First Day of School 2009

Well, as most of you probably feel that live around here - I can't believe school is starting so incredibly early! It seems like I am just getting to have summer and whoosh! there it goes! The kids were excited, but they were going to miss summer. I was excited to be back in a routine, but not looking forward to all the chaos that comes along with school and the activities that follow. Tuesday was Back to school night for Tris and Wednesday was back to school night for the rest of them. School started Thursday and they all had a great first day. I really like all of their teachers and I couldn't ask for more! Rhett was beside himself to start school with his brothers and sisters and he was so cute wandering around his new class and talking with his friends that had been with him in preschool. It was so strange to see my little guy all grown up on me. I keep asking him to slow down...he's just not listening!

More pictures of Fort Cove...

Fort Cove Days August 2009

The week before school started it was Fort Cove Days. If you haven't been up to visit Fort Cove or don't know what that is, it is a cool place just past the
I-70/I-15 interchange It's a church history site and it is worth going to visit with your family, especially during their weekend celebration in August.

Kristine and I took all of our kids up there and we had a great time. We arrived just before lunch and started off with a horse and buggy ride. The kids loved this. Next, we ate some FREE lunch and enjoyed the entertainment they had there. After that, they had little stations where you could take the kids and they demonstrated toy making, different foods that were cooked, animals, old medical stuff, wood carving, etc. Some of our kids were able to use a double-ended saw on some wood and Kristine's girls pulled a handcart with the rest of our kids in it.

Next, we toured the fort itself and got to see all the different rooms. It was a really beautiful place and well restored. By the time we got to the barn where there were other demonstrations, Rhett was having a full-on meltdown so I had to take him back to the car and wait until the rest were done. All-in-all it was a really fun day and we were so glad we took the kids!

Catching Up...Summer Pics...

Here are a few summer pics I have meant to post. The two weeks before school were really the only two weeks I had to get ready for school, for myself and my kids, so I was very very busy. I had my 6 week checkup at the DR on the 6th and he said everything was looking really great and he was really happy with how I was doing so yay! I don't think I will have to go up for a very long time as long as everything stays well - so a big thanks to all of you for your prayers, love, and concern. You are wonderful and I couldn't have gone through this without you!

Some Swimming Fun...


Rich's favorite thing to do at the pool...


Kayle takes a dive...

Brothers who have beds two feet apart, but still miss each other!

Elders Quorum FHE at Sand Hollow

Last night we had an Elders Quorum dinner at Sand Hollow Lake. When we first got there, we were a little worried because it was so windy, but right after the blessing was given on the food, the wind calmed down and it turned into a beautiful night. We ate some great food and the kids swam and had fun making this horrible pile of stinky dead fish. The moms weren't too thrilled with it, but they thought it was great!
Amanda & Laura keeping an eye on the little guys...

Lots of kids having lots of fun!

Aspen & Rhett with their 1 little fish (by the end of the night, there were about 10 in this same hole)

24th of July at Kolob Reservoir

Since I have been down most of the summer, I was feeling well enough to attempt a camping trip with the kids. Richard had Thursday and Friday off the weekend of the 24th, so I thought it would be a great weekend to go camping. We left Thursday afternoon and came back Saturday. We rode four wheelers and motorcycles, swam in the lake, ate yummy dutch oven and camp chef-cooked meals and enjoyed good company. A few cousins came up along with Richards Dad & Kitty. Jennifer and Tiara came up with us as well and had a lot of fun. Friday, we went for a drive around the mountain and enjoyed some deer and the beautiful flowers and scenery. We also had some fun swimming in the lake (well, I watched the swimming). Friday night, a few more came up to join us and we had a great dutch oven dinner, ate smores, and lit sparklers for the kids. Saturday, we went on a few 4-wheeler rides, the men and boys shot their bows at targets, and we went swimming some more (I watched again, but it was really fun). There was a group of students down from BYU for the weekend and they had turned a canoe over on the dock and made it into a slide. It was quite entertaining watching them ski and flip and slide on the canoe. The kids sure enjoyed it. Saturday evening we headed home completely exhausted and I spent the next full day in bed, but it was well worth it. The weather was beautiful and we had so much fun!

This is a beautiful 3 x 3 we saw on our way up to the lake...

This is Rich & Mike rowing in the canoe...(with their arms)

On our scenic ride with the kids...

The BYU students on their self-made slide...

The kids having a blast at the lake...

FHE at the River...

For Family Home Evening a couple of weeks ago, we took the kids down to the Virgin River in Hurricane and the kids and Richard went swimming. I sat nicely on the beach and took pictures of them. It looked like a lot of fun from where I sat! We took our dog, Ellie, along and she didn't enjoy swimming as much as the kids did, but it was sure fun watching her paddle around!

