The day of being Tagged.

I love an excuse to blog! It is my new favorite activity. Although, I find it hard to really talk and brag about myself. I think I have a pretty average life. Nothing to exciting but not WAY boring. Just Average. So when I got the invite from Mandy to play this "TAG" game, I welcomed the opportunity. Bear with me as I take on the challenge!!

The rules:

A. The rules of the game are posted at the beginning.

B. Each player lists 6 facts/habits about themselves. (I chose to do thing that people might not know about me)

C. At the end of the post, the player then tags 6 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know that they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

1. I was almost kidnapped as a child. NO JOKE! I don’t think I have told hardly anybody this story. My whole family, cousins, aunts, grandparents and all used to make a yearly trip to Lagoon. We would make a huge deal out of it, because we were just some country bumpkins in the great big city! Anyways, we went to stay at the Chase Hotel and Suites which is in downtown Salt Lake. My mom was in the shower, and she told my dad to watch me. This is in 1985 by the way, when I was 2. So drag racing was on TV, and my dad got a little preoccupied. I somehow managed to get out of the room. Well, I obviously don’t remember the rest, but my mom said that they searched for over 30 minutes for me. She even ran down the street when she seen a stroller and pushed the lady aside to look in the stroller because she thought I was in it. Finally, my cousin Jamie noticed me down a hallway with a woman and she was walking into a room with me. He yelled, “KANDICE!” and she stopped and he grabbed me and she went in the room and hid. It was just terrible from what I hear. My mom was so upset that she didn’t even go to lagoon.
2. I was a really good dancer at one point. I danced and did gymnastics from the time I was 3. I clogged, did jazz/ballet/lyrical, you name it, I did it. I was on drill team in high school, and made the All-State Team my junior year. I still like to dance, but weighing like 40 lbs more than I did back then makes it a little harder.
3. I was valedictorian of my graduating class. I was a FREAK about getting straight A’s. I never accepted less. I worked so hard to do my best. At the time, I think it was a little bit of a control issue I had. But now, I am grateful I did it. My parents had a college fund for me, but since I had a full ride scholarship to Utah State, I got to use that money for a down payment on our first house, and that has been such a blessing.
4. I have a few strange pet peeves. Actually I have a LOT of pet peeves and things that people do to bug the living HELL out of me, but I rarely say anything because I am such a nice gal. The first thing that makes my skin crawl is the feeling of cotton balls. It is all squeaky and gross and sticks to my dry skin, YUCK I had chills just thinking of it. The next is people calling too early in the morning. Just because some people are retarded enough to wake up at 5 a.m. DOES NOT mean that I do. Someone called at 8:10 this morning, and I have had a long week with my sick baby and I was so mad that they woke me up. 9 o’clock is a very nice time to call. The last thing that bothers me is people chewing loudly and grossly and in my ear. We weren’t born in barns people. Gross.
5. I am a good lifelong friend. I feel sort of gay to brag on something like that, but I am glad I can be a good friend. I try to never lose friends, which is partly due to the fact that I rarely let people inside my little shell very often. I have to test the waters for awhile and get a true judge of character before I will let myself become totally involved with a friend. If they don’t meet my standards, then they just remain a friendly acquaintance, instead of someone who I will share my whole life with and then have to not like so much later. My closest friends have remained true and good and will remain so forever I hope. I will blog on each of them separately later. I do have several friends that I gain from church, Bunco, card swap, and just through passing here and there. I try to always be happy and approachable. Although I know everyone does not and will not always like me, I hope I can leave this earth with lots and lots of friends, and no enemies.
6. I hope that my friends know that I have a testimony of the gospel. I believe this church is true with every fiber of my being. I marvel all the time that I was selected to be born in the USA, in Utah, in Vernal, and in a home that was blessed to already know of this church. I am so lucky and grateful. I love having that stability in my life when we live in a world that is so unsteady. I love my savior and what he does for me every day. I love the scriptures and believe whole heartedly that reading them blesses your life and gives you answers and guidance. I am truly a believer in prayer, I feel like a walking prayer person sometimes because that is all I do. But it works! I hope that my friends know, and whoever might read this will know that I am trying my hardest to be a good person. I am FAR from perfect, but I am trying, and I hope that matters.

