Farewell to 2008

Wow, I thought my New Year's Eve celebration last year was lame....this year takes the cake. I took the kids to their favorite restaurant: Bob Evans - gag! We watched a family movie together: Ice Age 2. I entertained myself during the cartoon by playing arcade games in the Webkinz world to earn money for Camryn and JD's Webkinz pets. I'm such a great mom. And here is the fun part...I got to put the kids to bed alone because Joel is on call tonight - yeah for me!

Just between you and me...this has been a perfectly fine New Year's Eve for me. Why? Because I'm ready to pop (being 35 weeks pregnant) and I just don't feel like doing much anyway. I'm so lame, I didn't even go to Joel's big anesthesia Christmas party this year. Oh well, there's always next...just kidding, we're outta here in 6 months!

So here I am reading my email and posting my last post for 2008. I think I might watch a movie or something.

I am kinda sad about one thing...

The whole reason I started a blog was to make a family blog/scrapbook out of it at the end of the year. I have the software on my computer from blurb, but I recently attempted to download my blog entries onto my blurb software and discovered they aren't pulling from blogspot right now. Argh, out of frustration, I emailed them and they said they are working on it. We'll see. Do any of you have any other companies that you've heard do blog to book printing?

I just got off the phone with Joel and I think it's official: This is the most pathetic New Year's Eve we've ever had. Ever. Hey, we can't complain I guess. We have 3 healthy kids, a job, a roof over our heads, great friends and family. Happy New Year to us! And you! Good luck in 2009.

Over and out.

Some people shouldn't have pets...

There is a dark cloud of pet carnage that hangs over my head. I don't know what it is, but I guess someone is telling me that I'm not fit to have pets - or maybe children for that matter hmmmmm.... Luckily, my stories of death only involve a few helpless hamsters and fish. The latest tragedy hit yesterday: Camryn's goldfish, Gabby Abby Ruby (yes that is her name) mysteriously passed on - no thanks to Mom.

So in the spirit of the holidays, I will memorialize my dearly departed (and I'll include one of Joel's pet carnage stories for interest) in a few quick memories... Warning to my sister Jenny and my friend Teresa: I know your fondness for pets so you may want to prepare yourselves...

~ My Latest Victim ~

Gabby Abby Ruby was a good little goldfish for Camryn - happily swimming around her little one gallon tank to please her owner. I thought I was doing a good thing by cleaning out her fish tank yesterday. I dumped out the water (like I was told to do at the pet store), added fresh water and put Gabby Abby Ruby back in. I forgot to condition the water (which I didn't think was that big of a deal with a goldfish) and within the hour, little Gabby Abby Ruby passed on. Poor Camryn cried and I felt like crap. I decided to be frank with her and let her know that fish die all the time and we could just flush it down the toilet and pick out a new one. She liked the idea of that. We picked out a purple beta today. She named her Gabby Abby Ruby Sehe.

~My First Hamster~

When I was a teacher, one of my student aides decided to give me her hamster along with all of its cool little mazes, food and green little running ball. I decided to keep it in my room for the enjoyment of my pre-teens (math can be so boring sometimes). We all loved little Einstein. Well, I brought him home over the Christmas holiday break and tragedy hit. We lived in this tiny one bedroom basement apartment. The owner (who lived above us) actually dug the basement out by hand. It was designed with short people in mind. Anyway, I let my little Einstein frolick about. I felt like a good adoptive mother. So one day I let him loose and he ran behind our refrigerator. When I coaxed him out, he literally had what seemed like a heart attack in front of my eyes. I completely freaked out and called my biology major, Joel (dutifully working at Checker Auto) to find out what to do. Joel had to take care of the hamster when he got home.

~ Hamsters 2 & 3 - did I even name them?? ~

To deal with the loss of little Einstein, I purchased two little mini-hamsters to take his place. After all, I had a bunch of food and fun mazes that I couldn't let go to waste. These 2 little guys liked to escape from their house while school was out. The school custodian didn't like me because he would find them running about occasionally. My little hamsters always returned somehow. One little guy didn't return one day and we all assumed the inevitable. He was found during a bookshelf cleaning that I made the students participate in. He had somehow burrowed himself between some old flashcard boxes and died. One of my students discovered him. The custodian had to discard him. We held a lovely funeral for him - eulogy and all.

Remember, there were two. The next hamster's demise was not so pretty. Somehow, #2 escaped again (I swear the custodian was letting them out on purpose!). When this little guy didn't show up for a few days, we assumed the inevitable again. I distinctly recall the moment he was discovered. Well, my 5th period algebra students came in after lunch and demanded to know what was stinking up my room. It didn't take us long to deduce it was most likely #2. My attention immediately turned to this big sectional sofa in my classroom. I had some brave volunteers lift up the couch for me so I could find the possible carcass. To my horror, it was there and covered with maggots! I'm not kidding. It was one of the most distgusting things (2nd only to finding a deer head in our garbage can covered in maggots - thanks Frank) I had ever seen! I freaked and so did the kids.

