Who forgot to blog...???

First of all, I must tell you that these pictures are in the wrong order. They never come out the way I plan, but truth be told, I am probably the only one who cares! Anywho, a few fun milestones since I disappeared: First, Justin (the baby of my family) graduated high school! Can I just say for one moment how OLD that makes me feel!? He looks amazing and gots lots of awards but I will not embarrass him. (For now at least :) Another fun event - Jeff and I got to take care of Jessy while her folks got to go on a much needed and awesome cruise to Alaska. She adored Duke and it was awesome to see just how great all three of my crazy beasts were with her. Sadie girl loved licking her face and Jess didn't even seem to mind...all that much anyway! The 4th of July was pretty mellow, it being on Sunday. Fun pic of me and the hubby I must say. I usually can't get him to smile that big! I am working summer school again which is both a blessing and curse - grateful for the hours, bummed that I had to miss Bass Lake again this year. (As I type this Mom, Dad, and Justin are enjoying the lake without us!) However, we are going next summer no matter what! The true highlight of this summer however, is Amy and the girls coming. They get to spend a whole entire month with us and I am busting at the seams with anticipation! Jeff even gets to come for two weeks as well, but will be coming a few weeks after the girls. He arrives the day before Jordan. And yes, I said Jordan. Jor gets home from the mission at the end of August. Mom and Dad are going to have ALL their kids, in-laws, and grand kids here at once. I think this might be a first since me, Jeff, and Jon all got married. Get ready for a bunch of pics!! xoxo

So what has been going on in the Goodwin house? Jeff and I celebrated our 4th anniversary with a trip to the temple, dinner at the Cheesecake Factory, and a somewhat ambitious tandem bike ride through Irvine Regional Park. Thanks to you honey, I still have feeling in my legs...not sure if you are that lucky! We have been working hard, hanging out with friends, bothering our families- basically loving life :) Justin's volleyball team has been kicking butt and are currently up for CIF semi-finals! It has been so fun to watch him grow as a player and an incredible person. He is being awarded male athlete of the year for Cypress High School and I couldn't be prouder. He is awesome :)
Some randomness we discovered today, Soto loves artichokes. (I am sure you all care :) Goes pretty nuts over them in fact. Hopefully, artichokes aren't bad for dogs, but seeing as he is still kicking 4 hours later, I think we are OK. Plus I had to just throw in a random picture of Sadie. She snuck her way into our room and onto our bed and was just so proud of herself. Oh, and she couldn't forget her crazy sidekick Duke.

Where to start?

It has been awhile since my last post. Much has happened. At times I feel as if time is rushing past me and I am trying to keep up; other moments seem to last forever as if moving at a snails pace. To start, Jeff's Grandma Alice passed away here in our home the beginning of March. It happened quite suddenly and I know Jeff took it pretty hard at first. He has lived with his grandmother since he was about 5 and she was more than just a grandma to him. I wish I could say something that would do her justice, but words just plain fail us sometimes. Perhaps, when he is ready, Jeff will write an entry about his "old lady." I would indulge for a moment though, and share just one thing that will forever stick out in my mind about Grandma Alice. Our room and her room are right next to each other. We shared a wall :) Every single nite we have lived here for the last two years, I heard her pray. I wish I could say we are that diligent :) She always prayed aloud and always prayed for every one of her kids, living and the one that sadly passed, and every single grandkid by name. Some nights she would pray for almost an hour. One nite, just about a month before she passed away, I heard her praying for Jeff and I to blessed with a baby. I was so touched and humbled and grateful. Not being able to have kids yet has been a really hard thing for me. We never talked about it, she just knew. And I am pretty sure that wasn't the only time she had prayed that for us.

At times I think we all feel like everyone else is so wrapped up in their own lives that no one could possibly be thinking about us and our problems and heartaches. And at this stage in life for most people that is true unfortunately. Very few of us consistently take the time to think of others and pray for them unless something tragic happens. That quiet example, that strength, her willingness to always think of others is what I will remember most about her. She is missed and the house is still just a little too quiet. We love and miss you Grandma!

