Happy Birthday Ben!!!!!

Ben and Hercules in their party hats

Today is Ben's 27th birthday!!! I wish I could have made it a little more special for him though. Really sucks being broke all the time. He wouldn't tell me what he wanted or needed so I knew what to get him as a gift, and then he caved at the last possible second and told me he wanted a framing staple gun. Sadly they're too expensive for me to pull that off now.... but maybe soon.

Power Ranger cake!

We both ended up working for a good majority of the day today (sucks being an adult.... birthday's don't matter anymore). I got off work a little early to pick up a special birthday cake, and some ice cream. I was hoping to get him a Bob The Builder or Handy Manny cake (since he's a framer and all....) and scoured the ENTIRE valley trying to find one.... but gave up after 6 stores and settled with good ol' Power Rangers instead. He was surprised both that I came home early, and that I brought him a fun cake, so all was well.


He had mentioned in a Facebook post several days back that he wanted to beat up a piñata for his birthday, so I got one of those too. He giggled and was as surprised and as happy as a kid on Christmas to see it! He definitely was NOT expecting that! We are going to take it up on Sunday to my parents' house to break it with the family. I can't wait!!!!!


I hope he enjoyed his birthday as much as I enjoyed seeing the surprise on his face with the few small things I was able to give him today! Happy Birthday baby, I love you!!! 

I Got My Baby Back!!!

Today is a happy day at our house, because after two and a half weeks I got my car back!!! It has been a LONG and inconvenient wait to have the repairs done, but driving it home as good as new was a happy moment.

Damaged Car

On the night of August 24th I was headed home from work when a drunk driver crossed the median and hit the vehicle in front of me head on, and then side swiped me as they continued down the road. At first I was really upset because it completely ruined our plans for our 5th anniversary, which was only days away. As I got out of my vehicle to check on the other drivers though and watched the events that followed my attitude changed. The car in front of me had a male and two hysterical females, and a baby that couldn't have been older than 3 or 4 months. That really got at me because he was so little. I never saw the driver of the car that hit us, because she continued down the road about 100 yards before she pulled over, but she and all of the members of the other vehicle all left the scene on a stretcher, and I didn't have any bumps, bruises, or scratches at all. Watching them all be taken in the ambulance made me extremely grateful that I had no injuries, and made me realize God had an angel riding with me that night to protect me.

I filed a claim with my insurance that night, but they wouldn't provide a rental until the determined liability, so I took the time we were going to use for our anniversary trip off work anyways and rested at home. The insurance wasn't great to work with, and I ended up going to get a copy of the police report for them since I was tired of waiting. Once I got that to them they authorized a rental and got my car in the shop for repairs, so for the last week and a half I have been driving a Kia Forte instead of my Impala....... blah.

I am SO glad that everything has been finalized with the insurance claim so I don't have to pay anything, and that I got my car back... but mostly I'm glad I'm alive and safe! The police report said the driver was being sited for DUI, and I have heard through the grapevine that the other vehicle she hit are suing. I sure am glad that I don't have to be involved in any of that mess! I do, however, wish the best for all the other people that were involved with this mess, and I hope I am NEVER involved with an accident again!!!

A New Addition!

As you can tell by the dates on my posts I am a bit behind on updates for 2010.... BIG surprise there right? LOL! This year has been a hectic and crazy one to say the least, but amidst all the chaos another small miracle graced our lives.

Oliver Michael Decker

In the wee hours of the morning (3:10am to be exact) of May the 24th my sister gave birth to my second precious nephew. He came out healthy and strong at a solid 6 pounds 12 ounces and was 20 inches long, just a tiny bit different from big brother Ayden. It was a long labor, but ended pretty quickly. I am so grateful I was able to be there to witness his birth and to watch his parents absorb every second of the moment.

He is a little over three months now, and is starting to chunk out. He smiles, and is starting to laugh a little, and I cherish every moment I get to snuggle him close to me and nuzzle his soft little peach fuzz head against my cheek. The Deckers definitely make adorable children, that's for sure!

Goodbye Dear Friends

In June of 2010 we were crushed and heartbroken to lose two of our animal children in a tragic accident. Somehow late that night our dear Titan and YoYo got out of the backyard. By the time we noticed they were missing it was dark, and raining. Ben drove the truck around the neighborhood for over an hour trying to find any sign of them, but to no avail. We sat and watched and listened at the front window for any sign of them for a few minutes, but just couldn't sit there and wait anymore, so Ben went out again, this time on his bike, in the pouring rain to find them. He ended up coming home cold, drenched, and devastated he was still unable to find them.

We went to bed late that night with heavy hearts worried sick about our "kids" and where they could be, just hoping the phone would ring that someone had found them. The phone did ring..... at 3:00am, but it wasn't the call we wanted to get. A member of the local animal control proceeded to explain to us that our dogs had gone onto a busy road, and it wasn't well lit.... the driver didn't see them in time to stop. He told us our Titan had died on impact, and our sweet YoYo was still alive but suffering, so they had to put her down. 

It was the most horrible news we could have ever received, and we sobbed and mourned for several days. It was too difficult to go in the backyard where they would have normally greeted us at the gate.... or to move their toys and leashes from their locations inside the house. Our hearts still long to hear their bark, see their happy faces and wagging tails, and to pet them again....... their memory will never be lost in our hearts.

