Just Because

I was downstairs doing the laundry yesterday and when I came upstairs I found these:

And this:
And this:
And these:
And this:
Because my husband is awesome. That's why.

The Big FOUR-OH!

I have been looking forward to telling you everything that I am thankful for today. This one's easy... I am thankful for this guy.


Today Allen celebrates his 40th birthday. So first off, let's give credit where credit is due: I am thankful to my sweet mother-in-law for getting him here. And for raising him the way that she did so that I could have such a great man for my husband.

I won't get into too much detail here, but let me tell you a few reasons why I am thankful for this man of mine.

I am thankful that he is service-minded. He is always going out of his way to do kind things for others, even when he doesn't always have the time to do so.

I am thankful for his ability to make or fix or build or do ANYTHING he sets his mind to. If he doesn't know how to do something, he's not afraid to learn.

I am thankful that he loves kids as much as I do.

I am thankful that he has such an amazing family which I have called my own from the start. I have the best in-laws on this planet!

I am thankful that he works hard and takes pride in a job well done.

I am thankful that he knows when to be serious... and when to be silly. It is so fun to have a spouse who laughs at my jokes and makes me laugh as well.

I am thankful he is mine.

Happy Birthday, Allen! Here's to many, many more years to celebrate together.

Treasure

Mother's Day was, in a word, awesome.

I got a beautiful new rosebush with "Our Mother's Day Mailbox Rosebush" labeled on the front.

Throughout the day I found letters from each of my kids nestled in the bush... including this classic from Coolister (who, may I point out, is almost sixteen).
On Monday there was no school and I was surprised with Mother's Day, Part II. I was spoiled so rotten I was afraid I was beginning to stink.

When I went outside I found that Allen had built a planter where the new rosebush could reside.
Throughout the day the kids would ask me, "Did you plant your flowers yet?" To be honest, I figured that if I held out long enough they would be planted for me.

No such luck.

As I washed the breakfast dishes this morning Princess called to me, "Mom! There's a mailbox by your flowers!" I looked out the window thinking that perhaps I'd find the purple Columbine flowers I received from church on Sunday planted by our mailbox.

Here is what I saw instead:
Indeed, a quaint, rustic looking mailbox was there in the flowerbed. And the flag was up. You know what that means...

Mail!
It was a letter from my sweetheart.
I'm not going to tell you what it said. Some things are for me alone. I will say this, though: Boy, oh boy am I a lucky lady.

I decided that after all of the work he put into everything the least I could do was get those roses in the ground.

I left the kidlets in the house with ElemenoB (who was home with a sore throat) and set to digging myself a hole. Almost immediately I hit a rock.

Cursed ground! I thought. I tried to pry it out with the shovel and found that it was not a rock at all...
It was some kind of burlap sack. Buried treasure!

Suddenly the kids' excitement for me to plant the rosebush the day before made sense. I pulled the sack out and unwrapped its contents, anxious to see what was hidden inside.
I grabbed the drill and removed the lid...
Pulled off the newspaper...
...and found my buried treasure.

I am absolutely overwhelmed at the effort that went into making this Mother's Day(s) completely unforgettable.

But you want to know where the real treasure is?

Right here.

For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also. -Matthew 6:21

Not For The Squeamish

Disclaimer: There's nothing particularly clever or funny about this post. Just so you know.

When you hear cataracts you probably think of your grandma, right? Not around here.

Allen is a young cataract patient. The best the doctors can guess is that the cataracts were caused by exposure to sunlight over time (so wear your sunglasses!). The good news is that cataract surgery is the most successful surgery in the United States today.

The thing about Allen is this: when he wants to find out about something he will research it until there is nothing left to discover and then decide how to move forward from there. After reading about all of the various lens replacements and surgical methods available he was ready to make plans for surgery.

His first surgery is scheduled for next week.

In all of his research he found some videos of the actual surgery taking place. He wanted to show them to me because he found them fascinating and educational. Despite my apprehension and squeamish stomach I watched this video of a cataract surgery with him and thought I was handling it well until I saw this photo that ElemenoB snapped...

At least I'm not vomiting. (Yet.)

I will say that I am extremely happy that we live in a time and place where this kind of surgery is almost guaranteed to be successful. Add that to Allen's confidence that all will go well and most of my fears are eased.

p.s. This is my 300th post! Holy smokes.

Dancing Queen

We had a Valentine's Day dance at our church on Saturday. As a general rule I tend to avoid dances where there are other adults present. Especially when the flier mentions "ballroom dance instruction".

