I Love My Life!

Ava

2011-07-17T09:09:00.000-07:00

Why yes....yes I do know I'm cute!

This is the closest I got to getting her to hold still so I could take her picture, and this is only because Chloe yoinked her peanut butter sandwich when she tripped, and she was upset!

Who me???

So cute!

Jocelyn

2011-07-17T08:59:00.000-07:00

Jocelyn is now 4 1/2, she is growing up so fast! Miranda had spent a few hours doing her hair, and it looked so cute that we had to take a picture. Jocelyn is so pretty!

Here is the hair from the back...
...and here is the hair upside down!

Happy Anniversary Babe!

2011-07-17T06:41:00.000-07:00

It's already been a year?? Time goes by so fast! My sweet husband decided to take me to my favorite restaurant for dinner for our anniversary. Fortunately for us, that restaurant is not local, so we jumped on an airplane and headed for Long Beach California.

Taco Surf....here we come!

Here I am, snuggled up next to the tiki, waiting for my dinner to arrive at Taco Surf.

Here's my sweet hubby at Taco Surf, patiently waiting with his cheesy grin, for his dinner to show up.
Taco Surf has the greatest interior design!
But it doesn't even compare to the chips and salsa.....AMAZING!!
This is where we decided we want to live. Anyone have a few million bucks they want to give us? These houses are on PCH, and I have always loved them. It doesn't hurt to dream, right?
The day after our anniversary, was Ricks birthday. I wanted to get him some really great seafood while we were on our vacation, so Kevin and Derrick recommended this place to us. Maximum occupancy was 44 people, and we had to wait for about 45 minutes to get a seat. From what I hear, that's not a bad wait time, as Kevin and Derrick waited for 3 hours....Suckers!! :)
You get seated at your table, they strap on your bib, and then it's time to order. The bib was pretty classy, but we had to leave it behind. You'll see why in a second.
Another restaurant where the decor is exquisit.
When your food is delivered to your table, it's brought out in a metal bucket, and they pull a plastic bag out of the bucket, with your food in it. You roll down the corners of the bag, and dig in. Here is Ricks dinner, the cajun crayfish. He also got some crab, and I have never seen him so happy. Food was amazing, and highly recommended.
Making a mess, and enjoying every bite!
Mmmmm...crab!!!

...and the aftermath. Once you are done, they pull up all 4 corners of the butcher paper, and throw everything away.
The night before we left, we went to Sunset Beach before dinner. It was so beautiful!

The beach really lived up to it's name...it was a beautiful sunset.
My sweet husband watching the waves.
This house is for lease, you can be next door to Taco Surf, and be able to see the beach. It's a win/win situation!! Happy Anniversary Honey, it's been the best year of my life. Here's to many more!!

Viva Las Vegas, Baby!!!

2011-05-25T15:38:00.001-07:00

If you start to laugh when I say this, just leave me a message on this post so I know who to slap. I went to Vegas and did a 5K.

Ok, so I only walked it, but I did it, nonetheless. We had such a fun time! A bunch of us girls decided to make it a girls weekend, and go down and have some fun...and fun we had! Below you will see the numbers I wore for the race. I figured that if they found a lifeless body lying somewhere along the route, they could take a DNA swab of my sweat off of the back side and identify my body. BUT, I lived to see the end of the race, and it was so fun to be a part of. We can't wait for next year, and by then I hope to be able to run it. We'll see how that goes. It took us 1:14:44 to walk it, so that time should be pretty easy to beat.

We stayed at the Luxor while we were there, and it was pretty nice! It was big enough to be it's own zip code, and really neat looking inside.

Our team name was "Ya-Ya's Racing for the Ta-Ta's".

Here is a bunch of us at the race, wearing our Fruit Shirts.

SAVE THE FRUITS!!!

Notice how they are strategically placed....heeheehee!!

Angela, Yolanda and Julia got a beautiful pink sash for being in the top 100 for the fundraisers. Our team raised a total of $3694.99 for the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. And we're off....

At the end of our trip, collecting our luggage, and wishing we could have one more day. Left to right we are Nancy (my best and cutest friend), Shauna (another best and cutest friend), Andrea (best and cutest friend, and long lost sister), Andrea's sister Corrie (new best and cutest friend), Jacy (my new best and cutest knocked up friend and younger twin sister separated at birth), and yours truely. My other new best and cutest friend Stef is taking the picture. Love you all!!

Someone in our group was too retarded to get their suitcase in all the way. Who does that???Thanks for a fun time girls!!!

Who's been sleeping in MY bed??

2011-05-25T15:12:00.001-07:00

The girls decided they wanted to watch a movie in my room. I'm not sure how much "watching" they did. But they did learn how high you can jump, when on a king size bed! I believe Ali was the winner in that competition.

Ali, Jocelyn, and Ava

Three of my most favorite people!

Sadie's Spring Concert

2011-05-25T15:07:00.001-07:00

I got to go to Sadies Spring Concert, and they were so good! I'm sure it's because Sadie was there leading the way, but that is not confirmed. She even got to play in a quartet, and they sounded amazing. Good job Sadie!!!!

The girls and gymnastics...

2011-03-31T07:50:00.000-07:00

I went and watched the girls do their gymnastics yesterday morning, and it was sooo cute! I got some videos of them, but for some reason this blog will NOT post them. Oh well, can't say that Auntie Julie didn't try!!

This bus has had all of the seats taken out of it, and there is padding on the floor and walls, and this is where they have their lessons.

Here's the girls warming up. You can see Ava working hard at it. She was having so much fun being like the "big" girls. Ali getting a little help with her flip. I think it kind of scared her, but she was liking it more at the end of class. Ava was not interested in doing the flip, but hanging on the bar was pretty fun, and Jocelyn was there to supervise.

Introducing......

2011-03-31T07:39:00.001-07:00

Here is the newest addition to the Merrell Clan...

Gabriel Glenn Born Feb 5th, 2011

Is he cute or what?

Our first little Benson Family Christmas

2011-01-29T00:50:00.001-08:00

On Christmas Eve, we had dinner at my mother in laws house, with Ricks whole family. We had such a good time. Everyone brought a little something, and we ate until we could hardly move. Here is my sweet hubby cutting his delicious meatloaf into slices.

