family – meet the butters

Lola’s 2nd Birthday Party

Published on July 6, 2020July 31, 2020 by JButtersLeave a comment

This year was a little different than her 1st birthday, but we still had a great time! We scaled down our guest list due to COVID-19 because it just isn’t very safe to gather in large groups right now. Instead, we got our Nance side and Cindy (AKA Grammy) together for a celebration of Lola.

Some of Lola’s current favorites are swimming and Minnie Mouse, so we made sure to incorporate the two into her party. Uncle Jaron helped keep the our ambitious swimmer entertained during pool time while I snuggled with Bodhi during his first dip in the water. And you better believe Grandma Nance had Minnie balloons, a Minnie swimsuit and matching Disney t-shirts ready to go. Lola even picked out her Minnie slippers for shoes that morning!

For food Andrew picked up Zeke’s Pizza and Krispy Kreme 4th of July donuts. Lola loved her sprinkle one. She was pretty impressed by our singing and almost figured out how to blow out her candles.

At the party she received a Moana doll (which she gave a kiss!), purse, hairbrush and bracelet from Grammy, Barbie accessories from the Reeves and Barbies/baby doll accessories from Grandma, Grandpa and Jaron. Her big ticket item at the party was her Barbie house, refurbished by Brian, Shani and Grandma Nance. It had originally been built by Lola’s Great Grandpa Arrington and Great Uncle Dwayne as a Christmas present to Grandma Nance when she was a kid, then was passed to me as a birthday present when I turned two. It was fun to keep the tradition alive.

Other fun presents she got were: Bowling set & golfing set from Grammy, adorable pink 2 lb weights from Maman the Great, electronic ride in car from Aunt Mary and Uncle Randy, adorable clothes from Mariah and a Peppa Pig set from Papa Butters & Karen.

We’d say it was a success! Happy 2nd birthday, Lola!

The Origin of “Bodhi Rush”

Published on July 6, 2020July 6, 2020 by JButtersLeave a comment

First of all… naming your child is hard work! This time around, we had no girl names we liked and our only boy option was Bodhi. Unfortunately, for the first half of the pregnancy I was not on team Bodhi, no matter how hard Andrew pushed. Once we found out we were having a baby boy I started to hop on board, and now I can’t imagine our son being named anything else.

But where did Bodhi come from? Soon after we were set on Lola’s name, Andrew fell in love with the name Bodhi from Patrick Swayze’s character in the movie Point Break. Andrew loved the character and the meaning of the name. “Bodhi” comes from “Bodhisattva”, a Buddhist term meaning awakening or enlightenment.

Now that we had a first name, the hunt for a middle name was on. We knew we wanted something meaningful yet unique (to go along with Lola’s middle name of Moon). The first one we considered was Riot. We both liked the sound of it, but there wasn’t a unique meaning assigned to it. Maybe we could attribute it to the crazy kicks he was putting his mom through? Next was Rush. Again, we liked the sound of it, but this time there were a few more associations. It is the nickname of Andrew’s favorite UFC fighter, George St. Pierre, and Andrew has seen the band Rush with his best friend Brian a few different times. We were pretty much set on Rush at that point.

Once Bodhi Rush was born, we found some additional ties to his name (or almost name):

-Just a few days after his birth, Black Lives Matter protests began in response to George Floyd’s murder. At this same time riots broke out in across the country, meaning our Bodhi Rush was almost Bodhi Riot the week national riots were happening.

-George “Rush” St. Pierre is being inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame in 2020 (GSP Video).

-And my personal favorite: a few weeks after Bodhi was born, my dad found the below sheet showing that Bodhi’s great-great-great-great grandfather was named Benjamin Rush.

The Origin of “Lola Moon”

Published on July 31, 2019July 31, 2019 by JButters2 Comments

How did our sweet girl get her name? And what does it mean? We’ll tell you!

