Five Amazing Years!

This past week on the 27th Mario and I celebrated five years of marriage. We decided that getting married was hands down the best decision either of us has ever made. It's hard to believe that we have come so far since meeting 5 1/2 years ago. We have built a wonderful life together with 2 little boys and lots of love. Mario is a wonderful husband who works very hard and always puts his family first.

The day started off with gorgeous long stem red roses from Mario. Those were our wedding flower so it was really sweet. Mario had to work all day so I got to play with my family who are visiting. We went shopping so I got a new dress and shoes to wear out to dinner. After Mario got home from work he took me out to dinner while my parents watched the boys. We went out to Mt. Ashland and ate at Callahan's. It is now my absolute favorite restaurant! It is a log cabin resort buried in piles of fresh snow. The restaurant is surrounded with windows to watch the snow fall and our table was right in front of a roaring fire. There was even a very talented guitarist playing love songs. It was very romantic and the only word for it is magical. Plus we figured that since the 5th anniversary is supposed to be wood, eating dinner in the woods would count. My gift however was much better than wood! Mario gave me gorgeous pearl earrings to match the necklace my parents gave me to be married in. I absolutely love them! I gave Mario a white gold tie clip, which he really liked. After dinner we came home and had cake with my parents and siblings.

This is the back of the lodge. Imagine it covered in fresh snow. It was so nice!

The evening was amazing with the beautiful fresh snow, delicious food, jewelry, and of course Mario. I have been so blessed with a wonderful husband that I get to spend eternity with! Only now I told him that if he made our five year so special he better start planning already for our 10 year!

Our first anniversary was spent in Ecuador. This picture is actually Christmas Day on the beach (2 days before our anniversary).

Our second anniversary we had just graduated from school a couple weeks before and had just moved to Washington. This is in Seattle with our friends Jeff and Lauren and Mario's mom and sister. Adam was just a few months old.

Our third anniversary was in 2006 and we had just moved to Medford, Oregon. We went to Washington for Christmas and I think that Mario had to come back early to work so we weren't together on our anniversary. This picture is from Christmas and I love it because Mario kept trying to tickle me during this picture.

Our 4th Anniversary we were in our new house here in Central Point. We both had work that day so I think we just went out to dinner. I was also pregnant with Tyler and pretty sick, but look how big Adam had grown!

Five years later we are a family of four and couldn't be happier!

Everyone has grown so much in five years! Thanks for all your love and support. We have the best friends and family a couple could ask for.

Merry Christmas to All!

There are so many friends and family who are far away today. We love you all and miss you so much! Have a Merry Christmas and know that our hearts are with you. Remember today not only the birth of our Savior but his life.

Love,

Mario, Linda, Adam, and Tyler

100 Books in a Year

I did it! 12 months of reading and I have met my goal of 100 books! I still have almost 2 weeks left so I'm sure it will come to a little over 100 books. I have found that if I set my mind to it I can accomplish any New Years goal. Like when I was younger I went a year without soda or chocolate. I've also done a year without french fries. My favorites have been keeping a journal everyday and reading my scriptures everyday. So here is my list of books. I mostly read in the evenings after the kids went to bed and while nursing Tyler during the night. I also kept a book in my purse all the time in case I am waiting in line for gas or sitting at the park with Adam, etc. I used a rating system where one star means I didn't like it and 5 stars means it is amazing.

