Happy New Year's!!!

Still can't believe this year is over. It seems like it just started! It's been an interesting year, that's for sure. Good things, not so good things, fun times, sad times, this year had it all! It seems like the older you get, time goes by faster. So, I definately thought that at 25 years old, my life would be a little different but I've finally learned that although making plans and goals is good, they almost always change and that's okay. Change isn't a bad thing! It can be hard at times but it's an opportunity to learn and grow as a person. My favourite thing this year, hands down has to be my nephew Brody. I LOVE him so much! He's just so much fun. I love spending time with him and playing with him. He's such a great baby! He's growing up so fast. I'm gonna miss him so much when I'm at school next year but he promised he'd Skype me every night. My second favourite thing from this year would be my trip to California with Natalie, Steve, and Lorelai. They're such great friends. I had so much fun with them and meeting their families. I wish I could go every year with them! It would be a great tradition. There are so many things that I enjoyed about this year. I got to spend the Summer at school and live with one of my bestfriends and we had some great times! I was in a relationship that ended up not being so great but I learned SOOOOOO much about myself that I have to look at it as a good learning experience. Being back at home for the Fall, I was able to be with Family. My parents sold their house (we'd lived there for 19 years), I worked at a movie theatre (loved it!) and tons of other things that were good. There were also things that were hard to get through but it's better to write about the things that were good, cause that's what we remember in the end. Of course we don't forget that we had hard times and it's good to remember how we got through them but we won't forget that we did have hard times so we don't always have to write about them all. As this year comes to an end, of course I've thought about all the things I would like to do next year. I've set some goals for myself that involve school, and work, and family. I've set smaller goals this year so that I won't forget what I need to work on. My main goal for 2009 is to set smaller goals and not worry about things I can't control.
I wish everyone a safe and Happy New Year's!!! Have fun with friends and family! Tell the people you love that you love them! Make this year a great year!!!

Merry Merry Christmas!!!

So, I guess this is Christmas! This year has been a little different as we moved out of our house just 10 days ago that we had lived in for 19 years. It doesn't quite feel like Christmas but it is still Christmas because friends and family are around and that's the important thing. So, I'd like to wish everybody a Very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year's. I hope everyone is safe driving around in the snow! Don't drive if you're drinking! Be Good!!! Remember that the Christmas Season is all about celebrating the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ. He's the reason that we're all here and even if you don't believe in Christ, I'm willing to bet that you can feel that there is something special about this time of year, so enjoy it with friends and family!

Change Again!

So, it was time for change again! I'm gonna colour it again soon but for now I just got it cut. They took off a lot! It may not look like it but it feels like it! All my hair is gone and I like it! I thought I would be totally devastated but I like it! It's easier to look after! I look horrible in the pictures but thought they'll do for now!

Santa....I KNOW HIM!!!

So, lastnight I was working at the movie theatre and in walks Santa! It was really him! and I'm all, "Santa, I know him!" So, of course everyone busts out laughing! The guy standing infront of him in line was totally floored and when he got up to the counter he totally forgot what movie he wanted to see! It was pretty funny! I got to help Santa and he came to buy a gift card! He was still dressed as Santa and he talked like he was actually Santa! It was pretty cool! So, if you're in doubt you can now rest assured knowing that he really is real! Merry Christmas!

Home Sweet Home no more!!!

Last night was my last night in our house! I moved all my things into my new place, and even though I'm headed back to school in a few weeks, it's all a little sad! We were in this house for almost 19 years so it's natural to be a little sad that we're leaving after all this time. My parents found a new place in Coquitlam but won't be able to move until February so they'll be in a hotel until then. Things are going good though and all the moving is almost done...for now atleast! I'll be moving again come January when I head back to school. You'd think that I would be used to moving, I've moved about 20 times in the past 6 years! The joys of being at school and on a mission! Well, I guess it hasn't been too bad! I still don't like packing and unpacking and the whole process of moving, it's just not that fun! It's almost all done though, so I'm looking forward to that!

Brody's first sleep over!

Brody had his first night away from home last Friday! It was so much fun to have him here! I loved it! I love that Joe and Laura let me take him whenever I want. It gives them a break and it's good for Brody to be around family and get used to other people. He only woke up once (it was about 5am) and he was up for about an hour. I changed him and fed him and he got a bit fussy but I always just talk to him (and not in baby talk, I hate that!) I talk to him like he totally can understand me! LOL! and I told him that he had to be quiet so he wouldn't wake up Nanny or Papa! I sang him back to sleep and then he didn't wake up again until 10am. He did so great! I'm so proud of him. I'm gonna miss him soooooooooooooo much when I go back to school in January but it's not forever and I'll just have to Skype them everyday so I can see my little man!

