Brian and Jennifer

My Boys

2012-01-21T15:23:00.001-08:00

I know it's been a LONG time
but I have a few free moments so
here's some cute pics of my boys
and we'll see when this happens again.

Brayden is such a little character!
He loves to climb and hang on EVERYTHING.
I am constantly amazed at how strong he is.

(A side note: November marked the beginning of some minor incidents requiring doctor intervention. Kind of ironic that the first incident occurred because we were following the pediatrician's advice. Because Brayden was climbing out of his crib she suggested we switch him to a toddler bed. So a few days later we went out and bought some bunk beds, although the boys are still in seperate rooms. Well the boys discovered that the crib mattress made a rather fun slide if propped up on the couch. They had a lot of fun UNTIL they decided to prop it up on a small dresser.
Brayden climbed up the mattress which slipped and, unfortunately, he hit his nose on the dresser on the way down. He ended up with 5 stitches.)

A few nights ago we put Brayden down for the night
and I was quite surprized by how quickly he fell to sleep
-Or so I thought.
About 20 minutes later I thought I heard some noises coming from his room.
When I opened the door I found not only the light on, but
THIS wonderful sight.

What you can't see is the other pile of clothes out of sight on the bed.

Now for pics of the other little character
-or should I say PIRATE-
in my life!
Needless to say he now knows what the letter R says.

Ok, now for the other incident.
I wasn't in the room when it occurred but from what Caleb said
he ran into the corner of the couch.
From what the dentist said he must have been running at full speed.
He pretty much shattered his right upper lateral incisor
and chipped his right lower lateral incisor and canine.
Unfortunately, the upper lateral incisor
was damaged enough that it couldn't be saved.
So here's the cute little boy with his gap-toothed smile
and the infamous couch corner.

Hopefully this month will be incident free!

3-a month ago

2011-08-17T14:07:00.000-07:00

So Caleb turned 3-a month ago!

Wow, I'm quite embarrassed that it's been over a month
and I'm just now blogging, but better late than never.
I guess it could be worse-he could be turning 5.

July was a wonderful month.
It’s made me kind of wish that my birthday was in July as well.
After all, it’s only in July when you can celebrate with fireworks.
That has been a highlight of the month for Caleb.
Many nights we have found him looking for fireworks out his bedroom window
instead of going to sleep.
He also got to celebrate his birthday twice.

The first was at Grandma’s house over the 4^th of July weekend.

He got to do a lot of the things he really enjoys:

Chocolate cake with strawberry toppings-his choice.

JUMPING!!!

Riding horses

On his birthday we went to the zoo.

Yep, it was the dinosaurs that made the biggest impression-
for both boys!!

Oh, and the water ball!
Wherever water is found, there Caleb will be also-
soaking wet and probably muddy.

I really luv that you can see the water droplets flying through the air-
evidence of the fun both boys are having splashing.

Here's a few more cute pics of my boys:

Caleb and his play dough "snowman".

My 2 adorable boys-
so sweet
so fun!!!

ONE

2011-05-10T07:39:00.001-07:00

I can't believe my baby is ONE!!!
I guess the saying
time flies when you are having fun
is true-sigh.
Brayden
is such a sweetheart and has brought so much
LOVE
LAUGHTER
EXCITEMENT
ENERGY
JOY
into our family.

I LOVE his adorable smile,
and just look at all that hair.
I guess that's one good thing about the helmet,
he's had very little hair loss.
Hopefully we'll be done with the helmet sometime in the next couple of months.

For Brayden's birthday we went to the park.

Here's the birthday boy in the swing,
BUT
honestly he enjoyed his stick a lot more!

Grandma A, Aunt Em, Uncle Mat and Uncle B and Addy
came to celebrate with us.

So, I pondered quite awhile what kind of cake I should make.
I am the first to admit that I'm not very creative,
and most of the time when I try to test my creativity,
I fail-miserably.
So you can probably understand why I was having a hard time deciding.
The day before the party, the "light bulb" finally flashed on.
I was sitting at the table, watching Brayden scarf strawberries and
voila the answer appeared-
strawberry shortcake cupcakes!!

What Brayden enjoys:
(besides strawberry shortcake of course)
Caleb
Climbing on everything
Trying to run
(It's so cute to see him try to move faster
when being chased!)
Helping put the toys or clothes away.
(Of course he also enjoys pulling everything out to begin with.)
Playing in my cupboards.

He says "mama", "dadada", and "all done".
He can sign more, all done and drink.
And it's so cute to see him wave.

Got to LOVE this adorable little face!

Looking, looking, looking...

2011-04-19T09:58:00.000-07:00

After what seems like forever of
LOOKING
WAITING
and
HOPING
perhaps spring is on the way!

Here's Caleb looking through his "telescope"
looking for birds and bugs in the backyard.

Ahh, finally a beautiful spring day!!

Brayden loved the old, dead tree limbs in our backyard.
(Ignore the ugly grass and weeds.)

Caleb: "I want to be a monkey in the tree".
So, here's our cute monkey.

feeling thankful

2011-03-23T07:26:00.000-07:00

So the other day was one of THOSE days-

(Disclaimer: Actually in this pic all 3 boys were having a really good time.
Caleb decided he wanted to take the picture rather than be in it right before I took it,
hence the stressed out look on Brian's face as he tried to climb down on his own.
I just thought it portrayed how I feel some days rather well.)

both boys woke up too early,
neither napped very long,
and so both were clingy and very ORNERY.
AND
Brayden didn't sleep very well during the night,
so I'll admit I was a bit tired and ORNERY as well.
The culmination of the day was a trip to the library that did not end well,
at all!
Just ask all the library patrons!
I was SO glad when Brian got home.
He's so awesome with the boys!

(Please don't misunderstand-
I absolutely LOVE being a mom to my boys,
and I wouldn't change my life for ANYTHING,
some days are just a little,
or LOT,
crazier than others.)

Yes, I realize I sound a little whiny;
and honestly I feel a little whiny
especially after reading this blog the next day.

It's not only an awesome giveaway
but also a celebration of a bravery that I truly admire
and admit that I severely lack.
Some days I 'm counting down the hours (10-12 hours) until my sweet hubby gets home,
let alone 7 months or longer.

After reading Jessica's story and being reminded of many other circumstances like hers;
I would just like to say a big THANK YOU to her
(and all other military spouses)
and her husband
(and all other military personnel)
for their sacrifice and courage to serve our country.

Update

2011-02-15T12:37:00.000-08:00

So I have a TON of pictures that I would like to share
that tell the story of our family for the past 4 months.
BUT if I ever want to actually finish a post enough to publish it,
I'd better just stick with what is current.

My house constantly looks like a tornado passed through it,
or rather 2 tornadoes!
Brayden is now 10 months and LOVES to get into everything,
literally!

And if wasn't hard enough to keep up with him crawling-
Now he's walking!
And loving it as you can probably tell by the huge grin on his face.

I love this picture of the cute guy!
He's such a sweetie,
is all smiles
and takes his big brother's "loves" like a tough little man.

Caleb is 2 1/2.
That should say it all!
He loves playing outside-
the mud was just a bonus.

He loves wrestling with his dad.
(Even Brayden gets in the action.)

He loves doing "new tricks":
Jumping off the couch,
jumping on the bed,
(yeah there's a lot of jumping happening at our house)
and doing somersaults.

Look at those BIG smiles.
Got to say I love my life!
But then, who wouldn't when you have these cuties to look at everyday!

Halloween

2010-11-03T19:55:00.000-07:00

Some fun Halloween pics:

There's a new Sherriff in town.

Our little football player.

My boys and the scarecrow they made.

My Adorable Boys

2010-10-06T14:39:00.000-07:00

Ok so at least it hasn't been 8 months since the last post, only 5.

Life is good.

My boys are so fun-and so stinking cute!

Brayden is growing so FAST!

He has such a sweet personality.

My handsome Caleb.

He is so curious and creative-

definately keeps me on my toes.

Caleb absolutely adores his daddy.

(Note his constant companion Mr. Bear.)

Brian ran a half marathon.

(A lot farther than I will ever run!)

Waiting for Daddy to finish running his half marathon.

Why I disappeared for 8 months

2010-05-17T11:06:00.000-07:00

1st
We bought a house last September.
So between unpacking,
organizing,
cleaning,
morning sickness,
and no internet
well I just haven't taken the time to blog.

2nd
And most importantly
On the 1st of May we welcomed
Brayden
into our home.

We are so
happy,
excited,
over joyed,
thrilled...
well you get the picture!

He is such a little sweet heart!

Brayden in the same outfit we brought Caleb home from the hospital in.

