High Five For My Obi-Wan

In honor of today's five-year wedding anniversary, we are accepting virtual high fives!

I planned to write something about how Oby and I met for today's post. It was going to be adorable, quirky and fun, filled with lots of inside jokes and sweet memories. Ours is such a silly and charming love story ~ it's my favorite one, in fact.

I started and stopped writing the story a couple dozen times this week, but I've decided that, for now, the story belongs in the sacred places in my heart where only I can go. Yes, I'm selfish like that.

Just know that Oby truly and without question came into my life at the exact right time and was the perfectly imperfect person who I instantly knew was an ideal match for me. I knew I could and would always love, trust, and adore him. And he has always let me know that I am the only one for him as well. He tells me every day both in word and action.

I love my "Oby-Wan."

Here is a video I put together. This was something I thought I was doing for Oby, but it ended up to be a gift for myself. To dig back through pictures and relive some pretty special moments made me feel some of those same feelings. One of the most prevalent feelings I remember when I was dating and decided to marry Oby was peace. Even the day of our wedding, I remember so vividly being worried that I wasn't excited enough. Don't get me wrong, I was blissful! I was SO thrilled! But the overriding emotion was peace. I knew, unquestionably, that I was making the right decision to marry this man. And if I could go back today, I would still choose him.

Five Years from Tara Bennett on Vimeo.

Songs:

I Do by Colbie Caillat

Better Together by Jack Johnson

Let it be Me by Rosie Thomas

Many of my friends tell me I don't deserve Oby... everyone who knows the pair of us knows that he is the good one. He lives these words of wisdom, and I just try to be as good as him....

Marriage is not a noun;
it's a verb.
It isn't something you get.
It's something you do.
It's the way you love your partner
every day.

~Barbara de Angelis

I just had to throw in this picture because it's cute.....


Happy Anniversary, my sweet friend! I love you! I love us!

Arts Festival

Chloe and I had a fantastic time at the arts festival!

I loved the yarn bombing, the record art and the acoustic stick performance. It was also fun to see the Forked Up Art guy because he donated one of his pieces for us to sell at an auction for the playground last year. (awww!)

Chloe loved everything in the urban art area.... the music, the people (boy was she flirting with the boys!), the lucky crystals, the grafitti art! I love when Chloe expresses her likes and dislikes, it's so fun to know that she has opinions and is passionate about life....

After parousing all the areas and booths, we (tried) to leave. But the elevator to where we were parked was broken and um, there was no way I was going to trust complete strangers to take Chloe in her chair down the steep stairs. So we opted to wait in the garden area for the maintenace guy to fix the elevator. This was a fun little detour!

Ultimately, the maintenace guy was taking too long and we had places to be, so I did trust the guys to take Chloe's CHAIR down those steep stairs. I carried HER. Safety first, folks!!! ;)

Head, Shoulders, Knees & Rainbows!

Chloe has been learning the parts of the body, which was initially unknown to me. A couple months ago, we were driving in the car and I was playing some songs I thought Chloe might like. When "One Fine Face" by Ernie came on, I looked back to see if she did like it. What I saw was Chloe pointing to the parts of the face as Ernie sang about them! To say I was beaming with pride and joy would be a dramatic understatement! This continues to be a favorite song around here:

When I realized my little cutie patootie likes pointing to the parts of her body, I eagerly embraced the opportunity to let her show off for me - and often. This is now one of our favorite pastimes. The other day, we were exploring body parts, like her elbows, her belly button, etc. When I asked her where things were, she got them all right, so I kept going. I asked, "Chloe, where's your bum?" She moved her little hand and fingers down toward the bum-bum area. I thought she was going to point, but instead.... she farted. And giggled. Coincidence? I think not. I think this was just another one of those moments when Chloe shows us her adorable personality! 'Hmmm.... I could point OR I could fart! hee hee hee.' I tell ya what, I love my girl!

