THE STEVENS FAMILY

We have moved again!!!

2011-08-07T14:39:00.000-07:00

from colorado to utah.

I feel like I write a post titled this every year. Oh, wait I usually do!! :-) Well, yes we have moved to Utah, and if you are interested in our new address please email me. melissaastevens@gmail.com

Fall Family Portraits

2010-11-07T20:11:00.000-08:00

Total Eclipse of the Heart

2010-03-12T22:26:00.000-08:00

I love this song, but I really love this video! My mother-in-law told me about this video. I can't believe how random the original video is. These words really fit much better.

PUNK PURPLE!!!!

2010-02-28T19:23:00.000-08:00

It is Jetta's birthday and this little girl wanted a punk purple birthday everything. Punk purple all began when I was looking at fingernail polish on the e.l.f. makeup website. I saw a purple polish I really liked and read the name out loud with some excitement in my voice. Ever since then when Jetta sees purple it is no ordinary purple it is PUNK PURPLE exclaimed in such excitement. So here are some pics of our punk purple birthday.

Cha cha cha changes

2010-01-22T15:10:00.000-08:00

Hello all, so much to catch up on........

1. Christmas was great! Some fun pics of the kidos

2. New Year's was fabulous. I don't believe in new year's resolutions so I made no goals.....
3. Some family photos

4. Pete at one month

5. Peter's blessing

6. Pete is almost 3 months and is a sturdy 12.5 lbs. and 26 inches long. I say sturdy because he is not a total fatty, just solid.
7. Henry met his Kindergarten teacher.
8. Jetta cut her hair again. :-)
9. I have been reorganizing our primary. Ward boundaries changed and with that comes a lot of change and organizing.
10. We are moving to a house. Renting, but it is a house and it comes with a huge yard!!! If you would like our new address let me know and I will email or mail one to you. Pictures of the house to come. It needs so much work, but hey what fun would moving into a perfect house be???!! Ha Ha...

The Cut

2009-12-08T18:48:00.000-08:00

I have now been initiated into the "my child just cut their own hair" club. No, I was not mad. It is a right of passage that is bound to happen to every mother of a daughter. Yes, I cried. We have been trying to grow Jetta's hair for 2 1/2 years now and it was looking so cute. When I saw the damage I kindly took the scissors out of her hand and reminded her we only cut paper but she looked so great that we needed to take a picture. What would getting mad accomplish? I quickly turned around and left the room to have a good cry and laugh and then grabbed the camera to capture these for your viewing pleasure. I did my best to fix the damage but it will take a few more months to get it looking decent. Oh well, I love you Jetta. You always keep my life spicy.

RANCOR

2009-11-12T19:19:00.000-08:00

What do you do when your soon to be 5 year old son wants this and only this for his birthday?

You call your mother and mother-in-law for advise. When they give the all clear you proceed with caution.

Happy birthday buddy, we love you very much!

New pics of Pete

2009-11-04T19:36:00.000-08:00

All I have time to say is we are doing well. The kids had a great Halloween! They loved having Nanna (my mom) in town, and they are enjoying have Mumsy (Dave's mom) in town. We got a little over 2 feet of snow here and had a great time playing! Pete is doing well and is very smothered by all of us loving him!

Welcome Peter

2009-10-27T19:24:00.000-07:00

HE IS HERE!!!!! After a long 9 months and very short labor (4 hours and 1 push later) Peter has joined our family. We could not be more excited. Henry was born to be a big brother Jetta is still figuring it all out and Mommy is wondering what in the world she has done. Here are some photos, I am looking so fine... Not!!! But all that matters is the baby. I will post more when I get a chance.

better news for me

2009-10-11T13:14:00.000-07:00

No c-section, he finally turned, the little turkey. He just needs to stay turned. I am dilated to a 1 and 50% effaced. I am thinking in the next week or two. Well, we will see.

A Stevens Update

2009-10-07T19:21:00.000-07:00

Well, it has been some time..... I would apologize but it seams to be the latest trend with me. I should not apologize for something that will more than likely happen again. I will not be going into detail here, some things are better left unsaid or un-complained about, but I am at my level of tolerance with this pregnancy and everything it and life has thrown at me. I am very ready to be done! This has been one of the most stressful and difficult pregnancies ever. I have only had three and that is not very many but this one does take the cake. Well, enough about me.....

Henry loves, loves, loves school!! Every day he begs to go and there was one morning when I thought a slight cough would get in the way and I mentioned that we should stay home that tears streamed from his eyes as he pled for me to let him go. "Mommy I promise I will not cough again, just let me go to school, I want to go!" Poor kid.... I hope this love will never change. I am so glad that we were led to this school! Dave and I were talking about how amazing blessings happen when you accept difficult things from the Lord. I would never have hear about this school if I had not accepted my current calling and Henry would probably still be at home, sick to death of me and scared to death of new situations. I love how the Lord is so mindful of our needs.....

Jetta is loving "Mommy Time". The other day we did a nature walk and collection. We pasted our collection onto paper and hung it on the fridge. I am trying to think of ways to still have one on one time with her after Peter comes. She really needs the love and focused attention. She is such a great little thing. Her sass it difficult at times but I would not have her any other way! My dad came in town the other day to pick up my brother, who has been living with us, and take him back to Utah. He told me that Jetta is very much like I was when I was her age.... Oh Dear!! Well, at least she might turn out alright.

Dave has been taking on multiple rolls at our house this past week and I am sure will continue to do so into the next month. He not only works full time but has been doing dishes, laundry, shopping, bathing, cooking, and crafting (with the kids). Since I have checked out of reliable mother, he has taken that roll on. Poor guy, I feel so bad but so lucky to have him. He has even had to cut down, if not give it up for a bit, on his new loved hobby of bike riding. He picked it up a couple of months ago with some friends from our church, but ever since I have been sick and stressed he has been waking up with the kids in the mornings so I can get some extra and needed sleep. What a dear!!!!

Well, three weeks to go, give or take a c-section possibility. We will let you know when the anticipated day draws closer or if all goes well and we are surprised we will post a photo or two. Love to all!!!!

School and Strawberries

2009-09-13T19:57:00.000-07:00

Henry started preschool. I can't believe it!!! It has been and answer to prayers! We wanted to send him but the $ is just tight at this time so I planned to teach him and having gone to school to do so, I thought it would all go well. I was ready and prepared but soon realized that being pregnant and then having a newborn and two year old and with my calling, there was no time. Besides, I think Henry was getting bored with just Mommy! :-) So, Dave and I started praying that something that was right for Henry and our pockets would come up and it did. In talking with another Primary Pres. she told me about the preschool that her kids do and how much she loves it and her kids love it and it is affordable. I looked at the curriculum and talked with the teacher who has been teaching preschool for years after teaching public school for years and has an amazing program, and knew it was the right thing. It just fell into our laps and with in 1 week Henry was signed up, had met the teacher, loved her, met his school mates, and started. On his first day he walked right in and looked back with a huge smile and waved as one of the most confident boys I had ever met. When I picked him up I asked how it went and he told me all about the day followed with the question, "Can I go back to school now?" Every morning he wakes up and watches the clock, asking if it is 9:15 yet, that is when we leave. He watches the numbers just counting down each min. My neighbor suggested I get a timer. I am so happy and excited to see him take this new step. I just can't believe that he is old enough to be starting school.

