Back To School.....for the Old Man!

Oh, does this picture ever make me laugh! 

Since March my hubby has been voluntarily out of a job. I'm not going to lie, I have enjoyed the livin' day lights out of it! There is not another soul on earth that I would rather spend every second with! I never get tired of him and we always find something fun to do! It has been awesome, to say the least. And now, it is time to get on with it, I suppose.

Ryan has done Heating & Air Conditioning his whole life. His Dad started a company when Ry was young, and so he started learning the trade early on. After we got married he became the Residential Manager in the company. However, he still struggled. He didn't have a passion for what he was doing for work, and since that is where you spend such a huge chunk of time, it's kind of important to be happy with it....at least that is how we felt. So, he decided to move on, which resulted in the offer to run the Harris-Dudley branch in Sun Valley, ID.

Back again! Out of one, and right back into another. However, neither of us can deny that this was the right move for us. The Lord wanted us in Idaho and that is right where we went. Every person, every experience, especially having the twins while we were there...it all was just as it should have been. We met friends that had a profound impact on our lives, friends that we will love forever! Ry ended up becoming an equal partner in the ownership of that company. They had a good company! They were successful! One of the best...if not the best in the Valley. Ryan was designing systems for 18,000 sq. ft. homes and doing work for Tom Hanks, Arnold Schwarzenegger and other uppity ups. He was providing well for our family and we were able to do whatever was required to take care of Dawson's needs. Including taking the time off work or working from his home office so he could care for Jake & Mal while Daws and I stayed in the hospital. All seemed just right.....except it wasn't.

I totally believe that each of us was sent to the earth with a "To-Do" list, of sorts. We have missions to perform, things that only we can do. When we are living our lives in a way that fulfills those purposes, then we experience joy and fulfillment. We have peace. When we are not, we may be busy, but we will still feel a lack of joy, peace and fulfillment in our lives. 

Ryan was experiencing just that. The lack! Ry has never been one to define success by money or position. Success comes for him through feeling. Feelings of fulfillment, joy, peace....all of those feelings only come when we are living our lives inline with what our spirit knows we have been sent to do.

After Dawson died the feeling of that part of our lives coming to an end started becoming stronger and stronger. We didn't know what would happen next, but we knew the Lord's will would be done. Ry worked hard. The area we lived in started to feel the weight of the economy in the area suddenly taking a nose dive. Remember when we lived in our RV? We were trying to find a way to heal our hearts by having an adventure together. The Lord knew that this was a step in helping us financially for our next big move, the one we didn't see coming, but we could feel something was going to change. And change it did! With 10 days notice Ry and his partners decided that they weren't willing to go into a hole trying to save the company. We were even more anxious to move to the next step in our lives, and suddenly the opportunity was in front of our faces. The down fall was that we only had 10 days to pack up and move back to Utah. We barely had a chance to say goodbye to the friends we loved so much!

Once we got to Utah, we tried to find the next step for us. Was this the window to getting Ryan out of HVAC and on to his place in this world. Well....not yet!

Ry was asked to start a solar division for a friends company, and so he did that until we could sort out what to do next. We just kept feeling that there was purpose in the timing. And there was. He had a job, we found the house that was the right fit for us, and we were able to buy it. Then Ryan was givin the opportunity to go work in North Dakota for my sis-in-laws Dad. One week gone, 3 weeks home. January-March. It was a sweet arrangement. Then March came. We had enough in savings to take a step back, live on it, and sort out our next steps.

The last several months have been a lesson in faith for us. Each week we went to the temple, prayed constantly and sought the Lords will in our lives. We felt that was the best way to help us find the right path and opportunities. All along, every time a job was offered or a little stress was felt, we were met with a reassuring, "not yet, just be still". Occasionally we would have a strong feeling to do something, like build a music studio in our garage. We don't know why for sure, other than it gives Ryan a place to record, write & play music and for me to sing at the top of my lungs without disturbing a soul....and I like that! :) When we would start to worry, we would go to the temple and again, "not yet, just be still".

