Under Contract

We accepted an offer on our house last Friday. So far things are going well, and we are keeping our fingers crossed that all will continue to go well. If all goes smoothly, we will close on Dec. 4th. Now to go about finding the next house...

Cousins and Leaves and Snow!

Last week brought with it some pretty strange weather. We had fun jumping in the leaves on Saturday, and then by Tuesday, it turned into several inches of snow! We made the best of everything by going out and just enjoying it all.

A pile of Dials (and a few Dial-Chamberlains.) A few of each of my brother's kids came over to Nana's house and we all had a blast!

I love how Bubba's hair is the same color as the leaves. He has the best hair ever.

And here we are 2 days later...

These two had so much making little kid-sicles out of themselves. We went through a lot of hot chocolate that day!

Gotta love the good old Utah fall weather-never sure quite what to expect. But we always have fun!

Wonderful Orem Friends

Some of our dear friends stopped by to say goodbye and wish us good luck on our new Southern Utah adventure. We feel bad we did not have a camera handy to take pics of everyone that came over, but you know who you are, and that we love and miss you. Here are just a few special neighbors and friends:

Amber! Oh how I will miss this young lady. She is an adult trapped in a 12 year-old's body! I know it's silly, but she became one of my best friends in the neighborhood. I always loved it when she would come and visit. She is an amazingly capable babysitter and the kids love her. She is also insanely smart and observant, and has more common sense than most adults I know. I know she will be impossible to replace, but I am so grateful that I got to know her for those 3 years! She comes from an awesome family, and has so much potential. I can't wait to see what she will become. Watch out, world. I hope my daughter can be like her someday. I will miss her so much.

My sweet Caleb. I had the immense privelege of being his part-time nurse, and he also comes from an incredible family. He came into my life at just the right time, and I learned so, so much about life from him and his sweet mother. April is the most Christ-like, sweet and thoughtful person I think I have ever met. She is such a good example to all those around her at what you can gain from the trials that you are given, if you accept them with your whole heart. I will never, ever forget this sweet family as long as I live, and I will keep them and what I have learned about love from them in my heart forever.

The Nelsons. They were our next door neighbors and second parents to our son Drew. Their little boy Ethan and Drew were attached at the hip for much of our Orem years. We feel so grateful for their friendship, and for their acceptance and care of Drew. They were always so quick to include him and take him places with them, and treated him just like their own child. Ethan was such a perfect playmate for Drew, and they could play the entire day and get along effortlessly. These guys were so hard to leave behind, especially because of the special bond that is shared by our two boys. We had to promise them both some overnight visits and weekend trips to console them that this wouldn't be the end of the dynamic duo. It was heartbreaking to see the sad look on Ethan's little face as we drove away, as the reality sunk in that this was really happening. We love the Nelson's so much and hope we can always stay in touch.

There are loads of other wonderful people that we will miss terribly, so don't feel bad if we didn't have a picture. Our Orem days were some good times, and we met so many wonderful people. We were given some great opportunities to learn and grow, and know we have become better because of our time spent there. We will miss you all!

For Sale

We recently found out that we are going to be moving to Cedar City. It is where I was born, and all of my family currently live in Southern Utah. Marshall was offered a great job at an accounting firm down there, and then after that, things just kind of happened quickly and started falling into place; we feel at peace with it, but nonetheless moving is a super stressful time. Especially for someone as high-strung as I am! I am trying really hard to sit back and relax and enjoy the ride. This isn't a great time to be selling a house, and that does worry me. We know the right family will come along in due time, and I am trying to be patient. I am so excited to be so close to my family, and it means the world to me that Marshall is laid back enough to take such a big chance on a smaller town. He grew up here in Orem, and most of his family live around here, so it is no small thing for him to be doing this. It is the most selfless thing he has done for me to date. He is amazing, and I am so grateful he loves me enough to do anything to make me happy. I promised him that we would buy BYU football season tickets for the rest of our lives- (he couldn't say no to that!) That will get us up to visit lots.

While it is hard to say goodbye to all our neighbors and friends, we are excited to start this new chapter in our lives. Cedar isn't the same town I grew up in; the growth that has happened there over the past 10 years or so is what has made this move possible for us. We are excited for the change (some of us more than others) and feel grateful that things have fallen into place as nicely as they have. I will try to keep this blog updated as things continue to progress.

