The Milne Family

2yrs ago...

2011-11-22T18:34:00.000-08:00

2yrs old

1yrs old

Newborn

2 years ago we welcomed our firstborn child into our family, Lucy Thair Milne. I can't believe that it has been two years already! Some day maybe I will get all of my blog posts put in a book that Lucy can read so the next little bit is a note to Lucy...

Dear Lucy,

I can't believe you are already 2yrs old! You are such a bright spot in our lives and we can't imagine not having you around. I remember the night you were born, you brought tears to our eyes (especially Papa) because you were such a beautiful baby and we could tell right away you had such a strong spirit. Some days you make me a little crazy but you always know what to do to melt my heart. You are such a strong-willed little girl and sometimes a little stubborn, you bring a smile to everyone you meet and you love to make new friends. I hope that never changes because I think it is such a wonderful quality about you. You love your mama and papa and especially you little brother Jack. He just loves to smile at you while you grab his hands so you can "dance" with him. Lucy, we can't wait to see what a wonderful woman you will become and are excited and grateful that we get to be a part of your life and watch you grow and learn. We love you so much and will love you forever and ever!

Love,

Mama and Papa

Jack's Blessing

2011-11-22T18:29:00.000-08:00

So, the first weekend in November we had Jack's blessing and it was such a wonderful day. I feel so blessed to have a worthy husband to bless our children and also to have so much family around to support us as well. It was so much fun to see everyone and to get together after for lunch and birthday cake to celebrate Lucy's 2nd birthday!

Lucy and her cousin Greta, these two are quite a pair...

Oma's Pumpkin Patch 2011

2011-10-16T20:56:00.000-07:00

So, normally every year we go to Bates Nut Farm during October for all of the festivities but we are trying to save money and it is such a long drive and with a 2wk old we decided to try something new a little closer to home, so we made our way out to Oma's Pumpkin patch in Lakeside and it was so fun!!! They have tons of stuff for kids to do and an awesome hayride which is pretty much a tour of their dairy farm. Lucy loved every minute of it and was very sad to leave. Needless to say we will be going again at Christmas and then next fall for halloween again! Here are just a few of the pics.

Jack Conrad Milne

2011-10-16T20:41:00.001-07:00

Okay so this is a little late but give me a break I just gave birth and am still adjusting to having 2 Kids instead of 1! Jack made his arrival about a week and a half early(no complaints here). I started going into labor on Thursday 9/22/11 and he was born at 5:27am on 9/23/11 weighing in at 8lbs 2oz which was a lot harder to push out than little Lucy who only weighed 7lbs 5oz. Anyway, he is a joy to have around and Lucy just loves giving him lots of hugs and kisses. She is already protective of her little brother and it is so cute! Here are some pictures taken at the hospital.

Camping at the beach!

2011-08-19T11:27:00.000-07:00

We love the beach and we love camping so what better thing to do than camp at the beach!!! Lucy is obsessed with everything to do with the beach. Sand, water, sand crabs, you name it she loves it(she gets that from Brad, especially the water part!) So, she did great and it was a fun trip we can't wait to repeat it again in September when Lucy's uncle Jacob will be home to go with us!

Blanket obsession

2011-08-19T07:32:00.000-07:00

There aren't too many words needed for this picture other than I'm sorry to say she gets this obsession from me... except I don't suck on my blankets like she does:) The other picture is her cousin Kennedy... we love her very much!

Parental Guidance Suggested

2011-07-06T20:51:00.001-07:00

So today I put Lucy down for a nap and I knew she was really tired and it was really hot in our house so I put her down in her diaper (which often occurs) and she was making noise FOREVER and would not fall asleep finally after about an hour I didn't hear any noise from her so I quietly went in and checked on her and found this...

I can't say that I blame her and it was so funny I had to get a picture! So, even though I had to change and wash all of her bedding because of course she peed everywhere it is a memory I will cherish! Oh and for those of you who haven't heard we are having a BOY!

