Jerrod in His Webelos Uniform

Boy's Night Out!

Yesterday, Derek called me on his way home and asked if he could take Jerrod on a boy's night out. Team USA was playing Argentina to qualify for the olympics and he heard at school that the tickets were cheap. They got there and bought their tickets which were nosebleed seats but a nice usher moved them way down so they got to be close. Derek called me from their good seats giddy. They were having the best time. They got to see Kobe Bryant, Lebron James, Jason Kidd, Carmello Anthony and many more... Here are some pictures.

Grocery Store

Thought I would share this picture of Ava in Albertsons the other day. I took it with my phone. Everyone that passed by thought she was so cute. It was the best shopping trip ever for me!!

First Day of School!!

Today was the kids first day of school.........finally. We have all been counting down for the last few weeks. They were all excited this morning but had a few butterflies as well. They have adjusted so well everywhere we have moved so I am sure they will make lots of new friends. Here are some pictures we took this morning.

Allison Loses a Tooth

La Cucharacha!!

We have cockroaches here in Las Vegas and Ginger is my bug killer. Yesterday I caught a large cockroach crawling across the floor so I called Ginger over and told her to get it. She came over and played with it enough to disable it and then just sat and watched it. What a good dog!

Chuck E Cheese To The Rescue

After three weeks of no friends and mom going crazy I decided it was time for something fun. I had a coupon for Chuck E Cheese and decided it was well worth the $30. Small price for my sanity. The kids all had fun. Ava was moving constantly so finally after all the kids tokens were gone, I had them watch Ava for a minute while I tried to get some tickets on the Skee Ball. And guess what Steve, I did it again. The alarm went off because of my high score and I got about 200 tickets. So, the kids were happy because that helped them out a ton on their prizes!

Ava got in this car and instantly leaned over and kissed the man. Awwwww!!

Ava's Birthday Bubble Bath

Ava loves her baths and loves bubbles so Derek thought it would be a nice treat for her birthday to have a bubble bath with tons of bubbles.

Ava Turns 2!!

Yesterday was Ava's second birthday. We had a Little Mermaid celebration. She was excited. She got some light up Little Mermaid shoes, a trike, a purse, which never left her arm after she opened it, and some puzzles and cars. Here are some pictures and at the right of the page is a video of her blowing out her candles and playing. Just click on it to view it. I didn't edit it very well, this was my learning experience so it is a little long.

Fun With Shrink Wrap

Last night we decided to use our leftover shrink wrap from the move to shrink wrap each other. Here are some pictures! Derek broke through before we could snap a photo of him. Allison decided to design a cool outfit out of it.

Derek's First Week

Derek survived the first week of medical school! Here is a picture of him in his scrubs that he wears to Gross Anatomy lab. When he wears them it looks official. All he needs is a stethoscope which we will be getting soon! The house is coming together SLOWLY. I'll send pictures as soon as a room becomes picture-worthy. In the meantime you might just have to come see it in person!!

We miss you Austin, Denver and Danika!

Austin, you are lucky that this came out blurry. You riding a girls bike would have been good blackmail material later in life.

Viva Las Vegas!

Well, we made it. We now live in Las Vegas. Our move went smoothly. The only thing that was harder than moving was waiting a whole week before we got internet service and cable tv!! The kids and I thought we just might die. Here is the story.

Last Monday we loaded the truck in Arizona. Our wonderful new neighbor Larissa came over and helped Derek load boxes into the truck in the morning while I finished packing up a few things inside. Derek came in to get a drink of water and the phone rang. As most of you know, Derek was put on the waiting list for the medical school in Arizona. There was a chance we could get a spot but no guarantee which is why we decided to come to Vegas. Anyway, back to the story. The phone rings and on the caller ID we see Midwestern University. Derek answers the phone and it was the medical school in Arizona offering him a spot. Talk about terrible timing. We already had our truck half loaded, a lease signed on a home in Las Vegas. Jerrod and I had a mild meltdown. Jerrod had such great friends there, so he was sad and I was just overwhelmed, thinking maybe this is a sign that we should stay. So Derek and I prayed about it and we both felt like Las Vegas was the right decision. So we continued to pack and Wednesday morning we hit the road.

We got here last Wednesday evening and six men from our new ward were there to help unload the truck. Isn't the church great! We got the truck unloaded in about an hour and we are still in the process of trying to unpack. It seems like I get one room done and looking good, and then I go downstairs to find that all the other rooms have new messes in them. It's going to take a while.

Derek had orientation on Monday and Tuesday and today was his first real day of classes. He brought his scrubs home that he needs to wear for anatomy lab and so I instantly told him we needed a fashion show. He looked very official in them. It was very cool to see him and think that he is going to be a doctor! Thanks to everyone that helped us along the way! Nagelis, Neerings, McClellans, Shipleys. You guys were great!!! We miss you all.

Here is our new address:
10951 Sadlers Wells St.
Henderson, NV 89052
702-463-2887