Simply Us

Updates

2011-08-09T12:39:00.000-07:00

Wow, it has been a long time since I last wrote. I thought now that I was working from home I would have more time on my hands to keep up with my blog. Apparently I was wrong.
So, let's see... last time I wrote my neighbors and I were in a bit of a tif if you will. All is well now, I just stopped caring, if Hinckley goes out and barks I give him 2 minutes to get it out of his system, if that is a problem for me neighbors then TOUGH.
Lola is doing good, she took her first independent steps on Sunday August 7th. That was pretty exciting, Donn and I were both there, and my parents and grandparents. She hasn't done it since though. I am sure any day now she will be running around the house. Lola loves to be outside (but she doesn't like to be on the ground outside) either being held or in her stroller. She LOVES to watch Dora the explorer and dances during the theme song. She loves her feet rubbed and will sucker anyone into rubbing them for her. She is 16 months old and 22lbs and 32inches tall. She still doesn't sleep very well. Some nights are better then others. She has got a ton of teeth and uses them well, she usually Loves to eat. Unlike her Mother she eats pretty much anything you put in front of her. Sadly she doesn't have very good roll models so she copies the dog. She tries to put her face to her tray and lick her food up like a dog. Or if she drops something like her binky instead of picking it up and putting it in her mouth, she bends down and grabs it with her teeth. Oh my. Her favorite word is "nonono" or "daddaa" or "uh oh". Even though she doesn't say Mama I am by far her favortie person. Which is good and bad, if I leave the room she screams bloody murder, and if I am around she will pretty much ignore anyone else. If I am not around she is cute as pie (or so I have been told). My mother will actually kick me out of the room and make me be quiet. So that once Lola stops the screaming Grandma can play with her. I love her so much but it does get exhausting to listen to her scream when I leave the room, or to have to always be holding her.

I love being home with her and Donn during the day and spending time together as a family. We got to take Lola to the zoo, which was an interesting experience, but fun.

Bark Off

2011-05-07T21:32:00.000-07:00

BREAKING NEWS: Dog's Bark.

I would like to take a moment and have you all think about something for me. Why do people buy a dog?
Most of you would probably say companionship and protection. Yes? Now my next question why buy a dog and not allow it to bark when it senses danger or fear? To me that is like telling a child ''now honey, if you feel afraid or if someone is trying to harm you or someone else just stand there and don't make a peep. We don't want our neighbors to be bothered or feel you are a nuisance."
We would never say that, we teach them to scream at the very top of there lungs. So when neighbor hood kids are yelling and throwing things at a dog it is unreasonable to expect him to not bark. Equally it is unreasonable to punish the dog for barking at the kids teasing him. Or a grown man yelling over the fence "shut up dog, stupid dog be quiet" (yes that will work, strange man waiving his hands and pointing as he screams)
I will be the first to admit, my dear Hinckley can be a bit annoying and yes he barks, and yes he barks at his shadow or a leaf blowing in the wind. I understand that barking is not a peaceful relaxing sound. But does it really interfere with your (my neighbors) quality of life?
When moving into my home, I met my neighbors and they were so welcoming and friendly. I apologized for the unsightly yard and a I forewarned them about my dog. I told them I am a horrible landscaper and I hate yard work, and it will never look great. But I would do my best to keep it from being and embarrassment. I told them my dog was a barker, but we had him in training classes and we were working with him. At this time everyone was so understanding. "Don't worry about the yard, it will come with time. And dogs bark we know that. As long as he is not out there for hours on end barking or late at night barking waking us or our kids up he is fine."
So about 1 1/2 years later, now my barking dog is a nuisance. Really? He does not make a sound from 9:30pm to 8:30am and if he does Donn or I are on him, we don't want him waking up Lola. Not to mention that if he does bark it's because our neighbors are having a BBQ or hot tubing, or having a camp fire. (which is a nuisance to me). Then during the day he is hardly ever alone, so I really don't understand when he is barking. Any how now we have been issued a "warning" from our HOA board to do something about him. So much for neighborly.
Now here is a list of my complaints....

Neighbor with a loud generator that goes off every hour, super obnoxious.

Searching for night crawlers and shining a giant spot light in my window, not nice.

Hot tubing multiple times a week, I can hear you. ANNOYING

Shoveling your back patio at 7am on a Saturday, um no.

Mowing your lawn 3 days a week at 630am, Seriously!

Teenager riding their skateboards on the sidewalk at 11pm, triggers barking dog

Throwing/yelling at my dog, not helping

And lastly,

Throwing a barking device into my back yard, can you say ILLEGAL.

9 months

2011-01-09T10:17:00.000-08:00

Lola Jo is 9 months old, I can not believe how fast time flies by.

She weighs in at 17.7 which is the 25% and measures 29in tall which is the 90%

She loves to eat, and she will pretty much eat anything you give her. She is mastering finger foods and loves to try and feed herself with the spoon.

She still isn't walking or crawling but rolls and wiggles to where ever she wants to go.

She loves to say Dada, she is still in love with Hinckley and loves to pet him and play peek-a-boo with him or anyone who will play with her.

She absolutely hates her nose or mouth wiped, notice above picture.

She does not sleep for more then a few hours at a time.

She loves to be held, and she loves to watch Mickey mouse Club house.

She can wave Hello (sometimes I swear she says "hi" as she waves, she will also wave bye bye.

She loves to clap her hands.
One of her favorite games is to shove her Binky in my mouth and laugh then pull it out of my mouth and laugh.

She thinks that is pretty funny.

She is ticklish, and I love to tickle her. We love to hear her laugh.

She also will shake her head "No" when we ask her things... Should we change your bum? then she shakes her head. Pretty funny.

She dances to music by wiggling her hands and bobbing her head.

We had a good Christmas, Lola didn't sleep well Christmas Eve (to excited maybe) so Christmas day she was super sleepy. We would hand her a present and she would hit it and throw it. Once she figured out how to rip the paper she enjoyed that. However, as soon as she could she the object she was no longer interested in the wrapping and just wanted the object, even clothes she would hold them and hug 'em. She still has presents to unwrap.