So, there you go. Some things you may have already known, and maybe some you haven’t. I have only one friend who hasn’t been tagged, and that is Jesenia, so she better continue the trend! Thanks Mandy for the Invite!

The day all about my Georgie

I should have put my husband first on the blogs about my family, because he was the beginning of it all, so sorry G.J.! But, I will end on him today. He is gone right now to training for work for 4 days. He left last night, and won't be home until Thursday. So, I am missing his help and love and support about now, and I still have lots of days left!

G.J. and I first met in 1998 at a Drill Team thing I was in charge of. He was tying to pick up on the ladies by joining the boy’s Drill team, which I just happened to be the coach of. Well, none of the other girls wanted him, so he settled for me. (lol. j/k g.j.) We had our first date soon after, I believe he took me “digging” as he called it. That is where you take a beater 4x4 into the hills and try to go up insane hills, not my idea of romantic or fun, but I think he just wanted to have an excuse for me to grab his hand. After that, we were pretty much inseparable. I was his first kiss……I feel a little bad, yet honored for being the one to break in those virgin lips of his. We continued to date through high school and we got married in May of 2000.

We first lived in G.J’s parent’s home, because they were living at the ranch at the time. They put their house up for sale and so that summer, we found a duplex, and it was so cute. It was right behind K-Mart, and we loved it. We scored at $400 a month rent. I think the rent on it now is like $950. We welcomed Hallie into our family in that little duplex. G.J. worked at the ranch for his parents that whole year until 2001 when he got a job at Coca-Cola.

This brings me to G.J.’s work career. He is a very good worker, very well liked by all who meet him. He is kind, patient, and very smart with what he does. He also does his very best. None of his work is just so-so; it is always the full amount of perfection. He was in college the whole time that he worked at coke. Those hours became terrible. He would go to work from 6-6, school from 6:30-10:30, and then home straight to bed. His college classes were pretty intense. Because he is a smarty pants, he had classes like chemistry and physics and the most advanced math available at the college, it was insane. Later that year, we moved into our house in the same neighborhood. It was so cute and our little family was so happy. I decided to take the leap and go back to school and take advantage of the full tuition/fees scholarship I had at Utah State, so I did. Then, it all got very interesting when I found out I was pregnant with Gavin. G.J. and I were both going to school full time, had a 2 yr. old, a mortgage, bills, stress, and another baby on the way. It was so hard, but as I look back on it, that was truly some of our happiest times together.

After Gavin was born, I graduated with my associate’s degree when Gavin was 3 months old. We stayed in our house until that December when we moved to where we are now. G.J. had gone through a few promotions at Coke, but that fall he had enough. They were under new ownership, and even though he is so patient in every way, he wasn’t taking it any more. So he quit, and had 3 or 4 part time jobs to make ends meet for awhile. He finally got hired full time at the school district. That was really nice. He enjoyed the work, the people, and the kids. It was good for him. He finally graduated college in May of 2005 with a bachelor's in Business Information Systems, or basically computer genius as I call it, something I am definitely not good at. The next year, 2006 he had a great opportunity to work for Moon Lake Electric doing their computers. He started his job the same day that Kayler was born, wow, what a whirlwind that was. They absolutely loved him over there. They were so good to him. He liked his job so well; that we actually even considered moving over there to Roosevelt, how scary is that?! Well, although he loved it there, he finally got tired of the drive, and his opportunity for advancement was pretty small, so we prayed and prayed that something would come up here. It finally did, and he is now working for Vernal City as their IT tech/GIS spec. Manager. Something like that. He is glad to finally have a position that is exactly what he suffered through 5 years of college for.

