If only I had gills

By five o'clock this morning we were out the door, and headed to the pool. Brett has been swimming a few times a week for a while now, and yesterday I decided I was going to start going with him. Today was my first attempt.

Today was basically just a confirmation of what I pretty much already knew. I can't swim.

Everything Brett was telling me made perfect sense, I just couldn't make my body cooperate. I was flailing all over the place. It is extremely hard to focus on everything at once. Your arms are doing this, while your legs are doing that.

I think that the hardest thing for me to overcome will be the breathing. Every time I tried to take a breath I would inhale a gallon of pool water. Yum. You don't happen to have any Gillyweed you can lend me, do you?

Brett is confident that I will get the hang of it in no time. Lucky for me I have a good teacher! ;)

The never ending story

{this was one of the only happy moments on the trail}

Yesterday morning Brett and I were trying to decide what to do with the day, and Brett suggested going mountain biking. So I thought, sure! Why not? We planned on being gone for an hour or so, and then coming home and taking the dogs to the park. It didn't quite go over as we had planned.

We headed up into American Fork Canyon to find a trail that Brett's cousin had told him about. He said that it would be a good trail for me to try out because it was a beginner trail. Yes, I am still technically a beginner. I have been riding my mountain bike for a few years now, but my skill level is still pretty pathetic. Now that I've got that out of the way, can I continue my story? Thanks.

Where was I? Oh right, we were driving up the canyon looking for trails when we see a couple coming off of a trail to our left. Brett pulls over and asks them about the trail. They tell us that it's about ten miles, but it's a great trail. Then they tell us where we can park and find the trail head. Since neither of us have been mountain biking in the area, we take their word for it. First mistake.

We park the car in the parking area, and get the bikes off of the rack. Brett sprays down with sunscreen, and offers it to me. When I refuse it, he tosses it into the backseat of the car. We wouldn't be gone long enough for him to need it again. Second mistake.

With our camel packs on, and our shoes tied we were ready to go. We head off on the trail, and things seem to be going great. It's a beautiful day, and the scenery is amazing. The trail, at this point, is not too steep.

The next thing I know, we are headed up a pretty mean hill. I don't have the strength in my legs to keep my bike going fast enough, so I have to get off and push it up. No big deal though, this is not unusual for me. When we finally get to the top of this hill there is a really great view of Mt. Timpanogos, so we stop to rest and take some pictures. As we are standing there a few other guys that had been behind us stop as well, and while Brett is talking to them I realize that I am out of water. I forgot to top off my camel pack before we left the house, but I figure we can't have too much farther to go, so it shouldn't be a big deal. Third mistake.

After talking with those guys for a few minutes they inform us that we are about a third of the way done with the trail. I figured that since we had already come pretty far uphill, the rest of the trail couldn't be too bad. Brett offers for us to turn around and go back the way we came, and I told him no. I wanted to do the whole trail. Fourth mistake.

Once we got going again there was another uphill section that really wasn't too bad, but I still had to push my bike up. Then we hit a nice spot that was downhill or flat for probably a mile or so. I remember thinking to myself: "if the rest of the ride is going to be this good, I'll be fine". Fifth mistake.

From there it was basically up hill the rest of the way. Then, to make matters worse the trails were all washed out, and it made it even harder trying to balance your bike in the skinny ruts. I couldn't stay on my bike for more that two minutes at a time, then I would have to get off and push it up another hill. My legs were sore from riding and walking, and my arms were sore from pushing the bike. It seemed like we had been going forever. By this time Brett had already traded camel packs with me so that I could have his water. It's things like this that make him so easy to love. Have I mentioned that he is my favorite?

We finally see a sign that says there is only three and a half miles left on the trail, and I was so relieved. Three and a half more miles, and I would be in the air conditioned car, on my way home. Not the case. From that point it was actually more like five more miles. Getting my hopes up when I saw that sign was my sixth mistake.

There was one point in the short downhill part of the trail that I panicked, because the hill looked more steep than it really was, and laid my bike down. I was crying because it scared me so bad. Then there was the part where I fell because the rut I was pedaling through was so deep that I hit my pedal on a rock, twisted my ankle, and hit my knee on another rock.

By the time we got back to the car we were both sunburned and exhausted. We had been on the trail for just over three hours, and we have no clue how far we actually went, because I am an idiot and forgot to bring my GPS. Seventh mistake.

There was a brief moment where I was actually having fun, and the rest of it was pure hell. Brett felt so guilty! For the rest of the day he kept apologizing, and did everything he could to make up for the situation, even though it wasn't his fault. I love him, but I will never go on that particular bike ride with him again. Ever. I still can't figure out how in the hell we started at one point, and got back to that same point by going up hill almost ninety percent of the time. It makes no sense to me.

