New Callings!

I forgot to mention the latest news and big changes in terms of callings! Glen Allen was originally the Elders Quorum 1st counselor and I was the Home Family and Personal Enrichment Leader. A few weeks ago there were major changes in the boundaries of our stake so the bishop decided to change just about everything around. Glen Allen (are you ready for this??) is the new Young Mens PRESIDENT! Yup... my crazy husband is now the "leader" for all the young men in the ward. I gave the bishop a hard time when he called him and asked if he really knew what he was getting himself into. But in all seriousness, Glen Allen will do GREAT! He has already grown to love all those he works with and presides over. As for mine... I was afraid it would be nursery (when the counselor over the primary called me to set up a new calling visit) but luckily, I was called to the Activity Day leader (10-11 year old girls). I am really excited about the calling, although I will miss my HFPE calling. Change is never easy but it always makes for some fun and exciting times! Here's to our new callings!

Are you ready for this???

Can you believe it... I am ready to update!! I know it's been forever but here it goes... here is a recap of the events for the summer!

1st: Lake Trip!

The boys are just like their father so they LOVE the lake! Here are a few pictures from our first lake trip of the season.

Surprisingly, they were both very happy even though it was VERY early in the morning!

2nd: Jones 1st Official Family Reunion

For Father's Day weekend, we headed to Woods Canyon Lake for the 1st official Jones Family Reunion. The weather was beautiful except for the one night it poured the entire night! Luckily we stayed relatively dry for tenting it! We did a little relaxing, visiting, game playing, baseball and fishing.

We got there the day before the rest of the family to stake out a spot, which was nice to just spend some quality time together!
The hammocks were a big hit! We had three of them set up and I don't think there was much time the whole weekend when they were vacant!

Aunt Rachel, Jaxon, Kaydance and Price all snuggling together.

My little goofball!

Mommy and Jaxon at the lake while the boys were fishing... gotta love the camping look! :)

Glen was a little hesitant at first but he finally decided the worms weren't that bad...

The boys did a little fishing but unfortunately, they were not successful! There was only one catch of the trip... yeah Clayton!!

Baseball, baseball, baseball! We played a lot of baseball over the weekend. Glen is quite the hitter! Jaxon tried outfielding (with the make shift girly glove) but didn't have much luck... but he had fun trying!

3rd: Mommy and Jaxon

I have the hardest time getting Jaxon to smile for the camera. Usually the only way I can get him to smile is if we pose together or if I catch him off guard. Here is one just playing around....

4th: 4th of July

For the 4th of July this year we headed down to Cochise. Nana and Grandpa Allen have a house in Cochise that they are upgrading and they needed Glen Allen's construction/framing expertise so we decided to make a trip out of it. We enjoyed the infamous Benson donuts, helped Nana and Grandpa with the house, played a much needed game of hand and foot, played at the park, and ended the weekend with enjoying the Benson 4th of July parade. I love the feel of a small town... there was so much community support and seemed like everyone in the town was there at the parade. The boys loved watching the fire trucks, motorcycles and all the people go by. Plus it didn't hurt that they collected a TON of candy from everyone in the parade throwing it at the audience!

The boys all wanted to match daddy by wearing their "Team Jones" shirts we all got at the reunion.

The LDS float was the hit of the parade because they came through with a huge water truck and cooled off the crowd! It actually felt pretty good!

5th: WICKED!

My family (all the adults) went to Wicked at Gammage this year. It was AMAZING! I had seen it on Broadway in NYC but it was much better here in the valley! What a great night!

6th: Learning to Ride a Bike!

For whatever reason, we have procrastinated on teaching Glen to ride a two wheel bike. We finally took the training wheels off his bike and he rode it like a CHAMP! He never fell and rode it like it was old news! He did great! Jaxon wanted to join in on the fun so he tried as well and wasn't as successful! :)

Last but not least: Apache Lake!

Glen Allen hadn't ever been to Apache Lake so we decided to follow a group of our friends up there to spend the day. It was a great day full of wakeboarding, and major tube wars (which I must admit, I am now known as "the best tube driver ever")... and of course some major jammin' and dancin' to the tunes!! Right as we were headed off the lake, this HUGE wall of rain came in. What an experience... it's not easy getting a boat ramped in a down pour with major wind!