I can not do any form of organized dance. I was kicked out of Modern Dance class my sophomore year of high school for a good reason. (Apparently watching 80's Madonna videos was not a good way to learn to modern dance. Whatever.)

We arrived at the dance as a teenaged couple were strutting their ballroom stuff in the gym to the cheers and applause of the crowd. After a few more numbers the lights were finally turned off.

It was time.

Allen asked if I wanted to dance to a half slow, half happy-bouncy kind of song. We took our place among the other couples and I immediately began to attempt a half sway, half bounce sort of dancing.

"You're right," Allen said. "Maybe we should just sit down."

But when the band started to play some upbeat Elvis numbers I really couldn't help myself. Allen joined me as we tore up the dance floor.

(Much to the horror of others.)

We brought the house down with a big finish which included some move we invented where Allen picked me up and swung me in a circle. I felt like we were the stars of High School Musical or something. It was awesome.

(I don't care how goofy I look in this picture because I love that Allen is captured here in the middle of a genuine laugh!)

Well, that was enough dancing for the night.

So we thought.

The band surprised us with a few more modern numbers that I just couldn't stay in my seat for. Allen was engaged in the fine art of conversation so I took the opportunity to relive my old 'church dance days' and do a little dancing with myself.

And then we went home and played RockBand.

The end.

Sweet Sixteen

Tomorrow marks the 16th year of our marriage - can you believe it?
SIXTEEN years!

I know what you're thinking... how did she score such a hottie?

Lots of hard work and stalking, my friends. But it sure paid off.

I consider myself one very lucky girl.


Happy Anniversary, Allen!

Three for Thursday

My husband is a man of many talents, a jack-of-all-trades you could say. He is humble about it though, and wouldn't admit half of them if asked. (And because I don't want to completely embarrass him, I will keep them to myself, too. For now.) I do want to share a little, though. I mean, can't I brag? I decided that all would be well and good if I just shared 3 things. And these are 3 things he has created using the same talent: woodworking. The most amazing thing about his skill with wood is that the blueprints are all in his head. Here are 3 of his most recent creations:

First, this cute toddler bed, complete with removable rails. Doesn't little Curly-head look perfectly content?

Next, this beautiful room. Our 2 oldest girls got their own room as a Christmas gift a couple years ago. He built them matching dressers, framed the window and refinished the bed all in the same color. He designed and built the wainscot, some shelves above the closet and door, and came up with the idea of the wood ceiling. Awesome.

And now, a work in progress, our front room. It was one of those unused-to-its-full-potential rooms, the kind we only sat in when someone came to visit. So we decided to turn it into a library and study. It has been a work in progress for quite some time, but the wait will be well worth it. The ceiling is almost completely finished:

And this is the bay window:

I can't wait to show off the finished product!

P.S. Someday, when he is retired and has his own woodworking business for fun, he can build stuff for you, too.

Oh, What A Beautiful Morning!

I have been suffering lately from a self-induced lack of sleep. I stay up much too late, reading books or blogs or watching movies or what-have-you. Then I try to fall asleep, fighting the pregnancy-induced RLS urge to kick and wiggle my legs as I wait for my calcium supplement to take effect. Baby 9 decides this is the ideal time to do a little breakdancing and gymnastics before settling nicely onto my bladder so that I once again have to get out of bed and visit the bathroom...you get the picture. Before I know it, 6:30 am rolls around and I am gently shaken awake by my oldest boy to start a new day.

But not yesterday morning. Yesterday morning was glorious.

I woke up well after the sun had come up and tried to orient my brain to what day it was. Saturday? No... then I realized the vacuum was going. Allen was still home, and he let me sleep in! What a rare, welcomed treat. He had set his alarm to get up before the kids, make their lunches & breakfast and get them to school. After returning home he did the dishes, vacuumed, and straightened the house up. All while I was still enjoying a sweet slumber.

I love that man.

Surprise Endings

I have had a few requests that I write a blog about my sweetheart, Allen. Let me say this: As much as I LOVE the spotlight, he avoids it. Unlike me, Allen is not a real showy kind of guy who likes to bare his secrets to the world. They say opposites attract, and in many cases that fits us to a T.

But I will give you a little snippet of what I know about Allen that you don't: he is great with surprises. (I, on the other hand, cannot keep a surprise a secret to save my life. I'm too excited to give it to the lucky recipient.) Like the time he got me a piano for Christmas. How do you keep that a secret? He pulled it off flawlessly. I was convinced I was getting a deep-freezer.

