Work Story

I should've posted this a while ago since it had to do with Christmas, but I'm gonna share it anyway.

So, as part of my job, I check in on different kids who are in foster care. Just about once a month, just to make sure they're healthy and safe. This past month I stopped by a home that has two foster kids living there, a 9 year old girl and a 5 year old boy. This family also has a few of their own kids. When I got there, the kids asked if I would read a story with them, I said yes of course, and they picked out a book. It was a few weeks before Christmas, so they picked a Christmas book. It was about a little lamb who was there in the manger when Christ was born. On one of the pages, the 5 year old boy pointed to Jesus and said, "Who's that?" I said, "That's Baby Jesus." He replied,"Jesus? Our big brother?"

I thought about this on my way home from work that night and it stayed with me through the entire holiday season. I just kept thinking how grateful I was that this foster family had taught this little boy who Jesus was. This boy is only 5 and already in foster care. I think it's safe to say that he is going to have a rough road ahead of him. I am so grateful that he has atleast learned who Jesus is, that He's our brother, and he loves us. I hope that he will always remember atleast just that much.

My job is hard, but it's so worth it. I am so grateful that I get to be a part of these fragile lives and that I can do a little to help strengthen them atleast a tiny bit.


After I told him that yes, Baby Jesus and our big brother Jesus are the same person, he then pointed to the Three Wise Men and said, "I think those are his apostles." I thought that was pretty cute.


I hope everyone had such a wonderful holiday season!

I curse, slash, I love blogs

I just spent over an hour looking at people's blogs. I haven't had anything to do at work since about 2:00 today. I bet these people are real glad they hired me! :)

The Uglies

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Congratulations Sadlers!

My cousin, Bethany, married Patrick Sadler in the Oakland Temple on Friday. We are so happy for them. The both looked so incredibly happy that day! It was a beautiful day and they had a beautiful reception. We were glad we were able to be a part of such a special day.



We had fun spending time with the Lams. I think Nate had fun too, even though it looks like he's being tortured in this picture.

Drive, Sleep, Wait, Drive, Sleep, Wait

This past weekend was a very exciting weekend for our family...PETE'S HOME! Doesn't he look great!? And he's not even that weird. I was really worried that he was going to be quite the weirdo, but surprisingly, he's still himself. :) I'm actually really proud of my brother. He got so smart...well he was already way smart before...but he's REALLY smart now! I'm amazed at how much he grew while he was gone. Go missions!





While we were waiting for Pete, we got bored and decided to document how I am the shortest sister in the family. I also have the biggest feet, I don't get it.



After we picked Pete up, we went to the Cheesecake Factory where my uncle dared Seth to drink a bottle of ketchup for $60. Seth accepted the challenge and drank only a third of it. My uncle still paid him $20 for drinking a third.




The title of this post refers to the obscene amount of driving and waiting we did. Everywhere we went we were with a whole lotta people and it took forever to make decisions and to get moving. Seth kept a log (he had some free time) of everything we did. The breakdown went like this:

Driving 45%
Sleeping %20
Waiting %13
Activities %10
Getting ready 12%

Egg Nog and Polyester Suits

I just love Christmas. I am getting really excited for this Christmas since Pete will be home.

Seth and I went to a Christmas party given by my one of my friends from work. We were supposed to wear our best Christmas get-up. I am so glad Seth invested in this green suit! He won the award for best get-up at the party (I'm not surprised). We had a great time at the party...Thanks Abbie!

Also here's a pic from going to see the lights at Temple Square.

More Birthday

My birthday was like 10 days ago but here are pics of my office on my birthday. I also got one more box of Diet Pepsi from my sis-in-law Lara. That's 48 cans of Pepsi. Twice my age! :) I also forgot to mention that the night before my b-day I went out to dinner with my friends Jamie and Amber from high school and had so much fun.
Sunday was fun celebrating with my family. Ever since I was little it seems like I've always wanted white cake with chocolate frosting on my birthdays. It's not even my favorite dessert but I just always want it on my birthday, so this year I asked for it again and it was delicious!
Anita and Tom, here are the boots that I got with your money you sent for my birthday! Thanks, I love them!

Happy Birthday to Me!

I wasn't really looking forward to my birthday all that much this year. Birthdays just aren't that excited once you stop having parties with cake, ice cream, and mounds of presents. To my wonderful surprise however, this birthday was so great!!

