Jeff, Angela, Brayden, and Brielle

Fuller Family Update!

2011-05-21T21:24:00.000-07:00

Well once again I am playing catch up on my blog. Just posted four new posts if you want to read what has been going on the past five months.

On June 3rd we will be moving back out AZ. We are sad to leave our family and friends here in San Antonio but we know the Lord wants us back in AZ. I have been busy packing and dejunking our house.

At the end of April I flew out to AZ to find us a home. I couldn't believe how expensive and hard rentals were to find in the east valley. We also looked at homes to buy but I do not want to buy something feeling rushed. Luckily some friends of ours are moving to Oklahoma and are allowing us to live in their house until we can find a house to buy. I am excited and nervous about the move. I do not do very well with change.

Brayden is turning five next week. He has enjoyed going to preschool this past year. He loves playing with his friends, playing with his little sister, boating, and riding the rides at six flags. He is very outgoing and loves to talk. Oh and he loves anything related to spiderman. I bet you can guess what his birthday party theme will be. I hope to put him in soccer, basketball, and gymnastics when we get out to AZ.

Brielle just turned 18 months. She is our little sweetheart. She loves playing with her big brother, playing with jewelry, eating, climbing, and getting into things so mommy has to clean after her all day. I am so grateful Heavenly Father sent her to us. She brings so much joy and laughter to our family.

Jeff has kept very busy with his vending equipment business. I thank my family and friends in AZ that have invited Jeff over for Sunday dinners or have invited him to do fun activities on the weekend. We can't wait to be a united as a family again.

I have been working as a nursery leader in my ward since January. It has been the perfect calling since Brielle has been able to go with me to nursery since she was 14 months. She loves nursery.

We are excited to hang with our family and friends in AZ. Let me know of events going on AZ. I would love to come and be apart of them!

Mission Call!

2011-05-21T21:08:00.000-07:00

My baby sister Melissa just graduated from BYU in December. She decided last summer that she wanted to serve a mission after graduation. On March 18th she found out that she will be going to the Atlanta North, Georgia Mission. She reports to the MTC June 22nd. We are all so excited for her.

Melissa has been living with me since January. In December we knew Jeff would need to spend more time AZ for work. Due to Christmas, weddings, and other family events Jeff and I have seen each other at least every three weeks. It has been nice having Melissa here with me in San Antonio. She has basically been my part-time nanny. She also has helped me with the long drives back and forth from Texas to AZ these past couple of months. We have had fun shopping together for her mission clothes and just hanging out. I would definitely say we have grown closer together as sisters.

Mark and Melissa's wedding!

2011-05-21T20:26:00.001-07:00

Because my dad's reception was January 29th and Mark and Melissa's wedding was February 21st I decided to stay in AZ for three weeks. I was able to go to Melissa's bridal shower which was alot of fun. It was windy, overcast, and rainy on their wedding day. Unusual weather for Phoenix in February. Luckily they were able to do some of their pictures the day before. Here they are walking out of the temple as Mr. and Mrs. Mark Fuller! Melissa was a beautiful bride! So happy to have her in the family. I had to take some candid shots of Brielle and Brayden waiting on the temple steps for the bride and groom to come out.

Fuller family picture with Grandma Fuller-Smith and Grandpa Smith.

Extended Fuller Family picture!

Brayden loves his Uncle Foo-Foo.

I can't believe seven years ago (2/7/04) Jeff and I were married here at the Mesa Temple. Look how our family has grown in seven years.

The original Fuller Five. I am so excited that on of Jeff's brothers got married. It is about time. We have not had a wedding since Jeff and I got married. Brayden and Brielle need cousins to play with on the Fuller side. No pressure Mark and Melissa!

After the wedding we had a luncheon at the church building Melissa'a family attends. We had yummy Mexican food. The reception was held at a house of one of Melissa's families good friends. It was decorated beautifully in red and black. We had yummy pulled pork. It was a wonderful day!

Brayden is already turning into a ladies man. This is one of Melissa's cousins daughters. Brayden was holding hands with her by the end of the reception.

Fuller girls posing for pictures!

Dad and Susan's Reception

2011-05-21T20:06:00.000-07:00

At the end of January I drove back out to Arizona to attend my Dad and Susan's wedding reception. They were married at the courthouse in November but they wanted to do a ring ceremony and reception with all their family friends at the end of January. My Dad's brother Bob and his wife Darlene flew from Wyoming to be with us. Here is a picture of my family with with my Aunt and Uncle and some of my cousins from my Dad's side of the family. It was fun celebrating with family and friends!

On my Mexican side of the family it is tradition to do a dollar dance. Here is Brayden dancing with Susan during the dollar dance.

Brayden loves his cousin Carly. He has told me multiple times he is going to marry Carly! I am sure in a few years he will change his mind. Here they are dancing. Carly definitely took the lead and even had Brayden twirl her multiple times.

My sisters and I with the Bride!

Christmas 2010

2011-05-21T19:41:00.001-07:00

Once again for Christmas this year we went to Arizona. We were able to spend time with my side of the family and Jeff's. All of Jeff's parents and siblings came out to AZ as well. We went to golf land, shopped, ate really good food at all our favorite restaurants, played games, and visited family and friends. This is a picture of me with Brayden and my niece Carly. Brayden and Carly four years old. They both were so excited for Santa!

Brielle with my nephew Bradly!

My sister Jonelle with her two kids, my sister-in-law Shawna, and me and my two kids. I think it is neat that my siblings like hanging out with Jeff's brothers and sisters.

Christmas Eve we went over to my Dad's and his new wife Susan's house. We had blast eating homemade tamales and opening presents.

This is a picture of me with my two sisters and my mom's best friend Karen. Karen has known me since I was four. We have spent many holidays together and she and her husband Charlie were there with with us when we all watched my mother pass away. I love Karen so much! She makes holidays so much more exciting!

Melissa and I are here with my step mom Susan. My Dad married Susan on November 30th, 2010. Susan has definitely helped to stabilize my father. She has been such a blessing in our family.

My brother-in-law Mark proposed to Melissa Hoopes right around Christmas. Melissa is from Mesa AZ so we spent Christmas afternoon hanging out and eating with her family. We are so excited for Mark and Melissa!

Preschool Christmas program!

2010-12-16T22:57:00.001-08:00

Brayden has been attending a baptist preschool here in San Antonio. This preschool was recommended to me by many women in my ward and I have to say it has been awesome! Brayden goes to preschool every Tuesday and Thursday from 9-2p.m. He loves it. Every year they have a Christmas program where the children dress in costumes and act out the birth of Jesus. The costumes were amazing, the music was beautiful, and my heart was so touched to see these little ones play the nativity characters. Brayden was the banner bearer. He held a sign that said Jesus and he led the three kings out. He looked adorable. Here are some pictures from the program. Aren't the little Mary and Joseph so cute?

I love my little boy! He is getting so big.

Here is my little banner bearer.

Grandma and Aunt Shawna came as well to see Brayden. We missed you Daddy. Can't wait to show you the video of his program!

Thanksgiving Weekend!

2010-12-16T22:43:00.001-08:00

For Thanksgiving this year we celebrated it at the Lake House. All of Jeff's siblings flew into Texas and Jeff's brother Mark also brought his girlfriend Melissa. We ate lots of good food, played games (especially scum), went for a boat ride, learned how to dance the cha cha, went black Friday shopping, and went to six flags! We had a blast! Here are some pictures from our fun filled weekend! This first picture is Brielle riding for the first time on the boat. I think she liked it

Picture of the Fuller family!

Just arriving at six flags. Don't we look thrilled?

The first ride we all rode was the wiggles airplane ride. We all did it for Brayden. Here is Mark with his girlfriend Melissa. Aren't they adorable?

Brielle loved playing in Grandma's fridge. I guess she felt like she fit perfect in it.

Look who is one?

2010-12-16T22:19:00.000-08:00

Are sweet Bri turned one on November 3rd. On her actual birthday Brielle went to mutual with me. My beehives love her to pieces! She got many hugs and kisses on her birthday! Brielle weighs just barely 20 pounds at 12 months. She says mama and dada. She loves her bottles (they will be hard to take away) and she is definitely a mamas girls. She loves pulling her adorable bows out and it drives me nuts. Her eyes cannot decide if they are going to be blue or brown and her hair is still deciding if it will be brown or blond. We might have a very indecisive teenager on our hands one day.

Jeff has been traveling a great deal so we decided to have her 1st birthday party on Thanksgiving since all of Jeff's siblings came out to Texas. Ironically Brielle was due Thanksgiving day but she arrived 3 and half weeks early.
I love her big smiles. She lights up my day when she smiles at me!

Here is Brielle with her three moms.

She loved her birthday cupcake! Confetti cake with homemade cream cheese frosting is so yummy!!

Fuller Update

2010-10-23T20:09:00.000-07:00

Well, I have to say I have a love hate relationship with my blog. I always want to post things on my blog, but then time goes by and I still haven't done it. I have this thing about posting things in the order they happen. I just can't post about Halloween if my Easter pictures have not been put up. Does anyone else have this problem? Today I did 13 new posts. If you want to check out what the Fuller's have been up these past six months just read the 13 new posts below.

Fall is here!

2010-10-23T18:09:00.001-07:00

Once again my favorite time of year is here. I love October! Starting back in September I decided I was going to finally buy Halloween decorations. I have had them up since the middle of September so I could enjoy them as long as possible. Here are some pictures of how it turned out. Let me know what you think. I found these pumpkin cupcakes at Kohls! The big one is a cookie jar and the small ones are candles. The table square is fabric I picked up at Hobby Lobby. Gotta love that store.

My mother-in law came up with the idea to sprinkle the candy corn around the giant cupcake. I think it gave it just the right touch.

Normally these keys are hanging from red ribbon but I changed it to orange to give it that Halloween touch.
The jars I got at Ross and Michaels. The small pumpkins are from pier one, the large ones are from Ross, and the black ornaments are from Hobby Lobby.

I just love these argyle pumpkins! Found these at my favorite store.. Hobby Lobby!

The table round skirt is from Kirklands. I love how it mixes polka dots, damask, and spider webs together. Suckers are from Wal-mart. I wanted black, white, and orange pinwheel suckers but I never found them. Eventually I would like to find some type of orange glitter balls or pompoms to hang from the black branches.

We got season passes this year to Six Flags. This is us three weeks ago enjoying Fright Fest at Six Flags. Oh how the weather has been perfect in San Antonio since the beginning of October. Another reason why I love October. Happy Halloween!

Brielle is 11 months!

2010-10-23T18:08:00.000-07:00

Alright this is Brielle's last official baby month. I can't believe my infant is turning into a toddler. Brielle got four of her top teeth this month. I can't imagine how painful it was to have four teeth come in at once. Brielle is definitely more opinionated. This month she started throwing her food onto the floor when she is not hungry anymore. I am definitely sick of sweeping under her highchair. When we go shopping now, she finds a way to stand up in the shopping cart or stroller even if she is buckled. I guess shopping days with her will be ending soon. Here some pictures of our little 11 month old. Brielle loves her Aunt Heather. Brielle lights up everyday when Heather comes home from school.

Eating her favorite snack..... Gold Fish!

Look who started Preschool and look who is ten months!

2010-10-23T17:52:00.000-07:00

Brayden started preschool in September. He goes every Tuesday and Thursday from 9:00-2:00. He has two of his sunbeam friends in his class. He looks forward to preschool every week and he loves doing his preschool homework. I hope he will be this enthusiastic about school when he is older. I can't believe how fast babies grow. Brielle is ten months in this picture. I had to take one of us since we matched.
Brielle loves her Grandma Jill. Once again they are pretty in pink!
Bradyen and Brielle love to play with each other. Brayden is such a great big brother. I love these two so much!

Look who has two new teeth!

2010-10-23T17:22:00.000-07:00

Brielle finally got her first two teeth at 9 and 1/2 months. I love seeing these teeth when she smiles.

Mortensen Family in San Antonio

2010-10-23T17:06:00.000-07:00

At the end of July my sister Melissa from BYU, my father, and my sister Jonelle, her husband Jay, and their two kids came to San Antonio for a visit. We had blast. We went down to the Alamo and Riverwalk, went to my in-laws lakehouse, played lots of card games, went to Six Flags Fiesta Texas, went shopping, went to the movies, and went out to eat. Brayden loved playing with his cousin Carly. My nephew Bradly even learned to walk here in Texas!

My Mother's Birthday was July 22nd, so we had a family home evening dedicated to sharing stories of my mother and celebrating her life. It was so fun having my family here. I cherish the time I get to spend with them because it is not very often.

Brielle 8 months!

2010-10-21T23:16:00.000-07:00

8 months for Brielle was a huge month for her. At 8 months she learned to sit on her own, rock on all fours, crawl, and say mama. Yes, that's right her first word was mama. She is a mama's girls and I have to say I love it.

Brielle loves jewelry. If I have it on she immediately reaches for it and tries to put it in her mouth. In fact I dangled one of my necklaces in front of her to get her to crawl for the first time. I guess every baby is motivated to move for different things.

These pictures were taken the first day I put her hair in a little ponytail. We call it her little palm tree. I loved putting the crochet headbands in her hair but by eight months she would pull them right out. I am grateful she has enough hair to put in a small ponytail.

Fourth of July!

2010-10-21T22:20:00.000-07:00

Jeff and I spent the Fourth of July in Phoenix this year. Surprisenly the weather was actually really nice. In all my years in AZ I have never remembered a Fourth of July this cool. It was wonderful. We hung out with the Anthon's. We ate Mexican food and played card games all night. We had a blast.
Our little girl was so excited to celebrate her first Fourth of July! (Brielle 8 months.)

My Best Friend's Wedding

2010-10-21T21:59:00.000-07:00

My best friend Janae' got married July 1st to Sterling Cambell. They were sealed in the San Diego Temple. Jeff and I had the privilege of being able to attend their sealing. It was beautiful.

Can I also say the weather was absolutely gorgeous in San Diego. Why can't I live in in a place where the weather is perfect almost year round?

Jeff and I had a blast. My wonderful sister Jonelle offered to watch our kids so Jeff and I could enjoy a vacation kids free. It was wonderful and just what we needed. Jeff and I went out to eat, visited the beach, got a couples massage, saw the Twilight movie together, went shopping and slept through the night peacefully. I think every couple has to plan a romantic getaway at least once a year.

Here are some pictures from their wedding. Congratulations Janae' and Sterling!

