Book Review: Harvesting the Heart

Once again, another book by Jodi Picoult. I just love her style of writing. She generally creates a story from multiple points of view so you can get an understanding of how a couple of the characters view this story. Harvesting The Heart was a really good book. I loved it. I'm not normally into girly books, but this caught my eye.
Here is a bit of a summary:
Paige has some significant demons in her past to overcome. When she was five, her mother disappeared. An only child, she was raised by her father. When she was 18, she had an abortion. This led to a breakup with her boyfriend, and, worried that her father might somehow discover her secret, she chose to run away. She met Nicholas at a diner where she was working. They dated about 4 times, got married, and started their life. He was much older than her and she was only 19. He is in the Harvard Medical School so she never sees him. 5 Years later a baby comes and this is where the story starts. Paige has such a low self image as her as a mother than she ends up leaving the baby with Nicholas for a few months to try and find her mother and to discover how to be a good mother. Maybe it isn't for everyone??

I would say to young mothers: Read this. It shows that nobody really knows the way to be a good mother and it just takes practice.

N-O Babies

just wanted to clear something up... We are not having a baby in January. My step mom, Sage is. I will have a LITTLE SISTER in January, not a child. I am very pleased with this too. We will be almost 22 years apart, but it's cool. I am closer in age with my parents, so hopefully she still thinks I am cool when I am an old foggy of 44 when she is my age. Very unlikely. I could be a freaking grandma by that age.. Gross.. (Only if I still live in Utah; you people shoot babies out FAST.) I guess I could be a cool older sister that takes her on vacations to watch my millions of kids. Haha.. I would enjoy that. I like family vacations; unfortunately my family doesn't do family vacation or I don't get invited to them (achem... Colorado.) But Anthony's family does BOMB family vacations (ACHEM... Yellowstone.) Actually, I went to Disneyland this summer with my family, but we only went because I invited myself and my mom to my aunts family vacation. (Creeper, don't mind if I do.) Rambling much? check yes. I have an hour break before my Literature of the Sacred class and I thought the procrastination of homework would take longer. Nope and score.

Anyways, we are just waiting for Anthony's MCAT scores. Should get them next Saturday. I am really nervous. I know he did great, because he is GENIUS! We have a couple schools picked out. We are thinking University of Arizona. He can get his MBA in this program too. Just in case Obama screws our life even more. We are also thinking Oregon University and just this last week I convinced him to look into Hawaii. (Beach? Check yes.- ) Also, Anthony is doing research right now for BYU. It is cancer research and he is thinking that he will get invited to ACR. This is where researchers go to present their cancer research. Right now Anthony is doing work on Macrophages. If he can slow them down it will slow down the growth of cancer. I think, I don't understand 95% of the vocabulary he uses when discussing this. He works with his professor who is the number one published cancer researcher in the nation. Way to go Anthony? YES. So if he goes to the ACR chances of him getting into the U of U are astronomical. We aren’t sure if we want to stay in Utah, but if he got accepted it would be so hard to say no. The U is definitely one of the lower rated medical schools in the country (in fact, Anthony despises how Utah glorifies it), but it is close to home which awesome. I guess we will see.

As for me, I applied to do my student teaching last Wednesday. I won't know where I am going until the end of December though. I am pretty excited. Sorry for the rambling, but I was super bored.

Infected with Perfection

This is one of my favorite blogs to follow. I came across this article and I thought that every woman should read this and discover their personal worth. I feel that in the society we live in (Utah's Bubble) that women try to be perfect though their lives never are truly perfect. We have so much pressure to be attractive, smart, homemakers, crafty, trendy... well it needs to stop. It doesn't matter how the world sees you; they aren't happy.

It is so important that we embrace our imperfections, because they aren't truly imperfections. They are what make us the person our family and friends love.

The Disease called "Perfection."

Not Much..

Not much as been going on lately. Just school and work. That is our life. However, we were able to do some fun things this past weekend.

