I KNEEd sleep

A couple months ago my knee started really hurting whenever I would bend down. It became so painful that I would have to use my hand to take my weight whenever I would squat down to pick something up. Then it began happening in my other knee. It got really bad, and then it began hurting so badly, as if all the tendons in my knee were unified in their decision to cramp up that I was losing sleep. I woke up every few hours and had to painfully stretch out my legs and then go back to bed. Stairs hurt. Running hurt. Standing hurt. Sleeping was scary.

I set up an appointment with a chiropractor and he said my Tibia was twisted and it looked like it may have happened because my pelvis was out of place. He adjusted me and the rest of the day I was pretty sore but the sharp pain was better in my left knee.

That night I was pain free in one leg, but my right knee still hurt. SO a few days later I went back to the chiropractor and he re-readjusted me and did a more thorough full body alignment. It was amazing. The next few days went by with little to no knee pain and I was sure I was healed! I was so happy!

However, the pain is coming back. A few nights ago I woke up from a particularly happy dream with pain back in my left knee.

Now its coming back in my right.

I never injured my knees or anything. I have never had anything wrong with them, and haven't changed anything I do, except I do walk around campus more, but nothing drastic.


Lucas says my warranty ran out so my body is giving up. It seems every few days somethign weird happens. One day me elbow like stopped working and I couldn't straighten my arm. The other day I practically fainted in the bathroom when I fell on the floor in a weird full body overheat, I keep getting headaches, and it seems that a new pain appears each day just teasing me for having to get the crappy school insurance. Oh well, even if my warranty ran out, Lucas is stuck with me!

I kind of feel like Mrs. Potato Head and if someone whacked me really hard in the back my arms legs and face might just fall right off.


Has this even happened to anyone else? Did you ever just start falling apart for no reason?

Lets Make a Deal

Remember my vacation back in December?

Well, I only briefly mentioned that I was going to be in the studio audience of the TV show, Let's Make a Deal with Wayne Brady

Well, as it turns out you aren't allowed to say anything about the show after you've been in the audience. Especially not if you were a contestant who was so overstimulated and in shock about being called up that you couldn't function. If you were a contestant who geeked out big time and just squeeled and giggled and yelled "THE BOX" over and over, you ESPECIALLY were not allowed to say anything to anyone until it aired.

Check it out:
Look for a giggly nurse and her handsome doctor

You can see Lucas and I pretty much the whole time in the background. It was really really fun, and for the best part of the show check out minute 21:00.

Cracks me up. But at least to won a prize!

I won a spa day in LA. There's like a Limo ride, a makeover, a health consultation, massage and all that kind of girly stuff.
Lucas has been pretty unexcited about it, because we really wanted to get an ipad out of being called up. But beggers cant be choosers!
We will see what happens, so even if we can't get the cash value (they have 90 days after the airdate to get us our prizes) I am excited to have a spa day. It was worth like 3 grand, and this would be the only time in my life I would be willing to spend that kind of money on myself like that. I will not hate it if it happens.


So If you are going to LA, get a free ticket and go try to be on Let's Make a Deal! It was super fun and maybe you'll get to see yourself geek out, too!

Mother's Day

I was kinda nervous for Mother's Day this year.
I was worried that nobody would remember that I am a Mother.
I worried that when they talk in church about Moms I would not relate.
I was sad that I am unable to hold my baby tighter because I'm so glad to be her mom.

Luckily, I have actually had a really good day. Sure, I cried a little. But, I would have cried either way. My gratitude for her reaches beyond the grave. I love being a mother to her as an angel as I would have if she were here.My daughter is the best. Am I a proud Mom? Very.

So I decided that if people don't remember that I'm going through stuff today, that would be okay. I can't expect everyone to remember her how I would, that would be silly.But as usual, the goodness of others is surprising.

You see, I actually thought Mother's Day was yesterday. I've always known that Mother's Day is on a Sunday, but for some reason I kept trying to tell guests at the Hotel to have a great Mother's Day. I couldn't get a hold of my mom all Saturday and went to bed feeling like the worst daughter ever for not reaching her. It was weird.

While I was at work I got a surprise phone call from my sister-in-law MaShay. Remember Hank? Well now he look like this:

He's adorable. So is his dear mother. Well, his mother, MaShay called me Saturday afternoon and talked to me about mother's day and about Molly. She said she had been thinking about me all day, and she cried when telling her brother Molly's story. I was beyond touched. She then teared up as she told me she hoped I could have a happy Mother's Day and know that I am a Mom. I cried it was so sweet. I love you MaShay!

Well, I woke up this morning to the sound of a wisk whirling around a bowl and I knew that Lucas was making me breakfast. He's the best. He has to be at church all day on Sundays, so he let me sleep as long as he could and woke me up around 8. I was surprised to find a beautiful rose on the counter. Because he knows my love for sweets, he made pancakes with chocolate covered strawberries. This was topped with whipped cream. I was in heaven. This boy knows me! He told me he loved me and gave me all the love and attention I need. I felt great.

