sam, lex & lea

a couple of moments from our time in st. george.

Yay! Then again maybe not. then agian...

k, i'm going to make this really short.  jeff has been trying to get a teaching job in cedar for a couple years.  it just wasn't working out.  when derek got the job in page he started looking at the teaching jobs there for jeff.  long story short on may 6th we found out jeff got a job in page.  we (derek and i) were SO STINKIN' EXCITED!  so all of us (derek's siblings except for jace and nancy) went to texas roadhouse to celebrate.  it's the first time we've all gone out i think.  it was a good time!!  anyway, come to find out jeff and kristina didn't feel too good about the job in page.  derek and i were upset to say the least!  we were just a little excited of the thought of them living SO CLOSE to us.  and i was super excited to think that i would get to see elea every day and do her hair!  but they knew what they were doing.  jeff ended up getting the perfect job in st. george.  so now when i say "we" i mean EVERYONE is very very happy for them! 

Sweet Little Alexis

Alexis is the cutest, sweetest, happiest, funniest little girl.  She is growing up so fast! She loves to help out with the dishes or anything else you let her do.  She'll try any food at least once.  She loves the water.  She LOVES her big sisters.  She says "hi, grandma" to anyone that looks like a grandma.  If you ask her why she is doing something she says, "cause".  We all just love her to pieces!!! (She is 22 months old.)

derek, your FIRED!

i can't leave this part of the story out...  when derek told his bosses in kingman that he was leaving to take the job in Page they were not happy at all, and 1 of them fired derek on the spot.  derek was MAD.  i felt so bad for him and i'm not a fan of people being mean to my husband.  my mom was in kingman visiting and we came up with this fabulous cake for him!  it pretty much cracked us all up!!  (he ended up not really being fired and he was man enough to keep working there for 2 more weeks even though he really didn't want to after being pretend fired!!)

Home Sweet Home

so, things have been a bit crazy around here, and i'm sorry but this post is really for journaling purposes.  i'm no good at remembering dates... so just work with me here!!  about 8 weeks ago we stated packing up to move to Page, AZ.  derek got the job as the city magistrate there.  DEREK'S A JUDGE!!!  it still cracks me up to say that.  lucky for me my sister took the 2 little girls so packing went relatively smoothly.  oh, and a nice girl in our kingman ward gave me more boxes than i knew what to do with so that was super awesome too.  anyway, the morning of the move derek and spencer drove to Page with the Uhaul.  They met derek's dad and brothers there and they put all of our stuff in a storage unit.  that same morning jen and i finished cleaning up the house and loading the cars.  then we drove to st. george.  we stopped in vegas and met up with thomas for breakfast at mimi's cafe.  which is the best place in the world to have breakfast!  later that day we were all together in st. george.  for the next 5 weeks the girls and i stayed in st. george and derek was in Page during the week working and would come to st. george for the weekends.  it was brutal.  i'm so glad derek doesn't have a job were he has to travel.  anyway, we played with friends and cousins.  MIRACULOUSLY avoided getting the flu.  and pretty much just waited for time to pass so we would finally get settled in Page and all be together.  i enrolled katelyn and annie into school in st. george for the last month of school which was the right choice!!  2 weeks ago we got the keys to the house and started moving in.  about 8 men from our new ward came to help get all of our stuff out of the storage unit and into the house. it took about 5 days for all of the boxes to be emptied and all the pictures to be hung.  the backyard is perfect.  the house feels huge and roomy.  our new neighbors are so friendly, and i'm amazed how many people have stopped by to meet us.  WE LOVE LOVE LOVE LIVING BY LAKE POWELL!!!!!  about every other day we take the girls swimming or hiking or both!  i feel really blessed that we're here.  things always seem to work out for us and i know it's not luck or just a coincidence.  we are truly blessed.