Great Commercial

the "OUR FAMILY"

I just thought I'd post these so that all could get a better look at how they were depicted in the priceless work of art by Jen which is now up for bids. Just email me your your bid, then your money. I'm confident I can get you the original from the Casa de Bonita but I'm not confident of how long it would stay in your possession after that.

Second Annual Mantua Bike Trip

My best pal since childhood and I went on our second annual motorcycle trip to Mantua on Friday. You may recall we did this very ride a year ago, hence second annual. We have been talking about going on a ride for quite some time but as the weather gets cooler the pressure to go increases. Well we are both glad we waited a bit because Chay (best pal) got a new bike that very day we left. Like all things Chay, he got a "deal of a lifetime" on this bike and we were both all grins about it. The ride, although quite chilly, was great. There was a bit of snow towards the top of the mountain wich made things interesting as we were riding motorcycles and not snowmobiles. We had to do a bit of skiing with our tennies to keep from laying our bikes over as they fishtailed nearly out of control. *Mind you we are seasoned riders and do not recommend you try this at home. We were kind of pushing our limits with time as we raced the sun to see who would decend from our peaks firsts but not even the sun could best us (refer to asterisk).
I was suppose to work the next day but when I got to work, a 7:30 in Salt Lake, I got canceled. So off for another ride! We went to Farmington canyon and road in the snow again with some red necks who had set up some some things to shot with their guns (last couple of pics). Overall it was a great weekend with a great friend and we still have another ride scheduled for Burley in a couple of weeks. Thanks to Scottie for letting me enjoy his bike once again.

Doug likes dogs

We were worried for a while that Doug was only liked people and not dogs so much.  Every time he would get around another dog we would start a low growl and then bark.  After talking to Emily about it we figured it was probably because he was more nervous than anything.  Well the other night he got to interact with the Ferrin's dog Gracy.  Here is the footage.  As you can see, things went great, other than the few times Doug tried to eat Gracy's hind leg like a piece of chicken.  

 

Sir Douglas von Cypress

I know the majority of the readers of this blog have meet our newest family member Doug but I don't feel like he's been formally introduced.  We picked him up from Cedar City two weeks ago yesterday.  Much do our dismay he was much larger than the pictures online showed.  Felicia thought she'd be able to carry him around in her purse but soon realized she didn't even want to let him sit on her lap too long. We've finally decided the full registered name for Doug is, "Sir Douglas von Cypress". "Sir" because he is such a gentleman, "Douglas" because we love the name, "von" which is German for "from" and "Cypress" which is the family Cedar trees come from. Hence he is "The gentleman Douglas from Cedar" or Cedar City that is.    Just one week after we got him he developed "cherry eye", which is  common with the breed, and we had to send him into surgery to get it fixed.  That explains the cone on his head.  Doug is full of personality and funny antics which keeps us smiling and laughing.  His puppy eyes and quick desire to please bodes well for him because the desire to drown him is often there.  Doug has had a particularly rough day today and has heard the word "NO!" way too many times for one day.  Well when he went to Mom and Dad's for lunch he decided to get back at us by plopping a dirt clod into Felicia's shoe.  

    

July 27th

Today is Felicia and my (John, to those of you who were wondering who's abandoned blog this was) two year anniversary.  This past year has gone by in such a hurry.  It's been a year of high expectations, goals, many a nights standing in front of the dry erase board planning our days, making check lists, writing out our budget (time and time again), and constantly trying to squeeze just one more drop out of the day.  School has been the bulk of our lives since we've known each other.  We're there now as a matter-a-fact.  It has felt like an eternal process but there is light at the end of the tunnel, for Felicia anyways.  Anything she touches turns to gold.  Her attitude is, "if I'm going to do this, I'm going to do it right".  And she shines and I squint and smile.  

In our relatively short time together, in comparison to those of you who read this, this date has been a trail  marker for us.  A mountain of sorts that we have had to conquer together.    Obviously, two years ago on this day we were married.  One year later to the date we gave talks together in sacrament meeting.  There were many steps taken to get to those points of achievement.  The trail was dark at times but hope and blessings kept us moving.  Without dedication to each other those achievements that are miracles in my life would have never come to pass.  

As the clock chimes the passing of another year, our steps towards progress have taken us to new heights and our commitment to life and each other has granted us the opportunity to say "yes we can" again to a new challenge we've been prepared for.  This day proves once again that it is a special day for us as we would like to invite all to Felicia's baptism on Aug. 15.

We would like to publicly thank the Landrum's for their tremendous cooperation in making changes to their plans and making their lives a little less convenient so as to make ours a little more.  We hope that all can attend as it will be a very special day for all of us.   

ps. We are out of mins. on our phone plan so if you so desire, we can be contacted after 9pm.    

