Graduation Week

The weekend before graduation, Robert, Emily, James, and Anna came to visit. It was so much fun!!! We truly had a blast!! It meant a lot to us that they sacrificed so much to be able to be here to celebrate Mark's great accomplishments, and to play!

Here are some pictures of a park visit they went on while I was at work one day...

I love this...James just looks like a little man walking across the bridge.

"Ooh, a water park! I want to go there..."

Anna enjoying some sun rays with her daddy...

I love Anna's hair...

He's going to be a true monkey some day....

So Robert and Emily went out to dinner one night and let us babysit the kids...it was so much fun! James and Anna are so good...and SO CUTE!

Mark took his last final on Wednesday and asked if he could have his graduation gift then since he was officially done. I was excited to give it to him so I did. (I was especially excited about the wrapping paper...Go Cougs!)

"Oooh..."

It's a Wii! That's right all you Wii playing folks....we can now play with you. Robert and Emily got Mark MarioKart for the wii so we can join their online games with Heather and Ethan! Woohoo! Happy Graduation, Mark! :)

The day after graduation our friends Kevin and Vanessa got married. Kevin was Mark's roommate last year, and Vanessa was my roommate. They met through our Sunday night dinners- we're so happy for them! We couldn't miss the sealing so we left the family for a few hours. We were grateful to have been able to take part in the sealing and feel of the sweet spirit there. Congrats, Kevin and Vanessa!!

Well, unfortunately we couldn't get any pictures of the bride and groom because everytime we tried we just got blocked. But here are a couple pretty pictures we took while waiting for them to come out.


After the sealing we met up with Mark's family at Rodizio's Brazilian Grill. His parents took us out in celebration of graduation. It was very nice of them and we had a great time. And of course it was a very exciting event for me- celebrate Mark with the surroundings of one of my favorite cultures. I even got a chance to speak some Portuguese...I really need to find more opportunities to practice, but it was really fun. We really did all have a great time together- a big thanks to Mark's parents for coming up and for taking us all out to spend some time together.



After dinner, we went to the Dinosaur Museum. It was a blast. Last time Mark and I went (see Valentine's Day blog), we kept thinking how fun it would be to have had James with us...this time we did...and a few other kids as well...

First, Emily let me hold Anna while we were there. I tried out her snuggle thing...it was fun. Although I felt like a total mom. It makes me laugh when I see the pictures though- I don't realize how short I am until I see pictures of me next to a baby and 2 year old- maybe it's just the camera angle. :)
James found a cave and had some fun running in and out of it.

Mark and James.
At the museum they have this great area for little kids. It's a canal of running water filled with sand and dinosaur and plant toys. It's the ultimate sand box! Here's James playing in the sand with some dinosaurs.
Well, James eventually had some other friends join him...some bigger boys. I'm not sure who had more fun, the big boys or little ones...
The big boys eventually made their own creation and blocked some of the water from flowing by making a dam. They found the art of erosion fascinating. Even better than that was there was a high strung grandma near by and she got all bent out of shape because they were taking all the sand from her granddaughter- who happened to be a little ways away and the boys had gotten all the sand from a little corner where no kids were playing. There is never a lack of entertainment when you are in a little kids area- if you get bored of watching the kids, you can watch the parents/grandparents getting all worried about their kid.
Since the boys were playing we made them put on their little aprons....I love how Jason and Robert are all big and tuff and Mark has his little toy dinosaur with a giddy smile- such a little boy...I love it! :)
James with a fun puppet.
"Oh, Hi!"
That night Angie and Jason came over as well and we all had a great time together. First we went to the mall. We had the guys meet us there so James could go to Build-A-Bear. It was funny, but we had to take a picture of him with his box after. The funniest part of it all was right after this picture. He quickly decided he didn't want his box anymore, but instead wanted my Victoria Secret's bag.

After the mall we went to Fro-Yo for frozen yogurt. We were all chatting and realized James had gone over to the next booth and found his reflection in the napkin dispenser. He decided to have a conversation with himself (which he had done earlier in the week with his reflection in our door knobs at home). He would say, "Oh, hi James!" "How are you?" "Come on, let's go!" Then he'd quickly run away and return only to have the same conversation with a few variations. It was so funny and cute! :)
The next morning everyone was leaving. Sad. :( Jason held Anna while Robert and Emily got ready and packed things up. They both fell asleep...


One last shot before they hit the road. We really miss these guys a lot!!!
Thanks again everyone for coming and celebrating such a special event with us. We really appreciate all you do and for all your love. Robert and Emily, we had a BLAST with you guys!! Thanks so much for spending so much time with us and letting us enjoy your cute keikis (kids)! We love you guys!! :)

April 15- The Best Day of the Year! :)

Happy Birthday to me! Minus all the snow, I had a GREAT birthday!!! Thank you to everyone who helped to make it so special! I love you all!!!! Here is my birthday shot...

A close up of the roses Mark got me....I love pink!!! :)

Feliz Pascoa!

I've decided Easter is my favorite holiday (of course Christmas is a close second)! I just love all the colors and the feel of Easter. I love the time we have to dedicate to the reflection of our Savior and His atonement. People don't seem to get so stressed and burdened by the holiday so it's more enjoyable. And, of course, I also love the candy and fun that goes with Easter.

