"Come Towards the Light!"

So last night Eric and I were lucky enough to get away for a little date night. Instead of doing the usual dinner, we decided to switch things up a bit and go for a hike and watch the sunset at the top of the mountain. We got a little later start than expected, and by the time we got to the top of the mountain the sun was almost already down. We stopped briefly to look at the view and have a quick bite, but knew we needed to hurry down before it got too dark. We didn't worry too much because Eric had a flashlight and I thought I knew the way down since I had hiked there before.

We started on our way down, and we must have forgotten how fast the sun goes down during the winter, because within ten minutes it was completely dark all around us. Eric pulled out his flashlight to turn it on, and to our dismay the batteries were dead. We then realized we were pretty much the only ones still hiking on the mountain; we were getting nervous, but just kept trekking along. We were hiking along and the trail kept getting steeper then we remembered and we started not recognizing anything around us. At the same time it was getting darker and we could no longer even see where we were stepping. It didn't help that is was a cloudy night, with no moonlight to help us find our way. That is when we realized..we were lost.

Somehow without even knowing it we had wandered completely off the trail at some point. We tried to back-track, but we could not find the trail anywhere. We had no idea where we were. We decided to keep on going, and just take it slow, but started to get nervous as the mountain was getting steeper and steeper. We found ourselves going down the mountain with out hands braced on the ground with each step, feeling out each step with our feet. The rocks and ground also seemed to be getting more slippery and unstable, and when a rock slipped it seemed to fall a long way down.

At this point I started to freak out a little. We had left our twins with a 15 year old babysitter and we were already supposed to be home. We called out for help to see if anyone else was possibly around who may have a flashlight. No answer. We had the choice to keep going down and risk getting hurt or just to stop and sit down and wait it out until the morning. We did not really want to do that either though because it was getting cold and we didn't have jackets or blankets. If we kept going, we knew there were a lot of cliffs on this mountain and we risked getting hurt. If we stayed, we had no way to get a hold of our sitter, and we did not tell her or anyone else where we were going. We were worried that she would be pretty scared if we just didn't show up.

My husband and I stopped and both were praying silently to try and figure out what we should do. A short while later we saw a light in the distance. It seemed to come a little closer... sure enough - it was someone with a flashlight! My husband and I both started to yell, "Hello up there! "Do you know where the pathway is? We are lost". When the man could hear us he yelled back down. What he said had an impact on me. I felt a rush of emotion and relief. "I can hear you!” he said. "Stop, and turn around. You are headed towards dangerous terrain. Turn around, and follow the light!" We were far away and had to climb a long way to find the man. On our way, again he heard him yell, "I am here; I am waiting, follow the light!" What relief we felt, as we reached this kind man.
His name was John Walker; he was a doctor and an experienced hiker, especially on this trail. He told us that he had done this hike many times before and told us he would show us the way. He guided us through the darkness with his light and kept us on the pathway. As we proceeded down the mountain, he showed us where we had been going and you could see cliffs in that direction. It scares me to think of what of could have happened if we did not meet this kind man. He stayed with us, even though we (okay I:) were much slower than him, until we made it safely to the bottom. Words can't describe the gratitude we felt towards this man at that moment.

This experience really had an impact on me and made me think of the Savior and other people in my life who have helped me along the way. The moments before I saw the light, I really started to fear because I finally realized how lost we were and felt like we could not find our way out on our own. Words cannot describe the relief and comfort I felt as I looked up to see a light coming our way.
It literally made me think how the Savior and the light he brings reaches out to each of us when we find ourselves lost in the darkness, alone and scared. How he calls out to us, "You are going the wrong way and our headed towards danger. Turn around, and follow the light. I am here, I am waiting. Follow the light."
I know that Christ is the one true light that helps us find our way back through the darkness and shows us our way back to peace and love.

It also made me think about how aware God and Christ are of me individually and that they answered our prayer to send us help that night. How aware they are of our feelings, thoughts and needs. It made me also think about how others such as leaders, family, and friends act as "lights" for the Savior to show others the way, just as Doctor Walker shared his light with us and helped show us the way to safety.

Anyways, long story short, it was quite an eventful night, and I am grateful we made it home safely. I am also so grateful for this man for helping us, and that God listened to and answered our prayer. I hope my friends and family know that I have a testimony that Christ loves them individually and personally and that he is the one true light that will lead them through this crazy life. God lives and loves us. If you don't know, please pray to God to feel his love. If you have questions and want to know more, feel free to call me if you want to talk about it (disclaimer- I am a believer but VERY far from perfect.:) Love y'all!

