Entry #16 Back peddling

Dear Diary,

Do you remember how awkward and weird it feels to peddle backward on a bike? It's NOT normal. Your body is so used to doing one thing and then trying to mentally keep your brain telling your body to do what it doesn't want to do is complicated. Just writing that and reading it out loud sounded complicated.

That is going to be my post today. I am back peddling. So much has happened since we left for Christmas at Grandma's. To tell the whole story would take a week, and I'm trying to accomplish it in one night. Good luck to me I guess. Then, just try and get my Mom brain to remember every important detail my children experienced is just going to make me cry for the lack of memory.

Let's stick with the "important details". The trip began after the kids had a half day of school. They had hot chocolate and read the polar express. Hundreds of little children touching things and mouths and it was bound to happen that disease would spread. I had already been to the doctor for the cold that would never leave my body twice before we left on this trip. We stopped in El Paso, Texas and stayed at an Embassy Suites. The best hotel EVER. We got a great breakfast the next morning and we were on the road to Uncle Jake and Aunt Nicole's house.

 While Derek is gone I promised to go to the temple once a month while he is away. I was able to go in November when it opened back up. December I was sick and so busy every second that I couldn't go before we left. I knew it would be basically impossible to go while traveling so I made a great way to include the kids in my adventure. We decided to stop at as many temples that we could along the road on our journey. It was awesome!

The first temple we stopped at was the Gila Valley, Arizona temple. It was literally on the side of the road in the middle of nowhere as we were driving and was the perfect first temple.

We arrived at Uncle Jake's around dinner time. The kids played, we grabbed some cafe rio for dinner and then we went to bed, except poor Eden woke up and threw up in the middle of the night. The next morning she was still sick as could be.

We had plans to visit with Grandma Sapp and wanted a cousin get together but the pukes were getting in our way. We decided to head over anyway and do a road side visit and then head to Shannon's house so we would be on that side of town for the trip and to get to Mom's car and pack and just be ready.

Along the way we made sure to stop at the Mesa temple where Grandma and Grandpa Heaton were sealed in the temple. It was completely under construction and looked nothing like it did when they got married, but it was a special place for us and I'm glad we were able to stop.

We had a lovely short stop at Grandma and Grandad's. Kiddos stayed in the van so as not to spread our germs. It was so nice to see them even if it was brief. The kids were spoiled rotten and we were on the road to Shannon's when what to our surprise the 3rd temple on our trip was again on the same road we were traveling on. We made a brief stop at the Phoenix temple that was literally about 2 minutes from Shannon's house.

Poor Eden was sick all day Friday at Shannon's, but thankfully slept ok. Saturday morning we woke up and got on the road to head to Grandma's house. Along our journey poor Elara threw up in the car. We had several hours left to go on the trip.

We decided to stop on the way and visit Dad's grave in Moccasin. I'm so glad we took the time then so we didn't feel rushed to take it on the way home. We snagged a picture with the kids. It was so beautiful. The sun was almost down as we drove in and the mountains were just beautiful. It was a crisp, cold evening of perfection and felt right.

When we pulled into Aunt Shelly's house Kael started to feel sick. We chatted with Uncle Jer for a bit and decided we needed to get to Grandma's house and take care of our sickos.

Sure enough that night Kael was sick and the next morning Eden was again. It was so hard having round robin. We ended up skipping church and staying at Grandma's so we wouldn't expose anyone.

Then on Monday Christmas Eve we were finally feeling a bit better. We got some last minute shopping done and last minute preparations for Christmas. We were able to gather Shellianne's kids, Shannon's kids, and my kids and all go caroling at Grandma's neighborhood. Shannon and the girls played ukelele's and it was so cute! I'm so proud of those sweet kiddos. It was fun. Then we headed back to Grandma's for hot chocolate and a cousin gift exchange. They all had names drawn and had to think of an ornament that fit that cousin's personality. It went perfectly! I was so impressed with each cousin came up with. It was such a fun tradition and I feel like we should try to do it again another year. My kids had a great time learning about their cousins and putting some effort into a gift that would mean something for many years. And in return they received gifts that meant something to them.

