Jas and Me

♥ What are your middle names?
J and Marie
♥ How long have you been together?
Creeping up on 5 years!!
♥ How long did you know each other before you started dating?
Um...2 days? It was a blind date and we met just a couple of days before if I remember right.
♥ Who asked who out?
Neither of us. :)
♥ How old are each of you?
Jason is 28 and McKenna is 25.
♥ Whose siblings do/ did you see the most?
McKenna's
♥ Do you have any children together?
Payson is 4 years old and Jack is almost 2!
♥ What about pets?
We've attempted fish, birds, a cat, and a dog since we've been married. We've learned we're not the greatest pet owners.
♥ Which situation is the hardest on you as a couple?
Probably money. We don't fight about it at all, but it's definitely a big stresser!
♥ Did you go to the same school?
Jason went to school in ID and McKenna went to school in CA and UT.
♥ Are you from the same home town?
Nope. Again, Jason from ID and McKenna from CA/UT.
♥ Who is smarter?
Jason at spelling...McKenna at EVERYTHING else! ;) ha ha!
♥ Who is more sensitive?
We're pretty even there. Although McKenna definitely cries more. :)
♥ Where do you eat out most as a couple?
Sadly, we've been out to eat ONCE out here in WY since we moved. And it was to Bonsai. Yummy!
♥ Where is the furthest you two have traveled together as a couple?
Maryland.
♥ Who has the craziest exes?
McKenna. Oh, the stories I could tell!! :)
♥ Who has the worst temper?
McKenna. Hormones. :)
♥ Who does the cooking?
McKenna. Although Jason made me breakfast in bed the other day!! He's the best.
♥ Who is more social?
We're about even there. Although McKenna has more time to be social.
♥ Who is the neat-freak?
We're probably equal slobs. :)
♥ Who is more stubborn?
McKenna
♥ Who hogs the bed?
Payson. Ha ha ha! Seriously. She climbs into our bed and we all get squashed!
♥ Who wakes up earlier?
Jason
♥ Where was your first date?
Our first date...long version or short version? That's right! You don't have a choice! You're getting the long version. One of my best friend's, Catherine, was dating Jason's roommate, Richard. They set us up. So Saturday morning they woke us up with flowers (I was staying at Cath's dorm) and took us back to their apartment and made us some super yummy breakfast (heart shaped pancakes). Then we got ready and went to Crazy Bob's or something like that in Rexburg to play pool. Then we grabbed Wendy's for lunch and went bowling. Then I think we watched a movie at their apartment. Then we went to Big Judd's and shared a GINORMOUS burger between the four of us. Then back to their apartment where we played cards. LOOOOONG first date. :) But it was such a blast!!
♥ Do you get flowers often?
I used to get them ALL the time! I actually asked Jason to buy them for me less often. (I'm an ungrateful wife). I just figure it's more meaningful when it's less expected. So now he buys me flowers on random occasions rather than on holidays. I love that!
♥ How do you spend the holidays?
Sometimes with my family, sometimes just us. And when we can, up in ID with his family.
♥ Who is more jealous?
Jason says he is. But I honestly don't really think either of us are.
♥ How long did it take to get serious?
Ummm...like a week? We're seriously a Mormon cliche.
♥ Who eats more?
I refuse to answer this question.
♥ Who does/ did the laundry?
McKenna.
♥ Who’s better with the computer?
I'd say we're equally challenged. :)
♥ Who drives when you are together?
Usually Jason, but lately me, since he only has usable one arm. :)

I tag anyone who thinks this is fun or is looking for something to post, like I was, and isn't feeling creative enough to come up with something on their own. :) Seriously though, if no one does it, I'll be sad. :(

Our New Easter Traditions

My parents always tried to help us remember to focus more on Christ at Easter than on the commercialized holiday. The Easter Bunny always came on Saturday, so as not to distract us on Sunday. Jason and I were talking last week and decided that we wanted to find some ways to really help the kids focus on Christ rather than the Easter Bunny as well, so we came up with an Easter countdown!!

