Welcome to my blog!

Well, I finally did it. I became a blogger. I want to be able to stay in touch with family and friends and post new pictures and milestones for Lyric. She is 3 and 1/2 months old now and is so much fun! I think she is teething so she is a bit fussy lately. She has discovered her hands and feet and grabs at things which is so funny. She will stare at her fists as if thinking, "which one will I put in my mouth first?" She is such a joy and we are so thankful to have her in our lives. She has beautiful blue eyes and the start of some brown hair. If you have just joined us, I will catch you up on our story.

Stu and I met in 2001 while both working at SSI Sprinklers in Wichita, KS. He worked in the retail store and I was a Sales Coordinator/Receptionist. His family owned the business so Stu kind of slacked off. We were from different worlds and slowly became friends. I was in a relationship at the time and he loved to stay up late and hang out with friends. We finally started dating on July 13th, 2002. I left SSI in May of 2003 when I graduated from Friends University and went on to be a CSR for my aunt and brother who were American Family Insurance Agents. On July 13th, 2003 he proposed in our home we just purchased in Wichita. We got married on October 23rd, 2004 at Trinity United Methodist Church in Wichita. We had a reception at the Boathouse. What a blast!

I became an insurance agent with American Family Insurance February of 2006 after my brother, Jason, decided to leave the company for another job. In my first year of agency, I earned AFLIC (for life insurance sales) and All American. That campaign earned us a trip to Montreal, Canada. It was amazing. I hope to continue to earn those rewards for my hard work in the future. May 1st, 2007 I took over an American Family Insurance Agency from a retiring agent in Independence, KS. He had 28 year career. Let's just say I have some pretty big shoes to fill. He is a great man and I am blessed to get to take this over and continue to learn new things from him and now consider him a friend. Stu and I bought a home in the country and are able to ride our ATV's on the country roads. We love the space and the fact that I am so close to my family. We get to spend a lot of time with my parents, Jason and Hope, and the Stouts (David, Shauna, Brayden and Cayden). Shauna works for me at the agency and David works at Cessna in the Single Engine line. Dad also works at Cessna in flight. Jason is back at Coffeyville Resources Refinery working long hours. He seems to enjoy it.

Stu started working at Cessna Aircraft in the Mustang wings line. He enjoyed the people he worked with and the 4 day work weeks. Most of the time, he worked 5-6 day work weeks. We couldn't complain though. He then applied for a move in the company that would take him to Contract Delivery as a member of the flight crew. He operates a Tug and and moves, sets up and assists with the delivery of the jets and single engine planes for the customers. He LOVES his job and most weeks gets Fridays off to spend with our daughter.

Stu and I took a trip to Glamis, CA right after Christmas 2007 with his grandfather and grandmother, Jim and Ingrid Hopper. Stu and his Grandpa (and myself) share a love for ATV's, dune buggies and riding on sand dunes. We took the long trip together and had such a wonderful time. We spent New Years Eve 2008 in the middle of the Algodones sand dunes around a campfire. The wind was blowing about 90 miles and hour but it was fun! Since we moved to Independence, the Little Sahara dunes in Waynoka, OK are about 4 hours away as opposed to 2 hours when we lived in Wichita. The trips don't come as often but Stu longs to go just as much. He does have a hard time leaving me and the baby but he deserves to get away and have a guys weekend sometimes!

We were so blessed to have survived the recent layoff and continue to pray for all those who did and also for those who weren't so lucky. We pray that God will provide for you and your family. We also lift up our new President, may God help him to lead this country in a new direction. He's just one man but has the world on his shoulders. We have had a lot of adventures in 61/2 years and hope to experience so much more. With the arrival of our daughter, Lyric Brianne. I am sure the best is yet to come. We have a lot of pictures so stay tuned!

Thanks for reading and I hope to keep this up.

God Bless!

Jamie