Giving Thanks on Thanksgiving Day 2008

I woke up very early this Thanksgiving morning and instead of rolling over and snuggling back into a peaceful sleep, I found myself reflecting on my life. What a difference a year makes! This time last year, my heart was so injured I didn't know if I would ever survive the pain. In contrast, this year my heart is so full thanks to so many of you. Each of you in some way has blessed my life.

Jason - I am so proud of you! Watching you with your daughter is the best feeling a Mom could have. Your eyes light up when you see her and her eyes smile and her arms and legs kick like crazy when she sees you. You are a good provider, working multiple jobs with long hours to support your family comfortably allowing Tawni to be at home with Stella instead of working outside of the home. I admire your conviction and dedication to your church and I appreciate the spirit and direction it brings into your life.

Cortney - Our lives changed drastically when you decided to return to Utah with me almost 2 years ago. You assumed the role of making sure Mom was okay, sometimes missing out on your own opportunities in life. You have such a huge heart and you are always there for people, even strangers. Last Thanksgiving when you took the turkey that you received from work out to the homeless family living in a tent in the desert, I was so proud. Your kindness to others is what makes you such a special man.

Tawni - Jason could not have found a better partner in life. You are amazingly smart, creative, fun and beautiful. In just a few short months, you have shown what an amazing Mom you are to our precious little Stella. She adores you and the patience and commitment you show to her is simply amazing. If you are this good in the first few months of parenthood, I can only imagine what the future holds for Stella and any other little ones you and Jason bring into this world. Thank you for all you do for me as well.

Stella - My little magical house mouse. I can't find the words to describe what you do to me! You radiate happiness, love and innocence. You started out with so many challenges that you have overcome. Although many, many people have been apart of your little success story, your spirit is what has brought you through this. God knew that we needed you in our lives and he sent you to us as a special blessing. I am so glad I get to be your Grandma LaLa. I love you baby.

Dave, Sharyl, LJ, Kory and Andrea - My second family! You have embraced me in every way possible. You go out of your way to make me comfortable and anyone that I happen to bring along with me. Sharyl and Dave, your home is warm, inviting and always full of love.

Steve and Sandy and Fam, you also have taken me in and counted me as a member of your family. You guys are amazing and so are your daughters and their families.

Kathy-Ron and Vickey-Tom - My irreverent Woodard relatives! I am so glad you are living back here instead of California! Football, BBQ's, sleepovers, day-trips to Best Friends Animal Sanctuary. You are the best, and, you are always here for me. Kathy, Ron and Vickey have known me since the day I was born...I have worshiped them ever since.

Gail, Kip, Dan, Brandon, Cameron, and Karli and KODI BEAR - I wished you didn't live so far away. Life is so busy and the distance between us makes it hard to be as close as I would like to be, but the times that we are together are great! I love you Sissy.

My Dad and Hazel - Although not Bloggers, LOL, I would be remiss in not mentioning how important my Dad is in this post. It's so hard watching my Dad get older physically, but his heart is still as young as ever. I know I have said it before in my blog, but my Dad is the most gentle, most loving Dad any daughter could have. He is my inspiration. His wife Hazel is his rock and together they make a good team. If she would only stop stealing silverware and dishes from restaurants! LOL

My list of friends grows every year and amazingly, very few of them fall away. Yes, communication slows down a bit, but still, I know they are still my friends and they know I am still here for them. I have made many new friends here in St George and what a diverse group! Some of my new friends are those I have made while working 3 jobs! Several of you know of the trials and tribulations I have been thru and your shoulders have carried alot on my behalf. I can't thank you enough! New friends are always a blessing in life, but then there are the friends that go back FOREVER! Jody - You are such a special girlfriend. We always seem to be there just in time to catch each other. Although many miles separated us for many years, our connection goes too deep to allow that to change our friendship. I am so glad I am living closer to you and that you and Kevin are so good to me. Richi and Jack, you too have been there for me at just the right times. Again, many, many miles separate us, but we know that all we need to do is call and we are there for each other. Maggie and Fredith, you never forget to send me your beautiful hand-written notes, cards and photos from Arkansas. It means so much. Dinah, dare I say how long we have been friends? I'm going to go out on a limb and say greater than 40 years!!! OMG can it really be? Some of you have been faced with challenges of your own this year...Olivia, you have been through so much yet you remain amazingly strong. I admire your positive attitude and ability to take it one day at a time. Diana and Kurt, Walker's sudden tragic illness made us all realize how fragile life is, but it sounds like he's stabilized and as you said, you can now look to the future to help him adjust to his new way of life. Doug, I just hope you can get it figured out buddy.

