tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-66707228269954490032024-03-13T13:21:33.949-06:00Jason & Ashley's Adoption JourneyThese are simply our thoughts as we start an exciting chapter of our lives.Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.comBlogger130125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-31190211880520571062015-12-27T12:02:00.001-07:002015-12-27T12:05:29.557-07:00Adoption!!TWO exclamation marks on that title because we have TWO adoptions to discuss!! Let me tell you about the first one first.<br />
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Little S, who has just been a part of our family for a long time, has had quite the roller coaster. So many stories in this little one's life, and she is only 3. One important milestone of this drama include the termination of her bio parents' rights. The trial only lasted a few hours, and it ended dramatically with an outburst (though not from the bio parents! They were a tad childish during the hearing, but who wouldn't be with so much at stake? And in the end, after the judge had made her ruling, they were pulled together. Not happy, obviously, but mature. I am sure they fell apart later, but in the moment, they really really surpassed my expectations. This wasn't the first time I could site a moment of composure either. There were glimmers throughout the last almost 2 years that S has been<br />
<a name='more'></a> in our home, and I wish they could be those parts of themselves more often, because that part of them is the part that will get to see S again if they can just hold on to it. But I digress...) Their parental rights were terminated, and adoption was finally in sight.<br />
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It was scheduled out longer than I would have liked, but her bio parents didn't contest the ruling, which they were in their rights to do, so things moved faster toward adoption than they would have otherwise. (What a gift from them to S!!) During the adoption week especially, S and I talked a lot about her story. I answered questions, we prayed for her bio parents, and we looked at the few pictures I have of them. But how do you explain all of this to a 3 year old, traumatized little girl? As far as she knows, her bio parents didn't know how to make a happy home, so she came to us so she could learn how a happy home works while her bio parents learned how to make a happy home. Then when people tried to teach them how, they wouldn't follow the rules and do what people asked, so they didn't learn how to make a happy, safe place for her. Because they were naughty and wouldn't follow the rules, they got a time out, and now they can't see S because only people who are safe for her get to be around her. That is what she needs to know for now, and the rule of thumb is that foster children/children adopted out of foster care get to know their whole story with no edits by the time they are 12, so she will get more pieces of the story as she grows and has more questions. I know I have said it before, but thank goodness for her extended family that is still a part of her life (as limited as that list may be) because S will have questions that I can't answer, that her bio parents have refused to answer, and angels will still be there to help her. Yay family!!<br />
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There was so much to plan for the adoption. Seth and Kai both have blankets I made for them when I was pregnant with them. Seth's is a puff quilt and Kai's is a cross stitch wall hanging blanket. So obviously S needed one also. Hers is bigger than the boys' blankets because she is bigger, and it is her favorite colors. :)<br />
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I also have a birthday decoration of all the birthdays of the grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, parents, and siblings of my children. I made it, and I made one for my mother and my mother-in-law also. I had to make extra pieces for all 3 decorations, which was more complicated than it sounds. Lol.<br />
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And we scheduled a temple sealing for the same day as the adoption. In our religion, we believe that families should live together forever after we die, not until "death do us part". That is a major purpose of the LDS temples. By being born to us, Seth and Kai are automatically sealed to us forever, but S is not since she wasn't born to us. So we got the extraordinary privilege of going into the temple as a family together, all of us, to be sealed to S. Not many know this, but my parents weren't married in the temple, so my brothers and I weren't automatically sealed to them for time and all eternity when we were born. When I was 3 years old, we went as a family to be sealed. I have such sacred memories of being there. Everyone wears white as a symbol of purity since one has to be living all the laws commanded by God to enter the temple. My mother made me the most angelic, white dress when I was sealed to them at the same age and season that S was sealed to us. So the dress that my mom made me all those years ago fit S perfectly, and she was sealed to us in the same dress that I was sealed to my parents in!! I had to fix a few small things that had happened to it since it is more than two decades old and worn by a toddler, so that also took some time, but the significance of such a heritage in that dress was more than worth it.<br />
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And the paperwork took more time than it needed to also, but that's foster care.<br />
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So the big day came, and Kai and S had a Christmas concert for the preschool that morning. They were so stinking adorable! They were perfectly little up there, and I loved it. Aunt E, Uncle K, and Cousin E, along with grandma and grandpa, were all in town for the adoption, so they all attended the concert, and I think that made Kai and S feel so special to have so much familial support.<br />
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Then we ate, changed clothes, got ready, and headed to the adoption!! The judge and lawyers had to do their technical, lawyer-y thing, and there was so much paperwork, but the air was electric. Everyone was on the edge of their seats, and that is saying something because so many family members and friends were there for this sweet little girl!! She is so loved!! Every single person that showed up just made my heart do a flip. I was so happy to see them all. And in the middle of the court proceedings, SANTA HIMSELF showed up!! And I mean the real Santa: tall, broad, jolly, perfectly long white whiskers, bald head, amazing Santa suit, loving, etc. He called S to him, and she just kept stroking his beard and saying, "You have beards?" (She thinks each chin hair is a beard, so all together they form beards, plural. Lol!) He gave her the cutest pink doggy that she now sleeps with most nights along with the quilt I made for her. When he hugged me, my arms didn't go all the way around him and he towered over me. But the clincher that made me believe in Santa again was this:<br />
He asked Kai what time the kids would go to bed on Christmas Eve. Kai knows they get in bed at 8pm, but trying to earn an extra hour to stay up, he told Santa 9pm. Santa then said, "Hmmm... What if you went to bed at 8pm? I think that would be better." Then turned around and continued on his way. :0 ... I was grinning from ear to ear, and Kai looked like he had just been caught. Since then he has told me a few times that he wasn't sure if he was getting presents or coal in his stocking. LOL!<br />
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We hurried home when all was done, ate, and got the kids down for a short nap/quiet time. We rushed to the temple, but the moment we set foot in that sacred building, the rushing just vanished. The kids were too excited to sit still, but they weren't noisy or rude. The whole mood was perfect, and I am honored to be sealed to these 3 perfect angels we call our children. God's trust in me for their care leaves me in awe. So much family, and two very special friends, were there to support us, and again, their wonderful spirits were felt and appreciated. The whole thing was better than I could have hoped for. Kai asked what the stages of life were, so I told him they were these:<br />
baby, toddler, preschooler, kid, teenager, adult, elderly, heavenly.<br />
He pointed to heavenly and told me he can't wait to die and be heavenly. This kid keeps me laughing! We talked about why, and he said it's because he hasn't seen Jesus, and he wants to see Him so much! I believe he felt the Holy Spirit in the temple and his little soul connected with that feeling. But alas, he must wait and grace my life for much longer before he gets to be heavenly. :) But the temple will always be there to remind us of that heavenly feeling. Praise God for that!<br />
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And while ALL of this was going on, we were also chosen by some very special people to adopt their child! :D :D :D The expectant mother is due in February, and the expectant father is so supportive and wonderful. They live across the country, so we have only seen them once while we flew there to meet them, but we have talked a few times on the phone, and we really enjoy getting to know them every chance we get. The baby is a girl, so this baby and S will be the best of friends. I just can't wait to meet this precious little girl!<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The kids are playing with the great sand we brought back with us from the beach when we went to meet the newest little one's birth parents. I wish the kids could have been there with us to meet them!</td></tr>
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The day after S's adoption, so amazing family members threw me a baby shower!! It was a blast. We went to lunch together and then went shopping for baby things. They kept asking me questions like, "Do you want the clear bottles or the pink ones?" And I would yell, "Pink!" This may be my only opportunity to go full girly with a newborn, so this baby will be 100% spoiled. Lucky for S, my need for hairdos and dresses and nail polish will be split between two girls now, so she might get a respite from my girly side. Lol! (Lucky for me, S is all-out girly! She loves that stuff!)<br />
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The beautiful birth mom has notoriously small babies, so this girl is going to be LITTLE, and that just makes me happy. It has been too long since I had a teeny tiny one. Maybe this one will stay little just a tad longer for me. :)<br />
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We have a crib, a mattress, a double stroller, lots of clothes, a diaper genie, a bouncer, a jumper, a baby bath, etc. etc. and we aren't even close to done yet. We are going to buy the carseat and pack-n-play when we are on the other side of the country while the baby is being born. (I get to be there for the birth if I can make it in time! I want to be there so so so much!) I will have to be there for a while because of the paperwork and such, so it will just be the newborn and me in a foreign state until we are legally allowed to cross state lines. I will treasure that time to no end. Jason will stay back to get the kids settled with grandma and then take a later flight. He will stay with us for a couple days and then fly home to be with grandma and the kiddos and get back to his job. When the baby and I get home, (Flying home by myself with a newborn??? Wish me luck!) Jason will take more days off to just be with all of us as a family. The adoption and sealing in the temple will take place after we are all in Utah together. And I am hoping against hope that this sweet girl can also wear a beautiful, long, white dress that my mother made for me when I was born. Again, it is 3 decades old, so it needs a little loving repair, but there is a chance that BOTH our girls would be sealed to us in dresses made by their grandma! (If she doesn't fit in it for some reason, I may attempt to make one for her, but that depends on time constraints.)<br />
