Eighteen!!!

Eighteen years ago today Jon was panicking when I walked through the doors at the Jordan River Temple. We had our scheduled time for our sealing, and I was told to be there about 45 min - 1 hour before. I hadn't worried about when Jon would be there. I figured we'd meet up before we went into the sealing room. He couldn't get a hold of me the day before the wedding (he was in Sandy, and I was in Provo) so he called the temple to find out what time the bride was supposed to be there (even though he only needed to be there about 30 minutes before show time), and they told him most brides were there about 2 1/2 hours early. So by the time my mom and I came strolling through the doors he had decided that I wasn't going to show. Silly man.

Some of the other funny things I remember about that day:

• I stepped on my train while we were outside taking photos at the temple. My heel had sunk into the damp grass right on top of the train, and there was a big ole grass stain. After our lunch my mom took my dress with her back to Provo to get the grass stain out. BUT I didn't hear her tell me she was going to take it. So when the time came for Jon and I to get in our car and head south I panicked because my dress was gone. This was before everyone had cell phones, so I was in near hysteria while I kept calling my mom's next door neighbor to have her run over and see if my mom did in fact have my dress.

See that little boy? He just
got his mission call yesterday.
He's going to Tokyo, Japan
in November!
See the little girl? She's going
to Montreal Canada in August.
Nat's about 3 months
pregnant in this photo...

• We had our wedding lunch on the patio of Jon's best friend's parent's house. They live across the street from my in-laws, and their daughter is married to Jon's oldest brother. While I was trying to get in touch with my mom about the dress, Jon was sitting in his parent's living room. I don't remember who he was talking to. I was a little tense just sitting there so I went back across the street to help clean up. I hadn't spent much time with my SIL, Natalie, and she surprised me by taking the plates and utensils out of my hands and telling me that the bride SHOULD NOT be cleaning up on her wedding day. So I went back to my in-laws house and sat in a lawn chair outside the front door.
• I ended up doing my own hair and didn't really like it. I don't know what I would have done differently because it was so short, and I was adamant about wearing a veil. My friend Christian's fiance, Kacy, came through our line, and she said she was happy to see me in a veil because she also had short hair and wasn't sure she could wear one.
• We were supposed to do our family photos at the church before the reception. Couple of problems with that... 1) My mom, Jon, me, and our photographer got over to the church, and the door was locked. Took up precious time finding the key. 2) My MIL took the Orem Geneva Road exit instead of the Provo one so she was awfully lost. She didn't make it to the reception until it was almost half over.
• My MIL had all of our flowers (which I'd never seen but they ended up being BEAUTIFUL) AND my FIL's tux. Our receiving line was supposed to be us and our parents, but for a good chunk of the evening it was us, my mom, and Jon's dad in casual clothing.
• We had Jon's good friend, Jared, take our pictures. We had set Jared up with my good friend, Dixie, a few weeks before we got married. So the night of our reception, our photog was mysteriously preoccupied. Most of the snap shots at our reception were taken by Jon's brother, Aaron. Jared and Dixie got married that November, and they will also be celebrating their 18th anniversary this year.

I'm making myself sick with all of the chaos! Good thing that day is long behind us!

Do you know what that day taught me? That there's never a dull moment in the Hill family.

I love you Jon, and I'm grateful that you chose me to be part of the circus.

Mon Couer - In 3 Parts

American Gothic
Grant Wood



Today we find ourselves visiting American Gothic.  I don't think Jon and I are quite of an age as this charming couple, but I think they say a lot about us. They are a stark respresentation of what's worth standing for. Imagine the end of that pitchfork was solidly tapped into the soil while they contemplate: 

• This is us!
• We are here!
• We're in it together!
• Things have not been, are not and will not be easy!
• We'll stay side by side using the tools God gave us to do what needs to be done!

