summer in Utah

We've been in Utah for almost 3 weeks getting out of the AZ heat 

and avoiding living in a construction zone with house remodel stuff

Driving to Utah without a husband to help was not so fun but we made it!

We are getting ready to go back and I found some pics that my dad took on his computer.

Benny is so big! At 2 months he was 15.3 lbs today he is 17lbs even-- 5 days shy of 3 months!

Definitely my biggest baby so far! He is a little man in a babies body!

 Pioneer Day in Scera Park

Me and Alison made tons of water balloons and the kids went crazy- boys against girls!

Lily getting James in the face!

 Celebrated an early 3rd birthday for Max with cousin Britney!

All he wanted was a remote control car with a flashlight!

James is always the funny guy.

My dad tried to take some pics of the boys, of course James didn't want to hold still

24th

{ this is us! }

This morning I woke up at 4:30 am to feed the baby.

 Being wide awake in bed I typically start playing with my iphone to see whats new for the day. I ran across the term "Mormon Bachlorette" and was intrigued so I kept reading and clicking! (Google it for yourself if you'd like- pretty interesting.) 

Anyway, the corresponding links led me to wedding blogs and of course wedding flowers which I love. ( I start a business at least once a week inside my head.) I loved looking at all the new couples and their shiny outfits and smiles. A wedding dream world I can easily get caught up in!

Then Rob rolled over in bed - by this time I was on full blown internet searches on the computer in our room.  " Guess what day it is today?" ha said, 

"Hmmm?"

"It's our anniversary today!"

"What?! your right....."

My thoughts led me in all different directions. We were supposed to be driving to California tonight for a week and a half of family friends and SanFrancisco Anniversary fun while family watched kids at "Grandma Camp." But due to Grandpa Claude being really ill, Myrna's Dad being ill, and our House closing getting pushed further and further back we had to put our plans on hold.  I had been so busy with the paperwork and decisions on this house that I FORGOT.

I was then overwhelmed by the fact at how normal our family felt after looking at all the fancy blogs. Good Normal though. The kind of Normal I wanted to aspire to 6 years earlier, the kind that brought peace deep inside.  Ironic I was searching weddings on our wedding day 6 years ago.  Looking at new couples, then seeing the contrast all around me of toast crust, dirty diapers, and toys all over the floor.  I pulled out my wedding album to show the kids pictures. But the fancy photography almost seemed dull compared with the beauty in the room - happy children around me, a life that we have CREATED!

We have been full blown- BUSY since our new baby- with no time for thinking about "me" or sometimes even "we."But IT FEELS GOOD! The kind of busy that is fun and never dull.  What precious Gems I have been blessed with since we have been married.  

I looked at our beautiful kids- being greeted by a smile and coo from Benny- Max being locked into his chair at the kitchen table because he cant be trusted with food and fast legs- James smiling and curled up on the couch. These kids are beautiful and amazing- always having something interesting to say- and they make me smile and laugh a lot.

My friend Amber had written down inspiring words at our temple ceremony. I had kept the paper in the back of my wedding book with a temple handout the sealer gives everyone- generic council. 

As I read the words I realized that I had forgotten some council and maybe could do better in some areas.  As a family and as a couple though I know that we have been doing our best but made a resolve to do even better--- and that felt good- no shame, just excitement to think of things differently, do it, and then wait to see what blessings come our way.

Instead of a big trip, or a fun blog post with all my shiny wedding pictures, I wanted to share those words of council below. I think they were ment for us-- but also ment for ALL COUPLES!! 

We have had our fair share of fights, disagreements, and struggles in our short 6 yrs but we have also had great fun too. When the negative seems to out weight the positive, I know that it is our commitment to commitment that has made all the difference. Commitment means some difficult things like forgiveness, compassion, team work, and swallowing our pride.

As long as we stay committed to commitment then there will be many more years to come. Lots more shiny Gems and great memories to be made.

So no trip this year

Maybe not even dinner out

Lots of diapers and naps today

but, a spiritual uplift that our family will benefit from for a long time!

More Pictures

As promised more House Pictures!  

We were supposed to close tomorrow but now another extension has been filed.

Arghhh

Anyway it should be ours before July 1st. 

It is a HUD home so there is a lot of extra paperwork.