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Every blanket I've made for my children has been vastly different from the others:<br />
a puff quilt, a cross stitch blanket, and a type of block quilt.<br />
(I made up the pattern for the last one, so there really isn't a name for it.) So now what type of blanket should I make? I must get sewing soon! I am super excited.<br />
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I must write about Christmas, because it was a blast! And we have New Year's, my birthday, Kai's birthday, and Valentine's Day before the due date of the next wonderful angel in our family. How did my life get so full and wonderful? The blessings seem endless.<br />
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<br />Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-88557759011200348872015-07-28T18:12:00.001-06:002015-07-28T18:12:54.521-06:00Camping<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Kai and his friend, just giggling in a hammock in the mountains.</td></tr>
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We are tent campers. It just doesn't feel like camping without a tent for me. I am sure I will change my mind as I get older, but for now, our enormous tent works for us. It can fit a queen, a twin, and two child cots with room to spare. Love it!</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Dressed and a quick breakfast so we can get to the fun stuff.</td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a>We went camping with friends who brought these awesome hammocks. The kids had so much fun in them that we bought some of our own for our next camping trip. (The first picture in this post is of Kai and his friend, Sophia, who came camping with us. One of my favorite pictures lately.)<br />
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We played in the lake nearby and paddled around in our blow-up raft.</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">At the beach with friends.</td></tr>
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There is a short jaunt called Devil's Kitchen. While driving there, everything is purely green, and then you walk down a very short little path to find this:</div>
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The contrast of colors from the purely green to this bright orange is just amazing!</td></tr>
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I absolutely loved everything about this trip, especially the light sprinkles of rain. And having friends around made it even more fun!</div>
Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-43896422804915792142015-07-25T22:31:00.001-06:002015-07-25T23:59:15.182-06:00Pioneer Day - 24th Of July<div style="font-family: Verdana, Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 11px;">
This is Jason posting. So in Utah we have an additional holiday called <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pioneer_Day_(Utah)">Pioneer Day</a>. Like Independence Day, it is an additional day to celebrate the past as well as set off fireworks. Nothing better than remembering our ancestors, barbecuing some great food with great friends, and blowing stuff up. We had three families over, 18 people in all, to celebrate and just enjoy each others company. It was a blast... literally. </div>
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<a name='more'></a>We BBQ'd everything from chicken to salmon to steak to roasted pineapple and even bacon wrapped jalapeno poppers... Yeah.... We ate like kings. It was fantastic. The kids played on the swing set out back and ran a muck with the dogs.<br />
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After eating we went out front to our setback drive and set off a lot of fireworks. (See the pictures.) :) There are some really nice benefits to living on a setback: very few cars driving right next to our yard/driveway and having a great area to have a fireworks show without worrying about the next car to drive down the street. There's nothing worse than lighting a big firework and then somebody driving down the street and wondering if you are going to hit their car...</div>
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We had a contest to see whose tank would go the farthest. Kai's ended up about a foot behind the line, which was hilarious. Ashley won, and everyone there participated, child and adult alike.</div>
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Between our festivities and LOTS of neighbors doing the same thing, we were able to have a fantastic show and and truly enjoyable time. It was awesome and I wish we could do it every weekend. Afterwards, we cleaned up, got the kids to bed and then 5 of us gathered in the kitchen to play board games. You should have seen this coming if you have read much about us. :) To give you an idea of our game tastes, we played Hanabi and Family Business. It was great. To everyone who came, thank you. You made our day.<br />
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Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-40722280880493990652015-07-08T14:31:00.001-06:002015-07-08T14:31:41.917-06:00Happy Birthday... and Happy Father's Day, Jason!!Jason is old! Yay! ... I mean ... happy birthday, Jason! :)<br />
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<a name='more'></a>We went out to eat at Texas Roadhouse, and I made him sit in the saddle to get back at him for when I had to sit in the saddle on my birthday. (I was 9 months pregnant. I gave birth to Kailand less than a week later. Between the waiters and Jason, they convinced me to sit in a very tall saddle while they sang Happy Birthday to me. I then couldn't get OFF the saddle and had to get help. SOOOO embarrassing. Lol!)<br />
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And presents, of course!<br />
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I got him a very expensive watch. It is kind of nice to have his birthday and Father's Day really close together, because I can scoot the money back and forth between the two to get him something a little nicer.<br />
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And for Father's Day, we have the same tradition as Mother's Day. We all go to a secondhand store and let the kids pick out some things for us to try on. We narrow down the selection and let the kids pick something to buy for us. It's so fun. We started this when we simply didn't have a lot of money, and it was so stinking fun that we haven't given it up just because we aren't living paycheck to paycheck anymore.<br />
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You can't really see what Jason got for Father's Day in these pictures, but you can see the fun we all had. (Tissue paper fights are quickly becoming a tradition also...)<br />
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And my favorite part of the day was when everyone was resting and Kai asked if I could teach him to ride a bike with no training wheels. I said sure, but then encountered some problems with the bike. Jason came out to help and ended up teaching Kai how to ride a bike. Isn't that just a precious thing to do on Father's Day???<br />
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In these pictures, Jason is wearing an outfit the kids picked out for him at the secondhand store. :)<br />
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Jason is an @mazing father and husband. I know no man like him that gives so much time to his family. He works from home, so he gets more than a healthy dose of us, and he still vies for more time with the kids. He is such an example to the boys of what a man should be, and S is going to have a hard time finding a husband that can compare to such a neat daddy. He's had to work for her affections like he never had to work for the boys', and he has never faltered. I love you, Jason!Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-20629815045749786742015-07-08T13:12:00.000-06:002015-07-08T13:12:15.337-06:00Happy birthday, Kai!Kai turned 4 and he was SOOOO excited.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>On even numbered birthdays, we do a family party. On odd numbered birthdays, we do a friend party. For this family party, Kai chose to go to the new children's museum.<br />
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It was built not too long ago, and we had never been before. The kids had a BLAST.<br />
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Our membership to This Is The Place Heritage Park and our membership to Seven Peaks both expired, and we decided not to renew either one. Instead, we bought a membership to Thanksgiving Point.<br />
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They have a dinosaur museum, farm country, gardens, and the children's museum, all for free with the membership. The kids have loved it so far, and we have been back a fair number of times. All in all, it was a good choice for a birthday, and Kai had a blast.<br />
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Happy birthday, my boy! I have loved these four years so much! You are amazing to watch. Your imagination and creativity bring joy to my days. I love you!!<br />
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<br />Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-88775978108743650242015-07-01T21:44:00.001-06:002015-07-07T16:38:07.499-06:00It's Like Riding a BikeSo recently Ash decided to teach Kai how to ride a bike. He was determined to learn without training wheels so Ash set up this little bike we have without the wheels and took him outside. She got him going and he pretty much just started riding the bike like he used to know how to do it. It was pretty amazing. I took a video today of him out riding for his fourth time. Seriously... Only the fourth time he had gone out to ride and this is what he is doing.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>I asked him who taught him to ride so well and he said, "I don't know, I just figured it out!" Just another reason that is the the human version of Po from Kung Fu Panda. If you don't know what I'm talking about, then I'll remind you of when he was younger. He used to eat EVERYTHING. He just kept eating and eating and eating and he was sooooo adorable and cute and cuddly. So every time we watched Kung Fu Panda 2 we think of him. Also a little while ago Ash and I were trying to find a sport that he would really enjoy. They were driving in the van one day and Ash mentioned that they needed to find a sport for him to sign up for. He said, "I want to learn kung fu. Can you just learn kung fu?" Ash told him that you can and he replied, "I wanna learn kung fu!" Ash promised to find something. Then Seth, who is signed up for a Chinese language immersion program for 1st grade, jumped in, "If we run into people who speak Chinese then I can talk to them and if we run into bad guys then you can protect the family!" Hilarious... I love our adorable kids. Seriously, who could make this stuff up?<br />
