Happy Anniversary!!

I cannot believe that it has already been 9 years! Married life with Mark has been great so far! We've had tons of adventures and I know there are more to come! I am so lucky to be married to the man of my dreams! He is honest, hard working, funny, spiritual, a wonderful father and a great husband.

I was visiting with a friend of mine about a week ago and we were talking about relationships. She said, "Of course you love your husband, Kristie...but what's so great about you and Mark is that you two actually LIKE each other. You WANT to be around each other. You have FUN together. You ENJOY each others company. A lot of people don't have that." Her comment really made me think and I realized how lucky Mark and I are. It made me sad to think that some people don't have that type of relationship with their spouse. I am so glad that Mark is my best friend, and yeah, we have a blast together! He makes me laugh every day...and I'm looking forward to another 9 years!

Love ya babe!

Then And Now....

Tara and I met in the 10th grade when I was 15 years old. (That was 20 years ago!!!!) Her family moved into our ward and we quickly became inseparable. We did everything together. I taught her how to drive a manual transmission in my little Mazda 323. Believe me, looking back, that is a scary thought! Disneyland, girls camp, youth conference, shopping, toilet papering teachers houses, just hanging out! We had so much fun!! My family moved away a few years later and she went to live with her mom in Newport Beach. Even living so far apart, we still found ways to get together and we would see each other quite regularly. She always had the funnest beach parties to go to!!! Over the years we had kept in contact, but then life just got in the way. I went on my mission and afterwards moved to Utah. After Mark and I got married, Tara and I lost contact for several years. While we were living in Texas she found me again and we’ve had so much fun catching up!

Last week, Mark finally got to meet her! Tara and her husband and kids were vacationing in Utah for a week so of course we had to get together. We drove to Park City to see them. We let the kids run and play while we made dinner and then sat and talked and took lots of pictures! It was so fun to see her after so many years!! I think it had been like 10 years since I’d last seen her. It was before Mark and I got married and we are celebrating our 9th anniversary this month. It was probably right after I came home from my mission. Wow, time certainly flies! Anyhow, it was so fun to see her and just catch up! Today I had to go digging through all our old pictures and oh, the memories came flooding back! We had way too much fun together!!! I wanted to post some pictures we’d taken over the years! And then some from Park City last week.

Then....






And now....

Schools Out - Don't Forget The Shaving Cream!

It's Summer Time!!!! Friday was the kids last day of school. They went from 8:45 to 10:15...long day, I know! At noon we had a huge party in the park behind our house complete with water slide! Each person brought a can of shaving cream and everyone went crazy!!! The kids had a blast, we all did! Even the moms got involved! (although some were more readily involved than others!) It was so fun!

We love the Walls!

So there's this family back in Texas. They're pretty cool... Gary & Karen, and their girls (& significant others): Jennifer & Justin and Lauren & Matt. Mark worked with Gary and that's how we got to know them. Being so far away from family, they quickly became family to us. My kids love them so much, we all do! We painted together (our media room and their spare bedroom), vacationed together (Playa del Carmen and fishing at the lake house), made home improvements together (bead board under our kitchen counter and staining their deck), ate at Chili's (a lot!!) and just spent time together. Karen (the quilter extraordinaire) even attempted to teach me how to quilt! They spent birthdays with us and holidays too. And brought the most thoughtful and fun gifts. They are the best! They even had the best crushed ice at their house! My kids were able to enjoy their pets - Scout, Diesel and Max (because we'll for sure never own a cat and probably never own a dog!!) We were supposed to stay with them the last night that we were in Texas. That didn't work out quite the way it was supposed to, so they drove the hour out to our house to spend our last evening. They became very close friends in a very short amount of time. I hope they realize how special they really are to us.

We miss them so much and hope to be able to spend time with them again in the near future! We love you guys!! You need to move to Utah!! You'll LOVE it here!! Okay, maybe that is a little extreme...but at least come visit! We miss you! Jennifer and Lauren, I'm talking to you too!!!

Rainie is my FAVORITE!!!

So there's this family, back in Texas. They're pretty cool. Rainie and her cute family moved into our ward a week or two after we did. They are HUGE BYU fans, so of course we got along great. She brought me treats for my birthday, held awesome scrapbook parties at her house, planned BYU Football parties at my house, saw many fun girl's night out movies with me and has the best laugh! Her and Chris brought yummy Taco Cabana over after Kids Night Out, taught us how to play Settlers!!! Experienced Truluck's Chocolate Sac (a scrumptious chocolate treat) with us. No one can forget our BYU Tulsa trip in a rented white 15 passenger van! (There is an entry somewhere about that!) That was the funnest! They held a going away party for us and taught us how fun Easter Egg Cracking Contests were! Jackson was our champion! Rainie always made me laugh! I do miss her and I'm so glad she is back to blogging! I seriously thought she fell off the blogging face of the earth. She is the reason I am even here! Her cute blog inspired me! So, thank you Rainie for being such a great friend and making our life in Texas that much more enjoyable! You are always my favorite!!!

BLAST FROM THE PAST!!

