Post-Op Report

This evening, David was in surgery for approximately 2 hours with the vascular surgeon. His left leg muscles were assessed for death/damage. Unfortunately, I'm not up on my muscle anatomy these days, nor is my mom who gave the report. Apparently two muscles were okay with no tissue removed, but 50% of the other two muscles was irreparable and removed. The surgeon tried to be conservative and take only was was absolutely necessary at this point. He will have another surgery in a few days.

Tomorrow, he will be having a tracheotomy, which is a surgical procedure to create an opening through the neck into the trachea(windpipe). A tube is inserted through the opening to allow passage of air and removal of secretions. Instead of breathing through the nose and mouth, he will temporarily breathe through the tracheotomy tube. It'll leave a noticeable scar, but will be much better for his body in the long run. Below is a diagram of where the trach incision will be.

What YOU can do to help the Watson Family...

From within hours of the accident, we have had an outpouring of offers to help our family in this time of great need. Usually at the time of these offers, we said we'd let them know because the family hadn't fully assessed our needs. Now we have a list of ideas for how you can help the family run. Unfortunately, a lot of the family need is financial. Without David's DISH income, a lot of day-to-day expenses will not be able to be paid without help.

1. Gift Cards: Smiths, Harmons, Costco, Shopko, Target, Walmart...to help pay for groceries and other items that may need to be purchased. Mary will be sent out on a lot of shopping assignments (and who can trust a teenager with their parent's credit card??? jk) Cash or checks are also gladly and thankfully accepted for any amount.

2. Ready-to-Eat Meals: We have been blessed with many fully-stocked hot meals so far, but what would also be helpful are ready-made casseroles, lasagnes, meals for the crockpot, etc...that can be refrigerated or frozen, then easily heated up and served. We're big fans of the fruit and veggie trays from Costco too :)

3. Cases of bottled water, juice and other snacks: Since we stand vigil at the hospital for so many hours at a time and all of the vending machines are outside the unit, we've already scraped our stash of bringable snacks at the house. We get thirsty, and Barbara prefers juice over soda. Other snacks like granola bars, fruit, junk food, Orbit Gum and munchies also help us curb our hunger and minimize our trips to the hospital cafeteria.

4. Outside-the-house help: If you happen to drive by, and see that snow has not been shoveled, or garbage cans haven't been taken from the curb, please stop by. We also need our Christmas lights taken down (since David will obviously not be up on a ladder anytime soon...) As the spring comes along, there may need to be some yard work done also.

5. Prayers, Letters, Emails, and Supportive Phone Calls: While David is in the ICU so long, this means that whatever progress he does make will probably come slowly. I know that my nerves have been frazzled after 6-9 hour shifts at the hospital each day. It can be hard to keep spirits up when looking at his swollen, bandaged body with various tubes hanging out.

My email is nicoleandrosie@yahoo.com . You can email me with questions or just to let me know that you're thinking of us. Any donations, cards, and meals can be sent or dropped off at their house. If you would like to mail something, and are not in the Salt Lake area, please email me for their home address.

The Secondhand Wednesday Update

Yesterday, Taylor, Rosie and I flew back to Detroit. We left for the airport around 6:00 am, but due to layovers and a 2-hour delay on the ground in SLC, we didn't arrive back until 5:00 pm. We're pretty exhausted, and Taylor leaves on a 4-day trip this morning. I wish he wasn't going to be gone. We get our apartment keys on Friday, and the moving truck comes Monday.

As for David, his status continues to remain the same. He's had a temperature around 102 degrees for a few days now. They use fans and ice packs to keep him cool. His vital signs have remained steady, but he is heavily sedated. I don't think his lungs are quite as bad as the RT who signed him up for the albuterol protocol led us to believe. There are some crystalized parts of his lungs, but the vent protocols are going as expected. The lady from the wound team looked at his leg and said part of it looks "dusky", which means there hasn't been adequate bloodflow to that area. Thursday he will go into surgery with Dr. Merrill and his resident to work on his leg. They will take out any necrotic tissue, assess his muscles and take out any part that has died. This surgery will give a good idea on what the long-term prognosis of his leg will be. Now the time estimate is for him to be in Shock-Trauma for up to two more weeks.

