Feeding the Ducks

When I was little one of my favorite things to do was go to the park with my Grandma to feed the ducks. She would save all the ends of her loafs of bread and when there was a good amound, and they had all hardened, she would take me and my siblings and we would spend the day. I loved it. Its probably one of my favorite childhood memories. We have had some AMAZING weather lately. My mom and I both took Friday off work and took Maddy to feed the ducks. I think I was more excited than he was (well, especially since he's not even 2 yet and had no idea what "feeding the ducks" even meant). My mom and I taught him how to "quack" on our way.
Checkin' out the ducks coming our way...

Feeding the ducks with "a-ma"Getting bored feeding the ducks

Oh Look! A stick! Thats way more fun than feeding ducks!But I sure love running through them! Our day at the park wouldnt be complete without some time on the jungle gym.

I love watching him play. He is SO curious! He found the water fountain to be completely fascinating. I laughed because he kept using the same hand to hold down the button and play in the water, so as soon as his hand came off the handle to play in the water it would shut off. He couldnt figure out that he had to use one hand to hold the handle and another hand to play in the water with.

I really do hope that my mom will continue the tradition of "feeding the ducks". What a fun day!

FHE

This year we have really tried to have Family Home Evening every Monday. I'll be honest, we aren't the best. But once in a great while we try to do something fun, just the 3 of us. Because we got hooked on guitar hero in Marina we thought it would be fun to play with Maddox. Well, what turned into FAMILY home evening, soon turned into Mom&Dad Home Evening. Maddox got bored real quick and decided to go play with toys... oh well, at least we tried!

Weekend in Marina

Last weekend Mike and I decided to have a mini get-away and go see my sister and her husband in Marina. We had planned to spend time at Cannery Row (kinda thier version of Riverpark....kinda) and at the Monterey Bay Aquarium. Since sis is a resident now she can get tickets for FREE! Well... change of plans. It rained while we were enjoying our time at Cannery Row and so we decided to get some desert stuff and a board game and go home. When sis went to get the free tickets for the Aquarium, they weren't available! So... basically we slept, played guitar hero and ate the whole weekend. So basically it was the perfect weekend.

Free Lip Clutch...

with lipliner, lipgloss and lipstick purchase. My last order for the month goes in Tomorrow Night (so its your last chance to get the free lip clutch)! Check out www.marykay.com/ashleyburton for all the yummy colors to chose from!!!!

Mike in MakeUp

This week I had my first Mary Kay skin care class by myself. Needless to say I was SO nervous (which was funny because it was for by best friend, whats there to be scared of right?) Mike could tell that I was so nervous so the night before my class Mike had my go through the class so I could practice what I was going to say, etc. When it came time to do my makeup I said "ok here is where we are going to put on foundation, so we can skip that part." His response was "well if you want to practice then lets practice. I'll put make up on for you." So he DID! I was giggling so hard I asked if I could take pictures. I knew this opportunity would NEVER happen again, so I couldnt pass up capturing the moment. I really do feel blessed to have such a wonderful husband who is so supportive, even so much that he would wear makeup just to help me. What a stud!

Fun at the Park

Maddy is OBSESSED with going to the park. As soon as his little eyes open in the morning he jumps out of bed and heads for the door. Every morning I have to explain to him that its too cold, and for the last 10 days its been raining, so there is NO way we are going to the park. Then he cries. Sweet huh? We today was a BEAUTIFUL day and so I decided to take him to the park. Usually we are the only ones there. Its a small park in the middle of our neighborhood and since there is a much better and bigger park about a 1/4 mile down the road this one doesn't get much use. Today though, there were SO many kids! Maddox of course thought he was old enough to be a big kid, so he followed along wherever they went. He's such a fun boy. He's growing up too fast!

Happy Valentines Day!