Jetta cried more on his first day than any body. I think she realized her buddy was gone and that she was not quite big enough yet. So I created a special time just for Jetta, "Mommy Time". We love our time together and as you can see from our first day it was quite the girly success! We painted our nails pretty pink and had a tea party with marshmallows, strawberries, and water. :-) We followed our bonding with a walk and some tricycle riding. She and I had a great time together and I am really looking forward to "Mommy Time" just with her, well until it gets interrupted by baby Peter.

Camping on Labor Day

2009-09-09T20:56:00.002-07:00

We spent the day in the mountains and the kids kept calling it camping. We had a blast! After I have this baby, and probably next summer we will be spending much more time in the mountains doing real camping. Just a few fun photos to share.

2009-09-09T20:56:00.001-07:00

I am finally posting

2009-08-10T22:13:00.000-07:00

So since the last time I posted, this summer has really been out of hand. Blogging has been on the bottom of my list. Sorry. My family has been bugging me for an update so here it goes.

Awesome cake by my cousin Chris Fitch who is a professional pastry chef

We celebrated a wedding, my sister Cami and Judd were married at the end of June, it was a fabulous wedding!! Thank you McCall for taking the photos that I was too burned out to take. Being pregnant and taking bridals really took it out of me. I am such a lame photographer! What photographer gets burned out of what they love to do?

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

We spent a lot of time on the boat, Henry and Jetta both got in and swam and went surffing behind the boat with Daddy's help. They are so brave, the first time my dad put me on a knee board behind a boat I was 6 or 7 and I screamed the entire time to bring me back in..... I was such a baby!!

We enjoyed the yearly Marshall rodeo in Oakley Utah and Henry and Jetta got all dressed in Cowboy apparel. This photo is some of the cousins at the BBQ. This is the first year since having kids that Dave and I got to sit through the entire rodeo with out interruptions. Quite the monumental moment!
My brother Miles has moved in with us for the summer. The kids love him and completely enjoy driving him bananas!!
We are working on potty training Jetta, so much fun! :-)
Henry has taught himself how to swim. He dives, swims quite the distance in the pool and has grown gills. I can never push that kid to do anything, when he is ready for something he puts his mind to it and accomplishes it. He is a lot like Dave!
I am up to my eyeballs in Primary and I am loving it. I am learning so much from this calling and I am quite humbled that I know nothing and have everything to learn.

Lately we have been to dinosaur ridge here in Denver, very cool for the locals here if you have never been. If you ever plan on visiting I recommend that you go and take the bus tour, you learn much more from the tour guides than walking it.

I took some senior portraits of a friend in the ward.
We celebrated our 6 year anniversary and yes, we are still in love!

This is a self portrait of Henry with shoes on his many toes. He is on a bridge, in the middle of a purple sky and brightly colored sun. And yes, he has on a shirt and shorts with underroos (what he calles underwear) that have been covered by the shorts. In every self portrait he has to be wearing underroos. It is probably one of the most important articles of clothing. :-) He and Jetta both have been drawing, drawing, drawing, and doing lots of side-walk-chalk. We have been using our imagination, and playing with sock puppets whose names are: mommy sock puppet, baby sock puppet and Henry sock puppet. Very original!
:-)

I certainly hope this is enough to fill my family's needs and I am sure this is more information than the rest of you wanted to know. Hope that things slow down a bit so I can update a more frequently.

Just had to share!

2009-06-21T22:03:00.001-07:00

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Hello Baby!!!

2009-06-11T17:18:00.000-07:00

We would like to welcome Baby Peter Craig to our family! No, he is not born but he is a he. We had our ultrasound today and there was not mistaking it, he is a boy! :-) We are excited and the kids are excited and we love his name. He will be named after my father and Dave's father. My sister Candice suggested we could call him peg for short. Knowing us it will stick. Well, just thought you all might care to know.

We are Back!!

2009-06-06T15:01:00.000-07:00

What a whirl wind of a vacation!! It was awesome! Perfect weather, great times, lots of laughs, so much to do and have done, and great family. I do have one confession, I did not take as many photos as I thought I would, in fact I hardly took any. I think the photographer in me needed a vacation as well. Maybe from doing my sister's shoot. Sorry, the visual sharing will be lacking.....

Well, we left Wednesday in our little Subaru and I only mention this because we came home in a much needed bigger vehicle. While we were in California my parents put a for sale sign in our can and with in a few days we had an offer and it was sold. Which only left us one day to find a new car before we had to come back to Denver. We found one we can afford and can and will fit all of us and our new addition (we will find out Thursday and let you all know) and all of our luggage. Oh happy day! Hopefully now our kids will not get sick in the car as we travel to Utah. :-)

So, we left and arrived in Utah to take my sister Cami's engagement photos. It was a 4 hour session, and with horses and with parents that all knew what angle and back ground should be shot. I was tired, but so worth it because the session was awesome the photos were beautiful. For viewing pleasure, click here.

After a day in Utah we left for Vegas, and stayed in the Excalibur. We spent the whole night looking for Merlin the Magician in the castle but he was not there. We finally convinced Henry that he went to Bermuda, like in the movie. He was satisfied with that.

We arrived in Newport Beach the next day and went swimming in the pool. I think I will have second home there some day. It was so beautiful! We were right off the beach and Henry and Jetta loved seeing the ocean from our balcony. The next day we went to San diego zoo. I loved the baby gorilla and the kids loved the rhinos! I got a little sick and spent most of my time in the shade at the front gate but the kids saw so many things. It was great. We all had matching shirts made so that we could see our group and not loose the kids. At the zoo we were a mass of Yellow, Disneyland - Blue. It was so nice to be able to see everyone and know what your child was wearing without thinking about it.

So, the following day was Disneyland and oh, did we Disneyland it. We spent 14 hours there our first day and 13 hours there our second. Henry loved every ride he went on and he went on almost every ride there was. Even the big ones. He loved the Grizzly Rapids ride the best. Jetta loved the Tea Cups. I think she went on that 4 times. I could go on a few and loved whatever I could do. Dave, is a child at heart and loved doing everything at any time with whom ever but I think watching Henry and Jetta brought him the most joy.

We spent a day at the beach and just played and relaxed. It was a much needed day! I have never seen Henry laugh so much and enjoy himself more than in the waves. We could not get him out! Jetta was not sure about the ocean and seemed content to build sand castles. She did like collecting shells and brought home a whole bucket full. I had to get rid of them at the hotel because they were starting to smell. She doesn't know so shhhh! :-)

We went to Sea world. I think this was my favorite. I loved the whales and dolphins and all the shows. We are still doing the Shamu call here at the house. Henry wanted to get wet so bad at the Shamu show but we were not close enough. So at the dolphin show he and Dave went to the 4th row and got soaked!!! Mom and Jetta were just fine where we were. :-) The kids fed the rays but not the dolphins, that was 45 bucks a pop, WHAT????? But they did not even notice because there was so much to do.

The morning we left we went to the tide pools and explored, very cool. Then drove to St. George and then to Utah, found a car and came home. I need a good week of sleep and a personal laundry assistant just to get back on top of things. Thank you Lois and Craig for a fabulous time and a great vacation. We can't wait to go back!! :-) Enjoy what few photos I have......

