SOLD!!

After 10 months of making 2 mortgage payments we FINALLY sold our town home. I can't tell you what a weight this is off our shoulders. We feel so blessed that we were even able to sell in this economy. However it Probably wouldn't have taken so long if we'd been smart and hired a real estate agent from the beginning. Oh well hindsight, right? Thank you Dale Rex for selling it so quickly for us. And thank you to all our family and friends for your prayers.

10 Years and Counting...

In honor of our 10th anniversary here are 10 things I love about you.

1. Your personality, I have a tendency to be a little high stung and get stressed easily and your personality is so chill that you always seem to mellow me out.
   
2. Your have a great sense of humor. My friends are always cracking up about the crazy things you do. Like doing a little dance when you answer the door. Even though you can be pretty cheesy at times, you always keep me laughing.
   
3. Your dashing good looks! Need I say more?
   
4. You are such an amazing dad! I've never seen a more proud father. Gavin will never have to wonder how much his daddy loves him.
   
5. You're a loyal friend! You make friends a keep them. Your friends know they can always count on you for anything.
6. You never talk badly about other people even when those around you do. You're very nonjudgmental and I think that's why you make friends so easily. Which leads me to my next thing...
7. You make friends easily. You can go into a room full of people you don't know and walk out with a hand full of friends.
   
8. I love your competitiveness even though we can get in some serious screaming matches over board games. But it's always nice to be on you team, because we usually win.
   
9. You get along so well with my family. From the first time my parents met you they loved you. You immediately fit right in. And of course all my sibling and their spouses love you too.
   
10. Last but not least, I love that you love me :-)
    

Congratulations Amber!

Steve's baby sister got married last Saturday and are so happy for her. It was a beautiful wedding and great to see all the family. Welcome to the family Brett!

7 Days in Michigan

Gavin's Highlights

• Nonstop playing with Keely from dawn till dusk
• Going down the tube slide at Rolling Hills Water Park
• Playing with friends at the Labor Day BBQ
• Keely's new puppy Mattie

• 
  

My Highlights

• 2 date nights where Lisa and I actually got to see our husbands
• Girl time with my sis
• Labor Day BBQ at Kristin's
  
• Spending time with my neice and nephew (even though Ben doesn't love me as much as he should)
• Keely's new puppy Mattie

Steve's Highlights

• Golfing 63 holes ( I'm not kidding they golfed 63 holes in 3 days)
• The Michigan/Utah game, even though the Utes won :-(
• Being the favorite - Ben loved him and wouldn't give me the time of day. I don't take it personally though, it's a gender thing. Ben just doesn't like girls.
• Keely's New puppy Mattie. Come on babe admit it!

P.S. Thank you Shauri for the pictures! They're only evidence I have that we were there. Lisa and I didn't take a single picture the entire trip.

Boys will be boys. . . .

is the saying I have written in vinyl lettering above Gavin's closet. This weekend the saying held true. Gavin was playing at a friends house when he took a head drive right off the couch and into their desk. It's so sad to see him all beat up like that and it happened right before soccer pictures too. We told him he looked like a tough soccer player. I know that the facts of life are that he's going to get bumps and bruises. I know he'll most likely get much worse, but I really hate to see him hurt, and I'm sure it won't get any easier.

I Didn't Even Cry :-)

Can I tell you how proud I was of myself? Oh yeah and Gavin too. Today was his first day of school and I didn't even cry. I know I'm a big baby, so I really prepared my self this year. This is Gavin's third year of preschool, so I think I must be getting use to it. He was very excited and even insisted on picking out his own outfit. He has never had an opinion on his clothes before, so I have no idea where that came from.

I love this school! When we went to meet the teacher day I was talking to a couple of his teachers about how impressed I've been with the school, because you can just tell how much everyone who works there loves their job and loves the kids. And one of the teachers started crying and said, "We do! We just love the kids!" It makes me rest easy to know that these are the kind of people I'm entrusting with my sweet boy.

What ball?

Gavin had his 1st soccer practice Thursday and his 1st game yesterday. Before soccer practice Steve and Gavin had a big talk on how he needs listen to his coach and do whatever he says. So during practice the kids we running a drill where they had to kick the ball back and forth between a line of cones and once they got to the end they were suppose to kick the ball as hard as they could to the coach. So Gavin gets to the end of the line and coach Callister yells, "Okay, Gavin give me a good kick!" What does Gavin do? He runs towards his coach to give him a good kick. Hey he was just doing what his coach asked, right? It was hilarious!

