Since a lot has happened since I last blogged I thought I would just point out the highlights:
*Keri left for Cyprus on November 21st. He has to be there for six loooong months and has already missed our 2nd year anniversary and thanksgiving and he will be missing Cambree's first christmas and birthday.. which is doubly sad when you think about how he wasn't there for her birth and a few months of her newborn stage!
*My awesome dad traveled all the way to England to help out while Keri was gone and was able to stay about ten days. Needless to say the jet lag he experienced was difficult but he managed it like a champ. The highlight of his trip was us driving 2 hours to Warwich castle and getting lost like a million times on the way home. Not to mention entering a 4 lane roundabout and having to go around 3 times because we were in the wrong lane to exit the first time and the second two times we simply lost track and missed the exit! I think we were both carsick from having to circle around so many times! After all of that fun we had to take a four hour BUS ride to the airport and be on a plane for 13 hours out of which Cambree cried at least 4 hours of!!
*My knee started hurting and stayed swollen for about a month so when I got back to Utah I had to see my Orthopedic Surgeon who told me I needed surgery again to fix my knee. Keeping in mind this will be my 8th surgery and my last two surgeries were only 9 months ago on my knees. My knee is horrid and my surgery is scheduled for January 7th.
*My whole family decided to go to my sisters house in North Carolina for Christmas so on December 21st Shaun, Cambree, and I boarded a plane for Greensboro... we've been here a few days and Cambree absolutely LOVES spending time with her cousins!!!
Well that about sums about the past few months..... Cambree and I are definately missing Keri but are happy that the rest of my family is all together for the holidays!!! Merry Christmas everyone!!! :)
Wednesday, December 23, 2009
Monday, October 26, 2009
When it rains.... it pours!!!!
It's never just one thing... its usually one thing followed by another and another and so on and on..... and that seems to be just how life is.
Sooo about a month ago I was at the gym.... that infectious Mylie Cyrus song came on.. you know the one.... Party in the USA... so I pick the pace a titch on the treadmill... and that is when it happened.... a little "pop".... and then it was like my knee was grinding with every move I made. The day I woke up and it was swollen to the size of a small Island... and very painful. Great I thought. Mind you I've had seven surgeries combined on my knees so knee pain has always been a friend of mine. Not a best friend, more like a second cousin twice removed...
So I go to the doctor who makes me wait 2 tortuous weeks because he thinks its a torn meniscus but wants to make sure... so I wait the two weeks....come back in and he evalutates me and thinks indeed it is a torn meniscus. Mind you he tells me he is going to be deploying in December so basically he will be out of the office in November.... not to mention the Surgeon is out until after Christmas..... greeat! So he does want me to have an MRI so he puts in a request for one..... so I go to radiology they tell me to wait 24 hours and call back to get a date for my MRI.... basically they tell me on the phone 24 hours later that my torn meniscus MRI isn't really all that important and when I press her on the issue she tells me the earliest they could get me in is on Dec 1st.... mind you my husband deploys in a few weeks and I'll be back in the states by December 1st. It just seems like there is no real help here. Since when did a torn meniscus get treated as casually as a paper cut? A torn meniscus involves real pain and a hard time walking, let alone carrying a 9 month old baby around.
Well as if I wasn't upset enough.... we went to dinner of Friday at the Galaxy Club on Mildenhall Base.... we put her in a high chair of theirs (which we normally don't do) and during the course of our dinner we notice once she is biting on the wooden bar that goes across the high chair. Super. Well the next day she breaks out into what we originally thought was a little baby acne but got worse and worse. It was all these sores around her mouth that looked painful. Not to mention she was refusing her solids..... she wouldn't even open her mouth for her favorite foods!
So we were back into the doctor today and the doctor told us she has Herpangina. Basically it is Foot and Mouth disease minus the foot. She only has the sores around her mouth and more than likely inside her mouth. Herpangina is highly contagious so Keri and I have a high chance of catching it. Suuuper!
Like I said.... when it rains it pours.... it's not a good time around the Christensen household!!!
Sooo about a month ago I was at the gym.... that infectious Mylie Cyrus song came on.. you know the one.... Party in the USA... so I pick the pace a titch on the treadmill... and that is when it happened.... a little "pop".... and then it was like my knee was grinding with every move I made. The day I woke up and it was swollen to the size of a small Island... and very painful. Great I thought. Mind you I've had seven surgeries combined on my knees so knee pain has always been a friend of mine. Not a best friend, more like a second cousin twice removed...
So I go to the doctor who makes me wait 2 tortuous weeks because he thinks its a torn meniscus but wants to make sure... so I wait the two weeks....come back in and he evalutates me and thinks indeed it is a torn meniscus. Mind you he tells me he is going to be deploying in December so basically he will be out of the office in November.... not to mention the Surgeon is out until after Christmas..... greeat! So he does want me to have an MRI so he puts in a request for one..... so I go to radiology they tell me to wait 24 hours and call back to get a date for my MRI.... basically they tell me on the phone 24 hours later that my torn meniscus MRI isn't really all that important and when I press her on the issue she tells me the earliest they could get me in is on Dec 1st.... mind you my husband deploys in a few weeks and I'll be back in the states by December 1st. It just seems like there is no real help here. Since when did a torn meniscus get treated as casually as a paper cut? A torn meniscus involves real pain and a hard time walking, let alone carrying a 9 month old baby around.
