ice cream truck

so yesterday we're sitting in the family room watching tv and all of a sudden we hear music coming from outside and it took me right back to my childhood. the music was actually some pretty cheesy christmas elevator sounding music but it still took me right back. do you remember when you were a kid and would hear that music, stop whatever it was that you were doing, and run to your mom as fast as your feet could carry you to beg for a dollar because the ice cream man was here! it was a good day when my mom would actually give in and let me have that dollar and off i was to buy candy right out in front of my very own home. well, its been years since i have heard that music or even seen an ice cream truck but yesterday i heard that music and we couldnt resist taking sophia outside to experience her first ice cream truck experience. rick grabbed his wallet and ran! hahaha! i remember if you werent super fast that truck was GONE! sophia thought it was the best thing in the world! she got herself a HUGE ice cream sandwich and was in heaven. she was in such a good mood that she was even willing to share with her sister believe it or not! it was fun to watch how excited she got over it and remember how much i enjoyed getting to pick out my favorite treat from the ice cream man. who knows if we'll ever see him again, the elusive ice cream man, but we sure enjoyed it!

new years resolutions...

for my resolutions this year i am doing the generic loose weight, get more organized, be busier at work, blah blah blah... but this year my biggest goal and most challenging is to find forgivness. there are times in our lives when we feel we have been so wronged by another that we can actually justify to ourselves the harsh feelings we have towards them. i have found myself in just such a situation. i have been deeply wronged and therefore felt that in my situation there was no place for forgiveness. i felt that surely heavenly father would understand and not expect that of me. but in my stubborness and shortsightedness i did not realize that when holding onto such harsh feelings, and i would even go so far as to say such feelings of hate, the only person we are truly hurting is our ourselves. i have heard all of this before from other people and in church lessons. ive heard it but never really felt its truthfullness for myself or experienced it in my own life. but i have found that it IS true. such feelings are all consuming. they do not allow us to move on from hurts we experience and im done with it. im done being consumed and continually hurt with my feelings whenever reminded of the situation. the person i have these feelings towards is not suffering from how i feel, I am. so im doing this for myself. in reading i have learned much. there is the scripture “I, the Lord, will forgive whom I will forgive, but of you it is required to forgive all men” (D&C 64:10). i also desire to recieve the lords forgiveness for my own sins. but how can i expect to have this forgiveness if i cannot do the same for those in my life? this is perfectly illustrated in a parable told by our savior jesus christ. "The Savior then told His disciples a parable so that they might more fully appreciate, remember, and apply the lesson that we must forgive everyone (see Matt. 18:23–32). He described a king who wanted to settle his accounts with his servants who owed him money. The first servant owed him 10,000 talents, which would probably be the modern equivalent of millions of U.S. dollars. The servant was not able to repay the debt, so the king ordered him and his family to be sold into slavery. The desperate servant petitioned for time and patience, promising to pay all. Touched by his sincerity, the king was moved with compassion and forgave his very large debt. The servant, therefore, fell down and worshiped him.
This same servant, who had just been the recipient of the king’s wonderful act of mercy and forgiveness, immediately went in search of a fellow servant who owed him 100 pence, the probable equivalent of a few U.S. dollars. He rudely demanded immediate payment. When the fellow servant pleaded for time and patience, the first servant was not willing to extend what he had just freely received from the king. He had his fellow servant cast into prison until he could pay the debt. This callous act was observed by other servants and duly reported to the king. “And his lord was wroth, and delivered him to the tormentors, till he should pay all that was due unto him.” Jesus then added this postscript, “So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also unto you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every one his brother their trespasses” (Matt. 18:34–35)."
how can we not forgive those who offend us when it is put in such a way? i know that the only way to find true peace and healing in our lives is to let go of those offenses against us and to not harbor such ill feelings. and so for this new year that is what i want. peace and healing in my life. i want to be more christlike in my life and i know that this is where i need to start. i dont mean to preach or sound holier than though because i know it will not be easy and i will have moments where i feel that anger again but i will continually remind myself of our saviors example and strive to be better. so if any of you out there have someone in your life that you have resentments or harsh feelings towards i would challenge you to take up my new years resolution. follow our saviors example and find forgiveness for that person and therefore find peace in your own life as i am hoping it will bring to mine. i hope everyone has a wonderful 2009 and wish everyone luck in whatever new years resolutions they have taken up for themselves this year!