Anthon's come to visit!

2010-10-21T16:51:00.000-07:00

I have to say this summer flew by. We were able to take a few vacations and I had some family come visit. In June our cousin Alli and her son Dallin came and stayed with us for a week. The boys had so much fun together. We shopped, took the boys to the park, we swam, watched our favorite shows together. I love it when people come see us here in San Antonio. Dallin and Brayden love to be with each other. Here are some pictures from their visit with us in San Antonio.Every year Alli and I have a tradition where we buy the boys matching shirts and take pictures of them wearing them together. I wonder how many more years the boys are going to allow this? Best Friends forever they will be. Just like their daddy's and mommy's. This was Brielle's first experience swimming in a pool. She loves the water. (Brielle 7 mos.) I just want to squeeze her chubs on her arms and his cheeks. Too cute!

Jeff was out of town for Brayden's Birthday. So on Father's Day we threw Brayden a family birthday party. Grandma Jill gave Brayden these cool jet ski's, and Dallin and Alli got Brayden a boat on a trailer. Obviously Brayden is a Fuller. We are training him young to love boating and the lake. I think Dallin really enjoyed his cupcake!
Towards the end of June we headed out to Phoenix. We stayed at my Dad's and with Jake and Alli. Dallin's friend Clare had a birthday party to see Toy Story 3. This was the first movie Brayden saw in the theaters and he loved it.

Can you feel the love these boys have for each other. They are adorable. Please don't grow up to fast!

Pink Cadillac

2010-10-21T16:50:00.000-07:00

Back in June, Jill and I went to Babies-R-U to look at some double strollers. As we were walking down the isles we saw this adorable pink cadillac walker! We had to take some pictures of Brielle in it.

(Brielle 7 months)

May Birthdays

2010-10-21T16:49:00.000-07:00

The month of May is crazy for us because Jeff, Brayden, my sister-in-law Heather, my nephew Bradly, and I all have May Birthdays!

Brayden turned four on May 29th. I can't believe he will be in kindergarten in one more year. This year Brayden decided he wanted a cars party. I was grateful he picked an easy theme. Every year for my kids birthday I have a tradition where I make them a fun homemade birthday cake. My mother-in-law found a website called cutest homemade birthday cakes. This website shows you pictures of homemade cakes others have made with all sorts of themes. This website was our inspiration for Brayden's race track cake.

Jill and I stayed up way to late decorating this cake, but it was all worth it when I saw the expression on Brayden's face the next morning. Here are some pictures of the cake.

The race track was made out of chocolate frosting and crushed Oreo cookies. The road lines were made out of white good and plenty. The tire fence was made out of lifesavers. I printed the traffic signs from the internet. The best part about the cake was it tasted so good because it was a homemade with homemade cheesecake frosting.

Brayden invited five friends over for his birthday. We played pin the tire on the car, red light green light, the bean bag dance, and animal action. After pizza, cake, and presents we went swimming. Brayden had a blast.

Jeff and I are one day a part. I am one day older and this year we both turned 30! I can't believe we are 30. I still feel like I am 18. For my Birthday Jeff took me out for breakfast and then we did a little shopping. Later that night we went on a triple date with our good friends Courtney and Jared and Lacy and Jason. We ate at Red Robin and then went and saw the iron man 2 movie. We had a blast. Mother's day was Jeff's Birthday so we just had a little family party. I am so glad Jeff and I get to share our birthday's together. It is one big party all week!

1st spoon feeding

2010-10-21T16:47:00.000-07:00

With Brayden I was so excited to start feeding him solids. I started the rice cereal at four months, fruit at five months and vegetables at six. With Brielle I got smart and decided there is no rush to start her on solids. I was going to keep life more simple for me and wait till six months to feed her solids.

At Brielle's 4 month checkup that happened at 5 and 1/2 months, my pediatrician asked me how often she was eating solids. I told him I had not started. He was not very happy with me and told me to start her on rice cereal ASAP. He explained to me that babies that start spoon feeding at six months are more likely to have speech problems and food allergies.

So that night I gave in and started her on solids. This was Brielle's expression the first few bites...............
Here is what she looked liked towards the end of her feeding.

Happy as can be. I think she realized this stuff wasn't so bad after all.

Easter 2010

2010-10-17T21:08:00.000-07:00

This year for Easter we were in Arizona. While I was AZ, I decided to take the kids to JC Pennys to get their Easter pictures done. I also wanted to get some professional pictures of Brielle in the blessing dress she wore. She definitely fit better in the dress at five months than 7 weeks old. Here are some of the pictures I thought turned out cute.

Brayden is such a ham when it comes to pictures. I love how his nose scrunches when he smiles. I love this little boy so much.

Brayden is three almost four years old and Brielle is five months in these pictures.
Me and my sweet Bri! Brielle hated tummy time as an infant. The first five months of her life she was content with just sitting in the swing, carseat, or baby papasan. She finally rolled over all by herself on Easter Sunday. I have to say it was about time since she waited to do it at age 5 months.
Well I have realized that taking family pictures can be quite exhausting. This was the best Easter picture I could get of the family.

Photography by Moriah

2010-09-01T21:48:00.000-07:00

Well once again my blog has been put on the back burner. I feel like my life has been so much busier with two kids and with Jeff traveling so much I am a single mom many days. Brielle is almost ten months now! She has grown so fast this past year. For journal purposes I am going to go back and recap what has happened these past six months.

Brielle was born right before my mother passed away. I have wanted to have a little girl for a long time. I had a good relationship with my mother and I long to have the same relationship with my daughters. My mom prayed all last year that Heavenly Father would send me a little girl. Brielle was my tender mercy. She was sent to me at a time when I feel Heavenly Father knew I needed her sweet spirit the most.

I miss my mom a lot. Many times I will be out shopping and I will see a girl close to my age with her mom shopping and having a good time together. I am not going to lie, I become very sad because I want that to be me shopping and having a good time with my mom. I am amazed at how writing can be such good therapy.

Well due to Brielle being born at such a crazy time, things that I really wanted to do with Brielle got pushed aside. I love sweet newborn pictures. I had every intention of sending cute announcements out of Brielle but it just did not happen. In some ways I still feel guilty about this but considering the circumstances I have to forgive myself. Luckily my friend Moriah offered to take pictures of Brielle back in March. Brielle was so cooperative and happy considering she was wearing a very itchy tutu. Here are some of the cute pictures that Moriah captured. Brielle is 4 months in these pictures.

Who can resist a baby in a tutu?

Goodbye Elder Bryan Mortensen

2010-06-02T16:03:00.000-07:00

Well I guess you could say my blog has been put on the back burner. I have so much to blog about for journalling purposes. I just have been putting it off because I feel like I never have enough time. Well I am finally going to work on my blog. For those few people who still follow my blog I apologize. I will try to be better I promise. I love reading blogs to see what others are up to.

The months of March and April we traveled A LOT. I needed the whole month of May to recover. Here is what we have been up to. In January Jeff once again switched careers and he is now selling soda machines again. He sold soda machines back when we were dating and first married. He works with his younger brother Mark. Their shop is in Phoenix but they sell machines in Texas, Utah, Nevada, and California. If you need a pop machine or cooler let me know. We will be sure to give you a great deal.

My younger Brother Bryan as most of you know got his mission call to Finland. March 6th, Bryan went through the Mesa temple for the first time. Jeff and I drove from San Antonio to Dallas to Phoenix to be there with my brother. We had to go to Dallas first to pick up Jeff's new 24 foot long trailer.

I enjoyed being at the temple with my family. I felt my mother's presence so strongly. The next day which was Sunday my brother gave his farewell talk at church. Some of our cousins from California (the Abeyta's) came out to hear him speak. Also some of my cousins from Mesa (Russell, Donny, and Melissa Mortensen) came as well. After church we had a family get together. We ate and enjoyed each others company.

That Thursday, March 11th Jeff had I headed back to San Antonio. We had things we had to take care of here. We were in San Atonio for about a week and then we headed back to Phoenix. We wanted to take my brother to the MTC and Jeff had soda machines to deliver in Vegas and Utah as well. My brother reported to the MTC Wednesday March 31st.

We went up to Vegas on Monday March 29th and we stayed at the Golden Nugget. The new tower of the Golden Nugget is very nice and the pool is awesome. They have a slide that goes through a shark tank. Tuesday morning we headed for Provo. We met my Sister Melissa who is attending BYU for dinner that night. We ate at Brick oven Pizza. It was so yummy. The next morning the we took Bryan to the MTC. I can't believe he is 19 already. It was so neat to see all the missionaries and their families saying their goodbyes. I am so excited for my brother and for the experiences he will have. Here are some pictures we took with Bryan before he left.

I took this picture of Brayden and Bryan when we were leaving the Golden Nugget Hotel. Brayden would hang on the back of Bryan's suitcase while he was pulling it. It was hilarious.

Here we all are with Bryan at Brick oven pizza. The pizza was so good. We had to take a picture of our last supper with Bryan for the next two years.

I love this picture. My dad was so happy to get Bryan off on his mission. We had to take a picture next to the famous MTC sign. As we were leaving this sign Brayden kept asking us what we were doing. We told him we were dropping Uncle Bryan off so he could be a missionary for our church. We told him when he was big and strong one day he would go too. He asked if we could go with him. We told him no he would go all by himself. He then replied by saying " I do not want to be a missionary." I guess we have 15 more years to change his mind!

Jeff and I stayed with our good friends Kingston and Kristi while we were in Utah. We had so much fun with them. It even snowed while we were in Utah. I was able to see the new Draper Temple. I got to do some shopping at University mall, Rod Works and Down East Basics Outlet store. We also ate at some yummy restaurants. Thanks guys for letting us stay with you. We had a blast.

Brielle's Baby Room

2010-02-28T17:45:00.001-08:00

I am finally getting around to posting pictures of Brielle's baby room. The room is pretty much finished, I just have a few finishing touches I will add when I find exactly what I am looking for. This room has been a labor a love from many of my family members.

Back in August I started looking for baby girl bedding when I knew for sure we were having a girl. I wanted to find bedding that was pink and green but that did not have a particular theme. I found this bedding set at Target.com. I ordered the bed skirt, crib sheet, and bumper. The set for some reason did not come with a blanket so I ordered an extra crib sheet and asked my Aunt Sue if she could sew me a baby blanket. I think she did a wonderful job. I love the buttons and
green polka dot edging she put on the blanket.

Eventually I plan on adding longer green bumper ties. For some reason they never make them long enough to tie around the crib. Sad story about the bumper is I ordered it August 19th and I did not get it until December 22nd. I was so upset that it took Target this long but I am glad I waited because I love how the bumber looks. My mother-in law (Jill) sewed the thick green ribbon to the very bottom of the crib skirt to add a little more color to it.

The pictures do not give the wall color justice. The walls are a pretty apple green color. I want to thank Uncle Larry, Aunt Sue, and Jill for helping me paint Brielle's room.

I have always wanted to put a canopy above the crib when I had a girl, but the more I thought about it I realized she would probably pull it down so instead I decided to hang this white sheer. I bought brown drapery knobs at Hobby Lobby and I spray painted them white and then I super glued the gerber daisies onto them. Jill folded and pinned the white sheer in place.

This is the view of Brielle's room as you walk in from the door.

I had bought these white baskets for Brayden's room back when he was baby but they had blue and white lining inside them. Instead of buying knew baskets Jill and I decided we would just sew new basket liners. The fabric we used was a polka dot roxy sheet I bought from Ross. Jill did a beautiful job sewing the liners! I think they turned out adorable. The lamp is from Kirklands and we got it on clearance for $14.99. I still need to spray paint the lamp base white.

All the pillows in Brielle's room are from Ross. You gotta love Ross and their prices.

This shoe is also from Ross. I could not believe it matched perfect with Brielle's room.

I wanted to have a chandelier in Brielle's room but I did not realize how expensive they can be. Luckily I found this chandelier at Walmart.com. I eventually want to add little pink lamp shades to it. I have to say I really enjoyed decorating Brielle's room. Sometimes I wish I could sleep in her room because it is so fun and girlie.

Brielle 3 months

2010-02-21T21:23:00.000-08:00

Once again things have been crazy here at the Fuller household. A new year has begun and we have already made some changes. Brielle is changing the most out of all of us. Brielle is three months now and we are starting to see some personality. She smiles and coos and still sleeps the majority of the day. She loves to be in the swing. In fact she prefers to sleep in the swing rather than in the crib. She loves to suck on her fist. I don't think she has quite figured out that you can suck on just one finger. She wakes up once at night but goes right back to bed once she is given a bottle. We love her to pieces. I posted a picture of Brielle in this outfit at 3 weeks old. This is what she looks like in the outfit at 3 months old. She has filled out quite a bit. Don't you just love big baby smiles? And how can anyone resist kissing those chubby baby cheeks?

I bought these adorable zebra pants at Babies R Us.

Grandma Jill and Brielle pretty in pink for Valentines Day!

Six new posts!

2010-01-22T13:36:00.000-08:00

Today I finally caught up on my blog. If I do not accomplish anything else today I will still be happy because I finally was able to sit down and blog! I promise to be a better blogger now that my life has started to calm down a little.

A new sunbeam and a sweet little girl!!

2010-01-22T12:54:00.000-08:00

I can't believe how fast Brayden and Brielle are growing.Time is sure flying by. Brielle will be 12 weeks this Tuesday! She finally has outgrown her newborn sleepers and clothes. Now she is wearing size 0-3 months. I took her to the pediatrician last week and she weighed 10 lbs 4 oz at 10 weeks old. Her height was 21 and 3/4 inches long. She still wakes up at least once a night and she eats 4 oz every feeding. She is starting to smile and coo. Grandma Jill found this adorable outfit for Brielle last weekend. I just want to eat her up when she wears this . Little girls clothes are so much fun. We had to take a picture of her.
One of Brielle's nicknames is sweet Bri. She sure looks sweet in this outfit.

Brayden started sunbeams almost three weeks ago. I had to take a picture of him after his first day of primary. He still tells me he wants to go back to nursery but who could blame him when you get to play with toys and have a snack.

Bryan's Mission Call

2010-01-22T12:17:00.000-08:00

The night we returned back from Las Vegas my brother opened up his mission call. He will be serving in the Helsinki Finland Mission!!! We all could not believe it and we all cried. We knew my mom must have had a hand in this decision. My mother was born and raised in Finland. She joined the church in Finland at the age of 18 and served a mission in Finland. My brother is so excited. This is where my mom wanted Bryan to serve. My mom wanted more than anything to get better so she could help Bryan with his mission but we now know she will be able to help him even more now that she is on the other side.

