Tag, I'm it...

Okay I was tagged. Maybe that's a good thing because it got me to post something on my blog again. So... enjoy!


A. The rules of the game are posted at the beginning.
B. Each player answers the questions about themselves.
C. At the end of the post, the player then tags 5 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know that they have been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

10 years ago: I was 13 and in the 8th grade at Mesquite Junior High in Gilbert AZ. I participated in Choir, Band, Volleyball, and Basketball. It was this year in school that I discovered that not only was I good at math, but I really liked it (a big thanks to my teacher Mr. Wattawa). It was also this year that my parents decided to move from Gilbert to Sequim Washington. That was hard to come to grips with, but I definitely learned a lot from that move and am grateful that it only lasted one year 

5 things on my to-do list today:
(1) make breakfast – Mom’s cinnamon muffins
(2) keep the babies happy, fed, and with clean diapers – sometimes this is the only item on my “to-do list” that gets any attention
(3) type up tutoring flyers and send emails to school counselors informing them of a well-qualified tutor in the area. If you know anyone that needs tutoring in math… send them my direction!
(4) make dinner
(5) go to the library to correct a blonde moment of mine – I went through the self-check out lane and borrowed a DVD that is still in its impenetrable plastic case.

Things I would do if I were suddenly made a billionaire: pay tithing, get out of debt, invest, buy a cabin with land up in the mountains, travel, donate, etc

3 of my bad habits: (1) letting things clutter instead of putting things away immediately, (2) staying in my pajamas all day long almost every day, and (3) having unfinished partial projects laying around.

5 places I have lived: Mesa, Gilbert, Sequim, Thatcher, and Mesa again.

5 jobs I have had: secretary at Chiropractic Office, research assistant at ASU, scrapbook etc employee, math teacher, Mom

Things people don't know about me: I have a grand piano that I hardly ever play and feel guilty about having it almost every single day.


Who gets tagged? Anyone who's looking for something to post about or anyone who found themselves asking "what was I doing 10 years ago?"

I'm praying for her...

that she will be able to return home soon. My Mom called yesterday morning to relay the message that my sister was in an accident, a 4 wheeling accident. My heart stopped as my mind raced through the possibilies, immediately praying and hoping that she would be okay, and wondering what I would ever do without her. My Mom said that while riding they had hit or ran over something that caused her to hit her head on an overhead bar and then hit her jaw another bar. That she had been taken to the Yuma Medical Center where they had to shave a portion of her head to sew up the gash. That she was being taken into do a CAT scan to see if there were skull fractures or a broken jaw. After hanging up the phone I continued praying... pleading with Heavenly Father that she would be okay... that Brett and the kids would be comforted and feel peace and love. Almost instantly I stopped crying, not of my own power because I could've cried for hours, but because of the overwhelming feeling that they were being watched over. I continued to pray anyway. Later I learned that the CAT scan verified that there were no skull fractures, but they were still unsure of the condition of the jaw. I hope that they were able to come home yesterday. I pray that she'll let us take care of her and her kids. I pray that she'll know more than ever before of our love for her. As I sit here I am reminded of the fragility of life... that at any moment anything can happen. I am so grateful for my sisters. They are some of my most precious blessings. So today Holly, I'm praying especially for you...praying especially that you'll always know that I LOVE YOU! In other words... I {insert really big puffy heart} you! :)

I just had to do it...

Which Twilight novel character are you?

You're Esme Cullen - Your maternal instinct to take care of people and be kind draw people towards you. You're compassionate and loving, yet firm when you need to be. You appreciate hard work and value the beautiful results of your dedication to any project.
Take this quiz!

It's been a while...

since I've posted anything. Here's what's been happening in the last few weeks. G continues to love on his little brother B. He will seriously hug him and kiss him for 10 minutes straight. That's a long time for a little guy to hold still, but he does it. It's nice because then I can easily get the camera and take a picture before the moment is gone. My only wish is that they'll continue to be this close as years go by...

Whenever my Mom comes to visit she always so kindly offers to watch my boys so that I can run any errands that I need to. THANK you Mom! I really appreciate it because I can't easily go grocery shopping until Jared's home. It's also nice to have some "me" time also. G love his grandma. She is so good at helping him explore, learn, and just be a boy! Anyway, one time she brought my niece S over to play with G. When my sister Holly came to pick her up G couldn't get enough loving in on his cousin G that is 7 months old. I've got a little lover boy and I love it! Just gotta watch out when he gets older...
While he was at it, he decided to start Holly's car with her remote control which she thought he wouldn't be able to do since you have to push 2 or 3 buttons at the same time. Leave it to G!


A few days before Christmas we got together with some friends to make "gingerbread" houses. It was fun to do something Christmasy. [the houses were thrown away the next day so I wouldn't be tempted to eat all that sugar :)]

My cozy cottage...

Andrea's school bus...

and Jared Gunnell's tower with Spiderman...

We are so blessed to have them as friends. G and Caleb get along so great. The games they come up with can be quite entertaining... in fact, all you need is a cardboard box!

My in-laws came here for Christmas where we opened gifts, ate chorizo and eggs (one of my favorite Christmas traditions), and listened to Christmas music all day long. We invited our "rowdy" neighbors over for Christmas dinner to hopefully create some positive relations with them. With two crock pots full of roast, 10 lbs of mashed potatoes, fruit & green salad, rolls, and 5 pies, we were able to feed the 6 teenage boys (yes 6!), their single mom, and us.

