Amber Mayree

My Week

2010-04-30T17:26:00.000-07:00

On Monday, the Larsens went on vacation and left me in charge of the kids. Yes, all 6 of them for a week. Luckily I have done this twice already, so it was no biggie. Although I was drained by the end, after only being home half an hour I was already missing the kids like crazy! It was hard watching all of them, but I would do it every day if I could (oh wait, I already do) I LOVE these kids, they are so sweet! Yes, very energetic, loud, and crazy, but SO fun!

Here are a few stories and highlights...

I took the 3 youngest kids to the park. We stayed for about an hour. Wyatt started fussing so I was anxious to get them home, as I could tell my favorite part of the day was near. Nap time. The boys were already cranky, and hearing it was time to go home did not help. I picked up a boy in each arm. Will and the blanket in the left. Wyatt and the bag in the right, and off to the car, which was not close. My arms were burning as they both kicked and screamed to get down. I surrendered and let Will down hoping he would walk to the car. He walked part of the way then decided to wander. Switch. Wyatt walked while I held Will. Switch. On and off the whole way to the car. We made it! Put Wyatt in the car first, buckled him in then went to get Will. I couldn't find him. I looked through the front window and saw a little blonde head bobbing up and down, about the size of a nickel as he had crawled under the bushes that separated the park and the parking lot and made a run for it. Of course I jumped out and chased after him, by the end of the second run of carrying this little monster to the car kicking and screaming I was so ready for nap time.

Hugs & Kisses

Another day I took oldest 4 to mall to play on the toys- Jeremiah (friend from NJ) came with to give a hand. They totally looked like ours seeing how they all have blonde hair blue eyes and so does he, so I told the girls to give him a hard time and play along with it. While we were walking Caroline said "daddy pick me up" he just laughed and kept walking. She stopped. threw a "fit" and yelled "DADDY! DADDY PICK ME UP!" It was hilarious and he was SO embarrassed! So he picked her up. That went on till we got to the toys. I sat down for 5 minutes tops. Wyatt the 1yr came over to me to pick him up. Picked him up and I felt something warm. I knew it! He had peed on my me. The whole left side of my leg was SOAKING wet. So we headed back to the car. On the way there Isabel (the 8yr old) thought it would be funny to give me a hard time. So she said really loudly "mommy, daddy, can I sleep with you tonight" OF COURSE she said it right when we walked past a group of guys in my ward. Yep. It was pretty funny though.

Cute Little Feet

Will (2yr old) had a dirty diaper. While I was folding the diaper Will jumped up diaperless and made a run for it. Ran out the back door.. well the back yard combines with the neighbors without fences and of course everyone was out and saw me chasing this little nakey boy. Yes, the neighbor boy is my age. Home from college and had about 7 or 8 friends over for a bbq outside and Will ran right up to them and sat on one of their chairs then said "No Amba, i'm with my friends" haha. Wow.

Playing with the girls' hair

Miko, the cute, but annoying dog chews up EVERYTHING. Not only did he chew up 7 shoes (so 7 pairs of shoes down the drain since you can't wear just one) and my jacket, but I made a huge mistake of leaving the garbage in the garage while I took the kids to school. Came back to a garage full of chewed up garbage, diapers, and a dog with poo all over him. What a way to start off the morning, cleaning that mess up and giving the dog a bath. I was so upset, but it's hard to get mad at a dog that cute. The kids say the same thing, even when he went to the bathroom in the house 3 times and they had to help me clean it up. He's REALLY lucky he's cute!

Ice cream

Ya, this was a LONG week, and yet I'm sitting here with a huge smile on my face and missing those kids. Funny how that doesn't make sense to me, yet, it does.

Sweet Caroline

I LOVE MY JOB!

Time.

2010-02-21T22:50:00.000-08:00

How do you get over someone you love? Someone you spent every day with, grew with, someone who became your best friend. How do you get over the pain of knowing that the promises he made, promises that mean the world to you, don't even cross his mind? How do you fall asleep without the tears on your pillow? How do you get his voice out of your head? The voice telling you you're the most beautiful girl in the world, the words I love you. His laugh when you get frustrated, because you can't find a thing to wear and you start to pout. The feeling of his arms wrapping around you when tears about to pour out, because you burnt the cookies. His smile when the song lyrics on the radio remind him of you, then he looks over and the look in his eyes are priceless. How do you move on from the one you were planning on spending the rest of you life with?

Time.

Find someone who drives and hour just to see you. Who stays, even though you're a complete bi.. brat. Someone who offers to go shopping with you when you've just got in an argument with your parents and want to spend that time alone. Someone who shows up at the mall anyway after being rudely spoken to, because he knew you would call him as soon as you got there wishing you had accepted his company.