Kael received a pokemon ball ornament, Eden a blue reindeer, Elara a baby doll, and Connor a train ornament. All were perfect for the kids.

Then when the cousins left we were able to do our tradition of putting all the presents under the tree. It was so fun. It was so late so we hurried and got ready for bed. Then Grandma and Mom got to watch a show by ourselves while the littles slept.

At 6 am Connor started to not feel so great. He woke up with a stomach ache... With everyone awake we decided to set up facetime for Derek and it turned out just perfect timing for him to watch. He was awake and not working, which I felt extremely grateful for. Shortly after opening the presents poor Connor got really sick and the throw ups started...

I'm just glad we made it through Santa Clause presents first. Sure enough Santa Clause made it to Grandma's house and found our family. That man seems to know our Dad's crazy work life and how to best take care of our familly.

We had a wonderful relaxing day. Grandma took the 3 big kids who were finally feeling well to Aunt Shelly's house and I stayed home with sick Connor and we both slept and relaxed, which to be honest was exactly what I needed for a Christmas present.

The next day was the epic cousin kickball get together. We had such a blast meeting up with almost ALL of our cousins. We were only short about 3 cousins total. Grandma stayed home with sick Connor who thankfully hadn't thrown up that morning. We decided to meet at Arctic Circle for lunch and had Grandma bring Connor. He got a little excited to eat and ate more than he should have along with an ice cream cone. As we walked out he ran outside to the front door and threw up all over me and him and the ground.... Poor dude was still not feeling great...

It was pretty dramatic and I have the best family. My Mom and Shannon helped cleaned up and back to Grandma's we went for a nap and to hang tight for a while.

On the 27th Shannon and I took the kids swimming at Grandma's pool and then showered and headed to Aunt Shell's for dinner. Eden tried out her new mermaid fin and tail. And Kael tried out his new swim flippers. Indoor pools are the best. And Shannon and I enjoyed soaking in the hot tub.

Friday the 28th we had fun prepping to go skiing. That was one of Eden's gifts and one for myself. We went night skiing at Brian Head and it was so much fun. It was absolutely freezing. -1 F to be precise and I am so proud of Eden! She got better snow gloves and she didn't complain about the cold and she went down the mountain about 6 times! We went with Josh, Emily, Shannon, Rebekah, and Shell and it was a super fun group and after we stopped at Denny's for some food. It was a late night, but I'm so glad I had that opportunity to go with my sweet Eden. I'll treasure that memory forever. She had so much fun and I loved being able to do something special with her!


Saturday the 29th I visited with my friend Ashley Higbee from high school. I wish we had more time for our kids to play and catch up. She is one of my favorite people in the world and she means so much to me. After our visit we got on the road to drive to Salt Lake City to visit our Grammy! Along our journey we stopped at our 4th temple the Cedar City, temple. I had never seen it yet, so it was a treat for me. And the kids hadn't played in snow yet and there was snow on the ground. Poor Connor stomped through it and reached down with bare hands to grab it so excited and about 5 seconds later held his hands in the air and cried ahhhhhhh.

We got our picture and grabbed some food and got on the road. It was great having time to visit with Kelly and Mark. The next morning Sunday the 30th we went and visited with Monica and Ryan Fowler and their kiddos. My kids LOVE their cousins and it was so fun being able to spend time with them. That saying the church used to always say, "It's about time" is so true and I'm glad we put forth the effort. We were able to stay the morning and go to a duck pond to feed ducks and play in the snow. The kids had a blast. Then, we went and visit the Bartholomew family from when we were in med school. And then on to the Bell family. I can't believe how lucky we are to have so many great friends that we are able to keep in touch with.

