Amber, Jared, James, and Griffin Neves

Life As I Know It

2011-08-15T12:44:00.000-07:00

This picture describes James personality perfectly. I love it.

Tomorrow is the dreaded day. Life as I know it is going to be a changing. Today is my last joyous day of summer. Tomorrow it's back to work. Don't get me wrong, I do really like my job, but I kind of love my Jamesy a little more. Okay, let's be honest, a whole lot more. He simply makes me happy. Happier than ice cream on a hot day or any day really or waking up without an alarm. I love having my own little family.

Family pic at the Fiesta Days Rodeo.

And this summer has just been the best. Nothing big or fancy, yet a little slice of heaven if you ask me. No we didn't go on any exotic vacations. No foreign countries or beach resorts. Actually we didn't even step foot outside of the state. But it was exactly what I wanted. Spending every minute enjoying my sweet, crazy, big blue eyed, blonde curly haired bundle of joy as he soaked in and discovered the joys of summer like a sponge. We spent our days eating otter pops, throwing rocks, going on wagon rides, splashing through water, and playing at the park.

We love his curls and refuse to cut his hair even if it is getting a little mullety.

He sure does love his otter pops. Just like his mom and dad.

We celebrated his first year of life and saw him quickly leap from the safe confinements of babyhood to a tornado whirlwind of chaos they call toddlerhood where he now climbs everything with lightning speed, turns a room upside down faster than I can blink, screams and pounds his fists and kicks his feet when he isn't allowed to use the laptop keys as his own personal drum, yet still manages to melt my heart on a daily (more like hourly) basis.

Our crazy toddler walking around with his drum sticks aka spoons.

I witnessed many milestones in his life this summer. His first steps, his first camping trip, him figuring out how to fall asleep all by himself, (Hallelujah) his personal discovery that he absolutely loves cheese, his first big injury (Fell out of a laundry basket onto hard tile split his chin open. Lots of blood but no stiches) and his first word besides mama and dada: Jesus. He has a picture of Jesus in his room and he always smiles at it and says Jesus. Sure he can't even make it through sacrament at church without having to be out in the foyer ripping up bulletin boards and eating flies from underneath the drinking fountain. But he says Jesus. It is probably the cutest thing in the whole world.

A few of Jamesy's favorite things all rolled into one: camping, his wagon, rocks, and water. Makes for one happy boy.

I'm sure going to miss lazy afternoons spent at 7 Peaks with my boys.

So yes this summer has been perfect. No I don't know who won SYTYCD. I didn't have a fave dance, dancer or even watch a full episode. I'm not sporting a glowing tan. I didn't even make it to my dinner clubs big pot luck pool party. (I am a little bummed about that one.) Yes I did (or at least should have) swept my kitchen floor after every meal,(James would much rather warm up his pitching arm than eat his food these days) washed sticky hands and faces constantly, straightened up toys and books just to have them thrown about in a matter of seconds, changed my fair share of diapers on a child who doesn't like to hold still ever, and rearranged my schedule around naptime. But I wouldn't have it any other way. Summer 2011 rocked my world. Being with my baby boy was enough for me. In fact, it was everything.

Who wouldn't love waking up to this face every morning? Since James usually doesn't wake up until 9, I'm sure going to miss this.

Where Did the Time Go?

2010-12-29T14:50:00.000-08:00

So it was just the other day I had a sweet cuddly newborn baby boy. And now I have a giant baby monster.If you don't believe me, see the picture below. A six month old who is in to everything, rolls onto his belly immediately when it is time for a diaper change or to get dressed, wears 12 month clothes, sits up, stands up, scoots backwards and in circles, attempts to eat anything and everything within his path, laughs pretty much on command, has a smile that melts my heart, weighs nearly 20 pounds and is in the 95 percentile for height. Seriously where did the time go? The past 6 months have flown by. And the funny thing about it is that when I first brought my little bundle of joy home it seemed like time was going so slowly. I literally felt like I was feeding the little big guy all day and night. That is all I did. It was a huge adjustment for me at first. I was used to a super busy schedule where I was able to go out and about freely. Being at home and inside by myself with a newborn all day everday took some getting used to. It's a good thing it was summer and we could at least take advantage of the weather and go on a walk or two. I swear those breaths of fresh air saved me. Don't get me wrong. I have absolutely and completely loved my sweet baby boy more than I ever thought possible. But adjusting to motherhood was harder than I thought. I was always worried about everything! Is he eating enough? too much? is he hot? cold? sick? breathing? bored? overstimulated? etc. I was always doubting myself as a mother even though I was doing the best that I could. Now that I look back on these times of uneasiness and doubt I really miss them. I wish I would have spent less time worrying and more time taking it all in. Taking in the fact that I am a mother(the greatest calling a woman can have) to the sweetest baby boy imaginable. My mom has always said that the greatest time in her life was raising her children. Now I am starting to understand what she meant. The past six months have been the greatest of my life. More than I could ever ask for. My sweet baby James makes life so magical. It blows my mind everyday that he is mine. It's crazy how much he has grown and changed in such a short time. You always worry about your baby hitting their milestones, but then when they do you wish you could go back. Go back and experience everything again right up to those first tender moments when they lay your baby in your arms and they cuddle sweetly next to you and you can just tell that they came straight down from your Heavenly Father. I've been doing a lot of reminiscing the past week or so as I've had a nice much needed break from work. It all started when I decided it was time to pack up James' newborn, 0-3, and 3-6 month clothes in order to make room for the abundance of new things he would be receiving for Christmas. I've been putting this off for awhile and boy was it tough for me. With each outfit, onesie, pair of tiny shoes, it seemed like there was a memory attached.

Like the time my baby first smiled at me in his lil' buckaroo onesie with the picture of his dad riding my favorite horse Carl. Or bringing him home from the hospital in his Griffindor onesie. Or putting his little cowboy boots on for his first photoshoot. Or, even those giant greenish blue hospital binkies that took up practically his whole face. Oh how he loved those.

And now he won't even take a binkie. Oh how things have changed. He got his first ride on toy for Christmas. It's a purple and green dinosaur that he can sit on or stand behind and push. He loves it. Can't work it by himself yet, but loves for me to push him on it. This picture isn't very good proof that he likes it but I promise he does.
Checking out his new presents at Grandma's house.

