Family Reunion and Internship

The beginning of June we went to Altamont, Utah for the Jones Family

Reunion for my moms side of the family. It was my grandpa, his two siblings, and all the family below them that were there. There were over 100 people there and we had a great time catching up and getting to know family better. There were so many kids and it was so fun to see everyone having a good time. My aunt Margaret Ann is a fabulous cook and was in charge of all the meal planning. It was so delicious and such a treat to have three yummy meals a day! Stuart and I were in heaven. The reunion took place on a large ranch and most people slept in the house while others slept out in RVs. Stuart and I slept up on top in the motor home all snuggled up :) throughout the day we went fishing , rock climbing, played volleyball, did crafts, hiked, went on ATVs, swam, games, and ate alot of food :) we had a great time and feel so fortunate to have so much loving family around.

After the reunion Stuart and I spent a couple days together with his family in Springville and had a nice time. After that we had to part for 8 days while I stayed in Utah to do a mini internship to get my SLPA license for California. It was really hard to be apart for that long, but I am so grateful I have the sweetest in-laws who took care of me and made me feel right at home. My mother-in-law spoiled me with a fresh smoothie every morning and it was such a treat. I also got to visit with friends from college in Utah and it was so great! I especially got to spend alot of time with Jessica and little Sydney and it was so much fun! 

My internship was a great experience and I feel very fortunate I was able to work under Ann Dorais and do therapy for these clients. It is such a joy watching the kids grow and progress in their speech. Wish I could have helped with therapy even longer but I was so excited to come home to my husband :) absence truly makes the heart grow fonder

Camping

Back in May our friends Chantry and Stephanie invited us to go camping. We were so excited that they had room for us and so we headed down after work. They so kindly provided all the food and it was delicious. We had carne asada tacos  and then of course roasted s'mores. Stuart and I had been wanting to camp so badly and so we were super excited to be camping and finally using all our gear! It was our first time camping in our marriage and it was a blast snuggling in our tent and hanging out by the fire. 

Emily Turns 24

I had a wonderful birthday this year and was fortunate enough to have the day off. Stuart brought me breakfast in bed and laid out a card for me downstairs when we left for work. In it was a shopping spree, since he know that was what I would want to do on my day off, and "The Pregnancy Card". Stuart made a card that I can use my entire pregnancy. It includes things such as foot runs whenever I please, guilt free napping, and dates planned by husband. It was so thoughtful and I have definitely been putting it to good use! 

So that day I went shopping and then met my family at Cheesecake Factory for dinner. My little nieces and sister in law even surprised me by coming into town from Vegas! I was so excited to see them and it was so nice of them to join the celebration. I was spoiled with presents and had a great time with family. 24 I know is going to be the best yet and I can't wait for all that's in store for me!

Finding out I was Pregnant

This is SO long overdue but needs to be documented.

Back in April I was a little late but that's nothing new for me. However this time was a little different, I was having these mild cramps that felt different than usual.  Anyways, I was nannying that day for my niece and I decided to just take a test to see. So nonchalantly I took a test thinking nothing of it, and bam! Immediately that positive line showed up that I was pregnant. Now this goes to show my personality... I didn't cry, have an overwhelming sense of joy, or panic, I just kid of sat there trying to process it. And...I only took one pregnancy test. After it processed a bit I began to get excited and got ready to tell Stuart!

I went to the store and got a neutral onesie and wrapped up the positive pregnancy test inside. Stuart had gotten promoted at work the day before, such a blessing, and so I told him that I had a gift for him for working so hard. I handed him the onesie and he opened it up and had the sweetest/excited look on his face while saying.."you're pregnant?! We're going to have a baby?!" Tears welled up in his eyes and that's when it became real for me. We just embraced, jumped up and down, and talked about how excited we were the rest of the night. It was such a tender moment that I will never forget. We feel so blessed that we were able to get pregnant quickly and the timing could not be more perfect with our home and Stuart's promotion. The hand of The Lord has definitely been seen so visibly in our lives throughout this process. 

Driving Range

Stuart and I have been trying to branch out of our comfort zone and make the most of the free time we have without kids. So randomly we decided to hit the driving range one night right by our house. We got a bucket of balls and pathetically attempted to hit a few balls. I am TERRIBLE and Stuart is...working on his swing :) he is MUCH better than I am but we both need some help. It's always fun though to try new things together

Beach, Bikes, and Breakfast

Back in March, we did one of our "dates" that I had planned for the year and it was one of the best! We woke up early and took our bikes down to Newport Beach to go bike riding and then eat at Rubys on the pier. It was so nice to have a date planned and paid for. I LOVE Rubys breakfast and  so I was in heaven. We had a fun time cruising around and dreaming of living on Balboa Island! I love spending time with just my main man, he keeps me on my toes and always makes it a good time.

Smith Family Comes to Visit

In April we had our first visitors! The Smith family came to visit us. They were kind enough to sleep on the floor of our place as we had no furniture yet. Those guys are troopers!! We had a fun time going to the beach, swimming, and eating :) Easter was that weekend and we went to Stuart's grandmas in La Crescenta to spend it with all the family. Family time is always a party!

Moving

Back in March we became full blown adults when we bought a townhome. We left Irvine and moved to the bubble of Ladera Ranch. Living in Irvine was a wonderful time for us and we loved every second. It was a great place for us to be after graduating and we are so grateful for the friends and memories that we made there. However, it was very temporary since we were in an apartment and now we are so excited to be in a permanent place for a while. This was the 6th time Stuart and I had moved in our short 2.5 years of marriage and so we are ready to settle down for a bit hopefully. It's just a little 2 bedroom townhome, but it's ours :) It was proved to be a good investment so far and we have loved living here. Everything is at our fingertips and everyone is so friendly! We have a huge ward with lots of kids so we are very excited to be here :) and...cheers for hiring movers! That was worth EVERY penny. 

The Disneyland Pass

Back in May it was a sad day when our Disneyland passes expired. I was so sad that it was coming to an end and it didn't make sense for us to renew with the baby on the way, there's alot of restrictions to prego women. We had such a great time with the passes though and look forward to going again with our little munchkin in a couple years. My husband is also officially a Disney lover and so that means the goal was accomplished. We love all the memories we have made there!

Valentines Day 2013

We're going WAY back here to get caught up. We had a fabulous Valentines Day while we were still living in Irvine. We decided to try out a new place called La Serena. We thought all La Serenas were the same, but after our food wasnt that great we realized we went to the wrong one. Whoops. This happens so often to me and Stuart! Oh well...we came home after and I did a scavenger hunt for Stuart to find his Valentines, he LOVED it, and Stuart gave me his Valentines as well as we ate the chocolate covered strawberries, cookies, and Swedish Fish that he had made ( yes the tiny chocolate looking ants are Swedish fish covered in chocolate). I love any chance to celebrate with this husband of mine and we sure do love Valentines Day!