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Friday, May 30, 2008

Thanks for the flowers

I receive these 2 doz beautiful roses the other day from "Paul's Crazy family"(as the card read) in Utah. They are so nice and really brought a smile to my face. That was so nice of them and I really really do appreshaite them as well as the love that came with them. I am the luckiest person in the world when it comes to in-laws!!
The reason for the flowers was that, I had what we will call a little episoid last weekend. This changed my plans from spending memorial day weekend with my family in the sun to spending it mostly alone and in the hospital. My family was by my side but on memorial day I ended up being very sick and I slept almost the entire day. I went in on Friday night and came home Tuesday night. That was really not what I meant when I said I wanted a relaxing weekend. I guess I should be more clear on things I wish for.
So, I have had much time to think, much time to put my life in perspective and much time to realize all that I have to be thankful for. I also found out a lot about my health. Some good some not so great but will be ok.
I can say this, I thankful for my friends. I was actually surprised about which of my friends showed up for me when I needed them. I know I have different kinds of friends. I have friends who I would call on for different things and at different times. I am thankful for each of my friends and for all of the different things that they do for me and the different times they are there for me. I am lucky to have so many friends and I hope that I am there for my friends when they need me for whatever I may be good at for them. (If that made any sence at all).

I am thankful for an awesome family. Again I could not ask for a more loving and devoted husband, and my kids were awesome too. It was nice to have friends stop in to check on me and even a few calls. Thanks to Laresa for setting up some meals to come into my home. Although Paul told her we were ok, and with older kids they would have been fine, it was also nice that for a couple of nights when I got home, dinner was one thing that we did not have to think about. Thanks to everyone to doing your part to help me feel better. It really did help.

Wednesday, May 21, 2008

They say I am addicted...

So, the word has finally made its way back to me. I was told last night that I am addicted to having murder mystery parties. LOL Hum..... I am seriously wondering if this is how everyone feels.
I have had a few, that is for sure. It is not really this type of party that I would be addicted to. I think it is more that I just LOVE having people over. I love getting friends together. We have our girls nights, and we have to have something for the men to be involved in too. My sweet husband loves cooking for my girls nights but loves even more cooking for the parties that he is invited to. So instead of just having friends over to sit around, talk and eat (not that there is anything wrong with that. We have fun with that too) this gives us something fun to do WHILE we are talking, eating and hanging out with everyone. I have seen the people who are so quite and shy....out talking to everyone, laughing and having a great time.
So, I guess Kristi and Mike would know more then anyone else because they have been to most of my parties. Kristi am I addicted? should I stop?
Some of our parties were much more fun then others. Besides the weather, there are two reasons for that. 1. The more people who come to the parties, the more fun they will be. 2. we have had different types of mysteries and the parties have come from different companies each time. Therefore, some of them are just written better and just better types or parties. Even the weather did not keep anyone from having fun. We all just staied close and by the fire.
I guess anytime you have any kind of party more then once, some will be better then others.
Our main goal is to get friends over, relax, laugh, eat, laugh some more, eat some more and do something fun. As long as we are achieving those things, I think we will continue having the parties. We are trying to invite more people and get more people involved. You know, extending our friendship circle.
What is it that they say......Making new friends but keeping the old.....some are silver and some are gold.
Anyway, that comment last night kinda caught me off guard. Was not sure how to take it. So I thought, " I guess I will BLOG ABOUT IT" lol I would not say I was offended or anything, just surprised. I told this person last night, I guess I will keep having them until no one wants to come anymore. That is when I will know to stop having them.
SO PARTY AT MY HOUSE JUNE 14th. Everyone invited but I HAVE TO KNOW WHO IS COMING so RSVP. It is a Wild West theme so easy to dress up for.

Monday, May 19, 2008

Firemen, Retirement, movies and puppies

Well for the weekend, someone tried to catch the yard on fire. We had to call the fire dept to come out and put it out. What was scary is that we noticed the smoke as I got out of the shower. We were preparing to leave. If we had left 20 mins earlier, I may not have had a house to come home to. Living by the railroad tracks we have had a lot of people cut through our yard (outside of the fence) from the tracks to my road and back. So, Paul played fireman and saved the day and my house!

HOW ABOUT PEOPLE NEED TO SAY AWAY FROM MY BACK YARD!!!

We got the fire out and were off to my Aunt Grace's retirement party. It was a surprise for her and a lot of fun. Her boys Perry and Steve went all out with a big cook out, friends with memories to share, great decorations and super sweet gifts for their mom. We love Aunt Grace. She is so sweet and always smiling. In fact, on the way there, Alyssa asked, isn't Aunt Grace the one with red hair, glasses and always smiling. lol Yup, that would be her. Always a kind word and a smile. We love you Aunt Grace. Congratulations on your Retirement!!

