Chris and Courtney's Blog

This little man

2011-11-18T15:14:00.000-08:00

This little man is getting so big, it makes me so sad sometimes when I really think about it. I don't know where the time has gone. When did he transition from baby to toddler? I don't know when It happened but it did! He is my buddy and I love it, we do everything together. He might be the busiest kid I know he loves to play and plays hard, we sure love him!

I saw this great quote the other day that I just love, it a good reminder to me when I start stressing that the house is a mess and dishes are all piling up and laundry that could go on for days.... that I just need to enjoy the way things are right now, just do what I can and not worry about the rest. Someday I will have all the time in the world to clean until my hearts content.

" If you are in the process of raising children, be aware that the tiny fingerprints that show up on almost every newly cleaned surface, the toys scattered about the house, the piles and piles of laundry to be tackled will disappear all too soon and that you will - to your surprise - miss them profoundly"

President Thomas S. Monson

what a wise man!

Caden's 1st Birthday Party

2011-04-18T11:51:00.000-07:00

on Feburary 9th we celebrated Caden's first birthday I still can't believe I have a 1 year old, It seems like the second he turned 1 he was no longer a baby. I sometimes I just want to freeze time and keep him the way he is forever. He is such a joy and brings the sweetest spirit into our home. We had two birthdays for him, the first was in Utah and we went to Chuck E. Cheese's with grandma Cheryl and grandpa Mike and all our Utah friends and family. The following week we had his party in Dana Point with all our California family and friends. Here are some of the pictures that Whitney took luckily she had her camera, I forgot mine. What kind of mother forgets the camera on her childs 1st birthday? ME I was so mad.. Birthday parties are stressful to plan so I had a good excuse. Thanks for saving the day Whit!

This lovely sign was made by Whitney..

And this Dump truck cake I made.. I dusted off my old cake decorating skills!

Yummy..

Chris made this video of Caden at 14 months, I absolutely love having these video's of Caden.

Chris is so amazing a filming and editing these!

Florida -Tallahassee

2011-03-03T23:44:00.000-08:00

In January, we went on a trip Florida to visit the area where Chris served his mission. We went with his mom and Mike and visited the Mission office and were able to meet the current Mission President. They were nice enough to invite us all back to the Mission Home for their lunch break and we were able to tour the house. The house was straight out of Sweet Home Alabama and was a classic Southern Mansion. I'm mad I didn't get a picture of it. It was so fun to be with Chris as he reminisced of old times.

We went to Destin which is a little beach town that he served in. The sand was so white and the water was so clear and beautiful. We also visited a near by town Niceville and met a family there that he taught and another family he was close with there in the ward.

We visited the air force base

Gosh I just love his little face!

We also went visited Mobile and Eufaula Alabama where he served for a while and met a family and the bishop in the ward. We were able to eat at Chris's favorite BBQ restaurant in town, Phil's BBQ "The Best Butts in Alabama." We got to meet some really amazing people that he was close with and I loved that. These families were so nice and welcoming to us. It was a great experience for us and we loved being able to spend so much time with Chris' mom and Mike. It was a great trip! I love that my husband served an honorable mission and had such an impact in others lives. It has been almost 10 years since he was on his mission and I was amazed at all the families that he kept in contact with through out all these years. Seeing him with the people we visited felt like it was just yesterday he was with them on his mission. It really was amazing!

9 months

2010-11-17T11:52:00.000-08:00

I can't believe my baby is 9 months already, he has been here as long as it took him to grow in my belly! He has grown and changed so much since he was born it really is crazy. I love each and every stage that babies go through. Now is especially fun that he is crawling because we play games during the day and he loves to be chased around the house. He is starting to really interact a lot more and we just love him to pieces!

9 Months

* he is 29 inches in length

* he weighs 22.11 pounds ( I swear I don't over feed my child..)

* he is crawling and pulling him self up on everything he can grab including my legs

* he walks along things as long as he is holding on to something

* he started eating rotisserie chicken, his new favorite food

* loves scrambled eggs

* nurses now just 3 times a day

* loves playing with his toys

* is back to sleeping like a champ again!! anywhere from 10 to 12 hours

* goes right to sleep when we lay him down for bed and naps

* still no teeth yet hopefully soon!

