March 2010

March is always fun at our house. We have lots of birthdays and anniversaries. First it was Drews birthday and we had dinner and cake at Grandma and Grandpas. Abby loved getting to hold baby Ethan again. She is very baby hungry and doesn’t like to share. She breaks down in tears when she has to give someone else a chance at holding the baby. She is so sweet and just loves him so.
I found out this month that the card group that I am attending is ending and I am so sad. I love going every month and enjoying creative girl time. SO apparently I am going to do my own now. Starting next month I will be doing a card group at my house and getting creative with my bad self. (okay that statement just made me sound really old.) LOL So far I have about 13 ladies that want to be a part of it. Yipee! I did a lot of praying to know if it is right and so far I still feel really excited and ready to begin. Gabe thinks it will be a good thing for me too. Although a house full of crazy and creative ladies makes him a little nervous.
Abby turned 6 this month. Oh my goodness I was hit really hard with the reality of it. I was sad that I now have to shop in the BIG girl section. And just noticing her and how much she has grown and what a wonderful person she is it makes me happy and sad at the same time. I want her to stay little but I also want to see what a wonderful person she is going to become. She is amazing and I want to be just like her, aside from the occasional tantrums. LOL

The theme of Abby’s birthday party was Fancy Nancy Tea Parties. The girls came in their most POSH outfits and we had a French/Fancy word lesson. The girls,11 of them, decorated tiaras, made teapot picture frames, and played follow the hostess. For refreshments we had a chocolate fountain which all the girls loved. They dipped strawberries, marshmallows, and pretzels in the chocolate. They all went home with a t-shirt which Abby and I made with Fancy Nancy iron-ons. She got lots of great presents and was so excited to have friends over to play with. Cousin Sarah spent the night and Abby loved having her over. They both put on make-up together just before the party and came downstairs looking very glamorous. The grown-up party was also lots of fun and Abby got lots of Hello Kitty things including a Hello kitty waffle maker. Her favorite present was from aunt Katie which was a CTR necklace which she wears everyday without fail. Everyone had a great time.
The next week Abby was invited to two parties, Tabby and Tahirah’s. Abby made the decision to go to Tahirah’s because she doesn’t get to see her very often and she missed her. Although she made sure that Tabby knew she loved her and took a present over on her birthday too. Tahirah’s party was a pajama party. She had lots of fun there. And she was very excited to wear her new pajamas from her aunt Giselle and cousins. She took her pillow and blankie. When she came home she was very excited to tell about the fun things they did at the party. Abby is a great friend and loves to see and visit with all of them.
Gabe, Abby, and I also attended a foster parent meeting to see if that might be a good fit for us. After the meeting we all felt very uneasy about it and are pretty sure that it wouldn’t work for us. We really want to extend our family but, we do not think that foster parenting would be a good fit. We have been passing out pens with our LDSFS information as well as this blog information in hopes that maybe it will lead a birth parent to us. Our fingers are crossed and hope that another adoption is in our near future.
HAPPY 10th ANNIVERSARY!!!!! Gabe and I have been married for 10 years. Wow what fun. Somedays it feels like we have been together forever and others it seems like it was just yesterday. What a wonderful husband I have and I am so glad that I get to spend eternity with such a great man. He took me out to dinner and even gave me a present, which he wasn’t supposed to YET. We had a new diamond put in my ring but couldn’t afford to get it out of the shop yet. SURPRISE! He went a got it and surprised me just before dinner. Afterwards we went to a movie and had a lot of fun together. Cheers to another 10 years.
Last but not least, Gabe headed off to Moab for yet another Jeep Safari. Although he didn’t come back until April so I will post more about it next month. All I can say is I am glad he is home. I didn’t sleep well without him and being sick on top of that was really a bad combination.
Smiles :)

February 2010

Okay so first post of 2010. We have been busy and it is about to get busier. March is crazy for our family with anniversaries and birthdays. I can't believe my baby is about to turn six. Sometimes I wish I could just freeze time and enjoy her for longer at that age.

Well, lets see...... I didn't write for January because well I don't think anything happened. LOL I think we were just busy getting ready for February. We took a vacation! Oh Wait of Coarse something happened. How could I forget? We got a new nephew. Baby Ethan was born Jan 25th. Such a cutie. He looks just like his daddy. He is a minature version of Drew. Abby had fun holding him. And so did Gabe and I. I forgot how small babies are.

