"moms flowers"

Dandelions are a definite sign of Spring! Kanyon loves when all the "lello" flowers grow in the grass in between mowings. He calls them "moms flowers" and always picks several at a time and brings them to me to have! I place them in water-filled containers in the kitchen for display. I love my hand-picked, special-delivered flowers!!!

Jumping for Joy

May 2010 was a really cold and wet month! When we finally got a nice, sunny, spring day, the boys were so happy that they spent nearly the entire day outside: soaking in the sun's rays, playing in the dirt, and JUMPING for JOY!!!

Sweet Swine

With the beginning of May came the beginning of this year's 4-H! This is the 2nd year that Ammon chose to do a swine project for the county fair in August.

For his demonstration, he talked about the different breeds of swine at a 4-H meeting:

We chose to get our weaner pigs from a pig farm in Leadore. Here's some of their larger swine:

Ammon chose a little pink one and a black & white one:

We argued the entire hour-long drive home about what they should be named. I personally liked "Porky and Beano" or "Jet & Cord" (the cowboys from the Amazing Race--one had a white hat and one had a dark hat). Josh liked "Guns and Roses" or "Schittz and Giggles".

Ultimately, Ammon got to choose because, well, they ARE his pigs. And he named them...

"Oreo"

and "Frosty".

Property Placement: shedding the shed

(Out with the Old, In with the New: PART 4)

Living in a small house means storage space is limited, so having sheds is a NECESSITY! We have three: his, hers, and a bike shed. My shed was bordering the south side of the house, so moving it was inevitable. Back in January, we decided to take on that task.

We chose a spot for it to go: across the driveway close to where the other two sheds were. But before we could move it, several steps had to happen. That chosen spot for the shed was where Josh usually parks his truck. We chose a different spot for him to park his truck, but that's where the travel trailer is parked. We chose a different spot to park the travel trailer, but that's where a wood pile was. So...Josh cut the wood lengths into blocks, we moved the wood to the other side of the fence, parked the travel trailer where the wood was, parked the truck where the travel trailer was, and we made way for the shed by leveling the ground and Josh poured gravel over the spot. Josh backed up a flatbed trailer next to my shed for me to put all of its contents onto. I didn't want to put all the stuff on the ground, and I didn't want to have to carry everything across the frozen driveway, so this really helped out a lot! I unloaded the shed's contents, and the boys loaded them all onto the trailer for me. I felt like somebody on "Clean Sweep" after seeing everything placed on that trailer. I couldn't believe how much crap was crammed into my shed: grow boxes (kids' clothing), sports equipment, holiday decorations, memorabilia boxes (Josh's & mine), coolers, camping equipment, luggage, baskets, random supplies, blah blah blah, etc etc etc.After the shed was emptied, Josh wrapped a chain around it, and used Grandpa's backhoe to push and pull it the 50 feet to its new location. That was the easiest part of the whole process, and took the least amount of time--less than a half hour!Then the contents of the shed were re-organized and placed inside once again! The new location is perfect! I wish we would've put it there to begin with when we bought the shed and put it together 8 years ago! It took us two weekends to get this entire project done: one Saturday to cut and move all the wood, and one Saturday to move the shed and all of its contents. (in the photo below, the travel trailer is visible at the far left, and the new wood pile is between the trailer and the bike shed).
This was the last preparation on the property that we could do until we were approved for our loan (which didn't happen until May)! We were so excited to finally begin the destruction of the old house!

...to be continued

Physical Preparation: in Anticipation

(Out with the Old, in with the New: Part 3)

When we found out from Wells Fargo in January that we would qualify to buy our home in February (after we received our taxes and paid off a few debts), we started to physically prepare ourselves. We hated to just wait around and do nothing in the meantime! I started with the inside of the house: I cleaned out the kitchen and boxed up any decorations I could, and then I started going through the kids' outgrown clothes, taking some to local families and some to charity. I didn't want to box up anything inside I actually needed, because I didn't know for sure WHEN exactly we'd be moving.