Donn and I are so in love with her, we are exhausted most the time, but her sweet smile and laugh make everything better.

7 Months Old

2010-11-12T23:44:00.001-08:00

Here is an update on her at 7 months old.

She weighs 17lbs and is 27 1/4 inches

She loves to roll over, from her back to tummy, from tummy to back. She is a rolling machine.

She has decided she likes to sleep on her tummy and it freaks me out. I check on her multiple times a night.

She LOVES food, do not mess with her when she is hungry.

She will stare at you while your eating (it makes us feel very guilty) so because of that she has had.... Bread, ice cream, jello, ice, water, and whipped cream.

She still doesn't sleep through the night, and sometimes she won't nap. She doesn't really like to sleep. To much to see and do.

She isn't sitting up on her own yet, she falls to her toes.

She does feed herself. She loves to hold her own bottle, sometimes she gets upset when we try to hold it for her. Miss Independent!

She loves to play peek-a-boo.

She still loves our dog Hinckley.

She loves people and children.

She has her two bottom teeth.

She loves electronics; cell phones, & remote controls.

Naked bum...I can't resist it!

Some child cuddle stuffed animals, others blankets, my daughter... cell phones.

This picture makes me look a little

white trash! I swear Lola wears clothes.

She throw up on her outfit so I changed her,

but then she needed to eat dinner before

her bath. Anyways, I love this picture

because she actually looks little!

We love her some much, she is always making us laugh and smile! Thank you Lola Jo for your sweet spirit and personality.

Halloween

2010-11-12T23:38:00.000-08:00

Yes I know this is a little late, but here is our stinker bottom on Halloween.

She is a skunk.

6 months old and Halloween crafts

2010-10-07T14:43:00.000-07:00

Lola Jo is 6 months old. Oh my heck I can't even believe it.

This outfit says "miss April" my brother's girlfriend made it. So cute. Anyways... So at 6 months old Lola weighs in at 15 lbs 7 oz and 27 inches.

Lola can roll over from her tummy to her back. Almost roll from her back to stomach, if that darn arm would get out of her way. She likes to sit up (with help). She is becoming snuggly again, which I love. She loves to talk, and scream (happy screams). She gets the biggest grin on her face when she wakes up and sees our faces. I love that! She loves Hinckley and likes to pet him or laugh at him when he barks. She still loves her cereal, but is not so sure about veggies yet. I love her so much, this has been the best 6 months of my life!

Next up Halloween crafts! My dear mother always finds these food crafts online, and ropes me into helping her do them. Which I actually really enjoy doing, I just have to give her a hard time about it. Her infamous words are "I saw this really cute idea online, it really won't be that hard to make." So here is the latest, Skeleton bones! They are pretty cute, and easy. All you need is melted white chocolate, pretzel sticks, and marshmallows. Take 2 pretzels sticks, put them side by side, and each end put a marshmallow on the tip of the two pretzels, drop it in the white chocolate, fish is out with a fork, drop on wax paper (we didn't have wax paper so we used foil) put it in the fridge to harden.

Then put them in a bowl, so it looks like a bowl of bones.

Then Jenny, Keke, Lola and I made this cute Halloween wreath, it to was pretty easy. However, if you have a 6 month old helping it does that a little longer. Jenny found this idea from http://www.allthingsthrifty.com this is my finished product.

4 months

2010-08-23T13:52:00.000-07:00

It has been a long while since I wrote anything on my blog, so while I have 10 minutes to myself I will write a little blub!

Lola Jo is getting so big, at her 4 month check up she was 13.7 lbs and 25 1/2 in long! Her Dr. Said to start feeding her cereal!
Oh my Lola loves it, the down fall is she can't eat it fast enough.

She is not sleeping through the night, but we are working on it.
She loves to talk and will have full conversations with people and toys.
She loves to smile, however she smiles like an old lady with her teeth out, Lola curls her lips around her gums, too funny.
She likes to sit up, with help!
She does not roll over yet!
Except once at night, I put her to bed on her back and she woke up on her tummy?!?
She hates a dirty diaper and she will cry until it is changed!
She loves her hands, well everyones hands!
And she loves her dad singing silly songs to her, she is a daddy's girl!

It is amazing how much I love her.
Remember when you were a kid, the night before Christmas you would get so excited, you couldn't stand to wait any longer! Or before a nice vacation? I get that feeling everyday as I get ready to leave work and go pick her up!

How did I live without her?

PIctures

2010-07-16T13:56:00.000-07:00

Family sleep over and more Pic by Lindsay!

2010-07-03T17:52:00.000-07:00

On June 25 we (Janae, Lexi, Ty, Lauren, Lola, and Me) had a sleepover at grandma Julie's. We did craft projects, made pizza, went swiming, went to the Lehi Parade and a Carnival.

We had a great time, but man or man, I am not ready (nor do I know if I will ever be ready) for four kids.

Lindsay came over on June 17 and did some more pictures, here are some of my favorites.

Lola's baby blessing

2010-06-07T10:19:00.000-07:00

Her blessing turned out so sweet, Donn did such a great job. Lola slept through the entire thing. After the baby blessing we all came back to my place and had a luncheon. The weather was nice, a little windy, but good.

I love the picture with Tyler, Lauren and Lola it makes my heart happy. Tyler and Lauren both loved Lola, it was really cute to watch them with her.

We also have a four generation picture, My grandma Lois, my Mom Julie, Me, and Lola.

It was a great day.

"M" is for MOM.

