"God has no problems," Corrie Ten Boom said, "Only plans." When ours are interrupted, His are not. His plans are proceeding exactly as scheduled.

Mount Diablo...

Yesterday Jeff, Loren, Loren's girlfriend, Joyce, and I all went up and spent the day at Mount Diablo. We had a lot of fun. Originally, we were supposed to go skiing/snowboarding, and my dad was going to come with us. But, since the weather has been so nice lately, we knew that the snow would be bad, so we changed our plans. And as it turned out, my mom needed my dad's help around the house, so he wasn't able to come with us. But the day still turned out to be very fun.

Jeff and I met Loren at his house and we all drove up to Dublin (where Joyce lives) together. When got to Joyce's house we made sandwiches and ate our lunch before heading out. (Mt. Diablo is literally in Joyce's backyard, she has a beautiful view from her driveway.) We drove to the mountain and spent the next 45 minutes driving up the mountain. It was a LOOOOONNNNNGGGGG but beautiful drive. Since being with Jeff, I've seen a lot of gorgeous sites. Loren has taken us to Yosemite, Mt. Diablo, and the Red Wood forest is next. (yay!) We stopped along the edge to take a picture of the view countless times before making it to the top, and we marveled the whole way up at the determination of the many bikers who persevered and made it to the top. (Seriously, there is NO way I could ride for ten minutes on that mountain, let alone hours and hours and hours like those bikers do.)

When we made it to the top, we were greeted with an amazing view. For those of you who don't know the significance of Mt. Diablo...while standing on the top of the mountain you can see a view that goes miles and miles and miles away. We even saw the Golden Gate Bridge! It was amazing!

We all went up and stood on the Observation Tower and looked out at the view and took millions of pictures. We spent a long time looking around.

After we were done looking around on the observation deck, we decided to go for a hike. We hiked up to a different part of the mountain, and climbed up onto a gigantic rock where we had another amazing view. We sat on the rock for a while looking around. (Correction...Jeff and I spent the whole time wondering how we were going to get down the rock, lol. Loren and Joyce admired the view.)

Finally, we got back onto the road and headed out. I was feeling car sick, and Loren offered to let me drive his truck (and offer I would have loved to take him up on, except I was feeling a little to sick to jump on the offer. lol, Loren has a nice truck!) We drove back down the windy road and then decided to go visit Joyce's horse at the boarding stables. (Not sure what they call it.) That was fun too, her horse is HUGE!! I don't think I've ever seen a horse that tall. Sometime soon, I'm going to try to ride him.

After that, we dropped Joyce off at her house and we headed home. When we got back to Loren's house, Jeff and I both headed back to my house.

The day was a lot of fun. The weather was beautiful and the scenery was amazing. I took so many pictures, but they don't do it much justice. And unfortunately, I didn't get any pictures of Jeff and I on my camera. :(

I'd have written more and added more details, but I must go and eat lunch now. So, goodbye for now.

Barbie...

On March 9th, Barbie turned 50. Here are some interesting facts about Barbie and her life...

*Barbie's full name is: Barbara Millicent Roberts...it's no wonder why she goes by "Barbie" (lol)

*Barbie is 11 1/2 inches tall

*If Barbie were 5 feet, 6 inches tall, she would have a 39-inch bust, a 21-inch waist and 33-inch hips.

*Barbie was created by Ruth Handler, and named after Ruth's daughter, Barbara.

*Barbie attended Willows High School, but graduated from Manhattan International High School.

*Barbie's boyfriend, Ken, is named after Ruth Handler's son, Ken.

*In 2004 Barbie and Ken split up for two years. (I wonder if during this time, no Ken dolls were created....?)

*Barbie had more than 40 pets in her lifetime, including a panda, a lion cub, and a zebra.

*Barbie has a pilot's license

*Barbie started her professional life as a teenage model, but since then, has had several careers, including a job as a flight attendant, a doctor, and a NASCAR driver.

*The first Barbie doll cost $3.00

*Mattel estimates that 3 Barbie's are sold every second.

*Barbie has had more than 1 billion pairs of shoes.

*Barbie is on Twitter, though very inconsistently.

*The first annual Barbie convention was held in 1980.

*The first Barbie doll dress was designed by Bob Mackie and was called "Gold."

*Twiggy, the model, was Barbie's first celebrity friend.

*Barbie met Ken in 1961

*Early market research suggested Barbie would never sell, because she had breasts; little girls wouldn't like her, parents wouldn't buy her.

