Third year Day 8 - Saturday December 21, 2013

There are so few days until Christmas and still some things left to get done!  Luckily I did most of my shopping online this year, and almost everything has actually arrived.  Today I got the girls to help me get things wrapped and finally we got some presents under the tree.  I had them help with other family members presents....Bridgett and Arrianne helped wrap Stephany's etc.  It was great to get that taken care of!  It's so fun to have Christmas music playing and the lights on in the house and on the tree!  We all love Christmas time! We always do a gingerbread house together.  We used to let each of the kids make individual graham cracker houses and additionally we would put together a kit.  Since the kids have been bigger, we just do the kit.  This year I didn't have much shopping time in town, so Mark picked up the kit at Costco.  The kit actually had the house pre-assembled and you just decorate it.  Stephany was sad, because she likes putting the house together.  Today I told her that it was a good thing that the house is already assembled because it's almost Christmas and she still isn't feeling too good.  Things seem to work out in the end.....

Third year Day 7 - Friday December 20, 2013

This afternoon I had to run into town to get gift cards for our employees.  The roads were not great and it took quite a bit of time to get in, buy the cards, and get them all ready to give out. Mark wasn't here to do it and someone had to be able to write a check and show identification, etc.  Bridgett came with me and before I left I got Stephany all situated with pain reliever, water and snacks.  It all worked out and we got home before dinner time, although it was dark.  Bad roads are not fun and bad roads in the dark are even less fun!  Mark and Arrianne drove home and boy was Bridgett excited to see them! She had a little bit of a hard time waiting up until they arrived, but she made it! The roads were very bad much of the way and we worried about them but luckily they got through with no issues. Someone told me today that their son was flying into Kalispell from Texas, via Salt Lake and the Salt Lake airport was closed Thursday. Eventually their plane did land in Salt Lake, after being diverted to St. George for a while. In the end, he did arrive in Kalispell, hours late. So, it all worked out with not flying Arrianne home anyway!

Third year Day 6 - Thursday December 19, 2013

Arrianne's last final was online and she did it late last night.  Today she spent the day working on her term paper and finally finished and delivered it to the professor 15 minutes before it was due!  Whew!  Then she and Mark spent the evening packing, moving and cleaning.  They got everything done by about 9:30 and then headed to Deb's to spend the night.  It was pretty late to head to Scott's as they go to bed before that.  Also, he wanted to stop and see Deb and drop off presents there.  Today Bridgett asked to watch a movie!  She's remembering that the kids said she needed to be able to sit through a movie so that she can go to the Hobbit movie during the holidays.  Anyway, she said she wanted to watch Rush Hour with Jackie Chan....and she watched the entire thing!  She and I were both very proud of her!  Little by little.....

Third year Day 5 - Wednesday December 18, 2013

Mark was able to go to my moms house this morning and drop off Christmas presents for her and my siblings, as well as pick up presents.  He had never been to her new apartment before, and really enjoyed getting a tour.  I really do like her new place and I'm so glad to know that she is in a gated community with ward members upstairs, and on either side of her.  Next he went to Jenn's for a fun filled time with the grandkids.  He took Arrianne out to lunch following one of her finals, and then dropped her back home to study for her last final as well as work on her paper for Music History I.  During the afternoon he went into Salt Lake on business, then grabbed some dinner and headed out to see Weston play basketball at (can you believe it??) 9 p.m.; this is a bit late for eleven year olds!  Anyway, it was a great day for him.  We wished we were there too but we will see everyone in January!  Today, out of the blue, Bridgett said that was cool how they put my name on the dressing room door at Maurices!  She remembered, all the way from Saturday!  Yippee! 

Third year Day 4 - Tuesday December 17, 2013

Mark drove to Utah today.  Arrianne is struggling to get through finals and having some terrible pain (ovarian) and wanted a blessing.  Mark had Tyler Fenn meet him over at her apartment and they gave her a blessing.  Also, he stopped and got her something to eat because she didn't have anything in her apartment really.  She's been eating up everything in the fridge and freezer so that it would be easier to move, which was smart.  However, the timing was not perfect because she didn't have anything easy to eat.  Of course, she had staples so that she could cook but no time really with finals and tonight, in too much pain. He got her all situated and hopefully she can get some rest!  She has only two finals left and one paper to write.  Mark headed to Scott's to spend the night; it's so nice that they have an extra bedroom so that he can stay there when he's in town.  Stephany is still sick and now I'm just praying that she's better enough by the time that Arrianne gets home so that she can enjoy the holidays!  Bridgett's super excited to see Arrianne and can't wait for them to get home on Friday!

Third year Day 3 - Monday December 16, 2013

Sometimes Bridgett remembers stuff that kind of blows me away.  Like today, she said to me, holding up her thumbs.....how come they call them opposable thumbs!  Opposable!  Love it!!  This also opened up a whole discussion about opposable thumbs and what they are good for, etc.  I always say to Mark....bits and pieces of her memory, coming back at random times!  It's cool!  I was on the phone a lot today with business issues (mostly) and some stuff for Arrianne as well.  Bridgett was very patient with it all for most of the time, but started to get kind of frustrated later on in the day. Finally she told Mark when he got home that I'd been on the phone all day long! Mostly true, ha ha!  But, you know how it is....on hold and doing things part of the time, etc.  Anyway, she did lots of reading, playing Nintendo, and ipad, etc.  She helped carry stuff down to Stephany in the basement like water bottles for her to drink etc.  She can't really carry a cup of water down without spilling because her balance is not wonderful, but it is pretty good!  She's been demonstrating balance for me lately, out of the blue!  For example, she will suddenly say, look at my balance mom!  Then she will balance on one foot while she counts to ten (and usually makes it!).  Next she will try to do the same on the other foot, but will have to count really fast and won't make it to ten.  But, it's getting better!  Today she suddenly said she wanted me to watch her put on her socks standing up with out any support. Hmmmm......I said okay if I stand next to you and you have a wall or something else on the other side of you just in case.  So, she stood up next to the fridge and I was on the other side.  She lifted her foot and started to put her foot in the sock, and leaned over into the fridge.  At this point, she abandoned the effort and said Oh I guess I can't really do that.  She said other people do it and I said at some point you will be able to do it too, but for now, let's just sit down to put on socks!  BTW, a few days later she saw Tyler putting on his socks while standing and said see!  Tyler can do it!  I want to be able to do that too!  Good remembering, I say! 

