Tim's Birthday!!

So yesterday we celebrated Tim's 18th birthday!! Tim is Rob's little brother and he is so much fun to be around!
I told him to look serious so I could take a good picture and this is what he did...

I'm not sure what he was doing, but I told him to look serious...

All of his gifts were wrapped in Victoria Secret bags, which was awesome!! He secretly loved it!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY SPOONIE!!! (That's from Rob)

Lehi Rodeo

My oldest brother's, Destin, wife and kids have been in town this last week and on Saturday, we all went to the Lehi Rodeo...

This is his youngest and only girl, Gabby, and she is soo CUTE!!
With our little digital camera, we couldn't get very many good pictures, but this was the best one and I was excited!

This one wasn't too bad either...

Needless to say, it wasn't as much fun as the Spanish Fork Rodeo, but we aren't going to be able to go to that one this year so it was better than nothing... The animals were in a funk though, at least 5 different horses refused to leave the pen when they opened the gate, it was crazy!!

Introducing R-Dizzle...

So on our way home from work last Monday Rob heard on the radio (1280 The Zone) that they were going to have a free style rap competition for 311 & Snoop Dogg tickets. It had to be related to sports and it wasn't supposed to be rehearsed, completely free style...I thought he was joking when he got excited and decided he was going to call in. I had never heard him even attempt to rap anything, but he was convinced he would win and made us pull over in Spanish Fork. This is what he came up with...

The Coach for the yewts
His name is Coach Kryle
He's been wiping that tear away for quite a while
His onside kicks when he's up by 43
He wears his pants so tight
That you can see his wee wee
He gives a free pass
To guys like Casteel
But if you ask him he just keepin' it real
Yeah poor Coach Whitt
Coaching his last year
But it's OK 'cause he's a great big ...

They put him through to the finals and he had to do a "rap-off"... this was his second one... (Keith was the guy he was up against in the "rap-off")

Keith is a week yewt
Yeah, he is sad
Living in the basement of his dear old dad
He's a filthy yewt
In his parents downstairs
His favorite sport is figure skakin' pairs
As a yewt
He's a filthy drunk
I'm beatin' down on him that' nasty punk
I beat down those yewts
Yeah I be stormin'
Slappin' round those yewts
Those anti-mormons

And with that... HE WON!!!! People were calling and texting in like crazy and Rob won by a landslide! It's was hilarious and he did such a great job!!

He would now like to be referred to as R-Dizzle... he's always wanted to be called that since his mission in Chicago. I suppose I have no excuse not to since he did win a rap competition!! haha

R-Dizzle or not, I LOVE YOU ROB!!!

The day has finally come...

Christian, my second oldest brother for those of you who don't know, is getting married!!! Her name is Naomi, she is Swiss/Italian living in Switzerland, and she is perfect for Christian!! This is a picture of the happy couple... it also helps that she is gorgeous! :)
They are getting married November 1, 2008 in Atlanta, GA... can't wait!!

I have a lot more pictures, but you get the point... CONGRATULATIONS!!! We are so excited for you guys!!

Pictures from NC

So I haven't received pictures from Jed in a long time, but this is now the second nephew I have that I have never met...sad I know!!!

This is Weston, Jed's second son!

Look at those big eyes!!

This is my brother Jed with his boys Bryce (right) and Weston (left). I think he looks tired, but then again, having two lively boys is a tough job!!

Here is Emily, Jed's wife, and her two boys. Such a cute picture!!

So excited to see you guys this November!!

Jacaranda Trees

Ok, I stole these pictures from Naomi's blog, but I absolutely love it! Look at how gorgeous this purple tree is!! I just had to have this picture...


Look at how beautiful this street is!! Could you imagine driving down this street??

These pictures remind me of the paintings in the movie "What Dreams May Come" with Robin Williams... I just love it! Thank you Naomi for posting these pictures, they really are gorgeous!

The light at the end of the tunnel...

If there is one thing that I am the most like my mother, it is the fact that I can not handle the heat!! When I am inside the house, or driving in the car I do not want it to be 90 degrees and sticky! Don't get me wrong, I love summertime and being outside by the pool or hiking or going to the beach etc. but when I am inside, the heat should be outside or you do not want to be around me!!

This last week in UT, it has been getting pretty hot and we, of course, bought an older home that does not have air conditioning...it has been miserable!! Just ask Rob, I almost become a different person, a very mean and nasty person! So I finally convinced him to help me put the AC unit in our bedroom window, we turned it on and I promise I heard angels sing... it was glorious!!!

