Traditions

(Alan, Mark, Kassi, Madison, Mallorie, JoAnna, Olivia, Court, Avery, Jake)

This picture was taken last year as we were getting our Christmas Tree. We have been cutting our tree from a lot in Alpine for the last 10 years. Our dear friends, the Taylor's, are the ones who introduced us to this great place. And inevitably, every year we run into them. We were all standing around waiting for the next available tree cutter when Kim decided she needed to snap a picture. I for one am very grateful she felt prompted to do so.



This picture was taken today. One full year apart. I could never have imagined that five days after taking the picture above, we would have been thrown into the most horrific 30 days of our lives. I could never have imagined that 365 consecutive days could carry with them so much heartache, loss, miracle, triumph, sadness, pain, devastation, faith, blessings and love. We have truly been put through the ringer since the first picture was taken.

The Taylor's are practically family. We have been together since we both got married. We have been together through vacations to San Francisco and Lake Powell, births, baptisms, birthdays, moves, deaths and now a major tragedy. I truly do not think I would have survived the last year without them. We were sad when we found out they would be in Arizona for Thanksgiving and we wouldn't be seeing them at the tree farm. That's almost as much a tradition as getting the tree the day after Thanksgiving. There are special people given to us by our Father in Heaven to help us endure this trying mortal life. I know the Taylor's are a special gift. We love them and cherish their friendship. And we really missed them this year.

Blessings of the Week: traditions

From the Mouth's of Babes

I was cleaning up the girls' room last night and came across this. The illustrator is Madison. The person that knows right from wrong is Madison. The person that understands that when you make a choice that there are consequences, is Madison. That is evidenced in her plea to not be a "bad person". She understands that it's a CHOICE. The person that understands accountability is Madison. The person that will have the hardest time understanding and accepting that justice may not be served for her dad that she loves more than anything....is Madison. Shame on them. Shame on all of them.

Halloween!

Where, Oh Where, Are You Tonight?

I have been procrastinating this post. For one reason, I can't ever remember my camera cord so that I can upload the Halloween pictures. For the REAL reason, sometimes it's just too hard on my mental & emotional state to sit down and analyze everything.

But I feel bad that I'm not keeping everyone in the loop, so I will try to do better, regardless of how I feel.

Halloween was great. On Friday night we went to the Ward party and Madison won an award for her costume. She was a mummy. She wore white clothes and I tore a flat sheet into strips and between Grandma and me, we got them attached to her clothes. Olivia was a vampiress with full make-up (of course), and Avery was a knight. I made a 3-tier monster cake for the party. We carved pumpkins on Sunday afternoon and trick-or-treated the ENTIRE ward. Mark was pretty tired so he stayed home and handed out candy. The weather was glorious and it was one of our best Halloween's ever.

For the last two weeks Mark has battled some pretty severe depression. We've changed his meds around and decided he may need a "cocktail" in order to receive some relief from his negative thoughts. We may have finally figured out the right combination. Just wish it wasn't so expensive!

On Wednesday, the 2nd, my mom had surgery. We went to the hospital to visit her that evening. When I turned the car off in the parking lot, Mark turned to me and said that he felt weird being there. He said it reminded him of when the nurses would say his name really loud and ask him to do things. I looked at him with what must have been quite the look because he asked me why that was a big deal. I told him it was because he was in coma when they were doing that. He wanted me to say it just like they did....so I did. He just smiled and got out of the car. Holy cow!!!

As we were standing in my mom's room, he suddenly became overcome with emotion. He had a sudden realization that he received the BEST medical care available and his heart was filled with gratitude. I, for one, hate being in that hospital.

On Thursday we went to the TBI support group. A neuropsychologist was speaking about memory. It was really interesting. The whole time Mark was nodding his head and smiling as he recognized much of what the doctor was saying related directly to him. Everyone was happy to see us there again. We're looking forward to next month.

We are inching ever closer to the anniversary date. I have been unsure as to how to approach it. I have decided that I have a certain talent with cakes, so I'm going to make a medical themed cake and we're going to deliver it to the ICU on December 1st. I'm hoping that this will be a positive spin on such a negative event. We are truly grateful for all of the medical personnel that helped save Mark's life....from the ambulance EMT's, the ER docs & nurses, Dr. Gaufin (the miracle worker), Dr. Cook who put Mark's face back together, the minute-by-minute care from all of the ICU nurses, the respiratory therapist that was so patient in answering all of my questions...the list goes on and on and on. All we have to offer them is our heartfelt thanks...and cake.


I took this picture last night as we were reading scriptures together as a family. At one point Mark had a daughter on each side of him, helping him when he needed it. This fills my heart to the brim. My girls love their daddy and are always right there when he needs them. Whether it's hugging him when he's crying, warning him not to do something dangerous, reminding him to take his medicines, or helping him read. They are there for him and love him so much. We are truly blessed.

Blessing of the Week...daughters