Ah, the kids table. Now that I am 40, I've graduated into the adult section of the room for holiday meals. It's kind of refreshing!
More of the kids table, and for some reason my flash was on strike. This is a rowdy bunch of kids, and we wouldn't trade them for the world!My sister in law Margo, and my mother in law Blondie don't believe in not making every occasion a beautiful one, so here is the adult table. Yes they actually let me sit at it. Truly a year of miracles! Christmas Morning...Can we open the presents now...PLEASE?!?

Sadie grinning at the camera, while Cassie decorates her with a gold ribbon.

Cassie's main present was wrapped by her father. Because she is a BYU fan, it naturally had to be wrapped in UofU paper. She noticed this right off, and made her feelings known.

She then realized she was wearing a BYU sweatshirt, and Christmas was, once again...a success.

Oh please...could it be.....?? An Ipad????

Cassie and Sadie both spent Christmas night with us. We really expected them to wake us up early in the morning, but by 8:45 not a creature was stirring. That clearly meant that they needed to have a wiener dog dropped into the middle of their bed to wake them up. It worked. We opened presents, and I cooked breakfast for everyone, and we had a wonderful First Christmas together. What more can a girl ask for?

Starbuck the Cat

2011-01-29T00:19:00.000-08:00

Starbucks life on this earth holds two purposes...

1. To sit on his cat condo, and make sure that all is well in the Benson household. He also has an eagle eye view of the wiener dog that won't leave him alone.
2. To guard the door against any intruders, that may try to break into our house ad straighten out the tree skirt that he worked on for hours to get it just the way he wanted it. Thanks for your help kitty cat!

Better late than never...right?

2010-10-21T03:21:00.000-07:00

Back in September, Rick took me and Sadie to Ouray Colorado for a few days of relaxation. We rented a Jeep when we got there, and drove around looking at incredible scenery, old abandoned mines, and just enjoying the outdoors. Here's a little of what we got to see...

This is Animas Forks, a cool old ghost town. It was first established in 1873, when people moved into the area to mine gold and silver. the summer population reached around 450 people, but few stayed to brave the harsh winters. Int he 1920's when metal prices fell, the town began it's slow transformation into a ghost town. Sadie had herself convinced that they were haunted....could they be??

This was an abandoned old mine we came across on our way to Animas Forks.

Sadie did a little Mining while we were there, and look what she found!!

My sweet hubby, and the Jeep we rented for the few days we were there.

Beautiful, darling!

The rest of the pictures are just some beautiful places we got to visit while we were gone. Can't wait to go back!

Sunday afternoon, great family, and my favorite little people!

2010-10-21T02:56:00.000-07:00

The spooky headless ballerina

Ali dressed up as a U of U cheerleader for Uncle Rick....he was VERY impressed!

Ava and her Cheeto-orange smile

Jocelyn and Ali posing for the camera...both at the same time...holding still....not blinking.....smiling.......MIRACLE!

I got MARRIED.....

2010-08-09T08:13:00.001-07:00

Soooo, I guess it's been a while since I have blogged about anything. As you can see, I've been a little busy. I sort of got married!!!! It was kind of fast, but I've never been so happy. Rick and I got married June 24th, and he is the sweetest person in the whole world. I know live in Heber, and have 2 step daughters, Cassie and Sadie, that are sooo sweet. I love spending time with them, and we even have Sadie living with us. I'm also a mom to a cat, and Chloe isn't sure about that whole arrangement, but things are getting better every day. They are friends by day, and arch rivals by night. Life is great!!!!!

Reunited....and it feels so gooooood!

2010-06-06T10:04:00.000-07:00

When I flew out to Kansas last year to visit my BFF Conni, we went to the most amazing restaurant. It was called Oklahoma Joes, and it was in the lobby of a gas station. Their BBQ sauce was magically delicious. For my birthday, I got a fed ex package with BBQ sauce, and a tshirt that says "My favorite restaurant is in a gas station" on the back. I hope to make you proud Conni, by using the sauce on some magically delicious ribs, and spilling BBQ sauce down the front of my new white tshirt while eating it! xoxo

My 40th Birthday....

2010-05-27T08:25:00.000-07:00

When I got to work this morning, feeling sorry for myself because I had left my 30's for greener pastures, I rounded the corner and this is what I saw. There was even soft funeral music playing in the background. I love my friends!!!! xoxoxo

UPS Man...... why are you so strange?

2010-05-11T08:23:00.000-07:00

Here is my package, which was put in a garbage bag and then left under my door mat.

But here is my favorite one. Apparently, shrubs serve not one, but TWO purposes when planted in front of your home. Not only beautification purposes, but package camo as well.....

Insulation From Hell....

2010-03-23T01:13:00.000-07:00

I'm not quite sure why all people on the earth weren't born with common sense. I guess for me, it's nothing but job security. I do have to say, however, that there are some people that lack the common sense of a billy goat. Allow me to set the stage....

I had some people knock on my door one day, saying they were in the area looking at the insulation in attics, and seeing if they could help you get more under the Questar rebate plan blah blah blah. So they checked my attic, and naturally, I had about half of what I needed so they scheduled to come back in about 3 days and get it taken care of. In my attic, before the builders put the roof on my house, they put plywood down the center of the attic so there is storage room up there....and storage there is. Rubbermaid totes, Christmas trees, lamp shades, a fan, you know. All of the stuff you don't have room for in your house, it gets shoved into your attic WHERE IT BELONGS! Anywho, I went up to my attic to check out the damage, and.... well, just LOOK at it!! Everything is buried. What the....?!?! Who does this???!?

I used to have luggage....

The pic below actually has a 9 foot christmas tree in a box laying to the sides of the rubbermaid totes. I would also like to add, that where the blue one is, that is actually a stack of 3 rubbermaids!

The fan you see is a Stand fan, not one that sits on a desk.

She is Three!

2010-01-21T00:15:00.000-08:00

Jocelyn turned 3 this week. Time goes by so fast! Here she is at her birthday party, preparing to blow out her candles.

All decked out in her birthday bling, blowing out the candles.

Here is a better view of her rings, and apparently they dont' taste bad either...

