The other day the girls were playing so I ran in to use the bathroom. Less than a minute later, here they come. They think they need to keep me company while I do my business.

Me: Can't mommy go to the bathroom by herself?

Brisa: But mommy, we missed you.

Now what am I supposed to say to that?

This and That

We just got back from Arizona and it is nice to be home. However, by the time we got here, Irving and Brisa were sick and Annie was so tired she didn't really know what to do. She doesn't sleep much in the car. I guess she takes after her mother.
When we got here, Brisa ran through the house, pointing out things that she had missed. Annie was just excited to be out of that car seat.

Today I was telling Brisa where her cousin James would be moving to. I told her it was really far away. She got a very worried looked on her face and said, "Mom, he has to go on a scary airplane to get there!" She loves airplanes but lately she gets worried when one flies over our house.

Annie has decided that she likes to shake her head "no" at me when I ask her things. I wonder where she might have learned that from.

The Move

We made it! Yes we made it here to our new home here in Fernley, Nevada. It has been a whirlwind of a month. We went from a vacation in Colorado to a move to Nevada. Who would have thought. People think we are crazy, but in the end we feel like we are making the move we are supposed to be making. Here is a recap of how this whole thing came about.

I have to admit that I have always wanted to live somewhere besides Arizona. I have thought about moving more than once and it never happened. I was always frustrated about it because I am not a fan of the heat but I am also one who is willing to do what Heavenly Father wants me to do. I now know that I was supposed to stay in Arizona so I could meet Irving. If I had moved long ago, I wouldn’t have found him.

So anyway, we were on our trip in Colorado and it was beautiful. Every time we travel somewhere cooler I tell Irving we should move somewhere cooler. He always tells me no because he hates the snow and the cold. This time he said that we couldn’t move until he had been at his job for at least a year. I accepted that answer. I didn’t think we would ever actually move because we never did before. However, when we got home, I did include a little extra in my prayers. I just said that if we were supposed to move somewhere then would He please provide a job or an offer for Irving so that he would have a way to provide for our family. I left it at that and I thought that was the end of that. Less than a week later, all that changed.

I was driving around running errands and Irving sent me a message. It said Do you want to move to Reno? I said what? And he sent me the message again. I went home and looked up everything I could about Reno on the internet as fast as I could. Then I sent a message back to Irving that said ok. Let’s go. Obviously we were only going to do it if it was right. We went out of town that weekend for the fourth of July and talked a lot about it. Irving got some advice from his dad. We fasted. We told Heavenly Father that if everything worked out, then we knew we should go. And it did work out. At times, we weren’t sure if it all would, but it did. For the most part, everything went smoothly. Irving got to keep his same job, same salary, same team and boss. He just does it from a different location. We found renters quickly. Everything just came together. We packed up our house and got ready for renters in just under two weeks and off we went.

Packing

It was quite a challenge packing our lives into a moving van. We got rid of a lot of things. It was nice to clean things out. I had a lot of people willing to help and watch the girls. Irving was worried that we wouldn’t have much help packing up the truck but we ended up have a lot of help. It was all packed up in under an hour and a half and I even had help cleaning up the house. It was really weird seeing the house completely empty because I don’t think it has ever been that empty. Thank you to everyone who helped with packing and moving.

Good byes

The goodbyes were the hardest. I think the hardest goodbye for Irving was saying goodbye to the house he has always lived in. I had a hard time saying goodbye to people. I teared up a few times. It was the hardest to say goodbye to my mom because other than Irving, she is my best friend. I know she is only a phone call away, but that isn’t the same.

Driving

The drive to Reno (Fernley) was the hardest. We drove both cars and we each had a girl in our car. The first day we made it to Las Vegas. We stayed at Santa Fe Station. The bad thing was we couldn’t get to our suitcases because the car was too full and so we didn’t have a change of clothes. The next day we drove the rest of the way to Fernley. The last few hours seemed to drag on FOREVER. We finally made it to Fernley in the early afternoon.