Third year Day 2 - Sunday December 15, 2013

Stephany is still sick and Bridgett is wiped out from yesterday, so we stayed home from church and just regrouped.  Mark and I are trying to figure out about him driving to Provo to help Arrianne move to another apartment and to bring her home for Christmas.  Since we planned to all be going down there, we didn't book her a flight and now the rates are crazy.  Normally I can get a flight for about $425 if we book like two months in advance; last minute the flight is like $1,250!  Anyway, I think he will leave on Tuesday and plan to get some business done on Wednesday, along with visiting the other kids (Scott's family and Jenn's family). I felt really bad to miss her performances last night and the night before, and this time they apparently didn't record them either.  To top it off, Jenn was planning on going on Saturday and she got sick too! Bummer!  But, life goes on.  Bridgett still wants to celebrate her "alive day" with everyone, so we will still plan to get together in January, when we take Arrianne back to Provo and have appointments with Faith.  She's got a really great attitude about things and is not upset about rescheduling.  When I talked to her about having to cancel the party, she said if Stephany is sick of course we can't go!  That's OK, I understand!  We can do it another time!  I love that!  Such a great attitude! BTW thanks to everyone that sent cards to Bridgett!  She only got six, but she was super ecstatic about them and loved reading them!  

Third year Day 1 - Saturday December 14, 2013

So it all happened two years ago today.  I woke up this morning, determined to do something positive and not fixate on the obvious.  I told Mark that I wanted to take Bridgett shopping for some new clothes; of course, what woman wouldn't think that way!! Anyway, when Bridgett woke up I said today we shop til we drop!  She was ecstatic!  Then she said, too bad we can't have french toast at Mimi's today! (she remembered!)  She said she wished we could have french toast in Kalispell.  I said, there's no Mimi's and I don't know if there's any place good to get french toast.  Then she said something amazing.....she said we could have french toast at that restaurant that is across from Kmart! Wow!  That's cool she remembered that!  Perkins!  So, off we went to Perkins.  Mark stayed home with Stephany and told us to have fun and take our time.  The roads were snowy, but we drove carefully in and parked, at about 9 a.m.  We were seated and ordered...french toast for Bridgett, fried potatoes and an English muffin (with salsa) for me.  After ordering, I looked around and who should I see but Kennedy and Julie! (my niece and sister-in-law that live in Kalispell) We popped over to their table and said hi. They were finished eating but offered to have us sit down. Bridgett was hurting a little and just wanted to stand.  Standing helps with she's in pain.  Anyway, in a bit she went back to our table.  I told Julie and Kennedy that this was her day and I should be with her, but they could come to our table, where the food had just arrived.  So, they came to our table and we continued talking.  It was a very nice visit, and we got to be with family after all today, and grab a few hugs!  They left and we finished eating and then bustled off for shopping.  Our first stop...Target.  We looked around there and bought some underclothing for Bridgett.  Then, we headed to the mall.  We first went to Bath and Body Works because randomly Bridgett had received a coupon in the mail for a free item.  She picked out some body spray.....vanilla with shimmer stuff in it. So Bridgett!  Exactly the fragrance she would have picked and also the shimmer is exactly what she would have wanted before the wreck!  She got some free vanilla lotion to go with it.  Then I reminded her that she had Jenn's name for Christmas (the kids draw names) and she definitely wanted to get her something there.  She picked out gingerbread foaming soap, gingerbread sanitizer, stress relief sanitizer, and some of those shea butter socks that soften your feet (with a cute picture of a cats face on the toes).  Next we headed to Maurice's which was just across the mall.  By this time Bridgett was lagging for sure.  She was tired and walking with slow steps.  On the way in she saw a blingy shirt, which I grabbed.  We stopped at the counter to get a sales gal to help us.  While waiting there, she picked out a scarf she loved and a necklace, all very much in Bridgett's style!  There was a very nice sales gal that helped us to a dressing room and put Bridgett's name on the door.  Then Bridgett just sat down and rested while I went with the gal to pick some jeans for her.  I got two different pairs, guessed at size (and was right!), and Bridgett tried them on and loved them!  She was too tired to try on the shirt, so we decided to just buy it and return it later if needed.  I paid for the clothing and we headed to the car, none too soon.  I really began to wonder if we would make it.  I don't know why Bridgett was so thrashed out today, but she was really tired and wimpy.  I got her to the car and we headed home.  Unfortunately, we need to stop for a few groceries so she stayed in the car, with her ipad, while I grabbed a few things at Rosauers.  It was funny that I saw Julie and Kennedy there as well, although they were across the store and I just waved.  We left and drove carefully home and I thought about how I'd told Julie we were going to shop until we dropped and it was not even noon and we were home already, even with a 35 minute drive!  But, Bridgett and I both had a great time and I'm so glad that we did something fun!  We both had a good nap today and then we all played games and visited tonight.  Of course, playing games was big on Bridgett's list of something fun to do! Overall, it was a great day. 

