Joshua, Chelsea, Joshua, Avalinea & Olivia

Washer and Dryer Stand Project

2012-01-22T07:57:00.000-08:00

For the past two weeks I have been working on making a stand for our front load washer and dryer. It is kind of a pain to bend down to load and unload them. But Chelsea and I didn't want to pay $200 each for the stands the the manufacturer has for sale. So for the past few years we have just been dealing with it.

Then Chelsea saw this project on www.pintrest.com one day and said that we needed to do it. :) So for $60 and some paint that we already had I made this stand. I think it turned out great considering I only had pictures to go off of.

This is the top/bottom of the Stand.

This is the stand put together.

Here is the stand with 1 coat of primer 2 coats of paint and trim pieces added. Not bad looking huh? Chelsea has 3 laundry baskets to put in the space underneath which will hold detergent and other various cleaning materials for the laundry and the house.

Theatrical Children

2011-11-11T21:29:00.001-08:00

For the past few months the kids have been acting out this scene from the movie Despicable Me. They have not rehearsed it in any way, they just one day started to do this between them while at play. I wanted to make sure that I got this on tape before they stopped doing it.

This is the scene where the 3 orphan girls come home from selling cookies all day and we first meet Miss Hattie the orphanage director. Enjoy

Hospital Newborn Photos

2011-09-27T20:08:00.000-07:00

Baby Tanning Bed.

2011-09-23T08:56:00.000-07:00

Olivia has had a problem with jaundice since we brought her home. Yesterday we took her to the Doctor's office because she was looking a bit orange and the doctor said that she needed to be on a bili light for the next 24 hours. That means that we can't hold her unless she is feeding. And even then we have what is called a blanket bili light that needs to be on her back. At first she didn't seem to mind but this morning she has decided that she doesn't like it at all. Probably because it is beginning to work.

Any way It looks like she is on a tanning bed. We thought that we would share.

Olivia Ann Barnett

2011-09-20T08:12:00.000-07:00

Monday September 19, 2011 4:33 PM we were blessed with a precious little angel. Her name is Olivia Ann Barnett. Chelsea was induced at 1:50 PM by breaking her water, no pitocin was used. After about 20 minutes contractions started. After about 2 hours Chelsea began pushing at 4:30 PM. Chelsea was awesome when it came time to push and it only took 3 rounds of pushing to get Olivia into this world.

Olivia wasn't breathing quite like the nurses and Doctors would have liked her to so they took her up to the NICU to put her on a CPAP machine to help her get going a little better. They also put a feeding tube in to get her a little nourishment and an I.V. in her hand to get some glucose into her system as her blood sugar was a little low. After about an hour on the machine the took her off and she did great on her own. So we took her down to the nursery to get bathed and dressed.

Currently her and Chelsea are doing well and resting. Olivia's blood sugar is a little low but nothing that a good feeding or two won't help with. We are so glad that she is here with us finally and that Chelsea is now going to return to normal after 9 months of not being able to eat normally, having migraines, and having her heart race at 200 beats per minute for no reason whatsoever.

Halloween costume shopping

2011-09-17T13:51:00.000-07:00

What do you think of these ideas for Avalinea?

Alien Princess Arial.

Floor Tile in Basement Bathroom

2011-08-05T10:56:00.000-07:00

We got the floor tile in the basement bathroom on Wednesday night. It was really easy to do. The longest part was cutting the tile with my dinky cheepo tile saw.

Corner by the door, detail of border.

Whole Floor view, kinda.

Corner next to shower detail of border.

Tiled the Shower in the Basement

2011-07-31T08:55:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we tackled the job of tiling the showing in the basement bathroom. This was an adventure!

First I would like to thank Mark and Ron for coming over to help with this project. I it always nice to have help.

The shower to begin with was just framing, so we put up some tar paper for water proofing and then the cement backer board. Unfortunately when putting up the first piece of backer board I screwed the board into the hot water line. But not only did I screw it into the hot water line but the screw went into the elbow piece that connects the line to the mixer! We had a sideways old faithful that shot water across the bathroom, across the hall and if the hall wall wasn't there it would have shot I'm sure all the way to the back of the basement! Chelsea went to Home Depot to get some replacement parts since we didn't have any on hand. Meanwhile Mark and I finished cutting the other pieces of cement backer board for the rest of the shower surround. Boy cutting that board sure was a dusty job, worse than drywall.

Once Chelsea got back we fixed the leak and put up the cement board without any further incident. By this time Ron had arrived and helped to water proof the seams of the surround which was a big help since I don't do so well with those kinds of detail oriented things. We then took a break for lunch.

After lunch we were all ready to go to cut some tile and start putting it up but the tile saw that I purchased months ago didn't come with a blade! OIE! So Chelsea and I took the kids to the store to get a saw blade. But Ron and Mark had to get home so that was ok.

Once home with the saw blade we started cutting the tile and putting it up on the wall. Don't worry Chelsea only handed me one piece at a time, perfectly safe for her to do at this stage of pregnancy. It took us about 4 hours to tile the whole 32" by 32" shower from floor to ceiling. We barely had enough thin-set to finish the job, but we think it turned out great!

Decorative Tile Detail

Full Shower

Ceiling Tile Detail

We have Carpet in our basement!

2011-07-17T08:22:00.000-07:00

We now have carpet in our basement! It took all day to be installed but it is done! And it looks, and feels great. We are so excited to be almost done with this project. We just have the bathroom to finish out and then we will be totally done. Yea!

Finishing the Basement

2011-07-16T10:06:00.001-07:00

This year chelsea and I decided to finish our basement to create more livable space and hopefully increase the value of our home. We bagan in April, and with the help of my family, (Dad, Mom, Jacob, Kelly) we were able to go from a bare basement to having all the framing and electrical and plumbing done all in one week! We were grateful for their help and sacrifice of a weeks vacation to do this with us. We put in some grueling hours that week, working from 7 in the morning to 11 at night some days. But the amount of work that was accomplished was tremendous.

The next weekend my dad came back up to help start the drywall, which again was much appreciated. And with the help of my brother Ron we got a lot of drywall installed.

Over then next few months Chelsea and I worked on the basement little by little doing work after our full time jobs in the evening. Today we are having carpet installed! We are almost done. The only major project left is to finish the bathroom out.

Enjoy the Pics.

Closet Framed in the Living Room

Sofit Framed around ductwork in front of bedroom.

Drywall installed in the ceiling of the hallway.

Hall way painted and finished with base board and trim around bathroom door

Bedroom Painted and trimmed with baseboard.

Joshua's 6th Birthday

2011-06-19T15:36:00.000-07:00

For Joshua's 6th birthday we went to see Thomas the Tank Engine. He comes to Heber, Utah every Memorial Day. Joshua was really excited about this and so was his sister Avalinea. We went on a 25 minute train ride with Thomas the engine and also got to see Sir Toppam Hatt. Joshua Engoyed himself very much and was very happy to have seen his favorite train.

As if I could ever forget.....

2011-04-11T18:08:00.001-07:00

I dont think I will ever forget the horrors of the first 15 weeks of this pregnancy, but for purposes of journaling and posterity I have decided to put it down on paper (or rather this blog).

January 24th- very faint positive on home pregnancy test. So faint in fact one could think that it it was just an error, but I felt differently. So I waited a day and retested.

January 25th- Another positive home pregnancy test- still faint but obviously darker than the first. At this point I was still a day or two away from my expected cycle so this confirmation was very early, but I was already feeling nauseous at night. Hence the reason for testing.

The next two weeks went on as normal. I would have periods of the day where I was very green and steered clear of all smells and foods. But I also had periods of the day where I could eat normally and felt just fine.

February 2nd- I went to the dr. to confirm pregnancy and get a prescription for some anti nausea meds just in case Hyperemesis were to rear its ugly head.

The storm....

February 8th- My 27th birthday I had to leave for 4 days of meetings for work at a hotel. I was nervous about dealing with morning sickness while in meetings for 12 hour days and eating hotel food but I was optimistic about the way things were going. At this point I was a little over 5 weeks pregnant.

February 10th- I spent the morning in the hotel bed and missed about 2 hours of meetings. I was very green to say the least and had spent the night in the hotel bathroom. Got a little better by lunch, freshened up and went down to attend the rest of the days meetings.

February 11th- Green ALLLL day long. Threw up every meal I hate, even just fruit and water. Frequent hot flashes throughout the day. Attended a mixer that night, for about 20 minutes then went back to my room and threw up some more. Packed my bags and got ready to go home. Just could take any more. And all the different smells in the hotel were making things worse. Particularly, and very strangely, every time I walked from the elevator to my room, I could barely make it to my room before dry heaving and loosing my cookies. Something about the smell of the hallway triggered me every time. And this was no dump of a hotel either, the Little America is a very posh place and very clean.

