ReLaY FoR LiFe/A LiFe LeSsOn FoR mE!

This past weekend I walked in an all night Relay For Life. If you have never done it, I would recommend trying it! It's a great way to realize and count your blessings! There are families that are facing some hard times and fighting the terrible disease of cancer.

While I was there I had the opportunity to hear one of the survivors speak. She told us the story of how just after 7 weeks of marriage she had a grand mal seizure in her sleep! She spoke of how just hours later she was having surgery to remove a large brain tumor. She explained how she allowed the tumor and the cancer to take over her life. It was all she could think about, It was defining who she was. Reluctently she decided to see a therapist to help her sort out the pain and feelings she was having.


She proceeded to tell us story how the therapist held a piece of paper(symbolizing cancer) directly in front of her face, and asked her what she saw? Obviously she could only see the paper! Than the therapist took 5 steps back and asked her again what she saw? This time she responded by saying, "Well, I see the paper, but I also see you, your desk, the lamp... etc." Her therapist explained to her that it was not healthy to focus on only one aspect of her life. Yes she had cancer, but she was also a wife, a step-mother, a daughter, a friend, an employee, a singer etc... The lesson this therapist was trying teach her was that there is so much in this life that we have to be grateful for, that only focusing on one thing will stunt who we are meant to be.


The last couple of months Dan and I have been seeing a reproductive endocrinologist. If any of you have ever had to go down this path, you understand that as a woman many emotions and struggles come along with not being able to conceive a child. Thoughts of self-doubt, failure and disapointment are ALWAYS streaming through my mind. I understand this is exactly how satan wants me to feel. He knows that I am weak and vunerable when I am taking medications that make the tears nearly uncontrolable and me inconsolable. I find my self mad, frustrated, jelous & scared.
 This lesson of this paper in the face was an awakening moment for me. I have really struggled this year when it comes to not being able to get pregnant. It has always been difficult, but I have never been so emotional, and I don't remember this dark cloud that seems to be overwhelming me!

This lesson symbolized for me the life that I have been missing out on. It led me to start thinking who I am? What do I want out of life?

I decided that I want to be happy! No matter how my life turns out, whether or not we get pregnant, or whether we decide to adopt. I want to feel the joy that I see from so many around me! I don't want people to walk on eggshells around me! I don't want them to feel guilty or bad for me because they are pregnant, and I'm not!

I want to be me again... ONLY BETTER! I want to be a better wife, a better daughter, a better employee, a better activity days leader, a better sister, a better friend. . . . . 

Cakes...

Here are a few of the cakes we did last year, I hope this year we get to do bigger and better things!!!

My Life

One day back when I was in high school I was talking with my sister in law Caroline and her mom about decisions that I was making, and where I wanted my life to go from that point. I remember Connie telling me something that has always stuck with me. She said to me " Lora, no matter what decisions you make or what happens in your life you have to always remember 4 little words, IT WILL BE OK." She said to me, Heavenly Father knows who you are. He knows the desires of your heart and he will be there for you any time you need him. So when you find yourself heart broken or upset just remember IT WILL BE OK! Back then it didn't mean much, but those words have brought me so much comfort over the years.


Each morning I wake up, get ready and by the time I am walking out the door I look as though I could take on the world. To be perfectly honest when it comes to work, I do. It feels great to see the numbers improve after all the hard work,effort and time I have put in! On the outside I look and seem put together, but on the inside I feel as though the woman I truly want to be is fighting to be let out.


It is no secret that for the past several years Dan and I have been trying to get pregnant and our journey of infertility has been a long hard road.