Movin' on out!

My parents finally sold the house! We need to be out of the house by December 15th! Sucks, I know!!! They amazing part is that they actually found a new place in Coquitlam but the down side is that they can't move in until February. The people said that if they can find a place earlier then they'll move out so we can move in earlier. That would be nice but for now my parents will be in a hotel in Langley and I'll be moving in with my brother and sister in law which I don't mind at all cause I'm pretty much there all the time anyways! I'm headed back to school in January too so things have been crazy around here with packing and getting things organized and ready for the big move. Hope all goes well. Saturday the 13th will be the main moving day so that things aren't left to the last minute. It's a little sad as we've been in this house for almost 19 years now. There's a lot of memories here so of course being sad is normal but I keep telling my Mom (who is the main water works around here anytime you mention how sad it is that we're moving after all this time) it's not the actual place you live in that makes it a home, it's the feeling you create so we can have a home anywhere! Change is good...sometimes! It will be fun to decorate! I get to help picking out new things and stuff like that so I look forward to that. Well, I'll keep upto date with how the move goes!

Gotta love a free movie!

So, my job at a movie theatre definately has its perks! The best one being the free movie part! To date, I've only seen 4 movies so far so I've been watching about one a week. The first one I went to was 'Changeling', Laura went with me. It was great! I really enjoyed it. Of course I then went to see 'Twilight' and I took Laura again. Not bad but not that great either. I then took my Mamma to see 'Australia' and Laura came with us. I LOVED it! I don't know why it got such bad reviews??? It was Hugh Jackman for almost 3 hours! Who wouldn't love that?! Tonight I took Debbie to see 'Four Christmases', which wasn't as good as I thought it would be but it was pretty funny. So, I'm pretty easy to please when it comes to viewing movies. I go to see a movie only expecting to be entertained so I usually leave satisfied. It takes a lot for me to actually hate a movie. There are a handful of movies that I strongly dislike, but for the most part I do enjoy most movies. I'm really gonna miss my free movie viewing when I head back to school in January, but I'll keep enjoying them for now.

Twilight's over!

So, the craziness of Twilight came on opening weekend and it stayed for all of 2 days and then it left. I'm not surprised though, it wasn't that good! It wasn't horrible but it wasn't good. It was pretty much right in the middle. The good thing about it was that it stayed pretty true to the book. Very little was changed in the film adaptation. The obvious condensing of things happened due to the need of getting enough important events in the book into the movie. There were moments that definately brought on the cringe factor! A lot of lines were actually pulled from the book. The number one noteworthy horrible line (and it wasn't from the book) was when Bella was talking to Edward in the cafeteria and she says to him, "your mood swings are kinda giving me whiplash". LAME!! I couldn't stop laughing! Anyways, since no more books are to be written (which I still think is a bad move on Meyer's part) the mania will hopefully subside until the next movie will be released which I believe will be in 2010. So, until then.....

Twilight Madness!!!