* says mama and dada

* gives kisses (this is my favorite he leans in with his mouth open)

Santa Barbara 1/2 Marathon

2010-11-09T12:53:00.000-08:00

Three months after Caden was born I wanted to make it a goal to train for a Half Marathon mostly because I knew it would motivate me to get back in good shape and I like running and have always wanted to do one. The first time I went for a run after Caden was born I barely ran a mile and thought I was going to pass out. But after months and months of training and at times asking myself why I decided to get myself into this. I was able to run the whole 13.1 miles except for a huge hill at mile 10 that I walked up, other then that we ran the rest of the way. I was pretty proud of myself, Melissa and Natalie for accomplishing this goal!

ALOHA.... Kauai

2010-11-04T10:06:00.000-07:00

In the Beginning of October, we went to Hawaii with Chris's dad, Adam, Melissa, and Merrick. Caden had his first plane ride, I was a little nervous about how he would do, but he ended up doing great we just kept him occupied with snacks and toys.

Caden loved his cousin Merrick he just thought he was the coolest.

Caden loves to give kisses now. When he is ready for one he leans in with his mouth wide open saying aawwww it is the cutest thing ever and I can't get enough of them.

We were able to get away from the kids and do an ATV excursion. They show you all where Jurassic Park was filmed and take you to ropes swings and waterfalls it was so fun! After, we stopped off at this place where you can jump off right in front of the waterfall. It doesn't look that high up from the picture, but it was probably close to 20 ft. I have never jumped off anything that high before. It was awesome we had so much fun.

Caden was a total water baby, loved being in the pool and ocean!

This was my first time in Hawaii and I loved it. We all had such a good time and Caden was sad to leave Merrick he loved having someone to look at and play with everyday.

Our Summer...

2010-09-25T00:51:00.000-07:00

Back in June we went up to Indio for the weekend with friends. The weather was nice, we didn't have any days that were over 100 degrees. We were able to get there 4 bedroom penthouse with a jacuzzi on the deck and jacuzzi bathtubs in the rooms. We did a lot of laying out by the pool and floating down the lazy river.

Caden's first time in a floaty..

Caden and Dylan

I came down to Murrieta and met up for lunch with some friends from highschool. It was so fun to see everyone and there cute kids and soon to be babies. I can't believe its been 6 years since we were all in highschool together.

Over 4th of July weekend we headed down to Dana Point and had some friends over for a BBQ and watched Fireworks. (I'm so mad that I didn't get any other pictures then this...)

The end of July Melissa, Jessica, Carly and I decided we needed and break from babies, diapers, crying/tantrums and let our lovely husbands take over for at day. We went to downtown San Diego and stayed at the fun and modern hotel Solamar in the Gas lamp district. At night we ate at this Yummy Italian restaurant and shared a few different pasta dishes. ( this picture cracks me up I never noticed the lurks we had in the background.)

Ice cream at Ghirardelli's!

The next morning we ate at the Richard Walkers pancake house and this apple pancake was amazing!!!

We laid out by the pool, it is so nice to just relax and not have worry about any babies. I think we defiantly should make this a yearly trip.

In August we had a family reunion and stayed in Aliso Viejo at the Renaissance Club Sport

The hotel had a gym with different workout classes every hour we all tried to take full advantage of the abs, kickboxing and booty workouts they had. We also went to a RUSH concert and I think the only song I had ever heard was Tom Sawyer, but it was still awesome.

While we were there we made hygiene kits and school kits for the Children's Hungry Fund charity and Chris made this lovely video of the family.

He is just so cute!

Caden 5 1/2 Months Video

2010-07-29T09:43:00.000-07:00

Chris getting video happy...

Pismo Beach Anniversary weekend!

2010-07-19T10:40:00.000-07:00

Last weekend was our 2 year anniversary the very best two years of my life thanks to Chris, I am a very lucky girl! We went up to Pismo Beach for the weekend enjoyed the beach, walks, toured Hearst Castle and ate lots of yummy food.

Right after we took this picture this middle eastern family all wanted to take a picture of Caden too! I was a little creeped out by it, and hesitantly said yes. After he took it he looked at his camera and said White baby showing it to his family. RANDOM?!

The Beaches up north are so beautiful, we stopped right off the highway at little look out point. The squirrels we so friendly and fat, I think people just feed these little guys all day.

Later that day we went for a walk around the town and saw this little stand of nastiness chocolate covered earth worms, crickets and scorpions with there stingers cut off BLAH so gross! I don't know who would eat those. I tried to buy some of the chocolate covered worms because they really did look like candy, the other ones you could tell were little critters. I wanted to play pranks but Chris wouldn't let me. =(

These were the only pictures of Chris I was able to get all weekend, he was having fun with our new camera.