2010-05-13T15:00:00.000-07:00

Mother's Day use to be a very bitter-sweet day for me. As you all know in 2004 I found out I was pregnant, it was on Mother's day of that year that I announced to Brad and Sally that I wanted them to be the parents of my baby. Every year since then they have sent me a gift for Birth Mother's day (which is the Saturday before Mother's Day, mark your calender.) Even with my very own special day, and even though I was so happy for Sally, Mother's day was hard. It was challenging to sit through Sacrament meeting and watch the little primary kids sing to their Mother's.
This year I got two special days, I am lucky huh? Lola is 5 weeks old now, and I am so in love with her. She is such a good baby, and she is starting to smile at people now! I was able to capture this picture, which is now my new favorite picture of her.

I have to go back to work on Monday, how am I going to leave her? I just want to sit and stare at her every minute. Actually I have been away from her to long writing this post, so I gotta go.

Introducing Lola Jo!

2010-04-11T11:06:00.000-07:00

She has arrived, weighing in at 8lbs 6oz and 20 1/2 in long. Perfect little Lola Jo! I can't believe how perfect my life is, amazing husband, new house, a dog that is behaving better and the sweetest little girl. I love everything about her, the pain of the last nine months and never being able to sleep again is totally worth it, that is a small sacrifice, to be blessed with such a precious little bundle.

Labor was super fast, I went to the hospital at 8pm on 4/4 they gave me some meds to get me prepped for the pit and epidural. At 3am the started the pit and gave me the wonderful epidural, at 6;30 my water broke all on its on, I was dilated to a 3. At 8:30am I was complete and ready to go, my doctor came in at 8:57, I started pushing at 9:00am and Lola was born at 9:05.

Here are some pictures, thanks to Lindsay!

Picture at 32.3 weeks and the "mom" hair cut!

2010-02-19T14:55:00.000-08:00

Lindsay, you inspired the haircut. Yours turned out so cute I thought what the heck I will chop mine off too.

Reader BEWARE!!

2010-01-06T16:53:00.000-08:00

This post does involve a sort of innocent animal...

So this post is also a little gross, but it happens to the best of us. You will find yourself in a similar situation at some point in your life.

The other day my mom was cleaning out her pantry and to her horror find a few mouse droppings, so of course my dad puts a mouse trap up.
This morning as my dad was getting ready for work he heard a noise, he said it was like someone of something was scratching a door. He doesn't think anything of it at first, a few minutes later he hears it again. Then it clicks, maybe the mouse got caught and is fighting dying. (hey I warned you) So he lets it be while he finishes getting ready for work. After an hour this little guy is still fighting. What the heck my dad says so he opens the pantry to see what is going on.

To his surprise the little mouse is either smarter then the average mouse or dumber that is up to you. Anyways the little guy has his arm (just one) stuck in the trap. The rest of his body is struggling to get it out. Well my dad didn't know what to do, of course he didn't want to free the mouse that would defeat the purpose of the trap. So he got a box and scooped up the mouse... Now what to do with this mouse stuck in a mouse trap... He throws it over the fence into some bushes.

Now if you are as cruel as I am you are laughing hysterically, if your not again I am sorry but I warned you. Anyways so now there is a poor 3 legged mouse attached to a mouse trap limping around.

I am and evil person but I can not stop laughing at this imagin in my head.

IN OTHER NEWS TODAY IS HINCKLEYS BIRTHDAY HE IS TWO YEARS OLD TODAY. IT IS A WONDER I HAVE PUT UP WITH HIM FOR SO LONG. ANYWAYS LOVE YA HINCKLEY!!

Pregnancy Picture and the Traveling Elf

2009-12-16T20:27:00.000-08:00

The Elf showed up on my door step on Monday night with a bag of treats. He is so cute, but he scared me. My doorbell rang so I went to answer the door and he was standing there. So then I had to take him to another neighbors house with some treats and drop him off. Fun little neighborhood tradition.

The Pregnancy picture is me and 22.3 weeks and holy cow I look huge. I swear the picture adds ten pounds. When I see myself in the mirror I don't feel that big, but there it is frozen in time forever. Oh well, so far the pregnancy is going ok. I am really really swollen tonight so I must go put my feet up.

2009-11-22T11:38:00.000-08:00

So apparently I was "tagged" for this honesty award thing. I have to list 10 Honest things about me and then Tag 7 other people. I will try to be clever.

1-BIGGEST PET PEEVE: I hate when people say "I had the worst day ever" to which I would respond, "I'm sorry what happened?" And then they say "nothing, I don't wanna talk about it." Or something like that. IF YOU DON'T WANNA TALK ABOUT IT DON'T BRING IT UP.

2-I AM TERRIFIED OF BEING A MOM: Don't get me wrong I am so excited for Lola to come, and I want kids, I love kids. But I worry that I won't be good enough or have enough patience.

3-I LOVE MY JOB: I am practically the low man on the totem pole being an Medical Assistant, I don't get paid a ton, and I deal with some hormonal women every day. But I love it. I enjoy my job and I have no desire to ever work anywhere else.

4-I AM A SUCKER FOR A MADE BED: If Donn wants to make me happy he knows that basically all he has to do is make the bed. I love coming home from a long day to see my bed all nice and neat. If I have had a bad day that little thing can make me so happy.

5-MY DOG DRIVES ME NUTS: There are many times that I have thought to myself, "TJ what have you done, why did you get a dog" He is a terror, he barks none stop a lot of the time, he doesn't allow you to sleep in, he takes up the entire bed, he destroy anything within reach (and he is huge so everything is within reach), but at the end of the day I love him. I can't stay mad at him, once he realizes your mad at him, he tries everything to make you love him again. I can't imagine my life with out him in it.

6-I WISH I HAD A PHYSICAL TALENT: Such as I wish I could sing, dance, play a musical instrument, play sports, paint, or anything crafty and creative, do hair or make-up really well, home decorating, or fashionable. But I don't. I hate the question "whats your talent?" and the only answer I can ever give is, well I am a good listener. Grr it bugs me, nobody looks at someone and says "you know what, she is a good listener" and in the high school talent show you can't get up on stage and just sit there. "oh my talent is I am a good listener" Yeah right people would throw stuff at you and boo you off the stage.

