Kanab & AZ

I swear this man is truly a cowboy, then he blows it all by wearing true ATV riding pants. He is larger than life. He is Tony and a long time friend of Bry's. They met years ago while doing something with the scouting program. Dan and I came to Kanab five years ago to ride with Tony and his family. It is so good to be back!

I was amazed at this breath taking view of the Grand Canyon
Then turn to the left and there's Lake Powell!
I am so afraid of heights that it is unbelievable to see
how close I got to the edge for pictures!

We drove to Arizona and through the Kaibab National Park to start out our day. We saw broad canyon draw, white pockets, and were able to pick up these funny little mill stones made up of iron ore that had rolled around in the sand and wind. They looked like petrified poop!

After finishing our ride we stopped at a car wash station to clean of the bikes and rino's. We had gone the entire trip without injury and just as everything was being loaded up, Harlie fell off the back of the trailer and scraped up her sweet little face. We hope Jenn lets her come again!

Read more...

Black Friday

Good Clean Family Fun

Exploring ruins or getting roosted by Dan,

Climbing on the rocks or staying safely below,

Dreaming of driving,

Or just taking a break {potty or otherwise},

finding a Jumping Place:

or tracing the steps of a Warriors Walk:

It's all good and dirty fun when we are together!

Dan and I came to the agreement that I would drive today, so that he could ride his dirt bike. Tomorrow, I can be a passenger and just enjoy the ride. Bry just bought two new Rinos and it scares me to think of the 10 - 15 thousand it might take to replace them. Every were you look there are warnings and notices of involuntary roll overs ~ even on flat ground. Tony assured me that this was a very easy trail and mostly sand. It was the mostly I should have been worried about...

We reached a spot of slick rock that I was too chicken to drive up. I was following instructions and staying right close to Tony. I was in four wheel drive~low and thought that the tough patch was over. I was exhilarated and amazed that I made it up these crazy rocks. Then I noticed that I hadn't been following closely enough and wasn't sure what way to go. I glanced up and noticed Jared and pointed left or right, asking which way to climb. I went the hard way and ended up stopping and having to ask for help...Dan climbed in and took the machine up the hill. I hoofed it and made it there all by myself with no problems. I got back in and let Dan take me through the remainder of the slick rock. My heart was racing so fast. I was close to hyperventilating and was shaking more than a little bit. I don't know why it scares me so but there you go! I turned to check on my boy and realized that Seth had slept through the entire ordeal ~ amazing!!!

Chloe and Harlie rode together most of the day and really had a good time together. We made it back to the trucks and were going to load up but Tony wanted to take us to the dinosaur prints. Dan and I stayed behind with Seth and started to load up. I found out later that Bry had scared Chloe into tears, telling her that the Dinosaurs were going to get them. He didn't know that she already has had bad dreams about dinosaurs eating me and that she just started believing us that they are extinct and no longer living... Oh well, we will just have to start over!

Read more...

Mock Thanksgiving Dinner

Just no the same...

After enjoying a 'mock' Thanksgiving Day celebration at Mimi's in Layton Wednesday night with Dan's family we woke up early and hit the road. We were a convoy of sorts and were missing our walky talkies. *Note to self ~ Bring walkie talkies next trip!!! I placed my hand over my heart as we passed Parowan at 11:05 AM {for Erin & Kendall}. There is something strange about driving through the small rural towns on a holiday. They already look so quaint and quiet but on a holiday they look down right dead! We reached Sand Hollow in a down pour of rain. Dan is so die hard, I would have just moved on and reached Kanab a little early. But, in the rain, we pulled out all of the machines. In the rain, we pulled on our jackets and coats. In the rain, we road the rinos and raced each other across the terrain. In the rain, we kept all cameras safe, in the truck. In the rain, we lasted only a little while before accepting defeat. In the rain, we finally arrived to Kanab and after unloading a little and cleaning up, a little, we sat down to eat at Grandma Tina's. Here we had dinner, a Thanksgiving dinner. To me Thanksgiving dinner is all about my mother's turkey. It is huge and moist and delicious. It is about being surrounded by family in the kitchen, rushing to get everything together ~ without forgetting about the last batch of rolls in the oven. I have my favorite foods: turkey {the white meat}, mashed potatoes, corn, and the rolls. I have never been a fan of stuffing or yams but tonight in this little restaurant, I ate it all. I was so hungry that I picked around the mushrooms and devoured the green beans drenched in {yeach} mushroom sauce. *** I miss the traditions, I miss my extended family, but I am thankful.

I am so thankful for Dan, Chloe and Seth. I love being together as a family. I am so thankful for a loving Heavenly Father; who protects us, who guides us, who loves us. I am so thankful for the beautiful land we live in and the freedoms we have. I am thankful for traditions and I plan on enjoying my moms stuffing next year!

Read more...

SPT - Dinner with the Girls

Read more...

Sewing Project

Read more...

I saw IT!!!

Seriously, I went expecting the worst. I haven't read the book for a while and thought that I might not hate the movie. I wasn't disappointed. I thought it was a great teen/chick flick. The sunny meadow put me over the top and Erin had to keep kicking me so that I would shut up and stop laughing out loud. But aside from those dirty looks and the people cheering and clapping ~ it was great!

I thought all of the actors did a great job and that

Robert Pattinson made a fabulous Edward! Hmmm...

Miriam, Krystal, Erin and I went together. Sadly this is the best shot:
It was so nice to have a little time to ourselves!!!

Read more...

Happy Birthday Mom!

Happy 29th Birthday Mom!

Read more...

Practice, Practice, Practice

I have Adobe Photoshop Elements 6 and just sat down with my friend Shannon, yesterday, to learn more about it. I think this magic wand tool is my new favorite! I just started to try it with this photo montage. I think with a little practice ~ it might be print worthy!!!

Read more...

Rewards

This is well worth the price for the good behavior today. After spending the morning at our friends house we went on errands. They were so good that I really enjoyed being able to give them a little ice cream cone, a prized treasure!!!

Read more...

Catch Up on Yesterday

Yesterday I got to go to the hospital to hold my brand new niece. I am so baby hungry, I have to remind myself that these precious, sweet smelling newborns grow up into something like this:

My niece Taylor was at the hospital and was taking pictures with my camera {Thanks So Much!} but she snuck this little gem in as well!!!

****************************

Our day started out very mundane. We woke up and called Tom and Jenn to see if there was any change of the baby/delivery news. Tom called us and asked if we wanted to meet his little girl and then he would say "SO WOULD I!!!" {He kept teasing us, so the last time they called to tell us the baby was here we didn't believe them!} But, this morning, like every morning both of the kids love to sit on the heater, just like their dad.

I love the way that Seth tries to copy Chloe in almost every way. He was trying to get his hair to go all crazy from the heat vent but just couldn't get the same results. After the furnace took a break they decided to show me how to give a piggy back ride. The tutorial follows:

__________________________________________
Step One:

Step Two:

Step Three: Step Four (Optional):

These purple PJ's are one of the many t-shirts I got for .99 ~ I love them! Chloe has decided that she doesn't want to wear pull-ups any more at night and has gone a week without accidents!!! I don't know if the two are related but the timing is a little fishy...

The baby was born around 10:30 in the morning but I had to take the kidlets to preschool. Wendy has been trying to get me hooked on the Big Bang Theory and saved a few episodes on her DVR. So while Chloe and Jacob were at school Seth and I watched it and fell in love with this funny, funny show! Seth fell in love with Aunt Wendy's massage chair.

It must be rough being a 2 almost 3 year old!

Read more...