Weekend Adventures...

So on the last day of Wes's visit to California (oh yeah, Wes came and stayed with us for a week...), we went to Fashion Island to just walk around and get some food.  But Kirsten had something else in mind...

Kirsten threw all logic and common sense out the window, and this is what you get...

Yes people...another dog!!!  Lady now has a little brother named Figaro.  (Kirsten also wanted me to mention that I am a total push over...)

But how can you resist a face like that!

On Saturday we went to my parents house to introduce the new addition to the family (and do laundry).  He got to run around all day and play with Lady and his aunt Arwin.  BTW, Arwin is a psycho dog, I am so glad we have sane animals.  If only they could say the same about us.

Both Lady and Figaro are King Cavalier mixes.  Lady is a Cavalier/Cocker mix and Figaro is a Cavalier/American Eskimo Mix.  It is uncanny how much they look alike.  I think Arwin is feeling a little left out...she is just a Terrier mixed with who knows what...

And to conclude our trip, we stopped by the kitty Polygamist camp (in my parents backyard).  I think we counted 12 cats, but there are probably a couple strays that didn't get in the picture.  We saved Zyzzx, our cat, from this feline cult a month ago.  The white cat in the picture is her brother...actually they are all her brothers, as they all have the same dad, the grey tom cat walking out of the picture.  He had no comments.  We were quickly escorted out of the compound, but luckily we got away with taking a quick picture first.  Zyzzx doesn't know how good she has it now, as long as she can survive the Lady and Figaro. 

Kirsten was a little hesitant to announce that we got another dog, so be kind in your comments! :)

We are animal lovers to the core, and we promise to not buy anymore...or until we move into a bigger place, which ever comes first!

My First Post...

Hi Everyone! So after months of getting after me for not posting on our blog...I have finally figured out the password, hacked into our blog, and posting!

Congratulations on the job honey! I am so glad that you are so happy. So what are we going to do with all our extra cash! j/k...but really...

~Ben

New job!

Hey everyone, thanks for your support when I quit my old job that SUCKED! I have found the best job in Orange County! It is a brokerage firm, that works on east coast hours! So I work from 6:30-2:30 everyday! The partners are AWESOME, and very nice to me. The employees are funny and I've enjoyed listening to their banter just on my first day here! I think I'll fit in well...and the coolest part is they have a diet coke fountain, so I can have all the fountain drink I want! It's a dangerous concept...but I'm in heaven! The office is less than 5 minutes away, and I think I'll start walking home from work when we sell my car...and the pay is EXCELLENT! So we're excited to have no more money stress, and some consistency FINALLY! Let me just say...I work 8 more hours per week, make over 2 more dollars per hour, and in 3 months I get a 10 % raise that will go into a pre-tax pension fund, or into my check, whichever I choose! And even though I am only coming in to this job an hour earlier than I went into the health center, I'm off FIVE hours earlier! No 2 hour lunch break, no driving to Corona Del Mar and back twice a day...no GAS bill...and we can sell a car! So the benefits are GREAT. speaking of benefits...I'll have them in 90 days! So I can FINALLY have insurance after almost a YEAR of not! So thanks for your prayers and just know that the Lord ALWAYS has our best interests at heart, and sometimes it takes a leap of faith to find great rewards! P.S..before I was a secretary, now I'm an operations manager for a brokerage firm...pretty good promotion eh? My first day was fabulous, and one of my new bosses even bought me a philly cheese steak for lunch! And I found out there are two other LDS guys working here! So I think I can thank them for paving the way, and impressing the bosses with their attitudes and examples. So hooray for my new cool job! I'm excited to learn and get even more education about the finance world!

CELEBRATION!!!

Happy Birthday to me! I am 23! Haha..it was a WONDERFUL day full of fun sweet things Benjamin did for me! It all started the night before with an unexpected visitor, my cousin Chandi! She happened to be about 5 minutes away for business, so we went out to dinner with her at Red Robin, which was really fun!!! She got to have fun with the animals and see our apartment, then I took her back to her fancy hotel where she got to sleep all alone in a King Size Bed! Thanks for rememberin us Chandi! 

When I got home I found our apartment had been completely decorated with streamers, balloons, a HAPPY BIRTHDAY banner, and party hats on balloon people! It was SO cute and I was totally impressed. I knew then and there my birthday would be fabulous!

These are the pretty perfect flowers Ben had sitting on the kitchen table! Isn't he sweet?

This is the funniest picture, she was so reluctant to wear this party hat...

But it seemed like once I had one on, she wasn't as ready to pull it right off! :) 

Ben drawing faces on the balloons..I had "people" at my party! haha

Hanging up the people!

Me and Lady in the middle of all the decor!

Coming through my streamers...

For me? How sweet!

A new N64 controller so we can play N64 mariokart together!

The next morning...this was my breakfast in bed! He knew to take a picture of it before I even told him to! 

My surprise lunch...we were going to eat it on the beach, but were too hungry to wait! So this was my chicken salad sandwich, shrimp that he cooked himself, and favorite chips! (cheddar and sour cream)

I'm reading the card he gave me which was SO sweet. I almost cried! He's a great husband...

Since we're poor and don't really NEED anything, Ben got me some new games! We love scrabble and I kicked his butt twice that day :)

Lady wanted to be part of the action and jumped up herself and sat on my leg :)

I may have slaughtered him at Scrabble...but he wasted me at our "Master's Edition" of Phase 10! Twice... 

My birthday cake that Ben made..I blew out ALL the candles!

Later, we had the sparkling cider we WOULD have taken to the beach if we weren't such home-bodies. 