Well as if I wasn't upset enough.... we went to dinner of Friday at the Galaxy Club on Mildenhall Base.... we put her in a high chair of theirs (which we normally don't do) and during the course of our dinner we notice once she is biting on the wooden bar that goes across the high chair. Super. Well the next day she breaks out into what we originally thought was a little baby acne but got worse and worse. It was all these sores around her mouth that looked painful. Not to mention she was refusing her solids..... she wouldn't even open her mouth for her favorite foods!
So we were back into the doctor today and the doctor told us she has Herpangina. Basically it is Foot and Mouth disease minus the foot. She only has the sores around her mouth and more than likely inside her mouth. Herpangina is highly contagious so Keri and I have a high chance of catching it. Suuuper!
Like I said.... when it rains it pours.... it's not a good time around the Christensen household!!!
Monday, September 21, 2009
A reason to be mad at my husband for ....
We all know men and woman and NOT created equal. This idea has been around for centuries... usually its in reference to men being physically better than women, or smarter than women.... well that's not what I'm talking about folks... I'm talking about our weight!!!!!!!
So Keri has been working the night shift lately which means he comes home anywhere from 9pm to 2am. His first question when walking in the door is usually... do you want some ice cream? By ice cream he means going down to the gas station that's still open and getting a pint of Ben & Jerry's. Now I know how my body works... if I stare at a Ben & Jerry's container too long I gain weight. My husband could have 2 pints of Ben & Jerry's and probably a few lbs!! So lately I have been trying to eat better lately and just when I think I have made it through the day without pigging out my husband will come home with that dreaded question and of course ....of course I want ice cream. So the first time he suggested it I was like... what the heck.... bring on the ice cream. But the next night when he suggested it I knew I had to refrain. Here is where I'm getting to the point that we are not created equal.... Keri could truly eat ice cream every night and not gain weight.... if I matched him pint for pint I would be at least 300 lbs.
How is this fair I ask you? One other quick story..... so last night I've had a lien cuisine for dinner.... you know those frozen dinners that are TOO lien cause after eating one I'm still hungry...so I have some fruit and some water and call it good. I've tried to cut back on soda, which lets face it is my best friend.... and so there I was on the couch waiting for Keri to come home and feeling victorious about my eating for the day..... of course the second he comes home he suggest popcorn and before you know it, I'm shoveling greasy, buttery, salty popcorn in my mouth and washing it down with a diet pepsi lol.
How are any wives suppose to stay trim with husbands who can eat virtually anything they want and not gain weight? Keri's best friends are Baskin Robbins and the double stack at Burger King. Life just isn't fair and men and women are differently not created equal!!!!!
So Keri has been working the night shift lately which means he comes home anywhere from 9pm to 2am. His first question when walking in the door is usually... do you want some ice cream? By ice cream he means going down to the gas station that's still open and getting a pint of Ben & Jerry's. Now I know how my body works... if I stare at a Ben & Jerry's container too long I gain weight. My husband could have 2 pints of Ben & Jerry's and probably a few lbs!! So lately I have been trying to eat better lately and just when I think I have made it through the day without pigging out my husband will come home with that dreaded question and of course ....of course I want ice cream. So the first time he suggested it I was like... what the heck.... bring on the ice cream. But the next night when he suggested it I knew I had to refrain. Here is where I'm getting to the point that we are not created equal.... Keri could truly eat ice cream every night and not gain weight.... if I matched him pint for pint I would be at least 300 lbs.
How is this fair I ask you? One other quick story..... so last night I've had a lien cuisine for dinner.... you know those frozen dinners that are TOO lien cause after eating one I'm still hungry...so I have some fruit and some water and call it good. I've tried to cut back on soda, which lets face it is my best friend.... and so there I was on the couch waiting for Keri to come home and feeling victorious about my eating for the day..... of course the second he comes home he suggest popcorn and before you know it, I'm shoveling greasy, buttery, salty popcorn in my mouth and washing it down with a diet pepsi lol.
How are any wives suppose to stay trim with husbands who can eat virtually anything they want and not gain weight? Keri's best friends are Baskin Robbins and the double stack at Burger King. Life just isn't fair and men and women are differently not created equal!!!!!
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Big screams and small acts of kindess!
So there I was... inside the house on a tuesday morning with a crying baby. She ate, she napped, she screamed!!! Patience I thought to myself... just have patience... meanwhile I'm frantically trying to think of anything to help sooth her... and the only thing I found is that she wanted me to hold her... so after about 15 minutes I thought to myself I can't do this all day so I put her down.... and thus the screaming started up again. So I put on my flip flops, strapped baby into the stroller and we were off...
The base we live on is relatively small so you can walk just about anywhere in about 10 minutes. Lucky for me the BX is like a 3 mile walk. As we walked she calmed down and I thought about what a genius mom I was. So we got into the BX and I was just about to get my shop on when.....*waaaaah waaaaaah* the crying started up again. You've got to be kidding me. Crying in the house is one thing, but the fit she was throwing in the store with everyone looking was quite another. I started to sweat.... I sweat when I get all panicked.....so I'm trying to calm her down while spying a cute shirt out of the corner of my eye when my small miracle came over named Vickie Wilkins...