First off, it is important to know that we did not agree on a single boy name. Not a one. And Lola was the only girl name we both liked. So when we officially found out Baby Butters was a girl, she was pretty much already named. It became absolutely official when Andrew created a cute baby announcement with Lola on it and posted it to Facebook to show me. Secret was out, and now the world knew our baby name — oops!

But where did the name Lola come from? I have always loved family names or names with meaning. When I was little my Grandma Arrington used to always comment on how Shani had my Great Grandma Lola’s nose, and the name always stuck with me. When I brought up the name to Andrew, he immediately liked the idea due to a cute little girl he used to coach at AfterCool Fitness being named the same. No other names were really sticking, so once I heard from my mom and aunts how wonderful of a person their Grandma Lola was, it was a done deal.

Fun fact: My Aunt Net (Jeanette) is also named after Lola, as her full name was “Lola Jeanetta”.

Now finding a middle name was a bit trickier. Again, I was pretty set on finding either a family name or something that had significant meaning. We went through dozens of options, but nothing really took. A short while into our hunt Andrew suggested Moonstone because it is one of June’s birthstones (at this time we expected Lola to be a June baby). I wasn’t a fan of the stone part, but we kept Moon on our list. Around the same time, my sister came up with Elliot in honor of the place Andrew and I met (Mesquite High School on Elliot road). We didn’t love the flow of it paired with Lola, but the meaning was great.

As we got closer to Lola’s arrival, I started looking into significant events from our relationship in order to try and find some additional name options. What we consider our first date (and where we had our first kiss) was the 2007 movie Halloween. I looked up the names of everyone who worked on the movie, and found that the director’s wife (who was also a small part in the movie) was named Sheri Moon Zombie.

After finding the above connection, I proceeded to look up other meanings attached to “moon”, feeling like this was a sign. In doing so, I found the metonic cycle. It is defined by Dictionary.com as, “a period of 19 years (235 lunar months), after which the new and full moons return to the same days of the year. It was the basis of the ancient Greek calendar and is still used for calculating movable feasts such as Easter.” I attached quickly to the 19 due to September 19, 2007 being the date Andrew asked me to be his girlfriend. And as I’m writing this, I realize Lola had her Butters family baby shower at an Easter celebration. I love connections!

At this point we were about 90% sure Lola’s middle name would be Moon. However, we were planning to go into her birth open to other ideas. Instead, the universe played even more into the Moon plan by pushing our induction date because of the full moon. According to the nurses, full moons cause the labor and delivery unit to overflow!

Once Lola was finally here, we figured there were too many moon connections to let the name go. She is officially our Lola Moon.

May Wrap-up

Published on June 6, 2017June 6, 2017 by JButtersLeave a comment

I’m a bit biased, but May is my favorite month. It is the end of the school year, beginning of summer and the month of my birth. It has Mother’s Day, Memorial Day and while growing up always meant dance recitals. May did not disappoint this time around – here’s a look at another wonderful month in the life of the Butters Family:

On Wednesday, May 3, we found that Baby Reeves is a girl!!! We can’t wait to spoil our niece with so much love. October can’t come fast enough!

Cinco de Mayo fell on a Friday, so we chowed down on Los Dos Molinos New Mexican food with Cindy to celebrate. Not exactly the right geographical location, but good food nevertheless.

The first Saturday of May I joined Heather and her bridal crew for a fun bachelorette weekend. We got glammed up at a Scottsdale hotel, played some party games, met Carlos the Uber Driver, chowed down on Kona Grill and hit Whiskey Row for drinks and dancing. We had so much fun jamming out in our little corner that we stayed there the whole night! By the time we made it back to the hotel we were exhausted and ready for some Zzzzs.

A week later was Werner Wedding Weekend! Friday was the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner (where Andrew had to make an impromptu thank you speech and I killed it in cornhole), along with a groomsman sleepover.

