SUMMER 2009 "HUGE" POST

I have been a bad blogger :( I have not posted a whole lot over this entire spring and summer season. Sooooo here comes an enormous post (mainly for my journaling purposes). These are some of our fond memories of this spring and summer which was jam-packed and went by way to fast!

GOBLIN VALLEY
Ethan was the lucky boy this year that got to go with Aaron down to Goblin Valley! If you have never gone before, make a point to do it sometime, it's awesome. Kids LOVE it. Plus there is an amazing slot canyon hike near by as well!

OREGON
Took a trip to Oregon with my sister Carolee. We went to visit my grandpa and also play around our old stomping ground. It was nothing but laughing our guts out, staying up most nights until morning with girl chat, and eating way to much junk! Yes,
good times, good times!!!

AARON'S HIKING TRIP IN ESCALANTE
Aaron and his brother Bryan and brother Eric went on a "boys" hiking trip to Escalante. They hiked 14 miles and did a crazy cool hike where you have to repel down 160 feet in certain areas into water. They loved it!


PICNICS
We did a lot of fun Sunday picnics with the kids. That's the ONLY nice thing about 9:00 a.m. church (I am NOT a morning person). Getting out early and having the whole day to enjoy as a family!


CAMPING WITH FRIENDS
We went to Pine Lake in south eastern Utah with 9 families from our old ward and man was it a blast! One of the funnest campouts ever! The boys were in heaven because they found lots of frogs, horny toads, and a few snakes (yuck)! But we had a fun obstacle coarse for the kids and games, archery, shooting guns, ATV's, paddle boats on the lake, fishing, pie eating contest, paintball, etc...The food was amazing thanks to the camp chef Carrie who makes the best food using dutch ovens!! Hope there is another Pine Lake campout in our future :)






AVERY'S 4TH BIRTHDAY
Avery had a "water" party this year with some friends and cousins. We put a sprinkler under the trampoline, had another wavy sprinkler going on the grass, lots of water balloons to toss around too! She of coarse wanted a princess theme (do they ever grow out of that)? Anyway the girls had fun playing, eating grilled hot dogs and cake with ice-cream. Hard to believe my baby is over 4 now.


4TH OF JULY
We had a big BBQ down at our house and lit off as many fire works as we could before a big storm rolled in. The kids always have fun getting together and playing with their cousins. I especially love watermelon, ice-cream cones, and corn on the cob this time of year.



CAR WASH
All the neighbor kids decided it would be fun to wash cars! Looks like a lot of work to me. I just prefer the local car wash! But they had fun and the car did look really clean :)


UINTA'S NATIONAL FOREST
We go camping every year in the Uinta's. It's one of our favorite spots. There are literally hundreds of lakes up there (most take 4WD to get in). I love breathing the fresh air, smore's over a "real" campfire, and hiking around. We have found some really good secret spots up there that we return to each year.


GRANDPA'S 90th BIRTHDAY PARTY
We celebrated my grandpa's 90th birthday party in August. We were lucky enough to get some 5 generation pictures which is kinda rare. It was really fun to see some of my cousins that I hadn't seen in years and also meet some other relatives I had never met before. My grandpa has lived a really really full life, but I think of all the things he has experienced and been able to do, his family and music/singing bring him the most joy!


SISTER TIME
My sisters flew out from Florida for my grandpa's birthday celebration, but stuck around for several more days for some sister time! When we sisters get together...forget sleep. It doesn't exist, nor do diets, or budgets (well I was good on my budget anyway). We spent some time up at the Gateway mall eating and strolling through some of the fun shops. And who can leave Gateway without a carmeled apple from the Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory? My sisters from Florida (and me) had never been to Dear Lizzy. It's a funky cool boutique out in the highland/Alpine area. So much fun! Now they have chunky charm necklaces to boot! I even took them on a little photo shoot in SL. I didn't get a picture of all of us together, but here is one pic of my sister Jennifer. Ahhhhhh sisters!


MOM AND DAD
My mom and dad have been coming out every summer to visit ever since my dad retired and they moved to Florida. It is always a huge highlight to see them. I LOVE my parents and feel like such a lucky and blessed girl to have them in my life. I can't begin to tell you how much they have influenced my life for good. They are two of the very best people I know.

(told you this post was HUGE)!

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY

September 1st makes 14 years of marriage for Aaron and I (sorry I don't have a more current picture of us, this was taken about 6 years ago). It sure has gone by fast and especially since having kids. The years just keep clicking away faster and faster. Aaron is one of the greatest persons that I know. He has so many qualities and I admire him so much. He truly is my very best friend, an excellent father and husband, and good example and support to me. I'm a very lucky girl!

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HAPPY FATHERS DAY!

You are loved so much Aaron. Thanks for being such an amazing husband and father!

PINEWOOD DERBY!

Gabe had his pinewood derby a few weeks or so ago. He was so excited...and so was Ethan and Avery! Of coarse Aaron made a car for both of them too! He goes a little over board with these things, he's kinda like a big kid at heart! Avery was very proud of her little pink car with attached flowers. Even though Gabe didn't place, all the kids got a little trophy cup! They had a fun time racing their cars :)

MOTHER'S DAY

I started off my weekend with my once a year over-nighter with my bunco group. This year we stayed in a cabin at Timber Lakes in Heber and it was soooooo much fun! We enjoyed shopping at the Park City outlets the next day! Then we had a big BBQ at my house on Mother's day. It was extra special because my mom and dad are here from Florida. I just wanted to tell both my mom and Aaron's mom how much I love them. I think they are both the kindest and sweetest most amazing women I know. Both of these women are such great examples to me.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Mother's day!