Christmas 2009

2010-01-04T02:10:00.001-08:00

Ava coming to grandma and grandpa's

Crawling around getting into things
Jocelyn and Ali opening presents. Ali was so busy that day, that this is actually the only photo I was able to get of her. Better luck next time!

Dad and Derrick

Making a mess...

Kevin picking his nose...as usual.

Jocelyn dressing up in her new stuff.

Hawaii 2009

2009-12-24T11:13:00.000-08:00

As we got on the plane to fly from Arizona to Kaua'i, Michol grabbed the arm of her chair to reposition herself, and promptly ripped a piece of the arm off. Didn't bother us at all that this falling-apart-plane was about to fly us over the ocean for 5 hours....

We were half way through our day of flying when Michol looked down and realized that her shirt was inside out....down and to the left of her finger is the tag that is on the inside. Better luck next time Michol!!
Gazeebo at the Palace
Iolani Palace

Ugliest Pants in all of Hawaii

Two ugliest complete outfits in all of Hawaii.....Looks like the 80's either just arrived on the islands, or it is coming back strong!

Haunama Bay

From front to back: Grandma, Mom, and Dad snorkeling at Haunama Bay

Beautiful Mountains...couldn't get enough of the view!

Valley of the Temples on Oahu

2009-12-24T11:04:00.000-08:00

This was a cemetary that had some amazing views of the mountain side. There were small temples around the property for different faiths. It was a beautiful place.

The Polynesian Cultural Center

2009-12-24T10:12:00.001-08:00

Eye Candy

Grandma Webb

My dad and mom

This strange palm is called a Traveling Palm. When it rains, the water runs down and fills in the little woven part at the base and people traveling around would drink it.

Replica of an Ancient Polynesian Temple

The landscaping is beautiful here

More Hawaii

2009-12-24T10:02:00.000-08:00

This is Chinamans Hat, which is on the east side of Oahu. One of the many beautiful views we had driving over to the Polynesian Cultural Center.

Lai'e Temple

Christus statue in the visitors center at the Lai'e Temple

I tried to get up close to the picture, didn't do a great job of that! (Although this was taken out the passenger side window from the drivers side.)

BYU Hawaii

Hawaiian Flora and Fauna

2009-12-24T09:17:00.000-08:00

I love the palm trees

Plumeria

Hibiscus
Monk Seal on the beach on Oahu

Oahu

2009-12-22T14:34:00.000-08:00

View of Waikiki Beach from our hotel balcony

This was a lookout point on Pali Hwy as we were going to the Polynesian Cultural Center.
Another view from Pali Highway

Diamond Head Volcanic Crater from our hotel balcony

Moms amazing breakfast from our hotel restaurant

Our morning view as we ate breakfast....what a rough life!

Pearl Harbor

2009-12-22T13:48:00.000-08:00

I met my parents and my grandma on Oahu for a week, and we were fortunate enough to visit the Pearl Harbor Memorial. I'm so thankful for that humbling experience. It makes you appreciate our country even more. The day we went was actually the day before Veterans Day, so the flag flew at half staff. I've always loved seeing the flag blowing in the breeze, and feeling a deep sense of pride when I see it. So please excuse the flag pictures, I couldn't resist putting them on here.

Kapa'a on Kaua'i

2009-12-22T13:29:00.000-08:00

My favorite Stephanie in the whole world!

Josh....are those my orange tic tacs??
Heston eating his "after church banana"

Michol taking her Sunday nap

The most expensive milk in the world...I knew you'd never believe it without a picture!

Condo in Poipu on Kaua'i

2009-12-22T12:13:00.001-08:00

This is the bedroom that I stayed in while living in paradise. This bed was amazing!

Our kitchen and living room area in the condo. They left us beautiful flowers to welcome us.

Dinner at the condo. Kathy is fixing something to eat, Heston is looking like a stud, and Megan like a beauty queen. Michols dad is on the right, it's kind of hard to see him, but yes he is wearing a leather jacket in Hawaii.

Landscaping at the condo was beautiful!

This is the waterfall that puts hot water into the hot tub. You can also see my new downs syndrome friend Sarah in the hot tub. I love making new friends!

Dear Chloe-

2009-12-17T21:08:00.001-08:00

Would you, by ANY chance, know what happened here?!?

Her favorite spot lately is hanging out under the Christmas tree. This is what it looks like after she gets it all arranged so she will be most comfy. I guess it's her decorating contribution. Have a Merry Christmas everyone!!

Love this picture of my brothers....

2009-12-09T11:54:00.001-08:00

Country Farm Fest

2009-10-18T04:36:00.000-07:00

My friends, owners and operators of Tricorn Trenchers were doing a booth this weekend, selling their AMAZING chips and salsa at the Country Farm Fest over in Payson. Since it was over there, I went and picked up my niece and took her with me. Ali and I had a great time! This is a picture of Ali sitting next to the giant pumpkins at the Biggest Pumpkin contest. This is the only time I actually got her to look at the camera, and it's half hearted at best!
There was a cat that she couldn't leave alone. The cat was loving her petting it, and vise versa! We had to go back 3 times for her to see the cat.

They also had a little petting zoo you could go into for $1. Big spender I know!! This is Ali petting the calf. She thought he was "so cute"!

Here is Ali petting the goat that tried to eat my shoe laces....

Petting the chickens was a bit of a challenge because they run so fast, but she was actually able to get this one for just a brief second! There is a duck in the back corner, that later was spotted running across the pen, with Ali closing in on him, as she was saying "HUG! HUG! HUG!" He wasn't into hugging so much.

This is where, for a brief moment, she was able to close in on that duck to say "hi".

This bunny rabbit was one of her favorites. She needed to get eye level with him, so here she is sitting in a cow pie (no, I most certainly am NOT kidding about that) so that she could get some real quality time with it.

We had a lot of fun coming to see the animals and to support my friends. It was such a beautiful day. Great ending for the week!!

A worthy opponent indeed!!!

2009-10-11T05:53:00.000-07:00

As you recall, I took all of the items that my sister has been setting up on my kitchen table, and gave them to her for her birthday. That was mid September. I got home the other night, and found one of the items sitting on my table, so I knew she had struck. I cautiously looked around the main level of my house and didn't see anything, so I took my search upstairs and what did I find?

