The View From Up Here

"I Will Never..."

2011-12-15T10:09:00.000-07:00

The last month I've really reflected on my life. Yes, it's going to be one of those updates. I can't really help it, sorry. I will start off with some exciting news that most of you probably already know about. Cameron recieved a job offer from SkyWest Airlines to start sometime this Spring. They have tossed around some tentative dates and he also has been put on a "short call" list. If someone drops out or what not they can call him and put him in the next available class date. They have never forloughed a pilot so they are very careful about only hiring the pilots they need. That's why no set date. Anyway, exciting to have been extended the offer. We will wait oh so not patiently for a phone call ;)

Like I was saying before, I've been reflecting. Have any of you ever said, "I will never do ___(fill in the blank)"? Well, I have. And if any of you know me well enough you will know how that has backfired most of the time.
The first time I can really remember was when I was a teenager. For some reason my Dad and I were talking about volkswagons. I had decided right then and there, for another odd reason, that "I would never drive a volkswagon". And I told my Dad as much. He even went as far as to have me write it down. I told him he would never be able to keep the paper.
Guess what my first car was. Yup, a volkswagon. AND he kept the letter. I believe he still has it tucked away in a drawer somewhere.
The next instance (that I can remember) is when I was getting ready to apply to colleges. I was looking into church schools and my best friend's mom was telling my mother about one in Idaho. Again, I uttered those dreaded words that pretty much mean I'm GOING to do it. "I will never go to school in Idaho." I dont have to tell you what college I graduated from.
You think I would have learned my lesson by now. But oh no, I hadn't.
Not too long after I joined the Latter-Day Saint Church, I was talking with friend about being a stay-at-home mom. It is suggested that mom's stay home to be with their children. The church understands that there is a need for some moms to work outside the home and these women are not shunned but it is suggested that a mom who stays home is best for our children. My thinking was that my mom was a working mom and I have always thought my sister and I turned out alright (no comments needed on this point, thank you). So came, "I will never be a stay-at-home mom..." I met my husband, matured and realized the importance of a stay-at-home mom. Thus, here I am today.
I met Cameron's family. He and the rest of his siblings are homeschooled. "I could never homeschool..." Time went on and talk of Cameron's dreams of being an airline pilot found us talking about the pro's of homeschooling. We'd be able to travel whenever and with his schedule he would be home for a week at a time, maybe two. We wouldn't be stuck to the kids public school schedules. I entertained the idea because it seemed so far in the future. Not as far as I thought.
Other ideas have come up. Ideas that I said "I could/would never...". sO I guess you all can be on the watch for those ;)
I just think that's it interesting that my life is full of things that I never thought I could or would do. But if I had stuck to my words, for one, I probably never would have learned how to drive :) and two, I wouldn't have the life I have today. It isn't perfect, it isn't all roses. It's frustrating, and boring, and stressful, but it's wonderful.
Wow, I just reread that and it sounds really cheesy. Sorry. I'm reading a book that has some dramatic word usage and it must be rubbing off.
Through all of this it is VERY obvious that the Lord has a sense of humor. I can just see it. He must laugh everytime I say that phrase and think, "Oh you won't? We'll see about that". I have learned mass amounts of information from each of these "nevers". About what is important in life, about me, about the Lord.
Even though it has been a good experience, and I'm sure it's not over, I'll be picking my words a little more carefully from here on out...and going through every converstation I've ever had in my life trying to figure out what "I will never" be doing next.
I guess what my hope is from this update is that we will keep an open mind about things. We never know what will make us into better people, what will teach us, what will help us understand, what Heavenly Father's will is for us.

A Child's Point of View

2011-11-07T10:49:00.000-07:00

These pictures are from our recent trip to Utah. My old roommate, Sarah, got married in the Draper Temple on the 3rd. It was REALLY windy that day so I didn't get any pictures of them coming out of the temple :( but Breanne decided while we were visiting temple square in between the luncheon and the recpetion that she was going to be in charge of the picture taking. It was fine with me. I got to talk to people and she was occupied. Win-win. So enjoy these pictures from a child's eye.

Okay, I took this one

Her first picture. The Christos in the Salt Lake Temple Visitior's Center

Salt Lake Temple

This is a "We are soooo cold. Hurry and take the picture!" picture.

This writing is on every temple. Very cool.

Angel Moroni

She liked taking pictures of pictures.

They had this cool model of the Salt Lake Temple. I don't know if this is how it's currently set up or when it was first built. I've never been inside to see, but I did hear one of the tour guides say that the Celestal Room looks pretty much the same as when it was built in 1893.

Obviously she didn't take this one either.

Conference Center. This is where the church holds General Conference twice a year.

Model of what Jerusalem looked like A.D. 33

Reception time with the Hansen's and the Sypher's. The little boy closest to the camera is Patrick. They haven't seen eachother since they were 3 or something but I think the betrothal is still on. Yes?

The reception center was georgeous!

Welcome to the kid's table

David and his Daddy, Chad. I think he looks like a mini me.

Breanne wanted so badly to get a picture of the bride. You don't even know how many blurry or bad shots we erased.

Finally she got Sarah's attention and she started posing for her.

Kate. Another roommate. People do the best poses for kids. Love this one.

All the old roomies, minus 2. Sandy and Anna you were missed.

Classic Chad.

Maggie and baby Jesse

Having hot chocolate at the reception was the best idea ever.

I look scary and kaity looks bored.

Vida and Daxton

Beautiful Bride, Sarah

Taking a break from our drive back home at the St. George Temple.

Another Christos in the St. George Visitor's Center

More pictures of pictures. These are from inside the temple.

The Celestal Room. Georgeous, yes?

The Garden Room

Baptismal Font

Joseph Smith. The Prophet of the Restoration.

Christ teaching in the temple as a boy.

Jerusalem

Great picture. I couldn't have taken a better one myself.

She wanted one of the roses. Too bad the garbage can was right there.

She was still at it after we got home. At this point I was almost ready to take it away.

Ginger was the most cooperative, I guess, because there are a billion and a half pictures of the dog.

The beautiful girl behind the camera.

We had a great trip and really appreciate the hospitality of the Hansen family. I'm glad we were able to spend time with you! And to the Mrs. Sarah Whitelock (hehe) I'm so very glad we made the trip up to see you and meet your husband. I wish you both the best!!! Hopefully, I'll live closer you all you Utards so we can see more of eachother then every 2-3 years.

The Last Month and a Half

2011-09-25T09:17:00.000-07:00

First off we got to celebrate Miss Kaitlyn's 3rd birthday on the 18th of September. I hope you liked the mog pog of pictures. Happy Birthday to our little 3 year old monkey! My mom came just for the special occasion which totally made both of the girls weekend. And mine. And Cameron's ;) We got to play around in Vegas after we picked her up, go to the lake, and play and play and play. My mom has all the pictures and who knows when, if at all, we'll see those. Thank you, Mom for coming! Thanks for putting up with your nomad children.

We've started to homeschool. Yep, I said it. We're homeschooling. I know I posted about Breanne's first day of kindergarten and how much she likes school but it has nothing to do with the school or her education. It just seemed the best fit for our family for right now. It's actually going pretty well. The girls and I are having fun together. We're still figuring things out which has made this month really hectic but I think it's going to be good. I feel like it's giving the girls and I a better relationship because we're productive together instead of just trying to fill our days and not be bored. I feel like Breanne and I are learning to be more patient with one another and know eachother's strengths and weaknesses (yes, even I have weaknesses). It's been a really great decision for us. So that's why I haven't posted in awhile because I'm still trying to figure out this homeschool schedule and still fit in my cleaning and grocery shopping, etc. That's probably the most difficult of it all!

The job front is also looking up right now. I'm not going to give details until we know for sure but a move could be in our future, within the next month I mean. A move seems to ALWAYS be in our future. If it really happens it will be a really good move. More on that in the next couple of weeks. Hopefully by the 4th of Oct? Oh the suspense!

First Day of Kindeegarten

2011-08-08T11:05:00.001-07:00

Yes, I ment to spell it that way.
Oh man. After months of waiting it finally came and I can't really believe it. I have a kindergartener. SERIOUSLY?! She was so excited. She's been asking for WEEKS when school starts. I told her last week that after "church day" (sunday) she would go to school. She woke up Sunday morning and said, "Mom! Today is church day. That means there's no more days until I go to school!" Yup, babe, that's what it means. I took a few pictures but I always remembered my mom taking pictures of me at my desk. I didn't get one of those because we met her class out in front of her room and they went straight to the cafeteria. That's another thing. This school serves the kids breakfast in the morning at no cost. Kinda weird and cool at the same time. I'm still going to feed her breakfast before she goes. So they go to breakfast at 7:55 and start class at 8:10. Anyway, here are the pictures. Cameron said I should take the camera again tomorrow and get there a little earlier so I can get one in her desk. When I realized that I wouldn't get one today that's what almost put me over the edge. But I controlled myself and made back to the car with no tears (I didn't put on mascara just in case though).

This one makes her teacher look really scary. She's not, I promise. Bad timing is all.

Bye Bye, love.

Going Home

2011-07-11T07:59:00.000-07:00

The title of this post has a dual meaning. Last week was crazy. We received some news from Cameron's family (I hope she doesn't mind me sharing) that his sister, who was due around the 9th of this month had been having some complications and in the end had lost the baby. How sad, how very very sad it was to hear this. I can only image the preparations that had been made seeing that she was due in just a week or two. So, with that news we started looking at ways to make it home and luckily Cameron's employer was very flexible and accomidating. So much so that he let us take one of their planes so that we could fly ourselves up to Washington. Driving would have taken an eternity and plane tickets were pricey, plus we wanted Cameron's other sister who lives in Rexburg to be able to come with us as well. This was the best plan. We had planned on leaving Saturday morning.
2AM Saturday Morning: Kaity comes running in our room saying, "Sissy throwing up!" Oh geeze...Sure enough she's throwing up. All of a sudden I get the urge to do the same and there stands poor Cameron with two sickies on his hands. This ritual continues far into the day so that cancelled all travel plans. By later that night Breanne and I start feeling better but then Cameron starts to feel icky. It seems like this will never end. Cameron makes it through the night without visiting the bathroom or the need of one of our trusty bowls, lucky devil. Sunday morning rolls around. The girls and I are chipper and feeling almost 100% better and Cameron seems to be fairing well. We decide to make the trip after all.
Around 11 AM we take off for Rexburg to pick up his sister. The flight was bumpy. Breanne and I were still recovering a bit so we weren't feeling real great and had our eyes closed for most of the trip. Our first stop to get fuel couldn't come soon enough. Filmore, UT never looked so good! After eating a bit of something we got back in the plane and made the rest of the way to ID. We were almost there, we had made it more then 5 hours in that small plane, 20 mins until landing and all of a sudden Bre yells, "I'm gonna throw up!" And she did. In the only empty plastic bag I could find and it had atleast 2 holes in it. Needless to say it was a mess, but mostly on Bre so we just had a quick wardrobe change in flight and that took care of most of it. We finally landed on solid ground.
The next morning we left bright and early and had terrific weather. Not a single bump. Okay, right before we landed in WA we had a few little "roller coasters", that's the only way I can describe the feeling. After a couple of those Kaity says, "More fun, Daddy! More fun!" We're all thinking, "No more fun, please!" That pretty much sums up how Kaity did the flight there. Nothing phased that kid and when we had all that turbulence the first day she kept asking for crackers and cookies while Bre and I just held our sensitive stomachs.
Okay, the whole reason we came. We got to Cam's parents on Monday. Tuesday they had planned a small funeral with just family. Cameron's dad prepared a talk about the special spirit that had come it to the world, ever so briefly and the blessings that the Lord has promised to us if we stand faithful. That Mike and Larissa would get to raise this child, not in this world, but in a more perfect place. That the blessings of the temple bring us the knowledge that we are forever families. That this little child will watch over them and their children and comfort and uplift. His talk was awesome. Not without tears but so powerful. Doug amazes me. He's a quite type of guy, but when it comes to matters of faith he just blows me away.
This isn't my trial but by watching them go through this and put their little Celeste Hope to rest I was in awe of their strength. It's moments like these, the ones where we don't have any answers of why, that make me so profoundly grateful for this Gospel. For a Father in Heaven that gives us these trials, these road blocks in life, that try us, that try our faith, but that teach us so much. And allows us to feel the love that he has for us. Because that's the only way to get through things like this. The events in life that can so easily break us. To know that Heavenly Father has a plan and we need to put our trust in Him and let Him lead us. Larissa stood as an example to me. I know her days couldn't have been easy, I know they weren't, but she continues on. I know she probably prays daily for strength to get through, but she's received it. We ended the funeral by letting some white balloons go with messages written on them. It was a beautiful sight to see all these messages floating "up to Heaven" as Larissa's little boy Austin put it.
So, the title of the post. Going home. Yes, we did but so did Celeste. She was named such to remind us that she's in the Celestial Kingdom with our Father. I'm glad that we were able to come and support them and to spend the little time we had there.
I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

Kayaks and Birthdays

2011-06-20T10:04:00.000-07:00

We got to go on this really amazin kayaking trip last Wednesday. It started at the base of Hoover Dam and ended at Willow Beach (not even real sure where that is). To get to the base of the dam they took us on this restricted road that we had to get permits for. A person escorted us down and had to observe us the whole time and didn't leave until we started paddling away.
The morning was B.E.A.Utiful, no wind. It was a perfect day to go down the river. While we were waiting for everyone to get their boats ready to go I was sitting on the rocks with one foot in my kayak. I was going to fix my seat real quick but didn't realize that the rocks were so slippery. I serisouly fell into the river before the trip even started. The guy who escoted us did say that he had never seen anyone slip in so gracefully :) That made me feel better. So I got to check the water out before everyone else. It was about 40-50 degrees. Yeah, a bit chilly...