February 18th- Between 2/10 and 2/18 hyperemesis was full blown. I was waking up in the middle of the night to throw up. throwing up all day, all night, not able to drink even water. Zofran medication was making no difference at all. Saw my OB who was very concerned about my dehydration levels and rapid weight loss. I had lost 5 lbs since 2/10. She ordered IV therapy 4 times a week where I would receive 8 mg IV Zofran, 1 liter of vitamins, and 1 liter of lactated ringers. I went to the hospital every other day to have this administered (what a nightmare). It did nothing. I would throw up in the car on the way to the hospital, in the hospital flowers while walking in, in the room while they were administering the IVs, and in the car again on the way home, and so on. Having the fluids would help a little with dehydration but nothing else.

3/1- another Dr. appointment. Another 6 lbs lost since last appointment. Switch from IV therapy to home health care with daily IVs. This is where the real torture would begin. Ideally a peripheral IV can last 7 days, but with my veins that was out of the question. Everytime they would come to poke me it would take 3-4 stabs before starting an IV and then many times the vein would blow, collapse, or clot. It got to where I was having to have a new IV started every single day. Just imagine that for a moment. I already felt like I was litteraly dying from starvation, malnutrition, and just sheer emotional hell and now I got to look forward to being a pincushion daily. Not to mention the fact that the IVs themselves hurt like hell. I would cry and night wondering how long this was going to go on. I would soon have an answer. Two weeks into home health they could no longer find veins to start an IV, my arms and hands were shot. The last day of home health the nurse said all she could find was a vein in the palm of my hand. I had reached my emotional breaking point. I was not going for an IV in the palm of my hand. I called my dr. who agreed that we needed to stop. It was time for the next step. An NJ tube. Also my hair was continuing to fall out in large chunks.

3/18- I can't remember the exact weight loss increments between 3/1 and 3/18 but by 3/18 the total was 20 pounds. On this date, after seeing the OB, I was sent to the hospital for one my IV rehydration and placement of the NJ tube. She was adamant about the rehydration- I was balling. Where were they going to stick me now? She said they might have to try my feet. Once I got settled in at the hospital, they called in a Anthesthisiologist to place my IV. Angels, really. The nurse was smart enough to recognize that I couldn't take more than one try so she called in an expert. He was able to place it in one try. They took some blood to measure various levels and started some fluids. Just using gravity, I absorbed a liter of fluid in less than 30 minutes. My blood work came back showing all kinds of trouble so I have to have another liter infused with some potassium for my heart and some other things that I can't remember. Once we had done that it was off to radiology for the tube placement.

Journey of the 4 NJ tubes...

Tube Placement #1- Radiologist was very nice and helpful. Used lidocaine jelly on the tube for my nose and a numbing spray on my throat to ease the pain. but still, there is no getting away from the uncomfortableness of shoving a tube up your nose and down past your stomach. It was torture and I vowed to never have to do this again in my life.

Started on the enteral formula that night- very slowly, getting about 400 calories in a 24 hour period. Getting through the tube placement was the worst, but even after it took quite a while to not gag and dry heave every few moments from feeling the tube in my throat.

3/22- threw up NJ tube #1

3/23- Tube Placement #2- This radiologist was not quite as good as the 1st. he seemed to have lots of trouble pushing the tube past my sinus. He just kept pushing and pushing and I swear it felt like he was going to push the tube into my brain. It was much more painful than the first time. He also had to take alot more xrays than the first dr, increasing my radiation exposure.

3/24- threw up NJ tube #2

3/25- Tube placement #3- This radiologist was like a godsend. He gave me some extra number spray in my throat, had my actually "snort" some lidocaine to better number my nose area and inserted the tube with me sitting up instead of laying down so that gravity could help advance it a little faster. He was done in like 5 minutes. Amazing. Still I gagged and vomited the whole time (who wouldn't?) but the pain factor wasn't there like the previous times.

3/28- threw up NJ tube #3

3/30- Tube #4 placement- There were some nurse errors at my dr.'s office which caused me not to be able to get my tube replaced the day after I threw it up. There was almost 48 hours in between losing tube #3 and placing tube #4. During that time, I was sooooo very ill. I thew up over 30 times in a 24 hour period. I hit a new emotional low. I literally wanted to not wake up any more. Tube #4 placement was by far the worst. The radiologist did not use any numbing whatsoever. What the heck is up with that? He apparently has never had this done! He also could not get the tube to go from my stomach into my intestine. My stomach was so small by this point from starvation he had to pump it full of air multiple times just to see the opening to the intestine. (OUCH!!!) Not only that but he didn't like the fact that I was gagging and coughing up little bits of bile so he made me put a washcloth over my face "so it didn't get on him". I was so annoyed. no one wants to be thrown up on, but really, let ME make YOU, the dr, a little more comfortable can I? I was bitter. I was hard to breath with the cloth on my face and the heat from my breath made my nausea and gagging even worse. This went on for over 10 minutes. The radiologist just kept staring at the x ray screen saying "i dont know, it just wont go". way to instill confidence. I was done with this guy. But it wasn't like I had a choice. 5 minutes or so later he finally got it and sent us on our way.

Perinatology...

4/6 Appointment with perinatologist at hospital- Baby looks great! They did a very detailed ultrasound where they measured the size of the bladder, kidneys, heart, brain, bones, ect. Took about 30 minutes, but it was nice for my to be able to see the baby for a long time. The baby is measuring exactly on track- so despite my deficiencies, we have a healthy babe. They also believe it is a girl! They want to see me back in 1 month to track progress again and recommended starting steroids in the mean time and really not eating much orally for fear of throwing up the 4th tube.

Since 3/30 I have been able to drink little bits of water- I guess the nutrition from the feeding tube is helping to even me out. But all my food comes from the formula through the tube. I'm up to 1800 calories a day now and gained 5 lbs back in the last 10 days. Dr.s were practically jumping up and down at my appointment this morning. Here is my current medication protocol:

16 mg Methylprednisone 3 X a day, crushed and mixed with water through feeding tube (steriod to help with nausea, just started this today)

8 mg Zofran 2 X a day, crushed and mixed with water through feeding tube (anti emetic)

1 Prilosec daily for acid reflux, crushed and mixed with water through feeding tube

1 Ducolax daily to keep my bowels moving from the effects of the other drugs.

Feeding tube will be in place until I can eat a minimum of 50% of my daily caloric needs orally. Currently I can't do much more than a bite or two of food every few days so it is going to be a while until we reach that point. but my dr. says I can keep the tube until delivery if needed. Can you imagine how FUN that sounds??!!! And just for record keeping sake here is an image of me with my tube. I was able to take a shower today for the first time in 10 weeks!! (I did bath before but had to have help because I was too weak so taking a shower was a big milestone)

2010-10-19T08:44:00.000-07:00

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Wheeler Historic Farm

2010-10-16T18:19:00.000-07:00

Our Day at the Wheeler Family Historic Farm...

We started off with a walk through a hay/corn maze...

adorned with many decorations...

pausing here and there for a quick rest...

When we came out the exit, we entered the pumpkin patch!! We spent some time there, each person picking out that perfect pumpkin. Avy found her prize pumpkin first..

Dad and Mom found theirs next. (not pictured) followed eventually by Joshua. Who must have evaluated at least 20 or more pumpkins before settling on this beauty...

Attempting a group shot, while looking into the sun and BAKING...

Next we headed over to another section of the farm for a wagon ride. The kids had fun posing with this big tractor while we waited in line...

Finally it was our turn to load up on the wagon. Sitting down was a welcomed break for Mom and Dad, though the heat was still there.

After the wagon ride we spent the rest of our time walking the farm and looking at all the various animals. The kids really enjoyed seeing them all and petting a few.

There was a beautiful stream running through the farm with lots of shade. So we decided to stop there for some nice pictures (and a little break from the sun). The kids however, we just that, kids. They did not seem to cooperate.

Back in the sun to see more animals...

We had a really great time at the farm and I think the kids did as well. They did not want to leave!

Joshua's First Day of Kindergarten

2010-10-16T18:05:00.001-07:00

Joshua was very excited for his first day of school. (9/1/2010) He practically ran all the way there, and has loved going every day since. He seems to do very well and we are very excited that he is learning so many new things.

Miss Morris ~ Room 101~ Eagle Valley Elementary

Mom and Josh

....In the bright, bright sun!

