R.I.P. Little Shelby

Our sweet little hamster Shelby (my favorite of the 3) left us on 9/30/10. We think it was just old age (he's about 1 1/2 and Dwarf Hamsters only live about 2 years). He was just fine that morning, running around and stuffing his face with food as usual, but when we came home from picking up dinner that night, he was gone. He had laid down next to his favorite spot in the cage and we'd like to think just went to sleep and passed peacefully.

We will miss you our little silver buddy!

More Testing

Marcel went in on 9/28/10 to Salt Lake Fire for a bunch of testing and interviews. He started at 11:30 and didn't get done until sometime between 3 and 3:30! In preparation for this they sent him a packet with a bunch of paperwork that needed to be completed and brought with him. He had to get 3 referrals from friends, 3 referrals from previous employers, copies of his Drivers License, passport, birth certificate and high school diploma; Get a copy of his criminal history and driving records, fill out 2 different packets, one regarding family life and the other life history.

They also sized him for a uniform but told him that it wasn't a job offer, it would just make things move along faster if he is hired. He also went in today, 10/4/10, to see a psychiatrist (required by them) which he said was weird. The guy just asked him some questions from the form he filled out, did some strange number sequence testing, and other random things (which probably weren't random to the psychiatrist). He told Marcel that he did well on his other tests so that's a good sign! Now he just has to get a physical and then we play the waiting game again. Hopefully this will have a happy ending/new beginning! That's a whole lot of work for nothing if not! We'll see!

Random Events

Here's a post with some random pictures of random things in our life lately.

Here's an awesome shirt that Pascal got for Marcel! He saw this at the store and couldn't resist getting it for him because it is SOOO true! Really though it doesn't interrupt our marriage too bad because we both enjoy! Oh well it's still an awesome shirt!

We found this sweet hat at Sportsmen's in Provo. It was on a mannequin and I snatched it as soon as I saw it (but paid for it of course)! It is my favorite hat and I just love it!

I also got this shoulder strap to go with my guns! Love it too!

I went to my parents house for a visit the other day and they barbecued hot dogs for dinner. Well Jessica is very conscious about what she eats (not like she needs to be because she looks great!) so she had a turkey dog while the rest of us had a good ol' American hot dog! You can see the difference! She was able to fit 2 turkey dogs in 1 bun and it was still smaller! I wish I had has much willpower as Jes but I just love my food too darn much!

The other night Marcel dished us up some ice cream and this is what I saw when he handed me my bowel! What a sweety! I LoVe ThAt MaN!

We found Toby a Halloween costume at the Payson Walmart and it's FaNtAsTiC! It's a dog wig and a little hoodie that says "Lil' Monster". He looks so darn cute in it, don't you agree?! He's not a big fan of the wig but he'll have to wear it when it's time to dress up again!

The other day the sun was super red from the big fire south of Nephi. Marcel was able to snap this cool picture. It's so crazy that the smoke from the fire affects the sun like that.

That's all for now!

Toby's Terrible Tantrums

So as it has been shown in a prior post, Toby doesn't do very well at staying contained in his play pen. He had chewed a hole in one side so we covered it. He chewed a hole around the covering so we turned the play pen around so that the hole was against the wall. That little bugger just chewed another hole!
To fix that we went all out and built a redneck fort! We begin with the glass door covering the top (which has been there since Toby discovered the springs in his legs), move down to the exercise step covering the hole (because heaven knows it's not used for exercise!) which is held up by one of our kitchen chairs. Next to that covering the holes extension is our oil heater (which wasn't plugged in so no worries). Yep all we're missing is duct tape and an antenna! Even after all of this, he was still getting out. We have no idea how either because he is too big to squeeze through the hole against the wall and everything is still standing that covers the holes in the front so....yeah, no clue. Toby have you been watching "Mind Freak"?! So to fix the problem (once and for all we hope) Uli borrowed us her big dog kennel because Ginger (her dog) doesn't use it.
He looks sad in those pictures but he actually quite likes it! Every time we have to put him in there we just grab a treat and stand by the kennel and he runs in and sits down so he can have the treat! Such a good dog! He hasn't figured out how to break out of it yet but I wouldn't be surprised if he did (okay maybe a little since it's thick plastic and metal)!

On another note, I think he hit his "Terrible Twos" in dog years because he went on a destroying spree for a while! When he was magically getting out of his play pen I kept coming home to messes (luckily no potty messes though). If there was any paper out, he would find and shred it. Shoes by the door would be drug around the room or up on the couch. Also no, he is NOT allowed on the table.

