Blue Angels

4th of July Water Balloon Volleyball

Dad being the smart one and not getting wet :)

Mom about to take a hit!

Yes, I know, Im horrible at keeping up with the blog, but Im going to try to start being better about it. These are just some pictures taken out at my parents house on the 4th of July after the parade. We ate lunch an then played water volleyball. It was fun!

4th of July

Harry's sweet balloon hat that he made.

He's not proud of it or anything is he?

Alison preaching to me...

The lucky one that still gets to run out and chase the candy :) She wasnt too excited that day...just kind of melo!

Dad preaching to me in his coveted spot by the train tracks...he has to sit in the same spot every year or he gets pretty upset!

Amy being Amy

Momma

Harry being Harry

This year for the 4th of July, we went to the Ashton parade as usual, and Destry wouldnt come because he refuses to come to Ashton as usual :) We went to the parade and afterwards had a picnic at the house with the family. Destry came out for the picnic. We ended up playing water balloon volleyball and then went to the Melaleuca fireworks in Idaho Falls with Harry and Jessica and Matt and some of his friends from the college. It was pretty fun. I have always loved July. It is my favorite month out of the year and I love all of the little celebrations that come with it!

Congrats Ali!

Yes, I know Im late, but Ali (my little sister) graduated in May. It's hard to believe that the little sister I chased around in diapers and played power rangers with is all grown up! Congrats sis! We love you and you will go far in life! Here are some pictures of the celebration :)

Life

So, I understand, I am a horrible blogger. But I have honestly got on here a few times for the last few weeks wanting to type something. All I really do is get on and stare at the blank screen. Through the summer and these last few weeks, I have definately grown more as a person than I ever have in my whole life. My perspective of life has changed, and the important things in life have changed a little bit too.

I found out I was pregnant right before school was starting. First, it came as a schock...not a bad shock....more like I couldnt believe that I was actually going to be a mom and that it had to happen right as my first year teaching was starting. After the shock, then came the excitement and the anticipation of knowing that we were going to be given the opportunity to raise someone and have a family with my husband and gratitude that Heavenly Father trusted me enough to actually take care of one of his little spirits.

I have never felt so much love for someone that I never had the opportunity to meet. I was overwhelmed at how happy I could be, even when I was exhausted and tired from the different pregnancy symptoms I was getting. Everything was going great, and I was feeling pretty good despite being tired all of the time.

I woke up on the first day of my new job at the school, and something just wasnt feeling right. I thought that I was just nervous for my first day and meeting all of the parents. I got to school, and felt okay, but it ended up miscarrying in the middle of my first lesson. It has made for some pretty rotten emotional days lately.

I didnt know that a miscarraige was such an emotional thing, but it is. I didnt know that you could love someone more than anything in the world, and never even meet them. I didnt know that you could spend so much time crying or being so emotional about something.....BUT....what I DO KNOW is that everything happens for a reason. I DO KNOW that Heavenly Father loves me, and that this isnt going to be my only chance to have a family. I DO KNOW that I have the most amazing and supportive husband that anyone in this world could ask for. I DO KNOW that I have an amazing support system of family and friends....and lastly....I DO KNOW that it is going to be okay. Life is hard sometimes, and this is defiantely turning out to be a pretty high mountain to climb, but in the end, things will work out the way they should and life will be okay. No, its not going to get any easier telling people that things didnt work out when they congratulate me in the grocery store or when I hear a baby crying, but it will be okay.

One of the things that this experience has taught me is to be more compassioniate. In the last few weeks, I have seen many different family situations that are hard, and it has helped me be more loving towards my students and their families. I have also learned how important family really is, and how important it is to have the gospel in your life. I dont know what I would have done if I didnt have Destry around to give me a blessing once in awhile or simply kneal down and pray with me. I have more compassion for other women who have ever went through the same thing.

I am so grateful for the support system I have had, and for knowing that things will be okay. Sometimes life is just life...its hard...and things happen that we dont understand. But, in the end, it will be okay.

Out of my element..and some good news!

Well can I just say this last few weeks have been very different for me. I am so used to having a schedule and running all of the time, that its literally driving me nuts not having one! The positive thing is that for once in my life, I am caught up with everything. The laundry is done, the house is clean and I am loving that part...the problem is that I have too much time so EVERYTHING is clean and then theres nothing left to do. I never thought I would see the day where I would say that I miss school, but I do. I loved learning new things. I need to find something to keep my occupied when I am done with all of the housework, so if anyone has any good ideas, let me know! I want to make a levi quilt, but I have no idea how to do it or where to start, so maybe Ill find a way to do that.

