School Year Ends

Yeah for summer break! I'm a little burned out with work, so this will be such a welcome break! Walt and I have three family reunions to attend this summer - in Illinois, Cedar City, and Seattle. What a great way to spend the summer.

The other thing we're really excited about is the new patio we have in the backyard. It is a 14 x 16 foot slab. We prepared the ground by cutting away the sod, digging the dirt down, and moving the sprinkler control box over about 10 feet. Then a crew came and poured it yesterday, and today it is hard enough to walk on. We've been looking forward to eating breakfast or dinner out on the patio and hosting Barbeque's. Come on over and take a look!

Mothers Day

For Mothers Day Walt was very sweet and made me scrambled eggs, toast, bacon, and fruit smoothies for breakfast. Then he presented me with a set of grapefruit spoons and a cute green watering can. I wasn't expecting anything, so it was such a fun surprise! He wrote me a sweet note and I felt so special. Most of you know we're having difficulty getting pregnant. We'll be trying IVF (In Vitro Fertizilation) this July, so we're crossing our fingers and praying that it works! We can't wait to be parents.

We're getting the backyard ready for a patio. The weather is so nice and we're really excited to have a place outside to sit and relax and eat breakfast or read. We (well mostly Walt and my brother Alan who spontaneous volunteered to come help all day! Thanks Alan!!) rented a sod cutter on Saturday and pulled out the grass where the patio will be. Then we cut out some grass in our yard that was full of weeds and replaced it with the grass from the patio area. We tried to break out the small concrete square that is out there right now, but it turns out that it is at least 12 inches deep, so even a 16 lb. sledge hammer wouldn't budge it. We'll rent a jackhammer. We also have to move the sprinkler box which is in the way. So still a bit of work left to prep the area, but we're getting there!

Ranger Cookies

Last weekend my brother, Bryan, graduated from BYU with is Masters in Accounting. An exciting day! Made even more exciting by his announcement that evening at our family party that he and Sarah are expecting their first baby this next December. Yippee! Walt's sister-in-law also called that week to tell us she is expecting. We can't wait to be a new aunt and uncle twice over again! Bry and Sarah announced their news by baking ranger cookies, wrapping them individually as party favors and including a recipe, the last steps of which said "Bry and Sar have their own little cookie baking in the oven. Bake 7 more months at womb temperature. Makes one little Graden." :) Walt and I think "Ranger C. Graden" would be a great name for a boy! (C. is for Cookie, of course). Ha!

Heather, my step-sister, moved in with us last week for the month of May. It's been a blast having her here. I'm getting big circles under my eyes from staying up so late talking with her. We 're loving it!

Today I attended BYU Womens Conference with my Grandma Stevenson, Aunts Kim, Kelley, and Su, cousin Kara, and sisters-in-law Liz and Sarah. SOOOOO fun. I love being with my family. I attended several great sessions. I'll post my notes here in a couple days.

"Expelled" Gets Two Thumbs Up From Us!

We saw "Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed" last night. It was Fascinating! Very well done - and eye-opening about what is happening with science education and research about evolution . If you can, go see it, and support Ben Stein in his effort to create acceptance for open dialogue about Intelligent Design. Has anyone else seen it? What did you think?

Our bedroom is all painted, and we LOVE it! The color is "ivory sampler", but it seems much darker than an ivory to us - more like a very light brown. We also rearranged the furniture, and now it feels like we have an entirely new room. Funny how a couple simple changes can be so exciting and feel so different.

Spring Break Week

It's Spring Break! Wahooeee! Rocky's surgery on Monday went well. The vet recommended lab testing be done on his tumor. We decided against it. We'll just let things run their course and hope the surgery took care of it. Rocky was a little mellow on Monday, but he has acted totally normal since then, and he's not scratching or biting his stitches, so we're doing good!

On Saturday we painted our garage floor. It looks awesome! It is a gray paint with speckles. Should make it much easier to keep clean - you can wipe grease off it.

Today I'm painting our bedroom! But I still haven't decided on the color. I really like a color for a couple hours, then I decide I'd like something else better. Then I worry I won't like that color and decide on a different one. I haven't been set on anything for longer than a few hours. Hmmm. Indecision is one of my vices.

We're excited to go see a movie my sister-in-law Jen told us about. "Expelled" stars Ben Stein (sp?) and comes out this Friday, April 18th. It's a documentary on scientists who support, research, and/or dialogue about the concept of Intelligent Design and the discrimination they receive because of it. He advocates for including this concept in our dialogue about evolution and the origin of man. Definitely something we want to support.

Rocky's Surgery

I took Rocky to the vet, and she said his lump needs to come off. He's scheduled for surgery on Monday (April 14th), and we'll find out that day whether there is enough concern about it to warrant doing some lab tests. She said the lump had some discoloration she was concerned about. I hope it's okay to pray for guinea pigs, because that's what I'm doing. I've gotten kind of attached to him.

Update: April 9, 2008

We had a wonderful General Conference weekend, spending Sunday at my grandparents' house in Salt Lake with extended family. I love the spiritual boost we get every 6 months!

Rocky, our guinea pig, has a large cyst on his back (about the size of a quarter). I've made an appointment with a vet to find out what is going on. Suddenly I have motivation to give Rocky a bath, clip his nails, trim the matted fur. It's like looking at your house when c0mpany is coming over and seeing dust and clutter you never saw before. We're crossing our fingers that everything is okay and hoping we don't have to put a dollar value on our little friend (how much do you justify spending on guinea pig surgery???).