Blessings from 7.13-7.19

7.13- my van, perfect weather AGAIN, summertime, wet & smooth sand on my toes, fun day at the beach with family, new bike trailer that Patty bought for us and using it on a fun bike ride with the kids around the block, lavender baby lotion, Dr. Pepper, my camera

7.14- haircut & highlights by my awesome dad, think I did real well on my Telecommunications job test, my babies, getting my toenails all purtied up, getting my house clean, a fast washer & dryer, my hubby

7.15- a safe flight and making it through the trip to Utah even though I thought I would not make it, air conditioning, delivery pizza from Papa Johns, reuniting with my little sibs whom I adore, my Aunt Konny, my Aunt Konny's amazing collection of movies

7.16- a good night's sleep, being able to borrow my cousin Aaron's car, an awesome visit and reunion with my beautiful momma, my cousin Amy, Mackenzie saving Joaquin's life when he dove into the pool, my cousin's awesome meal of Lomo Saltado- mmmm!, kids enjoying their childhood, good times at cousin's house, warm apple pie

7.17- pay day was more than I expected, getting scheduled enough shifts to make up for my time in Utah and knowing we'll be able to pay rent, Krispy Kreme donuts, grocery shopping and having food!, shells and cheese for lunch, getting in to visit my mom even though it seemed almost impossible, Sonic ice, kids bedtime

7.18- fabulous time at Lindon water park with kids and cousins, singing Primary songs with my sister and cousins in the car, Little Ceasar's pizza at cousin Amy's house, chattin' with cousin Amy, Aunt Konny doing all our laundry

7.19- awesome visit with my mom, hot showers, cousin Michelle and Aaron watching my kids so I could have a peaceful visit with my mom, Joaquin not dying when he escaped from cousin's house, Taco Bell mexican pizzas, smell of mountain rain, Willis family taco salad tradition, visiting with cousins and loving my roots, kids having a blast, beautiful summer night and weather, cousin Amy's hubby and his dad's Patriotic music concert, Baily's first sleepover, loves from my Bubba

Seven New Posts!

Check 'em out below yo and don't forget to join in on the discussion questions if you'd like!

P.S. Did you notice how I have a song to go with each post. Sweet, huh? Yeah- I'm cool like that.

Joaquin on Trampoline

Joaquin loved the trampoline at my cousin Amy's house. We totally need to invest in one of these bad boys- the trampoline that is.

Splish Splash

Saturday July 18, 2009
Yesterday was pretty much awesome. We got to go to the Lindon waterpark with my cousin Amy and her family. The water was perfect and not freezing like most little kid water parks are and we all had a blast. After the water park we went to Amy's house from some pizza and it was so good. I must have been craving pizza or something because it really hit the spot. Amy and I were so tired though so I cut the visit a little short and headed home. There's not a whole lot to say except what I already said. Yesterday was pretty much awesome- good summer fun!

Discussion Question:

What's your favorite water park?

There Can Be Miracles, When You Believe...

Friday July 17, 2009
Friday was a day of answered prayers. I woke up and checked our account as I always do on Friday- pay day. To my pleasant surprise my paycheck was much higher than I thought it would be. Robert was able to work a few overtime shifts which pay time and a half. I called to get my work schedule for next week and was so grateful to find out that I will have at least 4 more shifts on my next paycheck which will allow for us to make our rent payment. It's all really a miracle how it has all worked out. I know I was supposed to come on this trip to Utah to see my mom and siblings and help out with their care. I'm so, so grateful and humble by the Lord's love for me and my family and how He continuously shows that love to me in so many ways. We pretty much just hung out on Friday at the house after getting some much needed groceries. Later on we went to visit my mom and there was a guard there who was trying to make it impossible for us to see my mom. It really stressed me out. But thanks to my Aunt Konny showing up and making things work out we were able to get in and see her. That was an answer to prayer because I did not want to miss out on a possible visit with my mom. During the visit Joaquin was very tired and fussy and the guard kept threatening me to get him quiet or we would have to leave. I was praying my heart out that he would calm down but he didn't so my mom took him and he miraculously calmed down. Another answered prayer. Not only did he calm down but it was so awesome that he got to have that bonding time with my mom. I need to work on being more grateful for the tender mercies in my life though and not getting stressed out so easily because truly I have so much to be thankful for!