tis the season!

its officially christmas!! today i finished decorating my tree completely (it took me a couple of days this year with two little ones!) and tonight we went to the temple to hear our stake choir perform. its so beautiful with all the decorations and lights. i would have taken some pictures but someone is keeping my camera hostage!! (you know who you are!) i love listening to and singing christmas songs. this year is charlottes first christmas and shes old enough to enjoy opening presents and what not. i realize she'll like the wrapping paper more than the gift but thats ok! now all i have to do is finish (or start rather!!) my christmas shopping so i can relax and enjoy the holiday without stressing. rick has asked me not to buy him anything this year and im sorely tempted to take him up on that since hes such a pain in the butt to shop for. whats everyone opinion on that? do i take him for his word and not get him anything or do i ignore him and buy him some presents? what would you do?? oh i love christmas! i hope everyone is enjoying their holiday as much as i am!! merry christmas!!

my babies

this past weekend my sister justyn and i took our kids to get their pictures taken so we could get a nice frame and give our mom a picture of the grandbabies for christmas. (so sshhh dont tell her!) sophia is reliably difficult and noah can be hit and miss with his moods but my little charlotte is generally our dependably happy girl. well, obviously she forgot this that day! after sophia having a minor meltdown she finally calmed down and was ready for her closeup and after noah getting his tummy full he was a happy camper also. but my dear little charlotte was not having it. she was so sick with a fever and a cold and WOULD NOT smile. these are the best we could get with the group as it was. not too bad i must say but we never did get a very good group shot thanks to charlotte the stinker!

a little late

so i realize halloween was a little while ago but i wanted to post some pictures from our fun halloween party. we all got together at brad and allies house and it was a blast!! we had a pretty wicked golf course thanks to brad and an awesome dance party with jessa showing off her killer dance moves! thanks to everyone who came and brought goodies. so fun!!

my house....aaahhhh!!!

ok so anybody want to trade me houses?!? why is it this house attracts every kind of critter imaginable? in this house i have had the typical ants, spiders, pincherbugs, cockraoches, which in itself is bad enough. but besides those lovely insects i have also had an infestation of fleas (i hate anything that can bite and draw blood in particular!), mice(not just one but a whole family i had to get rid of!) a bee hive in my roof which made its way into the house so for awhile i had a swarm of bees in my upstairs! (no exagerating here!) the other day we came downstairs to make breakfast before church and there was a bird sitting there on the ground (yes it was alive)! and then yesterday i get home from church and theres a lizard sitting there in my entry way! its a good thing im not the typical girl when it comes to bugs and rodents. although i did freak out over the ants (ok there were thousands!)and the fleas and the bees, i hate bees they freak me out! but everything else i simply scooped up and put outside. ill keep you posted on the next unwanted guest i find in my house! if i find a snake im definitely moving!!!




so this picture has nothing to do with my post but i thought id post this for graham. oh graham see what you have waiting here at home for you?? i bet you just cant wait to get home now!! isnt she lovely? hahaha! im kidding. we all miss you bunches and i cant wait for you to get home and also to meet the newest addition to our little family! we love you!

so very random!

ive decided i think my daughter sophia has got to be one of the funniest people i know! today was my nephew noahs blessing and when i told sophia we were going to their ward to see him be blessed she said to me, "like simba in the lion king when they hold him up in the air? are we all going to bow down before him like in the movie?" she cracks me up. the other day she was sitting on the toilet going to the bathroom when she reaches behind her and pulls the toilet seat forward to rest on her back and i say to her "sophia what are you doing?" she says to me "im pretending im a turtle!" i love this girls sense of imagination and how clever she is. after church today rick and i were organizing a bit and decided to take apart charlottes bouncy seat and baby swing and put them up in the attic. i also went thru her clothes and pulled out all of her clothes which have gotten to be too small. it was making me so sad i wanted to cry! shes 8 months now and i cant believe how fast its all going by. shes crawling, pulling herself up to everything and cruisin around, and she already has 5 teeth! shes such a sweet baby girl and i enjoy her so much. im so excited to see all of the changes she is making but on the other hand i just want her to stay my little baby! i love both of these girls so much and am grateful to have been blessed to have them in my life. i love my little family!