Jon and I have been together longer than some and shorter than others. We've lost close friends and family, and we've gained a plethora of siblings-in-law, nieces, nephews, and step-family. We've had friends move away. We've moved away from friends. We've been able to make new ones. Some day soon we will have to put down a beloved animal. We've been on 25 hour road trips, and we've driven just a few minutes to spend time with the people we love. We've encouraged each other in school and work. We need to encourage each other through weight loss. We argue; we make up; we compromise; we laugh; we love.






April Fools 1943
Norman Rockwell

 

We really enjoy games and laughter at our place. See Rockwell's Mr. smiling as Mrs. contemplates clocking him with that wrench? Such a fascinating depiction of the way Jon and I play board games. Ever tried Monopoly with him? You'll want to clock him too - I promise. But really - Jon reminds me to smile and enjoy the humor. He knows how to work hard, but sometimes more importantly he knows how to play. One of my fondest wishes is that he continues to play with me for a very long time.






Sweet Responsibility
James Christensen

 

Our last feature of the tour is a piece titled Sweet Responsibility.I sigh at this bald gent gently handing over a single bloom to the curly haired, slipper-wearing beauty.

 Jon's not big on giving flowers. I think the only kind he's ever bought have been straight from the grocer's refrigerated floral section. They've been precut and prevased. But on summer evenings he brings me single miniature rose blooms from our front yard.



I love those. I love how they show up on my bathroom counter or nightstand months later when I move a clock or book or jewelry box and discover these little treasures that either fell behind something, were hidden for me to find later, or were at one time propped up where I could see them. They've lost their fragrance and the suppleness of their petals, but they remind me that once upon a time I was given a token by a boy because he loved me. This thought brings me a smile on a cold winter day and blustery spring-ish mornings. 



I'm the luckiest girl in the world.

I love you Jon.

Mon Couer II

The Shape of Things to Come
Jack Vettriano

Next we move on to Jack Vettriano's The Shape of Things to Come. I love this painting - I love Vettriano's style - very raw, gangster meets glam. Seriously - check out Amateur Philosophers, The Billy Boys, Dance Me to the End of Love, The Road to Nowhere, or The Singing Butler. Just don't do too much perusing of his site - he's fairly risque - even blatant. Believe me.

Anyway - I love this one because of the chivalry. Her hair's set, and for some reason they've found themselves barefoot on a rainy seascape with the boys looking on. Still the man drops what he's doing and goes to her aid.

Know how this reminds me of Jon? He does thoughtful things like this for me quite often. I'll share two stories with you.

First - after Griff was born I had post-partum depression. Didn't take much to persuade me to stay inside and dread everything. Jon came home from bishopric one night and handed me a pink cookie. You know the kind - the fluffy sugar cookies with about an inch of pink, preservative-laden, lard-filled frosting. Simple act really - he probably stopped to get a soda and grabbed something that was on the counter. but you know what? He knew that my miserable self needed some sugary goodness. He knew I needed him to pull me out of mire - for a few minutes.

Second - I've had 3 boys with the man. I've had fairly easy labor & deliveries (7 hours for Carson, 5 hours for Evan, and a mere 3 hours for G), and I'm a firm believer in drugs making things much better and relatively pain free.

I didn't really know what to expect with my first. I had no idea what it was like so I was wondering how bad it could really be wanted to feel a bit before it got really hot & heavy. I quickly had enough of that and my rescuer/pain reliever stopped by my room at just the right time. He was on his way to a C section and wanted to see if I needed him to start the epidural before he wouldn't be able to do it for a couple of hours. No question on my part. NOW!

 I was sitting on the edge of the bed, trying to wrap my arms under my knees to curve my back (which isn't an easy task with a basketball in between your ribs and pelvis). The anesthesiologist was prepping my back and the needle, etc. A contraction hit, and it absolutely took my breath away. I panicked! Jon jumped up from the rocking chair in the corner, knelt in front of me, touched both of my knees, looked me right in the eye, smiled, and gently but firmly said,

You have to breathe.