On Monday the 31st the girls got to hatch their hatchimal babies. It was so fun and cute. We then went to the zoo with Grammy. Along the way we stopped at our 5th temple the Oquirrh Mountain temple. The zoo was just perfect. It was basically empty because it was so cold, but there were plenty of animals to be had. On the way home we stopped at the 6th temple the Salt Lake City temple. It was fun to take the kids around Salt Lake where we lived for 4 years and sweet Connor has never been. It was our home. It was familiar, but for our children, they do not remember. We totally knew they wouldn't remember, but it was so fun being able to show them what I did with them when they were babies.

We packed up the morning of the 1st and headed back to St. George. I needed to get laundry and all the Christmas packed up. On the 2nd Grandma took the kids and I literally slept all day. It was glorious. I kept thinking I should get up and do something, but then I remembered how I would be driving with the kids the very next morning and just didn't want to adult. I was still sick with a cough/cold the entire trip. Thankfully I got up and worked on the process of loading and packing everything up. That evening Grandma took us to this awesome playground. It had a volcano and dinosaurs. It was so great. Then, we drove to our 7th temple. The St. George temple. My favorite temple ever. It was wonderful to take a picture of my kids where I stood moments after getting married to my best friend. Show them where Kael and Eden were born across the street. I have always loved the St. George temple. It always felt special to me. Its one of the oldest standing temples. It was completed before the Salt Lake temple. It's where Derek and I both got our endowments. It was just special taking my kids there.

After going to the temple Grandma then took us to dinner at chuck a rama. It was so awesome. They had apple beer. And the kids loved picking out their food and as much as they wanted and then of course having ice cream after. It was the perfect way to end our trip. Little did we know how much we needed that Grandma time. We miss her so much already. I'm so grateful for my Mom.

This wimpy girl is crying. I am a wimp. I couldn't have made it this far without my Mom. She took care of me and my kids especially while I was sick that entire time I was with her. And then not only did she take care of me, but I got her sick with a cold too, and helped take care of me and my sick kids along the way. We had so many times where we laughed and cried together and it was nice to not feel lonely.

It's stupid, but part of me is grateful for this stupid deployment because some miniscule part of me can relate to how my Mom and Juli must feel with their best friends on the other side of the veil. Except it's awful because Derek gets to come home to me in a few more months and they have to wait until the next life to see their best friend. And it breaks my heart. I just hope someday I can be half as awesome as these ladies are.

Anyway, on January 3rd we said our goodbyes and got on the road. It was really hard. Can't lie. Remember this is a WIMPY blog... I do have the best kids in the world "most days" and they did pretty amazing for car pooling companions. We made it to Albuqurque, New Mexico that night and pulled into the temple there for temple number 8. We snapped some photos and went on to the hotel. It was colder than I imagined it would be in Albuquerque and there was snow on the ground. We got up fairly early the next morning and got on the road for an 11 hour drive non stop. Around lunch time we made it to Lubbock, Tx for temple number 9. That's right folks we took a picture in front of 9 temples in 4 different states on this trip!
On the car ride home I'm pretty for certain I developed my first ever sinus infection because my head felt like it was going to explode. We made it home, unloaded some stuff and then just went to bed. It was late and I was exhausted.

Needless to say we stayed home and chilled until school started on Tuesday. Like 3 days of just recover. I'm so glad I planned it the way I did. I needed that time to just lay and do nothing....

I went to the doctor that Tuesday got some more medicine. And life went on. The kids went back to school and we are finally getting into a routine. There is a LOT of other stuff going on, but that can be for another story.

For now. I feel like I can finally stop back peddling and just start moving forward again. We are basically at Derek's half way ish point. I'll take it. Because now or in a week in this time frame it officially means we are looking at the downhill of this deployment instead of trudging up a steep hill. I know it won't be smooth sailing, but it'll be an awesome adventure to talk about someday.
If we survive. I am a wimp remember.

Love,
Someone who doesn't really ride bikes anymore