My Amazing Husband!!!

Here he is at mile 16 with his sister in the pink. He is behind the big guy in orange. I am a little upset he got in my way. It was awesome to see that they were smiling and there had been no catastrophes yet. Again, here he is at the last mile!!! Man I feel like I was waiting FOREVER to see him but really it was only like 20 min. He did it!! I had no doubt he would, but still running for that long is CRAZY!!! but what an accomplishment.



and maybe a little Crazy? I have been lazy and been needing to post these for a long time. Chad ran his first Marathon this Oct. in St. George!! He did an awesome job and I am so proud of him. Way to go!! Here we are at the end I can't believe he is smiling, I would have been puking! and a pic of the people he trained with. What a good race they all had.

slide show of Hawaii pics

Hawaii here I come!!!

So it has been a while since I have featured my cute little toes on my blog :) he he I am happy to say that in 3 days I will be on my way to PARADISE!!!! So of course I had to visit my good friend Meg and get my toes decked out? how does she come up with this stuff, she is just amazing. Look out turtles here I come :)

red, white and blue

This year for the 4th we decided to take the day off and change things up from the norm. Yap, no balloons, no parade!! I know rebellious clan aren't we? Do not fret because we still managed to have a fun filled day. We hung out at the pool (more pics to come), then went to Julie and Richards house for a Red, White and Blue bbq, and yes the food had to fit in that criteria as well. It was a lot of fun, besides the kids playing, running, jumping and climbing everywhere we settled down when dusk came and watched a movie on the back of thier house!!! Funny thing is i can't remember what movie it was, i do know it fit the theme though. Thanks Julie and Ricki for a fun day!! :O)
Abbie was the winner of most patriotic, all red, white and blue
So here was my contribution to the red, white and blue (and green) theme!! It was a yummy salad loaded with healthy things!!! Blueberrie, strawberrie, walnuts, spinach, and feta cheese!!! are you noticing the theme, yet?
and ate american food, hamburgers and hot dogs, the kids were in heaven!!! MMM yummy

Bryce Canyon Fun

This year we went with my family on their "annual" trip to Bryce Canyon. Wow, can I just say although it was fun, I was totally exhausted when we got home. It was fun and I can't wait to go again and hopefully Lucas will enjoy it more when he is a year older. Oh man was he not happy the first two days of the trip!! Who knows why maybe cuz he was hungry, tired, sick, teething or just felt like torturing me for two days. Of course it all changed the last day we were there, he got a little happier. Anyway, enough of my whining, the cousins had a blast together and it was fun hanging out with my family and playing games. So here are some pics of some of the things we did!!!
The four wheeler ride was longer than expected but still a lot of fun. Lucas fell asleep but was in heaven for the first hr.
I was the tech crew on the hike, chad carried lucas and I carried cameras, video cameras, waterbottles and packs. I know your jealous at how well I look for not showering in 3 days!!! Good thing you can't smell me. Yucky!!!
Tanner and Nic while hiking
One of the best things that happened in Bryce Canyon!!! Now the trick was to get him out and on a bed while keeping him asleep. Somehow we did it!!! Thanks for the backpack Liz it was a lifesaver!! Isn't he sweet?
While we were sight seeing the kids spotted a squirrel and seriously sat and watched it for 15 min. They were so amazed. Here is Lucas trying to get a better look!! Can you see it?
Chad took the kids down to the little town (don't remember the name) the thing that cracks me up about the pics he took while they were there is that in every single one Ella is in it somewhere and climbing on something!! Such a monkey girl :)

The famous "Jake the Snake" that poor thing was kid handled like crazy, I have to admit I felt bad for the creature. Even Lucas would hold him!!
The one brilliant move I made was bringing this toy for the boys to play with. Lucas pushed it around camp, shoveled dirt in it, piled rocks in it, dump it and start all over!!!

The cousins while sight seeing!! isnt that canyon amazing!! I wish you could see down in it, wow it was awesome.

So cute!!! and kinda long post :) he he

A couple months ago I was finally able to get some pictures (professionally) taken of my kids. Whitnee Jenkins (studiomjphoto.com) took them and was so nice to work with my and my kids schedules. I love my pictures and wish you could see them all. But that would make for an even longer entry. So here are some of my favorites. Enjoy!!


Little Lucas!! These are his 1 yr. pics. Honestly every single picture taken caught his personality. Ya gotta love his teeth. He is a busy boy. More that Tanner or Abbie ever was. Always moving, climbing, rolling, talking. The only thing he won't do much of is eat. Loves apples though. He also likes to play with cars, another thing tanner never did. My favorite thing that melts my heart though, giving loves. His loves and kisses are the best. These pics were taken at my moms. What do you think about the hair. I can't handle how cute the "hawk" is.