So we are loving our new ward and our new neighbors. We are getting to know all the people on the circle here and they are all great! Our dear friends from across the street have a little boy that got baptized Saturday morning, so of course we went to see him on his special day. As we were leaving the church building after the baptism, someone was holding the door open for me since I had my arms full of kids. I glanced up to thank him and immediate recognition hit both of us! "Kristie?" I wanted to make sure I had the right name so I asked him and he told me it was John. I said his last name and he nodded and hugged me. We walked outside and he said something about knowing me as my maiden name. Mark walked up right at that moment and said, "You must know each other from the mission." John and I smiled and I looked at Mark and then back at John. "Not exactly...we used to date." It was hilarious! We dated for a while when I lived in California. After his mission and before mine. We chatted for a few minutes and I asked where he was living. He said just a few streets away. I told him we had just moved back to Utah from Texas and mentioned the ward we were in now. He just laughed! WE ARE IN THE SAME WARD!!! I love it! I introduced him to my cute hubby and three kids. He introduced me to his cute wife and six kids. We had to leave because we were heading up to Layton just then for a birthday celebration, but I seriously can't wait to talk to him again! He was such a good friend and what a great guy! Too funny! What are the chances of that? Seriously?!!!

Texas Snow and "Jay-Dubs"

(Our front yard in the snow - March 2008)

It snowed last night. It was the craziest thing! In the two winters we have lived in Texas, we have never experienced snow. Yes, thunder and lightning storms, wind storms and sleet, but never snow. It was actually kind of cool. The kids were all excited that the ground was white and I had to make Jace and Caden promise that they wouldn't stop to play in the snow until after they got to the bus stop. I could not have them missing their bus! They were good listeners, they ran all the way, cute things!

A little later on this morning I was in the daycare room with all my cute daycare kids. They were coloring as I was de-cluttering my filing cabinet, preparing for the big move. We had fun songs playing on the cd player and everyone was happy. It was very nice because I was actually able to get some things done. Mark called to discuss our moving plan and as I was going over that with him on the phone, there was a knock at the door. "Oh great," I thought. I told Mark that I had to go, there were "Jay-Dubs" at the door. Just as I was thinking, "I don't have time for this! Maybe I'll just pretend I'm not home." the kids all ran over to the door to see who it was. A little frustrated that the kids had blown my cover, I got up and walked to the door. I probably had a scowl on my face as the door opened, but then the weirdest thing happened. As soon as I opened the door, I absolutely felt for this couple. Maybe it reminded me of my mission, with their long coats, and the snow covered ground, going door to door out in the (freezing) cold winters (of New York) for what they believe. It was a man and his wife. They were Jehovah's Witness. They handed me their literature and invited me to read it in light of the upcoming Easter holiday. I was not interested in the literature, but I did not want to be rude or make them feel bad, like I did after having so many doors slammed on me in New York. Williamsburg Circle Drive came screaming back to my memory. I was a brand new missionary, still with my trainer, Sister Kenny and my MTC buddy, Sister Moya (We were The Gruesome Threesome).

We encountered so many people that day who were not just rude, but they were MEAN! It was rainy, all three of us were freezing cold and wet. I think we went home and cried when our day was over. That was truly the most discouraging day in the mission field for me.

I do not share the ideas and beliefs of this couple, but I would never wish that type of discouragement on anyone so I gracefully took their pamphlet and thanked them. They asked how we were enjoying the snow and I told them that we were originally from Utah so it was nice to see snow again. They thanked me for my time, I told them to stay warm and I closed the door as they walked away. I wondered if my telling them that we were originally from Utah is the reason they ended the conversation or if they were just there to pass out their literature. Either way, I was glad for the reminder of my mission and I am glad that others are motivated enough by their faith to go out and share it with others. I am SO GRATEFUL for the missionary program in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. My mission is what molded me into the person I am today. And even though, I had discouraging moments like the day we tracted Williamsburg Circle Drive in Fairport, New York, I wouldn't trade one day of my mission...not ONE day!

(The Gruesome Threesome: Sister Kenny, me and Sister Moya on P-day on the walkway to the Sacred Grove April 1996)

President Hinckley, Remembered

Our Dear Prophet, President Gordon Bitner Hinckley passed away two Sundays ago on January 27th, 2008. I have such a great love for him that the news, although it was expected, was still very difficult for me. I understand how the leadership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints works, and that the Lord has promised that we will always have a living prophet on the earth to lead, guide and direct us, so I didn't feel lost and confused as to who would be our new prophet. But I did feel great loss because I have felt so much love and admiration for this wonderful man. He was the Prophet who signed my mission call to serve in the New York Rochester Mission. As a missionary, I sat and listened to him as he spoke at our All-Mission Conference in Palmyra, New York and heard him testify that a young farm boy walked into a nearby grove of trees early in the spring of 1820 and actually saw God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ. He is the only Prophet my children have ever known. He did so much to make Christ's church known throughout the world and I LOVE that he had so many temples built!

One of my favorite stories of President Hinckley is from his mission in England. He had been sick, he was feeling discouraged and frustrated and he wrote home to his father and told him that he should just come home because he was wasting his time and his father's money. Shortly thereafter, Elder Hinckley received a letter from his dad. It said, "Dear Gordon, I have your recent letter. I have only one suggestion: Forget yourself and go to work." And he did. He made a pledge that day to the Lord that he would try to forget himself and lose himself in the work and service of the Lord. It is a pledge that he kept until the very end. (Click here to read the article from the New Era.)

I am so grateful for his example of service, charity and love. He was so full of life! One of my favorite quotes from him is on my wall where I can see it everyday:
Another is in Caden's room, so that he has a constant reminder of how to "be."

I am so grateful for President Hinckley's example and that I was allowed to live here on earth while he was our Prophet! I am so glad that he is now with his wonderfully sweet wife, Marjorie, whom he has missed these past (nearly) four years.

With all of that said, I am excited to have President Thomas S. Monson as our new Prophet, Seer and Revelator and I know for myself that he is called of God. I look forward to having him lead and guide us.

President Thomas S. Monson - Prophet

President Henry B. Eyring - 1st Counselor

President Dieter F. Uchtdorf - 2nd Counselor