Our 2 little boys-
both miracles,
just in a different way.

And yes, Caleb adores his little brother-
perhaps a little too much at times.
I love being a mother!
And, wow, do I love my boys-
all 3 of them!!!

Playing at the park

2009-08-29T10:00:00.000-07:00

Caleb enjoys playing at the park.
Below are some fun picts with dad.

He prefers, though, just staying in the stroller and continuing our walk.
(Gets upset when we try to take him out of the stroller.)
Why?
I don't know,
But I think it's because there is so much to see while we walk.

Trying to get picts

2009-08-18T11:13:00.000-07:00

Caleb is 13 months!
Below are picts of me trying to get a good picture.
It's kind of funny, at least he thinks so.
Seriously, he is such a character that he constantly has me
laughing and smiling.
He makes each day an adventure that I treasure!

Finally he sat still long enough for me to snap a couple.
I love how they turned out.
They show his cute, sweet personality.

Playing

2009-08-11T11:24:00.000-07:00

The first weekend in August we went to Brian's family reunion at their ranch.
It was a lot of fun and Caleb had a really good time.
Below are some fun picts of him:
1) Playing peek-a-boo...
2) with cousin John

3) trying to give cousin John hugs
(According to Caleb you have to PULL the person close...

...and then you can hug them.)

I love Caleb's hugs.
They are usually very enthusiastic-
which I think makes them all the better.
Poor John, though, he was a very good sport.

ONE

2009-07-20T13:01:00.000-07:00

Caleb is 1!
He weighs 23 pounds 9 ounches (50%).
He is 31 1/4 inches tall (90%).

Below are some fun picts of our adorable little boy!

He brings so much joy and laughter into our home!
I am so blessed to be his mom!

Birthdays

2009-07-10T15:33:00.000-07:00

Since my family's reunion was over the 4th of July,
we celebrated Caleb's birthday
(a little early)
along with our Country's birthday.
It was so much fun.
We went to the park and Caleb found a.....stick!
He and Dad had so much fun playing together that they wore each other out.
We also watched the parade. This is Caleb and his cousin Zachary.

Can you guess the hair style of the day for the youngest 3 family members? Amy, Myself, Katie
Andrew, Caleb, Addison

And of course we had to celebrate with cupcakes...
"What is this blue stuff? Fingerpaint?""Oh I see, you're supposed to smash it, squish it, and squash it!"
"Oh no, now it's all over my fingers."
"I wonder what it tastes like."
"Wow, this is Yummy!"
"Do you want some?"

3 THINGS

2009-06-17T12:57:00.000-07:00

3 Things have happened this month
You can all probably guess the
FIRST
Caleb is 11 months old!!
How can he be that old you ask?
I don't know-
I'm in shock myself!Although you can't see the customary 11 month sign in the above picture-
it was taken on his 11 month birthday.
Out of more than 30 pictures,
a couple of attempts at taking pictures
and
a couple of hours
this was the best one.
Why?
Well that brings me to the
SECOND THING

Yes
He is walking!
AND
He thought that sitting still while I was trying to take his 11 month pictures was
TORTURE!

Can you tell what the THIRD THING is from the picture below?

Well, if you guessed riding a horse-
you are correct.
For those of you wondering how the above picture is a hint-
3 words
tight wrangler jeans!
(I found them in a box of clothes my sister Amy sent to me.
I was really excited because
I thought it would be really cute
for Caleb to look the part the first time he rode a horse.
They were too big,
length wise anyway,
but way too tight around the middle.
Talk about Torture!
So I took a picture and put them back in the box.)

10 Months

2009-05-19T12:39:00.000-07:00

Where did my baby go?
It's like he turned 10 months old and all of the sudden he's a little boy.

He has mastered crawling!He can pull himself up on his knees.

He can stand supported by the couch
and even daringly tries walking a few steps.
He doesn't make it very far,
but I'm sure that it won't be long before he's able to walk all by himself.
And that is probably the hardest part.
Don't get me wrong-
I love seeing all the new things he can do
AND
We cheer with him when each new developmental stage had been reached
BUT
He soon won't be my dependent baby anymore,
BUT
an independent little boy!

He has wild bath hair!
(Ok, so I added this picture only because I love it!)

And
He just looks like a little boy!
CUTE!
ADORABLE!!
But
not my baby anymore!
(Even with food stuck to his neck!)

On The Move?

2009-04-18T12:20:00.000-07:00

Caleb is now on the move...

OR
At least he's been practicing!
(He does great at army crawling.)
He's also really good at scooting backwards.
The problem?
He can't see where he's going and ends up in interesting locations-
like under the bed,
OR the coffee table,
OR the chair.
He is then usually STUCK until mom or dad come to his rescue!BUT
Who needs to crawl when you have daddy around to help you walk
wherever you want to go!
(Which, by the way, is Caleb's preferred mode of transportation!)9 Month Stats:
20 pounds 6 ounces (50 percentile)
30 inches long (95 percentile)
Where did these giant genes come from?

AND
as you can see-
just as cute as ever!
OR
is he even cuter?
Yep, I think you're right
he's even cuter!
BUT
how can that be possible?
It just is!

Wonderful Week

2009-03-18T09:26:00.000-07:00

What A Wonderful Week

FIRST
Happy Birthday Tanya!
It was so great to celebrate Tanya's birthday with her-just the 3 of us. I love this picture of her and Caleb.
It's kind of hard to know what to get someone that has given you THE gift that has fulfilled your dreams-motherhood.
But, Tanya, we hope that you know how much we treasure you-
the wonderful young woman that you are.
WE LOVE YOU!!

SECOND
Caleb has a new cousin (the first of 3 that is due in the next couple of months).
Addison June was born on 11 March(I'm not sure why this picture posted side-ways.
I tried many different things to change it, but I guess you will just have to turn your head to see it properly.)

THIRD
Caleb is now 8 months old!
Unfortunately he no longer fits in the outfit that we brought him home from the hospital in
(I know-go figure.)
But it was a fun way to see how much he is growing.
Well after trying different outfits, Brian suggested we put the original outfit on his frog.
FOURTH
These are just some fun picts of Caleb.I love this one!If you look closely, you can see his hair sticking up from his head-cute!

Look

2009-03-02T12:45:00.001-08:00

Here are some cute picts of Caleb from the last month.
February 16th Caleb turned 7 months old.
Perhaps you noticed 2 things from the above picture.
#1 Caleb has mastered sitting up.
(The pillows are behind him because occasionally he thrusts himself backwards.
Although our floors are carpeted they are not soft,
so in order to prevent brain damage and tears,
I try to make sure something soft is behind him. )
#2 I doubt next month I'll be able to fit him in this outfit again.
It is really getting too small.
He definitely doesn't fit in 0-3 month outfits anymore.
(It's not that I don't have other outfits for him to wear that actually fit and are warm,
it's just become a way for me to show how much he is growing on his monthly birthdays.)
Caleb just hanging out doing one of his favorite things-
chewing on anything he can get his hands on!

The title of this picture could be:
I love eating!
or
I love making a mess!
SAME THING!

I love this pic of Caleb-
it shows off his cute smile,
his gorgeous dimple,
his out of control hair,
pretty much what a handsome and adorable little guy he is!

Update

2009-02-04T09:45:00.000-08:00

Wow, I can't believe it's been since November since I blogged!

Sorry to all!
Time is flying by and Caleb is growing so fast.
Below is the last 2 months in a nutshell.

December 16thCaleb's first Christmas was right around the corner when we celebrated his 5 month birthday. I was scheduled to work the first half of Christmas day
and we were planning on heading to Brian's parent's after I worked
so we celebrated Christmas on Christmas Eve.
Caleb proved to be an expert at ripping off the wrapping paper on his gifts.
And yes, he was more excited about the paper than his gifts.
He was so cute (as always.)

Our first Christmas Tree!
Brian had a wonderful idea when we were decorating our tree this year.
We decided to have a "thankful tree".
Each day we would write down a couple of things we were thankful for on slips of paper
and then we hung them on the tree.
On Christmas day we planned on reading them out loud.
2008 has been a wonderful year - we have truly been blessed!

January 16th was Caleb's 6 month birthday.
6 Month stats:
18 pounds 4 ounces
27 1/4 inches long
He is getting so BIG!
AND
some BIG things have happened this month:
On January 29th the adoption was finalized.
Although he has been 100% part of our family and hearts since we brought him home,
it was so wonderful to know that he is lawfully ours.
And even BETTER on January 31st he became a part of our eternal family FOREVER!
My heart felt like it was going to burst with JOY and GRATITUDE and LOVE!