<br />Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08356564250751379750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-3216811203829727462015-06-28T09:47:00.001-06:002015-07-07T16:37:36.798-06:00Memorial Day WeekendSaturday, we met my brother and his family at the Museum of Natural Curiosity at Thanksgiving Point. It is the best children's museum I've ever been to. When Seth saw his cousin, they held hands throughout the museum. It was so stinking cute. Not to say the other kids don't get along, but Seth and this particular cousin just connect.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>When we were all done at the children's museum, I made dinner and then we went to pick up a niece and nephew from Jason's side of the family. Their older sister was having her 16th birthday party, and the younger siblings needed a place to go. All in all, we had 8 kids at our house overnight, and it was AWESOME! The kids had so much fun, as did Jason and I. :) S slept in her bed because she thrives on consistency, but the other 7 kids slept on air mattresses in the living room and had a sleepover. I slept on the couch to supervise, and we had a blast. Root beer floats, candy, popcorn, and How to Train your Dragon 2!<br />
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We played games Sunday morning with my brother and sister-in-law. And went to church in the afternoon. All of our company was gone by then, and the house felt too empty!<br />
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Monday we started with breakfast at IHOP. Then the adventures began. We decided to visit both of my sets of grandparents, all of whom have passed away. We went north first to visit my dad's parents.<br />
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Then our path took us south to visit my mom's parents.<br />
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(We wanted Jason in these pictures with us, but we really didn't want to disturb anyone on this day, so Jason took the pictures for us instead of being in them.)<br />
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It was so nice to see how many flowers had been left on all the graves. These people were truly loved in their lives! And it was nice to see the gravestones of other relatives buried nearby also. The crowds were huge, but the people running the place were so organized and helpful that the big crowds weren't a big deal. At one point we were fairly far away from one of the burial places, and a worker gave us a ride on a golf cart. The boys enjoyed that, since just two days previous I had explained to them what a golf cart is.<br />
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At one of the cemeteries, we saw a tribute to all the children lost to abortion, and my heart broke for them. I am so grateful that my husband, my children, and I were all giving an opportunity at life, to live and love and learn.<br />
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I know this post is really late, but I had to post it anyway. Memorial Day is such an important day, and I am so grateful for having such a wonderful heritage in the military. It takes a brave soul to fight for what they believe in. I hope I have even a little piece of that bravery in me, even though mine will never be manifest in the military.<br />
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(One day we will go visit Jason's grandpas and his grandma that has passed on. We did get to visit his grandma that is still alive though for New Year's! <a href="http://jasonandashleyadopting.blogspot.com/2015/03/im-back.html" target="_blank">Read about that here!</a> His other grandparents are just buried so far away that it makes visiting them difficult.)<br />
<br />Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-35370205562168038242015-06-27T22:16:00.000-06:002015-06-28T09:20:36.417-06:00Yard Work Galore<div style="font-size: 11px;">
<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">So Ashley invited her 13 year old nephew over to help with some yard work. What a great idea. He spent a good amount of time weeding and mowing the front and back lawn on Friday while I worked and then we spent 8 hours on Saturday weeding between the garden boxes, weeding the area behind our fence (in the wetlands), cutting down a huge weed/bush, laying several layers of weed barrier, and then finally moving several wheel barrows worth of rocks from behind the fence to between the garden boxes. What a tremendous amount of work! I am posting some "after" pictures of everything. I wish you could see how much of a change there was in the before and after.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Let me tell you, that 13 year old worked hard and between the two of us we got significantly more done that I could have done in probably 3 weekends by myself. It was tremendous and I'm glad he allowed us to pay him well for his work. It was a long, super hot and sweaty day and I for one can barely move between being sun burnt and sore. It was totally worth it though after seeing the results. Thank you for everything you did... It was amazing!</span></div>
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Before our work the in between spaces were filled with ripped up weed barrier and dirt. Oh and a ton of weeds that were pretty tall since they were getting a lot of water from our awesome garden boxes and drip system. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">We will not be getting lots of weeds in between the boxes anymore and that makes me so happy. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Because our house backs up to a wetlands area we get some really cool benefits (deer coming up to our fence regularly, tons of rare birds flying around and no back yard neighbors) and some pretty cruddy drawbacks (tons of flies and mosquitoes and a lot of invasion weeds). We were not able to truly enjoy our beautiful view recently because the weeds had grown so much that they were blocking our line of sight. Look at it now... It's gorgeous!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">This is the view to the left of the last picture. Bringing down those weeds brought us some beautiful scenery back.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">I'm not sure that you can get a sense of how big this root is. We took down a 7 foot weed... umm I mean bush... erm... Yeah it was pretty much a tree. The last piece that we struggled with was this tangle of roots. After digging it up for a while it simply wouldn't budge. Two reciprocating blades later and this monster came out. Having that thing gone makes our back yard look even better. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">Here's the work that our nephew did. Look at that... Just flowers... No weeds. It's awesome! He did such a great job.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times, Times New Roman, serif;">You can see our tree and pumpkin plants going crazy here which is awesome. The better part of this view is that we weren't able to see the dirt and the pumpkins due to the crazy weeds. This area can creep up on you like crazy because of the wetlands and the watering system we have in place. Looking good now. Still needs a bit of work but man is this awesome.</span></div>
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Jasonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08356564250751379750noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-37674405323565119142015-05-18T23:14:00.001-06:002015-05-18T23:15:17.568-06:00Mother's DaySeth made me the sweetest little calendar for Mother's Day. He colored the sky gray and said, "The sky is dark because it is raining hearts for Mother's Day!" I loved it! Every page of that calendar just exudes love and time spent in earnest concentration.<br />
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This boy melts my heart. You wouldn't believe how empathetic he is. (For instance, he has a girl in his class that was born with half a heart. This obviously causes a few physical challenges. He has taken her under his wing, and when I told him he wouldn't be in the same class as her next year, he started crying! He doesn't want to lose his friend.)<br />
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Kai had a program at school and sang a couple of adorable little songs. I had a hard time not laughing and crying at the same time. This boy is going to be a heart breaker! Watch out for those eyebrows!<br />
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And my favorite part of the little "mom surveys" this year was Kai saying he can talk to me. It's true. We talk when happy or sad, bad days or good days. He doesn't open up to everyone, and I LOVE that he opens up to me.<br />
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We also have a tradition of going to a second-hand store and letting the kids pick things off the rack for me. It is wonderful to see what it is they like. Most of the stuff is hilarious. S picked a yellow shirt with flowers all along the bottom. Kai picked a BYU shirt. Seth picked a black dress. (He usually picks a dress for me.)<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">My friend and I wearing our matching necklaces since our sons go to the same preschool. These necklaces are a badge of honor. </td></tr>
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And my sister called from her mission! It was so good to see her. She was in a car accident that was way more serious than she first let on, so it was nice to see her alive and well. She is always so positive and it is refreshing. I miss her a ton. She is almost 1/3 of the way through!<br />
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Here are some photos from the time we spent at my parents' home over mother's day weekend. It's always fun to go home.<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">All the men took naps, so my mother and I went for a walk.<br />
Our walk, just the two of us, was one of my favorite moments on Mother's Day.</td></tr>
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<br />Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-30286530408907146182015-05-18T22:04:00.002-06:002015-05-18T22:04:19.052-06:00A boys' day together also means...A GIRLS' DAY TOGETHER!<br />
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When the boys all left to go to the Payson Temple openhouse, that left S and I at home together. The first thing we did was nap in a big bed. She loves being cuddled, so we fell asleep quickly. About an hour later, I woke up to S pretending to sleep. She was trying so hard to be good, but she was wide awake. I sneaked over as quietly as possible and turned on Cinderella, her favorite Disney movie. I then sneaked ever-so-quietly and got back in bed. S was so adorable, pretending to be asleep but obviously awake and watching. She eventually watched without reservation, and before long, she was yelling at the TV.<br />
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"Watch out for the kitty!"<br />
"Be nice to 'Rella!"<br />
"They dancing!"<br />
"Yay! You did it!"<br />
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This girl is so full of life. We ate dark chocolate covered raisins as we cheered on 'Rella, and we danced, and we played games. I loved our girl day, and I love our girl. :)<br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">*Sorry for the lack of pictures, but we can't post her face yet, and there is no point to any pictures without her in them for this post.</span>Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-20156600713920825382015-05-06T23:53:00.001-06:002015-05-06T23:53:13.024-06:00Boys Only Trip to the Temple<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Hey this is Jason. So the boys and I got to have a special day today. I took a half day off from work and we were able to go down to the new Payson LDS Temple. Just me and the boys and it was a fun time. If you don't know, LDS temples are special places in our religion where members of the LDS church who are living in accordance with the teachings of the church may go to perform special ordinances. These are essentially very sacred promises made with the Lord. After a temple is built and before it is dedicated as a Holy place, it is opened to the general public to walk through and see the inside. The boys loved it.<br />