Watch out guys. Those rocks can be slippery...I would know.

There were lots of little places to stop along the river. Hot springs and what not, but we wanted to try and find these hot pools. This little canyon that were hiking up? Not the right way to the hot pools but we didn't realize that until we had hiked almost half a mile in. Come to find out later that trail led to the highway. So we really added an extra mile to our trip. I think that hike spent everyone more then the paddling. By this time in the day it was well over 100 and not many of us were equiped for hiking as we were in water shoes and bathing suits. Oh well, now we know.

This was the sign on the REAL trail to the hot pools. I guess a couple people in our group didn't see it on the way up and dunked themselves completely...it does say it's rare. Lets hope that's true.

We had to climb this ladder to get to the hot pools. The first pool that's at the top is pretty warm. We described it as Bullhead City tap water. Yes, living here in the desert we don't have cold tap water in the summer and turn our hot water heaters almost completely off. Anyway, the first pool was like that and the second was like a really hot hot tub. The third one was burn the flesh off your legs hot. Maybe it was just because my chins got burnt but seriously I couldn't stand to be in it. I had to run through it!

Cameron's in the background making his way to the "flesh melter".

Ahhh, beautiful...but the wind started to pick up in the afternoon and the stops becam less and less as we tried to paddle against the wind. It was down right brutal at times. Our friends were in a double kayak and his wife hurt her shoulders, not on the trip, and couldn't paddle so he was paddling that thing by himself in the wind, with another kayak tied to the back because on the trip one of the other ladies slipped and hurt her wrist. It was quite the sight and at times he couldn't even keep it facing down river. If I hadn't been trying to keep myself facing down stream I would have taken a picture. The day ended at 5 when we finally reached it to the pull out spot. Phew!

For Cameron's birthday he wanted to go out to eat. Here in Bullhead there aren't a lot of places to choose from and we hadn't been to Lake Havasu City yet so we headed down that way. I don't think there's an original idea in all of Havasu. They have the London Bridge, you know...the one from London, and they have these mini lighthouses from places across the country. Why they can't come up with their own thing I'll never know. Anyway, for fun I made Cam and the girls get their picture with one of the mini lighthouses.

It was windy. Well, it's always windy.

THE London Bridge.

Randomness over the last 2 months

2011-06-01T15:07:00.000-07:00

I've realized that I have neglected to off load my camera in the last couple of months. Oops. So here are some pictures from Easter, our trip to Big Bear Lake and other randomness that happens at our house.

My Bre turned 5 on May 1st!

Poor dog in a choke hold. This happens often.

Tea Time

We had an Easter Egg hunt with some kids from our church

Breanne looking a lot like "Gus Gus" right here.

Big Bear Lake

We took a trip to good ol' Riverside, CA a couple weeks ago to visit some friends out there. I brought my camera but for some odd reason I didn't take any pictures with it. Here's a couple I took with my phone. I got to see the baby that was born the day after we left town (that I didn't take a picture of!), walk Mt. Rubidoux once more for old time sake, run a 5K with a jogging stroller and play with my former softball team, "I'd Hit It" (which means I got to see Rae and Dane. I wish we could have spent more time together).

I'm hoping that this summer will bring some more exciting posts. Here are some of the things we have planned: A kayaking trip on the 15th of June that starts at the base of Hoover Dam (thanks to a lovely lady who is kindly watching our kiddos that day!!! Thank you Sandy!), 18th is Cameron's birthday, 19th is Father's day, the girls and I are taking a trip to Utah on the 27th of June to visit long lost friends (YAY!), 4th of July (don't know what yet but it's always fun, right?) and to end our summer of vacations we (the girls and I) will fly home to Washington for 2 weeks the end of July (courtesy of my Mama. Thanks, Mom!). Breanne starts Kindergarten on the 8th of Aug. So now you all know our schedule for the next 2 months. Hopefully, I'll remember to take pictures.

Oh, and on another note. I know I already put up here that Cam was going to start getting trained in the seaplanes but he's about one flight away from having his first student. His boss also told him that as soon as he's good to solo in the buccaneer he can take me on a flight. It sounds pretty cool because you can put the landing gear up and down in the water. There's a restaurant in Lake Havasu City that's on the river. I guess you can fly the "buck" down there, land in the water, put the gear down, go up the boat launch and park it in the parking lot. SWEET!

He also took his ATP written (a test he has to have completed to get a job with an airlines) with an 86%. Now, that may not seem too impressive but listen to this. This test has only 80 questions but it pulls the 80 questions from a test bank of 1500! It's basically memorizing everything that you possibly can and then going and taking the test...immediately before all the information falls out of your brain. He had to go up to Vegas to take it which is 1.5 hours away. He took a practice test the night before and got a low 80. The say to expect about 10% lower on your actual test. You need a 70% to pass so we were expecting him to barely pass this thing and he ended up with a pretty decent score. Just made me proud that he was able to pull it out and get it done.

Lake Mohave

2011-04-20T08:27:00.000-07:00

Panning for gold, or maybe just mud.

This is Kaity getting up right after she fell in trying to get back to the shore. She even abandoned her frisbee in the desperate flight.

This was before she fell in. Hence the smile.

Kaity and I were recovering from our colds (3rd time this year!) on Sunday so we stayed home from church. It was such a beautiful day out, though, that we couldn't stand to be inside any longer. We were going to just go down to the river again but decided that we would explore a little instead. Cameron went fishing with the young men in the ward a few days earlier at Lake Mohave so we thought that would be a good place to start. It was the perfect time to go to because last week was National Park Appreciation week (it's in the Lake Mead Recreation Area), or something like that, so everyone got in free. Saved us $10. We went over to a place called Princess Point, I think. Awesome beach and there was hardly anyone there. We hadn't really planned on swimming that day so we didn't come prepared. It was about 95 out so we couldn't help but pull up our shorts and wade in, or in Kaity's case fall in. The dog even got in on the fun. Not willingly. I had to pull her by her hind legs into the water and make her swim back to the beach. She looked like a wet cat. I should have got a picture of that! We are definitely buying a annual pass for the summer. I'm sure the place gets packed but there's lots of other places that we have yet to explore in the park. We're thinking about making it a weekly trip. Anyone want to join? :)

A quick update

2011-04-04T08:50:00.000-07:00

I know what some of you might be thinking. "They've been there for coming up on 5 months. Shouldn't they be moving?" Well, here's the scoop.....We've been thinking a lot about this. Cameron has gotten up to 1100 hours and most of the airlines that are hiring have minimums of 1000. He has heard of a couple really interesting sounding jobs from the students he trains, one includes a corporate/charter job, flying jets, that's out of LA. It pays really well for a 1st year First Officer. The other is with Sky West and everyone has good things to say about them.

As we were thinking about all of this and if we should be tossing out resumes Cameron was given the opportunity to start being trained to instruct in the seaplanes.

Piper Cub


Lake Buccaneer

The condition was that he'd have to stay put with the company for 6 more months. We thought that flying seaplanes is what we wanted but Cam was getting excited about the next job and flying a fast jet. He went back and told his boss to hold off on training him because he was thinking about applying elsewhere. That brought out the big guns. They started throwing money at him to keep him there. Effective immediately, he got a pay raise to what a 2 year CFI makes (he won't be one until July) and to sweeten the deal he would get another pay raise once he's all set to instruct in the seaplanes. Needless to say, this is the most money we've ever made. That's not really saying a lot but it's quite exciting for us. It's also nice that a company is willing to offer us more money to keep Cameron.

Of course, we had to rethink our original decision. After comparing Pros and Cons we came to the conclusion that we're going to stick it out here in the desert. To those of you who may be confused or in shock at our willingness to stay, let me explain.
First of all, let me tell you that the first year pay for a FO (first officer) is horrible. We're talking $1300-$1600 a month. We've always been prepared for the downgrade in pay and knew that it was going to be tight. But now, we'll be able to start saving, REALLY SAVING, so when we do make the jump we'll have a cushion to live off for the first year. This is one of the biggest reasons we're staying. Because moving (which would include buying out our contract) is expensive and pay is bad and we would deplete everything we have to get to the next job. I won't go more into it because you probably really don't care all that much but that's what's going on with us.

They'll start him in the Lake Buccaneer to train him in the aircraft and when he's good to go in that they'll move him to the cub and he'll start instructing. To get him more excited yesterday afternoon I made him take us down to the river where they keep the seaplanes. That did it. Cameron will spend the summer on the Colorado River. That means that pictures like this will be common place in a few short months!

St. Patrick's Day

2011-03-18T09:01:00.000-07:00

I think I'm the only Stay-At-Home-Mom that didn't do something special for their kids for St. Patricks Day. I really didn't know that it was such a big holiday. If only I'd known then I would have done something....okay, I wouldn't. I look for any reason to make cookies though so we did make some but I didn't have a shamrock shaped cookie cutter and the dough was way too soft to roll out. Anyway, they had green frosting and pink sprinkles (my girls will find a way to add pink to anything, even a day of green).
I felt so left out of the festivities that I had to post about our nothingness. Do you think my kids will be psychologically damaged when they find out that a leprechaun never visited them as kids, their toilet water and milk were never green, and their mom never made clever green foods for them to eat? Probably, but what am I to do? :)

I really do think that all these things that other moms do for their kids are cute and secretly I'm jealous that I'm not that creative or motivated. Hats off to you all.

Emergency Landing #2

2011-02-24T09:24:00.000-07:00

No I am not kidding. I wish I were though.

Last Tuesday I got a phone call that started with, "Everyone's okay". That immediately makes me think that it's NOT okay. This time him and his student were out doing an instrument cross country out to Prescott, AZ. On the way there the engine failed. (Turns out that the fuel line broke and starved the engine) Cameron takes over the controls and starts looking for a place to land out in the middle of the nowhere (also known as Wikieup, AZ). He decides on a few places but as he gets closer to the ground he sees that his first two options (that were paved) have power lines. So he goes with his third option which is a dirt road. He lands the aircraft fine (dodging brush and rocks) but comes up on a wash in the road. They were going pretty slow by this point but he took his feet off the brakes and tried to lift the nose over the wash. It started out well but as they came back down the nose wheel hit the edge and tore off.

You can see the wash and the nose wheel in the background. Anyway, some workers were out and saw Cam's plane come down so they were there by the time he stepped out of the plane. They drove him and his student to a diner and not long after they got there people were coming up to him asking him if he was the pilot and if "this" was his aircraft (showing him a picture on there phone that WAS his aircraft. This is a VERY small town). People gave him a round of applause for his landing and compared him to the guy who landed in the Hudson. Crazy!
The FAA has since been out to look at the aircraft and the accident site and they only have good things to say about Cameron's landing. Apparently he picked and nailed the ONLY landing spot that would have worked out there. He talked with one of the guys yesterday and after he got done questioning Cam he told him that they may just send him a letter of recommendation, or something like that, to send in with his resume to other companies. A letter from the FAA telling a future employer what a great pilot he is? Yeah, we'll take it! All in all Cameron did everything right and has received nothing but praise.
On a better note, Sheble Aviation is losing a few instructors. This leaves a couple key positions open like a seaplane instructor. Cameron has already put his name in and with any luck he'll get the opportunity to start working with the current seaplane instructor before he leaves.
Hopefully, this is the last of the emergency landings. If not, I'm going to urge him VERY STRONGLY to consider dentistry again.

Cameron's First Emergency Landing

2011-02-05T09:55:00.000-07:00

And his LAST, I hope! I can honestly say that him telling me this story didn't strike fear into me. He's an amazing pilot and is the most level headed thinker I have met. He's the only person I know that doesn't give into his adrenaline and fear, even when, lets use this as an example, HIS PLANE IS ON FIRE! Regardless, I still don't want ANYTHING to happen like this AGAIN! I'll recount what he told me as best I can and be kind with me as I try and use aviation "lingo".
He was out with a student and the weather has been ridiculously cold lately so she wanted to turn on the heater. Cameron was fully aware that the heaters in these things are a "ticking time bomb". But he assured me that if use properly and ventilated they should be fine. Well, all was not fine. They entered the pattern and were getting ready to land when white smoke started filling the cabin. (It think)Cam turned it off and hit the button that was suppose to ventilate the heater (or something) and that's what the black smoke started filling the cabin. His student gave the controls over to him. They couldn't see so they opened a small window that started sucking the smoke out. He used that little gap that the window was making while sucking the smoke out to see the runway. He throttled up to 140 knots (which is a very fast speed to be coming in for a landing). His feet were getting really hot, but he never saw any flame (just assumed that there was). He could still hardly see when they came in to land (and Cam doesn't really remember this) but his student told him that he "greased it on". That means that it was a nice landing :) While Cam was preparing to land his student ripped off their headsets and undid the seat belts so that as soon as the aircraft was stopped they could jump out. They put the brakes on hard and as soon as they stopped they jumped out. A fire truck was on its way to meet them but at the rate and speed that Cameron descended to land the fire was already put out. Shaken but safe. The funny part was that the firefighters were disappointed that they had got all dressed up and there was nothing to do. They did get to ride back in the truck though so it all ended on a good note and he was back in the air the next morning (not in that aircraft, or course).
I'm sure I'm missing details that Cameron would have thrown in but that's the story I remember. This experience has only increased my confidence in his skills as a pilot and reaffirmed to me that the only place for him to be is in an airplane.