Here's our eternal family
(Aren't my boys handsome?)
(Brian's mom made his cute little outfit.)

Oh what a wonderful, wonderful, marvelous day!
A day I will never forget!

And last, but definitely not least,
This joyful day was made possible by this very special young lady:
We love you so much Tanya!

Thanksgiving Highlights

2008-12-10T09:03:00.000-08:00

Although I am posting late about Thanksgiving, it doesn't mean we didn't have a wonderful time. We did! The food was absolutely delicious, but the company was the BEST! It was so much to get together with my family. All of my siblings were there except Amy (once again you were missed!). Here are some exciting highlights accompanied by pictures.

Caleb was able to attend his first basketball game.
His Aunt Emilee played really well-it was so much fun!

Caleb and I, Uncle Matthew, Grandma and the star player-Aunt Emilee

We had my sister take a family picture of us.
(Perhaps you have noticed that Caleb has had his first hair cut. It was really hard for me to do, but his hair was getting really straggly. He is still absolutely adorable, although I think it makes him look older.)

Caleb enjoyed Grandma's exersaucer so much that we brought it home with us.
Now he loves not only standing but jumping as well when being held on someone's lap.
Caleb's cousins Ethan and Chloe loved entertaining him.

It is a family tradition that the weekend after Thanksgiving we head up into the mountains in order to hunt down the perfect Christmas tree.
Caleb had a good time-he slept most of the time in the Baby Bjorn.
The 3 of us bundled up beside our tree.

And lastly, an adorable picture of Caleb modeling the hat his Uncle Matthew made him.

Expressions of 4 Months

2008-11-20T12:46:00.000-08:00

I can't believe Caleb is 4 months old!
Weight: 15 pounds 3.5 ounces
Height: 25 3/4 inches
This outfit sure fits differently than when we brought him home from the hospital.
Actually, I was surprised that it still fit.

He makes some of the cutest expressions (see below):

lil' cowboy

2008-11-01T11:52:00.000-07:00

Caleb was the cutest little cowboy for Halloween.

I'm usually not into dressing up, but it was a lot of fun dressing Caleb up.
As you can see, his outfit is complete with little cowboy boots and even a little cow.
The only thing he didn't have was a cowboy hat.

Actually, Caleb loves horses so a lot of his outfits are cowboy outfits.

What Caleb Thinks of Fashion

2008-10-26T18:26:00.000-07:00

First Snow Storm

2008-10-11T12:58:00.000-07:00

Caleb all decked out as we prepare to head
to church during the first snow storm of the year.

Tanya picked out this outfit when we went shopping
together after the first doctor's appointment I went to with her.
Brian's mom made these booties from his grandmother's pattern.

Caleb all bundled up with Mom
If you look closely you can see snowflakes on Caleb's cheeks.

A few of Caleb's favorite things...

2008-10-09T15:12:00.000-07:00

Caleb's response to his favorite things.
A few of Caleb's favorite things:
Caleb loves bath time. He enjoys kicking and splashing with his feet.

Caleb also loves spending time with his daddy.
When Brian gets home from work he is all smiles.

One of Caleb's NOT so favorite things:
Caleb does NOT like tummy time.
He usually lasts less than a minute before he starts to make his dislike known.
Lately, though, he has found that sucking on his fist sometimes make it a little more tolerable.

The Power of Zout

2008-09-12T19:27:00.000-07:00

Thank you Krista and Lisa for giving us Zout at the baby shower!

Totally and Completely in LOVE

2008-09-11T11:22:00.000-07:00

I am totally and completely in LOVE with
these two boys!!!

Brian is such a wonderful husband and father-
so supportive and loving.

Caleb is such a special little boy-
he brings so much joy into our homes not to mention he is absolutely adorable.

Daddy and Caleb cuddling.
Brian loves being a dad. He is so wonderful with Caleb.
When he's home he's more than willing to change Caleb's diaper, burp him or just carry him around-even at 3:00 am.

We enjoy going on walks with Caleb.
He really enjoys his baby bjorn and is usually asleep before we leave the parking lot.
He's such a cutie with this hat on-
although it's way too big for him, it's the only one that shades his face completely.

Getting Bigger

2008-09-05T09:50:00.000-07:00

Today I realized that Caleb really is growing.
The hard part is he is in between sizes.
I put this outfit on him and had to laugh because
the shirt (newborn size) is getting too small
(it shows off his cute belly really well if I don't put a onsie underneath)
and the pants (0-3 month size) are still quite big (they slide down without the onsie).
I guess it won't be long before I have to pack up his newborn clothes-
what a sad day that will be because I'm a really sentimental person.

Look at the cute cheeks on this sleepy head!

Another picture that shows off how big he's getting.
By the way he's 90% asleep in this picture.
It just takes a little while for his eyes to close completely.
He's so cute and so much fun!

Fun picts of Caleb

2008-08-27T10:44:00.000-07:00

So this post is going to be just a few random but fun pictures of Caleb.
I thought this was an appropriate first picture!

Caleb loves sleeping on his boppy. (Oh how I wish he slept as well in his bed, though he's doing much better lately.) Look at this fun bed head! I love the expressions he makes when he is stretching after a nap! When we put Caleb in his bed we try to bundle him up so his flailing arms don't startle him while he's trying to fall asleep. Well, he does not like being bundled and most of the time wiggles out by the time his nap is over. This is how I found him a couple of days ago. Yes, our big boy is sitting up! Ok so he's propped up, but isn't he adorable!! He's all dressed up for the first time going to our ward.

Family get together

2008-08-20T09:20:00.000-07:00

Brian's family decided to get together to celebrate Caleb's 1 month birthday.
Ok, so actually his 1 month birthday happened to fall on the family reunion,
but it was fun getting together anyway.
Caleb wasn't the only baby at the cabin as you can tell by the picture below.
He has 3 cousins that are less than 1 year old.

Grandma holding Caleb (1 month) and Madison (10 days old)
Aunt Marilyn holding John (7 months old) and her grandbaby (Brian's oldest nephew's daughter) Lorelei (5 months old)

Everyone wanted to hold Caleb. I don't blame them-he is so much fun!
Unfortunately, I only have pictures of a few of them.

Cousin Elizabeth holding Caleb

Cousins Kimber and Kristin entertaining Caleb.
He is starting to smile and coo a little-it is so cute!

Caleb got to meet his first horse (no he didn't ride-I didn't dare).
Unfortunately he slept through it.
Thankfully Star didn't mind.

I've been a mother for 1 month!

2008-08-18T16:57:00.000-07:00

I can't believe that Caleb is 1 month old!
Time has flown by, and I have loved every second of it!
I can't believe how fast he is growing-as of Aug. 11th he weighed
8 pounds 2 ounces.
I want to say, "Whoa, slow down time!" my little boy is growing too fast!

Caleb's first family reunion

2008-08-04T10:08:00.000-07:00

First things first-a picture of Caleb!Yep, he's as cute as ever!
(Just in case you were wondering, his shirt says "Automatic Sprinkler".)

So Caleb enjoyed his first family reunion last weekend. It was a lot of fun spending time with my mom and my brothers and sisters, although everyone was a little bummed that Amy, Matt and Zachary didn't make it. Why do plane tickets have to cost so much? Well, Amy, even though you were missed, we had a lot of fun!

Friday night we went to Brandon's, ate dinner and just hung out.
Caleb finally got to meet his cousins. Ethan was especially excited and gave him lots of "loves" throughout the weekend.
Everyone was captivated by Caleb, even little Eliza.

Then on Saturday we went to Katie and Aaron's to eat breakfast and then we all headed to the zoo. I was a little nervous about taking Caleb, but he did amazingly well. I borrowed a sling from Jamie and he slept in it for most of the day. I guess we'll have to take him back when he's older, he missed pretty much the whole thing:)

This is what I saw one time when I peeked into the sling to see how Caleb was doing.

Caleb wasn't in the sling the whole time, though. This is him and his daddy enjoying some sling "free" time. (My 2 handsome boys!)

We all thought this picture was pretty funny. This gorilla was just lying there in the shade with a burlap bag under his head that he was using for a pillow.
After the zoo we headed back to Katie and Aaron's, all of us pretty bushed from a day walking around in the sun. Although everyone was too tired to go swimming, we enjoyed celebrating 4 birthdays.
Happy Birthday Bennet (you can see the back of his head in the bottom right corner),
Chloe, Troy and Aaron!
Sunday after church we once again gathered back at Katie's, ate lunch, and took family photos.A photo of my family minus the 3 sorely missed persons already mentioned. This is our second family photo
(the first was taken right after Caleb was born in the hospital.)
Don't I have the cutest family?
It was a marvelous weekend! The only sad part was it had to end!