Utah has been in a seemingly unending state of Sprinter/Sumter (Spring-Winter/Summer-Winter), but for about one week, it's seemed like a real life, full-fledged summer! So Chloe and I went to get a pedicure in honor of flip flop season. When the lady doing our pedicure asked which color I wanted, I pulled out FIVE bottles of nail polish. She didn't speak the greatest English, so I think she thought I misunderstood. She repeated, "No.... which ONE color?"

Needless to say, I'm pretty sure she thought I was crazy when paid her good money to paint our toenails like this:

Colorful piggies!

Crazy? Maybe so. But those toes make me smile and giggle many times every day. So if looking like a childish num-nutz makes me happy, then so be it! I choose joy!

It's Not About the Diagnosis

I had recently been feeling overwhelmed and victimized by Chloe's special needs. I was feeling a little bit like Chloe's diagnosis had stolen the life I had planned and completely taken over everything. I felt like everything I had ever wanted had been indefinitely delayed because of Chloe's developmental delays and I did not like feeling as though I had no control in my own life.

Well, I learned long ago that when I start to feel like a victim, I have to dig deep and find a way to become the victor instead.

In this case, I was stumped.... I felt defeated. But I didn't stop trying. I kept seeking a way to overcome these feelings. My answer finally came when I was looking for something to uplift a friend who is battling cancer. I found this print: What Cancer Cannot Do. Its message spoke to me.

Please don't misunderstand. I'm not trying to compare Cerebral Palsy to cancer. Cancer is undoubtedly a much different battle. But I believe the underlying message of that inspirational print works with any diagnosis. When I read it, the victim within me was quickly diminished by a new sense of empowerment.

Yes, Cerebral Palsy has changed things, but it has not won and it will not win. It has given Chloe disabilities that have affected our lives, but it has not and will not disable our ability to live a happy and fulfilling life. It has not and cannot take away anything that really matters!

In honor of this new-found sense of empowerment, I created this word art. It is nearly identical to the cancer print, so just know that I'm taking absolutely no creative credit for this.

It has been a gift to realize/remember that Chloe and our life is not about Cerebral Palsy; her diagnosis is so much more limited than I sometimes realize. It has been an important lesson for me to not give Cerebral Palsy so much credit and to give myself, Oby, our families, our loving Heavenly Father and especially Chloe much more credit.

Special Gifts

Chloe had so much fun celebrating the main men in her life on Father's Day! She wore a cute shirt, just for the occasion that said, 'my heart belongs to dad.' This was actually her Valentine's Day shirt, but it worked perfectly for Father's Day as well! All together now.... "Awwwww....."



She surprised Oby with a picture collage for his desk at work and a unique bouquet of some of his favorite treats..... Dove dark chocolate squares were in the vase, then there was an arrangement of beef jerky sticks. I wish I would have gotten a better picture of the bouquet because it really was quite fantastic!



Her main gift was lots of love and snuggles. But it turned out to be a raw deal for me, Grammy and Nana, though! Chloe would NOT give the girls kisses that day.... She knew this was the day for the boys so she saved all her lovin' for them! It really was adorable that my non-verbal little girl was able to say, "Happy Father's Day!" in her very own special way by doing something she was able to do independently - reserving kisses. She really is such a sweet little smarty pants!





Thank you again to Oby and our dads for being such loving and wonderful fathers. We are lucky and very, very grateful. xo

Rad Dads

I want to wish a Happy Father's Day to some pretty special men.

It's no secret.... Chloe's dad is rad. He has an impeccable mix of strength, humility and humor that makes him a very special father. Chloe absolutely adores her daddy-o....




My dad and Oby's dad are both wonderful examples of fatherhood for Oby to follow. Oby's first hero was his dad and my first love was my dad (and some things never change) They are our friends, yet we also respect and admire them immensely....