Growing pains

2011-05-02T19:36:00.000-07:00

Well I know its been awhile since I last posted and a lot has been going on. First things first is our family of 3 is going to be a family of 4 come October. I find out in a week and a half what we are having and I can't wait! Lucy is growing up like crazy and even though I like to think of her as a baby still she is definitely into the toddler era (yikes!) She is still loveable and loves to make people laugh but man is she one stubborn little girl who is sassy as can be. She is talking more and more saying things like: Elmo, Buzz, bubbles, yellow, bath, mom, papa, grandpa and so many more words its crazy! She will pretty much repeat everything you tell her (or at least try) and her newest thing is shaking her finger at you saying "no,no,no" it is hilarious!! She is going to start nursery on Sunday and we are all excited about that! Pretty much that what has been going on the past couple of months. I will try and post when I find out the sex of the baby, so until then...

New Years Resolutions

2010-12-26T09:17:00.000-08:00

Okay so I know it is totally cliche to write new years resolutions but I like to think of it as a yearly "to do" list and it helps keep me focused so here it is...

1. care more about my appearance (as in take better care of myself)

2. Spend more time crafting/sewing and less time watching TV

2. read the Book of Mormon(again)

3. write in my journal more

4. Update Lucy's baby book more frequently

5. Cook dinner more (that's for you Brad)

6. Try to be a more attentive wife/mother

7. exercise more

8. Pay off credit cards

9. Save more money and learn to live on less so I can stay at home with Lucy

These are just a few and they are NOT listed in order of importance, they are all important. I would just like to put one more thing out there, new years resolutions give us that kick start to better ourselves but we can't forget to re-evaluate throughout the year an d put ourselves back on track(I often forget this last step). So to everyone, HAPPY NEW YEAR!! I hope that 2011 proves to be a good year for everyone and if sturggles find you, I pray that you will come through better than before.

Lucy's First Birthday

2010-11-07T09:50:00.001-08:00

I can't believe my baby is already 1!!! Seriously where does the time go? Anyway, we had a "little" party on Saturday for Lucy at the park. (I say "little" because that is what it was supposed to be, but silly me I forget that brad and I come from two large families who love to get together!)It did end up being more of a production than I anticipated but was still a nice low key afternoon at the park with a little bit of cake to celebrate. I am so grateful to have such great family an d friends around to celebrate with and Lucy loved all of her gifts! She is way too spoiled. So, we are now getting into the toddler years and I am nervous and excited all at the same time. It will continue to be a learning period for all three of us but we are anticipating a crazy awesome adventure!

Lucy and her Great Grandma Cooper

Lucy and her Great Grandma Ida

Grandpa, Uncle Tommy, Grandma and baby Olivia

Halloween 2010

2010-11-07T09:42:00.001-08:00

So, this year was Lucy's first Halloween and we dressed her up like a cute little duck.(I figure this is one of the only years she'll let me dress her) We started out with a trunk or treat at my parent's ward on Tuesday then on friday we had our ward trunk or treat and Lucy wasn't quite sure what was going on as far as the whole trick or treating goes. Saturday Brad and I, along with my cousin and her husband, went to a fun halloween party. It was definitely a nice cheap date night! On halloween we carved pumpkins at my parents and passed out candy to all the kids. I can't believe halloween has come and gone, next year we will work on Lucy actually saying "Trick or Treat!"

Bates Nut Farm 2010

2010-10-24T08:37:00.000-07:00

Uncle T trying to prove is manhood...

(Grandma, Auntie B, Lucy, Unle T and Grandpa)

So, we headed up to bates nut farm for our halloween time tradition and I just love it because it seems to really kick off the holiday season, (which is my favorite). This year was fun because I got to take Lucy with me, granted last year she came too but she was still in my womb and much easier to handle... actually Lucy was great and she loved looking at all of the animals, pumpkins, and most of all the people(she gets that people watching from her dad...). Unfortunately, Brad was not able to come with us this time so I had to take lots of pictures for him so he could see the excitement and feel like he was there. It was good times, (minus the traffic there AND back)good company and we can't wait to do it again next year!

Time Flies...

2010-09-12T14:17:00.000-07:00

Wow I can't believe we are already in September! I can't say that I'm not excited though because Fall is my favorite season of the year, I love all of the family gatherings, holidays, cooler weather, the smells and I am even more excited because this year Brad and I get to share all of that with Lucy! I can't believe how fast she is growing up! Here are just some recent pictures I have taken of our funny girl!