Easter morning Shaun came over and he and Mark searched for their Easter baskets I had hidden. After, we had breakfast and watched the church's Easter short film and read the First Presidency's message. It was a very good day for us!

Mark's basket...

Shaun's basket...

Then for dinner I made some pasta...with some Easter shaped pasta my friend Jill got me one year. It was fun...here are some of the shapes...


The night before Easter we had the annual Easter Egg Hunt- a tradition in my family since I was really young. It was always so much fun! Although we didn't have nearly as many people as we used to have growing up, it was still a blast to be with friends and have some fun!

First, I decided to make some Easter cake...here's the body...

Shaking some food coloring in the coconut for grass...

Body surrounded by grass...don't mind the huge mess on the counter...

Eyes and a mouth...with some jelly beans in the grass...

Finishing touches....

The final product...with cupcakes...and chocolate covered strawberries that Vanessa brought.

So here were our participants...Shaun of course! :)

Our favorite neighbors, Erik and Michelle...

the almost newly weds, Kevin and Vanessa....

...Mark, of course...and our friend Aaron came by later too. Another successful Easter full of the fun spirit of Spring, the beginning of life, and the reflection on the great Atonement and our great Savior! Happy Easter!!! :)

Mark's Masterpiece

In the summer of 2007 Mark made a website for BYU's PreMed Club. He wanted a graphic for the page but the club had no logo- so he made one himself. This is what it looks like...

This year the club presidency met and decided on designs for this year's t-shirts. One of the guys said he really liked the logo on the website and wanted that to be on the shirts- and that was what was voted on. Of course Mark just quietly enjoyed the praise of his logo and didn't say anything...so I'm telling his secret! We went to this year's banquet and there were about 250 shirts there being handed out....here we are modeling Mark's beautiful work...

In addition to his artistic skill...he also has some great husband skills! :) I came home from work on Friday (he was supposed to be home way before me) and he wasn't home...he left for a minute to get me some flowers. Notice they are bright, beautiful tulips!! Oh they made me so happy! :) Mark Rocks!

Conference Sunday!!!

I love General Conference! We wanted to be sure to go up to it this time. We planned to go on Saturday but the weather was horrible- snowing and cold. So we got up early on Sunday and got in the stand-by line. After the morning session the weather was beautiful. Here are some pictures...

Mark and I striking a pose in front of some flowers.


Shaun and I relaxing and enjoying the sun shining on our faces! :)

Tabernacle shot...I am always amazed at this building whenever I walk in. The spirit of such great things that have happened there for so many years is so strong. It truly is a sacred place.

Of course the flowers totally brightened my day! I couldn't get enough of them...so Mark took some shots for me to enjoy them even after we left temple square. Here are a few...

I love tulips and daffodils. I love the bright, beautiful colors!





They really do a great job of keeping the grounds so beautiful! I love it...and have really needed to see some of it with all the rain and snow we've been getting. The feeling of the sunshine and colors of flowers just make me so happy and giddy- I'm truly the daughter of a beach boy/landscaper! :)

Anna's Blessing

Last month we were lucky enough to fly down for Anna's blessing- our new, and only, niece. Even though it was a quick trip, it was so much fun to see everyone! We really had a great time and hated to leave so soon. But here are some pictures...

Anna's blessing was beautiful! Here is Mark and his mom with the little angel. Notice her hair- it's so cute!!!

Afterward we went back to the house for a little lunch. Behind me you can see Emily's dad and two missionaries- one of them is Emily's brother. He is serving in the Phoenix mission and his president gave him permission to go to the blessing.

The cake...so pretty!

Jenna stopping for a pose- when I got our camera back we had about 50 pictures of Jenna- thanks Jason! There's a few more as we go...

The table decorations...they were so cute. Mark's dad took some very nice pictures of Anna so each table had some in the middle.

The flowers in the backyard. Random picture, but I just really like them and can't wait to have my own garden to work in. Dad, I'm going to need some help! :) (Especially if we're in Arizona- only the Sprinkler Mechanic will be able to make a good enough system for us!) :)

The food...


Jenna poses...


Meanwhile Mark was inside playing Legos with the boys. I think he might have had just as much, if not more, fun than they did. This is Mark's robot- the little boys attacked it shortly after the picture.

James got bored and went out for some cake....mmmm!

Then the kids went to the pool area...we watched them closely...but they had a BLAST! It was so fun to watch, we were all cracking up! They kept splashing each other and making themselves laugh.

Then Pam took them up to the waterfall...

and they were even more entertaining here! It was like a kids' dream!

We brought James some cars...he's opening up his present. I don't know what I'm doing...looks like I'm trying to sit on an imaginary chair, or throne...

Anna and I! Isn't she the cutest. And notice the shirt- My auntie loves me! :) I was so excited when we found this.

And of course a bib that says "I love my uncle."

Well, we had a blast! We're excited to see some of you this week again! Thanks Robert and Emily for letting us take part in celebrating the arrive of your little princess! :)

St. Patrick's Day

We had our annual St. Patrick's Day dinner- cornbeef patties with pork and beans. Yum! I also made green rice krispies for dinner- as Mark is modeling in this first picture. He is also modeling one of his new shirts- BYU's Business School was recently ranked #1 by recruiters and #5 overall by Business Week. They made shirts with 5-leaf clovers to celebrate! Of course Mark is proud- he graduates from the Business school in less than a week! Congrats, Mark! ...and Go Cougs! :)