Missouri!

I got back from Missouri last night and was really glad to see my hubby and be out of that awful weather, BUT really sad to leave Jeff, Amy and the girls! During our trip we got to see Jocelyn get blessed, go to Nauvoo, help the fam move from Kirsville to St. Louis, go to the zoo, shopping, fun meals, movies and lots of "body slams" from Kayla :) And although it probably wasn't the smoothest move, I enjoyed every second of being there. It is hard that Jeff and his family are so far away, but hopefully we can at least get Amy and the girls out here soon! :) Poor Jeff is going to be stuck in the hospital for a LONG time now! We wish him the best as he starts this new chapter in his life. Love you lots and lots guys, thanks for an awesome week! Hugs and kisses all around :)

On your mark, get set, go...!

Justin got to build a boat out of just cardboard and duct tape for his physics class and then they raced them in the pool. Jeff and I hung out with him and his two friends, helped tape, roll cardboard (thanks Jeff :), and went to watch them race. They got first place on day one for their period, went to the finals the next day, and got second. Very cool, and very fun to watch! All of the boys in my family took physics and got to do this. Me, well I hate math and am not very good at it either, enough said! It would have been fun to participate in this however. You're awesome Justin. Can't wait to bother you everyday for a week while we are in Missouri, haha!

P.S The name of their boat was the "Angry Apache," hence the red war paint.

The last few weeks...

So what have we been up to the last few weeks? Hmmm, Jeff had a root canal, Justin went to the third round of C.I.F. volleyball (he was stinking AMAZING I might add :), the doggies were their normal crazy selves, baby Hali'a had another surgery and we are so very grateful that she is doing so much better, and my mother-in-law and I made a receiving blanket for a friends baby shower (thanks Karen!). I have 3 1/2 weeks of school left and I hope I make it :) Me, Mom, Dad, and Justin are taking off to see Jeff and his family, to see Jocelyn get blessed, and to help them move to St. Louis. I am so excited to see the girls (and their parents too, of course!). I am so looking forward to summer even though I have hardly no break this year. We start summer school way early, and go back to school in August. I am not very stoked about it, but at least summer school is only four hours a day. Some fun things definitely on the horizon in the coming weeks and I am going to try and post a little more frequently this next month. Gotta love that big Duke :) He has totally brought unconditional love and lots of smiles to our house. He has been great therapy for me during some tough times these last few months.

3 years already!!!

I can hardly believe how fast time flies! I am so blessed to be married to such a wonderful guy :) I count my blessings everyday that we found each other and get to be husband and wife. He is truly the best thing that has ever happened to me. In a world and time when so many people think of marriage as an archaic tradition or something that somehow stifles individuality, I am grateful for my testimony of eternal families and celestial marriages. When two people are joined in unconditional love and unite themselves with the Lord, nothing else on earth compares to that. Jeff and I have known each other for over 15 years and I feel like he has always been there, I love that! I still get excited everyday to see him after we get home from work and I miss him like crazy if we spend any time apart. We really are two pieces of one whole. Happy anniversary to us, and here is to forever my sweetheart!! :)

Oh dear Sadie Mae...

Me and Hali'a

the "donut" or cone #3

cone #1, eaten (don't have a pic

of the second one)

back in the day - my precious puppy!

About two weeks ago, we finally got the opportunity to have our dear Sadie Mae "fixed." I was on spring break and thought it would be the perfect time to have her surgery so I could stay home and just hang out with her. She did really well during the whole procedure, although I must say, Jeff and I almost had a freak out moment when the guy at the clinic told us he could not find our dog. (I thought Jeff was gonna punch someone :) Jeff went in and found her though, and she walked out to the car and got right in with a little nudge from dad. She literally jumped out of the car when we got home and I almost had a heart-attack. She did pretty well and stayed somewhat mellow, mellow for Sadie anyway, the first 2 or 3 days. The first day we left her alone was 4 days post surgery to go to my aunt and uncle's for the annual Easter egg hunt and party. During those two hours she managed to eat her cone and stitches out. Jeff called me and I ran home to find her guts split open. Not pretty. I was kind of freaked out because it was a holiday weekend and I knew how much it was going to cost us to take her to an emergency room - a fortune! But off we went to Fountain Valley to the nearest ER. Everyone in the office was so amazing to us and the vet there, Dr. Campos, put in her staples for free!! All we had to pay for was the pain meds he gave us and a bigger, longer cone for her head. Tender mercy right there folks, and a huge blessing for paying our tithing :) Fast forward to Tuesday nite when I got home from my parents and Jeff got back from work, and she has EATEN her cone and her staples!!! Crazy dog! Off to the ER again, and lucky us, Dr. Campos was there. He was pretty amazed at her "determination" and by the fact that the sedative/pain meds he gave us did absolutely NOTHING to her, not even a nap. We went home with a "donut," more pain meds, and muscle relaxers. He told us Sadie needed a farm and was hyperactive- no kidding :) She slept Tuesday nite for all of 6 hours, a record folks I am serious. But man oh man, do we love her to death! We are glad her and all her craziness are ours :) AND, today is her 1st birthday! We are off to the Pet Expo tomorrow (awesome!) and I am sure we will pick up tons of treats for her! More to come...

The month of March

So the month of March has come and pretty much gone. Nothing too exciting, but we did celebrate Mom's birthday (sorry, no pics), and my favorite holiday of the year - St. Patty's Day. And yes, St. Patrick's Day really is my favorite holiday :) The picture is of Jeff and I at the Cerritos Performing Arts Center. Jon, Aubrey, Troy, and Lynette came with us to see the Irish folk group, Danu. We had dinner together before hand at my parents and overall had a great evening. The only bummer was that Jeff was feeling under the weather, and oh, Jon and Troy both fell asleep during the show. I guess they were not that impressed. As for the second pix, well I must say that, in and of itself, is a true miracle. Never in a million years did I think I would get all three of those dogs in the same picture, let alone all looking at the camera. I believe Soto thinks we have something against him. Poor thing. But at least they aren't fighting. At the moment, we are unsure of Duke's fate. Jeff is dying to keep him, and I, well, I am slowly warming up to the idea. We will see how the next few days go. If he can learn to sleep outside at night instead of ON me, well, he might have a permanent home. Luckily, we have a backup home if he can't stay with us. Work is work. Nothing very exciting there. April should be fun and exciting with conference, spring break, Easter, a new baby in the family, and some more birthdays. We'll keep ya posted... ;)

Duke...

So this is Duke. He is an almost 4 year old chocolate lab. Jeff found him. Now we might be keeping him. Good grief, LONG story. Maybe when I am not so sleepy I will fill you all in. It is a very crazy story indeed...