Allen read my last blog about the Twilight series of books and came home with a copy of Eclipse for me. What a fun surprise! (He also read the entire spoiler on the book at wikipedia and threw out little hints of what was to come...check out his comment on my last blog entry.)

I have been devouring this book as much as I did the others while attempting to keep the house above "hit by a tornado" status. This morning I finished it. On page 599, I found some writing in the binding:

...and there was another surprise, the itinerary for a trip to visit my friend Rebecca in Washington!

There's your snippet. If this doesn't embarrass him too much, there may be further installments.

Thanks Allen!
I would have just called you, but you're in that meeting. Let me know if you want me to delete this post.
Love, Gerb

15th Anniversary, Day Three: The Trip Home & Star Valley

(Family barn in Afton)

Our trip home was the only plan for the last day of our weekend getaway. Just drive and enjoy the scenery. We planned to get home a different way - by driving through beautiful Star Valley, Wyoming. Star Valley, or more specifically, Afton, has always been revered in my mind as the childhood home of my mother-in-law, one of the most amazing women ever to set foot on this planet. I am always amazed when we drive through the lush green pastures and grassy hills. I wonder if she misses it all, there in the dry desert among sagebrush and Joshua trees where she has spent her entire married life.

We decided on something of a whim to stop in and visit two of Allen's uncles and their wives who still live in Afton. His uncle Lloyd and aunt Bonnie still live on the property where my mother-in-law's family ran a dairy farm. We were able to enjoy a quick visit with them before they needed to head into town.

Next we headed over to Ralph and Beth's home, where we probably overstayed our welcome but enjoyed every minute of it. We got updates on all of their children, complete with pictures. We learned all sorts of interesting things about them that we did not previously know. My favorite two were:

1: Ralph is an amazing photographer.

2: Beth is a talented painter.

When it was about time to head for home, Beth offered us some fresh produce from their garden. How can anyone resist fresh produce? So, we all went out back and picked enough to feed our family for about a month. We picked corn...

...beets, carrots, onions, squash, potatoes, zucchini, cabbage and green beans. And Beth shared with me her recipe for Milk Can Soup, which we enjoyed twice after returning home, along with yellow squash muffins. Heaven.

We also got to visit Ralph's wood shop, where he creates some fascinating candlesticks and replicas of the hay thrower his dad used when he was young, among other treasures.

I would love to have their life when Allen and I are at that stage with kids all grown and married with families of their own. Their home is beautiful, their yard is vast and well maintained, and their garden is to die for. And they have time to pursue their other interests and enter them into competitions at the County Fair. What a dream!

Here is a small portion of some of the garden fresh produce we got to bring home:
How are we supposed to top off that anniversary?

I don't think we'll try.

15th Anniversary, Day Two: The River

On the agenda for the second day of our anniversary celebration was a trip down the Snake River. Let me mention here that I have a greater fear of water than I do of heights. My fear stems from a combination of experiences with the Mississippi River (it was a bike ride away from my childhood home in Clinton, Iowa) and swimming pools.

I have never really considered water to be my friend.

However, this was a challenge! I was going to face my fear and CONQUER THE SNAKE! (if it didn't conquer me first)

Notice how confident I am in the above picture...arm in the air, screaming to the wind, "Bring on BIG KAHUNA!!" (Allen is 'riding the bull', on the front of the raft, and I am directly behind him.)

As we began to float down the river, all was well. The water was relatively calm, and no one was drowning. Our guide, Cristal, decided to shake things up a bit.

"I need a volunteer. Hey, you, in the front, what's your name?"

I remained quiet and looked to Melissa, sitting next to me. She was as scared as I was, but I was hoping she'd take one for the team. Peer pressure got to her and she volunteered.

Cristal thanked her and instructed, "You're going to 'ride the bull' through the first rapid. Just crawl up there onto the front of the boat, hold onto the rope, and throw one hand in the air."

Melissa declined. I think she said something like, "NO WAY." Someone else volunteered, and all was well. We made it through rapid #1, and everyone was still alive. I felt a bit safer.

"Who's riding the next one up front?" Cristal asked every time we approached a new rapid. I was egged on to volunteer every time. I told you I like a challenge, so in an act of stupidity and an attempt to be funny, I said, "I'm waiting for the Big Kahuna."