Our New Addition

2011-02-04T09:44:00.000-07:00

Most of you already now about the newest member of our family, Ginger. She's a 4 year old Shetland Sheep Dog. We adopted her on 1/11/11 from the local shelter for $10. I won't go into much of the details of what has happened (or been chewed through) since she's been with us because I have posted many of the woes on facebook. All I can say is that I'm working with her to overcome her faults...
She's a very sweet dog and has SOO much patience with the girls, especially Kaity who's constantly in her face, pulling her collar, putting sunglasses on her, etc. I didn't think having a dog would be this, umm, stressful or frustrating and if I had to do it again I don't know if I would. But she's with us now as a permanent part of the Marley fam.
Not much else exciting has happened. Cameron did get a raise, which was really nice because, one more money is always nice, but two that he actually works for a company who GIVES pay raises. They have been really impressed with Cameron's work ethic and the comments that they have got from the students he has trained. Cameron is so close to hitting that 1000 hour mark he can taste it! When that happens he'll start tossing out his resume, AGAIN, and see what hits he gets. For all our Western WA people, Horizon Airlines is first on the list to apply to. That would get us either to Portland, or Seattle. Either one would please our families, I'm sure. Of course all of this is very hypothetical. It's really just us dreaming, but Horizon's minimum time requirements are 750 hours and their strongly preferred requirements are

1,000 hours total flight time.

100 hours of multi-engine flight time (Cam has about 300)

A college degree (B.A. or B.S.)

All of which Cameron has with the exception that he needs about 40 more total hours. Again, just dreaming.
That's about all that's worth writing about. My mom is heading out this way on the 17th so I'm sure they'll be pictures to post in the next couple of weeks. For now we just stay inside most of the time and try to stay warm (third hottest place in the US my eye!).

Christmas

2010-12-30T16:58:00.001-07:00

On Christmas Eve we decided to take a family hike. This may become a yearly tradition no matter where we are. If it's snowy we'll go snow shoeing or cross country skiing. But it was sunny so a regular hike it was.
I really didn't think that there would be too many people out because, hello, it's Christmas Eve. They should have better things to do like make a huge Christmas dinner and be with family. Apparently, not in Bullhead/ Laughlin area. As you can see from the picture below, there are quite a few cars in the parking area. Okay, you can only see 3. But there were more then that!

This place was right across the bridge into Laughlin.

My handsome mountain man. He was so excited to get in the outdoors that he brought along his homemade camp stove and a pan to cook something in. Unfortunately, he didn't get the opportunity to use it.

Some of the rocks with petroglyphs on them. Apparently this place is sacred to the native american tribe in the area.

My girls being themselves which is anything but quite and reverent in the sacred place.

Kaity and her rock.

Breanne said that this rock formation looks like a camel. So that's what we'll call it. Camel rock. Do you see it?

There is water in the desert! It had just got done raining for the past 4 days so there was a pretty cool little river that ran all the way down the rocks. We had to jump across it several times to keep going up.

The night before Christmas and all through the house not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse.

and the stockings were hung by the (eh hem) counter with care in hopes that St. Nicholas would soon be there.

{Insert Video that was taking FOREVER to upload here}

Christmas morning!

Hope you all had a fun and relaxing Christmas because we sure did. It was nice to have Cameron home for a few days. We even went out a bought ourselves a BIG Christmas tree during the after Christmas sales. It's 7 1/2 feet tall and about 3 1/2 feet wide at the bottom. With our tree topper on we have taken it right up to the ceiling.

We also got the girls some fish. This one here is "Watson".

This one is "Sherlock".

The girls would really enjoy a pet that they can play with but this will have to do for now.

Cameron is really liking the job over here. They have him all checked out in the multi engine aircraft and is now one of 2 multi engine instructors. One of the "big wigs" with the company, Senior, has really taken a liking to Cam as well. He's went flying quite a bit with cam to get him his multi hours so he could instruct in their aircraft (which I guess he doesn't do with anyone) and he gave our family a spiral Christmas ham that was delicious. The company also gave a smaller ham and a big tin of Schwann's ice cream. YUM! On top of that, I bought a 9 lbs ham! That's a lot of ham. So we gladly gave one ham away because who needs that much. Our freezer is only so big.

Holy Night

2010-12-19T13:59:00.000-07:00

This Holiday season has been so different for us. I know that Christmas is pretty much the same every year as far as traditions and gift giving, baking and shopping, decorating and tree getting but I've really had a chance to think about the real reason we celebrate. This is probably because usually this time of year we're making plans for 12+ hour trips and how much time we're going to spend with each family and what we're going to do to what days, stressing to get the rest of our shopping done, etc. It's all kind of stressful and, like I said, this year is different.
We just moved and will be having the very first Christmas by ourselves with our very own little family. This is the first year that Cameron and I get to decide what WE want to do with our children and how WE want Christmas Eve and Morning to go. Don't get me wrong. We loved being with our families and sharing those moments with them but at some point we have to start building our own traditions and memories. So this is the moment.
We've known since the second week of November that we would be alone this holiday so I've been thinking about it for a while, trying to find ways to make it special for all of us. I started thinking about what I wanted to teach my girls about Christmas and how I was going to get them to understand that it's more then presents and candy and Santa. Now, all those things are good and fun and the girls have definitely experienced that part of it. The big question was, "What am I going to teach them?". I can honestly say that I have learned more by trying to answer that question then I had expected.
I always have known that Christmas is about the birth of Christ, but I never thought about why. Why is that important? I feel silly writing that because it seems so simple now. We're celebrating his birth because that was the beginning of His incredible life. Because that incredible life lead to that great sacrifice that allows us to overcome death. But more then that, he chose to leave our Father in Heaven, come down and be born as a little child in humble circumstances and endure the cruelty and the unbelief to teach us by His example and to ultimately save us. I can put myself in Mary's shoes. Being told that she's going to bring into the world the Son of God (that I can't relate to) and then doing so, not in a house with a bed and blankets, but in a shelter. Not having a crib, but some hay, to lay her new baby in. I think any new mom or mom-to-be can tell you that this would not be her ideal birthing plan.
Besides all the reasons we have to celebrate this season, there's something else I think we can do. The three Wisemen brought gifts to Christ. Gold, an item back then reserved for kings, Frankincense, an incense used in the temples of those days and Myrrh, something used in embalming, signifying his death. They brought gifts that we meaningful. I've heard from a couple of different people that they are having their children give a gift to Jesus. I think that that's great. I think we all should try and find a gift to give. Something meaningful. There are so many things that we can improve in ourselves, to be more kind, slower to anger, faster to forgive, to think better of others, etc.
My hope is #1 you got through this ginormous entry and #2 that we can slow down this week before Christmas and really get into the spirit. To think about the Christmas Story, read it if you have it available to you(Luke Ch.1). Put yourselves in their shoes, Mary's, Joseph's, the Wisemen's, and Christ's. Share the true spirit of Christmas, the Spirit of Christ.
Since I have had the chance to slow down this year, got my shopping done earlier and had to really think about how I want my family to celebrate such a joyous time of year I've found what Christmas really means, to me anyway. Today, being the last Sunday before Christmas, the lessons at church were all based around the meaning of Christmas and I couldn't hold in the feelings that I felt.
I hope you all have a safe and a VERY Merry Christmas!

We've Landed

2010-12-10T15:12:00.000-07:00

So sorry for the long delay in posts. I called to get the internet on the 1st of December and the lady kindly told me the soonest available time would be the 10th of December (inconvenience #11). Anyway, on to what happened on the way over here if I can remember that far back...

We decided to leave Friday afternoon instead of Saturday because the roads were looking bad EVERYWHERE. I'm talking Southern OR, Northern Cali, Northern NV (inconvenience #1). So Friday it was. We stopped to get gas before actually getting on the freeway and on our way, of course, but we had trouble with getting the gas in the moving truck (inconvenience #2). Got that taken care of without too much hassle and we were off. The weather was alright on our way out of WA besides heavy rain and slush. We stopped off in Oakridge, OR around midnight. Saturday we drove in snow all day. The Willamette Pass had lots of snow but the truck and the car did just fine. The other drivers on the other hand...Cameron was driving in front and saw a semi slide off the road and flip onto its side, breaking the windshield. Everyone was fine and the cops were on their way and so were we. Just a little farther up the road we find ourselves in a very long line up of cars. Through the grapevine we find out that there was an accident involving a semi and another accident involving 2 cars. That kept us waiting for about an hour or so (inconvenience #3). It gave the girls time to get out and play in the snow. We were going to try and make it to Reno that day but as we got closer to the pass there were weather warnings and chain restrictions. So we turned back and stayed Saturday night in Susanville, CA. I have to tell you that if you ever find yourselves driving through Susanville you NEED to stay in the Best Western. It had THE BEST beds I've ever slept on in a hotel. Just had to put that in there. Sunday we made it through the pass and Reno with no problems. That night we stayed in Las Vegas. We woke up Monday morning ready to get to Bullhead City, AZ. It took us about an hour to get there. Our travels were finally over! Yay! But it turns out our troubles were not.

We filled out all the paperwork for the apartment but they forgot to tell us that we needed to call and have our electricity and gas turned on before we could move in (inconvenience #4). They let us move in anyway, but we were still without power and heat. We walked to the apt and it was dirty. The carpet and linoleum were stained (inconvenience #5). It just wasn't what I wanted to walk into and I about had an anxiety attack. We walked back down to the office and they sent us to another apt that was MUCH better with brand new carpet and linoleum. The apt was still smaller then both of us had thought but it was taken care of. We had to go get the power and heat for it. I don't know if anyone else in Bullhead has internet because everyone and their dog was in line to pay their bills. I had to wait for a customer service rep first because I couldn't get a hold of anyone on the phone. I think I waited for 20 mins before giving up and driving down there (inconvenience #6). The gas company wasn't any better (inconvenience #7). Again, a line full of people waiting to pay their bills and one lady to do the job. The electric co. would turn our electricity on the same day but I would have to pay extra. We had been in the car for 3 days. Needless to say I pay the extra. The gas co. could fit me in on Wednesday...the day I went in there was a Monday. That means that we were without hot water for a couple days (inconvenience #8). By the time we got done with everything it was about 4:30 and we hadn't eaten anything since breakfast. We didn't get a hold of anyone from the ward to help us move in before we got here and we couldn't get a hold of anyone that afternoon so Cam and I started hauling stuff ourselves, to the 3rd floor (inconvenience #9). Now, I'm strong...but hauling a dresser up three flights of stairs strong? I don't think so. We gave up when it got dark and decided that we'd pay for an extra day on the truck and do the rest tomorrow. Luckily, we got a hold of the church and they would come the following evening. By this time things were starting to look up. Cameron and I hauled out what we could and waited until that night to get the rest of the big stuff in. That was about 9:00pm. We had to get the truck back that night because Cameron had to be at work early. We were about to be completely DONE with the move, but no. It couldn't go quietly into the night. It had to give off one more little hiccup. The truck wouldn't start. The battery was dead. We jumped it and got it back to the drop off location. END OF TRIP!
Now that we're here things are settling in to place nicely. The town is small and has a large population of old people and "country folk" (PC term I guess). The weather is better then what we left and I can pull out my flip flops so that makes me happy. We're getting geared up for our first Christmas by ourselves and I'm kind of excited about that. Our ward seems very nice and very eager to have 4 new members. I think we increase the ward by 35% (just kidding...kind of). Cameron is really enjoying working for this company. They're laid back and appreciate the work he does. I think we'll be okay here. So I'll end this very long post by saying:

HAPPY HOLIDAYS from our family to yours!

Here's the Plan

2010-11-17T13:35:00.000-07:00

I think everyone knows by now but if you don't...We're moving! This shouldn't really shock any of you who know us. Cameron has been offered a job at the school that he did his seaplane training. It's in (drum roll please) Bullhead City, AZ! Where is this place you ask? Right on the Colorado River, across from Laughlin, NV, approx. 2 hours south of Vegas. Still don't know where? Lucky for you there's a map provided. So here's the deal. We're getting our moving truck on Wednesday of next week and loading that same day. Fortunately, we didn't unpack even a quarter of our stuff when we moved here so all that should be fairly simple. THEN we do Thanksgiving. This year it's EVERYONE all together. I mean EVERYONE! My family and Cameron's. It should be fun. We spend one more day with my family and then Saturday we're off. Travel Saturday and Sunday and move in to our new apt on Monday. Cameron will start work the next day.
If all goes well, this job will give him 1500 hours by the start of summer. If that happens then he can pretty much apply to whatever job he wants. That would be pretty amazing. So that's why we are going back on our previous statement (meaning MY statement) that we would never again leave the state of WA. This seems like too much of a good thing to pass it by. So another move it is.
Here are some pictures of our new town.

1. This is from a casino in Laughlin, NV looking over the river to Bullhead.

2. Welcome sign

3. Sun Valley Airport. Home to Sheble Aviation and soon to be Cameron.

If you want to see more, come visit!!