It's nothing intricate, just a simple daily activity for 3 weeks prior to Easter Sunday. (We started a couple of days ago). We came up with a list of 21 age appropriate activities. Some are focusing on Christ, some on Spring and the way that it ties into Christ, and a few on the Easter Bunny. (They're little. We can't leave out the Easter Bunny entirely!)

We started with a mini egg hunt (there were 3 eggs for each of them) and those eggs had letters on them. Each letter stood for something that helped us to explain the Resurrection in 4 year old terms.
Yesterday we just colored a picture from the back of The Friend. The picture was of Mary standing in front of the tomb. As Payson colored, I explained to her about Christ's body being in the tomb and how on the third day, Christ moved the big rock and came out of the tomb, alive again. We talked about how because of what Christ did, we are all able to be alive again after we die and be together with our family and friends.

After we were done, Payson and I went upstairs to see Jason. (Jason never gets to watch sports when he's working, so he's been glued to ESPN on this medical leave!) Our conversation went something like this:

M: Payson, why don't you tell Daddy about the things we talked about while you were coloring?
P: Jesus died and they put his body in a tomb.
M: And what happened after 3 days?
P: Jesus moved the rock...(pause)...Mom! Jesus was really strong!
J&P: laughing really hard :)

I love that kid! It's been fun to watch both she and Jack learn and grow lately. Jack is talking SO much more than Payson did at his age. Our personal favorite right now is when we say, "Jack, I love you!" He always say, "Love you too!" Of course, it's all slurred together in that sweet little baby voice, but I absolute adore it!

I am so excited to go to Utah next week! It's going to be so great to see my family! I haven't seen them in a couple of months. But mostly, I can't wait to show off how much my cute kiddos have changed in that time! And it's been even longer since we've seen Jason's family, so seeing them in July will be exciting as well!!

Anyway, Jack keeps yelling, "Mommy! Elmo!" I guess it's time to go color in his new Elmo coloring book. :)

Wear the fox hat...

This makes me *almost* pee. :)

Just to clear things up...

Definitely not pregnant. Thanks, though. :)

Surgery

**the pictures in this post were taken on my phone; sorry for the poor quality**

Last Tuesday I spent the day scouring the house. It was FILTHY. Jason being home {since the accident}, I've been completely out of my schedule. Everything was getting put off. But with his surgery being the next day, I wanted to clean as much as I could so I wouldn't have to worry about it while he was recovering {i.e., I was playing nurse}.

Wednesday morning I got up ridiculously early to get ready and get everything packed up. We dropped the kids off with my visiting teacher {she's the BEST} and headed to Laramie, WY. {That is where the orthopedic surgeons outpatient facility is}.

Laramie is about a 3 hour drive from here {at least when I'm driving with my lead foot, it is}. :) Between here and Laramie there is...nadda. Seriously. One tiny little town called Rawlins, population about 8,500. Oh, and a few random little patches of trailers. No trees, not mountains, nothing. It was a terribly boring drive.

Although, as we got close to Laramie there was one small mountain range covered in black trees. It was beautiful!! And we saw a few herds of deer and antelope alongside the rode. And I saw a little coyote running around in the snow. It was the cutest! Those were the highlights of the drive.

The surgeons were running behind that day, so they finally took Jason back two hours late. It was a boring two hour wait. I was exhausted from getting up so early and I just wanted to take a nap! They finally took Jason back around 4. They told me they'd come get me in about an hour and a half.

Jason all prepped for surgery. Pretty dress and bonnet, huh? :)


I grabbed some food and then went out to the car to try to take a nap while he was in surgery. We were planning on trying to make it home that night. We figured we could make it home by about 9 or 10. {That was before they started surgery late}. I couldn't sleep at all waiting in the car. So I went inside and read a magazine until the surgeon came out.

