Happy Anniversary, Ace

That's right. We are celebrating 8 years today.

I was a bride at age 20-- I don't think anyone should make THAT kind of decision at such a young age. I was carefree, independent and didn't want to get married. But I knew it was right, and I couldn't pass up such a great guy! It's crazy to think that I made such a HUGE decision without really knowing what I was getting into. I thought I knew Aaron well before we got married, but I had NO idea how much he would affect my life. I was strong-headed, self-sufficient and didn't want to settle down. But something about Aaron made me change. I quickly became helpless, 'hopelessly devoted' and completely dependent on him. I love it and HATE it at the same time! After a few short years of being married to Aaron, it seems impossible to try to live without him. There are a million reasons why I love my husband, but today I am making a list of EIGHT-- because I am cheesy like that.

1. He has a forgiving heart. About ten minutes before we were married, we were sitting on the couch in the celestial room of the Salt Lake Temple having a sweet conversation. I looked him in eyes and said, "I think I am going to throw up." He put his arm around me and untied my dress at the waist so I could breathe. He told me he would forget what I said and marry me anyway. And last week when I said, "I can't believe it's already been 7 years." He kindly corrected me- "No, it's actually 8 years" without taking it personal (something I would have done.) What a mighty good man!

2. He's righteous. We were married on a Friday, spent one night at Anniversary Inn in Salt Lake and on Saturday, drove to Vail, Colorado. On the drive to Vail, we happened to get stuck in traffic because of a terrible wreck in the canyon. Of course, it wasn't a big deal because we were happy being together and were not on any type of schedule, but when we arrived at our condo in Vail, it was much later than we expected. We brought in our luggage and I was about to go and put on something a little more comfortable, when Aaron said to me, "We better run to the store and get some food for tomorrow." I was totally shocked because the last thing I was thinking about was groceries. We were newlyweds and we had JUST arrived at our place and he was thinking about keeping the Sabbath Day holy? That is Aaron for you. As we were grocery shopping I realized that THIS what was our marriage would be like.. I married a man who puts God first and I love and respect him for that. He ALWAYS does the right, honest, good thing. I am truly privileged to learn from his example on a daily basis.

3. He knows me better than anyone. The other day I was in the worst mood. I was tired and hot and hungry and we were stuck in the car doing something I didn't want to do. I was complaining about one thing or another and Aaron started laughing.. which made me mad. When I asked him WHAT was so funny, he said, "I love you because I could pull over at any gas station and get you a cold drink and you're personality would do a 180." And then I laughed because I knew he was right. He got me a drink and I was a changed woman.

4. His side of the room is ALWAYS tidier than mine. Aaron is a clean freak and I love it. The toilet seat is always down, he puts everything in it's place, and he always clears his plate from the table AND washes it. Not once have I ever folded a batch of laundry and had a single sock of Aaron's without it's match--because that just not his style. I didn't know I won the jack pot until after we got married and I am so glad he is patient with my messiness.

5. He can make me laugh like no one else. It's not exactly WHAT Aaron says that makes him funny but the way he delivers it. I love that he does crazy things just to get a smile out of me. He will moon me when I am on an important telephone call or tell me something totally out of line during church. Last week when we went to his grandpa's funeral, he kept saying things to me as though he was a psycho-abusive husband who was about to harm me. I know that doesn't actually sound funny to any of you, but trust me, it was laugh-out-loud HILARIOUS. He came up from behind me at the grave site, and whispered in my ear, "If you ever leave me, I'll kill you. If I can't have you, NO ONE can. You better watch yourself because you'll end up in a casket." Anyone who saw us together was probably thinking, "What a sweet guy... he just gave an awesome dedicatory prayer and is now saying something meaningful to his wife." Little did they know...

6. He's constant. Aaron is who he is and no one is going to change that. He is level-headed and always calm. His advice is incredible and he often puts me in my place. I need to be married to someone in control because I am seriously a roller coaster. I am either up or down, hot or cold.. and he keeps me grounded. I honestly cannot imagine where I would be without him. He is my rock.

7. He is an incredible athlete. Aaron not only loves to watch sports, but he LOVES to play. He makes it a priority to exercise and it's inspiring. Most weeks he plays tennis, basketball AND volleyball.. that's not easy to do when you don't have a lot of extra time, but Aaron does it. I love watching him play because he gets competitive but never looses his cool. He is a natural. He still holds the reigning ping-pong title at Gonzaga law school because no one could beat him. (I know I sound like Pam from the office bragging about Jim's ping-pong playing...) But seriously, my man gotz skillz.