Then he said, "I made you something." I was really surprised and touched. He ran out of the kitchen and came back holding Molly's memory book. My throat got a lump in it and I knew that he had given me a gift by giving Molly a gift.

See, I have been trying to make Molly's memory book since July. Its really emotionally tolling for me, and I am working REALLY slowly. I have yet to do all Molly's pictures because I end up crying. I had hoped that Lucas would make a page about him and Molly. A father/daughter thing. It's been a long time and he had not done it so I figured it was going to make him sad.

But this morning he flipped open her book and there was a beautifully scrap-booked page.




The poem in the middle says:

Molly,
I will never forget the first time I saw you,
I will never forget the first time I held you,
I will never forget those few hours
we had together as a family

I will always love you.
I will always be better because of you.
I will see you again.


My eyes watered up as I read it. I was so happy he did this for me and for Molly. It meant the world to me and made me SO happy! I don't know how he does it, but he seems to become more and more perfect with every passing day.

Then, thanks to facebook, all the people who thought about how today would be for me left me nice comments letting me know they were thinking about me and wished me a happy Mother's Day. I am constantly impressed with how loving other people can be. Thank you for making my day less difficult!


Later at work, I called my mom to wish HER a happy Mother's Day. We laughed for 30 minutes straight as we talked about awkward moments.

This is my cool Mom!


We laughed at this...

Today in church (we go to a student ward, so nobody there is a Mother but me) the talks were all about Motherhood and the Bishop let us know there was going to be a special musical number. A "surprise" he called it. Well, after two speakers all the boys in the congregation get up with their hymn books.

The girls all start giggling, excited that the boys are going to sing us a special song. Usually on Mother's day it's something like "Love at Home" or a song about Mom's.

The Bishop got up and said, "I know none of you are mothers yet, but the men jumped at the opportunity to sing a song for you"

They then sing the song "Ye Elders of Israel". Its basically a song that empowers men to be Christ-like and support others. Its a song for Men.

At first the girls are taken by the fact that the boys are singing and looking for cute ones. I laughed when they stop giggling and just kind of stare as they realize the men are singing about themselves. I know that these men are important, but to sing about it as a Mother's Day musical number? I am still laughing about it. Lucas said he was embarrassed at the song choice. It had nothing to do with Moms.

As they sang (about themselves) for the girls(for dates?haha) we all sat awkwardly and then it was really weird as they sat back down. Hopefully one of those boys gets a date out of it.

The closing song was about a half an hour later. Unfortunately for the women in the room, it was a song that was meant for a men's choir and none of the girls could sing it. We attempted it, but the room was filled with the sound of men singing next to girls squeeking out notes that are out of their range. The more I think about it the more I giggle.

So as I told my mom this story she laughed really hard, the kind of laugh that makes you glad it was after something you said.

We then laughed as my Mom tells me her awkward church story:

She plays the piano really well. When she was in college, she was playing some classical music that she knew really well on the piano in the church. Her Bishop heard her and asked if she would be willing to play a musical number that Sunday.

Now, my mom has really bad nerves when it comes to performing musically. She hesitated but agreed to play.

She practiced a churchy song from the hymn book all week, and on Sunday she got up to play when it was her turn.

She stood behind the piano and looked out over the congregation and was overcome with nerves. She lost all courage to try and play the song she had been learning all week and instead only had courage to play a piece she knew she had memorized.

It was Solfeggietto by C.P.E. Bach.
For the whole mental image, here is the song


Not exactly sacrament meeting piano music. But it was the only thing she knew she would ruin, so off she went.

Anyway, she got up and it was silent. She said everybody felt really weird and then this girl goes "Was the C.P.E. Bach?" My mom just says, "Yeah."

Well, she was never asked to play another church hymn on the piano in that ward. haha

HAHA! That's my mother!



Hope your Mother's Day was fantastic!

A Picture Story: The Oven and The Dummy

Once Upon a time, there was a happy and very used oven.


Oven and his best friend, Amber, loved to make cookies. It was one of their favorite things to do, so they made cookies a few times a week.



One day, Amber was absentmindedly wandering around the kitchen because she was craving something sweet. She didn't have the ingredients to make cookies, so she just hung around oven. Amber started talking to her husband, Lucas, and grabbed onto Oven's handle. Oven was happy.

Suddenly, without warning, Amber decided to swing from Oven's door and try and put her toes up on the nearby counter.


Amber is a dummy. She put too much faith in the strength of oven's door.

Alas, The door swung open and crashed to the floor. Amber crash landed on top of the door with a painful thud!!




Oh, yes, Amber is a dummy.


Oven was broken. His hinges were bent, and even though Amber and Lucas tried as hard as they could, they could not put him back together again.

Lucas was forced to remove Oven's door. He was useless to them now.


