Diamond in the Rough

April crafts and sewing projects!

2011-05-29T21:50:00.000-07:00

This is the Easter door hanger I made via my favorite wood crafting store. I have more wood projects coming up. And even a wreath or two.

This is an apron I made in April. I love this fabric it is so much fun!

These are the skirts that I made for Emma and Ashleigh last month. They weren't very hard to make and only took about an hour start to finish.

It's May!!

2011-05-07T09:23:00.000-07:00

Okay Friends, I have been crafting and I know I promised pictures but I have also been super wrapped up in our Operation Blanket Drop. Please head over to our family blog for more information. Under my blog list to the left click on Jess and Joleen or is it Joleen and Jess. I forget!! Anyway... I have been out of commission this last week as well but I do promise to get pictures up! Also please, Please, PLEASE help us spread the word for our Blanket Project! We would love, Love, LOVE all the help we can get. More details on the family blog :)!!

End of February!

2011-02-25T18:33:00.000-08:00

Can you believe it? The end of February is here. Seriously, this might be my most favorite winter month :) ONLY because it is so SHORT!!!! That does mean less days for crafting fun as well but as long as winter is almost over- I am a happy camper. OK pictures are to come of my projects but if you didn't see on the family blog I have posted pics of the "Can-O-Dates"! Today I made "Dating Dice" which for those strengthening your marriages you can use these in many different ways. I also made a "Wild About You" tin and I am working on some spring crafts. I have found the cutest birthday crafts that I will begin working on next week. Also I have two aprons I am finishing up and I am getting ready to decorate the kids bedrooms.

My sweet husband and I are taking on a project for this year and if you'd like in on it check out my family blog. (click on Joleen on the side bar and it will take you to it) So I am thinking this will take up a ton of my crafting time this year but I am more than okay with it. I just finished reading The Maze Runner and I am waiting for my new book to come in the mail which is a book on strengthening marriages by an LDS author so in the mean time I am continuing to read "The Power" (the sequel to "The Secret")! I am going to see Harry Potter 7 part 1 tonight and my new flick I am dying to see is Red Riding Hood which is directed by one of the Twilight directors and is produced by Warner Brothers and looks AMAZING! March 11th is when it comes out. All this among working (which now I get to drive 45 minutes one way 4 times a week) and taking care of the kids. Oh... I will start posting some of our FHE ideas too and I was called to help teach Primary. Whew! We have CrAzY days mixed in with quiet and relaxing ones and we are anxiously awaiting Jess getting out of school.

New Ideas

2011-01-12T09:02:00.000-08:00

January and February always seem to be my cabin fever months. I feel couped up and stuck inside; I go a little stir crazy sometimes just itching to get outside and longing for the day when we can run through the grass barefoot. My goal this year is to stay creative through these months and hopefully that will keep me from getting too "Blue"!
I love finding fresh, new ideas. I have found a few websites that are devoted to crafters. You can post your pictures of what you are doing and give tutorials. I don't have pictures yet of any that I am going to try but I'm going to tell you about a few of them.

Themed Chinese Take-Out boxes: Take a Chinese take out box (you can buy them at the craft store or party store like Zurchers in all different colors) place a floral foam ball or square in the bottom of the box. Then take tissue paper and cover up the foam making the tissue paper stick out of the top of the box. Next you'll need thin, small dowels cut to size (I like 12" to 18")and either 5 or 7 of them(odd numbers look more pleasing to the eye). You'll be inserting these into the foam so it will be easy to stagger them. Here is where the fun and the theme comes in. You will be glueing or taping items to the dowels or you can tie them on with curling ribbon. So here are a few themed ideas: birthday, the possiblities are endless; movie night (packet of microwavable popcorn, gift certificate to block buster, boxed movie candy- you can find at Walmart for $1 or go to the dollar store), baby gift (binkie, bottle, shoes, socks, ect...) Candy bar (super simple tie candy bars onto each one. This works great as a teacher gift.) Get creative with your themes.

Doily Jars- I just saw this on a website where a gal took mason jars and glued doilies to the outside. Then put burlap and ribbon around the top with buttons and jewels for embellishment. So simple! And you can put tea light candles in them and they give a beautiful glow. She suggested using real doilies and not paper ones because they work better. These are beautiful, I am going to try them out.

Burlap and Satin Stockings: Yes Christmas is over but our matching family stockings only go through three of the kids not four. So this year I am going to have to make new stockings for the family. I don't really know how to describe these just watch for the pictures.

and Pre-School in a can: this is very similar to the can-o-dates, but instead of date activities it's preschool activities for your little ones at home. I am also going to do a "Summer Time Tin" that has a bunch of activities for when my kids somehow get bored over summer vacation.

Check back for pictures of projects as I complete them. Happy January to All!!

December Craziness

2010-12-28T06:26:00.000-08:00

This December has been one of the most crazy ever in my married years. We have had all the regular family parties, birthdays, Christmas events and Jess had finals, Easton had his tonsils taken out and we moved. Now I am relaxing and working on my New Years resolutions. I will get pictures posted of my recent crafting. I will get organized so that I can do more crafting (it's a stress releaser for me) and I will post pictures of the new stuff I do. Right now I am working on a super fun craft/gift that makes my house smell super yummy! I also found a new hobby (well sort of new for me) that I am loving and goes right along with my scrapbooking. I love to take pictures. But Jess found this free program on line called picasa and it works a little bit like photoshop- just not as cool. But it's right on my level so I am having too much fun tweeking my pictures. Also since we've moved I am having to find a new gym/rec center :(- I need to find a Zumba Instructor that I like since I left the best ones up in Bountiful. This was one of the saddest parts of the move. I will miss Irma, Leslie and J! IF anyone knows of any super great Zumba classes in Utah County (specifically the Alpine/Highland/ American Fork area) I'd love your input :) Thanks Oh and HAVE A HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!

Christmas

2010-12-01T20:22:00.000-08:00

My most favorite scrap and craft store is going out of business. I know you don't thing it's a big deal but trust me it is. See I know I haven't been ontop of things with my photos of my crafts but trust me this is super sad. So anyway... I will post new pictures as soon as I can. Things are a little bit crazy right now but that is only because Jess has finals and I have a son and my sweet hubby who have birthdays this coming week. But the show must go on. I will find another craft store!

Just to let you know what is coming... I have vinyle projects that I have been working on. I have wood blocks I have been working on (stuff that have been waiting for a while now), bows for girls that are too cute, necklaces which are so dare cute you wouldn't know what to do and tons of things on my siloutte.

But my most favorite thing is this Christmas time of year. Take time to enjoy this Christmas time of year and remember what is really important, our Savior.

Haag Family Biggest Loser 2

2010-10-12T03:36:00.000-07:00

Jess and I have decided we are in on the Haag Family Biggest Loser round 2. Jess is going to the gym and riding his bike. I am still going to Zumba, doing yoga, biking and a few other things here and there. I had surgery in September so I feel like everything I did in the first round was undone. I have gotten out of a few habits (like taking my dinner to work with me and drinking enough fluid) so I just have to get back into the swing of those things and keep exercising. Hopefully I will make my new weight goal by the end of the year (my new year's resolution goal) and I'm not too far off, so I am hoping to be able to get it done.

And I have been working on more projects and finishing up some others. I also went to my friend's Relief Society Enrichment (or what ever it is called now) and the Halloween Queen came. She was amazing and showed us how to throw all kinds of Halloween parties and gave us recipes... so yummy. I will have to post pictures of some of the recipes. I did make a "Monster Mash" themed dinner the other night and the kids (and Jess) loved it. Sorry no pictures though, we were having so much fun I forgot about it all :)!!

Halloween Crafts

2010-09-14T08:06:00.000-07:00

I am a copy cat. I can see something and then duplicate it. My favorite scrapbook store had these cute "Eek!" blocks last year. Well I didn't take the class but I kept the sample picture. I decided that I wanted to use different paper and embellishments so I spiced up their idea just a little. I loved them so much I made a set for my mom and I taught my mother-in-law how to do it all. I think she had fun. Then I went to my favorite craft store and found these super cute kits to make Halloween wood monsters. I think they turned out pretty cute too. Now I'm totally in the mood for fall and Halloween. This is my end of summer door hanger I made as well. Love watermelons in August. I have finished up a Halloween and Fall door hanger and will get pictures of those soon. Oh and lets not forget the eclipse blocks. I bought this kit from my favorite scrapbook store. I will have to post the pictures of the twilight and new moon blocks too. They are fun.

Summer Dresses

2010-08-27T13:49:00.000-07:00

Here are the summer dresses I made for my girls. I guess they are kind of jumpers. I made one for my brand new niece Lucy too :)!! I think they are sooo cute but really it's the fabric that is just darling!

Sew Crazy

2010-08-18T07:15:00.000-07:00

Lately I have been in a sewing mood. I have made Emma a fancy, twirly girly skirt and then the cutest little jumper (one for each of my girls and a niece so far). I am loving sewing but I only know how to do the simple things. So I found this blog called newdressaday (dot) wordpress (dot) com. She takes a new dress from the thrift store everyday and transforms it into something amazing all for under a dollar a day. Go check out her amazing transformations. She makes it look easy (especially since I don't have to make any button holes or sew in a zipper). In this crazy world of recession and pinching pennies this actually sounds like a plan. I am going to eventually try my hand at it but first I have to find the time to go shop at a thrift store. If any of you take on the make-over-an-outfit challenge I'd love to hear from you and see your creations. You can e-mail them to me at thebabe_jph (@) yahoo (dot) com. In the subject heading write "blog sewing make-over" so I don't randomly delete you thinking you are spam. Also if you have made some awesome outfit for you or your kids- send me a picture to my e-mail and I'll feature you here. Pictures are to come of my sewing projects.

Bloggity Blog, blog, BLOG

2010-08-12T07:03:00.001-07:00

Sarah and I haven't been singing as much as we have in the past. But to keep this blog alive we have decided to make it a schmorgusborg of stuff. I'll be posting FHE ideas among other things here. For family updates you'll want to visit my family page. I'll also post my crafting fun here too. So be watching :)!! And I've had several requests for my date night ideas & the little things ideas so be watching for those as well. And I will always TRY my very hardest to give credit where credit is due.

First off I will tell you about the "Wild About You" box. This is not MY idea. I found it on another blog (Thanks Dating Divas) there are several ways to go about this. I went to the craft store (Roberts) and found a little tin lunch box. Then I went to Heartland Paper and found "anmial"print paper (ie. zebra stripes, aligator skin, cheetah print, ect..) then I mod podged the paper to the outsid and inside of the tin. (I'll post pictures soon) Now here is where you put your own spin on it. The Diva's over at Dating Diva's put "Risque Frisky" ideas on slips of paper in the box to keep things alive between you and your hubby and then you draw one out as needed. Or you can do your own thing by putting on slips of paper reasons why you love your spouse, or all the little things you are grateful for that they do for you ect... But what ever you do is up to you. I made this box for Jess and he got a kick out of it.

Second- my Father's Day gift for Jess was the "Can-o-Dates" (thanks again to the Divas) I have seen this on several other sites as well. Get an empty paint can and use your mad crafting skills to mod podge paper to it and then decorate it up. (Pictures are to come I promise) then inside the can fill it up with date ideas. I gathered ideas from many dating sites, but my favorites come from the Dating Diva's! Then Jess draws a date night out of the can and waah laa!! Magic!! You have a date. As we go out on our dates I will post them so you know how they go. The Diva's really step up to the challenge of keeping your marriage alive by making little invites for their date nights (which is totally optional gals, but I've done a few for Jess and he likes them) and keeping their hubbies guessing all week long or sticking to the theme of the date.

I have to say I am happily married and I love my husband and I love going out with him. I love going on dates with other couples as well as dates with just the two of us. I love spending time with him without the kids but sometimes our dates include our kids because honestly we can't always get rid of them ;)!!! And I love new date night ideas because I do get tired of dinner and movie all the time. Don't be shy or afraid to leave your comments and feed back! Or you can give me the feedback when you come to the salon to get your hair done. I have lots of clients who read my blogs, then either e-mail me or come to the salon and fill me in. I love it any which way :)!!