Second year Day 365 - Friday December 13, 2013

I can hardly believe we are at the last day of the second year!  In some ways it seems like it was a lifetime ago that the wreck happened.  Life has certainly been different for the entire family since the wreck; I guess that will always be true and perhaps not in a bad way.  Not that I want to be philosophical at this point, but we all have our nightmares and we all have to find a way to get through our struggles.  Sometimes other peoples struggles seem hard, but the struggles we personally face are the real measure of who and what we are.  We all have the ability to handle whatever is thrown our way.  Sometimes we struggle trying to find our way to the top of the water again, after we've been "thrown overboard in a raging storm" but in the end we do it.  Hopefully we come through the storm having learned something, but definitely we will have changed and hopefully for the better.  Hopefully we come out of our struggles full of love, gratitude and forgiveness.  Hopefully we continue our journey, fortified and ready to face the next storm.  Perhaps we have to time out a little while to gather strength again, but life will go on either way.  Ready or not, life continues forward.  It was with great sadness today that I had to cancel our trip to Utah and cancel Bridgett's party.  Stephany is too sick to travel.  Mark offered to stay home with her, but the roads are not good and I just couldn't face driving them alone with Bridgett.  Plus, it would take a long time because I go slow on bad roads!  I sadly sent out texts to everyone that we had invited, because I couldn't face talking to everyone without crying.  I had a good cry about it this evening.  I was really looking forward to tomorrow; it seemed like such a positive way to spend the day.  Overall I've been doing much better than last year and I think the party was a big part of that.  I cried on Mark's shoulder for a while, then I called Jenn and cried to her.  What a baby I am!  But I did feel better after a good cry.

Second year Day 364 - Thursday December 12, 2013

I told you that I charged Bridgett's workout ipod, the one that she was using when she had her wreck.  Today she turned it on and began to search for music to listen to.  One of her playlists is "convertible music." Of course, she did drive a blue Mustang convertible and loved doing that!  She loved the feel of the wind on her face and in her hair!  And, apparently, she loved playing music while "riding in the 'Stang" (Princess Dairies quote).  Bridgett loved/loves to say that quote.  Of course, as I've mentioned before, Bridgett was a big movie quoter before the accident.  Since the accident, she remembers many quotes, she just couldn't remember what she was quoting from at first.  Now she's getting better at that, but she asks me almost daily what show she is quoting from. Since I hardly ever watch movies, I'm terrible at answering for her.  But usually one of the other kids can answer. BTW, Bridgett does long for the day when she can drive her 'Stang again, with the top down and the wind in her face and blowing her hair!  We all look forward to that day! 

Second year Day 363 - Wednesday December 11, 2013

Today we had to fill out papers for Bridgett's student loan.  It is income based, so at this point she has not made any payments.  Remember, she was in school full time when the accident happened.  She hasn't worked yet, so no income. Anyway, when she signed the documents about her income, she said that she hates her handwriting now.  Initially, her handwriting was messy, but OK.  The therapists asked if it was her normal handwriting.  No, she had very neat and careful handwriting.  She gets frustrated because although it's getting better, it's still not as neat and nice as it used to be.  Bridgett says it looks like a childs handwriting.  No, it really doesn't, but maybe it looks like her handwriting when she was a child!  Sometimes it's messier than other times, but mostly fine and definitely readable!  Something funny that Bridgett says often.  When she can do something herself without any help (something that she used to need help with) she says I can do it all byst myself.  I'm pretty sure that byst isn't a word!  Anyway, it's funny.  Another example of a Bridgettism! 

Second year Day 362 - Tuesday December 10, 2013

It's getting closer to Bridgett's two year anniversary of her wreck.  She calls it her Alive Day!  She said, I have a birthday and now I have an alive day too!  She says...it was almost a dead day--but it's an alive day--so we should celebrate!  I'm not having a lot of crying and stress like last year and I think it's because we are focusing on celebrating and thinking about all of the good things; it seems positive and productive! I'm looking forward to Saturday and having fun with everyone!  Also, I'm busy writing up a recount of some of the spiritual experiences we've had during this time.  I want to give a copy to the many family members that will be there Saturday.  I will mail out copies to those who can't attend.  I've done my share of crying as I've prepared this account, but those are a different kind of tears.  Tears of happiness, tears of feeling the spirit, tears of joy.   Still tears that wear you out, but in a good way. I've arranged a special menu for the family at Mimi's.  They said whenever they have a group of 25 or more, they encourage people to narrow down the menu; this speeds up ordering and insures that they have extra of those items.  I confirmed the menu today and everything is set for Saturday! 

Second year Day 361 - Monday December 9, 2013

This morning we had an appointment with Sharon to get Bridgett's hair trimmed.  Remember that the last time we had an appointment, she all of the sudden said she wanted a pixie cut!  I cancelled that appointment and we have waited for a while.  It's been weeks since that day, but still when we were getting ready to go this morning, suddenly Bridgett asked if she could get a pixie cut.  This time I just said NO!  We talked about it and she was OK with not getting it cut short.  But, what are the odds that she would remember that!  Hah!  On the way to Sharon's she suddenly asked how long it takes to be an esthetician.  What!  How do you remember that word, I asked????  It's so random, the things that come out of her mouth!  And she remembered what it was that an esthetician does!  Anyway, Sharon did such a great job with Bridgett's hair, and it looks so cute!  I said let's take a picture and she said she'd pose like a model, which she did!  She's a crack up!  Anyway, we got all ready to leave and I had just paid Sharon, when suddenly Bridgett said...I have to get my glasses.  Your glasses--where are they?  Sharon took them off when she started cutting my hair!  Now, it doesn't seem like a big thing to you I'm sure, but this was a BIG thing to me!  Yeah!  Short term memory getting better!  Just before we left Sharon's, Bridgett said isn't there a movie about a Jamaican bobsled team, that goes to the Olympics?  Yes!  Then she said isn't it called Cool Runnings?  Yes!  Then she said she wanted to go home and watch it.  She'll forget about it by the time we do a little grocery shopping and get home, but hey, at least she remembered about the show! 

