Happy Thanksgiving/Birthday

A yummy dinner with my parents.


Dessert with Jeremy's family, which also happened to be birthday celebrations for Jeremy's sister Lairen.


Happy Birthday Aunt Lairen!!!

Need a good laugh?

These are the cute faces that come to me every morning, making sure teeth are clean and satisfactory.

This is my adorable red head that comes to me each Sunday asking if it's fast Sunday and grateful when it's "SLOW Sunday" cause she'll get treats in her primary class :)


This is also the cutie that often has ants in her pants (never sitting still) and has a story that relates to her actually having ants in her pants...yes the story needs to be recorded. It goes as follows:

This was a beautiful day and a lovely chance to sit in the grass and enjoy waiting for Ally to get off the bus. Mom sat while Kaitlyn danced. It looked like a new monkey dance. New movements with her hips, arms and some jumps here and there. Then the realization came that she was uncomfortable. Kaitlyn started scratching and mentioned that something wasn't right, "my bum is itchy mommy". She had been sitting next to me and I saw that she sat directly on an ants nest and had ants crawling all over her! We had to wait for the bus which luckily had rounded the corner and had two more stops. We started wiping them off the best we could. Once the bus arrived, Kaitlyn and I ran home, leaving Ally behind (yes she was not happy and had no idea what was going on). We were running home, laughing histarically as I'm telling her exactly what's going on: ...."you REALLY have ants in your pants....we'll get them out...let's hurry!" We tell her all the time that she needs to get the ants out of her pants. Luckily, she too, was laughing the whole way. We stripped Kaitlyn down in the drive-way, wiping ants from all the crevises (EEW). Ally was shocked to see a naked sister running to the front door as she arrived at the top of the driveway. We got Kaitlyn all washed up and we now have this funny story of Kaitlyn having ants in her pants the first week of Kindergarden :)

An Escape.....For Mom's Birthday

We picked up the birthday girl, as soon as school got out, and headed for the Coast. We had a fun evening together; dinner, games and a movie. Mom's has great pics of the evening on her blog (birthday treat and fun game). It was fun being able to have simple night of fun in a cozy setting (away from the usual routine). Veterans Day started out beautiful! We all woke up early and were down on the beach by about 8am. We were pleasantly surprised, we could have been without coats! We were all happy as clams to have our little get-a-way....and celebrate the fact that Mom's another year younger ;)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!!!

Saying Our Goodbyes

The girls were devastated Saturday evening when they realized it was going to be the last time they would get to get to see Rachel and the twins for a while. The girls and I stopped by for a really quick visit Sunday night. We turned on Babes in Toyland, but I don't know how much of it they actually watched. It was fun spending time with Lairen, Rachel and the babies. We are grateful for each moment we spent together. We'll miss you all (that includes you Leif) and look forward to the next time. It always nice when family comes back into town.

Ally's Baptism

What an incredible day! Ally has been so excited to enter the waters of baptism and follow her Savior, Jesus Christ. Her special day was filled with smiles and a few tears when the day was over. She truely feels the love of the Savior and is certainly letting her light shine. Our family is so blessed to witness this special day. Ally, we are pleased with your decision and hope you always feel the peace and comfort you felt on this special day.


Many of our friends and family members came and showed their support. We didn't get near the pictures we would have liked and I'm so sad that the pictures we did get, didn't turn out very clear. A family dinner took place following the baptism. We were thrilled Great Grandma Jeanne and Great Grandpa Paul came. Aunt Rachel and the twins were able to be here along with the rest of Jeremy's local family members and my parents. We missed the rest of you dearly, but know you would have been here if you could. Thank you for showing your support in other ways...you are wonderful and we miss you!!!

Ally is such a special girl. She knows she is loved by many. All of us know it is because of her sweet disposition and the love she shows to others. Thank you to everyone who has shown their support. You helped make this a special day for all of us.

Ally has a special primary song we've been singing for the last several months. It is her favorite, I thought would be appropriate to share. It is titled:

Baptism
Jesus came to John the Baptist, In Judea long ago,
And was baptized by immersion, In the River Jordon’s flow.

“To Fulfill the law”, said Jesus, When the Baptist questioned why,
“And to enter with my Father, In the Kingdom upon high”

Now we know that we must also, Witness faith in Jesus’ word
Be baptized to show obedience, As was Jesus Christ, our Lord.

Fall Leaves

Beautiful sunshine most of the week, created a beautiful vision in our yard...crisp leaves and a giant pile to jump in! We had fun and got a great picture of Kaitlyn during her unexpected and much desired photo-shoot. This one's for you mom, from Kaitlyn.


Jeremy and I estimate; if we raked leaves, we would have about 200 piles this size throughout the season. We are grateful for the lawn mower attachment that scoops them up for us :) Hooray for technology and Jeremy's dediation to get it done 2-3 times a week during this 3 week period. Thanks Babe!

Leif's Visit/Babies Blessing

Leif came in for a short visit with the family. He's completed his out of town rotations and we were thrilled he was able to reunite with his family (he and Rachel were divided for 3 months...I can't imagine!). The twins were 6 lbs. when he left, he came back to them being double the weight and little Micah surpassing Savannah (complete rolls reversed!)