Pre-K

Drew recently started his second year of preschool. Next year he will be in Kindergarten! He has been having a bit of a struggle this year because his BFF Ethan is 6 months older, and started kindergarten this year. Since they are attached at the hip, and have been together all summer, this has been kind of an adjustment for them, especially since they are on opposite schedules. He does enjoy being at school, and perhaps this will give him an opportunity to make some new friends. We have been blessed to have some awesome friends and neighbors next door. Here is the traditional first day of school pic:

Aspen Grove

At the end of August, Marshall's super-generous, sweet parents took all the kids and their families up to Aspen Grove, a facility up near Sundance, which was a fun family vacation get-away area. They provide cabin rooms and all the food, and also babysitting for the kids during the day, which allowed the adults to go and have tons of fun doing all the things we love best. And, we got to try some new things! We had a blast and ended with a fun hike up to Stewart Falls.

The hike was more fun for me on the way up, because Drew hiked. Since it was a few miles, he was pretty tired for the return trip. So I had the privelege of carrying him the entire way back down. Good times.

Drew and his cousin Audrey- super hikers!

Ok, so I already knew my husband was an amazing basketball, volleyball, and football player. He is such a natural athlete- it isn't fair! But what I found out at Aspen Grove is that he could also give Robin Hood a run for his money. He totally hit a bullseye on this shot. How is he so good at every sport? Oh, and I musn't forget rope-climbing. He was good at that too. And hatchet-throwing. And horseshoes. I think Marshall had more fun up there than anyone.

The kids had such a blast playing with daddy!

Oh, and did I mention "Drew" caught a fish as well? He was so excited as Marshall helped him reel it in. All he kept talking about doing at Aspen Grove was fishing, and I didn't really have much hope that he would actually catch one. Angler Marshall to the rescue! Drew went around the pond afterwards telling everyone about his catch. He was absolutely giddy. It was awesome.

Drew catching his first fish was one of those special 'mommy moments' for me. I hadn't expected that. I suppose it is probably because I come from a family of fishermen-It's in my blood!

M and Allie in jail. They had a cute little western village for the kids to play in.

At the horshoe pit. Of course he was naturally good at that too. I was just happy I never hit anyone.

The Chamberlain boys also won both the 3 on 3 as well as the 5 on 5 basketball tournaments. (Which I played in- we did it co-ed! Woo-hoo! I hadn't played in forever, so that was a lot of fun.) Marshall and his brothers are all close to 6 1/2 ft. tall, and they make a great team. It was fun watching them play together.

The cabins we stayed in were really cozy and fun. There was a cool loft above with a ladder. Drew had fun climbing up there. At night after we put the kids to bed, the adults had so much fun playing games and telling funny stories and laughing. Those are the best times.

One of my favorite parts of Aspen Grove was the guest lecture. John Bytheway and his family were up there with us, and we were able to listen to 4 different talks about different marriage/family subjects. I really like him, and was able to learn a few really valuable things from his presentations.

Thanks again, Mom and Dad Chamberlain. We had such a wonderful time, and made some beautiful memories as a family.

I Hate to Blog

Ok, I gotta confess something...I love to read other people's blogs, but hate to update my own. This is my little attempt to repent. I haven't taken many pictures this summer, and they were all taken on the same day, but I guess a little something is better than nothing!

We took the kids to the Discovery Park in Cedar. It is a super cute and fun place for them to play!

Cute little Allie. She is such a cute little stinker! She knows how to play Nana like a fiddle. We always have such fun together. Nana calls her a "brown-eyed pickle-pie."

My cute mom and Boo-Boo (aka Sandy Sue, her favorite of all her children.)

Drew is going back to school this week. He will be in his 2nd year of preschool (or I guess it's considered "pre-K" this year) and he is so excited. When he says his prayers he says he is thankful to be able to start school again! lol... He is a studious and insanely smart kid. We are so proud of him.

Good old Nana. I don't know what I would ever do without her! And of course, the kids adore her as well. We have had som much fun spending time together these past few weeks.


Well, that's about it for now. We are headed up to Aspen Grove this Wed-Sat. to spend some time with Marshall's family. Should be good times. Hopefully I will remember to take some pictures!