1 week

2008-07-24T12:20:00.000-07:00

I have wanted to blog for a week now, ever since Caleb was born, but somehow I can never find the time.So I am practicing my multitasking skills and going to attempt to blog while feeding Caleb. We'll see how good I am at typing one handed.

This past week has been a blur of wonderful experiences that I will always treasure in my heart. The time that we had with Tanya and Caleb in the hospital was priceless. I was able to be in the delivery room when Caleb was born and Brian came in soon afterwards. It was such a special experience which continued that night when I spent the night with Tanya in her room. I was able to help take care of Caleb and I will always be grateful to Tanya for that experience. As Brian mentioned in a previous post, we are so blessed to have such a wonderful friend as Tanya.

We brought Caleb home Thursday and it has been an absolutely wonderful experience taking care of him. I LOVE BEING A MOM! Even at 2:00 am I absolutely love gazing into his precious little face. Our son sure is such a cutie!
Yesterday was his 1 week birthday. I took him to see the pediatrician and found out he now weighs 6 pounds 12 ounces (he's only 1 ounce away from his birthweight!) and is 19.5 inches long. He is a very healthy little boy. For his 1 week birthday he only woke up during the night once-happy birthday to me. (Don't worry-he made up for it last night by waking up every 2 hours to eat.)
Now what you all have been waiting for- more pictures!Caleb on his 1 week birthday.
I thought this outfit was very festive although it was quite big on him.
Such a handsome little guy!!
We took this picture today after giving him a bath (he has peed through 3 diapers today-I think it's time to invest in some different diapers) and when we took off his pee soaked outfit we found his little umbilical cord missing-yep it fell off today!

Tanya

2008-07-21T20:12:00.000-07:00

Today we received temporary custody as well as a renewed appreciation for Tanya. She is such a wonderful person and Jenny and I admire her for her strength and kindness to us and everyone else. We know that pregnancy and adoption are very difficult experiences for anyone, but we have been amazed at Tanya's resolution in her decision. We know that it is two separate things to know what to do and to actually do it.

Our relationship with Tanya will continue through letters and pictures and Jenny and I are morning the loss of a continued relationship as it has been. I have seen Jenny light up as she talked with Tanya and as she told me about their experiences together. I'm grateful to her for letting us be so involved and I view some of what I felt during the delivery as sacred feelings and impressions. Tanya has an amazing personality that is focused on others, which is how I want to become too.

Thank you Tanya - we love you

We're home

2008-07-20T19:55:00.000-07:00

We brought Caleb home on Thursday. Here are some pictures.

This is the outfit we brought him home in.
The first thing he did when arriving home was sleep.

His first bath

Sun tanning to help with Jaundice

Caleb's Debut!

2008-07-16T10:57:00.000-07:00

7/16/2008 3:53 AM

6 lbs 13 oz

19 inches

2008-07-02T13:57:00.000-07:00

So, we finally have access to the internet in our home-sorry about the delayed blogs!

So much has happened since the last blog.... BUT first of all the time is getting closer-Tanya is 36 weeks! I have been able to be present during 2 ultrasounds as well as all of her appointments. She also came over for dinner and saw the finally completed nursery (pics below). I have thoroughly enjoyed the time that I have been able to spend with Tanya and the wonderful friendship that has developed.
Kind of simple-but I really love how it turned out.
(Thanks to Kathy for her ideas and mom for her sewing skill!)

Other news and fun:
Brian graduated with his Master's in December and walked in April.
I also graduated with my bachelor's in April but didn't walk.
It is so wonderful not to have homework ever again. YEAH!!!

Thanks to both of our families for your love and support!

We spent some fun time with my family up the canyon from my mom's home.

Tyson, Becca, Mat and Em enjoying the campfire.

Ethan (my nephew) celebrated his 8th birthday and was baptized.
All of my family were able to be there except Tyson and Becca and Amy and Matt.
(I can't wait to see them at the family reunion in August.)

Most of my family at Ethan's baptism.

AND last but definitely not least, Brian and I celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary. Wow, I can't believe that it's been 5 years- 5 wonderful years. I am so incredibly lucky to be married to the most wonderful husband in the world!

Caleb Ray

2008-05-02T16:30:00.000-07:00

We've decided to name the cute little guy Caleb Ray!
Ray is Brian's middle name, as well as the middle name of Brian's father and grandfather.
Can anybody guess why we chose Caleb?
Everything is going well. We ate dinner with Tanya and her family (very yummy lasagne!) on Sunday. It was a lot of fun. I'm looking forward to her next appointment on Monday.

Update

2008-05-02T16:07:00.000-07:00

So, a lot has happened these past few weeks. I guess one of the biggest changes is that we've moved. Yep, after 5 years we have left Provo. We are still in an apartment, but hopefully it will be just for a little while longer. We are trying to see what we think of the area as well as seeing if Brian can survive biking to his work (I agree that he's a little crazy, but he's determined!) Anyway, we'll see what happens. Hopefully it will end with us buying a home. One problem the move has caused is that we no longer have internet access-hence the reason why I haven't blogged for a little while.

Kind of a funny side note-the first thing that was set up in the new apartment was the crib. (Brian's parents bought us a crib and brought it with them when they helped us move the first night. They wouldn't leave until the crib was set up, although it was pretty late at night. Needless to say they are excited as well.)

Heartbeat

2008-04-18T08:31:00.000-07:00

Tanya invited me to her doctor's appointment yesterday. There was quite a bit of good news such as the doctor said she could come off bedrest-Yeah! It was so awesome to hear the cute little guy's heartbeat, (we are trying to decide on a name) which made this whole wonderful experience feel more real.

After the appointment, I enjoyed hanging out with Tanya and Kari (her mom). Kari took us both out to eat (thanks so much!) then we ended up going shopping. Although we couldn't find any clothes for Tanya, I ended up with some adorable little outfits.
Kari gave us his first little outfit. Isn't it adorable?
Tanya picked out this cute little ensemble.
I love baby clothes which only added to my excitement about this whole thing.
What a wonderful day!

p.s.

2008-04-14T20:22:00.000-07:00

For those of you who are wondering-it's a BOY!
Tanya showed us some of her ultrasound pictures-he is such a cutie!
He's due the end of July.
and YES we are so EXCITED!
It is so much fun getting to know Tanya.

Yahoo!

2008-04-13T16:44:00.000-07:00

Today we received the best surprise! We were chosen to be adoptive parents!! We met Tanya and her parents at their home today and enjoyed getting to know each other. Admittedly, we were a little (perhaps a lot!) nervous, but thankfully, Tanya came prepared with questions for us - I wish we would have written some down too. They were great questions like, "How did you meet?" "What was your favorite date?" "Why would your spouse make a great parent?" She even had me whistle her a tune. It was so much fun. We have quite a few things in common such as a love for horses and BYU football! One of her questions was who we support: BYU or U of U - and she probably would have kicked us out right then if we didn't answer correctly:) I was amazed that we could laugh and cry together and share such a wonderful experience together in such a short amount of time. We have truly seen the hand of the Lord in our lives today. We look forward to meeting her whole family in two weeks!

Finding Mario

2008-04-06T16:09:00.000-07:00

Friday night was my mission reunion. I served in the Switzerland Zürich mission under President John Holbrook. I enjoy seeing my mission president again and seeing my mission friends. The big surprise was I saw Sister Wiesner from one of my wards. Brother Wiesner was the ward mission leader we worked closely with and their family celebrated my birthday, which touched me at that time.

At my mission reunion Sister Wiesner asked if I would like an update on any of the members. I specifically asked about Mario, who Elder Sheffield and I taught and saw baptized. (He contacted other missionaries in Zürich, showed up to our ward services and after the 3 hours of church we taught him the first discussion and asked him to be baptized - there is gold in Switzerland!) My last day in Switzerland I escorted Mario through the temple. Unfortunately, he moved shortly after I returned home so the contact information I had didn't work and I lost contact.
Elder Sheffield went back to Switzerland and met with him and his new wife. Unfortunately, his wife was not supportive of the Church and he stopped attending his new ward. I have tried a number of times reestablish contact with him, but they have not worked.

Sister Wiesner told me that he is now active in the church and that she would work at getting me back in contact with him! The other thing that made me very happy is she referred to him as a friend of the Bishop who baptized him. He asked me to baptize him, but following advice from the MTC, I told him I would be happy to, but thought it would be good for the Bishop to baptize him. One of my teachers in the MTC told me that having members baptize helps form stronger friendships between members who can be supportive after missionaries leave.