A Trying Tuesday

Tuesday proved to be more trying than Monday for David. The temperature that he developed on Sunday night has increased, which is indicative of infection. He's on Kefzol and Gentamycin, which are two great antibiotics, and his blood culture hasn't grown any specific bug...so it's a waiting game to see what is causing the fever. The two murses (male nurses, the metro training the redneck) weren't particularly helpful in explaining his condition today. I got there too late to hear the report on the doctors rounds, and his wounds looked better, so I thought he was showing constant improvement. I talked with the respiratory therapist a lot today, stood at his bedside as she tried to wean him off the ventilator. She said she heard some "crackles" in his lungs and he didn't do very well with the vent weaning. It made his BP increase, his pulse ox go down to 86%, he was very agitated, his body was quivering, and he had to be put on a higher dose of Propofol (sedation) to calm down. His hands were also put in soft restraints to prevent him from pulling at the tubes. I grabbed Taylor's Zune and some headphones so he could listen to Crosby, Stills and Nash to calm him down.

I spoke with the HR and Workers Comp people at the Church. From what I understand, WC will pay 2/3 of his full time wage through a third party administrator. The remaining 1/3 will come out of his sick time accrual (11 hours a week, I believe) Health insurance will continue to be in force for the family, but he will not accrue sick time, 401k deposits, or vacation time. After 45 days, his Long Term Disablility coverage will kick in, and medical insurance premiums will be covered for no cost. Luckily, all medical care for the rest of his long-term recovery will be covered by WC and he will not have to pay a cent for his accident-related injuries. That's a blessing for sure.

Around 5 PM, and 5 hours at his bedside, I gave him a kiss and said my goodbyes until next week. I had plans to go out on a double date with John and April. As we were leaving, my mom got a call from the respiratory therapist asking if David could be enrolled in a research protocol for patients with Acute Lung Injury. Up until this point, the family was under the impression that all of his major injuries were from the pelvis down. Apparently, his lungs have filled with some fluid, the trauma of the accident is exacerbating his decreasing lung function. To find this out freaked me out, because Acute Lung Injury is in the same pulmonary family as ARDS, which I had in 2000. The research protocol will give him doses of Albuterol through his vent tube every four hours until 24 hours post-extubation. The RT came to my parents' house to explain it to mom, and the RT called me on my date to explain the protocols. I thought it was a great idea, and quite ironic because the ventilator protocols used now, with the highest positive outcomes, were the same ones established through the ARDS study in 2000. I gave my approval and mom signed the consent forms.

Due to the increased need for pulmonary care, David was transferred to the Shock-Trauma ICU last night. I was so exhausted that I couldn't wait until 11:00 PM to visit him, which was the time the nurses said he would be ready for visitors post-transfer. If I wasn't leaving for the airport so early on Wednesday, I would have been over to get the details from the horse's mouth.

My blogs will become a little less detailed at this point, since I won't be speaking with the doctors and nurses directly until next Friday 1/25 when I fly back to Utah. Hopefully he'll be out of the ICU and will be able to enjoy my visit and see Rosie too. My blog will probably have a few non-David related posts, but I will put any updates I get on here for your reading fulfillment.

Monday, Monday

Dad continues to make progress. When I went to the hospital this afternoon, his wound-vac had been installed. This machine helps drain out the infection and excess fluid to speed healing from the inside out. They also cleaned up his bandages that are barely dripping now. He did develop a bit of a temperature, but with some ice packs and a fan blowing, it never seemed too out of control. He did need two more units of blood infused, likely from all of the wound vac/cleaning/ evaluation by the wound team. Mom and I rubbed lotion over his arms, hands and feet after Thana (our favorite nurse) washed his hair and shaved his face. He looks a little less like an a accident victim, and more like a man who is just really sick. He'll likely still be intubated a few more days, so I don't know if I'll be able to talk to him before I head back to Michigan on Wednesday. Rosie's got the 25th off school, so we'll likely come back to SLC that weekend.

