Salt Lake Surprise!

I am married to an amazing man!  I truly am!  He's always been amazing, but there are certain times when he goes above and beyond his normal "amazingness" to really blow me away.  This was one of those times!

At the end of August, my across-the-street neighbor, Melanie (and her family), pulled out of the driveway one last time as they trekked across the country to settle in Montana.  The day they left, I'm pretty sure a piece of my heart left with them.  Our boys played together almost daily, and Melanie had very quickly become a close, meaningful part of my daily life.  We were all SUPER sad to see them go, but none more sad than me.

Fast forward about a month.  Melanie had plans to go to Salt Lake City for a few days to attend the doTerra Essential Oils Conference.  Missing Mel, and being new into the "oil biz", I really wanted to be in Salt Lake.  On Wednesday afternoon, Melanie texted Darron and told him he should surprise me and put me on a plane to meet her (and her good friend from AK, Sara....whom I had just met) in Salt Lake.  

Enter my AMAZING husband.  He worked all afternoon, between meetings with clients, and found me a ticket to the SOLD OUT doTerra convention, bought me a plane ticket using air miles, and arranged everything with Mel (in Montana).

I was in the kitchen cooking dinner when Darron came home from work.  He walked over and gave me a big hug. With his arms wrapped around me, he told me I would be getting on a plane at 8 a.m. the next morning for Salt Lake.  What???  I was in shock!!  I immediately started crying.  The most giving and surprising part of this plan???  I would be gone until Sunday evening....Darron's birthday was on Saturday!  That's right....he had arranged for ME to be out of town with girlfriends on HIS birthday.  I was speechless.  And overwhelmed.  And grateful.  And excited.  And a tad bit nervous about spending four days with a new friend and an even newer friend!

The trip was everything I thought it would be and more.  Although I didn't get to spend a lot of time with Melanie before she moved (we didn't really get to know each other until a few weeks before they left), I couldn't have asked for a more fun, relaxing, informative trip.  Mel and Sara and SO FUN to be with.  I never once felt like a third-wheel or out of place.  We attended the convention during the day, and had relaxing, enjoyable dinners at night.

We walked everywhere, of course.  It had gotten really late one night as we were walking back to the hotel and we were so tired.  These little bike taxis were everywhere so we treated ourselves to a ride home.  It was so fun!  After almost running over some pedestrians, we learned it was our drivers first night!  Ha, ha!  Of course it was!

The wild side of these two...riding pigs!  I think we had been sitting in a conference center too long at this point!!

 So blessed by the friendships of these two beautiful ladies!

 On Saturday, just across from our hotel, a GREAT Saturday market was spread out.  We decided to buy some local yummies for our dinner that night.  We enjoyed a beautiful Saturday night eating a quiet, delicious dinner from our hotel balcony.  Pure bliss!

 The conference itself was incredible.  I learned SO MUCH and I'm in love with this company and the way the oils are helping my family stay healthy.  And I'm super thankful to Sara and Mel for answering my thousands of questions and really getting me "in the know"!

Sadly, Sara and Mel both left Salt Lake Sunday morning, but my flight wasn't scheduled to leave until Monday.  I was planning to enjoy a day to myself laying out at the hotel pool, but of course it poured down rain on Sunday....and Sunday only!!  So what's a girl to do other than get a manicure, a new haircut, shop, eat, and have dessert in bed? :)

I am so thankful for this trip.  So thankful to learn more about using oils for the health of my family.  So incredibly thankful for the time to bond with my dear friend Melanie, and add a new friend Sara to my life.  So thankful for the memories made.  And so beyond thankful for a selfless husband who chooses to love me in ways that I can't even comprehend.  

doTerra Convention in Salt Lake City for 2015 is already booked and THIS girl can't wait!

Sail Away, Sail Away, Sail Away

Not exactly sailing away on a luxurious cruise ship, but still a blast all the same!  Several years ago I had the opportunity to "sail" on my brother's US Navy ship for the day.  This past October, friends and family were invited again.  With the minimum age being 8 years old, Preston made the cut so he was able to join me on the trip!

