UVU-phoria

D & C 5: 01-09

(Davies & College)
"And there is light at the end of the (College) tunnel!"

This Friday May 1st 2009 Justin and Ashley will be UVU graduates Class of 2009! Woo Hoo! Justin with a Degree in Political Science and Ashley with a Degree in Accounting. A lot of people are probably thinking "well it's about time!" and I must admit that I am one of those people, but I also want to be the first to congratulate these two on their hard work, dedication and determination. College life isn't all fun and games (well at least not for Ashley:) and it definitely takes a lot of stamina and perseverance, but now that it is over I think they will both agree that it was well worth the effort.

I know that I harassed them from time to time for taking so long, but in all fairness they had to work a lot of hours to achieve this accomplishment and I'm sure it was much harder than it looked. Here's why....

Ashley paid for every semester of school except for one... all of her books...two years of living expenses (the two years she lived away) including her 1st and last months rent upfront & cleaning deposits! (not to mention... paying for all of her personal expenses like.. car... gas... phone...hair...etc!

Justin also paid for six years of living expenses including all of the necessary deposits.... his own books and every semester except the first year and a half after his mission...(we helped with those since he came home from Denmark flat broke:) Also his personal expenses, gas.... food... clothes... food.... dates... food:)! Justin also got involved in Student Government and received scholarships which helped him out financially. He was Chief Justice in 2006/2007 and Student Body VP 2007/2008....Go Wolverines!!

Sorry for the bragging, but I think I'm entitled for two reasons..... I'm a Mother and a Blogger! ha ha ha:D I guess what I'm really trying to say is ....I love you both and I'm very very proud!

Congratulations Justin & Ashley....YOU DID IT!

UVU FUN...

Justin's sisters helping him with his campaign

Team UNITE

Decking the halls

and the windows:D

Sister Support

Making delicious Cinnamon Almonds

for rush week...I think we made a million batches:D

Hundreds of cones for the almonds...mmmmm

Justin speaking at the bill signing event/party with Governer Hunstman & President Monson when UVSC became UVU! Justin spent a lot of time on Capital Hill lobbying for this, so it was very exciting when it finally happened and was one of the coolest things that I have ever been to. I am still mad at myself for not checking Jake and Karli out of School for it:(

Here is the ballroom where the event was held. There is another room behind this one for the overflow of people that stood and watched. It is also where they served pizza and cake before it began. The balloons attached to the ceiling came floating down as the bill was signed while the band played along....so cool!

This is a shot of Justin speaking with the big screen above his head. He gave such a great speech that was full of wolverine pride and the students let out a big cheer when he was done:D

If you look closely you can see the President of UVU, Governor Huntsmen, and a smiling President Monson all looking at Justin as he gives his speech. I'm telling ya....nerves of steel that kid N E R V E S O F S T E E L !

Justin & Joseph presenting President Monson with his very own UVU Tee shirt. (He liked Justin's tie:)

When UVU had a contest to name the student section Justin entered it using an alias name (so the committee wouldn't know it was him) and he won!! It will be forever called....

The MAWL

(Mighty Athletic Wolverine League)

Cool name don't ya think?

Arriving early to the game when they
unveild the new name

Go Wolverines!
Thanks Justin & Ashley it's been a lot of fun
...but I'm glad you're done!

April Showers

...bring May Weddings

Oooooo

La

La!

Ashley's first bridal Shower was last Saturday, hosted by some of her cute High School friends. Six girls were missing but the ones that were there had a great time gabbing and catching up on each others lives. Lindsey (Mano) announced she's pregnant, Jessica is due next month, Ali (blonde) had a baby girl four weeks ago, and Mandy ran a half marathon that morning!

Lindsay (Cooper) Ali, Lindsey, (Mano) Jessica, Ashley, Ali, & Mandy

Ashley was so lucky to have such a great group of friends in High School. I miss those girls keeping me up late at night with their fun games (Mandy) and loud giggles (Lindsey) and I can't wait to see them at the wedding!