Second year Day 360 - Sunday December 8, 2013

I've been trying to get a hold of everyone to confirm attendance at Bridgett's party on Saturday.  So far it looks like out of 59 people invited, 52 will attend!  Bridgett is super excited about the party and talking about it every day!  She's still having headaches.  Oh, I forgot to blog about this....we went to see Anne for a second appointment.  I called her first and talked to her about Bridgett's headaches and the fact that she's super car sick again, when she hasn't been for months and months.  Anyway, I said, let's just have a clean up appointment, and address the headaches and carsickness and not do anything extra.  She said that would be great from her perspective.  Anyway, we had the appointment and anyway, she's still having those bad headaches and she's still carsick.  Bummer!  So, we got all ready for church and then suddenly she had a terrible headache and we had to stay home!  These headaches are the worst!  Of course, the carsickness is terrible as well, and since we will be traveling this Thursday; she will have to take Zofran for sure! Arrianne ended up going to Urgent Care this morning.  She's worse today.  Jenn took over some decongestant to her and when she heard that Arri was planning on going to Urgent Care, Jenn said that she'd take her.  Arrianne didn't want to get Jenn sick, but Jenn brought a mask with her.  Urgent Care unfortunately said that its just viral and that she needs rest.  She's got so much going on, including a recording session tomorrow night (from 9;00 p.m. to 11:00 p.m. no less!) and she wants to do everything!  We'll see how things go, but hopefully she will be able to perform this weekend for her Opera Workshop!  She has two duets, a solo piece, and another group piece with solo, in addition to the many chorus pieces.  Hmmmmm.....

Second year Day 359 - Saturday December 7, 2013

Today Bridgett did the funniest thing--she got some Doritos to eat, put them in a bowl and then got a spoon to eat them with!  I looked at her kind of funny and she said are you commenting on my eating chips with a spoon?  Yes!  She said it keeps my fingers from getting dirty!  Hmmm.....I guess that's true, but I've never seen anyone do it before!  I told Mark about it and he said oh I guess I started that.  He said that quite a while ago he was eating lunch and had some chips.  He didn't want his fingers to get dirty so he ate with a fork.  He said it's the only time he's done it before, but there you go.  I always worry about things like that, thinking that Bridgett is impressionable, and there you go!!
I forgot to blog yesterday, that Arrianne got sick!  A week before her performances and then finals and juries!  Yikes!  She came right home and went to bed.  She's loading up on vitamins and I told her to just try to stay home and sleep.  I know that she's so sleep deprived!  Also, they had choir performances this week, and she was out late in the very cold air.  Lots of people in the department are already sick, and that makes it hard to stay well when you are surrounded by germs and sleep deprived! 

Second year Day 358 - Friday December 6, 2013

Late this afternoon, Bridgett and I went in to see the Christmas Creche display at the stake center.  Stephany wasn't feeling well enough to go.  They have spent hours preparing for the event, and then it's so COLD outside, I'm worried about attendance.  It's been below zero all week, and its supposed to be like -13 tonight!  I hate it went its this cold!  I shouldn't say hate, that's a strong word....I really, really don't like it!  Anyway, went we got out of the car the wind was blowing so hard, and it was SO cold!  We hustled inside and looked around for Mark and luckily found him quickly.  We made a somewhat quick inspection of the creches, but we did run into a few old friends and stop to talk.  First we saw Dick and Diane Denney.  Diane is a school teacher and teaches 2nd grade.  When Bridgett was in second grade, she asked me every night about public school and what it was like.  At length, Mark and I talked about it, and then asked Bridgett if she wanted to see what it was like.  I asked Diane if she could visit her class, and she consented.  Bridgett, being the social gal that she is, loved it!  She came home and begged to go to public school.  There were only two months left before summer, and so we talked and told her that she could go, but would need to finish out the year.  She agreed and so off she went to school.  She had fun at first, being the new girl, etc.  Then she started asking what we were doing at home school, and asking me to wait for her to get home before we did anything fun.  In the end, she really didn't enjoy it that much and wanted to quit, but as we'd agreed, we finished up the year.  I felt bad sending her when she wanted to be home, but Mark and I felt that if she didn't finish it out, by the next year or so she'd be asking to go again.  She needed to really find out what it was like and then make a choice.  And so, in the end, she decided that she loved homeschooling and didn't want to do public school again.  Of course, that was no reflection on Diane!  Bridgett didn't immediately recognize Diane.  I whispered that she was a second grade school teacher and a look of memory flashed across her face.  Did I go to her class?  Yes!  Next, we ran into Steve Perrone.  Bridgett immediately recognized him and excitedly gave him a hug.  A few minutes later, we stopped to talk to Debbie Perrone.  By this time Steve caught up to her as well.  Bridgett saw Debbie and I could see that she recognized her, but couldn't remember her name.  Steve said, she's with me, Bridgett!  Suddenly she said Debbie!  I said do you remember their kids.  A few weeks ago when Steve was at church, Bridgett remembered all of the kids names.  Tonight she couldn't remember right away, so I prompted her saying Jon.....and then she said and Lindsay and Melissa!  Right!  In her defense, Bridgett was in a very visually stimulating environment, it was the end of the day and she was tired, and also, she's had a long week with all of the headaches.  So, she was a little slow remembering.  Lastly, we ran into Muriel Reed.  I got involved in a conversation with her and so Mark and Bridgett walked a little bit.  When I was done talking, I caught up to them.  By this time, Bridgett was walking very slow, and was so tired out and ready to leave.  Mark helped us to the car and I drove her home and she went right to bed! 