At the end of January, most of the snow was melted, and we wanted to start on outdoor projects that had to be done before we moved. In order to move away the old house and make way for the new house that is twice in size, we had to remove everything surrounding the house that would be in the way during the whole process.

In the front of the house, there was a propane tank, ornamental trees, large rocks outlining the edge of the house, decorative antique equipment, and a covered porch that all had to be removed. This is a photo of the front of our old house, taken in January:

The propane company came and picked up the tank (our new home doesn't use propane). Josh dug up and transplanted the three ornamental trees, and we moved all the large rocks and antiques to a different location.After we switched mortgage companies in February, and we thought we'd be moving out on Saturday March 13, we started taking apart our covered front porch. This is what it looked like at the beginning of March:We took the BBQ grill and chest freezer down to the outdoor pavilion in Edward & Kathy backyard, and then Josh (with a little help from me) removed the covering over the porch, a very time-consuming task. Of course, that first night after we took it down, it rained! We missed the roof as soon as it was gone! We thought it would only be for a few short days, but it turned into 2 months that we lived without it. We never would have taken it down if we'd known it was going to be so long! And, of course, those 2 months were during the middle of Spring, so the rain came down and the mud came into the house (via footprints) constantly. So frustrating!

Now that everything on the front was gone (except the porch itself, which we waited to remove until we knew FOR SURE when we'd be moving out--we learned our lesson with the covering!), it was time to work on another outdoor task.

....to be continued

Bucket List: Items #3, 4, 5

When Josh and I met, we discovered that neither of us had been to a concert, but we both really wanted to. We made it a goal of ours to attend one. Finally, after 8 years of marriage, I got tickets to see Nickelback in concert--with my sisters! Josh said he couldn't go because he'd already committed himself to attend an overnight scout camp/hike. It was totally his loss (especially since he hurt his foot really bad on that scout hike while I was gone!). Nickelback was absolutely amazing in concert!!! And I really enjoyed going to see it with my sisters! After that night, I made it a personal goal to see a concert at least once EVERY year. So far, I've kept that goal. And Josh has come with me to every concert since then, too! We can't believe we waited so long to start going to them! My favorite concerts as of yet have been: Nickelback, Faith Hill/Tim McGraw, and Muse. But you know who I would LOVE to see in concert? U2, Bon Jovi, and Celine Dion. I have loved all three since I was a teenager, and I know that all three would be fabulous performers! Back in February, I purchased tickets for Josh and I to see U2 in concert TONIGHT, but due to an emergency back surgery for Bono, that concert has been delayed until next year. I can't tell you how disappointed I am! Someday, hopefully someday, I will see these favorite performers of mine live in concert!
My Official Bucket List Items # 3, 4, 5: See U2, Bon Jovi, and Celine Dion perform in concert!!!

Cinco de Mayo

As I was tentatively planning out the ward parties for the year back in January, I knew I wanted to do something fun and festive in the spring. Last spring I did an Easter party, and the year before that was an "Around the World" party. I thought a "FIESTA" would be fun, and I planned it to be on the first Wednesday in May, which just so happened to be Cinco de Mayo!!

The day of the party went so smoothly...Josh and John helped me set up tables and chairs (enough for 150 people), I only had to take Kanyon with me to decorate and I got it all done rather quickly, I cooked the hamburger the night before--so the remainder of the food preparations were not stressful, and the party started basically on time!

I decorated the gym with red and yellow crepe paper (for me, crepe paper always screams "Party Time" because my mom used to decorate our house with it whenever it was one of my sibling's birthdays") and the doorways had festive "FIESTA" banners:The table centers were adorned with shiny little red confetti chili peppers:The stage had 5 "FIESTA" pinatas hung from the curtain rods:
For dinner, we ate soft tacos (with all the fixings), chips and salsa, and rainbow sherbet for dessert. I had two sets of tables with all the dinner items on opposite sides of the gym, so that people could serve themselves from both sides of the tables--thus creating four lines. It really made dinner serving so quick and easy, and the time spent waiting in line was reduced dramatically!

