Stolen Car, Part 3

What a nightmare. The thieves stole EVERYTHING from the car, they ruined the transmission, cracked the engine mounts, and tore the exhaust system, and that's just so far. I wonder how long it'll be before the engine goes.

The insurance company is dragging their feet in agreeing to pay for the repairs, demanding proof that the mechanical problems were caused by the theives (did I mention the technitions that have looked at it have already said that it was?).

Looks like at least another week or two before I'll have a car again.

Disneyland 2009

We got back from Disneyland yesterday and had a great time. I wish we could go there once every year or two. The kids had a great time. Grandma and Grandpa Baker were able to come, too. We got to spend some time in the park with my Aunt Kelly (Grandpa Baker's sister), who lives in the Anaheim area. It was so fun to see her!

Aiden's favorite rides were Dumbo and Woody, and Mackenzie's favorite rides were "Inc" (Monsters, Inc.) and Pirates (at least that's what she says; I'm not so sure about that since she was more than a little nervous while we were on the ride).

One of the highlights for us was Turtle Talk with Crush (the turtle from Finding Nemo). They have an auditorium with an animated turtle on the screen. Crush interacts with and talks to the audience. The kids get to sit up front, and Aiden was the first kid he talked to. You really would have had to have been there, but it was CUTE! Here's a recap:

Crush: What's your name, little dude?
Aiden: Aiden
Crush: I'll call you Awesome Aiden. Where are you from?
Aiden: Utah
Crush: I don't know where that is. Do they surf in Utah?
Aiden: No.
Crush: Why not?
Aiden: Because there is no sea.
Crush: No sea? How do you live?

Disneyland is definitely a fun family destination. The downside of things was that Mackenzie caught a cold the night before we left and had a really hard time on the airplane, particularly the landing. Her ears were pretty clogged up, and she puked a few times on the way down. Poor kid! Poor other passengers who had to listen to a screaming girl. Mackenzie was also kind enough to share her cold with me and Grandpa while we were in Disneyland. It didn't slow any of us down too much (Mackenzie was doing much better by the time we hit the park on Thursday), but we're all still trying to recover. Mackenzie is definitely on the tail end of her cold.

Stolen Car, Part 2

For those of you who have asked, my car was stolen out of my driveway (it was parked right by the house and surrounded by other cars) on a Sunday night. It is a 1996 Honda Accord (I know, they are very popular among car theives).

The good news is that the police recovered my car. The bad news is that we were on vacation so I had to pay all sorts of impound and towing fees. The thieves had also punched out the ignition. I haven't seen it yet (the impound yard was less than cooperative), so I don't know the extent of the damage or what is missing yet. My mechanic is getting the vehicle towed to the shop today.

Stolen Car

Scratch what I said earlier about still driving the same car as when I got married. It got stolen last night. But, things are replaceable. People are not. My family is safe and sound and happy. I have much to be grateful for.

Family Pictures at Temple Square

We took these yesterday evening at temple square. I've been planning to get a family portrait in the spring with the tulips all winter long, and spent a long time coordinating outfits. I was a little disappointed that the kids didn't cooperate a little more, but I think we still got a few cute shots. Special thanks to Krissy for her help in taking our family picture.

Temple Square

Here are a couple photos I snapped while at Temple Square yesterday. I was pretty happy with them.

Soccer Season Begins!

Yesterday was Aiden's first official soccer game of the season. He did great!!! He gets to play on the same team with his good friend, Toby. Check out some of the pictures.

Happy Anniversay

Friday was our 6 year wedding anniversary. Such events make you feel a little nostalgic. I look back on the last six years, and life has not led us where I expected to be. I didn't know Rich would still have three years of school left, plus residency. I didn't know I would still be driving the same car and living in my parents' basement. I didn't know I would have already owned and sold 4 houses and moved 3 times. I didn't know we would have two of the cutest kids in the universe, and I didn't know I would love them so much. I didn't know that I would love Rich more today than I did on the day we got married. I didn't know how happy I would be...

We planned to spend a nice afternoon and evening together, but things just didn't quite work out as planned. Rich had 4 tests in the morning, and didn't do as well as he would have liked. He felt stressed about that, but felt better the next day when he found out that everyone else struggled with the tests too.

We went golfing in the afternoon, but it was windy, the course was crowded, and neither of us had a very good game. After that, we ate lunch at the Rumbi Grill, which really was delicious and hit the spot.

In the evening we went to the Desert Star theater and saw American Fork Idol. This was Rich's first time to that theater. They put on melodramas. It was cute, but I've seen much funnier productions there. We got home late and were pretty beat after the day, but it was nice to celebrate and spend some time together.

I love you Rich!

Big Girl Bed, Part 2

I put the crib back together today...