NOW for the good news! I have learned a lot from this latest piece of good news. The biggest thing being that Heavenly Father doesnt always answer our prayers the way they should be answered, but he definately answers them the way that they should be answered for a reason. To start out...it has literally been my dream since I was a little girl to work as a teacher in Saint Anthony. As I had the experience of working with the life skills children for a year and then being able to come back and student teach I thought that the only place for me to be was in Saint Anthony. I absolutely LOVE the staff and I LOVE the children more than I could ever express. To make things even better, a part time kindergarten posistion opened up in Parker. I wanted this job so that I could be a mom at the same time. As the school year started coming to an end, the principal told me he really wanted me to stay and teach there. When he said this, I really was happier than you can imagine. I decided just to be safe that I had better apply to a few different districts just in case. I applied and a few weeks later, one of my friends, Stephanie, that works at Henry's Fork as well, told me that I needed to get back on and resubmitt my application for madison because 8 teaching jobs just opened that day. I went on and resubmitted my application and emailed one of the teachers. I was called 2 days later for an interview with the Archer/Lyman school. When I went in, I had a really good feeling, and the interview went well...until they got to the last question. The last question that I was asked was this: "There are 52 other people that have applied for this job. Why should we hire you instead of the rest of them." When they asked this question, I answered it, and left being sure that this would just be a practice interview that everyone tells you about. I walked out almost positive that there was absolutely no way I got the job. After I got off work on Friday, I got a phone call from the principal, Marche Young. She told me that they had enjoyed my interview and would love it if I could come and be a 1st grade teacher. I had a really good feeling about it, so I said yes. In the meantime, I was asked to come in and interview for the job in Saint Anthony. I decided it wouldnt hurt to see what they could offer. The principal called me in and told me that they wanted me to stay, but he didnt feel good about having to lay me off next year. Apparently the posistions there were only for a year. I was so grateful that I had decided to take the job at South Fork. After recieving the news from Saint Anthony, I got a call from the principal at the Parker School. He wanted me to come in and interview for the Kindergarten job. I found out that my Aunt had not recieved a job offer yet and she would be interviewing for the job as well. As hard as it was for me to say no, I knew I was doing the right thing. What kind of person would I be if I decided to go and interview against my Aunt when she hadnt been offered anything yet. She ended up getting the job, and I am very happy for her. I wanted to work at Parker, but I know things happen for a reason, and who knows, maybe someday I will, but I am grateful that Heavenly Father was looking out for me on this one.

After all of the interviewing mess was over, I got the opportunity to go in and meet the staff and see the school. The school and staff are WONDERFUL! They all are so nice and easy to get a long with. I went in and observed a few times before school was out. The last day that I was there, the director of the Special Ed. program poked his head in the classroom I was in and said he needed to talk to me. I was a little suprised and wondered what he needed. He told me that he had a student he would like me to meet. He would be in my classroom next year. He continued to explain to me that the student they were putting in my room had cerebral palsy and severe seizures. It would be my job to come up with a safety plan and find a way to evacuate the students if he was having a seizure. He explained what the procedure was for when he had a seizure and what could possibly happen. It would be my job to call 911 and make sure everything was okay. As he is telling me this, my mind is going 90 miles a minute! Yikes! I'm a first year teacher! Give me a break!

I followed him down to one of the kindergarten rooms where my student was. The minute I met Mateo, my heart melted! What a sweet little boy. The first thing he did was grab my hand and kiss it. He was such a sweetheart. He doesnt really have any verbal skills and he is in a wheelchair, but I really think that this next year with him is going to be a good experience. I was a little nervous at first, but I know that he is going to be in my class for a reason and everything will work out.

Since then, I have had the opportunity to go into the school and set up my classroom a little bit. I am so excited for next year and the many challenges and experiences it will bring. I am grateful that Heavenly Father puts us where we are supposed to be, and even more grateful that he would even allow me the opportunity to find a job in times like these and that he trusts me to have such a special spirit in my room.

This is the place....SLC temple

Right after the marathon, we decided to go for a walk on temple square...can I just say I think I shoud have waited a day or so because my legs were ON FIRE! I felt bad because I really wanted to just go to the hotel and take a nap, and the sister missionaries REALLY wanted to give us a tour...I think they were bored! I finally had to throw in the towel and go rest a little bit, but we did have a nice time walking around for a little bit. It is always fun to go to temple square and see the temple, I just hope the next time we do it, my legs dont feel like jello!

While we were in Utah for the SLC marathon, I asked Destry if we could go to the "This is the Place" monument. I spent a lot of my childhood in Salt Lake visiting the doctor and going to different places with my parents after appointments, but suprisingly, I have never had the opportunity to visit. I asked Destry to take me and we were able to see a lot of the amazing things there. It really humbled me to think that so many good people gave up everything they had to come and settle the Salt Lake area. It was fun to go to the top of the hill and look down and try to picture what it must have looked like before all of the buildings were there. It was a great experience, and I am glad that I was able to finally experience it there.

Salt Lake City Marathon

Well, I survived! I ran the Salt Lake City Marathon in 4 hours 33 minutes. I can honestly say it was one of the most rewarding experiences that I have had in a while. I worked really hard to get there, and I made it! The only thing that I did not like about the Marathon is how hard it was on my legs. It wouldnt have been bad at all, but Salt Lake is basically concrete the whole way. My knees hurt super bad the next day, but after that I felt great. The race started at the Legacy Bridge in Salt Lake where they hosted the winter olympics and it ended at the Gateway Mall. The race wound around different neighborhoods and side streets. It was fun to see all of the people who lived in Salt Lake having Barbeques in their yards and handing out water, otter pops and oranges to the runners. I truly felt the support of the residents of Salt Lake and I will definately run it again next year. It was amazing!

