Sierra's Music Project

My Bikers

Aspen & Sierra have signed up to do a bike ride to Louisville this Summer. If you don't feel like Google mapping, that is about 160 miles going the side road route. The youth leaders in the ward that we share a building with have put this together and have invited our ward's youth to participate. They will ride down to Louisville in 2 days; going 75 miles one day and 85 the other. Once down there, they will sleep for the night, and then get up and do Baptisms for the Dead at the Louisville Temple.

The girls are super excited to be able to go on this adventure and I have been so proud of their accomplishments so far. They have done a couple of 10 mile rides, a 26 mile ride, and a 31 mile ride. Do you really want to be jealous? Neither one of them has complained to me yet about being sore! Sierra did take a bit of a spill on the 31 mile ride this past Saturday and scraped up her arm and knee, but nothing to really write home about. She also had a bruise on her ankle, but hasn't really had a problem with it.

They have LOVED every minute of riding and I hope that we can keep it up even after the big ride to Louisville. I wish I could have done it with them, but these rides are mandatory, and I still have class on Saturdays. Hopefully, I can start riding with them when I'm done, but most likely won't be going on the big ride.

Thomas and I are just beaming with pride and know that they will really cherish these memories that they are making!

PS. It is BEAUTIFUL out here in Indy, and we LOVE visitors!! *Hint**Hint**Wink**Wink*

Can't be fixed...Story of our lives...

Aspen had an appointment today with a pediatric orthopedic surgeon. It took us about 3 months to get in. The reason we were taking her had sort of resolved on its own, but I thought we better go and make sure everything was okay. Last summer, we noticed that Aspen had a lump on her kneecap that was probably the size of 2 marbles. It was kind of gross looking and she could grab it and squeeze it...double gross. After about a month, it started to send shocks up and down her leg. We took her to the pediatrician and she made us an appointment with the surgeon, but the earliest appointment available was for 3 months later. Gotta love it!

So this lump has kind of just diminished slowly over the last month and really isn't there anymore. At her appointment, they ordered xrays to make sure everything was okay, and by the time the Dr. came in to see us she looked pretty annoyed with us for coming to have her look at something that wasn't there. Wah, Wah, right?

While the nurse was asking us questions before the Dr. came in, I asked her if we could also have the Dr. look at Aspen's feet. Aspen is very pigeon-toed and looks like she has really flat feet. Well, a nurse practitioner came in first and asked Aspen if she could sit in the "w-sit." It's where you kneel down, but then spread your legs outward and sit on your bottom on the floor. I knew exactly what she meant because Aspen sits like that ALL the time! Aspen shows her, and I hear the NP just hum and nod...not usually a good sign, huh? She then watches Aspen walk up and down the hall, and checks her legs and hips while she lays down on the bed. By this time, I knew something was up.

The NP said that Aspen has Femoral Anteversion. Uh...what? It's when the femur is twisted. That is what cause the knees and feet to point inward. She said the being able to sit in the "w-sit" comfortably is a tell tale sign. Apparently 90% of kids who have it grow out of it by age 10. Yeah, well, we all know my kids don't ever grow out of the stuff they should. She goes on to say that the only way to treat it is with a VERY painful surgery that they absolutely won't do unless the child is in severe pain from it. Basically, the slice the femur bone and twist it back to where it should be. OKAY...she can live it!! She did say that doing ballet really helps kids with this condition. As soon as she left, Aspen turns directly towards me and says, "I am NOT taking ballet!"

Ballet focuses on turning the feet outward, which is why it would help.
Aspen can do this move, but completely opposite. She turns her toes inward all the way and then puts her feet one in front of the other.

Marina came with me and she was doing really well and being super patient sitting in the chair. Well, towards the end of the visit, she slumps out of the chair in complete boredom onto the floor straight into the, you guessed it, the "w-sit!" Both the Dr. and the NP look at her funny and then look at me and say, OH...she's got it too! Nice.

Fashion Show Pics...as Promised!

Aspen with the whole group before the show started. She is in the back left hand side.
Don't they look ready to ROCK?!?

Oh sure, she strikes a pose backstage....

AND...here we go!

She had a GRIP on that necklace!

Sorry that they weren't in any kind of order, but I GAVE UP after messing with it for so long!
Can you believe this girl is ONLY 13?!?

Divine By Design

Last night, Aspen was invited to be a part of an awesome program put on by the Stake Young Women's (YW) Presidency. It was a MODEST fashion show called Divine by Design. Talking about how we are designed by our Heavenly Father in his Divine wisdom. Aspen felt really special for being invited to be in it, especially since only a handful in the whole stake were chosen. The fashion show was before the YW General Broadcast last night, and tied in really well with all that the General YW Presidency and Elder Uchtdorf had to say. The leaders in charge of the fashion show had no idea that the General President and Elder Uchtdorf would bring up the same theme, so it was just a really nice night and went together perfectly!

They really went all out for this program and I was completely surprised at what they had planned. Before the fashion show started, one of the leaders talked about how the media is distorting our views about beauty and how FAKE they are in their advertising. She went through lots of time periods and discussed how certain fashions were "in style" and how the media played into those fears that women have about their bodies. She talked about how plastic surgery is really popular now and how that may be as crazy as when the Chinese women would bind their feet to be smaller. I think it made complete sense and I know that she had all the girls' attention in that room. She showed a couple of videos that showed how a picture of a model can be so distorted and how when you look at and think about how beautiful the model is, you really are not even seeing the real person! Here is one of the videos by the Dove and their campain for real beauty.



She also talked about this picture that Ralph Lauren had as an ad. I mean this model doesn't even look human anymore after all of the photoshopping!

There was another video that she showed, but I can't find it. It was just a really nice program with a great message. I'm glad that Aspen and Sierra were able to be there last night.

I got some video of Aspen walking the runway, while a friend of mine took some still pics. I'll post those as soon as I get them. She was so super nervous, but still had fun! She did GREAT!! The first time they modeled their hair that they had done by professionals, then they modeled a casual outfit, and then they modeled a Sunday Best outfit! She thought is was so funny that the hair people told her she had a beautiful mane...ha ha! I'm so proud of her & so glad that she got to spend a couple of days with some great girls getting pampered! Everyone came up to me all night telling me how beautiful she is, which I of course already know!

It's About Time

Ryker is FINALLY beginning to lose some teeth! He is so overly excited. It's just adorable! He lost one on the bottom a little while ago, but he lost another one yesterday. His adult teeth are starting to come in behind his baby teeth. They're tired of waiting, I guess. He has an adult tooth on the bottom coming in under his tongue. The picture of the one below was starting to wedge his loose front tooth and wouldn't let it come out. It's been loose for awhile, but it's just been stuck on the one side. So, yesterday we decided it needed to come out. Ryker couldn't pull it, and didn't want us to pull it, so Thomas suggested to Ryker that we wrap a string around it to try and get it out. He did, and he pulled and pulled and it came out! His face was priceless! He was so proud of himself!

AWESOME GIVEAWAY!

Hey Everyone!

My good friend over at www.sewmanybooks.blogspot.com is doing an awesome GIVEAWAY!! Get on over there to enter (CLICK HERE to go directly to the giveaway post) and tell her that Jamie sent you! Don't forget to reference my name people!!

What are you waiting for? GO NOW!!