The day started off with pancakes made by Chef Seth! Then, when I got to work my office door had streamers and signs that said, "Happy Birthday Heidi!" and office was decorated with streamers and signs as well! My friend at work, Amber, had gotten to work early to decorate and she also gave me really good hand soap from B&BW. THEN...a few minutes later a few people came and sang Happy Birthay. THEN...my other friend at work Ashley, brought me a 12-pack of Diet Pepsi, a bag of Tootsie Rolls (i love em), and a bag of those tasty Cadbury eggs that they make at Easter, but also make at Christmas now. THEN...my friend Abbie (who I also work with) brought me another 12-pack of Diet Pepsi, a bag of Smartie's (which I also love), and some way cute kitchen towels from Anthropologie(I had mentioned once when we were at Gateway how I loved Anthropologie's kitchen towels and she rememebered!) I know, I was really feeling loved and it was only 11:00! Throughout the day I received text messages and phone calls from family and friends wishing me a great day. My friends from work and I all went out to lunch and it was delish. After work, Seth gave me his presents and a note that made me cry. Oh, and I got another 12-pack of Diet Pepsi from him as well. I think I'll be set for a while. Hey Lara, need some Pepsi?
Speaking of Pepsi, everyone at work thinks I'm sick for liking D.P. They're all Diet Coke drinkers. Seth gave me a yoga mat...which I have been so excited to get. He also got me some snickerdoodles from Paradise bakery (he even wrapped them! so cute.) I Love those cookies.

I just realized almost the entire day was about food. Oh well!

Seth and I later went to dinner at such a good restaurant called, Trio. SOOOO YUMMY. We had an appetizer that made us both think of Seth's mom Anita. When we were eating it I said, "I bet your mom would love this!" and he said he was just thinking the same thing. Ha! Anita, you're probably curious what it was! It was Rosemary Flatbread with carmelized onions, goat cheese, and roasted red peppers and tomatoes.

It was such a great day! Tonight we're continuing to celebrate by going to a play at Pioneer Theater Company. The celebrating will continue until Sunday night when I'll have my family b-day party.

In conclusion, birthdays are so great, as long as you're with people you love and people who love you! Even just getting a phone call or text on your birthday totally makes your day. Birthdays are the best even when you don't have mounds of presents, cake, and ice cream.

Blast from the Past!

A couple of weeks ago I got a comment from my friend MICHELLE GRATZINGER...who I haven't seen in forever! We were such good friends in middle school, then one day she got in a food fight at lunch and got kicked out! I know...way dumb. Well, she went to a different school for 9th grade and all of high school and we lost touch. So, you can imagine, I was way excited to see a comment from her! I was way excited, but when I clicked on her name to see her blog...she didn't have one! So now I have no idea how to contact her. So ATTN: MICHELLE GRATZINGER if you read this...MAKE A BLOG or email me...heidiherway@gmail.com

Oh and everyone should know Michelle too. I remember having so much fun with her in middle school! She was way funny and loved to eat as much as I do! FYI...I love people who love to eat as much as I do.

Chillin Out Max

I think we're posing. I don't know if we're supposed to be reverent or gangsta. This is Pete and me.

I've been tagged

I was tagged by my cousin Rachel. What I'm supposed to do is tell you six things not commonly known about me. When I'm done with it I'm supposed to tag some other people so I'm tagging Lara, Melanie, Natalie, Anita, and Hailee. Here we go:

1. Like Rachel, I think Rachel said this: I am SO AFRAID OF LARGE BODIES OF WATER. I think part of it is that you don't know what's under you! I was told that they have never found the bottom of Bear Lake. That means that anything could be living in it, like some lake sea monster! I also saw a movie once when there were like pirhana's in a fresh water lake. You never know, some pyscho person could breed a species of fresh water pirhanas in Lake Powell. PIRHANAS will EAT you. Of course, I am also afraid of sharks and I don't need to explain that one. But I am also afraid of all fish. Seth tried to make me snorkel in Greece this summer and I lasted .25 minutes. Just long enough to put my face in the water, see a tiny, translucent fish,and freak out. When I was younger I used to think that swimming pools had sharks in cages behind the pools walls and at night they let the sharks out to swim. I always worried that someone would accidentally let the sharks out when we were swimming during the day. I still wonder sometimes.

2. I WAS ALMOST ARRESTED FOR BUYING BEER WITH A FAKE ID. It's not how it sounds, but of course, this all came about because of stupid boys. I was hanging out with some friends one night in Salt Lake. These friends wanted to play billiards at a place where ID was required. I was only 20 at the time, so I had to let them down by saying I couldn't go. Then some wise-a got the idea that it would be SO funny if they tried to get me in with a fake ID. Then another person thought it would be even FUNNIER if they drew a goatee on my face, put a baseball cap on my head, and sent me into the 7-11 to see what the cashier would do if I tried to buy beer with a fake id. Not just anyone's id, but a very large man, which I believe of Middle Eastern descent. (He was with us, it wasn't just some random guy) Now, we were all LDS and didn't want to actually buy the beer, they just wanted to see the cashier's reaction to my ridiculously drawn-on goatee. So, I went in, grabbed a Corona or two and some gum and went to check out. The cashier didn't bat an eye at my goatee and asked for my id. I showed it to her. Cashier: "This is fake. I'm calling the police." Me and everyone else:"No! We were kidding, it's just a joke!" Cashier:"I don't care, it's against the law." The police were called, they arrived, looked at me and started laughing. No charges were filed and I was free to go.

3. I RAPPED MY SIXTH GRADE STUDENT COUNCIL SPEECH: It went like this:
"Hey Joe, Whadda you know?
Student Council is my show
So walk real fast and don't be slow
Vote this week for Heidi Ho!

