Grass

About a month ago Martin and I finally finished the new sprinkler system and laying the sod. I was going to post the results after a couple of dry spots got greener. And then I was going to wait until he cut it for the first time. Delay after delay so I finally just did it. The labor was incredibly back breaking and I am so thankful for a husband that doubles as the incredible Hulk. No matter how hard I tried to keep up and do my share, he really did all the work. I am so happy to have a nice front lawn so I can no longer be embarrassed by what the house looks like. Now the back is a whole other story...

My Baby's 5!

Ashlynn had her 5th birthday today. I can not believe my youngest is that old and will be starting kindergarten soon. I hope she had a good birthday. When I would ask what she wanted she would constantly change her mind or talk about the three cakes she wanted.(She is such a funny girl) I love her so much and am so glad she is apart of my family.

My brother also had his birthday today. I wasn't able to be there but I hear he had fun! I love you Matt!

Kids!!!!

Last Sunday, we did not go to church because Ashlynn had a cold and I wanted her to get over it asap. I always feel bad about missing church because my calling is more Sunday oriented. During the week she recovered while Martin and Alex both started getting sick. Martin became congested and just didn't feel real well all week. Alex started out getting congested and then it all went down hill. Wednesday night she threw up all over herself, her bed, her sister's bed...(Bunk beds have their downfalls, one being when the person throwing up is on the top bunk it is much more messy.) The girls moved into the living room for sleeping while Martin and I tried to clean and disinfect their room. Alex acted sick at first but never threw up again. Today, I thought she must be better because she was eating again, had not thrown up and did not have a fever. With no noticeable signs of sickness I proceeded to get everyone to church. Before church she said her tummy hurt but I assumed it was other problems. We got to church 15 minutes early like always. I went out to get a tithing slip and when I got back one of my counselors was calling me over to our seats. There was Alex with throw up all over herself, the pew, the floor... Why did she just sit there? Why had she not gone to the bathroom? We started to clean her up so we could leave as discreetly as possible when she projectile vomited again. After trying to clean up the area as well as I and Bridgett could, I left and took her. She went into the tub and her clothes into the washing machine. All signs of her throw up are now gone and she is again acting like nothing ever happened. With the amount of torture parents have to put up with it is no wonder parents turn around in later years and embarrass their teenage children...it's just a thought.

California Day 5, 6, and 7

Sunday we went to church with Dad and Lynn. After church all of Martin's family came over to Dad's house for a birthday BBQ in his honor. When everyone was leaving I felt my vision go wavey. Apparently there had been an earthquake in Los Angeles. We found out later that it had registered as a 4.7.

On Monday, we went to Disneyland. The girls were so excited. First up on the agenda were Mickey ears. They both picked out the princess ears and got their names stitched on the back. After that we hit the rides. Trying to do as many of the rides as we possibly could Martin and I would strategize were to go next while waiting in line. After riding the Matterhorn Alex wanted to know if every ride was a roller coaster. She loved it. After Fantasyland and Toon Town we had lunch. Next we hit Tomorrowland. We got in the 25 minute line for Space Mountain. When we were only 5 people away from getting on Ashlynn tells me she does not want to go. I have to ask her to seriously think about it because she can not change her mind after the fact. (I was not waiting in that line again.) Ashlynn and I did not go but Martin and Alex did. He said that when they got off she said "That was Awesome!". I guess she really likes roller coasters now. It was getting close to the closing time for California Adventure so we decided to go over and see if there was anything we really needed to ride on. When we got over there I realized that my cell phone was no longer in my pocket. After that everything went down hill. We were tired and I was cranky. The girls were falling asleep on Martin while I checked a couple of the rides for my phone. We decided to call it a day. I now understand why people feel the need to go to Disneyland for 3 to 5 days...we could never afford it but it would help spread things out a little.

On Tuesday we packed up and headed home. It is so good to get away but at the end of a trip it is so good to come home.

Happy Anniversary!

