Brett & Aisling

Here are the first shots of Aedan. Sorry some of them are from the phone. But hey, they are still pictures. I'll add some more video to these later. Click here to see more.

Born April 21, 2009, 6lbs 9.8oz, 19inches.

One of the pictures is a video in case you missed it you can see it here.

Okay. So, i think we bought "Hailey" (the rust bucket that doesn't run) back on valentine's day. What a great present from a wifey, huh? Me letting Brett buy an old broken down car for all that was in our bank account at the time. haha.
ANYWAYS. She has been Brett's project. Every Saturday when he gets home from work, that's what we generally spend our time doing: figuring out how we can fix up this car and make it run.
First, Brett replaced all the fluids and switched out the oil filter. He had to take the gas tank off of the car to clean it out, and then he found a hole in it, so he had to get that welded up. SO, after that, we were hopeful, thinking that she might start. A couple turns of the key in the ignition, and it sounded like she wanted to go...But then gas started shooting out of the carburetor. Oh, sad day. :( Brett was so heartbroken. ANOTHER thing to fix before the car could start.
Brett is so smart, though. He got a cheap rebuilt kit, and for about $20, it's like we have a brand new carburetor now. (It looks so new, partially because i cleaned off all the metal parts, and now it's nice and shiny. When you open up the hood, it seems to glow, it's so clean!)

After Brett rebuilt the carburetor, it was time to try again and start Hailey up. :)

FINALLY! SUCCESS. The engine was running great, no leaks or fluid shooting out of anywhere. So, Brett thought he would take her around the block for a drive.
NEW PROBLEM: Apparently there is something wrong with the transmission. She doesn't want to go into drive or reverse or any of the gears. Hmmm... So, i guess we have some new things to work on. He'll ask around and figure what ne needs to do next for the transmission problem and see if we can't figure things out.
Oh well. When Brett is feeling down about the car, he says he'll just sit behind the wheel and start it up and remember that he was the one that got her to run. :)
Maybe, just MAYBE, we'll have Hailey driving before Aedan is here. :)

Here are the first few pictures, and a couple of videos, we took of the wedding. There should be some more really nice ones coming from the Ginters.

More info later...

FINALLY, BRETT GAVE ME A RING!!!!!!!!

Today we spent the day at Wheeler Farm in Salt Lake CIty.
We went there at Brett's suggestion to feed the ducks (which i am always so thrilled to do!), and just lay out on a blanket, enjoying the weather and scenery.
There was a wedding reception going on this evening, and Brett started joking about marriage. He put his Brazilian seed ring on my ring finger and joked "Look. It's like we're engaged now!".
"VERY FUNNY..." I said, not completely amused. I shook of the Brazilian seed ring and let it fall on the blanket next to him. I turned around and went back to watching the animals and the reception. Brett grabbed my hand again, and i thought he was being silly, putting the brazilian ring back on my finger.
I turned around to tell him something like "Oh, Brett, you're silly..."
But at the moment i turned around, he said, "Aisling, will you marry me???"

I thought it was a joke! But i looked down at my finger and OMG I HAVE A SHINY DIAMOND RING ON IT!!!!!!!!
I was so shocked and surprised, i just start bawling. (I think i scared Brett a little bit. What a champ he is to not have run away!)
So...we both cried and after i finally calmed down, he got a "YES!" out of me. Ü

So that is the story!
What a wonderful surprise it was to me! It was the most perfect evening EVER! Ü

Love,
soon-to-be,

Aisling Silva

(There are more pictures of our fun at Wheeler Farm attached. Ü )

Brett made it safely to Phoenix. In addition to all of us--that we know he was dying to see--Aisling surprised him. See if you can figure out who he was more excited to see...

Aisling gave me a CD with images and movies of Brett's mission. You can see them here.

We had a wonderful dinner last night (Saturday the 12th of May). Aisling, a good friend from our ward, came to eat with us in celebration of Justin's arrival. She knows Brett and happened to bring several pictures of him that no one has seen before! So my Dad and I have scanned them and placed them up on the internet for you guys. These never-before-seen photos came just-in-time for Mother's Day! Hope you enjoy them.
-Mike

So I have been given something rare--Elder Silva photos! All of a sudden there were several in my email. So it seemed like I should just put them online in case anyone, especially in Brazil, would like to see them. Don't know the story behind the individual pictures, maybe if anyone knows they can add comments.

You can see them all here.

Hey, I used this picture of me and Brett in a recent blog entry on our small business blog "Seeds of Growth." We submitted the entry to a competition of sorts called a blog carnival. Every week they choose the 7 best entries from all those submitted. This one focused specifically on entrepreneurial topics. Anyway, we got picked. Here is part of the quote: "The lead picture is worth the visit!"

You can read the rest of the carnival comments here: Escapte From Cubicle Nation
You can read the original blog entry here:Seeds of Growth

Here are some pictures of Brett entering the MTC (thanks grandpa!)

This year, we got together with Dave and Kristin Free and their family, Eric and Malina Hulsoff and their family, and Opa for Thanksgiving. Before our meal, we all went around and mentioned things we are thankful for. We thought we would share them with you. Here is our list:

Elena: Relatives and family
Terran: Everything
Madison: Jess
Adran: Terran and my house
Jessica: Holy Ghost
Daniel: Food
Jordan: Cars
Adam: Dad
Malinda: Family
Eric: You guys still like me (even when my intelligence can be overwhelming…Ü)
McKay: Good education
Dave: Loving Heavenly Father
Brett: Beautiful things in life (certain cars, turkey, etc. Ü)
Melinda: Music
Kristin: How often the Lord condescends to hug me and tell me it’s worth it
Josh: Family, food, and fun
Becca: Dishwashers
Michael: Missionaries
Nate: Scriptures
Jeremy: My family
Andrew: Freedom fighters and my family
Lauren: The earth
Opa: Being here
Joe: Free country
Diana: Missionary son
Elder Joseph: All you guys
Jake: Ability to run

(P.S. Sorry if I spelled anyone's name wrong!)

You get to read it yourself! It arrived this afternoon and we read it to Brett over the phone. Very exciting and very blessed!
Brett - Here is the entire packet scanned for your viewing pleasure.

Here are some pictures we took on the return trip. Click on the picture to see them.

According to the church website, Brett's assignment has been made and his call has been sent. Typically here in Arizona that means that the call will be in the mail box a week from now: Friday, September 23rd. Stay tuned to this space for the latest...