8. He's the most humble person I know. In my eyes, Aaron is practically perfect. But he never lets it go to his head and that's exactly what makes him so incredible. Aaron never seeks for attention. He is such a great example to me because I have always had a desire to be in the spotlight. But he doesn't NEED people to notice him because he's comfortable just being himself. And that's why I am crazy about him!

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Aaron and I have a lot of pictures together, but these are two of my favorites. They were both taken by Aaron's mom and were both captured in the moment.. I'm sure that's why I love them so.

This is us in Hawaii, just waking up from a comfortable night's sleep on an air mattress.. I'm sure neither of us realized this picture was being taken, but I love it because it's so US. Most nights I end up discarding my pillow to lay on Aaron-- and at least once a week he's complaining that I've cut off the circulation in his arm.


This is us squished on a little couch, eating ice cream and looking at Aaron's mission pictures. We are often sitting on the same chair or laying in an area that is only big enough for ONE of us.. I just love being around Aaron and I am so glad I get to spend the rest of my life with him!

Here's to a wonderful (but not exactly easy) 7 years 8 years...
and another FOREVER more to go.

Dad's Day

We love Les/Grandpa because:

Ben: He is always nice to me. He has a big garden. He makes good food.

Luke: He always laughs at my jokes. He likes it when I call him Grandma. He gives good hugs.

Zack: He never makes me wear my seatbelt when I drive with him.

Janet: He has a great sense of humor and a contagious laugh. He puts his family first, no matter what. He is such a good father-- he has always been there for me.

Aaron: He is a great support to everyone in his family. He doesn't give advice unless someone asks for it. He never judges and he is comfortable being himself.

________________________________________________________________


We love Stan/Grandfather because:

Ben: He watched the movie Zathura and played the game with us. He throws pillows at us and takes the blankets out from under our feet. He tells good jokes.

Luke: He played in the mud with us and made a rope swing. He plays games with us like Fruit Basket and Hide and Seek. He brought a sand pile for us to play with in Arizona.

Zack: Grandfather is BATMAN! (with his arms out in front of him.. saying "dun-unt, dun-unt")

Janet: He puts 110% into everything he does. He is friendly and easy to talk to. He makes delicious grilled veggies and yummy homemade salsa.

Aaron: He has always been an excellent example. His enthusiasm and drive separate him from the crowd. He'll give you an interesting opinion on any subject you want to talk about.

________________________________________________________________


We love Aaron/Daddy because:

Ben: He always makes me laugh. He taught me how to ride a bike. He always does stuff with us when he gets home from work.

Luke: He plays videos games with me. He's crazy. He jumps on the tramp with me and bounces me really high.

Zack: He crawls on the ground and acts like a monster. He sneaks chocolate milk in my cup when mom isn't looking. He squeezes me tight.

Janet: He is a child magnet. He sets a great example for our kids. He treats me respectfully and actually contributed to this post-- SHOCKER!

We are truly blessed to have these great men in our lives!

Happy Father's Day!

Arizona Fun

So little time and so much to post! I feel behind because I haven't really documented our trip to AZ... and I want to git-R-done before Father's Day, our Anniversary and a L.O.N.G trip to Utah. Summer has officially begun! Yeah, baby!

This is a HUGE cement Dinosaur off the main road in Holbrook and we just HAD to stop and see it. The little town of Holbrook is an interesting one.. with funky tepee hotels and crazy dinosaurs 2 feet from the street. Whoever said there's nothing exciting happening in small towns?

We also stopped at MAKE-OUT POINT at the Hoover Dam.
(Too bad we had kids in the car with us and couldn't really enjoy it.)

Our boys LOVE this place because it's where Megatron was buried in the Transformer movie.. [I cannot even tell you how much I am looking forward to this TF obsession coming to an end!] On the road trip we played 20 questions and Ben and Luke kept thinking of Transformers.. it was really hard for me to guess because I DON'T KNOW all their names, colors, orientation, capabilities, etc. Eventually we told them they had to play their own game and it was interesting to hear them fighting in the back seat saying things like, "When I asked you if he was a Autobot, you said YES, but ShockWave is a Decepticon-- DUH!" I just kept thinking how grateful I was to have two of them so I don't have to be a part of that conversation. This unhealthy preoccupation with Transformers WILL end eventually, won't it? Please say yes.

