Tortuga

Well I have this addiction. I LOVE turtles and to be honest I couldn't tell you why however I have loved them since Grade 3. My very first turtle encounter was when my best friend Michelle Riediger gave me a turtle necklace for my birthday. From that day on I was hooked. One could only imagine the smile that spread across my face when Mom Tobler and I stumbled upon this beauty at a yard sale. It is a foot stool and for the $2 that it was I couldn't leave it behind. The hideous purple simply would not make the cut in our home so while Momma V was here we went and bought this darling material.

For some reason both Jared and Jakob couldn't hammer the upholstery nails into the wood so Jakob whipped out his tools and screwed the fabric to the turtle. (Thank you once again to Chad and Janet for the wedding gift Jakob loves those tools)

I'm very pleased with the simple re-make.

Windy With A Chance of Chaos

Yes, it was that windy today. I park my car in the spot farthest to the right. Thank heavens for our landlord who came by to tell me to move my car. (I was in my garmies when the doorbell rang and had to scramble for some clothes but that is another story.)

This is the view from our apartment window. There are some guys outside right now trying to fix the situation however I think it's going to take a little more than two guys pushing from on top of the awning.

Trying Something Different

Last Sunday Stu and Courtney invited Jakob, Bill, Jessica and I to attend the Rock & Worship Concert Tour. I know most are thinking: What?! A concert on a Sunday? How inappropriate and at first I shared your thoughts but allow me to share my theory. I understand that this is uncommon among LDS members to attend concerts on the Sabbath, however how can I ask Stu & Court to attend church with us and respect wheat we believe if I do not respect them and attend something that is important to them? They aren't trying to convert us and we aren't trying to convert them, we just want to understand both sides & enjoy some good music therefore I justified it and went.

This is Stu & Courtney and I love them both dearly! They live 3 minutes from our apartment and & I love having them so close to us! I am so grateful to have them as friends, they make me smile!

Introducing the Crew! (minus James and Jenna) I love them all to bits. This quite possibly could be the funniest and most varied group of people I've ever encountered! There is NEVER a dull moment when we're all together. I think some of the most shocking parts of this concert for me would be a) I knew all of the artists from listening to the radio which included Mercy Me, Francesca Battistelli, Family Force 5 & Fee.

And b) the spirit that I felt there. I understand that people have many different ways of worshiping and remembering our Savior. For me at least, I thought that this would simply be a concert, that I would be immune to such emotions because it was not the way that LDS members worshiped. I thought I would see it as music and not as a way to worship but I was wrong. Music to me is so powerful, I am continually amazed at the power it has to touch peoples hearts including my own. I can safely say that I felt the spirit there, it had touched me in a way that I had not expected because I was out of my element. I am very grateful to have been able to have that experience and to be able to share it with dear friends. I have learned that when you're in tune you can feel the spirit anywhere you just have to have and open heart and mind.

It Pays to Have a Hand Maiden

Lately Jakob and I have been talking about how nice it would be to have a hand maiden to cook and clean for us. Not that our home is large by any stretch of the imagination but somehow it is ALWAYS a bombshell. This past week Jessica has been visiting and boy, did we put her to work.

She cooked...

She Cleaned...

She organized... at our place and Mom Toblers. (Victorian Tea Party)

And when life seemed to difficult for her to overcome, Jakob arms were there for a much needed hug. Poor Hand Maiden.

All of her hard work didn't go unnoticed mind you. Jakob and I greatly appreciated her company. We had tons of fun visiting with Bill (who kind of likes her), attended 2 concerts, went on a road trip to Phoenix, intruded on poor Mom Toblers tea party and let the heat of the sun kiss our pale skin. Best of luck at school Jessimaca!! We love & miss you!!

Crazy Love

On April 7th Jessica, Courtney and I took a road trip down to Phoenix, for three days, to see Michael Bublé. For those of you who don't know who Michael Bublé is... he's the modern day Frank Sinatra and he's AMAZING! I thought it would be fun for us girls to have our own little adventure.

... And an adventure it was! We left at 5:30 p.m. and drove at night. About an hour outside of Phoenix my dear car (Red Thunder) started to overheat. We phoned Stu (Courtney's husband who is pretty car savvy) and he advised us to check the fluids even though they were perfectly fine earlier that day. In the morning we come to find that once again all of the radiator fluid is gone. We drove to a Checkers and bought two gallons and filled her up again. No sooner than we had arrived back at our apartment (and let the car cool) was the fluid gone again. This wouldn't be so much of a problem if we weren't alone 6 hours away from home. However our men back home were ready for the wost and arranged to tow us back home if necessary. (Talk about worry warts. ;) But it's nice to be worried about.)

Even with Red Thunder over heating MULTIPLE times and us having to refill the radiator fluid every time we drove we didn't let it dampen our spirits! After several prayers from home and together with the girls we went to the concert and decided to fix the problem in the morning. The next day before we departed we ventured out in search of a mechanic to fix the car. This is where we found Scotty who made me laugh and smile. Turns out it was a hose that had a hole in it. He told us to go for breakfast and it would be done when we got back. I cried, after such a stressful morning and not knowing how much it would cost it was a HUGE relief to only have to replace a hose. He told us he would ensure we would be safe while we traveled back to Vegas. I am so thankful that there are still good people in this world that care enough to help and take care of strangers. I will forever remember Scotty. Even through all of the chaos Michael Bublé was sensational!

It was nice to have "girl time" & be able to spend time together with Jessica and Courtney who hit it off right away. It was Courtney's first trip without her hubby which was hard for her but we all had so much fun. Courtney had her first ever IKEA experience and she was amazed. I truly think that Vegas needs to get one. I love IKEA.

