Farley Funny Farm

Thanksgiving in Utah

2009-01-19T16:21:00.000-08:00

This year for Thanksgiving we went to Utah to spend it with Jason's sister and her family. We were able to sleep in, eat a yummy breakfast, make food, eat, visit, eat, relax, eat, play games, eat, etc. Jason was able to spend LOTS of time with his nephew Bart building lots of racetracks, etc.

Here is a picture of him and Bart playing with the Hot Wheels.

It was a great visit and were happy Janelle invited us.

After we went to Janelle's, we went and stayed with my brother Chad and his family. We went and saw the lights at Temple Square in Salt Lake City.

It was lots of fun! My other brother Kelby and his family came up and we saw a parade, played lots of games, and enjoyed the company. We loved spending time with all the nephews and my niece.

This is a picture of my nephew McCoy and niece Mikkelle wearing fun footsie jamies : )

Fall 2008

2009-01-19T15:56:00.000-08:00

This fall we were able to go on some fun trips. We decided to go to Apple Hill with my sister Amberlyn, Shaun, and Cat. We had a blast, and though it was a little chilly, it didn't rain on us which was a great plus. We had fun looking at all the little craft booths, buying apples, and seeing the beautiful scenery.

Here is me (the really fat one), Shaun and Amberlyn posing at one of the stops.

Here is the beautiful scenery up at Apple Hill

We stopped by Hard Rock Cafe on our way home and ate some yummy food. When we went to take the picture, some random waiter jumped in the shot : )

Jason and I went to one of those "timeshare" presentations and we won three one night stays at various locations. Since Jason and I's schedule didn't match up, I ended up taking my sister Amberlyn to Reno, my mom to Angel's Camp, and Jason and I went to South Lake Tahoe. Most of the hotels were great, but when we went to South Lake Tahoe, it was VERY horrible, so we ended up getting one on our own. Here are some pictures of our trip. Yes, it was fall the whole way up, then winter (and snow) up in South Tahoe. We loved it! It was definitely fun being able to get away, especially in the middle of school : )
We both teach Primary in church, and as a reward for my kids, I held a party at my house. We had fun playing games, decorating cookies, and watching movies.

HALLOWEEN

2009-01-19T15:24:00.000-08:00

This past year was my first Halloween in about 5 years where I didn't have a party to plan. I promised my psychologist I wouldn't plan any parties. Without all the stress of planning something, I was really able to enjoy myself this year! Jason, Shaun (my brother), Cat (his girlfriend) and I went to a pumpkin patch. We were able to get some really big CHEAP pumpkins that we got to pick out for ourselves. We also went on a little mini corn maze and the boys had fun scaring Cat. It was a beautiful day!

Me on Jason's back at the patch.

Then right before Halloween, we went to our Ward's Trunk or Treat. We thought it would be fun to get all dressed up. When we got married, one of my mission companions sent us a large witch and large Frankenstein Monster. She put our names on them and called us the Newlydeads. Ever since then, we have been collecting witch's and Frankenstein's and we decided that we would be them this year. We had WAY too much fun spraying our hair with colored hair spray, painting our faces, and picking out the cool costumes. I guess if I have more time, I get a little more into it.

Us all dressed up. Jason even shaved his Goatee (he hasn't in 4 years) so that it would be more authentic.

Halloween itself was interesting this year. I dressed up with a friend at school as Salt and Pepper, and Jason ended up having to Ref football that night, so I stayed at home with another friend watching Hocus Pocus and Beetlejuice. I did get to dissect a heart at school, which was VERY cool : )

Camping Trip- Labor Day

2009-01-19T15:13:00.000-08:00

So we were able to go camping over Labor Day. Of course we decided to do it very late and were unable to find a great campsite, but we were able to go to a fun little place about 1 1/2 hours away.

This is us sitting at the campsite early in the morning.

My brother and his girlfriend came along. We were really close to the river and had fun sitting by the river, playing LOTS and LOTS of Settlers (fun game),hiking, and we were going to go fishing, but it got really windy on the last day, so we packed up quickly and took off for a BBQ back in Sacramento.

This is us walking to the river on one of our little hikes : )

Our Lives Since Summer

2008-11-07T12:15:00.000-08:00

Just a quick update on us:

JASON- Still doing signs on weekends (early Saturday am and Sunday pm). My parents have been helping us out since we don;t have very much time this fall-THANK YOU!!! We have lost several routes and possibly could loose some more, so he is starting to look for other work. We hope somewhere in a hospital.

