Brian Regan

Heather got all of my sisters together for a fun filled time together in Logan.  We got tickets to Brian Regan!!  I love him.  He has brought many side splitting laughs to our family. 
I drove to Pocatello...yes I did.  DaNae couldn't bring me back to SLC to fly home, so the flying thing didn't work out this time.  Dang it.
I then transferred my luggage to Heather's van.  She is a good (kind of) driver.  She drove Shalean and I to Logan where we met up with DaNae and checked into our awesome Marriott hotel suit! 
We had a ball being together and laughing more than is legal.  I may or may not have snorted a few times.  Mostly my sisters made fun of my age, and cracked old jokes.  They are just jealous...
I also confess to drinking too much Dr. Pepper.

We went to the Logan temple and that was really neat.  I had never been there before.  I loved seeing my sisters in white and thinking of what it would be like when Lori and Mom are with us too. 

We shopped until we couldn't walk anymore.   I scored a sweet pair of jeans that I had been waiting to buy.  And yes, we shop like our mother : )

Before the concert we got a little restless and started taking funny pictures.  Brian Regan didn't start until 10:30.  Looking at these pictures reminds me of the bedroom we all shared.  I think there was like a king size bed and a bunk bed in the "girls" room.  I remember that awesome red sued bed spread.

                                                I am so happy to have sisters in my life!

The Temple: "I'm going there someday"

 Coelton made one more step in his progression.  He went to the temple for his own endowment.  When he received his mission call, the stake president told him to get to the temple as soon as he could.  With Christmas and then going back to school, he was finally able to go on Feb. 12.  He chose to go to the Boise temple.  His buddy Garrett was having his mission farewell on the 13th and Coelton really wanted to go, so he came home for both events. 

Joels parents and my Dad drove over with Coelton.  It was nice to have some family with us.  Uncle Jason and Aunt Stephanie also came.  Coelton's friends, Garrett and Austin also were there. 

As a Mother, it was a huge pay day.  When I saw Coelton in the temple, I was so happy.  I got that lump in my throat that spills over my cheeks!  I just wanted to give him a hug and hold him for a long time.  He is so excited to be a missionary.  I know that the blessings of the temple will help him on his mission and through out his life. 

I know that families are forever.  I am so thankful for mine.

The Eastern Idahoans had to hit the road back, so we grabbed a quick bite to eat at Fudruckers. 

(not sure you should say that too fast after going to the temple ; )

Dad Hammer needed to be back to Shelley due to his meeting with an apostle!  Elder Anderson set him apart to be a temple sealer in the Idaho Falls temple.

Coelton was able to enjoy the rest of Saturday and all day on Sunday with us. It was the BEST!

  We sadly sent him back to Rexburg on a shuttle.  He caught the bus at the airport at 7:30pm.  He was scheduled to be back in Rexburg at the Hart building at 1am.  We called Coelton off and on through out his trip, he had to change buses in Pocatello and everything was going well.  We told him to call us when he got to BYU-I.  He called at 1am and told us he was dropped off at the wrong spot.  He was about 4 miles from his apartment.  Joel called the shuttle company and got into a fight with the dispatcher.  She called the bus driver who told her that he went to the Hart building after he made the stop where Coelton got off. 

After talking to Coelton more, we got this story:

He was in and out of sleep and was worried he would miss his stop.  When he woke up he could see they were in Rexburg and he didn't know they would be stopping there.  Instead of ASKING the bus driver if they would be going to the HART building he just got off the bus. 

Let's think for a moment about that...Rexburg Idaho...February...1am...lots of snow...very cold.

Coelton has his luggage and is walking to his apartment.  He can't talk on the phone very long because his hand freezes.  We were ready to call the police and have an officer go and pick him up, but he made it to his place by 2am.  He also called all of his room mates and none of them picked up their phones.

I hope he learns to TALK to people...especially bus drivers.

It makes me a bit nervous to send him to Puerto Rico for 2 years.