The epidural must have kicked in about then because I remember squeezing his hands and feeling an amazing calm come over me. From then on he was right there with me, pointing out when my contractions were starting on the monitor, getting me ice, not touching me because he'd already figured out (or perhaps not so nicely been told) that it drove me crazy to be touched/rubbed through a contraction. Then when I thought we'd both had enough, his son was placed on my stomach, and I watched him smile as his hand ran over the top of Carson's head for the very first time.

I gave that gift to him... And I loved him for the way he received it.

Mon Couer Day 1



Your Place or Mine
James Christensen

 The Jon and Staci romance began on October 9, 1992. We sealed the deal on July 9, 1993 (that's 9 months to the day for those of you counting fingers). February 14 was the big day that led to the deal being sealed. 

To commemorate this romantic occassion I'm guiding you on an artistic tour not just of the past but also where I sincerely hope we're headed. I won't drag you through the flourish all at once. You'll get 3 chances to be swept away.

First off is James Christensen's Your Place or Mine. I love the saucy maid and her halibut. What else would ensnare such a fine sir?

I knew that I had Jon ensnared when I called him 3 days after our first date (which was to Rocky Point haunted house - plenty of screaming, protecting, and body grabbing going on there - and not just all by Jon... ;-)) to come over and change my roommate's flat tire. Jon was watching a video at ANOTHER WOMAN's place and made me swear that it really was flat. What?! Did he think I was making up excuses to get him to come over? Insert eye roll here. 

• He showed up (I don't remember how timely he was in this - I guess that doesn't matter now anyway).
• He saw the flat.
• He changed the flat.
• He left. (So maybe he hadn't finished the "movie").

But he smiled at me as he got back in his car... Perhaps it was me that was ensnared...

Inviting Romance and Using Lots of French Words

The Painter's Honeymoon
Lord Frederic Leighton - 1864

Romeo and Juliet
Frank Dicksee - 1884

If you've read me or known me for any length of time you know that I am a true romantic. I am passionate about frills, beautiful fabrics, heart palpitations, decadently luxurious scents, strong alpha-males (and equally strong females), and bling. The problem with this is that I live with 4 very male males. (How better to be a renaissance woman than to raise healthy, lusty, active boys?! I promise their wives will one day thank me.)

When Jon and I bought our house 5 years ago I fell in love with the potential it held in its niches/dust collectors. There are 4 of them. One in our entry hall, one in Carson & Evan's bedroom, one in my office, and one in Jon and my bedroom. It took me a while to fill these spaces. They are high enough that it isn't an easy space to access, and I knew that changing vignettes was not going to occur very frequently ever.

la Belle Dame sans Merci
Frank Dicksee - 1893

Il Bacio
Francesco Hayez - 1859






Springtime
 Pierre-Auguste Cot - 1873


I was laying in bed one night and realized that while I'd left the space in our bedroom open so that I could ponder the design components, Jon seized it as storage - for his guns and bow. I cannot even tell you how quickly I jumped out of bed. NO WAY WAS OUR BEDROOM GOING TO BE A DEFENSE ARSENAL. Well, it really was too high for me to do anything about that night, but I was startled into the immediate requirement to fill this space - they way I wanted it filled.

At one time my bedroom was the catch all for household flotsam. Who am I kidding, it still is... I started my search for a private, restorative, romantic space by ridding our room of some of these items. Laundry still manages to find it's way, but there are no nerf guns, StarWars guys, or video games in my boudoir.

First of all I found the perfect scent. For me it's Scentsy's Frech Kiss.

Sweet fig tenderly caressed by coconut pulp, exotic cedar, and caramel.

Um - hello? caress? fig? exotic? caramel?! Be still my heart. I love this stuff.

S H J - vinyl cutouts placed on wallpaper sample

Next I fell in <3 with monograms. I also got very wrapped up in whose name appears on the left side of the last name initial. Which side does a queen sit on? Which is the bride's side of a wedding party? See where I'm going?

This is what I came up with. You have to excuse the dust. Remember when I said it was difficult to get to? Anything toward the back of the vignette is nearly impossible to reach - even with those extendable feather dusters... And if you missed the allusion there, then I just don't know what to tell you...

