It's a...

Tonight Laurin and I hosted a gender reveal for Jacob and Amber...and a week earlier than they expected! Yup...we were able to pull off a little surprise. Amber got a blood test, which normally takes a couple weeks to process, but long story short, we got the results early. Amber gave me permission to receive the results so I could coordinate with the baker for the cake and stuff the balloon drop with the appropriate blue or pink balloons. When I received the results early, I reached out to Laurin and she suggested we move it up a week. She coordinated with all the people that were planning to come and the surprise was set in motion...only we thought they caught on. There were a couple slip-ups from party attendees plus the fact that Amber knew I had logged into her patient portal (because it alerts her too), but they didn't put the pieces together. I decorated on Saturday so when they showed up for what they thought was just another normal family dinner it was all ready. They walked in and Jacob just went for the hot-and-ready tater tots I had just pulled out of the oven. Amber was simply talking with Laurin about something unrelated when Laurin finally asked if they were ready to know the gender of their baby. There was a moment of shock! Amber said that she had no clue. She simply thought I was uber prepared and had simply decorated a week early. I laughed. It wouldn't be unlike me to be prepared (which thankfully I was), but I wouldn't have decorated a week early. The next two hours from dinner to the reveal seemed agonizing for Jacob. He kept inspecting the cake and the large balloon envelope to see if he could catch a glimpse of a color. Amber was more composed but just as excited. Finally, after everyone had shown up, the moment arrived. Amber, with knife in hand, cut the cake to reveal...BLUE! It's a BOY! Jonas pulled the string on the balloon envelope to drop the blue balloons and excitedly jumped around the room. We are beyond thrilled to welcome a new little grandson into our family...and I think Amber and Jacob were just as excited to see blue. This little boy has no clue how loved he already is. Congrats Jacob and Amber!

Happy 11th Anniversary!

This year our anniversary fell on a Friday. We contemplated escaping for an evening or doing something big, but life happened. Dallin needed surgery that day. Jonas had an early basketball game Saturday morning. Jeff had work stuff to attend to, etc. As I sat in the hospital, waiting for Dallin to return from surgery, I couldn't have been more grateful for the amazing life Jeff and I have built over the past 11 years. Yes...our day was just a typical mundane day-in-the-life of parents, business owners, partners...but what better way to honor our anniversary than to be in the thick of what we have created? We started our day as we usually do with scripture study, exercise, and homework. After Jonas got on the bus, I headed north to pick up Dallin for his surgery. (He broke his wrist and had hoped it would heal without surgery but after a few weeks in a cast, it was recommended that he put in a couple screws.) Jeff was busy during the day with normal work stuff. After Dallin's surgery, I got him settled at home then rushed back to Payson to pick up Jonas to take him to taekwondo. While he was in taekwondo, I ran to Costco to grab a few items, before finally returning home. Jeff and I did actually go out to dinner that evening at the Harvest Restaurant (one of our favorite places), and we did exchange gifts. This year's anniversary gift was "steel". Jeff got me a new set of stainless steel pots and pans, and I got him an orangutan (inside joke) with a "steel" ASL I Love You ornament. Just something simple. I honestly can't believe it's been 11 years. It feels like much less than that, but when I consider where we started and where we've come to...I'm proud of what we've accomplished in those years. I have seen miracles overcome seemingly hopeless situations. I have witnessed tender mercies in helpless moments. I have felt intense joy and pride where heartache and despair existed. And through it all, Jeff has been my constant. I can't imagine going through life without him by my side. He is the rock we all stand on. He is my best friend and my eternal love. Happy 11th anniversary to us!

Yes Day!

