Happy Birthday Jared!

Jared had the day off for his birthday and requested we go to a splash park. So we got all ready and headed down to Payson after naps. When we got there at 3 the pool was full and they weren't letting anyone in. Jacob was not happy to get back in the car but we drove up to Spanish fork and went to a splash park there. He had a blast! Last year when we did this he did not like it but this time he wanted to walk right into the deep end. Jared help is arms and put his feet in the deep end and he wanted him to let go! We'll have to go more often. I haven't hit my 6 week mark yet so Mae and i hung out in the shade. For dinner we grabbed Jacob a kids meal at Wendy's and gave him to our neighbors while we went to Texas Roadhouse. When we got home we spent the rest of the night playing hand and foot.

He was so sad to leave.

So I walked around the corner and saw my nephew, William in the sink. He was so cute that I had to take a picture of him. After seeing that I started thinking about my nieces and nephews and how awesome they are. I have over 20 now and I’m sure there are many more on the way! Although it scares me to death I know I’m going to love having some of my own some day. I hope you guys aren’t getting annoyed with my posts yet.

Provo, here i come!

So, long story i was thinking of coming back to Provo early for very good reasons and my dad told me to mention it to Danielle, i kinda wanted to surprise her if i did come, but i decided to call her up and told her i was probably going to be coming home in a few days. Of course she was way excited, but in the end it was not the right thing to do, so i had to then break the news to her that i wasn't coming anymore. Once again, Long story short we were both pretty broken up about it and to make it up to her i decided to come and see her from the 8th-12th to make it up to her. I'm very excited to see her and we've already planned tons of things to do! All in all i think it turned out alright even though we both went through some pretty big disappointment. At least i feel like I've learned a few good lessons and i have realized yet another reason why Danielle is amazing! (Sorry to all my friends in Provo this is a trip for her and i probably wont have time to do much more than say hi)

Danielle

Today I feel like making sure everyone knows how much I love Danielle! If you don’t know who she is you'll just have to take my word for it. Let me tell you she is the perfect girl. If I wanted to I don’t think I could find a fault in her, and if i ever did find one there are so many amazing things about her that it wouldn't matter at all. Her happy personality and the way she shows her affection for me even from a long distance. I’m sure there is no equal. She is gorgeous and fun to be around. And to top it all off she loves me! It’s hard for both of us to be so far away from each other but I’m sure it will be well worth the wait.

Family Home Evening

This last Monday we had a big FHE with my family in Ohio. My parents are visiting my sister and her family. It was a blast we first made a fire in the back yard and cooked hot dogs on sticks that dad and Matthew had cut down. Matthew had a walking stick that he found earlier that day and he decided to make that his hot dog roasting stick. The hot dog barely fit on the end, it was awesome. Everyone brought chairs around the fire and tried to avoid the smoke... mom kept muttering something about how she didn't like bunnies every time the smoke came towards her. Rachel almost broke her leg because the chair she was sitting in tipped over. That part of FHE was very successful!
After eating we came inside smelling like smoke and decided to have FHE it was fun but the best part was when the kids sang "I'm so glad when grandpa comes home" and all jumped on him and did the actions to the song, I thought it was funny until then they started singing "I'm so glad when Jared comes home" and did the same thing to me. After me they went on to their dad whom they thought was feeling left out but I'm sure he was praying they would forget him this time. At the end we sang the sunbeam song and instead of jumping up and down for the loud parts dad, Kevin and I tossed the kids to each other in a circle for each of the loud parts.
I have always wanted to do FHE with my family and look forward to teaching my children the gospel and helping them to enjoy and love it.

Tonight is the Night!

Well here it goes, this is exciting. My first real post is about one of the most amazing people in my life. Her name is Danielle Nicole Townsend, and today she sent me the coolest package. A few days ago she told me she was sending me a package but wouldn’t tell me what was in it. She asked me if I ate sugar (because over the past few months I have been “preaching” to her about the benefits of eating healthy and the deleterious effects of eating sugar.) I figured I was being smart in deducting that she was sending me some candy in the package. To my surprise, it was a big box full of candy, nothing else. Although I am not the biggest lover of candy it made me very happy to see it. Before I could intervene my nieces and nephews quickly dove into the box and ate one of each. Everyone was excited to point out that she was in love with me, a fact I have long since recognized. I’m happy to know I have found someone as astonishing as her and to know that she does care for me. I honestly fearlessly declare to the world that I am in love!

The Beginning

Hello to everyone that will be reading my blog. I thought it would nice give some opening comments to those of you who are interested enough in my life to read this blog. I don't know how often I will update this but I hope to use it as a sort of impersonal journal. I have recently realized how important it is and how good it feels to write your feelings and important events. In this particular post I don't plan on talking about any events but about my life in general. Two quotes come to mind when I think of life. The first is from The Count of Monte Cristo, Life is a storm. You will bask in the sunlight one moment. Be shattered upon the rocks the next, what makes you a man is what you do when that storm comes. You must look into that storm and shout, Do your worst for I will do mine! And the second comes from what you might think a far less credible source but nonetheless I believe it is very true. In Mr. Magorium's Wonder Emporium Dustin Hoffman says, "Your Life Is An Occasion, Rise To It!" I can't say much for the past, you would have to talk to those who knew me as I was growing up to know if I did what these men have counseled, but this is how I plan to live my life.

I don't aspire to be a person that is written into the history books but I do hope to become somewhat like my father. For those of you who know him you know what I am talking about without any explanation. He is a man of many answers, not all of them are right by any measurement but all are well thought out and given with much love and care. He is highly respected in his profession and also among the members of the church. Many times throughout my youth people would come up to me and tell me what an honest or hard working man he was. I didn’t realize or appreciate these things until these past few years. Above all my father is a humble man. I’ll give one example, even though I repeatedly prodded him many times in my youth he never once told me how much money he makes, in fear that I would boast of it to my friends. i have long since given up my quest to know, and now believe he would be happy if none of his children ever knew. That is not part of the legacy he wants to leave behind. There are far more important things to him than money. I would consider myself a happy man if one day someone compared me to him. I’m sorry this went on for so long but I hope it was a good introduction as to what I am trying to make my life to be.