I love my nephews!

Sam and Bradley

Happy Thanksgiving!!

I have so many things to be thankful for this year! I feel so blessed to live in a free country and for the freedoms we have. I'm thankful for the men and women who give their lives so that we can have the freedoms we do. I'm thankful for my awesome family! I'm truly blessed to have everyone so close by and so willing to help each other. I'm thankful for such a loving and supportive husband who loves me for being me. I'm thankful for great friends! I'm thankful for our health and well being. I'm thankful for our jobs and our home. I'm thankful for our church and for the strength and comfort it gives me. I'm truly grateful for knowing that God loves us, no matter what!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone and don't forget to voice what you're thankful for.

My doggies

I don't post very many pictures of my dogs, but I couldn't resist posting these. They're just too cute!!

Buddy sleeping on Chris' pillow


Coco using her sad face to try and guilt us into letting her on the couch

What have I been up to?

Cleaning, cleaning and more cleaning. (It sure feels good to just throw stuff away!) Finishing projects and the last few little things on the deck. Having barbecues with friends, roasting marshmallows in the fire pit and enjoying the cooler weather. Blowing, bagging and raking leafs...then never seem to stop falling! Spending time with the nephews and niece. Celebrating birthdays (Happy Birthday Mom and Bryleigh!!) Most of all, looking forward to Thanksgiving! I can't wait to spend time with family, decorate for Christmas and the Black Friday shopping!!

Race for the Cure

This year my work sponsored a team to do the Race for the Cure. There were over 25,000 people there so it was really crowded, but it was really neat to be able to participate in something like that. I did the race to support my Aunt who's a 2 time breast cancer survivor.

Wendy, Me and Jennifer (Happy b-day Jennifer!)

Happy Halloween!

Every Halloween we get together at my parents' house to pass out candy and take my niece and nephew's trick r treating. We also set up the movie projector and watch Halloween cartoons on their garage door and usual end up roasting marshmallows in the fire pit. This year Tom and Chris decided it would be fun to bob for apples in a cooler full of ice water. So Tom, Chris and my sister Katie all joined in the 'fun' and all suffered from severe head freezes. Good job Katie for betting the boys!
Our family also has a competitive side and every year we have a pumpkin carving contest. Which pumpkin do you like the best?



Someones had to much sugar!


My cutie nephews and niece


Tom and Chris

Happy Anniversary!!

Happy anniversary to us! I can't believe we've been married for 7 years already. Time sure have gone by fast. I feel so lucky to be married to such a great person. Someone I love more then anything and someone I consider to be one of greatest friends and supporters. He laughs at all my stupid jokes and makes me feel like the funniest person around. We love to hangout together at home and watch our nerdy Sci-Fi shows. I love that we have the most fun just hanging out and being silly. I'm so proud of him to taking on his new business venture and for working so hard to make it work. I'm so honored and lucky to be married to someone like Chris. Love ya babe!

Favorite time of the year

It finally feels like fall! We're entering my favorite time of the year and I love it. I LOVE the cool weather! I love wearing sweat shirts, layers, fleece, flannel pj bottoms, and slippers. I love sleeping with the windows open and letting the cold air in and then snuggling under the covers. I love that fall means the Holidays are just around the corner.

The Deck

The long awaited deck is finally almost done! This has been a long and back breaking process, but we're very proud of it. We have a few more things left to do, but for now we can still use it. We doubled the size of the old deck and it's now 20ft x 20ft. We can't wait to have people over for BBQs and roasting marshmallows in the fire pit. A special thanks to Dad for helping us design it, pour the concrete, run the new electrically outlets and most of all, helping us build it.

Old deck just before being demolished:


Framing for the new patio:


Pouring concrete can be dirty work:


I got to help screw in over half of the 2,000 screws used:



Dad, Jason and Chris working on the frame:


The framing:


The 'finished' product:

A long awaited answer

I didn't get to spend a lot of time watching General Conference this weekend but I was able to watch the Prophet speak at the end of the first session yesterday. He talked about having hope and living and enjoying each day you have. And the importance of not looking at what you don't have. What he said really meant a lot to me and I really feel like I finally have an answer to something that Chris and I have been praying about for a long time.

Over the last 6 years I have slowly turned into an anger bitter person. I've never understood why we can't have kids and why everyone else around has been. The more time that's past, the more angry and bitter I've become. We did everything we could think of spiritual and sought out the best fertility doctors in Austin and still nothing has worked. Over the last year we've debated about fertility treatments vs adoption and which one we should do. Each one with it's own expense and neither one would be easy. Countless amounts of prayers were said as we pleaded to find out which path we should take. I've never felt so alone in trying to make such a huge decision. Each time a prayer wasn't answered I felt more confusion and anger. I couldn't understand why God wasn't listening and why he'd left me walk alone for so long. I felt my spiritual candle slowly fading down to nothing. After yesterdays talk, I finally feel that peaceful feeling that I've been so longing to feel. I finally have an answer to a prayer that I've waited so long to get. I finally feel a weight lifted off my shoulders and my anger and bitterness fading. I finally feel like I can move on with my life and live each day as it comes. I can really enjoy the time that Chris and I have together as a family.

