Starting a New Chapter

Day 29: 3 Wixhes

2011-12-29T14:49:00.002-07:00

1. Live Happily Ever After

2. Pay off all my debts

3. Get my mom cancer free and get my parents out of debt.

Day 28: Something That Stresses You Out!!!

2011-12-29T14:47:00.001-07:00

DIRTY DISHES!!!!

Day 27: Original Photo of the Town you Live In

2011-12-29T14:46:00.002-07:00

Day 26: Your Dream Wedding

2011-12-29T14:44:00.001-07:00

HAD IT!!!!!!!!!!

Day 25: First 10 Songs on Your IPod

2011-12-29T14:43:00.001-07:00

Since I don't have an IPod, that's easy. None!!!!

Day 24: Something You've Learned

2011-12-29T14:42:00.003-07:00

That's a pretty broad one!!! I've learned that being a teacher is not a school day long job, but consists of hours and hours of extra planning, paper work, student and parent relations, school administration relations, grades, and soo much more!!!

Day 23: Favorite Movie

2011-12-29T14:39:00.001-07:00

Always has been and always will be!! Can't beat a romantic comedy with a truly HAPPY ending!!!

Day 22: What's in Your Purse

2011-12-22T13:46:00.000-07:00

Um. Seriously. Here we go!! It's almost like a Mary Poppins bag!! Should be fun!!! I have a planner, mini notebook, purple pen, black pen, green pen, gift cards, wallet, checkbook, wedding announcement, keys, card, check to my husband, tide to go pen, mirror, chapstick, camera, pills. I think that's it. May find some other surprises if you search through it!!!!

Day 21: Favorite Picture of myself of ALL TIME!!!

2011-12-22T13:42:00.003-07:00

This was taken while I was in Japan. I LOVE this picture because my haircut is cute, my make-up is cute, I am skinny, I'm happy, and I just plain look CUTE!!!! Can't beat a fun pic!!!

Day 20: Nicknames

2011-12-20T17:38:00.002-07:00

Pretty much only have one: BOOBOO!!! No one in my family knows where it came from, but it fits me perfectly!!!

Picked up a few more on the way: Berlyn, Harriet, Breastesses, Hobag.

Day 19: Something you Miss

2011-12-19T16:41:00.000-07:00

Feeling healthy ALL day long!!!

Day 18: Favorite Place To Eat

2011-12-18T19:23:00.004-07:00

My BFF from college, Tay, can attest to it!! Best Specialty Drinks EVER!!!

Day 17: Something You're Looking Forward To

2011-12-17T17:45:00.001-07:00

END OF SEMESTER AND CHRISTMAS BREAK AT HOME WITH THE PARENTS!!!!

Day 16: Dream House

2011-12-16T16:57:00.003-07:00

http://farm5.staticflickr.com/4048/4524794593_d1e65322a4_z.jpg

I would LOVE to live in a house like this someday!! Doesn't it just look fun?!

Day 15: Bible Verse

2011-12-16T16:52:00.002-07:00

Judges 3: 21-22 A fat king gets stabbed in the stomach by a dagger and his fat envelopes the dagger and he can't pull it out!! Hehehe!! I'm morbid!!!

Day 14: A Picture of Me a Year Ago. . .How Have I Changed?

2011-12-16T16:40:00.003-07:00

Physically wise, I haven't changed that much. Except that I have a little protruding tummy from being pregnant!! Life wise, I got my masters, got a boyfriend, got engaged, went to a family reunion, got my first real career job teaching, got married, and got pregnant!! I say I had a pretty eventful year!!!

Day 13: Goals

2011-12-13T19:02:00.001-07:00

1. Have a healthy baby
2. Get my husband through college.
3. Get my husband a good job (preferably outside of Arizona).
4. Stop working
5. Buy a house
6. Pay off debt (school and car).
7. LIVE HAPPILY EVER AFTER!!!!

Day 12: Something You Don't Leave the HOuse Without

2011-12-13T19:01:00.001-07:00

MY PHONE!!!! Sad, but true. What happened to the day when I was defiant and wasn't going to get a phone because everyone had one?! Now I can't live without it!!!

Day 11: Favorite TV Shows

2011-12-11T10:40:00.002-07:00

Um . . . . . another hard one since I don't really watch TV. Used to be a BIG fan of Lost until it got weird, Friends until it went off the air, Survivor until it became about playing the game instead of surviving, American Idol until the singers got weird, So You Think You Can Dance until it turned into only having professional dancers on the show, Gilmore Girls until Rory slept with her ex who was still married at the time. I do watch Wipe Out every now and then and America's Next Top Model, but that's about it. Don't really watch it since it's mostly filth on anyway.

Day 10: Something You're Afraid of

2011-12-11T10:38:00.001-07:00

Um . . . . . thinking . . . . . . still thinking . . . . . . . nothing really. Is that pathetic or just weird? It used to be of never getting married, but now that I am married, not really afraid of that. Maybe miscarrying. That is scary. But that would be about it.

Day 9: A Favorite Picture of Your Best Friend

2011-12-09T17:47:00.002-07:00

Can't beat having a sister as your best friend!!!!

Day 8: A Place You've Traveled To

2011-12-08T17:03:00.003-07:00

ARGENTINA

I love to travel (ok, more like live in different countries), but Argentina has to be one of the few that most people can never say they have been too. Granted, it wasn't on my list of places to go to, but the Lord had a different plan for me and called me there on a mission for my church!! Best year and a half spent in my life!! Was more in the ghetto 2nd world country parts, but loved the people and their friendliness and happiness!!! It was also very green there which I ABSOLUTELY love!!! Would some day love to go back and visit!!!

Day 7: Favorite Movies

2011-12-08T16:56:00.002-07:00

ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! Apparently, this blog challenge doesn't know me very well because I will pretty much watch any movie put into the DVD machine. I'll try to name just a few though. Here we go:

Wizard of Oz
7 Brides for 7 Brothers
Harry Potter movies
Disney (but especially The Little Mermaid, Mulan, and Tangled)
Sixth Sense
The Village
Triple XXX
The Pacifier
Any romantic comedy pretty much
Remember the Titans
Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief
Sky High
Lord of the Rings Triology
Man From Snowy River
The Mummy and Mummy Returns
Batman (the new ones)
Fast and Furious
and the list goes on and on!!!!

Day 6: Pic of Something That Makes Me Happy!!!

2011-12-08T16:54:00.003-07:00

DUCKY!!!!

Day 5: Song to Match Your Mood

2011-12-08T16:51:00.002-07:00

If I posted this when I should have, the song would have been "Who Needs Sleep" since I don't sleep well any more (bathroom breaks, cramps, tossing and turning) and am constantly tired. But as of today, it would have to be "Jingle Bombs" by Achmed the Dead Terrorist!!!!

The Rents

2011-12-04T10:37:00.004-07:00

(Mom and Dad when they were newlyweds)

So my mom and dad have to be 2 of the coolest people I know. Ok. I think they are the 2 coolest people I know!!! My dad's name is Kent Delos (my grandpa got this name off a list of drunk guys who came in the hospital that night) Hutchings. My mom's name is Jeanie Marie Roth. My dad was born May 13, 1950 and my mom October 14, 1953. They met at BYU in the group International Folk Dancers and got married September 21, 1973. They have 9 BEAUTIFUL children: Cara Jean, 37, Alicia Ann, 36, Mindy Marie, 34, Chad Kent, 33, Amberlyn Brook, 31, Shaun Tyler, 28, Kelby Rand 26, Brendon Berc 21, Breanna Noelle, 19 almost 20. (Our family in much younger days)

They also have 12 beautiful grandchildren: Colton Ray, 10, Sterling Daniel, 9, Kayden Chad, 8, Ryland Kent, 6, Boston Cooper, 6, Dacie Ann, 4, Mikelle Amay, 4, Mccoy Daly, 3, Azure Snow, 1, Rhett Douglas, 1, Lekai, 9 months, Jade Marie, 2 months. (All but one of the grandkids at my wedding)

My parents have moved countless times (at like 15 if not more), been through at least a 12 jobs (just for my dad alone), 8 brain surgeries (for my dad), knee replacement (dad), prostrate cancer (dad), diabetes (mom), vertigo (mom), and breast cancer (mom), and yet they still find time to attend games, awards ceremonies, graduations, births, baptisms, weddings, and anything else they can manage!!! They have shown all their children what a strong marriage can be like and the true meaning of unconditional love!!! They are the 2 strongest people I know as well.

My dad: Has the sweetest, strongest testimony of the gospel of anyone I have seen!! He is the rock in our family!! He is the first one to suggest that family get together for whatever reason they can!! His face never shines brighter or his smile is never bigger than when he is surrounded by his family!! He has sacrificed his whole life for the well-being and health of his family. He laughs when we laugh, cries when we cry, is angry when we are angry, and is our number one supporter!! He rarely ever lets us see him in pain or hurt as he is trying to be the strong one for our family. And yet, he is the first one to tell a famous dad joke (his favorite is about his deaf dog. You should ask him sometime) or suggest something fun and crazy to do!!!(Funny daddy!!!)

My mom: THE STRONGEST lady I know!!! Has sacrificed time, money, emotions, and body for her family. She loves to dance and shares that whenever she can. Her body may not do the motions she can dream up anymore, but her mind still works and she teaches that to her children. Her testimony is just as strong as my dads, and never waivers, no matter what the new trial in life might be that she is facing!! She is also the funnest person to hug!!! She laughs readily and cries when her children do!! She is the most spontaneous one (first one to suggest TPing or chasing a car full of cute boys and getting a speeding ticket for it) and will actually participate as well!! Has had her fair share of physical ailments, but manages to keep a smile on her face!! She is our light and joy!!

(Mommy with her newly shaved head after chemo and with her youngest granchild)

My parents are a true inspiration and light in my life!!!! I don't know who or where I would be without them!!!(Mom and Dad now. Still as gorgeous as ever!!)

First Love

2011-12-03T15:00:00.002-07:00

I can't believe I am actually writing about my first love. It has been FOR-E-VER (Sandlot quote) since I have talked to him. I did a little cyberstalking and got this pic off his wife's facebook (no I am not friends with her, but I am friends with his sister and she has his wife linked to her. Confused yet). His name is Geoffery Ethan Anderson. He is 31 (same age as me) birtdhay May 13 (sad that I still remember huh?!).
So you want to hear the whole dirty story? Ok. I'll give you the short and condensed version. Met him my senior year of high school doing a church play (his girlfriend at the time convinced him to be in it). We had a dance scene together and ended up playing a game to see who could hurt the other person more during the dance. After the play was over, he disced his current girlfriend and started dating me. We had been dating for 3 months before we admitted to being in love with each other. We went to BYU together the next year and spent our freshman year there together. That Christmas we decided we wanted to get married, so I got a promise ring. He then went on a mission for my church. For one whole year (the mission thing is 2 years long) we wrote faithfully and all was well. Then, for some unknown reason to me (never found out) he started writing weird and not soo nice letters. Finally, I gave up on the idea of marrying him and decided to serve a mission of my own. When I found out where I was going, I wrote him and told him and that was the last contact I had with him. When I got back (a year and a half later) an old friend of mine and his contacted me and in the course of our conversation I found out he had gotten married. Nice of him to tell me. Anywho, the above picture is of him and his beautiful family. I think they have 3 kids now, but not sure. I was young, but we were really in love!! I am glad that we each found happiness in our own ways!!!

Blog Title

2011-12-02T16:21:00.001-07:00

My blog title isn't that interesting. I basically named it this because I just got married and I am starting a whole new chapter in my life. Little did I know that included a 3rd little Kleinman as well, but we welcome little ducky as part of our new chapter.