It needs to be fixed up with new carpet paint fixtures etc...

So consider these the BEFORE pictures......

Happy Packing to us!

Benny

One Month Stats:

12 pounds

24 inches

Q-T-Pie!!

He is my real life little doll. 

Cant get enough of him.

Rob's Mom Janness with the boys

We've had lots of help - a whole month of it between my Mom, Janness, and Rob's works PTO.

I've been on my own for a week now! I was super nervous but every day gets better.

The casualties this week while I've been asleep (destroyed by the 2 yr old): Fridge Lock broken, DVD cord cut up with kitchen shears, drape panel with same shears, box of strawberries, couch pillow pink from strawberries, chocolate syrup bottle (thank goodness it was on the kitchen table), multiple bags of crackers smashed on the floor and scattered everywhere. 

Luckily no body parts have been involved!!

We are also adding this addition to our family! 

Darling Craftsman with a reading nook in the stairwell! 

My favorite part of the house by far!

We are supposed to close in a few weeks. I know--so much for NOT buying a house and planting ourselves here but I guess we are! Wish us luck!!

Fresh Out of the Oven

Benjamin Robert 

May 2, 2011

4:04 am

 A few days before our little guy came 

 Fresh out of the oven!!

9lbs 4 oz. 21 inches

 Benny gets to meet Blue Doggy

 Food! even hospital food--- give it to me!!

On our way home

Ive been meaning to post some pics of the Baby but we have camera cord problems so I have finally caved in and am just putting MOBILE pics on here!  

We love little Ben he is so healthy and strong- a miracle!! He was weighed yesterday and was 10 lbs 7 oz already! I feel like  I have a 2 month old compared to my other kids!  I FINALLY have my dark haired baby too! I hope he stays dark that is!....

(Yes-- I am typing this while feeding at 4 am!)

I wanted to do a natural birth- no induction and no pain meeds!! So with some meditation, hypo birthing playing in my ears, lamaze 101 (and anything else I could read for that matter) tucked away in my little brain, I drank my orange juice castor oil concoction at 41 wks and I was on my way into labor!!! It was so quick and fast!! I fell asleep at 11:00 pm the night before thinking I might be feeling regular contractions. I woke up at 1:30 am when my 2 year old had to pee. The contractions were regular! I was still having them! At 2:30 I woke up robert and called my sis-in-law! Arrived at hospital by 3:30 and baby arrived a half hour later!! It was awesome!  

With all the preparation for Birth, I neglected a bit the preparation for postpartum- lets just say that things are wild over here and my emotions are unstable! Pray all three of my children will be live to see the light of each new day! Ha just kidding, kind of...... . What a great experience having three ACTIVE BOYS is too- it is WILD but it is LIFE and I am happy to be busy living it!

Funny

Today James was watching Qubo ( a ghetto version of PBS filled with lots of infomercials between cartoons-- we don't have cable right now!) and saw an infomercial with the Fonz.

James said, "I know who that is- that is Henry Winkley- he was our old prophet that died a long time ago before President Monson!"

It took a second to register-- and then I had to explain that it was President Hinckley and that Henry Winkler was a TV star.  Pretty funny!!! But that is a lot for a four year old to remember- i can't believe he even remembered President Hinckley was before Monson.

I AM A FAN!!

Im in Love with Jessica Seinfeld and her food website! I think cause I was a fan of Jerry's first. Who isn't right? that man is a genius! So of course she has to be too (lots of major celebrity assumptions!) It is fun to get a glimpse into her amazing kitchen and see her family a bit.  Real People. I told Robert tonight that if Jerry Seinfeld can eat out of a crock pot than he can too- haha!!

We have had some yummy meals lately, courtesy of doitdelicious.com, Jessica Seinfeld's blog.  She is an AMAZING cook that puts thing in SIMPLE terms. I loved trying some recipes from her cook book "Deceptively Delicious" a few years ago. Robert still doesn't get off my back about putting Spinach in Brownies but they are good!!

Anyway, I became her fan on Facebook and found out about her amazing website.  She has a bunch of video tutorials that show in simple terms how to make some great, quick dinners.

I have tried the

Sweet Cherry Tomato Pasta    It is so good I have made it twice and I used whole wheat gnocchi instead of spaghetti noodles--AMAZING! Planning on making it again and again and again!
 
