Hannah Banana

My brother and his wife live so far from us and they had a beautiful little girl, Hannah, who we do not get to watch grow up on a day to day basis. He is really good at using Photoshop and sent me these pictures of my niece today. It is so fun to see my brothers and sisters starting their own families. It is so fun to post pictures of each of them growing up and becoming little people. Enjoy the photos of my niece, Hannah Banana.

Help a friend!

I have a long time friend who is in a peculiar situation and I told him I would share his website on my blog in hopes he might find others who would help him out. Please go here to read his story and decide for yourself. I am always willing to help others the best I can and I am sure he would appreciate your help and if you'd like to post his link...the more the merrier.

My little nephew!

I got to go and see my little nephew, Andrew Joseph (Andy) last night. I had to wait until after the kids were in bed and David was home because no children are allowed to be around him until 2 weeks after his regular due date. He is beautiful (or should I say handsome). It's hard to believe my kids were small like that (well maybe not that small). I was even excited to change his diaper- what was I thinking? His eyes were open and looking all around until he was ready to go to sleep again, and even then he fell asleep in my arms. Looove it!!! *But definitely not enough to have another one- I'll let my siblings do the honor in that area. Here are a few highlights.

*paper/embellishments credited to Heather Roselli - you can find it on this site.

The Tooth Fairy

Well here it is another phase of having children- the tooth fairy. He was so excited and wanted to look at his tooth and never put it in a safe place so now it is lost- probably thrown in the garbage--Bummer!!! He wrote a letter to the tooth fairy to explain the circumstances. Hopefully, she (or he) will come anyway. I think she probably won't pay the normal amount. :O

*paper is a free download called "moody blues" at this site.

My new haircut

Well I got a haircut...I have been wanting to do something different with my hair and when you have long hair there is not too much you can do with it - so I cut it! Its not really short but it's short for me. My wonderful hairdresser and dear friend April did it for me. I have actually decided to let my natural color grow out to make my hair a bit more healthy so we are going to put in darker highlights in the next little bit and I actually think I might have it layered a little more. So anyway here is a picture of me with my new haircut. I think it is a little ridiculous I have to take my own pictures but hey at least I have it captured on film.

Andrew Joseph Brown

Gretchen had a beautiful baby boy born:
April 17, 2008 @ 12:24 am.
6 lbs 2 oz - 19.5 inches long

Her water broke the previous morning and there was just no stopping him. He was ready to enter the world. He is actually 5 weeks premature. But yikes! Just as big as any of my kids. A head full of black hair and beautiful skin. I was actually pretty honored to be there during the birth- I got to be the official photographer. Don't worry I stayed away from the graphic stuff. But I must say the room was full of emotion and I found myself holding back the tears. My little sister was having a baby and to see her push so hard to bring this little boy into their family was so heartwarming. Its so hard to believe she and Joe are parents- I still think of them as teenagers dating in high school. I found myself reflecting on those days and realizing just how much they have grown in the 8 years they have been together. They are going to make wonderful parents. They have so much love to give and so much to teach "our little Andy". Congratulation to them - and Much love!!

Trip to Walla Walla

Where is Walla Walla?

This past weekend we went to visit our friends the Marley's in Walla Walla, Washington. We had a fantastic time and the weather - well you can't get much better this time of year. The kids had a blast hanging out, going to the park, watching baseball, water balloons, and just being with each other. The adults had just as much fun catching up, having intellectual conversation and knowing the kids were, for the most part, entertained. The food was fantastic! Chicken Shish kabobs the first night and BBQ Ribs the next. Who can forget the absolutely fabulous brownie delight we had for dessert. We were pampered this weekend and reminded again just how precious friendships are and how important it is to stay in touch- even when the distance seems like so far away. For some reason I have been unable to upload photos so i will post a slideshow and you can see all the fun we had this weekend.

What we did with Bonnie and Rick

So as you can see the slideshow below is of some captured memories from Bonnie and Rick's visit. We had some great fun. Alex was so excited they would be here to come see him practice for baseball season. Rick got here just in time to see him catch a few grounders and Nicholas had fun playing with him at the park. That evening David and Rick, along with our friend Dave Dixon, headed over to Priesthood Session (LDS General Conference for the men) while Bonnie and I, along with Erika Dixon, picked up some pizza and went to hang out with Gretchen for the evening. We had a nice time visiting and keeping Gretchen company and came home to find the men watching Nacho Libre. It was a fun evening! The next day we watched conference in the morning and afternoon and then I packed up the fixing for Egg, Bacon and Tomato Sandwiches and we ate dinner and Gretchen's. Elsa made a great cake to celebrate the April birthday's (Nicholas, Bonnie and Christian). Monday evening David and i went to dinner with Bonnie and Rick (Alex got to come too! For his first "adult" dinner. He behaved well and even took a few of our pictures. It was such a pleasant visit and worth it since Rick was offered the job and they will be moving up here in the next couple months. Yippee!!! We love you bonnie and rick!!!

