The Az Howards

Birthday Party

2011-04-11T11:38:00.001-07:00

Friday was my friend Jenny's birthday so a bunch of us girls went out to dinner at Pasta Brioni's in Scottsdale to celebrate. Happy Birthday Jen and welcome to your thirties!!!

Kevin & Cady's Wedding

2011-03-28T10:37:00.004-07:00

Don't you HATE IT when you forget to take pictures. Thats exactly how I am feeling this morning. I had so many amazing wonderful things going on ALL weekend and guess who was too busy to take pictures??? MEEE!!! I'm so mad. One of my BFF's Cady got married in San Diego on Wednesday and we had the reception here on Friday. I did a candy buffet for the reception that turned out really really cute and was a HUGE hit. Cady looked GORGEOUS and I'm so excited for her and Kevin. All of our friends were there to celebrate however you'd never know since I didn't get ONE SINGLE PHOTO!!! Hopefully someone else did and I can snag their pictures. Here is a few photos that I actually did capture.

CANDY BUFFET

A HUGE THANK YOU to Tory who helped me TONS on friday while I was running around like a chicken with my head cut off...

Me with the beautiful bride Cady

Tory, Cady, and Me (love these Salisbury girls)

It was my friend Bambi's birthday this weekend so Saturday we spent all day eating, shopping, and playing Just Dance to work off all the food we had ate. Of course there are NO PICTURES AGAIN but I love you Bam and I always have a blast with you. Happy Birthday!

Baby Shower

2011-03-28T09:49:00.003-07:00

I appliqued these super cute ties onto some onesies for my friend Stephanies baby shower. I found the tie pattern online for FREE. It was sooo easy and I can't wait to make some more. Next up maybe some skirts with appliqued t-shirts to match????

Wipe Out

2011-03-23T10:02:00.003-07:00

We are dog sitting two puppies right now and I just happened to get this great wipe out on video. Don't worry, no animals were harmed in the making of this video. Ha ha

More Sewing Projects

2011-03-18T12:39:00.003-07:00

I made this ADORABLE rag quilt recently. I love the colors and the fabric together. I love rag quilts and I can't wait to make more.

Since so many people are having babies and I don't have time to make everyone a rag quilt like I would love to, I made a bunch of tag blankets. They are still SUPER cute and the babies love them.

You will notice I used the same cute fabric for the girl tag blankets. Yup, I love it THAT much.

For the boy tag blankets I found a Daisy Kingdom fabric that was already quilted that I loved, so that saved me TONS of time not having to quilt all those squares myself since I made several of them.

I have a few more projects I'm working on. I'll have to snap some photos and share!!

Happiest Place on Earth!!

2011-03-08T14:27:00.005-07:00

(Tory, Me, Carlee)

This past weekend I went on a VERY short but VERY fun girls trip to the MAGICAL KINGDOM aka THE HAPPIEST PLACE ON EARTH aka DISNEYLAND!

I LOOOVE doing girls weekends, and getting away from the every day hustle and bustle is a definate MUST every now and then. Tory and I flew in Thursday night and met up with my cousin Carlee. We spent ALL day Friday at Disneyland and California Adventure and I'm pretty sure we walked AT LEAST 8 miles during the day because our legs where KILLING us by the time we left the park. While there we ate then rode rides, ate, watched a show, ate, rode some more rides, ate some more, watched another show, ate even more, etc etc... Ha ha Its a good thing we walked a ton because there is just too many good treats to pass up at Disneyland.

Two of my favorite girls on Main Street USA

Our first ride of the day- ROARING RAPIDS.

Let's just say I was NOT happy. There is nothing worse than walking around all day in WET clothes especially wet jeans. But for the record, I still went on the ride and was a good sport. But YES, I did get pretty wet.

Getting warm next to the BEAST'S fireplace

On a JUNGLE CRUISE...

BIG THUNDER MOUNTAIN

Posing by the front entrance.. a MUST

We watched the ALADDIN show in California Adventure and it was FABULOUS like always!

World of Color was AMAZING!!! They shoot water in the air and project images onto it. I could never describe it and make it sound as amazing as it really is. Definately something everyone should see.

A HUGE Thank you to Larry & Christy for letting us stay at their beautiful home. Thanks again!

On Saturday we hung out in Long Beach and had an awesome lunch down by the water. Later we drove by the Playboy Mansion in Beverly Hills and saw a couple of girls going in the gates to "Spend the Night" ha ha

I had a wonderful, fabulous, awesome, terrific weekend. Thank you Tory and Carlee. Love you guys and I can't wait until we can have another awesome weekend together.

February 2011

2011-03-03T15:29:00.006-07:00

Wow, I guess we have been busy. I'll try to catch you up to speed. I'm sure I'm gonna leave lots out so feel free to fill in the blanks with something AMAZING! Whatever you imagine is probably 10 times better than whatever we were ACTUALLY doing. Let's see, where to start... hmmm. We have been doing a little more home improvements around the house like painting, curtains, and minor changes. Its crazy how little changes can make a BIG difference though. For Valentines Day we didn't do much. We went to a Ward Party on Friday night and got our picture with Mr. Valentine (or whoever he was suppose to be). Ha ha

Our family room ( We painted the wall and reframed our temple photo) I love love love it!

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My friend Cady got engaged (YAY) and we threw a bridal shower for her a few weeks ago. I'm so so excited for her and Kevin. Congrats guys, we love you!!

I made this super cute banner for the bridal shower....

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I finally broke out my sewing machine I got for my birthday back in December and decided to start a few projects. I made a super cute dress for my 2 year old niece Lu and I had extra fabric so I whipped up a skirt for my friends one year old daughter. I can't wait to have time to do some more projects. Think I'll start working on Christmas presents NOW!

Bailey wearing her skirt
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This past weekend Eric and Tory came into town and it was Eric and Cady's (yup they are triplets) birthday so we had a PARTAY at our house. Dinner was great, Tritip, Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes, and asparagus. I went all out for the festivities! We stuffed ourselves then had a JUST DANCE 2 Dance Off to work off some of those calories. It was hilarious, I just might have to post some of the videos. Thanks to everyone that came to celebrate!
Happy Birthday Eric & Cady, we love you guys!

Book Series

2011-01-24T13:48:00.002-07:00

It's no secret that I LOVE to read. There is just something I adore about opening a book and getting lost in its pages. Besides loving a good book, I LOVE LOVE LOVE a good book SERIES. The joy that comes from reading about your favorite characters over and over again makes you feel like you know them, like they are a friend. I have to admit that most of my favorite series I have read numerous times. Its always surprising to me all of the new things I discover every time I reread something. Below is a few of my favorite series, I'm interested to know what are your favorites????

Of course HARRY POTTER by J.K. Rowling

The TWILIGHT series by Stephenie Meyer

HUNGER GAMES by Suzanne Collins

SHOPAHOLIC series by Sophie Kinsella

STEPHANIE PLUM series by Janet Evanovich

And I'm currently reading this series and I can't wait to finish the third book so I can start over.

Date Night

2011-01-24T10:15:00.004-07:00

It seems like with the holidays and all the craziness of the last few months, Ryan and I had not went on a date with just the two of us in FOREVER. Friday night we decided to go out to dinner and we absolutely LOVE sushi but I couldn't even tell you the last time we had it. We love GOT SUSHI in Mesa but we decided to be brave and try a new place. I had heard good things about SUSHI KEE on Main and Power. It is a family owned place and I was told to not be steered away by the location. When we got there, there was a line out the door which I took as a GREAT sign. The sushi tasted fresh, portion size was good and it was reasonably priced. We will definately go there again and I give it a TWO THUMBS UP for anyone wanting to try it.

Its January already??????

2011-01-18T11:57:00.003-07:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR!! I can't believe that it is 2011. Wow, the years just fly by. I started this blog 3 years ago and I am so glad I did. Its fun to go back and see and remember the things that we have done and how fast time has gone by. I have been slacking again lately and need to get back on the blogging bandwagon. Here's a quick view of some of the things that we've been up to. I've really got to get my camera out more.

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The beginning of January we helped the Salisburys celebrate their girls birthdays. Bailey turned a big ONE and Sophia turned FOUR. Happy birthday girls, we love you!

Don't you just love those beautiful blue eyes!

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My uncle and two cousins were in town from Utah along with the Salisbury clan in early January. The weather was gorgeous so we took the WHOLE group hiking in the superstition mountains. I love love love this time of year!

Hiking group: Mom, Paula, Gary, Boone, Jackson, Ryan, Jack

(not pictured: me, Peyton, Eric, Tory, Bailey)

the Salisburys........................................The Ho Ho Hoggs

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I hadn't done anything crafty since christmas and I was itching to do another project. I decided to make HOWARD letters for our new mantel. I started by printing off the letters in different fonts from my computer. I then cut out the letters to make my stencils. I placed the letters on mdf wood and cut them out with a jigsaw. (well actually ryan did this for me). After that I painted them black, then mod podged scrapbook paper onto them. To finish them off I sanded the edges and antiqued them with stain. It was a fun project and I can't wait to make some more.

the wood letters

after I mod podged them

the final result

BEAD FOR LIFE

2011-01-04T12:53:00.009-07:00

Some of you might have received a necklace or bracelet from me for Christmas. They all came from an organization called "Bead For Life". If you haven't heard of it, I recommend you watch this video:

http://www.beadforlife.org/video/4DVDRoll.html

or visit their website at

http://www.beadforlife.org

It is an excellent way for us to help fight poverty. Check it out, you won't be sorry.

Merry Christmas

2010-12-29T12:43:00.003-07:00

We had a very quiet and peaceful Christmas this year. The boys didn't want to cooperate for our christmas eve picture this year. Happy Holidays to everyone and I hope everyone stays safe this New Years!!

Love the Howards,
Ryan, Amber, Jack & Joey

Party.........Party...........Party

2010-12-22T10:31:00.006-07:00

As most of you know, December is a crazy busy month with Christmas.. But throw in several birthday parties, a steady stream of company since thanksgiving, a horrible cold, and other holiday parties and crazy turns into INSANE. Here is a brief look into what has been going on in the last few weeks, although it almost seems like a blur to me. I love the holidays but I am looking forward to things getting back to normal and actually getting a good nights sleep.

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The beginning of the month started out with my niece Lu turning 2. She's such a funny little girl and such a fun additional to our family.

I co-worker of mine did a cookie exchange party and this was what I took. Super duper yummy ORANGE COOKIES with fresh squeezed orange juice. They flew off the plate and I can't wait to have time to make them again.

We attended a carnival theme birthday party that our friends Luke and Naomi hosted. It was complete with a bounce house, face painting, cotton candy, and carnival games... GOOD TIMES!

Alyssa with her cotton candy.............................Bambi, Me

My Aunt Linda and cousin Brett flew in from Texas for the weekend a few weeks ago and it was so fun to spend time with them. Thanks for coming!!!

Playing Mario Kart

Rachelle, Linda, Brett

On my birthday we had a few family and friends over for donuts and hot chocolate outside by a bonfire. THANK YOU to everyone that came, I had a great time. I tried to get a picture with everyone that came but I forgot a few so if I didn't get your picture, I'm sorry. My birthday is also the anniversary of when I got my little boy Jack. So happy 8th anniversary little buddy.. I love you.