What joy! I hope to find Mario again.

Where did March go?

2008-04-02T10:23:00.000-07:00

Wow, I can't believe that it's April. March seems like a blur.
Why? Just one word-SCHOOL!
All of my attention has been focuses on completing my last 2 classes. Actually 90% has been worrying about and then writing a research proposal for my Nursing Research class. After I submitted that assignment yesterday, I felt like a huge weight lifted off my shoulders. Now I have just 1 really small assignment left and I will be done. Sometimes I wonder what I will do with all of my free time. The first thing I need to do is deep clean the apartment-something that has been neglected for the last few months. Mostly, though, I am looking forward to reading something besides nursing text books. It has been almost 2 years since I've felt like I can sit down and indulge in a good book without having schoolwork hanging over my head.

One exciting thing that happened in March is my little sister Katie got married on the 14th. It was wonderful to see them sealed in the temple-they looked so happy (although in the one picture I have of them I would say they look more dazed). It was also a lot of fun spending time with all of my siblings and their cute families.

The happy couple: Aaron and Katie
(see what I mean when I say they look a little dazed?)

Sisters
Jamian, me, Emilee, Katie, Amy, Becca, Mom
Grandma with the Grandkids
Ethan, Zachary, Chloe, Eliza, Bennett
adorable Eliza with her daddy Troy

cute Zachary with his mommy Amy

We had fun making Zachary look "pretty".
Shh don't tell his dad we put a bow on his head.

Peeps

2008-03-24T15:58:00.000-07:00

This Easter I tried to enter this peep display contest posted here. For some strange reason I guess they didn't post my entry. I didn't get an email reply telling me why my entry wasn't considered. I think that it was because I just did mine in Photoshop rather than in a shoe box. I am rather proud of my display so I figured I'd share it with you.

Are you as quiet at home?

2008-02-21T09:33:00.000-08:00

Twice in the last couple of months, two different co-workers have asked me the same question: "Are you as quiet at home as you are here at work?"

The answer to that question is NO and this post is proof!
Wednesday night one of our neighbors stopped by and gave us 2 tickets to the BYU vs Utah basketball game that night. We both are BYU fans and we both really enjoy basketball (and the tickets were free) so we decided to go. It was a very exciting game. The score was really close up until the very end. Quiet me with Brian at the beginning of the game.
(Just one quick little insert. After one of the exciting BYU plays I heard a cute, little voice in the row behind me say, "Dad, I'm going to go to BYU when I grow up." I thought that was so cute!)Cheering (slightly hoarse me) with Brian just after BYU beat Utah. The final score!
And just in case you were wondering, I'm sure the lady I was sitting next to during the game was NOT wondering if I'm as "quiet" at home!

Roller Coaster Ride

2008-02-20T10:15:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I wish that my life wasn't so much like a roller coaster ride-especially during the down times! This last downward turn about jolted me out of the car, but I'm clinging on tight and hopefully things will start to turn upwards again-soon. I guess if life was always a smooth ride, it would get really boring and we probably wouldn't learn anything. Don't get me wrong, the uphill part of the ride is great, it's the going down part that I have a harder time with. The thing that has kept me clinging on tightly rather than just letting go and giving up is knowing that someone (my Heavenly Father) can see the bigger picture of my life and continually gives me strength and courage and blesses me with His love. For now I'm trusting in Him that my life long dream of becoming a mother will be realized-I just have to be patient in the meantime (that's the hard part!)
Anyway, thank you to everyone for your thoughts, prayers and words of encouragement during this time.

The weekend wasn't all stress and heartbreak, though. We were able to visit with 4 of Brian's siblings and their families. Unfortunately, we only have pictures of one, though. Probably because we have a new nephew in the family and we want to show him off.Here is cute, "little" John and his daddy-Robert

Big sister Tori with Uncle Brian

What's New

2008-02-06T19:56:00.000-08:00

Wow, I can't believe that it's been a month since I've posted anything.

We have experienced a lot of change the past month-
so I thought I'd share a little of what's been happening.

1) Brian graduated from BYU (wahoo!) and started work in Salt Lake.

The hour long commute twice a day is getting old pretty quick,
so that brings me to the next new thing...

2) We put an offer on a home in Salt Lake County.
We won't know for awhile if they accept it.
We've been looking for awhile and have found it somewhat difficult to find something that is livable and within our budget, let alone something we really like.
We'll have to see what happens.
3) I started my last semester of school (Ok, so I've been going to school for awhile so that isn't really new, but the almost done thing is and I'm so excited!)
If only I can survive my nursing research class!
4) My little sister is 16! I can't believe it!
Mom, Brandon, Emilee (Birthday girl) Katie, Aaron, Matthew,
Me, and Brian Celebrating Emilee's birthday.
5) President Gordon B. Hinkley (a man I truly admire and look up to) died. I will miss his enthusiasm for the gospel and his never ending energy. Thomas S. Monson is now prophet and president of the church.
AND Last but definitely not Least
6) A very sweet and special friend of ours is due in a little less than 2 weeks.
We admire her strength and courage and hope that she knows that she has a very special place within our hearts.
We are excited and hopeful...

Christmas

2008-01-06T16:26:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
(sorry it's a little late)
Brian and I spent Christmas with my family this year. It was so much fun! All of my brothers and sisters and their families were there. It reminded me of Christmases of my youth when everyone was home, except with the addition of wonderful in-laws and nieces and nephews.
The Sunday before Christmas, my niece Eliza was blessed.
Isn't she beautiful?

My whole family after Eliza's blessing.
Back row: Grandpa, Tyson, Aaron (engaged to Katie), Matt and Brian
Second row: Grandma, Becca, Katie, Matthew, Amy, Zachary, Emilee, Me
First row: Mom, Bennet, Ethan, Chloe, Jamian, Eliza and Troy

Christmas Morning What's in our stockings?
Elmo is almost as tall as Bennet!
Brian with cute Zachary (yep even got the drool)
Bennet giving Uncle B hugs.
It was a wonderful Christmas! We are looking forward to a new year, although it brings with it many changes. Brian starts his new job tomorrow, and I start my last semester of classes on Wednesday. We are also in the process of trying to find a house. Other exciting changes are possible, so we will keep you posted.

Reminiscing

2007-12-12T14:31:00.000-08:00

Yeah! I am done with school-for this semester at least. Yes, there was a bit of cramming at the end; but I am finished and ready for the Christmas break.

My Christmas break to do list:
1) Deep clean our apartment
2) Read a book just for fun (Does anyone have any suggestions?)
3) Go Christmas shopping (I'm not even close to being done. Actually, I haven't really started.)
4) Look for a house
5) Start writing papers for my Nursing Seminars class that I am taking next semester (I think this is probably a little optimistic.)

A little while ago I was emailing a friend about how fun it is to reminisce about the past with family. We shared experiences that we have had while camping in different national parks. Brian and I promised her that we would post a few pictures of us at Yellowstone National Park about 3 years ago.

The beautiful Grand Tetons

Matthew and Brian with a buffalo in the background

Some people we don't know, but they are getting pretty close to those elk.

Yes, this picture is a little blurry; but the lines are hail. We got caught in a hail storm in the middle of one of our hikes. This picture is of Brandon, Amy and Mat trying to find shelter during the storm. After the hail stopped, it continued to rain which turned the trail into a stream. We were all soaked by the time we got to the car. BUT it was so much fun and so memorable!

Christmas Fun!

2007-12-08T06:20:00.000-08:00

I got an email from my brother-in-law (Tyson) showing some of us as elfs (http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1219515507). So I couldn't resist trying it out with my brothers and I http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1236395958

Thanksgiving Fun!

2007-11-30T09:35:00.000-08:00

Sorry that this post is about a week late, but as they say, "Better late than never" AND I had too much fun over Thanksgiving not to share some of the excitement.
There are 2 reasons why I love Thanksgiving
#1 Spending time with family and
#2 The wonderful and extremely yummy food
(I had to work until 2:30 pm this year so it was about 7:00 by the time we got to Brian's parent's house. Thankfully Thanksgiving leftovers are just about as good as the actual meal.)

Friday all of Brian's family (one nephew and his wife are the only ones missing) got together for pictures. It was a little chaotic with that many people in such a small area, but everyone cooperated and the pictures turned out really well (sorry but none of those pictures are posted). I took advantage of everyone being together and took some pictures of some of Brian's nephews and nieces.

