Out for the Count

There is really only comedy that can be had when your husband shows up one afternoon after skiing with a dislocated shoulder, just 1 week after you have major knee reconstructive surgery (Patella realignment and lateral release of the ligaments). The heavy narcotics that I was on at the time probably fostered my uncontrollable laughter that day. I am pretty sure that Greta did not think it was as funny. We spent weeks preparing her for mommies owie. Telling her that mommy would be coming home from the hospital with a BIG bandaid....but nothing could have prepared her for this spontaneous parental malfunction. I can only imagine what her little mind must had been thinking when she looked at us, both all rapped up in BIG bandaids, on pain killers and unable to preform as the trusty parents we had been for her until now. Her poor little eyes would just bug-out of her head in disbelief. To our pleasant surprise, she quickly took up the roll of "Care Taker", asking us each morning how our injuries we're feeling and bringing us ice. Her kindness and ability to comfort was, and still, stunning. Who would have guessed that at 2 1/2 year old has a capacity to show such empathy.

Our compounded injuries have turned Kirby land upside-down. Our usual routine of "On the Go - Never a Free Moment", has morphed into a sedentary existence, one so unfamiliar to us that we almost had to seek reference. Finally confronting the idea of what people do when they can't ski on a saturday afternoon and as cabin fever threatened our sanity, we headed out into the retail world. Our failed attempt at shopping for a new TV sent us scrambling out of the crowded Best Buy parking lot before we even steps on foot out of the car. Knowing we were not going to try that again, we settled on family lunches out and small trips to the park or Wheeler Farm for our family fun and our hopes are high for a trip to the swimming pool, now that I can get my leg wet again.

Being house bound has not stopped us from family visits. Nana was soooooo kind to come stay with us for the first week of post-op. Her priceless care and entertainment for G is something i'll be hard pressed to repay! Grandpa and Grandma Linda came 1 month post-op, originally to assist with the recover of knee #2, which has been delayed until May.Their visit was unlike any other, no XC skiing trips, no hikes, although we did manage a cool February picnic just to keep them on their toes.

Finishing off the month of February with a fun filled trip to Montrose to visit with Gmom and PapaD, with Tepees, snowy drives and a walk along the Uncompahgre river.

(Click here for more pictures).

We are healing fast and are stronger everyday. Spring is in the air and we look to warmer temps so we can stop thinking about the ski season we're missing out on and start thinking about the summer fun ahead! Greta already has her summer skin on (see photos link above), deciding that clothes are the optional part of everyday attire. She's still amazing us daily. She can count to 10, sing her ABC's and enjoys a good tea party! She says the funniest things...like when Stefan told her that a new sushi restaurant was opening in our shopping center and she said "Holy Moly!". This girl really loves sushi! or when she asked me what color her hair is and I said "Brown" then I asked her what color my hair is and she said "white", ha! I guess it's time to do some root dying. She's a sharp little one, never misses a thing. She can read stories ALLLLLL day long...discovering a new fondness with Thomas the Train, her favorite, of course, being Emily. We are potty training, she's doing GREAT! Stefan and I are already coming up with ideas for how we can spend our extra $40 a month...I vote for a beach vacation!

Team Kirby is back, She's 2 & It's 2010

My effort to BLOG seemed to escape me throughout the summer, fall and almost this winter too, but now as the snow falls and the early evening is keep me indoors, I have found the motivation to continue with what I have started. Honestly, who let me get YOU hooked on our Team Kirby Blogging, then gave ME the right to enjoy the majority of 2009 without posting for months on end? I sincerely apologizing for my lack of social networking etiquette and because it has 7 months since my last post (I know, I am a disgrace to the blogging community) I have decided to make this post the "Super Mega Team Kirby 09 Extravaganza" and simply say summer, fall and most of winter happened! Posted below are the contents of Team Kirby's last 7 months, meticulously organized into clickable photo biographical links for your viewing pleasure.

So sit back and enjoy, block off a few hours from your day and prepare yourself for Team Kirby summer-fall-start of winter photo submersion.

But first, I feel compeled to give you a quick Greta update... Since June she has somehow managed to go from19 Months to "So Big"...Everyone has heard the saying before, the age old words of wisdom that warn you of how fast your kids will grow-up. There is truth in that wisdom and over the last 7 month we experienced it first hand. We've managed to watched our baby transform into a full-blown toddler. There are no more morning naps, just the afternoon 1-3. No more pureed foods, just "big" food. No more bottle feedings, just big girl cups. No more help from mommy, just "I do it." Nope, all those baby traits have been replaced with the wonder and amazement of a thriving little girl who soaks up the new world around her like a thirsty sponge. And as you can see in the 2 pictures below she is "So Big"

3 days old

25 months old

Now, let the "Super Mega Team Kirby 09 Extravaganza" begin.....