The view from our room.. so pretty!

5 months

2010-07-08T13:38:00.000-07:00

 I've been told by several people that I'm pretty much the worlds worst blogger!! So here is my attempt to be better we'll see how long it last =)

5 MONTHS

I can't even believe Caden is already 5 months it's crazy. The last time we had him weighed was two weeks ago, and he was 17.10 oz 90th percentile and height was 26 in. 75th percentile so he is wider then he is tall. =) He is such a happy baby and so quick to smile I love that about him.

*Still a great sleeper

* Starting to get ticklish

* Will laugh so hard when we make faces or play games with him

* Still nursing every 3 hours during the day

* Still only rolls from his stomach to back

* Drools and eats his fist like a mad man I keep thinking I am going to feel a tooth but nothing yet.

* Likes to be in the stroller while I jog in the mornings

* Loves bath time/ jacuzzi with Dad

* Lights up when Chris walks in he knows exactly who it is

Caden overload

2010-04-20T21:43:00.000-07:00

trying on Mommy's hats

such a CHUNK!

(I love it)

he is starting to discover his hands and loves to put them in his mouth

cute Hurley onesies compliments of Whitney..

Caden's 1st Jacuzzi

loving the water

I love kissing those luscious lips!

Easter weekend

2010-04-06T13:27:00.000-07:00

The cousins

On Saturday, Chris and I met Melissa and Merrick at the beach. It was fun but I think we were all a little cold. I am a little anxious for nice beach weather to start!

On Sunday, we went to my family's house for dinner. It was fun hanging out with family, and Caden had two fun little Easter baskets to open from both Grandma's. Later that day we came home, relaxed, and watched conference.

My cute little bunny

I cant believe today he is already 8 weeks old! These are his 6 week check up measurements. We brought him into the doctors last week, because he either had a little eye infection or poked himself pretty good in the eye. He had already gained another pound in a little over a week making him 12.6 lbs... such a little chunker.

weight 11.6 lbs 75th percentile

length 22 1/2 in 50th percentile

He loves tummy time
Loves to smile at his daddy when he comes home from work
Rolls over from his tummy to his back
Loves to eat
Starting to sleep almost 8 hrs through the night (loving this!)
His happiest time is right after he eats and loves to stare and coo at mommy
Loves his Binky he will not go to sleep w/out it
Loves to be snuggled
Starting to be able to stand up when we hold him
Is the best and cheapest entertainment for mommy and daddy

Should have just stayed home...

2010-03-28T22:50:00.000-07:00

Since Caden has been born, I have dreaded going to the grocery store... I used to love it, but that was before it took me like an hour and a half to leave the house. Friday night Chris was home so I left Caden with Daddy to have some bonding time and decided to run out really quick to pick up a few things we needed. After doing all my shopping, I walked out to the parking lot and unloaded all my groceries in the trunk. I put the cart up onto the curb and got in the car and drove home.

I pulled in the driveway and looked to my side and realized my purse was GONE! So i jumped out of the car to see if maybe I left it in the trunk with the groceries... ( Ive done this many times ) When I realized it wasn't there, I raced back to the store as fast as I possibly could and my cart was still in the same spot up on the curb... with NO purse inside.... I was seriously gone for maybe 3 minutes. I went back inside and asked the manager if any one turned in my purse and left my number with them and bla bla bla. I noticed this creepy van parked next to me that wasn't there just 3 min before so I was trying to wait to see if they saw anything. Meanwhile, I'm in the parking lot like a mad lady knocking on peoples windows, asking them if they saw anything. I don't know what was going on but no one seemed to speak English.

I finally drove home and we started canceling our debit cards. I then started remembering everything that I had in there: my debit cards and all my gift cards from Christmas and my birthday that I had been saving. I probably had 7 different gift cards in there along with my Iphone with a picture of my baby on it!! I hope who ever took my purse feels really bad... Mean mean person!!

1 month

2010-03-10T23:15:00.000-08:00

Loves his swing

1st day of church

we love our little man!!

Caden Christopher Marquis

2010-02-14T22:56:00.000-08:00

HE'S HERE!! Our precious little baby finally decided to make his grand appearance on February 9th 2010 at 9:02am weighing 7lbs 10oz and 20 inches long. We are both healthy and doing great. I can not begin to describe the love we have for him already he is the most precious gift we have ever been given. What a miracle it is, you really have no idea how much you are going to love your child until they are here. I feel so blessed this Valentines Day to have a healthy baby and such an amazing husband I love them both so much.

