Tis the Season for... Christmas Parties and Santa!

We have had family Christmas parties on the past two Sundays both with a special visitor, Santa :). Last Sunday we had just sat down to dinner when Santa Clause showed up. All the kids were very excited but I think most the adults were just hungry! Except for my dad who is more a kid at Christmas time than most of the actual kids. He is thinking of buying a suit and being one of "Santa's Helpers" next year. If you know my dad he would do a great job! Santa distributed presents, I got a $50 Gap card and Ryan got an itunes gift card. We were very excited. (Especially me...losing 39 lbs. (as of now) I am in need of some new clothes:) ).

After we opened presents and sang songs Ryan and I introduced a new game to my family of passing a present while the book 'The Night Before Christmas' is read and then yo get the present you end up with. It kind of back fired because everyone ended up with the present the started out with...and of course some kids cried because they didn't like their treat. It was a lovely idea:). Then Ryan and I recreated the Nativity Story using the grand kids. You can all imagine how great that was... When all was said and done we finished off the party with a little bubbly that Debbie (Ryan's mom brought) and we toasted to the Christmas Season and we all went around and shared one thing we are grateful for. For most of the kids that consisted of Play Station 3's and Wii's. But it was really nice to hear all the wonderful things that my family was grateful for. And my Grandma gave a very sweet testimony that we all enjoyed, she is a great lady! Over all the parties have been fun and we are happy to be around family for the Holidays this year!

Chaserbug

Since we have moved to Utah we don't have too much to blog about...I feel we are boring. We wake up super early and go to work and get back late, I could think of other things I would rather be doing like biking in AZ instead of worrying about crazy snow drivers, but we made our bed and now we are sleeping in it :). I just have a couple cute pictures of Chase that I think are really cute. Yes, he is a complete menis around here, chewing up Christmas ornaments, making all the other dogs hyper, knocking little kids over, taking whole sandwiches off peoples plates when they are not looking... he has turned crazy here. He goes non-stop all day so when we get home we take him in our room and he just crashes. It is the cutest thing, we can call his name and he doesn't budge! We have to physically move him off our bed so that we can get in. But since it is really cold in the basement where we sleep he likes to jump on our bed and sleep under the covers (until he is kicked off--we down sized beds moving here and there is just not room for a third being). He is really funny:

And Chase loves the snow. We like it because he has stopped shedding for the time being and is holding on to all that extra hair for warmth. He loves to run in the snow and go crazy! The other day we took him on a walk and I think he thought he was swimming because he would dive into the snow and burrow his face all the way tot he grass and run the whole length of the yard (I hope the neighbors didn't mind). We were laughing so hard, he did it over and over and over again.

Saturday was his birthday! He is officially 1 years old! He all hung out all day and he got two new toys :).

I know all this talk about our dog... we need a hobby! :)

The Square and Bucks

Well, before Pat left we all had to go to Temple Square and see the lights but coming straight from AZ we needed something to keep us toasty warm so we went to Starbucks. This is how the story goes.... we had 6 people in the car and 5 wanted hot chocolate. Ryan and I ran into the Sarbucks at the Gateway to get 5 peppermint white hot chocolates. I guess it was a lot easier said than done. We got two of our drinks and then two other people got their orders. Then they gave us 4 other drinks and said that one was a mistake but that we could take them all. So we loaded up the cup carrier with 6 drinks and headed to the car. Ryan thought it would be funny to try to beat me to the car so he ran off pretty quick but as I was walking I wanted to taste a hot one so I took a big sip and to my surprise it was not peppermint hot chocolate, yes it was a fat cup of hot coffee...with peppermint. As I ran out of Starbucks to catch Ryan I couldn't yell because I had a mouthful of coffee...Yuck. I sit it out in the nearest garbage and called for Ryan. All 4 drinks were coffee. Needless to say we ended up going back and some how leaving with 7 peppermint white hot chocolates. It was a long process but it kept us warm and we walked through the lights.Let me know if anyone else has gone to Temple Square this year because we thought that it was not as lit up as usual. It was still really cool but there were a lot of blank trees. In fact, Ryan and I went driving around last night to see Christmas and we drove down entire streets without lights. I think that people forgot to have that Christmas cheer shining bright for all to see. We were kind of disappointed and decided to come home. Although, the lights that did have lights looked really great! I really do enjoy being home for Christmas!