To each of you that keep the emails, phone calls and text messages coming...you have no idea how much life you bring to me. And, for those of you who take time out of your lives to come to see me, I can't tell you how that makes me feel, other than uber-blessed. My music horizons have been expanded by some of you who have shared some amazing artists with me. Allen, introducing me to Eva Cassidy's extraordinary voice; Somewhere Over the Rainbow is stunning just as you said. Jody, I know you will love hearing it as a lover of all things OZ, and Tawni, you have chosen that same song, although a different artist as the music on your Dainty Dumplings Blog. How serendipitous is that! Michelle, Nina's CD is Kick-A! LOL. Some random notes of thanks; KayDee, I get compliments almost daily from perfect strangers on my hair - you have been a huge part of my physical transformation! More importantly, you are not only my hair stylist, but another friend I have gained here in St. George and you are always willing to listen to my amazing stories! Amber, I loved our trip to Denver and you hooking me up with rooms in Vegas was, well, above and beyond. Thank you. Tami, Treena, Chris - girls nights out have never been more fun than with you!
Grant, your all-things-Gluten Free lifestyle has been so helpful to me. I love it when you pop into my office with a new GF goodie ready to taste! Jean, I can't believe you moved away! I miss you! Thanks for the opportunity to work with you at Kays Jewelers. It was therapy for me believe it or not! Kelly in Denver, Death Cab for Cutie is by far my favorite CD to listen too when getting ready for a night on the town! Lana, we need to get you out of Salt Lake and down here to St George for a visit soon! Brad, Jason and Clark - inviting me to participate in all of the online Fantasy Leagues has been so much fun and entertaining too! Stuart, on the day my world crashed around me, you accidently stepped on a landmine by asking me if I was okay, LOL and you've been there ever since. I owe you BIG TIME! Last but not least Patrick, a renewed friendship that has had a huge impact on me. I admire the person you are, and am so glad that I am able to have influences like you in my life!

Scott, you were right...time is healing the hurt, but it wasn't just time, it was all of these people I have surrounding me. I'm sure you are experiencing many things that are bringing you happiness as well.

The ginormous ham is in the oven, a 20 pounder! We'll be eating on it for weeks. I'll send pics of the family later. Happy Thanksgiving everyone, and once again from the very bottom of my heart, thank you for being a part of my life! I love you all so much.
Glenda

Thanksgiving Eve 2008

Thanksgiving Dinner at Dave and Sharyl's house tonight was fabulous. Cortney and Jason were spot-on with their ad-lib comedy routines which kept everyone entertained. Stella was sporting her Thanksgiving Holiday outfit and was cute as ever. She doesn't stay still for one second any more. Most of the pictures I take of her are blurry because she is always moving!

Tomorrow will be another day with the family, food, and of course football! Stay tuned!

Love,
G

Vacationing in St George

What a great time we had while Patrick was here from Maine. In a nano-second he became part of the family, especially when the boys realized he is as nuts about sports as they are.

The slideshow is most likely the longest in history, but it's really only a portion of the pictures we took. The fun started when he arrived in St. George half starved so we went for Sushi and Thai food at Benja. Ummmmmm good. Starving Patrick seemed to be the theme while he was here...I forget to eat therefore I forget that others need to eat. It didn't take him long to figure it out though so he quickly learned how to grab a snack every chance he could just in case.

Sunday morning we ran some errands and when we got back, Cortney had his 4-wheeler loaded on the trailer and was ready to take Patrick to the desert to ride and target practice. We rode the 4-wheeler out to see the Petroglyphs which was about a 4-5 mile ride. When we got back, Cort had set up some targets and we were ready to shoot his 243 rifle. In addition to starving Patrick, he's convinced we also tried to deafen him with the rifle. Cortney and I don't hear a thing when we are shooting, HONESTLY and therefore we don't think about having ear protection for others. Hours later Patrick said his ears were still ringing LOL. Patrick and Cortney are both good shots, but, I reigned supreme when I took out the Heineken beer bottle hung in a bush. If you could have seen their faces. Ha!! After fun in the desert sun, we had the whole family over for a BBQ and Sunday Night Football. On Monday, Jason and Cortney took the afternoon off from work and we golfed 18 holes at Coral Canyon. Once again, it was a beautiful day. Patrick birdied the hardest hole on the course, and you would have thought Jason did it himself. He got more excited than Patrick! We got to the 18th hole just as the sun set. It was perfect. After golf, we all went to Cafe Rio for dinner. All 6 of us, including Stella in her car seat rode in Jason and Tawni's Honda Pilot together. As we were driving home Stella got a little fussy so Tawni turned the volume up on a Baby Einstein CD and the adults broke into a rousing rendition of Old McDonald Had a Farm. I wasn't sure what Patrick's thoughts were at that exact moment, but from my position in the way-back seat of the Pilot, it was hysterical to listen to.

