Independance Day

Happy 4th of July!

As I celebrate this holiday with a fun BBQ and pool party with Bart's family, I hope I will be able to remember the real meaning of this holiday...and thank my Heavenly Father once again for letting me live in a free country.

All the Best.

My Hero.

For Father's Day my sisters and I wrote a letter my dad and put it in a picture frame for his office (along the same lines as my mom's gift). Below is the letter I wrote to my dad:

Dad,

In my life I have come to find that a hero can do extraordinary things:

1. 
   He would risk his life for the community.
2. 
   He does his job without pay.
3. 
   He is devilishly handsome.
4. 
   He loves his job.
5. 
   He does what is best for his community.
6. 
   He can fly.
7. 
   He uses his power for good.
8. 
   He is smart.
9. 
   He saves lives.
   

As I have looked over this list I have been able to identify one hero in my life. Let me show you how he compares:

1. 
   You would risk your life for your family and religion.
2. 
   You never received a penny for raising me. Well, maybe a tax credit. :)
3. 
   Everyone knows you’re good looking for an old man. You even still have all your hair.
4. 
   I can tell you love being a father by the way you treat your kids. It makes me want to become a mother.
5. 
   Even when I hated the punishments you gave me, deep down I always knew they would help me in the long run.
6. 
   Although you can’t fly, there was a time in my life when I knew you could do anything. I still believe that.
7. 
   You hold the priesthood, which you have used in countless callings. Look at how many lives you have changed for good.
8. 
   All a person has to do is look at your bookcase to tell that you’re smart. It was inevitable that I would be too. :)
9. 
   You have saved six lives. My siblings and I were lucky enough to be raised in the church because of you and mom. By teaching us how to live our lives righteously, we will be able to live with our Heavenly Father again.
   

Dad, you are my hero.
I love you.

Ashlee

All the Best.

Reality Check.

I had a big dose of reality last night. But thankfully, I have a wonderful husband who pulled me out of it. I'm so glad I'm married.

All the Best.

I Figured Out the Secret...

...the secret that all the bike riders have kept from us outsiders. But before I share the secret with you, I want to give you some background.

I never really noticed them until I really started riding my bike. But a few months ago (when I really started to ride my bike a lot) I saw all the bikers heading south on 56th street. Bart and I live on 58th St. and Bell, so we take 56th St. for almost everywhere we need to go...family's houses, church, Paul and Bernadette's house (which will end soon when they move to Surprise :( ). And everytime we are on 56th St., we always see two to three bikers. I have always wondered what in the world is so great about 56th Street? Then today I decided (as I was getting my bike out to go exercise) that I would find out what was so special about it.

It turns out that 56th St. is very nice for bikers. There is a bike lane all the way down to Shea, that makes it very convienent. So I figured this must have been it...then I went past Shea Blvd. Guess what I found over there (besides gigantic houses):

I was astounded. Now usually I do not resort to taking pictures with my cell phone (I couldn't resist) so of course this picture doesn't do the scenery justice...but WOW.

The greenery stretched on for miles, but I couldn't go explore because:

I would be trespassing if I did (sigh).

Well, at least I discovered the secret. As I was leaving this piece of heaven to go home I passed another biker coming in. He waved and I thought I saw a wink. :) What a wonderful way to start out my day.

All the Best.

Adventures in "Bart Week".

Bart turned 24 on May 26th (I know it's a little late...don't get me started) and we had a great time celebrating (see below pictures for details). You see, if Bart was ordinary, we would only celebrate his birthday on his actual date of birth, but Bart is not ordinary. And because Bart is not ordinary, we celebrate his birthday for one full week, which is called "Bart Week". So here were some of the many adventures we had that week (that I could document at least).

May 25: Family Party with the Hatches

Bart's birthday cake (compliments of Connie)


The "wrist rocket" the Mikos' gave him.


The sweet cufflinks Shane & Jessica gave him.


The very cool "smart pen" his parents and Hilary gave him.


May 26: The final day of 'Bart Week'

Bart did make a special request for his birthday...he wanted breakfast in bed. The dilemma was that Bart had to be at work at 5:30 am (Bart works for his Dad's construction company in the summer...and they start early). So like a good little wifey I got up at 4:00 am and made French Toast and scrambled eggs for him.

The result of my labors in the kitchen.


Bart eating his meal while still half asleep.


The finished plate.


After work I told Bart we could do whatever he wanted to do for the rest of his birthday.

It included:

and


He loved them both.


What was his present from me you might ask?

(I know, I know...what was I thinking.)

I think he had a satisfying birthday. Until next year when I have to do it all over again (yikes!).

All the Best.

Memorial Day 2009

OK, here are my Memorial Day pictures (finally)! First let me give you the run down of our busy day:

Pool party with the Hatches
Bart's birthday party with the Hatches
Huge slide with the Kitchens
Pool Party with Palo Verde Ward
Hospital to see Hayden (Paul and Bernadette's baby boy!)

I'm pretty sure I took a nap on a lounge chair at our ward pool party because I was so tired. Here are the pictures just from the Hatch pool party and the Kitchen water slide fun (P.S. I was getting tired of taking pictures at the Kitchen water slide, so there definitely aren't as many, sorry!).

Mason (Bart's nephew) ready to go swimming.


Hilary (Bart's sister) and Connie (Bart's Mom) watching the kids swim.


Paige (Bart's niece) swimming with Roy in the background.


Bart's ready to snorkel.


Brody (Bart's nephew) would not leave the top step of the pool, poor kid was too scared.


Shane (Bart's brother) jumping off the roof into the pool (I caught his flip flop mid-fall!)


Bart following in his brother's footsteps.


Bart racing to the diving board (nice emo hair!).


Jessica (Shane's wife) and Paige having fun together.


Roy (Bart's Dad) relaxing poolside.


Amy (Bart's sister) watching her kids swim.


Sadie (Hilary's dog) and I relaxing poolside.


The gigantic slide my family rented for the day.


Greg chillin' out at the bottom of the slide.


Chase (Kristi's son) playing in the kiddy pool.


Bart after doing a trick down the slide (he's so cute!!).


The Udall family coming down the slide (except Madison...she didn't want to go down).


Brooklyn (Greg's daughter) after coming down the slide (she wouldn't look at me).


Courtney (Chad's daughter) playing in the kiddy pool.

As you can see, it was a very fun day. It's always great to spend time with family, and Bart and I are blessed with two great ones.

All the Best.

A Moment's Thought(s).

Bart took me out to lunch today. It was nice seeing him in the middle of my day instead of only at the end (when I'm tired and a little cranky). Sometimes I don't treat him as well as I should. I'm sorry honey. I'll try to do better.

I've really thought about taking photgraphy classes. I looked up some classes at SCC and I'm 95.5% sure I'm going to enroll in two next semester. And here I thought school would be over for me. But this time around I think I'm really gonna enjoy it.

My creative sisters are putting together a collage for my dad for Father's day. We are writing a letter to Dad (kinda like what we did for my Mom) about how great he is and I still haven't started it. My sister needs it today...I'm such a horrible procrastinator. I'm hoping I'll be able to get a grip on my bad habits before they take me over. Such is life I guess.

Here is another picture from my 'Memorial Day 2009 Photos' that I should've posted a few weeks ago. I know you probably think they don't exist, but here is proof (again) that they do. Don't worry, I will post them eventually (Remember: Ashlee=Procrastinator).

This beautiful flower is now the background on my work computer. I think it will brighten up my day.

All the Best.