The Campbell Clan

BIG CHANGES

2011-05-30T20:04:00.000-07:00

Day 14: A picture of you last year - how have you changed?

Well one thing is very obvious, I am no longer pregnant! YAY! This was taken around June 18th, 2010. I was 35 weeks pregnant here and due July 22nd. I ended up having Sy on July 14th, (same day as his older sister) and here we are a year later.

A lot has changed both physically, emotionally and mentally. But for the most part I am reasonably happy.

Bucket List...Sort Of...

2011-05-16T22:40:00.000-07:00

Day 13: Goals

My goals used to be HUGE and out of this world, ones that would seem unattainable. But then one day I was brought back down to earth when I had children. Now, well now my goals are simple. The basics that normal people would hope for. So here they are, in no particular order.

1. Own a house.
2. Raise my children to be good, healthy, open-minded people.
3. Run a marathon.
4. Be honestly happy. (This one is a never ending work in progress)

That is it, rather long list huh? I really just wanted to be basic in my life. I figured those were ones that I could actually do one day.

Never alone...

2011-05-14T21:00:00.001-07:00

Day 12: Something you don't leave the house without.

I realized I have not done one of these in a long since I started doing so much with my cakes. So I thought what a great time to do it while a cake is in the oven and then needs to cool for a long time before I can slather on the ganache.

So before I got married and had babies I would have to say that I never left my house without my wallet or purse. (Never really was a purse kind of girl)

But then I got married and popped out two children. (Well more like the doctor pulled them out, since I had c-sections) So now, save one or two times, I never leave my house without one of my children. It usually ends up being the most grumpy child of them, requested by my lovely husband. Because taking a grumpy child to a store is so much easier them letting them stay at home. :)

So there you have it, hopefully I will catch up soon enough.

T.V. Time

2011-04-14T14:16:00.000-07:00

Day 11: Favorite tv shows.

Currently I don't own a television. I know, I know, this day and age it is strange. But it is true, the only tv I watch is online via either hulu.com or netflix.com.

So my current loved shows on hulu are:

Modern Family
Biggest Loser
Cougar Town
The Daily Show
Colbert Report

Netflix:

The First 48
Cake Boss
Law and Order SVU

Nothing too exciting, but there they are.

“The key to change... is to let go of fear."

2011-04-13T16:42:00.000-07:00

Day 10: Something you're afraid of.

I think to be honest, I am afraid of a lot of different things. But I think there are different levels of fear. For instance I have a fear of clowns, but I think it is just a creepy fear. Fear of sharks, I find them amazing creatures, but never in my life would I ever want to come into contact with them.

But my biggest, most over whelming, and horrific fear is: bathophobia.

Now it might sound like I am afraid of the bath. But the actual fear if falling from a high place, more or so to my death. Now this isn't just some fear, it literally debilitates me. I can't think straight, I feel sick, I feel helpless, weak. I get to a certain point height wise and all bets are off. I am scared beyond straight.

Now if I am in a tall building and look down, but know there is a protective shield that is keeping me safe...totally find.

Roller coasters, no way.
Sky diving, um I would probably pass out mid air.

Anything along those lines is a no way, next type situation. Honestly even thinking about it makes me sick to my stomach. I think the main reason it is so scary to me is because I feel like while falling you can actually think about your death coming. You know it is going to happen, just a matter of time. And that time is what frightens me the most about it.

So there, now you know the one secret to get me to say anything. ;)

What is a friend? A single soul dwelling in two bodies. ~Aristotle

2011-04-12T10:31:00.000-07:00

Day 9: A favorite picture of your best friend.

I have two best friends really. I mean the generic answer is alway the spouse. Well yes, Jon is my best friend. But I do have another best friend that also means a lot to me. She is family, but still another best friend. So here is first, my husband Jon:

Okay so it says favorite picture of your best friend, so ignore the crazy eyed lady sitting next to him. This picture was taken on our anniversary. (Don't ask which one, 'cause I really don't remember) Jon and I fit each other so perfectly. We have our moments and fights over things, but we never seem to be able to hold on to the grudge or fight for very long. I guess it just doesn't seem worth it. He is so intelligent and I am so thankful for him. We are just so good for each other in so many ways.

Love you Jon!

Secondly, my other best friend. Kind of feels only right to have a male and a female right? So here is my other best friend, Kelli:

I love this picture of her because she is just so fun and looks so happy here. Kelli and I are called "soul mates" by my parents. We really were meant to be very close friends I think. She is so much fun and I adore her wonderful sense of humor. She is so smart and is currently going to school for sociology. Every day she impresses me with her abilities and urges me to go outside of my box.

Love you Kel!

New York, New York, New York!

2011-04-11T14:58:00.000-07:00

Day 8: A place you've traveled to.

Can you guess where I have gone? Back in 2001 I traveled all the way to New York state. I had the best time there ever! I went in August, so fortunately for me I was able to see the Twin Towers prior to their collapse. I went all over, saw amazing things, beautiful buildings, shops of all classes. Ate at street vendors, visited wonderful restaurants, and danced until my feet were black and blue. It was one of my finest trips EVER.

However, getting there was a WHOLE different event. I was supposed to fly from Spokane to Seattle, and then straight from Seattle to Leguardia Airport in New York arriving somewhere around 6pm . Well the first round of flights was okay, I was suppose to leave at 7am, but for reasons unknown to me, we left at 9:30. Waiting around in the Spokane Airport for over 30 minutes is more than just boring. I get to Seattle, and find out that the airline I am flying with is actually new to domestic flights. In order to fly with them I had to find the International gate. But you see Seattle Airport was currently being worked on, so I was lost. 45 minutes later I was able to find a tunnel that would transfer me to International flights.

After fighting my way to the gate, since I was thinking we were boarding soon, I was informed over the loud speaker that my flight was again delayed for unknown reasons. 2 hours or so later we finally started boarding our plane. I was ready for the long ride to New York and was happy as a clam. Now here I was 20 years old and heading to a state I have never been to, all by myself. (I had my boyfriend meeting me there, he was flying from Chicago to New York after a visit to his dad's.)

When for some reason the pilot proclaimed that we were no longer heading to New York. We were heading to Midway Airport in Chicago, with no explanation. Here I was in Chicago all alone in one of the most dirty, nasty, filthy airports I have ever been in. We all waited in line to receive instructions from the ticket counter, and it was my turn. "I am sorry miss, but the flights to New York at all booked up. We can put you up in the local motel and you can catch a flight out 10am tomorrow morning." That wasn't going to work. I had a hair appointment at the famous Frederic Fekkai salon on Madison Avenue. I started out being nice to the man behind the desk, it wasn't really his fault. But then you see, he became rude. So in turn I became rude, and for those of you that know me...well I ended up "winning".

I was on the next flight to Newark, New Jersey, (Wait that wasn't where I was going right?) close enough. I was informed that I could get a ride with all the other passengers on a buss the airline was providing. I was also given coupons for the "cafeteria". So I went and grabbed some food and asked the lady where the gate was. She informed me that it was at the other side of the airport and I was boarding in 5 minutes. So I took off, running as fast as my little legs would carry me. Only to get there and find out I was delayed around 45 minutes. I sat with other angry passengers.

So we end up in Newark New Jersey, and there is no one waiting for us like they claimed there would be. So we tracked down a Delta employee and asked for help. Well we all ended up having to get taxi's and we were given vouchers to give to our taxi drivers fortunately. After a long ride to New York I finally ended up at Leguardia Airport at 2am. Lost luggage and all I headed to White Plains with my boyfriend and close friend. Two mornings later I received my luggage in the morning. I loved New York, but not the trip there.

The End

And Action!

2011-04-07T20:38:00.001-07:00

Day 7: Favorite movies.

(I realize I am a few days behind, I have been busy!)

I LOVE movies. So to list my favorite would probably take me a week. So here is a small list of a few that I have watched recently that I love.

1. Burlesque
2. Pride and Prejudice
3. Anchorman
4. Black Swan
5. Sense and Sensibility
6. Love Actually
7. The Kingdom
8. Inception
9. The Other Guys
10. 27 Dresses

Happy

2011-04-04T20:00:00.000-07:00

Day 6: A picture of something that makes you happy.

I don't think there is one picture that can show all of the things that make me happy. But here is one of something that makes me happy currently. We recently bought my daughter a toddler bed and she is sleeping in it all by herself right now. She just looks so tiny and adorable in it. Pleases my heart greatly!

"Bound To You"

2011-04-03T21:10:00.000-07:00

Day 5: A song to match your mood

So this doesn't exactly match my mood, but it has become my favorite song at the moment. So pretty! Enjoy!

Parents are the very last people who ought to be allowed to have children. H.E. Bell

2011-04-01T12:49:00.000-07:00

Day 4: Your parents

Karen Kay Chandler Stenzel, born March 26th 1954.

Gary Roy Stenzel, born November 6th 1948.

My parents, oh where to start. First they have been married almost 36 or 37 years in July. They live in Spokane, Washington and my father owns a lawfirm that my mother works at as well. She is a receptionist there and my father is the head attorney. They have had a lot of struggles in their lives and have come out the better in the end. I know they are happy to finally have their house all to themselves and it is much deserved!

Love you guys!

I was nauseous and tingly all over. I was either in love or I had smallpox- - Woody Allen

2011-03-31T19:10:00.000-07:00

Day 3: Your first love.

Ugh...I honestly don't really know when I started to realize I could understand the meaning or the feeling of love. I mean of course when you are in 6th grade and you have a boyfriend, that is all you can think about. You honestly believe that you are old enough to feel love for someone in that regard. With that in mind, I would say that my 6th grade boyfriend was my first love, LeShawn. Looking back I have these grandiose memories of him being ever so "hot". I am pretty sure we "dated" for around 4 months, and believe me back then I thought we were going to make it. Then one night my friend, Felicity, and I were at my house having a sleep-over. I received a phone call from LeShawn's brother, Rodney. Rodney said that LeShawn wanted to break up with me but didn't want to talk to me about it. I was devastated. With my heart broken I handed the phone over to Felicity to finish the conversation. After a few minutes she looked at me with a strange face and said, "Rodney wants to go out with you." I was all flustered, what was I to do?

I was sitting confused, and Felicity decided to take things into her own hands. She told Rodney I would "go out" with him. When she hung up I inquired as to why she would tell him such things, her reply was simple, "You were going to say yes, you know that." That was done, I sat there bewildered about how my true love could have broken my heart so.

Not 15 minutes later the phone rang again, it was LeShawn. He was calling to ask why I told him brother to break up with him and that I wanted to date him instead. I cried, I was so upset. I thought my life was over. Rodney and I "dated" until I moved to the Valley of Spokane. (Around 3 months) Only to never see any of them again. However when I am in town and find myself driving on the freeway past their neighborhood, I always catch myself looking around to see if I spot one of them.

As for my first real true love....it is a long, upsetting, heartbreaking story. But today I find myself in a real relationship. I am married to my best friend, a person who knows me inside and out. Who is honestly perfect for me in every way.

Understanding my madness...

2011-03-31T12:29:00.001-07:00

Day 2: Meaning behind your blog name

Okay so it really isn't madness at all, just decided to have a retarded opening to this post.

As far as the blog title, there are two different ones. As far as my "Campbell Clan" well I am pretty sure this title has no explanation needed. I mean our last name is Campbell, and we are a clan. (pretty riveting stuff eh?) Just more proof that I am not that thrilling of a person.