Don't the babies look SO precious???!!! The babies blessings were very sweet, Leif did a great job! It was a good day.

A night of Tricks and Treats

Friday was our big night to celebrate halloween and have our chance to trick/trunk or treat. BG had their businesses open for trick or treating and we were thrilled that Paige joined us for the speedy trick or treating jaunt down Main Street.

Once Jeremy was home from work we headed to his parents for their wards Harvest Festival, which included some trunk or treating. It was a great time being able to have most of the cousins together (Jade and Westin we missed you!!!). Becky & Steve came in from Boise. Everyone had a nice time together....especially the cousins :)

Meeting the Twins

We were estatic when Aunt Rachel (Leif's wife) asked if they could spend some time at our house during their visit. The day finally came after a couple months of anticipation. What a neat experience for our family! The girls got to be little mommy's for a day. They LOVE the real-life baby dolls, I mean neice and nephew :) Being able to feed, change diapers and clothes, play and watch them sleep was such a joy. It was a crack up watching Kaitlyn play her "Chinese Checkers" hand-motions with Savannah. Kaitlyn was really good with her. Ally became buddys with Micah and loved every chance to hold him and carry him around. We all loved our chance to hang-out with Rachel. She is so good with the kids and brings much energy into the home. We love you guys and appreciate the chance we had to be together.

Our Ally is 8!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ALLY! It's unbelievable to me that our Ally is 8 years old. This sweet girl is growing up so fast!

This past year, she's come out of her shell in many different areas. She knows what she wants and is learning to get over many of her sensitivities that have bothered her in the past. One of the most significant changes is her willingness to share her talents. Ally loves to write, play songs on the piano (without reading music) and sing. She is getting confident enough to do these things in crowds. It's fun to hear of Ally's desire to share her writings. She's continually adding more details to her stories and never fails to impress us with her imagination.

Ally, you are an amazing girl and bring us so much joy! You are kind, thoughtful and loving in so many ways. Thank you for being the sweet daughter you are!

PARTY TIME! Ally has many sweet friends. We are lucky they live close by. Most of them ride the bus and live around the corner(s) from us. It was a half day at school, so the kids rode the bus home and had 3-hours of organized fun. Here are the guests, starting at the bottom left (top pic): Taylor, Alexa, Lauren, Ally (of course), Jillian and Jadyn.


The mummy wrap game was a big hit, it was played twice and was very comical. The girls posed great for the picture! What goof-balls!

"Spin the nail-polish bottle" was another hit. It was a long game, but each girl loved it. 8 bottles of polish: one girl chooses a color and spins. Whoever the bottle points to gets to paint 1 fingernail and choose the next color to spin. The girl to get all her fingernails painted first, gets to choose the first color to take home. This continues until each girls nails are painted and has picked their color to take home.

Other fun items were: A guessing game (gumball count), charades (barbie movies were drawn from a bag to act out, grouped in team of 2) and pipecleaner crafts.

I was very impressed with the throughtfulness of Ally's friends. The cards were so personalized and sweet! You can tell each girl put lots of thought into each gift as well. Thanks for coming girls! You all are so special and fun to be around!

Ally's all caked-out. Dessert of choice: Oh Henry Bars, with cupcakes for those who might not like them. Easy for me....I like it!


Tonight's fun: Ally is so simple and easy to please. Originally, she wanted the family to go out for ice cream and that's it. After the busy day, plans changed and she wanted to stay home...that is after going to the store to get ice cream with Dad. We made sundaes and she opened presents. She was thrilled to get her own set of scriptures with her name on them.

It's great to be 8! Ally has made the decision to be baptized, it will take place on the 6th....we are so excited for her special day and are proud of her decision.

Pumpkin Carving

The guts were up to the girls this year....no complaints were allowed or they went to bed. Ally and Mom were a team. Ally designed the pumpkin, the only change mom made was to add eye balls to the square eyes. Ally designed a great pumpkin! Jeremy stuck to the traditional pumpkin and was teamed up with Kaitlyn. I loved watched Kaitlyn's expression while they worked on the pumpkin together. Great work F-A-M-I-L-Y!

2010 Deer

It's been a while since we've had some hunting pics on here. Jeremy went East with his friend Steve. This is the first time in 13 years that he has skipped opening day. Instead, they booked a hotel during the week to clear out the weekend crowd. It worked!!! They left Tuesday morning and got their deer the next morning...YES both of them :) I'm pleased with the picture of my handsome man, but am envious I didn't get the chance to go. Jeremy loved the colorful Pheasant he spotted and I love the shot of the moon he mistaken took, while taking a picture of his rig. Glad it was a good week....and that its over :)


Nothing but excitement when Daddy arrived home. The girls ran out and gave lots of hugs. Kaitlyn couldn't wait to get her hands on the deer :0) Yes, it's not the nicest picture....sawed off, fuzzy scalp...but everyone else looks great!

I LOST MY TOOTH!