Jack enjoying his treat from Grandma

Mom & Me

Mom & Dad

My brother Ben, Max, & Bryn

Cady, Me, Tory, and Bailey

Tory & Me

Bailey, Cady & Me

Darcie & Me

I finally got my stockings hung.

Christmas Humor

2010-12-09T10:12:00.000-07:00

My Hubby is AMAZING!!!!

2010-12-07T12:10:00.003-07:00

So for YEARS I have been wanting a mantle... especially at christmas time. The problem is, our home does NOT have a fireplace. Despite that little set back, I wasn't gonna let that stop me. I found a few pictures of some mantles that I liked, went to Home Depot and picked out trim work and put Ryan to work building it. After several hours of hard work and LOTS of paint, it was done. He did such an AMAZING job, I LOVE IT!!!!! I quickly whipped up a new garland to match my tree... made a new centerpiece for the mantle and now I just need to finish the look by adding my stockings and candles. THANK YOU HONEY, YOUR AMAZING!

Oh christmas Tree

2010-12-03T13:08:00.003-07:00

Can I just say that I'm loving my Christmas Tree this year. I wanted to change it and do something fun for a change. It was hard to get a good photo of it. The green mesh looks yellow in the picture but its actually a lime green like the ornaments. Other than that, I LOVE it. Next I am making a matching garland to go on the mantle that Ryan has been making me.. pictures to come soon.

Happy Turkey Day

2010-12-03T12:55:00.002-07:00

Our thanksgiving was pretty low key this year. The weather was actually cold for us which kind of made it feel MORE like the holidays. A BIG thanks to my cousin Carlee who drove over from California for the long weekend. We had so much fun while you were here, can't wait for you to come back. On friday, Carlee, my mom, and myself all got up at 3am to hit the sales... it was crazy cold outside and we braved the lines and got some good deals.

Us enjoying the beautiful weather outside.

Grandma & Bryn..................... Lu

Bryn smiling for the camera.....................Josh & Carlee

Playing some after dinner games

On Saturday we met up with my Aunt Paula and Payton for some more shopping and lunch.

Paula had to put her sunglasses on cuz she always blinks in pictures. ha ha

Me & Carlee

Happy 33rd Birthday Ryan!

2010-11-09T13:24:00.003-07:00

Let me just start this by saying that I am SO jealous of my hubby. I have ALWAYS wanted to go to Disneyland ON my birthday and my lucky hubby got to do just that this year. Friday was Ryan's 33rd birthday and to celebrate we decided to go to the Happiest Place on earth. Lucky for us we hadn't used our free passes from Volunteering waaaay back in February, so it was an easy choice. We drove over to Anaheim thursday night and thats when our adventure started. We made a restroom stop in Blythe and as I was walking in to the convenient store I noticed two homeless men rummaging through the garbage collecting things. I felt so sorry for them that I gave each of them $5 to get something to eat. No sooner had I handed them the money and they were inside buying booze with it. I have to say that I was a little irritated but I guess they had a good night thanks to me. Our saga continued when we checked into our Hotel. We got our room key and made our way up to the 18th floor. Immediately upon entering the hotel we could see the fireworks and laser show going off at Disneyland so we ran to the window. After a minute or so we turned on the lights and looked around the room and noticed that someone's stuff was in the room... AWKWARD!! We hightailed it back downstairs and got another room. We realised after we were in our new room that Ryan had thrown our bag of goodies in the old room when we first walked in. We got so excited about seeing disneyland and then ran out of there so fast when we saw it was someone elses room that we forgot it. So if you were staying at the Doubletree in room 1816, YOUR WELCOME! After a good nights rest we headed off to Disneyland for the day Friday!!!

Possible Christmas card pic???

I HEART MICKEY!!!

They had just started setting up Christmas stuff while we there. I was bummed that it wasn't already all done because I LOVE Disneyland at Christmas time. We had a great day except we got stuck on the Indiana Jones ride which caused us to miss World of Color at California Adventure. All in all it was SUPER fun and I can't wait to go back.

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On Saturday we went to Venice Beach and rented bikes and road along the beach. Venice is always a good idea because its a great place to people watch. After that we went to Roscoe's Chicken n Waffles in Hollywood for some gooood food. We were the only white people in the place which cracked me up. The food was awesome, as always. We drove around Hollywood for a bit then headed out to Riverside to stay with our friends Eric and Courtney Bostock. We stayed up well past the time change Sunday morning chit chatting. Thanks for letting us stay Eric & Courtney, we had TONS of fun!

Halloween 2010

2010-11-02T17:57:00.007-07:00

Wow, what a crazy week we've had. Make that a crazy few weeks for me. I worked thirteen days without a day off getting ready for halloween and by the time it got here, I was so ready for it to be over. First off, let me back up and take you through the last week. My brother Josh's birthday was last week so the fam got together for dinner and pumpkin carving.
Happy Birthday Bub!

Below is our final product. I think we did a pretty bang up job!

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Every year my work (Red Brick Realty) does a haunted hallway party for the community. This means LOTS of work for me. We transfer our office into a haunted house. Since there are only two of us, this process takes ALL month long to put up. Needless to say, halloween is NOT my favorite holiday. All the effort was worth it though because we had a GREAT turn out this year and I think the kids (& adults) loved it. Thanks to everyone who came out and supported us, we'll see you next year!!

Me with Bailey Salisbury (I'm a pirate)

(Princess Bryn, Ladybug Lu, and me)

Who's that scary man in the background (ha ha)

This is my partner in crime, Summer who I work with... without her I would drown

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Okay, my boss who LOOOOOVES halloween also has his own Halloween party every year at his house. I spent many many hours helping them decorate their house for their party and let me tell you, they go ALL OUT! They have a gorgeous house and just about every inch is covered. Like a big dummy I didn't take pictures of their house or my office, so thats on my list for next year. For the Hopkins party we decided to change up our costumes from the night before so on Saturday we rummaged through the house to see what we could find. We decided on a pimp and ho.. with ryan being the ho. The funny part is that we just wore each others clothes, slapped on a wig and we were out the door. No one at the party recognized us, which in my mind equals a HIT! Below are the pictures... try and keep a straight face when you see Ryan, he's such an ATTRACTIVE female!

The Ho and The Pimp

We are sooo HOT!

Shari that I work with was the exorcist girl.. she was freaky!

Naomi.... you look WAY too pretty next to me. ha ha

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Eric and Tory came for the weekend so we got to spend time with them while they were here too! Yay, come back anytime guys.... better yet MOVE BACK anytime!

Can you tell it was super sunny out??

Friday Night Lights!

2010-11-02T17:50:00.004-07:00

This fall we have went to several High School football games on Friday nights. I love watching football live.... everytime I hear the song "The Boys of Fall" it makes me want to go to a game. I'm sad that we are missing the last few of the season.... Go Mountain Lions!!

Happy 3rd Anniversary

2010-10-04T13:39:00.028-07:00

Tuesday October 5th we have been married THREE WONDERFUL YEARS! For the past week and a half I have had a horrible, stuffy, achy, sneezy, couldn't get out of bed HEAD COLD. We really REALLY wanted to go somewhere for our anniversary but it just didn't seem like that was going to happen since I couldn't kick my cold. After taking TONS of sudafed and advil around the clock, I actually felt pretty good on Friday night. So when we got a call from our friends Eric and Tory inviting us on a LAST MINUTE SPUR OF THE MOMENT trip to San Francisco, we said WHY NOT? Saturday morning we woke up at the butt crack of dawn and hopped on a flight to San Fran. We met up with them at the airport and by 10am we were all enjoying a nice hot breakfast at our hotel there. We jetted out to see the city and BOY DID WE EVER. We cruised around ALL DAY and did LOTS of sightseeing. Let me just say that we DID San Francisco in a day and didn't leave anything out. Sunday we took a drive along the PCH and saw the BEAUTIFUL coast line.. I could have just sat there for hours listening to the waves crashing. Sunday afternoon our friends Jeff and Laura came over for a few hours, making the weekend complete. Sunday evening we hopped a flight (first class, thanks Eric) back home, exhausted from our whirlwind weekend but SOOO glad we went. My head cold is now back in full swing, so its back to bed for me, but well worth it. I want to say HAPPY ANNIVERSARY TO MY WONDERFUL HUBBY, thanks for all that you do for me and the boys.. WE LOVE YOU! And another BIG THANK YOU to Eric and Tory for the spur of the moment invite.. it's always a blast to hang with you! You know your true friends when you can share a hotel room. ha ha
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Our first stop in the city was the famous LOMBARD STREET which is the crookedest street in the world. It makes 8 sharp turns and is surrounded by beautiful homes. It's definately a crazy street, I can't image living on it. It was so fun to drive down that we did it TWICE!

You can see the winding road behind us.. it is decorated by gorgeous flowers and bushes.

You can't visit SAN FRANCISCO without going to the GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE. On Saturday it was very foggy so you couldn't see most of the bridge.

Next stop was Baker Beach which has an amazing view of the Golden Gate Bridge and the Bay.

Of course next on the list was FISHERMANS WARF and PIER 39. We walked the pier, went to the OLD arcade place, and watched the boats sailing around Alcatraz.

Up next was what we referred to as the FULL HOUSE HOUSES.. really they are called the PAINTED LADIES. They are beautiful Victorian homes built between 1892 and 1896 and are located across the street from Alamo Square Park. We all had our own favorites.. personally I liked the yellow one the best.

After cruising around all day we were famished, so we headed to CHINATOWN for dinner. We ate at HOUSE OF NANKING. It's super yummy so if your ever in SF, I suggest you go there.

I think my FAVORITE place we visited was the SAN FRANCISCO PALACE OF FINE ARTS... it was SO BEAUTIFUL. I had seen it in movies such as "So I married an axe murderer" and "The Batchelor" and always wanted to go there. It was under construction so we couldn't walk through the dome but the grounds were GORGEOUS!!!!!

We drove up to the Coit Tower which is located in Pioneer Park.

No SF trip is complete without some GHIRARDELLI CHOCOLATE. You can see Bailey enjoying her hot chocolate since it was COLD outside.

On Sunday's drive we saw the GORGEOUS coast between San Fran and Santa Cruz. Love love love it!

There is an old lighthouse along the coast called Pigeons Point which also actually has a Hostel that you can stay at. It's about 20 miles north of Santa Cruz on a beautiful part of the coast. I just might have to go back and stay!

On Sunday we went back to Baker Beach with Jeff and Laura to get a better picture of the Golden Gate since the fog wasn't so heavy that day. The wind was CHILLY and the waves were HUGE crashing on the shore.

I took SOOOO many pictures I couldn't decide which ones to post, but these were my faves. ENJOY!

Faith, Hope, and Love

2010-09-10T11:00:00.003-07:00

We would like Tory and Eric to know that our thoughts and prayers are with you today. We know today is going to be hard for you and for Sophie. There are lots of people who love you and are praying for this little girl. We must find faith through our prayers and trust in our Heavenly Father and know that he can bear your burden. Right now faith in the Lord is the only thing that can bring us peace, understanding and hope. We love you guys!

