Christmas

We had an interesting Christmas this year. The power went out right after we finished opening presents because we had a BLIZZARD on Christmas morning.

We did have a good Christmas regardless. We enjoyed out time together.

This is a picture of us later on in the day. We were at my parents and Sterling was really tired.

We have never had a Christmas of our own. Ever since we have been married we have slept over at Sterling's parents house on Christmas Eve. It seems strange that the year we don't have out own house is the year that I really wanted us to have our own Christmas morning. So, we did out stockings in our room before we went out to open presents with everyone else. We have a really fun Christmas tradition every year that we both go christmas stocking shopping at the same time in the same store for the other. It's really fun because we have to try and avoid each other in the store so the other can't see what we have in the cart for each other.

Pedro got a stocking too! I made him this little BYU stocking. It was actually supposed to be Sterling's but I made it too small so I used it for Pedro. I will make Sterling a larger BYU stocking for next year.

Sterling on Christmas morning. One of his little sisters gave him a game that he has been wanting for a while. He was really happy to get it.

When we woke up we noticed it was a huge storm. It took our power out and make it difficult to get across the valley to my parents house. Little did we know when we left that on my parents side of the valley they hadn't even gotten any snow. This is Sterling headed to the car to go to my parents.

Kris, Kiana, Bryson, and Pedro. All Kiana wanted was to sit with her dad and Pedro. she loves that little guy. She just follows him around the house.

Bryson got a Nintendo DS for Christmas. He kept asking how to play the games he had gotten. Kris would tell him to come over and he would show him but for some reason he went to my mom (who, by the way, calls them "finger"drives instead of thumb drives) to help him. She tried her hardest to help him. Bless her heart.

Bryson and Kiana LOVE to wrestle with Grandpa. Whenever they punch him in the stomache he says "Don't mess with steel" Right before we left Kiana had started to pick a fight with Grandpa. It's really cute.

We hope that everyone had a really great Christmas filled with a lot of love. We excited for what this next year brings for us and all those around us.

First Snow of the Year!

A couple weeks ago we had the first snow of them year. This is what we woke up to. Normally you can see clear the the mountains on the east side of the valley from the front door of the house. It was snowing like mad. It all melted pretty fast but the day was really pretty. Sterling and I went out to see a movie. I really wanted to build a snowman but Sterling was a kill joy.

view from the front door.

We have to force Pedro out of bed every morning to get up and go outside to go potty. I put a sweater and a rain slicker on him this day because it was snowing and so cold. (Iknow, I know. Yes I am one of those people that kind of treats their dog like a baby but we don't have any kids!!!)

Pedro outside in his "winter clothes". Scotty, my mother-in-laws dog, always has to supervise Pedro's potty trips.

We look like we're in pain but we're really not. Sterling looks like this in almost every picture we take of him so I guess it rubbed off on me. We were at Jordan Landing to go see "Eagle Eye". Good movie by they way!!

My little handy man!

Sterling is not handy with cars at all. His family is the "take the car to the shop to get it fixed" type of family. I know how to fix cars more than he does. We're rying to cut cost everywhere we can so when the window in the Saturn stopped working we took the car over to my dads to have him help Sterling put in the new part. A couple weeks later I noticed the "change oil" sticker in his car said that he was supposed to change his oil about 5000 miles ago. So, we went and bought the stuff to change the oil ourselves. We probably didn't really save that much on changing the oil ourselves but we felt good about it.

Working on the window in his VERY worn out BYU jersey.

Changing the oil in the car. Sterling got out the handy-dandy owners manual that was actually pretty helpful.

Sterling and my dad trying to figure something out. I forget what they were looking for.

Pedro really wanted to be outside with the boys working on the car. He hopped in the car while the door was open and wouldn't get out to go back inside with me. They had the BYU game on in the car so they could listen to what was going on. (not the BYU vs UTAH. this was a couple weeks ago)

Late Halloween

So, I have been trying to get Halloween picture up for a very long time. I finally got it done.

We went to Trunk or Treat at our ward but it was very lame. So, we drove over to our old ward that we were in when we lived in the condo's trunk or treat. It was awesome. They had dinner, music, and tons of fun. The two bigger girls were in my primary Class. Amber is the one standing right next to me. When I first started teaching their class she was in a wheel chair, had tubes coming out of her and no hair. She was just finishing up with chemo. She's in remission now. It was so great to see her so healthy. I almost wanted to cry. Sara is the girl next to her and she had grown a lot since we moved out. The little girl is my old visiting teacher's daughter. Her name is Kassidy and she is a doll.

