My sweet boy...

Well, this weekend was bittersweet to say the least. It was so wonderful to have Jeremy in town and to spend time together. Unexpectedly, our weekend ended up being one with many emotions. Saturday we were on a high and had so much fun in the 1st Annual Banzuke, Sunday we saw the movie Fireproof and I was an emotional mess afterwards, we then got the exciting news that our friends had their baby on Monday morning, and then low and behold, Monday afternoon we were given some very bad news. 

While Jeremy was in town, we took Maverick into the vet because for the past few months he has been extremely lethargic and has had problems walking on his right leg. I have been very worried about him but unfortunately, last month when I had scheduled a vet appointment, my jeep broke down and I had to spend some unexpected money to get that fixed so I had to delay getting him in. Finally we got him in but I was not ready to hear what the vet had to say. 

It turns out that Maverick has a massive tumor that has grown on his scapula. If he were to receive an operation, he would end up having his right front leg and scapula amputated and would have to undergo chemo and radiation. However, the vet said if we were to go that route, we would just be prolonging the inevitable. So, we just opted for pain management with medication and are hoping for the best. We have absolutely no idea how much longer Maverick will be with us and due to this fact, I have been a wreck. THANK GOD Jeremy was here in town with me because I could not have received that news alone. 

With that being said, as hard as this has been, isn't it amazing how God works things out? I was so upset several weeks ago when my jeep broke down but if it hadn't I would have taken Mave into the vet by myself and would have had to hear the news without Jeremy next to me. It is also amazing to me at the timing of this difficult situation. Maverick came into my life at a very hard time for me and has been right next to me ever since. Now, here it is, right before my wedding and it is possible that he will be taken away from me. I have been through A LOT but I can honestly say that this is one of the hardest things I have ever had to deal with. Maverick has always been a momma's boy and is my baby. He has been with me through so much and I have been sooo blessed to have him in my life the past 6 1/2 years. I am not sure what the future holds, but however long I have left with him, I hope to make the most of it. Unfortunately, Jeremy had to head back to KC very early this morning but Maverick and I took some 'Mommy and Mave' time and went to the beach for awhile. 

This picture was taken this morning and will always be priceless to me. 

What a surprise!

On the way to my aerobics class (yes, I was dragging Jeremy to one of my classes), we received some exciting news! To our surprise, Mya Grace Dimmick arrived this morning (Mon, 9-29-08)! Here is why this new arrival was so surprising...she was not due for another MONTH! However, she was obviously ready to come into this world and she is just perfect. Jessica was our judge in the Unbeatable Banzuke Competition on Saturday since she could not participate in any of the events. We had all just been talking about the fact that in just one month we would have a new member in our Cul-de-sac Club, and now she is here already! Jeremy joked that she wanted to make an appearance since he was in town and we all humored him! heehee! She is just so precious! Congratulations to the proud new parents!

GO SEE THIS MOVIE!!!

Jeremy and I went to go see the movie FIREPROOF with Kirk Cameron on Sunday and all I can say is it is a MUST-SEE!! It is a Christian-based movie from the creators of FACING THE GIANTS and wow, it speaks volumes. It is very well done and there are many levels to this incredible film. Everyone should go see this movie, we highly recommend it! (And, if anything...Kirk is still as cute as he was in the 80's!) Oh, and if you do go see it, it would be wise to take tissues with you...

Engagement pictures

Jeremy and I had fun posing for pictures on Sunday afternoon for Josh. We had a fun engagement photo session and even had some time to get pictures with the boys!

Let the games begin!

