"Whatever. You're Goooorgeous!"

This is my best-friend Kindra. Really she is. I'm tearing up as I write this just thinking about how blessed I am to have her. How lucky I am that she chose me. That she knew that her Mom would need her so much. I love her so much because she is so much like me.

As she came out of school on Tuesday, she had her glasses hanging from the neck of her shirt. "That's weird", I thought. I opened the car door and asked her about it.

"Oh nothing. I don't want to tell you", she said.

"What?", I said.

"You'll just be mad", she giggled.

She knows how to push my buttons.

"Kindra. I don't know if I'll be mad because I don't know what it is....SO TELL ME...NOW!"

"Mom. Christy told me that she doesn't like me and we can't be friends anymore because I wear glasses so I took them off. It's OK. I can still see when I squint", she whispered.

"Are you serious, Kin? Whatever. You're goooorgeous with or without your glasses and are you REALLY going to let someone like that determine what you'll do. That is so mean. Are you mean like that to other kids?"

"No...but Mom...I don't really care that much but it did make me feel kind of sad", she said.

"I'm so sorry Kin but be sad for her because she is going to miss out on being friends with the funnest (I know it's not a word but it sounds better when talking to a 6 yr old) girl ever!!!", I said trying to be as nonchalant as ever. You know. The idea of the less you make of it the better. That was all that was said until we were getting ready for bed.

"You know that you're really beautiful don't you? I know that you care what kids at school think but don't. Really. Don't let them determine who you'll turn out to be. It seems huge right now but you'll look back and laugh. See my elbows? When I was 10, a boy told me that they were ugly and that they looked like someone had broken them. I was devastated and started only wearing long-sleeve shirts because I believed his stupidity. I carried this insecurity even into High school. I look back now and want to punch Mike Black in the face...in the privates!"

She laughed at me.

"Mom. hehehe. Goodnight. I love you best friend and my white blanky loves you too."

I'm sure that this won't be the last time that we'll have to deal with this issue but for now I think that we've got it handled but still. If I can teach my kids anything...the one thing that I want it to be is that they are "those kids who are just nice. Nice to EVERYONE and that they are liked by everyone because of it". Oh Kin. Stay strong. Remember that I love you...with or without your glasses!

Look What I Found In My Garden Today!!!

You KNOW what that means?!?
YEP!!! Summer is right around the corner! :)

A Happy Valentines to Me From UT & CA!

Our Valentines started off great this year. I stole an idea from a friend to have the kids write down some of their good choices on hearts and then to put them up on the wall. The kids had so much fun doing it! Kindra brought home a "Valogram" that she had bought for me with her piggy-bank money. It was way cute how she had tried to do it all in secret too :)

This is what Carter made for me in his class...(I just have to laugh at the smile that he's aquired since he's been losing all of his teeth!)

I had told Carter that they could come up to Snowbird with me and try snowboarding for the first time while I was at my ski lesson but that all changed when they postponed my lesson because of the storm that was coming. We knew how much that he was counting on trying to snowboard so we just took him around the corner to Evergreen Park for his first time down.

...and yes. Kindra and I hung out together in the warm and dry car...

After a few trial runs learning his balance and with Trevor finally letting him go on his own...HE DID IT! He was so excited!

We jumped in the car and off to the airport we went. Last minute, after they postponed my ski lesson, I got invited to go to Camarillo/Santa Monica, CA. I was so excited to get out of the snow that going to the overcast weather was no big deal at all!

This is a funny story. I was proving to Keriann's kids that I could, if needed to, get up and down the stairs one step at a time. They laughed every time I "got to" (as I put it) get carried up the stairs so I had to use the situation as a lesson teacher :)

On our way out, Keriann took us to the Santa Monica pier. I'd been there before, but had decided to go shopping at the nearest Anthropologie. Go figure why I'd do that?!? I'll be honest, I didn't even know that I'd been to that area until I recognized the hotel that I'd stayed at. Who knew that this fun pier had been right across the street? If the weather had been better, I totally would have hit up some of the rides. Next time, right?

Such a fun weekend! I did receive a challenge to reflect on my life and on some of the things that I LOVE. I can easily express all of the things that I HATE but I don't always vocalize the things that I LOVE in my life.

I love my children. I love being able to be a home Mom. I love my hand-cycle and the sport. I love the fact that I am active. I love my "marms". I love my car. I love the relationship that Trevor and I have maintained. I love my collection of shoes. I love that I love being in love and that I have not given up on my romantic ideas. I love that my best friends are my brothers and sisters. I love that my Mom will always listen to my rantings. I love volunteering at the kids schools. I love my God. I love the relationship and the comfort that I find in my faith. I love that I'm not tied down. I love that I can be so adventurous. I love that I can be independent yet dependant when I choose or want to be. I love the Summer. I love anything that has to do with water/boating/Lake Powell. I love laughing. I love being fun. I love being weird. I love going to movies. I love that I have not given up hope. I love trying new things. I love making lists and crossing things off. I love my Blog. I love that I can always keep people on their toes and that I can still shock them. I love my tivo. I love LOST. I love THE AMAZING RACE. I love our random routine. I love decorating. I love shopping. I love our GNO. I love being competitive. I love the fact that I can still recognize and act on the promptings that I receive.