Needless to say, we didn't make it to the park with the dogs. We went home, ate a pizza, took a nap, and then woke up and I had some Oreo's and milk while Brett had chips and salsa. By that point it was almost bed time.

This morning, I feel like I got run over by a truck. Every muscle in my body aches.

Revenge of the fallen

Friday night we went to see Transformers 2. We got to the theater about a half hour early, which ended up being a good thing because within about fifteen minutes there wasn't an empty seat in the house. It was packed. A few minutes after we sat down, the seats began to fill up. One couple was heading up the stairs towards us after a few minutes of searching the theater for the perfect seat, they chose the seats right behind us. Shortly after they sat down, this is the conversation we overheard:

Guy: I knew we should've come earlier

Chick: These seats are fine. What's wrong with these seats?

Guy: If we were here sooner we could've got seats in the middle

Chick: {pointing to the center of the theater} Go sit in the middle by yourself!

It was hilarious. Brett and I couldn't stop laughing. That was pretty much all they said to each other the whole time. I can't imagine having such a horrible relationship. I wouldn't be able to handle sitting in silence like that. To me the whole point of going to a movie with someone is being able to spend time with them, and have fun. Whispering things to each other throughout the show, and laughing together. Why even bother if you are just going to be angry the whole time?

Anyway! We really liked the movie, and enjoyed spending time together. It was great!

Into the mouth of the mountain

I can't wait until tomorrow when we are hiking to this! It's going to be a blast. We haven't been up there for about three years, and this time our best buddies are coming with us! I couldn't ask for a better Saturday.

Have a great weekend!!

Update: Our plans were cut short when we arrived at the base of the mountain to purchase our tickets only to find out that the cave tours were sold out for the day already. We'll have to try again in a few weeks.

The anticipation is killing me

Johnny Depp as The Mad Hatter, Helena Bonham Carter as The Red Queen, and Anne Hathaway as The White Queen

Brett and I are HUGE Tim Burton fans. That should be pretty easy to figure out based on what we dressed up as for Halloween last year. So many of his movies are on our favorites list, and we could watch them over, and over, and over. Edward Scissorhands, Big Fish, Beetle Juice, Sleepy Hollow, The Nightmare Before Christmas, and Sweeney Todd are some of the greatest movies ever, in our opinion.

I love the way that he can take any ordinary thing, and turn it into something totally eccentric. His creativity is endless, and I love how quirky all of the characters in his films are. You can tell just by watching one of his movies that he is involved. He has such a unique style, that makes his films really stand out above the rest. He is brilliant.

Yesterday I found out that one of the projects that he is currently working on is a non animated version of the Disney classic, Alice in Wonderland. I can't wait for this to come out in Theaters! I am ecstatic. Just look at those costumes! Johnny Depp is almost unrecognizable as the Mad Hatter. The whole story is crazy as it is, so I am sure that the Burton version will be as far over the top as humanly possible.

Do you have a favorite Tim Burton Movie?

Belle's new buddy

Meet Fern. She's the newest member of our household. When we moved in with Kristi and Jerry, their family fell in love with Belle. So when they started talking about the possibility of getting a puppy, a boxer was their first choice. Today they found her. Isn't she cute?

Clean up on aisle twelve

Last night Brett and I ran to the grocery store to grab a few things. We prefer to shop for a few things here and there, when the need arises, rather than spend hours buying everything we need all at once. We had been shopping for about ten minutes, and had almost everything we needed. Just two more items on the list, and we would be on our way home.

We decided that it would be faster to split up, so I went one way to grab dog treats, and he went another way to grab the milk. Then we were going to meet back in the middle. One problem. I couldn't decide which dog treats to choose. It's a hard decision to make these days, because there are way too many options. How am I supposed to know what is going to taste good to a dog? Maybe she doesn't like the taste of lamb, who am I to decide? As I stood there staring at the selection of dog treats, trying to make a decision, I see Brett out of the corner of my eye. He was apparently much faster with his task than I was with mine, so it was perfect, he could help me decide. I had a bag of Beggin' Strips in one hand, and some rawhide bones in the other hand. Apparently it's too tough a decision for one to make on their own, so I needed backup.

I turn to show him what I am holding, and ask his opinion. Right as I am beginning to speak, I see one of the two gallons of milk he is carrying fall from his hand in slow motion and explode as soon as it hits the concrete floor.


Nothing like this has ever happened to us at the grocery store before, and we reacted in the only way we knew how. Hysterical laughter. I'm sure that the look on both of our faces was priceless.