California Dreaming

2009-05-19T16:21:00.000-07:00

For the next two weeks we will be in California. We will be going to Disney Land, Sea World, San Diego Zoo, the beach and much much more. When we get back I will be posting many pics and sharing all about our grand adventure. See you all then.

Why did you eat......?

2009-05-14T18:05:00.000-07:00

A few days ago Henry and I were playing and he accidentally kneed me in the belly. I caught my breath and he asked what was wrong. I reminded him that there was a baby in my tummy and we needed to be extra careful when we play. He played a little bit longer and then asked, "Why did you eat the baby in your tummy?" I said, "I didn't eat it." He asked, "Did you just swallow it." "No, I didn't swallow it either." Thankfully because he is 4 he was satisfied with that answer and didn't ask how it got there. I am not ready to have that chat with a 4 year old. :-)

Surprise!!!

2009-05-06T20:42:00.001-07:00

For my birthday Dave made this secret video of me and my sweet cycling skills!! :-) J/K This is Danny MacAskill, and this is one of the most amazing things I have ever seen! I love the way he makes it seam so effortless and in my wee mind I think to myself, "Hey, maybe I could that too". :-)

Happy Happy Birthday Daddy Dear!!

2009-04-23T14:02:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Dave!! We had an awesome day! The kids helped me decorate the kitchen and get presents wrapped. We ate BBQ ribs, corn bread with honey butter, honey orange carrots (thank you crissa), and very amazing raspberry jello salad (again thank you crissa). We had Dave's favorite chocolate cake. We basically ate amazing but gained 30 lbs. just that night! :-) We opened gifts played all night with the kids, heard the new babies heart beat and stayed up until 1:00 doing a puzzle that Dave got. We love puzzles. It was a fabulous day and if any one deserves it, it would be Dave. He is the most amazing man, husband, father, and friend that I and my children could have and we love him to pieces!!!

I'd pee too....

2009-04-18T10:40:00.000-07:00

A couple I served my mission with sent these pictures to me. This is a new roller coaster in Ohio. I love the last picture because that would totally be me! :-) Can you believe how crazy scary that coaster would be? It reaches a speed of 120 mph and drops 400 ft. Crazy, Crazy, Crazy, any one up for a vacation?

You Know Your Pregnant If........

2009-04-15T09:07:00.000-07:00

You know your pregnant if at 10:30 at night you are enjoying and I do mean enjoying a bowl of cottage cheese with ranch flavored fishy crackers swimming in it and a very tall glass of orange juice. And yes, I did ask Dave to go to market to pick up those items for me last night. Just to note this is the first time I have ever asked Dave to go to the store to get me food to feed a craving in all my times of being pregnant. So, this is the official announcement, I am pregnant. This is our third and I am sure to many of you this is crazy, and at times this is crazy to me but never the less we are excited. I am 11 weeks, sick sick sick, and already showing. I show early because I carry so low. I have not thrown up yet but I sure wish I could because i think I would feel better. The kids are being so patient with me and Dave is always the best! We will be finding out if the baby is a boy or girl, I can't stand the unknown! My sister is pregnant just a month ahead of me and she is one of those that likes the surprise, I could never wait that long. Having a third brings about a whole new set of items to think about. We need a bigger car, uuuggg!!! We will now be an odd numbered family, who will be the one sitting alone on all the Disney Land rides? That is my biggest question. :-) How will Henry and Jetta do? Henry I think will be splendid and Jetta well, I think we will have some attention issues. I am not quite sure how this will affect my ability to do my calling, pretty sure the Bishop will not release me, which is good because as overwhelming as primary pres. is I am starting to love it and especially the children. I have amazing counselors so I am not worried about a thing. Oh, I plum forgot.... My due date is Oct 30th. Not to excited about a halloween baby but my other two have come early by about a week so I am not to worried. Please be patient with my posts and lack thereof. It is on the bottom of my to do list. I will do my best to keep it coming! :-)

8 foot snow man!!

2009-03-30T13:47:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we had a fabulous snow storm. We got about a foot of snow. Keep in mind that here in Denver this has really only been our third big storm this year. You can imagine how excited my kids were! :-) Dave was just about as excited as them. His really is just a large child. Well, Saturday morning we got dressed to go out and play. We ended up building an 8 foot snow man. It was so awesome. But if any of you know Denver, by the evening it had fallen over and melted. But at least we got some pictures just for the record.

50th Wedding Anniversary

2009-03-30T13:44:00.001-07:00

I had the great privilege of taking this wonderful couple's 50th wedding anniversary photos. I hope that when Dave and I get to 50 years we are as happy as them.

Luck O' the Irish

2009-03-17T20:32:00.000-07:00

So, St. Patrick's Day is kind of a big deal in my family. My Great Grandfather Poppy is 3/4 Irish and 1/4 Cherokee. We grew up with major green celebrating, and I would like to carry on that tradition with my kids. They are old enough to get the whole thing and I think really find the magic of Leprechauns, gold, rainbows, shamrocks, etc. For breakfast a leprechaun must have snuck into our kitchen and colored all of our food green because we had green eggs, green pancakes, green milk, green butter, and bacon. Bacon is not green but I am sure it is lucky! :-) The kids got a kick out of that. Henry loved all the green things. We did green freckles, just like Leprechauns, and had shamrocks on our hands. We dressed in green spent the morning at the park came home for a picnic in the front yard where we had special rainbow gushers. We spent the day playing and doing fun games just like Leprechauns. For dinner Crissa, Dave's sister, came over for a traditional Irish meal. Corned beef, cabbage, potatoes, bread with green butter, peas (not irish but green) and of course, green jello!!! For dessert we had root-beer floats in memory of my Grandpa, it was his birthday today. Such a fun day and enjoying it with kids made it even better!! Thanks mom for all the great traditions. Sorry we never ate your green breakfast.

Persnickety Clothing

2009-03-14T17:37:00.000-07:00

My oh so creative cousin, Corinne, created this line of clothing. She lives in Southern Utah and has 5 children. For every item of clothing she sells she is going to donate one item to a child in need. Could you ask for a better cause. Her clothing line is adorable and so funky. I love the colors and patterns she puts together! Check her out and support children in need.

http://persnicketyclothing.blogspot.com/

X-RAYS

2009-03-14T07:59:00.000-07:00

The radiologist's diagnosis: There is a buckle fracture involving the lateral base of the 1st metatarsal bone. So glad there are trained professionals out there to help when the situation calls. Oh, and aren't her bones cute and little?