So, I can actually blog about this because I have read all 4 books and the unfinished 5th rough draft, and because I'm working at a movie theatre and we are currently selling advanced tickets to the first movie which comes out next week. First, the advanced tickets are selling out like crazy and even the advanced showing that is the day before the movie is officially released is almost sold out. So, now for my opinions....just so we have one thing clear, I LOVE (and I mean love love love love) Vampire mythology! I always have since I can remember. So, with that said, I went in with an open mind. I started reading Twilight while I was in California in August (yes Steve, I read while on vacation!) I actually enjoyed the first book, even though it puts an entire new spin on the vampire world. I found the second book (New Moon) was excrutiating to get through. It was drawn out and I had to force myself to finish it. The third book (Eclipse) wasn't as bad as the second but not as good as the first and don't even get me started on Breaking Dawn (the fourth book). I found each book should have been read over a few more times before being published, it was filled with grammatical errors (and I know I'm not perfect with my writing skills but I'm not a published author and even I caught them!) I found that most of my problems were with the final book. There was just way too much crap! It was just too mushy and too much focus on their sexual/physical relationship. We get it, they like to be "alone"! Enough with the writing about it already! And the whole issue with the 5th rough draft being leaked onto the internet and Stephenie Meyers long drawn out pitty party about how she felt betrayed and therefore will not finish and publish the 5th book....come on....get over yourself lady! After I read the letter she posted on her website, I was like, "For Reals?" Crap happens and she has a huge fan base for which she should be grateful for, she just needs to finish the freakin' thing. Ridiculous!! I don't hate the Twilight series, I was just a little disappointed with it. This could have been an amazing story of love and sacrifice but I didn't feel that at all. So, now I will reveal something that might garnish a few haters towards me...I am totally a Jacob fan! Sign me up for Team Wolf! I'm totally serious! The guys a huge wolf...that's HOTT!! I feel that if Edward truly loved Bella, she would have stayed human. Obsession is what became of both Edward and Bella and that is not love. Obsession consumes the people involved and it burns and burns until there is nothing left. I could go on about this cause I really believe that Edward was selfish and Jacob is who she belonged with but I'll stop cause I don't hate Edward. With that said, it's not like this was a horrible reading experience, it could have been better but it wasn't horrible. And now, the day approaches us where the world will be able to view the Twilight movie and so I will be writing about that soon as I am currently working at the movie theatre while I'm at home so that should be an interesting experience next week when the masses (mostly teenage girls) come in to see this first installment, I'll be writing about that. Until then, I was gonna leave you with a few images of Twilight merchandise that made me laugh but they won't download properly so I can post them at the end of this blog, only at the beginning and it's making me annoyed so maybe next time.

Trick or Treat!!!

We had the cutest little trick-or-treater this year! Brody was a skunk for Halloween, and he was so freakin' cute! The funniest thing was that he would not smile while he had his costume on, it was almost like he was embarassed by it so he just wouldn't smile. He had his serious face on and he just wasn't having it! He was still cute though so we took lots of pictures anyways. Next year he'll be almost a year and a half old for Halloween so I wonder what he'll be then?

Free Movies...Here I Come!

So, I finally got another part time job!! I've been doing house cleaning which is going really good. I have a few clients and I make $20 an hour which is really nice but I was still looking for something else I can do as well and I found it! It's the perfect job! The Colossus Movie Theatre in Langley! I have training on Saturday November 1st! Free movies! Yay! I'm really excited. I'll probably be doing a lot of things, I guess whatever they need me to do. I'm really happy though and I'll let everyone know how it goes. I really needed this job though or I most likely wouldn't be going back to school in January. I just wish the Canadian dollar would stop dropping, that would be nice!

So, pretty much my favourite thing to do right now while I'm at home is to go and spend time with my nephew Brody. I think he's just the cutest thing ever! I just love him so much. It's been so much fun every time I baby sit him and it allows Joe and Laura to go and do stuff without having to worry about Brody! He is such a great baby! He's so happy and content! It's so easy to make him smile and laugh but the second he sees the camera he stops smiling cause he's so enthralled by the camera! This makes it really difficult to get a cute picture of him actually smiling but it's fun to try. I watched him lastnight so I had fun taking pictures of him, these are 2 of my favourite ones. I'm sure there will be a ton more! I'll be sad when I go back to school in January. I know that I already have neices and nephews (Hey! I was born an Aunt!!) but growing up with them all being around the same age as me made it more like having siblings. Now that I'm older and I can actually enjoy being an Aunt, it's way more fun! And let's face it, I'm a pretty cool Aunty Em!! I love my little Moose!

A Little Change!

So, the other day I saw on Skip's facebook that he got his hair cut and I felt all inspired! So, I decided that I needed a hair cut too and then after I got my hair cut I decided it needed a new colour. During my Summer semester, Jaymi highlighted my hair and it turned out really good. I loved it! I like having lighter hair in the Summer and then having darker hair for the Winter. Plus, I just love playing with my hair colour. So, I got it cut and then coloured it. The colour is a little darker than I thought but my hair takes colour really well (it looks black) but it always fades to the colour I wanted in about a week. My Mom strongly dislikes my hair when it's dark but I love it so as long as I like it...guess that's all that matters! Change is good....sometimes!

P.N.E. and end of Summer!