So many tender mercies had been given to my family this past December. My mom was able to see and say goodbye to all her children and grandchildren before she passed. She passed with all of us around her. My brother received the Melchizedek Priesthood the day after my mom passed away, Brielle was given her baby blessing, and my brother received his mission call to Finland two weeks after my mom had passed away. This will be a month I will never forget. I have felt the love of my Savior in so many ways these past few months. I am so grateful for eternal families and for the gospel. I will be eternally grateful for those two young 19 year old missionaries who came to my mothers home that cold January night and knocked on the door.

Fuller Vegas Trip 2009

2010-01-22T11:35:00.000-08:00

Because all of Jeff's siblings were going to be in AZ Christmas Eve for Brielle's blessing, Jeff's parents decided to take the family up to Las Vegas for a family vacation. We left Christmas day around noon and stayed up in Vegas for four days.

I talked to my dad to see if he minded me going up since this was going to be the first Christmas without my mom. He told me I should go and that my mom wants me to make memories with my husband and children. Before my mom died I asked her what her favorite memories were? She told me she loved all of our family vacations and time we spent together as a family.

This vacation is exactly what Jeff and I needed. Jeff's parents rented a four bedroom house for us. It had a heated spa, pool table, and was about ten to fifteen minutes away from the Las Vegas strip. We had a lot of fun!!! Thank you Jill and Clare for taking us on this family vacation

One tradition my family has is whenever we visit a city that has a temple we will visit the temple and take a family picture in front of the temple. I had taken a picture in front of the Las Vegas Temple 15 years ago with my parents and siblings and now I am carrying on the tradition with my own family.

This is the view from the Las Vegas Temple.
This picture was taken at the Paris Hotel. I am amazed at how some of these hotels are so large and have so much detail to them.
The Fuller family loves to play games. Every holiday we play games as a family. This is us playing a game of "scum" one of our family favorites. Because we do not gamble Papa Clare decided to put his own Vegas twist on the game by giving us $10 if we won President and $5 if we one Vice President. We all had a blast. I was one of the lucky ones who won quite a few rounds. Shopping here we come!!
Las Vegas is known for their Buffets. Here is Brayden enjoying his food at the hotel buffet.

Jeff and his brothers decided to take some silly Vegas pictures.

Brielle's Blessing Day

2010-01-22T09:34:00.001-08:00

Originally one of the main reasons why we were going to go out to AZ for Christmas break was to bless Brielle at my parents house so my mom could be there with us. We had scheduled it for Christmas Eve and we still continued with those plans even with my mom passing. It was a beautiful day and I felt the presence of my mother very strong. It is a day I will never forget.

Our close family and loved ones came to my parents house at two o'clock Christmas Eve. We sang Families can be together forever, had an opening prayer given by my father, a musical number by Brielle's Aunt Heather, Great Grandma Smith, and Grandpa Clare. Then Brielle was given her baby blessing.

Things I want to write for journal purposes are the names of the people who stood in the circle. (Daddy Jeff, Grandpa George, Grandpa Clare, Uncle Brian, Uncle Mark, Uncle Bryan, Cousin Jake, Cousin Andrew, Great Uncle Larry, and Great Grandpa Smith.)

Things that I remember from the blessing were it talked about her being a very valiant spirit. She will do well in school and with learning, it will come easy to her. She will one day marry in the temple.

After the blessing we had a wonderful lunch. My dad made his yummy enchiladas.

Brielle slept the entire afternoon. She was an Angel and I am so grateful Heavenly Father sent her to me at this time in my life. I can only hope Brielle and I will be as close as my mom and I were. Here are some of the pictures we took of this special day.

This picture was taken right after her blessing. You can see tears in Jeff's eyes.

Brielle with Grandpa George and my siblings.
Brielle with Grandpa Clare and Jeff's brothers.

Brielle and the Fuller girls.

My best friend Janae' allowed me to borrow her daughters blessing dress. Janae was blessed in this dress as well. With my mom so sick and planning the funeral I never got the chance to really shop for a dress for Brielle. I was so grateful for Janae'. Here we are together. As you can see Brielle was sick of taking pictures.

A day in winter wonderland!

2010-01-22T09:22:00.001-08:00

After a week of planning a funeral we felt it was time to have a little fun and get into the Christmas spirit. I wanted to take Brayden to see Santa. We took him to Golfland and Santa was very nice to all of us. I think we have all been on the nice list this year.

That day at Golfland they brought snow in for the children to play in. Brayden had a blast playing in the snow. He even got interviewed by a local Phoenix TV station. In the next few years I would love to take the kids on the polar express up in Flagstaff.

My Mother's Funeral

2010-01-07T21:57:00.000-08:00

So much has happened in the month of December I don't even know where to start. I have wanted to blog about all these events for the past month but just have not had time. I am dedicating today to my blog.

My mother passed away December 12th, and we had her funeral December 19th. It was a beautiful funeral and everything went smoothly.

My moms two older sisters, brother-in-law and nephew from Finland were able to come to the funeral. One of my aunts from Finland has three married children who live here in the states, they were able to make it to the funeral. Three wonderful families in my parents ward offered to house my Finnish relatives while they were here AZ. It was so neat to spend time with my relatives that I have only seen a handful of times. The last time I had been out to Finland was 1993.

I wanted to share a story about how my Aunt Merjia decided to come out AZ. The relief society president (Becky) in my parents ward (her parents) are the temple mission presidents for the Helsinki, Finland mission. Becky's parents met my mother before they went out to Finland. My mom told her parents to keep and eye out for her two sisters. On December 11th my aunt Merjia went to the temple to do a session and ran into Becky's parents. After the session Merjia went up to Becky's parents and told them she had a strong impression she needed to come out to AZ but her only concern was she was not sure where she could stay because she knew my mom had all her children staying at her house. Becky's parents proceeded to tell her that their daughter (Becky) had two guests rooms and would not mind at all having her and her family stay. I am so grateful to the ward members who graciously offered their homes to my family.

My Father did a beautiful job planning out the program. The two missionaries that converted my mom in Finland came to the funeral and spoke about her conversion story. My moms two sisters shared childhood stories about my mom, and my siblings and I shared one funny memory each that we had of my mother. A lady in my moms ward sang a beautiful solo and O Holy Night was sung by my dad and small group of men with three violinists. I was surprised at how well I held it together at the funeral.

After the funeral we all left the church and headed to the cemetery. Jeff picked out my moms casket. I think he did a great job. Jeff felt like this is something you would see in the temple.

Jeff is the only one missing in this picture. I think he is the one taking the picture. In this picture is my brother Brian, my brother-in-law Jay, my sister Jonelle, my father, my sister Melissa's boyfriend Frank, my sister Melissa, and I.

My mother loved red roses so we had each person at the funeral throw a red rose onto the casket.

The women in my parents ward put together these beautiful entry tables as you walked into the chapel.

The women in my parents ward also put together the lunch- in. These are what the tables looked like at the lunch- in. They did a beautiful job and the food tasted great. I am so grateful that these women were so willing to serve my family. The picture on the table is my moms graduation picture from high school. I think she is so pretty in this picture.

My mother-in-law has put together memory tables for funerals. Her and I worked together to set up this special room. We put the memory room by the viewing room. This gave people a chance to find out some things about my mom they may have not known.

This picture I had to take of Brayden helping to take out the trash after the lunch in. I love to see my boys working.

After the lunch in we decided to take my relatives to see the temple lights at the Mesa Temple. We thought this would be something my mom would have loved to do with us.
I had to take a picture here with Jeff. The Mesa temple will always have a special place in my heart since this is where Jeff and I were married almost six years ago. Can you see Brayden hiding behind my legs?

2009-12-16T17:35:00.000-08:00

My mother passed away Saturday December 12th at 9:50 p.m. She was surrounded by all her children, her husband (my dad), and three of her best friends. The experience is one I will never forget. Each one of us said our goodbyes one by one and then we sang God be with you till we meet again, How great thou art, and Be still my soul. After that we played this beautiful song called Flying on Angels wings that a lady in my parents ward sang for my mom earlier in the day. My mom requested Monica to sing this at her funeral. After the song ended my mom peacefully passed away. I have so many emotions and feelings right now. One minute I am happy and the next I am sad.

My parents ward has been so good to us they have brought in meals, babysat our kids, and have helped with the funeral plans. I have never in my life had to rely so much on other people has I have now.

Jeff and I got out to Phoenix early Thursday morning so I got to spend three full days with my mom before she passed. My mother told me she was at peace with dying. She said she was happy to die around Christmas because it is when we celebrate Christs birth, she was glad to die with some hair since the last chemo treatment did not make it fall out, and she was excited to see her parents again. My mother is such a wonderful example to me. She suffered much pain the last two months of her life. She lived a beautiful life and was such a wonderful example of someone who lived a Christ like life. I know I will see her again one day.

Here is the obituary my sister wrote for my mother.

MORTENSEN, Hannele age 54 of Peoria, Arizona fought valiantly against stomach cancer for the past year. She passed away peacefully on Saturday, December 12, 2009 surrounded by her family and several close friends. Hannele was born July 22, 1955 in Kemi, Finland to Valo Marikainen and Elma Rautiainen. She graduated fr...om Tornio High School in 1974. She served a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from November 1976 to May 1978. In December 1978 she came to the United States to attend Brigham Young University (“BYU”). She studied business and dance while at BYU in Provo, Utah from January 1979 to April 1979. While at BYU she met her future husband in a dance class. On July 3, 1979 she married George L. Mortensen in the Salt Lake City Temple. After getting married, the couple lived in Sheridan, Wyoming and El Paso, Texas. In August 1980, the couple and their first daughter Angela returned to BYU so George could continue his studies. After George’s graduation in April 1982, they moved to Phoenix, Arizona. George and Hannele raised their four children Angela, Jonelle, Melissa and Bryan in the Phoenix Metropolitan Area. They lived in Phoenix, Glendale, Surprise and Peoria, Arizona. Hannele graduated in 1998 from Phoenix College with an Associate degree in Legal Assisting. Hannele worked at PRM Association Management from 2001 to 2004 and for High Tech Institute from 2004 to 2009. Hannele is survived by her husband, George L. Mortensen, her daughters, Angela (Jeff) Fuller, Jonelle (Jay) West, Melissa Mortensen and her son, Bryan Mortensen. She has four grandchildren. Services will be Saturday, December 19, 2009 at The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints located at 9543 W. Jomax Rd. Peoria, Arizona. Visitation will be one hour before the service from 11:00 A.M. to 11:45 A.M. The funeral service starts at 12:00 P.M. Interment will be in the Sunland Cemetery and Mortuary of Sun City located at 15826 N. Del Webb Blvd. Sun City, Arizona. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the missionary account for Bryan Mortensen. Account #850871054 JPMorgan Chase Bank, NA.

Little Snow Angel

2009-12-03T20:34:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday I took Brielle to church for the first time since she was born. I loved dressing my little girl for church. My mother in law found this adorable outfit for Brielle. She was our little snow angel. I kept the outfit on all day because I know in a few weeks she will not be able to wear this newborn outfit. I can't believe how much she has grown in four weeks. Time is flying by so fast. Brielle right now weighs 7 pounds. She eats 3 oz per feeding and she wakes up every three hours to eat during the night. I get very little sleep. Last night I got a total of four hours of sleep and some how I survived today.
Today our sweet Bri turned one month. I took a picture of her tonight to document this monumental day. This sleeper is size newborn. She wore it home from the hospital and it was pretty big. Today it fits perfect and if her legs get any longer we will be moving on to our 0-3 month sleepers.

2009-11-18T19:06:00.001-08:00

I can't believe Brielle is two weeks old. She definitely came a lot earlier then expected but we are loving our little peanut. Today she went to the doctor and she now weighs six pounds. She hardly cries but she loves to grunt. She is a very calm and good baby. I really enjoy having a daughter. I love dressing her in pink and in bows.
Last Wednesday some good friends in my ward through me a baby shower. They were kind enough to postpone it one week since I ended up delivering Brielle the day before the original shower date. It has been hard for me to be so far away from my family but it was nice to feel so loved by the women in my ward. I really enjoyed myself that evening and I was able to bring Brielle to the shower. She slept the entire time. Here are the Fuller girls posing for the camera.

Baby Brielle is here!!!

2009-11-07T08:41:00.000-08:00

Brielle Elizabeth Fuller was born Tuesday Nov. 3rd at 9:40 p.m. in the evening. She weighed 5lbs 14 oz. and was 19.5 inches long. She came 3 weeks and 2 days early. This was a lot earlier then what we were expecting but baby and mom are doing fine. We were released from the hospital yesterday afternoon. Jeff and I are so grateful Heavenly Father has sent this sweet spirit to us.

These pictures were all taken at the hospital. I want to write about her birth for journalling purposes so you may want to scroll down to the pictures if you do not want to read about her birth.

I have had so many overwhelming feelings about this pregnancy. Jeff and I have wanted another little one in our home for quite sometime. I can hardly believe she is here.

About two weeks ago I woke up in the middle of the night with some bleeding. I called the on call doctor and she told me it was probably no big deal but to continue to watch the quantity. The next morning the bleeding continued so Jeff and I called the on call doctor and she told me to go into labor and delivery to get checked out since it was a Saturday morning. At the hospital they checked the babies heart rate and checked to see if I was contracting. Here heart rate was good and I was not having any contractions so the doctor did not seem to worried. She asked if I had placenta previa and I told her that at my 22 week ultrasound we did not see any signs of placenta previa. She said my stomach was soft so I was not having a placenta eruption. She checked to see if I was dilated but I was not so she told me that the bleeding was probably caused by my bowel movement I had in the middle of night. She said the BM probably caused my uterus to shift. Jeff and I accepted this theory and went home.

On Tuesday Oct. 27th I went in to see my doctor told her about what had happened Saturday. She thought the bleeding was strange but accepted the on call doctors theory. She was in a hurry to help deliver a 25 week old baby by c-section so she did my strep B test and hurried out the door.

Tuesday Nov. 3rd I woke up and took Brayden to preschool, went by a friends house to look at paint, and then I headed to the nail salon to get a pedicure. I am so glad I pampered myself Tuesday morning because little did I know what was to come. After my pedicure I picked up pizza. As I was paying for the pizza I felt clots of blood coming out. I called Jeff and rushed home. We called my doctor and she told me to come in ASAP.

