Ryan Call

If you remember a couple of posts ago, I mentioned that I have a HUGE family with a TON of cousins, most of them living far away....I said MOST. Growing up I had only one set of relatives that were less than 45 minutes away, they were actually around the corner in Sandy! It was my dad's sister Jeanette and her two boys, Ryan and Robert. I saw them probably more than I saw anyone else. I have so many memories of hanging out with them, they were like the little brothers I never had. We had many sleepovers and boy we had so much fun together! I also remember our many family parties when the entire family from Brigham and Clearfield and SLC would unite. The whole gang of us cousins around the same age would hang out . It was Me, Chris, Cammie, Patrice, Natalie, Jessica, Stephanie, Ryan and Robert. Some of the best times as a kid was hanging out with my family, especially my cousins...true friends that love you no matter what!!! Well, I am sad to report that I lost one of my cousins, Ryan Call on Thursday. His viewing was Monday night and his funeral will be Tuesday. I am still in shock that he is gone. Regarding my family, EITHER side, he is the first one that I have lost. I'd like to think that he is getting the party started up there for us all. For now, I am remembering his smile and his big bear hugs. My thoughts are with his brother Robert and my Aunt Jeanette, I couldn't imagine being in their shoes...and they are both being SOO strong right now. Well, I guess this post is a little long...so I will end with his obituary as well as a picture of Ryan and Cammie that my cousin Amy took during her recent visit. (sniffle, sniffle):

Richard Call "Ryan" Richard "Ryan" Call, 28, was born on June 3, 1981 in Salt Lake City passed away August 27, 2009.Ryan was raised and educated in Sandy, Utah. He loved playing football and baseball in his youth and was an avid Utah Jazz and Denver Broncos fan. Family was very important to Ryan and his most treasured times were spent surrounded by his family and friends. He had a special relationship with his brother Robert and his mother and best friend Jeanette. Ryan leaves behind a host of family and friends which include: father, Richard (Joni) Call; mother, Jeanette (Ross) Gravette; brothers, Robert (Carli) Call and Ryan (Amanda) Gravette; sister, Aletha (Dan) Drenth; grandparents, Johnnie and Mary Lovato, Charlie and Martha Black, Bob and Helen Gravette, and many loving aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, cousins, friends and beloved pet. Memorial services will be held at The Adventure Foursquare Church, 352 West 12300 South, Draper, Utah, on Tuesday, September 1, 2009 at 1:00 p.m.

Advice needed!

I shared a couple of posts ago about the cat that we recently adopted. We allowed Lauren to take Oreo into the house with a few conditions:
1) If she trashed our house either with her claws or poop, she would be OUT.
2) If Matt/My allergies got too bad, she would be OUT.

Well...on condition 1=She has had 5 pooping accidents since we got her on 8/7. She generally goes in her litter box without any issues, but she isn't perfect yet. MAYBE we can let that slide if she doesn't have any more issues. The one good thing is, I have learned that the carpet here is MUCH easier to clean than the carpet at my last house! Another good thing is that she hasn't destroyed anything with her claws!

On condition 2=The first week, Matt and I were sneezing, and we had itchy eyes. Week two, Matt and I are now starting to get veey wheezy. It is miserable!

So. That brings us to a tough decision. We now all love this little furball. But, I am not sure if we can realistically keep her. It is hard to be SOOO uncomfortable in our own house! We have tried a few things..allergy medicine = nothing. Cat bath every other day = helps a little. Special Cat allergy lotion = helps a little. Lots of vacuuming, keeping the cat OUT of our bedroom, using a humidifier in our bedroom = helps a lot. Still NOT perfect...but still wheezy!

What do other people with pet allergies do? Do we turn her into an outside cat? Do we try to find her a new home? I am so torn. She is such a sweet, well-behaved, silly fun-loving cat. Oh, and Lauren is in LOVE with her. She wakes up early to play with her, they are together ALL the time. What to do!!??? Any advice would be appreciated.

Here are some Oreo pics. Here she is in her cat bed. Now you see her!
Now you don't!

I've even caught Pepper and Oreo snuggling on more than one ocassion. For an old dog, Pepper sure tolerates new friends!

Too cute!

Curiousity is definitely in this little kitty:

So sweet and playful!

Missing Amy!

Well, if you didn't know it...I come from a large extended family. My mom is one of nine and my dad is one of seven, so I have a TON of cousins. Unfortunately.... most of them live FAR away. I don't get to see them nearly as much as I would like. One of those cousins, is my cousin Amy. She is my dad's sister, Shirley's oldest daughter. I can't even remember the last time she visited...it has been that long!! But that is what I love about family, when she came to visit at the end of July, it was as if no time had passed! We had a whirl-wind adventure and we had a blast! It was also great that she had a daughter that is close to Lauren in age! She and Clara quickly became best little buds!
On their first day, we took them to Lagoon. It was Clara's first time riding rides!