We were also able to visit with my cousin Lindy and her four adorable kids-- who happen to live just a few minutes away from Aaron's parents. We had a great time and talked a million miles an hour while we were together! This is a crazy action shot of Luke being Luke. We took two pictures and this is the better one.. but that happens when trying to pose with 7 wacky kids!
Lindy's 9 year old, Whitney, has her own blog and I love that. Our kids are growing up in such a different world than we did! Email wasn't even available until I was in college.. and it wasn't THAT long ago!


I also have lots of pictures of our visit with our best friends from BYU who now live in Scottsdale.. but that will just have to wait. My kids are all napping and I can wait to start a new book! God be with you til we meet again.

Happy Birthday Mom

On Mother's Day, I wrote a tribute to my mom, so I am going to make this quick. I just wanted to let Beverly know that I am thinking of her today on her 58th birthday. Wow, that's OLD! I can hear her replying back to that- "I still feel like I'm 19!" She has always been young at heart and still looks fabulous (when she decides to wash her hair.. jk.) She always made birthdays special for me growing up. I know that wasn't easy with ten kids to buy presents for.. but that's exactly why it means so much to me now. We opened our presents on the morning of our birthday.. as soon we woke up. I believe one reason for this because we got a special box of COLD CEREAL... and we got to pick it out ourselves.. exciting even in our teen years! Of course, the box would only last one morning with all the other kids in the house, so we really looked forward to it!

We didn't wrap any present either... the special birthday person sat in the living room while we all took turns going into the kitchen and put random presents in a brown paper bag. We seriously fought over who got to take what present in the other room. And the "presents" were always things that we needed.. like face wash, hair products, or a new pair of shoes. I can STILL count on my mom to give the most practical presents. For baby showers, she loads us up with diapers, wipes and burp cloths. I think Aaron thought I was pretty weird our first year of marriage when I wrapped up deodorant, mouthwash, and socks for his birthday. He opened them and kind of laughed (and I didn't get why it was so funny!) I love my mom for being so practical and proud to stick to the basics.

Birthday dinners were always special too, but not because we took the family out to a fancy restaurant. My mom would make whatever we wanted... and most of us chose a home-cooked meal instead of pizza. [The day Ben was born, my mom came to our little Provo apartment and asked if she could pick up something for dinner. Aaron and I looked at each other and sheepishly asked her if she would make a roast and mashed potatoes instead. It tasted delicious!]

During birthday dinners growing up, we would sit around the table talking about why we loved the special birthday boy/girl and then my mom would read excerpts from her journal the day they were born.. Then we'd hear the SAME stories every year from their childhood. I could recite some of those stories still.. (Scott saying "it's not Mu-getti, it's GA-SpETTI!" or Debbie leaving off the first letter of her words and following bugs around the yard calling them "Ass-hoppers" And Kristy telling my mom that she couldn't be her mom anymore or that she was going to cancel her 4th birthday.) This was the way we celebrated and I hope to continue the traditions with my children. On my first birthday away from home, my mom photocopied stories from my childhood and sent them to me in the mail. I remember crying in my bedroom that night as I read those pages from her journal.. I was homesick and it was the best present I received.

My mom is such a sweetheart, but she isn't naive. She choses to do good because it makes her feel happy... and she sets such a great example for her kids. Sometimes we joke about not wanting her to come to the movies with us (or sit down and watch an episode of the Bachelor) because her purity will be offended and we don't want to feel uncomfortable around her. But she just doesn't have time to watch something that isn't uplifting. Hanging next to my parents big screen TV is a portrait of my mom. I believe it's strategically placed because whenever we sit down to watch something, she's looking right at us.. and usually we say out loud, "What would BEV watch?" as if she is always monitoring us and encouraging us to CTR.

Well, how's that for taking a quick minute to say Happy Birthday?! I love you, Mom and I am grateful for your loving friendship and your hard-working, steadfast example. And thanks for raising SUCH an AMAZING DAUGHTER!! Hope you have a good day!

