I honestly don't know how to do this... I have a ton of updating to do and I don't know how to put it all in the right order. So I am just going to try from here...
So to start... For work there is this thing called Orange Day.It's a new thing where they give us a day off with the contingency that we will serve in the community. Its a designated Give Back day! My Uncle Todd made us our shirts! He did a great job! Shout out to Todd!

Marv Orrock arranged for a bunch of us to go to the Humanitarian Center in SLC and build hygiene kits etc. along side a group of Doctors in the area. Here are some of the pics from that adventure.

Then Reagan turned 8 years old! And guess what happens when youre 8 years old? You get to make the choice to get baptized. I am so proud of Reagan making the choice to follow Jesus Christ and be baptized. She and the other children getting baptized that day sang one of my new favorite primary songs... I am sure I wasn't supposed to be taking any pictures but I pretended in my mind to not know it!

My cute Gram and I at the top of the

Joseph Smith Memorial Building

Paul Cardall is an old friend that I originally met through High School friend Shannon Callahan but then he and I ended up working for EFY in 1996. He is also a very talented musician in the area that has a few CDs out and I have kept tabs on him through what was happening in his music career, always hoping for his success from a distance. Paul has had a heart condition since birth and was on the list for a heart transplant. There have been many articles in the news paper and he has quite the following on his blog regarding his experiences while waiting to recieve a heart. I dont remember how I heard about the benefit concert but I knew I would really like to support him. Knowing that my cousin Corey was also on the transplant list I called his family to see if they would be interested in going. Marsha & Craig Case along with Kelli & Brittney were there. There were many of the old musicians that I remember from EFY concert nights! Colors, Peter Breinholt, Ryan Shupe and the Rubberbands, along with Kurt Bestor and many more! It was an amazing concert and a very touching, emotional night.

The end was so great, Paul along with his beautiful wife and daughter (who the concert was named after "Living for Eden") was able go up on stage with his good friends and the nights' performers and talk about what it meant to him and his family to have had this experience. Then Paul played for us! It was beautiful.

The good news is that I know how the story ends because I waited so long to post all this! I actually ran into his sister Becky in Dallas over Labor Day Weekend at the BYU vs Oklahoma game... and she told me he was in the hospital and they hoped that meant that any day he could get a heart. I am sad to say that in my mind I thought "... or he could die before one comes available..." and I thought it wasn't all that likely. I just didnt have the faith or hope I should have had in my heart at the moment. I am so happy that I was wrong! Paul recieved a heart recently!!
It was also so great to run into so many old friends there... Ranger and Jodi Nielson from the Africa Adventures. My amazing high school English teacher and dear friend Kati Burningham. So that is all the updating I can do for now... lots more to come!

Oprah Round 2

So when I got thru on the OPRAH reservation line- it was exhilerating! I was hooked! First timer and I was a junkie! I couldn't just be happy with four wonderful tickets-NO I had to have more... I had to provide ample OPRAH for everyone that I loved and barely knew for that matter!

It all started so innocently... I was on my way to my family reunion (mid AUG) and had been calling the entire previous day, I was discouraged as I knew that many friends and family were calling as well, trying with all their mighty efforts, good energy, and prayers to get through, like I was- but that obnoxious lady kept saying " do du do...We're sorry, all circuts are busy..." (I know she wasn't really sorry!) And none of us had gotten through at that point. I thought "I am not calling anymore" or "Ok that's enough!" maybe 20Xs but then I would think, "well you are certainly not going to get OPRAH tickets by NOT calling@!" so I kept on Keepin on! And then it happened. I didnt even realise it for a minute! All the sudden there was a voice telling me "thank you for calling the Oprah Show Reservation line..." and I was holding, listening to some random chatter about the OPRAH show and how important my phone call was to OPRAH! Aaaggghh!!! I screamed -in the car- "I GOT THROUGH!!!" I made the kids turn off the movie they were watching (cousins Caleb and Liza were very understanding) all focus on not letting this call be dropped- I was passing through Parley's Canyon- what if I lost reception??? I was a train wreck waiting- my heart was pounding- my chest and neck were all blochy-I was shaky!

Then this nice guy named Mark came on and we got to work asking all the pertinent info... I had 4 tickets in under my name! and I lost reception right before he gave me the last bit of info but Thankfully he was aware of where I was and that it might happen so he got all the info he needed quickly and said I could call a different # later if we got disconnected! Whew!

That was about when I noticed a craving- a need to do it again! We stopped at "Granny's" in Heber and were eating and I was quietly still hitting redial on my cell... and there was that voice again! "Thank you for calling the Oprah Show Reservation line..." less than an hour had passed! And suddenly I became my mother reserving for a different day... I had no idea how I was going to get there more than once and so I asked if I could move the first group of tickets (for the 18th-my bday, which was now full) to the date she had available this time and she did it for me! I now had 8 tickets on Sept. 11, 2008! I was dancing in the parking lot, on "Granny's" front porch, out to the car, singing in the car- I can't tell you how different my mood was from the beginning of that day! I was so excited!!!