As far as my blog title.... "http://emotionalcaseofglassimin.blogspot.com/" Originally I had gotten a title called "iminaglasscaseofemotion". However I am an idiot and set it up all wrong. So I had to go back and make some slight adjustments to this title. This stems from a quote in my husband and my favorite movie. "Anchorman". If you have not seen this movie, well I highly suggest seeing it. If you are of course in a silly state of mind. Otherwise you might find this movie offensive and probably terrible all around. (I never said I had great taste in movies either) Here is a small bit of the movie that has come to produce my wonderful blog title..

Nicole M. Campbell

2011-03-30T21:57:00.000-07:00

"Day 1: Introduce, recent picture of yourself, 15 interesting facts."
1. Honestly, starting here is scaring me a little. (I don't find myself interesting enough to have 15 unknown facts be written about me.)
2. I don't like chocolate. I realize most girls, well people, would call me strange. I just don't like the texture, taste and the aftertaste of it.
3. I am addicted to criminal TV shows. I find myself staying up late at night watching shows on Netflix relating to anything criminal or law based.
4. My views on religion and God greatly differ from the way my parents raised me.
5. My daughter was born with Cerebral Palsy and I totally blame myself for it.
6. I am scared of my future.
7. Sometimes when I am alone I talk to myself in foreign accents.
8. I love to sing, and wish I could be a singer. (But too nervous)
9. I have an immensely low self-esteem.
10. I would love to be a personal trainer someday.
11. I am training to run the Utah Valley Marathon in June 2012.
12. I didn't do that great in school, but have no doubts that I am smart. I never went to college, but recently realized that a degree doesn't actually mean you an intellectual person.
13. I don't like asking for help.
14. I think I have depression.
15. I love reading, but also seem to stop reading every book about two chapters before I am finished with it. Then I have to go back and start all over again, just to not finish it that time as well.

Long Time Gone

2010-05-31T11:44:00.000-07:00

It has been a long time since my last posting, I guess my life is just busy. There has been a lot going on in my life and I am just trying to wrap my small brain around it all before Sy gets here. Oh that is right, FYI I am having a BOY! I am very excited and can't wait to meet my little son and see what he looks like. He is due on July 22nd, but my doctor has to leave town on the 15th of July so he will be here no later than on the 14th. Which Zoe isn't too excited about because her birthday is the 14th. So meanwhile after my mom gets here I will be doing everything in my power to go to the hospital before this date and have him.

As for Rya, she is doing well. We did have a few appointments for her this last couple weeks. Her neurologist said that she was impressed with her motor skills and state that she believes she is around a 7-8 month old in that area. However her cognitive still are still down around a 5-6 month old. Mostly because at that time she was not saying any constants. We were not sure if this difference was a good thing or a bad thing, and to be honest she was not either. She stated that in all her time doing her job she had never seen something like that before. So she wasn't sure if she could say it was a bad thing or a good thing. I personally decided to see it as a good thing as well as her physical therapist is seeing it that way.

Her rehab appointment also came and I was a bit more nervous about this one. Her SMO that she was first given for her foot really didn't/doesn't seem to be doing any good for her foot. She is way too strong and over powers it when she stands, since it is just plastic. So the doctor gave a script for two new braces. One that will go to all the way up her leg to her knee to give it more stability as well as a soft one for when she is asleep. She was also very disappointed in her tightness with her muscles on the left side. So we started her on a new medication called Baclofen to help her muscles relax and make it easier for us to do stretches with her. We also set up an appointment for her to have Botox injections in a few different places. This Botox should last for 3 months and help a lot to make her stretches work better. After three months we then evaluate the results and decide then if she needs another round. After she receives her Botox the doctor wants us to amp up her PT. Which means anywhere from 3-5 days a week of PT. This is a lot for me and I am feeling very overwhelmed. But we have to do what we have to do, I might start out with 3 times a week to just get used to the situation. As well as work Rya up to the 5 days. But Jon wants to jump into the 5 days right away. Just seems like a lot for me as well as Rya and we will have to come to a happy medium somehow.

Well that is all for now.....sorry my posts are always so long!

Feeling in the Dumps

2010-02-28T11:31:00.000-08:00

I am honestly not sure if what I am feeling is the usual pregnancy hormones or honestly true sadness/misery. I have so much "quiet" time at home where I am busy doing physical things, but what it does is allow me to the time to think. THINK!!! Thinking isn't always good to do when your emotions are already down in the dumps. I have all these sad feelings, and I have no outlet for them. I love my family dearly but they are not the best of people to express my emotions.

I don't sleep at all anymore, I am either in the bathroom, listening to my husband snore or waiting for Rya to wake up. So I am exhausted and waking up at 6:30am in the morning or before that. I never get to sleep in anymore and that doesn't help at all.

I am about to embark on a "poor me" session, so you can either chose to stop reading here if you are tired of me complaining or continue to read. Your choice....

I clean my house top to bottom, I spend all day cleaning, I work my ass off. I love a clean house and it feels great and helps me have a better over all attitude. But my family comes home and I can see all of my hard work come apart before my eyes. I don't mind doing the normal cleaning, dusting, bathroom, laundry the stuff that homemakers usually do. What I do mind is doing everyone's dishes after dinner, making dinner, put food away, cleaning the kitchen after, picking up people's shoes, their clothes off the floor, toys, video games, all the stuff they got out themselves. Why am I the maid? Should I wear a maids outfit to just make myself clear?

I don't really have any friends around here. I mean, don't get me wrong. I have friends, but none that are close to me currently. This makes it so that I hardly ever get out and do things with other adults. I do leave my house on a regular basis, but none of these outings are social in anyway. Doctors, doctors and more doctors. This doesn't exactly help my mood....in actuality this makes it worse. Coming home knowing the stretches I have to do with Rya, the new stuff she has to wear, the medicine she has to take. There is a point almost weekly where I want to give up.

We also have been having financial issues, in the sense that we are poor. We don't get paid a lot and living paycheck to paycheck is our life currently. It sucks. We can't do the things we would hope to do and live the life we want to live. Obviously this sucks.

Last, and maybe the least, but not in my eyes. I got one Christmas present. That is right, one. I realize I am adult and so it should not be a big deal to me...well it isn't. But when you receive one gift that you love and are really excited about, you think it is a big deal. Well I got a Seattle Seahawks shirt for Christmas from my mom. This is all I got, well I got a magazine that had recipes in it and replacement glasses for our kitchen. So the only personal present for me was the shirt. Zoe borrowed it to wear, I informed her that she needed to be careful and bring it back the next day. Yeah......it is gone. Nowhere to be found, not at her mom's house and not at our house. What makes me the most upset is that no one cares. She doesn't care, my husband doesn't care, no one else cares. Also, I will never hear an "I'm sorry for losing your shirt". Nothing, I will be made to feel horrible if I am upset and it shows and it makes her upset. I will be the jerk, I will be the mean step-mother because I am upset that she lost my shirt and doesn't care. Maybe I am blowing this out of proportion, oh well. I will just blame it on the pregnancy.

I guess all in all I don't feel like a wife or a friend or a mother at times. I feel like a maid, a cook, a care taker and babysitter. I am sure all mothers have felt this way, or do feel this way. I guess it is my turn, and it sucks. I just wish one day my family would see these things and care, they can even pretend to care. Just show me some love or some sympathy.

Am I asking too much??

Trileptal Side Effects

2010-02-20T21:38:00.000-08:00

One of the side effects that Dr. Bennedict, (her neurologist) informed us about was a change in Rya's mood with her seizure medicine. She might become slightly more crabby over time. At first I thought nothing of this because Rya's disposition is always so happy. Well the time has come where I think the medicine and teething are taking a large toll on her attitude.

Don't get me wrong, she is still a happy girl and smiles at almost everyone she sees. However things like bath time, which used to be a wonderful time to relax, has now turned into a hurry up and get her clean and out before she has a melt down. I can't say for sure it is the medicine, or a combination of teething and the medicine. All I know is it is getting more frustrating on a daily basis with her. I am sure someone would come over and see her and think maybe I am blowing this way out of proportion. I am sure compared to children her age she is a wonderful little girl. But I am so used to hardly ever crying and always smiling. It is just kind of running me down lately and it doesn't help that I am feeling more and more fat these days.

Gaining 7lbs in a months time isn't exactly a point of pride....but alas it is what happened. I just wish/hope it won't get out of hand. But the bad part is my hunger seems to be getting more and more out of my control. Oh well....I guess there isn't really a whole lot I can do except give the little baby what he/she wants for the time being and pray it won't go straight to my hips. (too late)

Blood work and rehab

2010-02-19T11:15:00.000-08:00

I asked my OB to request for my blood to be tested for the same mutations that Rya has, Factor V-Liden and MTHFR. I went to the hospital and had my blood drawn and was told it would be a couple days. Which I found to be odd because when Rya was tested it took two weeks. Come to find out it was going to take a little longer than the person originally thought. Anyway, all in all I tested negative for Factor V and positive for MTHFR. I am not super sure what this means, but we will try to get into a hematologist to see what they tell me. I am guessing it means the same ask it does for Rya. It isn't something to stress over until it is time to take birth control. But we will see.

Rya also had her first Rehab appointment. I think a lot of people equate rehab with physical therapy or drugs. In this case it is neither. It is actually medical doctors who use things such as Botox injections or orthodics to correct or help improve lives of people living with disabilities. Right now we have a list of things for Rya that we are doing. She is getting a certain type of shoe/brace for her ankle to help straighten it out. She also is getting some special tape to help with this issue as well. And she is getting a splint for her right hand so that she has to focus more on her left hand while playing. Lets all cross our fingers for this. I am not excited however....I don't like listening to her cry.

On a side small note, she got her new glasses and seems to be adjusting okay. She has her moments of attempting to rip them from her face and eat them. But for the most part she doesn't seem to mind them too much.

The Chaotic Life of a Mother

2010-01-22T07:42:00.000-08:00

I have been reading my husbands blog for a while now and am impressed by his diligence in posts. Me on the other hand spend most of my time going crazy. My life is so busy and filled with stress I never seem to get a moment alone.

A large amount of "things" have happened since my last post and thought I might update those of you that actually do read this. (So not many, lol) First Rya is now 9 months old and weighs in at a whole 15 pounds. Needless to say she is a small one. And prior to her appointment she was crying non stop. And not just any crying, screaming like she was in horrible pain crying. So we waited it out, thinking it was teething for a few days until her appointment. Come to find out the poor thing had an ear infection. So we got her going on some antibiotics and within a day she was back to her old smiling self again.

Rya also had her neurology appointment that we go to every three months or so until she is a year old. (Which is her next appointment, YIKES!) She had been doing this weird lurching thing and we were not sure what on earth it could be. All in all her neurologist said she looked great and was progressing about 3-4 months behind. Which is where she thought she would be for her disability. But she was very concerned about the lurching and ordered an EEG be done right away. If she has a condition called Infantile Spasms then we needed to start her on a steroid right away. Only down side is the ACHT steroid costs $40,000 for one round of treatment. So we were crossing our fingers and praying she didn't have this.

We went home hopeful and not hopeful at the same time. But the neurologist finally called and answered our prayers. She is clear of infantile spasms but has a tendency for seizures. We start her on seizure medicine and as long as she doesn't have a seizure in two years and has a clear EEG she can get off of those. But if ever she has a seizure then the two year clock starts again.