This is a picture of a bunch of our friends from our old ward. They are so great. We miss them A LOT.

Our good friends that lived across the hall from us are 'D' and Kasey. Right before we moved out they had little baby Pierson. He was born the week of General Conference and they got his name from one of the General Authorities that spoke. He's half black and is soo stinkin cute. His costume was a horse and Pedro was a horse so we had to take a picture of them together. (This was the back of my car)

I was a pink lady and Sterling was a T bird. Well, we dressed him up like the picture before and then he found one of his mom's leather jackets to wear so he could be a T bird.

Let's Honor Them

It's Veterans Day!

Today is Veterans Day. It's a day to remember and honor those who have and are serving for us. These brave young and women know more than most that FREEDOM ISN'T FREE.
I have a a picture of my cousins wearing my grandfathers military hat that we found after both of my grandparents had passed away. When we were taking those photos I don't think we realized exactly how much that hat really meant. We didn't realize what pride should be present while wearing that hat. We didn't realize that my grandfather had fought for loved ones and strangers.

Both my grandfathers and Sterling's grandfathers served in the military. Today is a very special day for both of us. The images and thoughts that they did and are living with are more than any of us can imagine. The sacrifices that were made on our behalf are amazing. We love them and appreciate them for what they have done. We love the current men and women who are fighting for freedom for everyone else that deserves it. We pray that the Lord will be with these awesome individuals who love with all of their heart.

God bless America and her service men and women, past, present, and future.

Punkin' Mania

So, I LOVE Halloween! The thing I love most about Halloween is the pumpkins. My parents and I took my neice and nephew (Bryson, and Kiana) to the pumpkin patch. Oh my Goodness! It was beautiful. Rows and rows of round, orange funness.

Kiana was trying to pull the cart while Bryson was pushing the wheel barrel.

The kids let us take picture but Pedro HAD to sit next to both of them. It's so cute that they smile when you tell them to now.

Me with the kids. Sterling had to go to school.

Grandma and Grandpa with the kids.

The pumpkin patch was so much fun and the kids had a BLAST. Sterling and I are going over to their house to carve the pumpkins this week.

Happy Birthday Kim

Kim,

This is for you Happy Birhtday. Make sure to turn up the volumn because the kids are a little difficult to hear.

Our get away

We babysit a lot for some friends of ours. Conference weekend was his birthday so we took David (the baby) overnight so they could go up to their Time Share in Park City. They offered the rest of the time to us during the week. We went up on Tuesday night and left on Thursday night. It was a really nice hotel. Very beautiful. On Wednesday we went back down to the city to have a cheap lunch and go to the Factory Outlets. We bought Christmas for most of Sterling's family for pretty inexpensive. I love to have my Christmas shopping done by the end of November so I can enjoy the holliday. Thursday we just kind of stayed in our room because the view was so beautiful and we just wanted to relax and spend time together.

Sterling and Peddie on Wednesday morning. The bed was huge. It was strange to feel like Sterling was on another continent while we slept.

The Shower!! I was AMAAAAZING! It was really large with marble tile. A little bench, and a sauna. To turn on the sauna all you had to do was push a button. I fell in love with the sauna. The steam and the heat took away a lot of the pain that I experience from my fibromyalgia.

The tub! It was huge and obviously a jacuzzi tub. I thought I would really enjoy the tub because I thought it would help with my pain like the sauna did. I didn't really like it. I don't like to be hot. I would MUCH rather be cold than hot. When I was in the tub I would get so overheated that I would get nasueas. I didn't enjoy it very much. Sterling did.

Animals weren't allowed so we snuck Pedro in. He would obviously have to go out to go potty so we put him in my back-pack to go take him out.

On Wednesday we went out to lunch. It was McDonalds. BUT, they had picnic tables. We bought Peddie a double cheeseburger and we got meals. Sterling gave Pedro some of his fries. What a generous dad he is.

I wish you could all see the waterfall that's behind us in this picture. It was gorgeous. This is at the front of the hotel. They had an enormous waterfall built into the building. It was stunning. We took this picture just as we were leaving so it was too dark to pick up the waterfall.

All in all we had a GREAT time at the nicest hotel we've ever been to. The best part was the company we had. Eachother.