Online Shopping Cash Back

2010-07-09T21:10:00.000-07:00

Use this link to sign up at Ebates.com to get cash back for shopping at all your favorite online retailers. Free to use and very simple.

http://www.ebates.com/rf.do?referrerid=yLl7ArGc6R2%2BZ1SS35RD3g%3D%3D

Free Diapers for a YEAR!

2010-06-12T09:31:00.000-07:00

So a few weeks ago I signed up for a free sample of Pampers diapers. Since I have been doing all this coupon-ing I have also been getting a lot of free samples. Well it came in the mail the other day and I finally got around to opening the sample box last night....and guess what!!!??.... in the sample box was a certificate from Pampers for free diapers for a year!!! Sweet huh! Guess i'll stop pushing Avy so hard to potty train now that we will have plenty of free diapers around!

BOOYA!

More great deals! Rite Aid, Target, and Walmart

2010-06-07T20:51:00.001-07:00

Target: Shout- 2 bottles for $2.04

Walmart: - 3 tubs of Pampers wipes for FREE

Rite Aid: everything else

Total OOP: $36

Rebates coming in 2-3 weeks: $21.99

Instant Rite Aid Rewards: $7

Total cost for everything shown here: $7.01 including tax!

Awesome Target Dealio

2010-05-13T15:16:00.001-07:00

Thought I would share with my few and faithful blog readers how I scored this awesome target deal for a grand total of +$1.76. Yes you read that correctly, I MADE $1.76 on this deal.

Windex- $12.99 -$5.00 off coupon from 5/9 SS insert in newspaper -$5.00 target gift card coupon from 5/2 SS insert in newspaper. -$3.00 off web printable coupon from target.com. = FREE plus +.01 in overage

Scrubbing Bubbles Cleaner- $8.69 - $5.00 off coupon from SS insert in 5/2 newspaper-$5.00 target gift card coupon from 5/2 SS insert in newspaper.=FREE +$1.31 in overage

Finish Dishwasher Detergent- $5.00-$3.50 off coupon from a long time ago in newspaper. sorry can't remember the date. = $1.50

Schick Hydro Razors- $6.99x2= $13.98-$10 off coupon (2 $5) from 5/9 SS insert in newspaper-$2.00 target web coupons (2 $1) -$5.00 target gift card (in their add for this week when you buy 2) =FREE +$3.02 in overage

PAID= 13.24 Out of Pocket (including taxes)
Received= $15.00 in Target gift cards
MADE $1.76
SAVED: $47.98
Now who wants to come shopping with me? :)

Mother's Day 2010

2010-05-13T14:56:00.001-07:00

Mom and the Kids just before Church on Mother's Day.
This was like the 10th picture we took, the kids were
not into pictures.

Mom and Josh. He's into the cheesy smile stage

Mom and Avy.

My big girl, she looks so old!

Joshie's Frist T-Ball Game

2010-05-11T10:23:00.000-07:00

Joshie was really excited to be able to play T-ball with his team mates. So much so that he forgot how to play! (Well we are still learning how to play so there isn't much to forget, but we will say he forgot.) It was very enjoyable to watch him play and have so much fun with his team.

Couponing Fun

2010-05-11T07:37:00.000-07:00

Target:
Total: $44.00
Total Paid: $15.74
Saved: $30.20
% Saved: 68.6%!!!!

Smiths:
Total: $59.27
Total Paid: $13.97
Saved: $45.30
% Saved: 76%!!!!!!!!!

Ta Da!

2010-04-16T13:35:00.001-07:00

Finally got the Laundry room finished!
We have had this can of paint that I picked out for the Laundry room for a couple of months now but never got around to putting in the sweat equity. Well this weekend, we decided on a fly at about 2 in the afternoon that we needed to get it done! I also had Josh install some utility shelves that we had laying around for a bit more organization.

And Kalynne- you see that basket right there! That's the basket from Reagan's baby pictures! I've put it to good use ;) thanks Amy!

My saying on the wall did not come out like I hoped. It's a bit small, and I can easily redo it, but that's on the bottom of my to do list now. For some reason I really have a problem with foreseeing sizes.

2010-03-22T12:41:00.001-07:00

My pretty baby in her new glasses!!!

30 Day Shred

2010-03-01T12:17:00.000-08:00

Well after dealing with the disappointment of the lack of results from my daily biking, I decided to switch gears. I had bought this 30 day shred video months and months ago, but sadly never tried it because I was intimidated by it. Everyone I knew that had tried it, reported that they were hardly able to walk the 2nd day. I bought it knowing this, but thinking that must mean it gets results!

Josh and I decided to do this together and started our first 'day' last week. Boy oh boy is this a workout!!! Every muscle in my whole body feels like it was worked out; literally. Its only 20 minutes long, but because of that, it is INTENSE. I don't really buy into the idea of losing 20 lbs in 30 days, but I'm just hoping to see results in inches lost. To track that, Josh and I are taking our measurements weekly. We'll know in 4 more days if all this muscle pain is working!

Here's what to expect:
The video is based on a 3-2-1 interval component. 3 minutes of strength training (push ups, lunges, squats, butterflies, ect.) , 2 minutes of cardio (jumping jacks, jumping rope, butt kicks, punches, ect.) , and 1 minute of abs (standard crunches, reverse crunches, bicycle crunches, ect.) repeated 3 times in addition to a warm up and cool down. You do level 1 for 10 days, level 2 for 10 days and level 3 for 10 days. The only thing I have found disappointing so far is that out of all my muscles, the abs feel the least worked out. However, I am told that will change in levels 2 and 3. Now that we are on day 4 I can see that level 1 is getting a bit easier and soon we will move on to level two. But I am sure as soon as we start level 2 I will want to go back to level 1 again! (or so I am told ;) )
We have exactly 30 days to go until our vacation in Florida so wish us good results!!!

Halloween

2009-11-06T14:49:00.001-08:00

For family night the Monday before Halloween we carved Joshies pumpkin, unfortunately it went soft before Halloween night. So sad, but we kept it out anyway it just looked more like a sad Jackolantern. Haha. Here are some pictures from carving night.

Avalinea

Avalinea coloring her pumpkin, I forgot to buy paint so markers had to do. It didn't work very well. But she was more interested in coloring the paper towels anyway.

Joshie scooping the guts out of his pumpkin

His carving! Great job bud!

Halloween Day
We took the kids to the ward trunk or treat that was held on one of our residential streets and they had a lot of fun. Great food (chili, nachos, hot chocolate) and of course Loads of candy!

Aunt Alayna the cowgirl with Minnie Mouse and Jack Sparrow

Avy is ready to "go!!!"

Arrrrrr matey!

Kara and Andrew's Wedding, October 10th, 2009

2009-11-06T14:15:00.000-08:00

On October 10th, Josh and I were able to attend Kara and Andrew's beautiful wedding in Sanger, CA. There was a man made lake that was the backdrop to the reception and guests could take boat rides on it as well. We really had a really great time and we happy to be a part of their special day.

Formal pictures by the lake

Pretty flowers that lined the aisle

Vows

Presenting Mr. and Mrs. Riordon!

The cake! Kara and Andrew went to Disneyworld for their honeymoon.

Taking off the garter......with teeth!! ha ha too cute

Throwing the bouquet. I really should have gone to one of these before I got married. I always want to jump in, but can't now that I am an old married woman.

The happy couple!

Kara and I

Josh and I right after our boat ride

Eric and Rachel dancing to their wedding song

Thanks Kara and Andrew for inviting us! It truly was a beautiful ceremony and a great party afterward!

Visalia Pumpkin Patch

2009-11-06T13:55:00.000-08:00

While we were in Visalia we got to take the kids to the pumpkin patch! It was so much more fun that picking them out at Albertsons. :) Joshie enjoyed the games, animals and riding on the train in addition to picking out his perfect pumpkin.

Riding the "train"

Posing as a Turkey

Now posing for Mom on the hay.

Avy and Uncle Jake

Avy picking out her perfect pumpkin

Joshie picking out his perfect pumpkin. (my hair looks like this for the wedding later in the evening, crazy i know, it was a little "big" for my tastes.)

Look how tall we are Mom! We will get to go on loads of rides at Disneyworld next year!

Kelly's Baby Shower

2009-11-06T13:05:00.000-08:00

While we were in Visalia, Stacy and a friend of Kelly's, Danielle threw Kelly a baby shower. I was glad that Avy and I got to be there with her for this fun occasion. We had great food, played infamous baby shower games like identifying the melted chocolate bar in the diaper, and got to watch Kelly open all her cute gifts. Baby Lily is sure going to look great 24/7!

