Yes for Marriage.. and VOTE

Okay quick note. The deadline to register to vote is OCTOBER 6. That is just one short week away. If you have not registered to vote.. DO SO NOW! If you live in AZ you can vote here.

Now as for today. We had an excellent meeting with our stake president discussing prop 102 in AZ. What is Prop 102?
Proposition 102 is 20 simple and clear words that define marriage as the union of one man and one woman. Prop 102 reads:
“Only a union of one man and one woman shall be valid or recognized as a marriage in this state.”
Prop 102 is on the November 2008 ballot in Arizona.

In May, California judges redefined marriage in that state. The Arizona Constitution is
the highest law in our state, so amending the constitution is the only way to prevent judges or
politicians from tampering with the definition of marriage here. In addition to being merely
statutory, the current law is also more limited than Prop 102 because it does not define
marriage as the union of one man and one woman.

We got lucky in our ward because we have Laura Knaperek (who is the Executive Director of United Families International) in our ward and she gave us lots of very valuable information about the effects of this proposition. Yes the proposition we are voting on is only the DEFINITION of marriage, but how you vote will vastly effect many things.

If this proposition does not pass these are just a few things that might happen:
Just like you can get a drivers licence in one state and drive all over... if 2 people of the same sex go to California, Massachusetts or Canada and get married soon wherever they go they will be recognized as a legal lawful marriage.
This one day could be the end of LDS social services because the LDS church could not legally refuse to give children to just man-woman marriages.
Doctors with anti-gay religious beliefs are not excused from obeying the laws that govern all of us, there have been doctors that have lost their licences due to not inseminating lesbians.

Recently, there have been cases of doctors who were *forced* to perform abortions and artificial inseminations even when they objected to the practice. There were ample alternatives available, but the poor doctors were given the choice to perform the work they disagreed with or face penalties.
Why should we expect religions be treated any different? Churches will be sued and could face varying degrees of penalties for failure to comply. They could face the loss of non-profit organizational status, meaning they would have to pay taxes.
The churches could face financial penalties of fines and punitive charges. On and on the list could go.The leaders could face personal financial penalties including fines and punitive charges.
They could face potential jail time for failing to comply with a court mandate. They could face varying degrees of punishment for a desire to follow their beliefs.

I know it all sounds a little extreme, but I figure if it is important enough for the church to discuss it, then it is important enough for me to express my opinions. I know the church always emphasizes that they are politically neutral and do not ask the members to vote any certain way. They are always very careful to let members have their own freedom to vote however they choose. However, I know the family is sacred and that we have obligations to uphold to keep the definition of marriage sacred.

Sorry, it is all a little jumbled. I am not going to edit. I was just rambling and so now I am clicking publish post with out even reading over.

Crazy Night!

We invited Mark and Caroline over for dinner and had the craziest night ever! The first thing Braiden (their 6 year old son) said to me when he walked in was, "Can I jump on the trampoline?" I told him it was a little dangerous because we have these poles of death sticking up around the trampoline because we are building a little fence around it, and the cover that goes over the springs was all torn up. Well the boys decided to take the kids outside while the girls finished up making dinner. Then, Mark decided to jump Braiden on the trampoline and I think they just had tooo much fun. Mark jumped him really high and Braiden landed wrong and really hurt his arm. He came in and was just hanging it limp. We all thought he just dislocated his elbow or something, so Caroline took him to the ER while the rest of us ate dinner.

She called later and said the DR could not see him for 4 FREAKIN HOURS!! Well we decided Shawn would take Mark and the baby down to the ER so the baby could nurse and Kloey would stay with us. Well while they were trying to get out the door, we found an ant infestation in Hugo's crib (GROSS)!!, had to clean, vacuum, spray, wash the sheets, etc. Then while I was trying to make him a bottle he decided to put a dishwasher soap tablet in his mouth and it exploded. He got a whole mouthful of the dry dishwasher soap. YUCK! I quickly called our favorite pharmacist (Marks dad Dale) who told us as long as he didn't throw up and he is breathing fine, we could just give him a big cup of milk and put him to bed. We just have to watch for some major diarrhea to come! (I can hardly wait for that....)