Abbie at 6 yrs. old. She is a Girl there is not mistaking this. Although, she does like to play outside and get wet and dirty like a boy would. She is extreme in all aspects. Right now here biggest passion is dance (go figure) she dances on a team and gets to travel and compete. Obviously, I think she does such a good job. These pics were taken on my deck and at the studio. So cute :)


Tanner at 7 yrs. old. One of his favorite things to do is write stories and create characters for these stories. Here is one called the "Elf Princess" I think he is amazing at what he does (but then again don't all moms think their kids are). So creative, I swear that brain never stops. Except when that head hits the pillow. These pics were taken in his bedroom!

Hair for competition!!

Ok so here are the steps to do the 3 ponytail "Mohawk" 1. pull back the front into a "Poof" (that's what the teens are calling it) i use the bobby pins with the ridges and cross them so they stay in. 2. I measure about where the eyes are and pull that hair into a ponytail and make a messy bun. (the hair that you pulled into the poof goes in this pony). 3. Make another pony tail below the first. I part the hair about mid ear and pull that into the pony tail and make a messy bun with that pony. 4. Pull the rest of the hair into a pony tail and make another messy bun. That's it. Looks complicated but all it really is is just three messy buns. Bobby pin any hair that you don't like hanging out, or you can curl it.
It is best to do this hair do with dirty hair, I have tried it with just washed hair and the buns won't mess. So I wouldn't wash it the day of. Also, when pulling the hair back I would wet it a little to get any flyaways and then spray it with hairspray. Leave me a comment if you have any questions. Good Luck :)
p.s Sorry about the blurry pics. abbie changed the setting on my camera and I didn't realize it til I was finished. Plus she wouldn't hold still and my 17 m. old was climbing on me. Ha Ha

A little treat

Last night after dinner I was having one of those "I need something sweet" moments. I don't know if anyone else has those cravings. Anyway, I didn't really want something heavy, or full of fat. so I saw this recipe on the side of a Vanilla wafers box and decided to make it. The kids helped me and gobbled them up!! Don't they look yummy?

What are you doing?

So I was trying to get the dishwasher unloaded so I could load it, again. As you can see by all the dishes in the back ground. I was putting something away, turned around and saw this. Now of course it is naughty, but he was so proud of pulling himself up like that and thought he was such a big kid. After all he watches his siblings climb on the counter all the time. (one of my pet peaves) So I had to snap some pics of him. Why is it that we are always taking pictures of our kids when they are being naughty? Ok maybe its just me, or my kids do lots of naughty things. :)

A fun weekend!!!

For Valentines I got Chad a Valentine cookie bouquet. Thanks for sharing some bites with me. The kids got a decorated cookie as well, along with a new dvd!! This is the first year I have gotten them more than a treat. Chad says that Valentines isn't really for kids. He is right, but hey I just wanted to do something fun. They were excited and it kept them entertained for most of the day!!! I love my family and am so greatful for the joy and love they bring to my life, and to Chad who is always making me feel like his Valentine!! Later in the day the cousins came over and we made sugar cookies together and delivered them to neighbors. We had a fun and exhausting day!!!
Aren't these two girls just the cutest things ever. Abbie and Ella had so much making cookies. Ella got a little side tracked and started making faces in the dough. They are so silly!!! and very, very messy. I should have taken a picture of the floor beneath them. OH MY!! is all I can say:)

Nic, quietly working on his masterpiece!!! He was the cleanest out of the bunch, not one piece of dough or flour was on the floor beneath him.
Tanner, cutting out his cookies, he didn't want to do hearts, (to sissy) so I let him and Nic use more manly cookie cutters like hmmm Snowmen? and Christmas Trees
Of course, it is my nature to take over, send the kids out of the kitchen to play and finish the project with a little less chaos. It was fun to let them make their own, and to have their cousins to share their valentine cookies with. You can see Tanners special frosting on the cookie in the top right corner. He was proud of his creation.

Abbie all decked out in her Valentine wear and hair. (thanks to all the hair blogs out there for the ideas!!! This was my fav.



We had a fun weekend hanging out with the kids and just relaxing. Well I am not sure I really did much of that, making sugar cookies, for me anyway, takes a lot out of me. Thanks to my sweet Valentine for the beautiful roses. Two years in a row!!! I think your getting the hang of it.:) I feel like I am his valentine everyday, it is nice to get a reminder though. Here are some pictures of some of the things we did!!!