7-I AM SHY: I know most of you are thinking Oh yeah right. But it is true. It scares me to talk to new people, or in front of people. I get very nervous. I tell myself and others that it doesn't bother me in hopes that I can believe it. Also because my dad is so good at it, he has no problems talking to new people, he has no problem being the center of attention. I always admired that about him, so I try to be like that. But on the inside I am shaking.

8-I WISH I WROTE IN A JOURNAL: I use to have a journal when I was younger and I enjoyed writing in it. I kept a small journal when I was pregnant with Ty but it wasn't very often. I keep thinking I should start it up again, but I keep putting it off.

9-I AM LAZY: My idea of a perfect date with Donn is getting take-out and a movie and cuddling. I love it. I don't get much time with him because of our work schedules so when we do get to spend time together I don't wanna share him. :)

10-I LOVE TO PEOPLE WATCH: It is not a very polite thing, but I stare. I get so caught up in other people, I tend to just watch them. I love to go to sporting events or public places and pick out a few people and just watch them. It is strange, I know, but I don't care. I enjoy it.

Okay so now your turn.
1-Lili
2-Brittany
3-Heidi
4-Lacy
5-Sally F
6-Cara
7-Sally S

We are Having A....

2009-10-08T19:29:00.000-07:00

BABY!!!!
hahaha, anyways I have now had three Ultrasound on three different days with three different Tech's and they all say that I am having a GIRL!!! I am still really early and there is a chance that our little baby is being shy and doesn't want to show anything "extra" right now. But most likely our baby is a Girl. I go back in again in a week to check again because I can. I will let you know about any changes. Thanks for playing in my poll.

BOY OR GIRL

2009-09-29T17:26:00.000-07:00

Many of you know that I work in an OBGYN office, therefore I have the chance of finding out the Gender of our little one sooner then most. On Monday 10/5 I get to have an ultrasound and we are going to try to find out if we are having a girl or a boy. I want to have a poll and see who and how many people guessed right.
Here is some information to help with your predication's:

1- I love fruit, watermelon, grapes, oranges, raspberries, strawberries, fruit juice, I love it all.
2- For the first few weeks I loved bacon cheese burgers, and mashed potato's but not so much at the moment.
3- The Chinese gender chart says it will be a boy.
4- I do not have morning sickness at all.
5- The ring test spins in a circle indicating a girl.

Hopefully that helps you a little bit. Please place your guesses.

Arizona Trip

2009-09-22T16:38:00.000-07:00

Donn is all about finding deals online... but there is a reason this hotel was only 3.50 per night. We liked to call it the Murder inn. Yes they were just remodeling but it was frighting. We get to our room and it said it was handicap accessible. HA!! Lets just say the bathroom was the size of a
stall. I mean you had to do like a six point turn to shut the door. Also since I am speaking of the bathroom, when we first walked into our room, I went to use the bathroom. Long behold there is a spider sitting on the back of the toilet. Not a good second impression. (First impression was what you see in the pictures.) We had a while to settle in before we need to go anywhere Donn wanted to watch some football and I was going to read. Sounds simple enough right? Wrong!! Out of 4 lights in the room 2 of them worked and so sitting on the bed reading was out of the question cause I didn't have enough light. Donn goes to get the remote to watch TV...no remote. He looks in all the drawers and under the bed...bad idea. The bed was completely broken ever board on the bottom was busted. Oh my. Anyways no remote. So we decided to head to our next stop, the Mesa temple. Picture are out of order oh well. The Temple was great,
I love being able to go to different Temples. After the Temple we wanted dinner but we didn't wanna wear our nice Sunday clothes. So we drove toward the restaurant we found a quiet little neighborhood next to it. What we did next I am not fully proud of. But we changed in the car. I am not even joking right as we were almost done a dad and son come out of their house and like 5 cars came in. Oops! Anyways dinner was amazing best spinach queso dip EVER.

Sunday morning we woke up to go to the free breakfast. Oh my my my. We walk into the lobby and see no food. "Is breakfast over?" we asked "no" replied the clerk lady "there is still A muffin left." We look over in the box and there is ONE mini muffin sitting in there. "would you like me to get another one" said the lady. I burst out laughing and said "no I think I want more then a mini muffin for breakfast we will go else where."

We then went to the Cardinals football game, it was really fun, but sadly they lost. We have been to 5 NFL games 4 wins and 1 loss.

Here is a Picture of the tailgating party it was fun and there were so many people there.

This is the stadium from the outside, it looks strange but the inside is really nice. Plus the roof is retractable.

This is us at the Mesa Temple, no Angel Moroni here. Question how many Temple don't have Angel Moroni?

PS: For those of you that do not know Donn and I are going to have a baby. I am due in April.

FSA (Family's Supporting Adoption)

2009-08-06T17:20:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend I had the great opportunity to attend a conference up in Layton. It was a FSA conference. I learned a lot from the speakers and it gave me new perspective on adoption. I have always been a huge advocate for adoption, but I learned how to approach other people better. Hopefully this will all make sense when I am finished. The best way to explain this is to share with you my story.

I was 19 years old when I found out I was pregnant. I was attending college to become a medical assistant and was in my 3 month there. It was also 3 months before mine and my boyfriends two year anniversary. Many things took place after that moment of finding out I was going to have a baby. But that is not really why I am writing this blog.

The real story starts when I was about 3 months along. I started seeing a counselor at LDS Family Services, she (Connie) changed my world. I wanted to get information on single parenting, because I thought that is what I should do. However, she gave my information on single parenting, and Adoption. I began to realize that I couldn't be a single parent at 19 and go to school and work and take good care of this baby. I looked more into adoption and it just felt right. My parents always thought adoption was the best choice but it took time for me to feel right about it too. When I finally decided that was the right thing for the baby I told Connie my decision. I browsed through some profiles of some great couples that were anxiously waiting to be blessed with a child. When I found Brad and Sally I just knew that my little baby was meant to go to them. It took a lot of prayers and a lot of faith but we found each other.

