MBA Update

We have officially decided not to apply for MBA school this year - Justin is slightly frustrated as his applications were almost completed, but at least we saved the application fees:) Justin's boss wants him to stay and made him an offer which we decided would be unwise to turn down in the current climate. I surprised myself by knowing as soon as Justin told me about the meeting that we would stay and felt at peace with it - although I did go back and forth over the next couple of days. We both feel good about the decision and are excited to spend another year here in sunny California. Next year.... who knows.

And just as a side note we have attempted to take family pictures for Christmas cards several times now and have not been successful for a variety of humorous reasons. Not the least of which is that I'm 8 months pregnant and who wants to send out a picture of themselves to everyone they know when they're 8 months pregnant. I am flattered that my husband isn't embarrassed to do that though. So just remember you're all loved and we will probably send out Easter cards - if we don't get it together soon- when I am hopefully close to skinny again. I might post some of our attempts on this blog though:)

Disney land and Randomness

Ok I have a confession. I look at everyone else's blogs at least a couple of times a week and I get so frustrated when they aren't updated - and I never update mine. I thought about making a goal to do it once a week, but I really don't think that's realistic for the next little while so I'll just try and do better and thank you to all of you who update your blog regularly. I love reading them and there are some seriously talented writers out there.

Above picture: I don't usually let Josh watch T.V. while he eats lunch, but as you can see he totally enjoys it when I do - relaxing in his new camping chair. This chair is also useful for getting in and out of his crib....

Josh's new reading spot.
I bought this monkey costume on sale super cheap at Old Navy. It's actually too small for him, but I figured my next children would all ove to be monkeys. Josh especially loves it and wants to wear it all the time. Which by the way Katie - this is the monkey in his closet he was talking about when we were web camming and I couldn't figure out what he wanted. I especially love the cowboy boot moneky combo.
Justin took the day off yesterday and we went to Disneyland. It was a blast! Josh crashed in his stroller for about an hour which was perfect and allowed us to stay a little later. But I think he's getting a little big for that stroller, poor kid.
The lights of main street behind us.
In the bumper cars.
I love taking Josh to Disneyland. He is always sooooo funny - he especially loves all the "dark scary rides" so I hope our new little one isn't a wuss. This time Justin took him on the Matterhorn - really he's big enough, does he look big enough?? - He didn't ask to go on it again, but he talked about it and acted out the whole ride for me most of the day today.

Scout Fishing Trip

Justin is the scout master in our ward and loves it. He recently took them on a fishing trip. I don't think a single one of them had ever been fishing and it sounds like they had way too much fun.

Thanksgiving

We had a great Thanksgiving - although we didn't take very many pictures unfortunately. We drove up to Provo to Justin's brother Jerry's new house - yes they own a house all of us Californians are jealous. We had a great time with all of our family. Justin's parents gave the grandkids their Christmas presents early - that way they get proper credit - and as you can see Josh was thrilled. He got a pop-gun, beaver hat and spiderman.


Baby Joseph - Zach and Katie's baby.
Opening Spiderman.
Josh was also a fan of the air hockey table.
We also got to see our good friends the Airds while in Provo. Well I did - Justin got really sick that day and I'm sure Rob was thrilled to go out to breakfast with Katie and I. I didn't bring my camera but Easton and Josh definitely remembered each otherand were very busy making trouble during breakfast. It's fun that they can both talk now. My favorite part was after breakfast they decided to have a race outside, just when they got going really fast they saw a big pile of rocks and both stopped in their tracks screaming, "Big Rocks!" Boys have to have their priorities.

Hunting

Sorry one more post today. Justin went hunting with some friends a couple of weekends ago and had a blast although they did not see a single wild animal:)

Halloween

Our cool trunk and my cowboys. Josh was so excited to get candy and kept saying, "open it". After the first trick or treat he was pretty much satisfied and so excited.
Our cool pirate pumpkin.

Friends Alex and Ava Marsh.

My Dad was also here to visit and I unfortunately didn't get any pictures of him. But Lindsay did snap a couple of pictures of our whole family so I'll put those up soon as well.