Strung from one wall to the other in my bedroom, she had woven a spider web out of yarn, and taped it to the ceiling, floor, and both walls. It went clear across my bedroom. She had made a black widow spider out of duct tape, and it was hanging from my ceiling fan, and the stupid wedding announcement was stuck in the middle of the web.
I think the spiders eyes are cute!

Ooooohh, black widow. Scary!

How am I ever going to top this????

The saga continues....

2009-09-21T08:02:00.000-07:00

Yes, the wedding announcement is still around, and being passed back and forth. After my mom and sister received it in the bottom of the bowl of jello, my sister made me a cd and left it on my kitchen table. In the cover of the case, I found the folded up wedding announcement. I then laid it in my moms top drawer of her dresser, so when she got up to shower the next day, she found it laying upon her "delicates". I got home from sunday dinner one night, and it was in the bottom of my purse. I returned it by taping it to the top shelf of the refrigerator, so it was hanging it down in their face when they opened up the door. I was then leaving my parents one day, and my sister had folded it up into a small square with tape around it, and she threw it into my car like a chinese star, it hit me in the head and bounced into the back seat, where it stayed for about a week. I would also like to note that in the picture in the previous blog, with the little shrine set up on my kitchen table, I took that stuff down and put it in a bag, and stored it in a closet. I came home MANY times to see that shrine set back up on my table, after Lindsey had stopped to pick up Chloe from my house. Sooooooooo......we celebrated Lindseys birthday this past sunday. I had already given her her birthday present, but I decided to give her something "extra special" while the family was there. She opened the box, and what did she find?? THAT'S RIGHT BABY!!! She got all of the crap from her precious little "shrine", plus her chinese star still folded up and taped in it's little square was taped to the front of the picture frame. HA!
She has vowed vengeance. Is she up to the task??? We shall see!

Execution of Operation 'Jello'

2009-08-10T13:34:00.001-07:00

So, about 2 weeks ago my cousin Dallin got married. The wedding reception was out in Lindon, so my mom, dad, and sister picked me up and I went out with them. When they dropped me off back at my house, this is how the conversation went:

Mom: (handing me the wedding announcement) "Will you throw this away? I don't want it laying around in my car."

Me: "Aren't you going home right now?"

Mom: "Yes"

Me: "Why don't you just throw it away when you get home?"

Mom: "Because I want you to throw it away. I don't want it laying around in my car."

Me: "Um........ok."

So as I got out of the car, I took the announcement, and as I walked passed their car, I dropped it inside the sunroof, and went inside my house. Not without first leaving a smug smile for them to remember me by. I had to go to work the next morning, and I went out to my car, only to find the announcement stuck underneath my windshield wiper. Sooooo, when I got to work, I put it in an envelope, and mailed it to my mother.

A few days later, I get home to see this little shrine set up on my kitchen table. In case you can't read the yellow sticky note, it says "Bring It". This tacky crap sitting around it, and the picture frame it is in, are courtesy of the dollar store....it is NOT stuff I already owned!So, I decided that Operation Jello was about to be executed. I called my mom on Sunday and offered to bring over some Jello for dinner. Delicious Jello might I add, so she was sure not to turn it down. I then put the announcement in a ziploc bag.....

And buried it in the bottom of the bowl. When I got to my moms, I told her that she better stir it to make sure that the fruit wasn't all at the bottom. As she brought her spoon up, the bag emerged. At this point I hear her screaming, "Lindsey she got us!!"

I am patiently waiting to see if they come up with something to get me back, and NO, putting it in my purse so I find it when I get home doesn't count! Although, since I got home and in the bottom of my purse it was, I may have to do something back to them so they are actually in possession of it. Any ideas.....?

I'm So Thankful....

2009-07-31T19:03:00.001-07:00

For a friend that can recognize when I've had a horrible day and for the knowledge of what a little straight shot of sugar can do to boost your mood. Most of all for her willingness to deliver it to me at work, and the hug that came with it.

Love you Alicia!

xoxo

This one totally had me going....

2009-07-03T07:40:00.000-07:00

This is the last time I will make fun of my UPS guy, I promise. He totally had me going this time. I never thought for one moment that something fishy could have been going on with my mat standing straight up in front of my house! Not out of the ordinary at all.

What the......?!?

Happy Fathers Day!

2009-06-22T09:12:00.000-07:00

My brother and I got this new lounge chair for my dad for Fathers Day in hopes that it would be a great addition to his sunday naps......and boy was it EVER!

Happy Fathers Day Dad, you're the best!!

Time it took to find dad the perfect gift=20 minutes.

Cost of said perfect gift=$60

Seeing it used in the manner for which it was intended=PRICELESS!

Seriously?!?!?!

2009-06-22T09:10:00.001-07:00

Stupid UPS guy! This one was at my next door neighbors house, so it's not just something he has against me!

Don't make any sudden movements Mickey!!

2009-06-11T08:29:00.001-07:00

I know the California vacation and Disneyland are a thing of the past, but I got this picture from my sister in law, and I couldn't help but put it on here. I love her eyes!

Super Sneaky UPS Guy....

2009-05-21T22:59:00.001-07:00

Sooooo, I get home today, to see my door mat is missing. I think to myself how strange that is, it's ugly, who would want to steal it?? As I am walking up my stairs, I see something out of the ordinary in my flower bed. Yep, you guessed it. UPS guy has put a package down in the dirt, underneath a water faucet, and covered it with the mat. Does he think that the mat will make it invisible? I hate to break it to you UPS guy, you're not fooling anyone!! WE KNOW YOU JUST HID THE GOODS IN THE FLOWER BED! The sad thing is, this isn't the dumbest thing he has done. I have come home to see a package leaning up against my front door, with the mat leaning up against the front of it. OOOOOOOOOOh, tricky!

I went to the Trace Atkins concert!!!

2009-05-16T10:46:00.000-07:00

Ok, I would just first like to say, that this is not a picture I personally took. On the tickets it said NO photography. The venue held 1,000 people, and there were exactly 999 cameras in there. Guess who didn't have one?