Oh and he got his first gun. Not to my knowledge of course. Jared bought it for him. It's a high powered air soft gun. Really Jared just bought it for himself, but since it was Christmas and all, wrapped it up and put James name on it. Let's just say I was a little shocked when James, assisted by myself, opened it up. But I'm sure in the blink of an eye James will be old enough to use it.

You would think with all the new things he got this kid would be set. But he would much rather play with the wrapping paper. We sure do love this baby monster.

Feeling Grateful

2010-10-14T09:58:00.000-07:00

Fall Break is here and I am happily relaxing on the couch with my sleeping baby snuggled against my chest and my little puppy rolled up in a ball next to us. It is so beautiful to me. It is so nice to just be home and have a couple days off. I do love my job and working with children, but having my own child has changed things a lot. I would much rather be spending my time with my sweet baby boy. I have found a whole new respect for full time working moms. I only have one child and I think it is so hard. But that's not the point of my blog post. I just feel so grateful to those people in my life who are willing to help. I went back to work full time on Sept. 24. I was so not excited. It was nice to have some time off at the beginning of the school year. And thanks to my good friend Marnie, I didn't even have to worry about my class. She just took care of it and I felt completely comfortable with my students in her care. The transition of going back to work has been hard, but so far I am surviving thanks to some help from others. My mom and sister, Rachelle, have both graciously given of their time to each watch James once a week. I am so impressed by their kindness. They do it for free and both of them work full time themselves, and Rachelle goes to school as well. Their jobs are a little more flexible so they are able to take a day off each week to watch my sweet baby boy and then make it up by staying late other days or working weekends. Can you believe how wonderful they are? It seriously amazes me. It is so comforting to be at work and know that my baby is being taken good care of. And I'm not going to lie, it's nice to come home to a spotless house when my mom babysits. My dad is also pretty amazing. He comes to see James any chance that he gets and since James was just a little fella my dad has watched him on Saturdays for an hour or two so that my mom and I can go shopping because Jared is always gone up the mountain or at a horse sale every Saturday. I love seeing how much my parents love James and how James's face lights up when he sees them. And Griff would totally live with my parents if he had the chance. He loves them more than anything. I am so lucky to have such a great family. I am also grateful to Jared for being with our little sweetheart three days a week. He doesn't always dress him in matching clothes or even remember to put pants on him, but I do know that he loves the little guy. We also have some great friends that we can rely on. Hannah has watched James several times and Amera is there for us too. And I know that my sister-in-laws are always willing to help. We truly appreciate everyone's kindness. And now on to some pictures.

I love my two babies so much. They are really starting to love each other too.

James look a lot like his daddy. Good thing they're both so handsome.

James and his grandma have such a special bond already. She brings him a new present every time she sees him, lucky guy.

James and the man he is named after. I know grandpa can't wait to shoot hoops with this little man.

James and his Aunt Shel. He even ran his first 5k to support her. Of course she was the winner and James came in almost dead last with his mom and Grandpa pushing him in the stroller, poor guy.

My Heaven On Earth

2010-08-08T14:13:00.000-07:00

First family photo

James with his triplet cousins

He loves to snuggle
One month photo

We made a cake to celebrate his first month of life

Dressed up for church

The newborn clothes are getting a little tight for our muscle man

James with his mom and dad after his blessing

It has been awhile since I last blogged and I need to get that creepy pig off the top of my page so here it goes. The last week of October 2009 (when I last blogged) was the hardest week of my life. I got the swine flu and felt sicker than I ever had before, then a couple days later my little brother died in a car accident, and to top it all off I found out I was pregnant and the high fevers and meds I was on could be harmful to the baby. Don't get me wrong. I was excited to have a baby, just nervous that I had already harmed my baby during its first month in the womb. My brother's death has been hard. I think about him every single day. He was a great person and my life will never be the same. But whenever I thought of my baby during pregnancy, I always pictured him up in Heaven being cared for by his Uncle Trevor. This brought me much comfort. At 20 weeks we found out we would be having a boy and that he looked healthy and strong. I was so relieved that he had 2 eyes and a nose and that all of his parts seemed to be functioning properly. My pregnancy really wasn't too bad, other than being ridiculously tired all the time and week 22 where I passed out 3 times at school. I think my first graders thought I was crazy. Once school got out I had about 2 1/2 weeks of summer to prepare for baby. I now realize I should've slept more during that time, but instead I became a crazy nester. My house never looked better and I was so ready for my baby boy to arrive. When my water broke at 4:00 in the afternoon the day before his due date, I thought he would be right on time. No such luck. After 37 plus hours of labor, my sweet boy finally came out screaming at 5:20 am on June 16. There are no words to describe how I felt when I first saw him, heard him cry, held him close, etc. I instantly fell in love with my swollen, battered and bruised bundle of joy. He truly is my heaven on earth. I can't get enough of my sweet, sweet boy. He has been the biggest blessing. After much debate, lists, and disagreements, we named him James Warren Neves, which I love. James is my dads first name (even though he doesn't go by it) and my brother Trevor's middle name. Warren is Jared's middle name. I am so honored to have my baby boy named after such great men that mean so much to me. So sweet baby James is now nearly 8 weeks old. Life with him couldn't be better. (Well maybe so if we could get him to sleep through the night) I love being a mom and watching my little guys every move. Currently he is snuggled against me sound asleep, breathing deeply, smiling on occasion. I love listening to him breathe, smelling his hair, kissing his chubby cheeks, seeing him smile and coo, giving him a bath, spending every moment with him. I feel so blessed to have such a beautiful gift from God. Motherhood with sweet baby James is grand.

