I am the luckiest girl alive to have this handsome man ...

 and this adorable girl...

in my life.

Jon is loving his job at the prison.  He works night shifts (6pm - 6am) and since he works 12 hour shifts his days rotate throughout the month.  So we have learned that the time of day or day of week doesn't really matter.  We enjoy all the time we have together, no matter when it is.  When Jon is working or sleeping, Josie and do I our best not to be too loud or get too bored.  I must say...I miss the summer much more than I have in the past.  It is only the beginning of winter and I am already starting to feel cabin feverish (partly my own fault).

A little about Josie:  

Josie is such a fun little girl.  She spends her days teasing me, climbing on everything, and pretending she is a princess, kitty, puppy, big bear ... or whatever else enters her sharp little mind.  She also loves to pretend to cook and eat food.  Although, right now her pretend food is a bunch of bead necklaces (she needs to wait until Christmas for a food upgrade).

She is talking and talking and talking.  It amazes me some of the things she ends up saying.  She knows her colors and her numbers.  I can't really take credit for what she knows, I just show her a few things and she picks it up so fast.  I have determined that her favorite color is red.  She is always asking for red things.

Josie loves to sing and dance, especially when I turn on her favorite Disney and Glee songs.  She sings along ... and it is so cute.  Sometimes I am willing to listen to the same song over and over again just because her singing is so cute.

Josie is so friendly and outgoing.  She is always saying hi to people that we don't know.  She loves to give hugs and kisses.  She has such a good happy nature about it, I really can't complain about the few tantrums that happen during the weeks.

I just wanted to give a quick update and talk about Josie.  I need to be better about writing down her stages and the things she loves to do.

Another Graduation

I am sure all of you are aware that Jon got a job at the Department of Corrections in Draper.  He started Police Academy on May 31st and he just graduated on September 15th.  This graduation was much shorter and much more exciting than his graduation from BYU.  The academy included many classes on laws, drugs, defensive tactics, guns, how to handle inmates, and many other classes.  This is where I get to brag about my amazing husband.  Before he started academy he decided that he was going to be dedicated and be in the top of his class.  He was extremely dedicated in working out, practicing his defensive tactics, and studying for his written tests.  He would even encourage his carpool and other cadets to stay after to workout or practice their defensive tactics.  He even helped a few cadets pass their tests.  All of his hard work did not go unnoticed.  There were about 10 awards and Jon received 3 of them!!!  Out of a class of 45 he was in the top 10%.  He also received the top Defensive Tactics award, and the Best All Around Cadet award ... meaning he had the best defensive tactics and written test scores combined.  Oh, and let's not forget the fact that all of our cheering (especially Janelle) was noticed by the Academy Commissioner.  What a great start to his career!
I am so proud of his hard work and dedication.  Since graduation he has been training in Max Security.  He is learning a lot and really enjoying his job.  Thank you to everyone that came and thank you to everyone that has helped us get through academy.

Receiving his certificate of completion

Showing off his hard earned awards ... he is so handsome

I'm so proud!!!

Everyone that came -- THANK YOU

First Hair Cut

Josie has worked really hard over the past 2 years to grow her beautiful strawberry blonde curls.  I was always scared that when I cut her hair, her curls would go away.  So I just let her hair grow and watched it turn into a mullet.  But I didn't care...I loved it!
For some reason while I was standing in line at Walmart I realized that if I just cut a couple inches off the bottom it take away a lot of the mullet and it would take away her curls.  So after bath-time, we turned on Beauty and the Beast (one of the only ways she will hold still) ... and I chopped.

BEFORE  

She is slouching forward, but it still shows her mullet-type hair.

AFTER

 YAY!!! She still has curls and her hair is actually straight.  I just LOVE my little girl.

Water Baby!

This summer Josie and I have spent a lot of time at the pool.  We started the summer with swim lessons to teach her a few rules and get her used to the water ... she immediately loved it!

Last weekend Jon had some family in town.  We went to the AF city pool and it was so much fun.  Thought I would share some of the super cute pictures.

Operation: Sticker Therapy

Your mission: to help bring happiness and distraction to toddlers fighting cancer by mailing stickers, sticker books, or happy vibes!

Hi! This is Abigail (my niece) the day before her 2nd birthday. You can see her central line and her surgery scar.

When she was 19 months old she was critically ill, and diagnosed with cancer--stage 4, high-risk Neuroblastoma.

She has been through a lot--with a lot still yet to go through. Abigail loves stickers and they offer distraction and entertainment during multiple hospital stays.

When kids are fighting cancer, they go through a lot of yucky therapies: chemotherapy, radiation therapy, antibody therapy, etc. We decided to call this project Sticker Therapy...a therapy they could look forward to!!