Amy, her husband Chad, and Clara from the Sky Ride:

Lauren, with a nervous smile as I took her pic on the ride:

Clara's favorite ride, Skalliwags:

Personally, I think they had the best time playing in the fountains:

They were both SOAKING wet!

Amy and I cooled off with a frozen lemonade instead, yummy!

The girls also loved their Dippin' Dots:

We ended the night at Cafe Rio. I knew they had to try it! (sorry no pics). The next morning we had coffee and doughnuts and fruit and later on we headed to Liberty Park, since they loved the fountains so much, I thought this would be the perfect place. Here is Jamie and Clara checking out the slide:

Me and Amy! Awwwww! She is such an amazing person! So glad that she is my cousin!

And the best buddies...Lauren had SOOO much fun with Clara!

Chad (blue shirt, blue hat) got in the action in the fountains too!

One more shot of the girls: Cheesers!

The Eichers family! We had so much fun! Please come to visit again soon! LOVE YOU GUYS!!!

Introducing.....OREO!

Meet the newest member of our family. Oreo the cat! On Friday, August 7th Matt and I and the kids were sitting on our porch after a nice dinner out, when suddenly we heard meowing. Then from around the corner comes this little cat..not quite a kitten, a teenager I think. She was sweet and friendly and not afraid of people at all. We don't have many neighbors, but we checked with all those around us..but to no avail. No one knew this cat!! Since then, Lauren has fallen head over heels for this little ball of fur! She quickly named her OREO since she is black and white. The only problem is, Matt and I are both extremely allergic, so having this little girl around has not been the easiest! But we just can't break our little girls heart!She is the craziest sleeper I've ever seen! Here is one of her many poses:

Now we have 2 pets! I had taken Pepper to get groomed earlier that day, I love her shaved look:

While playing with the kitty, Matt and the kids did some playing of their own. Our sweet boy gives the BEST kisses:

Dad is a fun ride!What a good sport Matt is!

Jamie doesn't know quite what to do with a CAT!

Jamie loves his cars, and I think in this photo, he looks just like my older brother, John:

Lauren and Oreo have been inseparable! What a big week for my big girl. First, starting Kindergarten and now a cat! Oh boy! What will next week bring?

And here is a sight, I thought I'd NEVER see! Matt sleeping with a cat! He never thought he could have a cat because his allergies...but we are going to give it a shot!

I had a cat for 15 years...but have had bad reactions to most cats ever since. But Matt has never had a cat, so he was making me laugh. The first night he asked me "what is that noise?" I told him it was the cat purring, he said it sounded like a little engine. I told him that is what purring sounds like! Then the first night she tried to sleep in our bed and I warned Matt that some cats like to sleep by their owner's heads...then later he woke up in the middle of night screaming "I don't want the cat to eat my eyeballs!" She was getting a little too close for comfort, so we have since purchased a bed and large cage to avoid any face-sleeping or (he he he) eye-ball-eating! All in all, she is a very sweet and easy cat...who was quickly litter box trained. Best of all, Ms. Oreo has kept Lauren entertained which has kept Jamie on good behavior as well. I just keep asking myself "what have we gotten ourselves into?". Oh boy!

Lauren's First Day of School

Today was Lauren's first day of Kindergarten! She was so excited this morning..look at her..all smiles! I am so proud of her, she woke up via her own alarm, got herself dressed and fed and ready to go! I can't believe how big she is! This is me at her age...think we look alike?

She was a great poser for some obligitory first day pics:

Her Grandma Tina bought her a new outfit for her first day! Pink, OF COURSE!

Curls and Smiles for Day Number One, in front of the fireplace:

Is it time to go, YET? Oh, I just think she is SOOO cute!

Jamie and Lauren "monkeying around" before we head out:

They really do love each other!

In the car, ALL SMILES! You can see our house in the background!

Jamie came along happily for the drive!

Lauren's School...Valley Crest! West Valley PRIDE!

All lined up, ready to go. Here is where the tears came, ALL mine of course!

It will just be me and the little guy in the mornings now, what shall we do? Today, I just kissed and hugged him a lot..and we watched "Cars"!

Matt held me and told me that I would be fine, that she would be fine. I know that she will love school....but I can't help but remember and wonder:

Where did this baby go? I am not sure, but I am sure that this little princess will go far! I Love you so much Lauren! I am so proud of you, and I look forward to your many adventures! Congratulations on the start of your new journey, our new journey!