Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Birthdays, Trees, Lights And A Time To Be Thankful.....

I can't believe how fast Thanksgiving has come and gone. It is definitely my very favorite holiday....for many reasons:

1. Spending time with family
2. Eating....eating.....and more eating!
3. A certain someone was born on Thanksgiving Day!!!
4. A time to reflect on the MANY things to be grateful for.
The week before Thanksgiving we drove to California to look for a place to live. On the way down we stayed in Mesquite and I ran my 11th half marathon. I'm hoping to run one more before the end of the year, but I don't think it's going to happen people. Someone, please remind me that when making this coming year's new year's resolutions to not commit to something physical. I think this year I'm just going to stick with the old "I'm going to stop drinking Diet Coke this year" resolution and then fail miserably before New Year's Day is over :) Mia is also making a New Year's Resolution to lay off the DC.....Such great parenting.
We had a great time in San Diego. Bryan worked most the time we were down there and so it was up to me to go to the housing appointments. Let me just say that I am THANKFUL for GPS or I would've been a lost mess. We found a place in Oceanside and we'll be moving the middle to end of January. This is so bitter-sweet as we are really looking forward to the adventure, but I don't know what I'm going to do being so far from our family and dear friends. We just hope we have LOTS of visitors!!!
On our way back from California, we stayed in Fillmore for Thanksgiving. It was so much fun having my whole family there (except for Jeff who will be coming home in June.....YAY). The weather was so nice and so it made it so much easier cutting trees this year (a Thanksgiving tradition). There's nothing I love more than a fresh cut Christmas tree.
On Tuesday we celebrated Finn's 1st birthday at Kangaroo Zoo. This is the first time Mia has been there and couldn't get enough of it. Here's the handsome birthday boy: The highlight of the party was definitely the cupcakes......and a mighty fine cupcake it was!
And yes.......I celebrated birthday #31. Where did those 31 years go?? There's no better way to celebrate your birthday (belated) than Girl's Night Out. It's been almost 9 years since I graduated from college and I feel so fortunate to keep in contact with some of my old roommates. We spent hours laughing and reminiscing about the good ol' SUU days. Good times. And last but not least.......the lights at Temple Square.

Monday, November 30, 2009

My "Back-Burner" Blog

It seems that my blog has been put on the bottom of my checklist as of late. I have great intentions of keeping it up-to-date, but it seems that "higher priority" things have gotten in the way. But, that is going to change. When Kate passed away, 2 of my dear friends put money towards having Kate's blog printed in book-form. This meant so much to me and I was so excited to get it done, especially fearing that there could be a glitch on blogger and I could lose all of those precious memories forever. However, it was harder and more emotional than I ever thought it would be. Having her sweet life documented meant the world to me, but it was so difficult for me to click on that link and re-visit those emotions. A year and a half later, I was able to muster up the courage to do it and here is the end result.......Ta Da:So having this tangible reminder of our Angel Kate, it became clear to me that I need to be better about documenting our lives not only for us, but for our posterity. In the past I've found myself questioning whether I should post certain things, not wanting to broadcast it to the entire blogging world. These things are an important part of our lives and, therefore, I want to document them. With that being said, I have decided to finally go PRIVATE!!! It probably won't come to pass until the first of the year. So in the meantime, please send me your e-mail address in a comment or e-mail me at: marcaerosenvall@yahoo.com.

Sunday, November 15, 2009

May I Please Introduce To You.....

.....Senorita Mia!!!This year for Halloween, all Mia wanted to be was a Spanish dancer......and a darn cute Spanish dancer might I add.

She is at such a fun age right now and this Halloween was so much fun with her. Although she didn't quite understand the whole "trick-or-treating" bit, she definitely loved the candy part and was on a sugar high all day long. We went and visited great-grandma and grandpa Christensen and also grandma and grandpa Rosenvall.

Blowing kisses

Grandma has a little stuffed squirrel that Mia adores. Every time we go and visit, Mia goes straight for the squirrel and mauls it. Grandma knew how much Mia loved it and wanted so badly for Mia to have it, but it was a gift from Grandpa and was very special to her. When we went over on Halloween Grandma had bought this little kitty and put it in the place where the squirrel normally is. Mia, of course, went right for it. She took the kitty, hugged it, threw it on the floor, laid on it as it were a pillow and wouldn't let it go. I think she liked it just a little bit. Her new favorite word is "Eeeeow."