I know that most people have been celebrating Memorial day today but not Martin and me. Today is our 9 year anniversary. I know that most of you probably think that is still in the newlywed stages, I mean we are still in the single digits, but to us thinking of nine years seems like it should be a reallllly long time. We didn't do anything really special because we just got back for California not that long ago. This morning we worked a little in the yard (it is such a mess) then in the afternoon we went to see Monsters vs. Aliens in 3D. I think the girls really liked it. We went to Chili's for dinner after the movie. It wasn't really a great date since we had the girls with us. Yesterday I asked Martin if he loved me as much as the day we got married. He said that it was a different love. (haha, he always knows the correct answer) I also asked him if he would ever go back...he said he wouldn't trade our girls for anything. I love that man! I am married to a terrific husband and an even better father. I can not wait to see what the future has in store for us.
PS Happy Birthday Nikolas! I hope you had a great one!

California Day 3 and 4: The Wedding

(I stole this picture off of Jenny and David Webb's Blog because we did not take a single picture of the wedding.)

Friday was spent in San Bernadino doing whatever we could to help Linda prepare for Krista's wedding. I spent the morning chopping celery, honeydew, and pineapple. Because there was so much to cut up I did end up cutting my finger slightly but believe me it could have been much worse. Martin and the boys spent the day outside painting and stringing Christmas lights all throughout the backyard for the reception. We did what we could but it was relatively small compared to the huge amount of preparation Linda had been doing for months. I am amazed at all the small details that I would have totally forgotten about if I had been putting the wedding together.

Saturday Krista and Ertle were married. They were sealed in the Los Angeles temple by the same sealer that sealed Linda and Matt. The bride was beautiful and the spirit was strong. I really enjoyed being in the sealing room, everyone dressed in white with all of Martin's family. The reception was beautiful and thankfully not too hot. By the end of the night, the backyard had a magical feel to it with candles glowing, music playing and thousands of Christmas lights strung across the yard. We had planned on helping take down whatever was needed but it was apparently already assigned to people Matt and Linda knew. I have never seen something that took so long to put together, taken apart so very quickly. We got home really late and had to carry the sleeping girls in to bed. Thank goodness we got to sleep in some the next day.

California Day 1 and 2: Driving and Newport Beach

So this past week we were in California. (I am sure Debbie and Helmut have noticed my absence with no blogging on LiveStrong) We left Utah on May 13. The 10 hour drive was better than it could have been since our new car has a DVD player in it. The girls watched movies while Martin and I listened to The Host by Stephenie Meyer on CD. Martin drove most of the way but I did put in a little driving time. I drove from St. George to Primm, Nevada. I mostly drove because I had to. Around Las Vegas, Martin had to call in to the judge for a drivers license hearing.

On Thursday we decided to go to the beach. The girls were so anxious to get there but Martin had certain things he wanted to do first. We had to wash the car, go to the bank for quarters(in order to pay for parking at the beach) and since we were in the area we went to see the house he grew up in. The house looks completely different. You can tell that he feels no more ownership to it since it does not resemble the house he remembers. We finally got to the beach. We decided not to go swimming because the water was a little cold. The girls and Martin went "wading" instead. Somehow, the girls both fell over and got their clothes completely soaked. I saw Ashlynn go down and it was completely funny. The wave knocked her over and she just could not get back up on her own. She looked like a crab on its back.

Most of their time was spent collecting seashells. They were not really picky about shape, color or even if the shell was whole. Some of them came home with us but a lot of them Ashlynn used for white windows for her castle.

Since they did not have enough sand everywhere on their really wet clothes...Martin had to bury them in the sand. I think it must be tradition to bury someone when you are at the beach. Ashlynn seemed a little nervous but Alex was ready to please her dad.


After the beach we had lunch and then went swimming in the hotel heated pool and hot tub. We did a pretty good job covering our bodies with sunscreen except for both Martin's and my feet. His were bright red, while mine just had stripes from my fingers...Oh, well.