Swimming Lessons

 For the month of January we signed Aubrey up for swimming lessons.  She was so excited to go 3 times a week.  She loved being able to wear her two Ariel swimsuits.  And boy getting her out of the water was a chore. 

There were so many things as a mother that I loved about this class.  I enjoyed being able to watch her learn new things everyday.  There was only her and one other kid in her class so the attention was always there.  It just made me feel safe for her, not being able to be in the water with her.  Her teacher was AMAZING!  I loved that she was informative to the parents and explained the areas that she needed to work on.  She passed her first class with flying colors.  She has two things that she can do, but needs practice.  So excited for the next time she goes back. 

New Years!

For New Year's it was pretty exciting around here.  We started the evening with a light dinner, followed by fireworks.  Not to mention how COLD it was out there.  Frozen hands in a matter of moments, but Oh was it fun!

And just after this picture was taken at 7:40 pm.... the kids were PJ'd and in bed at 8. 
For the rest of the evening Don and I watched movies and took it easy.  When Midnight hit it was kissy kissy and then bed!  Hope your New Years was great and you partied like there was no tomorrow!

Christmas with the Jordans

We were lucky enough to spend the day after Christmas with Don's family.  We had a great time celebrating with his family.  Celebrating with the Jordan's is a little different from my family in that there are more people there to celebrate.  It is great spending time with lots of people that you love and they love you.  Another year under our belts and many more to come.

Can't wait for more times like these with the Jordan's.  Merry Christmas everyone!

Christmas Day

What a wonderful day it was!  Don was so nice to get up early and be out there with the camera to catch Aubrey's face when she saw Santa's gift.  It was great and that we really didn't get up until 9.  My kids love opening gifts.  I was really surprised at how into it Rebecca was.  It was nice to have two kids excited for gifts. Here are a few pictures from our fun filled morning!

And then the aftermath!

It was a BEAUTIFUL morning!

Christmas Eve

We celebrated Christmas Eve this year with my family up in Bountiful.  Getting there was the hard part.  I headed to the store to pick up the goodies that I was set to take, when I recieved a call from my hubby.  So I dislocated my knee and I can barely put any preasure on it.  (Seriously!!!  On Christmas Eve you had to go and do something like that!?!?!?!)  The killer part was when we got to the Instacare.  The estimated time from check-in to seeing the doctor was 2 HOURS!!!   Again SERIOUSLY!!!  It seemed liek everyone and their dog chose that day to get hurt.

Anyway, we were seen by the doctor and they took x-rays to see if anything was broken.  Luckily there was nothing showing in the x-rays about it being broken just possibly torn ligaments.

So showing up two hours late for the party turned out to be great.  The turkey was a little late in cooking time and so we got there just as it came out of the oven.  We had a great time celebrating with my family and loved seeing all the kids faces when they opened all their gifts.

I have to say my favorite reaction of the night was Aubrey with her BIG gift from Grandma and Grandpa.  She received a Tinkerbell themed scooter.  When she opened it, said with gasps in between almost every word, " It's my... It's my... It's my NO FALL SCOOTER!!!!"  She has loved watching all the kids around the neighborhood ride their scooters but doesn't have the balance yet to use the two wheeled scooters and this scooter has three wheels.  I tell you it was a HIT!!!

Rebecca received her first dolly.  And loved it, if you can't tell by the expression on her face.

A Tinkerbell Blaze Vet Kit.

Little people school bus

My wonderful gift was a new pot and pan set, and not just any, a Rachael Ray Set.  I LOVE IT!!!  It is so amazing!  Thanks Mom and Dad!
And look and that beautiful face

And then this awesome puzzle was given to Don. It is a maze game enclosed in a ball, and the goal is to get through all 100 steps and reach the end... getting harder as you go of course.  It is a blast, and so frustrating!!!

Halloween 2010

Needless to say this is long overdue.  For Halloween 2010 we stayed in our neighborhood.  Aubrey was very excited to get all dressed up as Snow White!  We did our annual Halloween dinner of taco soup before heading out.  We were so grateful that the weather decided to be nice to us after a while.  It started to downpour just about 5:30 and lasted for a good hour before letting up.  But then the rest of the evening was beautiful!

Dressed as Snow White and a Giraffe we headed out for an even of fun! 

We met with Superman and a dinosaur for part of the evening.

At the very end of the evening we had two tired girls.

Our evening ended early with two girls in be by 8 and us parents relaxing.  Next year we may celebrate a little longer with the kids being just a smidgen older.  :)

Life Lessons

Well first and foremost.... WAY too long since my last post!  I will have to take some time to catch up here in the near future.  But until then you get to read what is on my mind.