Our goal with Operation: Sticker Therapy is to receive enough stickers to be able to put some packets together to share with other children we meet who are fighting for their lives. We encourage you to donate some stickers, and then know that you are blessing the lives of some precious children.

Please mail them to:

To: Operation: Sticker Therapy
C/O Fans Across America Charitable Foundation
18521 E. Queen Creek Rd., Suite 105-187
Queen Creek, AZ 85142

Thank you for your kindness and generosity, and may it be returned unto you!

If you would like to make a financial donation to Abigail, that would be greatly appreciated. You can do so by visiting this site:
http://www.fansacrossamerica.com/assist_a_family/registry/families/families_in_need/abigail_goss_family.php

or by including a check payable to "Abigail Goss Medical Trust Fund" with your stickers. Thank you dearly!

NEW JOBS

Jon and I officially have new jobs!!!
Jon started working for the Department of Corrections last Tuesday.  He has 4 months of Police Academy ahead of him.  Ten hours a day of classes and physical training can be taxing, but he is much happier.  He loves being the provider for our family.
As for my job...I feel like the luckiest girl.  I am doing laundry, dishes, cooking, cleaning, shopping...etc!  But you know, even though the work is mundane and it can be annoying, I am so happy doing daily tasks for my family.  We have learned a lot over the past 2 years.  It has not been easy, and Im not sure I would want to do it again, but I am grateful for the lessons we have both learned.

Now, lets talk about Josie!!!  She is 22 months and a busy bee.  She wakes up happy, eats a big breakfast and then plays really hard until her nap, then she wakes up, and plays really hard until it is time for bed. 
She LOVES animals and she is an expert at animal sounds; puppies, roosters, bee's... haha, it's so fun.  She has such a cute personality and I am so proud to be her mommy.

BUBBLES!!!!

Yesterday we spent the best $2 of our life.  Walmart has this little bubble bottle that does not spill (Thanks Megan for telling me about it).  Josie loves it!!!  Not only are bubbles the best invention for little kids, but this bottle takes away any mess and spill.  SO AWESOME!!!

I have some cute videos but blogger isn't allowing me to upload videos right now ... ugh.  totally annoying. Oh well!  Here are some cute pictures.

NEW JOB!!!

Jon received a conditional job offer from the Draper prison!  We are soooo excited.  He just has to pass a drug test and a background check, and he is good to go!  He will start training on May 31st, at which point I get to quit!!!  Do you hear me singing and doing my happy dance?
Well ... that isn't the end of it!  There is a job opportunity down in Gilbert AZ that we are looking at.  We are going to go down the beginning of May so he can do some more testing and an interview....so we will see what happens there.
We feel so blessed with this job offer and we are so grateful for the prayers that were made on our behalf.

Crafty Dreams

I haven't posted in a while because I started another blog!  www.rcraftydreams.blogspot.com

I have always enjoyed sewing and doing simple crafts, even though I never really thought that I was very crafty.  Well, Jon has had a hobby for a long time that has allowed him to paint and use his crafty brain ... so recently I decided that I should start doing my own hobby.  There are many nights that we will turn on a movie so we can both do our hobby.  The only time we will say anything to each other is when we want to make sure that what we are doing really is as awesome as we think (I know...we are crazy!)

In my blog searching, I kept seeing cute ideas but I could never remember where I found it, or remember all the things I wanted to do.  So I started a craft blog for myself.  It allows me to keep track of all the awesome ideas that I find, and to keep a to do list of the things I want to do.  PLUS, when I finish a project I am able to show it off. This blog has given me a lot of motivation to keep up with my hobby ... and I find that the more I search, and do projects, the craftier I get.

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JOB UPDATE --- I wish I had some awesome news, but we are waiting .... STILL!!!! We are going crazy! 

Jon took the psychological tests, and the polygraph.  Those were very mentally draining days for him, but we think he did a good job.  He doesn't have anything to hide, so we are praying that they will see how awesome he is.

We thought we were supposed to hear back last week, but we are still waiting.  We will let you know when we know.

Possible Job

I have been afraid to post anything about a possible job for Jon because I don't want to jinx anything.  But I decided that by posting this, I could also ask for you prayers on our behalf.  As you know, I am working full time, and Jon is with Josie full time.  Jon has been working really hard to get a job so we can switch roles.