Vickie Wilkins is just about the nicest, sweetest, most caring, sincerely awesomest person I've ever met. She is a mother of nine and has amazing patience. I've never seen her raise her voice or get flustered at all. She is, in my mind, the very model of what a mother should be. She happened to be shopping with her kids and must have heard Cambree's cries. Vickie came right over and took Cambree out of her stroller and the second Cambree hit her arms she started smiling and all the tears were gone. It was magic I tell you. Vickie kept saying she would take Cambree while I finished shopping and I kept saying... no... but eventually said yes. Ahhh Vickie took Cambree for probably 20 minutes and I was able to collect myself, and shop around in silence.
Now I know this story must seem like not a big deal... but to anyone who is the mother of a screaming child, this was god sent. A small act of kindness from Vickie really helped calm me down and have a little time to myself. Turns out Cambree was a complete saint the whole time they had her. It was a nice break for the both of us. Sincerely nice people are rare to find these days and it makes me want to be a nicer person myself. Maybe one day when I'm shopping and I come across a screaming child of someone I know I can return the small act of kindess.
The base we live on is relatively small so you can walk just about anywhere in about 10 minutes. Lucky for me the BX is like a 3 mile walk. As we walked she calmed down and I thought about what a genius mom I was. So we got into the BX and I was just about to get my shop on when.....*waaaaah waaaaaah* the crying started up again. You've got to be kidding me. Crying in the house is one thing, but the fit she was throwing in the store with everyone looking was quite another. I started to sweat.... I sweat when I get all panicked.....so I'm trying to calm her down while spying a cute shirt out of the corner of my eye when my small miracle came over named Vickie Wilkins...
Vickie Wilkins is just about the nicest, sweetest, most caring, sincerely awesomest person I've ever met. She is a mother of nine and has amazing patience. I've never seen her raise her voice or get flustered at all. She is, in my mind, the very model of what a mother should be. She happened to be shopping with her kids and must have heard Cambree's cries. Vickie came right over and took Cambree out of her stroller and the second Cambree hit her arms she started smiling and all the tears were gone. It was magic I tell you. Vickie kept saying she would take Cambree while I finished shopping and I kept saying... no... but eventually said yes. Ahhh Vickie took Cambree for probably 20 minutes and I was able to collect myself, and shop around in silence.
Now I know this story must seem like not a big deal... but to anyone who is the mother of a screaming child, this was god sent. A small act of kindness from Vickie really helped calm me down and have a little time to myself. Turns out Cambree was a complete saint the whole time they had her. It was a nice break for the both of us. Sincerely nice people are rare to find these days and it makes me want to be a nicer person myself. Maybe one day when I'm shopping and I come across a screaming child of someone I know I can return the small act of kindess.
Saturday, August 15, 2009
A week of being brave...
As if conquering Cambridge wasn't enough.... next came Friday night. My friend Miranda and her husband wanted us to join them for a night out! She had mentioned going to see GI Joe and having dinner... at a Thai restaurant. Oh goodie I thought.... Thai food. I might just be the worlds pickiest eater (well next to my siblings lol) .. I mean I'm the type to get a hamburger ketchup only... I don't ever go out of my way to try something daring ... and I'll usually pick the most plain and boring thing on the menu. So for me to agree to Thai food.... well lets just say I wasn't exactly thrilled but decided I could branch out and try something new. I know I know... how big of me! Besides I could wash just about anything down with a diet coke right??
So Miranda and her husband were running late and we missed the movie and head straight into Mildenhall Village for dinner. We rolled up on the Thai restaurant and I took a deep breath and walked through the glass doors. Then I heard the most beautiful words ever...... they were all booked up and we couldn't eat there! Hurray!! I was saved!! Bring on the normal food.... or not..... darn that Miranda... her and Geoff had other ideas..... the other idea was....... INDIAN FOOD!
Indian food?!?! And I thought Thai sounded bad.... Thai sounded like heaven on earth compared to Indian food. That movie Along Came Polly came to my mind when they said Indian food. You know the part where Ben Stiller is sweating uncontrollable and then had to head to the bathroom. I mean.... I have an irritable bowel to start with.... is adding Indian food into that equation really a good idea? But... I didn't want to be a party pooper.... so I agreed....
We walked into the restaurant called Ghandi by the way..... and took a deep breath in. *Sniff sniff*..... what is that smell...... *another sniff*.... surely this can't be a good sign if the smell of this place makes me want to vomit. It's like walking into a nail salon where the smell is just like horribly awful but the longer you are there the less you notice it. Well that happened.... we sat and the longer we sat the less I noticed the smell... was that a good sign or a bad sign?
We were given the menu and I'm frantically looking for something I could stomach. The menu might as well been in French..... I mean I had no idea what the heck Curry was..... is that sad? When he came to take our orders.... I simply pointed at something that had chicken in it and hoped for the best. I told Miranda and Geoff I could probably go on Fear Factor after this experience....
Well turns out... the food wasn't that bad. Infact I didn't hate it. It wasn't even scary. That movie Along Came Polly exaggerates I think lol. I mean it probably wouldn't be a place I would ever suggest eating at.... but if I was starving and that was the only option I had......I guess I would go there. So there you go... the girl who doesn't try new things often tried one of the most craziest restaurants and lived. Maybe I'll order something different with my hamburger next time..... spice it up a little...... than again... probably not!!
