Since I last posted

I guess I've decided that our family blog may be a once a year thing for me now. I don't know how I had time to do it before. But I do realize that there may be some of you out there who may want to know how we're doing. So, I'll give you a quick peek into our lives today.
Last time I wrote we had just decided to move in with our inlaws. It's been about 7 months now, wow! Plenty of new and exciting things have happened in that time frame. First of all, living here has been a blessing in more ways than we could ever have imagined. I know for a fact that it was meant to be and we have been truly blessed. About a month after we moved I started having back pain. I went to the Chiropractor and after several visits and a couple of experiments he couldn't figure out how to make the pain go away. He recommended that I go and get x-rays which I did. It was then that we found out the cause of my back pain. I have a herniated disk, some bone growth and degenerative disk disease(which isn't really a disease so I don't know why they call it that) I opted to get a cortisone shot in my spine to help with the pain(and I was truly in pain). I have been very pleased with the results, it took away the unbearable pain and made it possible for me to go through physical therapy and chiropractic adjustments. I wish I could say that I feel great and I'm all better but the truth is that I will most likely struggle with this my whole life. I am getting stronger and hoping that all the work I'm doing will help me to avoid spinal surgery altogether. The blessings...well, I couldn't have taken care of my family without the help of my in-laws! They helped so much when I just couldn't do it all. So that's been my major focus of the past 6 months.
During the holiday season we got to help pick, dry and pack/bag tons(maybe a ton literally) of Mandarin oranges. It certainly kept the whole family hoppin' for several months. We also got to enjoy the fruits(literally) of our labors as we could eat a mandarin fresh from the tree whenever our hearts desired.
As for the kids, well, they have LOVED it here. The elementary school here has been the best for them. I have had teachers and people at the school offer me more help with my children's education than I have ever had before. They really care about the boys, I love it! We would love for them to continue going to that school through 8th grade there but the catch is that we need to make sure we live close enough to it. As much as we would love that, it seems almost unreachable. Who knows what Heavenly Father has in mind for us though, right? If He needs us here, we'll stay here!! (I don't mean here, here, in this house. I mean in our own house in this area, but I think you probably knew that : )
Which brings us to the other great big thing that has happened. We finally were approved to buy a house on February 16 or so. We started looking and trying to figure out where to move. I wish I could end the story like this...

"We found the perfect house for our little family. We closed in 3 weeks and now we live in our own heavenly, cozy, independent abode." I wish...

No, that wasn't the plan. On February 22 Jacob called me at lunchtime like he normally does. I could tell something wasn't right and I asked him jokingly "So, did you get laid off?" And to my surprise, he said YES! It was weird because we both kind of laughed about it. We've been through this before...alot. We know that Heavenly Father has a plan for our family and that it happened at the right time. I'm so glad that we didn't buy a house and then get laid off! How awful that would have been! It's been a blessing to not have rent or a mortgage to worry about, that part makes being unemployed not quite as awful. Although we are anxious to have our own home again. It will happen.
So, for the past month Jacob has been job hunting, studying for his LAST (woohoo!) "ARE" (Architectural Registration Examination) exam and teaching himself "Revit", a program that most companies want in an employee in his field to know. For now, we'll just keep job hunting and doing what we can to help around here and serve in our ward. The good things will come, we hope.

As for church, I serve in the Primary Presidency as the Secretary. The women I work with are the BEST, I truly enjoy it. Jacob has been Joshua's primary teacher but he now has a new calling in scouts, still working with Joshua once he turns 11 in May. I think he will enjoy being the scoutmaster although it will mean he's gone from home more, bummer for me. (I love having him home)

Oh, and I have to tell you about Katie! She has grown up so much in the last 7 months! She loves being in Sunbeams and looks forward to it each week. She is a true princess. Loves Cinderella and everything princessy. There are some nights when I have to sings a song from EVERY princess movie before I can tuck her in. I love it! She has a pink pair of Barbie cowboy boots that Aunt Sarah gave her and wears them whenever she gets a chance. When it's rainy(and sometimes when it's not), she has a pink pair of "Kitty Cat boots" that she sticks on. So, she's a shoe girl for sure. She has been so fun to have around!

Life is hard but good, we are blessed and I'm thankful for our blessings in spite of the hard things. That's us in a nutshell! Maybe I'll post again before Christmas, you never know....

Moving right along...

So Summer came and went in the big ball of fun that I completely expected. Mary was here for the summer and we worked out together alot. We went on several trips:Oceanside, camping in the Mountains, Animal Kingdom, Lake Clementine and a couple of other really fun family activities. We celebrated our 12th anniversary August 5th(with a night stay in San Fransisco, Sourdough bread bowls and Ghiradelli Chocolate~Yum) We had visits from Liz and Cameron, then from Megan and John. Overall I have to say it was the most fun filled summer I have ever had as an adult. I enjoyed every minute I had with my kids and we even managed to fit in some reading on most days. The boys both met their reading goals which we are so proud of them for.
So, now that Summer days are over, we have made a big decision that is completely changing our lives. We feel that it is exactly what we need to do in our lives and will be a blessing for all involved. This weekend we are moving in with Jacob's Mom and Dad in Penryn. We have noticed that housing is becoming more and more affordable around this area. But in order to buy a house we will need a down payment, and after living 8 months without a job and relocating recently we don't have that kind of money. So, by moving we will be able to save every month for our new house. Also, the kids started the new school year at Penryn elementary and they absolutely LOVE it. Our other goal in moving now is to help fix up Jacob's Mom and Dad's house and help them take care of some projects that have gone undone for a while. We are excited to build, paint, clean and redo to help them out. They live on a 5 Acre fruit orchard, so we will also be able to help with the Mandarin sales in November and December. This will be an exciting and fun adventure for our kids, their grandparents and us. We know it's the right thing and we are excited.
So... life is full of fun and we are excited to be progressing and following what Heavenly Father wants for us. Here's to the future!!!