Through these almost 10 years that I have known G.J., we have gone through SO much. There are so many details that I have left out about our marriage and our life together. But what I need him to know is that he is a wonderful husband and father and all around great person. He is so good to me in every way. I don’t know where he gets his patience, it is amazing. Most important, he loves me no matter what. Whether I am fat/skinny, having an ugly/pretty day, or even when I am downright ornery or emotional. He is so sweet to me, and treats me so well. He is such a help with the kids. They are very lucky to have a daddy that plays with them, and by play I mean he gets on the floor and wrestles and plays ball and games and is right in the middle of all the chaos. I even have to get after him for getting too wild with them. I am so lucky to have a husband who I can be proud of, who so many people think highly of, and who is such a good man. He takes me to church, to the temple, reads scriptures, prays, loves Family Home Evening, and most of all loves us, and we love him. I thank Heavenly Father every day that I have him as the head of our home.

The day all about Kayler

So the last baby to bless my life on this earth is my sweet little Kayler. He is officially the cutest 18 month old little boy in the world as you can see from his pictures. He is so funny and full of life and is a BUSY little boy.
It was a hard decision to have another baby, but as soon as I felt his little body move inside of me, I knew it was right. Even though being pregnant was not too much fun, and it was a rough road to get him here, I was even more sure of that decision when I first held him. I didn't even sleep that night in the hospital because I just held him and cherished every single second and knew this was the last time that I would hold a baby of my own so fresh from heaven.
He was a late walker, and talker, but oh my, now that he does both of those things, watch out!! He loves to eat and is such a little snacking monster. His favorite thing to do is sit on his little dora or spongebob couch, with a snack on one side, a drink on the other, and of course has to be watching either Dora, or Spongebob. And the whole time he is sitting there, he has to say over and over "dora, dora, bap pap (back pack), or else bob-bob (for spongebob).
Along with those things, he loves to play with toys, any kind all day, especially all of Hallie's really small things that he sneaks into his mouth just to make me mad. He loves airplanes and balls. He is so sweet to give loves and kisses, especially to his mommy. And he will lay his little head on my shoulder and pat my back and say "awww" and then look at me and smile and giggle.
Even though he doesn't talk conversations yet, his little eyes are full of wonder and awe. I hope that G.J. and I can be good teachers and parents to him and that Hallie and Gavin will be good examples. I have had so much fun with him just knowing that he is my last baby, I cherish it so much more, I wish I would have been that way with Hallie and Gavin.
So the past 3 days I have dedicated all to my beautiful children. I am sure that my blogs will be filled with stories about them because they are my life. Have a good day!

The day all about Gavin

The next little bundle of joy to come into my life was Gavin. He is so beautiful. I am going to have to chase girls away from him with his long eyelashes and olive skin paired with his green eyes. He has always been a tiny little guy with LOTS and I mean lots of energy. He has the most tender little spirit. He doesn't like to be in trouble, or see people in trouble or hurt. Every night he has a little tradition. He tells me, "in the morning, i want pancakes for breakfast." and then every morning comes, and he never wants the pancakes I make him. He also out of the blue will say, "mommy, I have a present for you." Then he gives me the best hug and kiss EVER-and I love it. I think he does it to melt away the anger I feel for all the naughty little boy things he does. On Wednesday, he took a black permanent marker and went outside and drew all over his face, Kayler's face, and the let the dog chew up the marker. He also had a very special quarter book given to him by his grandma and grandpa and he ripped out every quarter in it, put it in a little box and then very sweetly asked, "I found this money, so can we go to the Dollar Store?"
He absolutely adores his big sister Hallie. When they play it is so cute seeing him just soak in every amount of attention she gives him. He loves to pester Kayler and make him mad. I guess that's what brothers are supposed to do. He has a couple friends that he loves, especially Quayd, Oscar, his cousin Joey, and he also thinks that all Hallie's friends are his friends too.
His favorite things are just typical of a little boy. He loves guns, action figures, balls, sports, T.V., and playing the computer. I hope he doesn't kill me when he is older for saying this, but he also really loves Hallie to dress him up in her dance stuff and they play dance class together, it is absolutely hilarious how he gets into it. He is happiest when his grandmas and grandpas invite him to play or stay the night. He absolutely cherishes the time and can't wait for the next time he gets to go.
He reminds me so much of G.J. My biggest prayer is that he will grow to be a good man, just like his daddy. He is so handsome and loves me to tell him that. I love him so much and love that he isn't afraid to hug and kiss and love his mommy. I know we will be great friends and that he will make me proud.