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We watched a video describing temples and what happens inside. Then walked through the temples many rooms for baptisms, waiting areas, sealings (marriages), and other rooms. The coolest one is the Celestial room which is also the most sacred room we have in the temple that most people get to go in to. Seth mentioned how white and beautiful the room was and mentioned all the crystals in the chandeliers. It was super cute. Throughout the tour I would set the boys down and discuss the importance and significance of each of the rooms, on there level of course, and they would ask any questions that they had. It's quite interesting to hear what they are thinking.<br />
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After going through we were able to take pictures inside a tent with large images of the temple. Unfortunately it was raining outside so we weren't able to get actual pictures. The boys and I ran to the van and went to Dairy Queen and ate some Ice Cream. They loved it. What a great day. And after that I asked if they wanted to go to the mall or go to a slide or something and they said that they wanted to go home so they could spend some time with Mommy and their sister. Granted, they were thinking of watching Mommy play wii, or play on a phone, or something like that, but it was still nice that they wanted to spend time with them.<br />
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It really was a great afternoon. I love when I get to spend time with my kids. They are wonderful, smart, and kind... It doesn't get much better than that.Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-3767641929477768762015-05-06T23:46:00.004-06:002015-05-06T23:57:50.872-06:00April? What's April?So... April was crazy. Like, out of this world crazy. The last day of April Jason and I looked at each other and literally said things like, "Wait... what? How did it get to be the last day of April?!?" Let me explain (with some cute pictures thrown in for good measure!)<br />
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COURT<br />
We had the permanency hearing for S's case through foster care. It was scheduled for a Wednesday. There was family from our side and from S's side who had driven in from out of state to be here for the court hearing because it is the biggest hearing in the foster care process (at least in this case for us). <br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uHRDY2WE1NI/VUr33dzE3RI/AAAAAAAADEU/NUsc0_pGMXU/s1600/IMG_20150415_100824831.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-uHRDY2WE1NI/VUr33dzE3RI/AAAAAAAADEU/NUsc0_pGMXU/s1600/IMG_20150415_100824831.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Grandma and S talking about what's important: jewelry! <br />
I am so glad she and grandpa came into town to support all of us.</td></tr>
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<a name='more'></a>Leading up to this day, I was a nervous wreck. I was less nervous for the birth of my first child! I was less nervous leaving to serve a mission in a foreign country! In both of these examples, I knew what the outcome was going to be, and none of the options had me losing a family member. The outcome of this court hearing could have lead to me losing S, and yes, she is family. I love that girl so much. As we are about to walk out the door, I get a text message from the caseworker saying the judge is sick and court is postponed until Friday. And thirty minutes later, court is postponed again until Tuesday! I thought I was going to die having to wait that long. That meant six more days of being a nervous wreck. I literally had to cut back to basics just to make it through. I got basic cleaning done, I played Wii, and I played with the kids. That was about all that got done around our house. I just wanted to make memories in case one of my memory makers was taken from me.<br />
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And then Tuesday came. We were there way earlier than we needed to be because I was so anxious. My mom came back into town specifically for this court date. I was so glad to have her on one side of me and Jason on the other throughout the hearing process. It calmed me a lot to be surrounded by kind, understanding, loving people. And I want to add a special thanks to my friend, Julie, for being willing to take all 3 kids very early in the morning and get them to school for me. She was so amazingly supportive, even through the multiple schedule changes when court was delayed.<br />
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We entered the court room without S's parents. They hadn't shown up, and no one had been able to contact them in any way for about a week. Their absence made for a short hearing. The feeling in that room was strong and strange. I cried tears of joy for us and simultaneous tears of sorrow for them. The outcome of the hearing was that the goal of the case was changed from reunification with her parents to adoption by us! It was a great day for us. My spirit calmed and I felt peace the moment the judge made her declaration. I have felt from the beginning that S was to be a part of our family, but I didn't want to admit it for two reasons. 1) I didn't want to get my hopes up and then be let down. We've waited to add to our family for a long time. 2) We would have been happy to be a small part of a grand story where her parents pull it together and get her back. I would have loved to help them in that way.<br />
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There is still a LONG road ahead before we can actually adopt S. Too long. But I can wait as long as I need to now that we are really sure of the future. (Though I would rather adopt her sooner than later if I get to pick. Lol!)<br />
<br />
LENDING A HAND<br />
While all of this court anxiety was happening, we were also living with two extra people in our house. A 21-year-old woman (whom we will call P) aged out of the foster care system and had nowhere to go from March to June, at which point she was going to go to Job Corps. She also had a newborn baby girl (whom we will call Q.) We offered to let them stay with us for those few months since we have a large bedroom that has no one in it. (Jason's office was in there, but he was willing to rearrange so that we could have room for P and her baby. I am telling you, Jason is amazing. His office is now in our closet. We have a huge closet, but it isn't nearly as nice as having your own room... Jason's amazing. Did I say that already??) We had very few stipulations before she moved in. 1) That she get a background check. This was DCFS's stipulation, not ours. It was required so that we could have her and S in our house at the same time. 2) I couldn't be her main source of transportation. 3) If she did anything in any way to harm our children (including bringing pornography of any sort into our house, etc.) she was out of our house instantly.<br />
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I won't go into a lot of detail, because I don't want to chastise her in public, but P had a hard time adjusting to all of the new changes in her life. It caused contention. I helped where I could, but she required more help than I could give with three kids, the court hearing (and anxiety), and everything else going on. It was hard. There was nothing so wrong as to consider kicking her out, and I was glad that we were helping, for she did learn many things that helped her as she adjusted to being a new mother. And I LOVED holding that new baby. It has been a long time since I got to hold a newborn on a regular basis. I miss it!<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-z_zxURvQScQ/VUr-Rhln_-I/AAAAAAAADGA/SHj4PYdjrAE/s1600/0424152001a.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-z_zxURvQScQ/VUr-Rhln_-I/AAAAAAAADGA/SHj4PYdjrAE/s1600/0424152001a.jpg" height="320" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Poor Sethie! He cried when we told him the baby would be moving out the next day. We told him to smile for the picture, and this is as close as he could manage. He loves babies, and he is a fantastic big brother. The day we adopt a baby, I will post the opposite picture of this one.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-59BemuSXOFY/VUr-RkFHvqI/AAAAAAAADGE/klVOieRb7P0/s1600/0424152004.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-59BemuSXOFY/VUr-RkFHvqI/AAAAAAAADGE/klVOieRb7P0/s1600/0424152004.jpg" height="320" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I miss this girl so much. She was such a cuddle bug. Can't wait until I hold her again!</td></tr>
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<br />
However, three days after the court hearing (finally) took place, I heard back from our RFC (our foster care representative) about P's background check. She never got it. Had DCFS found out, they could have taken S from our home. I was furious. I haven't been that mad in a very long time. P had lied to both Jason and me multiple times about this. I talked to Jason about it, and I decided not to say anything until I could calm down and pull my thoughts together. But then I saw P in our kitchen, and my mouth took over. I blurted out, "You didn't get your background check!" She said, "Yes, I went in, and filled out the paperwork, and..." I cut in, "And you didn't have your social security card, and you didn't get your background check." She just stood there with a look that told me she knew she was caught. "You have 48 hours to get out of my house, and I am giving you that long because I like you and am feeling generous."<br />
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I informed our RFC of the decision I had made, and she said that was a good solution. P and Q moved out about 24 hours later, but they moved into a situation that I don't think is healthy for either of them. I worry about them and text them, but it is hard to get a read on how things are really going or why they are going that way. So I just worry and pray.<br />
<br />
EASTER AND LDS GENERAL CONFERENCE<br />
Easter and conference Sunday fell on the same day this year. I will post about it separately, because we have a lot of pictures. :)<br />
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CONCRETE<br />
And we got a lot of new concrete on all four sides of our house and in our garage! I am ecstatic. We extended our porch out front, added a patio out back, added a pad for the garbage cans on one side, and added a pad for the air conditioner on the other side. (The air conditioner was sitting on a piece of thick plastic before, which had tipped and made our air conditioner cost a fortune to run. I'm excited to pay cheaper cooling bills this summer.)<br />