Words I need to ponder

"The Lord gives you experiences that stimulate growth, understanding, and compassion which polish you for your everlasting benefit. To get you from where you are to where He wants you to be requires a lot of stretching, and that generally entails discomfort and pain."
Elder Richard G. Scott

I had a really great conversation with a good friend of mine last week that really got me thinking about things. Then I found this quote on another blog and I thought it was to perfect to ignore. I guess sometimes I'm a little stubborn and don't always listen the first time.

Success!

Well the surgery was a success and the results are good; no need for further surgery. The pulmonary valve does have some blockage, but not enough to be to concerned about. We'll go back to doing a yearly follow up and hopefully nothing more. I've had enough pointing, prodding, electrodes and monitors to last a life time!

The heart cathaterization is another story. That is something I wouldn't wish upon anyone. It was a little weird being in the cath lab section of the hospital. I guess i always pictured that to be a place were old people go. I even had 2 nurses tell me that I was the youngest patient they'd ever had. I had great nurses, they just had a heck of a time getting my IV going. After several attempts of trying to get the IV into the vein (this included moving the needle in and out of the vein several times and moving it side to side to get the fluids going) I ended up turning white as a ghost and pucking all over. My hand is still sore from that! Being wheeled into the cath lab was very intimidating and a little overwhelming. Not to mention that fact that it was freezing cold!! They had already given me a Valium and benedryl right before they started to help me relax and they gave me something else through the IV that was supposed to be even stronger. Well let me just say it was to little to late because my worst fears came true. Not only did that numbing shot hurt more then anything, but the burning afterwards was horrible. They gave me another dose through the IV but not before they game me 2 more shots. That was just horrible!!! With that many meds in my system I really don't remember much after that. I'm just glad the whole thing is over and i don't have to do this again.

Fun Friday planned for tomorrow

Well, tomorrow's the big day and I have to say that I'm getting a little nervous. I'm not sure what I'm more nervous about; the fact that they'll be sending tubes through the artery in my groin or the fact that they keep you awake through the whole thing. Or the fact I HATE needles more then anything!!!!

This is an exert from the patient pamphlet they gave me:
"The normal points of entry are either the groin area or the forearm. The immediate skin area is numbed with a local anesthetic, administered through a needle. You will feel an initial pin prick as the needle is inserted, and then a burning sensation as the anesthetic is injected. You also may feel pressure when the catheter itself is inserted, and/or exchanged with other catheters during the procedure." I guess they don't like to give you any fluff. Doesn't this sound like fun?!!

Happy Birthday Bryce

Yesterday was my nephew Bryce's 4th birthday. We took Bradley over to see him and had cake and opened presents. I can't believe how big Bryce is getting and how much he's learning. He loves playing Wii and anything that has to do with trains and Transformers. We love having him so close by.

How lucky am I?!!

I came home on Friday from a very long day to something wonderful...


And that lead to this..


And then to this..


And more of this..


And then this..


And finally to this..



It was a wonderful surprise to come home to a clean house, several dozen roses and even good smelling candles. I'm very grateful to be married to someone like Chris. I also want to take a moment and brag about his flower arranging skills. Back when we were first dating, his mom and I taught him how to arrange flowers himself so he could save money. So know he buys the flowers, ferns and babies breathe and then arranges them in the vases. These flowers turned out beautiful!!

It's a BOY!!

Our newest member of the family arrived yesterday morning. Samuel Andrew Summers came 3 weeks early and weighing in at 4lbs 7oz. Maggie gave us a little scare with her preecclampcia but now both mom and baby are doing great. We're all very excited to welcome him into the family.

Maggie's baby shower

Last week we had a baby shower for Maggie. We had lots of fun and had a pretty good turn out. My sister in law Wendy made her first diaper cake and it turned out soooo cute. Maggie doesn't look like it, but she's due in 3 weeks and we're very excited to meet the newest member of the family.

Here's the ladies; Maggie, Me, Katie, Wendy and Mom


Wendy's diaper cake:

I'm a lemon

It's official, Chris married a lemon.
The doctor gave me the official diagnosis as pulmonary stenosis. Basically a congenital defect that causes a narrowing of the pulmonary value and restricts blood flow through the heart. This is surprisingly common in kids and most outgrow it by their teenage years. Well, this is where I (the lemon) come in. Mine hasn't gone away, in fact it's actually gotten worse. Now the doctor wants to do a heart catheterization to determine exactly how narrow the valve is. Let me just say that I'm less then thrilled about having another surgery. I guess it's good that we're doing it next week and not putting if off; otherwise I probably wouldn't do it. And now all that money we were saving by not doing fertility treatments these next few months just got reallocated to this.
Poor Chris! Not only am I practically infertile and unable to him kids but now I've also got a defective heart and will probably die at a young age of a heart attack. Like I said, I'm a lemon. I think I should let Chris off the hook and let him find someone that didn't fall from the lemon tree.