Yes, I do have sandals on...I didn't have any shoes. I never needed them in AZ :) But, I do now...moving was a good excuse to go shopping for shoes and warm clothes.

THANK YOU!

We owe a huge THANK YOU to everyone who helped us move! We had a bunch of friends come over on Saturday to help us load up the truck. Everyone worked really hard and fast. We were able to get everything loaded pretty quickly. Dede helped me clean while all the guys moved stuff down the stairs. When everything was cleaned and packed we all went over to James and Dede's to have our favorite pizza one last time NYPD pizza. It is so yummy and it was awesome! Afterwards we all cleaned up and went to a new outdoor mall that had just opened up and looked around. Pat was looking for jeans with flaps over the back pocket...he says they make your butt look good :) After walking around the mall we went back to James and Dede's and crashed. We had a sleepover because we didn't have anything left in our apartment. We all got up early and they made us German pancakes, Ry had never had them before. Then we packed up and left. It was really sad. There are a lot of things we will miss about Arizona but James, Dede, and Ramone will be one of the main ones. It is really fun to have friends to do stuff with and everyone has so much fun. And Chase will miss his best friend, Ramone. We have a lot of good memories of Arizona and look forwards to getting things moving forward in Utah! Although about now we are both freezing and would like our 80 degree weather back!

Thanks again to everyone that helped...we are very grateful for you all!

This is the morning we left, after the sleepover, that is why we all look like we just woke up...because we did :)

Little Ramoni Macaroni, Mac, Apple, Appy...whatever comes to mind...he is so cute!

Best buds!

Happy Thanksgiving!

We had one last final holiday together before we left to move back to Utah. I am actually writing from Utah so that means we are back but I have to still do a few posts of the last few days in Arizona. Thanksgiving this year was really fun. Pat, Ryan's younger brother flew in from Indiana Thanksgiving morning so we shared it with him and also out very good friends the Crowley's. We had enough food to feed 20 more people but we all ate a lot of food and had a good time. Before Pat got in and it was time to make all the final preparations Ryan and I decided to go on one last bike ride in AZ. Yes we are dressed in long clothes because it was a chilly Thanksgiving morning! :)Pat was nice enough to come out and spend the holiday with us and also help with the move...he is a trooper! We are really grateful for his help.
We also had James, Dede, and Ramone (their puppy and Chase's best friend) over too. After we ate we played the Wii for a little bit and then we went to see August Rush. After the movie we had pie, hung out for a bit, and then went to sleep. We were all pretty tired and needed a good night's sleep before the big packing day!

The Demolisher

Many of you know that Nici got a bike for her birthday, which was a little over a month ago. She is doing so good I'm impresssed by her everytime we go ride. We have a few favorite rides we like to do and are going to miss when we leave AZ.

One of the rides we call Userary Loop: It's only a 20 mile ride through the desert of AZ, but there is a huge downhill where we can hit 40mph, and an even bigger uphill that is over 3 miles to the top. This picture is from the first day that she rode it. The hill is really hard for anyone the first time they ride it. I think she was a little mad at me in the middle of it so I rode away and let her finish on her own. I knew she could do it. AND SHE DID!!!!!! She was really happy once she got to the top, not only cause it was over, but that she did it. Once she got to the top I called her the Demolisher cause she demolished that hill.

Anyways this post was to pay tribute to the Demolisher.

P.S. This weekend we rode Userary Loop again. Standing in the parking lot unloading our bikes the Demolisher dropped her bike. It was on the gound and she was holding it with two hands, then all the sudden she just let go, as if the bike could stand all on it's own and would not be affected by gravity. It was really funny. It might not sound that great but it really was hilarious. Anyways... I thought I'd share.

