Some Things Are Worth Fighting For

Well, it took 37 years, a lot of cussing and screaming, stress and tears, but we are finally homeowners!!!

Buying your first house (or any house) is supposed to be a fun process. You know, looking at different houses, realizing what you want and what you are willing to compromise on. Seeing weird floor plans and trying to figure out what you would do different. Writing a contract and the anticipation of getting a good deal. Signing closing documents and drinking champagne in an empty living room! What a bunch of crap!

Buying a house in this new economy SUCKS!!! It was probably the worst experience of our lives. The underwriters (the elusive ghost people that get to decide whether or not you are worthy enough to be granted a loan) are asking for everything short of DNA and your first born. We had to jump through our assholes to get proof of EVERYTHING! I mean it was absolutely ridiculous! I won't bore you with the gory details but to say the least, they turned me into a screaming banshee that cussed out every person involved. My poor lender, who was working his butt off for us, got the brunt of it. He was cussed out probably 2-3 times a day by the end of this process. I used words that would make a sailor blush.

We went under contract on September 11th (should have been a sign). The financing deadline was September 30th (mom and Eric's Bday) and we were supposed to close on October 27th. But because of the stupid underwriters and their bullshit, the financing didn't get finished until the 27th (closing) so we couldn't close until our anniversary (the 28th). And because we didn't know if they were going to give us the loan until the very last minute, we couldn't pack or plan to transfer utilities or anything. And to top it off, our landlord at our current house put it up for sale and they were showing it almost daily. AAAAGGGGGHHHH!!!!!

Anyway, some things are worth fighting for. After years of saying, "if it was our house, we'd do this..." it's real. It's not just on paper anymore and, honestly, it's still hard to believe. We are moving today with the help of our neighbors and friends and should be sleeping in the house tonight! All of our hard work over the past 5 years of rebuilding our credit, staying diligent on the budgets, paying off debt, and a strong push at the end...it's rewarding to know you didn't give up and that's the only reason why you succeeded.

I hope to see you all at my new house soon! I love you and miss you all! Thank you for all your prayers during this process...I know it helped to push it along in the Universe (and kept me from the verge of a breakdown also!).

HAUNTED CANYON

Last night we took a haunted train ride up Provo Canyon on the Heber Valley Railroad. It was super cute and fun! We took Jack (Gage's friend) and went with our neighbors, Jeff and Allie, and their 2 year old, Blake.

As you are heading up the canyon, you are listening to different ghost stories about the canyon over the PA. Outside the train windows, there are scenes that correlate to the ghost stories...the woman in the wedding dress looking for her husband's body after they crashed into the train, the carniverous cavemen from long ago, the crazy cat lady that turns kids into cats, the headless conductor...and so on. It was cool cause all the scenes were backlit and they had real actors out in the woods. Most of them were kinda far away but there was one scene about zombies and they were right up next to the train...it was a little freaky!! But the conductor said as long as the train doesn't stop, they can't get on so we should be ok!!

At the top of the canyon, the train stops (of course) and all the kids are screaming "don't let the train stop". It gets moving again, back down the canyon while more ghost stories are playing. It starts going fast, then jerking to stops, then fast again, then the conductor comes on and says there are problems with the brakes and everyone needs to hold on. All of a sudden the train comes to a stop and the lights go out! We sit there for a couple of minutes before the lights come back on and the train starts moving again.

The next thing you know, all the ghostly characters from the stories are on the train!!! They are running up and down the cars scaring all the kids and making a scene. It was pretty funny. The carniverous cavemen got in Gage and Jack's face and freaked them out a little bit; then they scared the crap out of Blake...poor kid! He was shaking and crying all the way back down the canyon!

PLEASANT GROVE VIKING FOOTBALL

After many years of soccer history in this family, Dylan decided to play football this year. As many of you know, they were on a winning streak at the beginning of the season, taking the first 4 games to victory! Their 5th game was close and they lost by only 1 point. During the next week's practice, Dylan dislocated his elbow and we spent the night in the emergency room. Luckily, nothing was broken and he is just in a splint for a few weeks, but that meant no practice or games. And the Vikings lost their last 2 games. (we like to think if Big D had been in the game, it would have helped) He is their best defensive lineman, after all! Regardless, the game today was exciting! It went into OT and they ended up losing, but not by any fault of their own. The refs made really shitty calls all game and the kids suffered at their stupidity.

They have one game left to play in regular season. If they don't win, they won't make it to the playoffs. Even if they win, they have to win by a lot in order to make up the point difference and make it into the playoffs. Dylan has one more week in ths splint, so he won't be able to play in this last game. If the Vikings can pull it off, there is a week between that game and the playoffs and Dylan should be cleared to play.

Keep your fingers crossed!

I am really going to try to keep up on this blog more often. At least, more than once every 4 months! Love you all and miss you tons! Keep your eyes out for the football videos to come your way!

Never Enough Time

Hello All,
Unfortunately, it's taken me a long time to add anything to this damn blog! I thought it would be an easy way to keep in touch with everyone and help all you to follow what's going on with the kids, but it still requires me to update! Sorry I've been a slacker lately, but there has been a lot of stuff happening in the past few months!