1. Twilight, Stephenie Meyer ****
2. New Moon, Stephenie Meyer ***
3. Eclipse, Stephenie Meyer ****
4. The Red Tent, Anita Diamant ****
5. The Christmas Box, Richard Paul Evans ****
6. Shopaholic and Sister, Sophie Kinsella ****
7. Shopaholic and Baby, Sophie Kinsella ****
8. Fire of the Covenant, Gerald N. Lund *****
9. The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho ***
10. The Secret Life of Bees, Sue Monk Kidd ****
11. Brighten the Corner Where You Are, Fred Chappell ****
12. Stacey and the Mystery at the Mall (BSC), Ann M. Martin ***
13. Gathering Blue, Lois Lowry ****
14. Messenger, Lois Lowry ****
15. The Templar Legacy, Steve Berry **
16. Hearts in Atlantis, Stephen King **
17. The Summons, John Grisham ****
18. A Little Princess, Frances Hodgson Burnett ****
19. The Mermaid Chair, Sue Monk Kidd **
20. Matilda, Roald Dahl *****
21. I’d Tell You I Love You, But Then I’d Have To Kill You, Ally Carter ***
22. Sense and Sensibility, Jane Austen **
23. Maniac Magee, Jerry Spinelli ***
24. Tuck Everlasting, Natalie Babbitt ***
25. Final Approach, John J. Nance **
26. Oliver Twist, Charles Dickens ****
27. Danny the Champion of the World, Roald Dahl ****
28. The Covenant, Beverly Lewis ***
29. A Wrinkle in Time, Madeleine L’Engle ***
30. Can You Keep a Secret?, Sophie Kinsella ***
31. Kate’s Choice, Louisa May Alcott ****
32. Shop Till You Drop, Elaine Viets ***
33. Shoes to Die For, Laura Levine ***
34. The Betrayal, Beverly Lewis ***
35. The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, C.S. Lewis ****
36. The Magician’s Nephew, C.S. Lewis ****
37. The Horse and His Boy, C.S. Lewis ****
38. Prince Caspian, C.S. Lewis ****
39. The Undomestic Goddess, Sophie Kinsella ****
40. Humor for a Woman’s Heart, Various ***
41. The Prodigal, Beverly Lewis ****
42. The Revelation, Beverly Lewis ****
43. The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, C.S. Lewis ****
44. The Last Battle, C.S. Lewis ****
45. The Silver Chair, C.S. Lewis ****
46. Gucci Gucci Coo, Sue Margolis ***
47. The Answer is yes: A Novel, Sara Lewis ***
48. Second Draft of My Life: A Novel, Sara Lewis ****
49. Society Girls: A Novel, Sarah Mason **
50. The Silence of John, D.S. Lliteras *
51. The Silent Boy, Lois Lowry ***
52. Number the Stars, Lois Lowry *****
53. Remember me?, Sophie Kinsella ****
54. When We Get There, Shauna Seliy **
55. Eat Well, Lose Weight While Breastfeeding, Eileen Behan ***
56. What to Expect When You’re Expecting, Heidi Murkoff ***
57. The Complete Book of Pregnancy and Childbirth, Sheila Kitzinger ***
58. Names My Sisters Call Me, Megan Crane **
59. Breaking Dawn,Stephenie Meyer *****
60. The Potluck Club, Linda Evans Shepherd ***
61. The Ex-Debutante, Linda Francis Lee ***
62. Digital Fortress, Dan Brown ****
63. The Christmas Train, David Baldacci ***
64. Certain Girls, Jennifer Weiner **
65. The Host, Stephenie Meyer ****
66. Little House in the Big Woods, Laura Ingalls Wilder ***
67. Heiress for Hire, Erin McCarthy ***
68. Three Days: A Mother’s Story, Melody Carlson **
69. Empire, Orson Scott Card ***
70. The Diary of Ma Yan, Ma Yan ****
71. Sweet Home Alabama, Paige Winship Dooly **
72. The Prince and the Pauper, Mark Twain ****
73. Questions To Ask Before Marrying, Melissa Senate ***
74. Journey to the Centre of the Earth, Jules Verne ****
75. You Could Do Better, Stephanie Lehmann **
76. The Christmas Candle, Max Lucado ***
77. The Shunning, Beverly Lewis **
78. The Confession, Beverly Lewis **
79. The Reckoning, Beverly Lewis **
80. Around the World in 80 Days, Jules Verne **
81. How to Behave So Your Children Will, Too!, Sal Severe ****
82. A Mother’s Gift, Britney Spears **
83. The Red Suit Diaries, Ed Butchart ****
84. The Get Rich Quick Club, Dan Gutman ***
85. Gossamer, Lois Lowry ***
86. Pure Drivel, Steve Martin *
87. The Pearl of Great Price *****
88. The Christmas Scrapbook, Philip Gulley ***
89. Life of Pi, Yann Martel ****
90. Amazing Peace, Maya Angelou ***
91. Skipping Christmas, John Grisham ***
92. Princess Academy, Shannon Hale ****
93. Pink Jinx, Sandra Hill **
94. Belle in the Big Apple, Brooke Parkhurst **
95. Grace, Richard Paul Evans ****
96. The Tales of Beedle the Bard, J.K. Rowling ***
97. I Heart Bloomberg, Melody Carlson **
98. Because of Winn Dixie, Kate DiCamillo ***
99. Letters to Malcolm: Cheifly of Prayer, C.S. Lewis ****
100. The Purpose of Christmas, Rick Warren *