Blessed!

2010-07-11T12:06:00.000-07:00

Some days feel like more than a trial while others are a blessing. Some days feel never ending while others whiz past. Some days we lose our will to press on while others give us strength, courage and hope. Some days what starts out as one of these things, by night fall turns into all of the above.

I have had my fair share of good days and bad. But recently I experienced the most bittersweet day. My youngest, who is 11 months old, was scheduled to have an MRI at Primary Children's Medical Center. The MRI was to be done on her brain. We had just come home from Washington a day or so before so Jess was not able to take work off to come with me. So my Mom came with me and my little sister watched my other sweet children while we were gone. They expected us to be there for 4 hours. As I said my prayers the night before I asked Heavenly Father to give me the strength and courage I needed to face this day. The MRI was schedule for 6:30 a.m. and I had to be to work later than day as well. I wasn't sure how I was going to make it through the MRI and then have to go to work two hours later. Miracles Happen! There are Angels in all of our lives watching over us, I truely believe this with all my heart and soul.

We arrived at the hospital right on time. My sweet Mother and I started out talking about a book she is reading that I have read in the past several times called "The Secret" on our way to the hospital. After the nurses gave my baby the IV and then the sedation medication, they took her to the MRI room we were not allowed to watch the MRI but we were told where her recovery bed would be and about how long it would take to run the test. My mom and I grabbed a drink and went out to the tables and chairs and chatted in the morning sunshine. We talked about "The Secret" and how it intertwined with our religious beliefs and how it works and what we are doing in our personal lives to make it work for us. It was the best conversation for me and we did talk a little bit about my family's vacation to Washington. Then we went back to the recovery room to wait for my baby to wake up. She did great and was a little trooper the whole time. There was another baby having an MRI done as well. The mother and grandmother were still gone when several doctors and nurses started showing up, pulled the curtain between us and working with this baby. My heart sank, I knew this was not a good sign. My mom and I continued to talk about being positive and little miracles and little "secrets" that happen in life. I was facing the door way when this mother rounded the corner, the look on both her face and the grandmother's said enough. My baby was waking up and almost to the point where I could take her home. At first I just wanted to get out of Dodge because I felt like I was an intruder there and that I was making it worse with my baby who was waking up and who didn't have tons of people working on her. The mother and granmother embraced and tears streamed down their cheeks and my heart hit the floor. It was then that the Spirit confirmed to me that my baby would be okay. You may say that should make me happy, and it does, but I knew the heartache this mother was facing and I felt guilty that my baby was more okay than her baby was. It was a very humbling experience for me; bittersweet. Even though my youngest is not out of the woods just yet and is still in physical therapy, she is progressing and doing well. I feel blessed! But before I went to work that night I prayed and gave my thanks to Heavenly Father but I also prayed for this other baby and the parents/grandparents for miracles to happen with them as well.

Washington Vacation

2010-07-10T20:53:00.001-07:00

We took a family vacation to the Olympic Pennisula the last week in June. It was beautiful, fabulous and just what I needed and I think Jess did too. We left early Friday morning and drove all day to the Seattle area. We stayed in Bellevue. The next morning/afternoon we had to get our car fixed but were back on our way around 2pm. We rode the ferry over to Bainbridge Island and drove up to Port Townsend, then to Sequim, Port Angelas and finally over to Forks (where our condo/hotel was). We saw amazing sites, played in the tide pools, rain forests, on the rocky beaches and the sandy beaches. Did some hiking and missed out on a few hikes that we wanted to go on, saw some snow and freezing temps up at Hurricane Ridge along with wild wind. We had some rain, lots of sunshine and mild beautiful temperatures. We visited a few Native American Indian reservations. The Makah Rez has Cape Flattery which I think was one of the highlights of our trip along with the sandy beach just down the road from Cape Flattery. The other highlight was we stopped at every LDS temple along the way. I will post pictures later of the books that I am making for the kids. The books will have pictures of them in front of every Temple we visit from every family vacation from here on out. In the fall we are planning a Utah temple tour. I think the kids have had fun this summer :)!!

Giveaways!

2010-06-26T08:16:00.000-07:00

OK! I am super EXCITED! Yes I am on vacation but I need to post about something super amazing. First.... there are several bloggers giving away a Silloutte. You will want to check out their blogs. Here is a list of them and you'll want to visit each one because they all have amazing projects. My list of projects just tripled.
They are all blogspot dot com's:
Tater tots and Jell-o
Oh, hell-o, Friend
southern hospitality
Thrifty decor chic
giver's log

So go have some fun this weekend and know that I will be busting out the projects after I win one of these babies!!! Think happy thoughts, right :) plus it will totally make my day when I win one :)!!

Biggest Loser

2010-06-17T07:22:00.000-07:00

My in-laws designed their own Biggest Loser game for the family to play. It has been a lot of fun and a lot of hard work. Jess and I have lost a lot of weight as well. No I have not met my New Year's Resolution weight loss goal but that goal is for the entire year. But I will tell you this I am well over half way there in-fact I may be closing in on three quarters of the way there. I have dropped another pant size :) and I am getting very close to dropping another hopefully this weekend. My pants are falling down and I am having to pull them up constantly :) this is a good sign!

These pictures were taken on Mother's Day at Temple Square. We had so much fun with my kiddo's, you'll have to check out the family blog for those pictures.

One thing the Biggest Loser has taught me is that I LOVE ZUMBA. It's tons of fun and you don't even feel like you are working out. So I am going to become a Zumba Instructor :) and start teaching too. It's a lot of hard work, but fun and rewarding too. It's much easier to take the class and just follow along than to actually teach the class.

Exercising!

2010-04-30T09:21:00.000-07:00

I'm terrible at updating this blog, but I'm getting better at it. Jess and I are still going with the biggest loser game his family has set up. We started on Jan 4th and got off to a slow start because we weren't sure we would have time for it. You see Jess is still in school full time and he works full time. I am a full time wife and mother plus I work part time. So I thought I would just break down our life for you real quick to show you how hard it has been to make time for this and how we seem to not have time for anything else.
Jess works full time usually 4 tens; Tues- Fri then he has school. He has a few on-line classes (which takes discipline to do) and he's in the middle of his "physcially have to be there for" class. Then on top of his full time schooling he has flight labs. These are not included in his full time school schedule. He tries to fly on Monday's and Saturdays at least 2 hours flying and 2 hours ground. Then he has to take care of 4 children (ages 8,5,3 & 9 months) while I am at work. Which is 4 days a week. Jess also gets flight time in on Tuesday and Friday's now because the sun is up longer. And because his "physically have to be there for" class is only a few weeks long (like 5) then he had to go to working 5 eights and he has school 4 days a week on top of everything else. He is packed solid-- try to find time for this man to excercise ontop of sleeping-- he needs his sleep so he can fly safely and oh yeah his job he is on the road 90% of the time driving through mountain passes and on dangerous roads. So his sleep is extremely important. Just so you all know though... he has been off of Dr.Pepper and all soda since January.

Then there is my day. I have two kids to get to school Mon-Fri by 8:45am. And I have to get them up, fed and moving in the morning. One is in Kindergarten so I pick that child up half way through the day. I work Mon, Wed, Thurs in the afternoon and evening then Saturday is a 6 hour shift that switches from early, mid and late shift depending on the week. I am a hair stylist so I have to "get ready" for work. I have to be showered, hair dry and presentable and makeup on and finished. I can't go to work with a wet ponytail and no make-up on looking like I just rolled out of bed, I'd get fired. It's not easy getting ready for work with three kids all needing lunch and the baby wanting attention and all the million "little" things that go along with kids and babies. I have to carefully plan this out so that I can have everyone ready to leave to get to the baby sitters and me to work on time. Then there is laundry for 6 people, one being an acid reflux baby who spits up a ton and on everything. Dinner, which I try to have made before I go to work to make it easier on Jess. Dishes need to be done, floors swept and vaccumed and bathrooms cleaned; beds made and rooms cleaned. Visiting Teaching and home teaching and church callings. Cubscouts and soccer (two games a week and one practice a week) then there is dance starting up in the summer, once a week and play dates for the kids and their friends. Grocery shopping since we do need to eat. Mowing the lawns and weeding the flowers and veggie gardens. Well baby checkups and not so well kid check-ups. Broken bones, head injuries and elbows too.

It all adds up and this is just an overview. Somehow we have found time to exercise and have made a real lifestyle change. I have found a new "aerobic" class I love called Zumba. It kicks your trash literally. I have been doing other things as well and now that the weather is getting better outside it is easier to rack up the points I think. I have found ways to incorperate my children into it so I am spending time with them as well as exercising. They are more aware of being physically fit as well. But I am a little worried that it is becoming an obsession and I am hearing my 8 and 5 yr olds saying some things that concern me. So we are having to combat that as well. But all in all I am feeling better and Jess says I am looking a lot skinnier since having baby #5! Horray!!! I am almost ready to down size another pant size and Jess's shirts are all way too big on him now. So exercise and a healthy diet really do work wonders.

Snowing

2010-04-01T12:20:00.000-07:00

In the last week it has snowed three maybe four of the 7 days. All I can say is "Are you Serious???" For real, where where you snow three months ago when it was freezing and we wanted you around? I am so ready for Spring and Summer to be here. So Bah Hummbug to you Mr. Snow's a lot in Spring! BOOOOO!!!!

Okay I am over my ranting about the snow... maybe :)!! Just a quick update I took a Zumba class and loved it. I've convinced Sarah to come along with me as well. I am slowly catching up on all of my projects that I have going on and I found some unfinished ones too so just when I thought my list was getting smaller it's really growing more than I want it too.

9 Years

2010-03-18T22:21:00.000-07:00

As of March 13th Jess and I have been married for 9 years. We celebrated by taking the kids to Grammie and Bubba Gramps for a mini vacation for their own and we took off for an overnight stay at a Bed and Breakfast in Midway called the Johnsons Mill B&B! It was fabulous. Here are a few pictures from the weekend. Happy Anniversary Sweetheart and here's to many more :)!!!

Thinking

2010-02-27T23:04:00.000-08:00

My sweet, handsome hubby and I are still thinking about whether or not to remove the privacy block on the family blog (almost typed piracy...funny huh???) Any input??? This last week has been a crazy one for us. I have had a migrane that I can't seem to get rid of. Never had that happen before so I'm feeling a little out of my element. We'll hopefully see the doc on Monday. Then Sarah was in a car accident this week too. I also had a sister-in-law in the hospital (emergency status...not planned) and my MIL had surgery too. I think March is coming in like a lion so it better go out like a lamb :)

As for other news. I'm feeling like I need Paula Dean to come and cook me some Southern Comfort Food Y'Aalll!! Because it's "UMMMM, Ummmm!!!" She is my fav. Thank Food Network! Do I hear VACATION bells tolling too ?????

Family Blog

2010-02-04T06:09:00.001-08:00

Most of you know that the family blog is private. I have had a lot of inquiries about why and if/when I will take the block off. I knew that I had "invisible" readers-- readers who stop by and read but don't comment or send me an e-mail to comment rather than leave it on the blog-- which is perfectly fine with me. We had a scary situation where we felt like it was best to put the privacy block on. I won't go into details but we just felt it was best. So I guess now that we feel the threat is mostly over (could always return with a vengence) we are considering taking the block off. For now it is still in place, but in the future it may not be.

As for Sarah and me, we've been so busy with wrapping up her senior year and getting her college applications in that we've put singing on the back burner. We still sing just haven't been practicing together. Sarah is in the works of writing several songs and I can't wait for them to be finished so we can work on them and sing them together :) You are super AWESOME Sarah!!!

Catching Up!

2009-12-15T05:21:00.000-08:00

Since having my 4th baby I have felt like I have been in a continuous whirl wind of life. It's not a bad thing; just some days most things get put on the back burner. Baby #4 (who is actually #5) has acid reflux (reflex) and is not always the happiest camper around. But one thing I have learned is that she LOVES music, singing and dancing. She especially loves Christmas music. So everyday after we take the kids to school we come back home and load up mommy's play list, get her settled in her swing and start the singing.

