The Bishop's

RD is the slacker...not me.

2010-02-14T21:29:00.001-08:00

So I've been gently trying to persuade RD to guest blog again, but he is refusing. He is much more wittier than myself but I promised several weeks ago I'd post some pictures so here goes. Here are a few of our trip to Disneyland in late September.

FYI- I did have my 2nd heart surgery on the 9th and I am doing well. The surgeon said he had never seen anything like the tunnel between my heart wall and the closure device that was put in my heart June 09 to close the ASD defect I have. He put a vascular plug in the tunnel and now it should be completely closed. Yeah for technology, no open heart surgeries! Thanks for all of the prayers and acts of service. We are so blessed.

Emery's favorite part of Disneyland...buying the $8 Minnie balloon. We should ALL buy stock in Disney. I wonder what the profit margin is on that?

Us at Laguna Beach. I'd love to live there.

So cute, 2 little cousins holding hands.

Haden found a friend from our neighborhood...what a small world (ha,ha,ha...)

Emery was always "hummy" for something...

Emery refused to get out of the stroller when meeting the characters.

My personal favorite day, was spent at the beach. It was so relaxing...

Haden did not care for the salt water taste in his mouth.

Emery didn't care for the water but spent hours building with the san.

We took Duane to a Dodger's game for his bday, it was SWEET!

That's why I married him...so SEXY!

Oh #^i*!!!

Run away, run away.

We are lame...

2010-01-16T22:10:00.000-08:00

I am preparing a whole bunch of pics from the last little while for RD to post tomorrow. We are sorry we are so lame at the blogging stuff. RD promises to get better. BTW-we saw AVATAR tonight and I thought the special effects were amazing but the acting and general script was cheesier that the pizza I ate during the movie. BTW#2-I'm having a 2nd heart surgery in February.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

2009-12-22T07:08:00.001-08:00

RD will soon post a 2009 year in review, but in the meantime we wanted to wish all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Disneyland...

2009-09-17T23:37:00.000-07:00

Just thought I'd share something I observed today. So we took the kids to Disneyland and as I look back on the day I think that the happiest part of Emery's day was using the little vacuum in our condo...she is so quirky! Here is a picture of her I submitted to a Smores photo contest.

From the mouth's of babes...

2009-08-16T22:07:00.000-07:00

Even though you might think this is a very heartfelt seminary like devotional blog posting based on the title, it really isn't. Also, if you can't tell, Amanda's guest blogger is back because, well I don't really know why, but I'm here again. Anyway I was going through the kids' school work for the week and I happened upon this little gem. I started laughing out loud and Blakely wanted to know why and so I told her sometimes the truth just makes you laugh. Kind of like when I realized that my ears really do stick out, you just have to accept it and laugh. Anyway, the pure honesty of this paper must be shared with the world, so I have posted it here. Please enjoy the work and I will add a couple of disclaimers after.

First of all, why I'm an eagle...I don't know other than I'm bald, so it makes sense. I also think that I'm watching over them because it's hilarious to sit on the outside and watch. Now, Amanda is curious, apparently as curious and playful as a monkey....I will attest to that. I guess her arms are spread out showing she has no weapons, she surrenders, she just doesn't know what else to do or say. Emery is a chipmunk, chipmunk cheeks (check), sneaky (check), possibly carrying some unknown virus due to her affinity for dirt and grime (yet to be determined). Haden, well he needs no explanation, he definitely pesters Blakely, and he kind of laughs like Woody Woodpecker when he gets hyper. Blakely, she is kind and gentle, but I think we need to let the opposition (Haden) create a totem and see if he agrees. But it's tough to argue with a cat, especially since they can turn in a heart beat and scratch the crap out of you. Finally, Blakely must have had a free draft spot so she inserted one of her favorite cousins Machayla. Machayla loves penguins and while I have never seen her waddle I'm sure it's very curious.

Well I hope that you enjoyed this piece of art as much as I did. I do look forward to more, especially the rebuttals from Blakely's siblings.

Don't die of shock...

2009-07-05T21:48:00.000-07:00

Amanda has hallucinated and decided that it would be a good time to have a guest "blogger", even more shocking she wanted it to be me, her portly, vociferous husband. It must be a side effect from her surgery, or maybe something that she learned when she looked death in the face. Well whatever it is, I will do as I am told because I don't want to get her worked up and after 11 years I know better than to disobey a command. So without further ado, here are my comments and musings about the latest photos that Amanda has decided to post.

Well after a couple hours of the kids interrupting our relaxing Fourth of July weekend we finally gave in and decided that we needed to find something to entertain them. After much thought we couldn't think of anything more fun on a warm summers day than a colorful piece of plastic combined with our hose. Amanda probably thinks that I enjoy the hydraulic properties of the exercise, but actually it's therapeutic to see the kids wipeout from time to time (as long as there aren't tears). In this picture Blakely executes a picture perfect knee slide while Haden fulfills his duty of pestering her in all aspects of her life and Emery shows us why big really is beautiful.

This truly is an extraordinary photo that you would normally only see in National Geographic. Here an endangered land bound Beluga Whale directs the X-Men flag football team in the execution of their next play. It's amazing that the children understand all of those squeaks, but it's no surprise that they weren't undefeated. You try playing for a whale.

Blakely did a tremendous job on her "Utah County" term project. She was assigned the illustrious county of Duchesne and after much hard work, sweat, tears, and procrastination she had a master piece. It's good to know that her parents perfection of the art of procrastination will live on.

Here is a photo of Haden with one of his all time best buddies, Jake. Jake came up with his family from Las Vegas and we had a great time (as always) visiting with them. If you wonder where Jake gets those good looks please notice his father Matt, the pater familia sunning himself just to the right.

Here Blakely enjoys a satisfying moment with one of her all time best buddies, Tori (Jake's sister). They are both smiling so either Jake and Haden have both suffered in some way, or judging by Blakely's far off gaze it's not far off in her mind.

