"THE CLIMB"

I know...some of you may think...really Miley Cyrus....but YES. This song has really touched me. This video clip is more honest than the real music video to me. There is always gonna be another mountain, and obstacles in our path...but if we choose to make the most of each experience we will rise. We are better people by struggling through adversity. Please enjoy! Watch this little clip, and know that the Lord is with you and me. He loves us, and so many beautiful blessings await us on the side, and through our climb.

Love you.
P.S HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM! You inspire me...I love you so so so much! xoxoxo

What I have DONE!

I've done 43....
What have you done?

1. Started your own blog
2. Slept under the stars
3. Played in a band
4. Visited Hawaii
5. Watched a meteor shower
6. Given more than you can afford to charity
7. Been to Disneyland or Disneyworld
8. Climbed a mountain
9. Held a praying mantis
10. Sang a solo
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Taught yourself an art from scratch
15. Adopted a child
16. Had food poisoning
17. Walked to the top of the Statue of Liberty
18. Grown your own vegetables
19. Seen the Mona Lisa in France
20. Slept on an overnight train
21. Had a pillow fight
22. Hitch hiked
23. Taken a sick day when you’re not ill
24. Built a snow fort
25. Held a lamb
26. Gone skinny dipping
27. Run a Marathon
28. Ridden in a gondola in Venice
29. Seen a total eclipse
30. Watched a sunrise or sunset
31. Hit a home run
32. Been on a cruise
33. Seen Niagara Falls in person
34. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
35. Seen an Amish community
36. Taught yourself a new language pig latin count?!
37. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
38. Seen the Leaning Tower of Pisa in person
39. Gone rock climbing
40. Seen Michelangelo’s David
41. Sung karaoke
42. Seen Olde Faithful Geyser Erupt
43. Bought a stranger a meal at a restaurant
44. Visited Africa
45. Walked on a beach by moonlight
46. Been transported in an ambulance
47. Had your portrait painted
48. Gone deep sea fishing
49. Seen the Sistine Chapel in person
50. Been to the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris (the workers were on strike when we were there and we were unable to go up)
51. Gone scuba diving or snorkeling
52. Kissed in the rain
53. Played in the mud
54. Gone to a drive-in theater
55. Been in a movie or on a TV show
56. Visited the Great Wall of China
57. Started a business
58. Had an encounter with a wild animal
59. Visited Russia
60. Served at a soup kitchen
61. Sold Girl Scout Cookies
62. Gone whale watching
63. Got flowers for no reason
64. Donated blood, platelets, or plasma
65. Gone sky diving
66. Visited a Nazi Concentration Camp
67. Bounced a check
68. Flown in a helicopter
69. Saved a favorite childhood toy
70. Visited the Lincoln Memorial
71. Eaten Caviar
72. Pieced a quilt
73. Stood in Times Square
74. Toured the Everglades
75. Been fired from a job
76. Seen the Changing of the Guards in London
77. Broken a bone
78. Been on a speeding motorcycle 100 mph...crazy boys
79. Seen the Grand Canyon in person
80. Published a book
81. Visited the Vatican
82. Bought a brand new car
83. Walked in Jerusalem
84. Had your picture in the newspaper
85. Read the entire Bible
86. Visited the White House
87. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
88. Had chickenpox
89. Saved someone’s life
90. Sat on a Jury
91. Met someone famous
92. Joined a book club
93. Lost a loved one
94. Had a baby
95. Seen the Alamo in person
96. Swam in the Great Salt Lake
97. Been involved in a law suit
98. Owned a cell phone
99. Been stung by a bee
100. Taken a martial arts class

There you have it...my 411!

DRUM ROLL PLEASE.......

I'M PREGNANT!

CELEBRITY APPRENTICE!

DID YOU WATCH CELEBRITY APPRENTICE LAST NIGHT?

I have been looking forward to watch my company be featured on Celebrity Apprentice for months! Some of the leaders I work with were even shown in the audience last night. I am so excited to share with my friends the new ACN VIDEO PHONE that was featured last night, and launched to the world! Over 24 million viewers. UNBELIEVABLE! The boom is starting to take place, and want to continue helping our friends get a piece of it! AWESOME! If you want to see someone you call...give me a call! It has really helped my family connect all over the USA! This technology is also helping families connect around the WORLD.

Love you all! Seeing really is believing!

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY

Happy Valentine's Day! Just wanted to send those of you who have anxiously anticipated the arrival of a new post....we love you....and we are doing great! So much love heading your way this weekend! Here is a poem from us to you. XOXO

Roses are Red
Violets are blue
We are so grateful
To have friends like you!

