FREEEEEEEDOMMMMM!!!

We. Did. It. Four and half months of not taking Owen out in public. No church. No grocery store. No errands. One of us was always home with Owen. Dan even had to go out of town THREE different times, which meant I was stuck inside (I used ice cream therapy to get me through those trips). And staying quarantined paid off - none of us have been sick since before Owen was born.

Yep - Road Trips ARE Awesome

Even though we were supposed to stay in until June, by Memorial Day weekend we figured enough is enough and we brought Owen out into the world. We didn't start small either - Owen's "coming out party" took place over the weekend at a family reunion down in Zion's National Park. (We're talking 60+ people here.) Talk about stimulation overload to the max - he didn't know what to do with so many new things and faces to look at. My favorite comment from family members as they met him for the first time was, "Oh he is so much cuter in person!" Correct. (Although in my humbly biased opinion, I think he's pretty cute in pictures too!)

The 4.5 hour drive was nothing for this guy. He rocked it!

With Owen's great-grandma. She is an angel.

Hanging out in the "party bus" to avoid the pouring rain.

Chillin with uncle Jon. Bet you couldn't tell that Jon & Dan are brothers. :)

Our first Sunday going to church as a family. I first cried out of relief that we made it!
Then I cried because I so wished Lydia could have been there with us to make our family complete.
Sigh. I'm sure she was there in spirit. :)

Church wore this guy out! Holding a sleeping baby is balm for any soul. Amen.

Perspective is an amazing thing, because normally staying cooped up that long would have drove me crazy (and some days it almost did). But after coming so close to losing Owen, we are just SO GRATEFUL he is alive and healthy, that staying inside for a few months seemed like a small price to pay. BUT - I'm still so grateful we are done that I think I might just jump up and down and do 10 cartwheels. 

Here are some of our favorite pics from the last several weeks, in no particular order (I figured the blog was overdue for some updated Owen pics. Warning - picture overload!)

Raise your hand if you're ready for a nap!

He stretches and smiles like this every morning. How can you NOT be happy with this guy hanging around all day?

If he was strong enough to stand all day, he would. He LOVES this jumper!

Be still my heart. (I seriously have the best job ever.)

Hello!!

With aunt April and cuzins Megan & Sofia.
Can you tell that Sofia is 3 MONTHS younger than Owen?
Me neither. Oh the life of a preemie.

He laughs ALL the time now.

He'll be sending this picture in with his Harvard application.

Flowers

Photo by Lindsey Spjute

In May of the year 2008 I was teaching and renting a house in Salt Lake with a few roommates. I remember on May 9th of that year as I said my prayers before going to bed, I included the welfare and safety of my missionary brother and sister. Several hours later I was startled awake to the sound of my phone ringing. It was my parents. Lindsey had passed out while she was running with her missionary companion in England. They couldn't revive her. She was gone.

The night was still thick with darkness as I raced through the 30 minute drive to be with my family. We sat in the family room in shock. Slowly the rays of the Saturday morning sun crested over the mountain and in through the windows. The long, dark night was over. The sun came out. My mom used to always remind us, no matter how dark the night, to hold on - the sun will ALWAYS rise the next day. She was right.

I don't remember much about that day. I do remember aunt Barb bringing over boxes and boxes of kleenex - not the cheap dollar store kind like Mom always bought, but the soft "this is a pillow for your nose" kind. Bless her. I remember Mom and Dad going crazy inside the house. What do you do when your daughter who was living half way across the world was gone? They felt helpless. Finally Mom stood up and said she couldn't take it anymore. She had planned on planting all her flowers out in the front of the house that day, and she didn't see a reason why she shouldn't get out in the yard.
I joined her outside, and together, on that fateful day before Mother's Day while my dad mowed the lawn, we planted flowers. She taught me some of the tricks about plants Linz had learned through her jobs, and together we dug, planted, and watered for most of the day. There were plenty of interruptions from family, friends, and neighbors - all coming to pay their respects when they heard the news. But by the end of the day the planting was done, and the yard was beautiful and full of vibrant spring colors. An unknown passerby would have no idea of the heartache going on inside a house with such happy and colorful plants decorating its exterior.

The following year, again on the day before Mother's Day, I found myself planting flowers with Mom. Only this time the cancer was eating through her stomach and liver faster than the chemo flowing through her veins could cure it.

The next year I planted those flowers alone.

And so it is that any time I get my fingers in some dirt to weed or to plant, my mind goes back to Mom's flowers. She always made our house and our yard a beautiful place that we were all proud to call home. While each Mother's Day brings an ache for my mom, my sister who left us on mother's day weekend, and my daughter who made me a mother, this year I rejoice in the fact that I am the lucky one. I got to have the most wonderful Mom any girl could ask for, a sister who I used to dance with in our shared bedroom wearing nothing but our little-girl undies, and a beautiful angel daughter who was too pure for this world. Yes, I am the lucky one indeed!