The day after Christmas we had such messy fun painting the balance beam. We got most of it done, but our work has been slowed by a storm that has come through. Still, the girls are excited to bring the floor to life when we can.
Sunday, December 28, 2008
A Recycled Christmas
Last year a friend told me about the community breakfast for the homeless, and since then I thought it would be a great thing start out Christmas with. We arrived at the breakfast and happened upon our friends Kelsey and Kia as well. The place was packed with people from all over the island--about 400 or so. And plenty of volunteers. While we were waiting to be able to serve, the girls got some balloon creations. Then we got to work, Ivy and Nate collecting trash and Kezia and I helping with the serving line. Nate said Ivy picked up all sorts of trash, not just from the tables, but also off the ground.
Kezia and my job was to put the utensils and soy sauce package on the plate and pass it down the line to be piled upon with food. Kezia was amazing. She worked so quickly, plopping the soy sauce packages on the plates and replenishing the utensil pile when it got low. I wish you could have seen her. She worked with joy in her little heart until the very end. I was so proud of her.
The Crowd
Giving out the presents
We went home and opened Christmas. The girls loved everything.
They're like young lions ready to pounce on their prey of presents
This rainbow wrapped the sky Christmas morning. Just as a rainbow is a sign of God's blessings on the earth, we felt richly blessed this Christmas.
Tight on time and money, we found ourselves with just 2 days to prepare. Eeeks! But we felt really blessed-- so many things fell right into place.
There was a garage sale around the corner of our house where I picked up some books for the girls, and I happened to spy a climbing gym for Elysse through the car window among large item pick-up pile at a building.
Can you beat those smiles?!?
On Tuesday our kind friends watched Kezia and Ivy while Nate worked and I hurriedly got things prepared for a clubhouse for the girls. This club house consisted of our beach tent, their chairs, table, and easel, and pieces of wood for the floor painted white, and a 2X4 between 2 cinderblocks for a balance beam, all painted white. The best thing of all: We had all of it already.
The one thing we did not have were decorations. I had stopped by Walmart late Monday night and wandered in a daze into the craft section with hazy thoughts of creating some sort of door hangie-doo for the tent. I ran into a girl from the condos where we used to live, who confessed to me she was a craft-lover, gave me some ideas, and showed me the discount table where I found door hangers, hearts strung on fishline, and crocheted hem lining. That plus some pink netting and some ribbon and we had a decorated clubhouse that looked pretty cool...except one thing: Color.
Can you beat those smiles?!?And that was on purpose. Actually, it kind of grew out of the realization that we did not have time to paint it ourselves, but we thought it would give the girls a sense of ownership if they painted it on their own.
All this time I was looking on the internet to see if I could score some Veggietales movies. And guess what -- 2 days before Christmas Eve someone posts some that were perfect for our girls!
We also gave our girls plenty of family activities to do during break, such as movie night, feeding koi fish, camping, paddling, crab hunting, Hawaiian sledding, pool, and making cookies.
That plus princessy toothpaste, toothbrushes, and bubble bath, and a make-your-own-tent thingie-do from a friend and we had a full Christmas.
Gifts: $45.
Looks on faces: Priceless.
Eric, Nate's dad, came over after the girls thought everything was over with to load them up on more gifts, giving them both the gift they say was their favorite: Ivy received a pony and Kezia received a princess dress. As soon as they were open, they both shared their toys with each other, quoting a song and saying, "sharing is caring". I had to pinch myself to see if it was really happening. They also loved getting a puppet show and puppets from Aunt Cheri and Uncle Braden.
My favorite gift was a well-needed nap in the afternoon, and a beautiful poem from Cheri and Braden. Nate's was a free day to surf however long he wants to.
Omigosh! Raspberrry Jam?!? How did you know?!? That night we had a delicious meal at the home of our great friends, the Skafs.
Christmas Eve
What a blessing Christmas Eve turned out to be! We had made plans a month ago to spend Christmas Eve with our great friends the Monsons, who had lived with us in October. I also invited our friends the Stillwells, who just recently had twin baby girls. In the back of my mind, a small panic began to develop: How was I supposed to be able to prepare the house for guests, prepare a meal, and squeeze 6 adults 4 kids, and 4 babies into our tiny little place?!?
Monday morning Jessica Monsen called asking if they could do it at their place instead, and they will provide the main dish. Aw YEA!!!