As for me, I started physical therapy for some huge horrible knots in my back. I have to have a deep tissue massage twice a week. Normally a massage would be a wonderful thing. Not this, they are not there to make you relaxed. They are there to work the crap out of you. But I figure as long as it fixes my back, I don't mind.

I also had my 14 week appointment on Thursday. The doctor couldn't find the heartbeat with the dopler so we decided to find it on the video. There the little chili bean was, just growing away. He/She just had a quiet heartbeat. The baby looked good and we can potentially find out what we are having on the 18th of Feb. Cross your fingers!!!!

Well that is a short version of what has been going on in our lives. Busy busy busy!!!!

Plus Or Minus, That Is The Question?

2009-11-26T05:16:00.000-08:00

Sunday, November 22nd, I sit eating cucumbers with Jon. I go into the bathroom and realize I am very sick and really need to throw up. (pretty picture eh?) Now this wasn't just any sickness, I knew exactly what it was. So the next morning, I bought the "test". It is true, it is a plus....

I am pregnant, again.

Yes my daughter is 7 months old, yes they will only be 15 months apart. Yes I am stressed and worried. But at least this time I can have the c-section and have the doctor tie my tubes all up, so this never happens again. I have personal reservations about all this due to Rya's disability, but nothing that I won't be able to confront head on when the time comes.

I am hoping with everything that it is a boy. would be nice to finish off our family that way. We have picked out names already, Ace for a boy and Avi for a girl. Zoe will chose the middle name for the baby. I am 6 weeks today, Turkey Day. Due July 22nd, which means I will probably have him/her at the beginning of July. Based on Rya's birth experience.

Well that about says it all for now. Hope everyone else is doing well!

Life Changing Days

2009-09-28T12:50:00.000-07:00

“Well I have good news and bad news. The bad news is that your daughter has cerebral palsy, the good news is that we found out early and can start therapy right away” said the neurologist. This might sound like the beginning to an interesting book. However sadly this isn’t a book, it is the beginning of my new life. Some time ago I had noticed a few things about my daughter, Rya-Jo. I mentioned these few things to her doctor, such as not using her left side as much as she uses her right side. Dr. BrokenLeg, (yes this is in fact her real name) decides that we should get an MRI of Rya’s brain. Deciding on whether or not to get the MRI was the first obstacle we had to face with a great deal more to come.
On the day of the MRI we drove to the Children’s Hospital in mostly silence. We knew there were great risks for the sedation but we also knew it was best to find out if there was a problem as soon as we could. The part that seemed to last forever was the crying from getting the IV. Never in my life have I ever wanted to hear my baby cry like that and never do I want to hear it again. We had to wrap her little arms with a sheet so she couldn’t push the nurse away. The screaming pierced my heart, and I couldn’t help but lets a few tears roll down my face. She continued to cry when I was carrying her to the MRI room, soon after they injected the anesthesia. Her crying began to fade and soon it was merely whimpers coming from her mouth. The nurse took my daughter from me and placed her on a giant table where they began prepping her for the MRI. I couldn’t watch much more and walked away after asking how long it would be.
Around 30 minutes later we walked back into the MRI room where Rya was sleeping peacefully on a hospital bed. She slept for almost 2 hours soundly and I never wanted to leave her side. When she woke up she was obviously confused and starving. Soon after she woke and had something to eat we were sent home. I had an appointment with the doctor on that Thursday to discuss the results of the MRI. Later that evening, however, the phone rang, it was Rya’s doctor. She explained that she had received the results and my heart skipped a beat. I couldn’t help but tell myself that she was going to be just fine since doctors never call with bad news.
I couldn’t be more mistaken.
She told me that Rya had a brain infarction, dead brain tissue. I was so confused and was not sure what questions to ask or how to even figure out how to tell Jon. I listened to the doctor and found myself asking all sorts of questions without realizing I was even talking. I hung up the phone and explained to Jon online what the doctor had told me. Immediately we started to look up as much information as we could to find out exactly what we might be dealing with. We had an appointment with a neurologist on the 14th and then a pediatric neurology specialist on October 20th.
Our suspicions were confirmed at the neurology appointment. Our amazing little miracle had a disease called cerebral palsy. My heart sunk thinking of a few people I had come across in my life that had this disease. I only knew of people in wheelchairs and people who couldn’t speak. As the neurologist went on she explained that there are people out there totally functional and have no idea they have CP. All I could do is hope that this would end up being the story for us. The neurologist was very happy to see that we had already had Rya in Physical Therapy, working on Occupational Therapy and had an Opthamology appointment already set up for her. As happy as she was, she had just thrown a blow to my heart that I am still not sure I will ever recover from.
I have tried and tried and tried to keep my spirits up because we are doing so much to help my little girl. She is showing great signs everyday that she is rewiring her brain, but with 38% of her brain missing one can never know. I find myself sick at nights, thinking of the same old, “Why me” issue. Our little family has dealt with so many life changing events, why another one? Why one that would affect my daughter? Was there any way to take her disease away and give it to me? Would I ever hear the words “Mom”, “I love you”, “I have a date”, “I am getting married” or “You are going to be a grandma”. I do realize that the possibilities of these words crossing her lips are there. But I also realize that there is a possibility they won’t either.
For now, all I can do is work, hard hard work. Make sure to give my daughter all the opportunities in life to have a normal childhood. And if it doesn’t work and she is wheelchair bound and can’t speak, I will know that her father and I have done all we can. All we can do now is just love her as much as we have always loved her and will always love her.
So please for us, place Rya in your prayers or thoughts once in a while. Pray that she will be strong, that she will be healthy, but most of all, that she will be happy.

Professional Pictures

2009-05-15T09:56:00.000-07:00

A close friend of my family is a photographer, as her baby gift she took some pictures of my little woman! She did such an amazing job, I absolutely love them!!!

Rya-Jo Kay Campbell made her arrival!!

2009-04-21T17:02:00.000-07:00

(This is a long one)

Rya-Jo Kay Campbell made her debut on April 18th, at 6:39am. Not exactly the date or way we all expected her to come, but she is here none the less. Tuesday the 14th I went to the doctor to have a stress test done on the little one. She had not moved much and I was beginning to worry. The test results were fine and doctor sent me home to just relax and keep track of kick counts. That Thursday was my regular 37 week appointment, and I was asked about her kicking again. Which again she was rather quiet. The doctor did an ultrasound and then another stress test. He noticed that her heart rate dropped several times during this test and that concerned him, as well as my high blood pressure.

So he said he was going to send me home to be on complete bed rest as well as watching my blood pressure. But before I left he wanted to check to see if I was dilated at all. When he entered the room to check me he told me that he had spoken to a specialist who said it would be best for me to be in Labor and Delivery at the hospital to do a 24 hour monitor on Rya. He then checked me, and told me I was dilated to a 2. So Zoe, Jon and myself headed to the hospital after a quick stop at home, to start what I thought was going my 24 hour stay.

Over the 24 hour period there were some drops again in her heart rate. And Friday night at 8pm the doctor decided it would be better to induce my labor. I finally got an epidural after some time and that was by far the weirdest feeling I have ever had. I couldn't move my legs at all! It was funny, yet at the same time didn't feel good either. After 8 hours of trying to sleep on my left side and hoping I would progress, no progress. So at 5 something AM my doctor decided it was time to go in and get her out. I was shaking uncontrollably on the way into the operating room and in there as well. My mind was racing, was I really ready for all this? Was this going to hurt, can I stop them and keep trying?

The second Jon walked into the room and made eye contact with me I felt completely at ease. I knew everything was going to be just fine. After a lot of pressure and pushing and weird weird feelings, I saw them move my little baby girl to the warmer table. Jon started to take a lot of pictures and they announced her weight and length. She weighed in at 4lbs and 10oz...17.5 inches long. She is/was TINY! One ounce smaller than her Aunt Ashley. She ended up having the umbilical cord wrapped around her neck and was also trying to come out face first.

She ended up having some eating issues, temp issues as well as breathing issues. She spent a week in the Special Care Nursery at the hospital. After eating wonderfully and able to maintain her temp, she was sent home on oxygen. She will be looked at on Friday to see if we can remove her oxygen tank or not. I think there is a really big possibility that she will not have to go any longer because from the moment we walked in the front door she has maintained her oxygen levels so well.

So all in all, she is amazing. I don't think I could be more in love with someone than I am with her. As hard as the pregnancy, emotions, labor and delivery were I wouldn't change it for the world. Except for maybe have her totally healthy when she came into the world.

Here are some more pictures, please enjoy! I certainly do!!!

Spokane Baby Shower

2009-04-11T09:17:00.001-07:00

On Saturday the 28th of March my mom and other family members threw me a wonderful amazing baby shower in Spokane, Washington. Traci, her son Ian, Garrett and myself drove up there for a trip and shower. Mom had invited a lot of people and a good majority of those people showed. It was really nice to so see so many people that I have not seen in years. Especially a friend of mine that I have not seen in almost 21 years! Everyone was so wonderful and really got me some wonderful things. Rya-Jo will be the best dressed little girl in town for a long long time.

The rest of the weekend was spent just spending time with my family. Playing card games and going to places to eat that I have not been in a long time. It was great to spend time with my mom and just relax, eat some of her wonderful food as well.

When we came back I had my 35 week appointment. Everything sounds wonderful and looks great. I actually had lost a half a pound since my last appointment. Which I found hard to believe considering the amount of food I consumed in Spokane. We also found out that I am really anemic and needed to start taking more iron pills, which don't sit well in my tummy. Thursday the 16th I have my 37 week appointment, at that time I will be doing everything in my power to get this little one out! I am just tired and in a lot of pain most of the time. So I will be talking with my doctor to see if he thinks she will be okay to come out and then Jon and I will get to working! :) YAY She is so close to being here, send healthy baby vibes my way please!!!

32 Weeks

2009-03-11T08:35:00.001-07:00

The top of your uterus can now be measured about 5 inches above your belly button. Because the top of your uterus is so high, you may begin to have trouble breathing or feel short of breath. This is due to the pressure that your growing uterus is placing on your diaphragm. This same pressure may also cause an increased amount of heartburn.

Most likely you are gaining about a pound per week. Your blood volume has increased by 40% to 50% during the past 32 weeks. This allows your body to accommodate both you and your baby. This increased volume is also important because it makes up for the amount of blood you will lose during delivery.

How big is your baby?
Your baby is a little over 16 inches long and weighs between 4 and 4 ½ pounds.

What is happening with your baby?
Your baby is continuing to grow. Her toenails and fingernails have formed. The lungs are continuing to mature but will not reach full maturity for several more weeks. Your baby’s skeleton has completely formed, but her bones are very soft and pliable.

Getting To Know You!

2009-02-15T12:02:00.000-08:00

1.What is your occupation right now? House wife, wife, step-mom and work for a bridal shop. But my most my most important job right now carrying my daughter until she is ready to greet the world. (I can't wait!)

2.What color are your socks right now? I am pretty boring, white socks.

3.What are you listening to right now? CNN Headline News and Jon playing Battlefield on his computer next to me. Oh and the fish tank...I love that sound.

4.What was the last thing that you ate? I made homemade lasagna for Valentine's Day dinner and had some left overs with bread and Cesar Salad. MMMMMHHHHH GOOD!

5.Can you drive a stick shift? I can, but you don't want me to.