Happy Birthday James!

We had a really fun weekend. It was our friend, James' birthday so we celebrated all weekend. On Friday we went to a really good Thai restaurant, I had never had Thai before but I really liked it. James got a 12 week old Rhodesian Ridgeback for his birthday so after dinner we let him and Chase have a play date. Chase was very excited and going crazy! But, he was having a lot of fun.

Then on Saturday we had a party at their house with all their friends and then we went roller skating! It was hilarious! In college James took a roller skating class and knows how to do all these cool tricks...we even saw a video of the final where he had to do a 3 minute routine...WOW! :)

Well, you see that smile on Ryan's face? It was not there all night. It was a frustrating experience for the big guy! He fell three times. Although, I have to say he was a very good sport and stuck it out! I was very proud of him for trying. He is awesome! I honestly never thought I would find myself back in a skating rink after all these years. I think we could all tell we are getting older...because by the time we left our ears were ringing because the music was so loud and we were all worn out! A bunch of old farts! :)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JAMES...WE HAD A GREAT TIME!

Me Too....

I guess I've been tagged, too. By my wife and an old friend Sarah Bennett.

1) My best friend is Nici. Why? She is always there for me, rarely annoyes me except for at work cause she follows me all the time and asks me what to do and used to call me all the time asking what to do in a situation but she doesn't do it very much anymore cause she knows I HATE to talk on my phone. She gives really good neck rubs, sometimes I have to really bug her to do it, but it's always worth the extra effort I have to put in. She takes care of me when I don't feel good. She buys me things. She laughs with me all the time. She supports me. She loves the Chaserbug like I do. Her cycling nickname is The Demolisher, cause that is what she does to any climb in her path, demolishes it. And she must have a butt of steel cause today I sat on her bike seat and almost cried it was so hard. She has squinty eyes. Sometimes she thinks she is so funny that she can't stop laughing and in reality it's not funny at all, but I laugh cause she is going crazy thinking she is so funny. She's really good at whatever she does. She is motivated and can do anything she puts her mind to. That's pretty much it. JK, hon. For those of you reading this and don't know her very well she is awesome.

2) My second best friend is my buddy Chase. He is awesome. I never thought I would care so much for a dog. I hope I love him as much as he loves me. He is so smart and well behaved. (those of you who have meet Chase might not see this in him cause he does get so excited around others he just can't help himself but be crazy). He is an awesome swimmer and can jump off the dock and do big belly flops. When he swims he lives by the saying "leave no ball behind" He won't come back to the shore until all the balls have been gathered and brought in. He dreams so hard when he sleeps he wakes me up sometimes whining and moving around. When he sits his butt goes down really fast.

3) Cycling is my new favorite thing to do. Climbing is sweet. Getting to the top of a big hill is such a good feeling. I love to go down hills as fast as I can. Spandex shorts are sweet, and jerseys are even sweeter. Bright white cycling socks are sweet, too. One of the things I'm looking forward to about living in Utah again is that I think the cycling is better there. Nic doesn't know this yet but next summer we're going to get into mountain biking.

4) I love to read. If I could only do one thing the rest of my life it would be to just read books. I've read a ton of books, well almost. I'm really good about starting one, getting to the middle, and then starting a new one never finishing the first. Some good ones I've read lately: Merle's Door: Lessons from a Freethinking Dog, Thinking for a Change, the most recent issue of Bicycling, I've read others but can't think of any right now.

5) When I was a little kid I was really, really afraid of the Wicked Witch in the Wizard of Oz. Deathly afraid. And the Tinman was my favorite.

6) I don't like to drink from straws. In fact, I never do.

I guess the first few weren't about me, but more or less my favorite things and why I like them so much. Anyways, I can't tag six people cause I don't know enough. But I will tag James and Dede cause I don't think they have been yet.

