This summer has been more fun than I could have ever imagined. This past winter was really boring and lonely as Melani and I felt like we never had anything to do, and just missed having a close group of friends like we have had in the past. Well this summer has been non-stop fun and I have become closer to a couple of friends and made a lot of new ones. We have had some fun and crazy times so far including: concerts, rope swings, photo-shoots, water park, free-pie night, night games, night swims, CRUD, bonfires, camping, basketball, eating out, all-nighters, and so much more. I have the best friends. I love warm summer nights when we can be spontaneous and crazy. I have a couple of busy weeks coming up but I am excited! This weekend I get paid to go camping for work. Then, I move in a week and will be in between apartments for 10 days. I started a new volunteer program this week and I have been doing training for that and am so excited for this opportunity. Plus in case you haven't heard....I am moving to ALL day shifts!! Not only that but I will work weekdays! I have Sat and Sun off which is virtually impossible in a 24/7 facility. My prayers have really been answered. This may be a temporary switch as our schedules are constantly changing but I will take it for as long as I can. I am so happy!!
Friday, August 7, 2009
Friday, July 17, 2009
More Pictures
http://dbimages.instaproofs.com/
If you want to see more pics...the professional ones, go to the above link. The best way to view them is probably in the slide show. ENJOY!!
Sunday, July 12, 2009
For Mandi
Here are a few pictures from the wedding. I am still waiting to see the rest of the professional ones. They will probably take a while longer, but the photographer is dang good. :) I didn't have a camera so these I stole from my mom and my aunt. I will make a Facebook album one of these days with the rest of the pics. So enjoy these for now and stay posted for more! 
The happy and cute couple! Scott and Valerie! 
My cute cousins! Taylor, Simone, Megan, Me, Natalie, Claire and Jacob
The cake was so pretty but there were a ton of leftovers! I never ate any, now that I think of it. I was too stuffed and too busy running around for the bride.
The kiddos...Me, Valerie, Cameron, Brain. The wedding was on Nathan's birthday so he was there too, in spirit.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Better Late Than Never
I tried to post this last week but the internet went out...so I am finally posting almost a week later...
Well, my sister has been married for almost 2 weeks already. Wow. It is still weird and will take some getting used to but I am so happy for her and her husband. I like him a lot. I think it is going to be hard to not be 1st in her life anymore. As different as we are, we have always been close...but, I am so happy for her! It was also great spending lots of time with my nieces and nephews, and all of my family. I got to see a lot of my cousins that I haven't seen for years and they are so grown up now. They are all such funny and good kids. I am proud of all of them; they have stayed strong in the church. My family is so wonderful, I wish we lived closer, and I wish I had lived closer to my cousins growing up. They are so much fun!! I feel like I hardly saw my parents, which was sad. It was just a busy week and there was not much down time, but it was a great trip. I forgot how intense humidity is...I don't think I will ever get used to it again.
My summer has been FANTASTIC so far. I love summers here, I think that's the main reason I stay. Oh and my friends too of course. I went hiking tonight with my 3 friends that I do almost everything with. It was a lot of fun but I got bit and stung to the extreme. That stinging nettle is wicked stuff. I never knew.
Well I don't have much else to say, but I wanted to give a quick (and late) shout out for Mother's Day and Father's Day. I got to see my mom the week of Mother's Day and I got to see my dad on Father's Day before I headed back from the wedding. It is the first time I have really spent time with them around those holidays in several years, so that was nice. Here are 3 things I like best about each of them:
Dad
1) Generous...he is always helping/serving/giving to other people. It never stops.
2) Encouraging...he always believes in me and encourages me to follow my dreams.
3) Hard Working...he is always working on something. He will come home from a full day of work only to work more around the house or yard.
Mom
1) Spiritual...she LOVES the gospel, it is so much a part of her, and that is a big reason why it is a part of me
2) Our friendship...I can talk to my mom about almost anything, we can talk for hours.
3) Musical...my mom loves the piano and organ. I love hearing her play.
I am so blessed to have everything I have. And since tomorrow is the fourth of July, I feel especially grateful for my freedoms and the beautiful country I live in!
Friday, June 5, 2009
Friday, May 22, 2009
Summer Lovin....I mean Lovin Summer
Georgia was so much fun! I have been pretty busy but I am finally getting around to blogging about my trip. The best part for me was just playing baseball in the yard with my brother, sister, her financee, and the 3 oldest kiddos. It was so great! We also swam, went to a Braves game, and went to a place with inflatable slides and bounce houses. Clarissa can climb those things better than I can, she wore me out!! It was just fun to be with my family and play with the kids. And of course the baby blessing and BBQ afterwards were fun too. Savannah is so sweet!
The first night we swam Joshua could hardly paddle and wouldn't go under water. By the end of the trip he could swim under water for several seconds. He learned so fast! I let him use my goggles and that seemed to really help him swim better, since he could see what was below. My dad gave him a dollar for making it from one side to the other. He was trying so hard!! It was SO cute! Brenna on the other hand had two near drowning incidents. She was too brave for her own good and was in the deep end on her own. It was pretty scary.
I finished this week long training for work the other day. It wasn't as bad as some people made it sound but it was 2 days straight of role playing and then 3 days straight of physical stuff. Overall I had to do 2 written tests, a role-play test, and a physical skills test. It was sort of stressful but they make it pretty easy to pass. I'm glad it is over though. It was nice to have a normal schedule for a week and I learned some good things, but I missed the kids and I missed sleeping in. :)
Last week, Mel and I had a dream fulfilled. We went and saw our most favorite Mat Kearney. (check out matkearney.com) He is seriously one of the best musicians. He opened for Keane, another band that I LOVE. It was such and entertaining show and we were so pumped to be there. It was such a great night, including eating the best pizza of our lives and meeting a cute puppy named Bentley. A few days after that we went and saw Mae, another band I love. They weren't as good as when I saw them before but it was still fun. It has been a really fun month so far and I am just way pumped that it is almost summer. I am playing on a kickball team and an ultimate frisbee team right now and will hopefully get a softball team going in June. It's going to be a great summer!
