I cried all through it...

So 3 weeks ago the 1st counselor in our Bishopric asked Spencer and I if we would speak in sacrament meeting today. Our topic was trials. We both agreed and today we spoke. I had gone over and over my talk and never got choked up. Nonetheless, there I was facing our whole ward and I craked. I was able to get through the introduction and maybe the first paragraph but from then on it was words mingled with sniffles and a scratchy voice. I'm not sure why this always happens to me. Everytime I talk in sacrament, which has been an average of every 2 years, I end up with watering eyes. Both Spencer and I know that I'm not an emotional girl, in fact I think Spencer has only seen me cry 2-3 time in the (almost) 3 years that we've been married. I can say 4 times now. I wish I would have been able to hold my own, there was so much in my talk that I'm sure they missed out on because they simply could not understand what I was saying. Maybe this is my trial. Other than that, this sunday was wonderful. Spencer's talk was really good too and of course he made everyone laugh with his football joke and telling everyone that he was going to sing "Count Your Many Blessings" to them. Nursery went very smooth and Kate did a great job as my helper.

Ahh-choo!

For the past two weeks I have had the worst allergies. The puffy, itchy, watering eyes, the stuffy but yet runny nose, the sneezing, and the scratchy throat - yep I had it all. It's was so bad that I even got a sinus infection from the allergies and random people asking me if I was OK. I tried everything and I have to say that a Kenalog shot in the bum is the one thing that worked. I got the shot on Friday so I'm crossing my fingers that by tomorrow I'll be cured. However, for itchy eyes I found a really good eye-drop called Zeditor. It's been torture the last couple of weeks and I'm anxiously waiting for my body to go back to normal.

15 Months!

Kate and I attended her 15 month check up. I know it's good to go to her "Well Check-Ups" but I always have a hard time handing over the 20 dollars to hear the doctor say, "Well, everything looks good - we'll see her again in 3 months." It's just hard because I know she's fine and that all is good with my little girl. I guess I pay for the shots. It was two this time, MMR and Chickenpox. On the upside of things, Kate is growing very slowly but growing nonetheless. Here are her stats:


Length: 28 1/4 - 5%

Weight: 17lbs. 6oz. - below the 3%

Head Circ. 46.1 cm - above the 50%


So she's got a little body and a big head. It's why she's so smart. Hehe. These are some pictures I took before the doctors.

House work

Thursday Spencer didn't have any appointments so he was able to do some house work for me. I needed another shelf put up in our laundry room so we could squeeze some more storage out of this condo. What we thought would be an easy project turned into a construction zone. Poor Spencer, fixing up things is just not he's forte. He and his little helper worked on it for a while yesterday afternoon, took a trip to Home Depot for some needed items and then worked on it some more that night. I still only have one shelf and our laundry room is off limits nonetheless, I know Spencer will pull through like he always does.

Special Olympics

Spencer volunteers to coach the Special Olympics basketball team here in Lehi. Kate and I went this last Tuesday to their practice. We were their cheerleaders. Here are some pictures of the team. Go Lehi Angels!!!

What's that noise?

I have been wanting to post this but felt like I needed to keep all my Florida Trip posts together even though this happened a few days ago. Ever since we came home I would hear this strange sound coming from what sounded like the walls of our laundry room. At first I thought it was water draining from our washing machine or our neighbors using their water, after all we do live in a condo, however the noise was so random and the more I heard the noise it sounded like scratching. Then it finally hit me... it's a Rat! I freaked out. Eww! I think we have rats, was the first thing that came to my mind. I could just picture it in my head, this big fat rat with it's long tail running back and forth making a home for it's 99 babies. I worked myself up so much that I couldn't pass by our laundry room. I called Spencer and told him what I had just figured out and how disgusted I was. Good thing Spencer only had 2 morning appointments and was able to be my Knight in shining amour and protect his family from this nasty rat infestation. I could not be in the house when Spencer was going to move the dryer and unhook it to see what we were actually dealing with so I took Kate down to Rachel's where we could be safe from any rat attacks. Next thing I know there's a knock on Rachel's door. It was Spencer with our dryer's aluminum coil made into a circle. He asked if we wanted to watch as he let out whatever was in there. I hesitated and then grabbed Kate and stood on the threshold of the doorway with Rachel holding Brooke and Austin in front of us. Spencer set the coil on the grass and a bird flew out?!?! Ahhh, I sighed what a relief. It was a poor little bird. Much better than a rat.