Jetta is broken

2009-03-13T18:07:00.000-07:00

Poor little girl! We went to house of bounce yesterday, it still was so much fun, and while Jetta was bouncing off a blow up ramp she lost her balance and fell onto the floor. She cried and said that her foot hurt but it did not look like a big fall. She didn't want to play anymore so I just held her while Henry finished getting his energy out. We left shortly after and I took the kids home for lunch and to give Jetta a nap. She wouldn't walk on her foot but I just thought it was a little drama. :-) After her nap she woke up crying that her foot still hurt. I put her on the couch and turned on a movie thinking that would last for about 5 min, she is quite the active little girl. She stayed on the couch all afternoon and all evening. I went to make dinner and heard her scream and turned around thinking that Henry maybe took a toy from her but she had tried to get off the couch and was crumpled on the floor. When Dave got home we decided to take her to After Hours to have her looked at. Henry asked to go to Rachel's (thank you, thank you, thank you) because he did not want to go see the doctor. We took her in and they took x-rays and found nothing but said they would send it to the radiologist. We took her home, got popsicles (thank you mom for the suggestion), and relaxed until bed time. The next day she was still limping and saying her foot hurt. Finally we got a call from the doctor and sure enough there was a break. I was small and will heal with out a cast but it will take 3 weeks to a month to heal and she will be in some pain for a few days. The doctor said that if she still was walking funny in a few days we might want to think about a cast just to take the pressure off. We currently just need to make her comfortable. As you can see from the pics she is in good spirits as long as she has toys, sunglasses, popsicles (again thank you mom), and a movie. Poor little girl! We have images of her x-rays but can't get them to upload. If we do we will post.

watch the skys

2009-03-12T09:23:00.001-07:00

Dave sent this to me and I thought it was so cool to see flight patterns according to time.

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Happy Birthday Jetta

2009-03-03T18:49:00.001-08:00

I can't believe she is 2! How the time has flown.

kookoo hair

2009-03-03T18:47:00.000-08:00

For you Cami

2009-02-17T19:47:00.000-08:00

So, my sister Cami just had surgery. Poor girl! I asked her if I could do anything for her and all she wanted was to see current photos of my kids. Well, it just so happens I just took pictures of them in new sunday outfits that Nana (my mom) bought them. The lighting was not the best but I tried to make it work. Here you go Bean!

25 Random Things

2009-02-07T22:57:00.000-08:00

My sister did this post and then tagged anyone who read it. At first I thought 25 things that is way to much but after reading hers I thought it was fun so if you desire to read 25 random things about me.... read on. If not pass and go!

Rules: Once you've been tagged, you are supposed to write a note with 25 random things, facts, habits, or goals about you. At the end, choose 25 people to be tagged. You have to tag the person who tagged you. If I tagged you, it's because I want to know more about you.

1. When I find a pair of pants or a shirt that I like I buy one of each color. My closet is really filled with maybe only 4 different styles. The rest is just a different color of that same style. I am disconnected when it comes to style.

2. I have a chicken pock mark on my leg that looks like the imprint of a molar tooth. when I was little I used to tell people that I was bit by someone and that was the scar.

3. Before my LDS mission, I was so scared to talk to new people on the phone I had never even ordered pizza. I still don't like talk to new people on the phone but at least I can do it.

4. I have been to Egypt.

5. I love to camp and hike and do all kinds of out doors things. But, I love my hot showers and makeup.

6. I love to take burning hot (and I mean burning my skin that it hurts and gets all red) showers.

7. I never wore make up until my nineteenth birthday, when my mom took me to get a makeover.

8. Before I knew any better I put my gold fish in a plastic bag filled it with water and froze him. I was upset because he had eaten some of my other fish.

9. I like to make lists of things I have already done, just so I can cross it off.

10. I love to travel!!! I have been to 9 different countries and 3 different continents.

11. My favorite animal is a shark and has been ever since I can remember.

12. I have a secret love for Batman. Not any of the actors that played him, but Batman!

13. I have a mole on my back that is the shape of an up-side-down heart.

14. I love really good black licorice. Not red vine black licorice but the real thing.

15. I hate seafood. Even the smell makes me sick. But my husband has introduced me to some that is tolerable.

16. I love movies.

17. I chew all my food on one side of my mouth.

18. I could eat good sourdough bread all day long.

19. Both of my children's names (unknown to me at the time) mean. Henry or "ruler of the home". Hummmmm?

20. I am a biter. I bite all my candy, popsicles and any thing else that most people suck on.

21. I am ambidextrous. When I paint, I use both hands.

22. I can touch my nose with my tongue.

23. I am from Utah but I pronounce my t's. As in mounTain and founTain. My husband thinks I am idiot.

24. I am one of the few people that got to marry a handsome prince. (My husband made me write that)

25. I love to dance. In college I did swing dancing clubs and taught people how. Now I just love to bust all kinds of moves when no one is looking.

I tag all who want to do this.

Nakie Muscles

2009-02-05T07:21:00.000-08:00

Dave and I just keep getting older and older. Getting out of the bed in the mornings gets harder and harder. This morning, for some reason, was particularly difficult. The kids came in and were playing in our room while we were lying there trying to get out. Henry and Jetta kept saying, "Lets go down stairs, lets go down stairs!" We would reply, "Just a minuet, just a minuet." For some reason everything gets repeated twice in our house. :-) Well, I tried to explain to Henry that Dad and Mom are so tired and old and that our muscles are achy. To which he replied with surprise, "Your muscles are NAKIE?!?" (his word for naked) Oh Dear!

Hello, Hello, Hello!

2009-02-03T09:31:00.000-08:00

I know I have gone for quite some time but I am not sure if I am getting burned out on blogging or if I am just getting a little to busy! I was reprimanded by my sister yesterday who demanded an update so here is the past month and a half in reader's digest version. Christmas was great! It was great to be here and just lazy mazy all weekend! We did not get much snow which I know was opposite for the rest of the country at that time. Come to think of it we have not had much snow at all and have been enjoying 50-60 and sometimes even 70 degree weather this winter. Sorry to all you who are freezing and snowed in. :-) After Christmas we enjoyed a great evening with some friends that took us on the jet airplane that he flies for work. Henry loves, loves, loves airplanes and our friend took us to the air port to let Henry get on his jet and look at all the controls and even stand on the wings. Thank you Issac and Heather!!!! We then went to zoo lights with them and enjoyed zoo night life all decked out in christmas lights. Henry started up play days with his "favorite and best friend", as Henry refers to, Thomas. Once a week Henry goes to Thomas' house and once a week Thomas comes to ours. Henry loves this and needs a good friend close to his age. I also got a new calling......... drum roll please........ I am the new primary president. I think my eyes are still out of their sockets! I started on a quilt for our bed, not the best time to take on this task but it is almost done. I caned 12 quart sized jars of apple sauce. As my good friend pointed out, I am not the best at time management. But in my defense apples were on sale for 39 cents a lb. I could not pass that up!!! Henry and Jetta have been pushing my buttons at all costs! I have endured Sharpie on everything, poo wiped on everything, soap covering the bathroom, things breaking, and typical winter sickness and blues. However since this calling I am a much more patient person. Isn't it awesome how the Lord blesses you when you are in his service!!! I have been asked to give a 45 min. presentation on Historical Kirtland (where I served my mission) to a church history group in our stake. A little nervous, okay, a lot nervous. The group is filled with the stake patriarch, temple workers, and bishops. Hummmmm! I wish I would have known who made up the group before I accepted! I also called to jury duty. Could my life get any more busy? I am sure it could and by the next time I post who knows, something huge could come up. But for now that is the reader digest version as to why I have not posted. Enjoy the photos and videos. See you next month. :-) Ha Ha Ha I will try to be better.

Our Family Photos

Black Berry Face!

Henry's "favorite and best friend" Thomas

My quilt

Saturday morning dancing with daddy. It is always good to have him with us!

