Happy Birthday Tony!!!

*** NOTE: I HATE THIS PROGRAM!!! I can't get it to do what I want, therefore my post is all screwed up. So take it for what it's worth. It looks ridiculous but I have been working on it for 2 hours and I am DONE!

Shalom bambinos! - Welcome back to the exciting life of Tony and Bergen! It has been a while...

Here it goes...

So it was Tony's birthday on the 1st of this month. He officially turned 27! What an old man... ;o) To commemorate the occasion, we went to dinner with Chuck, Debbie (Juelch) and their kids, as well as my mom and Adrian. Aunt Sue couldn't make it because she had something previously planned. We missed her, but no worries; good times were still had by all. Tony got to designate where we would be eating, and he appointed Red Robin as the place to dine, just like we did last year. He gets a free burger coupon emailed to him for his birthday every year, so that may have done a little bit of coaxing. It is very feasible that this will become an annual thing for Tony's birthday - a big shindig at the Red Robin.

Here is the whole clan at the table...

Tony & I in front of the fountain where we always take our picture. Oh...presh

Tony's present was a big deal and I had to get him out of the house for a couple of hours to put it all together. Tony & Jose were already planning on going to the BYU football game, so it was perfect. They both had their respective college gear on and off they went to the game after dinner. While they were gone, my mom, me, & Shannon all worked together to get it done.

I know...you are thinking to yourself…

"What is this wonderfully fantastic present that Bergen has put together so secretly for Tony???"

Well I will tell you my friends...

I thought long and hard about what I could do that would be a big surprise and he would love. I thought and thought and finally came up with it after hours of meditation and different holistic rituals.......It had come to me!!! I could put together the "Sports Room" that we have been planning on doing for forever! You see, over the years, we have compiled quite the collection of different sport memorabilia. We had masses of banners, figurines, signs, posters, etc. So the 3 of us (Me, my mom, and Shannon) planned it out and got everything framed, assembled, hung up on the wall and put up on shelves. We got done just in time. They got home and we were ready for action. I put the cake (I had made Tony's favorite cake - Rainbow Chip) and also some balloons in the room.

The door was shut...he walked in...and as you can tell he was pretty surprised (I think). (And no, Shannon is not overcome with emotion, she is just rubbing her eye...)

Now hold on, don't get your panties in a ruffle. I know you want to see what he is "oohing and awing" over...that comes next...it is the fun part...

DRUM ROLL PLEASE.............................

And here are the walls!!!...

On this wall, there are some MacFarlanes on the shelf...Barry Zito, Dwyane Wade, Jordan & Jordan. Below in the frame are some Bulls Luol Deng collector stamps.

This is the "A's" wall...with a street sign and a banner. The autograph is from Bob Feller who really has nothing to with the A's except for that I got the autograph at an A's game! So I guess this is an "A's / Indians" wall. ;o)

Here is a closeup of the Bob Feller autograph...

This is another shelf that is up a little bit higher on the wall. The MacFarlanes are Jordan, Jordan, Shaq & Dwyane Wade. The framed collectors stamps are of Shaq & Dwyane Wade also.

These are a few things on top of the dresser. There is a Shaq MacFarlane, a Dwyane Wade jersey card, an autographed baseball, and Dwyane Wade (in box) & Jordan figurines.

And the best wall of all...His MJ "Wings" poster! (Stick, I know where you live...) I got it out from the closet and had it framed!!! Finally! Then under it, there is a Chicago Bulls street sign as well as a framed & numbered picture of Michael Jordan winning the 1988 Slam Dunk contest.

Personally I think I can give myself a pat on the back for that one. I think that it turned out pretty dang good. He didn't have any idea, which was the best part.

Thank you all for sharing this exciting event with us. If you have any questions, comments, or concerns, please feel free to email Tony. Thanks.

July the 4th...

So I don't remember much about the 4th but here are some pictures to prove it happened. I do know that we went up to Logan (surprise surprise)...and we did have fun. We missed Jonny & Erin and the kids, but I'm sure they had fun in Pittsburgh. Since Jonny & Erin are gone, the only grandkids left are Isa & Eva, so they are all I get to take pictures of now. But seriously, these "faces" that Isa pulls are really something...