Bonnie and Rick visit

Reflections

I just saw the most beautiful video of the life of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Reflections of Christ. It is worth every second of the 5 minutes it takes to watch it. I feel I must share it with my blogger friends and family because it truly represents the testimony I have of who Jesus Christ is and the role he plays in my life. I don't speak often of my thoughts on our Savior because in this world we must constantly fear offending someone. However, those who know me, know that the gospel of Jesus Christ is everything to me. Jesus Christ is my savior. He came to this earth to bring us our Heavenly Father's Plan of Salvation. He suffered in agony for the sins of every person who has lived, lives now, or will live. In this one act alone he made it possible for us to repent and have the opportunity to live with our Heavenly Father again, he over came spiritual death. When he gave up his life on the cross and was resurrected 3 days later, he overcame physical death so that we all could be resurrected and have perfected bodies in the eternities. It is through his example we can become like him, if we so choose. Living the gospel of Jesus Christ is work, it is daily recognition that I have so much to learn and to grow but more than that it is the joy that comes from knowing that it is possible to overcome those weaknesses. It is the blessings that fall all around me to remind me that He knows me, He loves me, He wants me to succeed. In spite of all that is happening in this world I know that I can make a difference in the lives that surround me. I can serve others and love others. I can share the joy I have and bring a bit of peace to those who are experiencing difficult times. This is me! This is what drives me. This is what I want my children to know for themselves through my example.
*I'm trying to be like Jesus
I'm following in his ways
I'm trying to love like he did
In all that I do and say.
At times I am tempted to make a wrong choice
But I try to listen as the still small voice whispers
Love one another as Jesus love you
Try to show kindness in all that you do
Be Gentle and loving in deed and in thought
for these are the things Jesus Taught.

* when you follow this link to listen to the song in its full glory click on the option words and music under recorded music and then hit play.
**the picture of Christ is done by Simon Dewey and can be found at this site.

My baby had a birthday

I can't believe it my little boy is 3 years old. He is my most energetic, my most aggressive, my most fun loving child. Each of them have their endearing traits and Nicholas' is playful and full of energy. He has a twinkles to his eyes that catch you off guard and make you want to play with him. When he asks "one more time" you can't help but say yes. We still ask him how old he is and he holds up two fingers and says "two" and we remind him that he is 3 now. Since he is my last i think i enjoy his birthdays because i won't celebrate another 3rd birthday. i am definitely ok with that but it makes me reflect a little more. I hope you like the pictures.

* the paper/embellishments can be found at this site, called "Urban Kiwi"

Point Defiance Zoo

I did it again! I went out of my way to do something other than stay around the house during breaks from school. It did help that the weather was absolutely spectacular. So- we called a few friends and invited them to the zoo. It was a great day for it and the kids loved picnicking in the park with their friends. We took a few pictures while we were there so our friends and family can keep up with the happenings in the grover household. I hope you enjoy the pictures as much as we enjoyed the zoo.

*paper/embellishments are free downloads found at this site, called "vintage florals"

Gretchen on bedrest

Well-My little sister is due with her first child- a little boy- at the end of May. Last week I received a call from her telling me she was in the hospital in pre-term labor. YIKES!! How scary- here I was in the midst of planning a baby shower for before the little one is to arrive and now it looks like it will be after he arrives. Anyway- i wanted to go see her in the hospital but she said they would be letting her go home on strict bed rest so instead we headed over the next day. What a strange day too! Here we are at the end of March and we were watching the snow fall for hours. Alex was at school but Natalee and Nicholas were there to make Aunt Gretchen feel loved! Here are a few of the pictures we took.

Murder Mystery Party

The Baxter's invited us over for an evening of mystery dinner party! We had a great time! David and I did our best to dress the part and took some pictures of ourselves trying to be serious and act our part. I thought i would scrap those pictures of course pictures were taken at the party and when I get those I will share with you who actually did the killing until then...do we really look like we could kill someone?

*paper/embellishments called "dinner party" are available at this site.