Time.

Hold onto that one who is patient with you when you're shopping and can't find anything that fits, being hungry, cramping, and under a time limit (and about in tears). The one who doesn't have words when you show him the dress you've just tried on, he just simply wraps his arms around you and holds you.

Time.

Appreciate the one by your side when you leave the mall with nothing. Frustrated and still hungry. The one who offers to bring you back to the mall after you drop the car off, and you harshly reject. The same one who shows up at your door knowing you would regret giving the cold shoulder and wished he was there to take you back the second you walk in the door.

Time.

Accept the one who continues shopping with the irritable girl who had been negative the whole night. The one who never complained, never reacted unkindly in return. The one who stays by your side and doesn't give up on you, even when you've given up on yourself.

Time.

Love the one you think of at night that brings you continuous smiles, instead of countless tears.

XOXO

2010-02-15T17:09:00.000-08:00

There are two types of people in the world. There are the ones that love Valentines Day and then there are the ones who hate it. I use to be the one of the many girls who hated it, up until a couple years ago when I got a huge teddy bear and candy from a guy who liked me. Ever since then I've loved this holiday. I didn't think too much into this holiday except looking forward to getting chocolate and stuffed animals, until this year... I was noticing everyone's blogs and facebook statuses about this resented day, then I went into my room and noticed my beautiful flowers Jared got me and a heart shaped letter my friend Amy wrote me and I couldn't see how anyone could hate this holiday.

Later that night I got a surprise on my doorstep, Jared had left me a frog and a letter. A couple hours later Jeremiah brought me over chocolates. This day just kept getting better and better. Chocolates, Flowers, and stuffed animals are keys to a girls heart, so how could anyone not love this holiday?!

Ten minutes and ten pounds later I got the answer. My best friend Gabrielle came over. She was sad, so I asked her what was going on. Valentines Day had come to an end and she hadn't seen or heard from her boyfriend all day. The look on her face when she told me broke my heart. I hated seeing her so sad. The rest of the night she kept me laughing. I swore i've never laughed so hard in my life. When she left I thought about how grateful I was to have her in my life, then I thought about Jared, Amy, Jeremiah and everyone else who had made my day so special and I realized it's not about the material things. Sure, chocolate is great, and flowers are beautiful, but it's the people in your lives that make life fun and exciting. So i've come to the conclusion that everyone should love this holiday, because I am sure everyone has someone in their life that they've been blessed with. Someone who when you think of them you can't help but smile. So let them know. Not just on Valentines Day, but every day.

Photo Shoot

2009-07-22T17:32:00.000-07:00

When I went back to Utah last month my friend JD took pictures of my best friend Gabrielle and I. He's an amazing photographer! He is very artistic and can turn a random alley into a great place to shoot pictures. It was a blast to spend time with my best friend Gabs and JD one last time before he leaves on his mission.

Palmyra Trip

2009-07-22T15:51:00.000-07:00

I just recently took a trip to upstate NY with my boyfriend Mark and some of our friends. It was an amazing experience. It was a quick trip with a lot of driving (12hours total), but totally worth it. We drove up saturday morning, got there in the afternoon, then left Sunday morning. First we went to Joseph Smiths house, then the Sacred grove, then later that night we went to the Hill Camora pageant. I am so grateful to be a part of the church and to have the opportunity to be out East and experience so many great things!

Home Sweet Home

2009-07-07T11:41:00.000-07:00

I made a surprise visit to see my family a couple weekends ago. It had been awhile since I had seen them and felt like I needed to be there and spend time with them. I was going to surprise everyone, but found out they were all going to be in Moab that weekend. So I just told my parents and surprised everyone else. Gloria walked in first and was shocked! I could have hugged her all day! Can you tell we are sisters by our unplanned matching outfits? I love her! It was so nice to be home!

The night I flew in my friend Scotty threw a bonfire for me, I hadn't seen these boys since before they left on their missions so it was a lot of fun to see them again and catch up on the past 3yrs!

Me & my best friend Gabrielle! I love her!

Matt & I

JD! My breakfast buddy!

My beautiful mom!

I can't wait to go back and visit everyone again! Love you all!

Boston

2009-07-07T11:10:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago Nichole and I went to Boston to go to a Red Sox game. We stayed the night at Nichole's grandparents house in Rhode Island Friday night then headed into Boston early the next morning. We met up with my friend Chase who is from SLC, but just recently moved to Boston. We met at the mall there which was huge and Nichole and I instantly fell in love with it! We headed to the game straight from there to beat traffic, which wasn't very successful but it added more adrenaline to the exciting adventure!