So Miranda and her husband were running late and we missed the movie and head straight into Mildenhall Village for dinner. We rolled up on the Thai restaurant and I took a deep breath and walked through the glass doors. Then I heard the most beautiful words ever...... they were all booked up and we couldn't eat there! Hurray!! I was saved!! Bring on the normal food.... or not..... darn that Miranda... her and Geoff had other ideas..... the other idea was....... INDIAN FOOD!
Indian food?!?! And I thought Thai sounded bad.... Thai sounded like heaven on earth compared to Indian food. That movie Along Came Polly came to my mind when they said Indian food. You know the part where Ben Stiller is sweating uncontrollable and then had to head to the bathroom. I mean.... I have an irritable bowel to start with.... is adding Indian food into that equation really a good idea? But... I didn't want to be a party pooper.... so I agreed....
We walked into the restaurant called Ghandi by the way..... and took a deep breath in. *Sniff sniff*..... what is that smell...... *another sniff*.... surely this can't be a good sign if the smell of this place makes me want to vomit. It's like walking into a nail salon where the smell is just like horribly awful but the longer you are there the less you notice it. Well that happened.... we sat and the longer we sat the less I noticed the smell... was that a good sign or a bad sign?
We were given the menu and I'm frantically looking for something I could stomach. The menu might as well been in French..... I mean I had no idea what the heck Curry was..... is that sad? When he came to take our orders.... I simply pointed at something that had chicken in it and hoped for the best. I told Miranda and Geoff I could probably go on Fear Factor after this experience....
Well turns out... the food wasn't that bad. Infact I didn't hate it. It wasn't even scary. That movie Along Came Polly exaggerates I think lol. I mean it probably wouldn't be a place I would ever suggest eating at.... but if I was starving and that was the only option I had......I guess I would go there. So there you go... the girl who doesn't try new things often tried one of the most craziest restaurants and lived. Maybe I'll order something different with my hamburger next time..... spice it up a little...... than again... probably not!!
Cambridge or bust....
Since I moved to England its just been easier to let Keri do all the driving when we go out. Infact at first I refused to drive at all. Then I realized I was only hurting myself by being too scared of driving in England. Slowly but surely I started driving short distances. First it was to Mildenhall, then it was to Feltwell (on what is certain to be the bumpiest road known to mankind.) The more I drove around, the more I found I liked it and felt comfortable. Then I did the bravest thing of all, I decided to go into Cambridge by myself..... *cue the scary music*
So I strapped Cambree in tight, took a sip of my diet coke and stepped on the gas. England has what is called a National Speed Limit here and it is 60 miles per hour. Now on those wide roads in America 60 miles per hour seems nothing special... infact why go 60 when you can go 80... but on these tinsy british roads barely big enough for one car, let alone two... 60 miles an hour feels like certain death. So as I was saying I took a sip, took a deep breath and stepped on the gas. The worst part of the trip is the 5 point roundabout. Let me try to set the scene. It is a huge roundabout that has 5 different exits and entrances.... so cars are going around and around and you have to sit there and determine when you should enter without getting plowed over. As you are entering the roundabout so are other people... its like a never ending circle of madness. In these cases it is best just to go and think later. My heart beats fast everytime I get to the 5 point roundabout and I always cross my fingers that I will make it out alive. On this day.... the heavens were with me and I made it just fine.
When I made it onto the motor way is when I turned up the music.. a titch.. and started to relax. I felt confident even. Then it came time to exit and head into Cambridge. Mind you this is about a 30 minute drive to get to Cambridge from my house, if something were to go wrong, I'd be waiting a while for Keri to come help me lol. Of course I push that thought out of my mind because it just makes my heart race again. Next comes two more sets of roundabouts and of course the tinsy roads of Cambridge. Cambridge is unique in that most of the people are on bikes not in cars. So if the cars weren't bad enough, you have to watch out for annoying bicyclists. Well I maneuvered through the roundabouts and before I knew it I was actually at my destination. A series of shops along a few blocks. I parked in the car (again in the worlds tinsiest parking stalls... seriously my parking in regular sized stalls isn't stellar ...) and got out of the car!!
I had done it... conquered the mean streets of England and actually drove to Cambridge by myself. I know this sounds silly... but truly driving my british car around can be quite scary. I learned one thing out of this experience, that I can't let fear hold me back any longer. Next stop: Norwich!!
So I strapped Cambree in tight, took a sip of my diet coke and stepped on the gas. England has what is called a National Speed Limit here and it is 60 miles per hour. Now on those wide roads in America 60 miles per hour seems nothing special... infact why go 60 when you can go 80... but on these tinsy british roads barely big enough for one car, let alone two... 60 miles an hour feels like certain death. So as I was saying I took a sip, took a deep breath and stepped on the gas. The worst part of the trip is the 5 point roundabout. Let me try to set the scene. It is a huge roundabout that has 5 different exits and entrances.... so cars are going around and around and you have to sit there and determine when you should enter without getting plowed over. As you are entering the roundabout so are other people... its like a never ending circle of madness. In these cases it is best just to go and think later. My heart beats fast everytime I get to the 5 point roundabout and I always cross my fingers that I will make it out alive. On this day.... the heavens were with me and I made it just fine.
