Things I Have Learned in 2015.

Hi.

I realize I haven't posted in well over a year and a half.

That's okay, though.  And there's no day like today to start over again, right?

Over the last year and a half, I learned so much more about myself.

And that's all that matters.....Right?

I learned to love in an unhealthy way.  That was sad, but at least now I can say I did it and be done with that chapter.

I love Elephant Revival.

I learned that I love bluegrass - to the point that it just resonates in my soul.  It even resonates in the freezing cold......

I learned that I truly love camping.  I learned that I can pitch a tent all by myself.  I learned that I am probably the best 'camp' cook around - that is, if there is a stove available. 

 I've learned that showering is overrated - In Telluride, I lived for 4+ days without a shower or a conventional bathroom - port-a-potties for the win.

Speaking of Telluride, I experienced heaven on earth in June of 2015.  In case you are wondering, Heaven on earth is located in Telluride, Colorado.  My breath was taken away to a trance it never has been in as I was driving into Telluride.  First of all, we were stuck in traffic so it was easy to lose my breath out of impatience - But the scenery, and a few cars in front of me a couple doing yoga in the stand-still highway traffic, all of that was just beautiful to me.  More like breathtaking rather than out-of-breath.  Words cannot describe the peace and happiness I felt in that town.  And the music?  It's just my happy place.  I can't even explain it.  You absolutely cannot frown when you're listening to Leftover Salmon, The Punch Brothers, Yonder Mountain String Band, Greensky Bluegrass, Trampled By Turtles, Sam Bush Band, etc etc.  I have decided that although there has got to be more to it, bluegrass is a key to exaltation in life.  

I learned that my family is wonderful - And no matter how near or far, they will always be my 'rock' as a whole.  My sister is my best friend and knows me better than I know myself.  She also is my biggest fan, and roots for me when I'm up and keeps me motivated when I am down.  

I learned that most friends are temporary - and that hurts. But I think that the best friends are the ones who may get frustrated with you, but won't give up on you - no matter what.  Friends are people who can understand you're in a crisis.  Friends love you unconditionally.  Unfortunately, there aren't many of them.

I have learned that dogs can become your best friends forever -  Even if they are an ex-boyfriend's, or a puppy that you helped grow for a few weeks -  They are forever.  Those dogs will always be part of the "loves of my life" category.

I will always be Mom for Cooper...I love that pup more than life.

14ers man....

I have learned that being 14,000+ above sea level is a hard-earned honor.

I learned mostly that things you wish could stay gold.....

Well, they don't.

"But just as the moon it shines straight,

So dawn goes down today

No gold can stay"

 "But there is only forward, no other way

Tomorrow was your hope at the end of the day

And gold turns gray."

Amy's Own Sausage Apple Stuffing

I know I suck at keeping a blog, but this Thanksgiving was the first time I cooked dishes on my own and I loved it.  Also, this is the first time I've combined multiple recipes on the web to make my own, original recipe.  Just wanted to write it down for myself, and also for anyone else who's interested!

Amy's Sausage and Apple Stuffing

(Because it was that good)

Ingredients:

• 1 loaf sour dough bread, cubed (about 10 cups)
• 2 medium apples, peeled, cored and chopped
• 1 lb Mild Italian Sausage, casing removed
• 1 medium yellow onion, chopped
• 1/2 cup pecans, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic
• 2 ribs of celery, chopped
• 3 tablespoons fresh sage, finely chopped and divided
• 1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, chopped
• 1 cup white cooking wine
• Garlic Salt and Pepper to taste
• 2 cups chicken stock/broth
• 2 eggs, lightly beaten

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Place cubed sourdough on 2 baking sheets. Bake 10-15 minutes, stirring bread occasionally until toasted, but not browned. Place toasted bread cubes into extra large bowl, add cranberries and apples. Set aside.

Butter 9x13-inch casserole dish. Set aside.

In large skillet over medium heat, cook sausage using spatula to break it up as it cooks. Add 1 1/2 tablespoons of fresh herbs. Cook through, but do not brown. Remove sausage from skillet using slotted spoon and add it to bowl with bread cubes. Leave 2 tablespoons of sausage drippings in the pan (drain any extra) and add onions and celery. Cook until translucent; add pecans, herbs, garlic and apples to skillet. Cook 3-5 minutes stirring frequently. Pour skillet mixture into bowl with bread cubes.