XOXOX~VAN DUREN FAMILY

HO, HO, HO!

"Thana...Thana...Ho, ho, ho..."

"Where's Thana?"

"Thana thays..ho, ho, ho!"

"Thana in there...wath Thana!"
~Dax

Are you kidding me? Is that not the cutest thing you have ever heard? I mean read? Daxton is really getting into Christmas. We just re-introduced Santa Claus. Daxton has a little lisp. (He is tongue tied.) It is the cutest thing! We have enjoyed reading stories about Santa, and watching our favorite Christmas movies together. He crinkles up his little nose and shouts out, "Thana! Thana!" every time we see a picture of him. THIS IS SO FUN! He knows what's happening this year! Don't you just love Christmas? Hope all of your holidays are bright!

I MISS MY BOYS

GOOD MORNING! It is about 1:39 a.m. in Colorado Sunday morning the 16Th of November. I have been in Colorado for a week doing business. (I am usually NEVER gone this long.) This is the longest I have ever been away from Daxton, and I am really missing my family. I have been really busy...which is FANTASTIC! BUT, there is "no place like home." I miss my boys.

Without getting all sappy...I looked through our blog. I watched old slide shows. Went through all of our family pictures downloaded to our laptop, and just wanted to share how much I love my family.

My husband is such a wonderful man. He is a giving, understanding, loving, and generous man. He puts others before himself, and freely gives. He is an incredible father...Daxton is completely in love with him, and he is a caring husband.

Daxton is the true love of my life (sorry honey...you are the love of my life too...babies just have an extra special place). He is smart, has great sense of humor, is happy, beautiful, energetic, inquisitive, and completely precious. He brings more joy into my life than I could have possibly imagined. He turned two recently, and I will do belated birthday post, and post halloween/pumpkin pictures.

I still have several more days out here in "Colorful Colorado", and each day I am here I am more thankful for the family I have at home. It is more than perfect timing to celebrate Thanksgiving in just over a week. I will be home just in time to do some laundry, and tidy the house for Thanksgiving. I don't know if I have ever been more thankful for my family, for the gospel, for inspiration, and for the blessings I have been given. I am so thankful Heavenly Father has a plan for me and my family.

Tonight as I type my little post...I just want to send a message to my boys...I miss you, and I love you so much. Keep up the good work at home. I will be back before you know it. Thanks for the video messages, and for playing games over the phone with me. I don't know what I would do if I didn't get to see you, and talk every day I have been here. BIG KISSES & LOVES!

XOXOX
Mommy

Got Cheerios?

Today is a day of celebration....let me explain. Daxton has had the long road to potty training. Here and there, not completely consistent, but comfortable with his friend Elmo....who awaits his arrival all day everyday. (We have an Elmo potty training seat.) His #2's have been rewarded daily for awhile but #1's (aka-"pee pee")have been struggling to achieve the same success. I was questioning whether or not he was completely ready...until TODAY! My mom reminded me of the infamous "Cheerios" trick. We throw a few cheerios in the potty, and then he shoots them like a squirt gun with his...you know what. I held my breath, unsure of what to expect... when he completely fell into my potty training trick! We have a winner!! He has gone like 12 times this morning and I couldn't be happier. Each successful trip is rewarded with "candy corn." He is lovin' life. No more diapers!!! We might be married to the house for a few more days, but it's worth it. The goal has always been to finish by the time he turns two. Next Friday the 24Th is the deadline, and guess what...we are going to beat it by a week! Thank heavens for "Cheerios"...all mom's who haven't tried this trick yet, "Got Cheerios?"-use them, I believe you will be pleasantly surprised!

The Best Gift

I vote "Yes" on Proposition 8. Most of us know, their is a major decision left in our hands. Watching "The Best Gift" touched me. My sweet baby will turn two in a couple weeks. He was created in the bonds of marriage, and is sealed to a loving father and mother. The gift of a child is eternal. I believe each child deserves the right to be created in the bonds of marriage. It is Heavenly Father's plan for each child.
1 Corinthians 11:11: "Nevertheless neither is the man without the woman, neither the woman without the man, in the Lord."
Each of us were created to be with a partner, that in the bonds of marriage can use the power of creation. We have been designed by God to bring forth children to this earth. As we make this decision to preserve marriage, it is really about preserving the life of each child. Please watch this video, and share it with everyone you know. Send them to our site or to your own. Post it on your blog, and let's make a difference.

HAPPY 4 YEAR ANNIVERSARY

Happy Anniversary Honey! Can you believe we have been married four years?!? I love you so much. XOXOXO