We had heard from family members who had broken their collar bones before that surgery was a very unusual option. Most of the time doctor's choose to allow the bone to heal on it's own because 1) it usually does just fine, and 2) the risk of affecting nerves in the shoulder, arm, back, and chest are pretty high. So when Dr. Auckerman suggested surgery almost immediately, we got a second opinion. Dr. Auckerman was very supportive of that decision and said that if we wanted to skip surgery and just see how the bone healed on its own he wouldn't be opposed to that.

The second opinion was also to have surgery. They were worried that because of the way the bones were sitting Jason might lose mobility/range of motion in his shoulder blade. And the second opinion doctor knew Dr. Auckerman. He told us that Dr. Auckerman was not at all knife happy and that he would trust his suggestions (this was after he had already given his own opinion). So we chose to go ahead with the surgery.

After the surgery, Dr. Auckerman brought out pictures {x-rays} of the plate and screws. He said the bones aligned so perfectly you couldn't even see the break in the picture anymore. He also said that he was extremely glad that we had chosen to go through the surgery. We hadn't known at the time what it was, but Jason had been in a little more pain the few days before the surgery. We brushed it off. Dr. Auckerman told me that the bone had actually already torn through the muscle and tissue in Jason shoulder and was actually already making it's way through the thin layers of skin {thus the increased pain}. Gross. But anyway, everything had gone great and as soon as Jason was awake they would take me back.

The metal plate and six metal screws they placed in Jason's shoulder to hold his clavicle in place.

That took a lot more time than expected. They had told me before the surgery that from the time they took Jason back for surgery until the time they came to get me would be about 1 1/2 hours. And then the average recovery time was about an hour, at which point we would be discharged and could head home. Jason had an incredibly difficult time waking up from the anesthesia. They finally took me back to see him around 7 {an hour and a half later} and he still wasn't fully awake. His color was awful and he was having trouble with his oxygen saturation.

The nurses gave me his care instructions and discharge paperwork to go through while we waited. I ran to the local pharmacy to fill his pain meds before they closed so that we would have enough to get him through the night. At that point I knew I was too beat to drive all the way home. I called the babysitter and arranged for the kids to stay the night. {Thanks you, Steph, times a million!! You are seriously my super hero!!} When I got back to the facility, Jason was doing much better. He was awake and his color was back. He was eating and drinking and was off oxygen.

By about 8:30 he was dressed and discharged. We stayed at a hotel across the street. The ortho facility has a deal with them and they split the cost of the hotel with us. The hotel also had special medical recliners, so Jason could sleep more comfortably. The hotel was pretty nice, and I would have slept like a log...had Jason not been waking me up for pain meds and to help him get comfortable all night long.

Thursday morning we loaded up, grabbed some free breakfast in the lobby, and headed home. Jason was drowsy and in a lot of pain on the drive home. I got him home and settled into bed and then ran to get the kids. They were tired and glad to be home.

The first few days were pretty tough. Jason was in quite a bit of pain, I was stressed, we were all tired, nobody was sleeping. We were finally able to change Jason's bandages on Sunday. I don't have a weak stomach at all, but for some reason I was so nauseous changing his bandages!! I kept worrying that I was going to hurt him or tear the wound back open or something. It was so weird! I've dealt with tons of blood and wounds and such before and never had a problem. Don't know why it bothered me so much physically this time.

Anyway, Jason is feeling MUCH better as of today. He's no longer taking the prescription pain meds during the day, just before bed to help him sleep without pain, and very little Motrin during the day.

He ices his shoulder pretty frequently with this handy gadget:


Now if only Payson would stop coming into my bed in the middle of the night, I think I could get some serious sleep!!