'Tis the Season

2010-11-02T14:54:00.000-07:00

Now that Halloween is officially over (and we're stuck with the left over candy) Thanksgiving and Christmas are just around the corner.
A few weeks ago I went to a class that was all on preparing early for Christmas. Now, I know what some of you may be thinking because I thought the SAME THING. Seriously? Plan early for Christmas? They already have decorations out in the store before Halloween! How much earlier can we get? Well, the girl who taught this class knows what she's talking about. After hearing all the suggestions that she had I am convinced that we should prepare early for the Holidays. She made up a list of all the suggestions and I want to share that with you. Sorry about the size and the format of the post. I wanted to share the ideas with you but I really didn't want to type it all out :)

Free Time

2010-10-14T12:10:00.005-07:00

Things are still going well over here in the now frigid state of WA. I have traded in my flip flops for boots and the one pair of closed toe shoes I own and my shorts and t-shirts for sweat shirts and jeans. I actually REALLY like it. It's nice to turn on the heater for the first time in over a year in our car and to snuggle up to Cameron at night instead of pushing him off me because we're sticking to each other . Sorry, that might have been a little too much info. Oh well.
I have found that since living here I have a lot of free time. The girls are content playing with aunts and uncle (there's only one) the whole day. I actually feel quite useless lately, but the girls are having a blast and so that's okay. So in my new found uselessness I have decided to start my sewing machine back up. I'm super interested in making dresses and that's what I did (and still doing).You'll have to excuse the image quality. My camera died right before we left California and we haven't replaced it yet. So these are from my phone...Wow, I didn't realize how much the quality sucked. I'll definitely have to get a better picture up in the future, but for now... Anyway, the top is a royal blue color and the bottom is made from a gray suit material. I REALLY like it. I had some troubles in making it (like I couldn't fit my behind in the skirt part) but some quick thinking and a few cuts later all was fixed. Still not "perfect" but it's the best yet. Here is what I'm going to start on next. I have some big ideas. We'll see what happens.
As far as work goes, Cameron is a stud and working hard. Sometimes getting home at midnight or later and heading off to work again at 8AM, working two jobs. He finished his application for the parks department and is suppose to hear from them this week about an initial interview before he gets to take the physical test and get put on the registry, where any hiring parks can contact him for an ACTUAL interview. Phew! It's a long process but hopefully it will turn out to be worth it.

Were Back in Town, Again

2010-09-21T17:57:00.002-07:00

We're officially back in the glorious, wet state of Washington (hence the new background). Time to break out the sweaters and the rain boots and pack away the shorts and swim suits.
We've moved in with Cameron's parents for a short while (very grown up of us, huh?) to save up some money and buy a house/condo (this is a far fetched dream of mine, has been for years, but maybe it's not so far fetched anymore). So for the next, who knows how long, Camano Island is our new home.
We have been really blessed so far with work. Cam has a job as a flight instructor at Snohomish Flying Service that started out not looking too promising but in the last week he's actually picked up a couple students, one being the owner's son. He also go offered a job at Blockbuster as a part-time shift manager. This is perfect because he can still fit his students into his schedule. He goes in this Friday to finish all the paperwork and start some training. Our goals for the near future are these: Kenmore Air is suppose to be hiring come this February for either a dock hand (someone to help dock the sea planes as they come in) or a flight instructor for sea planes. Kenmore is his dream job. Around January Cam will try and get the rest of the hours he needs to be an sea plane instructor, with Kenmore, and maybe that will give him the in he needs. All these things are kind of a long shot because we don't know for sure if they'll be hiring, what the pay will be and if we'll be able to afford to get him another 15 hours on floats. In the meantime he's finishing the application for a WA State Park Ranger. This will take a couple months to get processed.
We're happy to be back with our families, even though it means we have to give up our sunshine. The girls are having a blast spending time with their cousins, aunts and uncles and the grandparents. I probably won't post as often anymore because I did all this mostly for our families while we were away. I'll keep everyone else posted of things that are going on every few weeks, if there's anything to post.

On the Road Again (in a week)

2010-08-16T08:57:00.002-07:00

Well, things have finally come together and all these "trials" that have happened have made us see what we think we're suppose to do. This job here in Cali served it purpose. It got Cameron to almost 800 hours, 500 hours dual given, over 200 multi engine and a lot of experience in office work. It wasn't very fun or enjoyable but it was necessary. That has all come to an end as we pack up our belongings (once again) and head to Camano Island, WA on the 25th of this month. We'll be staying there until a job comes, which hopefully won't take too long since he's already filled out 2 applications and we haven't even left yet. He's still going to do the aviation thing but at a slower pace. We need a more normal family life, or a family life at all. The more we think about this move the more things fall into place. If the world was combining against us last week, well it's finally righted itself this week. It's really nice all the support we're getting from family and friends. I just want those of you who we will be leaving in a week to know that California really hasn't grown on me but you sure have. I'm going to miss all of you who I got to know over the last year. I really got comfortable with you even though I knew that we would leave eventually. If I could take you all with me some how I would. I plan to stay in touch through Facebook, blogging and text messages. I'm not good with actually calling people on the phone, sorry.
Our life is crazy, but I think it might be slowing up a bit. I feel like we're almost where we belong.

Bigger and Better Things

2010-08-11T08:02:00.002-07:00

No go on the Sierra West job. By the time his background check got in they had already hired someone else. So ridiculous! Anyway, that happened and then a couple of days later he finds out that he has lost his medical because the FAA didn't get all the info they wanted and all the letters they've been sending go to his parents and blah blah, they didn't get to us on time. So he can't fly until they review his case and mail him another one. He called his boss in JAX and was pretty nervous about what they would say, maybe something like "you're fired" but the only thing he said was "alright. let me know when you get it straightened out." That was a relief to hear until we found out why he had been so nice. They stopped his pay as of the day he called. Now mind you, he can't fly but he still runs the whole office and has been doing ground lessons and proctoring exams. So that's crappy. To add to the mess and frustration our car needed some costly repairs, our camera is broken to never be fixed again, out DVD player crapped out and my cell phone has decided that it doesn't want to charge itself anymore, ever. Is the world combining against us? Why yes, yes I think it is.

The Waiting Game

2010-07-22T09:02:00.003-07:00

Cameron had a job interview in Oakdale, CA last week for Sierra West Airlines. This is a charter operations that do a variety of different things from transporting cargo, to people, to prisoners (yeah, I know). It's strictly "on-call". When he first went he thought he would be interviewing for a metro
This would be really awesome because it's a turbo-prop aircraft and that time of time in aircraft is really valuable at this point in his career. When he got there they asked him if he knew what kind of airplane he was applying for. Just for the sake of things he said he wasn't really sure. Turns out he was interviewing for one of these:

It's a Lear Jet 35. Uh. yes. I said jet! How great would that be? Um, REALLY GREAT! So, anyway, the interview went pretty well, we think. He already filled out paperwork for a background check and did a drug test. I guess the background check is taking longer then expected, so we're told, and they're still waiting on that to make a decision. So we're playing the waiting game, still. The job would move us to El Paso, TX, if they extended it to him, for 18 months. I've been waiting to post this because I don't want to jinx it. If anything, interviewing for this job has made him get everything in order for future job interviews. We'll keep you all posted and let you know anything as soon as we know it.

As for other matters. I'm starting the process to get Breanne signed up for preschool this fall, if we're still in the Riverside area. She's very excited about starting school and I think this will be a great experience for her.
Breanne has also started swimming all on her own. She jumps in with daddy, into the deep end, and backwards. She's becoming quite the fish. Kaitlyn sees her swimming without her floaty and automatically thinks that she can do it to. She's gotten quite a shock a couple of times as she figured this out. I would put up pictures of all of this but our camera went crazy a few weeks ago and I haven't taken it in to get fixed yet

Happy Birthday Father's Day!

2010-06-21T08:23:00.003-07:00

My birthday falls right next to Mother's Day and Cameron's birthday is right near Father's Day! I think this is great. Keeps the party going a couple extra days and who doesn't like that?
Cameron has been working like a crazy person this last week, in fact I think we had him home for dinner only once. That was Monday...or was it Tuesday? What ever it was it wasn't very much. THEN, I found out that he was going to have to work the night of his birthday too. So, to make up for it we picked him up for lunch and took him away from his second home, AKA: the airport. I also had a softball game that night and Kaity was looking like she wasn't going to feel good enough to go spend an entire evening outside. I made arrangements for Kaity to have someone here with her until Cam was able to get home but to my surprise Cameron walks in the door at 6 pm when he wasn't suppose to be home until more like 8! YAY! And to top it all off Kaity seemed to be doing pretty well so we all got to go to my game and see my team get slaughter....yea, wasn't pretty. Before we left though Cam got to blow out his candles and make a wish, I hope it was a good one :)

Saturday we went to a graduation party for a friend here. Kaity still had a snotty nose but that seemed to be the extent of it. I thought I may have even escaped getting this little bug but later that evening my throat started to get scratchy...and then it started. Cameron got the WHOLE Sunday off, which in the last 4 weeks or so was unheard of. He hadn't been able to go to church in 3 weeks. And this was the perfect weekend to go because Breanne was going to be singing in the primary and she had been practicing her song for about 2 weeks. Sunday morning comes and I'm not feeling all that great but I get up at 6 am to make our traditional Father's Day cinnamon rolls. Kaitlyn isn't 100% and Breanne started to get a little worse. I'm determined to go to church because Cam hasn't been able to go in a long time but finally after persuading me to sit down on the couch I succumb to the sickness and realize that we shouldn't go and contaminate everyone else. We had a fun day of just hanging around the house in our jammies and playing games and watching movies. It would have been REALLY nice if all us girls hadn't been sick, but we're glad that we got to spend the day with our favorite guy. Breanne got to sing her song for Daddy even though we didn't go to church. It goes a little something like this:

"I'm so glad when Daddy comes home. As glad as I can be.
Clap my hand and shout hurray! and climb upon his knee.
Put my arms around his neck. Hug him tight like this.
Pat his cheek and give him what? A great big kiss!"

That song really does describe the joy that happens when Daddy comes home. Even Mommy can relate to that. We love him so much for the hard work he puts in and all the stuff that he puts up with. So from all your girls, WE LOVE YOU DAD!!

Busy Month of May

2010-05-18T08:52:00.006-07:00

So the month of May is full of celebrations for our family. I already posted about Bre's birthday but after that was Mother's day
Cameron managed to buy me beautiful flowers and get them home on his motorcycle without destroying them. The girls gave me cards and Cam had them draw in them to put on their personal touches. He doesn't get much alone time with the girls so the only time he could think to do it was at my softball game. When we went out on the field he would pull out the markers. When we got back into the car after the game Breanne was acting really weird and kept trying to tell cam a secret. I had no idea what was going on, but the next morning Cam was getting ready for work and Breanne comes to me and tells me that she made me a Christmas card yesterday. I'm really confused for about half a second when it dawns on me.
"Breanne, you weren't suppose to tell me that!"
"Do you want me to show you?"
"No, Bre, you'll show me tomorrow."
It was pretty cute. I kept it a secret from Cam until after they had given me the cards.

A few days after Mother's Day was my birthday. Cameron was able to take the day off (amazingly) and take me to the beach like I had asked.
The weather wasn't real great and we all ended up kinda cold so my day at the beach was cut short to an afternoon but it was still nice to get out and do something together. Later that evening they took me out to dinner.

Breanne being cold. I guess she never warmed up after leaving the beach. But as we say, she could be in the middle of the desert and be cold. Been there, done that.

Kaity and Daddy sharing a fry.

And I had to post this last one because the sharing of the fry reminded me of him and Bre sharing a shake. I think it's so sweet how much they love their Daddy and how they have him wrapped around their little fingers.

May has a lot going on and June doesn't slow down too much because it's Cameron's birthday on the 18th and Father's day on the 20th. But I did enjoy all the celebrating and I'm glad that I got to spend it all with my family.

P.S.-We just had the cake for my birthday last night. It's okay to drag a birthday out a few days, right?

Happy Birthday, Breanne Alice!

2010-04-23T16:03:00.008-07:00

Breanne had her 4th birthday on May 1st.
Here's a trip down memory lane...

3 days old

3 months old

1 year old

2 years old

3 years old

4 years old

She wanted to be a fairy princess for her birthday and what the birthday girl wants the birthday girl gets. I made her fairy wings out of wire hangers and some knee highs. After much frustration and a sliced thumb later, here they are. I let her paint them. She alsorequested confetti cake with pink frosting. Sorry no pictures of that.
We were lucky enough to have my mom, step dad, sister and baby Sophia come down and spend a few days with them. They spoiled them rotten, no doubt, but the girls had a blast.
While Cameron and I snuck off to Indio, CA Thursday and Friday night for our 5th anniversary

they took the kids to the wild animal park down in San Diego (pictures to come later, I'm sure). Don't worry, those are virgin mimosa's.

I can't believe how fast the years have gone. Bre, you've taught me a lot about being a mom (some good, some bad). I should give you more credit for being the "guinea pig" in this whole motherhood experiment. You're so smart, sometimes too smart for your own good. You always keep me in check. You're full of life and love to laugh. When Christ told us to be as little children I think of you. There are great things in store for you, my love.

Happy Birthday to our big, 4 year old, girl!

new dresses

2010-04-14T14:04:00.002-07:00

So I found another really good tutorial :http://www.rufflesandstuff.com/2010/04/lemonade-dress.html

I made 2 dresses using this as a guide. The first one is more like the one in the tutorial and is just a casual dress (VERY comfy!). The second one is a little dressier. LOVE them both.