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Last night a group of us took Sophie to Amazing Jakes for dinner and games. It was a BLAST and I hoped she felt all the love that we ALL have for her.

PRINCESS SOPHIA

Me hanging with Bailey Boo

This girl is fearless!

Eric & Ryan...........................................Cady & Kevin

Sophie racing mommy.....................................surrounded by love

Labor Day Camping Trip

2010-09-07T13:09:00.010-07:00

For Labor Day Weekend we decided that it would be so much fun to take the dogs camping. My parents wanted to join and we thought it would be fun to take a few of the grandkids as well. My parents (Grandma & Bucka) took off friday morning with my neice Bryn to find us a spot before the rush. Ryan, myself, my nephew Max, and the two dogs cruised up to the mountains after work on friday night. Upon arriving we pitched our tent, set up for the night and saw the AWESOME tarantula that Grandma had caught earlier in the day when he came walking into our campground. The kids nicknamed him Terry, and he was pretty big. We let Terry go on Saturday morning so he was free to go eat and roam.

This is Terry the tarantula

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This was Joey's first camping trip and he LOOOOOOVED it. I didn't think we were gonna be able to get him in the car to go home. He loved exploring and all the noises and sounds of the mountains.

JOEY

Max......................................Bryn.(Bryn had great bed head)

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On Saturday we decided to drive up to Workman's Creek Waterfall which was just a few minutes away. There wasn't much water flowing down the 200 foot falls but it was still pretty and there were beautiful views from up there. On the way down the mountain we got a flat tire on the subaru.. and I mean FLAT. We pulled over, put on the spare and crossed our fingers that we would make it down the rocky road and back to the campsite safe. It did and Ryan and my dad took off to go find us a tire. FIVE hours later they returned empty handed. After driving for hours, they found a tire shop that had closed 30 minutes prior to them arriving. Oh the joys of camping.

Bryn & Max at the Falls

Beautiful view from the top of the falls

Bryn, Bucka, Max, and Grandma

My boys.... aren't they so cute!

While camping the boys enjoyed teaching Max how to use a slingshot and how to fire a BB gun.

Ryan with the slingshot....................................Max with a BB gun

Bucka showing the kids how to shoot

The Gibsons..................................................The Howards

Jack................................................................Joey

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On Sunday Ben, Rachelle, and Lu drove up to spend the day with us.

Lu enjoying some watermelon.. love those buck teeth!!

Who doesn't LOVE s'mores while camping.

It was a great weekend and we DID make it home safe even though we had to drive SUPER slow on our spare tire the WHOLE way home. My boys (Jack & Joey) are already dying to go again.

Cable Bridge in Pasco, Washigton

2010-08-31T16:53:00.002-07:00

I just thought the bridge looked beautiful at night with the lights reflecting off the water!

Weekend in Pasco

2010-08-31T13:12:00.024-07:00

This past weekend Ryan and I took a quick trip up to Washington to see family. This is the first time we have been back in over 3 years so it was LONG over due. In fact, this is the first time since we have been married that we have visited. Its so fun to go to his hometown and see where he was raised. The weather was absolutely PERFECT while we were there, I even got pretty cold at times. We were so short on time, so we mostly just hung out with the fam and didn't have much time for anything else. I feel bad because I know there were people that we missed but I promise we will be back soon and will catch you next time. While we were there we did go to the County FAIR and RODEO.... GIDDY UP! Small town rodeos are always a good time, almost as good as that ENORMOUS elephant ear we shared while watching the rodeo. Thank you to all of our family for putting up with us for 4 days, we miss you guys already.

Dad- Ryan can't wait to get back up there to help you on the farm again. I think he is missing the tractor already. Maybe next time you'll have some goats for me to feed. (wink, wink)

At the Airport getting ready to board our flight

It was so fun to spend time with our neices and nephews and play games

Me & Sis-in-law Michelle

Of course we had to make a Sonic run... :D

Chillin with the fam................................Ryan & his Sis ShaRae

At the Fair with Mom and Dad

We cruised around checking out the animals like this Longhorn. The goats were my favorite, if I could have fit a mini goat in my luggage, I think I would have brought one home with me.

At the Rodeo = GOOD TIMES!!

Surprise Trip to Cali!

2010-08-24T11:06:00.008-07:00

Last thursday my cousin Brett Johnson returned home from his mission in Chicago, Illinois.

While on his mission his parents moved from California to Dallas. For his homecoming my Aunt & Uncle flew back to Cali to spend the week before going back to Texas. On a whim, my mom and I decided to drive over and surprise them and spend the weekend in Cali too! We loaded up my car and headed out for a LONG drive to surprise them.

On the way we HAD to stop at the Palm Springs outlets for JUST A MINUTE. We went to one store where I got some SUPER cute Big Stars Jeans for more than half the regular price... SCORE! After that, we were back on the road. Since we were hitting LA around 6pm we got on our phones and rerouted to bipass LA. In the process we ended up on a two lane highway in the middle of nowhere. But we did eventually make it back to a freeway and rolled into Bakersfield about 9:30pm on Friday night.

My cousin Carlee was in on the surprise so when we got there, we had her come out to meet us so we could surprise the rest of the group. I tried video taping it, but it is really dark. Listen for my Aunt when we go walking into the room. Her reaction is HILARIOUS!!!

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A HUGE THANK YOU to Carlee for letting us stay with you and for keeping the surprise a SURPRISE. We had sooo much fun!

Carlee, Mom, Me

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On Saturday we had a few hours for us girls to go shopping and just hang out. I hate that we live in 3 different states, its so fun when we are all together. We need to plan a girls trip together.

Aunt Linda, Carlee, Mom cruising around shopping.

SHOPPING..... SHOPPING...... SHOPPING

Showing off their new SKINNY jeans. You guys look GRRRRREAT!
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Saturday night we had an open house for Bert (Brett) so Carlee and I made a few posters with some of his mission pictures! We had good food, good people and a GOOD TIME!

Christie & Linda = BFF's
(Thank you so much to the Starkey family for letting us crash at your house for most of the weekend)

Me, Bert & Mom (Brett still in his missionary pose)

SISTERS......................................................COUSINS

One goofy pic and one serious pic.... gotta say I love the goofy one!

Brett, Carlee, and Linda (sorry Karl, we didn't get you in the photo)

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It was so sad to leave on Sunday not knowing when we will ALL be together again. Thanks again for a FANTASTIC WEEKEND. We had soooo much fun even if it was just for a few hours. And a GIGANTIC THANK YOU to my cousin Brett for serving an honorable mission. We are SO PROUD of you and that you took two years out of your life to serve the Lord. I think you said it best in your talk on sunday when you said... "I have seen how the gospel has changed lives and I have seen how the gospel has changed MY life". I'm so proud of the man that you have become and for your testimony. We LOVE you!

I miss these girls already.... Til we meet again!

It's a Party!

2010-08-16T13:04:00.003-07:00

Its been a while since we have had a dinner party and since the Salisbury's were in town, it was a good excuse to have one. Ryan and I created a HUGE salad bar for dinner which was a great idea. Not only were we able to get ALL the food ready a day ahead of time but we also had yummy leftovers for the rest of the weekend. After dinner we got our ROCK BAND on and had a great time. Thanks for coming over everyone, we can't wait to do it again.

Salad bar... Lettuce, Romaine, garbanzo beans, cucumbers, broccoli, celery, carrots, cauliflower, cherry tomatoes, red peppers, olives, eggs, cheese, mushrooms, bacon, cottage cheese, fried onions, nuts, chicken, homemade ranch, and homemade rolls. SO DELICIOUS!!

Brent & Lexi McDowell...................................Seth & Megan Miller

Eric & Tory Salisbury.............................................The Host & Hostess with the Mostest

The Gang rocking out!

I love how serious everyone is while playing... GOOD TIMES!!

Tory & Me

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On Saturday we decided to soak up the sun at Sunsplash Water park with Eric, Tory, and the girls while they were still in town. It was so much fun but my calves are soooo sore today from climbing up and down the stairs all day. Next time we are definately gonna hit up Wet n Wild because I've been dying to go there all summer. Thanks for a good weekend Salisburys, we miss you guys already!

The Salisburys & the Howards getting ready to get our swim on!

I want to be a dog!

2010-08-09T12:43:00.003-07:00

On Saturday the weather was beautiful... I know, I know... its Arizona and its SUMMER but we woke up to beautiful 80 degree weather and suprisingly it stuck around for several hours. We were so excited to have cooler weather and so were the dogs. They get soooo bored and fat during the summer months that any hint of cooler weather and we load them up and head to the dog park. So with their tails wagging we loaded up all three boys ( we are dog sitting my parents dog Frankie) and headed out for a fun morning. First stop was Sonic for some breakfast.... and I'm not talking for Ryan and I. The three boys feasted on breakfast burritos and I swear they were eating the paper afterwards because they loved them sooo much. With their bellies full and the wind in their ears, next stop was the bark park. It was cloudy, breezy, and perfect weather for a day at the park. The boys made LOTS of new friends and ran until their legs were about to fall off. Afterwards when we got back home, they crashed on the couch for the next four hours from exhaustion. Man, what a life. I think I WANT TO BE A DOG!

Loaded in the car and super duper excited to be going for a ride!

Munching down their breakfast burritos....

I have to say that we definately have CUTE KIDS.

Making new friends...................................and cruising the park with Dad

Guess what..... I'm BACK!

2010-08-04T11:21:00.004-07:00

I know its been months since my last posting so I'll try to keep this short. We have had some good times, some bad times, and some trying times in the past few months. Our lives where turned upside again in May when Ryan was forced to change jobs yet again. In 3 years, this is the third lay off that we have went through. In this economy its so tough to keep your hopes up but its also so important that we exercise our faith and persevere. We are so thankful for all that we DO have and for our friends and family and everything that they do for us. With that being said, here are some of the highlights of the past few months.

In May, June and July:

We watched as our good friends the Salisburys blessed their new baby girl Bailey
My cousin Carlee came to visit from Cali (Miss you girl)
Gained a few pounds (boo)
Jeff & Laura Shaw came to visit us for a few days from Cali
We sold Ryan's truck so we could pay cash for a 1994 subaru legacy wagon (jealous?)
Ryan switched jobs and is now working for Direct Alliance
Shed some tears when our good friends Eric & Tory Salisbury moved to Utah
Lost a few pounds (yay)
We went to several pool parties (sunblock anyone?)
Ryan's sister ShaRae and her husband Jason came to visit (In July, really?)
Our friend Matt Johnson got married (shocker)
Eric & Tory came to visit us because they missed us so much (ha ha)
We took our nephew Max on our ward campout (rent a kid)

So even though these few months have been trying... we made it through. We had lots of company come to visit us which helped keep our spirits up. So anyone is more than welcome to visit us at anytime... we LOVE company. Come on down!!!

