All I want for Christmas is an...appendectomy??

Tis the season for surprises!! I spent Monday thru Wednesday at the new and luxurious Sacred Heart Medical Center. Tuesday morning I bid adieu to my appendix and I thanked it for a most memorable holiday season!!! When the Dr. came in to discharge me Christmas Eve day he said "are you the lady who is in such a hurry she took out her own IV?" Hey, you gotta do what you gotta do! The same with stitches, all you need are basic sewing skills to removed them. Am I right??
As per usually, Jason and the boys have stepped up and showed unusual valor in caring for me, baby and the house. Thank you so much for those who helped out the family and prayed for us.

Merry Christmas everyone!

Tamie Prociw at 11:34pm December 24

"For those of us that know you we aren't the least bit surprised that you took out your own IV. Afterall, didn't you used to throw darts with your old insulin needles? And didn't you get one stuck in the bottom of your foot causing your foot to cramp? Then there is your fascination with other people's injuries. :)
Hope you are feeling better now that you are home!"

Small Bits of Happy

Thanks Darilyn for the idea. Please do this yourself and pass it on.

• steaming hot bath
• hearing a cello play
• standing at the top of a mountain ready to ski down
• corn on the cob from the garden for breakfast
• cotton candy
• water skiing at dusk, trailing my hand across the moon's reflection
  
• the feel of tanned skin after a day in the sun
• my mother singing
• adeptly using a bike or roller blades to get around
  
• the smell of a roast cooking
  
• playing guitar and singing with children
• an enormous sun dipping into the ocean
• old family photo albums
• driving a ski boat in the lake
• the smell of apple pie baking
  
• a fountain diet Pepsi, crunching the ice at the end
  
• my husband's giggle when he is truly humored
  
• my boys adoring their baby sister
• daddy's and their baby girls (even when they are grown)
  
• Red Rocks Amphitheater at sunrise
• Triangle Lake, nearly all my childhood memories
  
• giggling with friends in the sun
  
• anything my children do
• equal competition
• listening to a good book
• my husband wearing cologne
• my father's blue eyed smile
• gliding through the water with flippers on
• watching my brother's softball games in the summer

Snow Charmer

As many of you know, we had a great snow fall earlier in the week and our boys got to stay home from school Monday and Tuesday. Since then they have been wishing and praying non-stop for more snow/less school. Well, it rained all night Wednesday and we woke up to,.. wet. The snow had vanished and my childrens' hopes,- dashed!

On Thursday, Joshua's 3rd grade music teacher told the kids what to do to make it snow. Last night, Joshua followed each and every instruction. He had to wear his pajamas inside out, flush an ice cube down the toilet, get to his bed without touching the floor, and sleep with a spoon under his pillow.

And look at what we woke up to...

Tortoise ahead.

The race is close: Tortoise 23 -- Hare 20.

Kristen's Korner

Latest on our little cutie:


Her vocabulary has really been growing lately: daddee, momee, no nu(Nathanael), boe(ball), moom(moon), bobble(bottle), eyes, bo bo bo bo(belly button), pe-po("Little People" video), boo(book), gog(dog), kiyee(kitty), uh-oh. She loves dogs and cats. She has some animal sounds down for the monkey, donkey, cow, and sometimes the dog and cat. When she is mad, her curse word is "BA!"

She loves to read books. Her favorite is "go,go,go" (Go, Dog, Go!) which she says with a relieved giggle as you pull her and the book on your lap. Pointing at things so we will tell her what they're called is her favorite way to learn. She also loves to be taken on art tours. Wherever we are she wants to be shown the paintings/pictures on the wall. Interestingly she likes the pictures of the Prophet/1st presidency and the 12 apostles. I have to name whichever one she points at. (It's harder than it looks on demand.) When we see the picture of Jesus she caresses his hair/face a few times.

We go to the indoor playground a few times a week with Teresa-in-law and Henry. Her favorite thing is the horse (the old fashioned kind on a frame with springs.) First she'll gently stroke it's mane (even though it's plastic), then bounce a few times and repeat. Any time she sees it from around the gym, she will wave at it. It is SOO incredibly sweet!

She also loves to dance, especially with her dad or Nathanael holding her and gliding around the room. Her brothers and dad are sooo totally wrapped around her little finger. They adore her so much! It is beautiful and magical to have her here with us. And yes, she's got me wrapped too...

Girls Twilight out

Me, my nieces and Teresa-in-law went to see "THE" movie for Aubrey's birthday (2nd from left). Even though I'm not a fan of the Twilight series, I- yes, I -saw it on opening day with the girls. We had a great time together and I enjoyed the movie. It made it fun to be with some Twilight nuts cause they would squeal with delight when some hot vampire/werewolf would come on the screen, etc.

Family Christmas Gift

"And the King shall answer and say unto them, Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me" Matt 25:40

Every Christmas we place a poster under our picture of Christ and decorate it like a gift. Any acts of service we do during December gets written on the poster. We try to do as many things as we can so we will have it filled up by Christmas Day. Then Christmas morning we offer it up as our gift to the Savior at the celebration of His birth.

Look who's walking

Princess gone grunge

Nathanael likes to see how Kristen looks in his clothes... Apparently, still adorable!

Nov. 19, Nathanael turns 15

My Big Race!

Basically I'm a happy, enthusiastic person. I do things with a passion. In order to get something done I have to have some kind of adrenaline kicker. I function best working with others, doing a large project or dealing with big trauma. Trying to do something mundane or unending is like torture for me and I can hardly get anything done.

After MUCH thought, prayer, and sound boarding (with my sister-in-law) I finally came up with a competition with myself: The "IN-ME 500"

It is a Tortoise and Hare sort of concept. the track is placed on my wall and will travel all around the family room and hallway. I move forward a space and write what I did on it every time I do some specified things. Like scripture study, drinking 6 glasses of water, 15 min of exercise, 45 minutes of housecleaning, staying within my eating plan, etc. If I earn 500 spaces (adding the Tortoise and Hare's together) by my birthday in March, my husband will buy me a sewing machine. The Hare moves forward if I did something because I wanted to and/or got to do it with someone else. The Tortoise moves a space when I did something I didn't want to or because I "had to". So far the Tortoise is in the lead 8-4. This is totally fun!

Open for business

I prefer to do many BIG things on an impulse! I never had a desire to do a blog before but I woke up this morning and decided I wanted to!