Frankenstein - the musical - staring Ashley & Michael

Ashley and Michael both have staring roles in the Penn State University production of Frankenstein (the musical not the comedy). Written and performed in a similar fashion to Phantom of the Opera with outstanding music it should be an incredible performance!

Ash and Mica have been working long, arduous hours over the past couple of months, along with the other members of the cast, perfecting their vocal numbers, lines, staging, etc. Dress rehearsal is this evening and we plan to be there front and center snapping a gazillion pictures!

Break a leg kidlets! (A theater term for opening night) … well, perhaps considering what Cam is going through DON’T break a leg, haha, but best of luck as you light up the theater with you incredible vocal talent and chemistry! We love you xoxo

Beat the bike!

www.beatthebike.blogspot.com (pictures posted on beatthebike & facebook)

The Lord's loving hands in all of life's experiences

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Message to Cameron -
"Runners fight the wind continually Cam; runners with a passion like yours fight all obstacles in order to enjoy those sterling moments of achievement and fulfillment that sacrifice, focus and drive bring. The spirit is with you still again in this third surgery guiding expert surgeons - a bright future is in store! We all love you sweetheart ! xoxo Mom, Dad, Ashley, Mica"

Cam and his date were involved in a horrifying accident on his motorcycle; a hit and run wherein the driver drug Cam's bike 400 feet, then jumped out of his car and fled on foot! It was a miracle that they were not killed or received brain or spinal injury! Their protection was obviously of a Divine nature.

Cam's friend is healing and back at school thank goodness, but Cam has endured three surgeries at two different regional medical centers in order to save his leg. Without going into detail it has been a frightening, exhausting yet powerfully spiritually experience for all of us. We have witnessed miracles and a wealth of blessings tied to the faith and prayers of so many family and friends everywhere praying for Cameron and our family. We cannot express how humble we feel, how touched by so many well wishes and strengthened by the distinct power of prayer.

Heavenly Father loves these two young adults and has preserved their lives ,no doubt , as they each still have a mission to fulfill on this earth. Throughout this laboriously draining process of surgeries and healing Cam has retained his positive attitude, cheerfulness and sense of humor. He does not wish ill of the driver, though justice should be served; in fact it disturbs Cam to hear anyone belittle this crazed driver or to make hurtful assumptions. For this man to have literally fled the accident on foot speaks volumes regarding the state of mind he must have been in - enough said.

We have had countless individuals who are strangers to us commend us on Cam's genuine spirit and his ability to remain gracious and thankful for every act of service provided him in spite of the debilitating pain and suffering he has experienced. We are very proud of him and exceedingly grateful that we still have our son with us to love and to enjoy!

All three surgeries were successful, the last one being of greatest consequence, due to the magnificent expertise of the plastic and orthopedic surgeons involved. Cam's plastic surgeon Dr. Leonard is a pioneer in his field of micro surgery and is not only exceptional, but such a warm, engaging man with a terrific sense of humor and ability to explain each detail of the process so that a patient and family can fully understand the complexities of such an intricate procedure. (Transferring muscle, arteries and veins to the damaged area of the body.) We also came to find out that he is a brother-in-law to friends of ours back home in PA!

All of Cam's surgeons, pa's, nurses, aids, etc., have been tremendous. He has been in a rehab center now for close to a week and becoming stronger by the moment. I have not seen him whine, curse, lash out, or even say things such as, "Why me?!" Instead he has only talked about "when" he will run again so as to prepare for the marathons in his future. Defeat is not in his mindset, he is motivated and driven to beat this obstacle; and no doubt he will.

Cam's days of riding his cycle into the canyons and on the trails of the Wasatch Mountains may have come to an end but he will forever have memories of the freedom and excitement of riding along side his friend Brent enjoying nature at its best! Now he focuses on a couple of years of physical therapy after many endless weeks of having to lie flat in bed in order to regain the use of his leg ... but he has the faith (pure trust) in God that he will continue to be blessed and to enjoy a full recovery. He may not be able to run at the level he has up until this point ,as a passionate distance runner, but if all continues at the level it is progressing he WILL run again!

Many sincere, deep felt thanks to all of our family and friends who have provided endless loving acts of service, prayers, visits, meals, and help in all forms! From Loraine , Kurt , Brent & Carlene, and Gayle and Bryan rushing to the hospital as we made plans to fly cross country to arrive here to visits, calls and messages from so many who wanted to come and offer their support and help! And to Brent and Carlene, Cam's dear friends and now ours as well, for their incredible devotion to our son! Young adults who have dedicated their lives to service and who have provided a wealth of assistance helping to put plans into action so as to prepare a living environment for Cam wherein they can help him to recuperate and take his life back. A daunting task still lies ahead for Cam as well as Brent and Carlene but their generous and loving attitudes has simply amazed us and been a great blessing in Cam's life! Friends of this caliber are often rare in life; but Brent has become a brother to Cam and it is apparent the respect and adoration these three Musketeers have for one another!