This year Mike and I decided to host a dinner party for us and a couple friends. We invited the Youngclaus', the Givens, and the Christiansens. We had SO much fun! It was a "How to Host a Murder" party, and it had a New York stock broker/social elite theme so we all got to dress up according to our character. As you can see from the dresses, some of the guests went ALL out! (wearing 80's sequin dresses even!)
My cousin (who is an amazing cook) made all sorts of yummy things for us to eat.Check out these cupcakes! ALL made by hand!! It was YUM-O! Thanks for all who came, we had SUCH a fun night!

Next Order

I will be placing another Mary Kay order THIS Sunday! (sorry for the late notice). If you are interested in any product let me know and I will be happy to order for you. Check out www.marykay.com/ashleyburton to check out our latest products in skin care, cosmetics, fragrences and more.

Game Day

Here are a couple shots of Maddox while he watched the Superbowl with the boys. Mom opted out and took a nap instead. Of course, Maddox had to have some game-day snacks!

A Little Bit of Tony, A Little Bit of Jessica

We always put Maddy in his football jersey on Superbowl Sunday. My mother in law's best friend gave us the jersey when Maddy was first born, (she's from Texas) and he has fit into it the last 2 Superbowls. (i think we might have to get a new one for next year, its getting a little snug). During the game Maddy found some of Grandma Burton's old red high heels, and since we all know Maddox LOVES high heels, of course he had to wear them around the house. This picture makes me think, if Tony Romo and Jessica Simpson ever have a baby together,

I bet this is what it would look like!

Watching "Pooh"

Maddy LOVES watching Winnie the Pooh. He makes the cutest little faces while he watches. He watches so intently. Sometimes its a natural reaction, sometimes he tries to copy what the characters are doing. I just had to capture it on film.

A Reminder to Myself

I felt I needed to write this experience down somewhere. Although a journal might be more appropriate, I must admit I havent been so good writing in it since I have started a blog. It just seems to be more convient to type, not to mention Im MUCH faster at typing than writing. Not to mention, I will be honest, teaching Primary has been a HUGE stretch for me. Most weeks I feel like what I have done or what I have taught hasnt mattered much, so I feel the need to write down the moments that remind me that Heavenly Father listens to MY prayer, and that the efforts I make really do matter.

Getting to church today was almost a miracle in an and of itself. I had some dizzy spells most of the morning. Maddox cried all morning too. We were 45 minutes late to church (which starts at 1 so that tells you what kind of a morning I had). When we got in the car to leave I had my husband say a prayer that we could feel the spirit at church, because honestly I just didnt even want to go. I almost called my team teacher to tell her I would be showing up, but since it was my turn to teach I knew I couldnt just dump the responsibility on her last minute. The lesson was on the First Vision. I made sure we started with a prayer, which usually calms my class down, but for some reason they seemed a little chatty still. I guess thats normal for 7 and 8 year olds, but I already was struggling. The kids today had the most random questions, and it was hard to stay focused. One kid asked "how was heavenly father born?" another girl asked, "what if our church wasnt true." Of course all I could do was bear my testimony (over and over it seemed) to try to get the spirit back in the room. When the lesson on the first vision was over, and before the class left, I bore my testimony again of the truthfullness of what I had tought. I challenged the kids to go home and pray, like Joseph had, and that Heavenly Father would answer thier prayers. I told them that they wouldnt get thier answers in a vision like Joseph had, but that they would know thier prayers would be answered because they would feel the spirit. I told them they would know it was the spirit when they felt a warm, calm feeling. When I closed my testimony the kids just sat there, silent. Then one of my sweet little boys whispered in the most sincere voice, "I feel the spirit right now."

I knew that that was an answer to my prayer. Here I was testifying to my kids that if they prayed thier prayers would be answered, and that was the exact experience that I was having. I had had my husband say a prayer before we left church that we would be able to feel the spirit at church. And time and time again I had prayed that I would know that what I did mattered. He was an answer to my prayers. What a wonderful reminder that Heavenly Father knows our needs, and he listens when we need Him most.