We went to Sedona Arizona. We have a timeshare thing so we make sure we take a vacation every year. We get to stay in some pretty incredible places. We had a great condo with two pools, unfortunately it was too cold to use the outdoor one but everyone had fun in the indoor one. We had some friends come with us. It was great to have friends for Abby to play with. Gabe and I enjoyed having friends to play games with and chat with too. We went on hikes, saw Indian ruins, played miniature golf (Abby won), and visited a ghost town. We even ate at a place called the Haunted Hamburger.

The red rocks in Sedona were absolutely beautiful. We were lucky to have it rain at night and be sunny during the day so we could go out and enjoy the beauty. We went and saw an arch with all the kids and it turned out to be a longer hike than we expected. Instead of 2 miles it ended up being around 5 miles. Surprisingly the kids did really well. Gabe, Abby, and I hiked to the top of a plateau and were able to see over the entire Sedona valley. It was breathtaking. Although, Abby and I are afraid of heights so it was a little nerve racking hiking along the ridge and walking along the edge of the plateau. But, we did get some amazing pictures and we enjoyed time together as a family.

We had a lot of fun at the ghost town, even though Abby did NOT like the name of it. LOL It was Jerome Arizona, an old mining town witch is now just an artsy tourist place. It was fun to walk through the old buildings. It was crazy because the whole town is built on the side of a mountain. So it was extremely steep and we walked a lot of stairs.

Abby declared that Arizona was fun but she would rather play in the neighborhood pool than drive 9 hours to go to the one in Arizona. LOL

My work has decided to give me 10 hours a week. Witch gives us a little spending money and gives me some time to visit with grown ups. I only go when Abby is in school so it works out perfectly. I am really grateful for my work and with them working with me through the last 9 years and all our family changes.

The end of the month we celebrated my grandparents 60th wedding anniversary. Even though it is on March 2nd. It was easier to get the family together on a Sunday. My step mom Valerie worked really hard to get things together. It turned out beautiful. She created a slide show of their lives together, had a cake made like their original wedding cake, and a recreation of grandmas bouquet. All the grand kids told Grandma and Grandpa how much they meant to us and I think they really enjoyed the party. We sure love them and hope they are around to see their 70th!

We have a new Adoption worker, Emily. She is great. Gabe and I really like her and I think she will really help us in getting a new addition to our family. Abby is really wanting to have a brother or sister. Especially since Drew and Katie had a baby this last month. And she really likes holding him. Ethan looks just like uncle Drew.

Josie, Gabe's sister, also left on her mission to New Jersey this month. She is going to be a great missionary. It was fun to see how excited she was. We just hope that Venus will be able to adjust to not having her there.

Well that is all for now. Next months post will be exciting because Abby is having a birthday party and Gabe and I are going on a Mexican vacation(sort of). Chat ya next time.

December 2009

Okay so it is 15 days into January and I need to reflect back to December. Humm where do I start? Let's see.....

We love December at our house. All the fun festivities and friends and family. We got the house decorated and beautiful for Christmas. Even Sarah(Abby's cousin) came and helped put ornaments on the tree. Sarah, Abby, and I had a blast. While I put the lights on they kept yelling down the stairs "is it time yet." When I finally said "Ready" the noise and the commotion from two little girls and a barking dog could be heard all the way to Australia. LOL Oh and of coarse they came down in the most terrifying red lipstick. LOL

Abby had fun at school. They did the 12 days of Christmas for the kids. Everyday she would bring home a little something like 4 Swedish fish or 10 tootsie rolls. It was fun to see the excitement in Abby's face everyday. The school did the annual Christmas sing along. I went and cried like a baby. I mean she only sang Jingle Bells and Up on the Housetop. But there I was crying. Guess I was just so proud of my little one.

Abby met Santa for the first time this year. She was nervous. She didn't even know he was in the room and then turned around and froze. She then came running over to me. Santa then began talking to her and telling her all about how he knew she was in gymnastics and how he knew she was a good girl. She slowly became more at ease and then began urging all her cousins to talk to Santa. What was so funny was when I got up I noticed that my lap was a little wet. She must have got so scared that she wet her pants. LOL Perhaps next year she won't be so nervous and scared.