After dinner, the kids all made maracas. Weeks before the party, I asked members of the ward to save their empty yogurt containers. I collected them, and then cut out lids from cereal boxes (I admit I pride myself on my resourcefulness). There was two tables at the party set-up with everything the kids needed to create the noisemakers. They chose a yogurt container, a lid, wrote their name on the lid, filled the container with donated dry beans, and then taped the lid to the container. VOILA!! Instant Maraca!!! (and entirely free, too!) The maraca creations were a huge hit! All the kids just LOVED them!!! I taught the kids how to shake their maracas to the beat of music, and then played "La Bamba". The children danced and shook their maracas to the song for everyone to see!!!

The last event for the evening was the pinatas! All the youth were SO excited! Each pinata had 10 strings (one string was the magic one that opened up the bottom letting loose all the candy and favors). All the kids found a place under a pinata, and I told them to hold on to a string, and wait to pull it until I counted to "3". At the sound of "3", candy was dumped all over the stage, and the kids all picked up as much as they could keep in their baggies.

(in the photo below, look at the pinata in front of Josh--the candy is falling out! And see the reaction on Kanyon's face? This picture puts a smile on my face!)

It was the smoothest, best ward party I've ever done! Within an hour of its beginning, it was over! I didn't have one problem (or 'glitch') like I always have in the past! I smiled the whole night and really enjoyed myself! My boys had such a great time, too, and they devoured all their candy that night and shook their maracas for weeks after (don't tell them, but during the house-move, I threw them away).

I told the Bishop after it was over, that since it all went so perfectly, that probably means I'll be getting a new calling soon. And surprisingly, he agreed to that statement!! But the truth is, I really enjoy being the Ward Activities Chairperson. I love creating, organizing, and throwing parties that I don't have to pay for ;)!!!

Goodbye Spring

Today is the last day of May; so for me, that means today is the last day of spring! Over the last 3 months, we've completed the majority of our Spring Top Ten list! Here's a glimpse at the listed items:

1. See the trees bloom and the grass turn green!
It was a cold spring, so the grass and trees didn't turn green until much later than normal. I truly appreciated when they did! The fruit trees just barely blossomed two weeks ago! I loved watching the world come to life again!

2. Go camping at Challis Hot Springs
This was such an enjoyable experience and it's the only camping trip we've taken so far this year (unless you count living in our camp trailer for the past two weeks, which I don't!).
3. Visiting Grandpa Perkins in Spokane
I'm so grateful that I had the opportunity to visit my Grandpa! I spent two nights at his house, and I learned so much about his life and had the opportunity to rummage through some of my Grandma's things, too.
4. Having the golf course open!
This is Josh's 10th year working as Superintendent for the Salmon Valley Golf Course! He loves his job!!! Josh and Ammon both look forward to when the course officially opens each year!
5. Celebrate Easter with the Perkins family!
This was my favorite Easter yet! And winning the golden egg only helped matters!
6. Enjoy our anniversary with a couple's night away!
Our original plan of staying overnight without the children didn't work out, but we did spend an afternoon alone together window shopping, we saw Muse in concert, and we went to the Twin Falls temple!

7. Planting the Garden
Due to the cold weather, we were a little delayed doing this! We finally just planted the garden TODAY!!!
8. Moving into our new home!
This did NOT happen, but we DID move out of our old home and are anxiously awaiting the day when we can move into our new home (hopefully it's sooner rather than later!).

9. Watch Ammon's 4th grade musical program
This was Ammon's final elementary school musical program. We enjoyed watching him and his classmates perform!
10. Attend Jonah and Micah's Kindergarten Graduation
Jonah and Micah sang so well during the musical portion of their graduation! We were so proud of them! And the children looked so wonderful in their caps and gowns!