Oh! You know how I said I scoured the house before we left for Laramie? Well, I got everything cleaned...except the kitchen. I was dreading it, since things had piled up {and my lack of dishwasher didn't help}. I left it for last and fell asleep Tuesday night before getting to it. So when I got home Thursday, I still had nasty dishes to clean. Ugh. But I found THIS:


on sale at the store the other day!! YAY!! It's a counter top dishwasher. Someone said to me, "But it takes up so much of your counter space!" And I don't have a very big kitchen, so that might have been a big deal...except that I had a big dish rack there anyway for my dishes to dry on, so really, it isn't taking up any additional space. That's helped significantly with getting the dish situation under control. :)

So things are slowly getting back to some semblance of normal. The house is mostly clean. Jason is feeling mostly better.

Now I just need to get back to eating healthy and working out!! Those are the two things that have slipped most these last couple of crazy weeks. We did a lot of eating out. Not healthy. And I was too tired and too busy to work out. Not healthy. And it's driving me nuts!! I don't feel as great as I did just two weeks ago. Not the same energy. And I've gained back a few of those pounds I worked so hard to lose. Ugh. Oh well. If I lost them once, I can lose them again, right?

Tomorrow morning the elliptical and I have a date, bright and early!! I'm really looking forward to it. You know, she doesn't talk, she doesn't ask me to do anything for her, she doesn't judge me. She does nothing but work me hard and make me feel great! She's a best friend, really, and I've missed her!! Although, I'm not looking forward to the aches I know I'll be experiencing Thursday morning. :(

Anyway, thank you to everyone for you thoughts and prayers! The last couple of weeks have been rough for me and your sweet comments here and there were so uplifting!! You are all just the greatest cyber friends a girl could ask for!! Love and gratitude to you all!! :)

Ugh.

Life. Life is just so flipping inconvenient sometimes. Yes, I said flipping.

Our car is in the shop. Still. There's a good explanation for this. See, we own a 2000 Dodge Stratus with about 130,000 miles on it. This thing has been through a lot in it's short 9 years of life. It's been slowly crumbling for the last little while. Finally, one day the key just wouldn't even turn in the ignition. The car was towed and a rental was acquired. After a couple of days, the rental was returned (because I'd rather live without a car than pay that much for a rental. YIKES!!) The ignition was replaced, but in order for the car to really be running, we have to replace a water pump of some sort and a few other things that are going to cost around what the car is worth. So the car has been sitting in the shop while we try to decide whether or not to fix the rest of it or just get a new car.

This might seem like an easy question to answer for some of you, but I'm really having a hard time figuring it out. You see, we're trying to pay down our debt right now. And the Stratus is paid for. A new car would mean a new payment. Technically, we could afford a car payment. But that would just be money taken from paying down debt. So do we throw way too much money into our little junker? Or do we get a new car? I don't know!! And I'm not willing to do anything until I'm sure of what the right thing to do is. Especially since workman's comp hasn't kicked in yet and we're not receiving any paychecks.

Anyway, so the car thing is inconvenient. But we live right by the grocery store, Jason hasn't needed to go into work, and the handful of times we've needed to go somewhere and have been stuck our wonderful friends and neighbors have helped us out.

But now Jason has to have surgery. Tomorrow. Ugh. The way his bone will potentially heal will 1) irritate the underside of his skin because the bone is broken at a point that is sticking straight up (it's really gross looking), and 2) because one bone is on top of the other and overlapping really far (more than an inch) they're worried he'll lose significant range of motion of they don't fix the break with metal plates and screws. Hooray for beeping every time we enter metal detectors!

Well, living in the middle of nowhere as we do, we have to drive nearly four hours to the facility that is performing the surgery. FOUR HOURS. Surgery is at 1:45pm. We are leaving around 8:30am. Surgery will take about an hour and a half. Then at least an hour for recovery. (It's an outpatient surgery). Then, once Jason is okay, another four hour drive home. An all day event.

I have to find someone to watch the kids ALL day. There is no way I'm hauling them on a four hour car ride, then wrestling them at the hospital for a few hours, and then another four hour ride home. Heavens no.

