Satterthwaite Family

July 4th Weekend . . .

2010-07-31T00:25:00.004-06:00

We headed back into the Sinks for a 4 wheeler trip with Lane and Leann for the 4th of July weekend. Dinner the first night was a breeze, the boys just wanted hot dogs over the fire . . .

After dinner Hunter wanted to go for a ride while we waited for Grandma and Grandpa to arrive. Troy is so patient with Hunter boy, I love how he takes the time to talk as well and listen to Hunter before he goes for a ride . . .This was camp for the weekend . . .
While Hunter was patiently waiting his grandparents to arrive, he got brave and started doing donuts on his quad. Too bad I couldn't take 2 pictures at once, the grin on Grandpa Lane's face was priceless when he saw Hunter doing donuts in the grass!

The Three Amigos were seeing if they could get Hunter's machine to run more smoothly . . .
Hunter thought it was really cool to drive Grandma around the meadow on Grandpa's 4 wheeler!
Worms were a hit with Bubba that weekend! He and Snoopy spent hours digging for worms . . . once TJ got a cup full, he would sit in a chair and stare at them. . .every once in a while he would pull one out to see what it looked like! That he definately gets from his Daddy! This mom doesn't have the patience to watch worms in a cup! LOL!

The boys loved playing with the bubbles with Grandma too. . .

It's been a long time since we camped with just Lane and Leann! It was a great weekend! No drama and just a bunch of fun family time!!!

It's official . . .

2010-07-31T00:18:00.003-06:00

THAT TROY GRADUATED FROM HIGH SCHOOL IN 1989!!!!

While Troy was trying to complete the back ground check for his employment at Malt O Meal, Clearfield High School said he didn't graduate! What? Are you kidding me?

Instead of the Principal taking a COLORED scanned copy of Troy's diploma via email, we had to personally take it to the Principal so she could confirm that Troy didn't magically generate his own diploma! What a joke!

So I am happy to report that after 21 years its finally on public record that Troy graduated from high school in 1989! LOL!

Father's Day Weekend . . .

2010-07-31T00:05:00.003-06:00

We headed up to the Eagles with my parents for Father's day weekend. Before we left though we had a BBQ and birthday cake for Bryan's birthday . . .
Hunter was lazy and grabbed the first pair of shoes he could find so he could ride his bike while Troy got the trailer ready . . . "MOM the rule is I have to wear shoes when I ride my bike!" LOL!

I was at the antique store and came across this golf clock for Dad. We usually don't spend a lot on my dad, plus he doesn't expect much either, but I loved his reaction when he saw it . . . it looks great at their bar in the basement!Troy scored brownie points with my mom . . . that bottom step is really tall . . . while Dad and Mom were walking the dogs, Troy decided to make it just a bit easier for Mom to get in and out of her trailer. Of course Bubba had to be right there to make sure his Daddy was doing it right!
I love how Jakey likes to snuggle bug with the boys while we are camping!

Cool Summer Hair Cuts . . .

2010-07-30T23:58:00.003-06:00

The boys love getting their hair buzzed like their daddy once summer time hits! Later that same day we were outside after a rain storm and there was a double rainbow, the boys were so excited, they had never seen two like that before!

Camping with friends at Bear Lake . . .

2010-07-30T23:27:00.011-06:00

In June schedules worked out that we were able to go camping with Kristie and her girls Lacie and Kaylee, also Mike and Taygen joined us before Kristie had her back surgery.

I met Kristie last August . . . she and Troy worked together at West Liberty Foods. She is a dear friend . . . her and her girls are a very important part of our family! Thanks to our cute friend Tammy who works at Traveland RV Park in Garden City . . . she always takes care of us when we want to come to Bear Lake for the weekend! This is our favorite camp spot . . .

Here is Lacie patiently waiting to go on a 4 wheeler ride . . .
Kaylee is ready to go as well . . .And of course Hunter boy is more than thrilled to show the girls how much fun the trail is up the mountain side . . .

Bubba wished he could go with the big kids, but instead he takes a trip around the park on his battery powered quad . . .Taygen wanted to go for a ride too and she finally convinced her daddy Mike to take her . . .TJ was full of stories that weekend . . .

The chef for the weekend . . .I am grateful that I have a hubby that loves to cook.

Me and my cute hubby . . .

Kaylee . . . "you taking a picture of me?!"And of course what's a trip to Bear Lake without a sunburn . . .Sucks that it had to be my feet, but it was a fabulous weekend!

Hunter's Kindergarten Graduation May 2010!

2010-07-30T23:06:00.003-06:00

Yes I know it's the end of July and I am just posting picture from May! What can I say we have been having lots of fun this summer! Been taking the easy way out and posting pictures on facebook, but finally decided it was time to update the blog!

I am so proud of Hunter Boy! I can't believe he will be going to 1st grade next month! His kindergarten graduation program was so cute! Aunt Mindy was able to join us as well bringing fabulous goody bags for each of the boys!
Hunter has a darling personality and it was a hoot to watch him sing. These next two are my favorite pictures of the bunch . . .Once the program was over, all the kids had to sit in the back of the lunch room and make the long walk to get their diploma. Troy, Bubba, Aunt Mindy and myself cheered really loud when Hunter's name was called, later he said "thanks Mom!" LOL

What a handsome boy he is! Hunter . . . we are very proud of you and we love you very much!

April was a busy month . . .

2010-05-20T13:43:00.007-06:00

When I first started up loading pictures I came across this one with TJ and his goggles he got for Easter and couldn't resist posting it! He is so damn cute!
We got a special visit from Travis and Linda! We were so excited to see them, I was pregnant with TJ the last time we saw them. Of course Hunter boy and Bubba took right to Grandpa Travis and Grandma Linda. It was so fun to visit and catch up! Linda wasn't feeling well the day we went to dinner, but I couldn't let them leave without at least one picture!
Also in April Troy got moved to the day shift! I teased a lot about what we were going to do having Troy home every night, but all I can say is WE LOVE IT!!! Of course we had a few trials those first few days . . . Troy forgot Wednesday was early day, so he took Hunter an hour late to school, then got a call later that afternoon, 45 minutes AFTER school got out, from Hunter's teacher, "did you forget that it was early out today?" LOL! Thursday that week was a nice sunny day so the boys spent most of the day outside. Of course Dad forgot sunscreen on the boys! TJ was so red and cried when it was time to lay down. I placed cool wet towels on his arms. He thought it was cool to be a mummy to go to bed!My little sis is so talented! She made Peter dolls to sell at a craft fair and of course I had to have some too! I have put this one at our bar . . . This one is my favorite and looks dang cute in our kitchen!!!
Melissa made a really cute golfer one for mom for her birthday. Mom got a new job at her corporate office so Troy, I and the boys got Mom a new Spring outfit to wear to the office.

On April 20th I went in for surgery on my wrist. The surgery on the wrist wasn't bad, but I cussed like a sailor when the doc put the plasma injection in my arm. LOL I wasn't completely knocked out, just in the twilight zone, so that shot I clearly remember!The Saturday after my surgery was my birthday . . . and it was great this year . . . I spent the morning with my cute mom. I picked up dinner from Andy's on the way home . . . and came home to this . . .Kristie and the girls brought it over while I was in Ogden with Mom. Hunter put on ALL 34 candles and TJ got to decorate it! Kristie and the girls also gave me some live plants, since all of our others died at the old house since it was so dark! HURRAY! Along with this cake we got to enjoy brownies made by Bryan who included symphany bars too and red velvet cake with cream cheese frosting from mom! My cute parents gave me sandals . . . I went shopping for summer clothes and Troy told that he was off the hook for a gift! I got yummy smelling lotions, a wall clock and a cute welcome sign from other dear friends as well!

TJ loved playing with the balloons and after a day and late night of festivities here is how we found him . . .So as you can see April was a bit crazy for us and that is the reason it's been so long since I have blogged! LOL

Easter 2010

2010-05-20T13:01:00.005-06:00

The Easter Bunny didn't forget the boys this year! Easter is a fun time of year for the boys to get their summer clothes, sandals, and sand toys. The boys wanted their own set of goggles for Bear Lake this year too! Here is what Bubba found Easter morning . . .
Hunter boy thought it was really cool to get his own basketball. He loves playing with Grandpa Steve's. Troy and I gave the boys their kites. Grandma Sue & Grandpa Steve gave each of the boys money, Grandma Leann made really cute cards and stuffed them with fruit snacks from her and Grandpa Lane. Grandma Rue gave the boys swimming suits.

The boys are set for summer, now if Mother Nature would cooperate with the weather, the boys could enjoy their new stuff!

Oh and it's been so long since I blogged I almost forgot the cute signs Aunt Melissa made for each of the boys as well . . .

Mom's new bling . . .

2010-03-31T15:00:00.002-06:00

In November it will be mom and dad's 35th wedding anniversary! For putting up with dad that long . . . mom has most definately earned her 3 carat diamond! The cell phone picture doesn't do it justice, but you get the idea! BLING BLING BLING! It's beautiful and I am so happy for her! When she first got it mom kept saying "it's so heavy!" I think that part is justified too! LOL!

Sore Arm . . .

2010-03-26T09:22:00.002-06:00

I know I have been a blog slacker. The week we went to Monster Jam my left arm started to ache from the elbow down. I was already seeing the chiropractor so I got his input. He thought it might be tennis elbow so he put me in a brace just below my elbow.

That first weekend with the brace I was out of my mind with pain. Now most of you know I have a pretty high pain tolerance . . . gave birth to my two boys naturally, had knee surgery and a hysterectomy with Motrion 800 only, so when I am in pain it's justified!

