The Great Pumpkin

Halloween is one of my favorite holidays just because it is fun and creative. I love it. So, this year I really wanted to do some fun stuff for Halloween. But, as always time has gotten away from me and now we are on the home stretch...well, I actually got my act together and we went to The Great Pumpkin Patch in Hayden, Alabama. It was fun. We took a hay ride out to the pumpkin patch and we got 2 pumpkins. Juliana got to pick her own and of course she picked a little one and then Mike picked a bigger one that was almost the perfect pumpkin (I say almost because I like one's with a long stem and this one doesn't and because I really wanted a white one but alas we ended up with 2 orange pumpkins). It really was a lot of fun and something that I hope we take time for each year. The next night we decorated our pumpkins and had a lot of fun doing it. We had seen these little sets of parts (they almost looked like Mr. Potato Head parts) that would make your pumpkin into different animals. So we got that for Juliana and then we got stuff to carve the other one. It was a really good family activity and I think that they turned out really cute.

Juliana is so excited about her little pumpkin!!!!

I thought they were so cute...you can see that both of them are proud of there pumpkins.

I just love this little girl!!!! Isn't she cute....

It was so hard to get her to pose for this picture. She really didn't like the sun in her eyes. But I think she looks so sweet!!!

Once again Juliana does not like the sun in her eyes and she was protesting this picture!!!!

She did a lot better with her Daddy!!! I think he held her arms down a little. LOL. I couldn't get away with that but she loves her Daddy so much!

As sad as it is, this is the best we got out of the family pictures!!!! She has a lot of fight in her. That darn sun was very bright and I had sunglasses on.

Juliana's Piggy pumpkin...it even had a curry tail. I had to talk her out of taking it with us every where we went.

She wanted a cat pumpkin so I just used a stencil out of the carving book we got. I think it turned out pretty cute!!!!

I am so excited!!!!!

Bitter Sweet...

Well, today has been very bitter sweet for me. This morning my Grandmother passed away. She was my only remaining grandparent and although it really was her time to go, it was still sad. But, I am very happy that she is with my Grandpa now and that she isn't in any pain. She was able to pass quietly and peacefully in her sleep. I wish that I could have been closer with her but I really did love her and I am glad that she is in peace.

Here she and my grandfathers are in their wedding picture.
And here they are in a picture of their 60th wedding anniversary taken 10 years ago.

Well, maybe this will help to give this day (9/11) a new meaning to me.

I love you Grandma.

THE BIG 29!!!!!!

So today is my 29th birthday!!!!! Happy Birthday to me!!!! I am here in Alabama and I am feeling a little home sick but, I am determined to have a good birthday. I woke up this morning early for some reason and I started my day by watching "Dr. Horribles Sing Along Blog" just to make me laugh and to start off my day cheerful. And I got myself Captain Crunch with Crunch Berries for breakfast (I am such a child it is sad) and I told Mike that I want desert crepes for dinner (what is better than crepes filled with Nutella, strawberries and whipped cream????) He said that he would take care of the cake. Juliana got me an Itunes gift card (per my request and Mike got me a GPS so that I am not afraid to leave the house...I really have the worst possible sense of directions and every time we leave the house Mike asks if I know where we are or if I could get home and the answer is always NO!!!! So this should help to get me out and about more. Anyway, Mike started school on Monday so, when he gets home I hope we can have a relaxing rest of the weekend and that we can take advantage of all the birthday club offers I sign us up for Red Robin, Cold Stone, Arbys, and Baskin Robins all give you free stuff for your birthday. And because Mike and my birthdays are only one week apart...yes Mikes birthday is next Friday, it makes it really fun because we can go out for free. Good stuff....so we can go to Red Robin and each get a free Burger and then go to Cold Stone and each get a free signature creation. I am very excited!!!!!

So we arrived here last Wednesday (so we have been here for about a week and a half) and then we just got Internet a few days ago. It has been a long week and a half. It feels like a lot more. But, we got her safe and sound. And hopefully within the next 2 weeks I can have everything unpacked and we can have a couch. Right now we are living without a couch...we are using camping chairs. LOL. But, I want to get a good deal and something that I actually like. I haven't ever had a new couch before. In the past they have all been given to us. So, I am very excited to get one that is NEW!!!!! We did however get a washer and dryer and a microwave. Wow!!!! It is great. Our apartment feels huge to me....of course that might have something to do with the fact that our last apartment couldn't have been more than 700 sq. ft. and this one is somewhere between 1000-1100 sq. ft. and is less than half the price we were paying before. I like our apartment a lot (except for the kitchen which has hardly any storage...but it does have a dishwasher which is so wonderful I can't even put my joy about that into words). However, moving to the south bring a whole new problem....La Cucaracha or in other words the cockroach!!!!! Oh my goodness they are so gross and I don't know how you can ever get use to them. Seriously the scare me to death...I actually cried when I saw one of them. Really I am that scared. But, I am really working on it. In my mind I tell myself (so if I am wrong please let me stay diluted because I need some kind of hope to an end) that soon they will be out of my house and I will only see them once and a while if the door gets left open for to long.