Introduction

2011-12-01T17:26:00.003-07:00

15 Interesting Facts:

1. My nickname is BooBoo. No one knows why.
2. I sucked my thumb until I was 4 and then one day just up and quit because I wanted to.
3. I have eaten dishwashing detergent and drank gasoline.
4. I have lived in 2 countries besides the United States: Japan and Argentina.
5. I have 8 brothers and sisters all from the same mother and father and none of them twins or triplets.
6. I was born on Friday the 13th.
8. I have visited or lived in 23 of the 50 states.
9. I have been skydiving and LOVED it!!!
10. I make up weird sayings like: "Boredah", "Vogue! Strike a Pose!", and "In my world, only I exist."
11. I have run 2 marathons.
12. My favorite color is orange because I feel sorry that no one else likes orange and because you can't be sad when you are wearing that color.
13. I have torn my ACL and got arthroscopic surgery for it.
14. I got plastic surgery from G.O.D. (Ok. It was to get stitches sewn on my cheek because I got hit in the face with a field hockey ball and the surgeons name was Gregory O. Dick, but hey, it counts).
15. My High School principal's name was Mr. Dickoff. No lie.

Grandchild #13

2011-11-08T15:31:00.003-07:00

So I know I just got married 2 months ago, but both Nathan and I agreed that we didn't want to wait to have kids. Luckily, Heavenly Father felt the same way!! We are now excitedly waiting for our first little ducky (and grandchild #13 for my parents, #1 for his parents) to be born on June 12, 2012. We had our first ultrasound today and got to see little Ducky(what we fondly call it) moving around and with a strong heartbeat of 171 beats per minute!! How one can look at the picture and not believe in a God or the miracle of life is beyond me!!! I am soo blessed and happy to be starting this new adventure in my life!!! I thought I was happy being sealed to by husband forever on September 2, 2011, but this is just icing on the cake!! I love life and all the blessings it brings with it!!!!

ENGAGED!!!

2011-06-01T12:27:00.006-07:00

Story time: Once upon a time there was a tree. This tree had much history with Amberlyn Hutchings and Nathan Kleinman. One day, Nathan told Amberlyn he wanted to take a picture of her by the tree for his brother on a mission. Amberlyn gladly conceded. After the awkward pictures were taken, Nathan went to put the camera away in the camera bag on the ground by the tree while Amberlyn stood behind him and watched. Suddenly, Nathan swiveled around with a box in his hands. Amberlyn shockingly asked "Are you serious?" (as she assumed it was a joke from previous encounters with said tree). The reply was in the affirmative. To which Amberlyn covered her mouth and began to cry. At this point, smiling so big it almost jumped off his face, Nathan inquired "Will you marry me?" Amberlyn enthusiastically, although somewhat muffled, replied, "YES!!" When Amberlyn did not immediately remove her hands from her mouth, Nathan questioned, "Would you like me to put it on for you?" Amberlyn, speechless at this point, affirmed he could with a subtle head nod. After the ring was in place and a hug ensued, Nathan, rather quizzically, asked, "So was that a yes?" (Apparently proposing had caused temporary deafness) to which Amberlyn ecstatically exclaimed, "Definitely YES!!" The end.

The "fake" proposal for April Fool's day for my students. The story that I made up for this one was that he sent me on a scavenger and the last clue was: "Go to the spot where you first 'fell' for me." Story about that more in a minute. My kids totally believed this story and the ring, which surprisingly enough, looks very similar to my real ring!!!

So the story behind the tree; In March of this year (I think) after institute, I decided to climb a tree behind the institute building. I was wearing slippers so managed to slip out of the tree while trying to get into it. On my way out of the tree, I swung on a branch to help me reach the ground. Well, the branch was weak and I am heavy so it snapped while I was in mid air landing me on my head and back and knocking me in the head with the branch. Nathan and Kendra (his cousin and my friend) were there to witness the event. Thus the tree playing an important roll in the entire engagement saga!!!The Real ring and happy me!!!

Mormon Prom

2011-04-21T17:37:00.006-07:00

So, there is this thing here in Arizona called Mormon Prom. Basically it's the same weekend as the Proms here in town, but it's geared towards Mormons, which means no inappropriate dress or music. My boyfriend's brother was going with a bunch of friends, but since they are all under 18 and the dance was in Flagstaff and didn't get over until 11 pm, which meant they would be driving after midnight, we got asked to be chaperones. I of course wanted to dress up, so away we went!! Formals and all!! It was an oriental theme and I'm sad that I didn't get a chance to take pictures of the decorations, but it was SUPER fun and SUPER late night!! How often do you get to get dressed up for formals after college anyway?!Pinning Nathan's boutonniere on!! He was scared I'd poke him!!

Soo awkward for him, soo funny for me!! His first corsage ever!!

Everyone survived the pinning!!The Lovely Ladies: Alex, Mashayla, ?, and Amberlyn The GQ Men: Cody, John, Joseph, and Nathan The whole gang!!! Nathan is shorter than me, but we made it so he looked taller!!

Gave the kids my camera and this is what they took!! The two lovebirds!!

My all time favorite picture of us soo far!!!

Proposal!!

2010-11-03T13:10:00.002-07:00

Beach Bums!!

2010-11-03T12:57:00.004-07:00

So, as part of my trip home this summer, my lil' sis and I took a trip to the beach!! Since there are no beaches in AZ, this was a perfect opportunity. Our parents told us about a beach with a shipwrecked boat on it, so we headed there. It only took like 2 hours to get there!! Not bad huh?! We had fun in the sun, sunbathing, swimming in the cold water with the dolphins, seals, and diving birds, building a sand castle, and hiking along the beach!! The adventure of the day was driving home and trying to find a fast food restaurant!! FYI, central California does NOT have any fast food restaurants for like 45 min!!!The beauty queens at the beach!!

The shipwrecked ship!!

"I shall call him squishy and he shall be my squishy"

I didn't know that humans could lay dinosaur eggs!!

Found cute baby footprints while walking along the beach

What we thought was the shipwrecked ship, but turned out to be just a cool ship.

Our sand castle complete with medieval walls and watch towers, wigwam houses, Stonehenge, and a seaweed flag!!!

I'm flying Jack!!

2010-09-21T14:57:00.004-07:00

And flying is what I did!! Another BIG part of my week long trip home was to go skydiving. Breanna and I had made a plan that when she turned 18 we'd go skydiving, when she turned 21, bungee jumping, and 25 is base jumping. We have also added a trip to Greece when she graduates from college. We have such fun plans don't we?! :) Anywho, we ended up not being able to go skydiving over Christmas break (which is when her birthday is), so we made a plan to do it this summer. And do it we did!! My mom was freaking out (because of the video they make you watch before about not suing them if you die and the waivers you have to sign, and because the place was total hippy) and my dad was jealous. We told my dad if he lost enough weight we'd go with him again!!! We of course both opted to pay for the pictures and the DVD!! Sooo worth it. My jumping partners name was Blane and he was HILARIOUS!! He had a million and one "dad jokes", as we call them. Then when it came time to jump, he said he was going to count to 3 and then go, but went on one!! He also had fun spinning us around a million times and then spinning us after our chute was open while we were gliding down (which ended up making me nausea). We jumped from 14,000 feet and free fell for 2 minutes!! It was the best 2 minutes and $175 dollars I've ever spent!!

Total ECLIPSE of the Heart!!

2010-09-21T14:39:00.003-07:00

The Girls: Breanna, Amberlyn, Ashley, a friend, Jenny, and Mikkelle

Waiting for the movie to begin!!

Surprised the theater wasn't full because the lines outside were CRAZY!!!

The sisters sporting our Twilight paraphernalia!

Our random gas logo we couldn't stop laughing at!!

Okay, so the title doesn't really have to do with the song,but it definitely has to do with the show. Thus the word Eclipse in big letters. I went home for a week this summer and one of the BIG reasons was to see the midnight showing of Eclipse with my little sister. It has become a tradition with us!! We go to all the midnight showings of the Twilight saga. She decided to invite some of her friends, which made it all that more enjoyable as they had fun screaming out and being young. We decided our favorite line is "Let's face it. I'm hotter than you." and that we would like Edward's personality on Jacob's body, so we're team Jacward!! They also had a fun question answer period before the movie began and had 3 couples come up and act out the scene when Edward first tell's Bella that he's a vampire!! Nana and I wanted to do it together because we would have rocked it, but they had to have a girl and a guy!! Boo!! The movie I think is the best one of the 3 soo far!! Excited for the 4th one to come out. The gas picture we thought was funny cause on our way home we stopped for gas and a gas truck with this slogan was printed on it!! Gotta love the randomness of it all!!

Blind Date - LITERALLY!!

2010-08-12T15:33:00.004-07:00

So when my friend asked me to set her up on a date with my other friend, I decided to make it a "blind" date. I mean LITERALLY!!! The date consisted of Scott and I, Diana and James, and Nick and Ashley (or better known as Nashley). Decided to make pizza's blindfolded. Thus the "blind" date. Each couple had one person blindfolded and the other one was in charge of telling them where to find sauce, toppings, and cheese to put on it. If the blindfolded person touched any item, whether they wanted the topping or not, it was added on to the pizza. Some couples were more precise than others, but all the pizzas ended up tasting AMAZING!!! Then it was off to do some bowling. But of course, knowing me, it wasn't just any bowling, it was 3-legged bowling!!! So each couple was tied together and had to bowl!! The best part was that we went to the trashy, redneck bowling alley and ended up having to change lanes and all sorts of things. But because of all the mishaps, we only had to pay for one person and one game!! Woot, Woot!! Scott, my date, and I were winning and ended up loosing. Diana and James were loosing and ended up winning. Nashley stayed in the middle the whole time!! Afterward, we made a last minute decision to go see How to Train Your Dragon at the dollar theater!!! It ended up being the BEST BLIND DATE EVER!!!

Random Picture Night

2010-06-20T18:23:00.006-07:00

So Ashley and I decided we wanted to have a night out on Saturday night but didn't know what to do. So she suggested we go to Torilla Flats, a ghost town type era place!! And here are the pictures to prove it!!! Gotta love BFF's and random picture nights!!
The story of Tortilla Flats Hugging a HUGE cactus! Kind of.

Ashley "pole dancing" or the best she can with a rail underneath her!! :)

I don't really fit in the wheelbarrow do I?

Just another pretty face?!

And just another pretty face!! I found the man of my dreams!!! Isn't he HOT!!

Ashley wanted a piece of him as well!! Um, I don't think they had Pepsi machines back in the old west!!

Thought I would take a bath while I was there. And what better place than to do it in the bath that Wyatt Earp used!!

Abandoned Gold mine.

Yippee Kai Yai Yay!!

Ashley is ever the lady!!

I really tried to get into the coach!!! Really!!

Surf's up!!

Ready, set, GO!!!

Happy Birthday to ME!!!

2010-06-19T15:48:00.010-07:00

So my birthday celebrations started off on Friday when I walked into work and there was a Happy Birthday banner and a plate of fruit on my desk. My cute teacher I work with, remembered that I'm not eating sugar. Bless her heart!! Then, Saturday rolled around and it was off to Dave & Buster's for some food and fun. Dave & Buster's is like an adult Chuck E. Cheese. Right up my alley. This is the pic of the people who showed up on time. Friend of Stephanie's, Stephanie, Ashley, and Steve Cox.

The dinner group (from bottom left hand corner): Tim Wells, James Ballard, Friend of Stephanies, Steve Cox, ME, Ashley Daniel, Stephaie Reed, Will Cramer, Dil Brinton.Not only was the guest of honor, but I got a crown, sash and beads as the "Birthday Princess" (that's what my sash said anyway).Fun at the table. Ashley, Stephanie and I playing with the party blowers.Stephanie with the oh so weird kid menus!! Yes, the monkey has a hamburger for a head and the monster has fries for a head!! Very odd!!

BFFs in AZ!! Ashley and Amberlyn!!My free dessert that I didn't eat!! I was good and stuck to my resolution!! Woot Woot!!One of the things you could do with your card that had points on it, was take a picture of yourself and someone else and they would mesh your faces together to make a baby for you (kind of like in How to Loose a Guy in 10 Days). ; Ashley and I had a little boy we fondly named Ambley!!Ashley winning 200 tickets at the jump rope game!!

