Monday, June 29, 2009

Help!

Have Teenager Pictures, Images and Photos

It's true, Morgan officially turned thirTEEN while we were in Yellowstone. She even got to see a bear on her birthday to add a little joy.

We sure love Morgan and even though the teenage years are a roller coaster ride and frightening, we are looking forward to the ride. Love you Morgan!

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Yellowstone 2009

We are all back safe and sound from Yellowstone. What a fun trip! A big thanks to Uncle Shirl and Aunt Toni for their hospitality and kindness. Summer never officially starts until we visit Yellowstone and clear our heads. Now, let summer begin!

Friday, June 12, 2009

And the Results are . . .

Please join me in singing... hallelujah, hallelujah,
hallelujah, hallelujah,
hallelujah, ha-lle-lu-jah!

Yep, it's true, I'm a grown up girl now. I passed my RN boards and am a real, certified, licensed RN. As thrilled as I am, I must say it doesn't feel like I expected. It's great...but different. I didn't expect the results until this morning so it was totally built up in my mind as this big count down. Well, last night around 11:00 pm I had Joe go to the Utah DOPL (Division of Professional Licensing) website to show him where to look it up first thing this morning, when I would still be asleep. Well, there it was, already posted. I didn't believe him when he said it and then when I saw it, I just sat there. Weird. Amazing, good, but weird.

I'm excited to go back to work after our Yellowstone vacation and get my name badge changed to RN! Oh yeah, and that little thing called, "Show me the Money!"

Congratulations to my dear friend Suzette who took it the same day and also passed. I knew she would. And good luck to all my other friends still studying their brains out!

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Our War Zone

For those who have not heard our pitiful story yet, let me share with you our happenings from June 9, 2009. I think it's best to start out with Joe's first post on Facebook that day. "I just love owning a home with a pool. Nothing like a leisurely dip in the pool on the way to the fridge for breakfast. What? We don't have a pool? Then what the he!! is all this water doing in our kitchen?" Yes, that is how the day started. I was still in bed and heard Joe yelling my name at the top of his lungs.
The pipe for the water main coming into our home decided to burst (due to crappy workmanship of the original plumber who plumbed our home). It was located in the water heater-a/c closet in our garage. You can't tell from this garage pic, but water was spraying 6 feet in the air with major force. Joe had to use a hammer to tear apart the wall just to get to it.
Since the water main is what you are supposed to turn off in case of emergencies, and ours was broken, we had to turn the water off in the front yard. Well, apparently when we laid our sod, the meter was covered with sod (unbeknownst to me). Long story short, the city had to come use a metal detector to find and turn off our water! The good news is Lehi City rocked and was here in 10 minutes. Thank you! We got a good 2-3 inches of water in our mud room, pantry, kitchen and dining room before the water was turned off.
To do list: Anxiety attack [check], insurance company called [check], plumber called [check], lost an arm and a leg to the plumber [check], Service Master arrived [check], and the tearing up of our house commenced.
We now have multiple fans and a huge dehumidifier in our home running non-stop.
Our carpet was torn up, pad thrown away, base boards removed and the drywall with the worst water damage was removed.
The drywall with less damage got holes placed to help facilitate drying. And the worst part? ...
...They put a plastic barrier up between the kitchen and the rest of the house. Do you know how often you have to use your kitchen? A LOT!! At least today they cut the plastic in two and installed a zipper. Yesterday we had to go out the front door and through the garage to get in the kitchen. The poor kids are going crazy.

So there is our lovely story. Sad day. Probably makes my top 15 list for "Worst Days of My Life." BUT . . . I'm still counting my blessings. I have a wonderful husband and kids who are all safe and healthy, a beautiful home that protects me from the elements, cars that work and jobs. I am truly blessed. Life is good.

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Birthday Thanks

Just wanted to send out a big THANK YOU to my awesome family who made my birthday so special.

I went shopping yesterday and when I got home, the kids surprised me with decorations (love the streamers on the ceiling), a decorated table and dance/party music jammin' in the background. Those kids know how to party!
My favorite part was this cute sign they made me and hung on the table cloth. "This party is guarenteed to clean itself up!" Hmmm, do my kids think I get stressed when they make a mess? I think so.
Thanks everyone for making my day special.
I love you all
!

Monday, June 8, 2009

Crazy Cousins

The Missouri Cousins are in town and it's Sleep Over Time! The girls are getting crazy with their hair.



Kelsey - aka "Bedhead"
















Morgan - aka "Pebbles"














Shelby - aka "Golden-Messy-Locks"








Ashly - aka "Bowhawk"















Dylan and Jake are hanging with the Wii. Surprised? I didn't think so.


This should be a fun night! Wish you lived closer.

Thursday, June 4, 2009

Youth Conference

We sent Morgan off to youth conference at 8:00 am this morning.

Where did the time fly? Just yesterday she was our little baby. She'd do all the usual cute things little ones do... like "How big is Morgan, SO BIG!," she'd call out every animal sound known to human kind and she'd memorize where we'd drive in the car. By age 2 she'd ask, "Are we by so-and-so's house?," and she'd always be right. Joe laughed at me when I worried about Morgan getting lost on the first day of kindergarten. She knew her way around Springfield, Missouri at 2 years old (population 152,000) but I was afraid she'd get lost in the hallways at school. Silly mom.

Today she's headed to Moab, Utah, to hike around Delicate Arch, go white water rafting and camp in tents. Once again, silly mom is worried! Not that she'll get lost or hurt or be lonely. Just worried that the days are passing by too fast and I'm not taking it all in.

I love Morgan (and all my children) so much and know that the day will come when I have to send them out into the big world to struggle on their own. I just hope I'm giving them what they need to succeed and be happy.

OUCH!
Enough of that silliness. I'll just enjoy the here and now. I love you Morgan...and hope you have an awesome spiritual experience at youth conference.

Monday, June 1, 2009

To Study or Not to Study

vs.
The kids and I ventured over to the American Fork rec center this afternoon and took in some sun and fun. The kids swam in the pool and I sat on the side trying to study for my RN exam. My study session was interrupted with the usual monitoring of children, protecting the book from splashes, potty trips and snack breaks. Other than that, the kids had a ball and I got a nice crispy burn to start my summer tan.

*Note to self:
Exam is in 8 days, stop playing and get serious!