He is still OCCASIONALLY doing installs for Pinnacle (security systems), and is he cannot find a hospital job, we are hoping he gets to be the service tech in January when my brother leaves.

Reffing football is one of his favorite things to do, and this fall is no different. He is almost done (he only had about three weeks left), but has had lots of games on Thursday evenings, Friday evenings, adn even some Saturdays. It is easy for him to go since he loves it so much, I just wish they would offer football year round : )

When he isn't doing any of these other fun things, he is super busy with school. He is taking one class and tutoring for the class he took last year. The tutoring gives us a little money, too. He is doing very well in his class getting the highest score in the class on two of his lab tests!!

He loves teaching his primary class, but hope they call another teacher for him soon so he won't be alone anymore.

MINDY- Going to school full time. This takes up most of my time. I am taking 16 units this semester including one online class. The online class is my hardest class, but I still have straight A's right now (and over 100% in three of my classes). 7 classes is taking its toll with tests and homework, but I am managing. In one two week time period, I had 5 mid-terms, 3 tests, and 4 papers due. I think the difference this time is I actually LOVE what I am doing. I think I should have gone into the medical field to begin with, though I wasn't quite mature enough to make that decision when I got my BS. I can't wait to start my career as a Medical Assistant. Next semester I even get to wear scrubs and give shots and take blood- YEAH!

One thing I have been really thinking about now that I am going back to school is becoming a PA (Physician's Assistant). It requires a little more school before I can apply, but I am loving this so much, I don't want to stop! And then I could work in an ER with Jason : ) I actually am really looking forward to that aspect, though I am not rushing it and will work as a MA for some time before continuing on.

I also help Jason with the sign routes as we have found with me driving it saves about 30 minutes on each route (about 1 hour overall- one more hour of sleep-it's so worth it!)

I also have been helping Jason's Mom out a lot since she had knee replacement surgery and cannot drive herself anywhere. Jason and I were able to go to the hospital with her for the surgery and visited her three more times there. We also went and saw her frequently in the "nursing home" she was at for recovery. Now she is staying with Jason's brother Curtis, but needs rides to Doctor's, so I have been helping out with that.

I also teach primary and love my class. Each Sunday I am so excited to look up the lesson and figure out what I am going to be teaching the little kids. It sure makes me feel good to teach them about our Savior.

CAT- Many of you are wondering who Cat is. She is my brother Shaun's girlfriend who happens to be living with us. I add her only to tell you we have a roommate. We hang out with them occasionally and play games, go to Haunted Houses, or go to Pumpkin Patches. Its kinda nice having a built in couple to play with!

Summer Adventures- Part 3

2008-11-07T11:30:00.000-08:00

I guess I should start with the 4th of July. Jason had to work all day (unfortunately), but we were able to go to our ward's breakfast in the morning. Then my parents and I went to our little neighborhood parade. It was cute and small. Then my entire family came over for some yummy BBQ and pool time. Afterwards, we went to a local place that does fireworks and had fun watching those. It was a perfect day!

Me and Jason at the fireworks that night! Taken with a camera phone : )

My brother Brendon had a big summer this year, too! I was able to go to his graduation (Jason could only come to his before graduation breakfast since he had to work). It was another beautiful day! Shaun, Me, Breanna, Brendon, Amberlyn, and Cara

And he also received his Eagle Scout award this year. He is the last of my brother's to complete it. All of them were able to come and attend the ceremony which was really cool. That means all the men in my family are Eagle Scouts (and too bad all the in-laws are so close but never got it-heehee).All four brothers and my dad- The Eagle Scout Clan!

Part ov every summer is Grandma and Grandpa camp. Since I live so close to my parents, I get to be a part of this every year. This year, both mom's of the participants decided to come and stay the week to cut back on Travel, so I got to see my sisters and sister-in-law all week! One day, we met up with all the grandkids and were able to go to the Sacramento River. It was a blast to go swimming with all of them, but we had to keep careful close watch to make sure none of them drifted away!

The women enjoying themselves- including my mom : )McCoy, Boston, and Kayden, the three brothers enjoying the river in a small raft

After Grandma and Grandpa camp, my sister decided to stay a week longer with her boys. One night, I invited all the boys to have a slumber party at my house. We went swimming and they all were loving it! Sterling and Colton even went swimming in the deep end and Ryland started to love the life jacket and got brave. They are so cute!