Tyler and Mckenzi (siblings) , Stephani, Ashli, Canon and Tani (siblings)Brothers: Fraser, Jason and Spencer
Cousins: Tori and Stephani

Cousins: Brennan and Spencer

Brian's parents with all of their grandchildren

Friday we also visited my brother, Troy and his family. I was hoping to get a picture of all 4 siblings together as promised in a previous post, but it didn't work out. We had a lot of fun hanging out with my nieces and nephews. We took Troy and the 3 oldest out to dinner to hopefully give Jamian and little Eliza a little bit of a rest. On the way we unexpectedly ran into Santa Claus.

Ethan, Chloe and Bennet with Santa Claus

We also had a lot of fun reading books together. There are a lot of really cute children's books.
Two of my favorites that we read are "Where's My Teddy?" by Jez Alborough and "Cinder the Bubble-Blowing Dragon" by Jessica Anderson.
Ethan, Bennett, Brian, Chloe and Me
(Bennet broke his arm falling off a chair while eating at Costco.
Hopefully he isn't going to take after his rather klutzy aunt-ME.)

We also got a few minutes to hold cute little Eliza. Brian holding Eliza

I really enjoyed spending time with both of our families this year. I am so thankful for family. I have felt their support and love too many times to count. Thank you, each and every one of you.
And for those of you reading this blog who might be thinking that you are not in my "family" classification, I have also been helped and uplifted by many friends and acquaintances over the years. Thanks to each of you as well.

Fun lab

2007-11-28T13:58:00.000-08:00

Here is a video of something I made in my Opto-Electronics lab. It's a light emitting diode (LED) like the one by your computer monitor's power button (yours is probably green - mine is red). Really all we did in the lab was just added aluminum patches to a semiconductor wafer (GaAs) that was made specifically for LEDs. In the movie you see us increasing the voltage on the probe causing the LED to emit light.

The next task is to make a semiconductor laser, but that has not been successful at our school yet.

A New Niece

2007-11-18T19:04:00.000-08:00

I am thrilled to announce that I have a new niece. She is absolutely beautiful, just like my other nieces and nephews (Ok, so my nephews are "handsome"). I love being an aunt and am excited that I will be able to meet Eliza the end of this week.

Chloe holding her new sister Eliza.
(I'm hoping to post a picture of all 4 siblings next week.)
She is the first of 3 new nieces and nephews that will join our family within the next 6 months. New babies are so much fun and bring so much joy! I look forward to each new addition to our families.

Family Time and Basketball

2007-11-11T14:56:00.000-08:00

This past weekend we spent with my family. All of my brothers and sisters and their families were there except for 2: Troy, whose wife is expecting their 4th child any day now (I am so excited to meet little Eliza!) and Amy who is in Texas. I'll just say that Emilee had the biggest cheering section during her basketball game. I had a great time watching her play basketball and found myself wishing that I could don a uniform and play with them. (I'm sure I would just warm the bench, though, because it has been way too long!) I like to say that I am the one who started the girl's basketball legacy in my family. After all, I was the first girl to decide to give it a try. I definitely was not the best player but I loved it! Since then, all of my sisters have played basketball as well and I enjoy watching them!

GO EMILEE!!

Emilee (#32) during a team huddle between quarters.

GREAT JOB, EM!!

Emilee and a few members of her enthusiastic cheering section:
Aaron, Katie and Myself

AND

We celebrated Katie and Tyson's birthdays.
Tyson, Katie, Aaron (sorry we can't see your head) and my Grandma

It's always fun getting together with family, but when we are all together it's a BLAST! (We missed you Troy and Amy but look forward to Christmas when you and your families will be here as well.)
The more the merrier!

I look forward to...

2007-10-28T10:44:00.000-07:00

As Brian mentioned in an earlier post, I went with him to one of his on-site job interviews in California. We flew into LAX and then drove 3 hours.

A view from the car as we drove to the interview.
The white lines on and at the base of the mountains at the top of the picture are all windmills.

We were a little worried about running into problems with all the fires, but all we saw was a lot of smoke and a few areas of burned brush. It was a lot of fun spending time with Brian and the interview seemed to go well because he received another job offer.

Brian and I at the LA Temple

On our way back to LAX, we went through a session at the Las Angeles Temple. I enjoy going through the different temples. It is so amazing to me that although the architecture may differ, within each one is found the same beautiful, peaceful feelings.
Brian has received a few job offers. Each has it's pros and cons, which is why we still haven't decided which one we are going to accept. So, no we don't know yet where we are going to live after Brian graduates but we can tell you it will either be in Arizona, California or Utah.

Some of the things that I am looking forward to after Brian graduates:
1) Buying a home! I've enjoyed our apartment but it will be fun to put some color on the walls and to decorate however I like. It will also be nice to fit everything in our home rather than storing a lot of our belongings with family. (Thanks Holly and Mom!)
2) With a home comes a backyard and hopefully a porch! I love spending time, relaxing outside. Our apartment's parking lot just isn't the same.
3) With a backyard comes a dog! Both Brian and I agree that the dog will have to live outside. What we don't agree on is the breed of the dog.

I grew up with Australian Shepherds and enjoy their personalities.

Brian would prefer a black lab.

What do you think?

Job Hunt

2007-10-24T22:12:00.000-07:00

Wahoo!! I got a job offer! That is a big relief for me. This was from my first on site interview; I've managed to set up 3 on site interviews within a week and a half. Hopefully they all want to make me offers so that I will have a choice of jobs and so that they will bump the starting salary up. Tomorrow I go to my 3rd on site interview and this time Jenny is going to go with me!

We're flying into LAX and noticed that our directions to the site puts us traveling through the fires on our 2 main routes. I'm so glad that Jenny will be with me to help me navigate through LA with possible freeway closures.

Birthdays and Heroes

2007-10-12T08:11:00.000-07:00

I love BIRTHDAYS because it is a time to honor and shower with love the people who are so dear to my heart. It is a time of laughter, of getting together with family and eating cake and ice cream.

The honorary birthday boys this week: Brian and his dad.

His parents came up this week and we went out to dinner with them, Holly's family and his niece Ashley. It was a lot of fun spending time together and celebrating.

Holly (Brian's sister) and her family, Lizzy, Lauren, Greg and Jackson
Brian's Mom and niece Ashley

As I was looking for an appropriate birthday card for Brian, I found the perfect one. Perhaps it wasn't really a birthday card, but it said how I feel about him. The front of the card had a superman-like figure on it with the word "You...". The inside of the card was plain except for 3 words: "are my hero." I've been thinking a lot about heroes since then. I don't think the definition of a true hero is someone who is "faster than a speeding bullet", or who has spider-like characteristics, or who can lift a semi-truck with his little finger. I believe that true heroes are ordinary people who inspire others to be more than they believe they can be.

One of my heroes!

Brian is one of those ordinary people who has the extraordinary ability to love others. He genuinely cares for everyone and is sincerely interested in their individual lives and life history. He is constantly placing everyone else's needs above his own and is always on the lookout for ways that he can help others. I am one of the main recipients of his love and concern which inspires me to try to be a more loving and caring person. I am truly blessed to be married to Brian. He is the love of my life!Brian, Myself and my Dad

Another hero in my life is my Dad. He had an extraordinary work ethic. While growing up, he was always working on one project or another. It was rare to find him just sitting around. He was usually working in one of his gardens (His flower garden was one of the most beautiful in the town we lived in and his vegetable garden was always very productive. Makes me wonder how I got a semi-black thumb.), building something with wood in the basement (Two of my most prized possessions are the head board and entertainment center that he made me.), or adding on to our house. Even when he was extremely ill with cancer, he worked as long as his body would allow. He enjoyed doing a lot of these projects with his children and he instilled in each of us the ability, if not the love of work. This isn't to say that he didn't enjoy playing. He enjoyed riding motorbikes or horses with us as well as camping and hiking, but he also enjoyed good old fashioned work. Although he died two years ago, his love and example live forever in my heart.

Bertha Rosa Furhrer

My Great-Grandmother Bertha Rosa Fuhrer had extraordinary faith. In the 1890's she, her sister Mary and her father were introduced to and accepted the gospel in Switzerland. Soon afterward, both Mary and her father died. The rest of her family were bitterly opposed to the LDS Church and told her that she would either have to stop her association with the church or leave her childhood home, for they would have nothing to do with a "Mormon". Her continued faith supported her in many trials and hardships in Switzerland and then in Utah. Whenever I am discouraged, or think that my trials are too difficult, I try to think of this wonderful ancestor; and I am buoyed up by her example of faith and determination.
I have many heroes in my life, people who are wonderful examples and inspire me continually to be the best that I can. I would like to share just one more. Actually this time my hero is not just one person, but a group of very special people. As some of you know, Brian and I are hoping for the miracle of adopting a child soon. Each birthparent is a hero in my eyes. I am inspired by their extraordinary strength and courage. I am awed by the love that I feel for each of them, although individually I do not know them. I know that for some of you that might not make any sense, but I believe that this love in inspired by the pure and selfless decision of each of these amazing parents. My heart aches for each of them and I wish that I could do something to ease the monstrous weight upon their shoulders. I have realized, though, that the only thing I can do is to plead for help from the one who helps us all, our Heavenly Father.
Who are your heroes?