And on top of that, the house is a nightmare. Really. It's so awful. We've all been sick and so there are used tissues strewn everywhere, dishes have piled up, toys are scattered throughout every room, laundry hasn't been put away (since last week when I finished folding it). It looks a lot like those houses on those makeover shows where they clear out the entire house and put everything for sale on the lawn and then clean and redecorate. You know what I'm talking about, right? It honestly looks like that. Terrifying.

So knowing that I am going to be taking care of post-surgery-Jason for the next couple of months (because that's honestly how long his recovery time is) I need to get this house under control today, pre-surgery.

And to top it all off I'm in charge of dessert for our Relief Society Joseph Smith Celebration thing on Thursday night. I have yet to go grocery shopping because I've either been dealing with sick kids, or have been sick myself, or have been trying to take care of Jason and get second opinions on this surgery and such.

I'm a little overwhelmed.

I'm lying. I'm completely overwhelmed. I want to cry. But crying won't get things cleaned up around here. I'd better get my big, lazy behind in the kitchen and start those stupid dishes.

Did I mention I don't have a dishwasher? :(

Updating...

So, I'm not patient enough to wait for 29 comments on my last post to post this, so if you haven't, scroll down to the next post and leave me a comment!! :)

I missed last week's update, and I'm a day early for this week's update. I'm just throwing out the scheduled updates and doing it whenever the urge arises. Like now.

This last couple of weeks hasn't been horrible, or great. The week of Jason's accident I didn't work out all week. And I ate pretty lousy one night. But I ate great the rest of the week. And I got back to working out this week.

As of this morning, since the first of the year, I have lost a grand total of 25 pounds. I was SO happy this morning!! I had actually only lost one pound this week, but that one pound brought me to 25 pounds, which is a big milestone for me! There's something about that number that gives me a mental boost and gets me excited.

I've found so many little things that just make it work this time. I'm not following some special diet program. I'm eating ice cream and chocolate and grabbing fast food and such still. Obviously not anywhere near as often and I'm making better choices in those situations, but I still do it. But the little things, like drinking at least 64 ounces of water throughout the day, tracking my calories/fat/etc, making the mental switch to just living this healthy lifestyle vs dieting, getting right back on track when I blow it instead of feeling sorry for myself and giving up, talking to other people who have similar goals and keeping each other motivated. All of those little things are keeping me on track and at this point it's starting to feel natural.

Don't get me wrong! It's still hard. There are times when I really crave junk even though I know I don't need it at all. And there are times (like right now) when I should work out, but I don't. But I've decided that I don't care. The pounds may be coming off a little slower now, but they're still coming off! And that's the most important thing. As long as what I'm doing is working, I'm going to keep doing it.

Today has been an exciting day for me!

First, I hit that 25 pound mark.

Next, I've been telling Jason lately that I'm 10 pounds away from weighing the same as him. Now only 8. Now just 6. My goal is several pounds less than what he weighs, so even once I reach that point, I'll still have lots of work to do. But there's something about not weighing more than him that gets me excited! As of today I have 5 pounds to go to weigh less than my husband! Man, that's going to feel good!!

Then last, I'm always jealous of wives who can throw on their husband's clothes. I don't know why. It's not like his clothes are attractive (on me; on him they're great!). But I haven't been able to do that and I've always wanted to at least have the option!! So I'm doing laundry and I wanted to wash the pants I had on (because they are literally one of two pair that even remotely fit me right now). I was trying to figure out what I could throw on and I thought of something that was in one of the other laundry piles. When I went to grab it I saw Jason's track pants sitting there. They were looking pretty comfy!! I just decided to try them on...for fun! I figured they wouldn't fit (he's tiny) but I just wanted to see if maybe they almost fit. And guess what?! THEY DID!! They're a little loose on him, and a tad snug on me, but I didn't care! Before I couldn't even get them on!!

These are all silly little things, I know, but they've just put me in a good mood. My progress has been slow lately, so little things get me REALLY excited!! :)

Anyway, enough of that. I'm going to go put some babies to bed and relax with my one-armed husband!! :)