The Financial Pursuit: a long and weary process

(Out with the Old, In with the New: PART 2)

At the end of November, we started taking the steps to find financing for our new home. We began with the company Quicken, because our home sales company recommended it. Quicken was easy to work with and we were glad! But just two days after being pre-approved by them, Quicken pulled the plug on all manufactured home lending. Due to new regulations set by the government, they chose to not participate in that type of mortgage lending any longer. We were upset, but we went ahead with finding another lender. Our homes sales company started the process for us with Wells Fargo on December 9; and this is where all our lending woes began.

Due to the remoteness and small size of our town, there are no local banks who provide manufactured home lending. The loan officer from Wells Fargo that we were assigned to worked out of Provo, Utah. All of our correspondence with him was over the phone, by email, or fax. After he initially received all of our information, we were pre-approved. We were applying for a conventional loan, and before he could send it to the underwriters, he needed more information. Everyday, he needed different information, such as: a listing of where all the deposits came from on our bank statement in the previous 2 months, an employers confirmation form filled out, a letter proving that our land was put in our name, etc etc. Every other day for several weeks, there was some 'new' thing he needed us to do. Then we sent him $500 for an appraisal to be done, and he didn't receive it for almost 2 weeks. Finally, he sent the papers off to underwriting. After a week, he informed us that we were turned down due to our high debt to income ratio. So he submitted the papers to FHA lending instead. He said we were approved by FHA as long as we paid off a certain credit card. By this time, it was the middle of January. It took us 6 weeks just to get to that point.

In February, our tax refund arrived and we paid off 3 credit cards. For 2 months we were very strict with our budget, and we paid off a 4th credit card. We decided to try getting a conventional loan again because we really didn't want an FHA loan--FHA loans have slightly higher rates and and are required to have mortgage insurance, which meant the monthly payment would be higher. We chose to work with US Bank. The loan officer we corresponded with worked out of a Nampa, Idaho office. He was very friendly and after receiving all our initial information, he told us he didn't foresee any problems with obtaining financing. He needed a few additional documents, he waited for us to send $500 to him for an appraisal. Within just a few weeks, the appraisor came and all the paperwork was done. He sent it off to underwriting. Right before the weekend we thought we'd be moving out, March 13, he informed us there was a problem with the paperwork. The land that we were using as collateral for the loan (equity for a down payment), had a lien attached to it.

Josh's parents own the property that we are putting our home on; it is a part of their ranch. Back in December, they deeded us 6 acres. They paid for a surveyor to come and do a lot split on the ground where we've been living the past 7 years, which is adjacent to their home. They have a home equity loan, and they thought only their house was collateral for it, but apparently it included all the land surrounding the home as well. Their loan was through Wells Fargo,. We still wonder how our own Wells Fargo loan officer didn't catch that problem back in January when it came back from underwriting the first time. We waited for a month for the lien release to come through. Finally, in the miidle of April, it did. After the title company recorded it, they sent it along to US Bank. From there, the situation got ugly.

We'd been hoping and working for financing now for nearly 5 months. In the meantime, our new home had been taken apart and was sitting on the home sales lot ready to be moved. We were careful with our budget and our time planning, because any day we would be moving out of our current house on short notice and we needed to be prepared. We kept thinking that we couldn't commit to activities because we'd be moving that weekend. We told ourselves we couldn't afford to go out to dinner or purchase items because we'd be paying for a mortgage shortly. We were beginning to think that all our efforts would never pay off; we'd never obtain the house that we'd been working so hard to get!

