Mattawa, WA

The weekend that Spencer's family came down for his graduation, Alan informed us that Grandma Jenne wasn't doing very good. She has had several mini strokes lately.  Alan told us that her dying wish is to have Alan's family around her table one last time.  We decided that we should all probably make the trek up there.  It has only been three years of marriage almost and I have never been to either one of Spencer's grandparents.  Why not hit them up the same weekend?

We all decided to leave on a Thursday right after work and spend the night in Boise.  Spencer, Spencer K, Caitlin, Alison and I piled into our trusted old Chevy Cobalt. It was a tight squeeze for the people who sat in the back.  It didn't help that we were leaving about rush hour and had to sit in traffic for an hour and a half.  Once we got over the Utah border things started to pick up.  We had to stop about halfway to Boise because all of our legs were dying.  We stopped in Twin Falls for a chicken sandwich at Chick-Fil-A. We finally pulled into the Detton grandparent's place around 11:00 pm.  As we pulled up, Alan, LeeAnn and Boyd were unpacking their car. It looked like they had just arrived as well. We didn't chat for very long before we all decided to get right to bed.

The next morning, I helped Grandma Detton get breakfast together. Everyone showered and were packed up ready to take off to Mattawa around 11:30 am.  While we were waiting to get all the bags strapped on top of the Chevy Tahoe, I explored the house.  They had a beautiful back yard that was nicely groomed as well as a pool.  This looked like the ultimate get together place.  Aunt Janelle lived four houses down.  We went down to check out her place as well.  They lived in a beautiful neighborhood.  It reminded me of my parent's neighborhood.  I would definitely like to spend a whole weekend in Boise.

Once everything was strapped on tight, we all loaded in the Tahoe.  We had one to many people so Alan brought down the Harley so they could switch off riding it.  Spencer started off on it.  I had a weird feeling so I didn't join him on it.  I made him wear a helmet though... he wasn't too happy with me but rather have him alive then dead.  Boise was about half way point to Mattawa.  We only had about six hours more to go.  We stopped at the halfway point in Oregon so Alan and LeeAnn could take a turn on the Harley.  I have never been through Oregon or Washington before and was blown away by how many trees there were.  It was really green.  I would love to live in Oregon if there weren't as many weird people that lived there.

I fell asleep for a bit and when I woke up, we were just entering Mattawa.  We turned down a dirt road heading to Grandpa and Grandma Jenne's place when Boyd said, "Get ready for the smell."  I didn't understand what that meant.  I saw that we were approaching the dairy farm but didn't think anything of it.  Then, out of no where, it hit. The smell of stinky cow poop mixed with rotting onions.  Literally this is the worst smell I have ever smelt.  We all started gagging.  His grandparent's live right around the corner from that stinky place and was so nervous that we were going to smell it all weekend.... Thankfully it was only when the wind picked up, which was like three different times.
Right before we pulled in, we passed rows and rows of portapotties.  Spencer's uncle Tim owns his own portapotty business.  His business just started to take off the last few years and is upgrading from his double wide to an actual home.  They are living with the Jenne grandparents while their house is being built on the same lot.

As we got there, dinner was ready. Aunt Lorraine, Lindsey, Haley and Ashley made us a mexican soup dish. It was pretty good. Right after we ate, we had to get on the road again to get to Lainey's bridal shower in Yakima.  It was an hour and fifteen minutes away.  Talk about being sick of the car!! Luckily it was only us girls in the Tahoe so we were able to get comfortable.  Once we got to Yakima, it was perfect outside.  The shower was in Aunt Elaine's front yard. There were a lot of people there.  Our car left a little early because we were ready to get home and get to bed.  On our way back we got a little turned around.  We missed our turn back to the house and got lost in the dark.  There are no lights down the farm roads so we were really turned around. Finally after about thirty minutes we found our way. By the time we got back to Mattawa it was 11:00 pm. We were all wiped. Uncle Don brought over his trailer for us to stay in since Grandma and Grandpa's double wide only had three bedrooms.

