Thanks for the memories girl...

Yesterday Herb took our sweet dog Sadee into the vet because she has really not been doing well for quite a while. I am so glad that I am in Oceanside and did not have to do that whole watching him take her away thing, I am so not good at those kinds of things. Anyway I am glad for her to not have to suffer any more. So today I am going to just remember all the great times we have had with her in the past 15 years +. That's a long time to have the same dog. It was a great ride and she was a really great dog, with lot's of energy and spunk. So thanks for the memories sadee girl, you will be missed for sure.

The Big Day...

Congratulations Jordan on your big day. I can hardly believe that it is really here. We are so excited for you. You are a great kid and your family loves you so much. So good job.

Last night at Seminary Graduation Jordan had to give a talk. He did a wonderful job and we were so proud of him. He has had a very busy week so far. Tuesday night he had his final interview to become an Elder. Wednesday night was Seminary graduation and tonight is High School graduation. Wow!!! what a week!!!

It just seems like yesterday that Christopher was graduating, and now as of tonight I am so finished with Mesa Public Schools. That seems crazy, but great.
David is graduation tonight too. These two kids have done almost everything together for most of their lives. They are born 3 weeks apart and have been really great friends ever since. So congratulations to David as well. We are so proud of you too.

I just thought that I would add this hillarious picture of when Stephanie straightened Jordan's big fro. Now he is cutting his hair shorter and so we won't get to have that experience as often. I just love this picture. He is always such a good sport to let her do that to him. Fun Kid!!!

Just want to say that I love you Jordan, and I am so proud of all that you have accomplished. I know that no matter what you do in life you will do it well. Enjoy the journey dude!!! It is a great one for sure. Can't wait for the beach!!!

We Love you beyond...

Happy Birthday Sweet Girl!!!

Happy Birthday Stephanie from the whole gang!!! You are the best.
This is Stephanie the very first time we ever met her. She brought such a ray of sunshine into our family. I decided right then and there that I wanted to keep her (and in case you did not know I usually get what I want!!!) She was such a breath of fresh air and beautiful to boot. How on earth could Cody not fall madly in love with this one. Thanks heavens he did, cuz we have all fallen madly in love ourselves.

She is always such a good sport and just does whatever she is asked, like climbing a tree and having this strange lady take your picture.

I am amazed daily at her energy and zeal for life. I love her smile and her hugs, and I love that she loves us right back.

And always, always breaking things!!! That's my favorite part, cuz she tries so hard not to and she just is always the lucky one. I am glad she came into our family because I use to be the one who always was breaking things. So thanks Stephanie for that.

I just want to take a few lines now and tell you how wonderfully amazing she really is.

When I first met Stephanie her smile was contagious. She was so happy and bubbly, I loved her that very second. It was in a kind of hard time for Cody when he was not active in the church and I thought well here we go, she is going to run. When we began talking on the beach (Stephanie and I) she asked a few questions, like when will Cody go on his mission? I answered with "He does not want to go" thinking she would run, but she did'nt. She said "Oh yeah, he talked about that at EFY." Then she asked what his calling church was and I thought for sure this would be the killer. I said "right now Cody does not go to church" and her comment back ment the world to me. (I am not sure that she even remembers) Without hesitation she said.... "Well I guess we have a lot of work ahead of us to support him." I knew that my prayers for Cody had been answered and that Heavenly Father loved Cody enough to send him Stephanie. She was always good to him, always encouraging and sure enough the turn around happened and here they are now, years later, married in the San Diego Temple, and doing great in the church. How amazing that has been for me as a m0ther to witness. I want to thank her for always loving Cody, for loving our family and for moving so far away from home to make her life here. She has sacrificeD a ton and she has touched so many lives here. She has the ability to make wonderful friends wherever she goes. People always miss her when she leaves. She is tender and sweet and wonderful with little ones, all of them, no matter whose little ones they are. She is grounded in the gospel and works really hard in her callings. That is impressive. She loves to be in the Temple again serving others. She truly is Christlike and we are sooooooo soooooooo blessed to have her in our family. When you are the mom and you get your first little in-law child you worry how it will go . I could not be more pleased with our addition to this family of Stephanie. So thank you Stephanie for your example of happiness, even in tough times. For laughing with me, and crying with me, and countless hours of trying to make my eyebrows look wonderful! For the sunshine you radiate and for all of the hugs and kisses along the way. For sticking it out with this crazy family and for being willing to let Cody be who he is. For being willing to learn new things and improve on your talents. For making us laugh and for taking our relentless teasing in stride. Thank you for loving us the way we love you and for helping in every way that you can to make this family better. We love you beyond love and cannot even begin to wonder what our family would be without you.

