DISNEYLAND

Faith gets her funny faces from her father

the things we do to entertain our children while waiting in long lines

Tyson, Faith & Ethan

even Jaylee enjoyed the rides. Its a Small world was her favorite


Yesterday we went to Disneyland. It was a long day. We woke up early and drove about an hour and half we got there about 9:30am. I was really excited because I havent been there since I was eight or nine. It was better than I remembered. It was HOT and the lines were sooo long but it was worth it. I even road on the Indiana Jones ride and it was scary. I am such a chicken I never ever ride any rides. The last ride I was on was at Amazing Jakes pizza, the Frog Hopper. I screamed so loud for them to let me off that I freeked Faith out too and we were both screaming. They had to stop the ride and let us off. People were staring, not cool.Saturday my sister in law Heather and her two oldest kids Tyson and Ethan flew in from Utah to stay our last week. Faith had a blast with her cousins. We got home around 12:30am. The days are flying by now, I cant believe we leave on Sunday:(

U.S.S. Midway

Grandma Lydia & Faith

Last week we toured the U.S.S. Midway a retired aircraft carrier. It was cool to see how our men live for months on end. The planes were really cool to see too.

FUN AT SEA WORLD

Faith feeding the dolphins

Faith petting the starfish

Yes that is Penny who used to work in the front office at Highland(Ronnie's brother married her daughter). They are all soaked from riding on the Ship Wreck Rapids ride.

Faith was so happy she was finally tall enough to ride this year



Yesterday we went to Sea World. It was HOT but the shows were great and we all had a good time.

MY Family Comes To Visit

Chance & Faith and their sand Sea Turtle

Ronnie's giant shell

Mariah, Chance, Faith & Jaylee dressed like pioneers at the Mormon Battalion


Every summer we come to Capri here in San Diego with Ronnie's family and his extended family probably 50+ people. Finally after all the years of coming and trying to talk my family into coming out too they finally did. They came for a short weekend trip. We had a lot of fun in one day. Faith had fun on the beach with her cousin Chance. While we were all in the ocean looking for sea shells to decorate their sea turtle's shell, Ronnie found a huge shell. Later we made my brave Aunt Coleen pry it open to see if there was a pearl inside. There wasn't, bummer. Later that evening we went to visit the Mormon Battalion in Old Town San Diego and then we ate yummy mexican food there. After that we drove to see the San Diego Temple. There is nothing like seeing this temple at night, my picture doesn't do it any justice either. It was a fun visit thanks for coming guys!

MY FIRST TOOTH!

Finally... I got my first tooth on June 10th, 2007. If you expand the picture you will see that my bottom right tooth finally pushed through! Yea :):)

MY 1ST TIME AT THE BEACH

MY 1st TIME SWIMMING

MY SUN BATHING BEAUTIES

Today has been perfect beach weather, sunny and warm all day. It was Jaylee's first time ever at the beach and swimming and she loved both. She had so much fun splashing the water in the pool with her hands. Its so much fun watching your children experiance things for the first time, its almost as great as if I were living it again for the first time.

June Gloom

We made it to San Diego late Friday night. It has been cloudy every day except Sunday and we dont go down to the beach on Sundays:( Faith is dying to get down there. Thats the greatest thing about staying right on the beach, you can beach it as you please. I have enjoyed eating all my favorite places that I havent been too since last summer.Today Ronnie bought a month membership to a jiu jitsu place so he can train while were here. Thats about it for now, just enjoying the ocean...

our Memorial weekend

My family has a tradition that every Memorial weekend we go up to the Whiting Homestead and spring clean our family cabin. All the other Whiting family members go up and all of us families spring clean around the homestead. This year Ronnie got to show off his landscaping skills by trimming the trees. I was impressed he did a great job. This was also the first year that Faith was old enough that I could just let her roam around the homestead with her cousins. She had the time of her life!

Of course it wouldn't be an exciting weekend for Ronnie unless he got to shoot something...poor fox:(


We had fun at the park in Show Low with my sister Lindsey and her two kids Shanay and Matthew.