Of course being as friendly as Nichole and I are we made friends instantly! The people in front of us were from North Carolina. When they noticed the seats by us were free they moved up to sit by us. The people above us were from Utah. Small world! One was a Yankee fan and was very brave to support his team by wearing his hat! Sitting next to us was Sam, he was our favorite, such a sweetheart! They were all hilarious and made the game a blast!

After the game we got a little tour of Boston. Even though it was dark while we walked around it was beautiful and really fun! I can't wait to go back!

Kings Point Adventure

2009-05-11T09:06:00.000-07:00

This past Saturday Jenny and I went to Long Island to hangout with Brock. I drove there for the first time and it really wasn't as bad as i thought it would be. I just hate going over the bridges! Especially the Verrazono, it's really pretty, but it still scares me! We met up with Brock then took the train into Manhattan (mine and Jenny's first train ride into the city). First we met up with Nolan and got the best cupcakes ever! We can always count on him for the best food in the city! Then we got some pizza, can never go wrong with New York pizza!

Next we went to the fountain that was in Enchanted, Jenny and i even threw pennies in and made wishes! It was so pretty, and the weather was really nice so we hung out there for awhile to rest from all the walking we had done!

You never know what you'll see in Central Park, that day we saw a guy singing opera, playing the violin, and dancing around like a maniac, yes, all at the same time! It was VERY entertaining!

After our feet were rested (of course Jenny and I wore the wrong shoes..again) We headed back to Brock's school. He's in the Navy and goes to the US Merchant Marine Academy. He gave us a tour of the campus and we even got to go on the "Toy Boat". Jenny and I were a little disappointed though when we were expecting it to be more like Titanic, but it was still way cool!

We got there right as the sun was setting and it was beautiful!! A perfect ending to a perfect day!

The Latest..

2009-05-11T05:56:00.000-07:00

Now that I have weekends off, i've been able to do a lot more out here and it's made being away from home easier since i have something to look forward to during the week. A couple weeks ago i took a trip to Long Island with my friend Krista who use to nanny there. We went to the singles ward there and i met some new friends (and ran into an old childhood friends older brother, small world). The drive there wasn't bad at all, but on the way back we missed a turn and ended up sitting in Manhattan traffic for almost two hours!! It was quite the adventure though!

The next weekend Brock (who i met at the singles ward) and his friend Brad from school came to Jersey to visit for the weekend. The plan was to spend the day at the beach, but of course as soon as we got there it got colder..so we went back to the hotel and went swimming, then went out to eat, then played some football in the parking lot! It was a lot more fun than it sounds haha. Later that night at around 1 am i got a craving for some icecream! None of the girls wanted to go so i went over to the boys' room and Brock was nice enough to take me to get some. Of course and 1am nothing is really open, but luckily Walgreens had a good stock and even had mine and Brocks favorite, cookie dough! It was sooo good! :)

The weekend after that I hung out with Brock again. He took me to a Newark Bears game, which of course was the key to my heart since I LOVE baseball! The lead singer from Lonestar star sang the national anthem, and the crazy lady in front made it very entertaining! She would stand up and say, "Everybody hits" then the whole crowd yelled WHOOO! haha!

After the game we went and saw the movie Fighting, and X-Men. Yes, two action movies with a lot of fights (hence the title). The Fighting movie wasn't bad, but I loved X-Men! Now i just need to watch the rest of the X-Men movies..I'll add them to the list of movies Ian (my employer) wants me to watch :)

Let the games begin!

2009-05-07T18:50:00.000-07:00

Ever since Nichole and I moved to Jersey we had an awful habit of going to Applebees and eating triple chocolate meltdowns every time we were stressed (which was a lot) so not only was the cost adding up, but the lbs were too! I've been trying to eat a lot healthier lately and i try to go to the gym at least 5 days a week (gotta get ready for the beach) We discovered tonight that not only is running around kicking a ball on a wet and muddy field tons of fun, but it helps get rid of stress and is WAY healthier than chocolate cake (although we do need that at times). Me, Nichole, and Monika (another nanny from Germany) have declared Thursday nights to be our girls soccer nights-what better way to help get rid of stress than running around kicking a ball in mud? :)

I Love NY

2009-03-14T14:25:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago my friend Nick and his friend Derrick came out to visit me! It was so much fun! We spent the weekend in NYC with a my other friend Rhisleyne and her cousin. It was the first time the boys have been in the city so naturally we did all the tourist stuff. Empire, Time Square, China town, Little Italy, Central park, etc. Even though it seems like i've done them a million times now it was a blast! The boys were so funny and kept us laughing the whole time! Ay i'm walking here!

By the end of the day our faces were frozen so we had to stretch them out a bit :)

New Yorks finest. ha ha.