Well, there you have it! There is our summer so far in a nut shell! We just got back from a week in Idaho and I will update those pictures soon.

Old and Moldy! That's what I am!

Yup... I am the big 2-9!!!! Almost 30 I know! Saturday was the big day and it was great! My wonderful husband is so good to me... he bought me a new camera, which was a big surprise because he kept down playing the fact that he couldn't think of anything to get me for the entire week leading up to my birthday (am I really that difficult to shop for??). For breakfast my mom treated me and the little boys to Joe's Farm Grill for my free birthday breakfast while Glen Allen was working at the church farm in Coolidge. Breakfast was yummy... thanks MOM! I did a little shopping before lunch, took a good nap, got my free dozen doughnuts at Krispie Kreme (yes, free dozen on your birthday) and then we had a ward swim party that night. After the swim party, Colter watched the boys so Glen Allen and I could go out for dinner. To my surprise, when we walked into Outback, the hostess blind folded me and I knew something was up! Glen Allen had invited some of our friends to meet us for dinner. When I got to the table they had asked the waitress to embarrass me so the Outback staff made a huge hat for me to wear that looked ridiculous. Good thing I didn't bring my camera, although I think Glen Allen has a picture of me on his phone still. Note to self... get a hold of the phone and erase the picture. :) Anyway, it was a blast and my stomach still hurts from the combination of laughing so hard I almost peed my pants and eating myself sick! Thanks Harrold's and Busby's for celebrating it with me... you are great company and are always fun to hang with! After dinner Glen Allen and I went to the movies just because we had a babysitter to take advantage of, although there was nothing good playing. We ended up seeing I Love You Beth Cooper and it was terrible... I don't recommend it. All in all, it was a great day! Thanks for all the birthday wishes... I really appreciate it. Thanks babe for a great day, you make me feel so special!

I know, I know... it's been forever!

Yeah, I am embarrassed... it's been over a month since I have posted anything. I have a ton of new pictures to add from the last month but unfortunately, our home computer is out of commission right now where all the pics are. As soon as I get the computer back, I will update all the latest "stuff" going on with the Jones'. Until then... I hope you are all having a GREAT summer!

Food for thought...

Although I have had experiences like this in the past, I had a very much needed conversation today at the gym, with a friend, that was definitely an answer to prayers and a testimony builder on the importance of trials in our lives and the blessings we recieve from our trials. This woman proceeded to share some of her daughters experiences with me and the struggles and trials her daughter has faced and how she continues to hold her head high, learn from those trials and embrace the lessons learned. My heart just sunk at the things I was hearing and I found myself thinking, "I don't know how anyone could go through so much and still keep going." I also found myself thinking, "You big baby... what is your problem? You complain and whine over such trival things in life, look at what others go through and still manage to stay strong." As any of you know, who really know me... I am not good with handling stress, seeing the sunshine through the clouds, realizing that things happen for a reason and realizing that I can't control the outcome of everything. I am grateful for those around me who are a constant support and lifeline in guiding me and keeping me sane. I am also grateful for the lessons learned through other individuals trials and struggles in life and I am so grateful for the little things in life that I take for granted. Although I still have my struggles, I know that I am EXTREMELY blessed and unfortunately sometimes I have a hard time seeing and remembering those little blessings. I know that we are not given anything that we can not handle. I rarely see this lady at the gym and I have never even really had a real conversation with her before... there is no doubt in my mind that the conversation, comments, thoughts and feelings shared today were a direct answer to prayers and I am grateful for those who take the time to be an instrument in teaching me the lessons I need to learn.
Maybe my thoughts today will be a tool or an answer to prayers for one of you but if not, at least it is a way for me to really think and contemplate on the experience I had this morning. Thanks for being my listening post... :)

Projects... projects... and more projects!

This weekend we decided to take advantage of the beautiful weather to have a "project weekend" at our house. Glen Allen came home from the gym on Friday morning and had been inspired by his buddies garden and decided he wanted to plant a salsa garden. So Friday we began project #1 (planting our salsa garden) by digging out the entire planter so we could paint the inside to protect the house from water damage. After digging and painting we decided to give the paint time to dry so we headed over to pick up a bunk bed for the boys from a sweet lady named Diane, who gave us the bed for free, which began project #2 (redecorating the boys bedroom). After picking up the bed, we headed over to the nursery to pick out our plants and herbs for the garden. By the time we got home, we were all exhausted so we took a nap before heading out for the evening to BBQ, swim and play games until late into the night with our good friends. Thanks for a fun night, Kash and Tiffany!