:)

My "Fantasy" Dinner Party...

I've been tagged by my friend Annabelle to put together a list of 8 people, dead or alive, whom I would invite to my home for a dinner party. I had a good laugh when I began to think about the random people I'd invite. OK, here we go...


1. King Henry VIII...to find out what was really going on inside that head of his

2. David Beckham...there is no need for an explanation here

3. My God...to give me all of the answers

4. Jane Austen...because she is my romance idol

5. The Duchess of Devonshire...to sit her down and give her the business for not standing up to the Duke or to her "best-friend" Bess

6. Gregory Maguire...because I love the book and the musical "Wicked"

7. Oprah...because she's got all the connections

8. Ludwig van Beetoven...because I could blast his music all day long no matter where I am


Who would YOU invite???

Kindra's 6th Birthday Party...

I still can't believe that she is 6 yrs old. It amazes me just how fast time really does fly! I found some of that window paint and knew that the kids would have so much fun "decorating" the front window before our get together. Yep. They did!

We asked Kindra where she wanted to go and eat for her birthday dinner and she knew exactly what she wanted. Egg-drop soup from this Chinese restaurant that she and I went to for one of our Mommy-Daughter Nights Out. :)

OK. So of course all of her gifts were "horse" paraphernalia. I knew that is what would happen, so I tried to do something different and I got her a Barbie golf clubs and golf cart set. It was all girly and pink and I thought, I hoped that she would like it. Nope. Not one bit so back to Target it went! Seriously...Kindra is hilarious. She got a bracelet, a jewelry box, and some clothes from her Grandma Corbridge. Nope. Wasn't even bothered with it. On to the next "horse" present she went! I was laughing so hard...

My Dad found her this thick book at Barnes & Noble that is only full of different horse pictures. It's actually pretty fun to sit with her and listen to her verbalize all of the thoughts that are going through her head! She could read it a million times!

Afterwards we asked her how her day had been and her reply was "Oh Mom! I just had the best day I could ever imagine!" Well then...that's all that matters!

My McSteamy of the Week...

This is my "dream man" of the week! Anyone else out there who is a "Greys Anatomy" fan noticing how hoooooot he is?....and he is getting even better week by week (even though his you know what has been a little damaged! hehehe) He can come over to my house any time he'd like and I'd nurse him back to health for a small payback fee of a little daily somthin somthin.....hmmmm hmmmm hmmmm!

Confessions of a Tan-aholic...

Yes. I go tanning. Fake baking. I pay for my tan. I don't care if it's unhealthy. I look better when I am tan and more importantly I feel better. This gloomy weather stuff gets me down so I need my 15 minutes of the heat stroke.

Last week while I was lying in the tanning bed, I was reflecting on how my life has been pretty random lately. Random events happening with random people. Things that I never would have imagined. Both good and bad. Both healing and confusing but some places that I would never want to go back to again. It's funny how we learn or are forced to learn how much better off our lives are without certain things. :)

I was at breakfast yesterday with some friends and realized that I've been taking some things for granted. I was once again reminded that life could always be worse and that I need to enjoy the time, the circumstances, the whatevers right now before it's too late!

OK. Now lets get to the good stuff. My days have been so busy with contacting everyone and anyone trying to find companies who would want to sponsor me and The Utah Handcycle Team for one of our National races. My days have been consumed with either speaking to or emailing someone a little something like this...

Dear so & so,

My name is Katie Terry and I am a member of The Utah Handcycle Team. The reason that I am contacting you today is that I am wondering if you would be interested in sponsoring the team for one of our National races that are coming up?

Though this is my first year competing on the National level, I feel very confident that I will do well. I competed and won my division in The St. George Marathon and was told by others on the team that I did very well especially since it had been my first marathon. That is when I was asked to join the Utah team. I hope to do well in the National races, earn my standings, and qualify to participate in the Paralympics in 2012.

Anything that your company could do to help us out would greatly be appreciated. Please let me know if this is something that interests you. I am also sending over some additional information as well as some photographs of me while participating in this sport.

Thanks again,

Katie Terry
The Utah Handcycle Team

So yeah. This has been taking up alot of my free time! The response has been great and I think that we'll be able to have a good season this year. We'll see and lets hope that I do as well as I hope to! Anyone that you know? Feel free to send them my way! hehehe