School

We've started doing a pre-preschool with some friends in our neighborhood. It's been fun, but definitely exhausting when it's your turn to teach. I took some pictures during play time the other day.

Arleigh and Axel "fixing" Josh's dresser.
Leo pretending to be a "diver" with the mask from the tool kit.

Did I mention that Josh is really into cowboys lately. They pretended to be cowboys and girl forever. I took the above picture when they were happily sitting on my chair. Then the boys touched Arleigh - she doesn't like to be touched. I had to take a picture before I helped her out because it was too funny.
Autumn was absent this day but we'll put up pictures of her soon.

Projects

I've been having lots of fun lately redoing things in our house. The above is the quilt that I made for Josh's bed - it will look a lot cuter when there's actually a box spring and bed frame under it. I'm working on it - if anyone knows of anyone trying to get rid of one in LA let me know.
This is the dresser I repainted - sorry no before and after pictures.
And these are the pictures I painted to go above our bed - notice no glass - totally earthquake safe:) I copied some pictures that I liked - I did not come up with the actual images myself.

Future projects- I just got a border to put up in Anna and Josh's room:) I'm really excited about it, but I'm nervous that we might be moving:( Quiet books and probably another quilt. Oh and organize and catch up on my scrap book.

Cowboys

Josh has decided to be a cowboy for Halloween this year and he is so excited. We borrowed some stuff from Aunt Allison and Mom got him the guns. He was ecstatic when they got here and it's been a struggle to get him to take them off for bed and church. He just walks around saying, "Stick em up!", "Where's my gun?" and "I have cowboy boots Mommy." I don't think he realizes he gets to walk around and get candy as well:)

Angel Child Demon Child

So this is what my darling boy did while I finished the ironing the other day. He's recently become obsessed with my bed - he absolutely loves the duvet. He laid there and "read" books for about a half hour - which is a really long time for a 2-year-old little boy.
This is what he did while I was trying to do the dishes. I realize the pictures a little blurry (he wouldn't hold still) so I'll elaborate. He took all of the utensils out of the drawer and shoved them under the bookcase - that thing is HEAVY to move- dumped out all our cards (which we'd hidden in the bookcase so he wouldn't get into them) and started to pull out all the books:) Ahhh motherhood!

Election Thoughts

Alright maybe I'm grown up now that I've finally been paying attention to the presidential election and at least some of the other issues on the ballot. I've voted in pretty much every election don't get me wrong, but I haven't taken as much time as I should to really get to the bottom of some of the issues. And still I realize I am a little clueless. I got my absentee ballot in the mail last week and I have to admit that I'd never heard of some of the propositions. But I'm determined to change that. Luckily Justin loves politics so he's inspired me to try and understand, dig a little deeper, and not take everything the media says at face value.

One proposition that I do care a lot about is Proposition 8. So I just want to get my opinion out there. I believe that it is essential that this measure passes. I think a lot of people haven't really thought about the issue. It seems intolerant not to allow gay marriage. Which on the surface it may. However, tolerance does work both ways. If this measure doesn't pass and gay marriage is allowed to continue it is very likely that those who believe in traditional marriage will gradually become discriminated against more and more as they are viewed as discriminatory. In the current situation it is entirely possible to not condone homosexuality and still have friends that are homosexual. You don't have to accept the lifestyle to accept the person.

It will be hard to find a safe haven in which to teach our children that marriage is ordained by God as between a man and a woman. They will be taught in every public setting that marriage between gay couples is equal to marriage between heterosexual couples. It is state law in California that schools are required to teach respect for marriage as well as sex education. If this measure passes they will be required to teach homosexual marriage and homosexual relations along with the traditional values. Also, religious charities in Massachusetts, where a similar law has already been passed, have been forced to amend their policies. For example, a Catholic adoption agency was required to give children to homosexual couples or lose their license. They chose to lose their license rather than denounce the belief of their church. We've already seen cases in California where gay couples have attempted to sue churches/florists etc that refused to serve them because of personal beliefs. Where is religious freedom in these instances?