I worked all of December to cover for maternity leave of one of the girls at the north office. It was fun to celebrate in all the activities. It took a little time to get back into the groove but after a week I was done being yelled at for silly little things and was back to being perfect. LOL I miss chatting with my boss Mary everyday. She is definitely a caring and sweet person and a good friend. Although I must say the drive was NOT fun. Of coarse Zo had to have her baby when it snows, so my 40 minute drive to work became 1.5 hours+. That was not fun at all. But I survived and am here to tell the tale.

We had the annual family party for my side here at our house again and it turned out well. The night before Abby and I went to Grandmas and Grandpas to help make cinnamon rolls. That was way fun. We just love our Grandparents they are the best. At the party we played the traditional white elephant cereal game which is always so much fun. Abby got her Cheerios and Wheaties and Gabe got his Life cereal. Its crazy how we can fight over a silly box of cereal. BUT WE DO! LOL

I decided to start an annual breakfast for friends since we never seem to fit each other in around Christmas time. We had 4 couples show up which wasn't bad. Hopefully next year the word will spread and we will have many more.

Christmas morning was fun. It was so exciting to see Abby come down and be excited about Santa. She wakes up about 8, WOOHOO, and sneaks downstairs, peaks into the living room, then comes and wakes Gabe and I up. She always loves to see the stockings hung on the railing and has to tell us that Santa came and put stuff in them when she first comes in our room. Christmas was good this year. We all were quite spoiled.

We went to Gabe's family at 11 and celebrated with them. Santa brought them a karaoke machine. Even I got up and sang. It was pretty fun. Josie and Giselle got up and sang back up for me. Gabe and Drew were excited to pick through all the songs and see how bad they could hash them. LOL

At my parents house we were yet again spoiled. Abby and Sarah played and played. They had a great time. And we stayed late playing wii with Sean who is a hoot. I have some blackmail pictures to show what a goon he is. We laughed and played until almost 11:30.

New Years was the best. We had a party and had our friends Andy and Camille with their kids and Kimmy and Bill over. We played wii games all night for the chance at winning a silly trophy. Andy and Camille got it this year. And the kids got to open a box every hour which was filled with games and activities for them to play and do. It kept them busy most the night. It was great for the adults too. At midnight we drank sparkling cider and popped balloons filled with confetti. Abby asked why everyone was kissing. It was pretty silly. So I told her it was because we want to start the year off right with the ones we love. Showing them how much we love them. Then Gabe and I looked at each other and went running after Abby who took off running and giggling till we caught her and gave her a big kiss too. It was a great end to a rough year.

Here's to 2010 and the wishes that it will be amazing.*cheers*

November 2009

This November was quite a month. I think we were all very happy. We watched our Utes and had a lot of fun going to the games. It was mine and Gabe's date night. We even got to double date with our awesome neighbors the Uluaves. They took their kids tickets away for the BYU vs. Utah game and gave them to us. We had a great time. We are so grateful for such wonderful neighbors.

Speaking of neighbors we have the Smiths that moved two houses down and they have three boys. Abby loves to play over there with Dawson and his brothers. And I have a card-making buddy. Suzy signed me up to be part of her card group that meets once a month. It is really fun and I love being able to have a girls night out.

We had a Super Saturday in relief society and I was in charge of the card making. I had lots of fun making and organizing...and shopping for my group. It seemed like it turned out well. I took Grandma Joyce with me and I think she had fun making things too.

And who can forget...Twilight! I bought my ticket early and made sure I took the day off work. LOVED IT! Although I believe I have changed teams. Team Jacob. LOL Giselle drove all the way from Payson to go with me and celebrate my birthday. It was great, love my sis-in-law.

And the most amazing part of the month was the primary program. Abby gave her first talk in sacrament. She was the icing on the cake. The program was about families and the spirit was so strong. I believe, sadly, it is one of the first times that a sacrament has felt so amazing since we moved. Our ward is filled with kids and has split 6 times. But I knew that this was going to be special. I invited all our family and was so grateful that most of them came. And I knew that they felt the spirit too. Abby's talk was about the day we were sealed as a family...

"Once upon a time a mother and a father wanted to have a baby. This mother and father were able to adopt a beautiful baby girl. The mother and father loved their new baby girl and wanted to make sure they could be a family forever. When the baby girl was six months old the mother and father took the baby girl to the Salt Lake Temple. The baby girl wore a beautiful white dress. Inside the temple the baby girl was brought into the sealing room where she waved and smiled at everyone. The mother, father, and beautiful baby girl were then sealed together as a family forever. That baby girl was me, Abby. And the mother and father were my Mom and Dad. I love them and I am so happy that we have temples where we can be sealed together forever."