Life Goes On (Well Let's Hope So)

2009-10-24T16:11:00.000-07:00

I'm stuck at home in bed with the swine flu. Not fun. Not fun AT ALL! I realized I haven't blogged since the summer so here it goes. I started feeling sick last weekend. Jared and I went up to Jackson Hole for Fall Break and I just felt a little out of it. I was so exhausted and cold and blah. I drank a bunch of cough medicine every night to knock me out, and it worked. By the time we got back I felt like I was getting better. On Monday and Tuesday things seemed pretty normal, except for I wasn't sleeping at night. I thought it was just because I had a lot on my mind and I was really stressed out because I had a final, a final paper and a presentation due in my masters class on Wednesday. By Wednesday I had a horrid cough and I was still exhausted, plus my whole body ached. I barely made it through the school day on Thursday. I think even my first graders felt bad for me. I got a sub for Friday, made my sub plans, and headed for home. I layed down for about a half hour and I woke up feeling more awful. My mom and sister came to pick me up because we had tickets to see Thriller at Kingsbury Hall and I was determined to go. I love Thriller and had greatly been looking forward to seeing it. Unfortunately I was in pretty bad shape. They took one look at me and decided I better stay home. Even my own puppy was scared to death of me.
I proceeded to sleep for the next 20 or so hours before I finally mustered up what little strength I had to go to my doctors appointment. After waiting forever they finally called my name. I had a temperature of 102 and I know I looked like a wreck. The doctor took one look at me and said, "You must be feeling a little bit worse than just sick." And I was. He checked me out, did some tests, and diagnosed me with swine flu. He couldn't give me an antibiotic because it only works in the first 48 hours and I've probably had it longer than that. So, he prescribed a strong cough medicine, ibuprofen 800, and tylenol 1000. He recommended that I take all of next week off of work. I would love to except for I still have to write sub plans each day, organize my classroom, make copies, etc. each day, and we have SEP Conferences on Thursday from 3:30-9:00. Plus I have my masters class on Wednesday, which I can't afford to miss. I know I'm feeling sorry for myself, but the swine flu sucks! The pain meds have done wonders for me though. I've actually slept really well and my head is no longer pounding and I don't feel like I've been hit by a semi. It's still a struggle to move. I went downstairs once today to get some Sprite and that was enough for me. I literally felt like I had outdone myself.
The worst part about this is that my whole family is in Logan right now, including my brother who I never see, visiting my grandma and my favorite cousin Dillon, who is in town from Boise. We always make an annual trip to Logan in the fall to visit the pumpkin walk, view the canyon at it's best, enjoy a pumpkin shake at Charlie's, eat at Sabor and Maddox, shop, laugh, go to the USU game, or whatever else we feel like doing. I'm stuck at home in bed and probably will be for awhile. My husband is on top of a mountain as usual. My little Griffy guy is where I want to be. My mom insisted on taking him to Logan with the rest of the fam. She didn't want him catching the swine flu from me. I think she loves the little guy just as much as me. But since she doesn't read my blog I have to say, I think my dad is Griff's #1, closely followed by her. I'm pretty sure Jared and I tie for third. Hopefully I'm over and done with swine flu in time for Halloween. It's one on my favorite times of the year. I love to dress up and I think Jared and I have a pretty clever idea for our costumes this year. Since this post is just as depressing as my swined flued life right now, here are some pictures of what we have been up to lately.

We still think Griff is the greatest puppy in the world!

I had a bday in September and we celebrated in Park City.

My bro and his wife Monica found out they are pregnant with triplets!

We went on a really long hike looking for elk. Griff loved the mud but not so much the hike. I carried him the whole way up.

We carved this (well mostly Jared) rad pumpkin but only came in second place at the Neves Family Pumpkin Carving Contest. Thanks a lot Grandpa Woody.

Jared's art teachers dad painted the murals inside the famous Cowboy bar in Jackson.

Enjoying a beautiful afternoon at town square in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

Grand Teton National Park was my favorite.

We watched Old Faithful errupt at Yellowstone. We also saw moose, lots of elk and antelope, but no bears.

San Fran and Such

2009-07-30T12:22:00.000-07:00

This past week we took a nice little family vacay to northern California. We rented an Astro van, piled in, and took off for an 11 hour drive. We finally arrived at my aunt and uncles house in Tracy, CA at about 1:30 am. The next day we headed to San Fransisco. We went to Fisherman's Warf first. We were entertained by the the seals, watched some interesting street performers, and ate lunch at Boudin's Sourdough Cafe. Next we headed up to the Golden Gate Bridge. Unfortunately, it was like the coldest and windiest day ever in San Fransisco, so it was hard to really enjoy the bridge. It was so cold that my mom, dad, and brother Trevor all purchased matching San Fransisco jackets to try and stay warm. And the fog was so thick that you couldn't even see half of the bridge. We walked on the bridge for awhile, but eventually turned back because of the bitter cold. After that we went downtown, drove down Nob Hill, and went to Chinatown. I love San Fransisco and wish that the weather would have been slightly more enjoyable. I have been there many times and it is always a little windy and cool, but never as bad as it was this time.

After San Fran we headed to my Aunt Diana and Uncle Mark's lake house. I love their lake house and was so excited to be back. Jared and I got the best room. We were downstairs and our room exited right unto the lake. The weather at the lake house was much better than San Fran. We spent two full days on the lake boating, wakeboarding, surfing behind the boat, tubing, jumping on the water tramp, catching fish, swimming, cliff jumping, pattle boating, kayaking, and of course plenty of eating. I'm actually starting to improve my wakeboarding skills. Maybe someday I will catch up with Jared.
We went back to Mark and Diana's house on Saturday evening and spent the night swimming in their pool and lounging in the hot tub. Jared enjoyed an intense game of horse with my 11 year old cousin Heather and barely came out a winner.

On Sunday we went to church and my cousins Heather and Anna played a piano duet in sacrament meeting. The happiest little baby sat in front of us and he loved Jared and I. We were entertained by him the entire meeting. Then we all headed to San Jose to have dinner with my Aunt Sherry and Uncle Billy and their family. Jared and I took the little kids on a nice relaxing Sunday stroll.
We took the long drive home on Monday morning but it ended up going by pretty quickly. We enjoyed the beautiful scenery of Lake Tahoe, Donners Pass, Reno, and of course my personal fave, Wendover.
We arrived safely back in good old Spanish Fork and were happily reunited with our little Griffy Guy. Thanks again Kim and Will for putting up with our crazy canine. And as if we hadn't had enough quality family time, we attended the open house of the Oquirrh Mt Temple with my entire fam on Tuesday. It was good to see Dustin and Monica since they were unable to go on the Cali trip with the fam. We also got to see our best buddies Lindsay and Austin and walk through the temple with them. Unfortunately the temple was wall to wall with people and it took us two hours to walk through it. But it was so beautiful and there is no place I would rather be than the temple.