I announced the news to them on Mothers day 2004, I wish I could have seen their faces when they heard that they were picked. I instantly felt a very strong bond and connection with them. We set up are first face to face a few days later. I was so nervous walking through that door the first time, but they made me feel so loved and apart of their family. We got along great and had a lot in common, except they root for byu and I am a Utes girl.

Through out the pregnancy we wrote back and forth I kept them posted on the pregnancy and they learned about me. They put together a Life book for the baby so he would know all about me.

On Oct 17 2004 I gave birth to a beautiful baby Boy (who they named Tyler Joseph) 9lbs 9.11oz
Then Oct 20th Brad and Sally got their very first child, and I said goodbye to my son. At that moment on he became their son. That was by far the hardest day of my life, but also one of the best.

We do have a open adoption and I get to be involved with their family and I am so grateful for them and the wonderful examples of faith, determination, partnership, parenthood, and strength. I love them a lot.

So here is how the conference helped me. People always ask me "do you have kids?" I have struggled with answering that question. Cause yes I gave birth but no I don't 'Have' him. Does that make sense? Anyways I have learned that I can simply say "Well I am a Birth mom" if they need more information they can ask. But I am proud of who I am, A BIRTH MOM!

The reason I posted this is because I want to help the world understand that adoption is awesome and a blessing, and I want to be able to help other birth moms, or adoptive couples.
If you know anyone who needs to talk send them my way.

House and Keke's Birthday

2009-07-21T16:40:00.000-07:00

So here is the kitchen now.

This is our Dining room.

The living room... funny store with the furniture. We went to RC Willey to pick it out, You know how they have them pre laid out in a "living room set" well being Mrs. picky I didn't like any one set. So I asked if I could mix and match sets. I was told no. I said okay well then I don't want any cause I don't like any set. He went and got special permission from the manager, and came back and said OK, you can mix and match. So I did. The couches are from one set, the tables from another and the lamps from another(lamps not pictured) hehehe I like being difficult.

So those that know me really well know I love Flamingos, so yes I did a flamingo bathroom.

The Master Bedroom.
No pictures have been hung up yet so it looks bare. But I love my bittersweet dark chocolate wall. :)

These pictures are mess up but for my friend Keke's birthday, me, jenny, and Keke went and got pedicures here or my toes after. The Heart Tattoo is real the superman tattoo is fake. Jenny and Keke got on too, but sadly I don't have pictures.

This is the birthday princess KEKE we made her wear the Tiara all night long, and a bottom that said "IT'S MY B-DAY"

Here is Jenny and Keke in the process of getting there toes done. We had a great time.

FREE FISHING DAY!

2009-06-08T20:45:00.000-07:00

Saturday June 6th 2009 was free fishing day, now as you all probably know I don't fish. However my Husband was very excited about going, so being the wonderful wife I am, I agreed to go with him. Well, Donn likes to fish but we had no fishing equipment, so he ran up to K-mart (yes K-mart) and bought a fishing pole, just one cause my dad has one, he also bought worms, hooks and stuff. He got home and had to drag me out of bed. Granted it was noon. Then we loaded up all the gear and some chairs and headed out. So we get to the pond and Donn starts getting everything ready and realizes that one of the fishing poles didn't have a reel on it. OOPS. So now we are left with the cheap one from k-mart.
This pond is in south jordan by the river bottoms.

Here are the poor guys we used to try and lure the fish to us.

So we decided to take turns, Donn taught me how to cast and such, that part was fun... but then you just sit and wait. And wait. And wait. And wait some more.

Here is proof that I actually tried, I put forth effort to do something different. Are we proud of me?

After 2 hours and tangled fishing line we didn't catch anything, but a dead fish did decided to float right in front of us for 45 mins that was fun. Since we didn't catch any dinner Donn had to eat the remaining worms cause he was so hungry.

I don't really like to fish, but I did enjoy spending time with Donn.

Our First Home!!

2009-05-17T19:24:00.001-07:00

Saturday May 15 2009 I received a phone call from my realtor saying that a house Donn and I had put an offer on accepted our offer. We now have to do paper work and a that jazz but we close on June 14th then we can start moving in. It needs a little yard work, a fence and some cleaning and maybe a fresh coat of paint but here it is...

Girls try not to be jealous but this is my closet. Oh sweet heavens. I haven't figured out where Donn stuff is going to go yet. Oh well!!

This is the living room.

My beautiful kitchen. I LOVE my kitchen.

I will post more pictures once we move in.

Ps: the house is in Herriman

2009-05-06T17:30:00.000-07:00

Alright Jenny finally here is my "LIST" for those of you that are unaware of what is going on I strongly recommend you watch "FRIENDS" Anyways this is a list of my Top 10 Guys that I think are super attractive/famous. I tag anyone who is bored and wants to play. They are not in order. They would be if i was talented enough to know how to do that.

#1 Jason Lewis, now I just learned about him from Jenny's page but my goodness he is attractive.

#2 Ryan Reynolds... Need I say more!

#3 John Cena he is a wwe fighter so Donn you can't be mad about this one, you introduced me to him. That is your own fault.

#4 Tatum Channing. I think I have a thing for poky out ears. Who knew.

#5 Oh sweet heavens Paul Walker. YUM!

#6 Leo Dicapro old time favorite. Lets hear for the teeny boppers!

#7 Zach Efron, yep I am on the band waggon.

#8 Aston Kutcher very funny and very cute! Bonus!!

#9 Vin Diesel. I don't know why!

#10 Nick Zano I am not sure why this picture is so big, but I will not complain.

How sweet it is to be loved by you...

2009-04-28T20:18:00.001-07:00

Many things have happened since my last blog and I have been lazy and haven't blogged about any of it. So now I will, oh the excitement. To start off I would just like to say that sometimes I don't give my husband the credit he deserves he is a great guy and I am so lucky that he is with me.