The P.N.E. started this year on Saturday August 17th. It's the 17 day fair down in Vancouver which happens every year at the end of the Summer. We have a donut trailer and a hot dog trailer which are both in the PNE. This year Jaymi, Baylei and Amber came up to work in the donut trailer. Jaymi and I worked the day shift and Baylei and Amber were on the night shift so we didn't get to see much of them but we crossed paths every once in a while. I also had another friend of mine (Skip) fly out to work. When I was away from Temple Square for 4 months I seved in the Texas Dallas Mission and he was serving his mission there and he was one of the Elder's I served with while I was there. He got here on Friday August 22nd and flew back home on September 2nd. I loved having him here, even though we didn't get to do much 'cause we were either working or being tired from working. It was fun to have him here. He worked the day shift with Jaymi and I. Now the Summer is over and the girls have gone back to Rexburg for the Fall semester and Skip has gone back to Provo. Sad day! I'm stuck here for the remainder of the year. I'll head back to school in January and finish out school but for now I'm here at home to make some money and get some bills caught up. Isn't it just wonderful being an adult and having responsibilities!!! Gotta love it.

California Adventure!

I flew out of Spokane on Tuesday July 29th, right into the Oakland airport! My friends Natalie and Steve (and their little Lorelai) went to California to visit family and invited me to come along, so I did! The first few days we were at Steve's parents house and we just hung out and relaxed. Friday August 1st we went to a cabin with his 2 older sisters and their kids. The cabin was about 2 hours away and it was amazing, it belonged to some friends of one of his older sisters. This was like a mansion cabin! We stayed there until Sunday afternoon and then headed back to his parents house. On that Monday we headed out to L.A. to stay with Natalie's older brother and his wife and son. It was so much fun being with them. Her brother Rich bought us park hopper passes to Disney Land and California Adventure Park so we spent Wednesday at Disney Land and Thursday at California Adventure Park. I really don't know how any one could spend more than 2 days there! It was crazy and hot and we were so tired and grouchy by the time we got home but it was still fun! I got a little red from the sun but it was worth it. We then relaxed and hung out by the pool and watched Michael Phelps kick trash at the Olympics! Canada is definately out of their element at the Summer Olympics....good thing the Winter ones are coming in 2 years! We drove back to Steve's parents house the next Monday and then spent Tuesday in San Fransisco which was really fun. Natalie and I got to go see The Dark Knight the afternoon before I flew back to Spokane and it was amazing! All in all, I loved my vacation in California! It was perfect, we got to relax and just hang out but we also went and did stuff when we wanted. We stayed up late and slept in! It was perfect! I was soooo sad to leave, especially since I won't be down at school this Fall and it's their last semester so they won't be there when I go back to school in January. Sad day! I couldn't ask for a better friend. Natalie is the greatest, we just have so much fun together. We have NEVER even had a disagreement, we just get along so great and we have so much when we're together and we don't even have to be doing anything! She's the best! and I love my little Lorelai, she's just the cutest little girl with such a spunky personality, she always keeps us laughing. Steve's pretty cool too I guess! Although, he's not too fond of the camera! He hated the fact that we wanted to take pictures of everything and he was pretty grumpy about it, but he continued to buy us batteries for it when we needed more so I think he secretly liked all the pictures! I was sad to leave but I'm sure I'll see them soon. Bye for now California!

Next Stop...Pemberton!

So, my next adventure was in Pemberton, B.C. We took our donut trailer up there for the Pemberton Festival which was July 25th-July 27th. Jaymi came up there with me to work, we drove up there the Wednesday night before it started to help my sister finish setting up. We were able to have a 5th wheel trailer up there and it was right behind the donut trailer and it was air conditioned so that was a nice place to hang out when we weren't working in the donut trailer. Jaymi and I had to leave early Sunday night so we weren't able to see Cold Play but we got to see everyone else which included, Tom Petty and the Heart Breakers, Nine Inch Nails, Jay Z, The Tragically Hip, and a bunch of other smaller bands. Besides the issue with the portable showers and porta potties, it wasn't that bad, but hopefully they make some changes if they're gonna do it again next year. My 25th Birthday also happened to be on July 25th! I had to work of course but it wasn't that bad, I got a cake and a card! My brother in law also bought me a cool pemberton hoodie and my Mom and Jaymi bought me a new camera! So, not that bad at all! The reason Jay and I had to leave early was so that we could head back to Spokane. She needed to be back by dinner time on Monday and I was flying out of Spokane on Tuesday night to go to California! The drive from my house to Spokane is about 7 hours so we got back to my house around midnight on Sunday, packed up the car, took a quick nap, made our usual stop at Tim Horton's right before we hit the border and we were on our way!