Saturday morning came bright and early as Glen Allen and I headed back outside to finish the garden. Unfortunately after digging all the dirt out, now we had to dig it all back in to begin planting. So after about an hour of straight shoveling, we had finally conquered the fill in, just in time for the boys to wake up to plant everything. They thought it was so fun to put the plant in and then push the dirt around it. As small as it is... we are very excited about our garden accomplishment. It only took us 6 1/2 years of marriage to get a garden but it's done and now (if we can just keep everything alive) we are going to be able to make some killer salsa! The big garden is to come but we are starting off small (and cheap)!

Glen Allen and Glen David planting...check out Glen David's green shovel... he was so excited to play in the dirt!

More gardening....







Our herbs.....

Our peppers, jalepenos, etc....

Our sad little tomatoes....


After finishing the garden it was on to project #2... the BIG Kahuna! Before Glen David was potty trained we told him that if he would get potty trained we would get him a "motorcycle room". Well, the potty training happened and was successful (about 2 years ago) and we just barely got around to starting the room. Better late than never, huh? So we cleared out the room and began the tedious painting. Can I just tell you how much I hate the prep work??? I was so sick and tired of blue tape! But after about 6 hours, two boys with no naps, several movies for entertainment while mommy and daddy worked, sore backs and paint everywhere, we finally did it! The top is a grayish/silver color, the bottom is black and the middle is, yes you guessed it... Kawasaki GREEN! The pictures don't do it justice but it looks awesome! We then put together the bunk bed, put on the new bedding and hung a few motorcycle pictures and called it a day! We still have more decorating to do but at least the walls are done and the bed is up and luckily we finished it just in time for the boys to go to bed and Glen Allen and I to collapse (after getting a call at 9:30 to substitute Sunbeams in the morning). YIKES!

The blasted BLUE TAPE!

Painting in progress...

The end results! As I mentioned the pictures don't do it justice, but I am pretty proud of it so far... we aren't done but the bank account can't handle anymore right now. :(

The new (to us) bunk bed!

Jaxon is still trying to get comfortable with going up and down the stairs on the bunk bed to get up to Glen's bed.

Sunday was a nice day of rest, except for having church at 8 a.m. and having to substitute Sunbeams and give an hour lesson on being grateful for ears. How can someone talk for an HOUR about EARS to 4 year olds???? It was another project in and of itself... and I am a teacher by profession for crying out loud!

Anyway, then this morning while Glen Allen went riding, I did at a little catching up in school and then began project #3... deep cleaning of the entire house! It's now 2:45, the garden is planted, the room is done, the Sunbeams have been taught about their ears, my house is spotless and all the boys are now taking a nap... yes, all the boys... daddy included!

I NEED a PEDI! :)

Jam packed Saturday!

Saturday was a very busy, but very fun family day for us! The morning started bright and early for Glen Allen and Colter (Glen's brother). While the rest of us slept, the boys headed out for a short morning ride. After riding, they came back, picked us up and we headed over to the Skate park so the boys could get in a skate session while mommy went on a Dunkin' Donut run! While the other boys were still skating, I ran Glen to his Primary activity day, headed back to get the boys, we drove through the car wash to clean off the dirtbikes in the back of the truck and then we were off to pick up Glen from his activity day. We managed to clean two pools (side jobs) in the hustle and bustle of the day and then headed to Nana's for a good swim! After swimming, it was nap time! As you can see, the boys all crashed while I managed to squeeze in some time to jump online to teach and then it was off to a BBQ at the Harrolds. We didn't get home until about 10:30! Talk about a long day! It made it VERY difficult to be up and ready for church at 8 a.m.

Colter rippin' it up on the trail!

Jaxon and I in the car while we were waiting for Glen Allen and Colter to clean the bikes.

Crash time when we got home from swimming. None of them even made it to their rooms, they all zonked out in front of the TV. Jaxon wasn't out yet but it didn't take long!