Well, I really hope that I can get back in the swing of things soon. And be posting more regularly too.

We are still alive....

Wow....I can't believe how long it has been since I last blogged. Sorry about that. And I am sorry to say that it won't be getting any better this month. We are about to move!!!!!!

My week is crazy. My Dad will fly in tomorrow morning and Mike is taking Wednesday and Thursday off. Wednesday we will finish up our packing (we have pretty much everything but our kitchen and our everyday items packed and sitting in our storage unit. Then Thursday we will pack the truck. Friday I will clean the apartment from top to bottom and then Saturday the landlord will to the walk through and then my Dad and Mike will be off. They should get to Birmingham on the 12th and Juliana and I will be flying in on the 13th. And my Dad will fly out on the 14th. And Mike will start school on the 19th. It has been crazy. And it just seem that this week and next will be the peak of our craziness. Anyway, I feel bad that I haven't been keeping thinks more up to date here but, really I have been so busy.

So, I am proud and a little embarrassed (ok actually a lot embarrassed) to say as of last Monday July 28th was it...I finished up my associates degree. I have been working so hard to get it all done and I did it. I have been working on it for about 11 years...that is so pathetic but it is a very big accomplishment for me and I am going to walk at the Weber State graduation in December. I just feel like I need to. So between getting things ready to move and school I haven't been able to be around like I wanted but, I hope that September I will start to find my new grove and I will be on here and my FHE board a lot more. (Sorry girls that I haven't gotten my FHE board going yet...I promise it will be one of the first things I work on.)

I hope all of you are having a great summer...next time I post I will be living in Alabama...Wow!!!!! This is just to strange.

Old Red Barn Company Quilt Giveaway!!!!

OK, I can't even tell you just how long I have been waiting for this. Old Red Barn Company is giving away the most beautiful quilt ever and I want it. I have been waiting for this give away and it is now here and I just have to win. And even thought I don't want anyone else to win, I am posting about it here.



All of you have to go check it out and see all of the wonderful products that she sells. And on the off chance that you see this quilt and say oh, that looks like Natalie I have to win it for her then by all means enter the contest and when you win send it to me!!!! Just Kidding (kind of). Good luck to all of you but, if you do win it and you heard about it from me, you owe me so big!!!!

Happy Birthday Nicole!!!!

Well, today is my beautiful sister Nicole's 30th birthday!!!!! And I wanted to let everyone know just what a great sister she is. So, here is a list of 30 things that I love about her.

1. She is 13 months and 13 days older than me.
2. She is a great Mom.
3. She is always the first person I want to call when something happens big or small.
4. She is one of my biggest supporters.
5. She talks me down from stupidity.
6. She is a great listener.
7. She is my best friend.
8. She just gets me.
9. We have inside jokes that no one else could ever possible get.
10. She is the only other person I know that will burst into song when answering questions.
11. She introduced me to Twilight.
12. I can tell her things that I would never admit to anyone else.
13. She is very creative.
14. She is one of the most talented people I know.
15. She has a beautiful singing voice.
16. If she leaves herself a message on her own phone, when she listens to the message later she thinks it is from me.
17. She is beautiful.
18. She is very kind and would just die inside if she ever thought that she hurt your feelings (even if you deserved it.)
19. I know that she will always tell me the truth if I ask her to.
20. She is smart.
21. On my last birthday when I was really homesick and down she sent me a bouquet of chocolate dipped strawberries to cheer me up.
22. She has an amazing heart and is very generous with her time, talents, and self.
23. She will talk on the phone with me for hours and help me get my house work done over the phone.
24. She has a lot of self confidence and has no fear in starting new projects and trying new things.
25. We never run out of things to talk to.
26. Even when I talk to her every day I miss her like crazy.
27. When she tells me stories I always know how she will have reacted to a situation because I would have reacted in the exact same way.
28. Neither of us can keep a surprise very well (we use to tell each other what we were getting for Christmas because we just couldn't keep it to ourselves).
29. She let me beat her number of my space friends.
30. She really is one of the best people I know and I love her very much!!!!!!

Nicole, if you are reading this I love you...and I really hope that you are having a wonderful birthday.

And for all of you that aren't Nicole that are reading this, please do me a favor and pop over to her blog really quick and wish her a happy birthday...even if you haven't met her.