How I manage. Plus a bucket list item crossed off the list.

I've been to Moab twice in the last two weeks.  Even for a Moab lover, isn't that a lot?
I am not going to give a play by play of our jeeping adventures because it's pretty much the same as any of the other times we went.  I was scared, it was pretty though, Frank loved it, yada yada yada.

What I would like to share is the coping mechanisms that I have come up with:
1-make a vow to myself to just keep my mouth shut and not yell, or whimper or cry or scream. Just be stoic. (Always break said vow within 5 minutes)
2-close my eyes when it is scary
3-get out of the car when it is really scary
4-pretend I'm on a roller coaster (but with my eyes shut)
5-pull my hat over my face and whimper
6-eat twizzlers
7-try to notice and point out the pretty stuff (flowers, mountains, clouds etc)

I'm eating better lately so I have given up #6 but Frank mentioned this last weekend that I do better when I have some twizzlers so that one must have worked somewhat.  They guys enjoy mocking me and my inadvertent noises, so at least I am entertaining.

Here are some pretty flowers I saw on our hikes. I love desert flowers!

The following little orange ones were my favorite but they were always in big bunches right on the side of the road, so difficult to photograph. I finally saw this little bunch and it is out of focus. Gah!

We did some pretty serious hiking on both weekends. Carter came with us on on Memorial weekend and we hiked the Fiery Furnace in Arches National Park. That hike was a bucket list item for me and I loved it!  It requires a permit to do it so advanced planning is necessary (not our strong suit).  Luckily we thought to get a permit the week before,  since we were there. It worked out great.

Here are some of the pictures of that hike:

Love the various arches and windows!  Arches really is one of my favorite places.

Beautiful!

 There was a fair amount of scrambling, climbing in cracks and through holes in the rock.  So cool

This is called "Surprise Arch" and it is awesome.

That's all for now!

This weekend, I am staying home and I can't wait!

30 years baby!

Yesterday, May 28 2018 was my 30th wedding anniversary.

30 years is a long time.

We went to Moab for the long weekend so I wasn't able to post but I wanted to write a little something to commemorate the occasion.

Frank got me a lovely picture of Christ with his sheep, a cute card (Disney themed! He is trying to get what I might like obviously) and just a few sugar free chocolates (we are trying to eat healthy but he knows I would like a little cheat).  I got him...nothing. Ugh.

In my defense, we are going to Mexico in a couple of weeks which is our official celebration of our anniversary so I didn't know we were doing anything on the actual day. 

Still, it was definitely a fail on my part.

I was really surprised by the picture!  I love it.  As I opened it he said something along the lines of the picture reminding him of me and my life's work/what I do best.  It totally made me tear up and still does when I think about it. So thoughtful.

Let's see how we've changed:

1988

1990 Frank's College Graduation

1995 (My college graduation)

Most of the pictures from the "early years" were on film so I don't have access to them. I need to get them digitized. Although those were not my best years, so I'm ok with missing them. Ha!

See:

1999 

1999 New Years Eve

2000 (Business trip tag along)

2003 NYC

2004 on our Anniversary

2005

2006 (Me trying not to cry at Christmas)

2006 Our anniversary (I tagged along on a business trip Frank had to London!)

2007 (40th bday trip for me)

2008

2008 (70's Party)

2009 in our backyard

2009 (Maine)

2010 Anniversary weekend (at a Memorial Day Parade)

2010 (first time at the grand canyon. Came out west for my parent's 50th anniversary)

2011 Branden and Amber's Wedding

2012 (The day Frank entered the hospital with Leukemia)

2012 (The day before Frank went back to the hospital for his bone marrow transplant)

2012 (On our anniversary)

2013 (Canobie Lake Park with Carter and friends)

2013 (Oregon Christmas, Frank's 50th bday)

2014 (Oregon Coast)

2015 (Moab)

2016

2017 (Moab)

2018 (Family wedding)

Apparently, for the most part we don't take pictures together unless it's a holiday or special occasion. Luckily we have taken some when we've gone hiking in Moab or I'd have nothing together for the last few years! Gotta fix that I guess.

It's been a bumpy ride for sure but I guess that's just how life is, amiright?

We do forget to cherish each day, which I vowed to do when Frank was so sick, but I'm grateful that our lives have become so normal that we can sometimes take it for granted.

Love is like that sometimes.

And I'm glad to have my love of 30 years here by my side.