6.Last person you spoke to on the phone? My mom yesterday, and hopefully she will call me today.

7.Do you like the person who sent this to you? Well I love the person who's blog I read it on.

8.How old are you today? 27 years young and getting younger! YAY

9.What is your favorite sport to watch on TV? Football all the way and UFC!

10.What is your favorite drink? Water lately and Koolaid.

11.Have you ever dyed your hair? More times than I can remember, but it has been a long long time. You should ask my cousin Traci this question...you would be entertained.

12.Favorite food? Food in general, but I love sushi and steak.

13.What is the last movie you watched? Last night we watched 13 Going On 30 as a family, I love that movie.

14.Favorite day of the year? I don't know, soon to be my daughter's birthday though!

15.How do you vent anger? Depends on who I am angry at. If I am angry at a person I know well or know, then I talk to them. Otherwise I usually get mad and then stomp around and then go to sleep.

16.What was your favorite toy as a child? My Pound Puppy that I still have. He is nasty, but I love him.

17.What is your favorite season? Spring and Fall, not cold or hot.

18.Cherries or Blueberries? I love Cherries, but love most berries as well.

19.Do you want your friends to e-mail you back? Well I am posting it on my blog, so I hope others will post it as well.

20.Who is the most likely to respond? Traci and that is pretty much all, maybe Kelli. I am a loser I know, nobody loves me. :)

21.Who is least likely to respond? Everyone else. :)

22.Living arrangements? I live in a Townhouse in Orem, UT with my husband, my step-daughter on days she is here. My cousin Garrett who is planning on going on a mission soon and then, one dog, cat and 17 fish. (yeah...17 fish) I love my place, it is a three story house and we have great neighbors and just a great nice place to live.

23.When was the last time you cried? Wow, I am pregnant. So I cry all the time now days. Well not all the time, but more often than I used to.

24.What's on the floor of your closet? Laundry hamper's and a big back pack.

25.Who is the friend you have had the longest that you are sending to? LOL, same as Mary just put, but she already filled it out. So maybe Kelli or Traci then.

26.What did you do last night? I made dinner for my husband and Zoe for Valentines and then cleaned (lucky me) and then watched the movie. Then after Zoe went to bed we watched a new show we found, great fun! We are boring I know.

27.What are you most afraid of? Falling to my death...otherwise, not much more.

28.Plain, cheese, or spicy hamburgers? I am all about plain with lettuce and tomatoes and pickles and red onions.

29.Favorite dog breed? There is one dog I saw a long time ago, it was a HUGE white and brown dog. I am not sure what it was, but I loved it. Otherwise a Golden Retriever, since that is what Molly is.

30.Favorite day of the week? Any day, because I love hanging out with my family.

31.How many states have you lived in? 2 states I believe, Washington and Utah.

32.Diamonds or pearls? Diamonds *and* pearls.

33.What is your favorite flower? Calla Lily (So pretty!!)

You know you are pregnant when....

2009-01-30T10:45:00.000-08:00

1. The bathroom becomes your bed away from bed.
2. Getting out of a cozy couch is a whole new ball game!
3. Your trip to the grocery stores for shrimp turns into a trip for doughnuts, cupcakes, french bread, juice, candy and any other thing you can find on your way to the register.
4. Naps are now a regular in your daily life.
5. When something sounds so tasty...then you eat it....not anymore.
6. When a "Snuggle" commercial warms your heart to the point of tears.
7. Your memory has just lost everything you had learned in the past 27 years of your life.
8. You feel like you ran a marathon the day before, when actually you didn't do anything.
9. Your tummy suddenly looks like an alien has taken over your body and feels like it too.
10. You are counting down the days until you experience the most pain you have ever felt in your life...and you are excited about it.
11. It is the end of January and you are still sleeping with no PJ bottoms, no covers, window open and a fan on. Yet you still seem to not be cool enough!

Almost 6 months! WHOA!

2009-01-09T19:09:00.000-08:00

Okay so I finally got up the courage to post a picture of my not so growing belly. Anyone that comments or laughs about the stretch marks will be hunted down and killed. And, yes I can hear the giggles even from my house to yours....
Also, Rya's Grandmother went a little crazy with buying clothing and stuff. So here is a picture of those!

HAPPY NEW YEARS 2009!!

2008-12-31T22:42:00.000-08:00

Happy New Years everyone! I always have those stupid resolutions that I can never keep. And the usual one of getting into shape doesn't really work for me until the year is halfway over. So my resolution this year is probably just to be more happy and enjoy the pregnancy and the fact that I get to become a mom in 2009. Nothing better than a miracle baby right? Not letting things get to me as much as they used to. Honestly I just want to be happy and that is really all.

I hope everyone has a wonderful New Year and that 2009 and brings you all the joys and happiness you could ever hope for.

Baby Campbell is a.....

2008-12-15T14:04:00.000-08:00

GIRL!!! I was supposed to go in on Wednesday, but called to see if I could show up earlier. I just couldn't wait anymore. I went in and he informed us that we are having a baby girl! It was so neat to see her move and feel her move at the same time. He also moved our due date to May 5th and not May 7th!!! So after we ran right out and purchased her first dress!

John Travolta fan in the making with a little sushi on the side!

2008-11-29T08:12:00.001-08:00

Friday after I got off work Jon and I decided we would go out and celebrate his new job, Yipee!!! We got all dresses up, well as dresses up as we get these days and headed out on the "town". There is a new *lounge* in Provo that we decided to give a try. Very upscale looking place with abstract paintings and lights on the wall, very upscale for Provo, Utah. Then we learned that this *lounge* didn't have any alcohol for my dear husband. So we left and headed to Happy Sumo, our staple. On the way to Happy I kept thinking how I wished that they had someone there who could tell me what sushi I could eat, otherwise I will have to get a Bento Box. Low and behold our waitress was 35 weeks pregnant and helped me find the perfect rolls to quench my sushi thirst.

We were sitting next to some girls who were in their very early early 20's. We were entertained by their topics of conversations and had a contest of which one of us could count more "likes" during a period of time. I gave up after 45 "likes" and won! So with some great sushi in my tummy, edamame as well as few Dr. Peppers we headed home very happy. Soon I realized that I am for sure coming down with a cold. Well being pregnant you are very limited as to what you can actually take to help in the feeling better process. The Albertson's Pharmacists was lovely and helped me find what I could take, but I didn't realize it was non-drowsy until this morning. Around 2:30 when I was still tossing and turning and not breathing so well I decided to take a bath to calm me down.

About 5 minutes into my bath I decided to see if I could feel the baby again, like I felt a few weeks ago. So I touched my tummy and pushed down a tiny bit, just enough to cut down the fat in between my hands and the baby. Now I have never seen Saturday Night Fever, but I have seen clips and heard many stories about how John Travolta rocks the disco dance floor. I do believe that my unborn has seen this and was trying out some moves from this movie in my uterus. I was positive that this was the baby and couldn't help but giggle and smile through the rest of my bath! What a weird feeling, it felt like someone was trying to push through a balloon with a fist...only the balloon was my body and the fist was my child. It was amazing and I cannot wait until I can feel that without needing to push through the forest of fat on my tummy!

Boy or Girl, that is the question!

2008-11-11T08:32:00.000-08:00

Okay so I realize that I have 5 more weeks until I find out what we are having. However, with that in mind, I thought it might be fun to find out what y'all think I am having. Now I know what my parents want/think and my husband wants/thinks, but what do *you* think? Leave me a comment stating if you think I am having a boy or a girl and we will see what everyone says and who is right!

Thanks!!!

Boy- Leigh, Mom, Dad, Kelli (I think as well)

Girl- Renee, Traci (I think! LOL), Jon

Dinosaur- Monica (LOL)

Change Can Happen

2008-11-05T08:16:00.000-08:00

I couldn't help but tear up last night while listing to my next President Barack Obama. Through out the past 22 months of campaigning I have sought out as much information as my limited brain can handle. In doing so I have grown and really found out who I am and what I stand for. I stand for rights and honor for all people! President Obama stands for those things as well. He represents those of us who have fallen on hard times and those of us who have found the strength to climb up and find a way out. He has been through his own downfalls and disappointments in his life. His mother working two jobs while on food stamps to allow him to get a good education. Not knowing his farther well and still having the family to help him become an amazing man, husband and father.

He sets a wonderful example for us that this life is worth living and worth fighting for. That life can change with a blink of an eye. He stands for equality and shows that you truly can be anything you set your mind to being. He sees that this country is in great agony and knows we need to do something about it now. He represents us 80% middle to lower class citizens who for a long time have been forgotten. Not raising our taxes to ensure that we can contribute to our failing economy. Ensuring that if you work for a large corporation benefits will be provided. He believes that woman have the right to choose. Whatever you choose is your choice and it won't be taken away from you.

Thank you America for making a change happen. You made a huge stamp in the history of the United States. Many people who have died in the past for a cause are singing their praises right now. I feel proud to be an American right now and hope others who don't see it that way will soon realize that Barack Obama was just what our country needed at this time in our history.

3 Months and we have a nose, eyes and mouth in the Ultra Sound! Yipee

2008-10-28T11:03:00.000-07:00

Well ladies and gentlemen we have made it through our first trimester so far, okay. I feel pretty good, except I am always tired. Oh and if I don't eat right away when I am hungry I get a little throw up happy, well I can't say happy...but you get the idea.

We had to change doctors because our insurance didn't cover the Midwife we were seeing. So I found a rather old school doctor in Provo and I really enjoy him. He was quick and funny and honest. I was worried about telling the doctor that I didn't want any prenatal testing done, fearing they would try to talk me into it. But I found that he was pleading a case against it before he even asked if I wanted any. So I felt so much better about that portion. I asked for an ultrasound since he has a machine in his office. He was backed up with clients since he was in emergency surgery with a lady earlier that day....but he was gracious and agreed. So we got another ultrasound and say little Rya or Mac move. It was very exciting to see limbs and see a nose and other facial features. It made it all that much more real to see the baby actually not look like a bean so much anymore. Hopefully things over the next could of weeks will get even better.

We are going to find out the sex of the baby for sure in December. Jon thinks it is a girl, but my parents want a boy so bad. I am just weirded out that I am pregnant still. But whatever we have I will be proud and excited all wrapped up in a little bun! My pants are getting tighter and that isn't a good feeling. I realize it will happen and it will only get worse, but come on! LOL When you can't fit maternity clothes just yet, this is annoying. Other than that I am excited because 6 of my friends and family are pregnant now. One of my old roommates is due just a week or so after me! Yipee!!!

Here is baby Campbell again!!

It really is really real! WOW

2008-10-01T23:08:00.000-07:00

So this whole thing was never really honestly real to me before today. I mean sure, I had some morning sickness, dizziness and am always tired. But that didn't mean a whole lot until today. At my appointment I met one of the midwives and she was really great. She taught me a lot and asked me a ton of questions. I didn't get a full head to toe exam since I am only 9 weeks. I have another appointment on my 12 week day to get the full "detail". However she heard me say that I wanted a ultrasound so desperately today. So she said she would tell the hospital that we were not sure the due date so we needed to do an ultrasound to get a better idea. :) I measured nine weeks as of today, Wednesday. And my due date is now May 7th!