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Of course, the timeline had to be terrible. We were supposed to have it all done by the time court came around, but it snowed. You can't lay concrete in snow.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bWsfomqdmNY/VUr3RlV6ncI/AAAAAAAADEA/1WDyuS7pv5c/s1600/IMG_1093.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-bWsfomqdmNY/VUr3RlV6ncI/AAAAAAAADEA/1WDyuS7pv5c/s1600/IMG_1093.JPG" height="240" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jason made a cyclops snowman throwing a spear. Silly man.</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-U7OAHd5LM1g/VUr3RgoHREI/AAAAAAAADD8/prLEq9Sv8z4/s1600/IMG_1097.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-U7OAHd5LM1g/VUr3RgoHREI/AAAAAAAADD8/prLEq9Sv8z4/s1600/IMG_1097.JPG" height="320" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Grandpa helped the boys build this funny snowman. They loved it!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pxP43USVV2Y/VUr34vC9qoI/AAAAAAAADEc/LCVnJKI71_c/s1600/IMG_20150415_185030338.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-pxP43USVV2Y/VUr34vC9qoI/AAAAAAAADEc/LCVnJKI71_c/s1600/IMG_20150415_185030338.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">This is Jason helping S to safely make it across the concrete barrier to the grass.<br />
He is so sweet with her. I think he's enjoying having a sweet little girl. :)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WRYD8DXYcqw/VUr4LqtiohI/AAAAAAAADEw/UTiruLq0wTk/s1600/IMG_20150415_185039345.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-WRYD8DXYcqw/VUr4LqtiohI/AAAAAAAADEw/UTiruLq0wTk/s1600/IMG_20150415_185039345.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The gang's all here!</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-K9HDIH2Y74s/VUr4LL9UMaI/AAAAAAAADEs/xooud3CXGDc/s1600/IMG_20150415_185342133.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-K9HDIH2Y74s/VUr4LL9UMaI/AAAAAAAADEs/xooud3CXGDc/s1600/IMG_20150415_185342133.jpg" height="320" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I love these boys.</td></tr>
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<br />
So we were left with no stairs in our garage and a torn up yard while we waited for things to dry out. It was all worth it though. I love having the extra space for the kids to play, for me to sit (and read a book!), and for our outdoor things to be, such as our picnic table and grill. Yay! :D<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JmuL-lZUJyI/VUr3SQjwplI/AAAAAAAADEI/MnPJRRn1yJE/s1600/IMG_20150414_110252806.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-JmuL-lZUJyI/VUr3SQjwplI/AAAAAAAADEI/MnPJRRn1yJE/s1600/IMG_20150414_110252806.jpg" height="320" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The porch pre-concrete (post-mold installation)</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-x5i2jGYZUkI/VUr4L32gw2I/AAAAAAAADE0/P9PN9occv7U/s1600/IMG_20150417_112929327_HDR.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-x5i2jGYZUkI/VUr4L32gw2I/AAAAAAAADE0/P9PN9occv7U/s1600/IMG_20150417_112929327_HDR.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Back patio</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-67X5gs0YUwY/VUr4Mvt0enI/AAAAAAAADE8/7SdItudgj_w/s1600/IMG_20150417_114351894.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-67X5gs0YUwY/VUr4Mvt0enI/AAAAAAAADE8/7SdItudgj_w/s1600/IMG_20150417_114351894.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Front porch</td></tr>
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SICKNESS<br />
And we all got sick. Not fun. (Though I admittedly love the extra cuddles...)<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ok5ZLnIbUNA/VUr34hQAe6I/AAAAAAAADEg/ACGj4jiJSUA/s1600/IMG_20150407_112040859.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ok5ZLnIbUNA/VUr34hQAe6I/AAAAAAAADEg/ACGj4jiJSUA/s1600/IMG_20150407_112040859.jpg" height="180" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Poor boys fell asleep on the exam table in the doctor's office because they were so sick. :(</td></tr>
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So April was all together ridiculous, and wonderful, and hard, and fun. Bring on May.Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-13827626757137594932015-05-06T22:57:00.001-06:002015-05-06T22:57:11.280-06:00Guys' game nightThis is Jason. So for the past several months, I have been hosting a guys only game night at our house. We get 6-12 guys together and play board games until midnight or 1 am. It's a super fun time and has been a blast to host. It's always interesting to see what games everyone wants to play. We don't get into anything as hardcore as Dungeons and Dragons, and we don't play anything as light as Apples to Apples. We play good solid strategy games or bluffing games or really whatever we want. It's a great evening to stuff yourself full of junk food and laugh a lot with some friends. Good times right?<br />
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<br />Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-12859803383779751022015-03-18T09:18:00.001-06:002015-03-18T09:18:50.235-06:00A must-readI have two seconds to post this while I sit here watching Kai splash in the bath, but this blog post is so well written that I had to share. Please read it. It just might help explain how crazy we are. :)<br />
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http://thefosterlife.com/2015/03/06/you-should-just-stop-fostering/<br />
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Now I'm going to go splash in a bathtub with a darling 4 year old.Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-86727462083894874252015-03-01T21:56:00.000-07:002015-03-01T22:10:06.537-07:00I'm back!Two months. So this will be a picture update of the minor events between Christmas and now. And then I will update on the bigger events. :) These are totally out of order. Lol!<br />
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We went to the dinosaur museum! The kids love this place, and it's super educational. (As a sidenote, I've started saying the word "super" way too much. It's a habit I'm trying to drop. I've come up with "uber" and "very" as good replacements.)<br />
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The boys both had their school Christmas concerts, which were adorable. They were so joyous, and it makes me smile just thinking of it.<br />
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This is just the boys giggling at the bottom of the stairs. :)<br />
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We held our neighbor's water bottle hostage after she left it there the night before. This is the picture we sent with the following ransom note:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hyxQVJVHk-c/VPPioYLGxhI/AAAAAAAAC7I/lz3KFzXNWqI/s1600/IMG_20141228_213200148.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-hyxQVJVHk-c/VPPioYLGxhI/AAAAAAAAC7I/lz3KFzXNWqI/s1600/IMG_20141228_213200148.jpg" height="320" width="180" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">We have a hostage. We demand a ransom. $1,000,000 or one package of Oreos and time spent with Harry Potter. Your choice. You have 24 hours or we will spill its guts all over your porch.</td></tr>
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When our friend came to get her water bottle, my bodyguards attached.<br />
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The Colts lost to the Patriots. Jason wasn't happy, but my dad was!<br />
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I re-finished the toy room tree after S pulled down several of the leaves. Luckily, this is so amazingly simple to do! I love easy-to-fix projects like this!<br />
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We took a trip out of state to see Jason's grandma. After his grandpa died in December, his grandma moved in with his aunt. This meant that grandma was significantly closer! Yay! We got stuck trying to climb a hill in a minivan to get to the house, and Jason and his uncle spent a long time digging us out.<br />
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This picture is so heartwarming. Who has a picture of themself reading to their GREAT-grandma? This is so precious.<br />
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In the same weekend, we also got to attend our niece's baptism. It was a wonderful experience. This girl was glowing all weekend. This trip was just filled with so much family. We loved it!<br />
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Speaking of family, we spent an evening with Jason's brothers and their families. This girl was so darn sweet to sit down and play Candyland with Kai several times in a row. He loved the one on one time. They were so cute telling us about the games they played together.<br />
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S was there for all of this, and I'm sorry I can't post pictures of her here, because I have some incredibly cute pictures of her. We have had her for over 10 months now, and I can't picture our family without her. She's been there with us through so much. We have watched her grow and change and blossom. We've cleaned up her blood, sweat, and tears, literally, not to mention puke! She's changed clothing sizes and developmental categories. She's singing songs now and can identify almost all of her colors and shapes. I even have her signed up for PRESCHOOL in the fall! We have a court date coming up, and I hope something is more solidified than it has been thus far. 10 months is a lifetime to a child. Really, we've had her for a third of her LIFE now! I LOVE her. Jason LOVES her. Seth and Kai LOVE her. She is family. She is our family.<br />
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We just renewed our foster care license, and we are signing up with another adoption agency soon, since LDS Family Services went to solely providing services for birthparents and NOT for adoptive couples like us. We have the list of adoption agencies narrowed down to a handful, and we are really excited about jumping in with one of them. It's been so long since I held a newborn and called him my own. (Though I hold other people's newborns and enjoy every moment.) :)Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-49866879268436929992014-12-26T00:49:00.002-07:002014-12-26T00:49:40.428-07:00God bless us, every one!I've watched four different versions of A Christmas Carol, read an illustrated version of the book to the boys, told the story with a really intricate pop-up book, and I am not reading the abridged version to the boys that was included with the pop-up book. Last year I read Jacob T. Marley, and it's been interesting to see different interpretations with the "Jacob T. Marley" explanation in the back of my mind. So don't be surprised that this post is entitled with a line from the book. :)<br />
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Welcome to Christmas.<br />
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Christmas Eve dinner is always appetizers.<br />
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Santa hats and a theme. This year was Mickey Mouse in honor of S since she loves Minnie and Mickey so much.<br />
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(I swear those gray pants of mine have Mickey on them!)<br />
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Reading The Night Before Christmas, as we do every Christmas Eve. Of course I had to hold the book up so we could have one picture without S's face.<br />
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Opening presents Christmas morning.<br />
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We don't do "elf on the shelf". I have enough to handle around Christmas time. So we made up for our lack of elf antics in a very fun photo shoot. :D<br />
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(At this point I stole the step stool and left Jason to his own instincts to get down. Lol!)<br />