Anywho, he was deeeeelicious! Oh, and he sings great to. A few of us from work went out to see him in Wendover, and he was worth every minute of the drive. I would like to say that at one point in the concert, he came down off of the stage and walked right passed us. I touched his shoulder. I TOUCHED TRACE ATKINS! My right hand (which may never be washed again) will be on display by appointment only. I'm pretty sure he wanted me. Julie Atkins....has a certain ring to it doesn't it?

By the way, Wranger really needs to send him a thank you note for what he does for their levis!

Family Fun!

2009-05-10T11:51:00.001-07:00

I went to Rob and Miranda's house for dinner the other night, and boy was it good! Nothing like summertime dinners. BBQ....fresh fruit.....homemade salsa....deeeeelicious! Jocelyn decided that she needed her very own. Eventually she got sick of dipping the chips, and just drank the salsa from the bowl. We've taught her right!!

Here is Ava, just on the verge of smiling for Aunt Julie. She never actually made it there, but I know she thinks I am the best!

Sorry Kevin....I stole your picture!

2009-04-30T16:35:00.000-07:00

This is a picture that my brother Kevin took at the petting zoo, and I love it. I don't know who is smiling bigger, the goat or Ali?

Little Criminal....

2009-04-28T17:17:00.001-07:00

Lindsey was walking through the metal detector as we went through security at the Longbeach Airport, and she was carrying Ali. Lindsey just happened to be wearing a shirt with a buckle on the front, that set off the detector. Because she was holding Ali, she had to be searched also. Ali was a pretty good sport, and did everything they told her to do. It just looked a little funny to see them pat down a 21 month old girl, and then wand her to boot! I don't even know how her little legs could reach the yellow shoe marks on the carpet!

Back from California

2009-04-28T16:52:00.000-07:00

.....and we had so much fun! The first day we went to the beach and as you can see, we found Ali the beach babe posing for the camera. If her mouth looks like it's covered with sand, that's because it is. She had to taste it, and apparently it wasn't too bad because she did it more than once. She had just as much sand in her hair as she ate.
Day two and three we went to Disneyland. We really lucked out because the temperature had been in the 100's, but the day we got there it was overcast and about 70 degrees, and that's how it stayed the whole time we were there. It was so nice! Here is my brother inside one of the rides. Who's the dip....?

Here is my brother Ryan, his wife Lindsey, and my niece Ali. She was far to busy looking at everything else in Disneyland to make eye contact with me for 2 seconds to take a picture. It was so fun to see her enjoy all of the new sights.

On the fourth day, we went to the San Diego Zoo. It was huge, and quite the workout hiking around to see the animals, but it was a lot of fun. This is one of the two panda bears that we saw.

I am stupid...

2009-04-02T23:06:00.000-07:00

So I got screwing around with my stupid blog tonight, and somehow deleted all of my pictures and contacts. I know, smart! If you don't see yourself on here, please let me know what your blog is! *sniff*

The last of the vacation pictures, I promise!

2009-03-28T19:01:00.000-07:00

This ugly building with the top that looks like a snow cone cup unraveling is the RLDS, now renamed Community of Christ's, Temple/International Headquarters. We went ahead and went on inside. It looked pretty much like a High School inside. Their daily prayer meeting was starting so I went in and had a seat. It was deathly quiet, with only about 12 people inside. We heard 5 gong's that I to this day don't know where they came from, had a strange 5 minute prayer meeting. They pray for one country each day, and that day just happened to be Niger Africa. They read a few facts about it, and it sounded like they came right out of the Encyclopedia, we had a minute of silence, sang a weird song, 5 more gongs, and we were out of there. The service lasted about 12 minutes.It may not be the true church, but they do get credit for promptness!

This is the door on the outside of the Liberty jail. This is also the original wall, and the only one left standing.
This is what is left of the Jail where Joseph Smith and a few others were kept for just a little over 4 months. It was winter time, and I'm sure they froze. How horrible for them. The jailer stayed in the top part, and the prisoners were put in the lower part through the square in the floor. If you look on the right side of this picture you can see how it was built. The inside walls were wood, the outside wall was rock (I believe limestone but don't quote me on that) and the place in between those walls they filled with smaller rocks. That was so just in case the prisoners tried to dig through the wood part of the wall, the other rocks would fall inside and alert the jailer.
This is the final resting place for Joseph, Emma, and Hyrum Smith. After Joseph and Hyrum were killed, they buried the bodies underneath the unfinished Nauvoo House, and then reburied under an outbuilding on the Smith homestead. At the funeral they used empty coffins with sandbags inside to prevent theft or mutilation of the bodies. In 1928, an excavator was hired to find the bodies. He found Joseph, Hyrum and Emma, and they were finally laid to rest here, near the Mississippi River.

This statue is across the street from the Nauvoo temple. The plaque underneath it says this:

"The Prophets Last Ride"

On the morning of June 24, 1844, Joseph Smith and his brother Hyrum left their families, homes, and fellow saints for the last time. Traveling on horseback, they paused on this bluff. Joseph looked admiringly at the unfinished temple and the city of Nauvoo and declared:

This is the loveliest place and the best people under the heavens; little do they know the trials that await them.

Joesph and Hyrum then continued on to Carthage, Illinois, where they faced legal charges and eventual death at the hands of a mob.

More Vacation Pictures

2009-03-28T18:27:00.000-07:00

This was on the main floor of the Carthage Jail. The "wardens" family used this as their living quarters. The room next to it was a holding cell.
This is the place where Joseph Smith was incarcerated for the last time. The window that you see is the one that Joseph Smith went through when he was shot.

This was called the Seventies House. It is located in old Nauvoo, and it's where church leaders used to gather for meetings.
How cute is this??? Potty training was probably horrible back then. There is enough room between the seat and the bucket, that I imagine there was a lot of hit and miss!Here is me and Conni hanging out with our friend Mr. Nauvoo Temple Sunstone. This was from the original temple. There are only a few of them left. This one was outside the visitors center in Nauvoo on display. There is also one in the Smithsonian.

I Love going on Vacation!

2009-03-28T18:08:00.001-07:00

We went to a Jazz Club in Missouri called "The Blue Room", and was it ever fun! We had so much fun. The music was amazing, and I wouldn't have minded bringing home one of the band members as a souvenir.

