Tornado touched down a few miles away!

We have these really BAD storms here and they have a tornado siren that goes off. It's this really eery sound...anyway, it went off yesterday and then this storm rolled in. We had a bad one a few days ago where the clap of thunder woke me up from a dead sleep and I jumped! During that storm someone was killed while driving due to a tree limb falling on their car and another house was struck by lightning and caught fire. Needless to say we were a bit nervous yesterday and then the siren went off! We watched the news and found out 2 tornados had been sighted and touched down and one was just a few miles from here. This is all new to us, but good thing we have a basement to go to. It was 9:30 at night, so we didn't wake up the girls and head to the basement. Maybe we should have, but I had painted all day and was exhausted and so I just went to bed once it had died down a bit. Brian slept with the girls in their room. I wouldn't have guessed the Brian and Madison could both fit on a twin mattress! And here we are getting a King:-) I guess he needs less room than I thought:-) We are busy furnishing our house, painting, picking up items for free, looking on craigslist a million times/day, taking the kids here and there for ward members to watch them, oh, did I mention painting? I didn't realize what a huge job that would be, but we have spent hours painting and finished the living room, kitchen, and one half bath that needs another coat of paint. We still have the stair way, hallway, bathroom upstairs, and three bedrooms. Wish me luck.

On a happier note, we have been so blessed and gotten many things for free. Just to mention a few are a full bed with boxspring and frame, bookshelf, silverware, lamps, floor lamps, green leather furniture (used, but functional), dresser, blender, microwave, stroller, small entertainment shelf, end table, full length mirror, etc. We have truly been blessed! It's all working out for us. I know the Lord watches over us and has shown us that time and time again. I keep wondering when he is going to stop and say, "that's enough blessings for now:-)" well, back to work:-) I will post pictures of our place when it's all finished. Brian wants to move in this weekend before he starts his surgery rotation. So far it's working out. We still won't have everything, but enough to live there!

Nauvoo Visit

This is Abby's curls from the humidity!

It was very hot and humid, but we thoroughly enjoyed being in Nauvoo with Rick and Tamara (Brian's parents who are serving a temple mission there). We got to see the plays, visit the sites, get a feel for the saints sacrifices, feel the heart ache, experience the joy of the city, and really appreciate the luxuries we have due to the saints sacrifices. It was humbling and spiritual. I will never forget it. We got to spend 4 full days there and Rick and Tamara were perfect hosts! Thanks for a memorable visit!

Pioneer Cemetary and Huge Oak Tree

Tamara took us to this huge Oak tree. I reminded me of Louisiana. It was beautiful and was probably around when the prophet was alive!

We saw a huge toad and I wanted to get a picture with it between the girls standing with their cute feet. The toad was camera shy and when I tried to pick it up it peed on me and wouldn't cooperate. He kept hopping out of the picture, so here are the girls cute legs and feet!


This statue represents a family mourning over burying a young baby in the ground. So sad!

This was sobering to walk through as lots of the graves were of young children who died in Nauvoo. One mother's story was of her first and she was two years old and the mother had to walk to the cemetary alone without family since she didn't have any to bury her first and only child.

Carthage Jail

I took this picture through the bullet hole in the door that killed Hyrum looking to the window that Joseph Smith fell out of. I saw this once at a friends house and loved it!

David's Chamber and Stone Bridge

These places were breathtakingly beautiful...if that is even a word! The girls loved playing in the water and got all the way down to their underwear and diaper and just splashed around and loved it! It was perfect weather for the excursion. We were really blessed with good weather while we were there. We got to see Sunset on the Mississippi and The Young Ambasadors from BYU, the play Just plain Anna Amanda, High Hopes and River Boats, and a bunch of the tour sites. Rick and Tamara even watched the girls so we could do a session in the temple. We were two of the four present at the session and were the witness couple. We then got our own tour of the temple and got to go up to the top where the bell is and look out over the city as the tour guide told us some experiences and we felt the spirit of it. We also got to view other places in the temple and see how it runs. They have this amazing staircase the spirals down four stories. It's gorgeous! There is so much wood in the temple. It was weird not to see just white everywhere. It's very unique and I felt blessed to be in it. What a sad day when the saints had to leave that beautiful temple and the fate of it.


David was the son of Joseph Smith whom Emma was pregnant with when Joseph went to Carthage. David loved to go to this place to think and ponder. They have made it into sort of a park. David seemed to have had split personalities of some sort and ended up dying young in a mental hospital. Sad story, but the place invokes peace and a perfect haven!

Peter's 18 mo. shoot!

I just love taking pictures of children. They are so beautiful, pure, clean, and they will let you know how they feel. No guessing what makes them happy and what doesn't. I loved this shoot because it was totally casual and things just happened naturally. Now, I am not saying that there wasn't a parent club behind me making faces and doing all sorts of crazy things, but when the family was together, there was joy and all I had to do was capture it! I feel I come alive when I take pictures and do a shoot. The power of creating like Elder Uchtdorf said.

Emily's Maternity Shoot!

I had a blast doing this one. It helps that my subjects are so beautiful and hansom. It was fun to do this...it's my first outdoor maternity shoot and I was very happy with it! Loved the tick tack bribery, fun laughs, Kevin limping on his sprained ankle, Emily's beautiful smile, and easy-going attitude, and Cannon's I can do it all by myself attitude made the shoot a success. I am going to miss family so much. It's going to be HARD to leave. I catch myself sometimes from wanting to all out bawl when I think of leaving to go to Michigan. I know the Lord will take care of us and has plans for us there...I will be fine once I get there and have a couch to sit on, a bed to sleep on, and a table to eat at, and an apartment to call my own:-) Not in that exact order:-) Here's for another adventure and growing experience. Here's to new friends, new experiences, and another home to love away from home. Sorry about the tangent. It all came about after spending more time with Emily. To see more of this shoot click here.

I just love this one of Cannon. He was climbing all over the tree while we were trying to get him to kiss Emily's belly. He is so fun to photograph. I love his big eyes and his body position. He goes where he wants when he wants...can you tell?