What could be more fun than going to the carnival in the Safeway parking lot in Springerville? Even Ronnie and my brother Jay had fun sliding down the giant slide with Faith.


Sunday my whole family went to St Johns to clean around my dads grave site and leave some flowers. The picture with Jaylee and my brother Jay is very special to me because this was the first time Jaylee has visited her grandpa Jay who she was named after. This by far was my favorite day of our trip. We left on Wednesday and got home tonight. It was a long trip in the mountains but Ronnie had to satisfy his craving because we leave on Friday for San Diego and wont be home until July 1st. Ill post pictures of our Cali vacation from our laptop while were there.

Anniversary

Today was our seven year anniversary. I think that this will be the best year so far because my lucky number is seven and this is our seventh year of marriage and its also 2007:)Tonight we went to the movies and saw Next. I really really liked the movie and I think Ronnie did too even though I had to keep punching him because he fell asleep three times. After our movie we went to Claim Jumper for dinner. Yummy! Happy Anniversary Ronnie!

"SEVEN YEAR ITCH"

MY LOVE STORY

The first time I saw Ronnie was in 7th grade. He came in the middle of the year. It was 1st hr English with Mr. Hall at Gilbert Jr High. Ronnie walked in that morning and walked down the row of desks with his tucked in rayon button up shirt (that was in style then). My heart honestly did a flutter and now I know why. Ronnie ended up switching classes after only a couple of days and I never really saw or thought about him again. That was until we ended up in the same 8th grade band class. Ronnie and I ended up "going out". We broke it off at the very end of our sophmore year in highschool. We always stayed close friends. We hugged on the football field gradution night and I felt that little heart flutter thing again, but blew it off. Ronnie moved to Utah for a while after graduation, we talked almost everyday (only as friends). When he came back he came to see me, we hugged and there was that flutter again. We dated again for about a year and a half and then he SURPRISED me Christmas Eve with my diamond. We were married May 19,2000 and the rest is history...

MOTHERS DAY

The highlight of my day yesterday was watching Faith sing in front of the church with the primary a special song for the mothers. She is a sunbeam this year and it was her first time to do this. Faith walked right up there and sang that song and wasn't even nervous which really surprised me. Also I was brought to tears when I saw a little boy in our ward who was born with spina bifida being carried up to the front and held by his dad to sing to his mom with the primary too. After church we went to Lydia's for yummy dinner and dessert. Later Uncle Homer, Aunt Connie, Josh, Meagan and Brooklyn came over to visit. It was a special day. Happy Mothers Day everyone.

7 Random Facts About Me

I was recently tagged by Amber. Here's how it works: Each player starts with 7 random facts/habits about themselves. People who are tagged need to write on their own blog about their 7 things, as well as these rules. You need to tag 7 others and list their names. Don't forget to leave them a comment telling them that they have been tagged and to read your blog.

Here is mine:
1.I am obsessed with my eyebrows. They have to be shaped a certain way. If I could, I would pay big bucks to go to an eyebrow specialists (anybody know one)? I have a crazy habit too, when I get nervous I start twisting and pulling out my eyebrow hairs. I am a big fan of the show What Not To Wear. I saw an episode where Carmondi lightened a lady's eyebrows with facial bleach. Am I the only one who tried this? Needless to say, I spent last Thanksgiving with Sizzled Orange eyebrows.
2.I love to do yoga. Something about the warrior posses...I make believe that I am a samurai. Every since I watched the Last Samurai years ago I want to be one.
3.I am a big fan of Kevin Trudeau and his Natural Cures books. I read his first book almost three years ago and it changed my life forever! I recommend every one read his books. Because of him our household no longer has a microwave and I am a picker eater than I was before.
4.I worked for Chase from 1997 until 2006. I worked the first 2 years as a teller and spent the rest in customer service. Because of this I cringe if I see someones money and it isnt bank faced (all facing up and in the right direction). I also love balancing check books and would only charge a small fee for those of you who need assistance.
5.I love my filing cabinet. Its perfect down to every last file. Sometimes when I walk by it I open it up and run my hand down all the files because I like the way they feel and sound.
6.Did you guys ever own a caboodle in the early 90's? I have a caboodle stuffed full of every love letter Ronnie ever wrote me starting back in 1992. They are all numbered too. There are 500 and something.
7.I feel that I have found my purpose in life but not my lifes purpose. I am looking for it every day. I love being a mother and a wife but I'm talking about that BIG change the world thing. Something that I am really passionate about. Something so big that one day I will be telling my story on Oprah. I admire Angelina Jolie for her contributions to the world. And the Asian reported that Oprah has on now and then (the really pretty one). And my sister in law Heather who is living her life's passion everyday. I want to FEEL what its like to be something greater than myself.