Utah 2010

2010-07-12T16:59:00.000-07:00

Well for the first 10 days of July Brad, Lucy and I were on an adventure in Utah at my grandparents cabins. The first cabin we went to was the DeBate cabin in Fairview Utah(asmall town outside of some other small towns in Utah...Manti area) Below are some things we got to do while we were there...

so these pictures arefrom Mt. Pleasants 4th of July parade(well 3rd of July because the 4th was on a Sunday and since we were in Utah it was only natural) It was a way small town parade but Lucy loved it...that is until she passed out in my arms from being way over tired...

This was another adventure, wouldn't you believe we actually got SNOW on the 4th of July! Brad was like a kid in a candy store and Lucy and I just wanted to cuddle inside, Lucy is cuddling with my cousin Maddie here.

Here are some misc. pics from around the cabin and a pic of my Grandma Ida and my grandpa Wayne.

These are pictures from one of our Rhino rides (for those of you who don't know what a Rhino is, it's basically an off road golf cart...tons of fun!) This the the scenery around the cabin...breathtaking. Before we left we had to make sure we left our mark...

After that cabin we headed to Provo canyon where my Cooper grandparents had a cabin and there we basically made the rounds to try and see as many people as we could incuding Brad's brother Chris and his family, whom we only get to see about once a year, they were nice enough to take us out on Utah lake in their boat which was so fun! Oh yeah and we also got to see my cousins new baby Brody too!

Overall it was a great trip and Lucy was a trooper! We were sad to be done with our vacation but we are glad to be home in San Diego in our own beds, even if it does mean we have to go back to work...Sorry for the long post:)

Camping in Julian

2010-06-18T14:25:00.000-07:00

So, over memorial day weekend my family and I went camping up in Julian and it was so much fun! (Minus the 35degree weather the first night). I was a little worried about taking Lucy tent camping mostly beacuse I was afraid that neither of us would get any sleep...but Lucy was born to camp!! She loved being outside and she slept great the whole weekend (again minus the first night, but in her defense it was freezing!) It was so nice to get out of town for the weekend and enjoy the good 'ol outdoors, and now that I know we can handle it with Lucy we are alread ready to plan the next capmout!

This is our new tent...it is definitely nice to have a little more space...

Lucy and Grandma freezing on the first day...

Lucy is ready for S'mores!!!

Lucy and Dad at Lake Cuyamaca on one of our outings

Lucy and Mom chillin by the campfire...please excuse my look, this was at the end of our trip...enough said.

Way to go Company B!!

2010-05-16T20:10:00.000-07:00

We went to the newly remodeled Mormon Battalion Center in Old Town and it was awesome!! Super family friendly and way cool!! They gave us this awesome picture and we got to pan for gold... and there is more but you should go check it out for yourselves to find out...I promise you won't be disappointed. Heck while your down there you can stop in Old town and get some fresh homemade tortillas which are soooo yummy!!!!

P.S. Ignore the fact that Lucy looks a little handicapped... we were trying to make her laugh!

Lucy's first sour candy experience

2010-04-08T19:06:00.000-07:00

So we had Lucy taste her first sour candy and luckily we caught it on video and it was HILARIOUS!!! We are probably bad parents but Lucy lived and I think she liked it what do you think...

Easter 2010

2010-04-08T19:02:00.000-07:00

Well I can't believe that Easter has already come and gone and that my baby is going to be 5 months on Saturday...it's crazy how fast time flies!!! well here are some pictures of Easter. We had a great time with family as always and Lucy was a trooper being drug from house to house.

Delayed...

2010-03-28T13:13:00.000-07:00

So here are a few oictures of Lucy's first time in her high chair and first time going to the beach and hanging with her friend Benson! I can't believe it has been almost 5 months already!!

Fun with Friends

2010-02-19T21:15:00.000-08:00

So, today was cookie making day since I signed up to make some for the young women fireside on Sunday so Jessa and Madie came over to help! Lucy loved Madie and just smiled and laughed at her all morning. It was so fun to have them over and have a little girl time. We ended up making like 5 dozen cookies (extra to keep of course!) and so all-in-all I think it was a very productive day!
*As a side note you can tell the cookies turned out delicious, like good 'Ol Carl's Jr. says, "If it doesn't get all over the place, it doesn't belong in your face!"

Where does the time go?

