Thanksgiving 2011

This year we graced my family with our wonderful, often rowdy, presence! It was the first time that we have been all together for Thanksgiving for about four years. It was awesome to be all together.

Julia got right down to work..complete with apron!

Making the mini cheesecakes...a Thankgiving necessity!

I attempted to get a photo of all the grandkids...this was the best one. I might be able to crop some of them together to get a better one. 

Some outtakes...

I think that these two girls are going to be trouble...

A little tramp time to get out some energy...

The weather was so nice that we just let the kids run wild outside while we finished dinner. 

My mom had some finger pilgrims that they could color. 

Anthony decided that Julia needed company in order to get a good nap!

I found other ways to entertain myself...

As did my sister-in-law....

Andrew had so much fun making rolls with Aunt Tabitha...and I appreciated her letting him "help."

My contribution for dinner...a relish tray pilled with tons of yummy vegetables and incredible dip that I made. I also did a pretzel salad, an apple pie, and I'm pretty sure something else....

Grandpa taming the "beast"

Made this pretty drink...

Watched the boys all jump in to get a head start on the dishes...

Finally time to eat!!!

Julia first really Thanksgiving and her favorite was the blueberry mini cheese cakes and the Oreo pie!

The Spread!!

The Breaking of the Wishbone....Who will win? 

Ready to Rumble!!!

Welcome to the biennial Monson Thanksgiving Bowl!

I need to work on my sports shots apparently...

One of my favorites....my brother has no idea what he is doing or how excited Matthew was to throw the ball

Quarterback for the Team A... James the Fierce

Team B---Peter "The Snake", Grandpa "Tough" Monson, Glen "The Glorious" , Rachal "The Quick"

Team A---Andrew "The Turtle,"  Grandma "Amazing" Monson, James "The Fierce", and Shaun "The Storm"

(Nicknames have been added without the knowledge or consent of the players....my right as the photographer and family historian....)

There was so very aggressive tacking....

Andrew was sent over to spy on the competition

Matthew loved just cheering for everyone!!

You can't see it very well but Shaun has his tongue hanging out, trying to catch the ball!

Taking a break

Touchdown!!!

Posed shot

Right between her fingers

Rachal was amazing!

My brother took my camera so I could play a little football with Andrew...he wanted to make a touchdown

Uncle Glen let the boys play with his longboard

It was a lot of fun to be together and we were so glad that the weather stayed warm for the game

My heart....

My heart is so full right now with gratitude towards my Heavenly Father for all his many blessings and for the love and support He provides for me both through the Holy Ghost and through people that He has put in my path....

About five weeks ago, I took Julia into the doctor for I what I thought would be a simple follow-up for urinary tract infection that she had after Halloween. No big deal right? You go, they run the test, and say everything is fine... the doctor came in and explained that she still had a small amount of blood in her urine and that I would have to take her to the hospital to get a catheter put in so that they could get a better sample. Again, I thought that this would be a simple procedure...painful but simple...they tried for 20 minutes and couldn't get the catheter in...it was absolutely horrible!!! Julia was screaming and terrified...I was crying..(she still cringes when I have to wipe her...) They then decided to do an ultrasound to see if they could see anything that way...the ultrasound actually went well...Thanks to her wonderful Daddy that could hear in her Mommy's voice that she couldn't do it alone....

The results from the ultrasound came in on Monday. The nurse told us that Julia had a cyst on her bladder that was stopping the bladder from completely draining...thus causing an infection.  She also said we would have to go see a specialist at Primary Childrens about having it removed...my heart literally sank and my hands started shaking....I was stunned. The nurse said she would make the appointment and get back to me. Anthony and I immediately began planning for a trip to Utah and who we would have babysit and what we do. I was really nervous about driving to Utah in the winter and was very thankful when the nurse called back and said that after talking to the doctor about it, they realized that there was a specialist in Idaho Falls and that we had an appointment December 15. TENDER MERCY #1

The next five weeks were filled with antibiotics and Tylenol to try and keep the infection at bay. Our family held a special fast for her and began praying for her daily....I have been so moved by peoples willingness to pray and offer support. (I just wasn't up to posting it....sorry to those that didn't know.) Not knowing was the hardest...and for those that know me, they know I'm a planner and this was a true test for me. I felt the prayers strongly and felt at peace about what was happening and that everything was going to be okay...this doesn't mean that I wasn't stressed or worried ... just as peace...I was able to handle it and do what I needed to till we could see the doctor. TENDER MERCY #2

We saw the doctor Thursday.  I had nightmares all week about what he would say. Anthony and I were prepared to set a date for surgery and were very surprised that after the doctor examined Julia and then looked at the ultrasound, said that she was going to be fine and that wasn't a cyst and had never been one!!! We were stunned!! There had been a misunderstanding about what the ultrasound showed.  What Julia does have is a fused labia (the area that urine comes through). There is only a small opening and so urine is getting trapped in her vagina, which caused it to look a cyst on her bladder...confusing right?   He gave us some cream and told us to apply it three times a day for three weeks and then come back. He reassured us that this was very common and that he had seen 100s of cases like this...TENDER MERCY #3

We were able to schedule an appointment for three weeks. The receptionist response to this was that she it was amazed that they had one since she was sure that morning that they had been booked till the 19th of January...TENDER MERCY #4

And TENDER MERCY #5 and 6...we have recieved very little snow this year and had clear roads and weather the day of the appointment even though we were suppose to have a storm that day. And a wonderful friend, brought in dinner that night so we could eat when we got home and not worry about it.

I am still in shock about what happened and feel so blessed that our family has been able to receive this blessing! The Lord has been with us the whole time and blessed my little girl and us with a small miracle!

The lessons I learned was to accept that I am not in control and that I don't have to know what the future will hold.  I learned to let go and allow the Savior to help me. He loves me and my family and He knows what my future holds and what I can handle. I learned to my fully trust in my Savoir and his promises. My testimony of priesthood blessings also increased as well as the power of the atonement to offer comfort to me through the Holy Ghost.

Miracles still happen!!!