We were about to leave to go to their house on Christmas Eve when they called to cancel: Their friend was in critical condition at the hospital. So the Stillwells suggested we go to their house instead We combined our side dishes and desserts and they cooked their Christmas ham a day early. The kids performed the pagaent, and on the way home we read Luke 2 and sang Christmas songs.
Christmas Eve: Success.
Santa's Workshop
This year the girls and I got to help wrap gifts for "Operation: Toy Box", gifts that were donated by people in the community to be given out to needy children at a Christmas breakfast we were planning on volunteering for Christmas morning. It was even better than being in the real Santa's workshop, perhaps because of the warm weather, or because no one had pointy ears and red and green striped socks, or maybe it was just the fact that all these toys were given in love to kids who may otherwise get nothing for Christmas.
Joyful Christmas music hummed in the background. Toys in plastic packaging were stacked against the walls, in piles according to age group. Rolls of wrapping paper stood slanted in gift bags, and an army of scotch tape dispensers stood ready to seal the packages. Seated were 3 youth, 3 adults, and us, unrolling, cutting, taping, and labeling. The girls enjoyed picking which toy to wrap next, passing the tape, and passing the beautifully wrapped gift down the table.
At one point, Elysse was hungry, so we slipped into the back room where I could nurse her. This room was even more magical than the first. On the floor were signs that read "Girls 0-12 month"; "Boys 12mo-3yr" "Girls 4-6" and so on, up to teenagers. Behind each sign were piles higher than Kezia with gleaming, crisp packages awaiting the hands of a boy or girl on Christmas morning. And there was no list of who was naughty or nice.
The girls couldn't wait to go to the breakfast and see who would receive the gifts they had so joyfully wrapped.
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Friday, December 12, 2008
Ivy's funnies
Last week we went to a tree lighting ceremony. My friend whose son I teach at Great Beginnings and I were talking about how 4 year olds are different than 3 year olds. Just as she said, "Four year olds do something wrong and you expect them to do it better; Three year olds do something wrong and you can just say, oh, you're still just 3", Ivy announced, "Mom! I just spilled all my yogurt in the wagon!"
All I could say was, "Good thing you're still three."
As part of a preschool excursion this week, we went to an art gallery. Ivy had to use the bathroom, which meant we had to pass a statue at the front of the gallery of a naked woman. After using the bathroom, Ivy announces in a loud, clear voice, "NOW WE GET TO GO BACK TO THE NAKED PERSON!"
Sometimes Ivy reminds us of Grandma Gunn, with certain expressions and such. I asked Ivy if she thinks she looks like Grandma Gunn, and she looked at her and said, "No, because I don't have a lot of lines on my face."
All I could say was, "Good thing you're still three."
As part of a preschool excursion this week, we went to an art gallery. Ivy had to use the bathroom, which meant we had to pass a statue at the front of the gallery of a naked woman. After using the bathroom, Ivy announces in a loud, clear voice, "NOW WE GET TO GO BACK TO THE NAKED PERSON!"
Sometimes Ivy reminds us of Grandma Gunn, with certain expressions and such. I asked Ivy if she thinks she looks like Grandma Gunn, and she looked at her and said, "No, because I don't have a lot of lines on my face."
Grandma and Grandpa Gunn
My grandparents are both 87 years old, and I have the privilege of having them stay here with us before and after their interisland cruise. Here's from an email I sent to my mom about some of our adventures:
They arrived Monday night. They were HONORED that someone upgraded their tix to first class and they raved about the service they received. Then they LOVED the leis and were so touched that they were from everyone. Grandma is so funny--she wants to save them for when we go out somewhere nice, so in the meantime, they're aging in the fridge. Oh well.
They found out Tuesday the hard way that they needed the wheelchair, so it is a very good thing that they have it. We walked to the beach near our house, and I went back home ( a 3 minute walk) to care for Elysse and make some phone calls. I was about to go back to get them when I saw them coming. A kind woman who saw them at the beach was helping Grandpa walk. Apparently, when Grandpa tried to get up, his leg went numb and he struggled to walk home. The woman, Julie, saw them struggling on the shore and came out to help. I came with the wheelchair and helped him get home. But once we arrived at the apartment building, I couldn't get the wheelchair up the curb. A kind man came over to help, and Grandpa was excited to hear that he was a member of our same church.
They arrived Monday night. They were HONORED that someone upgraded their tix to first class and they raved about the service they received. Then they LOVED the leis and were so touched that they were from everyone. Grandma is so funny--she wants to save them for when we go out somewhere nice, so in the meantime, they're aging in the fridge. Oh well.