Mom and I talked to a case manager nurse and the HR representative for dad's department. His billing and pay should be figured out over the next few days. Luckily, he has 32 sick days accrued, which will guarantee full pay until at least Mid-February. We'll find out the details on his other compensation and benefits sometime Tuesday or Wednesday. In the evening, we had a family council with Bishop France and Jim, our home teacher. We figured out some of the upcoming needs for keeping the household running, such as paying bills, housework, and meal preparation. Jacob knows how to do the Dish installations, so hopefully that stream of income won't dry up during dad's recovery. It's great to have such an amazing support network, especially within our own family.

David Q&A

For those who are visiting my blog for updates on David, this post is specifically for questions you may have. If you want to know more about a procedure, doctor's updates, recovery estimations, post a comment below. I will respond a few times a day.

Also, for the time being, only family is being admitted into the ICU for visits. We had a few people come in that were not family that happened to get his privacy code, and saw him in his fairly gruesome state. I'm sure he doesn't want the general public seeing him like this, so please keep him in your prayers and stay tuned for updates. Once he's out of the ICU, he will love visitors.

Thank you for all the support we've had so far, through meals, prayers, cards, and visits to the house. We'll still need help for some time to come. I'll try to answer the emails and voice mails I've recieved, but I also have been on the phone for several hours over the last few days.

Sunday Evening Update

Mom, Mary, Taylor and I went to see dad after the shift change. He'd been changed from Versed to Propofol for sedation. His bandages were cleaned, he was in a more comfortable, larger airbed. The swelling in his body was still pretty severe, but the bleeding in his leg has decreased significantly. There wasn't enough time in the afternoon to do the IVC filter and the wound vac, so that will be installed tomorrow. He didn't respond much to our touch because of his sedation level, but tomorrow they will probably take the sedation down and see how he responds. They added a breathing treatment into his ventilator line to help with any mucous in his lungs and make sure that his asthma doesn't kick in. His toes are pink and warmer than yesterday, and bloodflow has been consistent on the doppler everytime.

Sunday afternoon update

When I arrived at IMC, the nurses and RT were preparing him to be transported to Angio for his IVC filter procedure. He was gone for about 2 hours, and the procedure well perfectly. The trauma surgeon gave me a little update on his situation...and it was pretty similar to this morning. My mom and I left soon thereafter so the nurses could change his sheets, clean up his wounds, and other nursey duties. I'm leaving to pick up Taylor from the airport, and we'll head back to IMC after 8:15.

Sunday Morning Update

I went back to IMC around 8:30 this morning. I met with the trauma team on their morning rounds. The acid levels in his blood are now normal, but there is evidence of muscle death. The enzymes from the muscles are very hard on the kidneys. They checked his BUN and Creatinine levels, and his kidneys are now okay for now. Today they will be inserting a feeding tube, wound vacs, and an IVC filter. The IVC filter is iron mesh, and it prevents any blood clots he may acquire from causing a pulmonary embolus. They are unable to use anticoagulation therapy to prevent the blood clot because he still has a gaping open wound in his leg.

At church today, there was a flood of love, support and prayers. I know our family will be taken care of. I was also told by Bishop France that Elder Dixon from the Quorum of the Seventy contacted him, and let us know that the First Presidency is personally praying for David.

I'm heading back over to IMC again. Taylor was released from duty early today, and I'll be picking him at SLC airport around 6:30.

