Called to Serve!

My sweet brother and sister went into the MTC 2 weeks ago. My sister is going to California to speak spanish and my brother is going to Chicago to speak spanish! Isn't that awesome? These are my two youngest siblings and I am so proud of them and I know they will do wonderfully.

The MTC was great! The spirit was so strong and singing "Called to Serve" started the tears. By the time it was time to say good-bye, we were all in tears and Connor was sobbing. He was so sad to say good-bye to my sister, he could barely stand it. But, we are so excited for them and we love them. We pray that they will find those who are ready.

Dave Ramsey

Brett and I had the wonderful opportunity to go see this guy:

If you have not heard of Dave Ramsey, you need to discover who he is. He is incredible! We first heard about Dave while listening to him on the radio. He is on 570 KNRS from 7-10 pm . I know, I know, it's an AM station, but really, that is what I listen to these days. FM radio has too many commercials and I have to save the music on my ipod for running days, or else I get tired of it-- so AM gets my attention. Anyway, we LOVE Dave Ramsey! We listened to him for a while and then read his book, "The Total Money Makeover," and we caught the bug to be debt free! Dave's philosophy makes so much sense and is so do-able. The total money makeover consists of 7 steps-- Dave calls them baby steps, like from the movie"What About Bob." We started the program in January. Since January we have paid off about $20,000 and by the end of this summer, we'll have paid off about $30,000! The cool thing is, is that he uses a lot of principles from the pamphlet the church published way back when, "One For the Money." He also uses a lot of scriptures from the Bible. His philosophy: "If you live like no one else, you can live like no one else." Meaning: if you give up things that everyone else is doing now like new furniture, finishing basements, newer, bigger cars, remodeling, boats, vacations, clothes, electronics, going out to eat all the time, blowing the budget, charging things just to get the 'benefits' etc., etc., etc.(and no offense to those who might be doing those things now. Trust me, we'll be doing some of those things when we can pay cash.) So, if you give up all those things now, later, you can do whatever you want with your money. I am so excited and just feel so in control of our finances now, which I am ashamed to say, I haven't felt our whole marriage. Isn't that horrible? My parents taught me well, but it seems I prefer to make the mistakes myself and then learn the lesson. I guess some things just have to be learned that way. In a few months we will be totally debt free, except for the house! No payments except the house! If you want to learn more about Dave, his philosophy and the "Total Money Makeover" click here.

We went along with our fabulous family, Natalie and Dave. We had a wonderful time and we were so motivated! Thanks for going with us guys!

Polar Bear 2008

Almost every year for the past 10 years, Brett has been taking us up to a place we like to call the, "Polar Bear Canyon." When Brett was a teenager he found this spot with his friends. It's quite a hike through brush and poison ivy (which none of us got on us, except Brett) and up some pretty huge rocks, but we make it and it's always worth it! This water you see is direct run-off from snow. Yes, I said snow. Since we had such a huge winter this year, the waterfall was very powerful. This time we went with my brother and sister, Alyssa and Tyler, a few days before they both entered the MTC.

This is right above the little 'pool' area where you jump in and have to completely submerge yourself to be an official member of the polar bear club.


Video of Ty

Video of Cami

(Just so you know before you watch this, as I'm getting into the water, I'm thinking to myself, "I am not going to freak out. I am not going to look like an idiot when coming out of the water." [I was thinking this because of past experiences of looking like a freak] Anyway, I am trying so hard not to go nuts, but the water is just so cold and I couldn't help it!)

We had a great time with Alyssa and Tyler! I'm glad we got to go one last time before they left!

I tried to upload the video of Brett and Alyssa, but it didn't work. I'll upload it when I can.

Connor is 8!!!

We can't believe that our little boy has turned 8! These 8 years have gone by so fast and Connor is getting so big and is such a great big brother! He is so willing to help out and wants to be a good example for the kids. He is so excited to be baptized and is looking forward to scouts! He is a great helper and has a great sense of humor! We love our little boy!

This year, for this very important birthday, Connor decided to have his party at Classic Fun Center. He got to invite 10 little friends (yes, that makes for a crazy time) and they had a ball!

Connor and his cousin Brandon, as thrilled as ever, going down a bouncy-slide

Connor's choice of cake, a piano cake. I thought it turned out pretty good...considering my cake baking/decorating experience!