The shower decorations consisted of butterly patterns in pink, purple and green.

The Cake! Looks really slanted here doesn't it? And this was the 2nd cake because we made them redo the first one which was even worse than this one! Costco is usually much better than this..

Kelly and her best friend Danielle, and Danielle's baby Jayla. Danielle co hosted the shower with Stacy and brought lots of delicious food and fun games!

Kelly and Stacy with the baby blanket that Stacy crocheted for baby Lily

Me and Kelly with the bedding set Josh and I bought for her. It was called the "Kelly B. Butterfly Garden" set, could it be more perfect? Lets just hope that Lily likes it too!

A pretty pic of Kelly at 34 weeks, almost there!

Avalinea enjoyed the shower too, but mostly just looked for peoples shoes to wear!

Kids at the "Zoo"

2009-08-24T10:46:00.001-07:00

We took the kids to a local attraction the other day called Kangaroo zoo. It is basically a giant room filled with bounce houses. It is really cool, because you can let your kids run and play while the parents just sit back and relax. Joshie had a lot of fun, he keeps talking about wanting to go back. Avy on the other hand wasn't so sure, but we think she had fun too.

Our Weekend Project (Two weeks ago)

2009-08-24T10:29:00.001-07:00

This is what Chelsea and I did one Saturday afternoon to alleviate some of our storage issues. The shelves are 16 feet long and 7 feet tall. Unfortunately as you can see we have filled it all up already, granted this is not as organized as it could be but we really need to have a yard sale. :)

Anyway it was fun to do and I was able to finally use my circular saw that I got some time ago. Fully awesome.

Dear Horace Mann.....

2009-08-06T13:31:00.000-07:00

Where to begin.

We have struggled from day 1 with our agent. We purchased a new home and subsequently set up a homeowners insurance policy through Jared Eggett agency for your company. The appropriate documents were mailed to us and we signed and returned them, however when we went to the closing of our home the yearly amount for the homeowners insurance had been increased by nearly $100. This caused our monthly mortgage to be increased erroneously. After going back and forth with our agent for several days they discovered they had made an error and changed the price but we had already closed on the home and paid the higher amount. It took several months for us to receive a refund check for the difference and any time we would call our agent with questions it would take about 5 business days for someone to return our call.

We also set up an auto policy for our two cars. Apparently there were several changes to the policy (unbeknown st to us) because we received about 12 different ID cards in the mail over two months with different policy numbers on them. You can see how this would be confusing. We subsequently replaced one of the cars and called our agent to make the change. Once again it took 5 business days for someone to return our call. That is simply unacceptable.

Once they did call us back they told us they had no way of knowing how much the 2nd new car would cost or what our total change in policy cost would be. I find this to be ludicrous. Why would I agree to sign any forms to buy any product without first knowing how much it would cost me? I asked the agent to do some research on this because we are on a tight budget. She said she would return my call the next day. That never happened. Over a week later, fed up, I called to cancel. Amazingly she called back the next day! Wanting to know why were canceling I told her that I was extremely displeased with their agencies customer service and that it was unacceptable to take 5 business days to return a paying customers call, EVERYTIME. In fact, the last time I called and she promised to call back the next day, she never did. Her response to this was to tell me that she has been out sick for 4 weeks and then sarcastically said "I'll try to never get sick again". That was just plain unprofessional, to say the least! I told her that I was sorry she was sick but I find it hard to believe that NO ONE in their entire office could return our calls. I did not ever call her directly, I called the general phone number for the agent's office and got the answering machine every time. Never in the 5 months that we had Horace Mann insurance did we get a live person on the phone when we called; only an answering machine. I have no gripes with your product, the insurance, but will never ever do business again with your agent: Jared Eggett's office.
We made the change to Geico, who offered rates as competitive as yours. When we called to make the change we were able to speak with a live person within 3 minutes. We were then able to set up a homeowner and auto policy AND receive documentation of the prices for both all within 20 minutes time.
Even if your product is great, if the customer service is lacking it will drive your customers away. I would suggest this be discussed with your agent.
Chelsea Barnett

That was therapeutic to write! for months we have been going through H**l with our insurance agency just trying to set up our stinkin cars and it has been sooo much stress on my shoulders. AND now its OVER!!!!! yeehaw!!
I canceled and sent corporate this lovely complaint letter. I don't much care if they respond just wanted someone to know, ya know?

Painting project done! Phew!

2009-06-26T16:18:00.001-07:00

Here are the pictures of the project that Josh and I have been working on while the kids were away. It took a looooooooong time to get done since we only did it at night after work. The coloring in the first picture is the truest, the top is a bubble gum pink and the bottom a chocolate brown. The other two pictures make it look really washed out in the florescent lighting. I wonder if Avalinea will recognize her room?? :) We still need to hang her quilt which matches the same materials as the diaper stacker (seen in the 3rd picture)

Possible bedding idea

2009-06-05T10:09:00.000-07:00

Thoughts???? color right? design?? what do you think, help! (sorry it's kind of blurry, but you get the idea)

Master Bedroom Warning, work in progress, not completely done

2009-06-05T09:48:00.001-07:00

So, i was noticing that in these pictures the paint looks like it is sea grean, its not. The paint color is acutuayl more of a Sage color, matching the green in the curtains. We still are in the process of putting up white crown molding in this room.
I'm also looking for new bedding (and plenty of fancy pillows ;) ) . I can't decide on what colors i want though, which is why i haven't purchased. I'm thinking i want to go with a brown tan to accent the sage green.
I am planning on buying a tall green plant to cover the wires from our TV, and you can see a tiny peek of the bathroom here, i am going to painting that the same Sage green as the accent wall.
Still some work to do!!!

Joshie's 4th Birthday at the Hogle Zoo!

2009-06-01T13:12:00.001-07:00

Alayna and Joshie relaxin in the Giraffe exhibit

Avalinea really like the Zebras
Joshie Keeping a close eye on the bears

Daddy and Avy
Nothing better than an ice cream cone on a hot day!
Grandpa Jennings and Avy
Joshie making silly faces and making everyone laugh
Grandpa and Grandma Mickelsen
Mommy and Joshie By the cool Elephant
The Carousel ride, a favorite for both kids
Blowing out all 4 candles!!
Joshie and his Monkey Cake
And lots of Presents..........."this is the best birthday ever" he said

Easter

2009-06-01T12:52:00.001-07:00

So I hate how blogger uploads all your pictures backwards, so we will just have to tell this story backwards! Here are the eggs that Joshie picked up from the hunt. He did pretty well for himself without Mom and Dads help!

Here is Joshie going after those eggs! You see all the parents on the field?? A big no no, it was strictly against the rules for parents to cross the lines onto the field but obviously many parents dont believe that the rules apply to them. Many parents were scooping up armfuls of eggs for their kids, leaving many 2 and 3 year olds with empty baskets. Sad.

I have no idea why Avalinea's picture is upsidedown. Blogger has a mind of its own! But it was a very cute picture of her. She was too little to participate in the egg hunt this year, hopefully next year she can!

Here is a picture of the field before the horn blew and all chaos broke loose. Lots of eggs to grab!

Here is Joshie and Avalinea waiting for the hunt to start. (In the blistering cold!) It was pretty neat to be able to participate in the city egg hunt. We plan to do it next year too!

Finalized Dining Room and Kitchen Decor

2009-06-01T12:44:00.001-07:00

I took these pictures months ago but forgot to upload them. Sorry, but better late than never right? I'll get the remainder of the house decor uploaded this week.

Becoming an Aunt, an Uncle and getting a cousin for the kids! :)

2009-04-24T11:53:00.000-07:00

We are very excited to report that Josh and I will be an Aunt and Uncle by the end of the year, and Joshie and Avy will have a cousin! How exciting! Josh's sister Kelly, is expecting her first little one and we are very excited for her.
Guess Avy and Joshie won't be the only grandkids for long! (hmm darn, that part is kinda disapointing. ha ha)

Which one, which one?

2009-04-20T09:32:00.000-07:00

Which one do you like better? let me know.

Clean Shaven?

Soul Patch?
Mini Goatee?
Full Goatee?

Mustache and Full Goatee?
Full beard, well kept?
Or.. Au Natural full beard?

A taste of our trip to Disneyworld!

2009-04-03T14:58:00.001-07:00

Here is just a taste of the 950 pictures we took on our vacation......

Us waiting in line for a ride

Our hotel- The All Star Sports resort

Josh in front of Cinderella's Castle---it was twice the size of Disneyland's!

At a stunt show in Disney's hollywood studios

One of the many animals we took pictures of at the Animal Kingdom

Me in the country of Canada in Epcot

The entrance into Epcot

More to come!!!