It's almost too good to be true, but it truly is the light at the end of a very long and dark tunnel!!

We are still not cooking because the kitchen is far away and gets really hot, but we are working on that this weekend...

For all of you (my family) in the deep south laughing at this, I know I have no idea how bad it is in Georgia and North Carolina and to be honest... I have no intentions of ever finding out!!

Strawberries!!

Ok, so this is something that I didn't have anything to do with, but bare with me now... I'm going to take full credit for it!!!

When we moved into our new house the previous people had two garden boxes, one with something that obviously died because...well it looked dead, and the other one had strawberries. For a while it was just a bunch of green leaves and we didn't really care so it was left to fend for itself until one day... we had strawberries!!! Ok, I've never grown anything in my life, and yes I understand that I didn't actually do anything to contribute, but they are in MY yard so I'm taking credit...I grew strawberries! :)

This is Ty eating the grass around the garden box... I promise we feed him, he just loves grass.

Ty eating more grass...

So there is a second part to our story... one day when we came out to check on my strawberries (yes they are MINE) I noticed that a few of them that had just turned red had been chomped on. We decided that it had to be bugs or something, but oh no, we were very mistaken. We took the dogs out one day and Tess disappeared off in the back of the yard and wouldn't come when we called. We walk over there to find this...

Needless to say, we are keeping a closer eye on her...

Here are a few pictures of the colorful strawberries!! Look what I did!!!

OK, so I wasn't tagged or anything, but I'm home sick today and extremely bored... Thanks Amy, I stole this from your blog!!

Four jobs I have had:
1. Nanny!! (favorite job!)
2. Pre-school teacher
3. Sales Associate at PacSun
4. Accountant at Shelf Reliance (right now)

Four movies I have watched more than once:
1. P.S. I Love You (with a box of tissues)
2. Pride and Prejudice (Keira Knightly version, it's shorter)
3. High School Musical 2 (that's right, I said it!!)
4. An Affair To Remember
(I promise I watch more than chick flicks, but lately that's what it's been)

Four places I have lived:
1. Vancouver, WA
2. Spanish Fork, UT
3. Orem, UT
4. Payson, UT

Four TV show I watch:
1. Supernanny
2. Jon & Kate Plus 8
3. Food Network (pretty much the whole channel)
4. So You Think You Can Dance (first time watching this year and I love it!)
*My favorite four aren't in season...The Hills, The Office, Lost, & Grey's Anatomy*

Four places I have been:
1. San Diego, CA (willing to move at any time)
2. Atlanta, GA
3. Canada
4. Las Vega, NV

Four people who e-mail me regularly:
1. Fogg Family
2. Pottery Barn
3. Real Simple
4. Work...

Four of my favorite foods:
1. Ice Cream...I grew up a Sampson, it's an essential food group!
2. Thin Mints
3. Tomato Soup & Cheese-wiches (grilled cheese)
4. My Favorite Dessert (I don't know the real name, but my whole life it's just been "my favorite dessert." It is layers of mint ice cream, crushed oreo's, cool whip, & caramel)

Four places I would like to visit:
1. Italy
2. Paris
3. London
4. New York City (to see a Broadway play)

Four things I am looking forward to in the coming year:
1. Buying new furniture...??
2. Remodeling Kitchen...??
3. Traveling ...(even if it's just to St. George or Vegas)
4. ...starting a family :)

It is what it looks like...

If it looks like I'm pouring hot water into our washing machine to do laundry...I am. We haven't had hot water for two weeks now. We have two large pots permanently situated on our stove top to boil water to wash dishes and do laundry daily. We've been taking turns between showering at my Father's house and at Rob's parent's house. Two weeks ago our water heater stopped working because the people before us installed it incorrectly and it finally blew out a part. The manufacturing company sent the wrong replacement part and the nearest expert on the type we have, is in Sandy. Rob took this picture because he thought it would be funny to have.

We now have no AC in either car or house, Rob's car is still sitting in our driveway because we can't get it fixed, Rob goes back to school this summer and now we have to boil water on the stove to do laundry and dishes. We are definitely experiencing the typical poor first couple of years being married. At this point, it's just funny now...