We took it easy the rest of the weekend because we were all so worn out from such a crazy week. We rented some movies. Let me recommend: Mad Money, Surfs Up, and 27 dresses. Of the ones we rented these were the good ones.

We are still playing with puppies. We still have two available. One may be spoken for as she makes up her mind but it needs a home soon so if anyone wants to talk about it, please let me know.

Hope everyone had a good weekend and I hope this week is a great one for everyone. I have another murder mystery party coming up. With these parties, you come in character and play along so if you would like to join the fun, PLEASE let me know soon and I will send you the information you need to know. We hope you will all join us.

Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Little Puppies Need Love too

LOOK AT THIS FACE.... Hi, I would give you my name but I have not been given one yet. I am looking for a loving home and a good family. I am a sweet little female peek-a-dot. I am pretty laied back and mild mannered. I can not promise that I will not nibble at your toes or try to steal your socks but I do promise to always give lots of kisses and let you cuddle with me anytime you want.

It looks like my hair will get long and wavy. That should be nice for bow placement and decoration. I am not expected to get anymore then about 10lbs (on the high scale). My mom and dad are both small (5 and 8 lbs). All of my sisters and my brother have been spoken for, so I am the only one still waiting to find my place in the world and the family I will explore this world with.

If you want to take me home, mommy Alona is waiting to hear from you. ARF! ARF!
Now how can anyone resist THAT!!


Tuesday, May 13, 2008

"If Life were easy, it wouldn't be hard."

My dear sweet Mother-in-law sent me a book for mother's day. I just have to share a small part of this book that has impacted me already while just reading the beginning. The book is written by Sheri Dew and the name of the book is "If Life were easy, it wouldn't be hard."


on page 4 it reads:
It's true that if life were easy, it wouldn't be hard. Meaning this: What if every prayer were instantly answered in the way we wanted it to be? What if a little bit of spiritual due diligence now and again kept us in constant and clear contact with our Heavenly Father? If nothing ever tested our faith or our resolve or our convictions-- because we really don't know what we believe or believe in, for that matter, until we're tested-- then what are the chances we would progress far enough spiritually in this lone and dreary world? Weather we like it or not, our trials and struggles can tend to accelerate our push toward godliness. In fact, it's possible we wouldn't go as far as we're capable of going without them. "For all those who will not endure chastening ... cannot be sanctified" (D&C 101:5)
Brigham Young said that "God never bestows upon His people, or upon and individual, superior blessings without a severe trial prove them". Sounds a bit foreboding on the one hand. But on the other, surely we couldn't expect to inherit the gift of eternal life or to receive ongoing bestowals of charity or to be taught the mysteries of godliness or to learn to communicate clearly with the heavens without making a diligent, consistent effort-- in other words, without it requiring a lot of spiritual work.
A friend of mine has sometimes wondered out loud what the headline in the Rocky Ridge Gazette might have been if those who pushed, pulled and prayed their handcarts over that forbidding Wyoming terrain hadn't kept going: "Turned Back Because of Rain." Or, "Turned Back for Fatigue" Or, "Turned Back Because It Was Too Hard."
They didn't turn back. And neither can we.
This life was designed to be a test-- a test to determine if we want to be part of the kingdom of God more than we want anything else. Mortality offers a wide range of experiences and opportunities, everything from countless ways to serve our fellowman to an endless array of distractions, deceptions, and modes of self gratification. When all is said and done, perhaps the most fundamental question we each answer is, Do we want to be part of the kingdom of God--both here on earth and eternally-- more than we want anything else? And do we demonstrate by our choices and priorities, by how we live our lives--everything from the way we spend our time and energy to the way we spend our influence and resources-- what we really care about?


I don't know about you but I have been tested and pushed to my limits on several hundreds of occasions. I have also been truly blessed over and over again. I may not have a ton of money or a big fancy house but I do have a great job. I have a lot of really good friends. I have an awesome husband who loves me more then I had ever imagined that a husband could love his wife. I have children who are really good kids and who know that I love them and I know they love me as well. My kids are such good examples for me. My husband has finally gotten the job he has wanted for a very long time. (boy the wait for this one was a huge test!!) I think for as many things as I have been through in my past, my life is pretty dang good.
I guess what I am getting from this part of this book is like the saying goes. " I never said it would be easy, I only said that it would be worth it". This saying has helped me though some tough times.

Sunday, May 11, 2008

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY

Happy Mothers Day to all of the moms out there.

I sure love my mom. She is amazing. She has taught me so much. Most of all, as a single mom, I learned that if she can make it with 11 kids on her own then I have no room to complain about dealing with 3. That alone helped me through a lot of hard times. No matter what mistakes you make or how bad things get.....NEVER GIVE UP.
Thanks mom for all you have done and for who you are.
I love you.