Lessons Learned!!

Well, Summer semester started on April 21st! this year. I went down early so I could go to my mission reunion which was a little weird 'cause there were many people there I didn't know but I also stayed in Salt Lake for a week to visit with Sariah (former roommate). I then drove all the way back to Rexburg and stayed with Natalie (another former roommate). It was nice to just relax and visit with friends right before the semester started. I was able to move into my apartment Saturday April 19th which is definately not one of my most favourite things to do as I just hate unpacking. For this semester I lived in Royal Crest #316 with Jaymi and Baylei and we got 3 new roommates who happened to all be freshmen. 2 of them were from California and one was from Las Vegas. It was an interesting semester filled with roommates taking stuff that didn't belong to them and all the other things girls go through! Boyfriends and late nights!!! Good times! We also came to the conclusion that we were no longer allowed to date any boys with the name "Ryan"!! I had some good classes where I learned so much and then there were those classes that really seemed like just empty work but I made it through! (of course with a little help from the friends). Finally it was all over and time to head home! Gotta give props to my saving grace this semester though.....Natalie! What would I have done without you? and of course you're gonna be gone come January! So rude!! As some of you know I also started seeing someone this semester, now things were good at first but then it didn't turn out so well. I don't really wanna go into details cause there's a lot of details but let's just say that I learned so much from this experience so I can't be mad about it. Sometimes when you're in a relationship that's not so good, you know it needs to be over but for some reason you hang onto it, even when all your friends keep telling you how much of an idiot he is! I knew this all along but I needed to realize a few things on my own, so I say thank you to the 2 friends that never put down the situation but only told me that I deserved the best. Sometimes you just need to come to terms to things at your own pace and always having other people make the situation worse does not help. In the end though, I made the right decision and I got to learn a huge amount along the way so I guess it could have been worse. Lesson Learned!

So, I'm officially really bad at keeping up with this whole blogging thing. I've just been a little busy so I've slacked off a bit but I will try to keep up now 'cause I do follow a few of my friends blogs and I hate when they don't update so I'll try better now. Well, I guess it's time for an update but it will happen with a few blogs as I've been pretty busy the past few weeks. The updating will get done in the next few days so just be patient.

Home for the Rodeo and a Baby!

So, I decided that I needed to go home the third weedend in May and I'm so glad I did! The origianl reason was so that I could work the Donut Trailer as it was at the Cloverdale Rodeo and I needed some extra moneys and Debbie was super nice and paid for my gas to come home. I didn't really give her a choice though, I told her she could either pay for me to fly home or to drive home...just kidding! I would NEVER tell her what to do! She is a pretty cool sister though! Couldn't ask for a better one! So, I went and decided to bring Jaymi and Baylei with me (roommates) they worked for us last year at the PNE so they're pretty much life employees now. We decided to leave on a Wednesday and we drove straight through (14 hours) and we stayed until Sunday. So, another reason I wanted to come home was to see the Baby that Laura was supposed to have by this time as she was due the week before but he decided to stay inside for a little while longer (I like to think that he knew his Aunty Em was coming so he waited just for me). Only Debbie and Amie knew we were coming home so it was a surprise to everyone else, it was also cool cause I was able to be there for Joe's Birthday. Well, Laura felt bad cause she said that she really felt that the baby wouldn't come for about another week, and with my luck he would most likely come the day I left. So, I prayed like I've never prayed before! I had a good talk with Heavenly Father and I says, "Heavenly Father, I'm always gone when important things happen in this family, I miss weddings, and funerals, and births cause I've been at school or on a mission and for once, I would like to be here for something important." and then I says, "If this baby is healthy, then please send him down!" Guess it worked cause little Brody was born on that Saturday and I was the first one in our family to hold him! We went to the hospital to see him and I just couldn't put him down! It's amazing how you can love someone so much that you just met! He was 10lbs, 10 oz. Kid's a Moose! But he's my little moose! Infact, that's what I'm gonna call him! I'm soooo grateful that I got to be there when he was born, I know it might not seem like big deal but it was to me. Now I'm just so excited to get back home and play with my little Moose!