And then it came.....SCHOOL! Ryan had a career planned for him, since he was 11! He knows all there is to know about the industry. College wasn't something he chose to do. It is something he regrets so terribly. Not anymore! As of yesterday, Ryan started attending his first classes at UVU, with hopes to quickly transfer to BYU. We feel very good about him getting a degree in Mechanical Engineering, as of right now. He is wicked smart and totally could do anything he ever wanted to do. For now, this feels good, and we feel that as he starts in that direction either other doorways will open, or this will remain confirmed.

And so it starts! Ryan, Jake & Mal in school. Ryan at nights, for now, so he can find something to do, or start a business that will provide for our family in the meantime. Funny thing is that just the other day I felt a strong prompting to start school this January! Can you imagine?! 2 College Students with 2 kids in school! I laugh when I think about it, but it makes me excited to think about what lessons we all, and most importantly our kids, will learn through this experience! Certainly college will play a huge roll in their lives!

But beyond all of that I have to say, I have 100% respect and admiration for Ryan! He has my complete support, come what may! How could I not support him?! He is a 38 year old man, willing to walk away from a comfortable living to pursue his mission and purpose. Not everyone's mission is directly related to what they do for a living. Ryan's is. We know this, because of his Patriarchal Blessing...and from what we feel! I have mad respect for his willingness to sacrifice and become the OLD MAN on campus! THAT is living with Eternal Perspective! THAT is LifeUncommon! And I love him for it! We may be starving college students, and life might get a little crazy, but it will be yet another adventure under the belt of the Lindstrom Family! No doubt about it! 

So buckle up my friends! You are along for this ride! Wouldn't it be interesting to be able to flash forward 10 years to see what your life looks like?! Well, it would, but since it can't happen, we are just going to trust and enjoy it as much as possible!

DON'T BE AFRAID TO GET A LITTLE UNCOMFORTABLE IN ORDER TO FOLLOW YOUR DREAMS! THE REWARDS WILL BE PRICELESS! 

REFLECTIONS: 6 Years Ago Today & A Week of Miracles

How do I even start this post?!

I am preparing for a fireside I am doing this Tuesday night in Pleasant Grove, in our Relief Society. It is the same theme as all of the others I have done for many wards and youth groups. "Gratitude in the Face of Adversity". It's about our experience with preemie twins with a lot of focus on Dawson and his life, death & mission. I love sharing this message, mostly because I understand that it is part of my mission and by sharing it and telling about my little Dawson, I get, as a special gift and a confirmation that this is what the Lord wants from me, to have Dawson with me as I prepare and present his story. I have missed him! I think I have cried a few buckets of tears over the last few hours. Especially as I have read THIS, watched THIS & scanned through THIS. They are tears of gratitude & tears of grief. How can I have possibly survived this long without him....but then, I know the answer to that question, don't I.

As I was going over everything I was suddenly struck with the thought that exactly 6 years ago today I was Life Flighted from Twin Falls, Idaho to the University of Utah hospital. Thoughts of that day were overwhelming! Ryan was in Utah for his grandpa's funeral. That alone, the timing of it all, was a miracle that I will one day be able to thanks Ryan's grandpa for. He had his funeral planned and we all knew he was going to go, but he just kept holding on. Then he passed away, his funeral was scheduled and Ry headed out. If Ryan had not been in Utah, Life Flight in Utah wouldn't have come to get me. My doctor fought for me to get there, and they agreed only because Ryan was there. Dawson & Mallory would need Dr. Walker, and so many others that helped them there. They had to have Primary Childrens in order to survive.

I remember the Life Flight crew getting there to get me. There was a storm, so the flight time would be longer than usual. Their policy is NOT to take a woman that is dilated over a 5, because of the risk of the baby/babies being born on the airplane....not a good scenario. I was at a 6 and contracting like crazy. They didn't want to take me. I looked at the team leader, as she was deciding what to do, and with a calm overwhelming feeling I told her, "You WILL take me with you and I will stop dilating." The spirit was totally confirming this as I said it. Both in my heart and hers. She looked startled and said, "WHAT?!" I told her again. Firmly. She said, "Alright, but you better not have those babies on my plane, do you understand me?" I said, "Yes". And I meant it. I knew they would make it to Utah.