What we bought with all the tickets we won. Royal jewelry (ring pops), a throne (Dave & Buster's HUGE 4 square ball), and a royal pet (Cookie Monster)!!!The festivities rolled on to Sunday (my actualy birthday) with a FUN game night at my house!!! Boy was I spoiled!! Sara Thacker and ME!!

Nick and Ashley, or more commonly known as Nashley!!Andy Hobbs, Audrey, and Stephanie.

Stephanie, James Ballard, and Dala (my roomie).

Katie (my roomie) made me a sugar free chocolate cake for my b-day so I of course had to take a seiance (sp?) pic. Family tradition.

The sugar free chocolate cornbread cake (it tasted more like cornbread than cake).

I wanted to wear my princess sash to church, so I threw on my old formal that I bought at BYU to go with it!! I didn't wear the crown to church, but put it on for my present pic!!! It was an AWESOME birthday!!! Yay for being 30!!!

D-Backs means Streaking!! WHAT?!

2010-06-19T15:28:00.003-07:00

So, for FHE a couple of weeks ago, our ward paid for us to go see the Phoenix MLB team, the Diamondbacks (it's a snake although our mascot is bobcat. Go figure). So away I went and had a blast!! Here are Ashley (my bff here) and I in front of the stadium. Funny thing is, she works for Chase.Here is the view from the concourse looking out into the Phoenix skyline (sort of).Some of the cool cats from our ward that went!! Starting top left hand corner, Stephanie Reed, Audrey, can't remember his name, Ashley, and I. Stephanie and I had an ongoing joke that night about jumping onto the field. We both wanted to do it. Then we started discussing how hot baseball players are. So I suggested that when we jumped on to the field, that we went up and kissed one of the hot players. She said, "Well, if we're going to do that, we might as well streak while we're at it." So we asked the first counselor in our bishopric if we streaked across the field and got thrown in jail, would he come bail us out? He said yes, so permission from the bishopric member means we're good to go!! :) The field. Yes. We were in the nosebleed section. But who cares!!

Kids I work with and Occupational Hazards!!

2010-06-19T15:05:00.004-07:00

So, my work's end of the year activity was to go to a place called Bounce U. Basically, it is an indoor facility loaded with inflatable bounce houses. Sooo fun!!They had this little cars that the kids could get into and pretend to drive around. I decided to get into one with my kid, Dillon. Getting out was a a whole different story!!Dillon and I cheesing it up!! He is such an A-DOR-A-BLE kid!! As you can see from the video!!I have the plastic burns on both of my elbows to prove that I really went down the slides!! See!!
This is my new kid I work with, Devin. He is non-verbal, has autism and cerebral palsy!! But boy does he love the water. These were taken at water day at work. Again, inflatable bounce slides and slip in slides, but with water!! How great is that?!

New Camera and New Computer!!

2010-06-19T14:53:00.005-07:00

So here are pics of my new camera and new computer thanks to the internet!!! They rock!!! LOVE them both!!

I've been ROBBED!!!

2010-05-02T16:12:00.000-07:00

About 2 weeks ago (Thursday April 15) I came home from work at 5:00 to find the door from our carport into our house wide open!! At first I thought that I had forgotten to lock the door (I am the last one to leave my house in the morning), but then I remembered checking the door to see if it was locked before I left. Then I thought that maybe my roommates dad was there, but he never leaves the door open. Then I thought that maybe my roommate was at her parents house and had run home real quick to grab something, but then I remembered she was still at work. So I cautiously walked in and said, "Hello. Is anyone here?" At first, everything looked normal. Then I walked into my room and realized that my computer wasn't on my bed. I thought maybe one of my roommates hid it as a joke. I walked into my other roommates room and saw that her bedspread was flipped up and her computer was gone. Then I walked into my other roommates room and noticed that her window was wide open and the screen was gone!!! I realized then that we had been robbed!! It was a snatch and grab job as they took my roommates tv, the two laptops, 2 of my cameras (luckily one was broken), my roommates guitar, some make-up, and few other odds and ends. It was a weird feeling knowing that some strange man touched my things, and for about a week afterwards I got a little anxious everday coming home from work thinking that someone might have broken in again. My roommates home owners insurance doesn't cover my laptop, so now its on the huntdown for a good laptop that isn't too expensive. I'm not sad about the computer (it was on it's way out anyway), I'm sad about the memories lost (i.e. all my pictures, schoolwork, English manual I made in Japan, etc.). Lessons I have learned from this experience:

1.) Get a gun

2.) Get a security system

3.) Get renters insurance

4.) Get an external harddrive and back up all my files and put it somewhere apart from computer

5.) Get a safe

One good thing about the whole experience: I got help from a hot police officer and an even hotter banker (when I changed my bank account)!! :)

Lucky Lem!!

2010-03-21T20:43:00.000-07:00

Who says you can't keep family traditions when you aren't at home?!Sunday before outfit (yes I am wearing a green tie and the tights are green fish net. Pictures forthcoming)

The actual day outfit!!! I had to be leaping like a leprechaun

Raise the roof? Not sure what I was doing here.

You can't forget the shamrock glasses or the "Kiss Me. I'm Irish." shamrock headband!

Dillon (the little boy I work with) wearing my glasses!!

If you can't tell, I have shamrocks painted on my toes, courtesy of my roommate Katie.

The famous rainbow cookies.

Lucky Charms for breakfast. Note the green bowl too!!

Lem visited my roommates, but didn't mess up their rooms. Katie's room.

He did leave his gold Rolos for them though.

Lem in Dala's room.Dala's gold.

And here are the green fish nets!! Mom didn't believe that I had actually bought them, so I took a picture to prove it.

The fish nets on the floor.

Picture Scavenger Hunt

2010-03-14T17:40:00.000-07:00

And the list is:You and your date hand spooning

"Kissing Cousins" (a couple who look like they could be related)

Yo Mama Jeans

A guy wearing a white belt

A Katie face (my roommate makes the funniest faces)

A couple kissing

An inappropriate outfit

A guy wearing a gold chain (he was really hot and nice. His name was Al. Would have loved him as my date!!)

A gagle of girls Enough people to spell a word (they are supposed to be doing YMCA)A silly photo with your date (Will and I)A goth couple Someone putting out "the vibe"Katie's date, Mike, accidentally putting out the vibe People posing like manequins

A VW bug (Will with the bug)

The only 2 we didn't get were someone who looks like someone famous and someone with a mullet. If we were looking for mohawks, we would have rocked it!!!

Hi Ho! Hi Ho! It's Off to Serve We Go!!

2010-03-13T16:31:00.000-07:00

Most people would say that 5 am is an insanely early hour to get up on a Saturday morning, but if you are crazy Mormon bent on serving your fellow man, it's totally normal!!! And serve we did!! A group in my YSA ward got up at that insane hour to go and dig out irrigation trenches filled with mud and dirt at the church welfare farm here in Mesa AZ. It was actually a TON of fun!! There were a few other wards there as well, so we got to meet and serve with a ton of fun people!! My two favorite had to be the 5 year old and 2 year old that adopted me as their racing and throwing-mud-at-each-other buddy!! The 5 year old especially!!! He even so kindly filled my pockets up with mud!!! Their names were Dallin (5) and Adam (3). They were there with their dad and had their own cute little shovels. Their dad was extremely glad that there was someone there to play with them and get them motivated to dig out the dirt. So excited in fact that they had to leave for a little while to find the Adam a bathroom, but Dallin insisted they come back so he could throw more mud at me!! When they pulled up in their car, he opened the door and screamed as loud as he could "AMBERLYN!!" I truly love little kids!! If God never grants me any of my own, I am glad I can have a special connection with others!!!

Greg, Me, Channing, John, Ryker, Steven, James, Josh, KennyThe Blue Shirt Brigade: Me, Amy, Jen, and Robert

Pic #2. Sorry there were no pics of the cute little boys!!!

Roses Are Red!!

2010-03-11T21:27:00.001-07:00

Or in my case, fire and ice!!! Talk about the best surprise of my life. They were left on my doorstep on Tuesday night!!! Still trying to figure out who the anonymous culprit is!!! THANKS!!!

A Very Merry Unbirthday To You!!

2010-03-11T21:06:00.000-07:00

My roommate Katie's birthday was this last Friday!!! So we of course threw her the party of the century. We invited a TON of people and had about 50 of them showed up throughout the night!!! Whoohoo!! We had tetherball, four square, bocce, tiki torches, cake (lots of it), homemade salsa (made by Katie and oh soo good), and lots of talking and fun!! Take a look!!!

Papago Hiking or Walking?!

2010-02-27T14:38:00.000-07:00

For a YSA ward activity this morning, we got up at 6:30 am to meet at 7 am to "hiking" at a nearby park!!! Um, it's Saturday!! Who's great idea was this? I say "hiking" in parenthesis because it was more like a walking trail. This was a boulder we did climb to the top of, but this isn't the picture I took. I forgot my camera (of course. I'm not used to having one), but this is what it looks like. Not very strenuous, but good to be out and getting air and exercise!!! The best part was the pancakes made by the bishopric at the end with the BEST homemade buttermilk syrup and a few quick games of sand volleyball!!! So not too sad about missing softball last night (it got canceled) because it was replaced, by good walking, good friends, good food, good games, and good conversations (butt spandex is all I have to say)!!!

You Underestimate My Sneakiness!!!

2010-02-24T17:31:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, my roommates and I were bored of sitting at home on a Saturday night, so we decided to play a prank on our guy friend. We made a stalker CD (songs that could be stalkerish including one that even sings about stalking someone), went and bought hershey's chocolate syrup, fake rose petals, a stuffed dog, a stalker card, and window clings, and went to his house and decorated his front step and car windsheild with it. We even addressed the card with a pet nickname (Dill Pickle since his name is Dil). Of course we had to dress in all black to make sure we didn't get caught!!!! The funny part was that he left the window clings on his windshield and drove it to church like that. Everyone kept asking him who did it, but he said he didn't know. He was pretty excited about it. Until I read his blog a week later and he mentioned a girl that he dated last year that was stalking him who had been in town that weekend, so he figured it was her!! Poor boy!! We still haven't told him. So, shhhh!! Keep it a secret!!!Shhh!! Don't tell!!!She-man man hater Crazy to the core (Dala, Katie, and Me)!!!

Do we look like we could take you on?!

I didn't get the memo that we were supposed to be making a "shhh" face!! Oops!!

Kids Say the Darndest Things Part 2!!

2010-02-24T17:28:00.000-07:00

So, for Valentines weekend I went to my sister's house in Cottonwood AZ. She has 3 little boys and little girl. The boys were trading/playing with pokemon cards (they are obsessed) when I got there and had them in neat little piles. I asked the oldest, Colton (who's cards they are), what he would do if I messed them up. He said he would hit me. Then the youngest boy, Ryland, said he would kill me. I asked him how and he said he would cut off my head. I told him that then I would be dead and asked, "Wouldn't you miss me?" His prompt reply: "No" very matter of factly. Gotta love my nephews!!

First pics with sister's borrowed camera - friend's b-day party!!

2010-02-20T15:54:00.000-07:00

So, my friend's, Kendra, birthday was this last week and as a belated celebration, we went to this little Bistro restaurant in downtown Mesa to celebrate. There were about 15 of us there. We went there because my friend took Flamenco dance classes at MCC and her teacher was performing there that night. We split 4 appetizers and just had fun watching her teacher perform. Kendra got to go up and sing a song and I asked Kendra to ask her teacher if we could go up and learn some Flamenco steps, and let us she did!! It's quite the work out if you ask me!! It was super fun!! After the performance we went to talk to the teacher and she let me feel her calf and thigh muscles!! That woman has leg muscles of FURY!!! She was way nice too!! It was AWESOME!! Then we happened to pass this event/dance hall, on our way out and they let us come in and tour the place. It was a brick building, but renovated for events and as a living space. They had a loft with an AMAZING kitchen (I wish I had taken pictures of it) and a shower that was a half oval glass wall with the water spout coming down from the ceiling (Kendra took cool pics of us inside it. Again, I forgot). The final stop on our adventure was to see a horse made out of random metal objects (including a vacuum machine). That I did get pictures of!! It was a CRAZY, FUN, EXCITING, RANDOM, night!! Loved it!!