Our little boy is hurt : (

Most of you know that Rob and I have two dogs, Ty and Tess. Ty, who is 2 1/2, is half Mini American Eskimo and half Toy Poodle, where Tess, who is a 1 1/2, is full Mini American Eskimo. We seriously love them like they were our kids...
This is Ty when we was just a puppy. We call it his calendar picture, so cute!!!

(don't pay attention to the date on the picture, it's wrong)

So last Saturday we took our puppies hiking up Payson Canyon, nothing extravagant, but it was fun. We went up a few trails, looked out over the valley and then came home (sorry I didn't have our camera on me at the time). The next morning we noticed that Ty was limping around and wasn't walking on his back right leg. We instantly got worried especially when he didn't want to play fetch, that meant something was seriously wrong. It was the saddest sight to see when he goes to jump on our bed, only make it half way and see him latched on for dear life as he is trying to push himself up with only one leg :(

The next morning we take him into the vet and he feels around his knee to see what is wrong. After a few minutes go by he tells us he has the dog version of a torn ACL and most likely would need surgery. At this point I'm holding back tears as he continues to tell us that we should leave him there for a round of sedation and x-rays. I'm not sure what was worse, watching our little boy being dragged out of the room with this terrified look on his face like we have just sold his soul to the devil, or the thought of him possibly needing surgery a week later...either way, I wasn't handling this well. We came back later that afternoon to get Ty and hear the details about the x-rays. The vet then tells us that it doesn't look as bad as he originally thought it was and surgery wasn't necessary right now. He went on tell us a lot of other stuff, but all in all, his ligament is either extremely strained or partially torn. Either way, there isn't anything he can do other than give him pain killers for the next week and a half and hope that his limp doesn't come back or get worse. If it gets worse and the ligament tears completely, surgery; if it's just strained, it should heal itself; if it's partially torn, we pretty much have to wait it out until it tears completely...yeah that sounds fun.

For the time being our little boy is doing pretty well, the only times he is upset is when the medicine has worn off and it's not quite time for a new dose. He can't run or play hard (life fetch) for two weeks and if he's outside he has to be on a leash. Which for Ty, life as he knows it has ended...

Saturday Morning

So as most of you know, I enjoy a good rain every once in a while, it's refreshing. However, when you are expected to come and help pour a cement foundation for a backyard shed using wheelbarrows and another cement slab for the side of your father's house, it doesn't quite set the mood for a pleasant experience...

They had to wait as one by one they filled up the wheelbarrows, haul it to the where the cement was wanted, and dump it to be spread out.

Here is Rob, waiting so patiently... can you tell he is having the time of his life in the rain??

Rob about to haul it to the backyard...those things get really heavy!!! I can't tell you how many times the tires went flat and they'd have to fill them back up again.

Here is my Dad, in the back spreading the cement. Gotta say, love the hat!!!

He may be 64, but that doesn't stop him from doing the work himself...

At least they had a lot of neighbors who knew what they were doing and could make it smooth. This is the foundation for the shed my dad is going to expand.

All in all it was a pretty eventful morning. They were able to get the cement poured and the foundations smooth so I would call it a success. It's not every day you get to wake up and spread cement first thing in the morning while it rains... For the record, it stopped raining about half way through and as soon as they were done and cleaning up... the sun came out.

Explanation

Ok, for all of you Utah natives, let me apologize for the post below. So you don't get the wrong idea, I wanted to explain something. Utah is and probably will be forever, my home. It is where Rob and I met, got married, and bought our first house. We have started our family here and made our house a home. I love it, but WA is where I was born and raised, that was the person I used to be for 18 long years... it's still that girl's home and when it rains it's almost, just for a second, like I'm back there again...

Mainly this explanation is for Rob because he doesn't like WA and gets mad sometimes when I wish I could move back there again. I think it's mainly the idea of being that close to the in-laws, but he doesn't like the rain that much either.

It rained today...

I stepped outside, and from the back of our house I can see pretty far up the valley... and all I see are storm clouds. I took a deep breath in and could smell it coming. As we drove further up the valley drops started to fall on the windshield...it was raining. As soon as I got to work I sat in my car for a minute, turned the vent on high, and just took it all in like a cold drink of water after a long hot day. It was so refreshing that I wanted to get out of my car, stand outside and let it soak in. It doesn’t rain too often down here and so when it does, it’s an instant reminder of the NW. I suppose it’s one of those things that you don’t realize how much you love it until it’s gone. I wish it would rain for a few days, but here, it’ll hardly last a full day.

It rained today, and for just a moment… it was like I was home again.