2010-02-11T15:04:00.001-08:00

So Lucy just turned 3 months yesterday and I can't believe how fast the time has gone...She is still such a joy to have around, even when she decides to throw a tantrum in the middle of the night. It has been so fun watching her grow and learn new things everyday...We love you Lucy!
Love, Mom and Dad

BORED.....

2010-02-10T09:57:00.000-08:00

2010 Friend Survey
Welcome to the 2010 edition of getting to know your Friends. Copy & paste, change all the answers so they apply to you, and then TAG your friends including the person who tagged you. The theory is that you will learn a lot of little things about your friends that you might not have known!

1.What time did you get up this morning?

Which time? I got up at 3:30 to feed Lucy then again at 7:30...

2.Diamonds or pearls? :

diamonds for sure

3.What was the last film you saw at the cinema?

I can't even remember...I think New Moon (yes it has been a while)

4.What is your favorite TV show?

I don't know if I have a favorite...

5.What do you usually have for breakfast?

toast

6.What is your middle name?

i don't have one.

7.What foods do you dislike?

um...I can't think of any right now

8.What is your favorite CD at the moment?

taylor swift

9.What kind of car do you drive?
toyota 4runner

10.Favorite sandwich?

Meatball

11.What characteristics do you despise?

haughtiness and arrogance stupidity

12.Favorite items of clothing?

jeans sweatshirts filp flops

13.If you could go anywhere in the world on vacation, where would you go?

Italy or Greece

14.Favorite brand of clothing?

I really like H&M

15. Where would you retire to?

a warm place.

16.What was your most memorable birthday?

I think I would hav to say either 16 or 19

17.Favorite sport to watch?

basketball (TV)
Baseball (live)

18.Furthest place you are sending this?

Im not sure...

19.Person you expect to send it back first?

no one.

20.When is your birthday?

August 6th

21.Are you a morning person or a night person?

Mornings...I can't stay awake long enough at night to be a night person

22.What is your shoe size?

8 (it was size 7 about 9 months ago...thanks a lot Lucy)

23.Pets?

cat...Tiger Lily

24.Any new and exciting news you 'd like to share with us?

Lucy is 3 months old today!!!

25.What did you want to be when you were little?

Vet

26.How are you today?

tired but pretty good

27.What is your favorite candy?

reses peanut butter cups

28.What is your favorite flower?

any flower

29.What is a day on the calendar you are looking forward to?

I don't really have one right now...

30.What's your full name?

Allison Milne

31.What are you listening to right now?

the Ladies at work

32.What was the last thing you ate?

lime tortilla chips

33.Do you wish on stars?

not really

34.If you were a crayon, what color would you be?

yellow

35.How is the weather right now?

colder but sunny

36. What is your natural hair color?

brown

37.Favorite soft drink?

mountain Dew

38.Favorite restaurant?

BBQ pit...or Del Taco (at least right now)

39.Favorite color of nail polish?

pink

40.What was your favorite toy as a child?

TMNT Pizza Shooter

41.Summer or winter?

summer

42.Hugs or kisses

hugs

43.Chocolate or Vanilla?

chocolate.

44.Coffee or tea?
neither

45.Do you want your friends to tell you when they complete this?

I don't care

46.When was the last time you cried?

Yesterday...Im such a baby

47.What is under your bed?

nothing we don't have a bed frame so the mattress is directly on the floor

48.What did you do last night?

watched tv and cuddled with Lucy

49.What are you afraid of?

spiders and getting into a car accident

50.Salty or sweet

sweet

51.How many keys on your key ring?

5

52.How many years at your current job?

9 months

53.Favorite day of the week?

saturday

54.How many towns have you lived in?

3

55.Do you make friends easily?

sometimes...

56.How many people will you tag?

nobody

2 Months Already?!?!?!

2010-01-10T22:11:00.000-08:00

How could you not love this face...Happy 2 month birthday Lucy, we love you very much!!

Resolution Run 2010

2010-01-10T22:04:00.000-08:00

So this past Saturday Brad and some other members of my family ran the Resolution Run 15k 2010. For those of you who don't know how far a 15k is, it's about 9.32 miles and they ran it down at Mission Bay and around Fiesta Island. I just have to say that Brad was dreading this run because he didn't really get a chance to train but he did such an awesome job and not only did he finish the race but he ran the whole time and finished in about 1hr and 45min! that is pretty good if you ask me and Lucy and I were there cheering him on the whole way, way to go honey we are so proud!!