5 years!

2009-03-20T13:05:00.001-07:00

5 years ago today, on the first day of spring (ahh how romantic!), I married my sweet heart and best friend in the gorgeous San Diego Temple. During those 5 years we've lived in 4 cities, had 4 different apartments, had two beautiful children, both graduated college, both gotten "real" jobs and bought a house! It's been a wild ride but we've made it thus far and we are ready for more! I love you Josh!!
Tomorrow we leave on a week long vacation to Disneyworld, just the two of us. Oh ya....it's ok for you to be jealous, I would be to. ;)

Inspirational

2009-03-06T13:11:00.000-08:00

Day of Faith: Personal Quests for a Purpose - 3. Rachel Esplin from Harvard Hillel on Vimeo.

"A few months ago a panel representing a variety of religious outlooks was convened at Harvard and moderated by The Washington Post's, Sally Quinn. On that panel was Harvard junior, Rachel Esplin, from Blackfoot, Idaho, president of the Latter-day Student Association on campus and a member of the Interfaith Council.
Seasoned journalist, Sally Quinn is a tough questioner and asked Rachel questions about whether the Church was a cult, were women treated unequally, why the secrecy surrounding the temple, what are garments, and much more.
What is fascinating about this video is the aplomb with which Rachel answers the questions, neither shrinking nor apologizing before Quinn's questions, and feeling free to assert her testimony, a remarkable quality in one so young put on the spot." (taken from the Bostonian Bishops blog- thanks Rachael!)

It's a long but wonderful video if you are in need of a spiritual thought for the day.

This woman is inspirational to me. I hope that I can testify of my faith as beautifully and eloquently as this young woman does, in my lifetime. Her parents must be so proud! What a beautiful daughter of Heavenly Father.

It's done!

2009-03-02T17:16:00.001-08:00

We're all moved in! and.........................exhausted! so we'll post pictures as soon as we have things cleaned up a bit.

Our walk through is today! hooray!

2009-02-23T11:37:00.000-08:00

At the time of these pictures the house still needed a good cleaning of course but we are excited to finally get to have our walk through today at 2 pm!!!! We never thought this day would get here, but it is now and we sure still have a lot to pack!

Glasses

2009-02-18T16:46:00.000-08:00

Got my new glasses in! Here's a picture for your enjoyment. Pardon the "blueness" of the photo, I took this with the webcam on my laptop. Also pardon the messy room in the background...I know you looked now! ;)

Carpet, hooray!

2009-02-17T10:52:00.000-08:00

Well things are finishing up with the house! Last week our carpets and blinds were installed and this weekend our cabinets and hardware for doors were put in. Our walk through is on 2/23 and we close on 2/25 at 9 am! We are soooo excited and the day couldn't come sooner :)

Avy loves to Eat People Food!

2009-02-17T10:07:00.000-08:00

No baby food for this baby, she just simply won't eat it. Only table food is acceptable. Here she is thoroughly enjoying her midnight snack.

Chelsea's 25th Birthday

2009-02-12T18:57:00.000-08:00

House updates

2009-02-05T14:47:00.000-08:00

As you can see, our house is very quickly coming to the finishing stages. Hooray!! Our paint is in and dry, vinyl flooring for the bath and laundry room is in, and lighting is all in. That just leaves the laminate flooring for kitchen and dining room, carpet, cabinets, counters, and appliances and we are done!
The flooring and cabinets were set to be in later this week so next week all we should have left is counters, appliances and cleaning. How exciting!! We have a walk through scheduled for the 19th and closing on the 24th. We're almost home owners!

Those "priceless" teeth

2009-02-02T15:38:00.000-08:00

About 2 years ago Joshie broke off one of his front teeth, we think, by chewing on a toy. Upon taking him to the dentist, they told us it would be best to cap it so that it didn't break off further and expose the root. This is a fairly big procedure for an 18 month old because they have to put them under general anesthesia for it. So we did it and paid about $400 out of pocket for his new shiny front tooth. Fast forward 6 months later.....While brushing his teeth that night I discover that he broke off BOTH front teeth somehow during the day!! No major falls occurred that I was aware of and I was just flabbergasted at out this could be happening again. Back to the dentist we went. This time, both teeth were capped so that his speech would not be impeded as he learned to talk, this time with metal behind the teeth instead of just the white stuff that look like real teeth. There would be no breaking these babies! This trip cost us closer to $1000 out of pocket due to the costs of the surgery center rising, and of course, double the teeth fixed. Those are some pretty darned expensive baby teeth! And of course we knew they wouldn't last forever, but it was worth the money knowing that he would learn to talk correctly and wouldn't look like a orphan child with two fragments for front teeth.
Fast forward 1.5 years to the present......regular dentist appointment for cleanings....only to find out BOTH said teeth are infected and need to be pulled. Yes, thats right, pulled. I asked if this was a cavity that went unnoticed to turn into an infection, but he said no, usually an infection results from a root that dies and then gets infected. He said it probably resulted from a fall. Jeez Joshie must fall ALOT! I promise I'm a good mother, really.

Happy Birthday to me! (I cheated)

2009-01-24T21:11:00.000-08:00

Well my big 2-5 birthday is two weeks from tomorrow. EEEKKK! A quarter of a century? That is just not possible..... I guess this is the age you start telling people its your 19th birthday all over again. For my birthday this year I have been telling Josh that all I wanted was some art for the new house. We both have similar tastes, thank goodness, so that made it a bit easier. Tonight he took me to Deseret Book to look at limited edition print that we both love. Being limited edition, they are out every where we go. However, this store happened to have 2 in the back room that they had just gotten in the day before. The manager said the only reason they were still there was because he had not had time to hang them up yet. Josh surprised me by buying it for me as my birthday gift!!! I know, I know, its two weeks early but we were afraid there wouldn't be one around my birthday- day. Isn't it gorgeous?!?! I am such a lucky girl!

On a side note- I have gotten sick AGAIN. I had to leave my bi annual academic training meetings early this morning because I was feeling so sick. Went to an urgent care clinic where they told me I either have a bad bad bacterial infection in my head (all my lymph nodes on the right side of my head are extremely swollen, along with chronic headache, fever, and stiff neck) or I have an early case of Meningitis. EEK. guess i wont be teaching primary tomorrow. So they put me on some very strong antibiotics and 1o days worth of steroids. I should be feeling new in 72 hours they said. If not, I am to come back for further tests. Let's just hope and pray that I am better.

Avalinea's First Chocolate Chip Cookie

2009-01-19T19:45:00.000-08:00

'Nuff Said

Now our Walls have mud!

2009-01-18T16:20:00.000-08:00

This is the Kids bathroom.

This is looking into the master bath (notice the cool archway) and master closet.

Here is the dining room and living room looking from the kitchen.

We have walls!!!!!

2009-01-14T14:13:00.000-08:00

We are very excited to have sheet rock up in our house! Getting close........

A view of the kitchen and dining room.

Looking into the living room from the kitchen

Master Bath seperate tub and shower

Our pretty archway going into the master bath

Vacation

2009-01-13T14:22:00.000-08:00

Looks like Josh and I will be sailing away on a wonderful 7 night Cruise to the Mexican Riviera for our 5 year Anniversary. Now if it were only March tomorrow!!! (I'd could sure use a vacation from reality for a while!)

Avalinea's 1st Birthday Party

2009-01-05T14:51:00.000-08:00

Playing on the Piano with Brother

New chair for her new bedroom!!

Having fun unwrapping presents with Mom and Brother

Happy Birthday Girl!! With the same crown that brother had on his 1st birthday (only in pink this time)

The cake!! And it tasted twice as good as it looked!!!

Avalinea's 1st Birthday

2008-12-31T20:08:00.001-08:00

More Christmas Pictures

2008-12-31T19:24:00.001-08:00

Some more Christmas Pictures for you enjoyment.

House Update

2008-12-31T19:16:00.000-08:00

Our house from a distance

Yea we have a Window in our Bathroom!

Our house now has Shingles on its roof and the plumbing and electrical are now done. The windows are in too. It is all so exciting.

Christmas Joy

2008-12-31T18:33:00.000-08:00

Joshie got a great new shiny red tricycle from grandma and Grandpa Mickelsen, his reaction is typical Joshie.

Joshie got a Train Set from Santa Clause, He was really excited, he played with it all day long.

2008-12-31T18:31:00.000-08:00

Well here it is almost a new year. And we have to say that it has been fairly good to us. Avalinea being born in January, Joshua getting a good job at Fishbowl Inventory, Chelsea becoming a Mentor at WGU, and Joshie.... well we love Joshie :P Anyway happy new year from all of us.

