Recent Photos

Nothing much has gone on this week. Last friday, my parents and I took Emma to a funeral for my friend Shannon (I didn't think Michael would be too interested!). It was a nice service. Saturday wasn't too eventful either. I just did some catch-up on the housework (that's NEVERENDING!) Sunday was church and we had like 10 babies being blessed! Okay, so it wasn't THAT many, but it was A LOT! I subbed for the Sunbeam class and it was actually pretty fun! It's been a long time since I've taught a primary class and I really liked it! I don't think that I want to be the sunbeam teacher, but it would be fun to teach something instead of being called as the "Monica Ward Program Copier"! Monday my dad went to get an x-ray to see if his kidney stone had passed after having some sort of a shock thing done last week, but after the doctor looked, it was still there, uneffected. So, they scheduled surgery yesterday. After having having an x-ray that morning, they couldn't find it, but decided to do the surgery anyway, and, lo and behold, there it was, so they chopped it up and removed it, and my dad is doing well. He went and took his written exam to be a phlabotomist (sp?) today and he passed! He got an 88%. They told him that no one has gotten more than 91%! Anyway, here are some random photos I took.

Michael "decorating" cup cakes.

The boys.

Bath Time!

Emma LOVES to climb on Michael's chair.

Surf's up!

See...I told you!

"I'm a little pony"

(that's the song the horse sings...)

I've Been Tagged

I was tagged!
Six weird and random things about me!
The rules are:
* Link to the person who tagged you (Joy)
* Post the rules on your blog
* Write six random things/unspectacular quirks about yourself
* Tag six people at the end of your post and link to them
* Let each person you have tagged know by leaving a comment on their blog
* Let the tagger know when your entry is posted

So, here they are...
1. I HAVE to chew M&M's evenly on both sides of my mouth (like if I have 3 M&M's, I put one on both sides and split the 3rd in half)
2. I check the outside temperature by touching the car window.
3. I still enjoy watching reruns of shows I watched as a kid (ie Saved by the Bell, Full House, Family Matters, etc)
4. I can't stand looking at crooked/unsemetrical (sp?) pictures.
5. I have to fall asleep on my side.
6. I don't like watching the news.

I tag:
1. You
2. You
3. You
4. You
5. You
6. You

The Big 2-7!!

No, that's not Emma, that is ME! Yesterday I celebrated my 27th birthday (yep, my birthday is 10-4!). Friday, we did family pics (which Michael hated because the flash scared him) and afterwards we went to Red Robin for dinner. Saturday morning, we met up with my parents, Ryan & Amanda & family at Hodels for a lovely breakfast buffet. When we got home, I picked up the house a little while Ron ran a couple errands before work. He left around 12:30pm for work and I left to go to my parents house after a little while. I finished watching conference over there and then left the kiddo's with them and went to my friend Carianne's house so she could do my hair and make-up and got all dressed up to go to a work function at a house in Seven Oaks. I had a work function there for a Links for Life charity event where they were showcasing our jewelry. It was pretty fun. I did not take advantage of the "hosted bar", but DID take advantage of the catering by Cafe' Med! YUM!! All in all, it was a fun evening and was so nice to get all dressed up and go to something like that! Thanks to all who participated and wished me Happy Birthday. I'm so lucky to have GREAT friends and family members who love me!

10 Months Old!

So, Emma is 10 months old now. I can't believe she is almost 1!! She has stayed so much smaller than Michael did, but she's still developing so much! She is crawling all over the place and getting into EVERYTHING! She is constantly finding things on the ground and putting them in her mouth! She is standing on her own and has even taken 2 steps! (It was a fluke thing, but you've gotta start somewhere, right?) Michael startd walking at 10 months, so we'll see if his sister does the same thing! Emma loves to dance whenever there's music. She LOVES to jump in her "Jumperoo" and she LOVES to laugh at her brother! They are sooo funny together! I love just watching the two of them interact with each other! I hope it lasts!

Happy 2nd Birthday Michael!!

Friday was Michael's 2nd birthday! I can't believe he's already 2! It's been a whirlwind! It was a week before my due date & I started having contractions at about 8pm. Ron got off work at 10pm and when he called I told him he'd better make sure he came home soon. He got there around 11pm and by 11:30, it was off to the hospital. We arrived at midnight, and was put in a room. After I got changed in my gown and sat on the bed, my water broke, and by 5:49am, Michael was born! It was so amazing! They laid him on my chest and he grabbed hold of my finger! We had his birthday party on Friday as well. Lots of friends and family were there. It was awesome! Everyone had a good time! Michael even got lots of gifts! Michael loves Mickey Mouse, so we had a Mickey Mouse party! My sister in law even made a Mickey Mouse Clubhouse birthday cake for him! It turned out SOOOO cute!

Some Pics of the party:

The Neighbors

The Grandma's

More Family

The Presents

Grandpa & Emma

Brody

More Family

More Presents

Blowing out the Candles (he was eating a Snickers)

We had a GREAT time and are thankful to all our friends and family that participated in this special day! We are so grateful to have such wonderful people in our lives and feel so blessed to be part of it. We are also so thankful to have Michael in our life. He is such an amazing kid! I couldn't have asked for a better son! It's hard to be his mom sometimes because he makes me laugh ALL the time! I'm so thankful to my Heavenly Father for allowing me to be his mother and I look forward to the many more birthday's we will have! I LOVE YOU, SON!

ELLEN!

So, my mom got tickets to go see Ellen, so me, my mom, Maribel (from my old job) and Kate (from church) all got up REALLY early and drove down to Burbank to watch a taping of Ellen! The taping didn't start until 6pm, but we were supposed to be there at 3:30pm. We decided to make a day of it and went earlier than that to go on a tour of the Paramount studios. It was like 2 hours long, but we saw all kinds of cool stuff! Lot's of movie/TV sets and memorabilia. We even saw Jerry from ER! He had just gotten his make-up and hair done and was just walking around. It was pretty cool! We also drove by the Ellen offices and noticed that Ellen's parking space was empty. We drove around the building and when we came back around, her car was there! we missed her by like 5 minutes! (She drives a white FJ Cruiser, by the way!) Anyway, after the tour we went to the famous Bob's Big Boy for some awesome hamburgers! Then off to see Ellen! It was lots of fun. When you first get in there, they immediately turn on music and you just dance practically the WHOLE time! We saw Ryan Secrest, Jon Leizak (the olympic swimmer that won the relay for US) and Brian Austin Green. She didn't give anything out, but it was still lots of fun. I'd like to go back again sometime. Thanks for a great time, girls!

Happy Birthday Bada!

This is me and my daddy!
Ryan and my dad.
Love the hair (everyone included!) And how 'bout them sleeves!
This is my dad & Michael. Michael was born just minutes before my dad had to head to work!
This is my dad and Emma!

Today is my dad's 51st birthday! We went to church this morning, then my brother and I and our families went to my parents for lunch/dinner. We had some chicken risoto (sp?) with a green salad and fruit. Amanda also made some brownies with a mint frosting. Then it was on to presents. My mom got him a new backpack & calculator (since he just started school), Ryan and Amanda got him movie tickets & we got him family pictures. Anyway, thanks dad for all that you do for me and my family. I feel so blessed to have you for my dad and am so thankful that Heavenly Father has placed me in your care. We love you so much! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!