Happy Birthday Mandy!!

She's the one on the right

The hot one on the far left

On the red raft


The cute little baby

We love you Mandy! In your tradition, here are some random things about you that I love.

Love, Jess


--Mandy is an avid Scuba Diver. She has been to Honduras and the Cayman Islands among other exotic places (like Lake Mead).

--She is 6th of 8 children (5 of 7 living).

--She is a licensed cosmetologist in Utah and Nevada.

--Mandy and I have known each other for more than half of our lives (since we were both 14 years old.

--Mandy is an accomplished violin and piano player.

--She had Brahm without an epidural; not because she wanted to, but because it happened so fast. Her average labor and delivery has been around 3 hours each time. Brahm was born within 30 minutes of when we walked through the doors of the hospital (and we left the house after her first contraction)!

--Mandy ran track in high school and played volleyball. She is quite the closet athlete.

--She can flare her nose at lightening quick speed; you should ask her to do it sometime—it is pretty impressive!

--Mandy makes the best food. She naturally is a great cook and loves to try new recipes (hint- hint to all of you recipe sharers out there). One of her best dishes is a savory zucchini pie—yummmmm!

--Mandy had an illustrious modeling career during her college years. She has been on anything from billboards to book covers and everything in between. More than 10 years after the pictures were taken, her likeness can still be found on hair dye boxes at many local dollar stores.

--Mandy is a certified chocoholic. She HAS to have something sweet after dinner, and it better be chocolate something or someone is gonna get it!

--Mandy’s favorite era is the 50’s. She wishes she could go back to those glamorous yet innocent days and go to a “mocktail” party.

--She also loves a classic black and white or foreign film. She cannot stand your average summer blockbuster.

--Mandy grew up with 5 sisters. Somehow her one brother (the youngest) came out with at least some masculinity intact. It could have something to do with her dad simulating natural disasters with the Barbie motor home (i.e. earthquakes, falling off a cliff, etc).

--Mandy was born and raised in Las Vegas in the same house her whole life.

--Her parents spent two full years on a mission to Cameroon, Africa.

--Not only has Mandy never sworn, but she does not even use fake swear words. There are certain words that “we do not say in our home.” Anything that could be a replacement swear word and a few others that she does just not like the way that they sound are taboo in the Warren household. She is especially sensitive to what words we can use when describing bodily functions.

--She has had a very tough time with morning sickness when pregnant. This time around, not only is she having a hard time with scents, but certain visual things as well. Do not mention digital SLR cameras or her blog around her or she will start gagging. Some other strange scents have been bothering her this time around as well; like her own body, whether freshly showered or not (of course, she has never stunk a day in her life).

--Like most mothers, Mandy’s number one priority is her children. Her life revolves around them. It is like pulling teeth to even get her on a date night without them.

--Mandy is a little OCD. She checks the stove, lights, garage door, etc multiple times before leaving to go somewhere to make sure everything is off/shut/locked. She asks me EVERY night if I have brushed Brahm’s teeth or said my prayers (99 times out of 100 times after I have already done it). Many times we will be 2 miles away from our house going somewhere and she will say, “wait, did we shut the garage?!!”

--She spent some time working in day spas and salons during her life. As a result, she LOVES a good pampering and is a bit of a product snob (she insists that only the salon quality hair and skin products will not make you bald and shriveled).

--She has always had quite the eye for photography. She has no formal training and has never had top of the line equipment, but as you can see from some of her blog posts, she does a great job.

--She is the most thoughtful, loyal, and wonderful person you could ever meet! Anyone lucky enough to know her can attest to her kind heart and loving nature.