Memorable March

This was the first summer we started "going out" Have we even changed at all?

March is somewhat of a memorable month for Owen and I. This March about 2 weeks ago makes 9 years together. It seems so crazy!! 9 years ago this month was when Owen and I were sitting at the State basketball tournaments in Cedar City, he was in 9th grade I was in 8th, and he pulled the bunny trick on me. He told me a story about how a bunny was lost and he was trasing my fingers saying it was lost this way and this way but when he went this way (holding my hand) he wasn't lost anymore. So cheezy!! I am laughing thinking about how cheezy he was! Anyway we ended up holding hands that day and then we just sorta kept holding hands for the last 9 years (minus the two he was on his mission).

Year 2002 and 2003

Prom 2003

Owens mom always says that some people may not know what they are really getting when they get married but we knew everything! Owen and I were always known in high school for fighting. We fought a lot and honestly we still do but its like a healthy fight. I know it doesn't make sense but that is just how we are. We are both very spoken and well we are good for each other. If either of us had different "more nice" personalities I think we would rip the other to shreds.

This was the night before Owen left on his mission.

Anyways this month is also memorable because we were engaged in March. I think it was the 14th, 2006. Honestly I am not positive on all the dates because I was in such a state of la la land. Owen got home from his mission on the 2nd of March and it was a very stressful time for me. Things just weren't looking on the bright side for us, but they progressed very quickly. After the first few days of Owen being home we worked through our issues and we both knew we were going to get married but we didn't really say when. We soon talked him into going on a cruise with my family. I honestly don't know how it happened but we had looked at rings sometime when we were in St. George before we left for the cruise. My mom was going down to St. George the day before we left to get some last minute things and Owen calls her and asks if she can pick something up for him. She was thinking, flip flops, shorts something like that, but no he asked her to pick up a ring for me.

1 day back from the mission and back at the State Tournie

We went on the cruise, had a great time and on the night where you "meet the captain" he decided was the night. After the formal dinner we went and changed and were going to go to the arcade with my brothers. While we were changing Owen ran down and talked to my parents about it and then we headed to the arcade. All of a sudden my brothers were gone, they just ran off. So Owen and I decided to walk outside on the balcony. We went to the back of the ship and were just talking and all of a sudden I look over at him and he was on his knee. I was in complete shock!! I knew it was coming at some point but seriously not this soon---he was only home for 12 days! I was freaking out and pretty much all I did was scream over and over. Finally he got me to shut up and of course I said yes. We went and found my family and then re-inacted the scene for pictures.

One of our engagement pics.

So, this post is to mark 9 years together. So many years together....and so many to come!

Getting ready for the Bambino

Well we have been sort of getting ready to bring a baby into our lives.

#1 is we are kicking our dogs outside!! I am so sick of their hair I could scream! I realize during the winter months its not going to be so easy but when its warm outside they are out. The only problem now is that the dumb dogs keep digging out of our fence. Now that they have learned it they do it constently. Owen is in the process of building a rock wall around the whole area so they can't get out. But he has also built them a nice little dog house that is really quite big, has a doggy door, and is insulated. He did a pretty good job. He still needs to paint the sides red and he wants to make a little sign on the front that has their names--such a creative fellow he is.

My cute little doggies. I do still love em' I just want them outside.

#2- I am a physco about baby clothes and have been for quite some time. Well my aunt Pam who had quadruplets was having a garage sale with all her stuff last week so I went down to St. George and well pretty much I went crazy!! I bought tons of clothes. Most are in pretty good condition and I feel like I got a good selection of boys and girls. They were only a dollar a piece so I couldn't pass that up. I got stuff from baby to age 3 so I am stoked, and a little crazy too.

#3- On Tuesday we got rid of my baby. My cute little Corolla. I am still really sad about it and I am going to miss my car so much! I wasn't really ready to say good-bye to it but I did. I told Owen a few months ago that I liked the Ford Edges and that I would consider getting one. Well he just dug right in to that and has been non-stop looking at them. I have been pretty nonchalant about it. He found a really good deal last week and well we went for it. The biggest thing that got me to do it this soon was because we can put the dogs in the very back and they won't be jumping all over the baby and the All Wheel Drive of course.

My baby

The new Edge.

I really do like it its just going to take some getting used to. It's not my sporty little car. It just feels like so much car to me. But I am happy with it. We also got a scooter with our purchase, which is pretty cool. We weren't able to bring it down because it wouldn't fit in the car but we will be getting it. Its just like the one below except ours will be silver. So that's exciting eh.

Where in the world is Carmen San Diego???

Where have I been? Its been so long since I blogged I can't believe it! But I do have somewhat of a reason. That reason was because I was trying to keep the fact that WE ARE PREGGERS on the down low. But I know now how well that doesn't work so it's out there. It's been quite the couple of months for us.

To start from the beginning...

