How fortunate I feel

When we moved to Utah five years ago, we knew no one. We simply packed our cars, pointed west, and hoped that we could make a good life for ourselves in Salt Lake City. All we had pulling us out here was the promise of my job at the University and an interest in being close to the mountains. The scenery is indeed spectacular and Steve and I both have been served well in our careers. But more important than our jobs and the scenery, we have found a set of friends who have become the main reason why we love living here.

Last Friday night, 9 of us girls got together in honor of my birthday. We met for pedicures, dinner, and cocktails. I think the main reason the girls planned the night-out was because they knew that camping would probably not have been my first choice of ways to celebrate my birthday, especially not when Steve and Carolyn were both under the weather. While I thoroughly enjoyed the evening and felt honored that everyone came out for the event, I came home happier knowing that we all needed the night-out. We laughed together and listened to one another. It was a healing night for all of us.

I am feeling sentimental and incredibly grateful, but I do not think I could truly express how thankful I am for our friends. All that I can say is that they make our lives in Salt Lake City very rich and rewarding.

We probably should have stayed home ....

Our friend Todd was celebrating his 40th birthday with "40 hours in the desert" where approximately 40 people traveled a few hours south to go camping for the weekend in the San Rafael Swell. There were kids and dogs and lots of ribs to eat. It should have been a lot of fun (and it was to some extent), but it turned out to be a less than ideal weekend for this household.

A couple of the guys (including Steve) drove down late Thursday night, so they could go canyoneering with Joshua on Friday morning before the rest of us arrived. Steve has never been and was very excited, but during the 3-hour drive to the campsite, he started feeling lousy. He had come down with some sort of stomach flu or food poisoning, so spent the night shivering in his tent and having to make frequent bathroom trips (which remember, there are NO bathrooms in the dessert). He was so weak and queezy in the morning that he could not go canyoneering with the guys, but I will post some pictures from those who did go. Pretty cool, huh?

I arrived Friday evening, only to find Steve looking haggard and sallow. He was not feeling well at all. On top of that, Carolyn was crabby and generally pitiful. I initially blamed it on the teeth that are wreaking havoc on her little gums, but now I think she and Steve may have the same type of stomach bug. They both rallied for short bursts of activity on Saturday, but also spent some time napping together during the day. Neither of them ate much of anything the whole weekend. As soon as we woke up on Sunday, we packed our cars and hit the road. They both slept the entire ride home and then took even longer naps when we got home. I hope they have seen the worst of this illness, but more importantly, I hope that I do not get what they have.

Despite their lack of energy, we were able to take a hike through the wash by our campsite. Below are pictures of the 'family' hikers.

Carolyn also played with her buddy, Oliver. We had a blanket set up with some toys, but they both preferred to crawl to the side and play in the sand.

Carolyn learned a bad habit from Leo

Now when Steve has a plate of food, there are two little beings begging and staring at his food.

10-Months Old

Carolyn is now 10 months old. She got her first two teeth this month. Her crawling has gotten faster ( a lot faster). She sometimes will stand on her own, unassisted, but it is only for a few seconds until she realizes that she is not holding on to anything. This month, unfortunately brought a series of ear infections.

Easter 2009

Ah, look at our cute little bunny.

Grandma Lynn and Grandpa Mike were here for Carolyn's first Easter. Carolyn loved all of the attention. Grandpa followed her around, no matter where she crawled. And, Grandma helped her learn how to better use her sippy cup. She particularly liked the hat and sunglasses they brought for her.

We went to a sunrise Easter service on the top of the mountain. It was cold and the visibility was pretty poor (we were in the clouds), but I think my parents were pretty excited to be on the top of the mountain (and to be able to get there by tram, rather than hiking).

In the evening, we had friends over. Both the kids and the adults had an easter egg hunt. Steve and my mom spent all day (literally) writing a personalized scavenger hunt for each guest. It was pretty funny to see grown adults run through the yard to find their eggs. We also had another food challenge. This time, it was the great panini cookoff. The overall winner was Nikki, who made a pineapple coconut poundcake treat. Other notable entries included: fried catfish with slaw, lox on potato latkes, roasted veggie paninis, the classic italian panini, grilled cheese, meatball/sausage panini, and BBQ tempeh on baguette. My mom won the award for 'originality' with her reuben sandwich in the shape of a bunny. I think it was the easter basket made out of a pepper and the cheeseball tail that really won it for her.

MILESTONE: The Easter Bunny brought Carolyn her first two teeth. After a particularly fitful night, I found two tiny points that had popped through her gums.

Busy - can that be my excuse?

I know, I know, I have not posted in a while. We have been busy and I have not uploaded photos from my camera in a long time. Here are the highlights:

• Carolyn finally got her first two teeth.
• My parents were in town for a few days last week.
• We had an easter egg hunt and a panini cookoff with our friends.
• Steve went back to work on Monday.
• Carolyn started daycare. She seems to really like it so far.
• Steve's car has been towed twice in one week, leading us to believe that it is time to think about buying a new car.
• Tomorrow, we are headed south to go camping in the San Rafael Swell to celebrate Todd's 40th birthday!

Perhaps after that trip, I will update the blog more completely. To tide you over, here is a picture of Carolyn. Isn't she just the sweetest little thing? Though, if you met her, you would know that looks can be deceiving because in reality, she is a loud-mouth, busy-body little booger. She is cunning and fast and can get into trouble faster than you can blink your eye. This girl is going to give us a run for our money. Heck, she already does!