Monday, June 28, 2010

Wedding Week



last week was a bit crazy to say the least. Macy went through the temple for the first time on Wednesday night. We all went to that with her. Thursday was the big day. He wedding started at 9:40 am so we had to be there at 9:15. The ceremony was beautiful. My papa was going to be the sealer but, he had to have Quintuple bypass heart surgery a couple days before the wedding so the temple provided a different sealer. He did a fantastic job. We spend an hour taking family pictures outside the temple and then headed to Sandy for the luncheon. It was at the Chuck-o-rama there. It was fun to be able to spend time with family. We were able to go home for a short time to gather our stuff and then we headed to the Provo Library to help set up for the reception. It was really cool because that is where I had my reception and we have not been back since. The reception was really fun, we danced a lot.
The groomsmen were in charge of decorating the car... bad idea. They are all mechanics so the hood got taken off and hidden... Macy wasn't too happy but they got it back on and they were on their way... not before stopping to clean out all the crap all over the car.












The next day (Friday) we headed up to Montana for the open house. We drove all day which is never fun. Saturday was the Open house which was fun... the boys played pool all night on the stage... even Andrew was up there playing.
Sunday we drove all day again. It is weird that my baby sister is married. But I am SO happy for her and Drew. They are so cute together and I love them both.








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Gallstones.... :(

Yes, I have gallstones. Bummer.
Saturday night after laying in bed at the hotel in Montana, I started to have this really strange pain in my upper stomach. It was so bad that i could lay down at all without it being hard to breath because of the pain. It made me super nauseous and I was up all night throwing up. Sunday morning I felt ok- besides the fact we had to drive 500 miles on my birthday. We went over to Brett's parents house for a little while and I started to feel a little nauseous again. As we drove home the same pain from the night before came back and the pain was worse this time... it was unbearable. I am usually a pretty tough girl and it takes a lot for me to cry but I was bawling because I could not breath because of the pain. Brett took me the the ER instead of home. They gave me morphine through an IV for the pain which was wonderful. They did an ultrasound to confirm that it is indeed gallstones and I will need to get my gallbladder removed this week sometime. Brett is getting in contact with the surgeon to see what is available.

UPDATE: I had surgery on Wednesday morning. It went well. They did it laproscopicly which left me with 4 small incision sites. One in my belly button and 3 on the upper right side of my abdomen. I had to stay in the hospital til wed evening because I couldnt get my oxygen levels to where the wanted them to be. I have been at home resting since then. Thanks for all your calls and messages. i have the best family and friends. Thanks for being there for me.

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Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Bridals

I was able to take my sisters bridal pictures this week. They turned out beautiful! She is one beautiful bride to be!

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Sunday, June 13, 2010

Bridal Shower

Yesterday was my baby sister's bridal shower. We had a really big turnout and it was really fun. We played some fun games. It was fun to be able to plan it with Alyssa and we had a really good time.

Wednesday, June 9, 2010

Hammock Bliss


This last weekend, Brett came up with a very good idea about how to hang the hammock up. We got that hammock in Puerto Vallarta Mexico in October of 2007 and still had not used it. In every house we have lived in, we have tried to find a way that it would work but we never could. We couldn't buy a hammock stand for it because they don't make them big enough. We thought about building one... that didn't work. And I have been so sad knowing that I have a beautiful huge hammock that I could never use... until now. Since Saturday, I have read almost and entire book in that hammock and yesterday the dogs and I took a 2 hour nap in it. What I love the most are the nightly relaxing conversations that Brett and I have after the sun has gone down laying in the hammock together. I Love it so much!


Friday, June 4, 2010

One year...

It has been one whole year since my Nana passed away. Time flies by so fast. Our family gathered at her grave site one year to the day that she was placed there. We all miss her so much it is heartbreaking. She is the best person that any of us ever knew. My family is the most important part of my life, I dont know what I would do without each of them. Together we are strong, together we can and will get through anything. We were given the chance at the cemetery to say something. My heart was so full but I didn't even know what to say and how i would have gotten through it so I just listened. I know she knows how much I miss and love her.This is something I wrote last year. I put it in my other blog but not here. Reading it still makes me cry. Reliving those memories and feelings of that time is really hard.

With just a few words out my my husband's mouth, "Cali you need to call your mom right now." I knew what had happened. The car ride home was the longest I had ever taken. Filled with a mix of tears and anger caused by traffic. As I walked into Nana's house, I instantly inhaled the smell of her. How long would the house smell like that? After I embraced family I walked to her room. A room once full of happiness turned to one filled with sorrow.