Got a beef? Want to groan?
I'll make your wants and wishes known
So walk real fast and don't be slow
Vote this week for Heidi Ho!

Be a deer, be a doe,
Be a Larry, Curly, or a Moe
So walk real fast don't tippy toe
and vote this week for Heidi Ho

Student Council is the place
To represent each sixth grade face
So vote me and you'll see
that Heidi Ho is the way to go!
Heidi Ho is the way to go
Heidi Ho is the way to go"

My dad wrote it. And yes, I won. Boo-yeah.

4. I GAINED AROUND 15 POUNDS IN RUSSIA. I have the pictures to prove it but I definitely am not going to post them. I wasn't fed very healthy food while I was there, didn't exercise much, and my daily Snickers bar didn't help much either. Everyone in my group gained weight as well so I guess I just didn't notice I was blowing up so much. We also discovered these chocolate covered cream cheese bar things. The were kinda like little cheesecakes. I know, you're all thinking, "You're lucky you only gained 15! Daily Snickers and chocolate covered CREAM CHEESE?!?! No duh!" Different rules apply when abroad.

5. ALONG WITH MY DOUBLES PARTNER, EMILY BROADWATER, I PLAYED JV TENNIS MY SOPHOMORE, JUNIOR, AND YES, MY SENIOR YEAR. Don't feel sad for us. We were awesome. Our coach however, did not think we were so awesome. I believe he called us "flaky, airheaded, ditsy, and they don't take tennis seriously" something like that. No hard feelings, Jim Hashimoto. We were the coolest JV Seniors ever. We wore intimidating bandanas on our heads, way rockin' sunglasses, we grunted every time we hit to intimidate the other team, and we had a victory dance. We won every game and not just our senior year, cuz of course, we were seniors playing JV! But we were region champs our junior year too. Did you know you can letter for being on JV 3 years in a row? Well you can, it's way cool. Our coach seriously hated us though. The day of our yearbook picture for the tennis team, we were 1 second late and he wouldn't let us be in the picture. We got him back though. We had our own picture of the two of us put on the tennis page and Emily was even quoted! Take that Jim!

6. MY CLOSET DESIRE IS TO BE IN A BROADWAY MUSICAL. I can't carry a tune at all. I think the term is "tone-deaf." But I just think it looks like so much fun to act and sing and wear fun costumes. It'll never happen, well lets hope it doesn't happen. That would be a terrible musical.

Tates and Toot wish you a Happy Thanksgiving!

In honor of Thanksgiving I decided to post this pic. This must be like 12 years old because I think Taylor is only 4 or 5. Aren't they so cute! We spent Thanksgiving in Heber (as we usually do) at Alan and Mary Bluth's house. My Aunt Vicky was up for that Thanksgiving and everytime she's around she always brings a craft, so we all made these frames. This picture is of Taylor and our cousin Ali when they were probably 5. Ali got the nickname Toot, when everyone was telling her how cute she was and she replied, "I not toot!" (toot=cute)Tates got her nickname because she is my father's child and nobody really knows where his nicknames come from. :) Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Enjoy all the turkey, rolls, and pies you can handle!

Our Very First Anniversary!

Seth and I celebrated our one year anniversary this past weekend. We went up to Wolf Creek Resort in Eden, Utah. It was gorgeous up there! Although, we did drive through Ogden to get there, and I have to say, Ogden is quite the dump. (No offense to anyone who likes Ogden.) I was also sick with a cold which was a bummer, but we still had a great time.

My parents gave us an anniversary present of a DVD with all of our wedding pictures set to music. It was so fun to watch and relive that perfect day! Seth and I have said so many times how perfect that day was!

I feel so lucky that I got to marry Seth and that he wanted to marry me too! I really couldn't ask for a better person to have as my husband. He treats me so much better than I deserve. I thought that I loved him when we were engaged and when we got married, but it's amazing how much more I just keep loving him! I can't imagine what it's going to be like when we're 80! That's gonna be a lot of love! :) Everyone knows how great Seth is, but I just wanted everyone to know that I know how wonderful he is too.

We Danced The Night Away!

One of my favorite things about our wedding day, was by far the dancing! I had so much fun at our reception and I think anyone who has seen Seth dance, knows how entertaining it is! He really is a good dancer, but he sure gets into it! His tux was SOAKED with sweat by the end of the night! For days after our reception we both kept saying how much fun we had! We hope everyone who came had fun too!

Conference Champs!

Lanx and her UVU team won their conference tournament last Sunday! It was a great game, despite a really lame referee. He called a bunch of stuff against UVU but failed to notice when lanx totally got WWF'd. Seriously, this girl grabbed Lanx around her waist, flipped her, and dropped her! It reminded Taylor of a game my dad used to do with us (without the dropping part) and it was called BowWowSkiWatinDaddle. So the new term for getting body slammed in a soccer game is now "getting BowWowSkiWatinDaddled." It was still a great game though and there were a bunch of Lanx's friends and supporters there. Grandma Shaw came all the way up from St. George just to watch the game! Seth was sporting his St. Patrick's day suit for the special occasion as well.