Discussion Question:

When was a time that you had faith things would work out but you didn't know how and how did it work out?

Let them be little...

Thursday July 16, 2009

It's amazing what a full night's sleep can do for you. It really can work wonders. Thursday was a great day. My cousin Aaron lent me his car so me and the kids could go visit with my mom. After we hung out at my Aunt Konny's awesome pad for a while we went to see my mom and had a simply fantastic visit with her. Oh how I've missed my mom! She was so happy and the kids were so happy and I was ecstatic. It was a perfect visit. After that we went to my cousin Amy's house. My cousin Amy has always been one of my favorite cousins. Growing up she was the funnest cousin and that hasn't changed at all. The kids swam, swung on the bed swing and tree swings, jumped on the trampolines and pretty much had a blast the whole time. Amy made this wonderful dinner called Lomo Saltado which is a Peruvian stir-fry. Can you say DELICIOUS?! It was heaven for my mouth. So good! While we were there I reflected on the amazing mom and person that Amy is and felt motivated to be a better mom. She really takes the time to enjoy her kids and make their childhood fun and awesome as it should be. She is such an example to me. It's no doubt that her kids adore her as well as any other kid that's around her. I left that night wanting to be a better mom, to play more with my kids and to provide them every opportunity to enjoy their childhood as much as possible. It was such a great and memorable day for me!

Discussion Question:

What's one of your best memories of your childhood?

Leavin' on a Jet Plane...

Wednesday July 15, 2009
Wednesday was an extremely long and exhausting day for me. Like I mentioned in my last post, I never went to bed or slept the night before since I was cleaning, doing laundry and packing. So that made for a very tired momma. Our first flight to AZ was long and Joaquin did terribly. He does not like to sit still for 5 minutes let alone 3 1/2 hours. He was so tired and fussy and I was getting all the dirty looks from the passengers who just wanted to sleep and not listen to a crying baby. That is not fun. We finally made it to AZ, grabbed a quick bite and headed to our next flight to UT. That one went much better. It was quicker, my kids were fed and that helped a lot. By the time we landed in Salt Lake I had never been more tired in my life. I was literally going on fumes. My Aunt Konny was going to pick us up but she had a surgery meeting so we had to wait at the airport for about 2 hours after we landed. It was hard because of how tired I was but I'm so grateful that my kids did so well. They really were champs. And I am so grateful for my Aunt Konny's neverending generosity for getting me and my kids out here to Utah and providing us a place to stay and so much more. When we got to my Aunt's house I ordered some Pappa John's pizza, we ate and I don't remember much else. My little siblings Zach and Kenzie were dropped off by my cousins were they were staying. I was so excited and happy to see them since I hadn't seen them since we moved to Wisconsin in November. I can't believe how much they've grown. Zach's almost as tall as me and Mackenzie looks exactly like my mom. My cousin's daughter Shannon who's the same age as Kenzie spent the night and Baily was on cloud nine playing with the big girls. It was great. It was a long day but I'm grateful for all that came out of it.

Discussion Question:

When's a time you had to pull an all nighter and was it worth it?

Gotta Have Faith...

