Wouldn't change a thing

Life is nothing short of CRAZY...but I wouldn't have it any other way.   I went out with friends last night and we were talking about some of the crazy fun things that have happened in our lives.   I do not know if I have ever laughed so hard in my life......Just some of my craziness.....Don't ever let your Mom help you with a T. P.  job unless she is a pro.....Back in the day we were TP'ing the Chapman's ( Mark and Telford's ) my mom of course was our get away driver.....because when you are in the 9th grade you still have to have a "get away driver".   We wanted to put shredded paper all over the lawn but she insisted we just crumble it..... well that would have been ok, unless of course you are using the "church news" which has a sticker on the front of who's name it is...clearly a bad idea !!!!!   I on the other hand , became a real PRO with my kids , thanks to Becky Webb who showed me the art of TP' ing years ago.   Don't go doorbell ditching at 2 am unless you know for a fact you will not get caught.....telling the neighbor you were just wanting to borrow a cup of sugar at 2 am sends up all kinds of red flags!!!   Don't steal street signs of boys you like.....or at least if you do make sure they are not in your car when you get pulled over...hard to explain your way out , but it can be done!!!  Make sure when you grab your husbands hand and start to run.....that you have a hold of your husband and not some random guy that apparently doesn't mind running with a strange chic.....my bad!!!  When you decide to play an All Time Great April Fools day joke on your boss.....( That his building is being seized for back taxes ) ....... let him in on the joke BEFORE he gets so sick..that he gets the "runs"  haha....so funny!!!! he might have even cried!!! sorry Justin !   Do though ,  have the time of your life and laugh often.  Michael Pritchard said " You don't stop laughing because you grow old. You grow old because you stop laughing "....( I guess I will never grow old )  My life gets crazy at times , but I would not change my crazy for any one's boring.....if I did ,  how could I possibly have ever had such a WONDERFUL LIFE!

Friends...It's the connection that counts

I went to dinner the other night with Shirley ,  one of my greatest friends ever. She is one of the Allen's from Lehi...(I Love, Love her family. People don't get much better than the Allen's!!)  We went to PF Changs...or so we thought! We are just chatting away , we walk in and are seated. Still just talking and talking (because that's what girls do best) she said "thats weird....they have spinach artichoke dip...should we get that?" Of course we should !...We ordered our drinks...and just continue to talk away. Every once in a while we would look at the menu and then get side tracked and start talking again. Eventually she said do you know what you are going to order? I start to look at the menu again ...hmmm this is weird I'm thinking...pizza ..pasta..I said "where are we?" We both turn to the front of our menus and realize we are not in Changs!!! we laughed so hard we cried! I went and told the bar tender, we were in the wrong place and to please tell the girl we were not staying. we grab our bags and got the heck out of there....I thought we were going to pee our pants we were laughing so hard. I felt like we were doing a dine and dash...except for the dine part! We walk across the parking lot and go to PF Changs, how did we not know we were in the wrong place...how did we miss the humongous, over-sized ,ginormous, mammoth  horse! I say its not because we were talking..because that comes naturally for most of us girls, but rather the fact that when you are with friends nothing else around matters. Friends are people you share your life with..the ups the downs and everything that comes in between. They don't judge you, they accept you for who you are..where you have been , and where you are going. I learned from a friend recently that we often are worried more about perfection...than connection. What good is perfection...if we never make a connection with someone? If we are always trying to put up a front so we don't let anyone really know who we are,  how would they possibly connect with us? If we don't ask questions how can we possible learn who someone is? This is what makes "real" friends one of the greatest gifts in life, they let you know who they are, where they have been and where they are headed,  and they never expect perfection from you. I have been blessed in my life to have some of the greatest friends ever. I am so grateful to have friends that when you talk , you pick up right where you left off the last time you saw them, and you never have to worry about perfection. I am grateful to have friends that are so fun to talk to and spend time with....that when you are with them you never really know what is going on around you! I love that I have been blessed with such a WONDERFUL LIFE!!!

Mom's...gotta love em'

Had a Girls Spa Day with my mom...Mani's, Pedi's, Massage, and....of course had to get the eyebrows done...When they asked who wanted their brows waxed before I said anything, the girl said 1...or both? I said just one (meaning my mom) my mom looked at me with a puzzled look and said to the girl..."NO I want 2"...she then turned to me and said "I don't just want one brow done , I would like them both done!" OH MY HECK...old people are just like little kids..did she really just think they would wax one brow and send you out in the world like that!!!LOL ...I love her! I am so thankful to have had good parents, I wish my dad was still here, I would love to see what he would have been like as he got older. One of the greatest gifts a dad can give to his children is to show them he loved their mother. I am thankful that my dad loved my mom, and that she loved him. I am grateful that I know I will see him again someday , and that Families can be together again. I truly do have a WONDERFUL LIFE!!!!

White shirts and Ties...Fathers and sons...love it!