While I was cutting vinyl I also wanted to cut a saying for the wall beneath the niche. I'd found a round metal thing that worked for me, but I wanted something to push the scene just a bit more. Here were my 2nd and 3rd place choices:

I love you, not only for what you are, But for what I am when I am with you.

If you love me only in my dreams, let me be asleep forever.

But the one that captured the essence of my relationship with Jon was...

Ralph Waldo Emerson - who knew transcendentalism applied to romance?

Finally - there is a  pièce de résistance... I found this gem at a store with one of the worst names I've ever heard: Way Cool Dirt Cheap. (It isn't in SL Valley anymore and I kind of miss it. They had some funky stuff in their showroom that was easy for me to repeatedly visit and imagine it in my home) After purchasing my pièce I found very similar items online titled "The Kiss" - I'm sure that's based on Rodin's captivating work. 




Rodin's The Kiss
from a different angle

  Without further adieu:

There it is. I love the simplicity, the curve, the flow, the hollows and angles, the symbiosis. It sat on my dresser until I had everything ready for the niche. Jon's first response was absolute perfection:

I think that's the most romantic thing I've ever seen.



One more picture - this time of the entire scene:

There are other things I do to inspire romance, but with this awaiting me I'm off to a great start even before I transcend the stairs.

And now I'm off to ponder my love of romanticism and its reaction to the Industrial Revolution... I know - I'm so wierd. 

Gathering Bling

This past Saturday I asked my SIL and niece if they'd like to sew while our hubbies and sons/nephews flew their helicopters and played Heroscape. She was way ahead of me and had been sewing with her friends the night before. So what's my stuff going to add to what she already had out.

I was assembling toppers, and she was working on pillows. She completely made me want to tackle that project - haven't done a pillow since this one...

So Sunday I went through my stash and found some lovely silver satin that we used when Carson was this for Halloween...
















Do you know how difficult satin is to work with? It does not stay in one place. It moooooooooves. I cut mutiple strips in 1 1/2 to 3" widths - kind of. Honestly they were mostly straight. Then I got out my ruffler foot (did you remember to use your jazz hands?), and ran the strips through the ruffler. Then I rolled the ruffled strips just like I was told to over here and made 5 of these. (ignore that they're already attached in this photo - I took these when it was all finished - brain wasn't thinking photo in the middle of this project...).

Now this is where the 2nd diva fit of the afternoon/evening came in. (Tell me you can gather satin with a ruffler foot without throwing the first one) I drive 3 middle school boys in our carpool a few times each week, and they are notorious for finding whatever crap has been stuffed under seats or shoved in pockets or thrown in the back. Seriously. One of the favorite car toys is one of those butane lighter things that make fire starting fairly safe (or encourage it in strange places - so go figure). I don't know why it's in my vehicle in the middle of winter, but I suspect it's a leftover from a scout trip. Anyway - I've seen a lot of blogs that say you should burn the edge of these flowers and that the fabric will curl nicely. SO - I wanted that lighter. Well guess what... It's not a problem locating it on any random Thursday, but when I actually need the thing it's no where to be found. Unless you look in the cupboard where all of my candles are stored... And if I decided to just grab it and sit down without letting my guys know I'd found what I was demanding, so be it... Anyway. Satin burns/melts very easily, and it's a bad thing for a mother of 3 boys to discover this and think it's cool enough that she cuts another strip of fabric and gets caught singe-ing right at the kitchen table. All I'm going to say is that it's a good thing there wasn't any fuel left in that lighter by the time I was finished...

Anyway. I was going to stop with the flowers, but the remaining fabric was calling to me. I needed to make a pillow while my ruffler was still attached to my sewing machine. So - I ended up with this: 

I think it's BE. YOU. TEE. FULL. Doesn't go so well with my white couch & chairs, but there's always a remedy for that isn't there?