Tuesday July 14, 2009

This day was quite the day. I started off with a nice haircut and highlights from my dad and I loved the way it turned out. Don't you;) Then I went home and did I don't remember. Then I got all gussied up, dropped off my kids at Grandma's house and headed to Elkhorn to take my test for the County Dispatcher job I want reallly bad. There were around 50 people there. I finished about in the middle and I think I did really well. It was kind of fun to use my brain again. It took me a little bit longer than I thought since I don't know the state of Wisconsin as well as AZ yet. But like I said, I think I did really well. I really hope I get that job. After that I picked up my kids, went home and was really lazy and procrastinated everything I needed to get done before my flight early the next morning. Then while the kids and I were eating dinner I had a major anxiety attack. My palms got all sweaty, my heart started pounding, I started bawling and I didn't know what was wrong. It was awful. I finally got the kids to sleep, started my laundry and cleaning, and continued doing that and packing until we had to leave the next morning. I know I was stressed worrying about missing work to go on this trip to Utah to see my mom because I knew it was going to affect my paycheck that I had to pay rent with. I was also feeling tension between some people that was probably causing stress as well among other personal issues which could all be the reason for the anxiety attack but it seems like I've been getting more and more of those lately. Regardless, I knew that the way things had worked out with planning my trip to Utah that I needed to go. And because of that I knew I just needed to have faith that because it was my Heavenly Father's will for me to go on this trip that things would work out. I'm so glad for that assurance and for prayer to help me have that faith. What a crazy day though.

Discussion Question:

When have you done something that you weren't sure of the outcome because you had faith that it was the Lord's will?

In the summertime...

Monday July 13, 2009
Today pretty much was rad. I know I say it a lot but I LOVE the weather here. It's so nice to be able to get out and enjoy the summer. Our morning started off normally with Joaquin getting into anything and everything. Seriously, why do we even have the DVD's out where he can get them? You'd think we would learn. And for some reason he only had one Elmo slipper on but I think he was rockin' it don't you? It's a good thing he's cute because he is quite the menace. His name should be Dennis. After running some errands we picked up my step-mom Patty and my lil' bro Eyan and headed out to the beach for the first time this year. The beach was pretty rocky but that didn't stop us from having fun. The sand was so soft and it felt like heaven on my toes. My kids had a blast. They are such water babies.

After that we made a quick stop at Wally World and headed home for an easy dinner of nachos and junk food. Mom of the year right here folks. After dinner Patty brought us the bike trailer she bought for us (LOVE her!!) at a yard sale for $14. That's right- $14! We've been wanting one of these for years! The cheapest we've seen them are for like $75 on craigslist or at yard sales. Patty is the queen of thrifty-ness. It's awesome. She's teaching me her craft and I love it. Anyway we finished up dinner and made our maiden voyage with the bike trailer around the block 4 or 5 times and it was so fun. Quite the work-out too. We really didn't do a whole lot today that was extraordinary but it was such a perfect summer day. The weather was complete PERFECTION and it was just a rad day. Rad.

Discussion Question:

What are some of your favorite Summer memories?

P.S. Don't forget to read the posts below and reply to those discussion questions;)

Work, Work & A Wedding

Friday was a little bit of a long day working a double in the morning. I don't remember much about when I got home except I was tired, we went to Wal-Mart, had McD's for dinner and I fell asleep pretty early. Fun, eh?
Saturday I worked a split so it wasn't too bad. I was still pretty wiped out though. Robert was off so he got a whole lotta time to spend with the kiddos and they were happy about that. Man they sure love their poppa! In between shifts I came home and got to watch them having some summer fun in the sprinkler. Good times these summer activities are!

I ended up getting an awesome shift to work that only lasted about an hour and a half so I was stoked about that. I came home in time to have a movie night with the fam and it was super. We watched School of Rock while we camped out on my bed and pigged out on popcorn, candy and soda. I loved every minute of it. Times like those are the ones I cherish most.
Sunday started out pretty rough and ended quite fabulously. I missed church. It was rough. Robert and the kids went so that was great. I love my husband. He really is the best ever. After church they came home, we had a quick bite and we headed up to Milwaukee to Boerner Botanical Gardens for Robert's boss's wedding. It was a GORGEOUS day- perfect weather once again and the venue was beautiful. I was not feeling well at first (dang you UTI's!) but I got better and we had such a fun time. It was nice getting to know Robert's co-workers and hanging out with them. They all seem so cool and nice. The food was delicious, my kids behaved wonderfully, we danced and boogied the night away, we got lots of candy favors to take home- it was just a blissful evening. It was a good time had by all. Sweet.