So now you know some random facts about me. Here are the people I am tagging: Ashleigh,Bailey, Sariah, katie, Heather,Meagan and Shannon.

Me A to Z

A - Age: 28
B - Bed size: King...still not big enough. I once put tape down the whole middle of the mattress to keep Ronnie on his own half (didn't work)
C - Chore you hate: laundry, it never ends
D - Dessert you love: cherry cheese cake and strawberry shortcake
E - Essential start your day item: make Jaylee a bottle (this is my alarm clock)
F - Favorite actor(s): Antonio Benderes and Julia Roberts
G - Gold or Silver: Silver
I - Instruments you play: Piano, clarinet (in High School) tried guitar after I had Faith it was too hard
J - Job title: too many
K - Kid(s): Ronnie 28, Faith 4, Jaylee 7mo
L - Living arrangements: 5 Bed room
M- Favorite month: June, usually when we go on family vacation to Cali (it's the most I get to see Ronnie)
N - Nicknames: A-Dawg (Ronnie's the only one who calls me that)
O - Overnight hospital stay other than giving birth: none
P - Phobia: flying, staying home alone at night and scorpions
Q - Quote(s): "Just because two people argue, it doesn't mean they don't love each other. And just because they don't argue, it doesn't mean they do."
R - Right or left handed: Right
S - Siblings: 3
T - Tattoo(s): 0
U - Unique talent:not talented
V - Vegetable you hate: artichoke
W - Worst habit: never can find my keys
X- If you were told to Xerox a part of your body what would you agree to: my hand
Y - Yummy food you make: garlic mashed potatoes
Z - Zodiac Sign:Aries

just in case you didn't believe me...

Ronnie pretending like he is a deer with the two deer sheds he found at "little red" over the weekend.

BREED OF HIS OWN

Ok so I thought it would be fun to share some things about Ronnie that you may or may not already know....

*Ronnie is a real comedian, at least he thinks so
*He drives way too fast and once recked his truck into a tree while driving on a mountain dirt road eating biscuits and gravy
*Ronnie is really good at math and always has to help me with my spelling
*Ronnie can bake the best cookies in the whole world
*Ronnie brushes his teeth for 20 min every morning
*Ronnie thinks he is Celine Dion and we get in more fights on road trips over his singing
*Ronnie is an excellent back rubber
*Ronnie owns and wears a cowboy hat (in public)
*Ronnie is a retired cage fighter
*Ronnie has received his EMT (emergency medical technician)
*Ronnie is an entrepreneur and started his own landscaping company four years ago with our own personal lawn mower in the trunk of his 79 Chevy Malibu. Today he has 30 employees
*Ronnie loves Johnny Cash
*Ronnie is drop dead gorgeous with hair (he says he shaves his head because he's "allergic to it") and he really means it
*Ronnie buys me EVERYTHING on my Christmas list
*Ronnie never answers his cell phone
*Ronnie plays the lottery and thinks every ticket is the winner
*Ronnie is always late
*Ronnie is afraid of dogs (especially schnauzers) oh and don't mention aliens
*Ronnie will race me to the door to see our girls first (after a night out alone)
*Ronnie loves hunting (anything)
*Ronnie is every ones best friend (just ask anyone)