Saturday was wedding day, but also my dancers’ competition day. I somehow managed to teach dance, drop in to see the number compete, make the ceremony, drive back for competition awards and get back in time for the reception without missing a thing!

The wedding itself was wonderful. Heather was beautiful, Andrew gave a heartfelt toast and we danced the night away wishing the Werners a happy and blessed life together.

Sunday was Mother’s Day. We started the morning with breakfast at Crepe Bar with Cindy and Mariah (still in town from the Werner Wedding) and Gardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2. Then we had dinner with my mom and family, where we got to celebrate two moms this year due to the pending arrival of Baby Reeves!

For my birthday, Andrew surprised me early with The Apple Dumpling Gang movie, then birthday burritos, a Target Gift Card and beautiful flowers. At work we went to Windsor for lunch and I got my favorite chicken salad sandwich. I had to teach dance the night-of, but everyone made me feel very special by singing and constant “Happy Birthday!”s. My mom and sister even stopped by with dinner and presents.

On May 24 we took off for our 25 hour turnaround trip to see Mariah graduate. We crammed in manicures and pedicures, meeting Mariah’s new boyfriend, a graduation ceremony and a super-fun graduation party all before our flight home. Congrats Mariah!

Memorial Day Weekend helped to round out the month. Friday at work I was charged with the student worker seating chart and moving logistics for our new building. I then partied at Board and Brush with my mom, sister, Aunt Katie and cousin Macy and ran back to GCU for an overnight event.

Saturday I had my Andrew birthday dinner at Olive Garden. Sunday we met up with Bailey and her family at OHSO for her dad’s birthday, then had dinner at Blue Adobe for my family birthday dinner. Monday was Murph, so after the workout Andrew and I played pool volleyball with some gym friends.

We stay busy, but are blessed to have such amazing family and friends to keep us sane and entertained. Happy June!

-Jory

April Wrap-up

Published on May 10, 2017May 20, 2017 by JButtersLeave a comment

April was all about birthdays and family.

To start the month, I had a nice joke-free April Fools Day thanks to it landing on my big Spring Preview event at work. Mom and Andrew surprisingly behaved!

The following week held Brian’s birthday, Andrew’s family birthday dinner, Andrew’s friend birthday dinner and Andrew’s joint birthday dinner on the Nance side. We are party Animals! Special highlights of the festivities included Mariah surprising Andrew on his birthday, a Dunkin’ Donuts refillable cup, new shoes (his obsession is only growing), and winning Trivia at Dave & Buster’s.

Easter Weekend became the new Arrington Family Reunion Weekend, starting with hot dogs, s’mores and pinatas at Katie’s house. She even had a projector set-up outside to view old pictures and The Apple Dumpling Gang movie. Saturday morning we met at Dan’s house for Fred’s famous sausage gravy (my FAVORITE), “Anything Goes” challenges, seeing my turtle, Tya Elizabeth, and an egg hunt. Andrew held up the purple team as much as he could, but my blue team won out in the end. We were so exhausted by the day of events that we fell asleep as soon as we got home!

On actual Easter day we went to TopGolf with Andrew’s mom and then I slipped away for a Wendy’s picnic lunch for my grandpa’s birthday.

Monday I had my first official taste of becoming Promo Team Manager. I am still earning their trust, but these crazy kids have me beaming with excitement for this new adventure. Special shoutout goes to my awesome JEP, Caitlin!

On the actual day of my dad’s birthday, the whole family was able to eat at Blue 32 for dinner. Jaron and mom nailed the present giving with a doorbell security system!

Saturday the 22nd we went to the Dbacks vs Dodgers game with the Nance clan to celebrate dad, leaving with car window shades and an awesome Dbacks victory.

Rounding out our busy month was lunch with my former boss (Julie), Brian W’s bachelor party, a vegan Friday night in with Jessie and Kristi, and the lantern fest with Heather.

I can’t help but feel blessed!