The custodian had to call in for support from our vice-principal to throw the couch in the dumpster. The poor custodian had to spray the whole carpet down with some kind of super cleaner spray. My principal came down and put a sign on my door that said, "Pet Cemetery." I knew at that point I should not be a pet owner any longer. I gave all of my hamster accessories away to an eager student (with permission from the parent of course).

~ Joel's Hamster Story ~

When Joel and I were in high school together, I'd hang out at his house every so often. His room always had this stench to it - I figured it was just "boy" smell. Well, I now know his little secret. He had a hamster too. It bothered him at night and so he put it in his closet and forgot about it. Yup, smells like that don't leave without a fight. Needless to say, Joel and I will have no problem denying our children any hamster for a pet. I'll just let them read these two stories.

~ My First Fishies ~

My sister Andrea gave me her old 10 gallon fish tank - equipped with everything I needed to begin a new chapter in my pet saga. I was nervous, but fish seemed so easy. They were. My fish did beautifully for a long time. I remember this really cool blowfish ate some rocks and died. It was about this time that Joel and I decided to start a family - something I was deathly afraid of (gee, I wonder why?). I told Joel that if I could keep Bill, my plecostomus alive, then we could have kids. He was doing so well, getting so big and fat. I must have felt pretty good about things because I did in fact get pregnant. Guess what happened shortly after? Yup, my good buddy Bill passed on. Ironic don't you think?

I'm telling you, I'm destined to be petless. My poor kids have to deal with their pathetic mother's curse. Pray for us because I really do want a little dog someday. If you hear me talking about buying a little pup, please remind me to read my post, "Some people shouldn't have pets."

That most definitely includes me.

Ummm, Merry Christmas!

Our Christmas Letter 2008

Well, Christmas kind of crept up out of nowhere this year! I've completely run out of time to send our traditional Christmas card via "snail mail," so y'all have the privilege to read it on the blog instead. We have much to be thankful for this season. Here are a few of the reasons why our hearts are full of gratitude:

We're moving in 6 months and 14 days - yes we're counting!

We've looked at homes in Pokey, but things are getting interesting with financing. Who knows what will happen over the next few months. We're not stressed about the situation at all - we're confident the best situation will present itself soon enough.

Our family of 5 will soon swell to 6 by Valentine's Day!

Heather is counting the days down on this final pregnancy of the Gardner family - seriously! The thought of a newborn joining our family is starting to feel real to Heather - finally! JD, Camryn and Christian love to feel Mom's belly when baby is moving. They laugh hysterically when he kicks them - it's way cute. We haven't decided on a name for baby boy Gardner. If you have any suggestions, send 'em our way.

Our kids bring us great joy!

JD is in the middle of 2nd grade and having a great experience. He's a great little student and his progression is quite satisfying to watch. Soccer is his favorite sport and his little Viking's team is so fun to watch! He is actually singing in primary now! This is a huge thing for JD (and Heather)! I think it has something to do with the fact that his mom is the primary chorister. The highlight for the year was watching JD get baptized. It was a sweet memory for all of us.



Camryn just turned 5 and is loving her preschool experience. She is quite a social butterfly - always inviting friends over for playdates. She is Christian's 2nd mother and best friend. Her days are filled with imaginative play, singing and making lots of cards to share. Currently her favorite song goes something like this: "Joy to the world that Barney's dead. We barbequed his head. We flushed it down the toilet, we flushed it down the toilet...." Thanks JD. If Camryn had her way, she'd get to eat treats all day and have a birthday party every week. She has a zest for life and we're so glad she decided to join a family full of boys!


Christian kills me. He's got a great sense of humor - we love it. Something clicked in his brain a few months ago and he hasn't stopped talking since. Ever. He is a wonderful balance between JD and Camryn. His brother and sister adore him (most of the time) and love to wrestle and chase him around. He has no problem showing his "feminine" side: wearing dress-ups, playing with dolls, playing with all the neigborhood girls and enjoying the occasional (ok, everyday) Barbie or princess movie. He has just recently shown interest in legos - wahoo! We have no shortage of those around! Christian will be turning 3 in a couple of months and I know he'll love his first friend birthday party.

Joel and Heather are constantly dreaming of our not too distant future. We've been on this medical road for nearly eight years. Has it been worth it? I'll let you know in a few years! Actually, it's been a wonderful journey. I don't regret it at all. We've met wonderful friends along the way and have a gained a deeper appreciation for poverty, hard work, faith and family.

We love all of you and hope your year has been memorable. May the good Lord bless each of you and your loved ones this coming year. We leave you with a wonderful thought/scripture that has brought us great peace and comfort in this complex world:

Be still and know that I am God, Psalm 46:10.