The next morning we woke up and ate breakfast.  Us girls went out and set up a table under one of the bigger trees to do our crafts on.  The boys were put to work knocking down two big trees to make room for the new house.  It got really hot, really quick.  The wind started to pick up and we all instantly ran for cover before awful smell crept back.

Lindsey and Drew offered to take some of us out on their boat to go wakeboarding on the Columbia River.  It was perfect for it.  Spencer and Boyd didn't bring their swimming suits so they borrowed some old ones from Drew.  The picture below was the outfit my husband was wearing... yes it was ridiculous but we did get a few people looking his direction like are you really wearing that? It was really hilarious. The water was a brisk 53 degrees... yeah needless to say I stayed in the boat. Drew, Boyd and the Spencer's were the only ones that got in.  This was Spence's first time wakeboarding on an actual wakeboarding boat.  He did awesome!  Drew was the best by far.  He was throwing back flips, twists, and clearing the wake at the same time... it was crazy!  Boyd hasn't ever been able to stand up to wake board.  We spent about 45 minutes trying to teach him before he was too cold and tired to keep trying. He was super close!  We had a really good time out on the boat.

When we got back, we helped make dinner.  Then we sat down and talked for hours. It was really good listening to the different stories from Alan and Tim's childhood.  They are the same person.  When they were standing next to one another someone pointed out to them that they were pretty much the same person and Tim's response was "I'm not as dorky as he is". It made us all laugh.  Grandma and Grandpa Jenne had a difficult time hearing everyone. At one point Grandpa got so frustrated that he went to bed because he couldn't handle it.  I felt bad for him.  They were both so happy to have all of us there though.  It was good to be around family. 

Sunday we woke up and went to church.  Their church was in the middle of no where.  Sandwiched between different farms.  They only had one ward.  That is one thing that I love about our church is that no matter where you are, when you enter an LDS church you feel at home.  You know where things are, you know when things happen.  It is the same wherever you go. Once we went home, we packed up to head to Boise.  It was really hard saying goodbye to Grandma and Grandpa because they are in their mid nineties... We aren't really sure if we will ever see them again.  As we were pulling out, we looked over and Grandpa and he was crying.  It made us all get a little choked up.

We stayed the night in Boise at Grandma and Grandpa Detton's again.  We got there around 11:00 pm.  Grandma and Grandpa were both asleep already.  We quietly piled in and went right to sleep.   I woke up around 3:00 am feeling sick to my stomach.  I think I had a little too much asparagus.  We also slept with the window open so my nose was stuffed because of allergies. As I tried to fall back asleep, I could feel my throat starting to tighten. It was getting harder and harder to breathe.  I had never had an allergic reaction like this before so I wasn't sure what to do.   I woke up Spencer and started crying... When I went to the bathroom, my face was swollen like the movie Hitch.  It was so scary.  I didn't know what to do, on top of my allergic reaction I was having a panic attack.  I told Spencer if I can't breathe better in 20 minutes, then we were going to go to the emergency room.  I asked him to give me a blessing. After a few more minutes, I was able to calm myself down and my throat started to open up again.  I was able to fall asleep.  Thankfully!!!

The next morning was Memorial Day.  It was interesting to see the contrast between Alan's family and LeeAnn's family.  Caitlin and Alison were joking around that we get to see the two ends of the spectrum.  Staying in a double wide one night and sleeping in a huge house the next. Once we ate breakfast, Janelle gathered us all bicycles. We wanted to do something before we got into the car again so went for a ride along the river.  We had thirteen of us in our bike gang.  The trail was packed full of people riding bikes and walking.  It was really relaxing to enjoy nature; it was so perfect outside.  It was therapeutic for me. I told Spencer I want to get us beach cruisers so we can ride along the Provo River.

It was really nice to finally get to see Spencer's grandparents' places. I can start to understand why there are such differences between the two families.  It was really nice seeing both grandparents. I hope that Grandma and Grandpa Jenne last for a little while longer... I would hate to never see them again.