I remember my dear doctor, Dr. Allen, whom I will love forever for this, coming into my room as I was waiting for Life Flight. It was about 2 am. I was alone. He asked how I was feeling. I told him I was really nervous. I remember his talk with me about the Lords will and the hope he gave me. I remember him telling me that he could feel that they would make it. It would be hard because of their size, he told me, but miracles happen. I remember that as he told me this I could feel peace settle in on me. I felt so consumed and wrapped up in the Lords love. That calm stayed with me, through the flight on the plane, then to the helicopter and into the hospital. Come to think of it, I can't remember that confidence leaving me. There were scary moments, but I remember feeling peace throughout all of it.

I got to the hospital around 4 am. The flight was torture. I didn't dilate any further, as I promised, but I kept up with hard contractions ever couple of minutes the entire time. I was exhausted by the time I made it to the hospital. My strength and courage broke for a bit when I first saw Ryan. My rock. I didn't have to do this alone anymore. I didn't have to be strong for a bit. They rushed me into a room filled with SO many people. Everyone expected for 2 babies....2 26 week gestation babies, to arrive at any moment. They didn't.

I continued with hard contractions one after another for hours, still no dilation. They called off the teams and tried to stop my contractions. I dilated. Just a 1/2 cm, but still. A plan was developed. They put in an epidural, which they would remove and place a few more times....a first in Utah and something that left them all scratching their heads. They would give it to me to allow me to rest from the contractions. However, because of infections it would have to come out again. Divine Intervention was in play. These babies needed 1 more week. They wouldn't survive without it. I was called to go through the hardest physical trial I had ever been through. The contractions would slow from time to time, but they were hard and painful. The bed I was on was a delivery bed. Hard as a rock. Ryan didn't leave my side. They brought him scrubs so he could have a change of clothes. He played games with me to keep my mind off the pain. There were many unpleasantries in his role that week, but I have never in my life felt so loved, cherished and taken care of. This experience was taking a very strong and deep love even deeper. He is such an amazing and selfless man! He loves me so darn much!

Nearly one week into this experience they had still not let me out of bed to shower. I needed one! My Mom & Sister, Lisa, showed up one night. Lisa wielded a razor & lotion. My heart skipped a beat out of fear. Lisa + razor and my skin! EEK! However, an hour later I had perfectly smooth legs & beautifully polished toes. Who knew that such luxuries would be so nice at that time?! I tease her about my fearing her razor all the time, but I hope she knows that I know that it was a service she performed out of love for me. Our love, as sisters, grew deeper through not just that, but SO much she would do for me over the years. Did you know her voice and mine sound so much alike? When I took Mallory back to Idaho, when she was released from the hospital, my heart broke over leaving Dawson for a few days. Lisa stepped in. She would sit with him and talk to him. He fell in love with her. If he couldn't have his mama & daddy, Lisa was the next best thing. It stayed that way the rest of his life.

The next day my sweet nurse washed my hair, using a bucket of water and having me scoot to the top of the bed so I could lean my head over. Heaven!

I remember the morning of August 6th. I was completely exhausted. My body felt tortured...I'm not kidding. Everyday I had held on for their dear lives. Today felt different. 1 week of hard contractions coming regularly and the miraculous fact that I had not dilated at all since that episode when they gave me the meds and their was a feeling of peace and release that settled over all of us. Today was the day. It was OK for them to come. I really had no idea at all about what lay ahead of me, but I knew it was time to face it.

They tried to prepare me for the size of the babies. I couldn't imagine. They told me that they would be too small to cry and told me not to expect it. They would be far to small & premature. I was so nervous about the c-section. I mean, anxiety doesn't quite begin to describe it. I don't know if it was the exhaustion or what, but they kept coming in my room and telling me to breath. Apparently breathing had become voluntary instead of involuntary. I kept feeling like I was going to forget to breath. It was really quite crazy. Ryan gave me a blessing. Peace returned.

At 1:40 pm on August 6th Dawson let his voice be heard as he was removed from my stomach. It was a gift for me. He cried out to let me know that he would be ok. All 2 lbs 10 oz of him. I didn't get to see him, but Ryan told me he looked just like a little Lindstrom...and he did, at first.

At 1:41 pm on August 6th Mallory cried out as she made her way into the world. All 2 lbs 3 oz of the most feisty, fiery little girl the NICU would ever meet! She had made it! She was tiny! Her voice was music to our ears!