The other great thing I had during the marathon was the support of my amazing hubby! I had to be at the UTATRAX at 5:30 in the morning, and my husband didnt want me to go alone, so he drove me there. After that he went back to the hotel, and later visited Brad at Home Depot while he waited for me to cross the finish line. There were so many people at the finish, that I didnt get to see him, but it was great to know that in the crowd of thousands of people, my husband was there waiting for me. Thanks hun for being so supportive and being there for me.

This year the proceeds of the marathon went to benefit the Huntsman Cancer Center for research. As you know, this cause was very dear to my heart because my Uncle Burke just passed away this summer, and I have other family members who have or are fighting cancer right now.

The one question that people have been asking me: Will you ever do one again? My answer is YES! Definately! I wont become one of those super crazy marathon people running 2 a weekend, but my goal from now on is to do at least 2 a year. My next marathon will be the Teton Dam Marathon in June!

I will post some pictures when I get them, I had to order them through the photographers that were there because Dest forgot my camera that morning.

Milestone

Well I finally made it! On Saturday, I graduated with my bachelors degree in Elementary Education! It has been a long 4 years, but it was worth it in the end. I will no longer spend many sleepless nights typing away at the computer or reading long boring books for hours on end (unless i want to). I attended the ceremony on Saturday and then had a dinner with my parents, Grandma Worrell, Destry and my siblings later that night. I have really been done with school for about a week now, but nothing can really beat the feeling of walking across that stage and knowing that you are really done! There have been ups and downs the last 4 years, but I can honestly say that I learned a lot. BYU-Idaho is a good school and there is a lot to be said about the professors in the Education Department. I am so grateful for all that I learned a long the way and for the people that I met.

One of the things that I reflected on the most yesterday was Heavenly Father's hand in everything. There were times that I honestly have no idea how I would have done some of the things or made some of the sacrifices that I did without his help. I am grateful that I was able to go to school everyday and feel his influence there. I can honestly say that BYU-Idaho is a special place and I will miss the feeling of being up there everyday.

Its on to the next chapter in my life...when I figure out exactly what that is!

Last Day at Work

So Friday was officially my last day as a pharmacy technician at the student health center pharmacy. It was bittersweet to leave in the sense that I will miss that place so much, but at the same time, I am leaving because I am graduating! In order to work at the pharmacy for the school you have to be going to school full time. I have loved working at the pharmacy for almost 2 years now. The people I worked with were amazing and the atmosphere was great. I have learned a lot more about medication than I ever really thought I would...and I guess in the long run its a good thing because I know what to take and what NOT to take. The only thing that I wont miss are the nightmares I have about counting pills over and over again!

One thing I was bummed about last week is that I didnt get to work with Shawn, my boss. Shawn is really the best employer you could ask for. He has taught me a lot and was always understanding about different school situations that we all had.

The girl in the pictures with me is Whitney Howard. Whit and I have worked together for the last 4ish years. We worked together at Valley Professional Pharmacy and then at the BYU-Idaho pharmacy. She really should have been my sister, and people say that a lot. We just have always been able to get along and have our own little inside jokes that no one else understands but us. We always had to good intentions of doing our homework when we got to work, but it was honestly next to impossible when we were together! Whit is one of the sweetest people I know and I sure am going to miss her. She got accepted to the RAD tech program at Weber State on Thursday, so I am excited for her. She will do great. Good Luck Whit!

Romantic Getaway

A few weeks ago, my wonderful hubby stopped in while I was working and asked me if I wanted to get away for the weekend. I about dropped dead! For one, Destry doesnt come in and see me at work. I can count on one hand how many times he has been in the student health center! The other thing is we never really go on getaways....so needless to say I was speechless!

I got home from work, we loaded up the car, and took off. I had no idea where we were going. Destry just said it was a suprise. We ended up in West Yellowstone for the night. We stayed in a hotel and then went to the bear/wolf discovery center the next day. After we explored there for awhile, we packed up and went to the Fish Hatchery. It was nice to just get away and not worry about school for a weekend. I am so glad that we can still have fun together. Destry is the best friend that I could ever ask for and the best husband. Thanks hun for the great weekend! I love you!

26.2 Miles of Fun?......

My husband thinks I'm nuts, my Grandma Worrell wants to know if I have rocks in my head for brains and my parents want to know who's child I am....but.....I signed up for the Salt Lake City Marathon about a month ago. Don't ask me why, but ever since I was little, I would watch runners on T.V. and I always told myself I would run in a marathon. I am nervous and excited, but I think I will be okay. I have been running 20 miles on Saturdays to get ready. The marathon is next Saturday. Wish me luck!