Just imagine little Abby's voice and it just makes this talk come alive. Gabe and I cry from joy every time we hear it or even if it just mentioned. (ball babies LOL) That was the highlight of our month and that joy just keeps spreading onto the other days.

Thanksgiving was nice. It was just Gabe, Abby, and I, my parents, Sean , Valisha, and Gram and Gramp Brown. It was small this year in numbers But you can never go wrong with Gram and Gramps cooking. They are the best. I can't believe they are in their 80's and still going strong. They didn't even want help. We love them so much.

Well we are getting the Christmas decorations up and next month I'll tell you more about that. Thanks for following this goofy blog. Keep us in mind if you see an adoption opportunity. Love you all.

October 19, 2009

Okay so apparently I'm not great at this blogging thing but hey, I trying right?
A lot has happened since I last posted. Abby graduated from preschool and started Kindergarten. She is such a cutie. She is really enjoying school. She likes her teacher and loves being able to walk to school with her friends. She does get bored but hopefully that will pass. She keeps telling me that she ALREADY KNOWS her ABC's and numbers.
We went on vacation in August to Bear Lake and had a blast! We took our niece Sarah so Abby would have someone to play with and it turned out to be a really great time for all of us. We played at the pool everyday, even when it was raining, and it was fun to see the girls in their swimming gear diving off the diving board. Especially Abby because she was so afraid to go under the water and then once she got on her arm floaties she had no fear. It was a lot of fun to watch.
Gabe seems to finally be out of the problem area with work. It has been a struggle with money this year but, thank goodness we had savings and a decent tax return. My work has also given me some hours here and there. I think I worked an entire month which was nice to have the extra cash.
We have a new nephew on the way. Due in February. We are so excited and can't wait to see what kind of Daddy Drew will be.
We are going to have a Halloween party on Wednesday for Miss Abby and her friends. She is so excited. We will paint pumpkins, do crafts, play games, and of coarse have treats. Abby is super excited and loved helping me get the treat bags ready. She is going to be Pumpkin Spice for Halloween which is pretty much a gogo outfit with an orange pumpkin wig. She looks so cute in it. Gabe is going to be a rocker and has purchased some tattoo sleeves. He said he is excited for Halloween this year. I told him the reason is because this is the first year I didn't have to make him choose a costume. LOL I am going to be a witch and am pretty excited to wear my costume as well. Oh and don't forget Nixen..... he's going to be a cowboy.
Gabe and I are also planning a murder mystery dinner for this coming Friday. It is 20's themed and we are really excited to see all our friends dressed in their crazy costumes.
We are still waiting on our adoption. Hopefully someone out there will find us and we can extend our family. Don't forget to mention us when you talk to your friends. We need as much advertising as we can get.
Gabe and I did the Biggest Loser contest in our neighborhood for the month of September and we won. We had fun going to the gym together. It was hard being away from Abby so often. We also ran a 5k together as a family. Abby did great she beat me by 10 min. She ran it in 35 min. she is a miss speedy gonzales. Now that the competition is over we are trying to figure out how the gym fits into our schedule. I am hoping that once Abby goes back on track that I can go while she is at school. Gabe usually goes after work. I lost 7 pounds and Gabe lost 5 in one month. We were pretty excited. We didn't win anything exciting but, the fact that we won was good enough.

April 2009

Hello again. Well It has been a fun month. Abby had her 5th birthday and we all had lots of fun. She had her first "kid only" party and we did a drive in movie in the living room. Everyone had their own box decorated like a car and we went through a car wash (crepe paper streamers). They all watched Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and sang along and had popcorn and treats. She was very excited to have her friends over and to play. Mom and Dad had fun just watching and listening to them sing and play.

Abby got roller skates for her birthday and is learning to use them. She always puts on her elbow and knee pads and her little gloves. She looks so cute. She also got some jump ropes and she is getting pretty good. I think she did 24 jumps without stopping.

Uncle Drew got married in March and we drove to California to see him and now AUNT Katie get married. It was beautiful weather and we loved seeing all the orchards and vinyards along the way. Of coarse when we got back to Utah we were hit with snow again. We drove through Death Valley on the way back and was at 89 degrees and then came home to 29 degress. Quite a change. We also lost a hub cap and a headlight on that trip. Goodness! But the wedding was beautiful and we are all glad that we got to go.