Lost & Found

Have you ever lost something valuable... maybe an earring or a pair of expensive sunglasses? Don't you hate it when that happens? I know I do, especially when it is something that you love and is irreplaceable like a favorite photo. For the past four or five years I thought this picture of Karli was lost... gone forever... a distant thing of the past... it's precious imagine slowly fading from my mind. So when Pat walked in the kitchen with it in his hands on Saturday I screamed with excitement, then jumped on his back and started punching him while trying to grab it from his hands. He was laughing... the kids were laughing and I was so happy but kind of mad at the same time....it was quite the scene:D Let me explain.... for all these years this photo has been in Pat's desk drawer along with a stash of other pictures that he loves, and here is the frustrating part... I have asked him sooo many times when I needed a picture of Karli for various reasons if he knew where this photo was and guess what....he never KNEW what I was talking about!
As to what Karli was doing when this photo was snapped.... your guess is as good as mine:D

Happy Birthday

....to my blog

She's one year old today:D

Here's how it all began

Jake Justin Patrick Lisa Karli Ashley

Well I finally got around to posting my first blog entry! I decided about a month ago to do this and it has taken me this long to get around to it. I was searching for a family picture to put on here and came across this one. It is about a year and a half old so I guess it's time for a new family photo shoot. Those are always fun aren't they? I have to admit they are much easier now that my kids are grown up. No more moaning and groaning and whining and crying.... Oh wait I still have Pat to deal with!

We still haven't got around to that new family photo shoot...too busy blogging I guess;D

Rising "young" Star?

Check out this 47 year old Scottish Singer who auditioned last week on Britain's Got Talent (Britain's version of American Idol.) When she stepped out on stage the audience booed and laughed at her because of her appearance, but even with frizzy hair and bushy eyebrows Susan Boyle wasn't nearly as ugly as the crowd's reaction.

Happy in her own skin.... Susan proves that beauty isn't only skin deep:)
You Tube's newest sensation with over 30 million views in less than a week. Grab a tissue and watch it here

Rockstar

KARS!

I think Karli "rocks" and here's why....

As a precaution Karli was put on blood thinner medication while she was in the hospital for Pneumonia/Pulmonary Embolisms this past December & January (read about it here here and here.) The plan was for her to stay on the drug for the next six months and have her blood tested once a month to make sure it was thin enough so blood clots could not form. Unfortunately it wasn't that easy and she ended up having her blood drawn once a week instead of once a month. It took about 2 months to adjust her medication to the right dosage. During this time the Doctor suggested that we take Karli to a specialist who would be more qualified to regulate her blood for the duration of her treatment.

No big deal.... or so we thought, but at her first appointment the doctor revealed to us that one of the blood tests they took while she was in the hospital had come back positive for an auto immune disorder where her blood cells fight against each other and cause blood clots to form. The Doctor also told us that there was a chance the test was inaccurate because of how sick she was when it was taken, and asked her to come back the next week and retake the test and maybe possibly rule out the disease for good.

A week later Karli went in and had her blood drawn yet AGAIN and the next day we went back to hear the results. Karli was worried and thought it was going to be bad news, but I kept reassuring her to think POSITIVE for a NEGATIVE result:D After waiting anxiously for about 40 minutes, a couple of Doctors came in and told us that the results had not come back yet and then spent the next 40 minutes telling us what to expect if she does have the disease. I was getting a little nervous and kept thinking "why are they going into such great detail and scaring us with all this information... why don't they just wait and tell us this later if necessary? After drawing diagrams and showing us charts and throwing out words that went way over our heads we finally heard something that perked our ears with excitement, "if the test comes back negative you will be able to go off the blood thinner by July 1st, maybe sooner!" I said a little prayer and kept my fingers crossed.... it didn't help.
Karli was diagnosed with Cardiolipin Antibody Syndrome the next day. We will be meeting with the Doctors next week to discuss it with them further but for now they are saying that she will be on blood thinners for the rest of her life:( She was devastated and it broke my heart to hear her cry. She is so young! Why her? Why couldn't it be me instead?

One of the things she is the most sad about is not being able to do some of the things she loves to do like snow ski and wake board:( It definitely will take some of the fun out of her Senior trip to Lake Powell.
Nobody adjusts overnight to something that will significantly impact the rest of their life, but Karli has a stiff upper lip and is dealing with this like the true Rockstar she is!