A little bit of everything!

I have sat down to blog several times in the last week.......obviously I wasn't very productive! Ha :)

So here's a little note from me to you to say "Hi!" and let you know we are still working on getting settled back into the house. I painted the computer room and am almost done getting reorganized paperwork wise. What a chore!!
The happy thought is that for the first time in 7 years this home office finally feels like a real functioning room!! I'll share pictures soon.......but here's a sneak peek :)

I brought these both back from Sicily....more on those later.


These buttons belonged to my grandma and great grandma & my mom painted the cup....I'll show you what they're in when I show the completed room.


These buckets were 65% off at Tai Pan ( love that store! ). They're perfect for holding office supplies.



We are in our second week of school. The kids seem to like their classes and teachers for the most part.
It's hard to believe that we have a senior, sophmore and our youngest started Jr. High! Where do the years go?
I'm so inspired by the wonderful people they are and it's a joy and yes, sometimes a challenge, to watch them grow :)

Ben is playing football instead of soccer this year. I have to confess I'm a bit sad about that. I love soccer. Football is like a foreign language to me but I'll get the hang of it :) Ben loves it and is doing great! That's what matters :)

Ben is #2



DJ is back in Sicily working indefinitely. He's really homesick this time.....more than usual. We are grateful for this job and what a blessing it has been!! We are praying that God will open doors here for a job ( sooner rather than later :)

Autumn is showing itself here and there. We have quite a few yellow leaves on some of our trees. It's a little early.
I absolutely love Autumn! It's by far my favorite season. I'll share some recipes with you over the next several weeks and take you along as I begin decorating :)

For now I'll leave you with these pictures of some pretty flowers on my kitchen window sill....Enjoy :)

I took the first two pictures and then...........



I walked by a little later and saw this reflection in the glass ( it helps that I cleaned the kitchen window inside and out earlier this morning :)

Utah.....What a Beauty! and Good Friends :)

Not to many things beat the feeling of loading the ATV's up and heading for the hills. Or here in Utah it would be heading to the mountains!

That's just what DJ and I did Friday morning with our friends Bill and Erin. We headed to East Canyon and put on about 20 miles, stopping to take pictures and eat lunch.

It was a wonderful day......so peaceful and quiet and good fellowship with some great people :)


Scenery out the window as we head to East Canyon.....



Bill and Erin in front of us.....


Doesn't that look like fun? (Taken as we drove by).....


This tree was fallen across the trail so what else are two grown men to do?


Act like the two boys that they are :)...........


In no time the tree was out of the way.....


Pretty.....


So beautiful.....




Bill and DJ chatting as Erin and I are down the hill taking pictures......


DJ attempting to climb a hill....it's steeper than it looks and he didn't make it....



This is where we stopped for lunch....so woodsy and tranquil.....




We had a wonderful day and are blessed to live in such a great state!

DJ also went riding with our friend, Doug, and his son on Saturday. I decided to stay home and enjoy some time to myself!

The kids are home from their summer youth retreat and this week we are getting registered for school.

Blessings to you all!

A Hidden Treasure!

Don't you love hidden treasures? I do, especially when it comes to older homes :)

This week a 61 year old treasure was brought to life in our home. I'm talking about the original wood floor we found under the carpet. It's fir and it cleaned up beautifully!! We were told that usually 80% - 85% of moisture spots sand out. We were estatic when everything came off with the first sanding!! They sanded 3 times, put two epoxy coats on and then a poly coat.

We are getting the baseboards painted ( I'm waiting for the first coat to dry right now :) and then we can get moved back into that room tonight. YEAH!

The kids left yesterday morning for their summer youth retreat with the youth group from our church. 5 days in Wyoming. This is the first year all 3 of the kids are in youth group together.
They got about 20 minutes into the 5 hour trip and the bus broke down so they had to rent vans. This is the same bus that broke down just past Las Vegas last summer on their way to Mexico for a missions trip!
Hmmmmmm.....anybody want to buy a bus? :)

DJ and I are enjoying the time together.....we cleaned the yard yesterday and we are working on the living room and ATV's today. Tomorrow we are going 4 wheeling with our friends Bill and Erin and then Saturday we are going 4 wheeling with our friend Doug.
It will be so nice to get up in the mountains! Hopefully I'll get some good pictures to share with you :)

Love to you all!


Before....


Before....


First Sanding....



After 2nd or 3rd Sanding....


First Coat of Epoxy....



Done.....Beautiful.....We Are So Happy With It!!

Home Sweet Home :)

Well, life has certainly changed this week!

Wednesday found us flying home from Sicily after saying goodbye to friends who in many ways are like family now :) It was hard to say goodbye and a little sad to leave Sicily after 7 adventureous months of living there! It was a wonderful experience for all of us and we're grateful to have had the opportunity to live amidst another culture.

A week ago life consisted of a little housework and lounging at Disio Resort by the pool......
Reality has set in and we are back in the swing of life here in America :)
Ben starts football practise tomorrow, we need to get the kids registered for school, Dani's studying for her permit and Heather's job hunting.

DJ and I didn't waste any time jumping into a project here at home. Friday we ripped the carpet out of the living room. There is a hardwood floor underneath that we decided to have refinished. That will get done this week and I'm so excited :) I hate carpet! I'll share pictures after it's done :)

My blogging may be a little sporadic for the next couple weeks while DJ's home.
There are still some pictures and journaling about Sicily I would like to share with you.

For now we are happy to be home.
The American flag, green grass, sprinklers and the sound of lawn mowers have all been welcome sights and sounds!

A Mediterranean Sunset......Moment by Moment

I can hardly believe we only have 3 days left here in Sicily! We are making the most of our time left here :) We have made such wonderful friends here....really they are more like family! They will all be missed so much :)

This week some of the ladies helped me celebrate my birthday....getting closer to the big 40! It was a beautiful and relaxing day. My friend, Tonya, hosted the celebration at her home. She made an awesome cake :) It was very sweet. I enjoyed spending time with friends and watching an incredible sunset!!



Here are a couple of pictures from the party and then pictures taken in Tonya's yard and finally....... enjoy the amazing sunset as it takes place over the Mediterranean Sea.



















What an amazing Creator God is :)