Feel free to embarrass your own husband:)

Fire House Field Trip

Yesterday Ronnie went with Faith and her preschool on a field trip to the new Gilbert Fire House. The class toured the house, they got to see the firemen slide down the fire pole and slide down a slide that they have. They got to check out the trucks and the sirens. The best part was right when the tour was over the firemen actually got a call so the kids got to see them leave on a call. Faith thought she was styling in her red plastic fire hat that she wore. Faith also enjoys the special one on one time with her dad. I just got done writing a thank you letter to the firemen and we will be sending them a copy of both of the pictures above.

lots of EXCITEMENT

Starting with Friday the 13th...It was my 28th Birthday. I was born on a Friday the 13th but it was Good Friday so that canceled out the bad luck. I think? Friday for lunch Ronnie, Faith, Jaylee and I went to Olive Garden. This is one of my favorite places to eat. Its unfortunate that my husband hates the place so I usually only get to eat there once a year on my birthday or when I'm pregnant. He's a little more accommodating during that time:) Then Ronnie watched the kids while I went to the mall BY MYSELF! Then that night we went to eat at AZ88 in Scottsdale with James and Nicole and then to see Wild Hogs. I laughed none stop the whole movie. I had a great Friday the 13th Birthday. Thank you to Lydia for watching our girls!

Saturday was my Grandpa Merls birthday so our whole family went to Mi Amigos to celebrate all April birthdays. There was about 25 of us. Besides the restaurant giving our private room reservation away (previously made a month before) to another party, we all had a great time.

Today Ronnie finally blessed Jaylee. For those of you who know Ronnie he is not a shy guy, but when it comes to speaking in church he turns to jello. It has taken Ronnie 6 months to get the nerve up but he did a great job. Grandma Lydia made Jaylee her beautiful dress. The dress fit great but she was too big for the cute bonnet and booties. The bottom picture is of Jaylee and her cousin Brody taken today after the blessing. We had a busy but exciting weekend.

our Easter weekend

Where to start? Our family and Ronnie's parents spent the weekend at "Little Red". Friday night we ate dinner in Eager with Uncle Homer and Aunt Connie. Saturday we went to Greer and ate lunch with Uncle Homer, Aunt Connie, Uncle Gerald, Aunt Eileen, and Shaunna. After lunch we went fishing there. I am proud to say that I caught the first of two fish that day. Ronnie caught the second one with Faiths little princess fishing pole. Easter Sunday we woke up to find that the Easter Bunny had visited Faith and Jaylee. Later Faith went on a Easter egg hunt in the forest behind our cabin. We stayed up late at night eating popcorn and playing checkers and card games. I am feeling really grateful tonight for the life that I get to wake up to every morning. I am greatful for the Atonement that makes it possible to live again with the family that I love. Im grateful for my family and for Ronnie's parents and extended family. I am grateful for my beautiful daughters and for my husband (who just got done unloading our whole car and bathing Faith). I have never loved Ronnie more than I love him tonight! I had a wonderful Easter! Happy Easter everyone!

P.S. Ronnie and his dad found a huge elk shed while they were driving on our quad

Conference

I really enjoyed watching conference this weekend. I especially enjoyed Saturday because the kids allowed me to pay attention more. This scripture from one of the talks on Saturday really hit home with me. This is something that I am going to try to work alot harder at perfecting.

29 Let no corrupt communica-
tion proceed out of your mouth, but
that which is good to the use of
edifying, that it may minister grace
unto the hearers.
30 And grieve not the holy Spirit
of God, whereby ye are sealed unto
the day of redemption.
31 Let all bitterness, and wrath,
and anger, and clamour, and evil
speaking, be put away from you,
with all malice:
32 And be ye kind one to another,
tenderhearted, forgiving one an-
other, even as God for Christ's sake
hath forgiven you.

EPHESIANS 4:29-32