I'd started out with 3 flowers and added the other 2 a little while later. When I had it how I wanted, I showed Jon, and do you know what his response was?!

Do you know how many times you swore while making that?

So not what I wanted to hear, but he was correct. There, I said it.

HE WAS RIGHT!!!

In my defense, allow me to say that you should NEVER under these circumstances attempt to make such a thing of purfled beauty. Yes that is a word, and when I'm asked for a word to describe me to a "T", that's the one I pull out - PURFLE. Look it up... What did my guys expect when I'd just switched my happy pill med two days before because my insurance company more than tripled the cost of my old medication? Were these guys supposed to know that I would be experiencing some withdrawal symptoms (headaches, nausea, dizziness, shaking, etc) from the old pills and that it may take some days before I find the new "normal" me? Was Jon really the wisest man when he said - and yes I'm going verbatim again folks,

Don't you think you should just man up and think about how you're acting. You're bigger than this.

Um. Really? You have no idea how upset that comment still makes me, and it's 48 hours later... Oh boy. But I really do love that pillow.

Linking to

The Engineer and the Sentimentalist

So - The Actor and the Housewife. Have you read it? Are you going to? I only gave it two stars on Goodreads, but boy has this one given me a lot to think about this week.

A friend of mine said the book made her uncomfortable because it would make her husband uncomfortable. She also said that I probably wouldn't have that same issue. Hmm - consternation. My own hubby doesn't seem to have a jealous bone, but do I give that enough consideration? Do I give him cause to be uncomfortable?

I think my man is one of the best. Another friend described him as a huggable, teddy bear-type, and she nailed it. She said that as she gets to know him a little better, she will be hugging him. I love that. I enjoy hugging him often.

I have always had a few, really good, male friends. Growing up it was Shawn Stewart and Mike Verville. High school - Philip Walstad and Christian Faulconer. I met Matt my freshman year at Utah State. Kyle came on scene early sophomore year. I did a good bit of dating, but I don't remember spending more time with anyone than Matt & Kyle.

Matt & Kyle made up all sorts of names for the guys I dated, but they never could come up with one for Jon. We'd gone to Seattle for an ASCE convention in February 1993. Jon was picking me up at the airport. Our plane landed in SLC at about 11:30 pm on Valentine's Day. Matt & Kyle hurried to get off the plane before me, and they were stalling me in the tunnel leading up to the gate. I happened to look up, and Jon was standing there patiently with a rose. He proposed on the way back to Logan.

June 1993. Matt & Kyle were graduating. I was getting married in a month. Matt was going to Seattle to do his masters at UW. Kyle was staying to do his Masters at Utah State. Jon & I would be living in Logan while I finished up my undergrad.

My apartment was packed, and my car loaded. I'd gone over to Kyle's while he was packing up his house. Matt was there. I remember Matt all of a sudden saying that he had to go. He gave me a big hug and walked out the door, got in his truck, and waved. I stood there watching him drive away, thinking that I may never see him again. Shortly afterward I hugged Kyle and left myself. I cried the entire way to Salt Lake. I remember being so frustrated with my future MIL because she didn't understand how I could cry over these two guys when I was going to marry her son.

Kyle brought a girl named Kim to my wedding receoption. My MIL drove me to the airport when I flew to Seattle for Matt's wedding (he found Kathy at UW - they had an incredible romance that Matt shared in various emails). I was pregnant with Evan when a kilt-wearing Kyle & Marion were hitched (he went all the way to the UK to find her). Both of them have two kids that I've never met but get to see in Christmas cards.

I like to think that I had as much of an impact on Matt and Kyle as they have had on me. But, there is still another man that I chose over them. He is the one I created a home with, the one who I created our 3 boys with, the one who makes me laugh every day, and the only one that I miss when we're apart for long weekends.

So - Becky Jack - I completely understand why you couldn't choose Felix. He just isn't Mike.

You Silly - Ladies ALWAYS Go First...

Today Jon and I had one of those rare days where we were out & about, together, on a weekday without any children.