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Eric & Bailey Salisbury I love this picture! (Eric, Tory, & baby Bailey)

My cousins Peyton & Carlee (my first cousins)

Jeff & Laura came to visit us. Laura.. love the bedhead

Ryan's truck before we sold it. (He was sad)

The Salisbury clan.......... we miss you guys. Can't wait to see you next week!

A bunch of our friend's kids at a pool party

Jason & ShaRae McShane.... thanks for coming to visit us. You are invited back anytime, we had so much fun while you were here!

Congratulation Matt & Cindy........... you are an ADORABLE couple.

Max enjoyed some good ol' fashioned games on our campout. Um dude... I don't think that's his back your grabbing. ha ha

Miche Bags

2010-04-06T14:34:00.005-07:00

I am so excited to tell you that I am now selling Miche Bags. If you have never heard of them, you are gonna LOVE them. You can have an endless number of purses with just one bag.. and there is no hassle to switch your purse, just put on a new shell and go in just seconds. If you love handbags, you are definately going to LOVE MICHE BAGS. I love love love them so much that I wanted to sell them to all my friends and family. And don't worry if you live out of state, I can ship to you. I am having an open house at my home this saturday from 3:00 to 5:00 pm for anyone who wants to come see them. If you would like to host a party of your own, let me know. I have information and brochures I can send to you out of state people. I get SOOO many compliments on these handbags and I just ADORE THEM.

These are an example of the Big Bag. All of these shells are used with the same bag, plus there is more to choose from. Very exciting!

Hoppy Easter

2010-04-06T14:11:00.004-07:00

I love when Easter comes around for several reasons. I love that its spring, I love going to the Easter Pagaent, I LOVE cadbury eggs, and I love having an excuse to spend time with family. This year we went to the Easter Pageant with a couple of our friends, and I sadly didn't take any pictures. It was wonderful and I'm so grateful to the entire cast for the hard work that they put into it every year. On Saturday we had an easter egg hunt for the kids at my parents house and it was Ryan and I's job to hide the eggs. Ryan was getting creative and hiding green eggs in the trees and I was disguising orange eggs as oranges on the orange trees. My little 4-legged boys even put on easter bows to look festive.

My Boys

My niece Lu............................My cousin Peyton

My niece Bryn..............................My nephew Max

For the festivities I made these SUPER fun cupcakes!!

So Thankful for Friends!

2010-03-31T13:05:00.002-07:00

Saturday was my friend Bambi's birthday and to celebrate we had a girl's day out. Earlier in the morning Ryan and I were outside pulling weeds for a few hours and I broke out in hives all over my arms. They itched like crazy and I didn't feel that great but that didn't stop me from spending the afternoon with my ladies. First up, we went to lunch at Chevy's. This is a tradition that has been going on for about fourteen years, well at least thats how long I can remember going to Chevy's for Bam's birthday. After we had stuffed ourselves with enough chips and salsa to fill a small truck, we headed to get pedicures. I had to skip getting a pedicure because it was causing my hives to get worse. After the pedicures and a few doses of Zyrtec and Benadryl we headed to Yogurtland and then some shopping. Later in the evening we met up with the Hubbies at Bambi's house for games and Rock Band. Thanks for the fantastic day ladies. I love you all.

Me, Bambi, Jenny, Naomi at Chevy's

Jenny & Bambi getting pedis

Shopping at Last Chance! We all got Juicy sweatpants!

A New Addition to the Family

2010-03-17T16:06:00.003-07:00

Our little family has grown. On friday we brought home this new little guy. He is a basenji just like Jack and he is only a year and a half years old. He was at the pound and I just had to rescue him, I couldn't leave him there. He is sooo sweet and we are having so much fun with him. He is a true basenji and he does not bark, but he does make the super cute yodle noise occassionally. He is much smaller than Jack but the two boys seem to be getting along just fine. Joey is such a cuddler unlike Jack and he is not grumpy at all. He is a keeper and we are so glad to have him in our family.

JOEY

Ryan had them both in a trance over this bone.

I'm currently loving......

2010-03-11T17:33:00.005-07:00

When you find a good thing I think its important that you share them. With that being said, here are a couple of things that I am currently loving.

CROSHAWS GOURMET PIES

Croshaw's is this fabulous little pie shop that just happens to be about a quarter of a mile from my work. They of course serve fantastic pies (by the slice or whole), but they also have sandwiches, pot pies, cinnamon rolls, cookies, and salads. Or for just $2.59 you can get the daily homemade soup with a melt in your mouth homemade roll that is to die for. Just like all great things, this fantastic place is getting discovered by more and more people so if you go, earlier is better. Oh and did I mention that you can buy homemade rolls and soup to take home with you too. All in all I give it a big fat TEN. If anyone wants to try it, I'm there at least once or twice a week for lunch anyways, so hit me up. The cross streets for this hidden gem are Power Rd and Brown Rd. Check them out on their website at http://croshawspies.com/

Bath & Body Works Anti-Bacterial Hand Foam

With all the colds and flus that are going around, hand sanitizer is a MUST. I have carried a sanitizer in my purse for years but none of them have smelled as good, or been as great as this one. I love the foam and it comes in such wonderful scents. The BEST thing is that it only costs $2.50.

Bookman's Entertainment Exchange

Hi, my name is Amber and I'm a bookworm. That's right, I love books and I'm not afraid to admit it. I love to read! It's a habit I formed early in life and one that I have kept throughout the years. I also love movies, music, and games. So naturally I LOVE Bookman's Entertainment Exchange. You can take in your used items and exchange them for new (well new to you) items. What could be better than this? What if you don't have anything to sell??? Not a problem, anyone can buy the used items. For all you moms, they also do FREE events for the kiddos. Check out their schedule on their website at http://www.bookmans.com/ They are located at Country Club and Southern.

Carrie Underwood- Temporary Home

I loooove this song. There is just something so sweet and simple about the message that makes you think about what is really important. To watch the video go to: http://www.cmt.com/videos/carrie-underwood/478351/temporary-home.jhtml

(Warning, it can be a tear jerker)

Ta Da.... Kitchen Unveiling

2010-03-10T18:16:00.003-07:00

Here it is.... We finished the bottom cabinets and we painted the walls brown. I loved the red but it had to go once I saw how it looked with the backsplash. I;m so glad that this project is coming to a close. Tell me your thoughts... I want to hear the good, the bad, and the ugly!

The Month of February

2010-03-10T16:55:00.011-07:00

I'm so behind in blogging that I have to do an entire month all at once. I can't believe that it is already March, where did February go? I guess it just FLEW BY! In february we had the awesome opportunity to go to Utah and Idaho to visit family. Our first stop on our trip was Logan Utah. We are so thankful that Ryan's sister Shauna and her family let us stay in their home. It was so much fun to spend time with their family and we really appreciate it. While there we visited the Pepperidge Farms Factory, went to the Gossner's Cheese Factory for some cheese curds and the drove by the gorgeous Logan Temple.

Ryan so excited about his cheese curds

Logan Temple... so pretty in the snow

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Our niece Ashlyn was baptised on February 6th in Logan and all of Ryan's family was there for the event. This was the first time in years that we have ALL been together and it was sooo much fun. Too bad it was only for a couple of hours, we miss everyone already. Congrat Ash, we are so proud of you!

The Hansen Family

After the baptism, the whole family hung out and played red rover, duck duck goose, and stuffed our faces. Oh and we snapped a few photos too.

The Bizzys

The Howard Family
Zach, Ryan, Bob, Audrey, Janelle, Shauna, ShaRae, & Michelle

Lots and lots of Grandkids. 18 to be exact

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After Logan we drove up to Pocatello Idaho to stay with Ryan's sister Janelle and her family. We watched the Superbowl, played wii and just enjoyed each other's company. Thanks for letting us stay with you McMinns, we can't wait to come back.

Since we were in Pocatello, we decided to drive down to Burley Idaho for the day so we could see some of my family. We went to my grandparents house and we also got to see my Aunt Sally, and my Aunt Verda and her kids. I wish we could have stayed longer, maybe this summer we will make another trip.

Me with my Grandma & Grandpa Hogg

My Aunt Verd and her gorgeous girls
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Before we flew out we got to spend half a day in Salt Lake City. We visited the Conference Center and walked around Temple Square. This was the first time that Ryan and I had been there together.

The Organ in the Conference Center

The Organ in the Tabernacle. We were lucky and got to hear someone practicing while we were there. I love the amazing craftsmanship of the pioneers. Even though the Conference Center is amazing, I still love the Tabernacle.

The Beautiful Salt Lake Temple

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In February we also had the pleasure of volunteering for an organization for the Disney "Give A Day, Get a Day" program. We cleaned up a community and in exchange we got FREE disneyland passes. We got rained on the whole time, but it was still a great experience and I think it is an awesome thing that Disney is doing.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to our good friend LUKE. For Luke's birthday a bunch of us went to dinner at Nandos (love it), then bowling. Thanks for having a birthday Luke, it was a good excuse to get everyone together.

Naomi, Me, Bambi, and Luke trying to be one of the girls

Not myself

2010-03-02T09:38:00.002-07:00

Have you ever had one of those days where you just don't feel like yourself? It feels like you are just going through the motions trying to get everything done and you lose yourself in the process. Well thats how I have felt for the past two months. With the kitchen remodel, craziness at work, both Ryan and I being sick, and other obligations it has just felt like we have had no time for anything else. I haven't blogged in over a month and whats even worse is that I haven't even taken the time to take pictures in the past two months that I could use to blog. I normally LOVE to take pictures and I'm always the girl with the camera but lately I haven't even been doing that. I also feel like some of you, my friends and family may have felt neglected by me lately. I'm sorry for that and I'm thinking of you and I MISS YOU and I pledge to be more aware and more ME. My biggest fear is that while I have been out of it, I may have missed sending that special call or text to someone that could have brightened their day or made a surprise visit to someone when they really needed it, and all those other things that I love doing and I miss. So stay with me, don't write me off as I'm slowing getting back to my normal self.

I love the Sun!

2010-02-02T10:03:00.003-07:00

I'm getting a little nervous to leave for Utah on Thursday. We are excited to go but I'm worried that I'm gonna FREEZE MY BUTT OFF!!!

Kitchen Remodel

2010-01-30T21:01:00.005-07:00

If all of our family and friends have been wondering where we have been for the past two weeks, we did not fall off the face of the earth and we are still alive. We started the daunting task of remodeling our kitchen and we have not left our house since. We have literally worked for two weeks straight and I don't even want to think about how many hours we have worked nor do I want to know. NO it is still not done but at least we have the use of a sink and stove again (YEAH). If you've ever been without the use of your kitchen you know how unfun it can be. Let's just say that we are on a detox diet this week after all of the take-out we have eaten in the past two weeks.

First I have to tell you that the kitchen remodel has been in the works FOREVER but it is just one of those things that keeps getting put on the back burner. Since Ryan and I both had a three day weekend a couple of weeks ago we figured it was as good a time as any to start on it. Okay so it took some coaxing from me and possibly some pleading but we embarked on what turned out to be a VERY BIG PROJECT. Don't get me wrong, I'm glad we did it and all of the lack of sleep and sore muscles will be worth it in the long run.

