Vegas Baby....

You have NO idea how much a picture can do to calm your nerves and bring you peace until you have sent out a missionary! The photo's and letters are like rain falling on the drought riddled soil of the desert. 

(Elder Alvarez arriving in Vegas from the MTC-he's pacing himself:)

So when I received these photo's from Josh's Mission home (THANK YOU SISTER BLACK:):) it was as if the heaven's had opened and it was pouring rain down upon my soul.

(President Black, Elder Josh Alvarez & Sister Black)

I  feel so blessed to live in a time that technology affords us the ability to have instant pictures and messages. How did we ever make it before the world of high speed Internet, smart phones and texting?

(Filling out mission paperwork-a VERY short note home)

(The new arrivals for November 15, 2010)

President & Sister Black

Elder Millington, Elder Alcorn, Elder Kakau, Elder Alvarez

& Elder Larsen

I have no idea how I am going to survive having TWO missionaries in the field.

Lamborghini, Ferrari or Kenmore???

 It is always around the holidays that I tend to look around my kitchen and go, NONONO instead of HOHOHO!!!
You see I like to bake like a mad woman and seem to never be satisfied with the amount or quality of work space or "tools" needed to do the job right. So when I took the time to check out this blog in the morning, imagine the thrill that tingled down my spine.

I really don't need a new fridge but boy howdy what would make a girl happier than a brand new

sleek and sexy black machine like that mixer on her kitchen counter!

(OK, so maybe sexy is taking it a bit to far:)

The men in my life get all excited about Lamborghini's and Ferrari's.  I'm sorry guys you may think the sound of a sports car racing by is the music of the Italian God's, but it has nothing on the purr of a bad boy mixing machine beating a batch of cookie dough! 

 Just Say'n :):)

 














If you are in need of or let's face it, in just an I WANT it hurting kinda way for a new fridge or mixer, enter HERE!  There is only one catch-if you win you have to SHARE your first batch of yummy cookie dough goodness with me:):)
Best of Luck

Did I Blink and Miss it?

I have been so busy with life and getting my missionary ready that I have not posted in forever, so long in fact that I did not realize that it has been since June! It is kind of fitting actually, it seems like it was yesterday that I wrote my last post and it seems like yesterday that my little Josh was toddling around the house playing with cars and Lego's and climbing on EVERYTHING!

And then TODAY he walked down the airport hallway, entered

the tram and was out of my sight and my arms for two years.

If feels like life was on warp speed and I just lost my breath and

all the years in between then and now.

Elder Joshua Alvarez, Future Hermana Alvarez (Phoenix Arizona Mission- 1/11) and Justin

He has grown from that little boy to a man and I could not be prouder of him.

I told him the other day as we drove together running errands that this two years was a gift to him from his family and from his Heavenly Father and it was his gift to our Savior and those that he will serve. As hard it is was to watch him walk away and how painful it is to not have him here with us, it would not be fair to him to take this experience from him and it would not be fair to keep him from serving the Lord. After all that my Heavenly Father has blessed me with it would be unthinkable to not have Josh serve Him now.

And so my heart breaks with sorrow at losing him for two years but in return my spirit can hardly contain the joy I feel knowing that this son of mine as chosen to serve the Son of God.

("Seeking the One" Liz Lemon Swindle)

Mosiah 2:17: And behold, I tell you these things that ye may learn wisdom; that ye may learn that when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God.

He is going to be an AMAZING missionary!

(I have a lot of updating to do over the next few months...stay tuned:):)

Show a little Tenderness

With Josh in the MTC and Katie on her way soon, my mind is fresh with the blessings of the Gospel. I LOVE that the foundation of my religion is based on Christ like principles, families and treating others with kindness, tolerance and love. That's why when I read THIS post this morning, I just knew I had to share:).

Elizabeth Bryant's Blog

Liz is an amazing lady living in San Diego (my home) raising a beautiful son and I lOVE her writing.

She loves food (she is a wonderful chef from what I can tell), is a talented painter

(she made paintings for Katie's room that I adore!), and is a devoted wife and mother.

Her blog is a must for a daily read!

The "Artist" Hand

I saw this video this morning and although the song is really lovely it was the actions that the artist is taking while singing that seem to resonate with me.