When I made it onto the motor way is when I turned up the music.. a titch.. and started to relax. I felt confident even. Then it came time to exit and head into Cambridge. Mind you this is about a 30 minute drive to get to Cambridge from my house, if something were to go wrong, I'd be waiting a while for Keri to come help me lol. Of course I push that thought out of my mind because it just makes my heart race again. Next comes two more sets of roundabouts and of course the tinsy roads of Cambridge. Cambridge is unique in that most of the people are on bikes not in cars. So if the cars weren't bad enough, you have to watch out for annoying bicyclists. Well I maneuvered through the roundabouts and before I knew it I was actually at my destination. A series of shops along a few blocks. I parked in the car (again in the worlds tinsiest parking stalls... seriously my parking in regular sized stalls isn't stellar ...) and got out of the car!!
I had done it... conquered the mean streets of England and actually drove to Cambridge by myself. I know this sounds silly... but truly driving my british car around can be quite scary. I learned one thing out of this experience, that I can't let fear hold me back any longer. Next stop: Norwich!!
Friday, July 31, 2009
Tuesday, July 14, 2009
My baby girl is six months old!!
When you are pregnant you think the baby will never come. Then you have her and you think you'll be stuck in that baby crying all night instead of sleeping stage forever..... and before you know it, you blink and your baby is almost crawling!!! Yesterday Cambree was officially six months old and I can hardly believe it! Wasn't it just yesterday she was this 5 pound baby that was so fragile? Wasn't I just bringing her home from the hospital and scared and nervous? Where did the time go?
Well Keri and I decided we definately had to celebrate Cambree's six month mark!! Keri brought home a cake and we got a few presents!! Doesn't everybody do this?? We lit six candles and helped her blow them out. Then we let baby do what she wanted with the cake... and turns out what she wanted was to dig right in which naturally we thought was the cutest thing ever!!
In the six months of being Cambree's mom I've experienced more joy than I ever thought possible. Cambree is quite the character... I think she gets that from me. Among the millions of fabulous things she does here are my favorites:
*She has to be touching nose to nose in order for her to go to sleep. This is a must!
*Her hands are her favorite toys. She could spend hours staring at her hands.
*She licks absolutely everything. The couch, the bed, the sheets, her clothes as we are taking them off and putting them on
*When she laughs she sticks out her tongue. When she does just about anything she sticks out her tongue
*She scratches everything with her hands. My eyes, my nose, my arm, the pillow, my sandwich..
*She loves tv! She'll watch just about anything to include Dog Whisperer
*She always has her legs in the air.. she use to sleep with them straight up in the air every night
I could go on and on like most mothers do... but I'll stop there! Happy six month baby girl!! I love you!!
Saturday, July 11, 2009
Turns out England really isn't THAT bad...
I know it's taken me forever to blog right? So much has happened and I meant to blog but then I got so far behind that it seemed hopeless to catch up. I do the same thing with my journals. Next thing you know I'm like a year behind... okay but back to the subject... England.
So I'm dividing my England experience into two categories. The first one is "Before I went home and had Cambree"... and "After I came back".... Before I went home and had Cambree life here was miserable! I was pregnant, it was winter which means the sun set at like 3:30pm. No I'm not even kidding. It's a total joke. To save time let's just say I hated England. Buuuuut since I've been back ...not pregnant.... and with a seriously cute baby girl.... I've decided... England is actually pretty cool and I'm kinda lucky to be living here!!
Since being back I've gotten back into the swing of things. I've eaten at my favorite restaurant Belle Italia a few times, I've reconnected with old friends, and actually made some really awesome new friends. I'm even involved in a play group for Cambree. Yay! Then there was our trip to Bath. Totally awesome. We stayed at RAF Fairford which lets be honest is practically a ghost town. Its this tinsy air force base that shuts down at 6pm sharp! Infact the hot spot on the base was the bowling alley and only because it stayed open later than 6pm ... oh and the hot dogs were good. So we set out for Stonehenge first. All of this is made very tricky when you factor in a baby plus a little rain but we actually had a good time. I have to admit though I was more fascinated with the sheep that were next to Stonehenge, than the actual rocks. LOL! I kept taking pictures of them and trying to think of how I could take one home with me. To be surrounded by Sissy's great aunts and uncles was pretty great. But yeah it was cool to actually see Stonehenge... along with about 50 Asians. Seriously I found it crazy that no matter where you are visiting there is always a handful of Asians right there with you. I was curious who was at Disneyland if they were all here with me. (I hope I'm not coming off as making fun of Asians... just stating facts that they are everywhere!)
ANYWAY, then there was Bath. (And lets hope I'm not boring you by this point.) We had the baby (check) rain (check) umbrellas....um..... yeah umbrellas would have been nice. So Keri put Cambree in the baby carrier and we were off... with our hoods up. Bath was spectacular. And I AM talking about all the SHOPPING!!! I was in heaven... however per usual the only thing I ended up buying was something for Cambree... but a cute something.... the cutest Baby Gap jeans ever!!!! Okay so onto the actual Roman Baths..... let me just say the Romans had the right idea!!! I could have totally fit in back in the day! It was pretty awesome to tour the Roman Baths (again with my Asian companions.) My only regret was that I didn't somehow stage an accident that involved me falling into one of the Baths.. they looked so inviting... except for the whole unsanitary part... Of course I have quite a few pictures that I'll try to post soon but for now you'll just have the picture the awesomeness.... Of course after a long day of walking, shopping, getting wet, and the Roman Baths... we were hungry and we knew just the place to hit the spot...... I'm talking about Pizza Hut of course! Now we'd heard that Pizza Hut isn't like an American Pizza Hut and after eating there I know why....its much better... however that isn't usually the opinion people have. I quite enjoyed it though.
