Hey Brother

If anyone was reminded about a certain TV show when they read the title of this post, then they are super cool. If not, you missed out.

Anyway, this post is a quick shout out to my awesome brothers.


Through junior high and most of high school, I thought that my three little brothers were put here on this earth to slowly and painfully irritate me to death. I think they thought that was their purpose also because they would come up with some pretty creative ways to annoy me.


However, I am now so grateful to have three younger brother. (I definitely can't call them little brothers anymore since they are all taller than me now.) I think that one of the funnest things I could ever think of to do would be to spend some time just hanging out and talking with my brothers. If you have met them, you would understand this because they are HIGHLY entertaining, if somewhat odd. So brothers, here is what I love about you:

Mike...


My brother Mike has been one of my best friends over the past years. He is always easy to talk to and very kind. He is also hilarious. I think one of the happiest moments of my life was when he led the Alta Soccer Team to win the State Championships. That was awesome!!!! Right now he is on a mission, and I am so proud of him! We went to hear one of his companion's homecoming talks. During the talk, he mentionned how training Elder McArthur (my bro) was a turning point in his mission. He said that Michael was the best, hardest working missionary he had met. That made my year! Way to go Mike.
Also, Mike is getting home from his mission in just six short months if there are any interested ladies out there. :)

Matt...

Matt is my least "little" of my brothers. I think he is up to 6'5" now. Matt has always been fun to hang out with. He is very, very funny. A favorite "matt moment" for me was about three years ago, we were at dinner in Florida with my whole family, including grandparents. Branden said, "So Matt, what are you going to do tonight?" Matt said, "Get laid!" (For those who don't know my brother, you should not he is not a dirty kid, just very awkward in a funny way). Everyone at the table looked at Matt so he blushed, looked at my mom and said, "I don't even know what that means." This might be a had-to-be-there moment, but I loved it! Matt is also very smart. He got a 4.0 all the way through high school and was awarded Academic Athlete of the Year. He would probably also want me to mention that he is very handsome and currently does not have a girlfriend...

Danny...

Danny was like my child when I was younger. I loved "mothering" him and he put up with a lot. Now he is all grown up, well almost. He is so much fun and such a sweet guy. Marina adores him. Danny is taking after Matt and starting swim team. He patiently tried to teach Branden and I how to "now drown" during our triathlon swim. Danny is also very smart and a great piano player. A favorite memory of Danny was when we were in Grand Cayman for Christmas Eve. It was pouring rain. Literally. We were basically swimming through the rain. We stood on the edge of some rocks at the beach and sang Christmas carols as the ocean waves and the rain soaked us over and over again.

Thanks for everything brothers. I love you guys!

Fabulous Firsts...

Wow. What an amazing month we have had. There are many, many things I would like to post about, but here are some of the exciting "firsts" in Marina's life. We are so proud :)

P.S. I have been informed by everyone that I am a lousy blogger lately. So, sorry, but here is one massive post... you asked for it.

First trip to the zoo! I think all us moms had the most fun.

Her first haircut! She actually really enjoyed this, all thanks to Cookie Cutters. They had a little car that she sat in plus they provided Baby Einsteins, which Marina loves. We think she looks pretty darn cute. Plus she is definitely looking like a blondie with her brown tips cut off.












First airplane ride! She was a pretty good sport but the second airplane ride went much better.

First trip to the beach!!! This was a big event. I was so nervous that Marina would hate the beach. That would be ironic because it is my favorite place in the whole world. Also, I partially chose the name Marina so that she would have to love the water... Looks like it worked.

We went to one of my very favorite beaches... Three Arch. After some initial hesitations at the waves crashing over her, Marina quickly adjusted. She is a major beach bum now!

Her favorite part? Probably eating the sand...

Another beach day. This one was at Huntington Beach.



And another, at Strands.


Still a big fan of the sand...



First trip to Sea World! The very first thing that we did was see the Shamu show. Marina started out excited...

but unfortunately, she was not that impressed with the actual show. Lucky for us, she loved everything else at Sea World.


Her favorite things were the Sea Lions and the penguins. (Specifically the outside penguins, which my mom and I used to call the "stinky penguins") She really loved watching the animals. She would even grab on to the sides of the exhibits to keep me from walking away.



This was also Branden's first time to Sea World (sad, I know). I think his favorite thing was the Shark Encounter. We went through twice.





First baseball game. It was "mormon night" at Angel Stadium. We had awesome seats...jk. Marina actually did really great though. She liked looking around at what was going on and then later fell asleep for the last few innings and slept right through the fireworks. What a good girl!



Her first cotton candy. It was a hit!


First time swimming at the pool. This one was in California too. She LOVES the swimming pool. She just kicks her little legs and tries to swim right out of my arms. I am so proud :)


First sunglasses. Ok, she never actually wore these outside, but I just wanted to post this silly picture of the two of us. I just love my little buddy so much!


Many, many thanks to Parker and Jessica for letting us crash at their house. We had an awesome time and we owe you guys big time!

Phone Woes

It turns out that letting Marina suck on my phone wasn't a very good idea. My phone started breaking down slowly and finally gave up completely. The good news is, I have a new phone. The bad news is, all my contacts were lost.

So, PLEASE send me a text from your cell phone with your name so that I can once again reconnect with the world. Thanks guys!