A Long Awaited Letter!

Have you ever been cliff diving? It’s a funny thing. The last time I went cliff diving I was looking from the ground up, watching divers playfully jumping off an otherwise harmless ledge, reaching terminal velocity, and then entering a body of water that seems to accept them like a sharp needle through warm Jello that barely holds its shape (assuming, of course that annoying “Jello skin” has been removed). When I approach a cliff, I somehow seem to lack the confidence the other divers have. I realize in that instant “I’ll have a lot more surface area when I hit the water, this going to hurt.”

It seemed like fun looking up with cool abstraction at ground level, but up there on the edge of a cliff, that soft gelatin starts to look like all skin, no Jello.

I felt the same way when I recently got what most people consider fantastic news. After trying for two years to get into law school I got accepted to Creighton University: School of Law in Omaha, Nebraska. When I applied, it seemed like a great idea, but when I got the letter that said I had actually been accepted it felt like I was on the verge of a legal education cliff. Once I jumped, I don’t really have the choice of turning back if I spot an abnormally thick layer of legal Jello skin directly under my landing pad.

My wife, of course, was naturally frustrated at my hesitation. “Don’t you dare mention legal Jello skin to me you spineless twit!” she said. NOTE: This quote may or may not be accurate as I occasionally black out when Teresa gets angry. I have yet to verify whether this is from my own spinelessness (in which case her accusation would be accurate), or spousal abuse. If anyone has an insight, or has observed the abuse, please let me know.

Understanding her frustration, I promptly played the possum and decided to wait until she could calm down to explain. I thought that such a momentous decision warranted a bit of consideration, though in unanswerable logic she countered, “We’ve been considering for two years. If any more consideration takes place it will be from me considering whether or not to slap some sense into you!” Noting the threat of violence supports my spousal abuse theory, I also realized she was right.

My reservations had only to do with my own insecurities. I wouldn’t want to keep myself from a fantastic law school like Creighton out of cowardice. Though my confidence in their judgement was a bit shaken when they decided to include me in their law school. But it looks like they did it, they finally nailed Jello to the wall and I couldn't be more excited about Creighton.

Thanks to Creighton and my wife for accepting me and believing in me despite my irrational fear of Jello skins. We’ll be moving in the middle of August, and look forward to our new home in Omaha!

Just Random Things!

So if anyone still checks this blog, I admire your faith in me that I might actually do something! Probably everyone agrees with me that life is busy, however, the majority of you still are able to update your blogs and show all of the wonderful things going on in your life. It is one or the other with me apparently. Lately, I have been OBSESSED with sewing little projects (to the point that it is keeping me up till 1:00 am and then wake up late for work and rush out the door without washing my hair for the 4th or 5th day in a row). But with my sister having had a baby in December, Dave & Karlie any day, and Tanner and Lupe in just a couple of months and then about five other friends being pregnant, I can always come up with an idea for someone. My friend just turned me on to this blog tonight www.oneprettything.com and I have just spent the last hour thinking of all the things I could do for Will and so many other kids! I only wish I could quit my job and support my family this way, but I seriously think we would have to scale back on a few things to make ends meet. Sadly though I don't have any pictures of my crafts!

Here are some pictures though from the last couple of months.

This is just a picture of Will brushing his teeth. It amazes me at how fast he is growing up and how he is starting to insist on him being able to do as much as he can by himself. He loves that little stool and will carry it around to help him climb up on things.

This is Will Easter morning after he found his little Easter basket. It didn't take him long to realize there was candy in each of the eggs and we weren't stopping him from eating it! Let's just say that to him that equals a pretty good morning!

Here we are doing a little easter egg hunt. After the first egg, he wanted to stop and eat the candy, but then he saw that there were more eggs to grab so he kept moving until the job was done!

Grant and I have always loved reading books to Will! Most of the time when I can't hear Will playing it usually means he is into something he shouldn't, but lately he has started going into his room, grabbing some books, and then sitting in his glider and will just look through the books. I love it! I think it is so sweet!

This is Mother's Day morning when Will is painting me a picture with Grant. The final project was a bouquet of feet and hand prints. I have to give Grant credit for going to all of that work because finger painting with such a wiggly little boy can make such a big mess!

Selling the Car

This has been our go-to car for a while now, but its time to sell. This is a quick slideshow for our craigslist ad.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Cowboy-Up and Shop!

This weekend Will went to Elsa Nunley’s Birthday Party. Elsa’s parents, Marc and Kenna put on a fantastic Wild West Themed Party. They had a huge cardboard cutout of a “Juice Saloon” and a jail and it looked great. Also, unrelated to the cowboy theme they had a big bouncy house that Will liked once he got it all to himself (the other kids made it too disorienting for his already clumsy walking). Elsa was the cutest little cowgirl on the invitation so Teresa and I decided we would try to dress up Will too. At first I thought it might be fun to have will be an Indian to Elsa’s cowgirl, but then I thought he would just get shot at by cap guns all afternoon (and ironically he can’t stand loud noises). On further reflection it is probably better that we didn’t use our firstborn to perpetuate an unfair caricature of Native Americans, but to be honest my first thought was the cap gun shooting.