The Horse and the Dow

So it's been forever since we've posted anything, but I'm making an early New Year's resolution, even though it's not the new year yet, to start posting more stories/pictures of Connor and Mckenna. They are starting to do some funny things and I don't want to forget the good times.

Connor and Mckenna have both started saying some funny things, with both saying words slightly differently. Kenna says "D-wink" for drink, and Connor says "Ninki". Kenna says "Cahnos" for "Connor" and Connor calls her "Nenna". Kenna says "cars" pretty well, but Connor calls them "Dars" - which brings me to the point of this post. He can't quite grasp the "c" yet, so he substitutes a "d" for a "c" most of the time. A cat is a "dat," a car is a "dar," and a cup is a "dup."

Recently I took Connor with me to Utah, where we said goodbye for two years to my little brother who was just about to enter the Missionary Training Center for his Mormon mission (he's heading to Long Beach California). While in Utah, Connor and I stayed with my twin brother Art, who has three young kids. Connor loved playing with all their toys, and on one of the nights just before bedtime, he found a box of little toy horses that he was eager to show me. He picked up one horse and said "horsey" and followed it up with a little "neeehhh" (is that the way you spell the horse sound?). Then he picked up another horse and said "horsey", and smiled. He was clearly having fun with Art's kids' horseys. Then he picked up a black and white horse, looked at it for a second, and then said "Dow." I was really confused - I couldn't understand what he was talking about. Possibly perceiving my confusion, he looked back at me and right on cue said "moooo". I started laughing hysterically as I looked at the black and white horse in his hands and realized that he confused the poor little horse with a cow...I mean...dow.

The joys of home ownership

No one ever told me before I got married that owning a home is so much work. I always that that owning a home is a lot cheaper because in the end its yours. What I didn't realize is that there is a lot of maintenence and keepup a long the way. Okay so tallies of fix-ups for the last month. This is ONE month mind you. AC broke, had it fixed, two days later ac broke again. It was a different component that broke so a totally different charge. Sitting in our bedroom and we can hear buzzing. Realized we have a beehive in our attic and noticed a hole in the wall outside with honey dripping out of it. Then a few days later the pipe got clogged that carried the condensation for the ac to the outside. Water is dripping through the kids ceiling. Hard to fix because we have a beehive in our attic and Eric can hear the bees when he goes up there. Hot water heater broke and water leaked all over and got into the dry wall in our garage. Hot water heater must be replaced, but also the stand for the hot water heater had to be torn out and the dry wall around it because of water damage. Dry wall must also be torn out upstairs where the pipe got clogged. Because of the water damage, they think we have mold. One of our bathtubs will not drain no matter how much draino we pour down it. Oh and to top it all my vacuum broke.

Seriously, who knew a house was so much work and money to maintain?! My poor husband has really had his work cut out for him this month. Its been impressive to see his handyman skills at work. I have also learned to appreciate a hot water heater. We have a warentty and they said that they are not able to put in a new hot water heater for a week (crazy, huh?). So this last week I have had the fun of taking cold showers, boiling water to warm the kids baths, boiling water to do dishes by hand and mop. I seriously do not know how those pioneers did it! Okay so its not that bad, but I really never thought about how nice it is to have a hot water heater until now that I have been without one the last couple days.

Also, funny story. We had a water damage restoration company come look at our water damage to give us a quote and check for mold. The guy was really nice and was asking the guys some questions to see if he could take care of it himself. That is when Eric asked the guy if he knew where or if he could buy some 'spermicide' that would be strong enough the kill the mold and take care of it. The guys started laughing and said that he didn't think Eric would be able to find any spermicide that would be able to take care of mold. Hahahahaha.... I was laughing so hard! Spermicide?! Really? What I think he meant to say is sporicide. The chemical that kills the spores from mold. Whoops! Love you hon!

Little Moments

This week I have been a little stressed and overwhelmed. Not about anything in particular just the stress that comes with everyday life of having two kids. Feeling like my house will never be clean, I will never be a good enough mother, never tackling ending mound of laundry, never being in shape enough, spiritual enough and never having time to myself. I saw a little one of the mormon messages the other day and it made me think about my priorites in life. Really like it so I will share:



Life gets stressful sometimes, but is nice to remember the things that matter most. I am so grateful for my family and for the gospel in my life. I am trying better to enjoy all of the little moments with my kids and not stress about all the little things so much. Today in church we also had an amazing lady that gave a lesson in relief society. She has cancer and has dealt with a lot of sickness and struggles these past couple of years. She has such a good attitude and outlook on life. She talked about how she has such a different outlook on life now that she has cancer and how she is preparing to meet God. So touching, she is so courageous. Brought me back to when our twins were sick and in the nicu. How strongly I felt that nothing else mattered expept for families and the gospel. Situations like that really help to put things in perspective and help us remember what matters most. Makes me want to be a better person and enjoy my kids more.