US Bank sent it to conventional lending again, and we were once again denied due to the loan to value ratio. It didn't make any sense to us. The lender said it was the appraisor's fault; the property was low-balled. Our house was worth $110,000 and our land was worth $72,000 but when the appraisor put the two together, he said the entire value was $155,000. So, our loan officer said he would submit our papers to FHA instead. We didn't want to go that route, but by this time, we just wanted financing--no matter what kind or where it came from. He said within a day's time, he would have the decision from FHA. He never called, never emailed. After several days, Josh called, I called, our home sales guy called. Finally, a week later, we were informed that there was some kind of a 'glitch' in the system with our loan submittal to FHA, and that FHA didn't recognize receiving our loan. I didn't understand why he couldn't just RE-SUBMIT it!!!

After another week of hanging in limbo, and not hearing from him, I sent him an email with an ultimatum: I was coming down to Nampa two days later (April 30) and sitting in his office all day until he could get a response from FHA. To which he emailed the reply that we should get financing from someone else. Josh called him, and the loan officer said he would no longer be working on our loan.

We were completely shocked! Josh called our home salesman. Our home sales company is sister companies with US Bank, so they got on the phone with our loan officer's superior, and it was promised that our loan would get the final approval the next day. But, it didn't. The weekend passed. Several days passed. The superior called and informed us that the appraisor that US BANK hired wasn't FHA-approved, and we'd need to have another appraisal done by a different appraisor. Then the loan secretary called and said all our documents that we'd submitted for the loan had now expired, and she needed to call our banks and get a new verification of accounts.

We couldn't take it any longer. By this point, I was so utterly depressed because I'd lost all hope that it would ever happen. We decided to pull the plug on US Bank. They were doing absolutely nothing for us except make our lives hell. Josh went and talked to a private lending firm in town. The head guy there said he would look into finding someone to fund our loan, and just over a week later, he got back with us, saying he found one. Two days later, we walked in, signed the loan paperwork, and picked up a check. The following day, May 13, we drove to Idaho Falls and gave the check to the home sales company. We signed more documents there, and returned home just in time to get a building permit before the office closed.

We'd been working on getting financing for so many months, it was surreal that things could move along so quickly. It's not ideal to work with private financing, because the loan has a higher interest rate and much higher monthly payments. But there's also positives about it: there's a lot less paperwork, no closing cost fees, and no waiting for government inspection on the house before we can move in. We signed the contract with our home sales company before April 30, so as long as we can close before June 30, we will still qualify for the government rebate for new home buyers. We plan to refinance the home this fall. After the house is completely done, we will convert the manufactured house + land into real property, which hopefully will make refinancing much easier than the original financing was!

So, 6 months after we put down our deposit on the house, and dealing with 4 lending firms, mounds of paperwork, and legal documentation, the time had finally come for us to move out!!!

to be continued...

Sunshine, Loves, and Rainbows

Yesterday, I was driving to town and I saw the most magnificent rainbow. I immediately smiled. It was so gorgeous: the bold and vivid colors, the grandeur of the giant structure, and the beauty made me stop and think. I thought of the song "Sunshine, Lollipops, and Rainbows". I thought of Noah's Ark, and the promise that God made to Noah after the flood. I thought of rainbow quotes and the symbolism that in order to see the rainbow, you first have to endure the storm. And for some reason, I thought of my first love.

(this picture was taken with my cell phone, and really doesn't do the rainbow justice)Josh was my 'first kiss' but he wasn't my 'first love'. He was close--he just missed being so by 2 years!

I was 15 years old when I found my first true love. We were in the high school musical "Fiddler on the Roof" together. We both had background roles (aka "chorus"), so during the scenes when the main characters were rehearsing on stage, the rest of us waited on the sidelines for the scenes in which we would appear. It was during those times that I had the opportunity to get to know him better. He was two years my senior, and he was a senior. He had the cutest smile and adorable dimples. He had a fun sense of humor, and was so charismatic. His eyes were mesmerizing and his voice was music to my ears.