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Going out to play in the SNOW! We were so excited to wake up to a white Christmas.<br />
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Coming inside now.<br />
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Christmas dinner. Steak, loaded mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, sparkling cider, and homemade chocolate mousse pie.<br />
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I wish we had more pictures, but I am glad I didn't spend more time with a camera, as that means I spent more time with my children. :)<br />
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So many people are on my mind today:<br />
Jason's widowed grandma has my thoughts since Jason's grandpa died two weeks ago.<br />
My friend died about a week ago, and his family has occupied my thoughts a lot also.<br />
My sister who is serving a mission for the LDS church in England is spending her first holiday away from home today.<br />
S's parents are definitely on my mind. Where are they? What did they do? What did they eat? What are their traditions? Where would S be if she hadn't been put in foster care? I will never know the answers to these questions.<br />
My family and friends with cancer are all in my thoughts and prayers. Did they feel well today?<br />
To the future mother of my adopted children, all my heartfelt love. I can't wait to meet you. Where are you today?<br />
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I could go on. There are so many people I would like to help. And on this day when our Savior was born, on this day when One who understands all our pain came into this world for us, my heart is full to bursting that I don't need to be there for everyone all the time, because He is. I can do what I can do, and He will do so much more. The reason I need to help those I care about is for my own peace of mind. And I love doing it.<br />
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On this most merry of days, a Merry Christmas to anyone who reads this. May you feel wrapped in your Savior's love, as I do. God bless us, every one!<br />
<br />Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-23480909297345740972014-12-11T20:57:00.003-07:002014-12-11T20:58:12.051-07:00Festival of Trees, NOT auction night...So after auction night is over, there are four days of open doors. You pay a small fee to get in, but again, every penny goes to charity. It's tradition for us to take the kids and see all the trees, wreaths, performances, quilts, gingerbread houses, etc. They open up a kid section also, with crafts, little prizes, and a bubble machine! This is the kids' favorite area, of course. We always buy them elf wands (plastic sticks with a bunch of long tinsel on the end) and let them do the bubble machine, but they've never wanted to do a craft.<br />
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Kai didn't want to get in the bubble machine by himself, so I stepped in with him. It's fun being inside a bubble!<br />
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And Santa always comes!<br />
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I asked the boys if they wanted to see Santa, and they said yes. I tried to talk them out of it, stating that they had already sat on Santa's lap this year and that they would get to sit on Santa's lap again before Christmas, but they wouldn't be swayed. We then stood in line for more than an hour. Do you know how long that is for a 6 year old and a 3 year old??? :( When we finally got to the front of the line, Santa was tired and annoyed, and the "elfs" were rushing us through. We took about 60 seconds total with Santa. I will not be talked into that line ever again. We can see Santa another day next year!<br />
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Jason wasn't with me through all of this, because we weren't sure S could handle seeing a lot of things she can't touch. And her meltdowns are epic. So Jason and S had a wonderful time at home together while the boys and I had a wonderful time at the Festival. Kai was enthralled with the river dancers, which made me smile. ;)<br />
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I'm glad we have this tradition, and it's good to point out to the kids that the money all goes to sick children (Primary Children's Hospital). We had a good friend's daughter go through quite an ordeal there this year, and it made me that much more grateful for what those good doctors, nurses, and other staff do there each day. And it made this year at the Festival very poignant.Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-47645230172514074862014-12-11T19:46:00.003-07:002014-12-11T20:33:32.569-07:00Festival of Trees<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Last year we were at the Festival of Trees, as we are every year. It's a tradition. But last year, we had a fake tree that had been given to us by my uncle. It didn't come with a fake tree stand. So I'd had my father fashion a real tree stand so that it would hold our donated, fake tree. It worked for five years. Last year was year six, and it wasn't working anymore. At one point the kids had put something under the tree, and I had gone under the tree to retrieve it. I bumped the tree while I was under there, and the whole thing started to topple. I grabbed the "trunk" and held up this huge, heavy tree by just the base of the bar. The kids were so fascinated by what was happening that they wouldn't move away, and my fear was that I was going to drop the tree on one of them. So I held it. And held it. And held it. I don't know how long I was under that tree. It seemed like a long time. Jason was upstairs doing something and couldn't hear my pleas for help. By the time I was rescued, my arms and back were so sore! I swore I would never put that tree up again in my house. When we took it down at season's end, I gave it away. So at the Festival of Trees last year, we almost bought a tree because there were several still waiting to be purchased. We decided against it since none of the trees available were really calling to us. But then this year rolled around, and we didn't have a tree...<br />
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So we donated money to Primary Children's Hospital, which got us a ticket to auction night at the Festival of Trees. EEEEEEeeeee! We got a babysitter and some fancy clothes so we could go hobnob with "the rich folk". I expected to be severely out matched money-wise, and we were in many respects, but that isn't what caught my attention about all the people there. What I noticed was the willing flow of happy greetings and kindness. Everyone there had arrived with GIVING in mind. You should have seen the Loooooooonnnnng line of people just waiting to get in there! So many people, and not one bit of trouble or discontent to be seen. As we stood in this long line, we talked to the nicest couple behind us. They were many years our senior, and they had great advice to give since they had purchased many Christmas trees this way. They buy one about every year and hand the "old" tree down to one of their seven kids each year. Doesn't that just sound like so much fun?!<br />
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If you don't know what the Festival of Trees is, I'll tell you. :) It's row after row after row--18 rows, in fact, with about 35 trees on each row--of large trees, all donated by kind people with grateful hearts for Primary Children's Hospital. Most trees are donated in honor of someone who died or overcame a life-threatening event. That's just the beginning. There are also rows and rows and rows of wreaths, quilts, small trees, decorations, playhouses, gingerbread houses, etc. The South Towne Expo Center is FILLED with this stuff, all donated and all available to be purchased. And everyone who runs this event is a volunteer. Which means every single penny spent goes to Primary Children's Hospital. Do you have any idea how many pennies that is? If this magnitude of giving doesn't put you in the Christmas spirit, I don't know what will. It is an awe-inspiring event to behold. And I was blessed enough to be there for it. On the open-house days (the four days following auction night) there is also a kids area and performers on stage. Again, everyone in these areas is a volunteer. People are amazing. (As a side note, I was telling Jason that when our pass into the auction night expires in a couple years, I want to go volunteer as an auctioneer. It would be fun to spend my days raising money for such a wonderful cause.)<br />
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So promptly at 5:00pm, the doors opened, and everyone started browsing the goods. The auction closed at three separate times, all half an hour apart. Jason and I rushed from tree to tree trying to find just the right one. We found about two dozen that we could have purchased and been happy with, but none of them felt right until we saw this:<br />
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Isn't it beautiful? It's called "The King Of Kings". I couldn't have put this tree together and made it look this amazing. When you looked at it, you could feel the reverence around it. Even kings came from far away to kneel at Jesus side. I wish I could post pictures of every little detail. There are at least seven different kinds of ribbon woven in and out of this spectacle. The crown on top is so symbolic, and I love the orange and red and gold all intermingled. It's so rich and warm. We had to have this tree. Unfortunately, this was in the last category to be auctioned off, which means we were taking a huge risk and passing up many wonderful trees. So what happens if we don't get this one? We go home with nothing. :( It was a risk to wait for this tree, but it was worth the wait.<br />
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There was also this tree, which also fell into the last group of trees to be auctioned:<br />
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This tree is angel themed and called "Reunited". I forgot to mention that everything around the tree also comes with the tree. I had entered the doors with it in mind that I would get a tree that came with toys for our adorable kiddos. This one was a perfect mix of beauty (for Jason and me) and toys (for the littles). So both of these trees were to be auctioned at the same time, and both of them were in the last round of auctions. I stood at the tree with the toys, and Jason stood at the other tree. The way the auction works, you put your bid on the bid list for the tree and then anyone who put down a bid, whether they are the highest bid when the auction ends or not, gets to write down one last bid on a piece of paper and hand it to the auctioneer. The person to write down the highest bid during that final blind auction wins. They pay whatever they wrote down on that final piece of paper, and the tree gets delivered to their home when the Festival of Trees is over.<br />
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"Reunited" had only two bids on it, mine and one other. The other bidder took a long time to show up, so Jason's auction at the other tree ended before mine even started. We had set a max price for "The King Of Kings". Jason went to write down the number we had discussed previously, and then thought better of it; our number was a round number, and he knew it was instinct to write down a round number. So he wrote down just a few dollars above our previously discussed round number. There was a whole group of people bidding on "The King of Kings", and as the bids were read, the price was climbing, but it hadn't reached our max bid yet. Someone else had written down our round number, so when Jason's bid was read, he had beaten out the other guy by a few dollars only. Jason won the tree! He was super excited, but he also felt bad about beating that guy so closely. He apologized, but the guy said it was fair and congratulated him. (As I said before, no one there was petty about anything.)<br />
