A Good Weekend

Mike, Ashlee, Brin and I traveled down to St. George for this!!:

Mike was able to baptize and confirm his sister, Krista, last weekend! It was an AMAZING experience! What a happy family!.. Ashlee did me a favor by cutting off my left side in this picture.. it didn't look all that great that day anyways. ;)

Then we dressed up the babes for Halloween! I made Brinley's tutu skirt (which was super cheap - $2 and easy to make!) and the headbands for the sweet cousins...though we didn't actually go out because they were tired and Brinley wasn't feeling very well.

This picture was about the closest of Alanna and Brinley together as we could get. They kept wandering around and wouldn't stay put. The headbands and wings didn't stay on for very long either.

Brinley's full outfit

Daddy feeding Brinley Reese's!

Alanna on Papa's lap. She looked so stinkin' cute.. and I loved the little sequenced net bows around her feet!

Krista's baptism was such a wonderful and special experience. Attending her baptism was a great opportunity to reflect on the covenants that I made with Heavenly Father and my relationship with Him and His son, Jesus Christ. I rejoiced with her when she received the gift of the Holy Ghost... which I have had for so long, and that I am sure I often take for granted. I am grateful for her faith, and to have been able to witness Mike performing the ordinance. I know that this meant alot to him as it does for me and especially our Heavenly Father.

Mr. Fix It.

This is a call out for my amazing husband!! We have ran into some problems since we have moved into our "new" house and Mike has been incredible at fixing them! Some are much more of a feat than others; however, I have been super impressed at my little handyman! :)

Problem: I broke the pull down string for the light in Brinley's room so we weren't able to turn on the light.

Solution: Mike took it apart, analyzed the problem (the pullstring thing-a-miggy was broken), replaced the broken part and now Brinley's room has light!

Problem: The upstairs toilet leaked into the downstairs bathroom whenever we flushed... The wax ring on our toilet had broken.

Solution: Mike with our neighbor, Darren's assistance, replaced the wax ring and sealed the toilet more securely. No more leaks! :)

Problem: Our gas dryer caused our laundry to smell strongly like smoke.

Solution: We bought a new electric dryer.

Problem: We had to unhook and plug the pipe to the gas for our old gas dryer.

Solution: Mike did it and our old dryer is gone! Thanks to Mike's dad for advice as well!

Problem: We plugged in the electric dryer to try it out, and it didn't turn on. - The outlet was not hooked up to a breaker.

Solution: Mike rewired some of the breakers to make room for a new one to hook the electric dryer to and now we have POWER! I tried our new dryer last night.. my clothes were dry and smelt clean breeze fresh!

We love fixing things on our own because we love saving money! I am so grateful to my husband for his skills and abilities, because no doubt we would have had to pay a plumber and electrician more than $200, but we spent less than $50! Hopefully one day soon we will be doing more improvements than fixes, but for now, I am so lucky to be married to a Mr. Fix-it! :)

Our Little Helper

Are all children so willing and excited to clean or am I just lucky?? As a 15 month old, Brinley loves to be of service to her mother and father! And we praise her up the wazoo for it! :) She likes to sit on the dishwasher lid and help me unload it. (Though I usually don't like her to because I'm afraid she might break it.) She hands me silverware to put away with a very distinct face and words you know intended to be something along the lines of "Here ya go, Mom," but come out in her own tongue.

She likes to grab baby wash clothes or paper towels and "wipe down" the floor, the toilet, or counter tops, and this morning it was her favorite red chair (probably the best dollar purchase I have made in my life.)

And as of late, Brinley Bug has discovered the garbage can. I was pretty nervous about this at first because she used to take things out of it and play with them! YUCK! Then she learned that the garbage can holds trash, like tissues and fruit snack wrappers. We have been sick at our house the past week so there have been a few tissues on the table and couch. Brinley decided to pick them up. Here she is on her third trip to the living room, finding another tissue and throwing it away...

Home Sweet Home

Well, I suppose it is finally time for me to post some pictures of our new place! We moved in about two weeks ago, so not all of the rooms are completely organized and looking how I want them to look. For example, our kitchen floor and curtains aren't my favorite. I suppose I should take before and after pictures before we do finally change them. Anyways, I apologize because you really are only going to see a couple rooms in the house. I will post more later.

I know I mentioned in an earlier post of us moving to Eagle Mountain, well that house actually fell through, and we are in Orem instead! We love our neighborhood and our neighbors, and it is great to not live so close to BYU campus anymore!

Here is our bathroom

Living room (not a fan of the lovely white fireplace, but oh well.. we'll live with it for now)

Living room again

Basement living room

A Welcome Home

When we got back from Connecticut, I had a couple surprises waiting for me -

1 - Mockingjay!!

Loved this book! Just as good as the others and so many awesome twists to the plot. Honestly, I wasn't quite sure where Collins was going to go with the 3rd book .. and how she was going to occupy a storyline for a complete novel. Oh boy, she sure did! Definitely worth the read.

5 out of 5 stars for sure.