Summer Days Are Here Again!

Wow, I am just so excited that it's summer. My biggest excitement is that we don't have to move this year and that I get to spend some goofing off time with the kids. It has seemed like everything is so structured and we always have to do something or be somewhere. So, I am looking forward to some:

be-silly-and-play-all-you-want-time
go-over-to-Grandmas-and-play-in-the-mud-time
splashin-in-the-pool time
and
staying-up-late and getting-up-late time.

Don't get me wrong, we have big plans for the summer and we will be busy but without homework and teachers telling us what is due and where to be, we are free!
This is what we have going on...

New family pictures

Summer school with Mrs. Mom (i am going to spend a hour each day reading and working on workbooks with the kids to help them stay sharp)
The library's Summer Reading Program
Gold's Gym time-I'm still involved with Team Training and liking the results-I gotta keep that up!
Pool time at our friends house
Mary and Liz are both coming home sometime this summer,
that ALWAYS equals FUN!
Summer Holidays
Watermelon
Laid back Scout activities
Vacation in Oceanside and San Diego for a week
Fresh fruits and veggies from Grandma and Grandpas garden
Canning Fruits and salsa
And just basically spending some quality time with my kids who are growing up
WAY TOO FAST, and our family.

This is going to be good...

Race Day

Saturday was the Race for the Cure 2010 Sacramento. The people I planned on going with couldn't come (sad) But I was saved by Mary, Liz and Cameron! They came into town late Thursday night and stayed until Sunday morning. They thought it would be fun to run with me so we all got to go. The weather was BEAUTIFUL, perfect for the run! We got there just in time for the "fun" traffic jam but had no problems checking in and getting our shirts. After we got all the fun stuff taken care of, we stretched and found a place close to the front of the race. They led us in a 10 minute warm up(we threw a little dance party in there too!) and we were off. Apparently not everyone had the same idea as we did to RUN so it took a few minutes to get out of the crowd. We all ran together, slowing to a fast walk whenever someone needed a break. It seemed to go by so quickly, I think we could've done a 10K!
At the end of the race we were greeted by tables full of fruits, yogurts and donut holes, muffins and croissants. Oh, and water too! We ate a couple things and then made our way to the booths. We got this picture taken while Cameron graciously held our bags, thanks Cam! We found out later that there were over 22,000 people there! WOW! It was a great experience and so much fun to be a part of. We had a such a good time that we are hoping to make a team next year so if you want to join, let me know!

Excellent Maiasaura

Over the weekend I found out that Nathan thinks I am an "excellent Maiasaura" and I am actually flattered about this fact. His first grade class has been studying dinosaurs and he has been thrilled at all of the new dinosaur information he is taking in. Imagine my confusion when I opened the Mother's Day card he made for me at school and it said:

Maiasaura
Only the Best
Tall
Helpful
Excellent
Runner

I enjoyed his little poem and then asked him, "Nathan, What is a Maiasaura?" and he replied, "It's a Mother Lizard! You are a good Mother Lizard!" WOW! That's awesome. So, I am a good Mother Lizard and proud of it!!

Here are the "love notes" I enjoyed from Josh and Katie as well:

(Written on a tracing of his hand)
I think your cute.
You are nice.
I Love you.
I Like how you take care of us.
You are the best Mom ever.
Love, Josh

Katie's Nursery teacher got her paint handprints and laminated it with this little poem:

Sometimes you get discouraged
Because I am so small
And I always leave my fingerprints
On Furniture and Walls

But every day I'm growing--
I'll be grown some day
And those tiny fingerprints
Will surely fade away

So here's a little handprint
Just so you can recall
Exactly how my fingers looked
When I was very small.


I hope all of you Maiasaura's had a wonderful Mother's day too!

Race for the Cure 2010

I had so much fun last time I ran the "Race for the Cure" I decided that I should do it again. Well, Saturday will be my second Race for the Cure and I am super excited. It will be my 3rd 5K, I was able to run one in Lincoln with Jacob back in October. This time will mean even more to me because I have been training hard and I expect to have a much easier time beating my time from the last one. I am also thrilled that my youngest sister Mary will be running with me!! WOOHOO! The last 8 weeks have been very challenging and rewarding for me as I have been participating in a team training session at the Golds Gym right down the street from our house. I met a great friend, Pat and we enjoy working out together. I call her my "gym mom" She pushes me and I push her and we are making progress together. She has a friend who just found out that she has breast cancer so even though I don't know Karrie, I will be running this race for her.
I would love to have all the girls in my family be able to do this race together in the couple of years, that would just be so much fun!
Hopefully we will never have to face breast cancer on a personal level. My heart goes out to all of those who have and will face this challenge. I know that Heavenly Father gives us challenges so that can become stronger.

Here's to all cancer survivors and sufferers,

this race is for you!

Our Bloglift

I am excited to introduce you to our new family blog. Along with the new design, I am promising to make a conscious effort to blog more often. I have realized that there have been things extremely blog worthy that I have just not taken the time to blog about. I am still working on things but I am pleased with what Jacob and I have changed so far.
Our new title is "Nothin' to do but Love and Laugh" Now that's way more exciting than "Bunting Blog" isn't it? When Jacob was on his mission, and under the direction of his mission president, he made a motto for his life. He said that it has helped him be a better and more focused person. So, we decided several years ago that we needed a "Family Motto." Because we want to encourage our kids to LOVE each other and also to have FUN together, the motto of "Love and Laugh" came to be. We display our motto proudly in our kitchen to remind us to enjoy each other and life.