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Jason called me to make sure I was still at "Reunited" and then headed my way. We waited for the other lady to arrive, and when she finally did, she just said she didn't want this tree anymore because she had won another tree. So I got "Reunited" for a super good price! That's right; we went home with TWO trees! :D :D :D<br />
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We also bid on a beautiful nativity, but we were out-bid in the blind auction. There were about eight people bidding on it, and one lady wanted to make sure she went home with it, so she tripled the price! Every penny goes to charity, so it's great that she's so willing to put her money on such a worthy prize. We did NOT write down triple the price, needless to say, and lost that auction.<br />
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At the lighting ceremony afterward, they had a very witty, young cancer patient give a brilliant speech before flipping the switch to light all the trees at once. (The lights had been on earlier, but all had been turned off just for this occasion.) Carmen Rasmusen sang a wonderful Christmas song also.<br />
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Afterward, Jason and I went out to dinner... at about 10pm. It was so nice to have a dinner together. We love dinners with the children, but dinners are just different when you don't have to cut up someone else's food and feed it to them. I didn't even have to beg Jason to eat anything on his plate. ;)<br />
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Yesterday the trees were delivered!<br />
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Jason was teaching Elder's Quorum. (He's in the presidency.) So I was home with the kids to receive the delivery truck. A whole mass of people poured into my house, all of them carrying something or other. They set up "The King of Kings" first. We had cleared out the entire toy room previously so we could put this tree in what used to be the toy room.<br />
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We wanted a set of doors between S and the tree since she wasn't very gentle with grandma and grandpa's tree while we were visiting their house. (Between S destroying the tree with cousin E and Seth flooding the basement, we may never be invited back, and I wouldn't blame them. But these are all stories for another day...) We've moved the toys into the storage under the stairs and behind the couch.<br />
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Some toys went into storage in the water heater closet, but these particular toys probably needed to go anyway. This means all the items stored underneath the stairs are now in Jason's office. Thanks for the sacrifice, Jason!<br />
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One man saw the kids crawling on me like ants and decided to help out. He held S the rest of the time he was here and played with her really sweetly. Kai got so excited he was running back and forth and wouldn't quit. I think he just didn't know what else to do with his excitement. It was hilarious. He bites his lip just so, and it's awesome.<br />
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We didn't show "Reunited" to the kids until Jason came home because we wanted to show them the toys under the tree together. They ran in and were so super excited. There were originally no toys for a child Kai's age, so we took out one older toy to make it even and added a couple of toys for Kai.<br />
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Seth got an electricity board and a microscope.<br />
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Kai got a gear set and simple transformers.<br />
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S got a cabbage patch doll that came with light up shoes and a Carebear that came with a short video.<br />
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It was like pre-Christmas around here! We spent the rest of the evening playing with each child individually, and it was the best day. I loved just wandering from child to child and making each one feel special.<br />
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Between Jason being in a Christmas musical, giving a lot of money to charity, reading all the miraculous stories at the Festival, getting Christ-centered trees, and having a date with my love, I like how this season is shaping up! I'm so grateful for Christmas.<br />
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More pictures of "Reunited":<br />
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More pictures of "King of Kings":<br />
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Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-34815426993235818342014-11-11T13:08:00.002-07:002014-11-11T13:08:45.868-07:00Everything breaks down.Everything breaks at some point. Everything. And that's okay. It's hard, and there's no way to see the light at the end of the tunnel most of the time. And that's okay. Recently, both of the cars broke down, my computer just shut off and never turned back on, my phone died slowly, our router went out. We just replaced a TV and had to work on a computer. ETC. I'm sure there's more. Everything broke down at once. And that's okay.<br />
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But it means I haven't posted in a long while. I feel like I've let down a connection, one I can't pinpoint and don't know personally, but one I want to know. Maybe there is no one out there reading this, but maybe there is. Maybe that person is the biological parent of my future son or daughter. That's my hope. I hope the connection has been made already. Maybe... Please tell me you're still reading if you're out there. I would hate for a broken computer to sever such an important connection.<br />
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So I don't have my pictures on this new computer, and I don't have any blogs written to post. I will do my best to get something up to date on this new computer so you can ACTUALLY know what's going on around here, though it's nothing too special: weeding, mowing, cleaning, organizing. Just the usual, which is how I like it. :)Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-61848798173469034792014-10-15T14:18:00.001-06:002014-10-17T14:51:48.542-06:00A very spiritual day<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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My sister is amazing. I have one sister, and I couldn't have hand-picked a better one. She is wonderful. Did I mention how much I love her? After my husband and kids, she's my favorite person in the whole world, and that's saying something since one of my sons is named after Jason's grandma and after a couple of uncles. (I've never had a little girl to name after my sister. Not yet anyway.) Well, this fantastic woman is serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints! There are many many things that need to happen to prepare missionaries before they head out, and I had the pleasure of being a part of some of her preparation. <br />
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We started at the Distribution Center, getting temple clothes and such for the exciting day when she will enter the temple. We went to Deseret Book next and got her a stellar CTR (choose the right) ring along with several other things that she needed. (What was your scripture pen called, sis? A dipsy-doodle??? Lol!) We then went to the Joseph Smith Building for lunch. That's where these pictures of my sister with the temple came from. It's a great view! (You can decide whether I mean the building or the girl!) <br />
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We then changed into dresses and got in the standby line for the Women's meeting. (I was going to type "the women's session of General Conference" but that wouldn't have been very accurate I guess.) And luckily, WE GOT IN!!!! :D<br />
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It was so wonderful to go sit in the presence of the leaders of the
church with my mother and sister and among thousands of others that share our same excitement for
their revelation for the church. These photos are of us in the tabernacle waiting to see if our lucky number comes up.<br />
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We had such a wonderful time together. At one point, my mom started crying. My sister laughed a little and linked arms with her... and then I started crying. Then we were all laughing. She linked arms with me also. Good thing we had a rock to lean on! There were all sorts of jokes about inside out oreos after that since we were the softies on either side of the hard cookie.<br />
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My husband always teases us by saying, "You can find an attractive woman behind every tree in Wyoming," because he just doesn't think there are that many trees. Well boy did we prove him wrong! We are some good looking ladies! (Of course, my mom is a transplant from Utah, but we still count it!)<br />
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My sis and mom had never been to Cheesecake Factory. (WHAT? Terrible, I know!) So I had to get them some cheesecake after the meeting. It was the first building we had entered all day that wasn't playing church music! If that isn't a wonderful day, I don't know what is. (Wait, wait, wait... we did briefly go in a store and purchase umbrellas because it was raining like CRAZY all day long.) Anyway, they approved of the cheesecake. ;)<br />
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We also got to perform a couple acts of kindness along the way, including inviting an old lady to come sit by us when she was alone and giving away an umbrella during the downpour. It was so nice to live Christ-like while adoring our Heavenly Father. I can't wait for the next few steps we must take to ready my fantastic sister for her mission and the memories we will make before she dedicates 18 months of her life to the people of England and to her God and Savior.Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-53966700212495560332014-10-13T21:01:00.000-06:002014-10-13T21:01:22.002-06:00Tooth Fairy!Seth lost his first toooooooooooth!!!!! Right before we pulled it, Seth said, "Mama, do you want one last picture of my baby tooth?" OF COURSE I wanted one last picture! So here it is:<br />
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<a name='more'></a>His "wiggly tooth," as he called it, is the bottom front tooth on his right (the left one in this picture). It started to hurt him when he ate, so we decided it was time to pull it. Seth asked me if it was going to hurt, and I assured him it wouldn't be too bad. We tied some floss around it, and Jason gave it a good tug. Apparently I had been wrong, because Seth kept telling everyone that it hurt way worse than I told him it was going to. Oops. Luckily we had a chocolate cupcake to distract him from the pain. ;)<br />
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Did you spot the cute hole in his smile? :D (And the chocolate cupcake on his face?) He told everyone we came across, including strangers.<br />