Blakely and Tori again, big smiles, focused straight ahead, mission accomplished.

You might be wondering why Emery is looking out the window...is her mom or dad coming home? Is the ice cream truck in the neighborhood? Well no, it's one of her favorite times of the week, the garbage truck is here to take the trash. I love the simple pleasures of little kids.

Kayden and Haden, dynamic duo from this years Pee Wee Marlins and future partners in crime. Let's just hope I'm not speaking literally.

Blakely's piano recital was great as always, but she played the best that she ever has. It seems the piano gods smiled upon her that day.

As I have already said, big is beautiful especially when you're talking about Emery's cheeks. She has more than her daddy wrapped around her little finger, but we all know she loves me best.

Amanda is truly a gifted photographer, especially when you look at this photo and know what a turd Haden was being that morning. He is a good looking kid, even with the West Virginia Hillbilly smile. He gets his looks from his mom.

Well it looks like my gig is up. I did enjoy rambling on to the anonymous masses that may or may not read this. Please don't hold it against Amanda that I took over this week, it must be the drugs...dang Plavix.

Okay, I suppose I should have posted sooner...

2009-06-28T16:08:00.000-07:00

Alright, so it has been FOREVER since I posted anything. I am always to busy reading about everyone else's life to put anything about my own. Lots has happened since I last posted. Enjoy some of the pictures, even though now they are 6 months old.

Here is an update on what is going on in our lives:

RD is enjoying working for Parson's Brinckerhoff on the UTA trax projects. He has taken up gardening and has been coaching Haden's flag football team. Amanda (me), I have been busy with photography, and being a Mom. I did run the SLC 1/2 marathon in April and about a week after became pretty sick. I thought I was prego so I went to the Doctor's and to make a long story short 1'm now 5 days post-op from heart surgery. I had a 1/2 inch hole in my heart that is now plugged up by a little titanium device. Blakely has been playing soccer with a team named the FLAMING CHEETOS, and is really becoming a good pianist. It is hard to believe that she is just finishing up 4th grade. Haden got his red/black belt combo in Hapkido, and took a break from that to play his first year of little league baseball, and then flag football. He excelled at both, and is going back to Hapkido this week.
Emery played soccer this spring on a 3-4 year old team. I was the lucky coach who got to run all of the field shouting, "run this way, kick it this way!"

All in all we are doing pretty well. Sometime life hands us experiences we never thought we would have, but they remind us to look around and be grateful for everything we have been given!

We lost our dear, sweet Granny in May. My family has had the privilege of knowing her and spending a lot of time with her. She was an amazing women and has left a legacy of love.

She was such a fun lady with a great sense of humor and just a pleasure to be around.

We never went away empty handed anytime we saw Granny. It did not matter if you just stop by to say "Hi," or if she came to church with you, she had something for you. She was always so generous and gracious.

I am so grateful my children had the opportunity to spend time with her. We miss you so much GRANNY! We will always remember our time with you and look forward to seeing you again.

Blakely on the field with the flaming cheetos.

Emery walking her favorite bunny.

Haden at the Dinosaur Museum

Emery's #3 Bday

Ouch!

Blakely's #10 bday (each candle represents 5 years, I am a lame MOM!)

The toothless grin!

Emery sledding & the rest our Christmas pics!

Typical Emery- we call her "pig pen" because she is one messy chick.

I need help with something...

2009-03-11T22:32:00.000-07:00

I need someone who would has some crocheting experience to take on some projects for me - in trade for some photography sessions....any takers????

A new website for Bishop Images

2009-01-11T17:45:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to let you know that Amanda has a new website (same address just new design). Check it out

www.bishopimages.com

It is official...

2009-01-08T21:50:00.000-08:00

Nobody get excited (I am not announcing I am pregnant or anything). I am just sad to say that I attempted to run 3 miles today after taking 6 weeks off from running, and although I did complete the mileage I did not run the whole thing. I can't believe how fast you lose that "great" running feeling. I'm sort of starting over and I am going to run the SLC 1/2 marathon in April so if anyone wants to join me let me know!!

Holiday & other photos coming soon...

As of late...

2008-11-30T22:06:00.000-08:00

Just a little of our life lately

Happy #7 Haden.

Flag Football stretches.

So you think you can dance in CONCERT.

Red belt awarded. Yes, he can do the splits.

What a girl on the uneven bars!

Once again I must apologize to the world of blogging readers that may wander to this page. I am a complete slacker but hope to do better on updating at story telling. I have many fun stories and experiences to share but very little time. I may also go private (still debating).

Random Acts of Kindness/TAG

2008-10-26T20:13:00.000-07:00

I have 2 friends who left me a little something with a note today. Thanks so much for thinking of me, I have been feeling pretty down lately and I really appreciate your kindness. I hope all of us can take a little time out of our very busy schedules to do a little something for someone else, sometimes just a smile in the grocery store can make all of the difference.

On another note, I was Blog tagged by a another friend with a CRAZY 8 theme. Here goes...

8 Favorite TV Shows (do I really ever watch these...)

1. LOST (by far my favorite)
2. The Office
3. Law & Order
4. Anything HGTV
5. Frasier
6. Seinfield
7. ER
8. Anything on Court TV

Things I did yesterday

1. Primary program practice
2. Attended a baptism
3. Attended a fun trunk or treat ward activity
4. Halloween party at my Mom's with my family
5. Swept & mopped floors
6. Edited pictures
7. Made brownies
8. Something with RD late at night (not what you think)

Favorite Restaurants

1. Al Forno's
2. Pizza Nova (in San Diego)
3. Market Street Grill
4. Niel's Halibut
5. Goodwood
6. Dragon Diner
7. Blue Iguana
8. Everywhere we ate in Puerto Vallarta (amazing food!)

