Long Time

So I know it has been quite a while, again. But I figure, anything is better than nothing, right?

Nothing exciting has been happening with Cody & Kylie Fitts family. We finally got our downstairs family room situated where we actually want to hang out down there. So that's good at least.
We are painting our family room finally. Lowe's messed up the color twice, hence the delay. Needless to say, we don't really like when you mix our paint Rick at Lowe's. :) Maybe you have other talents, but mixing paint is not one of them.
I got my craft room situated, I just have to figure out what I want to put on the walls. Now I need to start sewing, crafting etc. in there. :)
Cody has been busy hooking up all his electrical stuff,he does some unnecessary things, but it makes him happy. So thats all that matters. (ie. hooking the lights upstairs, so they turn on as soon as the garage door goes off so I don't have to enter a dark house). He is crazy. He cleaned his garage, out fitted it all with shelves galore. It looks pretty good.
We found 2 more boxes of clothing in our junk room which we are currently cleaning out for the "workout room" Cody is glad he is finally able to bring home his weight bench and an elliptical for me.
But who cares about the house??? haha its the same old thing, different week.
But on a more uplifting note....
I taught my first lesson in YW yesterday, it went surprisingly well. I have been a RS teacher, Primary, and Sunday School, but YW is completely different. The lessons, mine do anyway, depend on who is in my class. This week, I could tell what came out of my mouth was inspired, as I had prayed for it to be, but it really was! I had been thinking about it for like 2 weeks, but nothing I had thought through during that time came through in my lesson. I learned alot from being able to think about it so long, so I guess that was the purpose for me. But they needed to hear something entirely different. The last time I felt this way so completely was when I was a RS teacher. There are just certain things you know they need to hear, but the Lord knows which things they need at that point in time. Considering I don't know the girls that well yet, I was nervous that I wouldn't say the things I needed to. But WOW was the spirit strong. It was an absolutely wonderful way to spend a Sunday. I know most of it didn't come from me, I am so grateful for inspiration. My girls are amazing! I love them so much already, and its only been like a month. They have helped me already to grow and see things differently. Sometimes I wish I could teach every week. But mostly not...ha ha
How about you guys? Have you ever had those types of lessons, either where you knew you said something they needed to hear? Or someone that was teaching said something you really needed to hear?
I swear, it seems like most Sundays, the talks and lessons are written just for me. Its awesome!

Tonights Festivities

So as you can see (the poster speaks for itself), this is going to be good. Its been a long time coming, and its finally here. I was going to practice self control and not go for a couple of weeks but...
Sunday I got a calling for the 3rd time in the last 2 months. This time I will be serving as a Young Women's advisor in our ward. Its going to be so fun, I am really excited to be back in Young Womens, its such a fun place to be. I miss my girls from the Eldredge Ward; but the girls in Orchard 5th are great also, and I am looking forward to speding time with them, getting to know them better, teaching them and also having them teach me a few things as well! ;)
After having both the Mia Maid & Beehive aged girls in Sunday School I know that we are going to have a blast. I love the people I am going to be priveleged to serve with, and the girls we have in our ward are amazing.
So our first order of business? Go see Eclipse as a ward YW activity of course, what else?
I can't wait to hear the reactions of over 20 teenage girls, it may even be more entertaining than the movie itself (who am I kidding?). :)
I know most of my blogging friends are going, and you all love to write reviews! I will be looking forward to reading them.

California Love

So, I guess I really need to catch up on this whole blog thing. ALOT has been going on this month, so I guess its been hard to focus. I haven't been home a whole week yet this month, so yeah, you could say we have been a little busy.

So I will split it up a little. We will start with our trip home to California.

We left on June 2nd, which happens to be the birthday of our wonderful brother-in-law, Brian. It was a bittersweet day, and the reason for our trip. Cody and I the whole trip had many thoughts and enjoyed this special day of his. Its nice to talk about him, and remember all the wonderful parts of his life. At the same time, it opens the flood gates and Cody & I usually end up in tears for a while. But we thought of you Bri, all day, and still do pretty much everyday. :) We love you.

The trip went off without a hitch that day. We hung out in Phoenix for a while at the airport, we had a 3 hour layover. I was tempted to call my cousins and have them pick us up and hang out for a bit. But I was a little too scared we would end up having too much fun and losing track of time. So in the airport we stayed, and I watched episodes of Glee while waiting. As soon as I stepped off the plane I knew I was home. Cody was laughing at me, but the air just feels so much better on my skin. ;) By dinner time, we were home with my family. We went to one of my favorite Mexican places for dinner, Olas. (I don't care what anyone says, I cannot find decent Mexican food or salsa anywhere up here). The salsa was as good as I remembered! :)

I spent time with my sister Erin's kids, Emery, Fallon & Porter. Emery & Fallon came with Noni (my mom) to pick us up. They always insist on being there when we arrive, its cute. They looked so old to me, this time. I still remember when they were both born, so it was fun, but it also made me realize that I miss out ALOT on their lives. Its probably been the hardest part about living here. But we won't go there, I usually end up in trouble.