This week I am giving this fireside, preparing for Mallory's birthday party & finishing up my training for my 65 mile bike race, which I am dedicating to Dawson, on his birthday. I look forward to spending an entire week thinking about the miracle of these 2 little people! After 4 1/2 years of praying and crying, fasting and pleading, the Lord had answered our call in the perfect way. We had 3 children! 3, when I used to believe that I would never have 1! 3, which is all that we will now ever be able to have and all 3 bringing their own lessons to teach and missions to perform. Life is good! Hard at times....but when we make it through the hard spots it just makes the good that much better!

I LOVE A GOOD DATE NIGHT!

Ry and I try to be good about getting some alone time every week. I think we are better parents when we realize that we are a couple first! We make each other ridiculously happy! And ridiculously happy people are better parents than miserable ones, right?! :)

What could I possibly love more than a date night? A surprise date night! I don't care if I am the surpriser or the surprisee....I'm not picky! And I DO SO LOVE to let a suprise unfold and watch my hubby enjoy it!

Ry and I both LOVE music! We love to listen to it and we love to sing/play guitar. So I knew this date would be a hit.

Have you heard about Cjane's Rooftop Concert Series in Provo, UT?

I have always wanted to go to one! Now I live in Utah and I can! Yay! Plus, they are FREE! Double Bonus!

Ry and I headed to Outback Steakhouse....cause the man needs some good steak from time to time. Afterwards we drove to a parking garage in downtown Provo. Ry was still clueless. We got out of the car just in time to hear Mindy Gledhill doing her sound check. Oh, you must click that link and check her song samples out! She was truly brilliant! I loved her!

Anywho....Ry was super excited! He was way glad that I had gone outside the "movie" box and that we were going to just chill and listen to music all night!

Plus, super bonus! I MET CJANE! And apparently I was excited cause I couldn't have smiled any harder! What the heck?! My eyeballs just totally disappeared! :) In all fairness we were laughing at Ryan because he had the camera set to video mode and recorded us posing! :)

Courtney is a BEAUTIFUL person! Outside and In. We talked about Dawson. She knew all about him. We both cried a bit. I gushed a bit, cause I am just so darn proud of her! I am so impressed by her drive and the way she sets her mind to doing things and gets them done! Plus, she is stinking hilarious! I love someone that makes me laugh!

Ryan Innes provided a bit of entertainment to get us started. He was pretty darn good. Then Mindy took the stage! I LOVED her!

There were SO many people there! Good thing we got there super early! We had pretty good seats! By the time everything really got going people were so crammed on that rooftop and down on every corner of the garage until they had CJane begging people not to fall over the railing! :) This picture doesn't even do it justice!

The headliner was Meaghan Smith! She apparently just won an award in Canada that is the equivalent of a Grammy for Best New Artist. Pretty sweet! She was fab and we loved that her hubby was her lead guitar guy.

Such a fun night! I am SURE we will be showing up at next months concert! In fact I can't wait!

Don't Judge Too Quickly

The other night Ryan and I were talking about some past events in our lives. Ryan is really one of the most forgiving and non-judgemental people I know. I remember making a comment like, "I don't know what made them choose to do the things they were doing." Ryan replied,

"We have to be really careful when we judge others because

we are only capable of judging based on our own life experiences.

They have experienced something entirely different and so they react differently.

We can't judge their choices, because we don't fully understand why they have made them the way they have."

I love that in a moment he can teach me such a great lesson. I love that his actions confirm that he totally believes this. I love that he inspires me to be more forgiving and less judgemental.

"Who Needs A Forum Anyway" Guest Post by Mr. Lindstrom

My dear hubby, the fabulous Mr. Lindstrom, is our Guest Poster today. I do love to read anything he writes. He manages to entertain me constantly....over the last 13 years, thank you very much! :) So, without any further ado......

Some of you may be saying to yourselves “Self—I sure would like to win $100, but just what exactly is a ‘forum’ fer anyhoo?”.  Well—I’ll tell you.  I am of the opinion that there are nowhere near enough social networking avenues available to surfers of the interweb, so I thought I’d create another one.  Yeah, not really. 

I admit I rarely, if ever, consult Wikipedia—but this is their definition of an ‘internet forum’:

“An Internet forum, or message board, is an online discussion site where people can hold conversations in the form of posted messages.  They differ from chat rooms in that messages are at least temporarily archived.”

