so, a few weeks ago, a wonderful friend came to spend the weekend with us. she asked if i would take some pictures of her and her cute little boy.

enter my thought process: me? take pictures? of other people? for real? yikes. my oh-so-not-professional camera stinks. ok, really it’s not equipment malfunction. it’s operator malfunction. me taking a good picture seems more like an accident than a regular occurance.  just pray that one will turn out so she won’t think i’m a retard.

of course i didn’t tell her that i was totally freaking. but hey, i figured no worries…you get what you pay for right? 🙂  so after some attempted osmosis from the school of tara whitney, i hoped some talent would wear off on me. hah, more like fake it ’til you make it.

so without further self-bashing, i’ll show you the results. and you know what? not bad. not bad. (i’m secretly so excited i can hardly stand it)

reb, you’re beautiful!

this one’s my fave.

check out the rest here.

wayne’s baptism. february 25, 2006.

i feel priviliged, honored, and blessed to know a man such as this. how could we have known that our first aquantaince would allow us to be part of this…a true change of heart.

we first met wayne a little less than a year ago. karin, a friend in our ward, brought him along to bring us dinner when ella had pneumonia. he seemed like a great guy. funny. happy. a lot like jeff. oddly enough, after they left, jeff realized that wayne worked at one of his doctor’s offices. small world. and so it began.

we loved getting to know him better this past year. he is a man of faith. he always has been. he was a devout member of his church–even recorded gospel music and invited us to attend one of his congregation’s live recordings. we’re talking hallelujah, amen bruthah, raise-the-roof worship here. and you know those people can sing. honestly, i didn’t think wayne could come to our church, sing our hymns, and listen to our glorious ward choir without wondering  where the "real" music was. (side note: i’m a member of our ward choir. yo, baby!)

he did come. he did wonder where the "real" music was. but he kept coming back. 🙂

thanks to karin, wonderful missionaries, an amazing love from ward members, and an incredibly powerful fireside and testimony of gladys knight, wayne felt the spirit. strongly. he knew how to recognize that spirit teaching him truth. he chose to follow those promptings and be baptized.
i’ve never been to a more powerful baptism. ever!  the chapel was full. so much support. so much love. so much happiness.

he shared his testimony today in our sacrament meeting. moved me to tears. made me smile. made me grateful for my opportunity to feel the joy of missionary work here and now. who would have thought it could get even better than my experiences serving in spain? it can! it does! and it will!

truly i can say, "how great shall be your joy!"

ella,

you are beautiful! should you ever have moments in your life when you doubt this–you must know how you have captivated so many by your beauty. as we walk down the streets here in mexico, we are surrounded by whispers and comments of

aye, que hermosa.

que preciosa.

mira los ojos.

tan bonita es ella.

you draw these people to you. we hear it constantly! you turn heads. you bring smiles. you exude happiness, goodness, and beauty.

may you always draw people to you because they can feel that goodness. be an example. be kind. be hermosa y  preciosa always.

–tu mamacita

2.19.06

i absolutely, positively could not wait to play with the pictures i took of ella on our trip to mexico.  taking her with us was worth it just to get these shots. more to come. oh yes, much more to come. 🙂

is paved with rocks and twinkies…

that’s what i’m feeling like right now. like major overconsumption of twinkies!  unfortunately that’s one of the ways i cope with stress. eat. eat. eat. then eat some more.

for the first time in years, i bought a box of twinkies. and, well, i must admit i’ve eaten a few. stress is abounding in our lives right now and that blasted fat-filled, processed puff of sugar has found its way into my life.

so, we put an offer on a house on monday, then received a counter offer. we’ve countered back and now we’re just waiting…waiting…waiting.
it’s a really beautiful little neighborhood.  it’s the bella vista community right next to valencia high school. cute house, great floor plan, end of a cul-de-sac. we’ll see.  trying not to get my hopes up. i’ve done that before and was utterly devastated. don’t want to make that mistake again.

no bites yet on our house. i can’t help but think people are crazy for passing this up! 🙂 but, of course, i am learning patience and faith. patience and trust. patience. and paaaaaaaaaaaaaatience. hopefully i won’t have to eat too many twinkies before things work out. i’d hate to be found comatose because i overdosed on those little lumps of lard.

i am convinced it doesn’t get better than this. well, maybe only slightly. let me explain…
jeff is out of town. ella is sick AGAIN. dallin is coughing. and i’m hanging in there.

but i’m so not alone. i am surrounded by some of the most genuine, caring, and true friends that can grace your presence. it’s amazing to me that they are all in one place. oxnard. odd isn’t it? i was so afraid to move to this dreadful place. or so i thought. this is where some truly elect people have gathered. if only i could bottle them up and take them with me wherever i go.

today is MJ day. and MJ, you know who you are. i am celebrating you today. i am celebrating your presence in my life. you are strong and faithful. beautiful and kind. talented and wise.

she showed up on my doorstep this morning with tulips. ahhh…yes, tulips. with friends like that and tulips like these, it definitely can’t get any better than this.