MOM RETIRES
It was a great chance to celebrate with the family and friends we haven't seen in a long time! Long are the days when an employee spends that amount of time at one job! 23 years...wow!! I remember when mom went back to school...it had a huge impact on me. I was extremely impressed with her dedication to school while continuing to hold down the fort at home! I have always been influenced by her amazing ability to balance her life as a mother, wife, career person, and woman. I only hope to live up to her standards :)

The retirement party was fun. The kids looked cute in their suits (even though they couldn't breathe!) and i've never seen Dylan so poised and patient and non-complaining!! It was also really fun to see all the family at the party at the house! Congratulations, Mom, on a wonderful career and cheers to a new chapter in your life!!!

MOM'S ACCIDENT
And not 2 weeks after retiring, mom falls off a ladder and breaks her leg! What a way to start your retirement, huh? Well, all things happen for a reason...God knows what this is for!! You've done amazingly well with this obstacle, just like you have will all things in your life! Your determination and strength only seem to get more secure and steadfast with age. Now 7 weeks after surgery, there's a new ramp in the garage for freedom, and a little bit of weight being put on the leg....keep up the amazing work!!

MELODY'S ACCIDENT
What's with all you people getting hurt? Stop this nonsense now!! Mel was in a bad car accident that totalled her car, broke her hand, and knocked her unconscious. Thank God it wasn't worse; it could've killed her!! We are all thankful you are ok and on your way to a quick recovery! We love you and your resilience will pull you through this!

TAZ'S ACCIDENT
Out of nowhere, the kitty hurt his leg to the point where he was not putting any weight on it and I had to take him to the urgent care for x-rays! $700 later, we still don't know for sure if there is a fracture, but slowly over the past few days, with the help of kitty morphine, he's starting to put some weight on it and is feeling better. We think he tried to sneak in the garage door to the house as it was shutting and got hit by the door. Poor Kitty!

on a positive note....

GAGE GRADUATES
No more kindergarten for the Gagers! It was a really cute ceremony, complete with caps and everything! It's hard to believe he'll be 6 already in August! He's very excited to go to "big kids" school next year and get picked up with his brother and not have to go to daycare anymore! (so are we...it's expensive!!) They are both growing up really fast...it's crazy!

DYLAN GETS STRAIGHT A'S
And we couldn't be happier! It took a lot of work and a lot of make-up credit, but he eeked it out at the last minute (almost literally!) Hopefully he learned a lesson on the importance of doing your homework right the first time and actually turning it in on time! Next year we are expecting a smoother year for him with his new skills in homework management! No taking away from him, though! He definitely earned the A's. Great job Dylan!!

GAGE RIDES A 2-WHEELER
The training wheels have come off and he's a speed demon on the bike!! He did very well and took to it quickly. He's already asking if he can do tricks!! He's very proud of himself :)

DYLAN'S SUMMER BUSINESS
The entreprenural spirit lives on....in a lawn mowing business! The flyers are in the making and hopefully, he'll make enough money to buy himself a new bike this summer! He wants to get into BMX racing! He's charging $20 for a cut and weed service. He's figured that if he can just get 5 accounts and do the lawns every week, he'll be rolling in about $100 every week. We've talked about how he will have to save at least half in the bank and spend the rest (soon enough, he'll be buying a car with that money!)

I'll try posting some pics and videos soon so watch out for that! And I'll try to keep this more updated. Luckily, I didn't really have anything going on at work today so at least I got this far!!
Love you all and keep posted!!!

BYU National Dancesport Festival

3/14/09

Sorry this took so long to get posted...the site was having problems uploading videos

This was a really cool dance competition. Couples from all across the country come to compete in a 3 day event in all areas of ballroom. They had categories from elementary school to semi-pros throughout the weekend and it was really fun to watch!

Dylan's school competetors

So even though Dylan's TEAM didn't make it to the national competition, he did enter into the individual swing competition. His partner this time was Hannah (they got to pick) and they did a great job! The group they competed with consisted of about 120 couples with about 25 being cut in the first round....

Swing Round 1

They have the groups combined...level 1 dancers and level 2 dancers organized alphabetically by last name. It's the luck of the draw which group you are dancing in and with what ability level. But Dylan and Hannah made it through the first round (even though they forgot a few steps).

In round 2 there were 5 heats with about 19 couples in each heat. They were cutting about 35 couples in this round...

Swing round 2

They did much better in that round and that's what pushed them through to round 3! Out of his classmates that were also competing, only 3 couples made it to the third round. In this round, there were 4 heats with about 15 couples in each heat. Again, they were cutting about 35 couples in this round...

Swing round 3

Dylan's heat that round was tough, full of almost all level 2 dancers. He and Hannah had a few missteps and they were cut that round. But they did amazing and we are so proud of them! He's really getting into Ballroom and wants to take more dance classes. We are looking into hip-hop over the summer!! Look for him in future "So You Think You Can Dance" tryouts!!

Dylan & Hannah

They really do have eyebrows...

The kids got a haircut today and we can see their eyes!!!

The Next Tony Hawk?

Here's a video of Gage showing off his mad skills on the skateboard. He's still a little attached to the small board, but we are encouraging him to practice more on the full size! He's a natural!! Look for him in future X-Games....