Count Your Blessings

Today Jeff and I did one of the hardest things I have ever done. We went to a funeral of some of our dearest friends, Bret, Annie, and Blake Hafen. They put to rest their sweet darling princess Hannah of only 16 months. When she was born she was diagnosed with a terminal illness called SMA. Hannah was only supposed to live a few months but she made through 16 wonderful months. As I sat in the chapel during the funeral, my heart was breaking. I am not a very emotional person but today proved to be a very emotional day. I cried A LOT!! It was so sad to see the Hafen family as they followed baby Hannah's tiny casket to the front of the chapel. Big Brother Blake, who is only 6, was sobbing....along with mom and dad. It was enough to break any one's heart. Aren't we so thankful for the gospel and all it's truths about eternal families?? I know the Hafen's are truly grateful. The opening song was Teach me to Walk in the Light and it was a tough one to get through. It hit home with me and made me realize what a huge responsibility I have as a parent to raise my children in righteousness. As we listened to the wonderful remarks and the amazing music, I couldn't help but think about my wonderful life. I have the greatest husband in the world who is a great provider for our family and worthy priesthood holder. Jeff is the happiest most optimistic person to ever live. How did I get so lucky to marry him? I also have 3 healthy children who keep me hopping. Today made me stop and remember that I need to be more loving, kind, understanding, and patient. Even if it is at 4 a.m. when Parker thinks it is time to wake up for the day, or trying to convince Lauren that she can't wear her princess dress everywhere she goes, or helping Maddie through her tough moments in life. Today I resolved to be a better friend, mother, wife, and daughter and not take my life for granted. I need to take time to stop and smell the roses, play more, clean less, take more pictures, go on more adventures, read more stories, and create wonderful memories for my children. I know this phrase is used a lot but life really is about the moments that take our breaths away and not about how many breaths we take. WE LOVE YOU BRET, ANNIE, and BLAKE!! I included a few recent pictures of my wonderful children who are growing up way too fast. Can't they just stay little forever??

Doesn't Parker look cute with a pink bow on his head?

GO UTES!!

Lauren running as fast as she can to get to her dad

Maddie with some of her dog collection

Commenting on comments

It has come to my attention by a few of our "blog viewers" that I don't allow comments on my blog. Well, I didn't know you could comment on blogs. That just goes to show how little I know about what I am doing. Well, I have change my settings and I think I have it set up so ya' all can leave comments. If someone would be so kind as to leave a comment so I can see if I did it right. If there are no comments I will assume that I am a "blog idiot" and I will try again. Ob-la-di, ob-la-da, life goes on!!!

Dam Fun!!!

Since summer is offically over I decided to sit down and look through all the pictures we took this summer. We had a lot of fun while Jeff went to work. One of the best days we had was at Pineveiw Dam with my family. My kids love Papa's boat and they can't get enough of it. We had a blast!! Lots of food, sun, water, and fun in the tube.

Parker loved the swing

Lauren using her cousins Spiderman fishing pole

Maddie is like a fish in the water

Parker and his cousin Zack

What could be better than a giant mud puddle with a frog in it?

The three Allred girls in one tube

Parker and Papa Karl taking their afternoon nap

Gotta love that face!!!

All cleaned up after a fun day in the sun.
The kids all took a shower behind the boat

Parker was such a great boy. He didn't even mind the life jacket

Lauren driving the boat with Papa

Oh, the places you'll go...

So, Jeff and I are at the place in life where we are really contemplating on where we want to live for the next chapter of our lives. We want to make an educated decision and not just move somewhere on a whim. We have been doing lots of searching and so we decided to go visit some of our top spots. We left Lauren and Maddie with grandparents for a weekend full of too much sugar and freedom but lots of fun. We took Parker and headed to paradise....San Diego. We had an amazing time and fell in love with the area. After all, who wouldn't love to live near the ocean and enjoy the sun, sand and surfing?? However, the question still remains...do we move to San Diego or not? We did lots of driving and searching but we still found plenty of time to relax and of course.....visit the ocean.

Can't you just imaging Jeff & Maddie on these waves?

Parker dipping his fat little feet in the water

Doesn't this look like something you would see on a post card?

I love that you can see Parker's reflection in the water

Hmmmm, I wonder what this tastes like?

Oh, that is what it tastes like


Parker loved the ocean!! What could be better
than slapping the water as it rushes in?

Parker tipped over and got salt water in his eyes.

But he was tough and didn't even cry

All tuckerd out from a hard day at the beach

My two boys....aren't they handsome??

Happy Brithday Lauren!

Lauren turned 3 on September 6th and what a wonderful birthday it was for her!! I can't believe that she is already 3 years old. She has really grown up these past couple of months. Her vocabulary is amazing and she talks non stop. She is always making us laugh. We are truly blessed to have her in our family. She is such a joy and a sweetheart. She makes my heart melt by the wonderful things she says to me. She tells me daily that I am her best friend and she loves me very much. Lauren has turned in to quite the princess. She wears her dress up clothes as much as possible and we enjoy watching her be "girly." She has also decided that her favorite color is green. It has made life very simple. Everything for her is green. The balloons, the cake, the candles, the wrapping paper, the ice cream, the clothes, etc. When in doubt, go green. WE LOVE YOU LULU!!!

Lauren 2 days old

Lauren 3 years old
Lauren's Birthday Celebration

Lauren LOVES her new pink princess dress. She has worn it every possible moment she can. We went out for pizza with her grandparents on her birthday and she even wore it to the restaurant. It was really cute. We got lots of comments on how great she looked. Lauren was in heaven!!!

Balloon Bouquet - $7.00
Princess Crown - $3.00
Sparkly Shoes - $8.00
Magic Wand - $6.00
Princess Dancing Music - $10.00
Princess Dress - $30.00
Watching Lauren be Princess for the day - PRICELESS!!

Just a few of our favorite pictures of Lauren.....

Caution...there's a lot of them.

Around our house Lauren is famous for her silly faces

Here are a few of our favorites

This one is our family's favorite....it is her impression of the Joker.

We laugh every time we see it!!

It is so funny what the camera captures.