Things on my wish list

1. Peace on Earth
2. Cures to any illness
3. More strength to endure
4. More patience
5. To be debt free
6. To see my kids grow & live happily
7. Go somewhere tropical often
8. More time & knowledge to complete everything

Things I love about FALL:

1. Football
2. Kids go back to school
3. Beautiful colors
4. Pumpkins
5. Thanksgiving
6. Sweat shirts & sweaters
7. Cooler weather
8. Pumpkin deserts (but not pie)

PEOPLE I TAG

1. Kim
2. Lyndee
3. Mindy
4. Sara
5. Andra or Barbara (get with the program & make a blog!)
6. Andrea
7. Kara
8. Jayme

Check it off the list...I DID IT!

2008-10-05T20:28:00.000-07:00

I am just going to gloat about this for a day or two because I was not sure I was ever going to accomplish this goal of mine or not but........ I did it, I did it, I did it! Saturday morning I ran the St. George marathon. My goal was to first, finish and second, try to do it under 5 hours. It poured rain, and wind blew the entire time but I ran the whole thing (I only stopped once for a quick potty break), my finish time was 4 hours 26 minutes. Not too shabby for my first one but nowhere near some of the amazing runners ahead of me. The top finisher ran it in 2 hours 22 minutes (unbelievable, especially since he's not Kenyan).

My Mom and Dad were there to cheer me on along with my awesome husband and my friend Kim. Thanks guys it was so much fun to share that experience with you and RD I know you sacrificed a lot for me to train. I can not even explain what a mental challenge it is to run that distance if you have done it before I am sure you know. I thought I would "hit a wall" at some point but I really did not. I do remember seeing the 24 mile marker and thinking "are you kidding me..." sometimes 2 more miles feels like asking your body for 10. I think the worse part of the whole thing was sitting in the ice bath for 20 minutes afterwards. I met a lot of great people along the route and I am just plain pleased to be a finisher. Don't get me wrong...I have been popping the Ibuprofren since yesterday and I am sure it will be a day or two until I can walk normal.

Here are some of my strange random thoughts and things I think about that keep me going during the marathon & training:

I'd like to have a sign on my back that says "Yes these are love handles but they just passed you!"(ha,ha,ha) or I think about how a dear friend found out I was training for a marathon and said "You just do not look like the running type." My body structure is not Olympic caliber material but I am the little engine that could.

(this one is a little weird but it works for me) Sometimes when I really feel like stopping I think about the poor Jewish people that were in concentration camps and how the Nazi's made them work or they would die. So basically I pretend I am in the camp and being chased...strange I know but it is a good motivator.

Of course I think about RD and other awesome people I have met that live with Multiple Sclerosis everyday, and how they have to fight to move, fight pain and fatigue constantly.

READY OR NOT...26.2

2008-09-30T11:13:00.000-07:00

Yes, I know I have been a major BLOG slacker but it is fall now and I hope to try to post things about our family weekly. Between training for the marathon (this weekend, oct 4th), photo sessions, weddings, church duties, and watching 2 extra kids I just plain have no time.

I AM RUNNING the ST. George marathon this weekend. I need inspiring words of encouragement, I am scared to death. I love to run but I am not sure if FULL marathon's (26.2 miles) are for me. Say a little prayer for me around noon on Saturday...

Poor Neglected blog

2008-07-19T22:17:00.000-07:00

It is summer and I already spend way to many hours sitting in font of the computer (working on my secretary hips!) to stay caught up with blogging. Here are some of the fun things we've been doing this summer. I've been reading everyone else's blogs and it looks like fun stuff. Happy Summer!

Yes, that is a one eye dog.

Grandma Bette & Granny

Kid bowling on the 4th

Lagoon

The West Jordan stampede

Thanks...

2008-06-24T13:36:00.000-07:00

A little venting for myself (a hard day):

Thank you to the large dump truck that kick up a multitude of rocks that ruined my windshield while driving to work.

Thank you to the Highway Patrol officer gave me a ticket for driving 65 miles per hour in a 60 mile per hour lane on the way home from work. I was not even in the fast lane, but yes I was five miles per hour over!

Thanks to my cat who decided to throw-up hairballs all over my hall way. Yuck!

If I drank alcohol today would be a day I'd have a nice cold one to sooth the nerves. Onward and Upward I always say...life is to short to sweat the small stuff!

A little of life for us...

2008-06-15T22:25:00.001-07:00

Some of these are a little old but I do not download my little point and shoot camera everyday. We have a lot of fun stuff going on with the end of school and beginning of summer. I will post more stories and pics later.

RD made me post this...he just loved my crazy corn row hair from Puerto Vallarta. It took over and hour to braid and about 30 minutes to unbraid, and it was just a little frizzy...

The kids are my Grandpa's grave on Memorial Day

Emery with an interesting snack: ICECREAM & EGG ROLL????

Kindergarten Day @ the Zoo, we had a good time!

Is it possible to have raging hormones in kindergarten?

2008-06-12T22:23:00.000-07:00

So at the Bishop house we have been trying to not watch as much TV and limit electronic time. We have been doing a lot of art projects. Blakely is obsessed with anything to do with cats right now and pretty much any art work has a cat incorporated into it. Haden...well he is somewhat of a "Don Juan." His artwork seems to involve dragons, swords but almost always a fair maiden. The flavor this week on his girlfriend list is Jenna. I am telling you "lock up your girls!"

I did it...I actually signed up!

2008-06-10T22:30:00.000-07:00

I signed up for the St. George marathon. I had a goal to run a marathon this year and even if I have to walk the whole thing-I will finish! Wish me luck with the training during the hot summer...if they ever get here!

It is official...I AM AN IDIOT!

