This is the place

I went to the temple today. Some of you may not know what that is, but I'm sure you've seen or heard of them before. I had the blessed opportunity to go the the Provo Temple. My wonderful husband watched our kids. And I remember feeling and thinking the entire time I was driving. . . I really don't want to be doing this right now, I mean I could be napping, orrrr playing that one game. Jennifer listen to yourself. YOU think napping or playing a stupid game is a better use of your time? Hmmm... yeah. Going to the temple is much more important than almost any excuse I could make.

You know those days when you have something you really don't want to do, but you know afterward you won't regret it. EVER. Some really simple examples for me in my life. Exercising- I hate exercising, but I always feel SOOO much better afterward. I never think; Gee that was a waste of my time. Same for going to church. Our church has just changed their time to 9 am. Yeah, I know! That's NOT that early. BUT for me, I still look like a ghost at 9 am. Some Sundays, if not almost all- I think to myself. I really don't want to get up. My bed is warm. Just let me sleep some more. But I never regret going to church. That is how it is for the temple. At least that is how it is for me. I usually do not feel like going, but I know afterward that I will be glad that I did. 

I am just so glad the temple is a close as it is and that the sessions are 20 minutes apart. If I barely miss one, the next will be soon, which is such a relief. I don't have to take a weekend off to attend a session or drive 1/2 hour or longer to get there. I don't have to entirely concern myself with leaving on time. I can go almost whenever I feel like it.

My New Year's goal this year was to go to the temple at least once a month. So far I'm right on track! I hope this is one resolution I won't forget about.

I wish all of you could be in a session with me. That would make me so happy. It is such a beautiful feeling and experience. I saw three people I knew at the temple today and it made me so happy to see them there.

I asked my Mom a few days ago to see if she could scrounge through some of my picture books for a specific photo of me as a child. And I'm SO glad she found it! Because I had to relay to you the familiarity the scene my son created when he walked down the stairs with a pen covered belly!

Me- early 90s

and Ayden 2010!

Naturally I was the more overzealous one.... either that or we caught Ayden quicker than my Mom caught me. Whatever the case may be, I think we're both pretty happy with ourselves!

Rock Band

McKay and I are experiencing some financial adjusting what with me going back to school and staying home with our kids. So in order to celebrate, he went and bought with some money he's saved up, Rock Band 2 for our xbox! Most of the games we purchase for the xbox are games like Left 4 Dead 2, Call of Duty 4 Modern Warfare or Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 which are games that I reeeeaaaaalllly don't play. So having a game around that I may actually play when I have time is SO exciting!! Although Rock Band can never measure up to my Super Smash Bros. or Mario Party. Be that as it may, I am not the only one stoked about our new game. The boys are going crazy for this game! And I'm talking about the 1 year old and the 2 1/2 year old. . . they in fact are interested in a completely different aspect of it though.

The packaging!

Ayden thought this was pretty hilarious. 

Ethan on the other hand. . . 

did not.

So we turned it on its side and made it a tunnel.

Much more fun for everyone!

Even Mommy joined in the tunnel fun. No photos of that. Sorry folks.

BYUs Decision

I started the application process to BYU around Halloween last year feeling ready to learn and ready to be back in school. It was a slow process and I wasn't really in any hurry to make it to a specific deadline. It took me until the beginning of 2010 to completely finish the process. Needless to say I have been nervous about their decision ever since I turned my application in. The first time I applied, I did not get accepted. Maybe my essay just wasn't good enough, seeing as it was a copy from one of my scholarship essays. haha Or maybe there were other reasons I wasn't accepted. I have come to feel that if it had been me that had been accepted to BYU and McKay to BYU-I, that our little family would have suffered financially, even more so than we do now; because yes we still are poor students. :) The job market here in Provo is much wider than in Rexburg and I would have moved up to Idaho to be with McKay, if that's where he was going to school. But instead we were able to move her because he was already here.

Anyway- after many nervous days when the BYU application popped into my head, I have finally been given an answer.  

AAAAAANNNNND, I have been accepted to BYU!!!!!!!!

About dang time!

Many faces

Ethan has many faces. Let me demostrate.

These ones I don't think I've posted before.... and the next ones I have.

Talk about personality! I love boys! They are waay too much fun! I might be okay having all boys for the rest of my life. Ethan never fails to entertain me. He just learned what a camera is around Christmas time and does that cheesy face you see as the first picture! Getting stretch marks and losing my personal time for this was and IS totally worth it! They are the love of my life, aside from my magnificent husband of course. Oh and sorry for the funky spacing. Its because of how the photos are arranged. I figured that most and hopefully all of you following this are intelligent people and can figure it out! :)

Office Politics

This subject has been on my mind lately. And I'm sure that my words won't exactly be polite, because in all honesty; I detest office politics. There are a few things that stick out the most to me.

Sucking up! You have to do it and you have to do it right!: If you don't suck up to your boss then you most likely will not go anywhere within the company. If you suck up to your boss and it looks fake, then he/she hates you, because you look fake. . . even though most the other people are sucking up too, you're just the one that doesn't look convincing at it.

The office rat, there's always one... or two.... or three: Why they feel obligated to rat on their fellow co-workers is a mystery to me! With my working history I have never felt it my duty to tell on people that aren't following the rules. Yes I'm going to get specific here. One place I worked didn't allow internet usage. I never found myself morally obligated to tell on people when they got on the internet- if I had I'd be telling on practically everyone- including myself! But there was always that one co-worker that just HAD to tell the boss when he/she saw something against the rules. This one could also be categorized at the "teacher's pet". No one likes the "teacher's pet", so would you please get off the floor and stop licking your bosses shoes.