D-A-D in S-L-C in I-C-U

This week in Michigan I felt that the Bullock family was settling in quite nicely. Rosie started school at Allen Elementary, and her teacher is wonderful (and also the wife of regional pilot, with whom I can commiserate) Taylor was off Sunday night-Thursday morning...and I finally had some wholesome, consistent alone-time with him. We went on a day-date (On the Border and "Juno"), did some furniture shopping, went for drives around the area to get acquainted with greater Canton/Plymouth/Westland/ Northville/Livonia area. We set up bank accounts, auto and renters insurance policies, and other necessities after a move. We've been reeling in generosity of the Pearce family and their lovely home. I started my Quantitative Reasoning, Statistics, and Critical Thinking classes. I felt like things were settling down...as much as they could for not actually moving into our apartment yet. Until Friday night.

I received a call from my mom. My dad, David, had been in a pretty serious rollover accident near Fillmore on the way back from a work trip to St. George. He's an audio/visual engineer with the LDS Church, coming back from equipment upgrades on the Temple and Visitors Center. He was with two other coworkers, Bruce and Nathan, in the back seat of a van (we still aren't sure if it was a minivan or large 15-passenger van), with lots of heavy A/V equipment that was being transported back to Church Headquarters. I haven't gotten the full story, but here's what I've pieced together.

Around 1:30 PM, Friday January 11, Bruce dozed off while driving, pretty close to the Meadow/Kanosh exit on I-15. He was startled awake by the sound of the caution grooves on the freeway, and overcorrected right when my dad yelled out his name. There was a slight hill down which the van flew over and tumbled a few times, and landed on the other side of the frontage road. Matt, a passing motorist from CA on his way to Provo for his daughter's wedding, saw the accident and was the second person on the scene. I've talked with Matt a few times, and this is what he explained to me:

The van was very well crushed and totaled. It had flipped and flown three or four times. Matt saw David's rear end was hanging out the side window of the crushed, upside-down van. It looked like he was crawling in with his left leg squashed under his body. Matt saw that the seatbelt was still attached, so he found a knife and cut him out of the seatbelt to relieve the pressure. Matt and some of the other motorists who stopped to help, set out some blankets, clothes, and other items so David could be laid out on the ground without getting cold and snowy. He was fully conscious through the whole ordeal. They administered consecrated oil and gave him a priesthood blessing.

The paramedics arrived and started triaging and treating David. Nathan was freed from the car fairly easily, and walked away with some minor cuts and abrasions on his forearm and elbow. Bruce was crumpled, not crushed, in the debris of the van and required the Jaws 'o Life to free him. He sustained some lacerations and contusions to the face, and was patched up within a few hours at Fillmore Hospital. My dad was taken by ambulance to Fillmore Hospital, where they diagnosed a pelvic fracture and a completely dislocated knee that had stopped adequate bloodflow to his leg (below the knee). Two hours post-impact, they decided that his condition was way too serious and he'd need to be LifeFlight'ed to Intermountain Medical Center in Murray.

For those who read this blog, and don't know David....he's no lightweight! My guess is that he's somewhere around 6'2" and 320 pounds. Due to weather conditions and the weight and balance on the helicopter, they were unable to chopper him to Murray. They loaded him on a fixed-wing LifeFlight plane, and flew him to Salt Lake International Airport. Then they took him (via helicopter) to IMC. Within an hour of arrival, my dad was taken in for an 8 hour surgery with a vascular surgeon, orthopedic surgeon, and general surgeon.

The pelvic fracture was on the wing of the pelvis, which is a non-essential area for bodily movement, and did not require surgical intervention. He had a pretty massive open wound over the pelvic fracture from the seatbelt, which they cleaned up and took care of. The main concern was his knee and lower leg. In addition to the dislocation/fracture of the knee, he had a significant crush injury to the leg. A saphenous vein graft from his right leg was required to restore bloodflow to his left leg. An external fixator was installed on my dad's lower leg, which elevates the open-wounded leg for drainage. After just over 8 hours in the OR, he was moved to the Thoracic ICU.

