Merry Christmas

Christmas was full of festivities and it started on the 23rd.

December 23rd
This day has now become a tradition on my side of the family. As the family grows my Grandma has changed our traditonal Christmas Eve party to this day so that way she can see us and visit. Of course we had Mexican, eveyones fav and the white elephant gift exchange.

December 24th
This day was spent with Matt's side of the family. We had our traditional Favorite Things dinner. This year I brought Bruchetta, Matt brought breakfast burritos from Los Favoritos, and Scott brought a bowl of fresh cut broccoli, yes broccoli! I know my kid is weird. haha We had a LOT of food but it was fun. This year we spent the night at Matt's oldest brother's house, which was fun to wake up and watch the kids open their presents.

Our Potluck Christmas Eve dinner. Look at all that food!

Scott opening his Christmas pjs.

December 25th

Ah Christmas morning we woke up with the kids coming into our bedroom asking if were awake so that they could open presents. haha Silly kids, I had to shoo them away a few times b/c it waay too early! Once my nieces and nephews opened their presents Matt and I headed to my parents home to visit and so that Scott could open his presents from them. Legos, he got lots of Lego from both sets of grandparents and a big bucket from us. He loves them and no I don't step on them he puts them away. What?! A 6 year old that puts his legos away, actually he likes to spread them all over the loft, so they are no in my way. After that we came to our own house because we had some presents that we wanted to open on our own and a few BIG ones for Scott.

Scott opening his presents!

My pretty awesome gifts from the hubby.

Once we finished opening presents, we headed back to my BIL's house and had our traditional Gingerbread house contest, err . . competition. We paired up, Matt and I were a team and had a great idea. At least one adult and a kid were a team except us. It was a lot of fun. There was one rule and that was we could have ONE secret item. Did we follow that rule, NOPE, none of us did, we all "cheated", hahaha. We had a log cabin, that was ours, to the White House. After that they were judged and categorized. All in all it was fun day, which concluded with dinner.

This is what we had to work with that was communal.

Happy Birthday to US!

As many of you know Matt and I are a year apart and our birthdays are 2 days, with Matt's being on the 18th and mine on the 20th. We have always celebrated our birthdays together. This year was no different. On Saturday it was Matt's birthday and he turned the BIG 30! I can't believe it!

 

So for his birthday I made him some yummy peanut butter bon bon or peanut butter buckeyes as some might call them. He LOVED them! You know why? Peanut Butter and Chocolate is his FAVORITE combination. Later that night we went to an ugly Christmas sweater party that one of Matt's co-worker had and they bought him a little cake and we all sang happy birthday to him. It was a lot of fun!

Then Sunday was our birthday dinner. The menu was pot roast and a yummy oriental cabbage salad, and for dessert angel cake with a stick frosting. We each had our own cake with our ages on them. After we were sung too it was race to see who could blow our their candles the fastest. I think that I won, but he says differently. haha I did end up getting a little frosting in my hair.

Monday was my birthday. Yep I am 29, next year I will have a big party. The day started out good when I got a text from Matt telling me happy birthday and my desk at work was decorated. :) Gotta love the co-workers. Earlier in the month they had a potluck for me and my supervisor for our birthdays. When I got home I saw a white bag on the table didn't think much of it until I went to clear off the table and Matt was like the box is right in front me. What? He bought me a pretty Pandora charm bracelet with a cupcake charm for my bday. Super cute and thoughtful, b/c I was not expecting anything at all. :) (good job honey.) Then Matt and Scott took me out for dinner. We went to Village Inn because we wanted breakfast for dinner and it was really good!

That pretty sums up our birthday weekend celebration.

My awesome Pandora charm bracelet!!

Thanksgiving

This year for Thanksgiving we spent it with my mom's side of the family. We went down to my aunt's house in Tucson and had an untraditional thanksgiving meal. It was a combination of Mexican and traditional (turkey, mashed potatoes). It was a lot of fun to talk to my Tias and my cousins. Since being down there my aunt Maggie has enlisted me to help her redecorate her living room. Yea!! I'm so excited. Scott and I will back in Tucson during Spring Break, but for now here are a few pictures that I took.

