As a tradition every Halloween we go to Rasmussen's Pumpkin Patch and to get our pumpkins for carving. We then spend a night at the Cassity house eating soup & bread bowls for dinner and carve pumpkins. Here's our finished product....
The Whole Family
Dasha's SUPER Free-handed Hooter
Pam's Happy Jack-O-Lantern
Dave's Demon
Mike's Tribute to all Nations but mostly AMERICA
Camille's Tribute to Twilight
Angie's Ode to America
Butch's Tribute to the Runnin' Utes
Ben's Lady LibertyWhy do we live in a world where people think the purpose in life is to change things we don't like? How can a person progress (with or without religion) if they are not challenged and forced to overcome challenges? How does one learn if he/she can answer the questions of a test however they see fit, and upon finding the answers to be wrong, claim the test is faulty, flawed or unfair? When are people going to realize the inescapable fact that we all got where we are today because of choices we made for ourselves?
If you are wondering why the rant, look at the news.
We have been blessed with apostles and prophets to give us a roadmap for our decisions. They do not change nor will they ever change to satisfy the demands of men who would challenge the messages they deliver. The gospel has not changed nor will it ever change to accommodate those who would try to change its message to suit their needs. If you don't like what you hear, don't listen, but do not try and change the message because you do not agree with it. Realizing you can not change God or his principles simply because it doesn't make things easier for you would solve so many problems with the world we live in.
If you don't like my opinion, thats ok, its mine! :)
President Packer, you have my support!
I really struggle posting to our blog. So in a meager attempt to catch up, here is what we did the last couple months......NOTHING!!!!!
Ok, maybe there were a few noteworthy things....
Ben got to come with me for part of my second trip, which I loved. We found awesome free parking downtown and went to the Cheesecake Factory in Caesars for dinner and wandered through the stores...it was a lot of fun. Yes, I know we both look a little drugged in this picture.
Memorial Day was spent relaxing at Bear Lake with the Cassity family. We all helped with the spring cleaning of the cabin and property and Ben taught me how to paint....and I was not very good at it but made a valiant effort. I couldn't get Ben to give me a nice (normal) smile for a picture...this was as good as it got.
I was in charge of taking pictures so this is about the only picture I got of us in the 3 days.
Viareggo Beach, Italy at Sunset
At the end of April Ben and I just celebrated our 7th Anniversary! Its crazy how time flies! It seems just like yesterday Ben was in the Emergency Room on the way home from our Honeymoon in Mazatlan with a parasite.....That didn't start us off on the best foot, but luckily it has just gotten better every step of the way and I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world. Happy Anniversary Babe!
2003: Blackpool England, competing with the UVSC Ballroom Dance Team....Just 2 weeks after we were married.
2004: Our first of many trips to California. Sitting outside the Rose Bowl in Pasadena where Ben served his mission.
2005: Golfing at the Bear Lake Golf Course
2006: December in Disneyland with Ben's best friend in the world (aside from me)
2007: Summer Trip to Disneyworld, Expedition Everest in the background.
2008: Four-wheeling above the Bear Lake Cabin in the Fall
2009: Hanging out on the beach at Bear Lake over the 4th of July weekend.
2010: Watching REO Speedwagon Live! We were definitely some of the youngest ones at the concert but we had a blast. It was an awesome 7th Anniversary!
We will call it a result of peer pressure but I have officially jumped on the Facebook bandwagon. I am still a little confused and feel like I need a Facebook tutorial. I update my blog so often, we will have to see how well I do at Facebook....happy networking!
We were up at Bear Lake for part of the Thanksgiving weekend and I took this picture of Ben & Roxy in the back of the truck and thought it was awesome. These to are tied at the hip. She sleeps on his side of the bed, sits by the toilet when he is in the bathroom, lays outside his office door when he is on the computer, takes Sunday afternoon naps with him and gives him the cold shoulder when he goes away too long. You really can't get a better dog than Roxy. She has been good since she was a puppy and she really is "man's best friend".
Halloween brought with it our regular fun traditions, Carving Pumpkins with the Cassity's and the Annual Twede Halloween Party. We had a blast with both families.
Brayden, Taylor, Candace & Brielle at the Twede Halloween Party
About a month ago we had the opportunity to take a beginner Scuba Diving class with Ben's family at Dive Addicts in Draper. Ben has been wanting to do this for a long time and it was on my list of things I never want to do. Anyone that knows me well, knows I have a fear of water and don't swim well. Taking a class where they add weights to you in order to make you sink and breathing through something other than my mouth and nose didn't sound so appealing. But we did it and loved it! It was definitely scary at first (well for me at least). I think the worst part was when she told us we were going to take the aspirator (what is allowing me to breathe....hyperventilate) out while sitting on the bottom of the pool and learn how to clear water out of it- this is if it ever gets knocked out of your mouth. We went down 12 feet deep and got to play around on the bottom of the pool for about 30 minutes. Ben was a natural and loved every minute of it as well as the rest of the family. I definitely need more work on swimming with flippers. All in all we had a great time and it was an awesome experience!
I was never much of a reader growing up, in fact I hated it. But as I have gotten "older" I have really learned to love reading---maybe because I am no longer doing it for a grade... Thanks to my sisters and sister-in-laws I have had some great recommendations of books to read. Lately I have a book with me everywhere I go. I just finished my last book a couple days ago and I am eagerly anticipating the Hunger Games sequel that comes out next week. If you have not read the Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins I highly recommend it. The Hunger Games is also going to be made into a movie but not set to come out until 2011. Here are some other books I have read during the summer that I have loved...
This is a great adventure series. The first 6 books of the series are available in the U.S right now. It is young adult, but good for any age. Everyone in my family that has read it loves it.
The title is a mouthful, but this book is really good. My sister-in law Dasha let me borrow it, and I loved it so much that I bought my own copy. It is all written in a series of letters so the story is told from a really unique perspective. It is currently on the bestsellers list.
Fablehaven is an amazing series, and as exciting as Harry Potter. There are 4 books currently out and I think there will be 1 more to complete the series. Brandon Mull is a local author and already has a movie contract for the 1st book. He has also written "The Candy Shop Wars" which is a great read as well.
Over the 4th of July we spent another great weekend with the Cassity's at the Lake. We got in some good relaxation as always, 4 wheeler rides, hanging out on the beach, and watching fireworks.
Ben on the 4 wheeler
