My little Ellie

7 weeks old and already breaking hearts. And yes, she began smiling at 5 weeks old. Like REAL smiles. She is already advanced like her big sister. Yes, I can brag because I am their aunt. (:

Hurray!!!

Today prayers have been answered for Geoff and I.

I have been job hunting for the past 2-3 weeks in a very specific job field. Instead of working in an office environment, I decided to hold out and look for a job that i would be truly happy in and we all know that is in the special eduction field. The school districts are REALLY hard to get into, as they usually hire within, so I was getting very discouraged.

BUT TODAY I GOT A JOB!! I will be a lead aide specialist in an inclusive 5th/6th grade special ed classroom! I am so excited! Not only is the pay not too shabby, but I get all the benefits of working for a school district-- paid summers/spring break/holiday break off which is great with Geoff being a teacher! Great health insurance benefits (which we desperately want and need right now!)

I am overwhelmed with gratitude to my Heavenly Father. He has taught me so much humility lately and really blessed me with so much. I can hardly wait to get back into the special ed field as it has been almost 2 months since I quit my job in Utah. I am so grateful for good days like today that make all those rough moments quickly fade away!

Picture Perfect Day

Today was such a great day... the weather was 70 degrees, sunny and just pure awesomeness. Geoff and I are watching our niece Abbi Lynn and decided to take advantage of such great weather and went to Market Street Square (a big outdoor/indoor/restaurant area that has boats that go around the lake and river area... Abbi was in heaven!)

We had lunch by the ducks, went to the outdoor mall area and walked on the trails around the lake. We love having Abbi come up and stay with us, and I am pretty confident she has a great time too (:

someone is being sneaky...

One of the highlights of my day is going out to the mailbox to see what the mailman has brought us. I have several magazine subscription thanks to mycokerewards.com (it pays to be a diet coke addict). Much to my surprise, I had TWO magazines waiting for me--- "Fitness" and "shape". SCORE!!

Then I dug a little deeper in the mailbox and realized there was a package and it was addressed to me.

I opened it and it was this shabby apple dress wrapped in the beautiful green tissue paper they always have around their beautiful dresses.

I was a little puzzled as I had not ordered one. There was a note enclosed that said "Hope this brightens your day. From, Someone who loves you". And that was it. I at first thought it was Geoff but he reassured me it wasn't so I wanted to thank whoever sent me this dress. It did bring a big smile to my face, not just because it is beautiful but more because of the generous thought and effort someone made to make me feel better. So thank you anonymous friend of mine, thank you.

Infertile Mer-tile continued...

i am up really late and have been tossing and turning in my bed. i have had some more questions as of late on what is going on with the Brown's road to baby making after our 2+ years of trying to conceive. I won't beat around the bush... just in the last couple of months we had our third unsuccessful pregnancy. i have been really quiet about it because i just get tired of wallowing in it all.. but with so many people concerned for us, i thought it would be best to let it be known.

it sucks and becomes harder each time. i have honestly never known such pain and disappointment. sometimes i just feel so hopeless and stuck. this trial is completely out of my control and that is the hardest part-- letting go of my pride and putting it ALL in the lord's hands. even with how awful and terrible all of this has been i can honestly say i have never felt such greater love either.

we are hoping that some new doctors here in houston will be able to shed some light on how to handle our situation and where to go from here. it is a super expensive process so we have to save up some more money before moving forward. the desire to be a mom is getting stronger each and every day. sometimes i wonder what i am supposed to learn from all of this... but then i look at my sweet kind and incredible husband and know that heavenly father loves us and will take care of us somehow someday in his own way and in his own time. i have many many fits and melt-downs. almost on a weekly basis. but i am surviving and trying to see all the good in my life. and honestly, i am so incredibly blessed.

here are 10 things i am grateful for this week:

1. a husband who knows just what to say to calm me and gives me the best hugs

2. a mom who always listens and cries with me

3. a dad who writes me amazing letters that reassures me

4. a little brother who is my best friend and prays for me

5. a little sister who makes me laugh

6. an older brother who lets me steal his beautiful daughters

7. the scriptures that calm my soul

8. prayer to lift me up when i am down

9. many, many friends who let me know they are thinking of me

10. a heavenly father who never leaves my side through it all.