*Barbie has five baby sisters. The first, Skipper, made her appearance in 1964.

*A 1959 Barbie in mint condition is estimated to bring $27,450...wow!!

*The first Barbies had white irises. The eye color was changed to blue in 1960.

*The 1999 "Generation Girl" series was considered controversial because one doll had a nose ring, and another had an ankle tattoo.

*Teacher Barbie was recalled in 1995 because she wasn't wearing panties.

*Barbie has made a brief appearance in "Toy Story 2"

*In 1997, Barbie was redesigned and given a bigger waist.

I used to love Barbies. I had countless dolls, and even more clothes!! I had all the cars, the horses, the houses, the shoes, the hangers and all the brushes!! I remember one birthday in particular, where all I got were Barbie's and their accessories, it was one of the best birthdays I've had!

My favorite Barbie, came with her husband, Ken and two little babies. It was called "Pregnant Barbie" and she featured a magnetic pregnant belly, which hid the two babies in. Both, Barbie and Ken wore wedding rings. And after Barbie had her babies, they would push them in the stroller and walk to the park for a picnic.

My least favorite Barbie (which I've never owned) is "Divorced Barbie." She comes with Ken's boat, his house, his car and his money.

If Barbie were real....

*She would have back pain from the high heels she has worn all these years.

*She would likely wear glasses or have had eye surgery.

*Her hair would be graying.

*She might have gotten a little shorter.

*She would likely have trouble standing up, given the size of her breasts and her small waist.

Here's what it would take to be Barbie...

*Have a chemical peel and use Retin A. "That should help the texture of her skin and get rid of the blotchiness and some of the pigment changes."

*Get an eye uplift and maybe a mid-face lift.

*Get a brow lift and Botoz in the furrows between the eyebrows.

*Have Botox injections in the laugh lines. If they're severe, have a chemical or laser peel.

*Have a face lift to help raise the area where the jowls sag.

*Have a neck lit for sagging under the chin.

*Get a breast lift.

*Plastic sugery on your hips and thighs.

That's all I've got for now...

Is there something you are hoping for today? Perhaps there is a condition you must ulfill before the Lord can grant it. He will...if you will.

A lot of ramble

Just for a head's up...I'm trying to type this out while eating a Chipotle burrito...thats tough multi-tasking. (mmmmm.....yum.....)



I am going to do my best to make this a "happy" post, since my last few have been pretty serious. Sigh, I miss the goofy old days, where I would blog on Ice Cream and Deep fried oreos and life was all ducky. Now, sometimes when I read my later posts, I think "Gee...what happened...This sounds like something a boring adult would write." Sniff sniff...don't try to grow up too fast, girls. Enjoy your carefree days now, while you have them. Because before you know it, you'll be working, paying bills and trying figure out how you will live after your wedding. Lol, Wow, I'm off to a great start on this being "happy."

Hey, and re-reading what I just wrote, I know that it sounds really depressing, like I'm not happy with where I am in life right now. I want you to know, I have never been more happy, but life is getting hard. I love where I am in life right now, love where life is leading me, but I don't overly love the hardships that are coming with this new season. I find myself often wishing, "I wish I could keep Jeff, but go back and be 7 again for a while." My point with saying all that is to stress to all of you younger people...enjoy where you are in life. Don't try to rush life and try to grow up too soon. Love where you are, and live it to it's fullest. There are many things that I can see right now, that I wish I would have done while I had the chance. I know I am still young, but age has nothing to do with it; It's where you are in life. I jumped head first into adulthood in a matter of only a few months, and now, as I am realizing I am down to very little time left at home, I find myself wishing I could go back and relive certain situations in life. Wishing I would have spent more time with my sisters and brothers, wishing I would have studied harder in school, ect. ect. So...all that to say...live...laugh...love.


Anyways...on to something truly happier.


So, this is really random, but we're very excited, and I want to share my enthusiasm with the rest of you...we got a magic bullet!!! (For those of you who don't know, it's the most amazing blender ever. It comes with little container attachments so that you can make single servings of drinks, soups, ice cream drinks, ect. You should look up the "Magic Bullet Infomercial" on youtube and see how cool it is.) We've been using it like crazy. Since we got it, we've been drinking tons of smoothies and ice cream blizzards. We've made sandwich fillings in it, mashed potatoes in it, and I think someone has made soup in it. It's pretty cool. Everyone should get one.