This summer has been wonderful. I am so sad to see it end. And sad to say I didn't accomplish much this summer. Time always goes by way too fast in the summer. So I guess it's back to school. I'm kind of nervous about this school year because I'm starting my master's program and coaching a high school bball team, and of course dealing with the bizarre and unique needs of twenty something first graders each day. I think it might be a busy year. Plus I have my puppy and husband to care for. But I couldn't be happier. I hesitantly look forward to all the chaos, challenges, and new experiences that the 2009-2010 school year will bring.

Oh summer! I'm really going to miss this....

and of course this.

We Rike Japan

2009-06-18T19:41:00.000-07:00

So Jared and I are finally adjusting to the real world after our little summer trip. Things got off to really rough start for us. After having a mixup and going to the wrong terminal, we missed a connecting flight at LAX (even though we had a good 40 min before our plane took off) then they wanted to charge each of us an additional 600 dollars to get to Japan. After talking to stupid Orbitz on the phone forever, Air Canada finally helped us out a little, just charged us a change fee and put us on the next flight to Vancouver. We couldn't get a flight to Tokyo until the next day so we decided to make the most of it and spend some time in downtown Vancouver. It was a cool city and we actually enjoyed ourselves, but we were so ready to get on our way. So we went to the airport the next morning to catch our flight to Tokyo. We finally boarded the plane and everything was going great. Oh wait jk! After being in the air for about 2 hours the pilot got on and said we had to turn around because of a computer problem. We all waited around at the airport for at least another 2 hours to get an update on our flight. Just our luck! It was canceled and postponed until the next day. So we were stuck in Vancouver for another night. Luckily they put us up in a hotel. We spent more time on the phone rearranging out hotel room and travel plans in Japan again for the second time. We decided to extend our stay by 2 days because of all the lost time.

We enjoyed a beautiful Vancouver sunset down by the water.

So finally after 2 days of being completely stressed out at airports and constantly on the phone with an assortment of idiots and unhelpful people we arrived out our destination after a really really long plane ride. But unfortunately we were so exhausted that we crashed and fell asleep at like 8:30 and completely missed our first night in Tokyo. We got up bright and early the next morning and were off to the streets of Tokyo by 6 am. Our first stop was at a temple right next to our hotel. Some munks were holding a service inside so we sat down and watched for awhile. It was really interesting to see and they were really good singers and chanters.
The early morning in Tokyo was so refreshing. The streets were quiet and the weather was cool and crisp. Next we went to the Imperial Palace. The inside was closed, but we walked around the gardens and the outside. After that we headed to Ueno Park. As soon as late morning hit, the streets were overcrowded with people. We attended a shrine, watched a baseball game, listened to some street performers play, and searched frantically for an International ATM because we had no money and we were starving. Jared thought that since in Russia he could use his credit card that it would be the same way in Japan. Wrong! They wanted nothing but yen and because it was Sunday all of the banks were closed. We finally headed back to our hotel and they exchanged some money for us there. We went looking for food and settled on a Wendy's. Shortly after, we found an International ATM at a Seven Eleven, but no slurpees.

The Imperial Palace in Tokyo, Japan.

We took out some money and took a nice walk around the Tokyo Tower. By this time we had to get ready to catch our bullet train and head down to Southern Japan. We gathered our luggage, jumped in a shuttle, and headed off for the train station. The bullet train was fabulous. Such a smooth quick ride. A normal bus ride from Tokyo to Kobe is about 10 hours. We got there in under 3 on the bullet train. We enjoyed the scenery on the way, but somehow missed Mt. Fuji. My good buddy Natsuki met up with us at the train station in Kobe and we headed off to her apartment. Natsuki and her boyfriend Kohei had a wedding to attend so they had arranged for us to have dinner with Kohei's family, the Taneda's. So we jumped on a bus and met up with them. They were such a nice family. Only a couple of them spoke a little English so it was definitely interesting. They fed us a wonderful traditional Japanese meal and then we played a Japanese card game and Jared made their little grandson cry when he traded him cards. It was so funny. After a delightful evening, Kohei's father drove us back to Natsuki's apartment.

We loved having a traditional Japanese meal with the Taneda family.

On Monday we headed to Kyoto. It is supposedly the most traditional city in Japan. We went to the Golden Pavillion Temple, Nijio-Jo Castle, and Kiyomizudera Temple and Shrine. I loved them all. They were all so unique, yet equally beautiful. We also went to a fun sushi restaurant for lunch. The sushi comes on little plates that just run on a conveyer belt next to all of the tables. You just take the plates that you want. Jared tried squid, Natsuki had lots of crazy stuff, and I had cucumber rolls, pineapple, and a strawberry parfait. After a long and exhausting day, we jumped on a train back to Kobe. We ate dinner at a little noodle shop by the station. You had to stand up and eat. Luckily we had Natsuki to read the menus to us and help us order. Otherwise, I'm afraid we could have been in big trouble.

The Golden Pavilion in Kyoto was so peaceful and beautiful.

On Tuesday we went to Osaka. Natsuki was busy in the morning so she hired on her friend Eugene to show us around. He was so different than the typical Japanese person. He was big and super loud, but we really liked him. He took us to Osaka-Jo Castle. It was huge! It took us several hours to visit each floor but we learned a lot about the history of the Japanese Shogun. After the castle Eugene was hungry so he made us try octopus balls. They were so slimy and nasty! Then we met up with Natsuki, had lunch and headed off to another shrine to meet up with some family friends of Natsuki's. After visiting the shrine, we went to her family friend's house for dinner. They made us so much food! We had chicken, sticky rice balls, fish paste, fish jerky, miso soup, chimchi, salad, veggies, jello, etc. I really liked the chicken and rice. Not so much a fan of the fish paste and fish jerky, or the Japanese spices. They had a really cute little grandson named Taku. He taught us our favorite Japanese word: AmPongMong. It is a popular Japanese cartoon character which looked exactly like the Japanese symbol for karaoke.

The Osaka-Jo Castle is really really big.

On Wednesday we went to Nara and we absolutely loved it there! It was a little bit of a smaller town with a countryish feel. The coolest thing about Nara were the deer. They were everywhere. Deer are found walking freely throughout the city. We enjoyed feeding them and getting chased by them wherever we went. In Nara we went to Todaoji Temple, which is famous for the Big Buddha which resides inside of it. It is so overwhelmingly enormous. I have a hard time comprehending how they ever built it. After that we went to a temple and shrine that has 3,000 lanterns. The walk there was so cool. It looked like we were in an enchanted forest and of course there were deer to accompany us. Natsuki's friend Utoe is from Nara and he took us through the city. He was such a cute little guy. Nara was definitely one of our favorite places in Japan.