In these past few weeks I have made mistakes that have affected people around me.  Being confronted with my statements and how it was perceived made me realize that I am the one in the wrong.  I have no excuses for my behavior and if I have a difference of opinion I need to thing about what I am saying before it is said so that I can be more aware of those around.

In the four and a half years that I have spent my life with a wonderful man, he has periodically reminded me of a simple part of being human.  As humans we are not perfect, but by living here on this earth we have the option to either continue in our ways and distance ourselves from our Heavenly Father, or to learn from our mistakes and change our ways for the better.  Sadly I have not taken this in stride and my ways are far less than perfect.

I am grateful that I am surrounded by people in my life that are there to help me in many ways.  I have wonderful friends that are honest and open with each other.  I have wonderful parents that have given me the tools to shape me to who I am.  And I have been blessed with a larger family that I married into that have shown me new ways.

In saying all of this, I would like to apologize if I have ever done wrong to you or someone you know.  My past actions can not change, but using those actions, good and/or bad, as a stepping stone in my life to realize what kind of person I want to strive to be.  I look forward to the future near and distant.  Thank you all for being in my life no matter how small.  You have made an impression.  And thank you for being who you are.

Advice Please...

Ok... So this is a sensitive post, but I need help on what to do.  I keep wracking my brain with several possibilities and just don't know what is best for the time being.  

In just a short time we are going to be attending a funeral of someone in our family.  I am at lost as to how to approach this with Aubrey.  I don't know if it would be ok to take her to the funeral and let her see the person "sleeping", (I can totally see her asking when is she going to wake up while we are there and then for hours after... that is just her personality), or if it would be better to not even bring her and not make it (death) a part of her life yet.  She knows who this person is when we see them, but does not ask for them by name when we aren't around.  The idea is kind of "out of sight, out of mind." 

A little more on Aubrey... we have had things die in our home... they were fish and she saw them go down the toilet to "a better place which we call heaven."   So it is not a total foreign subject to her.  But I don't think a fish and a person are on the same level, especially since it is someone in our family.

So any imput would be appreciated.  I would like to have a plan of acction on how to handle it before the time comes.  Thanks in advance.

Honest Reactions

Last Sunday Don and I had a meeting with the first counselor in the bishopric.  

When Don told me on Friday, I almost instantaneously became nervous and 

petrified of the calling that that they were going to ask us to.  

Thoughts were running through my head of two major things...

1- I have always been afraid of callings.  With this the fears include, but are not limited to: believing that I don't know enough, can't get my messages across the way they should be taught, not being knowledgeable enough to answer the questions that are brought up spontaneously, etc.  

and 

2- In college I had a roommate that said to me. "She would accept any calling that was asked of her, because they wouldn't have called her to that if it wasn't a calling from God, and he knows what she is capable of."

So needless to say whatever was called of me I wanted to accept, but was PETRIFIED!

So on to the calling... Don and I have been called as Ward Missionaries!  

At first when they called us I was even more hesitant to accept... I believe that missionaries do great work for the church,

But...................... and I am even hesitant to write this............

while growing up in my home, missionary work was not accepted, understood, or even appreciated.

So accepting this calling I am stepping into a whole new territory.

The next step was sharing the news with our families... 

While I am looking forward to sharing the news with Don's family, with my family I am scared out of my mind. 

This morning I shared the news with my family and even though I had expected the reaction that I received, it was hurtful.

I am still excited about the calling and am looking forward to all that it has to offer not only our family, but all those in the ward. 

We will not only be spreading the work and word of the Lord, but we will be able to know our neighbors on a more personal level.

So on that note:

And WE ACCEPT!

We are excited for this journey.  Thanks for listening.

Will Power...

So lately I have had absolutely NONE!!!
I see something I want,
I think of something I could use,
I look at something I don't need...

And I buy. With money that I don't have,
has not been saved, and is promised somewhere else.

I need to find a way that I can improve on this,
yet it seems as though I always can find a loop hole that justifies what I am feeling.

This has gone on for some time now.
What I wouldn't give for better control of myself.
As I am writing this it feels like I am doing nothing.
I am hoping that by admitting this to myself publicly on my blog...
(yeah I know it is all so very public), that I am helping myself.
I will be able to check up with myself and hold myself accountable for my actions.

I see TODAY as the LAST day that I will let my impulse reactions
over run my will power.
Budgeting and saving is now a top priority in all that I do.

So in the end I would also like to ask any of you that are reading...
and that have read this far...
What is your strategy?
What ticks and tips help you in this matter?

I look forward to the beginning of my better managed self - control.