Well anyways, the boys left and we were fine. But come to find out, Braiden's arm is broken all the way through. He had to go into orthoscopic surgery and got the bone set and pins put in his arm. Then in a couple weeks they will take the pins out and put a cast on. I feel so horribly bad that the poor boy got his arm broken at our house.

It was a crazy night! I am glad that we have such good friends that don't sue us or something :) I hear he is doing fine now though, I sure hope so!

Flowers and Wreaths

Heather and I had another couple of fun days crafting. We made some super cute wreaths together and went shopping for some fall decorations.

Lacy had fun making her own wreaths for Mimi and Grandma. She decided all on her own to make it for them. She made one for Mimi then said, I need another one for Grandma. So thoughtful!

Then on Friday we went and bought some flowers to go in the lovely flower pots from Kim (thanks Kim, you are awesome!). The most awesome Lady from my mom's ward gave us some patio furniture and some flower pots. I also know Mark and Caroline got a brand new TV entertainment center. I can't wait to see it up in their house!

We did the potting in our house because Friday was a super HOT day. We did it by the back door then swept it out when we were done. True Arizona style!

Lacy is so happy she finally gets to use her watering can she got from the prize bag for being so good!

as for this last picture... its just so adorable. I can never leave my little Hugo out. He is doing so good at walking. He now can walk clear across the room. Its adorable, we will work on getting it on tape this week. Be excited... because its so dang cute!

2 Random Pics

I just took this picture of Hugo and I LOVE it! He is sound asleep. What do you think he is dreaming about? I think he is a ninja flying through the air kung-fuing someone. He is such a stud that little boy!!










The other picture is obviously of me. I dyed my hair black! It wasn't supposed to be this dark!! It was called "Nutmeg" and it was just a darkish brown. I decided I look much better with a little red, and not so dark. I'm crazy, I know. Thats what I get for being cheap and not getting it done professionally (I miss Sheri!)

Mr. Handyman!

I know, I know. I've done it once before- told the embarassing stories about my husband trying to be "Mr. Fix-it"... well here's another one for the books. He actually wasn't trying to fix anything this time, but just trying to be handy. He had put a bunch of boxes in the attic a while back (with out my say!) and I had no idea what he had put up there. Well he put some boxes up there that I actually get into on a regular basis. One is a box full of purses and bags. I like to have them handy so I can rotate. Sometimes you need a bigger bag, sometimes smaller, sometimes a backpatch, or a clutch... Come on women, you know what I mean. Well when shawn got home from work yesterday I asked him if he could climb into the attic and get me this box (or at least the bag I was looking for) He agreed, after some grumbling, and climbed right up there. He was only up there for a split second when I had this feeling that I should move to where the was no noise above me. The second I turned to take a step, Shawn fell through the attic and landed right where I was standing. I didn't see it because I had litterally just stepped over. He landed right on his feet... but we were both covered in dusty crap, and his arms were scraped up pretty bad. He's so tough though, he took it like a man and hopped right back up, got bandaged, and watched the kids while I went to mutual. What a good hubby.

I am just so greatful for the spirit leading and guiding and being a constant companin to give you those little thoughts in your mind like, "Move out of the Way!"

I love my hubby so much and I am so glad he is so strong and tough, and landed on his feet!!

Heathers first question was, "well did he at least get the bag?" the answer is, no... but all I need now is a ladder and I can get it my self by just putting the ladder up to the huge hole he left me! Way to think the glass is "half full" right?

