Give Me Sweets!

All I want is some Oreos and milk! It's only been three days of this competition and I'm having a craving for sweets. I don't think I'm going to make it very far without losing my mind. I do have some strawberry milkshake protein powder I could mix up with some milk and that might be okay, but nothing beats a moist, double stuff Oreo cookie dripping in milk.

In case I did not post before, Amber is the Primary President and I am a Den leader, primary teacher, and prison ministry correspondent. Those callings keep us pretty busy but they are all fun and worthwhile. It's fun to see the boys in Scouts trying to earn their Wolf badge. They are the shortest kids in our den and when we went to the Cub Scout day camp last Saturday, one of the leaders looked at the boys and asked them if they were eight years old yet. Our little short boys are so cute, but even the girls are catching up. I think Charity is a head shorter than the boys now. The last time we measured the boys was December 2011. They had only grown a half an inch within that year. Pretty crazy! we are planning a Disneyland trip next year and I don't know if the boys will be able to ride all the rides. Thomas is 3'9" and Ammon is 3'8" and a half. Yep, I guess they have the short gene, and there's not too much hope for them since Amber and I aren't that tall either.


“We knew that our purpose was to gain a physical body, to overcome trials, and to prove that we would keep the commandments of God. Our Father knew that because of the nature of mortality, we would be tempted, would sin, and would fall short. So that we might have every chance of success, He provided a Savior, who would suffer and die for us.”

Thomas S. Monson, “He Is Risen!” Ensign, May 2010, 88

Best Vacation Ever!

Amber and I celebrated our 10th year wedding anniversary in August 2011. We had the best time! We went on a seven day cruise to the Mexican Riviera. While we were on the boat I told Amber that I could not remember the last time we went on a vacation together just the two of us. Of course, the last time we went on a cruise was on our honeymoon back in 2001. But that was only for four days (which was not long enough). I'm not going to go into all the details of our trip here because I don't have enough time. I was thinking of it just now and remembering the good times we had. When we got home we decided not to wait another 10 years to go on another cruise, so we booked one for 2014. The trip gave us a sense of renewed love for each other and helped us recharge our batteries from the previous 10 years. That is one of the most important parts of marriage, the time spent alone with each other. Whether it be on a date night or other activity, anything to get away from the kids and fall in love again. It is definitely helped our marriage stay strong for these 10 years and Amber has been so supportive, I could not ask for a better companion!





"The relationship between love and appropriate action is demonstrated repeatedly in the scriptures and is highlighted by the Savior's instruction to His Apostles: 'If ye love me, keep my commandments' (John 14:15). Just as our love of and for the Lord is evidenced by walking ever in His ways (see Deuteronomy 19:9), so our love for spouse, parents, and children is reflected most powerfully in our thoughts, our words, and our deeds (see Mosiah 4:30)."Feeling the security and constancy of love from a spouse, a parent, or a child is a rich blessing. Such love nurtures and sustains faith in God. Such love is a source of strength and casts our fear (see 1 John 4:18). Such love is the desire of every human soul."We can become more diligent and concerned at home as we express love—and consistently show it."

David A. Bednar, "More Diligent and Concerned at Home," Ensign, Nov. 2009, 18

Friendly Competition

So today we started a little contest between some friends. Here are the requirements:

1. 7 hrs. of sleep (not necessarily consecutive - naps count too!)
2. 48 oz. of water
3. 30 minutes of exercise (not necessarily consecutive)
4. 2 servings of veggies, 2 servings of fruit
5. No soda, beer, wine, unhealthy snacks (ex: potato chips), or bad fast food (anything fried!)
6. No sweets. (Desserts, pastries, sugary snacks & cereals) * Sugar-Free alternatives are OK.
7. No eating after dinner/8pm
8. 15 min. of scripture reading (or spiritual text if you don't do scripture)
9. One journal entry (any length)
10. Express sincere appreciation, love or praise to your spouse (if single, to another person)

This competition doesn't only involve Amber and I but also other friends. at the end of the required time whoever has the most points for doing these activities gets a free dinner paid for by the other friends. So here I am writing a blog post is part of my journal entry for the day.

Amber and I went to Ammon & Thomas' school today and got to see what they have been doing since January. We switched them to Eduprize school, and they seem to be doing well and enjoying it a lot better than Anthem. Amber and I were so proud of the boys work and Thomas has been doing very well with drawing. We have great boys we're so proud of the progress that they're making school.

I was goofing around at church yesterday and snapped a couple pictures of the boys.




















They are pretty funny! I don't know why Ammon's would not rotate right, but there it is.


"In a time when the family is under attack from the forces of evil . . . , the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve have set forth in "The Family: A Proclamation to the World" that 'parents have a sacred duty to rear their children in love and righteousness.'"This includes nurturing, supporting, and teaching children in all things pertaining to righteousness so that they may remain firm, with their 'loins girt about with truth, having on the breastplate of righteousness, and [their] feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace' (D&C 27:16)."

