July So Far

We have had a great July so far and we are just getting started. Katie, Blayke, Daxon and Zayla came up for a day at the lake (ok. so a few hours at the lake). It was a really warm day and I got a bit sunburned but luckily Deklin didn't. Besides eating the sand in Hawaii when Deklin was six months old, he hasn't been around sand and I was amazed at how he just grabbed a shovel and just started digging. He wasn't afraid of the water at all and although it was a bit cold he got in up to his waist.

To get to the lake I just walk out my back gate and around the side of the lake to the sand. It is probably not even 50 yards. My house is the dark roof on the right side of the picture. There is a cement barrier that keeps the sand away from the rocks and the little kids from going out too far. There were teenagers (including BLAYKE) on the deep side of the barrier where the water was clear and cold. I know that we will spend many fun days at the lake and when we put an offer in to buy this new house we didn't even know what was going on back there. We were so excited to hear about all the plans and then finally see it fill up with water.

Deklin's first haircut did not go very well. Although he said "air-pane" a hundred times on the way over to Cookie Cutters he did not like sitting in the airplane when it was time to get his hair cut. He started screaming when his hairstylist Marissa put the cape around his neck. So, we took the cape off and although Deklin was sitting in an airplane (on of his favorite things), had a movie playing, and a sucker offered to him he was still screaming. Someone pulled out some bubbles and he calmed down just enough for Marissa to cut his hair. All the cutting took only a few minutes but it seemed like forever! I left his hair a little bit long because it isn't very thick on top. And I like long hair. We came home with a lock of hair and a certificate that showed that he received his first hair cut.

With his mullet intact he had no idea of the trauma he was about to endure.

The 4th of July was really fun besides spending most of the day cleaning up the garage. Our cul-de-sac had a BBQ and fireworks show. We have such great neighbors and it was really fun to hang out and get to know each other better.

Deklin is a total cool dude. (and so is Lance) The house in the background is for sale so if you want to be my neighbor it only costs $615k. It has a pool, is over 5000 sq ft. with nice extras and just steps away from the lake :)

There are so many kids in our cul-de-sac and they had a blast with the smoke bombs, the water balloon fight and the Pop Its. Deklin was even trying his hand at the Pop Its but he didn't throw them hard enough for them to actually pop. He did ride on our neighbor's tricycle, though, and so now I need to find him a real "bike". My new house is in the background behind all the kids.

Katie and I went to the lake for the second round and it was fun. Well, it ended fun but did not start out fun. "Crappin' kids" is all I have to say. The lake is more full now and so the cement barrier is covered. The water was more cold and the day started out fairly windy. But as soon as we all just tried to relax and have fun WE DID! There were quite a few cars there (over 30) but it didn't feel like we were too crowded or anything. The only annoyance was a large group of teenagers (I'd say they were like 12-14 year olds) who were so dang loud. Katie and I both remember acting just like them when we were younger so we tried not to let them get to us. We are so excited that we get to go to a Pacific Ocean beach soon and actually ride waves.

(in the picture with just Deklin the roof you see on the far left is the house for sale. My house is to the right of that.)

Mullet No More

This cute little boy is getting his mullet cut off today. I am really sad about it but I think it's time. He is 21 months old now and so we're getting rid of the baby curls. I hope that he looks so cute with his big boy haircut. But of course he will. He is ALWAYS so dang handsome. Sorry if this disappoints any of you loved ones.

New House vs. Old House (pic added)

I know that some of you probably thought that I wasn't moving but I've done it! We owned our new house for three months before moving into it because we wanted to do some remodeling and finish our basement. It still isn't quite done but it's getting really, really close. I really like my new house but of course not everything is perfect. This morning I was comparing my new house with my old house and somethings aren't really a comparison because my new house is over ten years newer. But here is how they've faired so far (list not complete)

Old House:
better garage (c'mon - a six car garage with an upstairs- you can't compete with that!)
bigger master bedroom (by just a little)
better foyer
bigger office for Lance
more closets (only one linen closet in new house)
bigger coat closet
loved my jack-n-jill bathroom upstiars
I had a love/hate relationship with the trees behind my house - great shade but the spring was horrible with tons of sticky pods all over and the leaves in the fall were insane
I loved my plum and nectarine trees

New House:
better kitchen (and pantry)
better movieroom
better fireplace
better craft room for me (oh yeah!)
better view (I can see Timp from my kitchen and backyard)
better yard (much bigger yard and covered deck and patio)
better master closet
better lighting fixtures
better cul-de-sac
better lake in my backyard :)
better commute for Lance

I really love my new house but it has been hard the last few weeks. Every other time I've moved after a week or two I was all moved in and settled. We still have very few rooms that are "done" and our garage and storage rooms are quite a mess. My craft room is a mess too and that will take some time for me to find everything a place. Our neighbors are really nice and our cul-de-sac is quiet (and not next to a busy road) but there are plenty of kids out playing during the day. We are already planning cul-de-sac BBQ's and a July 4th fireworks show. I especially love my new friend Becky. She has an adopted son and triplet girls (Ben just turned five and the girls will turn five in October).

