Belated Post

I know that many of you are waiting for pictures from our recent trip to Utah. However, I realized that I had never posted about the family BBQ that we hosted for our anniversary. Since I'm OCD and cannot do things out of order, I had to post the pictures from that event before I put up photos from Utah, but I promise it will happen soon!

Anyway, David and I decided that we wanted to spend our anniversary with family. We invited David's mom and his sister's family over for dinner and had a great time eating grilled hamburgers, hot dogs, pineapple, and corn on the cob!


Since David and I were going to be in Utah for the Fourth of July and over David's mother's birthday, we had sparklers for the kids and cake and ice cream for Heather. Although Caroline was okay with the fireworks, Jackson didn't like them so much and burnt his finger. I felt so bad!!
This is the beautiful cake that Courtney made for her mom's birthday. Isn't it amazing!!!! (And it tasted great too!)

Blowing out the candles!

Mother and daughter....and Jackson

Four Days

My sister posted the following on her blog today. I thought it was a really nice tribute to my parents and wanted to share it:

"In just four days my parents will return home from serving as Mission Presidents in Brazil. Three years have flown by and yet it seems so long since the day they left. My father has seven new grandbabies to meet and a son-in-law he has only talked to on the phone. They left the house with a field behind it and only a few houses. Now there is a fence and houses staring into their backyard. Two of their children and Bob were all still attending college. Now they are all done and happy to be through. In the time they have been gone all six of their children have had ups and downs, shed tears of joy, and tears of sadness, frustration, or pain. But the one thing we can all agree on is that we have all been blessed and we all feel closer. Over the last three years my parents have given my siblings and myself the greatest gift they could have. They blessed us by serving a mission. They taught our children the gospel is more important than anything else on this earth. They have taught love and sacrifice to me and my children in a way nothing else on this earth can. My parents chose to serve God, they chose to serve the people of Brazil, and they chose to do what they knew was right. I am so proud of them and am proud to call myself their daughter. Thank you Mom and Dad for the legacy you have started by choosing to serve! See you in four days!!!"

I am also so grateful for the sacrifices my parents have made to serve the Lord. Their dedicated service has shown me that service to the Lord comes before anything else. Even though I missed having my parents with me during some of the events that occurred in my life while they were gone, their absence taught me lessons I never could have learned in any other way. Love you mom and dad!

Happy First Anniversary!

David, thanks for still making me laugh everyday! I love you!

I can't move back to Utah...

...because Utah doesn't offer DOUBLE COUPONS!!!

So, I've become an obsessive couponer. I stalk coupon blogs and get giddy when someone nabs next weeks grocery ad a day before it comes out and posts it online. However, my obsessive compulsive behavior sometimes pays off.

For instance, this week our local grocery store, Harris Teeter, offered SUPER DOUBLE COUPONS! This means that all coupons up to $1.98 will be doubled (i.e. a coupon for $1.50 would give you $3 off). I had so much fun figuring out how to get items for super cheap or even free. Here's what I got:

Glade Gel Warmer and Refill $0.19
Kraft Caesar Italian Dressing $0.50
Colgate Advanced Whitening Toothpaste Free
Colgate Whitening Toothpaste $0.49
Oscar Mayer Hot Dogs Free
4 Boxes of Mini Wheats $0.33/box
Lysol Toilet Cleaner $0.59
Lysol Kitchen Cleaner $0.47
2 Seventh Generation Jumbo Paper Towels Free
12 Pack of Eskimo Pie Ice Cream Sticks $0.50
5 Mars Brand Candy Bars $0.18/bar
Kraft Mayo w/ Olive Oil $2.50
2 Packages of Sparklers $1.00

In total I only spent $9.34 and I saved.............drumroll please!.............................$47.19

Allyson's Wedding

This weekend my friend Allyson got married. David and I went to the wedding and luncheon and had such a great time. It was a beautiful wedding. They were married outside of a small church that I had to take a picture of because it was so picturesque.





Allyson has been a great friend throughout my time in the history program at UNCG. I wish her and Alan the very best in their marriage!

Hey There Delilah--Mormon Style

Go here to watch a hilarious take on the Plain White T's song, "Hey There Delilah."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9xi4OsIdmn8

Baptism

This past Saturday David and I had the opportunity to participate in a baptism for a wonderful young woman, Amanda Lacy. David baptized her and I spoke at her baptism. We were both so excited for her. She is amazing and has already read the entire Book of Mormon and has started reading the "Our Heritage" booklet. She will be a wonderful member and has become a good friend. Ironically, my cousin baptized his wife and stepson on the same day, making it a great day for miracles!

David, Amanda, Elder Quinn, and Elder Sorensen