My doctor did an ultrasound and told Jeff and I she wanted a perinatologist to a more detailed ultrasound. She told us to check into labor and delivery. The last thing my doctor asked me is if I had eaten lunch yet. Luckily I had grabbed a piece of pizza on my way out the door. I had a feeling she asked me that just in case I had to have an unscheduled c-section.

Jeff joked on the way to hospital "Wouldn't it be great if we have the baby today." I did not want this because I did not feel prepared. My baby shower was scheduled for Wednesday night. Her baby room was still not done and my house was not organized completely the way I wanted it. I had not completed my nesting.

We went in and had the ultrasound. The doctor confirmed I had placenta previa. She said my placenta was completely covering my cervix and that I would definitely have to have a c-section. She said that Brielle was measuring about six pounds and looked healthy. She recommended we just get the baby out but she would let my doctor decide if she wanted to wait a day or two.

She talked to my doctor and the on call doctor and they decided they wanted to get the baby out at 9:15 that night. I cried. I felt so overwhelmed and scared. I did not want c-section. I also could not believe I would miss the baby shower by one day. After a few phone calls from family and friends my spirits were uplifted. I had two hours to prepare myself for the c-section.

I went for the c-section at 9:15 p.m. and by 9:40 p.m. Brielle was out. She had lots of dark hair and had a distinct girlie cry. Jeff and I cried tears of joy. My spinal worked great I did not feel a thing. I am so grateful for pain meds and modern technology. While they stitched me up Jeff went with Brielle to the nursery. I did not feel any pain until I was in the recovery room. That is where I started to throw up and feel severe stomach pain. Somehow I made it through the night.

I am so grateful that Heavenly Father allowed us to find out I had placenta previa before I went into active labor. Brielle and my life would have been at risk if I had gone into active labor. I know angels were watching out for her and I.

Many family and friends have called and visited. Jeff and I have felt so loved by others.

Jeff is all suited up to go in the operating room.

This is Brielle right after she was born. We could not believe how much hair she had.

This is Brielle being weighed. She did not even make it to 6 pounds.

Brielle is finally all cleaned up.

I love being able to put bows in her hair. Girls are so much fun.

Brielle already has her Daddy wrapped around her little fingers.
Grandma Jill and Aunt Heather with Brielle.
This was the first time Brayden met Brielle.
Aunt Sue and Uncle Larry drove out from Houston to come to the baby shower but they got to meet Brielle instead. Larry and Sue also painted the babies room for me while they were here. Thank you so much guys.

Halloween 2009

2009-11-01T21:44:00.000-08:00

Fall is my favorite time of year. I love the cooler weather, I love eating anything pumpkin, and I love the anticipation of all the holidays to come. This year is even more special because we are also waiting the arrival of our little girl!!

Jeff's dad's birthday is on Halloween so we took him out to dinner at Ruby Tuesdays and then came back home and and ate pumpkin squares. We took some family pictures before we took Brayden trick or treating. You will notice I am not in any of the pictures but that was done on purpose. All you pregnant women out there can understand.

This year for Halloween Brayden was a lion for the second time in his life. He wore this outfit when he was five months old and it pretty much covered his body now it fits just perfect. Here is my lion now............

And here is what my little lion looked like three years ago. Wow, he has grown so much but he still just as adorable!!!

The unique thing about Jeff, Heather, and Brayden is they are all 13 years apart. Jeff is 13 years older than his youngest sister Heather and Heather is almost exactly 13 years older then her nephew Brayden.

We made grandpa take this picture even though he did not want to. You have to take a picture on your birthday.

Grandma Jill, Heather, and Brayden being silly.
After we took Brayden trick or treating we went over to the Albrethsen's to play some games and eat yummy food. We had a lot a fun and we were grateful for the extra hour of sleep we got since it was daylight savings last night.

Heather is on the drill team at Reagon High. Last Friday they did a halftime routine to thriller. Here is what Heather looked like for the performance. She definitely scared Brayden. She spent all Saturday morning working on her hair trying to get the hairspray and knots out.

Preschool Fieldtrips

2009-11-01T20:58:00.000-08:00

Well I have been horrible about keeping up with blogging but I decided tonight I am going to catch up on what we the Fuller's have been up to. This year Brayden is in a Preschool co-op with some other children from our ward. At the end of each month we take field trips. So far we have been to fire station and the pumpkin patch. This is our future firefighter in the making.

Brayden loved sitting in the fire truck. They let the kids sit in the firetruck, spray a fire hose and climb through the firetruck. They even put on the firetruck siren.

The pumpkin patch was a lot of fun. They had six learning station for the kids. They painted pumpkins, went on a hayride, pulled red wagons, and played some games. Brayden was our little pilgrim and Daddy was our Indian.

This is Brayden doing his first potato sack race he loved it. What little boy does not love to jump.

Projects

2009-09-16T21:55:00.000-07:00

Well this week has been crazy busy and I know right now I should be sleeping but she (the baby) is always kicking and awake right when I need to go to bed. So I decided to blog. I have been trying to improve my sewing skills so I made a few burp cloths for a special friend in my ward. I had to take a picture of what I sewed so I could prove to my family that I am becoming more and more domesticated. I really enjoy sewing. I never would have said that ten years ago.

My mother-in-law sewed these pink ones for me. I think these burp cloths are all really cute. Homemade gifts are the best. They are such a labor of love. Hopefully my sewing skills will continue to improve.

Blessings

2009-08-25T19:42:00.000-07:00

Today we found out the cat scan results for my mother. The doctor said everything looks clear so she will just have check ups every couple of months. We are so happy that it looks like there will be no more chemo treatments. This is such a relief for my mother and our family. It is so nice to hear good news. You really appreciate the ups in life when you have felt the downs. I am so thankful today. My heart is full!!!

2009-08-21T14:52:00.000-07:00

FYI........I went in to see my doctor today and she surprised me by offering to do a gender ultrasound. She confirmed that it looks like a girl. I think now after two ultrasounds I can feel confident about shopping in the girls department. Pink here I come!!!

Baby News and Vacation Pictures!!!!

2009-08-16T15:37:00.000-07:00

Well this afternoon a dear friend of ours did an ultrasound for me. I have been itching to know what we are having. I am 25 weeks and and three days along. I have waited six weeks longer than I did with Brayden. Talk about suspense. Well we are more than 90% sure its a ............ GIRL!!! We looked long and hard and could not see anything poking out. We even double checked. We are excited and I don't even know where to start. Part of me has a hard time even thinking it is possible Jeff and I could even have a girl. I guess I will probably be in denial until I finally hold her in my arms. This has been a bitter sweet day because exactly a year ago today I was in the hospital having a miscarriage. I know today was a tender mercy from the Lord.

Jeff has been begging me to get the pictures up of our Arizona and California trip. Here are the pictures finally from our trip. We had the opportunity to go out to California with are good friends Sheri and Jeremy and their two daughters. We even drove out together and squeezed all seven of us into a Nissan Armada. These first few pictures are of us as Balboa Island. The weather was gorgeous. I love being in a place where we can wear a light sweater at night. Here Brayden and Jeff are enjoying the sunset at the pier.

Brayden loves riding carousels.

This is my favorite picture I got with Brayden with Mickey Mouse at Toontown. He was so excited to Mickey Mouses house.

Here we are at Club 33. We just got done eating a nice large meal and we were ready to head back into the Disneyland crowds.

Don't you want to squeeze and kiss both of their cheeks?

Brayden and Jeff really enjoyed riding the bumper cars.

Brayden and his friends Shade and Maddie got to meet Handy Manny. I actually like watching Handy Manny.

Jeff matches perfect with Mickey and Minnie.

Enjoying the sun at Laguna Beach. I love my two boys.

This is my mom with Brayden. On August 25th we will get back her cat scans results. We are all hoping for good news. I think my mom looks beautiful.

Brayden got to be in Az for his 2nd cousin Dallin's 3rd birthday. Dallin and Brayden love each other so much. They are a handful though when they are together. I found these outfits at Kohls on clearance. So the boys matched for Dallin's party. I think they are adorable.

My best friend Janae' and I took our kids to the Glendale recreation pool one day. Crew and Brayden had so much fun riding the slides and the lazy river.

We had so much fun spending time with family and friends. I was so excited to meet my new nephew Bradly!!!I wish we had had more time out in AZ because I was not able to see everyone I wanted to see. Hopefully we will be able to see more people when we come back in December!

Feelings

2009-08-08T13:06:00.000-07:00

Well Jeff and I just got back from AZ last night around 8:00 p.m. We drove 14 hours yesterday. Brayden and I slept in till 10:00 a.m. this morning. We had so much fun visiting our family and friends. We also had the opportunity to go to Disneyland with some good friends. I will post pictures of the trip as soon as I unpack my camera.

Every time I return back to San Antonio from AZ I always have a let down day. I feel a little down and to be quite honest sometimes I cry. I wish I did not feel like this but I do. I know Jeff and I are suppose to be in San Antonio right now. I have met some wonderful people here and Jeff and I have had neat experiences here. Every time I come home and feel like this I get mad at myself because I know I just need to be happy. I definitely do not miss the 115 degree heat and the fact that the only green that exists in Gilbert is the farmlands and grass yards but I have so many good memories in this dessert oasis. AZ is where I met my truelove, got sealed in the temple, graduated from college, became a school teacher, bought our first house, and had our firstborn child. So many memories flood my mind as I visit AZ. I hope I am not the only one who ever feels like this about a place they have lived so many years.

I am excited for what the future holds. I know here in San Antonio is where we will give birth to our second child in just a few months and hopefully we will buy our second house here as well. Jeff and I have had great opportunities to serve the youth here in San Antonio and the adults as well here in our ward. These past two years have been a big learning experience for Jeff and I. I am so grateful for the people here in San Antonio who have reached out to us and have become our friends. Feeling loved by others has helped Jeff and I with this transition. I hope that Jeff and I can make others feel the same.

Patience!!!!!!

2009-07-21T10:44:00.000-07:00

Today I went in for my second ultrasound. Jeff and I have been so excited to find out what we are having. I have been dreaming about baby girls and boys for the last couple weeks. It looks like we have a modest and shy baby. The baby kept its legs together the entire time. The doctor could not get the baby to move its legs apart. Then at the end of the ultrasound the baby crossed it ankles. I guess it was feeling very comfy. I won't be having another ultrasound until I get back from AZ. Has this happened to anyone else? I don't know if I can stand to wait any longer. The goods news is the baby looks healthy. The baby is measuring a little small but has long legs. I almost 22 weeks and it looks like my next ultrasound won't be until I am 24 weeks. I guess Heavenly Father is trying to teach me patience. He is probably giggling at me thinking I will know soon enough. I will keep everyone posted on the gender once we find out.

A Child's Prayer

2009-07-19T14:22:00.000-07:00

Brayden is growing up so fast. He loves trucks, cars, and boats. I took this picture of Brayden on Jeff's parents boat last week. This is a typical Brayden smile.

A week ago (July 11th to be exact) Brayden said his first prayer all by himself. I wanted to write down what he said. It was a Saturday night and we had just come into the house from swimming. Brayden wanted eggs because he was hungry. I made him eggs and he informed me we needed to say prayer. I asked him if he wanted to say prayer. He started by saying "Dear Heavenly Father, please bless the eggs, please bless mummi" and then he said "Dear" and paused. He said "Dear" again and then I said "in the " and he finished the prayer with Jesus Christ amen.

My heart was so touched to here him say a prayer all by himself. He even remembered to pray for my mom who is fighting stomach cancer. My mom is from Finland and in Finland mummi is how you say grandma. I can't believe how fast he is growing. Next year he will be a sunbeam.

I am so grateful for the power of prayers . I know Heavenly Father hears our prayers. Whether we are 29 or 3 years old he will always listen to us. Tuesday my mom goes in for a catscan to see if her cancer is gone. We are hoping for good news and it would be a great birthday gift for her since her birthday is Wed. July 22nd.

Last Sunday I had Jeff take a picture of me so I can show this baby what I looked like at 20 weeks. The belly has finally popped. I am more than halfway there. Thanksgiving can't come soon enough!!

Summer fun 2009!!!

2009-07-02T19:08:00.000-07:00

Well this summer has definitely been hotter than normal. I am starting to feel like I am back in AZ. To keep cool this summer we have been swimming and taking weekly lake trips. Brayden could swim all day if we let him. He doesn't even mind swimming all by himself. He is jumping off the diving board all by himself. He still has to swim with a life vest on but hopefully next summer he can swim all by himself. My baby is getting so big! Jeff's parents live right on Lake McQueeny in Seguin TX. Their place is beautiful. They just got done remodeling their house. I will post pictures later of the before and after. Now that it is summer we have been going boating almost every Thursday. Jeff's family is a boating family. You cannot be a Fuller without knowing how to wake board. Jeff has been wake boarding for 14 years. He can do lots of flips and tricks on his wake board. He is so fun to watch. In this picture Jeff is doing an air raley. In the second picture Jeff is in mid air doing a toe side back roll. I am itching to wake board but I guess I will have to wait until next summer.

Brayden has this new obsession with sunglasses. Here is Brayden and his Aunt Heather on the boat. Brayden refused to smile or look at me when I took this picture.

Last week I went to girls camp. This year I was called to be the ward camp leader. I had so much fun at camp. This is my second year in a row going. My only complaint about camp was the 100 degree weather but luckily we had a pool to swim in. I spent most of my afternoons in the pool. I love the YW in our ward. They are awesome. Here are some pictures of the girls in their skit costumes. Our skit was called the "Seven Trials of the Seven Seas." Hannah our modest righteous mermaid is tempted by the bully bruces, lazy lobsters, crabby crabs, greedy pirates, cheating school of fish, immodest mermaids, and the Hollywood "star fish." She upholds and influences all of them to live her standards. Here is a picture of the bully bruces. They tempted Hannah to try some "coral" light and "sea"weed.

Hannah is the girl in the orange shirt. She made all of the mermaid tops. In the skit the immodest mermaids have the tankini part rolled up so the top looks like a bikini. Hannah teaches them that you do not have to show off your stomach to feel beautiful. She then pulls down the top on each girl to make it a tankini. If anyone wants a copy of the skit just ask and I can email it to you.
The theme for camp this year was "Catch a Wave of Righteousness." Each young women and leaders signed this wave banner. We took a picture of the girls holding the banner the last day of camp. The stake leaders are going to mail the banner to the Young Women General Presidency and tell them that our girls are riding the wave of righteousness and will continue to ride the righteous waves. We all had so much fun!!!