My loving husband saved me there. "I'll ride Kahuna. You ride another one."

As we made it through each rapid, I became more confident. No one fell out. No one drowned. I can do this, I told myself.

"Here comes Champagne. Gerberta, you climb up front."

So I did. And I rode like a mad woman, hand in the air, mocking the 12-foot waves as they crashed down upon me. (12 feet may be a slight exaggeration) I yelled, "BRING IT ON!!" as we fell down the 8-foot waterfall. (There may not have been any waterfall, either.)

When we came out of the rapid, I realized with amazement that I had survived!

As I moved back into position, Allen said to me, "I never thought I would see the day that you would ride on the front of a raft."

Just what I wanted to hear. I love to surprise people, especially myself.

The 2 largest rapids on this stretch of the Snake are Lunch Counter and Big Kahuna. At Big Kahuna there are photographers perched upon a rock that take your picture and sell it to you for a mark-up of around 500%. (I'm a sucker for pictures of myself doing things I thought to be impossible, though. I guess they count on that.)

As we approached the larger rapids, I became nervous again. They looked pretty big from far away. I imagined they were only larger as we went through them. I imagined correctly.

Apparently, I had chosen the wrong place to sit (up front, in the middle) because I was completely drenched each time a new wave hit the boat. We made it through Lunch Counter. Now it was time for the photo opportunity at the Big Kahuna.

And I made it. I didn't fall out of the boat, I didn't drown or die, and the boat didn't flip. I didn't get caught in a whirlpool, sucked into an undertow, or eaten by a piranha. These fears were all unfounded!

I dare say, I had the time of my life! What an adventure. And I couldn't wait to see the pictures, to prove to any unbelievers that I did this.

The pictures were ordered online. They looked grand.

When they came in the mail and I could see them more clearly, I realized that my attempt to appear bold and fearless came across more as....well, see for yourself. Here is a close-up from the picture above:Maybe terrified is a better word? But I still made it.

Later that evening we went to the Bar J Wranglers Chuckwagon Cookout and Show, where some very talented guys play a variety of instruments and sing cowboy songs for everyone. Here is a picture of the planners of this fun trip, Ken and Vickie (at left). Thanks, Ken and Vickie, for including us in an unforgettable adventure!


Stay tuned for Day 3: Star Valley & The Trip Home!

15th Anniversary, Day One: The Hike

(Our wedding announcement photo, 1992)

Allen and I are simple people. That said, we did not have any grand plans for our 15th anniversary. However, our good friends Ken and Vickie invited us to join them and a group of their friends and family on a 3-day trip to Idaho and Wyoming. Anniversary festivities all planned out for us? How could we resist?! So, arrangements were made for the kids (Thanks Lyle and Eva!) and off we went on our little adventure.

The pre-first day was driving to our destination: Driggs, Idaho. Once we traveled past Idaho Falls (beautiful!) the trip was uneventful, so I won't bore you with the details. (Night trips are always a little more exciting for people like me who think every reflection of light to the side of the road is most likely the glare of a deer's eyes, ready to bolt in front of the car. What are they trying to accomplish with that, anyway? Haven't they seen their friends and family cross these roads, walk toward the light, and never return? It's nighttime! Go to bed already, where it's safe! The grass is NOT greener on the other side...)

Once we arrived in Driggs and located our hotel, we could not sleep. We are both night owls, and knowing we needed to rise bright and early at 4:30 a.m. did not matter. Plus, we don't watch T.V. at home, and - MAN ALIVE - there are all kinds of things in that box these days! Plenty of smut, but also home decorating, remodeling, real-life mysteries, some E.R. true-stories show where they're trying to figure out what the heck is wrong with someone before the paralysis spreads to his head and he stops breathing...could YOU turn this stuff off? Oh, yeah - and 24/7 sports. One of us was thrilled with that, the other was not.

Oh, yeah - the trip.

Before we know it, 4:30 a.m. rolls around, and we did what we do best: hit the snooze button (just once!) and then prepare for hike day. The plan was this: Hike Table Mountain after breakfast. And that we did.

We were told that Table Mountain is about a 14-mile hike, round-trip. I had planned to do some walking ahead of time, but it never happened.

"I'm young," I told myself. "I can totally do this."

My body laughed just now, as I typed that.

