flashback friday: how we met (according to me)

It was June 1999. I had just moved to Provo after attending Ricks College for two years, and I was transferring to BYU and looking for a job before starting my junior year that Fall. I had decided to move into Centennial Apartments, because my good friend from high school, Kristen, lived there. I drove Betlnut from Fallon and arrived in Provo where I leased an apartment for the summer right next door to Kristen. I found a job within a couple of weeks working at the International Office at BYU as the J-1 specialist (immigration stuff).

I began attending the singles ward and Kristen introduced me to some of her friends in the ward. One of the first people Kristen told me about was a guy named Wade who her cousin had been dating. Her cousin had gone home for the summer, but Kristen (and myself) still considered him "taken." She insisted that I meet him and I still remember very vividly the first time I saw him. Kristen and I had gone to his apartment and were standing in the living area when he came out of the hallway and sat down to chat with us in his living room. I was wearing a green dress with a white button up collared shirt over it. I don't remember if it was Sunday, or if I was dressed for job interviews. Wade was wearing a short sleeved green/white/tan striped "towel" fabric shirt and shorts. He was also wearing a carved bone necklace (from the mission, I think). I was introduced and we all talked. I thought he was good-looking and very nice. He also came across as a bit of a tease and I felt comfortable around him and thought we'd be easy friends. I really didn't think much more of him at the time, because I assumed he was unavailable.

Over the next few weeks, I met another guy, who I started to "hang out" with. During a ward trip to the Manti Pageant, Wade ended up laying his head in my lap and falling asleep while I was flirting with this other guy (a little awkward). During this time, Wade and I spent some time together, but I never intended to be more than friends. I remember talking to him about the other guy (and getting teased by him about it), but nothing more. After only a few informal dates with the other guy, he moved home for the summer. I was somewhat twitterpated by him and we planned to call each other and keep in touch until he came back about a month or so later.I think we talked on the phone once or twice, but it didn't last long.

At one point Wade and I ended up playing racquetball together. I was still interested in the "other guy" so I was not on my game with Wade. Whoever won had to pay to take the other person to the new "Star Wars" movie that had just come out. He had never played racquetball before, so I taught him and by the end of the session, he had whipped me pretty well. I remember acting very goofy and not trying to impress him at all (in hindsight, maybe not trying to impress him did impress him?).

Anyway, one day I gave him a ride to the store when his car "The Monty" broke down. During the trip I invited him to go to a party in Provo Canyon with some of my friends. He teased me and asked if it was a date, and I gave an adamant "NO." At that party I started to see him as a guy that I could date, rather than just a friend. We flirted and teased each other. We walked along the Provo River and talked about insects (for fly-fishing) and roasted hot dogs and marshmallows over the campfire.

That night I forgot all about the "other guy," and started thinking about how I could spend more time with (and get a date with) Wade!

Easter

A few of our best pictures from Easter morning.
They all looked so cute dressed up for church,
but of course I didn't get a photo!

Pete and his loot.

Ben trying out his new Easter toothbrush (since when does the Easter Bunny bring toothbrushes?!).

Jack the melt-your-heart brave.

my husband, the scientist

It's a pretty big deal to get a paper published in the scientific community. Wade has only had a few published during his 5 years as a graduate student (which is pretty normal) and the following is an abstract from his final paper during that time, which was just published in the Journal of Bimolecular NMR. So, congratulations Wade for your hard work!

Use of reverse micelles in membrane protein structural biology
Wade D. Van Horn Æ Mark E. Ogilvie Æ Peter F. Flynn

Membrane protein structural biology is a rapidly
developing field with fundamental importance for elucidating
key biological and biophysical processes including
signal transduction, intercellular communication, and cellular
transport. In addition to the intrinsic interest in this area
of research, structural studies of membrane proteins have
direct significance on the development of therapeutics that
impact human health in diverse and important ways. In this
article we demonstrate the potential of investigating the
structure of membrane proteins using the reverse micelle
forming surfactant dioctyl sulfosuccinate (AOT) in application
to the prototypical model ion channel gramicidin A.
Reverse micelles are surfactant based nanoparticles which
have been employed to investigate fundamental physical
properties of biomolecules. The results of this solutionNMR
based study indicate that the AOT reverse micelle system is
capable of refolding and stabilizing relatively high concentrations
of the native conformation of gramicidin A.
Importantly, pulsed-field-gradient NMR diffusion and
NOESY experiments reveal stable gramicidin A homodimer
interactions that bridge reverse micelle particles. The
spectroscopic benefit of reverse micelle-membrane protein
solubilization is also explored, and significant enhancement
over commonly used micelle based mimetic systems is
demonstrated. These results establish the effectiveness of
reverse micelle based studies of membrane proteins, and
illustrate that membrane proteins solubilized by reverse
micelles are compatible with high resolution solution NMR
techniques.