        

Blood Money

I have been donating plasma for, well, way too long.  Mom and Felicia cringe every time it's mentioned.  "I don't like it.  What if you get AIDS from a dirty needle?" -Mom  

Well as far as I know I haven't acquired any disease or virus but I have bought a lot of groceries and rented a lot of movies from the money I make doing it.  I get bonuses for donating on my fifth and seven time for each month.  I made enough this week alone to pay for my rent. (Don't quit your day job to do the same.  You'll be disappointed.)  Anyways, I took some pictures last time I went in so any of you who are unfamiliar with it can get a glimpse into my side job.  

Oh the life of a poor college student.  I love it.

Family Reunion Memories

Since there is so much talk about the Family Reunion, I just thought I'd post this to get us all excited.  Enjoy.

Dirty Harry

             Yes this is just the rabbit and yes, it is worth watching all the way through for some comic relief at about 50 sec.  Make sure you turn up your volume so you can hear my commentary.  So here it is. The much awaited and much prolonged video footage of            Harvey/Thumper/Dirty Harry.    Sorry it took so long Em. 

 

Nurse Dummy (that's me)

Do you remember as a kid playing house, cops and robbers, lost kids in the weed-fort, H&R Block (for only a very select few) or Doctor? That was fun. Now that we've all got our intern hours out of the way we get to practice some of these skills on a daily basis in the real world. (Make sure your kids are doing the right internship so they don't grow up to be a "lost kid" or a "robber") Anyway, as most of you know, Felicia is doing her internship, known as clinical hours, as a nurse. (That was a lot of commas) She gets to do a practicum in a made up scenario on a dummy and then practice her new skill in a real life situation at the hospital during her clinical hours. This past week was extra exciting for her. She learned how to put things in patients like drugs through an i.v., nasal gastic tubes, urinary catheters, depositories, and i.v.'s themselves. Then, as explained earlier, she got to practice all of those friendly skills on real people. Well she felt quite confident in herself in all of the above learned skills except for one, i.v.'s. She'd got to practice on a dummy but they don't let you practice on one another during nursing school anymore. Well the instructors know that practice makes perfect so they turned a "blind eye" as some of the students, including Felicia, took some i.v.'s home to practice on the brave or stupid. She confronted me with her real life practice problem and asked if I'd volunteer my hand to her for a minute. "Sure!" I don't mind needles. I get stuck by a 16 gauge needle twice a week for an hour at a time. A little 22 gauge needle won't be but a little prick. Right? Well the pictures below will tell the rest of the story. Just a little advice for anyone planning on sticking a needle in someone. Don't do it so slow that you can see your skin dimple before the needle break through. It feels really gross. Especially when it has a catheter attached.

Notice the paleness 

(zoom really close and you might see beads of sweat)

Best Friends

Several months ago I had a dream that to most would be just another odd or meaningless dream, but to me it left a big impression on my heart. Like most of my dreams it took place in Burley at our old Sandy Glen residence, but I, and everyone else, were the same age we are now. I had just bought a McLaren F1 which is an exotic sports car and use to be my all time favorite. I was not wealthy however, the car was just really old and banged up but I couldn't pass it up. I was overjoyed and brought it home with much excitement! A few of my friends passed by me on the lane and laughed and kept driving as they yelled out their window, "what a junker!" Slightly discouraged I pulled into the driveway and saw Dad working in the garage. He gave it a quick look and with a disappointed look on his face said, "not a wise purchase son" and went about his business. Now really disappointed in myself, I sat in my new, beat up childhood dream car and just stared at the steering-wheel. To add a little salt to the wound a couple of my sisters poked their heads in the window and asked if it was too late to take it back. Just about the time I was going to back out of the driveway Emily came out the front door. She looked at the car from the front porch and with a squeal of excitement she leaped in the air throwing her hands to the sky. She ran down the sidewalk with a giant smile on her face and said, "OH JOHN... YOU GOT ONE!" As she stuck her head in the passenger side window she asked me where I had found it and oohed and ahhed as her eyes scanned the interior. At that moment all my sorrows went away and it was all suddenly worth it.

I woke up from that dream with tears in my eyes as I realized one of my best friends was going to be moving to Atlanta, GA in just a couple of days. That dream represented my relationship with Emily in so many ways. Just as in my dream Emily possesses a quality that few others do. She has always been able to share excitement for other's joys and make you feel like you are the most important person in her life. Besides some heavenly beings (my wife included) there is probably no one else who knows me as well as she does. No one else would have really known just how much I loved that car or even the name of it for that matter. She has always taken an interest in my interests and set her life aside to listen about mine. There is usually no one else I'd rather talk to than my younger sister. I love her so much and wish her a HAPPY BIRTHDAY on her very special 25th (which is my lucky number)!

I love you Em!