 We flew to San Diego early in the morning on Wednesday....someone was so excited he didn't sleep a wink!  And might I say, traveling with one child is MUCH different than traveling with four!!

 Preston and I spent the day, just the two of us, at Legoland on Thursday.  The good Lord lavished His love on us by providing a Chick-Fil-A en-route (almost) to Legoland.  What a great start to a fantastic trip!

 We had a BLAST at Legoland together!  

Maggie and Peepaw flew in that day so we were able to meet them, along with Aunt Angela, for dinner that night.  We were worn out by bed time!

 Friday was an early start.  We had to be at the ship by 6 a.m!!  Preston was eager to get up and going though!  Uncle Andy is now a Chief Warrant Officer (read- big high up guy on the ship) so it was fun to see everyone stop and salute him.  He's over all of the ships navigational systems.  Pretty honored to have been the sister of CWO Edwards!!

 As we were leaving port, a US Navy submarine was heading in.  All of the sailors were standing on the top of the sub.  Their sailors were saluting our sailors.  What an incredible sight!!

 So thankful to have spend this time with Peepaw and Maggie!  Preston is one loved grandson!

 Saturday was a free day.  My one request was to stick my toes in the sand, so we headed to a beautiful beach for a bit!  Love time with my momma!

 This kid LOVED playing in the waves.  A boy after my own heart!  We could have stayed for hours!!

 Finally a picture with my wonderful sister-in-law Angela!  Being together as a family was such a treat!

I love this picture, just wish dad had been in it too.  I am so thankful for my family.  Wish I could see each of them more often, but thankful for trips like this full of wonderful memories!!

Preston and I had such a great time together and with Peepaw, Maggie, Uncle Andy and Aunt Angela. Couldn't have asked for a better few days together!  As always, thankful to my incredible hubby for making it all possible!  One for the memory books for sure!!

Better Late Than Never

Whew!  Where has the time gone??!!  After taking quite the hiatus from blogging, I'm excited to start dedicating time to journaling again.  I have now printed two years worth of blogs into hardback books for my family...and we LOVE looking through them.  They are our keepsakes, our style of "scrapbooking".  So, in order to play catch up from the past few years, I gotta start some time....and now is just as good of a time as any!  Better late than never!

Thanksgiving Days

We had a great few days celebrating Thanksgiving with Darron's family this year.  Our morning started with mommy watching the annual "Macey's Day Thanksgiving Parade."  This has been a tradition for me since I was a little girl, always watching it with my mom.

Thankfully, over the years, my kids (especially Preston) have really been getting into the parade with me.  This year, Preston and Parker both spawled out on my bed taking in the floats!

As is tradition, we headed up to Grandma's house for the Cowboy's game and lunch.  All the family was together (minus Kim and Mark) and we had more than enough food, laughter, play time, and naps.  The kids enjoyed playing outside some too.

Our family and the Coronado's spent the night at Grandma's like usual, so us girls could head out for our early morning shopping on Good Friday!

After a day of shopping, we decided to stay at Grandma's house another night and make gingerbread houses from scratch, and watch movies.

 Preston and Max getting the candy ready for decorating!

 Parker doing his part.

 After I made all of the gingerbread molds, the dads settled in to help the kids build the houses.

The kids (and Grandma) finished decorating the houses on Saturday.  And after lazing around together all day, we all decided to just stay up at Grandma's one more night, watching movies and enjoying each others company.  We headed to our own houses Sunday morning, quickly got ready for church, and then all surprised Grandma by going to her church with her and all going out for a great lunch together afterwards.

So, Thanksgiving lasted about four days this year!  We made great memories and just had a good time being together as family.  So thankful for times likes this as they strengthen, build, bond, and solidify us as family! 

Annual Adak Hunt

For the second year in a row, Darron and five of his buddies flew to Adak Island for their annual caribou hunt.  D, Craig Wilson, Cody Carpenter, Ron Bailey, Anthony Brooks, and Ian Turner set out for 7 days of "man-time" in the mountains of Adak.