2 - a massive spider in our bathtub! This picture really doesn't do it justice because I was still at least 6 inches above it when I took it. It was huuuge! Mike killed it and tried to rinse it done the drain, but it wouldn't fit.

Visit to Connecticut

We took a trip out to CT to visit family for a week. Most of Mike's extended family live there and he hasn't seen them for about 10 years, and I had never met them before. Plus my wonderful twin, Leslie lives there! The picture above is of when Brinley attacked a Dunkin Donut. She was covered in it! Great Grandma Duthrie was very helpful in cleaning her off.

Cousin Spencer (age 8 - soon to be 9) and Brinley. Spencer loved Brinley! And she enjoyed playing with him most of the time.

Leslie and her roommate Kira in a fight til the death! Well not really, but they were ferocious

! Leslie and I didn't have any pictures together.. Leslie, I blame that one on you. :)

Brin and I.. and some pleasant man walking behind us at the beach. It was my first time ever going to the beach and stepping foot into the ocean!! It felt nice, but I definitely am not a fan of tasting it. Well, I didn't literally lick the surface or anything, but all I could think of gurgling salt water when I am sick.. and those aren't very pleasant memories. Brinley was a bit cold and afraid of the waves.(Which were very small. haha)

Cousin Meghan, Mike and Uncle Jeff hanging out by the pool.

Me and Brinley - wearing the super cute swimsuit cousin Spencer picked out for her

Most of us together after the pool party at Uncle Dave's. I am too lazy to list everyone.

Cousin Calli, Grandma Duthrie, Brin and Mike at the park.

Cousin Calli and Brin at the park - they loved playing together.. well when Brinley wasn't whining and crawling after me.

Grandma Duthrie embracing Mike and great granddaughter Brinley

We loved the trip! I wish I had taken more pictures and had more patience to blog about the experiences and memories that we had. Duthrie family is amazing and my sister is awesome. I wish we could see more of them. Everyone was so hospitable, caring, and thoughtful of us. I left feeling so loved and grateful for family.

A New Wall to Scale

Well, here is Brinley in one of her most favorite things to do: explore through the fridge!! While Mike has been busy scaling alpine routes on the Grand Teton in Wyoming, this is what his daughter has been summiting... of course she hasn't really reached the top, but no doubt she would keep going up if the freezer were opened!

Notice the look before the ascent.

What??! Am I not supposed to be up here?

Happy little girl after a safe descent with help from mom.

Mike on the way up the Grand Teton on a first attempt. His team didn't end up summiting so back they went again and they were successful!

Brett Francis, Sarah Handley and Mike at the top of the Grand Teton!! Yay they made it and survived as well! :)

Another happy note - Mike and I celebrated our 4th anniversary earlier this week! I am married to the most amazing man in the world and our last 4 years of marriage have been just wonderful. We celebrated by going to the temple and eating Sub Zero ice cream.

A Taste of Nursery

I took Brinley into nursery for the first time on her own today. Yes, she just might be 6 months too young for normal family wards, but we are blessed enough to be in a ward where there are few kids in nursery so she can go! She was the only one in there at first and then another girl came later.

I had some mixed emotions about the whole thing - I mean I am grateful to not have to sit outside meetings while she is going crazy during Sunday school and Relief Society, but at the same time I am kinda sad to think that she is already in nursery.. without me or Mike.. and doing fine on her own. Oh, my little girl is growing up so fast!

It was soooooo cute when I went to pick her up. I didn't see her at first, but then I noticed her in the corner. She had fallen asleep on a play rug with her legs tucked in and her little butt in the air with the binkie off to the side of her hand. Oh I wish I had a camera to capture that precious moment that was so special to me.

Brinley is One!

We have a toddler! So crazy! A few things our one year old loves is:
- to be scared
- game of chase
- string cheese
- pretending to share and sometimes actually doing it.

At her one year appointment, Brinley weighed in at 18 lbs 14 oz and was 29.25 inches long.

I gave a go at cake decorating. Sheep were chosen because Brinley has a stuffed lamb that she loves. I think they turned out ok.

We had a double birthday party for Grandpa B and Brinley at the park. It was a good time. Thanks to all who participated whether in person or in thoughts. :)

Offer Approved.

Back in February Mike and I put in an offer for a town home in Eagle Mountain, UT. It was a short sale.. and about 5 months later we got approval!! I'm not quite sure why short sale homes are called "short sales," because the average closure time is 4-6 months. We have been blessed with how things have turned out though. We will be able to get the rural housing loan and receive the tax credit for new home-buyers.

If all goes well, we should close and be moved in in about a month. Pictures to come later. :)

P.S. Slight disappointment about this buy.. "free" trip to Cancun is canceled. It actually costs about 200 dollars just for the processing fee and additional fees are tacked on as well. Granted it is still a steal of a deal, but it turns out buying home is kind of expensive.

Babies Drumming

Brinley and Isaac were going crazy while Mike was drumming. Then Isaac started drumming along with Mike. They are so cute!

