Kendall was Student of the Quarter

Kendall got an award for Student of the Quarter for her Study Skills class. Jay and I were able to attend the awards ceremony at the school and are so very proud of her. Not only is she a polite and hard working young lady, but she is constanly being recognized by her teachers for her outstanding work performance. She has to struggle in some of her classes, but she does the work and for that, we are beaming with pride.

Under the Weather

Jay and I are both sick right now. I'm pretty sure it's just a cold - sore throat, fever, extreme fatigue. I stayed home from work today. I probably could have forced myself to go in, but I was afraid of contaminating the office and also didn't want to push myself and then end up sick for several days. Tonight I had a small amount of energy, so I made some cards. I think I am paying for it now because as I sit typing I am soaked in sweat so I will finish this post and go to bed and turn the fan on.

If you think of it, please pray for us. We pick up Nicole on Friday and then head to Knott's for our annual trip. We all need to be feeling better for this weekend. Enjoy the creations.....

I made this card for my friend Susan from Bunco who just had a baby boy

This one is for my Uncle Roland's 90th birthday

Getting a jump start on Christmas cards

I will still make my digital cards this year to send out to everyone, but I am making individual cards for family

Kendall's Baptism

Kendall was baptized today at church. This was a decision she made completely on her own. She went to a baptism class last Sunday morning to find out more information and to make an informed decision that was right for her. We discussed at length that this was her choice, and not something we were forcing her to do. We explained that some decisions are between her and God and we can't tell her what is right or wrong for her. After the class, she decided that this was something she wanted to do.

Here are some photos of this important event in her life. We took some video also, which I attempted to upload, but 4 hours later I gave up! All our loved ones are more than welcome to come visit and we'll show you the video in person :).

New Toy

Well, we have a new addition to our driveway. We ended up purchasing a 2009 Nissan Titan, which is a blessing, but is giving me a bit of a heart attack. We got an unbelievable deal through USAA and although the timing is difficult for us financially right now, after much discussion we agreed that the timing will work out for us in the long term. Jay's truck is on its last leg and my car has 126,000 miles on it and we don't want to be in a position where we have to replace both vehicles at the same time and therefore, two car payments. So, we decided to go ahead and replace the truck right now and then hopefully wait about 4 years to replace my car. We are going to sell the old truck and (boo hoo!) sell the Harley as well. Not just for financial reasons, but Jay's back is not doing well and riding is just not an option right now, until he strengthens his back quite a bit.

We all love the truck, it's beautiful, rides really well, and will hopefully last us for years to come!!!!

Birthday Cards

Just some birthday cards for now. I am going to do some more posting tomorrow with some current events. Please come back!

This is a birthday card I made for my friend Kim

This one was for Staci, my musical friend!

This one is for my Mom

Happy birthday everyone!!!!

Another Biker Babe in the Family

We were unable to find the Halloween store in Santa Maria this year, and since finances were a bit tight anyway, Kendall got creative with her costume. She decided to be a "biker chick" so she borrowed Jay's leather vest and I got her some temporary tattoos from the Harley Davidson store and we put a bandanna on her head. She looked absolutely adorable and played the part perfectly. She is such a Daddy's girl! I'm hoping to get some pictures of Nicole in her costume from her Mom. I will post them if I'm able to get them into my hot little hands!

We had a really good Halloween night. We went to the Harvest festival at church and all volunteered to help with games. Kendall helped with the maze in the youth room and Jay and I did some games in the preschool area. The little ones are so adorable! We saw bumble bees and ironmen and spidermen and butterflies and cows and cowboys and policemen and firemen and some of the sweetest little faces! We got home late and only got a couple of trick or treaters but it was a really fun evening and we always enjoy serving together.

Congratulations Jay!

Jay has been working to complete his Master's degree for several years now. A week ago Thursday, he had to take a comprehensive final exam to complete his degree. He had to pour over all of the material from every single course and be prepared to answer any question that was asked. He was not given any details as to what would be asked on the exam and had 6 hours to answer 4 questions (worth 2 points each.) Each question was in essay form and required 3 pages so essentially, he had to write 4 short papers on information he could only hope he was prepared for. We went out for dinner last Saturday night to celebrate because I was so confident that he would pass that I didn't think we needed to wait. Today we received the news that he passed!!!! He now has a Master's Degree in Space Studies. He should be receiving his degree by November 15th. I am so proud of him. Not only for this incredible feat, but for who he is and all he does. He has managed to work an extremely stressful job, keep up with helping around the house, study for this incredibly challenging exam, and be an attentive father and husband. He is not only a rocket scientist, but a superhero. Well, he's my superhero, anyway :). Please congratulate him with me.