We have also celebrated St. Patty's Day, Easter, and General Conference. I had an ingrown toenail removed by the doctor, and just yesterday I believe I broke my first bone ever - my toe! And it is even on the same foot as my now deformed toenail that had the ingrown :) Poor Jeff also dislocated his knee yesterday! What a pair we are right now! Haha! Hopefully we will both stop limping and recover quickly. Here is to a HAPPY, maybe slightly less eventful April! xoxo

I love February

I love February, and not for the obvious reasons. True, my sweetheart and I had fun going out to lunch to celebrate Valentines Day. And I thoroughly enjoyed commemorating our Presidents with two Monday holidays off work. However, I love February because we get to see the Westminster Kennel Club dog show! I love watching dog shows, and I love that I have even gotten Jeff to like them! :) And although they will never make it to Madison Square Gardens, in honor of this great event, I am going to torture everybody with pictures of the most gorgeous pooches I know. They are all my "Best in Show." xoxo





Duke

Sadie

Soto

Yea! The new computer is up and running fabulously! Not much to report that is new and exciting. After a couple of days of torrential downpours, we got the most beautiful double rainbow yesterday! I am only sorry my camera wasn't able to get the whole thing in one shot. We celebrated Dad's birthday with good friends, family, and some fun music. Jeff and I also got to go to Medieval Times with some friends (braved the rain even!). We were on the green knights team, too bad he ended up being the evil guy. Oh well, it was still fabulous :) Happy January!

Is it really 2010?!?!

Wow, I feel like I just updated my blog not that long ago, and here two months have gone by! Crazy, crazy! Anywho, one of the reasons for the delay is the broken computer. Poor thing has got to be at least 10 years old and is through. Fortunately, a new one should be arriving in the next few weeks - hooray! Until then, not too many updates, and no pictures :(
Since the last post, I went to Palm Springs with my best friend, Lynette for a quick one nite trip. Tons of fun and a great break from the same old routine. Thanksgiving came and went, we ate two dinners that day! Christmas was nice and relatively mellow. Jeff and I were both sick on and off for most of December so we did not get to do too many activities, but somehow it was perfect just the way it was. We got to be with our families and remember the Savior, the most important things about Christmas I would say :)
My mind spins sometimes when I contemplate just how quickly time is flying by! I really don't know where the heck this year went!! I am not really a goal setter like my dad, but for this upcoming year I hope to take more time to "smell the roses." There are some very big and exciting events on our horizon and I can't wait to see what this year brings and where life takes us. May this year bring happiness, peace, and prosperity to all of us! xoxo

Hope

I had a thought today - Sometimes we must let go of one dream to make room for a better one. I thrive best when there is an order to things, when they go according to a well laid out plan. There is less stress in my life when I know exactly where I am going and what needs to be done and just how to get it done. Funny then, to think that things very rarely happen that way in real life :) I am strange I think. I plan out my life in every detail in my head and I would be oh so happy if things went the way I had imagined. It is so hard when I feel like I am going down one road and it feels right at first, and then I keep going and things are not going like I planned. I am so quick to get discouraged and feel lost and confused. I don't easily find new roads, I am not comfortable starting on that road that is not clearly laid out in front of me. I want to cry sometimes and tell Heavenly Father that I can't go where he wants me to unless He shows me where it is exactly I am supposed to be going! I get frustrated and do nothing instead of turning my faith over to Him. Because certainly, there can not be anything better then my well thought out plan. The wonderful plan that makes perfect sense to me. Oh how I need to be better! I have a testimony. I know Heavenly Father is in control. I know He knows far better than I what is best for me and what, in the end, will truly make me the happiest. His plan is the best, sometimes I just forget. I forget and get discouraged and sad, because I feel like a little kid and think, hey, my plan is good too! And truth be told, my plan is probably good. The dreams I have are good. BUT, there are better plans and better dreams when Heavenly Father helps us write them. So today, I am grateful for that thought, no, that inspiration from the Holy Ghost.
I re-read the greatest talk by Pres. Uchtdorf called The Infinite Power of Hope. He gave it last October conference and I wish I was smart enough to know how to put a link here so anyone that actually is still reading this blog and post could pop over there really quick. However, it is pretty easy to find on lds.org. I highly recommended it as an ultimate spiritual pick me up :)
May we all make room for the best dreams. xoxo