Another time while I was HOME he decided to shred the tag on our mattress (I was washing the bedding so it was exposed and vulnerable) which really isn't that big of a deal but then he moved onto the wall! Argh! Oh you better believe he was in trouble (which he knew hence him hiding under the kitchen table). Lets just say he hasn't shred a paper or the walls in a while!
*Sigh*....this puppy really pushes our buttons sometimes but we definitely love him! Over all he is a very good dog and loves us as much as we love him. We wouldn't change a thing about his goofy little personality!

A peek at me!

Seven Things I Can Do:
1. Baby Marcel when he's sick or injured!
2. Be crafty/creative
3. Make yummy desert (normal food is a different, not so good story!)

4. Listen

5. Care about others more than myself
6. Talk to a stranger like a long lost friend
7. Dream big!

Seven Things I Can't Do:
1. Jump very high
2. Cook Mac&Cheese the same way twice
3. Drive the exact speed limit (I'm usually going around 5 over)
4. Go a whole day without laughing (I have some pretty great people in my life!)
5. Go 1 week without talking to my family
6. Mornings!!!
7. Watch an entire scary movie with my eyes open and ears unplugged!

Seven Nicknames I have:
1. Jen
2. Hun
3. Face/Facer
4. Snow White
5. Minerva (something my Grandma W. used to call me)
6. Jenni-Pooh(only my mom could call me that and I was very young, so don't start!)
7. Klepto (softball name for stealing bases)

Seven Things I Say Most:
1. I love you!
2. Face/Facer
3. Don't
4. For Real?
5. Duh!
6. Huh?
7. Brian and Christie's office, this is Jennifer! Lol!


Seven Goals for the Year:
1. Be a better wife
2. Be a better friend
3. Be better at keeping the house clean
4. Exercise regularly
5. Eat less junk food (this will be a toughy!)
6. Get into better shape to be more confident in myself.
7. Be more positive and optimistic

Seven Reasons I Fell In Love With Marcel:
1. Very first it was his stunning blue eyes and charming smile
2. Next it was his laugh and the way he makes me laugh
3. His personality is one of a kind and it is amazing
4. He can always cheer me up when I am down
5. He is ALWAYS there for me
6. His cooking (he is a pretty darn good chef!)
7. He has seen me at my very worse (so far) and still loves me just the way I am!

Seven Things I Love to Eat:
1. Potatoes in any form (mashed, baked, fries, etc.)
2. Marcel's chicken Enchiladas (oh so good!)
3. Sweets (that is vague for a reason! There are way too many of theses that I could name!)
4. My mom's home-made salsa
5. Black pitted olives (especially when you stick them on the ends of your fingers!)
6. Fruit/Veggies
7. Pasta (I may secretly be part Italian!)

Seven things I can't live without:
1. Marcel and our families
2. My doggies (Storm, Demon, & Toby)
3. My phone
4. Laughter
5. Food ;)
6. A camera to document memories
7. Sunshine and an occasional rainy day!

Uli's Graduation

My dearest mother-in-law, Uli, graduated from nursing school on Sept. 22,2010! We were unable to make it because Marcel had to work and I was home, sick with the stomach flu but luckily Pascal was able to get some good pictures for us!

We are so very proud of her for this great accomplishment and for her strength in being able to push through any challenge that arises in her life. She is a great woman and a great example. I'm so happy that she is Marcel's mom and a part of our lives :)! We love you Uli and couldn't be more proud!

Setting up Trail Cam

On Sept. 19 we decided to hike up into a canyon to set the trail camera up so we can find a nice buck for me to get for the rifle hunt. Marcel had a few different canyons in mind so we chose the easiest one of them and began our hike. We ended up stumbling across this handy-dandy spring.

After walking around and scouting the area for a bit we decided to set the trail camera up near the spring.

We also set out some salt, berry mixture, and acorn feed to help our odds a bit!

We had to get a few pictures of us enjoying the beautiful day!

On our hike back to the truck I almost stepped on this little guy! He was so tiny! I would say that his body could fit on top of a quarter! So cute!

It was a pretty toasty day and luckily Marcel packed some water. It was very refreshing!

I couldn't help but take some pictures of the beautiful scenery. I love this time of year because all of the leafs are changing and it's gorgeous!

A week or so after we set the camera up Marcel was talking to a friend and found out that where we set everything up wasn't the best place because it's on the border of some one's property and there aren't very big bucks that go there. We have yet to go retrieve the camera but we'll be doing that soon. Marcel has an idea for another place that we're going to try so we'll see. Hopefully we can get lucky!