Heroes:

This week I have been thinking a lot about who my heroes are, or people that I really admire, and there are many, but there are a couple of people who really stick out in my mind.

I don't even know her, but she is the most strong, humble, spiritual and faithful person I "know". Truly, a beautiful person inside and out. Her name is Jess and last February she had to do what all of us parent's fear the most and that was to put her trust in the Lord and watch her beautiful baby girl pass away. Little Cora had been diagnosed with cancer and passed away just a little over two weeks after that diagnosis. It was the most heart breaking post to read. Seriously. I cry every time I read her blog.

But what I really admire about Jess is her unwavering faith. While Cora was in the hospital she would post praises of what good had happened that day and then at the end she would post a Bible passage and it was always so fitting. Simply amazing. Yes, she had posts about hard days, but they always ended with how she trusted Him and loved Him. Inspiring? I say YES.

If you want to follow her blog go here: Cora

Another person who I consider one of the best people I have ever had the privilege of knowing is Kelly Stoker. He was my dad's best friend. Kelly passed away Christmas eve due to a tragic accident. I've known the Stoker's for a very long time and at one point they were like my second family. Kelly was a very well respected ENT and just an all around good guy. He and my dad caused a lot of mischief around the neighborhood. There were a lot of practical jokes played by both parties, whether it was spray-painting a big 'Y' on our lawn when BYU beat Utah in football, to switching out BYU and Utah fan license plates to even ramming one of those tail-pipe whistles using a GOLF CLUB...you always knew who it was. Kelly was also the most kind man you would ever meet. He was always willing to lend a hand.

Kelly's funeral was truly a celebration of his life. It was amazing. I never cried so hard, but it also sealed my resolve to be the best person that I could be. There were a couple of General Authorities there to speak about Kelly like: President Eyring, Elder Hales and Elder Bednar. There were also a couple people from the Quorum of the Seventy. It was simply amazing. All of the Stoker's are amazing people. Kim, Kelly's wife, posted this little saying on her FaceBook along with some pictures from Kelly's memorial. I love it.

To Answer Some Questions:

To answer some questions that I have been asked lately. The answer is

YES.

I did indeed have a tummy tuck and augmentation. Now, since having that done I've noticed that everyone has a different opinion on the whole "taboo" subject of plastic surgery. I've had some people express envy and I've actually had one person stop talking to me completely(someone who I thought was a pretty good friend too).

So in order to "clear the air" with people I've decided to blog about it.

Why did I get it?
Hmmm..I'm 5'0, had 4 kids, had no intentions of having more kids, and noticed that no matter how hard I worked out there was always going to be a tummy there. Also, I had a severely herniated belly-button so I figured while they are fixing that, why not fix what bothers me the most?

Did it hurt?
I can honestly say that it was NOT that bad. Sure, there were moments of discomfort, but compared to being pregnant..it was NOT that bad. I would say my only complaint is the fact that I had to walk bent over for 2 weeks before standing up straight. My back was killing me! Oh yeah..and getting your drains pulled out is not all that fun either but that is a short-lived inconvenience.

How much did it cost and where did you get the money for it?
None of your business.

How big is your scar?
It goes from hip to hip. You can't see it. The only people who have seen it are Mitch and people who I have shown it to.

Do you regret it?
Uhhh...NO! I thought long and hard about my decision to "go under the knife". I knew it was something that I always wanted to do once I was done having kids. I was not one of the "lucky" ones to have everything bounce back. Short people have it TOUGH when they are pregnant!! Only one place for the baby to go and that is straight out! Sure there were risks, but there are risks with everything you do. Luckily, I didn't have any issues and have healed up just fine.

Why couldn't you be happy with what the Lord gave you?
This is where the differences of opinion come in. I had one person straight up ask me this question. So here is my answer and sorry if it offends but this is how I feel. The Lord blessed me with four beautiful kids that I wouldn't trade for anything, but with those kids came a body that I was not happy with. I did not start out with a stretched out tummy. I started out with a flat tummy, no gastric reflux and no herniated belly-button. So I got it fixed. I have found NOTHING on the Internet, Bible, or Book of Mormon to suggest that plastic surgery is wrong.

So I say to you: If you don't agree with my decision then fine. We are different people and differences in people are what make the world an interesting place to be. I'm not going to think of you differently. In fact, I welcome people's opinions on it, but don't push your agenda on me because I'm probably going to see it a completely different way.

Buckle Fracture of the Distal Radius:

In English now: The radial bone (one of the bones in your forearm) crushed, or wrinkled if you will at the point furthest from your elbow. We had the extra "TREAT" of having her ulna be cracked as well. So here it is. The full-arm cast. Yes, full-arm. She was just supposed to get one that went to about the middle of her forearm, but it was broken enough that they needed to do a full-arm cast. GOOD TIMES! This next Friday we get to go in and get some more x-rays (because I have endless amounts of money) and see if it has shifted or not. If it has not shifted then we change for the forearm cast, if it has shifted then we get to go in for surgery and get it pinned! YAY! (I hope you can tell that I'm being sarcastic) So all of you PRAY that her little bone stays in place. We don't need/want surgery around here. Luckily it did not affect her growth plate so she will not have problems with this in the future.