-Jory

25 Days of Andrew

Published on April 20, 2017April 25, 2017 by JButters1 Comment

In honor of Andrew’s 25th birthday I had the grand idea to gift one present a day for 25 days leading up to his birthday. I did not manage to keep up, so it turned into “25 Presents for Andrew” instead. Here’s how it turned out:

The Angry Crab was Andrew’s dinner choice!

We bowled a record 5 games and Andrew got a 198!

Eric Church concert on a Tuesday – such party animals!

He does NOT like Almond Joys so we made a run for Airheads

A note about 25 reasons I love Andrew

Happy birthday to my handsome hubby!

-Jory

March Wrap-up

Published on April 20, 2017 by JButtersLeave a comment

March turned out to be VERY surprising for our family! On March 11, 2017 Andrew and I found out we were going to be an uncle and aunt for the first time:

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At Shani’s birthday dinner, her and Brian broke the news by slipping an ultrasound to the waitress. When my dad received the check it was tucked in the left side and the receipt was labeled “congrats”. After much confusion (“is this the right check?”), and a little help explaining from the expecting parents, we celebrated the news with some fun presents.

Other happenings in March included TEDxGCU and TEDxASU:

The Ostrich Festival Parade and Suns game with my girls:

Spring Break baseball games:

And car snuggles with the pups while the house got sprayed for cockroaches:

Six months of marriage has sure been great!

-Jory

February Wrap-up

Published on March 2, 2017March 2, 2017 by JButtersLeave a comment

Happy March from the girls!

February was eventful for the Butters family. We started out the month by celebrating Andrew’s grandma’s birthday, enjoying Superbowl craziness and dealing with the removal of Andrew’s wisdom (teeth). We also replaced all of our home’s interior and exterior doors, completed our taxes and ended the month with a cockroach fiasco.

Wisdom Teeth

Andrew had all four wisdom teeth removed on February 10. He did not undergo anesthesia, so the whole experience was unfortunately memorable. However, with the aid of pain medication, frozen peas, LOTS of soup and mashed potatoes, couch sleeping and his lovely wife, he is back to his normal shenanigans.

Valentine’s Day

Love day was consumed with work and wisdom teeth pain, but we still managed to enjoy one of our favorite holidays. We kicked it off by celebrating one year since our engagement on February 12! Andrew was stuck celebrating at home, but I was able to decorate sugar cookies with my sister and Aunt Net. On the actual day I was surprised with flowers and my favorite chocolate bar, and then the next weekend we were able to exchange cards and hit happy hour at RA. I even got my life together enough to make special sugar cookie puppy chow for my coworkers!

Home Renovation

We thought the doors would be a major feat for February, but we ended up doing even more than we thought. Somehow I ordered new sliding closet doors on top of what we had planned, due to Andrew being home during the measuring and me being a bit distracted when ordering. Also, we had a cockroach infestation on Tuesday, so all of our kitchen cabinets had to be emptied. It was (and is) stressful, but on the bright side our kitchen project just got bumped up to this weekend. Wish us luck and check back here for updates…

-Jory

January Wrap-up

Published on February 19, 2017 by JButtersLeave a comment

Happy New Year! We celebrated with my closest friends at Kristi & Cory’s home and shared a great new year’s kiss. Cheers to 2017!

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January came and went in a flash. Andrew started the new year with a crazy week of back to back events, really testing his patience, stamina and will. He also began his MBA introduction class at GCU in the same week! Now in the clear, it is safe to say he crushed it (and survived).

I joined a weight loss challenge at work and am trying to get back into a healthy routine. Andrew and I have managed to cook at home on a regular basis, which is a big help, but the exercising has not been implemented quite yet. Other than that I have been engrossed in my regular routine of work, teaching dance and trying to fit in friend and family time.

Our big news of the month: new doors! Installation should be completed next month and we’ll post a before and after on the blog.

Thanks for catching up with the Butters!

–Jory