Conference

My family has traditions during conference. Every Saturday after the Priesthood Session we all go out to dinner at a nice restaraunt. (my dad pays) The women usually get together before and meet at the restaraunt to wait for an open table. (It can get pretty busy) It used to be a pretty big bill because all the siblings, their spouses, and any of their kids 12 and older went. This year my mom and sister were in Texas with my brother Kim and his family because his baby is in the childrens hospital. My brother Kirk and his family didn't come down from Logan. My brother Kris came but didn't bring his family. So, It was just Dad, Sterling, Kris and I. We went to Archibalds. (EXCELLENT!) On Sunday morning we all go to my parents house and they feed everyone an enormous breakfast. My dad usually wakes up at about 5AM to get breakfast going. (Hashbrowns-2 kinds, eggs, cinnamon rolls, bacon, ham, sausage, juice) This year it was only, Dad, Sterling, and I for breakfast. Prep time was significantly less.

Dad and Sterling getting breakfast ready. (*Note my dads uncanny ability to match plaid bottoms with a striped shirt. My brother Kris has inherited this ability along with wearing socks with flip flops. It takes real talent to pull it off. At least both patterns were blue.)

Dad and Tucker cuddling in Mom's chair. Tucker had to "suffer" with dad while mom was out of town.

Pedro cuddling up to listen to the words of the Prophet.

We watched the Sunday Morning Session at my parents with my dad. The only downside to having such a wonderful breakfast right before conference is that you're so full you can't stay awake. Usually I'm the one that stays awake while Sterling falls asleep. This year Sterling was the only one to stay awake. He even leaned over and hit my foot because I was "snooring" too loud for him to hear. (I don't snore! I just breath loud!)

Hairy Boy!

I cut Sterling's hair a while ago and it ended up looking like he had just joined the military. We're trying to cut costs so I took another wack at cutting his hair.

The Before

In "The After" picture it doesn't look like I cut much but I had a pile of hair to prove contrary.

The After
It doesn't look like I cut that much but in person you could definatley tell a difference.

I did a much better job! I better have because I had him stuck in that chair for the majority of one of the conference sessions. To be fair to myself he wasn't real cooperative. I told him to put his head up and he would for a min but he kept putting it back down. He's a trouble maker.

When the adversary gives you lemons...

make lemon pie.
So, literally everytime we start the adoption process something financial happens that sets us back. About a year and a half ago we went in for orientation for adoption and got the paperwork to fill out. We were refinancing our condo so that we could have the money to pay for the adoption when Sterling got in a wreck. We found out that following day that our good for nothing insurance company had cancelled our policy because the DMV didn't file the medical clearance paperwork that the Dr's office had faxed over. Lewis Insurance stated that they sent out a letter to us letting us know what was going on but we never got one. Granted they had our first apartment address on file with them but all of our mail was being forwarded and we got a little post card that told us they had moved offices!!! So, needless to say the balance still owed on Sterling's '02 Mazda Millenia (which he loved dearly!) was about $10,000-$12,000. The other guy had like a '98 or '00 Mustang. He sued us and we settled for $4,000. Between everything all of our money for the adoption (plus A LOT more) was used. To make that situation worse the company that towed our car told Sterling he couldn't touch the car. They at least let him get the school books he needed for that quarter out but he had other books in there, all of his CD's (there was a lot), his mission scripture, and our Temple clothes (the ones we were married in. Plus, Sterling's temple pants weren't only the pants that he married me in but they were the same pants his dad married his mom in) :( , We had to refinance once again to get the car paid off so we could get the title to give over to the junk yard so we could get our stuff only to find out the they had either crushed it or sold it so EVERYTHING was gone! We were pretty devastated.

The hundreds of dollars of school books we "couldn't touch"

The damage. (he was T-boned) Thank heavens that he was alright.

We were just saving up to be able to pay the $1000 you pay up front for background checks, home inspection, and whatever else you need when our condo leaked into the condo below us ruining stuff in both of our condo's. Luckily the insurance (we got a new company) paid for most of it but we had a deductible we had to pay.

And now, we have sold our condo (didn't get as much as we wanted out of it because we had to refinance TWICE), moved in with Sterling's parents, and have money in savings to pay for the adoption. Our plan was to save the adoption money, and take our income to pay off ALL of our debt and save money for a down payment on a house. All of a sudden, on Saturday Sept. 27th I (Konni) am pulled aside at work and told they are letting me go. Yes, that is right! I am unemployed. To make the situation a little worse Sterling hadn't been to work in a couple of days because his anxiety and depression was the worst I have ever seen it. He would just lay in bed. He wouldn't smile, he didnt' want to talk. I was so worried about him. He hates his job and just couldn't get over this hump of anxiety and depression to pull himself out of bed and go into work. He's back at work now but he still has to force himself to go in. He's doing better. He will laugh and smile now.

The point of this whole things is 1. to let me vent and ramble on about it. and 2. to give you the moral of our story.

