Mommy Lessons

I find myself learning all kinds of lessons about being a mom. Two I learned today:

1. I can put a sleeping Aven down in her crib in a dark and quiet room and within 20 minutes she'll be awake and ready to play again. I take her out on errands and have her in and out of the car several times and in rattling shopping carts in noisy stores all afternoon and she won't wake up once.

2. Contrary to what my mom said, I can fit a six foot tall tree, Aven, and two dogs in my Subaru at the same time. I showed her.

Wasatch Crest Trail

Last Saturday I went on a killer bike ride up Big Cottonwood Canyon with some friends, Brad and Jessica. We did a trail called Wasatch Crest a grueling 10 mile ride that starts at the top of the canyon along Guardsman pass and follows the ridge line for about 6 miles before dropping back in the canyon at Desolation Lake. The ride starts out with almost a mile of mean up hill riding then flattens out for a bit before a major downhill ride that killed my hands from the constant braking. The whole ride took us 3 and half hours.

Self portrait.

Here's Brad and Jessica somewhere along the top of the trail, with Brighton Ski resort in the background.

Here's me taking a brief rest after a little uphill battle.

Gorgeous view looking down into the Canyons Ski resort toward Kimble Junction

Here's Desolation Lake, It's so Desolate, I wonder if it's sad and lonely, but it's so pretty.

I don't know where this is but I like it. The view's were great the whole time, some times I would look up from the trail to be surprised at the amazing view. The wild flowers were also blooming all around us.
Here's a Panorama I took of Desolation Lake.

Look At That Face . . .

"Leave me alone, my stories are on."

20 Years

Mark's high school yearbook photo. What a handsome devil.

My uncle Mark, my dad's fraternal twin, died 20 years ago in a helicopter accident at the age of 34. It's really hard to believe it's been so long. I still think about him often and how much I miss him and how sad I am that I never got to know him as an adult. I feel like I've really missed out.

In remembrance I thought I'd post a few photos of him.

Here's Mark and my dad at Mark's wedding. Mark is the one who doesn't look like the ringleader of a circus. I guess they put the groomsman in such ridiculous getups to make sure the groom looked super sharp. Wow.


Mark on a snowy day.

Mark's first line of work was in cosmetology. He owned a salon near the U of U called Shear Excellence (I'm proud to say he gave me my first perm). His dream, however, was to be a pilot. Soon after getting his pilot's license he sold his salon. It's still in business, but has been moved to the 15th and 15th neighborhood.

Showing off his pilot's license.

Wearing his "Rocky Mountain Helicopter" uniform and helmet.

This picture was taken by my grandpa when he and Mark flew up to Flaming Gorge together one spring.

I sure miss him.

Cara's 30th Birthday Party

Cara turned 30 on the 12th, I threw her a small birthday party to celebrate the occasion. We had a BBQ at Cara's Mom's house since, it has more space and isn't currently a disaster area thanks to Hurricane Aven.

Here's the Birthday girl and Aven

I didn't get too many photo's I was running around cooking or otherwise getting things done. but here is a good one featuring most of the people that attended.
Pictured above: Dustin, kissing his son Payton, being held by Amber. Rob and Jaxon in the background along with Grace's butt. 'Nique on the right with my parents Christine and Dennis in the background. Not pictured is Rob and 'Nique's daughter Gwen.

Cara's Mom Nancy holding Aven.

Videos of Aven

I finally got around to editing the video we took of Aven and Grace meeting for the first time. I thought it would be a good thing to use to test posting videos to the blog. Lucy is also seen in the background meeting Aven for the first time.

Aven's First Trip to the Malecker Ancestral Vacation Grounds

I've been excited about this trip since I found out I was pregnant. Being able to share the cabin my grandpa built in Flaming Gorge with my child was a major life event for me. This year is the 40th anniversary of my Grandpa leasing the land on which the cabin is built, which made it even more special. The only thing that would have made it better would be my Grandpa being alive to enjoy this moment with me. In one of the last conversations I had with him, he explained how he built this place for his family and how he hoped I would take my future children there for them to enjoy it the way I have enjoyed it throughout my life.

Aven and I sitting on the deck, July 2009.

My mom, Mr.Breeze, and me sitting on the deck, August 1979.

A family portrait on the deck.

Hanging out at Mustang Ridge. A favorite swimming spot that is accessible by boat or by car.

Aven and I at Mustang Ridge near the water. The water is incredibly high this year.

Aven and Grace.
It didn't get much above 60 at the cabin until we left on Monday, so Aven spent much of the trip bundled up. Thanks to Lisa Morey for the incredibly cute, warm hat that kept her little head warm.

Aven and Ian.
Luckily, it got up to 70 in places without so much tree cover, so we were able to enjoy a hike along the canyon rim at Red Canyon.

It rained quite a lot while we were there. Here's a gorgeous view of the bridge and the Gorge with rain clouds reaching down.

Thanks Grandpa, for building the cabin in this beautiful place. I'm so happy that my daughter gets to grow up there just as I did.

Sacrifices That Really Aren't

I took Aven to the doctor yesterday because she had some blood in her stool, which really freaked me out. First, she weighs 11 lbs. 5 oz.- wow! She's getting so big. The only time she looks small to me anymore is when Ian is holding her. Second, Dr. Dimick thinks she is allergic to dairy. So, for the time being I have to remove all the milk, cheese, ice cream etc. from my diet. Not an easy thing to do. From what I have read this is pretty uncommon in breastfed babies, but more likely to happen to babies from families with a history of dairy allergies. My mom and sister both have this allergy. My mom's allergy is quite extreme, my sister's is fairly mild. The good news is that there is about a 90% chance this allergy won't persist past her 3rd birthday. I may even be able to reintroduce dairy into my diet in a couple months when her digestive tract is a little more mature. This doesn't even feel like a sacrifice to me- just something I'm doing to make sure my daughter is as healthy as possible. It's an interesting opportunity to explore different ways of preparing food. Just tonight I had my first cheese-less pizza. Not too bad.