Griff will be the first to tell you that I had to go get my girl parts checked. He was very upset that he couldn't go with me because I get to go whenever he gets shots. There was absolutely no way G-man was going to that appointment with me. I can just imagine the questions flying out of that kid's pie hole. Yikes.

Anyway - Jon dropped me off and then went to get my vehicle's safety & emission tests done - because he "knows" the guys at Jiffy Lube. Whatever. The thing passed, and he paid for the sticker right there so that I wouldn't have to go to DMV. He even put the sticker on the plate for me. That's one wonderful man that I've got.

After picking me up we headed to the same place that we always go when the kids aren't with us and we're on the south end of the valley - Pei Wei. Jon had the nerve to walk in the restaurant ahead of me and let me hold my own door. Now I do this on a regular basis when he's not around or if the entire fam-damily is together, but COME ON! It wasn't like he was out for lunch with the guys! It was just the two of us. I won't even begin to tell you what else he did before I got the chance this afternoon...

Again - anyway. While we were driving home we were talking about the books I've been reading lately. I had The Unthinkable: Who Survives When Disaster Strikes - And Why with me because I can't read the thing at night. It makes me think too much, and I find myself wanting to share passages from it with Jon and talk about whether we agree or disagree. It's fabulous.

So - this morning I finished Maggie, which is the sequel to one of my top ten favorite books - The Dead Don't Dance. These are the story of Dylan and Maggie Styles. Maggie hemorrhages after the birth of their stillborn son and slips into a coma. TDDD is about Dylan living while Maggie sleeps. Maggie is about what happens between them when she wakes up...

When Maggie opened her eyes that New Year’s Day some seventeen months ago, I felt like I could see again. The fog lifted off my soul, and for the first time since our son had died and she had gone to sleep–some four months, sixteen days, eighteen hours, and nineteen minutes earlier–I took a breath deep enough to fill both of my lungs.

I was curious what my hubby would do if something happened to me. I asked him if he'd sit next to me in the hospital while the monitors beeped. His reply?

"Nah - I'd make a recording, repeating that it's gonna be all right - go toward the light. You'd see me soon enough."

I was completely flummoxed! I just sat there staring at him. So then he said,

"What?! Someone'd have to watch the boys!"

3 Strikes in an Otherwise Enjoyable Evening

Jon and I enjoy watching movies after the boys have gone to bed at night. Jon will watch anything, and he remembers everything. I am a little more selective in what I'll watch (no horror or monsterquest for me), but occassionally I'll try something just for the heck of it. After a couple of years pass I have a hard time remembering if I've seen something - especially if it didn't make a big impression the first time around.

Somewhere I'd recently seen a review for Fireproof and thought it would be a good one to pick up from Redbox. It sat in my purse for a couple of days and then Jon suggested watching it Tuesday night. We made it through about the first 20 minutes of the thing.

If you've had to endure watching seminary movies, you have witnessed better acting in a Christian film than this thing possesses. I now understand that this movie is a plug for the book The Love Dare, but boy is it transparent! Maybe we would have liked it more if we'd stuck it out, but in the best interest of our marriage it had to be removed.

Next we tried one of the movies I checked out at the library (what's better than a free DVD that you get to keep for a week?!). I checked out Gross Pointe Blank (which is one of my all time favorite movies. We've seen it multiple times but will watch it repeatedly. Last night just wasn't a GPB-type of night), Little Miss Sunshine, and Conversation(s) with Other Women.

I put in Conversation(s) with Other Women. It looked somewhat quirky, and it definitely lived up to that expectation. We made it about half an hour into this thing and could no longer handle the split screen.

I suppose that may feed into why we don't like picture-in-picture or scrolling text while watching TV either. If you're watching TV to relax, how much stimulation do you need to force on your brain? Wait - let's also flashback in one of the splitscreens (and flash forward in at least one instance). You gotta be at the top of your game to keep up! How can you do that when the dialogue is very quietly delivered, sometimes under a breath, and not all that stimulating anyway?