By the time I got the call, Taylor was into the 2nd day of his 4-day trip, so I decided to take Rosie out to SLC on the first flight of the morning. After 4 hours of sleep, we woke up at 4:00 am and drove to the airport. The layover in Minneapolis and flight to SLC was pretty uneventful. I knew that Rosie wouldn't be able to go into the ICU, so I arranged for her to stay with the Lewis' family while I stood vigil at the hospital. My mom and Jacob had stayed overnight through the whole surgery until 6 am, and were sleeping, so my job was to be on call for questions and support at the hospital. After taking about 6 condition-calls at my parents' house, I drove over to IMC. The IMC Campus is huge, and I was a little confused because I'd been told he was going to be transferred to Shock-Trauma ICU. After about 15 minutes of going from nurse station to nurse station with no luck (his trauma alias was ZZZIM, ZITI for some reason) I found a doctor who has been briefed on his condition and he showed me where to go.

When I walked into S204, I couldn't believe how swollen and bruised up he was. His neck had swelled so much that it was bigger than his head, but even his ears, eyes, nose, and tongue were swollen. He was sedated on Versed and intubaed. The most gruesome sight was his leg, itself. It was covered in bandages and elevated, but was soaked in blood and fluids from the open wound (to help reduce swelling and edema). Thana, his ICU nurse, was absolutely wonderful. I spent 5 hours with her, as she kept tabs on his vitals, dopplered his feet to verify adequate bloodflow, infused more units of blood, checked labs, glycerine-swabbed his mouth to keep it moist, and other nursing functions. She and I got along really well, and she designated me as the family spokesperson to give updates to anyone who called the ICU with the privacy code. Throughout the afternoon, Mary, Grant, Julie (his sister), Grandpa Jack, Mom, and Bishop France visited him. He was given another priesthood blessing by Jack and Patriarch Sheffield, and was guaranteed a full recovery.

I spoke to all three surgeons over the course of the day. The vascular surgeon said that this was one of the most difficult surgeries he's ever done because my dad's calf was so large. We joke about our "Watson Cankles"...our giant calves and ankles that have no end. The swelling made his calf about the size of a volleyball, and he had to use his deepest instruments. The maneuverability within the leg was darn-near impossible to operate quickly, and the surgery lasted over 8 hours. Unfortunately, from the time of impact to bloodflow restoration was just over 9 hours...and normal function of the leg is only guaranteed within 6-8 hours of blood deficit The orthopedic surgeon said the health of his muscles and nerves will take a few weeks to determine, and he will likely have permanent nerve damage. He could have partial or full muscle loss, which could require amputation. The general surgeon said she'll be rounding once or twice daily to make sure that his other vital systems are functioning normal (i.e. respiratory, urinary, cardiovascular, etc)

For a while, the respiratory therapist tried to wean him from the ventilator to see if he would breathe on his own, but he coughed and gagged irregularly, and it was clear that he would still need to be intubated for a while. We were told that due to the pain medication and sedation, it was necessary to keep him on the vent while his body healed, because he wouldn't be able to adequately breathe on his own (due to trauma and existing asthma and sleep apnea). His Versed dose was weaned from 10 to 2 while I was there, and for part of the early evening he was responding to stimuli. The first response made me laugh...I asked him if he knew that 3 of his 4 favorite girls were next to him, and he smirked and shrugged his shoulders. A few times he tried to open his eyes, but his eyelids were swollen shut and purple, and his eyeballs were completely red. He loved it when I scratched his head, and would lean into it a little. He grabbed my hand a few times, but didn't have much grip (from a bandaged hand with a chunk of flesh missing).

I stayed at the hospital from about 1:30 PM to 6:00 (at shift change) and went back from 8:15 to 10:30 MT. I had been up for 21 hours, after only 4 the night before, so I headed back to Chez Watson and slept on the couch. I will probably go back again this morning around 8, stay till 10:45, go to sacrament meeting at 11, then come back to his bedside. I'd originally planned to fly back to Detroit this afternoon, but in my priesthood blessing from Grant, I felt that the family needs me here for a few more days. I'll have to play it by ear.