Donn and I celebrated our one year anniversary since being sealed in the Mount Timp Temple. He planed everything and he would not tell me anything about it. So Saturday 4/18 we got in the car and drove up to Ogden. We went to the Dinosaur park up there and walked around. It was actually really fun and educational. After that we drove up the Ogden Canyon and came to this place called the Alaskan Inn. It is log cabin type hotel. Anyways we get to our room and Donn unlocks the door and tells me to go first. So I open the door and the whole room is covered in rose petals, and tea lite candles. It was so cute, just like in the movies. :) He then brings out the chocolate covered strawberries (a huge favorite of mine). Here is a picture of our room. Sadly I didn't bring a camera so this is just off the Internet.

Later that night we went out to the Bistro for dinner, and walked around the city a little. The next morning we got breakfast served to our room, then we gather our things and headed home. It was a great anniversary!

This last Sunday Donn and I were sitting in Sacrament meeting. The water was being past and this family across the aisle from us knock over the entire tray spilling water every where. After the Deacons had finished Donn quietly got up and left the room. He walks in a few minutes later with a roll of paper towels and starts cleaning up the mess. He didn't cause the mess or have anything to do with the accident but he cleaned it up anyways. I sat there watching him thinking..."what a good guy, I am so lucky."

Then in primary I was teaching the lesson and the kids were being so super rowdy. I was about ready to give up trying for the day. Next to me Donn folds his arm and sits up straight and simply ask the kids to settle down and listen. Now it only worked for a few minutes but the point is that he saw I needed help and he stepped in.

Later that night Donn was suffering the web, ksl to be exact and he came across a lady selling tickets to WICKED. Yep Donn got 4 tickets to see the play WICKED this Saturday I am so super excited.

Even though I complain sometimes about silly things that Donn does, or I get grouchy with him and nag about things. He puts up with me, and he handles me very well. He knows me better then I know myself sometimes. He is a great guy! I hope and pray everyday that I can make him as happy as he makes me. I love you Donn. Thanks for all the amazing things you do for me.

Texas, home to some of my favorite people. Texas, home to cockroaches!

2009-04-06T15:01:00.000-07:00

These are three of my favorite people, Sally, Ty, and Brad. Donn and I traveled to Texas over the weekend. These wonderful people welcomed us into there home. We had many adventures while we were with them. Here are a few; the above picture is taken by me as we were walking toward the Alamo.

This is spider man with his "superwebber", and I had the privilege of playing spider women (no I did not get a costumer). I was also able to be Prince John while Ty was Robin Hood. Ty has an amazing imagination, it was so fun to be able to play with him.

This was taking on the River walk. My dear husband Donn came up with the wonderful idea to vacation in Texas. Thank you!! I learned things about him on this trip that make me love him more then I already did. I am so lucky to have him (he is another one of my favorite people)!

San Antonio Temple.

Thank you Brad, Sally and Ty for giving me the best vacation ever. I enjoyed every second with you guys. I am so lucky to have such wonderful examples. When the day comes for Donn and I to be parents I hope we can be as strong, spiritual, righteous, smart, fun, outgoing, and intelligent. You have done an amazing job. Thank you! I miss you all so much.

Donn and I then ventured to Houston!!

WrestleMania at the Reliant Stadium, oh my craziness. This place is HUGE. There were 72,944 people in attendance and it wasn't sold out. I will admit it was a little entertaining. At least it was for the first hour in a half, by the 3rd hour I was so past ready to be done. It was an experience, one that I hope I don't have to do again.

After it was over we stayed at a hotel by the Airport, I was not prepared for this. We get into our room and I went to use the restroom. Well, lets just say it is a good thing I didn't have to go that bad. Because there was a Cockroach in there. I do NOT do well with creepy crawly things so of course it scared me and I screamed. It is a good thing Donn is brave he came and saved me. So now here we stuck to spend the night at Cockroach hotel. Yeehaw!! Morning finally comes and we need to get to our flight, as we are packing we come across another roach.

Well we survived them and made it to our plane on time. Phew!! Nope not yet. Are flight is Delayed 20 mins. No biggy, right! Wrong again we touch down in Phoenix and had an unexpected plane switch. GRRR I am starting to get frustrated. So then that plane had a 10min delay. YAY!! So we finally make it to good ole Utah 30 mins late. Now Phew? Nope, we go to baggage claim to get our luggage. Not there, hummm. We are told to wait because the unloaders are behind. So we wait, others are getting their bags and leaving, but not us. So 45mins after we land we are told that there is no more luggage. WHAT? Yes, someone put our bag (and a few other people's bags) on the wrong plane. Here is a picture of it before it went missing!

Mexico Cruise!

2009-01-31T19:06:00.000-08:00

Donn and I had the great experience of going on a cruise together, this is a picture of some of the cool people we met and got to hang out with while on the ship. We went to Mexico. Sorry the pictures are outta order.

We did many fun things, the above picture is us horseback riding. Donn had never done it before. It was a blast, the trail took as up a little mountain side that looked out over the ocean.

On morning we decided to get up early and see the sunrise. It was gorgeous but very cold, and it rained on us. Oh well, it was a nice experience.

Oh my! We went para sailing. Scary at first let me tell you why, first; I am very afraid of heights. second; we wanted to go together and the guy that hooked us up said to me "how much do you weigh?" Okay embarrassing, but I told the truth. Then he looks at Donn "how much do you weigh?" So Donn tells him. No lie this is what the guy said next "UM...well...I think you guys will be fine." Excuse me you think we will be fine. I would like you to be Certain on that matter. So I asked him if it would be better for us to go singles. "Um...nah it should be okay." Oh dear so Donn and I get suited up and go. The hooks were rattling and creaking. We thought for sure we were done for. Have no fear we lived to tell about it, but it was a little unsettling.

This picture was before the above incident. We were naive at this point.

This was at the cocktail party.

Some other things that we did was gamble... I know we are bad. I learned how to play blackjack. I got a little addicted. We also tried out our musical skills, we did karaoke. We were awful, actually worse then awful, but we had fun.

It was great to be able to spend time with Donn.