Visit to Santa

2008-12-21T11:20:00.001-08:00

Hey look no crying faces!

The Roof

2008-12-17T15:35:00.001-08:00

The roof is now on our House, YEA!

House Update

2008-12-14T22:19:00.000-08:00

They have finally gotten started on our house! The first floor is basically framed! Yea!

Our New Fridge!

2008-12-12T10:29:00.000-08:00

Last night I found quite possibly the best deal ever. I have been wanting a french door fridge for our new house ever since I saw the first one. But they are way way too expensive. They start at like $1500 for the smallest white one. Well, last night I went to our Sears Outlet store because we had received an ad in the mail that looked like they had some good sales going on. It must have been a pretty good sale because they barely had anything left. As i was just about to leave the store I saw one on the opposite side of the store all by itself that caught my eye. It was a kitchen aid brand, with ice maker and internal purified water dispenser (very cool!) for........$809.99!!!!! It retails for $3199 normally. Needless to say, I bought it and am a very happy camper with my deal finding skills.

My Dilemma

2008-12-04T10:54:00.000-08:00

Two years ago I bought these beautiful stockings at Target. They have had them every year for a while so I figured I was safe in making these our family stockings and being able to add more as needed. Well, of course, this year they are no where to be found. And as you can see, I need one for Avalinea. Her cheepo stocking looks pretty pathetic next to the rest. WHY I didn't buy one last year when I was pregnant with Avey is a mystery. I have no idea what I was thinking.
If anyone sees a stocking similar to these PLEASE let me know asap.

Your opinion needed!!

2008-11-24T08:36:00.000-08:00

Please let me know which you like better; curly or straight?

And then there was......... cement!

2008-11-21T12:27:00.000-08:00

Our basement is poured!! Our lot was excavated, primed, and foundation poured all in 4 days! (amazing how quickly they can move when they want to!)
Our new target close date is early to mid February.

Sad, Sad Day

2008-11-19T13:36:00.000-08:00

So the day has finally come.......I got my first cavity. I've been avoiding going to the dentist ever since my pregnancy because I literally couldn't put my tooth brush in my mouth for oh.....5 months. Seriously, not joking. Add to that throwing up 6 to 7 times per day and your left with a pretty gross dental situation.
Having proudly worn the badge of "Never had a single cavity!" for the last 24 years, I must now take it off. The dentist says I should feel lucky I only have one given my oral hygiene, or lack there of, during pregnancy. He said most women who report having thrown up a ton in pregnancy will show up with 10+ cavities on their next visit. (the bile in your stomach breaks down the enamel of your teeth, leading to easier cavities) But I still don't feel so lucky, and I'm not ready to give up my "never had a cavity" badge. What a sad, sad day.

Update on our house

2008-11-18T09:34:00.000-08:00

Well after many many frustrating months of run around, Chelsea decided that enough was enough with our builder. (writing in third person)
Being her mother's daughter, she sent a strong but courteous letter to the owners of the building company, describing to them the bad business practices that had been going on in their company. This letter was sent at approximately midnight on Thursday evening via email. Lo and behold, Friday morning at 9 am she received a phone call from none other than the owner himself. He extended his great apologies for the lack luster customer service they had received and requested a meeting that would include the two owners of the company, the foreman of construction, and ourselves.

Ok enough of this third person writing. Let me tell you, did we ever pick the problem child lot!!! When we signed our contract we found out that we were going to be house number 13. How lucky for us. At this meeting, we found out that many unforeseen problems arose with our lot. First being that when they began to excavate our basement they could not find the sewer lines. Apparently these are pretty important things! ;) So they had to contact the land developer to come out and locate the lines and also visit city hall to go through video footage of the creation of those lines( or something like that, I don't speak construction) Finally, said lines were found!! Then came the second large problem. In the middle of where our driveway needs to be are two city utility boxes. As you can imagine, you can't exactly just pour cement over city utility boxes. Nor can you have said boxes in the middle of your driveway. So back to the city the builder went. The city has finally decided to move said boxes to another location. This, we found out, is the reason we have had over a month of delays so far. Let's hope we've had enough problems from our lucky number 13 home.

Back to the meeting.... after hearing our concerns about the lack of service we had received in regards to unanswered questions we had and that we had been denied modifications we wanted to make to our home; they created a few special modifications for us for free!
1- we are taking out the door between the master bedroom and master bathroom and instead creating a large roman archway
2- We are closing off the door between the master bath and the walk in closet and just putting a door in the bedroom that leads into the walk in closet. (no more having to walk through the bathroom to get to the closet)
3- we are adding a window, 4ft by 3ft above my soaker tub for natural light in the master bath.

Moral of the story: stand your ground on demanding good customer service! I am proud to be my mothers daughter and that she taught me how to strongly but courteously stand up for myself and others. Thanks mom!

Halloween Babies!!

2008-11-17T10:19:00.000-08:00

Joshie (above) was 1 day shy of 5 months in this picture(2005). Avalinea is 10 months (2008).

I think we have a tad bit difference in weight, no? :) Joshie weighed 16 lbs 14.5 oz and was 26 inches tall (at 4 months) Avalinea on the other hand, weighed 17 lbs and was 29 inches tall at 9 months. I love that they could wear the exact same 1st halloween outfit despite their difference in age!!

That's right....my company is cooler than yours!

2008-11-13T17:15:00.000-08:00

For anyone interested, the company I work for was in Time magazine today. Here's the link, it's a really great article!

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1858876,00.html

Frustrated. Vent

2008-11-05T19:41:00.001-08:00

Over the last 48 hours I have been hearing and reading a lot of comments saying that "those who voted for Obama were probably young, uneducated (collegiately anyway) 18 year olds who were doing it to be trendy and cool" . Just let that sink in for a moment.... By implication then, those who voted for McCain are older, educated persons not swayed by popular trends.

As a "educated" person this upsets me greatly. I take my voting responsibility very seriously. Prior to the election I spent several weeks reading and researching BOTH candidates platforms. Browsing both candidates websites as well as third party websites like CNN and other news. I watched all 3 Presidential debates as well as the Vice Presidential debate. I consider myself and informed voter. I am strongly against voting party line. I hate that button on the ballot which gives us the option to vote all democrat or all republican. Not all democrats are wild liberals who want to abort babies and take aways guns. Not all Republicans are Bible preaching, pro death penalty right wingers. We should be voting for a person, not a party. Voting for a party is the lazy way of doing things in my opinion. In fact, I'd be all for abolishing parties all together. I believe we need to have a balance across the spectrum of beliefs, platforms, and ideas and in order for our nation to run smoothly. Voting party line often involves a lot of assumptions, which is another thing that really irritates me.

Assumptions. Just because I'm LDS does NOT mean I'm a republican. And following the same argument, even if I was a republican, it doesn't mean I am because my parents were, or I am because everyone else in Utah is. Whatever I am, I am because I read. Because I research. Because I am involved. Because I can think for myself. Too often Republicans in Utah are stereotyped as just following the crowd and incapable of thinking for themselves. We need to fight against assumptions. I have often been asked the question, how I can be a good, God fearing, LDS woman and be a "liberal"- like the word is eternal damnation or something. I find this question so ignorant I'm not even going to take the time to give it a response.

Now that the election is over, we need to move past all the back biting and name calling. We need to be United. I would say this no matter the outcome of the election. Whoever you voted for, if you did your research and truly believed in your candidate; I respect you and your vote. We shouldn't spend our time categorizing each other as if one group of voters is more important than another. We all need to support our new President, regardless of how we voted. Because if we don't, we've failed before we've even begun. Divided we fail.

I'd like to propose a new rule for the next presidential campaign. I'd love to take credit for this idea, but in truth, my sister Alayna is the one that came up with it.
"In any debate, commercial, rallies, anything....you can only talk about YOURSELF and what YOU will do. You are NOT allowed to bring up the other person at all."
With this rule in place there would be no nasty name calling, no lies spread, and no negative ads. Political Utopia. It will never happen, but its nice to contemplate.

8 Things

2008-10-29T20:42:00.000-07:00

A coworker and good friend of mine tagged me this week and this one seemed like lots of fun, so here we go!

