"WE THANK THEE, O GOD, FOR A PROPHET"

Bryce and I just found out that President Gordon B. Hinckley, the beloved prophet of our church, passed away this evening at the age of 97. President Hinckley has been the prophet most of our lives and my heart broke when I heard the news. I know that he is so happy to now be reunited with his eternal sweetheart, and to be free of the ailments that plague our mortal bodies, and I feel an overwhelming amount of gratitude for having had such a loving and kind prophet lead and guide this church - lead and guide me.

I know that Heavenly Father gives us a prophet to teach us and to lead us and to help us feel His unconditional love for us. I'm so thankful for my testimony of this gospel, to know that the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is the only church on this earth that has the fullness of the restored gospel. I know that the Book of Mormon was written by prophets of old, and that is was saved for our day to bring us closer to the Lord, and that we also have modern-day prophets on the earth at this time. I know that Joseph Smith was a true prophet of God who restored Christ's church to this earth, and I know that every prophet from him, down to President Hinckley, has been called of God, and that our new prophet is called of God as well. And most importantly, I'm so thankful for our most loving Prophet, Seer, and Revelator, our Saviour, Jesus Christ. I know that through His prophets on this earth, He leads and guides and directs His church, and that He wants nothing more than for all of us to return to live with Him and our Father for all eternity. I know these things are true and I'm so grateful for President Hinckley's influence in my life! We love you, President Hinckley!!

IT'S CALLED A SNOWPLOW!!

Okay, this is ridiculous! First, we had bitterly cold weather for four or five days. Then it warmed up, which was wonderful, but it was only in preparation for the last two days of nothing but snow! We left the house yesterday around 5:30, and one of CJ's shoes fell off. We didn't realize until we got out of the car at the store and figured we'd find it when we came home. Little did we realize that by the time we would get home that night, CJ's shoe would be buried under inches and inches of snow, making it impossible to find. We also didn't realize that NO roads would be plowed - including the freeway (are you kidding me?!)! And we definitely didn't realize, as we dragged ourselves out of our warm beds this morning at 7:00 AM, that our 9:00 AM church was cancelled (it wasn't until we actually forged the weather and got to church that we found out - at least they still had sacrament meeting), or that Bryce's law classes would be cancelled on Monday either. It's all been kind of a shock to Paige, who grew up in Utah, that all this snow is causing such a commotion. Yeah, it's a lot of snow - if you can't tell by the pics - but c'mon! For a city that actually has a winter season - this isn't Seattle, where 1/2 an inch of snow is practically considered a state of emergency - you'd think they would invest in some snowplows and salt!!

The sidewalks and bridges of the courtyard of our apartment complex have practically disappeared

Bryce drives this car to school. Good thing school's cancelled - we don't know if he would have been able to get out with all the snow behind it

OUR NEPHEW IS FAMOUS!

Paige's brother Chris, and his wife Jenny, make the cutest kids! And now there's printed proof! Their youngest son, Anders, who is 7 years old, has made his modeling debut with this hot ad for Dillard's. Check out those golden locks! Someday we plan on riding his coattails...

6 mo OLD GIANT

January 26th was CJ's 6 month birthday! We can't believe it's already been six months - definitely the most rewarding and joyful six months of our lives! We didn't realize how much CJ had grown until we went to see our good friends, Heather and Tyson Dobbs, who welcomed their first baby into the world on Tuesday January 22nd. Their little boy - Brody David Dobbs - is exactly a full pound heavier than CJ was, and yet we've already forgotten CJ ever being that small! Brody is adorable and after holding that tiny little bundle, we both were feeling a little baby hungry...

SLEEPIN' ON THE JOB

Okay, so I couldn't resist getting this hat a couple of months ago. It was on clearance and, even though it was a little too big at the time, it was too cute to pass up. Now that CJ is 6 months old, I figured it might finally fit, but as the picture shows, it might still be a little too big :) And even though it looks like he just kicked back to take a nap, he was actually talking the whole time (probably trying to get his Mommy and Daddy's attention so they'd move the darn thing! :)

I'VE BEEN TAGGED

Okay, now I know I've made it in the blogging world because the day has arrived where I too have been tagged. Thanks, Nicki.

