We have been blessed with an adorable granddaughter!
We are so happy and in love with her.
She was born the day after my brother passed away.
It is the truest example of the circle of life. We come, stay for a little while, and then we go. I am so grateful for new life. This sweet little one is our 7th grand baby. She has a smile that fills her whole body!
I love the blessing of being parents, grandparents, and part of a family.
Welcome to the world sweet smiley girl!!
I have a dear friend named Julie.
She has been my best friend since high school. We have been friends for long enough that we have some pretty troubling and embarrassing stories of our time together. I am amazed we made it though some of them. I’m so thankful we did. She is a gem. So loyal, and generous, and fun!
We have had this friendship and history for years, before we both got married. Then we both got married the same year within a month of each other. Both of our husbands names are Brett. Only her hubby’s only has one “t”. We started having our children within a year of each other. Because we love each other and we like to be with each other, as our children were born, they became friends. The kids don’t quite match up as far as ages go, but each of our kids are very close to each other. We used to call them our chosen cousins.
Let me add here that she has lived 350 miles away from me since just after we both got married. You have to put a big effort in to stay best friends when you live far away from each other. Also, we used to write letters to each other, because it cost too much to call and talk. Now we have cell phones and communicating is easy.
Our children are all adults. Almost all of them are married. Most of the married ones are parents.
We haven’t had all our kids together for years. They are all so busy and when my darlin and I visit them, it’s usually just the two of us.
We told Natasha we were going to visit with our friends and have a reunion. She says, “Now how are we related to them?” Kelsey said, “We’re not.” Natasha said, “What!!! We’re not related to them?” Haha, we laughed and laughed. All this time she thought they were family. Well, they are! We chose them.
So we had a reunion this last week in a little town in central Utah named Marysvale. It is an old mining town. There are lots of trails for riding 4 wheelers and hiking. We had so much fun! All of our kids and their spouses and grandkids where there. Wow! We know how to multiply.
What a fun time we had! It was very crowded, noisy, and fun!
I love our chosen family. And my bestie Julie!
Today it has been eight years since I started my blog.
As I read through the blog, I am so happy that I have been able to share these stories and experiences with everyone!
I am so thankful that I have written them down.
They are a treasure to me.
My life and all that I have experienced is wonderful. Even the challenges have taught me so much. Some of the best things I’ve learned in the last eight years are:
1-Family is everything. I can’t imagine my life with out my family. Both the one I grew up in and the one I have with my Darlin. I feel blessed to have a sweet husband, wonderful children, and I am in love with my beautiful grandchildren. I’m thankful I have a blog full of memories of my family.
2-A knowledge of God and my Savior, Jesus Christ is a blessing in my life everyday. The gospel gives me direction, and hope for my life. 
3-I am so thankful for my ancestors. The family who came before me, and who paved the way so that life would be better for me. They left homes they knew, for the unknown. They gave up comfort for the challenge of a journey to a new life. I can’t imagine what they went through, but I am so thankful. I love them!
4-Grandbabies are the best!!! I am completely in love with them! They are my reward for not killing my kids. Haha. But seriously, how wonderful it is to have these sweet little people who I get to love, and spoil, and then send them home. It is the best!
Thank you for your visit to my blog!
I love to have you come.
This beautiful little human is our new granddaughter!
She is perfect!
Our youngest daughter and “Bonus Baby” and her hubby, Anthony had this sweet baby this last week.
I am so in love with her!
She is a cute little trooper and has been doing well at life.
I’m so grateful to Heavenly Father for a new baby to love, and that our daughter has this wonderful opportunity to be a mama, she will be amazing. It will be so fun to watch this baby grow and learn new things. Life is wonderful!
Anthony and Emily taking a Sunday nap.
Happy Birthday to this wonderful daughter!
I am so blessed to have you in my life!!!
You are- very much a “Bonus”, sensitive, happy, thoughtful, motivated, loving, soon to be a mama, beautiful, amazing, energetic (not so much in the above pic), healthful, spiritual, considerate, hard working, faithful, responsible, creative, forever my baby, artistic, patient, kind, lovely, and a forever lover to Anthony!!
I love you so much!!!
I am so proud of you, and happy that you’re my sweet “Bonus Baby”!!!
Our sweet “Bonus Baby” daughter and her sweetheart, Anthony are having a baby!!
A little girl!
Yay! I’m so excited to be a grandma again! It really is the best! We’re having a baby shower for her this week. I’ve been getting decorations made and organizing the menu.
I remember when my kids were little they used to ask what a “baby shower” was. I told them we all get nakey and get in the shower together. They were usually pretty concerned & surprised. Then I would tell them what a “baby shower” really was. 🙂
We’re celebrating the baby that is on the way! And giving gifts to a sweet daughter so she is ready when the baby comes! This will be my daughters first baby, and she is over the top excited to be a mama. She will be a wonderful mama, I’m sure!
The theme is hot air balloons. I thought these turned out super cute! I got the idea off Pinterest (of course). I bought the baskets at the D.I., bought a package of three paper lanterns, got some cute scrapbook paper for the pennant banner, some cotton string, and some sparkly tulle. Oh, and just a few flowers for the top of each “hot air balloon”.
Don’t you just love parties? I do! It’s so fun to plan and set up, and then see everyone enjoying themselves. I sure hope they do! I’ll take some pictures and share them after.
Have a great day!!!
It’s my blogiversary!!
So here’s a list of 7 things I’ve learned blogging for 7 years:
1-Always remember why you do it.
I don’t spend a lot of time on other peoples blogs. I am trying my best to get a grip in my life and sitting on the computer all day doesn’t help. So if I don’t have a lot of visitors, because I’m not commenting all the time on others blogs, I’m ok with that. I am leaving a journal with stories and what not for my family and anyone else who would like to visit. I love you all!