Leaving the hospital

Coming home for the first time

My boys

Grandma and Grandpa

Great Grandparents

Grandma Cheryl

Grandpa Dale

More pictures to come soon!

The San Diego Zoo / Pumpkin carving

2009-11-19T21:19:00.001-08:00

A COUPLE WEEKS AGO CHRIS AND I WENT TO THE SAN DIEGO ZOO FOR THE DAY. THIS LITTLE MERCAT WAS MY FAVORITE THEY JUST WALK RIGHT UP TO YOU AND STARE, I WANTED TO TAKE HIM HOME. CHRIS WON'T LET ME HAVE A LITTLE FURY FRIEND =( AND HAD FORBID ME TO WALK INTO ANY PET STORE CAUSE I ALWAYS WALK OUT BEGGING HIM TO LET ME TAKE A LITTLE FRIEND HOME. WHAT A MEAN MAN HE IS!!

ALL THE ANIMALS AT THE ZOO WERE OUT AND ABOUT IT WAS SO COOL TO SEE!!

GROSS THIS MONKEY WAS GOING TO THE BATHROOM

I CAN NEVER GO WITHOUT CARVING PUMPKINS! THESE ARE THE LOVELY PUMPKINS WE CARVED THIS YEAR CHRIS DID A HAPPY FACE AND I DID A MONSTER...

Blog Slacker!!!

2009-10-27T21:51:00.000-07:00

These last couple months have been crazy first moving all of our stuff from Newport to Laguna Niguel not a far move but it still takes forever to pack then unpack which we are still doing UGHH! then my huge test out for work.. Im finally done with bringing in my models yes!! and on top of all that being pregnant most everyone knows this by now. Here are some pictures of our little boy that is growing in my belly!!

The OC smorgasborg fair....

2009-07-19T22:52:00.000-07:00

All of his winnings!

Chris looks way too excited

The cow that sprayed chris with his snot!
we had to take a picture with him after that.

this guy was huge!

creepy couple..

3d glasses

fried foods!

This weekend Cardon and Whitney came up to visit! We went to the OC county fair and had so much fun eating a smorgasborg of different fried delights as they call it... from fried snickers, twinkies, white castle cheeseburgers that the boys ate and wanted to throw it up after.. so classic. We saw a 3d weird Al Yankovic show and lots of fun farm animals. Chris was getting super curious on one of the cows and was getting up close and personal with it. All of a sudden, the cow started moving his head towards Chris's and then sneezed all over him. It was hilarious. His shirt and hair was covered with this gross white cow snot. We could not believe it!!!! Later Chris played a couple of basketball games and seriously won every game the first time he played it. He pretty much was the Kobe Bryant of the OC fair.=)

Anniversary weekend

2009-07-19T22:27:00.000-07:00

My Handsome husband!

Last weekend Chris and I celebrated our 1 year anniversary. We headed up to Mammoth for a quick weekend. We went stream and lake fishing. My family came up on Sunday and met us out on the lake to go fishing. It was a fun weekend but a long way to go for such a short time. Next time we will plan on staying longer.

A fun day in L.A.

2009-06-03T22:46:00.000-07:00

Today I went up Valencia to visit Whitney since she's here for the summer now yay! We came down to LA to hang out with Melissa and little Merrick. We all went down to the Grove and decided to go shopping and have lunch at the farmers market YUM! It was a lot of fun even though it was rainy all day and the grove is an outdoor mall! Merrick was such a good boy all day as we walked around, what a little trooper. Bath and body works is having there semi annual sales right now, so I bought a bunch of smell good stuff. I just love that store and can't help not buying something even though i probably have enough bath, shower, and lotions to last me and my family a lifetime. =)

On the way home we passed this house with about 20 little naked man statues in the front lawn. ARE YOU KIDDING ME RIGHT NOW! I made Whitney whip out the camera as fast as she could and took a picture of it. I would love to meet the person that lives there... it was so classic.

Happy 23rd Birthday Courtney - 23 Reasons I Love Her

2009-03-09T12:52:00.000-07:00

Having the date be March 9, 2009, which is 23 years after the Heavens were so generous to permit the birth of my lovely wife to this earth so that I could be so lucky to meet her 21 years later and start in the journey that has been the best experience in my life, I thought I would take this time and "sneakily" hack into what has mostly become her blog of us and tell the world 23 of the top reasons I love being married to my Courtney:

1. Loyal Love-I have never met a person that is so loving and offers that love at all times. It may have taken some time for me to inherit that love, but now that it's here, I am amazed of how much I can be loved despite all my weaknesses and 'isms I have. It makes a marriage so much easier to have that love as our foundation.