I love love girls night out...but my favorite are the ones we do the night the men have Priesthood. This year was kind of different because Breck wasn't  here..so bitter sweet were my thoughts. There is nothing more humbling than seeing all the dads out with their son's. That is what makes this girls night one of the best. I love that we see this twice a year. This year we were in Gilbert, instead of Queen Creek...most of the girls were from Gilbert, so they won! and Red Robin it was. So fun to have good friends to laugh with and share life with. I am grateful we have the gospel that brings us together. I am in awe to simply see these men who chose to go and listen to our Prophet. I have often wondered if they ever know how much it means to the women, that they go. This year is different in so many ways, all of the kids are in Utah spending time with their dad. I had no white shirts to iron, no suits to pick up from the cleaners..no collars to straighten...no white shirts or ties. I am grateful though for all the years that I did get to iron the shirts, and straighten the ties, because those moments truly were part of my WONDERFUL LIFE. 

The luckiest girl ever....

I feel so blessed in my life to have what I have...I am so grateful for my 3 precious kids! I don't know what I would do if at the end of the day, I didn't have them. I am more than blessed to work for the man I do..often I wonder what did I do to deserve such a great guy in my life. I would not have made it through this past year with out him...I tell him all the time he is stuck with me for life!! It humbles me to see what the Lord has blessed me with ..great friends and a great family..and people who came in to my life , just when I need them. I was thinking the other day how easy it is to choose to see the good in your life.  To recognize the Lords hand in all things can give you  strength beyond what you can ever imagine. As difficult as this trial is ..there are so many good things to see from it. We had a long life together..we have a ton of good.. fun..crazy.. unforgettable memories. I know that Heavenly Father has a plan... a plan that will someday make me smile, it's just getting there that is so tough. Sometimes I guess we have to go through these trials to learn and grow. I am so grateful that as i trust in the Lord that i find strength to do what I need to do, and I am grateful for my kids that bless each day of my life, it because of them that I can say to my self....You really do...have a WONDERFUL LIFE .

To Move Forward

I never in my life thought I would be at the crossroad I am today. I feel like 22 years of my life is just gone in a second. It feels like a fire swept though your house and when you go back to see the damage there is nothing!  I feel like on the outside looking in and there is nothing left, but the ashes of what once was. At the end of the day I look back and think of all the things I wish I would have done differently. I wish I could take all the heartache out of this. I remember when my dad died and the sense of lonliness I felt. When my dad died I knew I would see him again. This is the end of something that was supposed to go on forever, Its an overwhelming feeling sadness. I feel like we failed in what we promised we would do, and that was to keep a family together forever.  I feel like he gave up on us, he gave up on something that should have been forever. While this has nothing to do with the kids, there are part of who we are. And when he left , he didnt just leave me...he left the kids. He has left us over and over , each time it is harder to get through than the time before. I know I need to be strong for the kids, but this time I just want to give up. There is no fight left. It hurts more than anything in the worl to see your kids hurt , especially for the selfishness of their parents. I pray the lord will strengthen us as we move forward , that we can forgive him and allow him to have his agency that the Lord has blessed each one of us with. I am grateful for the atonement, for our agency to choose, and for the tender mercies of the Lord that we may find joy in this WONDERFUL LIFE .  

Batter Up!!!!

Today has caused me to really think about where I am going .  I am so truly blessed to have people in my life that help me and encourage me on my way .  I pray that I may be able to do the same for others .  What is my " blueprint " ?  Is the foundation strong and secure ?  What do I need to do to anchor myself ,  make sure I am strong , secure , and moving forward ?  If we are not moving forward will not achieve the things we want .  Whether  it be spiritual , emotional , financial , physical we must move forward . I believe that when we are what the world says " in the right place at the right time " ,  we are really just showing up on time to receive the blessings that were intended for us .  I believe God wants us to come to him with a plan , a plan that has a foundation , strong walls and roof for protection . He wants to know of our desires big and small . He is waiting for us to lay the blueprint out , to let him know of our intentions and then to take action . I believe that as we ask with humble hearts , and gratitude for the blessings we have been given , he will bless us more than we can possibly imagine .  If we live and make decisions where we want to be ,  rather than where we are at , doors will open , blessings will be manifested , and gratitude will be present .  A baseball player steps up to the plate , swings ,  hits a home run , get on base , or strikes out and goes back to the bench .  Either way , the player steps back up to the plate again and again throughout  his career ,  he does not give up. This is what makes life so wonderful... we can come to the plate again and again , if we strike out , we have not failed .  We simply must redirect ourselves and swing again .  Hank Aaron went 0 for 5 his first time at bat with the Milwaukee Braves. And we all know Babe Ruth is famous for his home run record, but for a long time he held the record for the most strike outs. He hit 714 home runs ,  but he had 1330 strike outs in his career, by which he said " every strike brings me closer to the next home run" . So the key is to not focus on our strikeouts but rather on the next home run. Playing in this game called life , we can strike out , and come back to the plate to get that home run and be grateful to live , this WONDERFUL LIFE !