All Caught Up

Whew! Now we're all caught up on the blog! I'm going to try to not let it get so behind again!

Halloween 2009

Don and I dressed up as road construction workers, Jordie was a hot dog and Jacie was a black cat. Don and I borrowed hard hats and vests from Dad. Don was noble and took the girls out trick or treating while I stayed in the nice warm house and handed out trick or treat candy. Don was a very handsome construction worker!

One of the Last Boating Trips of the Season

This was one of our last boating trips of the season. We met up with Travis, Nancy, McKenzie, Bridger, and my cousin Chris's boy Jackson. Jordan and Jacie became kneeboard experts, and I got a cute picture of the kids all sitting together on the boat. We sure have enjoyed the great times we've had on the boat!

Adam's Canyon Hike

On Labor Day, we went on a hike with Marty, Jenny, Jake and Ben. It was so fun and it is a beautiful hike. Next to Jordan and Jacie, Jake and Ben (my nephews) are my most favorite kids in the world, closely followed by my cousins' kids Bridger and McKenzie. (There are pictures of them to follow). Notice Jake with the red cast. He had jumped out of his swing and broke his arm. We had so much fun and enjoyed our hike and the time spent together.

First Day of School

This is the picture we took of Jordan and Jacie's first day of school. Jordan is in the 5th Grade and Jacie is in 3rd Grade. They look so grown up in this picture. Once again, our awesome friend and neighbor, Amanda Brezoff, did their hair all cute for the first day.

Jacie's Baptism

Jacie's long awaited baptism day finally arrived. On August 1, 2009, Jacie was baptized a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. She really felt the spirit of the day as she said after she was baptized, "Mom, I felt the Spirit and it made the water so warm!" We are so proud of Jacie and are so glad to have her in our home!

Jacie is 8!

Eight is Great! Jacie turned 8 years old! She was so excited to turn 8 and be baptized! She had a birthday party at the Lion House on her birthday, then was bapitzed the next day. She was so happy to be baptized and she was just sparkling all day on her birthday which was July 31, and continued to sparkle through August 1 which was her baptism day. Here are some pictures from her birthday.

Cabin Pictures

Cabin Trip

In July, our dear friends, the Creer's took us up to their cabin. It is up in the Uintahs near Christmas Meadow. It was so beautiful up there and the kids had fun riding four wheelers, playing in the river, and hanging out. Don and Jodi loved how relaxing it was and enjoyed being with our friends. Here are some pictures.

Long Overdue Update

I have been a little neglectful of our blog, which is sad because so much has happened since our last post! Jacie turned 8 and was baptized, the girls started school, Christmas is just around the corner, and Jodi is PTA President. I guess that's why the blog has been put on the backburner. Time to move it to the front for awhile! Here we go with the updates!

More Lake Powell

This picture is Hole in the Rock. Before Lake Powell became a lake (or reservior), it was a huge dry canyon. When the pioneers came through the area, they had to figure out a way to descend the large cliffs. They developed a system where they tied their wagons and lowered them to the bottom of the canyon through this hole in the rock. Really amazing when you think of their ingenuity. Jacie gave kneeboarding a try and was a champ!

Lake Powell!! The best!

How we love Lake Powell and all things boating! We went down in June with Julie and her kids. Poor Mark couldn't get work off and had to say home. So we all went down and had a blast! I love Lake Powell. It is right up there on the top of my list of happy places!

Rendezvous!

Jordan just finished 4th Grade. (How that happened because it seems she was just born yesterday, I don't know!) The 4th Grade does a Mountain Man Rendezvous as they study Utah history. Don and I were over the Dutch oven lunch for 150 people. With great volunteers and dear friends, it was a success! Now we are Dutch oven pros! (Especially Don!) It was tons of fun and a neat day for everyone.

San Diego

Check out this 6 legged starfish!




I've been slacking on keeping up on our blog! It's been a long time since I added anything so I guess I better catch up! In April we went to San Diego with Don's brother Ivan, his wife Angie, and daughter Megan. We went to the San Diego Zoo, Sea World, and the Wild Animal Park. It was fun and Jacie decided she is going to be a Shamu trainer when she grows up! She loved Sea World! Here are some pictures to enjoy.

General Conference

I haven't done anything on this blog for a few months. It seems like things get crazy and busy and the next thing you know, months (not even days or weeks anymore) are flying by. The kids will be out of school in two months from now! I know these months are going to fly because we're going to be so busy with end of school stuff going on!