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

Roper/Rosenvall European Vacation!!!

8 Crazy American Tourists + 6 Countries in 10 Days = Good Times!
This was our sweet ride the 8 passenger Peugeot.
Check out the double decker cargo space. It's a miracle it all fit.

We took the direct flight from Salt Lake to Paris and after 9 LONG hours, it's amazing that we can manage those BIG grins!

Day 1

Paris, France

The Louvre

We spent the first 2 days in Paris. Our first destination was the Louvre. It was incredible. After spending some time there, you sure gain a greater appreciation for art.

The Mona Lisa

It was hard getting a good picture of the painting as it was enclosed in glass. Hmmm...who's she "really" looking at!

The architecture of the inside of the building was quite interesting. There are hallways upon hallways of paintings and statues.

The Eiffel Tower

We rode the elevator to the very top. It was bitter cold and the wind was blowing like crazy. However, it was absolutely beautiful. I took some pictures from the top but because of all the lights from the city, it turned out a blurred mess :(

Day 2

We stayed in a darling little villa right outside of Paris in Bailly-Romainvilliers. The second day we spent seeing the French country. Dad is a HUGE fan of old presses {apple presses, grape presses, you name it}. Let's just say that there's definitely not a shortage of them in "wine country."

You would not believe the rows and rows of vines. I can only imagine the massive amounts of wine produced.

Oh, and I can't forget to mention the PASTRIES!!! Oh My......were they ever so divine? These particular ones were my favorite.

This is exactly what I envisioned the French country to look like. I just love the window boxes with the fountain of flowers.

Asking some locals for directions. They were so sweet.....and helpful too.

Versailles

Louis the thirteenth's successor, Louis XIV, had a great interest in Versailles. He had grown up during the disorder of the Fronde, a civil war between rival factions of aristocrats, and wanted a site where he could organize and completely control a government of France by absolute personal rule. He settled on the royal hunting lodge at Versailles and over the following decades had it expanded into one of the largest palaces in the world.It's like looking out the backdoor at my courtyard.......oh wait!

The second night we spent back in Paris. If you look closely, you can see the Eiffel Tower in the background.

Day 3

We packed up and headed to our next destination.......Frankfurt, Germany. Along the way, we stopped in Reims, France and attended Sacrament Meeting at a small ward building. A few people spoke English, including the missionaries, and the whole meeting was in French. Even though we didn't understand anything that was being said, the Spirit was so strong. It was confirmed to me that the church is true regardless of where you are in the world. Everyone was so friendly and welcoming. This was such a neat experience for us.

After church we hit the road for Germany. It took us almost the entire day to drive to Frankfurt. We got there in the early evening and went and got a bite to eat. I can't believe I didn't take one picture. I must say, however, that the food in Germany was awesome!!!

Day 4

Prague, Czech Republic

The best part of the trip is that we had no plans (this is how the Roper's vacation). We had talked about spending the majority of the trip in Italy, but decided to visit Prague. I'm so glad we did because this was probably one of the biggest highlights of the trip. The city was magnificent. We stayed right in the "Centre" and spent the evening walking around and admiring the beauty of the city.

We dined at some fabulous restaurants. One great thing about Europe is their pastries and desserts {as mentioned above}. Check out those crepes!

Most every hotel we stayed in charged around $20 for Internet service. I was very grateful for Bryan's "Man Purse." He was able to take his laptop with him and connect to the WiFi in the restaurant so we could call home through Skype.

Day 5

The dollar was very weak in Europe. We had some breakfast at McDonald's one morning and it cost us nearly an arm and a leg.

We decided that we wanted to take city tour of Prague. Doesn't this picture scream "Tourist??"

The main stop on the tour was the Prague Castle. This castle is the only European castle that houses any government entity. This little quartet sat and played outside of the castle. The music just added to the ambiance. Couldn't leave Prague without having a famous "street" frank!

After the city tour we hopped in the car and headed for Innsbruck, Austria. The drive through the Austrian Alps was absolutely beautiful.Here we stopped in a little ski village. Not enough snow yet to hit the slopes.

Day 6We had the most picturesque view from our hotel room.

We got up early and drove through the Austrian Alps into Bavaria, Germany where we visited the Neuschwanstein Castle.