The deer were so friendly.

Big Buddha was gigantic.

Jared and I loved Todaoji Temple.

Later that evening we headed back to Kobe, met up with Natsuki's friend and went to Chinatown. We ate a big meal at a Chinese restaurant and it was really good. Then we went to sing karaoke. Apparently it is really big in Japan. Jared and I weren't the best singers, but I think we had the most fun. We sang Queen, Tom Petty, The Bangles, and John Mellencamp. We also came up with our own words for some of the Japanese songs.

We were all tuckered out after a long night of karaoke.

On Thursday Jared and I headed off alone for a "choose your own adventure" experience. We had planned on going to Hiroshima, but the bullet train was full so we went to Himeji first. We rented out bikes and rode them around the city. Everyone in Japan rides bikes. We had these sweet bikes with baskets and for once I think we really fit in. Ha! We went to the Himeji Castle. It is a world heritage site and probably the most famous castle in all of Japan. Jared couldn't get enough of it. Everything about it was really old and authentic looking. It even had all of these cool little turrets that they used to attack their enemies with by shooting arrows and throwing stones through them. The stairs were so narrow and steep. We were so tired after examining each and every floor. We took one final spin on our bikes, grudgingly gave them back, and jumped on the next train to Hiroshima. We took a long train ride and then a ferry to Miyajima to see the floating Torri Gate. In actuality it wasn't really floating at all. The tide was low so the water wasn't even touching it. Afterwards, we wanted to go to Peace Memorial Park. Unfortunately it was too late and the park was closed for the evening. So after a wonderful day together, we decided we had better head back to Kobe.

Look at the dorky tourists on the bikes!

The Himeji Temple was super old and cool.

we enjoyed the ferry ride to Miyajima.

We made it back to Kobe and hung out with Kohei and Natsuki for the night. First we went to Harborland. It was so cool! There is this cute little carnival right next to the harbor. Next we went to dinner at Kohei's work, Korean BBQ. You sit at a table with a big fire pit in the middle. They bring you big plates of meat and you cook it yourself. The food was super good. I even tried cow tongue and suprisingly it wasn't that bad.

Harborland in Kobe was delightful.

On Friday it was time for us to head back to Tokyo. We said our goodbyes and jumped back on our good friend, the bullet train. We made sure to not miss Mt. Fuji this time and it was pretty sweet. We made it safely back to Tokyo Station aka "the busiest place in the world" found our train to the airport and got ready for another super long plane ride. Jared slept almost the entire plane ride and I didn't sleep at all. So that was fun. I watched like 4 movies, none of them very good. After a short layover in Vancouver, which has the nicest airport by the way, we boarded another plane to LA. Obviously we couldn't get the same flight back to SLC because we were now coming home 2 days later. After paying all of our extra money, we were disappointed to find out we couldn't get on a flight until the next morning. We got another hotel room and spent the night in LA. It was late so we got some food and headed to bed. This time, Jared didn't sleep at all. We were both fighting Jetlag so bad and I think after 5 days I am finally back to normal. Anyway, we got on our flight Saturday morning and made it back safely to good old SLC. We both missed our puppy terribly and couldn't wait to see him. I don't even know how many times on our trip Jared or I said I wish Griffy was here. He would love this place. Japan had more dogs than I have ever seen. Rachelle picked us up, we came home and Jared immediately went to sleep. Being the crazy person that I am, I had to unpack the luggage and get the laundry started first and then I joined him for some sleepy time. About 3 hours later we were reunited with our little pride and joy, Griffy Jay. Griffy stayed with my parents and of course they spoiled him rotten. He ate spaghetti, ice cream, and whatever else his little heart desired. As my parents went to leave our house poor little Griffy chased after them and looked as sad as ever when they didn't take him.

The bullet trains were a great way to travel in Japan.

All in all our trip was a "huge success" minus the whole worst luck ever, stuck in the airport for hours and hours, oh lets spend a ton more money to even get to Japan thing. Japan was a beautiful safe country and I would highly recommend it to anyone. Things I will miss most about Japan: Calpis water and all the yummy drinks, Pucca candy, the drink machines on every corner, no one talks on their cell phones in public, everyone is quiet, respectful, and polite, the cute little smiling school children in their matching uniforms saying "herro", the friendly deer, the railway system, the bullet train, the beautiful landscapes, castles, temples, and shrines, the hospitality, and of course, AmPongMong. Things I won't really miss about Japan: everything is super small: the hotels, the houses, the food and drinks, the people, etc. paying for tp at public restrooms, the toilets on the floor, not knowing what I am eating and then biting into something like fish eggs, all the weird food, not being able to read anything I see or understand what anyone is saying, looking completely different and out of place and the humidity. I would like to say one final origato or odigato to Japan and the wonderful experiences that we had there.

I sure do miss seeing the cute little kids of Japan. They were so friendly.

Oh Happy Springtime and Happy Haircut!

2009-05-16T17:08:00.000-07:00

Spring is such a beautiful time of year. Jared and I have really enjoyed the weather these past couple of weeks. The Neves family did their spring calf branding, which is by far Jared's favorite event of the year. I was given the assignment of head photographer, kind of a big deal. If you have never seen calf branding it is quite the bloody, flesh burning mess. But I guess it's kind of cool at the same time.

Jared is such a handsome cowboy

Indy and our little Ewok

Griffy going for a ride with his daddy

Loxy and Griff love calf branding and each other

We also had the opportunity to take our good buddy, The Seahawk II, out for a spin for the first time this year. It is so relaxing to be out on the water in our little boat. We piled Griff and Rexy inside the raft, along with all of our fishing gear and went on a little adventure in Salem Pond. The dogs were so good. They just layed around and slept as Jared and I attempted to fish. Unfortunately we didn't have much luck with the fish. But don't worry we aren't giving up anytime soon.

