Stinkin Church Basketball

The day is soon approaching. Next Tuesday I will have surgery to repair my knee. Stinkin church basketball. :) I tore my meniscus. For you to have a better idea of where that is, I've included a picture. It's basically the cartilage plate between the bones. My doctor said the surgery only takes about 30 - 45 minutes and I should be home a few hours after that. Unfortunately they do have to put my under to perform the surgery, which I am a little nervous about. I was hoping that they could just give me a shot in my knee and go to town on fixing things. I'm sure everything will go well though and I will be back to chasing kids around the house in no time.

Jason will also have to refrain from calling me "Gimpie".

Last week the 3rd graders put on a program about Native Americans. Jason and I were able to go watch Ashlyn perform with her class. They did such a great job. I was extremely proud of her and amazed at all the songs and actions that they all learned. She nailed her speaking part and impressed me with her dancing. It was one of those moments where I had to use all my strength to hold back tears. Yes....go ahead, make fun of me.....but I can't help it.....I love my kids and I am so proud of them!

Ammon took us to his first Blue and Gold Banquet. He has really loved being part of the Cub Scouts and it's been good for him to get out and make some more friends. He's starting to pass off things in his scouting book and I'm sure Jason will have him earning every badge and belt loop possible. He also lost a tooth last week. Unfortunately it took the Tooth Fairy 3 days to show up. I may have to call her customer service line to complain. ;)

Alyssa is starting to read and is now learning simple addition. Every day I am still amazed at how much happiness and energy can fit into such a small little person. She is such a great little helper and is always asking me if she can help me do things.

McKenna has taken some lessons from Alyssa and has started helping more. The other day she asked me if I would like a drink. I told her "Sure. Thanks." She came back a couple of minutes later and set a glass of water next to me on the desk. She then said, (in an English accent) "Here you go maddam." It was hilarious!

Jason is still my favorite thing ever! I'm sure by now everyone is just about gagging on how I can go on and on and on about him and about how mushy we are, but dang.....I just can't help it. He really is sooooo great! I've come to the conclusion that I had to go through so much crappy stuff before he came along so that I wouldn't ever take him for granted and I would always realize how wonderful he is. Well it worked. I think he is completely and totally amazing and I will love him forever and ever. He's stuck with me. :)

We will have all the kids here this weekend so we're going to try to do somthing fun together.

Ammon and Alyssa are gone most Saturday's, so it will be nice to have everyone home at the same time.

Tonight I'm learning how to make hair bows at our RS activity. I'm up for learning something new. I went and bought a whole bunch of pretty ribbon then realized that I probably wasn't saving all that much by making them myself. Oh well. It should be fun anyway.

Better bring your A-game.......

Ok, so I thought I would be really good at this whole blogging thing. I thought I could find the time I needed to do it and be able to keep all of you lovely folks up to date on what is going on in our lives. Well.......to say it plainly....."I stink at it." I have only posted 2 entries before this one and I've had this site up for a while! I am amazed by how quickly the days go by. I guess that is what happens when you're having fun.......or maybe when you're an out of your mind crazy like me and don't realize it. Either way, I need to really step it up on this whole blog thing. Here goes entry #3.

To catch you up on the kids: Ashlyn is still practicing for Suessical the Musical which she will be performing in mid-March. She is so excited to strut her stuff across the stage and show us all just how talented she really is. Her Suessical music continues to drive me out of my mind, but it's all for a good cause. :) She is hard at work studying up on chinchillas for an animal report. She saw them on tv the other day and fell in love with their cute little beady eyes and bushy tails. I agree....they are stinking cute. But as I tell the kids...."If they poop and can't do it in the toilet, I don't want them." Ammon is now old enough to join the Boy Scouts. He has enjoyed meeting new friends and doing "big kid" things. Last week we attended my first pack meeting. It was actually a lot of fun....though I have to admit.....I think I would rather pull out all my teeth using no anesthesia than be a den mother. Watch, now lighting will strike me dead for saying that.....or maybe someone will be "inspired" to call me to be in the scouts. Ammon is helping me learn more about boys every day though and maybe eventually I will understand them. :) Alyssa continues to be our "little diva". She tries out different hair styles and clothes 24/7. She dances around the house constantly and we all get tired just watching how much energy that little stinker has! She NEVER stops! Sometimes we check on the kids at night and Alyssa will be sleeping in some really strange contorted position. She is the most flexible "gumby girl" ever. Hmmmm, maybe we can sell her to the circus if she turns into a bad teenager someday. I'm sure she could do all kinds of tricks for them. McKenna still runs the house. She sings constantly and when she's not singing she's yelling. It's funny how people think she is soooo good natured because of her "little voice", but they haven't seen her hold her own against her older siblings. She really can be sweet though and tries really hard to be a good girl. Out of all of the kids, I see myself the most in her. I understand her, so she probably gets away with more than she should......Jason thinks I'm just a sucker.

Now, on to Jason and I. We are still pathetically mushy and manage to gross our kids out about every day.

Thursday after my 1st pack meeting, I played a little basketball with some of the other sisters in the ward. Now if any of you have ever seen me play anything sports-like, you will know that sometimes I get a little competitive. As we played I realized that I would probably fit in better playing with the brothers in the ward. It cracked me up to hear how many times the girls said "sorry"...."sorry"....."sorry". Believe me, there is a HUGE difference between men and womens church ball. The men don't say "sorry", they say things more like, "what the ____? You freakin _____! Quit playing like a ______!" Not to say that I was talking or even thinking things like that but I was out for the kill. I was there to play a serious game. It was a lot of fun until I came down bad on my knee and injured it. But did I quit playing? Nope. Stupid me kept going. It may have been the adrenaline...or just my natural competitive nature, but I just couldn't stop! So, with nostrils snorting steam and a will to play till the death, I continued. Then, when it was all over, I wanted to die....or at least gnaw off my own leg. It hurrrrrtttttt! I was finally able to get in to the doctor today and from what he can see at this point he thinks I have torn my meniscus. (The cartilage between the bones in the knee.) So, now I will probably be having surgery. Lucky me. :(

I managed to get up (limp up) to bear my testimony on Sunday. Whenever I tried to say anything about Jason or the kids I got really emotional and got that froggy thing in my throat that makes it so I can't talk. I sounded like a mix between a croaky frog and squeeky mouse. It was embarrasing. It was good for me though. I hadn't been up in a while and needed to do it. It had been an emotional week for me with the passing of President Hinkley. While Jason and I were watching his funeral I had a thought come to me...."Why are we so lucky? Why have we been given so much? Out of all of the billions of people who have lived, why were we born here....and now..... and into the church?" In thinking about this, I also felt that we must have all been amazing spirits before coming to earth. We were given these blessings because we promised to help others and bring them back to our Heavenly Father. We aren't supposed to just sit back and enjoy what we have been given....we are supposed to step it up and actively work to spread the gospel and bless lives. I think President Gordon B. Hinkley demonstrated this his entire life. I once heard that his wife Marjorie, said she had never seen him do anything unbecoming a prophet of God. What a compliment! Though we all make mistakes, we can always resolve to start today......to be better....work harder and to do our best.

Jason is doing great. He's still HOT as EVER and makes my heart beat double time. He's been busy with work as usual and still manages to give us his all when he's home. He keeps the kids in line and has babied me during the time that I've been limping around the house...though he usually babies me anyway. I am sooooo lucky to have such a wonderful husband! He's the love of my eternity.

The countdown is on. We should be getting sealed in just under 4 months! The clearance paperwork is still in process but it should be done by the time we have our anniversary. (June 1st) I can't think of anything better than knowing that we will have the opportunity to be together forever.