Dawg Fest Tourney

This weekend we took some of our friends up to Montana. The boys signed up to play in the annual Dawg Fest basketball tournament.  Spence hasn't played in it for two years but we saw a lot of the same players.  This time instead of playing with family, Spence asked Russ and Kyle to play on a team as well as Boyd.  We got a call late Friday night from Allison saying that her car broke down one and a half hours outside of Dillon.  She headed home a day earlier than us and was trying to get a hold of someone to alert them before her phone died. We finally got a hold of Alan and after three hours of sitting in her car waiting, Ali was picked up.  Sylvia had finally died.  She had been in the family for years.... Now she is gone.  May she rest in peace. haha

Spencer met Russ while playing football down at Snow his first year. Just recently he ran into him at 24 hour fitness and started lifting with him every day.  Kyle is Russ's lifting partner so that is how he met Kyle. They are now the lifting trio.  We have hung out with their wives a few time as well. Devri and Shelby are really sweet girls.  I got to know them better this weekend.
We all left Provo on Friday and got up to Montana around 7:00.  When we first got there, we stopped at Spencer's house and introduced everyone to his parents.  After talking and freshening up, we hit up Papa T's for dinner.  We had been talking up Taco Pizza so we ordered one as well as a burger.  I was really impressed with the burger.  Papa T's is one of our favorites, we always eat there whenever we go to Montana.  That night we played Sequence and Scattergories.  The girls kicked the boys' trash!

Once we got to the college gym, we were watching the other teams warm up.  We could tell that there were going to be some really good teams.  It wasn't until about ten min before the game started that we realized the boys signed up for division A which all the college basketball players for Western play in.  We were wondering why division A only had about eight teams compared to the fifty teams in division b.  We lost the first game pretty quickly.  The boys did really well we just weren't as fast as the other team.  Our shots weren't going in either.  By the second game, the boys were warmed up and ready to play.   We ended up facing Troy Scott's team. He was a boy that went to high school with Boyd.  They don't like each other. We were in the lead for the majority of the game until the end.  We went cold and we ended up losing it. It was a sad loss...

 

We had a two hour break after that game so we went back home to eat some lunch.  It was the quietest lunch. The boys were so disappointed in themselves.  They didn't say a word. All of us girls were really sad. We kept quiet until they were ready to talk.  The last game they had we beat the other team. It was a really good game.  We were hitting all of our shots.  We were really excited because that game was a total mood changer. It turned our day around.  After that, we went back home and hung out.  We shot clay pigeons down by the pond.  We had LeeAnn's famous spaghetti dinner.

On Sunday our first game is at 10. We lost.... by a lot.  The team was really fast and hit everything they threw up.  It single elimination on Sunday so we were out quick. We headed back home to pack up and eat lunch.  We hung out on the back deck shooting gophers in the lower pasture by the pond for an hour or two.  It was perfect outside. We sat and talked for hours.  Finally we decided to pack up the car and head out.  Allison ended up riding with us.  It was a really nice, relaxing yet fast weekend.

Class of 2015

Spencer graduated!!! He graduated in Exercise Science. He walked last Friday. His Detton grandparents as well as his parents came in town to watch him walk.  My grandma Nelson and her husband Ken as well as my grandma Peterson and my parents came down as well. After graduation we went to the Spaghetti Factory to celebrate.  This day couldn't come fast enough. So proud of Spencer and all of the hard work he has put into our future.  He takes the  Dental Admissions Test on June 6th... hopefully he will have another four years of school. :)

"The Plan of Happiness" - April 2015 Conference

I need to start writing more posts that are upbeat and fun... But conference was this past weekend so this is going to be another spiritual post... Two in a row! :)

Last weekend Spencer's great aunt Karen was having a surprise birthday party in Twin Falls, Idaho.  Karen has been to many of our Jenne family events so Spencer and I felt it was appropriate to make a day journey to attend this surprise party.  It was conference weekend so we got to listen the morning session on the way. I am glad we did not only to see family, but also because I was able to sit and just listen.  I didn't have any distractions.  I was able to truly listen.