Neuschwanstein is one of the most popular castles in Europe. The castle was about 1/3 complete when King Ludwig II was killed in 1886. Seven weeks later, the castle was open to the public.

Jordan looks like he fits right in.

The interior of the castle was amazing. All of the walls and ceilings were hand-painted.

This picture was taken from the very upper level of the castle. How would you like to have that veiw?

This picture doesn't do the kitchen justice. This would definitely be my dream kitchen!

Another shot from the top of the castle.

This castle, Hohenschwangau, is located just below Neuschwanstein and is where King Ludwig II grew up.

Day 7

Italy {Venice}

This is exactly what I pictured Venice to be like. It had been raining quite a bit and so the water level was really high. It was crazy to see water flowing into the various businesses and homes. I guess they just have to get used to it.

Milan, Italy

We got a chance to visit Sister Wilcox. She's a family friend serving in Milan. It was so much fun to see her and visit with her. From what we were told, she is an amazing missionary.

Later that night we stopped at a little pizza joint and had the opportunity to have some "real" Italian Pizza.....Mmmmm!

Day 8

Switzerland

We headed up into the Swiss Alps on a winding little road, tunel through tunel, in hopes of making it to Interlochen. We never made it, as the road was closed because of snow. However, the drive was totally worth it. These pictures don't do it justice.

We made our way into Lucerne, Switzerland later that afternoon. Lucerne is know for its famous wooden bridge. It crosses the Reuss River in the city of Lucerne, is the oldest wooden bridge in Europe and one of Switzerland's main tourist attractions.

I think I have died and gone to heaven!!!

Bryan scoping out the local fruit stand.

Day 9

Approaching the end of our trip, we started making our way back to Paris. We took the country roads into Germany and stopped in a little village {can't remember the name}. Anyway, there was a festival going on with vendors selling homemade jams and jellies, wine, apple cider, etc.

It's amazing how 10 days can come and go so quickly {actually 11}. We missed our flight home, causing us to spend another night in Paris {long story}. Anyway, 24-hours later and $4,000 in change fees we were on a plane back to Utah. This was such an awesome experience and I'm so grateful to have had the opportunity.

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Fall Festivities

October has been crazy busy for us. We finally made it down to Fillmore to decorate Kate's grave site for Fall. Mia LOVES to play with and rearrange the decor. I was glad to finally get it up before the snow starts to fall. I must say that the cemetery, during the fall, is about the prettiest it gets all year round.

South Ridge Farms with IHH
We spent an evening at South Ridge Farms with IHH {Intermountain Healing Hearts} members and families. I love this place, especially the fresh apple cider and pumpkin ice cream. We took a hay wagon ride out to the pumpkin patch and picked out our prize pumpkin.

Miss Madison Turns "3!"
Mia's little friend, Madison, turned 3 and so we helped her celebrate at the Live Planet Aquarium. We have never been, so it was fun seeing all the fish and sea creatures. Happy Birthday Maddy!
Checking out all the birthday loot!
Mia's favorite were definitely the Stingray.
HEE HAW!!!
It's a tradition in Bryan's family that during the Priesthood session of General Conference all the women and kids have a night out. This year we went to Hee Haw Farms. We have never been before and this place was so much fun. We started the night out by picking a pumpkin out of Grandma Rosenvall's pumpkin patch. This one was Mia's favorite pick!
We took a hay wagon ride out through the corn fields.....
.....and even took a ride in a rooster
Grandma Rich sure loved the hay wagon ride.

J + H = Happily Ever After!

Jordan and Hailey were married in the Salt Lake Temple on October 1st {yes I know....I am behind on posting}. The day was perfect. We are so happy to welcome sweet Hailey into our family. Here are a few pictures from the celebration:
They make a striking couple....don't you think?
Waiting for Uncle LoLo and Auntie Hailey.

This picture melts my heart....Tender!!

All the "Best" Men!

The Amigos and Amigas!

Cupcakes +...... More Cupcakes.........

= One hyper little Girl!!!

And they live Happily Ever After!!!!

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Liver for LuLu!!!