After the reality of it all set in, Brett found the nearest employee and proclaimed "I made a huge mess." Then we stood near the spill taking full ownership of what happened until the same employee returned with a mop. Then we laughed some more, and continued the conversation about which dog treats to buy.

We ended up going with the Beggin' Strips.

We ♥ Disney-Pixar

Saturday afternoon we were invited by Chaz and Shay to go see a matinee. Okay, I'm lying. They told us that they were going to see a matinee, and we invited ourselves. Anyway, the movie they picked, that we tagged along to was Disney-Pixar's UP.

Three words: we loved it.

I don't think there has been a single Disney-Pixar movie that we haven't liked. In fact, they have become some of our favorites. There are certain ones that we have seen over and over, and they never get old. But Brett's favorite is The Incredibles, and mine is Finding Nemo. There are so many other great ones to choose from! UP is now definitely high on my list of favorites.

What is your favorite Disney-Pixar movie?

I could've done without the Tarantula's

Saturday we went to a barbecue at Del and Jana's house. They have a zoo. You think I'm kidding? I can prove it. Below is a list of animals they currently own:

Three bearded dragons

A Parrot

Four Parakeets {two of them are babies}

Thirteen of these nasty things

Animals not pictured:

two dogs

two cats

one fresh water fish tank

three salt water fish tanks

and a turtle.

Refreshing

I love the smell of rain. It has been raining here all week, and I can't get enough. It is supposed to rain a lot this weekend, and I can't wait to play in it. Today has been extra sunny and warm though, so maybe we won't get the chance.

I remember when we lived in North Ogden, and we would get these incredible rainstorms that would flood the streets. We would sit on the porch and watch the rain and lightning, while listening to the thunder, and smelling the rain in the air. Every once in a while we would see something float by, and we would laugh. It was always something that you wouldn't expect to see floating down the street, like a laundry basket. We got a kick out of that.

Two summers ago, right after we moved in with Kristi and Jerry, there was a rainstorm in Highland that was just amazing. There was so much water in the slope of the yard that Brett and Scott were using the grass as a natural slip 'n slide. It was hilarious to watch, and by the time they came inside they were soaked to the bone. Unfortunately we don't have any pictures. I wish we did.

This is something that Brett and I have greatly in common. We both love the rain, everything about it. I think that is the main reason that we want to live in Washington someday. Neither of us have ever been there, so hopefully that will be our next vacation destination.

I guess I should go buy an umberella.

Feeling generous

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Off his rocker

Brett is always coming up with new ways to potentially injure himself. It is just part of his DNA. His brothers and one of his sisters are the same way. Always looking for the next crazy thing, and they just get crazier and crazier as time goes by. No one in the family knows where it comes from because neither of their parents are what you would call thrill seekers. If I had to make a guess, I would say it comes mostly from their dad. {Sorry Lloyd!} He's a pretty laid back guy, but he was a firefighter and EMT for 23 years, so there has to be some sort of wild hair associated with that kind of intense profession if you ask me.

Since Brett's accident he has become a little less crazy. But the adrenaline junkie in him is not completely gone. Here is a video of his most recent feat of insanity:

Most of you may not think this looks too scary, but the video doesn't really do it justice. It doesn't show you how far away the shed and the pool are from one another{if I had to guess I would say ten feet}. Not to mention the ring of cement that surrounds the pool, and the fact that the pool is only four feet deep.

But then again, I am a chicken.

Not an {entirely} average Saturday

The original plans for the weekend changed, and we didn't end up hiking to the Timpanogos cave's after all. Instead we went to watch my big brother compete in the Questar Gas Rodeo. It's not the kind of rodeo you are thinking of, I assure you. There are no horses, no cows, no bull riding, no clowns, no cowboy hats, and no barrel racing. Instead the events include meter sets, service line installation, digging, pipe cutting, and relay racing. It's very entertaining to say the least. I'm sure that you thought being a 'gas man' was a boring job. Think again.

While we were there, I somehow ended up operating a backhoe:

Yes, it really is as fun as it looks. I'm thinking about changing professions.

My brother's team ended up taking second place in the rodeo, and will be going to St. Louis to compete in the National Gas Rodeo. Yahoo! They have been to nationals the last two years, and even took third place overall once. Wish him luck.

After all of the excitement of the rodeo we went up to Ogden to hang out with the Schlange's. We had a great night of pizza and drinks, just hanging out. That's our favorite thing to do. No plans, just sitting on the patio eating and chatting.

What did you do this weekend?

So happy it's Friday

I love the weekend. Don't you?

I'm still not really sure what our plans are for tomorrow. We might go to Ogden, and hang out with the Schlange's. Then again they might end up coming to our house instead. If that's the case then there will be a BBQ, and a hike up Mount Timpanogos to go see the Timpanogos Cave. Either way, it should be fun. I love being spontaneous.