 After not having any luck with caribou the first few days,  the guys decided to go "hunting" for ptarmigan.  They bacon wrapped the ptarmigan meat and broiled it in the oven.  According to the guys it was good, but I'm thinking they were just wanting to kill and eat!

 At one time, Adak Island was an old military base.  The guys always find some pretty cool artifacts left behind when the island was basically deserted.

Darron was blessed with a beautiful caribou this trip!  He had to take the shoot from 400 yards away and took it down on the first shot!  Impressive!

The guys came home with four caribou total.  They could have had more, but the "bou" were still way up in the mountains and they just didn't have enough time to keep hiking, shooting, cleaning, and packing out.  

Thanks to a wonderful client who let D borrow his professional grade meat grinder, Darron processed his own caribou this year.  Our freezer is abundant with roast, ground meat, and sausage!  Love the hunter in my man!

Viva Las Vegas!

This summer I had the opportunity to keep my niece and nephew a few times a week to help out.  I made an agreement with their parents that I would keep them as much as needed, as long as they would keep our kids for a long weekend to away in the Fall.  Best deal I could have made!

Darron and I love going to Vegas together, always have.  Don't get me wrong, I'd love to lay on the beach in Hawaii, but with only a few days to sneak away, Vegas is cheaper.  

We had the best time together, just getting away, staying in a nice hotel, relaxing, and being carefree.

Of course one of my favorite things about vacation, is eating.  And after a long flight, this fresh fruit crepe hit the spot!  Yum!

 We stayed in a newer hotel, the Vdara.  They "upgraded" us to a room on a higher floor overlooking the Belagio fountains.  The room was beautiful and the view was outstanding!

 This pregnancy, wings have been my biggest craving.  And wouldn't you know it, a Hooters Casino and restaurant is on the strip!  And they have AWESOME wings.  We stuffed ourselves the first night and could barely wobble out of there!

 New York, New York.  Love this casino and how beautiful it is on the strip!

 We went out of our comfort zone and had dinner at a Blue's Club one night (thanks to a coupon).  We ended up staying for about 2 hours because we were having so much fun!  The music was so good and we had a great time laughing and watching people dance....especially this group of African American ladies from Dallas who were singing, dancing, cheering, and everything else.  So fun!

 We also branched out and ate lunch at this Brazilian restaurant (thanks for another coupon)!  They brought fresh meat and seafood to your table.  You just said "yes" if you wanted some and they would cut the meat and give it to you there.  Again, we could barely wobble out of their.  It was soooo good!

 Out of all of the trips we've made to Vegas, we've never ventured of the strip to Freemont Street.  We made it a point to spend an evening there this trip.  It was a unique and very fun experience!  They have the street covered by this screen that plays little shows and stuff.  The street is filled with shops, casinos, and street performers, along with a very fun looking zip line!  We will definitely be heading to Freemont Street and the zip line next time we're in Vegas and I'm not pregnant!

 Darron and I don't take much to gamble with.  We set aside a certain amount for each day and just consider it our "entertainment fund."  We mainly play fun slot machines with bonus games and just enjoy walking the strip.  The last couple of trips we've experimented with playing Craps.  This trip, we started to really get the hang of it.  The cashout voucher was for $181.  We only started with $20!  Now THAT was fun!

 A picture of our beautiful hotel.  Would definitely stay here again!

D and I realize how blessed we are to get away by ourselves about once a year.  Between the kindness of T and Scott, or my parents, we are usually blessed with a trip to Vegas or somewhere local every year.  It does wonders for our marriage to just spend time together without being "mommy and daddy" and with limited other stresses.  Although we don't have the next trip planned, and it may not be for awhile, I'm already looking forward to it!

Basketball Baby!

Since shooting hoops with Max and Uncle Scott this summer, Preston decided he wanted to give basketball a try this Fall.  He played on a YMCA team with Max, one practice a week and one game on Saturdays.  They had a lot of fun playing together and Preston learned alot about the game.