We cannot even begin to express our gratitude for the outpouring of support to those who participated in Apple Fest this year. Our hearts are so touched with the generosity of those who donated to this benefit honoring our Sweet Angel Kate. We had originally planned to donate the proceeds to Primary Children's Medical Center. However, we feel fortunate to have the opportunity to donate on a more personal level this year.
Meet sweet little London (aka LuLu). Isn't she a doll?

LuLu was born with Alpha 1 Anitrypsin Deficiency, a genetic disorder that causes liver and lung failure. Because of LuLu's declining health, the need for a liver transplant is necessary sooner than later. We know that the money raised through Apple Fest will be a big help to the family of LuLu with the anticipated medical expenses for her impending liver transplant. Again, thank you for all the support at Apple Fest this year and we look forward to another successful event next Fall (September 17-18, 2010).

For more information about sweet LuLu, visit: http://www.liverforlulu.blogspot.com/.

Wednesday, October 7, 2009

A Sweet "Heart" Spotlight!

Bryan and I belong to a support group, Intermountain Healing Hearts, for families with children and adults with congenital heart defects and heart disease. I joined this group shortly after Kate passed away and I must say that it has been really hard for me to open up and express my feelings. However, having others who are going through or have gone through similar experiences has been therapeutic. Every month IHH comes out with a newsletter spotlighting a "heart" friend. Last month, Kate was the spotlight and I wanted to share her "shining" story:

Sweet Kate, Kater Bugs, Bugaboo and Sissy was born on a beautiful HOT Summer morning, July 15, 2006. With no prior knowledge of any birth defects or a heart condition, Kate was transported to the NICU at Primary’s shortly after birth. During the 7-week initial stay, Kate was diagnosed with Tetrology of Fallot and later was given a diagnosis of Double Outlet Right Ventricle. Although Kate was full-term, she only weighed 4 lbs. 2 oz and heart surgery was too risky for how small she was. The doctors felt the success rate of the surgery would be greater if she could weigh at least 10 lbs. We were so excited to bring Kate home and help her grow. Dealing with oxygen, a feeding tube and A LOT of medications, we were determined to provide Kate with as normal life as possible. Kate experienced swimming, going to the zoo, museums and even a hay ride on Grandpa Roper’s farm. Kate had a keen sense of fashion and a head full of dark curly hair (thanks to sponge curlers). Kate loved it when mom would put the curlers in, but it was a “no-no” to play with her hair……and she would let you know that! At six months, Kate went in for her heart repair. After 12 LONG hours, the surgery was complete and seemed to be a success. Recovering in just 17 days, Kate came home and we were hopeful for some developmental progression and increased strength. Also having a rare genetic condition and not knowing what to expect for her future development, we were hopeful that the heart repair would allow her to start reaching some milestones. One great memory we have is Kate’s 1st birthday. During that first year, especially during those dreaded RSV months, we tried to limit as much exposure to sickness as we could, limiting exposure to family & friends. So when her birthday came around and she was fairly stable, we thought it would be appropriate to have a big celebration. This ended up being much more than we had planned on. With close to 100 of Kate’s friends and family, it was a lot of fun. Having feelings of going a bit overboard, looking back we were so glad we did it because it ended up being Kate’s first and only birthday. We wanted to provide Kate with the best quality of life as possible. However, as she grew, her muscles and heart were not able to keep up with her growing body. She started experiencing seizures, which would cause her to stop breathing. Primary’s became her second home, spending over 5-months in and out of the hospital. She was so loved by all who cared for her. I must say that Kate was quite pampered during her stays……having her nails painted, ribbons and bows in her hair at all times and even an occasional massage (with that darn Oscillator). We knew that the only way for Kate to get out of the hospital and hopefully stay out was for her to have a Tracheotomy. This was an extremely tough decision, but we wanted to do all we could, medically, to keep her here with us. Boy, what a challenge. But, we had wonderful help from family and also home nursing. Kate endured many surgeries and experienced much physical pain over the course of her short little life. As a parent, you want to do anything and everything for your children. Through our religious beliefs, we believe all things have purpose and we know that we will see her again. As much as we did all we could to help our sweet little Kate, we believe she helped us more than we could’ve ever helped her. We always said, “Kate had the biggest heart of anyone we know,” and in reality she did. Four weeks after Kate’s passing, we welcomed a healthy baby girl, Mia, to fill our empty arms. We want to keep Kate’s memory alive, not only for us, but for Mia and our future children. This past fall, we organized a charity 5k run, in memory of Kate. The proceeds of the event went to Primary Children’s. We hope to keep this new tradition alive. Having Kate in our lives has made us better people. We miss her so much but feel so blessed to have our very own guardian angel watching over us.