Hiding a little mistake with buttons on both sides.

I also made a flower pin to pin the second dress because, as I am still a novice at this, it was a little big in the waist.

The pictures aren't the best. I have 2 options; self portrait, or ask Bre. I opted for self portrait this time but next time I think I'll have Bre do it :) I feel stupid smiling....oh well, you get the idea.

Recently....

2010-03-24T19:18:00.003-07:00

I guess it's been awhile since I've posted, but lets be honest; our life isn't that exciting. So here's what's been happening since my last post. Kaity is spewing forth words like a fountain and is starting to piece them together. Example: Cameron and I were talking in our room and heard little footsteps coming. We quickly act like we're asleep. Kaity comes running in saying, "Mommy, Mommy, Mommy..." over and over again. Finally we hear, "Mommy, we-ah-oo (Mommy, where are you)?" Too cute. I couldn't play sleep any longer. Also, when she farts or burps she says, "scuse you", as in excuse YOU. She's a funny kid.

Breanne is becoming a real mommy around the house. She does her best to keep Kaity in check and out of her stuff which Kaity grabs up faster then food on the table (anyone who knows Kaity gets that joke). Neither Kaity nor I appreciate the "momminess" from Breanne, but I do know that she is trying to be helpful. She does help me dust and make dinner and even helped Kaity into her seat at dinner tonight. They're really starting to play and laugh together and that makes all the screaming and fighting worth it, I guess :)

Cameron has applied to a couple of different places in WA, but not a word since. There's a company called San Juan Airlines that he has applied to more recently that is out of Anacortes. To help him look more qualified and eager for the job we went to Palm Springs today (about an hour drive) to get his high powered endorsement (which means he can fly an aircraft with over 200HP). Hopefully when he calls the company tomorrow they'll be so impressed with his motivation they'll hire him on the spot. Don't worry, I'm not holding my breath. So until that time, we stay here in sunny Riverside, CA.

As for me, well, I manage all the chaos. That's about it. I have looked into being a part-time representative for a home care company. I would be able to work from home for the most part and it would bring in the last few dollars we're lacking every month, so I figured what the heck. We'll try it out and see how it works.
Here are a few pics I've taken in the last couple of weeks:

San Diego- Coronado

2010-02-12T09:45:00.005-07:00

We got the opportunity to go down to San Diego for a couple days because Cameron and his mom had a big dinner to go to where Donna (his mom) was speaking. Cam was hoping to go and rub some elbows with the big wigs and try and get a corporate pilot job :) He did end up rubbing shoulders but no job offer, yet...
Anyway, we got to go play on the beach (my favorite) and stay in the amazing five starish Hotel.
"I found a rock!" Soon after this Daddy so kindly placed in back in the ocean so she wouldn't drop it on her toes.

The Hotel Del Coronado. Apparently, Marilyn Monroe made a movie here? I haven't seen it. VERY nice place.

Taking a walk with Grandma (Cameron's mom)

Grandma with the girls

"Get in the water" is what this looks like.

Just kidding apparently

She ate sand twice that I could count. Once was curiosity and the second, she was trying to get away from me and thought that burying her face in the sand would do the trick. Nope, just a mouth full of sand.

I think we need to get a sand box. Who knew that it would keep them so entertained?

View from our room. Swimming pool, Ocean, and then Mexico is the lights off in the distance.

I had to put this on here. I laid Kaity down in Bre's bed for an afternoon nap. I thought she would try and get up and be a real pest but in about 15 mins this is what she looked like. Awww, how cute? She's getting to big!

Left Overs

2010-01-20T09:50:00.007-07:00

So I had a hard time putting Bre's videos up on the other post so this is my second attempt. We'll see how it all goes. Also, I wanted to put up Cam's pictures from his seaplane training! Those will probably be a little more reliable then the videos.

After a long day of training, bringing the plane up to the shore on the Colorado River in Bullhead City, AZ/Laughlin, NV. After being here I really have no desire now to go to Vegas (if I had any in the first place). This was "Old Vegas" as the signs said. I would hope that "New Vegas" wouldn't be as tacky and this place (as my mom so correctly said) was full of old people. That made me feel all the more weird because we were definitely the youngest people there by a good 30+ years.

The girls and I spent an hour or so hanging out on the beach waiting for Cameron to fly by. We threw rock and looked for pretty ones because that's all there was to do. Either that or go hang out in the smokey casino/hotel.

In the background is our hotel. We're on the AZ side and the hotel is on the NV side.

Flying by!!

Again. I wish I had a better camera...

What a pose!

Kaity really wanted to go in the water. It was warm, but not THAT warm!

Oh, what a stud! He claimed that he didn't know I was taking pictures. Yeah, right.
He had so much fun getting his seaplane rating. It's just a small step in the direction of his dream job, which is to fly one for a living. I don't think he has a preference where (WA would be ideal but we'll take it where we can get it) or doing what just as long as he could.

So the video STILL isn't working!! I'll try and post them on facebook or something else. I'll let you all know by e-mail if I DO get them up and running.

Show Week

2010-01-19T16:15:00.011-07:00

Breanne has been taking dance/gymnastics lessons at The Little Gym and she had "Show Week" yesterday where she got to show us all the routines she's been learning.

Breanne and some of her classmates playing "what time is it Mr. Fox?" (I think that's what they were saying)

Breanne doing a handstand

Finishing her ballet routine

Class Picture

P.S. I couldn't get the videos to work on here (I'm VERY upset with my computer or whatever is thwarting me!) so those to come later...maybe...

Christmas in Washington

2010-01-02T16:11:00.005-07:00

We were able to go home for the holidays thanks to the generosity of my mom. I left on the 17th with the girls and Cameron joined us on the 22nd. When he regrouped with us we headed up to Camano Island to spend some time with his family. They just recently bought 10 acres on Whidbey Island and plan to someday build a house. We went there to play some laser tag in the woods.

And to give the kids a ride on grandpa's tractor

Cute little Kaity

I LOVE Whidbey!! We went over to Ft. Casey to play, yet, another game of laser tag before the sun set.

They look like trouble, yeah?

Light house lit up with Christmas lights

Back at grandma and grandpa's house the kiddos found new shoes. Silly kids.

Christmas Eve Christmas play. Grandpa is the donkey (fitting), Piper is Mary.

Kaity is baby jesus :)

Breanne is the angel and Benjamin is the shepherd

Christmas morning we were at my sister's house with my dad, cathy, and her daughter and boyfriend. Kaity didn't really grasp the whole ripping presents open idea. Wierd, I was SURE she would.

Uncle "DG" showing Breanne all that she can do with her new sweat pants.

Still working on the present...

Littlest pet shop

Spohia in her hip leg warmers and bow

Christmas afternoon we were back at my mom's house with my sister, DJ and Sophia.

Breanne got her very own lipsmakers chapstick. Kaity wanted to try some and Breanne graciously put it on for her.

Cameron came back on the 28th and me and the girls stayed until the morning of the 31st. We were so tired from traveling that for New Years the girls went to bed, probably before 7pm and Cam and I only lasted until 11:30pm. We did rent "Up" and let them watch that before bed.
Happy 2010, Everyone!

An Update

2009-12-01T09:44:00.004-07:00

Over the Thanksgiving break we found a really nice hike in the Angeles National Forest.

The worst part of the hike was the fact that the first (and last) half a mile was a very steep hill. Starting was alright because it was down hill, but having to do that right at the end was brutal. I was carrying Kaitlyn in the pack because Cameron had her the whole hike in. Breanne decided that her legs were too tired to go on so Cam ended up carrying Bre on his back! By the time we got back to the car we both were pretty exhausted but it was a lot of fun.

This was our first year doing Thanksgiving ourselves. I was a bit overwhelmed at first, thinking of all the things that needed to be made but it went off without a hitch.

The day after Thanksgiving we pulled out our Christmas tree and what few decorations we have.

I thought Cam's idea to hang the stocking like that was pretty ingenious.
So, now we are looking forward to our trip home for Christmas. The girls and I will be leaving on the 17th and not returning until the 31st. Cameron only has the 22nd-28th off so he will only be with us for part of our trip. I'm excited to pull out the winter hats and winter jackets and to really feel some cold weather for just a couple weeks and then back to the wonderful Southern Cali winter weather.
For presents this year, we are crafting all of them. This is more of a warning to my immediate family then anything else.

Park Time Photo Shoot

2009-11-18T15:53:00.003-07:00

Breanne's crazy laugh

Kaity's crazy laugh. They pretty much look the same :) Both with food in their mouth

I don't think this will be the last time I get this look from her

More Creations

2009-11-14T18:01:00.004-07:00

This one has pockets. Tricky, huh? Okay, not really, but I was proud of it!

Pencil skirt made from a pair of dress pants. I REALLY like this.

And...TADA! My first button holes. Trust me. I felt pretty cool after I figured out how to make my machine do these. i think from now on EVERYTHING I make will have button holes.

And the reason I tried these new fangled things...

A lengthened pair of sweats for Bre.

I have so many more things that I want to make it's ridiculous. I have plans to make the girls reversible jackets possibly for Christmas and, yes, I plan on trying to make something for Kaity. She's just so hard to measure and try stuff on because she's so wiggly!
Yay! Makes me so happy to see that I don't REALLY suck after all (just moderately. Don't look real close at seams and such. I'm still learning!

Non trick or treating

2009-11-03T11:16:00.002-07:00

So, for Halloween this year we didn't go trick or treating. There, I admitted it. I figured that the girls are still pretty young and still don't quite get the whole idea, we had taken them to our wards trunk or treat so Bre had already gotten enough candy in my opinion and on top of that I really didn't want to take them out in our neighborhood. Anyways, I did dress them up. We ended up having mummy dogs and french fries and pumpkin cheesecake for dessert. Um, yeah, yummy! While we were eating all that I found some old Casper the friendly ghost cartoons to watch. Breanne really enjoyed those. It was fun and next year lets just hope we live in a more kid friendly neighborhood because I don't think I'm going to get away with not taking them 2 years in a row. I've seen lots of pictures from everyone else and it looks like everyone had a great "holiday". Yay!

Pumpkin Carving

2009-10-27T08:12:00.004-07:00

We finally got some pumpkins and carved them last night. Now, for those of you who remember pumpkin carving last year know that Breanne was absolutely terrified of getting her hands gooey. Well, that's the way it started out this year as well. I guess old habits are hard to break. Kaity on the other hand seemed pretty okay with sticking her spoon in there. That is until mean ol' daddy came along and MADE her stick her hand in there and grab all the gooeyness that is pumpkin guts. "uhhh...what am I doing?"

"What is this stuff?"
"I don't want to do that again, dad"

"I said I didn't want to do that again!!"

She doesn't usually cry if she's scared or unsure about something so at first she had a very scared look on her face and after sticking her hand in there a couple of times she had had enough. Breanne finally started doing it herself. Yeah Breanne!

Kaity had more fun sucking on the pieces of pumpkin we were carving out.

Creations

2009-10-15T18:22:00.003-07:00

This is a purse I made for Bre yesterday because she liked the one I made for myself so much.

This is a dress that I made TODAY! I found the "idea" from the idea room. They have a link on the right hand side of my page. This dress was made from Cameron's old dress shirt. Yes, a dress shirt. I have to say that I am completely and utterly in love with it! Breanne looks less then thrilled, but trust me she loved it.

I sewed a little bit of lace in the front to bring the neckline up a bit.

This is the back of the dress, but it was the front of Cam's shirt

This dress didn't cost anything to make because everything I used I already had in the house. The lace was part of a pillowcase that we had got for a wedding present that I knew I would never use. So I put all the pieces to good use. The lace here and the actual pillowcase for Bre's Halloween costume.
It was REALLY easy and if I think it was easy then ANYONE can do it. Look up the tutorial at:
www.theidearoom.blogspot.com

2009-10-08T09:08:00.004-07:00

the girls at the park in So Cal.

This is my new purse that I made with my sewing machine. I plan on making others. Once I figured things out it was fun.

What is the Meaning of Life?