Halloween

We had 3 days of Halloween festivities this year. First we attended our ward Fall Festival. It was a lot of fun to play the games and see who dressed up as what.

Scott ready to go!

Moving Day!

Yes it true! It finally happened. We moved out Matt's parents house and into our own place again!! YEA!!!! As I mentioned in an earlier post we are renting a house from a friend of ours and we couldn't be happier. This house is perfect for us with some room to grow into.

Moving is a hard work but so worth it. We didn't move too far from where we were before. In fact it is pretty much down the street. We are still in the same ward and Scott is still in the same school.

Here are some before pictures of the house before we moved in.

The front room (living/family room)

Baptisms

Today was a long day, but an exciting one! Today both my niece, Natalie and little brother Danny were baptized!! Can it be that it's been 8 years!?! I'm so proud of both of them for making the choice to be baptized and confirmed members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

You're problably thinking, how did I attend 2 baptisms at once. Well Natalie's was in the morning, 11 am, and Danny's was in the afternoon, 3pm. They were at the same time at one point but Natalie's was bumped up. Whew! That would have been a big dilemma as to which one we were going to attend, I almost didn't want to go to either. But it all worked out.

Me and Natalie!

Me and Danny!

Old Friends

This weekend I have been meeting up with old friends and it has been fun. It started on Friday night when I went to the Moutain View 10 year reunion. I can't believe that it has been 10 years since I graduated high school. Although I didn't graduate from there I did attend my Sophmore and Junior years and was invited to come to the family event at Falcon Field Park. It was great to catch up and see where people have ended up after 10 years. I even took my camera and failed to take pictures, silly me.

Then on Saturday I met up with another old friend from Cali who now lives here. It was fun to have lunch with her and her kids and just catch up. It was nice to feel like we just picked up from the last time we saw each other, which it has been at least 11 years. Crazy I know! (again took my camera but didn't take pictures)

It is so fun to catch up with people that you haven't seen in awhile and get to know each other as adults and not as crazy teenagers. It's amazing what a few years of growing up can do to a person.

Thanks to everyone I saw and talked with it was a lot of fun!

So Blessed

I just wanted to take a moment to express how thankful I am for the many blessings we have received these last few weeks.


First off I want say that Matt is finally employed with a great company, Karl Storz Endoscopy. He is just ending his third week with them and is really enjoying it. They sent him to Boston at the end of July for some intense and extensive training on their products. We are very grateful to his friend that was able to get him in front of someone and Matt did his part in charming them, not a hard thing to do for him. This job has really good benefits which is also another blessing, although my job has great benefits too, it's nice to be completely covered. The pay is good, it has replaced his previous earnings from Pulte. I'm just glad that Matt has found something that he likes. :)

Since we are now back to where we were in our income we have been blessed again by being able to find a place to call our own again. One of our friends owns a house just down the street from Matt's parents and was looking for new renters b/c her current one has given their 30 days. So when I saw that the house would be available soon we quickly jumped on the opportunity and have worked out a deal and we will be moving in at the beginning of Oct! This is perfect because we will not have to change wards or school for Scott. Although my mother-in-law will be sad when we leave b/c she has enjoyed having us in her house. But it's time for us to be on our own again. We will be forever grateful for Matt's parent's generosity in letting us invade their space for the last year.

I know that all of this was not possible had it not been for us in doing what we are supposed to be doing. We have been paying our tithing, being diligent in our ward callings and trying to live a good faithful life. We truly have been blessed. :)

7th Anniversary

On Saturday night Matt and I had a date night to celebrate our 7 year anniversary, which was monday the 2nd. I can't believe that we have been married for that long! Anyway, so to start out our night we went to Benihana, for those of you who don't know it's a Japanese cuisine restuarant. They make your food at your table. We had a fun chef who was constantly cracking jokes as he was making our dinner.