This last week has been a busy for us. The kids were getting over pneumonia and we also have had a lot of doctors appointments. We also are now proud owners of a minivan now! I really wasn't very excited at first, felt like I was a couple points lower on the coolness scale, but the more I drive it the more I like it. So much for spacious and practical with kids. The kids are also growing and learning by leaps and bounds. Connor is getting so cute and is starting to talk a lot more. He is starting to imitate words that people say. Some of his new words are "whoah, drink, hi, daddy, mom, and drink. Kenna is taking voice therapy and is starting to make a lot more noise. Its so great to see her making progress. She also started taking a dance class which is really fun. Here's a few pics from the week!


The kids enjoying their first ice cream cone! They loved it and both ate the whole thing!


Yummy!


Playing is so much fun!


Dance class with daddy!

Snow in July?!

Yesterday, we went to the Phoenix Zoo with my good friend Amanda and her son. They were having a special event, Snow in July, so we decided to head out and join the bandwagon. Little did we realize that half the people in the valley would decide to come for the same event. It was super hot and crowded, but also fun. The snow was halfway melted by the time we got there, and dirty and ice. The kids weren't quite sure of what to think of it. After playing in the snow, we went to the splash pad, which also was a lot of fun, but very crowded. Aunt Calli, also came with us which the kids loved.

What Mckenna thinks of the splashpad


What is this stuff?



Benefits of going to the zoo = two happy and very worn out sleepy babies!:)

Eat Mor Chickin!

July 8th is now my favorite day of the year. For those of you who are unaware of the significance of July 8th, let me explain. Chick-Fil-A offers a free meal to anyone who dresses up like a cow each year on the anniversary of the restaurant. I'm told that a half-cow outfit gets you a free chicken sandwich, but a whole cow outfit gets you a whole free meal (and a special thanks goes out to my sister Allison who reminded me this year). So what do you do when you have a family of four? Dress everyone up in a full cow outfit, and you get free meals for everyone - yes, even the babies. It didn't matter that the workers at Chick-Fil-A looked at us strange for ordering adult meals for each of our one-year-olds- it was worth it when mom and dad ate Connor and Mckenna's food for the next two days.

When we first entered the restaurant, I won't lie... it was a little embarrassing as we realized that we were the only ones dressed like cows. Here we were- dressed head-to-toe in cow outfits, courtesy of paper plates and construction paper taped to our all-black outfits, (and the kids' full-body cow-outfits from last Halloween), and we had the wrong day - or so we thought at first. It wasn't long, however, until we spotted the cow mascot and a few others who entered the restaurant dressed like cows, and then we felt right at home.

After eating until we were full, we wanted to hit up a few more Chick-Fil-A's in the valley for quality leftovers for the rest of the week, but we started to feel a little guilty for dressing Connor and Mckenna in their fur-cow-coat Halloween outfits when it was 115 degrees in the middle of summer in Phoenix, so... we decided one restaurant was enough, and that we'd just continue the fun next year. We'll do it all again on July 8th, 2012!!

Fourth of July!

This year for fourth of July, we stopped by my parents house for a little bbq with some awesome chicken and steak from the grill. After we lit a couple of sparklers and fireworks. The kids eyes were soo big! It was really fun watching the kids reaction to seeing fireworks for the first time. I also couldn't help but think of last year, and how much they have grown since that time.

Burns Family Vacation

Two weeks ago, our family had the opportunity to go on vacation to North Carolina. It was so much fun, a little crazy at times, but an overall, big success! Eric's family actually used to lived in North Carolina, for about 7 seven years, so we all met back there for some beach fun. It was awesome to see all the brothers and sisters, cousins, and nanny and poppy.

