Lately, I have felt like my life could be described by the scripture that says, 'I will open up the windows of heaven and pour you out blessings and there won't be enough room to receive them..." Of course I was paraphrasing but we have been blessed with so much lately I can't help but feel that way. As most of you know Riley was accepted into BYU last week for graduate school - hello we couldn't have been happier about that. However, yesterday we received some more good news that brought our happiness level OVER THE TOP! Riley was chosen to be an intern for BYU through the DWR and with that ALL of his tuition, fees and books are paid for for his two year Masters program. He also receives a nice salary each year as an intern - yahhhooooo! We both feel extremely blessed to have it all worked out so perfectly. I thought I would just share with you the rest of our great news.

St. Patrick's Day

I absolutely LOVED the warm weather this week. For St. Patrick's day we had a BBQ at Riverton park with Cam and Amy and of course cute little Brycson. It was such a beautiful day I'm glad we spent some time in the sun. I was proud of Riley when I got home from VTeaching that morning he was in green and he had Kennady dressed in green, too! However, the outfit he had her in was so goofy so I had to change her to something else :)

I was too slow with my camera they were holding hands on their way to the playground but I missed it by just a second...too bad it was pretty cute. Of course, Kennady was holding Brycson's hand in one and a potatoe wedge in the other - boys and food are her two favorites!

Garage BBQ

Riley and I have been feeling antzy for summer so on Saturday we had a BBQ in our garage because the weather was too windy to have it outside. Courtney and Rem came to eat with us - thanks for coming over you two.

Kennady adores Rem, she especially loves losing her hands in his HUGE hair! She always reaches for his poofy hair whenever she gets a chance.

I love this picture - Courtney you are beautiful!

TWILIGHT EXTRAVAGANZA

My friend Cindy threw a Twilight party for some ladies in the nieghborhood on Saturday night. Some of you might know that I thought Twilight was AWFUL the first time I saw it in the theater. My friends in the ward really liked it so I thought watching it with them again would give me an opportunity to change my mind....well it didn't. However, I think it might have been because we all talked and laughed our way through the WHOLE movie! I loved it!Cindy is my favorite - she had the house all decorated for the party, everything was in red to symbolize the blood sucking vampires....ooh. Candice helped make the cookies with red frosting...everything was adorable.

Oh and don't forget our blood-colored punch.... Here are the girls alive and the one below is us pretending to bite one another. I know totally cheesy but really we were at a Twilight party so how much cheesier could we be?

Rise And Shout A Cougar Is Out...

I am so excited to announce that Riley was accepted into BYU for his Master's program....YAHOO!!!!

As most of you know Riley has worked so hard these last five years and will be graduating from the U at the end of April with his BS in Biology. He has taken some EXTREMELY difficult courses and worked so hard. Ever since last November Riley has spent many hours emailing, calling and traveling to schools all over the place. We've been to Fort Hays, KS; Laramie, WY; Utah State and BYU. Our first meeting with any school was at BYU back in December. After Riley's not so optimistic interview we went to lunch at the BYU creamery and pretty much ruled out the fact that BYU was an option for us. I had told Riley all along that BYU was the school I was praying for but if our family had other plans I would be okay with that too. Whenever Riley and I felt discouraged we would talk about a line in his patriarchal blessing that says, "pursue your educational goals..." and we knew we had to do our part if we expected the Lord to bless us. In our research and trips to Utah State we met a professor who is a liason between Utah State and the DWR. He gave us the information for an internship and recommended that we contact a professor at BYU. The professor's name was totally unfamiliar to us and we were shocked to think we had let a professor slip through the cracks whom we didn't contact. I have no doubt the Lord was guiding our family and because of Riley's efforts doors continued to open. After our trip to Fort Hays we decided not to apply because it didn't feel right for our family, everytime we talked about FH we felt uneasy. As far as Wyoming and Utah State nothing panned out with those two schools because of lack of funding, thanks to a poor economy. That of course left BYU as our last and only option for graduate school. Riley had a few interviews and felt good about them but we couldn't help but feel anxiety thanks to our original meeting at BYU that left us feeling inadequate. We received the letter in the mail yesterday and instantly we both felt sick thinking we would've heard through a phone call instead of a letter. Riley had been in contact with his potential advisor and we thought we would've heard from him first if we were accepted. Riley was so nervous he refused to open it immediately. He said he wanted to shower so he had time to prepare mentally for whatever answer we received. That left me with nothing to do but analyze the letter to every last detail. Initially, I thought it was thick enough for an acceptance but by the time Riley was finished I was convinced we weren't accepted because it was too thin, I was going crazy! Anyway, we said a little prayer before we opened it and when Riley began reading and I heard "Congratulations...." our tears of joy began to run and it took a minute before we could read anymore. Not two minutes after we read the letter Riley's advisor called to congratulate him so we knew it was for sure. I am so proud of Riley. It was one of the happiest moments for me when I was able to see Riley's joy and to know that his efforts were good enough and that he is now seeing the fruits of his labor. Riley and I are so grateful that our prayers were answered and we are excited for this new phase in our lives. Go BYU!!!Riley made sure to call his mom and dad very first and of course they were thrilled! We had a get together planned last night at the Madsen's so we were able to share the big news with the Perry clan all at once. We have such a great family that has taken so much interest in Riley's schooling - thank you for all of your prayers, pep talks and advice. I'm so glad we get to stay close by - we love you guys! Proof that it is official....

Clearly, Kennady is so happy for her Daddy too!

My sister the super star!

It was so fun to go to Good Things Utah with my sister Shandra and yes, her fan club! She owns a business www.dealstomeals.com and so she was invited on to explain her company. She and Todd have worked so hard to get this business running and I'm so proud of you two! Shan you did such a great job I was especially intrigued with your description of the canned goods :)This is Shan and Todd in the green room, I told Shan she needs to send a autographed picture of herself so it can be hung on the walls with all of the other famous people! Here are the fans that came to support Shan. She had a lot of friends from the ward, family and of course my wonderful in-laws. Laurie (my sis in law), Diane (my mom in law), and Yia Yia (my gma in law), and of course our friend Lori came to support Shan as well - I have such a great family I love you guys!Here is the big group

I caught Riley singing this unusual and kind of disturbing song in the shower, where did he come from? Mom and Di you might recognize the message...

A Must See On TV!!!

My sister Shandra is going to be on Good Things Utah tomorrow, March 13th! We are so excited for her and know that she will do a great job! If any of you are around feel free to tune into Good Things Utah at 10am on channel 4. My sister owns her own company, www.dealstomeals.com, and will be discussing grocery saving tips and meal planning! Shan I am totally proud of you - GOOD LUCK!