2009-09-25T23:18:00.002-07:00

Isn't that the most cliche question? So many people have asked this and how many really know the answer? People say, "if you were to meet (fill in with some famous thinker/God) what would you ask him/her?" This is on lots of people's lists.
I had an epiphany tonight as I was talking to Cameron in bed (he was sleeping, of course). I know this answer. Now, I've known this answer for a while, it's not like I just figured it out. But that's the crazy thing. I have this answer, that so many thinkers have contemplated. Simplified it's this: Learn all you can, be the best you can so that when the day comes that you are called home you can return to your Father in Heaven. This is what the Gospel of Jesus Christ is! The Gospel is the answer to the age old question. Maybe it's amazing to me that I know the answer because I didn't always have it. I joined the church as a teenager and many times I wondered why the heck I was here. What was the point to all of it? Everything was made clear.
I couldn't get someone else's opinion on the matter because, like I said before, Cam is now asleep. So maybe it's just me and my crazy tired brain. I know that people get comfortable with the way things are and what they like, but if they would learn more about WHY we do what we do (we being the LDS church) they would see that the things that we are asked to refrain from make our lives easier. I compare my life with the way it could have been or with other people and I don't have the same struggles they do. I choose to do things a little bit different but the outcome is tremendous. All these things go back to that question. It's all about what we do, how we choose to do it, the words we say or don't say. I'm not perfect be any means and I know that I will never be, but I can keep trying. If we would view families the way the Lord would have us we would know that families are eternal. "Til death do us part" has no say here. Why would a loving, caring Heavenly Father part us from those we love so much through death to never be with them again? He wouldn't and he doesn't. The meaning of life is family. With out eachother we would have no hope to get through this life OR to return to God. If EVERYONE knew this and lived it the family wouldn't be falling apart like it is. There are so many in this world who are confused about right and wrong and what is true and what is a lie. The church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints is the answer to "what is the meaning of life" and to what is right and what is true.
“Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls.
For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light"-Matthew 11:29-30

"What kind of existence can we hope for? Those who come unto Christ, repent of their sins, and live in faith will reside forever in peace. Think of the worth of this eternal gift. Surrounded by those we love, we will know the meaning of ultimate joy as we progress in knowledge and in happiness. No matter how bleak the chapter of our lives may look today, because of the life and sacrifice of Jesus Christ, we may hope and be assured that the ending of the book of our lives will exceed our grandest expectations. 'Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him' (1 Corinthians 2:9)."-Elder Deiter F. Uchdorf Quorom of the Twelve Apostles

The meaning of this life is to happy and to experiece that "ultimate joy" that Elder Uchdorf spoke of, with those we love.

Happy 1st Birthday, Kaitlyn Sophia!

2009-09-18T09:13:00.006-07:00

September 18th, 2008

October 2008

November 2008

Holidays 2008

February 2009

March 2009

April 2009

May 2009

June 2009

July 2009

August 2009

September 2009

Happy Birthday, Beautiful girl!
She is walking and getting into everything. Just what a One year old should be doing!

Life So Far in So Cal

2009-09-18T08:06:00.002-07:00

So as many as you know Cameron got a job offer as a flight instructor for a company called Airline Transport Professionals that got us moved all the way down here in Riverside, California. It's about an hour east of LA and 2 hours north of San Diego.
It was a crazy move seeing that we knew that we would be moving in about 2 weeks but we didn't have a clue where we were going until the day before we had to get the truck. Very frustrating. So I had a whole day to try and figure out places to live in or around Riverside. I found that Riverside was a little more expensive than we could afford so I started looking to other cities. I found San Bernardino to be pretty inexpensive and here is why. There are bars on most of the windows, junk on every porch, patio and lawn. Hardly any grass, or vegetation. Not to sound racist, but we only saw 1 white person the whole time we were there. It was a pretty run down part of town and now that we're here in Riverside many people have confirmed our theory, that it's not a good place to live. Even a manager that was going to show us an apt told us before hand that, "this isn't a good place for your family". Needless to say, we didn't see the apt.
So after a frustrating afternoon in San Bernardino, we made our way to Riverside right about the time all the offices were closing. The only apt we looked at we fell in love with. Of course anything that we had seen after San Bernardino would have looked like the Taj Mahal. But this place really is nice and is in our price range. Monday was a holiday so it put quite a damper on everything because we had to wait until Tuesday to be approved for the apt. More frustration, stress, blah blah blah... We are finally moved in, thanks to our great ward members.
Riverside is pretty nice and we're slowly getting use to it. The girls have to share a room which is proving a bit hard because Kaity still wakes up every now and again and she wakes up at 6 AM! this is turn wakes Breanne up at 6 AM and guess what? That means I wake up at, you guessed it, 6 AM. It doesn't help that we forgot Kaity's port-a-crib in WA and I returned her crib because it was on a recall list. We've been using the play yard we bought to keep her in but Breanne so kindly lets her out in the morning. Here's what happend this morning:
I hear the girls stirring and moving about in the living room. I look and see that Cameron is not in bed. How nice, I think, he got up with them so I could sleep in. I try and fall back to sleep. About 10 mins later I hear Kaity crying, then screaming. I don't hear Cameron out there seeing what's going on. What is going on?? I get out of bed to find JUST the girls out in the living room! "Where's Daddy?"
"He's sleeping."
"Where?"
"Next to you, silly." (This is Breanne talking by the way)
"No he is not!"
I run back to the girls bedroom to see if he is there. Nothing. I see if he is in our bathroom. Nope.
"Where is Daddy?"
"He's at work."
"No he's not...."
Sure enough. I call his phone. He had a flight at 5:30AM and apprently told me about it when he got home last night. I totally missed that little nugget of information.

I've already posted pictures on my facebook and videos of Kaity walking and dancing. Please refer to those for all your viewing pleasure.

The possibilities are endless

2009-08-30T20:26:00.003-07:00

These pictures tell the story of our life for the past year and a half. Airplanes. Chasing Cameron's dreams of becoming a pilot. Well, that day came when he passed his commercial license and then he got closer to getting a job flying planes when he received his certified instructor ratings. He has finally been extended a job offer from a company called ATP, Airline Transport Professionals. It's a flight school all over the country where Cam will finally become an instructor. He got a phone call from them Friday the 21st saying that they had a couple openings and if he wanted one they would need him that coming Monday in Jacksonville, FL for "standardization training". The options they gave were San Diego, Riverside, or Las Vegas. We bought a plane ticket for him to leave for FL. So he has now been in Jacksonville for over a week and still has no idea where we might be going. His family came and helped me pack up last monday and tuesday so I have been living out of boxes for most a week. Tomorrow should be the day we find out exactly where we are going. All these moves in such a short amount of time is hard to handle. Someday we'll set down some roots, maybe even own a home. Who knows, with us the possiblities are endless!

Rexburg, Roomies, and Utah

2009-08-24T13:21:00.006-07:00

We had the wonderful opportunity to take the long trip over to Idaho and Utah a week or so ago. Getting to see Sam and Amber was a ton of fun. They showed us the updated sights of Rexburg since we've been gone for a year and a half. Some of these included the new and improved Walmart, Arctic Circle's new play area, and a new frisbee golf course.

Breanne was Daddy's putter

We found a wagon at the park

Wait! I lost something!

There goes the other one

Who needs wheels anyway?

Peek-a-boo

At the duck pond

Auntie Amber and Kaity

We also got to stay with Maggie and Chad for a few days. It was nice to see them after such a long time and to see that our kids played so well together.

Eating goldfish

Auretta, Patrick, Breanne

Auretta

That Saturday while we were in Utah we had a roomy reunion. It has been a whole 5 years since we met. How crazy is that? Even though we have all gone our separate ways we still can hang out together like no time has past. Loved it!

Vida's Daxton and Kaity

Rootbeer anyone?

Maggie, Vida, Katie, me, Sarah
Roomies!

Uh, funny story. I caught them off guard and said, "okay everyone smile". What did they ALL do? Sat up and sucked in their bellies. ALL of them! So funny.

Splash parkin it in Rexburg

Breanne found a new love when Sam broke out the Guitar hero and Rock band. She took it so seriously.

What is it to be a "Mom"? Random miss firings of my brain

2009-07-30T09:44:00.003-07:00

For some very strange reason I have been contemplating this question. Probably because I have so much time to myself in the evenings with Cameron gone and it takes me about an hour to fall asleep because my brain won't shut off. So with all these things combining this is what I have been thinking about a little bit.
I remember when I first had Breanne and people kept asking me if I felt like a mom yet. I had never been a mom so I didn't really know what it should feel like. Now looking back at the past 3 years of me being a mom I'm still wondering, "What should it feel like to be a mom"? I don't know if I DO feel like one.
For starters, almost everyone I know that has children that are about my girls age are older then I am (with the exception of Maggie who is having baby #3 and is 2 months younger then me). And everyone who is my age is just getting married or just having baby #1. I feel as though I should actually be about 28 or 29 instead of just 24. I just graduated college a year and a half ago and I'm still trying to figure out how to raise myself and now 2 girls. I look at how I parent my girls and it seems so different from other people. The older people I know who have kids seem to have a more layed back approach. Maybe in 5-10 years I'll be like that too. It's interesting how just a few short years can change your perspective on things and how you handle them.
Now, with all this thinking don't think for one second that I don't love my kids and are grateful that at age 24 I have them. It's just things that I was pondering and I don't know if it will make sense to anyone else.
When I go out to have a picnic with Breanne and Kaitlyn, or just the 3 of us, I feel like more of a babysitter then a mom. Not that I'm lugging around these kids that I'm getting paid to watch sort of feeling. Okay, maybe it's more of an Aunt feeling. Like I'm taking them out to have fun and hang with them. Does that make sense? Maybe that's what being a "Mom" feels like and I've had it all along. They way the question has been posed to me makes it seem that it will be this sudden, life changing "wow, I feel like a mom" when I think it come on more gradual and eventually it happens but you still feel like the same ol' you.
Being a mom has definitely brought out all the characteristics that I don't like in myself, don't know if I'm the only one. Being tired I see myself more on edge and more frustrated. Trying to teach Breanne new concepts and she tries my patience. Learning to be less selfish with my time and my life goals. These last 3 years have shown me all the things I need to work on and have slowly made me a better person. I just hope that as I strive to be a better person my girls will have patience with me. Hopefully they get it from their father because we all know I am still trying to develop mine.

one week down, 2 to go

2009-07-23T08:42:00.002-07:00

As many of you know, Cameron has been gone to Vegas for the last week and won't be home until August 4th. He is finishing up his flight training (and when I say finishing, I mean finishing) getting his multi engine, certified flight instructor, certified flight instructor instrument and his multi engine instrument. All this means that after August 4th he can start sending out his resume to every flight school in the country and start teaching other people to fly.
It has been interesting, to say the least, having him gone for this long. The first two days were absolutely over whelming and I cried multiple times. As this week went on it got significantly better and we are now coping just fine (atleast for right now).
My sister's baby shower is this Sunday and I'm currently down at my mom's trying to help her with that. We could potentially have 60 people at this shower and it's at my mom's house. Could be a bit crowded and it's suppose to be about 90 degrees. Hope everyone wears deodorant. So after all this I'll have only one week left and I REALLY hope it just flies by.
Cameron had an interview for a Park Ranger position for the state of WA and we had been waiting to hear if he got one of the positions. As it turns out he didn't for some unknown reason so the chances of moving are significantly increased. I'd say we had a 90% chance of moving which is really sad because I really love the town we're living in and all the people that we have met. It just depresses me to think that I have to move and make friends all over again, which I'm not very good at.
Florida, Texas, California, Arizonia, Nevada, and any other warm climate state, here I possibly come!

Tragic Celebrity Death

2009-07-06T12:18:00.005-07:00

Yet another celebrity death. Tragic, but true.
Scene may be graphic for younger viewers.

Nemo was found July 5th. Unfortunately, he was identified too late.

Sorry, but this is for Cameron. He had this idea because of all the celebrity deaths that have been occurring this month. It may be a bit cold, but I laughed so maybe others out there will have a bit of a chuckle too. Seriously though, if I was famous I would be concerned that I would be next! To all those celebs out there...you've been warned!

4th of July at Mason Lake

2009-07-06T11:56:00.007-07:00

For the 4th we went to my Mom's lake property out at Mason Lake. There's a company down there that puts on a great show every year on the 3rd. So we just sit out on the dock and watch the fireworks from there. It was probably the nicest 4th of July that we've had in WA in a long time. The girls loved playing in the wading pool. Kaitlyn was the only one of the kids to actually get in the lake. Breanne swam like a fish in AZ but it was like pulling teeth to get her to step into the lake. I guess the lake water isn't exactly 80+ degrees. We had such a great time, but the sun just sapped the energy so now we're recovering.
My cousin's boyfriend and his family came down. It was nice that Breanne had another little girl to play with.

She really did love everything about the lake. Very impressed!
My Mom put up a swing for the girls. Breanne just loves swinging with her sis.

Boat ride. Kaitlyn trying her very hardest not to fall asleep.

Even Papa John and Cathy came out for the afternoon on Saturday! We had a great time swimming and enjoying our time with the fam.

I have to add these last pictures because she was so cute. I checked out a discovery box for her from the library right before we left for the lake and this is what she dressed herself up as:

Her wings were down at Nana's house. When we spent the night down there that night she woke me up at 5:40AM. The first thing she said when I opened my eyes is, "I want to wear my fairy wings." Needless to say, I sent her promptly back to bed!

The first camping trip as a foursome

2009-06-29T19:56:00.008-07:00

We finally did it. We got stuff together and went camping with the girls last Friday. We went to Baker Lake because it's only 45 mins or so from us. So in the event that everything went horribly wrong we could pack up and be home quickly. Luckily, that wasn't the case and it went well for our first attempt.

we went for a long hike after eating dinner. Breanne picked where we should go at each fork in the road and insisted that she didn't want to go back yet. Needless to say, Cameron and I took turns carrying her back to camp.

Breanne pulled her chair up as close as she could to the cooler to look at all the different bugs that were on it.

Baker Lake

Gathering firewood

Kaitlyn eating dinner

Breanne throwing pine cones in the river

She and Kaitlyn loved "the cave". I think Bre could have spent the entire time in the tent.

By the time morning came and we had breakfast Breanne kept saying she wanted to go home and Kaitlyn was fed up with only being able to crawl around in the tent. We ate breakfast, packed up and went home. When we got back Katie went crazy crawling EVERYWHERE!

Like I said, it was good for our first time. Here's a cute video of Cameron and the girls getting the beds ready.

