Scott and Melody

Joseph's youngest sister will be getting married at the end of this week. We are so excited for them! We love them both dearly and think they are a wonderful match for each other.

I took their engagement pictures for them and the pictures below are two of the pictures that they chose to send out with their announcements. I will be taking some bridals and groomals later this week as well and will post some of them when I get a chance.

Wasting time...

So this morning I was at my mom's house cutting out some quilting fabric for her (she hurt her arm so it is in a sling and she can't cut fabric right now) and she was looking at facebook at Google Reader. All of a sudden she looked at the time and exclaimed, "Oh no! I have to leave in five minutes and I still have to pack a lunch!"

Then she said, "Raise your hand if you have been wasting time."

Replying to herself she answered, "I would, but my hand is on the mouse."

Swimming with my children

Austin and Matthew holding on for dear life (this was before they discovered their newly found swimming skills):

Three little fishies - Madeleine, Austin, and Matthew:

Elizabeth and Rachel lounging in the pool together:

It is always an adventure to go swimming with my three children when Joseph is not with me. It is usually pretty chaotic. This last Friday we went swimming with my sisters and their children and we had a great time. The big event was that my two boys decided it was finally time to swim around in their swimming tubes without constantly holding onto me. They turned into little fishies swimming back and forth with me and Debby across the pool while Elizabeth lounged in her swimming float with the canopy on for shade. The other big event was that my boys both jumped off the diving board with me (see videos below). The best part was that this was how the conversation went preceding the jumping:

Me: Austin, do you want to jump off the diving board?

Austin: No.

Me: Okay, then I'll go by myself. (At this point I start climbing out of the pool.)

Matthew: I want to jump with you.

Me: Great!

Austin: Is it safe?

Me: Yes.

Austin: I'll watch Matthew do it first to make sure it's safe.

Wow. Austin is definitely his mother's son in some ways...

Lyrics Epiphany

So I just had a moment of realization. I always thought the words to "Oh L'amour" by Erasure went like this:

oh l'amour
broke my heart
now I'm making for you

but it turns out that it really goes like this:

oh l'amour
broke my heart
now I'm aching for you

Hmm. That makes a lot more sense. Go figure...

Yesterday afternoon

Yesterday afternoon I was playing with Elizabeth and Austin and took a quick picture of both and then took one to capture Matthew's afternoon nap. What a great time we have together!

Random moments from the last couple of months

These last couple of months have been really busy!

My kids are so funny. I am learning to laugh more as I watch the silly things they do and listen to some of the crazy things they say. Here are a few pictures of the silliness:

(clockwise, from upper left corner:
Matthew "shooting" Elizabeth,
Matthew with his shades on,
Austin all ready for SCUBA diving,
two boys "playing" the piano - do we have a plumber in our future?,
and two little chefs ready to help cook)

Here is a picture of me with Audrey Marriott from when Adam and Laura came for a wedding in May. This little girl was named after me and I love it! She just turned one year old this month and I can't wait to continue to watch her grow. The collage below it is also from our visit with the Marriotts.

(clockwise, from upper left corner:

Matthew riding, Laura and Audrey,

Austin riding, and Elizabeth)

I just can't get over how sweet our little girlie is! I am loving watching her grow. The picture below is from a walk in the park that we took last Sunday morning.

My family brings me so much joy!

Happy Birthday!

This week two very important women in my life have birthdays. My mother-in-law's birthday was the 1st of July and my Grandma Jody's birthday is today.

My mother-in-law, Evelyn, is so wonderful! She is kind, giving, thoughtful, and so fun to be with. I have a marvelous time just chatting with her about anything and everything. The picture below is from when she came to help me after I had Elizabeth. She made life so much easier for us. The boys LOVED playing with her. While she was here she not only helped clean and make meals, but she played dinosaurs, cars, made forts, and read book after book after book with my boys... She is very patient and a great example to me. I love her so much and am so glad that I will get to see her in just a couple of weeks!


Today is my Grandma Jody's birthday. She is one of my favorite people! She is friendly, considerate, and so service-oriented. She makes everyone feel at ease instantly and can almost always find a connection with anyone. She is beautiful as well. Many people have told me that they think I look kind of like her and that is one of the highest compliments someone could give me. The picture below is from last summer when she was on a mission with my grandpa in Brazil. They have served four missions already and are still going strong. What wonderful footsteps to hopefully follow in one day. I love you Grandma!

(Can you believe she turns 80 today?!)