We ended up watching the news and had a heated discussion about the benefits of applying dead carp as fertilizer (that's right I did say C-A-R-P). I have an involved history with carp (well, my younger brother does), and Jon grew up across the street from the brother of man using the carp. This morning I can't believe how stupid we were to even be arguing over the topic - we were obviously not in the best spot after watching the beginnings of two doozies. It was not a pretty end to our evening.

From This ... To This ... A Valentine Sneek Peek

Last year I went public with my valentine's gift for Jon. This year I'm gonna keep it just between us - well except for this little snippet.

Here's the cover of the book I'm making him:











Page one:











Page two:

(BTW - after scanning this and previewing it here I saw a way to vamp her up a bit. If you use your imagination, I think you'll see baby doll to teddy...










Amazing huh?

Page two started out as this






and went to that ^. I was looking through my scrap paper, and this idea just popped in. She's not quite as sexy as I'd imagined, but I do have some artistic limitations.




Oh - and Happy Valentine's Night to you, too!

I've Got One of My Own...

Last night Jon took me to see Australia. I was a little let down by the music - I was expecting something along the lines of Out of Africa or Man from Snowy River. Somewhere Over the Rainbow is one of my favorite songs, but how about something original that facilitates you getting all swept up in the moment?

Musical score aside, I loved this movie! We only got one phone call from the boys, and we got to sit front & center to see Hugh in all his fantastic glory.

At one point, Jon leaned over and asked, "So when are the blades going to pop out of his hands?" I know how much Jon likes X-Men, and Wolverine is one of the favored characters at our place. I did one of those eye-rolling head shakes and squeezed his knee. At least the man has humor.

Hugh eventually made his white jacket appearance. My heart palpatations had me clutching my hands at chest level. I have a feeling that Hugh's wife ain't the only lady gettin turned on...

I happened to look at Jon out of the corner of my eye and remembered my own hunk of a man walking across the room toward me at our wedding reception. There was a sweetly familiar zing in Jon's eye that was also there 15 years ago.

Ya know what? I think he likes me ;)

Yick - One of the Things That Happen Just Because I'm the Lone Female...

Jon took Carson and Evan dove hunting on Monday. He's always told me that if it rains really hard the day before the opener, then the opener isn't any good. So - why would he think it was hunky-dory to take my guys out at 4:00 in the morning after the downpour we had Sunday night? I don't get it - they are so excited that they can't hardly go to sleep the night before, Jon wakes up at 3 freaking thirty to make porridge (aka oatmeal or germade) and toast so that they can have full stomachs. They gladly get up to eat (I honestly heard nothing out of Evan when their alarm go off - this is not normal!), and they load up. Whatever.

They left, drove down to Delta, got 1 bird, and came home.

They'd taken Hilo (our 3 yr old chocolate lab) with them for his 1st hunt and left Kona (our 11 yr old black lab) home. They decided that Kona would like to pretend she'd gone hunting, so they wanted to keep the dove to throw around for Kona to retrieve in the back yard. She's old enough that this is about all she can handle - so it's all good. I didn't ever think to ask where they were keeping the bird.

So, last night I went out to the garage fridge to get a Diet Coke. At this point you're probably wondering whether you really want to keep reading, huh? Eh - go ahead. I dare ya.

There were two cases in there, so I just reached into the one that was sitting at an angle looking like it only had 1 or 2 cans in the bottom. Did I look in the tilted case? NO! Why would I do that? When they're in there like that, they're either empty or they have a couple cans. PROBLEM - it didn't have any cans, just a DEAD DOVE. Griff just stood there and laughed at me shrieking. He rattled off something about how everyone knew that was the box with the bird. I couldn't really hear him cause I had the skeevies so bad. Cured me of my Diet Coke habit for an evening.

Come to think of it, today I've only had one out of the inside fridge - that's where I keep my bottles...

15 Years TODAY!!!

I love you, Jon!