Francisco J. Viñas, "Things Pertaining to Righteousness," Ensign, May 2010, 107

Christmas 2011

Christmas was awesome (as usual). Amber always comes up with great ideas for presents for the kids. Here was one of them:

The kids went psycho when they saw it. I had the video but for some reason it got screwed up. Myself and my parents put a lot of work into this thing. Somewhere in the vicinity of 77 man hours sanding, staining and sealing it. Here is what it looked like before:

Pretty big comparison huh? Anyway, it was all worth it on Christmas day. Thanks to everyone who helped take it apart, transport and unload it! We bought it from a guy in Goodyear for $500.00. We had to take it apart and transport it though. No biggie, a new one costs like $1500.00, and I wasn't about to spend that much. Speaking of $1500.00, Amber wanted a picnic table as our dining room table for Christmas. So we found one online that we liked and had the prisoners build it. Here is what it looks like..unfinished:














Amber was very excited and the craftsmanship is remarkable! This bad boy seats 12 people. I will post new pics when we finish it.

The boys got some really cool toys, like full auto nerf guns. See for yourself:



Way better than the nerf guns we had growing up. Anyway, there are more pics and stuff but I will post them later. There's soooo much stuff to post since I haven't done it in what seems like forever.

Luckily, I have kept all of my New Year's Resolutions so far; I've worked out every day, I have eaten my 5 to 6 small meals a day, I have read my scriptures everyday, I have updated the blog, I have said my prayers in the evening, I think there's one more, but I can't remember. Guess I need to write them down so I can refresh. I feel very satisfied in my progression so far, and that's what matters the most. It's amazing how much more satisfied life is when you accomplish your goals.

"How I admire men, women, and children who know how to work! How the Lord loves the laborer! He said, 'In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread' (Genesis 3:19), and 'The laborer is worthy of his hire' (D&C 84:79). He also gave a promise: 'Thrust in your sickle with all your soul, and your sins are forgiven you' (D&C 31:5). Those who are unafraid to roll up their sleeves and lose themselves in the pursuit of worthwhile goals are a blessing to their families, communities, nations, and to the Church."

Dieter F. Uchtdorf,, Two Principles for Any Economy, Ensign, Nov. 2009, 56

Happy New Year!

It sure is hard to stay up late as you get older. I'm 32 now and Amber will be 30 tomorrow. So many good things happened in 2011, but one thing that did not happen was I did not do the blog. So, that will be one of my New Year's resolutions. Once you get out of the habit, it's hard to get back into it. The same with just about every good habit out there both spiritually and physically.

Christmas Tree

Amber does a great job decorating the "adult" tree. The tree that we had near the time we first got married now goes to the kids to decorate how they want. The only problem is the cat keeps attacking the trees and breaking some ornaments. That cat has no respect for Christmas!

Spider Prank Christmas 2010

Testimony of the Book of Mormon

Praise the Lord!

I was working out the other day and this came on the TV. I just had to post it



"With all the strength of my soul I testify that our Heavenly Father loves each one of us. He hears the prayers of humble hearts; He hears our cries for help. . . . His Son, our Savior and Redeemer, speaks to each of us today: 'Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him' (Revelation3:20).

"Will we listen for that knock? Will we hear that voice? Will we open that door to the Lord, that we may receive the help He is so ready to provide? I pray that we will."

(Thomas S. Monson, "Mrs. Patton--the Story Continues," Ensign, Nov. 2007, 24)

Has It Been That Long?!!

Wow!! Since the girls b-day? That's a long time to not post anything. A lot of things have happened and are happening. Here's a little something:

Only Charity is walking now. But Hope is Standing on her own for just a little bit and Faith...well Faith will get there. LOL! She's a crackup.

The boys have been doing very well in school. They are both on the Honor roll and are reading faster and faster each day. Now we just need to stop Ammon from running in front of the bus all the time! Argh!

Speaking of Ammon, he had the chicken pox about a month ago and got to stay home from school, bored out of his mind for 10 days. Amber lubed him up with the good stuff, but he looked like a zombie.Ammon also is starting to ride his bike without training wheels. I'll try and get video of that.

Thomas is doing better at not rubbing his lips all the time. There was a time where he looked like the joker his lips were so bad. One of his favorite things to do is clean the bathroom every morning. He gets mad when Ammon helps him. Pretty funny. He had is 100th day of school and he made this out of 100 macaroni:
Amber needs to finish the birthday videos for the boys and girls. Unfortunately we have been having hard drive problems and all the video clips and pictures have been non accessible.

Amber's grandfather Larry Williams passed away 3 weeks ago and we had a beautiful funeral for him. Amber was asked to make a video of his life and we looked through old pictures of his life. It was a little difficult for Amber to do but it was crazy to see how times have changed. Great man, an inspiration to so many people. To bad I don't have pics, but we had the National Guard at the grave site to provide a military funeral service. Charlene received a United States flag and salute. After the dedication an F-16 (I believe) flew over. I watched it dissapear into the clouds and thought how great the symbolizm is in that. He will surely be missed....


The boys thought it would be funny one day to get into the girls' walkers and roll around

I don't know where the boys get it from....

Hopefully it won't be that long before I post again, I promise it won't be as long as I waited this time ;)


"Since the beginning of time, love has been the source of both the highest bliss and the heaviest burdens. At the heart of misery from the days of Adam until today, you will find the love of wrong things. And at the heart of joy, you will find the love of good things."And the greatest of all good things is God."

Dieter F. Uchtdorf, "The Love of God," Ensign, Nov. 2009, 22