This is Conni's baby Alina. Not so much a baby anymore. We were pretty good friends by the time I left, and she called me Dewey. The 2 pics below are me and Conni hanging out with the Prophet and his brother Hyrum. This was such a beautiful day and a great experience. In the background is the Carthage Jail. Pretty touching place to be.

This is the first stop we made when we got into Nauvoo. It was a breathtaking sight.

New baby Ava

2009-03-23T00:00:00.000-07:00

Here she is, the newest member of the Merrell clan. How cute is she?!?! It's a little early to tell, but I think I am her favorite aunt! :) She was born Tuesday March 17th, 8lbs 4oz and 21 inches long. We are glad she is finally here!

Jocelyn, the proud sister. She thinks baby "Aba" is so "tute"!

Ava at 3 days old

Ava at 2 days old

I got a new car!

2009-03-11T22:52:00.000-07:00

My Honda was a piece-o-crap, so it's a thing of the past. Here is my new car, and I love it! It's a 2007 Hyundai Tucson 4wd. It's so fun!!

My cute wiener dog!

2009-03-11T22:47:00.001-07:00

My cute Niece Ali

2009-03-11T22:40:00.001-07:00

My niece Ali came to visit me one day, and of course I had to take some pictures. In the first picture she is just being her cute smiley self. In the second picture, she was just being cheeeeesy!

Bad things happen to GOOD people!

2009-03-11T22:12:00.000-07:00

So my kitchen flooded......&^%$#!?!

It wasn't a total catastrophic event, but just enough to make me have a melt down. The pipe under my kitchen sink decided that now was as good a time as any to come apart, and naturally I was running water trying to get it hot enough to wash something by hand, so there was plenty of water to go around! GGGRRRRrrr!! It all turned out ok in the end, but I sure could have done without it!!

Stupid pipe not being connected

Water all over, although the cleanest this cupboard has been in a while!
Here is my junk all over the place. I have a whole new level of organization under my sink right now, was this such a bad thing......?

Merry Christmas to ME!

2009-01-07T16:38:00.001-08:00

Hope everyone had a great Christmas! I got a lot of fun things, but this is one of the things I bought myself. Apparently I was a really good girl! I have been looking for a new table for a while, and decided this is the one I couldn't live without. It's nice and small, but it has small leaves on each of the sides that fold out to make it round. It ended up being a bit bigger than I thought it would be with the sides up, but I love it anyway!

Here are the cushioned seats. I thought I might want to change the fabric to something darker, but I really like the way it looks with everything.

My Christmas tree is up.....that's right, CHRISTMAS TREE!

2008-11-22T07:12:00.000-08:00

Not only that, it's been up since Tuesday November 18th. I just couldn't wait any longer! I got a new Christmas Tree Skirt this year, and it has a cute Santa on it, and Santa has a pom pom for his nose and one on the end of his hat. I no sooner got it wrapped around the bottom of the tree when Chloe ran over, laid on her belly, and proceeded to nibble on Santa's nose. I'm not expecting it to make it through the holidays, but here's hoping!

Here is Chloe's stocking. I put it in the tree to keep it all in one piece.Here is the "star" on my tree. Isn't he cute? I bought a bunch of small sock monkey ornaments last year at Christmas time, and knew he'd like to join them.
This photo is proof positive that I will never be a photographer. Although my tree is cute, notice the "star" on the top? Of course you don't, because I cut it out of the picture!!

Crack Free America

2008-11-20T08:16:00.000-08:00

I propose a crack free America people, and I am NOT just talking about the drug!! I don't know why men working on their cars, size 18 women in size 10 spandex, or men with their boxers and their butt hanging over the top of the waistband of their levi's feel the need to show us the things that should be covered up! If I wanted to see a butt crack, I'd look at mine in the mirror! Please America, either pull your pants up, or your crack down!

Nieces are fun

2008-11-16T09:20:00.001-08:00

Hey Hollywood!

Jocelyn is so talented....bet YOU can't do this!
Ali was completely unwilling to cooperate so I could get a picture of her, so this is her headed after Chloe.

Notice her hair.....it was lovely! We had been playing in a tent, and her hair for the rest of the day looked like she was about to be struck by lightening.

Me and Lindsey got to babysit our nieces for a day about a week ago, and we had so much fun!

Halloweeeener Dog

2008-11-07T13:32:00.000-08:00

Here is Chloe's Halloween costume. It took me a while to get this picture, and she wasn't about to cooperate the slightest little bit so this is the best we could do. I hope she isn't planning to pay me back!

Happy Halloweeeeeen!

2008-11-03T07:02:00.001-08:00

Here are the non party poopers of my family who decided to dress up for Halloween....

This is Rob, Miranda and Jocelyn, what cute little bee!

Cutest little Kitten ever, smeared whiskers and all!
The Pac Man on the right is my brother....or so I'm told.

Magically Delicious!

2008-10-28T21:28:00.000-07:00

See....dreams DO come true!!

This is my brother Kevin, I love this picture!

Conference Weekend

2008-10-04T09:18:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I've had anything to blog about. Life is plugging right along as usual. I finally have all of my stuff put away in my house, and it's clean!! I never thought I'd be able to stay that!

It's conference weekend, and one of my favorite times of the year. I love watching conference. There is such a wide range of topics, and it's so fun to listen to them all. I know this picture isn't exactly current, but it is one of my favorites. I just adore President Hinckley. What a great man he was! He was able to accomplish so much in his life, and represented us well. I'm excited to watch President Monson progress in his calling. Sometimes I feel that it's a shame that the world isn't over-populated with men like these. (Only younger and SINGLE!)

Look what I did....

2008-09-15T09:51:00.001-07:00

I'm finally done with the lower half of my house and up the stairs. The other bathroom and the bedrooms are going to have to wait until I get all stupid again and decide to take on another project. I'm hoping it doesn't take too long, because now my white walls upstairs look pretty boring!

The 3rd picture down isn't all that great, the lighting in my house was stupid and I couldn't get a good picture of it. I'd say that the 2nd picture is pretty much the closest to the actual colors in my living room.....

I am going to be a new Auntie!!

2008-09-05T21:49:00.000-07:00

The new baby is due March 8th.

Is that exciting or what????

I think it's going to be a boy, but what do I know?

I'm sure this smile is because she is thinking of her favorite Auntie Julie!