For those who have seen Will walk, you know that he already has that irrepressible swagger that is known to cowboys. Though, as devil’s advocate here, I may have to suggest that swagger be the wide-legged stumbling of a 15 month old. At any rate, we knew that role of a cowboy, individualistic, stubborn, reticent, though at times well spoken, would suit Will perfectly.



So the task then fell on my shoulders to find the various props needed to transform Will from City-Slicker to Cow poke. I thought that surely I would be able to find a toy gun and a badge at the first “Dollar Store” I came across I but I was wrong. So very wrong. After making trips to four different dollar stores, I didn’t find one gun, hat, or belt buckle. I didn’t even find bandana.



Giving up I went to Wal*Mart where I quickly found not one, but two cap guns, a felt cowboy hat, a belt with buckle included and one green bandana. The bandana turned out to be the trickiest as all of the Latino workers thought I was saying “banana” and the first “Whitey” I talked to had no idea at all. Finally I had to walk by the “unmentionables” to the handbags where I found women’s scarves and there it was, the green bandana like a beacon showing me the end of my four hour shopping fiasco. I snagged a Revlon Color Stay Eye-Liner (nod to Teryn Jensen for the “Believe-Me-Beauty Blog”) and then spent another half-hour trying to get out of the store.

But I hope as you can see the Eye-Liner came in handy both for painting a little mustachio on Will’s upper lip and for (I’m told) lining the lids of Teresa’s eyes. Teresa made flashy belt buckle even flashier by making a big “W” Buckle out of foam and aluminum foil. Hopefully these pictures of Will hamming it up for the camera made the shopping trip worth it, as he didn’t even wear the items for which I had spent so much time looking for even five minutes when we got to the party. I think this one tipping his hat as if to say "Howdy Padna'" made it worth it for me anyway.

The Wildest Thing of All!

This year for Halloween, I decided that it would be fun to make Will's costume. I had no idea what I got myself into when I bought all the material and got started. I think for the last couple of weeks if I got to bed before 12:30 AM I was doing pretty good. (Remember I also have to leave for work at 7:00am, if you do the math you'll realize I have been a little sleep deprived!) At one point I had an idea for our whole family to dress up in a theme (I won't say what it is in case we do it next year), but when I mentioned it to Grant he quickly shot down the idea of dressing up for Halloween. A couple of days later, I mention dressing Will up as Max from Where the Wild Things Are (Will loves the book) and then Grant thought he could dress up as a Wild Thing. I brought up the whole argument of dressing up and he confessed he just needed time to adjust to the idea of making a fool of himself for his kids. I haven't sewn anything with an actual pattern in SEVERAL years! I can't even remember what it was I sewed last. But I was pretty excited about this since I just got a sewing machine for Christmas last year and love the idea of any little projects. Even though between Grant's headpiece and Will's costume I got very little sleep and a little grief for neglecting my own husband's birthday, I think they turned out pretty cute!

Don't let that innocent face fool you!

He seriously has turned into a wild thing ever since he started walking!

I decided that I had already put too much time into the two costumes so I was the mom who sent Max to bed without his supper! Lucky for him, it's Halloween and people are giving out candy, so he didn't go to bed hungry!

This is the first house we went Trick-or-Treating to a house, it definitely

didn't take long for him to catch on to the whole free candy idea!

Grant was such a good sport about wearing that mask everywhere with Will! Will thought the mask was hilarious, and would smack it around to remind him who was king. However, some of our other friends' kids didn't think the mask was all that funny, it actually

left several kids in tears running for their parents! Oops!

Back from Utah!

First a little disclaimer, this post is long and is two weeks outdated, but I have been having issues with getting all the pictures on the post! So I hope everyone appreciates all the work I've gone through! So on Sunday, we went over to Dave & Kelli's place to have dinner. It was the first time since Christmas, we have all had a chance to get together. As always, there was a lot of laughing and joking! Here are a few pictures..

On Monday, it was "B" Party! We started off, my making BIG bubbles in the back yard! Everyone got to make their own bubble makers out of yarn & straws. It was pretty fun to see the BIG bubbles. Check them out!

Afterwards, my mom taught all the grandkids, except Will, how to bake bread. Yum! Yum! That smell of bread baking brings bake memories of warm bread after school!

Later that night, we had a tasty BBQ while swimming at Dave & Karli's house! The weather was perfect for a BBQ and swimming! We all had a great time having cannon ball contests, going down the slide and water fights!

On Tuesday, we all went to Boondock's where we played a little miniature golfing, go-karting, bumper boats and arcade games! I knew Grant would probably love all of this just as much as any of the kids! When they were on the bumper boats, you could squirt people with your water guns! found some guy he didn't even know and just soaked him! Afterwards, he overheard him talking to his family saying, "Did you see that guy with the blue shirt!?! He wouldn't leave me alone!" It was a lot of fun!

