Introducing...

Phelps McDiver!

I have wanted a turtle forever and finally was able to bring this little guy home. He is a red-eared slider and is about 2" long. He's great at playing hide & seek, loves to eat & hide under lettuce and bask in the sun, he always has a bubble on the end of his little nose, has a missing finger, loves his daily bath, and always tries to bite the Q-tip I use to help clean him. Gemma finds him fascinating but doesn't know what to make of him yet. He sure has been fun to have around! We have gotten him a bigger tank now and has a few fish friends that hopefully soon he will try to eat. It is so fun watching him grow and discover things.

Good-bye to a great friend

Lost a great guy and friend today. We all miss you and love you so much! I am so blessed to have known you in my life! Even though I haven't seen you in years I think of you often and I will always think of you and Susan as my other Mom & Dad. I have so many many wonderful memories of you! You were such a huge part of my childhood. Thank you for everything....... for being in my life! I love you Larry Worley!

Four weekends and a Wedding

Life has been pretty busy lately....

Weekend #1: Brent & I celebrated our 5 year anniversary of being sealed in the temple for eternity. I really can't believe it has been that long ago! We were able to go up to Sanpete that weekend to do a session in the Manti Temple to celebrate and also so that I could make it to Jenessa's bridal shower. I love the Manti Temple. It always has such a wonderful and special feeling that is different from all other temples. It was wonderful to see Nessa again and to spend more time with Jason. I'm so glad she loved the sign I made them.

Weekend #2: We were able to go up to Sanpete again but this time it was to see the Mormon Miracle Pageant. We were able to meet up with my cousins Amanda (who is currently living in Hawaii), her fun in-laws, and my other cousins Laura, and Arianne. It was so wonderful to see the pageant again..especially since I grew up being in it pretty much every year. I was still able to quote most of it! We were also able to do another session in the Manti Temple. It really is the hardest thing to put into words how strong the spirit is there.

Weekend #3: Again up to Sanpete. This time to be with Jenessa as she went through the temple for the first time. I loved every minute I was able to share with her on that beautiful and wonderful day. The spirit was so incredibly strong and I know her mom was there with her. Seeing Jenessa in the Celestial room really brought back so many memories of when I went through to receive my own Endowments. I am so truly grateful for the gospel in my life and for the precious experiences I have been able to have because of it. We were then able to go to Brent's parents house to help them put a sprinkler system in their yard. It was hard work but it was great to be able to spend time with them and being able to work hard to accomplish our goals. We were also able to visit with Brent's mom since she had her surgery. We wish you a speedy recovery mom. We love you.

Weekend #4: Back up to Sanpete for my DeLeeuw Family Reunion. It was so great to go camping and to see so much family...most of whom I haven't seen in years. It was so fun!! I have such a goofy and loving family! Also this weekend Jenessa and Jason were married and we were blessed to be able to be there. It was so neat to listen to the sealer marry them and to hear and know that the spirit was directing him to things he needed to say. We were able to spend the day with them through the pictures, lunch, and reception. It was so wonderful to see Nessa so happy and seeing how much Jason really loves her. Nessa, I love you and I am so grateful that you found your prince. You are the most special person I have ever met and you are the best friend anyone could ask for. I am so lucky that I have been able to know you and have you for a friend for 18 years...and I look forward to many many more. Thank you Jason for treating her the way she deserves and making her happy. And thank you so much for letting us be a part of this special day! We wish you the most happiness in your life together!!

A lot happened during these 4 weeks. It was amazing being able to go to the temple each week and to feel the spirit so strongly. It has made me more positive about things going on in my life and the trials I am facing, and I am trying to remember those feelings I felt and incorporate them in every day. I love my family and I am so grateful for this chance we had to spend so much time with them. And I am especially thankful for the wonderful blessing of sharing this time with Jenessa and Jason. What a wonderful life we have because of our family, friends, and the gospel!

Utah Summer Games

This year Brent & I were able to attend the Utah Summer Games Opening Ceremony. It was so fun. I love doing new and different things with Brent. We sat on a nice grassy spot and cuddled until the ceremony started. The wind was horrible, and being pelted by sand from the long jump sand pits didn't help. But once the festivities started the wind died down and we were able to enjoy the evening. They had the Jazz Bear come and ride a motorcycle through a ring of fire, some cool x-treme bikers, musical numbers (all of which really were not good at all..especially the group called the party crashers), and best of all was a very touching salute to all the troops and amazing fireworks going off right above our heads. It was such a fun evening out! Thanks Brent.