Sunday, October 4, 2009

"August and Everything After...."

Back to the Ol' Stompin' Grounds!
It's been 14 years since Bryan served his mission in North Carolina and he hasn't been back to visit until now. Since Michelle's sister and family live in NC, we both decided to kill 2 birds with 1 stone and visit the beautiful state of NC. We spent one day hitting all the places that Bryan served. He served over a year in Durham and wanted to see if he could find his apartment. We spent some time driving around familiarizing himself with the area and then Bingo.......we found it. We also drove to Raleigh to see the new Temple. It was absolutely beautiful. I'm a HUGE fan of doing destination races so we signed up and participated in the Salem Lakes trail run. It rained the entire time we ran. I'm typically not a fan of running in the rain, but it wasn't pouring and actually created a nice little mist. I wish I would've taken more pictures because this lake was beautiful. We didn't stay for the awards ceremony after the race, but later found out that Michelle and I both placed 1st in our age division. Not too shabby!Teresa and Scott (Michelle's sister & brother-in-law) taking a photo of taking a photo! Visiting NC this time of year is a MUST. It is so lush and green and with the leaves starting to change, it was absolutely breathtaking. We spent a day driving to the Smokey's.
This photo was taken on Grandfather Mountain.
John, Michelle and Finn
As much fun as we had, we were both very excited to get back to Miss Mia!

Apple Fest 2009

Morgan sure has the Apple Fest Spirit!!!
I'm embarrassed that it has taken so long to report on Apple Fest this year. We had an absolute BLAST and are are already looking forward to next year. We had such a great turnout and and are so appreciative of the many generous people that came out to support this great cause. We didn't have the "Kate Rosenvall Foundation" set up for this year, but are working on having it in place for next year. Since our daughter Kate spent so much of her short little life at Primary Children's Medical Center, we want to donate the proceeds of Apple Fest each year to something special; whether it's something the hospital is in need or to help a family(s) who are in need of financial help for medical bills. We are so excited for the turnout we had and the many, many donations that were given. A HUGE "Thank You" to all those who participated in Apple Fest this year as well as all the many volunteers who helped make this event happen. Stay tuned for the donation grand total. We kicked off Friday night with a dutch oven dinner and live entertainment by "Switchback" playing anything from Lynyrd Skynyrd to ACDC. The food was great, the entertainment was great, fun was had by all.
Uncle Greg made a great dancing partner.
Hampshire's got some smooth moves!!
This year we added a 10k and children's 1 mile run in addition to the 5k. There were close to 100 participants this year.
Teresa and Zach coming in strong!
The Nielsen Crew!
Kirstin and Weston........we sure did miss Motley this year!
Face painting sure was a favorite by all. Is that Tyson or Tanner??? Not quite sure who this handsome little skeleton is!

We look forward to seeing you next year!!!!

Down on Grandpa's Farm

Mia didn't last too long in the wagon.......
......She would rather be Grandpa's BIG helper!

What Mia does Best.....

......EAT....EAT....EAT!!!!

She Definitely has a SWEET TOOTH just like her Mama!

St. George with the Sanders'

While Bryan was out of town for a few days, Mia and I decided to head South and spend some time with the Sanders' clan. We had planned to stay for a few days, but our trip was cut short because Mia and Jaylee both got sick :( One thing I have learned from being a parent is that plans change ALL the time. But, in the short time we were there we had a fabulous time (as always). If only they lived closer :(

Monday, August 24, 2009

Save the Date

For More Information Visit: http://www.roperapplefest.blogspot.com/

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

I Must Confess....

Before I was a mom, I had THE LIST....you know, the list of things that you will NEVER do as a mom??? I swore my kids would would never know what Diet Coke was (Ooops....too late) or will NEVER know what's inside those "Golden Arches" (Well, that secret is out) and most of all I would never, I repeat NEVER be one of those moms that let their kids run freely through the Gateway fountains and on top of that, get their clothes completely soaked (for some reason it's always been a pet peeve of mine)!! Well folks....I've eaten my own words!!!Mia had such a ball! What was I ever thinking?