Happy 30th, and 6th b-day!

December 29th.



Today was always just my little sister, Caitilin's birthday. That was until she decided to get married, and have two boys - one of which was born on her birthday; coolest birthday present ever I'd say!



Now, it's Caitilin and Ryan's birthday. And oh! How I love these two people. I mean, I love every member of my family, but I wanted to spotlight these two in honor of their Birthday.

Caitilin is 30 today!! She was born 28 months after me. I don't remember her being born but I'm sure I was happy, unlike Erin, who wanted to "throw her out the window". That's a funny story.

Caiti and I were always close growing up. Since I was the oldest of the youngest four she and I always shared a room. We shared the same bed for the longest time until Jr. High when my parents thought it would be good for us to have our own beds, daybeds. It was a good day.



Caitilin was always the mother figure growing up. She was always taking care of everyone, and she loved to cook.

We hung out all the time, worked at chick-fil-a together, went to NKOTB together, she even bought my ticket to see the Backstreet boys.

While I was on my Mission Caiti (19 at the time) met and married a good man, Kurt Summerhays. She was the first of the siblings to get married. I met Kurt when he came to Chile with a friend. I still remember the phone call saying that he had a package for me. I had no idea who this dude was but he just happened to mention that he and Caiti were dating. WHAT?! Caiti never told me this!! Yeah, it was a surprise, but a good one. I sent Kurt home with a package for my family, and a letter to Caiti saying that I approved. After I met him I knew they would get married. He was perfect for her, and still is.

I remember asking my Mission President if I could call home to talk to her before she got married, he denied my request but said "she won't remember the whole conversation over the phone, but she'll cherish a letter more". I was bummed, but I knew he was right.

Even though she is younger then me, she feels like my older sister because she's so mature. I always go to her for advice and for comfort when I need it. She's a great listener, a great friend, sister and especially a great Mother.

She's got these two amazing boys, Gavin and Ryan. Love them both so much!!

Ryan cracks me up! He's the younger of the two boys. He acts so much like his mom. When he tries to help Gavin do the right thing he'll say it in a tone that she would use, and words she would use like, "make a good decision Gavin!".

He and Caiti need to have their own cooking show. I mean this kid is 6 years old today and reads cook books to his mom. He's so smart, he and Gavin both are amazing boys.

Here are some fun videos and pictures of the two of them.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY CAITI & RYAN. Love you so much!!

Ryan sleeping

Gavin and Ryan in Asheville, NC

Ryan & Gavin looking out the window in my house

The Ryan and Caiti show!

another early gift

My parents got me this to play on my new piano. Man oh man am I LOVING it!...and yes, the piano too. :)

SINGING CHRISTMAS CARD

Hey everyone,

This is my brothers website, and offering FREE Singing Christmas cards on TUESDAY the 15th ONLY. Get ‘em while you can!!!
-Shannon


Merry Christmas, friends and family!

Some of you know that I recently launched a website called SingingChristmasCard.com On that site, over 250 personalized Christmas songs are available to send as an e-card, instantly. Normally, the cost of sending one is $5.95. A pretty good deal if you ask me!

But I've got a better deal for you... and all your friends... and all their friends, and so on. This Tuesday, December 15th 2009, for one day only, all 250+ of my personalized Christmas songs will be FREE to send. Yep, FREE! There's no special code to enter, no membership to buy, nothing like that. This is one of those rare times when free really means FREE!

Send as many as you like, tell your friends and relatives to send as many as they like. Forward this email to everybody you know! Blog about it! Twitter about it! Make it your Facebook status! Send a mass text! Get the word out! I want everyone in your circle, and everyone in their circle and beyond to take full advantage of this!

Wishing you and yours the best this Christmas!

Shane Curran
SingingChristmasCard.com

"I'm yours"...

This is so dang cute! And man, this kid can sure play the Uke.

Happy Saturday!

Early Christmas gift

I am still in shock, I'm speachless! Tonight Ryan came home and told me that this will be delivered to our house on Saturday. Are you kidding me?!


I cried. Oh yes I cried.

I have the best husband. I don't tell him enough how great he is. Thank you, Ryan! I love, love, LOVE YOU!!!

*this is the exact piano, except in Mahogany. Ooohhhh...ahhhh!!!

Vay-cay??!!

In my mind this would definitely be considered a vacation even though it would be work, work, work. Ever since hearing about the opening of this from Ryan, I have wanted to go. You can make it a week long event or a full month. I would go for the full month if I could. It would cost a pretty penny, but would be soooo worth it! Anyone want to help donate?

I mean look at everything you do on a single day...