Well, the 1st Annual Whitsbury Court Unbeatable Banzuke competition took place on Saturday. For those of you who have never heard of Unbeatable Banzuke, it is a crazy Japanese game show that is shown on cable that we have all watched together. So, we re-created silly stunts and games with our neighbors and had such a blast! We had five teams and Jeremy and I were one of the teams who participated. It was a lot of fun competing against everyone in the events which included a human wheel barrow race, a slip and slide race, a water balloon toss, a doggie paddle race in the pool, among several other races and competitions (we had 13 events all together)! Unfortunately, Jeremy and I came in 4th but we had a lot of fun working and playing together! My brother and Josh were the ones who took first and were crowned the First Annual Unbeatable Banzuke Champions!!! We ended the night at Brandon and Stephanie's house eating and watching a movie together. For more pictures and information regarding this fun competition, there will be more posted on my personal blog!

Gun Fun

Jeremy is finally in town....Yay!!!!!! He flew in and we started wedding errands right away! So, we are now officially registered for our wedding! We had a blast at Target this afternoon picking and choosing stuff for our registry! Happy Day! We are now heading out for our first 'team building' competition...this will be our first marriage tester! haha! The 1st Annual Whitsbury Court Unbeatable Banzuke starts very soon...stay tuned...

2 months and counting....

Well, we officially are at the 2 month mark until the wedding! Jeremy is actually flying into Jax today which I am very excited about! We have a lot planned this weekend...we will be registering, getting engagement pictures done, getting him measured for his tux, AND participating in the 1st Annual Whitsbury Court Unbeatable Banzuke Games!!! What is that you ask?! Well, stay tuned and find out! It is going to be fun!!

Countdown to the BIG day...

...87 days!

It's OFFICIAL!!!

The original plan was that we were going to go hiking on Friday morning but Jeremy's flight delay put a little kink in that plan. We had talked about going hiking on Saturday in Sedona but the rain kept us from getting on the beaten path. SO, finally, on Monday morning, hours before Jeremy was to fly out, we were finally able to get a hike in. We didn't have a lot of time but we headed up to the saddle of South Mountain, one of my favorite mountains to hike in AZ for a number of reasons. It was a great hike and the weather was perfect. At the top I showed Jeremy the view of downtown PHX and as I turned to him to point it out, he was standing there with the ring and asked me to marry him!!! Now, I know that we have gone about this whole ordeal a little backwards, we already have the date, dress, and now HIS ring but it has all been a wonderful experience and we would not change it for the world! So, even though our 'engagement' was not a surprise to anyone, we were very excited because it all felt so much more official! The ring turned out so beautiful too. My late step-grandmother left one of her rings for me and Jeremy had gotten that from my mom. After polishing it up and adding a new diamond to the middle, it is not only stunning but quite sentimental to us both. I really had no idea when Jeremy was going to 'pop the question', I just told him he had until November 29th to do so! haha! He said he had planned on doing it Friday morning when we were supposed to go hiking and had hoped that I would have all weekend to show it off, but hey, sometimes you just have to roll with the changes, and that is one of the many reasons why I love him so much!


We had a wonderful morning spending time with many friends before I had to reluctantly take Jeremy back to the airport. He didn't have a whole lot of time to get checked in and get through security so I just dropped him off at the terminal doors. However, about 5 miles down the road he called me to say that ironically his plane was broken down and due to the flight delay he would not make his connecting flight in Denver. SO, he was put on a flight early in the morning, leaving at the same time as me! Even though it was inconvinent for him to miss his flight, it was such a blessing too! He was like, "I ask you to marry me and then I have to jump on a plane to leave, that's not cool!" We were able to go out by ourselves to a fun Scottsdale restuarant where we enjoyed an amazing dinner of sushi and martinis and celebrated our 'official' engagement!

God is good all the time...