I am now the proud owner of...

MICHAEL BUBLE' CONCERT TICKETS!!!!!!! (Geoff gave them to me for Valentines!!)

...for anyone who knows me well enough, knows how big of a deal this is to me. Other than my wedding day, going to this concert could be one of the best days ever for me! I have been a wee-bit obsessed with Michael Buble' for about 6 years now! So excited I can hardly stand it.

Missionary Opportunity

One reason I felt very strongly that Geoff and I were supposed to move to Houston is to help with missionary work down here. I have been praying that I would meet someone here that I could share the gospel with... well it happened this morning!

I was in the kitchen eating my oatmeal and the door rang. I was a little flustered to be interrupted from my morning routine but went to answer the door. There was 2 older gentleman at the door-- missionaries from a Baptist church here in our neighborhood. They were all smiles and asked if they could come in and teach me about a message of Jesus Christ. Of course I said yes and let them come in.

They walked in and immediately saw a picture of Christ. They right away asked me if I was christian and i of course responded that i was. they continued to ask me if i could change one thing in this world, what would it be? i took a minute to think about this and then responded that i would save families that are falling apart. they were really taken back by my answer and said i must have read their minds.

they then gave me a little book titled "the secret of family happiness" and went on to tell me how god intended marriage to be between a man and a woman and how satan is trying to destroy the family now more than ever. the spirit overcame me knowing there were other good christians that felt the way the LDS religion does.

the spirit was kicking me in the pants to share my testimony with them so i told them to sit tight for a second as i dug something out of my closet. i just happened to have an extra "the family- a proclamation to the world". and i gave it to them with shaking hands. but you know what? these two men were delighted to have it. and i asked them if i could give them one more thing that meant a lot to me? they didn't even hesitate once. they received the book of mormon with smiling faces and said they were so happy to know there was love in this home. i then bore my testimony to them of our savior Jesus Christ and they bore their testimony of Him to me.

we then invited each other to our churches and parted ways.

now, i don't know if anything will come of this. these 2 men are very devoted to their churches and are doing a lot of good for their community. but you just never know. moral of the story is this... though sharing your testimony can be frightening and scary-- it is probably one of the most spiritually uplifting experiences i have ever had and i am grateful for these 2 men who surprisingly knocked on MY door. and i am grateful for a loving heavenly father for giving me this opportunity to share my testimony.

V-day Weekend

Life is Crazzzzzy for Geoff and I. Our church starts at 1:30pm (yes, you should feel bad for us...) and laying in bed yesterday morning was the most time we have spent together in quite some time. So, being the devilish woman I am... I just booked us a weekend getaway to........

..........San Antonio!! I am very excited as it has been a few years since I have visited. There is SO much to do there and Geoff has never been. I am way excited to spend some much needed time with my funny Valentine and to have it JUST be US!

Dress addiction

I am sure you all know I have an addiction to Dresses. I love feeling girly in them with some sexy high heels. There is nothing like wearing a beautiful dress from my favorite place shabby apple.

But I have a dilemma!!!

With all the weight I have lost... my beautiful dresses are becoming saggy and shapeless. As you can see shabby apple dresses are not cheap and I refuse to give up on them. REFUSE!

But I SUCK at sewing. It has never interested me AT ALL. But I am determined to get over this and alter my beautiful dresses so I can keep on wearing them.

So I am turning to you crafty, amazing and talented women out there....Does anyone have any suggestions on sewing websites or secret tricks about altering clothes??? I am a sewing virgin and could use ALL the help I can get!!!! PLEASE HELP!