So, here is an updated on what is happening----
Last month he applied for a position as a Correctional Officer at the Correctional Facility at the Point of the Mountain.  It is a really long process, and it requires me to have a lot of patience.  With the application he also needed to take the NPOST test (Pre-employment test), which he successfully did and passed with a 93%.
On March 8th, he had a physical test and interview.  He had to run 1 1/2 miles in 17 min 30 sec, he completed this in 11 min 30 sec.  He also had to do 7 consecutive push ups and 20 sit ups and a 16 inch vertical...haha, I know those sound so difficult!  He exceeded their requirements and he ended up being in the top 10%.  Interviews are always hard to gauge, but he felt like he did a good job.
There were a total of 260 applicants, and after the interview and physical training they cut it down to 150 applicants.  He made the cut and yesterday he took several psychological tests, this ended up being about 1200 questions.  Tomorrow he is going to take a polygraph test.  In about 2 weeks we will hear back with the results and if they still want him, then he will be asked to take a drug test, and get a physical from a Dr.  If everything goes our way, he will be selected to start POST training which will last 5 weeks.  He will have to pass everything with at least 70%.  After the training, he will then start the job on May 31, 2011.
WOW -- I'm tired just thinking about the process.

I have the utmost confidence in him, and I know he will do an amazing job.  It does scare me that there are still 150 people fighting for 40 positions.  If you could please pray for him to be noticed and to get the job, it would be greatly appreciated.  The experiences that Jon and I have been going through over the last year have been extremely difficult, but I have also learned a lot.  It is hard to live on Heavenly Father's time, but I have faith that Heavenly Father knows what is best for us....I just hope that this job with the Correctional Facility is IT!  Love you all!  I will keep you posted.

Grandma and Grandpa Goss

This post is dedicated to Josie's Goss grandparents.  They are on a mission in the Philippians and I thought it would be nice to post some pictures and make a special video for them to see.

SISHY!!!
A couple weeks ago we went to Walmart and stopped in the fishy isle.  Josie was so excited about the fish she ran up and down the isle saying "Sishy! Sishy!" and pointing to all the different fish.  The next week Jon and I thought it would be fun to bring a couple of the 'sishies' home.  We found a big enough glass bowl and went and bought 3 fish.  Jon named his fish Jimmer, I named my fish Zoe, and Josie named her fish Sishy (by default).  Here are some pictures.  You can just see how excited she was.

Sadly, the fish only lasted a few days.  I guess that is what we get for buying Walmart fish.


Jon's hockey buddies fixed up Utah Lake so they could play hockey on the lake.  Josie was also there enjoying the snow and the cold.

Look at how precious she is!!!

Last but  not least, here is the video of Josie talking to Grandma and Grandpa Goss.  Of course anyone is welcome to watch.  Josie is just too cute!  The only way I can get her to hold still and talk is by letting her watch the screen ... she just loves watching herself.

Nursery Time

NURSERY!!!  Josie went to nursey for the first time today.  Jon walked her into the room and she ran straight for the toys and didn't even look back.  It was amazing!  She had such a good time.  She has never been so happy after church.  As for Jon, he absolutely loved being able to listen in Sunday School and Priesthood.

I have always looked forward to the day when I would be able to make cookies or something with my daughter.  So the other day I thought I would let Josie stand on a chair and help me make rolls.  It was so cute!  She helped me stir and roll the dough ... it was fun.  It didn't take her too long before she realized that she liked the way the dough tasted and started getting flour every where.  It was so adorable I just had to show everyone the pictures.

Back in November my family got together and we had a HUGE family reunion.  It was the first time we have been together since ...um... before Steven went on his mission.  So before I got married!  It was a lot of fun to have my whole family around.  While we were together we thought it was the perfect opportunity to take pictures.  This our little family picture.

Isn't she just the cutest 17 month old you have ever seen?

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Last Saturday I got a call to meet with my bishop Sunday morning before church.  I immediately started thinking of all the callings I would like and would not like to have...but I decided that I would accept any calling that I was given.  I was thinking that being the primary pianist would be the best job in the world ... well this will teach me to want a calling.  I was called to be the primary chorister...I'm pretty sure my eyes got really big and my jaw dropped because almost immediately he started telling me why I was chosen for this calling.  This Sunday will be my first day and I already started having nightmares about it.  I am very nervous, but I am also excited.  I think once I get used to everything it will be a really fun job.  I felt a lot better about entertaining kids after the previous chorister brought over a ton of materials and posters.  Jon wishes that he had my calling right now because he does not want to watch Josie during Sunday School and Priesthood ... but really, he only needs to do it for a total of 6 hours!  After that she will be in nursery!!!!!

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Jon got his top braces off last month and he will be getting his bottom braces off in a couple weeks.  He is excited about having straight teeth.  Jon having fun at home.  He does a great job taking care of Josie and taking care of other needs around the house.  The other night Josie got sick and threw up twice.  He took care of Josie, did the laundry, and everything else that comes with a sick baby...and let me sleep.  I didn't even know she was sick until I got to work.  He is a great man, I feel so blessed to have him in my life.