Lacy started TUMBLING

We signed Lacy up for a Tumbling for Tots class and she had her first one on Monday. For anyboy who knows, have ever met or seen, heard anything about, or reads my blog knows that Lacy is SUPER active and needs lots of stimulation. She gets bored and antsy easily and I thought this class would help her get some wiggles out... plus she loves to do "tricks" and show off all sorts of things she can do. They wouldnt let the parents stay in the room but I got a few snap-shots the the window on the door. Lacy always had to be right close to the teacher and was definitely the shining student listening very carefully and doing all her teacher asked her to (why isn't she like that with me??) They seemed to have lots of fun and she said she is really excited to go again next time... but told me she needs her own water bottle to bring some gay-dor-aid in next time.

Duh mom.. what were you thinkin?

I Love Monsoon!

I dont know if it is still technically "Monsoon Season", but we got to enjoy some really nice Monsoon weather last week. We went out to a very fancy dinner at the Taco Bell with the Baxters and then all of us and my parents went to the park where Lacy got to run wild and Hugo got to play on the swings. We stayed until it started to rain, then I opted to walk home to my parents while Shawn and Lacy drove. Hugo and I always enjoy the rain together :)

1st Field Trip

Lay's preschool had their first field trip on Friday. We went to such a cute museum, The Hall of Flames. They got to hear a story from a real firefighter, watch a movie on fire safety, climb aboard a real, old firetruck, try on some old stinky jackets and hats and play at a little fire safety house. They had so much fun and I got to see lots of old trucks and meet some more moms from the school. We had so much fun and got to go to McDonalds afterwords with lots of Lacy's friends. We are both looking forward to many more Field Trips in the future!

Koby's baptism

A couple Saturday's ago we went up to Prescott for an awesome day! I spent the day at my nephews soccer games, shopping with Heather, haging out with family and most importantly, KOBYS BAPTISM. I am so proud of Koby for being such a shing young boy and doing what is right. He is the oldest of all my neices and nephews and he is setting such a good example of what a young boy should be. He did so good and we had such a good day. It was a beautiful service and I was so happy to be a part of it. After, we had a little get together to celebrate such a wonderful occasion and also a birthday party for Koby and Billy... or should I say Darth Vader and the Storm Trooper.
I only got a few random pictures from the day... it doesnt do the day justice. The weather was gorgeous, the company was divine and we were all super happy to be there, and sad to leave and have the day end so quickly!

Warning!

The YW work is done, the birthday cards are done and Hugo is sleeping. I have a few moments so I am going to try to catch up on all the blogging I've been meaning to do. So my warning is, you are going to see lots of posts here and on my other blogs. I hope you enjoy! :)

My AWESOMETASTIC Brother!

I was over at Samuel Fullers house the other night (my lovingly sweet, best friend of a younger brother) and I heard him and his friends talking about getting "Sam Fuller married!" They told me of a bet or competition they have to find him a wife.
They joked that everyone should start a blog to advertise him and help him find a wife.Well I love my brother dearly and so I am going to be number one in helping in this cause. I am going to post all things about Samuel. You can all be my helpers in looking for good single girls to set him up with.
Add to the comments, or send me an e-mail ( jennylynnbrown@hotmail.com) and I will post anything nice or sweet you have to say about Samuel. - he says he really wanted me to do this, but I think he only said that because he doesn't think anyone actually will. I told David Mortensen it was going to be a race to see who can get the blog address "getsamfullermarried" first, I decided to give that to him since I dont call him sam... he's always been Samuel to me. So I am all about embarrassing the heck out of him.. as long as I find him a wife!!

check it out and tell all single girls you know to check it out! (click below)

Samuel Needs a WIFE!!

this is samuel

Memories

I just left a really funny memory on Kyle's blog so it made me want to post too to see what kind of funny memories people can think of.

Here’s how you play:
1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn’t matter if you know me a little or a lot, anything you remember!
2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It’s actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I’ll assume you’re playing the game and I’ll come to your blog and leave one about you. If you don’t want to play on your blog, or if you don’t have a blog, I’ll leave my memory of you in my comments.

