Final Night in Michigan & Pictures From the Move!

The Girls!!!
Amberly & Laura
Laura & Rylie
Rylie at Logan's Roadhouse
Connor at Logan's Roadhouse

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"Aaaaaah! Time to stretch my legs!!!!"

Dinner Time!

Megan, Zoey, and catching up on "Twilight"!

Video of Allie and I playing catch while we were taking a break at a gas station!

Entering the "beautiful" state of Wyoming!!!

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The night before we moved from Michigan we did a couple things, besides the obvious packing and cleaning of our apartments. First, Megan and I took a break from packing/moving to go to Rylie baby shower! We weren't going to but changed our minds. I am so glad we did!!! Yes, I looked like a slob! However, you have to remember I had been working my tail end off all day, although my tail end still appears to be intact. So, all I had time to do was shower and go. We had a great time at Rylie's shower. It really meant a lot to see everyone before we left! I love the girls there and have enjoyed them so much!!!! After we left there we went back home and continued getting the remaining items packed and began cleaning our apartments. We got hungry so we went to Logan's Roadhouse for dinner! It was YUMMY and was great to take a break from EVERYTHING!!!!!

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I included a few pictures of us moving. I only got shots of us when Megan, myself, and our girls made a stop at a gas station. I was tired and needed a break. The boys (Mike, Connor, and Justin) were a ways behind us. So, we took advantage of the time and stopped. I believe we were in Nebraska, just about to stop for the night. Or was it Iowa? I don't know, don't remember, oh well. The first night we stayed in Des Moines, Iowa. The second night we stayed in Nebraska. The next day we drove the rest of the way to SLC. I stayed in Tooele (where my sis. lives) and Mike continued driving to St. George. The Call's, of course, stayed in their new apartment. I am so glad we made the trip with the Call's. It made it so much fun and it was great to have the help for each other. I know it would've been a very long 3 days if it had just been Mike, myself, and the kids! I do have to say that Megan got the raw end of the deal. She did most of the babysitting since I was driving the majortity of the time. THANKS MEGAN!

Connor & Daizy!!!!

As many of you know, Mike's Mom and Sister (Shannon) have poodles. Mike's Mom has 3 (Pepe, Tigger, and Fi Fi) and Shannon has 2 (Daizy and Shasta). Yesterday Shannon had her 2 poodles over for a visit because Daizy was getting her hair cut and Shasta can't be left alone because she whines. Connor absolutely loves, loves, loves all the poodles. He keeps calling them his dogs. Daizy loved Connor! She was all over him! It's fun for him to have pets to play with!

Another Milestone

6 MONTHS OLD
5 MONTHS OLD

Here are some updates of Rylie at 5 and 6 months old. Her most recent milestone is that she has started saying "Momma"! It started on the 18th and now, whenever she gets upset or tired, she repeats, "Momma!" over and over. It's so cute! However, I think I may need to change my title since I have two kids saying Momma now!

Just When You Think You've Got Your Kids Under Control!

On a trip to the grocery store, Connor kept begging for a sucker. So, we took advantage of this (yes, Dr. Phil would be very disappointed) to use it as bribery to get Connor to behave in the grocery store, for once. Well, it worked. So, he picked out one of those candy bottles where the "nipple" is candy and inside the bottle is powdered candy. We opened it up for him before driving home because he had earned it. Well, after our 10 minute drive, we arrived to discover that Connor had been sharing his treat! Wasn't that nice of him?!?!?!?! Unfortunately, at the time, we didn't see it that way. We were really worried that Rylie would end up sick to her stomach or something. Apparently she is definitely my daughter because it didn't affect her one bit!!! Except she absolutely LOVED it! We then took advantage of the opportunity to teach Connor about what things Rylie can and cannot eat.

Packing the Truck!

Rylie all tuckered out from watching me pack!
The 26'' truck we rented!
Mike & President Sybrowsky
Where the heck should we fit this????
Phil, Anders, and JustinThe Moving Crew

Rylie & Phil

Tiffany, Laura, and Christie

Allie in happy land with her Diet Pepsi

Happy Girl & our AWESOME Home Teacher!