And that's how our pretty fab weekend went.

Discussion Questions:
How often does your family eat out?
What's one of your favorite family movies to watch?
What's one of your favorite wedding memories besides your own?

Bailyisms

3.20- "Cute 'chick-a-wa-wa'!" (That's how she says chihuahua.)
3.22- Robert gave her a Priesthood blessing of comfort because she's been really sick. After he's done she says "Ok. Hen'ly Fadder will make me feel better now." Melted my heart!
6.30- "Jesus loves me mom."
She was playing with the dogs and I overheard her saying "Reach for the sky..." Can you tell she like Toy Story?
7.1- "Mom, you're my bestest friend ever!"
"I just love my family so much!"
7.2- We were talking about trying to convince daddy that we need a new baby in the family and Baily kept insisting that she wants 2 babies (I concur!). Then out of the clear blue she says "Mom I just want a new baby brother named Broccoli." What the?!
I told her to go get her shoes and she looks at me and says in a very annoyed manner "Yes. Sir." Excuse me!

Blessings

3.20- Spring is here!, turkey bacon melt for breakfast...
3.23- seeing progress in weight loss, snuggling with my bug, Baily's fever breaking for a little bit, the cutest noises Joaquin was making during his bath, watching DWTS with my girl, FINALLY catching up my blog
4.6- my egg whites tasting good this morning, back to BFL nice and clean, a really good day with the kiddos, Joaquin's giggle, Baily's smile, Motreal steak seasoning, doing service with my kiddos, fulfilling church responsibilities, being happy
6.30- PERFECT weather, no dog poop on the floor, good dinner, happy kids, yummy dinner, getting the crazy monster on the side of the house trimmed back into a bush and my awesome step-mom helping with yard work, the internet, my beautiful flowers and all the greenery in my yard
7.1- Joaquin sleeping in until 8:45 when it was my turn to get up with him (unheard of!), getting my house nice and tidy clean, the nice cool weather in July, Baily loving peas and rice with veggies, fresh fruit, So You Think You Can Dance, dancing and talent, music, Joaquin taking a 2 1/2 hour nap so I could be more productive, delicious new snack I made and will for sure become a family staple, home-made banana nut muffins, B's sweet prayers
7.2- J slept in until 9 and then took a 2 hour nap and B let me nap in that time (amazing!), perfect weather, Robert getting off work early, pretzel/peanut bark, hot dogs, no cooking for dinner, my awesome step-mom, the Internet, STYCD, playing at the park, my awesome kids
7.9- perfect weather, leftover chicken enchiladas, nice stroll around the block, laughing at Joaquin instead of screaming at him for eating a whole tube of my lipstick, music and dancing, mormon messages on youtube, delicious baked penne pasta dinner, cheese!

Come what may and love it!

Thursday July 9, 2009

Tuesday was a very, very bad day for me. I won't go into details but just say, again, it was a very, very bad day. Yesterday was much better after some major prayer, some unloading and venting with family and my hubby along with very appreciated consolation and my husband being off all day on Wednesday to help me out. Having the missionaries over and the Spirit they brought helped out a lot as well. Today was pretty blah but I had some personal breakthroughs that I'm very proud of. I was more patient and yelled a lot less with my kids today which makes my heart happy because they are the best kids and do not deserve an unpatient mother and to be yelled at. So today while I was updating the old blog and Baily was at her friend's house playing I realized that Joaquin was being way too quiet. I noticed this way too late. Out comes my sweet boy covered in my lovely shade of Violet Mist lipstick. Lovely. Before I could get mad I was touched by the Spirit and quick to my recollection came the talk from General Conference last fall by Elder Wirthlin called "Come What May And Love It." It was one of those talks that touched me in a way that I will remember it for the rest of my life. I've included the link below so if you have a chance you should really read it or watch it. Anyway, in this talk, Elder Wirthlin talked about trials and ways to face them and one of those ways is to laugh at situations that might otherwise fluster or anger you. This was definitely one of those moments. I am so grateful for that touching moment by the Holy Ghost because as I started to laugh at my boy he quickly swiped his look of fear off his face (he was scared what I was gonna do because he thought for sure he was in trouble) and got this adoring, unforgettable smile on his face. It was such a sweet moment and I'm glad I was able to enjoy it instead of regret yelling or getting angry. Man I love this kid. And I would trade that smile for a Violet Mist tube of lipstick any day!