CALIFORNIA!!

Oh man, I had way to much fun in California. It was so hard to come home and face reality. I'll give you a little outline of what we did..

Friday

6:30 pm: left AZ after work to head on out.

12:00 am: finally arived after too many bathroom breaks

Saturday

2:00 am: go to bed after chatting for a long time (kids were asleep when we got there, made for an easy night of putting kids to bed :)

Too early: Kids get up

10:00: Wake up to yummy pancakes that Brian has made. He's famous for his delicious breakfasts- Your lucky to stay there just to get his breakfasts!

12:00pmish: Head out to the San Diego Zoo. SOOO much fun- kids loved it, was a bit hot towards the end but we had so much fun.

4:00 pm: Little nap with Hugo

6:00 pm: Babysitter arrives!!!!

6:30 pm: Yummy ribs dinner with BC and Patrick and Chaz... with no kids!

8:00 ish: Shopping at the mexican stores on a little errand

9:00 pm: Patrick and Chaz park their car so we can go get desert!

9:50 pm: We finally get a parking spot

9:55 pm: The yummiest sundae EVER at Ghiradelli's. Oh so yummy and of corse some really fun company!

10:30 pm: Come home to a clean house and ALL the kids asleep in their bed. The best babysitter ever! Another easy night of putting kids to bed!

11:30 pm: Brian and Shawn lay down to watch the office and Chantal and I get our craft on!! She taught me how to make bias tape, how to sew aprons, lots of little sewing tricks and tips. We had some awesome conversation and had sooo much fun! I miss my sister sooo much! I can hardly wait until Brian graduates and we can hang out more. Shes my BFF for sure!

Sunday

4:00am: Chantal and I decide its time to go to bed, Brian and Shawn have been asleep for a long time!

Too Early: Kids get up- Shawn gets up with the kids because he is the best husband and uncle in the WORLD!!

10:30-11:00: The rest of the adults get up, eat breakfast, get the kids ready, get ourselves ready

1:00 pm: Head out to church

2:15 pm: The Browns come home from church (minus Lacy) becaue Hugo is super fussy. He falls asleep the minute we get in the car, Shawn gets a nice nap and I clean up a little bit.

5:00pm: Awesome dinner out on the patio

6:30pm: Head out to La Jolla to see the seals on the beach. It was so fun and we saw some seals. The kids all loved it!

9:00pm: Head over to Sea World to see the fireworks. We didn't go inside Sea World, we got even closer to right where the set them off. We had popcorn and Hot chocolate. So fun, the kids all loved it, Hugo was adorable, a little scared (they were SOOOO loud, you could feel them in your chest) but he let me hold him and he just pressed his cheek to mine and watched in awe!

11:30pm: We get home home and the kids are asleep!!! This trip was the easiest ever in putting kids to bed. We had so much fun playing with Susan and chatting (Susan was the only one still awake)

Monday

12:15am: Office comes on and Chantal and I get our craft on one more time!

2:15am: Off to bed!

Too early: Kids get up. Hugo has fussed all night!

10:00am: Head to the beach in Coronado! The kids were all so cute. Lacy had a blast on the boogey boards. Hugo got to touch the ocean for the first time. He wasn't sure about it at first, but he got a little better after a few times. I dont think he felt very good though. He spent most of the time up on the towels playing with his toys and eating snacks.

3:00pm: Get home and do white-trash showers in the back yard. Soap and a hose... kids and Shawn and I all get soaped, hair washed. The whole bit. I'm sure the neighbors think we are total hilbillies.

3:30pm: Chantal and I get our craft on.

6:00pm: Head on home- greatly against my will. I DID NOT want to leave!

11:30pm: We arrive to our home in Tempe and you guessed it, the kids were asleep. It was the best little get away I've had in a long, long time. I'm going to go back in October and nobody can stop me!

Thanks Jones' for letting us come and for being such awesome hosts, it was way super fun!