Jared's model pose is so hot right now

How cute is our little fishermen

I love Griffy and Rexy and The Seahawk II

Getting ready to set sail on our raft at Salem Pond

So are little Griffy puppy has a lot of hair! The poor little thing was getting so hot and exhausted being outside for even a short time. His hair was completely covering his eyes and face. At Jared's softball game last week a little boy said to his mom, "Why doesn't that dog have any eyeballs." It was so funny, but we decided it was time for Griff's first haircut. Jared wanted to cut Griffy's hair himself, so after many youtube tutorial videos on shih-tzu grooming, I finally obliged. We went and bought a clipper set and Jared went to work. At first Griffy was really wiggly. He kept trying to bite the clippers. I was really nervous for Jared to cut around his face. I tried to help by holding Griffy, but then I would just make things worse because I was so scared. Eventually Griffy just gave in, layed down, and held still. Jared cut and cut and cut! I just swept the floor around him. After what seemed like forever, he was finally done and Griffy's eyes were rediscovered. He looks so handsome. Jared did such a great job. I think he should enter the dog grooming business. It is so weird because Griff looks like a completely different dog. He is so little again, yet he looks like an old man. Either way, we love our Griffer's puppy so much. He has the most delightful personality. We love just being with him. The other day Jared said to me, "Do you ever wish that Griff had a cellphone so we could just call him when we're gone?" And of course I had to agree.

Griffy needs a haircut! Hey that dog doesn't have any eyeballs!

Jared getting down to business

Poor little Griffy just barely hanging in there as Jared chops away

Post Haircut. My two handsome boys so happy to be done and looking fabulous.

Easter is Extraordinary!

2009-04-14T16:23:00.000-07:00

We had a delightful Easter Weekend. On Friday afternoon Jared and little Griffy guy came and joined my 1st graders for an Easter Egg Hunt. Jared and I hid all of the eggs on the playground while my room moms played games with the kids. Griffy loved pawing at the eggs, breaking them apart, and carrying them around in his mouth. The kids seemed more interested in playing with Griffy than finding their eggs, but seriously who can blame them. Eventually all of the eggs were found and much candy was eaten, just in time to send the sugar high children off to their parents for the weekend.
After school and a little rest, we quickly threw some stuff together for a little camping excursion. We headed up to Lakefork and settled on a cute little familiar spot that just so happened to be the same place we got engaged. There were still traces of lights and orange twine left behind from that fateful day. It was nice to be back and enjoy this special place together once again, with Griff in tow.

Jay Jay is such a macho macho man

We quickly built a fire, put up our tent, and started cooking some food: tinfoil dinners in our dutch oven. Griff was so funny; our own happy little camper. He barked at a stump viciously until we convinced him "it was nice." Then he frantically dug a little hole next to it. He loved chasing Jared around gathering wood. He liked the fire, but was careful not to get too close. And he especially loved his tinfoil dinner, which I fed to him from a Wendy's cup.

Putting some finishing touches on our tent

Griff loved the great outdoors

After dinner we just sat by the fire, relaxed and ate Jellybellys and Robins Eggs. Griffy was really cuddly, just the way I like it. After all of the wood gathering, fire making, tent building, etc. we were exhausted so we headed off to bed. I thought we would freeze, but I was actually warm. Griff made his own little bed on top of Jared's vest and an Aggie blanket, but eventually he got cold and joined us. He slept right between us on our pillows. Griff always sleeps in his crate so it was nice to have him in bed with us. He is extra warm and fluffy.
The next morning it started to rain a little so we decided it was time to go. After piling Griffy and all of our stuff into the car, we took down the tent and were on our way. The worst part of the trip was the ride home. We were in Jared's car so he made me go out in the rain and mud and move big rocks off the rode so we could get through. I hate getting muddy and dirty so luckily my pouting finally payed off and he started to do it.
On Saturday, it was my mom and my brother Dustin's birthday. Yep my mom was lucky enough to have her first child on her date of birth. So after cleaning up from our camping trip, I went out to lunch with my fam to celebrate while Jared went leather shopping with his brothers. We went to the Brick Oven and it was super yummy. They brought two desserts out, one for my mom and one for Dustin. Dustin was full so Trev and I ate all of his. Woops! Jared finally made it back right when we were finished. So we went home and got our lonely puppy. Later that night Dustin and Monica came over and we watched a movie and made popcorn. They have a mini popcorn maker that looks like the one at the movie theater. I loved it.

Happy BDay Mom and Dustin!

On Easter Sunday we decided to go to church with my grandparents in Eureka. The only problem was we were already running late and then somehow we missed the exit. The next exit was a good 15 minutes down the road. Oh and then Izzy threw up in the car. So we weren't exactly on time, but at least we made a valiant effort. We decided we had better enjoy sacrament from the foyer.

Our family Easter photo

My Dad and his Griffy Guy

After church we headed up to Church Street, to indulge in an Easter Lunch at the Garbett Residence. Before lunch I dyed eggs with Jordan, Hunter, and Syd. Griff was in heaven playing with his best buddy Iz and getting plenty of attention from everyone. After a fabulous meal, Jared and I got the honor of hiding all of the Easter Eggs and treats for the big hunt and then we took Jordan and Griff on a little adventure to explore an old mine and a cave. By the time we got back, the Easter Egg Hunt was just ending. But luckily we were just in time for birthday cake. We all got on our bday hats and Grandpa strapped on his guitar. We sang to my mom and Dustin and then got to eat my fave: my moms german chocolate cake.

Jared exploring an old mine shaft

The lovely birthday girl

Griff even got in on the bday fun

Shel and I love our crazy puppies

Grandma and Grandpa always entertaining

Izzy loved her bday hat

After cake, we said our goodbyes and headed down the road to our next destination. We arrived at the Neves Residence in Palmyra just in time for dinner. Luckily Jared's siblings were late so it gave us an extra hour to prepare to eat again. We had a wonderful Easter Dinner with the Neves Family and then Jared and I, once again, got to hide the goodies for the Easter Hunt. Griff met up with his good pal Rex, and proceeded to torment him for the rest of the evening. We enjoyed chatting and watching the kids be kids. They all looked so adorable in their Easter best.

The happy kids after there Easter Egg Hunt

Griff and his posse chillin in a truck

By the time the evening was done we were exhausted and ready for some relaxation at home. Jared promised Dog the Bounty Hunter, but instead we got How It Is Made and Robot Chicken. And somehow, even with awful tv, the huge pile of laundry on my floor remained unfolded. It literally haunted me all day at school on Monday, but somehow I managed. I'm happy to say it is now all folded and put away, and school is out for the week. Yay for Spring Break, even if it will consist of (drum roll please) deep cleaning the house, finding new car insurance, taking Griff to the vet for shots, filing, balancing my checkbook, and maybe a couple craft projects. Fun stuff, eh. Oh and I hear the weather is supposed to be glorious. Lucky me.

