Happy 6 Years!

Our 6 year anniversary was on March 27th! I can't believe it has been 6 years....it feels like 20!! I hear if you make it to 7 years, your smooth sailin from there! We're on our way! I can honestly say that I have NEVER doubted my decision to marry Ryan. In fact, many times I find myself feeling very lucky to have married the man of my dreams! I had 2 dreams growing up 1. to be a wife and 2. to be a mom! Both of those have come true thanks to Ryan! This has been such a great 6 years and I look forward to what the future holds! Hopefully not much more schooling(who am I kidding), more money, more kiddos, lots of fun memories, maybe some romantic getaways, fun family vacations, less poundage (food and weight;), lots of good times and hopefully not lots of bad times! Good luck on that, right? Seriously, it is nice to know that I have Ryan by my side for whatever the future holds for us good or bad. I am so glad that Ryan finally came around and realized what he was missing out on...me! We have had so much fun and I blame him for that. He always keeps things interesting and fun! I feel sooo blessed to have such a wonderful, loving, charming husband who adores me and supports me in everything! He is such a great dad to my sweet girls! I love him soooo much and look forward to many more years together!
We had such a blast on our anniversary! I have the best in-laws who so graciously kept our girls over night so we could enjoy each other and remember why we got married. We started the night out at my favorite restaurant that I have probably mentioned many times before, Casa Manana. Then we were off to Gila Idol! Oh yes, it's like American Idol just on a lot smaller scale! The Gila Valley had an Idol concert and it was actually really good! We weren't expecting such a great concert with such great talent! We really enjoyed that. Then we went home and watched the movie "Fireproof" It was a pretty good movie. Cheesy at times, but it had such great messages. It made me take a step back and look at my life. Am I being the kind of wife I should be and am I treating Ryan with respect and being selfless. I know I can do better and be better. Watching this movie made me want to work harder at that. It also made me so grateful for Ryan and the husband that he is. He is by no means perfect, but he tries. I recognize that my actions make a big difference in his actions. If I give 110% then he is more capable of giving 110%. Anyway, enough marriage counseling, I recommend this movie to anyone who hasn't seen it. In the morning we ran a few errands together and walked down main street. We haven't had the chance to see what is down main street so we decided to take a stroll. It was fun to see all the stores and buildings. It kind of felt like Mexico, only a lot cleaner! It was great to just spend time with each other and not get interrupted 100 times. I love you so much Ryan! Thanks for a Fabulous 6 years!

It sure has been fun remembering this beautiful day and ALL that it entailed!

Isn't that HOT!

Conversations with Abby....

1. Abby likes to pick out her clothes and get herself dressed. We were getting ready for church and she had picked out some tights to wear. Our conversation went like this...

Abby: "Mom, these pink tights match my dress, Right?
Me: "Well, not really because the pink stripe in your dress in Hot Pink"
Abby: Very confused says " Then are these tights Cold Pink?"
Me: With a smile on my face I said "No sis, those are Light Pink"

2. We were in the car driving and I was very happy with how the girls were behaving. So I was telling them how much I liked that.

Me: "It sure makes me happy when you guys are sweet and kind and listen real good! Thank you so much"
Abby: "It sure makes ME happy when you don't scream mommy" :)
Me: "Me too sis! See, when you guys are good then mommy doesn't scream."
Abby: "Oh, maybe we should all just be sweet !"
Me: "What a good idea"
That concept didn't last long.

3. Abby has been asking a lot of questions lately and has become very curious. We have been talking about how we get milk from cows, meet from the deer daddy shoots and bacon from pigs. I was cutting a watermelon and realized I need to plant a garden for more than one reason.

Abby: "Mommy, what animal does a watermelon come from?" :)
Me: I laughed and said "watermelons don't come from animals, they grow in gardens"
I then discussed what else grows in a garden and realized I need to plant a garden so my kids can learn how things grow and also to save money. Probably not, but it was a good thought!

Kids sure are funny, aren't they?

Abby Has Hair - (a little bit)

Abby has pony tails, I can't believe it! The other day I was playing with her hair and realized we probably could do some pony tails. The smile on her face was the best! She has recently noticed that all the princesses and all her friends have long hair! She puts her pajama pants on her head and says "look mommy, my long hair." She keeps asking if her hair is growing. I reassure her that it is growing just very very slowly! This is a huge stepping stone for us and we are very excited!