May the month of Birthdays!!

2009-06-07T21:41:00.001-07:00

Well once again I have slacked on blogging. We have been so busy this past month. Jeff and I celebrated our birthdays at the beginning of May. My sister Jonelle gave birth to her son on May 20th. My sister-law Heather turned 16 on May 28th, and Brayden turned 3 on May 29th. I am going to try and avoid having another child in May because so many of our family members already have May birthdays.

This past week Jeff's cousin Jake his wife Alli and their son Dallin came to San Antonio to visit us. I decided to wait and have a family birthday party for Brayden when his second cousin Dallin was in town. This year we had a Mickey Mouse party. Brayden loves watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. This was the first show he would sit down and watch.

Alli bought Brayden an adorable Mickey Mouse outfit for his party. We went swimming and grilled up hamburgers. Jake makes the best burgers. I was in food heaven. I miss eating Jake's burgers, steaks, and pulled pork sandwiches.

While Jake and Alli were here we went to the river walk, shopped, barbecued, and went swimming. They were only here a couple of days but we had a lot of fun.

My camera has been taking a lot of blurry pictures. Not too many pictures turned out decent but here are a few that were not blurry. Brayden is driving his "truck" with Donald and Mickey in his "truck bed." (Alli please send me your pictures. Most my pictures are blurry.)

Here is picture of my two favorite boys! Brayden loves his dad. Daddy is #1 in his eyes. If Brayden comes to our room in the middle of the night he always goes to Jeff's side of the bed. If Brayden wakes up crying in the middle of the night daddy is the only one who can calm him down. Brayden is a daddy's boy. Maybe our next child will make me their #1.

Here is a picture of Brayden's Mickey Mouse Cake. Jill and I had busy week making Brayden's and Heather's homemade cakes. They both turned out cute, but I do have to say I am all caked out.

Dallin and Brayden had so much fun jumping on the trampoline. Oh, the life of a three year old.

Alli bought Dallin and Brayden these life vests on clearance at Sams Club. She gave Brayden his vest at his birthday party. Brayden put it on but decided that was all he needed to wear to go swimming. We all were laughing when he came out from his room only wearing the life vest. I had to take a picture.

I can't believe Jeff's baby sister is 16!! I have known Heather since she was eight years old. She has grown so much these past eight years. She has become a beautiful young woman and I am glad to have her as a sister-in-law. For her birthday Heather had a boy girl party at our house. They played games, went swimming, and ate pizza and cake. I think everyone had a blast.

One thing I love to make for a birthday party is a homemade, creative birthday cake. Jill and I made this sweet sixteen cake for Heather. We loved it! It was super cute and girlie. Leslie a friend in our ward gave us the tip to cook the cake 325 degrees and cook it ten minuted longer then what the box says for the minimum amount of time. To check and see if it is done you push your finger on the top of the cake. If it presses back up it is done. Cooking at this temperature makes your cake super moist and it does not fall apart when you flip it out of the cake pan. Thanks Leslie for the tip.

Heather's sweet sixteen party happened to fall on Brayden's Birthday. Brayden wanted to eat her cake so bad all day. Jill and I made Brayden some cupcakes and sang Happy Birthday to him. Brayden was so excited to blow out the candles and finally hear that this was his cake.

Brayden got to blow out candles three times. Once on his real birthday, at Chuckee Cheese at his friend party, and then again at his family party.

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Brayden stuffing his face. I think he ate the whole cupcake in three bites.

Bradley Ryan West was born May 20th weighing 7 pounds 6 oz. My sister pushed twice!!! So not fair.

Now I have a niece and a nephew. Here is Carly feeding her baby brother. They are both adorable.

I was not able to be in AZ for Jonelle's baby shower so I made this Diaper cake and brought it up to AZ during spring break. I think it turned out cute and it was super easy to make.

Good News!

2009-05-08T17:44:00.001-07:00

Last Tuesday Jeff and I found out we will be having Thanksgiving Baby! My due date is November 26th which happens to be Thanksgiving Day! Due to my miscarriage last August I wanted to wait on telling people our news until after I had been to the doctor. So far everything looked good on the ultrasound. We are hoping things will continue that way. We ultimately know it is in the Lords hands. To see this babies heart beating was the best Birthday present Jeff and I could ask for!

Spring Activities

2009-04-26T21:20:00.001-07:00

I am feeling so guilty that I have not blogged in a while. It just seems like life has been so busy the past few months, but once again I have found peace and quiet so I feel this is the perfect time to blog. Easter was wonderful. We went over to my in-laws and I did not have to cook or bake one item. Jill made a yummy roast, potatoes, rolls, carrots, and dessert. Thanks Jill. We did a little Easter egg hunt for Brayden which he of course loved. Here are some pictures of us Easter morning.

Last weekend Jeff's Aunt Sue and Uncle Larry came and visited us. We had fun with them like we always do. At the beginning of June Jeff's cousin Jake, Alli, and Dallin will be visiting us and then my sister Jonelle and her family will be coming to see us in July. I am so excited to have visitors since I miss my family and friends back in AZ so much. Jeff and I have been busy with our callings and work. Jeff is now the 2nd counselor in the Elders Quorum and I am still working with the YW. I am getting everything ready for girls camp. I think it is going to be a lot of fun.

In my spare time I like to work on projects. I have plans of sewing an apron. I have sewn a few bean bags. I would like to make some more necklaces, and eventually I would like to paint Brayden's future big boy room, but my latest project has been repainting an end table. My very good friend Courtney just moved into their first brand new home. I am sad she won't be in the same ward as me but happy that she still does not live that far from me. Courtney has this end table given to her from her Father that she wants to keep but give it an update look. I suggested sanding it and then painting it black. Due to my love of making something old and making it look new I took on the project myself. Here are the before and after pictures. I think it turned out great. I am glad Courtney has always been such a good friend to me because this was definitely a labor of love. I love you Courtney!
This picture was taken after I sanded it but imagine a dark stain finish with little dark brown speckles. It is amazing what a little paint can do for furniture. The only question I have is I have not been able to find a good varnish to put on after I paint that does not bubble or make the furniture look real shiny. Does anyone know of a good varnish?

Update

2009-03-19T20:31:00.000-07:00

I have been wanting to update our blog for a long time but it just has not made the priority list until tonight. Last week Jeff and I went back to AZ for spring break. We drove the 15 hours all through the night so that Brayden would sleep the majority of the trip.

My mother started her chemo treatment the weekend we arrived. Last Friday she was sent to the ER because her doctor thought she had an infection. My mother was miserable and it was very hard to watch her be in so much pain. She was released from the hospital today and it looks like she did have an infection but the dosage of chemo she was given was too much for her to handle. That is what made her so sick. Hopefully they can figure out the best dosage for her.

I have been feeling so bad that I am not in AZ to help my mother and father out more. I wish I lived 1000 miles closer but it is not possible right now. I was talking to my friend Lucy the other day about my feelings. She told me that by serving my ward here in Texas, people in my parents ward will serve her in my place. Today I called home to see how things were going. My brother informed me that my mother is coming home today and that she is feeling better. He also told me the young women in their ward were cleaning up the house for my mom. If you know my mom she loves having a very clean house. I wanted to cry. My parents ward have been so good to my family. People have brought dinners, my mother's visiting teacher took my mom to the ER last Friday and stayed with her at the hospital the entire day until my dad was able to get to the hospital, and now the YW have given up time during their spring break to help clean. My heart is full. I have the opportunity to work with and serve the Young Women in my ward and I have just recently been called to be the ward camp leader. I have a testimony of what it means to have a ward family.

Our trip to AZ was short but I was glad to spend time with family and loved ones. I was able to see the baby blessing of my best friend Janae's baby girl. My sister and I decorated her daughters room and baby room. Jeff's favorite mission companion and his wife just had a baby girl and we were able to see her, we helped my dad with the Mormon prom dinner for my brother, celebrated my nieces birthday, and spent time with the Anthons. Our computer caught a virus so I will have to download pictures a little later of our trip. Thanks for the love and support we have felt these past few months.

5th Anniversary

2009-02-08T14:28:00.000-08:00

Yesterday Jeff and I celebrated our fifth wedding anniversary. Where has the time gone? To celebrate Jeff scheduled a couples massage for us in the afternoon. Then in the evening we went to Texas Roadhouse for dinner and we saw the movie curious life of Benjamin Button. The massage was wonderful. It was my first full body massage. I definitely will be asking for one for my birthday. It was nice to spend some alone time with Jeff. Thanks Grandma Jill for watching Brayden.

I feel I have learned a lot these past few years. Marriage is definitely hard but it is also so rewarding. I have learned that we are not happy unless we are both trying to put the other persons needs in front of ours. I cannot be selfish. I have learned to have more patience and I am continuing to learn patience. I have learned that Jeff has to have sleep otherwise we are both miserable. I have learned that with some things we may never completely see eye to eye but that is okay. I also have learned that Heavenly Father is connected in every way to our marriage. I am so grateful that Jeff and I were sealed together as an eternal family. It is a day I will never forget. At times I know we both get discouraged, but I am so grateful that Jeff and I know we can turn to our Heavenly Father for help so we can be reminded of the potential he sees in the both us together. Jeff and I am excited to see what is in store for us these next five years!! I love you!

Here is one of our engagement pictures over five years ago. I think we look like babies!

Life's bumps

2009-01-29T22:25:00.000-08:00

I have wanted to update our blog for a couple weeks but have not found the time until now. January has been a month of many ups and downs for my family. On New Years day my father called to tell me my mother has stomach cancer. It was a complete shock to our family. I had just gotten back from AZ and my mother did not act sick in any way while I was visiting. I went numb on the phone with my father. When my mother got on the phone I tried to hold back the tears but I lost it when she told me that she will accept whatever Heavenly Father has in store for her. We cried together and had a family pity party. Later that day my mother received a priesthood blessing that said many wonderful things that uplifted all of our spirits.

Just prior to this phone call from my father I had been thinking of what good things may happen for us in 2009. I was excited to set new goals. 2008 was not an easy year for Jeff and I. It was one of the hardest years in our marriage but I know I have grown from the trials we have experienced. The news of my mom put me in a deep depression. I felt it was the last straw I could handle. That evening I asked Jeff for a blessing. Once again my Heavenly Father gave me the comfort, peace, and strength to move forward with daily life. On fast Sunday I was able to bear my testimony. I felt so good to share my testimony of the gospel and of my Savior. In the past month so many people have said things to me that have given me so much strength and peace. I feel they are my angels.

Later on in the week we found out that it looked like the cancer had not spread outside of her stomach. My mother went into surgery last week to have part of her stomach removed. The doctor seemed very pleased with the surgery. We will find out in a couple weeks if my mom will need chemo treatment. My mom is back at home resting and she is doing well. I ask that if you are reading this to pray for my mother. I know that she can be healed according to our faith.

I know these trials we are experiencing will continue to teach us things we need to learn. Patience and long suffering are things I have learned to have more of this past year. I feel I will be able to have empathy for others who may experience similar trials. I have gained a different outlook on life. Enjoy the little things. Laugh when your two year old throws a tantrum. Cherish the time you have with family and loved ones. Show your love and appreciation to your family and loved ones.

Christmas Break

2008-12-29T08:25:00.000-08:00

About an hour before I left for AZ I decided to take family pictures hoping one would be good enough to send out to all my family and friends. Brayden has reached the stage of being very difficult when it comes to pictures. This was the best picture I could get of the three of us. Sad to say this picture did not make the cut as good enough to send out. This year I am simplifying and through our blog I would like to wish all my friends and family a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!! Brayden is at that age where he gets into everything. Nothing is off limits to him. Here is my niece Carly and Brayden hiding themselves in my parents loft entertainment center. They pulled all the videos out of this cabinet and made quite a mess. I think I am scaring my sister into not wanting boys after she spent a few days with Brayden. Brayden is our little Dennis the Menace. He gets into everything all day. I am constantly cleaning up after him. Brayden and his second cousin Dallin were pretending that they were asleep. Brayden had so much fun playing with his buddies.

This is me with my two sisters Jonelle and Melissa. Melissa is attending BYU and Jonelle will be expecting her second baby this May. We will find out soon if she will be having another girl or a baby boy.

Here I am posing with the first pillow I sewed all by myself. My sister Jonelle said she was amazed how I can cook, make homemade bread, and sew now. She said I am becoming a domesticated women.

Here are the drapes my mother and I sewed for two days straight. We made a total of four panels. The pictures do not even give the drapes justice. They look so much better in person.

I think the thing I miss most about AZ is my family and friends. If I could transplant my whole family and my good friends to Texas I would be set. Saying goodbye is always hard but I was excited to get back home and get back into my normal routine. Jeff and I left AZ around 8:00 p.m. Saturday night. We arrived here in Texas around 12:30 p.m. My mother-in-law and sister-in-law came over to watch Brayden so we could sleep since Jeff and I probably slept a total of three hours each driving home. I am grateful that I was able to visit my family and friends in AZ this Christmas. Here Brayden is saying goodbye to Dallin and Carly. He had so much fun playing with his family and friends in AZ.

AZ Winter Wonderland

2008-12-22T21:28:00.000-08:00

Well Brayden and I have been in AZ for the past week and Jeff just arrived last night. We will be here until Sunday. I have had a blast hanging out with my family and friends. My mom and I spent two full days last weekend sewing drapes for her living and dining room. I sewed my first pillow. I have found my new favorite restaurant Pita Jungle. I think Janae and I both ate there three times last week. I have been having so much fun. I wish I could stay longer so I can spend more time with everyone. I have been going back and forth from Peoria to Gilbert trying to visit family and friends. Snow was brought to my parents community the other day. My Dad, sister and I decided to take Brayden and his cousin Carly sledding. They had so much fun. They were able to enjoy snow in 70 degree weather. Here are some pictures of us sledding.

This is my Dad, Carly, and Brayden.

Brayden and I sledding down the hill.

My sister Jonelle and niece Carly.

Holiday Spirit

2008-12-11T08:31:00.000-08:00

Last night for mutual all the youth wrapped presents for kids who would not normally have Christmas. This program is called Elf Louise. I participated last year and loved it, so I had to make sure I would be in town for this activity this year. We found out that through this program 25,000 kids will receive presents Christmas morning. The youth loved this activity as well as all the leaders. It truly puts you in the Christmas spirit.