Tag...I'm it!

My friend, Jess, tagged me and that means I have to write 6 things about myself...although about a month ago it wrote 100 things about myself so this will make it 106:)

1. I "heart" cycling! This is my new favorite sport. Since my birthday I try to ride 5 times a week. On Saturdays we go for long rides and it is so fun and tough...but it is really fun.
2. I have lost 24 lbs in the past 9 weeks with going to Weight Watchers meeting...and still have some to go:) but, I am very proud of my accomplishments.
3. I am a new big fan of the Ellen DeGeneres show. I think she is really funny!
4. We bought a new vacuum last week and now I love to vacuum. And I cannot believe how much a Golden Retriever sheds...it is insane!
5. I think Walt Disney was probably the smartest man ever.
6. I am very excited to be in Utah this Christmas and to have snow for the Holidays...Christmas in AZ is just like a day off work with presents, sometimes lacking the Christmas spirit.

Well, consider me tagged. Now, I have to tag others so...
TAG: Ryan (my hubby), Lisa and Brett Anderson (separately), Lisa Echoles, and Mike and Lindsay Nerhing (separately)...have fun!

Tribute to Thanksgiving

I know I kind of skipped over Thanksgiving but don't think that I don't love this Holiday too. But, being on Weight Watchers a day dedicated to food is not something I am looking forward to right now :) Although, I am thankful for one whole day dedicated to being thankful and celebrating all the blessings we have in our lives. This is my tribute to Thanksgiving :)

Graduation Day!

Last Friday was a special day for our little puppy. He graduated from his pet smart training class. He was top in his class (doesn't every parent think that?) We are very proud of him. He now knows sit, down, wait, stay, leave it, no, and puppy pus-ups. We also realized that he is completely motivated by food. This little puppy will do anything as long as a treat is involved. We also found out that he loves to watch the mice and Ginni pigs before and after class. He would just sit and watch them forever. He wouldn't bark or do anything he would just sit and watch. Sometimes people would stop to watch him watching them because it was just that funny.

Chase has a little girl that comes over everyday and takes him on a walk and she reads books on how to train him so we invited her to come to his last class and see him graduate. She brought him a couple of presents and this card we thought it was so cute and nice. Chase loved the presents too...he played with them non-stop until it was destroyed...so for about a day :)

So Many Things To Be Grateful For!

Well, this week I have been a bit absent for blogging because I was in Utah with my family for a funeral. It seems like a funeral is always a good time for reflection and to think about the things that are truly important to you. This week I thought about things that I am really grateful for especially because the death of my cousin came as a shock and was very unexpected I thought of things that give me comfort during rough situations like this was.

1) I am grateful for my knowledge of the gospel and the atonement. When I find it difficult to put myself in someone elses shoes it is comforting to know that Jesus Christ knows. He is the only one who has experienced all things and knows exactly what we are feeling. It is comforting to know that God is just and merciful. We all make mistakes but God knows the true intentions of our hearts. I love the gospel and the peace it brings me.

2) I am grateful for the knowledge that families are FOREVER! In a rough situation my family is a good one to be apart of. You say family reunion and no one can come but you say funeral and everyone is on the next plane out. We had family come in from New York, Colorado, North Carolina, California, and Arizona. It was good to see everyone again and be able to laugh, cry, and strengthen family bonds. I love my family!

3) I am grateful for good friends who support me and my family in a time of need. For good friends who fed my husband while was gone and all the kindness that was shone on my families behalf.

I am grateful for so much more but this is a good start.

Scanned Memories #2

I just wanted to go down memory lane again and share some more pictures from the past.

You have to love pictures from High School dances. This was Homecoming my senior year (Mikelle, me, and Ashley) and I can't remember what the other dance was...whatever it was it was an 80's dance (I hope!) :) (me and Lisa). What about those alternating socks and high tops!