The cutest is that Abby has always called them "tail hairs". Now just about every morning she asks if we can do tail hairs! When she first looked in the mirror at her tail hairs she said "I look different mommy". She is right, it makes her look so much older.

I need a little work on making it straight and even but I haven't had any practice! At least Abby doesn't know the difference. And just in case you have forgotten or don't know why I haven't had any practice....

Infant (2004)

This is Ava and Abby. Nothing has changed, Ava has a TON of hair and Abby has none. Pretty funny!

6 months

1st Birthday (2005)

18 months

The same hair style and accessories as baby sis!

Here is the same pair as before, Ava and Abby.

2nd Birthday...still no hair (2006)

Summer 2007

Fall 2007

3rd Birthday (2007)

4th Birthday (2008)

And now! Isn't her hair DREAMY!!

February update....

I can't believe we have had so many visitors already....we are missed! That is so exciting! Our very first visitors were our good friends Drew and Amy. They came to visit for the day to escape from their sadness that they were experiencing. We were glad to give them a place to escape to. I got my massage table out and gave Amy a 90 minute massage to help her relax and relieve some stress. I am so glad I have that talent and ability! I sure enjoy doing that for people. Amy and I have been good friends for a long time and have been through sooo much together! She is truly the best friend anyone could ask for. She has been there for me many times in my life and I am so grateful for her and her friendship! While she enjoyed her massage, Ryan and Drew found some trails and went mountain biking. I know Ryan really enjoyed that. He has only gone biking with me and the kids and its just not the same. Thanks Drew for kickin his butt! Then we met up with some other friends Kent and Susan for dinner and played some games. All in all, we have a fabulous day and really enjoyed spending time with Drew and Amy!

Our next visitors are some of my favorite people to spend time with, Dani and Nikki. They came to visit with their kiddos for the day. My girls were soooo excited to have friends to play with! Abby has especially missed being with all of her cousins and friends since we have moved. And I have of course missed being with my friends as well!! It worked out perfectly because Ryan was gone all day and night so it gave me something to do. We had fun playing at the park and just hanging out. Dani's mother-in-law lives close to me and she was so kind to babysit ALL of the kids so we could enjoy a fabulous dinner at my favorite place, Casa Manana!! Fortunately, I think the girls enjoyed that and it will cause them to come back and visit:) Nothin like good ol Mexican food. Actually, Dani and I had a girls night out just about every Tuesday night after work! It always consisted of Mexican food....hence the extra poundage! I sure miss that time we had but I'm sure I won't miss the extra pounds! Thanks girls for coming it was fun, lets do it again soon, please!!

I took a picture of all the kids playing but I can't seem to open it on my computer. And I am sooo done with computer problems. Every time I sit down to work on my blog something goes wrong!It is probably just me but I am so frustrated. Maybe I can figure it out later.

And lastly, my sweet mother came to visit! Sorry mom, that silly face is pretty silly alright! My mom came up for the weekend and we sure did enjoy that! The girls miss their grandma and I know she misses them a lot too! We showed her around town - all 10 miles of it - and also took her over to Duncan. She got to experience what that's like! I think she wants to move their now. We visited with Ryan's parents and grandparents. We feel so blessed to have such wonderful friends and family around! Love you mom, hope you come again soon!

EMPLOYEE OF THE MONTH!!

Isn't he just the cutest! I sure wouldn't mind having him as my nurse, even with the shaved head.....it's called starving students can't afford and don't have time for a hair cut every 3 weeks!

My sweet hubby started a new job at a nursing home as a CNA, or butt wiper as we like to call it. I know that's crude, but ya tell it like it is and lets face it, someday we are all going to be having our butts wiped by someone else! Anyway, Ryan started in February and at the end of the month the residents have a little meeting. In this meeting they discuss who they feel has been the employee of the month. Ryan had only worked about 4 or 5 shifts that month and in that short time he impacted the residents enough to be named employee of the month!! I think that is sooo great and I am so proud of my little hubby nurse! I am so impressed but not surprised in the least. Ryan definitely has a way with people. He is very charismatic, fun and a hard worker, when he wants to be! His goal is to make each resident that he cares for smile or laugh at least once during each shift. Actually, I think that goes beyond his work environment, who am I kidding, he is always trying to get a laugh! It keeps things interesting and I love that about him...most of the time! I have seen a tender side of him in that genuinely cares about these folks and their needs. He has really enjoyed his job, although it is very hard work physically and emotionally! He's a winner!

