a day in the life of Jonas

sleep
stretch
ask to go potty
eat
play fetch
eat favorite toy "purple monster"
attack lion
help with chores
look cute

sleep some more

my beautiful valentine's day flowers

The Carters Visit

Em and Aaron came to SLC a few weeks ago. They came to visit our home in Heber where Aaron played with Jonas while Mindy taught us how to make salsa. Later we went to dinner with more friends at Red Robin. The day came and went too quickly but it was so fun to see them! Come back and visit soon.

Happy Valentine's Day Mandy-I love you more....

I was thinking of the best way to create a Valentine's Day card for my wife to go along with the flowers that I got her yesterday, but being stuck at home all day without a car and not wanting to walk Jonas into town twice in a day I thought that I could post it in blog form. Since Mandy is always wanting me to add to the blog anyway, I figured this would be a great way to do it. Unfortunately, she wont see it for a while since I just learned that internet privileges at her work were taken away.
Recently I was reading a blog where someone was fairly upset and even posted that they sometimes regret marrying their husband because he has Cystic FIbrosis (CF) and all the complications that go with it. That really saddened me. Luckily, my wife has no regrets about marrying me (or at least she hasn't told me) and loves me because of my CF. CF is one thing of many that has shaped who I am as a person and it was that person that Mandy fell in love with and allowed me to fall in love with her. Literally from the time we started dating years ago I knew that she would be my wife, it just took me a long time to convince myself of that reality. What I love most about Mandy is the way her eyes pinch down and sparkle when she smiles, how hard of a worker she is, even though she gets discouraged she pushes through the hard times and comes out on top, and how much unconditional love she has, especially for me. Almost three years into it we have come far and gone through a lot. Hospitalizations, school, first home, first puppy, IVF and looking forward to many more great years to come.

There are some lyrics from Matthew West, a christian song writer that make me think of her every time I hear them and I often find myself going through the lyrics in my head thinking of her:
Take a look at the mountain
Stretching a mile high
Take a look at the ocean
Far as your eye can see
And think of me

Take a look at the desert
Do you feel like a grain of sand?
I am with you wherever
Where you go is where I am
And I'm always thinking of you
Take a look around you
I'm spelling it out one by one

I love you more than the sun
And the stars that I taught how to shine
You are mine and you shine for me to
I love you
Yesterday
And today
And tomorrow
I'll say it again and again
I love you more

Just a face in the city
Just a tear on a crowded street
But you are one in a million
And you belong to me
And I want you to know
I'm not letting go
Even when you come undone

I love you more than the sun
And the stars that I taught how to shine
You are mine and you shine for me to
I love you
Yesterday
And today
And tomorrow
I'll say it again and again
I love you more
I love you more

Shine for me
Shine for me
Shine on, shine on
Shine for me

I love you more than the sun
And the stars that I taught how to shine
You are mine and you shine for me to
I love you
Yesterday
And today
And tomorrow
I'll say it again and again
I love you more

I love you more than the sun
And the stars that I taught how to shine
You are mine and you shine for me to
I love you
Yesterday
And today
Through the joy
And the pain
I say it again and again
I love you more
I love you more

And I see you
And I made you
And I love you more than you can imagine
More than you can fathom
I love you more than the sun
And you shine for me

7 weeks old

1 week ago we got our little puppy. On Monday we took him to the vet for his first shots. He took them like a champ and didn't even notice them because the vet tech was distracting him. The potty training is going better than expected, he actually goes to the sliding glass door when he needs to go and we let him out and he goes within 1-2 minutes than wants back in. He figured out that if he goes pee a little bit he can come in and get a treat and then he asks to go out again a few minutes later to finish emptying his bladder so he can get another treat. He is very smart! He is sleeping pretty well in his kennel at night and only needs to get up once to go to the bathroom. He loves walks and we haven't used a leash yet but he stays next to our side the whole time and never runs off. We are working on learning how to sit. But he knows his name and comes when he is called. We are tired puppy-parents but its fun!

Puppy Love

On Saturday (Jan 31, 2009), Colin and I went to Smiths to get groceries and came home with a puppy! Outside of Smiths there was a family giving away puppies for free! They were all so cute and since we have wanted a dog for a long time but never had the house or yard until now we decided to take the plunge and get a puppy! His name is Jonas, he is 6-weeks-old, an australian shepherd/golden lab mix. Apparently these dogs are obedient, social, good family dogs, friendly, energetic, loyal and smart. Jonas loves to be at our feet or held and snuggled constantly when not eating, pooping, peeing or playing with his new toys! We are both smitten and so glad he came into our lives right now.