G was thoroughly spoiled by Santa giving him a ride-on tractor, B giving him legos, and everyone else giving him books. Thank you! G loves books and I love that he loves them. We've set some special ones aside to take to church with us and hopefully help him to be reverent.

The boys and Grandma Kathy...

Grandpa Gary's boots are big shoes to fill. [I want to know how to get rid of G's red eyes...]

I'm so glad that Becca got to come and meet little B and make friends with G. I just love her. It was also nice to have my sister Tressa and her whole family down for Christmas I just wish I'd gotten a picture of them. I guess I'll have to wait for the pictures that Holly got.

Here's a 4 generation picture that we got. Grandma Verdaun, Gregg, Jared, and the boys. Aren't families amazing?

To cap off a wonderful holiday season Jared blessed baby B by the power of the priesthood. It was a special occasion as family members gathered to witness and participate in the blessing of our sweet baby boy. I am full of gratitude for my husband and the example that he is to me and our children. I am amazed at how the love that we have continues to grow and multiply as time goes by.

Season's Greetings

Make a scrapbook!

Baby, it's cold out there...

It's definitely feeling Christmas-y out there. It's been raining for the past two weekends with high's in the 50's! That's cold for the Valley of the Sun. In fact, when we were in Tucson last weekend, it hailed pretty good on us. Enough to freeze to the ground. I almost slipped and fell on my rear end and Jared got a good sized "hail ball" and threw it at me. Fun! Garrett's getting a little stir crazy being cooped up all day though. I need to just bundle him up and let him out. I wish it would dry up a little bit so he doesn't come back in the house looking like a "mud ball." Here are some pics from a few weeks back. My in-laws got him this hat. We think he looks like Elmer Fudd and the kid from "A Christmas Story." What do you think?

What a weekend...

This past weekend we had the privilege of sitting in the presence of an apostle of the Lord - Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf of the Quorum of the 12 Apostles. Our Stake Presidency was getting reorganized and he was the presiding general authority. Jared helped set up chairs Saturday morning in preparation for the Priesthood Leadership meeting and Adult sessions. Elder Uchtdorf went around amidst his interviews and shook the hands of those setting up chairs and expressed gratitude for their service. Neat! At that point Jared wished he hadn't gone in sweat pants! The adult meeting that evening was really great. The main focus of discussion was missionary work, temples, and family. Elder Uchtdorf is really quite humorous too! One of his points was reminding us not to judge others by how they dress or smell. None of us is perfect - and you can't smell someone who's not a full tithe payer.

Sunday was Kirk's mission farewell in Tucson so we missed the General Stake Conference session, but later learned that the new Stake President is our Bishop, Jay Leavitt. His 1st Counselor is Ryan Porter which is actually a relative of Jared's. Anyway, Sunday morning we made the drive to Tucson and thoroughly enjoyed Kirk's talk in church. He is going to be a GREAT missionary to those in the Calgary Canada mission. The Chapel and overflow were "overflowing" with supporters of Kirk. Afterwards Theresa put on an amazing luncheon featuring the tasty Sweet Pulled Pork recipe! It was a big hit!


It was nice to spend some time together with the whole family. It's going to be a while until we're all going to be together again with Kirk going on a full time 2 year mission. I guess it's also a possibility that Evan will enlist active duty with the Marines and then it might be 3 years until we'll see him again. We'll just have to keep G and B familiarized with them through pictures so that they know who their uncles are! Aren't we blessed that families can be together forever?

Hope your days are MERRY and BRIGHT...

It's beginning to feel like Christmas... finally. The high for today is 62! Anyway, my friend Andrea put this music video together for our entertainment. I laughed so hard that I just had to share. I must say one of my favorite parts is Jared's shimmy move at the end.

To view this Christmas Jingle, follow this link.
http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=9570689027

Happy laughing!

Somebody pinch me...

Okay I'm pretty sure I'm not dreaming, but somebody pinch me! Brexton just rolled over from his tummy to his back! I'm totally serious! Even before this phenomenon occurred, I had noticed that he was a strong newborn - holding up his own head, rolling from side to side while on his back, twisting in a circular motion while on his tummy, etc... but rolling over? Come on! The only Garrett-proof spots for Brexton in the house are on our 4 ft bed and the countertop... now I'm not so sure they are Brexton proof! Here's to hoping that it was just a fluke! I mean he is only 19 days old...

The Best Mashed Potatoes EVER...

Okay, so I know I never posted anything about Thanksgiving so here goes. As of Thanksgiving day Brexton was just 6 days old so I wasn't about to go traveling anywhere. So the Tompkinsons came to us from Tucson and I'm so glad they did. It wouldn't have been the same without having family to share Thanksgiving with... not to mention the fact that our dinner would have been severely lacking. I put myself in charge of the turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, rolls, and pumpkin pie. In addition we had green bean casserole, fruit salad, stuffing, and cranberry sauce (am I forgetting anything...?). The turkey turned out deliciously - my first attempt ever (thanks to Tressa for the recipe). The mashed potatoes were a huge hit thanks to Chef Jenny's recipe - Creamy Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes. They were so good that I made them again last night! I am willing to bet that they will top any mashed potatoes you have had in your whole life!

Chef Jenny is a new favorite blog of mine to check. I have tried one or two other recipes of hers and they are fabulous! You've got to check her out.