The Game was pretty fun to watch. We have to remind ourselves that our funny boy is just learning. He mostly just ran up and down the field with the mob of kids and was pretty unaware that a ball was involved. It was lots of fun to watch though. The age group for his team is kindergarten and 1st graders, so technically Gavin isn't suppose to be on the team, but the Callisters' were nice enough to let him sneak on. His team got worked, but they were playing against a team of ginormous 1st graders. Gavin didn't seem to notice though. When people ask him is he won he tell them yes. I guess at that age we're all winners.

Our little winner

Almost looks like he's heading for the ball, huh? Nope just running ;-)

Thumbs Up!

He got pretty worn out. They only had one sub so Gavin kept trying to take his own time outs.

Is it really almost over?

I can't believe Gavin starts school on Monday and summer is almost over. How did it go by so quickly? This post is dedicated to some of the things we did this summer that I meant to blog about but never got around to. So readers beware this is a long one.

We have an awesome neighborhood with some great kids! One of Gavin's favorite things to do is just run wild with his friends outside playing water games. And it's fun for me too, because I can just sit and visit with the moms while we watch them go crazy.

Gavin loves bowling and he gave me a run for my money. Not that, that's saying much. Steve makes me use bumpers or it's just embarrassing.

We spent a lot of time at our neighborhood pool with friends and cousins. Gavin loves the water. He would swim all day every day if I'd let him

Gavin loved going to Boondocks with his daddy. They would play miniature Golf, ride paddle boats, play arcade games, and run around in the jungle gym. Gavin loves alone time with daddy.

I decided to buy passes to Thanksgiving Point this summer since we live so close. So we've spent a ton of time there. For some reason Gavin loves the Dinosaur Museum. No matter how many times we go he still has fun.

So One Sided!

I always heard parents talk about their love for their children and thought I understood it. It turns out I didn't have the slightest comprehension of parents love for a child until I had one of my own. And I think its really unfair how one sided that love is. Don't get me wrong, I know that Gavin loves me, but I think it pales in comparison to my love for him. You're probably wondering where this rant is coming from, well let me explain.

Gavin left me Wednesday morning with my sister Julee to go visit my other sister Lisa in Michigan. I'm going to share a few of the conversations we've had that are giving me this complex.

First-The day before he left we were cuddling on my bed and talking about his trip. I was giving him lots of hugs and kisses telling him how much I was going to miss him while he was gone when I asked him if he was going to miss me he said, "Ya, and when I there can me and Keely go to Jungle Java and ......" He just kept rambling on about all the fun things he was going to do when he got there.

Second-When I was dropping him off at the airport and again smothering him with hugs and kisses he says, "K, mom I have to get on the airplane now." And just like that he was off while I on the other hand started crying as soon as I got back in my car.

Third-One of the times I actually got him to talk to me on the phone I guess I'd interrupted an important meal because he said, "Mom I have to go. I don't want my turkey sandwich to go to waist." And this coming from the mouth of the boy I have to force to eat anything. I guess I should be happy he actually talked to me that time. Most if the other times I called he said, "No!" whenever Lisa asked him if he wanted to talk to me. Where the love?

But in all seriousness I'm very happy he feels confident and independent enough to leave us for a week without feeling sad. I'm also very thankful for sisters and a brother in law who love him and take care of him as if he were their own. He's having the time of his life with his best friend Keely and his aunts and uncle spoiling him like crazy. Steve and I have even managed to have a little fun with out him. He keeps telling people we're falling in love all over and again. And I keep asking, "What do you mean again?" Just kidding babe! It's been great to have all this time together, but I think we're both more than ready to have our boy back.

KNOCK, KNOCK, KNOCK...

was the sound that woke me up just before 8:00 this morning. All our neighbors know that the Atwood's would never be up before 9:30 on a Saturday. So I didn't know who could possible be at our door so early. When we finally came to and started to become coherent we could hear the sound of waters outside our bedroom window. Steve jumped up and ran to the door where our neighbors the Wanders were standing to tell us we had a problem. One of our sprinklers had broke and was spraying everywhere for who knows how long and had totally filled both our window wells with water. Steve shut off the water and ran downstairs to find 2 rooms and a hall way completely flooded. What a way to wake up!! So we've spent our day moving everything out of those rooms into the family room (see the pretty picture?), sump pumping water, wet vacuuming water up, and trying to dry everything out. Not the funnest way to spend a Saturday! Oh well, I guess it could have been worse.