Now for the question you have all been waiting for...

How was Hinckley while we were away?

Horrible. Day one: he got a movie that my mom's friend let her borrow, it is ruined. Day two: he got my mom's chocolate fountain and totally chewed the cord off of it, tore the box apart, and of course left teeth marks on anything that remained. Day three: Mom's thread. Day four: Bananas. Day five: a cook book. Then today I come home from dinner and he has paper towels shredded all through the living room, more bananas, and a picture frame with the glass broken.

HELP ME!!!

Anywho the cruise was fun.

2008-11-26T18:58:00.000-08:00

Happily my life has been fairly mundane the past few weeks. Hence forth no blogs from me. I know I know everyone is so sad. For I am such a fabulous blogger and all. So just because I am so nice I will give you a brief update. My dog is cute but a menace, he has destroyed a number of videos, shoes and as of today the corner of my wedding photo album. He also loves the sound of his voice and barks at Donn and I all the time, very annoying. He takes up at least 95% of the bed leaving the other 5% for Donn and I to share, so I basically sleep like a pretzel. Oh well it is a good thing he has a cute face.

Next in the wonderful world that is TJ I think I have a diseased gallbladder. I want it removed however all of my test or normal. Go figure! Anyways I met with a GI specialist today and guess what.... he thinks it is my gallbladder. So he is going to TRY and convince a surgeon to take it out.

Lastly I stole this from Jenny so I will post it, it is a few list of 8 things of me:

8 Shows I like:

1- One Tree Hill
2- Gossip Girl
3- Ghost Whisper
4- Friends
5- Ace of Cakes
6- The Soup
7- Reba
8- Biggest Loser

8 Restaurants I like:

1- Olive Garden
2- Noodles and Company
3- Village Baker
4- Training Table
5- Red Robin
6- La Frontera
7- SuCasa
8- Iggy's

8 Things that happened yesterday:

1- Jogged on treadmill
2- Worked
3- Took dog for a walk
4- Took dog to puppy school
5- Made bacon and french toast
6- Talked to Jenny
7- Checked Email
8- Bought dog food

8 Things I am looking forward to:

1- My anniversary on 11/29
2- Going on a cruise in 1/09
3- Getting my gallbladder removed (hopefully)
4- My dog to stop ruining my parents house
5- Getting my own house
6- The long weekend
7- The Holidays
8- Kids (far in the future)

8 Things on my wish list:

1- A well behaved, non bed hog dog
2- Continued weight loss
3- A House
4- Free airfare to and from Texas
5- No more car payments
6- More day light
7- No bad snow storms
8- No more spiders!!

ER

2008-10-29T10:30:00.000-07:00

I have shocking news... my dog was in the ER again last night. Yippee!!! This time it was because he was limping around and whining. He wouldn't put very much pressure on his back left leg all day yesterday. We went to puppy school, and he played a little but not like usual. So when we came home he got worse. He couldn't get on the bed, or up the stairs. It was very sad. At around 10:30 last night We decided to take him to the ER, because we love it there, and get him checked out. The doctor moved, bended and pushed on poor Hinckley's leg until he found the problem. Bruised hip bone, pulled muscle and of course growing pains. Yes every one I paid 160.00 dollars for that information. He did give us some pain medication and now we have a drugged up puppy. Hooray.

2008-10-27T17:50:00.000-07:00

Take the Quiz and Share Your Results!

Oh don't we all love the twilight series? Thanks Cara for the site. You all should find out what character you are.

Bread dough

2008-10-12T15:59:00.000-07:00

I don't know how many of you out there own a dog, but let me tell you something I learned today.

Bread dough is very very bad for dogs. We all know my dog is very mischievous. Today I was making rolls for dinner. I had them all set out on the tray, and left them to rise.

I left the kitchen to go blow dry my hair. I entered the kitchen about 15 minutes later what do I find. The dog has devoured a banana a few pieces of chocolate and seven, yes SEVEN dinner rolls. First I smack him on the bum for jumping on the counter. Second I log on to yahoo and search Dogs eating bread dough. I discover this can be deadly to them. Because, the dough will expand in is tummy. So I rush him to the dog ER. They gave him a shot to make him vomit. He did, and then he did again and again. He is fine now. Can I just tell you how freakin scared I was, my heart was racing and I was bawling. We are all okay now though.

Reba McEntire with Kelly Clarkson Concert

2008-10-11T09:12:00.000-07:00

For my mothers birthday we bought her tickets to the Reba concert. My mom loves Reba. She happened to be touring with Kelly, whom I use to not really like. Anyways the show was last night and it was so amazing. I actually really like Kelly now, and love Reba even more. It was really upbeat and fun. I don't know how many of you have seen Reba's TV show, but I find it funny. One of the other characters from Reba came. Barbara Jean...she was hilarious.

It was a super fun night.

It's a great day to be alive...

2008-10-07T20:24:00.000-07:00

So get this yesterday my face decided to have an allergic reaction to who knows what and now I have these weird little itchy bumps all over my face. Luckily for me no one can see them. Unluckily I can feel them.
Anyways, so then last night I finally fall asleep around midnight, then my dear sweet husband comes to bed at 3:30 and I get woken in up. Of course now that I am awake I have to pee. Oh gees. So I crawl out of my nice warm bed, and start walking out of the room. When all of the sudden BAM, I smack my shin on a box. Wahoo freakin who. I proceed to stubble out of the room, and step in something gooshy. What the crap... Dog poo. Yep thats right stepped right in dog poo. My wonderful puppy left me a present. The good news everyone is I had socks on. So at least it didn't ooze between my toes.
Thankfully my husband came to my aid and cleaned up the dogs mess. Isn't that nice of him? I finally made it to the bathroom. Sadly after all of this I couldn't get back to sleep until 5am, and before you know it the alarm is going off and it was time for work.
Are you all wishing you had my night? I know it is a fabulous life I live. Oh well as my mother would say... "If that is the worst thing to happen this year, it will be a great year."