We love you!

Joel, Heather, JD, Camryn, Christian and baby boy #3

Count my many blessings...

I know, I know, I totally suck. I haven't kept to my once-a-week entry! Oh well, my blog book (that I'm going to print off in January - has it nearly been a year???) won't mind much.

Joel and I were fortunate enough to take the kids (all 3 3/4 of them) back to Utah for a little R&R with our families. Actually, the REAL reason we spent 2 fun-filled weeks in Utah was so that Joel and I could take a trip up to Pokey and look at houses! That was our favorite part anyway (sorry family - I really love you, but if you only knew how much I want to move on with my life!). The hospital is taking such great care of us: our tickets, rental car, gas, related food etc were all paid for! We are soooo not used to this kind of treatment - I love it!

Now, how do we get them to pay for our house??? ha ha

Anyway, before I get ahead of myself, I need to post some memories and pictures about our adventures while in Utah. Get ready for a ton of pics. You'll just have to wait to hear about our house hunting trip next post. Some things might be in the works anyway......

OK, first thing first...

Joel and I are so thankful to have the incredible families that we have. We've grown quite fond of them since we've lived so far away (ha ha). We can hardly wait to move a short 2-3 hour drive from them. Both sets of parents are so supportive and helpful. We love to hang out with our brothers, sisters, brothers-in-law, sisters-in-law, nieces and nephews. We're lucky.

So in the season of Thanksgiving, here are a few of my favorite people that I'm most thankful for:

My mom & dad: they've been married for like a hundred years.
My dad: he just finished his last round of chemo and is tired, but doing well!
My Grandma Zesta and her cute husband, Charles.
My hilarious brother Frankie & awesome wife Lisa
My sister Andrea and her fabulous new hubby, Mark
My Joellie - my best friend

JD, Camryn and some of their cousins

Christian and his chicka cousins.
Chistian is surrounded by girls at home and in both families. He's going to make a fantastic husband some day!
Lisa, he's still asking to play with Sophie!

My brother and nieces

4 generations: My mom, grandma and daughter.
This is my only living grandparent. I have so many fond memories of her. She is 95 and getting frail. I don't like the idea of losing her. I'm grateful we could be together for Thanksgiving. Camryn wispered in my ear before we took this picture that she loved her "old grandma!"

This one's for you Jenny...

Grandpa Bagley bought a gingerbread house kit for the kids to work on. I had to hurry and take a picture because I figured this masterpiece wouldn't last long.
I was right.

OK, enough of my family. On to Joel's fam. We come from 2 large families and so trying to squeeze everyone in is a bit of a challenge. Luckily, we were able to share a baby blessing, early Christmas celebration and of course, nachos and santa shakes (a Gardner tradition) with almost everyone (miss you uncle 'Thaniel :( ). Here are a few pics of the great time spent with my "other" family. Again, we are so lucky...

Our newest niece, Aliyah (did I spell that correctly Brit?) on her blessing day.

4 generations again! Joel is lucky enough to have all of his grandparents still going strong. Grandpa & Grandma Gardner have always been so gracious towards us.

Christmas in November - turning out to be a Gardner tradition. So fun!

"When are we going to start opening presents already??!!"
I swear, Camryn was so excited to get an early start on Christmas. She asked when it was going to be her turn at least a dozen times.
Like father, like daughter...

Camryn and her favorite "girl Gardner cousin," SarahJD and his favorite "guy Gardner cousin," Joseph
We are so lucky to have incredible aunts and uncles for my kids (on both sides).
This is Steve, our Chinaman uncle. He's been in China for 5 or so years (is that right Cristie?) and is so affectionate towards all of his nieces and nephews.

Josh (Joel's brother) and Melodie were "lucky" enough to have us give to them this year. When we were in Chicago, we stopped by the Hershey factory store and bought the "World's Largest Chocolate Bar!" 5 pounds of creamy bliss if you ask me.
Our goal is to fatten you up Melodie!

I'm sorry, but my Christian is so dang cute! He was elated to get a "hippity hop Mickey Mouse ball" from Gammy & Grandpa. Doesn't that make you feel good Cristie??

We ended our trip with a visit to see the lights on Temple Square with my brother Frank and his family. Our kids are the same age and love each other.
It was a nice way to end our trip.

So can you see now why Joel and I have so much to be thankful for? The only thing I regret about our trip is not being able to visit everyone we wanted to see. We really wanted to see your new gorgeous baby Randy & Caroline! Sorry! There just isn't enough time when we're Utah - it drives us crazy! Maybe next time.

Well, it's late and I'm tired so I'm going to hit the hay. Actually, I don't really sleep much anymore. I go through serious insomnia when I'm pregnant. The good thing is that I get to ponder a great many things. The bad thing is that I'm often tired and ornery during the day. I guess it's a good thing I don't sleep - I need all that time to repent....and count my many blessings!