The day all about Hallie

I have decided that I need to dedicate a whole day of blogging to each member of my family because they are so important to me. My first day I will dedicate to my firstborn,- my sweetheart little girl Hallie.
She is 7 years old. She was born on September 28th, 2000. She was a darling baby, precious in every way. She was smart from the beginning, always eager to learn and does so all on her own and loves it. She learned to talked very young. I could have a conversation with her by the time she was 18 months old. She is still to this day talking my ear off and always has the funniest, most clever things to say. She has always had a very special spirit about her. I remember once in sacrament meeting when she was almost 3, we sang "I Know my Redeemer Lives" and she just started crying. I asked her what was wrong and she said "I just keep thinking of the owies in Jesus' hands and it makes me feel sad." We had a family home evening lesson earlier in the week about his death, and I think she just remembered it during that song and it was so touching.
She loves animals, and says that when she grows up she is going to be a veterinarian. Which is a little sad because she is MAJORLY allergic to cats and lot of animals with fluffy hair. Her eyes get bloodshot and they swell shut. Her wildest dreams came true on her birthday this year when her Grandma and Grandpa Searle bought her a puppy. His name is Dexter and she spends most of her time with him outside. He is still in that puppy stage and nips at her clothes and shoes and it freaks her out a little and it is so cute. I seen her out there today with her "poop bucket"- as she calls it- walking around picking up after him. I think they are going to be great pals. Along with that, she likes to dance. Some days, she doesn't want to go because "it's too hard", but after we leave she loves it. She is performing in the Nutcracker this December. Her other favorite thing to do is to draw, which she if very good at. She is a better artist than me by far. She loves her littlest pet shops and all sorts of little toys like that.
She loves her friends. She makes them so easily. She loves to have them over to play and loves to be invited to anything, especially birthday parties. Just tonight her little friend Taylor and her mom Janice (who is my friend) and I all went to dinner and to Wal-Mart after. They were so cute and funny. It was a good time and made me sit back and realize how grown up she is becoming -sniffle, tear- She really loves all her cousins and grandmas and grandpas. She doesn't like to be bothered by her little brothers, but she is also sweet to them when she is in the mood, and loves to teach them stuff. This afternoon it was her goal to get Gavin to learn his letters, I think if she fails as a veterinarian, she would make a great teacher.
I love her with all my heart. I never had a sister of my own, but nothing compares to having her as my daughter. I want to rescue her from any heartache that I may have felt growing up, but I know that I can not only be her mother, but a friend to listen and to lovingly guide her. She is so smart and bright and I know she will go far in life. So here's to all the days that I have had with my little Hallie, and to all the wonderful days I know we will have in the future.

The days of sickness

So, today I am sick. Crap is all I can say. I HATE BEING SICK. I never ever get sick. I can think of like one time in the last year or so that I have had a cold/flu bug. I think the lord knows that my kids get sick so much, that if I get sick too I would be pushed over the edge. I tried to think of my health my whole life, and although it has been pretty eventful, I know that I am very very lucky to not have the terrible illnesses that are out there. I decided to give you a little of my major health stories. My first surgery occurred when I was 1 and had tubes in my ears. Next came my tonsils when I was 7. After that, I was a healthy gal, until middle school came and I had mono. That was not fun at all, and I still suffer with it every now and again. Then in high school I had an intestinal problem. It was a bunch of crap, and I will just leave it at that. Then I got pregnant, and that is when all hell broke loose. I suffered from Hyperemesis Gravidarium. That is a great big fancy word for wicked morning sickness. I was hospitalized a total of 10 times during my 3 pregnancies from complications with that. When I was pregnant with Hallie, I had to have my appendix out, so that was the next surgery. Then Hallie came and that went well. After that, I had my wisdom teeth, nothin like yankin' teeth and loosing 15 lbs because my mouth hurt so bad. Wish I had some more teeth to pull cuz those 15 lbs are back...lol. Then my pregnancy and delivery with Gavin went ok. After Gavin, I had some major women problems if you know what I mean. Lots of hormone therapy, ovarian cysts the size of oranges that required 2 surgeries. I also had to have a cyst in my jaw removed, it formed where one of my wisdom teeth was. Then I had my sweet Kayler. I had another weirdo disease called thrombocytopenia. This just means low blood platelets and clotting ability, so I had to have him all naturale, and MY HECK that hurt, I get a little nauseous just thinking of it. After I had him, I had a big gob of scar tissue from my appendix and ovary surgeries. So, when he was 3 months old, I had my right ovary removed. That was no fun. Nothing like cutting your stomach in half. I did well until last May, when that blood condition came back, and I had to have Uterine Ablation done. That was not very enjoyable either. SO, I have had more than my fair share of health crap go on, but like I said before, it is nothing at all compared to the many debilitating illnesses that other people have to deal with every single day. Besides that, I have kids to take care of, and although the pain of the things I have went through was bad, there is nothing worse than having one of my precious angles be in pain and there is nothing that I can do to take it away. So, I know I will feel better soon, and I pray for a happy healthy life for me, my family, and my friends. Have a good day!

