Summer time!!!

School is out, the weather is hot (100 deg.), bathing suits are in, and summer is here!  So what have we been up to this past week?  Well,they say a picture is worth 1,000 words....

 Oh Brightlie... such a goofy girl, she 

has more personality, flair, and independence than any other

2.5 year old i know!  

Her newest accomplishments that she has mastered are:

1. dressing herself (SHE has to put on her pants and shirt- "no mama, i do it!")

 2.  getting herself in and out of the car & 

buckling herself into her 5 point harness carseat (wow, right!?)

3. putting her shoes on quickly & on the correct feet (usually).

4. choosing a DVD or movie, putting it in the player, & pushing play on the remote.

5. Tells me almost every day exactly what she wants for lunch (always includes cheese)

6. Random talent---she is a nautral pro at folding towels... cool huh?

7. At night for her bed-time story she now "reads" the books to us--- it is crazy to hear her chatter and point out specific things, and tell us her own version of the pictures!

 Love to visit the splash pad, especially with friends!

 Brightlie is an excellent towel folder!  (She was so pleased with

how she stacked the towels in the closet (on right).  And i didn't even teach her or

tell her too!  I came in to fold laundry and she had 

folded 2 towels and was working the the third (pic below)

She was so proud, and so was I!  

  Look at how precise she folded the two on the ground!

AMAZING!

Oh, I gave B her first "real" bowl of cold cereal this week

(Lucky Charms WITH the milk this time) and she LOVED it!

Can you tell?  Pure JOY.

Paul is such a great daddy-

he loves to help with feeding Peyton, diaper changes, etc.

and he loves to play with Brightlie.

 And the girls just adore him!

PEYTON - 1 month old

weight:  8 lbs. 1 oz.  

height:  20.25 in.

head:  35.5 cm

all just under or at  the 25% (percentile)

 I feel so bad... I need to take more pictures of Peyton...she is already 1 month old!  

Time is going so quickly, I just want her to stay small.  She is a good baby, but

has started to be a little more picky.  She hates being anywhere but in someone's arms, which 

is hard when i have a toddler who needs my attention too.  She spits up, so outfit changes

are happening more frequently. She is still tiny, wearing newborn clothes and 

newborn diapers... size 0-3 months swallow her. She sleeps about

5-6 hours each night so far, amidst her otherwise every 3 hours feeding schedule.

We love her and are so happy she is in our home- what a sweet

little baby, and a blessing in our lives!

Hi-ho, Hi-ho....

 I just have to brag....

 because i know everyone thinks their kids are cute...

And I must be the President of that club!  

(Because I totally KNOW that my kids are adorable!!! haha)

Thanks Sarah for the pictures

So, the girls pictures have nothing to do with our big announcement..... but as for our VERY exciting news- Paul got his first "real" job as an engineer!!!!  I am so proud of him! You rock babe!
(He is working for a co. called Aerotek for 6 months, and then hopefully he'll be officially hired by AGI after the 6 months.  Aerotek is a placement company, that coordinates with and is paid by successful companies to find good employees.  So, AGI goes to Aerotek and says find us a Mechanical Engineer Designer. Aerotek says, oh, well we know of a guy, Paul Reidhead, who we have already interviewed, who we suggest would fit that position.  Then AGI will pay Aerotek to "try out" Paul for 6 months -then (hopefully) AGI will give Paul an official offer to be apart of their staff if he is the right "fit". Meanwhile, Aerotek pays Paul for the 1st 6 months. (Make sense?  Confusing i know....)

Here is the background story:
It's a little stressful and overwhelming to graduate from ASU with dreams of a great career, and not be able to find a job.  And since Jan., Paul has been sending out his resume across the US in hopes of landing a job as soon as he graduated.  And it started to concern us as Paul neared graduation and was still not hearing back from any of these companies he was applying for.  You see, not to brag, but Paul has an outstanding resume.  He was top of his engineering class at ASU polytechnic, with a 3.8 GPA, Suma Cum Laude. His professors loved him, peers respected him.  In fact, several well-noted engineering professors gave him letters of recommendation.  So, we were baffled that he was not getting calls from these companies.  It did not make any sense, and it was discouraging to see less qualified people getting jobs and Paul not. Plus, Paul is a loving husband and father, and was naturally concerned about being a great provider for our family, especially with a new baby having just arrived.  SO, we prayed... and fasted... and prayed... and Paul kept sending out his resume. And amidst the stress and frustration, Paul and I both felt that the Lord must have something special in mind for Paul, and that we needed to be patient and exercise our faith in the Lord's timing.  (Faith = the miracle, right?) Well, on Monday Paul had a telephone interview with Aerotek.  They had reviewed his resume,  all went well with the phone interview, and they set up an "in-person" interview for Tues.  Tuesday morning Paul met with his recruiter (aka. personal job finder) and the guy was so impressed, he called up this company, AGI, and set up an interview with them the same afternoon!  Paul Then met with several people at AGI, including the VP, and he felt it all went very well!  The next morning, Paul's recruiter (Aerotek) called and said that AGI was highly impressed with Paul and wanted him to start immediately (this upcoming week).  So on Thurs. Paul went to Aerotek, signed an official contract and other paperwork, and is now officially employed!!!  He starts with AGI tomorrow!!!  AND, AGI is located in Chandler, AZ, so we will be staying here!  We still can't believe that all of this occurred within 4 days!  Aerotek was SHOCKED and pleased at how fast this all happened - they told Paul that it usually takes a few weeks or even months sometimes to get all the interviews done, hear back from the company on their decision, and get official contracts taken care of.  WOW!  We know that the Lord has blessed our family with this amazing opportunity, and Paul is so excited to be in a job, doing what he loves, providing for his family.  Way to go Paul!!!