Well after six weeks of pain, just a little over two hours of sleep each night, and numb fingers I finally went to a surgeon last week. I have what is called radial tunnel syndrome. It's a pinched nerve on the top of my elbow (it is sometimes referred to as reverse tennis elbow). The reason I was out of my mind with pain when the chiropractor put the brace on is because that is where the pinched nerve is and it just made things worse. The doc said he was amazed I got thru the pain with no pain meds. A lot of patients take percocet or oxycontin to deal with the pain. Just my luck, nothing can be easy! The new doc put me on steroids to help with the swelling and hopefully relieve some of the numbness in my fingers, I am suppose to have a nerve test done next week to see how much damage is done.

He also gave me loratab to help with the pain at night so I can get some rest. My lack of sleep isn't helping my arm get any better either. He said he wanted me to get 7 to 8 hours of sleep. I laughed and told him no way! I hate taking pain meds and with Troy working nights I need to be able to function if the boys need me. The doc asked that I take the meds on the nights that Troy is home so can take care of the boys, if need be. It's been nice getting 4 to 6 hours of rest instead of just two. I just hate how sick I get taking pain pills, I could do without the woozy tummy and migraine! The pain isn't as intense though and the numbness is improving each day. With any luck it will all be better before next Thursday and I can just bag the nerve test!

So that's my excuse for not keeping up on our blog. It hurts too damn bad to sit at the computer at home after working all day!

Disney on Ice . . .

2010-03-26T09:12:00.002-06:00

On Saturday March 13th I took the boys to Disney on Ice. Since Bubba is a huge McQueen fan, I thought we should go. Troy didn't want to go so he spent the day with his dad. I met Kari, Shantel and the kids there.

The boys loved McQueen and the Lion King. The Little Mermaid was okay and they got really bored with Tinker Bell. LOL! I had to keep reminding Hunter that we were not there to buy every toy in sight! He got pretty emotional! I did get him a plush Mator and TJ a plush McQueen. We were taking the boys to Chucky E Cheese later that night so I just couldn't justify spending $20 for cotton candy just so Hunter could have a hat!

The boys had earned their tokens for another trip to Chucky E Cheese. So after the show, we, Grandpa Lane & Grandma Leann too all headed for pizza. What a freakin nightmare! We will not attempt that again on a Saturday night! LOL!

Hunter lost his 1st Tooth . . .

2010-03-26T09:00:00.003-06:00

A month ago we went to Ogden for the day. Hunter had a loose tooth for a few weeks and it was barely hanging on. Grandma Sue told Hunter that he needed to get it out before Grandpa saw it or he would take the pliers to it! LOL! Low and behold an hour later Hunter boy had the tooth out . . .

Two weeks later he lost his second tooth while he was sleeping. Thank goodness it was on his bed and he didn't swallow it. . .

Hunter loved that he got $2 per tooth from the tooth fairy. He wants a DS game that is $25, so I told Hunter rather than spend his money, if he would save it and do chores around the house to earn more dollars, he could get that game. He has to earn half the money and I would pay the other half.

Monster Jam & Valentines Days . . .

2010-03-26T08:41:00.003-06:00

We decided to take the boys to Monster Jam again this year. Grandpa Lane and Grandma Leann came with us as well! Troy had the bright idea to go early and get the drivers autographs, ya not a good idea with Bubba. He didn't like the crowd! LOL! So we spent an hour in our seats before the show started, but all in all it was a good day!TJ didn't like to keep his ear plugs in all the time, he just held onto them when the big trucks came out.
We finished out the day with mine and Grandpa Lane's favorite meal . . . PIZZA! It was a fun day and I am glad we got to share the day with Lane and Leann.

On Sunday, Valentine's Day, was the Daytona 500. Troy and I love to kick off the NASCAR season with a get together. We enjoyed the race with Grandpa Steve and Grandma Sue. Of course you can't have a party without a spread of yummy food . . .
My cute mom doesn't like NASCAR, but she is a trooper! Unfortunately she wasn't feeling well that day so she took a little rest . . .
Since we had taken the boys to the monster trucks the day before, we just gave the boys $5.00 in their Valentine's cards. Grandma and Grandpa gave them $5 each as well. The boys loved it. They wanted to go and spend their money right away! LOL!

Troy and I don't usually do anything for each other except cards, but this year he surprised with with a new popcorn popper! HURRAY! Now we can enjoy the 50 lbs of popcorn the Johnson family gave us for Christmas without part of it burning since my other popper was 10 years old!

TJ say's the cutest things . . .

2010-02-18T11:14:00.002-07:00

The other day the boys and I were going to IFA to get dog food. Hunter wanted to see the rabbits and baby chicks, I told him they won't be there until closer to Easter. The two of us continued to talk about how cute they are and TJ without missing a beat goes . . ."ya mom they are cute just like me huh!" Yes Bubba they are cute just like you!

A typical conversation with Dad and TJ . . .

Dad: Hi TJ how are you today?
TJ: I'm okay dad
Dad: So are you crazy today?
TJ: laughing, no daddy I am goofy today!

If by chance Troy asks TJ if he is goofy, he will say he is crazy, or on a rare occasion he just agrees with his daddy! What a silly boy!

Hunter in Karate . . .

2010-02-08T09:43:00.002-07:00

During the holidays Hunter asked if he could take karate. Well with the hussle of the holidays over, we decided to let Hunter give it a try . . . and he loves it!

Usually Troy takes Hunter to class since it's before I get off, but it worked out last week that I got to take him. He has been working hard and practicing well so we decided to get him his uniform. Hunter is determined to master the square knot so he doesn't have to have daddy's help tying his belt.

It was awesome to watch Hunter listen so attentatvely to his Sensi, trying to grasps the lower round house kick and then complete the move with just a little bit of help!

We always remind Hunter after class . . . no practicing on brother! LOL!

I hate my toe nail, I mean the lack of one . . .

2010-01-29T08:44:00.004-07:00

When I was a kid I suffered from ingrown toe nails really bad. The thoughts of a hot tub, epson salt and dad with the clippers still give me nightmares. Just kidding Dad! I had both sides of both big toe nails operated on a few times before high school. Well 20 years later, my left toe nail has NEVER grown back properly.

It doesn't take much to pop it loose, whether I stub it, get is caught in a shoe or sock or someone/kid/dog accidently steps on my toe, the nail pops loose. Well just my luck I stubbed my toe last night . . .low and behold my toe nail came off! GRRRR! I painted the rest of my toe nails red to match the ugly spot. LOL!

The boys thought it was really cool to touch my toe where my nail used to be. Boys will be boys!

A bite mark & the flu

2010-01-22T11:18:00.006-07:00

After all of the fun we had on Christmas, New Years and for Hunter's birthday the 2nd week of January was definately not so fun!

When I showed up to pick up TJ from daycare this is what I found . . . TJ had a toy another little boy wanted and this little brat decided to take a bite out of TJ. GRRRR! I was none too pleased to say the least. The teacher and director of the daycare felt horrible. I gave TJ lots of loves and of course he was fine the very next day. What a champ Bubba is.

Later that same week Hunter boy got the flu. I honestly thought it was just the 24 hour bug that he gets every year since he was one. Boy was I wrong. Hunter threw up and laid around for two additional days. Jake and Charli were right there to comfort him as well.
We got the whole damn family sick! It honestly wasn't intential but I still felt bad. Next time Hunter throws up every 20 minutes but never spikes a fever, and is acting normal the very next day, he will be kept down for another 24 hours, just to be sure! LOL!

Hunter boy is 6 . . .

2010-01-22T10:38:00.004-07:00

New Years Eve was kinda quiet this year. Troy had to work so the boys and I just hung out at home. After the boys went to bed I curled up on the couch with a Black Dagger Brotherhood book, called Troy at midnight to wish him Happy New Year and then went to bed. It was the first New Years Eve since Hunter was born that Troy and I weren't together to give each other a kiss for the New Year. Oh well, many more to come that we can celebrate together!

Hunter wanted to go to Chucky Cheese's for his birthday so on Friday, New Years Day we headed to Layton for some fun. Grandpa Steve and Grandma Sue joined us as well.
On Saturday January 2nd we had the family up for cake and ice cream. Hunter was spoiled of course . . . new DS games, transformers, GI Joe toys, a new coat plus we lucked out back in the Fall and got a 4 wheeler for free from a gal that Troy works with. It needed some electrical work done so Grandpa Lane came to the rescue and helped fix the machine. Our luck didn't stop there, Troy mentioned to a guy at work that we needed to get some nice helmets for the boys, well low and behold, he happened to have two that his boys had grown out of. SWEET! We love free stuff!

Hunter didn't know what to think when he went in to the garage and saw a REAL 4 wheeler just his size. Troy was right there to show Hunter boy how it worked, most importantly where the brake was! LOL!

After a little bit of instruction from his daddy, he was off . . .

Notice the personalization just for Hunter thanks to Grandma Leann!
TJ loves being just like big brother. He has his own helmet and has taken over the battery powered 4 wheeler that used to be Hunter's.

I can't believe how time flies! We sure had fun that day and look forward to camping season when Hunter can ride his machine up in the hills just like daddy and Grandpa Lane. Thanks to everyone who helped us pull this off, we couldn't have done it alone. We love you!!!!