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Jetta singing "I am a child of God"

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A birthday cake for President Monson

2008-12-19T08:45:00.000-08:00

In December's Friend (an LDS children's magazine) there is a little place where you can give President Monson ( the prophet of the LDS church) a birthday present. In his conference talk, Elder Quentin L. Cook of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles said: "When our beloved prophet, President Thomas S. Monson, was asked on his birthday this past August what would bee the ideal gift that members world wide could give him, he said without a moment's hesitation, 'Find someone who is having a hard time,..... and do something for them.'" So the Friend has a place where you can fill out your information and a little story of what you did to serve or help someone and then the Friend will send them to the prophet in August 09 for his birthday. I thought it would be fun and a good experience for Henry (they ask children to be at least three). I told him this morning that soon it would be President Monson's birthday and that all he wanted for his birthday was for us to help someone. I asked him to think of someone he could help. Henry thought for a while and then said, "You Mommy." Of course tears welled up in my eyes and then I asked him what he would like to help me with and Henry said, "I want to help you make a birthday cake for President Monson." "Oh really," I replied, laughing a little. Then Henry said with a light in his eyes, "And I will blow out his candles!" I hope President Monson would be okay with that. :-)

charlie brown tree

2008-12-16T12:35:00.001-08:00

So, we got our tree and decorated it a couple of days ago. It is a cute little tree, the biggest one we've had since we've been married. We went to the same place we always go to get out tree, "The real McCoy". It is a family owned corner lot and we just love this family and we love their trees..... they last forever. When ever we go I always feel so bad for the charlie brown trees. What if they never get a home? Even when I little I remember my siblings and I getting the charlie brown trees because we felt sorry for them. So, this is our little tree, excuse my naked daughter..... Jetta is Jetta. I think the diaper and Klompen are a nice touch. Merry Christmas!

Snow Play

2008-12-09T11:08:00.000-08:00

We have all been sick for the past week so when the forecast said snow my heart sunk because we would be inside for yet another day. However, that morning I woke up to the excitement of fresh snow and decided I didn't care if we were all still sick we were going out!! We needed the change of scenery so very badly! We had so much fun running, sliding, climbing, angle making, rolling, track making, snow eating, shoveling, and cold noseing. We played for 2 hours. I only took a few pictures and filmed a little, the rest of the time was just enjoyment! I love playing in the snow.

getting ready (side note: my brother, miles, made me this scarf for my mission. Jetta loves it!)

rare sibling love

Photography update

2008-12-05T08:37:00.001-08:00

For those of you I have done photography for lately I finally updated my photography blog. Sorry It took me so long. You can click on the link in my side bar or just click here.

Cow Boy Cousins

2008-12-01T18:47:00.000-08:00

This is Henry and Jetta and their cousin Jackson. For Christmas my mom got all of the kids cow boy attire. She gave it to them early so they could dress up and play together. That is just what they did. I think there is a little country in all of us especially these three. Thank you Nanna.

Jetta has a little crush on my brother Miles.

Late night!!

2008-11-25T08:19:00.000-08:00

I was up until 2:00am trying to finish this. I worked on it during Jetta's nap and then all night. I can't believe it but I finished. Starting over was a pain but I think that Heavenly Father must have been helping me to have fast hands..... :-)

To my Horror!!!

2008-11-24T11:18:00.000-08:00

I have been drawing a picture for my sister for Christmas for some time now. I have been trying to finish it before Thanksgiving so that I can take it to Utah when we go for the holiday as we will not be going to Utah for Christmas. I don't trust sending it in the mail....I don't want it to bend. Well, I have been spending most of my nights for the past two weeks trying to get it done. I finished the horses head and felt like I was on the home stretch. I left yesterday afternoon to take some family photos of some friends. When I came home I found this to my absolute horror!!! I just turned around and walked out of the house, sat down on the front step and cried. There is nothing I can do to fix it, I tried many different tricks. My lovely son Henry, pushed so hard on the paper with the pencil that it dented the paper. Even if I got the pencil marks off, which I can't, the integrity of the paper texture is gone. I will simply start over. I am so sad but I also know he just wanted to help.....

Is he really that big?

2008-11-15T14:16:00.001-08:00

I can not believe that Henry is big enough to do this. I am so excited for him, riding a bike opens up a whole new world and brings on a whole new level of independence!!

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Happy Birthday Henry

2008-11-10T09:01:00.000-08:00

So for the past month I have been thinking about Henry's birthday. He is turning 4 and is so so excited! When I ask him what kind of a party he wanted he said, "Space". Hummmm, Space......how am I supposed to pull that off? Well, I have been thinking and thinking and looking and finally came up with a starting point, aliens....... From there his party just took off. It was his first real party with friends and such so we decided to go all out. We cleaned out the garage and decorated it like space. We hung christmas lights (stars), paper balloons (planets), a rocket and had all kinds of alien and space games for the kids to play. We had pizza, veggies (Henry's favorite), space cake (Henry's request) and ice cream. It was so fun with all of his little friends. I think every one had a great time. Here are some pics of event.

The New Zoo

2008-10-27T08:51:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago Alex (a friend of ours from church) and Dave decided they wanted to plan a weekend of fun for our families. They wanted to go to Colorado Springs and go to the Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. What a great idea Rachel (Alex's wife) and I thought! We talked about a date and minor details but left the planning up to them........humm. The day before we were to go nothing had been planned or mentioned. Oh men...... :-) Rachel and I got on the phone and finished planning. We packed lunches and looked for coupons and planned a time and when Saturday came we were off. This zoo is so cool!!! It is up on the mountain and the animals habitats are apart of the natural surroundings. The first thing we did was feed the Giraffes. Yes, you can feed and pet the Giraffes!!! It was so cool! I forgot my camera.......blast! But I got some shots on the phone. This zoo has so many fun animals and you can get so close to them. The bears were swimming and catching fish, the porcupines were up in trees, the mountain lions were trying to eat Jetta. She came running out of their den(you could walk in/under it while in enclosed glass) and tripped. One mountain lion came sprinting off the mountain he was on and slammed into the fence trying to get her. Crazy! Good thing the fence was there. We saw moose, wolves, beaver, turkey, wallaby, nile hippo, and so many others. While we were leaving we saw a bunch of wild deer. It was quite the zoo and I think will be going back! We had so much fun!! Thank you Alex, Rachel, and Oliver for going with us.

Bathtime Bliss

2008-10-23T19:31:00.000-07:00

Bathtime has always been fun at out house but lately it has been especially exciting. Jetta likes to wear goggles and jump up and down and splash and create a mess. Henry likes to make a mess on Jetta, the wetter he can get her the better! Most of the time she does not like Henry's idea of a good bathtime fun but in the end they end up best friends.

gratitude pt 2

2008-10-22T12:21:00.000-07:00

5 things I am grateful for today:

1. good friends who called and wrote concerned comments
2. the most beautiful loaf of homemade bread I have ever seen
3. my husband who picked up some groceries and made dinner
4. priesthood blessings
5. an understanding boss

So, yesterday I thought I was getting better. By 4:00 in the afternoon I had had crackers and sprite and kept them down. I was feeling pretty great. My friend came by with some homemade bread, I had some and still was feeling great. Dave came home with groceries and dinner and I had a little of that and felt great.........my sneaky tummy........what a tricker. 11:30 pm I was full on sick again. All night I was in the bathroom. I got only 4 - 1/2 hour increments of sleep. I was in so much pain. 8:30 am Dave comes in and says he called his boss and is taking a sick day. Thank you Dave's boss. He was downstairs with the kids doing breakfast and playing and had things under control. Thank you Dave. He kindly asks what he can do for me and humbly I ask for a blessing. I was in serious pain. My stomach was swollen and painful to touch....I could not even have elastic bands of clothing around it because it hurt so bad. I have never been one to ask for priesthood blessings often, only when I really think there is nothing else I can do. I should have asked for one sooner. Dave gave me a blessing and I was sick only once after. I was able to stand straight, walk to the bed and slept from 8:30 to 12:30. I am feeling better and want to say thank you again to everyone!!!!