I can actually remember the day we found out we were pregnant for the first time. It was a Sunday and all weekend I did not feel great, I went to church and while I was at church I got a text message from my Aunt Debbie, asking if we wanted to go on a hike and have dinner with their family and my Aunt Bonnies family. I of course said yes and she asked if we would bring a watermelon. We actually had to run to store because we didn't have one (judge me later). While at the store I picked out the biggest most beautiful watermelon ever. Upon arriving at my Aunt Bonnie's house we learned that we were going to pack our food up the mountain and eat up there. Dan instantly shot me this look of " Oh great, you picked out this massive watermelon and I am going to have to lug it up this huge hill." During all of this something in me was telling me not to go on the hike, I kept shrugging it away because I had hiked this very hike several times. I knew what I was doing, right? WRONG! Not even half way through the hike I got extremely sick. Throwing up, passing out, etc...I felt SO STUPID and bad because now Dan was not only packing a massive watermelon up the mountain, but helping me up too!
When we finally got to the top I started to feel much better only, my ankles were HUGE! My aunt was the first to notice them, and she looked up at me and she said "Oh my gosh Lora... You're pregnant". I laughed at her and said  "yeah right." She told me that when I got home that night that she wanted me to take a pregnancy test, because she just knew I was pregnant.
When I got home I did exactly what she had told me to do, and she was right. I was pregnant! I ran out of the bathroom into our bedroom, looked right at Dan and said " Bonnie was right." The first thing Dan said was  "Holy $#!% were going to have a baby" (Again judgements later)  I had never been happier, and I loved Dan's reaction.
I always thought it was so dumb how people would wait to tell someone they were pregnant.  I called my mom that very night, I couldn't wait to tell her! It didn't take long for the news to travel, I was getting text messages from so many people telling us congratulations. I truly thought I had died and gone to heaven.
I actually had a Dr's appointment scheduled for a different reason so I called the office and changed it from a yearly exam to a pregnancy exam. Dan took work off and came with me to what we thought would be the first of many appointments. When I got to the Dr's office they had me do all the normal stuff blood draw, get on a scale, pee in a cup etc... Then they directed me to a room and we waited, for some reason I just knew something was wrong. I could actually hear someone saying to me." No matter what happens today IT WILL BE OK, know that your Heavenly Father loves you and he knows the desires of your heart IT WILL BE OK!"
When my Dr walked into my room, I didn't need her to tell me anything, I knew by the look on her face something wasn't right! She asked me when my last period was and we guessed that I was anywhere from 6 - 8 weeks along. She then said to me that my blood test revealed that my hormone levels were not where they should be for someone who was 6- 8 weeks along. She said that by how low they actually were that the baby was not longer alive and I had to make a choice whether to get a D&C (Dilatation & curettage) or to let the  "fetus" pass naturally. She left the room for a minute to let Dan and I make our decision, I didn't even dare to look up, knowing that if I saw Dan I would probably lose any control I was holding onto at that point. I was so ashamed and couldn't help but feel like I had done something to make this happen. Dan and I decided that we would let the baby pass naturally and we left the office.
There really are no words to explain how I felt that day other than desperate. I wanted my baby, and there was nothing I could do about it.


Since that day, Dan and I have been pregnant one other time but it too ended up with a miscarriage. My Dr tells me that I am prone to early pregnancies because of several reasons, 1st one being that I have PCOS. 2nd I produce a weird type of folic acid that causes developing problems with the baby.


In October I decided that I would switch Dr's and we would take a new fresh look at getting pregnant. So I went in for my first initial exam. They took blood, they had me pee in a cup, they made me step on the stupid scale and she did a vaginal ultrasound. (I loved that she was being so thorough). After she was done she started to ask me lots of questions, I had never had someone go into so much detail. She asked me questions like, do you know anyone in your family who has gone through early menopause? Do you know anyone with diabetes? Etc...
By the end of my exam I had a few answers as to why she was asking me all of these questions
1st - I was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, she gave me my blood sugar level(I don't remember it, but it was high).
2nd- She was concerned with a lump I had shown her on my right breast and she wanted it biopsied right away.
3rd- She was concerned about possible early menopause, because of the findings with the ultrasound she had done earlier.


She asked me to come back in 30 days and she put me on an extremely strict diet I was to eat 75-100 grams of protein a day. (This is harder than it seems.)
She said that if I hadn't lost at least 20 pounds by my next appointment that she would know that I wasn't doing what she wanted me to do!
As for the early menopause she wanted me to come back in a week to have another quick ultrasound done to see what my uterus looked like,and she also would have my blood test results back.


I felt so alone and desperiate after this appointment, and for a week I kept telling Dan that by the time I was 25 I was going to have breast cancer, a dried up old lady uterus, and probably be bald from the effects of breast cancer. (So many people have laughed when I have told them this statement.) But it was how I was feeling at the time I was really scared for what my future held.


After the first week passed I went back in to have another ultrasound where she found that she may have been wrong about the early menopause and maybe I just had a thinner uterus than most? At this same appointment they used a large gauged needle and took a sample of the lump I had shown her and sent it away to be biopsed.
Two days later the nurse from her office called to tell me that I didn't have cancer, but rather just a lump?
This was a huge relief!  It was like the world had been lifted off of my shoulders and I could breath again...