PRINCESS AVERY

I love to watch my daughter and how she interacts with the world. She is so different from her brothers. She doesn't really have anyone to play with while they are at school all day, so she has a pretty wild imagination! I always hear her having conversations and giggling. She must have a few "imaginary" friends. Everyday Avery plays "dress-up"! She goes from one princess costume to the next. It just cracks me up how girlie she is and how she seems to take this whole princess thing so seriously. I'll just continue to observe and enjoy this sweet time in her life since I know it won't last forever!

EASTER MESSAGE

Oh it is wonderful, that He should care for me, enough to die for me...




I hope everyone has a wonderful Easter Sunday

SNAKES!

Gabe LOVES snakes! In fact he loves all amimals, bugs, insects, and creepy crawlies etc... He has no problem holding snakes or bugs. He loves to catch them and begs to keep them. He would love if I would let him have a lizzard or a snake as a pet. NO way! He has a turtle and a cat and I'm good with that. Maybe a dog someday. I'm sure there will be more snake pictures as he is determined to catch another one....yikes!

ETHAN IS 7

OK, so I'm a few days behind on this post. Ethan turned 7 on Saturday the 21st. We had friends come over to play and have cake on Saturday and then we had two family BBQ's to round out the weekend. Ethan has been my child that is very full of energy, loud, and outgoing (yikes!) But he is also soooo much fun to have around. He is (for the most part) really amazing with his sister. He gets down on her level and plays with her and pals around with her. He even plays the things she wants sometimes like "kitchen". He LOVES to play with friends and he really looks up to his brother Gabe. Sometimes it's hard to remember that there is 2 years between them. I just love Ethan to pieces, he makes me so happy!! And did I mention he is devilishly handsome? :)

Gabe is 9 today!

Nine years ago Gabriel was born, and what a special day it was! And it has never been the same since. Gabe has been an incredibly sweet boy to have around. He is such a huge help to me and he is really great with his brother and sister. It has been fun to watch him grow and change over the years. to see his personality develope and see what makes him unique. We are so happy to have Gabe in our lives and part of our family. Happy birthday Gabe!

LAST SNOWBALL FIGHT

Wow! We got about 5 inches of fresh new snow Monday night. The kids wanted to go out and play in the snow one last time since we knew it wouldn't stick around very long. Aaron helped the boys roll a HUGE snowball and Avery just ran around licking everything saying it was "ice-cream". Then of coarse they all wanted to warm up with hot chocolate. They were extra cold since this took place at night! I am so done with winter. I am ready for the kids to go outside and play in the warm sunshine. I know spring is just around the corner though!!

IT'S OFFICIAL!!!

It's official, I'm a Nikon gal! I had the opportunity to upgrade my camera and came to a cross road. I was using a Canon and was ready to upgrade to the Canon 50D which is an awesome camera. But after doing a lot of research and reading tons of reviews and forums, I decided to go with the Nikon D300 which is an excellent camera. I decided that Nikon would be a better investment overall for me. Plus this is the camera that most of my favorite photographers use. I'm just so excited I'm squealing inside, I had to share the news! Now....to keep saving for more fast lenses (yikes$$$$$)!

Jewelry open house!

My sister-in-law makes the most amazing jewelry! Seriously, it's so pretty and made from the finest materials. She is having an open house (at her gorgeous home) or you can order items from the comfort of your home by looking at her jewelry blog, making a selection, and simply sending her an e-mail. Plus she is having an awesome sale! Just thought I would pass this along to anyone who may be interested. Check out all her jewelry at www.mariecarmel.blogspot.com

SNOW BOARDING

Ethan tried something new this year!



(click to enlarge)

TECHNOLOGY

My friend Melissa blogged about the "small" things in life that she enjoys. Things that we probably don't really think about, but that are so wonderful. Like hot running water or the garbage that gets taken away at the curb each week. We have it good in so many ways. She asked us to tell about small things that we appreciated. I have a big one...Technology!

I was thinking about the pioneers and ancestors who lived in places like England or Europe and made the decision to come out west and join the Saints. Once you said your goodbye's that was pretty much it. For the most part you were not going to be communicating with or seeing your loved one's again. Maybe you could send a letter by boat but at that time that was pretty much it and it surely took a long time. Yes, in the future there were railways, telegraphs, and then the telephone. Boy that would have taken some serious faith to leave everything behind to come out west.

I am so grateful for the ease in which I can see and communicate with my family. My dad and mom gave all of my siblings and I a web cam for Christmas. Since they live in Florida we don't get to see them very often. Usually only once a year when they come out in the summer, and then it's back to e-mails and phone calls (which have been amazing up until now). But this little web cam device is so dang awesome! Now I can see my parents and talk with them any time I want. And through Google g-mail it's free!!! It is so fun now to visit with my sister's or parents who live in Florida. It's soooo much different than a phone call or even an e-mail. The kids can talk with their grandparents or their cousins. We have been having a blast with it!!! So I am grateful for the technology that allows me to see my parents who live thousands of miles away with just the click of a button!

2009

Once upon a time there was a much thinner and much healthier.......ME! Oh my goodness where do I even begin? I looked a whole lot different 4/5 years ago. I have no excuses (now that my baby is 3 1/2). I have eaten poorly and given up on my workout routine. This year I really need to focus on my health and set a better example for my kids. I would love to hear any tips from any of you out there on what works for you. If you have any good healthy recipes or a work out you love, let me know. Good luck to any and all of us who have loosing weight on the radar for 2009!!!