(J Biomol NMR (2008) 40:203–211)

jack the brave

Tuesday night at around 6:30pm, a can full of rice falls on Jack's third finger of his right hand. I respond to his cries to find a bloody scene, and upon inspection, see that the finger tip is cut through on one side and the nail is removed from the nail bed, "hanging on by a thread." Thoughts of a fingerless child run through my mind as our whole family drives to the ER. Jack cries/screams the whole way there. Upon arrival at the ER (well about 30 minutes after we arrive), doctor's assure that the finger laceration is common and can be repaired. There was also a slight fracture to the bone that does not need repair. "We'll stitch up the finger and re-insert the finger nail," they say, "This will stimulate the new nail to regrow," they assure me. Jack is given Morphine and sleepy drugs for the procedure. I wait anxiously in the waiting room for 40 minutes. Jack the brave arrives home with a nifty and bloody finger bandage around 1:30am.

PS- This story was no where near as calm as I made it sound, except for Wade, he was cool as ice (as usual)!

flashback friday, betlnut

The first vehicle I drove was a black 1984 Chrysler Laser, Turbo. I got it at my surprise 18th birthday party (which wasn't really a surprise, because my mom threw me a "surprise" birthday party pretty much every year). Anyway, I was surprised to find this little black car on our front lawn in May of 1997 when I arrived home, complete with the license plate "betlnut" (I was a big Beatles' fan, so my mom took the liberty of registering it for me).

(this is not an actual picture of my car, but the closest I could find on Google)

Betlnut was no ordinary car. It could talk. It told me when my door was open: "The door is ajar." It told me when my oil was low: "Check oil level." It reminded me to fasten my seatbelt: "Please fasten your seatbelt." It also told me when my windshield wiper fluid was low: "Windshield wiper fluid is low." Yeah, it was kind of like "Kit" on "Night Rider," but not anywhere near that cool.

I spent the last few months before heading to college with my new ride. I learned how to drive a manual pretty quick and it was a lot of fun. I taught a friend how to drive it one day when we ditched our 8th hour chemistry class. Another time, I got stuck about 1/3 of the way from my school to my home when the check oil light came on and smoke was coming from under the hood. I decided to pull over and wait for someone to bring me more oil. Even after putting a full quart in, it continued to leak and smoke. I found out that betlnut had a crack in it's engine so we were losing oil at an alarming rate. Eventually a temporary fix made it possible to drive the car again.

Betlnut made the trip to Rexburg, ID with me in the summer of 1997 (and sat in the parking lot most of the time). It also made the trip home from Rexburg, ID a few times. One trip included driving about 15 miles a hour through a snow storm where I could see nothing but the red tail lights of the semi in front of me. I also got soaked from the snow entering through a broken seal on the drivers side door.

Another trip home from Rexburg, ID in particular was very memorable. Me, my roommate, and a friend from my hometown all made the trip together and on the way back to Idaho, just North of Jackpot, NV, betlnut unexpectedly died. Luckily, a woman saw us and stopped to give us a ride back to Jackpot. The woman who picked us up took us to her church leaders home and he knew the local LDS church leaders. Within an hour or two, we were given a hotel room to stay in and a free meal at the local casino. We ended up having to stay two nights in the bustling town of Jackpot, NV (They have a hotel and several casinos, but no grocery stores!). However, my impatient roommate took off without telling me where she was going. I found out several days later that she had hitchhiked with truckers back to Rexburg and arrived there safely. I was left to share a hotel room with a guy that I barely knew (I wasn't about to ask the nice people who were letting us stay for free to give us two free rooms). I don't even remember his name now, but he was a very nice return missionary (which at the time, meant "way too old for me") and we played cards A LOT! The nice people from the local LDS ward, who we never even met, by the way, also had my car towed to Twin Falls and fixed for me. They then arranged a ride for us in to Twin Falls to pick up Beltnut and sent us on our merry way back to Rexburg, and they insisted on paying for it all themselves!

Beltnut took a break my sophomore year of college and sat in my mom's yard until my brother Todd fixed it up again and then the car headed to Provo with me in the summer of 1999. I was driving Betlnut when I met Wade (that must be the reason that he was interested in me!). Betlnut never drove for long, it would work for a few months and then sit, unable to drive, in the parking lot of whatever apartment I lived in. Although I owned the car for about 3 years, Betlnut probably only got about a year of actual drive time.

Betlnut had been sitting in the parking lot of Centennial Apartments for several months and would eventually be towed, when Wade I were married and moved out of the apartments in 2000. At first, I thought that was a good solution. But then I learned that they charge you for impounding your vehicle and make you pay the fees eventually, whether you want the car or not, so we had to come up with a better solution. We decided to give it away, but had to call around quite a bit before we found a junk place that would come and pick up the poor car without charging us money to do so. I left the title in the glove box and keys in the engine since I wouldn't be home when they came to tow it away (yeah, real sentimental, I know).