*Fitness and Exercise*

Immerse yourself in a variety of indoor fitness classes in our gymnasium and aerobics room with Toning, Circuit Training, Indoor Cycling, Tai Chi, and Yoga. Or take the opportunity to experience an outdoor activity like Water Aerobics, Outdoor Mountain, or Road Cycling.

Sample of our daily schedule:
6:00 am - Open Gym or Class
7:00 am - BreakfastStretch
8:00 am - Hike / Walk
11:30 am - Water Aerobics
12:45 pm - Lunch
1:15 pm - Education Series: Cooking Demo
2:30 pm - Kickboxing
3:30 pm - Circuit Training
4:30 pm - Stretch
5:30 pm - Dinner
6:15 pm - Education Series: Intuitive Eating

*Schedule has seasonal changes Other Classes during the week may include: * Total Toning * Cardio Circuit * Living Drums * Step-n-Pump * Ball Works * Core Strength * Treading

For your enjoyment...

Monday during work my younger brother, Conn, came to my desk and chatted with me (we work at the same place). He played a song for me that he had recorded the night before. If you've ever heard him sing you know how amazing he is. The song almost brought me to tears because I was so proud of him.

Well we got talking and I told him how much I wanted to record a song with him. He agreed and we got things going. We went to my parents house that evening and went into my brothers recording studio he had built in my parents basement. We found a karaoke version of, "Baby it's cold outside", printed out the lyrics and away we went recording.

I've never recorded a song before, so this was new to me, but very exciting. We recorded the first take of it and liked how it sounded but decided we needed to play it up a bit more and really have fun with it.

Click here for the final version of "baby it's cold outside" (and yes that's me laughing and shouting at the end...that's how fun it was!)

Lesson

I learned a very valuable lesson yesterday in Church.

One of the last speakers talked about living the spiritual life and living the material life and how if you try to live the two you'll have more trials. When you live the spiritual life you'll still have trials but they'll be much easier to go through. We can't try to live the spiritual life while soaking our feet in worldly things.

Not that I've been basking around in sin or anything like that but I certainly haven't been doing what I need to do to be living the spiritual life.

I have found that I spend more time on the internet then I should. I play more games on facebook instead of spending more time with and talking to my husband. I sit there and watch TV, while also on the internet, instead of getting up and moving around; exercising, reading my scriptures, practicing my guitar/violin/piano.

I have wasted so much of my precious, delicate life doing mindless things for entertainment. Not even giving a second thought at what I could be doing that is better.

I have been given talents that I don't use, and body that I let become sedentary, a brain that I don't exercise.

I'm grateful for these lessons and for the realization that my life is worth so much more.

15 minutes of fame

So, I was at my parents house the night before Thanksgiving.

As I was sitting there chatting with my Dad and my brother Conn in the living room, my Dad's says "whoa...listen to this.." and proceeds to read a portion of an article in the newspaper regarding my amazing-athlete-of-a-nephew, Kalin's, new placement on the Mountain View Bruins Varsity Basketball team. (Yes, that's right. He's playing on the Varsity team as a freshman. Crazy! They cut a senior to put Kalin on the team. I feel bad for that poor Senior.)

Here's part of the article that was found in the Daily Herald...

"This year we've got a different make-up," Gardner said. "We've got to make the best of what we've got and have to make sure we're successful fundamentally."

The Bruins will have an exciting wild card to play this season. Freshman Kalin Curran, a 6-3 wing, has been eyed for a while by Gardener's staff and is now eligible for varsity minutes. Curran will likely be gradually slipped into the lineup as the season progresses.

Gardner hopes with a new roster and a preseason schedule to get rolling, Mountain View can compete for a spot in the 4A playoffs.

"It's going to take some time for guys to get a feel for what we're doing and the level of competition," Gardner said. "Our big thing is we want to play our best basketball in January, February and the first part of March."

GO KALIN!!!

Prayers

This little angel is having a tumor removed from her brain this morning. Please pray for her. Her parents are our neighbors and good friends.

morning surprise

Here's what my awesome agents did to my desk area this morning. I This is what happens after moving to a different floor in our building, and having a whole bunch of empty moving boxes.

It was actually pretty funny and I had fun with it.

Create

Wow! I love this video. Isn't it amazing how something can touch us so deeply, and I believe that when it does then that means the spirit is telling us something.

I read a certain blog often, by a family friend. Each year she studies, ponders and prays about a specific word or short phrase that she will work on for the year. Each year is a new word. Reading her blog makes me want to be up for the same challenge. It's definitely something that I could use to better myself.

This video sparked that word for me: CREATE.

This one word can mean a lot of things I'd like to do.

But a few things come to mind when I think about CREATE. (in no particular order)

Creating more peace in the home, starts with me.

Creating Healthier Living

Creating more love in the home - and a love for others.