I watched my friend Stefanie's baby, Braxton. He is so cute. (His father was Preston who passed away 2 weeks ago.) He is such a cutie. The happiest baby I have ever seen. This is what he looked like when she dropped him off:

He is constantly smiling and I love it! I hope I have a baby that is as good as him. Unfortunately, I had to change a poopy diaper and it was kind of gross, but I managed. He was so good the whole day. I even took him grocery shopping. He was getting fussy so I did this:

And it worked. He fell asleep like this. Worked like a charm; you mothers out there should try this for sure. When we left, he fell asleep in the car and I am pleased to say that I got him out of this carseat and laid him down in the house without him waking up. I am professional. People should really trust me with their children more often.

After I babysat him, Anthony and I went to the BYU game vs Nevada Reno. It was fun, but I am glad we decided against getting season tickets this year. They are disappointing this year. It may have to do with the fact that the QB is a freshmen, and under that condition I think that he is performing well. I sure wouldn't be able to do that well with this being my first season. Lay off of him people! He is a just a kid!

After the game we went and saw Dinner for Shmucks. It was sorely disappointing and really dirty. I got uncomfortable and I thought I was immune to crude humor (unfortunately) But I have to admint it was semi hilarious at time.

Also on the Primary note... I love it. Though I think I will be getting sick quite often. How it possible for their noses to be constantly running?! I don't get it. Anyways, I love teaching/learning the songs for singing time. It is so fun. I really like when they nursery kids sing I am a Child of God. They know every word. Their parents must be doing their job! There are only 10 kids in the entire kids section. 1 kid in Primary and the rest are in Nursery, so really I am in Nursery the whole time except when I do Sharing time with the 1 primary kid. It is fun, but I do miss Sunday school and Relief Society. We are working out the schedule where I might be able to go to Sunday school at least once a month and maybe R.S., but we will have to see.

Day 15... SH sH shuFFLE

Day 15 - Put your iPod on shuffle: First 10 songs that play

1. Enemy- Eve 6

2. Wedding Dress- Matt Nathanson

3. I Go Back- Kenny Chesney

4. What's Your Fantasy- Ludacris

5. Down- Something Corporate (Favorite song!)

6. Rock That Body- Black Eyed Peas

7. The Party Song- Blink 182

8. Good News- Something Corporate

9. 11AM- Incubus

10. Summer Is Over- Allred

Wow, my iPod never shuffles this good... I wish it chose my favorite songs every time!

My Family. Day 14. I skipped a few.

Day 14 - A picture of you and your family
So I skipped a few... They were repetitive... I have a lot of family so this may take multiple pictures, and I can't pass up an opportunity to show off our gorgeous families.
You don't mind though, right?

This is my Handsome father, Russell. And I just realized my eyes are closed.
Don't worry about it.

And this is my B-E-A-U-TIFUL mother, Nicole.


My Dad's Family. Me, Annica, Dad, and Sage.

Soon to have another little girl!
YipEE

My mom's family with her butt load of kids. haha.
Just TEasin.
Braxty, Riley, Ron, Mom, A Boy, Madison, Keaton, and Taylor

And I am ashamed to say this is the only picture I have A's whole family. I suck.
Me, Anthony, Tabi, Joe, Casey, Brit, Sarah, Josie, Eileen, Steve, Katie, Chris and Ashley.
Bigger family than both of my together! Well, maybe. I'm not counting.
And will be growing even more. Love it.

Until We Meet Again, Preston

One of my best friends, Stefanie Carver, lost her husband to loss of brain funtion on Tuesday, September 14. They were married just over a year ago and they have a son, Braxton D Lodeserto, who is 9 months old. You can read his obituary here.

I just can't even imagine what she is going through right now. She is being so strong for herself and her little boy. I can't even comprehend losing a husband at age 21. He in a serious ATV accident over Labor Day weekend, where it rolled and landed on him cutting the flow of oxygen to his brain. He was life flighted to the Provo Hospital where he was in the ICU for almost a week and a half with no brain activity. The thing that gets me is that his spinal cord was still funtioning so he had reflexes such as he would squeeze your hand, and when he heard noise he would turn his head and LOOK at you. Yes, his eyes would be open and look at you. But he wasn't awake and he was comprehending what his eyes saw, because his brain wasn't working to register the sight. I dont' know how his family was so brave. If i saw that i would fight and say that he was alive, but the doctors were very understanding and simply told them that he was gone and just his body was there.

It has been a week and half fight for his family throught this struggle. I feel terrible. Life is so short. I can't imagine what their families are going through, but my prayers are with them.