Poor Aidan

He has decided he does not love "taking shots". He did get his neat bandages, but was walking like he was limping. After a huge chocolate chip pancake at IHOP he was feeling much better. Although when he woke up from his nap he was running a bit of a fever and saying his legs really hurt. Some tylenol and a carrot from the garden and he was raring to go.
I'm so glad he doesn't have to have shots again until his Kindergarden ones.

A little late with this update.

Well, Kaitlyn has long been back from Girl Scout camp and I have yet to update. She had a great time! She tried everything which is what I asked her to do. She even went on a canoe and had a great time. She came back with dirt and mosquito bites all over her, but was smiling and very happy. She looked even more grown up to me. People have asked if she missed us and the answer was "Not really" so I guess that means she had a lot of fun!
I was a little worried about her because the counselors don't stay in the cabin with them, but sleep outside in a tent. She said that it wasn't a problem, but they did get in trouble the first night because they kept turning on the light. She said they told the girls it looked like they were having a party...she thought that was too funny.
Each girl got to pick a name for themselves...they had Kitty, Sparrow, Pony, Boa and several others that I can't think of right off hand. Can you guess which one Kaitlyn chose? Pony of course, I thought that was pretty funny.

On Tuesday Kaitlyn started her first day of second grade. Their school building is under renovation, so they are going to another elementary school for the next 3 weeks. Although her teacher told me that they are worried that it will not be finished in that time frame. I don't know what they are going to do if they are not finished, the other school will be starting in Sept. and those teachers will need to get their rooms back and set up.
Kaitlyn's teacher seems nice. Kaitlyn likes her, I will know more about her in the next couple of weeks when we have open house. So far all the notes home have sounded pretty good. I wish I could go volunteer in the class room, but with Aidan being 3 there is just no way for me to do that. So I have to go with what Kaitlyn tells me.
And on a final note, I was worried about Friday's. Kaitlyn gets out of school at 1:50 and I have to start work at 2:15. I don't think I can physically make it back home in time to start work. Well, we found out that one of Kaitlyn's friends that was in her class at Edgemont is going to the same school and lives right up the street from us, she is not on the same track though, but we do overlap. So, I am picking up in the mornings and then Kaitlyn will ride home in the afternoons! I am so glad that it worked out, a total God- Thing!
Now I have to get Aidan ready to go to the Dr's. He is getting some shots today. Poor guy. It is our tradition to go out to lunch, breakfast, or treat after getting shots. I always feel so bad about the shots that I feel I need to make up for them with something fun.
I told Aidan that he needs to get a shot and told him I'll take him out to lunch wherever he wants. He said "I love taking shots" and "I can't wait to get a neat bandage". Yes, he calls band aids.. bandages, I don't know where he got that but I think it is pretty cute. I am sure he won't love taking a shot when he gets it, but I'm sure he will be a trooper.

"So Much...

I love your hair" is what Aidan told me while sitting on my lap today. The only problem is that I haven't had it cut since February and it shows! It has been driving me nuts lately. But Hey if my son " So Much Loves it" then I guess I shouldn't complain. LOL!

What a fun week!

Well, vacation is over, but it was a lot of fun! We started out by going to California to go to a friends wedding. It was such a fun time. I haven't seen Jessica in a few years, so it was wonderful to see her again. She looked beautiful in her dress.
Their reception was a lot of fun, and Aidan became the talk of the party with all of his dance moves. I still wish we had a video camera to get him dancing....He did everything from slow dancing with Hope (the cutest little girl ever!) to break dancing. Everyone was talking about him :0)
We had a good visit with my parents, brother, sister and her boyfriend on Sunday. And then we went to Balboa Island on Monday. The kids had a great time playing on the beach and riding the ferry out to the Island. The houses are beautiful out there. Aaron and I are talking about getting some people together and renting one for a week! I would seriously love living at the beach for a week!
We then had a few days of a break back at home cleaning and getting ready for MY slumber party. It is a fun weekend of scrapbooking, and I had about 6 girls and cutie Audrey to stay over at my house. It was so much fun meeting these people in real life. We all got along really well and had a great time making some fun projects. Theresa Marie, her mom, and Audrey got to stay with us an extra night and we took Aidan and Audrey for a walk around the neighborhood and just had a good time chatting late even though we were all ready for bed!
I made some wonderful friends this weekend, friends that I think I will have for a lifetime! And of course like the good scrapper that I am I didn't take any pictures from this event. Although there were so many people snapping pictures that I am sure I will end up with something.
Kaitlyn is off to girl scout camp. We miss her (esp. Aidan he keeps asking about her and checks her room every morning). I am sure she is having a great time. We will pick her up tomorrow, so I will update on how camp was then.