Isa was so darn cute - especially when Chris can get her to do "faces". I can't get enough of her! Eva is so cute as well...here are a few pics of her...adorable!


Ok ok...so yes this post was supposed to be about the 4th of July, but I just had to cover that first. ;o) Now...about the 4th. We did lots of things...the usual parades, cookouts, fireworks, and yada yada yada. Here are some self explanatory pictures! Enjoy!

City Firework Time...

Cache Valley Cruise-In Baby...

And of course...Good Times with the Savage Clan...



Hope that you all had a wonderful 4th. Maybe you will get lucky and I will post again soon - but don't hold your breath. ;o) Later gaters.

Phoenix Baby!!!

So we decided that after I got my PICC out...we were going to take off. We have been wanting to go down to Phoenix to Spring Training forever, so we finally did it. It was SO much fun! Plus it was warm - so that was a bonus. We drove...which we will never do again...and it took about 10 hours to get there from our house. We stayed at a hotel and just went to baseball games every day! Awesome. We were there supporting the "A's" of course...Tony has liked them forever. But we saw them play the Angel's, Dodgers, Orioles, and I can't think who else. But it was awesome. I definitely want to go again. I got some old Hall of Famer dude's autograph. I can't remember his name, but I paid $10.00 and stood in line to get it. I think we lost the autograph, I hope it wasn't worth too much money. I was also excited that I was so close to Jason Giambi! He was like right there. Crazy. Tony laughs at the picture of Billy Beane. He claims he is giving me "the look" because I am taking his picture. I don't think he even knew I was there. We had a wonderful time and if anyone wants to come next year then giddy-up! We're going! K...I am off to watch UNC beat Michigan. Later.

Ya...No Joke...

So after I got out of the hospital, I had to get my hair done. It was looking pretty bad. When I was feeling good enough I went to my hair dresser Patty. I was just planning on doing the usual, boring highlight and trim. But before I left, Tony said, "You should do something cool with your hair!" What he was meaning exactly I wasn't sure. He continued to tell me that he thought I should just do something funky...like get a different hair cut, or color it different or something. I didn't think much of it and headed to Patty's. I told Patty what Tony had said, and being the brilliant stylist that she is, she said "Let's put a fun color in one section of it!" So she pulled out what colors she had. She had red, blue, magenta, & purple. I didn't even hesitate...purple. (Although now I think magenta would have been cool...maybe next time.) I told her to just go for it. So this is what she did! I went home and Tony loved it. He was a big fan. I like it too...it is different and gives people another good reason to stare at me besides the fact I have fluid running out my nose!

Ya, I'm a Slacker!!!