Merry Christmas

2009-12-12T15:36:00.000-08:00

Well I can't believe that it is Christmastime again! Crazy how time flies...this time last year it was Brad and my first Christmas together as a newly married couple and this year we are blessed to have a growing family with Lucy here to celebrate with us! It has been one crazy year but an awesome one. We are sending out real Christmas cards but My cousin Katie's father in-law comes to san diego to be "Santa" every year so we went to say Hi to him this year and he gave Lucy a free picture of him...he is such a sweet man and it was so cute seeing him hold Lucy. well I am sure I could say more but I will save it for later, Merry Christmas everyone!!

Introducing Lucy Thair Milne

2009-11-15T10:22:00.000-08:00

Well she finally made it!! Little Lucy made her debut on 11/10/09 at 8:43pm weighing 7lbs 5oz and 20.5 in long. She is just beautiful and we love her very much and we feel so bleesed and honored to be her parents. Here are a couple pictures for now and there will definitely be more to come!

Lucy Update

2009-10-16T13:52:00.001-07:00

Okay everyone...So, here is a little update with what is going on with Lucy. about a month ago I was diagnosed with Gestational diabetes which mean that I am not producing enough insulin to keep up with my blood sugars, therefore, the extra blood sugars go straight to Lucy and she stores them as fat. Doctors test all pregnant women because if you do in fact have it they want to monitor you baby more closely to make sure the baby does not get too big and that everything is going well. So I had a sonogram done yesterday to check her size because I am just shy of 37 weeks. The docs like to check the babies proportions because it is common for babies with diabetic moms to have a bigger stomach and they don't want you to risk trying to push the baby out and have her stomach get caught on the pubic bone. So, I went to the doctor today and Lucy is already about 7lbs. 8oz. and the doctor said her proportions look good she is just a big baby all around (lucky me...) I also had a Stress test done today which measures Lucy's Heart rate to make sure she isn't under any kind of stress, she rocked the test and the nurse said everything looked really good. They measured my cervix and as of right now I am dilated to a 1 and 50% effaced, (which means I am going to have a baby in the next few weeks, I already knew that) but it was nice to hear that the painful contractions that I have been having are actually doing something, so it is not in vain. I asked my doctor why my contractions were already painful and she said it was because of Lucy's size. So, there is definitely no doubt in my mind that I will be having an epidural( as long as the docs say its okay). So, my due date is still the 10th of November and my doc said she won't let me go over, even by a day, but that she think I might not make it to my due date anyway. SO, I would be okay if she came early because I am so excited to meet her and I am so done being pregnant. Sorry this was kind of long and boring but hopefully our next Lucy update will be announcing her birth(keep your fingers crossed!) Oh and here is a picture of her cute little face...

Nates Butt Farm

2009-10-12T19:00:00.001-07:00

So this past Saturday Brad, my parents and I all went to Nates Butt Farm (or Bates nut farm for those of you not from San Diego) It is a tradition that my family and I have been doing since I was little and Brad and I have carried on into our married life. We decided to go last minute becuase we don't know how much time before Lucy comes and we didn't want to miss it! It was a beautiful day and was super fun to walk around and see all of the fun booths set up. They even had some sugar free candy just for me...yay! (although the real stuff looked way better.) So, I would totally recommend going, especially if you have kids, it is a nice outing and fun to see all of the fall spirit and of course pick out your own pumpkin!

Lucy Thair

2009-07-15T16:08:00.000-07:00

Well everyone here she is in all her glory! Here are two pictures from the sonogram, one is her sucking her thumb (which of course I think is precious) and the other is of her girly parts (a special thanks goes out to the radiologist for pointing them out...I was a little lost) She is moving all the time and we just love seeing her move and grow! I will update more as time goes on!

Its a girl!!

2009-07-05T17:41:00.000-07:00

Okay so I know that most of you have already heard but we just found out on Wednesday that we are in fact having a little girl! We are so excited!(and by we I mean I am excited and Brad is not sure what he is going to do with 2 girls around...) We have picked a name already and it is Lucy Thair Milne(Thair is his grandma's name). It is so nice to call her something other than baby or "it". So, I do have sonogram pictures but I am still trying to figure out how to scan them in but in one of the pictures she is pretty much sucking her thumb and it is the cutest thing ever! Anyway, I just thought I would let you all know!