Gratitude

It has been some time since I have updated what is going on in our lives, and I finally found some spare time today, so I decided to post a new update. The last few weeks have been amazingly busy and challenging, but looking back on them I can only express gratitude for everything that took place.

I have found myself very busy at work and at times frustrated as I learn the work and get my daily tasks done, but because of the income we have been able to save the car, pay all the other bills, and even have some to spend on fun things for ourselves, which has been very nice for a change. It is still frustrating to me sometimes to have to work when there are things I would much rather be doing with the family, but I realize that if I wasn't working we would have lost it all without a doubt.

Last week my mom told me in a text message that she had to go in for a biopsy because they suspected possible breast cancer, and I was scared to death not only that I may be susceptible to the same fate, but more that her time here would be cut short and I wouldn't have her in my life anymore. I prayed harder and fasted more than ever in my life that her results would come back that she was healthy, and when I found out that they did I was so relieved I wanted to cry! That was a very scary and very new challenge for me to go through, and I again can only be grateful that things worked out for the better.

I also had a very humbling and eye opening event take place this last week. After I got home from work Saturday I was sitting reading updates from my friends on Facebook and stumbled across one from my cousin that I just read over and over not believing what I read was true. I tried calling my family, but no one would answer, so I called my cousin and asked him about what was written, and he verified it was indeed true. Another cousin of ours had been in Las Vegas running a relay when he was struck by a drunk driver and killed earlier that morning. I was in absolute shock. He is only a few years older than I am, and has a wife and three little babies. I arranged to get the time off to go to the funeral yesterday in Kamas, and it was very sad but at the same time almost a celebration, not of death, but of his life and the good he did. Listening to all the kind things everyone had to say about him made me grateful that he had been a part of my life, and made me sit and reflect on the times we spent together, and also wonder what people would say about me. It was the first time I had taken time to reflect and ponder in a LONG time.

News broadcast for Jeremy's Accident

I think that I take many things for granted... my health, my family and friends, my home and material possessions that others don't have... and this week has made me extremely grateful for everything and everyone I have in my life, and I hope that I am able to express that not only verbally, but through my actions as well.

A Pleasant Surprise!!!

It's been awhile since I updated my blog, mostly because I have found myself swamped with tons to do. I have been adjusting to working full time again, and it has taken almost the month I have now been employed to get there, but I think I finally am acclimated. I am grateful to have a blackberry, because I have made myself a very detailed calendar that runs every second of every day so I actually get things done, because otherwise I would never get anywhere on time and never get anything done! Lol!

Joseph Julian Diaz at 2 days old

Ben and I have both had an overwhelming week dealing with the birth of our newest nephew to his sister on monday, and Ben's birthday on thursday. I was really disappointed because I was asked to be in the delivery room when he was born, and I ended up having to go to work instead, but we went to visit as soon as I got off. My cousin ended up having her son later that same day, but she's in Idaho, so I was only able to see him via picture message. I got up early and decorated with balloons and a big banner on the door for my nephew to come home on Wednesday, and his mom was thrilled! Then I spent the next day decorating for Ben's birthday. He was totally not expecting it either! I put streamers and balloons everywhere before I left for work so he'd come home to it... then I left work early and picked up a cake and some ice cream, and I turned off all the lights and lit the candles right before he walked thru the door. He was surprised all over again! I was so proud of myself!

Ben's Birthday cake!

My biggest surprise of the week though happened today. I was feeling super tired and unmotivated because I had to work today. I kept getting calls from a number I didn't recognize, but couldn't answer because I was working, then my mom texted me and said I needed to answer my phone asap because my aunt had very exciting news for me. I signed off the phone and called her not knowing what to expect, and I was delivered the news..... she had found out how bad I wanted to go to the Creed/Staind concert next week and she had bought me a pair of tickets!!!!!! I was speechless! What a pleasant way to end the week!!!!

Things Are Finally Working Out

Well, it's been 2 weeks and a few days since I started working at Wachovia. I made my first hour worth of calls last night, but only got voicemails, I didn't actually get to talk to anyone. It was a little nerve wracking, but I did okay. I guess the true test is how I handle doing it full time on my own and being responsible for hitting my numbers. I like my team a lot, but management leaves some to be desired. Ultimately I would say so far so good, although I will say I would still MUCH rather work from home, or not work at all. I'm still looking into that option.

Ben got his check and we were able to pay all the bills except the mortgage, which was a huge burden removed from us. With him getting paid bi-weekly and me getting checks twice a month it should make it easy for us to pay everything once we finally get everything back in working order. I am currently working with a company who claims they can lower our payments and keep us from foreclosing, so we'll see what they come up with.... but if they fail we may find ourselves moving soon. I don't know that I am all that upset about moving though... I hate Utah and see that as an excuse to leave and start over somewhere new... why not right?

Things are finally starting to improve and get back to normal, but our relationship is also being affected by the change. We are not stressed and worried all the time about bills like we were before, but we are also not nearly so attached and close as we were only a few weeks ago, because we spent every waking minute together and had no one but each other, and now with both of us working full time we get up, get ready and leave for work, get home, eat dinner and rest for a little bit, then go to bed again... and not only do we not really spend much time together, but I feel ineffective as a wife because I am not able to prepare meals and keep the house spotless the same way I was before. He would never complain about it, but it really bothers me, but it's obvious we will fail if things aren't the way they are now, so I guess I will just have to adjust.