So yes, it has been forever since I have written and updated my blog. But I do have a good excuse. I was in the hospital for about a month. The reason goes as follows: I had Meningitis twice, then for some odd reason I started having seizures. My mom was there with me and said I had about 7 of them. Crazy. I don't remember it at all but my mom said it was awful. So I was back in ICU for that for a while. Next I was back up on the floor. Then Dr. Hunter (one of my doctors) did surgery on me, yes to try and stop the leak, so I was in the hospital another week recovering from that! Whew! He went clear up my nose by my brain to patch a spot.
So I had packing up there for a while. It is pretty crazy when they pull packing out of your nose that is packed up so far is it by your eyes! It feels like they are pulling your brains out of your nose! AHHHH!!! So it was quite the journey. More so for Tony and my mom, because I don't remember very much of it, but I sure wasn't feeling my best and it took quite a while to recover. The seizures really messed with my brain and memory. In the hospital it was hard for me to do things mentally that a third grader could do. It was different exercises that were really simple, like simple math, comparing 2 pictures and finding the differences, or finding things that came next in a sequence. It was crazy, and frustrating. But a lot of it has come back to me. When I got home I had to be reintroduced to my home, I didn't remember any of it. I would ask Tony the day or the date about 20 times a day. I am sure he got sick of it. Anyway, I am doing a lot better now. Not 100%, but better. I have already started leaking again since the surgery, so no it didn't work. But really, who thought surgery number 59 was going to be the winner?!?!?! Just kidding, I don't have a bad attitude about it. One of these times it will work. I actually am sitting here with a tissue stuffed up my nose so that I can do something with out dripping everywhere. My mom got the great idea of getting those cotton rolls from the dentist (thanks Bruce) that they put in your cheek and they fit perfectly up my nose and can hold me over for a little while. So they are nice. They look pretty funny, so I usually just use them when I am home.
Anyway, while I was in the hospital, they put a PICC line in. (I have the picture, it is the long purple tube with two ports on the end) It is basically a glorified IV. It goes in your arm in a vein, but they actually thread the catheter all the way up your arm and around to your heart. It is a nifty invention. They are wonderful for me because I don't have any veins left. IV's only last a couple of days, but PICC lines can be in for over a year the guy told me. So since I had a PICC in, they let me go home and give myself the antibiotics I needed for another 4 weeks. It was a pain but I did it. I had to give myself 2 different medicines, so about every 4 hours I was shooting up with one of the two. It was a pain during the night having to wake up and do it. But I did it, and now the PICC line is out and we are moving on. I have been going to doctors already to see what surgery they are going to do next. Not sure what it will be, but I will let you all know. Here are some pictures of me giving myself medicine and also with a roll of cotton up my nose.

An Old Dream Comes True...

Well, I finally did it. After all these years of admiring Carrie Underwood, I was able to see her live. Thanks to my dear husband who bought me the tickets a long time ago, a friend (Joslyn) and I headed up to the E Center in Salt Lake and enjoyed the show. She put on a really entertaining show and of course she was absolutely gorgeous!!! I have been a fan of her's since the day she tried out for American Idle way back when. At first I really liked her because she had a gorgeous voice and the one major thing that I noticed about her throughout the show was that she dressed modestly!!! Amazing in this day and age. So I was rooting for her the whole season, and the night she won I remember being so excited that I wanted to cry!


Anyway, she moved on in life to become quite famous, and then the modesty flew out the door pretty quick. But I still like her music and I keep tabs on her here and there. So all in all, it was a fun time. Peace out.

Seattle...

Well...earlier this month I was able to fly up to Washington state and surprise my good friend (Kerri) who was going through the temple. My mom and I went, and we had to plan it very carefully so that Kerri wouldn't find out. It was awesome how it all worked out. We got in pretty late and had my aunt pick us up at the airport. When we got to her house, Kerri was already asleep (Kerri lives with my aunt.) So that worked out perfectly. So we just snuck around the house really quietly getting ready for bed and then went to sleep without anyone knowing.

In the morning my aunt told us not to come out of our room until 9:30, when she got home from aerobics. So about 9:30 we could hear everyone down in the kitchen eating breakfast. So my mom and I decided to go down. My aunt has 2 sets of stairs to get to the downstairs, so my mom and I split up and each went down a different set of stairs. We were in our pajamas still so it was great. We walked into the kitchen about the same time, and I acted like I had just woken up and I said "What's for breakfast? I'm starving..." And you should have seen Kerri's face! I wish I had a picture of it. It was classic. Her jaw dropped and she was so confused for a minute. But then she came-to and figured it out. It was awesome.

The day at the temple was great. She was going through for her first time, so it was really neat. Afterwords we had a little lunch at my aunt's house. We stayed for a couple of days and played and shopped and it was so much fun. Good times, good times.

A New Abode...

So since Tony found out that we are staying here at the Springville factory, we decided to start looking for a place to buy. We looked for quite a while and settled on a place called Somerset Village in Spanish Fork. It isn't far at all from where we live now. The cool thing about it is that they build the houses, frame them and then wait for someone to buy them before they actually finish them. So that has been so fun. We have got to pick everything out. Paint, flooring, countertops, cabinets, etc. So fun. And of course Mommy Mary helped out to make everything flow and look good. Another huge bonus is that we get a 2 car garage!!! We are really moving up in the world I tell ya.
Here are the first set of pictures that we took on the 1st of November when they were just getting started. We are pretty excited. We are shooting to move in around the first week of December, but we'll see.

