Blessing 21

My New Table!




I seriously LOVE my new table! I got it at a yard sale (by far the best find this yard saling "season"...which is only like 4 months in Idaho). It is an 8 person table, and get this...it came with 10 chairs and 2 bar stools! The guys selling it told me that he paid $1000 for the table, $80 for each of the chairs and $100 for both of the bar stools...I got the whole package for $350...Woohoo!



I have been wanting a new table for a while now (the one we've been using is a hand me down from my Grandma Owen...it was good while it lasted, but I was ready for something nice!) I love finding good deals!

52 Blessings Project #13

Blessing # 13
~My Cell Phone~

It's hard to even remember what it was like not having a cell phone with me at all times...how the heck did I ever communicate? It makes me feel more safe that I can have some way to communicate if I am ever in trouble (mostly when I lock my keys in my car)...but seriously, I remember when I was probably 8 or 9 years old and we lived in Mesa and my mom locked her keys in the car and we had to go knocking on random doors to see if we could borrow a phone...hello, scary! We are so blessed by modern technologies...we've come so far, even in the last 10 years and I am so thankful for it!

Blessings Blessings Blessings

This is gonna be a blessings catch-up session...I don't know what has happened, but this past month has been soooo hectic that I haven't found a spare moment to blog, so here it goes!

Week # 10
~The innocence of a child~
The other day when we were at the temple for Nathan's wedding, Emma-Leigh and Maci were watching the kids. While in the visitor's center they caught Gwen doing this on camera...

...priceless! When I saw this picture I was reminded of all of the things that are truly important in this life...Heavenly Father and Jesus don't ask for perfection, they know that would be impossible...but they do ask us to love them, I'm glad that they send these precious angels down here to remind us of that every once in a while!

Week # 11
~Our growing family~
I am so blessed to have a new sister-in-law...I'll be the first to admit that it was hard for me to see my little brother get married, there is something deep down inside that is VERY protective of all of my siblings! We are so lucky that he found Rebecca! She fits right in and they are so perfect together which makes it a lot easier to let him go...that doesn't mean that I didn't bawl like a baby! We love you guys!


Week # 12
~Spring~
Unless you live in some place like Idaho I don't think that you can truly appreciate the magic of spring! I personally HATE the snow, so every year that it melts away and we start to see the sunshine and grass again, it feels like a miracle! (Of coarse as things go in Idaho it can be beautiful one week and snowy the next...even in...June!) I really enjoy bringing out all of my Spring decorations to brighten things up a little bit...I may have jumped the gun a little this year since I was decorating during a random snow storm, but I decided that I didn't care what mother nature was doing...it was going to be spring inside my house dang it!

52 Blessings Project-Week #9

Week #9

My blessing for this week is my sweet sister Emma-Leigh. Her birthday was on the February 23rd and I can't believe how fast she is growing up. I remember the day that she was born like it was yesturday...I wanted a baby sister more than anything in the world (I already have 3 brothers)and since my mom and dad never found out the sex of their babies, I was left waiting until the very last second! I remember waking up early one morning because I thought that I heard my Grandma talking...I got out of bed and sure enough...mom was at the hospital and they just had a baby...GIRL! I remember being so excited that I cried! Even though Emmi is 7 years younger than me, she has always been a good example of kindness...it is definitely humbling when that is shown to you by someone so much younger, but I hope that she knows how much I love and respect her. Happy LATE Birthday sista! I love you!

Here is a cute little picture of when we lived in Salmon...what a cutie!


This is a more recent picture...I think it was last year because it was one of her first dates, I went up there and did her hair and make-up for this dance!

