is it over yet?

well, let's wrap this december up in true fashion- how about some merry christmas flu? i've had mine thank you very much. i started working nights on the 23rd, got paid the big bucks on the night of the 24th (holiday pay and all), and was supposed to return to work on the night of the 25th. well, return to work i did, but as a patient not a nurse! i woke up in the middle of christmas day with a horrible bout of flu. i kept at it until later that night when i called all of the urgent cares (which are closed on christmas for future reference) and finally had to resort to my own dear ER for treatment. it wasn't cheap. but i was badly dehydrated and needed something to make me stop throwing up. a couple of liters and some meds later, i was gorked out and getting better. the next morning we awoke to find eric's grandmother in the hospital in the town we were all supposed to be meeting up in for a late family christmas in colorado. our christmas trip was canceled, i was still contageous and we didn't know the full story yet with his grandmother. this is certainly not an afterthought of the day after christmas when all this happened, but my grandfather also passed away on this same day. he is finally with jesus and with his beloved bride; my grandparents were some of the most wonderful people on this earth and they are dearly missed.

i am still in bed today trying to fully recover. the bug doesn't want to quite let go yet. eric's grandmother will be alright and is being transported back to a lower elevation in texas. this certainly was not the christmas we were planning for. in fact, it feels like it may not even have happened. so many of the family traditions both eric and i have grown up with went undone this december between my family trip and eric's business trip, work, and then being sick. we tried to do advent together at night when we were together, which is one of my favorite family traditions. but things just really never came together for us this year. we will have to celebrate christmas the whole rest of the year then, which is the way it is supposed to be anyway.

sorry, no new pictures from this fabulous week. i know, you're disappointed. actually we did manage to take a photo of the gigantic icicles hanging off the back of our house. we definitely had a white christmas!

a different december

It's been a different december for me. My only grandmother passed away at the beginning of this month, so i've had a flurry of activity flying up to ohio for the funeral and trying to understand death, grieving, my own parent's retirement and immanent aging process, right up to eric's and mine own aging process and future decisions.

I was also called upon to fulfill my civic duty and report for jury duty. Now, how many people get called in for jury duty? not that many. how many people, when called in for that jury duty, actually get put on the jury? even fewer. I was selected for the actual jury. it might have been fun if i wasn't supposed to work that day, and it was my first day off orientation. it stinks to call in to your new work and say you have been selected for jury duty.... it was an interesting process though. i felt like i was in a movie!

eric left for most of a week on a business trip to florida where it was muggy and warm. we've been cold here in salt lake and i've got a few more ski days under my belt, including a telemark lesson. i'm doing much better now- this type of skiing is hard to get the hang of!

i've spent the last week relaxing, hiking to the hot springs with a couple of friends, and making christmas cookies. my friend tracy had a good friend of her's from high school come in to salt lake for a few days. we hiked down to diamond fork hot spring- i posted pictures of the same springs last year this time. it seems to be at least an annual trip down there. i love it- it's quiet, always snowy, and always fun to sit in warm water with snow all around.

in other news, i think we are going to put pilsner up for airedale adoption. we have an excellent airedale rescue society located here in salt lake. he has just been too much. it seems that even with regular exercise he gets bored around the house. the other week while i was away from the house he got down into my sink and drug out a glass bowl that i had eaten soup out of earlier. it, of course, broke on the floor. i was so mad. i think he needs a home with another dog. or maybe a million acres to run around on. i just feel that we either need to get another dog or give pilsner away. i don't want another dog. i think i'll miss pilsner a whole lot the first couple of months and then our first summer vacation we'll be so grateful we don't have to place a pup somewhere. he's a great dog- just still so much puppy! i've done all the hard work with the training and such, now some other family just needs to love on him. it's not an easy decision, but ultimately i think it will be better for pilsner to have another doggy or just another family member always around. as it is now i have to leave him locked in a crate whenever i leave him alone. that's not fun for either of us. i don't know when he'll be leaving us, probably after the holidays. :(

sam higby is coming for a visit! he'll be here for christmas day. i have to work a whole lot, but he and eric i am sure will get a lot of skiing done during sam's time here.



Tracy and Paige posing for my picture on our hike out to the hot springs


Along the path


Sorry for the soft porn.... Tracy, Paige and I in the springs