Did I mention that there is a lake in my backyard? We really wanted to put a pool in our yard because our lot is quite big and we'd still have tons of room to play but we decided that we were doing too many other things and that maybe we would do it next year. Well, now I don't know if we'll need to do it. There is a lake just beyond my back fence and not too far away we have some "splash pads" that are free to use and tons of fun. The lake is full of water now and there is a beach area. When it is done they will have fishing and a fish cleaning station, restrooms, showers, paddle boats, a dock, a pavilion and a grass area. We were hoping for some playground equipment but I didn't see any on the plans.

I will post some before and after pictures when I am more organized. I don't have very many before pictures though and my house isn't quite "after" yet as it is still a work in progress. I miss you my UTAH COUNTY friends (especially you, Nat)! Keep in touch!

Here is a picture from Deklin's window. You can only see a corner of the lake but you can see my back gate that opens up to the lake area on the right side. There are lots of people enjoying the great weather and water today. The whole section where the cars are parked is a sandy area to play in.

No title necessary

A Little Late

We had a team of 15 but I never managed to get a picture of all of us together. We were quite popular in our pink "Save the Ta Ta's" shirts and many people told us how much they loved our shirts and took pictures of us. Thanks, team, for spending the day with me!

I'm feeling famous today

In the fall of 2007 only a handfull of people knew that I was expecting a baby. I had an angel here on earth willing to sacrafice her own wants to better the life of her unborn little boy which in turn would make me a mother. I was absolutely overcome with emotion as I walked through those months in 2007 trying to prepare for this little baby and this unknown that was adoption. Lance and I attended the Families Supporting Adoption Conference that was held in Salt Lake that August and we were very enlightened. While there I noticed this big white guy loving on this beautiful brown-skinned baby in some of the classes that we were in. Then I noticed the same beautiful baby boy with his mother. There were many couples there with babies but this couple stood out to me.


Then the next month this same couple came to our monthly adoption class held in an auditorium at BYU for "show and tell" (each month they would ask a couple who had recently finalized their adoption to come and share their adoption story with all the waiting couples before they started the mandatory cirriculum for the night). I found out that the proud father was Josh and was the same Josh that happened to be our LDSFS caseworker for about five minutes (we had talked to him on the phone 2 or 3 times). His wife, Lindsey, was VERY passionate about adoption. I am actually pretty sure that Lindsey is passionate about EVERYTHING but she's really passionate about adoption (if you haven't checked out the r house shame on you!). She gushed about how wonderful blogging was so the next day I checked it out and started this blog. I have several friends that started blogging because of my blog so you can see that Lindsey's passion reaches further then she knows.

Today she featured my Temple Sealing video on her blog. Needless to say I am very honored. It reminded me all over again about those tender feelings during the first six months of Deklin's life. Unless you experience it firsthand it is very difficult to describe how you feel when your child isn't really "yours" until a judge signs off on it. I wish there was a way that I could experience the joy of peeing on a stick and having it say "yes, you are going to be a mother", carrying a baby inside my body and feeling the baby, and giving a child the miracle of birth (just to name a few things). I also wish that I could share with my fertile friends all the joys that adoption brings. I know that many of my loved ones DO understand some of the miraculous blessings of adoption and for this I am grateful. Don't ever take for granted that your children are yours because they came out of your bodies. Remember that all mothers don't have that luxury. Although our labor pains may take different shapes and forms I am so proud to be a mother and I know that I am in good company. I am truly surrounded by wonderful examples of motherhood by both biological and adoptive mothers. I will be praying for the the r house

Easter in pictures

Another Race Post

If you'd like to join my team for the Race for the Cure, which means I will pick up your race packet for you, you must register by THIS Friday.

Our team T-shirts are going to be PINK and will be a light cotton shirt. They aren't too fitted and the sizes run between Small and 2XL (let us know if you need a youth size). The cost is $10 and you'll need to get me your shirt order by THIS Friday as well. You do not need to order a shirt to be part of my team :)

Let me know if you have any questions and SAVE THE TA TA'S!-