The Grand Canyon

We had an awesome opportunity to go to the Grand Canyon as a family with the Boy Scouts in our ward. We drove from Salt Lake through Las Vegas, then from Kingman into the Havasupai Indian Reservation.

There are so many things to see there, I felt as though I didn't have enough time. I could not believe the blue green water in the middle of the desert, it was breathtaking .

The hike in was 10 miles as was the hike out, luckily our food and camp stove were carried in by mules, and we only had to take our toiletry items, snacks, and clothing, along with our sleeping gear, I think a top sheet is sufficient (;0

Great Salt Yuck!!!

What a crazy night we had for Dylan's birthday out at the Great Salt Lake, Dylan's newest hobby is Skimboarding, he loves it, and he is pretty good at it too. The rest of the kids were protesting an evening of playing at the Lake, due to the smell, and the icky flies, which will pester a person to death, unless you are in the water. I ended up bribing the kids to go out to the lake by buying them Subway sandwiches, after all, teenagers are always hungry.

We ended up having a great night, and really enjoyed each others company and the solitude of the Lake. Ky and I walked out until we were waist high in the water, which felt like a 1/2 mile or so. Zach and Eli swam on the boogie boards, and Bob posed for many pics, not really his scene, but nonetheless, an enjoyable time.

Eli's 13th bday

September 23rd marked the 13th birthday for the Eli man. I can't believe it, but it's true, all of my children are teenagers. Eli wanted to make a slip n slide at Murray park, so we rented a pavillion, and set it up, 100 feet of slip n slide, plastic sheeting, dish soap and a little water from the river. It was a total blast, the kids enjoyed every bubbly minute of it, and let's face it I loved watching them. When the park managers came over, I thought I might run and hide, but alas I faced the music, he asked us to take it down because it burns the grass. The kids (22 of them) agreed to take it down, and they played games the rest of the afternoon, football, frisbee, and volleyball in the sand, it was by far the warmest birthday we have had for Eli, a perfect day for the park.

For the love of the little ones.

How did we get here? It seems as though the kids were all so small, not so long ago, now the baby I watch, Bon, is 10 months old, the little girl I watch Abby is turning 2, and my youngest turned 13. I remember when they were so small that they needed me all of the time, now there are moments when I sit in a quiet house and wonder when they will be coming in the door, and I will bounce back to action.
Thank goodnes for these little people who keep me busy during the day, along with my Grandma Kathy, and my Mom. Oh and I should not forget the neices nephews or neighbors. I love all of them, especially for reminding me of the sweet innocence of childhood.

I look at my children and wonder what the next 3 years will bring, I feel like I may have not taken every opportunity with these beautiful children I have been blessed with, and that the sand is running out of the hourglass all too soon.

So hold your little ones tight, and tell them that they always have to kiss their moms, regardless of mustaches, beards, or grumpy teenage attitudes. They are grow up too fast.

Spooky the Old Dog vs. Scouts

Spooky and I (Jenn) decided to go to Lava Hot Springs with the Scouts. The boys were mad, especially that the dog was getting them hairy, then that Mom didn't want them throwing rocks, using hatchets in the dark , or shaking each others tents at 1am. Alas, all was well at the Hot Pools. When it is 20 degrees outside, they feel pretty nice, and even a Scout can relax and enjoy the steam. We stayed at Smiths Trout Haven, which was pretty awesome as well.

Ky is 35!

I am always thankful for this time of year when my husband is as old as me! We had a great party for Ky. Our friends, the Swensens and Isaac came, Jeff and Kirst and their Kiddos, Phil, Alesha and Koen, as well as Whitt and Shannon, Diana, and Kathy. We even had a cameo appearance from Smash and her beau John.

Happy New Year 2009

Here were a few of our guests at the New Years Party, they had a great time, we played some getting to know you games, had a greedy white elephant game, and watched a movie. We all had a fun time, except for my pots and pans, they got a little more than I bargained for, next year I will remember to use pie plates. Top prize,,,, rubber chicken....

Ouch!!!

Bob had his wisdom teeth (3) taken out on January 30th, poor guy. He was very brave and tried to stand up immediately upon gaining consciousness. I told him he had to sit down until his dad got there, as he is almost a foot taller than me, and I am not sure I could support his dead weight. It was quite a comedy getting him in the house by myself, as Ky was picking up medicine at the pharmacy. I told Bob to pretend we were on a date and put his arm around me, he actually fell the full length of the Man Room into the love sack. Here is a picture with the best Ice pack I have ever made, baseball pants, the seat went under his head, and then I tied the legs around his jaw.

All Aboard!

We went to the train museum in Ogden for Presidents Day, we had a great time, although we could not convince Zach to come with us. He was enjoying some quiet time on the sofa, and thought that the museum sounded too boring. Bob was in St George, so it was just Eli, Granty, and myself. We had a great time, and hopefully we'll go back again soon.

Pumpkin Carving at our House

We had a great time carving pumpkins, it really cracks me up, but Zach wanted to be the headless horseman for Halloween.  We had to find a big enough pumpkin to fit over his head, it was a 12 pound pumpkin, but nevertheless, it works, see.    Bob wanted to make him a Barack Obama pumpkin,  he seems to really like Obama, and even asked his dad to buy him an Obama shirt.  Of course Ky will hear none of that,  only Republicans can live here.   Eli went for the traditional somewhat smiley Jack o Lantern,  and Granty took his woodcarving tools and put them to the pumpkin test, making very small holes everywhere for his unibrow pumpkin. :)  P.S. Bob's pumpkin could not be turned into Obama, so it was a puking black hole. 

City cousins come to town

So, the city cousins come to the country to see their Aunt Nae. We came down for Claire and Whitters birthday parties, and we had a blast. We played at the Cleveland park, played at Nae's beautiful new house, and we went cutting Wild Asparagus. It was an awesome time.

Zachery's 12th Birthday

So this is what 12 looks like, I will never forget, his last day in primary. He bore his testimony that he should be sad, or a little happy, but he really isn't sad to be leaving primary, and I forgot what else to say. This year Zach's really enjoyed reading and playing baseball. He is a great kid, with a funny personality, and I always say he is a 50 year old guy trapped in a kids body.

The Old House Rocks

So the kids are very excited, and the adults are very sad, to spend every waking moment that we are not at baseball, at the old house painting. They have relived the glory days of the dirt pile, and tortured bugs, as well as put the swingset to the weight test. In this picture Eli, Kegan, Zach and Dylan.

State of the Cabin in April

I suppose we will not have any water for a while, it seems that our spring is higher up in elevation than our Cabin, so we will need to wait it out. We were hoping by the end of April to use the Cabin, but see what you think. This is Eli and Dylan on top of the snowbank.

Rock Band?

So the kids are getting more entertaining as the years go by, the other night Swenny and I were scrapbooking and the kids decided to dress up and play Rock Band. They were singing and dancing, as well as drumming to Foreigner, AC/DC, and Fleetwood Mac. It's so funny that they like the music as much as I ever did. One thing is for sure, not much scrapbooking got done. Zach, Eli and Kegan were totally hillarious.

Happy 8th Anniversary

Ky and I went to the beautiful Johnson's Mill in Midway, UT. It was an awesome adventure and we want to go back very soon. We stayed in the Mill Pond room, our room overlooked their pond, and the streams, we could hear the waterfall right outside, and we had an awesome view from our balcony. Ky was very happy when the sun went down, as I was very busy watching the deer, swans, and eagles.