I returned to work on Tuesday and Wednesday, leaving my car with Patrick during the days for him to cruise around. I know he visited the Arts Village of Kayenta which is way cool out in the desert. He also took my bike out for a ride in the hills around where I live and on the hiking/biking trails that wind their way through the community. I worked Tuesday night at the gym so while I was working Patrick came over to work out and to enjoy a massage. Coincidently, my boss from Denver had arrived in town that night and just happened to be at the gym working out. I looked into the basketball court and there was my friend Patrick and my boss Scott shooting hoops together. It was actually pretty surreal.

Wednesday night after I got off of work we went out to dinner at The Texas Roadhouse and then went over to Dave and Sharyls to hang out. Sharyl had dessert waiting for us and we hung out watching the Jazz game and eating pie. Thursday we got up and headed up to Zions National Park. We first started by driving up Kolob Terraces where Patrick started seeing some of the beautiful wildlife we have here. Although we didn't get a photo, there was a huge hawk sitting in a tree right off of the road. A few miles up the road we came upon two deer just to the side of the road. One was a beautiful 4-point buck, the other a doe. They were the first two of over 100 deer we would see that day. At least 10 of them were big bucks with large antlers. We went back down towards Springdale and stopped at the Gem and Rock Trading Post where I had Patrick pick out a soveneir rock. Each of my friends that have gone there with me have selected one of many, many types of ores or rocks that come from this area. I always get one to take to Madison's little grave at Best Friends when I stop there. So Patrick chooses a chunk of Iron Pyrite (Fools Gold) and off we go to find the Watchman Trailhead to begin our hike. Zions Park is one of the most beautiful places on the planet, and these pictures prove it! Our hike took us to an overlook of the canyon which was filled with the yellow colors of Fall. The hike was about an hour in with a vertical climb of about 400 feet. Just right actually. We came upon huge gardens of wild cactus, a fern grotto back under some rocks, and some ginormous rock formations. Once on top, we hung out for awhile just admiring the beauty of it all. From there we drove up through the tunnels and out the East Entrance of the park. That's where Patrick encountered the 7ft long, 4000 lb buffalo. "The Big One" as they call him was scratching his head on some guidewires used for power. He was rubbing so hard that the wires were swaying to and fro clear across the highway to the other side! He was a monster! Our next stop (other than those for photos) was Best Friends Animal Sanctuary. Patrick has seen the show Dogtown on the National Geographic Channel and wanted to visit there. We were able to see several of the Michael Vick dogs and he recognized several of the areas that were on the tv show. Of course we made a stop at Angels Rest so I could leave Madison's new rock on her marker. As it was almost sunset, we headed back down to Zions to enjoy the views. Of course we weren't disappointed at all. By the time we got to Springdale it was dark. We decided to eat at Oscars (of course) and as we were getting out of the car to go into the restaurant 6-7 deer came walking right up the road! One of them was another huge buck. They were just saundering along munching as they passed. Cars were stopping to take pictures and the deer could have cared less that the people were all around them. It was so cool! It was an awesome day all the way around.

Friday morning we got up and packed for our trip to Las Vegas. We met Jason, Tawni, Cort and Stella for lunch at Mongolian BBQ. Patrick had never seen anything like it! You load up, seriously, LOAD UP a bowl of veggies/meats/noodles/sauces and give to the cooks who put it on a giant revolving grill, all the while they are stirring it with big sticks. They then return it to you all cooked and ready to eat. It tastes fabulous. Of course I can't have the noodles, so I go for mine over rice. It was a perfect send off for Patrick and it gave the kids a chance to all say goodbye. We arrived in Vegas around 4:00 pm, and rode the monorail directly to Jimmy Buffets Margaritaville. We people watched the crazies going up and down the strip which was very entertaining. From there we started walking the strip, going over to The Bellagio watching the amazing water show then winding our way over to Caesars Palace. A chance meeting with some Tequila leaves my recollection of the rest of our stroll a bit hazy, but I do know that Patrick was able to sneak in some food when we returned back to Margaritaville...something like a Cheeseburger in Paradise? Saturday morning, Patrick headed to the airport to return to Maine and I drove back to St. George. Even though it was his vacation, I felt like it was mine too. I hope we didn't wear him out too much with all of the running around. We all enjoyed his stay so much, and he's already talking about coming back to see more. The next time he comes, he wants to rent a Harley to really be able to enjoy the outdoors here. We are all ready when you are Patrick!

So its back to work for me tomorrow with Thanksgiving right at our door. Sharyl has to work on Thanksgiving so she is going to do dinner on Wednesday night. The kids still would like to have the family get together so they will all be here for ham dinner on Thanksgiving Day and anyone who wants to join us is welcome!