Summer Fun...Finally!

So Trissy's friend, Jennifer, has been staying with us this weekend and it has been a lot of fun. Today, Richard moved the tramp onto the grass and put the sprinkler under it and gave them a hose to play with. These were the fun pictures I took when I saw all the fun they were having. Awww to be a child again...Who wouldn't love to join them? It is hot!!!!

Horses Horses Everywhere!

Here are some pictures of our new family members. Richard got a new Palomino a few months ago and we finally settled on calling her "Bree." She is a beautiful horse and Richard is excited to get her broke and have her a long time. He says she is very mellow and I will probably enjoy her (let's not push it). May 9th, Lady (who is not our horse) gave birth to Trigger (who is our horse). He is a beautiful Saro who is already built very well. Here are some pics of him the day he was born and at 2 months old. July 7th Kate (our beautiful black pony) gave birth to a cute little maybe Bay maybe Buckskin little man. His name is Banner. He is only 11 days old now and he has been struggling with an infection, but he is doing so much better and we are so happy. He was really sick there for awhile. Let's see if you can match the horse with the picture (ha ha just teasing). It's hard enough for me to keep all the new names straight!
This is Bree...

This is Trigger just born with mom, Lady...

This is Trigger today at 2 months with his mom...

This is Banner just born with mama Kate...

This is Banner yesterday at 10 days old just getting over his sickness...

Stitches Out, PICC line out, and Happy 4th!

Well, Independence Day sure brought a new sense of independence to me - no more wires attached to me! Yay! Thursday, Richard and I drove up to Murray and took Rhett with us (since it was just his birthday and we thought it would be fun to spend the day with him). We went to my Drs appointment and everything was looking good. He took the stitches and staples out of my head and removed the PICC line. I was thrilled. I was a little tired and sore from driving all that way, but so happy to be detached from stuff. Afterward, we went and visited my sister and her family and then headed home. This is a picture of my new haircut that my cute niece Chelsey gave me to help out the growing pains of my shaved rear head. It's a little grown out and messy in the picture, but you get the idea and look how well my wound is healing!


4th of July is always fun for our family. We love the small town stuff and we love the atmosphere of the day. Since we got home so late and I wasn't feeling well, Tris is the only one who got up in the morning. She rode in the parade with Grandpa Hirschi and went to the park with him and then came home. We actually didn't even go to the parade or the park this year, which was weird for us, but all the kids were sleeping and I really wasn't up for it. In the evening, Stan and Shani were over for an impromptu BBQ and then we headed up to the ball fields for the home run derby and the Hurricane vs. LaVerkin softball game. Richard has been in charge of this for the past few years and it has been a fun thing for our family to do. I was a little worried if I'd make it through the evening, but I took a couple pain pills and I did okay. I had a lot of help and the kids were pretty good. Hurricane won the softball game and the fireworks were wonderful! 4th of July was a wonderful day!

An Unexpected Birthday...

Because of the given circumstance, I wasn't expecting to have such a great birthday this year, but it turned out to be quite nice. I guess maybe because I dropped my expectations or because I didn't expect too much from anyone because they've already done so much for me for the past month. Who knows, but it turned out really pleasant. I really spent most of the day as I have been lately - lying down, sitting down, taking a small stroll around the house, and changing out my IV bag.

On a different note, I received so many phone calls, texts, and facebook posts wishing me a happy birthday and a quick recovery, along with a wonderful visit from 3very great friends of mine who brought me a heavily frosted (and I'm sure fat free) beautiful cake along with lots of laughter and good company. I received 3 wonderful phone calls of great family singing to me and cheering me up. My cute daughters colored a big banner with their cousins and hung it up in my living room and my husband surprised me by sneaking me out of the house for a bit and taking me to do one of my favorite things - get a pedicure!

I was a little nervous about going out in public a) for fear I would frighten people to death with my awesome haircut and fanny-pack IV and b) I wasn't suppose to be out and about for fear of infection and sickness and germs, etc., but it felt so good to be out and while I was there, I met this really wonderful lady. She sat down beside me and we got to talking. She was asking me about my surgeries and I was talking to her and found out her Dad had just passed away the day before and she was getting his funeral arrangements put together in Las Vegas. She was so nice and pleasant and didn't make me feel weird or out of place. It was really nice. When we were both finishing up, she leaned over to me and said, "I'd like to pay for your pedicure." I told her that was really nice, but not necessary and she insisted, telling me that she really felt like doing something nice for someone today. It nearly brought me to tears and it was just one of those shockingly really kind and random things that never happens. My husband didn't find out about it until he went to pay and she really didn't want me to tell anyone, but I just wanted to share this awesome story because it made my day. For someone random to do that for me and all these kind things people having been doing for me this entire month, I just feel overwhelmingly blessed and I hope deep down inside, people know how much everything means to me. It has made this trying time just a little brighter and a little easier to deal with even though it has been so hard.