I had a crush on him before he ever paid attention to me. My interaction with him began with a frequent smile and short flirtatious conversations. But one day, my twitterpation for him became something of real substance. We were in the large costume closet, looking for costumes (or at least I think so). It was just the two of us, and after a few minutes of chatting, he shut the door behind me and we were alone. We spent over an hour in there, just talking. He was the first man I've ever talked to about real-life things. We talked about school, about family, about friends, about our goals and dreams and futures, we talked about our strengths and our weaknesses, and about our inner selves. We made a connection that day, a real, true, heart-to-heart one. I walked out of that closet a different person than when I walked into it over an hour earlier--and all that had transpired in between was talking!

Because I was just 15, I had to wait to go on a date with him. And since my 16th birthday was in August (3 months after he graduated), I felt hopeless that I would EVER date him!!! We remained friends throughout the remainder of his senior year: I often sat by him at lunch, occasionally I called him on the phone, and frequently I would visit with him at school functions. My first date, shortly after my 16th birthday, was a double date. I went with an acquaintance and the couple we doubled with was him (my first love) and the sister of my date (does that make sense?). After graduation from high school, he went to college for a year before leaving for his L.D.S. mission. I only ever dated him twice: once before his mission, and once after. Both dates are interesting stories, but neither are pertinent to the reason why I'm telling you all this.

I never could have married my first love. In the beginning I thought so (and I hoped and wished for it, too), but after a few years of getting to know him, I knew it would never work between us for whatever reason. But knowing so didn't mean I loved him any less. I often thought about him after I got married, I wondered where he was and how he was, and occasionally I would hear from others what was going on in his life. I genuinely cared about him, and I truly wanted him to find happiness in his life.

On August 30, 2001, I saw him for the first time since I was married. It was the strangest meeting. We were living in Salmon, it was a Friday night, and I had just gotten off work. On my way home, I decided (very randomly, I might add) to stop at a gas station to put a few gallons in my car's tank. I went inside to pay for it, and the lady at the desk was preoccupied. I had to wait several minutes to be helped. Finally, I walked back out to see a truck pulling a trailer stopping at the gas tank right next to mine. A man got out of the truck, and I stopped and stared, unbelieving that it was him. Only once in the 9 years that I've lived in Salmon have I spotted someone from Tremonton that wasn't related or living here--and it was him. He was on his honeymoon and stopped to gas up one last time before reaching his final destination! I yelled his name and ran and gave him a hug! He told me where he was going and why, and I met his new wife. I told him where I was living and what I was doing, and then we said goodbye.

I remember that date so well because of something else that happened on that same day, something that changed my life forever, something that became one of the hardest trials of my life thus far. The details of that life-altering situation are of no importance now, but at the time, I didn't know where my life was headed or if I was going to survive. Several times during that time period, I thought back to how I'd seen him on that very day, just hours before. It helped me to feel so not alone. I think of it now as a gift from God during a dark time in my life.

In 2007, I became in contact with him through the internet. Our lives had both dramatically changed since we'd spoken to each other last, and it was great to catch up online. We became quick friends once again. For several months, we'd sporadically talk and I enjoyed my renewed friendship with him. But, then things changed (as life always does) and we haven't spoken for almost two years now. Once in a great while, I think about him and I wonder how he's doing, and, almost always, I'm just glad that he's found happiness in his life.

Even though I knew I would never marry him, my love for him ended up blessing my life 3 times through periods of hardship. I honestly think that Heavenly Father was mindful of me when He blessed me with the acquaintace of my first love. He knew what was ahead of me, and He knew that I would need someone on earth to bring me hope during those times of trials.

And in thinking about that, it occurred to me that Heavenly Father has blessed my life so many times through the help of many friends and family. I can look back and see where a specific person was placed in a particular time of my life to help me through certain obstacles that I had to overcome.

The majesty of the rainbow, the memories of my first love, the existence of my friends and family in my life are all evidence of God's infinite love for me. And I am truly blessed to have that knowledge!