Now, for your viewing pleasure:


And our little man Cohen. Sleeping. Apparently this was a really comfortable pose because he didn't move for about 3 hours.


Finally, my new little (okay they definitely are NOT little but still..) lovelies. Gotta love Black Friday KILLER deals! Can I just tell you how much I love them? They get things SO CLEAN and are super cheap to run. My washer costs us $10 a year to run! Can't argue with that.

A long time has passed:

So yeah..I know. I haven't blogged for a long time. I got threatened the other day that if I did not update my blog I was going to be in BIG trouble. Here you go Melanie..Just for your reading pleasure. :)

UPDATES (don't you just love them?)

Anessa turned 10 a couple months ago. Wow! I've been a mom for a decade. Can I just tell you it's been a ride? Ness has turned into such a great young lady. Her personality is changing (Heaven help us!)and her body is changing. Meaning..she's almost as tall as me. Not a great feat, I know, but still! She comes up to my eyes now. I can't even do her hair anymore unless she kneels on the ground. She's borrowing my clothes, she's wearing deodorant and she's getting into the "boys are kind of cute" phase. We're in trouble.

Recent developments are: Anessa broke her arm yesterday. WTF?? Shouldn't it have been Peyton, Mr. Let Me Run Across the Ground Like a Wild Animal or Cohen, Mr. Let Me Jump Off the Couch Yelling "TO INFINITY AND BEYOND!!" to break their arm first? Nope. It was my sweet daughter who worked so hard to get her reading counts points all so that she could go ice skating with her class. Someone has a sense of humor.

Here are some pics of Ness at her birthday party. Yes...I helped clean the girl who completely colored her face. At least they had a good time right? Right?



Peyton turned 7 in September! Those of you who haven't seen him for a long time would definitely see a difference. This boy has turned from a sword-wielding crazy man to Mr. Cool and Collected. Seriously. The difference from last year to this year has been weird/cool. Weird in that it happened just like that. Cool because he's one cool kid. He has such a big heart and ADORES his little sister. Adores doesn't even begin to describe it. He calls her "little sweetie" and he thinks playing with her is the best. He always tells me how good dinner is even if it isn't his most favorite meal, and he always has a hug and an I love you Mom ready for when he gets home from school. *insert melting heart here* He's doing awesome in school. He's reading at second grade level and by the end of the year should be at the third grade level. SWEET!

Here is Peyton eating a sour War Head (hehehe..I'm mean, but seriously..He wanted it!) and feeding the reindeer with Cohen.



Ah..Cohen. Where do I begin? The kid is SO FUNNY! Just an example. This is a typical shopping trip with Cohen. While sitting in the cart, Cohen says to some random lady, "I really LOVE meatballs". Lady looks a bit disturbed by the statement and says "that's great honey" then laughs and says "well at least he knows what he likes!" Fast forward about 10 minutes. A lady is standing in front of our cart trying to get to something and Cohen yells at her "GET OUT OF OUR WAY! YOU'RE STANDING IN FRONT OF OUR CART!!". She gives him a weird look and I apologize profusely for his behavior. I then turn to him and tell him that it isn't right and we don't treat people like that. His response?? "whatever, mom". Okay then. SAME shopping trip, we are standing in front of the ice cream waiting for Mitch (okay me) to decide what/if to get any ice cream. Cohen says to some nice ladies standing there. "My dad has a lot of money because he bought me Apple Jacks." She bursts out laughing and proceeds to tell me what he says. Yep. Needless to say, Cohen provides our family with a lot of laughs. I guess the one bad thing he does do is that he LISTENS to everything and stores that gem of either "good parenting" or something he heard off the t.v. for a public appearance. You can see us with our mouths hanging open often and saying "where the crapp did he pick that up?!?".

Cohen.



Aja is just the cutest little thing on two legs. She hasn't grown much. She's just a little squat, but she has the sweetest spirit of any kid I know. She wakes up every morning singing to herself. She's always quick to hug and give kisses. Seeing her run and walk is just about the cutest thing I have ever seen. Okay, it's second to her talking. She has the most darling little voice EVER. She seems to be doing really good. Her progress is slow, which is to be expected, but she has exceeded A LOT of expectations. We have been lucky enough to not have any shunt malfunctions yet, but we know it's only a matter of time before it happens, but we don't focus on that, we focus on our cute little girl who likes to play with her babies, sing, get her hair done, color, eat and eat, jabber, and look at us with her beautiful eyes that melt your heart.

Here are some cutie pics of Aja. She LOVES to find random winter hats and wear them around the house.



Mitch and I are great! He's busy with work and I'm busy with kids. I have a new found love as well. ZUMBA!!! Holy crapp! I'm addicted. I could do it every day. Hence why I'm getting certified. Those of you who haven't tried it SHOULD! Funnest workout EVER!


Hope all is well with you and yours!