Welcome Home Morgan


On Friday night my nephew Morgan Titus returned safely from his two year and some months (extended) Mission in Colorado. (Morgan is the one in the pics with the blue plaid shirt on.) His family had a welcome home party/cookout for him on Saturday. I thought it was going to rain but it did not. We had beautiful weather for it. So much so that the pool was very inviting. It was sure good seeing him again. To know Morgan is to love Morgan. He really is a great guy. He has such a fun and friendly personality and seems to love everyone. I know that he made a huge impact on the lives of those who he met in Colorado.


All of this grandparents were there, some other family and a lot of friends came to welcome him home.






My brother Bronson (Morgan's dad) has two sons and three daughters. His other son Josh was also home visiting for Morgan's return. After Josh returned from his mission in Utah, he headed back to Utah for school. He loves it there. It was great that he was home as well.

Bronson and Laurie(mom) have such a fun family. I love visiting with them. When I was 13-14 I lived with my brother for a while. While there I was the babysitter for Josh and later for Morgan. I LOVED the time that I spent there. I love the girls as well. Kendal who is graduating high school this year and the twins Hannah and Chandler who are 13. I was off being a mom myself when the girls came along so I only babysat Kendal a few times and the twins I watched a lot when they were babies. For everyone of Bronson's children there is a story and a reminder to different parts of my life.


Now that I have written and revised this post, since I noticed this was turning into a therapy session for me. I am cutting it short with this. I want to once again welcome Morgan home. We missed him and are so thankful for the great example he is for my son as well as other kids in general.
Anyway, with great food, good friends, lots of family and fun, here are some pictures of the cookout for you to enjoy.

Sunday, May 4, 2008

sumo wrestlers and a lesson on being nice

Ok, let me explain....
When you walk into the Sumo's restaurant on Clemson Rd, the first thing you see as you step into the door is a picture of a group of Sumo wrestlers standing in a circle. So, with that as circles go, you can see the front view of some and the rear view of others. All I can say is, maybe I should put a pic of sumo wrestlers in my bathroom so when I step on the scale, I know....its really not THAT bad. lol
This was my first visit to Sumo's. Paul and I went on a double date and had so much fun. We had a WONDERFUL meal, the chef puts on a show and we were in awesome company.
As we were waiting on our table when we arrived, there was a little boy and his little bit older sister standing there waiting with their mom near by. They had some b-day gifts there waiting with them. Paul asked the boy if the gifts were for Paul. The little guy was quick to tell Paul that it was his birthday and not Paul's and he would not be sharing the gifts. So Paul asked the boy his age. He turned 9. The sister stepped in to let us know that she was 11 I think. Paul said that he was 13, they said no, you look like you are 18. LOL he said yeah, you're right. You are sooo smart. LOL. Then the boy said no, you really look like you are 21. Of course Paul agreed and they are BFF's !!!LOL So as Paul confessed of his age to the kids, I said, he's old huh, they said "not really cause our dad is 50". So, I think Paul is feeling a lot better about his age these days and he has new friends. LoL it was really cute. Paul makes friends everywhere he goes.

Speaking of making friends. I so enjoyed the lesson in Relief Society this morning. Christy does a really good job. She was talking about how we should think about our actions more. Think about how we affect others and think about if our actions, or words would change if the Lord was in our presence. That made me think about my family and my friends. I know for a fact that things would be different around my house if Jesus were here. I mean my house would be cleaner, I would work harder to treat my family better. I would be more careful to treat my friends better. There is a lot I would do different.
Then the thought came up in class that it is up to us as to how we let other people affect us. If someone is driving me nuts, I can either get mad or I can find a better way to react. When we get mad, it always affects us more then it even is noticed by the person who has angered us. If Jesus were here, would we let that person make us mad? Probably not.
So on the way home from church, my children and I had a talk about how we are all going to try to work on not letting people get to us. That we are going to try to walk away from potential fights and disharmony. We are going to try not to bother others or do things that would normally make them mad and when someone bothers us we are going to find a better way to handle our feelings about the situation.
This is a pretty big goal for our family. I really think that it would do us all so much good to achieve this goal. I hope it will bring our family closer and clear some of the tension that sometimes interferes with our home. Paul and the children all agreed that it is important that we ALL work on this together. I am excited and hope we can all stick with this one and make it work for our family.
I also want to say that I know that sometimes we meet people so that other people will come into our lives. I have had many experiences where, because I know one person, I get to know other people better then I may have before. I am thankful for my friends and those experiences that I have had to make the friends that I have. I consider myself very blessed to be surrounded by people who genuinely care about me and my family and I hope that they know how thankful I am to have people like this in my life. I have an awesome family at home and in life and I have awesome friends all around me. I am so thankful for that.