My mom is doing much better. She's been up and walking around for the past couple days now, though she is still tender and gets tired easily. She's been working with a natural health practitioner for the past week or so, and that has helped her a lot. She apologizes to all who have called her or e-mailed her in the past several days, and says she says she hopes to start returning phone calls and e-mails in the next couple days. She hasn't been online in over two weeks (her blog posts that have been added recently were scheduled--meaning they were wrote several weeks/months ago, and scheduled to be posted on certain days at certain times) nor has she been talking on the phone to anyone other than her NHP (natural health practitioner). She still has a ways to go before she is completely well, and she thanks you all for the prayers.

Shylie is getting so big! She's starting to teethe, so she's been very cranky lately and drools so much!! She's got the cutest hair, except for when my mom wets it and slicks it down like an old man. Poppet turned 4 last week, and got her first training wheel bike! She was so excited. Lolly...well, Lolly is the same old Lolly; full of spunk and spice. =/ The boys are doing well--loving the warmer weather and being able to run around outside in shorts and t-shirts. Shelbie and Shaylah are doing good too. Shelbie has been working a lot and is making a ton of money...way more than me, in fact!! (It's really not fair, actually.) But since Shelbie has been gone a lot lately, Shaylah has had to step up and pull some more weight around the house. She's loving being the part time "right hand arm" to my mom.



Jeff and I are doing fine. There's still no change in his job situation. I am still bummed and depressed, but I know God is in control. I heard two good sermons on Sunday about not losing heart during hard times, and I was grateful for that, as I really needed to hear them. I took all my wedding magazines back, but since then, I've found three others hidden in my room under my clothes, under junk on my desk and stuck on the side of the couch cushion, and I've also found a few other random books about planning thrown about my room. It's almost like they are haunting me and laughing at me: "Ha ha...ha ha..." Then, on top of that, I've got the 20+ mail order magazines that I sent for which are covering my dresser, stacked by my bed and on my nightstand. I'm ready to have a really big bonfire and use them for kindling. It doesn't help either, when I get online to check my e-mails and see 11 e-mails from various bridal resource shops. "Color Coordinate your wedding" from David's bridal, "Sale ends today!!--it's your last chance to save 10% today!!" from Jean M wedding and "Save up to $100!! Spend and save!!" from Exclusively Weddings. Rexcraft...Anne's Bridal Bargains...Invitations By Dawn...Natually Ever After...on and on and on it goes. I used to save them, but now I've begun to mark them as 'spam' and delete them because I'm tired of seeing them. Today, as I was driving home from Turlock, I drove past the apartment complex that (as of now) we are thinking of living in and I got a little choked up. It's a sinking feeling.

I comfort myself, knowing that my ways are not His ways, and his plan is better than my puny little ideas. I know that He has the perfect job for Jeff and He will make known the perfect job, in His perfect timing. Maybe right now He is using this time to teach us something.

Lol, I was also comforted a few days ago while talking with a friend. She just got engaged three weeks ago, and her and her fiance (who are going to school in Virginia,) flew home last week to "finish planning the wedding." They got engaged, and planned their wedding from Virginia all in a matter of 3 weeks. I thought..."If they can plan a wedding in three weeks from a different state, I know I could do it too." I told Jeff, "We still could possibly get married this year, all we gotta do is find you a job, and we could have our wedding planned in as little as 4 weeks time."

There was one e-mail that I got from a wedding retailer today, that I was actually glad I got. It was about celebrating St. Patricks day. Basically, if I plan a green wedding for March of next year and buy all my supplies in the next two days from "Exclusively Wedding", I will save 25% on all green items I buy. Wooo-hooo...I've always wanted a green wedding.

Yesterday Jeff and I were talking and we decided (it was his idea) to try a No Carb/No Sugar diet. (HA!!) We were on fire last night, and couldn't wait for today to start it. I talked with him this morning, and he says, "So...what can I eat? I didn't eat this morning, because I didn't know what I could eat." LOL, needless to say, we threw that idea out the window, and just decided to do a "half carb/little sugar" diet. Please keep us in your thoughts as you go about your day, enjoying your sugar and your carbs. :)

Daddy, Jeff, Loren and I are going snowboarding on Friday. I'm really hoping there is a huge storm before then, because I want to actually enjoy boarding this time, and not sleep in the lodge the whole time, like I did last time. (By the way, the storm will cause the snow to be fresh and soft, not hard and rocky like last time.) Anyways though, we're really excited and eager to go. It will be fun.

Well, that's all I got for now. I think I did a little bit better on making it more light hearted this time, didn't I?

one of those weeks...

