IL Trip

Earlier this summer my parents took 3 of my nephews on a road trip to Nauvoo, Cathage Jail, Independence, Liberty Jail & Adam-Ondi-Ahman. So of course I had to tag along. We also were able to visit Becky, Dave and the kids in Carbondale, IL. It was a great trip and way too short.

Outside our hotel after our first stop



Nauvoo Temple



Nana showing the boys how to walk on stilts



Nana with Mia & Kianoa



Justin, Tommy & Ryan at Cathage Jail



Cathage Jail


Outside Cathage Jail


Cutie Kianoa & Pappa



Liberty Jail



Independence Visitor Center



Adam-Ondi-Ahman

Cakes

I'm sure I have posted some of these pictures before but here are the cakes I have made.
First cake I ever decorated:


Flower cupcakes



Flower cake



Present cake



Wedding cake



Graduation Cake



Dora Cake



Unicorn Cake



Snowman Cake



Circus Cake



Airplane Cake

Look Not behind Thee

To stay on track with my random postings, I thought I should start the year off by posting a video. I found this while I was blog stalking (yes, I will admit that I blog stalk) someone that has recently suffered a miscarriage. While I have not experienced the loss and heartache of a miscarriage, I have experienced the heartache of not being married or having children. I think this is a pretty cool video and the message it brings really rings true to me. My life hasn't always gone the way I thought it would or even expected it should. And learning to not look behind me and long for things that could have been is a work in progress. This video is a good reminder of that for me.

Cakes

I made a couple of cakes for my niece Katy's 2nd birthday and for my friend Kerstin's daughter's 4th birthday. They both were a lot of fun to make even though at one point I had my phone in hand about to call the nearest bakery to see if they could quickly make the cakes for me. Mainly because at one point I had made Dora crossed eyed. Luckly I was able to fix it! I'm no Ace of Cakes but I think they turned out pretty good.

Dora the Explorer


Unicorn

Recap

I was going through the pictures on my camera and found some that I wanted to post. The first ones are from the Relay for Life walk my family and I did in memory of John. A member of your team needs to be walking at all times from 6pm until 6am. The idea being that cancer never sleeps so either does your team. It was very humid but a lot of fun. I think John would have really like the shirts Jacqui had made for all of us. The front of the shirts say "Cancer is a pain..." and the back of shirts say "In my sacrum - John Schoen"

This picture was taken at 6am in the morning after the walk was done. I think we all look pretty good for being wake the entire night!



This next one is of Sheridan and Megan. It was taken during Megan's visit for John's funeral. What cute cousins!



Miles' first birthday

Update

I've debated for months now about updating my blog. Mainly because I didn't really have anything to write about after John passed away. I miss him terribly and think about him daily.

In January I FINALLY got a job after being back in San Antonio for 4 months. I am the Operations Coordinator for Sorenson Communications. The company provides a video relay service to deaf and/or hard of hearing people. My job is to schedule the interpreter's and manage the operation side of things. I am learning a lot and really enjoying it.

In other news, Jacqui and the kids are moving back to San Antonio this summer! It will be so nice to have them closer. Mike and Heather had their second baby, Alison Elizabeth on March 26th. She is absolutely beautiful with lots of dark hair. I will try and post pictures of her and Katy soon.

My Beloved Brother

John passed away this morning after a short but very difficult battle with colon cancer. This is all still so surreal and my emotions are out of control. There are so many things I want to say. John was a kind, wonderful, funny, thoughtful brother, husband, father, and son. I couldn't have asked for a better brother. He was always so concerned about me and did everything he could to have the best relationship with me. I will cherish the wonderful Priesthood blessings I was so honored to have received from him. He was always so willing to give me one whenever I needed it or asked. I hope and pray that his wonderful sweetheart, Jacqui is able to know how much I love her and how grateful I am that we are sisters. And I hope and pray that their four beautiful children will always know how much their father loved them. I love you, John.

Miles' baby blessing, January 2009

Christmas 2006