Update

2009-06-17T09:49:00.002-07:00

Cameron is SO close to finishing his commercial rating. He has scheduled his written exam for Saturday and his check ride on Tuesday. By this time next week he will have his commercial rating DONE! Then he gets to start on his certified flight instructor certificate. He's able to get paid to fly after he finishes his commercial, but in the economy today there's no where that would hire him with only 250 hours. Most places want atleast 1500. I've got a whole list of places for him to apply to be a flight instructor. Unfortunately, none of them are in the state of Washington. I'm just glad to have him back for a couple of days after he finishes his commercial to go camping with the girls! Then it's back to the grind stone for him for another couple of weeks.
That's the most exciting thing going on in our lives right now. Kaitlyn is now cruising along some of the furniture and she even tests out standing all by herself when she thinks that no one is looking :) I guess we'll REALLY have to start baby proofing the house. I hate baby proofing. We finally had to put those stoppers in the oulets because she was showing a bit too much interest in getting electrocuted.
We're looking forward to seeing where the future will take us in our traveling adventures!

Date to Friday Harbor in the San Juan Islands

2009-06-04T09:04:00.004-07:00

I know the pilot personally
Our little plane

sunset over the islands

Friday Harbor

last landing

Kaitlyn was just so cute yesterday. I had to add this picture

Her first time at the yoke!

2009-06-02T15:35:00.003-07:00

Breanne went on a flight with Cameron today. She loved it the whole time, except for one part. I guess Cameron started doing little "roller coasters" with her and she liked them too until he did a big one. Was a little too thrilling, I guess. She also got the fly the plan, with a little (or alot) of help from Cam. She had a blast with he daddy!
Cameron teaching her how to put on her head set

She's a pro already!

It was only a 2 seater so Kaitlyn and I stayed on the ground

but she wanted to get the feel for it too!

The Zoo

2009-05-30T20:11:00.004-07:00

Katie, little sleepy monkey

Breanne and Aunt Heidi at the giraffes

the new penguin exhibit

the gorillas were really neat because they had a little guy running around. He was jumping from limb to limb, swinging on everything, it was just like a little kid! So cute.

the last stop we hit was "the family farm". It was a petting zoo with mostly goats. It was funny because earlier in the day Breanne and Austin were both asking to see pigs. We kept telling them that pigs weren't at the zoo. Well, we were wrong.

Other random pictures:

Daddy's little helpers. Don't they look helpful?

Memorial Day fun

2009-05-26T11:03:00.002-07:00

We had so much fun this weekend at the lake property. As a family we went down on Saturday and got to spend time with my sister and her husband, my mom and Jerry, Susie and my two cute nieces! Unfortunately I forgot the camera so you'll have to wait until my mom decides to off load her camera. The three girls got to play together and had a blast. They were so exhausted after three days together.

Cameron invented the "naked s'more" and I invite EVERYONE to try it. Roast the marshmallow, but instead of putting it on a graham cracker you shove a piece of chocolate in the middle of the roasted marshmallow. Let it melt a bit and then shove the whole thing in your mouth. No mess and you have tons more room for yummy goodness because you're not eating the graham cracker!

I haven't posted one of these in a while. Very comforting in confusing times, I think.

Getting closer!

2009-05-21T19:31:00.005-07:00

Cameron took his instrument check ride today and he passed! He is now officially instrument rated and is now building time until he reaches 230 hours (he has 170+), then he'll start working on his commercial rating so he can get paid to fly people around. Trust me, even though it's confusing it's very exciting.
Kaitlyn is getting so big! I can't believe all the stuff she can do. She gets into EVERYTHING! Today she knocked my fingernail polish over on the carpet. I swear she's so stealthy. I didn't even see her get by me! It's such a difference from Breanne who we didn't even have to baby proof the house for. Katie crawls, gets to sitting position from crawling, is trying to stand while leaning on toys, LOVES Breanne's toys or anything that she's playing with and she jabbers a ton. It just seems like it hit all of a sudden. I finally put her in the bath tub with Bre because she was all but falling out of the infant tub trying to look at what Bre was doing.They really are cute together. Breanne is such an awesome big sister.
Here are some other random pictures that I have taken over the last couple weeks.

Breanne sleeps just like her daddy!

The puppy Breanne got me for my birthday. We named him Rascoe.

Kaitlyn "helping" daddy with his flight plan.

I can't read

2009-05-11T19:47:00.002-07:00

So we were reading scriptures tonight as a family and I was explaining to Breanne that "Daddy and I are going to read and when you get bigger and can read you'll read with us too. For right now though you're just going to listen". She said okay, but when Cameron and I stopped to discuss something Breanne gets up, sadly, and walks towards the bookshelf to put her scriptures away. I asked her what she was doing and she looks at me with those big puppy dog eyes and says, "I can't read". She crawled back in Cameron's lap and started whimpering. It was cute and sad all at the same time.

Breanne Turns 3!

2009-05-04T10:31:00.001-07:00

Just a couple days old.1 month

4 months10 months

1 year18 months

2 years2 1/2 years3 years!

Her birthday was the 1st but I didn't want to post it until after all her parties! She got to go to Red Robins and have everyone sing her a birthday song and get an ice cream sundae. Later that night we were able to have Cameron's family come over for a small get together. On Sunday we went down to Puyallup for a party with my family. It is sufficient to say she was spoiled rotten with all the presents she received :) She enjoyed being a princess all weekend long.

Anniversary and others

2009-04-30T09:07:00.005-07:00

Cameron and I got to go to Leavenworth, WA for our 4th anniversary for a couple of nights. It was so nice to get away for a while and we REALLY appreciate all the family that watched the girls for us while we were away. Of course you have to stop at the crazy hat shop!

We saw a couple of families of geese out teaching their babies to swim. It was so cute!

Down by the river

Icicle River

On the way home from picking Breanne and Kaitlyn up at Grandmas and Grandpas. She fell asleep with the parachuter on her head (obviously). The girls were so exhausted from all their playing the weekend. They had a ton of fun and so did we.

A small update on Cameron's job situation: Today is his last day! He will no longer be a cars salesman and, hopefully, tomorrow he starts flying airplanes full-time. we realized that if we don't do it now then he'll never get to do it. So now it is. We hope to get it all done and over with in a couple of months. Of course, how many times has our plans changed. I guess I should just say "who knows what's going to happen?" but this is our plan for right now.

The story of our life...or atleast the past year

2009-04-22T14:40:00.004-07:00

I never would have thought that life would be so complicated. Go to school, get married, have kids, graduate with hard earned degree, get job with that hard earned degree...oops, not possible! We have now been graduated for a year and Cameron has been struggling to find a job. Well, he got a job selling cars but he dreams of flying. We both have come to realize that if he doesn't finish up his ratings now he'll never do it and end up like his dad who is now close to retirement and still dreams of flying. There are a lot of different options that we can consider, but it's trying to figure out which one it right for us. He really likes the idea of being a Bush pilot but that requires us to move to Alaska and live there for a lot longer then I want to even consider OR move to Australia! That just seems like a joke. I've never even been outside the U.S. besides Canada (and we all know that that really doesn't count) let alone MOVE outside the U.S. Oh, did I mention that Bush pilots get paid peanuts!
Another option is Crop dusting. The thing that's wrong with that is that Airlines (which he hopes to end up someday) don't like crop dusting time. They get paid fairly well, but it's something that he'd probably do for the rest of his flying career and he doesn't know if that's something he's ready to do. He also has a job interview to be a park aide over the summer. It pays alright, but he has no guarantee of a job come September.
I'm starting to wonder what "happiness" really is. I had this conversation with Cameron. I use to think happiness was about achieving your dreams and goals. I always thought that if you have a dream you should pursue it, but at what cost? We have come to a conclusion that happiness is achieving your dreams and goals, but it also has to do with being happy with what you have. I just don't know at what point you realize that you need to stop pursuing aspirations and just find something that you're marginally happy with.
When will we get to stay in one spot long enough to get to know people?
When will we finally decide where are kids are going to grow up?
What will Cameron do as a career? And how long will it take to get it?
So many unknowns, so many variables, so confusing!

2009-04-16T08:35:00.004-07:00

Some Easter pictures from Easter Weekend. On Saturday we got to do an Easter egg hunt with Cameron's friend's family and then on Sunday we just stayed home, which was very nice, and then had dinner with Cameron's family.

Kaitlyn's Easter candy

Breanne and her bucket of candy. I think I went a little too far with the candy. I bought 3 bags just for her. Well, we get some too, but mainly for her.

Easter egg hunt with the Mathia family. She had a blast. She kept saying, "this is so cool, this is so fun!"

There's sissy...

What she has looks interesting...can I have it?

apparently not!

It's okay, they're still friends

I feel like a complete moron because I got the girls all dressed up for church and I didn't take a picture of them! So mad at myself right now.

We also went to the beach, again. I love the beach! This time it was a rocky shore and Breanne got to see baby crabs and all kinds of other sea creatures.

My cute family

Hope everyone else had a great Easter weekend!

Just a Day at the Beach

2009-04-07T14:07:00.004-07:00

Deception Pass on Whidbey Island to be exact. We had to get outside and enjoy the sunshine while it lasted!

Cameron and his girls

Kaitlyn loved being in the snuglie and being outside

the girlies in the sand

ahhh, the fam

she fell asleep about 2 mins after we got in the car, but she fell asleep with donut left in her mouth! If you look real close you can see it, if you want.

Breanne Turns 3!

2009-04-02T14:35:00.009-07:00

Just a couple days old.1 month

4 months10 months

1 year18 months

2 years2 1/2 years3 years!
Her birthday was the 1st but I didn't want to post it until after all her parties! She got to go to Red Robins and have everyone sing her a birthday song and get an ice cream sundae. Later that night we were able to have Cameron's family come over for a small get together. On Sunday we went down to Puyallup for a party with my family. It is sufficient to say she was spoiled rotten with all the presents she received :) She enjoyed being a princess all weekend long.

A Book with a Promise

2009-03-29T12:56:00.002-07:00

This is the latest video put out by the church. Enjoy and Share!

Day Out at the Park and Updates

2009-03-26T10:28:00.006-07:00

We have a park just down the street from where we live and it made for a nice walk yesterday. Still a bit cold but we're all willing to brave it for an hour or so just to get out side!

Breanne and Kaitlyn on the swings. This is all Breanne wanted to do which wasn't too bad because I could push them both and not have to hold Kaite the whole time. I'm a dork and don't realize that you can totally see my shadow!

Breanne pushing Kaitlyn.

Kaitlyn liked the swings. No smiles over it but definitely no crying.

On the way home. When we got back to our house they were both asleep but as soon as I pulled the camera out of course they woke up. Still 2 cute kids.

Breanne is becoming very fond of her little sister. She even tried to wake her up from her nap yesterday just to play with her! Not always appreciated by the mommy, but still sweet.
Kaitlyn is trying her VERY hardest to crawl. Nothing yet, but I'm guessing that in the next few weeks she will no longer be stuck in one room. She does these push ups, literally, they look like push ups. I think she may have better form then me! She also gets up n her knees every once in a while. That means I need to start baby proofing. I hate baby proofing. I never really had to do it with Breanne so it will be a learning experience. I think for the most part she'll follow Bre around. Breanne is doing pretty well with the potty thing. She has pooped in the toilet 2 days in a row and we've started a new reward system. So far it's working, but we'll see if she keeps it up. It's a chart that she gets to put stickers on every time she goes in the toilet. If she has lots of stickers on it by the end of the week we have a sort of "party" for her. I still have to figure out exactly what that will be.
Cameron's job is going so so. They have been really slow but they say that the end of month picks up. We'll see.
Things are going by so quickly. Kaitlyn is already 6 months old and Bre will be 3 in about a month. It's so hard to believe that I'm a mom of a 3 year old and a 6 month old and next month we'll be married for 4 years and graduated for a year. It's like we're in real life now and not just college students any more. Man, what a reality check! :) All in all, life is pretty good. Just need the weather to get warm so we can go play outside in the grass.

The Blessings of the Temple

2009-03-22T13:39:00.002-07:00

I decided to post a new video every Sunday. I really like these. They have a great message to help remind us of important principles and to teach others who may not know. I like that this is the way the church has taken a stand. These are also available on LDS.org.

Mormon Messages

2009-03-15T16:41:00.002-07:00

I found these videos on youtube and thought that everyone would benefit from knowing about them and hopefully viewing them. I hope that everyone will at least take the time to see the one posted below.

You can view more at www.youtube.com/mormontv

Where In The World Is Sedro-Woolley?