The Missionaries

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On August 19th we packed up the moving truck. The morning of the move the Sybrowsky's and Arrington's fed us a DELICIOUS breakfast! We then went and picked up the truck we rented to share with the Call's. We were so nervous that all of our things wouldn't fit! However, with the help and creativity of everyone involved, the majority of it fit!!!! It worked out perfectly! The day of the move came so fast for us. We had an amazing turn-out of people that came to help us move. We had about 16 people that showed up! President Sybrowsky came really early, because we were able to get the truck sooner than we thought. He and Mike got the majority of our stuff loaded. Then the rest of the crew showed up to help the Call's load their stuff. Tiffany was an ANGEL FROM HEAVEN because she came and took Connor, Rylie, and Allie for the day! That was a HUGE HELP to us! We were able to get so much done! Then, Christie went in my apartment and cleaned the heck out of it! I don't know what I would've done without her help! Jack and Abby even stepped in to help! We were so blessed with all the support we received and will be forever grateful!

Allie C.'s Birthday Party!

On August 16th we celebrated Allie C.'s birthday! Her birthday was on the 18th but, with packing, moving, and everything else going on, they celebrated it a couple days early! It was such a fun party!!!! They held the party at the Delta Mills park with all the blue slides! When we got there, there was paint and white shirts for all the kids. Each child picked a color of paint and then hand printed or foot printed each shirt. They turned out dang cute and are so fun! Then, we had food, cake, and opened presents! Allie made out like a bandit with presents! I was even jealous of the presents she received!

For the final playgroup that we were able to attend we decided to meet over at the Splash Pad! What a great idea that ended up being! What a great time that was! I was so glad that so many were able to come. We really enjoyed playgroup and looked forward to it each week! I loved getting to know all of the girls and getting closer to each of them! We really miss it but are so glad we got to have such a fun time for our last get together!!!!!

WARNING!!!!!!!

I WANTED TO GIVE A HEADS UP/WARNING THAT I FINALLY HAVE THE TIME, RESOURCES, AND ABILITY TO UPDATE MY BLOG WITH PICTURES FROM PACKING & MOVING, OUR VISIT TO SEE MY FAMILY, ETC. SO, IN THE NEXT WEEK YOU WILL SEE MANY PICTURES THAT HAVE HAPPENED WEEKS AGO BUT I WOULD STILL LIKE TO SHARE WITH EVERYONE!

Is That Rylie?!?!?!?!

As I came in the house last night, Mike's Dad was holding this picture up. He wanted to know who I thought it was. Looking at it first glance it kind of freaked me out. I didn't have a picture of Rylie like that. However, to me, it looks a TON like Rylie. I didn't know who it was and wanted to know who got a picture of Rylie! Ha ha! Turns out that this is a picture of Mike's Mom, Linda, when she was close to Rylie's age. It's funny 'cause I have been spiking Rylie's hair, exactly like Linda's hair in this picture! It's neat to see the close resemblance!

Where Are We?

I don't know if anyone has been wondering where we are or how we're doing. So, I thought I'd give a little post/update and then I'll do more later and post pictures too (there are many to come)! Our trek out West went well. The kids did FABULOUS!!!! The last day was really long but that was to be expected.

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Here is a brief overview of what we've been up to since leaving Michigan:

• Spent 2 days in Tooele, with my parents, visiting my sister and kids.
• Made it to the promised land (WELLSVILLE)!!!!
• Went to church in the ward that I grew up in.
• Ate at my favorite restaurants in Logan (Juniper Take-Out, El Sol, Pizza Plus, Papa Murphy's, Village Inn).
• Went swimming with my brother, sister & her family at the outdoor pool in Logan.
• Took Connor 4-wheeling.
• Went on many walks.
• Made hair bows with the women in my family.
• Met my brother's fiance.
• Went to SLC to hang out with family and also the Call's.
• Lost my wallet and purse (both on different days). I swear, having children makes you lose brain cells. Anyone else have that problem?
• Played cards like crazy!
• Painted toe nails and finger nails for my nieces and my sister.
• Went shopping with my Mom many-a-times!
• At at Olive Garden with my brother and his family.
• Had the ultimate pillow fight with my brothers. Or rather, they attacked ME!!!!
• Mid-afternoon gas station runs to escape the 5 thousand children screaming, all under one roof! Ok, maybe there were only 13! Ha ha!
• Hot dog & smores up in Dry Lake!
• Got attacked by bees.
• Got my hair highlighted!
• Eating more raspberries than we have picked! Connor feeds them to Buddy (my brother's dog).
• Attended a Labor Day parade that consisted of more rain drops than there were floats! Well, I stayed home with Rylie but others went! Ha ha on them!!!
• Connor, Rylie, and I came down with colds.
• Watched AFV with my family while playing Pinochle and laughing our heads off! Good times!
• Rylie started eating other veggies and loving them so far!
• Realized that the people that manage our apartments are EVIL PEOPLE and are out to scam EVERYONE!!!!
• Learned that Connor and Rylie cannot share a bedroom or no one will get any sleep!
• Connor marked his territory all over my parents backyard (deck, grass, raspberried). That's my boy!!!!

