Dr. Day's Graduation

So, I realize I'm behind once again.  I really need to post pictures from Easter, our trip to Torrey, and other fun pics, but these pictures are on the computer already and I'm thinking about it at this moment so here are the pictures from last weekends graduation ceremony.  Thanks to my fabulous dad for the awesome photography!

We are so excited to be done and to be looking forward to a paycheck!  We appreciate all the love and support from our family and friends!  Congrats to Jordan for all of his hard work!  It was so fun to see some old friends in Iowa as well.  We're grateful for the Moore's allowing us to stay with them.  We had so much fun catching up with our old neighborhood and especially seeing Libby and Brynlee play again.  Hopefully I'll post some pics soon!

Missouri

Thanks for all of your prayers!  Jordan was offered a position in Missouri for a 3 year residency and he took it.  We will be in a small town called Farmington for the first year and then St. Louis for years two and three.  We're excited for a new adventure.  I have to confess though...I've enjoyed Utah more than I'd ever thought I would.  We've never lived separate from, but close to family until now and it's really nice!  We will surely miss it!  My cousin Kellie and her family live in the St. Louis area and we are excited to have some family close there as well.  I have also enjoyed having temples so easily accessible here in Utah.  Excited St. Louis has one!

I don't know a whole lot else about St. Louis (except for the arch), but we really enjoyed the midwest during our three years in Des Moines.  It will be nice we can continue on with Jordan's training without waiting a year.  We are in the hunt for renters again for our townhome in Ankeny.  We have lots of lookers so we're hopeful we'll be able to seal a deal soon.  We have awesome neighbors/friends that are managing and showing the house for us.  They're terrific!

We got to go to the circus a while back with Jordan's sister, Shawna and her family.  Finally have pictures available to post :).  We're missing Landon in these pics, darn it!  Too bad we can't get a normal face out of Brynlee either!  We are also headed out with them soon on a short mini vacation to hopefully a little warmer weather a little further south.  I'm afraid they might be sick of us and ready to ship us to Missouri early! 

Jordan and I were able to enjoy the Sunday morning session of conference at the Conference Center.  I loved conference (as usual).  I especially loved Elder Christofferson's talk on adversity.  I think that we could relate to Elder Brown's feelings as a cut back currant bush over the nearly 3 weeks we were looking for a residency.  So grateful for a loving Gardner who knows what's best for us.  Check out the talk here.

We actually had a residency prior to conference, but the talk definitely meant a lot to us.  Prior to that, we receive a lot of comfort from reading Elder Uchtdorf's talk "Continue in Patience."  Here's the shortened version in a video:

Not much else is new for us.  Brynlee's excited to get to be a big sister and I'm getting fat.  Jordan's busy with clinic and enjoying the last few weeks of his 20's! 

Catch Up Time!

I feel bad that I haven't kept this blog up better over the last little while.  It is hard once you get behind and I struggled blogging about certain things.  I need to get it over with and get caught up so I can use the blog for what is for...keeping you all updated!  I am going to start at the most recent and work backwards.

JORDAN PASSED BOARDS!!! Hooray, that is my very happy news for the day!

We are currently living in South Jordan, Utah.  We are expecting a little girl in August!  I just had my ultrasound last week and she was facing my back perfectly enough that the ultrasound tech had a hard time getting and good profile pics or I'd post one.  The best one I can find that's not scary looking is this cute little foot.  It was wonderful to see that she seems to be healthy and all is ok.  Brynlee is so excited for a sister and we think two girls sounds like too much fun! 

Unfortunately, Jordan didn't 'match' for a residency so we are praying that something comes available.  There is a shortage for his class and there's potential we may have to wait a year and try again.  All of your prayers are greatly appreciated!  We are eager to know where we will be living in only a couple of months but we are learning a great lesson in faith and patience.  We've been blessed in so many ways and we really have no reason to complain.  We're confident it will work out just the way it's supposed to.  We have missed living close to Gramie and Papa and Aunt Nat, but Brynlee has had so much fun getting to know cousins better and Jordan and I have loved being close to his family.  I have especially enjoyed having all my great sisters in law close by.  They are fabulous! 