2-Put your best foot forward.
Emily and Anthony’s cute socks and shoes on their wedding day!
I struggle sometimes. I prefer to not focus on complaining. It’s really not me anyway. I am a joyful person! I am always looking for the blessings in life.
3-Have variety.
If I always focus on one topic, it’s like I’m talking in a monotone voice. That’s not very fun! So it’s good to mix it up.
4-Be totally honest.
I am, what I am. I love to share what I feel and the adventures I’m having. Sometimes, life is challenging. Maybe if I share how I’m working through a challenge it might help someone else. Who’s to say…;)
5-It takes a lot of effort sometimes, and that’s ok.
Remember Dory? Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming!
6-“If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all.”
I am a firm believer that love conquers all. I don’t agree with everyone on the internet, and I know they don’t all agree with me, but we can be kind and show love for other humans when we communicate.
7-Sharing what matters most to me is fun!
Sunday’s really are Best! Family History is so fun! Missionaries make me happy! Beautiful Places are beautiful! My Darlin, First Born, Janet, Dream Come True, Most Quoted, Amber, Bonus Baby, Anthony, Grandbabies, and Tayzie mean the world to me! Someday this blog will be a treasure for the people I love, maybe it is already. Either way, it’s here and waiting for a visit from all!
Thank you for visiting! I hope you return often!
Love, Joy
Planning a wedding is so much fun!
It can be very stressful if you try to do too much and not let other people help. It is something little girls think about a million times while they are growing up. It is an event that moms look forward to sharing with their daughters from the time they are born. We build it up and have so many expectations about how it is going to be. It can be very beautiful and very reasonably done. It’s best to be realistic though, and know that things don’t always go perfect and that’s ok.
With that I will say I am very frugal. I have taught my children to be careful with their money, and I know they will be careful with their parents money, too.
I will never spend an insane amount of money on an event that will last a day.
The most important part of the wedding day is the Wedding, the actual vows. Making promises and professing your love to all, especially God. When you look into your sweetheart’s eyes and your know you want to be with them forever. That is the most important part of the day. You don’t need to spend a lot of money to have that.
Within a day or so of the announcement of the upcoming wedding, I usually find a book that I can use for the planning. The book I used for Emily and Anthony’s wedding was just an address book that I knew I would never use for it’s intended purpose. I separate it into sections.
I find it is easier for me to simplify the categories. Most of the planning can fit into one of the following categories:
1-Important-Things in this section are, you guessed it, important. *Research of and final choice for the wedding venue. *The address and phone # of the county you will be married in, with the information about when to purchase the wedding license. *Contact information about the officiator at the wedding.
2-Budget-Of course it’s very important to have a budget. You can spend a lot of money on a wedding, enough to save a small country. Or you can be very careful with most of the wedding and spend a little more on special things. Pick the part of the wedding or things at the wedding that matter the most to you. It could be the location, the dress, or something like the flowers. We bought Emily’s dress at a vintage clothing store and I made modifications to it to make it what she wanted. We used canning jars that were decorated for the centerpieces. They are very popular and cheap or free.
3-Guests-Start listing and gathering all the addresses of those who will be invited to the wedding, the wedding luncheon, and the reception. The same people may be invited to all of the events, but maybe not. I usually invite family and close friends to the wedding, and the luncheon. Then I invite more casual friends, neighbors, co-workers, and acquaintances to the reception.
4-Reception-I put everything about the reception in this category. Location: All of the possibilities for the location, their phone numbers, prices and details about what they offer. I went on google and checked addresses to see if the address for the wedding and the address for the reception are close enough to make it convenient for those attending. You need to know that we are LDS, and our daughter got married in the LDS Temple. They don’t hold receptions there, so the reception location was different. Decorations: Table decorations, back drop where the bride and groom will stand to greet guests, sign in table, pictures and decor placed here and there to add to the total feel of the reception, ceiling decorations (we used paper lanterns), etc. Food: What will be served, what type of food and how you will serve it. How you will present it? Will you have servers, or helpers to clear the tables. Some weddings serve a full meal. We didn’t do that, we served refreshments. More about the reception in a future blog post.
5-Misc-The wedding luncheon (or brunch or whatever you decide) can go in this category. I put information about the colors for the wedding. Swatches of the fabric we used, etc.
Another helpful part of the planning is to get a Pinterest account. It is a fantastic resource for planning fun “do it yourself” decorations. You can purchase a couple of magazines, to look through for ideas. A Google search of this place or that place, or different types of decorations, etc.
These are some things that have helped me. I planned two weddings last year. One was our son, and the second was our daughter. Both weddings turned out great and they were both different. It was very fun, and stressful, but I loved doing all of this for my kids and their sweet spouses.
-Just an FYI, I planned Emily’s wedding in 3 months. It can be done! I promise!
Where do I start?
I have been a slacker…..Only in my blogging!
Life is so wonderful, and hard, and awesome! Our family had a wonderful blessing on Saturday, January 30, 2016. Our daughter Emily, my Bonus Baby was married for time and all eternity to her sweetheart in the Jordan River Temple.
It was wonderful!
It was a blizzard.
It’s was very overwhelming and fun!
I have had my two son’s get married, but this is my first wedding for a daughter. Let me just say there is a big difference in what you do to get ready for a son to marry, as opposed to what you do to get ready for a daughter to marry. I have been sewing, and hot glueing and organizing for weeks and weeks for this blessed event.
It all turned out great!
Now that we have had our day with Em, I’ll share some of our preparations with you.
I have learned a lot about what works and what doesn’t in preparing. I’ll share some of the things I’ve learned. I will share pictures and fun ideas.
Watch for my next post!
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