Jason's Surgery

For all of you that have been curious, Jason's surgery went very well. It was done on May 8th at LDS Hospital. His surgeon is very optimistic that he was able to get all the areas of his heart that were causing both the atrial fibrillation and the atrial tachycardia. This is the fourth time Jason has had this particular surgery, known as a catheter ablation. His recovery has been surprisingly quick....just a few hours after coming out of recovery, he was up and walking the hospital halls. He's quite the trooper!
The downside to all of this is if this surgery doesn't work (and we won't know the outcome for 3-6 months), the next step we will have to take is what is called a Maze procedure. This would involve cutting open the chest cavity with an incision that runs vertically. For obvious reasons, Jason is not too delighted with that idea!
So for now, we are crossing our fingers and praying that this surgery will (finally) do the trick. Hopefully we won't have to see the inside of a hospital for a while!

Back home to Utah!

We just thought we should update everyone....we are officially back in Utah now! We are currently living in Layton, in Jason's parents' basement. We were trying to sell our house in Rexburg, but have decided instead to rent it out. As soon as we get some renters in there, we're going to find our own place in SLC. Jason's parents have been so great. They have been generous enough to let us stay in Jason's old bedroom, and we're so glad to be back in Utah.
Jason is absolutely loving his new job! He's now working as a Lead Teller at a branch in West Jordan, which was a promotion for him. He's working a lot, and staying really busy. It's a nice change from his oh-so-slow branch in Idaho Falls.
I'm back at work at the dental office I worked at prior to our move. I, too, got a promotion upon returning! I'm now a treatment coordinator rather than an assistant. I'm really enjoying my new position! (Especially the pay raise that came with it!)
We are doing well, and are enjoying the warm weather! It's such a change from Idaho. We can actually see the grass - rather than just SNOW!
Just a heads-up everyone: We may be calling in favors with some of you - we could use some help moving!

Moving

Jason and I moved to Rexburg, Idaho back in October '07. Jason was accepted to BYU-Idaho, so we said goodbye to Salt Lake and bought a home in Rexburg. It was quite an adjustment! I was raised in a small town, but I've always considered myself more of a city girl. Jason had never lived outside the Salt Lake valley! So you can imagine how difficult it was for us to become accustomed to a town this size (17,000 people). Thankfully, Idaho Falls is a mere 30 minutes away, so we were able to get our "semi-big city fix" without too long of a drive.
Aside from the size, Rexburg was an adjustment due its freezing cold temperatures and icy winds. There were days the temperature got down to -30 degrees! We made it through the chilliest months without any permanent frostbite, and were quite proud of ourselves!
We've proven to ourselves that we can endure the frigid temperatures, the oh-so-quaint town, and the less-than-adequate shopping. (Trust me, the shopping has probably been the hardest part for me.)
As most of you know, Jason has a heart condition called congestive heart failure. Since being diagnosed back in 2005, he's also been experiencing atrial fibrillation, and just recently the problem has been compounded with atrial tachycardia as well. When we made the decision to move to Rexburg, it was with high hopes that his last surgery would fix the problem permanently. It didn't.
The next step? Jason's cardiologists have advised him that he needs another surgery. So we put our thinking caps on and made the decision to move back to Utah. Due to the present circumstances, Jason has had to withdraw from school, and so it seems we are in Rexburg for no apparent reason at this point.
We are sad to leave our adorable new home, and the friends we have made here, but we do know that it is for the best.
Thank you to everyone for all your support and prayers! We love you all.