Christmas Vacation - a little late, but better late than never!!

2010-02-20T14:29:00.000-07:00

Our cute little apartment lit up at night!!

Nana's b-day is on the same day!! Sherlock Holmes and a cake in the shape of a crown made it worth it!!

My stash of Christmas gifts (tub and bear in background not included). And yes. I got a Wicked Witch of the West Barbie doll! She's my favorite!! Although she's pretty like Barbie. What's up with that?!

Nana's Barbie. Her head was HUGE!! The Barbie's head that is. Don't ask us what happened!!

What our family room looked like the morning of!!!

Our awesome pj pants (they are from Old Navy and seriously comfortable and my most favorite)!! We were too tired to do a real sister pj picture!!! Can't you tell?!

An interesting holy family. Dad=Joseph, Me=Mary, Mikkelle (my niece)=Baby Jesus!!

It wouldn't be Hutchings' nativity without a bi-polar shepherd, an angel that shimmered like Edward from Twilight, A 70's wiseman, an Arabic woman wiseman, and the gangsta wiseman. Someday we'll have to answer for this. But for right now, we're just going to play with it!!

Mikkelle dressed herself and looked too cute for words!!

For the family talent show, Mikkelle showed off her "naked dance." She only does it when she is naked or only wearing a diaper. She shakes her little bum!! It's A-DOR-A-BLE!!

Nana and I doing the clogging routine she taught me THAT afternoon.

All the kids that were home for the holidays (besides Kelby and Amber-Rose. Don't remember where they were).

Cat and I had the same Christmas shirt (except she is 2 times skinnier in hers than me). I got mine from the teacher I work with and she bought her own.

All the girls getting ready at the same time. I was actually done getting ready, but had to stay in for the picture.

Nana and I slept on the queen mattress out in the family room since there was "no room in the inn" for us. Mikkelle would come climb in bed with us every morning. We LOVED it!!We made gingerbread houses one night as a family. I don't think I was really ready for this picture. Mikkelle is next to me on the chair and spent the evening downing the creme in the Oreo cookies!!My finished gingerbread house. I decided to go traditional this year. I know. Boring.All the finished houses. WE had a bar of soap, Willie Wonka's Chocolate Factory, the temple, a voodoo gummy man stabbed through the heart, and the catholic priest house!! At least we have fun making them right?!Our decorated tree and fireplace. I didn't get to lay under the tree this year after it got decorated because I came a day too late!! Sad day!!:(Don't know what we were doing, but we matched and we're cute!! Can't beat having nieces at home for Christmas!!

Broken Camera

2010-01-31T19:15:00.000-07:00

Hey friends and family!! It's ME!!! I didn't die!!! Imagine that!! Okay. Enough with the exclamation points. I've just been very busy with life and work and school and YSA conferences and fun!!! Okay. So I guess I wasn't done with the exclamation marks!! Ooops!! Anywho, I haven't posted much lately cause my camera has been busted!! Yep. Just stopped working right after Thanksgiving. I still haven't gotten my Thanksgiving pictures off my camera yet. I do have some Christmas pictures, but only because my mom took pity on me and let me copy them from her camera. So eventually I will post those. My sister is going to let me use her old camera until I can buy a new one. So I'll try to update you more in the near future!!! Wish me luck!!!

New Moon or Bust!!! Oh and to see my sister too!!

2009-12-12T15:11:00.000-07:00

The weekend before Thanksgiving the movie New Moon came out!! I know a bunch of you are rolling your eyes and sighing right now at the mention of such a movie, but Brendon, Breanna, and I made it a deal and a tradition to go see the midnight showing of all the Twilight movies when they each came out. Brendon is serving a mission, so Nana and I were the ones that were in charge of carrying on the torch.!!
We actually didn't end up going until 12:40 am, but close enough. Too bad the theater we went to was EXTREMELY SMALL!!! And because of the number of people, we ended up being some of the last in the theater and couldn't find 2 seats together except for the first row left side, so we would have had kinks in our necks. They had an area in the middle to put wheelchairs. Since Nana and I had a blanket, we put it on the floor and watched the movie from the floor. Hey. We paid to get a good seat to see the movie!! The movie was AWESOME!!! Soo much better than Twilight. There was a couple there that dressed up like Bella and Edward and looked pretty close to the real things (contacts and all). My little sister has a shot of them. We also had people wearing the red contacts too. It was way fun!!

I also went to see my little sister in a dance she was performing. The senior dance majors have to coreograph a dance and teach it to people for their final project. Nana found out about it and was in a contemporary dance (at least I think that's what it was). I videotaped the whole thing on my phone, but my phone sound is busted so I only have the video with no sound!! Oops. Nana did GREAT!! My favorite dances were a 50's contemporary about leaving and a time one that was rough contemporary. Didn't quite understand the video dance. Weird!!!

On Saturday, we drove my sister-in-law to the airport and then went go visit my brother and family up in Kaysville and help them decorate for the holidays (they are getting a head start since my sister-in-law is pregnant and has complications). I have some of the most adorable nephews. Mccoy just climed into a pile of leaves and sat there for a little while. Had to get a pic.
Then he went inside and climbed behind their couch and was looking out the window at us!! He looked lik a prison inmate wanting out!!
That night, after Breanna's performance, Kelby, Nana and I went to a movie at the $1 theater (oh what I would give to have one here in Mesa). We couldn't decide (literally. We spent 20 minutes arguing about it and entertaining the ticket clerk), so finally I got to decide so we watched Cirque du Freak: The Vampire's Assistant. It was a vampire weekend. Nana wasn't too thrilled about it, so afterwards, her and I made a midnight Wal-Mart run and then watched The Proposal. All in all, it was a much needed and happy weekend!!!

The Nomad Settles In

2009-12-12T14:43:00.000-07:00

If you have been following my nomadic life, you have been privy to see me move from Laveen AZ, to Mesa AZ, to Cottonwood AZ all in a matter of 3 months. I decided to continue on with my moving streak and move for the 4th time in 4 months. Now I am back in good old Mesa, but I am living with roommates and have basically settled in. I figured that since I now had a full time job, I could afford to move to a real place. I live with 2 girls named Dala (pronounced day-la with a long a) and Katie. Dala owns the house and had 2 extra rooms, so Katie and I are renting from her. I moved in the week before Halloween. My room is a good size for one person. sufficient enough, and I really like my roommates. It's in the boundaries of really good ward too. I am enjoying having my own place for right now and NOT living out of my car, even if that does mean that I have no bed frame and no dresser drawer. Beggars can't be choosers.

Halloween or moving? Which would you prefer?

2009-12-12T14:29:00.000-07:00

So I know that I am a little behind on my blogs. Okay. A LOT behind but I've been extremely busy these last couple of months trying to get my life in order. I actually saw Julie & Julia last night and decided I want to write a non-scencical blog about something random. Maybe I'll start one called Single and Sassy and write about my many strange single adventures I have. It's kind of interesting sometimes.

Okay, so enough of the randomness and on to the real reason I'm writing this blog, which would be...Halloween. For those of you who know my fun loving, crazy, party attitude, you also know that holidays are my absolute FAVORITE!! I love to go all out and be crazy and get into the spirit of things. Well, this Halloween turned out to be a little different. At my job, we did let the kids come dressed up on the Friday before Halloween. We, the teacher and the other habilitators, decided to go as a bag of M&M's and M&M's themselves. The teacher was the bag, and we were the M&M's. It actually turned out really cute and EVERYONE loved it!! But that was about the extent of my holiday celebrations.

I decorated for the holiday (a few days before), but actual Halloween day was spent getting all my stuff from my sister's mother-in-laws house, unpacking my room (which by the way still doesn't have a bed frame or dresser drawers) and then doing assignments for school!! It was the most anti-climatic Halloween any one's ever had. My roommates went to a bunch of parties and trick-or-treating with Nephews, but I got to spend the day at home!!! It was sooooooo SAD!! I did get to watch Dark Crystal with one roommate and our friends, but that was the extent of my Halloween celebration! BOO!!!

Oh!! Almost forgot. I did get to do a pumpkin. We carved them at FHE the Monday before and I was not about to pass up that tradition. I made on with a cat chasing a mouse and a full moon (my friend Nick's idea). Nick made one throwing up and let me keep it since his family had already done them and he already had one!! That was about the only fun part to the holiday!!!

Kids Say the Darndest Things!

2009-12-02T22:07:00.000-07:00

My sister posts on her blog some of the crazy things that her kids say. I have been privy to be there when they have said some doozies themselves. Here they be:

Doing a school project making slides with pictures that begin with certain letters for elementary school age kids.
Amberlyn: "Hey boys. What are some words that begin with the letter A?"
Ryland: "Oh I know. GOAT!!!"

After playing a game with the 3 boys, Sterling lost and was really upset.
Amberlyn: "Sterling. It's okay to loose. Aunt Amberlyn looses all the time. We can't always win."
Sterling (through tears): "I didn't loose. The scriptures say that the losers shall be winners and the winners shall be losers. So I won!"
Um, I don't think he quite understood what that scripture meant!!!

Online Courses!! AAAAAHHHHH!!

2009-11-07T19:01:00.000-07:00

Okay. So apparently my teacher for this class did not get the memo that this is an ONLINE course!!! She has a PH.d. and I think she assumes that we are going for our doctorates instead of our masters. Just to give you an idea of what is going on I'll explain what this class involves. 3 individual papers (with intense research), 3 BIG team assignments, 4 days of posts a week for participation points, 2 team annotated bibliographies a week, and one team response a week. This ALL needs to be done within 4 weeks. On top of that, she posts the requirements for each assignment, but in 3 or 4 different places and with 3 or 4 different sets of requirements and then when we ask questions for clarification, she sends us back to these postings (like that clears it up). She gets defensive and is kind of all out rude in her answers sometimes. On top of that, she sometimes does NOT include things she requires in the assignments and even if you follow her rubrics SPECIFICALLY, she still requires more and grades just as harshly!! It is a joke. I have never been this stressed out about a class in all my life, including my 18 years of pre-masters program classes. I am trying to get a formal complaint together and have A LOT of class support as everyone is struggling in this class!! Honestly, we took an online class because we have jobs, families, and lives and really want to be successful and do our assignments right, but that is impossible if we don't know what we are supposed to be doing!!! Boo on online courses!! Or should I say, online teachers!!

Yard Sales!! UGH!!

2009-10-22T14:51:00.000-07:00

So living near sisters has it's advantages and it's disadvantages. One of those disadvantages is yard sales. I absolutely DO NOT like yard sales. I don't know why, but something about them makes me fell a little like white trash. I mean, everyone has them and everyone knows that it's second hand stuff, but I still feel like they are getting old junky stuff!!! But yard sales are a part of purging your house/apt of junk you don't need. And my sisters decided it was time to do it to their places. And since I live here, I got help!!! First was at my sister, Alicia's, house for 3 days (Thursday, Friday, and Saturday) of last month. I got to be the translator for all the Spanish people that came, which wasn't very many!!! It was kind of a bust sale, so Cara decided to lug the stuff to her house to do another one a month later. Luckily, at this one, I was in charge of the kids for one day and the second day I had to do University of Phoenix online classwork. Oops. Soo sad!! That didn't keep me from getting frustrated and yelling at my sisters. Boy!! I am definitely a good yard saler!! Soo glad that's all over!! Whew!!

JOB!!!

2009-10-19T13:00:00.000-07:00

For those of you who don't know, I GOT A JOB!!! I start Tuesday with training!! I am excited!! It's $11 an hour, so not what I was getting with EUSD, but it is from 8-4 everyday with a half hour paid lunch break. So basically, I work 40 hours a week!! It is with an institute called L.I.F.E. if you couldn't tell by the picture. It is an institute that offers all the services that disabled children need in one place instead of having the parents run to a MILLION different places for school, therapy, and whatever else their kids need. As mom said, I am never going to get away from these special education kids. They have their own school programs, so I am going to be an aid in the intermediate classroom!! It should be fun and rewarding. I get to wear jeans everyday and their L.I.F.E. t-shirt, so I'll be pretty comfortable all day!! Yay!! I am moving down to Mesa in the next couple of weeks and living with a girl named Dala in my ward!! Life is starting to work out!! Get it. Life!!:) Bad joke!! Thanks for all your love and support through all my trials, tears, melt-downs, and craziness!! I love you all!!

