Brothers & Sisters

George and Amy

Nathan and Amy

Mom & Gideon

Amy & Mom

Andrea and Jason

Amy

Andrea and Amy

Matt, Rebekah, and Nya

George and Amy

Staci, Jethro, Cali, and Katya

Gideon and Amy

It was so nice to have all of my brothers and siters there. It was also great to see my sister in law Amy, and my brother in law's Matt and Jason. I am so excited to have Becky in our family.

Gideon & Becky's Wedding

I flew up to Sacramento for Gideon's wedding. I left early Friday morning. The coolest thing was that Nathan and I booked the same flight without even knowing it. So we got to be on the same flight. His seat was directly behind mine. Even if we sat next to each other it would not have mattered much because I slept the entire flight. I was so tired. (more about that later) Anyway, Gideon got married in the Sacramento Temple.

Long Time No Post

Oh My Gosh, I can't believe it has been since December since I have posted anything. I have had so many people mention to me that they miss my posts. I have actually really missed blogging. I love to read blogs, and read my favorites often. I am ready to re-enter the blogging world with my own blog. So why haven't I been blogging? Well the main reason why I haven't posted anything is because I lost the cord to my camera that connects to my computer to upload photo's. So, I think that blogging without photo's is boring, therefore I just haven't done it. I am at George's house this weekend and I can just put my memory card in his computer and upload pictures. So I am going to do some posts. I just need to get online and find a new cord for my camera. So there is my lame excuse for not blogging.

Only 19 More Pounds To Go!

I only have 19 more pounds to go until I meet my weight loss goal. I started this diet/exercise program on 12/6/06 and really wanted to lose 100 pounds in one year. I have lost 81 pounds so far and I am very proud of myself. I am going to keep going strong until I make my goal. It is always the last little bit that is so hard to shed.