Christmas 2009

2010-01-22T10:00:00.006-07:00

Santa definately didn't miss our house this year. Jake is making sure Santa got everything placed just right for Hunter.TJ made out like a bandit at well. Notice Santa didn't forget the ET toy!
I remember as a kid my sister and I hung out in the bedroom with Mom while Dad went to see if Santa came. Troy and I continue that same tradition with our boys. The boys couldn't wait to see what they got . . .
TJ was so excited to see the ET toy . . .Santa even brought ET the movie for his new DVD player.

TJ was excited to watch a movie all by himself in his own DVD player. He made himself comfy right in the middle of the living room . . .

Santa was smart and brought ET for Hunter as well.

Santa hid Hunter's DS as the bottom of his stocking, Hunter's reaction was so cute, "a DS are you kidding me!?"
Hunter boy also asked for cowboy boots like his daddy. He found some he liked that were John Deere at IFA so that is what he opened from his dad and I.
Troy has to go on the roof quite often at work and needless to say it's damn cold! So the boys and I got him a face mask to help keep him warm.
Jake and Charli got bones from Santa too . . .

Bryan, Kristi and the kids got our boys Lightning McQueen sleeping bags. The boys ask for their own bags each time we go camping. Thanks Runchel family for spoiling our boys!

Grandma Sue and Grandpa Steve got the boys cool Transformer sheets, and all sorts of goodies and snacks. They gave Troy and I a meat package to fill our freezer. We get to enjoy our Christmas gift all through out the year. Thanks Mom and Dad! We love you very much. More pictures to come with our day with Grandma and Grandpa. My camera batteries died so the rest are on Grandma Sue's camera. I figured I have waited long enough to post, so more to come soon!

Christmas Eve 2009

2010-01-22T09:38:00.005-07:00

I had to work half a day Christmas Eve, but it was nice to leave at noon so we could spend the rest of the day with family. Of course I have to get pictures in front of the Christmas tree before we left . . .

We headed to Lane and Leann's first. We enjoyed a few hours at their house, the boys thought it was so cool to get their own "credit card" aka gift card to Wal-Mart so they could pick out what they wanted. Grandma & Grandpa also got the boys cool pens and activity books as well. Troy and I got yummy cookie mix.

Since Aunt Marie passed away, we have been going to LaRue's for Christmas Eve for dinner and to open gifts. Both Melissa and I like to stay home on Christmas day so it's nice to have a place to meet and exchange gifts. Grandma Rue spoiled our family. We all got comfy PJ's, Troy and I got a levi blanket she made. Grandma got Hunter boy a stereo and Bubba a GEO Trax set. Aunt Melissa, Uncle Jeremy and the kids got Hunter and TJ the cutest slippers. TJ's sound like a chicken and Hunter's moo like a cow.
TJ loves his Great Grandma Poorte . . .
We had to make a quick stop by Aunt Kari's on the way home. She helped Santa get that very unique gift TJ asked Santa for. LOL! Unfortunately with all the bad air we had to give Hunter boy a breathing treatment before we could head home as well. Thank goodness Grandma Sue was there to come to the rescue.

A quick visit with Santa

2010-01-22T09:33:00.002-07:00

On our way home from daycare the week before Christmas we saw Santa in the middle of town. The boys wanted to stop and tell Santa what they wanted for Christmas. Glad we did . . . TJ told Santa he wanted an ET toy (are you kidding me?) LOL!

Hunter was excited to tell Santa that he was a good boy and wanted a DS for Christmas!

These boys are 3 and 6, what am I going to do when they are teeangers. LOL! I wouldn't trade them though, they are my life and I love them very much!

Troy's 39th birthday . . .

2010-01-22T09:19:00.005-07:00

Troy wanted to have a get together for his birthday and play beer pong. It was a fun night! I didn't appreciate the drums playing in my head the next day, Jose and I cannot play together for a while. LOL!

Since the weather was crappy and the crud was going around we didn't have many people over. We let the kids play too. They thought it was great to have root beer in their cups and play with the big kids! I love Hunter's face when Bobbie throws the ball.

Random posts of the boys . . .

2009-12-17T15:27:00.003-07:00

The other night Hunter was doing his homework and TJ wanted to do "homework" too! We are working with Hunter boy on his writing since he takes after his dad at the moment with chicken scratches. TJ used his tongue alot to steer that marker where he wanted it to go!

I think TJ is going to be a lefty like his big brother and Uncle Todd . . .
I am a bit late posting these pictures, but what the hell! The weekend of Halloween our friend Bobbie called to tell me that she was taking her horses to the fair grounds for a bit and I should bring the boys down.

TJ wasn't quite sure about it . . .

After one trip around the arena, Bubba was content just hanging out watching brother . . .

Hunter boy on the other hand loved it! He had to ride both Jake (the black horse) and KC (the white horse).

After riding Jake, Bobbie finally convinced Hunter to wear the cowboy hat!

The Cutest Satterthwaite Boys Ever!

2009-12-14T12:59:00.007-07:00

Hunter boy . . .

TJ, aka Bubba . . . Brotherly love . . .

A quick visit with Santa . . .

2009-12-14T12:52:00.003-07:00

On Friday the boys and I spotted Santa in the middle of town on our way home. The boys were so excited and asked if we could stop. Troy and I are going to have our hands full with this little guy. At three Bubba is already asking for the hard to get gifts . . . an ET toy and a big Lightning McQueen car. I have found them both on Amazon, but for the lucky price of $69.99, are you kidding me? Hopefully he likes what Santa picked out instead!

Hunter was so excited to ask Santa for a DS. WOW, and he is only five! Yes I am afraid Troy and I will have our hands full with Hunter as well since he already has expensive taste! LOL!

Thanksgiving 2009

2009-11-30T11:19:00.008-07:00

Thanksgiving was a little bit different this year. Unfortunately the middle of November Troy got the flu. He was on the uphill side by Thanksgiving, but it was a bit late to make any real plans. We wanted to stay home anyway. I didn't want my parents to get sick, so dad cooked a small dinner for just he and mom. Our friends Bryan and Kristi didn't have plans for Thanksgiving either so they and the kids came over for dinner. Our turkey was fabulous! Troy cooked it in beer this year since we didn't have any wine. DELICIOUS!
It was a really nice relaxing day. Too bad Kristi had to leave at 5:30 since she had to work that night. Bryan, Tori and Dallas hung out for the evening though. What's Thanksgiving without watching Charlie Brown? After that we watched CARS. The boys, Troy and the dogs had no problem getting comfy on the carpet in front of the TV! The pictures are really dark since they were just taken with my cell phone, but you get the idea! LOL!Troy had to work the weekend but got up early to spend some time with the boys and I on Friday. The weather was so nice, we decided to put up our Christmas yard toys. The lights on the house are still a little weak we noticed that night, but Troy will have it looking like the Griswalds in no time!Friday night I finally watch the X-Men movie series. Never been a big Hugh Jackson fan, but I really enjoyed the movies! The boys liked them too. They played Wolverine all weekend! Thanks Bryan for letting us borrow your movies!

Saturday was a fun day. The boys and I got up early to get our haircuts at Kellie's. Then went to visit Carolyn. So sad that KC is gone, but she is in a better place. For those of you who don't know KC she was a Tooner & Hooch dog (sorry I can't remember the dog breed at the moment and my computer keeps freezing up when I Google it). I think she was close to 10 or just over 10 years old. Stormy, Robin and Carolyn's Boxer is lost without KC, but seems to adjusting a little bit each day.

Later that morning, while the boys were playing at Grandma and Grandpa's, I got to sneek away with Mindy to see New Moon! We loved it! I am a huge Jacob fan, book 2 was my favorite! It didn't follow the book completly, but far better than the first movie! Thanks mom and dad for taking the boys so I could have some girl time.

Sunday was a lazy day at home. After a month of living in our house Jake has decided he doesn't like the hardwood floor. What a dork! He walked on it just fine when we first moved in, but now he is so skidish on the floor. Not sure what happened, but after several attempts of coaxing him to come into the living room I decided to put a long rug by our back screen door. This is how Jakey spent most of yesterday . . .The rug sticks out like a sore thumb in the kitchen, but I don't care. I have come to appreciate one of dad's favorite sayings "silence is golden!" It was so nice to watch TV last night and not hear Jake's claws scrambling on the floor.

When I took the boys to daycare this morning, this is what I found in their cubby's. TJ's states "I am thankful for: mommy & daddy, my brothers Hunter and Travis and my dogs Charlie & Jake." We have such cute boys!

Halloween 2009

2009-11-05T08:49:00.004-07:00

So I am not sure why I went costume shopping the first of October because the boys didn't end up wearing either of the costumes we got. That's okay though, one step ahead for next year! Hunter had orginally wanted to be a vampire and I couldn't resist taking TJ's picture when he tried out the teeth . . . The boys couldn't wear masks to their party at daycare, they got their face painted instead. TJ's was washed off by the time I got there, but Hunter kept the red face for hours. I am still cleaning red out of the shower. LOL!

A few weeks ago when I went to dinner with Cheryl and Jenny, the boys watched ET with Troy at home. Hunter couldn't stop talking about it. I happened to mention it to Aunt Nic and she offered to let us borrow the ET costume Aunt Jo made for Tina's kids years ago! Hunter boy loved it! TJ was originally going to be the Hulk. The costume from Wal-Mart was 2 sizes too big, but sometimes it's not worth fighting with a 3 year old in the middle of the store. 2 sizes to big this year will fit perfectly for next year! While unpacking boxes Halloween morning I came across Hunter's old Elmo costume. TJ loved it!