Well now we are going to try and cram a few more things in until November when Keri deploys for six months and I head back to the States.... and this time I am actually sad to leave England for a while. It has grown on me soo much. I love how pretty it is, I love how much there is to go see, I love trying to covert dollars to pounds... wait I don't love that... but really England is a place everyone must visit at least once.......Oh yeah and I still dream about snagging me one of those Stonehenge sheep!!
So I'm dividing my England experience into two categories. The first one is "Before I went home and had Cambree"... and "After I came back".... Before I went home and had Cambree life here was miserable! I was pregnant, it was winter which means the sun set at like 3:30pm. No I'm not even kidding. It's a total joke. To save time let's just say I hated England. Buuuuut since I've been back ...not pregnant.... and with a seriously cute baby girl.... I've decided... England is actually pretty cool and I'm kinda lucky to be living here!!
Since being back I've gotten back into the swing of things. I've eaten at my favorite restaurant Belle Italia a few times, I've reconnected with old friends, and actually made some really awesome new friends. I'm even involved in a play group for Cambree. Yay! Then there was our trip to Bath. Totally awesome. We stayed at RAF Fairford which lets be honest is practically a ghost town. Its this tinsy air force base that shuts down at 6pm sharp! Infact the hot spot on the base was the bowling alley and only because it stayed open later than 6pm ... oh and the hot dogs were good. So we set out for Stonehenge first. All of this is made very tricky when you factor in a baby plus a little rain but we actually had a good time. I have to admit though I was more fascinated with the sheep that were next to Stonehenge, than the actual rocks. LOL! I kept taking pictures of them and trying to think of how I could take one home with me. To be surrounded by Sissy's great aunts and uncles was pretty great. But yeah it was cool to actually see Stonehenge... along with about 50 Asians. Seriously I found it crazy that no matter where you are visiting there is always a handful of Asians right there with you. I was curious who was at Disneyland if they were all here with me. (I hope I'm not coming off as making fun of Asians... just stating facts that they are everywhere!)
ANYWAY, then there was Bath. (And lets hope I'm not boring you by this point.) We had the baby (check) rain (check) umbrellas....um..... yeah umbrellas would have been nice. So Keri put Cambree in the baby carrier and we were off... with our hoods up. Bath was spectacular. And I AM talking about all the SHOPPING!!! I was in heaven... however per usual the only thing I ended up buying was something for Cambree... but a cute something.... the cutest Baby Gap jeans ever!!!! Okay so onto the actual Roman Baths..... let me just say the Romans had the right idea!!! I could have totally fit in back in the day! It was pretty awesome to tour the Roman Baths (again with my Asian companions.) My only regret was that I didn't somehow stage an accident that involved me falling into one of the Baths.. they looked so inviting... except for the whole unsanitary part... Of course I have quite a few pictures that I'll try to post soon but for now you'll just have the picture the awesomeness.... Of course after a long day of walking, shopping, getting wet, and the Roman Baths... we were hungry and we knew just the place to hit the spot...... I'm talking about Pizza Hut of course! Now we'd heard that Pizza Hut isn't like an American Pizza Hut and after eating there I know why....its much better... however that isn't usually the opinion people have. I quite enjoyed it though.
Well now we are going to try and cram a few more things in until November when Keri deploys for six months and I head back to the States.... and this time I am actually sad to leave England for a while. It has grown on me soo much. I love how pretty it is, I love how much there is to go see, I love trying to covert dollars to pounds... wait I don't love that... but really England is a place everyone must visit at least once.......Oh yeah and I still dream about snagging me one of those Stonehenge sheep!!
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Monday, June 1, 2009
Monday, May 18, 2009
Since we've been gone...
This was the start of our very first day back in England! I forgot about all the cute stuff I had waiting for us at home like this hooded towel!!!
This was something my mom had bought us before I left for England the first time. We were all sad because we stayed longer in Utah than originally planned and we knew she would out grow it and not be able to use it. I strapped her in anyway but she's a bit too tall for it :(Saturday, May 16, 2009
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Leash visits!!!
My best friend from the 8th grade on was in town and she came over for a visit!! This is her oldest daughter holding Cambree. I was asking her where she got her red hair from and she said (and I quote) "you!"
It's crazy how Cambree totally fits into the Milne family! She looks like one of the girls...
Could they all look any cuter? This family are professional picture takers! It must come from living in Cali and being stalked by paparazzi ;)
Cambree and Leash!!
Baby Will!!! This is Leash's newest edition and he is simply to die for! He is soo cute! Mark is going to make him into the next Tiger Tiger Woods y'all!
Mark was a total pro at handling Cambree!!
Is it just me or do they look like a cute couple?? I smell romance!
I asked Leash if Will likes older women... Will was born exactly three months after Cambree to the day! Lucky 13th!!
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Monday, April 27, 2009
Wednesday, April 22, 2009
"Rare"... was all he said!