Okay, many of you probably know that Owen and I have been trying to get pregnant for sometime now and we were kind of stressing about what we really wanted to do as far as fertility and such. We knew we wanted a baby soon but we didn't know what measures to take quite yet. Anyway to make a long story short the month of January was different for us. It was crazy because I just felt like 'okay it is going to happen this month', there were just so many things that kept falling into place for us. Personally I set my spiritual goals higher and was really trying to do "my part". Kinda crazy thing too was that when I talked to Nick at Christmas (Owen's brother on a mission) he just kept saying, "April you have to get pregnant this month then you can be my countdown for when I get home (as he gets home in Oct.). Just weird things kept happening.

So then the time of the month came (Feb 4th) and Owen was getting all excited and kept saying maybe I was pregnant and such and I just didn't want to get his hopes up because I was trying to not get my own hopes up but I decided to take a pregnancy test and as I was about ready to toss it in the garbage because I just thought it would be another let down I saw the plus sign and about died. But of course I didn't believe it. So I went to Walmart got another one, took it, it was positive decided to tell Owen but still didn't know if I really believed I was pregnant. Then I made Owen buy another test and it was positive. So I called my Dr. and told her the situation but that I really didn't think I was pregnant and she confirmed that I was.

We couldn't keep our mouth shut too long so we decided to tell immediate family and then wait a couple weeks and tell others. When we told my parents I decided to take a family picture for Jacob (my brother on a mission) so we set up the tri-pod and timer and right before it took the picture Owen said, "Hey you guys by the way, April is pregnant" everyone kinda giggled and kept smiling for the camera so I had to really tell them we were serious and my Dad and Justin still didn't believe us but you can see what Tyler and my Mom were thinking. We then wrote a little poem to tell Owen's parents. Jann was flipping out!

Since that time, the news has pretty much trickled out to everyone which made me really stressed out because I was really worried about if I was really pregnant and if I was going to stay that way.

I have been pretty sick, throw up a couple times everyday, feel like crap and so on and so forth but forward we go and hopefully it starts getting better. My Dr. gave me so medication to help but I am too freaked out to take it, I decided I would suffer through the sickness. Yesterday March 17th, we had our first Dr. appointment--which I could not wait for. We heard our little baby's heart beat and then they played around on a really old ultrasound machine with us. It was so crazy to see it moving around in there. We could see its heart beating and his little arms moving around. It was really cute and I was pretty much in shock. There is a picture of our little baby bean. I know you can't really see it but its proof that there is actually a baby in there. (the head is on the right side and if you look really hard you can see its arm sticking up). Anyway so we are super excited!! As of today we are a little over 10 weeks. We will be 11 weeks on Friday! Yahooo!!! Oh and the baby is due the day after Nick (Owen's brother) gets home from his mission. So we are now his countdown. October 9th!

Shrute Army of Champions

Well Shrute Army are officially champions! They won the championship game last night. They were pretty excited, it was their high school basketball championship they never got. This isn't the entire team as some weren't able to make it but here are some. All the guys are from Valley (except Jana's hubby Tate-but they didn't have a problem accepting him as one of their own). Owen has a blast getting together with everyone and playing basketball. Us girls like it too because we get to catch up on everyone and of course watch the boys play ball.

This other pic. is from highschool when they won their region tournie. Not everyone is the same age group but here are a few of the boys back in their high school days.

Grandpa's Letter

So it was my Grandpa Gary's birthday today so I decided to write him a little letter. I will share it below.

Today is February 4, 2009,
Today is my Grandpa’s birthday which makes him 75
Today I am remembering the many memories I have had with him
Today I am going to write about some of these memories

One of the best memories I have of my grandpa is reading Horton Hatches the Egg
What joy this used to bring me as a child as I would sit in amazement and wonder
“How can Grandpa sound just like Mazy and Horton?” Grandpa was the best entertainment.
I don’t think anyone will ever read Horton Hatches the Egg better than Grandpa.

I used to love to go Grandpa’s house and go “exploring”.
Oh the things we could find between, the backyard, the garage, the basement, and Lisa’s old bedroom.
It was always an adventure there and there was always a good place to hide.
We never got bored at Grandpa’s house!

If however we did get bored, that meant it was time to wrestle in the living room.
What joy it brought me to have Uncle Mark pull my underwear clear past my head!!! J
Then Grandpa would come in and say “I swear if you break one thing in here….”
It always ended in us crying and my mom threatening Mark about what she would do to his kids one day.

I have so many memories with Grandma and Grandpa, so many I will never forget.
But there are some memories that I don’t necessarily remember, but that I have been reminded of
Like the time I told Grandpa that I wasn’t going to say “F---ER S--T no more”.
Or the time Hilary said “I don’t like Grandma Gethel but Apey does”

Some of my most memorable times were when we went to Australia,
I loved every minute of that trip, except when Grandpa was infuriated with me
All because we were at the “best seafood restaurant EVER” and all I would try was a burger and fries.
It was all I could do to put my sunglasses on and let the tears stream down.

