It's Official!

We have packed up almost every item we own and are officially leaving tomorrow. :( I am so sad, but I know that this adventure is the best for our family right now. Thanks to all of our family and friends who helped us out! We will miss everyone and know that we are missing out on some great times. We stopped by both of our works today and it just amazes us that everyone really does care about us and how much we truly will miss seeing them all the time. Wish us luck on NOT getting caught up at the border! I will post some funny moving pics when I get a chance in a few days.

Absent

I have been so absent from the blogging world these past 2 weeks. I feel so left out of my blogging buddies lives... Ok, jk, I am not that desperate. I am sorry to complain again, but seriously... I MISS BEING HOME WITH MY BABY... and blogging buddies of course. I only have 2 more days of work and then 1 day to pack and then we are honestly leaving... I really am excited, yet tonight I just want to cry. I am going to miss my family and friends terribly... especially my mom. I call her constantly and she always makes time for me and helps me out with everything. She has sent me tons of gluten-free food (which by the way, with her help, is working out just fine and I feel great) and has made phone calls, packed boxes, and has watched Deakon (see the 2 previous posts) to help us move smoothly. It just kills me because everyone keeps telling me how sad she is about us going, but she is all smiles and "how can I help you guys" whenever I see her. Man, she is just awesome. I love you so much Mom... I will come and visit ASAP... Thank you for everything... YOU ARE THE VERY BEST EVER!!!

Family Fun

Here are some more pictures of another day that my Mom took Deakon. The first picture was taken when I went to pick him up from her house. He was putting "hats" on all of the bottles that my mom had canned. It was so funny. They had fallen off by the time Grandma got the camera, but we were talking and all we heard was, "hat....hat....hat..." as he put them all on. My Mom got some cute pictures of him with some of his cousins this past week too. I can't believe these 2 little boys are getting so big already! Now we just need a picture of him with Ethan and with Cooper... could you please arrange that Monica? Thanks!

Hat Time...
Deakon and Judson (Danny and Becky's baby)
Deakon reading to Luke (Debbie and Christian's baby)
Deakon with Uncle Stephen (Stake)
Playing with the little people at grandma's house

Wheeler Farm

Because my Mom is so awesome and is going to miss us (aka DEAKON) she has been having Deakon over for a few play-dates this past week. These are some pictures of their trip to Wheeler Farm. He loves his grandma so much and it is great for Kyle to get some time to pack without him running around. Thanks Mom! Love you lots!

I'm a SILLY...and have a mean sister

So... I am being forced to share some news that I learned on Thursday. I have officially been diagnosed a Celiac... or as I like to call it- a silly. For those of you that don't know what being a Celiac is... basically I am allergic to gluten and therefore must follow a gluten-free diet for THE REST OF MY LIFE! AKA- no wheat, barley, and rye. My little brother, older sister, mom, and aunt all have this so at least I am not alone. Most of my family has been tested and are negative... lucky. So, I thought I would post today because my sister wrote a very mean post about me on her blog: www.glutenfreebetty.blogspot.com. Her link is on my list... all I have to say is... "HOW RUDE!" Ok, I am not really offended, here is a little insert from her post:
"Gluten Free 101:


First of all, gluten is poison to your body. POISON! The real deal - skull and crossbones included! Remember that health movie when they show someone sneeze and they magnify it and show all the droplets in fluorescent colors so you can see where it lands? Gross, I know, but that is how you have to think of gluten. It's so easy to get gluten through cross contamination, so wash your hands constantly. It can get a little crazy when you're trying to feed your baby and feed yourself, but even if you have to wash your hands 50 times a day it will be worth it if it keeps you healthy. (Keep lotion on hand - all that washing can be brutal, especially in the winter!)


READ YOUR LABELS! Even if it's a product you've bought before, double check that the manufacturer hasn't changed any of the ingredients.


After saying all of that, being on a gluten free diet really isn't that bad or that hard. Sure you'll have bad days, but if you live in a state of preparedness those days will be few and far between. To help you get started here are some of my favorite things to eat that are naturally gluten free and can easily be found at your regular grocery store. I'm only doing this because I love you and don't want to keep seeing you get sick!"

So...if it wasn't for her and other family I would just have stomach aches for the rest of my life and be miserable so wish me luck on my GLUTEN-FREE adventure! Love you MERI!

