Back to the Begining

Housing dreams have now gone down the drain. Our realtor was a fraud, and now we can't afford anything. We can't afford to move, we can't afford to stay. What do we do. We are in limbo right now. I'm so frustrated at the moment. What's the deal? Why must people be so dishonest and crush the hopes and dreams of others? How come we can't all just get along?

Words To Live By

Too many people put off something that brings them joy just because they haven't thought about it, don't have it on their schedule, didn't know it was coming or are too rigid to depart from their routine.

I got to thinking one day about all those women on the Titanic who passed up dessert at dinner that fateful night in an effort to 'cut back the calories'. From then on, I've tried to be a little more flexible!

How many women out there will eat at home because their husband didn't suggest going out to dinner until after something had been thawed? Does the word 'refrigeration' mean nothing to you?

How often have your kids dropped in to talk and sat in silence while you watched 'Who wants to be a millionaire' on television?

I cannot count the times I called my sister and said, 'How about going to lunch in a half hour?' She would gas up and stammer, 'I can't. I have clothes on the line. My hair is dirty. I wish I had known yesterday, I had a late breakfast, It looks like rain.' And my personal favorite: 'It's Monday.' She died a few years ago. We never did have lunch together.

Because we cram so much into our lives, we tend to even schedule our headaches. We live on a sparse diet of promises we make to ourselves when all the conditions are perfect!

We'll go back and visit the grandparents when we get Steve toilet-trained.. We'll entertain when we replace the living-room carpet. We'll go on a second honeymoon when we get two more kids out of college.

Life has a way of accelerating as we get older. The days get shorter, and the list of promises to ourselves gets longer. One morning, we awaken, and all we have to show for our lives is a litany of 'I'm going to,' 'I plan on,' and 'Someday, when things are settled down a bit.'

When anyone calls my 'seize the moment' friend, she is open to adventure and available for trips. She keeps an open mind on new ideas. Her enthusiasm for life is contagious. You talk with her for five minutes, and you're ready to trade your bad feet for a pair of roller blades and skip an elevator for a bungee cord.

My lips have not touched ice cream in 10 years. I love ice cream. It's just that I might as well apply it directly to my stomach with a spatula and eliminate the digestive process The other day, I stopped the car and bought a triple-decker. If my car had hit an iceberg on the way home, I would have died happy..

Now go on and have a nice day. Do something you WANT to...not something on your SHOULD DO list. If you were going to die soon and had only one phone call you could make, who would you call and what would you say? And why are you waiting?

Have you ever watched kids playing on a merry go round or listened to the rain lapping on the ground? Ever followed a butterfly's erratic flight or gazed at the sun into the fading night? Do you run through each day on the fly? When you ask 'How are you?' do you hear the reply?

When the day is done, do you lie in your bed with the next hundred chores running through your head? Ever told your child, 'We'll do it tomorrow.' And in your haste, not see his sorrow? Ever lost touch? Let a good friendship die? Just call to say 'Hi?

When you worry and hurry through your day, it is like an unopened gift....Thrown away. ... Life is not a race. Take it slower. Hear the music before the song is over.

'Life may not be the party we hoped for... but while we are here we might as well dance!'

Life Is Full Of Change

Randy and I have been thinking about moving up north a lot this year. We miss family and friends that are up there, there are more job opportunities, and we just feel like it's the right thing to do at this point in our lives. The biggest problems about moving though, are housing and employment. Granted, Target could transfer us up north, but I would most likely be demoted, and have a pay cut. Could we afford somewhere to live if I took a pay cut? I don't know.

Well, today, my sister informed me that she and a friend had found a lot out in Sandy that was conveniently in Randy's and my price range. She said that her friend, being in the real estate business, could build us a home on this lot, and we could do a rent to own kind of a deal.


Let's elaborate a little on the house they want to build. It would be very similar to the model home that they visited. There would be 3 bedrooms up stairs. and 3 in the unfinished basement. It would have a 2 car garage, a living room and a great room, a LAUNDRY ROOM (yea laundry! ha ha) and a decent size yard. And it would be ours! No more renting, well, for the most part. My sister's friend said he purchased the land today. He could start building as soon as contracts are signed.


I don't know whether to be excited (which I am) or scared (which I also am). The thought of owning a home excites me. Having 3 bedrooms and an unfinished basement makes it perfect to grow into. The location isn't bad and it's closer to family then St. George. But there will be snow! Yuck!

