Oh man are we loving SUMMER!!!! David and I love waking up and having Daddy with us now that he's out of school for the summer. We go to the pool almost everyday which is so much fun! When I was younger, I loved going to the pool. Partly because it meant a visit to my grandma and grandpa's, but also because I love the water! Well, pools... I like pools. I get nervous when I can't see the bottom which is why I'm not a huge fan of lakes.

Anyway, David is a huge water baby!! He loves to splash and go between the hot tub and the pool. I found an adorable swim suit for him and he's a stud when he has his shades on! I'm glad that we haven't missed many days due to bad weather and I can't wait to take him swimming at his Auntie Linda's! Their subdivision has an AWESOME theme pool that he's finally old enough to enjoy.

I am soooo looking forward to taking him to the beaches in the Philippines! He probably won't be fond of the sand, but I'm sure we'll have a blast. In a place as gorgeous as that, how can you not enjoy it? We can't wait!!!!!! :D

I just heard that one of my friends is getting a divorce and my heart aches for her!!

Growing up in a house where divorce was brought up quite frequently (or so it seemed), I grew up thinking that a successful marriage was near impossible.

Then I met Jason... he's sweet, charming, caring, loving, giving and the best man I have ever known. I am so grateful to not only be married to him, but to have made a covenant with him and Heavenly Father that allows us to be together FOREVER. Time and all eternity with the love of my life - perfect!

It's been awhile

Jason is such a giving person... I guess that's the best way to start this story, lol. He has been in contact with his "trainee" mission companion lately which is awesome! His companion is a native Filipino (yes, that is spelled correctly) who currently lives in Hawaii - way cool! However, he has a job making minimum wage which won't get you much in Hawaii! He and his 4 roommates share a 2 bedroom apartment which costs $2250/month!!! So, he makes minimum wage ($7.25) and pays $450 for housing. To give you an idea of the cost of living, in case the housing didn't make it obvious enough, a gallon of milk costs $6 - holy cow!!! Anyway, back to the story...

He isn't going to school currently, can barely afford living and doesn't really care for Hawaii. My husband, being the ever caring person he is, offered to let his mission companion live with us - what?!? I mean, he's a nice guy, shares our values and is a hard worker, but I haven't ever met this guy before!! I trust Jason's character judgment, but I'm still hesitant. I don't mind helping him out, but we are going to be working very hard to find him a job and an apartment, lol. Jason's boss has already said that as long as he has all the proper documentation (visas, etc) that it shouldn't be an issue hiring him so that's good.

Other than that, we're not up to much! Jason's on summer break which is awesome. One of the missionaries who was here when I was baptized is in town and it's been great!!! She has an internship at the zoo and we've been able to hang out a lot. She lives in Spokane, Washington so we obviously don't get to see each other often enough, lol.

As promised

Today, I woke up to this:


On days like this, I spend my day wearing this:


And in here:

I have a confession... I have never made a Red Velvet Cake. Yes, shocker, I know! I found this recipe for Red Velvet Cookie Sandwiches - YUM! What a fun afternoon...


1 cake mix in large mixing bowl. I expected the cake mix to be a bit more........ vibrant.


Oh, wait... there are a couple pigments


There we go. Definitely on the right page :)


Into the 350 degree oven for 15 minutes


Gotta stop and feed the babe. Oh he is PRECIOUS!!!!! He, too, enjoyed his first bites of Red Velvet goodness


DING! First batch done!

The camera was MIA during the frosting making, but here's the end result:


Nom nom nom......

Today was a fantastically creative day. When I wasn't in the kitchen (and when I wasn't spending time with Jace & David), I was doing lots of brainstorming and came up with some really awesome ideas. I'm very into the "creative baby items" market right now... I guess we'll see how that goes!

Besides that, it was a really fun day. Hope yours was, too!!!

"Ok, Jace, I'm gonna need you to start making more money"

Because apparently, I must have EVERYTHING!! lol

Like these lovely little sweethearts:

Or these!!!
Or these in every color!
And come on... who DOESN'T need a castle cookie cutter?!?!

Or a cake pan that makes cake "sandwiches"??


Cleverly named "The Cakewich"


Be still my heart!!

I have this friend...

We'll call her Caryn - because that's her name! lol
A little background information: I've been having a tough week emotionally. Basically I've been remembering times that I've been hurt or wronged by family members (mine and Jason's) and getting really frustrated because the emotional wound is still there.

Today, Caryn made a blog post and while it didn't really have anything to do with hurt feelings or earthly family relationships, I was so uplifted by reading it! She always seems to have an eternal perspective - ALWAYS and I love it! As a convert, I really appreciate the example that Caryn is to me. It bugs me when people who grow up in the church take advantage of the amazing blessing they have to learn and grow... Caryn has never come across as one of those people.

I am so grateful to know Caryn, her husband, and their beautiful daughter and we miss them immensely! Jason and I speak of them often and hope we can have a reunion soon. We miss you guys!!!!!!!!!

One of my favorite pics of the Allen family, lol :)

The boy that makes my heart melt

"David, where's your tummy?!?!?"

Cute Babylegs!!!