I was really touched by Boyd K Packer's talk. If you haven't listened or read it yet, I highly suggest it.  I posted a link to the talk at the bottom of this post.  It was titled the Plan of Happiness.  President Packer is aging rapidly. It was really hard to understand him.  I had to close my eyes and really listen to be able to understand what he was teaching. I am so glad that I did because his talk was everything I had been searching for lately.  I honestly felt like I was suppose to hear it, like he was talking directly towards me.  There were two things that really stood out in his talk. Procreation and the atonement.

The first thing that touched me was when President Packer stated that 'multiplying and replenishing the earth is essential to the plan of redemption and is the source of human happiness.'  In other words, you find happiness in life by having and raising children. Satan doesn't want us to be happy. He is a miserable person.  He wants us to be miserable too.  He wants to do everything and anything is his power to prevent us from being happy.

When we do sin, Satan wants us to feel terrible.  He wants us to feel guilty.  Even after we have fully repented of our sins, he wants us to feel the scars that were once wounds.  He wants us to always feel broken.  It is through the Atonement of Jesus Christ that our scars can be removed.  We can be free of the sins once committed.  Christ heals us. "Behold, he who has repented of his sins, the same is forgiven, and I, the Lord, remember them no more." (D&C 58:42)

President Packer ended with his testimony. This was my favorite part:
"I am so grateful for the blessings of the Lord Jesus Christ, for the power of procreation, for he power of redemption, for the Atonement - the Atonement which can wash clean every stain no matter how difficult or how long or how many times repeated. The Atonement can put you free again to move forward, cleanly and worthily, to pursue that path that you have chosen in life."

This talk really touched me because I have been feeling like I was having blessings withheld from me because of my past sins.  I have also had a 'spiritual drought' which has taken me away from Christ's light.  I really felt like Heavenly Father forgot about me.  Like he couldn't hear my prayers.  I wasn't getting the blessings I wanted when I wanted them.  I felt very alone and doubtful.  President Packer really opened my eyes to this foolish idea.  He helped me remember that my sins have already been forgiven. They were washed clean through the Atonement of Christ.  My scars are gone.  They aren't what's preventing me from feeling the spirit and receiving blessings, I was the one causing myself the heart ache.  I gave up trying to learn and hear the words of our prophets and gospel.  This talk reminded me of what I needed to do to get my life pointed back to the light.

Once we got to Aunt Karen's party, we were talking with everyone who was sitting at the table and each person said they took something different talk.  One person said they only got Atonement out of his talk, another said they only heard about marriage.  I feel like President Packer was able to hit and touch so many different people.

I am so grateful for his wise words that he shared this conference. There were many many different talks centered around family.  Satan is threatening the family.  He is trying to break them apart.  It is through families where we find true happiness. There were several other talks that I really enjoyed and learned from as well.  I really am grateful for these wise people who speak at conference. They really strengthen my testimony.  Family really is the key to happiness.  I can't wait for the day when Spencer and I will have our own little one's running around.  I hope I will be able to raise them in a Christ centered home.  I want them to experience his grace and love.  I am so grateful for this spring conference.  I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ Amen.

https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2015/04/the-plan-of-happiness?lang=eng

Marching on toward April...

Boy, this year is going faster then I can blink... Ok maybe not that fast, but it sure feels like it. I'm trying to be better at updating my blog... My girlfriend always gives me crap for only updating in November... ;) I am trying to prove her wrong!  Not a whole lot has happened the last few months so this will be a quick update.  I got a promotion at work! I was pumped! I now am learning about tax correction forms, posting wires and more about reimbursement accounts.  It absolutely learning and understanding new things so I'm really loving it so far! Plus my new manager is awesome! I am love my new team.


Spencer is graduating - WAHOO! Finally! He walks April 24.  These three weeks leading up to that day are going to be stressful ones for sure.  He is taking some of his hardest classes right now like Organic Chemistry. From what I can tell, he has been working his butt off. This week alone, he has three tests, and 2 papers due. I can't even imagine what his finals week is going to be like... I don't know who is more excited about him being done with his schooling.


