Countdown to the Mediterranean!

 89 days until we are in Barcelona, Spain and boarding the cruise to start our amazing 10 day trip (11 if you count another day in Barcelona we are staying after the cruise!) that will take us to so many amazing places I've only dreamed of seeing!  Can you tell I'm excited?! :)
Everything is finished and there is no turning back now...no matter how nerve wracking the thought of flying over the ocean is!  haha.  Somehow we'll make it through that part, I'm sure.  Conner is probably going to have the hardest time with the flight and is already mentioning that maybe Grandpa or Bryan could prescribe something to just knock him out.  I don't think that's going to happen but won't be telling him that.
This blog is really for me and to look back at as a journal type thing so I'm going to ramble about our trip!  It's going to be so neat!  We are flying to Barcelona to board the ship.  After a day at sea we will be in Valleta, Malta.  I have to admit I have never, ever heard of it before the planning for this trip.  We will be doing some kind of power boat trip where we will end up eating at a nice outdoor restaurant on a cliff overlooking the ocean.  Day 3 takes us to Tunis, Tunisia.  I can't remember the excursion for this port at the moment!  oops.  Day 4 is to Naples, Italy where we are going to split up some.  Bryan and the three boys will be traveling to see Capri and the Amalfi coast.  I will be going, along with Stephen and Leslie (I think), to see the ruins of Pompeii.  This is one of the things I want to see the most!  Bryan has already been there and while he loved it, he was excited about doing something different this time.  Day 5 is Civitavecchia, Italy where we are traveling into Rome.  We are going to see the Vatican City, the Catacombs, and the Coliseum!  Oh...and I'm totally looking forward to seeing the Trevi Fountain and make a wish. :)   Oh yeah....the Sistine Chapel should be okay too.  haha.  Day 6 will be La Spezia, Italy where we will be going into Florence.  We'll get to go into see the original statue of "David" although Bryan has said there are many replicas all over the place.  Still!  It seems like it will still be special to me.  The only thing that I'm a tiny bit disappointed in is that we won't be going to Pisa.  I'd love to see the leaning tower but it's pretty far from there and Bryan said it's overrated so I'll have to take his word on it.  I guess if we ever make it back to Europe I can put it on the schedule.  :)   Day 7 takes us to Ajaccio, Corsica where we are doing a historical tour.  Apparently it's Napoleon's hometown.  Day 8 we will be in Villefranche, France where we are going into Cannes and touring the royal palace there.  After all of that craziness we will have a sea day where we will probably collapse from exhaustion!  Hopefully we'll also have time to just breathe and take in the last of a wonderful experience.  We'll debark back in Barcelona the day after and spend the day there where I've booked a segway tour for our whole group!!  The boys are totally excited about it and so am I!  I don't know if I have mentioned this to Bryan's parents yet...so hopefully they are up for it!  haha.  It's basically three hours on a segway checking out the sites of the city.  Should be very neat!
Okay...enough for now.  But I can't wait!!

Conner's 17th birthday!

It's so hard to believe how fast time can fly by.  It is just hard to put into words how amazed I am that my second child is 17 years old today.  It feels like it was just yesterday that we were walking up the steps to find his name on Miss Patty's door on that first day of preschool, or the day of his baptism when Grandma Anderson gave a talk using string to demonstrate our time here on this earth, or starting junior high when I had to sit down with a counselor to pressure her to let Conner go into Algebra 1 (at Conner's insistence) yet he became mute in the meeting and it looked like I was "crazy, pushy mom".  :D   So many memories that feel like they were only yesterday.  

I am so proud of Conner is so many ways.  I don't think I tell him often enough how much he helps me since most of the time I know it feels like I'm nagging him to help more, be more mature, be nicer to his younger brothers and sister, and take more responsibility and initiative in his school work.  He's had to follow in some really tough footsteps (Jessie!) and it's really neat to see Conner coming into his own.  We are starting to see some real maturity from him and I couldn't be happier!  It's so strange but you can actually see that maturity increase daily right now.  He's been so much more helpful with his sibling and especially Evan.  I will find Conner sitting with Evan watching "Veggie Tales" clips or movies all the time.  I know Conner is getting as big of a kick out of them as Evan is which is so cute!  Conner's been so much nicer to his brothers which I know has been something he's had to really work at.  He's been trying harder in school and has shown a real interest in computers which seems like a good fit for him.  He's showing  maturity in his friendships and his testimony.  He's been asking me about FHE and family scripture study and it is coming at a time when I really am struggling with keeping all of that together.  As far as friendships...for the first time, probably ever!,  he actually told us that he wasn't going to a friends house for their monthly/weekly video game all nighter because he didn't feel good about it.  He's just shown us some real maturity and I just love him so much and can't explain how proud I am of the young man Conner is and of the man he is becoming.  We haven't hit perfection yet but we're on the way.  haha!  He's a joy to have in our family and I am so thankful he is a part of our family.  