8 Favorite TV shows:
1. Prison Break
2. Desperate Housewives
3. Army Wives
4. Gray's Anatomy
5. Biggest Loser- my inspiration (I'd love to be on a biggest loser "normal just overweight folks!)
6. Extreme home makeover
7. Law and Order SVU
8. Criminal Minds

8 Favorite Resturuants:
1. Ruby River Steakhouse
2. Zupas
3. Cafe Rio
4. Iggy's
5. Round Table Pizza
6. Olive Garden
7. Friday's
8. The Roof (only been there once but it was amazing)

8 Things that Happened Yesterday:
1. I worked from home
2. Felt good about my job
3. Hated my job for a few moments
4. Watched my favorite shows
5. Read random people's blogs
6. Stayed up TOO late
7. VOTED! (okay that was today but I couldn't think of anything else)
8. Drove by our "pretty dirt lot" (again, today)

8 Things That I look Forward To:
1. My house being built
2. Moving into and decorating my very first house!
3. Taking Joshie trick or treating this Friday
4. Being debt free
5. Going to nursing school
6. Going to a graduate FNP program after nursing school
7. Vacation in Walt Disney World in November 2010
8. Some "Me" time

8 Things I love About Fall
1. Sweater weather!
2. Eating soup
3. Getting ready for the holidays
4. Vacations
5. Cheap utilities (no air conditioning and not much heating)
6. Countdown to Christmas
7. The beautiful colors
8. playing outside

8 Things on my wish list
1. To be a size 8 (only 2 sizes to go, i can do it!)
2. Someone to do my dishes all the time (but exactly the way i like it)
3. To have a large house with backyard and play set for the kids
4. A Kenmore Pro Series Kitchen
5. A date night with my husband every week
6. More time with my children
7. To not have to work full time
8. To never be sick again (my children as well)

I tag: Taylor K, Kalynne J, Jacob B

2008-10-17T11:08:00.000-07:00

"Creditors have better memories than debtors" ~ Benjamin Franklin

Quote of the day

2008-10-13T13:30:00.000-07:00

Quit trying to keep up with the Jones'. They're broke.

Sarah Palin Video

2008-10-07T07:25:00.000-07:00

A good friend of mine from UCSD recently traveled to Wasilla Alaska to help create a documentary of sorts about the life of Sarah Palin. Here is a clip; its pretty interesting. I have friends with great talents!
http://wasillaproject.typepad.com/

The seasons are changing...

2008-09-30T15:49:00.000-07:00

........and so are we!!!! Here are some
pictures from our fun sick free weekend!

Avalinea is growing up so fast!
She will be 9 months old this week!

Joshie would rather take pictures than be in them,
but I got a smile out of him a time or two this
weekend for the camera

He was enthralled with Uncle Ron's Bow and arrow....

....and Mom's Cheshire cat visor

Our House! (sort of) ;-)

2008-09-10T18:56:00.001-07:00

So below are some pictures of our up and coming house! We got to go to the design center today which was so much fun! It was like being on a shopping spree (within our small budget of course). Here are some pics of the stuff we chose!

Here is our carpet, paint color for the walls and
our wood flooring for the dining room, kitchen,
and half bath down stairs.

This is our Vinyl flooring for the bathrooms, and
laundry room. The countertop for the bathrooms
and Kitchen is on the top and the cabinet sample for
the whole house is on the right.

This is our master bathroom layout. Our walk
in closet is behind Josh. it is the size of a small
nursery!

Other side of master bath. We do not have the
window above the bath in our home.

Kitchen cabinets

Layout of our kitchen- I am really excited about
have the bar to eat at. (the post wont be there
it is just holding up the counter while the glue dries)

This is actually our same model, though we have a smaller porch. These are also the colors we chose.

I hope you all will come and visit when we finish at the end of February!!!

Shameless Plug

2008-08-29T14:33:00.000-07:00

If you want to see greats thing happen in the next 4 years; then you all know what you need to do in a short two months time.....
Obama for President!!!!!

House and Joshie updates

2008-08-21T07:26:00.000-07:00

Well yesterday we took the plunge into home ownership! We bought the house! Although, it is NOT the one on our previous blog, we decided to go with one floor plan up, so it is actually a little bigger :) You can go to this website to see the floor plan: http://www.bigghomes.com/concord.php

On a not so great note, Joshie had more tests at the hospital yesterday that revealed that he has Vesicoureteral Reflux. Basically meaning that his urine is being pushed back into his kidneys instead of leaving his body. This is why he had the massive kidney infection recently. Over time, it can cause kidney scarring, and with enough scarring can cause kidney failure. We are waiting on the doctors phone call to tell us where we go from here. Please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.

Recent Kid pics

2008-08-18T15:21:00.001-07:00

Both kids are doing well- Joshie is finally recovering from his bout of hospital visits and illnesses, we have some diagnostic testing this week to complete but hopefully after that we will have some answers on why he has had his most recent problems.

Avalinea is 7 months old already! And just recently learned how to sit up! She is also babbleing Da-da-da all the time. Why do babies always say that first?!? She is a very happy baby, except at around 9 pm every night when she is ready for bed. I can't believe she is 7 months already, why can't pregnancy go this fast?

My babies (well one is not such a baby anymore)

2008-05-23T15:44:00.000-07:00

I'm so grateful for my beautiful babies! They bring joy to my life everyday and even though being a mother is the hardest thing I have ever done, it the most rewarding as well. I love seeing Joshie learn new things everyday and become more of a little boy. (with quite the attitude at times! - he must get that from his dad ;) ) And Avalinea is just such a happy baby, she is all smiles for us and loves to play. We have been greatly blessed to have such even tempered and loving children!

Graduation and Baby Blessing, a full weekend indeed!

2008-04-28T20:35:00.001-07:00

Joshie, Avalinea, and Mommy are very proud of Daddy for finishing his degree in Linguistics! Hoorah for graduation day!!

Avalinea Rose Barnett was blessed on Sunday April 27th in the Pleasant Grove 12th Ward. Her Aunts Katelyn and Alayna, Uncles Ron Jr. and Zach, Grandmas Rebecca and Stacey, Grandpas Mark Jennings and Ron Sr., and Mom, Dad, and Brother Joshie were all in attendance.

Sunday Best

2008-04-13T13:57:00.000-07:00

Avalinea got all dressed up for church today. Its the first time she fits into her very fancy dresses, so of course we had to take lots of pictures! She does great at church! Sleeps most of the time, which is a lot more than we can say for her brother! Joshie keeps us on our toes at all times.On that note, I always said I was NOT going to be one of those Mothers that let their children run wild up the isles of church and screamed like banshees during sacrament. I distinctly remember rolling my eyes quite a bit and thinking how much better behaved my children would be. These are the thoughts of an ignorant yet to be mother. My eyes have been opened. I have learned that these Mothers are not really "letting" their children commit these acts, they're just simply trying to "get through" the longest hour of church with their sanity intact. The hour that does not include the place of every parents dream; mommy and daddy vacation time; the place we know as "nursery". I have been humbled and will no longer be so judgmental of these Mothers. (Though we still try and grab the little monster before he actually makes it up to the stand)

Easter!!!

2008-04-08T13:14:00.000-07:00

So we had easter at our house this year. Josh and I cooked a very yummy dinner consisting of Honey Baked Ham, Twice baked potatoes, steamed veggies, garlic bread sticks, macaroni salad, peach pie and vanilla/chocolate pudding pie.
We had Dad, Katelyn, and Alayna over to enjoy the festivities with us.
We colored eggs the night before and then were able to have a great easter egg hunt with Joshie following dinner.
As a family we are very grateful for our Savior who has made sacrifices to make our family eternal!!
Here are some pictures from our fun day!

Yes I do have 2 kids

2008-03-27T13:11:00.000-07:00

So I was looking through previous posts and thinking about how there were no pictures of Joshie and quite a few of Avalinea. So I decided to create Joshie his very own post.

We're saving this picture from his future wife...classic

He loves to cook- and especially loves to crack eggs

He lovingly calls this his "purse", for a while he wouldn't go anywhere without it.

This is a really old picture, but I love it. He was just in his room rocking away, entertaining himself.

Tanning

2008-03-27T13:05:00.001-07:00

So I know these pictures are very blurry but I wanted to post them anyway so you all could see how Joshie keeps up with his tan while watching TV.

Joshie and Avalinea

2008-03-27T12:50:00.001-07:00

Happy 4th Anniversary!

2008-03-20T21:16:00.000-07:00

Yes-- we both look exhausted, our sweet baby girl has not slept for more than 3 hours at a time in the 11 weeks she has been on this earth. We are very very sleep deprived!

So today is the start of the 4th year my darling hubby and I have been married. We celebrated by having a very yummy dinner at La Vigna, which was quite delectable, but quite pricey. We then went to Jack and Jill Bowling Alley and played two games of pool (both of which I won I must add!) and then 1 game of bowling which I lost badly. 98-52, pretty darn pathetic on both our parts but hey, we had fun and thats what counts right? Right...... ;) Then we finished off our night by renting Enchanted and buying a tub of popcorn.
Happy 4th year babe! I love you so much and can't wait to share the next 50 years with you!