We had a fantastic summer filled with ID-CO-UT camping, Wasatch hiking, Denver time, Sawtooth Music, Steamboat Springs 4th of July celebration, and a beautiful Marble Wedding

(Click here for more pictures of Summer).

Fall was kicked off with a biking trip at the North Rim of the Grand Canyon with Grandpa, a solo Daddy - G trip to Gmom's, G's 2nd Birthday with a Nana visit and Halloween

(Click here for more pictures of Fall)

Winter has been a slow start in the Wasatch but we've managed to fill our days with lots of XC ski trips, Thanksgiving trip to Denver, Christmas at home with Gmom and New Years!

(Click here for more pictures of Winter...so far)

We'll there you have it...Team Kirby is back in the saddle again!

That was Swell

We took a soggy doggy camping trip to the San Rafeal Swell with friends Chris, Erika and Finn, over Memorial Day Weekend. We were no sure we would make it to our camp site, due to the inch of mud icing the road like thick chocolate frosting. But our trusty Snowball (our van) kept her two wheel drive tires on the road until we reached our destination. We were so proud!

It was great to see the kids interact on this trip. The are really becoming friends and learning to play so well together.

They ran together...

They smelled the flowers together...

They chilled-out together...

and they laughed alot!

Despite of all the rain, and wow did it rain, we managed to get in a nice hike...

and the big boys did a little climbing.

It was a great start to our family camping season...

...let the summer begin!

We all had a Swell time!

Nana Time

Time with Nana is priceless. 

Here are a few photos from G and Nana's time together while Mom and Dad were on vacation.

Greta learned a precious family tradition! 

They spent time just strolling around.

She got to ride her first pony!

They played at the park!

And they took time to smell the flowers!

I am so glad they got to spend this time together!

We Found Zion and Each Other

3 wonderful days in Zion! 

Thanks to Mom, who so graciously FORCED Stefan and I to take a weekend away from life in exchange for a weekend for Nana-Greta time. Our 3 day-40 mile through hike of Zion National Park was not exactly the relaxing, "kick your feet up by the pool with a margarita" escape that Mom was envisioning for us, but it was a classic Kirby "before kid", "remind us why we fell in love" kind of hike!

The weather was perfect, the scenery was breathtaking and the company was way overdue. Most of the hike was surprisingly unexpected for us. We started off at Kolob, heading up LaVerkin Creek. At first it was like we imagined it would be; Mammoth red rocks walls and Colorado Plateau vegetation intermingling with traces of Mojave shrub, a real Southern Utah feel. Gradually we gained elevation, temperatures dropped, and then Pines became dominate. Enter Hopp Valley;  a striking box-canyon with the strangely familiar  feel of the Rocky Mountains. Lush, brushy under-story, montane wild flowers and towering yellow pines. 

Stefan swears he found the largest Pondo on the planet, and I concur. It would have easily taken 5 adults to give this big giant a hug. It was the kind of stature a Redwood could be envious of. In-fact, we had to keep smelling it, a vanilla sweet, to convince ourselves that it was not one that was horribly lost.  

The next morning  was spent winding our way up Hopp Valley which eventally lead us up to sage brush flat tops and Pine Valley shade.  The real views of the hike were now just beyond the horizon.   As the day went on,  the miles started taking their toll on us. Skirting around the jagged  piles of black lava, the remains of an ancient volcano, made my now black-and-blue big toe nail ache with every jarring step (the only casualty of the trip, my poor toe). But knowing that just beyond Lava Point was our final resting place of day 2 gave my "out-of-shape mommy legs" the strength go on to camp. We ended the day with a epic game of GIN, both managing to get GIN an unheard of 2 times! 

The final day was long, 13+ miles but all down hill and ALL VIEW. From Lava Point we headed for the West Rim Trail, apply named for its 360 degree views of canyons and neighboring plateaus.  The views on the Rim Trail can be partly blamed on the decades of lightening induced forrest fires that have chard the pines and everything else in its path, making us grateful for the blue skies over head. As we descended into Zion Canyon, the trail became steeper, the vertical magnitude of the canyon walls consumed us an civilization eventually rejoined us. 

Sitting on the shuttle bus that took us to our awaiting van, we held hands. I am not sure that we spoke a word to each other on the short ride to the car, but I know that we were thinking the same thing. Beer, followed by Chips and Salsa! :)

Our weekend concluded with a fancy Springdale hotel to celebrate our 6 year wedding anniversary. The Desert Pearl Inn, a cozy Inn right on the Virgin River. Highly recommend it! It's probably the only hotel in Utah with a bidet. 

Thanks again Mom!