Ice Castle in Midway

During the slow month of January, I always try to keep the kids busy in swim lessons and other activities like visiting the Ice Castle in Midway.

Happy New Year 2019

 Welcome 2019!

We welcomed the new year staying up late and blowing the party whistles, hitting pots and pans, drinking and saying cheers with bubbly. This year no one was interested in making goals but I was. I find that setting goals helps keep our spirit and mind moving forward in our accomplishments. It is easy to be comfortable with where we are in life but we often learn so much more about ourselves when we go outside our comfort zone. This year I have a few goals I want to focus on. The first is study the scriptures with the Come Follow Me program the church has put out. My second goal is to continue to focus on keeping my health up in order to spend time with my cute girls and family and enjoy the simple things in life...the birds singing, the ability I have to play with my kids and teach them important things in this life.

Looking Back at 2018

2018 seemed to go by very quickly this year!

We had a busy year as a family and individuals in 2018.

In January these were the goals we wanted to achieve in 2018:

         - Aubrie: Go to Kindergarten
                          She definitely achieved this one  and even was awarded the Principles Pride award the first week of 
                          school. She graduated from Lotsa Tots preschool, caught her first fish on her own in Panquitch  
                         Lake, lost her 1st tooth, turned 6 years old played and  scored lots of goals in soccer,  learned to 
                          read  books and went on lots of family vacations.
                                             
         - Brynnley: Get potty trained
                                Brynnley was able to be fully potty trained by the fall of this year :) She also learned to ride a  
                                bike with training wheels, loved to scooter around, had 2 dance recitals, turned 3 years old, and  
                                has started to talk more and her little personality is coming out. She loves playing with her sister

          - Mom: Stay healthy 
                           I started this year with having 4 tumors that the doctors have been watching and ended the year 
                           with only 2! All my cancer tumors have been slowly shrinking each month! Chemo still takes it's 
                           toll on me and I did have about 4 months in the spring that my hair started falling out a lot. I still 
                           have times that I am tiered but have been able to continue to go to the gym weekly, make healthier 
                           eating choices, and was able to accomplish a few goals in my life such as being able to hike to 
                           Delicate Arch in Moab, visiting Disney World,  and getting my Hand Therapy Certification. 
                              
           - Dad: Loose weight
                          Jeff had good intentions of loosing weight but was very busy with work. He did get to visit  
                          Disneyworld, ride 4-wheelers, and take the trailer out to go camping. 

First Visit to Disney World

         

 Easter Egg Hunt time

     

Hiking to Delicate Arch, Dancing Queen, Bryce Canyon, Aubrie's 1st Fish with Uncle Joe

               

Exploring Minetonka Caves and Bear Lake Rental House 

           

Pre-School Graduation, Brynnley's 3rd Birthday, 4th of July Parades

                                

Camping at Smith and Moorehouse

        

Spending time with Grandma and Papa P and playing in the foam at Bluffdale Days   

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Aubrie's 6th birthday and loosing her 1st tooth

       

Fall fun at Cornbelly's, Trick or Treating

                   

Making sure the girls were on Santa's Nice list

December Cancer Update

I had another CT scan right before Christmas this year. The good news and blessing of good health continues with good results. 
This is a comparison from 9-28-18 scan to 12-21-18:

As of my most recent scan only 3 tumors are being watched. One is near my R psoas muscle,one in Peritoneal region and one in the vaginal cuff. These tumors continue to get smaller each visit!!!

R psoas: 9-28-18 was 13.9 x 11.9 mm   12-21-18 scan: 12.8 x 12.0 mm  Peritoneal nodule was 12.9 x 11.8 mm   12-21-18 11.9 x 10.5 mmVaginal cuff- hard to see on scan 
I had another Prolia shot to help with my bone strength. Luckily I don't have side effects from this one!I also had a DEXA scan but have not received results yet. My CA-125 is currently a 10 and seems to stay around 9 or 10! 
The past 2 rounds of Chemo have been a little more challenging with more fatigue and joint pain (knees, ankles, and back). I think it may be due to the cold weather (temps have been in the 20's) and the business of the holidays. My hair has stayed pretty strong but has slowed down growing. I continue to focus on clean eating, exercise and decreasing my stress level. I have been also dealing with the side effects from lack of estrogen and having some bowel difficulties. The condition I have is called levator ani syndrome. I have some difficulty and pain going to the bathroom but once I started doing pelvic floor relaxation exercises it has helped a lot!

Merry Christmas 2018

Merry Christmas!!!

This year we caught Santa delivering presents!

 The girls woke up around 7 am and were so excited to run to the family room to see what Santa brought them. Both girls had asked Santa for LOL dolls and he came through!

 Brynnley was so happy to get a Paw Patrol towel she was hugging it all morning!

 LOL dolls!

 Christmas morning breakfast...Santa cookie and hot coco!

 We enjoyed the morning opening toys and having breakfast and then went to Grandma Susie and Grandpa Matt's house for more presents and yummy food. 

 Later that evening, we went to Grandma Evans house to have dinner with all the family. We had a wonderful Christmas season full of fun, Christmas lights, and family time.