Stadium of Fire

Wow, I can't believe it has been almost a month since my last post! Crazy! Mike made it back from Uganda in good health and we are very happy to have him back home with us. I almost feel like this is a journal that I need to update what we have been doing the last month, but let's be honest, that's not going to happen because it would be a ridiculously long post! Although, I hope I can get Mike to write at least one post about his experience in Africa.

Anyway, happy Independence Day everyone! Mike and I were able to go to Stadium of Fire this year to watch Carrie Underwood! It was awesome. I was surprised at all of the different things included in the event from giving away motorcycles, five different musical acts, to a very large court of honor.

It was a fairly emotional evening for me. I lost count of all the times I teared up throughout the night. Let me just recount a few..

• They represented each military branch with a small troop in uniform with each branch's flag and song playing as they marched on to the field. Oh and when each branch was called, people of the audience stood up if they were a part of it.
• Four military jets flew overhead right after the national anthem was sung by Carrie Underwood... I don't know why either.. My thoughts must have been along the lines of, "Oh cool!! Real jets!"... then tears built up.
• A 98 year old man that was the founder or something of Boy Scouts of America starting the court of honor ceremony.
  
• A 2-3 year old girl dressed in a red, white and blue dress with glitter and ribbons in her hair sitting next to us getting excited about the concert and watching her parents faces light up with excitement as well.
  
• A gorgeous firework that I could only describe as a celestial chandelier. It wasn't big either, but the fans of white sparks against the night sky was a spectacle of beauty like I had never seen before in a fireworks show.
  

Seriously, I could add several more to my list. Probably what touched me the most was a particular song sung by Carrie Underwood. Let me just say she is AMAZING to watch live. She brings so much spirit, power and talent to her performances. She precluded this song by saying of all the songs she has written, this is her proudest work as a song writer. So, I thought it was going to be a song I was familiar with, but it wasn't. I hadn't heard it before. Though, I'm sure many of you have. It is called Temporary Home. Literally, tears running down my cheeks. A new round of tears came with every verse too. I felt rather lame because no one else was crying around me... haha oh well! Here is a link to watch it on youtube:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LraOiHUltak

Anyway, Stadium of Fire was awesome and if you get the chance to go, I highly recommend it.

Petting Zoo!

During our visit to Seattle, Brinley and I went to the petting zoo with Kilee and Easton Nickels. Brinley loved the animals, but did not want to touch them. She was so excited to see them and was talking like crazy. Easton just ran around the place like the little independent guy he is.

Brinley and me posing with the sheep! Kilee and Easton with her favorite farm animal, baby pigs!

Brinley and Easton checking out the pigs.

Peeking at the baby chicks.

Brinley looking in awe.. but not touching!

Easton and a baby cow.

Tools of the Trade Stainless Steel Pots and Pans Review

Boy, this is posting day! I have been on the hunt for some stainless steel pots and pans. The other day I was in Macy's and found a brand I hadn't heard of on sale for half off. I was a little skeptical of the brand because it wasn't mentioned when I was doing my research on what kind to buy. However, I still bought the 12-piece mirror-polished set.

Before I opened them, I read quite a few reviews about them. Usually 1/5 or 5/5 stars from consumers who had bought them. Needless to say I had some mixed feelings about the pans. The overall rating was about a 4.3/5. So, yesterday I decided to try one. I wanted to cook something easy to see how well it worked. I had read a lot about needing to use butter or cooking spray on the frying pan to make sure it didn't stick . The meal I chose to try was a grilled cheese sandwich with the bread buttered on each side on low heat. Simple enough right?

Here is what happened to my pan...


Maybe I didn't use enough butter? It took a solid 5-7 minute scrub with really hot water to get this off. Annoying to say the least.

My rating: 1/5 stars.

They will be returned this week.

Art City 5k

I ran a 5k with some friends and family this weekend in Springville. It was a lot of fun. There was a rather steep hill that I couldn't make it all the way up with a stroller and had to walk about half way. Man, it was tough! I hope to do another one or another race in the future too. I enjoyed the week of training and the goodies afterward. Plus, it was a cheap race :). Thanks to my friends Ashlee, Dalyn, Lindsey, Austin, and Liz for running it with me. And to my brother John and his wife Liz for recommending it to me. I would love to run it again next year!

Liz B., John, Dalyn, and me before the run with our kiddos and strollers. John took 3rd in the stroller division! Woohoo!

My cute little bug ready to go for a ride

Me, Ashlee and Dalyn right before the gun went off.

Brinley was exhausted after the race and needed some hydration!...Ashlee also fed her ice cream for the first time!

Our matching pants

Yes, I was very sweaty after the run. And it was pretty warm too.

Babes that went on a ride: (left to right) Brinley, Porter Nardone and Isaac Heath

Chilling after the race, waiting for the drawings to begin!

These pictures were borrowed from different cameras seeing how ours is in Africa with Mike, so I don't have all of the pictures that I wanted to post. Lindsey and Liz H. - I love you too! :)