Today was the Saturday sessions of General Conference. I love General Conference. It's nice to have the proverbial cup filled. It's good to hear messages about how we can improve ourselves and draw closer to the Savior. I have lots of room for improvement. Sometimes it's good to take moral inventory and make note of strengths and in my case numerous weaknesses. I am grateful for the tender mercies of our Savior and for forgiveness. I'm also grateful for eternal families. That has got to be the greatest blessing. I am so crazy about Don and the girls. I am grateful we can be together forever. That gives me so much comfort when I feel scared or discouraged, knowing that Don and the girls and me are eternal. Awesome!

All Good Things must come to an End

Our last day of vacation. I caught this photo from the pool deck ( I'm guessing 3 or 4th floor of our hotel) of Mark and Julie going for one last walk to Waikiki Beach. After we drove around the island. We stopped at the Dole Pineapple Plantation. I took a picture of these cute Hawaiian kids. This is after I was joking around about how the Japanese take pictures of everything, even other peoples kids. Teach me to joke about stuff. We stopped at the Temple, which is undergoing renovations. Then we went to our favorite restaurant in all of the islands - the Crouching Lion. It was closed last year when we were there, but some good soul reopened it. It was so awesome and we had a great view.

Tide Pools and Shells

After Hanauma Bay we stopped at a beach with Lava Rock that makes for the nicest little Tide Pools. We searched for shells. Julie and I found these pretty black shells. They were so tiny. We're holding them looking for more shells and Julie says she could feel a leg moving. Anyway, there was a little hermit crab living in that shell! No sooner did she say that and out pops some legs out of one in my had. There is something so relaxing about looking around at shells.

Next Stop: Hanauma Bay

Hanauma Bay has to be one of the prettiest places, both in the water and out. We were so lucky - the weather was perfect and there wasn't a crowd. We snorkeled and saw some beautiful fish. Julie and I got cold and went to the beach, plus poor Julie had this blister on her toe that was as big as Toledo! The salt water sure didn't do that any good. Mark and Don swam out to sea and saw way more fish. It's just a good thing I wasn't aware they were out as far as they were or I'd have had a nervous breakdown. It was a beautiful day!

Bringing "sexy" back

Here is Don showing some leg next to the "sexy" minivan we rented. He told me I'd definitely be in line for one of those after our rental. Not quite. Still not a lover of the minivan. No offense to those of you who own and love them! Just not my thing.

Getting Stranded by "Reliable" Transportation

After our visit to Pearl Harbor, the Shuttle company we hired would not come and pick us up. We called a company called "Reliable" ha ha, and they were busy so they sent another company. We got to Pearl Harbor and had to pay in full and then the driver told us to call half an hour before we were ready to go and he'd pick us up. Don calls and the driver said he had come by and we weren't there so he left. Well, the company is trying to find us another driver, which by this time Pearl Harbor is closed and everyone is gone, when Mark decides to check out the public transportation bus. It was a good thing, or we might still be sitting at Pearl Harbor. Here is a shot of Mark and Julie being good sports on the Bus, expecially while we were driving through the "hood" in Downtown Honolulu. Wouldn't want to get off of the bus in some of those parts!

In the Aloha Spirit

Well, just got back from another wonderful trip to my happy place. The ONLY reason I came home is because we went without Jordie and Jace, and I had to come back to them. We went with our dear friends, Mark and Julie Creer, and had a ball. The weather was perfect the crowds were light, and the company was awesome. It was great!

We went to Pearl Harbor and saw the USS Arizona Memorial, and went aboard the USS Missouri - the ship were the treaty to end WWII was signed.

Check out Jodi firing away at enemy aircraft while Don was captain of the ship.

Happy Birthday, Jordan!

Today marks a decade that Don and I embarked on the greatest journey we could ever take - parenthood. 10 years ago today we were introduced to a precious angel who changed our lives and won our hearts. Never could I have imagined that a tiny human could keep me up all night, scream nonstop for 24 hours, make me see stars from being so tired, and make me the happiest, most blessed, luckiest person on the planet. The one month and 30 hours of labor, the 4 months of colic, the sleepless nights and the high pitched scream that human ears were not designed to encounter were things that bonded me to this angel and it was all worth it. We became like war veterans that bond in combat; we bonded because we both survived the colic wars. Once Jordan overcame the colic, she was the easiest, sweetest, and best child any parents could hope for. She still is. She has an incredible sense of right and wrong, she is so kind to small children that they gravitate toward her, and has wisdom that exceeds her years. All I can say is parenthood agrees with me, it has been and continues to be a great ride!

We love you, Jordie girl. We are so grateful you are our daughter forever! Happy Birthday angel!