Seeing the baby and then hearing the heartbeat was by far one of the most amazing moments in my life thus far. I know that may sound stupid, but I have yet to stop smiling since we left the hospital. Thinking this is something that would never in a million years happen to us makes this even more of a miracle. Today started out really horrible, selling my wedding ring for way under price to pay bills was awful. I cried a lot, just because it was something that meant a lot to me. But it was cured for the time being seeing our little sticky bean on the screen! So here are some more of the pictures we got from him, one of them shows the heartbeat at 168.73 per minute, which he said was perfect! YAY

ENJOY, I DID!!

My Baby Buddy

2008-09-24T04:03:00.000-07:00

At work I was excited these last couple weeks. There was a seamstress who was pregnant as well and she was my baby buddy. Early in my shift I went to visit her and she told me she was going to the doctor because she had been spotting and had a lot of cramps. I of course told her that it was possibly just implantation bleeding and the cramps I think are normal.

After a long day at work I learned she had come back from the doctor and had lost her baby. I walked in to the seamstress area and all she had to do was look at me. She had tears in her eyes and just looked drained. She hugged me and told me that she had lost her baby. I told her all the normal things of "It wasn't time, and it will happen when it is right." You know *those* things. She said that she needed to make sure I took it easy and was careful. And that she was at least lucky that she has children already. There were more hugs and tears and me walking away thinking, "What if that was me?". What would I do, what would I say. I mean I know I am still in the scary area. But here we are 5 years after we met and this just came out of the blue. I am not sure what I would do or how I would handle it.

I guess since I have no feelings of being pregnant other than the fact that I am feeling sick sometimes and tired and potty breaks all the time. No bleeding or anything, just hoping it stays that way. I just feel horrible for her and like I shouldn't be excited about being pregnant anymore at work. But at the same time I can't help it either. Just breaks my heart for such a wonderful woman to experience such a hard and horrible time in her life.

Nausea, heartburn, indigestion, upset stomach, diarrhea!

2008-09-14T19:02:00.000-07:00

Okay so no diarrhea, but you get the point. I truly feel bad for any judgments I placed on people prior to this. People that told me they were tired and had food issues in the early stages. I learn now that each pregnancy is very very different.

My sleeping pattern was never really good in the first place. Adding this all into the mix just doesn't help. It hurts my tummy to sleep on either side, so my back it is. Then after a few hours my back hurts, not to mention the bathroom breaks! So I sleep a couple of hours then take a bath or go to the couch and read. I guess it is my bodies way of making me get used to crappy sleep with out drugs!

Now the food, I am hungry ever 20 minutes. Yet the smell of certain foods makes me want to keel over. However, I know if I just eat it and live through it I feel better by the end of the meal. But sometimes it is just too stinky! LOL I know now that there are a few things I will never be able to eat again.

I know that something amazing and miraculous is happening to my body. But do you think it could happen with less issues? Oh and not to mention, Jon and I decided to look at pictures of how big the baby gets each week. And the 40 week mark they had a picture of a small pumpkin! A SMALL PUMPKIN!!! I have to pass that through my vagina???? I realize that I am not the first woman to do this, nor will I be the last. But this is *my* first time, so I freaked out a little. I have seen many many newborns in my life, it just never registered fully. And now it is hitting me...WOW.

Anyway, I will stop now and let you all get back to your normal, not grossed out lives.

Life works in many mysterious ways!

2008-09-09T16:33:00.000-07:00

Well there you have it. I rather can't believe it myself, but the doctor confirmed it. I am one day shy of 6 weeks. I have decided to tell whoever because if I have a miscarriage then at least I will have people there to support me.

Many of you know that we honestly thought this was not possible. So to hear the nurse say, yep you are pregnant and your due date is 5/8/09 was crazy. I will keep you posted on any news, but for now I want to rest and just relax as much as possible.

Chipper Anyone?

2008-09-03T21:02:00.000-07:00

I figured I needed a chipper post considering my last ones....so here goes. A few cool things have happened through the last couple of days. My cousin Jeremy was doing a job for a guy that lives here in Utah. Since he started school recently he isn't able to do the job and school work. So he was able to hand off the job to Jon. Thus Jon has a job so far so good. Family is kind and helping in rent for us, hopefully we will get paid asap from Jon's new job and we can take care of paying them back.

FOOTBALL IS STARTING!!!!!!!! Thursday is the first game of the real season and I cannot wait! We also have three BYU football players next door to us now. They are a lot of fun and really nice guys. Reed #3 (WR), Hooks #47 (LB) and Chambers #11 (WR, PR). So I am excited to watch them kill the Huskies this weekend.

And I am starting back full time since the busy season in back in play at work. Yipee! There are still a bunch of downer things happening right now, but at least things are getting slowly better.

Anyway, there is my chipper post. Hope everyone else is doing wonderful!

It Does Get Worse!!!

2008-08-28T08:32:00.000-07:00

Okay so I should have saved my title from the other day to this one. And maybe I am complaining a lot on this blog...but if you have a problem with that don't read it. So as I said the other day life is turning into a big old pile of crap. So far here is what makes August suck:

1. Kelli (my bestfriend/cousin/sister) moved to Moscow, Idaho. Sucks because she was one of the only people I could do certain things with and she would understand it or want to do it with me. So her being 700 miles away sucks so much.
2. Jon got laid off of his job.
3. I got paid WAY under what I expected.
4. I had to apply for food stamps. I have never done this before and believe me it is humbling.

So far life sucks right? Well it gets better....

5. So we get a letter from Jon's old company with a check enclosed. The check is for $0.00 with a letter stating a bunch of fees and so forth. Now the reason Jon got laid off is because of money in the first place, so I am pretty sure they just didn't want to pay us.
6. We have rent due on the 1st, and we have $20.00 to our name until I get paid in a week. And considering how much I was unable to work my check will probably be just as much as the last one if not less. Rent is $1200.00! HAHA
7. I got pulled over yesterday, not for speeding. I was stopped at a red light with a police officer behind me. He decided, even though I didn't do anything wrong, to run my plates. I had no idea that this could happen, but it came back as no insurance. We closed our bank account so our insurance couldn't go through and got canceled. So after waiting in the car sobbing because of my day so far, the officer comes to my window. He asks me if there is anything I have not taken care of like a speeding ticket. It took me a minute, but then I remembered getting pulled over on our way to Vegas and I lost the ticket. Thus the ticket was never paid. So he informs me that there is a warrant out of Beaver County for me because of it. At this point I was tempted to just have him cuff me and take me away to escape all this crap for at least a day. He gave me two options, A. Have him take me in and send me to Beaver County or B. Take a ticket for no insurance and appear in court for it. Um, let me think there officer, I think I will take option B! He let me go with just that ticket and it is up to the judge how much my fine will be.
8. I called Beaver about my once $80.00 ticket and the lady informs me that the fine is now $284.00! Awesome huh? I don't have that kind of money right now. She told me I can pay on it but the warrant won't go away until it is paid off. YIPEE! So I have to stay out of the way of the police for some time.

You know I keep saying that life can't get worse, but guess what, it can. It can get a hell of a lot worse. Ugg....

Just when you think life can't suck anymore it brings out a bat and hits you upside the head! (Beware adult language may be used in this blog)

2008-08-18T23:32:00.000-07:00

I don't really want to explain entirely what that heading is meaning...but I am sure you all know where I am coming from. Honestly just when you think you can't get much lower in life then "TADA" it hits you...it can! Well these last couple days have sucked a lot. One thing after another.

Bills piling up, literally, debt overpowering our checkbook. I feel like our family has had it fair share of shit happen to them. It seems as though someone has decided to take an enormous vomit green crap on all of our heads. It doesn't rain at our house or in our family is comes down with the wrath of God. All you want so desperately is to wake up and feel like life was supposed to work out this way and be able to honestly say, "I love my life". Yeah that load of shit doesn't happen around here. We wake up wondering what kind of ass whooping we are going to get today?!

When you find yourself crying getting into bed, sobbing in the shower, crying while seeing your cleaning list for the day....you know life sucks. Then you watch people on TV who are richer than rich and talk about how much they love their life and you wonder why you should be any different from them. We did the whole business thing and see where it has gotten us...yeah. I am pretty sure God just hates me and is out to make my life just that much more awful. And for those of you who might disagree with me, that is fine. But you are not walking in my shoes....and before you tell me God is only testing me as much as I can handle. Well walk a day or two in my shoes and then come back to me.

I am sure I am going on and on and no one understands. Sorry, if you really want to know then let me know.

Toe Update

2008-07-31T18:51:00.000-07:00

So I finally decided to head to the doctor because my toe was not looking any better. There was a big chunk you could fold back and it was kind of gross. So the doctor said it was infected, even with my attempts to clean it up. The doctor said that she needed to do a surgery on it right then. So we numbed it all up and she cut a bunch of it all off. It bled tons for about 5 minutes with the doctor holding a piece of gauze on it the whole time. The numbing felt really strange and then the pain came! WOW!!

It hurt so bad that I couldn't really walk at all on it. The nurse put a pressure bandage on it and they told me to keep it dry and make sure not to walk too much on it. I have some medicine to take and some other meds for it. Well needless to say my toe is gross and looks funny with a "cast" on it. I also received a tetanus shot, which hurts now. So needless to say I didn't work today since it hurts like a mother to stand on it.

Here are some pictures of it and the little devil herself. She is cute, but mind you her bite isn't so cute. ;)

Molly vs My Toe

2008-07-24T22:39:00.000-07:00

So on July 10th we decided to get something for Zoe for her birthday.....yeah. We got her a puppy Golden Retriever. Her name is Molly and she is a sweet girl but is teething. So she is biting all sorts of things, hands, bottles, carpet, stairs, beds....you know. But most of all today it was a bite to my big toe on my right foot. Now I already have a bone spur on my right ankle, but man did this hurt. I tore my foot away and it just started bleeding a lot. I had to run to the bathroom to get some band-aids and then tonight at work it came through my sock. Anyway, a crappy night at work because of my toe. The only down side is she is ADORABLE!!!

So here she is....oh and her eyes are not blue...it is the camera.

2.5 weeks and already an upgrade!

2008-06-11T21:50:00.000-07:00

So recently Jon started a job with a local company. He left his old job and has not looked back. Jon really has enjoyed his first weeks there at this company and feels that this is a place he would enjoy staying for a long while. He gets along great with the CEO and the fact that he is an ex-marine sniper helps Jon a lot in feeling a connection with him. (that is for those of you that know Jon's previous jobs)
Anyway...so today Jon was in the CEO's office with the guy who was running development. They were discussing how to do reviews for employees and Jon was rather blown away from the insane way they were doing things. So he helped them in making this duty more efficient and actually more helpful to the employees. At this time the CEO, Troy, said..."That is it, Jon you are the new CTO." Of course Jon thought this was a joke and went about his day. Little did he know that all of this was already in the works and was announced that he is the new CTO for his company, and he has only been there a little over two weeks. CRAZY!

For those of you that don't know what the CTO is, it is the Chief Technology Office. So you have the CEO, CFO and CTO that pretty much run a company. There might be a few more of them depending on the size of the company. So today was a great day all around. I got new shoes for my birthday and Jon got an awesome promotion.

I am so proud of him and happy for him. He is an amazing smart person and deserves this more than you will ever know. Congrats babe and remember I love you tons and tons!!!