Go with your gut feeling

2008-09-04T07:02:00.000-07:00

You know when your are going about your day, and as you're doing something you think to yourself 'this isn't going to turn out well'? What is it about us that makes us keep doing whatever it is we are doing, ignore this feeling, and hope for the best?

Monday morning I am getting ready for my day, so I could meet my friend Nancy for lunch to do a belated celebration for her birthday. (...and a shout out to Nancy for her birthday.... Hey girl!!) So I get done putting on my makeup and set my makeup bag on a shelf above the toilet. As I am doing my hair, there is a bottle of hairspray that I need and it's sitting behind the makeup bag. As I am reaching for the hairspray and picking it up, I am looking at the makeup bag, and then at the open toilet, and thinking "this isn't going to turn out well", but does that stop me? NO it does not! As I hit the corner of my makeup bag with the bottom of the bottle of hairspray, and watch it teeter forward (unzipped mind you) and fall upside down in the toilet, I knew instantly that I deserved it. I should have listened to my gut feeling. Swearing did NOT make the toilet seat slam shut and save my makeup's life either. If I would have thought for one second that the items would have flushed down and not clogged the toilet, I would have sent them off to a better place, but instead I had to put my hand in there (gag) and fish the items out. Now that I have taken out a loan to replace all of my makeup (you know how expensive it is), and had my hand in toilet water, I think I've learned my lesson.

Women of Many Names...

2008-09-02T09:43:00.000-07:00

1. YOUR ROCK STAR NAME: (first pet & current car) Sparky Honda
2. YOUR GANGSTA NAME: (fave ice cream flavor, favorite cookie) Rocky Road Butterscotch
3. YOUR “FLY Guy/Girl” NAME: (first initial of first name, first three letters of your last name) Jmer
4. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite color, favorite animal) Purple Dachshund
5. YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, city where you were born) Ann Provo
6. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first) Merja
7. SUPERHERO NAME: (”The” + 2nd favorite color, favorite drink) The Red Cola
8. NASCAR NAME: (the first names of your grandfathers) Leo Melvin
9. STRIPPER NAME: (the name of your favorite perfume/cologne/scent, favorite candy) Dreamsicle Twix
10. WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: (mother’s & father’s middle names ) Webb Ross
11. TV WEATHER ANCHOR NAME: (Your 5th grade teacher’s last name, a major city that starts with the same letter) Beach Beaver
12. SPY NAME: (your favorite season/holiday, flower) Fall Daisy
13. CARTOON NAME: (favorite fruit, article of clothing you’re wearing right now + “ie” or “y”) Grapefruit Pantsie
14. HIPPIE NAME: (What you ate for breakfast, your favorite tree) Shake Quakey
15. YOUR ROCKSTAR TOUR NAME: (”The” + Your fave hobby/craft, weather element+ Tour") The Movie Spring Tour

Me and my bright ideas!

2008-08-27T13:54:00.000-07:00

Now that Hawaii is behind me (*sniff*) I decided to take on a project. Somewhere in my tiny little mind, I decided that my house should no longer be white inside, and that I needed to paint. Instead of buying a gallon of paint and just hitting my kitchen as a small project, I decided to buy 5 gallons of paint and try to do the whole lower half of my house, up the stairs, and in the landing. You know how you can get a hairbrained idea to do something and it seems so do-able before you start it, and then you get in the middle of your project and wish you were dead? Welcome to my world! Here are a few of the "before" pictures, and hopefully before I die, there will be some "after" pictures to post along with them!

Living Room and Kitchen

The city of Kihei in Maui

2008-08-14T13:02:00.000-07:00

Here in the top 2 pictures, you can see the view we had from our balcony in our hotel room. The bottom picture was in front of the hotel looking out over the ocean. Rough life huh? :)

Turtles and Seals....

2008-08-14T12:47:00.000-07:00

Are these little guys cute or what??? On Sunday we went to turtle beach. When we got down near the shore, there were 4 turtles up on the sand, and there were bunches of turtles just swimming around in the water near the shore. It was cute to watch them swim around, and every once in a while you'd see this little head poke out of the water and look around. They have volunteers on the beach to keep people from bugging the turtles too much. It's actually a $2,000 fine if you are caught picking up or even touching a sea turtle. Just south of Turtle Beach a few miles is Sunset Beach, and they had a Monk Seal up on the shore. She had been there for about 3 days just napping in the sun. They say there are propbably only about 1,800 Monk Seals left in the world. They can be a little agressive if you bother them, so when they are on the beach the park volunteers put up yellow tape to keep people away from them.

More Aloha....

2008-08-14T12:01:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday we got up at the very buttcrack of dawn, (3:30 to be exact) and drove to Honolulu to get on the ferry and go to Maui for 2 days. Lets first talk about the ferry. Who invented that thing? It was such a rough ride, I was absolutely green the whole way, and my good friend Lelia was a lot worse off than I was. The ride out was so bad, that it made us dread the trip back. (Although our fear of seasickness made us come up with quite the anti-nausea cocktail, and we did great!) Our main purpose for going to Maui was to drive the road to Hana. Its a 52 mile road that took us about 3 hours to drive due to the fact that the road is very narrow and winding, having 620 curves, 59 bridges-46 of which are one way so you have to take turns crossing. You drive through rainforest's, get to see waterfalls along the way, and there is a black sand beach that we were able to stop at.

Aloha!!

2008-08-14T10:27:00.000-07:00

I'm back from Hawaii, I know you all missed me. We had a great trip!! My friend Lelia and I went to visit our friend Julieanne in La'ie on Oahu. We were there for 8 days, but it seemed more like 8 hours. Here are my partners in crime. Lelia is on the left and Julieanne is on the right. Aren't they cute?? This picture was taken at the Polynesian Cultural Center right before we went to our Luau for dinner. MMMMMM, delicious!

Here to the right is a guy that was passing the sacrament on sunday, then we ran into him again at his work. Quite a change I must say! After watching these students in their performances, you know they love their jobs. They were fun to watch.

Here is a little waterfall at the Polynesian Cultural Center that I thought was kind of pretty. Everything there was so beautiful, it was nice to just walk around and enjoy the landscaping as well as going to the different shows. We got to watch them climb a coconut tree, make coconut bread, and I even learned to dance in the Fiji section.....I'm sure it wasn't a pretty sight.