Okay so I'm sure your wondering what we did or you already skipped ahead and peeked at the pictures (shame on you) and now your back to read the post. So far we have stripped and refinished the top cabinets and added new hardware, ripped off our old countertops, replaced with new slate countertops, installed stainless steel sink and faucet, and installed undercabinet lighting. We extended our bar to make it bigger and put in a single sink which I am absolutely in LOVE with. We still need to seal the tile and grout, refinish the lower cabinets and add new hardware, do touch up paint, and install pendant lights over the bar. Its a work in process but I must say it is coming along beautifully. We are taking a break from working because we are headed to Utah and Idaho this week to visit family (YEAH, WE ARE SO EXCITED). Leave me a comment with your thoughts about our progress.

BEFORE

AFTER

Here are some pictures that were taken during the whole process....

Late Late Bday Dinner

2010-01-11T16:46:00.005-07:00

With the craziness of the holidays, Ryan and I never made it out to dinner for my birthday until friday night. We went to a used bookstore (ahh HEAVEN), then to Chevy's Mexican Cantina for dinner. I'm not a HUGE fan of their food but I absolutely LOVE their salsa which has kept me coming back for years.

Yes thats me.. I wore clip-in extensions that night to give me long flowing hair.

Its happened again....

2010-01-11T09:31:00.003-07:00

It has happened again. Just like when I was sucked into the make believe world of the Cullens and Forks Washington in the Twilight series, I have recently been seduced by the make believe world of Panem and the Hunger Games. At first I was not drawn into the book "Hunger Games" but I promised myself that I would keep reading. It didn't take much longer and I was HOOKED. I found it hard to put the book down. I had so many mixed emotions going on; anger, sadness, hope, love, fear, and loathing for the capital. Like all adolescent girls I find myself bouncing back and forth between TEAM PEETA and TEAM GALE, the exact same way I did with Edward and Jacob. I don't want to give anything away to those that haven't read the series, but I will say this.... READ THEM! Its going to be an agonizing wait for the third installment of the Hunger Games Trilogy which is not due out until August of this year. If you've already read the books, what were your thoughts on it? Did you love it, hate it, or both at times like me?

Something old.. something new

2010-01-08T13:10:00.002-07:00

Anyone that knows me very well, knows that I LOVE Goodwill and thrift stores. For over ten years, I have been scouring Goodwills all over looking for good deals and rare finds. Some of my BEST memories involve my mom, my BFF Bambi, my Aunt Paula, and me driving all around the valley to find the best deals on Goodwill's half off day. We have it down to a science. We get there early, sometimes that means standing outside and fighting the crowds, just to get in the door. Then we split up and look for anything that we think the entire group would possibly want. Then we meet back up and show our finds. We also have what we call "the layaway program" at Goodwill. Or in other words, you go the night before and scope it out to find the best deals so your not wandering around aimlessly the next morning. For over ten years I have enjoyed the thrill of the hunt and everytime I pass a Goodwill I always check to see when the next half off day is. I think most people think that I'm a compulsive shopper when they see my closet or my home but what they don't realise is that about 65% of my closet has been bought second hand and most of it for under $5.

Over the long holiday weekend, since I was sick I spent more time on the couch than I would have liked. And while I was laying there, I kept thinking of ways I could improve the room, or things that I could add to it. It just so happens that Saturday was Goodwill HALF OFF DAY, so you can guess where we went. We actually went to 5 thrift stores that day I think, I lost track because I was sooo excited about what we were finding. After some rearranging, some additions and some elbow grease, the family room is now transformed. I didn't take before pictures but if you've been to my home, maybe you can notice the few changes we made. My next project is the front living room.

Additions: The curtains (which I stole from my living room), The end table ($15 at thrift store, we just refinished it with a little stain), The large lamp & shade ($5 at Goodwill, SCORE), Jar for popcorn ($2 at Goodwill) picture frames above lamp ($2 a piece at Goodwill, we just refinished them), Shelf (Stole from living room), small lamp (stole from spare bedroom), picture frame and hanging plant (stole from hallway), bookshelf (stole from spare bedroom), family blocks (made them :D), square ottoman (stole from our bedroom), and not pictured is a dvd tower that we got at Goodwill for $10 to hold the wii games.

I know I could go out and purchase these items new but there is just something satisfying about reusing something old and bringing it back to life. I think its important that we reuse and recycle and that we teach our children those principles.

Happy New Years

2010-01-08T12:39:00.004-07:00

Why do I always feel like I'm playing catch up when it comes to my blog. Life moves so fast that "poof" a week is gone by and I'm finally finding the time to tell you about our New Years.

I have several blogger friends, some of which are family members that I have never met. I was so excited last week when Ryan's cousin Heather called us and said that they were in town. I've followed Heather's blog for a couple of years and we have emailed back and forth but have never actually met. I'm so glad they had a chance to come to our home and they are welcome back anytime.

Trevor, Heather, & Jakoby Hess, The Howards
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On New Years Eve I was sick AGAIN!!! I am beginning to think that me and New Years just don't get along. This is the second new years in the last three years where I have been sick and in bed. Because I was sick we kept it low key and just hung out at our friends Dennis and Jenny's house. Earlier in the day, my friend Naomi picked me up to get me off the couch and we went to Jenny's early to make lots and LOTS of sushi. BTW....I am a MASTER sushi roller, who would have known? After a quick shower at home to clean up, Ryan and I headed back to the party to enjoy the big FEAST I had helped prepare.

Naomi, our MASTER sushi chef

A Whole Lot of Yummy

Bambi, Jenny, Me, Naomi

We were so glad the military let Jenny come home on leave for the holidays. See you in March girlie!!

Family Pictures

2009-12-28T14:33:00.003-07:00

I haven't been able to post these until now because they were Christmas presents. For my parents christmas present, my two brothers and myself got together secretly and took family photos. We then framed a couple of them for my parents as a surprise. Here are a few of the pictures.

The Holidays

2009-12-28T14:12:00.004-07:00

I love the holidays and the holiday season but I have to admit that I am kind of relieved that they are almost over. We had a nice, but quiet Christmas this year. Both Ryan and I have been super busy with work, parties, and everything else that the holidays entail, I feel like Christmas crept up on us so fast this year. For Christmas Eve we had my mom and dad over to our house and we ate lots and lots of yummy food. After we had stuffed ourselves we drove around the town looking at christmas lights. The best display we found was a sign in front of a house saying "Ditto" that pointed to the "over the top" house next to them. I tried to get a picture but there was so much traffic around the houses that the pictures didn't turn out.

Ryan and I in front of our tree on Christmas Eve

Mom & Dad- Christmas Eve

Even Jack got to go see Christmas lights. He didn't want his picture taken though.

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On Christmas Day we went to my Mom and Dad's for lunch and to hang out with everyone. We played games, opened presents, and enjoyed each others company. I forgot to take pictures so sorry everyone, I only snapped a few.

Grandma & Bryn with their guns

In front of Mom's tree- Christmas Day
(Two striped sweaters don't go together) ha ha

Sweet baby Lu

Jack was excited to open his present from Hailey this year. He was smelling the box trying to figure out how to get it open.

Other things we did this weekend: Played the new super mario bros game for hours, rocked out to Beatles rockband, saw New Moon, cruised the Goodwill, and did a little bit of shopping.

Seeing Double

2009-12-23T10:27:00.002-07:00

Have you ever shown up to work to find yourself matching a co-worker??? I HAVE!!! Yesterday I wore my favorite hooded sweatshirt to work because it was rainy and cold outside. My sweater is easily 4 years old but it is STILL my favorite. To my surprise, a co-worker of mine Krystal also has this sweater and it is her favorite as well. Here we are looking like twins.

As if that wasn't strange enough....... after work I ran to Sam's Club to do some last minute Christmas shopping. To my surprise, I ran into another girl wearing the SAME sweatshirt. She TOO said it was her favorite sweatshirt and has had it for years. I guess when you love something you should hold onto it. I should write to the designers at O'Neill and thank them for making such a cute sweatshirt that has lasted throught the years and is a favorite to so many.

This girl probably thought I was crazy when I asked to get my picture with her.

Santas Little Helper

2009-12-23T10:20:00.002-07:00

Like I previously said, I have been one SUPER busy Elf. Below is just a little peek of what I have been up to lately. A BIG thanks to my hubby who helped me a ton by cutting wood and sanding. I couldn't have finished ALL of the blocks without you honey.

FROM THIS

TO THIS

TO THE FINAL RESULT

In all the chaos, I found time to make some super yummy pretzels too!

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-21T11:13:00.004-07:00

Merry Christmas from the Howards. We hope everyone has a holly jolly Christmas!!!

Sleep is Overrated.. well maybe not!

2009-12-21T10:13:00.004-07:00

The weekends just keep getting busier. Wow, I need to clone myself so I can get everything done. Let's see, where do I even begin to tell you what we have been up to???? This weekend we attended two christmas parties, one birthday party, made 8 homemade presents, went to church, visited friends, and made several trips to Walmart, Costco, and more. I can't show you pictures of the gifts I made just yet but I'm excited about them. Every year I make gifts and EVERY year I ask myself, why do I do this? Then I remember that there is just something old fashioned and special about giving a gift to someone that you made as opposed to just running to the store and buying something. All of my gifts are made from the heart with love, just like Santa would do.
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I know we have all seen those emails that have been going around aout people in Walmart. Well I have my own. On friday night after a party, we rushed to Walmart and ran into our friends Liesl and Sam. We also ran into this poor nameless Groom who was being humiliated by his family and friends. I'm sad I didn't get a full shot of him because he was wearing ladies underwear over his clothes.. I'm talking the granny panty kind, leg warmers, and a T-shirt that all the women in the store were DYING to sign. Congrats to the nameless Groom and I hope your buddies didn't have too much fun at your expense.

My contribution to the T-shirt was back hair in the lower region. Ha ha

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Ryan and I are still on the activities committee in our ward so we helped with the Christmas Party on friday night. It was a success and everyone had such a good time.

The primary singing a song

A BIG thanks to the DeWitts

Us, The Bizzys......................................Brett & Brooke Martin

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Merry Christmas to all my work buddies. Here are a few photos from my work, Red Brick Realtys, Holiday party. I think I am still eating leftovers from this party. Ha ha

Me and Summer our Office Manager

Casey & Shari............................................Doug (Owner) & Sandy (Broker)

Me & Shari..............................................Mark & Sheri (Congrats on your engagement)

Happy Birthday to ME!

2009-12-16T11:28:00.002-07:00

THANKS to everyone who sent me birthday wishes to help make my birthday a GREAT one. I was excited to get EVERY single text message, facebook message, email, phone call, and verbal Happy Birthday. Thanks to the ladies at my office who decorated my office, bought me lunch, and had a birthday cake for me, you guys are AWESOME. Last night I met up with family for ice cream and fun. I LOVE YOU ALL!!

My wonderful hubby gave me a GORGEOUS ring for my birthday that I absolutely LOVE!!!!

You know you have been friends with someone for a long time when you start to become one.

