A New Adventure

Since I've known my husband he has talked about dreams of becoming a business owner and achieving financial freedom. Throughout our marriage the image of that dream has evolved as ideas got sifted through. In the end, Real Estate has been the one constant.

For a long time Justin has wanted to get into real estate more than he has been able to but felt limited and unsure of what direction to go and where to start. Just under a year ago, his cousin introduced us to a new school offering a unique combination of real estate education and opportunity to make money by marketing the school. The school is called Nouveau Riche (link HERE) As we hosted our cousin every couple of months or so as he attended the school here in Phoenix, we would learn more about what he was learning and watch his excitement about what he was doing increase.

As Justin tried to make important decisions about where he wants his career to go and how to reach his financial goals, this school became more and more interesting to us. Finally, we attended an "intensive" that gave us a small sample of the education and more information about the marketing opportunities.

It was the perfect fit! It seems to be just what Justin has been looking for, and more importantly, it feels right!

We're excited to start this new adventure and invite anyone else interested in learning about the school to ask us about it. Justin loves to share his new interests and he is particularly excited about this one. We both are!

Justin started a blog to document his education and progress as he achieves his goals. You can visit his blog HERE.

Good luck, babe!

Tough Kid!

Well here we are again!

I took Cole to the arm doctor again earlier this week to get new x-rays and see how his arm has progressed. Well, it hasn't at all. In fact, the bone moved, IN THE WRONG DIRECTION! So, we had to have him go under so the doctor could move the bone back in place and re-cast his arm. We're not sure why the bone moved or what may have caused it. I guess stuff like that just happens sometimes and you gotta do what you gotta do.

Here we are just before his procedure. He was actually quiet excited about the whole thing. He got to decorate the mask that they used to put him under and ride around in a wagon and a push-car. What more could a boy want?! He especially loved the outfits. He loves to wear the face-mask I had and play doctor. What a trooper!


I got to go in the room with him until he was asleep. Let me tell you, that was kinda weird! His eyes actually rolled into the back of his head! But the doctors and nurses were really great and told me what would happen before it did, so I wasn't freaking out!

All went well and now he is back at home causing mischief. Way to not skip a beat, son!

Goodbye, Friend :(

Sometimes in life we are lucky enough to make a friend that leaves a lasting imprint on your life. I have been lucky to have found a friend like that in Britta. She is truly an inspirational person. You can't help but feel the spirit when you are near her. She brings so much joy wherever she goes and I will miss her so much! She has been one of the biggest instigators of girls night out which has brought many of the girls in my ward at church become much closer. She started something here in Mesa and now she is off to start new adventures in Utah. That's right, she's moving :( So sad for all of us left behind, but exciting for her and many others who will get to know her there.

So, goodbye Britta! You will be greatly missed so visit soon! Good luck with all your new adventures!

Heather Neilson is Having a Baby!

Heather Nielson is Having a Girl!

Her Due Date is Sept 20th

(this is their first baby)

Hosted at Shye Petersen's Home

Tuesday September 2nd 2008

from 6:30pm to 8:30pm

Come enjoy Refreshments & Games

For gift ideas check out her wish list HERE

We are looking for volunteers to help out by bringing dessert for the shower. If you would like to bring something please contact Trina Leishman or Becki Crosby!

Girls Night Tonight!

My mom and I want to go so Mama Mia tonight and a few other people expressed some interest so I thought I'd just make it a full fledged girls night! We are meeting at the Harkins theater in the tempe marketplace. The movie starts at 6:40. All is invited, so I'll you there!

He makes me smile!

Justin's been working so hard at work, studying, and making a lot of important decisions lately and has been feeling a bit stressed. So friday I surprised him with a date of his favorite things! We went to Flemings for dinner. If you've never been there, it is easily the best meal you will ever have, but it's a bit pricey so be prepared, it's worth every dime you pay! yum-yum. Then, we went and saw "Dark Knight" and had such a good time! What an awsome movie!

Anyway, hope Just remembers that night and that his family loves and supports him and all that his is accomplishing. What a hard working man. He deserves all the good things in life, especially a good steak and chocolate cake!

The Tooth Doctor!

Ever since Rylee's first dentist apoitment when she was three she gets so excited when we go to the "tooth doctor" because she always gets to leave with so many prizes. This last week, Cole had his first dentist experience and loved it just as much as Rylee did. A good report for both kids!

Another Cast/Fashion Show!

Well, Cole got to get his splint off and now has a way cooler green cast! (he picked out the color himself). I'm so glad because I was only able to get one t-shirt over his splint and that's what he wore to church and for the next two days after that. (time to wash it!)

And again, he had a cast/fashion show to show off his new cool green arm! Cole has become quiet the jokster and now, randomly, he'll say to me "I going break mine other arm, and I can't eat or play with my toys! ha ha!" He thinks he such a crack up! (he gets it from me, we're hilarious!)

Just a Cute Baby!

Gracie is 9 months old now and growing faster every day. She refuses to crawl, probably because her army crawl gets her where she wants to go much faster, but she pulls herself up on furniture and is starting to walk along it (usually when she sees something she wants). She just had her well-baby visit yesterday and she is still a BIG GIRL! She is 75% for her weight (which means she is slowing down in that department), but she is still off the charts for her height. Looks like we have a basketball player in the making!
She certianly never goes hungry! Even after she fills her tummy up with baby food, she wants whatever everyone else is eating. Food is like a magnet for her! Gotta watch out for that in future!