They found out Tuesday the hard way that they needed the wheelchair, so it is a very good thing that they have it. We walked to the beach near our house, and I went back home ( a 3 minute walk) to care for Elysse and make some phone calls. I was about to go back to get them when I saw them coming. A kind woman who saw them at the beach was helping Grandpa walk. Apparently, when Grandpa tried to get up, his leg went numb and he struggled to walk home. The woman, Julie, saw them struggling on the shore and came out to help. I came with the wheelchair and helped him get home. But once we arrived at the apartment building, I couldn't get the wheelchair up the curb. A kind man came over to help, and Grandpa was excited to hear that he was a member of our same church.
Later that day, Grandpa sat outside with one of the books he wrote in his hands while I helped Kezia ride her bike. Julie drove by asking how he was doing, and I told her he would like to say hi to her. The cool thing was, he told her earlier that he would like to give her a book, and it was just coincidence that they met again, and he had his book with him.
Wednesday morning I hosted an excursion with my preschool. A big storm was predicted beginning Wednesday night, so we decided that this was a good day to go outside. We attempted twice to go to the beach, but got chased back to the car by the wind and rain. We did manage to go see some resting sea turtles on the beach and surfers on sizable waves.
They joined me on part of the preschool excursion, where the children got to make their cookies n' cream ice cream (way cool).
That afternoon they watched the girls for a bit so I could catch some waves and that evening we went Christmas caroling with our ward. It was a lot of fun.
Well, before Grandma came out, her hairdresser told her she ought to cut her hair short because Hawaii is windy and rainy. I think she may have placed a curse on Hawaii because we are having quite a storm! It came Wednesday night, with sheets of rain and high winds for 8+hrs straight.
It was exciting to listen to, but I was mostly kept up by Elysse's crying. She got a fever during the night, and she and Ivy are both feverish and coughing, and Elysse has a runny nose: All the symptoms of a sickness that has been snaking its way around the North Shore lately, so apparently it's highly contagious, and we are crossing our fingers and toes that Grandma and Grandpa don't catch it, asking Grandma and Grandpa not to touch the sick girls, and chowing down Echinacea.
That morning, Thursday morning, I took Kezia to school. We drove along the road until we got to a place that was flooded; the river was overflowing. There was a van signaling us to pass him. I stopped by him and he said he has seen other cars go through, but he wasn't going to. Well, I thought, if a van isn't going to try, then I'm not! But just then a truck came to my other window and said to just stay in the middle and don't stop and I'll be fine, and that a lot of cars have gone through. So I thought, alright. But what I couldn't see was that the flood continued on around the bend. We passed a stranded car, and Kezia and I were cheering on the Isuzu as the water level was past our tires. At one point the car was going slowly and I was afraid it would give up on us, but we made it through...only to find that school was canceled. And by this point, the police had closed the road. The other road we could take back home was worse than this one, so we heard, with lots of cars stranded and deep puddles. I was considering going through again (we made it through once, we could make it again!) But I am grateful I decided instead to park the car and walked through, because while we were walking there was a large truck towing another large truck out. Kezia was super-brave and I kept her going through the water with a 1-2,1-2 count. The water at one point was up to my knees, and up to her waist. So that was our big adventure.
(This picture doesn't even do it justice. This was a few hours after, and the water has subsided some. And this isn't even where the water was deep, although you can see it is covering the road and the sidewalk and the field)
Grandma and Grandpa were going to go to the submarine ride, but it was canceled too because of weather. Grandma and I played Waterworks, Grandpa and I ran some errands. It was great to go around with Grandpa and see how he struck up a conversation with every person he came in contact with, and made them smile. The girls took advantage of the sun peeking through the clouds to play outside, and that evening they walked with the girls to the playground. (I made sure that this time we were well-connected with phones just in case.) I went outside to read, when I saw some light drops of rain. I left to go get them, and as soon as we reached home, it came down HARD again!! We all felt lucky that I came when I did (since we just live down the road from the playground.) Grandma said Grandpa had a hard time walking, that he was feeling off-balance.
That night, Thursday night, the wind blew. Elysse and Ivy woke up in Friday morning still sick, and Elysse continued on her cries for the whole day , (later we found out she had an ear infection, poor thing) except when she was sleeping. Ivy was in high spirits, though. Grandma stayed home and did laundry while Grandpa and I ran errands. Grandpa was kind enough to dry out our tools that were outside during the storm. (which will have to be done again, since I trusted the blue sky and returned them outside. Duh!)