2. Sexiness- She caught my eye from the first time I met her. It doesn't take a genius to recognize her sexiness and although it's not everything to attraction, I am sure grateful that every time I see my wife, I find her more attractive and sexy. Whether it's here hypnotizing blue eyes or her squinty eyes when she smiles, I always am taken back by how cute my wife is. How did I get so lucky?

3. Spiritual Strength- When I first was introduced to Courtney, her best friend Whitney told me her conversion story and all the obstacles she overcame in joining the LDS church. After some of our early "deep" conversations Courtney and I had when we were dating, I was able to see her strong spiritual strength she possessed and it was a big example to me. Her testimony is still an example to me and I am so grateful to have a wife that builds me up spiritually.

4. Fun Loving- Anyone who knows Courtney knows of her passion of having fun. Whether that's pranking you while you sleep, going to Disneyland, or rocking out to her ghetto rap, she always finds places to have fun.

5. Hard Working- Many of you read Courtney's recent post about her job and the intense program she's involved in. Not only that, she teaches Primary at church, works out, and is always finding time to cut friends hair on the side. Even after exhausting evenings she gets up everyday and does it all over again. Wow.

6. Non-judgemental- It is not in Courtney's character to judge others, which is something I have always loved about her. Having a wide range of friends that live different lifestyles, it is great having a wife that can see the good in all of them and not judge. I have always loved that about her.

7. Caring- Being the last child, I was kind of "babied" growing up, so Courtney has big shoes to fill and she fills them. Whenever, I'm sick or not feeling well, she is always so quick to jump to my aide and help me get better.

8. Smart- Courtney knows so much of so many random things. Maybe it's her google skills, but she usually has an answer for everything. She even knew that the honey mustard dressing at quiznos was not fat free after I was convinced it was (thanks to Nick).

9. Honest- Courtney is brutally honest, even when she knows it may not be what I want to hear. I love knowing that I have a wife that I can trust 100% and that there is never worries or doubt about her compromising that. Her honesty helps me want to be 100% honest with her, which helps keep big problems out of our marriage.

10. Sociable- I can bring Courtney anywhere and she usually leaves with several new friends. It's so nice having a wife that hang with the guys, or go to a place where she's never met anyone and is talking with everyone within minutes. She always has fun things to talk about.

(Due to not making this post an absolute book, the remaining 13 traits will not have the description, but for those who know her probably know it anyway!)

11. Nurturing

12. Forgiving

13. Curious (Curious George)

14. Likes the same foods as me

15. Athletic

16. Amazing Family

17. Ability to make a negative a positive

18. Always wanting to do new adventures

19. Thoughtful

20. Very artistic and crafty

21. Humble and Grateful

22. Respectful and courteous

23. All the traits I could wish in a wife

So these are just a few of traits of Courtney that make me lucky to be her husband. I wish her the happiest 23rd birthday and I am so excited to spend so many more until we are old, shriveled and pooping our pants together in wheelchairs. I love you Courtney, Happy Birthday.

I FEEL LIKE I LIVE THERE.......

2009-01-29T21:37:00.000-08:00

Toni & Guy (creators of Bed Head, Cat Walk, S Factor, Rock-aholic products) is a unique salon industry with over 400 salons world wide with most of their locations in regions such as Asia, Australia and all over Europe. They have been in business for over 40 years and the most unique thing about them is that all their stylists have to go through the exact same extensive training program to work there, so every Toni & Guy you visit they will all have the exact same Philosophies and Techniques taught world wide.

Lately I have been feeling like I live breathe and sleep Toni&Guy. I started working here in August they have a year long strenuous assisting program unlike any other salons. There are 3 phases in the program: first B1, which you strictly are a salon assistant until you finish completing their first phase of their continued education program which you have to bring a model every week to perform certain techniques which they grade you on. Either you pass or you fail and if you fail, you have to find another model and perform the technique again... Yes it sucks. I have had this experience once or twice... But they will fail you for the dumbest things, even if everything looks perfect, if they find the smallest hair not colored, you fail. It's so stressful... it has to be absolutely perfect which is good I guess, because in the end hopefully it will mold me into a fantastic colorist which is what I hope to become!

Toni & Guy is departmentalized, which means you either cut or color. You have to choose only one specialization, so you become really skilled and trained in one area. So if you have your hair colored by me, you will go see someone else for the haircut.