Ellen Degeneres vs John McCain

2008-06-01T00:42:00.000-07:00

Most people I know probably don't agree with me in this field. And that is alright, everyone has the right to feel the way you want. Since this is my blog, I will post my opinions and how I feel about all of this. I feel like people have a tendency to pass judgment on others without really getting to know the subject in detail. Maybe being gay is a choice, I don't know because I am not gay. I don't pretend to know anything other than what I see or feel.

I think that people deserve to be happy in whatever life they chose. I not am God, and I have no place to tell people how to life their life while on this earth. God will judge everyone in his own way. So to those of you out there who now have a chance to be happy and take it, congrats. Below is a discussion between Ellen Degeneres and John McCain. She is a great person and I enjoy her personal take on all of this.

Again you don't need to share my opinions at all. But this is my blog and I can talk about what I want and how I want to talk about it. Also remember that Christ loves everyone, regardless of who that person or who they chose to love.

Wow, I love my job!

2008-05-31T20:45:00.000-07:00

Okay say you all know, well most of you, that I am a bridal consultant at a local bridal shop here. Honestly this is the best job in the whole wide world for me! My husband tells me if there is ever a job that was made for a person it is this job for myself. I get to dress brides all day long and give them wedding ideas, do veils and tiaras.

So every month we have 4 levels set for us with our commissions. You can earn 1.5-3% of everything you sell. You automatically get 1% of every sale you make, but depending on how much you sell in a month you can get higher. Every month it is different, for May the 3% commission break was set at $13,500. So if you sold that or higher you received 3% of your sales. This month as of this morning I had the highest sales at $16,632 dollars!!! YIPEE, this is a slow month also. I was so excited you guys and love my job so much.

I love the girls I work with and the people I get to help. Even though there are all girls that work there, it isn't drama like you would expect. So all I can say is that I love my job and couldn't ask for more!

Bleach and ammonia are a bad mix???!!?? Who would have thought that!!

2008-05-14T09:27:00.001-07:00

This last week has been an interesting one at that and it is only Wednesday. Monday morning I woke up and headed to work at around noon. Jon informed me that he was going to clean his bathroom in the office/guest room. The day was slow and it was odd because I had a really bad feeling for the time I was at work. Around 2:15pm, I heard my name over the intercom at work telling me I had a phone call. I left my bride and by the time I got to the phone the caller had hung up. The receptionist looked at caller ID and told me the number, which was Jon's. She said that he didn't sound so good over the phone. At this time I headed to the break room to call Jon and see if he needed me to come home. After two calls and no answer I told my boss I had to go and would be back after I checked on him.

I found Jon in the office/guest room bathroom passed out over the bathtub. The door was shut and the window was open in the guest room. It smelled of cleaned solution very badly and Jon was not responding. He was sweating all from head to toe and I tried to wake him up. Now I was not as worried as I did get eventually because I am used to him passing out with his tumor. So I got him to respond to me for a brief second and he said in a very very raspy voice that his lungs and throat were burning. Most of the time if I think he is really hurt and I tell him I am going to take him to the doctor he says no and that he is fine. This time I told him I was going to call 911 and he didn't argue. A little bit after calling them the police showed up and seconds later Jeremy Foutch and his uncle Mike showed up. Again shortly after that the paramedic and fire department showed up and helped Jon to get some oxygen and into the ambulance. For me that part was most difficult because I am used to taking care of him myself and was unsure of what to do at that moment in time.

Well we spent a few hours at the hospital with breathing treatments and eye drops and pain meds and finally was released later that night. Jon burned his lungs and throat with the mixture of ammonia and bleach. He didn't know that Windex has ammonia in it, so we all know now what not to mix. He is doing much better now, but still has a burning feeling and still cannot talk for the most part. But he will get better with time and now is not allowed to clean the bathrooms!!!

Can I get a "Wife's Day"??!!??

2008-05-07T21:31:00.000-07:00

Mother's Day is a wonderful holiday for all of you lovely mothers out there. You get "rewarded" for all that you do and all that you will do for the upcoming year. Including those future mothers have this comfort in knowing the next year's mothers day will be a wonderful occasion. Flowers, cards, dinner and a wonderful array of thank yous.

But then there are those few of us who either don't want children or can't have children. Now granted those few that choose not to have children are choosing not to have a "Mother's Day". I am stuck between a rock and a hard place, I can't have children, therefore don't want children. I am sure if given the option I would have a child...but obviously for reasons other than the joy of Mother's Day. However when you are stuck like me, what happy day do we get?

What about hard working Wife's Day? My life is fun and I love every second of it. However I have a stressful life on a daily basis and every day wake up wondering if this might be the day I wind up single again. So can I have a day, a day of rest and relaxation. A day where I get a present that says, "You work hard, you are loved and deserve to be pampered a bit". Being a Step-mother isn't even remotely close to being an actual mother. Presents and cards and thank yous just don't happen, no matter what you do.

I guess I am just complaining, and that is okay right? I just wish there was a day to celebrate and show me a little appreciation for doing the things I do. Even though I am not a mother I am still a hard working wife.

(O.K. stepping down for my soap box now.)

Kanzius Caner Machine

2008-04-19T21:41:00.000-07:00

This is by far one of the most amazing things I have ever seen. I can only imagine what this could do in the future. But hopefully not that far in the future!

A big blurry movie!

2008-04-17T08:04:00.000-07:00

My life has become a big old blurry movie it seems. I wake up and get as much housework done as I can, check my e-mails, blogs and bank accounts online. Then I eat breakfast, if I am lucky. Get ready for work and spend 7-8 hours running around dressing up brides. Now don't get me wrong, I love my job very much. I also have to admit that I am pretty damn good at it too. But on a non closing night I get home and spend a little bit of time with my husband. Watch a movie or play poker, something to spend time together. We get exhausted and head to bed to wake up and do it all over again. On a closing night I get home around 10:00pm. Then spend a half hour with Jon and then we crash.
I never have time for anything else anymore, not only that, but no desire to do much. I don't sleep well so I take stuff to help me sleep. Which only makes me more tired in the morning when I don't get 12 hours of sleep. Again I totally dig my job and wouldn't trade it for anything. I guess I am just tired and kind of depressed that I have a dirty house and no clean clothes anymore. I start laundry and then get busy with other things, so it sits there for days on end.
I feel like I am losing part of who I am right now. Almost like a robot in this daily routine and I can't seem to break the cycle. It is driving me nuts to have a dirty house and a pile of laundry that could make a dump jealous. But it is so not typical of me to let it go.
Anyway, just feeling kind of crummy right now. Feeling like I don't have a lot of my life anymore. I love hanging out with Jon and a few friends that I do have. But otherwise I just kind of am flowing through life with this big blindfold on and not sure what or where I am headed next.

I just don't understand...

2008-04-01T22:03:00.000-07:00

On Monday afternoon a young seven year old girl left her apartment in South Salt Lake. Her name was Hser Nay Moo, and she was just a little girl! This little girl was just walking around near her own home and and an Amber Alert had to be issued. I am unsure as to what this damn world is coming to!

Today at 7:00pm the police knocked on three doors that were unanswered on Monday. The first two brought nothing and a third door was answered. This apartment brought the worst kind of news ever. They found this young girl in the bathroom of this apartment deceased. This apartment was occupied by five men, and the police only said that she had signs of "trauma". Which can only indicate one thing if you ask me. What makes me sick is that five grown men took a child, a young girl, from her home. They took her and hurt her and killed her and destroyed the lives of so many people. She was an only daughter and I can't even imagine, nor do I want to imagine what they might be going through.

My thoughts and prayers go out to her family and friends. Her friends at school who cannot understand what has happened. When I was in elementary school a girl was taken from her home and found dismembered in a garbage can a few days later. I remember this and it was a thing that no one ever expected or even could fathom happening in our society. And it makes me sick to think that this kind of a thing happens almost 3-4 times a year now. Children being taken from their families and hurt in so many ways, then their life taken.

I guess the one thing I am happy about is that in Utah we still have the death penalty and we use it on some occasions. However we do have death by firing squad, so that is one small hope for these pieces of garbage that did this. My heart is broken for this family and while watching the new conference I could see it struck a chord with the police. There was no dry eye among them and you could see their hearts were hurting tremendously.

All I can say is I know at least the life after this life for these kinds of people will be hell....literally! Keep her family in your thoughts prayers.

Snow, snow go away, come again....never!

2008-03-31T11:05:00.000-07:00

UGGG!! I am so tired of snow. I hate snow in the first place, but throw some in at the end of March and my frustration turns to disdain! Seriously, it is spring, it is almost April and there is snow on the ground. What is that?!?!?!?! I am getting my house all cleaned out, I guess you could call it spring cleaning. But I'm not sure if you can call it that since it seems to be February outside still!!! Arg, I am really getting annoyed and if it snows again in the near future...I will...well I don't know. I guess I will keep complaining or something. I just wish it would go away, I want flowers and green grass and trees and sunshine!

You said yes to him, now it is time to say yes to the dress!

2008-03-11T23:52:00.001-07:00

While growing up most girls dream about their wedding day, and more importantly their wedding dress. When they finally meet the man of their dreams, or just a man in general, it is time to live out those plans. Of course your opinions and styles have probably changed since Ken and Barbie had their white wedding with a pink Corvette. So you set out on a journey to find that perfect dress with friends and family in tote. Armed with pictures and ideas of the ideal gown, you enter that wonderful wilderness of white!

Ball Gowns, A-Line, Mermaid, Empire or Column, so many choices out there. I have to admit that my job as a bridal consultant is heaven on earth for me. But there are those occasional moments in any job that make you take a step back and wonder why. Wedding dresses are usually made in China and the sizes are measured by their standards. What is a typical 12 in our country is a whale of a female to them. Which honestly is a shame, you think designers would do it the other way around. On Saturday it is really busy at the shop, brides, prom dresses, bridesmaids and banquet dresses are flying all around the shop. A bride enters with her Aunt and Uncle and I am her consultant. Some brides have never tried on dresses before and need to be walked through cuts and styles and every little detail that pertains to a wedding dress. Then you get the ones, like mine, who have tried on dresses a lot. They know what they want and know where to find it.

I hunt down my brides amongst all the plastic dresses bags in the "2" section. She hands me enough dresses to make a couple of trips to her dressing room. And finally I slip her into the room and allow her Aunt to help her get the gowns on. The door opens and she comes out in a $650 dollar dress. It looks amazing on her and we place her on the stage surrounded in mirrors. Now a few minutes into staring at herself her Aunt pipes up and asks the price of the lace covered mermaid dress. I inform her of this price and see her mouth hit the floor. Come one, wedding dresses are expensive, come to terms with that lady! The beads are hand sown, the lace is hand sown on and buttons and pearls take hours to get just right. So she hurries her niece into the dressing room again and closes the door. After a rather long wait I knock on the door to make sure everything is alright with my bride. The door swings open and the, oh so honest Aunt asks in a very stern voice. "We are on a very strict budget right now, and none of these dresses have prices on them."

Well we go over some dresses and I point out to her the reasons for the prices on the dresses. I also ask her what her budget might be for this dress, "$300 to $400 dollars, and no higher. But we don't want something too plain." Well I hated to break it to her that the price range she was in, plain and simple was the only way to go. I break out my handy little wedding magazine and show her some of the cheaper dresses. After I fetch the two dresses for her that were of somewhat "O.K." quality she throws them on. They take two looks in the mirror, get back into the dressing room and the brides gets her clothes back on. The Aunt throws open the door, "Your dresses are ugly and too expensive!" and stomps out the door. All the while dragging her niece by the arm as if she were some rag doll that just happen to follow her around. These are the occasions that make my job a little bit on the difficult side. :)

Oh well, my job is amazing and I love it more than anything. But it is a little bit stressful from time to time!