Last Wednesday I had the opportunity to be in charge of the Miamaids for mutual. We made ginberbread houses. The girls were very creative. We had a blast making them. We made the houses with graham crackers and juice boxes. I felt like a little kid again. My memories of elementary school came back to me. I really enjoyed making these houses. I think I will try and make a tradition of making these houses each year with Brayden and my future children to come. Tonight I will be flying out to AZ. I guess you could say my Christmas breaks starts tonight!!!

Home Projects

2008-11-26T21:20:00.001-08:00

Well these past few weeks I have been working on some home projects. I get so much satisfaction in beautifying things. A week and a half ago my mother-in-law and I put up my Christmas tree. I will be in AZ for Christmas so I wanted to have my tree up for a while before I leave. I think I get more excited now to put up my tree than actually opening presents on Christmas. This year Jill and I found some cute candy decorations at Hobby Lobby. I also found my stockings there as well. Gotta love Hobby Lobby! I can't wait to go to the Orange Patch boutique when I am out in AZ. I got a lot of my decorations there a few years ago.

Jill found these present boxes at Sam's Club this year. They match perfect with our trees.

I recently recovered this bench I bought at Ross(another one of my favorite stores). Originally the bench had a cheetah print on it. We took left over fabric from my drapes in Gilbert and recovered the bench. I love how it turned out.

About a month ago I bought these three large candlesticks for $8 at a garage sale. They were originally a silver gold color. I spray painted them oil rubbed bronze and bought red candles for them. I love taking something old and making it new. I am amazed at how many great things I have found at garage sales. I love a good bargain.

While I am working on house projects Brayden will entertain himself by riding around the house in his coupe car. Never call his coupe a car because he will reply by saying " No, MY TRUCK, MY TRUCK, MY TRUCK!" Brayden loves trucks. Anytime he sees a truck on the road he has to tell us it is a truck and you have to immediately respond by saying "Yes Brayden that is a truck."

To run errands with me he always makes it very clear he wants to go in the truck rather than the chevy malibu. This little boy is obsessed with trucks, but who can blame him. He is definitely our little boy. I love these pictures of Brayden in his "TRUCK."

Hmmm. What should I order?

Halloween 2008

2008-11-09T06:56:00.000-08:00

This Year for Halloween Brayden went as a bumblebee. My mother-in- law found this costume at Burlington Coat Factory. I know by next year Brayden will be telling me what he wants to be so I had to pick a soft cuddly outfit. Brayden did not like wearing this costume when we tried it on at the store . I was afraid he would not wear it on Halloween, so we had a few practice sessions. I explained to him that if he wore the costume he would get candy. Then I would take him to the front door and have him ring the door bell and say trick or treat. I would then proceed to give him a piece of candy. After a few practice sessions he was ready to go. By Halloween he was begging to get in his outfit and even the day after Halloween he begged to have it on.

Halloween night we were invited to our friends house for potluck soup dinner before trick or treating. The kids ate bread and soup and played while the parents talked and visited. Then we all headed out together to trick or treat. This was the first year we took Brayden trick or treating. He loved ringing the doorbell and a few times he would just run into the house as soon as the door was answered. If he was allowed to pick a piece of candy he would always try to take a handful and if he was not allowed to pick a piece of candy he would try to anyways. Brayden also wanted to eat his candy right after he got it. By the end of the night he was a pro at trick or treating. Jeff and I had a lot of fun with Brayden and our friends. After trick or treating we visited friends of ours in a different neighborhood and played speed solitaire with them. Halloween was an evening where I just wanted to freeze time because we were having so much fun together as a family! Here is Brayden with his girlfriend Sadie who was a ladybug. They are a perfect match for each other.

This is my friend Courtney her daughter Sadie, son Jack, and Brayden and I.

Fall Fever

2008-10-19T19:50:00.000-07:00

I love this time of year. The mornings and evenings are cool but the days are still warm. I love sleeping with the windows open. I love the anticipation of Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas! October is definitely my favorite month.

With the weather being so pleasant we have been doing outdoor activities. Heather and I have been running 2-3 miles a day. Running is not so bad when there is a nice cool breeze. Tuesday night we went miniature golfing with Jeff's entire family. Shawna was the only sibling missing. The boys were very serious and competitive about the game. Jeff got first place and Heather took second place.

To get in the Halloween spirit we all went to Six Flags Fiesta Texas on Friday for "Fright Fest." In the month of October Six Flags decorates for Halloween with pumpkins, ghosts, and even water fountains dyed red to look like "blood." They also put on fantastic Halloween shows. The entire Fuller Family had a blast.

Brayden's favorite ride at Six Flags is the bus ride. Here he is with his Aunt Heather!

You know your child is getting big when he can ride the carousal all by himself.

Grandpa being silly on the carousal!

Brayden won the gold medal!

My friend Courtney's Birthday was Sunday so I invited her family and some other friends over for dinner to celebrate. I made chicken parmesan and homemade rolls. I think I figured out the secret to making the chicken tender and juicy. Just put a little bit of butter on top of each chicken breast right before you stick it in the oven. My friend Pam made yummy banana bread and for dessert we had Mississippi mud pie. I am so glad to have Courtney as my friend. She is very sweet and kind and I felt an immediate connection to her when we first met. Having friends like her makes me less homesick for AZ. Her daughter Sadie just turned two so we celebrated her birthday as well. Brayden loves to play with Sadie. Sadie is officially his first "girlfriend." Happy Birthday Courtney and Sadie!

I found a long lost memory card that had pictures of me last year in AZ with my dance girls. This past year was the first year that I did not teach dance since I was 18. I really miss dancing and teaching. I hope to teach again soon.

Life of a two year old

2008-10-08T20:32:00.000-07:00

This is a typical picture of Brayden sleeping. He has to have a whole mouthful of blankie in his mouth. As a baby Brayden never liked binkies or sucked his thumb. Around eight or nine months her started to have an attachment to this blue blanket. Before you know it he started sucking the corners of this blanket causing me to have to cut the corners and wash his blanket every few days. Brayden does not call his blanket "blankie" he calls it "ditty" and we have no idea where he came up with that name. I have tried weening him off his blankie. My mother in law found another blue blanket at a garage sale and we started to give him that blanket. We feared if we ever lost the original blanket my nights of sleep would be over. As time went on Brayden realized there were two blankets so when I now put him to bed he has to have both "ditties." The strange thing is he only sucks the corners of the original blanket. I guess one tastes better then the other! He looks so peaceful when he sleeps.

The other day I walked towards the entryway and found Brayden reading a book on the stairs. He was smart to grab a pillow. I guess this will be his new reading spot!!

The other night my sister in law Heather and I went running. When we returned we found the kitchen floor covered in margarine. I think Brayden thought there were cookies inside because of the picture on the box. I looked to see where Jeff was and sure enough he was on the computer and Brayden was watching TV. I asked Jeff if he saw Brayden get into the fridge and he said no. I showed Jeff the kitchen floor. Jeff was not thrilled about cleaning this mess. I guess Brayden really thought the cookies were somewhere inside the margarine. Who can blame the two year old. (Excuse the grout. We are renting a steam cleaner next week to clean all the tile and grout.)

Happy Birthday Jonelle!!!

2008-09-19T21:32:00.001-07:00

Today is my sisters 26th Birthday. I really have no memories of life without her. We always played together as children. We fought over clothes as teenagers and now we give each other comfort and advice. Sometimes I feel she should have been the older sister. We were married exactly two weeks apart and our firstborns are only 3 months apart. We have been through many ups and downs together. I am so glad Heavenly Father gave me such a sweet, kind, and beautiful sister. I love you Jonelle. Happy Birthday!!!

HURRICANE IKE

Early last Saturday morning Hurricane Ike hit Galveston, Houston, and Beaumont Texas very hard. The storm surge was big causing some great damage to these cities. There is a lot of clean up to be done so the church has asked for volunteers here in San Antonio to go down to Houston to help clean up. Jeff and his two brothers (Brian and Mark) who are visiting us will be going to Houston early tomorrow to help out. The women in my ward have been asked to make treats that the volunteers can pass out to the people in Houston. I am grateful that the church is so organized when it comes to disaster relief.

Jeff's Aunt and Uncle who live in North West Houston (near the temple) sent us these pictures of what happened to the homes around their neighborhood. They told us the electricity went on and off all through Friday night and Saturday morning. They survived the storm and were one of the lucky few homes that still had electricity. Church was cancelled for them Sunday, so they helped prepare meals for people in their ward who did not have electricity. Thankfully they had minimal damage to their home.

My best friend Janae' happened to be visiting Vidor Texas (near Beaumont) for her grandfather's funeral when the storm hit. All of her family members are fine and she made it back home to AZ on Wednesday. She told me she saw cars flipped over, homes completely split in half by fallen trees, flooding, and even more things she could not even describe. Please keep the victims of Hurricane Ike in your thoughts and prayers.

This is Uncle Larry and Aunt Sue's backyard. Luckily they were able to board up a few of their windows.

Stolen Suitcases

2008-09-06T21:13:00.001-07:00

My sister-in-law Shawna headed up to BYU Idaho early Wednesday morning. My mother-in -law has been helping her for the past few weeks shop for winter clothing. They did not have luck here in Texas finding warm coats or warm shoes. Might be because it does not snow anywhere close by.

My good friend Kristi who just moved up to Salt Lake offered to pick up Shawna from the airport and take her shopping for winter clothes. They decided to stop by a TJ Maxx in Murray UT to see what bargains they could find. Kristi decided to pull up the 4 runner to the front of the store while Shawna was checking out. As Kristi started to drive she noticed that it was noisy and that it sounded like one of her windows was down. She looked in her back seat and saw the back passenger window punched through and both of Shawna's suitcases gone. Shawna came outside and Kristi showed her the window and the empty back seat. (So sorry Kristi about your window.)

They called the police department which could be seen down the street from the TJ Maxx. They had the security guards check the surveillance cameras but to their disappointment the parking lot they parked in was the only place the cameras did not videotape. Kristi filed a police report and Shawna started to realize all her shoes, clothing, contacts, retainers, glasses, teeth whitening trays, and school supplies were gone. (Also the red dress she is wearing in the picture was stolen.) Luckily her carry on bag and bag pack were not stolen (they were in the back of the 4 runner) so she still had her make up, jewelry, hair dryer, rollers, and curling iron. Before the police showed up a women pulled up to Kristi and asked if her car had been broken into. Kristi said yes and she told them her car had been broken in the day before in the same parking lot. This thief must have known where there were no cameras. The police officer was really nice and could not believe this happened in this nice area of town in broad daylight at 3:00 p.m.

Kristi had help getting her back window duct taped and then they immediately continued shopping for essentials. Shawna found some great deals and was able get a couple pair of shoes, shirts, and a pair of jeans. It was a stressful night that Shawna will never want to relive but maybe one day will be able to laugh about. How many 18 year olds can say that their first day away from home they have everything they own stolen. We are praying that maybe the suitcase will be ditched (realizing there were no electronics in it) and someone will call telling us they found her suitcase.

Many people have been generous in helping Shawna out during this chaotic time. Kristi has donated clothing to her and one of Shawna's good friends from Texas who is also at school at BYU Idaho is letting her borrow her clothes. Mark has taken her shopping the past few days, and Jill and I have been shopping the past few days for clothes to send up to her. Shawna does not have a car so this makes it a little more difficult for her to shop for a whole new wardrobe.

The lesson I have learned from this incident is you never know what trials will be thrown at you but as long as you put your faith in the Lord he will help you through it. I also have learned to never leave anything valuable in your car that can be visibly be seen through the windows. I guess that's why we need trunks. Please keep Shawna and her missing suitcases in your prayers.

Trials

2008-08-20T13:58:00.000-07:00

These past few days have been days I know I do not want to relive but I know I have grown stronger and closer to my Heavenly Father. Saturday I had a miscarriage at 10 weeks. I had not told very many people I was pregnant because I wanted to wait until I had my first doctors appointment where I could hear the heartbeat. With Brayden I was very sick and nauseated. I noticed that this pregnancy felt different. I was only nauseated if I did not eat and I felt really good. This concerned me a little but I tried to stay positive and keep the thought of a miscarriage out of my mind.

Last Thursday I started to spot. Right there I knew this was not a good sign. I immediately went to Jeff and we both started to look up on the internet what this could be. I did not know what else to do so I asked Jeff for a comfort blessing. The blessing said some beautiful things and I felt at peace. We felt I had a 50\50 chance of keeping this baby.

Friday I woke up and the spotting became very heavy. This is when I knew I was going to lose the baby. Immediately I tried calling around to see if a doctor would see me. After a lot of calls and frustration I prayed to my Heavenly Father that he would guide me to a good doctor and that they would take me in today. I needed help with my burdens. Immediately a doctors name came to my mind that a good friend in my ward recommended. I called the office and the receptionist said she was going to personally ask the doctor if she could squeeze me in. Ten minutes later the receptionist called back and I had an appointment at 1:00 p.m. I got a babysitter for Brayden and Jeff and I were off to my appointment. The doctor confirmed I was having a miscarriage and she was very personable and nice to Jeff and I. We decided to let me pass the baby on my own instead of having a D & C, since I was already starting the process. After the appointment Jeff took me to sonic to cheer me up with a burger and a shake. That night I prayed that the miscarriage would come as soon as possible.

Saturday morning we had a ward youth lake trip planned at Jeff's parents house. Jeff and I got up at 6:00 a.m and I had strong feeling that I should drive out with Jeff early instead of driving out later with Brayden. As we were driving out to his parents I started to have very painful cramping. When we got to his parents I felt like the miscarriage was going to happen any minute. Sure enough nature was taking its course. I stayed upstairs at the Lake House and I watched from a window the fun everyone was having. My mother-in-law was my personal nurse the entire morning.

After about three hours of heavy bleeding, severe cramping and feeling light headed I decided to call my doctor. After telling the doctor my situation I was told I needed to go to the ER. During this conversation we had a young women break her nose. Then we had another young women pass out due to dehydration causing the ambulance, sheriff, firefighters, and game and fish to all come to the Lake House. Due to the chaos I tried to cope with the pain and I held off going to the ER. After another half hour of extreme pain I called Jeff and asked him for a blessing and told him I needed to go to the hospital. Jeff immediately came in and gave me blessing. The blessing told me that I would have peace and comfort and that I would be okay. It also told me not to be afraid to try again to bring more spirits down because they are waiting. I am so grateful to have a husband who is worthy of holding the priesthood and that I can call upon him to use at anytime.