A BIG Thank you to Aunt Janet

This afternoon I went to get the mail and there was a box on the front porch. Aunt Janet made Kaitlyn and her doll Elizabeth these adorable hats and dresses. She also sent a lot of other dresses in the box as well, but this was Kaitlyn's favorite.
Kaitlyn loves dresses from Aunt Janet, and wears them all summer long because they are nice and cool.
We feel so blessed for a wonderful Aunt who takes the time to make such adorable outfits.
Thank you Aunt Janet!

My way of relaxing.

Do you have something that you do that totally relaxes you and other people would just find it tedious and crazy? For me that is cutting things out. For instance titles on my scrapbook pages are always cut out by hand. I keep thinking about purchasing one of those new cutters that you hook up to your computer, but while creating this page the other day I found that this is what is relaxing to me.
I think my great grandmother (Mammom is what we called her) must have passed this love on to me. She cut out everything and saved it to put on cards and envelopes to make things look special. She told me the story of why she did that, and I think I'd like to share it with you...
When my Mammom was a little girl she had asked a babysitter to cut something out for her. Well, the babysitter cut it out, but did a terrible job of doing it and left the edges all jagged and awful looking, so Mammom said she vowed that as soon as she was old enough to use scissors she would always cut things out nicely...and she ALWAYS did. She was phenominal with the scissors.
So now whenever I am working on a title I end up thinking about my Mammom and her scissors. And yes cutting out these little tiny letters by hand is something that I enjoy doing. And I have figured out that THIS is what makes my style so me. Almost every page has a hand cut title. It might not be Creating Keepsakes worthy, but it doesn't need to be. I like my style just the way it is.
And just to let you know a little bit about this page.... The picture was taken by my dad at my cousin's wedding last August. The journaling reads: "Aidan, I love this picture Poppa took of you at Scotts wedding. What fun it was for you to drink out of a special "grown up" glass, but this picture also reminds me that someday you wont be my beautiful baby boy, but all grown up drinking champagne at your own wedding...and while I look forward to that day I am so not ready to give up the sticky hugs and kisses and having you all to myself. I love you my beautiful baby boy. Love, Mommy"
Thanks for looking!

Well the trash bags worked

I went into Aidan's room this morning and he cleaned up his whole room and even made his bed. I asked Aaron if he had helped him and Aaron told me he did it all by himself. The punishment must have worked. I was so happy that I let him pick one toy out of the trash bag. When I told him that he told me "I want Kitty" which I knew is what he would go for. So, I told him for each day he keeps his room picked up then he can pick one toy. It seems to be working...but alas I think all hope is lost that Kaitlyn will keep her stuff picked up. A mom can only hope....

I can't take this house anymore!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'll tell ya, I can't wait for Kaitlyn to go back to school. Since she has gone on summer break there is stuff everywhere! Everytime I feel like I am getting a handle on it she adds more to the pile.
We went through her room the other day and got rid of a bunch of things she doesn't play with anymore and cleaned everything up properly. That same day her room was a mess again.
Aidan is on a non cleaning streak and won't help pick up anything, so I took the trash bags to his room yesterday. And yes, even kitty ended up there. (Kitty was laying on the floor with the rest of his stuff).
Aaron has been working on the yards and I'm trying to stay on top of the house, but with the 2 mess makers it is a loosing battle.
And Mom I know you are sitting back thinking "HAHAHA Payback!" I feel horrible about the mess we left you with now that I know how horrible it is to stay on top of everyones stuff.
Vent over. Hopefully by the end of today the house will still be picked up if not clean, I know wishful thinking on my part.

Whew! What a week.