Family Birthdays!!

2009-10-19T12:27:00.001-07:00

October is family birthday month!! For real!! It starts with Cara, then John, then Beth, then my mom, then Mikkelle, and finally Alicia!!! Whew!! And since I am in the state where most of these birthday people live I get to celebrate with them all. And now you get to see how we celebrate too!!Cara, the cute birthday Princess!!

The glutton free chocolate cake I spent an hour on making for Cara's birthday (she can't have wheat)!!

John's Birthday cake and singing to him.

What happens when Alicia is with sisters, finds the tape, and goes crazy!!!

Playing Disney Scene it for John's birthday.

The nephews with Cara and John at John's b-day party!!

Car Trips!!

2009-10-19T12:10:00.000-07:00

So, since I live in Cottonwood with my sister and my ward and most of the job opportunities I have been pursuing are down in Mesa, I usually take one trip a week down there. Yes, it eats up a lot of gas, but it's worth it for me!! But as I travel I get to see a lot of interesting things. These are just few of them:The gorilla motorcycle rider!!Right after this picture he gave me a peace sign. I think he saw the flash!!!Random Hot Air Balloons!! Don't know why they were there.The upclose picture of the hot air balloons!!

TOFW

2009-10-19T11:55:00.000-07:00

For those of you who don't know what that means, it's an acronym for Time Out For Women. It's a conference that the church holds for Women ages 18 to 100. They do it all year long in a lot of different cities, but they ALWAYS come to Phoenix. Cara had never been and Alicia goes every year so we decided to make another sister outing of it!! We drove down on Friday and stayed at Dawn's house on Friday to Saturday.

On Friday night Bro. and Sis. Wilcox spoke as well as John Bytheway. Their theme was, "If you can laugh at it, you can live with it!" They told some really funny, funny stories and jokes and had us in stitches. The musical performer of the evening was Jenny Oaks Baker (Elder Oaks daughter). She is a violin player and is AMAZING!! She played with the New York Symphony first chair. I was soo in love with her playing. I only wish I could play that well!!

On Saturday, the speakers were Emily Watts, Emily Freeman, Susan Ulrich, and Kris Belcher. They talked about Sweet Assurances we receive by the truths we know. The truths were: Emily Watts- Fruits of our labor (raising children), Emily Freeman- Abundance (The loaves and fishes story in the Bible), Susan Ulrich- Sins verses Weaknesses, and Kris Belcher- Grace and Healing!!! Kris was a favorite as she is completely blind and told us some extremely HILLRIOUS stories about situations she was in because she was blind!!! The musical performer of the day was Kenneth Cope. He was really good, but sang a few different songs that were interesting!! It was a very uplifting day and fun to hang out with sisters.

Cara's highlight came on Saturday. They had drawings for Deseret Book, some storage place, and a place that does online journals. Cara really wanted to enter so Alicia and I said we would put her name in on our cards too!! We didn't really, but we did enter for ourselves and Cara entered for herself. After lunch is when they did the drawings and Alicia and I were teasing Cara that she better do her hair and make up so when they called her name she would be ready to go up and get her prize. Well ...... SHE WON the journal!! Alicia, Cara, and I were laughing soo hard!! It was really funny!! I love spending time with my sisters!!

Hair Dying Party!!!

2009-10-19T11:31:00.000-07:00

So my sister Alicia wanted to highlight her hair because her mousy brown roots were starting to show. I have wanted to put purple and blonde highlights in my hair for a little while and my sister Cara has wanted to do blonde highlights for a little while too, so since we all live close together, we decided to do it all together. Too bad Cara and I bought cheapy dye and the blonde didn't show up too well. My purple was awesome except that it was hidden under my red hair and were really thin highlights so that you couldn't see them unless I fixed my hair a certain way. And because I didn't have color treating shampoo, they are pretty much gone now!!! Alicia's dye was like pur peroxide, so hers turned out GREAT!! I did them!! Go me!! Cara was babysitting a little boy and Dacie was there too and they wanted to do it as well, so we put foil in their hair without any dye!! It was fun bonding time all around!!Alicia, sooo excited about doing Cara's hair. Can't you tell?

Waiting for the dye to set.

I could get reception with so much foil in my hair!!

Sexy foils Alicia!

Cara looks really surprised that she needed that much foil!Dacie's really excited about her "highlight'!!The little boy Cara was babysitting getting his hair "highlighted"!The crazy sisters taking fun pics while we are waiting for our hair to be done.

We seriously did not plan on all making the same face!! We're sisters!! What more can I say!!

2009-10-13T16:05:00.000-07:00

I spent my second year at Young Women's camp the first week in July (the week before I moved to AZ). The called me again as the lifeguard, but added to my responsibilities to be the music leader. The lady who usually does it, Sis. King, has MS or something like that and can't walk very well and is in a lot of pain a lot of time, so she didn't feel like she could make it up to camp. So I met with her before camp to go over what we wanted to happen. Our camp didn't have song booksl, so we spent an afternoon putting songs together for camp. We also went over an evening of teaching me some of the songs I didn't know, and she made me a CD to listen to the songs and learn them. Can I just say that for a month before camp, all I sang was camp songs!!! I also wanted to make music a big part of camp this year, so I made awards (music note wands) to pass out to the year that sang the most during that day. This meant at meals, to and from activities, and whenever they could!!! I was surprised at how much this caught on with the girls. They loved it!! If they didn't know a song, they came to me to learn it!! I have never heard soo much singing in my life!! It made me soo happy!! To also let the girls know who I was and what my job was at camp, I made T-shirts that said FACE the music (with the notes F A C E on the treble cleff) and Every Girl Becomes Divine Forever (with the notes E G B D F on the treble cleff). I put my nickname on the back for fun. I also wore a sun hate, a music note scarf, and shoes decorated (by myself) with musical notes and phrases all week!! The girls loved it!! Then, for lifeguarding, I wore my dad's swimsuit from the 70's all week!! It was nice to not have a calling to be directly over a year because during certifcation time I could go make crafts, do family history, or make scarves for the humanitarian project!!! I loved it!! And the girls loved my crazy outfits!! I did bunk in the yurt (round platform tent like things) with the YCL 1's and stayed up late every night talking, telling stories and bonding with these cute girls!! It was a very fun, very dirty, very tiring, and very blessed week!!I got assigned to one of the buses going up as the adult supervision. I got to be with the first years!! They were a BLAST!!!

The first day of camp we had to introduce ourselves and what our job was at camp. So this is how I came out on stage. You can't see, but I had bright orange flippers too. I taugt the girls a swimming song to incorporate both callings!! They thought it was great!!

The back of my shirt.

A regular days musicware

This is my dad's AWESOME suit from the 70's!! He actually wore it too!!I found an orange ball at one of the activities and stole for the day and pretended to be pregnant. The husbands name was Harry and was 6'2", dark, and handsome. He couldn't come to camp!!:)

I got in trouble for pretending to be pregnant, so here is me after I gave birth to George, the little orange ball, and before I had to give him back!!

One of the many crazy get ups the YCL 2's wore every night.

More crazyware.

One of my girls from seminary, Carey. She took about 12 pictures of herself (I made the mistake of giving her my camera), but I only put this one on!!

2 of my girls from the year before, AJ and Katherine. I was the 4th year counselor the year before. They are GREAT girls!!

Every night the YCL 2's put on crazy skits and did crazy games in crazy outfits!! Here is just one of them. The camp theme haning above them was Shoes You This Day. And we got pink camp shirts!!!

Graduation?! Almost not!!

2009-10-13T14:20:00.000-07:00

So anyone who knows my sister really well, knows the trauma of her graduation. But for those of you who don't, I'll fill you in!!! Anyway, my sister was involved in a lot of sports and dance programs and stuff. The school spends a fortune on these things and asks the parents of the students or the students themselves to pay for camps, uniforms, and other expenses. Breanna and my parent talked to the Athletic director and Nana's dance teacher about the expenses that she owed. They worked out a deal that erased her past debt and she just needed to turn in current stuff. So Nana got busy and did fund raisers and helped out her dance teacher cleaning the studio and all sorts of things. Nana went to go check what she owed at the beginning of March because if it wasn't all paid off by the end of May, they wouldn't let her walk. When she went to check, they told her she didn't owe anything. She was ecstatic because she still thought she owed a lot. If it sounds too good to be true it usually is. At the beginning of May the Vice Principal came back and said that Breanna owed the school $1000 and she needed it by the end of the month to be able to walk. Nana was devastated. She did not want to be the only Hutchings to walk. Well, she didn't have the money and mom and dad didn't have the money, so Mom and Dad went to talk to the school. They weren't trying to get out of paying, just trying to work out options that would allow Nana to walk and the payment to be postponed!! They also wanted to find out what had changed since March when they told Nana she didn't owe anything. Nana had received a scholarship that could pay it off, but she couldn't get her scholarship until she had her transcripts submitted to BYU and BYU sending a report to the agency that gave her the scholarship saying she was enrolled in school. But BYU wouldn't send that until she paid her first month's rent in July (even though she wasn't going to school until September). So that was another almost $700 she had to come up with. It was crazy. When mom and dad asked if they could make as many payments as they could until the end of May and then pay the rest during the summer when Nana had a job, the Principal said No!! The Athletic director even came back and said that he never excused her from past debts. Nana had also earned over $300 in a fundraiser and the cheerleading coach said she never received it. So the principal pretty much accused Nana of stealing that money!! They were soo rude and mom said she almost hit the principal. Luckily, dad works in business and kept a level head on his shoulder. They sucked it up and thus began the month of pulling resources. Nana called everyone she could think of to ask for loans, offer babysitting services or any other service for pay, putting the word out at schools and through the places of businesses that we worked at, garage sales, and car washes. Most people were outraged, but there were the few that were mad at us. Mom got in trouble at her school for putting a flyer in all the teachers boxes for a donation car wash we had to raise the money. The worst part was yet to come though. Nana put up flyers on bulletin boards around her school to advertise for the car wash. Well, Nana got pulled out of class to go to the Principal's office. The principal said she had to take all the flyers down because "it made the school look bad" (mind you she didn't say anything mean about the school on these flyers). Then to top it off, a security guard escorted her around campus like a criminal to make sure she took down all the flyers, even when classes let out and kids were walking past her. Poor Nana was mortified and just bawled. We really think that the school was doing this because they had recently had a registrar who embezzled hundreds of thousands of dollars out of the school. It was HORRIBLE!! The garage sale was fruitful though, as well as the car wash. There were the occasional cars that passed by and screamed "Pay your f%@*!&# bills" and one hostile person call the place where we were holding the car wash telling him how wrong it was that we were allowed to hold the car wash for the purpose of helping my little sister graduate at his business. To the business owners credit he defended us and told us we were welcome to have a car wash at his business whenever we wanted. We were truly blessed to have so many people pull through for us. And WE MADE IT!! She was able to pay off her debts and got to walk with her class. It made it that much more special for her because of all the struggle and sacrifice it took. It was also neat because my 2 sisters from AZ and my sisters 4 kids came to the graduation!!! We were all soo happy to go!! And Nana looked soo cute and was soo happy!! It was all worth it!!Nana is the blonde with the yellow sash turned toward the camera in the front left corner. Sorry my camera went fuzzy.

Nana the Flasher!!

We are crazy siblings. But we do have fun!!

Nana with the 'rents.

The whole gang that came.

Nana with her niece and nephews.

We had to hold the graduate up in our arms!! It's the crazy thing to do!!

The graduation dinner at BJ's. Mmmm. Pizookies!!

More eating fun.

My free meal because they gave my first one to someone else so I didn't get my meal for like 20 minutes. Cara got hers for free too when they didn't tell her that they ran out of broccoli so they had to run to store. Oops!! Yay for free meals!!