Well, this afternoon I prepared dinner to take with us to the Christmas parade, and as we were getting ready to go, it started to rain, and thunder and lightening. We decided to go see if the parade was still going on. Well, we happened to be really blessed and this is why: First of all Grandma decided she was too tired to go. If she had gone, she would have been miserable, I think, because it was definitely RAINING. We drove to the starting point of the parade, and were not allowed to go down the road where the parade would be going on. So that meant we got to watch the parade from where they were filing all the paraders in the order in which to go. We only walked 25 feet from our car, which meant Grandpa didn't have to walk very far, and we saw the hour-long parade in only 18 minutes, since all the paraders and floats were crammed together. That was super, because 1. I forgot to get a chair for Grandpa, 2. Kezia and Elysse had fallen asleep during the 5 minute drive to the parade, and 3. I didn't want our sick girls to be exposed to the cold wet air for that long. Besides, after we arrived home, the rain came down harder. So we felt really blessed. Afterward, Grandpa and I said that it was perfectly (un)planned.
After we arrived home, Grandma and Grandpa fell asleep and Nate and I bullied an 11-ft box with surfboards inside to our back porch through the pouring rain. Now all is quiet except for snores and coughs.
The girls have enjoyed reading with Grandma and Grandpa, listening to Grandpa's songs, and watching his magic tricks, reminding me of the Grandpa I knew when I was young.
Saturday Grandma and I went to Walmart to pick up a few essentials, then we headed to Laie to go to the PCC (Polynesian Cultural Center) (hoping the foreboding clouds in the sky were merely an illusion). I droped them off with hats, an umbrella, and the wheelchair and I left to congratulate my friend Leslie on her graduation and say goodbye as she heads off to the mainland to get married. While I was at the BYU campus, (right next to the PCC), the rain came down HARD! The type where you step out and when you come in, you look like a shower head yourself. I returned to the PCC with sweaters and found Grandma and Grandpa struggling with the wheelchair and ready to return home. However, a guide graciously found them a place to watch the canoe pagaent under cover, and then she stayed with them until another guide took over and helped them for the whole time. And the front desk only asked them to pay $10 for admission. See? It pays to get old.
Monday was a lot of fun. We went to the beach and played. Grandpa and Ivy enjoyed sharing pretzels and pumpkin dip on the shore while Grandpa called out to whomever was in the water to turn around and pose for a picture.
Well, before Grandma came out, her hairdresser told her she ought to cut her hair short because Hawaii is windy and rainy. I think she may have placed a curse on Hawaii because we are having quite a storm! It came Wednesday night, with sheets of rain and high winds for 8+hrs straight.
It was exciting to listen to, but I was mostly kept up by Elysse's crying. She got a fever during the night, and she and Ivy are both feverish and coughing, and Elysse has a runny nose: All the symptoms of a sickness that has been snaking its way around the North Shore lately, so apparently it's highly contagious, and we are crossing our fingers and toes that Grandma and Grandpa don't catch it, asking Grandma and Grandpa not to touch the sick girls, and chowing down Echinacea.
That morning, Thursday morning, I took Kezia to school. We drove along the road until we got to a place that was flooded; the river was overflowing. There was a van signaling us to pass him. I stopped by him and he said he has seen other cars go through, but he wasn't going to. Well, I thought, if a van isn't going to try, then I'm not! But just then a truck came to my other window and said to just stay in the middle and don't stop and I'll be fine, and that a lot of cars have gone through. So I thought, alright. But what I couldn't see was that the flood continued on around the bend. We passed a stranded car, and Kezia and I were cheering on the Isuzu as the water level was past our tires. At one point the car was going slowly and I was afraid it would give up on us, but we made it through...only to find that school was canceled. And by this point, the police had closed the road. The other road we could take back home was worse than this one, so we heard, with lots of cars stranded and deep puddles. I was considering going through again (we made it through once, we could make it again!) But I am grateful I decided instead to park the car and walked through, because while we were walking there was a large truck towing another large truck out. Kezia was super-brave and I kept her going through the water with a 1-2,1-2 count. The water at one point was up to my knees, and up to her waist. So that was our big adventure.