Freaky Greek Pasta  This is delcious- please use all the feta and even put in more!!- it sounds like a lot but it isn't- sooo good and light and filling too.  (I know Im prego and soft cheese aren't good- just turn a blind eye to my choices....

Perfect Halibut over Spinach  I used Tilapia instead of Halibut because it is cheaper. So good still and I made a rice pilaf with parmesan cheese and asparagus that was the perfect side dish.

And of course the Slow Cooker Lasagna listed below- it was that good!!!!  I made it today and started it before I left for church and when we got home it was perfect. I'm not a huge fan of crock pot cooking but this was delicious. So much flavor and the noodles were perfectly tender and the cheese was so good. I only happened to have one ricotta cheese in my fridge so I substituted a container of cottage cheese instead and it was great. I included the tutorial for the lasagna below so you can see how simple and easy her videos are.

I hope sharing her website can help your family cook fast and healthy meals-- also no four legged animals are involved- and all whole foods!! Love it!!

SLOW COOKER LASAGNA

Prep time: 20 minutes
Total time: 3 hours and 50 minutes
Serves 6-8

This slow cooker lasagna couldn't be more simple (you don't have to pre-boil the noodles!) Just assemble and walk away. But before you do, watch Jess and Ali show you, step-by-step, how to do it.

SHARE:

READY TO LEARN? JUST HIT PLAY.

ingredients

2 28-ounce cans

crushed tomatoes

4 cloves

garlic, finely chopped

2 tablespoons

dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon

kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon

red pepper flakes

1/4 teaspoon

freshly ground black pepper

2 15-ounce containers

fresh ricotta

2 cups

grated mozzarella (8 ounces)

1/4 cup

grated Parmesan

16

lasagna noodles (about 3/4 of a 1-pound box)

5 ounces

baby spinach (about 6 cups packed)

directions

In a medium bowl, combine the tomatoes, garlic, oregano, salt, red pepper and black pepper (12 turns on pepper mill). In a separate bowl, mix the ricotta, 1 cup of the mozzarella and the Parmesan.

In the bottom of a 5 to 6-quart slow cooker, spread a thin layer of the sauce. Top with 4 of the noodles (breaking to fit as necessary.) Spread 1 1/2 cups of the sauce over the noodles and layer with 2 cups of the spinach and 1 1/2 cups of the cheese mixture. Repeat twice more with the noodles, sauce, spinach and cheese mixture. Top with the remaining 4 noodles, sauce and 1 cup mozzarella.

Cook on low, covered, until the noodles are tender—especially in the center of the lasagna, 3 to 3 1/2 hours.

Faith as a grain.....

I have to admit I haven't bee stellar at Personal Prayer for a long time.  I think that happens when things don't turn out the way that YOU have planned, then through bad choices you limit the feelings of the
Spirit and your Faith weakens and then Prayer seems to go away too.

I think I wanted what I wanted so badly that I didn't want to know what the Lord wanted me to do I didn't even care.  I had felt like he had let me down. But then it feels like Rock Bottom because you are alone, the Spirit leaves, and it is so easy for anger and Satan to entice you.

There have been other times in my life when I experienced this- I remember living in Hawaii having made a lot of bad choices, being on my own for the first time and wanting to do what ever I wanted. I remember feeling Rock Bottom again.  I had called my Dad and he asked me when was the last time that I had asked the Lord for help in Prayer.  I felt how much my Dad cared and I was reminded how much the Savior cared and wanted to talk to me. The feelings were so strong that remembering it 13 years later still brings all of those feelings back.  As soon as I turned to daily Personal Prayer my life took a turn in a better direction. I felt the Saviors warning and promptings and I chose Faith- faith to follow what He was saying.

The Move out to Arizona took some prayer and faith and LISTENING.  Just finding the right renters- knowing when it was time to leave our house (Robs company was sooo flexible- he had been telecommuting for over 6 months when we chose to leave and they would have given us longer,) and where to live when we came here.