After the blessing I felt a little better so I decided to hold off going to the ER. Eventually I started to feel worse and I felt like I was going to pass out. After five hours of pain and bleeding I knew I had to go to the ER. Jeff drove as fast as he could to the ER. I was in so much pain I felt like throwing up and I could not even stand on my own. A nurse came out with a wheelchair and wheeled me in. I waited for about ten minutes and I started to pass out. A nurse saw how pail I was and took me in immediately. They put an IV in me and gave me medicine for the pain. I was starting to feel so much better. They then took me in for an ultrasound. It revealed I still had not passed the baby. With the help of the doctor I was able to pass it with out having a D & C.

As I was in the hospital I kept thinking how the Savior has felt my pain and so much more. Physically the only other day I have felt just as much pain was the day I delivered Brayden. At least with Brayden I was able to take a beautiful baby boy home. This experience has made Jeff and I so much more grateful for Brayden and his sweet spirit. I know that we will have to wait just a little bit longer for more sweet spirits to come into our home. So many people have said things to me that have really comforted my soul during this difficult time. I know that Lord has a plan for Jeff and I and we have to accept his time table. I know that through this trial something good will come out of it in the end.

Family in town and Jill's 50th B-Day

2008-08-10T06:51:00.000-07:00

This past Friday Jeff's two younger(very single) brothers came down from Utah. We have not seen them since January so we have many fun things planned to do this week with them. Since all of Jeff's immediately family is in town we decided to throw Jill (Jeff's mom) a surprise 50th Birthday party. We thought it would be fun to do a 50's theme. Jeff and I wanted Jill to know how grateful we are for everything she has done for us. She has raised 5 beautiful children and she is always willing to help us with Brayden. She has lived a beautiful 50 years and we know her grandchildren will look at her life as a legacy to continue on. Happy Birthday!

I loved how the cake turned out. (Thanks Kristi for all your help I could not have done all this without you.) As we were setting up for the party I kept telling Kristi how I can't wait for Brian and Mark to get married so I can have sister in-laws to help with these family parties. I guess I will keep praying for my future sister-in-laws.

This was supposed to be the crazy picture but I guess some of the Fuller's did not get the memo!

After pizza,cake, and presents we decided to go swimming. We played three games of water basketball and four games of water volleyball. We had a blast. Brayden is getting more adventurous. He likes to jump off the diving board with Jeff.

He also likes to slide into the pool. I don't even have to catch him.

During our water basketball game Brayden somehow found himself in the game. Heather is trying hard to block Brayden from the boys. Luckily Brayden did not get hurt.

Girls Camp and July Birthdays!

2008-07-25T07:04:00.001-07:00

So I have not been so good at blogging this month but it has been a busy month for Jeff and I. Two weeks ago I had the opportunity to go to girls camp with my ward and stake. I was asked back in March to be one of the camp leaders. At that point Jeff and I were not sure if we were still going to be in the ward so I committed to helping prepare the girls to go and as time got closer we would see if we were still around for me to go. May came around and I decided that I would commit to going. For those of you that do not know me very well I am not a very good camper. I am scared of bugs, I hate public restrooms, and I do not enjoy sleeping in tents. I love my bed at home. But for some reason I knew that the Lord wanted me to be at girls camp this year. I even talked my sister-in-law Heather into coming with me. Getting the girls all set and ready for camp was a lot harder than I thought it would be. Luckily Kristi, Heather, Sherri, and I had each others help. The two nights before camp I was only getting 3 hours of sleep each night but somehow the Lord helped me function through the day. The morning of camp we met at the church at 5:30a.m. At 6:30 we were all loaded up and ready to head towards Camp Bovay. Girls camp was near Houston and it took us about 3 hours to get there. We arrived checked in and started to set up our tents in 100 degree weather. I think all of us were miserable but we got our tents up as quickly as possible and headed to lunch in the air conditioned room. All I kept thinking at this point was Texas camping is nothing similar to what I experienced at girls camp in AZ. I am used to mountains, pine trees, cool weather where you have to have camp fires and sweatshirts on. I did not pack one pair of pants and I lived in basketball shorts the whole week. We as leaders joked that we were all Laman and Lemual and the girls were Nephi because we never heard them complain. Luckily there was a swimming pool with slides that we as leaders were able to swim in each morning. The pool was my saving grace. The first night at camp it rained during dinner very hard for about an hour. Yes the temperature dropped 25 degrees but at night when we were sleeping it was very humid. Luckily it did not rain any other day but a lot of the girls tents did not with stand the rain. Many girls had to sleep with semi wet sleeping bags that first night. As the week went on I think my body adjusted to the heat. Despite the heat we as leaders and the girls had fun. I felt the spirit so strong and my testimony was strengthened. My favorite night was the last night of camp when we had ward testimony meeting. I am amazed at how strong the girls in my ward are. I love each one of them and I feel honored to be able to work with them. I will never forget this experience! Thanks Grandma Jill for watching Brayden.

When I arrived home for girls camp I was greeted by an unhappy little boy who had a bad accident earlier in the week. I guess this is what happens when Mom goes to girls camp.

This picture was taken right after his accident. Brayden was riding his plastic scooter around one of the homes we are building. He was on the driveway and he lost control going downhill and landed face first in the rocks. Poor Baby!

Birthdays

July has been a month of many Birthdays in my family. I wanted to wish all of my family members a Happy Birthday and tell you that I am glad to have all of you in my life.

Merrilyn Kelly(Jeff's Aunt) July 6th- I admire the relationships you have with your children and how involved you are and have been with their schools and extra curricular activities.

Sue Anthon (Jeff's Aunt) July 12th- You are one of the hardest workers I know. You are talented in many areas and you always are willing to share your talents with others.

Hannele Mortensen (My Mother) July 22nd-Thanks for being such a good mother and friend to me. I couldn't have have asked for a better mother. I hope I can be as good of a mother to my children as you have been to me.

Jake Anthon (Jeff's cousin) July 22nd-Jake I met you before I met Jeff and I am eternally grateful that you and Alli introduced me to my eternal companion. I hope Dallin and Brayden will have the same relationship you and Jeff have.

Dallin Porter Anthon July 24th (Brayden's second cousin)- Dallin I had the privilege of seeing you come into this world. I can already tell you are a special young boy and I am excited to see you and Brayden grow together.

Happy Birthday!!!!

4th of July

2008-07-06T06:47:00.001-07:00

I always look forward to the 4th of July because I know it will be a day of family, friends, and fun! Since I studied American History in College I love quizzing people on American History Facts(especially on the 4th of July). I know that the Lord paved the way for our Founding Fathers to create this wonderful and amazing Country. I feel blessed to have been born and raised in the U.S.A. Last year my family came out from AZ to visit us in Texas. We watched the fireworks from my in-laws boat on the lake. It was really fun! This year Jeff and I decided to invite family and friends over to play games, swim, and play waterbasketball. The best part of the whole evening is we were able to walk right down the street and we had a perfect view of the fireworks. The weather was nice and cool and towards the end of the fireworks it started to sprinkle. I do have to admit I do not miss watching fireworks in 100 degree weather. I guess Texas can have its advantages. This picture is Brayden with his Grandma Jill. Brayden loves to swim. If we tell him we are going swimming he immediately goes to his room and gets his swimsuit and swim diapers. Brayden is becoming more adventurous. He will walk on the diving board but he refuses to jump off to Daddy.

Brayden loves jumping on the trampoline. Grandma Jill, Aunt Shawna, and I enjoyed playing on the trampoline with Brayden. It is so good to take time out from everyday life and just play with Brayden.

2 going on 16 and Youth Conferance

2008-06-25T07:48:00.001-07:00

Brayden has this obsession with driving. He enjoys sitting in the truck and steering. He also loves keys. He likes putting them in the ignition. When we go shopping at Ross or at Wal-mart he likes to take my keys and shuv them in a small hole in the shopping cart to act like they are in the ignition. He screams if I pull them out. Excuse the wild hair but his hair has so much texture and volume that he looks like a wild man all day.

These past few weeks Jeff and I have been busy with our callings in YM and YW. I will be heading to girls camp in two weeks and Jeff has been getting the YM ready for scout camp and Philmont. A couple weeks ago we had youth conference. To start off youth conference there was a dance and our ward was in charge of decorating. We decided to do a luau theme. My friend Kristi who is the Laurel advisor came up with the idea to make 3-dimensional palm trees. After mutual on a Wednesday night Kristi, her husband Kingston, Chris(YM Pres.), Jeff and I stayed up pretty late and made 4 of these palm trees. I think the trees turned our great!

Brayden and Heather's Birthday and a visit from the Hartsfield's!!

2008-06-03T10:04:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday Brayden turned 2 years old. Where has the time gone? Before you know it he will be in kindergarten. We had a birthday party for Brayden Thursday night. JD, Janae, and Crew arrived in San Antonio Thursday afternoon so Brayden was a able to have one friend his age at his party. I decided this year to do the John Deere Tractor theme. (Now that we live in Texas I thought the theme was very appropriate.)It was so much fun. My favorite part of the party was decorating the cake.

I found this John Deere Tractor fabric at Hobby Lobby which is one of my favorite stores here in Texas.
(Thanks for the tip Lucy!)

This picture is everyone that made it to Brayden's Birthday Party. I am so glad we were able to share Brayden's Birthday with our family and friends.

My sister in-law Heather had her Birthday on Wednesday. She is now 15. We called her cake the guacamole cake because we frosted her cake with the green frosting we could not get to turn bright green. We think it was because the food coloring was old. She is such a good sport about letting Brayden take most of the attention on their birthdays.

Brayden got this red rocking chair from Grandma Jill. I love it.

Brayden's favorite gift was his motorcycle tricycle that Mommy and Daddy got him. Too bad his feet do not reach the pedals yet. Oh well he still loved it.

After we had pizza, cake and ice cream, we all went swimming. We had a blast. Brayden loves the pool. I think we will be spending a lot of time in the pool this year.

The party did not stop Thursday night. The party continued throughout the weekend. On Friday we took the Hartsfield's boating we had a blast on the lake. Saturday we went sight seeing in San Antonio. We visited the temple and went to the River walk. Monday we went to six flags and rode all the roller coasters. The party ended Monday night when JD, Janae, and Crew headed back to Phoenix. Now it is back to reality. The fun has ended. Time flies by so fast when you are having fun. We sure will miss the Hartsfield's. I can already tell Brayden is missing his buddy Crew. Hopefully Jeff and I can come out to Phoenix this summer. We love visitors so any of our family and friends are welcomed to come visit us anytime. We promise to show you a good time!!!

This is Janae and I in front of the San Antonio Temple. (Can't wait Janae' for you to come visit again so we can do a session together.)

Trip to AZ

2008-06-03T08:52:00.001-07:00

For my birthday gift Jeff bought me tickets to see my parents in Peoria, Arizona. I wanted to stay for two weeks but I only was able to stay for about a week due to the fact that children can only fly free until they turn two. It was great to spend time with my family and I was able to visit with a few of my friends. I hope to come out again this summer with Jeff and we will definitely have to spend a least a week on the east side of town so that we can visit with those of you I was not able to see this last trip. The time went by so fast and before I knew it I was back in San Antonio. During my visit in AZ it was annouced that a temple will be built in North Phoenix. I am so excited for my family and friends who live in the Peoria, Glendale, and Surprise. They will not have to drive all the way out to Mesa or Gilbert to attend the temple. While staying at my parents we had a little family celebration for Brayden's 2nd Birthday. Here is Brayden with his Grandpa Mortensen and his Uncle Bryan.

Brayden loves anything sweet. I guess he has my sweet tooth.

Carly is Brayden's only first cousin so far. They had a blast playing with each other. Here they are playing on my parents piano. I love Carly's smile.

I love little girls with dark hair and dark eyes. I think Carly is so beautiful. Maybe I am just bias because I have dark hair and dark eyes.

Brayden and I were able to visit with Brayden's Great Grandma Fuller/Smith. He loved the wagon she had in her backyard.

One afternoon I was able to get with my girlfriends Janae', Kerri, and Alli. We took our kids to the mall playground due to the rain and odd cold weather we were having in Phoenix. The kids had a blast. Its weird to think that seven years ago we were all going to the singles ward together and now we are moms.

Here is a picture of Janae's son Crew. I love his hair and his big eyes. I think he is a mini JD!

Birthdays!!

2008-05-08T07:07:00.001-07:00

This week Jeff and I are celebrating our 28th Birthdays. Jeff and I are exactly one day apart. Jeff married an older woman by 24 hours. Its fun sharing Birthdays because we get to have a fun long weekend. Today we are going to go wakeboarding with family and friends. Tomorrow we are going up to Dallas to go to (their) six flags. I want to wish Jeff a Happy Birthday and tell you that I love you very much. Thank you for being such a good husband, father, friend, and provider. Thank you for being patient with me and my weaknesses. You make me want to be a better person. I am so glad that I get to share my birthday with my best friend!!!

Brayden and Shoes!

2008-05-05T18:53:00.000-07:00

The other night I came home to Brayden walking in my white heels. Daddy thought it was funny so he took some pictures. I love how Brayden has the shoes on the wrong feet. He even has the wrong toes between the thong on his left foot. I will have to slowly take away his bedtime bottle now that he is turning two. He is such a bottle baby. He will drink sippy cups but he prefers bottles when I put him down for bed.
Jeff and I are doing well. We are very grateful that we have been able to house sit for our good family friends who have moved to Utah. They have a beautiful custom home. This blessing has given us more time to figure out where in San Antonio we want to live. The Lord always finds ways to make things work out.

A Wonderful YW Evening!

2008-04-25T13:12:00.000-07:00

For the past five months I have been working in Young Women's as the Personal Progress Leader. Along with being responsible for helping the girls complete their Personal Progress, I am in charge of putting together Young Women's Recognition. I really wanted this to be a special night for the girls who were receiving their medallions, and for the rest of the Young Women. We as leaders decided it would be nice to honor all the Young Women. I found these pretty austrian crystal earrings at Serendipity. To tie in the earrings my mother in law helped me write this quote. "We want you to always remember you are a Daughter of a King. We hope that you will wear these earrings as a reminder of who you are. They represent the jewels in your crown. They reflect many different colors which represent your YW Values. Please continue to be valiant and obedient to your Heavenly Father. If you do you will receive your crown in the Celestal Kindom." The quote of the night was "O, Be True to Who You Are... A Daughter of a King." I was very pleased with how the night went. I think all the Young Women felt special.

