I saw this done by the wife of one of my nephews on Byron's side of the family so I thought that I would give it a shot. It's my "Year In Review". Definitely not Time magazine worthy stuff here but it will help make me feel less guilty about how little I update my blog. On your mark, get set, go...
JANUARY
This is a crazy month for us. If we don't get enough celebrating done between Thanksgiving and Christmas, we make up for it this month. Within 18 days we celebrate Byron and I's wedding anniversary, his birthday, Kellee's birthday, Ashton's birthday and then Payten and Skyler's birthday last of all, on the same day. I honestly don't remember anything else happening this month other than my brother's annual ski trip and I was released as Relief Society secretary and called as the Enrichment Leader.
FEBRUARY
We kicked the month off with Camryn's 16th birthday. She had an awesome cake that a friend of ours made with a picture of the band, Motley Crue on it. I thought I had a picture of it but can't find it now. Rats!
MARCH
Hmm, where do these days go? I'm not fully convinced that there ever really was a March.
APRIL
Byron and I took a trip to California. Camryn was supposed to go with us but she had something come up in the middle of it so we left her home in the care of two babysitters, Ashton and Meghan. For a 16 yr old the coverage seemed about right to me. Our trip to CA was fun. We drove to the coast and walked the beach. It was sooo windy and Byron would not wade but I could not get that close and not stick my toes in. It was heaven. A cold heaven, but heaven nonetheless. We had a good visit with my mom and I was able to reconnect with a friend I haven't seen since high school. Funny to think that it's been that long since we were practically inseparable back then.
MAY
This is always a good month because I get Mother's Day and my birthday usually within a week of each other. It's also the month when I could really start riding my motorcycle again and school is out.
JUNE
Not too much this month. Our one grandson, Skyler, came to live with us for the summer. It was fun to have a little kid be so happy to see you when you get home from work again. I got to spend some time off of work with him because Camryn had Girl's Camp this month so we didn't have anyone to stay with him during the day. We played A LOT of Candyland, Chutes and Ladders and Sorry. Do NOT let anyone tell you that 6 yr olds have short attention spans. This kids could play even the most avid game-player under the table. We went to the park some and one day it rained so we built a blanket fort. It was also fun to take him on the back of my bike when our motorcycle club rode in the Orem City Days parade.
JULY
We started the month off by riding the bikes as one of the opening acts in the Provo Freedom Festival parade. I wore an awesome red, white and blue tie-dyed shirt that Ashton brought me from Haight-Ashbury for my birthday. My favorite part was meeting Casey from the Channel 2 Morning News. I know, I'm a dork, but I think he's funny and he has the craziest laugh. This is also the month we attend the Johnson Family Reunion. We always go camping and we always go river rafting. Our kids are big enough that we now rent inflatable kayaks and they are a blast. Skyler was able to go with us and he had a good time. We finally coaxed him out in the kayak and he got so soaked and so cold that he was practically blue but he kept telling Grandpa to hit another rapid and was bugged cuz he couldn't hit them all.
AUGUST
This was a very exciting month for me. I had been helping the Spanish ward in our stake organize a Handcart Trek for their youth conference and this is the month we went. It was amazing. This is the third time I have gone on one of these treks and it never gets old. Byron even got to come along this time. He didn't walk but he totally worked hard helping the cooks. Those women think that he is Superman. I think that they just might be right.
SEPTEMBER
School, work, not much else. Our house got a little boring because we are back to seeing the grandboys only every other weekend but I think that Skyler is glad to be back home and in school.
OCTOBER
Entry edit**Meghan reminded me that we did have some fun this month with her fantastic 23rd birthday and also Lilly and Kaitlynn's birthdays. Sorry girls. Not such a hot month as I have previously alluded to but I am not really one for airing my dirty laundry in public so the most I will let on to is my knee surgery. I have already blogged about that so I will not bore you any further. It is pretty much healed now and I am looking forward to riding the motorcycle and knowing that it is going to support the bike when I put that leg down.