Add wine to skillet and scrape browned bits from bottom of pan as it cooks. Add butter and chicken stock. Bring to boil for 3 minutes, remove from heat and pour over bread cubes in bowl. Add eggs. Toss gently until combined and pour into prepared baking dishes.

Cover with foil and bake 40 minutes. Remove foil and bake 15 minutes more.  Done!

It's Been Forever.

Life happens, and then you forget to blog about it.

I'll keep this update short and sweet...And hopefully, I'll become better about updating this highly-neglected blog more frequently.

I have been living in Denver, Colorado for the past month!  Time flies when you're having fun -  And I really am having a fantastic time.  

The past month has consisted of: 

• Adjusting to Stepmother-hood (just kidding-ish, he's a dog, my boyfriend's amazing 2 year old pup Cooper).  I love having a second pup around to give love to!

My chillin's.  I swear Taz is happier than he looks about having a little brother.                 

• Job hunting -  I'm being really picky and it's going way too slow for my liking.
• Camping -  That was last weekend.  It was beautiful being up in the mountains and seeing the fall colors.  The leaves, they are a-changing.  Oh, and we stopped by Fairplay, CO - Where the fictional town of "South Park" is based upon.

                       

Luckily I went camping with 4 guys who fit the parts just right.

Absolutely beautiful.

• Beer festivals/Oktoberfest.  These go without saying.  Denver has some pretty rad breweries and pumpkin beer.
• New friends.  This also goes without saying.  I really love meeting new people, so it's been fun!

Giant Jenga is a big deal here.  This is Julie, Katharine and I trying our hand at it.

The past summer I guess I should highlight as well.

• My little brother Matt came to visit Utah in June.  He loved it.  Besides me almost fainting on our hike up Grandeur Peak, I'd say it was a success.

   

Hiking Grandeur Peak with my little-big bro.

• I visited Colorado, a lot...Mainly to see this guy that I have a really big crush on  (he's pretty sweet).  



My first Red Rocks show.  Elephant Revival and Gregory Alan Isakov played -  Backed up by the CO Symphony.  It was BEAUTIFUL.

• I saw some amazing shows at Red Rocks Ampitheater (that place has been on my bucket list for years; it did not disappoint) and we did a lot of camping.  I love camping, and I can now say that I make some mean camp-tacos.  

This camping picture of us makes me laugh.

July 4th camping.  We floated the Colorado River on inner tubes, probably best 4th of July ever.

Primitive.

• I also visited another spot on my bucket list, Lake Powell.  It was one of the most amazing, fun experiences of my life and I cannot wait to go back again!  I don't think I've ever laughed so much in one trip.  

Our spot -  Yes you're seeing that right.  That's a blob.  Oh, yes we did.

• For my East Coast friends, an explanation: Us West Coast people (or something like that) rent a house boat, boat to an undisclosed location (with no cell phone service!) in what's basically a flooded Grand Canyon, and play house for the week.  On a lake.  It's as awesome as it sounds.

Just ya know, proof I was there.

                       

• I went to a beautiful wedding following that, and then Andrew, Cooper Taz and I rented a Uhaul and hauled my stuff out to Denver.  

                      

And here I am now, living in a sweet house in Denver with 3 other roommates, 4 dogs, and a cute yard.

Talk soon, yeah?

P.S.  Yes, it was one of the hardest things ever quitting my dream job, but as much as I love my cancer kiddos, I needed to take care of myself...And working nights and days, having a hugely unpredictable schedule made my body hate me.  No joke, I got diagnosed with high blood pressure this summer...And as soon as I moved out here, it's magically disappeared.

Glimmers of Hope.

I feel like the past couple of months have taken their toll on me when it comes to my job.

I love it, but sometimes it hurts my heart a lot.

The love I have for these patients and their families is so big, so naturally when these patients I have come to know and love just can't fight anymore, it is heartbreaking.

As a nurse, you become these kiddos' biggest cheerleaders in life next to their family.

It sucks.  Plain and simple.

There are glimmers of hope.

Like for instance, today a cute kid who I hadn't seen in a few months walked into our unit...With the most beautiful  re-grown blonde hair and those same smiling eyes of his.  We all yelled "Spiderman!" as he walked in (a superhero nickname for a superhero kid).  He immediately retorted with "It's NINJA BOY now!!"   