It's Sarah's Senior year. She is involved in so many activities and things with her friends that I haven't had the heart to pin her down to a practice schedule too. She is practicing and still singing but between my mommy & work schedule and her school & Senior year schedule it's been kind of crazy. I figure in the next few months things will level out and we'll get back on track. But for now Sarah needs to enjoy her Senior year and I need to enjoy my last baby :)

We wish all a Merry Christmas! Thanks so much for following us. And if you want us to come sing at your "going on's" let us know in advance so we can make it a priority :).

Crazy Night!

2009-11-03T05:30:00.000-08:00

I love my job. I am a hairstylist and I work at a salon in Centerville, UT! I work with awesome girls and we have an amazing clientel, and more specifically I have the sweetest clients. I do have a hard time leaving my babies to go to work but once I get there I'm ok :)!! I have been doing hair for about 13 years. That is not the crazy part.

Yesterday afternoon we were all sitting in the front of the salon (which has all glass windows) when a truck started backing into the parking stall right in front of our door. We all immediately noticed him because he was backing in and we have had a car come through our window several years ago. We were all sitting around (had a little down time) and when the man got out of his car we all just kind of watched him. He walked around the front of his truck and to the passenger side and looked like he might be coming in, but nope he headed towards Quizno's. One girl said he's a military guy so I looked up and said No he's just wearing a military camo hunting jacket. Then another girls said oh yeah cause he has dark jeans on. Another girl said "And he looks like he needs a shave"! So here we are picking apart this poor guy. I noticed that his one pocket looked like it had something heavy in it... his jacket was slanted (not hanging straight). It didn't hit me until later that he was carrying a gun. I was still checking out his sweet truck and my client came in and she commented on his truck too. Before we know it the salon is swarming with police. Asking questions about the man and the truck. We were able to tell them the make and model of the truck (yes, girls notice all sweet things including sweet trucks) and positively identify the man. That is when we are told he just robbed the bank and that he was armed and that is when it hit me that he was packin' when I saw him. How scary is that?? To make a long story short... we filled out witness reports, and one girl went and positively ID'ed the truck and finally they got the guy. I have to give a shout out to Centerville PD... they got their man! You never know what's going to happen. We've always been an observant bunch and it paid off.

Whew!!!

2009-08-10T10:43:00.000-07:00

So this blog is still open for all to read. I figured it out. I'm not very good with computers and all this JaZz!! So only the family blog is private. I won't be posting pictures of the kids on here and may only comment about the kids every now and again. This blog is more for my sister and me anyway and following our singing which has been on the back burner while pregnant with this last baby! Things will be starting to get back into full SwInG as I recover and figure out life with one more sweet child added to the mix of our already CrAzY life :)!!

Privacy

2009-07-28T13:12:00.001-07:00

The time has come for our family blog to go Private. Because of recent events and certain people thinking they have the right to control or do with our lives what "they feel" is best, this is why we are going private. But I guess that blogger won't let me have just the family blog private I have to have all my blogs private.... unless someone can tell me how to reverse that so that this one can remain "open" anyway.... I appreciate all your thoughts and prayers and if you want to be added just send me a comment with your e-mail address in it. For your privacy I won't publish any comments with contact info in them. Comment moderation is in effect so I have to publish the comment it won't just pop up or appear for everyone to see :)!! Thanks again for understanding.

More "AH HA" moments

2009-07-24T11:28:00.000-07:00

As I said in my last post... I have been reading the conference issue of the Ensign. Just a quick update... yup, I'm still pregnant. The short of it is the baby's heart is doing well so they want to keep her in as long as possible. My body has been through a lot with this baby, not to go into too much detail but let's just say I was done a few weeks ago when they first decided to put me on bedrest. Since then I have become increasingly discouraged as to why she just doesn't come or why they doctor hasn't taken her yet. My biggest fear in becoming discouraged has been that the baby will feel the discouragement and that she will feel that we don't want her or don't love her. That was my biggest fear with Easton at the very end when my body was hurting so bad and I just wanted him out. I have faith that this baby knows I love her and want her here in our family and I think that she knows how much her mother is going through so that she can have life and be born. So on to my "Ah Ha" moment.

I was reading Elder Kevin W. Pearson's talk Faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. And it reminded me of the book "The Secret" only from a Gospel perspective. Those who have read this book and then read his talk will understand. First off we are commanded that we (as parents) must teach our children to understand the doctorine... of faith in Christ. I had to stop and think am I teaching my children about having faith through this pregnancy? I am teaching them to endure to the end? Am I teaching them to trust in the Lord? "Faith requires an attitude of exact obedience, even in small and simple things." Although this pregnancy doesn't feel small or simple to me am I still obeying the commandments and teachings of our Savior and Prophets? This time of being on bedrest has given me a chance to think about a lot of these things. How am I teaching my children? Am I living righteously enough to set a good example? (by this I'm not meaning am I perfect) Do I show them I love them enough? Do I tell them every day that I love them and praise them for the good things they do and discipline with love where needed? Elder Pearson goes on to say "Personal righteousness is a choice." I love that. It's our choice whether or not we choose light or darkness! Now on to the part that stuck me as part of "The Secret"

Elder Pearson quotes a scripture from March 9:22-24. "If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth." "Faith and fear cannot coexist. One gives way to the other." and one more.... "Consider it this way: our net usable faith is what we have left to exercise after we subtract our sources of doubt and disbelief. .... Is my own net faith positive or negative? If your faith exceeds your doubt and disbelief, the answer is likely positive. If you allow doubt and disbelief to control you, the answer might be negative. We do have the choice. We get what we focus on consistently. Because there is an opposition in all things, there are forces that errode our faith." All of these quotes from his talk combined just go to show that when we have faith and when we believe that positive things will come. Some take more time than others but that is where faith comes in. And here these last few weeks I thought it was patience Heavenly Father was trying to teach me when really it is to have unwaivering faith. Elder Pearson meantioned 6 destructive D's doubt, discouragement, distraction, lack of diligence, disobedience and disbelief. Then at the very end of his talk he states a promise from the Savior : "if ye will have faith in me ye shall have power to do whatsoever thing is expedient in me." What a cool talk.

Inspiration

2009-07-17T06:26:00.001-07:00

As most of you have heard by now I am "officially" on bedrest and have been for almost 2 weeks. Bedrest is not my favorite and actually drives me insane; and how do you honestly do bedrest with 3 small children? For the most part my kids have been AMAZING. If you read our family blog you'll know that yep, I have "cheated" while being on bedrest too. We have gone for a few elevation drives (some including dirt roads) which is supposed to help the baby come and I have gone walking and even took blue cohosh root (in liquid form; yuck) to help her along. But I am still pregnant, I guess she is now just too comfy to want to come.

With being on bedrest (and totally bored out of my mind) I have read a few books, finished a few projects and yes even finally found the time to read from cover to cover my May 2009 Ensign. The Conference Report :)!! I love conference and I love reading and re-reading the talks. They are so inspired and hold so much truth and guidance. I have not yet made it to the back cover, but thought I would share a few of my "Ah Ha" moments and quotes while reading. The first big one came this morning, since I have been wide awake since about 6:15am. Elder Cook's Saturday Morning talk at the very end he says "Even though our journey may be fraught with tribulation, the destination is truly glorious." Of course his talk is not talking about me an being in labor and having contractions since week 20 of pregnancy that have been on going and wearing on my nerves.... but I applied it to that anyway. On Wednesday morning I woke up just sobbing and all upset that I haven't had this baby yet. I cried for a long time. And this little quote made me think that this baby needs to be here on earth and in our family and she will come, but for some reason I get the privledge of having a crazy (tribulation) pregnancy. I'm not sure if it makes me love my kiddo's more than I would if I'd have a breeze of a pregnancy or if it's just that when she really does finally make it here... the destination is truly glorious. In most of the talks I have read so far they mention faith and endurance. Elder Eyring talked about Adversity... this pregnancy has been adversity for me but you know I have been dealing with it and I know "things will work out" but I need patience I guess. But all in all I know this too shall pass and soon I'll have a beautiful baby girl to finalize our family and what a blessing she'll be to us. I am getting super excited to meet her, see her, hold her and smell her sweet baby smell a heavenly scent. And hopefully it will be sooner than later :)!!!

It's Summer Time

2009-06-22T08:32:00.001-07:00

The sun is finally out and shinning with no rain clouds in sight. I love, love, LOVE summer!! Sarah and I have not been able to sing together since I sound "off" when I'm pregnant. I hope this baby comes soon so we can get some good summer practices in. My fingers are so swollen and huge that I can't play the piano either. Oh well, there is a season for everything right? My season right now is to be miserably pregnant :). I have always loved being pregnant but I think this is Heavenly Father's way of letting us know that this sweet baby is my last and since she was a surprise (I'd already decided not to have anymore because of how hard it is on my body and how many miscarriages I've had) I think I'm being told it's okay to have this sweet baby girl but let's not tempt fate any more. I am 32 weeks and 2 days today and I'm hoping I don't have to go much further. I have tried about everything I know to get this baby here. After 12 weeks of constant contractions and swelling my nerves are a little shot. I'm grateful for my AMAZING husband and my SWEET kids who are enduring well with me and hopefully soon little Ashleigh Kae with be here with us.

Sshh!! It's a secret!

2009-06-10T07:23:00.000-07:00

About 18 months ago I had a client in my chair who was telling me about a book that was featured on Oprah. The book's title is "The Secret" by Rhonda Byrne. She had amazing stories about what "The Secret" had done for people's lives. My client then continued to tell me how "The Secret" had impacted her life and her sister's lives and all their family members lives. She said it is hard to explain but you just need to read the book. So being a little skeptical but having a nagging feeling that I should read it I asked my Dad about the book. My Dad is an avid reader and reads a lot of books. Ironically he had just barely bought the book that day and had started reading it. So I went out and bought it too. Since then I have read the book several times and even have little quotes from the book as reminders laying around my house in certain spots that only I will see them everyday and a few that everyone can see.

I am pregnant with baby #5 (this will make 4 living and 1 deceased) and my body is having a hard time. So lately I have forgotten to use the secret, BUT, I have seen the power of "The Secret" work in my life amazingly since the day I started reading the book. We bought our first home, we've bought Jess a Jeep (again) and it was everything he wanted (except it wasn't the 4 door; that's coming later), we were able to get pregnant and stay pregnant with this last baby and it's a girl, Jess got an amazing and very rare bonus check right at Christmas time from work, we have put our backyard in and have it the way we want it, all the walls in our house are painted the colors we want; just to name a few. There are many things little and big that happen on a daily basis that we know come from using "The Secret". If you haven't read it I highly recommend it and another book called "The Key To Living The Law Of Attraction" by Jack Canfield.

So I am getting back into the "frame of mind" that I need to be in to make my life the way I want it to be. I want it to be happy and peaceful. I think that being positive and setting goals and having dreams is important in life. This morning as I was flipping through the book I came across a section that really made me stop and think. It said" If you are complaining, the law of attraction will powerfully bring into your life more situations for you to complain about. If you are listening to someone else complain and focusing on that, sympathizing with them, agreeing with them; in that moment you are attracting more complaining situations to yourself." I thought 'how often do we complain?' Seriously on a daily basis how often do we complain about anything and everything? I know the world we live in is a very negative world and focuses on complaining but I have decided that I don't want that in my life. I want to be Happy NOW and always. We have to find ways to be happy and feel good Now no matter what our current situation. (Trust me... I've been contracting for 11 weeks now... I know how hard somedays it can be to not be cranky and just be happy). Once we feel good even though we may not having everything we want it will come. In the book it says "Make a decision that you are going to do everything you can to be as happy as you can in every moment. You will be amazed at how the Universe will flood so many things into your life that will continue to make you happy..." Some of you may be wondering about negative thoughts and feelings one more quote from the book I read this morning is "You do not have to erase negative thoughts you have had. All you have to do is feel good and think good thoughts NOW, and you will shift yourself to a completely different frequency where no negativity exists. No matter what you have thought in the past, whether 10 years ago or 1 minute ago, Now is where all your power is. Right now you can use your power to shift yourself. When you know this, you can move through your life without fear or regrets, because you can always think good thoughts NOW!"