2008-06-03T06:37:00.000-07:00

Yes, yes I am an idiot. In my rush to get the laundry done yesterday I was loading in a load of colors due to the fact that Emery had just had a little accident (she is potty training) that rendered the shorts I was wearing a bit wet. So I went ahead and loaded them in with the colors. Later when RD was putting them in the dryer he found my one month old cell phone in my shorts pocket. It did not survive the colored bleach nor the spin cycle...I AM AN IDIOT!

My prayer was answered... (a long post,lots of pics)

2008-05-31T22:20:00.000-07:00

So many know that I am a professional photographer. Whenever I take professional pictures I download them, then immediately burn and archive the original files. Then after I edit I burn and archive the edited files. I am very careful with digital negatives. However when it comes to my own family pictures in the past I have been pretty good at backing up my images and stuff...EXCEPT for this time. The other day I came in and found my little Emery clicking around like crazy on my computer. I did not think much of it until later that night I took a look at my family hard drive (I have 2 one for PRO stuff and one for family) and noticed that instead of only having 15 gigs left I had a whopping 40 gigs left. I got to thinking "what the heck" so I started to look around at our files. This was about at 10:00 at night, by 10:30 I was in tears all of my family pictures, my address book, my email data, and a bunch of other stuff (25 gigs worth) had been deleted somehow by my little stinker. We have now put a lock on the computer room door so little fingers can not go crazy. Well to make a very long story short somewhat short, I was in tears as I went through each one of my backup discs and realized that ALL of my family pictures from my point and shoot camera had been deleted with no way to retrieve them. I WAS AN IDIOT AND NEVER BURNED A BACKUP CD OF THE FILES. These included 2 years worth of Christmas's, Emery's first bday & 2nd bdays, Blakely's baptism, our vacation to Sea World, Haden's first day of kindergarten and just lots of memories. I could not sleep by the time I went through all of the discs (with no luck) it was 1:00 in the morning. I sat at my desk and bowed my head and said a little prayer. I know it is cheesy to ask a very busy Heavenly Father who has to help people with real problems out, but I asked anyways for some way to help me recover these pictures. I just kept thinking about all of those fun times I'd never get to remember except for in my mind. Right before I was about to turn the computer off, I decided to do a little search on google. I typed in "Recovering deleted files from the trash on a MAC." From that search I was able to find a trial version of this software called file salvage that I ran on the computer all night. When I woke up I had 15,000 JPEG files that I could retrieve from the hard drive. Of course I had to buy the full version of the software but I did for $79 and was able to retrieve the images. I felt like I had been given a little miracle, here are some of the images I got back:

Emery's first Halloween

My Mom and the Big Chief

A high school jock and his pregnant cheerleader.

Good friends at a special time.

Cousins with a close bday.

Emery's first bday cake.
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Bean's bapstim

Easter Day
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Haden singing "a Holly Jolly day with Mary..."

first belt award

Blakely at Seaworld

Emery loved her stuffed animal

Bishop's & Cecil's feeding the dolphins.

My husband.

Self portrait of Amanda

Bishop monkeys

Haden with his Okapi.

RD being a BIG pervert...imagine that.

A day at the beach

Excited little one in the sand.

The night the last Harry Potter was released (see Mad Eye & Harry?

finding a lady bug

Riding by himself

Just fun at the Gateway

Emery's preview of 2 year old pouting

Interpretive dancing by Haden

Another special day for great friends.

First day of Kindergarten

At the beach with cousins

Halloween

Haden's bday

Reflections

Emery dancing to Frosty the Snowman

Christmas

Bean's 9th bday

Emery's 2nd bday.

Easter morning.

Time passes by... (a little venting)

2008-05-26T22:12:00.000-07:00

I just can not believe how time passes by. I really think the clock is getting faster or maybe it is all of the electronic devices and to do list I use that make me feel like I never have enough time to complete everything I'd like to do. Don't you ever wish you have 2 or 3 duplicates of yourself (a better looking version of course with a boob job) that could get all of the things done you have not finished (running the marathon, home projects, church service, work responsibilities, working on education, actually getting a good night sleep, attending all the kids activities, and taking care of their needs). RD and I have had major painting plans for our home for over a year and we have not even bought the paint yet. I have lived in my home for 3 years and have not put any window treatments in our main area. Sometimes between all of the craziness I start to feel a bit down on myself, then I take it out on my hubby & kids. Then what do I do...

I read the Ensign, the scriptures or sometime other people's blogs to remember what life is really about. It is not what I did or did not get finished each day. For that matter it is not really about me,me, me. It is about the time spent with my kid who are growing up (and I am missing some it making to do list's) , my awesome neighbors, my parents & extended family, or my best friend RD. I guess we can all accomplish great things if we on swimming, swimming, swimming...

P.S. Who is really going to start running with me? I need a partner seriously

Running-starting this Tuesday

2008-05-09T11:54:00.001-07:00

Alright girls...we will start bright & early this Tuesday at 6:00 a.m. We will meet at the stop sign on Fall Oak by my house. Do not worry if you need to walk for a while during the run, it takes a few weeks to feel good when you run (build a base) but I promise with constant effort it comes. I did not love to run at first and starting again is hard. It helps me so much with stress, I can't believe it. See you then---Happy Mother's day!

Early morning running-ANYONE?

2008-05-07T08:25:00.000-07:00

I am having a hard time finding time to squeeze in running into my schedule and I need some partners. My regular partner is prego (Stacey-what an excuse). I am out of "running" shape because I have taken some time off for an injury, so I am starting at beginning of a training program again. Does anyone want to meet Tuesday and Thursdays at 6:00 a.m. and run for a bit? (we will start with 2-3 miles, then slowly make our way to 5). Let me know...

A much needed vacation-Puerto Vallarta

2008-04-30T09:53:00.000-07:00

RD and I decided to spoil ourselves this year for our 10 year anniversary. We spent a week in beautiful Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. It was so relaxing and nice. I have never had such good food. No cooking, no cleaning, no kids, no work, naps whenever, the beach, and spending time with my best friend (my husband). It could not have been better. We met our friends Matt & Kim (from Las Vegas) who are also celebrating their 10 year anniversary and shared a condo with them. We got them addicted to watching The Office, and now they got us hooked on LOST. Here are just a few of some great memories!