The rules are: Once you have been tagged you have to write a blog with 10 weird random things, facts, or habits about yourself. At the end, you choose 10 people to be tagged. Don't forget to leave a comment that says, "you've been tagged" on their profile and tell them to read your blog.

1. I LOVE to balance our checkbook and pay the bills! I don't know why, but I find it very relaxing and feel such a sense of relief, like a weight's been lifted off my shoulders when I'm finished. If I could, I would pay all of our bills a year in advance! Maybe it has something to do with the fact that I tend to be a perfectionist...

2. And I HATE grocery shopping! So much so, that I put it off, and put it off, until the weekend so that Bryce can go with me. Unfortunately, that means we're often eating scrambled eggs or quesadillas for dinner.

3. Even though I tend to be loud, I'm actually quite shy. I have a hard time getting to know people in a one-on-one situation and it's something that really bothers me about myself.

4. I hate to admit this, but I totally get sucked into reality shows. It doesn't matter what type of show it is, if you leave it on for 5 minutes, I'm hooked. Something about it is so intriguing to me. Needless to say, I have to carefully monitor what I watch or else I'd be addicted to everything on TV!

5. I know it's goofy, but I really enjoy doing crossword puzzles. I get excited about answering the questions, like it's a chance to prove what I know. Which is probably why I love watching Jeopardy! Or Cash Cab, or playing Trivial Pursuit - basically any trivia game. Even though I only know the answer every once in a while, I feel like the questions are usually pretty tough, so if I can keep up at all, I must know something, right?

6. How I feel about myself is directly related to whether or not I work out. I know, sad, but it's true. If I've exercised, I feel confident in my body image, but if I've been lazy and just not done much, I tend to be not too pleased with what I see in the mirror. Usually, that's enough motivation to get me moving (but not always :).

7. I love putting CJ in new clothes, especially new jammies. I find myself looking for sleepers every time I'm out - it just seems like you can never have enough. And when we do get something new, I have to resist the urge to take a picture of him every time he wears a new article of clothing (I can't tell you how many pics we have of him in a new pair of pj's).


8. Since I was 5 years old, my dream has been to be a professional ballet dancer. But honestly, if I could have any talent, it would be to sing. I really do love singing, but since I'm not that hot, I reserve my ballads for CJ when we're home in the middle of the day, or when I'm driving alone in the car, or when Bryce and I are goofing around.

9. One of my little indulgences is taking naps with CJ in our bed. Sometimes in the afternoon, when it's time for CJ's nap, if I'm tired too (which is often), I'll wrap CJ up and lay him next to me in the bed. He's 6 months old now - too big to snuggle on my chest like he used to - but our nap time makes me feel close to him and I love it!

10. The person I want most to be like is my husband, Bryce. He's everything I wish I was. There's something about him that people just LOVE! I think it's his innate ability to make people feel so important, and because he is so genuine, and because he'd give you not just the shirt off his back, but the shoes on his feet and the car he drives too, if you asked. He's so laid back (and I'm so high-strung) and yet, very sensible (I tend to be a little dramatic sometimes), and he's great at everything he does. He's very passionate about the important things - the Gospel, his family and friends, etc - and he's so smart, but in a reserved way. Sometimes I forget how intelligent he is, until we start to talk about politics or school or geography (I swear, he knows where EVERY country is :), or until I read a paper he's written or find out a grade he's received. And that's what I love about him - he doesn't intimidate you with his knowledge. And he's so patient with me, and so gentle and loving and fun with CJ (and with me too). Anyway, I could go on and on, but you get the point...

Okay, so ASHLEY L., BECCA, BRITTA, HEATHER, JANA, JAYNI, LINDSEY, MEGAN, MEL, and MICHELLE P. ...tag, you're it!