AMBER (+) BAMBI (=) BAMBER

Always running behind

2009-12-16T10:18:00.004-07:00

I'm always behind on posting things. Last Saturday we had a VERY busy day. First I want to say CONGRATULATIONS to Eric and Tory who are expecting a baby girl next month. Ryan and I popped into Tory's babyshower for a few minutes on our way to the State Football Game this weekend. We are so excited for you guys and we can't wait for the big day.

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MESA HIGH SCHOOL VS HAMILTON HIGH SCHOOL STATE CHAMPIONSHIP

If you've followed our blog you know that we have gone to several Mesa High football games this year. We know several of the players and we were estatic to watch them make it all the way to the State Championship game. The game was at the Cardinals stadium which was a treat in itself. We arrived early to the game to do a little tailgating beforehand. Unfortunately Mesa High lost by a score of 35-0 but we are still proud of our boys. We had lots of family and friends at the game, which made it even more fun. Maybe next year guys!!

How exciting that they got to play on the Cardinals field

Mom & Dad.............................................Ben & Rachelle

I Heart Christmas

2009-12-10T21:33:00.004-07:00

Its beginning to look a lot like Christmas at the Howards. I FINALLY decorated our christmas tree this week. I hate to decorate the tree because it takes so long but once its done, I LOVE it. Now its time to put up the Nativity scene, the stockings, and my Christmas village. Its actually beginning to feel like Christmas too with this cold weather we have had. Okay, when I say cold, I mean its been cold for us Arizonans. Christmas is 2 weeks and counting... are you ready???

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One of the awesome things about the holidays is giving to those in need. We were asked to participate in a secret Santa for a family in our ward. I won't disclose their names but they have several young girls, so I was excited to make TONS of hairbows for them. My cousin Peyton was over while I was making bows. She is TOO cute, so she got to go home with a few bows for herself.

2009-12-07T17:07:00.001-07:00

GO MESA HIGH

2009-12-07T16:12:00.016-07:00

Friday night we went to the High School Semi-Finals football game to cheer on Mesa High School. It was a GREAT game and they won 14 - 10 over undefeated Mountain Point. We are so excited for all the boys we know who played and we can't wait for STATE this saturday at the Cardinals Stadium. GO JACKRABBITS!!!!!

It was in the 40's at the game so I was FREEZING!!!!!

Before each game the boys on the team do the HAKA for the crowd. I missed the very beginning and some guy walked in front of me, but here's a rough video of it. Hopefully I can get a better video at state this weekend. (Video is above in previous post)

Lu Turns One and Hiking with the Gibsons

2009-12-07T13:56:00.003-07:00

On Friday my niece Lu turned one year old. She is such a cute, funny little girl. For her birthday she devoured TWO chocolate cupcakes giving her a chocolate goatee. Happy Birthday Lu Lu.

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On Saturday morning the weather was a little chilly so we decided to go hiking with the Gibson clan. Ryan, Jack, and myself loaded up and hit up McDonalds on the way to the trailhead. Jack loves Sausage McMuffins for breakfast so we happily obliged. We met the whole Gibson clan at the trail and we headed off. We were quite the hiking crew.. there was, Myself, Ryan, our little dog Jackie, my brother Ben & his wife Rachelle, their kids Max, Bryn and Lu, and their dog Jack. We all headed up the mountain and suprisingly made it ALL the way to the very top of Usery Mountain. I'm so proud of the kids, they were real troopers. Here are a few pictures of our journey along the way.

Jack eating his McDonald's McMuffin...mmmmmmmmm

Bryn was singing to Ben....................Baby Lu had the easiest job of all of us

The Gibson Clan minus Max and Jack

Superhiker Max with his cape..................Ryan waiting for the rest of us to catch up

Gibson Clan photo Take 1

Gibson Clan Photo Take 2

Well I never did get a picture with all of them looking. Bryn didn't want to cooperate.... typical 3 year old.

A 4 year old beautician

2009-12-01T17:19:00.004-07:00

Yesterday my 4 year old nephew Max gave my 3 year old niece Bryn a haircut. And it was quite the haircut. Aunt Amber was called in to try and fix the job. Poor Bryn lost all her beautiful long locks..... guess its a good thing that hair grows.

This is Bryn before her Max original haircut

And this is the after result!

After we fixed it... it was much better!

Thanksgiving Weekend!

2009-12-01T16:49:00.005-07:00

For thanksgiving we stayed in town and had a small thanksgiving with Ryan and I and my parents. Our good friends the Salisburys came over too which gave us a full table thank goodness. Thursday morning we headed out to our neighborhood park so Ryan could play turkey bowl with the guys. A few of us girls cheered them on from the sidelines. After the game we showered up and headed over to my parents house over for dinner. I was bad and didn't get pictures of us but I did snap a few of the Salisbury crew.

The boys playing turkey bowl

Cheerleaders on the sidelines

Sophia, Cady, Eric & Tory Salisbury

Cady & Me (Glad you could come girlie)

After dinner we played a few games then headed over to our friends Luke & Naomi's house for more games and fun.

Bambi, Eli, & Alyssa.................Bambi, Me, Naomi

Bambi, Naomi, and I hit up the Black Friday shopping early this year. Again I forgot to take pictures because we headed out at 11:00pm. THATS RIGHT... our mall, Toy R Us and many other stores opened at midnight this year and we were there for it all. We got home around 6:30am after a LONG NIGHT of shopping. It was fun girls but next year I might go to bed. Ha ha

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On Saturday the Kehoe family invited us to go to the ASU vs UofA football game with them. The 4th quarter of the game was exciting including the fact that it hailed on us but at the end ASU lost. Thanks for the invite.. we had so much fun.

Ryan started decorating our house for Christmas. We didn't finish getting all the lights up just yet. Now its time to crawl in the attic and get out all the decor for inside. I LOVE this time of year and all the FESTIVITIES!!!! YEAH, for CHRISTMAS!

Service is Key

2009-12-01T16:01:00.002-07:00

I love this time of year because it gives us lots of opportunities to donate to those that are less fortunate than us. Serving others, whether by giving of ourselves or our wealth is always the BEST feeling. We donated turkeys for Turkey tuesday and our Stake collected almost 1200 turkeys for St. Vincent De Paul that day. Hopefully no one will go hungry this holiday season!

A Perfect Holiday Treat!

2009-12-01T15:38:00.002-07:00

I made these a couple of weeks ago and they were a huge hit. My personal favorites were the Nutter Butter truffles. Enjoy and have fun with your holiday baking!

Sad Day!

2009-11-12T09:50:00.008-07:00

Our good friends Jeff & Laura are moving to California tomorrow (sniff sniff). Well technically Laura moved about 2 weeks ago but she flew back in yesterday to drive the U-haul to California with Jeff. Cady and I picked Laura up from the airport yesterday so we could do a girls shopping trip to Last Chance one last time. I love the picture of Laura, she is sad because there is not much of a selection of shoes when you wear size 12!!! Holy Shoe-bacca. Ha ha

Mean Girls (Cady, Regina, Karen).............................................Shoebacca

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We grabbed the hubbies and had our last double date with the Shaws before the big move. We've been on sooo many double dates with them this year, its gonna be weird to not have them around. We'll miss you guys tons and wish you luck in Cali. We can't wait to come visit and you are always more than welcome to come and stay with us.

The girls!

Waiting for our table at Oreganos

WE WILL MISS YOU!!!!!

Happy Birthday Ryan!

2009-11-09T17:55:00.016-07:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY RYAN!!!!

Last thursday was Ryans birthday and on his actually birthday just the two of us went to dinner and did a little shopping. On Saturday night we had a couples party at our house and I have to say it was a BLAST!!!! Thanks to all of our friends that came, we had so much fun we are already planning another party for around christmas time. So get your white elephant gifts ready everyone!!!

Ryan was soooo excited cuz he got LOTS of wii games for his birthday. He has been fishing all weekend on the wii.

At the party we played the NEWLYWED GAME because all the couples including us have been married less than 3 years. It was HILARIOUS watching the bickering that was going on in the room. Ryan and I were the hosts and it was so much FUN! For playing the game, everyone got lei'd when it was over. (Ha ha) Thanks for participating everyone!

Eric & Tory Salisbury..........................................Seth & Megan Miller

Lisa & Kyle Hargrave....................................................Jon & Lara Stowell

Grant & Krystal Smith.............................................Brent & Lexi McDowell

Us (The Hosts)

The Whole Group

We also played a few other games and Megan won two of them... way to go girl. And Tory & Eric proved that they are handy with oven mitts.

We played reverse limbo or the cereal box game as I like to call it. I was SUPER impressed with how flexible this group was. The object of the game is to pick up the cereal box without using your hands and only your feet can be touching the floor. After each round the box is cut so it is shorter. We got all the way down to just the bottom of the box by the end and Krystal and Grant were the winning couple. I have to say that the BEST award goes to Tory who made it all the way to the end and she's SEVEN months pregnant. Props go out to you Tory.

Kyle and Lisa both had good techniques.

Krystal and Tory used the same technique til the end.

Our flexible winners!!!!
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Eric was hilarious doing this. I videod him everytime but dummy me had the camera sideways so here is one of the best videos but you'll have to tilt your head to watch it cuz I'm retarded!!

A Whole Months Worth!!!!!

2009-11-04T14:57:00.007-07:00

We are ALIVE!!!! Okay so a busy month means no time to post on my blog but I'll catch you up to speed on us. The past month has just flown by and I can't believe its November which means its almost christmas... YIKES! We've been so busy I don't even know where to start... how about I start at the beginning of October where we left off and go from there.

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In OCTOBER:

Ryan & I celebrated our 2 year anniversary on October 5th. We both took the day off and went to lunch, walked around costco, and pretty much just chilled the rest of the day. Wow... 2 years has just flown by. Happy Anniversary Honey!

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This year we went to the opening night of the Arizona State Fair... we didn't ride any rides but we ate some yummy fair food and saw all the 4H animals. Jeff & Laura came with us.. I think this was our last double date with them since Laura has already moved to Cali. (sniff, sniff)

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The 'ol gang had dinner at Brent & Lexi's house. It was so great to see Matt & Christie while they were in town too... you guys need to move back cuz we miss you.

(Lexi, Brent, Amber, Ryan, Eric, Tory, Megan, Seth, Christie, Matt)

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Happy Birthday to my niece Bryn who turned 3 on October 16th. She got to go to Disneyland on her birthday... lucky girl!

Happy Birthday to my brother Josh. We had a joint birthday party for him and Bryn.

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FINALLY we are seeing cooler weather which means HIKING!!!! We were soooo excited to hit the trails again and enjoy nature. This time of year reminds us why we love living in Arizona. We have several great hiking trails within 30 minutes of our home so we can't wait to spend the next few months exploring even more new trails.

With cooler weather we also get to enjoy our evening walks at the Riparian again. We love walking around the lakes as the sun goes down and I've missed it over the summer months.

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It wouldn't be October without pumpkin carving witht the family. We used templates this year and I think they came out great. Its hard to tell in the picture so you'll just have to trust me.

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HAPPY HOWL-OWEEN!

