A warmer climate

Ok. Ok. Now that I've "left you hanging long enough" as my Aunt put it...

(I'm sorry. It was not intentional. Let's just say that the blogging in our house normally gets done during nap time, and a certain someone has refused to take their nap the last couple of days.)

I will finally let you in on the secret.

Our little family will soon be living in

ARIZONA!!!

More specifically the Thatcher/Safford/Pima/Morenci area. (We're not sure which town yet. We still need to find a place to live.)

It looks like the Lord thinks we need to live in a warmer climate. First St. George, now Arizona.

We couldn't be more excited! Minus the fact that our family will be 14 hours away.

Dan will be working as a Diagnostic Diesel Technician for a copper/gold mine.

So there you have it. Our big news.

*As of now, Dan's starting date is pending until he passes the physical and drug test that he took a couple of days ago. Once we find out more details of our big move, we'll be sure to keep you in the loop. :)

He Did It!

Friday was the big day.

Dan graduated from WyoTech!

And now I am going to brag about my awesome husband. Just because I can, and I should.

Not only did he graduate, but he did it with HONORS!

You're looking at a guy that graduated as a member of the National Technical Honors Society and had perfect attendance.

Can I just say that I am soooo proud of him! He looks good in his graduation attire. Especially those new boots that were his gift from yours truly and Alayna. I told Dan that our gift was to remind him of where he came from since we will no longer be living in our home state.

Yep, that's right. We have a job. But I'll tell you all about it in a different post. I will give you a hint. We are moving somewhere warmer than Laramie. I know all you Laramie-ites are thinking that it doesn't take much to get warmer than here, but when you have two job offers for places that are colder than here, you find out that maybe Laramie isn't the coldest place on earth. :)

Now, on to some more pictures.

Dan and his mom.

Dan and I.

And another picture of our graduate.After the graduation, that was UNDER an hour. Seriously. I am not kidding. Guess they know how to do it at WyoTech. Anyway, after the graduation, we went out to eat at Dan's favorite restaurant, Corona Village.

We had a fun time filled with good food and laughter...and faces like this. Don't ask me what he is doing. I don't ever know. All I know is he is good for a laugh.

The gang. (Minus a few. Sorry. This is the best picture I got.)

Oh, and maybe one of the most memorable moments we had at Corona Village was when Grandpa taught Alayna how to shoot the wrapper off her straw. It's a must. Every kid ought to know how.

Our Family Pics

We decided before the weather got too fall-ish we needed to get our pictures taken. And based on the temperatures today, I am soooo glad we got them done when we did.

Carolyn took our pictures. She is Amazing! Need I say more?...except that we had a great time getting our pictures taken....and that's saying a lot. Especially for a guy like my husband who cringes when I mention we need to get pictures taken.

Might I also add that getting pictures taken with an almost two-year-old, is way different than a one-year-old or a baby. Patience is a word that is coming to mind. Although, it really turned out to be a pleasant experience.

Here are a few of our favorites of little Miss Alayna:

And a few (or a lot) of our favorite family pictures. I am torn as to which one is my favorite. I think it's this first one, but I just can't seem to make up my mind. I just love how Alayna has her arms around both of us.

Her popped hip is to die for.

Just the two of us.

There you have it. Carolyn really did a fantastic job!

22 Months

Here's a little of what little miss Layna has been doing this last month.

We have been on many stroller rides in our "new to us" stroller. LOVE it! In fact, Alayna loves it so much she wants to sit in it while watching a movie.

Helping mommy wash all the raspberries to make jam. As you can see, she LOVED splashing the water. So mommy decided to forgo the shirt.

She's been lining up her shoes. One night I said "Layna, go get your shoes so we can put them on." After a couple minutes I thought she didn't listen when, come to find out, she was bringing them all to me and lining them up.

Layna's been talking on the phone...while going potty. It's never to early to multi-task.

She's also spent some time showing off her diva side. Hand on the hip and everything.

There has been some ticking going on around here. Daddy is the best at getting those giggles.

There also has been some mischievous-ness going on around here lately. Such as getting into the vaseline and smearing as much as possible onto our face.

And there definitely has been some dancing and singing going on around here as well. Especially to Chitty Chitty Bang Bang since that seems to be the movie of choice.

Here's a little video. Enjoy.