While I was finishing getting ready to go trick or treating I asked Troy to take pictures of the boys, not realizing he would only take ONE picture! What a dork! Oh well, here are Elmo and ET!

We decided to head to Meadow Park with Adella and the kids. The party started at 4:30 which was nice because it was still sunny and warm. TJ looked so dang cute hanging out in my truck with his McQueen shades on. LOL!

We also connected with Hunter's friend Dylan. They haven't seen each other since pre-school and loved trick or treating with each other. It was funny at the park, they were both lifting up their masks to find each other! After the kids trick or treated, donuts and hot chocolate were served. Troy was having truck issues so we didn't stay long, but the boys got loads of candy and enjoyed their donuts at home. Thanks to Tori who came along and helped with the boys! I was so frazzled with Troy's truck issues that I didn't take any pictures with Dylan but he was a very cool Darth Vader.

After we got Troy's truck home and he off to work we met Dylan and his family for more trick or treating around the neighborhood. Thanks to Julie who kept Hunter so he and Dylan could play some more while I took a very tired Elmo home to rest!

Donut contest at home . . .

2009-10-30T14:58:00.003-06:00

Tuesday was the Fall Harvest at Hunter's school. The boys dressed up in their costumes and we headed over for dinner. Once we were finished our nachos and hot dogs we headed to the gym for the festivities. What a freakin' nightmare! I guess they orginally planned to hold the event outside but since it was frigid cold they improvised inside the school! It was wall to wall people.

The boys stood in line for 20 minutes to get their face painted and then saw the donut contest. Donuts were tied to a rod and the kids had to kneel on the floor and eat the donut without using their hands. Whoever did it the fastes got a price. So we headed over to that line, after 30 minutes Troy and I had had enough. Troy went up to the teacher tying donuts on a string and pulled the "I just got called into work card". She was nice and give us three donuts so we grabbed the boys and belined out of there!

We decided to have our own donut contest at home. We tied the donuts to the broom handle, I held it on the counter, we laid down a sheet to help with the mess. Dad and the boys went to town! Oh my gosh I was laughing so hard!

I was laughing so hard that I about dropped the broom over the counter so Troy came to the rescue!

TJ was getting a little discouraged because he had only taken one bit. I told him to just use his hands, it was okay.

I wish the flash wasn't so bad on this picture but I couldn't help posting it. Hunter was hillarious when he got ahold of the donut!
Daddy was the winner!

Even though Troy was done, the boys wanted to continue finishing their donuts on the string . . .

I am so glad that Troy suggested getting the donuts and taking them home. It was much funnier at home as a family than arguing with all the students and parents at the school.

TJ's Birthday Weekend . . .

2009-10-30T13:20:00.007-06:00

So when I pulled out my camera on Tuesday I realized I still had TJ's birthday pictures on it and thought I really should post them! I am a bit late, but like my cute friend Jenny said last week at dinner, everything doesn't have to be posted in chronological order.

On Friday October 9th Silvio's wedding reception was in Ogden. Then afterwards we went to my dear friend Ange's house. I haven't seen her since TJ was a baby so it was nice to catch up for a minute. Unfortunatley I didn't have my camera.

The boys were exhausted by the time we got home. Hunter didn't even stir when Troy brought him into the house. Since the boys have bunk beds now it's a bit difficult to get Hunter ready for bed when he is dead to the world so I had Troy put him on our bed. Once again he didn't even stir . . .

Once we got the boys into bed Troy and I were laughing because this is how we found Jake, ready on Troy's side of the bed . . . On Saturday the 10th Bubba turned 3. I can't believe how big TJ is getting! We got him a bike for his birthday and a new winter coat. He knew he was getting a McQueen cake for his birthday party but that wasn't until Sunday. Boy was he pissed first thing Saturday morning when he woke up and I didn't have his cake. Before we gave him his bike he opened up Monsters vs. Aliens from Hunter and his winter coat from Troy and I.

Hunter kindly reminded me Friday night at Wal-mart that he gets to open a present with McQueen paper too. I had completely forgot about wrapping a toy for TJ on Hunter's 5th birthday. I am so glad Hunter said something because I would have felt awful forgetting. Hunter was very excited to get Megatron!
Here is the cool new bike . . .

TJ wanted to go bowling for his birthday. So Saturday afternoon Troy and I took the boys to Wild Bills in town. They loved it! Aunt Nic this picture is for you, they got the same style of shoes as you did on our date night! LOL!
TJ was determined to carry his own ball to the stand to push it. So cute!

Hunter after rolling the ball as hard as he could . . .

After we finished bowling we went to Jenny's house to pick up Bubba's cake. He loved it! I had to hide it in the trailer for the night so TJ didn't help himself before his birthday party.
On Sunday afternoon the family came up for cake and ice cream. TJ loved the army trucks from Grandma and Grandpa Lane . . .

Cathey, Nate and Mikyia gave TJ a remote control Thomas train. He loves to make it go in circles.

Thanks to Grandma Sue and Grandpa Steve for getting TJ clothes. Very much needed since he is finally starting to grow . . .

TJ was so excited to open the sack from Aunt Melissa, Uncle Jeremy, Cameron, Kya and Mayla. Inside Cameron had placed Ramone from CARS. Bubba always plays with the car when we go to visit so Cameron got up really early Sunday morning to find it so it could be included in the present sack. What a sweet cousin!
Once the presents were done, TJ was excited that is was finally cake time!

Bubba laughed the whole time we sang happy birthday to him . . .

TJ is so dang cute and we love him to death! I can't believe that he is already 3, time flies! Now he just wants to skip 4 and go right to 5 so he can go to kindergarten like big brother!

Thriller . . .

2009-10-27T08:25:00.007-06:00

Early Saturday morning I got a text from Mindy asking if I would be her date to Thriller that afternoon. I didn't hesitate and said YES! We were on the down hill side of moving, but I have the best hubby ever. He said he would finish moving, I could spend the day with the girls. So later that morning off we went to the Red Iguana in Salt Lake for lunch. Very yummy Mexican food!

What's a girl day without pictures! Mindy and I . . .
Debbie, Mindy's mom is so fun! Can definately tell they are mom and daughter . . .I have met Jamie, Mindy's cousin, a few times over the last few years but have really gotten to know her these last few months. Jamie is a hoot! The girls, Devinne and Tyra are hillarious!
Here is Mindy being silly pretending to have a mustache! What a goofy girl!
Once we got to Kingsbury Hall we were greeted by zombies as we went in. Very creepy!
It was a fabulous day! Mindy is one of my closest friends and I love her to death! I appreciate her kindness and all the love she shares with my family! I never would have thought to go to Thriller, but thanks to Mindy I got to experience it! What a blast!!!!

Eating Dinner at the Table . . .

2009-09-23T10:54:00.002-06:00

I was reading a friends blog today and came across this conversation and it just broke my heart.

One boy stated that he was starving and was excited to get home, because Mom was making a chicken dish that was his favorite and she promised to save him some. The reaction from a few of the other youths was surprising to me.

It went something like this:

Does your Mom cook dinner, every night? This was said with a huge emphasis that held an element of awe or disbelief. When he went on to assure the group that yes, indeed his Mom did fix dinner every night, the group was stunned.

The crust of the conversation held statements like, “we can’t afford milk, because my mom buys 10 red bulls a day or trades our food stamps for cigarettes.” another statement was, “I don’t think we have actually ever eaten at the table, at least not that I can remember.” one of my favorites, (hope you can sense the sarcasm) was, “we don’t even have a table”

I am grateful to my mom who made my sister and I eat at the table every night when we were growing up! We didn't always like it, but as a mom myself I enjoy that time with my family to find out how their day went, what adventures they had at work, school or daycare, and sometimes it's a race to see who can get done the fastest so we can spend more time at the park before bath time.

Sunday dinner is sometimes a challenge, the boys are hyper or whining about something, but I wanted to say thank you to both my parents for enduring meal time at our house! I love you very much!!!!

Peach Days 2009

2009-09-19T08:04:00.001-06:00

Last Friday we met some friends in Brigham and enjoyed the festivities. Since the boys had the flu for the fair we promised them that they could ride the rides at Peach Days. Our friend Kristi is "The Nut Lady" so we stopped by there first to get some almonds and nuggets. The boys thought is was really cool to sit on Chris's Harley (Kristi's new hubby).

Then of course it was off to the sandbox and tractors! I don't know why the pictures of TJ didn't save to my phone, dang it! Operator error I am sure!

Then once it started to get dark we headed for the rides! The boys thought it was cool to ride the rides with the lights on. My cell phone doesn't take moving pictures that well so I don't have any of the boys having fun, but I think the best was the large slide. Hunter loved racing his dad and TJ. TJ's favorite was the motorcycle ride.

Hunter wanted to ride the ferris wheel so TJ and I hung back while he and Troy rode. Last year was much better for Hunter, this year he screamed most of the ride! LOL!

Labor day weekend 2009

2009-09-14T10:38:00.005-06:00

Troy had to work the weekend before Labor Day so the boys and I hung out at home. Hunter loves duct tape (like father like son) and wanted to create an Iron Man hand. I wasn't hip on the idea of duct tape on the skin so Troy suggested using a baggy first. Who knew that a baggy and duct tape could entertain the boys for hours . . .On Saturday Troy brought home a skid steer to spread the pile of dirt in the back yard. The boys were in heaven! They loved riding the skid steer with their dad. TJ would patiently wait on the tramp for his ride then grin from ear to ear when it was his turn!Hunter loved it too! Whether his dad was driving the tractor or it was just sitting on the trailer, Hunter was content playing in it.