School's Out for Forever!!

2009-10-13T12:40:00.000-07:00

So my sister said that I can type a post that happenend in the past and then repost it to the month it happened in. So I am taking my first attempt at this!! Wish me Luck!!

So school/work ended for me on the 26th of June. Luckily for me, since my job was to be an aid to an autistic child, I got to participate in all the end of the year activities including a trip to the bowling alley and laser tag!!! If you know me, these are 2 of my favorite activities!!! I bowled for a little while, went to the arcade with my student and helped him win tickets and pick out prizes, played a game of lazer tag, ate, and just had a good old time. These moments are fun for me as well, because I get to play with the other students that I don't get to spend much time with in class. They are some cool cats. Here are a few pictures of our excursion!!Cory (my autistic student) and I bowling!!Hannah and Ms. Amberlyn This kid has got to be one of my favorite kids. He wasn't in our class, but we became good friends after he challenged me to a game of tetherball and beat me. These kids were pros at it!! His name is Keshaun and he has the most gorgeous light brown eyes!! He is a cutie!! I asked him once if he would marry me when he got older and he told me no becuase I would be like 50 when he was like 20. Not quite, but close enough!! :)The Lovely ladies of room 18. In order: Israel, Grecia (she is gorgeous and was Cory's obsession), Jewelian, and Nae'Lani. The baby is Nae'Lani's little sister.More lovely ladies of room 18. Jessica, Taylor, and Hannah in the front.

These next pictures are from the last day of class. We had a TON of snacks, moved all the desks so we could play games on the floor, wrote on the whiteboard, and just had fun!! I sometimes miss these kids A LOT!! I definitely was meant to work with kids!!

Cory and I once again. He loves to take pictures!!Me, Jessica, and Jewelian in the back. Jewelian's mom works for a jewelry store, so my going away present was a gold ring with a pearl in it (all real). Jewelian was my helper with Cory and loved to hang out with me!!

The gorgeous Grecia and I!! She is Mexican, but with the most BEAUTIFUL blue eyes!! She's going to be a knock out when she grows up!!

Marissa was the tomboy in the class and LOVED soccer. She also LOVED Twilight (her parents actually let her read it and watch the movie). We became fast friends.The girls wanted to do a star picture with our feet. Their idea. Try to guess which ones are my feet.

The teacher, Mrs. McCartney (yes. Like Paul McCarntey or Jesse McCartney) and one of my favorite people in the world as well. She was a HUGE Twilight and Robert Pattison fan as well, so we got along GREAT!!One of the secretaries and another one of my favorite people inthe world, Akira. She had a different man every week it seemed like, and the most AMAZING singing voice in the world!! She was a blast!! She ALWAYS had a flower (fake) in her hair!!

And of course I saved the best for last. This is Lidia, the other Secretary!! We were meant to be kindred spirits. Her daughter played soccer with Nana for a little while. She is Portugese (so is her husband), but also speaks Spanish fluently. We had fun talking about soccer (She introduced me to Renaldo. HOTTIE!) and just being girls. I love this woman!!

Seminary days!!

2009-09-15T16:42:00.000-07:00

Text message from one of my seminary students last year:
"I miss you. Seminary isn't the same. I hope you're doing well!!"

I miss you too!! Seminary was one of my most favorite callings!! I love you guys and wish you all the best!!My cute seminary class at the scripture bowl!! They did soo good!! I was soo proud of them!!

One of my teams came in 3rd place at the Scripture bowl!! Not bad for a freshman class!!

The white t-shirts are class shirts. Our class name was Freshman Fury and the theme scripture is D&C 133:57 I think. They turned out great!!

Baptism!!

2009-08-28T17:49:00.001-07:00

So, my first nephew got baptized this month. His birthday is the 27th of July, but he waited until the 1st of August because it was more convenient for family to be there and for my sister. My sister has more information about the baptism on her blog (www.aliciasangels.blogspot.com), but since I recently moved to AZ, I got to go up to Cottonwood for his baptism. He was spoiled because both sets of granparents and all of his aunt's and uncles on his dad's side as well as 3 aunts on our side came. He was soo excited and knew all the answers. He looked soo cute in his suit. It was fun to see my cute nephew growing up. I can't believe he is already that old!! I love you Colton!!(The Hutchings clan that made it)

(Colton did NOT want to take a picture with his aunt. Too bad. I think I look way cute in this pic!! So what if Colton isn't looking up!)

My First house in AZ

2009-08-28T17:41:00.000-07:00

When I first got to AZ, I lived with my oldest sister, Cara's, best friend for about about month. She was really nice to me and I liked living there, but it was kind of far from any real city (Phoenix, Tempe, Mesa, anything) and I wasn't finding work, so I couldn't pay rent. In the end, it worked out for both of us for me to move. It gave me the chance to move to Mesa where I had more contacts and more job possibilities and gave her her house back. Here are a few pictures of her house for your viewing pleasure.(The front of her house)

(Her beautiful BIG kitchen. My mom's dream)

(My BRIGHT room)

Room for 1!!

2009-08-28T17:33:00.000-07:00

And I'm not talking about a house! I'm talking about my car on my trip out here to Arizona. If you don't believe me here are the pictures to prove it!!

Not the most comfortable way to make the 12 hour trip. Luckily I was the only one who needed to fit in that car. And that's only 1/3 of my stuff. Yikes!!

Living in an Alternate Universe!!

2009-08-28T17:23:00.000-07:00

You know you live in an alternate universe when:

This is your next door neighbors house (fountain included)

The kid you're living with calls this a mansion (especially if you've see his house)

Houses are not defined by how many bedrooms and bathrooms they have, but by how many garages they have.

I live in a Castle! Literally!

2009-08-13T15:26:00.000-07:00

So, as most of you know, and some of you don't know, I decided to up and move to AZ for a change of life. Time for something different. And different it truly has been. I'll update you more on actual move later, but 2 months and 2 houses later, I find myself at the mercy of my dad's cousin, Debbie. She is an awesome lady!! She is truly incredible. Not only has she so graciously taken me in, but she pays me to type stuff up for her, and even lets me sleep in her HUGE king size bed. Her husband was a insurance agent for fortune five hundred companies when he was alive (sadly enough, he passed away in 2000 in a HORRIBLE car accident), and had really good life insurance, so she does pretty well. Right before he died, they built their dream house and I know I get to live in it with them. Here are just a few pics of what it looks like (or some of it anyway)!!(the front of Debbie's house)

(the front entry way)

(the stairs to go up)

(The princess room for her granddaughters. It's actually a storage space under the back stairs in her house, but she converted it into a princess room. It's Nana's dream room!)

(Everything's pink including the TV with a little crown on top!!)

(They sometimes have sleepovers here)

(Pink is the new black)

(In case you didn't know what type of room it was, it's painted on the wall)

(See. I told you I lived in a castle. Complete with suits of armor)

(And coats of armor hanging on the wall. The bushes are painted on the wall)

(Even the walls are made out of stone. And don't forget the loft upstairs complete with beds and room to play)

(And the ladder staircase. Gotta have one of those!)

(This is the bed I get to sleep in every night. Pretty nice, right?!)

(Half of Debbie's closet)

(The other half of Debbie's closet complete with 3 walls of shoes!! Can't forget those!!)

(Debbie, and now my, bathroom. Or half of it!)

(the other half of the bathroom)

(their family room)

(the back stairs to get upstairs)

(Part of the entertainment room. You can kind of see their cocker spaniel's head on the couch.)

(the other side of the entertainment room)

(looking into the kitchen from their hallway. that's an island in the middle)

(this is their refridge and freezer. It takes up half of a wall)

(Their pool is surrounded my roman columns)

(the pool I go swimming in everyday!!)

Get Me to the Church on time!!

2009-07-25T13:54:00.000-07:00

Or in this case, the temple!!! So as many know and some don't know my little brother, Shaun, married his long time girlfriend (4 years), Cat (short for Catherine), on April 11th 2009 (yes. Over Easter weekend). I am now officially the only one in my family of marriageable age (Brendon is on a mission so that doesn't count, and Nana hasn't been to school yet and is still 17, so she doesn't count) that isn't married. I asked my mom what she would do after she planned Nana's wedding (because she is soo used to planning weddings and she won't have any to plan after Nana) and she said "Plan yours!" Sad day for me!! I'm not bitter or sad at all. I actually think it's hillarious!!!

Anywho, I took off a week and a day of work since it takes one whole day to drive down there and the rest of my family was going to be there at least for half the week and drove down on Saturday all by myself. I took my sister Mindy's car as she was going to Disneyland for a week with my brother Chad and his family and they were going to drive their car home on Sunday (the day of easter), so I took their car with them. My brother, Kelby, his wife, Amber-Rose, and daughter, Mikkelle, let me stay with them in their spare bedroom. My parents stayed there a few nights as did my sister Cara and her husband John. We did some major house hopping between their house, my brother Chad's house, and my grandparents house!! It was kind of fun!! I spent the week sleeping, watching movies, watchings conference (general conference was the week before the wedding), shopping, getting my hair done, reading Brisinger (book number 3 in the Earagon series if anyone knows it), and playing games!! It was a blast!!

Friday night before Shaun's wedding we got together as an entire family (except Brendon who is on his mission) and had a mini bachelor party for my brother. Nothing gross. We just played games and went around the room and told why Shaun would make a great husband and father. It was fun to be together as an entire family again since it has been 2 years since that has happened!!

The next day was the actual wedding. They got sealed in the Salt Lake Temple (since Cat served her mission on Temple Square) and the sealing was done my Elder L. Tom Perry. He is a very large man in person. He did the sealing because he served in the stake presidency with my grandpa in Sacramento years ago and before Brendon went into the MTC, my parents visited him in his office. When he found out that Shaun and Cat were gettting married in Salt Lake he insisted on doing the sealing!! It was amazing!! He is gentle giant and really funny!! He had some amazing insights on marriage and what it entails and how to make it work. I wish I had had a pen and paper to write them down. Cat's family didn't know that he was doing the sealing so they were pleasantly surpised when he walked in the room. Cat was beaming the whole time and my brother had his cute little Shauny grin on (for those of you who know him pretty well, you know what I mean)!! They looked soo happy and it was a beautiful ceremony!!

Afterwards we took the traditional pictures and I got put in charge of Shaun's new video camera to take video of all the proceedings. I also got his camera so I was way busy with that!! Thus I did not get ANY pictures with my own camera. I did have fun though with cousins and taking random video.

After pictures it was off to Chuck-o-rama for a brunch. Everyone made it except for Shaun and
Cat. They were having a good old time taking pictures and showed up for the last half hour that we were there. They were totally in their own world.

That night the reception was at a reception hall. They decided to rent one out as it was easier than making our family get all the decorations and stress over decorating a church in a place that no one was familiar with!! We did bring some of our own decorations anyway and it turned out B-E-A-UTIFUL, but once again, I had Shaun's video camera so didn't get any pictures of my own. I had fun though seeing and talking to cousins and friends (especially ones from Maryland) I haven't seen in FORVEVER, dancing my guts out, and video taping random people. Our family was asked specifically by Shaun and Cat to do a little performance. If anyone knows Cat, you will know that her favorite youtube video is Vitas Opera #2 (if you haven't seen it, you need to go watch it. It's crazy!!) so we really wanted to do that. But we figured that no one else would get it besides our family and Cat, so we did a mini skit of Shaun and Cat's 4 year rocky relationship (Chad was Shaun and Nana was Cat. It was HILLARIOUS!!) and then made up different words to The Little Mermaid's Kiss the Girls. Cat and Shaun were rolling. I'm not sure that anyone else got it, but we had fun and so did Shaun and Cat. Afterwards they left for their honeymoon to go to Mexico, only after my brother Kelby stole Shaun's keys and made him chase him. It was good times.

That night our family stayed up until 3 am playing card games. Chad was in rare form and even little Mikkelle stayed up and was absolutely hillarious because she was acting like she was drunk cause she was soo tired!! My family is hillarious for anyone who knows them, so we had a pretty good time.