So, we had an incrdible time last week at my parents. Kim was right I am going to become so spoiled knowing that I can fly home for free whenever the feeling strikes....I love that about my job. But our trip was way too short. We flew out on Tuesday morning. I got up at 2:30 to call and make sure we would make it on the plane, and planned on going back to sleep, but Kaitlyn woke up at 3:00 AM so that meant no sleep for mom. We made it on the plane without any problems.
The kids had a blast on the airplane although Kaitlyn had to sit on a different row than us, but just right across from us and she did a grea job. When we got to Long Beach I was taking a picture of the kids infront of the plane, the pilot came out and offered to get a picture of all 3 of us.
We went and saw CARS that afternoon and Aidan loved it. It was a really cute movie. The next day was swimming at Uncle Seans, and then my cousin Kerry came out to visit with us too. The next day it was time for us to come home already. We barely made it on the plane, but we made it onto the very last row and the 3 of us got to ride all together. The kids enjoyed the snacks and behave really well. (Esp since mom took the middle seat so they would be seperated! :0)
Kaitlyn thought it was funny that I had to wear blue gloves. The blue gloves are for cleaning the plane. The company policy is that we are all part of the same team, so therefore if we are on a plane we all need to help clean it. I did my part although they told me since I had the kids I could go, but the kids enjoyed helping to clean too. The pilots even come out and help clean up the cabin. The best part was getting into the pilots seats though, the kids just thought that was the best thing ever!
Then on Friday the kids and Aaron went to a baseball game for the SLC Bees. The game started at 6:00 and they finally got home after 11:00, but the game had not even finished yet. Kaitlyn was a bit disappointed because she didn't get to stay and meet the players, but we had a surprise for her on Saturday that we needed to get up early for. Her cousins Hannah and Seth were at Grammie and Poppa's house. When we told her that she flew out of bed to get ready to go. The kids had a great time playing together and getting dirty. Aaron's Aunt Janet took Kaitlyn and Hannah over to her house and let them pick through this HUGE pile of doll clothes (that Aunt Janet made) that will fit Kaitlyn's american girl doll. Kaitlyn was so excited she and Hannah both ended up with at least 25 outfits apiece. Aidan and Seth played all day long with very little fighting, wich is usually not the case with those 2. All in all it was a great week, but boy was it sure exhausting. Since I worked on Sunday we didn't do anything for father's day. I hope Aaron had a relaxing day though since he is the best daddy ever! We love you Aaron.

Going home...

I'm using my flight perks to go home this week! I am super excited. I haven't seen my mom or dad since November...can't believe it has been that long! The kids are excited because Uncle Sean (my bro) says that they can come over and go swimming in his pool. It is going to be hard to wait until Tuesday to go!

I've been tagged by Kim

In my fridge:
1. Milk

2.Cottage Cheese
3. Last nights dinner left overs...italian pasta shells
4. broccoli
5. a ton of different salad dressings and condiments...I love to try new dressings, but I don't always love the dressing so there they sit until I decide to clean it out.


In my closet:
1. Clothes
2. 2 iris carts that are being used for our sock and undies drawers
3. a canvas box that holds all of our winter scarfs, gloves and hats
4. cleaning solutions for the bathroom (our closet is in our bathroom)
5. Shoes

In my handbag:
1. my day planner
2. makeup
3. hand lotion
4. antibacteria gel
5. gum

In my car:

1. a box of kleenex
2. aidan's booster seat
3. a notepad
4. dust
5. a Martina Mcbride Cd

On my TIVO/DVR/etc.
1. About 3 episodes of Er needing to be watched by my hubby
2. An episode of the west wing also waiting to be watched by my hubby
Other than that there is nothing on it. We are all caught up.

I'm going to tag Stacy.

Decisions, Decisions

We had a meeting at Kaitlyn's school the other night to determine what school the kids in our neighborhood should go to. Seems like they really don't know where to put us. Half of our community go to one school and the other half go to the other school. East vs West. Well the meeting was pretty informative. One thing I didn't know what that with the school Kaitlyn goes to right now when she gets to middle school she will not be going to the same middle school as all of the friends she is making currently. I don't like that because I think when children hit the middle school age they really need their friends to help guide them through that really awkward time.
At the meeting we were given 7 choices. Only one of which seems like a good choice to me, but the other parents were not happy about that choice. It was to send them all to the year round school that is right up the street from us. (the other parents didn't like the year round idea...I'm not too sure how I feel on that one.)
Aaron and I got to talking about it and we really liked the principal of the year round school. I was told that we could go get a special permit to have her put into that school. The changes that the school board are looking into would not happen until the 07-08 school year. We think if she has to change it would benefit her to change now. So, I went and toured the school. It was really nice, and they are remodling it this summer so it will be even better when she gets there. We talked with her about it and she seems to like the idea ok. She will miss the friends she made this year, but really why wait and let her bond further with those friends when she will be pulled away from them later. So, it looks like change is in order for her and us, but in the long run we think it will be the best for her...
Now we just have to decide on what track we like!

Another year older...

