~SIGH~

Isn't it kinda a sick joke that my baby boy (can I still call him that?) is finally sleeping through the night, and I have time to sleep, but now it gives me time to think. Yep, I'm an insomniac. I think instead of sleep. (Really nothing new for me, but I go through phases) For a few weeks now I've been awake in the weee hours of the night. I find myself having to attempt some kind of cat nap during part of one of Ollie's naps (while Gabe watches a show-horrible mom I know), but I can't make myself sleep at night. So then I stop taking cat naps, and get into a work out routine, which is supposed to help you sleep better right? My body still won't adjust. I'm in a stress funk. Well really I don't know if you could call it stress. I don't feel majorly stressed, just anxious. Is that a good word? I want the next six months to fast forward themselves. Ha! That sounds bad, so I better explain a tad.

Adam is taking two major licensing tests in August. These will allow him to do the things he needs to do for his job; buy stocks, set up accounts, etc etc. His big one, the Series 7 test, is the 9th, and the other Series 66 test is the 26th. That's what he's being paid to study for hard core right now. The Series 7 is a bigger test but Ej associates pass is better, cause they have more time to study for it. The series 66 is smaller, but they only get the two weeks after the series 7 is done to try to cram for it. ANYWAY, I feel completely confident in my husband. He has been scoring awesome on his chapter exams and doing awesome on all his review questions, etc. It's just one of those things that makes tension in life, ya know? You wait around for it, and it's stressful for him. He feels it, we feel it. It's fun.... :) If he were to fail, he'd be fired. Lovely of them right, but they pay you to study and they expect you to pass.

I know he'll do wonderful, I just wish we were onto the next step already.

NOW, Adam and I have never felt so inspired in our marriage to do something, than we did to move here to St G. It was amazing the blessings we received, and how things worked themselves out for us. That being said, it didn't mean it was easy, and we knew it wouldn't be. I just wish the hardest first six to nine months would go a tad fast than they are. The week after his tests he trains. The last week in Aug/first week of September he leaves us for a week to go to Tempi, AZ to train. He comes home and gets to start knocking doors, and building up clients. BUT, he can't sell yet until he has another training done at the end of October, where he leaves for another week. He graduates, and gets the official okay to actually do something for clients. The "sell date". This part is stressful for me, cause duh, no Adam around. It's hard for him, cause they send him to find clients after the first training, but he has to tell them he can't sign them up right away, just introduce what he can help them with. After October, it's just us praying like crazy that people will confide in him and want to be a his clients. That he can build a business successfully for the next two years. On top of that we are dirt poor. I'm talking dirty dirt people. Poorer than newlywed poor. Ha. How are we gonna pay bills poor. Not trying to get sympathy, just stating those fun facts. The kind of fun poorness I hope that I'll grow from and look back and appreciate someday. We are so much closer to family, and are already finding we want to come up and visit already a bunch, but can't. No money, no husband, who is working crazy hours. What a tricky time to be so moneyless. During summer when we want to play, and into the holidays where all you do is spend money. Should be life changing.

Non of it is easy, and we know it, that's why I want it to go quickly. :) So that is why it won't. So that is why I have insomnia. Do you think I'll have it for the next 6-9 months? Man I hope not. SIGH....I'm not trying to make it sound like I'm miserable, cause I'm not, so I hope it doesn't come across that way. It's just life right now, so I'd like to remember it despite the hardness.

I guess on the bright side you lucky people get to read me ranting in our blog more often. I mean, who doesn't LOVE a Mandy mid-night rant? Who's with me there? HA. It helps me to "write" my thoughts down, so they aren't so jumbled in my head. It usually helps me sleep. I also get more reading in right now. I got some good book recommendations right now, if anyone wants them. No reading doesn't make me tired, or keep me awake. It just keeps me occupied during the hours of bleh. Anyway, hope you're all having good dreams. Wish I was.....

Homemade Jam

I had a visiting teacher in Sparks, show me how to make simple homemade freezer jam. It's nothing elaborate, but it's so great. I'm so glad she took the time to do it, cause my family LOVES it! We made some all on our own as a family for the first time, and it turned out great! Hurray!

Simple Summer Fun

You'll probably see a lot more random pictures of Adam and I together. We realized we don't get enough together, so we made it a goal whenever we are taking pics of the kids, to attempt one of us.

Sometimes keeping things simple, like playing in the sprinklers, make the best memories. Don't you think? I love that kids can be so happy doing something so simple, like playing tag, having picnics, and playing in water.

Learning to walk holding one hand, he's getting pretty good

Finally Visiting the Temple

We got out of the car and Gabe said, "Whoa, I wanna get married in this temple." Funny to think that this one will most likely be the one she does get married in, we hope. We finally got around to walking around the temple as a family and going to the visitors center that's there. We would like to go back to the visitors center on a date sometime to read more of the fine print that our kids aren't into right now. It was all pretty cool. It was amazing to realize how that temple got built. Too cool. Anyway here are some pictures of us wandering about.

Gabe loved climbing the stairs to the doors

Ollie was mad we wouldn't let him climb the stairs too

A missionary gave her a Jesus pass along card. She loved it.

Our attempt to get a family shot, at the end of the day they ended up like these. Oh well.

Parks in St G

I think this picture sums up what playing in St G mid-day is like. (notice the sweat drips and wetted hair) It's warm, but it doesn't stop her from asking to go. A lot of the parks have canopies over their toys, so they won't get too hot. Kinda nice eh? Even though it isn't our favorite time to venture out right now, we still have fun when we do, even though we might not smell that good when done. :)

He still isn't the biggest fan of swings, being opposite than his sister, he LOVES slides though.

Everyone love a good underdog

I love black and white pictures. I should take more of them, I don't do it enough.

He didn't want to stop to take a picture. He was just wanting to go. Every time we tried to take a picture, he kept learning forward trying to go down.

Ollie was mad I took wood chips out of his mouth

Gabe wanting to take pictures with my camera is a common thing now. We tried to get her to look through the view finder window this time. She was trying to take a picture of Adam, and she wasn't aiming at him at all. He kept asking if she could see him in the window, and she kept telling him yes. This is the result. I guess she could see him, just bits and pieces of him.

I think it's hilarious. Nothing like a good collage of Daddy pictures.