I'll be nice to your face, but behind your back I'll be trashing you: Cue the picture!

yeeaaah. . . I don't know how often men do this, seeing as I'm not a man. But I know women do and I know women I have worked with have trash talked me before. "Why can't she just listen?!", "Why can't she just do what you tell her and not argue?", "Why is she so rude?. . . oh.... hey Jen! Its good to see you!" Maybe I'm just an awful person, but if you disagree with something I'm saying, then say it to my face. I've only had one person I can think of that has actually disagreed to my face and I respect her more than anyone else I've ever worked with. The people that are usually talking about one person behind their back, are usually doing it behind a lot of people's backs. How is anyone supposed to trust you when they hear you trash talk someone?

Oh we must not forget those people that make themselves look good by making other look bad: I had a boss once that would blame her employees for her mistakes. We would take her instructions and follow through and if she forgot something and we didn't follow protocol; she would tell her boss that she told us and we just didn't follow the rules... aaand then we'd get in trouble. Well that's just a crap shoot of a deal.

Oh and if you didn't already know, you're nothing but a little peg/bug/nothing to a company: They don't give a crap if you're a single parents, or if you have a family to care for, or if you're husband or yourself is sick. If they know they can't get sued or that you won't sue, then they'll most likely fire you if you've lost your value to the company. Which I need to remind you is probably zero anyway. There is nothing close to 'family business' in companies any longer!

They want money, money, money, money! They don't care about the people involved that help them get the money. When I actually get into my career, I will be saying sayonara to large companies.... at least I PRAY I will get to do that.

The ohhh so famous double standard: Do as I say, not as I do. Hmmm... Ok, so you're saying that we're not allowed to do this or that, but because you're above me in the company you can, because you're more privileged. Or because you've earned the 'right' to. Example: No one gets to be on the internet, but because I'm your boss. I can get on anytime and you can't call me on it, because, well I'm your boss... or No going past your break time, 10 minutes only! That's all you get! If you go beyond that too many times, even by a minute; I'm going to have to write you up. I'm going to hate it, but I have to. Its my job. *suure, so why do you sometimes leave an hour early? Or don't come back after and hour or longer?* How does a boss expect to gain respect when they can't even follow the rules they've given out. Even if they don't pick the rules, they should still follow them. You want respect, then don't ask your employees to do anything you don't want to do.

And last of all, at least of all that I can think of at the moment, here is a cartoon that perfectly demonstrates one of the MOST annoying things I sometimes feel I get sucked into:

The End. Buh- Bye.

Birthday Bash!

Its been a year. I cannot believe its been a year since Ethan was born. It feels like he should still be this little quiet baby that sleeps on our couch and gets knelt on because he looks like a pile of blankets. He shouldn't be walking and pointing to the lights when we ask where they went. He shouldn't be going up and down the stairs or eating what we eat! Has it really been a year? Wow.

Well to celebrate his first year of birth we had a quiet party with just us.... aand grandparents if you count skpe as attending. :) He was sung to lots of times and just stared off into space most likely wondering what we're saying. Ayden was pretty thrilled about hearing the birthday song though. He wanted it to be his birthday too.

Ethans' Great Grandma stopped by in the evening and dropped off a present for him. The entire time she was here, Ayden was sitting at the table staring at the birthday cake, which he'd already actually dug his fingers into for sampling purposes. He kept telling us to sing the birthday song so we could eat the cake.

Ethan is certainly very loved. He had a card and gift from his Great Grandparents, the Esplins. His GGPA Kunz stopped by to drop a gift off and played for a bit with the boys, which they always love! And he was able to see his Grandparents and Aunts and Uncles who wanted to wish him a happy birthday and watch him open the presents they sent to him. Which in reality, even if he received no presents, he was in good company and had the attention of people that care for him, which is what really matters.

Here are some photos of the celebration. They're basically of him dominating his birthday cake and of Ayden helping him. :)

Happy 1 year Ethan.

Prepping for the blowing out of the candles.... which Ayden did for him. We asked him to help is brother and he was more than willing to oblige.

and it begins...

Ayden was all up in this cake and getting a photo with just Ethan in it was next to impossible.

We opened one of Ethan's gifts and there was party hats in it!

Feel free to interpret what he's thinking there.

Favorite photo of the night!

If you haven't been noticing, the cake in each shot has gradually become more destroyed. Both the boys ate or hid the entire cake. It was a disaster. At one point Ethan was trying to lick the platter and Ayden stuffed his arms and elbows into the cake.

Here you can see 'some' of the mess. What you don't see is our table with cake on it. The computer desk with crumbs on it. My kids covered in cake! etc. It was scary filthy!

The cake is gone.... yes those two little boys ate it all! And one suffered from a crazy sugar high!

Sugar Junkie aaaaand Ethan.

I have been in a chocolate mood lately. Specifically chocolate milk, BUT McKay went to Costco about a week ago and bought me a $16 chocolate heart attack in a cake! Little did I know. that Ayden was ALSO in a chocolate mood.

So a few days ago when we left Ayden alone for maybe 2-3 minutes he scurried over to the counter and dug his little hand into the corner of my cake! I didn't even know he was TALL enough to reach the cake. If I had, I would not have put it in that corner.

Naturally Ayden was thankful for my oversight and did not hesitate to take advantage of the situation.

Look what I did Mom!

Wait... you didn't want me to do that?!

Hmmm... maybe I shouldn't have made such a mess, then she may have neeeever known and I could still be eating chocolate cake!

Ethan on the other hand was so fed up with life at our house that he decided it was time to make out on his own.

Well forget that. My diapers' full and I'm hungry.