On Sunday I took Jeremy to my church in PHX, LifeChurch.tv. God has been doing some incredible things with the campus, including uprooting them from their former location into a new temporary place. It really is a God-thing though and it was amazing to see everyone in such high spirits and faith even though the past few weeks have been very stressful and difficult with all of the changes. Fortunately, with God in the midst, this has all been viewed as an amazing opportunity, not an obstacle. Pastor Craig had a wonderful message to share on Sunday that I believe spoke to us all on many different levels. He said that "God doesn't always give us what we ask for, but He always gives us what we need." OH, how soooo true that is. So many times in my life, I would ask and ask for something, the whole time knowing that what I wanted was what I thought would be perfect for me in my life. Then that would fall through and low and behold, God had something bigger and better for me. Or, time and time again, he just had better...no PERFECT timing for what it was that I actually needed. Jeremy and I have talked about this and we are very thankful that God had a plan for us...even years ago. Even though at the time when we broke up it just didn't make sense, we now look back and see how pertinent it was for us to have gone through that time of separation. We are so grateful for the things we have learned and experienced in the time we had apart. And, if God would have granted me what I had ASKED for so many years ago....well, I just don't know how things would have turned out if I had actually gotten what I wanted....not what I needed.


On Sunday afternoon we went out to lunch with several people from church including my pastor and his wife. We had a great time catching up and everyone enjoyed getting to know Jeremy in the short time we had. Jeremy and I then drove up Superstition Mountains to enjoy the tiny town of Tortilla Flatts and dessert on the patio of the Lakeside Restaurant. We met up with some more friends for dinner that evening (we ate A LOT this weekend!) and ended the night with an at-home concert, put on by none other than Jeremy, Claire, and Jordan! (I was the groupie who cheered them on as I drank one of Jordan's infamous margaritas)!!! Oh, and I have to point out...doesn't it look like there is fire coming from Jordan's guitar??!! He is quite the Guitar Hero huh??!!

Red Rock Country

On Saturday morning we headed to the beautiful Red Rock Country of Sedona. Sedona is one of those places where pictures do NOT do it justice. You cannot truly see the beauty of it until you see it in person. Jeremy had never been to Arizona, let alone Sedona, so we hopped into our rental car and drove the 2 hours up north to this amazing land. We ate at a very yummy Mexican joint and shopped around all of the little touristy shops. Ironically in one of the shops, we found an awesome find...Jeremy's wedding ring!!! Yep, he loved it and I loved the $12 price tag. It was perfect (and man, does he look good with a ring on)!! Unfortunately, it did rain a little bit while we were there so we opted out of going on a hike. We just enjoyed the scenery and headed back to the Valley where we met up with a group of friends for dinner and another pizookie...but this time it was a PARTY PLATTER size!!! It didn't take the six of us long to devour it all...

Another stadium down...

It turns out PHX had one of the worst storms that they had seen in a very long time on Thursday night and the winds were at hurricane speed. I am wondering...did the weather follow ME?! I had to laugh at the irony but thankfully I woke up Friday morning to the beautiful typical PHX weather.

After spending the night on the Las Vegas airport floor on Thursday night, Jeremy FINALLY got into PHX on Friday morning about 10:45! It was wonderful to see him and he was very glad to finally land in the Valley of the Sun! I picked him up and we headed straight to My Gym where I introduced him to my friends and was able to see some of the kiddos that I used to teach. It was great seeing everyone and being at the Ahwatukee My Gym again (it really is the best My Gym EVER)!!! After visiting for awhile, we grabbed a bite to eat at one of my favorite restaurants and then made it over to my friends house, Jordan and Claires, where we were staying for the weekend. We cleaned up and took off for downtown where we saw the Dbacks play the LA Dodgers! It was quite an interesting game...there were many Dodgers fans (including a young kid dressed up as Manny Ramirez; dreadlocks and all), several loud brawls (I will blame the crazy Dodgers fans here), and we even saw a Dodger fan get tazered right in front of us (I so thought he was dead). All in all though, it was a very fun game. The Dbacks beat the Dodgers 9-3 and Jeremy was able to mark another stadium off his "must-see-stadiums" list! We ended the night with some great company at BJ's and Jeremy was introduced to his first ever PIZOOKIE! Ah, Phoenix is full of so many wonderful things...