The Second phase is B2, which is where I am now, is where you are on the floor taking clients 2 days a week and the rest of the week assisting until you finish their 2nd part of the program, still bringing models every week. I seriously can't wait to be done with assisting, so I have been trying to finish the weekly models faster by doing two models a week instead of one. I'll be done with B2 in 2 more weeks!!!! and NO MORE ASSISTING!!!

The Third phase is Intermediate, in which you are on the floor every day taking clients but you still have to do the weekly models until you finish the techniques required. Then, I'll do one more final test out, which you do 5 models with different assigned techniques and present them in one night with a themed runway show coordinated with clothes, makeup, music and the whole bit. That will be my stress week for sure! poor poor Chris =) Then, if you pass that, its finally done and no more bringing in models every week and stressing about who to find.

I will have finished B2 eight weeks ahead of schedule, I don't even know how on earth I did that. Well actually I do.... MY HUSBAND is amazing and helps me so much, he has helped me find models by walking around the malls with me, put up postings on criagslist, and actually has been a model himself for some sexy man lights! He is so supportive of me and helps me out when I start getting overwhelmed about work. I really would never been able to do it without him, he's the best husband in my book!

6 months down eternity to go!!!

2009-01-11T17:38:00.000-08:00

To celebrate our 6 months marriage! we grabbed sandwiches from this yummy place called Gallos it's this little hole in the wall authentic Italian deli right off the PCH The best sandwich I have ever had. We took are sandwiches to inspiration point a little beach nearby and ate them at this little park looking over the beach and watched all these classic hippies doing yoga with their dogs.. I should of taken a picture dang it.

Hoilday Cheer

2009-01-11T17:15:00.001-08:00

We left for Utah two days after Christmas to spend New years with Cheryl and Mike we had fun snowboarding, snowshoeing and spending time with family.

Decorating the Christmas Tree

Every year Newport Beach has a boat parade in the harbor, beautiful yachts sail by with tons of lights all over. I love looking at Christmas lights it's my favorite!

Buddy and Me

2009-01-11T16:48:00.000-08:00

A week before Christmas Chris and I got to be doggy sitters while Matt & Ann were on vacation. He is a great big Rhodesian Ridge back named Buddy! He was such a good boy for us the only thing wrong with him is he is hearing impaired thats right totally deaf and he is only 3 yrs old. I took him out side to go to the bathroom and decided to not put on his leash because he never would leave our side very far, so I let him out and he decided to wonder off behind the bushes luckily he came back after he smelled everything! But its hard having a dog that doesn't hear you. We would find ourselfs talking to him throughout the day and calling him over to us even though we knew he was deaf hoping maybe he just had selective hearing, no such luck. Chris loved having a buddy!

MAKE ME SOME BABIES!!

2008-11-20T23:42:00.000-08:00

I found this off Samantha's blog and decided to give it a try. So I guess this is what our little freakish babies will look like! Can't wait.... We can't figure out why they have such big foreheads? Anyways you should try it and then post it on your blogs, it's really easy to do and good for a laugh.

What do you think about my little new baby b?
MakeMeBabies.com - What will your baby look like?

What do you think about my little new baby jim?
MakeMeBabies.com - What will your baby look like?

Wicked

2008-11-16T20:56:00.000-08:00

Our hot dog feast!

This last Wednesday Chris and I went to go see Wicked, Finally. I have been wanting to see that play for a while now. I have heard nothing but great things about that play and since it is leaving LA in a couple months we decided we'd better go before it leaves. It was AMAZING! We both loved it and the music was great. I want the soundtrack now. It was even better, because Chris surprised me with 3rd row seats; we were so close... My favorite song from the play is "For Good". Below is our niece Maddy and Chris's sister Michelle, whom both have such beautiful voices and do such an amazing version of this song. After, we ate at the famous Pink's hot dog stand in Hollywood. It was my first time eating there. Chris always talks this place up and I'm always telling him how good J Dog is in Provo. He has never ate there before. After having tried them both I'm still sticking with J Dogs as my favorite hot dog stand!

"For Good" from Wicked

Seafood?

2008-11-02T21:37:00.000-08:00

Today, we went to Chris' colleague at work 3 month old nephews birth celebration. In Chinese culture the first born grandson in the family gets this huge celebration, it was at a Chinese restaurant with about 400 family and friends there. We got there so hungry being fast Sunday and found out it was a 8 course authentic meal being served, which was all seafood. Unfortunately, we are not the biggest fans of seafood, but it was interesting seeing all the different foods being served like chicken with its head still on, a whole fish, lobster, crab we even watched someone eat chicken brain! It was a fun party we even learned a little bit of a culture dance that they do in China.