Twilight T-shirts!

I got a kick out of these shirts! Here's a shout-out to all my book club friends and sister-in-laws who love the "Twilight" series! I just might have to get one for the Twilight movie that comes out in December! I found them at this website, referred to me by a friend: ohsweetsadie!

Spring!

Spring is here! Thanks to the Wallace's (the people who owned this house before us) when it's spring our yard comes to life with flowers of all different colors! We love it!






This is McKay and Makenna on our way to my parent's house for their bday party. McKay fell asleep while Makenna was holding his hand. Aren't they just so cute?!


Here they are blowing out their candles on their cupcakes! It was a wonderful day and they were spoiled by everyone! Thanks for your love and support!

Cement!

We finally are pouring the cement to extend our driveway! YEA! This has been a long time coming and we're so excited to have it poured! I want to give a HUGE thank you to Brett's brothers and his dad that came to help! The cement truck ended up being over 2 hours late, I felt so bad! This was a Saturday morning, and we all know how precious our Saturday mornings are! These guys just goofed off and had fun with eachother, and then got the job done! They are wonderful! The cement looks great! I'm so glad they all know how to do it! What great family we have!

McKay doing his hand print

Makenna taking her turn.

Connor taking his turn.

The finished product!

My Big 30th Birthday!

I turned 30 this year! I have been looking forward to the 30's, actually! I would much rather be entering the 30's than the 20's. I am more sure of myself, who I am, what my purpose is, how to fulfill that purpose. I care less about what others think of me and more about what I think or what my Father in Heaven thinks of me. I feel more mature in my relationship with myself and with my husband, and that is a good feeling! I hope to make this the best decade of my life!

This decade started out with a bang! Just so you all know, I have the BEST husband in the world! I couldn't have asked for a more fun (for me) birthday! He took 1/2 day off of work and came home, picked me and the kids up, took the kids to his mom's house, and then whisked me off. We were alone, together, without kids! He said, "OK, this is how much money you have. Get out your birthday list. Let's go shopping!" (What guy does that?) So, we shopped around everywhere for the better part of 6 hours! It was so much fun! I got lots of running stuff, some shirts, jewelery, shoes, and we just had a great time! We even stopped and got our pictures taken in one of those little booths in the mall! We had a city volleyball game that night so we went to play, and then Brett surprised me with a night out to dinner with all our volleyball friends at PF Chang's! It was great! This birthday was the perfect girly birthday! Shopping and eating out! I am so grateful for Brett and his thoughtfulness and kindness and sensitivity. He didn't complain once and didn't tell me to hurry up at all and had a smile on his face the whole time! What a wonderful man!

The Twins are 5!

I cannot believe the twins are 5!!!! Yes, they are FIVE YEARS OLD!!! My babies are officially not babies anymore. We were still trying to stretch it out when they were 4. Four year-old's can technically be babies, right? Oh well. Where has the time gone? We are so blessed to have these 2 in our family. They are so fun and helpful and just plain-out good kids. They are eachother's best friends and I love that they are so close! I am honored to be the mother of these twins and I thank Heavenly Father every day for them! Here are some fun pictures of their birthday.

McKay wanted a Christmas tree cake for his birthday. Decorated with Skittles, M&M's and licorice. This was a little tricky to make. It was my first time doing a cake like this. I'm not the huge creative type, but this was actually fun. I learned a few things this time, that I will keep in mind for next time!

Makenna wanted a heart shaped cake. This was a little easier to cut out than the Christmas tree. This is decked out with Rolo's, chocolate Skittles and fruity Skittles! Anyway, they both loved their cakes!

A HUGE thanks to Alyssa for coming over and helping me get everything ready! And a big thanks for all our family who came to support our little family! We love you all! Here are some random pictures of them through out the years. Sorry, no baby pictures, none of them are on our digital camera files on the computer. Enjoy!

Congratulations Mom! (Thanks to all of you!)

VICTORY!! WE DID IT!!! A huge thanks to EVERYONE that voted! My mother-in-law had no words, just screams! (If any of you know Marla, you can picture her reaction!) She is sooooo excited! Marla is so touched by everyone who participated even those who have never met her! She is truly overwhelmed by every one's efforts and the outcome! Thank you for helping make this a Mother's Day she will never forget!