I'm also sad to leave the family and friends I have down here. I feel like, after a year of living in this apartment, that I finally have people I can trust, places I can run to, and a pretty good relationship with my cousins and their families that live here. If we move, are those friendships strong enough to survive?

Disneyland

Back from our Disneyland trip! Where to start on our crazy adventure. Randy and I left from the Vegas airport, and arrived in Long Beach, Cali 2 hours before the rest of the fam was scheduled to arrive. Unfortunately for us, the family's plane was delayed almost an hour. 3 hours of sitting at the airport doing nothing.

Family finally meets us at the airport, we grab our bags and head to the car rental. We decided we were going to rent 1 van for all 9 of us. Our van was a big 12 passenger van, red in color. This worked our pretty well, and kept us all together. After getting the van, and a car seat for Emily, it was time to find the hotel.

Fighting through California traffic, we finally found our hotel. When we pulled in, we noticed 5 or more police cars in the parking lot. There were police officers surrounding one of the rooms. Are we sure this is the kind of place we want to stay with young kids? We decided that it was to late in the day to try to find another hotel for the week, so we chose to stick it out. Dad checked in, and handed us the keys to the two rooms that would be our home for the next week.

Upon opening the door to the hotel room, the smell of a mixture of kitty litter and mold rushed out to greet us. The ceiling had watermarks on it, as if the tub from the second floor was leaking, and would fall on us at any time. Walking from the door to the bathroom, our socks turned black from the grime on the carpet. The water from the sink had the aroma of sewer water. "Welcome to hell" I thought to myself.

We made due with what we were given. After all, the hotel was within walking distance to Disneyland and was less then $100 a night. Needless to say, most of our time was spent at the parks! Cayson, Emily and Braydan suited up the first night to go swimming, only to find diarrhea floating in the pool, and a dead bird in a bucket next to the hot tub. No more swimming for us!

Monday, we headed to Disneyland. We were 2nd in line to enter the park, and Emily, Braydan and Cayson could hardly contain their excitement! The vigor, eagerness and excitement of youth is such an amazing thing to witness. As we entered the park, you could see the dreams and hopes of all the children there materialize. They were entering a land that was all their own, filled with wonder and amazement.

Our first ride that day was Peter Pan's Flight. Emily watched with wide eyes as we boarded the flying ships, absorbing every movement and moment of the ride. Feeding her amazement with that first ride was like giving oxygen to a raging fire. Emily went on EVERY ride at least once. When I say every ride, I mean EVERY ride! From the gentle Winnie the Pooh ride to Splash Mountain, from Dumbo the Flying Elephant to the Haunted Mansion, Emily soaked it up like there was no tomorrow. Her favorite ride is still Space Mountain, the indoor, dark, space roller coaster.

And then, it happened. Cinderella walked around the corner. Emily's mouth dropped, and her eyes got big. Her childhood idol was right in front of her, so close that should could reach out and touch her! The moment that Emily went and asked for Cinderella's autograph was probably the most memorable part of the trip. Cinderella greeted her, crouching down to Emily's level and calling her "Princess". Emily was speechless.

Tuesday was California Adventure's turn to entertain us. Again, Emily rode all of the rides that she was tall enough for. This included the Tower of Terror. Talk about a brave kid! She loved the ride, but didn't want to ride it again because it made her "feet fly".

Wednesday we went to Universal Studios. I think the boys enjoyed it a lot more then Disneyland. It had a little more "grown up" feel to it. After wearing the boys out here, we headed back to the hotel. Time for a good night's sleep for our last day at Disneyland.

After a good night's sleep, we were off to Disneyland one more time. By this time, we had been on all of the rides, and browsed every shop there was. It was easy to pick which rides and shops we wanted to revisit. Another long day's play, and we were ready to say good bye.

Tradgic End

. . . :'( had a hospital visit today. things aren't looking good. :( they think i'm having a miscarriage. i dk what to say. i dk what to do. i feel so completely hopeless. numb. depressed.

Happy Father's Day

So, my dad is in Arizona for Father's Day. :( Happy Father's Day Daddy! Miss you! Randy's dad is up north, so we're celebrating Father's Day alone at home. Oh well. It will definitely be a Father's Day to remember. ;) Happy Father's Day to all Father's out there.

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OMG! (+) test! :D I'm so excited! Wait until I tell Randy! OMG!