Graduation

Brent graduated today! After many years, months, weeks, days, and hours, Brent is finally going to graduate from SUU with his Bachelors Degree. I am so proud of you sweetheart and look forward to all the new adventures this will bring into our lives. Thanks to you all for all the support and encouragement you have given us.

Sorry some of the pictures aren't the greatest... haven't had time to photoshop them yet.

Amanda & Solomon Nair and a wonderful weekend

My wonderful cousin Amanda and her fiance Solomon, who have been waiting about 6 months to get clearance to be married in the Temple, finally were able to go to the Manti Temple to be sealed for time & eternity on Thursday the 28th of October. I was so lucky to be able to attend. They looked so completely happy together. Congrats again you guys! After the wedding was a luncheon at the church. My mom and Cam were able to come. We all stood up and gave a toast to the happy couple and like a complete idiot I cried (I blame Jene Beal)!! and to make it worse it was recorded!! I felt so dumb.. but oh well I was just happy to be there... at least I wasn't calling Solomon the wrong name like Grandma (I love my silly grandma)! Love ya Manda! And I can't wait to get to know you more Solomon. Congrats to both of you!

Friday was a fun day. I did Paige's makeup really neat for her Halloween costume and went and watched her school dance with my mom. Some of the kids in her grade had some great costumes! Captain Underpants was one of my favorites. He had a superhero costume on with a pair of his old underwear on top. So funny. One of Paige's teachers was Edward Cullen. I thought it was just sweat at first. Oops. After the dance we all traveled up North... dropped Paige at a friends house for the weekend and Mom and I went shopping before going to Manda and Sol's reception. It was so fun just spending the day with my mom. I haven't been able to do that for such a long time! Brent traveled to my parents house that night. I missed him so much and was glad to snuggle up to him that night.

Saturday we had a great day just having fun with my parents. We went to a Snow College football game. It poured rain like crazy but it was way fun. I tried some kettle corn and I actually loved it! We then went home and ate yummy food and watched "The Poltergeist" for some Halloween fun. It was such a great weekend!!!!

10 years - - - WOW!

Is it weird, or what, to know that Brent has been out of High School for 10 years now? I think so!

We stayed with my parents this weekend so that we could go to Brent's High School Reunion. We came up on Friday night and had fun playing and watching movies with the family. Saturday was the day of the reunion. Mom and Dad took us to see "Despicable Me". It was so cute! It got out a little early so we decided to take our time getting to the Reunion. Brent was so excited to be able to see some old friends and show me his old school. It was so fun being able to share that with him and see pictures and trophies and meet classmates. I even won a drawing and got a volleyball water bottle. lol. I really hope Brent had a fun time and that it brought back a lot of happy memories for him!

Stupid People

Our apartment complex has decided to redo our parking lot. If that wasn't annoying enough we had to park on the road last night. We woke this morning to find that our car had been vandalized! Luckily the car was not broken into and nothing was stolen, but it was covered in who knows what! Thank heaven for my good friends here that let me run over first thing this morning and wash my car before it was stained. I was very relieved to find that it came off fairly well. I just couldn't believe that someone would be that stupid and have that little regard for some one else's stuff. Hopefully tonight we will be able to park in our parking stall!

Autumn Time

The world is wonderful place. We were able to enjoy some of the amazing processes that take place. The leaves changing colors and the clouds. We went with some friends and were able to take pictures of them and they of us. Fall is such a wonderful time of year!

Life...

So life has been full of surprises & trials that have really tested us. But through the struggles of our life right now, we have grown stronger. Of course not everything that has happened has been bad... in fact we have had some amazing experiences also.