Second year Day 357 - Thursday December 5, 2013

This morning was a little hectic, trying to get everything under control so that I can be gone for several hours for my audit.  Mark was totally involved in the annual Christmas Creche display at the church, so Tyler was in charge of playing games with Bridgett during the audit period.  Luckily, the auditor was someone that has audited me before.  We got to talking and I found out that I was one of his first audits, five years ago!  He was very nice and the audit only lasted about an hour and a half-ish.  After I got home, Bridgett said she was remembering getting a Betty Spaghetti doll for Christmas one year, along with her sisters.  She described their dolls and their funny spaghetti like hair!  Cool! 

Second year Day 356 - Wednesday December 4, 2013

So, ever since we saw Anne, Bridgett has been having bad headaches, almost migraine like really.  In addition, she's had neck pain.  For a few days after a treatment, that might be OK, but now it's really going on for too long.  Her headaches are so very painful and no pain reliever is helping at all.  When Faith works on Bridgett, the after effects are definitely limited and don't hang on.  Of course, usually she's seeing us again the next day and she can make an adjustment to stop the pain.  I have been meaning to call Anne, but feeling so crummy that I didn't get around to it.  I did call Lil tonight and ask her about how she found out about Anne, and how long she's been seeing her, etc.  The other day was her first appointment.  She wasn't referred by anyone, she just met Anne at the bank where she (Lil) works.  She suggested that I call Anne, which is what I would have done by now if I hadn't felt so crummy!  I will try to call her tomorrow afternoon, after my audit. 

Second year Day 355 - Tuesday December 3, 2013

Today Bridgett had a string of questions, like always!  Most of her questions these days are asking if she's remember correctly or not.  She used to ask questions and I'd say what do you think?  Now she asks like this......does Lady Gaga sing Poker Face?  Is Snoopy the dog in Charlie Brown movies?  Doesn't aunt Debbie live in American Fork?  And one of my favorites.....didn't Stephany used to always say fluffer nutter?!  It's so fun to have her remember things, albeit random things!  Today I was SOOO tired, and also crying a lot.  I wondered what was the matter with me.  By afternoon I was a basket case, and finally Stephany called Mark and asked him to come home.  It was not very convenient for him, but he did come home.  Together we realized that my new thyroid medication that I started last Tuesday, was not working properly.  I was tired all last week, and just chalked it up to traveling, Thanksgiving, having Arrianne home and staying up late, etc.  I called my doctor and discussed the situation, and adjusted my medication.  Hopefully tomorrow will be better!  I have my in person audit on Thursday, and I need to feel better!

Second year Day 354 - Monday December 2, 2013

Today we were talking about Christmas and I asked Bridgett if she remembered what she asked for and got when she was 12.  I said, there were two kind of opposite things.  She said, didn't I ask for an American girls doll?  Yes!  And then she said, and didn't I ask for a BB gun?  Yes!  It was a funny thing, giving her a doll and a gun for Christmas, but so Bridgett-ish!  Bridgett has always been one of a kind, unique in every way!  Today Bridgett asked about the Trojan horse.  Random!  Anyway, I had her look it up in her reference book, and it wasn't there!  So, we googled it and read about it.  She remembers there was a Trojan horse, but none of the details about it except it happened, supposedly, a long time ago.  Some things she is remembering are like that, sketchy, but there. 

Second year Day 353 - Sunday December 1, 2013

All too soon it is the last day Arri will be home.  We've all had such a great time!  The girls have had a lot of fun together.  BTW, they never got around to watching the last of Lord of the Rings!  Stephany and Bridgett were feeling sick today and Mark had to go into work at the last minute, so Arrianne stayed home from church with me and we visited some more.  Mark made it back in time for lunch together.  He loaded her bag into the car and they took off about 3:00 to head for the airport.  Normally we would go and see her off (and meet her!) but this trip she just got to be alone with her dad.  Mark said that he asked her to sing for him on the way to the airport, and it was really fun for him.  She has been singing a lot while she was home.  She has a very loud, operatic voice, which is beautiful--but it's hard for Bridgett to listen to for very long.  So, each day when Arrianne practiced (for one-two hours), Bridgett went into my room, put in her earphones and turned on her ipod and listened to music to block out the singing, while she played Nintendo or played on her ipod.  It all worked out, so that's good.  Arrianne has juries in a couple of weeks and also her opera workshop, with lots of music that she's still working on.  She can't go a week without singing!  Arrianne made it home safely and we all went to bed early.  Oh, this was a funny thing......today Arrianne was practicing her singing and Bridgett was in my room on her ipad.  I stopped in the room to check on Bridgett and found that she was on the Buckle site, looking at clothes!  She always loved the Buckle and has quite a few things from there.  Bridgett always had style and loved fashion, with her own kind of style.  So, anyway, I asked her if she wanted to put things in the shopping cart and show me later.  She couldn't remember how to do that so I taught her.  It took quite a few times before she could remember each step.  She kept forgetting to choose a size so that the item would get added.  But in the end, she added 13 things to the cart for me to look at!  It's nice to see her starting to be interested in fashion again.  When asked, she's said that she wants some new clothes and jewelry for Christmas--some bling for sure.  So Bridgett! 