So with that... I am going to do as Peter Pan and Tinker Bell say: Think Happy Thoughts!! I think Walt Disney must have known the secret inside and out :). I want to be Happy and have a happy life so today I am wiping the slate clean and starting fresh with happy, positive thoughts and feelings. And I think I'll keep a running post of the amazing things that happen in my life so my children will know to be happy and positive know that all good things will be waiting for them too and that they can do it too. I may not change the world, but my world will change for me and my sweet little family.

Frustrated!

2009-06-08T22:23:00.000-07:00

I just need a little venting session... not that my family blog wasn't venting :)!! I just want to say I have always tried to make everyone feel welcome into my family. I have always tried to at least say Hi and How are you at family gatherings to everyone. But apparently I'm a horrible sister and sister-in-law. But what I really discovered is this: I'm not horrible it's others who think the world revolves around them! The only thing I have ever wanted is to be loved and to be included in both my family and Jess' family. But for some reason, that I haven't figured out yet (other than the world revolves around them), I am never to talk about me or what's going on with me and I should only sit quietly and never say a word and I should never be included in anything. I have tried so hard to make my brother's wives all feel comfortable in our large family (and I know my mom has too) it's hard to be thrown into a family with 13 kids and all the hulla ballou that goes along with it. But I also have a husband and 3 kids that I have to watch too. I feel like I have to keep an eye on my kids now and that I don't get the chance to "hang out" in the living room with all the girls and chat because as soon as someone comes in crying it's all my kids fault (whether it really is or not). And I don't have feelings I'm just supposed to take what ever is dished out... this is true for Jess' side as well. I would love to have a break from my kids and sit and chat with all the girls but that just isn't going to happen because I am a mom.

Put A Smile On Your Face

2009-05-04T21:25:00.000-07:00

And make the world a (happy) better place!! Today I have had a pretty rotten day. It's a Monday and there really isn't anything too specific other than I am still contracting, swelling, getting headaches and my body just plain hurts. I decided since I had the awesome opportunity to go to work that I was going to put a smile on my face and make it all better.

Results are: I am still contracting, swelling and having nasty headaches and my body still just plain hurts... but while I was smiling and pretending that none of that was going on, I could actually bare it a little easier. When I got home from work I was greeted by happy, smiling, laughing children and a husband. They were so happy to see me :) and I was sooooo happy to see all of them. I realized that even though I am experiencing a pregnancy with tons of problems and that is hurting my body (literally) that I can still be happy and still let my sweet, beautiful family know how much I love them. I am not worried about this baby. I pray for her and I know she is meant to be part of our family. I love her so much already and I know that if she is born early that she is going to be just fine. So Put a smile on your face :) and see how it changes your day... even if you have just run into the garage with you car, ran over your husbands tools in the driveway or turned his G's pink in the wash, laugh and smile about it and see how much better the day can be. I have learned this goes far with our children too. When we laugh at them about the "small stuff" they seem to be much more apt to listen to why we don't do that and they get the whole sentence "let's not do that again!" :)
--J

MMB giveaway

2009-04-28T13:43:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone... go check out MMB (mormom mommies blog) the link is on our family blog under fun stuff. They have the most amazing give aways this month. For those with girls check out the tutu's and the dress ups... A-MAZ-ING!!! The books look super good too. Anyway hurray up to enter you only have until April 30th.

55 mph

2009-04-26T08:30:00.000-07:00

Today I just need to vent a little...
All those who drive along Redwood Road here in WX and NSL should know by now that the speed limit is 55 mph from 5th south all the way down until you pass over Center Street where the speed limit turns to 50. I do agree that the stretch of road needs more speed limit signs but I just have to say how annoying it is to get stuck behind someone who wants to drive 40 or 45 mph. Come on that is 15 under the speed limit. They should be given a ticket for going to slow. I also agree they need to widen the road to a 4 lane road all the way down to 5th South but what do you do? And if you pass someone on Redwood...watch out you'll most likely get a ticket. My favorite is when it finally does widen to the 4 lanes and you pass someone doing the actual speed limit or as you are going around them they flip you off... um excuse me???? I wave and smile, if I have time too.

Another road that drives me nuts is Main Street in Centerville. The speed limit signs say 40 not 30. And there are 2 roads that when people are going North and turning right onto them from off of Main they turn from the left side of the road. I forgot the nam of the first road but the second one is Chase Lane (the first one is before Chase Lane). I love when people try to sneak up the side of your car (when there is clearly no room and then they honk at you to move out of their way) and as soon as they get up to the corner they swing wide left to turn right. It must be a requirement to live up either of those streets that you have to be incapable of making a normal right turn and you have to be as rude as possible! All I can say is LEARN TO DRIVE!

Let Freedom Ring...

2009-04-19T13:09:00.000-07:00

I am sitting in my bedroom with the smell of homemade bread sifting through the entire house and listening to my new neighbors (very annoying and very loud) air conditioner running non stop. I have been reflecting on our freedoms we enjoy. My freedom to complain about such an annoying a/c unit (which for my neighbors sake I'm not sure they are aware of how loud it really is just yet... since it's day time and I am sure they aren't in their bedroom yet and it's probably louder in their room than in mine), my freedom to bake bread when ever I want, my freedom to love my husband and children and family, my freedom of religion, of speech, of my rite to bare arms, to plant what ever flowers I want in my yard, to own what ever car I want (our new Beep Beep included), to have as many or as few children as my sweet husband and I so desire, what color of clothing I wish to wear, the freedom to paint my walls what ever color I want...and the list goes on.

What humbles me most about our freedom is this: That Freedom isn't Free. Never was; never has been. I am deeply grateful for those who sacrifice so much and give their all for my freedom. My husband is one of them, My father and grandfathers a few more, my brothers even a few more. I really am surrounded by amazing men who give up so much to protect what is most valuable to us FREEDOM. Because without it we wouldn't have anything else. Jess and I have many other friends and family (male and female) who currently serve or who have served and my hat is off to you.

I just found out that one of my brothers will be going back to the Middle East in the Fall. His wife has a baby due in the summer and my heart aches because I know, from experience, how hard it is to let them go. I know how hard it will be for him to go and leave behind a brand new baby. He'll miss out on seeing this sweet spirit grow and develop. I know the fears of a military wife who is left behind. But I also know that Heavenly Father will be watching over my sweet brother and that we ultimately have to leave things in the Lord's hands, have faith and trust and know that everything will work out the way it is supposed too. So May God Bless and keep him (and all our soldiers) safe and bring him home again and may we never forget the price of FREEDOM.

A Little Something....

2009-04-10T14:45:00.000-07:00

I found a quote today...acutally I think it was the title of a talk given by a General Authority but I decided that I like the title just a little quote that I will probably cut out of vinyl and definitely stick on my bathroom mirror or even somewhere that my children will see it daily. And the quote...drum roll please...

"Don't Let The Voice of Critics Paralyze You!"

For all who have a dream, know where you are going and what you want to do... don't listen to the critics. Take Jess for example; for 4 years his army unit (with the exception of one awesome company commander Capt. Hamilton) told him he couldn't go to school, wouldn't go to school and would be only good for enlisted army service. They laughed at his dreams of flying helicopters or being a dentist. Look where he is now. He has almost all of his schooling done for flying helicopters and is about half way through with a Global Aviation Degree (which by the way, you don't have to have in order to get an amazing job flying). Way to go Babe and show the world you can do what ever you have your heart set on. And don't forget...

"Don't Let The Voice of Critics Paralyze You!"

Furniture

2009-04-10T09:04:00.000-07:00

I finally was able to take pictures of our new furniture that is about a month old now. We love it. It's microfiber and amazingly comfortable. Now we have an all matching living room. Jess hung the mirror and now we just have to decide on a few pictures and frames and then I think the front room will be done. With the exception of one wall that needs to be painted :).

This is a close up of the couch and the mirror. I love it. The kids love the furniture too. We just have to remind them to keep their shoes off it. Easton thinks it's his job to distress the center table with his matchbox cars and gets really upset when we tell him that's not for his cars. He'll get over it!!

All About High School

2009-03-24T15:36:00.000-07:00

Gininnia tagged me a while ago and I'm finally getting around to it so here goes... trust me it's not that impressive.All About High School Tag
1. DID YOU DATE SOMEONE FROM YOUR SCHOOL? Went on a few dates with guys from my school and a different school, but nothing serious :)
2.WHAT KIND OF CAR DID YOU DRIVE? My parents cars, nothing too cool :)
3. DID YOU PASS YOUR DRIVER'S LICENSE TEST YOUR FIRST TRY? Yep!!
4. WERE YOU A PARTY ANIMAL? Nope!!
5. WERE YOU CONSIDERED A FLIRT? Nope...too shy!!
6. WERE YOU IN BAND, ORCHESTRA, OR CHOIR? Not in High School.
7. WERE YOU A NERD? No but I got good grades, I was just shy.
8. WERE YOU ON ANY VARSITY TEAMS? No
9. DID YOU EVER GET SUSPENDED/EXPELLED? No
10. CAN YOU STILL SING THE FIGHT SONG? No it's been too long.
11. WHO WERE YOUR FAVORITE TEACHERS? Ms. Rose and Mr. Winder
12. WHERE DID YOU SIT FOR LUNCH? In the hall or off campus
13. WHAT IS YOUR SCHOOL'S FULL NAME? Woodscross High School
14. WHAT IS YOUR SCHOOL'S MASCOT AND COLORS? Wild Cat, blue, white and red
15. DID YOU GO TO HOMECOMING AND WITH WHOM? Yes. Can't remember the first guy but Jess took me to Homecoming too.
16. IF YOU COULD GO BACK AND DO IT AGAIN WOULD YOU? I think H.S. is over rated :)
17. WHAT DO YOU REMEMBER MOST ABOUT GRADUATION? I was so excited and I didn't have to go back the next year :)!!
18. WHERE DID YOU GO SENIOR SKIP DAY? Shopping with friends.
19. WERE YOU IN ANY CLUBS? Pep club and FBLA
20. HAVE YOU GAINED SOME WEIGHT SINCE THEN? Well I've had 4 kids so yes I think so.
21. WHO WAS YOUR PROM DATE? Jess Haag
22. ARE YOU PLANNING ON GOING TO YOUR 10 YEAR REUNION? Nope
23. DID YOU HAVE A JOB IN HIGH SCHOOL?Yes. I worked at Classic Skating and that's where I met my awesome husband (and for all those wondering no Rob had nothing to do with getting Jess and I together or even married, although he claims too.)

Now I tag Renna, Rachel, Megan, Kim, Jen and anyone else who wants to join in the fun. Post and let me know so I can go read yours :)!!
--J

R&R

2009-03-18T08:36:00.000-07:00

Just what the Doctor ordered. I was getting a little too stressed out and I needed a "breather" so Jess and I left the kids with Grammie and Bubba Gramps and got away for a few days. We went to Port Angeles/ Sequim, Washington. We saw a lot of things and did a lot of sight seeing from the car. We did some walking but kept it mild since I'm a fragile (high risk) pregnant woman :)!! We went to Bainbridge Island, Forks, La Push (where the beaches are), Victoria B.C., Port Townsend and Seattle.

While we were away my swelling went down but now that we are back it's rip roaring again. I did get a lot of rest, but after being home for two days I'm almost as tired as when we left. The thing I am learning to do is be a little more "lazy"! I am always on the go and always have a project going or something that needs to be done. I'm also a perfectionist so things have to be done right. A clean house to everyone else is not the same to me. I'm learning that it's okay to have dusty shelves, toys on the floor, books out of place, laundry in baskets and beds not perfectly smoothed. I have always loved "meditation" and have learned that instead of once a day I get to do this two or three or four times a day. Naps are essential and as long as the kids sit quietly on the recliner in our room and read books or watch a little show while I take a 30 minute snoozer, it's okay. Once our sweet Ashleigh is born I think I'll go back to having the tons of energy I've always had but I think I will still keep mommy nap time and maybe leave books out of place :).

--J

Allergies...

