Married 9 years and counting!

On September 18, 1999, the most handsome man in the world took me to the Mount Timpanogos temple, and we were married for time and all eternity. Afterward there were lots of photos, a luncheon at Thanksgiving Point, a ring ceremony where my dad walked me down the aisle (while Rachael played the Pachelbel Canon), and a reception at the Springville Art Museum. We danced twice to our special song, "In Your Eyes" by Peter Gabriel - the first time we didn't have an audience. (I must add that “Video Killed the Radio Star” was also on our playlist. Yeah, we’re pretty silly people). We were our own MC's, which made things feel a little chaotic, but it was still fun. Poor David had a migraine, so when we cut the cake and fed it to each other, he was begging me in a whisper, "Please don't shove it in my face, or I'll throw up!" Of course, I respected his wishes. (He was too cute to make sick, and the tux was a rental).

Despite the imperfections of the day, some small and others not so small, it was still a lovely day. And, in a moment of romantic bliss during a photo shoot at the museum, my honey looked down at me with his 80’s rock star haircut and baby brown eyes and said with so much tenderness, “We're married, Sweetie!”

Sometimes life is very, very good.

Carbon Monoxide Detectors

On Monday night, our smoke alarm/CO detector beeped at us at around bedtime. At first we were unsure what was being alerted. We actually noticed a gas smell in the laundry/utility area. Feeling somewhat befuddled, David asked to consult the manual for the detectors. Suddenly he said, "Wow. It's the carbon monoxide signal." We were instructed to get out to fresh air and call the gas company. We did all of the above, which required dressing the mostly naked 3 year old (he looked cute before and after), grabbing and waking the swaddled baby (who also looked cute and made some very funny "arrgh!" noises on and off to express his confusion), and thrust our little family into the (thankfully) not-too-freezing night air. Our wonderful next door neighbor loaned us the use of her phone and a blanket to keep the baby warm. Sophie was actually very excited about the whole thing. I don't think she understood that it was pretty serious.

It turned out that our water heater needed cleaning and (for scientific reasons I can't fully understand) was emitting large quantities of CO into our home. The measurement was 90 something or other. According to the very nice man who came, it starts looking bad at 10. If I hadn't been crying a lot that day, I would've guessed it was the cause of my yucky headache.

Anyway, we're grateful that our old smoke detectors went on the blink last year and that we, under the recommendation of a good friend, upgraded to the current ones we have. (The old ones didn't have a CO monitor as well). I had originally balked a little at the expense (all of the units together came to about $200, if I'm remembering correctly). I have no complaints at all now. We're also humbled to be reminded that, as expensive as the annual furnace and water heater check-ups are, they are a much better alternative to becoming a headline in local newspaper. I won't even make up an imaginary headline, because it would be creepy (and I've been a bit melodramatic already). Anyway, you get the point!

So - Carbon Monoxide Detectors - As Woody would say, "If you don't have one, get one!"

Wanna see something kind of fun?

Left and above - Sophie (3) and Aidan (3 mos)
Right - Sophie (6) and Ian (3 mos)

And I've been so sure that Ian is a carbon copy of Aidan. Oh well! They're equally cute and fun! Sophie has hardly changed (despite the missing front teeth now).

And finally, here are my 3 babies in all their glory! (Well, as of a couple of weeks ago...)



Where have the years gone?