The next morning we were off to my favorite place, Disneyland. It has always held a place in my heart. I love to go, and I love just being there, I don't even have to ride anything to enjoy it. I have so many fond memories of spending the day there, and it was nice just to spend a day outside in the warm, California sun. Erin and I kind of have the same thrill seeking attitude. We love the feeling of falling, so if nothing else we both had to ride Tower of Terror,we got a couple of others in also, but this was the priority. By the end of the day, the kids were spent, I was as tired as ever, and it was time to head home. I think it had been the first time in at least 2 years that I have been there until the park actually closed. Oops!

Friday we were off to pick up my Cody's sister Colette in LA, so we met them at the temple. It was nice to be back at the LA temple. Another spot that holds SO many memories, youth trips, putting up the temple lights as a youth, going with my family, commandments I had made, and the marriage that we have, which started there. Its still "my temple" as Bishop Lythgoe would say. :)

We took the kids home, went swimming and played until we could play no more. The kids all got along so well together. Erin's 3 kids, Kelly's little boy Rhett, and Colette's kids Cole, Hallie & Eli.

Saturday we had a little going away BBQ to go to for my sister Erin & her family who would move to Gilbert, AZ the next week. It was hard, but it was nice to see all of her friends come together for them. And I had the opportunity to take some time and spend it with just my mom. It was much needed. She is one of my best friends, and she always listens, and gives good, informed advice, which I really appreciate.

Sunday was when the real party began. We left for the airport after we had gone to church and eaten dinner. So we get the airport, check Colette and her kids in, and then we go to check Cody & I in. Oh, but wait, Delta had taken Cody & I off the flight and it was too late to put us back on. After an hour on the phone with them, they decided they were going to charge us even more and we still weren't going to get home on one of their flights. I am so fed up with them its not even funny, I would not recommend that airline if my life depended on it, but thats a whole other story. Anyway brave Colette decided to take the flight with 3 kids by herself. So off she went, and off Cody & I went to the metro station. It turned out fine, as soon as I had made arrangements for work, my stress was gone, and what was so bad about another day home? So we took the metro to Simi, and my sister Kelly picked us up, we got fed, we hung out with her and Randy & Rhett and some of their friends. We spent some more time with my mom, and then we went to sleep. My mom dropped us off on her way in to the temple and next thing we knew we were back in Utah. AH! Yeah, I know, it was kind of crazy, but I wasn't as stressed as I had ought to have been. All in all it was a good trip, and lots of fun. I just can't wait to go back. August could not come soon enough!

Ps. There will be no pictures for these posts, I asked Cody the night before we left if he would like me to put in my bag, but he said no, he would pack it in his carry on in the morning. Never happened, there was just too much going on in his head that morning, and so it stayed. Oh well, so we were without a camera. Sorry. (This is why I joke that our kids lives wont even be documented, because we ALWAYS forget the camera). :)

Not So Lazy Days

Well our weekends are known for being the least lazy of our days of the week, probably.
It all started on Friday. I got to sleep in, but I can only ever sleep until about 9am, and then its a bit too much for me. I got up straight away, and started with the 5 loads of laundry I had to do. :) I don't mind laundry, its pretty therapeutic. But 5 loads???I don't know how we stacked that much up. There were so many towels, whites, clothes, jeans, sheets etc. WOW! Needless to say I got all but one done.
The part I do love is the folding and putting away. Because while I fold, I like to either, watch a movie, which is one of my sisters favorite things too (love ya Erin), listen to music (loud) or in this weekend's case I got to listen to a fantastic thunder storm and some rain. :) It was heaven.
Later that night I decided not to let a co-worker take the night shift from me, and I went to a get a few more hours of work in. I like the Friday night shift. Its very relaxing. I used to hate it, but I have learned to love it. I get to do my lesson planning for Sunday and get caught up on my reading. :)
I got home to a husband mowing the lawn, which he loves and listening to his ipod. Tasks and music? Who would have thought?
Saturday I think I got up around 8, Cody was not near ready to join the liveliness. So I got all ready for the day and started my last load of laundry. I think I had most of the house clean before Cody headed out to plant his veggies. :) He planted tomatoes, peppers, corn, squash, basil, cilantro, oregano, etc, and put in a new sprinkler system...I deep cleaned the kitchen, the family room, our room, the only room I don't touch is Cody's office. He is crazy, he knows where everything is, but to me, it just looks like chaos.
I got to leave for a little bit and went to my friend Jessica's parent's home. It was nice to go back to such a familiar place. Her family was my family while I was on my own, which was great. They always made me feel like one of them. I got to put some highlights in Jess' hair for her. It was nice to get back into doing foils again. I miss it, but at the same time I don't necessarily miss the salon environment. You tend to get caught up in things like designer clothes, purses, jewelry, etc. I wasn't a fan of all of that. I like my simple, fun, carefree life we have created much better. :) I do love talking to my clients and making sure they like the way they look! Jess looks so cute with the blonde, so I was more than happy to help her put it back in. Plus, it was so much fun to go hang out and play again. I had forgotten how much I miss her! Love ya Jess!