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The tooth fairy came and left him four quarters that night. She had an easy time of it because we bought this adorable car. The trunk has "tooth fairy" written across it and it's a pocket to hold the tooth. Seth picked it out. (Thank you Amazon.com!)<br />
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He's so tired and excited in this picture.<br />
<br />Cute Sethie was so excited. He'd tried to stay awake so he could meet the tooth fairy, but he just missed her it seems. Maybe next time. He has another loose tooth now and his new tooth is already coming in! He's getting old so fast. I'm torn as to whether this is okay with me or not. He's been a joy so far, and I will miss his baby stages, but he's so amazing now! How could I wish that away?Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-32966230416920870682014-10-13T20:43:00.000-06:002014-10-13T20:43:58.307-06:00Zoo with Uncle K and Aunt E!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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The Hogle Zoo just redid a large portion of their displays, and it's pretty awesome. So when my brother and his wife asked us to go to the zoo with them, we were really really excited. But mostly because I got to spend time with my brother and his wife. Yay! They live in another state so it seems like ages between visits, and it's compounded by how much their sweet baby girl grows every time I see her!</div>
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When the zoo remodeled, they brought back the LION FOUNTAINS!!!! :D :D :D Pictures with the lion fountain are tradition. I think I have pictures of ME at that age doing this exact same thing. </div>
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<a name='more'></a> There are so many cute pictures that I can't post because S is in them, but she looked away for this one. Aren't my boys adorable??? <br />
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The lions came and sat down right in front of us, which was really fun.<br />
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Uncle K and Aunt E were so very helpful during this whole trip. They toted around my kids and helped me lift them over and over so they could see all the animals. I couldn't have done it without them.<br />
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I don't know why, but every time Kai got interested in an animal, that animal would come sit right in front of him. It was amazing.<br />
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Elephants!<br />
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Yes, Uncle K had ALL the kids climbing on him. And he was so nice about it. Lol!<br />
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They were feeding the rhinos and it was neat to see how their personalities came out as they ate... a lot like humans. Haha! The kids kept laughing every time the rhinos got picky about the food.<br />
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Spot the rhino!<br />
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We were just in time for the bird show, and this huge owl almost nicked our heads as it flew over. Those birds were all so majestic. Just amazing. (On a side note, Aunt E and I went to college together my first two years, and we picked out animals that we thought we would be if our personalities were animals. We decided Aunt E would be a flying squirrel and I would be a hummingbird. I would totally be a hummingbird.)<br />
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This parrot was Seth's favorite because it was rainbow colored. :) That's my Seth.<br />
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Seth LOVED being with his youngest cousin. He really wants a dozen siblings. We won't be giving him a solid dozen, but we're doing our best to add more kiddos to our bunch!<br />
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Seth said this was his favorite animal in the entire zoo. I'm not sure why, but I had to get his picture anyway. <br />
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I'm telling you, ALL the animals came to the glass when Kai was around. Crazy...<br />
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No really all of them. See the monkey behind Seth?<br />
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Here it comes when Kai walks up!!<br />
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These pictures are also tradition. Measuring yourself against a gorilla = Priceless.<br />
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There is a little area to dip your toes and it was certainly refreshing.<br />
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This bear walked right toward the glass, which was pretty cool. Unfortunately, he turned right at the end and headed away from us. Ah well. <br />
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This splash of water was also really refreshing. This was the last thing we did before we left the park. Look how cute those cousins are together!<br />
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It was such a great day. Thank you, Uncle K and Aunt E, for inviting us and helping me create wonderful memories for our kids. This was seriously a great day.Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-82593420637094994562014-09-28T23:02:00.001-06:002014-09-28T23:02:20.644-06:00Spending timeWe've filled our time with some fun things lately. The bigger things get their own post, but here are a few of the day-to-day things that we've enjoyed.<br />
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City Creek. Love this mall. Wish we lived closer to it. These monkeys wouldn't stop pulling faces, and the more I laughed, the more faces they pulled! <br />
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Jason holds a monthly game night with several other guys. I don't mean a video game night; I mean a board game night. As I was growing up, I always said I was going to marry a nerd, and I DID! :D I'll let him give you more details about it in another post, because it really is cool enough to deserve its own post, but I thought I'd give you at least one photo here. <br />
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As the kids were playing in the backyard, Kai climbed in with S because he saw leg holes facing both directions. They were then stuck. It was kind of hilarious. Sorry about the weird star cropping of S's face, but I had to post pictures, and I didn't have any without her face in them. <br />
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I love my day-to-day life. It isn't easy, but it's amazing. Most amazing things aren't easy. I'm grateful for my boys. There aren't words to express how I feel about them. I love them so much. They are my everything, and not just because they fill as much time as possible. They amaze me and move me every day. And I've definitely fallen in love with S. If we don't adopt her in the end, it's going to be hard on all of us. That isn't to say that giving her back to her bio parents would diminish the time we have together. Because I'm grateful that we've gotten to lend a hand and make her life better. I'm so glad I've known her, whether that be for a short while or for an eternity.Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-31112507459068984262014-09-28T21:58:00.000-06:002014-09-28T21:58:50.784-06:00School time!Time for school! My kids are uber amazing at this school thing, and they love doing it. We have fun reading and writing together. They both have their subjects that they aren't a big fan of, but we can work through those. And when they master the hard parts, it's so fun. Their little faces light up and they are always so happy they can't contain it. It comes out as a squeal, or jumping, or a booty-shaking dance. I LOVE IT.<br />
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So this was Seth's first assignment as a kindergartener. He colored the flag at school, and we were told to practice the Pledge of Allegiance with him at home. Gladly! <br />
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Unfortunately, one of the assignments he brought home just after that was a book with this mistake in it.<br />
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It was difficult to explain to him that the book was wrong. Books had never been wrong before! Lol! As he was reading this, he really paused when he got to the mistake. It threw him a little.<br />
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Another assignment was this:<br />
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All Seth had to go on was this little, orange crayon, and he drew Sandman from Rise of the Guardians. I think this is an AMAZING mimic for a 5 year old!<br />
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Here are my boys all ready for school. Aren't they handsome? (And yes, those ARE Harry Potter shirts! Thanks for asking! I'm pretty proud of them. S has a matching one with pink on it.)<br />
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<br />Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6670722826995449003.post-45754447366686952802014-09-21T20:18:00.001-06:002014-09-21T20:18:24.297-06:00Kai and I at the Ogden Temple Open House!<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Kai and I got to have a day just for the two of us! It was so nice. And the funniest thing was the difference in conversation between when I went with Seth and when I went with Kai. Kai's conversation was very sporadic. He kept asking questions I
couldn't answer, such as, "Where do you stand in Salt Lake City?" "Which
building is the Salt Lake City building?" etc. He even interrupted
himself several times with a completely different thought. It's obvious
that he is soaking in his world right now. He notices everything and has
a question for everything.<br />
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<a name='more'></a>Being in the temple with Kai was amazing.We were standing behind a couple who didn't know a lot about temples. I could see them listening intently as I explained things to Kai and answered his questions (when they made sense...) I talked to them a couple of times throughout the temple tour, but I wish I could have been a better resource for them. I didn't want to just say, "Hey, looks like this is a little out of your knowledge box. Can I help?" But maybe I should have. I never know whether that would be appreciated or not.<br />
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We went to lunch afterward, and I let him choose anyplace he wanted. He wanted Buffalo Wild Wings. Lol! Funny kid. I'd expected him to choose somewhere with a play place, but I wasn't going to argue with him when I love BW3's food so much! We discussed rugby and the extreme sports channel. It was fun to see what he cared about, because it definitely wasn't basketball.<br />
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The picture below is one of my favorites. We were in the picture/info tent after the temple tour, and Kai didn't care about the pictures at all. But this statue really caught his eye. He really studied it. I think he recognized it from when we've gone to temple square in Salt Lake City. He had a few questions about it, like he does about everything, and it was nice to be able to sit there and feel the spirit with Kai for a second.<br />
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As a side note, the funny part about this picture was trying to take a decent one. Kai kept grabbing the front of his pants, so I told him to put his hands straight down at his sides. He obviously did, but then he wouldn't smile. Silly kid. :)Ashleyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16558367249173178814noreply@blogger.com0