So where to start? Well ... Brent and his brother Mark got tickets to see Paul McCartney - they are both huge Beatles fans. The Concert was to take place in Dallas, TX at the new Cowboy Stadium on August 19th. They were both super excited and quickly planned out the details. I had my birthday on the 10th and then a week or so later I was layed off from my job. Brent still went on his trip to Dallas cause I felt it was a once in a lifetime opportunity for him to go and share this with his brother (and non-refundable tickets in his name and I would hate to have Mark go alone!!) Brent said they had a awesome time and enjoyed every minute!! He especially enjoyed the concert and being able to sing along to all his favorite Beatles songs. I went up to my parents house while he was gone. We didn't do much but I really enjoyed spending time with my family. It was so nice not to be alone and depressed thinking about my job. We did have the chance to go to Lagoon while I was visiting. It was so much fun going on all the rides with Cam, Paige, and Mom!!

I came home just in time to go to the Oquihhr Mountain Temple dedication. It was so wonderful! There was such a special spirit that was present. President Monson and Elder Ballard both gave wonderful talks that greatly touched our hearts, and the other talks were great too. It made us both think of how important the temple is in our lives. We have great blessings that can only be found withing the walls of the temple!

A few other things that have happened are that my brother Cameron is having back surgery. He is really nervous. I can't believe he is having that kind of surgery at age 18. This experience has definitely shown us several blessings the Lord has blessed him with. It is amazing how the Lord shows us his love in everything he does. He will never give us trials we can not over come! Cam - we are praying for you and wish you the best of luck with the surgery and recovery! We love you so much! Also we learned that Brent's Grandfather has been diagnosed with Leukemia. Brent has been taking it really hard, especially since that is how his mom passed away when he was 12. His Grandpa is such a wonderful man and we love him so much! A cool thing about him is he was on the submarine that rescued George Bush Senior in WWII.

I still don't have a job & it has been about a month now. I applied at at dentist office & I am really hoping that I get it!!

I have learned a lot through our recent trials. I have felt the love & comfort of our Lord Jesus Christ so much, and I have come to rely more fully on our Savior for help. My testimony has grown and I know that we will get through all the Lord has planned for us and that it will be only a short time. I know that this is the true church. I know the Savior lives. I know that I am a child of God & he loves all his children. I am so grateful for the gospel in my life and the special blessing of having the priesthood in my home. I am grateful for the temple and the blessing of eternal families, knowing that when it is finally our time to be blessed with kids that we will be with them forever if we live righteously.

We thank all of you for your many prayers & support. We love you all so much!!

Just us for the weekend

On Friday the 17th we were able to go see the 6th Harry Potter! HOORAY! It is by far the best on in the series so far!. I can't believe there is only only left!

On Sunday, Brent & I went to Zion again for another free weekend. We hiked to the end of the Narrows path (didn't quite get to the Narrows all the way cause we forgot to bring extra shoes to get wet - oh well). We also hiked to the middle & lower Emerald Pools.

It was such a beautiful day to go. I loved hiking with Brent & spending time admiring the scenery. The hike to the middle pool was mostly going up stairs. It was so difficult to make my legs move after that and my hands were so swollen from the heat and overworking myself that we decided to head back to our car. We decided then to drive through the rest of the park. It was so neat to go through all of the tunnels & see all the sandstone - even though we got stuck behind a really slow obnoxious van (and who happens to be in tonz of our pictures lol).

After driving through the park, Brent decided we were close enough to Page, Arizona & Lake Powell that we should just keep driving till we got there. It was so fun taking a long road trip & going to new places with Brent. My cousins Ryan & Melanie moved to Page not that long ago, and it was really fun to surprise them with a visit. It was so good to see them again. Janey is now crawling & Taylor and Callie have grown so much! We didn't get to stay long (had a long 2.5 hr drive back) but it was so nice to visit them!

It was such a great weekend!!! We both had so much fun and we can't wait to go again!!


Here are some of the millions of pictures we took --enjoy!

Transformers is....

AWESOME!!!

We were first in line opening night to see Transformers - Revenge of the Fallen. We waited in line 2 hrs, ate some extremely yummy ice-cream, and had a wonderful time! It is such a good movie. Definitely recommend this one to everyone!!

Graduation

To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream; not only plan, but also believe.

My little brother Cameron graduated from Manti High School on May 22. It is so weird to think of him being that old! Congrats Cam on this big step. We love you so much and know that you will do great in life and all that you do. Just remember to always believe in your dreams and fight to achieve them.

Life will give you what you are willing to take. Don't allow yourself to settle in life. Fight for the dreams that you have and never lose sight of your potential!