Our little household...

2008-03-03T21:10:00.000-08:00

I was thinking it was time for a little Campbell House update or something along those lines. Right now Jon and I are still living in Orem, Utah. We still have Zoe on Wednesdays and every other weekend. Luckily we get along great with Jon's ex-wife and if we have something planned another night we can call her up and have Zoe for the evening.

Zoe is in third grade and is loving it a lot! She is in the Chess club on Wednesday mornings, yes ladies and gents...the chess club at 8 years old. She takes after her dad a lot her mom and I joke! She has a lot of friends and one particular friend we are trying to ween her off of. A boy at her school that she spends a lot of time with at lunch and recess. We don't want to make *that* big of a deal of it, but we are working on pushing her to spend time with girls more. She just finished basketball and is looking to sign up for guitar lessons soon. This coming weekend she is going to her cousins baptism in Wyoming. Her Grandmother is giving her the hamster she has in the children's library she works at. She couldn't be more excited of course!

Jon is currently still working in the IT department at Maverick. He is enjoying the fact that he doesn't have a lot of responsibility right now. And working from home is also a big plus for him since he has treatment Monday, Wednesday and Fridays now. He also was told he might be approved for a new clinical trial coming up. Apparently this strain of rabies goes directly to the brain and attacks the tumors. So he is waiting to hear about that and hopefully will start that soon. He is also speaking to Franklin Covey again, they have not hired for his old position. So his old boss really would like him to come back. He is thinking of doing both jobs, since he can work from home. He is still working on our contract negotiations for our client in DC. Hopefully we can get that up and running in June or July. He still isn't sure if he will remain at either company after the contract starts. Otherwise he is enjoying Rock Band at home on the XBox360 and spending time with Zoe and I.

Me, well me... I got the job at the bridal salon and today was my first day. I loved every minute of it. The only down side is not used to being on my feet all day long. I am sure it will take some time, but I will get into the groove soon. I helped a lot of people today and some of the employees asked me if I had been working there for a long time. When I explained that today was my first day they said they were shocked because I looked like I knew everything that was going on. That was really nice and made my day even better. I do miss being at home already, but enjoy having a life outside my front door. I have been looking and planning trips for this summer to Paris and Switzerland. Hopefully our contract doesn't take too long to nail down and we can head out. I still am enjoying being a mom to a deaf cat, although he doesn't seem to understand what it means when we squirt water at him while he is attacking the fish tank. I was sure after a year or so he would get it, but nope. I guess instinct is thicker than water...or something. I am also spending a lot of time working on getting into shape. I have lost a total of 12 pounds so far and I feel pretty good. I have 43 pounds left to go for my goal weight. I have a blog for that too if you feel like checking up on me. Just click on my profile and you will see my "Fatty to Fabulous" blog.

All in all our life here is good old Orem is great. It will be that much better when we get our house built in Springville so we can be that much closer to Zoe. I hope this post finds everyone else in great spirits!!!

Barbie Dolls and Wedding Dresses!!!!!!!

2008-03-02T11:26:00.000-08:00

A while back I went to Allyse's Bridal with Traci for her wedding dress. It was really busy that day and the woman helping us had a few ladies to help also. So I sort of took over and helped Traci with the dress and the corset, jewelry and veil. The woman thanked me for helping and jokingly offered me a job. Now a few months later I went to a friends baby shower and she was there also. We talked for a few minutes and again she sort of jokingly offered me a job.

So I applied there this past month and went in for an interview on Saturday. The same person I have spoken to the last two times was the same person who interviewed me. We talked and after everything I said she clapped and cheered. Which I obviously took for a good sign. She kept telling me that she was excited and everything I said was exactly what she wanted to hear. So as I left she said that she was excited to have talked to me and that she would call me on Monday. Well Saturday night I got a phone call from her. She informed me that she was at home and was too excited to wait until Monday to call me. She offered me the job and said that she was very much looking forward to having me on her team.

So my new job is dressing up woman all day long in wedding dresses. What job could be better for me than that! So if you happen to be getting married any time soon and still need a dress, call me! Come see me!!! :) YAY!

Keeping Tim in my thoughts...

2008-02-29T15:05:00.000-08:00

This morning I found out some pretty sad news. A very close friend of mine was dating a woman for a rather long time, and were actually in the midst of having a very mutual breakup. He was going to help her after her upcoming surgery and when she got better they would go their own ways. He left her at their house over a weekend, but he and some of her friends had some really bad feelings. When Tim headed back to his house he found his girlfriend in bed, he tried to wake her by grabbing her arm. She was very cold to the touch and he found a note. Unfortunately the bottom half of the note's ink was blurry due to fact that the note was by her head and liquid from her mouth had blurred it. Tim called 911 because he knew Tonia was gone and he was so scared and afraid of what happened. Tonia was very depressed and was on a lot of medication for her emotions. She told Tim that she was sorry she couldn't be the woman that he wanted and that she would miss her kids very much. The ME eventually informed Tim that she had taken 20 Xanax and 30-35 Loratab. Obviously she passed away peacefully and without any pain. Poor Tim is doing better, but still kind of in shock. I know this explanation is short and probably confusing, but I needed to write it down to take it all in.

Sad that a lot of people don't realize that pain they inflict on people they care about when they do something like this. Makes me very sad to see him in such pain and depression. Anyway, if everyone can keep him in your thoughts and prayers that would be helpful!!

Life's little punch lines...

2008-02-29T10:22:00.000-08:00

Not sure why I named this blog *that*, but it sounded cute. But life has been a little crazy lately and we are just trying to make life smooth. Since we are still in the waiting period for our contract to go through, it is looking like June will be our month. Happy birthday to me huh? But Jon has been working for Maverick the gas station as a tech guy, and he gets to work from home a lot. That is a plus for me to hang out with him a lot. Now the really good news is that I have an interview with a bridal shop on Saturday! Yipee!! For those of you that know me probably can see that this is very exciting for me. If I get it and love it I will probably stay there even while we have the contract. My diet is coming along swimmingly and although it is frustrating I realize that it will be all worth it in the end. Zoe is doing well at school and enjoying it a lot. She has a lot of friends, but is sad that her neighbor friend here just moved. She will be heading to Wyoming in a week for her cousins baptism. Her grandma is giving her the hamster she has for her library at her school. So of course she is thrilled about that! But otherwise life in general is pretty good, just off and on of stress. I just am looking forward to the contract to going through so we can put bills and all that stressful stuff behind us. Anyway, got to go work out!!!!

David Archuleta...very impressive.

2008-02-28T08:36:00.000-08:00

WSOP Here I Come!!!!

2008-02-24T12:02:00.000-08:00

WSOP- World Series of Poker...yeah! LOL I recently learned how to play poker and absolutely love it! We went and bought a bag from Cabela's that had tons of poker chips, dealer chips and cards. Jon taught me how to play and now I can't get enough of it. Every time I have played for some reason I rock the house. Last night we played with some friends for a couple of hours. By the last hand I had most of everyone's chips. There were only a few left on the table and a few in the stacker that I didn't consume with my almighty hand of poker. So much fun!

8 Year Old Basketball

2008-02-22T09:13:00.001-08:00

So this year Zoe decided to play basketball for Springville City. Jon and I coach her soccer team every October, but we didn't sign up to coach the basketball. The coach that Zoe had was the father of two girls that were on our soccer team this year. Now in soccer at this age Jon and I make sure they learn positions and how to actually play the game. This is the most important time for them to learn this information. During the soccer season however we had to miss a game. So we asked a few dad's to coach for us that day, we ended up having the soon to be basketball coach be the sub. Now our team was not in any way amazing, but we were good. We won almost all our games and when we did lose a game it was only by one or two points. Anyway, we come back from our trip to hear about the game from Zoe's mom. Cristen explained that the sub-"coach" brought a lawn chair and just pointed to the girls he wanted in at that time. No one knew their positions, who they were supposed to guard, or who even the goalie was. So we ended up losing that game around 7-0. Yeah...all the parents seemed to be a little upset. We also had practice during the entire season every Wednesday for the girls to learn. So, on to this season of basketball...

Zoe had two practices, two that is it. Granted they are young, but this is the time they learn about the game. Not only did they have two practices, but I am not sure you can even call them practices. It seemed like a time for the coach to come and play with his "co-coach". They only shot baskets from the free-throw line, never discussed blocking, rebounding, passing or anything at all. One of those practices were a big group practice. All of the teams met at a gym and practiced in their own teams. I guess I am just frustrated that Jon and I put in some much work for soccer. We made binders for the parents with schedules, numbers, information about the rules and treat dates, maps...everything. At the end of the season I made certificates for the girls and gave them medals. We made sure that all treats were healthy given the fact that these girls were in a sports activity. Anyway, I was just annoyed yesterday at the last game with the coach. He sat on the bench while the girls played and he didn't say a word. I think next year Jon and I will also coach basketball so that we can make sure the girls learn something this year. :)

Early Valentine's Day Surprise!

2008-02-12T14:23:00.000-08:00

Monday evening Jon asked what we were doing for dinner. At that time I had not thawed anything since we just recently got home from the grocery store. So I offered a few less than savory ideas, not on purpose though. Grilled cheese, sandwiches that kind of general stuff. At this time Jon told me to get dressed and he started making calls. Now, to whom I am unsure of at this point in time. After a few minutes of doing make-up and that kind of stuff, he then excused himself for an errand. At this point I was a little nervous about the errand he apparently had to run. Jon peeks his head in through our front door and asks me to remove myself from the front room. So as I am sitting on the toilet, (not going to the bathroom by the way) again he peeks his head in and asks if I am ready. The doors opens and there are two dozen roses sitting there on the table. In the form that you see them on 1-800-Flowers.com! It was sooooo pretty, and amazing. So all dolled up and apparently somewhere to go we got into our car and headed out. We ended up in SLC at my favorite place ever, Spencer's Steak and Chops at the Hilton hotel. We had an amazing dinner and great company! It was a wonderful wonderful surprise!
I have a wonderful husband and a great friend in him as well! :) Happy V day everyone!!!!

Mississippi banning feeding fatties?!?!

2008-02-07T11:43:00.000-08:00

Recently in reading some news online, Jon ran into an article that made both our jaws drop. The article is about some state representatives that are trying to pass a law that does not allow restaurants to serve obese people. WTF?!?!?!? Are we then putting the judging in the servers hands? Such a smart idea, and how can we determine at that moment what is obese and what is not. The kids that are usually sitting people are still in High School, yeah that is a wise choice for them to be the deciding factors. Maybe they have not heard of racial discrimination, yeah that worked out well for us huh? Maybe we should be focusing on teaching healthy eating habits at a young age. Try getting rid of pop and fatty/sugary snack foods in schools. Teaching families how to eat better and be active. People on a lower fixed income cannot generally afford to purchase or eat a cleaner diet. Maybe look into that instead of banning them from public places as if they are our redheaded stepchildren and we should be ashamed of them. Makes me sick and sad all at the same time that our country has gotten to this point. No wonder a lot other countries are sitting back and laughing at us...

Emotionally and physically drained...