Second year Day 352 - Saturday November 30, 2013

Oh, forgot to mention that yesterday I took Bridgett to see Anne Yellow Kidney, the craniosacral therapist that Patti Fenn told me about.  She is located right in Bigfork.  We were waiting for her finish with her appointment before us, and when the person came out--it was Lil Levi!  We were both surprised to see the other one and had a really quick hello goodbye before we went into our appointment.  Anne is very experienced.  I'm not sure at this point how experience she is in relation to Faith, but this next week we will watch how Bridgett does and that will tell me a lot.  However, at least she has many years of experience, and she definitely knows more that most of the therapist we've seen.  We are hoping that this can help with our travel situation!  One thing that Anne talked to Bridgett about during this appointment was that she has tension down one side from her negative feeling towards the man that hit her.  She asked Bridgett how she felt about him.  Bridgett said she was angry that he hit her.  Anne said these feelings spill over into our life and cause people to have negative feelings towards others that they are involved with.  She asked Bridgett if she ever got mad at her dad or brothers, and how their relationship was.  Bridgett told Anne that that she loves each of them and that they love her and treat her so well.  Suddenly I remember something.  There have only been like five times that Bridgett has been angry about anything since her wreck, but each time she has said something snappy to Mark!  He always looks bewildered and asks me, what did I do?  And he hasn't ever done anything really.  I have just chalked it up to hormones but I wonder......I mentioned this to Anne and she nodded.  She told Bridgett that this is common when you get hurt.  Your inner child expects your dad to protect you, to keep you from getting hurt.  Your inner child blames your dad for not being there and helping you.  So, she said to take this next week to try to forgive the man that hurt her.  After we left, we talked on the way home.  We haven't really talked about this subject for a while.  Bridgett again asked me if the man ever apologized to her.  She said, he should have said that he was sorry you know!  I know, but he is sorry I'm sure, I said.  Then I remembered to tell her about something that happened while she was in a coma.  I blogged about it at the time.  Her visiting teacher found out about the wreck and called her mother and told her.  When the mother heard the details, she exclaimed that this girls father had been at the scene!  They all got together that night and came up to the waiting room at the ICU to see us.  The father sat and told us about his experience.  He said that he was one of the first on the scene, just minutes/seconds after it happened.  He saw that a cyclist had been hit and since he was a cyclist himself, thought this might be one of my friends.  He jumped out of his vehicle and ran to Bridgett.  He saw that it wasn't anyone he knew but had great compassion for her.  He took off his coat and covered her up, since it was so cold outside.  He looked over and saw the man that had hit her and he had fallen to the ground on his knees and was sobbing.  When I told Bridgett this, she immediately changed in her demeanor and started to cry!  She said she felt so badly for him and realized the great sorrow that the man had. She said, I hope Heavenly Father forgives me for being angry with him--I'm so sorry!  All the way home she talked about it.  When we got home, the rest of the family was a little mystified to hear her talking about it and about how sorry she felt for the man.  I explained the situation to everyone.  I cried too.  It's a hard thing for everyone. 

Second year Day 351 - Friday November 29, 2013

Today Arrianne said, the week is going so fast!  I know! I hate that!  But, it's not long until Christmas break!  She said, well that's a scary thought because that means that finals are just around the corner and there's not much time to have everything done!  True!  We did lots of just visiting and resting today.  Later on in the evening, the power went out!  I hate that!  We grabbed the flashlights and lanterns and spent the rest of the evening in the dark more of less.  Mark and I decided that Bridgett had better sleep up in the extra bed in our room, so if she awakened in the night and the power was out, someone would be around to help her to the bathroom.  Of course, it was also getting chilly in the house. Mark started a fire in the fireplace pretty quickly, and also a fire in our bedroom fireplace, so that we could keep it warmer.  He tried starting one in the wood burning stove downstairs, but it's been several years since we've used it and in the dark he couldn't get the flue opened up correctly, so mostly he just smoked up the downstairs and then quit!  Stephany and Arrianne were so funny!  They said the smoke was like fog, so went into the bedroom and dressed up like detectives and talked with British accents!  Hilarious!  The power was out for quite a few hours, but we were all bundled up in our down comforters as we slept and kept fairly warm. 

Second year Day 350 - Thursday November 28, 2013

Thanksgiving Day!  It was a great, although quiet day.  We had a wonderful time all cooking together.  It's so fun to spend time in the kitchen together.  Arri said, think of how much time we cook for Thanksgiving and then how fast its all eaten up! True!  We have an interesting dinner on Thanksgiving because in addition to the turkey, we have vegan dishes for Arrianne and I.  Bridgett is again going back to a dislike of meat, although she never did enjoy eating turkey.  She and Scott don't like it at all.  However, there was plenty to choose from without turkey! 

Second year Day 349 - Wednesday November 27, 2013

I forgot to blog that when Arrianne got home, Bridgett ran over and hugged her and once again said, I'm never going to let you go!  It's so cute to see them together! It's great to have Arrianne home, adding so much happiness and life to everything!  Another thing I forgot to blog was that when we were flying home Bridgett asked how fast the plane was going.  I said, oh probably about 500 mph, but I really didn't know for sure.  Anyway, she thought about that for a little while, then she said, so, if I was driving 100 in my convertible, wouldn't I be going 1/5 the speed of a plane?  YES!  I was so happy and excited to see her thought process there!  And the math skill!  Fractions!  YES!  Today we went shopping for Thanksgiving dinner and then played games. We played Disney Trivia.  Bridgett answered the kids questions, and sometimes needed a little bit more time, but overall did great!  It was fun to all play together! 

Second year Day 348 - Tuesday November 26, 2013

Its so fun to have Arri home and all be together.  Of course, the bad thing is that we got home the same day--it would have been better for us to get home a day earlier so that we could rest up a day before Arri got home.  So, this way we were all wiped out today.  Oh well!  So much for planning!  Arrianne asked Bridgett if she'd like to watch a movie with her today.  I've blogged about TV and movies before--but anyway, Bridgett has not liked watching anything at all since her wreck.  She and I set a goal for her to watch 30 minutes and then build up slowly.  Tyler has teased us that I always used to encourage everyone to watch LESS TV, and now here I am trying to get Bridgett to watch MORE TV!  Anyway, somehow our conversation today turned to the new hobbit movie and Bridgett started asking about it.  We told her the first one came out last year.  She said, well I'm behind!  I need to watch all of the Lord of the Rings movies and the first hobbit movie so that I can get caught up for the new movie.  Arri said shall we start tonight?  Bridgett answered in a hearty affirmative! So, about 7:30 p.m. they started watching the movie.  Usually by this time, Bridgett wants to read for an hour, but instead they started watching.  Oh, another thing, I have to clarify that sometimes Bridgett will watch 20 minutes of something but really she is just kind of watching.  She sits in the same room as the TV and plays a game on her ipad while she "watches".  So, tonight she started out with her ipad on her lap, but Arrianne sat right next to her and waited to see what she would do.  She watched one hour and 48 minutes of the movie, quoting many parts right before they happened!  She remembered the movie! At that point she said to Arrianne that she was tired and really wanted to finish the movie, but needed to sleep.  She said she'd finish tomorrow.  Who know if that will happen, but we all consider that a great breakthrough!

