Looking Forward to Fall-

I LOVE the summer but I LOVE LOVE the fall! It is my favorite season and I can't wait for this year. Here is what I am looking forward to this fall:

• Sweatshirts and Jackets
• Good smelling "fall" candles
• Cool brisk evening walks to the park
• The anticipated arrival of baby Driggs
• Carving pumpkins
• Trick or treating with Whit. I love Halloween!
• Cheering on the Broncos every week with Danny
• Celebrating Danny's 28th Birthday
• Watching Parker play his 1st year of Highschool Football!!
• General Conference
• Sunday nights at grandma's with her homemade hot chocolate
• The red, yellow, and orange leaves that will cover my entire front yard
• Racking up all the leaves and playing in them with Whit, Danny, and our 2 overfed fat bulldogs

Wahoo for fall! Can't wait..

Back to School

I have decided and feel prompted that it is time that I started school again. I went and talked to a counselor and I have done all of my prerequisites to get into the nursing program at SLCC. I just need to apply and wait. The only problem is that it is a 2 year wait.. soo I might apply at some other universities in the area but most likely I will just wait and hopefully do the baby thing again. We shall see.. In the meantime there are some other classes that I can take now so that when I get into the program my work load won't be so much. I'm excited, should be interesting working out all the details. Danny's excited and is my biggest supporter. He says he can't wait until he can be the housewife! (Like it's easy or something?? Seriously, he will be in for a real treat!)

A Gracious Banker-

This past week was not a great week with my new budget. The day that the money was deposited into my "special budget account" I decided to go shopping. - Clothes shopping. There were lots of great sales going on and I just NEEDED some things for Whitney and myself, right? I get to the check out line to pay for all of the "goods" and when the lady told me the total it was a little bit higher than I had expected..ok a lot higher. I had spent over half my budget in 1 day at 1 store on stuff that we probably didn't really need. Oops! I felt really guilty because Danny is on this "lets save our money, pay off our house" kick so I decided not to tell Danny and thought...humm maybe we can just not eat this week, very selfish, I know. Well that didn't work. Danny said that we needed to do a Costco run. I got kinda nervous.. still didn't tell Danny about it until we were on our way to Costco and I said very nonchalantly "Well, I may have spent a lot this week on other things..." He gave me the look, I gave him the look (the innocent- I'm sorry I will never do it again -look) and I won. The gracious banker lent me some money to pay for our groceries! (Not that I gave him much of a choice and really-- Danny getting mad??-- Doesn't happen very often.)-- But he didn't let me off that easy. The Banker said that I will have to repay my debts through my budget this friday when the funds get deposited into my "special budget account." Darn budgets!

Note to self: Do the fun shopping AFTER the necessary shopping.

Island Park

The day after I got home from girls camp we left for a trip with Danny's family to Island Park, Idaho. It is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been to!! Julie's family (Danny's stepmom) has a cabin up with their own private dock on the lake--- AMAZING! The boating was awesome, weather was great, the scenery was crazy beautiful-- the only minor glitch was our very cute little toddler. She was good for the most part, but was teething and had a cough so she was a little bit onery, but that couldn't damper our spirits! We had a great time and -- as always-- came home with the vacation blues. Back to work..back to cleaning, laundry (the list could go on forever).. back to REAL life. But, as my sister Jessie would say, "Mindi, stop complaining. At least you got to go on a fun trip with your family!"-- I guess she is right!

I asked Danny really nicely if he would buy me this cabin and I would help pay for it with my "minimal" budget and he said "Fat chance in..." Bummer! Someday, right! (Hopeful thinking!)

It amazes me that people don't believe in a Supreme Being and that this earth is just a happenstance??? --It is too beautiful to be just an accident!

The dock. Us getting ready to go on our evening "cocktail" cruise.

My cute little Whitney helpers! She loves these 2.