Halloween

2008-11-02T21:10:00.000-08:00

To start off the night we went down Chris' brothers house to see the kids in their costumes. They were so cute and excited about all the candy they brought home. Later we went to a costume party with some friends that Chris hadn't seen in a while. We had a lot of fun playing Guesstures and different name games all night! We had fun spending time with other married couples in the church who are a lot like us.

Disney Land

2008-11-02T20:43:00.000-08:00

A couple weeks ago Chris and I went to Disney Land and went to the Innoventions center and found this computer that takes your picture and then ages you like 40 years and shows what you would look like if you had sun damage, smoker and severe weight gain! Very scary to say the least.... Later we met up with Tanner, Megan and Eli. Even though it was a Friday night and totally busy being a couple weeks before Halloween we had the luxury of using the baby (Eli) for our fast passes, we all took turns carrying him to the front of the line where they would give us a fast pass for the ride which was pretty much a front of the line pass thanks Eli!

Our Upcoming Broadway Star

2008-10-20T13:01:00.000-07:00

This is a recent video my brother Matt posted showing his youngest son (and our nephew!), Marcus Marquis, singing the song "For Good" from the popular play Wicked. He is only 3 years old and was diagnosed with Autism last year. I think I see a career for him in the future. Way to go Marcus! What a cutie.

Protecting Marriage.... Vote YES on 8

2008-10-09T23:25:00.000-07:00

Here are some main points about proposition 8. Spread the word to everyone you know!
1. Having tolerance without condoning.
We can love someone while still maintaining and advocating our standards and beliefs.
2.Unless Proposition 8 passes, California society will soon undergo a profound change in its basic understanding of marriage and family life.
That will affect everyone in numerous ways. Over time, greater acceptance of nontraditional marriage will be demanded of all people. This could impact the ability of any religion to teach and practice its beliefs.
3. Proposition 8 will not hurt gays.
In California, the law provides for marriage-related benefits to be given to civil unions and domestic partnerships. Proposition 8 does not diminish these benefits.
4. Failure to pass Proposition 8 will hurt children.
If gay marriage remains legal, public schools will put it on equal footing with traditional marriage. Children will likely receive “age appropriate” information about sexual relations within heterosexual and homosexual marriages.
5. Failure to pass Proposition 8 will hurt churches.
The court’s decision will inevitably lead to conflicts with religious liberty and free speech rights. Society will become more and more hostile to traditional beliefs about marriage and family.

Tee Time Anyone?

2008-09-28T21:31:00.000-07:00

Chris recently just finished up these golf tech lessons where they hook you up to sensors and video tape your swing and analyze your swing against other golf pros. So we decided to go out to the driving range right near us and hit some balls, and see all those lessons pay off. I didn't realize that I would like golfing this much even though I wasn't that good. Hopefully soon I can make it out to play 9 holes but as for now ill just be sticking to the driving range.

Honeymoon in the Cayman Islands

2008-08-10T23:47:00.000-07:00

UPDATE!!

2008-07-09T23:44:00.000-07:00

Getting ready to watch the fireworks

Making S mores...

burying Blaine in the sand!

Last weekend for the 4th of July we spent the whole day at
the beach with my family. It was so much fun but really crowded of course.

Chris went to Cabo with his dad and brothers on a fun
boys trip hanging out by the pool and fishing.

I went up to Utah to visit my best friend Whitney for a little shower

It has been so long since the last time we have blogged! We have been so busy and so much has happened in the last two months lost of wedding plans. All of my wonderful soon to be sister in laws threw me an amazing shower in Dana Point it was such a fun day, they did such a great job with everything and made it so special for me. I am so lucky to be marrying into such a great family! =) Tomorrow were getting married!!! I'm so happy and excited to be marrying my best friend and such a wonderful person who makes me so happy, life could not get any better. We can not wait to start our life's together. We will have more pictures soon of our honeymoon.

PROM!!