So—it’s a ‘site’ where people can hold ‘conversations’ which are ‘archived’.  How could this possibly be of use to you?  After all—you already have accounts on Facebook, Twitter, Myspace, Linked In, Ning, Tagged, Classmates, Hi5, Myyearbook, Meetup, Bebo, Mylife, Friendster, Myheritage, Multiply, Orkut, Nerdcentral, Webgang, and Mygeekclub, with a dozen or more different gmail addresses just to keep things easy and organized. 

Two words:  ‘Niche’, and ‘Archived’.

Niche:  ‘A situation or activity specially suited to a person's interests, abilities, or nature.’

Archive:  ‘An extensive record or collection of data’.

Remember that life-changing inspirational video about a cat with six legs that your bestest friend from high school, that you didn’t remember existed until you accepted his friend request and went through all of his pictures, posted on Facebook a month ago?  Wanna show it to your real bestest friend?  You may be able to find it in a jiffy, but I’m positive I couldn’t.

How about that High Altitude Green Jello recipe that is TO DIE FOR?  Well, if someone shared it in a ‘niche’ forum somewhere, you could type ‘green jello’ in the search bar and find the recipe, as well as all the riveting discussion about it, in about a half a second.

It’s like hanging out with friends online, but everyone has similar interests, and shares ideas and information that can be searched at any time by anyone for reference.

PERSONAL EXAMPLE(that you can skip if you are easily bored):  About a bajillion years ago I was into off-roading.  I wanted to build an off-road machine, but I had no previous experience in how to do such a thing.  I found an online niche forum about off-roading.  I joined even though there wasn’t much content there yet, because the forum seemed to be about exactly what I was interested in—building your own off-road machine.  I was member number 6, as in the sixth person to join.  The other five people didn’t hesitate to ask questions in the forum, to share their projects in the forum, to post pictures in the forum, to pass along information in the forum.  I built an entire custom off-road machine from the ground up, with no prior knowledge, almost exclusively by taking part in this community of do-it-yourself off-roaders.  As of 8:33 this evening, there are now 174,171 members of this forum, with 2,288 members browsing the forum at this very moment.  When I joined there were about 4 or 5 subforums.  Now there are 82.  Without this forum it would have been ridiculously difficult for me to build my off-road machine—but it took a leap of faith at first just to join.      

SO—what exactly is the niche that is YourLifeUncommon?  I can’t really say that I know.  Not that I’ve spent weeks thinking about it, but I can’t really put YLU into words.  The truth is, if you’ve read more than about five YLU blog posts(uhhh…not counting this one), you probably have a pretty good idea what it’s about.  THIS IS THE NICHE OF THE YLU FORUM.

Homemaking doesn’t really cover it.  Self-improvement is a little too broad.  Entertainment certainly doesn’t explain it(until now anyway).  As the niche that is YLU continues to be better defined, the YLU Forums will grow right along with it, with new, more specific forums added as necessary. 

Since the YLU Forums are new, the archive of discussion is fairly small.  Okay, really small.  This is because the ‘archive’ of information comes from its members, and you’re all a little timid about sharing your vast pool of knowledge.  I don’t blame you.  BUT—if the YLU Forum is going to help anyone—you need to get over yourself.  You KNOW you have something of value to contribute.  SOMEONE out there has some amazing recipes they want to share.  At least ONE of you has sewed vinyl before, and could certainly be of assistance in the ‘Crafting’ forum(like, right away actually—go HERE).  Forum registration is FREE, but your contribution  is invaluable—‘having  great value that is impossible to calculate’.

Besides, if you don’t go join right now, not only will you miss an opportunity to win $100(out of my own pocket I might add), but I will continue to post on YLU daily with unbearable quantities of ‘these’ ‘around’ ‘every’ ‘word’.

Don’t have anything you want to share right now?  FINE—anything goes in the ‘General Discussion’ forum(although ‘anything’ will have to adhere to a PG-13 rating).  Talk about the weather—whatever.  The first step to joining or forming a community is getting to know each other.  We all have something in common or you wouldn't be reading this right now. 

So—enough about me.  Let’s hear about you.  All you have to do is click HERE.       

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