Whitney and I met our cousins, Jodi and Jenni, for dinner at the Cheesecake Factory. We all ordered our own food, but then ended up eating all of Whitney's yummy Santa Fe salad...it was the best! We laughed like crazy as we tried to take the perfect picture...good thing that place was loud because we could not stop cracking up at our hilarious pictures of ourselves. But seriously, Jodi, how hard is it to hold a camera and take a picture, plus remember to smile??
By the end of the night, our jaws were aching and our tummy's were full!
Jodi and Jenni, along with their husbands and kids, have just recently moved back to Utah, and it's been fun to see them a little more often. Thanks girls and aunt Joan for a great night out!
Garrett's at a work retreat at Falcon's Ledge (one of his favorite places to pheasant hunt and fish) for the night, so the kids hung out at grandma and grandpa Nichol's with Whitney's boys, Tanner and Ethan...they always have way too much fun together.
As Whitney and I drove back to our parents to get our kiddos, I joked to Whintey that she really needed to update her blog. She has not been on since baby Will's funeral, more than a month ago...but, she just can't do it and it breaks my heart to see her so sad and broken. I can see where she's coming from, though...to write about such things as movies, play dates and vacations seems trite compared to where she is coming from. She has incredible friends who call everyday and get her out of the house and keep her and the boys busy, but I'm sure that when nighttime falls (and she takes off that brave-face) and all is quiet she probably cries herself to sleep every night. I cannot even begin to imagine the heartache she and Russ are feeling. She asked me tonight what she should say when people ask her how many kids she has...I couldn't hold back the tears. I hope she can get to a point where she can say "we have 3 boys, 2 we are raising here and one we will raise in the eternities." It's sad how society puts a status on how many children you have...like the more you have the more capable you are...I sense she feels that, yet she has no control over that. We should be careful to never judge. She and Russ want more than anything to have the noise of lots of children in their home and right now she feels kind of jipped...they have begun the adoption process, but have been told that adoption is such an emotional roller-coaster ride and right now she's not sure if she's ready to jump on.
Her testimony is strong, yet she is suffering and I can't do anything to help. She's my sister, I should be able to help 'fix' this, but I can't. I know in time answers will come...but it doesn't make the waiting any easier. I still cry every day for her...