We are loving our calling. About a six months ago, we were asked to be in the nursery.  At first we were really unsure and we didn't know what we were doing. After a few months, I can say I really am starting to love the kids.  Seeing them each week is really fun.  They are at a point in their life were they are learning and absorbing new things every week.  There is this one little girl name Charlotte and we have seen a transformation in her just in two months.  She had extreme separation anxiety from her parents. Once they left she would scream and cry until they would return.  About a month ago, she started playing with me and she didn't notice when her parents would leave.  Last week, she waltzed right in and waved good bye to her mom like she was a big girl. When her mom came to pick her up, she didn't want to leave. She shook her head as she saw her parents standing in the doorway. Its amazing to me how kids can learn, grow and adapt so quickly.


Last weekend was General Women's Broadcast. I totally didn't realize it before it was to late.... so I caught up and watched some of it tonight.  Sister Cheryl Esplin's talk really hit me hard.  Her talk was about refraining from Satan's temptations by being full of light.  She used an example of a soda can that was empty and a soda can that is full.  When you are full of Christ's truth and light, you are strong and hard to crumble as the soda can that is full.  When you aren't full of the light and truth, you can easily be altered and bent like the empty soda can.  I have been feeling kind of empty lately.. I have been questioning my place in life and in the church.  I have been doubting myself and my testimony.  I really have been feeling myself be 'bent' and 'altered' by Satan.  Her talk reminded me that to overcome this, I need to do the simple Sunday school answers.  I need to pray and to read my scriptures.  I haven't been very good at it lately but I have set a goal to be better.  I need to doubt my doubts before I doubt my faith. I need to stand true to my beliefs. I need to hold on to what I believe. I know that my Heavily Father loves me and wants what is best for me. I know that it is through him that families can be together forever. I  know that he listens to us and knows what we are going through.  I know the trials we are going through are for a reason.  God isn't putting us through anything that we can't handle...  He is helping us through this journey of life. I am grateful to have such a wonderful husband that I can learn from.  He is so strong and never lets his testimony fade. He stands up for what he knows and doesn't question his beliefs.  I strive to be more like him.... I love my family and my Heavenly Father in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen. (Not really sure if I'm suppose to end like this, but if felt appropriate.)

Most of 2014.. AGAIN

It looks like I wasn't very good about blogging this year either.  Spencer asked me as I sat down to start writing this post, I told him that instead of writing in a journal, this would be more effective for me to remember little events.  Only posting once this year, I know I am missing stories that I will want to remember.  I need to be better about updating our blog!  Well, I guess I will pick up where I left off last year...

December 2013:

We ended up going on a cruise with my family for the holidays.  We flew to Miami and got on a Carnival cruise for 7 days.  The first day we hit the Bahamas. As we got off the boat, we were instantly greeted by workers trying to get us to use their services.  Many were offering to take us to the other side of the island, others were offering to braid our hair.  All I wanted to do was to hit the shops to find different bargains.  So I put my head down and walked to the end of the road.  Once I got passed them, I looked up to make sure my family had kept up with me.  My dad is a sucker and got caught by one of the scariest looking workers.  He had offered to take us to the most perfect beach for the day.  I got really ornery because my family decided to trust this man.  He told us to follow him to his van.  He also told us to call him Mr. Bojangles.  One of his legs was shorter than they other which made him have a limp and he barley spoke English.  Once we got to his van, I was definitely scared... It was a beaten down van.  The seats felt like they were going to break in half.