The day about my blog

O.K. So since I only have a few people who will ever read this namely Janice and Mandy, who already know most every detail about my life, I am going to have to dig deep to think of stuff to write about. But, I am going to do like Mandy and print it off and keep a journal. I am much faster at typing than writing, so I figure it will be a good thing. I decided that each of my posts is going to begin with "the day of" or "the day about". Even though some of my posts will be about days that turn into weeks or months or years, I thought this was a good way to title each post. I personally feel that you have to take one day at a time, life goes sooo quickly sometimes. So for today, because I am dead tired, this is my end. I hope I can think of some good stuff to write about and that in the process become my own psychologist as I think of my past, present, and future life and all that it entails. Along with that, I hope that it will give whoever reads this a better idea of who I am, and how I have gotten to be this person. Have a good day!!

The day of WORK!

Ok, so I guess I have to do this blogging thing. I doubt more than like 3 people will ever read it, But I will give it a try. Today was CRAZY. My day began at 7:27 when I did Hallie's hair for school and got her off to the bus. I then laid down for a quick sec, but Kayler woke up so I changed his diaper, and fed me and my boys breakfast. Then, I had to make a few phone calls, check my email, etc. Then off to school I took Gavin. I then went to wash the car. I came home and while Kayler was strapped into the car seat, I dried the car off, vacuumed it out, and wiped off all the "special" little handprints my kids seem to leave on the windows. Then inside I went, sat Kayler down in front of cartoons, and began my house work. This was the usual stuff like laundry, changing sheets, cleaning everywhere. Then I realized, oh crap. it is 10:40, I better go get Gavin. So off I went again, strapping Kayler in the car seat. In the meanwhile, I have been on the phone with my grandma, brother, and mom. I then come home to continue the housework, but I realize that it is 12 and time for lunch, so I get something fixed and G.J. comes home to eat. Then I lay Kayler down for a nap, get Gavin settled for a minute, and continue on my housework/laundry, etc. I FINALLY get that all done at 2, have myself a shower, check my millions of email messages yet again (NOT!, I never get any.) and then I just lay down, and Kayler has woken up. So I get him out of bed, change his diaper, again..... Then by this time Hallie is home, so all 3 kids need a snack. We have some cereal, then in the car we go. Hallie has dance at 4. So I strap all 3 kids in and head out. I drop her off, then I have to do errands, Ponderosa Feed-for a dog heating pad (stupid dog, later blog), then to the garment store, 7-11 (cuz "the kids" or maybe me, need a snack), and finally to Jones Paint and Glass-for a screen, and then back to get Hallie. We then go visit G.J. at his work, come home, fix a few things that are broken, eat dinner, have baths, say prayers, and now here I sit, exhausted as ever. And just a little sad that I have to wake up and do it all over again, but tomorrow shouldn't be as busy. All in a day's work for a mom who's so lucky to stay at home. (did you notice all the times my poor kids had to be strapped into their carseats, i bet they were in the car for a total of like 2 hours today! luckily they have a movie to watch)