Oven sat sadly with no door for weeks, just dreaming of cookies.



Amber sat sadly with no cookies for weeks, just dreaming of cookies.

Lucas sad sadly listening to amber miss cookies for weeks, and he too dreamed of cookies.


One blessed day, a knock came at the door.

It was a package for Oven! New Hinges had arrived!




BEST DAY EVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Lucas put oven back together, he looked as good as new. The three of them were so happy to be back together, they baked some cookies to celebrate.

Tick Busters.

I can't believe how fast time is flying, lately! Since I wrote last I had a very busy end to semester and finished my first semester back in school with a 4.0! I was VERY excited! I have always been good at school when I try, but never put that much effort into it before. It is refreshing to feel good about the way you spend your time.

So if you feel like my blog is being neglected and therefore you are unable to stalk us, blame college.

We also took a trip to Utah and Colorado for the ten or so day break between semesters. It was WONDERFUL to see family. We had a lot of fun, as we always do. Lucas is so relaxed around family. There is NO way that we are not going to end up in Colorado. Colorado/family=happy Lucas=happy Amber. Win Win! (Not that I'm not equally excited to see my family as he is, but he is much happier there compared to here because of the lack of stress and responsibility when we go home. haha.

Speaking of responsibility, Lucas got a new calling at church. He is in the bishopric of a single student ward on the BYU-I campus. He LOVES it. When he first got the calling he was kinda in a blur, just overwhelmed and feeling like he didn't now anything. I thought it was cute. Then he started and he felt even MORE overwhelmed and I thought it was cute. But now he is getting the hang of it, he is gone ALL day on Sundays (like 9 am to 11 pm yesterday) and then all day Tuesday, with more here and there as he is needed.

It seems like a lot to take on, but I have seen him absolutely fall in love with the calling over the last month. He is serving with all he has, and I think the Lord is helping him find time to do all he needs to around the calling. Its really great, and he comes home all dressed up and tired. There never has been a more proud wife.

We also started a new semester, I am taking all Science classes. Anatomy and Physiology (the second half) ..online, Chemistry, Foundations of Science and Book of Mormon. Its an intense amount of work, but so far I love it like I did last semester. I'm still having a love affair with education.


HOWEVER, just because I love learning, does not mean I love everything about it. I am not usually the person to rattle the system when I dont like something, but I did. I wrote my first harsh letter to the Business department at the school. It was long and pointed. It called people out for behavior and regulations that were uncalled for. It was signed "Lucas Taylor" hahaha. (They called him in to have a meeting with him and apologized...CHECK)


Finally, we gave Moose a hair cut, again.

We could have paid like 45 dollars to have him groomed but I did what is cheaper and trashier and cut his fur myself with a small pair of scissors. It took FOREVER. Our bathroom was covered in fur and moose ended up looking hilariously different, with random long chunks, a bleeding tongue and a few bald spots.


Seriously, there are a lot of bald spots. This is just one side.




Yes, I cut his tongue. I was holding his mouth and trying to trim the long fur around his nose and just as I cut he stuck his tongue out to taste the scissors. He jumped back but didn't make a sound. I wasnt sure If I hurt him because he just started licking his legs. I looked down and there was blood all over his leg. I got so scared that I sliced his tongue in half or something and rammed his mouth open and he was bleeding, but the cut on his tongue was so small I couldn't find it. He stopped bleeding eventually and I gave him a bone and some extra hugs and love to say "Sorry I'm a sucky barber".

Finally, at the end of the hair cut I had to torture him a little more and had to give him a bath. It was really sad. He avoided me like the plaque for a couple hours. Lucas stayed away during the whole ordeal and so Moose still loved him with caution.

The next day, Moose was acting really weird. He was extremely lethargic and didn't seem interested in food, his bones, his treats, outside, or us. Once I picked him up and he was burning up. I had never felt him so warm. He's never been so sick. He just layed around bored. We were sure he had the stomach flu. It was so sad. Lucas got so worried about him that he prayed that we would be able to find out what was wrong with him.

The next day Lucas was holding him and cuddling him when he goes, "I found the problem! Moose has a tick!"


SICK! I ran over to see it. It was true. There was no denying that Moose had gained the affections of a little brown tick. I was so mad at that stupid bug. Nobody sucks my dog's blood! NOBODY! We paid him back by covering him in peanut butter. When he refused to break up with Moose we tried to burn him out. Nothing. Tough little guy. Finally, I had to hold Moose down and talk lovingly to him as Lucas grabbed the tweezers. When Moose seemed distracted enough by my tricky love overload, Lucas YANKED that little tick out. Moose Yelped and jumped up, crying. It was SO SAD. His leg was bleeding where the tick pulled off some skin. Lucky we got the whole thing. Stupid guy

However bad I felt, it was worth it. We had our healthy dog back within the hour. Don't mess with us, Ticks. We will find you and make you pay for hurting our puppy!