Wow, so much has changed for me this last year...I guess that is what growing up is all about, the changes.
This was the first year that I didn't spend Christmas with my parents, and I hated it. I missed the big family Christmas. It was made worse by the kids both being sick though. I think it wouldn't have felt so bad if they had both been feeling great and enjoyed themselves (and I wasn't so tired from staying up all night taking care of them). Although, this was the first year that I had 2 Christmas trees and I really loved the way the house looked this year!
This year was the first time I have gone back to work in 8 years. This change has been hard on my family, but I have been enjoying my time at work. It feels nice to be working again. AND this is the first job I have had (except for my 2 year career as the church janitor) that has not involved working with children. And although I think that working with children is very important, I want to still love my children and be there for them when I "get home" from work. Working with children drains me and when I get home all I want to do is be quiet...I'm happy to be working with JetBlue (and I think my kids will be happier in turn).
This year my Brother and his girlfriend came to visit me for the first time since we moved to UT. We had a great time although Leah wasn't feeling well, and I really hope they enjoyed visiting also. I can't wait to have them come back for another visit!
This year my inlaws moved to UT, and it has been nice having them a little closer by. The kids have esp. enjoyed having them come and stay when we needed some over night care! They are also looking forward to having them come and stay when Aaron and I go on a cruise in October.
And this year I have come back into contact with some old friends that I have missed very much. I was so happy to hear from those people! And I am praying that I can rebuild those relationships even if we don't live near each other.
Some things that I am wanting to work on this year before I turn the big 30....
I would like to really get in shape and stay that way. I can't believe how hard it is to get and stay fit. I never realized that is what happens after you have children.
I would like to stay in better contact with my sister and brother. I miss them so much and wish we talked more on the phone at least...thank goodness for computers! It has been nice to stay in better contact that way.
I would like to keep my house clean...easier said than done with a 3 year old running around the house. And I would like to actually get bedroom furniture...yes it has been 8 years of marriage and we still don't have bedroom furniture! I really would like our bedroom to feel beautiful when we walk in there. Right now all I want to do is run right back out of there!
And this year I want to take at least one trip on a JetBlue airplane...Kaitlyn has already asked me when we can go to the American girl museum in New York! She is so excited that we will be able to do that (I'm thinking that might be a good birthday trip).
And one last thing...I want to take pictures a little more regularly! I love photography and it has been one of those things that I have let slip this past year, so I'm trying to be more consistant with my picture taking.
Well those are my thoughts of my last year in my 20's! I can't believe that I'm going to be 30 next year!

I'm officially an employee of Jet Blue!

Thanks for all the well wishes. I got a 93% on my test. I had to pass with an 80% or better. I'm glad it is done. Next week will be easier, we only go from 4-10. I can handle that.
Thanks again for all the prayers and well wishes!

Exhaustion is setting in.

I know it is almost over, but I'm just so tired right now. Within the midst of all this training I caught a nice little cold, still have it some but I'm almost through with it. I slept until noon on Sunday and if I didn't have to get up then I probably would have stayed in bed much longer. Poor Aidan is so ready for Jeremy to come in the afternoon so he has someone to play with....I'm glad this is my last 4-12 week. Next week we go from 4-10...I can do that, I'll be alive to do some things with Aidan. It is just getting through with this week and my final on Friday that I'm ready for.
Aaron became a deacon on Sunday. I am so proud of him, his testimony was really moving and I really think God is going to use him to do great things. At the same time it is kind of scarey running through life letting God be in control of it rather than taking control ourselves. We are just trying to remember to lean on him for all things cause great things happen when we do! On the first day of training we had to get up and talk about ourselves for a minute. One of the things I said was that we moved to UT 3 years ago and it was an adjustment but we are starting to really love it here. Well, I got questioned further and finally had to tell the whole class that I'm not LDS... That was a big moment for me. I don't mind letting people know that I'm not LDS, but it is not usually the first thing I let people know about me and esp. not talking with a whole group. God is really molding the shy insecure person to be BOLD. Why should the fact that I am a Christian not be the first thing I tell people? It was really scarey and exciting. I'm praying that God uses me to witness to someone, I had thought it was going to be one of the few men in my class, but he ended up getting a different job and left jetblue, but there were seeds planted I'm sure because he was one of the ones who kept questioning me about my move. And then we spoke further about my beliefs. I pray that God will send him someone and that the seed was planted in the short time I knew him.
To all of you who read this, I hope you have a wonderful week! I'm sure I will post on Friday or so to let you all know how the final goes this Friday...Please pray that I keep sane this week! The nerves are starting to settle in! Thanks!

Good Afternoon, Thank you for calling JetBlue Airways, this is Shannon how may I help you?

Just when I think I can't learn anything else they keep stuffing more into my brain. Actually, I am loving it. I miss being away from the kids and Aaron, but I love going in to work every night and learning how all of this works. They are trying to make it as fun as possible, and they are doing a pretty good job at it. I have met several people and have made a few new friends. Now I am waiting to finish training and then I can use the flight benefits....My friend and I already have a trip to New York planned for may! I can't wait. I've never been to New York.