I had to take a picture of this sign. I thought it was kind of cute. While Jess spent over an hour curling my hair I read this to the girls.

I was so exited for this trip I can't even explain and let me tell you it was all worth it! Nothing could bring me down! If Michael comes to a town near you I would HIGHLY recommend going to see him!

Our tickets only cost us $50.00 a pop and we were in the very last row which to be honest was an excellent seat. It was an incredibly steep incline which made my height radar go off a little bit but for $50.00 I was pleased with our last row seats.

The opening act was a band called Naturally 7 and they were wonderful. They are an Acapulco group. If you haven't heard them (which I'm sure you haven't because their first album just came out) you should YouTube them. We were seriously impressed and they were very entertaining to watch. We met with them after the concert and they are very humble guys. I was very impressed with them.

Oh and then came Michael. He was sensational!! He sang and danced and told jokes. It was very entertaining. He doesn't believe in the "concert" feel of simply standing there and singing to you. He says if that's what you want you can buy his album and listen to it at home. His philosophy was you paid the money to come and see him so it should be a show, and a show it was.

I couldn't stop smiling and in almost all of the videos we took you can hear me singing in my horribly tone deaf voice as loud as I could. The poor people sitting beside us in this sold out show. Fun fact that Micheal told us: In 2004, his first performance was in Phoenix. He had sold 19 tickets total. Now 6 years later he had a sold out show of 13,000 people. Crazy what a lot of talent and a little bit of time can do.

We said farewell to Phoenix and headed home. It was amazing to us how dark the road was on the way down. We couldn't see a single cactus even though they were scattered EVERYWHERE! Much prettier than Vegas.

Courtney and I have decided that we'd like to live in Flagstaff with all of it's green trees and snow. Well at least have a cabin to vacation to. It was GORGEOUS and just a few miles away... Mormon lake? Curious. Even with all of the car troubles we had a ton of fun. Poor Red Thunder started acting up on the way home again but we made it home safe and sound. I don't think we'll be making any more long distance trips in that baby.

Easter Sunday

Although we didn't have an Easter egg hunt I would have to say that being able to see our Prophet speak in person would make this one of my favorite Easters.

Unfortunately Clark was not able to join us. So we walked with Mom, Dad & Rachel. It was so nice to be able to go as a family. Clark & Rachel only live a few blocks away so we walked most of the way.

When packing I didn't factor in walking and heels and the blisters that may result in such and action, so I wore my dirty old running shoes and switched shoes outside of the conference center.

The hall was huge and we were on the lower level on the right hand side. We were close enough to be able to tell who the people were but not close enough to see their expressions. Because of this I found myself watching the screen more than the pulpit. On several occasions I had to remind myself that this is real, I am sitting here watching and listening to conference live.

Momma V got Jakob and I matching mitts from the winter Olympics in Canada. Pappa V dared me to wave wearing my mitts so he could see us on the camera. I may be bold but I didn't want to be the first person to wave to their parents at conference. So here Mom is waving for all of those to see!

I know it says no pictures but I couldn't help myself. The choir was amazing in person! It was a beautiful Easter melody. After hearing them on T.V you'd think I'd be used to them but every time they sang I had goosebumps. They were wonderful!

Being just one person in a congregation of this size made me feel so small in a church so big. I have never seen a gathering of that magnitude before and all to sit and be taught. It warms my heart to know that there are members all around the world with morals, standards & faith. To be a part of something so large and wonderful is an amazing feeling. The power I felt as we sang "I Know That My Redeemer Lives". There was a section that was across the hall that was signing the words & it pricked my heart. I don't think I could forget that feeling. (I took this at the end of conference not during the song)

I had a burning feeling as the congregation stood for President Monson as he left. He waved good bye and we all waved back. I could feel the love he had for the members and the love that the members had for him. What an incredible man.

Making our way back home through the throng of people. Smiles all around.

We had such a good time at conference. I would highly recommend it for all who haven't gone yet. Just simply for the spirit that is there. I would love to attend another session hopefully in the near future. It was a wonderful experience.

Salt Lake Adventure

For our Easter weekend Jakob and I accompanied Mom and Dad Tobler to Clark and Rachel's adorable home in Salt Lake (As shown above). We had a barrel of fun adventuring around town.

We had so much yummy food courtesy of Mom Tobler and Clark. I had to throw in a picture of Mom seeing as how she's almost always on the other side of the camera lens.

A Tobler gathering just would not be complete without doughnuts for breakfast.

Roast Beef, Sangria, Sweet Potatoes & Asparagus... it simply doesn't get better than that! Yum Yum!

Clark and Rachel's home is so quaint. The bathroom is too small for two people which the clan had to point out to me. I see nothing wrong with leaving the door open while Jakob showers. The see through holes aren't big enough to really see anything. :)

It was a tight squeeze around the toilet area too. Peoples legs must have been shorter back in the day. How many Tobler's does it take to put change in a meter?

There was lots of cuddling and napping too!

Poor Jakob tipped the couch right over. Of course I couldn't help him up until a picture was taken. What can I say.. It's the blogger in me.

Jakob and I got a chance to look around temple square. Yes, I know the temple in crooked in this picture. Jakob wouldn't let me climb in the garden so he held onto my jacket while I attempted a shot.

I have decided that I want a pretty brick house like this. Isn't it beautiful! I love the porch and it had a deck in the back as well. Adorable. There are tons of houses like this around where Clark and Rachel are located. I love it!

Don't be deceived by the pretty flowers.. It was FREEZING! Poor Mom Tobler had to wrap herself up like a burrito!

We had a lot of fun in Salt Lake. Thank you to Clark and Rachel for allowing us to crash at your place. It was much appreciated. We look forward to visiting again!