Wow!

Locked In

Today was a sad day :(

My poor baby got locked in the car this morning. It was all I could do not to panic. Along with her in the car was also my car keys, and my purse. We have OnStar, so I called my husband to call them and we conferenced with them but they were unable to get the car unlocked because the car was in the garage and there was too much interference for the signal to get through.

by this time she was crying pretty hard, and I needed to call Zach's preschool to let them know we'd be late. I was holding in my panic, still doing OK. It wasn't too hot out, so Raeleigh was OK.

The OnStar person called 911 and they sent a dispatch out, and John decided to come home and help as well. He really was the biggest help, he had another key. John beat the dispatch by about 3 min. and saved the day. We heard the sirens as they were getting near, John didn't think it was for us but once they are called they have to follow through. Thankfully it wasn't a hot day, and she was OK.

Now I make sure at least one door is open as I get the kids in and out of the car, so it doesn't happen again.

Details in short

4 Bedrooms / 3.5 Baths
4,815 Sq. Ft.3 Car Garage
Move-In Ready!
GE Monogram gas appliances, front load washer/dryer, upgraded mocha maple cabinets, granite tile countertops, upgraded doors, 10 foot side gate, 8 foot carriage house garage doors, upgraded sound isulation, energy efficiency package, two-tone interior paint package, soft water system, Rec room, electronics upgrade, and so much more!

It also has a lot of storage, every corner you turn there's a closet.

It is a spec home, and the lot size is abt 1/3rd of an acre.

House part III

This is the den.

It will be my salon, but a few changes must be made first. In the house we are looking to buy it doesn't have a door or entry into the main part of the house like it does in the model. The only entry is by the laundry room, which is reached by walking through the entire lower level. I don't really like that, so as soon as we can we will be putting a door in.

There are a few things that are not our style, but they are things that can be fixed. Eventually. But definitely things we can live with.

We are going to sign papers today! Wish us luck!

House part II

So this is the bonus room, it's on the other side of the wall of the family room.

Our great room doesn't have a bar or the doors leading to the outside.

These are the bedrooms.

In the model they made the fourth room into a media room, which is great, but in ours it's a loft, so it's not enclosed.

This is the master suite

It's beautiful in the pics, our is too, to a lesser extent, not so decked out. No tile on the shower or tub, no framed mirrors, and basic fixtures. Things we could do ourselves if we choose to.

Bathrooms and laundry room.

The laundry room doesn't have the chute, but we'd like to add one, since it's downstairs. It doesn't have all the cabinets but it does have the washer and dryer and a sink. Bonus! The bathroom on the top right is a Jack-and-Jill, should be fun.

One more pic to come.

House part I

This is the house we found. Now mind you, these pics are of the model, so basic structure is the same minus a few details.

This is the front and back of the house.

The house we want is not landscaped, and does not have the balcony. It's nice to see the potential though.

This is the entry and front room and formal dining area and stairs.

Again, ours is more basic. The door is wood, the banister is all wood, and where you see wood flooring it's all tiled and there isn't an entry into the den like you see in the upper left pic.

This is the Kitchen!

Isn't it great! All that space, The color of the cabinets is different, just some basic stuff is different, but I love it!

This is the family room.

Its adjacent to the kitchen.

Hold your horses! There's more to come!

Dream a little dream

So this morning Kaleb awoke unusually early and came running into my room and said "Mommy! You're alive!"

umm yeah, and you just woke me from a deep sleep.

not good.

So John was up and got the full story.

Apparently, Kaleb was having a dream, in which Kaleb and I were on a plane and it crashed and caught on fire!

What!

Well that's not the worst of it.

We died.

So when he ran into my room this morning exclaiming "Mommy! You're alive!" It must have been a huge relief to him. After that he wanted to climb in bed with me and cuddle.

Poor kid, what an awful dream to have. I really hope they get better.

The Construction of a Wedding Cake

Two weekends ago I went up to Snowflake, AZ to make a wedding cake for my sisters friend. It was not an easy thing to do. We had forgotten the cake rounds, so we had to search Showlow for some. We had already traveled near to four hours to get to my Aunts house in Taylor, and then we spent over an hour just looking for a place that sold the rounds. When we finally found some we rushed back and started baking. I was already tired from traveling, but I had to get the cake baked because there wouldn't be enough time the next day. That was reserved for doing the brides hair, and decorating the cake.