For Christmas, Jeff and I gifted Jonas a "Yes Day". Basically, this is a day where Jonas gets to decide what to eat, what we do, etc. There are a few guidelines and a budget set, but essentially he gets to dictate how the day goes. He was so excited to finally cash it in. He started his day with breakfast in bed before running to Payson Market for donuts. This kid loves donuts! From there, we headed to Lowe's Xtreme AirSports where he jumped, flipped, and played for an hour before heading to the main event of the day, Provo Beach Resort. I naively thought that we would spend 3-4 hours there bowling, playing laser tag, traversing a ropes court, playing some arcades, smacking a croquet ball, surfing on the FlowRider, etc. However, we closed the place down 9.5 hours later!! He had so much fun! We bowled at least 4 games, he spent an hour on the FlowRider (where he surfed for the first time and did awesome!), we played croquet once and he ran through the ropes course once, we spent a little time in the arcades, and he closed the night playing laser tag over and over and over again. To say he maximized his Yes Day would be an understatement...but he's pretty sure he wants to ask for a Yes Day for every Christmas and birthday. 

Happy New Year 2024!

Happy New Year! I always grow a little nostalgic and a bit reflective at this time of the year. I like to look back on everything we've done and how I've grown along the way. 2023 was a good year for us. So many milestones. So many trips. So many memories. Yet, as I look toward 2024, I want to practice being more present. I want to find quiet moments when life slows down (even for a minute) to truly ground myself in the here and now. I saw a word box posted on Instagram in which I was supposed to see what four words jumped out at me. The words that seemed to be illuminated on the page were change, miracles, connection, and family. I know those types of exercises are more fun than prophetic, but I liked all of those words. I want to see the miracles in my life - big and small. I need to be better at embracing change and being willing to be open to new things or new ways of doing things. I want to build deeper connections with those around me, but most importantly, my Father in Heaven. And, family is always my #1. That is how we rang in the new year...with family. I am so beyond grateful that my adult kids want to come home. Our relationships are not perfect. There have been (and I'm sure will be) hard moments when decisions were made that in hindsight may not have been the best to nurture relationships. Jeff and I aren't perfect parents and our kids aren't perfect kids. We're all just trying to do the best we can. Yet, I am forever thankful that we are willing to accept responsibility for our choices and still offer grace to each other...no matter how difficult that can be at times. Tonight, however, was not difficult. We all had fun just chilling at the house. There was no big party or any planned activities. I had several trays of food (fruit tray, veggie tray, meat/cheese/cracker tray, chips and dips, etc.), a fun photo booth, and ample games to play...and that's what we did! Before the older kids arrived, Jonas, Dallin, Jeff and I watched a little Star Wars. Jonas is trying to watch all 3 trilogies, but once the other kids arrived, we moved from video games to board games to just hanging out. Before Carter and Everly went to bed, we even went outside to blow noise makers and light sparklers. Jeff, Jonas, and I even stayed awake until midnight. I honestly can't remember the last time I did that, and I think this was Jonas's first time. Once we toasted the new year, we headed to bed. Jacob and Amber went home, but Dallin and Casey (and Laurin partially under duress) stayed up for another few hours playing video games. Needless to say, Laurin and Casey didn't make it home that night.

New Years Day was pretty chill too. In the morning/early afternoon, I spent some time tidying up from the past week of parties while Jeff took the boys outside to put up some new lights in the shop. It was shaping up to be a pretty routine day until we all decided to do a little hike up Santaquin Canyon. Jacob and Amber came back down to join us. I wasn't expecting as much snow as we encountered (especially since there really hasn't been any snow in the valley), but we were all prepared enough to enjoy a couple hours outdoors. At one point, the boys tried to see if they could start a fire with just a shoe string and sticks. It didn't work...but that became the evening's activity. We made our way home before it got too cold where I scrambled to find something to feed everyone (thank goodness for soup and cheese sandwiches) and the boys continued their fire quest. After doing a little YouTube research, they discovered the wood they were using wouldn't have started a fire, but all became a little more educated on what to do in an emergency. It wasn't anything big for the first day of the New Year, but we were together and having fun...and that's how I hope 2024 continues to be.