Second year Day 347 - Monday November 25, 2013

We got up and had some continental breakfast. We were all pretty slammed from yesterday.  Bridgett and I played some cards down in the lobby, so that Stephany could sleep more.  She was really the most slammed!  We checked out and had a taxi ride with yet another rude taxi driver.  What is it about there SL taxi drivers!  I've been in lots of taxis--some friendly and talkative, some polite and quiet, but none rude like these guys!  Weird!  Anyway, they told us that the airport would be packed with holiday travelers, but it was pretty empty and we breezed through security with only one person ahead of us.  We had a wait for the plane, but it was OK.  There was a close place in the airport with something to eat.  I pushed Bridgett in the wheel chair and we got something to eat.  Stephany was going to run to Jamba Juice, but by the time we returned to stay with the bags, suddenly the airport was packed!  She ate a protein bar that I had with me, so it all worked out.  Bridgett was dizzy and nauseated already, but I gave her tabacum and zofran and hoped for the best.  Luckily the plane ride was smooth and uneventful and she did just fine (first leg of the trip so far where she's been pretty OK, although somewhat nauseated!).  We arrived early, and Mark was waiting for us with the car.  We were so glad to be back!  We went home and all crashed for a nap before Arri's plane landed.  Her flight was not early, so Mark had to wait a bit, but then bundled her off to home too.  It was so good to all be home together!  Oh, Bridgett said the funniest thing today.  She's forever bugging me about sleeping my phone to save the battery.  Today, she watched me do it and then said, hey it's like teaching a kid to tie their shoelaces!  What, I said.  She said you know, its so exciting to see your kid learn how to do something that you taught them!  HAH! 

Second year Day 346 - Sunday November 24, 2013

So this was a very weird day for sure.  Luckily we started the day out by resting in the room until about 1:30, when we had a late check out.  Then I left the girls downstairs in the very nice lobby while I went around the block and picked up food for lunch.  We left the bags at the desk.  We ate in the lobby and just rested on the comfy couches until 3:00, when a taxi picked us up to go to the airport.  We got through security and sat down to wait at the airport.  I noticed it was snowing outside by now and frowned thinking about the storm.  We boarded the plane and then sat on the runway.  We were notified that the storm was interfering with take off and that we would be waiting until the we had clearance.  At this point Bridgett mentioned that she might want to go to the bathroom, which we avoid while on the airplane.  I said yes, go now for sure, before we get in the air.  Luckily for us, she did go then, because we sat on the runway for three hours!  Then they went back to the gate and let anyone off who wanted to get off.  They told us however, that there were only eight seats left to fly to SL tomorrow, so they couldn't guarantee that we'd make SL if we didn't go tonight.  We were cleared to leave by this time, although it took a bit to de-ice the wings and get some more fuel since we'd used up fuel sitting on the runway.  Of course, we had already missed our connection in SL to Kalispell by this time and I think everyone had missed their connections to where ever.  Bridgett was a trooper!  She was very motion sick, but I'd given her two zofrans so that helped.  She sat in her seat the entire time!  Of course, she was very anxious to get off the plane.  Everyone was in a tizzy about missing theirs flights.  We got off the plane and found no less than seven wheel chairs at the bottom of the walkway.  The porters had names on their ipads, which they held up.  We walked so slowly down the ramp as Bridgett was dizzy.  I know people behind us were impatient!  Anyway, our porter was Russian with a thick accent.  There were Delta people telling us to move quickly to someone who would tell us what would happen now.  Between Bridgett being dizzy and sick, the rush to get out of the way for others who were in wheel chairs, the Russian porter practically running down the halls with us, and the worry about our flights and Arrianne flying home tomorrow as well (hoping we could make it home too), I completely forgot to grab our carry on bags just inside the gate, which had been gate checked.  They weren't there yet, or I would have remembered!  Anyway, by the time they got us down to check on our next flight and I remembered about them, they had been moved somewhere else.  Long story short, they were located just in time before being boarded on another plane.....they had booked us to fly to Minneapolis and then back to Kalispell!!  Whoa!  We COULDN'T do that, even if we missed Thanksgiving.  Bridgett barely survived the first flight!  So, they re-booked us from SL to Kalispell the next morning.  We tried to get on Arri's flight in the afternoon, but it was full.  We were given a voucher to get a hotel discount, and stayed at the Marriott by the airport.  We took a taxi over there (rude taxi driver!) and the girls found something at the front desk to eat.  We had planned to grab something in the SL airport and would have been there at dinner time.  By the time we arrived, all of the food places were closed!  WOW!  Anyway, we crashed and got some sleep without unpacking too much.  What a day!! 