Once I leave here it will have been a solid month I will have spent back in our home state seeing Cam through this ordeal. I could not have achieved everything I needed to as a mother without Jon's physical and emotional help and strength of testimony during so many pain wrenching moments of silent screams and streams of tears. Jon is our rock and was able to accomplish a great deal in Cam's behalf while here; and Ashley and Michael back east at home keeping the home fires bringing in our absence has been a great help as well. We are so very blessed to have such a tight knit, loving family.

Tomorrow Cam returns to see his surgeon in Salt Lake wherein we will once again be able to hear the life blood flowing into his leg through the Doppler attached to his leg and then later a visit to his orthopedic trauma surgeon in Utah county to see how all of the rods and screws are doing in his leg. It is breathtaking seeing the modern miracles of medicine which allow people such hope!

We may never be able to repay each of you for your individual words and acts of service in our families behalf; but know that you "our earth angels" have inspired us and we WILL pay it forward ! Our impetuous will be your fine example of Christ-like service as we seek to help lives that we, also, find have need of comfort and service in what ever manor :)

Thank you Heavenly Father for the bounteous blessings you continue to bestow upon our family. And thank you for allowing us to learn from challenging mortal experiences; which compel us to become more humble, more teachable, and to learn and grow into more caring, appreciative individuals. And thank you for further helping to strengthen our testimonies of the gospel of Jesus Christ as we rely on the power of the Priesthood, as well as the empowering ability to serve others, and of our knowledge that families can be together forever!

Post Script 10/19/10 - Cam's surgeon proclaimed magnificent progress today! The transplanted tissues are thriving and now he can even sit up and walk on his good leg up to 30 minutes every three hours! Cam is stoked to have greater freedom from being chained to his bed lol :) It's a wonderful day indeed! Also, his friend in whom he grew up with in our Pittsburgh ward, Darlene Stoddard Agle, approached us early on with an idea to host a "run" here in Utah in Cam's behalf to help generate donations for his spiraling out of sight, out of pocket medical expenses this poor recent college grad will have to some how come up with. Further details will be forthcoming but it will be called "Beat the Bike!" (check out Darlene's blog at www.beatthebike.blogspot.com) . This is such a generous offer of time and effort by her & friends to plan and implement! Again, we are touched beyond words as to her thoughtful effort in behalf of Cam as well as all of yours as well!

California Dreamin'

Life's a beach and then you die! ... Fun in the sun family vacation tied to some work in southern California. We showed our kids our version of hanging out in LA; many fond memories of travels up and down the coast of California while growing up and even after Jon and I married. We LOVE the city of Angels and the string of beaches from San Francisco on down the coast.

A day at Disneyland was great fun, we finally converted Cameron to how crazy-fun the theme park can actually be if he is with his family!! However, we want to take him to Disneyworld and really blow his mind! His busy schedule due to college, work, mission have kept him from being able to come on our trips to Disneyworld. Space Mountain, Thunder Mountain, Pirates, Haunted Mansion (though closed this time), Peter Pan, the submarine ride ... every last morsel of Disney is delightful and dining at the Blue Bayou was icing on the cake.

We enjoyed a day at Santa Monica Blvd (actually 3rd street) and the pier which was lovely. The shopping is terrific there. A crazy tour of Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Sunset Strip, etc., locating the homes of many movie stars; I'm partial to the stars from back in the day classic movies! Boggles my mind that on one street for instance Lucille Ball lived across the street from Humphrey Bogart and two other famous stars from that era! It's also fun to go to the Chinese theater and see all of the stars hand and foot prints in the concrete as well as the stars on the walk of fame. I was on a mission to once again see the hand prints of Marilyn Monroe, Lana Turner, Shirlee Temple, etc., and I wasn't disappointed.

We spent time beach hopping which is one of our all time favorite things to do! Huntington, Newport, Balboa on down to San Diego on a magnificent, leisurely drive. We enjoyed a lovely beach somewhere between Carlsbad and San Clemente that was incredible! Driving the PCH is simply a joy and provides breathtaking scenery.

We did everything from hopping in our rental car and setting out to track down a favorite rock star that both Cam and Ash like from the band(s) Something Corporate / Jack's Mannequin. Cam conducted some online real estate research (haha) and located his home in Silver Lake; Cam & Ash knocked on his door, spoke to the guy's wife and left a little gift for him - it was crazy and sooooo CHRISTESON in spirit! We also tracked down a park in downtown LA that was in a movie Cam liked called 500 Days of Summer. Bizarre yet fun! And Ash later had us search for a strip mall that sported a very unassuming club where one of her favorite bands, Avenged Sevenfold, started out.