While Troy and the boys were running the skid steer I picked up tree limps and weeds! Not so much fun for me, I was one giant hive by the end of the day!

On Monday Grandpa Steve and Grandma Sue came for a visit. It was so nice to spend time with them. With all the festivities here in town and then the boys being sick, it had been quite awhile since we had seen them.

Later that night it was fun to enjoy a BBQ with Bryan, Kristi and the kids. Troy decided to burn some branches and weeds in our fire pit. It was nice to have a fire but boy did it irritate our allergies again!

First day of kindergarten . . .

2009-09-14T10:01:00.004-06:00

Well the first day of kindergarten finally arrived for Hunter. August 31st was Hunter's first day of school! He was so dang excited! I can't believe how fast time flies. I took a long lunch that day so I could take him to school. I was a big girl and didn't cry!

Once we arrived he went running into his class, shouted out that he had glue sticks (that is the only thing the teacher asked us to bring) and grabbed the sticker with his name on it. I had created a color coded calendar (yes I know OCD) for his teacher, daycare and Troy. As a working mom I needed to know that everyone was on the same page, when Hunter went with daycare and when Hunter would be picked up by his dad. I checked with Mrs. Roberts to see if she need anything else, Hunter found his name to hang his back pack . . .
Then it was time for me to go. I gave Hunter a kiss and headed for the door. Hunter boy was so dang cute, from his circle of friends he shouts "have a good day mom I love you!" That's when I got a bit teary eyed! I am so glad that he loves school! Kudos to his daycare too! Hunter got a cool green back pack from all of his teachers chucked full of fun school supplies! Of course Hunter didn't want me to take back the transformer one we bought a week earlier, "it's okay mom, I will just use both!"

That night he brought home is first homework assignment. He had to put 3 things in a bag to stand up in front of the class to tell a little bit about himself. WOW who knew the first assignment would be so difficult. Trying to explain to my five year old that putting a toliet paper roll with glued paper on it, really wasn't what the teacher had in mind! After much thought in his bedroom Hunter came out asking if he could please take a transformer, he really liked playing with them. Sure, that would be okay I said. Then I asked if he wanted to take a little 4 wheeler toy since he likes to ride with his daddy. Oh my, the fit started all over again! No that is not what he had in mind.

While we were making dinner, Hunter asked if he could take something to show everyone that he likes to help me cook. Fabulous idea! He choose a measuring cup. Two down, one to go! I was trying to figure out something for him to take to talk about camping and riding the 4 wheeler. I suggested a picture of him, daddy & Travis on the 4 wheeler with the trailer in the background. It was a hit! He loved it!

On Wednesday, the first week of school, it was Hunter's turn to present to the class. He said the kids really liked his stuff! Glad we both survived his first homework assignment! LOL!

Hunter only got to go to school for a week, then it was assessment testing. During his week off the teacher sent home a figurine for the kids to create themselves with. I was a bit nervous considering our last assignment, but we made it through without a fight! LOL!
Now as most of you know I am not very creative at all, but we pulled out the construction paper, scissors, glue and went to town. Hunter didn't want to draw is own face, lord knows I can't draw so I suggested a picture. Hunter thought that was really cool! Then of course we had to decorate his stick figure shirt to match the transformer shirt he was wearing. Here is Hunter and his finished product! Very cute I must say!!!

2009 Box Elder County Parade & Fair

2009-09-14T09:05:00.007-06:00

Troy had to work the night of the parade. The boys were suppose to ride the daycare float, but since they were so grouchy I had them take a rest instead. After a quick nap we walked down to Hearts & Hands Daycare to watch the parade.TJ loved eating his popcicle and Hunter loved getting candy with his friends.

Muriel is the daycare director and is absolutely fabulous! TJ and Hunter just love her!

Once the float was a block away from the daycare I grabbed the boys and we walked to the float. Hunter was so excited to be able to hand out candy.

TJ rode with Shelly, another daycare teacher who is wonderful!

Hunter walked about 2 blocks and decided he had had enough, he wanted to ride the float. TJ was done all the way around, he wanted no part of the float, he just wanted his mom! LOL! Thanks to Patty, the pre-school teacher at daycare, for helping me with TJ.
After the parade we headed to the rodeo since the boys had never been. Wednesday was the night of the bulls. Hunter and TJ loved it. Uncle Shayne & Aunt Mindy came as well. Shalon brought Mandy to enjoy the rodeo too. Hunter wanted to pet a horse so bad, so Shalon & Mandy took him to meet the rodeo queen (Mandy's cousin). Hunter was in awe. He was too embarrassed to have Shalon take his picture! Hunter has decided he wants to ride a sheep next year so he can bucked off! LOL!

The advantage to living in a small town is we can enjoy the festivities every night and it doesn't cost a dime. I love that the fair is free! On Thursday we met Lisa, Luke & Gracie to see the animals. We found Brianna's pig who took 6th out of 250 pigs! Way to go Brianna! After seeing all the animals the boys wanted to play on the saw dust pile. Boys, they are entertained with anything!

On Friday we headed to Ogden for Carrie's baby shower! I am so excited for her! She is having twin boys in November. Daniel, who is three, will have so much fun with his little brothers! Leave it to Hunter to get curious about a toy. He got his arm stuck in it. Carrie's sister Lisa was so cute, she was trying to calm Hunter while she was taking the toy apart. Jodi, another mom at the party, came into the toy room just a laughing. She tipped the toy upside down and wiggled Hunter's arm right out. Jodi has 4 boys with the same exact toy! LOL! Thank goodness it wasn't anything too serious!
Unfortunately the night didn't get any better. TJ threw up on the way home from Ogden. It was a very long ride from Willard to home for all of us! I had no idea the boys were even sick, they were acting normal, but I later found out they were exposed at daycare. Poor TJ kept throwing up every hour through Saturday night. Hunter started throwing up about 3am Saturday morning and was sick through Saturday night as well. I have never had both boys sick at one time, not an adventure I want to try again anytime soon! The boys were devestated that they didn't get to go back to the fair on Saturday to ride the rides. Thank goodness Peach Days was only a few weeks away!

Playing with worms & slugs

2009-09-14T08:47:00.005-06:00

The weekend of August 15th we headed up to the Eagles to camp with my parents. It had rained a ton that weekend so the worms and slugs were out in full force. The boys thought they were cool . . .

Millie and Mollie loved it too when the rain stopped, they could be outside to play. PINNED barked Mollie as she was standing over Millie. LOL!

God has a huge telescope . . .

2009-08-24T08:32:00.001-06:00

I had a cute conversation with Hunter last night . . .

"Mom how does God watch us if the doors and blinds are closed?"

Me: Honey God lives in our hearts, he sees everything. When we are outside he looks down on us from Heaven.

"So does God have a huge telescope?"

Me: with a smile on my face . . . Yes honey, God does :)

I am a slacker and trying to get motivated . . .

2009-08-21T21:28:00.003-06:00

I feel like a slacker lately. I haven't posted on the blog for weeks. I haven't felt like cleaning so I have just done the bare minimum to get by! So last Sunday I decided I was going to get my act together and tackle one project a night.

Monday: Went thru the boys closets. Boxed up TJ's clothes that were too small to give to Carrie since she is having twin boys in November. I even took the boxes downstairs so we weren't tripping over them in the computer room.

I moved Hunter's 4T shirts to TJ's rod in the closet since there is no sense in boxing that stuff up. In a month they will fit TJ. A few weeks ago mom and I got all of Hunter's school clothes, but I have left them in the sack so Hunter wouldn't bug me to wear them. Once I cleaned out their closets I hung all the new clothes up, reminding Hunter that school doesn't start until the 31st so don't bother asking to wear his new clothes, because the answer will be NO!

I did cave yesterday though and he got to wear a new Iron Man t-shirt and his new sketcher shoes to back to school night! TJ got to wear his new Iron Man shirt too!

Sorted all the laundry downstairs so I could do two or three loads a night so it wasn't so much come the weekend. Vacuumed the house and wiped down the kitchen.

Tuesday: Got a call from Troy at work that our basement was flooded. The black hose on our AC unit came off so the garden hose ran full blast all Monday night until Troy found it at 3pm Tuesday. We didn't have feet of water, but enough to make everything soggy. Note: all those boxes I took downstairs on Monday, yeah they are soggy. Should have just left the damn boxes upstairs and tripped over them for a week! GRRRR! To boot, 10 loads of laundry in the hallway were damp, Troy just put them in a one big pile and placed it in the computer room. Oh the funs of tripping over laundry while trying to get the dogs out back.

Troy moved all the furniture and boxes out of Trav's room, shop vac'd what he could, then tore out the carpet from the bedroom down the hallway to our washer and dryer. We learned that our patio that Troy put in, is the same square footage as our basement. Just enough room to lay the carpet out to dry. LOL!

Wednesday: Washed the bathroom towels, our sheets and quilt. Even got Troy to flip our mattress.

Thursday was a crappy day at work. I wanted to leave at 3:30 for back to school night, but instead payroll was late, it didn't arrive until 4:30. I raced home, we walked to the school and got to meet Hunter's teacher. I really didn't do much after that. I couldn't believe our basement wasn't dry yet! I am really going to have to wait until next week to put things back together? I took a nap from 6 to 7, I was ready to throw in the towel!

Today . . .Friday: much better day! Started working on month end at work. Once I got home I started the laundry again, then decided to update the blog. With any luck I can get in a groove through the weekend and get lots done! Our house needs some TLC!