(This picture doesn't even do it justice. This was a few hours after, and the water has subsided some. And this isn't even where the water was deep, although you can see it is covering the road and the sidewalk and the field)Grandma and Grandpa were going to go to the submarine ride, but it was canceled too because of weather. Grandma and I played Waterworks, Grandpa and I ran some errands. It was great to go around with Grandpa and see how he struck up a conversation with every person he came in contact with, and made them smile. The girls took advantage of the sun peeking through the clouds to play outside, and that evening they walked with the girls to the playground. (I made sure that this time we were well-connected with phones just in case.) I went outside to read, when I saw some light drops of rain. I left to go get them, and as soon as we reached home, it came down HARD again!! We all felt lucky that I came when I did (since we just live down the road from the playground.) Grandma said Grandpa had a hard time walking, that he was feeling off-balance.
That night, Thursday night, the wind blew. Elysse and Ivy woke up in Friday morning still sick, and Elysse continued on her cries for the whole day , (later we found out she had an ear infection, poor thing) except when she was sleeping. Ivy was in high spirits, though. Grandma stayed home and did laundry while Grandpa and I ran errands. Grandpa was kind enough to dry out our tools that were outside during the storm. (which will have to be done again, since I trusted the blue sky and returned them outside. Duh!)
Well, this afternoon I prepared dinner to take with us to the Christmas parade, and as we were getting ready to go, it started to rain, and thunder and lightening. We decided to go see if the parade was still going on. Well, we happened to be really blessed and this is why: First of all Grandma decided she was too tired to go. If she had gone, she would have been miserable, I think, because it was definitely RAINING. We drove to the starting point of the parade, and were not allowed to go down the road where the parade would be going on. So that meant we got to watch the parade from where they were filing all the paraders in the order in which to go. We only walked 25 feet from our car, which meant Grandpa didn't have to walk very far, and we saw the hour-long parade in only 18 minutes, since all the paraders and floats were crammed together. That was super, because 1. I forgot to get a chair for Grandpa, 2. Kezia and Elysse had fallen asleep during the 5 minute drive to the parade, and 3. I didn't want our sick girls to be exposed to the cold wet air for that long. Besides, after we arrived home, the rain came down harder. So we felt really blessed. Afterward, Grandpa and I said that it was perfectly (un)planned.
After we arrived home, Grandma and Grandpa fell asleep and Nate and I bullied an 11-ft box with surfboards inside to our back porch through the pouring rain. Now all is quiet except for snores and coughs.
The girls have enjoyed reading with Grandma and Grandpa, listening to Grandpa's songs, and watching his magic tricks, reminding me of the Grandpa I knew when I was young.
Saturday Grandma and I went to Walmart to pick up a few essentials, then we headed to Laie to go to the PCC (Polynesian Cultural Center) (hoping the foreboding clouds in the sky were merely an illusion). I droped them off with hats, an umbrella, and the wheelchair and I left to congratulate my friend Leslie on her graduation and say goodbye as she heads off to the mainland to get married. While I was at the BYU campus, (right next to the PCC), the rain came down HARD! The type where you step out and when you come in, you look like a shower head yourself. I returned to the PCC with sweaters and found Grandma and Grandpa struggling with the wheelchair and ready to return home. However, a guide graciously found them a place to watch the canoe pagaent under cover, and then she stayed with them until another guide took over and helped them for the whole time. And the front desk only asked them to pay $10 for admission. See? It pays to get old.
We were planning on taking the quickest route down to Honolulu to get to the ship, but I changed my mindafter someone mentioned the road had closed a few days before because of mudslides, and it occured to me that if we get stuck, we are stuck; there's no other road. Well, I am very glad we went back the other way, because we drove through quite a few large pools of water and through heavy rain. I am doubtful we would have made it the other way. Here's a funny story. On the way back we passed Hukilau beach. I asked Grandpa if he has heard about the Hukilau (Who key lau) beach. Grandma was in the back seat and couldn't hear well. Her eyes widened at what she thought she heard, "Bahookie beach?!? BAHOOOKIE?!?"
Now it is Sunday the 21st. Grandma and Grandpa returned from their cruise yesterday (Saturday) morning and now I am thoroughly convinced I should go on a cruise. They looked so refreshed and relaxed!! They raved about the food and how their room was made up every time they returned to it and the excursions they were on (except for one 8 hr. drive on bumpy roads through a barren landscape), the pools, saunas, and spas on the ship. They said they had a great time. But they only took 2 pictures!!!