One thing I've recently come to appreciate in our dads is the fact that they've taught us to be passionate about life. Through their examples, we have both realized how important it is to spend time doing what you love. In fact, some of their passions have become our passions....



Yeah, they've always been pretty awesome at their job as dads. And when you're good at your job, you get promoted!



It should be NO surprise that they are also amazing grandfathers. Chloe lights up when she sees her Papas. It touches my heart....






Happy Father's Day to three of the most amazing men I have ever had the privilege of knowing and loving. Thank you for giving a love that is so simple and pure, yet so deep and profound....



Last but not least, thank you to our loving Heavenly Father for blessing us with, well, every single thing.

And... Cue Music

Sorry, but I've been catching up on this season's So You Think You Can Dance and that's what Nigel says during all the try-outs. Speaking of SYTYCD, are you watching? If not, you should! WOW. I. Love. That. Show. And this season seems to be promising so far!

Onto the music.... Here is a new compilation - and a pretty fantastic one, if I do say so myself! I found new music from parousing VH1 Top 20, Odd Girl Out, Passionista's blog, Song of the Day blog, and from being a concert-going-groupie. I hope you enjoy this half as much as I know I will!!!

Since this is a music-related post, I'm going to do a quick review of concerts I've been to or will be going to this month....

The Head & The Heart opened for Iron & Wine. Can I just tell you -- they are both AMAZING! I already adored Iron & Wine, but Sam & his band exceeded expectations. Sam's voice is like buttah and I could have watched his drummer all night long! But as much as I loved Iron & Wine, I think I liked The Head & The Heart even more. Trust me, that shocks me more than it could ever shock you. Words just simply cannot explain and recorded music does NOT do justice to this band! Their voices, their musical skills, and their energy just filled up the entire venue. The crowd went wild for them. If you ever get the chance to see them live, take it!!!

I have loved and adored Brett Dennen's chill musical style and genius lyrics for years, and I just didn't think I could like him any more than I already did. Boy was I wrong! He was such a fun entertainer, an absolute joy to watch! He made the audience feel the lyrics. He is adorably humble, yet ridiculously talented. It was so much fun to see him!

The next concert coming up is Natasha Bedingfield. Although I appreciated her voice, I didn't really consider her music my style -- UNTIL the fateful day when I watched an acoustic concert on TV, something similar to VH1 Unplugged. Oh me oh my, she is a beautiful performer. Here's a little sneak peek at what I plan to see at her Less is More tour performance....

(p.s. I just love this song ~ it reminds me of Oby!)

The other concert we've got this month is Civil Wars. Usually I go to concerts with my friend Melissa, but Oby actually wanted to go with me to this one - he loves their music! Which is a good thing because I really, really wanted to see them and their concert falls on our 5-year anniversary!!! You have to check out these videos..... Their connection, harmony and unique dance between folk-rock and indie-pop is just my style! Oh I cannot wait! Also, I LOVE the venue where they're going to perform - it's going to amazing :)

In other entertainment news, have you seen the trailer for the new show that's coming out starring Zooey Deschanel? Holy bananas, I have watched this a couple dozen times and laugh hysterically each time! She is one of my absolute favorite people - I love her music, her acting, her quirky style.... I cannot wait for this show to start! Check it out and set your DVR!

Happy Birthday, Grammy!

It's flag day, which means.....
It's also my mom's birthday!

She is exactly twice my age. Crazy.

We were excited to have an excuse to eat Oreo ice cream cake.
Yummy!

My mom is an amazing person with a charitable heart.
I hope she knows how grateful we are for her.
I think she knows how much Chloe adores her.
I pray she knows how much I love her.

Happy Birthday, Mom!
xo

Fun With Friends

Chloe is lucky to have lots of good friends!

Party friends (Roller skating with Daddy at Jake's birthday party):

Snuggly friends (Hanging out with Ryan & Kendra):

Hiking friends (Silver Lake with Melissa):

and even furry friends:

Life really is better with friends!