A Memorable Memorial Day

Monday was a blast! We woke up early (6:30 early!)... which is insane as it is on a holiday... to head over to Gilbert and meet up with my family to go jet-skiing at Roosevelt Lake (near Globe). It's a bit of a drive, but there's usually less people out there so we have more room to have crazy fun. We went with my parents, my sister Lisa, her husband TJ, TJ's brother Jake, and the Owen's. It was actually really windy out there, so the water was pretty choppy and the water was pretty cold (considering the rain we had last week), but it was still a lot of fun. The water was really high so we spent a little time just trying to find some shoreline to set up our base camp, but once we found a small area we were off! We were there for several hours just lounging in the sun, playing cards, eating lunch, and of course jet skiing. Richard even brought his float plane (he builds model airplanes) and flew it over the lake. Thanks for a great day dad!

Grandma and Amy hanging out on the shore.

Lindsey, Richard, and Mike oiling up.

Mike and Richard, and Lisa and TJ on the jet skis

Mike and Richard after a windy, cold trip

Amy doing what Amy does best... eating

Richard, Mike, Dad, Lisa, TJ, and Jake switching turns

Amy loved sitting on the jet ski, even it it wasn't moving (we didn't have a life vest for her so she couldn't ride this time, much to Mike's dismal and despite Mike's begging)

Naptime with Aunt Lisa

Once Amy got used to the water, she had a blast swimming, although the waves made it a little difficult to stay standing up without help.

A Lot of Pomp Considering the Circumstance

So my little sister, Summer, graduated from high school last week and it was... an adventure. Mike got off work early so we could head to Gilbert and have dinner (yum, yum... Gecko Grill) with the family before Summer had to run off. It poured rain on us the entire time over to Gilbert and since the graduation is typically on the high school football field, the school had announced that if it was going to be raining that the seniors would go into the auditorium and all the family and friends would watch on monitors in the cafeteria area (the auditorium is only big enough for the seniors). After countless angry parents and defiant seniors who swore they would sit on the football field, rain or shine, the school caved in and we went to the football field in the pouring rain. And it rained... and rained... and rained even harder. It wouldn't have been nearly as bad if they would have cut out their speakers... like the 5 saludatorians... or if the valedictorian hadn't used the words "just give me 4 minutes" after we were all soaking and freezing (I've never seen a valedictorian get boo'ed before). But they did the ENTIRE program, despite the chants of "read the names" from the crowd and the senior class throwing around beach balls and releasing live mice, and Summer is now a high school graduate! She's heading off to BYU-Idaho in the fall (if anyone knows of any available jobs up in Idaho, let me know! She's looking for one!). We're so proud of her and all she did this year! Congrats Summer!

Do we look like we're having fun yet? Yes, that is a trash bag on my mom's head. One guy showed up with a whole roll and was passing them out. They actually were quite nice to have!

All the umbrellas! I've never seen parents allowed on the field during graduation before, but it seemed like there was constantly someone walking out to the graduates to give them an umbrella or poncho or something.

The sisters (plus Amy and minus Calli who is in Missouri and was sad she couldn't be here. We missed you Calli!)

I'm So Glad When Daddy Comes Home!

Amy loves her Daddy. He had to work until 7:30 tonight (that's 11 1/2 hours of work in one day! yuck!) and she was excited to have him come home and watch Disney Sing-Along Songs with her before she went to bed. Definitely two peas in a pod!

Can I Open My Presents NOW?

This is a little belated, but I had the best Mother's Day! Mike spoils me rotten on holidays, not even really talking about the gifts but more the thought and attention and actions. To start off with, he decided he wanted to cook me Mother's Day dinner, but we were going over to my mom's house so I could cook her dinner. Does this deter him? Of course not - he makes me dinner the night before. Yum, yum... pepper steak. One of my favorites! To top it all off, he had spent the whole day cleaning the house and watching Amy while I had been in Mesa for a baby shower and to get dinner stuff for the next day at my mom's house. So now I have good food and a clean house. Pretty perfect right. Yes, but he topped it all by making delicious fondue (symphony bar, milk, chopped peanuts, marshmallow cream, and toffee, with bananas, strawberries, and apples!). Oh, and he got me this beautiful bouquet of roses too! What a great guy!

The next morning he made me a delicious omelet and gave in when I begged for my gifts (he wanted me to wait until the evening when we got home from my parent's house, but it was my day, so I won). He got me the Taylor Swift CD (I love her!) and Amy gave me a mommy book called "I love my mom because...", along with a card from Mike and a card from Amy (with her yellow-painted hand print on the inside). We went to my mom's house after church and had pizza and salad (yes, that's what she picked) and played games with my family and went to visit my grandparents! All and all, it was a pretty spectacular day! Thank you Mike for all you do!

Mother Dear I Love You So

Since Mother's Day is tomorrow, I'd like to take a minute and write this tribute to my mom. I'm really not even sure where to begin. My whole life my mom has been a rock in our family. She has always been the best example to me. When I was little I thought my mom could do everything. Now that I'm older I learned that it was true. She cooks, sews, cleans, gardens, does hair, and does every crafty thing under the sun. I admit, it's a little intimidating at times, but I've just come to realize that no one can be as great as her, so I'm not the only one!

My mom has always supported me in all of my decisions. I wanted to play sports in high school, she was at every game. I wanted to play the violin, she did her best to stay awake. I wanted to go to college, she paid my tuition. This last one is especially dear to my heart, because not only did she give me the opportunity to go but she was my greatest cheerleader when it came to finishing it. She knew how important it was to me to get my degree, so she stood beside me the entire way.

My mom is also the best grandma to my little Amy. When I was in school, Amy stayed with Grandma from sun up to sun down twice a week, and then she pretended to enjoy it! Whenever we get in the car and Amy gets a little fussy, I just tell her we're going to see Grandma and she starts looking out the windows going "mamma, mamma". I hope Amy grows up knowing what a special woman her Grandma is.

The most important thing my mom has done for me in my life is to show me her testimony of the Savior. We're big criers in our family, so we don't get up real often to share it, but she shared it in our home, and through her actions. Every room in our home, and almost every wall, depicted some aspect of the gospel. We were raised to follow every counsel given and she led by example in that. Her strength has helped me to grow closer to my Father in Heaven, and I thank her for that.

Mom, Happy Mother's Day, and thank you for all you do for me and my family. We would be lost without you. I love you.

Cinco De Mayo

Hey guys. Mike and I were realizing that tomorrow (Monday) is Cinco De Mayo. We were thinking it would be fun to have a mini-fiesta with burritos and games and stuff. We were thinking of getting together around 5:30ish and everyone could bring some aspect of dinner. We have an above-ground pool, so if it's not too cold then you're welcome to bring a suit or whatever. We'll get a pinata for the kids and have some fun! If you want to come, let me know what you're interested in bringing. Hope you can come! Below is a list of stuff that you can pick from (pick one or two if you want).

Ground beef (taco/burrito seasoned)
Refried Beans
Tomato
Onion
Sour Cream
Guacamole
Chips
Drinks (soda, juice, lemonade, whatever)