These are my good friends Lisa, different Lisa's. First, this is one of my favorite pictures I have of me and Lisa at the State softball tournament our Jr. year--I had on my rally cap! My favorite thing about High School was playing softball. Second, the other picture is my other friend Lisa, she was my best friend in High School.

(Right to left: Britt's brother, Britt, Katie, Ashley, Megan, Kristin, Lisa, me, and Natalie)

This picture was taken at Primary Children's Hospital.

My senior or Jr. year my friends and I decided that at Christmas time instead of buying each other presents we would get together a week before Christmas and go buy presents for the kids at Primary Children's Hospital with the money that we would spend on each other. Then we would take them up to the Hospital. One of my friends had an in and we would get to go on a tour and meet some of the kids. It was really fun. Then that night we would all go out to dinner. This tradition would lasted about four years, up until my mission. It is some of my favorite Christmas memories.

This is a picture of me and my sisters at my oldest sisters wedding in 1998. We had awesome hair! :

GOOD TIMES!

Birthday Treats!

Well, this past Tuesday was my birthday, 28! WOW, that's old! I had a good birthday...we went to Texas Roadhouse, my fav restaurant, with friends and Ryan spoiled me with gifts. I love the Christmas village we do every year but I also love Halloween so Ryan gave me a Halloween house like the Christmas ones we have but this one is Dracula's Castle, I love it. Also, he gave me a bike. I actually got to go help pick it out and I was very excited...but this gift comes with a story, here it is:

My main worry about this bike is the bike shoes that clip in and out. I have never used a bike with clips before. At the bike store I kept talking to the sales guys and Ryan about my fear of falling because they all said that everyone falls. Well, I really do not what to fall! They said that it doesn't hurt your body just your pride. They gave me all these tips about how not to fall...I was ready. After 3 hours of measuring, tightening, fitting and checking we paid for the bike, walked out of the store and decided to take a spin around the parking lot...Big Mistake--After twenty seconds of riding I was getting off and unclipped my left foot and then when I stopped I tried to step down with my right foot. As you can tell the right foot was still clipped in and I FELL! I couldn't believe it. I was laughing so hard laying in the middle of the parking lot. Ryan was looking down when I pulled up and he said all he heard was "oh, Crap!" and then saw me fall! It was really funny because I was laughing so hard and Ryan was so concerned. He kept asking of I was ok...of course I was ok, I fell from a standing position to the ground. I wasn't even moving when I fell. It was hilarious! I scratched up my leg, elbow, hands, and my poor bike. I had only owned it about 20 seconds and I already had dinged it up!

That night Ryan and I went on a ride and I did ok. I was nervous (it is not like I remember as a kid) but as we stopped at lights I would clip my right foot out with plenty of time before the light and I was getting pretty good at getting it back in. Well, at our last light I was thinking to myself, "if i wouldn't have fallen earlier today than I wouldn't have fallen on my first day out". I spoke 10 seconds too soon. As the light turned green the cars were waiting for us to go before they turned left so I pushed off but the pad in my shorts got stuck on the seat of my bike and I couldn't get up...smart me took my right hand off the handle bar to move it but with my left foot clipped in and my left hand on the handle bar gravity took over and I fell to the left. Right in front of all the cars waiting to turn left. I can only imagine how hard they were laughing. Because once again I was not even moving just pretty much standing still and then just fell over. I am not very good at this and if I was ever a prideful person...I know have a little less. It is really embarrassing. The only thing you can do is get up move your bike and laugh at yourself. Ryan is funny too because he is almost afraid to laugh at me and gets very concerned. He is cute. And needless to say... my left side now matches the scratches of my right side...this is a dangerous gift! But, I love it and I am very excited to get better at it. Thanks Ry!

Scanned Memories #1

Today I spent some time scanning some old pictures of me and Ryan. Mostly him because most of the pictures of me as a child are in Utah at my parents house but here are some of them. I will have to break up all the pictures because there are so many cute ones, especially of Ry...he was one cute kid.
A month before I left on my mission in 2000 my family went on a cruise. We went to Jamaica, Mexico, and the Grand Cayman Islands. It was one of the most fun things I have ever done!