Proposition 8 is mostly a language issue. In California domestic partnerships already enjoy all the tax benefits etc. as married couples. The only thing they would lose if Proposition 8 passes is the title of marriage - which we as a society have defined as between a man and a woman for 100s of years. It is only between a man and a woman that a child can be created and raised. I deeply believe that this is the way that God intended it. There has been many studies done on the benefits of raising children with both a mother and a father as opposed to single-parent household or homosexual households. Although I do realize that it is not always feasible to have both parents in the picture - and children do turn out just fine - it is the ideal. I would encourage anyone who lives in California and has not thoroughly researched this issue to do so and make your voice heard (and check out the websites that I've posted at the top of my blog). - please leave me a comment - I'd love to know what everyone thinks.

For Jessie

This is an awful picture of me, but it's the only one I have of Jessie from her trip and she was offended she wasn't on our blog. It's from riding the ferris wheel at Santa Monica Pier.

Photo Shoot

These are some pictures that Justin took of Josh before church yesterday. He's getting so big!

Gram's Visit and Disneyland

My Mom came to visit this last week and we had a blast! She was so cute with Josh.

Wednesday we spent the day at Disneyland. It was an awesome day to go. The only line was for the Nemo ride. And we got handed fast passes to all the big rides. I couldn't go on any of them of course - but my Mom and Justin enjoyed it - and it made it nice for me that I only had to wait for them for 15 minutes instead of an hour. Josh talked the entire drive home to himself reliving all of the rides.

Josh and Gram's on the merry-go-round




Playing with the new play dough Gram's got him.






Driving the car with Daddy-O. Josh loves all the rides that involve "dark tunnels". I know he's a weird 2-year old.







We're so glad Ashlee talked us into getting season passes!! This last week Josh discovered the Buzz Lightyear ride. You get to ride around in a little car and shoot at targets with a lazer gun - we rode it no less than 6 times. The other favorites are Pirates and Mr. Toad's wild ride. He now asks for Disneyland stories before he goes to bed.

Cars and Trucks

So I realized that my psycho photo-taking husband hasn't taken a lot of pictures lately, but I did say yesterday that I would post some new pictures... and since our lesson in YW today was partly on following through on what we said we would do:) here they are. These are some of my favorite pictures of Josh and his passion for anything with wheels:)





















With Miss Natalie at the ___ house, I totally can't remember the name of it now, but it was really cool!! He was a famous actor... it's around here... anyone know?

And this picture totally made me miss Natalie... and Amy.... and Patrick, we hope we get to see you soon, and maybe live by you next year!!:)







Also question- Josh has been sleeping in a little and since he grew out of his jogging stroller I've been trying to use that time to work out in the mornings. I can do some weight/core workout stuff, but does anyone have any ideas for more of an aerobic workout that I can do at home? Justin has to be at work at 6am so leaving isn't really an option.

Phone Calls

I just have to say I absolutely HATE making phone calls. Even with my really good friends I prefer to email a lot of the time. Just ask Justin - I make him call everyone for me - especially companies, cable company etc. So when we were asked to help with Proposition 8 phone calls, I seriously dread it, for days before I have to do it, get sick to my stomach etc. For those of you not in California, Proposition 8 is the amendment to the State Constitution that would make marriage only between a man and a woman. The First Presidency has asked us to do all we can (in coordination with other groups) to get this passed. However, I actually had a really cool experience today, and I'm sharing it because I'm sure a lot of you feel the same way about the phone calls etc that I do. I was running this morning totally dreading the phone calls that I knew I was going to have to make when I got home and kind of praying about it at the same time, and I just felt really strongly that this is important to Heavenly Father. The family is one of the most sacred things to him and as much as I hate it it's important for me to support this proposition. I knew this, but I hadn't really felt it yet. And the thing is I can totally see the other side. The people against Prop 8 have done some really effective advertising and the majority of people that I contact see no reason not to let everyone marry. I won't go into all the arguments for Prop 8 right now - feel free to leave me a comment if you want the facts:)- but I just knew it was important. And I kind of had fun today while I was making the phone calls. I'm not going to lie I was always a little bit excited when an answering machine picked up and their were 5 registered voters connected to that number and I could just cross them off, but it wasn't extreme torture and for that I'm grateful. I actually laughed quite a bit today and realized that while a select few people are unpleasant the majority are helpful and that I can do my part in a small way. Afterall, I always want to be more involved in my community, have a deeper meaning to my life etc. I just pictured more volunteering at a literacy clinic than political activism (that's Justin's department, the freak actually ENJOYS making sales calls, calling people he doesn't know etc.)