A ticket!

2007-10-08T05:17:00.000-07:00

I got a traffic ticket on Saturday. This breaks my 10 year no ticket record. I was ticketed for sliding through a stop sign. The last time I was pulled over (about 5 years ago) I got off with just a warning for sliding through a stop sign. - I guess now I can identify a pattern that I can change.

It has been a source of pride for Jenny and I that we have not been pulled over and we have not been in any traffic accidents since we've been married (over 4 years). I think I'm going to do traffic school just so that I can at least have bragging rights that I have a clean record since my no tickets bragging rights are gone now.

Ice Cream

2007-10-04T06:05:00.000-07:00

Brian is:

Plain vanilla - that's a very disappointing result. The main thing that I evaluate ice cream on is what it has added to it - caramel cups, fudge strips, or chocolate covered things. Growing up I couldn't understand how Kent's (my brother-in-law) favorite ice cream was vanilla. After Jenny and I had been married for about a year she brought home vanilla for some root beer floats and I was kind of disappointed - ever since then we haven't bought vanilla.

Jenny is:

I also was a little disappointed at first because I love lots of yummy "stuff" in my ice cream as well, especially caramel. But then I read the description of just plain vanilla, and what do you know, I guess that really is just plain me.

Miracle

2007-10-03T08:12:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday I had the opportunity of going to the General Relief Society Meeting held at the Conference Center. Because of work, it had been a long time since I had been able to listen to the broadcast. While singing the opening hymn I looked around the conference center and was struck with a feeling of awe. Despite the rain and cold weather, I could not see one empty seat. It was an awesome experience to sit beside Katie and Jamian (my sisters), to listen to those inspired words and to feel that wonderful feeling of sisterhood.

Here is one of my favorite quotes from President Monson's talk:
"Sisters, do not pray for tasks equal to your abilities but pray for abilities equal to your tasks. Then the performance of your tasks will be no miracle, but you will be the miracle. Pray earnestly."

I love that last part about us becoming the miracle.

Spelling - A Costly Mistake

2007-09-22T06:22:00.000-07:00

My mom has always told me that I need to improve my spelling and it has always been my worst subject in school. I have improved significantly by trying to correct the misspelled words myself instead of using the spell checker. Jenny also helps me a lot too. This week it may have cost me significantly though.
I made some last minute changes to my resume before going to a job fair (click here to view an edited version of my resume). Since I was going to print it out on resume paper, Jenny didn't have an opportunity to look it over - BIG mistake. I really just changed two lines to about my mission one of which said, "Planed and conducted training meetings." Since "planed" is a real word the spell checker didn't catch my error - hopefully most of the 28 companies I gave my resume to didn't catch it either, but I'm sure some of them did.
When I got home that night it only took Jenny a few seconds to find my error. She showed it to me and made the change. The next morning I had 3 interviews set up so I printed off 3 resumes to replace the ones the interviewers had. As I sat down and placed my resume on the table at my first interview my eyes went right to that line and I saw an uncoverable error saying that I "Pslanned and conducted..." Frustration and anger started to build towards that one line as if that line had been changing on its own and was determined to defy me. Those are not good feeling to have at the first of a job interview. I knew I could try to ignore the mistake and hope it never came up or I could highlight it myself. I chose the second options and then asked if I could bring him a replacement after the interview.
I know this will all turn out ok in the long run. For now I was able to replace all of the resumes of companies I interviewed with. Also, I'm pretty sure I now know the difference between "planed" and "planned." See Mom - I'm still improving!

The Endless Search

2007-09-21T15:08:00.000-07:00

One of the debates that Brian and I have had throughout our marriage is how best to stay healthy and fit. We have tried many things over the last 4 years: running, racquetball, running, hiking, running, lifting weights, running and running. I can't count the number of times we've decided to try running as our fitness routine. I have to admit that I'm the problem for a few reasons.

#1 I have a hard time getting out of bed at 6:00 am on my days off to run.
#2 I don't think just running is very exciting. I prefer running up and down a court dribbling a basketball, or running up and down the field playing football.

SO in our never ending search to stay fit we have decided to try riding bicycles. Brian has a bike that he uses occasionally to get to school and we borrowed my little sister Emilee's bike for me to ride. It's a good thing Brian is an engineer because I think it's been a few years since Emilee has ridden her bike. It was in pretty good condition, but needed some minor repairs.
Brian putting his bike-fixer-upper skills to good use.

Although I was pretty excited, I was also quite worried about that first ride. The reason for my concern? It had been more than 5 years since I had ridden a bike! Of course when I voiced my concern Brian said, "It's just like riding a bike." I wasn't sure if that old adage applied to certified klutzes. But I am proof that it does. I made it back from that bike ride and several others without a scratch.

Babysitting

2007-09-16T16:34:00.000-07:00

Here is a video Jenny made when she was babysitting for my sister. I guess it shows that sometimes kids are pretty easy to entertain. I just have to shake my head at some of the ideas that Jenny comes up with.

Jenny's Family Reunion

2007-09-16T14:07:00.000-07:00

The end of August we headed to Idaho to party with my family. Everyone was able to make it except Amy and Matt and their little Zachary (I guess he's not all that little anymore since he's over 20 pounds and only 4 months old.) I'm looking forward to Christmas when we will all be able to get together and meet Zachary.

Can anyone guess our first activity? Perhaps a hint will help (see below pictures).

Brandon, Katie and Emilee processing and then cooking the apple sauce in the garage.

A gold star to anyone who guessed that we bottled apple sauce. Possibly not the most enjoyable activity; but like they say "many hands make light work." It has been quite awhile since we've worked together on a project which actually made it a lot of fun.

The next day we went up the canyon (some on motorbikes and some in the suburban) where we played games, hung out and enjoyed the beauty of nature.

Chloe giving Uncle B some exercise. She kept saying, "higher Uncle B, higher".
So Ethan decided that he would help Uncle B.
Bennet trying to play chubby bunny with Tootsie Rolls.
We went on a hike to see "hidden" waterfall. Thus named because it was so covered by brush and trees it was impossible to see. Can you see it in the above picture? Neither could we.
Family picture overlooking the valley.
Troy and Mom (Brandon in the background)
Tyson left Katie behind in a cloud of dust. You can see the evidence if you look carefully at her face.
And of course we had to ride horses.

Ethan and I riding Roy.

Troy and BennetBrian riding RoyEmilee and Chloe
It was a lot of fun and I look forward to a continuation in December.

School Begins One Last Time For Brian

2007-09-10T13:07:00.000-07:00

I can't believe how fast this summer has gone. I'm not sure if I'm ready for the rigors of school, homework, papers, tests, etc. I have really enjoyed spending the evenings together with Brian after work, without the worry of homework. Ready or not, though, it has begun.

Exciting news: Brian started his last semester last week. He will graduate with his Master's Degree in Electrical Engineering in December. I think he is excited (I definitely am), though a little nervous about finding a full time job that will support our family. He does have one tentative job offer from the company he did an internship with over the summer. That adds stability and reassurance to that unknown part of our future. He is also planning on looking into other companies and job opportunities as well. I am excited to see what the future holds for us and hoping that I will soon have a reason (full time mommy) to drop down to working only part time.

Not as exciting news: I start school again this week as well. I wish that I could say that I will be done in December with Brian, but alas, that wouldn't be true. I am only one semester behind him, though, and plan on graduating in April. Yippee! (Maybe that is celebrating a little too soon, but I am getting closer to graduation celebration.)

Do we have green thumbs?

2007-09-06T20:43:00.000-07:00

Yeah, I have a green thumb! (I think.) This summer we planted our first garden. One of Brian's friends is renting an apartment with a garden spot behind it and offered to let us plant some vegetables there. He and his wife water the garden and we keep it weed free (pretty easy to do because it is so small). We planted zucchini, squash, potatoes, tomatoes, peppers, kalarabi (we really don't know what this is or what to do with it) and corn. The garden is surrounded by tall trees on 3 sides and so we were worried that nothing would grow because of lack of direct sunlight. (As I look at these pictures, I realize that the garden looks rather sparse but at least there are green plants growing! As some of you are aware, I have a hard time keeping house plants alive. I think I just need to find a plant that tolerates times of drought (when I forget to water it) and flood (when I remember to water it). Does anyone know of such a plant?)