I got really quiet because I wasn't sure why my family was being so trusting of this old black man. After about fifteen minutes of driving, he pulled up to this little shack.  He told us to follow the sidewalk and it would lead us to the beach.  He promised he would be back an hour before our boat said to be back and drove off.  Walking down the sidewalk, my parents began second guess their decision.  But once we got to the end of the sidewalk, it was worth it.   It was the most beautiful beach I had ever seen.  There were only a few other families that were on it too.  Instantly Spence, Zack, Trev and I  dropped our stuff and ran to the water.  It felt amazing.  We had never seen such blue water before.  After a few hours of hanging out and swimming, one of the families that was by us told us they had seen jelly fish in the water so to watch out for them.  That was enough to keep Zack and I out of the water.  A little while later, two black men came around the corner on their ski dos.  They were waving their hands trying to get people to rent the ski dos.  Trevor didn't realize that is what they were trying to do.  When he saw them waving, he decided to wave back.  Once they saw him wave, they instantly darted toward him.  My parents started yelling no, no! Trev didn't understand.  He came back and told us he thought they were just being chill.  He was a little naive.  Later on, a woman walked by us selling suit coverups.  My mom and I bought one.  Luckily, Mr. Bojangles came back at the time he said he did.

On the way back to the port, Bojangles took a different route.  He took us through the hood.  It was the scariest place I had ever seen.  There were people walking around with guns strapped to their chest.  There were a lot of homeless people.  All of the sudden, he pulled into a stall in an ally way and said he would be right back.  My whole family thought that we were going to be robbed and killed.  We had no idea where we were, we were getting close to being late for our boat, and Bojangles had ditched us in the scariest part of town.  Just when we were about to get out of the van, he popped around the corner and jumped back into the van.  He apologized and said he had to check on his lottery tickets.  We all started laughing.  We got back to our boat just in time. Once we got back to our cabins, we crashed.

The second day was a day at sea.  We hung out on the deck.  They had different activities all day. At one point they had line dances.  Trev and I went down to learn the different line dances.  There were so many people it made it super fun.  My parents ordered all of us pina coladas. The food was also amazing.  They had about 7 different types of restaurants that you could get endless food at. Later on they had a movie on the deck.  That nights, we found a few decks of cards and played games on the deck for hours.  They had live singers.  It was really nice to hang out.

The third day we hit St Thomas.  We went on a snorkeling excursion.  We got on the boat and hit two different spots.  The first was one where we got to see sea turtles.  We got to swim with them.  It was really cool.  The second spot we hit was a ship wreck.  There were a lot of colorful fish.  At one point, the tour guides brought out fruit and shrimp.  When we tossed the rhine, fish instantly came up to the surface to eat them.  It was crazy.  After we got done from our excursion, we went back to our cabins and got ready for the day. We then went shopping at the little stores.

The fourth day we went to Puerto Rico.  We wanted to walk around the island to see the fort.  It was really cool to see the different things that were built.  The town was so colorful too.  At one point, we stopped and found a secret jail.  It was interesting to see the small ally ways and secret crevices.


The fifth day we stopped at Grand Turk.  My parents and brothers had an excursion, so Spencer and I hung out on the beach the whole day.   The beach was packed but we were able to find a spot to lay down and hang out.  We stayed close to the ship.  It was nice to have alone time with him.  There were a few different shops on the island so we walked them but didn't find anything.


The sixth day was another sea day.  That morning, I woke up extremely sick.  I had a fever and had the worst aches and pains.  I couldn't get warm either.  I stayed in mine and Spencer's cabin all day.  Throughout the day, my family and Spence came to the cabin to check on me.  At one point, I literally thought I was going to die.  I laid there for an hour hoping someone would stop by.  No one came. I had never felt as sick as I had felt right then.  I tried to stand up but instantly knew that I wouldn't be able to walk without passing out.  I laid back down again hoping someone would come by my cabin.  Another hour went by, nothing.... The thought instantly hit me that I needed to receive a priesthood blessing. There wasn't any phone service so I couldn't locate my family.  As I laid there, I prayed asking for someone to come check on me.  Within the next ten minutes, there was a knock on the door.  It was my little brother Zack.  He had a key so just came in.  I told him to go get Spencer and Dad because I needed a blessing.   After they had come into the room and gave me a blessing. My mom had asked how long I had been trying to get a hold of them and I said I was laying around for a few hours hoping someone would stop by.  It wasn't until a few minutes ago when I decided to pray for someone to come by.  My dad told me that he had a 'feeling' that I needed something when he sent Zack.  I am so grateful for my Heavenly Father.  If it wasn't for Him, my dad wouldn't have had the prompting from the Holy Ghost.  I am so grateful for the priesthood.  After receiving the blessing Spencer gave me, my fever broke within the hour. I began feeling much better.
The last day was the day we got off the ship.  I woke up feeling almost one hundred percent better.  Thankfully I didn't get anyone else sick. We got to port around 10 am and had to be off by 12 pm.  Spence and I flew out that day so we went straight to the airport and headed home.  My family stayed one more night and headed home the following day.  It was such an amazing trip.  I am so grateful for the time I got to spend with my family over Christmas break.  My parents spoiled us with this trip for Christmas!