Blue eyed baby

2008-03-17T12:06:00.001-07:00

"My morning with the camera" ~ By Avalinea Rose

2008-03-11T11:57:00.001-07:00

I save my smiles for those moments that are really hard to capture.

I'm becoming very expressive. In the words of my brother, this is my "what the heck?" look

These are my "angry eyes". I've been giving mommy and daddy these a lot late at night lately.

This is my pouty face. Gets mommy every time.

They grow up too fast!!

2008-03-05T13:45:00.000-08:00

I can't believe Avalinea is already 2 months old! On February 22nd (7 weeks old) she started holding her head up and smiling a little bit. It's bittersweet because I don't want her to get old being my last baby but its neat to see her making progress. She's still waking up at night every 2 to 3 hours which sucks but hopefully that will end soon. PLEASE!

Our little trip to Manti

2008-03-02T18:59:00.000-08:00

After church today we thought it would be fun to take a little drive. I've been bugging Josh for the past 3 years to take to me to see the Manti temple but we've never gotten there, until now. Of course being a Sunday and having the kids with us we didn't get to go inside but it was still fun to get to take some pictures and walk around the outside. It was only about an hour and a half drive which went by very quickly because the entire drive was new to both of us. Here are some pictures to enjoy!

A very beautiful temple any time of year

Joshie enjoyed running around on the stairs-- there were lots of them!

Moving

2008-02-29T16:58:00.000-08:00

Thats right, the Barnett family is moving. I hate moving, really really do. It's quite stressful and to this point I've never had to do it with 2 kids in tow! Yikes! Josh and I have been packing 2 or 3 boxes each night over the past week in an effort to make things not quite so rushed, but lets be honest. We all know we'll be up allllllll night the evening before the big move and up again at the crack of dawn the day of. That's just how it works. It's like some unwritten moving rule that you must be sleep deprived. Oh well, we'll manage. At least I don't have to be the one lifting all the heavy appliances...he he he......
We're moving to a quaint little place in Pleasant Grove. Much much closer to Josh's work and literally down the street from daycare! Very excited about that part. I'm hoping to walk the kids there once summer hits instead of driving. It's still a two bedroom apartment, but it has 2 bathrooms! YAY! Imagine living in a place where the master bedroom has it's own bathroom! I am quite excited. Mostly because I finally have an excuse to go out and buy new bathroom "stuff". I picked out the cutest set from Target for the kids bathroom, penguins with snorkel equipment and floaties. Darling. Josh thinks its just an excuse to spend more money but I reminded him that if we are going to be stuck in a tiny apartment with two kids for at least another year, we might as well make it look homey. I think he just agrees to pacify me. Which I don't mind :) And we will have a separate laundry room! No more washer and dryer in the bathroom! Woohoo, even just that makes the move worth it. Despite the dreaded packing and unpacking part, I'm excited for a new place to say the least.

Hyperemesis Baby Survivor

2008-02-22T16:28:00.000-08:00

Recently I have been reminded of just how lucky I am that my little baby made it through our battle of Hyperemesis. There are many that aren't so lucky. For those of you who don't know much about hyperemesis I would encourage you to explore the following website: www.helpher.org
It saved my sanity during my pregnancy, and being able to share my experience with other women who were also suffering at the same time made everything much more bearable. Here is a short synopsis:
We found out we were pregnant in May and by week 6 I was dealing with much more than "morning sickness". It was the kind of morning sickness that just didn't go away. Unrelenting. Nothing stayed down, not even water. By week 7 my doctor took me out of work and put me on disability. Which was a God send because I was barely functioning. The nausea persisted and the migraines from vomiting 7 times a day and starvation my body was going through were really taking a toll on me. I lost 5 lbs in 6 days. Over the next several weeks we visited numerous ER's and IV centers for IV therapy. This was life saver. After each IV therapy session I felt like a normal human being for about 2-4 hours. Then it started all over again.
Many people believe this should end at 12 weeks, or the end of the first trimester. Let me tell you, they are wrong. Morning sickness does generally end at this time, but Hyperemesis is a whole different beast. It plagues many women until the day of delivery.
Fast forward a few months of constant puking and trying to sleep the days away- by 20 weeks gestation I was able to return to work. My doctor had found the right medication for me, and our insurance was finally paying for it on a regular basis. Guess they finally figured it was less expensive than IV therapy. (After a month of both me and my doctor fighting them) As much of a pain insurance is, I am so grateful to possess it. This little miracle drug of mine cost a whopping $1200 per bottle! But my wonderful coverage only made me incur a cost of $5!!
At each doctor visit we had to yet again revisit the idea of PICC line. A catheter that is inserted in your left arm that leads into your heart. The reason for this was that despite functioning better I was still dropping weight and throwing up on a daily basis. By this time I had lost 20 lbs.
I can't tell you how many times I heard, "if you lose one more pound....."
Thankfully we avoided the PICC line successfully.
By the time I delivered at 37 weeks 4 days I was still 5 lbs under my pre-pregnancy weight. I had fears about if the baby would be healthy, if she would be small, and what effect 9 months of malnutrition and starvation would have on her. But she was born at a healthy 7 lbs and despite having some eating problems herself, was in very good health.
What I've learned from this experience:
*That I can overcome anything with the support of my family and my friends.
*That while the sickness for me did not end until delivery, it did end. And that is the important thing.
*That I can now empathize with those who are ill better than I ever could before.
*And most importantly that my little baby girl was worth every miserable moment.

I can't imagine fighting this disease and not having a baby at the end of it to remind you of why you endured it. So many women lose the battle and my heart truly breaks for them. I am so grateful for my little babies (one not so little anymore) and can truly understand what a sacrifice it was to bring them into this world.

Welcome!

2008-02-22T16:13:00.000-08:00

Well, we've officially entered the blogging world! I decided this would be the easiest way to distribute pictures and news to our family and friends that reside in many different places. I can't promise this will be updated on a daily basis, but we're hoping it will become a fun hobby for us (when I say us, it will likely be me, chelsea, doing most of the blogging), which can later be used as documentation of "our family history"

Joshua, Chelsea, Joshua, Avalinea & Olivia

Washer and Dryer Stand Project

Theatrical Children

Hospital Newborn Photos

Baby Tanning Bed.

Olivia Ann Barnett

Halloween costume shopping

Floor Tile in Basement Bathroom

Tiled the Shower in the Basement

We have Carpet in our basement!

Finishing the Basement

Joshua's 6th Birthday

As if I could ever forget.....

Wheeler Historic Farm

Joshua's First Day of Kindergarten

Online Shopping Cash Back

Free Diapers for a YEAR!

More great deals! Rite Aid, Target, and Walmart

Awesome Target Dealio

Mother's Day 2010

Joshie's Frist T-Ball Game

Couponing Fun

Ta Da!

30 Day Shred

Halloween

Kara and Andrew's Wedding, October 10th, 2009

Visalia Pumpkin Patch

Kelly's Baby Shower

Kids at the "Zoo"

Our Weekend Project (Two weeks ago)

Dear Horace Mann.....

Painting project done! Phew!

Possible bedding idea

Master Bedroom ** Warning, work in progress, not completely done**

Joshie's 4th Birthday at the Hogle Zoo!

Easter

Finalized Dining Room and Kitchen Decor

Becoming an Aunt, an Uncle and getting a cousin for the kids! :)

Which one, which one?

A taste of our trip to Disneyworld!

5 years!

Inspirational

It's done!

Our walk through is today! hooray!

Glasses

Carpet, hooray!

Avy loves to Eat People Food!

Chelsea's 25th Birthday

House updates

Those "priceless" teeth

Happy Birthday to me! (I cheated)

Avalinea's First Chocolate Chip Cookie

Now our Walls have mud!

We have walls!!!!!

Vacation

Avalinea's 1st Birthday Party

Avalinea's 1st Birthday

More Christmas Pictures

House Update

Christmas Joy

Visit to Santa

The Roof

House Update

Our New Fridge!

My Dilemma

Your opinion needed!!

And then there was......... cement!

Sad, Sad Day

Update on our house

Halloween Babies!!

That's right....my company is cooler than yours!

Frustrated. *Vent*

8 Things

Quote of the day

Sarah Palin Video

The seasons are changing...

Our House! (sort of) ;-)

Shameless Plug

House and Joshie updates

Recent Kid pics

Master Bedroom Warning, work in progress, not completely done

Frustrated. Vent