Our New Home

When we arrived in Fernley, we went straight to the realtor’s office. It took a little while but we signed our lease and got the keys to our new home. Our house is just right for us. It has an open floor plan and for some reason Annie really loves it. She crawls all over. It has 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. The backyard is dirt but we are planting grass. We bought a swing set for the girls and they LOVE it.

We made it!

We are here in Fernley now. It is a nice place and we are adjusting to life here. I am working on documenting the move, but for now, here is some of the funny things Brisa said yesterday.

After going potty on the toilet-
Mom: Brisa, do you want to wear underwear?
Brisa: Mom, you know I poop in my underwear.

Before bedtime Brisa picks up a screwdriver and starts to poke it at Annie. Dad says: Brisa, stop that. Brisa says: But dad, I want to play doctor.

It's days like this that make you stop and think.

Today I went to a funeral for a sweet friend. It was beautiful and I was very grateful I took the time to do it. It made me stop and think about all the really important things in life and just how precious they really are. It is kind of sad that it takes a funeral to do that to me. I should just do that on a regular basis. I guess the day to day activities sometimes make us forget about those important things. And yet I think that all those day to day activities make those things seem more important. I came home today and just watched my little girls. It amazes me how fast they grow and how sweet and innocent they are. I enjoy watching them learn and grow and explore. Their sweet spirits give my life a meaning I never knew I could have. I admit that there are days when my patience runs thin and I wonder what I am doing. But there are many other days when I am just grateful to be where I am doing what I am doing. If there is something I can take from today and remember is that life is meant to be enjoyed, not just endured. Moments are precious and we need to cherish them. Have faith, have hope, be positive. Love this life and be prepared for what comes next. Don't take anything for granted.

Oh and I love you mom! All that I am, I learned from you. Thank you for teaching me and loving me. I appreciate it more than you know.

March

I typed this in March but I am posting it now.
March has seemed to fly by here in our part of the world. Irving’s sister, Camilla, got married. The highlight of our month was our Spring Break trip to Oceanside, California. Irving stayed at home for this trip. Kelle and Wendi came with us. We drove over on Monday and came home Friday. There were no big plans. We simply relaxed and enjoyed ourselves. Tuesday and Wednesday we walked around and spent time at the beach. Brisa and Annie love the sand. They did not love the water. Thursday we went to the aquarium. Both girls enjoyed it. Brisa loves fish. We also drove down to the beach in La Jolla. It was beautiful. We had a great time and we are so glad Kelle and Wendi were willing to join us.

February Fun!

We have had a wonderful February. A lot has happened. Here are a few updates.

Irving is enjoying his new job. He likes being back at the hospital and the hospital REALLY likes having him back.

Preschool is going really well and I am having a lot of fun doing it. On a side note, I am starting to take registrations for next year. I will be doing two classes. They will be on Tuesdays and Thursdays. One will be from 9-11:30 am and the other will be from 12:00-2:30 pm. The cost will be $60 a month. Go to www.tryonfarmpreschool.com.

Brisa turned two this month. We had a fishy birthday party for her with some of her friends and family. (Pictures to come.) We rented a bounce house for the day and Brisa had a great time in it (especially because it was a Nemo bounce house.) She is growing up so much. She got her first real haircut. She is talking more and more. It is funny to listen to the things she says. Her newest favorite phrase is "I can do it." She also helps a lot, espaecially with her sister. She loves to help mommy water the plants.

Annie is such a sweetheart. We love having her sweet little spirit in our home. She is starting to realize when her mom and dad are holding her and when they are not. She is growing faster than her sister did. She is turning into "tons of fun" as my brothers and sisters would call her. She HATES rice cereal. We can't even disguise it in her other food. She just starts gagging on it. She does like her other food though. We love listening to her laugh. We can get her laughing pretty hard.

Overall, we are doing wonderful Our lives are busy but we feel so blessed.