For halloween this year I was little Red Riding Hood and Ryan was the big bad werewolf. Jack was a hotdog because he is a "hot" dog. We went to both of our work parties on friday night and then stayed at home to pass out candy on halloween night.

At work we had a great party which included a "haunted hallway" to scare the kids. We had a great turnout and so much work went into putting it together that I'm actually glad its over. I'll post pics of the hallways when I get them.

(Me, Summer, Cindy)

Baby Lu was an adorable pumpkin..............my cousin Payton makes the cutest princess!

Football..Temple... Friends

2009-09-30T13:47:00.004-07:00

We had a very busy weekend. On Friday night we went to watch Red Mountain High School take on the Mesa High Jackrabbits. For the first half of the game we HAD to sit on Red Mtn's side since I was a Mountain Lion and then during the second half of the game we switched to the visitors side to sit with some friends. I'm pleased to announce that Red Mtn won... GO LIONS! I think we are gonna have to go to a few more games this year because we had lots of fun.

Mesa High's Sidelines

The Bizzys...................................Mark & Jeanette Jackson

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On Saturday morning we got to participate in the sealing of this beautiful little girl to her adopted mom and dad Alan & Linda Adams. This was the last of their 3 babies to be sealed so all three kids were there and it was such a sweet experience. Thanks to Alan and Linda for allowing us the priviledge to be there. We just love those babies!

Maile Rose Adams

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My friend Jenny is in the Army and she was home on leave for a few days before heading out to Hawaii on Monday. On saturday night we got together at her house so we could see her and hear all her interesting military stories. Have fun in Hawaii Jen and we'll see during the holidays.

The girls cruising around in Jen's new car that her hubby got her.

(Naomi, Me, Jenny, & Bambi)

Wow... its so rare for us all to be together now. xoxo

Social Gatherings

2009-09-20T21:14:00.003-07:00

Friday night was "Girls Night Out" for some of the girls in my ward. We shopped, ate, gabbed, ate some more, gabbed some more, then ate some more. It was a lot of fun. Thanks for the invite ladies, I'm ready to go again anytime. Brooke- I thought maybe I should photoshop you in since you weren't there for the picture. xoxo

(Stephanie, Valerie, Me, Julie, Jeanette)

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On Saturday night we spent the evening with some of our newlywed friends. Its so wierd how just a few years ago all of us were single and hanging out at Seth's house on a weekly basis, and now we are all happily married and never see each other. I miss those Sunday nights Seth, we need to get together more often. Who's up for camping?

(Amber & Ryan, Tory & Eric Salisbury, Meagan & Seth Miller)

Brent & Lexi McDowell aren't pictured but they were there too.

I HATE THEM..... I HATE THEM

2009-09-18T12:28:00.004-07:00

I'm talking about scorpions. I HATE THEM MORE THAN ANYTHING!!! Last night we got home late and I walked into the kitchen to find one crawling around in the sink. Of course I screamed and yelled for Ryan. I had this creative idea to spray hairspray on him and then light him on fire. It worked great and we killed him!!! Of course then I was too creeped out to go to bed so we drove to Walgreens, bought a scorpion flashlight and headed home to start our hunt. We scoured the entire outside of our house until midnight... All in all we found FIVE SCORPIONS and killed four of them. YES, one of them did crawl away but I will sneak out again tonight and comb the area for him. He will be mine.. oh yes, he will be mine. We also found a black widow during our hunt... ughh HATE THEM TOO!!! If you smell something burning coming from our house, don't worry, its just me lighting scorpions on fire with hairspray. Ha ha

Double Date

2009-09-16T13:21:00.002-07:00

Nothing breaks up a boring rigorous work week like a date night in the middle of the week. We had dinner last night with our friends Nick and Darcie and it was such a welcome relief. Not only that but I FINALLY used a gift card I got for my birthday back in December of last year. Ha ha

On another note....We missed the season premiere of "Biggest Loser" which I'm dying to watch and so excited that its a new season. We've gained some weight over the summer since its been scorching outside so we need some motivation to get back on track.

Attention Runners!!

2009-09-10T09:47:00.007-07:00

My good friend Courtney is putting on a charity run for the American Cancer Society on Saturday October 17th at Red Mountain Park in Mesa. Please help me in supporting this cause and spread the word. For more information about this event, you can go to:

http://thunderbirdathletics.com/ and go to "Pink Out" Run

For more information on Courtney you can check her out at:

http://www.aahperd.org/naspe/pdf_files/CTSA09_teatro.pdf

Sorry Court, just thought people might like to know who you are too. haha

2009-09-08T17:34:00.004-07:00

Over the three day weekend we went up north to the white mountains with my parents. We stayed at a friends quaint little cabin that has a great patio and is full of unique antiques. The weather up there was perfect complete with a little rain. Here are some of the highlights from our weekend.

We went to the Taylor Corn Festival and enjoyed navajo tacos and roasted corn.

Jack LOVED all the green grass. He ran and ran and ran...

Picked apples off the tree

Witnessed one of nature's great miracles

We visited an old pioneer home. They raised 13 kids in this tiny one room home. I'm so thankful for all the pioneers who sacrificed all that they had and even their lives at times to come across the plains. These were amazing men and women.

Visited the Snowflake Temple grounds

Even Jack liked the Temple

Watched some good 'ol fashioned team roping

Cute cabin where we stayed

It was so great to get out of the heat for a few days. We are so lucky in Arizona that we can drive just a few hours and be in the beautiful pine trees.

What we've been up to....

2009-09-08T16:25:00.004-07:00

I'm Enrichment Leader in our ward and we have a super saturday craft day in our ward coming up soon. These blocks are what I came up with to teach on the fun day. They are super easy to make and I think they are adorable. The picture doesn't show it but they are made with 2x4's so they are thin enough to fit on shelves. If you want instructions on how to make these blocks, let me know. They are GREAT for gifts and christmas IS coming up soon!

A little over a week ago we had dinner at our friends Brett & Brooke's house. Joe & Jessica joined us as well and we had a GREAT time just hanging out, munching on some pizza, and chatting til the wee hours of the morning! Thanks for the invite guys!

Brooke, Me, Jessica & Meg

For enrichment last month I taught the ladies in our ward how to make your own laundry soap and how to make a super easy sugar scrub. If your looking for a way to save $$$$$ this is it. You can make laundry soap for the whole year for around $10 bucks. I have the recipe for those that didn't get it. If you want it, I can email it to you.

These are the ingredients for the laundry soap.. just add water

Ingredients for homemade sugar scrub.... sooo easy!

Happy 50th Birthday Linda!

2009-08-27T13:59:00.006-07:00

Our friend Linda Adams turned the big 5-0 last week and we celebrated with her on Friday night. Linda and Alan have three of the most ADORABLE babies that they have adopted. We just love them to pieces.

The twins... they aren't really twins but they are only 2 weeks apart so they are being raised as twins.

These babies loooove Ryan.

Their oldest boy was sooo excited to go play that he took off with girlfriend in hand. Too cute!

The Happiest People

2009-08-17T10:25:00.005-07:00

In today's economy so many of us are going through tough times and struggling with making ends meet. It's easy to get depressed and be down thinking of all the things you are missing out on or going without. It could be luxuries like vacations, cable, eating out at restaurants, shopping, new toys, etc... Why is it when we are down we look at all the things we DON'T have instead of looking at the things that we DO HAVE??? For instance: life, love, friends, family, youth, health, and the love of our Heavenly Father. I am rich in those areas, don't those things count for more than material wealth??? I say YES they do. Money can come and go but you can't take away the love of my family and friends EVER. Yesterday in church I heard a great quote that I want to share.

"The happiest people are NOT those that have the best of everything, they are those that MAKE the BEST of what they have."

I really want to choose to be happy EVERY day and make the most of everything that I have been given. What will you choose?

Baby Blues

2009-08-17T10:18:00.003-07:00

I had my ADORABLE niece Lu for a couple of hours this weekend so I just HAD to snap a few photos of this cutie! I can't believe how fast she is growing.

Lu Elle- Age 8 months

Game of the Year!

2009-08-04T10:27:00.003-07:00

If you are like us and you love board games... TICKET TO RIDE is the game for you! We received this game for christmas and we have seriously played it at least once a week since. I am not even joking. Every Sunday or Monday night we get together with my parents JUST to play this game. Its that addicting. And we NEVER play just one game a night, its usually two or three. I would say that we have definately got our money out of this game thirty times over.

The game is for adults only and can be played with 2-5 players. The object of the game is to use all of your train cars and complete multiple destinations. Its a strategy game and it can get very intense. There have been many nights when we are cussing at each other because someone blocked someone else and they had to be rerouted. Its a TEN as far as games go. If your interested in playing it before purchasing this wonderful game, we'd be happy to have you over to play. The game is a little pricey $40-55 and can be purchased at a game store or online at amazon. We recommend it and think its worth the money. It also makes a great gift. Thank you to the McMinn family who gave it to us!

This is the board and cards for the game!

DBacks Game

2009-07-27T22:40:00.001-07:00

What is better than Diamondback tickets?????? How about FREE Diamondback tickets. Thank you to Mark and Sheri for giving me free tickets to the Diamondbacks game for Monday night. We LOVE LOVE LOVE the Dbacks and lucky us, we got to go twice in one week. We packed our pb&j sandwiches, popcorn, and snacks and headed out to the ballpark on Monday night. The only thing that made the night even better was seeing myself featured on the jumbo tron, not once but twice. Ha ha The Dbacks lost but it was exciting to see Ryan Howard hit a home run.... not my Ryan Howard but the Phillies Ryan Howard. lol

The Newlyweds Jeff & Laura enjoying watermelon

We were happy as clams to be at the game.......................watching the players warm up!

See the Jumbo Tron................................................See us on the Jumbo Tron

All about July

2009-07-26T21:16:00.003-07:00

I saw this on a friends blog. You are suppose to post July pictures of your kids from previous years up until now. Since we don't have kids, I am posting pictures of us throughout the years. You'd think that since we are adults we wouldn't change but I have to say that we both look different even after just a few years. TAG YOUR IT.... repost this on your blog!

July 2007..... we were engaged

July 2008

July 2009

We LOVE the Dbacks!

2009-07-26T18:41:00.003-07:00

My Aunt Linda and Uncle Karl came over from California for the weekend. On Saturday night, we decided to take in a Diamondbacks game. Fortunately the Dbacks won and it was FREE visor day so we all got free Dback visors......score!

The Group minus me..........................................Karl and Linda

Extreme Close-up............................................Linda and Mom

Check out our nice FREE visors!

Jeff & Laura Shaw Wedding

2009-07-17T23:24:00.011-07:00

On July 11th, Jeff & Laura were sealed in the Oakland California Temple. The weather was beautiful the bride looked gorgeous and Jeff was the happiest guy... just look at those dimples. It was so hard for me to pick which photos to post. So if you don't see yours on here, don't be offended, I just had SO many to choose from. Email me and I can send you any that you don't see on here. We had such a great time and we felt honored that we could be there. We have seen their relationship grow from day one and it was so sweet to see them HAPPILY MARRIED!