The moral of the story is When the adversary gives you lemons, make lemon pie out of it! We have been praying all day everyday. Our relationship is better between us and our Heavenly Father. We are showing our faith by continuing forward with the adoption. We know that we are doing the right thing because the adversary is blocking us at every turn and we will NOT be stopped. With the help of our Father in Heaven and our Savior we will overcome this too and bring a wonderful little spirit into our Eternal Family. We have each other and the Lord had brought us together. We have little Pedro (and Milton & Charlie) to tide us over until the child that has chosen to come to us through our birth mom makes his/her (I want a boy, Sterling want a girl) grand entrance. We pray that the Lord might stregthen us and all of our friends and family to get through all of our trials.

Might be fun

Okay, so I saw this on a cousin of a cousins (don't ask) blog and decided to join in. Here is what you do...1. As a comment on my blog, leave a memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you know me a little or a lot, anything you remember! If we're only blogging friends, write about a post that is the most memorable for you.2. Next, if you feel so inclined, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. If you leave a memory about me, I'll be sure to write one about you...!

Condo or Baby?

We finally closed on the sale of our condo. It's actually been a couple weeks but we've had other stuff going on.

This is the view that could be seen from all the rooms and the patio. It's beautiful. The mountains look like a painting. It's nice to just take some time to notice them and all of the beautiful splendor the Lord has given us.

We gave up the home we love so that we can adopt. The view from our home was beautiful but I don't think it will compare to the look in our birth mom's eyes when we meet; and the love that will be present when she holds that baby for the first time. We can't wait for the Lord to send us our angels. By angels I mean our baby, AND our birth mom. It will be our own glimpse into heaven.

Please Help!!!

To all of our friends and family,

Sterling and I have a nephew that is very sick. They live in Texas so we have only met him once but we still love him so very much. He was born with 1 tiny kidney (I don't think it was ever working) and the other wasn't doing well either. The poor little guy was born in March and as of today, Sept 15th, will have had at least three major surgeries. He has a feeding tube that sticks out of his belly and has recently had to have surgery to put a tube and stuff (great medical terminology I know) to put him on dialysis. Yesterday (Sept 14th) they were forced to do dialysis before the Dr.'s felt comfortable and it leaked all over so now they have to go in and "install" a differend kind of dialysis. (hema-something) His name is Nikolas and I know that the Lord has sent him to my brother and sister-in-law because they would be able to take care of him. I am just asking that all of you might be able to remember him in your prayers. Any prayers that can be offered would be fabulous. Here are some pictures...

This is Nikolas a few months ago while they were visiting us in Utah

This is Nikolas after his surgery to put in the first dialysis port.

Nikolas is a very special spirit and we are hoping and praying that the Lord will bless all of us and him to help him get healthy so that he can stay with us. All of your prayers are appreciated.

If you would like to see more about Nikolas and his family here is a link to their blog...

http://www.beamovi.blogspot.com/

Awww... How Cute!!!

Ok, so, I had a couple of hamster's from the Vet Tech department at my work and to make a very long and drawn out story much shorter (and look in more favor to me) Sterling gave them away and I was VERY upset. So... we got another one. His name is Milton and he's pretty cute. I know I know.. you're all thinking... is she really putting a blog up about her new hamster? YES DANGIT! I AM! Now do you see why we need to adopt a baby so badly? Anyway, right after we got Milton we went to my parents house for dinner on Sunday. I knew that my neice and nephew, Kiana and Bryson, would be there. So, we brought Milton for them to play with. They LOVED him. they kept taking turns holding him and laughing while his little feet would tickle their arms when he ran up and down them. Then, one of them (I forget who) saw the back end of him and said "I can see his bum!!" Ha Ha Ha hilarious. For those of you who don't know... hamster carry their male genitelia (sp?) on their back end and you can see it all the time. It was just too cute for words. I just said "Yup! you SURE can!"

This is out little Milton

This is Charlie. He came to us because his owner was trying to find him a home and we decided to take him

This is the both of them. Their not real great friends... they don't cuddle or anything like my other two did. The other two were brothers though.



They like to push each other off of the wheel. Charlie is significantly bigger (fatter) than Milton so he pushes him around a lot. Milton runs really fast on the wheel where as Charlie more waddles along. However, It seems that Charling has taken quite a "liking" to Milton at times. Sterling says that Charlie rapes and pillages. Poor Milton.

Anywho... these are our new pets.

I'll be putting some much more interesting posts up very soon. So... stay tuned!

Who does Sterling look like?

MyHeritage: Look-alike Meter - Familytrees - Family search