Jealous

I got a picture email from Chris the other day that totally made me jealous. It was titled "look who I'm playing with." What a cute kid!! I'm glad to see that Chris puts in a hard days work. =)



This is another cute picture. I can't believe that Bryce turns 4 on Saturday. I have such cute nephews and I can't wait to meet the newest one next month.

Quick update

I finally had my cardiac MRI today. I didn't realize how hard it can keep to hold perfectly still for 1.5 hours. Luckily the only uncomfortable part was laying there with my arms over my head and battling the tingling sensation when they fell asleep. I have my follow-up with the cardiologist in a few hours, so I'll know the results soon.

We finally started work on our new deck that we've been talking about for months. Last night Tom and Chris ripped up the old deck and I can't believe how many bugs, lizards and other disgusting things were living under there!! I'm hoping we can work on it every day this week and have it done by Saturday.

Yummm BBQ!!

The Salt Lick BBQ is hands down the best BBQ around!! The food is sooooo good and it just melts in your mouth. We decided to try out the new one in Round Rock this weekend and oh my goodness, was it delicious!! I was a little worried it wouldn't have the same feel or taste as the original, but it was just as good. Lucky for us we don't have to drive all the way out to Driftwood and now we can have BBQ every weekend.

A little more discretion please....

Sometimes I think doctors should use a little more discretion when talking about patients while they're sitting in the patient rooms. I heard all my results and next steps before the Dr. even entered the room to tell me. It probably didn't help that I'm incredibly nosey by nature and when I heard the Dr. on the phone I immediately tuned my ears into what he was saying and quickly picked up on the fact that he was talking about me. Regardless, drs. should be a little more careful about what they say and who they say it to when patients are around.

For those that are left wanting more information; here's a little back ground on what I'm talking about. I found out I had a heart murmur when I was in middle school and saw a cardiologist every year until I was 18. At 18 I moved onto an adult cardiologist and I was cleared to go every 2 years. (The Dr. wasn't to concerned because most kids out grow their murmurs as they get older.) Well life got in the way and it's been about 8 years since I've gone. My fertility Dr gave me a little nudge to go back again and I agreed, but mostly because I've noticed over the last few years I get short of breathe over simple things that an active 28 yr old shouldn't get short of breathe for. So I went 2 weeks ago and the Dr. was surprised at how loud and how noticeable the murmur had gotten. He schedule me for an echo cardiogram and I had that done last week. I won't go into detail, but man are those fun!! (Just picture an ultrasound probe being mashed into your ribs and chest for 45 mins) Today I had the follow-up and this is why I posted the above comment. The Dr wasn't to thrilled about the results from the echo. He said they were inconclusive and it didn't really give him the insight he wanted on what was really causing the murmur to have gotten stronger over the last several years. So now it's onto a Cardiac MRI. I should be getting a call from the hospital to schedule that tomorrow. For now, we do the usual waiting game.

Birthday Pictures

I know these are a little late, but I just the pictures from my sister in law. Chris was gone for my bday, so my mom took me out to lunch and we did some shopping together. We had a great time spending the afternoon and evening together. On Sunday the rest of the family had an excellent dinner with home made Mexican food. Everyone did a really great job making me feel special for my bday and I enjoyed all the food and gifts.

Bryce and Chancho flipping over the couch:

Sea World

This is a little late, but when Lizzy was here my parents, Lizzy, Chris and I went to Sea World for the day. It was really hot, but a lot of fun! I wanted to post pictures of us on one of the rides. Notice the total fear in my mom's face, it's priceless!!

First 5K of the season

As my last day being 27, I decided it would be a good time to run a 5K. It's been several months since I've run a 5K and I've done no running training; so you can imagine how slow I was. I also just started doing my workout program again and I'm very curious to find out how much of a difference it makes when I run my next one in Sept.

I am very excited about the results I've seen in first week of the P90X program. Once I get another week or so under my belt, I'll start posting my results. I don't want my competition knowing how bad they're getting beat just yet. (You're going down Pocahontas!)

Thank you

I just wanted to take a moment and say thank you for the kind words and listening ears of those around me. I'm very grateful for good friends and family to make me laugh when I don't feel like laughing and to smile when I don't feel like smiling. It's always wonderful to feel like your loved. Never underestimate the power of friends and family! So, a special thank you to those that have gone out of there way to cheer me up. (You know who you are) Thank you!!

Ever feel like giving up?

Have you ever had one of those days when you feel like no matter what you do or how hard you try you'll never get what you want? Have you ever felt like you wanted something so bad that you put your whole heart and sole into it, but you still can't have it? Have you ever just sat and cried because you're so frustrated with how your life is playing out? Have you ever wondered if God is just testing you but you feel like you're failing miserably? Have you ever just felt like giving up?

Lizzy's Here!!!

My baby sister is here visiting from Utah and we've been having lots of fun together. It's been like old times and I'm so glad she's here. She's only here for a week, but I was able to take some time off work to hang out with her. Here are some pictures from our family time on Sunday.

Lizzy and Bryleigh: