Looks like snow, smells like snow, tastes like snow, well, it must be snow....in Las Vegas?

So this post will mostly be for the benefit of our avid readers that don't live in the Winter Wonderland that is the Las Vegas Valley. Yesterday was an adventure to say the least. Having previously (on Monday) received significant snow in the Summerlin region I assumed that Las Vegas had already met it's quota of one good snowfall a year. Boy, was I mistaken. It began snowing at about 11 am and did not stop until well into the evening. Boulder City essentially became an island. Both roads heading out of Boulder towards Arizona were shut down. Railroad Pass more closely resembled Donner pass and was eventually shut down, after Lindsay spent 3 1/2 hours moving about 4 miles to get through. (She'll have to fill you in on her experience as I would not be able to do it justice) The only way in and out of Boulder City was the Old Lake Mead road that goes through Lake Las Vegas all the way down to Lake Mead and then back up to Boulder City. Even that road was being monitored by Police requesting proof of residency before letting me into town. Reports and my naked eye indicate that as much as 8 inches of snow dropped on our little desert town yesterday. Needless to say Las Vegas is not prepared for such precipitous events. (They were waiting for snowplows from Baettie) The airport shutdown to all incoming and outgoing flights and school was cancelled for Thursday. Yeah for getting a snow day in Las Vegas. I hope you enjoy the pictures and I'll make sure Lindsay posts a follow-up blog. I also included a picture of our deco'd house pre-arrival of the aforementioned whiteness.

Both the fates and science agree. It's a Boy!

Now just over twenty weeks into her pregnancy, the much anticipated ultrasound appointment had arrived. However, prior to letting the science take all of the guesswork out of it, Lindsay's sister Maren and her husband Rikki insisted that we see what the fates had to say about the gender of our first child. All it would require was a box cake, some food coloring, and a little bit of baking know-how. We agreed and thus began what we hope becomes a long running family tradition. Maren and Rikki made the cake, a layered round, with half dyed pink and half dyed blue. They then expertly frosted it rendering the different sides indistinguishable. Next the moment of truth. The mom-to-be spun the cake and then proceeded to cut a slice with eyes closed. To both of our pleasure the slice came out blue (and only blue so there will be no ambiguity there) and our feeling that our first child would be a boy was confirmed leaving no room for doubt.

The next day we anxiously went to our appointment, especially me, as I had not been present for the first ultrasound or to hear the heartbeat. I don't think I fully grasped how much there was to worry about with a developing fetus (spina bifida, down syndrome, cleft palate, right number of limbs, fingers, and toes, not to mention proper organ development). Luckily all was well as the technician took twenty minutes locating every organ and limb and giving us every view possible of our little one. About five minutes into the session she pointed out an extra appendage and told us It's a Boy! We of course told her we knew that already because the cake told us so. So here are a few of the pictures we got to take home with us. The baby is totally cute, but you can't help but think he looks a little like a creepy alien with his big head and being able to see his full curled spine. He was also very shy as despite twenty minutes of poking and prodding he refused to turn toward us and give us a good face shot.
Needless to say both parents are very excited and we appreciate all the support we have received from family and friends. In response to the most commonly asked question, no, we do not have a name yet nor have we yet to really narrow it down. However, we will keep you all up to date.

What can I say, I'm a rule breaker

What, you might be asking, are you blogging at 0240 in the morning for? I would answer I am working of course. Is that what you should be doing when you are working? Well, no. I shouldn't even be on the internet- I like to live on the edge. And, in my defense (for those of you who are worrying about the patients I am neglecting) my patients are blissfully easy (I probably just jinxed myself with that). One is a "walkie-talkie," meaning they can do everything for themselves (you know, move, feed themselves, toilet themselves). Walkie talkies are not common on the ICU, but I will take them when I can get them. The other patient is not quite a walkie-talkie, but he is lucid and can move himself with minimal assist, so he is also in good shape. Basically, they are doing pretty well (and I still check on them very frequently). So here I am blogging. I just had some random hospital thoughts and quotes I'd like to share with all of you. Sorry no pictures for this post.

Dr. Cardiologist to Lindsay, "So, how did you get to be a nurse at age 14?"

Random questions we were discussing one night:
- Would you let your spouse go to a strip club if he/she told you before hand?'
- Would you let your spouse go out to dinner with a coworker, if it was work relate?
- Would you let your spouse go out to dinner with an ex (either girlfriend/boyfried or ex spouse)?
I was among the more conservitive of the answerers, and my face even got red when they first sprung the whole strip club thing on me.

Having to look at sputum (aka spit), emesis (aka vomit), and stool (aka poop) for weird discolorations such as blood, bile, and brisinger (I coudn't think of another b word)

Patient to Lindsay, "You are my nurse??" (somewhat incredulously)
Lindsay to patient, "I do look a little young."
Patient to Lindsay, "A little?"

Going home and still hearing the high-pitched beeps of oxygen sat monitors that are alarming (definitely my least favorite alarm sound).

Charge nurse to Lindsay, "Do you mind calling your dad and asking him to come in for a consult?" (The patient ended up not needing a surgeon because their blood was way too thin and there's no way someone is going to put in a line with someone with an INR of 4.8, so said dad did not get bothered)

Lindsay to another RN: "Do you ever just have no time or desire to put up with whiney people?"
RN: "Isn't that every night?"

Looking down at your arm and realizing you have poop on it (that's actually a nursing home experience- I've been good about keeping poop off myself once I graduated to the hospital).

Fall, change, and babies

Well, for the 4-8 of you that have been anxiously awaiting this blog- be excited, it's going to be fantastic. Fall is one of my favorite times of year (it and spring need to duke it out). It makes me sad Vegas does not have real fall colors, I think that's what I miss most about Provo. Fall is also a time of change, and there have been a lot of changes going on in our home. I am just going to forgo talking about Aspen Grove, because it was a long time ago and I never got anyone's pictures. I know, lame. It was a wonderful vacation and I had a great time con mi familia. The rest of our summer passed fairly uneventfully- I got my cast off and went back to work (which explains my lack of blogging, though I realize this is not a real excuse because many people work and yet find the time to do other things, like blogging and keeping up on what's going on outside in the real world), Aaron continued in his new clinical setting, and I got pregnant. You know, the usual. We found out I was pregnant pretty quickly, as we've been trying for a least a decade. I was pretty nervous (and still am), but things are looking really good. At our first doctor's appointment he did an ultrasound (per my request- again the nervous issues) and it looked like a little turtle with a fluttering light in the middle. Pretty amazing. At 12 weeks I saw a perinatologist and they did a fancy ultrasound (aka transnuchal) and the little one was bouncing all over the place- I have a feeling it might have its father's spring for life. I still try not to get too excited, because (as learned from past experience) it is a long, hard fall from cloud nine. For those of you who are worried I am an unhappy prude, not necessary because it is impossible not to be excited about having a baby and I am extremely happy.

This is at 12 weeks. And yes, we are already dorky parents and these pictures are up on our fridge.

Now to explain the beautiful rose at the top of this blog. My creative husband did that last night actually, and yes it is a pumpkin. Pretty cool, no? We carved pumpkins two nights ago and it was so fun, I think we've carved pumpkins every year since we've been married. This may mean that we truly are the world's biggest dorks, or that we really need kids, but either way, it was a blast, and I must say, we pretty much rocked it (Aaron especially)

This is me with my pumpkin- it was an albino pumpkin- all white. (For all of your dying to know if it was white inside, alas, no it was not, it was orangey-green and had a slightly sweet smell to it). I roasted its seeds and they're pretty good. I know, you can barely see me.

Aaron carved this pumpkin- it was ginormous! And -ready for the grossest story ever? - when he went to pick it up to bring it inside he found: now, don't keep reading if you have a weak stomach because this is nasty; tons of crickets living in/eating the bottom of it! Luckily I was not outside when he picked it up, but I knew there was trouble when he said, "Lindsay, you do not want to see this." Which, of course, I then had to look and was thoroughly disgusted. Apparently, the nasty little grotties were hopping all over his feet. I felt some trepidation at him bringing the pumpkin inside (after he had sprayed it with bug spray) but there were no little gross friends inside the pumpkin- they had just eaten a fair amount of the outer bottom. Even with this mishap, the pumpkin is still awesome and the eaten up bottom kind of adds to its Halloween vibe. Sorry, you can't see the nastified bottom in the dark.

Okay, more changes. We got a new air conditioning/heating unit, the cost of which is too painful to even speak. ;) We haven't had a real chance to use it yet, but it has to be better than the old one because it was the perfection of inefficiency. Aaron also finished painting the front shutters of our house blue. I know no one will really notice except for perhaps Matt and Maggie, but it does look a ton better. Notice our cute Halloween decorations? AND the not yet carved pumpkins in the front (pay special attention to the white one). We would like to pay tribute to our family out in California who provided us with said pumpkins. Philip and Julie just visited us a few weeks ago and it was wonderful! Aaron and I both had to work at various times during the week, but it was so nice to have them here! There was lots of bike riding that I was not a part of, and that was alright for me, my pregnant tummy, and my bum which would invariably have gotten sore.

Alright, last but certainly not least we have one last babies to cover: Shane's new dogs. This is about 2 1/2 months late, but we got to spend time at Pine Valley with the family over Memorial day and Shane came down with his cute little mini Dautson (I know, misspelling) puppies! As most of you know, the Ripps are generally not dog people, but those little dogs had our hearts won over in about 30 seconds. It was so nice to, well, first be in Pine Valley, but also to spend time with family. We hiked up a volcano, which turned out to be more strenuous than some of us had bargained for. It was a fantastic weekend.

Now, in closing and all seriousness, I would like to thank my family and friends for all the love and support they have given me this past year. I know the year's not over yet, but I feel like it needs to be said (it could also be hormones). This year has been extremely difficult for me, and would have been much worse if not for all you people. Thank you! (Especially to this wonderful man who lights up my world.)

A few of my favorite things

Well, I just got back from Aspen Grove with my family (Aaron was not able to go because he started his PT clinicals). But, like the slacker that I am, I did not take any pictures. So, I will have to blog about Aspen Grove once I steal pictures from other family members who actually take them (Aaron says we now know the real reason we have no pictures from the first part of our marriage).
Here are some pictures that just make me happy and give the world a better glimpse into the glamorous life of Aaron and Lindsay.



These flowers are from our front yard. We call them our "alien plant" (though the actual name is passion flower I believe). Aren't they awesome? They look like they belong in Hawaii or some happy not so flippin hot and dry place. And they stay relatively healthy all year long.

All things sisters (and sisters-in-law). Sisters are some of the best (and most necessary) things in the world.

Okay, this is our guest bedroom and, yes, that is the color. I'm trying to give it an international flare. Can I just tell you it makes me happy and does not even give one a headache to sit in?

Exploring the Majestic Wildlife and Rugged Landscapes of Boulder City

I have never been one to pass up the opportunity to express my disdain for the barren wasteland that we live in. While some may try to color it up a bit by referring to our environment as the beautiful desert landscape of Las Vegas, the fact of the matter is it is hot, dry, brown, hot, dusty, generally dead, hot, windy, unforgiving, and did I mention it's really hot. However, I must admit there are small pockets of beauty that I happen upon and just have to ask myself, "Am I still in the same state?" Mt. Charleston is quite enjoyable, the temperature is cooler and there are even naturally growing trees that are taller than my house. Red rock is another place we like to go as it extends the Nevada landscape pallete beyond the typical options of light brown, brown, and dark brown and embraces such shades as red, orange, yellow, and even an occasional green. Today we discovered another such place to add to my very exclusive list of natural places in southern Nevada worth venturing outside your door to experience.
As Lindsay's hand is still on the mend (though the cast was removed last Wednesday, WooHoo!) and I don't start my first clinical until next Monday we decided to have an adventure day. We contemplated seeking new trails in our typical haunts, Mt. Charleston or Red Rock, but settled on the idea of trying something new and a little closer to home(Gas still isn't cheap my friends). We have often heard people speak of the hot springs near Hoover Dam, but neither of us had ever personally made the trek, so we decided to check them out. The trail is not marked or part of any State or Federal Forest service, but it's easy enough to both find and follow. The heaven's shined upon us this day and provided some cloud cover to protect us, otherwise I may have found myself sprawled out on a rock half dead, waited for the world's largest spatula to come along and flip me. I will take 95 degrees with 30% humidity over 113 and no humidity any day.
This post is getting really long, so I think I will quickly sum up the highlights of the hike. The first half of the hike was very gentle and followed a natural wash. The second half of the hike was much more fun, requiring a little bit of bouldering, scrambling, jumping, up-se-daisying, and even the use of some conveniently placed ropes. We encountered the hot springs about half-way through and I must say they exceeded my expectations. Not only were they cleaner than I expected, there were many more of them than I anticipated. The only downside was there were warnings not to drink the water because there were bacteria in there that like to get in your brain and kill you. Needless to say, we chose not to bathe in the springs, but did enjoy looking at them. Don't worry though, that same water runs all the way down the canyon and empties into the Colorado river, I'm sure the bacteria become diluted enough that they don't pose any threat to anyone downnstream (maybe). So from the springs we followed the water down the canyon to the Colorado River. We thought we would take a dip and get refreshed, but that water is cramp your muscles and shrink your manhood cold! So we just waded around where the warm spring water met up with the river. So the best part of the trip was the plethora of Big Horn sheep we enjoyed along the way. We saw solitary ones, a full-size heard, little baby-ones, mama's, and big males with the fully formed and curled horns. It's incredible watching them scale the cliffs with ease. They are however, quite careless about knocking loose rocks that may fall on those below. All in all, it was a four hour trip. We had a lot of fun and really enjoyed the wildlife and the sheer cliffs that towered above on either side of us during most of the hike. I would highly recommend it to anyone feeling adventurous and looking for a quick day trip.

Happy pictures for the day

Since I have so much to show and tell, I'm just going to post random pictures that make me happy. Isn't this a cute picture of Maren, Kels, and me? It's at Pine Vally reservoir. In the other Aaron is actually doing a flip in the snow (also in Pine Valley, though at different times). I love that kid.

Camping in Mt. Charleston and traversing Valley of Fire

As time moves forward I am moving backward, seeing as I have so many pictures and I need to let the world experience them. So here are pics from camping in Mt Charleston with Maren and Ricky (it's amazing that place is only an hours drive from Las Vegas). We made the most delicious peach cobbler. I must say we were proud of ourselves. Maren and I were just talking saying how we need to make more. Aaron and Ricky jumped/slid down that rather large chunk of snow. There was a rather large fellow who thought about it. Cute hiking buddies. These other pictures are from April when Phillip and Julie visited us. We went to Valley of Fire and it was actually pretty (my memories are of a hot, hot boring place). Yes, we are climbing an elephant- the coolest part of the trip. Yes, I am wearing flip flops. At times I am ill prepared. I included this pic because Aaron went off hiking for like an hour, leaving me at the bottom starting to simmer until I sucked it up and went looking for him.

Cambria

So here are pictures from Cambria. There was a beach where elephant seals come for all sorts of things- mating, bithing, molting. No, these ones aren't dead- they're molting, and yes it was a little gross (and stinky) but also pretty cool. The beach was gorgeous. Star fish!!! That last one of Aaron is actually near San Fran (Half Moon bay it's called) and it was an unfortunate accident of bending too close to look in tide pools.

Here are some pictures camping up at Ice House (the campground we stayed at). Aaron and I went on a really neat hike and just happened to walk into a JRR Tolkien scene. On another day we went to neat water falls that are basically mountain streams running over and pooling in smooth granite rocks. Very cool- sad for the Lindsay with the cast. That was Aaron's favorite tree- it was ginourmous.

Joing the blogging world

Yes, we have caved to society's proclivity (isn't that a great word?) for easy and mass communication. Actually I've been intending to do this for a while but never really had the time/motivation. But, as the fates would have it, I was destined to have a cornucopia of free time because I broke my hand and have not been working for 3+ weeks now. Rather than twiddling my thumb these past few weeks, Aaron and I did go on vacation to California- first camping with his family up near Lake Tahoe area, then to the coast in Cambria, and finally to the old Somerhalder homestead. It was a fantastic vacation and I only took one person out with my cast the entire trip (unfortunately it was my mother-in-law and it involved a rather large and terrifying flying bug).