Hunter Brittney Watkins

2008-04-06T19:02:00.000-07:00

Friday, RD & I had the opportunity to attend the funeral of some very good friends 7 year old daughter. She was the 5th of 6 beautiful girls. What an uplifting experience it was to be at the funeral. Of course tears of sadness were shed but the message was clear...Families are a forever unit. She passed away peacefully after years of battling a degenerative brain disease call Battens Disease. Here is a poem about this little girl I thought was so sweet:

"WHAT I LIKE BEST"

My name is Hunter, and I like best,

Mommy and Daddy and all the rest.

Anna, and Lacey are so much fun,

Kiersten and Whitney who like to run.

There's one little girl who picks me up,

That's Sadee Kat - and- My big Pup!

My pup is Hershey, he's chocolate brown.

He chases Grandpa round and round.

I call him "Herdy," 'tis the best I can do.

My name is "Hunner", who are you?

Another I like is Scooby-Doo

I really like him: I call him "Doo-Doo".

Daphne's my doll held together with glue,

Her fingers and toes I like to chew.

She is my friend and Scooby too,

Watching their video, I like to do.

Another doll I like to squeeze,

Tiger baby, cuddle her please.

I drag her around all the day long.

She's very tough and very strong.

I like to splash and swim all around.

Water is fun, so I have found.

Liho the dolphin spins round and round.

He jumps out of the water; he's just a big clown.

I like to cuddle in Grandma's lap,

Although I really don't like to nap.

She loves me, and hugs me with all of her might.

Sometimes I put up a pretty good fight.

As I lay her saying good-byes,

I feel moisture from your eyes.

I like your hugs, you on your knees.

Meet me in heaven, with Jesus please!

For Hunter, From Grandpa Gomm

Jake & Trichelle have been amazing parents to this sweet little girl and we are lucky to have been able to share a part of their experience.

April Fools'-a good one on RD!

2008-04-01T22:09:00.000-07:00

So today is April 1st (April Fool's day). My Mom is the queen of April fool's day jokes so she reminded me to pull one on RD. Here is what I did. I called him and work and said I had just received a call from a man who said he needed to speak with him urgently. I told RD it was a guy from his 2nd job with Primerica, and I told him he sounded snooty and important. RD asked me his name and I gave it to him...Mr. Lyon. Then I gave him the phone number (which happened to be the phone # for Hogle Zoo.) You figure it out!

He ended up calling the Zoo and asked for Mr. Lyon...funny! He thought it was so funny he pulled the same joke on a few other guys from his work. Thanks MOM, you made me giggle a lot today!

Happy Birthday Peanut!

2008-03-23T22:17:00.000-07:00

Happy #2 to my beautiful little girl. You are the sweetest little beast in the world. I can not believe it has been 2 years since you have came into our lives. Two years full of joy but 2 of the most trying years I have yet experienced. Forgive me for all of the details & personal stuff...

I will never forget the feelings of excitement and wonder after I found out I was expecting another baby. I had previously lost a baby at 20 weeks and was worried but thrilled to possibly bring another spirit into this world. I was about 3 months along when your Dad was diagnosed with Multiple Sclerosis. Life changed really fast in a short number of days & weeks. We were so looking forward to your ultra sound to break the cycle of hospital visits/tests/drugs and all of that fun stuff. I will never forget the look on the ultra sound technicians face shortly after we started the ultra sound. Of course I started panicking and grilled her with questions about why she was spending so much time & what was going on...she quickly went to get the physician to talk to us. The physician came in to take a peak and started to explain what it was he saw in the ultra sound images. He started talking about cysts in the brain, chromosomal abnormalities, and trisomy 18. I had no idea what he was talking about so I asked. He explained that most of these diagnosis are "not compatible with life..." the tears started rolling and he tried to comfort me. He did a very thorough exam and said that things looked pretty good other than the cysts on her brain. He recommended that I have an immediate amneocentesis although it carried a moderate risk of miscarriage this early in a pregnancy. He explained that I only had a few weeks left to legally abort if the amneo confirmed the diagnosis that my baby would not live or even make it much further into the pregnancy. I asked him what our other options were because I had no plans of aborting this baby even if she would pass away. He said we could wait for 6 weeks for another ultra sound. We opted to wait...that was the longest 6 weeks of my life. RD was so sick and was not able to really function much, I started doing a lot of heartbreaking research on trisomy 18, I investigated funeral homes, and did a lot of praying. I always felt peaceful though. I'd sit in the bath tub at night watching her move inside of me just knowing that life is a precious gift whether she lived outside of my womb or not... she was alive. After the six long weeks, we went back and found out that we were one of the luckier families whose child had the cysts but the other red-flags seemed to be missing, and after several ultra sounds & other tests they confirmed that she should be born without complications, and she was...all 8lbs. 9ozs. My heart goes out to anyone who has to cope with an ill child, or the loss of a child!

Things I love about her:

Her big beautiful sparkling brown eyes, her thick curly hair. Her sense of humor and her hearty laugh. Her love of food (by far the biggest muncher in our home). Her love of cars, balls, and wrestling with her brother. The sweet way she talks to her baby doll, the way she chases the cat around, her Emerish language, and her feisty attitude. We just love you Emery!

Pure frusteration!

2008-03-20T20:45:00.000-07:00

For those of you who know or care. I made a decision today...