Happy birthday Conner!

Jessie's hair is back. :)

I forgot to update a picture of Jessie's hair since she has gone back to blonde although I just realized she's in Bryan's birthday picture from a previous post.  Oh well.  It looks really nice although a little darker I think and she's upset there is more strawberry blonde in it than she would like...but it will just have to grow out.  It looks wonderful and it is so nice to see her back as her normal self.  :)

The 40 things I love most about Bryan!

1. my song
2. our children
3. your passion for all kind of music
4. your work ethic
5. your honesty
6. your taste in jewelry! :)
7. that you always put your family first
8. your drive to stay fit
9. your amazing brain
10. your generosity with me
11. your trust in me to "run" our family
12. your love of Disney!
13. the way you light up when you watch one of the kids accomplish something
14. that you always invite the kids along with you when you run errands and love spending time with them
15. your sense of humor
16. your sarcastic outlook that compliments mine
17. your soda addiction because it makes mine look mild. :)
18. that you hate veggies too!
19. your hidden talents that you pretend you don't have...like your ability to draw and write
20. the beautiful poems you've written for me
21. knowing that you can handle any problem that comes up and the feeling of security it gives me
22. hearing you play the piano
23. your persistence to reach all your goals
24. that you have more clothes in your closet than I do. ;)
25. that you always stretch yourself and are always reading different kind of books
26. my favorite gift you've ever given me...Evan's therapy scrap book.
27. that you are generous to your family when help is needed
28. that you passed your musical talent on to our kids
29. your unwavering commitment to exercise
30. that you are willing to try new experiences...like swimming!
31. your love of scuba diving and excitement for the kids to share it, even if they don't. :)
32. your strength, inside and out
33. our similar feelings and views on religion and politics
34. your support of all things Evan, even if it took us a while to get there!
35. your commitment to our marriage
36. your love of cruises
37. your willingness to apologize
38. that you are even more handsome now than you were when we met
39. your patience with me when I am having a bad day...or even week.
40. that you have been an amazing partner, friend, love, and confidant for over 20 years!

I love you Bryan!

Happy 40th birthday!!

February is already flying by!

It's Feb. 12th and we are already approaching Bryan's big 40th birthday and Valentines Day. Big weekend and I wish I was a little more prepared. I've thought a lot about it but seriously...at this point there isn't one thing that Bryan needs, or even wants, that he can't or doesn't just go out and buy himself. My brother suggested a trip to San Francisco which would be amazing, but we just went to Vegas less than two months ago and I can't imagine Bry taking time off again so soon. Besides, our Europe trip is coming up!!! Yay! Counting down and so excited! May 25th is coming and we are so pumped!

At this point I guess the b-day/valentine weekend looks like it will consist of dinner and a movie. I wouldn't mind seeing Avatar. We'll see if I can even drag Bryan to the movie theater at all! :) Jessie is heading home which I'm sooo ready for! Two weeks can really drag sometimes. She did make a big decision and will be back at Mizzou this fall. As sad as that makes me, I am happy she is going to go back. It's a grown up decision and as much as it's been hard for her to be so far away...is 4 hours considered far? :) ...it's a much better school and she'll be able to go further by staying. We WILL have her home for the summer though so it's not all sad! :)

The therapy situation with Evan has moved forward as we thought. Our last team meeting working with Matt will be in a few weeks. Evan is doing fine although we've upped his medication and he about drove me insane Wednesday evening. He was just wired! Lots of light flipping and overall being demanding. He just won't take no for an answer! One thing I can say is that he is persistent. That boy can ask for chocolate milk for over an hour without giving up...that's for sure!!

Well, it's been a good month so far but I think we are all ready to move forward into Spring. Too cold and we're just ready for more light in the evenings!