So here is the process, collaged, of the construction of her cake. Thanks to Nat for the pics of the process.

I only wished that I had more time, a cake stand, and maybe a little more licence to use flowers or something to pretty it up a little more. The bride is very simplistic. So this is what I was able to do in the time I had.

It was a three tiers, two chocolate, one vanilla. The filling was Strawberry preserves mixed with marshmallow cream and cool whip. It turned out really yummy!

What do you think?

the frog prince

Yummy!

On the 7th of this month we celebrated my nieces 6th birthday.

She turned 6 on the 3rd.

I needed to practice my cake decorating skills so I volunteered to make her birthday cake. This is the result.

A cake fit for a princess!

It was devils food cake with chocolate ganach and whipped white chocolate mint filling.

It was SO yummy!

My Grandma's Story

I gave a talk today in church and I thought I'd share it with you all :) Enjoy!



I was asked to speak on a topic that was given as a challenge by our Stake president last fall. If you remember it was to find the conversion stories of our ancestors and add them to our personal records. I have to admit that until I was asked to speak on the subject, I had not done so. My mother has many stories in her records, but I decided to share the story of my father’s mother, my grandmother, Lillie Mae Fuentes Snyder. It’s kinda funny, when I called her, she said she and my grandfather were speaking in their ward this Sunday also.

Her conversion story begins when she was 16 yrs old, living in the tiny LDS settlement of Luna, NM, in 1951. Although the community was predominantly LDS and she had many friends that were members, she knew nothing of the religion or its beliefs. One day she was visited by a couple of stk missionaries from the area, they came to ask her if she would like to go with the youth of the church to attend the Mesa, AZ temple, and be baptized for herself. She didn’t know what to say, she was very uncertain. They asked her to think about it, and left her with a promise; if she would be baptized now, then later (maybe not now, but sometime in the future) she would yearn for the knowledge. After they left she spoke with her mom and her who in turn left the decision up to her. As she considered the trip, she thought of how much fun it would be to take a long trip with her friends, and decided it couldn’t hurt.

She didn’t tell me much of what happened on the trip, only that she was baptized in the temple, and had to wait a few weeks until the next fast Sunday, to be confirmed a member of the church.

As she was telling me her story I realized that I had never heard the whole thing. I only knew that she had been baptized in the temple. I didn’t know that she was completely blind to the LDS religion or even religion as a whole. It’s amazing to me that she was able to make that leap without knowing anything except that some of her friends were members and they were nice people. It makes me wonder if I could do something like that, commit to something so blindly.

She now was the only member in her family which made it hard to get to church, so she wasn’t able to go as often as she would have liked, and so learning her new religion was slow.

On a Sunday she was attending, it happened to be my grandfathers first Sunday back from his mission. When he saw her for the first time, he knew she was the one for him. He had known her older brother, and when he left for his mission she was still quite young and he didn’t know her.??? After courting her for a short time, they were married civilly, and four months later they were sealed in the Mesa, AZ temple.

My grandmother attributes most of her learning the gospel to my grandfather teaching her in their young married lives.

Five years after being baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, after being sealed in the temple for time and all eternity, and after the birth of her second child, the promise the stk missionaries had given her came into fruition. One day she just had this overwhelming desire to learn as much about the church as she could. She read all the books my grandfather had, and borrowed many more from other members. She joined a book club and continued her search for knowledge of the gospel.

Today, because she was humble enough to listen to the Spirit and let it guide her, she is faithful and strong in the gospel. My grandparents have served two missions for the church, one in the London, England mission, and the other in the Salt Lake Family History mission, partly in the Family History Center and the other part in the church Vaults.

They have 5 children, 16 grandchildren, and 8 great-grandchildren, most of which are strong members of the church.

I know personally, through their example, and my grandmother’s in particular, that I am in a better place than the world would have me be. I have a testimony of this gospel and in our Lord Jesus Christ, and in our Father in Heaven and in the Hold Ghost. They, like my grandparents, love me and want the best for me and my family. I know this gospel is true. I have witnessed it time and again. My grandmother’s faith is a testament to it.

I say these things in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.