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So, now you know a little of what we've been up to. We'll be here for 5 more days and then we'll head down to St. George to join Mike. Once we dropped the Call's off in Holladay, Mike drove down to St. George and myself and the kids drove up to Cache Valley. Mike started his externship on Tuesday and seems to be keeping busy and out of trouble. He's been golfing a lot, which makes him happy! This Sunday we'll be seeing the Call's bless Zoey and then we'll be off to St. George! Until then.....SMELL YA' LATER!!!!!

WE'RE IN NEBRASKA TONIGHT!

As everyone knows, we left Michigan on Wednesday to move to UT! We packed the truck on Tuesday (pictures to follow) and what a day that was! Us and the Call's were VERY worried about all of our items fitting into the moving truck! However, with a prayer, help of many people, and pretending it was a jig-saw puzzle, pretty much everything fit!!!! We were so relieved and very grateful! We had a huge turnout to help us pack the truck! We had President Sybrowsky, the Arrington's, the Taylor's, the Haddock's, the missionaries, Justin, the Bingham's, Anders, Chris, Craig, and the Charles's! Bless her heart, Tiffany came and took Connor and Allie pretty much all day long so that we could get everything packed and ready to go! That made a huge difference!!!! We got so much done! On top of that, Christie just took it upon herself to clean my apartment and did a FABULOUS job!!! We had hardly anything left to do when she left! I was so grateful for that! It was a long day but could've been worse without everyone's help! Thanks so much!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We left Wednesday on our big adventure back West. The kids were PERFECT!!!! I couldn't have asked for things to go any better! Connor rode in the truck with Mike & Justin. The girl's all rode in the van with Megan and I. We only had to stop for gas and a break a couple of times. We made it to Des Moines, IA at around 8:30 (thank heavens for the time change). We had some pizza then we went to bed.

This morning we got up, had breakfast at Perkins, and then continued on our journey. Today was a little bit harder day for all of us. The kids were tired of being in the car for so long! I was too!!! We had to stop a little bit more than we had planned. We arrived in Big Springs, NE at around 7:30pm (again, thank heavens for another time change). So, here we sit taking a much needed break for the night! HOORAY!!!!!!!

Tomorrow will be the longest day by far! It's also the last day of our journey! It will be an 8 hr. drive to Holladay, UT, where the Call's are moving to. We'll be so excited and anxious to get to UT! That's another reason it will seem to take so long to get to UT! We're excited about it though and look forward to this "trip" being over with!!!

MORE UPDATES TO COME!!!!!

On The Road Again....

It's hard to believe that this was us, 3 years ago to the day almost! Of course, this is when we left Michigan the first time. Only to return a year later! Ha ha! Now, that's a whole other story! Now we're about to do it again! We're loading our truck tomorrow and heading out early Wednesday morning! The reality of what is about to happen excites me and scares me as well. Change is hard but this is a good change in many ways!

Things have sure changed since the first time we set foot in Michigan. We have added another child to the mix. We've gotten "healthier", if you know what I mean. We've made many new friends. My hair has changed another 15 or so different colors. We've been through potty training, a gazillion finals, countless playgroups, wild parties with friends, , awesome girls-night-outs, spring hatchings, tasted many new flavors of Oreo's, cussed more than once at a pot hole, discovered the need for good Mexican food, and other fun memory-makers! We've even had cow tongue & sardines for the first time and managed to switch locations of where we go to church(which was the best thing EVER).

Living in Michigan and experiencing Law School has really been a growing experience for us in so many good ways! We have really come to love and enjoy our lifestyle out here! We have loved the way our family has been able to bond and learned to rely on each other more! We love and are grateful for the friends who have become our family out here. Without each of you we would be so sad and very lonely! We're grateful and so glad we got to experience so many adventures that we otherwise would've missed!

Although Law School is over and we begin another chapter, it doesn't mean that this chapter is closed! I will miss each and every person here immensly! I fully intend to keep in touch! I love all of my fellow Michiganders so much! Thanks for all the memories! Thanks for loving us for who we are! Thanks for being so accepting and inviting us to hang outs or whatever the occasion seemed to be. Many of you have seen us at our highest high's and our lowest low's. You know who you are. Thanks for being there and lending a listening ear, advice, or someone to cry to! I HATE GOODBYES!!!! I am horrible at them, as many of you already know. Just please know I love all of you! I will miss you all so very, very much! Please keep us posted on how you are and what you or your family is up to!

The Human Pancake!