Happy Birthday Lisa . . .

2009-08-21T20:55:00.003-06:00

It was Lisa's birthday on Wednesday. She is now a year older than I am. LOL! We are the same age from April to August. Shalon, Lisa and I went to dinner on Tuesday. The three of us together are a hoot, we are laughing constantly!

Lisa you are a true friend and I love you to death!

Sir Hunter . . .

2009-08-21T20:43:00.002-06:00

Last week was all about Kings and Knights for the boys at daycare. They got to go on a treasure hunt at the park and they made shields and masks for the sword fights. The helmet is a milk carton cut apart and then covered in duct tape. The boys loved it! TJ wouldn't let me take his picture so I will just post one of Hunter . . .

Raspberry Days 2009 . . .

2009-08-21T19:13:00.011-06:00

After Troy took Travis to the airport, he came home and took a little nap after working all night then we headed to Bear Lake for Raspberry Days. Shayne and Mindy were already there enjoying the sunshine and having some margarita's. Since I screwed up thinking the spot they had reserved at Travelland would hold both our trailers, the owners were nice enough to let us pull along side of them on the lawn since the RV park was booked.

Mindy and the girls went for a walk to check out Raspberry days, TJ waited patiently on the big rock for their return . . .
Once the sun went down the boys and dogs hit the eyelid theater. Since Jakey can't sleep in our bed in the trailer he curls up on TJ's bed . . .
Charli hasn't slept on our bed in years, she just sleeps by the door, posting guard over the boys.
Hunter thought it was pretty cool to use Dad's boy scout sleeping bag since Travis had gone home . . .On Saturday we all headed to the lake right after breakfast. We knew it was going to be a busy day and crowded. Even being at the lake at 10am it was 2 or 3 rows deep, after 45 minutes of driving around Troy just stopped and said this is good. LOL!

TJ was a champ and wore his hat the whole time so he didn't get a sunburned head and nose.Of course we can't visit the lake without taking the water toys . . .A cute picture of TJ and Aunt Mindy at Bear Lake . . .

Hunter boy posing with his daddy . . .I bought myself some new sunglasses but they hurt my head too bad, so the boys decided to wear them.

Mindy had reserved two wave runners for the afternoon. Hunter boy was estatic, he couldn't stop asking if it 1:00 yet to go and pick them up. I told him if he was good, he and his dad could go for a quick ride. After the older kids took the machines out for a spin, it was Hunter and Troy's turn to go. Hunter was grinning from ear to ear . . .

Bobbie and Kyler went out for a turn as well . . .
After we all (except Shayne of course) took a turn on the wave runners, we were all water logged and ready to return to camp. Jake and Charli were excited to enjoy some outside time.

Mindy thought of everything, she brought a fun bean bag game for the kids to play at camp. Hunter and Kyler were the first to try it out. Then Hunter wanted to see if he would fit in the box the game came in . . .

Hunter already learning to pick up the girls (Jake making sure she does nothing wrong to Hunter) . . .

My cute hubby, the camp chef . . .
TJ and Uncle Shayne . . .
TJ enjoying a piece of watermelon . . .

Hunter and Aunt Mindy . . .

Some friends of Amanda and Lexie's decided to spend the night so we pulled out our tent. While Travis was here, a bracket broke (not bad considering it's the first thing that has broke on the tent since we got it from my parents 10 years ago), but nothing can't be fixed with Troy around. Just ask him, all he needs is duct tape or a bungy cord . . .
Mindy and I enjoyed a shot, or two of tequilla. Damn it tasted good, it had been awhile since I got to play with the girls . . .

Some crazy dude (oh wait that's Troy) being silly for mine and Mindy's picture . . .
Yin and Yang (aka Troy and Shayne). Boy can those husbands of ours put some beer away. Thanks Amanda for going and getting more!Shayne and Mindy enjoying a moment by the fire . . .
Hunter talked Uncle Shayne into helping roast his marshmellow for a smore . . .
Hunter and I snuggle buggin by the fire in my favorite blanket, since I have had since high school! LOL!

It's now 11:00 at night. The boys should be in bed, but since they were still awake, we settled in to watch the fireworks from camp . . .On Sunday while Troy was putting stuff away getting ready to go home, the boys wanted to watch a movie. I thought it was cute how they laid on Jake . . .

Once Jake got tired of the boys laying on him, he joined Charli for the ride home. Charli, "are we ready to go yet?" Jake, "do we really have to leave today?" LOL!
Before Troy put the toys away, the boys headed outside one last time. TJ's legs are finally long enough he can ride Hunter's quad. That's of course after Hunter takes him for a ride!

It was a great weekend! Troy and I found out later that mom and dad had gravel delivered that same weekend. I guess we shouldn't have changed plans, but that's why they didn't tell us, mom and dad wanted us to have a fun weekend at Bear Lake one last time. Thank you and we love you!!!!

A visit with Uncle Dude . . .

2009-08-03T19:57:00.005-06:00

We lucked out this year and got to see Doehler just before Travis went home. After dinner, Hunter and Uncle Doehler were playing catch with the baseball and Hunter missed . . . To try and take Hunter's mind off his sore lip I asked him if he wanted to take a picture with my camera, I don't think he did too bad . . .Thank goodness Grandma Leann took great family photo's last summer because I definately didn't have it together this year. Oh the funs of taking family photo's . . .This one is the better of the two, but I wish Troy would have pulled TJ's shirt down before the picture was taken. LOL!Grandpa and Grandma with our boys . . .

Uncle Doehler and the boys . . .

All of us with Uncle Dude . . .

It's tradition to get the two best pals toasting a drink . . .

Of course we have to get one with all the fellas . . .
Hunter was ready to take another picture so I asked him to take one of Doehler and I.

I sure wish he lived closer, it sucks to see him only once a year, but we sure have some good times when he is in Utah to visit. We love you Uncle Doehler!!!!

Pioneer Day 2009 and the Truck Pulls

2009-08-03T19:06:00.009-06:00

On Thursday July 23rd Troy and the boys finished putting in our sandbox. Since Troy had to work the weekend, we had Bryan, Kristi and the kids over for dinner and fireworks that Thursday night.

Without fail Jakey is always in the middle of things . . . Dallas, Travis, TJ and Victoria with Hunter buried in the sand . . .

TJ wanted to be buried just like brother . . . After we ate our dinner and it started to get dark, Troy pulled out the fireworks. It was sparkler time first . . .
Here is TJ, Bryan and Hunter enjoying a firework . . . I loved getting the right reaction on camera . . .Hey dad did you see that?TJ was so funny . . . "Mom did you hear that it was so loud?!"After a few loud fireworks TJ decided to hang out in the chair for a minute . . .

After resting a few, TJ couldn't decide if he wanted to be on the left or . . .

the right side of Hunter LOL!

We had a few more sparklers so the boys enjoyed before the grand finale . . .TJ knew the last one was going to be loud so he come and hung out with mom . . .
On Saturday, the boys and I headed to the fairgrounds to watch the truck pulls. It was very hot! We decided to hang out on the East side so the boys could have room to move and be closer to the trucks. Good thing we live close because I ran home to get hats and some sunscreen.
TJ being his normal self for the camera, I am not going to smile, I AM NOT! lolGrandpa Steve and Grandpa Lane would be proud, Hunter's favorite truck what a white chevy. He waited all night for the truck to be lowered.

I bought each of the kids a licorice rope, I think Travis stuffed the whole thing in his mouth at one time . . .

TJ enjoyed his piece by piece . . .

This is how TJ watched the "pull trucks" . . .
Say cheese Hunter . . .
Since Troy couldn't be there with us I took a picture of a Ford truck just for him . . .
The boys thought this yellow truck was cool because it was called BUMBLE BEE!
After the truck pulls we headed to Troy's work to watch the fireworks on the roof. I forgot my camera and I wasn't about to climb down that ladder just to take a picture. All in all it was a fun weekend. Glad I got to spend time with the boys before Travis went home.

Bear Lake 2009

2009-07-25T07:54:00.009-06:00

We lucked out this year for our annual Bear Lake trip, it fell on Troy's short week so he took Wednesday and Thursday off so he, Travis and Hunter could held to the hills before we went to the Lake. How would it be to take 2 days vacation and get 7 days off?! Monday July 13th the boys hooked up and headed for the Sinks in Logan Canyon. TJ and I hung out at home for a few days since I had to work. Troy and the boys road the 4 wheelers non stop those first 3 days.

Our Jakey is getting pretty old, he will be 11 in November, but Hunter and Travis found his favorite squeeky toy and Jake turned into a puppy chasing that toy. Of course after a few minutes he needed to rest. LOL!

Here is our baby girl Charli, she is really starting to show her age she is 13, but she still smiles and wags her tail . . .
Here is a great picture of Travis hanging at the camp fire . . .
Troy pulled out the bb gun for the boys to shot, Hunter thought it was cool to shoot the "baby gun" LOL!

TJ and I weren't going to join the boys until Thursday at Bear Lake but we decided to head up to the mountains Wednesday night. I arrived to a very dirty Hunter boy.
Thursday morning we packed up and headed for the Lake. Thursday was just a relaxing day, hangin at camp and the boys played at the park. Unfortunately Friday was a very expensive day for Troy and I. We needed to put tires on our 5th wheel before Troy dared tow it home. Rather than leave the 5th wheel in Bear Lake after our weekend vacation Troy headed back to Tremonton to get new tires. The boys and I headed to the lake for the day.

TJ was in 7th heaven playing in the kiddie pool, it was like bath tub water.