So anyone who knows anything about me knows one simple fact... I have horrible knees! I started having knee pains when I was very very young. I remember telling my mom how much they hurt and I was like six years old. Of course there was this incident... I was six and we were out on the ski slopes. About all I remember is that I was flying down the slope and it ended up in a horrible crash at the bottom. I hurt both knees pretty bad and had to be carried around everywhere!! Needless to say I hated skiing every since but that is another story for a different time that includes dad tying a rope from me to him next time we tried skiing.
So yeah I've always had knee problems. Well then my brother started having knee issues and my mom finally took him to an orthopedic surgeon Doctor Pepper Murray. Little did we know then that Pepper would play a big factor in our lives. Well ended up Shaun has some plicka in his knee that needed to be removed and not soon after that I ended up seeing the good doctor myself and soon enough I was being scheduled for the first of many surgeries.
Well of course he found plicka in my knee as well. Plicka is a band of tissue we are all born with. In most people it sloughs off and goes away as you grow. In some people it doesn't and the band grows tighter and tighter around the joint and it causes pain and restricts movement. Well he found and removed plicka in my knee as well as arthritis. Yeah arthritis already! I was only probably 20 at the time. Well over the next ten years I've had seven knee surgeries. I had plicka grown back twice, I had a knee cap that wasn't tracking and was off 40 degrees.. A few surgeries ago he informed my that the cartilage in my knee was deteriorating and by the time I was 40 I was looking at a knee replacement in both knees. That was devastating to hear and I remembe crying in the recovery room.
So yesterday I went in for surgery number seven and when I woke up in recovery the first thing I asked my mom was the same question I always asked her first.... what did he find. I died when she told me. Of course he scaped away the arthritis, cleaned up the cartilage but he found that for a THIRD TIME the plicka had grown BACK!!!!! I said three times? I asked her what Dr. Murray had said about it and all Dr. Murray said (mind you he is a man of few words) is "rare!" That about sums up my family and the crazy things that happen to us... rare!
Well not long after as they are putting oxygen on me because I'm not breathing well.. Dr. Murray's PA came in to talk to me. He told me about the plicka growing back a third time and told me... He said about 5 people a year come in with plicka that has grown back a second time.... I was the FIRST PERSON he has ever seen where the plicka has grown back a third time!!! Yeah I shouldn't have been surprised!!!! I'm pretty sure it isn't normal to have seven knee surgeries and be told in your twenties that you are looking at a knee replacement in a few years!
Anyway so now I am upstairs doing the same drill. Ice on my knee.. knee elevated... and trying not to focus on the pain! Thank heavens for Shauns lap top!! Well after one c-section, and two knee surgeries.. I'm ready to head back to England in less than a month and join my husband!!!
So yeah I've always had knee problems. Well then my brother started having knee issues and my mom finally took him to an orthopedic surgeon Doctor Pepper Murray. Little did we know then that Pepper would play a big factor in our lives. Well ended up Shaun has some plicka in his knee that needed to be removed and not soon after that I ended up seeing the good doctor myself and soon enough I was being scheduled for the first of many surgeries.
Well of course he found plicka in my knee as well. Plicka is a band of tissue we are all born with. In most people it sloughs off and goes away as you grow. In some people it doesn't and the band grows tighter and tighter around the joint and it causes pain and restricts movement. Well he found and removed plicka in my knee as well as arthritis. Yeah arthritis already! I was only probably 20 at the time. Well over the next ten years I've had seven knee surgeries. I had plicka grown back twice, I had a knee cap that wasn't tracking and was off 40 degrees.. A few surgeries ago he informed my that the cartilage in my knee was deteriorating and by the time I was 40 I was looking at a knee replacement in both knees. That was devastating to hear and I remembe crying in the recovery room.
So yesterday I went in for surgery number seven and when I woke up in recovery the first thing I asked my mom was the same question I always asked her first.... what did he find. I died when she told me. Of course he scaped away the arthritis, cleaned up the cartilage but he found that for a THIRD TIME the plicka had grown BACK!!!!! I said three times? I asked her what Dr. Murray had said about it and all Dr. Murray said (mind you he is a man of few words) is "rare!" That about sums up my family and the crazy things that happen to us... rare!
Well not long after as they are putting oxygen on me because I'm not breathing well.. Dr. Murray's PA came in to talk to me. He told me about the plicka growing back a third time and told me... He said about 5 people a year come in with plicka that has grown back a second time.... I was the FIRST PERSON he has ever seen where the plicka has grown back a third time!!! Yeah I shouldn't have been surprised!!!! I'm pretty sure it isn't normal to have seven knee surgeries and be told in your twenties that you are looking at a knee replacement in a few years!
Anyway so now I am upstairs doing the same drill. Ice on my knee.. knee elevated... and trying not to focus on the pain! Thank heavens for Shauns lap top!! Well after one c-section, and two knee surgeries.. I'm ready to head back to England in less than a month and join my husband!!!
Monday, April 13, 2009
Hannah Montana!!
Okay okay okay.... so I've never been an actual fan of that Hannah Montana show... I mean don't get me wrong, when there is nothing on, I'll totally sit down and watch an episode or three... and yeah I might have watched a marathon before on a boring day but yeah its not like I tune in faithfully! So there I was ... watching tv when a preview came on for her movie and I just knew it was a must see!! So tonight KK, Shaun, and I went.... and as I suspected.. I LOVED IT! It was seriously so goooood! I mean is it safe for someone over twelve to admit they liked the show?