I'll drink to that! It was a great birthay, and my husband made sure I felt like a princess ALL day! I think he was good and ready for my reign of royalty to be over...hahaha. He is such a greatfriend and person, we have a lot of crazy fun at our house! I was totally surprised and blown away at his generosity, but I guess after knowing him this long, I should have expected it :) I also got some other great presents for my B-Day..including a new outfit from my mom, a new purse, a whole set of Mac makeup, a necklace that says "Sing" on one side, and "Like nobody can hear you" on the other. And a new shirt and some pots that have draining lids so I don't have to use a strainer! My parents spoil me lots, and my in laws gave me a giftcard to Borders with which I bought SIX books! They are keeping me really busy and I love it! :) Anyway, thanks to everyone who called or wrote me! Love ya!

Update!

This is gonna be a really long post, but I had to update! My parents were able to come and visit us for Father's day weekend, and we had SO much fun! It was my parent's anniversary on June 14th, and they enjoyed spending their 28th Anniversary with us! So it was a celebration, cuz I got to open my early birthday presents as well! We started out the weekend by going shopping and I got a complete set of Mac Makeup from my parents, and a couple new outfits and a new purse! We enjoyed lunch with Ben, then went back to shopping and bought the boys some new clothes! Then that night we surprised my dad with an ANGEL'S game!!! Here are some fun pictures:

My dad and I holding the tickets

WHOA BIG

The inside of the stadium

Ben and I at our first big Baseball game!

My parents were pretty stoked!

Me being excited with my dad!

K-I forgot to take a picture of my hot dog till it was gone...so this is the rest in my mouth

Ben had a bug on his glasses...it was intense

I had to put this on because my mom got ticked at my dad for laying like this. She told him he looked dead! hahaha

We took my parents to the dog park the next day, and they got to be proud of their "Granddog"! haha

We finished off Saturday by taking them to Ruby's on the Pier...which was really fun! We also had taken them to sprinkles that day to get a yummy cupcake!

Benjamin and I on the pier

My mom LOVES Lady!

Happy Father's Day!

I have one of the best dads there ever was. He is such a terrific man and has always been such a good example to me, and one of my best friends! He has had so many callings in the church, from Scout Master, to Elders Quorom President, and my favorite was Young Men's President cuz I had access to a lot of boys...hahaha. Actually, my favorite one was when he was the bishop of our ward and was able to interview me for my first temple recommend! He is a spiritual man who is very close to the spirit. He is a PATIENT man. He has 4 daughters, a wife, 2 female cats, and a female dog! SO he's been grossly outnumbered for a long time, and I hope to give him a grandson someday! :) He's glad to finally have a son in law to help him balance things out! He is a great husband and is so supportive of my mom. They are best friends, and remind me of the old couple in "The Notebook". They are so in love and I have learned so much from them about how to be a good person and a good wife. My favorite memories of my dad include: Going to the lake with our boat that he was always good about maintaining, going camping at the girls camp site to keep it reserved for the campers, cuz it was just he and I with other dad's and daughters. Daddy daughter dates, including the time he took me to Applebees and I was NERVOUS cuz I didn't know what to talk about with my DAD! haha... Driving me to show choir and madrigals in school, and always making conversation even though it was early and I was in NO mood to chit chat... :) And all the times I've seen him cry. It reminds me that even though he is a strong and tough man, he still has a testimony and a sensitivity to life.  I get my tears from him :) WHen I was little we watched a TV show about a girl who got kidnapped and I remember asking my dad  "If that were me, could you beat up the bad guys?" I remember I was SO comforted when he said "Oh yeah, I would kick their butts" or something to that effect... anyway...I LOVE YOU DAD! Happy Fathers Day, Happy Anniversary to my parents, and HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ME! :)

New addition...

So...we did it. We fell in love with a kitten and we're keeping her! She is white with blue eyes..and so soft! she came from a litter that was born in the Tyrrel's attic, so she's really mellow. She loves to play with Lady and they have become best friends! We're now a family of four!!! Her name for now, because we just can't choose is Zzyyxx Intertia Snowball Squirts Tyrrel. Zzyyxx because it's an exit between Cali and St. George, which is sorta symbolic of our relationship, Intertia because of an inside joke with Breanna, Snowball, cuz she's white, and Squirts cuz she squirted poop in our bed the other night. (yes it was gross) So her name is long, but I think we'll mostly call her "the kitty" anyway. We love our little white kitten! haha

My attempt at a photo shoot :)

They really love each other so much!

She no longer eats this stuff, it's what gives her the "squirts"

Close-up! Look at those pretty blue eyes!

They WERE napping when I came over to take this picture, but they look awake right as the flash goes off. Haha..my little animal family...hey it's curbing the baby hunger!

Fun tag!

OK I HAVE SEEN THIS POST DONE BEFORE AND THOUGHT IT LOOKED SO FUN! HERE GOES!

FAVORITE FOOD: BEN AND KIRSTEN:

FAVORITE COLOR: KIRSTEN

BEN:

NAME OF PAST PET:

KIRSTEN:

BEN:

(chewie)

FAVORITE PLACE TO BE: BEN AND KIRSTEN:

MAJOR IN SCHOOL: KIRSTEN:

BEN:

MIDDLE NAME: KIRSTEN:

BEN:

FAVORITE HOLIDAY: BEN AND KIRSTEN:

WORST HABIT: BEN AND KIRSTEN:

PLACE WE'D LIKE TO VISIT: BEN AND KIRSTEN:

AGE I'LL BE AT NEXT BIRTHDAY: KIRSTEN:

BEN:

I now tag everyone who hasn't done this yet!