JACK-IN-THE-BOX

Over Christmas, Bryce and I spent a little too much time trying to find the super cute jack-in-the-box that CJ had played with at his Great Grandma Mackay's house. He had laughed so hard and loved it, so of course, our hearts melted and we had to have it. After many shopping attempts that came up empty-handed, we finally gave up. Then Bryce's sweet Grandma Mackay called us the other day to let us know that she had sent her great-grandson a surprise...a jack-in-the-box - she is so sweet! Thanks for thinking of us, Grandma! We miss you!!

CJ's FOUND HIS VOICE

CJ has recently discovered that cooing and humming isn't enough anymore. Instead, he prefers to squeal! Check it out (and imagine hearing that come over the monitor at night :)

REASON #5,174 WHY BRYCE IS THE BEST HUSBAND EVER:

As I sit here blogging, my sweet husband is doing the dishes! Not only is he rinsing the dirty dishes, but first he put away the clean dishes that were in the dishwasher (something I hate doing), so that he could rinse the dirty ones and put them away. I know, I know, it may not sound like a lot, but if you add that on top of the fact that he spent the afternoon with CJ and let me sleep for almost 4 hours, even though he was tired, and that he willingly and happily babysat last night so that I could go play Bunco for an undecided amount of time, and that after I asked him to rub my neck because it was sore, he ended up rubbing my whole back for half an hour (which he will do any time I ask - I have to keep myself from taking advantage of it :), and that early Tuesday morning - we're talking like 6:30 AM - he ran to the store to get some stuff that we needed because he knows that I hate grocery shopping. Those are just a few of the wonderful things he does for me on a regular basis and I thought he deserved some public recognition (I'm sorry, Bryce - I know you hate it when I do this kind of stuff :)! I love you, Sweetheart! Thank you for making my dreams come true!!

SEAHAWKS THROUGH AND THROUGH

As I walked into our bedroom Saturday afternoon, Bryce was getting ready to head over to Nate and Polly Anderson's to watch the Seattle Seahawks' playoff game. He had a big grin on his face, so I asked him what he was smiling about, to which he laughed a little and said, "I'm just excited to wear my jersey," (the smile kind of faded when I told him I was going to put that on our blog :). Sadly, the Seahawks lost, but no matter...my boys will always be "the twelfth man."

BABY SHOWER

Heather Dobbs, one of our great friends here in Spokane, is about to have a baby boy, so it was tons of fun helping with her baby shower. Here are all the ladies that were there: Top L-R: Tenielle, Paige, Heather, Becca, Sarah, and Amy Bottom L-R: Mauressa, Michelle, and Megan (not pictured: Laura and Kara)

GO ZAGS!

It's about time we got CJ some Gonzaga gear (P.S. This shirt is supposed to be size 12m...)

CJ's FIRST NIGHT IN THE NURSERY

It's been kind of a long time coming, but we wanted to wait until after the holidays to move CJ from the bassinet in our room, to his crib in the nursery. Now that we're back in Spokane, tonight is the first night for CJ in his crib. We were worried how it would go, but within minutes of putting him down, he was out! So apparently, I'm more attached to CJ sleeping in our room than CJ is...it's okay, I'll get over it. And I'm pretty sure Bryce is already over it :)

COLD SHEETS, WARM HEART

If you don't know much about Bryce, let me give a small idea of why he is such a great husband, father, brother, son, friend, and overall person! Last night, after weeks of Christmas traveling, and hours of driving, we finally made it back to our apartment in Spokane to start real life again. And when we walked in, our apartment was FREEZING! After cranking the heat to full blast, I shivered as I washed my face and brushed my teeth to get ready for bed. Bryce had already hopped in bed and I could hear a lot of rustling around. When I walked out of the bathroom (which is in our bedroom), to what to my wondering eyes did appear - nope, not 8 tiny reindeer - but my adorable husband, lying under the covers across the entire bed, basically making snow angels - or in this case, sheet angels. All so that when I hopped into bed, it would be toasty warm for me. And let me tell you, when I snuggled into bed and into Bryce's arms, my heart was warmer than my comfy bed!!

CHRISTMAS BREAK 2007