Puerto Rico

2009-03-14T14:04:00.000-07:00

I went to Puerto Rico for a week with the family i work for. It was beautiful and a lot of fun. Poor little Max got sick the second day we were there, but he was such a trooper! He drank some tap water that didn't agree with his stomach, and teething on top of that was not fun. For him, or us. He had a blast the first day though and he felt better the day we left, thank heavens he wasn't sick on the plane ride back to Jersey!

Thanksgiving

2008-11-30T15:39:00.000-08:00

Alone in Manhattan!

2008-11-21T16:37:00.000-08:00

I've been into the city a lot, but i've always been with people that know their way around, well Haley just moved to Jersey from North Dakota and had never been to the city before, we couldn't find anyone with experience to come with us, but i was confident enough to take her myself. We stayed with Nolan who is friends with my employers. He got a last min call to take care of some stuff out of town, so he gave us the keys to his appartment for the weekend. What an adventure! We started out in Time Square and did all the tourist stuff, after walking around all day we decided we were going to start living like true New Yorkers and took our first taxi back to the appartment. Nolan is a chef in the city, so naturally he recommended the best resteraunts around. We ate at a cute little chinese restraunt on 2nd ave that has the best orange chicken i have ever had! After dinner we decided to call it a night, knowing we had a long day of shopping ahead of us.

The next day another friend named Dennis hungout with us. He picked us up and we went to brunch at a cafe on 88th off 3rd ave. I had amazing german apple pancakes! Yum! Next we went to Harold Square to start shopping mission to find coats. First stop was H&M...there it was-the perfect coat for me right in front of my eyes! On sale too! With some help from Dennis, the owner of the store and the door man i found the perfect fit. Next was Daffys. No luck. Macy's was next and Haley found a nice Calvin Klein coat originally $298 for a killer deal of $70! To finish off our new look we got hats, scarfs and gloves. After shopping we went to Central Park. It was beautiful! Cold...but definitely worth walk! Needless to say, the weekend was amazing and now i am the one that has experience :)

Sweet Max

2008-09-08T17:16:00.000-07:00

Where do i even begin with this little boy?? He has become a huge part of my life out here in New Jersey. I watch him while his parents are at work. As much as i love him, he does give me a run for my money. He's so fun and cute though, which makes it easier :)

How loves bath time-by the time i am done giving him one you would think i took one with him, because i am soaking wet! :)

Max and I LOVE going to the park! There are 4 on the street across from us so we go to a different one each day! It's so much more fun now that he can run around and climb on the playgrounds! He loves swings too-as you can tell by that huge grin in the picture :)

My friend Nichole who is also a nanny watches this little girl Lorelai who is 7 months. Her and Max are so cute together! We have playdates and the two babies laugh, stare and smile at each other non stop! It's adorable!

Max isn't a very good sleeper...well, at least not in his crib. He wants to be held and cuddled with. When he gets tired he picks up his blanket and binky, reaches for me to pick him up, then points to my room. He needs to start napping in his crib again, but it's even hard for me, because he's such a good snuggler :)

U.S Open

2008-09-08T16:40:00.000-07:00

Sam and I went to the U.S Open in New York - something i've always wanted to do! It was and amazing experience and tons of fun! The tickets were from 7am-2pm so it was a long hot day. The tickets we got gave us a guaranteed seat in the Arther Ash stadium (the main stadium) and we could walk around to all the other matches going on. We got to watch Serena Williams play, and many other great players!

After the matches were over we went across the park where MIB was filmed. We took pictures and walked around the park. It was very nice.

Family

2008-09-08T11:21:00.000-07:00

I Love My Family!!

Mom and Gloria came out to visit me for a week!

Jersey Girls

2008-09-08T11:17:00.000-07:00

The 3 Nannies!
I met Jenny and Nichole at church. They are so much fun to be with! Unfortunately Jenny was only here for the summer. Good thing shes from Utah! We had so much fun together though! I've made some great friends out here!

NYC Adventures!

2008-09-08T11:05:00.001-07:00

Subway Surfing! Next time you're on a subway tray staying up without holding on to something. We make it look easy, but it's a lot harder than it looks.

Jenny and i spent a day in the city shopping for purses, then later that night went to the play Wicked. It was AMAZING!! I was hesitant about buying tickets, but Jenny got a killer deal and it was definitely worth it!

After the play we were walking back to port authority and saw these guys with motorcycles. We just HAD to take a picture! We gave the guys our shopping bags, purses, and cameras to take our picture. We should have taken a picture of these tough biker guys with all our stuff. Wasn't it a sight!!

Friends

2008-09-08T09:35:00.000-07:00

The friends i've met here in Jersey are great! We have so much fun together, whether we go into NYC, the beach, or even just hanging out at our local applebees.