gratitude

2008-10-21T09:00:00.000-07:00

5 things I am grateful for today

1. healthy days
2. the short distance from my couch to the bathroom
3. movies
4. kids that watch movies
5. tums

I woke up very early this morning sicker than a dog. I am still sicker than a dog but i a hoping to last the day. It is all I can do to get up off the couch to put in a new movie or get the kids some food. I think I just ate something that didn't agree with me because everyone else in my family is fine. My poor sensitive stomach. I really am thankful for my list mentioned above, however it is days like this and many others that remember how far away I really am from family.

the first Peter & Alecia Richards family reunion

2008-10-19T19:51:00.000-07:00

We had a blast in Utah for our family reunion. We went to Heber Valley Girls Camp. It is a beautiful LDS owned and operated camp in the mountains. We camped in cabins, cooked in dutch ovens, did the ropes course, hiked, and got snowed on. Henry and Jetta did great! They loved it, all of it!! We had so much fun with all the family and cousins. Thanks mom and dad for putting this together!!

The Richards Clan.....Awesome sweatshirts made by Candice the graphic designer of the family.

The beautiful leaves at our camp.

On the ropes course. Even Henry loved the ropes course. He scaled the tree no problem.

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The cowboy camper

Snow baby

The last day of our reunion we went to a place called Jump On It. It is in Lehi, I think, and it is filled with tons of trampolines. You can jump from wall to wall and off walls and all over the place. It was so fun! My sister McCall was a champ and jumped with my kids for quite some time. Thank you McCall.

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say PIE FIGHT!!!!

2008-10-14T20:52:00.000-07:00

Henry watched "The Great Race" a while ago and ever since he has wanted to have a pie fight. When we went to Utah to visit family, my mother-in-law created a pie fight for the kids. It was so fun!!! Dave and his dad were good sports and joined in the fun. If you have never had a pie fight, I strongly recommend it!!!

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Canning

2008-10-02T07:22:00.000-07:00

I've been canning. I think I like it. Is that weird? So, about a month ago I visited my family in Utah and my sister McCall was in the middle of canning peaches, salsa, and jam. I was so impressed and wanted to copy so badly. I went and purchased a steam canner and some jars and then watched for the fruit to go on sale. Went it went on sale I was so excited, I got pears, peaches, and tomatoes. Yes, I canned them, yes, it was an all day process, yes, it was a mess and yes, I liked it. There was something about seeing all my jars sitting on the counter and seeing the "fruits" of my labors. :-) Thank you McCall for the inspiration.

so you want to be a cowboy baby

2008-09-15T12:33:00.000-07:00

This past week we went to visit family in Utah. My sister Candice was blessing her baby and my other sister McCall just had a baby, it was time for a visit. While we were there my other sister Cami told me that her good friend Judd would take Henry on a horse ride. Background story.........Henry loves animals and his favorite is horses. He loves to pretend he is a horse and any chance he gets he will ride, pet, and feed anything that resembles a horse (ie burro, mule, donkey). However, he has never been on a real horse. He has seen many and even fed them but never ridden them so...........When I decided to visit I asked Cami if Judd would take Henry. Cami's friend is a cowboy in every sense and cami is a cowgirl in every sense and they ride all the time and said that it would be no problem. Henry and his cousin Jack borrowed hats from my mom and did the cowboy thing all morning. Henry was quite in his element. Jetta would not get on the horse. She was content to waring a cowboy hat and playing with dirt all morning. Since we have gotten home he carried his grey horse around calling him Silver (the name of the horse he rode) and telling me this is the horse he rode. Thank you Cami and Judd!!!!!!

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feed the birds 2 dollars an apple

2008-09-15T12:26:00.000-07:00

While we were in Utah we visited Dave's family. Lois took us to Tracy Aviary to see the birds. Henry and Jetta loved it. We were there for a couple of hours and saw all kinds of birds. Henry fed the birds and practiced standing like a flamingo. Jetta played in the puddles and got dirty. In all a very successful outing!

QT'S in the park

2008-09-15T12:24:00.000-07:00

Our Labor Day Marathon!!

2008-09-02T10:37:00.000-07:00

Dave's sister Crissa, who lives here in Denver, told us about the annual Colorado Springs labor day hot air balloon launch. I think it is the 1st or 2nd largest hot air balloon launch in the nation. We decided this was an opportunity not to be missed. I did some research on the internet to find out what else there was to do in Colorado Springs so that we could make a day of it. We got up at 4:30 am so that we could pick up Crissa at 5:30 so that we could be to Colorado Springs in time for the 7:00 am launch. It was so worth it!!! The sun rise on the way down was so beautiful and the balloons were amazing. The kids loved seeing them being blown up and then taking off. My favorite part was the "splash and dash". There is a lake just south of the park where the balloons were launching and if the wind was right it would take the balloons right over the lake, the pilots would set the balloon basket right down in the lake and then take right off. It was one of the most amazing things I have ever seen!!! We had such a fun and full Labor day. I think it was one of the best Labor days ever!

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Buckskin Joe's (yes, that is really the name of the town)

2008-09-02T10:05:00.000-07:00

After the balloon launch we drove to Canon City and just outside of the city there is a western town called Buckskin Joe's. It is a town created by historic western buildings brought to this town to recreate the original town Buckskin Joe's. You can go into the buildings and see time period things typical of the west. They have live gunfights and horse drawn wagon rides, and a mine you go in. Many many movies have been filmed there with many famous stars including John Wane. We had so much fun there! It was a little cheesy but mostly fun and there were some really cool things to see. The kids loved it especially Henry!

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2008-09-02T10:01:00.000-07:00

Riding the train to view Royal Gorge and the highest suspension bridge that crosses it.

The Highest, The longest, The biggest

2008-09-02T09:43:00.000-07:00

After Buckskin Joe's and the train we went across the bridge that goes over Royal Gorge. To our surprise we found that not only could you go over the bridge but they had a mini Disney Land set up at the gorge. We rode a vertical train that takes you to the bottom of the gorge and back up, a huge swing that swings you out over the gorge (we opted out of that one), a petting zoo, burro rides, a western town, herds of animals to see (the white buffalo, so cool), live music, a mary-go-round, lots of food, 1 of 3 water clocks in the world, the highest suspension bridge in the world, the longest single span tram (it is the picture of the little red tram car in the middle of gorge), and after we drove to the biggest rocking chair in the world! :-) It was a full time of fun!!! and many world records achieved by our family :-) Ha Ha, the chair was our greatest achievement.

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2008-09-02T09:30:00.000-07:00

Garden of the Gods

2008-09-02T09:22:00.000-07:00

This was our last stop for the day. Garden of the Gods, located in Colorado Springs. This is something I have been wanting to do for a long time. It was so beautiful and amazing the way that the rocks just jet out of the ground. The kids just loved it, Henry even did a little rock climbing. See if you can spot the lion in the pictures of the rocks. It is pretty obvious but still cool to find.

