what a week

is it really only Thursday?
what a crazy 72 hours.

my week started like any other:
work on Sunday evening.
work on Monday.
As I was walking out to my car Monday evening,
I received a call from my mom.

dad was in a wreck. rolled his pick-up.

one thing I've learned when it comes to my dad is:
accidents happen and I shouldn't overreact.

however, once he was at the hospital,
they discovered he had broken
a vertebrae (L4) in his back and was being flown to Denver.

it was scary. very.
broken back.
surgery.
flight to Denver.
whoa.

but the more I learned about the events of the wreck
and watched as things unfolded,
my tears of fear became
tears of gratitude.

my dad rolled his pick-up.
without a seatbelt on,
and only broke 1 vertebrae.
no cuts. not one bruise.

he was partially ejected from the vehicle.
into the snow.
on a night with subzero temperatures.
in the country.
and he was found within 30 minutes.
and he had coveralls on.

he had to be flown from colby to denver.
my brother lives in colby.
I live in denver.
the hospital was literally 10 blocks from my house.
if ever being in the hospital could be described as "convenient,"
this was it.

they thought he would require surgery.
but they discovered the break was "minimal"
and have remained "very, very optimistic"
that it will heal with time in a brace and limited movement.

I feel like I could list so many things to be thankful for in the whole ordeal.
my work has been incredibly supportive.
I have been reminded of how many people do care about my dad, my family, and me.
I have gotten to spend 3 days with my mom and dad,
helping out, talking, playing cards, and praying.

granted, i would like to spend time with them under different circumstances,
but this time with them has been sweet,
in its own way.

Do I wish this wouldn't have happened? sure.
Do I wonder, at times, why these "bad things" have to happen? absolutely.
and while these are questions and worries are human, I know that they are not healthy.
(at least not for long periods of time :) )
and if I would have allowed myself to stay there (in those places of worrying and fear),
I would have missed out on seeing God's goodness and His faithfulness through it all.

it confirms for me that what you see in life is often what you are looking for.
faith allowed me to look beyond the circumstances and see the bigger picture.

thank you to all of you who have called, emailed, texted, visited, and especially prayed.
I truly believe in the power of prayer.
It is mysterious to me.
Doesn't always makes sense.
I'm not the best at it on most days,
But I can not deny the power that lies there.

Please know how thankful we are for all of you.
My dad said yesterday, "I have extended family I didn't even know about."
He was talking about all of you.
Thanks for loving us.

with love,
Erica

toe pick

every time i lace up some ice skates
(which isn't that often, i might add)
i can't help but think of this movie.


so even when they told us the ice wasn't great
and hockey skates would provide more support,
i went with the toe pick.
:)


yesterday, we went up to evergreen to skate on the lake
i had been wanting to do this for awhile
and we got invited to go with my dear friend Kristen and her boyfriend Chad.
somehow I didn't get a picture of them. oops!


yeah, we're pretty good.

Kristen and I always manage to have a really good time together.


today it is snowing. again.
winter has finally arrived!

'cause I'm country strong.

bobby haude and I went to the movies tonight.
and it was really good.
loved the music.
what can I say,
country music is in my blood.
it reminds me of home;
the longer I am away from Kansas,
the more I appreciate my country roots.

and look at Gwyn's boots! aren't they great?
i'm not even a huge fan of red...but those are great.
if I was a country music star,
I would have boots in every color.
dresses with cowboy boots are a great look.
that's why I am super stoked to go pick out my boots tomorrow!
(they ones bobby haude got me were too small)
don't worry. I'll post pics.

and this is Beau.
his voice in the movie was really great.
made me want to stay and watch it again.
just to listen to him.

okay. and maybe look at his eyes.
don't worry, I told my husband that I thought he had great eyes.
and a great voice.
I could say more, but I won't :).
i'll stop.
seriously though,
I think you should go see the movie.
it's a good one.
all you city slickers: don't hate on us country folk.
:)

thriller!

THIS was seriously one of my favorite things about Christmas break
it was not as great as dancing with my hubby on NYE
but it was pretty great.

so. much. fun.

and so. very. funny.

it's a great way to get ready for
MJ & Cirque Du Soleil.
our parents got ALL of us tickets for Christmas.
Denver. January 2012.

i'm super-excited.

for now, I'll just find someone with a wii
who will let me practice my moves!

Mack turns ONE!

Mackoy Matthew turned 1 year on December 15th.

Unfortunately we didn't get to celebrate with him on his *actual* day.
So we threw him a little party while we were home for Christmas.


here he is opening his gift from us the day we got there.
i wanted him to wear his *1* Shirt when enjoying his cake.



yep.
he is definitely a Hemmert.
he wasted no time digging into the chocolate and sugar!

he is such a sweet boy.
I had a blast crawling around the floor with him.
snuggling with him before bed.
and listening to his laugh.

can't wait to see what year #2 brings!!


well, we know ONE thing that year 2 will bring....
another member of this beautiful family! :) :)

LJ

Rob finally got to meet Lydia Jane
while we were in Kansas!

we met the Waldron family in Salina for lunch.
it was SO great to see them.

they are such dear friends to us.
we share so much with them and cherish their friendships.
and we love their sweet little girl.


we miss them and wish we got more time with them
but we hope and pray that our paths will soon bring us closer together.

i mean, look at those cheeks!
who wouldn't want to kiss them every day?
i know that i would!!!

ringing in the new year

we got all "gussied up,"
went to the Oakley Country Club,
and danced the night away.



a local cover band, Aces and Eights,
played some of my country favorites,
and we boot-scooted-and-boogied
our way into 2011.


Rob said the next morning:
"That was probably the most fun I've had on a New Years."
he was a 2-steppin' fool.
i was very impressed!

who said Western Kansas wasn't fun!?!?