Any prayers or positive vibes through the universe would be muchly appreciated. I'll try to keep updates on my blog everytime I'm back home by my computer. You can call my cell for updates also.

To work or not to work?

A few weeks ago, I'd made the decision to just stay at home and do school full-time in Michigan. I'm still wavering with the idea of working, because I know that our bank accounts are pretty dry and it's not going to get better anytime soon. So I was looking online this morning, and found this job that I want. This is the type of job that will get me out of bed in the morning!!! I applied, but I'm not really hopeful (It required a bachelor's degree plus experience) I don't know the pay either, but I have a feeling it's pretty commensurate with what I made in Cali.

We are currently seeking an Epidemiology Research Associate in our Ann Arbor, MI office. The Epidemiology Research Associate will work closely with project teams to assist in administrative and epidemiologic aspects of studies.

Major Responsibilities

• Prepare agendas and take minutes at meetings
• Data entry as needed
• Assist in preparation of tables, reports, presentations and manuscripts
• Work directly with project managers to identify other related tasks needed for project
• Coordinate medical chart abstraction effort involving assistance in setting a timeline, utilize Access databases, mail letters and forms, participate in the creation of abstraction tools, assist with the development of training materials, train abstraction firms, track medical charts, follow up on pending charts, contact with abstraction firms, hospitals and doctor's offices as needed
• Conduct literature reviews and summarize findings
• Other administrative tasks deemed necessary
  

Qualifications:

• Bachelors Degree plus experience (in related field)
  
• Interest in public health, epidemiology and pharmaceuticals
  
• Experience with Excel, PowerPoint and Access
  
• Experience with medical records and/or claims data a plus
  

Road Trip Complete!

After 1750 miles (in addition to the 670 from LA to SLC), I am finally "chillin" in Michigan...both literally and figuratively. Actually, the weather has warmed up a bit, so it's a balmy 31 right now. Our apartment won't be ready until January 18, so we are basking in the generosity of the Pearce family from our new ward. We looked for deals on extended stay motels, temporary rentals on Craigslist, and options with people we barely know in far-off corners of the Detroit-Metro area. After a few weeks of looking, nothing was panning out. Last week I got in touch with my new RS president, who helped set us up with a family in our ward that could host us for two weeks. They are totally generous and lovely, and living in their house feels like I'm playing "house" as a child again. The beds are more comfortable than I've ever owned, the theater room rivals any one I've ever visited, the three fridges are stocked with goodies from Costco, and the house is just amazing. It'll be hard to move back into our painted-cinder-block-wall apartment in two weeks.

Today I'll be attending church in the Plymouth Ward, and this evening I'll pick Taylor up from the airport for his next 3 days off. Rosie will be signed up for school tomorrow, and we'll find a bank account to open (with access in CA, UT, and MI...none of which BofA, Wamu, or Wells Fargo can offer) I'm signed up for intermediate algebra, statistics, quantitative reasoning and writing...and will order my books this week and start with coursework.

It's been so nice to have a couple weeks off. I'm glad the roadtrip is over...and Michigan is ending up to be nicer than other peoples' predictions. There's my update.

What a difference a year makes...

This blog is dedicated to my awesome brother Jacob. He's made so many good changes in his life this year, and is happier, healthier, and more successful than he's been in a long time. He's risen to the occasion and bettered his life. He's freaking out about getting an A- in his Chemistry class, when he used to flunk classes like nobody's business. The top picture was taken when he was druggy sickly last Christmas . The next picture was taken during his darkest days of 2007. The next two were during the summer as he was cleaning up his life, and the bottom one was this week on Christmas eve. He looks healthier than ever. I'm proud of my brother, and am excited to roadtrip to Michigan with him this week!