You are going to be an amazing mother and I can't wait to meet that beautiful little girl you are carrying. She will grow up to be as wonderful as her mother.

I hope your day is as amazing as you are.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SWEET GIRL!!!

Sometimes life gives you Lemons

Well I wish that I had better news, but I don't. We lost tonight in our fight for the State Championship. It was not the outcome that we had hoped for but aside of all of that I would like to pay tribute to my children. They are beyond amazing. I am so proud of all of them. Chris and Rachel and Anna are all enjoying this week at the beach together, making wonderful memories. Jacque and Curt so far away in Logan working hard to get through life and school, and even though neither one of them could be at the game tonight I am grateful for their support on Cody and Jordan's behalf. And our Stephanie, always on the sidelines cheering for the coach and for Jordan. Thanks heavens for texting!!! Never thought I would say that, but I am so thankful for it tonight. I could let my kids know immediately how we were doing. So the first game was so exciting and we came off with a big win!!! Second game was the same, we came out with the big win!!! 2 out of the 3 we needed for success tonight, but it was not to be. We lost the 3rd, 4th, and 5th game, and man I have to say, that was not fun at all to say the least. Jordan wanted this so bad. Cody wanted it bad as well and at the end of the night I was the mom with 2 broken hearts in 2 wonderful boys and I can't fix them. That is the joy of life, we get to have our ups and our downs and then we get to pick up the pieces and be grateful for the memories from those ups and downs. When I look back on the last 4 years of Jordan's time on the team, with Cody as his coach, it is all good. Lots of fun, and good playing, with a whole bunch of growing experiences. Their bond is amazing and for that I am grateful. Even though the other 2 children were no where near that gym tonight, I felt them hurting for their brother's as well. That part I love about family. They stick together through all of it. I really wanted this for these kids, but you know what, one day they will look back and I hope, I really hope that they can see the good that took place. It has been about 10 years that our family has been playing volleyball for Red Mountain High School. We have had our share of victories and defeats, so kuddo's to the Red Mountain Volleyball family. It has been a wonderful decade, it's hard to have it end, but that's okay. We will go away from this season of our lives and have tons of good laughs, sore throats from yelling for the team, wet kleenex from crying over losses and a whole heck of a lot of proud, proud moments of our kids on that court. So thanks Christopher for starting this family off in volleyball. Thanks Cody for years of exciting plays. Thanks Jacque for keeping up with the boys. And thanks Jordan boy, for making everyone of all the siblings before you extra proud to call you brother. Have I mentioned that I love my kids, they are beyond amazing...

It's brag time!!!

This kid is amazing!!!! It's so sad to me that at the end of this week is the end of a 10 year stretch of watching my kids play volleyball. What will I do with all of my time!!! Red Mountain ended regular season with 16 wins and 1 loss. It has been an incredible ride so far. Last night was the 1st round of State Championship games. We are ranked 3rd in the State and we played Marana Mountain View from Tucson. It was exciting for sure. We won and that's is of course the best part. It is best out of 5 games and it did take us 4 games to do it, but non the less it got done!!! On Wednesday we take on the Gilbert team at Red Mountain at 6:30 p.m. Of course the farther you go in the play-offs the harder it is to win, but I know that if we play like we can we can do it. I am so proud of Jordan, he really does lead this team and rallies them together so well. I love to watch his intense expressions when he kills that ball, and I love to watch his brother Cody (who is the coach with coach Pebbles). He is so proud as well of his little brother. He has taught him so much and I know that it is killing Cody to not be out there on the court. His senior year they took 2nd in the State Finals, so this is such a great opportunity to be in the finals again. I know that Jordan really wants to win this not only for his team, but for his brother. I am telling you, if you want to see a great match you should come and watch on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. It is so awesome to see. I can't wait. Now for a little bragging which Jordan will not be happy with, but heck who's blog is this anyway!!! Red Mountain took the region championship for the 2nd year in a row and Jordan and his really good friend Ben Dockter took Co-MVP's of the region. Then the next evening Jordan was awarded with the Most Outstanding Athlete at Red Mountain and Ben was awarded the Most Outstanding All Around Athlete at Red Mountain. I am so proud of both of them. They have been playing this game together and with a few others for 4 straight years on this varsity team. We loose 8 seniors this year, which is so many, but I know that the coaching will continue to be great and that next years team will build on the past and step up to the plate. Our family loves volleyball and have so enjoyed this journey with our kids.

By the way, Nana is doing great, they even considered taking her off of hospice, but we are hoping that they keep her on, the help is amazing and the support of hospice is priceless, but she goes to all the games with us and is really doing well. Thanks for all of your prayers, and I will be a better blogger. Keep watching for the State Championship update!!!