Florida Trip Part 5

The last few days in Florida we had a BIG Bori Beach Bash. We thought it would only be appropriate to go to the beach one last time. However, this time was a little different because it wasn't just our family but the whole "Bori" family. Mama, aunts and uncles, cousins and even friends of my cousins came to the beach to have one last Who-Ha before we left. We picked St. Pete Beach, which is now Spencer favorite beach, as the party place. The gals sat around talking and watching the kids while the guys got an energetic game of football started. Kate was so funny because she decided that she did not like the sand anymore and would not for the life of her touch, stand, sit or play in it. She spent most of the day on my lap. On her behalf I have to say that she was teething and wasn't feeling all that well. The weather was perfect - a little over cast but still warm with a slight breeze. We all played on the beach until around 7-ish and then hunger struck. We got ready as fast as possible and went to eat at the Ooh-la-la Village Inn. With a party that size it took forever to get our food and by then Kate had enough. Enough of the sun, the sand, the noise the madness - she was just so tired and off her normal routine. After Spencer and I got our food and inhaled it we left to put Kate down to sleep. Nonetheless, the party didn't end after dinner even though it was about 9:30 because the hotel we were all staying at was having a Karaoke Night. So after dinner our whole group set out for the lounge of the hotel to sing our hearts out. We busted out some really bad Karaoke and had a really good time doing it. Elena, Gillane, Rachel and I (my sis. and cousins I grew up with) all did one together for old time sake. We dedicated our song, "Any Man Of Mine" to our hubbys’. Despite the fact that most of the lounge was filled with my family, we rocked the hotel with our little diddy. It was so fun! Kate not wanting to touch the sand.Kate, Austin, and D-Bo getting a ride up and down the hall on the luggage carrier

The next day started early with the beach in the morning (no football today – the men wore themselves out the day before) and after lunch we headed over to the hotel pool. Try to picture a group of 40 coming in form the beach and all crashing the pool area. We literally took over the shallow part of the pool. There were all sorts of contests to be had. For example, the guys having to carry someone on their backs from one side of the pool to the other, good ole' handstand, keep away, and many more activities. Around dinner time we decided to go back to my uncle’s house so the party could continue. We ordered pizza and dance and played night games until 1 in the morning. Needless to say by the time we all got home we were pooped. There are many things my family can't do but one thing we've got down is how to party. I thoroughly enjoyed myself but Spencer was ready to go home and sleep after the pool but like the champ he is, he hung in there until finally we were able to flop onto our bed. Spencer and George trying to catch a bird by holding chips up in the air. Neither one caught a bird.Boys vs. girls in a game of keep awayD-Bo, Kate, Austin and Emily going on a gator ride. Kate loved that thing.

Sunday was another much needed day of rest. I have to admit that though I've been married to Spencer for almost 3 years now, I've never seen him as worn out as I did that Sunday and Monday. Both days all he wanted to do was to do nothing. We missed church on Sunday but to make up for our lack of spiritual nourishment Spencer gave a wonderful quote that started a spiritual debate that led from one gospel topic to another. What started to be a 5 minute quote became a 3 hour "Bori" style discussion. So even though we didn't make it to church I did get 3 hours of gospel conversation in. Hehe

Monday was a bitter sweet day. I was glad to be going home to our everyday routines but sad that we were leaving family behind. Rachel and Anthony were on our same flight home. Kate did fine the first hour and a half and horrible the next hour and a half. Then she finally fell asleep for the last two hours of the plane ride. Stepping off the plane and feeling the dry air of Utah made me sigh. Ahhh..... Utah. Home again home again! It sure felt nice.

Just like that it was over... our big 2 week summer trip that we had been counting down to for nearly 5 months had come and now gone. It was a wonderful experience and I'm so grateful that we were all able to do it together. I love spending time with family and couldn't have asked for a better vacation.

Thanks to MaMoo and D-Bo for the use of their home, Georgie for the hoopdy van, Rachel for planning out all of our activities, Kaitlyn, Emily, and Nicole for helping with Kate and most importantly a big thanks and smack-a-roo goes out to Spencer for making all this possible and being there with me to share all this with.

Florida Trip Part 4

So one week down and one to go. Monday through Wednesday we were in Key Largo. There we were able to do lots of snorkeling and we even went scuba diving. The 5 hour drive down to Key Largo wasn't too bad at all. We left early enough that for the most part the kids slept through it. Our hotel was really nice (Thanks Rachel for putting that together). There was just so much to do and see that I didn't take as many pictures as I should have. I know shame on me. Some of the things we saw snorkeling or scuba diving were a huge spotted eagle manta ray, two sea turtles (Nicole and I got to touch one of the turtle's shell), lots and lots of fish - all colors and shapes, a manatee, lobsters, lots of jelly fish, and get this... a few sharks. It was so cool. However, poor Spencer, his feet were not made for flippers. By Wednesday I think he had a total of 6 blisters on his feet. His feet were pretty much covered with band-aids the rest of the time we were in Florida. I told him the salt water would help heal them. Hehe. Great memories were made while we relaxed by the pool, tried to communicate under water, or when we all stayed up into the wee hours of the night talking. More pictures to come - I have to get our underwater film developed.

Thursday I got to see my very good friend Lauren. We went to High School together and she now lives in Tampa, Fl. We got lunch at 5 Guys Burgers. It was the first time any of us had been there and it was really yummy. I tried to get her to come out to Utah. I told her that we could find her a man, a real man. Hehe. She said she'd think about it but I'm pretty sure that my Lauren is a Florida gal.

Florida Trip Part 3

OK back for some more. Saturday we made our way to the Gulf coast. On this side of Florida there are hardly any waves and the water is always so nice. My mom had brought some kitchen utensils for the kids to play in the sand with. In this picture Kate was playing chef and make some delicious sand casserole. Want some?