Kaitlyn lost a top tooth....you can see she's thrilled! She insisted on writing this note....what a silly-willy!

Grandpa's Birthday

It is so fun when the cousins get together and celebrate. They are great friends and love every moment together (which unfortunely is seldom). We got to enjoy hearing them play the piano, dance, act out skits (if that's what you call them) and watch them be just plain silly...SO FUN! Grandpa, we hope you had a wonderful birthday. Thanks for providing the time to celebrate. We LOVE you!!!

The Fort and Old Apple Tree

It was a beautiful day and I couldn't let what could be the last beautiful weekend of the season go to waste. We got mom out of the house and headed for the Fort. It was a great outting! Mom and I enjoyed the Fort the most, both of us intrigued by many things we now take for granted; herbs needed to be grown, sugar had to be ground, brick ovens needed to be heated for 3 hours before baking, water had to be fetched and carried, tools had to be made, etc. It's nice to be reminded how easy we have it. We tried to teach the girls what we could, without boring them to death...who knows what stuck. All I know is Ally's getting good at the yada, yada, yada (in a polite way, rolling the eyes). I certainly know when to quit.


The girls enjoyed the Old Apple Tree and the walk afterwards. They loved learning that the tree was 174 years old, had been hit by a big storm (possibly lighting) and was cut in half from it. They also learned that Johnny Apple Seed is a relative of ours....from my Mothers, Fathers side. As we sat surrounded by the highway, railroad tracks and planes going to and fro, they realized at those things didn't exist when the tree was planted. On the walk they could see the fort we had just walked through, the river and bridge. It was also the first opportunity to watch a small airplane take-off with a banner advertising a website.

It was a good day. So glad we spent it outside and didn't let the beauty of the day go to waste!

Brennan, 6th Nephew

Congrats Kevin and Heather, he's beautiful! More pics will be posted after my turn tomorrow....can't wait! This is the 6th nephew, 2nd on my side.

The current count is 13 neices, 6 nephews (8/4 Jer's side, 5/2 my side)....so much fun!

Yeah! We got to meet Brennan. I felt selfish going by myself and after having a rough morning with the girls, decided to pick them up and take them with me for a visit. The girls were thrilled and loved hearing his sweet sounds. I loved hearing the touching story of Heather singing to her baby just before his arrival. Apparently his heart rate was outragously high and the doctors were considering c-section. She didn't even want to think that route and decided to sing to the baby while changing positions a few times. She sang for a hour and it worked! His heart rate dropped and he arrival a short while later. I'm so glad Heather didn't have to suffer quite as long as she did with Mya, but still feel bad it took longer than anticipated. Congrats you guys! He's a cutie!

Bakery Babes

Every Monday, each of us takes our turn choosing the treat we would like to have for family night. Now that I'm not working, the girls are taking full advantage of the more time consuming treats our family loves. The girls had a blast and I loved every minute helping them. Both batches of treats were the best batches our family has ever made. Way to go girls!


Ally and her orange cocunut rolls. Her favorite part was cutting the dough into pizza slices.


Kaitlyn and her cinnamon rolls. Her favorite part was spreading the melted butter and sprinkling the brown sugar on the dough.

Field Trip to the Pumpkin Patch

Kaitlyn and I thoroughly enjoyed our trip to the pumpkin patch. It was a beautiful day and warm enough to wear a t-shirt. The kindergarten classes are adorable to watch. I loved it when they swarmed to the hay bails once the teacher said it was their turn....so FUN!

Back to School 2010

Ally started school two days before Kaitlyn. Both had a great 1st days. I can't really say Ally's excited to be back, but it has been a good week. She's happy to have a nice teacher and see her friends each day. Kaitlyn is thrilled to be riding the "big" bus with sister and knows she'll have a good time at Kindergarten this year. I am ready for a full week of school and getting into a set-routine. So far, so good.

HTC 2010

Okay....so about a year ago a friend asked if I was interested in running Hood to Coast, my reply "no way!". I came up with several reasons why I wouldn't/couldn't do it. 5 months later, the friend came to me seeing if my reply would be the same....I was wishy washy and after my husband heard me...his comment was "you'll come up with any excuse in the book, won't you?" Well, I couldn't take that...and knew I had my husband's support ;-)

So here I am with my "Speedy Runners: OnDemand" team. I can't believe I actually completed all three of my assigned legs! It was a great opportunity and I'm thankful for the experience...though I'm not sure I'd ever do it again! Note to self: NEVER do leg 20 again (terrible...horrific experience! I'll just say hills, gravel, dust and more hills, gravel, dust combined....and not excluding an animal attack)...Uggg! I do plan to keep up with the running or jogging as my husband would say :) I agree, I'm slow!


I had fun getting the jitters, days before the run while watching the tents go up for the finish line "party".


There were 2 vans, I was in van 2. Very mello van, with lots of team support. Our Mascot, Speedy Gonzales.



Khara, thanks for putting the team together, reserving my spot and being a great friend!


AND...thanks to my family and friends, who encouraged all along this journey. You're support, prayers and encouragement got me through this! THANK YOU!!!