Loopy Tired Children

2008-09-02T09:09:00.000-07:00

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By the end of the day the kids had had it. They were still so good and oh so funny!!!! It was a long day for them! 4:30 am to 8:00 pm. Exhausting!!!!

Blast from the Past

2008-08-18T19:39:00.000-07:00

I came across these disney cartoons with Henry today and oh my, oh my I remembered watching them when I was little with my sisters. We video taped from the tv "On vacation with Mickey Mouse". I remembering watching it over and over. It is not out on dvd but I found almost all of the clips on youtube. I love this cartoon so much and wanted to share. Candice and McCall, get ready to die.......... :-)

Wall-e and Eve the monkeys

2008-08-11T19:05:00.000-07:00

My mom came in town for a couple of days just to play and have fun. While she was here we made these......."monkey doodles" and as you can see the kids love them. Henry named his Wall-e and Jetta's Eve. Jetta did not have much of a say but I don't think she cares. Henry likes to have them dance together and play and do just about everything he is doing. Thank you mom for making these and for coming out to have fun with us!!!!!

It has been so loooooong!!

2008-07-29T08:42:00.000-07:00

It has been about a month and half since I last posted about computer problems. I guess when it rains it does it in buckets! Life has been a bucket of rain lately. Nothing bad just a big crazy bucket of rain. So, we had computer problems and then.........we had internet problems. Then we went out of town for two weeks only to come back to a new calling in church. Ward camp director. I still teach relief society but now have this and I was so excited! I had just a few weeks to get ready because camp was coming up. Lucky for me the previous camp director was on top of things and I did not have to much to worry about. I say to much because there was still so much do. Crazy!, but not as crazy as the week before I left for camp. I was trying to get my house ready and the kids because my mother-in-law was coming to watch them. Dave could not take work off because he was leaving the week after for Young Men's camp. My dear mother-in-law came for three days and I wanted it to be as painless as possible! So......I'm getting ready, getting ready and our air-conditioner goes out. So bad in almost 100 degree heat. While they are fixing that a huge, and I mean huge (almost 4 gallons of water came out of our ceiling) leak starts in our ceiling. It ended up being a totally different problem from the air problem. All of this and I leave the next day for camp. AHHHHHH!!!! My mother-in-law braves what she knows is going on here and still comes. I leave, have a great time at camp (no bears, there has been a problem in that area) come home to a fixed air-conditioner, and fixed leak. Thank you Lois (my mother-in-law)!!!!!!! So, I am home and catching up with life and hopefully this week will be as uneventful as possible!

Things we did with my family

2008-07-29T08:34:00.000-07:00

So, we went to Utah for two weeks and man was it packed full of fun stuff. We spent the first week with my family and then the second with Dave's. Dave came out later and spent the last couple of days with us. We had so much fun!!! While we were with my family we went 4-wheeling, boating (Henry got in the freezing water, I was so proud), riding on a carousel, slip-n-sliding, and just playing in the backyard. We had a great time!!

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Jumping

2008-07-29T08:16:00.000-07:00

This is kind of a long video of the kids jumping. It is probably more for family because who would really watch a long video of their friends kids jumping? :-) This is in my parents backyard. Just some more fun things we did on our vacation to Utah.

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Things we did with Dave's family

2008-07-28T20:15:00.000-07:00

We had such a great time with Dave's family. All the cousins came over and played and played and played! Dave's brother Luke and wife Kami brought over their new dog Baxter and Henry just loved Him!!!! We went to the splash pad and let the kids play in the water. It took them both some time to get brave enough to get in the water but once they did....they were off and we could not get them to leave.

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First Piggies

2008-07-28T19:54:00.000-07:00

So Jetta really has no hair. I guess I should say her hair is slow to motivate! Finally it became long enough to put into piggies. I am so excited! As you can see it is a rather small piggy but none the less it is there!!!!

Whale

2008-07-28T19:50:00.000-07:00

Henry loves loves loves animals! He also likes to draw.......however not as much as animals. This is his first whale. I think it is so cool and very stylized. I guess I should clarify on the "first whale" comment. I thought this was his first whale until I went to do laundry and found one very similar on the wall in marker. :-)

Get this off my head!

2008-07-28T19:48:00.000-07:00

Three cuties

2008-07-28T19:46:00.000-07:00

I could not resist!!

I am still here!

2008-06-18T09:10:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lack of posting but our computer crashed a few weeks ago and we just got it fixed. I am so excited to be back in the tech world! Updates and posts galore to come!

What do you think?

2008-05-28T14:39:00.001-07:00

I am working on a new photography project. I am trying to decide between sepia or black and white. What do you think?

almost summer days

2008-05-20T10:22:00.000-07:00

Living in a townhouse is sometimes wonderful but when it comes to yard space for kids it is lacking. We do however have a little front patio and spend most of our days out there when the weather is nice. Yesterday was great weather and we spent most of the day in the front with the hose and the freezing water that came from the hose. After the kids were shaking and purple we got warm in the sun and big warm towels.

the newest members of our family

2008-05-20T10:14:00.000-07:00

We got Henry some fish this last weekend. He loves them and loves to feed them. He named them Big Bird and Cookie Monster (pronounced tookie monster). Check for future additions in the next coming days.

in search for ants

2008-05-20T10:11:00.000-07:00

Henry loves to observe ants and then smoosh them. Daddy is supervising so that the smooshing doesn't take place. Jetta just likes to eat them. I didn't think anyone needed to see a picture of that.

28 reasons why my 28th birthday was fabulous!!

2008-05-06T08:00:00.000-07:00

1. it was a two day celebration

2. the sunday before my birthday I subbed in primary as the chorister, so fun

3. that sunday night Dave me a fantastic birthday dinner

4. my sister-in-law came over for the celebration

5. he also made me my favorite birthday dessert..........grasshopper pie

6. for my and David's birthday we are getting an elliptical

7. for my birthday the kids slept in, I am sure they knew

8. for breakfast we all had oatmeal around the table.......I am going through an oatmeal phase

9. I used my new shampoo

10. my good friend invited me and the kids over for a pool party

11. my 17 year old brother sang the whole birthday song over the phone

12. my kids did not fight all day........that is a big deal

13. the little boy that I babysit on mondays was so very good

14. Dave told me he got a babysitter for the evening so we could go to dinner but it was surprise as to where we were going

15. I ate leftover grasshopper pie all day

16. I bought some very cool lanterns for myself as a gift. they are recycled metal and made in india. I love love love them

17. henry sang to me, very sweet

18. my husband still loves me.....28 years and two kids takes it toll :-)

19. it was 75 degrees

20. we spent most of the day outside

21. so many people called to say happy birthday, thank you everyone

22. my sister gave me a watch because I do not own one with a working battery

23. the kids and I had grape popsicles

24. Henry and I watched an episode of "old school sesame street"

25. I got a lavender grow kit.......lavender is my favorite flower

26. I ate more leftover grasshopper pie

27. my sister-in-law Crissa watched the kids while we went to..........drum roll please.......

28. Fruition, a fabulous restaurant. So good and so very nice. It has been so long since we not only went out on a date but to such a nice restaurant like this.......I was so very pampered. Thank you Dave and everyone who made my day so wonderful

Happy Birthday David!!!!