So Richard is gone now to a ball tournament and I am basically alone with my girls for the rest of my birthday night, but I don't mind, because I have had a fantastic day and I think, in a weird way, this may be one of the best birthdays I've ever had because I've realized just how many wonderful people I am blessed to know and call friends in my life. Thanks to all of you I know and to that one kind stranger who really brightened up my day.

Happy Birthday my Baby Rhett!

Well, it has happened, my little man has turned 5. I can hardly believe it. It makes me so sad that he is growing up so fast, but he is such a sweetheart and so darn cute (I think he is blissfully aware of this and takes full advantage). Since I am down and out, we got some takeout for our little guy, ate some icecream, and Rhett got to spend some quality time with Dad. Here are some pics of the little guy getting his awesome new "racing rocket" bike (that is what he calls it) and the cutie with some cards. He is telling everybody that we will celebrate his real birthday when mom is better. It is pretty cute. Here are a few things I love about my little guy.

1. He is my baby.
2. He is so darn cute.
3. He loves to kiss and hug me at any given moment (which I love).
4. Even when he cries, he is so darn cute.
5. He is a smart little guy and he loves to read.
6. He is a fun, sweet little brother who loves his family.
7. He is my baby (I know I already said that, but can you really emphasize that too much?)

Happy Birthday Big Guy!

Congratulations to Kayle on Your Wolf Badge!

I just wanted to tell my little guy how proud I am of him for accomplishing his wolf. He got a couple of beads, his wolf, and a couple of arrowheads also. I've never done the scouting thing until this first boy, so this is all new to him, but he sure loves it and Richard loves scouting, so I'm glad there's someone to guide the way! He received all his awards at pack meeting Wednesday and Rich was kind enough to make sure and get pictures since I am unable to leave the house. I love you Kayle!

Another Update...and an Airplane Ride...

Well, last Tuesday, I was healing wonderfully, and then I went to bed. I woke up in the night very uncomfortable (like rocks in my head) and I had Richard give me a blessing. I tossed and turned all night and in the morning I asked Richard to stay home. We called the doctor and they were trying to get ahold of him because he was in surgery all day, and by then, my fever was climbing to almost 102. I was in a lot of pain and Richard was really getting worried. Well, when the doctor called back in the afternoon (finally), my fever was 104.6 and I felt like I was dying. My doctor wanted me to go to the ER immediately and have a spinal tap done and he was worried that I had meningitis. Well, after being in the ER for a few hours, having a CT scan, lots of pain medication, and a spinal tap (ow!), I thought they were going to give me some antibiotics and send me home. All of a sudden, the ER doctor comes in, talking to my other doctor on the phone, and messing with my head wound. He finishes his conversation, comes back in the room, and tells me that I need to get up North immediately. All of a sudden, they're arranging for lifeflight to come and get me, Richard's taking care of arrangements with the kids, and our plans are changed - big time. So after we get up North, my doctor tells me he is going to take me back into surgery. The next day, they took me in, reopened my wound, and cleaned everything out. The good news is that the inside part of my surgery was holding up well (there was some silver lining). Anyway, when I woke up, I felt horrible again, and they started pumping me full of heavy antibiotics. I was in the hospital 3 more days and then they released me with a PICC line in and a bag full of antibiotics that Richard gets to change everyday for the next two weeks (he's getting quite good at the home health biz). And if any of you have had a PICC line placed, it's quite the experience in itself. The lady who was putting it in was really good, but for some reason the PICC line kept going up my next instead of down by my heart. This happened about 10 times (she said this never happened to her) and when they finally got it in, I thought I was going to die! Let's just say it was sweet relief. Anyway, so now I have been home for a few days and I am getting a little better everyday. I am finally able to walk around and sit up more. My doctor doesn't want me to get a blood clot, so I have to walk more than I was, but I have to rest when my neck says, please stop! My hair is nicely shaved (even more this time - I'll try to get a picture) and it is quite interesting to get dressed over an IV.

My family, friends, and ward members have been amazing through this time and I wouldn't have made it without their prayers and concern. I truly felt all of them while I was up North and I feel them daily when I wake up a little better each day. I know this summer is a hard one, but I'm trying to look forward to the future and being better and enjoying my family for years to come. I almost felt like I would lose them, and now I am grateful for every second I get to be a part of this life. I am so blessed.