26

Happy birthday to me!  I can't believe that I am 26 years old now.  Crazy to think I am entering the next major phase of my life- my 2nd quarter of a century.  :)  In my first 25 years I accomplished:  baptism, earned my YW award, completed HS, graduated from ASU with honors, dated & married my best friend, supported my Mom's fight/loss with Cancer, became a homeowner, & had 2 baby beautiful baby girls.  WOW!!!  I can't even imagine what the upcoming adventures will be, but I'm sure that the Lord has plenty more exciting things in store for my life! 

So, this past week was my 26th birthday (i'm getting old!!!) & Mother's Day!  Paul was so wonderful and made both days so very special!  I love him and his efforts to make me the happiest girl in the world!  

Turning 26

My birthday-day started off with Paul taking me... you guessed it- shopping!!!

We hit up Scottsdale mall where I bought myself a new shirt, accessories, and MAC makeup!

 Then in the evening, on our way to dinner, Paul took me to 

PANDORA at San Tan Mall.

What a special surprise- what girl doesn't like nice jewelry!?

 Isn't it pretty!?  It is a sterling silver charm bracelet!

Thus on special occasions, I can continually add 

more charms one at a time!

 For dinner we met up with my SIL Chelsea (& her hubby Danny)

at The Keg steakhouse for a romantic and delicious meal.  And the dessert

was fabulous!   After dinner we went to the movies, and saw The Avengers.

What a great date night with good food, great company, and 

lovely gifts!

Happy Mother's Day

Roses & gifts from my sweet hubby & girls

 (Brightlie was so excited for me to open my presents!)

 Me and my adorable girls!!!  I love being their MOM!

A child's artwork---Priceless!

The Mother's Day card Brightlie colored for me.

Me & Brightlie 

2.5 years ago the Lord helped me become something more...

I became a mommy!  What a sacred and divine calling!

It's not always easy, but they are totally worth it!

My Mother's Day gift...

a willow tree, figurine set- with a Daddy, Mommy, baby, & little girl

(Our little family!  How thoughtful is Paul?!)   

I love it!!!!

I'm so lucky to have Paul as my husband and best friend, 

& I am so blessed to be a mother to two darling girls!

I love them so much and am so happy to call them mine!

BRIGHTLIE DONNA

2.5 years old

PEYTON SAGE

3 weeks old

 

Special Moments

The month of May has just begun and already this first week has been crazy fun!  Two major events occurred- First was .... wait for it.... Paul is an official GRADUATE of ASU!!!!  After a tough 5 yr. engineering program, he graduated (5/3/2012) with a BSE in Mechanical Engineering from ASU Polytechnic, with honors: Magna Cum Laude!!!!  I am so proud of him!  And he survived his finals all with a brand new baby in our home!  Of course we had to celebrate, so with our 20 closest friends/family members, we had a dinner party at Mattas Mexican Grill!

 Paul's Capstone Project (& team)- a high density server for AMD

 'Where's Waldo?" - I was glad Paul waved so i could 

find him in the crowd! (At Convocation!)

 My Sexy Man!  An ASU graduate!

 I'm so proud of him!  Now we are both ASU alumni!

 Paul's dinner party celebration @ Mattas!!!

 20 of our closest friends/family came!

 Everyone had a great time and we are all so proud of Paul!

Go ASU!!!!!!

(Yes, I bought us ASU shirts just for the occasion- cute right?!)

The second major event of the week was the blessing of sweet baby Peyton at church today.   She looked so pretty in the beautiful dress my sister bought her, and she was such an angel throughout the blessing.  Paul did a wonderful job on the prayer, and we were so happy to have so many friends and family come to share the special moment with us.

 My sister Steph came in town for the weekend to

be here for the blessing... & she brought gifts!

 Steph holding Peyton for the 1st time  :)

PEYTON SAGE

So tiny and so pretty....

Our sweet little girl!  We love her so much!!!!