Saturday we got some chores done and then John and I went shopping for me a new bike for my birthday. I’ve been riding my blue “Iguana Giant” since I was 14. Although it’s become a classic I think it might be time to put her to rest. I still can’t decide what I want in a new bike so we’ll have to go out shopping again before I make a decision. The kids decorated the house for me that night and John took me out to dinner.
On my actual birthday I got up and went to ward council. But my friend Carrie, the Young Women’s president, made me an awesome birthday sign and some yummy cookies. So it wasn’t too bad.
(A little, funny, behind the scenes from this pic...I walked into ward council and sat down across from this huge sign and didn't even notice it. I was talking about some things that needed done and everyone in the room was sitting awkwardly looking at me and I was worried that I had walked in on a conversation I shouldn't have. When I finally took time to look at the sign and read it I realized why there had been such a weird and awkward vibe in the room! Sometimes I'm a little slow. Haha!)
I also got this great shirt from my sister. Rumor has it that she has one to match that says, "I'm Kortney." What I found hilarious though was that I already owned the exact shirt that she bought for me. She knows I love a good Walmart shirt.
After church that day I went to an open house for one of my old mia-maids that is leaving on a mission. Then I came home and the kids watched me make myself dinner. I made delicious bruschetta. We opened presents and had cake and were done by 3:30. Then I hopped in the car and picked up Heather for our trip to Salt Lake for her follow up appointment from the mastectomy she had had just a few days before. We had a nice time visiting in the car and it was actually a nice calm end to my birthday. We got to Salt Lake around 10:00, slept at her aunt's house, got up early for her appointment (which went well), grabbed some food, and then drove straight home. We were back to Meridian in time for dinner!
In other news…soccer season has begun! There was snowfall during Emmie’s first game. We froze! And technically her first game should have been last week but there was too much snow/water on the fields. Why they start soccer season the beginning of March in Idaho I will never understand. But Emmie’s team won 1-0. Emmie scored the only goal. Her team had some great plays and had a great first game.
Owen got sick…again. He ended up missing 3 days of school, a ski team party, a birthday party, and a day of skiing. Poor kid. And while I shouldn't laugh. Owen's txts that day made me laugh until I cried. Mostly because he said the school nurse was useless. I know he wasn't feeling well, but he seemed a little dramatic....
He fought fevers and a horrible cough, but luckily he was well enough to make it to his band concert. He's still first chair. Way to go Owen! Ainsley also had an orchestra concert last week. But I forgot to take a picture. Oops.
The girls and I had a girls day up at bogus with my ski friend Mandy and her daughter Ava last weekend. Owen and Ava are perfect little ski buddies so I was bummed he wasn’t there but it ended up being a fun day for the girls. Ains even made it down her first black diamond. She might be as slow as a snail but she can get down anything!
Ainsley has also started driving herself to and from school (with John or I in the car). We’re trying really hard to get the rest of her supervised driving hours finished so that she can get her license this summer. I can’t remember if I wrote this before…but Ainsley got a job teaching swimming lessons this summer. We are super excited about it! But I don’t want to worry about driving her. So we’ve got to get this done. Her driving has turned a corner and she’s getting far less scary to drive with! I’ve been amazed at how much improvement she’s made just with consistent drives to and from school every day. She’s so close!
I’ve been crazy busy at work lately. One of my favorite things about my job is how low stress it is. But somehow I got put in charge of the used book drive this year. I’ve actually enjoyed putting it all together, but it has added a level of stress. I’ve been working extra hours and it’s become one more thing to worry about. The book sale will run this next week and then it will be back to regular library business, which I think I’m ready for. I spent last week counting and organizing the 3,500 donated books, coordinating prizes for kids, and making sure everything was ready for the book sale to run smoothly. At this point I just have to hope I remembered everything!
Owen and I also got to spend some quality time volunteering at the Meridian Food Bank. He has to do community service hours for one of his classes and this is what he chose to do. John took him the last time he volunteered. So when we showed up this time he knew what to do and where everything went. I'm glad he had the opportunity and hopefully he learned a little bit of gratitude along the way.
I discovered the Family Search app today. It is so cool! I made my kids download it and they played around with it and read about their ancestors all afternoon (and if I'm being honest, during sacrament meeting). Things like that make my heart happy.