 Parker snuggled with Aunt TT during one of the games....for a few minutes.  He loved going to "basketball" and I'm sure he'll be officially on the court as a real player in no time!

Wether it be soccer or basketball, Preston loves to learn and try.  While he isn't necessarily the "best" on the team, he sure plays with a lot of heart.  He always has fun and is so encouraging to his teammates.  Keep up the great work Pres!

A Ghost, A Pirate, and Rapunzel

Halloween came quick this year!  Darron and I spent five days together in Las Vegas and didn't return home until the day before Halloween!  While costumes were ready and kids were excited, the day was still crazy and therefore, a lack of pictures. :(

Parker loves playing in his big brothers pirate chest so he "played pirate" this year for Halloween.  The poor little guy was just diagnosed with a sinus infection and double ear infection that same day.  We thought we'd take a sled to pull him in, but it didn't last long.  After only a few minutes, Parker was off and running to the rest of the night!

Little Silas was dressed in a warm Giraffe costume and he loved being pulled in the sled with Parker!

For several years now we have had a Halloween tradition of having the Mondeel's, Sanchez's, and Wilson's come over so we can all trick or treat together.  The group continues to get bigger each year, but we all have such a great time!  Look carefully and you'll see a Preston ghost with a Cowboy candy bag, a little Parker Pirate, and a sweet Payton Rapunzel with pretty much only her long braid showing!

Family Fun 2012

A few more pictures to catch up on fun events in 2012!

Preston, Darron, and I love sushi (the cooked kind).  We are learning to perfect it at home!

Fun times sledding at the cabin!

Payton and Parker enjoyed hunting Easter eggs at Sportsmans Warehouse this year (Pres was at his cousins house).

2012 Easter Picture

As is tradition, Kimi, Marta (and baby Silas), Becca, Hannah, Laura, and me spent a weekend in April at our Family Cabin.  These weekends are filled with walks, junk food, games, laughter, and some sleep!

More sledding at the cabin with Parker, Brookelynn, and Max!

We had such a great time in Texas at the end of May.  The kids and adults all had so much fun being pulled in this tube behind the boat!  Peepaw took me for a wild ride, and then Peepaw and I took Bubba Hairy the dog for a fun ride too!

Preston and Max had their first guitar recital.  I was so nervous for them.  They both did GREAT!

Soaking up the sun in Texas again.  A little girl and her daddy....too sweet!

Parker sporting his new glasses for the first time.

Darron and I enjoyed a night out at dinner with friends, then the Dirks Bentley concert.  It was awesome!

A good days catch out on the boat with Maggie and Peepaw.  Thanks for hosing them off Parker!

Peepaw and Maggie kept the kids for two days for Darron and I to get away.  We spent an entire day at Six Flags together.  It was SO MUCH FUN!  Then we drove to Oklahoma and spent the night at the Chocotaw Casino and Resort.  It was super nice and the time away is just priceless!

I finally did it!  Becca and I (along with some other friends) went and got our tattoos!  I love it!

Would you believe the parents of these kids have been our first and closest friends since we moved to Alaska...11 years ago.  We all started off with no kids.  Now, between the 4 of us families we have 10 kids, a new addition since this picture in Seward this summer, and one on the way!!  It's been a busy few years!

This was taken in our trailer while camping with friends in Seward.  I just had a feeling....and although the line was faint, there was a definite line!

We drove to Ninilchick with the Coronado's for a weekend of dipnetting this summer.  We camped just up from this beach.  The guys caught a TON of fish and we had the most perfect campground...eventhough it rained alot.  The beach was fun to walk on and we collected tons of rocks.

While Darron was in Texas visiting his grandparents, I got brave and took the kids the the Air Show.  Whew!  What an adventure that was.  After parking and walking about 8 miles total that day, we all had a great time and were worn out by the time we made it home!  We ended the day with pizza and a movie.  While tiring, I wouldn't have done it any differently!  We had a terrific time together!

I love this man.  We have so much fun together.  I love that we have lots of the same interests.  Date nights with Darron are what fuel me and keep me going.  So blessed and thankful!