And someday creating a life.

There are a lot more things I'd like to create and hope to do that now and in the next years to come, but for now I think I'll stick to the above. Baby steps.

Not mine...

...but a dang cute kid! I just have to share this picture because I love it. I took this picture of Phoenix a few weeks ago, and finally got them posted on my photo blog. Check out the rest!

What to do?

I need some advice.

The job that I have is a Manager position where I am over 60+ call center agents, and 5 supervisors. I love my job. However lately it is weighing heavily on me.

I'm the one people go to when they need to vent. I'm the one people go to when things aren't going right. And I'm the one they expect to have all the answers to and fix it.

But I don't have all the answers, and I don't always know how to fix things.

I constantly feel that negitive energy of people complaining ALL the time. I take it home with me, and I shouldn't.

When people are negative I do all that I can to not give into it and help them see the positive side of it. I have even told people to grow up, be an adult and deal with the situation as an adult (but in a much nicer way - although I do just want to let it out and not beat around the bush anymore, but I fear I'd get in trouble).

Those who have issue with others I have told to stop coming to me to complain, but rather talk to the person and work it out.

Oh, the drama! It's exhausting me!

Even this morning one of my pregnant friends came up and told me how aweful their mother-in-law is, etc, etc. Seriously! I just finished working out, I feel great, don't bring me down!

How do I tell people this? I don't know how because that's part of my job; to help people and resolve conflicts. But, seriously...does it have to happen ALL THE TIME!!?!?!

FALL!!

I had taken these pictures a while ago after a photo session in the Provo Canyon. Now that my computer is FINALLY up and running and running right - I'm now getting these on here.

Definit & Young Sim

If you haven't heard these guys you really should! This is my younger brother Sean and his buddy Simeon; they make some amazing music together. You can check them out at itunes.

*picture taken by moi.

getting sucked in

Why do I do it? Am I THAT desperate for money that I would risk my health, gamble my own money to try and win? I never thought of it as gambling but in a way it is, and I don't like that.

I mean honestly the odds of winning are like 1/1,000,000 or more. Why do I think I will win?! The truth is, I probably won't so I need to stop trying. It's not doing me any good.

I mean think about it. They tell you that in order to get a few game pieces you need to order a LARGE drink, LARGE fries, 10 or 20 pack Chicken Nuggets, Hashbrowns, etc. People, including me, are risking their health for some stupid game pieces that will have no use to them. Again, I can say that because I've been doing it. Grrr...why do I get sucked in!

Think of all the money people are spending just for a chance at winning big. It's sad. Reality has hit me and I'm not playing anymore.

Yeah, I'm talking about this...

ta - da!

There aren't that many pictures of me and Ryan. Why? Well, he doesn't like having his picture taken and I don't like the way I'm looking the majority of the time, so we never take pictures of us. We're always the ones behind the camera.

While at Mabey's Pumpkin Patch last week our friends got this shot of me and Ryan together. I think it's the first we've had in a few years. Sad, I know. But I love this picture!

one more...

...along with the fun colored pumpkins at Mabey's, they also had fun shaped pumpkins. This was one of them. Just think of the fun things you could make out of it.

An Alien
A Skull & Cross bones...

Isn't Ryan cute!

Shopping for pumpkins

Last week Ryan and I went with our friends, and neighbors, the Fromm's, to a pumpkin patch in South Jordan. Mabey's Pumpkin patch.

Silly me forgot to bring my camera. (I stole Lindsey's pictures from her blog)

I know! What kind of photographer am I?! I need to get a smaller one so I don't have to haul my big one everywhere. But I really wish I would have brought it. It was a beautiful field full of all kinds of pumpkins.

Red, white, green, orange, and itty bitty striped pumpkins. So cool!

As soon as we got there we took a few pics of each other and then climed on the tractor for a hay ride around the field. Coleson loved it! (he's the cute little dude sitting on my lap.)

Then it was time to get the wagon that Coleson pulled and pick out our pumpkins. We ended up getting a couple bigger ones and a whole bunch of little ones all for $10. I highly recommend everyone going there.

All in all it was a great night. Especially ending it with a few games of 'Rummicube'.

Good times! Thanks Fromm's! You guys are the best!

Brian, Lindsey w/Amelia, me holding Coleson, and Ryan.

Coleson so proud of his wagon! Me in the background checking out a pumpkin.

Lindsey took this beautiful picture while we were on the hay ride.

Our loot!

GRRRRR!!!

My hard drive crashed last week. Gosh! I'm frustrated. I've got people looking at it, and thanks to my brother Shane who was able to come to the rescue to assess the issue. I'm crossing my fingers that pictures and programs will be retrieved, especially for my clients' sake. AHHH!