 

This was part of our dinner before it was cooked.

The veggies that come with all the meals.

 

Matt had lobster and filet mignon. That's the lobster just after it was cooked.

I had shrimp and teriyaki beef. Very tasty!!

When we had arrived to put our name down for a table they asked us if we were celebrating anything and we said our anniversary. So after our meal the took our picture.


After dinner we headed over to the movie theater to catch the latest movie that everyone has been raving about, Inception.

This was an AWESOME movie! Great concept and fantastic effects! Unfortunately Matt didn't watch it straight through. He was soo tired from his trip from Boston that he was tuckered out and fell asleep!

Ode to the Elephant

About a week ago I came home from work and Scott runs down the stairs and with saddness in his says, "mommy I lost my elephant."

I looked at him in shock and said, "You lost him? Where?"

My mother-n-law was in the kitchen and she said that it was true. They were at Walmart doing a little shopping and he must've left him on a shelf. Matt and Scott went back to the aisle that Scott was in and it was gone! They even went back again. I even took Scott back that evening to see if someone had found him. I even called the next day in vain hoping that an employee had found him. But to our dismay he was never found. Such a sad day. That elephant was his beloved stuffed animal, just like a blanket is to some kids that is what his elephant was to him.

Please a moment of silence as we mourn the loss of a family member.

Here is a slideshow to remember our beloved elephant. (if you look closely in the pictures elephant isn't too far.)

Girls Night: Eclipse

On Tues night, me and my friends had the opportunity to see Eclipse!

Karen had connections, so we were able to view it at 7 pm and not at midnight! I was so excited when she called me because I thought that I would have to forgo see this movie on opening night, but being able to watch it early and not have to wait in line with a bunch of screaming teenage girls was AWESOME! We walked right into our theater found our seats and waited for about 30 mins before the movie was to start.

Here we are waiting excitely for the movie to beginning!

Happy Father's Day

I just wanted to pay a small tribute to one of the best dad's, and that would be my husband, Matt. He is such a great dad to Scott. They always have so much fun togther. Of course Matt likes to pick on Scott, but isn't what dad's are supposed to do? ;) Scott just adores him and loves to hang out with his dad. We love him and appreciate everything that he does for our family. So Happy Father's Day Matt!

Oh, I almost forgot the gifts. Scott gave him a package of Oreo cookies, which he picked out all on his own, and I gave him a gift card to Massage Envy and his favorite candy of all time, Reese's.

Scott's Birthday Party

Today we had Scott's birthday party at Peter Piper Pizza, same as last year just at a different location. We invited old friends and some new friends. Of course the grandparents were invited. It was great to hang out and chat with everyone. The kids had a Blast! Scott made out like a bandit with the gifts! Thanks to everyone who came out, and it made it a special day for Scott. Enjoy the picture slideshow.

Happy 6th Birthday Scott!

6 years ago today I become a mother. I can't believe that it's been 6 years since Scott came into our family!! I can remember when he was still a baby, it only seems like yesterday. But now he is a little boy finishing up his first year of school. He is a smart and funny kid and shows his stubborn side more than I would like him to. :) We are glad that he is ours forever and wish him the best in life.

The Gila Valley Temple

Today Matt and I took advantage of the Gila Valley Temple open house and took Scott. It was such a neat experience to share it with Scott. It was his first time in a temple and he was fascinated with it. It is such a beatiful temple, and small. I was not expecting it to be as small as it was. This was my 3rd time going to a temple open house and it was also my 3rd time attending a temple dedication.

The session that Matt and I attended was wonderful. We got to hear Pres. Eyring and Pres. Monson speak. I didn't know that Pres. Eyring had roots from the Gila Valley, so to him it a very special event to say the least.

I love what the temple offers and that I'm glad that we made the decision to get married in one so that we can be an eternal family.