Ironic how such a relaxing trip can knock you out. They didn't do much yesterday beside nap and relax. Grandpa had caught a bad cough on the last day of the cruise, so today (Sunday) they stayed home.
Last week we really haven't had time to talk or do anything besides care for the kids and our tummies. I don't think they really knew what they were getting themselves into when they said they just want to come out and see what our family does. I just hope they don't feel like a burden, because it's an honor having them here. It was so nice today to just sit and talk and laugh (which was unkind to Grandpa's cough) but it was great to finally put a slow-down and just talk and laugh. We learned about all the boys that were after Aunt Katherine, aobut how my mom really wasn't that bad in their minds, and about how Aunt Sherri got cold feet with Uncle David.
Right now they are at the beach with Nate and Kezia. Nate's been trying extra hard to get Grandma to eat some chocolate. And we are all anxious to see who will get the first spanking from Grandma, since she's made the threat. :) They leave tomorrow night.
Monday was a lot of fun. We went to the beach and played. Grandpa and Ivy enjoyed sharing pretzels and pumpkin dip on the shore while Grandpa called out to whomever was in the water to turn around and pose for a picture.
Grandma made a beeline for the water and she was so funny! She sat next to the water, and panicked a little when a ripple would come. And I guess when you're as light as Grandma, you ought to panick a little, because the water would push her almost 180 degrees! And then she'd laugh and wait for another ripple to come. Kezia enjoyed sitting with her, as well as I. We picked up tiny shells and pieces of coral.
She and I talked a bit about when she was young, about the cherry tree in her yard that the neighborhood boys would climb and eat the cherries and how her mom would squirt the hose at them. She told me about strict Grandpa Smart who was a stake president for 25 years and they always had to wear skirts when he came around because he didn't approve of girls in shorts. She told me about how he settled the Ducshene/ Roosevelt area of Utah, and would start up banks and shops and such and then coax businessmen to come in and take over. She told me how she loved hanging out with her cousins. And she told me about her father the entrepreneur who quite his job with a Charm cosmetic company to begin his own line: "Charmetics", and the successful line of perm machines that turned off when a woman's hair perm was just right. Ooh-la-la! Grandma said she was the guinea pig for showing off how good the machine was because her hair was so fine, so it always gave her a good perm.
Did you know Grandma didn't wear any makeup here? I commented how good she looked, how much color she has, and she said it's because you are what you eat, and she eats really well. So there you have it. Speaking of looks, it was humourous to watch Grandma insist on she and Grandpa wearing "Hawaiian" clothes while they were here. ("No, Roger, you're in Hawaii. You will not wear that outfit. You will wear this one with the flowers. Now put this on and we'll save this one for when we return home.") They looked so comfortable and relaxed in their colorful "Hawaiian" clothes that it was almost stiffening to see them slip into their brown and blue polyester and silk "Utah" outfits for the trip back home.
It was so wonderful to have them here.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
Grateful to have Nate as my sparing companion
Although it seems that we fell off the face of the bloggin' planet, we're still here.
Both Nate and I have found 2008 to be a very challenging year in many ways. I look forward to the beginning of 2009, as though a mere change in number would magically change things around. There have definitely been some wonderful, great things that have happened this last year, don't get me wrong. But as a whole, it's been a royal butt-kicking -- at least for Nate and I. One night after the kids were in bed, I closed the door and said to Nate, "I feel like I'm in a boxing match with Life that isn't ending, and it's beating me up real bad. I feel I am sunken in a corner, trying to catch a breath. But I'm still in it, and I haven't fallen yet. So BRING IT ON!" Nate laughed, and without speaking, we both understood the same thing, that both of us were in that corner together. I am so grateful to have Nate by my side.
Both Nate and I have found 2008 to be a very challenging year in many ways. I look forward to the beginning of 2009, as though a mere change in number would magically change things around. There have definitely been some wonderful, great things that have happened this last year, don't get me wrong. But as a whole, it's been a royal butt-kicking -- at least for Nate and I. One night after the kids were in bed, I closed the door and said to Nate, "I feel like I'm in a boxing match with Life that isn't ending, and it's beating me up real bad. I feel I am sunken in a corner, trying to catch a breath. But I'm still in it, and I haven't fallen yet. So BRING IT ON!" Nate laughed, and without speaking, we both understood the same thing, that both of us were in that corner together. I am so grateful to have Nate by my side.
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