Things I Love about Jon... (It is Valentine's Day after all)

Valentine's Day - 1993 - 15 years ago - Jon asked me to marry him. I'd gotten back from an engineering conference in Seattle late Valentine's night. Jon met me at the airport to drive me back to Logan. My plane was late, and by the time we got on the freeway it was about 11:45 pm. Jon didn't want to forever hear stories about how he proposed the day after Valentine's, so as we got on I-215 and headed east, he took a deep breath, pointed out the Salt Lake Temple, and asked, "That's romantic, huh?" I just sat there perplexed, and he popped the ole question. Not exactly the scenario I'd thought I'd get, but memorable all the same.

I made a book for Jon's 32nd birthday that contained 32 reasons that I loved him. It's been a few years since I put it together, but reading through it sure helps reinforce that I made the right choice that Valentine's night. Making such a list is a fabulous exercise - if you haven't tried it, you should.

Here are my February 2008 Top 10 Favorite Things about Jon (had to put the date in there because this is a dynamic list):

1. The sound of his voice - Jon's deep, melodious voice carries very well (Have to admit that I don't think melodious and Jon have ever been combined in the same sentence. Dang romance novels) Even in a room full of people, I can close my eyes, listen to him talk, and walk right to him.


2. His wake up routine - I tell him to get out of bed about every 10 minutes for half an hour. He finally gets up, goes pee, and then gets back in bed - to stretch his back. Just so you know - I have found other ways to wake him over the past 15 years, but this is a family blog. What were you thinking?


3. The number of pillows he needs to sleep comfortably - When we got married he had the f-l-a-t-t-e-s-t pillow I'd ever seen. Now he has one for his feet, one for his knees, one at his back, one to hug, one for his head, and one against the headboard so that his hand has a place to rest and doesn't have to be left without any fluff. Did I mention that we also have a pillow top mattress and sleep under a down comforter? It's a bit of heaven I assure you.


4. His love of breakfast - He always makes sure the boys or hunting companions have a good breakfast before taking on the day. Could be oatmeal, chocolate cake with milk, fried eggs, or cinnamon toast. Doesn't matter - everyone gets food in their tummies before they walk out the door.


5. How he gets nervous - He is not a big fan of change. It is endearing to me to know that even my well-endowed tough guy has things that make him uneasy. (That 'well-endowed' part was added after he read through this and was disappointed that I hadn't mentioned the size of his manliness. How's that, Sweet?)


6. How he wears shorts year round - Doesn't matter that it's snowing like a banshee and you can't see 1-foot in front of your face - Jon will be outside wearing wool socks, boots, and his down parka, but the knees will be bare.


7. He loves my Christmas village - Most years he's more anxious than I am to get this thing out. Of course, he moves that rubber lizard around so it's a daily adventure to see in which branch of the sewer it must have been swimming. Then there's Mr. Timms - the hotel bellhop. Mr. Timms gets awful depressed over the holidays, and he has a tendency to climb tall buildings looking for the best jumping spot. Never a dull day in Christmas in the City!


8. Nightly backrubs - I have a favorite type of comb that has become sacred at our house. It has a comb on one end and a metal pick at the other. If the boys have gone to bed and one of these combs can't be located, they will be dragged downstairs for the treasure hunt. (OK so this is one of my diva-quirks. In a house where I'm the lone female, I'm allowed) On any given night after the boys are in bed, I can go sit on the floor by the couch, and Jon will use said comb to tickle my back.


9. He's the laid back one - I love that he lets me be the one to get uptight about stuff. It'd put me over the edge if both of us took up the habit.


10. Sanctuary - I love that no matter what, Jon has a space for me within his arms and that regardless of the noise and distractions within or outside our home, he gives me moments where I'm exactly where I need to be.

So - Jonny - thank you for being the man I go to sleep with at night, wake up with in the morning, and most important - being the person that I most anticipate seeing or hearing every single day. You help me laugh at myself, thoroughly love and enjoy the 3 incredible boys we've created, and make our home a place I relish.

I love you.