I hope he always knows he can be whatever he wants to be, as long as he loves it.

So tonight I sit here, reflecting on these last few months and hoping I can always find the little glimmers of hope to get me through.






(INSERT picture of me dressed up in a Spiderman mask with my patient...It happened, and is somewhere out there on the world wide web.)

Visits, Ski, Hike, Denver.

This update will be random.

It's hard to catch up on three plus months worth of life events.

My little sister Ali finally came out in April to see what Utah was all about...And I'm pretty sure she loved it.  It was so cool to be able to take my sister around and show her that Utah is actually amazing and not weird...She actually called me the night before she flew out here to ask if there were any malls in Utah.  Operation: get my family to move out here has officially begun.

Sistas forever

I skied on May 16th, which was cool because it is my dad's birthday...But, even cooler because it's MAY 16th!  I skied in the middle of May!  Another perk of living in Utah, except skiing in slush is way harder than it looks.  I went with my rad friend/coworker Kristin.  It's always a party when we work/play together.

We may or may not have given up early...

Next, forget how terrifying I may look...But know that I have the coolest friends to go hiking with, ever. Taz, Vater, Jadie and I are the greatest of hiking pals.  I can't wait to go on more hikes this summer with our group! 

Last but certainly not least, I went to go explore Denver, Colorado for the first time the other weekend.  Although I didn't get to explore as much as I would have liked to (I lost my ID on the second day there...Major fail), I had a lovely time with this sweet guy!

Somewhere in Boulder, Colorado.  

Bike ride selfies.

More later..This summer should be pretty sweet!

Update Intro.

Heads up: I wrote this about 3 weeks ago...I think.

I woke up this morning thinking about my blog.

It's been nearly a three month hiatus.

It's time to update!

(Fun fact: at that time, I saw an anonymous person commented on my blog saying they wish I'd update again.  Well, Anonymous...Today's your lucky day.)

A lot has happened in three months.

Two and a half of those months have comprised of me adjusting to being a dog mom.

I love it, and Taz does too.  I call it Taz's "retirement" phase of life.  He's almost nine, and in dog years that's AARP-worthy.  

Taz started out his retirement by a cross-country trip to from New York to Utah, followed by lots of hiking in the mountains.  He's discovered a love for dog parks.  He has also discovered that water is okay to casually wade through.  I think he's also discovered he's a dog...He has made a couple of dog friends, finally!  

He has even hiked Nevada..How many of you have hiked in Nevada?  This is one lucky dog, living it up!
      

 (At this time, he also rolled around in cow manure out of excitement..I hope none of you have done that)

I'm lucky to have extended family live just a two and a half hour drive away, and that they live in such a beautiful part of this country.  Yes, Nevada can be beautiful!  No, it's nowhere near Las Vegas.  I stay away from Las Vegas like it's the plague.

I'm just pretty lucky is all...

Except when I sliced my finger open with my brand new chopping knife and landed myself in the emergency room with 5 stitches.  My bad.

Dreams, and Dogs.

I love my dreams.

Since my skiing helmet came in the mail about one month ago (it's seriously been that long!!) I dream about skiing all the time.  My dreams involve me doing crazy Olympian things.  I also have many dreams where I am skiing in deep, deep powder.  So deep that it goes up to my neck and I end up nearly buried, stuck under the snow..But I don't mind, because it's powder.  I think I very may well have caught the "powder flu".  

Last night, I dreamed of Icees (the best slushies ever) and chugging cherry coke.  I wish that was real life.

So last week, I turned down this crazy, amazing opportunity to go to Thailand.  I got as far as buying the plane ticket, and then turned it down last second because I didn't want to get in trouble with work (I would have had to call in sick four times in a row, which is one time too many).  Reflecting on that, I realized I must really love my job.  And the verdict is in.  I really, really do love it.  I love the kids.  A lot of the time it's hard to muster up the energy to go to work.  But it really is so rewarding.  So rewarding that I wouldn't risk a runaway trip to Thailand for fear of losing it.

Also.  By the end of next week, I should have a dog living with me, permanently.  His name is Taz.  I'm sure you know him...As I have so affectionately referred to him as my boyfriend for the past few years.  He loved me so much, he decided to hitch a ride across the country for me.  That's true love.