2008-05-01T22:10:00.000-07:00

Last Friday my little sister Shelby went to her first prom as a sophomore. Last month she turned sixteen so she really didn't waste anytime to get her first date. and as I am her older sister and cosmetologists I was the lucky one to get her all beautified. So from makeup, coloring her hair to styling to the acrylic nails and pedicure And despite my best efforts she really didn't look to bad. I wasn't to sure about letting a "Senior" take my little sister to prom, but he did a better job asking her to prom then most guys do proposing (except Chris of course). He had it arranged where he had talked to her 1st period teacher. So before school he came in and brought a big blue box filled with balloons with a note attached that said "open me", when she came into class she opened the box with all the balloons flying up with another note on one of the balloons that said "catch me" she opened that one and it was a banner that asked her to prom, as he walked into the room with a bouquet of flowers. So cute!

Engagements

2008-04-08T19:58:00.000-07:00

Since Chris has been a busy bee with posting blogs I thought I had some catching up to do.. On Saturday we went down to Laguna beach down by the Montage with his dad, Adam, Melissa and my parents to take our engagement pictures. It turned out to be a a really pretty day at the beach we got splashed by a few waves, while frolicking in the water. Poor Chris fell flat on his bum while taking pictures on the slippery moss. ha I think he got a little embarrassed about it. But in the end it all turned out pretty good and we ended up with some pretty good pictures thanks to Dale and Adam. Then we all went out eat at Wicked Gardens (the same place we ate the night we were engaged!)

A Denver Gettaway

2008-04-03T00:01:00.000-07:00

In May of 2007, Courtney and I thought it would be fun to get out of Utah for a weekend and visit the fun city of Denver where my brother Adam and his wife Melissa lived. They had a fun little apartment right downtown which made it convenient for seeing the sites.

On Friday, the four of us went downtown to see Nick Swardson, an aspiring actor and comedian. The show ended up being one of the funniest shows any of us had seen. Afterwards, we had some macaroni and cheese sliders with some cheesecake from the good ole Cheese Cake Factory.

On Saturday, we hung with the "super sick" yeah-bro's at the local apartment. The pool was wall to wall with drunk, classic people all looking to swoop. We enjoyed our private little corner where Courtney was able to read "Eclipse" in peace and I was able to hear the kid's that Melissa nanny's for fight with each other..."MELITHA!"

It was sad that we had to go, but the trip eventually came to an end and we hopped back on our Jet Blue flight back to Sweet Old Provo, Utah.

Trip to Santa Barbara

2008-04-02T23:09:00.000-07:00

In April of 2007, Courtney and I made our first road trip with long drive back to the homeland, Santa Barbara, for a Strung Out show that was playing there. We made the trip with our good friends Cardon and Whitney Smith (who Whitney happens to be Courtney's best friend, and Cardon my old roomie, a nice!).

On the way there, we had to make our traditional stop in Vegas to see if we could earn some spending cash for the trip. Feeling lucky, I placed $100 dollars on Red, which everyone seemed to agree with. After I lost it, everyone then spoke up about how I should have chosen Black! Oh well.

We actually stayed right outside of Santa Barbara in the beach city of Carpenteria. We got a hook up on a hotel room there and enjoyed some classic Rusty's Pizza the first night.

After years of making fun of the geeky tourists of renting those ugly 4-person bikes, I finally caved in and found myself peddling one in downtown Santa Barbara. It actually was pretty cool. Aside from dodging the bums and little kids chasing us, we were able to cover some good ground. When Court and Whitney were in the back together, it suddenly became "extra hard" for us to peddle up front.

We ended up having a run in with the cops over the weekend that caused some drama, but overall it was a pretty solid weekend. We had some time to run over to my Pop's condo by the beach which is always a pleasant visit. When living in Utah during the winter, it's always tough to leave California. But hey, I won my money back in Vegas on the way home!

Rockin at 80's Night

2008-03-31T19:53:00.000-07:00

Some of our first dates consisted of some pretty stellar dancing at the classic "80's Night" at Area 51, in Salt Lake City, Utah. Every Thursday night, this not so clean night club only plays classic 80's songs the whole night and makes it a fun night for Provo nerds like ourselves. Many times we would dress up in the best 80's attire we could find. Courtney had some competition dancing with Chris, not from the other girls, but from many of the gay guys that also like to dance the 80's night away. Others shown in the pictures are Eric May (Chris' Roommate) and Whitney Donaldson (Courtney's Roommate). May was infamous for wearing his classic homemade Tees like "This is Why I'm Hot" to 80's night. Courtney was dressed to dance on this particular night, where myself was a little too cool. Usually I could be found wearing tights and a cut off, but on this particular night, I wasn't feeling it. Even though we kept these dancing dates pretty casual, some of the first sparks that flew between us were across the Area 51 dance floor.