About 2 weeks later, we had an open house in Elk Grove California for all our friends who couldn't make it!! Too bad it was the same night as my old roommates reception and she is part of a family that has like 10 brothers and sisters in the Elk Grove area, so not as many people came as expected, but it was still fun. We got to decorate the church this time and although it was fairly simple it was still beautiful. My sister, Mindy, and I did Cat's hair for the reception. It looked gorgeous. I mainly hung out with my friend James, who was nice enough to come and was the only one from my YSA ward to come, and Nana and her friends. I did visit with more family as well. This time I got to take pictures as I was NOT in charge of Shaun's video camera. It turned out great. It was less formal than a reception, so not too much stress!! We opened Shaun and Cat's wedding gifts that night as an end to the evening.

Overall the wedding was fun and we now have a fun new member to our ever growing family!! Yipee!!

Colorado Rockies and In the Buff!!

2009-07-24T17:14:00.000-07:00

In February of this year, my brother, his wife, and 3 little boys took a trip to Colorado. My brother graduated from Colorado University in Boulder Colorado in like 2000 or something like that. Anywho, while he attended school there he was in an acapella gr oup called In the Buff. They were named this because the school mascot was a buffalo. They didn't actually sing in the buff (although the guys at the concert said they would if they got enough money for it!! Hehehe). Well, this group has a reunion every 5 years, or something like that, and this year was the 15th Anniversary. My brother decided to go, but wanted to bring his family. They had lots of parties and dinners at night so he couldn't go with his wife and leave his 2 young children at the hotel alone. Thus, they paid for me to fly out to Utah and drive to Colorado with them to babysit their kids. And I was GLAD to do it!! I love vacations!! Too bad it was snowy and freezing there, but well worth the trip.

(The view of Bolder from the mountains)

(more pretty Boulder)

(And even more Boulder)

(The boys in the hotel room)

We had fun doing lots of planned and unplanned activities. We got to hear Chad sing his solo (Mony Mony) in the archway (an outdoor walk way with great acoustics) with his old group and a bunch of other songs. We were just grateful that they didn't strip down during one of their songs which Beth said they did. Yikes. The other members had fun partying until 4 am everyday right outside our hotel room!! It was fun for us!! Luckily, the boys slept through everything!! We took tours of Boulder and went to the library and other fun places. We ate a fabulous Mexican place (you'll have to ask Chad the name of it, but it tasted soo good) and watched Chad play in a football game with the other In the Buff boys in which he sprained his ankle or foot or something. It's the Hutchings curse. And we got to go swimming in an indoor pool (which was quite an adventure for me as I forgot my suit and didn't have money to buy a new one, so I bought shorts and went swimming in shorts and a white t-shirt. It was very interesting!!). We jammed our days with fun things to do!!

(McCoy and I watching Chad play football. I had to hold his hands down cause he kept trying to take my hat off his head)

(The indoor swimming complex)

The highlight of the trip was the concert that was put on by this years In the Buff crew which involved having all of the members who came for the reunion coming up and singing some old songs with them. Chad was having a blast!! The best part of the concert was the contest I got to be in. They had me and 2 other guys from the audience come up and have a race. We had to run from one end of the stage to the other and be the first to finish a caramel covered apple to win a free In the Buff t-shirt. Well I ran my little heart out and took a big bite of the apple to only find out that it was a caramel covered onion. I told the this with my mouth full of onion and then continued to eat the onion thinking I had to finish it to get the t-shirt. The members of In the Buff started laughing and said I didn't have to finish it, so then I had to spit it out into a napkin!! It was disgusting, but I was comic relief for everyone!! And I did get my t-shirt!! So although I think it made me sick the next day, I am glad I did it.

(The whole gang singing. Chad is in the front row, right hand side wearing the red shirt)(Chad's in the red shirt. Sorry it's soo blurry)(Chad singing his guts out)

Yep!! On the ride home I was sick the whole time (I think the car ride is like 12 hours or something). I woke up that morning with diarrhea and feeling nauseous, but I thought it would go away, but it didn't!! I took some pepto bismal early in the morning and continued to feel nauseous the whole trip, having to have Chad pull over multiple times thinking I was going to barf (which I never did). It wasn't until we stopped for dinner that I barfed up all the pepto bismal (cause I didn't have anything else in my stomach to barf up). I actually barfed it up in a cup in the car. Not my finest moment. I was sitting next to Kayden when it happened and he didn't say a word. I felt better after that. Not nauseous, but not well, just stable. When we got back to Chad's house I felt really hot, so I took some aspirin thinking I had a fever and that did the trick. I felt completely okay the next day!!

(My last day with the boys and after getting over being sick. Their true characters come out in pictures)

So, except for the day of misery, my 4 day trip to Colorado was a BLAST and unforgettable!!

Holiday #3 Catch Up!!

2009-07-23T19:08:00.000-07:00

Happy 4th of July!!! I know, I know!! I am going to be playing the catch up game FOREVER it seems like!! But better late than never I always say!!

My Independence Day was kind of sporadic!! I spent the morning up at YW's camp (they don't call it girl's camp anymore because we are supposed to focus on the fact that they are Young Women, not girls) packing up and riding home on the bus. I got home around 12:30 and went home to unpack and get ready for the day. Dad worked at the fair all day so he wasn't with us until the way late festivities.

At about 5:30 we picked up Nana and headed over to Mindy's for hamburgers, potato salad (which mom left at home and had to go back with Nana to pick up), watermelon, corn on the cob and yummy cake!! Mmmm, Mmmm!! Most of the food was prepared by Mindy and Jas!! We had homemade ice cream later that actually worked!! Surprise, Surprise!! Can you tell my family likes to eat on holidays!!! We can't help loving food!!
After dinner we went swimming (well, Nana, Jason, and I went swimming) and hot tubbing for about an hour!! I HAD to take a shower after that cause I still smelled like camp and now I was chlorinated and it was the first time I could take a shower in a week without getting dirty as soon as I stepped out!! It felt great!!We then walked down to the corner of the street to watch the fireworks from Cal Expo (i.e. the fairgrounds. Mindy and Jason live close enough we could see them). We decided to do this rather than try to battle all the traffic. We did have some tall evergreens in our way, but we still got to see the majority of the fireworks and really enjoyed them!!After that we did our own fireworks we bought. Mindy and Jason were really tired so went to bed, but Shaun, Cat, Nana, Mom, Dad (who came over after work) and I had a BLAST (haha. Get it. Blast!!) setting off fireworks!! Cat did a firework dance, and Shaun and Nana took turns leaping over the fireworks.
We all decided to be illegal too and hold the big fireworks in our hands and shoot them out!! Nana even got daring enough to put one up to her mouth.!! Then we did our traditional sparklers although we miss the old metal ones as they last longer, light easier, are brighter and don't burn you!!! We had a great time doing them though!!!We finished off the night with our traditional watching of Independence Day (the one with Will Smith in it). What can I say. We have a movie with every holiday as well. You can definitely tell where our priorities lie. With food and movies!! Hehehehe!! It was a relaxing and fun filled day!!

Holiday #2 Catch Up

2009-07-21T13:34:00.000-07:00

Happy Easter Everyone!!! I'll post more later about Shaun's wedding as it happened over Easter weekend, but for right now, I'll just post about actual Easter!! And what a good Easter it was!!(Chad, Dan, Dacie, Cara and Ryland dying eggs)

(Ryland, Beth, and Kayden dying eggs)

(Colton, Sterling, Chad, and Boston dying eggs)

Since it was Shaun's wedding the ENTIRE family (minus Brendon who was on his mission and Shaun and Cat who were on their honeymoon) were there. That meant we had 2 nieces and 6 nephews to celebrate with!! It's always more fun when kids are around. We did eggs on Saturday night with all the kids at Chad and Beth's house. Boy did the parents go all out!! We had tie dyed eggs, crayons, shrink wrap, stamps, paint, outfits, cars for the eggs, you name it!! The kids LOVED it!! I decided to do a few eggs of my own as did Cara and Breanna. We were the only adults to do them!!

We all went to our separate churches in the morning (I was with Kelby and Amber-Rose and mom and dad were with Grandma and Grandpa, i think, and the rest with Chad and Beth and family) and then met up afterward family fun!!

Nana and I still got Easter Baskets (the benefits of being single. I still get treats from mom and dad) and we had an absolute FEAST for dinner with ham and everything. Then it was off to the Easter Egg hunts.(Get Ready. Get Set.....)

(GO!!!)

(Look at all my Candy BooBoo!)(Hey! Mine's empty!)(Chocolate! Chocolate! Where's the Chocolate?!)
Anyone who knows our family knows that we do 2 Easter egg hunts. One with chocolate eggs and robin eggs inside, and the real Easter eggs outside. We mainly let the kids do the hunting, but again, being the only 2 singles, Nana and I went on the hunt. We got to get the higher up chocolate eggs. I eventually gave mine to all the kids, but it was still fun to search for them. Then it was outside to our perspective areas to search for our eggs. The little kids had it easy in the back yard, but Nana had the side of the house, I had the garage and Cara had the front yard, so we had a little tougher time. But that's what you get for being older, right? We eventually found them all and had a blast doing it.(Colton the tight rope walker)

(Um. My eggs seem to be lost!)

(I'm thinking. I'm thinking. I'm thinking)

(I found 2! Yay!)

(I can't even reach that high. How am I supposed to get my egg?)

The rest of the day was spent bouncing on the trampoline with the kids and playing games as a family (you should see my sister's video of Nana and I playing crack the egg on the tramp!! It's great!!)!! I love spending time with my family!! They are hilarious and always make me feel good and wanted!! Happy Easter to all!!(Boston, Mikkelle, Kelby and Dacie all bouncing away!)

(Boston, Kayden Kelby, Mikkelle and mystery guy jumping to their hearts content!)

(Happy Easter! Love BooBoo and Dacie!)

Luck of the Irish!!

2009-07-20T10:27:00.000-07:00

I decided that since I don't quite have a job yet here in AZ, that I would take the time to try and update my blog. Well, at least do a post a day until I'm caught up. Like I said before, I'm not updating everything, but at least the important events. Which includes holidays.
With that said: HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY!! Yeah, I know it's like 3 or 4 months old, but i figured I do it anyway. The day was prettty normal with work and stuff although, I did have the month of March off from school (CA has year round elementary schools and the track I was on had March off), but I still had Montessori. I wore a green shirt, green boa, green clover glasses, green clover headband that said "Kiss me. I'm Irish), and a green sparkely shamrock body art on my cheek!! The kids loved it!! It did make seeing hard, but fun. I was disappointed that no one kissed me this year as last year I had a cute old man give me a kiss on the cheek saying that he never passed up a chance to kiss a pretty girls!! Hehehehe!!
That night, Nana had an awards banquet for cheerleading, so we all went to have free dinner. We had a our green dinner the day before with green macaroni salad, green salad, green punch, and our famous rainbow cookies (yummy. You should try them). Nana won most spirited and got this CRAZY phsycho bobble head cheerleader trophie. It was kind of scary.
Nana and I decided that since we were the only 2 home this year with mom and dad we would make them watch all 3 of our St. Patrick's day movies. So over the period of 3 nights we watched Darby O'Gill and the Little People, The Gnomemobile, and Finnian's Rainbow. If you haven't watched them, I highly recommend it!! We like Darby O'Gill and the Little People best because it has a very young, very HOT Sean Connery in it!! But Finnian's Rainbow is good too with our favorite dancer, Fred Astaire, in it!! It was a fun family holiday. Gotta love being Irish (my grandma's maiden name on my mom's side is Daly. Can't get much more Irish than that!!)!!

Happy Birthday to me!!