2009-03-08T08:19:00.000-07:00

...or so I thought! At the beginning of this last week we had some awesome wind which kicked up a bunch of junk in the air. By Tuesday night I was suffering from allergies but because I am pregnant and very high risk I can't take my allergy meds :( !! That's okay. I thought it would go away and my Doctor told me I could take a decongestant to help. Friday evening I called my doctor since I couldn't breathe through my nose and asked if I couldn't take something else, yep I could take a stronger OTC degcongestant. Saturday I went to work and nothing was helping by the time I got home I was really suffering. So I layed down, felt a little better and then we went to dinner. I couldn't eat a thing. I drank some water and Strawberry Lemonade and was just miserable. So I broke down and went to Instacare...which I hate going there, so you know I desperate. It was the shortest visit I have ever had there. Ofcourse there wasn't anyone in the waiting room but we could hear a kid screaming in the back. We checked in and sat down for just a few minutes, then we were called back. The nurse took all of my vitals, asked a few questions one of which is "Are you allergic to any medications?" Yep sure am...Pennicillin. "What's your reaction?" Closes off my air way instantly and should only be used in life or death situations. She says "oh it's already on your chart." Great. The doc came in just a minute later asks all the Q's about my symptoms and when they started. Looks in my ear..."Oh that ear drum is bulging" as I am pulling away from him cause my ear feels like it's going to explode. (it really hurt) Then he's tapping all over my forehead and along my cheek bones, which was killing me again. He says you have sinusitius. Great I knew it and...... So then he gives me a perscription for a maximum strength decongestant and says take this for 10 days if you don't get better here's a perscription for an antibiotic then take that. Um, okay. I'm 17 weeks pregnant and I'm very high risk so I'm thinking I'll give my own Doctor a call when I get to the car. We were seriously in there only 15 or 20 mintues. So crazy.

I call my Mom and tell her what the doctor said and she asked what perscriptions he gave me. By this point we are on our way to the only open pharmacy at 8:30 pm on a Saturday. I read her the first one and then I look at the antibiotic. Ammoxicillin. Um... ARE YOU KIDDING ME??? I'm sure it was just an oversight... but one that would cost me and my unborn baby our lives. So now I'm overly concerned and call my Doctor (who happens to be AMAZING) and he's working on call at the hospital. I leave a message and he calls me right back. He said the decongestant is just fine to take and then calls in a different antibiotic but he told me I need to start taking it right away, especially if my ear drum is bulging. Then he asked where I went and what doctor I saw and he took care of that :)!!

Storm

2009-03-02T16:30:00.001-08:00

Ok, time for a break from my homework. Lately I have been a wreck. I just haven't been myself and it was hard to face each and every day. My friend Staci introduced me to a song that I absolutely love. It is Storm by Lifehouse. Here are the lyrics:

How long have I been in this storm?
So overwhelmed by the ocean's shapeless form
Water's getting harder to tread
With these waves crashing over my head

If I could just see you
Everything would be all right
If I'd see you
This darkness would turn to light

And I will walk on water
And you will catch me if I fall
And I will get lost into your eyes
I know everything will be alright
I know everything is alright

I know you didn't bring me out here to drown
So why am I ten feet under and upside down
Barely surviving has become my purpose
Cause I'm so used to living underneath the surface

If I could just see you
Everything would be all right
If i'd see you
This darkness would turn to light

And I will walk on water
And you will catch me if I fall
And I will get lost into your eyes
And everything will be alright

And I will walk on water
You will catch me if I fall
And I will get lost into your eyes
I know everything will be alright
I know everthing is alright

Everything is alright
Everything is alright

I seriously cried the first time I heard it. I look at it as if God is the one who will catch me when I fall. I love this song so much. It is as if it was written from my life. The first verse of the song is sang acapella and the rest of the music is so wonderful. It is just simply amazing.

I cannot wait for Joleen to have her baby. First because I'll have another neice, and second, we can sing again!! I'm not in choir this year, so I really miss singing everyday. I have written a bunch of new lyrics, and can't wait for Joleen to help me with the harmony. Well so long for now!!

~Sarah

p.s. If you can, listen to Storm. It is just so amazing!! :(|)

What a Week

2009-03-02T15:42:00.000-08:00

Wow. It has really been forever since I've gotten on. There has been so much going on in my life lately that I just haven't found the time. Second semester started, and then about a week later while walking to church, I slipped down some concrete stairs and hurt my head, neck, and back. (The fact that I already have a broken back and kyphosis, didn't help any) But, I'm doing better and everything is okay. Last week was torture for me. I had three major tests for my CE (college) classes. I passed the first two, one with 90%!! and am still waiting to hear on my chemistry test. It was so stressful studying for them and I am so entirely grateful to Staci and Cherie for helping me, and especially Jacob, who came over to my house unannounced the night before the test to help me study. He left his mutual early and even sacrificed his homework for me. I will be forever in debt to him. I have a big project in my CE Interior Design class to do, so I will get going for now, but I will be back later. Sorry for not posting in the longest, longest time!

Furniture

2009-02-28T19:17:00.000-08:00

Jess and I just bought new living room furniture. I love it. It's nice and comfy to sit on and looks good in our front room. The kids love it too. Now we just have to finish painting the last wall and the living room will be pretty close to done. Jess is going to hang pictures too. I love how it is all coming together. I promise I'll post some pictures as soon as I can get some that the kids aren't in :)!!! We also bought a new mattress for one of the kids bed and it is a little on the tall side so we are having to make a few adjustments there and then that childs room will be close to being finished too :)!! I love having a house. It's so much fun to paint and decorate.

Vacation

2009-02-21T10:07:00.000-08:00

I am so excited about going on vacation. It has been 2 years since I have had a real vacation so I am jumping on the chance to celebrate my anniversary on vacation and without the kids. Jess found the most beautiful and romantic bed and breakfast on the Straight of Juan de Fuca. Check it out at Colettes dot com. The place has absolutely beautiful gardens (which probably won't be in full bloom while we are there but hey it's still beautiful) and we are right on the ocean. Our room has a huge window that looks out onto the ocean too. I'm super excited. For those who don't know I am DEATHLY afraid of water, having almost drowned twice (acutally three times so far in my life). By the way we are not going to San Antonio, we are going to Washington State. We fly into Seattle and then drive to Port Angela's. The problem isn't staying at the B&B it's that we have to cross two bridges to get there. I'm already hyperventilating and I have two weeks until we leave. The first bridge I'm sure will be easier than the second bridge (which is a floating bridge and Jess made the mistake of showing it to me.) the bridge basically sits right at the water level :( and when it's windy the water can blow over the bridge, am I nervous about this? Sure Am. Plus it's not just once I have to cross it, it's twice AAAHHHHHH!!! But what I am concentrating on is all the beautiful sites we will see and how much fun we will have. We are planning on taking TONZ of pics and we are eating our Anniversary dinner at "Bella Italia's" !! For all you non-Twilight fans that's the resturaunte Bella and Edward eat at in the first book. There are a bunch of wildlife refuges and marine life centers that I think we will visit and a few light houses we may make a trip down to Forks (if I am feeling up to it) and we'll probably spend most of our time on the beaches, I love the calming sounds of the ocean (as long as I am not over top of it) I am a land lover!! There is a reserve called Bloedel Reserve on Bainbridge Island that we may go to, if I can get up the nerve to cross another bridge or go on the ferry. Like I have said before, Jess really knows how to plan a vacation and finds the best B&B's and hotels to stay at. I have never (in 8 years) been disappointed. I couldn't figure out how to post pics from the B&B but I'll be able to once we get home. You'll have to stay tuned!!

JEEPERS...

2009-02-17T19:43:00.000-08:00

Jess and I love Jeep Wranglers. They are so much fun and a great second car to have. In the summer we sold our Jeep because there were only two seats in the back and we have 3 kids (going on 4). Lucky for us the new Jeep Wranglers come with 4 doors and 3 seat belts in the back and a "trunk" space. This means that we'll have enough space to put in a jump seat and still have room for all the camping gear and what not. Jess and I are very picky about features and colors and tires. Since it will be a "second" car and we DO plan on having it longer than a year or two we are taking our time and waiting for the one WE really want. We don't want some junker of a Jeep that was owned by some teenager (or dumb guy who thought he was all that) who trashed it either. So, in the near future the newest member of our family will be a new Jeep Wrangler. Our baby girl may beat it here since we are very paticular, but really unless she comes early we should have our new "BEEP BEEP" soon after our vacation. Am I spoiled, yeah! What can I say, but Jess is spoiled too. Ask him about his Saturday "honey do" lists and he'll tell you 9 times out of 10 they consist of taking a nap, 4 wheelin' with the kids and playing at the park. Such a hard list. But I have to say he is very on top of most things that need to be done around the house. Only that one time out of 10 do I need to have him do something more than just have fun with the kiddo's!! That's another reason we are so excited to buy another Jeep. We really miss 4 wheelin' in one. It's like our family pet :)!!

Bored!!

2009-02-09T09:00:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I wasn't feeling super well so I decided, as I was laying down with my feet up, that I would do some research. I wanted to take my mind off of things so I focused on something that makes me happy. My gardens. I went on line and researched out the best times to plant my flowers, veggies, and berries. I learned a lot about strawberries so we'll see if this year I can make them grow. And I learned that I need to go on the hunt for Peach trees if I want them planted this year... because you are supposed to plant your peach and nectarine trees between the begining of December and the end of February. That was something I would have never guessed. I was done with my research sooner than expected so I decided to start reading "Midnight Sun". For those who are not Twilight fans this is the book that Stephenie Meyer was writing from Edwards point of view. She gave a rough draft copy to a friend who posted it on the internet so it's just a rough draft and it's not all the way finished. I was hoping that she would finish writing and publish anyway but I don't think she is going to do that now. So I broke down and went on her site and started reading. And that was my day yesterday :)!!!

LOVE

2009-02-01T19:10:00.000-08:00

Happy February!! Just thought I would post a little note. We have made it through the worst month of winter...January. February is the shortest month and it starts to warm up from here on out. (Although it starts out a little slow) Also the days are getting longer and hopefully no more below freezing temperatures. Probably a few more snow storms but the snow shouldn't last too long. January is such a depressing month, I'm glad it's gone :)!!

I love Valentines Day!! I love it for the fact that it's my day (and month) to show my kids and husband how much they mean to me and how much I love them (which I try to do every month of the year) but this month it gets done in pinks, reds, purples and white. I love it. I leave heart shaped notes on beds and in lunches, under pillows and on dinner plates and even rolled up in their napkins. This year I'm worried I won't be able to do as much because of my pregnancy but I'm still going to try. I love holidays and making my kids faces light up even with the smallest gestures and the littlest pieces of paper covered in I Heart U's!! I might even go to my hubby's work and let some hearts explode in his work truck. Wouldn't that be fabulous :)!! I may need some help with that one. But hey... it's all in the name of LOVE!!!

Twilight

2009-01-31T19:19:00.000-08:00

Yes I am reading Twilight again. It sure is taking me a long time though, since I've been at it for about 2 months now and I'm not even half way through. I've just been super busy lately. The last two weeks Jess has been out of town. The kids all wanted to sleep in my bed and were sad daddy was gone... not to meantion our drama the first night he was gone. So they asked me to read to them. Well I was reading my Twilight book and decided why not. I read them a chapter of Twilight and Emma is hooked. She is an Edward fan but thinks Bella's name should be changed to Emma. Oh the lovely mind of my four year old :), isn't she sweet. Even Jackson likes the books, of course he doesn't like the mushy stuff, go figure, he's a boy :)!! And Easton he could care less, he goes to bed pretty easily still even when daddy is gone. We just have to worry about him getting up at 3 am and wondering around the house :)!!

Blessed!