52 Blessings Project 7 & 8

Week 7 & 8
OK, so once again I am cheating! I'm doing 2 blessings in one post, but I can't mention one of my blessings without mentioning the other! My very special blessings are my two adorable nieces Gwendolyn May & Phoebe Elizabeth. I've always loved children so much and it has been so much fun to be there right after the birth of Gwen and Phoebe. First let me talk about Gwen...she is such a firecracker! I've said this a million times, but I have no idea how Rachelle EVER keeps up with her...she wears me out in 10 minutes! She loves VeggieTales and is getting very good at singing along, she can also sing her ABC's...even though sometimes in the middle she says L-L-L-O-P :) She is so fun to just watch because she does such a good job of entertaining herself. Here are a couple pictures of Gwen...she is such a princess! She looks just like her dad in this picture...with her Aunt Linz's attitude! This is Gwen at the hospital when they were bringing Phoebe in for the first time! Sponge Bob was on, so she was oblivious to everything around her. The stuffed caterpillar behind her was the stuffed animal she picked out for Phoebe (even though I have a feeling it will be more for her)...it is over 5 feet tall, and I'm sure there were plenty more "sensible" toys to choose from, but I couldn't resist those puppy dog eyes...what can I say, I'm a softy! I was so excited that Gwen let me do her hair before we left for the hospital (I watched Gwen while everyone was at the hospital)...apparently she never lets anyone touch her hair...I might have the magic touch! And here is my other blessing! Phoebe Elizabeth was born on Friday the 13th...what a LUCKY day! She was 9 pounds 11 ounces (poor Rachelle) and is the cutest thing ever! I've kind of had a little cold, so I haven't been able to go back up and see her since her birth, but she is so precious, I could just cuddle her all day! Her poor head was bruised a little, but she seemed pretty happy the whole time we were there -passing her all around!

I'm the luckiest aunt...I'm glad that I have 2 adorable little angels to spoil!

52 Blessings Project-Week 5 & 6

Week 5 & 6 This last week we've celebrated the birthdays of my brother-in-law, my mother-in-law, my brother, my Grandma Owen & my Granny Elmer (who passed away last year)...not to mention I have a niece due anyday! Things have been a little crazy, but on February 9th, which is Nathan & Granny's birthday I realized how grateful I am for the both of them. Nathan Nathan was my first baby brother, although I think I sometimes resented him for taking the attention away from me (I was, and still am, kindof selfish), I hope he knows that I respect him and am so proud of all that he has accomplished. Here is a cute picture of us as kids...getting caught trying to wake Nathan up! Nathan shares a birthday with my great-granny Phoebe...she passed away last year right before her 98th birthday. Granny was one of the most amazing people, she always had a way to make you feel so important. I had the opportunity to go down to Arizona and visit her several months before she passed away and she never seized to amaze me! She could recall memories like no one else, I would enjoy sitting there and listening to her tell stories of when she was a little girl...she included every little detail! I actually have a cute video of her telling a story, but I can't get it to upload right now, I will work on that and post it later.
Here is a picture of granny and I, I love and miss her so much, but know that she is so happy in heaven with all of our loved ones...especially her sweetheart who she'd been away from for so long!

52 Blessings-Week 3

Week #3

Once again...way late! "Better late than never" was written especially for me...I'm sure of it!

This week I am thankful for this...

...A husband that works hard! There are so many days that he gets home from work and just crashes! I am so glad that he is willing to do what it takes to take care of me. I love you Hottie! I snuck this one in too...

...out like a light!

52 Blessings-Week 2

Week #2

Wow! Has this been one CRAZY week! It's been my intention to sit down and write this blog several different times this past week, but every time I try, it seems that something else comes up. Work has been especially stressful...we had several meetings going on with a lot of preparation that went into each one of them. There were times that it seemed like everything was falling apart with no solution or way to repair the damage (canceled flights, UPS delays, incorrect data, canceled meetings etc etc)...some of you that are reading this know exactly what I am talking about because you may have been there with me at 10:00pm on Friday night...for the rest of you...JUST TRUST ME! At times I thought we should just give up and go home, so it may be strange that the blessing I have chosen for this week is my JOB! There are a lot of people out there...people that I know personally who have lost their jobs and have no where to turn. Every day that I come home stressed and exhausted I am comforted to know that I will still have a job to go to tomorrow, the next day and the next day after that. It definitely makes it worth the blood, sweat, and yes...even sometimes the tears!
I found this picture that I thought I would show along with this post. This is me and my manager Patty (on the right-very pregnant at the time!) and a couple of other girls at our annual Convention-I think that this was the one in Atlanta! We were at the end of a very long week and this is us all dressed up right before our big Awards Banquet!