Is this the coolest?!
Sunday, March 26, 2017
Thursday, March 23, 2017
Valentine's Day, 2016
Traditional Spaghetti Candlelight Dinner
Rob wanted to make chocolate dipped strawberries for dessert....
Nailed it
😂
Valentines for Rob
Mahdi's Valentines for the family ("from Elle")... awwww
Monday, March 20, 2017
Bonus boys, bedrooms, bathroom... and throw in a front door, entry lighting...
Picking out flooring and shower tile for the basement bathroom and bedrooms we finished for Mahdi and Reza.
Reza could not care less about colors, bedding, or decor for his bedroom.
His one request was a big picture
of the family over his bed.
of the family over his bed.
Mahdi, on the other hand, had a master plan for his bedroom and wanted it to reflect his personal sense of style in every detail. He kept putting me off for bedroom pics, because he wanted to have things just perfect...
...he's so dramatic
😂😂😂
A couple weeks later, he told me he had a surprise....
knuckleheads 😍😜
The bathroom...
So, while we were at it, I realized that since our giant 8' tall wood door had to be refinished about every other year, and we'd spent thousands on it in the 9 years we'd been here...
(Halloween)
... why not fix the money pit instead? And while we're at it, add some daylight to our entry? And get the door more to scale with our XL entry?
Rob's thoughts: don't spend money
My thoughts: but we ARE spending money on the door every other year just maintaining it. A fiberglass door wouldn't crack or need to be refinished, and we'd get daylight in the entry and curb appeal.
Rob's idea: don't spend money
My idea: But, Rob, a new front door, on average, increases the sale price of a home by 4%. Return On Investment = 96.6 percent.
Rob: Hmmmm.... (Rob's motto: Trust but verify....)
Under construction...
We also updated the entry and staircase lighting
Nice? It only took 10 months 😱
But we love it 💗
Tuesday, March 14, 2017
Runaway
This year, the anniversary of Elle's funeral, February 13th, marked a different milestone in our lives....
But let me back up. Getty left home the week of Thanksgiving at age 17. We kept in contact with him whenever he had access to a phone (and he came home for Thanksgiving and Christmas), but he would not live at home under the few non-negotiable conditions we had set.
Rob and I ultimately decided Getty needed to be taken to a residential treatment center where he would be safe, clear-headed, catch up in school, and get therapy, so we had him transported to residential on January 23rd. The next morning at 5:50 a.m. I got a call that Getty had run away. In the aftermath of a blizzard, with about 2 feet of snow on the ground, he had taken off in the only shoes the center had provided for newbies, flip flops for the shower.
Three weeks later, on that Monday February 13th at 6:00 a.m., we met up with police, a transport team, and a backup chaser (thanks, Skyler) at Getty's suspected location. In the temple a couple of weeks before, I had the impression, "I will deliver him into your hands." Sure enough, Getty was at the location, and we were able to check him into a new—and more remote👌—residential treatment center.
It's been 3 weeks now of residential treatment. Getty seems resigned to the fact that his crazy parents aren't giving up, but he's not super happy and wants his freedom. Sitting through 3-4 therapy groups a day has got to be 5x harder for someone as hyperactive as he is....
Meanwhile, Rob and I are beginning to decompress from many months of stress, conflict, and confusion.
Life.
But let me back up. Getty left home the week of Thanksgiving at age 17. We kept in contact with him whenever he had access to a phone (and he came home for Thanksgiving and Christmas), but he would not live at home under the few non-negotiable conditions we had set.
Rob and I ultimately decided Getty needed to be taken to a residential treatment center where he would be safe, clear-headed, catch up in school, and get therapy, so we had him transported to residential on January 23rd. The next morning at 5:50 a.m. I got a call that Getty had run away. In the aftermath of a blizzard, with about 2 feet of snow on the ground, he had taken off in the only shoes the center had provided for newbies, flip flops for the shower.
Three weeks later, on that Monday February 13th at 6:00 a.m., we met up with police, a transport team, and a backup chaser (thanks, Skyler) at Getty's suspected location. In the temple a couple of weeks before, I had the impression, "I will deliver him into your hands." Sure enough, Getty was at the location, and we were able to check him into a new—and more remote👌—residential treatment center.
It's been 3 weeks now of residential treatment. Getty seems resigned to the fact that his crazy parents aren't giving up, but he's not super happy and wants his freedom. Sitting through 3-4 therapy groups a day has got to be 5x harder for someone as hyperactive as he is....
Meanwhile, Rob and I are beginning to decompress from many months of stress, conflict, and confusion.
Life.
Thursday, March 2, 2017
Elle Day/Angel Day, 2017
Five years later, February 4th is a Saturday, the same day of the accident, and February 8th is a Wednesday, the same day of the week Elle passed away.
And the activities of this Saturday are the same. Watching Cy's basketball games in the morning and visiting the hospital (this time to see Mahdi) in the afternoon.
It's eerie. Rob is quiet and anxious. I feel heavy and tired.
Later, at 3:40, (I know the time because I'm watching the clock) I'm in the kitchen just as I was that Saturday afternoon. I'm anticipating 4:07 p.m., and I'm starting to feel overwhelmed. I hear a knock at the door and plan on not answering (with my red eyes and tear-stained face), but it's Kim, Emily, and the girls with a box of pink sugar cookies.
I feel better already 😋
(WHY didn't I take a picture of my gurls on the doorstep?)
Neighbors bring us balloons and flowers. I can't get over it. (And MK is messing around, as usual 😉)
And the activities of this Saturday are the same. Watching Cy's basketball games in the morning and visiting the hospital (this time to see Mahdi) in the afternoon.
It's eerie. Rob is quiet and anxious. I feel heavy and tired.
Later, at 3:40, (I know the time because I'm watching the clock) I'm in the kitchen just as I was that Saturday afternoon. I'm anticipating 4:07 p.m., and I'm starting to feel overwhelmed. I hear a knock at the door and plan on not answering (with my red eyes and tear-stained face), but it's Kim, Emily, and the girls with a box of pink sugar cookies.
I feel better already 😋
(WHY didn't I take a picture of my gurls on the doorstep?)
Neighbors bring us balloons and flowers. I can't get over it. (And MK is messing around, as usual 😉)
On Wednesday, Elle's Angel Day, we head out for a fun day just the six of us (Getty was invited, but....)
Thug life 😂
Cam's sick from eating too much of that awesome food at our favorite Wasatch Back Grill
After dinner, we shop at the Riverwoods and
then head to watch Cy's ball game
Meanwhile, a few of our favorite cousins
heart attacked Elle's headstone 💗
heart attacked Elle's headstone 💗
Bentley kills me 😂
Angel Day #5 ✔
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