From January - May we were finishing up spring term.  Nothing too important happened during these months.  I finally graduated and walked in May! WHOOT WHOOT! My family and Spencer's family came down to support me.  I am lucky to have such an amazing family!

Towards the end of June, we went to the Wilcox reunion in Apple Valley, California.  It was a family reunion for LeeAnn's side of the family.  Spencer and I drove down on a Wednesday night and stayed ant Tij and Camille's in Las Vegas.  We then woke up and drove to Los Angeles on Thursday.  Spence was able to show me around different areas of his mission.  This was the first time he had been back since he came home in October 2010.  He tried calling some of the people on his mission so he could stop by and see them, however none of them answered on such short notice.  He took me through Culver City.  I absolutely loved this part of town.  I know it would be expensive but I would love to live there.  It was just below the temple.  After, we walked the temple grounds.  We wish we would have taken our clothes so we could have done a session in this temple.  We then went and found a spot on Hermosa Beach.  It was beautiful.  We didn't have our swim suits and it was a little cold to swim, so we just hung out on a blanket.

On Friday, we went to Six Flags.  We met the whole Detton clan there.  It was a blast.  We rode lots of rides.  On the way back Boyd, Neal and LeeAnn decided to ride with Spencer and I.  Boyd and Neal got in a huge argument about 'Catch 'Em Alive Jack'.  They were screaming at each other.  I was in tears laughing so hard in the front seat.  We got stuck in horrible traffic on the way back.  It took us hours to get home.  The whole time, Neal and Boyd were bickering while LeeAnn sat between them.  It was very hilarious.

Saturday was the family reunion day.  Everyone met at Linda and Bob Turner's house in Apple Valley.  I met the whole Wilcox (Grandma Detton's family) side.  Each family had their own movie.  Aunt Janelle put together the Detton movie.  It was really cool to see how each family fit in.  We took pictures and played in the pool the whole day. Sunday we got up and drove all the way home to Provo.  It was a fun yet quick trip.

In September, we were asked to speak in our ward.  This was the first time we had ever got to hear each other speak.  First, they gave us a new calling.  We are now nursery workers... YAY! I was super stoked when we first got this calling because I have been really baby hungry... Spencer wasn't too crazy about our new calling.  The first week we were in there, there were about 12 kids to 5 adults.  It was crazy! Kids were playing and screaming.  There was even one kid with a smelly diaper.  It was an interesting first week.  After that, we were on the bishopric's radar.  We were asked to speak three weeks later.  When they pulled us aside, I almost said no.  But I had been fasting that day for some answers and knew that this is God's way of speaking to me.  I agreed to speak.  I was asked to talk on God's Harvest by President Uchdorf, The August General Presidency message. I will talk about this experience in another post soon to come because I talked about my family's conversion story. :)

In October, Caitlin and Spencer King got married.  They were sealed on Friday Oct 10.  It was a beautiful day.  The weather couldn't be more perfect.  I am biased because mine and Spencer's sealing has always been my favorite, but their sealing hit second on my list.  The sealer talked about how the initiatories differed from men and women.  My mind was blown, as were others who were in the sealing room.  I had always wondered how women were able to cleanse and stuff like they do during initiatories.  I am glad the sealer took the time to explain a few different things. It makes more sense that women do have the priesthood.  When a woman and a man are sealed they become one.  The woman then has the priesthood through her husband.  I had never looked at it like this before.  I am so grateful for the opportunity I had to be in the temple and be able to witness their sealing.


