April 24th 1977

Ryan is 33!!! Happy Birthday Ry! Much love to you! We had a great day in celebration of him, the sun was shinning and everything seemed to line up exactly how we wanted and needed it to. He was able to start off the day by golfing with his buddies, the Richards boys, at Thanksgiving Point and had a great time full of laughs and great golf. Following that we met his family over at JCW's for some lunch and gabbing. (Once again Mason amazed us with his ability to down hot hot hot wings in no time flat) and then we took the kids to go see, How to train you Dragon. Really such a cute movie!!! We all loved it and had a really good time, Papa, Nana, Ally and Tavin all came with us for some fun. Following that Ryan and I went out with Jeff and McCall to Bambara for dinner and then out to ice cream. (Thanks Steph for watching the kids) Dinner was really fun with fabulous food and lots of laughs. The menu even came out with "Happy Birthday Ryan" printed on it. Really though, the food was amazing and the company was great!!! On Sunday we went to his parents house for his birthday dinner of which he ordered the same thing he always does; pork chops, 7-layer jello, mashed potatoes, rolls, and his mom's oatmeal cake. (his favorite meal). Followed by playing outside until it was dark. Another fun night!
Ryan has always loVEd his birthday and its usually a month long celebration. This year seemed to be kinda hectic so we only got the 1-2 good days in but it was really great and a ton of fun!! I really think he had a fun day and enjoyed turning 33! Thanks to everyone for helping me make it special for him!!






33 things I love about Ryan (in no special order)
1. This love for the Lord
2. His knowledge of Joseph Smith
3. He can really let go and play with his kids
4. His work ethic
5. He is so handy and can make, build, and fix just about anything
6. He is really affectionate... tells me he loves me about 100 times a day
7. We really are each others best friends
8. Never idle
9. A really loyal friend
10. He loves his family- a great big brother
11. He adores and loves his kids... he can make them laugh harder than anyone else
12. He always smells so good
13. He is a great dresser
14. He always has some little quirk he is obsessing about
15. Loves music and movies
16. Always up for some fun
17. Very animated... never been bored when he is around
18. His hands... awesome back rubs
19. His kids have him wrapped around their little fingers
19. Loves all sports (well except for Nascar... hates Nascar)
20. Always has a good story to tell, usually about something crazy that happened to him
21. Passion in all that he does
22. Patience in all projects... he is a perfectionist
23. So forgiving of me and all my faults
24. So kind, he's the guy that will the the homeless all the cash he's got or go buy them a meal
25. Really the best hubby you could ask for
26. Really athletic
27. Takes great care of all his things
28. His eyes, bright and loving
29. He can always make me laugh
30. Loves his country
31. Can clean a car, mow a lawn, and vacuum better than anyone I know
32. Pushes me by example to be a better wife, parent and friend
33. My absolute favorite person out there... Love love love you!!!

( Just noticed I have 2 19's in there... I guess and extra "thing" for good luck)
So many more things I love about him.... I am the lucky one to be hitched to him forever! Thanks for making life so much fun!! Happy Birthday!

Highschool

I had the pleasure last night to re-unite and re-acquaint my self with some wonderful girls from high school! We met for dinner at Paradise Bakery and had a great time catching up and lots of laughing. I haven't seen these girls in years, a couple of them I have had the pleasure of keeping up with them a bit through blogging and facebook (gotta love technology) but haven't seen them face to face in a long time! It was really fun to talk about old boyfriends, what were we thinking moments, our families, and lots of laughs. In fact after the restaurant closed we headed on over to Starbucks in Target to continue the gab. Really, enjoyed myself and am so glad to have caught up with some of my favorite people. Everyone really has turned out to be awesome moms and amazing women. I am a bit of a late comer, they have been getting together for a couple of times now, so I am excited to be added to the group and to go out in the future with them and see even more girls.
I have been blessed my whole life with great friends... really great people who surrounded me and made life fun. Lots of good memories!! Here's to the girls of the Skyline class of '95 (WOW, we are old, and that was probably cheesy to say:) Oh well. Love ya all! Can't wait til next time!

Me, Lisanne, Emily, Sabrena, Bree, Katie, Michelle

SpRuNg

You know when spring has sPruNg when... The BBQ gets fired up 1-2 times a week, yard work is well under way, the sound of flip flops, the morning routine is getting old, all the windows are open letting the fresh air in, lots of tweet tweets singing...

kids out playing until after dinner time,



the tulips are in bloom,



the water fall is up and running,


it feels like 95 when its only 75,



the hammock is getting its full use,



baseball is well underway,
cleaning is hard to do on nice days, the weather is kinda crazy from one day to the next, green grass, buds and flowers on the trees, time to try and get into swimming suit shape, Ryan is working a million hours a week, Sammy loves to be outside, bees are everywhere, pink noses and cheeks from the kids being outside all day, and the kids are actually tired at night because they have been running all day! Love this time of year. It really does feel like a renew, a rebirth, and a new found energy.