Chloe's eye surgery

In Sept./Oct. we noticed that Chloe's eye was getting really red and would get puffy.  It would get really bad at times and her teacher would send her to the school nurse because they thought it was pink eye.  I had to pick her up from school twice.  It would get really bad and then go away for a little while and then come back.  We took her to Dr. Loveland and we tried 2 different eye drops.  Nothing worked. We were finally referred to a specialist...an opthamologist.  I called for an appointment and they told me I couldn't get in until April.  They referred me to another one that I called and they told me it would be May before I could get to see the Dr.  I painted an ugly picture for them and told then what I was dealing with and they put me on hold.  When they got back on the phone they said, "Oh, your in luck, we just had a cancellation on Monday morning."   I was thinking, "ya right...I'll take it".

When the Dr. looked at her she saw some little bumps on her eyelids that were full of virus and were making her eye sick.  She said the body would eventually fight them off, but it could take years.  She recommended that we do a little surgery to remove the lesions. 

The next week, we went into a surgical center early in the morning.  The anesthesiologist called the night before and told Chloe she could bring her favorite blanket and stuffed animal.  She brought her pillow pet.  (dolphin)

They put a black mark above the eye that would be getting all the attention.  I wished I would have taken a picture of her eye when it was bad.

Chloe loved playing with the mask that would put her to sleep.

The Anesthesiologist gave her some medicine that made her relax and she became very silly.  She was very funny and was putting the mask on her dolphin and giggling about it.  She didn't even know when they wheeled her away to be put to sleep.

I had no idea what to expect.  The little girl who was waking up from her sleep in the recovery room was screaming her head off.  I pictured chloe with a black eye or a patch etc. 

When they brought us back to her I was very surprised to see that she looked really good.  She just had 3 little red spots on her eyelid.  They cut them and took out the core and then cauterized them.  They put some ointment on and called it good...and it was. It actually looked better after surgery.

We watched Chloe sleep for 40 minutes.  They told us that it is best to let them sleep as long as they can.  When she finally woke up she said, "Is my surgery over?"  We waited for the Dr. to give the okay and then we went home.  I once again, thought she would sleep all day, and I would have to keep a close eye on her and cater to her every need.  Boy was I wrong.  I carried her in the house and she ran up stairs and put on her shorts and turned on the wii and played Just Dance!   

 



Love that Bogus Basin!

We have been to Bogus about 10 times so far.  We have had some awesome days on the mountain.  The girls stay with me and Joel has decided he likes to stay with us too.  Caden usually brings a friend and they take off as soon as we get there. 

Chloe has become such a good little skier.  She can now go on green runs and most blue ones.  She has even tackled a couple of black diamonds.  One was a little scary when she fell and it was so steep she started sliding down the run and got going faster and faster.  I had to ski really fast to get in front of her and acted as the wall that she crashed into...right in front of a big tree.   She LOVES it and can't wait to go up each week. 

Hailey is practicing pulling her legs together and getting out of the snow plow position.  She does very well and can pretty much go on any run.  She is deciding if she wants to be a boarder or a skier. 

Oh ya...the best part is eating a large bogus fry!  When ya stick with Mom and Dad, that's a little perk that comes along with it. 

I have been really bad at taking my camera skiing.  I don't have very many pictures.  I went last Monday with the ladies in the ward.  It always feels so wierd to be skiing while the kids are in school and Joel is working...perhaps a little guilty.    It is pretty nice to be able to go on any run and go as fast as I want. 

2 weeks ago Joel and I got up Saturday morning and woke up the kids to get ready so we could go skiing.  The kids wouldn't get out of bed, so we left them and went skiing for the day together.  Just the 2 of us.  It was really great.  Joel finds all the powder runs and loves that.  Snowboarders love powder.  Skiers have a harder time in powder.  For one thing it makes my legs BURN.  I fell a couple of times too, and it's a lot harder for me to get back up than it used to be.  Mostly I like to kiss on the chair lift : )

Coelton is having the time of his life at BYU-I.  He is taking the snowboarding class and has a pass to Targhee.  He goes there every Thursday.  He was put in the advanced class and his instructor is a GIRL!  He is loving it a lot...the snowboarding, not the girl.    He promises me he will take pictures...of him snowboarding, not the girl. 