We got a new game called Ticket To Ride and we all enjoy playing. Including friends and extended family. Abby likes to play but needs a little help. We have had several game nights including one where our friends brought their Wii and we all played and had a blast. Thanks Kimmy and Bill.

We still are tight on finances but we keep praying that things will turn around. I was able to work one day. Its not much but every little bit helps. We cant believe that Gabes work could do such a thing. But I guess its just another trial that we need to overcome.

We are loving the little spouts of spring weather and are going on walks and we even had a new park open by our house that is super awesome.

Well that is about it for this month. Catch you all next time.

March 2009

Wow It has been awhile since I posted! Lots has happened. In December we went on a cruise. It was fun; more or less. Abby loved washing her hands everywhere we went and playing in the hot tub. Gabe and I liked the stops and getting off of the boat. I dont think we will cruise again. Just stick to hotels where we can explore. Gabe did talk me into going on a Rhino tour in Cabo and believe it or not I liked it! We rode along the beach and were able to see whales off in the distance it was beautiful and amazing.

We had an excelent Utah Football season where we went 13-0. Yipee! We had fun going to all the games and having a bowl party at our house. We even went to the parade and had a great time. Abby asked if we could go to the parade every day. Guess she had a good time.

Money is a little tight this quarter and we are hoping that tings will look up soon. An error in payroll over payed Gabe last quarter now we have to pay it back. Not fun, but we keep praying that things will work out.

Abby tried going to dance for two months and liked it a little. So now that she is five she has to choose a type of dance to go into(ie:ballet, jazz, hip hop). She chose gymnastics! She relly likes getting to go with the big kids and being in the big gym. Who knows maybe we'll have a master gymnast on our hands. She has already mastered the head stand. She is also loving to work on the bars.

So far no one has looked at our adoption profile. A little discouraging but we know that the Lord is watching over us and waiting till the right time. Abby is still convinced that she is going to get multiple siblings. Gabe even had a dream that we got three. Wow! We just keep hoping and praying and trying to get the word out amongst our friends and family that we are trying to adopt. We are even trying to network through facebook. We'll just have to wait and see.

Abby is turning five this month and she is so excited. I can't believe that my baby is growing up. We even get to go to kindergarten orientation next week. With her in school hopefully I can work some and earn a little more income and go to school. I would love to graduate sometime in the next century.

Gabe is training for yet another marathon. He has already paid to do the Bear Lake run and so I guess we are off to Bear Lake in June. I have never been there so it will be an adventure for me as well. He is working hard and trying so hard at work to bring home the bacon. Sometimes he doesn't get home till 7 and we miss having dinner with him. But as soon as work is looking up a bit we will get back to normal. We are just glad that I am able to still stay home with Abby. And stay in this wonderful house and neighborhood.

We got a new calling in our ward. We teach the 8-9 year olds. We love those kids. They are so fun and each has such a wonderful personality. We are learning about the Doctrine and Covanants this year. Gabe and I are learning just as much as they are I think. Gabe seems to be the goof off in class and he tends to get the warnings just as much as the other boys in the class. Stinker!

Abby is really enjoying preschool. She gets to do lots of projects. She even gets to go on field trips. She got to go to the firestation last month and had a good time. She was so excited to show me her fireman badge sticker and pencil. She is so big.

I actually did it!! I had my own Craft Camp and it seemed to go over pretty well. I had 22 RSVP. Only 14 came but still I was surprised at the turn out. Everyone can't wait for the next one. My boss and my step mom sat and discussed how they thought that this was my calling and how I should start my own buisness doing craft camps. I thought it was funny how they both just sat down together and discussed my future without me even there. I have thought about it some, but I just haven't got that motivated bug yet. We will see if these camps keep being a sucess maybe I will have a future doing it.

Oh, one other exciting thing happened since last post, my Grandma and Grandpa moved up here from St. George. Just about 2 miles away. Still in the same neighborhood. Abby is absolutely loving it and loves to go play at Grandma Joyces. I love to go visit and have someone close that I can rely upon. Grandpa is great for helping me out with projects and Grandma is my scraping buddy. And Nixen, our dog, has just as much fun over there. He loves to play with his friends Noodles and Sasha (gradmas dogs). He jumps in the car and runs from each window to make sure we are going the right way to Grandmas.

Well I guess I should be off doing some housework. So there is my post for now. Until next time TATA!