Jared made me this purse for Easter. He's so good at stuff. I love it.

Birthday Bonanza

2009-03-22T20:45:00.000-07:00

This weekend we celebrated two birthdays in my family. My sister Rachelle had a bday on St. Patrick's Day and my Grandma Wardle turned 80 on the 18th. We went up to Logan to have a big bday bash for my gma's 80th with my dads whole fam. It was quite the event. I always enjoy going up to Logan. I absolutely loved my college days there and it just brings back so many great memories.
We got up to Logan on Friday night and went to dinner at my favorite place, Cafe Sabor, with my family and a few cousins. We made sure that they sang happy bday to Rachelle so that my mom, Jared, and I could enjoy her fried ice cream. After dinner we just chilled at our nice brand new hotel. Jared and I even had our own room. Thanks dad! My dad insisted that little Griffy and Rachelle's dog Izzy not stay at the hotel, so he and my mom had a sleepover with their little grandpuppies at my gma's house.
Shel's bday dinner at Sabor

On Saturday we definitely took it easy in the morning. Then we finally reunited with our little Griffers and took him up to the USU Campus. It was such a beautiful day! We hung out at The Quad, took a trip to the Anthropology Museum, visited the bookstore, and of course got some good old Aggie Ice Cream. Then we went up to one of my favorite places in Logan, First Dam. We attempted to feed the ducks dog food because we didn't have any bread, but they didn't like it so much. So we just hung out and enjoyed the fabulous weather.
First Dam
Our little Fam on the campus of USU

After our nice afternoon together we reunited with family and prepared for the party. We had the party at Iron Gate Grill. The food was so yummy! My dad was the mc for the evening and he did a great job. Each family took a turn sharing talents and talking about grandma. For my family, Rachelle sang and my dad and I talked. My grandma and I are very close because I lived with her the last year that I attended Utah State. She is an amazing woman and I look up to her a lot. I told some stories about living with my gma and then I talked about how Jared's Grandpa Woody has a huge crush on my gma. Then I presented her with a picture of her and Grandpa Woody together looking happy as could be at my wedding. Jared photoshopped the picture and we wrote a message across the top from Grandpa Woody. The pic was hilarious and my gma was so embarrassed.
Jared and I at the partay
The Whole Wardle Clan

After the party, Jared and I went back to the hotel and went swimming. Then our best buddy Dillon joined us. We took him to see Marley and Me (it was his 3rd time seeing it) and then he had a sleepover with us at our hotel. We talked my dad into letting Griff stay with us and Dillon and him had a blast together. Dillon was so excited to have a big bed all to himself. Griff slept on the floor on a little pillow. He is such a good dog. Dillon was so mad that Griff wouldn't make any noise. He kept asking us to make him bark. Griff finally growled and barked a little at Dillon when they were playing together and Dillon was thrilled. He is such a funny guy and we love spending time with him.
Dillon and Griffy love each other

My dad and his mom

I had such an enjoyable weekend. I am so blessed to have such a wonderful family. I have to give a birthday shout out to my little sis Rachelle. She is such a talented, beautiful, fun, compassionate, successful girl and I love her so much. She always makes me laugh and I am so grateful to have her in my life. Love you buddy!
Happy Bday Little Sista!

Happy Weekend!

2009-03-15T10:47:00.000-07:00

This weekend has been so nice. The weather was beautiful on Saturday so we decided to take a little horse ride. We just went out to West Mountain. It was bittersweet for me because my trusty sidekick Carl was nowhere to be seen. So I rode the Buckskin. The Buckskin is a great horse and he treated me really well, but I still missed Carlos. So it was little Griffy's first time on a horse ride and he did fabulous. Jared carried him in a little bag for a while and then we let him get down and run along the side of us with his compadre Rexy. He was loving life and it was so fun to watch his little legs carry him as fast as they could. By the end of the ride he was so exhausted, which was fine by me because he just cuddled up and let me hold him. He is such a sweet dog and Jared and I truly love having him in our life.

Griffy was so thirsty on the ride home

Griff and his good buddy Rex

Griff getting used to the saddle on Jared's handsome horse Hansel

After our ride we took a nice long nap. We finally woke up at about 8 pm and got ready to head up to Salt Lake. My friend Crystal is in town from Texas so a bunch of my friends got together. We went to the Tavernacle, which is a dueling piano bar. People request songs and the pianists sing and play whatever is requested. They are pretty talented. We had a good time listening to some classics, catching up with friends, and just relaxing. Oh and we also got to meet Dick Nourse, the retired news anchor. He was really friendly and touchy. He totally reminded us of Ron Burgandy from my all time favorite, Anchorman. He graced the audience by getting up on stage and singing and he wasn't half bad. We had a great time, but missed our Griffy puppy greatly so by the time midnight struck we headed for home. Our poor little guy was so excited to see us. He is such a self esteem builder. Weekends rock my world and Jared and I are so lucky that we get to spend them together.

Jerry and Amby

Oh I love Niz and Lins!

The happy couples. It was so crowded in there and I love Jared's hair.

Ron Burgandy aka Dick Nourse loved Linds and me

Oh and I went to Disney on Ice with my mom and my sister on Thursday. We were the only people there without kids besides the dorky couple on a date sitting next to us, but oh well we had a blast anyway. We had really good seats and the show was amazing. I really was impressed with the talent of the skaters and the production as a whole. Plus it was fun to see all of the kids dressed up as their favorite Disney Characters. If you have kids, (or if you don't) I would highly recommend this show.

My favorite part was their rendition of Lilo and Stich.

Rachelle, me, and my mom. We always have such a fantastic time together.