Sonic is Here!

2009-04-09T08:07:00.001-07:00

So Sonic is finally here in good ol' Santee and so loast night Brad and I and Ben and Jessa decided it would be a good idea to go for dinner and bask in the ambiance that is Sonic. Well we arrived around 7:30 and drove up and past sonic to wait in the line that took up almost the whole dirt road behind it. Well about an hour later we finally got to park our car in the "Stall" and we figured since we were here we may as well take our time so we ordered A LOT of food and of course dessert and finally around 10:oopm we arrived back at Ben and Jessa's. Moral of the story: If you plan to go to Sonic within the next few days/weeks go with a group of friends so that the wait goes by a little faster and you can all joke about how you waited in line for and hour to buy "fast" food. All-in-all it was a BLAST and we will definitely go back it was yummy!

It's baby time!

2009-03-09T08:13:00.000-07:00

So, for those of you who haven't heard yet the rumors are true and I am Pregnant finally! I am due on November 10th so I still have a long way to go but we are both very excited and we will keep you updated as things come along, until then...cya

Hi my name is Allie and I have an addiction...

2009-02-26T13:30:00.000-08:00

Needless to say, my addiction is time wasting. I always complain about never having time to do anything but when I step back and write down all of the things that are taking up my time, only half of them are productive. I am addicted to pointless TV shows, I will find any excuse to avoid homework(and I wonder why I am struggling?) and I am so easily distracted by almost anything. SO, I just added another new years resolution(even though it's already February, hows that for procrastination?)and that is to be better at time management and focusing on things that are meaningful and productive instead of watching TV or browsing the Internet for the sake of browsing. Its going to be tough and since my husband always tells me I am a wimp I am up to the challenge of proving hm wrong...WHO'S WITH ME! (okay I don't blame you if you are thinking Heck no she's crazy) Well here is to becoming superwoman, or at least a better version of me...lets not aim too high ;)

Touching story...

2009-02-12T13:20:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I got this email today and I don't normally like chain letters but his one just touched my heart and I wanted to share it with everyone...
Two Choices

What would you do? You make the choice. Don't look for a punch line, there isn't one. Read it anyway. My question is: Would you have made the same choice?

At a fundraising dinner for a school that serves learning-disabled children, the father of one of the students delivered a speech that would never be forgotten by all who attended. After extolling the school and its dedicated staff, he offered a question: 'When not interfered with by outside influences, everything nature does is done with perfection. Yet my son, Shay, cannot learn things as other children do. He cannot understand things as other children do. Where is the natural order of things in my son?'

The audience was stilled by the query.

The father continued. 'I believe that when a child like Shay, physically and mentally handicapped comes into the world, an opportunity to realize true human nature presents itself, and it comes in the way other people treat that child.'

Then he told the following story:

Shay and his father had walked past a park where some boys Shay knew were playing baseball. Shay asked, 'Do you think they'll let me play?' Shay's father knew that most of the boys would not want someone like Shay on their team, but the father also understood that if his son were allowed to play, it would give him a much-needed sense of belonging and some confidence to be accepted by others in spite of his handicaps.

Shay's father approached one of the boys on the field and asked (not expecting much) if Shay could play. The boy looked around for guidance and said, 'We're losing by six runs and the game is in the eighth inning. I guess he can be on our team and we'll try to put him in to bat in the ninth inning.'

Shay struggled over to the team's bench and, with a broad smile, put on a team shirt. His Father watched with a small tear in his eye and warmth in his heart. The boys sa w the father's joy at his son being accepted. In the bottom of the eighth inning, Shay's team scored a few runs but was still behind by three. In the top of the ninth inning, Shay put on a glove and played in the right field. Even though no hits came his way, he was obviously ecstatic just to be in the game and on the field, grinning from ear to ear as his father waved to him from the stands. In the bottom of the ninth inning, Shay's team scored again. Now, with two outs and the bases loaded, the potential winning run was on base and Shay was scheduled to be next at bat.

