Day 6 of 30 Things

Day 6: What is the hardest thing you have ever experienced?

It's interesting that this question came up today, because I've done a lot of reflecting this past week on the hardest thing I have ever had to experience.

This coming Thursday marks the 10 year anniversary of my Dad's stroke. I've written a few times on this blog about that experience, so I won't go through much detail now. But It was the scariest, hardest, faith-shaking moment of my life. It's so hard to see someone you love so much suffer so badly. It affected how my entire life afterwords played out. 

But 10 years later and my family is stronger than ever. 

It was the hardest thing I ever experienced, but it was also one of the biggest blessings. How can you not love and appreciate your parents more after you almost lose one of them? I witnessed the power of prayer as my dad got stronger and healed. I watched him accomplish things that we never thought he would be able to do again. I watched my Mother as she stood by his side, taking him to numerous doctors appointments, specialists, hospitals, and rehabilitation centers, all while taking care of 4 kids and staying so strong.

What an inspiration. 

I love you both Mom and Dad.

(I wrote a detailed post about the day my dad had his stroke 2 years ago, if you want to read it, click HERE. For warning signs of a stroke, please click HERE. Knowledge is power and time is key. The sooner they can get a diagnosis, the less damage will be done. And remember, it can happen to anyone, anytime. My dad was only 39 with no previous health problems. It took them 8 hours to diagnose because they just couldn't believe that someone like him could have a stroke. Please pass this information on to loved ones!)

8 years ago today...

8 years ago today was the worst day of my life.
Not the "I locked my keys in the car and my washer went out and then my dog chewed up my new pair of shoes" kind of worst day, but I mean literally, the absolute worst day of my entire life.

I remember exactly where I was.
I was 15 and in in the 9th grade.
It was after school and I was staying late in my English classroom working on a project for my Lord of the Rings book report with my partner.

We finished up and (as this was pre-cellphone era for me) I used my teachers phone to call my house to let my dad know I was ready to get a ride home.

Instead of hearing my dad's voice on the other end, I heard my grandpa's.

"Brooke this is Grandpa, your dad is in the hospital. We'll come pick you up and take you and your brothers down there"

My heart sank. I didn't know why he would be in the hospital. Was it a car accident? A heart attack? Maybe it wasn't that bad, just stitches... yeah it could just be stitches.

My teacher, (who, I'm pretty sure, was born with a rock instead of a heart...) asked if I was Ok. When I told her my dad was in the hospital she just said "a lot of old people have to go to the hospital when they get a cold or something..."

What? You seriously just said that? First off, my dad was 39. Second, he wasn't the kind of guy to go to the doctors, let alone the hospital for "just a cold" are you kidding me? My grandparents met me outside the school and my brothers Colter, Sawyer and I were taken to the hospital. We met my mom in the Emergency room.

She explained to us that my dad had had a stroke.

It happened that morning right after we had left for school and they hadn't figured out what it was until just before we arrived. My dad had all the symptoms of a stroke, but the doctors just wouldn't believe that someone that young could have one.


A stroke is normally a blood clot in the brain preventing blood and oxygen to get to it. In my dads case, the blood vessel blocked itself in a way. Blood broke through the wall of a blood vessel, which pushed it out, creating a blockage. The doctors said that there was no reason that this happened other than it was basically just a freak accident.

Things began to get scary.

My dad was getting worse, and the doctors were planning on life-flighting him to the hospital in Salt lake for emergency surgery. I remember feeling so scared that I was going to lose my dad that night. Something in my heart and the back of my mind told me that I needed to be prepared in case this was his last night.



By this time, my aunts, uncles and cousins had shown up and we decided that we needed to give my dad a priesthood blessing. I remember that almost immediately after the blessing, I felt that horrible scared feeling leave me and a feeling of peace washed over me, and not only over me but over the whole room. I suddenly felt that everything was going to be ok and that my dad was going to pull through.

Soon after, the doctors came back to check on him and realized that he was beginning to stabilize. They were not going to have to life-flight him!

Those first few days were the hardest. My dad was paralyzed on his left side, couldn't swallow, couldn't walk, could barely talk. You never imagine seeing your big tough dad so sick. It breaks your heart.

It was weeks in the hospital, then many more weeks in rehab. When he was finally able to come home, we were constantly worried about him. Even just watching him eat was nerve wracking because his throat was still partially paralyzed. Our lives had changed so much.

But 8 years later and my dad has made so much progress!

