If Only EVERY Morning Could be a Saturday Morning!

At our house we have a Saturday morning tradition. When the kids wake up, they jump into my bed and begin the cartoon watching. Now...I did not say WE, I said THE KIDS because I continue sleeping or at least close my eyes and try to sleep. This allows me to lay in bed for as long as I possibly can! This morning as I was up for a trip to the bathroom, I grabbed my camera and used the infamous timer so that we had some proof of our tradition! TGIS! Notice the "hooooot" bed head?!? hehehe

I am going to get my A** Kicked!

Remember the first time that you skied, or snowboarded, or wake boarded, or did something that it was inevitable that you were going to get your a** kicked? Well...it's official! The guys at work talked me into it...I have committed to a 5 week session of mono-skiing and have all ready prepared myself for a moment of death! I am pumped, excited, and scared to death all at the same time but really I CAN NOT WAIT to get out there! It begins in March so anticipate some great pics :)

The Birthday Party

I had to sneak home to decorate so that it was ready for when we came home...purple of course! ...and we can't forget about the horses who are very important!?!

We took Kindra to dinner at one of my most hated restaurants...Applebee's...but that is where she wanted to go and what the Birthday Girl wants, the Birthday Girl gets!


I always get a present for the other one to open so that it's more of a family event. There is no need to cause them to be jealous or sad about the day...so here is Carter...
...and yes...the left over Christmas wrapping paper! :)
Grandma and Grandpa always give such great gifts! This horse's name is Princess...

Now, if you have ever seen the movie "Toy Story 2", there is a horse in the movie who's name is "Bullseye". Kindra loves "Bullseye" and so that is what we found her. It is hard to see, but I have hidden "Bullseye" on the back of my chair. It did not take Kindra long to see him!
Kindra also wearing the Birthday Girl tutu that she got from Aunt Lyssa for Christmas...

Kindra's purple horse cake with "a lot of purple icing"....

DIG IN!!!

Thank you everyone for coming to Kindra's birthday party! Thank you Colin and Abbi for the "Candyland" game! We missed the Zimmerman's and Uncle John-Charles but we understand...warm Texas and Spain are much better places than cold Utah at this point! Happy 5th Birthday Kindra! We love you!!!

Happy Birthday Kinny!

I can not believe that my little "Kinny" is 5 today! She is my best friend and I can not even imagine life without her! I have written this in my journal every day on her birthday because I seem to remember different aspects of it on different days so here it goes again...Kindra was a wonderful surprise at a horrible time. I remember just knowing that I was pregnant in the hospital when I woke up and I also knew that she was going to be a girl. It was basically a "I am sorry...Katie is paralyzed and her body will probably abort the baby because of the medicine she has needed and the trauma her body has gone through". My family was so taken back by the word "baby"! What baby? I did not even know that I was pregnant! But I knew that there was a reason that Kindra had come at this time and that she was needed in my life! For the next few months I went through minimal physical therapy so as to not cause additional stress to her but she was still not growing as much as the doctors would like. I was 28 weeks when they admitted me back into the hospital so that they could monitor her growth. They also discovered that because I was not able to stand up, she had "positional club feet". I remember just bawling my eyes out at the thought that I had done this to her but knew that whatever way things were supposed to be, they would be! On January 16th 2003 my body woke up knowing that something was not right. The hooked me up to some new monitors and gave me some more drugs to slow things down a bit. By 3:00 pm, I was getting pissed. They were not finding anything new, I was starving, my TV did not work, I had sent Trevor golfing, I was lonely, sick of the hospital and wanted to go home! Finally Trevor came back and my Mom, John-Charles, and Mike came to visit. Right at that same time a Physical Therapist came over to make sure that my back wounds were healing properly. Remember...I am paralyzed and can not feel from the waist down...So I rolled over for him to look at my back and he said, "That can't be right?" "Yeah, I think I'd know," I impatiently popped off. He called my Mom over and she calmly said "Oh" as she rushed out the door. I was so confused as to what was happening. My brother again asked me if that was right as the nurses and doctor rushed in. Someone pulled me back over, threw off the sheet that was covering me, and there between my legs was Kindra! I began crying but knew that it was out of my control. Maybe this was the plan that was set for her. She was so bruised and so tiny. 1 lb 12 oz They rushed her down to NICU because she was not breathing. I distinctly remember hearing a nurse tell another that I had had the baby but that she had not made it. My Mom was awesome and was so calm and helped to comfort me. Trevor was freaking out but was trying to call his Dad to come up to give Kindra a blessing. My Dad was in Europe so he could not be there. The doctor advised us to give her a name...Kindra Ann Corbridge...and they also informed us that they had her breathing but needed to fly her up to Primary's. They let me see her before they took her and she was so, so, so fragile. They said that the first night would be the true test because her lungs were undeveloped and damaged. My heart hurt but again I told myself that it was all for a reason and that I needed to maintain my trust in the Lord. For the next 4 months she was in the hospital but continually improved, grew, and fought like the tough chick that she is :) until she was able to come home. Every time they were worried about something, she somehow was able to pull through it without any problems. She is my miracle child, that's for sure and I don't know what we'd do without her! We love you Kindra!

Remembering & Thinking...

It was bath time last night so I went in to turn on the "peach" colored old school tub to begin the nightly ritual. As I turned on the water and looked down to the tub...a memory flashed quickly through my mind. The memory of having my own bath time as a child in that very same tub came flooding back. I can tell you the exact toys we played with, the smell of my Grandfather's cologne, the smell of the bath towels, etc. etc.
Of course this is not the first time that these collision's have occurred and I am glad that they do. They give me a sense of determination to give to my children the same important memories that I have. It's like when I think of my Grandparent's home, it is a completely different place. Which it is...it is my home now and it is so different but I also enjoy the fact that they are one in the same?!? Does that make sense? It is why every time my Dad comes over he'll mess around and take care of things even when I don't ask him to or he'll pause for a moment, stare, and then comment on how wonderful things look and how well things have worked out! I will give my Mom the "here we go again" look and just smile and agree :) It allows him to hold on and to feel proud and I understand that...
It just got me thinking last night. Thinking again about the things that really matter and thinking again on the type of parent I want to be and know that I can and should be. I want my kids to remember the good but to really have the good!
I grabbed my camera which is always by my side and quietly went in to Kindra's room. I could hear her having a very deep conversation with herself and her horses. I just love to hear her imagination and the ideas that she can come up with. We, as parents, forget that, or at least I do, forget that once upon a time...we were our children with such deep imaginations and such great determination!
Notice the horses....
Notice the video case that she has turned into a tent...
Notice the horse that is waking up and coming out to play with the others! :)
Then there is my Carter who is intently watching his cooking shows...
He told me all about "pulsing" tonight which you do with a food processor?!? Who is he?!?
Once again, another silly moment night full of "monster truck" races. They went to the Monster Truck Show with Trevor and they loved it! Kindra's birthday cake now must have a purple monster truck and a horse with purple icing. Who is she?!?

My Newest Re-Addition to My Collection

I re-found this CD in my case the other day when I was trying to teach Kindra the ways of the music world. It is awesome and the composer's name is "E.S. Posthumus" and the album's title is "Unearthed". Anyway....check it out if you get bored and curious!?! :)