On Wednesday, we down to BYU and did some bowling! Every time I bowl, I realize the longer I bowl, the quicker my game goes down hill! My mom was great and stayed at home to watch Will so we could enjoy the game a little more. It was pretty cute seeing Rebecca, Jeff, Brandon, Zachary & Matthew bowling! Afterwards, Dad treated us to some ice cream up at the CougarEat. Later, that afternoon my cousin Krista stopped by to see me with her two adorable little kids! It was so much fun to see her! I was so glad it worked out that we got to see each other! Thanks again for coming over!

On Thursday, this was a very special day for Grant & me! It was our 4th Wedding Anniversary! WOW! Where did the time go!?! I can't believe how much I love Grant and all the wonderful things he does to make me happy! That night, my family watched Will so we could go out to dinner and a movie. It was the first time in a while that we have gone on a date, BEFORE Will was in bed! It was so nice to spend some time with just each other! Earlier that afternoon, we went to the Dinosaur museum at Thanksgiving Point. It was so interesting learning and seeing all the dinosaurs!

On Friday, my family went camping, but Grant and I opted out of that because Will would not have slept very well and so NO one would have slept! Instead Brooke and Spencer came down from SLC and we went to Olive Garden to visit Kelli while she was working! It was great to catch up with each other! Then the next morning, Tanner, Lupe and Anna came down and we went to play a little tennis! As always, tennis is so much fun to play, no matter how long you've been away from the sport! Will even had fun chasing the ball all over the court!

Sadly, that afternoon we were packing up and heading back home! It was a great week! I was so glad I got a chance to get up there so I could see Karen and her three boys while they were visiting! Thank you mom & dad, Karen, Kris & Nate, Dave & Karli, and Marianne! Will loved all the attention from his cousins! Thanks again to Dave & Kelli, Brooke & Spencer, Tanner & Lupe, and Alli for making the time to visit! I know things are pretty busy for you guys with work! It means a lot to us when we get to spend time together! Thanks again EVERYONE for making it a great trip!

Still Alive in Phoenix!

   I really don't know if at this point anyone even still looks at my blog, but I thought I would post a few pictures just to let anyone know what is going on in our lives!  

    First of all, I can't believe that Will is nine months old!  There are so many times throughout the day when I look at him and am just amazed at how much he has grown up!  I absolutely LOVE this stage he is at, which I should mention that I have loved each phase so far!  He is such a happy baby/little man and loves to laugh and smile at just about anyone!  For the last two months at least, he has been getting up on all four and then rocking back and forth like he is going to crawl, but it hasn't been till Monday that he really started crawling!  He's pretty funny about it!  He will crawl about three or four feet and then roll a little then even throw a little army crawl in there!  I laugh because there have been times when it looks like we have GI Joe training going on in our living room!  A couple of weeks ago I was up in Utah and three of his top teeth cut through and since then he has gotten a forth tooth as well on top.  Much to his father's disapproval, he grinds his teeth together!  Grant has a hard time holding onto him when he starts grinding his teeth, not that I can blame him!  It is an awful sound!  Most importantly though I thought I would include a few pictures of Will from the last couple of months, which lets be honest is really what people (if you're anything like me) really care about when checking blogs!

  Even though these pictures are a little old!  I never got a chance to post them in a blog and I thought my friend Kenna did such an amazing job for his six months photos!  There were so many cute pictures but this just is an example of a few of them!  

     I love these pictures!  Will is definitely Grant's son for several reasons but it is very evident when you see Will with books!  The kid doesn't get tired of books and loves to have story after story read to him!  It's pretty cute when I put him to bed or down for a nap we always read a couple of stories and after each one he sits up on my lap watches to see which book I grab next with a cute little grin!  It is so sweet!  By the way, for any mothers out there, my sister, Kris, told me the Llama Llama Red Pajama was such a cute story so when I saw it in Target I couldn't help but stop and read it!  I am not ashamed to admit that I had to hold back the tears at the end because it is so sweet!  Every mother should own this book! 

  These are few pictures when I was up in Utah with Will while Grant was on a High Adventure campout with our ward.  It was so much fun to be in Utah and see my family!  I always love seeing them and they are ALWAYS more than welcome to come and visit anytime (hint, hint!).  Thank you again mom and dad for taking such good care of us while we were up there!  

  

   These are a few of the more recent pictures that we have!  The last four out of the five pictures show so much of his personality!  He is constantly laughing and smiling!   Grant and I just laugh when Will starts doing his "intense" smiles and it just keeps on encouraging him even more!  

  Well, I think that pretty much sums it up for the last little while!  I always try and tell myself that I need to be better about posting but I never seem to change so who knows when this will happen again!  Hopefully sooner that three months though!