This month marks 5 years that Dan and I have been trying to get pregnant, and I am struggling! The reason for this post is for me to be able to try and explain what it is like for someone to experience the pain and loss due to infertility. Since October I have had an extremely hard time dealing with the idea that I may never have the opportunity to have a child of my own.

I am struggling with my relationship with my Heavenly Father. I am so mad I that I dont feel as though I can pray with the right heart so I stopped!  I fell abandoned, alone, frustrated and hurt..
Growing up I have always heard. "You get to wake up in the morning and decide your attitude, are you going to be happy or sad?" The problem is, I'm angry and I don't know what to do with that anger...?

Last week after I had taken my monthly pregnancy test(Seriously should have purchased stock with the company)and it was negative, I called my mom to get some advice, she was beyond wonderful and our conversation was exactly what I needed to hear! After I hung up the phone I was sitting on my couch, my house was completely silent and I started to pray, after my prayer I heard agian. " IT WILL BE OK. I am your Heavenly Father and I love you! I know your hearts desires and IT WILL BE OK.

Activity Days

About a month before Daniel & I moved back from Roosevelt I was released from the Young Womans presidency and called to be an Activity Days leader. The next day we had decided to take a job back in the city and moved before I ever had the opportunity to get into my calling...
So it was kind of neat when we moved into our new ward in South Weber, and I was called again to be an Activity Days leader! It was definately an inspired calling!
I have had such a great year being apart of their lives and getting to know the young girls in my ward. They are so VERY full of life and remind me all the time to find the fun and excitement that comes with life. We have done many fun things including candle making, pedicures, babysitting bags, journaling etc...
I also have the best activity days partner ever! I am pretty sure Heavenly Father knew that I would need her to help me get through my year! What would have I ever done without her?
Thanks Erin!

A few weeks ago we had a daddy/daughter mock camp out! I don't know about anyone else, but I feel like it was perfect!

Here are a few pictures of our fun adventures!

Ice Skating @ the Kaysville ponds

Growing up my grandpa used to take me ice skating all of the time, I would be sitting in class when over the loud speaker I would hear " Mrs or Mr(whoever my teacher was) we need Lora Peterson to bring her things with her and report to the office." When I would see my grandpa standing in the office, I would get so excited!!! Then he would ask, would you like to take the afternoon off and go ice skating... With zero hesitation I would of course say yes!

So yesterday when I listened to my voicemail and  heard my grandpa on the other end saying... "Lora, it's grandpa... I went over to the Kaysville ponds today, and they are just a smooth as glass. Do you think we can get a party down there tonight?"  I had no hesitation as I threw on SEVERAL layers of clothing and met my grandpa down at the ponds.

My grandpa holds a very special place in my heart! It was so wonderful to have the opportunity to spend the evening ice skating with him. It will be a memory I will always treasure!

 Can you believe he is 84 years old! He was using the shovel as a "walker" ...

Christmas Morning!!!

Dan and I had such a wonderful Christmas.

On Christmas morning we were able to go down to Payson to visit Dan's brothers family

It was great to be apart of their morning, and see how happy & excited they were that Santa had visted their home.

 Sahara and a very sleepy and sick aunt Lora (can you tell?) I had a fierce migrane Christmas morning!

 MacKenzie got a new bike... She LOVES it!

 MacKenzie is a grandpa's girl.. .She LOVES her grandpa!

 4-Wheeling babster!

 Sahara is so grown up!

 Dan and I gave each of the girls a little stuffed animal for christmas, and Brilee adored hers all morning!

 Sahara is really into fashion!

 Doesn't she look happy?

 YAY! Snow boots

When you would ask MacKenzie what she wanted for Christmas she would tell everyone that she wanting a bag of candy! She was so excited to learn that Santa had fulfilled that request!

We hope you all had a wonderful christmas! Love, The Mitchell's

Scoffield Family (Christmas Eve Pie)

Me & My Sister in Law Caroline

My Mom & Baby Kendall

My Mama... (Isn't she beautiful!)

My Cousin D.J.'s son Morgan

Ace (He is growing up too fast)

They buried Rusty in the garbage can full or wrapping paper!

The whole family

Ausha & Cort

That is one sexy man! aka my husband!

Izack, Joni, Arlin and the side of my brother Jordons head!

Thanks Erin for having all of us at your house! It was such a fun night!