2009-01-27T17:31:00.000-08:00

I love reading blogs and reading people's experiences and how human we all are. Today I feel especially blessed. One blog I follow had a makeover contest. People were nominated and then 6 fnalists were chosen. I read the stories of these 6 ladies and I have to say most of them made me grateful for my own trials. One sweet woman has a boy who was born without a brain but is still alive (he's 3 or 4 years old) and she has other children too. Can I say I think she took the cake cause I don't know how people do it. Easton was in the hospital a month and I thought I had it bad. Another lady has had 2 children. The first died when he was 5 weeks old and the other when she was 7 weeks old. That tore my heart out and stomped on it. I've lost one baby but two and in a row and to not be able to have anymore.... I can't even image what she must go through everyday. Another was a woman who has a small child and tried very hard to make her marriage last but her husband (for lack of other words) is pretty much a jerk and is very abusive towards her. And one more I'll tell you about, she has two boys and had a baby girl on the way. There were complications and this sweet baby was born just a few days ago but died during labor...there again...my heart is aching. So I feel very blessed. I have my own little trials that seem big and hugemongus while I'm going through them but honestly I have it a lot easier than most so I shouldn't complain. On these days I just think Count Your Blessings and know that Heavenly Father is aware of you and he knows your limitations. He also sends us Angels to help us through. Those Angels range from the seen to the unseen. I think my seen Angels go without naming but there are many and I appreciate all of them in my life.

MLK DAY

2009-01-18T15:01:00.000-08:00

Friday I picked Jackson up from school on our way to the babysitters. He got in the car and he started telling me about what he learned in school that day. He asked me if I knew who Martin Luther King Junior was. I told him yes and he got so excited and started telling me stories about this great man. Finally I asked him "What did Mr. King do that was so great?" (I asked this question because he had told a lot of stories but hadn't really hit it on the head yet) To my great surprise he said "He made everyone equal. We are all the same." I was so proud of him. I asked him "Why is that so important?" And he said "Because Heavenly Father and Jesus want it that way and we are all God's children." My cup runneth over and so did my tear ducts. I love that he looks beyond skin color and sees the person inside. I love that he is so smart and has wisdom beyond his years and I love that what we are teaching him here at home is sinking in too.

--J

What's on the Menu?

2009-01-13T12:08:00.001-08:00

For the past 7 plus years that I have been married, Jess and I make a menu for the week and then go grocery shopping for the things that we need. This helps keep us on track with our bugdet and helps us not to over spend at the grocery store. Although sometimes it still happens. Here is one of our Menu's from a few weeks ago:

Monday: BBQ hotdogs and steak
Tuesday: Lasagne
Wednesday: Left overs
Thursday: Hilda's Rice
Friday: Homemade Pizza
Saturday: Dad's night
Sunday: Chicken parmesan

We generally try to have a left overs night since some of the recipes can't be cut down anymore and lets face it not every meal can be frozen and used at a later date. But anything that can be we try to freeze. My kids get to help out with the meal planning and they even get to help cook. Their favorite thing to do is to help me make bread. My mother-in-law has the most amazing recipe and generously gave it to me and taught me how to make bread... it is divine!! My kids are hooked and now super spoiled. We also love, love, love freezer jam. I can't wait for fruit season. The sad thing is most of the fruit will be rippening and ready for canning and making jam about the time my baby is due :(. So this year might be slim pickin's for my kids and husband. But hopefully my baby will come on the day I've told her too (Ha Ha Ha!!) and I should be up and moving around enough to at least get the basics done. And if we have another spring in Utah like we had last year... the fruit will all be a month or two behind and then I'll definitely be okay for canning :)!!

The one really sad thing is...that my menu's have gone out the window since becoming pregnant and let me tell you how much that has thrown me through a loop. At the same time I'm so tired I can't even begin to think about cooking let alone actually doing it. Hopefully my first trimester will come to screaching hault and I'll feel better over night and be able to resume our normal routines and even try out some new recipes :)!!!

Miracles Happen

2009-01-11T12:27:00.001-08:00

Babies are miracles! Plain and simple. But my babies are not only miracles but an act of God. I have endometriosis. I was diagnosed when I was 18 but knew by 16 that is what I had. To be diagnosed with endometriosis you have to have surgery. It can't be detected through ultra sound or just by symptoms. It is very, very painful also causes women not to be able to have kids. I grew up in a rather large family (13 children all from the same mom and dad) so at age 18 when the reality of this devistating condition was setting in I choose not to believe that I would never have children. I had considered adoption and what an amazing gift these young girls give to not only their baby but to the adoptive parents. In the back of my mind I knew I would have at least one baby.

Jess and I started dating a few months after I was diagnosed. He was still in his Senior year and I had just graduated the year before. Jess and I knew after several months that we were supposed to be married for eternity. Jess still had a two year mission a head of him and I encouraged him to go. Shortly after he left on his mission (about a month) my endometriosis got worse and my doctor wanted to see me. I went into his office and he said to me that I needed to get married right away and try for children but there were no gaurentees that I would ever be able to have kids. My endometriosis was very severe and getting worse. I couldn't help but laugh and he said I'm not kidding. I told him I just sent a missionary off and he's the one that I'm supposed to marry. He has two more years. This doctor was LDS himself and he said all I can do is help you with pain management and we'll leave the rest up to God. 18 months later I was back in his office for a pre-surgery consultation and to have him sign my papers so I could go on a mission my self. He asked about this missionary and I said "oh, he said he'd wait for me." And he said when does he get home. I said six months. He just grinned and signed the papers. After my surgery it was confirmed just how bad my endometriosis had become, but they lasered it all out I was free to go on my mission. While at the MTC, 3 days before my plane was to leave for Florida I had a severe "endo attack". The MTC doctors wanted me to go home get on this medicine for 3 months and as long as it was working they would send me straight back to Florida. This was 2 months before Jess got home. I didn't want to come home. I told the doctors "No my doctor already signed off that I could come out." So they sent me to see the MTC Mission President and his wife. I will never forget this couple and how amazing they are. The Mission President told me Heavenly Father was testing you. Just like with Abraham and Issac. He just wanted to know that you were willing to do anything he asked of you. You have served your mission well and it's now time for you to go home and begin a new mission. He gave me a blessing that said I would be able to get marrie and have children in the Lord's time.

Little did I know that the Lord's time was sooner than my timing. Jess came home two months later and the week I was to give my Stake President a decision as to wether or not I was going back on my mission Jess asked me to marry him. 8 weeks later we were married and 8 weeks after that we found out we were expecting a baby. Talk about the Lord's timing. My doctor couldn't believe it and made me take several pregnancy tests... all which came out positive. Miracles Happen. With Emma I had surgery again and months later after I thought surgery had failed found out we were pregnant again. Both Jackson and Emma had tramatic entries into this world. After each child was born my doctor would pull up a chair and tell me just how special each baby was and how they should not have survived birth. Emma was most amazing because she had a knot tied in her chord so tight the doctor worked on untying it for the longest time and couldn't. It was also wrapped around her neck 3 times. He told me he'd only seen a knot two other times and the babies were both born still born and the knots were easy to untie. Our next baby Ammon only needed a body and was born too early to live longer than his brief 7 minutes. Then Easton came along...and I want to say what miracle didn't happen with him. Now we are 9 weeks and 2 days pregnant with our last baby that we never thought would be possible yet here we sit and look at the ultrasound pictures and I have heard her heart beating twice now. And all I can say is Miracles Happen!
--J

SAD!!

2009-01-06T19:24:00.000-08:00

I am super confident that Jess' family 110% believes that I don't have feelings. I'm also pretty sure that they think they don't ever have to apologize for being out of line either, because none of them ever have. I can't tell you how many times his family has hurt not only my feelings but his as well. Jess and I usually don't say anything but this time they have gone too far. I honestly believe that all of his siblings wanted him not to marry me and I think they think that treating us aweful puts a wedge between us and that it destroys our relationship. I have news for them all, it doesn't destroy our relationship it makes it stronger. Jess and I love each other very much. We got married for time and all eternity, and we don't take that lightly. So I guess you could say nice try but your efforts for your brother to divorce me aren't going anywhere. And as for destroying relationships, you are only hurting yours with him.

Holiday Potpourri

2008-12-30T18:41:00.000-08:00

I found this recipe on-line and it really is good. It'll make your whole house smell sweet.

1 lime
1 lemon
1 orange
1tsp whole cloves
1 cinnamon stick
15 whole cranberries

Slice the lime, lemon and orange. Place everything in a medium sauce pan. Add 2 quarts water and bring to a boil. turn dodwn and simmer. Add water when needed. Can store in the fridge when not in use. Pull out and reheat when you want. Lasts up to a month.

--J

When the Spirit Speaks

2008-12-30T08:58:00.000-08:00

About a month ago Jess came home from church and said "I have a Secret to tell you" then he said that maybe he would just wait and when it happened he would tell me that was the secret. Now we all know: Men you can't tell your wives something like that and not have us be intrigued. So with very little convincing he told me that he was sitting in Church and was told tha we have another baby to come to our home. When he was in Iraq he had a dream about the birth of his baby girl. He saw her and it was not Emma. He knew that after seeing pictures of Emma. I too have had dreams of a little girl and I've had the spirit tell me that we have another girl. My body is very fragile. This will be my last pregnancy so we know that this is our little girl. We also know her name and how it is to be spelled. It is Ashleigh. I told Jess her middle name is to be Kae but Jess isn't sold on the middle name just yet. This pregnancy feels a lot like Emma's so far. And by now with my boys I'm so sick I'm throwing up every 15 - 20 minutes. I've thrown up twice once was bile and once was stomache acid. With Emma I only threw up twice and felt nausiated for a few weeks. So in a few weeks I should be feeling good :)!!
--J

Raise Your Voice

2008-12-22T08:59:00.000-08:00

Sarah and I sang in Church on Sunday. We were both so nervous and to make things even more nerve racking we sang accapella. Jess (and many others) said we sounded great. I'm glad that it sounded okay. To make things even more complicated I had the start of a sinus infection so I was a little stuffy but I don't think anyone noticed. Sarah and I love to sing. We sang Oh Holy Night and what an honor it was for us to sing a song about our Savior and His birth. It truly is humbling and it builds our testimonies that much more. So we say Thank you to our family and friends who support us and to all who believe in us enough to give us the opportunities to sing.
--J

In Wondering Awe

2008-12-09T10:15:00.000-08:00

This weekend we went to a little town called Midway. There at the LDS stake center they have an inter-faith Cresche display. As we walked into the Church there was a reverance and almost a hush that seemed to fall over all who entered; all who came seeking the Christ child. As I walked through the many rooms and saw how many different ways the Nativity scene can be displayed I wondered at the journey that Mary and Joseph had taken into Bethlehem. How hard it must have been on Mary and how patient Joseph must have been to urge the donkey on and to take great care of Mary. I thought of how many Inns Mary and Joseph must have come to and been turned away from. And the one Inn Keeper who had compassion on Mary and offered his stable for shelter. How hard must it have been for Mary to give birth in such circumstances. Then to wrap her baby and only be able to lay Him in a manger. Did her heart break? I don't know but I do know on that Silent, Holy Night so long ago our Savior was born and what a miracle that was.
In one of the rooms they had a life size display and costumes where you could dress up and have your pictures taken of the Nativity scene. They did ask that no pictures be taken except in this room. Easton was a sheep, Emma an angel, Jackson a wiseman, Jess was Joseph and I was Mary. Easton was in awe over the baby. And kept giving the doll that represented the baby Jesus kisses. Kneeling by the manger with my son so eager to love the baby Jesus I felt a little overwhelmed and wondered how I would capture this love he had and make sure he keeps that love of his Savior with him always. I wondered if Mary felt overwhelmed at the thought of raising the son of God. And I decided that she had great faith that Heavenly Father would bless her with all that she needed to teach and raise her son and so it is with me and my children.

My sweet children couldn't get enough of the manger scene. How grateful I am that my husband has the same convictions as I do and that teaching our children to walk in righteousness is at the top of our list of things to do. I am so thankful for a gentle and loving husband who is also an amazing father. We loved seeing the cresche displays from all over the world and seeing the many different ways this sacred scene is brought to life.

And now as this season is just getting started, Sarah and I are practicing for performances and we even have a FHE program all ready to go. I just hope that I will be able to make it throuh without crying. And even though it is busy between kids, work and practicing I still have time to enjoy the season and reflect on the true meaning of Christmas.

--J

As Promised

2008-11-28T18:23:00.000-08:00

Sarah and I finally took pictures together. Some turned out really cute and others we'll just leave those out for now :)!!!