In the POOL!

Well, i guess this sums up our summer. though Jason was REALLY busy with work, were able to enjoy our sevles all summer long. Without work for me all summer, I was able to start healing and focusing on making me better!

Summer Adventures- Family Reunion

2008-09-26T17:53:00.000-07:00

Hutchings Hold'Em 2008My entire family-wow there's a lot of us!

One of the really fun things we did this summer was my family reunion in Flagstaff, AZ. So yes, just three short days after arriving home form Utah, we took off and drove (AGAIN) to AZ for my immediate family's reunion. THe theme was Hutchings Hold 'Em . It was a cowboy, card fun theme and we all enjoyed it!All the nieces and nephews at the campground (background)

Flagstaff is a beautiful place, and if I ever lived in AZ, this is where it would be. There are trees and it is not as hot or ugly as the rest of AZ (I only say that cause I like green and AZ is very brown). We camped at a small KOA campground and enjoyed lots of yummy food, playing games, visiting and talking, playing with the kids, and just plain fun at the campsite. But we did not stay at the campground that much, our days were filled with lots to do. The first night we ate at a dinner theater (cowboy style). Sunday we went to church and spent the evening putting funny make-up on and making up skits for fun. Jason's group all decked out in some fun make-up!

Mindy's group who all "killed" my dad!

Monday we went to Sugarbowl (a ski resort) and rode the ski lift to the top and enjoyed the scenery and beautiful view of the area. All the nephews at the top of the ski lift : )

But Monday we also went and visited the Grand Canyon. I have been (when I was younger I think), but this was spectacular. It was truly breathtaking. The pictures do not do it justice, and I can't believe how beautiful the sunset was.

Tuesday was spent packing and heading out towards home. I t was sad to say good-bye, but I knew I would be seeing most of them shortly when they came for Grandma and Grandpa Camp (in the next edition). That is one of the benefits of living next to my parents, everyone who comes and visits them gets us, too :)

Until next time . . . .

Summer Adventures Part 1- Trip to AZ and UT

2008-08-13T16:56:00.000-07:00

Before I backtrack and tell everyone what happened at work, I figured I would start by telling you the "good stuff" that has happened this summer. I am not sure how far I will get in telling, but bare with me.

The summer started off with a mostly solo trip from me to visit my sister who lives in Cottonwood, AZ and my brother in Salt Lake City, UT. Jason came at the end of the trip in Utah, but I did a lot of solo driving. My first stop was to my sisters. After 12 hours and almost running out of gas on a dirt road, I enjoyed four days with my sister, her husband (who amazingly was off work all four days) and her four kids. This is my first time visiting her with out her nearly popping out a kid, and it was fun. We got to have one day together just us and watched a movie, went shopping, and just had fun. I also enjoyed hiking with the whole family on Monday (Memorial Day) in Sedona which is only 30 minutes away from where they live. The picture above is of all the kids right before we left on the hike. We actually went about 3 miles round trip which was pretty good for such little legs. We even made it out without any bruises or scrapes. I was also able to play lots of games with my sister and her hubby (he's the game player, not my sister) and she even got me hooked on "The Bachelorette". On Tuesday, I allowed her and her hubby to go out on a date and watched the kids all afternoon. We went to the park and out to eat, got prizes from Family Dollar, and enjoyed some fun naps. I really had a great time there.This is a picture of my niece at the park. She looks exactly like I did when i was a kid. I have a picture of me on the swings at this same age, and we look the same : )

The next stop on my journey was to see my brother Chad and his family. It was my first time seeing my new nephew and he looks just like a cabbage patch kid!

This picture was the very first picture my nephew Kayden took in his life, so I had to post it for him-heehee.