Our Church is Broken.

I mentioned in my last post that Aaron was asked to be a deacon and that we had been thinking about leaving our church. I thought I might explain just a little bit because I have been asked what a deacon does.
Well, our church just seems to be broken. Nobody knows what they should be doing, and it is seriously affecting all aspects of the church. We love it there, and love the people...BUT we feel like something just isn't right. I'm not sure exactly how to explain it. When we joined we were told that our church is "elder rule"...meaning that there is a group of 12 men that pray and make decisions of where things should be going. Well, I guess awhile back our deacons were the ones who did this, but things happened and that is not the case anymore. Now the staff are the only ones making decisions....
So, the children's groups need help, the deacons don't know what role they are playing, our church isn't following it's bilaws (the group of elders), and things are just an all around mess. Nobody has any direction. When you offer help it is turned into "take all of it" not just help with it. It is seriously frustrating....
So, to answer the question "What does and Deacon do?" Right now, not a whole lot in our church. They should be the leading force, but they are not. Aaron was told that a lot of changes are being planned for this next year.
We had been planning on looking for another church, but Aaron was asked to teach Sunday School...he accepted we stayed. We had planned to leave, and Aaron was asked to be on the church planning committee basically figuring out what is needing to be fixed (everything in my opinion) he accepted and we stayed. Now He has been asked to be a deacon, he will be ordained on April 2 if they decide that God wants him there...we prayed, he accepted, if he makes it (which at this point it sounds like a formaility) then we are committed to staying for 5 years.
All of this has happened within the course of the last 3 months, and the latter 2 within the course of the last month. We feel that God has us there to help the church through the ripping off of the band aid and putting on the medicine so that the wounds can be heald. It doesn't matter how the wounds got there, just that they are there and need to be fixed.
It will be a long time to heal, but I think that God has big plans for us and our church.

News from Wampville.

Sorry I haven't posted in awhile. Things have gotten crazy hectic since Jetblue called and then on top of all of that I got sick and then Girl Scout cookies came in...so I am just now finding time to sit down and give you all an update.
We have been so blessed with wonderful friends and family who have graciously offered to come and help us take care of Aidan while I am transitioning into the world of the employed. This Wed. my inlaws are coming to stay for 2 nights while I am in Orientation meetings on Thursday and Friday. I am so grateful that they are able to do this, these meetings are during the day. Then on Monday we have a neighbor boy who also goes to our church coming to watch the kids after school so that I can make sure to get to training on time. That way Aaron doesn't have to worry about how quickly he needs to get home. God has been so good to us and just took care of all of my worries about this transition.
More news...Aaron has been asked to be a deacon in our church. While kind of scary it is such an hounor for our family. We had been thinking about pulling out of this church for awhile, but it seems the more we try to pull out the more God asks us to do. So, we feel like God it telling us we need to stay put and try to help make the change. Not exactly what we would like, but as we have learned before we need to do what God wants. So, please pray for us as we are still making the decision about this. Tonight Aaron is going to meet with a few of the deacons and they will be questioning them about his faith... please pray that God will direct his answers.
On one last note...Girl Scout cookies are here! We are busy dividing them all up and getting them ready to be delievered. If you are out of state and ordered some I will be trying to mail them out before Thursday. We have already sampled some and boy are they yummy! Our troop is also doing a few cookie booths. We have 360 extra boxes of cookies to sale and we have already sold 88 of those boxes! The girls have done such a great job!
Ok, I'm off to go paint. A friend of ours works for a blind installation company and he brought over a drape for our slider (no more yucky verticals!) It is a really pretty beige microfiber, but now that it is up the wall looks yucky...so I'm going to paint the 2 walls in the family room and the one wall that wasn't painted in the kitchen a nice beige color that matches the drape. When I get it all finishe and put back together I will post some pictures.

Jet Blue Called!

So, it is over. All of the background check that is! Finally. I am happy. They want me to come in for testing this Thursday, Aaron's Birthday. 9am, I have to study. Pray that I will get through the test.
Then onto training. March 16 and 17 I will have orientation, then I will start a four week training on Monday the 20th. This is good. It is sudden, I was thinking that I still needed to get some more things together, but I guess they were able to take care of it. I am getting nervous for Thursday though. I'm glad it is Aaron's Birthday, he is taking the day off to watch Aidan and then we will go do something afterwards...not sure what, but it will be fun whatever it is.