SPRING BREAK!!!

For spring break we made a trip back home to Gilbert! We had a lot of fun relaxing, visiting with friends and family, shopping etc. We don't have much shopping in Safford you know. We had a great time. Ryan got to visit Gore, his old job and go shooting with his buddy Rich and I got to go shopping with my mom and get a pedicure:) I didn't take very many pics but I did take some at Peter Piper Pizza for Noah's birthday party.

We also got to go on a date while we were there! Thank you so much mom for babysitting and allowing Ryan and I to have fun and remember why we love each other so much! We invited Dani, Ryan, Nikki, and Jesse to join us on our date and we are so glad they were able to come. We had a blast just like the good ol days when we were dating and did fun, crazy things! We ate dinner and then ended up at SKATELAND of all places! I know, we hadn't been there since we were kids. After checking into bowling and goofy golf just to find out that it was way too busy and crowded we decided to go skating with all the junior high kids. It really was a blast once we got comfortable in the skates. I think Harris biffed it the most! It didn't take long before we realized how old and out of shape we all are because we got tired way too fast! Thanks for the fun night guys!

Warning....Be Prepared to Laugh Out Loud!!

Need I say more! I came across this video and laughed right out loud! If you haven't already seen the real BEYONCE video you should check it out, his moves are right on!

It SNOWED Last Night!!

I am so excited! I have lived in Mesa/Chandler my whole life so this is new to me. The wind woke me up last night because it was so loud and strong! I thought our roof was going to blow off! I have a serious problem going back to sleep once I'm awake and I am up for an hour or two. We'll talk about that another day. Anyway, at 2:30a.m. I noticed it was snow not just wind and I was so excited! I woke Ryan up and we watched it for awhile. That is my yard, that is so cool! Whoohoo!

Our House...

Just Kidding! I wish that was our house! That is actually our backyard view of our new neighbors.

This is our house....almost as good!

We are so grateful for this house that we have been blessed with. Our neighbors that live behind us have graciously allowed us to rent from them. This opportunity has allowed Ryan to attend nursing school and only work a little bit, therefore able to focus most of his time and energy on school!

This is that fabulous ditch that Ryan backed the car into! The picture doesn't do it justice. Below are a few of my favorites! If you want to see more....come on over! We welcome visitors...

....told you so! This is my new doormat that is so amazing! I still laugh every time I see it!

Yes....wood paneling throughout the house! The best part is the camouflage door! Do you see the door handle? Gotta love it!

And lastly, the master bath mural....a gold tree! Guarantee you haven't seen anything like it! She's a beauty.


Kitchen...obviously


Family room


Our bedroom

Ryan's office/guest room /more wood paneling

And that's the tour of most of our house. The girls room was a total mess and I didn't feel like cleaning it, so there you have it. This is for those of you losers who won't make it here to visit us!

Grandparents / Great-Grandparents!!

Right before Christmas Grandpa Kottraba was in a nursing home for a little bit. He was really close to our house so the girls and I got to go visit a few times. The girls just loved to talk to all the ol' folks. This picture was right before Christmas when my family went caroling. Grandma and Grandpa Kottraba were very happy to see us! I am glad that the girls have been able to get to know their Great-Grandparents!

They look a little stoned but still dang cute. Before we moved we stayed with my Mom at her house. The girls absolutely love Grandma and Grandpa T. In fact, we probably wore them out while we were there. The girls constantly wanted to go in their room to see them. I am so glad that they moved in with my Mom because we have had the chance to see them a lot more! I have always been very close to my grandparents but have grown to love them even more now. The sweetest thing was when Kenna climbed up on Grandpa's lap and he rocked her for about 20 minutes. She did not move a muscle. So sweet! I love my grandparents sooooo much and am so grateful for all the time we get to spend with them! We sure do miss you guys! Thanks for all you have done for us and for all of the fun memories! We love you!!

Some Pics!!

These are some of the pictures from our family photo shoot. Thank you Heather Torriente for taking these awesome pictures for us! Your the best!

Don't I have the cutest little family ever?! Ooo, I just want to squeeze them!

Just Ryan being Ryan! Thanks babe, I appreciate it!

Oh, the love of his life! How sweet!

Sometimes I wish I were a soccer ball!!