Grandpa's Funeral

This was our boys' first experience with a death in the family. The kids have met Grandpa Chester once or twice, but they didn't have a close relationship with him. The day before we left, I sat down with Ben and Luke and we talked about what would happen when we arrived in Phoenix (we would be spending a Friday afternoon in our church clothes, attend the funeral, burial services, etc.) Zack was asleep for our discussion (which made it better for everyone.) But apparently Luke felt it necessary to explain things to him as we were getting ready to leave. I was putting the last few bags in the trunk, when I overheard my 5 year old tell his little 2 year old brother where we were going and why. This is what I heard Luke say in a really sweet, [and rather excited] voice...

"Zack, do you want to go to Arizona to see a DEAD guy?" When Zack nodded his head, I smiled.. but then Luke followed it by saying, "And it will be cool because when we touch him, he will be really, really cold!" and as morbid as that sounds, I just couldn't help but laugh. That was definitely NOT the discussion I thought we had earlier, but apparently that's what Luke got out of it. He did find the open casket fascinating and had ALL kinds of questions for us during the viewing.

Ben, on the other hand, did not like the open casket at ALL. He barely looked at Grandpa and he just kept saying over and over, "It just makes me creeped out." I was able to sit down and talk with him for a while before the services started and I was amazed by his little 7 year old brain. He asked deep questions like, "why can't everyone just remember how he used to look when he was alive rather than seeing him like this?" I thought he was very sweet and sincere and I will never forget that moment.. holding my big, little boy on my lap and explaining that life can be very fragile, so we must try hard to let those around us know how much we love them.

The funeral services were very nice. Our kids were relatively well behaved and Aaron and I were able to listen to Chester's children share memories of their father. Aaron's dad gave a great life sketch of him (and he was well prepared, especially after having written a 120 page book on his life.) I learned during the funeral that Chester was a 12.7 POUND baby! How grateful I am that large babies don't run in the family!


Aaron had the opportunity to dedicate the grave site and that was a neat experience. During his prayer, I couldn't help but feel overwhelmed with gratitude for being married to a worthy Priesthood holder who loves and honors his family so much. I am truly blessed and hope that I can show Heavenly Father how grateful I am for my family.


Ben wanted to know EXACTLY what was happening with the casket and how deep it was going to go. I just happened to snap this picture of Aaron giving a little tutorial. He is such a great, attentive Daddy and I love how affectionate he is with our boys.

Luke and Zack fell asleep in the car during the burial and we just left them in the van with the windows rolled down. I am glad they were able to catch a little shut-eye because the rest of the day was crazy.. (and will be documented another day!)


Even though Ben was serious during the service, he was able to loosen up and crack a couple of good jokes. My favorite joke of the day is-- Question: Where do mashed potatoes go when they die? Answer: The Gravy-yard. He is getting pretty clever with his words and I think he might be ready to publish a joke book (or at least get a few on laughy-taffy wrappers ☺)

Ben LOVES his Grandmother. They have always had a special relationship.. since day one.
Also pictured is Uncle Jerry's wife, Carol.

Three Generations of GREAT Men.

It was a warm day in Phoenix but it wasn't unbearable. We enjoyed visiting with cousins and family members at the gravesite. Aaron isn't really close with his cousins (which is completely FOREIGN to me!) He moved around so much as a child and didn't really have the opportunity to get to know most of them..

Above is a picture of Chester's six children.. They were ALL able to make it, even Uncle Steven who had to get permission from his parole officer to leave the state!

Steven Lloyd and Stanley Floyd are TWINS. Yes, Aaron's dad has a twin brother and it's a strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde! I have heard so much about Steve over the years and this was the first time I was able to meet him (and I believe it was Aaron's first time too.)

Steve and Stan are TOTAL OPPOSITES and have been since the beginning. Stan (Aaron's dad) is the most upbeat, happy, righteous man you will ever come across. Steven is a very skilled man who has lived his life on the wild side. I believe the reason why Aaron hasn't ever met him is because he's spent much of the last 30 years in and out of prison... I was seriously excited to finally meet him-- and I just HAD to get a picture of the twins!

I am truly feel blessed to have such wonderful in-laws. Aaron's parents are so loving and such great examples to me. We had a lovely weekend with them. After the funeral, we drove 3 hours north to their home in Snowflake. It was great to be able to stay in the new addition to their house and sleep in every morning while they played with my kids! I always have such a good time with them and love them like my own parents. (Sorry for the picture overload, but these are for Aaron's siblings who weren't able to attend.)