http://lds.org/conference/talk/display/0,5232,23-1-947-9,00.html

P.S. I'm going to start including discussion questions at the end of each post to try and generate some good discussion. And yes, that means you have to comment to participate. And yes, this is a way for me to get some comments but really, that's not the only reason. Really. So the question of the day today is:

When was a time you had to laugh about something instead of get mad or frustrated or maybe wish you had laughed about something instead of got mad or frustrated?

4th of July Weekend & Summer Stuff

Wow. It's amazing how I can go from such a high day to such a low day in just one, well... day. After my great July 1st and start to a new 2nd half of the year I got an earache that was horrible on the 2nd. I wasted the day away sleeping and being in pain. Blegh. We did manage to go to the park though for a little bit since Robert got off early which was nice.

On Friday the 3rd I had to work and that was not fun. I really wanted to be with my family but sometimes you just gotta work. The event we did was awful and even though I tried so hard to make the best out of it during the fireworks I broke down. I got really emotional and was really missing my mom. But alas, I made it through. Robert had to work on the 4th and so did I which again, wasn't thrilled about but it's work. I did get to go to the little Pell Lake Town parade with my kids, my dad and brother Eyan so that was cool. Work wasn't as bad as the night before which I was grateful for. But I came home that night thinking this was a pretty crappy 4th. The 4th of July is usually my favorite holiday (which is weird since I'm not a big fan of summer, but I'm weird) and it just didn't seem like the 4th this year. I didn't have to work on Sunday which was good but Robert still had to work which was not good. I was feeling really sick on Sunday morning and extremely tired since I didn't make it home until 2am that morning from work so I missed church again which I hate. I feel like such a lame Sunday School teacher when I miss so much and so irresponsible not to mention how much I miss that much-needed spiritual boost. I did feel better later on after I got some sleep and me and the kids went over to my pappa's house for some delicious bbq which is exactly what I needed to add some 4th of July spirit to my soul. It was sooo good and the kids had fun playing with the hose and water thingy and I enjoyed catching up and chatting with Patty.

I am so lucky to have moved into a home where my step-mom Patty had planted all these awesome flowers that I LOVE when she lived here. She told me that these red lilies would bloom on the 4th of July and I thought that was so cool. So sure enough, right on the 4th of July, these babies bloomed. I call them my Firework Lilies now. I love 'em. The daisies have also bloomed like crazy and I just adore them. They really are such a happy flower!

On Monday the weather was so perfect and since I'm trying to be a more active, fun mom I'm trying to get my kids out for more activities. I guess the park works just fine for that because that's all I had time for and it was pretty awesome. I love the weather and Summer here!

Just my babies enjoying the process and product of some delicious peanut butter chip chocolate cookies. Yum!

I recently found out that the local theatre here shows free kids movies in the Summer at 9am on Tuesdays so I thought that would be something fun to try out. This past Tuesday they showed The Tale of Despereaux. We had to buy our popcorn and drink but it was free for all of us to get in. Sweet! We made it about an hour and then the kids were done. It was pretty early for us (as you can tell from my horrible picture with no make-up- sorry!) but it was nice not having to worry about leaving since we didn't have to pay to get in!
I don't have any pictures but last night we had the missionaries over for a delicious chicken enchilada dinner and it was so nice. They are such nice boys and gave us some good missionary goals that I'm excited about. I've always wanted to be a better missionary and having them over was just the motivation I needed!