2008-02-06T12:30:00.000-08:00

Today I am totally lost with exhaustion. So many thins piling on me today that are causing me to literally break down, and being a female right now doesn't help. ;) Our new contracts are still in negotiations and since they are with the government it will be that way for a while. At the end of the negotiations it will be well worth the wait, but as for right now it is way too much stress. We are getting rid of our cars so we don't have to worry about the payments or anything else. We are purchasing a cheap older car, this will loosen some of our stress. There are a few other things that are just adding up to make things hard. I just with the government contracts would start already so that I can stop stressing over money right now. But there is nothing I can do to speed things up, it is the government after all. LOL So I will just sit back and try my hardest to relax. I am trying to get into a bridal shop to maybe work there for a bit, maybe even stay there when the contract begins. It is something I love and something I would for sure enjoy doing. Anyway, just needed to vent for a few seconds, hoping that will help.

Thanks!

I need some feedback!?!?!?!

2008-02-02T17:44:00.000-08:00

Okay ladies! I need some feedback on some information. Now sometime in a females life they will either have a wedding, be in a wedding, attend a wedding, plan a wedding, help plan a wedding or pay for a wedding. Now in planning a wedding or anything at all that has to do with a wedding things become very stressful. Especially driving all over the place to hit each vendor, photography, food, dresses, announcements and cakes. All of it adds up to a lot of time and gas spent. So I need some information and feedback to this...if you entered a "mall" that's sole purpose was to provide you with all things wedding, would this be a good thing for bad thing. You enter and there are wedding dress stores, bridesmaids, flower girls, tuxedo shops, flower, everything and anything weddings.

At the entrance there is a reception desk that allows you to sort of check in. Information about your upcoming event, address all that. If you don't have an event and are just looking around, just putting in your name and number for future. Then you are also offered an assistant to shop with you. Talk you through you wedding, helping with prices. You could use this person to personalize your wedding for a simple fee. Vendors set up shops for you to look at everything and make appointments. Have servers walk around the "mall" offering drinks and offering small samples of their catering companies food. They give you a crab cake or something and if you like it they have a business card for you to take.

Also have drawings for clients, returning receipts to the reception desk at the end of your shopping day. We put in your name a certain number of times according to how much you spent. The winners could receive discounts on products from vendors at the "mall". Over all it would be a one stop wedding location, no more driving to millions of dress shops, photographer offices, bakeries, flower shops and all that.

Let me know what you think either by posting a comment on this blog or e-mailing me at nicole_m_campbell@yahoo.com

Thanks
Nicole

"27 Dresses"

2008-01-26T00:17:00.000-08:00

Okay tonight Kel and I went on a much needed date! We took ourselves to the movies to watch "27 Dresses". And yes of course it was a chick flick, but it was a wonderful chick flick. We were in a theater with mostly all girls, there were maybe three or four boys there. And you could tell it was third or fourth date occasions, as any other level of the relationship they wouldn't have been there. But it was so entertaining to "ohh" and "ahhh" out loud in the scenes that we loved and hated. But over all the movie was sooo good. The idea of the movie, the actors, the characters, the lines and just all of it! If you get a second, go see it, cause you will love it! Trust me you won't, that is if you are a girl, be disapointed!

Attention Wal Mart customers!

2008-01-20T13:14:00.001-08:00

Today is Sunday, and that is when Jon and I do a lot of our shopping for groceries. Usually the stores are not as crowded and we like all the room we have. Today, however, Jon said he wanted to go to Wal Mart. Jon needed to purchase some new clippers and he figured this would be the best place to go. I myself knew better, but went a long with the idea anyway.

The isles at Wal Mart were packed with yelling kids and stressed out parents. They were not, however filled with food and a large selection. It looked like some store going out of business and their final sale was today. Walking around we saw so many amazing sights, really well groomed mullets, families with no less than 3 carts filled with junk food. So many wonderful treasures for the eyes! But we were most amused by the wonderful experience that awaited us at the check out line.

In front of us in line there was a woman and two kids. She has two different loads, one she was paying for and one that was paid for by WIC. She was obviously frustrated, but by what we were unsure of yet. Then down the isle came a man, whom I can only assume was her husband. She yelled out to him to go and get another gallon of milk for the WIC order. Everything seemed normal, but maybe she was a bit annoyed at life in general. Then the situation was drastically escalated within seconds!

Her husband came down the isle again with the gallon of milk, obviously in a hurry. And here is the conversation that occurred....

Woman: "Where is my card?"
Man: "I gave it back to you last night."
Woman: "No you didn't! Where is it?"
Man: "I gave it back to you last night!"
Woman: "No you f!@#$%g didn't! Give me my card!"(Her kids standing right next to her)
Man: "I put it on your wallet last night when I got home."
Woman: "No you f@#$&*$g didn't! Because you are a stupid mother f$#@!r and irresponsible I had to use this card." (as she shoves the card in his face)

A few seconds pass and the cashier informs her that the milk she chose is not correct for the WIC program. The lady turns to her husband...

Woman: "Go get the (such and such) milk. Hurry up, be quick and don't f#$k around with my time."

The man runs off and the lady decides that the children are now in some need some colorful language.

Woman: "Don't touch that s#@t! And stop f$%#$*^g with your brother."

The young boys look at me and give me a very evil smile. And in my mind I know exactly what kind of life these two little boys are leading. Right then the husband comes back with the correct milk and they pay and are on their way. I was floored that a woman spoke to her husband in that way, either in public or private. Have some respect for your spouse, children and the people around you! Anyway, had to share this with those of you reading my blog. Jon says he is still stressed over that lovely experience.

Four Things

2008-01-20T10:57:00.000-08:00

Four things about me that you may or may not have known, in no particular order. The directions are at the end.

Four jobs I have had in my life:
1. Receptionist at Supercuts.
2. New Accounts Manager for First Step Internet.
3. Phone Center Manager at Humanvoice.
4. CEO of IT Management.

Four places I have lived:
1. Spokane, Washington
2. Pullman, Washington
3. Provo, Utah
4. Orem, Utah

Four TV Shows that I watch: (When we had cable-not big TV watcher)
1. Football
2. COPS
3. Law and Order SVU
4. Pros V Joes

Four places I have been (other than where I lived):
1. Washington DC
2. New York
3. Canada
4. Vermont

People who email me regularly
1. UFC
2. Prevention Magazine...(yeah lol)
3. More spam
4. Noticing a trend here?

Four of my favorite foods:
1. Baked Ziti
2. Salad
3. Bread
4. Steak

Four things I look forward to in the next year
1. Getting into shape.
2. Building a new house.
3. Something that only 3 or 4 people in my life know about...that would rock!
4. Starting our new contract ASAP!

If you have read this, tag you are it. Copy and paste on your blog with your own answers

Chick v Dude in Alberstons check out lane....

2008-01-19T20:09:00.000-08:00

O.K. most of you know I am into football, really into football. This evening I was at Albertsons getting some J-E-L-L-O, and stumbled into a wonderful conversation. There were two guys and two girls on an obvious date getting snacks. I heard a male voice say, "Tony Romo is an over-rated quarterback, he sucks." I started to laugh out loud and they all turned to face me. For those of you who don't know, Tony Romo is the quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys...now I don't care too much for the Cowboys but you have to give credit where credit is due. So they all turned their heads in attempt to see what I might be laughing at. I looked at the guys and said, "You have got to be kidding me!?!"

Well in an obvious attempt to not be insulted by a girl about football in front of his female friend...he said, "What you like him and the Cowboys? Do you even know who that is anyway?" Again, most of you that know me know by now this really pushed my buttons. What, just because I have a vagina and breasts I can't know about football??? WTF? So I felt it was time to put this metro-sexual in his place. So I began my rant..."There are literally only 2 maybe 3 quarterbacks in the NFL today that are better. For the three years that he has been playing he has taken the Cowboys to the playoffs every year. What other quarterback has done that? Brett Favre and Tom Brady, and a questionable Peyton Manning are the only quarterbacks that can outshine him. There is a reason he is #3 in the NFL this year, and that is on stats talking not someones opinion. Bill knew what he was doing when he put in Tony and didn't even look back for a reason."

If he had a tail it would have been tucked between his legs as he stood there looking at me. The girls started laughing and the friend of the metro-sexual said to me, "Never in my life did I think I would be standing in a grocery store lane watching my friend be put in his place about football by a girl." As we were all leaving the store they noticed me getting into my car. They said to me, "Nice car!" To which I replied "You can come over here and look, but your hater friend has to stay over there." Again another uproar of laughter and we all went our separate ways.

So to all you men out there that think you know more about football then all woman...you will get your turn. Just give me time to map my football knowledge tour around the US and I will be happy to argue with ya. Okay that is my rant for the evening. Thanks for listening...er...ahh...I mean reading.

Damn it, why didn't I think of this!

2008-01-08T19:03:00.001-08:00

What a wonderful life....or something.

2008-01-08T18:06:00.000-08:00

Usually by this day in a new year I have something exciting happen, but I have to admit right now I've got nothing! LOL, pretty lame life huh? Just hanging out and spending time with my family, and I can say that isn't a bad thing at all. However, I did have a wonderful opportunity to watch an amazing football game. Watching the Seattle Seahawks play the Washington Redskins. This game was by far one of the most entertaining games I have ever seen! Go HAWKS, and now we are on our way to Green Bay to shut down the Packers. Now hopefully we can show up like we did against the Redskins!!! Anyway, one of my random thoughts for the day. And I added a picture of Jon and I from one of our Vegas trips. I made Jon walk like 6 miles in his shoes to get to Tiffany's to get that necklace that I wanted. LOL It was so worth it...especially because after that we were able to enjoy the evening with one of our good friends! RUM and COKE! YAY :) Alright well I am saying goodnight and hopefully something fun happens here really soon and I can post it.

First, I want to thank all the little people that helped make this happen....

2008-01-02T19:06:00.001-08:00

So many of my friends and family have these little blog things. So as with myspace, it was only a matter of time until I started my own little land of blogging paradise. I guess I am never sure as to what people have to blog about, I mean *that* much can't be happening in everyone's life on a daily basis, right? Then I start to read everyones blogs, and I was happily surprised. It isn't only me that has a non-daily-eventful day! It seems people just write in there on holidays, when something exciting or significant happens, or when they feel like venting. And dang it, I am pretty sure I can keep up with that!

Christmas and New Years came without much of anything. No crazy, life changing experiences. Honestly in a way I am glad, but also sad that I had nothing nutty to send off 2007 with. Now Jon and I had the option to go to New York to celebrate the 2008 coming. However if you know Jon and I at all, you know that it is difficult to get us to Salt Lake City let alone New York. So we backed out and decided to spend the time at a friends in Orem. It was a lot of fun to spend time with people I have not seen in way too long. We brought in the New Year with Rock Band and Margaritas. At midnight I had my kiss and headed home, exciting huh? But wait the best part is about to come! The next day was spent putting away Christmas decor and cleaning! Yipee!!! I know you are all so jealous and I am sorry your life isn't as exciting as mine, maybe someday.

Alright, well that was my first of what I hope is many attempts at blogging. If you didn't enjoy it, then I am so sorry. I will try harder next time...or something.
Here is a little picture of me and a Bentley I saw at a Airport Parking Lot. Bet you don't have any clue it isn't mine huh?

And I wonder why Trya didn't want me
for America's Next Top Model!