We never leave home without the big dump truck. TJ would sleep with it if I would let him. LOL!
Here are the boys enjoying the sand, Hunter loves to be buried by Travis, it's cute . . .

Travis needed to rinse off after buring Hunter . . .
All in all Friday was a fun day. Too bad Troy couldn't have joined us, but glad we were able to get new tires and he could still enjoy the rest of the weekend with us.

On Saturday, breakfast couldn't get over fast enough, the boys were anxious to get back to the lake. We included our fun floaties as well for the boys to enjoy. Here is Hunter and Dad getting the toys ready . . .

We got TJ a little car a few years ago to help shade him from the sun, he hated it when he was a baby, but couldn't get enough of it this year . . .Once all the toys were blown up, Travis and Hunter headed to the waves to test them out . . .TJ was funny, while his brothers were on the boat, he toted each one of the floaties to the kiddie pool to test them out. He was a little man on a mission . . .TJ was full of smiles this year so I couldn't resisit taking tons of pictures of him. I forgot his life jacket here at home so he and I didn't go out on the boat. Our friends offered a life jacket for him, but we were fine at the beach. TJ was content hanging out on the tube BEFORE it was behind the boat.Jay borrowed his brother-in-laws rhino and told his mom Carolyn that he wanted to show her a new spot, little did she know that he was actually taking her thru a giant water hole! It was hiliarious, we could see the splash over the trucks in the background of the picture. She was a drowned rat.While Mandy and Spence took the boys on their boat, Taylar hung out with TJ and I. She is such a cutie!
Travis on the boat with Marolyn. Trav doesn't look very happy, I am not sure if this is before or after his tube ride. LOL!

Troy got on the tube with Hunter and Seth, they had a blast! There are more pictures of them because they didn't want to get off the tube! LOL!

Hunter giving the thumbs up to go!
Hunter was just a laughing catching some air! When he came back to the beach he told me it was like bouncing on a trampoline.

Riding the waves . . .
Since Hunter and Seth wouldn't get off the tube, Troy decided it was Trav's turn to go with the boys. Travis was having no part of sitting on the edge though, he wanted the middle. He didn't have as much fun as Hunter and Seth. Thanks to my cute parents I had my own shade this year at Bear Lake, not major sun burn for me! HURRAY! Just before her mommy came back Taylar crashed in my lap. TJ got a bit jealous so I put him on my lap as well to cuddle.
It was a wonderful trip and a much needed attitude adjustment for me! Thanks Robin and Carolyn!

Fun In the Sun . . .

2009-07-22T20:18:00.007-06:00

Aunt Kari invited us over for Karter's birthday party on Saturday the 11th. I am a bit late posting pictures, but it was a fun day in the water. The boys have decided we need a blow up waterslide too. Wish we had that magic money tree in the back yard so we could get one.

It took TJ a while to warm up to the idea, but once he figured it out, as long as there wasn't a lot of kids on the ride, he was having a blast. The boys have a slip and slide at daycare that they like to play one, on this day TJ just wanted to walk across it though. Silly boy!
Travis loved it too! Kari was worried about Travis since most of the kids at the party were 10 and younger, but he joined in the fun. He and his brothers kept having races up and down the slide.
As soon as Grandma Sue arrived, Travis was determined to get her wet . . .This is one of my favorite pictures of Travis and TJ this summer, say cheese . . .Hunter boy had a blast too, he was all over the place, most of the time climbing up the slide rather than using the ladder, or knocking people over before they could get out of the way, imagine that!Behind Kari's house is a holding pond, a mother had hatched her ducklings. Hunter and Kasen decided to take a break from the waterslide and feed the ducks.

After a few minutes TJ realized big brother was gone so he wanted to go investigate. He is so little he couldn't see the ducks over the weeds at first. "Where mom where?"
Of course you can't visit Aunt Kari's house without a fest, the boys were famished after playing in the water all day, they each ate three sloppy joes, endless chips, and fruit too. That doesn't include the brownies, cake, ice cream and banana splits that were served for dessert just before we left. Nothing like having three growing boys around!
Here is Hunter and TJ snuggle buggin for a minute trying to get warm on mom's lap . . .
By the time we left at 6:30 that night, TJ was exhausted. Before we hit the freeway to come home he was snoring. When we got home I couldn't resist taking a picture before I put him to bed. I think this picture says it all, what a way to end a fun day in the sun. Note . . .TJ never woke up until Sunday morning at 8am, he was one tired little boy. LOL!

Weekend of Camping and Haircuts . . .

2009-07-05T20:20:00.010-06:00

We headed up to the Eagles with Mom and Dad this weekend so Troy could work on a few projects with Dad. There is another little boy at camp named Hunter too, our boys have lots of fun together . . .

Here is the new fire pit, we no longer have to stand in mud, HURRAY . . .
Mollie thinks she is 10 feet tall and bullet proof. She doesn't even make a sound when the little dogs walk by, but watch out when the big dogs do, she carries on like an opra singer . . .On Saturday the sun came out for a bit so we headed down to the river. Here is Hunter hurrying to smiling for the camera since it was so chilly . . .
TJ wasn't quite so sure . . .
The boys talked dad into taking them across the river . . . but Troy got knee deep in the water and decided it was too cold . . .
Grandpa Steve found some shade to enjoy the boys playing in the water . . .

Once the boys got used to the water close to shore they decided to throw rocks and sticks for a bit. TJ would throw the same rock and then go and get it . . .
After a lit bit TJ got really cold and wanted to snuggle bug with mom . . .
Whenever we go camping we always make sure we pack the dump trucks. At mom and dad's new spot they are right on a busy corner so I wouldn't let TJ wander with the bigs kids, I was too nervous no one would see him. So instead he hung out in his dump truck watching the kids play. He was content with that . . .The boys love helping their daddy build a fire. Hunter didn't want TJ's help so Grandma Sue stepped in to referee . . .TJ loves taking a sip of dad's beer . . .

It was a fun weekend. I realized while uploading these pictures that I never got a picture of Travis. He found some kids his age at the park and didn't want to hang with us much. That's okay, I am glad he got to have some fun with kids his own age. We went to the Huntsville fireworks Saturday night but the pictures are on mom's camera. I will have to post them at a later time.

The boys were so ready for their summer haircuts. Hunter and TJ love being buzzed like their daddy so after we unloaded the trailer and finished our dinner we pulled out the clippers and went to town. Here is TJ with his famous scowl . . .

Half way thru his haircut TJ wanted to be done so Troy thought it would be funny to buzz his own hair to get TJ distracted for a minute. It was cute, TJ was laughing from his toes. What a good dad my boys have . . .

Once TJ was done he loved touching his new air cut . . .

Jake and Charli were in the mix of things as well, I just love Charli's smile . . .
Hunter boy thought it would be fun to have a mohawk, it lasted long enough for me to take a picture, then he was buzzed just like dad and brother . . .

While TJ was playing we noticed that Troy had missed a few spots, so TJ jumped on Troy's lap to let him finish. Don't mind the gloves either, not sure why the boy likes to play with them when it's 90 degress outside, but hey some battles are just not worth fighting over. LOL!

Troy's new toy . . .

2009-07-02T23:29:00.003-06:00

a riding lawnmower! Troy has wanted one for some time now, but it's not been a priority to get one. Troy listed his pistol on ksl. One of the guys he works with is a gun collector, saw the ad, and asked if Troy was interested in a trade. Our push mower is on it's last leg, it's 12 years old . . . we bought it with some of our wedding money back in 1997. So this opportunity worked out perfect for us . . . traded a pistol that had been used very little in 12 years for a 3 year old riding lawnmower.

Well it's official . . .

2009-06-30T19:37:00.005-06:00

We are parents of a teenager! LOL! Today is Trav's 13th birthday! We met Grandma and Grandpa in Brigham tonight for dinner at Winger's. Troy told our waiter about Trav's birthday. It was great . . . they brought out a huge piece of mint oreo pie singing and clapping just for Travis.

Proud Grandpa Steve, our birthday boy and a cheesy grin from Hunter . . .
Of course each time I tried to take a picture of TJ he would turn his head. But I had to post because I loved Grandma Sue's smile . . .
Finally after a few tries I got the front side of TJ, what a goofy boy . . . Travis asked if he could make his own birthday cake this year so after I put the boys to bed Saturday night, we pulled out the mixer and Travis went to town. He did a fabulous job! He did everything by himself. I have to admit it was the fluffiest cake I have seen in a longer time. Nothing like chocolate fudge cake with chocolate fudge frosting. YUMMY!
On Sunday we had his birthday party. Before the festive event my cute friend Carrie and her son Daniel came to play for a few hours. The boys played in the pool, rode the quads and jumped on the tramp. It was nice to have some girl time while our boys enjoyed the sunshine. Here is Travis, Daniel and Hunter posing for the camera . . .
Travis received just over $150 from family and friends, then Troy and I gave him $100 for his birthday. Tonight he bought himself a DSi. He has wanted a DS and a digital camera, so why not get the combo piece that has both. LOL! Here is Great Grandma Poorte and Grandma Rue with Travis opening his cards . . .Before we lit the candles Hunter had to make sure there really was 13 candles on the cake and TJ wasn't far behind to help blow out the candles . . .
It's hard to believe that Travis was only 15 months old when Troy and I got married. Where has the time gone? He has grown into a fine young man and we love him very much!

Dad's Day 2009 . . .