She is such a happy baby! She smiles and laughs very easily. She just learned how to clap and immitates everyone else who does it. It's so cute! I love it!

I'll post a video of her playing soon.

Tag. . your it!

I love getting tagged! It makes me feel like my friends think of me sometimes, so maybe people like me! Yeah! I'm part of "in" crowd!

How To Play This Game of Tag:Post these rules on your blog. List: 3 joys, 3 fears, 3 goals, 3 current obsessions/collections, 3 facts about yourself. Tag 5 people at the end of your post by leaving their names. Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog!

Joys:
1. My husband. He does so much for our family and loves us so much.
2. My kids. They make me laugh daily, even on rough days.
3. The Gospel. It gives me great peace to know where I'm going and how to get there.

Fears:
1. Losing anyone that I love.
2. The dark. Yes, I still believe there are monsters under my bed. I even won't let me feet or hands dangle over the side for fear they might get eaten in my sleep!
3. Getting to the end of my life and feeling like "I should have done more."

Goals:
1. To have my licence in Marriage and Family Therapy by the time I'm 35 (only 7 1/2 years to go, EEeeeeeeeh!)
2. To teach my children to make their own definition of success and reach for it.
3. To get my husband to see his dreams.

Obsessions/Collections:
1. My family blog
2. My mommy blog
3. Other peoples blogs (I'm a blogaholic!)

I tag everyone who reads this!

When did she get so big?!?!

Rylee completed her first day of Kindergarten successfully. She loved it! She says she really likes her teacher and that she thinks she's funny. She's made some new friends and likes the boy she sits next to in her classroom (oh boy!).

When I dropped her off she told me she wanted to walk to her classroom by herself :( So, I let her and just watched from afar. Shortly after finding her classroom door, she started to talk to the kids waiting for her class. It didn't take long before she was surrounded by 4-5 little boys, showing off thier backpacks and chatting about the classroom numbers on the wall. Justin has decided to think she was talking to the boys and not the girls because she is a tomboy. I'm sure it has nothing to do with how cute she is :)

After school, she was excited to tell me all about it. She doesn't have any homework yet but she's excited to start that aswell.

You can go to Rylee's blog to check out her response to her first day of school (posted soon)

Finally!

I bet you were wondering if you would ever get to see it!

Well, it's finally here! Actually, we got it about 2 weeks ago, but it should have been here over a month ago (gotta love fed ex). This t.v. took quiet a trip. First, it went to El Paso, then all the way to North Carolina, before it finally made it's way to our happy home (what a nightmare it was)!

But, now we're enjoying the clarity that digital t.v. offers and the fun big screen to watch movies on. Now my kids can play movie theater and not have to pretend like we have a nice t.v. anymore! Thanks to all you voters out there that voted for my husband to win this fabulous t.v. And thanks to the "Hottest Dad's Contest."

Well, it was bound to happen eventually. . .

Last night, after we had put the kids to bed, Justin and I decided to watch a movie (P.S. I Love You). About 15 min. into the movie we hear this loud THUD! from upstairs and then an instant scream. Cole often roles off the bed when he is sleeping and usually cries a little about it then gets back in bed and is asleep again within minutes. This time was different. We ran up the stairs and Cole was screaming ( not just crying) and holding his arm. I knew instantly what had happened. I looked at his arm and you could see that just below the wrist, his arm was broken. His arm was not suppose to bend that way. So, off we went to the E.R. I was surprised how quickly they were able to get us in there and out again. Cole did awsome throughtout the whole thing. He whined only a little when they had to move his arm around to take x-rays, but mostly he was just calm and a little nervous. We read him stories and the doctors and nurses promised him popsicles and a new toy when he was all done. (Now my kids think going to the hospital is like going to Chuck-E-Cheese or something because when we asked if they were ready to go home once Cole was done, they said no)!

I took pics this morning of Cole's battle wounds and you would think he was posing for a fashion show! He just kept moving into different poses to show off his splint (he'll be getting a cast in a few days). What a tough kid!

(Check out Cole's blog to hear his response to the whole ordeal)

"Breaking Dawn" is Here!!!!

Just a few photos from the midnight release party of "Breaking Dawn." It was pretty fun! They had good music, yummy cupcakes, a scavenger hunt, and a few contests. My friend Becki (the hot blond seen in pics) made the t-shirts that we are wearing. She sells them if you are interested. Just check out her website (here). I am nearly half done with the book and LOVING IT! Where does Stephanie Meyer come up with this stuff! Anyway, hope you all love it like I do!

Attention Twilighters!!!!!

I am so excited! Just want to send out a reminder for those who are interested in the "Breaking Dawn" Midnight Release Party tonight. We are meeting at Becki's house at 8:30 and then we'll all go together from there. I am so excited! I haven't ordered the book yet, but I think the party will be great fun. Click on the flier above to get the details. If you can't meet that early, than come later if you can and give me a call so we know to look for you. See you all tonight!