When I first saw the house that Robert has chosen I was in Disgust.  (Pic below of the dirt and my bleach/soapy rag that had cleaned the white line!) I said no and for 2 weeks looked every day for a new place to rent with no success. One day in a prayer of desperation, Heavenly Father told me that the yucky house was to be where we would live and that I could handle it! I was in shock and I asked again but got the same answer. (The second picture is the white wall that I cleaned and then painted! I was so happy!) It took 3 solid days of cleaning and scrubbing to make the place livable. But it fit all of our things and was sooooo cheap. Literally half the price of everything else on the market. I was still trying to have Faith in my Prayer when I went to church for the first time later that week and met so many amazing people. The Spirit confirmed again that we were in the right place.

I cant even tell you what that Decision has done for our marriage and our finances. We were able to get a much needed computer, do tons of repairs on our cars, pay off our moving expenses, save money, save money for our Rental house in Midvale, AND Rob and I didn't need a second job in the evening to be able to have extra money. We've had sooooo much time as a family to do EVERYTHING! We have tried all kinds of fun activities and had more dates and good times with the kids. Our family is soo much stronger.

Over and over again I have been reminded about that ONE choice and I have been filled with Gratitude towards God.  I have turned to him for Prayer again on a regular basis.

Some other examples lately include:

Not wanting to get out of bed being sick of my KIDS, sick of being Pregnant, and tired of the monotony of taking care of a family. I literally had the covers over my face saying a prayer that I could just get out of bed and function for the day.  My friend Nancy texted me that she had extra tickets for Disney on Ice that day and that I would need to leave in an hour to get there on time.  I was going to write back  No Thanks when then Spirit told me that this was the answer to my prayer. I got out of bed and started the shower and within the hour we left. I was trying to be hopeful- not wanting to go do this- but when I saw how happy my kids were my attitude changed. The Day ended up being soooo fun. The tickets started a chain of events and we didn't get home until 9 PM that night. it was such a fun day.

how many other days did I forget to ask the Lord for help?? And If I did ask-- did I have the faith to listen to the answer??

also lately:

Me and Rob got in a big fight. It was about the Sabbath Day and how to observe it. I know stupid right?? Some how it seemed worth it at the time. It is something we have fought a lot about too. I was so heated that I decided to walk to church.  This is no small task seeing that I live 5 miles from church and being pregnant in sandals walking over dirt roads and train tracks- it took an hour and a half. I wanted to turn around a gazillion times, not to go apologize but just to go home and go back to bed. I wanted to stop at Wendy's and grub on some bacon! I wanted to stop at the nail salon I passed by and rest and get a pedicure! But the spirit told me I needed to be at church. I was too stubborn to get a ride form anyone and kept on walking. I sat in the back careful to not sit by Rob.  The speaker started and low and behold started talking about ways to create peace in her home. She talked about her and her spouse having arguments over the Sabbath day. She talked about how a fool is quick to anger and how it is just not worth it to fight over such a small thing. I felt rebuked and repented!!!!!! I was so grateful that I had gone to church instead of staying in bed. What a great lesson I have learned that will stick with my for life and have change the dynamics of my marriage. There were a lot of key things I had heard that day that will stick with me for a long time.

another:

Praying for more faith in our Government. Then seeing tax laws renewed in the final hours of 2010! The tax laws have helped us greatly reduce the loss on our rental!  A miracle.  Trying to be more optimistic about God taking care of me and enjoying the day, the moment, knowing that his ways are true and just and perfect-- so what do I have to worry about??!!! Nothing! He is the ultimate protector and provider.


Reading the latest talk on Faith- Richard G. Edgley from last General Conference- "Faith the Choice is yours" he says that he has not seen Faith move an actual mountain but he has seen Faith move a mountain of despair and doubt and replace it with hope and optimism. I have personally felt this this past year. My marriage that was crumbling has become strong. Our personal Finances have received a boost, My whole Paradigm has changed. My view on life is drastically different.

This has all happened from FAITH. Faith leading me to Personal Prayer, then listening to the Spirits answers after I have prayed and doing what was asked of me even though I didn't know how it would turn out. I have found so much joy in the simple things life brings. I have found joy in listening to the Spirits guidance. It seemed there are a gazillion examples of blessings in my life as a result from faith but this is getting lengthy already so I will spare you!!

I know that no matter how infinite your circumstances seem, your eyes will be opened and you will be led out of your despair and into a better place.

I'm not sure why I wrote all of this but I felt like I should so I did!!!! I hope that it benefits someone out there reading it.

Love April