At this juncture, do they let Shay bat and give away their chance to win the game? Surprisingly, Shay was given the bat. Everyone knew that a hit was all but impossible because Shay didn't even know how to hold the bat properly, much less connect with the ball.

However, as Shay stepped up to the plate, the pitcher, recognizing that the other team was putting winning aside for this moment in Shay's l ife, moved in a few steps to lob the ball in softly so Shay could at least make contact. The first pitch came and Shay swung clumsily and missed. The pitcher again took a few steps forward to toss the ball softly towards Shay. As the pitch came in, Shay swung at the ball and hit a slow ground ball right back to the pitcher.

The game would now be over. The pitcher picked up the soft grounder and could have easily thrown the ball to the first baseman. Shay would have been out and that would have been the end of the game.

Instead, the pitcher threw the ball right over the first baseman's head, out of reach of all team mates. Everyone from the stands and both teams started yelling, 'Shay, run to first! Run to first!' Never in his life had Shay ever run that far, but he made it to first base. He scampered down the baseline, wide-eyed and startled.

Everyone yelled, 'Run to second, run to second!' Catching his breath, Shay awkwardly ran towards second, gleaming an d struggling to make it to the base. By the time Shay rounded towards second base, the right fielder had the ball ... the smallest guy on their team who now had his first chance to be the hero for his team. He could have thrown the ball to the second-baseman for the tag, but he understood the pitcher's intentions so he, too, intentionally threw the ball high and far over the third-baseman's head. Shay ran toward third base deliriously as the runners ahead of him circled the bases toward home.

All were screaming, 'Shay, Shay, Shay, all the Way Shay'

Shay reached third base because the opposing shortstop ran to help him by turning him in the direction of third base, and shouted, 'Run to third! Shay, run to third!'

As Shay rounded third, the boys from both teams, and the spectators, were on their feet screaming, 'Shay, run home! Run home!' Shay ran to home, stepped on the plate, and was cheered as the hero who hit the grand slam and won the game for his team.
'That day', said the father softly with tears now rolling down his face, 'the boys from both teams helped bring a piece of true love and humanity into this world'.

Shay didn't make it to another summer. He died that winter, having never forgotten being the hero and making his father so happy, and coming home and seeing his Mother tearfully embrace her little hero of the day!

AND NOW A LITTLE FOOTNOTE TO THIS STORY: We all send thousands of jokes through the e-mail without a second thought, but when it comes to sending messages about life choices, people hesitate. The crude, vulgar, and often obscene pass freely through cyberspace, but public discussion about decency is too often suppressed in our schools and workplaces.

If you're thinking about forwarding this message, chances are that you're probably sorting out the people in your address book who aren't the 'appropriate' ones to receive this type of message. Well, the person who sent you this believes t hat we all can make a difference. We all have thousands of opportunities every single day to help realize the 'natural order of things.' So many seemingly trivial interactions between two people present us with a choice: Do we pass along a little spark of love and humanity or do we pass up those opportunities and leave the world a little bit colder in the process?

A wise man once said every society is judged by how it treats it's least fortunate amongst them.

New Home

2009-01-24T13:17:00.001-08:00

Well it's official...we've met with a Realtor and were are on the hunt for a house of our very own and we can't wait to find one. We hope we can stay nearby everyone here in San Diego but we are keeping an open mind...So, if you guys see anything interesting let us know!

2009-01-16T13:34:00.001-08:00

To the end of a great year and the begining of another one

2009-01-01T09:35:00.000-08:00

So, 2008 turned out to be a pretty fantastic year. Of course it had its ups and downs but I am trying to learn to focus more on the ups. We have had many wonderful times with friends and family so I thought since I haven't been very good about keeping up with this thing I would post a few pictures of what Brad and I have been up to this past year...

Thanks everyone for the good times lets keep rockin' in 2009!

I finally broke down...

2008-10-13T12:07:00.000-07:00

So, I've been fighting starting a blog because frankly I thought it was a waste of time but since I have a job where I have time to waste I thought why not, what the heck? So, as far as what has been going on...well Brad and I pretty much just work and go to school. I am taking 9 credits split between Grossmont and online at BYU-Idaho and brad is taking a class for his contractor's license so we pretty much don't see each other until the weekend but its only a temporary so what can you do? So, I guess that's all for now...until next time, adios!