My problem is this: when I am challenged with a task that seems difficult or unattainable, I face it head on. I like to prove to myself that I can do things. So, Table Mountain? 14 miles? Bring it on.
The hike was beautiful. Scattered wildflowers, a variety of trees, even some wildlife. We enjoyed the conversation with our fellow hikers as we made our merry way along the trail and over streams. After we had gone at least 5 or 6 miles, my sweetheart (who has been on this hike twice previously with Scouts) happily announced, "We're probably about 1/4 of the way there now." Quick math...14 miles, 7 miles each way...one-fourth of that...

WHAT?!

But we continued on, enjoying the scenery and stopping for occasional breaks and photo opportunities. Allen continued to point out where Table Mountain was along the way.

"See that teeny tiny speck, WAY off in the distance below Grand Teton? That's where we're going."
Up we continued, up numerous switchbacks and eventually to a kind of plateau. At this point we could see Table Mountain off in the distance well enough to get a picture. (It's the little nub in the far right corner) I think we were more than halfway there at this point. I hate to admit this, but I was getting a little tired. And a little sore. But, nothing I couldn't handle. I was ready to CONQUER Table Mountain!

This is where the hike got really uphill. Up, up, up we went. I decided it was best to keep pushing on and not stop. I sang songs in my head with a steady tempo and kept pace with them, trying to keep up with Allen.

I think he was running by now. The man can hike.

After navigating over a large field of rocks (there is some really cool word for this but I can't remember it and can't find it anywhere - I think it starts with a "g") the real climb began. The last uphill pitch of the hike was deceptively steep. I did lots of singing here, keeping pace with 'American Pie' and 'The Sound of Music'. I wanted to walk to more upbeat songs, but my legs mocked me when I tried.

Did I mention that I have a fear of heights? It doesn't make sense, does it? I told you, I like a good challenge. As long as I didn't look back to where I came from, I was fine. The last 100 feet or so was up through some rock. I held on to the mountain with one hand and the ground with the other. Here's the last bit of the trail, almost to the top!As I stepped onto the mountain and looked over at the Tetons, I decided it was all worth it. What a breathtaking view! It was like being on the top of the world.
As we watched the rest of our group, as well as other hikers, making their way to the summit, clouds began to roll in. I have an aversion to being struck by lightening, so I started to make my way down... Oh. my.

It was steep. Did I really climb up this trail?? What was I thinking?

"Our sentiments exactly," said my knees.

We made our way down, back across the big field of rocks (Gravant? Is that the word? No, that's a river...but it's got some fancy French spelling...Gross Ventre or something...I talked to Allen - he's the one who kept using the word - it's called talus. Or, even better sounding, scree. Don't you love learning new words?!) and back to the switchbacks.

The evil switchbacks.

This is where the piggybacks began.

Piggyback is not a fancy word for part of the trail. It is a word used to describe the way a sturdy man can carry his wife down a mountain when her knees refuse to move. If it was up to Allen, he would have given me a piggyback ride the whole way down. He's that kind of guy. But, remember, I must CONQUER the trail! Here is where I got to know Gary.

Gary is an EMT. Ken and Vickie invited Gary and his wife Kathy on our little excursion, too. Gary had drugs. Ken had ace wraps and knee braces. Between the two of them, I had everything I needed on the way down the mountain. Well, the three of them. We can't forget my pack hubby. On the occasion that my knees would lock up, Allen would insist that I hop aboard.

Ken, his son Korey, and Gary stayed with Allen and I the whole way down. I told them they could go on ahead if they wanted. Their wives were further down the trail. They stayed with me.

I know I slowed them down.

I know they were looking out for me.

I love those guys.

On my last piggyback ride, fairly near the end of the trail, Gary pointed out something across the stream...
We would have missed the moose if it were not for Gary's noticing it. I think we were all watching for rocks on the trail at this point, no one was enjoying the beauty that completely surrounded us because we were all looking forward to the padded seats in our air conditioned rides back to the hotel. Again, beautiful.

By the time we arrived at the hotel, I could not even stand on my own. Allen threw me over his shoulder and carried me in.

By the next day, I could walk again. I looked a bit odd, but I could walk.

My advice to all: Don't run on pavement. I did that all through high school while on the cross-country team, and my knees have hated me ever since. Be nice to your knees, and they'll be nice to you as the years creep up on you.

Just out of curiosity, I looked up Table Mountain after we got home. Here is what I found: "This 11-mile roundtrip hike seems much longer than it really is because of the 4,000-foot elevation gain."

11 miles? No way. I'm sticking with 14. Or 20.




Stay tuned for Day 2: The River!