My visit to Happy Valley

Its lunch time here in Provo at the conference I'm attending so I thought I would send you all an update. There's SNOW up here! I will admit it is pretty, but dang it cold! My conference is on a Project Management software package that is very detailed and complex so I've been grateful for some extra-curricular activities while I've been here.

I'm actually staying at the Marriott at Thanksgiving Point in Lehi. I can't believe how much everything has changed since I moved away to Maine. Jody and Kevin picked me up at the hotel and we went to dinner at Applebees in Lehi/American Fork. I gave Jody an early birthday present just because I couldn't wait until February! Jody LOVES anything to do with the Wizard of Oz and she has an extensive collection of items related to the movie. She holds me responsible for this mass collection because I gave her the first piece over 20 years ago; a plate for her wall with Dorothy and Toto on it. Now, she practically has a room dedicated to everything Oz! Anyway, I came across the cutest door stop that is the Wicked Witch of The West with the Ruby Slippers on...but its just her black and white stripped stockings and the ruby red shoes. When you put it up against the door, it looks like her feet are sticking out under it. Jody loved it of course! Last night Allen, another friend had me over to his place for dinner. He lives up near the University of Utah, actually it's almost on the campus, right across from Kingsbury Hall and the Rice Eccles Football stadium. The lights of Salt Lake were so beautiful and it was nice to be able to see them again from that vantage point. When I visit the Salt Lake area, I am so conflicted...there are so many memories from childhood to adulthood here, and at times free flowing tears and sadness as I drive around. But, I am making new friends, having new experiences and always enjoying the love and support of my friends and family who are ALWAYS here for me.

The conference will end today and I have a 4-hour drive back to St. George tonight. The drive is a little dangerous as the deer are migrating right now and the interstate goes directly through the migration areas. It's a little stressful, especially in the dark, but I'm sure I will get home safely.

Patrick will be here in 3-days...whoo-hoo. He offered to bring Lobster, we will see! I doubt I'll be posting again before he arrives, so staytuned for fun pics of his visit.

Love to you all,
G

S-t-r-e-t-c-h-e-d Thin!

Never did I ever think that my single life in St George, Utah would keep me so busy, but it's so true! My trip to Austin was fabulous and now this week I'm headed to Provo, Utah for a 3-day business seminar. I'll arrive Monday evening and have plans to go to dinner with Jody and Kevin when I arrive. Tuesday night I'm meeting another friend for dinner, then Wednesday I head back down to St. George which is about a 4-hour drive. Saturday Patrick will arrive from Portland and our list of fun so far includes hiking in Zions, horse-back riding in Snow Canyon, taking the 4-wheeler out to the Arizona strip to check out petroglyphs, and his final weekend we'll be in Vegas. The next week is Thanksgiving and I'm having dinner at my house this year. I'm so excited! Sharyl is going to do a dinner on Wednesday because she has to work on Thanksgiving day unfortunately and then I'm having dinner on Thursday for everyone. When all of that is done, we're into the Christmas season!

Our little Stella is doing fabulously. She will be 10-months old next week. It's so hard to believe. Cortney, Jason, Stella and I went to dinner the other night when Tawni was attending a bookclub. The boys were busy eating all-you-can eat wings while watching the U of U play football on the overhead televisions at Wingers. Stella and I just played while the boys cheered at the game. The video is of Stella going after her "cheerios". She has the hand-mouth coordination down like no other. She is such an adorable little girl that we can't take her anywhere without people commenting on her beautiful eyes or her adorable face. Although she is still very small, she is doing so well. Tawni puts in alot of time and effort with her, helping her to advance and overcome any challenges she may have due to being so premature. She is catching up to the normal percentile nicely.

Cortney spends most of his spare time hanging out with friends and although still a bachelor, he's eyeing a few babes. He's considering buying a new mountain bike right now. Both of our bikes are in the shop getting tuned up and ready to ride. This is the perfect time of year for riding in this area.

My friend Henrik from Denmark plans to come back to visit sometime after Christmas. He is considering purchasing a home here in the U.S., specifically in St George. Cortney is all about a trip to Denmark, mostly because Henrik tells him the beer in Denmark is even better than the beer in Germany! I have been learning to speak some Danish...and I thought French was hard!

Now that you know how busy I am, I hope you'll understand any long stretches between my posts. Everyone is good, everyone is happy, and everyone is healthy. LFISGR8!

Love Ya

More Halloween Fun in Texas

Not only was it Halloween, but it was my sister Gail's 50th birthday celebration. We had a costume party on both Friday and Saturday nights. The pictures are of my sister Gail, her husband Kip, my other brother-in-law Dan, my nieces and nephews; Brandon, Cameron, Karli and Kodi, Doc the Black Lab and then lots of friends.

It was a lot of fun, including some fun Texas sized Karaoke!

A scary Halloween night in Austin...