So... I totally forgot my sign in name and never bothered to look it up. That is why I haven't blogged in forever. But, since there is so much to catch up on I finally took the time to remember/look for my sign in name and I will try my best to catch up on things. It might take me a few entries to get all caught up as I like to use each entry for something specific. Right now I'm half way through my Summer semester. Can I just say that this semester is totally kicking my trash! I am tired all the time. My goal this semester was to get an on campus job but that hasn't happened cause there is just not enough time in the day. I know that some people can do it- school, and work, and life and so on but I really don't know how they manage cause I'm barely hanging on. Prettty much my life is school and homework. I know it's not an excuse but that's all I can manage for now. I was finding a little bit of time for a certain guy but that's a whole other entry cause it didn't end so well but it was a great learning experience. I wouldn't say that I hate my classes but there are a few I strongly dislike. One class I do like this semester is my Education Psychology class. I'm taking it with 2 of my roommates and it's just an awesome class. Our teacher is pretty much the coolest and the 3 of us just feed off of eachother when we're in class and we pretty much entertain our fellow students. Our class size is rather small which is actually really nice cause we're all getting to know each other and we're actually becoming friends so it's been a great experience so far. When we see each other on campus, we actually talk to each other. Unlike other classes where you see one of your fellow classmates and you know that they know they know you but they totally act like they don't. LAME!!! Anyways, this semester is half way done and I'm feeling a little overwhelmed with all the work I need to catch up on so that's what I've been trying to do this past week. Things are okay for now, I'm barely hanging in there but I'm okay. Thank goodness for friends and roommates that help out along the way to make the load a little lighter. Well, I will go for now as I need to think about eating something for dinner and do some more work. Until next time.....

A Prophet of God.

Gordon B. Hinckley was born on June 23, 1910, in Salt Lake City. He spent 46 years in service as a leader in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 12 of which as the 15th President. He traveled to 60 countries, dedicated 95 of the 124 temples, some on sites that he himself had surveyed and selected. President Hinckley was definately a modern Prophet for the people, making Mormonism more familiar to the public and more accepted in the Christian fold. On March 12, 1995 he was ordained as the 15th President and Prophet of the Church, the same year he issued a proclomation on the family. Of all his accomplishments in this life, and the spiritual giant that he was, I feel that one of his greatest traits was the love in his heart. He loved the people of the church, he loved the people not in the church, he loved the youth. He taught patience, love, and charity. He taught the importance of family, and the sacredness of motherhood, and he loved the Savior. Around 7pm on Sunday January 27, 2008 President Gordon B. Hinckley passed away in his home surrounded by family. His death is a loss to the world, as he was an amazing man and leader. One of his greatest messages was that our lives should be the symbol of our faith, just as his very life was a symbol of faith to us. Personally, I never got to shake his hand like I always wanted to but I did see him many times while I served my mission on Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah. It made me sad when I had heard that he passed away but then a smile came to my face as I realized that he was reunited with his beloved sweetheart who passed away in April of 2004 and had been waiting patiently to see him again. What a wonderful gift it is to have a living Prophet on the earth, and even though President Hinckley will be greatly missed, instead of being sad, we should celebrate his life. So, here's to the reunion that just took place in heaven just a few days ago!

Who told you, you were having a girl???

It was way back in October, we were all at the table for our Thanksgiving dinner (Canadian duh!) and my brother asked my Dad if he had quit smoking yet and then said he needed to quit so he could be here when his grandchild was born. We were all like, "what!!!". I guess that was his cool way of letting us know that he and my sister in law were finally gonna have a baby. The week before Christmas they had an ultra sound done and found out they were having a girl! Yay! They picked out a name, painted the nursery, and Laura even bought a Juicy Couture diaper bag. Last Saturday they took both sets of parents to their 3D ultra sound. The technician asked if they knew what they were having and they of course replied, "it's a girl" (cause that's what they were told) a few minutes later she replied, "who told you you were having a girl?? Cause...it's a boy!!" Laura, who was quite happy she was infact having a girl and not a boy said, "SHUT UP! OH MY GOSH! SHUT UP! SHUT UP! I DON'T BELIEVE YOU! OH MY GOSH! OH MY GOSH! PROVE IT! PROVE IT CAUSE I DON'T BELIEVE YOU! She then proceeded to show them that it was infact a boy with all his boy parts. So, baby Annabelle Ava Brown is no more, and for now we just call him baby Joe cause they haven't picked out a boy name yet (they've thought about Davis or Brody so far but I hope they keep brainstorming). Moral of the story...unless they're 100% positive, they should just not tell you! Good thing they painted the room a neutral colour! Can't wait to meet ya baby Joe!

