What I LOVE about MY LOVE

It's hard to pin point on what made me fall in love with Jarom. It might've been the fact he's gorgeous or how on FB he claims to have an interest for 'collecting dirt samples' or how he comes up with the most endearing of nicknames. Whatever it was, got me hooked! And I'm so incredibly grateful he chose me to spend eternity together 'collecting dirt samples'. Here's just some of the many things I love about him:

• The HILARIOUS and sometimes CUTE songs and rhymes he comes up with! Ah he's a riot!
• His ability to talk to anybody and be their friend instantly.
• The extent of his soccer (sorry, FOOTBALL) knowledge! He could discuss any player of any team, including stats, coaches, uniforms, dates they're playing for hours on end!
• His thoughtfulness. For eg. last night before footie practice and before I got home he quickly did the mountain of dishes to save me time before the missionaries came over. My husband is amazing!
• His singing voice!
• His beautiful blue eyes, and how the one has a brown ring in the middle!
• The way he comforts me and 'cradles' me and can put a smile on my face no matter the circumstance!
• His love for the Savior and the Gospel!
• His testimony!
• How he magnifies his calling!.
• That he comes to join in my seminary class, and for his wise input. He's a constant support!
• His laugh and love for life!
• How he needs salt with every meal!
• His handwriting. So neat!
• How he fusses over his hair, and the fact that he has a hair straightener and I don't! haha!
• He's just plain fun to hang out with. Best friend ever! ('besties' lol)
• His ability to negotiate and find good deals!
• His excitement when using a flexi-shopper! :)
• How he brings little surprises home!
• His desire to do what's right!
• His smile!
• That he served a mission - in SLC! He is who he is today because of that selfless service. We're blessed because of it. Thank you babe!

Happy month of love Jarom, my best friend, my handsome husband, my eternal companion!

I love you!

"Tartan Meets the Queen" and everything in-between

It has to be said that my mum and I have always been avid readers and writers. Mum loves settling down to a thick novel starring old creepy houses, and I enjoy reading anything educational, classic, and with an inspiring main character. We've always wanted to write a book, so the obvious solution was to write one together. A regular mum and daughter team. Insert team Tartan. This whole 'thing' started in 2007 on a bright Sunday afternoon. Feeling bored and creative, we plopped onto L's bedroom floor with a mega old grey Sony laptop and typed up a story about a girl named Tartan. Why Tartan? Well have you ever heard of a character named Tartan? didn't think so. Our love for all things plaid stems from our Scottish heritage. And if you notice, Tartan wears a Anderson tartan skirt - Anderson because it was from L's high school uniform. Its one of the best - plaid's that is. We were sure of 2 things we wanted for our story: a) it has to be adventurous and involve travelling b) it has to be educational. The Adventures of Tartan and Grand-dad was the result. We chose Grand-dad as her companion mostly to satisfy that inner desire to honor our own grandparents for creating such terrific memories for us. And like any true filmmaker, of course we HAD to leave hidden symbolism throughout. Things containing special memories that no one else would understand, except us and those who know us best (ie. the squirrel, ode to 'squirrel face' and 'Sparky').

Next step: make the words come to life with the help of the incredibly talented illustrator, Heather Castles. There are no words to describe Heather's pure GENIUS when it comes to capturing your imagination to paper! We obviously owe majority of the credit to her talent. Thanks for all you do Heather!

Trafford then published our book and hey presto, you gotta book baby! Click on these links to purchase your own copy: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Word Power Books

Naturally we wanted to let Her Majesty the Queen know we honored her (why is it that we feel the need to impress this lady!?! Its a sickness I tell ya!). Her lady in waiting was kind enough to reply!

Check us out with our first ever royalty check for a whopping $3.00! Gotta start somewhere!

Tartan continues to live on in these next upcoming adventures to Paris, France, and Mpumalanga, South Africa. If you have any ideas as to where you'd like to see Tartan visit, please let us know which country interests you.

And that, dear readers, is the background to our little masterpiece and the little girl we love, Tartan.