Thought for the day....

2008-07-19T18:32:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I have written, only because I have nothing interesting to say. When I tell people that 14 days from right now I will be in Hawaii, they just don't seem to want to listen. Oh well, it's still fun to say out loud! I will leave you with one of my favorite quotes...

"Just because someone agrees with you doesn't make you right. It just means there's someone else out there as stupid as you." -- Nathan Reed

Have a great weekend!

Seagulls.....from Heaven or Hell?

2008-07-03T12:21:00.000-07:00

Animals.....God's creation. Some provide us with comfort, joy, warmth, companionship, even unconditional love. They are happy to see you when you get home, cuddle with you on a cold winter night, or are just content to be wherever you are. However, there are others that have a mean streak and I'm quite certain they were part of the 1/3 of the heavenly hosts that choose to follow Satan. I speak of the seagull. I had nothing against the seagull, until July 1st, 2008 at about 8:06pm. Let me set the stage.....

My alarm went off at 5:30. That time of the morning should be against the law. I hit snooze twice because I just couldn't make myself get out of bed. Due to a late shift at BYU, I rolled into bed at about midnight so I didn't get much sleep. I finally got out of bed and had to hurry to leave on time. I got to work with about 2 minutes to spare, and from the time I logged into my computer and took my first phone call, until I left work 10 hours later, we were busy. We had just taken over dispatch for Lindon that morning, so we were a little bit out of our element but not too bad. It was just a busy stressful day. I had to stop and grab some protein shakes at Sams club on my way home, and I knew it would be packed. I was right. It took me forever to get out of there. I finally got home, scrounged up something to eat, then ran and changed my clothes because I had a meeting with the Stake President at 7:00pm. I really had to go to Wal Mart and pick up a few things. As much as I would have rather had a mammogram than gone shopping, I decided that if I didn't go that night I wouldn't have a chance to go again until Saturday, so off to Wal Mart I went. I was working off of a list, so I wouldn't forget anything, and I could just get in and get right back out. No time would be wasted inside that store. I had some sleep that I needed to be getting and I planned on wasting not one minute. Is there anyone out there in the world that has EVER used the self check out line at a store, and NOT had to fight with it? I strongly believe that they have some internal scanner that can detect your stress level, and from there it decides the degree of difficulty you are about to have during your transaction. Every single time I scanned something (and mind you, I probably only had maybe 15 things in my cart) it flashed the 'skip bagging' screen, so I then had to push the 'skip bagging' button and wait for 10 seconds for it to clear and let me continue. Apparently the number of items it will let you push this button on, is one less than what I had, because after the very last item I had to scan it froze up the transaction and then gave me the 'wait for an associate' screen. (Somewhat like getting the blue screen of death on your computer at work.) I learned that the internal scanner that detects your stress level also is the system on which they decide when to send their associates that clear the 'wait for an associate' screen to break. After sitting there for about 5 minutes an associate wandered by, sipping the last of her Mtn Dew and eating her last Frito (typical break food) and cleared it for me, so I was able to continue. I swiped my debit card, grabbed my receipt, and walked out the doors. Finally! I'm on the home stretch, I can almost picture my wiener dog waiting for me at the front door.

As I approach my car I popped the trunk open with my remote in hopes of making a fast getaway. Then it happened... and I actually heard it hit. As I stand there (in clean clothes that I have worn for about 60 minutes at this point) a seagull flies above me, and craps on me as he goes by. It hit the top of my head, splashed (yes I said splashed) onto my arms, and the rest dripped down the front of my shirt and my skirt. Normally I would have been about 4 shades of pissed off at this point, but I just stood there. Frozen in time. Just when you think that your day has been long enough, and you start to see that there is an end in sight, it only takes one little 2 pound seagull to bring you back to reality. Quite a humbling experience I must say.

In the future, I don't believe I will dwell on the fact that my day has been long and stressful, and that I have 20 things to get done after work before I can go home. I'm going to be thankful that I have been able to go one more day without being crapped on. But just in case, I think I'm going to start carrying an umbrella in my purse.....just to be on the safe side.

Me.....from A to Z

2008-06-28T14:31:00.000-07:00

Ok Shauna, here it is.....all about ME!!

This is me from A-Z!

A-attached or single? single, single single!!
B-best friend? Andrea will be ticked if I don't say it's her, but I have lots of great friends!
C-cake or pie? yes please!
D-day of choice? I enjoy Sundays with my family, but any day off of work will do!
E-essential item? gum, lipgloss, and a diet coke
F-favorite color? purple
G-gummy bears or worms? sour gummy worms
H-hometown? Provo, Utah (wow, haven't I made it far??)
I-indulgences? lately, it's been grapefruits....go figure
J-jan or july? I love the 4th of July
K-kids? I have a furbaby named Chloe, she is a 4 year old wiener dog
L-life is incomplete without? laughter, family, and friends
M-marriage date? maybe in 2010? everyone has to have a goal right?
N-number of siblings? I have 3 brothers and a sister
O-oranges or apples? oranges
P-phobias? snakes, spiders, and skunks
Q-quotes? "It's better to keep one's mouth shut and be thought a fool than to open it and resolve all doubt"
R-reason to smile? my nieces, they are the best!
S-season? spring and fall because it's so pretty
T-tag another person? Miranda and Lindsey
U-unknown fact? I'd say how cute I am, but that's no secret!
V-very favorite store? Deseret Book
W-worst habit? eating junk food....but it's so good!
X-x-ray or ultrasound? ultrasound, I've never had one before
Y-your favorite food? grapefruits and kneaders breakfast...yummy
Z- zodiac? Gemini-explains a lot doesn't it?

My First blog....

2008-06-21T13:20:00.000-07:00

My friends made me do this.....seriously! It was under duress, and I had to agree to be a part of this, or they were going to continue to make a blog of me, without me. It's always a good idea to be a part of something I guess, but you will soon find out exactly how boring my life is and wonder why I have one of these in the first place. I'll post pictures of me getting ready for work, driving to work, sitting at work, and the ever popular LEAVING work. If you're really lucky, I'll take a picture of my lunch and post it. Now there is a good time! Stay tuned for more excitement.....