Brynlee has been doing gymnastics with some of her cousins and loves it.  We both look forward to Tuesday mornings!  I should have been taking pictures and I will repent!  She has been potty trained (completely!) for a few weeks now.  It was a challege to get it all the way done, but she did it!  We are thrilled!  She is getting so grown up and amazes us by what she says.  I have to be ever so careful what I say because she is such a sponge and has a bit of an attitude.  She loves dresses (but they must flare out when she spins) and dancing.  She changes her outfits at least 4 times a day and we must have music playing continuously.  I have taken pictures since I got here, but apparently I stole Natalie's camera cord and left mine.  Bummer.

Brynlee and I got to take a trip to Colorado a few weeks ago and Brynlee enjoyed seeing Aliyah and we got to meet her new cousin Joshua. He's a cutie pie!  It was good to catch up with Jason and Andrea and spend sometime with Gramie and Papa and Natalie. 

Christmas was so fun with Brynlee.  Most of the 'pictures' we took were actually video and I'm not patient enough to upload them.  She still asks if she can have things for Christmas.  It was fun for her to take part in a nativity with my family and our family friends. 

She enjoyed making/eating Christmas cookies!  I learned that there is no such thing as too many sprinkles!

On November 21, Jordan's mom passed away from the effects of metastisized breast cancer.  Because we knew it was coming, we were able to go out a visit a few times before her death.  We are grateful for those moments and the time we were able to enjoy her on this earth.  She was a remarkable woman and wonderful mother.  The more time passes, the more we realize how much she did for us individually and for the family as a whole.  We miss her terribly and are so grateful for the gospel and especially the sacrifice of Jesus Christ that assures us that we can be with her forever.  We actually left Brynlee home in Colorado for the funeral so she enjoyed Thanksgiving without us.  It was our first trip away from her and we really did miss her!

Halloween w/Grandma Day

We were able to visit Utah several times in the fall.  Unfortunately, the circumstances of our visits were unfortunate.  Jordan's sweet Grandma Durfey passed away on September 21 and we went out that weekend for her funeral.  We miss her, her loving hugs and kisses, and her good advice.  She was so kind to me from the day I met her.  I always felt accepted and loved as one of her granddaughters.  I forgot my camera for the event, but it was a very nice funeral with so much posterity that love and miss her. We especially miss her now that we live in Utah.  We wish we could stop by the house and say hi.

Halloween was extra special for us this year.  With Jordan's mother's health declining it was decided that we would have a pseudo-Christmas that weekend.  It was good for us to be able to come out and spend some quality time with her.  She was weak and tired but still able visit and we enjoyed her company for one of the last times.  Jordan's parents had planned to give each granddaughter a doll for their 10th birthday. Knowing that she wouldn't be here for all of their 10th birthdays, each granddaughter was given a doll and each grandson a hunting knife.

It was fun to have the whole family together and enjoy each other.

 Brynlee sported a hand-me-down ladybug costume which was slightly too small, but I think she was awfully cute.

 The Day Halloween crowd! (At least the costumed ones)

Brynlee's doll was special because it is Glenda from Wicked.  Brynlee loves the Wicked songs and sang and danced to them for Grandma.

 Brynlee and cousin Sage

We appreciated all of the good advice and the special spirit that was there over the weekend.  We miss you Mom!

Fall Fun

October was bound to be a good month since we were all together again.  We had a scare at the beginning of the month because the doctor Jordan was supposed to rotate with bailed at the last minute.  Luckily, a family friend who is a physician stepped in and let Jordan rotate with him for the month.  It was so nice to be a family again.  We were able to visit a corn maze/fall festival with Brynlee.  It was a blast and she loved it.

 We also were able to join her cousin Aliyah for her birthday party in Colorado Springs.  Brynlee is jealous of the park they have by their house.

 I swear Jordan has as much fun as Brynlee at the park.  I'm glad he's a kid at heart.

Brynlee was probably more 'helpful' than Aliyah would prefer.  We're glad they are so close to the same age and enjoy playing together.