My friend Kristi had these runners made for our Relief Society Birthday Party last month. She decorated the party so pretty. I asked her if we could use the runners for YW Recognition. I love how the runners look so classy. I found the cute boxes at Ross. I love pink and black. I guess that's why my wedding was pink and black. For one of Jessica's projects she drew this cool picture of In N Out Burger. She grew up in California so she really misses their burgers since you can't get one in Texas. I miss them too.

Our Laurel President Lisa did a cool project where she gave every YW in the San Antonio Temple District little pieces of granite that were left over from the construction of the temple. She put the pieces in those little white envelopes with the San Antonio Temple sticker and ribbon on them. She also included a quote reminding the YW to not take the Temple For"Granite." This was her way of letting all 3000 YW feel they had a piece of the temple. I loved it.

Lindsey is my little Beehive who had set the goal of completing her Personal Progress before she turned 13, and she did it! I could not believe it. This girl is awesome. I can't wait to see what she will be like as a Laurel. For one of her projects she typed up 73 of her mother's recipes and put them in a book. Then she cooked some of the meals for women in the ward who just had babies over spring break. These girls are such an inspiration to me.

Happy Birthday Dad and New Calling!!

2008-04-20T21:13:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was my Father's Birthday. I wish I could have been in Arizona to celebrate with my family. I guess now that I live 1000 miles away I will not be able to make it to all special family events. I want my Father to know how grateful I am for everything you have done for me these past 27 years. You have been a great teacher and example for me. I love you. Happy Birthday!!

Earlier this week Jeff got a call from the first counselor asking to meet with Jeff on Sunday. This morning Jeff and I made bets on what calling he might be receiving. To our surprise Jeff has been called to be the 1st counselor in the Young Men's. The new YM President just moved here and he is a professional ballet dancer! Chris has danced in the the movies Centerstage, Saved the Last Dance and Step Up. I can't wait to meet and talk with him. Jeff is super excited to be working with the youth again. He has been teaching Sunday School the past year so he already knows the Teachers he will be in working with. Now all Jeff and I got to do is figure out how to jugle Brayden on mutual nights since we both work with the youth. We will make it work.

(These pictures were taken at the San Antonio Temple last summer.)

YW Lesson

2008-04-15T21:56:00.000-07:00

This past Sunday I had the opportunity to teach the young women. The topic I was given was preparing to be an eternal companion. I have known for a while I was going to be teaching this lesson, so it had been on my mind for quite sometime. I wanted to make sure that in some way I could help these girls understand the importance of preparing now to be a future wife and mother. Thanks to sugardoodle.net I was able to get great ideas on how to present this lesson. I started out by giving the girls a paper that said "resume for my future husband." I had the girls list qualities they wanted in their future husband. After a few minutes we shared our ideas. Then I had the girls cross out husband and write in wife. From there I explained that boys/men are looking for qualified women too, and that now is the time to prepare. We talked about how they can prepare physically, mentally, spiritually, emotionally, and socially. I feel the lesson went well and I pray they can apply the things that they have learned into their lives. Ironically everytime I give a lesson or talk in church I always feel there is something the Lord feels I need to realize or learn as well. This lesson made me realize that even after we get married we still need to prepare and work on becoming a better person in all of these areas mentioned above . I know I have so many things I need to improve on, but I am grateful that Jeff can look past my weeknesses and see the potential I have. I feel the Lord gives us a marriage to help one another overcome our weeknesses so that we can return to him. I just wanted to let Jeff know how grateful I am for him. I appreciate all you do for me and our family. I love you.

Fun Toddler Pictures and Tagged by Melody!!

2008-04-13T18:49:00.000-07:00

Brayden cried when I took this white chair away from him. I never should have taken it away because it was all down hill from there. Luckily we got a few good shots.

I had to bribe Brayden with gum to get him to take all these pictures in the brown outfit. He was still mad that I took his white chair away. Luckily Brayden's 2nd cousin (Dallin) was in good spirits for the pictures. I wonder how people can even get toddler twins to take pictures. TODDLERS!!

Well I have been tagged by Melody and some of these questions I have been tagged before on, so I am going to change some of them up.

5 years ago: I was 22, going to ASU West, working at Wells Fargo, teaching dance, and Jeff and I were broken up for the last time before we got engaged. It was a difficult time in my life but everything all worked out in the end.

5 cleaning jobs I do not mind doing: vacuuming, dusting, I enjoy organizing rooms, emptying the dishwasher, and making beds. For some reason I love making beds. Jeff's parents joke and say they always know when I have been over because all of their beds are made. I guess you could say I am very comfortable around my in-laws.

5 things I did today: slept in till 9:45 a.m. (thanks Jeff),went to church, gave my lesson in young women's, went home teaching with Jeff, cleaned up a strawberry mess on the floor done by Brayden.

5 places I have visited: Finland(my mother was born and raised there), Bahamas, Friday Harbor and Island near Seattle, WA (Free Willy was taped there), Orange County(I love it there), and Utah.

5 things you might not know about me: I love going to garage sales (its neat that someones trash is another persons treasure), I love watching HGTV, I enjoy painting walls, I have sprained my ankle once, and I hate using public restrooms.

5 things I am thankful for: My Heavenly Father and Savior Jesus Christ, the gospel, my family and friends, my wonderful eternal companion, and my son Brayden. When I was pregnant with Brayden Jeff gave me a blessing and I was told by Heavenly Father to always show my gratitude for Brayden. I am so grateful for his sweet spirit being sent to Jeff and I. I feel some days Brayden teaches me more than I teach him. I am truly grateful for him.

Now I am going to tag Kerri, Raina, and Charla. Sorry girls if you have been tagged before.

Evidence of our hard work!

2008-04-08T21:34:00.000-07:00

Well this is what the Fullers' have been working on for the past year. This is the first custom home we have built here in Texas. Jeff's Father used to build custom homes in Arizona so he has been teaching us all about the business. We are very grateful for the work and time he has given us. Everybody in Jeff's immediate family has contributed some type of work to this home, so it will be bitter sweet when we finally sell it. This house is 6400 sq. ft. It has 5 bedrooms, a den, living, family, and dining room, a loft, gameroom, and media room. It also has a four car garage. We still have to do some finishing touches on this house. We have started the second house so I will post pictures of it later. In Texas track homes are usually made of brick so people love stucco homes. Tile roofs are not common here. Most people have asphalt shingle roofs. Tile roofs are very expensive out here. It is so different from AZ.

These are the front doors. I love the rod iron!

(Powder bathroom)

We are going to let the buyers pick the flooring, so that is why you see concrete on the floor. We only put tile in the bathrooms.

(Dining Room)

This is the view you have as soon as you walk in the front doors.
It will look even better once the flooring is installed.

(Masterbath jucuzzi tub)

This shower has three showerheads!

(Guest bathroom)

This is the view from the upstairs gameroom. It is so green here in Texas.

Easter!!!

2008-03-29T20:23:00.000-07:00

Jeff and I now have church at 1:00 p.m. We decided that we would make a big Easter breakfast so that after church we could relax and not have to worry about cooking a big dinner. Here's Brayden in his new Easter outfit. I love Brayden in blue in brown.My two handsome boys!
Brayden is usually very grumpy after church. I think it's because church is during his normal naptime. This is one of the typical faces he gives me when he is tired or upset. This picture was taken right after Jeff picked him up from nursery. We celebrated Easter Monday night with Jeff's Family. Jill made a good roast with potatoes, carrots, and homemade rolls. (This is one of my favorite meals). After dinner we had an Easter egg hunt for Brayden. Here is Brayden hunting for the eggs.

He found the egg with the jelly bean!!
Brayden loved this big Easter Bunny that Grandma Jill Had.

He loved the bunny so much he wanted to kiss her.

Here's Brayden gazing into the bunnies eyes.

Brayden kept kissing the bunny over and over which was great for pictures. He would kiss the bunny and then throw his arms up and say yeeaahh!! It was adorable. I do not know if you can tell but Brayden has an owee on the underneath part of his arm. He has had the owee for two weeks now and it has pretty much healed. I never figured out how he hurt himself but everytime Brayden notices his owee he starts whining as if it hurts bad. So we have to give his owee a kiss and say all better. Sometimes we have to repeat this process three times in a row to get him to stop complaining. I know this owee should not hurt anymore so I think he is complaining just to get attention. WOW I never thought a little boy could be such a drama queen or is it king?

Fun Spring Break!

2008-03-22T20:20:00.000-07:00

Brayden trying on these sunglasses. I think he looks good in shades. Cool boys Brayden and cousin Dallin on the golf cart. Brayden and Dallin playing in the kitchen cabinets.

This week I was able to have some much needed fun. These past few months I have been working very hard with my mother-in-law remodeling her lake house. We have been painting, peeling wallpaper, organizing, picking out granite countertops, tile, paint colors, faucets, sinks, mirrors, light fixtures, etc. On top of the work we have been doing at her house we have been helping Jeff and my father-in-law with their custom home building business. It has been crazy but I have learned so much about homes. Because this past week was spring break Jill and I decided we would take a break from working. It was nice to have a few days where all we did was shop. My mission this week was to find Brayden a cute Easter outfit so I could get some pictures taken of him at JC Penny. I have not shopped for him in a long time so I really enjoyed the hunt for the perfect outfit. This mission was accomplished.

On Wednesday my good friend Alli drove out to see us in San Antonio. She was visiting her in-laws in Houston for the week and decided she would make the drive to San Antonio. I was so excited to spend time with her and her son Dallin. Brayden and Dallin are second cousins (Jake and Jeff are cousins) and they are exactly eight weeks apart. They were delivered in the same hospital room and Alli and I watched each other give birth. Brayden and Dallin I feel will always have a special connection. We shopped together, stayed up late watching American Idol, and watched our boys play. It was a lot of fun. On Thursday we took the boys to JC Penny and had their pictures taken. We got some good shots of them together and separate. I had so much fun this week. It reminded me of how much I miss so many of my friends and family in AZ. I am starting to make friends here in San Antonio and I feel with time my life will get easier here. I know the Lord has a purpose for us moving out here. If anything it has made me a stronger person.

Fun day at the Zoo!

2008-03-10T18:29:00.000-07:00

Saturday morning Jeff checked the weather and decided it would be the perfect day to go to the San Antonio Zoo. The high was going to be 71 degrees, sunny, with a slight breeze. We got ready and headed off to the zoo. Here is Brayden pointing at the bear. We had to take this picture because one of Brayden's nicknames is Brayden Bear. (Daddy gave him that nickname).

Here is Brayden pointing at the monkeys. Brayden wanted to touch the monkeys so bad but couldn't, due to the glass between us.

Brayden and I are standing in front of the fish in this picture. Brayden liked the turtles better than the fish.

When we finally reached the petting zoo, Brayden decided that he did not want to pet the goats. It seemed strange because every animal before he was whining to have us move him closer so he could touch them. TODDLERS!!

This is a cool picture Jeff got of the Lion. He roared five times in row and it was LOUD!!! The lion reminded me of the movie Lion King. Brayden loved the zoo. It was fun spending time together as a family. Jeff has been very busy with building custom homes and I have been busy helping my mother-in-law remodel her house. It was nice to take a day off to have some fun.

The fun continues at the PARK!

2008-03-10T17:50:00.000-07:00

After spending an afternoon at the zoo we decided to take Brayden to the park so he could show Daddy how he can go down the big kid slide. I have been trying to take Brayden to the park as much as possible. The weather is great and it's a good way for him to burn some energy off.

Tagged by Janae'

2008-02-16T21:40:00.000-08:00

10 years ago: I was 17, a senior at Ironwood High School, the varsity cheer captain, on the performance dance team and I was preparing for college.

5 things on my to do list today: clean my house, return a movie, shop at walmart, spend time with family, and look for a pair of new jeans.

Snacks I enjoy: I love anything sweet......ice cream, chocolate chip cookies, cheesecake, chocolate cake. I also love homemade rolls and bread. I could not live without carbs.

What I would do if I were suddenly a billionaire: I would by a home in Arizona and Texas so we could be close to both of our families. I would then spoil my parents and siblings with anything they wanted. I would invest the rest so Jeff could retire.

5 jobs I have: Working retail at Red Eye clothing store, teller at Wells Fargo, dance instructor, 8th grade U.S. history teacher, and cheer coach.

3 of my bad habits: I am a little OCD about having my house clean. I am learning that with children it's hard to keep your house perfect all the time. My sweet tooth. I am a perfectionist.

5 places I have lived: Arizona, Texas, and Utah

5 things people don't know about me: I love to help people decorate their homes (I would love to be an interior decorator), I love shopping for bargains at ROSS, I am afraid of heights, I always wanted to be a dancer for the BYU Cougarettes, I was born at the same hospital as my father and was delivered by the same doctor.

I tag Kristi, Chelsea, and Melody

It's our anniversay!

2008-02-07T20:26:00.000-08:00

Today was our four year anniversary. I can't believe we have been married for almost half a decade. Time flies by so fast. Tonight Jeff and I went and saw a chick flick (27 Dresses). I knew this would be the only day this year I could get Jeff to see a girlie movie without putting up a fight. He was a sweetheart and sat through the entire movie with not too much complaining. It was a night to get out and feel like lovebirds again. Sometimes I feel we get so caught up with life we forget those amazing feelings we had for each other when we were engaged and on our wedding day. Four years down and an eternity to go!!!!

Brayden Doing Dishes

2008-02-01T00:03:00.000-08:00

This is Brayden trying to help with dishes at the Lake House.

Entering the Blog World and Disney Cruise January 2008

2008-01-31T23:55:00.000-08:00

My friend Janae has been trying to get me to do a blog for the past six months. She stayed up with me late last night showing me how to set it up. Thanks Janae for your help. This January Jeff and I took a trip to DisneyWorld for three days and then we went on a Disney Cruise to the Bahamas. These pictures were taken at Disneys island called Castaway Cay. The water was too cold for Jeff and I so we took a nap on the beach and did a bike ride. The beaches were white and the water was very blue. It's the prettiest island I have been to. As you can see my legs have not seen the sun for a few months. We had a blast. Thanks Grandma Jill and Heather for watching Brayden.