2008-04-29T15:03:00.000-07:00

Dave is going to kill me for posting this picture but Henry took it with the camera and I just is sums up Dave so well. So full of life and so much fun!!! He is the best in every way. We love you Daddy!

We had such a great day! Good food, family, and CAKE!!!!! Henry did the candles on the cake and both Henry and Jetta helped with the decor. Of course Henry thought it was his birthday so we had to do a second lighting of the candles while he blew them out but he loved singing happy birthday to his Daddy!!!

Two Cuties!!

2008-04-29T15:00:00.000-07:00

Homemade butter Mmmmmm!!

2008-04-18T18:51:00.000-07:00

I am no Martha or Betty but I did just make butter!!! Found the recipe online and thought I would try. It is fantastic and so easy.

2 cups heavy cream

1/4 tsp salt (optional)

Put heavy cream in food processor/mixer and beat until it separates, turning yellow and very clumpy. Strain extra liquid and then put butter in a bowl and mash with a spoon until all remaining liquid is has been removed. If desired add salt and mix it in. This is so delicious and my 3 year old loved watching the process. So fun!!!

Really it is time for spring now!

2008-04-10T15:49:00.000-07:00

This morning we woke up to 2 inches of snow and by the afternoon we had about 5. It is the middle of April and I need to have long days at the park with warm sunshine! I am so tired of winter and believe it or not Dave would agree with me. All of you who know Dave know that he loves his winters, so it really must be time for spring.

STRAWBERRY SHORTCAKE DAY!!!!!!

2008-04-10T15:45:00.000-07:00

We have a little tradition at our house that I did growing up. When strawberry begins you have strawberry short cake for dinner and that is it. It is not quite strawberry season but I could not help myself. I am so tired of the winter weather I needed something a bit springy in my life so we enjoyed!

sneaky sneaky

2008-03-31T13:49:00.000-07:00

We went to Heber to visit my family. My brother Miles got a dog for Christmas. My kids loved her and she loved them, especially when Jetta was eating because Jetta would sneak food to the dog and I caught her on camera. Jetta is so sneaky!

ode to cami

2008-03-31T13:39:00.000-07:00

So, some of you know and some of you don't but my dear little sister Cami came to live with us while she went to school at the Denver School of Message Therapy. She was with us for about 6 months give and take some weeks for Christmas break. Well, she just graduated!!! Yeah!!! I am so excited for her. The whole family came out to Denver to support her. She now lives back in Utah and I miss her, all of us miss her. Her cubby misses her. (definition of cubby: the tiny cave of a room where she lived in our front room in our not so large town house.) CONGRATULATIONS on your new job! Come back and visit us soon!!!!!

fishy kisses

2008-03-31T13:36:00.001-07:00

Jetta just learned how to give fishy kisses.

Happy Birthday Jetta

2008-03-05T07:48:00.000-08:00

Jetta is now 1. I can't believe it. It really seams like only yesterday I was in the hospital. Time sure does fly! Well, we didn't have a party (mommy burned out) but we did have cake and presents. For her cake I made lady bug cupcakes. As you can see she loved them. She could blow out her candle all by herself and from a foot away. She's got quite the set of lungs, any of you who have heard her scream would agree. She got some really cute outfits, large bright fun beads, shape and animal puzzles, a little farm, and a bounce and spin zebra. She is in 1 year old heaven!!!!!

Japanese Binocular Soccer

2008-03-01T20:51:00.000-08:00

Just about died laughing when I saw this, hope you enjoy!!!!!

Pre-birthday celebration

2008-02-24T20:47:00.000-08:00

Jetta will be one soon. Dave's parents came in town to celebrate. We had Jetta's favorite, chocolate chip cookies with candles in the middle. Henry sang to Jetta and then blew out her candle......Birthdays are hard when they are not yours. I still struggle.

Winter Park getaway!

2008-02-24T20:28:00.000-08:00

Okay, so can I just say that Dave has the best boss ever!! She was not able to use her condo vacation this week and asked if Dave and I would like it, for free.....um let me think......YES!!!! I don't even know when the last time was we took a vacation with just our little family. Winter Park is a ski resort town about 1-2 hours from Denver. The condo we stayed in was great. Two bed, two bath, full kitchen and family room for just us. Could it be any better? The kids loved it and so did we. There was a mogul competition at the Winter Park Resort, so we went and viewed. It was very cool, I have never been to a ski competition. We played in the snow, sat around and went to the Winter Park train depot. Henry loves trains. Henry did not get car sick which he usually does and since Jetta now faces forward in her car seat she did not scream the entire time. It could not have been a better vacation!!!!!!!

sibling bonding

2008-02-24T20:23:00.000-08:00

Are they really sitting still and not fighting over the book. Journal moment!!!

Warmer weather is coming......we hope!

2008-02-24T20:19:00.000-08:00

Maybe about once or twice a week we have some warm days, in the 50's and 60's. It is fantastic and when those days occur we take advantage!!!!

Happy Valentine's Day

2008-02-19T07:04:00.000-08:00

We have a little play group with some neighborhood friends and decided to have a Valentine's party with the kids. They had a blast and so did the parents, at least I did. We decorated cookies made valentines and played valentine bingo with m&m's. Jetta got her first valentine, it was mutilated the next minuet. Henry loved making cookies, however the frosting never quite made it onto the cookie. He just liked it piled into the palm of his hand, it was easier to eat.

The grocery store

2008-02-19T06:56:00.000-08:00

Henry likes to pretend that he is grocery shopping, however we do not have a cart or pretend food so he uses his jeep as well as real food. The only problem is when he won't let me put it back and it has been a few hours and I am worried about the food going bad.

An end to the best membership a 3 year old could have

2008-01-29T07:42:00.000-08:00

This is a tribute to the Denver Aquarium. With much regret our 1 year member ship that my parents purchased for us is at an end. This membership got us through the coldest of days and the hottest of days. There were many days that we went through the Aquarium over and over. Henry loves fish and everything this aquarium has: otters, snakes, large fish, small fish, eels, huge sea turtles, sharks, rays you can touch and feed, tigers that swim in the water and so much more. We love the Aquarium and will miss our weekly trips there, maybe in the future we can spend the extra and get another membership.

Sweet Saturday Activity!!!

2008-01-29T07:28:00.000-08:00

Since we all have been sick off and on this whole month we decided that the first Saturday that we all were health we would go do some thing really fun and this is what we did.....BOWLING!!!! How much more fun could you get? Henry loved it and bowled for all of us. I think Dave and I got to bowl once or twice each. The pics are a bit blurry because it was so dark and I only had the camera phone but it is kind of a cool effect.

Hey!!!!

2008-01-29T07:26:00.001-08:00

What a naughty little girl, I think she know it too

snow play

2008-01-29T07:19:00.000-08:00

Dave's parents came in town for the new year holiday and it was right after we got a bunch of snow. Henry could not wait to go out and play in the snow with them. First we just went on a walk around our place but then we found a rather large hill and Henry started to roll down it. He could not stop he was having so much fun!!!! I think he rolled down it over 10 times. I got sick just thinking about it.

I kind of fixed it

2008-01-29T07:10:00.000-08:00

this is the biggest I could get them.....hummmm.....any ideas?