Blog to Book

It has been way too long!! Last weekend, my mother's elementary school, had its annual Carnival. When I was younger and going to Barnett, the carnival happened around Halloween and was held indoors. Now it is held outdoors and is held in September. They had so many fun games that they never had before. The school had gotten a company to come in with all of their blow up toys. They had big slides and obstacle courses. It was so much fun.
Anyways, I went of course to help my mom and to spend some time with Kirstee and Makadee. While there I ran into a family friend. She was taking pictures of everything her children did. I asked her why she was taking them and she told me about how she blogged. She told me about a program called Blog to Book. She turns her family blog into a book! I love that idea! Right then and there I decided that I wanted to be more faithful at my blog so that I can start preserving more memories for my future life!
The first thing I want to catch up on is my wonderful family. We were very lucky to get to see Todd, Deedra, and Hunter this summer. They made the long trip up to Utah for Grandma's funeral. It was so fun to see them and to get to be with them for almost two weeks! Deedra and I are quite good friends so it was cool to have someone to hang out with! This is what Hunter liked to do best: get on Aunt Jody's computer and play games or watch movies!
Speaking of my Grandmother's funeral, it was beautiful and full of light, just the way Grandma would have wanted it. It was fun for all the family to get together and celebrate her life. I wish I had a copy of her life video to put up but sadly I don't. It was a very long week filled with family events and a quick trip to Idaho but we survived. Here are some pictures of the family throughout the week!

Michele and I in front of Grandma's Coffin with pink roses!
A big highlight for me was finally getting to meet the famous John, Michele's husband!
(And he is just as cool as everyone said he was)

This is what we did most of the time that we were at the burial site: Chase Hunter!

Hunter was done with his tie within the first few minutes of getting to the cemetery! So it would have been really expensive for the family to transport Grandma to Idaho in a hearse. We decided to transport Grandma in a trailer and my uncle would pull the trailer with his truck. We, my uncle Brent and his family and our family, went to breakfast before the burial. Hunter announces to the waitress, as my Uncle pulls up to the restaurant with the trailer, "My Grandma's in that trailer, she's dead." It was really a funny moment. The poor waitress was mortified!

Marley with Grandpa and Uncle Brent!

On our way home we bought this funny mustache for Hunter! It was so much fun and kept us entertained for awhile!

I have also been doing alot of crafts lately. My mom needed me to make some things for her secret sister at girl's camp! I made a really cute tote bag, several flower clips, a cute letter "N", bookmarks and washer necklaces. Too bad I didn't take any pictures. I did take pictures though of the adorable shirts that I made for Kirstee and Makadee! I made them shirts for the 24th of July! They turned out so well that my mom wants one as well!

Kirstee and Makadee with their patriotic cupcakes!
Isn't she cute?

Heidi, the girls, Marley, and I went to the Spanish Fork parade on the 24th of July. The girls were so happy to have Marley with us!

During Education Week at BYU I ran into a lady that I taught on my mission. She was inactive but is now active and does a lot in the Lakewood Ranch Ward! I was so over happy to see her. We set up a time to meet for lunch and I immediately called Shauna, formally known as Sister Stewart. We were both so happy to see how well Tari was doing! It was great to have lunch and catch up on good old times! Please forgive the horrible picture of me with my eyes closed and gum sticking out of my mouth!

I have been looking forward to Labor day weekend probably since I got home! I love Labor Day because that means one thing for Payson: ONION DAYS!!! On Friday I went straight from work to Heidi's. We went and did a scavenger hunt around Payson and then decided we would take the girls to the carnival! We ate scones, rode rides, and got out faces painted! We then had a sleepover, which Kirstee was gracious enough to give me her bed for the night. We woke up early and decorated bikes for the children's parade. I then walked with Makadee in the parade as Kirstee rode her bike. Makadee's front tire went flat about 10 minutes into waiting for the parade to start! The girls were so happy to get popsicles and tickets to the carnival. We then watched the talent show because some of my other cousins children were in it. By the time we finished the talent show and one ride at the carnival, we were soooooooo tired that we headed home! Mom and I returned though, just a few hours later, to the park! We went shopping through the craft booths and then listened to the adult talent show!
On Sunday Ryan, Sam and Marley came to our house for dinner and for more Onion Day festivities. After dinner we went to the park for the annual band concert. Marley loved it and we had fun mostly talking with each other!
Monday was officially Labor day and that always means the Grand Parade! It was really fun this year. We caught and ate a lot of candy, clapped for those we knew and those we didn't, and overall had a "grand" time at the parade. We then went to the car show and back to the craft booths. We ended the day with a barbeque! It was a long weekend full of great activities. We were all so tired at the end of Monday! It was so fun though to have Ryan, Sam and Marley over. I love them so much! I can't wait for next year! Here are some pictures of the excitement!

Marley with Uncle Scott! She loves him so much! (not actually from Labor Day, but still really cute)

Marley loves this little rocking chair!

Marley using a watermelon as a chair!

This post is really long! Sorry! As for me I am doing well! I am living in Provo now and I have started school. It is a lot of work, but what is worth it without the work!

Dear Heaven

Grandma with Uncle Dean two weeks ago!