PS. this is the coolest baby 3D picture ever! He totally looks like his Dad! LOL!

Don't Let it Snow!

I really do love the white stuff, I'm not a hater. Everything looks all pretty when it's covered in snow, especially early in the morning when it has just fallen and kids haven't played in it yet so it's all perfect. But enough is enough! If people could actually drive in it then that would be another story but with one inch of snow people all of a sudden forget how to drive and there's accidents everywhere. I mean, the tow companies probably love it cause it's good for business! At least I'm at home right now where people actually believe in salting the roads unlike the city of Rexburg which has a firm belief in red rock (which is a waste of time and money). My solution to this madness is heated roads. The snow wouldn't stick to the roads, they would just be a little slick from the water which is a lot better then being icy! Seing as how that's not likely to happen any time soon, just gotta suck it up! It could be worse, like the rest of Canada where it's usually

minus 30 degrees celsius. I guess I should be happy that I live in the Province of perpetual rain. I do love the rain! and it's a lot easier to drive in! Here's a view of the freshly fallen snow from my front door looking down the street. Hope it doesn't fall again!

A Star is Born.

Kayden David Alexander Boyd was born on October 11th, 2007. Weighing in at 7lbs. 10oz. 51cm. Kayden (the name was suggested by me of course!) is my great nephew, son to my nephew Chris and his fiance Shawna. He is the first boy great grandson for us, as well as the first grandson on both sides of his family. Kayden is the spitting image of Chris but he difinately has Shawna's eyes. Chris, Shawna, and Kayden live in Edmonton, Alberta but they spent Christmas 2007 with us. Kayden was blessed at church on Sunday December 30th, 2007. This picture is of him in his blessing outfit with his special white blessing blanket that his great great auntie Heather bought especially for him. What an amazing gift family is, even when we're all driving each other crazy. It was so nice to have them visit for Christmas, we already miss him and wish they didn't live so far away.

Do all Dogs really go to Heaven?

So, on the evening of Thursday January 3rd, we had to put our little dog down. She was almost 18 years old. What a sad event that was. She was the only dog that we had from birth to death so it was sad. She was getting old though and the past few years for her had been rough as she kept throwing her back out but she hung on 'till the bitter end. She had stopped eating a few days before and we didn't want her to starve so we knew it was time. Of course I had to be the one to take her to the vet for them to put her down cause no one else would do it. On the 15 minute drive out to Langley I found myself shedding a few tears. You see, Tiki hated the car. Anytime she found herself in a vehicle she would whine and cry, she just didn't like it very much and sometimes she would make herself sick with anxiety. A little strange for a small dog as most love going for a car ride but not our little Tiki. But, that night I wrapped her in a blanket and put her on my lap and drove to the vet and she didn't make a sound. It was almost like she knew it was time to go and she was okay with it. So, I shed those tears while saying to myself, "Why am I crying, it's just a dog". But, this little dog was a good dog, she was very loving and very loyal and pretty well behaved (except for that one time she went missing all night and then came home a little preggers) Any who, after talking to my friend later that night she helped me to realize that's it's probably not healthy to be one of those crazy people obsessed with their dog who pretty much thinks of them as a real person and dresses them up and has their own stroller, etc. (you get the picture) but it is okay to be sad when you've had a dog for as long as we had Tiki. So, here's to you my four legged friend...you were a great little doggie for those 18 years. We will miss you! Hope you found your way to doggie heaven. Have fun playing with Chevy! and you better be waiting for me when I get up there!

Another Year Older and Possibly Wiser too!

So, it's finally 2008. WOW! and that's an understatement! Where does the time go? I have been home from my mission for almost 2 years now and it feels like only yesterday. Christmas is finally over and I am happy for that. I just wasn't feeling the Christmas thing this year. I'm thinking that it had something to do with the fact that I'm not married and I have no kids and I just got irritated by all the happy people around me. I mean, I'm fine with being single but sometimes it's just annoying cause of course I want to have a family and be married but it will happen when it's supposed to but that doesn't mean that other people won't stop bothering you about it. Oh well. Anyways, I'm still at home. I was supposed to go back to school this semester but my mom is not doing well in the health department so I've taken another semester off to stay at home and help but I should be heading back to Idaho in April...can't wait for that. I've had too much time off now and I'm feeling antsy to get back and finish school once and for all. It's time.