Politics

What is wrong with me?... Whenever the subject of politics come up all that I hear in my head is that voice from Charlie Brown when the teacher is talking, "whah whah wha whah whah wha whah". Really, I just have no interest or desire in involving myself with them. If there was one thing Ryan could change about me I am sure it would be this. He really enjoys listening to people like Glen Beck and keeping up with all the things that are going on in Washington. His family is hugely into it, in fact, at Sunday dinners politics are often a subject that come up, and I am left there with not much to say or contribute. Why is that. There really is no spark in me right now to even try. Maybe in a different season in my life I will be more concerned. But as for now, I am leaving that all up to Ryan:). Some reasons why I have a hard time with it is I am just not an alarmist and I am generally pretty naive and trusting in this area with those who run our governments. Which I am sure some would call those faults. I also have a tough time believing that my voice has much weight at all in Washington. I am sure it would count as more on a local level, which is why I have encouraged Ryan to be more involved and worried about things on a state level rather than a Federal. I am also sure that how we were raised plays a part into it, my parents weren't involved either but Ryan's always have been. They have always listened to numerous talk radio shows as well as news stations on TV, they have gone to all kinds of city meetings, anything they could raise there voice up for they did. Maybe I just don't have that seed planted in me to get up and voice my opinion.
Don't get me wrong, I love this country, I whole heartedly believe in all the values in was built on, I do have concern for the parts of our Nation that our dwindling, I support the troops and really try not to take our freedom for granted, I teach my kids to love this country. And even with me being less involved than others it really does not take away any appreciation I have for those who are involved. I am sure they can make a difference on some level. And I am grateful to them. But for some reason I am just not interested right now . Sorry Ry! Maybe some day!

Spring Break

So this week was Mason's sPrINg BrEaK and I am sorry to say... a little uneventful. But we still did a few fun things. The weather at beginning of the week was snowy and cold but by the end of the week was in the 60's and great! Ya never know what you are going to get :) Ryan took Ella and Mason to go see How to train you dragon which they all really liked. They came home that night really excited to tell me all about it so I guess I will have to go see it some time soon. They played with their friends, they played with each other, stayed up late, no morning routine ( my favorite part), Mas played baseball, and we went to the Zoo with some of our friends. Overall it had a good relaxing time and made us a little anxious for sUmMeR!

hOpPy EaSteR

lOvE it when Easter and General Conference meet up on the same weekend! The only thing that could have made it better was if the weather could have not been so crazy and was actually warm and sunny instead of cold and snowy. None the less we had a great time!!
The Easter outfits- Love the bright spring colors... as you can tell, I am really into yellow right now:0









Coloring Easter Eggs- Unfortunately I wasn't on my A game enough to get these ready before Ryan had to go the priesthood so the kids and I colored Easter eggs while he was gone.






Easter Morning- The Easter bunny was really clever this year and left clues as to where to find the eggs... so we went on a mini egg treasure hunt.




Easter Dinner- We went to Nana's and Papa's for an awesome dinner and a fun egg hunt! Thanks everyone!

bLoOm wHerE yOu ArE pLanTeD

We had our RS Birthday dinner and the theme we chose this year was, Bloom where you are Planted. Its a theme that I have heard before but, as a comity, we thought that it was just what our sisters needed right now. I really enjoyed the night and hope that the other sisters in the ward did too. But I am sure, as usual, its always the ones who are preparing that seem to get the most out of something. Still, I hope the themes stuck in their hearts and they were able to analyze their lives and see where they need to BloOm and bring some life to.
For dinner we did salads, YUM, and for dessert we had the sisters bring birthday cakes, YUM again!
For decorations we tried to bring a little of sPrInG indoors with fresh flowers and bright colors.
And for the classes we decided to divide into 3 mini classes that all the sisters would attend each one! They were all wonderful and seemed to touch my heart in different ways-
1) "Weed" out the obstacles- This one was the one that really grabbed ahold of me. We all have trials or "weeds" in our lives. Whether they be poor health, addictions, disability, depression, fertility, lack of spirit, economic issues and the list goes on and on. Some of our weeds are there because of our poor choices and lack of taking care of our lives, some are blown in by the wind and are therefore ours to deal with even though we may not have "asked for this", and others are just stubborn and hard to get rid of. None the less it is important for us not just to cut the weeds down but to yank it out by the roots and rid ourselves of it. How do we do that... Prayer, scripture study, reasonable goals, apply the Atonement, listen to the prophets council etc... Start to focus on the beauty and the end result instead of the weeds that are in front of you and stop making excuses.
2) Look to the "Son" for Strength- We all know as flowers begin to bloom they turn their little heads to the sun and look for warmth and brilliance and nurturing from it. We need to do the same... We need to do the best we can do on that day and then turn our heads toward the "Son" and let our brilliance shine back at HIm. Allowing him to feed us and and help us grow.
3) "Nourish" yourself- There are three ways we need to do this, and in doing this bAlanCe is the key. Physical, Mental and Spiritual. As with flowers they all need nutrients equally otherwise missing one will still cause the flower to die; be it from not enough sun, too much fertilizer, or not enough or too much water. Our lives need to be in balance. Physical- Live the word of wisdom, treat our bodies like the temples they are, exercise, and continue to learn. Spiritual- Create a home where the spirit can enter, watch for extra media things that can enter that will disrupt the spirit you want to be in your home. Study and pray, ask the Lord for help and to teach you. Mental- Rely on those around you... be a good friend and rely on those friends who love you. Ask for help when needed. lAuGh, find ways to release a good belly laugh, especially with your kids... they need to see that you are happy. Find hobbies that bring joy and stimulate your mind.
I am so grateful to have this calling... it came at a time when I was "spiritually asleep" and needed a change and of course the Lord knew where to put me to help me to bLOoM.