What do you have planned this weekend?

Drop us a line

Oh yeah, I almost forgot to tell you...Pages From Our Book now has email.

If there is something you want to know, or something you want to say, go ahead and send us an email. I really like it when a blog that I read has email, so I decided to follow the trend. Besides, we want to hear what you have to say!

We're fancy like that.


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Repaying the favor

I have yet to tell this story here, because I always just assume that everyone has already heard it. It is such a big part of who we are, that I make sure to tell everyone who will listen. In fact, I am currently in the process of writing a book about it. That's no joke.

Something amazing happened yesterday, and I was really excited to blog about it. After starting to write the post about said event, I realized that you wouldn't understand it's significance to us because you didn't know this story yet. There are a select few of you who already know what I am about to say, so feel free to skip forward to the end, and only read the part about what happened yesterday. If you don't know this story though, I encourage you to read it, because it truly is amazing. I will try to keep it as short as I can!

April 15, 2005 was a day that forever changed our lives. Brett was out riding his dirt bike, as he usually did on his days off, and I was at work. About two hours into my shift Lloyd {my father in law} showed up, and wanted to talk to me. I was just finishing up a haircut, and told him I would be right with him. I knew something was wrong, I could just tell. The rest of the haircut seemed like it was taking forever, and I was freaking out inside. The worst possible thoughts were running through my mind. I was sure that someone had died.

When I was finally done, and went out to talk to him, he told me that Brett had been in an accident on his dirt bike. I have to be honest with you, I was relieved at first. Brett wrecked his bike all the time, and he was always okay. So I thought that this wreck would be the same as usual, a broken bone that would be better in six weeks or so. I was wrong. He told me that it was bad, and we needed to leave immediately.

Brett was taken by ambulance to the American Fork hospital, but the injuries were too severe for them to treat. He had to be taken to the University of Utah Hospital via Life Flight. After the family had arrived at the hospital it was about six hours before we were told what was going on. I was able to go back with Brett's sister and see him for just a few minutes, but that was all.

His injuries included a broken neck, two lower spinal fractures, and the right side of his pelvis was shattered. It was bad. The doctor told us that he only had a 10% chance of making it through the night, and that we should say our goodbyes. They also told us that if he did live, he would be paralyzed from the neck down. I was terrified. We had only been married for eleven months. Here I was, 20 years old, just shy of my first wedding anniversary, and I was being told that my husband was most likely going to die.

It was the longest night of my life. Me, Gwen {my mother in law}, and Ryan {my brother in law} took turns sitting with Brett in his room, while the other two tried to get some sleep. In the morning Brett woke up and we were all so happy, although we still had the terrible feeling that paralysis was inevitable. It didn't matter though, because he was alive! About ten minutes later he said four words that I will never forget... "my toes are cold."

I couldn't believe it! He wasn't paralyzed after all. The doctor came in and confirmed it, while the nurse found him a warm blanket to wrap his feet in. Everyone was instantly relieved, and we knew that everything was going to be alright. The next 48 hours were the hardest on Brett. He had to have surgery to fuse the bones in his neck back together, and then had to have his hip completely reconstructed. Having two major surgeries in a 24 hour time period caused him to loose a lot of blood. His body wasn't regenerating blood cells fast enough, so they had to give him a blood transfusion. It was a long process, and he ended up receiving 5 pints of donor blood. Shortly after he received his blood transfusion, one of the things that the doctor told us was that Brett would never be able to give blood again. That bummed him out. He had tried to give blood a few times before, but was always told that he couldn't because his tattoo's were too fresh. So to be told that he could never give blood, made him upset. Especially because now he had received blood, and couldn't return the favor to someone else.

He only spent a total of about two and a half weeks in the hospital before they sent him home. His recovery was a long painful road full of hospital visits, blood draws, pain meds, and no sleep. He still suffers from pain related to the accident on a daily basis, and the scars are a constant reminder of the entire process.

I am so grateful to have him here with me still, and I can't wait to get the whole detailed story written down. I promise, there is a lot more to it that that!

Fast forward to last night.....

There was a blood drive in our neighborhood, hosted by the American Red Cross. Kristi {Brett's sister} went down to do her donation, and while she was there she found out that things have changed in the four years since Brett's accident. There is a new rule for people who have received blood transfusions. They can in fact give blood, they just have to wait one year first.

Last night my husband did something that we thought he would never be able to do. He gave blood for the first time. Yahoo!

I wish I could say that I was brave enough to follow through with it, but I was not. Hopefully someday I will overcome my fear of needles.

Have you ever given blood?