I am not going to be able to run the marathon I have been training for on April 19th. I am soooo bummed about it. It is still a month a way but I have a nagging hip injury that is really making this critical training stage impossible. I was suppose to run 20 miles last Saturday but only made it 11 because of the painful throbbing from my hip. I have ran 2 long runs of 16 miles without a problem but I do not think I can run 26.2 in a month when I can barely walk around sometimes. I have and IT band injury. I still plan on running the 1/2 marathon on the 19th but I will have to give my muscle sometime to recover & repair before I attempt the full...how sad! I have always wanted to run a marathon & really enjoy running so I know it won't be long before I can check that off of one of my life goals. Thanks for reading my babbling thoughts & pity party for myself.

A week's worth of fun

2008-03-13T22:45:00.000-07:00

Just a cute snapshot of my THREE favorite people!

Some cute girls having a good time at the bowling alley.

Blakely is such a social girl...she told me this was the best day of her life. I am glad that once a year she has the best day of her life. I love this age, the girls are so funny!

I could not believe how many of the girls were pretty good bowlers. 113 was the highest score...not bad for an 8 year old!

Her first coolaid experience.

A little explanation about these. Emery has decided that she is picking out her own clothing and dressing herself lately. I had just dried her off from a bath when she decided these were the pants she had to wear. I watched as she worked so hard to put them on. I tried to put on a diaper but she would have nothing to do with it so I let her roam around a bit with her pants on backwards.
She is a big helper and likes to rolls the rugs even when they don't need it. I guess she figured she had on her working pants and it was time to get plumbing.
This one kills me...just strolling down the hall, pants on backwards, no shirt...no cares in the world.
Here is Haden on crazy hair day...he wanted as many pony tails as possible with his hair.

RD and my (mostly) sweet little cowgirl.

A prayer for my cousins 5 year old!

2008-03-10T13:31:00.000-07:00

Last week one of my cousin's little girls was diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. Her name is Sadie Huish and she is so sweet. Here is her blog if you want to read about her:

www.Sadiehuish.blogspot.com

Remeber to hugs your little ones & enjoy everyday you have!

Happy Birthday BEAN!

2008-03-09T21:48:00.000-07:00

I can not believe it has been 9 years since the birth of my first child. She is quite the girl! I know she was meant to come when she did because she was a complete surprise. We had only been married a few months and thought we were in the "safe" baby free zone for a while but we were surprised to find out that birth control only works 99% of the time. We would not trade her for anything though! She was a very funny little girl. She has tons of unique quirks that make her who she is.

THINGS SHE LOVES: Post it notes, calendars, organized parties & party planning, organizing puppet shows...organizing anything! Elmo, Pink Scooby-doo, back packs, Little Pet Shops, Barbies, Disney Princess (especially Auro from sleeping beauty), Nutcrackers, fairies, American Girl dolls, Hannah Montana, High School Musical, gymnastics, and playing with friends.

THINGS WE LOVE ABOUT HER: her sassy spunky attitude, how passionate she is about so many things, her sweet handmade cards, her artwork, and so much more...

WE LOVE YOU BLAKELY BEAN! Happy #9!!

Goodbye Grandpa & February!

2008-03-01T23:00:00.000-08:00

This week has been very eventful (they all are lately). My Grandpa passed away on Friday and I have been madly scanning old pictures to make a slide show for his service. A lot of this week and next has been filled full of family things. I did manage to squeeze in another 16 miler today and I have a bunch of photo editing to do so I can post some other things on my blog(s).

Things we did this week: I bought some "fresh ice cold water" from my friends kids water stand. I enjoyed several walks in the beautiful Spring teaser. RD took Haden on his first snowboard adventure. Blakely is now off track & looking forward to her bday next week.

Emery has started to get into fashion and is now picking out her own outfits and trying to dress herself. More to come soon....

Lock up ALL the ladies & 16 miles

2008-02-18T20:23:00.000-08:00

Well I ran 16 miles Saturday (it was a major task for me...2 hours, 40 minutes). It's probably time to actually sign up for this bloody marathon in April. RD has been so supportive watching the kids on Saturday while I go on my long runs. It has been a life goal of mine to run a marathon so here goes (don't know if I will do it again after though!)

Funny Story:

We were eating dinner Thursday night and Haden (#2) asked to be excused for a minute. He ran to the bathroom and was in there for some time. I finally decided to go make sure everything was o.k. Well I walk in on him finishing up with a bottle of gel, a comb, and a stocking cap. I ask him what the heck he is doing and he says "The ladies are going to love this new look Mom."

What am I going to do with him...lock up your little girls. I have to apologize now but he is already a womanizer and I do not know what to do.

Elastic cat & 14 miles!

2008-02-10T22:03:00.000-08:00

Yeah...I did my first 14 mile run yesterday. Can I just say that there are way to many hills around this area? My long run this Saturday is 16. Thanks Stacey & Jayme for honking at me in your vans, believe it or not it is a good motivator. It will be a miracle if I can run this marathon. My goal is to finish somewhere under 5 hours but training in the winter is hard stuff! I have not posted in 2 weeks so it is time for my little update. I wish I could have more time to blog more everyday stuff but time certainly gets away from you. I feel like I spend the better part of my day on the computer working on pictures anyway but I love reading about everyone's family life (especially Lyndee's she has cool stuff!)