We first started off our trip on Saturday, June 25th. Our flight left at 700 in the morning. We had two flights, our first one was five hours with a layover in Alanta, Georgia, and our second flight was two hours, from Alanta to Raleigh, North Carolina. Honestly, the idea of a full day of flying with two babies absolutely mortified me, but the twins did a lot better than I thought they would. Before flying, I went to the dollar store and got any new toys and snacks, I could think of that might possibly entertain them. We had books, a flashlight, hand held fan, stickers, markers, fruit snacks, you name it! Eric braved connor and did and amazing job at keeping him entertained. I think Mckenna, actually enjoyed flying. She loved looking out the window and pointing at the clouds and everything. She also loved having hours of one on one time to sing, read bookd, color, and snuggle. Once we got to Raliegh, we went to our hotel and got settled in. We later met up with Alison, Eric's sister, and had dinner together, and later met up with the rest of Eric's family. One of the highlights of that day, was also getting to see Jeff again, Eric's brother, who just got home from a mission. The last time we saw him was when he left for his mission, which also happened to be the same time as our wedding. lol. It was great to visit and see him again.

The next day we headed off to Rocky Mount, NC, Eric's hometown. We attend the ward Eric grew going to, and I even got to see the house Eric grew up in. He also showed me his old high school, and around the town. After Rocky Mount, we went to my sister in law Ev's parent's house for lunch. They served us an amazing lunch and we all to visit and play. We then headed off to the condos, where we would be staying for the next week.

The condos that we stayed in were AMAZING! I wish I took pictures. It has always been a dream of mine to stay in a condo on the beach, and thanks to Nanny and Poppy, that dream came true! It was so nice because we all stayed on condos by eachother on the beach. It was perfect because we could visit eachother whenever we wanted to. We also had plenty of space for the kids to run around, and had a kitchen to where we could feed our kids. It was also just a short walk to the beach, which made it so nice with toddlers to come and go as we please. Thank you so much Dave and Ruth!

The beach was so beautiful and fun. I have never been to the beach on the east coast. It is a lot warmer than the Pacific ocean. The waves where also bigger where we were and it was just so pretty. The kids LOVED the ocean. They could sit in the sand and dig for hours. Connor also loved the water and kept scaring me by randomly running towards the ocean. That kid is so fast! Me and eric had a lot of fun boogie boarding, and there even was an ocean kayak.

During the week we also got to go to a cool little aqaurium on emerald isle that the kids loved. On another day, we took a pontoon boat on the bay, and found a sand bank where we went looking for shells. I also got to try some authentic north carolinen bbq. It is nothing like the bbq that we have out here. It has a spicy kind of vinegar taste, sounds weird, but it was soooo good! We also hit up a Bojangles whenever we we able. I have never heard of Bojangles before, but apparently its the Mcdonalds of the South. It has the most amazing fried chicken ive ever had, way better than KFCs! Getting hungry just thinking about it!

Anyways the week was great. We loved being able to see everyone and just visit. Our kids had a blast playing with all of the other kids. The ocean was amazing..... I miss it and everyone! Here is some pics!

Beautiful North Carolina! Soo green!


Eric's house he grew up in and home town. I think its beautiful!


Auntie Allie, Ev, and Me


This is actually Eric's twin Art. Really funny, if Eric and Art were together the kids could tell them apart. However, if Art walked by without Eric around the kids would think he was dad and reach out for him. They would get really upset and start saying dada and reaching for him if he didnt pick them up right away. Poor art got double duty this week!


Nanny and Poppy and all the grandkids

The Girls!


Grandpa's pal!




Fun at the mueseum!

Sweet boy!

Love this girl!



Having so much fun!

How Poppy got a black eye!

Beach Babe!


Lovin Life!


The kids LOVED diggin in the sand!


Wagon Rides with Poppy are the best!


Still have so much fun together!

Mommy Fail Moments & Random Pics

Do you ever have those moments as a mother were you do or react to something in realation to your kids and immediately after you wish you didn't do it. You just sit and wonder why did I say or do that? I call these mommy fail moments.... I have had a lot of mommy fail moments lately. Lol, my poor sweet kids...

For example last week.....had a nice chat with poisen control...again. It all started the night before, when Eric was working late. I had done a late night run to the store and came back in around eight. I was freaked out because I accidently left the back door unlocked, and I thought I heard a noise inside the house. Because I am scaredy cat, I grabbed our bottle of pepper spray and kept it with me on the couch,so I would be prepared to take care of any unexpected intruders... I put the kids to bed right away, but kept my pepper spray by me the rest of the night just incase. The only problem is I forgot about it, and accidently left it on the couch.
The next morning my, oh so curious boy found it on the couch, somehow got the safety latch off, and sprayed it all over his face. I was with Mckenna in the living room and he just came in screaming at the top of his lungs, face red, coudln't see.. It was so sad, he was so upset, and I didnt even know what was wrong yet. I ran into the family room to find the bottle of pepper spray on the floor. I called poisen control, hyperventilating and crying at the same time. They said it would be okay (about 10 times), but to wash it off with soap and water and to put ketchep on his face to help with the burning (who knew?). Poor boy screamed for an hour. I felt sooooo bad. How could I have caused such pain on my little boy? MOmmy- fail momment big time! We sat there and both cried on the rocking chair for about an hour, both covered in ketchep. Looking back at it, it probably looked like a funny scene, yet soo sad..