I go to my family reunion, come home, and Monday morning it starts again! I get that craving! The thought goes through my head, "What if I could get more friends and family to the OPRAH Show with me??"(ON REPEAT) So I start calling again! What did I say? An adrenaline junkie! And LOW & BEHOLD I got through again! While on a conference call with my friend Heather! Dont even ask how that happened?? She and I both got 4 tickets for the 4th of Sept. So she took her sister, Bridgette and I used the rest of them with my mom and her friends!

AND THAT FOLKS IS WHY THERE ARE A ROUND ONE AND A ROUND TWO OF OPRAH!!!

This time around (my second week in a row-mom too) I found a place that slept 8, north of the city for a screaming deal!!! The CRAZY EIGHT on this trip was (in order L to R) Amy, Anne-Marie, my Aunt Charlotte, Jennifer, Jamie, Wendy, myself and my mom (taking photo)

So during the week between the two trips I was at working at a lunch appointment with some doctors and my phone rings! It says on the caller ID "OPRAH"!!! I freak out inside-thinking "it would be unprofessional to answer while the dr.'s are right here!" and certainly they will leave a message! NOPE, no message! The dr.'s were funny they were like, "You didnt answer for OPRAH???" I tried to call back to ask what someone was calling about- half of me worried it was about the comment I made during the warm up on the first show, then I wondered if it was one of those times where the audience needs to come early the night before and watch a new movie to be discussed the next day on the show, or was it all together something else??? I was worried sick! I finally got someone that knew what was happening-they wanted to try to CANCEL our reservations! And reassign us to a different date! I said "No way! My mom has reservations on the same date and there are EIGHT of us flying there from Utah, Arizona, Idaho and DC to be there together!" He said, "Okay, we will leave it the way it is!" I was SOO relieved!

When we got to the show we soon found out why they had to make some changes, there were many people in line that were returning and invited audience members with a special connection to the topic. Breast Cancer Survivors. Christina Applegate had recently had a radical double mastectomy, she was only 5 weeks post-op when we taped the show. It was very emotional and very informative. A majority of the audience were Breast Cancer Survivors, the energy was so hopeful and supportive. A highlight was that the founder of the Susan G Komen, Race for the Cure , Nancy G. Brinker was there as well- what an amazing legacy she has created in memory of her sister! I love to run that race and I love Melissa Ethridge's song "I run for life" (PLEASE listen to this song! ITs so AMAZING-whether or not you like the artist!)


We of course went to the Oprah store after and had some fun! I told my friend Amy, "I dont think I even looked at the bill at the end- that's a first for me- to be completely unaware of what something costs and to not care." I didnt know for a few weeks what the damage was at the Oprah store- it was a bit liberating for me!


We did so many fun things while in Chicago! We shopped A LOT! We ate A LOT! We walked A LOT (it rained A LOT!!!!) We laughed A LOT!
We went on an Architeture Tour of Chicago by Boat- YEP in the rain! It was a really cool tour! More exciting and interesting than I would have ever guessed- and I HIGHLY recommend it to other visitors of the city! Thanks Amy (see link for great Oprah post)for that Awesome suggestion!

The last day there it was raining harder than all the other days! And we had to lug our luggage all over town to get to the airport! And we ended up getting off at the ONE station that had no escalator or elevator! We had sooo much crap (except Amy!) It was insane! Char and I had to go back and forth like 5 times to help each other with each bag and then go back down flights of stairs to get the next bag to help my mom-she is not old or wimpy-hers was just Very heavy! Not only were we wet but our luggage was wet all through on the insides, making it heavier as we went. We experienced some very kind karma and a few of us took one for the team stepping into lakes of water but all in all we got to where we needed to go- and did so SOAKING wet!

Reagan Morphs to Mary-Kate Olsen

MyHeritage: Celebrity Morph - Family search - Dynasty

Off track Adventures with the Tuttle Girls

So a few weeks ago the Tuttle kids were off track and called to see if they could have a sleep over, the only problem was that I had to work in the morning because it was the middle of the week, so I told them they could have a "late over." They were so excited and came over and we started out by watching the end of American Idol then they wanted to do some art and play school so we got out the new drawing boards that I got for them a while back. Anne-Marie drew them some cool animals and we all tried to do some of our own...

Then we busted out the Dance Dance and a Little Karioke Revolution as well... It was a super fun night!

Adventures with ANNIE & Reagan who is 7 now!

A few weeks ago I was at my Aunt Charlottes house and she told me that ANNIE was coming to Kingsbury Hall, so I got online and tried to find tickets right then. SOLD OUT! Big bummer! A few days later, as I was watching OPRAH-I know surprising- I saw a commercial for it and I called the number right then and got tickets for that Very night= whew spendy and only 2 seats on the 13th row... So I called and asked Char if she thought that Hailey would be sad if I just took Reagan (if she even dared to go??) for her birthday? And Char said that she thought it would be okay with Hailey and would ask Reagan if she dared! She said that she would go! She was so brave! And seemed to be excited!

(PS I am watching Oprah right now-surprising again! Maria Shriver is on-I love this one and have watched parts of it 3 times today, once at the gym, once at Char's and all of it right now!)

Reagan and I had a great time, she is such a sweetheart. I just love spending time with her and having her be a part of my life. The pictures are of us before we left and then the last one is of us at the theater! Happy Birthday Reagan, I sure love you!