Second year Day 345 - Saturday November 23, 2013

In the mornings Bridgett and I either walk to Starbucks for some yogurt and a bun (and bring something back for Stephany) or we have something in the room that we bought the night before.  We made the mistake of taking a taxi to Whole Foods one day.  It cost $35 one way!  And then there wasn't much that we could buy anyway.  Bummer!  Usually we can get enough food for several days, and put it in the fridge.  But for whatever reason, this Whole Foods isn't as big as many that I have been to before.  Anyway, it was cold but not windy and we decided that today was a good day to go to the zoo!  We headed up to the zoo and found out that it was windy there and so colder.  We walked to the giraffe house first, where the girls could feed the giraffes!  SO FUN!  It was worth it to go just for that experience!  Afterwards we walked to the elephant house.  BTW this zoo is built on a mountain, so you start at approximately 6,000 ft elevation and climb to 7,000 at the top.  By the time we had reached the top, Bridgett felt sick and was ready to go.  I had told Stephany before we went that even if feeding the giraffes was all we could do, that would be OK, so she wasn't upset about leaving.  We sat in the gift store and Bridgett had hot chocolate while we waited for our taxi.  On the way back we went past the Broadmore Hotel and estate and it was pretty amazing!  We didn't stop however.  We picked up some food at Noodles and Company, which is too far away for us to walk to so nice to drive past!  We ate and had a nap and then decided to go to the Space Foundation Center.  That was also a neat place, with actual astronaut suits, etc. We wandered around there for about an hour; we were the only visitors there, maybe because of the cold.  Afterwards we had the taxi drop us off about a block and a half from the hotel, at the pioneer museum.  There was a very scary elevator there (old cage elevator) and the girls didn't want to go to other floors, so we just did the main floor.  We used a wheel chair, as Bridgett was tired by now.  Afterwards, we braved the cold and walked back, stopping for gluten free pizza for the girls and Chipotle for me.  Once inside, we thawed out and decided that it was a good thing that we were going to just rest in the morning and not go anywhere else! 

Second year Day 344 - Friday November 22, 2013

This morning we had appointments and then we went to the Olympic Training Center in the afternoon. I'm glad we waited and didn't go yesterday, as it was so cold then and much more moderate today.  Although there was snow on the ground, the walks were clear. It was a great experience! The girls and I just loved seeing things there. First there was a movie that lasted 12 minutes. I was worried about whether or not Bridgett would be able to tolerate it, with the loud sound, but she did great! She LOVED it. Of course, she always dreamed of the Olympics, and had set her sites on trying out for the Olympic Rugby team. I don't remember when rugby is supposed to be in the summer Olympics but Bridgett used to know for sure. I should ask her if she remembers! Anyway, we went on a tour of the facility and we saw athletes training, which was fun! We saw the mens wrestling coach, who was an Olympian himself. It was just us and two other people on the tour, so we got to ask lots of questions. The store was great and we bought everyone a shirt with Olympic graphics on it.  The girls are feeling great and this has been a good trip for appointments!

Second year Day 343 - Thursday November 21, 2013

This morning we had appointments and then we had planned to go to the Olympic Training Center in the afternoon.  However, it snowed this morning and it was bitterly cold.  I called the visitors center and they said that the walks would be shoveled but that as it was so cold, it might be icy.  Yuck!  So, we will wait until tomorrow and hope the weather is better!  We took a taxi to our appointments with Faith; I can't worry about Bridgett slipping on the icy.  On the way home, we picked up food that I had ordered ahead and then we stopped at Natural Grocers for a couple of things we needed (including yummy WOW gluten free peppermint brownies!).  It was great to be back inside and warm again!  We explored the hotel a little bit and got some pictures.  In the late afternoon Bridgett stayed warm in the room while Stephany and I walked around the block and picked up dinner.

Second year Day 342 - Wednesday November 20, 2013

On Monday Faith and I were talking about Bridgett's progress and I told her the story about Bridgett being so giddy and saying that she needed to think of something sad so she thought of a crocodile eating her.  Faith said she laughed about that off and on ever since I told her about the crocodile thing.  Bridgett does say the funniest things, usually ever day.  She's a humorous person, that's for sure!  Today we went to our appointments and afterwards, Faith said that she just needed to see Bridgett for about 15 minutes later on.  She offered to cut her lunch short and see us about an hour after our appointments, so that we wouldn't have to come out when it was dark.  That seemed good to us, so we left to get some lunch.  There is a place just across the street so we went there to check out the menu.  There was nothing on it that the girls wanted, so we started back towards the hotel and the main downtown area to look around.  We wandered here and there, looking around until finally I noticed that it was almost a half an hour since we had left and we were all the way downtown.  I told the girls that we didn't have time to eat, but that we needed to head back to Faith's house, which we did.  After we got back to Faith's, I ordered a pizza to go from the place on the same block as the hotel called Il Vacino's.  They have gluten free pizza as well.  We walked back and picked it up on the way.  The girls had that for lunch and I grabbed something at Chipotle's again, which is also in that block on the backside of where the hotel is.  It's handy to be where we are, because there are great places to eat right on our block! 

Second year Day 341 - Tuesday November 19, 2013

Last week when Bridgett was talking to Arrianne, she told Arri that she had "fallergies", defined by Bridgett as fall allergies!  Another example of Bridgett's love to make up words, which she had before the wreck.  She said that everyone should use this word because it only makes sense! Today we had appointments with Faith again.  We walked from the hotel, had our appointments, and walked back, stopping for lunch.  We went to Chipotle, and they had food similar to Qdoba, but with one neat difference.  Along with meat, they offer sofritas now, which is a combination of tofu and spicy things.  It was yummy!  Afterwards we had a nap and then we walked back to Faith's office for a second appointment for Bridgett.  By the time her appointment was done it was dark.  I asked Faith if it was safe to walk in the dark and she said no, so we called a cab to take us back.  On the way, we stopped at Poor Richard's for gluten free pizza.  One cool thing about being here is that almost every menu has vegan and gluten free options, so everyone can find something to eat.  I found out that even at the pizza place they have a tofu dish!