Happy Anniversary Brian!

Brian, I told you I found the perfect anniversary gift that didn't cost me anything.....well, except for taking Nicole Hammontree out to lunch for helping me with this. You have hinted and asked in the past for me to work on something like this but those who know me well know that creating something on the computer is not my cup of tea. Thank goodness for Nicole, her talents are amazing.

I thought now was the perfect time to do a family blog as we celebrate our 14th wedding anniversary! Can you believe it. The time has gone by so fast. The things we have accomplished together in the past 14 years still amazes me.....especially these 3 kids. We are 2 of the lucky few who got to marry our high school sweet hearts and we made it work!

How did I get so lucky? You are all I have ever known since I was 15 years old. We got to grow up together, which I think makes us both who we are today. There were a lot of people who thought we were too young to get married and knew for sure that it wouldn't last. But, we dared to dream our dreams and here we are today.

Every day I thank God for you in my life. You are the "poster child" for the perfect husband and father. It's the little things you do that make me proud to be your wife, like not leaving the house in the morning without saying goodbye to each one of us and telling us you love us, or the dishes you wash, or laundry you fold after a long day at work just because you can tell I am exhausted from a day of being a mom.

With that, I hope you enjoy your anniversary gift. Hopefully with your help we can keep this current to share our happiness with our friends and family. Thank you for making my dreams come true! Happy Anniversary. I love you.

Our biggest dreams come true!

Here they are! Our 3 biggest achievements. So many times we lay in bed at night laughing about something funny Tyson said, amazed at Jett's newest "trick"......trying to remember when the other two developed to that point......or stressing over the beautiful young woman McKenzie is becoming.

This was a night that you were in Sacramento for a class. It started to sprinkle so I took the kids and Shelbee on a walk. They were so excited to see rain. It was barely sprinkling and Tyson kept saying "man, it's pouring!" I had to take a picture because they were all so happy finally after a long week of sad faces from missing you!

What a stinker!

O.k, I'll go ahead and say it. Ignore the tampons in the background. The picture was too cute not to post. Occasionally we put Jett on the toilet and he usually will pee. This time he suprised us and actually pooped. We couldn't believe it. We were two parents who were so proud of their 7 month old that we just had to take a picture of his poop!!

Remember how suprised we were when we found out we were going to have another baby? We were so shocked that we decided not to tell anyone until we were over the shock and could smile as we shared the news and not cry. I was 16 weeks along when we finally shared the news.

Now we can't imagine what life would be like without our little Jett. He has added so much life to our home. He already has us figured out and runs the house. What a great gift we were able to give McKenzie and Tyson. He difinately completes our family

Where did the time go?

It is hard to believe that McKenzie is about to turn 12. I thought this picture was appropriate because life is all about her friends right now. This picture was taken at the end of the school year at academic night. McKenzie is our little over-achiever. She is already starting to have a busier schedule than us. She is on the Student council this year which she is so excited about and keeps growing as our little pianist.

When she was just a little baby you would pick out nike clothes for her and give her stuffed basketballs to play with. Her pacifiers even had basketballs on them. Well, that plan backfired on us. She is nothing but a girly girl! She brings so much joy into our lives. What a good example she is to her brothers...(when she's not teasing them)

She is so kind and sensitive to others and their feelings. She is growing up to be quite a beautiful young woman. Where did the time go?

Tyson is so lucky!

How many dad's will sit for hours and play legos? How many dad's will play Indiana Jones or Starwars on the Wii and get just as excited as their 6 year old just to be playing? Tyson's Dad!!

How lucky our kids are to have memories of you playing with them the way you do. You are so hands on, fun, and caring. What a great example you are to him of what a Father should be. You are always there for our kids if it is just for playing or to have a talk with.....and even for that "occasional" getting in trouble.

And Shelbee

I was not raised being a dog lover. But, watching you interact with Shelbee has started to turn me around. If I had a dime for everytime you said "man, she is a good dog"......

I couldn't leave her out. We have better pictures of her but I liked this one because this is exactly what our family room looks like in the evenings when you are playing with our kids.....Shelbee is right there playing too.

We love you!

It has been a few weeks of working on this gift to you 10 minutes here and 10 minutes there between Jett's naps or times when he will play nicely in the office. On this day he started to fuss so I picked him up and I snapped a picture. This gift is also from him, he sacrificed some mom time as I worked on this.

What a wonderful world we have. Thank you for being the glue that holds this family together. Happy Anniversary, We love you!