25 Things I Am Thankful For

1. My family: Mom, Dad, Ana, Andrea, Jason, Eli, Jonah, Emma, Anna, Lily, Jack, Rebekah, Matt, Nya, George, Amy Michelle, Sarah, Kate, Juliette, Jethro, Staci, Katya, Cali (coming Dec 1st), Gideon, and Nathan.
2. My Religion
3. The Atonement
4. My Faith
5. Living in Utah, even though I am sure most of my posts will complain about driving in the snow!
6. My Friends
7. My Jobs
8. Living with Rebekah
9. The beauty of this earth and the mountains that surround me.
10. Dr. Hendricks - helping me lose 75 pounds (still have 25 more to go)
11. All the medical professionals that have helped me over the past month.
12. The smiles on my nieces and nephews faces when they see me.
13. That I taught Katya to point to her head. She will even use both hands and smile and laugh when we all say "YEAH" She will even put her hands on her head whenever you say "where is your..." because that is what she relates the word "where" with. She will also put her hands on her head whenever she sees me because she knows she will get praise from her "auntie".
14. I am thankful for Daisy (Bekah's black lab) even though she ran in front of me when I was carrying a bunch of stuff down the stairs and made me fall down the last three stairs. Thank goodness for carpeting, a good cry, and that I didn't break any bones. Daisy is a great hiking companion and has been on a ton of hikes with me.
15. I am thankful for strong bones. I am 32 years old and have never had a broken bone. And I even hate milk and refuse to drink it. Therefore, I am also thankful for other sources of calcium- I love cheese and can't live without it.
16. I am thankful for blogging. It has been a great way for all of our family to keep in touch and updated about what is going on and I love all the pictures. Thanks Andrea for getting us all on board in the blogging world.
17. I am thankful for all my extended family - don't think I forgot about you!! Aunts, Uncles, Cousins, Grandparent's. I love you all!
18. I am thankful I made it home in one piece my first night driving in the snow. (here come the snow complaints) I am thankful I made it safely though.
19. I am thankful for medical insurance - random I know, but two weeks in the hospital can really make you think about a lot of things, and a minute didn't go by that I was thinking about how glad I was I had insurance.
20. I am thankful I finally got my apartment rented out and sold some of my things. It will be a bummer when I am able to be on my own again and have to buy a lot of things, but I had to downsize major!
21. I am thankful for Nya and the joy she brings into my life each day I see her. I'm not playing favorites with Nya and Katya, they are just who I am around most often now. Kind of like how I used to always post about Sarah and Kate when I lived with them. Anyway, just a cute Nya story. So when I fell down the stairs I thought for sure Nya would be concerned about me, ,but she wasn't. She was more concerned about the fact that I had locked Daisy in her crate. All morning long I was carrying things down the stairs to put in my room. Daisy kept dancing around my feet and I knew something was going to happen. Of course before long Daisy tripped me and down I went. She just gets so excited when I am around because she thinks I am going to take her hiking. Well, I had Daisy go in her crate for safety reasons. First of all I didn't want to get tripped again, and second I didn't want Daisy to get hurt by me stepping or falling on her. It is hard to see when you are carrying boxes. Anyway, Nya was so upset with me that I put Daisy in the crate. She said "Auntie, let Daisy out of her crate right now", then she continued to yell at me in her little two year old voice "Daisy is my dog and I love her and she is not in trouble! I want you to move back to your apartment" I tried not to laugh because it was so funny, but I explained to Nya the reason why I put Daisy in the crate. She didn't care what my reasoning was, she just wanted me to let Daisy out. Then I showed Nya my knee and the rug burn I had on it, and it didn't even phase Nya. She wanted her dog FREE!!!
22. I am thankful for this day and age that I live in. Yes, I love my cell phone and the Internet, and I don't know how we ever survived without them.
23. I am thankful each night I make it to midnight at work. It is hard working that late sometimes when the phone calls slow down and you are tired.
24. I am thankful for peanut M&M's. Not on my diet of course, but the best choice if I am going to choose a type of candy and sometimes my sweat tooth gets the best of me.
25. I am thankful for the opportunity I had to reflect of these things I am thankful for. It really brings a spirit of gratitude at a very difficult time in my life. I realize there are many other "small" day to day things I am thankful for. Sometimes we just need to take a break from our lives and take the time to stop, breathe, and thank our Heavenly Father for all he has given to us.

Leaves Change Color in the Fall...

This year, so does my hair color. I have been blond for such a long time and decided it was time to go back to my natural color. I didn't want to spend the money to have a professional hairstylist do it, and Staci has been coloring her own hair for years. So I asked her to do mine. We went and picked out a color that we thought was closest to my original color. I think we did pretty good. I love it and think she did a great job. I know we will probably have to do it a few more times just as my hair grows out to get rid of all the blond.

I'm Still Around....

I realized that it has been just over two months since my last blog post. So I am still around. I have had a lot going on the past two months including a two week stay in the hospital (the reason of which I would like to keep private). I gained 12 pounds while in the hospital. It is so hard to lose weight and yet so easy to put it back on. Anyway, I hope to do better about my blogging and my diet so I can reach my goal of losing 100 pounds. I started my diet on 12/6/06 so my goal is to reach the 100 pound mark by 12/6/07. I have about 30 more pounds to go now, so wish me luck!!!!

It snowed here yesterday and I had my first experience driving in the snow. I hated every minute of it. Everyone told me to just go slow, which I did. I drove about 35-40 m.p.h. on the freeway with my hazard lights flashing and everyone blazing past me. Even got a few people honking, but oh well I wanted to make it home alive and not wreck my car or anyone else's for that matter. It was after midnight (that is when I get off work) and I was surprised at how much traffic there was. Probably because I am usually the one going 70 m.p.h. and I usually stick with the same few cars. So, since people were actually passing me I think I was more aware. Anyway, I made it home safe and sound and was so thankful I made it home safe. The entire time I was driving I wondered "Now, why did I decide to move to Utah?" Anyway, I know I will do better once I get used to it.