Well this week was a bit out of the normal. You see we have this cat named Sara that is pretty much a family member. Whenever #1 Bean draws a picture of our family the cat is always a part of it. So last Sunday she started vomitting all over the place. Seriously not just a hairball like stuff...really yucky vomit. So Monday after aerobics I come home to take her to the animal hospital to figure out what is going on. I get the cat to the Vet's and have the exam, and the Dr. tells me he thinks she needs to have x-rays ($250). So the cat had x-rays and he comes back and says look what we found, and girl elastic with the metal clip that is probably giving your cat Zinc/lead poisoning causing the vomit. He then told me that he could do surgery that day ($1300) or he would give her an anti-nausia shot ($25) and I could take the cat home feed her a can of pumpkin that should help the elastic pass through. Of course I took her home and filled her bowl full of pumpkin. The fun part was on the way home...I felt so bad for her because she was a nervous wreck (meowing, and moaning) so I put her in the pet carrier and put her in the passager seat facing me so she knew I was there for her. Well I guess she got nervous and peed in the carrier. This is the worse part...I got to the intersection on 90th and New Bingham and went to cross and noticed I was about to get hit so I slammed on my brakes and voila the cat goes flying in the windshield sending a spray of cat urine all over my car (sooooo nasty!) I made it through the intersection and broke out the baby wipes and started cleaning up what I could. I got the cat home, sprayed her down and locked her in the bathroom to start the pumpkin process. Needless to say, she did not care for pumpkin so about 5 hours later before the anti-nausia stuff wore off I filled a syringe (about 50 times) full of 3/4 cup of pumpkin and force fed it to her. My bath room was covered in pumpkin as was my shirt. Needless to say...she seems to be acting normal now so I am assuming the elastic made it way into the litter box. What a day! RD steam cleaned my car (and the house) and I Lysoled it at least 3 times.

Other than that our lives are pretty much the same. Here are some pictures of stuff we have done over the past little bit and yes I am very proud of my son wearing tights! Emery loves to wear her pink hat Grandma Bette made, and Blakely had a lot of fun at the planetarium!

Bitter-Sweet

2008-01-27T22:56:00.000-08:00

Well, I am sure everyone has heard the news about President Hinckley. When I heard about his passing I just thought about the reunion between he and his sweet wife who passed a few years ago. What an amazing man he was, and I am sure he will keep up with his work on the other side. Just in case any of my Swedish friends are reading this, President Hinckley was the Prophet and President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (mormons). I know some of my Swedish scrapbooking, and other scrapbooking friends have asked some questions about my beliefs but just in case you want to learn more here is the link to the website that can answer a lot of questions, www.lds.org. (of course you can always ask me too!)

President Hinckley was a great example, my favorite thing about him was his sense of humor. He was very genuine and hard working, and such a spiritual giant. I will miss him, but I know his successor will be amazing as well. My #1 (Bean) cried for a while, and I have to say I say I shed a few tears as well.

On another note (a week in review)...

This week has been pretty uneventful, other than D & I went to the Brad Paisley concert on Thursday. I gave D the tickets for Christmas, I guess that means I gave myself a gift too! The concert was amazing and loads of fun, I had no idea Brad Paisley was such a good musician. We went to dinner at the Blue Iguana uptown (yummy-highly recommended).

I am still keeping up with my little training regimen for the marathon on April 19th. It was kind of a rest week for me (as far as running training goes), so I only ran a total of 15 miles. Next week however a different story...my Saturday run in going to be 15-16 miles (yikes). I also had 3 photo shoots that I will post on my photography blog as soon as I can.

#2 (Bug) is off track and driving me crazy asking "who can I play with?" every second. He certainly has been enjoying the Wii Santa brought but I can not believe how competitive he is. He told me "you don't have any skills Mom!" Needless to say he is right but who likes to be told that over and over again? I karate chopped him and he did not like that very much. #1 (Bean) has been practicing piano and is almost done reading Little Women, she also started Melody practice again. #3 (peanut/groceries) well she actually expanded her vocabulary a bit. She says "upple" when she wants you to pick her up. I think it is a form of "up please," and of course she spent plenty of time grazing on whatever she could find that was edible and/or sweet. I also weaned her from a bottle this week...I do not know why I waited so long. D (my man) worked lots and started studying to take the Securities exam. FYI-he is a civil engineer but works part-time doing financial planning (insurance, mortgages, retirement, etc.)

Enough about us...we are happy and healthy so far! Best Wishes to anyone who reads about our day to day stuff.

I'm really not lazy

2008-01-18T22:47:00.000-08:00

You know I thought I would be able to find more time to write a little bit more about our family. I spend alot of my time on the computer working but usually it is 1:00 in the morning before I am done and can post something on our family site, but most of the time I would rather sleep. Well I won't include any pictures this time, but I will write a bit about us.

ME & D: What can I say about us. We are madly in love and he is the best man in the world (right?). Well most of the time that is how it is. We were friends for over 10 years before we ever "hooked up". His Mom was the director of a dancing school that I took lessons at, then we ended up at the same Jr. High but different High Schools. To make a long story short...I dated his brother and some of his friends, he dated ALL of my friends including my best friend and eventually he and I became best friends, due to all of the phone conversations about each others relationship woes. I wrote to him often on his mission but I was waiting for another missionary and never thought of him (D) in a very romantic light. The first time we kissed I told my Mom it was good but felt kind of like I was kissing my brother. A year after he came home, we went on a 6 week dance tour to Europe. One night while we were crossing the English channel on a ferry, we got to talking about the future and that is when the weird feeling and questions started. Once we decided we were going to date I knew we were bound for marriage. That was July, we were engaged at Christmas and married in March. It has been the best 10 years of my life. What a roller coaster ride, I would not trade any of it and feel so lucky to have a true soul mate.

#1 (our daughter's-nickname is BEAN)

It was a good thing we (me & D) had such a good relationship because we were blessed with a Honeymoon baby. Bean was born a few weeks before our first anniversary. She will be 9 this year and is such a good girl. She is very spirited and sassy but has such a sweet way about her too!

#2 (our son's-nickname is BUG)

I remember telling D before he was born that I always wanted a brown eye-curly hair kid. Well, for those of you who know him you know I was granted my wish. He is one CRAZY kid, very adventurous and a great story teller. He had his pre-school teacher believing that we had a live cheetah living in our basement.

#3 (our daughter's -nickname is PEANUT)

This little butter ball is a very unique individual. I have really enjoyed having her around and the poor thing inherited my gene pool. She looks a lot like me, and I look a lot like my Mom so it has to be in the DNA somewhere (Sometimes I call her mini-me). She is growing so fast and never passes an opportunity to eat, she has to keep those chubby cheeks filled... D has nicknamed her Groceries!