Now what should I do in 2009?

Ornament Exchange AKA Partay!

I decided this year to have a party for Christmas. Last week I invited a bunch of friends over for an ornament exchange. It was so much fun to have an evening with just the girls. We ate lots and everyone went home with a different ornament than they brought. It really helped me get into the holiday spirit. I also realized just how many wonderful friends I have! These women are AMAZING! I feel blessed to be surrounded by so many awesome people. The only hard part about the party was that I wanted to invite tons of people, but due to the size of my house I couldn't invite everyone. I think this may become a yearly tradition!

Tyler's First Food!

A couple weeks ago Tyler had his four month check up. I can't find the paper with the exact measurments but he is almost 13 lbs. which puts him in the 10th percentile for weight and then he is in the 25th for height. So tall and skinny?!?! That so does not go with our family genes....lol!

The doctor said that he is ready to start rice cereal whenever we are ready. We have only given it to him once because I don't think any actually got in his tummy. He still thrusts his tongue out when we try to feed him. When I put the spoon up to his mouth for the first time he literally attacked it! He lunged for it with his mouth. It was pretty cute. It's been a couple weeks so I need to try again and see if he actually gets some in his tummy. He won't take a bottle so if I could get him to eat rice cereal I can be gone for more than 3 hours and leave him with Mario or a babysitter!

Family Photos

Today we braved the fridged Oregon weather and had our family pictures taken! My good friend Janice Jones is a professional photographer and did a great job. Check out her website at jmjstudios.com! We did the shoot in Jacksonville, which is a historical little town close to our house. You can check out the pictures here: http://www.jmjstudios.com/client/aguirre

Thanks Janice!

So Much To Be Thankful For

Our family had a great Thanksgiving this year! This is the third year in a row we have been at home in Oregon for Thanksgiving instead of with my family in Washington. I always get really homesick being away from family but our wonderful friends made this Thanksgiving a great day. We headed over to Ned and Anelia's house at about noon and hung out there enjoying appetizers, friendships, and soccer (yeah, Mario would NEVER watch a football game and loves soccer!). Our friends Jason and Joy were also there and Adam had a great time with the kids. Then we went to Julie and Steve Harris's house for dinner. They are our friends from the ward and invited the Jones's, Rees's, and us all over for a traditional turkey dinner. It was great to visit with friends and reflect on all of our blessings. I feel so blessed to have such great friends who always make us feel like family! After a few hours of visiting and eating at the Harris's we headed back over to Ned's house to eat MORE food. I tried out some new recipes this year and they all turned out pretty good. I made a spinach artichoke dip that was yummy, a dinner roll wreath that was okay, and pumpkin cheesecake!

This Thanksgiving was so different then what I am used to, but was wonderful. Every year my family goes around the table to say what they are thankful for. My Aunt Karen suggested that we all have a virtual trip around the table since many of us are away. Twice I have said I was thankful to be pregnant because with both my boys I found out I was expecting the day before Thanksgiving! This year I am thankful not to be pregnant! Just Kidding! All joking aside, I am so blessed. I have a loving husband who is a great dad, a hard worker, and my best friend. I have two adorable boys who make me smile everyday. I have awesome parents and siblings who are my friends. Being a part of the Vander Hoeven Machine is awesome and my inlaws are wonderful people. I couldn't ask for a better family! I have so may great friends who make life all the more fun. And of course I have the gospel of Jesus Christ. I am so thankful that my family can be together forever!