FOOTBALL!!!!

2008-09-24T22:10:00.000-07:00

Donn and I have this tradition where we go to a different football stadium every year. This years vacation took us to California. Here are some pictures from our vaca.

The Chargers

in San diego. Yes Chargers won.

This is Donn and I at the San Fran 49ers game.
49ers won.

Donn and I also try and go to the temple
near the location of the football game. So this
is us ant the San Diego Temple.

This is the View from our hotel in Oakland, CA
So beautiful.

I don't know why... It was funny at the time.

Telephone booth, but no telephone.
So I made Donn stand in here while
talking on the cell phone. Again funny
at the time.

We also went to a comedian in Colusa, CA, which was so funny. We did a little gambling, and lost. Then we went to Alcatraz and took a tour of the prision. I thought it was very interesting. Then we did the 49ers game. Woke up Monday morning and jumped on a plane to San Diego. Landed just in time to rent our car and get to the Chargers game. Got up Tuesday and went to the temple, which is BEAUTIFUL. Then got on a plane and flew home. We had so much fun.

PS: I love GPS, I highly recommend it. It is so worth the money. If it wasn't for Gps we may still be driving around completly lost.

All in all it was great. The best part is my husband planned the whole thing. He is amazing. Thanks Honey!!

My Birthday!

2008-09-15T21:39:00.000-07:00

My birthday was Sept 9th so for my birthday my dear sweet husband took me to a demo derby at the state fair. It was so much fun. I love demo derby's, I mean what is not to love...

Cars getting stuck in the dirt.

Cars getting pushed over the cement barricade.

Fire!! I love when the cars start on fire. Yes I

am a pryo apparently.

And the hard hitting crashes. I love it. Thanks

Donn for the birthday gift.

On Saturday two of my girlfriends took me out to dinner to my favorite place. Olive Garden. Yummy!!

Shanna, Pyper, and Me.

The waitress was kind enough to take this picture

so Donn could be in it with us.

They even had the staff sing happy birthday to me, I had a great birthday week. I am so lucky.

More men and women info...

2008-09-10T21:19:00.000-07:00

Men are motivated and empowered with they feel needed. Women are motivated and empowered when they feel cherished.
Not to be needed is a slow death for a man.
A man's deepest fear is that he is not good enough or that he is incompetent.
Just as women are afraid of receiving, men are afraid of giving.
It is difficult for a man to listen to a woman when she is unhappy or disappointed, because he feels like a failure.

And my favorite one this time is "A woman's tendency to be compulsive relaxes as she remembers that she is worthy of love, she doesn't have to earn it; she can relax, give less, and receive more. She deserves it!"

I have spoken to Donn on a few occasion's and he actually does agree with most of the stuff in this book. Hopefully it will help us all understand eachother more.

GOOD LUCK!

Men are from mars...

2008-08-30T20:29:00.000-07:00

So as many of you know I am closing in a my first year of marriage. It has been great, but there has been some struggles. Stuff I never would have imagined. As I was sharing some of this information with my dear sweet hairdresser, she recommend a book. "Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus" by John Gray. Since I have finished "Breaking Dawn" I thought I would give it a shot. Well, I am only on Chapter Three but holy crap it is so true. Anyways, because I am so kind, I have decided to share my new found wisdom with you. Over the next little while as I read this book I will be posting helpful tidbits. Just know that the wisdom you are reading is from a professional. Not from me, John Gray has a Ph.D. Impressive, huh?

Here are todays pointers:

"A man's sense of self is defined through his ability to achieve results."
"A women's sense of self is defined through her feelings and the quality of her relationships."
"To feel better Martians (men) go to their caves to solve problems alone."
"To feel better Venusians (women) get togetherand openly talk about their problems."
"We mistakenly assume that if our partners love us they will react and behave in certain ways-the ways WE react and behave when we love someone."

That is all for today. I do, so far, recommend reading this book.

Wake up call

2008-07-12T10:39:00.000-07:00

So this is what I woke up to this morning my husband taking this adorable or not so adorable picture of me. But try not to pay attention to me just notice where the dog is in this photo. Donn said he is a little jealous that the dog gets to cuddle with me and pushes him (donn) away. The other thing that you can't see in this picture is that Hinckley actually has his paw on my stomach. Weird dog!

TAGGING

2008-07-11T21:18:00.000-07:00

I am a dork the whole purpose of the simpson carton was to tag you. SO... TAG!!!
JENNY
JULIE
AND EVERYONE ELSE WHO READS THIS YOU ARE NOW UNDER CONTRACT TO DO THIS TAG THING!

simpsonizeme.com

2008-07-11T21:13:00.000-07:00

Everyone Simpsons has added a new character to the show... ME!! Yes ladies and gentlemen you too can be a simpson. Just go to simpsonizeme.com it is loads of fun for everyone.

Poor puppy

2008-07-02T17:57:00.000-07:00

So today I took my dear puppy Hinckley (6months old) to the vet. Tomorrow he will become an it. That's right ladies and gentlemen and I having him neutered. I hear that it is the best thing for him, and that it will help reduce his chances of getting cancer. It was weird though to take him to the vet and leave with out him. My house is so empty, I don't like it. Anyways that is all I have going on in my life right now. Exciting I know.

Keeping it Real Tag!

2008-06-27T21:42:00.000-07:00

The rules are you have to take ten pictures of the following things. And you have to do it right away. No straightening, cleaning or wiping your child's nose.

#1 Self Portrait (yes it has been a long day)

#2 My favorite shoes (oh so comfy)

#3 My Closet (none of Donn's clothes are in here, and it is still crowded)

#4 The Fridge (we like liquids)

#5 The Sink (Jenny and I just made cookies, Yum)

#6 The laundry room (boring)

#7 My Favorite Room (hehehehe)

#8 The Potty (enough said)

#9 Dream Vacation

ANYWHERE I LOVE TO TRAVEL

#10 What my kid is doing now

Good question

Hope you enjoyed the tour.