While I was there, Chad took me on a tour of our Church Headquarters (since that is where he is now working) and it was amazing. I had really been struggling with my testimony and going to church, and it really helped remind me of everything I knew to be true. We also went on a long bike ride and enjoyed the "spring-like" weather they were experiencing at the end of May. I also took the boys to a park in Orem (south of SLC and north of Provo) where I met up with a friend i hadn't seen in a long while. I also took the boys to the mall and got them a crazy game and fun tattoos. Friday night we went to Chuck E. Cheese (kind of a tradition with these boys, I take them every time we visit them).This is a picture of my bro with his three boys winning some fun tickets! On that Saturday, Jason flew in early in the morning. After picking him up at the airport, we rushed to Eagle Mountain (where his sister Janelle lives) and saw her son being baptized. It was really neat. Right after, we headed to the temple to see her and her family be sealed together in the South Jordan temple. It was a beautiful day and we were so happy to be there. We went to a small reception for them afterwards and then headed back to my brother's to play games and sleep. We arrived home the next day which made my trip a total of 9 days! A DEFINITE much needed vacation for sure!

This is Jason kissing his niece Adella at the temple.

This is Jason with his two sisters Lynn (on the left) and Janelle (on the right) at the temple after the ceremony.

Jason's Jobs Update 7/23/08

2008-07-24T09:44:00.000-07:00

Jason has been SOOOOOOOOOO busy this summer. He has been working two jobs and 7 days a week.

His first job is placing new home development signs for his brother’s booming business in Elk Grove and Natomas (two neighboring communities of Sacramento. It takes up Friday nights and/or Saturday mornings as well as Sunday nights and/or Monday mornings. It is hard work and takes about 7-8 hours to do, but we cannot complain about the income it provides FOR SURE. Mindy actually assists him by driving the truck so he can easily jump out and place the signs. It is the time for both of us to be together as we hardly get the opportunity to see each other and talk. It isn’t so bad once we get going, it’s the getting going that is the hardest. Jason will be keeping this job in the fall due to the great income it provides and since it will not conflict with his schooling.

The second job Jason has been doing is installing security systems for Pinnacle Security. He works Monday through Saturday and usually starts between 10am and 1pm and sometimes does not get home until 12midnight. Since the work is paid by the install, Jason is trying to get as many as he can to help with money and his end of summer bonus. It is hard work, with sometime when he is just waiting for an install usually in the area playing his PSP pr watching a movie on it. He usually gets 2-3 a day and that is great for the weekly income as well. He is hoping for a service tech position in the fall, but we will not know about it until close to fall. He would be able to do this on the days he is not in school. He has enjoyed it for the most part, but hates the fact that he really can’t spend time with me, go on vacations, or spend time with all the family that is around.

Jason is doing an amazing job. Mindy is so grateful for his efforts as it has allowed her the MUCH needed time off work right now. We are looking forward to the fall when we will be able to see each other hopefully a few more evenings. And yes, Jason will be reffing again this fall, but only on Thursdays and Fridays, not Saturdays like he did last year : ) Way to go Jason for working his butt off !!!!!!!!!!!!!

Quick Mindy Update

2008-07-16T08:22:00.000-07:00

Work Sucked
Nervous Breakdown
Quit my job
Seeing Psychologists/Psychiatrists
Getting better

Our Birthdays

2008-04-05T13:58:00.000-07:00

I couldn't post all negative- heehee!

Jason and I have both celebrated our birthdays recently, Jason turning 29 and me hitting the big 31 (wow, I can no longer say I am barely 30). Jason's birthday was on February 22nd. Though I had to work all day, I was able to go out and do signs with him that night and he even came and visited me at work and brought his traditional Pastrami Sandwiches. We knew it would be a weird day, and so on Saturday, we celebrated more. My dad and siblings came over and we played games, watched a movie, ate cake and ice cream, and enjoyed the day. I even was able to make him breakfast on Saturday (the day after). I did drop the ball this year, but I made sure that Jason sure felt loved, and my family helped to make it special also cause in the middle of doing signs, we stopped by the house (we pass their house twice during our sign routes) because I had to "use the bathroom" and they had a cheesecake, balloons, and sang Happy Birthday to him. They stepped up and saved me for sure!

My Birthday was on March 28th, and as mentioned below, was a truly emotional day. I only had to work a half day, and we were able to watch a movie, I took a nap (after being out until 1am the night before with my dad in the hospital), and then we went out to eat at my favorite restaurant. Jason did an amazing job and even got me two birthday gifts I really wanted. Then Jason dropped me off at my parents house where I was spoiled rotten. I got my hair cut from my mom, had a fun party with some neat gifts from my parents and siblings including my favorite cake and ice cream, received a very good massage from my brother Brendon, pedicure from my sister Nana, and hand rub from my sister Amberlyn all while watching Girls Just Wanna Have Fun (one of the classic fun movies I never get to watch). Then on Saturday, Jason continued spoiling me by giving me a very long massage, and then we went out with some friends to go bowling (my sister came too). Afterwards, we went out to eat again. I truly felt spoiled and felt as though I had been truly spoiled.

