~CAMBRIA AND CHRISTINA~

Cambria and Christina are both anticipating the arrival of their baby girls. We had a baby shower for both of them yesterday to help them get started on some of the stuff that they are going to need. I loved some of their comments..."So, how many diapers does a baby go through in a day"? "WOW, that's a lot of wipes". Oh, it is going to be fun watching these two little girls raise their two little girls! I hope that their little girls are as close to each other as my cousins are to me. What great friends they will be if they are!

We had a few "little" people at the party yesterday also. Abbie was there and Meg brought Sienna. We think that Sienna looks a lot like Lore and John's little Maddie so she fits right in. Can we have her Meg? Jamey brought her little boys and Ashley brought her little boy and "big" girls. I can't believe how grown up Page and Jada have gotten.

It was so good to see everyone. Katie made it down to give her support (or maybe condolences) to Cambria and Christina. She is such a busy girl right now in the middle of nursing school at the "U". Thanks for coming Kate!

Shauna, Cambria's mom-in-law and photographer extraordinaire gave the girls the most adorable little white outfits (see 1st picture) I hope that we get a very cute picture of the two little ones dressed in them when they get here :)


It was defiantly a "PINK" afternoon. We are so looking forward to these two little girls! Stephanie went a bit overboard but, I'm thinking that I would love to have her dress my little girls. She has the cutest taste. But, she couldn't stop with just one pair of shoes...And she claims she's not a "girly girl" . Right.

Thank you to everyone who came and to all of you who helped me. I don't do "parties" well and your assistance was very much appreciated... I just may have survived it all mentally in tact!

~LAST HOORAH~

I can't even begin to tell you how much I LOVE Deer Valley! It truly is a skier PARADISE! Blue sky, deep snow and LONG runs! I have to say that the salmon salad is a far cry from the nachos we get at the top of Bishop's Bowl at my other favorite ski resort...It sort of pains me to say that but, wow, what great FOOD! (See Debbie licking her plate...It was carrot cake!).

I am pretty sure by now that I have convinced everyone who reads my blog that they should become (if they are not already) SKIERS! The winter just flies by and talk about some fun times...Well, maybe minus the concussion :) I look so forward to Thursday when I know that I don't have to be in the O.R. I can spend my day on top of a mountain stress free, with no real worries...Acuna matata, a wemaway-a-wemaway, a wemaway-a-wemaway...One day maybe I will be able to spend more than one day up there. Oh, that would be incredible. I can't hardly even allow myself to consider that there may come a time when that will indeed be possible. For me, I think that it will be called "Geriatric skiing" I can see it clearly in my mind and, it's not what I had really hoped for. I am already starting to slowdown and I keep telling myself that I am NOT THAT OLD! In my younger days I thought that there just might be a place for me on some Olympic venue. Surely I would be good enough someday if I skied EVERY Thursday to make my way to stardom as a great downhiller or mogul extraordinaire! Alas, as with everything else I have tried and fallen short at, skiing will just have to remain a lovely little mid-week get away. One spent with dear friends always in search for that elusive run. The one with deep yet light, fluffy powder that no one has made tracks through. How great it is to have so many girlfriends that love to do what I love to do and who take care of their "older and not so wiser" friend. They are always there to pick me up when I decide to have a "garage sale" *. I will miss my skis now that the season is over but, the really wonderful thing is that spring brings with it GREAT biking weather! South Fork, here we come!

*Garage Sale:
Bad fall while skiing. Usually happens when skier attempts something far above skill level. Skis are popped out of bindings and scattered helter-skelter . Poles usually at place of impact or where ever they come loose as skier continues down the mountain in uncontrolled head first position. Goggles are usually lost during slide as they are unceremoniously scraped from skiers face. i.e. STUFF EVERYWHERE! Usually after one of these falls a skier is ready to sale each piece of equipment exactly where it lays... For that day.

~EASTER ON THE INSIDE~

What do you get when you mix Easter with Conference weekend? Cold, wet weather...Easter egg hunts in the house and grandchildren with bubbles and kites that desperately want to be outside. One day very soon the sun will shine and the gentle spring breeze is going to send those colorful kites skyward I promise! In the meantime, the Easter egg hunt had to be held in grandma and grandpa's basement. I really don't think that the kids minded all that much. Candy found in colorful eggs hidden all over the house after all is much more fun than being outside in the cold snow, and toys buried in baskets of green grass can be a great distraction for the absent sun!

Hooray for the Easter Bunny who can find children even when they are at their grandparents house!

All in all, it was a great weekend filled with wonderful words of wisdom and counsel from our Prophet and leaders and giggles and hugs from the little ones. It just doesn't get any better than that...Well, maybe one more ski day at SUNDANCE or DEER VALLEY, ALTA, BRIGHTON, SOLITUDE, SNOW BASIN, SUN VALLEY, GRAND TARGHEE, WHISTLER or the ALPS! ; )

~A WORK IN PROGRESS...POSSIBLY FOREVER!~

Hey Stephanie! I got the pictures to work...Well, some of them.
As most of you know I am trying to learn how to use my camera. I took a bunch of pictures of Gage and Ali the last time they were here. When I put them on my computer they were all in pixels! Not one of them was focused! I could NOT figure out what I had done wrong. Well, with a lot of just plain messing around with buttons...(I am SO not a reader of instructions...) I realized that I was in the wrong setting! DUH! I'm learning. SLOWLY, ever so slowly...

~Surfs up...April Fools!!!~

~THEY SWIM~

I had so much fun this morning! I watched Cole and Maddie at their last swim lesson. They have really done an amazing job of learning how to become "little swimmers". It is more of a "survival" swimming lesson. The instructor teaches them to first of all not be afraid of the water. They learn to flip over onto their backs and "FLOAT". It is really incredible. They just float and float. Cole is a little older and he can flip over and actually swim to the side. Both of them are so comfortable in the water. They are like little fish. I LOVED watching them and taking pictures and they loved showing me everything that they had learned. It makes you feel a lot safer at the pool knowing that they are capable of staying ON TOP of the water until you can get to them and help them if they need it. WAY TO GO Cole and Maddie!

P.S.
Cambria said that I needed to add more pictures so, when I do that I get a BIG gap between my words...SORRY! I think the pictures are worth it :)

~APRIL FOOLS, I MEAN HAPPY BIRTHDAY GARETT~

Happy Birthday Garett! Wow, I can't believe that 24 years ago I was trying to hail a policeman down driving 70 miles an hour down main street in Springville desperately yet unsuccessfully attempting to get their attention. (this was before cell phones). Not that they could have done much except maybe notify the hospital that yes, we were coming in with a baby that had been delivered in the car and no, it was NOT an April fools joke! That would have been helpful...All's well that ends well they say and this was one experience that ended VERY well. There is nothing you can't do. Sometimes I wish you would SLOW DOWN just a little but, I don't think that is in your DNA anywhere...Thanks for all you do and all you are. WE LOVE YOU!