As I saw her i felt as if someone punched me in the stomach. My air was gone and I felt dizzy. I knelt beside her bed as I had many times before and wept. I held her cold hand against my face as time moved in slow motion around me. As I spent my last minutes of alone time with her empty earthly body I talked with her. I told her how I felt about her, feelings that I hope she knew before she passed. I asked her to take care of my future children and that I was glad that they get to have Nana for a while, The Nana that would teach them to take walks and to gather flowers and step on lids. Her face had become one of my favorite textures and I touched it knowing that It would not feel like that ever again. I felt my heart break as I knelt there.

I spent the weekend making a movie about Nana. This project came hand in hand with stress and worst of all, deep sadness. As I stared at pictures of her for days straight I couldn't help but feel empty inside. One moment I would look down at a table soaked with my salty tears and the next I would feel tearless, empty and alone. Part of me wished to get her out of my mind and the other part was terrified to forget her. Cycles of emotions left me exhausted and sleepless.
The viewing was full of emotion and loved ones. I was right about her face. The touch was foreign to my fingers. She looked so beautiful, so peaceful. The room was filled with her spirit and love, as well as tears.

As we prepared for the service to celebrate her life, family again gathered together in a small room. Beautiful words were spoken of her there. As I said my last goodbye, I placed a porcelain doll in her arms. A doll that would look over her earthly body forever. I stared at her face one last time and my mind was flooded with memories of smiles and laughter. The reality had hit me that this was the last time I would see her face. Beautiful words and music filled the room as we all payed tribute to an amazing woman. It was just as she would wanted it to be.

The burial site was peaceful and quiet. Looking over the beautiful valley below and first sign of blue sky that I had seen in days above. It was there I finally caught my breath, felt the calm come over me at last. The sadness had not gone, but the crushing feeling on my heart had lifted. I felt her presence there with me, my dancing, skipping angel. She remains in my heart and will always stay there. My hero, my friend, my Nana.


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Christiana Marie Duval

My step brother Gordon and his wife Leona had thier first baby. Christiana was born on May 29, 2010 at 6:11 pm. Weighed 6.10 and was 19 inches long. Congratulations you guys! She is beautiful!

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Thursday, June 3, 2010

Alex's Graduation

My Brother Alex Graduated from High School on Friday! I am so proud of him for being such a good student and such a good person. He will be off to Snow College next year which should be really fun for him!! Congrats Alex! I love you!


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Wednesday, June 2, 2010

Sealing

My sister Macy is going through the temple for the first time on the 22nd of June. Just 2 days before she married Drew. I found out recently that my brother Alex wants to be sealed to us and that we will be doing that on the same day.

Alex is my step brother. He joined our family when he was 4 years old. His mother wasn't always there for him so my mother raised him as her own. He wasn't treated any differently, he was always just my brother. When Dallin was 1 year old, my mom and step dad were sealed to each other and to him. I was 13 at that time and I remember being able to enter the temple and stand around the altar and watch this happen. It was amazing. Alex's mom was approached at that time and asked if Alex could also get sealed to them and to our family and the answer was no. Alex is not sealed to anyone and his mom is not a member anymore. So we knew when he was 5 years old that he would have to wait until he was 18 and then make that decision for himself to be sealed and join our family forever. He has made that choice and it makes me so happy that he will have this experience to go into the temple and be sealed to our family and that even my 12 year old brother Dallin will get to be there. Doing it on the same day as Macy goes through will allow a lot of our extended family to be there which will be amazing.

That will be a great day.

Tuesday, June 1, 2010

Memorial Day Weekend

We had a great weekend! We spent it with my family at Blackhawk Campground up Payson Canyon. It was a Jewkes Campout so there were a lot of people there and it was a lot of fun and very relaxing for the most part. We took our dogs. They were so good. We were able to have them off the leashes for a good amount of the time. They loved being so free. Brett and I came home on Sunday night so we could sleep in out own bed for one night and be able to sleep in on Monday.
Monday morning, Alyssa dropped by on her way home from camping and we planned Macy's bridal shower and addressed the invitations that will go out today. They turned out cute and the shower is going to be so fun.


Memorial Day is always a day full of memories of my dad. This year was the first without Nana so I thought about her a lot this weekend as well. Next week it will be a year since she passed away. We are doing a memorial get together for her this weekend.