For the next few years, I drove Wade's 1988 Mitsubishi Montero Sport. Those of us who knew it, knew it as "The Monty." I used the Monty to commute to work at Alpine Elementary for 2 years. In 2002, we bought our used 2002 Toyota Corolla, still used by Wade to commute to work. One year ago, I upgraded to a Dodge Grand Caravan. Talk about a sweet ride! It doesn't get any better than this. Eat your heart out Betlnut! (Seriously, I love my minivan, and I never thought I'd say that).

weekend in the smokies, part I

Here are a few of Wade's amazing photos from our trip to the Smoky Mountains last weekend (It was a great trip. I'll get around to posting about it with some pics of the peeps soon!).

Smoky Mountain View

Smoky Mountains

Laurel Falls

Newfound Gap

Old Growth

Rainbow Falls

Smoky Mountaineer Home

there's a monster in your mouth! (and other tricks I've used to get teeth brushed)

*To my future self: These ideas actually worked to get Pete to let me brush his teeth. Try them with the twins, it just might save your sanity.

1. Pin him down on the ground and tickle him. While his mouth is open wide with hysterical laughing, brush as fast as you can. He even asked to be tickled sometimes.

2. "There's a monster (or car, truck, dinosaur, Lightning McQueen, etc.) in your mouth!" I usually play it up A LOT, by saying things like: "I see it, way in the back!" "Oh, there it is, it's still there!" "I almost got it, just a little bit more!"

3. Tell him about germs (really, the truth, not the overly-simplified kid-version). They are small viruses or bacteria that live all around us and can make us sick if you don't keep yourself clean (also works well for washing hands, taking a bath, cleaning up at the dinner table, etc.). I usually say something like, "Let's get the germs off your teeth." Once again, play it up: "Almost got em all!" "Oh, I missed a spot right there." etc.

4. Play up how sparkly and shiny his teeth can be after we brush. It helps to have him stand in front of the mirror so he can see when his teeth are clean and sparkly. Sounds so simple, but it works for us.

5. Your turn, my turn. We've done several versions of this: Pete brushes his own teeth and then he decides when it's my turn to help him brush his teeth, OR he takes a turn brushing my teeth with my toothbrush and then I get a turn to brush his teeth with his. I'm sure there are other variations.

6. Race: We each brush our own teeth and instead of racing to see who can be done first, we race to see who can get their teeth the shiniest. I usually give some encouragement along the way: "My teeth are so shiny, I'm gonna win!" "You missed a spot right there in front." "Keep brushing, they're looking good." etc.

7. Another favorite of his is just a made up "brusha, brusha, brusha, brusha" sound, kind of like a train "Chuga, chugga". I do this and then randomly shout "STOP!" He has to brush as long as I make the noise and then freeze when I shout stop. Then I'll start over again with "brusha, brusha, brusha, brusha." We play the game until I've found his teeth to be sufficiently clean. He finds this hilarious.

We've also sung this song to the tune of "Row, row, row your boat":

Brush, brush, brush your teeth,
brush them nice and clean.
Brush them on bottom and brush them on top
and brush them in between.

When he stops brushing, I stop singing.

perspective

Been feeling a little down lately. Ya know, just feeling like a mommy and I need a little "perspective." I found a blog called Letters to a Parent with letters to parents from other parents. I Liked this tidbit from a woman named Marty:

"Let me tell all you moms out there that I appreciate you. Every time you say, “How many times do I have to tell you…” you are teaching your kids responsibility. When you say, “Don’t hit, bite, kick…” a hundred times a day, you’re promoting peace. Every day when you’re still there, you’re teaching your children trust and dependability and love. You may not realize what you’re doing, but you are changing the world, one kid at a time, one day at a time."

“Be not weary in well-doing, for ye are laying the foundation of a great work,and out of small things proceedeth that which is great.”

I also keep coming back to something I read in the book First Things First, by Stephen Covey (okay, so I only read the first chapter). He shared a story about a 23-year-old mother of two who was diagnosed with terminal cancer and was in the hospital. She said, "I would give anything just to go home and change a messy diaper."

Perspective.

saturday: soccer & swimming

flashback friday, my grandmother the leapling

Billie Jean Grey Beach

Graduation Photo taken at 18 years old in 1946

My mother's mother was born on February 29, 1928. That's exactly 80 years ago today. She jokes that she's only 20 years old. I have many fond memories of spending time with my grandmother. I have played Rummycube and Phase 10 with her more times than I can recall. There was always something sweet to eat at grandma's house and something fun to do. She was always there for us and always happy to see the grandkids whenever we came around. She still is.

Happy 80th birthday grandma! I love you and wish I could be there with you to celebrate! For those of you who want to read some fun memories of my grandma, visit her blog here.

Here she is July 2007 with Ben & Jack,
two of her many great-grandchildren, almost 62 years later.