Thanksgiving

For Thanksgiving this year, we got to see both sides of the family! First we spent the night in Henderson which is just outside of Las Vegas. Grandma Pat drove from Colorado and Eric's brother Chris and his girlfriend Reyna cooked a yummy meal. We did make a short trip to Circus Circus and saw a beautiful cactus garden that was decorated with Christmas lights. It was good to catch up with family but we wish we could of spent more time with them. Next, we headed up to St George, Utah where my parents have a second home. Both of my brothers and their families were able to come down also. The kids loved to see their cousins, climb on the red rock, go swimming,and have a second Thanksgiving dinner. We are spoiled!

It was a little weird when it was time to come home and we left in the opposite direction! I truly love the Arizona weather and I can't imagine going back to the yucky snow. We will adventure all the way up to Cache Valley for a whole week after Christmas. The kids are looking forward to going snowboarding, sledding, seeing old friends and neighbors, and spending time with family. Life is good!

Halloween

We celebrated our first Halloween in Arizona! It was different in the fact that it was 75 degrees and the kids didn't have to wear a jacket or coat. Queen Creek had a big "trunk or treat" at the community park that we went to and then the kids trick-or-treated around the neighborhood. They got oodles of candy and had fun. Tyler and Easton wanted to be ninja's, Kylie was supposed to be a corpse bride, and Kenadie was a butterfly. We even dressed up Riley in a witch costume, she looked so cute! (yes, I am one of those people :)

Life is as busy as ever, the kids are enjoying school and playing with friends. It is really starting to cool down here and it is so beautiful! I am now working 3 days a week and it is Heaven! I have some time during the week to clean and get things done. I enjoy my job and the patients. A lot of the snowbirds (that's what they call the people who live here during the winter months) have come back and we are getting busier. I also am serving in the young womens with the Beehives and do enjoy that.
Eric is working 4 10 hour shifts a week and doing online school plus scouts once a week. He will be going to the night shift at work but we are told it won't be for several months.
Tyler is in Middle School and is super excited to start basketball this next month. He is growing like a weed, he wears a size 7 in MENS, and is showing signs of being a teenager :)
Kylie loves school and is a straight A student. She has made many friends at school and has a really good friend that lives close by. She loves to learn how to cook and help me with the other kids. She loves doing cartwheels and summersaults and is talking about trying cheerleading. We will see....
Kenadie is a handful lately, very emotional about weird things, but has made some good friends. She loves to read and is in accelerated reading, math,and spelling at her school.
Easton is just a ball of energy. He loves Kindergarten and is way ahead of the normal at school. He is reading well and continues to keep us entertained with the things he says. He is starting soccer in January and is so excited. He still loves trains but has a new passion for Mario cart and making video's with Tyler on the ipod touch.
I am enjoying decorating/painting this house to make it feel like it's home. It is a work in progress and we have only touched the surface! We are looking forward to going to Las Vegas and St George for Thanksgiving and seeing family!

I'm Back!

Since we moved 800 miles away from Cache Valley I decided it was time to get back into posting. I have had a lot of people ask why we decided to move so here is how the story goes....
Back in March 2011, Eric's Grandpa died. I wasn't able to go to the funeral but Eric went to Phoenix for a couple of days. When he came back he just kept telling me that we should move to Arizona. You see, we had been talking about moving somewhere warmer for years but it never seemed like the right time. The house prices were cheaper here and a lot of jobs for nurses. I liked my job in the wound clinic but I was still missing home care and the money that I was making. When Eric found out that Schreiber's had a plant in Tempe and he could transfer it made it more realistic! It made me nervous to make such a big change and I wanted to do the right thing for the kids. I can honestly say it was one of those times in my life that I had my prayer answered so strongly that there was no doubt. I knew that it was the right thing. I had only been to Arizona once and it was ten years ago so I wanted to see if it was a place I wanted to move. Eric and I came down in April and looked at a lot of different neighborhoods and houses. We loved it! We went home and put our house up for sale within a couple of weeks. We were surprised and blessed to have our house sell within 3 weeks! We flew back down to Arizona in early June and found the house we wanted to buy. We then moved down the end of July. It has been a whirlwind when I think about it but things are finally settling down. It was a major leap of faith. I didn't have a job. I have never lived outside of Cache Valley. I didn't know who was going to watch the kids. I didn't know what direction was North, South, etc. I was extremely blessed to be offered a job the second day after we moved here for a home health company. It has been wonderful to do what I love and make money! Eric likes his job and it is a lot easier for him physically. The kids have adjusted very well and love their schools. They are closer now because they had to be each other's best friends for the first while. There are things that I miss about Utah. I miss the leaves changing in the fall, my wonderful neighbors, my house that we built, the park, the long summer days, my friends, the kids being close to their grandparents and cousins. There are a lot of things that I love about Arizona. I love the weather of course but there is so much more! I love my job, having a pool, our ward, living close to the freeways, lots of good shopping, more diversity, lots of things to do, etc. I do have to admit that I did have one day where I was so homesick. I woke up on a Sunday and I just felt so sad I can't even describe it. I think I was mourning my old life...the good, the bad, everything. I wanted to be back home but at the same time I knew that it would never be the same. I know that we could move back at any time if we wanted to but it still wouldn't be the same as it was and that is just life! Moving here has strengthened my testimony of the Church so much! It's amazing how the church is the same no matter where you go. I got called to serve in the Beehives (12-13 yr old girls) and I am really enjoying it while Eric got called as a scout leader. There is a big Mormon population out here but I am still amazed at how many people still don't know what it is. Eric is one of only 3 mormons at his work out of 150 people. He has had to really stand up for what he believes moreso than he ever had to in Utah. My testimony of the word of wisdom is so much stronger. I never had a real problem with this but you can really see the difference especially with some of the patient's I see. I asked the kids what they like about living here and they say the pool, our new house, the schools, etc. They have adjusted really well and that is such a blessing. We hope to visit Utah sometime in December and see some old friends and family. It is my goal to update weekly so we can update on what we are up too!