Our Wonderful Weekend

I love going to the temple. The Manti Temple is and will always be my favorite. It is so beautiful inside and the spirit is so strong. Brent & I were sealed for time and eternity in this temple 2 & 1/2 years ago. Brent received his endowment and both Brent and my parents were married in this temple also. And now we had the opportunity to go with Brent's younger brother Darin as he received his endowments.

This past weekend we had the wonderful opportunity to go up to Sanpete to support and share this amazing experience with Darin. It was so neat to see him so happy and all in white and to be with so many family and friends. Darin went on his first date when Brent & I started dating and now he is preparing to enter the MTC this month. Wow how time flies!

After the temple we met up with the rest of the family who weren't able to join us in the temple, for lunch. It was really yummy Mexican food! After lunch we all went up to Fairview to have our family Christmas time really quick and to get ready for our family pictures (which are already outdated - Cindy is due in April but Darin will be on his mission by then). I think they will turn out really cute.

After pictures were done I had Cindy cut my hair. It looks so cute! It is pretty short - about to my chin, and spiky. I will try to get a cute picture up sometime.

On Sunday we hung out with Brent's sister Karen and her fiance, Ryan. It was so good just to talk and get to know Ryan better. They seem so happy and so in love. I love talking with Karen. She is such an awesome person! Later that day we watched the Superbowl with Brent's family. It was a really good game. I loved watching the hilarious commercials. They had alot of good ones this year.

On our way home we stopped by my parents place in Manti to show off my haircut and to say "hi". We had stopped by there on our way to the temple but half of my family was out and my dad had been rubbing it in that he had got to see me and my mom hadn't. It was so funny. I love seeing my family, especially seeing how much my dads face lights up and that huge happy smile he gets when he sees me. I love you too dad ..... and all of my family (including in-laws). You all do so much for us. Thank you. It was such a great weekend!

What is going on in our life...

Well not too much has happened recently. Brent & I are both working 2 jobs. We joined Primerica in September. We are building a business with PFS and are working to help families. We work from contacts and referrals. Let us know if there is anyone you know that would be willing to sit down with us for a few minutes to learn more about what we do in helping families and showing people how to become financially independent! This business is truly amazing. We look forward to helping as many of our friends and family that will let us and also becoming business partners with those that see the same value in this business that we have! Brent is also done with another semester of school. He is now studying frantically for his finals. Brent I am so proud of you! This semester has been really busy and hard. You had a lot on your plate but you stuck with it. Good luck with your finals.

Last Week Of Summer

Well the last week before SUU starts is finally here. Brent is finally signed up for all of his classes and books are ordered and on their way. I can't believe how fast summer has gone! In addition to school starting... we have received our concert tickets. Smash Mouth is playing this year for SUU's Homecoming concert. It is going to be so much fun. My family will be attending with us and boy is Paige excited! We were even able to get front row seats!! WOOOHOOO!

First official post.

So, this is our first official post besides the announcement.

We have been really busy this summer working and spending a lot time with family and friends.

We had our 2nd Anniversary of our Sealing in June. We were able to go to the temple to Celebrate. We were able to do some sealings of couples and families. It was so awesome! I still can't believe that we have been sealed for that long.

We helped Mark and Em move. It was very hot when we moved them from Logan to Eagle Mountain, but we survived (barely). To bad it was just to a temporary place until their place is finished.

We made a goal to attend the temple every other week. It has been challenging but worth it. It is truly amazing the spirit in our lives and in our home.

We spent the Fourth of July with Megan's family. We missed the parade because they decided to do it on the third at night. Go figure. :P It was a lot of fun to be able to be up there especially because we were there for Megan's cousin's baptism, too.

The 24th we spent in Fairview. I was talked into running/walking the 5k. I managed to live and finish, too. We went to the parade and got drenched by the fire truck. It was pretty fun. We were also able to get our hair cut by my talented sister Cindy. She does such a great job. We then went up to Eagle Mnt. to visit Mark and Em. We spent the rest of the weekend playing Rock Band and helping them move again. I am just glad we didn't have to move everything. Mostly just the things for the baby's room.

Well, I think that about wraps up our summer so far. (Not much of it is left till its over :( Oh, well).