One of the Cutest Girls Ever...

So, I guess I am a biased aunt who thinks that her nieces and nephews are the cutest. But I think most aunts say that. Anyway, one of my cute niece's name is Shayla (as you can tell from the picture, duh) and she just started preschool. She absolutely loves it! She is a complete social butterfly and loves being around other kids. These are her first school pictures ever and they turned out so dang cute - I just had to post it on my blog! She posed like a pro. She moved to Wyoming last Spring with her family and I miss them like crazy. I especially miss her mom Erin, we are really close and it is hard to be so far apart. Thank goodness for phones I guess. Shayla and her brother Jonny are growing up so fast – it is crazy. I need to get more pictures of them (hint hint Jon...). The last picture I posted of little Jonny was when he was standing there with his crack showing. So cute. They are such fun kids. Hopefully someday soon we will be able to go up to Gillette and see them. Anyway, enjoy the cute picture of Shayla. I love you Shayla!!! Love, Aunt Bergen

Bergen Gets an Idea...

So I guess I am going to back the train up a little bit and tell you about something we did last August. I know this will mess up the order of my posts, but just bear with me here.

So, it was a Friday night, and we were doing the usual weekend thing...sitting home on the couch by ourselves. Tony says, "What do you want to do?" And I respond, "I don't know, what do you want to do?" And it continues on until about 10:00 PM when we then decide to watch the news, Sports Center, and then hit the sack. Exciting eh? So one Friday night I had had enough of that. I got to thinking and had an epiphany whilst sitting in the water closet. (Don’t most of you do your best thinking there???) I decided...WE WERE GOING TO THE ZOO!!! So Saturday morning we got up, got all ready and headed up to Salt Lake to go to the infamous Hogle Zoo. I hadn't been there since fifth grade, and I soon found out why. When we got there, we got out of the car and were immediately surrounded by families with little kids and strollers and coolers. Not a single soul our age was in the vicinity. Oh well, what the heck, we were going to go and have fun. So we went. We never did see anyone our age the whole time, but we did run into Dana Petersen (Kent Petersen's sister) who was there with her kids, and she took a picture of us. So we do have this picture.

Other than that I just took pictures of animals. And at one point we came across this gorilla figure and decided we had better try and stand like gorillas. Ya, pretty cute I know.

So, after all, it really wasn't that exciting of a day - it was quite a juvenile activity actually, but at least we did something and got out of the house and inhaled some fresh air. I'll think of something better for next time, or better yet how about you come down and keep us company!!!

Tony's Birthday...

Well yes, we do all tend to get older as time goes by - sadly enough. And Tony has now reached the ripe old age of 26, which is approximately 9,490 days. Ya, he is an old man. But we had a fun birthday for him...at least I hope it was fun. I tried to make it different than a normal day. The only thing I failed miserably at was making his favorite cake - which I forgot all about. He LOVES the rainbow chip cake with rainbow chip frosting, ya I'm a bad wife. But, I made a big happy birthday sign and laid it on the floor for him when he got home from work (he gets home about 2 hours before me) and then when I came home I walked in the door with some balloons, including a "Go Diego Go" mylar one with several colored latex ones to go with it. He loves Diego, he watches it all the time. He was thrilled, I just know it.


Then that night we went to dinner at Red Robin with my Aunt, and my cousin and her family. We had a good time.

For his birthday Tony got quite a few things, including: 2 XBOX games, a new church shirt, a Kohl's gift certificate, a Wal-Mart gift card, some coin, a new basketball (well actually it was just one that his brother Nick found at the church one day and no one claimed it for a while so he gave it to Tony), and then he got some new basketball shoes. I think he had a pretty good birthday. Even Stick remembered and called, so I think that that really capped off the day!