Mother's Day

Mother's day this year was very good to me. :)

My mother in law gave me a gift certificate to a nail salon, the same one that matt got me a gift certificate for on Valentine's Day, which I still haven't used.

Saturday - Matt took us out to dinner as a family. I got to pick of course, and I choose Applebee's because I really wanted their Maple Blondie Brownie. yum! (sorry no pictures, forgot the camera)

Sunday - Matt made dinner. Again I got to choose what to eat. The menu was Filet Mingon, ranch flavored mashed potatoes and sauteed asparagus. I received a pretty bouquet of flowers, which Scott picked out.

Matt plating dinner.

Dinner, yummy!!

Dessert, my favorite, cheesecake!!

A little slideshow of my bouquet. ( I was playing w/ my camera again)

Meatballs!!!

Okay so today Matt requested my meatball sandwiches for dinner. According to Matt, my father-in-law, Meesa and Trev they are the BEST meatballs they’ve ever had! I’ll have to admit that they are pretty tasty. All I really did was take a standard meatball recipe and add my own things to it make it taste better. So I thought, why not share the tasty goodness with my fellow bloggers! So here’s to your enjoyment my meatball recipe. Bon Appetite!

Meatballs

1 lb lean ground beef
1 lb lean ground turkey
1 egg
1/2 Italian flavored breadcrumbs
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 c parmesan cheese
1 jar of spaghetti sauce

• preheat oven to 350 degrees
• in large or medium mixing bowl combine the turkey, beef, eggs, breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese. mix thoroughly and then shape into 1 1/2 in diameter meatballs.
• arrange meatballs on baking sheet (i use pam so that they don't stick so much) and place in oven for about 10-12 mins, then turn until repeat until all sides are brown.
• in large saucepan add spaghetti sauce on low to simmer.
• as you cook each batch of meatballs place them in the simmering sauce

These make awesome sandwiches!!! I like to use provolone cheese b/c it melts but doesn't get stringy like mozarella does. I use a Hogie bun, which holds at least 4 meatballs. Place your cheese ontop of the meatballs and then stick in the broiler until the bun is toasty and the cheese slightly melted. Now you are ready to enjoy the BEST meatball sandwich EVER!!!

Retraction

This is a retraction post to the one about Matt's new real job (click here to read).

After much talk, prayer and attending the temple, we have come to a decision that I will not quit my job and we will not be moving to the Lake Havasu area, for now. I will continue to work at Wells Fargo, :( so that we can save up enough money to be better prepared for a move if that is what we need to do. This decision feels right and we are grateful for the promptings of the Spirit and the ability to counsel with the Lord on such an important matter in our lives.

The thought of working does sadden me but it's not the right time for me to quit. Matt will continue to commute each week and we do miss him when he is gone, but we are very thankful for modern technology that allows to communicate via webcam and Skype.

What thought interesting as I was visiting teaching this month that the message was about Seeking and Receiving Personal Revelation. I want to share with you a couple quotes that I loved that pertained to what we needed to do, which we did.

“Prayer is your personal key to heaven. The lock is on your side of the veil. But that is not all. To one who thought that revelation would flow without effort, the Lord said: ‘You have not understood; you have supposed that I would give it unto you, when you took no thought save it was to ask me. But, behold, I say unto you, that you must study it out in your mind; then you must ask me if it be right, and if it is right I will cause that your bosom shall burn within you; therefore, you shall feel that it is right.’”

President Boyd K. Packer, President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles



“The temple is a house of learning. Much of the instruction imparted in the temple is symbolic and learned by the Spirit. This means we are taught from on high. … Our understanding of the meaning of the ordinances and covenants will increase as we return to the temple often with the attitude of learning and contemplating the eternal truths taught. … Let us enjoy the spiritual strength and the revelation we receive as we attend the temple regularly.”

Silvia H. Allred, first counselor in the Relief Society general presidency

Garden update

I can't believe that it's only been a few days since I last posted about the garden. Things are now starting to grow!! Check it out!