Sorry this post was long! I'll make up for it with some cute pictures : )

Lava Lanes

This past weekend we went bowling with the Jones family! While there we ran into our friend Amanda and her son so we all bowled together! We had a great time eating greasy bowling alley food and teaching our young children the oh so important skill of knocking down pins with a ball. Tyler enjoyed watching us but soon got bored and fell asleep. Adam LOVED it! He had to put the ball down and push it down the lane, which took about 2 full minutes because it went so slow. Amanda's son and Adam had fun together and loved their bowling names, ironman and tree ball (yes, Adam was tree ball and no, I don't get it). London was adorable watching us all bowl and enjoyed cheering on her Mommy and Daddy. But in the end...I WON! Yeah, no big deal...but I kicked butt...hahaha jk! Let's do it again!

Look how happy Adam is bowling!

Tyler and Daddy bonding!

But then Tyler fell asleep. I swear this kid can sleep anywhere!

Mario dancing with London, it was so super cute! They get along so well!

This is my winning bowling stance. I actually am really not good but like to pretend! I took bowling in college and am still paying off those student loans, so I better win! (yes, I took bowling and not economy or something more important..)

Overall a great night!

Pinewod Derby

The Scouts in our ward did a Pinewood Derby Fundraiser this weekend. Mario had absolutley no clue what a pinewood derby car was and was shocked to see a piece of wood we had to carve! It was pretty hilarious! Needless to say, I was the one to make it...and I waited until 2 hours before the derby. Yeah, maybe we should have put more time in...our car never crossed the finish line!!! It was actually pretty funny because Adam was so excited about the car he didn't even notice that is was the WORST one there! But we had a great time and ate way too much food. It was the wards Thanksgiving dinner as well so there was a huge turn out. Great Job to the scouts for a great activity!

Mario and Adam eating some delicious dinner!

Getting ready to race.

No, this is not an action shot! Our car actually was stopped right there before the finish line! Too Funny! But look at Adam running for it...he was so proud.

Happy Birthday Jacki!!!!

Jacki is my cousin and my best friend in the whole world! There is no one in the world quite like my Jacki. She is hilarious and knows more about me than probably anyone...and still likes me (that's gotta count for something)! Jacki is married to a great guy, an amazing Mom to two of the cutest boys on earth, and works for microsoft. I don't know how she does it all! She is always thinking of others and loves being right where the action is. We have been to lots of Mariner games, Nsync concerts, and trips to the mall together. Then of course there are the countless cousin sleepovers and inside jokes. I always have fun when I'm with her! Jacki, I love you millions and couldn't ask for a better friend! Have a fantastic birthday (maybe I'll have a cranberry slush in your honor)!

Midnight Madness!

Twilight came out at midnight last night, so of course I had to be there! Mario thought I had lost my mind and was a little worried about having Tyler for so long (he is yet to take a bottle!), but did great. Adam slept the whole time and Tyler only got fussy the last half hour. I met my friends Crissy and Anya at about 9:30pm (thanks guys for saving me a spot!) and didn't get home until about 3am.

The place was packed and ressembled a stake dance...when did I get old!? Everyone was giggling about boys and doing homework, too funny! We were in our seats about two hours before the movie and got to talk, eat popcorn, and drink soda. It was great! During the movie all the little girlies kept giggling in the weirdest parts and laughing about nothing. And of course there were people saying very loudly things like "That's not how it is in the book!" A little annoying! Oh well....I thought the movie was great!

I love the Twilight books and was so excited for the movie, and was not dissapointed. It was a little cheesy but so were the books. How can they make a superhuman glittering vampire not look a little cheesy! I thought the acting was great and can't wait for the sequels. It's about awkward teenagers who don't know what do with their emotions so the awkwardness of the movie was perfect. At first all the close up eye staring junk bothered me but so mch of the book is Bella's thoughts not action, so it made sense. Go see it and judge for yourself, but I liked it!