NOVEMBER
Thanksgiving and trying to find a Dr. who will do a bunionectomy before the end of the year. Thanksgiving was really small this year. Kellee and Patrick went to AZ and Meghan and Dan went to St. George so it was Byron, Camryn, Ashton, Ashton's girlfriend and her little boy and me. Pretty chill day.
DECEMBER
Found a Dr. who will do the foot surgery. The chosen day was the 22nd. Yep, the Tues. before Christmas. It just couldn't be helped. I had various activities so spread out throughout the month that it was the best day and it really did work well since it was not a busy time at work so I could take the rest of the week off and not have to go back to work until the 28th. The surgery was a success and I am now back in matching shoes. That sounds funny but I have had a "boot" on since the surgery and it is nice not to have to try and find a shoe that is roughly the same sole height as the boot. I never was completely successful but I got close. I had an interesting experience coming out of the anethesia this time. I have had two previous surgeries where I had no trouble waking up, feeling fine and just going home. This one was not so wonderful. First of all, I could NOT wake up. In fact, the nurse came in and hooked me up to the oxygen because I wasn't breathing as much as she'd like. When I finally got a drink and a couple Lorna Doones in me I decided that I just wanted to go home. All I wanted to do was sleep and I could do that in my own bed. Well, getting dressed was an adventure. I wasn't feeling too hot but I figured that it was just an empty stomach thing cuz all I had had was two cookies since 8:00 the night before. Well, I got my PJ pants on and my shirt and I started to realize that just maybe the cookies were not going to stay in my belly. I told Byron to get one of those jellybean shaped basins out of the cupboard cuz I was gonna need it. I might as well have not bothered. Just for the record, it was not much of a holder of throw up. Mostly, it was like a throw up slippery slide that caused the contents of my stomach to end up on my pants and shirt. All I could do was sit there, annoyed at myself. And then I did it again. Well, luckily I had worn a sweatshirt as well as a shirt so I took off the shirt and wore the sweatshirt home. However, there was no escaping the lower attire and I got to ride home in barf pants. Awesome. The best part was that when the nurse came back in the room to check me out she acted all put out that we had used the little pink basin and not one of the barf bags hanging so conveniently next to the door in a container that I would never have guessed contained such a thing.
Well, as Porky Pig says,"Abadee, Abadee, that's all folks!"
We had sub sandwiches with all the fixin's.
Meghan and Kellee (that tummy bump on Kellee is Baby Boy Reilly due in June!) with Monet watching from the back of the couch
Byron and some of Dan
Kellee, Payten, Camryn, Lilly, Patrick
Payten
Ashton and Jesi
Lillian
Patrick and Kaitlynn
A notepad for observations and labels.
Inside there is a snake, glow sticks, flashlight, compass (he was SO excited to have one that really works), magnifying glass, binoculars, camera, pirate eye patches, fake moustache and little containers for all of his "finds".
A friendly fox to help him with his adventures and an official "adventurer" badge.
This is the Harry Potter kit that Meghan made Skyler for his birthday. She used an old suitcase and modge podged some pictures on the sides.
Inside was an owl and a cape with the Gryffindor House badge, his acceptance letter to Hogwarts, a potions notebook and the book entitled, "I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good". There is also a wand that she made out of paper. paint and hot glue. It's amazing.
A notepad for observations and labels.
Inside there is a snake, glow sticks, flashlight, compass (he was SO excited to have one that really works), magnifying glass, binoculars, camera, pirate eye patches, fake moustache and little containers for all of his "finds".
A friendly fox to help him with his adventures and an official "adventurer" badge.
This is the Harry Potter kit that Meghan made Skyler for his birthday. She used an old suitcase and modge podged some pictures on the sides.
Inside was an owl and a cape with the Gryffindor House badge, his acceptance letter to Hogwarts, a potions notebook and the book entitled, "I Solemnly Swear That I Am Up To No Good". There is also a wand that she made out of paper. paint and hot glue. It's amazing.