2009-02-14T21:21:00.001-08:00

Presenting The Best Valentine Present Ever

2009-02-14T19:16:00.000-08:00

So Valentines Day at our house started out a little rough. Jared was battling the stomach flu and let's just say it wasn't pretty. He started to feel a little better, but immediately got tired and feel asleep. Even though I had plenty of cleaning to do, I was feeling a little lonely and bored. Jared slept for about 2 and 1/2 hours and I wasted the majority of this time enjoying a long bubble bath. So Jared eventually got up and decided he was going to be okay. I had bought steaks the night before to cook for Valentines and I think Jared was finally ready to eat. He told me that we needed a grill pan or something to cook the steaks in. It so happened that that is what I had gotten him for Valentines. I know romantic huh. So he went upstairs to get ready for the day and I went out to the car to get his gift: a new grill pan thingy, a warm flannel shirt to wear for work and a little journal book that I had written in to express my love to Jared. I was already a little emotional because of various reasons and writing in the book made me realize just how much I love my husband and how blessed I am to have in my life. So I gave Jared his gift and then started to blow dry my hair. He was very thankful but felt bad because he didn't get me anything. I didn't think I cared that he didn't get me anything but then it made me think he didn't love me as much as I loved him. I'm such a baby. So I proceeded to get ready for the day and clean the bathroom: shower, toilet and all for like the next hour and a half or so. Jared could tell that something was wrong but I was trying to be okay. He said that his dad called and the horses got out so he had to go and help. I just stayed home and sort of pouted. He came back about 30 minutes later with my fave frozen yogurt and said let's go for a ride. I was so ready to get out of the house so I agreed. He said we were going out to Benjamin to get some papers for his dad and I just went along with it. I was quiet and distant on the ride. We arrived at the house and he went inside to get the papers he needed. I stayed in the car for what seemed like forever. He finally came back with something black and fluffy in his arms. He brought it over to my side of the car and placed it into my arms. It was a new baby puppy! Our new baby puppy! I loved him from the start. He clung to me so tight. He is so cuddly and sweet. He had a big red bow on top of his head. I was so excited. Seriously the best Valentine surprise ever. I felt like such an idiot for being such a baby. I guess my husband really does love me. So back to the puppy. He is a 2 month old Shihtzu. We named him Griffon Baxter Neves, but we just call him Griff. I love the way he looks up at me with his big blue eyes and the way he always wags his tail back and forth. He is so beautiful to me and I couldn't be more happy with the newest addition to our little family. I love you Jared and Griff!

2008 was Great!

2009-01-24T12:55:00.000-08:00

We Love Christmas!

Paris? Oh wait! Just Vegas.

Our Honeymoon in Jamaica.

Our wedding at the Manti Temple on Nov. 8th.

My pre-wedding present: meeting Mr. Kyle Korver!

A Tribute to our old buddy Carl

2009-01-14T20:21:00.000-08:00

This past weekend we sold a great horse and Amber's first equine friend. Carl was also know by Amber as "Carlos Boozer", "Carls Jr.", "Carlos Santana", and so on. Amber almost was trampled by Carl the first time she rode him. They've had a love/ trample relationship. I did a ranch horse competition aboard Carl this past weekend. He's performed really well. I was very proud of him. He was sold along with his buddy Jose to some AZ residents. We are glad they are together but sad we won't get to ride Carl anymore.

Our New Baby

2008-12-26T22:07:00.000-08:00

So Christmas is over already. It went by so fast, but I guess it always does. I really love this time of year, until it is over and we have to survive January, February, and March. My fellow teachers know exactly what I'm talking about. Anyway, the holiday season is such a magical time and I definitely enjoyed it, as usual.
Our first holiday surprise may be small, but she is oh so lovable. My sister, Rachelle, got a new baby puppy named Izzy. She is seriously so much fun. She will run around all crazy for awhile and then cuddle up to you and fall asleep. She is a daschun chihuahua mix, weighing in at about 4 pounds. She has the most beautiful big brown eyes and such a funny personality. I was babysitting her one Saturday, when my mom requested my assistant with some shopping. So I loaded up little Iz in a blanket and packed her around the crowded stores like a baby. I have never had so much attention in my life. Everyone had to come and see my cute baby puppy. The very next day it was Sunday and we were attending church in good old Eureka, Utah. Rachelle didn't want to leave Izzy alone, so she put a dress on her and we wrapped her up in her blanket and took her to sacrament with us. I kind of felt ridiculous taking a dog to church, but then again it was Eureka. Izzy was so good. She never even made a sound, and I think most of the people thought she was a baby. We spent Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with little Iz also. She loved unwrapping presents and playing underneath the tree. She always wants to be right in the middle of everything. Needless to say, this cute little baby puppy has brought so much happiness into our lives, and she isn't even ours. We love her. I think Jared and I definitely need a baby puppy of our own.

It's Been A Month!

2008-12-09T14:02:00.000-08:00

Oh hi! Welcome to our blog! So Jared and I have been married for a month now and I have to say that it has been great. We decided to make a blog to keep in touch with all of our pals, but mostly to brag about how cool we are. So yeah, we celebrated our 1 month wedding anniversary yesterday. I know we haven't been married long but I think we are pretty good at it so far. It has truly been so enjoyable. I can honestly say that he is my bestest friend and he simply makes me happy. He is so funny and kind, and of course really really good looking. I never knew another person could make me so happy.
So yesterday, Jared came to my school and surprised with me with flowers. What a guy, huh? Oh and last week he came and taught my little 1st graders all about Russia and how they celebrate the holidays. He even dressed the part and took on the role of Vladimir, the cold demanding cranky Russian. He taught the kids how to write their names in Russian and they seriously thought it was the coolest thing ever. They always get so excited (and wild) when he comes around.
Last night (after Jared put blankets on all the horses, we definitely miss Brian already) we had a nice quiet candlelit dinner at home to celebrate the big "one month" mark. After dinner, Jared looked on the internet and in some weird leather making? magazine for the next two hours to compile his Christmas list for me, apparently the new Santa Claus. Who asks for a rawhide for Christmas? Um yeah, that is exactly the first thing on my adoring little husbands list. What can i say I married a unique guy.
So I think we are really getting used to this marriage thing and we even kind of like it. Things are good. I even got Jared to go to Michael Mclean's Forgotten Carols with me. Everything was going great until we all linked arms and Lindsay started to cry. That was a little much for Jared. But either way, I love Christmas and I love my husband, even when I find his socks (never in pairs) all over our house! I think I'm really going to like this blogging thing. But I'm late to my 3rd/4th grade teams basketball practice so I have to go. Buh Bye!

2008-12-03T21:05:00.000-08:00