Dear Heaven,
I wanted to write to you and tell you about your most amazing angel that you received this week! She will be one of your sweetest angels. If you want proof of this fact, ask any of her adoring grandchildren or one of her many great-grandchildren. She has cared for all of us even though we were suppose to be taking care of her. Be aware of her wonderful sense of humor! She will get you when you least expect it. If you ever need gospel knowledge, she is the one to go to. She has read the scriptures many times and will be able to help you with any problem by quoting to you a scripture. If you can talk her into it, have her make you an apple pie. You will never taste anything so sweet. Not because of the sugar that was put into it but because of the time and love that was put into the making! If you find yourself not feeling so well or feel your heart is breaking, she will be beside you all the way as you work through it. She will put a bandage on that heart of yours and give you hope for tomorrow! She will put a soft blanket around your shoulders and comfort your fears until they are gone. She will also remind you of the love your Heavenly Father has for you! It won't be because she tells you of His l0ve but you will feel it because that is how she lives.
Please let her dance and sing! Don't separate her anymore from her adoring husband and her beautiful baby. Let her rock her baby to bed each night. She will be missed here on earth but we all understand that she is in better hands now! Please let her know how much I love her. Tell her what a huge blessing she has been in my life and in the life of countless others. Thank her for her many words of wisdom and for her priceless advice. Please give her a hug for me and for all those who feel of her loss! Even though it is Our loss, we know it is her gain.
Love,
Jody

Mysteries of Moster Grove

This Friday Heidi and I took her girls to a play at BYU. It was entitled "Mysteries of Monsters Grove." It was so cute and funny! It was about a little girl, named Amelia, who's family moves to a new place called Monster's Grove. They move there because the monsters need a new accountant. Amelia's dad is hired for the new position. Amelia is very worried about the move and gets even more anxious when her father disappears. The audience gets to help figure out the mystery of where her father has gone. The monsters included mummy, werewolf, witch, Frankenstein, skeleton, ogre, swamp thing, and Draculette. I won't ruin the ending because who knows, one day you may find yourself in Monster's Grove!!

This is when Amelia first meets her new neighbors!!!

Amelia wants to be a detective when she grows up! Here she is questioning the monsters to find out where her Father has disappeared to.

Wouldn't you be a little frightened if Draculette invited you to her castle for dinner?

The Princess and her King

In April, Todd had leave from the Army. So Todd, Deedra, and Hunter came to visit. They arrived on Easter and stayed for a week. It was the best week I have had for awhile. They all stayed at our house. It was a big slumber party every night. Hunter refused to sleep in his own room. The first night he slept in my Mom and Dad's room. My mom didn't sleep all night because Hunter kept kicking her off the bed. So after the first night we had to make other arrangements. We finally built a tent for him in the living room. Every night after that we slept in his fort. I don't know where he came up with the idea but he decided to start calling me princess. His fort turned into a castle. He was so sweet to me all week long. He also decided that I needed to call him the King. He called and still does call me his princess. It is so cute. He treats me like one most of the time. I cried when it was time to leave. But they call often on skype which makes it a little bit better.

While Todd and Deedra were in town we had to renew our family pictures. Deedra suggested that we do red, white and blue for our pictures! It was a great idea and our pictures turned out wonderful. (They were taken by a lady named Amy Cowan, she is a local from Payson and does a great job for a reasonable price) We got some really cute ones of Hunter. He really enjoyed the first part of the session but wasn't such a fan for the last part. Marley was super cute as normal. Sam and I had gotten her outfit about a month earlier. We found her shoes at Payless. It was great to be together as a family! Here are some of my favorites! Sorry I would put up a slide show but I can't remember how to do it!

Fun in the Kitchen

This weekend I babysat Kirstee and Makadee, my 2nd cousins. I wanted to do something really fun with them and decided to have a cooking party. You know me, I can't just have a cooking party. I have to go beyond! So I found a tutorial on the internet for cute aprons. You take a dish towel and sew the corners down. You leave enough room for a ribbon and when it is sewn you thread the ribbon through! I also found out how to make chef hat's. I didn't have the time or the money so my mom suggested that I make the hats out of paper. We made the bottoms of the hats with poster board and then we stapled fabric on for the top! We had so much fun and the girls really enjoyed it. We made pizza and dirt cups for dessert!

This is my first post since I have been home and hopefully I will start being more regular about posting! I am a little rusty on the computer but my skills are improving. Maybe I will remember how to post pictures by the next post. It has been about 2 months since I got home. I started work last week at my old job which was working in the mail room at BYU. I love my job and have the best boss you could ask for. I enjoy my co-workers and the work we do isn't hard. I will be starting school this month on the 27th. I will be applying to the Elementary Education program this fall and will start my program next winter!!! I am really excited to get things moving!
The last two months have been filled with family time!! It has been wonderful. I get to babysit my little niece alot. She is so cute. She has a really cute personality. I love hanging out with my brother, Ryan, and his wife, Sam. We are always doing something fun!!
My brother Todd got home a month after I did from Qatar. Qatar is in the middle east by Saudi Arabia. He was deployed there for a year with the army. Once he returned his family moved to Texas. That is where Todd will be stationed for the next while. I miss them so much. They have been visiting for the last week and it has been wonderful. Todd, Deedra and Hunter have been staying with us for the last three or four days. We have watched movies, read books, gone to museums, built a fort and ate alot of junk food!! I am so sad to see them leave. I love them so much!!

Coming Home.

Sister Comte is flying into Salt Lake City Wednesday the February 3rd in the afternoon.

Can you believe 18 months are already over?

Next time this blog is updated, it will be by Jody herself.