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-23T21:34:00.001-08:00

Just wanted to say Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Our family wishes you all a happy, healthy-HOLIDAY!

December has been busy as ever...a lot of Primary stuff to prepare for the upcoming year, lots of parties & events, photo work, and taking care of the kids. I'll share some fun stories, pictures and experiences soon. Here is our Christmas letter & card sent out to family (just in case we missed anyone!)

A YEAR IN REVIEW

Doesn’t it just seem like we just celebrated Christmas? I swear that time is speeding up, or maybe it’s what happens as you get older, wiser & better looking!
Compared to the last few years this year has been somewhat uneventful for our little family. No moves, no new diagnosis, no newborns, but plenty of fun memories.

The highlight of our year was our family vacation. We drove the kids down to San Diego for a week filled full of Sea World, The Zoo, and the Wild Animal Park. We played at the beach and had a great time. The kids keep asking when we are going back. It was so nice to get away from day to day life & get some R&R.

RD finished his year & a half worth of chemotherapy treatments in April. All seems to be pretty manageable as far as the MS is concerned. There are good days & bad days, but we are so grateful for good doctors & modern medicine. He is doing well working for PSOMAS and recently took the P.E. exam. We still have not found out the results, but I am pretty sure he passed (he always does well). I tease him that whenever there is a drainage problem, a construction problem, or a weird design in a road that a man must have been the engineer, but I know I could never come close to designing the things he does.

Blakely turned EIGHT this year. She was baptized in April and is growing into a beautiful young lady full of ideas and strict schedules. She is enjoying the 3rd grade, loves playing the piano, and taking gymnastics. She had her tonsils removed a few weeks back but has fully recovered from surgery. She is growing into a beautiful young lady, full of ideas, and she loves keeping to a strict schedule. She keeps me organized and on my toes constantly.

Haden is STILL horse crazy but has branched out to a few other areas as well. He was able to ride a horse all by himself this year, which was a huge for him. He also started Karate and has advanced from a white belt, to a yellow, and currently has his green belt. He can do the splits ALL three ways. He started Kindergarten this fall and is doing well in school. His teacher always tells me how polite he is (I am not sure if it is the same kid I know that she is talking about!) He just had his #6!

Emery celebrated her big #1 this past March. What a joy she is in our home. She is not saying a whole lot yet but she has developed her own language we call “Emerish” and whatever she is saying she really means it. She looks you straight in the face and goes on and on. She can get her point across & get what she wants most of the time. She has big brown eyes and darling curly locks of hair.

As for me (Amanda), I am still serving in the Primary in our gigantic ward and it keeps me pretty busy. I love the kids & the sweet spirits they have. I did run a 1/2 marathon in April and I have become a bit addicted to running so I figure that I should complete one of my life’s goals of running a full marathon. I am going to run the Salt Lake Marathon on April 19th 2008. I also decided to make more of an effort to make my small yet growing photography business more legitimate. I’ve hired RD as my accountant, and actually have a great new assistant. If you have time you should check out my weekly blog & website @www.bishopimages.blogspot.com

We hope you ALL have a wonderful Holiday Season & a very Happy and prosperous New Year. We love and think of you often! Best Wishes!

Merry Christmas!

2007-12-23T21:34:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to say Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! Our family wishes you all a happy, healthy-HOLIDAY!

My crazy life

2007-12-09T22:13:00.000-08:00

I have not posted on this blog lately because I have been soooo super busy taking, editing, delivering pictures and everything else photography. I have so much I want to say about our family. I think this is a good alternative to keeping a journal. But, between my church duties, my job, my family & house obligations I just have not had a minute to play. Our kids are getting excited for the Christmas Season and we just celebrated Haden's #6. I have lots of fun event pictures I need to post but they have to wait until I finish all the PRO ones. Trust me everyone out there in cyberworld I do have stories to tell but for now you will just have to wait but thanks for looking. If you want to see what I have been doing lately check my Photography blog (fun stuff!)

Life Lately

2007-11-18T20:33:00.000-08:00

I should be posting everyday but just have not found the time. Here are some things that have been going on around the Bishop household. Halloween, yes I know it was 2 weeks ago but we are still eating all of the bloody candy left overs. I am going to post a few pictures from Halloween.

Other events.
Blakely had her tonsils removed on the 9th. She is still pretty sick and I hope to have her back to school this week. We had some unexpected complications with her surgery. She was given some morphine to help with her pain and apparently she was not meant to ever have morphine. They actually had to bring in the crash cart and bag her for a few minutes. It took her about 4 hours after that to wake up and come join this life. It was one of those "out of body" experiences for me. I was really calm for most of it but there was a point when I finally said "Fix this...do whatever it takes." After all it was only a same day surgery. Anyways, she has spent the last week pretty drugged up, laying on the couch, eating ice cream and watching Hannah Montana.

Haden is enjoying Kindergarten and is full of life like always. He certainly is a interesting little guy. He takes Karate twice a week and has earned his green belt. He can also do the splits in EVERY direction. I can not believe he has not broken any bones yet. It is a dare devil and sometimes has some pretty good stunts.

Emery is growing & growing. Her hair gets curlier everyday and she seems to be picking up about one new word per week. Her smiles just melts my butter and she has such a funny sense of humor. She is my little snuggler. I need to take more pictures of her, she would love it if we would stay outside ALL day.

RD and I are doing great. I just had to have my first crown and root canal. I hope it is my last...very painful but even worse is how much $$$ they cost. RD took the P.E. exam a few weeks ago and we are anxiously waiting the results.

2007-11-14T21:23:00.000-08:00

Well it is about time that I get into the blogging game. I have been looking at everyone else's blog for a long time but I need to have my turn telling our family stories. We have 3 great kids who are full of life (or full of something!) Life is crazy everyday but I would not trade for anything else. Look for more interesting things to come...