This was the very last picture taken. We were walking through the park and saw that someone had raked up a pretty decent pile of leaves so we decided it would be fun to play in them... soooo we did. And it was fun!!

We call this the Peek-A-Boo picture. It turned out pretty cute.

This is one of my most favorite pictures. I really like the background.

And this in another favorite. Just so happens this was the first picture taken that day. I'm really glad that Sarah and I took pictures it was so fun and now we finally have pictures of us together for our blog :)!!!

--J

No Wonder

2008-11-26T11:41:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I wonder why Sarah would be so tired after babysitting... after I saw these pictures all I have to say is NO WONDER!!!

What is up with my kids??? Eaton can't resist a dog pile and Emma can hold her own. You should see her with all of the nephews and uncles. She is one tough cookie.

Love how sweet and endearing this photo is. This is what happens when Jess goes out of town. Sarah comes to babysit my kids and then my kids go BONKERS!!! And who wouldn't with such a fun aunt hanging around.

That's my lil' Sis. One day I'll be as skinny as she is (again). She is my inspiration after having 4 kids. And she has such a fun personality. I love my family and love that we are all so close but Sarah and I have this awesome "Sista Bond" that we cherish. So I think we do more and get along more than with the other sisters. I'm so glad that my kids have such great relationships with all of my brothers and sisters too. Jess and I both feel it's so important to have those family bonds.

And then they go crazy :)!!! No really... I think this is my favorite picture. My next favorite is of Sarah looking like she is biting Jackson's ear off. I'll post that one later since I haven't figured out how to put more than 5 pictures on one post. If anyone knows the trick... please feel free to fill me in :)!! I love how Easton is upside down. He has more personality in his pinky finger than most kids I know!

2008-11-21T18:42:00.000-08:00

More Twilight

2008-11-15T19:35:00.000-08:00

I can't get enough of Twilight. I love it :)!! We moved into a new ward in the spring this year and about a month ago the ward was split. Before the ward was split I met this amazingly sweet girl named Emily Tyndall. I found out today that she is in a band called Petal and they wrote a song based on the Twilight book. I have heard a little piece of it and it's amazing. Awesome Job Emily!!! And not only is it being recorded but they have a music video they are doing. She is Bella and there is an Edward (no it's not Rob P but he's just as good lookin') so check out her website at www.petaltheband.com the music video will post next week and there is a link on the website for their blog. It's great and you have to check out her dress...it's fabulous!!!

Holiday Season

2008-11-13T12:24:00.000-08:00

This is my favorite time of year. I love Thanksgiving and Christmas and all the holidays that wrap up the end of the year and the beginning of a new year. One thing that I am so grateful for is music. I am so grateful for the talents my Heavenly Father has blessed me with; especially singing and piano. I am so thankful for family. For my sweet husband and children. For my parents and my husband's parents. For my siblings, their spouses and their children as well as my husband's siblings, their spouses and children. I am so very close to my sister Sarah. I am thankful for her talents as well and that we work well together developing and perfecting those talents. One thing the Holidays bring on is Christmas Carols. Those are our favorites and so fun to sing..... we already have a few people asking us to sing. I'm nervous but I know this is one way to share my testimony of our Savior with others.

On my side of the family we celebrate birthdays once a month and have a Family Home Evening (FHE) tied along with it. December is our month to come up with FHE. Last year we had all the grandkids dress up and we re-enacted the Nativity story. It was beautifully done. I will post on my family post pictures and highlights from last year. This year I felt very impressed that we needed to sing the precious Christmas Carols. At first I thought we should have just a family sing along, now we are going Caroling to neighbors and friends. I'm so excited about this. Sarah and I are going to sing a few songs before we leave to get everyone in the spirit of singing. So I'll keep everyone posted on how it goes. I love Caroling and think it's almost a thing of the past so I'm challenging everyone to get out there this year even if it's only to your next door neighbor and spread some Christmas Spirit :)!!!

I am also a nurshery leader in our ward and I have decided that this year for singing time from now until the end of the year we are going to sing Christmas songs and learn a few. I have Senior Nurshery and these kids already know "I Am A Child of God" and "I Love To See The Temple" word for word. So I think they can do it. Now I just have to find bells or chimes and have some fun with it too since after all they are only three years old. They do love music time though and I think they could spend almost all of nurshery time singing....but I don't know if I can :)!!!

Halloween Pictures

2008-11-09T15:40:00.000-08:00

This is my hunky, handsome, adorable husband and me on Halloween. We went as Tim McGraw and Faith Hill. Not exact impersonations but hey I thought it was close enough.

Jess and I have been married almost 8 years and still going strong. We still feel like we are newly weds too. We have experienced a lot during our 8 years. Jess was in the active duty army for 4 years...making me a full time army wife, and in the National Guard for 2 years....which now he is putting in his WO packet to fly helicopters for the army. He is already a pilot he just needs to build up flight hours and get paid for it. We have 3 beautiful children and we've been through a lot to get them here.

Family is very important to us. It's our most valuable possesion. I was never 100% sure that I would be able to have babies since I have endometriosis (on a severe level). So for us having children is not only a blessing but a miracle. This is us and just a little snippette of our life. And I think this is the first year we both "dressed up" for Halloween.

Bella's Lullaby

2008-11-08T18:28:00.000-08:00

I listened to the Twilight soundtrack and my most favorite song is Bella's Lullaby. I have heard two versions of it on the internet and love them both. Not that anyone hasn't guessed yet but music is a huge part of my life and has been since I was little. My mom sang to me all the time as a child and played the piano. My sisters all play the piano and so do I, maybe that is the reason it is my favorite instrament. I've had a few people comment that they can't believe my favorite song on the soundtrack is Bella's Lullaby...... I thought everyone would have had that pegged from the first 15 seconds of the song. I've been practicing Hymns and Primary Songs but I really need to branch out a little more and play a few other songs too. I guess that I'm nervous that someone is going to critique my playing and give me a failing grade. I get stage fright too and maybe that's why I haven't done more singing. I do have to say it's easier with someone singing with me...Thanks Sarah!!! And I'm pretty shy so I really only belt it out when I'm cleaning my house. If you ever want to hear me singing then you should stop by my house unannounced in the spring or fall when I've forgotten my windows are open.... then you can hear what I really sound like. If you listen for me at church... you won't hear me.... I've perfected singing quietly or at family birthdays... I sing Happy Birthday horribly on purpose. Only my husband and kids have heard me sing it right!!! So I guess one of my New Year's resolutions should be to get over it and just sing huh???

Mountains and A Grain of Sand

2008-11-02T00:10:00.000-07:00

I was listening to a song the other day on the radio and the words caught my attention. I often go through life, as I think we all do, rushing about trying to get our "to do" lists done. Making sure that everything in the house is spotless, the kids are fed and off to school or home from school and then it's off to work, home from work and put the kids in bed while packing lunches, reading scriptures and saying prayers. There's quite a few more activities packed in just one day but for the sake of carpel tunnel I'll just assume you get it. Sometimes I worry about all the wrong things. Or I get so caught up in a certain situation that may be going on in my life at the time that it completely consumes and swallows me whole. This is where I tend to forget important things. Sometimes this mountain that we are climbing seems so all encompassing and when we get finally "get over it" and look back it's actually just a grain of sand blowing away in the wind. But what is left behind can sometimes be a hole as big as a mountain.

These past several months I have really learned a lot about myself and patience and that even though there is some horrible thing happening right now... down the road it's going to seem so insignificant in relationship to what we could have focused on or where we are going. Sometimes I find myself being upset with a situation at work or with friends or extended family and I beat it to death in my mind and I pray about it over and over and over and over again until I think Heavenly Father wonders if I, Joleen, believes that He hears my prayers and in His time will answer them. I have to be patient and turn some things over to the Lord to finish taking care of in His time and in His way. But as I am thinking and beating it out trying to figure it out..... I'm missing out on opportunities I could be spending with my precious babies or my sweet husband or extended family.

So what I have learned is that trials will come and most of them are best handled head on and to do all I can do and then pray about it and talk to my Heavenly Father and leave the rest in his very willing and very capable hands. I am watching miracles happen in my life and my little families life at the moment and in due time I will share those with you. For now I will leave you with just a little taste of one such miracle. I miscarried another baby :( just a few weeks ago. While I am still a little tired and lacking a little energy I am feeling rather well. Jess and I thought that this time I would be able to carry the baby full term. Many don't realize just how many miscarriages I've had and when I tell them... people think I'm making it up. So it's huge for us to feel like this baby was it. Well we lost the baby but in all of my reflecting and reaching and praying and growing these past few months.... I was blessed with the knowledge that around this baby's due date there is something that will be going on in our lives that will make it much harder on us if I were to be pregnant or just have given birth. I think I know what will be going on in our lives but as I am not 100%sure I'm not ready to reveal our speculation.... but this I do know..... Miracles happen and I am so blessed.
--J

More Twilight Fun

2008-10-29T08:27:00.000-07:00

Liz with her pumpkin cupcake. Very creative!

Sarah's Twilight cup cake

Sarh with her cupcake.

And Miss Sarah (on Bella) her self. This was so much fun. I already have requests that I do another one. This time I'm thinking of a red carpet theme for the movie release... What do y'all think??? So Any whoo.... be thinking and send me your ideas or you can volunteer to help me too and I won't turn you down I promise :)!!

--J

Twilighters

2008-10-28T07:36:00.000-07:00

Last Friday night we had a GNO with a Twilight theme. I haven't figured out how to put more than 5 pictures on a post so I was limited to just 5. I have all of them on my FB if you want to check them all out. Anyway.... Here is Prom Bella and Renesmee. These were some of the party favors. Thanks Jen they were awesome... and I love the tags.

We decorated cupcakes. Mine was supposed to be Edward so I posed as "kissing" his cheek. It's silly I know but Jess really likes this pic so I'm good with it.

This is Broken Leg Bella getting bit by Victoria. LOL this was so fun. Dressing up is great and what girl doens't like to... especially around Halloween???

These are more of the party favors. They are coffins filled with candy "blood bags", red finger nail polish and Eclipse mints. And yes we put vampire teeth around the napkins. There are endless possiblities out there.

We played Twilight Jepardy and had some quick facts and a Bella's Birthday Quiz too. We're sad everyone wasn't able to make it. We had loads of fun though and I'll post sarah with her twilight cupcake next.

--J

Twilight

2008-10-24T09:11:00.001-07:00

So I took a "which character are you most like in Twilight" quiz on my FB and it said I was most like Alice. I have always wanted a Porsche and I love to shop and almost went to FIDM so I could see it. Then I took a different quiz in the bloggin' world and it said I'm most like Esme. It said : "You are thoughtful and care very deeply for your family. A loving home is of great importance to you and you always try to make everyone feel welcome. You have a great capacity to love and are sensitive. You are firm when you need to be, but people trust your judgement and appreciate the kind way you always handle things."

So I'm Esme in the bloggin' world and on FB I'm Alice. I guess I'm a mix of them both. What do you think???? Anyway... it's all for fun so don't think I'm going to change my name or mix both names to make a new one :)!!
--J

Joleen

2008-10-15T08:42:00.000-07:00

These are a few pictures Jess took of me during our Fall Frenzy of picture taking. I actually like them. It's very rare that I like pictures that are taken of me. I'm just a little self-concious I guess. Anyway.... These are my updated pic's!

Beautiful Sarah

2008-10-15T08:35:00.000-07:00

Sarah is so amazing. I thought I would post a few pictures that Jackson took of her the other day. They have so much fun when I am at work. Sarah is so pretty too. If you ask her she'll tell you she's not but really just see for yourselves. I'm so glad that I have a sister that I can relate to and have tons of fun with. Sarah and I get along so well. I think we are singing this weekend. I have to check with her, but we'll let you know how it goes if it pans out.

Inspiring Quote

2008-10-09T15:14:00.001-07:00

I was really bored in my US History class one day, and decided to read the quotes that my teacher has on the wall. He is not only a history teacher, but a guitar teacher as well. This was the quote that stuck out to me:
"Humans make Music, &
Music make Miracles."
I love it and decided that Joleen and I are the perfect example of this. We make the music, and the music that we sing, hopefully will make miracles in the lives of others.