So anyways, sorry for doing two posts without pictures, I'll put up some good ones tomorrow - but I wanted to write this while it was still fresh so I can go back and read it when they ask me to do things like talk to people in person.....

P.S. I just realized that my family is going to laugh when they read this and remember how much time I spent on the phone with boyfriends in high school and college. But just for the record - that's totally different:)

Pink or Blue???

I know so many of you are going to be checking my blog constantly to find out what I'm having:). It's a .......

GIRL!!

We're so excited! We asked Josh if he wanted a boy like Easton or a girl like Arleigh and Autumn. He said a girl which is surprising because he usually says boy.

And so you don't constantly ask which names we like... we'll call her: Anna Lynn (just for you Jessie) as long as she looks like an Anna when she comes out:) When I asked Josh if we should name her Anna he thought and said, "No Autumn" - there's no convincing him otherwise. I remember being convinced that we should name my little sister Amy or Jessie (not sure which) Penny after the girl in the Rescuers so hopefully he'll survive. Although I guess the fact that I remember wanting to name her that so vividly might show it was traumatic when it didn't happen.

Crazy Month!

So I realize I haven't posted any new pictures in awhile. This month, my family came to visit, we went to Utah, three days after we got back I went to St. George while Justin was at Scout Camp and then Jessie came to visit. It made the month go amazingly fast and was so fun to spend so much time with family! Here's some pictures of our adventures. I took most of them so they aren't as good of quality as usual:)

Grandpa Stan teaching the third generation to ride. Josh looks not happy - but he really loved the horses. He kept saying, "Horse is walking mommy!"
While Jessie was here we went down town to the fashion district. I had bought a couple of head bands and then we got Josh spiderman stickers to keep him entertained. At this moment he was also dancing to the music coming from the store - I know he looks classy. It was even better when he wouldn't stay in his stroller and kept lining up behind the cracks in the side walk, yelling, "Ready, set, go." Then running as fast as he could - usually into someone else. I don't have any other pictures of while Jessie was here, but we had a blast. It's so fun to have sisters, and she fulfilled a dream of mine, by riding the Ferris Wheel on Santa Monica Pier with me. She might have regretted the decision when I freaked out at the top - but whatever:) Jessie - Justin had the same reaction when we rode it for his birthday a week later:)
Josh was a huge fan of Gram's new toy room. Especially the trains! I was a fan of him going upstairs and disappearing for 20 minutes at a time. I know 20 minutes doesn't sound like a lot, but when you have a 2-year - old it can be heaven:)

Ok Grandpa's cut out but it was almost a 4 generation shot - if you include me behind the camera - I just like how you can see how pretty it is around the corral.


Telling Daddy-O about all his adventures. He talked to him for 10 minutes straight that night! It was so cute! He loved staying with Grams, Grandpa, Adam, and Jessie, but he missed his Daddy. When I asked him if he wanted to go home and see Daddy. He thought really hard then said, "No, Daddy come Grams". He was quite pleased with himself. Thanks family for loving us and showing us such a wonderful relaxing time!

Beach Days

We have loved living so close to the beach, and we have great friends that have gone with us on pretty much a weekly basis for the last 2 years:) I thought they deserved a few pictures. However, I don't usually bring my camera, so most of the picture are of Autumn because her and Josh were being hilarious one day, but just know that if you're not in the pictures you're still included in the memories, although it was slightly more relaxing when we were all pregnant and could just hang out while our husbands surfed instead of chasing crazy toddlers, but anyways....

Josh has recently taken up boogie boarding with his Dad. They're pretty good although we do need to get him a wet suit.
Autumn and Josh playing in their swimming pool.

Josh just kept chasing Autumn around doing whatever she was doing, running, laying in the sand you name it.

John and Justin digging the swimming pool:)
Sitting in a hole with Easton.

I know this has nothing to do with the beach - but I never posted pictures of my quilts and aren't the awesome!!!???