We were pretty sure the zucchini would grow because everyone knows it is so hardy, but were surprised when everything else did pretty well except the zucchini. We planted 8 plants in the upper right corner and sadly none of them survived. We also planted potatoes in the lower right corner, but our friends forgot where we planted them and planted more zucchini and squash over the potatoes. So we did end up having a few zucchini plants survive. When we dug up a potato plant to see how they were fairing, though, there were only 2 tiny little potatoes.

Our tomato plants did very well and we have enjoyed eating some very yummy cherry tomatoes. The bigger tomatoes are still green, but hopefully will ripen soon. The pepper plant has also produced some pretty big green peppers. The corn is really short and thin, but amazingly enough has a few ears of corn. The ears are only about 4 inches off the ground so we’ll see in a few weeks if they are edible.

Here is the kalabari plant that we don’t know what to do with. It grew really well, but does anyone know how you prepare and eat it?

What do our friends and family think of us adopting?

2007-08-16T21:23:00.001-07:00

Well let's see what they reply.

set up

2007-08-13T19:00:00.000-07:00

We just changed our blog address so that our blog will be the same as our email address (brianandjennifer1 at gmail dot com) and our LDS Family Services online adoption profile name at itsaboutlove.org (brianandjennifer1). This will simplify our life a bit.

Family Reunion

2007-08-12T21:27:00.000-07:00

This weekend we had a family reunion up at the ranch with the descendants of my parents. The tough part for me was being there without Jenny (she had to work). It was really difficult for me with out her there. It was great, however, to see everyone and have time to talk with them.

Things I think we should do again next year are:

Take a family picture again (thank you everyone for your participation so I could have an updated photo to post on our online profile)
Greg's Gourmet Breakfast
Some outing/hike (like the hike to the bear cave)
Jared's Star tour (I know there are a lot of constellations/stars that I can't find now)

I thought that people saw more stars after a bright flash :)

Things I think we should change next year:

Have everyone assigned to something except for Mom (and Dad)- Mom was overly stressed about organizing every thing and having it all work out. I noticed that everyone was helping out, but that didn't seem to change Mom's stress level.

Here are some more pictures from the reunion:

You've got to watch your step when you do morning aerobics in the cow pasture :)
Dad playing catch with his grandsonsWho's driving this thing?

Bear at the ranch

2007-08-04T22:43:00.000-07:00

There have been signs at campgrounds near the ranch warning of bears, but this is the first evidence that I've seen. I think that my Dad and nephew (Bryce) just reset this trough at the beginning of the summer.

My Uncle Mike wrote the following about it:
"Aunt Julia Ann and Aunt Neucile were at the ranch in Julia Ann's truck passing by the green trough and looked over and saw this bear walking over to the trough. They stopped and watched. It tested the water with it's paw then took a drink and then climbed in. They had turned the truck engine off and watched it for quite a while. It was not frightened at all and just laid in the water trough. They were upset with themselves for not having a camera but little did they know that there was a motion sensor one strapped to the tree by them that Neucile's grandsons, Luke and Nate, had set. When they left, the bear was still bathing and unconcerned about them."

Hiking Timp

2007-08-04T22:17:00.000-07:00

This weekend we got together with some of Jenny's brothers and sisters and Hiked Mount Timpanogos! It took us about 9 hours. Because we hiked it on a Saturday there were a lot of people there. One hiker recognized me from the Day's of 47 Parade when I petted (is petted the right word?) his dog and talked with him and his wife - amazing memory. I also saw Jubi on the trail (Jubi is LDS Church member from Switzerland who my friend, Ted, worked with in Switzerland and introduced me to after we were home.)

Amazingly Matt and Emilee (Jenny's youngest siblings who thought they might find it too difficult) seemed to come out the best - no blisters and they still had energy at the end. The big downer was that Matt's beautifully carved walking stick got broken. His friend made it for Matt's birthday. One of the best parts was we got about 50 yards away from mountain goats! I've never seen mountain goats before. They reminded me of ponies with bigger chests and more angle to their hind legs.

L to R: Katie, Brandon, Emilee, Jenny, Mathew
Background: Mt. Timpanogos 11700 ft.

Adoption Paper Work is in!

2007-07-12T21:18:00.000-07:00

Jenny turned in our adoption paper work today! We were amazed at how things came together for us. Our case worker was out of town and wanted to approve our photo collage and birth parent letter before we made the 20 copies for the other offices. But amazingly we emailed her everything and she emailed back and only had minor changes. We had a great ward member who did our photo collage on photo shop in exchange for us taking her and her husband out to dinner - there's no way we could have done all of that!Each photo collage page is a 8.5x11 inch picture. We also needed a 4x6 inch picture that represented us so we had our neighbor take this picture a few weeks ago.
I think with projects of this importance one can always find some flaw, but I'm happy with how things came out.
Here is our complete Birth Parent Letter (the online profile is just an adaptation of this document)

Moving the Cows

2007-05-19T21:25:00.000-07:00

We moved the cows from the winter range (the desert) to the summer range (the ranch) this weekend. I don't remember ever moving the cows and having things work out so well. It was amazing. I think the reason why it went well was that we had a lot of people. We had my dad and all his sons, my uncle and all but one of his sons, and my dad's 1st cousin and his grandson plus my nephew and some of my cousin's small boys. We found most of the cows (I think all but 3) on the first day!
One of the best things was when we pushed the cows into the corral we had so many people there that we were able to form a human wall and not one calf got out at the end. Also, on the second day Robert saw 2 cows and calves, but then lost them. Robert had been in the saddle a lot the day before and most of that morning looking for those cows so when I got there I switched him to give him a break. My cousin and found them soon after and drove them the 3 miles to the corral. My cousin and I were able to keep them together the whole way and when we got to the corral the cows were spooked by a horse that was left in the loading pen near the gate to the corral. After we moved the horse the cows went right in - amazingly.
When my cousin and I were done there we tried to meet up with others that were getting the last cow that was far from the corrals. Its calf had a broken leg so we couldn't drive it to the corrals. When we met up with them they had the calf in the back of the truck, but we didn't know where the cow was. Bruce then told us that Robert was following the cow on foot so we set up the cattle trailer in the middle of an open valley with 5 12 foot panels funneling into the trailer.
We had just gotten everything set up and sent out riders to replace Robert when I went to pick up Robert in the truck. I was motioned back when I got to the trees at the edge of the clearing. Everyone hid - I went in the cab of a truck with Bruce's dog (so it would scare the cow). When the cow was in the funnel everyone crashed in and closed the outer panels and the cow jumped right in the trailer. That never happens - usually the cow get too scared of the trailer (or never makes it to the trailer because the dog barks) and it takes 1 or 2 more hours before we get the cow in a corral or near the trailer again. Bruce jokingly said that this must be one of the blessings we received because of Dad's mission. My cousin joked that that's how our ancestors did it in the olden days when every thing just worked - in the days when both dogs, horses and cows were well trained their roles.

Brian Introduction

2007-05-13T21:26:00.000-07:00

So I guess the best way to start is with an introduction. I started this page as a Mother's day present for Jenny. We're using this page to share information about us with friends and family so that people who are considering us a adoptive parents to their children can know more about us. I think that is a big decision and maybe there are other people like me that would want to spend the time to research everything out before hand.

I grew up as the youngest of 8 children and have felt loved by each of them and my parents. My brother's and sister's names in order of age are Marilyn, Christine, Kathy, Barbara, Holly, Bruce and Robert. Each is married and has children so when we get together there are 40 of us including my mom and dad. My dad was a professor of Mathematics for 40 years and has been retired for almost 2 years. My mom is a homemaker and always took a class at the university as her outlet from the kids. My mom and dad just finished an 18 month proselyting mission to England for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

I also served a 2 year proselyting mission speaking German in Switzerland when I was 19 years old. It was a wonderful experience. I enjoyed (and still enjoy) learning German and talking with others about what they think about God.

I currently am a full time student and am studying to get a master's degree in electrical engineering. With that degree I have mainly studied about light, but have also studied micro fabrication principles. I am currently doing an internship with a company that does communication systems - like fiber optic cables and radio antennas for telephone, video and internet. Professionally I hope to get an MBA after obtaining some technical experience. With the MBA and technical experience I hope to contribute to developing telecommunications throughout the world.

That is some of where I've been and where I hope to go. I look forward to comments posted by family and friends. I hope that we will grow closer together with sharing this information.