Anyway thats not the real story of the night.. oh yes my friends that came later. So after the killer movie I was like... we have GOT to go pick up the soundtrack! Seriously, again... I never really thought Mylie Cyrus was like that great of a singer but her new song "The Climb" gave me goosebumps when she sang it in the movie... or maybe it was because she was brave enough to finally take off her blonde wig and just be Mylie.....okay I'm getting off track (and you'll have had to see the movie to understand why i said that!).... so yeah we hit up Target and I ran.... actually ran to the cds. Mind you my knee is NOT healed up well enough for me to be running yet so after the run I was hobbling a bit....
So I get to the place it is suppose to be and...and ...... they were all gone! Seriously sold out! So I was like.... onto Wal-Mart! I know.... who shops at Wal-Mart right? (Jk) So we hop back in the car and we cruise to Wal-Mart. I get out of the car and decide running is out, and casually walk in... but it was a fast paced walk. So we get back to the cds and......... gone! They were ALL gone! I'm like what the heck.... so we check like all over and seriously nothing and I'm starting to get really sad...... until.......I see Kelly reach for something and my eyes get big and I see the best thing these eyes have seen in a while........THE LAST HANNAH MONTANA --THE MOVIE CD!!! You cannot imagine my joy! I started hyperventalating my sister said and I was going on and on about how I couldn't believe she got the last cd, and how great it was, and how if she let me have it they could both burn it to their iPods and I'm just going on and on... and I clutch the cd stand to help support my hyperventalating... and thats when I noticed..........this hot boy standing RIGHT behind me listening to EVERY WORD I was saying!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Omgosh I was sooo embarrased. No wonder my sister quickly handed me the cd without a fight (i mean she wanted it too people)..... no wonder my brother quietly walked away like he didn't know...... as i was going on and on and on and ON.... this guy was standing there listening to me and was probably wondering if I was a special needs kid or something!
So I'm like why didn't you guys tell me he was right there?! Meanwhile my sister is laughing SO hard that she um.... has an "accident".... oopsy don't tell her I told you that. So I'm dying, KK's laughing, and Shaun is no where to be found! So Kelly tells me she notices this guy walking down the isle as I'm going on and he actually stops and listens and Kelly is just so embarrassed cause she is holding the cd and he can see its Hannah Montana and we are clearly NOT twelve....and I'm one step away from needing to blow into a paper bag to calm down.....man I was totally dying later!!!!!!! But it was well worth it... KK snagged me the very last cd in the store and I must say it was well worth it!!
-----The end------
Anyway thats not the real story of the night.. oh yes my friends that came later. So after the killer movie I was like... we have GOT to go pick up the soundtrack! Seriously, again... I never really thought Mylie Cyrus was like that great of a singer but her new song "The Climb" gave me goosebumps when she sang it in the movie... or maybe it was because she was brave enough to finally take off her blonde wig and just be Mylie.....okay I'm getting off track (and you'll have had to see the movie to understand why i said that!).... so yeah we hit up Target and I ran.... actually ran to the cds. Mind you my knee is NOT healed up well enough for me to be running yet so after the run I was hobbling a bit....
So I get to the place it is suppose to be and...and ...... they were all gone! Seriously sold out! So I was like.... onto Wal-Mart! I know.... who shops at Wal-Mart right? (Jk) So we hop back in the car and we cruise to Wal-Mart. I get out of the car and decide running is out, and casually walk in... but it was a fast paced walk. So we get back to the cds and......... gone! They were ALL gone! I'm like what the heck.... so we check like all over and seriously nothing and I'm starting to get really sad...... until.......I see Kelly reach for something and my eyes get big and I see the best thing these eyes have seen in a while........THE LAST HANNAH MONTANA --THE MOVIE CD!!! You cannot imagine my joy! I started hyperventalating my sister said and I was going on and on about how I couldn't believe she got the last cd, and how great it was, and how if she let me have it they could both burn it to their iPods and I'm just going on and on... and I clutch the cd stand to help support my hyperventalating... and thats when I noticed..........this hot boy standing RIGHT behind me listening to EVERY WORD I was saying!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Omgosh I was sooo embarrased. No wonder my sister quickly handed me the cd without a fight (i mean she wanted it too people)..... no wonder my brother quietly walked away like he didn't know...... as i was going on and on and on and ON.... this guy was standing there listening to me and was probably wondering if I was a special needs kid or something!
So I'm like why didn't you guys tell me he was right there?! Meanwhile my sister is laughing SO hard that she um.... has an "accident".... oopsy don't tell her I told you that. So I'm dying, KK's laughing, and Shaun is no where to be found! So Kelly tells me she notices this guy walking down the isle as I'm going on and he actually stops and listens and Kelly is just so embarrassed cause she is holding the cd and he can see its Hannah Montana and we are clearly NOT twelve....and I'm one step away from needing to blow into a paper bag to calm down.....man I was totally dying later!!!!!!! But it was well worth it... KK snagged me the very last cd in the store and I must say it was well worth it!!
-----The end------
Friday, April 10, 2009
Cambree and Tabby....
Hi guys... this is my best friend Tabby.... my Nana Barbara gave it to me... we love her..
I love to snuggle with Tabby at night...
I love to snuggle with Tabby at night...
Tabby and I like to stretch out... comfy cozy....
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Cambree looooves Spring...
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England or Bust..
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