Work Update

2008-04-05T13:30:00.000-07:00

Wanted to give everyone an update on my work status: Lots has happened since the last posting. On March 25th, Rio Linda School District (our partner with our free after school sites where we have over 140 kids) decided to switch providers on April 25th,meaning that we (Rio Linda Elverta Recreation and Park District) would no longer be providing the after school program at the two schools where we did have the free program (referred form here on out as ASES, After School Education and Safety). Quite a shock to both myself and my boss, and lots of work to be done to switch it over. Even though there were a number of factors in this decision, I myself felt directly responsible for the discontinuation of the program. I went through lots of feelings of guilt, anger, sadness, and have been trying to deal with all of these. It greatly effected my Birthday (on March 28th) and only after a priesthood blessing from my father and husband did I start to feel as though I was no longer alone in this process. I have been able to keep myself composed while at work except for a few moments of break down in my car sobbing to Jason. I also briefly broke down in front of my staff on Tuesday April 1st (yeah, nice April Fool's joke for them) when I let them all know they no longer were needed after April 25th. It was very emotional for many of them (and for others, they were upset and I am still dealing with them). Then, just last night, we had a parents meeting at the better of our two schools, and all the parents were stating how much they appreciated us and wanted to know why we were leaving because they liked us so much. When I went to ask the parents to write notes of gratitude or to let our Board of Directors know at our next meeting, I briefly cried again. But overall I have been able to keep myself in check. I am sure Jason would state otherwise, especially since I seem to take all my anger and frustrations out on him (yes, he is so patient and perfect for me). I am doing better each day, but know until April 25th that I will continue with my indigestion, headaches, nightmares, no appetite, sore back and shoulders (where I carry all my stress), and boughts of crying, yelling, and pure exhaustion. I know that the program will continue with the new provider and that the children will be taken care of which is the most important thing through this all. To quote my boss "If we can get through this, we can get through anything!" I truly believe that and am grateful through it all, my boss has been very supportive and helped me, our Board of Directors are not unhappy with me and I still have my job, that I have family praying for me, that I have such great staff that are willing to work hard until the end, I have supportive office staff who are helping me out with the paperwork necessary, a husband who is so patient and kind and willing to help me through it all, and most of all, for my Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ who I know have carried me though this whole ordeal. Until next time . . .

Mindy's Work

2008-03-07T18:04:00.000-08:00

Got lots going on in our lives, but first and foremost right now is my work. It sure has been crazy, starting on February 19th. I am dealing with lots of major incidents with employees and kids. We have had broken bones, stitches from practicing for our parent talent show, upset and screaming parents, parents threatening to "shut us down", incident reports not filled out correctly, and more fights then I can count with the kids. I have had to deal with 12 incidents in 9 days (you do the math). It sure has not been fun, and I think I know have an ulcer and my shoulders will be permanently tense until I can get a good massage. My boss keeps telling me that I am learning lots (LOL), and that I will be so much better for this. I certainly hope so. I guess this is what happens when you are supervising over 27 staff members. Summer should be better, and I am actually looking forward to the break-heehee. I am still extremely busy getting our swim team up and running and helping another co-worker (who is over aquatics) with the summer and lifeguarding because of my background. I have my big Spring Jubilee Eggstravaganza on March 22nd and all that it entails, but actually am finding myself more organized than I thought and will enjoy the day rather than stress over it (lets just pray for sunshine that day). Our webpage takes up some time as well- you can check it out at riolindaelvertaparks.org, I am the one that does the upkeep and maintenance on it. And lets not forget our next Rec Guide will be coming out soon and I am responsible for coordinating that. Well, I guess I have complained enough for one day, but maybe some of you who have simpler lives will appreciate this. I do love my job, and if I didn't have to deal with all the issues (hmmm), my job would be perfect! At least I have more good days here then bad, and the good days are really fun! Until next time . . .

New to the Blogging Game

2008-02-18T15:20:00.000-08:00

I am attempting to try and get this thing up and running.

Life for us has been pretty crazy!

We love everyone and miss them even more.