36 years and counting. a tribute from my brothers and sisters.

thank you to malinda and aaron for putting my happy b day up on the big O tires billboard!!

Today, I turned 36. This morning, on my run, I nearly got chased down by a dog, ran over by a driver who was on the wrong side of the road, and twisted my ankle. The dog did not rip my Lycra outfit off of me, the driver corrected himself, and my ankle rebounded in seconds I however, was grateful. I continue to be AMAZED at the people I have in my life who love me unconditionally. My brothers, sisters, and their spouses put together this most fine tribute for me, and I LOOOVE IT!!!!! Thank you to all of you for making my day special. :) I had to put all of Todd's in one number or else I would be 40!

Aim,It has been so fun to read the tributes that you have done for each of us this year. In that spirit, here is one to you! In celebration of your 36th birthday, we are going to come up with 36 reasons we love you! Here are my top 15.....over to you rest of the fam!

Reasons I love Aim from Jeannie:

1. Amy is the epicenter of fun in the family. Who can deny this for someone who does high kicks in her driveway?

2. Amy has a gift for knowing when someone needs her. I have often been put in awe of the promptings she responds to in order to help heal someones heart.

3. She's gorgeous. And sets the standard for cutting edge fashion in the fam. I love when she buys me presents because they are always way more fashion conscious than I would buy for myself!

4. Amouse is motivated. She is constantly coming up with new plans and schemes for projects. I have no idea how she can pull all of this off but manages to! It feels like life is constantly in motion around Amy. I love that!

5. She is a GREAT photographer! Every new set of photos I look at -- I love more!

6. She is a compassionate friend. Her service to Eileen, and others, speaks to this.

7. Amy is very complimentary. You are bound to feel great when she is around!

8. She makes pretty much the best peach pie on the planet.

9. If you needed a road trip partner, you'd probably pick Aim.

10. She has great taste. Her house is so fun to look at! Holidays and parties at her house are so classy!

11. Amy is constantly improving her talents. At this point, not only is she a great photographer, she is a great writer. I love to read her blog. She is funny, endearing, and insightful.

12. She remembers nearly all of our childhood. I lean on her for my family memory!

13. When she watches my kids she says they are nice : )

14. Amy keeps track of everyone. I wish I was as good as she is at calling and keeping in touch. Every time I have lived away from home, it is Amy that keeps a steady stream of fun and encouraging news coming my direction. Sometimes her letters would make me laugh so hard I would keep them for weeks and read them over and over again -- to anyone who would listen!15. Amy is bold, fun, courageous and beautiful. I love having her for a sister.Happy Birthday Aim!

I'll take 16-20: (from Darin)

16-Amy has an understanding heartwhen there's a test she's first to start

17-She's the timber that whethers stormsLittle hands she holds and warms

18-Head of light and heart of hope

19-She's my Sis, my friend,

20-and totally dope Love you Amy, Darin

Reasons why I love Aim from Toots:

21. Amy is known by so many and loved by so many. She is a friend to all and has a large variety of friends herself. She even befriends those who are much older than her--such as the sweet old lady in her ward who came to Emma's party last year--oh, I can't believe I forgot her name!!!

22. Amy does very well to be a valuable employee in her position at Marketstar. She is highly respected and well recognized since being there for over 10 years.

23. Amy doesn't stop short at anything...she will go the extra mile in whatever she does. No pun intended---but she is going to run the Half Marathon this May and we all need to root her on for that!!!! It's awesome!

24. Amy lives life to the fullest and is often expressing how happy she is. That is something we can all try to be a little more of--HAPPY!

25. Amy has established a great family and home. We LOVE to come visit her in Brigham and be in the "country" for a while and feel the atmosphere in her inviting home. Her kids are so fun to be with and I love that she always makes sure to show them affection. Amy was always one who was very tender-hearted and showing love to others.

26. Aim is so GOOD at ideas. She can come up with a plan that everyone loves and all the activities etc. to go with it. She is so very, very smart when it comes to thinking things up.

27. I have to second what Jeannie said about both fashion and the fact that Amy is gorgeous. It is true. Amy ALWAYS looks so good. You can tell she loves to shop! It's fun to see what new things she will wear when I see her. Also, her skin is much younger than her years and she will continue to look youthful for a long time to come.

28. Aim is often led by the spirit to do some amazing things such as sending roses to Marie Morris, drawing the beautiful picture of Marie Pettingill (with angel wings), and of course, doing the photo collage for Eileen and taking it to her home.

29. Aim is a wonderful artist. She has made some beautiful pieces of art--some of my favorites are: the pencil drawing she did of Mike and I, the oil painting she did of Kory's old dog, and the one of Marie.

30. Amy is involved with her kids!!! She even goes to their school to teach art each month. How great is that? Hayden, Emma and all their classmates get to learn a new skill as well as get the chance to be with their Mom for a time.Lots of love from Toots!

From Abs:

31-She shares her love. Love for life, for people, for fashion, for things, for her kids, for Kory, for me, for all of us. I just finished putting all of Justin's old pictures into an album for him and there were lots of pictures of him and Amy hugging and having fun together. There were also a few special notes she had written to him over the years telling him how much she loves him. I appreciate all the love she shows to my family - unconditional.

32-She's not afraid to try new things. Aims is full of fun and never one to sit in the back row of life. Two of my favorite memories thus far are 1- Aims riding the Honda at Flaming G. and 2 - Aims driving the 4-wheeler all the way up Mantua with me on the back. So fun!
Aims is motivated! Once she has a goal in mind she will conquer it. I love how she decided to be a runner and boy did she decide to be a runner! In all my years of running I haven't done half the races she has and I can't wait for the results of the Half Marathon. I'm so glad we could run some races together last summer.

33-She never gives up. No matter the circumstance or situation she will follow through to makes things better, make someone feel better, make something look better...she just makes life better. :)
34-She's got mad skillz - photography, home decorationatization, fashionability, business savvy intelligized, creativitiveness, artisticality, and utilization of all things Amouse. (That was for you Lynn!)
35-Aims is beautiful inside and out. She makes me want to be better. I know I feel blessed every single day to have her as a part of my life! (That goes for everyone.)
Love ya, ABs

From Todd:

36-I love it that Amouse took up running with no prior experience and now kicks butt. Those legs aren't just hot, they're fast too.Aim's blog is tops.Aim's book is wonderful. I'm hoping to read it to my girls someday. I love how it jumps around but maintains a clear development.