So much has happened lately. I'll warn you all now, this isn't going to be a joyful and perky post. I'm rather discouraged and bummed right now. I want to crawl into a dark hole and...I don't know, sleep until life returns to normal again.

Here I go....

My mom is very sick right now. She's been dealing with health issues for about three months now. She's been in the urgent care/emergency room 5 times in one month. In the last seven days alone, she's been to the doctors, the urgent care and the emergency room. She's having heart issues, and they can't diagnose her condition. Her chest hurts her very badly, her arms, hands, chest and neck feel tingly and she gets severe head rushes constantly, even when she is not doing anything. Not to mention, her pulse is always very high. This, of course, has been very stressful on everyone in the Ney house. She made an appointment with her doctors, but they can't get her in until next month. So she's been working with a herbalist who has been helping her during the past few days. Hopefully it works. She is literally on bed rest (not by dr.'s orders, but she has no energy or umph to get up and do anything), she's constantly in pain, and looks miserable. Please keep her in your prayers, as well as my dad, the baby and all the kids who are feeling the stress that is going on.

Last Sunday night Jeff started getting really sick. By Monday morning he was throwing up everything he drank (remember, he was on the cleanse and wasn't eating anything). I had taken my mom to the urgent care that morning, we left at noon and I took her home and dropped her off. Jeff and I had been texting all morning, and I knew he was very sick. So, after dropping my mom off, I went to Jeff's house to take care of him. His mom and I tag teamed all afternoon taking care of him. Poor guy, he threw up a total of 19 times throughout that day! He looked horrible and felt horrible too. He had a huge migraine and his kidneys were starting to hurt him. Since he couldn't keep any liquids down, I roded in cayenne pepper (for his headache) and water to keep him hydrated. I kept rubbing his neck, back and stomach with peppermint oil-to ease the pain, as well as having him breath in the smell of lavender to keep him calm. It did help some, but he continued to complain about his kidneys all afternoon, he was in excruciating pain. Around 7:30 he started to complain that his right kidney was hurting way worse, which raised red flags in Debbie's (his mom) and my mind...what if it is kidney stones. Originally we were thinking that he was sick from detoxing from the cleanse (which was to be expected) but as it continued into the evening, (and it had started the night before around 6-ish) we started to realize it was something else. My parents were at home, and were very worried about him and were urging us to take him to the emergency room. At 8:00 we both decided we needed to bring him in. He hardly had strength to stand or walk, but was still so sweet throughout the entire experience. By now, his migraine was gone (thanks to the cayenne!) but his kidney still hurt him very badly. We brought him in and about two hours later he was hooked up to machines and having tests ran. His blood results came back totally wacky, he was very dehydrated and his kidneys were very damaged. Not to mention his white blood cell count was very high (indicating a infection somewhere in his body). He ended up getting admitted to the hospital (and didn't get out until Wednesday afternoon.) In the end, they never figured out what was definitely "wrong" with him, nor why his kidneys hurt so bad. They ruled out kidney stones (though he had all symptoms and signs of that. And it is still possible, that he passed a stone before the tests were ran...?) appendicitis and a few other 'major' illnesses. After he left the hospital, he had a day or so where he was peeing a little bit of blood (which is a sign of passing a kidney stone) but that cleared up pretty quickly. (Oh, and we found out during all of this, that lemons and cayenne is also a kidney stone detox....lol...oops.) He was still weak for a few days, but quickly bounced back and is completely healthy and normal again. Oh, and Debra was telling me a few days ago, that there has recently been a new flu bug that is going around, that was the same symptoms that Jeffrey had. (So, that could explain why his white blood cell count was high, if that is what he had?) I was so glad though, when he got out. I am so done with hospitals for a while!! I was him nearly 24/7 while he was in the hospital. I stayed with him for the first night and didn't leave til the next afternoon (only to run home and shower,) then came home that night to sleep in my own bed, and was back with him the next morning til he was discharged. It was a very interesting few days. =/

We've gone snowboarding twice this month, and I will be going again with my dad, Jeffrey and his dad next week. Two weeks ago when we went, I had a lot of fun. (I got SO sun burnt though!) But I did a good job, didn't fall very many times and the snow was perfect. We went again today, and I didn't have any fun. The snow was very rocky today, and it was freezing cold. I only boarded for like 3 hours, then I slept in the lodge for the rest of the time. At one point, I was finally doing okay, and I caught some rocky snow, and fell on my rear, but my board flipped me forward, kicked me in my stomach and slammed my face into the snow. My chin is scratched and my lip was bleeding and I desperately need to see a chiropractor. LOL.