Happy Birthday Chloe!

Chloe had a fantastic 7th birthday!  She had her first b-day party at age 5, and I have let the kids have a b-day party every other year.  I told her she should wait until she's 8 to have a party, but of course she wanted one this year! 

She invited 6 friends to go to "Bounce".  They had a great time playing on the inflatables.  We were there for about 15 minutes and they all said, "When are we leaving?"  We ended up staying for an hour and a half, then went to our house and opened presents and played musical charis and pin the tail on the donkey. 

 One of Chloe's friends gave her some pet frogs. She was SO excited. Chloe wants a dog so bad. Any kind of pet is so awesome. They are named Lily and Hopper. They are fun to watch and easy to care for.


She got lots of fun gifts. Chloe has the sweetest little friends!

Hailey invited Jordyn to keep her company.  Jordyn brought a present for Chloe!

The girls all got to eat a snowman cookie and make one to take home. 

I feel very domestic!  I made this cute skirt for her.  My sister DaNae makes cute skirts and she showed me how via a online tutorial.  I gave this outfit to Chloe for her birthday.  She looks so cute and was so excited!

She also got an art table with a chalk board, wipe board and paper.  She loves her new pillow pet.  She wanted the dolphin.  Who would have thought pillow pets would be such a big deal.  All the kids want one. 

 

The family took Chloe out to breakfast to our favorite Cafe Express, but it was so crowded we ended up at Denny's.  Joel left for England that afternoon, so we enjoyed a lazy day, Chloe loved just hanging out and playing with her gifts. 

Nephew Weddings

When I married Joel nearly 20 years ago, these boys were very small.  I remember Chad toddling around in his blanket sleepers.  We were all at his house in St. George and he tripped over Joel's  foot and fell.  He quickly stood up and yelled "quit it, dummy!" It was so funny to hear that out of such a little boy.
 Chad went skiing with us to Bogus a few years ago.  I was so amazed at how he could do back flips on his board.  I think he can do flips and all kinds of tricks on the tramp and just on the lawn.  Those Heward kids are amazing.  Chad is so friendly and is always fun to talk to.
 
I taught Taylor and his 2 brothers clogging lessons when he was in like 1st or 2nd grade.  He was at our duplex one day and wondered into my kitchen.  I had a book shelf full of food.  He came back into the living room and said "Aunt Natalie, do you have any Chips or Chili I could have?"  The funny thing is there was a big bag of chips and some cans of chilli sitting on the shelf that he must have scoped out. 
I always love how Taylor calls me Aunt Natalie.  He has always been a fun nephew to talk to and be around.
  
Chad Heward married Mickey on December 18th in the St. George temple.

Taylor Wray married Becca in the Bountiful temple on January 6th. 

I have no idea how to get these pics the right way.  I rotated them in my file before I download them into the blog, but they go in the other way.  If anyone knows how to fix this please comment.  Thanks.

Back to College

After the Judy family Christmas party, we stayed the night at Rhett and Claudine's house.  We stayed up until like 1am, so our hopes of attending a 9am church didn't happen.  We needed to drop Coelton off at BYU-I and then get back to Boise so the kids could go back to school the next day. We went to church  at Heather's 11am ward in Rigby.
We drove to Rexburg and went to Coelton's new apartment.  He used to live in 215, now he lives in 205.  He still lives at Nauvoo House.   His apartment was freezing!  He was the first one there, so we cranked up the heat and turned on his oven and baked some otis spunkmeyer cookie dough we had in the car.
We got all of his stuff moved in and set up.  We also went to the store and got him some food, since he doesn't have a car. 
It was time for us to hit the road back to Boise.  We gave him hugs and before we knew it everyone was in tears and it was very hard to say good-bye AGAIN!  It was so good to have him home for 3 weeks.   It was like he had never left.  We love having all the kids home and being a family.  It's not the same with him gone.

We were all so exhausted on the drive back to Boise.  It was a full 4 days!  Hammer/Judy families and taking Coelton back.  I looked in the back seat and saw this freaky thing.  Caden sleeps with his eyes half open.  The girls were crashed too.