Kate & I 2004, this pretty much defines our relationship.

When I had gotten home I had to herd Codes back inside to get cleaned up. We had a dinner date with my good friend Kate. Kate and I have been BFFs since we were 12. Her husband is great, Cody and I love them both. It was good to see them again. We had a great dinner, Ry is a wiz at the grill, and Kate made some great sides. Delish. Thanks again Jones'! By the time we got home I was wiped. We both had been working hard all day long.
Sunday, and I have a love-hate relationship. I love Sunday because I love going to church, we love our ward, I get to teach Sunday school (and man do I learn a ton about the Old Testament that I never got in depth with before). And I get to hear great lessons and talks each week. But as the day wares on, I realize I am that much closer to heading back to work early the next morning...But it was a great day. It was a beautiful day outside. Cody got up and made me some cinnamon french toast, orange juice and fruit, yum! We got ready for church, and I had extra time so I baked some bread. Cody was in heaven. I made a loaf of regular, and some more cinnamon chip bread. The boy is a sucker for anything made from scratch! I got a nap in after church and I watched the sunset of the deck in the evening. It was great. Now I just have to wait it out til Thursday, when I can get back to our weekend routine.

By the time we were done with everything on Saturday, we already had a big list for this coming weekend. Wish us luck!

Its Good to Have Records

Recently I have been doing a lot of thinking about records, genealogy, etc.

I had always loved having a journal, ever since I was little. My mom would always buy me these cute little journals when she got a new journal, so it was something we kind of did together. She was always a good example of journaling. She had what she called a Gratitude Journal, which is kind of self explanatory, but she wrote the things that she is grateful for, or that had made an impression on her that day. So she has multiple records of things, which I am thankful for, because she will be able to show them to the kids in our family, so they will know what she was like before they could remember, or before they were born.
My mom also has boxes and boxes of photos, which my sisters and I like to go through every once in a while. Its fun to remember those funny things we did. I don't think they have gone through them yet, but when they do the kids will love the hair, especially Erin's...the hair and the earrings in all their glory from the 80's. :)
Cody has kept a journal as well. Also he kept all of the emails, letters, pictures and his journal from his mission. Cody also gave me his tags when we got engaged, so now I have them. But I am working on putting everything into a book for him, but who knows how long that will take.
So I have been able to get to know him all over again, and its been a lot of fun. I know how Cody was as a teenager, on his mission, some things from after, and the passed 2+ years we have been together. ( I realized on Sunday that this passed Mother's Day was my 3rd in the Fitts home, crazy!). Cody is pretty much the same, minus the rap music he used to love in high school. His goals are similar, his focus is similar, and the things that are important to him have always been the same, which I am thankful for, he is such an example to me. :)
Cody has also been entertained by my old journals. He leaves them alone most of the time, unless I share them with him. I mean, I guess he should be able to read them any time, we don't do secrets, but its weird to just read through someone else's things. So he has heard all of the things from when I was a teen, and even before. And he usually just says, "Yep, that sounds just like you." or "You would say that..." Or "Wow, you have dealt with a lot". Its rather funny and its a great way to dig a little deeper.
These things mean a lot to me. I love being able to look back and see that we are the people we have always been. Our values are completely the same, and in some ways the bar has been raised (which I guess it should). I am also glad that one day when we have kids and grand kids, they will be able to have all of this stuff. They will be able to get to know us, and they will learn from the experiences we had. I always loved hearing stories, and now I just wish I knew more, now that my grandparents are gone.
But the apostles are inspired, and they tell us too, that it is important to keep record. And also, this is what inspired me to do a blog way back when. I don't care who reads it (we have found out that there are more of you than we thought, hehe), but if you do...thank you!
These are just some of my favorites that I have found in Cody's things.

My cute little skinny Cody. He didn't look much different than this when we met.
This was a crazy story to read. This is the scorpion that stung Cody's hand one day.

He tells me about these all the time. When he thinks of butchers, or butcher shops, this is what he thinks of. Pretty sick.

He still has this tie, and he still wears it. It will be fun to pass on to our future missionaries one day.

Goofy Cody. He loved everyone he served with, and we have seen some of them randomly. Its always nice when I can place a face with the names. His favorite comp married a girl named Kylie too. :)

Well, if you need a good laugh, maybe you should go through your old things. Laughing is almost a guarantee. :)