I spent Saturday helping Debbie move into her apartment. Jeff, Julie (his sister), Josh (his brother) his uncle and his cousin all came to help. We filled two trucks, three cars and there was still a little left. It was a lot of fun, I enjoyed hanging out with them all and getting to visit with Julie and Josh and getting to know them better. I've had a lot of time to be with Debra lately, which has been nice, but it was fun to hang with them also. Jeff has a great family.

Then, on Sunday I spent all day with his family again, for his Grandpa's birthday. We went to his Aunt and Uncle's house and ate a big dinner and desert. (German Baptists make the BEST food in the whole wide world. I can't wait for Thanksgiving.)

Anyways, my final update on Jeff's job situation is: he didn't get the job. Therefore, our chances of getting married this year, are as small as his chances of getting that job were. ...Very slim, obviously. I'm heart broken and want to burn my dress and destroy my wedding magazines. Not really. I'm just very discouraged, and don't want to look at another wedding photo or hear of another couple getting married for a very long time. I'm trying to encourage myself though, telling myself that if we have to wait another year...that's 12 more months of working out to fit into my dress. Haha. I'm not sure when we will be getting married now. If God does something amazing quickly (as I know he can do) maybe we still could get married this year. But as of now...I have no idea. I will say though, November-February and April-June are out, we can't use those months, so we don't have many options. Please just pray for us and this situation. For Jeff to get a job, for us to trust the Lord and for me to not be so discouraged. And just so you all know, we are still holding strong to our conviction of not kissing til our wedding day. We will continue waiting for however long it must be, as we have made a commitment that we will not break.

Anyways. It's just been one of those days...one of those weeks...where I wish I was seven again. Playing with Elmo...flying him through the backyard and landing him in the pond. I went through several months of trials before I met Jeff that were the hardest months of my entire life. The Lord proved to be faithful to me through that time. I feel like I'm back in that place, going back through the desert and the flames once again, looking for a helping hand. Please keep us in your prayers.

He never allows us to undergo anything or which He has not promised us the strength to endure. The everlasting arms are always underneath us, the everlasting love...always surrounds us.

The longest Q&A e-mail EVER!!!

1. Where is your cell phone? in my pocket, destroying my body's electrical flow pattern
2. Your significant other? Jeff
3. Your hair? brown-ish blond-ish, curly, medium lengthish
4. Your mother? tallish and sweet
5. Your father? short...ish and humerous :) (hopefully he doesn't read this post!! ha ha)
6. Your Favorite Thing? being with Jeffrey
7. Your dream last night? Jeff and I married and moved into an unfurnished appt...with grey concrete walls and we ate soup on the red paint splattered floor. yeah...it was weird.
8. Your favorite drink? water, iced tea
9. Dream/goal: be the best wife I can for jeff and take care of him and our family
10. The room you're in? the playroom...kinda messy right now
11. Your fear? not being able to dial 911 in case of an emergency
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? married with...hmm...two little girls and one little boy
13. Where were you last night? At the hospital with Jeffrey
14. What you're not? I am not... a boy or a bird or a plane etc.
15. Muffins? Poppy Seed and CHOCOLATE!!!
16. One of your wish list items? a couch for our appt
17. Where you grew up? ceres
18. The last thing you just did? picked jeff up from his house
19. What are you wearing? jeans, belt, shoes and socks, t-shirt with sweatshirt
20. Your TV? not a flatscreen and doesn't have cable
21. Your pet? is naughty
22. Your Computer? is old school with not enough memory
23. Your life? a bit stressful, but in general...wonderful!!
29. Your summer? hopefully busy planning a wedding and going on a honeymoon
30. Your favorite color? pink
31. When is the last time you laughed? I dunno, probably sometime earlier
32. Last time you cried? oh boy, I've been crying all week!!
33. Who will/would re-post this? hopefully everyone!
34. FOUR PLACES I GO OVER AND OVER: Church, walmart, library...and church again
35. FOUR PEOPLE WHO E-MAIL ME: Facebook, David's bridal, Anne's bridal and Jean M invitation
36. FOUR OF MY FAVORITE FOODS: ice cream, french fries, butterhorn rolls and Jeff's aunt's mashed potatoes
37. FOUR PLACES I WOULD RATHER BE RIGHT NOW. In bed sleeping, in bed sleeping, chipotle, and in bed sleeping again :)