I've been noticing that Rylie continuously does this "human pancake" position all the time. She never gets mad and seems to enjoy it. You could be holding her, she can be sitting up on her own, and down she goes. It's so funny. One day I was working on packing (story of my life) and let her sit and play on my bed. I had gone to the kitchen to get some markers and some other things. When I came back, this is what I found. She had totally fallen asleep all folded in half! It was adorable! When I picked her up I found that Mike's phone had been under her forehead the whole time, which left a rectangular shape on her head for a while!

Which Muppet Are You?

You Are Animal

A complete lunatic, you're operating on 100% animal instincts. You thrive on uncontrolled energy, and you're downright scary. But you sure can beat a good drum. "Kill! Kill!"

http://www.blogthings.com/themuppetpersonalitytest/">The Muppet Personality Test

Funtyme Park!!!

The guys (Mike & Justin) were at school studying for finals week. Megan and I were tired of being in our houses so, we decided to take the kids out to have some fun. We landed at the Funtyme Park in Grand Ledge. We had such a great time with the kids and they were so happy! First we took them miniature golfing! It was fun because only Connor & Allie played. We just let them play however they wanted and it was so cute! They loved the holes where you'd hit it in the hole and the ball would go through a tunnel, or something, and come out some other place. They would repeat those holes over and over! Allie even got to where she wouldn't even putt the ball but would just drop the ball in the hole over and over! It was awesome! After that we took the kids on the go-karts. Allie and Connor were able to ride with us! They really enjoyed themselves. Connor and I even got to go one more time for free. While Connor and I were driving (Megan was watching Rylie) a couple Dad's and their sons showed up. They were so nice and helped us out while we took turns driving the go-karts! What a great night!

A Few Fun Photo's

Mike & I picking up Connor at the Call's house
Smoochy, Smoochy!!!!
Connor and Zoey!

Megan (THANK YOU!) sent me a whole bunch of pictures that she had stored on her camera so I thought I'd share a few! The top two are after our date night to see Wicked and have dinner. As you can probably see, I was SO PUMPED to have my heels off! I'm an amateur when it comes to wearing heels! So much so that I NEVER WEAR THEM!!! I have issues with being taller than my hubby. Anyway, I was more than happy to have them off! The bottom one is one where Connor was just enjoying some time with Zoey. He really loves all the new babies! He loves to play, talk, and make them smile! It's so adorable!

A Perk To Having Children

Connor loves to help me clean up the house. So far I've caught him mopping, sweeping, dusting, and even throwing clothes in the washer. Lately he's had an obsession with helping me vacuum. So, I stick him in the hallway. I figure there isn't anything too dangerous that he can vacuum up. I'd say I've got him trained pretty well! LOL!

Another Milestone!

Rylie reached another milestone yesterday. We've been working on her sitting up. She's been doing ok. However, yesterday she sat up on her own for 7 or 8 minutes! It was so fun! After that she slowly but surely started to fold in half. Babies are so flexible!

What a "WICKED" Birthday!!!!

Us at the Taylor's house, dropping off Rylie
Eating dinner at Carrabba's
The FABULOUS white-chocolate cheese cake w/ raspberry sauce drizzled on it!

I had another amazing night dedicated to my birthday! Yes, I know....I am spoiled! Wednesday was an awesome day for me! All day I felt like I was getting ready for prom or something! With my birthday money I had picked out an outfit to wear specifically for this occasion! I felt so cute and wanted to impress my hubby! I even wore high heels! For those of you who know me, this is a BIG DEAL! I DO NOT WEAR HEELS! I'm afraid it showed too! Luckily, Christie gave me some advice on how to walk on the dang things. We started out by dropping off our kids! Thanks to Megan and Christie for taking our munchkins for us! It was so great to spend alone-time together! After that we headed to dinner. I thought we were going to Red Robin to use up a "Get-a-gourmet-burger-free-for-your-birthday" coupon. Well, Mike had another surprise up his sleeve. He said he was joking and wanted to take me somewhere nicer. So, off we went to Carrabba's! I don't know if you've ever had their lasagna but, it is TO DIE FOR!!!! After that Mike let me order dessert! It was yummmmmmy too! So, our night was off to a GREAT start! Then, we headed off to see "Wicked"! I know this musical has been on everyone's post. There is definitely a reason why. IT'S AMAZING!!!! I love the story and the music in this musical! I will never grow tired of it! I enjoyed it so, so, so, so much! I was in 7th heaven and found myself wanting to jump on the stage and start singing along with them! It was an awesome, fun, exciting, great, entertaining, and memorable night! I will never forget it! THANK YOU MIKE!!!