Another mommy fail momment (yes, I have many:). Went to the stoor the other day. Got a full cart full of food. Kids were getting cranky and so I got them a donut from the bakery to split. Chocolate everywhere... Went to line to checkout, asked a million questions about whether bread was on sale, which tomatoes are the cheapest, ect. Think I drove the store clerck crazy. In the meantime, I realized I forgot to put socks on Connor, which normally wouldnt be a big deal, but some little girls from our nieghborhood came to play with the twins and painted his nails bright red. The guy behind me kept rolling his eyes at me and looking at his feet.

At this point, both the kids just start screaming because they are tired of shopping and being in the cart. When we finally finished ringing up all the food and figuring out the price, the clerck told me my total and asked me how I was going to pay. That is when I realized that I forgot my wallet!
Here I am kids screaming, boy with bright red nail polish on, me in my grubbies, kids have eaten two donuts and are covered in cholate, have taken a bunch of time.... and I have no money. The store cleck and everyone in line looked annoyed, and I am sure they were thinking "this lady is off her rocker!".
I quickly apoligized and promised I would be back to pay for the groceries. The lady then asked how I would pay for the donuts the kids already ate. I seriously think she though I had "forgotten my wallet" to steal the donuts! I apoliged again and promised her I would be back to pay for donuts and all! Mommy fail moment!

And then there is today that I lost my keys AGAIN, for like the forth time this week, and then I left my husbands keys in the keyhole in the door outside over night so that anyone could easily come in our house! My sweet husband is so patient and kind to me despite my complete lack of organization and my many moments.
I wish I could be one of those blogging mommies that could sit and brag about how much I like to clean my house, what crafts I did, and how much I enjoy every moment of being a mother. But honestly if I did, I would be lying! I feel like most days I am just in survival mode trying to keep the kids fed and alive, and dont have time for much else. Lol, seriously, I dont know how you moms do it!
I will say, times like these make me so grateful for the gospel. That despite my many mommy fail moments and weaknesses, God still loves me and believes in me. I still wonder many times why God entrusted twins to me. I mean he knows how scattered brained and imperfect I am! But I am so grateful for the atonement and his presence in my life which makes me want to be a better person and keeps me trying. I am especially grateful my the forgiving nature of kids and how they love you know matter what, and for a husband that loves me despite all my weaknesses.

Girl getaway!

This last weekend I got to go on a little two night getaway with my sister Tiana to a cabin in Greer. Tiana got a good deal on the cabin, and was nice enough to invite me to go with her. Originally our husbands and kids were going to go with us, but thanks to our sweet husbands, they decided to take the kids for us and let us go alone for some much needed rest and relaxation. It was sooo nice to have nothing to do all day, no responsiblities and just relax and do whatever we wanted. We went hiking, sat out in nature, read magizines, and watched a TON of chick flicks, and ate mountains of chocolate. My idea of paradise.:)

Our only little mishap on the trip was her car overheating on the drive home. Yikes! If any of you know us, you'll know that seeing us on the side of the road with a broken down car is a little bit of a scary picture... I am proud to say though that we figured out how to open the hood, and even figured out where to put the water. Okay...so we freaked for an hour and finally had to ask a guy for help, but we did it! We then drove to the nearest Checker Auto, and begged a guy there to come look at our car. Thank goodness it was nothing significant. We bought a couple gallons of coolant, and we were on our way home. Thank goodness we made it home without any problems! Thanks Tiana for the wonderful trip, you are such a wonderful sister! And thanks to our hubbies for giving us a break from the kids, you guys are great!

Birthday getaway!

This year for my birthday when my hubby asked what I wanted, I told him just a date or day alone with him away from the kids. Man, did my husband do a great job! We were lucky enough to have my mother in law, Ruth in town at the time, so Eric whisked me away for a quick trip up north. We left on a Friday and stopped in Sedona on the way, and did a jeep tour. We continued up to Flagstaff where we spent the night, and then spent the next day skiing. It was such a fun trip and nice getaway! Sometimes among the business of everyday life, I forget what a good time I have with my husband. He really is so fun to be around, and I really treasure those moments that we can get away and feel like kids again. Thanks babe for the great time, you made my birthday great!