On the official stars tour, though Jon and I used to buy one of those cheesy maps sold on the street and thereby locate the homes ourselves, but this time we enjoyed a mini bus tour. We saw current stars such as Britney Spears, Christina Agulara, Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez homes &/or former homes, along with Ringo Starr and George Harrison, Michael Jackson to Lindsey Lohan, Tom Cruise and Jennifer Aniston (and many others) to the old time Hollywood legends. So strange that anyone (us included) even wants to spend time scouting out stars homes but it was actually quite entertaining hearing all of the stories and recent happenings as well as realizing just how small the Hollywood community truly is.

We spent time on Rodeo Drive as Ash wanted to see the famous shops; his was her first trip to California! Sunset Blvd where many bands and stars were discovered such as the Doors (from the 60's), etc. We ate ourselves silly dining out and laughed non stop ... it was truly a memorable experience being with our kids. I can't think of anyone I'd rather spend time with than my family!!

Alas, the week came to an end. We saw Cam off at LAX en route back to Salt Lake and we hit the tarmac a day later for home which included a repeat change of planes in Phoenix. Oh how I longed to STAY in Phoenix!!! By time we arrived home it felt like it had simply been a dream that we had spent so much time amid palm trees, blue skies, sandy beaches and incredible Mexican food. Like I said ... Life's a BEACH and then you die! PS tons of fun pictures on my facebook page!

Happy birthday to a most remarkable daughter!

Happy 20th birthday Ashley babe! You know the story well but here is a repeat of the charming and blessed events ... As a family we had been praying for our baby to be born for a very long time and Cameron, age 5, wanted a little sister! One day after watching the TV cartoon the Flintstones and seeing that Barny and Betty Rubble wished on a star and the next day Bam-Bam was found in a basket on their doorstep Cam rushed into the room and insisted that what we needed to do was wish on a star for you!!

That night we did; we wished on a star, (in all good humor of course) and literally two days later we received a call from Family Services asking if we wanted to come and bring our new baby daughter home with us! Of course we all realize that Heavenly Father required that the timing be right for your glorious entrance into this world and that fasting and prayer is what finally brought you to us; however, I think that Cam was inspired and from that day forward you became our precious 'wish upon a star' daughter :) Each Christmas up through your 18th year we have given you a special gift connected to a star theme to commemorate the wonderful, magical blessing of our daughter's birth and sealing to us in the Provo temple.

Ashley, we love you with all of our hearts sweetheart! You are an exceedingly intelligent, spiritual, talented, beautiful, loving, motivated spit fire of a girl. A young woman with an incredible moral compass and strong testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ with a thirst for knowledge and desire to pursue incredible experiences. It has been such an honor to be your mother with all that this entails; laughing and crying together, pursuing incredible adventures and experiences together, working through life's challenges and dilemmas together and even being silly together. You are definitely daddy's little girl but a mother and daughter share an equally special bond - our hearts are identical and knitted together with beautiful silver threads of love and respect for one another!

We are so proud of you babe! What fun to see you make the Dean's List three times in a row and I'm sure it will not stop there. How moving to see you love and lead the little Primary children in church in their songs each Sunday; and your desire to major in elementary education and secondary English where you will continue to have a positive impact on children and teens lives for years to come is equally touching. How delightful to see how devoted you are to your big brother, of the fun you have together and the affection you share for one another. How touching to see you evolve as a young woman who is in love with the love of your life as you and Michael pursue your goals and prepare for a temple marriage and family in the future. You simply take my breath away Ash in how you are choosing to live your life!

Your 20th year is starting with a bang indeed! Exciting college classes juggled with holding down 1-2 jobs on the side. Being selected as a model for Whirl magazines bridal addition http://whirlmagazine.com/?p=8648 , being involved on campus as an orientation leader, chairman of the winter formal, vice president of the drama club AND now having auditioned for and been selected as the female lead in the fall Broadway musical Frankenstein http://frankensteinthemusical.com (to hear the beautiful soundtrack); and icing on the cake is acting and singing with Michael who was also awarded a significant role! The two of you possess such incredible singing talent, it is going to be such a treat seeing you both on stage once again and this time in such substantial roles.

May your next 20 yeas and beyond be filled with many delightful surprises honey, continued focus in dealing with life's difficulties, on going enthusiasm as you pursue your many, diverse goals and a song in your heart as you reflect each night on from whence all of your blessings have come. Heavenly Father loves you Ashley Bretlyn and your entire family thinks you rock!

xoxo Mommy, Daddy, Cam, Mica & Missy Belle Buttons