It's incredible looking back and remembering the way he was, lying in a hospital bed for weeks, paralyzed on one side, feeding tubes, IV's and all sorts of monitors all over him. Then you see him today and he is a modern miracle. He now walks with the help of a cane, he went back to college and got his degree in fine art, he can still go hunting, camping, take airplanes, ride the Indiana Jones ride over and over at Disneyland, paint and draw, go to concerts, build fences, attended my wedding and a million and one other things. Things that many people who have had strokes never get the chance to do again.


I am so proud of my dad. He's such a hero in my eyes and I'm so grateful that he was there to scare away boyfriends, get mad at me when I was past curfew, attend all my dance competitions, come to my high school graduation, take art classes with me, be there to watch me be sealed to my husband and in 5 1/2 months become a grandpa.

What would I do if I didn't have him to be a grandfather to my child?

I love you Dad. Thank you for being so strong and always being there for me. You really are the best dad in the whole wide world and I'm so grateful that you are here with us today.

Mom's are the best

It doesn't matter how old I get, or the fact that I'm about to become a mom myself, but my mom always makes sure that I'm healthy and happy.

She's the best!

I've been sick for a couple of days.
Mostly just horrible migraines and dizziness.
I even called in sick today at work, which I never like doing.

I'm also super anemic. Which means I don't have enough iron in my system and my body has a hard time reproducing it's blood supply.

In fact, when I was hospitalized with pneumonia, there was a serious debate weather or not to give me a blood transfusion.

Ever since, the doctors have told me to take iron supplements, never pass up green beans or red meat (but who would pass those up anyways?) and I get a finger prick test every now and then.

My mom was worried when she saw me yesterday, she said I looked too pale and was worried my anemia was getting worse, which is known to happen to pregnant women, and would explain the dizziness.

So today, she brought me what she called the "baby smoothie"


It had bananas, blueberries, flax seed, fish oil, spinach, and a fiber supplement in it.
It started out purple, and tasting like bananas. It ended black and tasting like spinach.
It really didn't taste too bad at all. It was just a little chunky, which made it tough to swallow. It's like beans, they taste fine, I just don't like the texture of them.

I dared my sister to take a sip in exchange for helping her do her homework. She got a weird face and just said "interesting".
(my mom)

This wasn't my first rodeo with a healthy smoothie my mom has made. For after school snacks she used to make smoothies with tofu in them. And really yummy sandwiches with spinach and apple slices.

I'm so grateful for my mom. She always makes sure I'm feeling ok. When I was living down in Provo, she had this "mom sense" that would let her know when I needed a visit from her and she would bring groceries or flowers.

When I was sick as a kid she would run out and buy me a sprite and make toast.

And let's not forget my dad here, he used to grab me cough medicine in the middle of the night or let me drink his coke.
(my dad and I)

Needless to say, I am feeling much much better tonight. My headache is gone and with it my dizziness. My mom said she's going to make me the smoothie again tomorrow (with less chunks) and I'll take it if it has made me feel this much better this soon.

I love you mom and dad. You guys are the best and thanks for always looking out for me (and you too Bryant, who always buys me Reeces peanut butter cups when I'm sick and doesn't make me watch football, I love you too!)

The Strongest Man in the World!

Growing up, there was a show called Pete and Pete.
It was about two brothers both named Pete and one of the characters on the show was named Artie, "the strongest man in the world!" He was really just a geeky guy in a striped outfit but he was pretty funny. My dad and I used to watch it all the time and we would joke that my dad was Artie, the strongest man in the world.

(This was taken at my aunts wedding. My dads the 2nd one from the left showing off his muscles)

But over the years he really has proved to be one of the strongest men in the world.
Seven years ago my dad had a stroke (he's only in his 40's now, which makes him way too young to have a stroke). The first year was extremely hard. He was in the hospital for weeks and weeks and in rehab for weeks on end as well.

But despite everything, my dad is still the amazing person he has always been. He's one of the funniest people you will ever meet. He's incredibly talented with his artwork (he has a show coming up later this year, check back in a couple of months for more info!) He's incredibly smart. He knows a little bit about everything so you can ask him any question you can think of and it's like he's a walking encyclopedia. He's also one of the most supportive people in the world. You can go to him with anything, and he will give his opinion, tell you what he thinks is best, but totally support you in what you decide. He's also just great to talk to. I love going out to his garage while he's silk screening and just talk with him about anything.

Also, did I mention he's a pretty good cook?

I love my dad so much. And i'm grateful for everything he's done for me.

Happy Father's Day dad. You really are the strongest man in the world.