Trials

2008-10-01T05:17:00.000-07:00

I read a book once that said eveyone has their own unique set of trials and that we picked our trials before we came to earth. Most days I believe it, but when I'm going through something especially difficult I have to wonder... "Did I really choose this?" Last night I asked myself "Did I choose this because it was the easiest trial?" Did I whimp out and take the easy way out? Was there something more difficult? I cried myself to sleep, which I don't like doing and I hate to cry in front of people so I guess this was the best way to let my tears spill over. Then this morning I remembered the next part of the book said that before we came to earth we had friends and angels who were "nominated" (for lack of a better word) to be around us or beside us to help us through our trials. Although we wouldn't know it. Because we wouldn't remember any of the pre-exisitence it could be a complete stranger or our best friend or even a co-worker, neighbor or a family member. There are also unseen angels all around us watching out for us. I really liked the book and wondered if I needed to read it when I did to understand a little more why I go through some of my trials in this life. Thank You to all my angels, friends and family who are there to support me and give me encouragement when it seems like I've lost all hope... you really are amazing.

Jackson to the Rescue

2008-09-26T09:00:00.000-07:00

Jackson is my buddy. He is almost always right there to help me out when ever I need it. When I'm sick he sticks right by me. When Jess is out of town he doesn't want to leave my side and will sleep either in the hall or next to me at night. He is a protector! The other day he was my hero. We inherited a piano. It's older and not the most beautiful piano but it still works. I was getting frustrated playing it because two of the keys would stick half the time or wouldn't sound the other half. Jackson loves to play the piano too. (He has perfect pitch as well, so the keys were driving him nuts too.) Being the super smart little guy he is he took the top of my pian off and looked inside to see what the problem was. Well it just so happens there was a number 9, green uno card which was causing the sticking and the non- sounding of the keys. Now I can sit down and play the piano and not get frustrated. Thanks Jackson.... you sure are smart and you are my hero!!

In One Ear

2008-09-20T19:58:00.000-07:00

I'm reading this book that I think is amazing. It talks a lot about life after death and is one lady's experience of dying, crossing over then coming back to life. It's a true story. I love how spiritual it is and how well it explains some things. I love that it goes along with everything I believe in and it also goes along with some books I've been reading lately about being positive and how life is anything you make it. Today while I was reading there was a part that totally jumped out at me. She said that we should not compare our selves to others and that we shouldn't compare our talents to other's talents either. That we should develope our individual talents. Sarah has been working on some lyrics on this exact topic and I guess it just made me realize that it doesn't matter what people think of me or who is trying to tear me down... we are all unique and we are all children of God. As long as I am happy and doing the things that Heavenly Father has asked of me then I don't need to worry about what someone else may say. Blessings come in all shapes and sizes and sometimes I think we have to take a look outside of what others think of us and take a look deep inside and see what Christ and Heavenly Father see in us all.

As Now I Fall

2008-09-15T22:39:00.001-07:00

So by now you should all know that Sarah is amazing. I have my little family blog that I have updated with a post about my baby Ammon Paul. You can check it out under my blogs I follow "Jess and Joleen". Ammon's birthday is coming up and I just have to tell Sarah "Thank You" she wrote lyrics to a song called 'As Now I Fall" and there is a verse dedicated to my baby. Sarah told me the sweetest thing when she wrote the lyrics. She told me that when Ammon died she wasn't sure what to say to me and all she could say on the phone was that she was sorry and that she hoped this song made up for it. I just want to tell Sarah: that is the best thing you could have done is just talk to me on the phone. My entire family, every brother, sister and sister-in-law called me to tell me how sorry they were. I have 8 brothers and 4 sisters and I now have 3 sister-in-laws on my side... and more on Jess' side. I even had a brother who was in Iraq who called me three times to make sure that Jess and I were okay. My family was in Utah (except the brother in Iraq) and we were in Texas. I felt their love and their prayers and to this day I am so grateful that they called. It's not an easy time to call someone but I am glad that they all did. And now with Sarah's lyrics I hope that we will be able to sing the song one day and that it may even end up on an album of ours :)!!

Homecoming

2008-09-13T18:36:00.001-07:00

Sarah got asked to Homecoming this last week. I was so excited for her. This is also her first date!! Yeah... go Sarah. How fun is that??? Anyway, I just thought I would keep everyone posted and of course I am doing her hair so we'll post pictures of the hair and the dress and the date as they come. Congrats Sarah girl and have fun at the dance. Oh and yes for those wondering we are keeping the brothers as far away as possible... it's not nice to scare away nice boys, just the scary ones :)!!

Sweet Babies

2008-09-05T23:40:00.000-07:00

I love my sweet babies. They are so amazing to me and each one is such a miracle. Babies are miracles in and of themselves but these three never should have been mine. I have endometriosis (endo) and it's pretty bad. I thank my Heavenly Father every day for the opportunity to be a mother and try my hardest to be a good mom. Am I perfect? I should say not but I'm trying. More than anything in the world I would love to be a stay at home mommy. Right now with they way the world is (with rising gas, food and everything prices) it's just not happening. I am sad that I can't be a stay at home mom but I am thankful for a great career and I love my job and the salon I work at. One day I will get to stay home with my babies. As for now we take every opportunity we can to have fun and enjoy being a family. (That is why I'm bloggin' at 12:47 am) Tonight I got home from an extra trying day at work and my kiddo's and awesome hubby decided that we needed to watch the stars come out. Emma was so cute she thought we were going to miss the stars :). So we headed out on to our new grass (yes we finally have grass) and laid out a bunch of blankets and watched the stars appear. Emma giggled her sweet giggle and Easton had to point out every airplane he could see... along with belly floppin' on all of us. I love when he gets in my face and says "Mommie??? Mommie??" And I say "Yes" or "Eastie" and he just smiles his devious little grin and I know that is his way of saying "I love you." Jackson is my brainiac and I love him so dearly. He watched and was counting the starts as they appeared in the sky. Poor kid lost count after a while but he is so much fun to talk to and listen too. I love how his brain works, I get a kick out of it. So these are my sweet precious babies and I hold them tight every day and tell them every day at least twice (if not hundreds of times) how much I love them.

Sweet 16

2008-08-31T12:33:00.000-07:00

Sarah turned 16 this year. So as a little tribute to her I decided to write 16 of my favorite things about her.

16. She is a very good friend, friendly and one of my best friends.

15. She has great hair!

14. I love when she gets embaressed and her giggle that goes along with it.

13. I love how sassy she gets with our 8 brothers and how she can hold her own with them.

12. She has a fabulous fashion sense :)!!

11. She is outgoing and isn't afraid to try something new. She jumps in head first and doesn't look back.

10. That's her place among the kids. So glad my parents didn't stop at 9 :)!!

9. She is soooo smart. And she wants to be a nurse.

8. She is dedicated to everything she believes in and wants out of life.

7. She is super pretty.

6. She is genuine about everything

5. Her testimony and knowledge of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

4. That she has goals and knows where she is going and what she wants out of life.

3. Her flippin' sweet piano & guitar playin' skills

2. Her smiles lights up any room and (drum roll please.......)

#1. That she and I are such great friends and how well we understand each other and how we have this amazing bond with each other. (Never play Apples to Apples with us... you'll loose)

And that is my Sweet Sister Sarah! Love ya Sis!

Not Just Music

2008-08-22T08:38:00.000-07:00

Sarah and I not only sing but we read. We have been reading the Twilight saga along with every other girl in America. We like to keep up on our current events and be in the know!! So it goes without saying that we are anxiously awaiting the movie release.... which to my surprise today has been bumped up to November 21st. So whether you are Team Edward or Team Jacob...gear up cause we have just shaved 3 weeks off our waiting time. (I strongly believe in the secret j/k) And for those of you who are fans and live in Utah we are planning a Twilight Party at my house in the near future so watch for more details to come. And anyone with ideas or who wants to help in the planning just give me a buzz.

Practice Makes Perfect

2008-08-18T09:46:00.000-07:00

I don't have any picture updates for you. Sarah and I have been practicing singing and fine tuning our voices. It's an ongoing process: practicing and fine tuning, you are never done in that area. We have decided that we need to do a photo album of just us so we are planning on taking pictures (which took some convincing on my part since I don't like to see myself in pictures) in the near future so you'll have to check back to see our photos and tell us which ones are your fav's.

Anyway.... as a side note we were having FHE last night since Jess will be out of town today and we decided to play scripture hang man. For those who don't believe in Divine Intervention I wish all of you a moment or experience such as mine last night. The Haag Family rules of scripture hang man go as follows: you have to pick a word or phrase from the scriptures, once it's guessed then you have to tell why you chose that word or phrase by either telling the story, giving a personal experience, ect..... So we started out and we play in teams since our children are small. Jess chose the first word and it was "converted" and told the kids about his mission just a little bit. Then I was at a loss as to what I wanted as my word or phrase. As I was flipping through the back of the Book of Mormon I instictively chose "Nephi builds a ship" which is in the front of the book. After everyone had guessed it I was then to explain the story. As I was telling the story I said that Nephi's brothers told him that he couldn't build a ship, he didn't know how or have the tools too and that they laughed at him and mocked him. Then I told them how Heavenly Father showed him the plans and showed him how to make the tools and where to go for wood and supplies. And then at the very last I likened it to us today and told my small children that in life we can do and be anything we want to be and that if we ask Heavenly Father that he will show us the way and what we need to do to accomplish these things. Even though I was talking to my children it seemed like Heavenly Father was talking to me and as I listened to everything I was saying I knew that I was where I needed to be at this point in my life and that my sister and I are supposed to be singing and blessing the lives of others through our voices. I don't know how all of that will come about but I do know that He will show me bit by bit and piece by piece. FHE continued and Jess chose the phrase "The Iron Rod" and then it was my turn again and I chose "The Liahona" and it just seemed that our explainations of the stories and our personal experiences were this Divine intervention of sorts for me. Here I was thinking about what my children needed and what I was supposed to be teaching them and it turned into everything that I needed at that moment. And how ironic it was that I was teaching myself. Was it a huge and grande display of anything.... no it was just this awe hah moment in my living room with my family, that opened my eyes to the things I needed at that moment.

I am so thankful for all of the different talents my Heavenly Father has blessed me with. For my sister, Sarah and for the sisterhood bond we share. For my wonderful, dear, sweet husband and all of his love and support and for him being in tune with the Spirit too.

What It Takes

2008-08-14T08:49:00.000-07:00

Sarah and I (Joleen) have been singing probably since the day we were born. There are actually 13 years between the two of us but we are the best of friends. We recently decided that we wanted a blog page where we could journal all about us and our singing, somewhere we could post our inspiration and sucesses as we journey down this path in our lives. Sarah is an amazing pianist and our voices tend to blend beautifully. "Nothing is greater than the harmony that comes from siblings" that is Sarah's most favorite saying. I play the piano as well but I like to let Sarah take the lead there since I'm a little rusty in that area.

We have the most amazing family and not just because of it's size :)!! There are 13 siblings in our family all from the same Mom and Dad. Our parents are the most compassionate, caring and supportive people we know. We love them dearly and thank them for all their love, support and input. We have been very blessed by our Heavenly Father who we owe so much to for blessing us with our talent of music, among other things. There are 8 brothers and 5 sisters in the family. I'm number 3 in line and Sarah is number 10! We have to thank our siblings for their love and support as well. We are always there for one another and cheering each other on in all of our different endeavors.

I am married, 7 1/2 years, and have to also thank my sweet husband for all of his love, time and support. For his patience with me as well. He is amazing and my rock, my everything. We have 4 beautiful children... one who is in Heaven waiting for the rest of us and watching over us as we journey through life here on Earth. The other 3 keep me very busy here at home. And I have to thank his parents as well for raising such an amazing son and for being supportive of us.

Sarah is in her Junior year in High School. She has lots of personality, is friendly, smart, loves to swing dance and is lots of fun. She is an awesome aunt too. She wants to go into nursing aside from singing and she is super creative. She came up with our name: Diamond in the Rough. We hope you like our blog and will check back often to see what is going on with us, our families and our singing. We love input so don't be shy on commenting :)