(HINT- CLICK ON THE PHOTOS TO ENLARGE THEM. I FORGOT TO MAKE THEM BIG)

Here they are as they exited the temple just after becoming h & w

Laura's family..........................................................Jeff's family

Sibling Rivalry

Laura & Family

The Brandons

Girlfriends

Beautiful Bride & Maid of Honor (oh thats me!)

Holy hotness..... I'm a lucky girl!

After the wedding, Ryan and I jumped on the Bay Bridge and headed over to San Francisco for a few hours. It was super windy but it was fun to site see even if it was for just a short time.

Bay Bridge

Of course we HAD to get some yummy clam chowder at Fishermans Warf

Alcatraz in the distance

EXTREME close-up

From San Fran we headed straight to the reception. We got lost and couldn't find our way back to the Bridge so we were rushing to make it to the reception on time. he he

The best picture of the Shaws... hands down!

I would tell you what we were laughing about but then I would have to kill you.

Aww... super cute Brian & Becky

Everyone LOVES Mama "D"

Laura... this face says it all.......beautiful cake before being shoved up their noses

So sweet.

Days before the wedding...

2009-07-14T19:12:00.013-07:00

This past weekend we went to Northern California for Jeff and Laura's wedding. I have tons of pictures from the entire weekend so here is the first of many. (For those of you that are in the photos... feel free to click on the photo and save them for your own use. Make sure you click on them first and enlarge them before saving them for best results.) We had so much fun with the Shaw, Brandon, and Thompson families. We were sad for the weekend to come to an end. Everyone is invited to visit us anytime, we always have room for you. Hopefully we will stay in touch.

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On Wednesday, I rode over with Jeff and Laura to Cali. We made a pit stop at the Palm Springs outlet on the way over for a few hours.

We look pretty tore up from riding in the car for 14 hours.

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Thursday I ran around Lodi with Laura's mom Sheryl getting stuff for the reception. We met up with Laura's childhood friend Kelly for lunch.

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Thursday evening I rode up to Sacramento with Jeff, Laura, and Jeff's brother David. We met up with the parents in Old Sacramento for some shopping and dinner.

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We ate dinner on the patio at Joe's crab shack right on the water.

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Friday morning Laura and all her girlfriends that were there for the wedding met up for a much needed mani/pedi.

(Me & Kelly)

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On friday evening we had the rehearsal dinner outside at Laura's grandmothers house. The weather was gorgeous and the company was fabulous. Several of us shared our thoughts and stories about the couple and it was great to hear how much they are loved by everyone.

(Laura & her brother Steven....................................(Leah, Laura, Bre, Cindy)

(Heather & Steve Laura's bro).....................................(Me & Laura)

(Laura and the moms)

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BACHELORETTE PARTY #2

We had a bachelorette party on friday night right after the dinner. Thanks to Shelli, Heather and Becky for all your hard work.

(Kelly, Laura, Me)......................................................(Laura, Amy)

4th of July

2009-07-14T18:56:00.004-07:00

Ryan's brother Zach and his wife Carrie and their three kids came to visit us for the 4th of July weekend. It was fun to have company in town despite the triple digit weather we had. Next time you guys need to come in the fall or spring when the weather is gorgeous. Thanks for visiting, your welcome back anytime.

On the carousel

All the kids including ours.

Coming Soon

2009-07-14T09:48:00.001-07:00

I PROMISE to find time today to update my blog from the past two weeks. I have TONS of pictures so it might take me a while to sort through them. I plan on devoting time to it today after work. Stay tuned.....

How Skinny is Too Skinny??

2009-07-07T11:47:00.003-07:00

It's SUMMER time which also means its dreaded SWIMSUIT SEASON. Most women would agree with me that putting on a bathing suit is not something that they enjoy doing. We as a society have become very image conscious and the public's perception of thin has changed over the years. What use to be perceived as thin and gorgeous in the 1950's would now be considered overweight or obese by todays standards. Let's take a look at how far we as a society have come in the last 50-60 years and how our perception of beauty has changed dramatically.

The first picture is of Marilyn Monroe taken sometime in the 1950's or 1960's. She was considered to be sexy and the ideal woman. Personally I think she is gorgeous and has amazing curves. The second photo is a contestant from the 2009 Miss Universe pageant, who I feel is alarmingly skinny. Is this what we now feel is beautiful and acceptable?

How did we let it go this far?

The scary thing we face now-a-days is that girls as young as 10 years old are beginning to diet and worry about their weight. Anorexia, bulimia, and other eating disorders are on the rise and I don't see an end in site. If you know of a friend, daughter, mother, sister who is struggling with their own body image I encourage you to reach out to them and let's turn this problem around. Ladies, be proud of your bodies! Whether your a size 10 or a size 20, be proud of your body and take care of it, its the only one we've got so LOVE it!

This image shows just how serious this matter is and how some people perceive what they see in the mirror differently than how the rest of the world sees them.

Busy, Busy, Busy

2009-06-29T21:50:00.011-07:00

We had a busy weekend. On friday night we went to CPK (California Pizza Kitchen) for dinner and then to Barnes and Noble to hang out. Only two more weeks before Jeff and Laura say "I DO" I think they are officially counting down the days now. We are excited to go to Oakland and celebrate with them.

Jeff is very excited to be getting married......................................................"Say Cheese"

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On Saturday morning we had the pleasure of going to a sealing at the Temple. Our friends Alan and Linda Adams have adopted three children and their youngest son Rydan was sealed to them on Saturday. Ryan and I are close to both of the babies so Ryan had the honor of assisting in the sealing. Their son Braelyn has already been sealed to them so he was there as well. Their little girl Maile Rose will be sealed next month when her adoption papers come through. We are excited to participate in that sealing as well. Rydan and Maile are 13 days old and the cutest babies... we just love them so much.

The Adams Family..............................................Rydan (he looks like an angel)

Everyone that attended the Sealing

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On Saturday night, I hosted Laura's Bachelorette Party! We met at my house then went to a water park for the evening! It was a blast and we were so hungry afterwards that we hit up a Waffle House and ate just about everything on the menu. Thanks to everyone that came,

Love you girls!!! xoxoxox

Laura and Courtney

Liesl, Courtney, Me, Laura, Bambi

We are all water logged after the water slides and HUNGRY!

Look at all that food!

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My cousin Peyton turned one this week. Yes, I have a first cousin that is 31 years younger than me, is that weird?? Haha

My Aunt and Uncle, Dave and Paula love this little girl to death and its easy to see why.. she is ADORABLE! Her Dada made her the cutest little wooden bench and she got lots of fun toys, dresses and hairbows. HAPPY BIRTHDAY PEYTON!

Chillin' in her chair

According to her cake it looks like she is turning 8. ha ha

So so Cute!

A Week in the life of a Dog!

2009-06-21T17:49:00.002-07:00

We have been dog sitting three dogs this week for our friends Luke and Naomi. If your good at math that made FOUR dogs at our house all week. For the first few days I felt like we had a newborn baby in the house. They would wake up every few hours making noise, or making messes. haha Thankfully after a few days, they were enjoying themselves and we made it through the week. Some of the things they enjoyed at the Howard home was a bath, LOTS of car rides, visits to Grandma's house, and they learned how to use the doggie door so they could go outside on their own. I'm sure they were glad to go home and see their family last night.

Lucy getting a bath...........................................Breezy, Belle, and Lucy enjoying their car ride

This is Lucifer in time out. (lol)..............All three little ones chillin on the couch

Jack enjoyed having his little friends come and stay but he is soooo glad to have his mom and dad back to himself.

Thank goodness for Birthdays!

2009-06-14T18:12:00.003-07:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY RACHELLE! It was my sister-in-law Rachelle's b-day on friday and the WHOLE Gibson family got together for dinner. We are still small enough to fit around one table... well when I say small, I mean small in numbers. haha

Ben & Rachelle.....................................................Ryan, Me, & Baby Lu

The Whole Gang

Uncle Josh & Baby Lu.........................................................Me and the Bday girl!

A Weekend with the Couturiers

2009-06-10T16:44:00.004-07:00

My niece Bryn was over last thursday spending some quality time with Aunt Amber. We cut her bangs, did her hair and then of course she loves to raid my closet and try on my high heels. These were her favorite. And who wouldn't love Red High Heels?

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We spent the weekend chilling at our friends Dustin and Bambi's house. Friday night we had a spaghetti dinner followed by brownies. The girls just gabbed while the boys watched the Diamondbacks game.

My hubby is so cute!

I LOVE these girls. Bambi (above) and Naomi (below).

Its good to have friends that have been with you through thick and thin.

On Saturday morning the girls met up to get a pedicure and relax. Afterwards we went to Goodwill half off day and found all sorts of bargains.

All of our cute toes after the pedicure

P.S. I made us all the cute flip flops

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Saturday night we hung out at Dustin and Bambi's house AGAIN! Their son Eli turned 8 so we had a birthday party for him. I CAN'T believe he is already 8. I remember going to Bambi's house and taking pictures of her belly right before she drove to the hospital to have him. It seems like only yesterday. Wow, time flies and I'm getting old.

Happy Birthday ELI!!

Thankfully there was another Diamondbacks game on tv Saturday night to keep the guys busy. They also got in the baseball mood and played catch outside for a little bit.

Me and my girl Alyssa showing off our new short do's. We are both loving them.

This picture cracks me up. Eli got some funny teeth for his Birthday. What a great family photo. We just need to photoshop Alyssa in there.

Did I mention I love these girls!

Naomi, Me, Bambi

Bambi... is it me or do you have like 50 times more hair than I do?

Would you let me watch your child??

2009-06-04T08:54:00.004-07:00

My friend Bambi's adorable daughter Alyssa has or should I said HAD beautiful long hair. The problem was that she hated having her hair brushed or put up so it was constantly in her face and tangled. Bambi decided it was time to cut it and I volunteered for the job. I can tell you that it was a good thing that neither of the parents were there or they might have cried when I cut that long ponytail off. I have to say that I LOVE the new haircut and it fits her cute personality. I was worried when Bambi came to pick her up though.. I'm not gonna lie!

Thanks for trusting me with your daughter Bam & Dustin. She is still as adorable as ever!

Before and After

I kept the ponytail for Alyssa to have............... look at that cute face!

What are your thoughts?

Weekend Review

2009-06-01T10:16:00.002-07:00

On Friday night I was a lucky girl and got a date night alone with my hubby. Its seems like we are always so busy and never have date nights alone anymore. We went to dinner at my favorite Mexican Restaurant NANDOS and then to Barnes & Noble. I know to some of you that might sound boring but I LOVE to read and get me in a book store and I'm in HEAVEN!

We laughed because we matched and it was not planned!

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Saturday was GIRLS DAY! I started out the day by cleaning and doing laundry. Then it was off to Bambi's to watch chick flicks on her new projector screen. After enjoying THE HOLIDAY and a little of MAMA MIA we were off to a dance recital to meet up with my mom and a few more friends. The recital was so cute. I loved seeing the little girls in their ADORABLE costumes.

All the dancers at the recital