As she sings you'll notice that she is cutting into the simple white pieces of paper with very sharp scissors. At times she seems almost to dig into the cuts and will the paper to bend the way she wants. Sometimes life seems to be the same way. As hard as we may fight the changes and the pain it can cause, the "Artist" our Heavenly Father, knows what beauty can come from the cutting away of what is needless in our lives and in the end we are left with a work of art. Waiting for the end result may seem difficult but I assure you it is beautiful:)

(Thanks to Ashley for posting this!)

A (Clean) Love Story.....

Somewhere along the way I saw it staring at me in it's bright

red, blue and yellow packaging. Innocently waiting there as I dug into the bin

of antibacterial wipes that I had come for. They seemed to call to me

"take me home please"... and

since I am a sucker for clean; I obliged!

I must admit that I really did not buy the line, "instant stain remover"

I have been burned before you know so this relationship would have to

be on a trail basis until I felt secure enough to be loyal and fully commit!

The time has come to exclaim to the world that YES I AM IN LOVE....

there I said it, I have committed (or is that, I should be committed?)

I can tell you the moment it happened, the exact moment that my heart

melted and I knew we would be together forever!

Wearing a new aqua colored shirt, I walked joyously into my kitchen

and began to devour, um I mean daintily eat my fresh and oh so

delicious blueberries that I had brought home that very morning.

After enjoying the bounty of blueberries I looked down as something

caught my eye, there it was; the SPOT

(OK I am trying very hard not to open up on a scene from MACBETH here)!

My heart sank, blueberry juice had stained my beloved shirt and

in a spot that seems to protrude out of my front like the great

mountains of the west! This was not good!!

But wait, could this be a chance for my new "mate" and

I to consummate our new relationship?

I called upon it's name as I dug in my purse to retrieve my new

friend, this is your chance to prove yourself I said.

Then it began, I broke the cap free and began to swirl and push, it was

as if there was a great blizzard beating about the great mountain.

Then just as the blizzard winds do, I gave it one last swirl and went

on my way. Just as you do in any relationship, I gave it time.

Time to think upon the path that our relationship had just

taken, time to decide "was this really going to work out", time

to repair any damage that was done.

When I was ready to face the tragedy again, when I had my

strength renewed and my temper calmed, I decide it was time.

I looked down at the soaring mountains ready to feel elated, ready

to move on to happier times!

I could not help but to exclaim in a loud joyous voice, YES, YES, YES......

it was gone, the spot was gone!!! It was if it had never

happened, it was clean and beautiful again!

(and a bit more perky I might add:):)

My new love was true, it had not failed me! We are one and what joy

fills my clean freak heart!!

I wish for you all the same true love, the same exhilarating feeling of clean

when you drip! You have no need for e-harmony or LDS singles.com, just

walk yourself (saunter if you prefer)

to your local laundry detergent isle and let the romance begin.

I highly recommend you bring a coupon, it helps the relationship to

start off with an extra sparkle:):)

The Blessings of The Temple....

As much as I hate the traffic and driving on I-4, I needed to feel a sense

of calm and peace from what has been a chaotic

past few weeks, and the only place to truly feel any sense of peace

is in the Temple. So this morning after getting the boys off

to work I packed myself up and headed to Orlando.

It is amazing how the Lord knows each of us intimately!

While In the celestial room I tried to pray for answers, I kept falling asleep!

For some reason I could not seem to get any of my questions out

before I would begin floating away again. That is not like me at all!!

I was very frustrated with myself and finally after almost

30 minutes I gave up and walked down stairs.

With no time for another session I went to see if they needed help

with initiatories. As I waited for a sister to come and let me

know the schedule I noticed this quote on the desk:

"I promise you that all who faithfully

attend to temple work will be blessed

beyond measure. Your families will draw

closer to the Lord, unseen angels

will watch over your loved ones when

satanic forces tempt them, the veil

will be thin, and great spiritual

experiences will distill upon this people."

--Vaughn J. Featherstone

My Heart immediately felt comforted and at peace.

It was the answer I had come for and the comfort I was seeking!

I know it is sometimes tough to get there, it is oh so worth it though!!!