2009-03-15T15:06:00.010-07:00

There's really nothing to special to post on, I figured I should though seeing that we moved into our new place and all. Cameron was really enjoying his job training but starting Thursday he started actually selling at their "sale" which was off site. It was so miserable, slow and cold and he's still out there for the next 3 hours as I write. He's been working practically 12 hour days and the weather has been pretty bad. He did come home with a suntan/burn AND he made his first sale yesterday and in fact he was the first one out of all the new guys hired to make one. That's pretty much par though. He's always successful at whatever he puts his efforts into. Can I just say that I officially dislike salesmen? Not Cameron, of course, he's wonderful, but some of the more experienced guys he works with are creeps. This one guy stole half of Cam's sale. Cam was doing fine, the people really liked him but the lady had to go to work so this other guy that had been watching saw them starting to leave. Now when a customer starts to "walk" as they put it your suppose to "turn" it to another salesperson who can get the sale right then and there. These people weren't walking, she just had to go to work. They gave Cameron all their info and they would be back. This guy didn't know what was going on and stepped in and handed them his card, which apparently ment that they were "married" on the deal (they would have to split it). The people didn't like that other salesman at all and to make a long story short, if Cameron hadn't stuck around with this couple they wouldn't have bought anything. Just because that guy gave his card he assumed that he was entitled to half the money! But that's what all the experienced guys try to do to the newbies. They slip in for just a bit and WHAM! there goes half of their sale! Creeps! Don't worry, Cameron won't let it happen again. He was pretty steamed about it when he got home, but he's prepared to give the next guy that tries that a piece of his mind (and if he wont I will!!). I hate the whole sales mentality. I know that Cameron is a great salesman because he's genuine and cares about the customer, not just getting their money, so I know that there are others out there too, but ohh the one's who are just out there for the kill!!! Creeps! That is of course the nice version of what I'm really thinking.
Anyway, so we moved to this small town called Sedro-Woolley. I know what your thinking "Sedro what? Woolley? What's woolley?" The more I get to know it the more I REALLY like it. Like, I might be able to plant roots here. The people we've met so far have all been really great and it's quite and pretty. We're really close to the mountains. It could be that I'm just so sick of moving that I'm willing to stay ANY where for a long time, but I think this place wont be bad. I would post pictures of my own but my camera seems to be MIA since the move. I'm sure it will show itself soon. Here is the location on a map for those of you who are REALLY confused :)

the girls

2009-03-04T16:49:00.002-07:00

I had to post this picture of the girls. They're so cute!

The job

2009-02-26T21:35:00.002-07:00

Cameron finally got a job offer as a car salesman at a Subaru dealership. I know what you're thinking "oh great, a car salesman" but it's a job that comes with benefits and the possibility to make good money. It's up in Burlington, WA so we get to move, AGAIN. We are going to look at places tomorrow. It's a job, I don't care what it is and I don't really think Cameron cares at this point either. We've just been waiting so long for one to come around and it finally has. And at a good time! The house we've been living in has sold. It closes by the 23rd of this month. Is that great timing or what? Cameron starts Monday so he'll be staying up at his parents house for the week so he doesn't have to drive 2 hours there and back everyday. I'm a little nervous because Kaitlyn is a horrible sleeper and I have been so very tired already, let alone taking care of her all night by myself. I feel so bad for Breanne, I hardly have any energy to play with her. We'll have to find things to do to get her and I out of the house.

Disneyland Pics

2009-02-25T16:57:00.021-07:00

Here are just a few of our pictures from our trip to Disneyland. These are to accompany the last post. I finally got the pictures on our computer!
Pluto

Most of the clan minus a few big kids

Katie on the carousel

Flying Dumbo!

Teacups were a hit. The kids loved to go REALLY fast. It made most of the adults sick :)

Tinker Bell!

"ello!"

Minnie Mouse

Goofy actually spent a lot of time with the kids. He played around in the jail and other parts of Toon Town. Breanne got to front and center with him.

Waiting in line at the Princess Fantasy Faire

CinderellaSleeping Beauty

Snow WhitePlaying swords
Little Princess

I thought this deserved to be on here because if you see a bigger picture of it Sam looks like he's screaming and Amber looks really upset. This was a cute little kids ride. All the other pictures I have of everyone are all happy and smiley. Not these two!

A big Bear in front of the river ride

Breanne loved the carousel

Stuck on the Indiana Jones ride. Someone had to come and get us off.

Cameron ready for his death waiting to get on Indiana Jones

We got stuck on the Pirates of the Caribbean

So we took some pictures

Breanne on Dumbo. It rained quite a bit that morning, that's why her pants are soaked and it looks like Dumbo's in a lake!

Family portrait at the beach

Kaitlyn didn't like the wind so she was curled up in a blanket with grandpa most of the time.

We got to go to the beach for a couple hours. Daddy and Breanne were waiting for the waves to try and get them.

Running back towards the waves

ahhh, the newlyweds, Sam and Amber

Austin building his sand castle

Breanne being, well, Breanne

Huntington Beach

Hope that's not long distance. By the look on her face...

This is kind of a funny story. The first picture he has the hat on the right way, but this one he has it on backwards. We didn't know that and we were having a really hard time getting the mickey ears to stay up. The sales guy walks up to us and without hardly even looking at us he says, "it on backwards". Man, we all felt kind of stupid and laughed but the guy didn't. He just walked away. Probably happens a lot.

River rapids ride in California Adventure. Most of us got pretty wet on it, but Cameron's mom is the winner by far. She came out looking as if she had jumped in the river and gotten back in the raft!

Had to have a picture with the airplane

In front of Sleeping Beauty's castle. Kaitlyn was asleep :(

Meeting Mickey

Just call her "muscles"

run for your lives, someone let her drive!

Sleeping beauties (Cousin Piper and Katie)

Cute little Kaitlyn enjoying Disneyland. she has lots of close ups because she was always being carried.

This is Kaitlyn's "I hate paparazzi" face.

In line for Thunder Mountain

Me and my Bubba

Mike, Larissa, Heidi, James and Marina on Splash Mountain

Aladdin, of course

Tarzan's tree house

Entering the park

Train ride. The kids loved this! They went on it 3 times at least.

The first ride we hit was Indiana Jones. It was surprisingly scary the first time, but by the 6th or 7th it was just fun to scream to make everyone else scared. We actually got stuck on this ride. Now that was fun.

The Disneyland trip

2009-02-24T10:43:00.002-07:00

well, we have been back from Disneyland for over a week now and a few people are starting to get pushy for a new post (ahem, Maggie).
We left for Disneyland EARLY Saturday morning, like at 5 am, and drove the whole way (20 hours or something crazy like that). The craziest part of it thought is that we didn't even know we were going until Thursday night. We get a phone call from Cameron's parents asking if we wanted to go. Well, of course! Like we'd turn down a vaca to Disneyland. SO we packed feverishly, as I'm sure his parents were doing also, and we were on our way.
They rented this nice vacation home that was only a few minutes drive from the park so it was nice not to have to live in a hotel room for 2 weeks.
Our first day at the park was Monday and I think the adults were more excited then the kids. At least the little kids. We had a six day pass to Disneyland and California Adventure so we took our time doing all the rides we wanted and seeing everything that we wanted. Breanne, her cousin Austin and Aunt Katrina got to go see all the characters and princesses. I think this was Bre's favorite part, other then riding the flying dumbos. The first character that she got to meet was Mickey, how perfect huh? We were going to see Minnie first but she had a huge line in front of her house so we decided that we had many more days here to do the character thing so we'd just wait and walk through Mickey's house instead. We didn't know that he was in the back. We walked through and we got to his "movie barn" where you just stood in a line sort of thing and watched some old mickey movies. They took people out of the room in little groups and when it was our turn as we were walking down the hall the person says, "alright, lets go meet Mickey". We walked in to see mickey and I wish I could have captured the look on Breanne face. She walked up to him and said, "hi mickey" in the sweetest little girl voice ever!
Let me tell you, it's fun to go on the rides and stuff, but to take your kids to see all their favorite characters is so much better then that! The last day we were at Disneyland we went around to all of them. The kids had such a great time.
California Adventure is a blast. They have bigger rides then at Disneyland, with bigger thrills. I'm not much of a thrill seeker, myself, but Cameron loves those kinds of rides. He and a few other people went on the maliboomer which shot you up 180 feet in the air and the Tower of terror which dropped you 3-4 times. I had decided to try every ride because I didn't want to miss out on anything. I didn't like the being shot up, but I didn't like being dropped even more! I made Cameron tell me everything about the tower of terror so I could adequately prepare myself. It seems there was a bit of a communication break down. The way he described everything it made it sound like there was 2 seperate drops. The first on was short and the second one was the big one. So we got on and the people working the rides were acting strange, which made it add to the whole suspense of things. Were sitting it an old elevator shaft and the rides starts going through what happened one night at the holleywood hotel (kind of a twilight zone thing) and after it shows that then the first drop is suppose to happen. Cameron told me it ws coming up and sqeezed my leg right before it happened so I thought I was prepared. Oh my goodness! It drops us the first time and it was scary. THEN, it brings us back up a little ways and drops you again! I was really getting scared, not just fun scared. THEN, it brings you up and I thought for sure that this had to be the end of the first drop because the ride kept going and the big drop came at the end, at least this is what was suppose to happen in my mind. that didn't happen. I look up and what do I see? The whole park from the top of the tower. At this point it takes your picture and I have this terrified look on my face because in my mind I was thinking "oh crap!". It did the final drop from the very top and I think that was it. It just seemed like it dropped us over and over and over again. After it stops everyone is starting to get out and I look at Cameron and all I can say to him is "you lied to me". I had all this adrenaline going and was so scared that I had tears in my eyes! I really hate those rides, REALLY! Like I said, communication break down. He thought he had explained it pretty well to me. But atleast I can say that I did it, right?
It was a really fun trip and to top it off I got to see Rachel and Dane, who I haven't got to see for a while. I totally want to go back with Cameron and the girls when they're older when they can go on all the rides. Kaitlyn went on almost all the rides that Breanne went on and didn't cry once. She cried in line, screamed even, but once we got on the ride she was happy as a clam.
One of our off days we got to go to huntington beach and spend a coupld hours there. It was nice to see the ocean.
We're having slight troubles with our computer downloading our pictures so I'll have to post a seperate post with all the pictures.

HAHA

2009-01-30T22:44:00.002-07:00

We're going to Disneyland for 2 weeks. What are you doing??? HAHAHA
I'll post all our fun doings when we get back.

Ballerina, Blessing and so much more

2009-01-16T14:38:00.008-07:00

Okay, we don't have internet at our new place yet so it's been awhile but here are some pictures of the house. Just keep in mind that it's an old place, needs a lot of work, and that we've done A LOT so far. The outside still needs some cleaning up so when the weather gets better thats the plan. It's on 1/4 acre and is completely fenced.

Our living room. We painted all the walls in this room. They were a horrible paneling and ugly flower wall paper on the other side.
This is the other side of the living room which we also use as our dining area and kids toy area. We have a pellet stove that works wonderfully. Breanne wanted to be in all the pictures I took :)
Kitchen. This was a bear to clean. We're talking hands and knees scrubing the floor! We used so much cleaner that the floor was sticky afterwards because we couldn't get it all off! It's not sticky anymore but...man.

Bathroom. The one and only. It's a little small but it serves the purpose. We painted this as well, I mean, Cameron did. Turned out well I think.
We blessed Kaitlyn last Sunday. We had Cameron's family, my mom and Jerry, my dad and Cathy, and Megan and DJ come to church. Afterwards they all came to our place for early dinner and some Duck Hunt. That's right, the oldschool nintendo game. Needless to say, it was a blast.

We're also doing the potty training thing and so far so good. No poop in the toilet but she's doing great at going potty in the toilet. Only a couple of accidents in about a weeks time. Slowly but surely, someday I will have a potty trained kid. She loves to be a ballerina right now. I have to put this video on here even though I messed it up. We get the ARTS channel that plays all kinds of different musical performances and she dances to all the music.

Christmas, New Years, New place?

2009-01-05T10:10:00.004-07:00

I posted pictures from Christmas Eve, but like some of my friends, I also forgot to take pictures of Christmas morning. We spent it with Cameron's family and Christmas morning there is an ALL day event. They usually stay up VERY late (or early) setting up presents that Santa brought and firguring out stockings. I don't think that his parents went to bed until 7 am. Crazy! I went to bed not too long after Breanne because I knew that one of us would have to get up with the kids, plus I don't do late nights very well anymore. So my kids owke up about 8 and we sent Breanne upstairs with the rest of the kids who were still sleeping. We didn't even start opening presents until 10:30 or so and Breanne was getting tired so it wasn't as fun as I hoped it would be for her. She had been talking about santa bringing her a stroller and a baby for a few weeks and when she finally opened it she just wanted to see what everyone else had. Oh well. She had a ton of fun any way. We had pie for breakfast, or lunch, but luckily brother-in-law, mike made breakfast sandwiches first. I just haven't gotten use to that tradition yet, but it sure is a hit. Then after digesting pie and candy and everything else we opened family presents. Like I said, an all day event. By the time dinner time rolls around everyone is basically too tired and we had Turkey sandwiches, like you would have the day after thanksgiving, with all the fixin's. I was totally down with those!

New Years was a relaxed time because once again we were hit with a cold bug! We stayed home with just our little family, put Kaitlyn to bed her usual time, and Breanne, Cameron and I watched Kung Fu Panda which was so cute. After that Breanne went to bed around 10 (we knew that she would try desperately to stay up to 12), Cameron and I watched Hancock (pretty good), Kaitlyn woke up at 11:45 so we were feeding a baby during new years and didn't get to watch fireworks on T.V. It was fun to stay up with Bre though. We had a good time.
Now with the new year beginning we are moving into a new house. It needed lots of work, but after the three days of painting, cleaning, and mouse hunting I think that it's livable enough for us to start moving our stuff in. We're running a bit of an experiment with the mice though. We don't know if they're still there so tonight we left a couple chips on the kitchen floor. We'll go back tomorrow and see if they've been nibbled on or stolen. We bought rat poison so hopefully that will do the trick. Other then that I think it's a go. The rent is right (practically free) and the lease is perfect (none). We hope this year has started well for everyone and we really hope that the beginning of this year brings the end of job searching for us!!!