The time we went to Holland was absolutely unforgettable
Becoming boaters, seeing the Neeleman windmill, Amsterdam and the red light district
When we went to Keunkenhof- the tulip festival, Grandpa wasn’t going to take a rest
He would walk the entire place with Hilary and me.

Of course Brazil was another trip I will never forget.
Paraty-the celebration of the Holy Ghost, Uruguay-best deals ever, Argentina-best steak,
In Brazil eating Jewish food at somebody’s home and wanting to die because I couldn’t be my picky self
Many memories, but mostly seeing my Grandpa in a place that he loves was a special experience for me.

Going to the ranch and the cabin were always the best of trips!
Always stopping at the Texaco to get frozen ice-cream
Always shucking corn, playing games, catching lizards, going to the big rock, exploring, and building forts
Always being free to roam the world!

There are many things we count on our Grandpa’s to do or to be
And these are some of the things we count on our Grandpa to do or to be
We can always count on Grandpa to keep the family together through thick and thin
We can always count on Grandpa to have a trip planned or to call us from some far off country

We can always count on Grandpa to sit on the couch with us and tickle our hands
We can always count on Grandpa to fall asleep but only claim to be resting his eyes
We can always count on Grandpa to give us a talking to and a few threats if we need it
We can always count on Grandpa to have a story or a joke to tell

We can always count on Grandpa to brag about his family wherever he goes
We can always count on Grandpa to have an opinion and not be afraid to voice it
We can always count on Grandpa to make a funny face, start speaking pig latin, or show off his pompous look
We can always count on Grandpa to be holding Grandma’s hand

We can always count on Grandpa to have an idea when we need a job, a paper, or something done.
We can always count on Grandpa to be our bestest friend
We can always count on Grandpa no matter what it is, he is there.
WE CAN ALWAYS COUNT ON GRANDPA!

There are so many areas of my life that involve my Grandpa and my Grandma
As time moves on and we don’t see each other as often, I do know some things
I do know that I have been very blessed to have my Grandparents in my life
And I do know that I want Owen and me to be the kind of Grandparents that they have been to me

I do know that I have the best of memories with my Grandparents; I wouldn’t trade them for anybody’s.
I am so grateful they have started traditions that will carry on for many generations
I am grateful they have kept this family close, and for who they are and what they stand for
I am grateful that they are they and I am I!

Superbowl and Shrute Army

I decided I needed to write a little bit on this weekend because honestly I do not remember one thing about last year's Superbowl and Owen keeps telling me all about it and honestly I think I must have blacked out or something or I just have really bad memory.
Anyway this year for the Superbowl we went to Jeff and Erica's and we had good food and of course good entertainment. I actually was really into the game and I thought that Arizona put up a good fight although the Steelers had some awesome plays!! I think my favorite commercials would have to be the Doritos and the Pepsi commercials. The best part though by far was the after show of The Office. Loved it! It was a good one!
Yesterday Owen played in his city league game with all the Valley boys and really this is the highlight of his weeks. He loves basketball and I think he still has dreams of being in the NBA with Kit right by his side. Boys! Anyway last night they played their first game in their tournament against a bunch of the Kanab boys and well we pretty much had a sweet victory! It felt good for some reason, don't know why, but better than other games. Maybe it was Kanab, maybe it was because I actually paid attention, maybe because it was a 'tournament', or maybe because Owen got a Technical for saying to the ref "that was a damn foul" with 2 minutes to go. If they win tonight then they get to play in the championship game. Yahoo! Go Shrute Army of Champions!
On another note Owen and I decided last night that we would wake up at 5:45am and go to Denny's to enjoy the free Grand Slam breakfast. Surprisingly or not so surprisingly we listened to the alarm go off until 7:00am. We finally got up and drove to Denny's. By then the line was all the way out the door and wrapping around the building. Yay we didn't care that much about free food, but we didn't get up that early for nothing. So we hit Ihop instead. We both determined that it was good and all but we would both would rather have our sleep.
That's all folks!!!

Vi Va Las Vegas!

Owen and I went to Vegas this weekend to celebrate his birthday. We had a great time! It was kind of weird not being with one of our families because it didn't take us FOREVER to do everything. We stayed at the Excalibur, got a good price and then we were upgraded when we got there, so overall we were satisfied with our stay.

The first night we walked up the strip and hit a few casinos we have never been inside and watched the fountains at Belligio--I don't think you can ever see this too many times. We went inside Ceasers Palace and I loved the staircase they have-- the rounded escaladers.

We then went on a whim and decided to buy Jay Leno tickets and go see his comedy show. It was really hilarious and we had a good time.

The next day we took it easy and hung around the hotel, went shopping at the outlet malls, visited M&M & Coca Cola world and went and watched Paul Blart at the movies. After the movie we decided to play Risk and sadly Owen, once again dominated me. I know depressing! I am still really upset about that but I will win next time! Overall we had a great time it was nice to get away but not so nice to come home to a winter-wonderland.