gratitude...

last night, dad, paul and i went to the patriotic service at the marriott center that is put on by the freedom festival. all i can say is it was completely inspiring... beautiful... humbling...
what is cooler than a crowd of 15,000 talking and then our flag is presented. everyone went quiet and stood. hands over my heart and a tear down my cheek. awesome...
there was beautiful music by alex boye, jenny jordan frogley, george dyer, jenny oaks baker, kendra lowe, bagpipes and a beautiful orchestra.
steve young gave a patriotic talk on our wonderful country and the inspiring people who founded it and those who continue to make this country great today. he introduced a young man who is still on active duty with the air force (married 2 days ago!) and became blind when his group came under attack. steve young asked if he had regrets about serving now that he has his injury. "no, i have received so many blessings because of this and i wouldn't have met my wife of two days if i hadn't been through this experience". that was humbling...
the service men and women were honored multiple times and a quote from abraham lincoln was read. i fell in love with his words all over again...

"Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal.

Now we are engaged in a great civil war, testing whether that nation, or any nation, so conceived and so dedicated, can long endure. We are met on a great battle-field of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field, as a final resting place for those who here gave their lives that that nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this.

But, in a larger sense, we can not dedicate, we can not consecrate, we can not hallow this ground. The brave men, living and dead, who struggled here, have consecrated it, far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note, nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. It is for us the living, rather, to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced. It is rather for us to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us—that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they gave the last full measure of devotion—that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain—that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom—and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth." Abraham Lincoln... Thursday, November 19, 1863

the hardest part of the entire evening was when alex boye started talking about the hero's around us...he spoke of the two boys, Lance Cpl. Carlos Aragon and Lance Cpl. Nigel K. Olsen who both graduated from mountain view high school. they both died in battle 3 days apart. then the song 'america the beautiful' was sung while they played a slide show of their lives. tears immediately came to my eyes... i had no tissue. the last two pictures were the boys graves. there wasn't a dry eye. their mom's were honored and given a flag... that.was.hard.

it was the best time spent...i love this country, my freedoms and the men and women who have sacrificed and continue to sacrifice for me today.

-ash

we now have sprinklers

paul has always wanted to put sprinklers in. we waited, talked and decided not to this year. next thing i know, paul brings home a trencher and rips our yard apart. paul had errands to run on saturday and asked if i would start cleaning out the trenches so they were "flat". me already thinking most of it was "flat", started working in the back where the largest rocks were. talk about sweat and blood. my legs were so scratched up from the roots and bruised from rocks i was proud. when he got home, he started where i thought it was "flat" enough, but apparently my flat and a seasoned landscapers flat are two very different words. it was really fun to work along side my sweet one and accomplish something. plus, i love yard work. we both worked early in the morning and late at night to get them done. my family graciously came over to our home and each with a shovel in hand, buried the lines. it was a lot of work, but that got done in no time. ransom was in charge of picking up all the rocks. there is nothing i love more in this world than my family!at the end we turned them on and i turned to paul..."we are people with sprinklers!"
-ash

cuter?

i don't think it gets cuter than this...i love this photo with mom and becky. mom's hair...what the? and then becky's pose. the best part is this captures their personalities perfectly and they haven't changed. i am so lucky to have these two in my life. where would i be without them?

it's about time!

paul and i finally got to the point where we knew we needed tires...i just didn't want to pay for them! those who know me, know i love trucks and tires. i love how they complete a truck, although i have seen some tires done way wrong. some are too big, too narrow, way too monster truck, and just dumb looking.
so as paul and i were looking around, comparing prices (i love discount tire), we found one we both liked. they are hankook dynapro tires, and yes, they make my truck look good!
we got to the register, got all 4 rung up, then the certificate and we were told the price. i knew it would be a lot, but i don't think i knew it would be a lot. i couldn't believe i started tearing up and had to turn away...i took a couple deep breaths and finally with a weakened voice asked if the certificates were necessary...yes they are...i couldn't look while paul counted the cash we had saved.
an hour later...the truck was done and oh so pretty!
-ash