Tis the season...I found a bunch of Ryan's Halloween pictures. This is not all of them but they are sure cute. I am glad that his parents were camera happy and we have all these cute memories.






So, I don't think that the GI Joe and the other one with the sword are Halloween but more just dress up but I thought that they are great pictures! Also, is that Donald Duck on the end of that sword? Scary! Oh, the first pumpkin baby is his brother Pat and the second pumpkin baby is his youngest brother, Nick, Pat is the skeleton.

Last but not least just some cute fall pictures (all of these are Ryan):


Ryan with Pat.
There are a ton more pictures that I want to upload but I will save some for another time. You have to agree Ryan was a super cute little kid, then again I think he still is.

We Love Him, We Love Him Not.........We Love Him!

Anyone want a dog? Very Cute, 10 month old Golden Retriever...any takers? We have been trying to give Chase more responsibility lately and letting him stay out of his kennel more when we are not home. We started out with just a few minutes and then have moved up to a few hours. Well, Ryan came home this week for lunch to find this:


Yes, this is the carpet in our apartment and that is all the padding. Needless to say he can not handle the level of responsibility that has been bestowed upon him and his days of being in the kennel all day have returned. Believe me that when I had to tell the apartment complex it was very embarrassing and they may need to replace all the carpet. Do you think Chase has to pay for it? No, it is all us! Bad Puppy! But, it is hard for us to be mad when he is so darn cute! How can you be mad at this cute little face?

Plus he is wearing the Halloween handkerchief that I made him....I know I am obsessed with Halloween but he is catching the spirit. :) So, all in all we can't hate him and in fact we are crazy about him!

Happy Birthday Dani!

Today is my little sisters birthday she is turning 26 and she has cool hair! Don't notice that she is the same age as my husband:) oops. Dani Happy Birthday! We love you and miss you and we hope that you had a good birthday. COME VISIT!














P.S. It is 75 degrees here and we are freezing--just last week we were in the hundreds! :) Enjoy the snow.

Weight Watchers Groupies

Today makes one month that we have been on Weight Watchers and I am a big fan! We decided to do this together, well, I asked Ryan to do this with me and he was supportive and has stuck with it...Thanks Ry! So, after going to the meeting each week and counting our points Ryan has lost 12 lbs. and I have lost 15 lbs. We are really happy and look forward to weighing in each week. We have really become aware of the things we are eating and it is good that we have each other when one of us gets weak and just wants a cheeseburger and strawberry shake from In & Out Burger :). One thing I really like about the Weight Watcher philosophy is that they just encourage you to "move more". They don't say, "Do this" or "Do that" in order to lose weight they just say to move more than you have been. It makes you feel good about doing what ever you can and also that anything counts. We have really tried to just "move more". We have been playing tennis a couple of times a week and I even tried to go running with Chase but he kept thinking we were playing and jumping on me and I got really bad shin splints (not because of Chase's jumping). I keep forgetting I am not as athletic and I once was. With my birthday coming up I have asked for a road bike so that we can go riding together. Ryan rides his a few times a week and has to leave me behind so hopefully if I get this sweet present than it is just one more thing we can do to support each other and to be more active. I have just really enjoyed doing this program and having this chance to become healthier.

Sanchez Family

I just wanted to share this picture because I think it is so cute!!! These are my nieces and nephew, Raiven, Jett, and Diamon. I miss them.
Love you guys!

Where Are All The Smokers?

Just to express a little frustration... We have been looking on-line for a place to live when we move back to Utah in the Orem newspaper and other websites and everything says, "NO SMOKERS/PETS!" Well, I tell you what we have a pet and no where allows them. So if anyone knows where the smokers live please let us know because from the looks of things we will be living next to them! It is very frustrating that we can not find anywhere to live...Please Help!!!

No smokers/pets=No Home