Working Moms

How do you moms out there work full time and still have energy for your family??? I am working full time until we move and Kyle is being a stay-at-home daddy. We are both having a hard time with it... I guess we are learning empathy for eachother... For those super moms out there that can do it all- I bow to you. I miss my baby so so so much and all I do at work is think about all of the things I should be doing at home... I hope the next 2 weeks go fast!

Our Condo

We have chosen a final date to move: Thursday September 25th! So....so...so... soon! WOW. Anyway, we listed our condo last night for rent on KSL. We got tons of responses and may have found the perfect renters already! I thought I might as well put some pics of our condo for memories and for any of you out there that care. Enjoy!

Just for you Linds :)

POUTINE

To go along with my HUGE news I wanted to make a post dedicated to things about Canada. Let's start with the most delicious... For those of you that have never heard of poutine... you are missing out! 3 of you got the poll correct that poutine belongs in the fry category... along with fresh cheese curds (they taste like mozzarella- just sounds gross) and brown gravy!!! Some of you might be cringing right now, but believe me- you haven't tried it. I thought I would hate it, but oh my gosh- it is good. PLUS, you can find it like everywhere in Canada. Poutine with KFC gravy... YUMMY! Kyle has also gotten me into adding malt vinegar on top (another thing Canada has everywhere- they like it with fries apparently) Kyle uses way to much for my liking, but half a packet doesn't hurt! Ok, so here is the picture- just go with it- it is really, really, really, good and I have to keep that in mind when I move!

For those of you that don't know. When Kyle and I were dating, he was on summer/fall school schedule which means that he had to go back home from January-May. I wasn't about to let him leave me for 4 months so I packed up my stuff and headed out with him. So... I have lived in Canada and when I read these funny facts on a site yesterday I just couldn't resist sharing:

*You understand the sentence, "Could you please pass me a serviette, I just spilled my BOWL OF POUTINE"
*You eat chocolate bars instead of candy bars.
*You talk about the weather with strangers and friends alike.
*You get milk in bags as well as cartons and plastic jugs.
*You drive on a highway, not a freeway.
*You have Canadian Tire money in your kitchen drawers.
*You use a red pen on your non-Canadian textbooks and fill in the missing 'u's from labor, honor, color. etc
*You can eat more than one maple sugar candy without feeling nauseous.(I still can't do this...)
*You know what a touque is and you own one and often wear it.(Beanie guys...touque=beanie)
*Back bacon and Kraft Dinner are two of your favourite food groups.
*If you live in some of the colder Canadian provinces, your car has a cord and plug sticking out of the grill ... it's a block heater for those sub-zero (in Celsius) days. (I was a bit freaked out by this)
*You pronounce the last letter of the alphabet "zed" instead of "zee."

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND EVERYONE!

O CANADA

So... I guess it is time to reveal the big news I KNOW you have spent all night trying to figure out. I apologize for any lost sleep and/or peeing of pants that I have caused. Our big news of the month...or year...or hopefully years to come is that we have decided to pick up from our warly(warm and cozy) home in Lehi, Utah.... and move 14 hours north to ALBERTA, CANADA. If this is a shock to some of you, believe me it is a shock for us. We have toyed with the idea of going back to Canada, or should I say Kyle has been whispering in my ear about free healthcare and endless poutine, since being married. I have gotten my way to stay here until now. The last 3 weeks we have come to a bit of a stand still in our lives. Things were ending... new things needed to be started... and we started talking about going. AND NOW WE ARE... in about 3 weeks!!! Holy cow, I think I just peed my pants... I am freaking out a bit. Although it seems as if we are just jumping onto the Canada bus, we have seriously put numerous hours and days and time on our knees praying for guidance about what we should do with our lives. We know this is the right thing for our family, so if we stop thinking about that I ONLY HAVE 3 WEEKS, we feel happy and at peace with our decison. Now... we just have to make lots of phone calls, pack everything we own, break my grip on my mommy/daddy/family and friends, and find some decent people to rent our condo! Piece of pie right? Right.... ok, just writing this is making me antsy and want to start packing so I will have to write more later- I found some funny quotes about Canada that are TOTALLY true and crack me up that I will post. I have included a map of where we are going. Ok, the map is totally tinsy... just imagine driving through Idaho and Montana and then you are there! We will actually we living just a bit outside of Calgary for now.

Calgary Skyline!

Big News.....

is coming tomorrow... stay tuned!