I wasn't able to sit with my other friends because they were in another theater, but we had quite a group (the picture is a very small few)! Most wearing our awesome Bite Me! shirts (thanks Michelle!). And I went in theory with my Mom, sister, aunts, and cousins via cell phone calls in the middle of the night...hahaha!So now I have to go see it again, who wants to come!

Tyler is All Smiles

I have never seen such a happy baby! Tyler is always smiling, giggling, cooing, and even full out laughing. He is super ticklish and laughs whenever I wipe his bottom or take off his clothes. It is the cutest thing. We have been very blessed with a happy little guy! And on a side note...He is rolling over! I thought I still had a month or two before I had to worry about him being mobile, but nope! He can roll from his back to his stomach...he's growing way too fast!

The Reason I Had Kids

So I figure we should have 4 kids...1 for the kitchen, 1 for the bathrooms, 1 for the yard, and 1 for the laundry. Totally kidding! But it was nice to have Adam cleaning along side me today. I was washing down all of our white woodwork and cabinets when Adam decided to clean the floors. He actually did a great job and kept saying how much fun he was having. Then he cleaned his whole room all by himself (which he does pretty often) and had me walk in with my eyes closed so he could suprise me with how clean it was. I'm sure this excitement for cleaning will fade fast so I am taking full advantage while I can!

Good Idea Turned Bad!

So tonight before putting Adam to bed, I decided for scripture study I would help him memorize "The First Article of Faith". Seemed like a great Idea....WRONG!

Me: Copy what I say, alright. We Believe in God, the Eternal Father

Adam: We bewieve in God, the INternal Father

Me: And in His Son, Jesus Christ

Adam: And in His Son, Jesus Christ...Oh mommy I know who Jesus is!

Me: Good Job! And in the Holy Ghost.

Adam: No Mommy! Ghost's are scary! Is it like a spooky Halloween Ghost?

Me: No, he's a nice Ghost and helps us to be safe and happy

Adam: So the scriptures are all about scary ghost and mean people, huh?

Yeah, so this went on for quite a while until I was able to convince Adam that the scriptures are not spooky....

I just had to laugh!

Lucky Number 8!

My little sister, Jennie, tagged me and since I want to be just like her when I grow up I figured I should do it!

8 Favorite TV Shows
1. The Office
2. Desperate Housewives
3. The Hills
4. Survivor
5. Rachael Ray
6. What Not To Wear
7. iCarly (I know..Lame, but the Miranda Cosgrove is so cute!)
8.The Amazing Race

8 Favorite Restraunts
1. Kaleidoscope Pizza
2. NoHo's Hawaiian Cafe
3. Olive Garden (Salad!)
4. Red Robin
5. The teriyaki place by Jeff and Val's House
6. Millhollow (sandwiches and frozen yogurt)
7. Sonic (cranberry slushes!)
8. McGrath's Fish House

8 Books I'd Recommend
1. The Book of Mormon (Along with the Bible and other standard works)
2. Harry Potter Series
3. Twilight Series (and The Host, all by Stephenie Meyer)
4. Number the Stars (actually everything by Lois Lowry)
5. Women of Genesis Series by Orson Scott Card
6. The Chronicles of Narnia
7. Everything that is by Roald Dahl
8. The Kingdom and the Crown Series (by Gerald Lund)

8 Things that Happened Yesterday
1. Dropped Mario off at work and later picked him up
2. Went to the Church for Super Saturday where I got to catch up with lots of friends!
3. Made a Table Runner, some Christmas tags and a 12 days of Christmas Book
4.Took a class on Christmas Appetizers for Parties
5. Went to Old Navy where I ran into Chris and Janice and bought some stuff
6. Read stories to Adam and Tyler
7. Got a headache from not wearing my contacts (I have pink eye)
8. Read Skipping Christmas By John Grisham after the kids went to bed

8 Things I'm Looking Forward To
1. Hopefully getting a new car tommorow!
2. TWILIGHT!!!
3. Thanksgiving
4. My family coming for Christmas!
5. Our family Reunion in Southern Nevada (January)
6. Tyler sleeping ALL the way through the night (7pm-7am!)
7. Adam having no more accidents!!!
8. Our trip to Ecuador (hasn't been planned yet but we are hoping to go soon!)