Christmas Pics

Christmas Morning Pictures....Rosie got her Orange Sweater from Santa!!! Mom got her automatic scrubbing bubbles shower cleaner, and dad got his Zune dock. I got an Ipod dock alarm clock and new satin pajamas. I gave Mary some CDs and Shawn displays how much candy that Santa leaves in in the Watson stockings. A few Christmas eve pictures follow.

Rosie's Snowy Photo Shoot

Here are some pictures that my good friend Zach took of Rosie at Murray Park yesterday. He's one of the best photographers that I know...if you're in the market for a photographer (baby, wedding, family, etc...) Zach is your man!

Murray Christmas!

Greetings from Murray! After a crazy year of being across the country from my husband, and a crazy month of packing, planning, and moving...it feels so good to be "home" in Murray!

There's no way I could have gotten through this insane week of moving without Eleanor, Debbie, Jake, Mary, Lizzie, Andrea, Brett, Anastasia, the Elders, and Rosie....packing and cleaning by my side. I worked my last day at Montclair Hospital, finished up Christmas shopping, gave multiple rounds of "See ya Soon" hugs, packed my car to the gills, and drove up to snowy Utah. I dealt with torrential rain on days I needed to dumpster-dive for boxes. I ate my last Animal Fries, Sweet Potato Stack and BJ's Pizookie. I had my last four hours of dental work (with a monster boil by my lip to prove it). I suffered through 5 hours of smoky-smelling movers packing my life away into a semi truck (and having to pay over $600 more than my original quote) I had three "incidents" with my car, giving Cami a few more battle wounds. I closed up utility accounts, put in my change of address forms, turned in my modem, and said goodbye to the "blue house" that's been so good to me for the last 18 months.

It's unreal to think that I'm moving across the country from all the friends and family I have. It's unreal to think I'm trading in my tees, capris, and flip flops for parkas, thermals, and snowboots. Trading palm trees and ocean for naked deciduous trees and the Great Lakes. Trading the Clean Air Act for "Smoking or Non?"

But in between the reality of my California existence and the surreal future of my Michigan life...I'm blogging from my parents' blue leather couch that holds so many memories...Family Home Evenings, recovering from my ARDS nightmare, making out with HS boyfriends, birthday circle memory games, folding mountainous loads of laundry, and countless other parties and domestic tasks. My feet are propped up on the long-loved coffee table that I gave to my parents when I moved to Cali. The hand-made stockings that my mom assembled when we moved to Murray are hooked on the mantle to my left, and the blue-and-pink adorned Christmas tree is in view to my right. I'll be attending church at the good ol' Highland Ward today. The only two things that could make my time at home better is Taylor...who plans to fly out to SLC on the 26th and 27th....and listening to Amy Grant's Christmas CD...my dad's mainstay holiday music continuously played during every December since 1993.

Merry Christmas. Joyeux Noel. Mele Kelikimaka. Feliz Navidad.

Help!

If anyone out in cyberspace that reads my blog, and is in the vicinity of La Verne....HELP! I have tonight and tomorrow to pack up my house. The truck comes Thursday at 7 am, so it's crunch time!

If you have some free time tonight or tomorrow...call me asap. I'm freaking out! I'm running out of boxes too...and it's been raining like crazy and my dumpster dives have been wet and unsuccessful.

*hyperventilates*

2007 Meme

1) Where did you begin 2007?
After falling asleep watching episodes of the Twilight Zone with Lissy and Tyler, Taylor and I watched the ball drop at home.

2) What was your status by Valentine's Day?
Happy and married…and in the same state as my hubby!

3) Were you in school anytime this year?
Yes...June-November. I start up again in January.

4) How did you earn your money?
Montclair Hospital Medical Center and Chino Valley Medical Center. I was an administrative assistant in Medical Staff Services

5) Did you have to go to the hospital?
Yes, every work day! I went to urgent care twice, and had to have a biopsy at the dermatologist, but this year was pretty uneventful health-wise.