2009-07-16T14:02:00.000-07:00

So I've given up on trying to catch up on my blog and I'm just going to start updating on the important events in my life. I'll go back a little ways to my birthday, but that's about as far back as I'm willing to go. So my birthday was AWESOME!! Other than the fact that I turned 29!! I got to sleep in and then spent the day watching movies and getting my hair and make up done by the my 17 year old sister (I know. I'm pathetic. I can't even do my own hair and make up right). Anywho, that night was spent with family. I kind of stopped caring about hanging out with friends near the end there (more about that later), so family was just fine. Mindy, Shaun, Cat, Mom, Dad and Nana were all there for at least part of the time. We had the traditional cake and candle blowing out and present opening and then went to do black light bowling at a local bowling alley. Cat won the prize for the funniest person as she would jump up and down each time she bowled hoping that would get her a strike or something!! It was hillarious. Dad, mom, Nana and I went home after to watch my 3rd movie of the day. You know me!! I can't help loving movies and every chance I get I watch them, I take it!! It was a relaxing day to get away from life and cares and just have fun!! Gotta love b-days!!

More Random Kids and Movie Lines!!

2009-05-16T17:08:00.000-07:00

More famous lines from my autistic kid:

"Miss Amberlyn, are you being evil?!"

"Are my friends going to start a riot?"

"What kind of washer and dryer do your parents have?" (He's obsessed with them right now!)

Movie Lines that my sister and I absolutely love and use:

"I'll love you. Always." (Must be said in a monotone voice with no emotion. Pretty in Pink)

Must clasp hands and raise them into the air randomly (watch High School Musical 1 for more details)

"No! The world must be peopled!" (Much Ado About Nothing. Kenneth Branuagh version)

"There's a double meaning in that!" (Much Ado About Nothing)

"I'd kill tigers for you!" (Only You. Marissa Tomei and Robert Downey Jr. Version)

Good Old Cheer Days!!

2009-05-16T16:33:00.000-07:00

My little sister Nana was a cheerleader at her high school, so since mom and dad were gone for her last 2 games that she was cheering in to put Brendon in the MTC I was the designated parent and got to go see her last couple of games. Here they are in all their glory!!

(Go Team!!)
(What?!)
(We're angry cause we stayed till half time and they didn't even perform a new routine!! Boo!!)
(Family's rock)
(And so do friends!)

Boo on the dentist!!

2009-04-06T12:44:00.000-07:00

So I decided that since I have dental coverage now in my insurance I would go see the dentist for a check up. I mean, it had been 8 years since my last one!! Oops!! Anywho, they did a cleaning, but discovered that I had a little cavity next to my root canal tooth and that I needed deep cleanings on both sides of my mouth (apparently they could reach too far down into my gums). That meant I had 3 subsequent dentists visits for 3 weeks in a row. Or so I thought!! I went in and got the first cleaning done, in which they had to numb the whole right side of my mouth. All went good. The next visit was too clean the cavity and fill it and maybe cap it!! Well, good old me ended up with another root canal!! Yippee!! The only problem was that when they went to put the temporary cap on it, it broke 4 times. So I ended up being at the dentist office for 3 hours!! They only did half the root canal cause they said they didn't have time to do the whole thing. By the time they were done, they sure did. Well then the next week I got to have 2 appointments. One to finish the root canal and the other to do the left side deep cleaning. When I went in for the rest of the root canal, the temporary cap had cracked in half, but luckily stayed on. Well, the root canal and cleaning are officially done, but I get to go back in the 14th to get a permanent cap and then back in in July for another check up and regular cleaning to make sure the deep cleaning was successful!! So 7 visits and $800 later, my teeth should be perfect!! I hate the dentist!! I did get to see Alicia while I was there (there was a picture on the wall that had a girl in it that looked just like Alicia. I'll post it later if I can get it to send to my yahoo account) and I got vicadin out of the whole ordeal, so it wasn't a complete waste!! Hehehe

Happy Valentine's Day!

2009-03-07T15:32:00.000-07:00

Also when my parents were gone it happened to be Valentine's Day. I told you that I didn't like being the parent. It was a lot of work. I had to be in charge of doing the tradtional valentine's bags and all the festivities!! I did want it to be special so I got both Nana and I Valentine's shirts!! It was cute. We spent the night doing different things. Nana went to a Valentine's party and dance with friends and I went on a blind date to dinner and movie with my sister and brother-in-law (with my brother-in-laws best friend) so we couldn't do the traditional red and pink dinner. So I made pink heart shaped pancakes in the morning. It turned out good and we did have fun spending it together without needing any stupid boys to make it special!! Happy day for sisters who are your best friend.

I've Got More Drive than You!!

2009-03-07T15:16:00.000-07:00

So during the week that my parents were out of town, my little sister Nana and I spent lots of time together doing all sorts fo fun stuff!! That includes the worst Mormon movies every made night at her best friend's house. Boy was it bad!! My sister and her best friend first cooked us 4 different types of Tatertot casseroles!! Who knew there were soo many. Napolean Dynamite would be proud!! I think we liked the jalapeno one the best. Then it was off to see the bad, bad, BAD movies! We watched about 3 and if you don't know what they were about, here's a few quotes to give you a hint:

"I have more drive than you."
"What about Thad?"
"You're soo naive. I love it. Marry me."
"I'm physically attracted to you."

I"M DONE!!!

2009-02-12T14:52:00.000-07:00

I am never making fun of another mother!! I have only been my parents for a week, and over a 17 year old at that, and I've been stressed out everyday!! Granted I teach seminary and work 2 jobs, but how do these working mothers do it?! I will forever be appreciative of my mom from now on!! I just can't wait till she comes back and takes over!! Mom, I miss you!!!

Amberlyn needs... BooBoo needs...

2009-02-12T14:43:00.001-07:00

So my sister had this fun idea on her blog and I decided to try it on me!! You go to google type in "(your first name) needs" and see what pops up. Write down the first 10 sites you see and you'll be amazed a the stuff you find. I decided it would be fitting to do both my name and my nickname since I answer to both readily. Here they are:

Amberlyn needs...
1. Myspace.com (not really. I already have one and don't really like it)
2. chocolates (YOU BET!!!)
3. Kennels (that only works if I have a pet, which I don't)
4. Ceremony Designs (are they trying to tell me to get married?! Boy would I love that!)
5. Drawing Wild Life (um, not an artist. Ask my friends about my stick dog).
6. Pediatrics (again I would need a child for this. Apparently google wants me to have a family)
7. Angels (everday)
8. Instant cast members (have no idea, but I would like to be an actress)
9. Health Care Counseling (I could use it)
10. A round mirror from amazon.com (not really, but I'll tak it if its free)

BooBoo needs...
1. Ginga and the World of Dogs (a book maybe???)
2. Twitter the clutterbug (sounds fun. where do I get one?)
3. A home (that is definitely true.)
4. News from designs (am I supposed to be a designer too?)
5. Your prayers (that would be nice)
6. Daniel Craig (I wish)
7. A house party (Party? Where? I'm soo there!!!)
8. A kiss (yipee. any takers?)
9. yahoo groups (already on one)
10. A rice pack from ebay (you got me).

Go ahead and try it!! It's fun!!

25 RANDOM THINGS ABOUT ME!!

2009-02-04T20:39:00.000-07:00

1. I love to do dishes, but hate sweeping. I lived at home for about 2 years and did dishes everyday for those 2 years as my chore.

2. I want to have kids that have disabilities. I hate seeing kids with disabilities in families that don't want them. I would prefer God send them to me. I most definitely want a deaf child.

3. I'm not sure what I want to be yet, but it's a toss up between Teaching High School Spanish, Firefighting, or being a Flight Attendant. What my dream job would be though is to be an actress.

4. I never wanted to learn Spanish, but then got called on a mission to Argentina and now speak fluent Spanish. I love it now and am grateful everyday that I can speak it.

5. I speak 3 languages fluently and 2 semi fluently. Want to know what they are? Fluent: English, Spanish, Sign Language. Semi-Fluent: Japanese, Russian.

6. I love to LIVE in different countries. I've lived in Argentina and Japan. My next stop would be Italy, but Thailand, Russia, Australia, Taiwan, Africa, Spain, England, and Ireland are all up there on my list. And not just visit, but live there.

7. I want to learn every language there is except for Chinese (mandarin or Cantonese). I have no desire whatsoever to learn that language.

8. If I could break any of my churches rules I would get a tatoo. I don't know of what, but it would either be on my ankle, wrist, or lower back.

9. I am secretly in love with Vin Diesel. My mom thinks I should just randomly write him. Don't tempt me mom!!

10. I would love to be on American Idol, but not to go on to Hollywood and sing, but to walk into auditions, walk up to Simon, shake his hand, say "I've always wanted to meet you in person. It's a pleasure," and walk out!!

11. I would give anything to be on Survivor, but am willing to settle for The Amazing Race (if I could do it with brother who speaks fluent Russian. Hey, we've got half the world covered) or Fear Factor.

12.I actually loved school and love to learn. I miss it everyday. Good thing I work for the school system here then huh?!

13. I was born on Friday the 13th. My friend Tay and I say we're twins only because she is adopted and we were born on the same day.

14. I want to be married and have kids more than anything in the world and I cry myself to sleep about it some nights.

15. I'm a HUGE Winnie-the-Pooh fan and believe or not, have an entire room decorated with Winnie-the-Pooh stuff although I am 28 years old!!

16. I can sound like the Wicked Witch of the West! REALLY!

17. My favorite movie is 7 Brides for 7 Brothers. I love musicals. I wish life were like a musical and that people broke out into songs all the time.

18. I have an entire file of pictures on my computer called "Handsome Hotties" with pictures of all the stars I think are hot. It has spilled over onto my closet doors.

19. I'm not afraid of anything. Seriously.

20. I want to go bungee jumping, sky diving, and base jumping sometime in my life.

21. My favorite job was working as a waitress at Los Hermanos Mexican Restaurant. It was one big flirt fest whether you were married or not.

22. I can beat almost anyone I know at the movie game (someone names a line from a movie and then I have to name the movie) IF I've seen the movie. I'm a movie fanatic.

23. I always thought it would be cool to play football for real (not just flag football). Maybe someday I'll get to.

24. I love to buy shoes, but I hate to wear them. Give a good pair of slippers anytime and I'm good to go!!

25. I love men of different races. I want to marry one!!

Kids Say the Darndest Things!

2009-02-02T14:43:00.000-07:00

Especially if they're autistic. Some of you may know that I work with an 11 year old autistic boy. He's a sweatheart, but he does have his days. The thing that gets me through those hard times though is remembering all the crazy things he says. Here are just a few of them:

-I got mad at him one day because he wasn't listening to me and doing his work. Usually when this happens he just says he wants to make me happy. But apparently I really upset him that day because he asked me, "Am I a jobless idiot?" What?! I still have no idea where he got that from. TV? Parents? Not sure.

-He got up to go sharpen his pencil and a girl in his class sat in his seat just to see what he would do when he came back. When he did return he gasped and said, "I've been replaced!"

-I kept him inside one day at recess to finish up some homework and when I let him out he ran down the ramp yelling really loud, "Recess, here I come!"

-I left him in the classroom one day while I went to the bathroom and as I rounded the corner to come back to class I see him standing at the door with it wide open screaming at the top of his lungs "Miss Amberlyn. Where are you?!"

-The other day I think he was coming down with something because he was sneezing all day. He finally turned to me and asked, "Miss Amberlyn. Why is my human body sneezing?" I told his regular teacher and she said, "As opposed to his alien body that doesn't sneeze?" We haven't quite decided yet:)

Temple Trip Troubles

2009-01-19T17:12:00.000-07:00

Whoever said that going to temple brought temporal blessings has underestimated the power of Satan. On my way to the church I hit the curb, but not just the curb, but the storm drain as well. So as you can guess I sliced the wall of my front right tire meaning I drove to the church on a flat. I went to the temple and then asked all the men to help me change it. We first couldn't get my car jacked up, then my spare was flat, then no other tires from other people's cars would fit on my car, then it was off to get my tire pumped up with air, and finally we got it on after a half an hour. Needless to say I didn't get into bed until midnight and it was quite the experience. And it didn't stop there. I went the next day to get a new tire and found out that my back left tire was completely flat and the tread completely gone so the spare went from the front right to the back left. Gotta love tires and getting them fixed.