After the sealing, we went to the Joseph Smith building for a luncheon.  It was a good meal however Spencer was the hungriest one and was fed about 30 minutes after everyone else was because they ran out of salad.  He was super grumpy.  After everyone gave their speeches, we rushed off to the Atrium in Sandy for the reception. It was beautiful.  It was a big hit.  There were so many people there.  Alison and I ran to walmart to get things to decorate the car for their departure.  Once we got back Spencer was the MC and got the first dance and cake going.  Once those two things happened, the dance floor was open for everyone.  All of the cousins were on the floor dancing to line dances and upbeat songs.  It was a blast.  Tij and Chris Bell made everyone laugh with their Gangnam Style moves.

After the reception, Spencer's family (minus Caitlin obviously) slept at our house.  We all got up at 5 am the next morning to head up to Montana. It was definitely a ride to remember.  We stopped for gas and Neal left the car running while Spencer filled it up.  We didn't realize until Neal had tried to 'start' the car.  We all busted up laughing once we realized we could have died.  We stopped at McDonalds in Blackfoot for breakfast.  There Neal also walked into the woman's bathroom.. it is safe to say Neal was in need of sleep.  We made it to Montana alive, thankfully.  Once we got there, we started setting up for the open house that night.  We made the house beautiful with the decorations from the reception the night before.  A lot of family friends from Dillon came to support.  It was good to see everyone.

So far 2014 has been a pretty normal good year... If I remember any stories I want to share from this year, I'll definitely post them.... Let's hope I can start posting more regularly so I don't have to keep doing yearly recaps! :)

Most of 2013...

Wow.. It has been awhile since I have updated our blog! So much has happened since February. Spencer started working at a barn called B&B Stables. This is the owners of Nuskin's ranch. There are over twenty horses which Spencer takes care of. Spencer really likes this job compared to his Nuksin job. He was pretty tired of selling skin products to Spanish ladies, haha! I like his new job better too! They work with his school schedule. They also invite me to go on horse rides with them as well. It is a blast! One day, we will have a ranch of our own!!

We ended up moving apartments at the end of July. We moved to Provo. We live in an apartment complex with other married couples. It is so much better! Although Spencer and I are so antisocial we still don't know very many of our neighbors! Ok, we aren't super antisocial, we just have busy schedules. He is working pretty much fulltime and going to school fulltime while I am doing the same. We hardly see each other! :(

For our one year anniversary, we planned a trip to Hawaii! It was so much fun. We ended up staying with his Uncle Paul and Aunt Dale. They live on the north side kind of by BYU-H. This was our first trip together since our honeymoon. We stayed in Hawaii for a week. Everyday we went to the beach. Spencer was able to surf and I liked to sun tan. I was horrible at putting sunscreen on Spencer. He had some weird sunburnt spots! haha

 

We went to Sharks Cove and snorkeled. We saw a lot of fish and a few turtles. It was one of the highlights. We also went to the Dole Plantation, the Polynesian Cultural Center, Maximoto's Shaved Ice, and walked the shops at Waikiki. One day we made a trip around the whole island. It was awesome! We tried to go to Pearl Harbor but when we got there, apparently the tickets had sold out at 6 AM! Spencer really wanted to go out to see the Arizona memorial but instead we were able to go on a battleship. It was pretty cool! Spencer was able to help Uncle Paul with his bee farm. He helped extract the honey from the bee's nests. I was too scared to help. haha

 

One of my favorite things we did was go to the Hawaii Temple. My mom's uncle Tom and Aunt Jackie work there. We were able to meet up with them and talk with them for a while. They were such sweet people. I am really glad I was able to meet them. Hawaii was seriously so much fun. Although it was SUPER expensive, I wouldn't have traded it for anything!