8 Things on My Wish List
1. A car!
2. Cute clothes that are a size 4 (oh and a body that will fit them!)
3. A new dining room table
4. A new TV (we got ours for free 5 years ago...)
5. An hour to sit in the jacuzzi and read with no disruptions
6. A baby girl (SOMEDAY! Don't get too excited Mom and Dad!)
7. A bigger SD card for my camera
8. A trip to Ecuador!

8 Things I Love About Fall
1. The Colors
2. The Clothes
3. The Crisp Air
4. My Birthday
5. It gets dark earlier so Adam will go to bed at 7!
6. New shows on TV
7. Mario gets off at 8 instead of 9....yay!!!
8. The Decorations (pumpkins, leaves, etc.)

8 people I tag....
EVERYONE!

ANSWERS!

Everyone did pretty well telling the boys apart! Even Mario and I had a hard time with it, so don't feel bad if you got some wrong. The Answers are:

1. Adam
2. Tyler
3. Adam
4. Adam
5. Tyler
6. Tyler

So Alisha, Mom and Dad, and Jacki got it right! Yay (but there is no prize lol)!

Who's Who?!?!

Every once in a while, as I hold my cute little Tyler, I have flashbacks to exactly 3 years ago when Adam was the same age. They look so alike to me! Tyler is bigger and growing faster but they still look so alike. They have a lot of differences in personality, likes, and dislikes though.

So I made up a game almost as fun as Monopoly! It's called "Guess which Aguirre Baby I Am". I'm going to post pictures and you have to say if it is Tyler or Adam. Good Luck!

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I've been tagged!

So Savannah tagged me (you are so busted! jk). I don't know if I have anything interesting for this, but I want to see what other people write. Here goes!

1. I was a mascot wrangler for the MLB All-Star game when it was in Seattle (2001 I think). I got to go on the field during the warmup and watch the homerun derby from "behind-the-scenes". My mascot was cool so I told him who I wanted to see and he made it happen. In fact, I almost got hit in the head by a ball Cal Ripken Jr. hit. It was pretty fun, especially because so much of my family got to do it too!

2. I've been to five Nsync concerts....and would go tomorrow if there was one! In Arizona we got into the after party and were really close to them. And we got pretty close all the times outside their hotel....yeah I'm a little crazy.....don't tell Mario (he hasn't figures it out yet) ;)

3. I went to community college instead of high school my junior and senior year. Yay for free college!

4. I've never once gotten in a fight with my parents...probably because they are awesome and my mom and I have the same brain. Really, we finish each other's sentences and have the same headaches.

5. I was only at the hospital for 45 minutes before Tyler was born. I showed up at 7cm and didn't have time for an epidural. Yeah, no fun! I was at Costco eating cheese pizza with my Mom at 1:30 and he was born at 3:30. Mario barely made it to the hospital. (This was after 2 days of constant contractions, so don't think I got off too easy!)

This was taken on the way inside the hospital at 2:45 pm, between contractions.

This was our little gift from God who arrived 45 minutes later at 3:30pm!

6. Mario and I met in April 2003 and were married that December after being apart the entire Summer. We spent less than a month in the same state as each other before we were engaged. We had huge phone bills and conversations at very weird times of the day. We were always in different time zones, some examples, I was in Hawaii while he was in Idaho, I was in Seattle while he was in Ecuador and then New Jersey.

This was taken at Salinas Beach in Ecuador on Christmas Day. Yes, Christmas on the beach! This was 2 days before our 1 year anniversary.

7. I am TERRIFIED of rats/mice/bats...any RODENT! Eww, Yuck, Gross, I would rather come face to face with an axe murder in a cemetary at midnight on Halloween than have a rat in my house. This is a picture at Hawthorne park about an hour before a mouse tried to kill me. I don't think the people in that park have ever seen a pregnant lady run so fast!

I am going to tag Alisha, Crissy, Adrian (because I am trying to force him to actually write on his blog!), Heather, Jacki, my mom, and Daniel.