Spencer Got this shot of me just enjoying the sand between my toes and of course people watching. One of my favorite things to do at the beach is people watch because you see the most amazing things there.

Soon I too started to play in the sand and did this magnificent art work. It took hours so I just had to take a picture.

On our way home we stopped for some refreshing ice-cream. With our tummy's full and being all beached out most of us fell asleep the rest of the way home. We found you have to get sleep when and wherever you can.

Sunday, finally a day of rest. Church didn't start until 1pm so we were able to sleep in and just lounge around the house until we had to get ready. I was in shock at how small of of a ward we went to. A few people here and some over there. It was so nice to experience a quiet sacrament meeting. Spencer took Kate for Sunday School and then also for Relief Society so I could attend for the first time in years due to my callings. It was nice and thanks Babe for watching Kate.

After church my mom, the most wonderful cook in the world, made some really yummy steaks and cheesy potatoes. We stuffed ourselves full and then a little bit more. It was so good. We all tried to go to bed early that night because we were leaving for the Florida Keys at 4 in the morning the next day.

Florida Trip Part 2

Thursday we decided to go to Sea World with the whole family. It was hot, humid and tons of people there but I know Kate liked seeing all the animals. We rented a stroller for all 3 kids and my Dad was the designated driver (Scary!). They all enjoyed the wild ride of zooming in and out of people walking the other way. Thanks D-bo for being such a crazy and fun stroller pusher - Kate loved it! One of the best shows was the Pets Ahoy Show. The whole show was based on cats, dogs, birds, mice, and a pig. It was really cute. Spencer loved it too. Probably because it was in an air condition theater. Anyway while we watched all the animals perform, Kate fell asleep. Spencer offered to stay there with her while the rest of us went to get seats for Shamu. When she woke up he met up with us at Shamu Stadium but accidentally left our camera and her sippy cup at the Pet's Ahoy theater. When we realized we didn't have our camera or her sippy cup we hurried back to find they sent everything over to Lost and Found. We went to the Lost and Found and were able to get our camera back but the sippy cup was gone. Interesting that someone stole our sippy cup but not the camera. I guess someone needed it more than Kate. So needless to say all of our Sea World Pictures are at the end of our trip right before we left the park. Oh well, we'll do better next time. On the up side Spencer won Kate a stuffed animal dolphin. She loved it!

It was such a hot day that when we came home we all decided to jump into the pool. It felt so refreshing. My grandma, who lives next door decided to join us and with everyone in the pool splashing around and having every water contest you can think of, it was the end to a perfect day.

The pool felt so good that on Friday we did a quick clean of the house. Believe me, with 11 people staying in one house it gets dirty fast. We also had a pool party. My sister invited some friends over to play some B-ball in the pool with my Dad, Anthony, and Spencer. Again Mama came over - she just can't resist a party. It was nice to just relax in the pool. We loved it!

Florida Trip Part 1

The last two weeks our family took a vacation to sunny Florida. Spencer and I hadn't been back there for two years and we were both really excited to return and enjoy all the wonderful things Florida has to offer as we try to relax with the family.

Our trip started Tuesday afternoon when our plane left for St. Louis. Both Spencer and I were very nervous to fly with Kate but to our surprise she behaved really well. In fact she made friends with almost everyone around her. The stuartists loved her because when they were doing their spill on airplane safety, Kate was the only one reading along with the safety book they provide for each passenger.

After hangin' out in St. Louis for 30 minutes we were on our way to Florida. We really thought Kate would have fallen asleep but she stayed awake the whole 5 hours. She must have been just as excited to see my mom and dad (Mom-moo and D-Bo) as we were. We landed in Orlando at 11:45 pm and as soon as they opened the door to exit the plane we were hit with a brick wall of humidity. Anyone who knows Spencer knows that two of his top 3 dislikes in this world are heat and humidity. However, he promised me that he would only be positive on this trip - and he was!

After getting to my parents house and getting organized with where everyone was sleeping, we all hit the pillows and tried to catch same Zzzz's because the next day was a beach day.

Wednesday we decided to go to Cocoa Beach on the Atlantic side. Kate loved it! On this side of the Florida coast there are lots of waves and the water tends to be little bit cooler than on the Gulf side. Of course Spencer was the first to run into the water and crash into the waves. Kate liked the water too but she preferred the sand. Austin, Brooke, and Kate fell in love with the beach that day.

Before we left for home Spencer spotted a crab by our van. Right then and there my Dad, Anthony and Spencer became "Jacques Cousteau's" and found a stick to poke and pry at the poor little crab so they could see it better. In fact, Spencer was able to actually catch the crab and hold on to it long enough to get his picture taken.

Austin thought the crab was "Mr. Crabs" from SpongeBob Square Pants.

Ok I have to go make dinner but check back tomorrow for more!

We're HOME!

We are home! The last two weeks we have been in the oh so hot and humid Florida. It was a very busy 2 weeks packed full of beach trips, pool parties, family get togethers and we even got a theme park in. I have so many pictures and so much to tell. However, I have to start the unpacking and getting organized process before I can do any blogging. So check back soon for some great stuff.