6) Did you have any encounters with the police?
No, but Taylor got two speeding tickets.

7) Where did you go on vacation?
I had some R&R in Florida, Utah, Idaho, and San Diego. I also spent two days in Michigan looking for apartments, but it was hardly a vacation.

8) What did you purchase that was over $1000?
My used Camry.

9) Did you know anybody who got married?
A few people…friends from high school and siblings of other friends

10) Did you know anybody who passed away?
My aunt’s mother

11) Have you run into anybody you went to high school/primary school with?
Yeah...quite a few. The best friend that I reconnected was Nicole McGill. We weren’t really close in HS, but we sure bonded this year!

12) Did you move anywhere?
I’m moving to Michigan next week!

14) What concerts/shows did you go to?
John Mayer, Fall Out Boy, Keane, Gliss, and a few other local gigs. I was supposed to see Ben Folds, but due to unfortunate Hollywood parking obstacles, we missed their whole set.

15) Are you registered to vote?
Yes, but I didn’t make it on election day this year

16) Who did you want to win Big Brother?
I don't watch it. My favorite shows this year at Grey’s Anatomy, ER, Private Practice, Biggest Loser, Heroes, Journeyman, Ugly Betty, and The Office.

17) Where do you live now?
A house, but I’m just about to move into an apartment

18) Describe your birthday?
Very enjoyable. Taylor just returned from a month in of training in Kingman, so I was able to go out to lunch with him. I had a party at my house with some of my good friends and family.

19) What's one thing you thought you'd never do but did in 2007?
Accept Nickie as a suitable nickname. I’ve never felt comfortable with Nikki or Nicky, but Nickie works for me. Thanks Lizzie!

20) What has been your favorite moment?
One of my favorite moments was when Jacob and Mary were down visiting, and we all went to Dockweiller Beach together. We had a blast.

21) What's something you learned about yourself?
I'm stronger than I think I am...and I can be successful independently of my husband’s day-to-day support. It has been a real struggle living on the other side of the country from Taylor. I think a year ago…that if I’d been told that I’d be basically living as a single parent, I probably would have spontaneously combusted. Now that I understand this, I feel more secure in moving out to Michigan, taking out a vow of poverty, and living with my husband again.

22) Any new additions to your family?
No one in the immediate family, but Cooper, Ethan, and Ava were born to my cousins

23) What was your best month?
Probably February…because I was in the same state as Taylor the whole time

24) What music will you remember 2007 by?
Garden State Soundtrack and Imogen Heap, My favorite song that was on the radio was probably “Dig” by Incubus.

25) Who was your best drinking buddy?
Liz and all her tea glory. But nothing was as intoxicating as the laughter.

26) Made new friends?
Yes. The four new friends that made the biggest impact on me were Brett, Kathryn, Anastasia, and Mary S. Conveniently, we went out a few times as a group and had lovely times.

27) Best new friend?
I’d have to say Brett. He’s a scholar and a gentleman.

28) Favorite Night out?
It’s a tie, the John Mayer concert experience with Lizzie, and the Genghis Cohen, Hollywood Walk, and 101 Café night with so many of my new friends.

Santa S.O.S!!!

Rosie's #1 item at the top of her list for Santa is a "Fuzzy orange sweater, size Medium." I have searched at Target, Gap, Old Navy, Limited Too, Nordstrom, Macys, and even thrift stores with no luck. It can't be striped, it can't be cable knit...must be a solid, fuzzy sweater. I've showed her other cute orangish sweaters...but none of them have been up to her standard. She thinks that Mrs. Claus will be knitting the sweater by hand...so when I shop for sweaters she says, "Mom, you're wasting your time!"

So...if you find a fuzzy orange sweater, size medium (and preferably under $30)...please let me know!

Little by little

This weekend Taylor came home for a day and a half to help us pack up the house. We got about 20 boxes squared away, and went through the junk in the shed. We still have a long way to go, but I'm not quite as stressed as before. Thanks for asking.