2009-06-21T20:17:00.004-06:00

Troy is a wonderful husband and dad. I couldn't have married a better person! He has the patience of Joab and loves being home with his boys. He is a hard worker and provides well for our family. I love you honey and want to wish you a very happy father's day!

This father's day was extra special for Troy because it's the first year he has had all three of his sons together to celebrate his day. I found the younger boys cute "Dad's #1 fan shirts" so after unloading everything from camping and before bath time, I got a quick picture on the porch with Troy and his boys . . .

At daycare last week, the theme was "super hero". The kids got to visit the fire station, ride in ambulance. A K-9 cop gave a presentation as well. Also the boys were working on a "special hero" project for their dad. This is what TJ made his daddy . . .It's a square piece of wood, hand painted by TJ and his creation of daddy. My camera isn't working so well tonight so sorry the pictures are so blurry!

On the back of TJ's "dad" figure it read, My dad is my hero because . . . he goes to work, he comes home to mine house, he plays with me, he brought Travis to see me! Love TJ

Isn't that sweet, my favorite part is what he says about Travis. TJ loves his big brother!

Here is what Hunter made for his dad . . .

Hunter's "dad figure" states, My dad is my hero because . . . he jumps on the tramp with me, he lets me do fun stuff, my dad lets me play in the sprinkler, help me ride my bike and lets me go down the alley.

What cute boys we have!

Unfortunately I didn't get to see my cute dad today. We got home a bit late from camping but I did call to wish him happy dad's day! Know that we love you! Hunter was pretty upset that we weren't going to Grandpa's house to wish his happy father's day. "But mom we got to see Grandpa Lane, so why can't we see Grandpa Steve?" Since Troy has to work all week, the boys and I will head down one night so Hunter and his brother's can wish Grandpa Steve "happy father's day" just a few days late! LOL! Know that you are loved Dad!!!

Camping in the Hills . . .

2009-06-21T19:07:00.006-06:00

We headed up Logan Canyon this weekend for Grandma Satterthwaite's 80th birthday. It was nice to get away for a few days. Saturday morning was beautiful, it had sprinkled just a bit Friday night, but early Saturday was fabulous! While Troy and the boys went for a ride TJ and I hung around camp. TJ loves "pretending to ride" on Daddy's 4 wheeler. Here is Jake and Charli enjoying being outside for a little bit before the rain hit . . .

Travis likes to stay in the tent so he can have his own space, Troy brought our canopy to help keep the rain off as well. It worked okay for Friday night, but with all the rain Saturday, Travis joined us in the trailer.

While TJ and I were hanging at camp he wanted a treat . . .
Say cheese . . .
Here is Dad and Hunter BEFORE the rain hit . . .Boying riding 4 wheelers and playing outdoors is hard work, time for a rest . . .
TJ loves the hand held tire pump, he was fixing everything and anything . . .
Hunter wanted to take a picture of he and I, not too bad with his short little arms . . .
TJ loves his little quad, he was content toting around camp on it rather than on the big machines with his dad and brothers . . .

Now let the mud fun begin! At the end of our camping spot was a huge mud puddle that the boys just couldn't resist. Each time they came back they got muddier and muddier. Troy always says "God made dirt and dirt don't hurt" LOL!

Troy and Travis were the first ones out in the rain and mud . . .Hunter wanted to join big brother and daddy too. Here is round two . . .

Round three was the funniest, they were covered in mud from head to toe! As you can see from their smiles, they didn't mind a bit!

All in all it was a great weekend. I didn't care for the rain too much, but after seeing how much fun my boys had, it was worth it! Before Great-Grandma headed home we got our yearly family photo. It worked out perfect this year because Grandpa Lane and Grandma Leann could be a part of the picture too! You would never know it was the middle of June with our winter coats on. It was pretty chilly.
In photo: Grandma Leann, Grandpa Lane, Travis, Grandma Satterthwaite, TJ, Troy and Hunter

I am always the one taking pictures, but Leann was cute and insisted on taking one of all of us as well . . .

In photo: Hunter, Grandpa Lane, Travis, Grandma Satterthwaite, Michelle, TJ and Troy

Like I stated up above TJ was content hanging out at camp and didn't have much desire to venture out in the mud, that was of course until it was time to go. While Troy and I were picking up camp TJ found a mud puddle and had a blast. He was jumping in hit, throwing rocks at it, doing anything he could to make the mud fly. I couldn't resist taking a picture before I changed him for the ride home. He was grinning from ear to ear! Such a cutie!

Travis has arrived . . .

2009-06-14T19:45:00.005-06:00

The boys and I were lucky enough to go back with Troy to the gate to pick up Travis this morning. The boys thought it was so cool to watch the planes come in and take off.
Hunter saw a bird and got really excited about it . . .TJ was so excited about the plane in the window, he was trying to tell Hunter it was so big, big like a jet. LOL!
We didn't have to wait long, maybe an hour, but the boys were getting restless so I had them make funny faces for me . . .
Finally they spotted a plane that said Frontier . . .
And their big brother was here!
This afternoon we had a BBQ with cousins that Travis doesn't get too see much. Today worked best for all of us since Tina has her hands full the next few weeks with girls camp, boys camp and a wedding out of town. All the kids are growing up way too fast!
In picture above left to right: Samantha, Sammy, Travis, TJ, Jake, Hunter and Erica!

A visit with O'Todd and Uncle Peggy . . .

2009-06-14T19:07:00.006-06:00

Uncle Todd and Aunt Peggy (O'Todd and Uncle Peggy according to TJ) were here last weekend for a few days. It was so fun to have them here.

Aunt Peggy enjoying our boys . . .

Uncle Todd, TJ, Hunter and Ms. Mollie, my parents newest addition . . .
This is my favorite picture, I just wish I would have closed the blinds first, oh well . . .Uncle Todd and TJ chillin on the couch! Uncle Todd and Aunt Peggy need to be around more often, we NEVER get this many smiles out of TJ. LOL!

For dessert after our BBQ I made homemade brownies, Aunt Peggy kept teasing TJ trying to steal a piece of his. It was cute listening to him giggle.
While spending the day at my parents, Troy and Hunter played catch. Millie had to be in the mix of things of course. LOL! Hunter can throw the ball really good but was intimated of catching it at first, but after a few minutes was doing really well.
While Troy and Hunter was playing catch, TJ wanted to roll down the small hill in the front yard , yes I know, a disaster waiting to happen . . .
Hunter under threw the ball to his dad and hit TJ in the head above his right eye . . .

This picture really doesn't tell the story. The poor little guy had a nice indentation and a big read mark dang it!Before Uncle Todd and Aunt Peggy left we met at Andy's for dinner and a drink with Uncle Sam. It was so funny, Uncle Sam kept teasing Troy, that the light was reflecting off his head just right and blinding him. Uncle Sam asked Troy to put on his hat.Here is Uncle Todd and Uncle Sam in his hat . . .
As you can see from the pictures Troy finally had to get glasses. I think he looks really good in them. It was funny, as we were leaving Uncle Todd told Troy he looks like a reformed biker.

Hunter's pre-school graduation . . .

2009-06-04T11:32:00.007-06:00

On Tuesday my Hunter boy had his end of pre-school program and graduation! I can't believe how time flies. Kindergarten in the Fall, are you kidding me?

For the last two years Hunter has been a main stream student in the Bear River Head Start Program in Corrine. He has learned and grown so much! Among Hunter's friends from school he has a friend who is Autistic and another who is in a wheel chair. I am proud to say that Hunter saw each of them as regualr kids and treated them as such! As a mom it warms my heart to know that my son isn't one that teases or is a afraid of someone because they are different!

Hunter has about as much patience as I do, here he sits waiting for the program to start and then let the singing begin . . .

After the kids stopped singing they got up to get their graduation caps and receive their certificates. Hunter was so cute, he just got up, and was behind Ethan so he could get his cap . . .

By this time I am bawling, it was so sweet to see Hunter push Ethan across the room to get his certificate . . .
then run back in line to get his own certificate!

Ms. Kari has been Hunter's teacher for the last two years. She is amazing and will be missed! If I decide to put TJ in the same program, she is definately the teacher I want for TJ too!
During Hunter's program, TJ was busy playing with the tractors. Of course I couldn't get him to smile . . .
Finally after a few tries and with Dad's help we got a little grin . . .

Once TJ got tired of the tractors he moved onto the McQueen cars! Silly boy!

Dylan and Hunter have been in the same class these last two years. Small world, Dylan's mom Julie and I worked with each other at Flying J. We didn't make the connection until almost the end of last school year. The boys may not go to the same school for kindergarten, but that's what play dates are for!

Hunter was excited to show me how he could transform Bumble Bee to match his shirt and asked that I take a picture . . .
Daddy and his boys . . .
Hunter boy with his proud mommy . . .

Teddy Bear Picnic . . .

2009-05-27T11:15:00.004-06:00

I just love the daycare the boys go to! The gals are so cute with the boys and are always planning fun activities. Today the boys were having a teddy bear picnic at the park. TJ wanted to take Pooh Bear and Hunter took his little friend Frank. Gotta love it! LOL!!!!

Happy birthday . . .

2009-05-18T08:31:00.002-06:00

I want to wish my sister a very happy birthday on Saturday! The boys and I enjoyed the sunshine so much I didn't even bother to turn the computer on. I called to wish Melissa happy birthday Saturday morning. She was treating herself to a pedicure!

Today would have been my Grandma Whitney's 89th birthday. Grandma passed away July of 1996 and I met Troy August of 1996, I am saddened that she never got to meet my cute hubby, she would have loved him. It comforts me to know that she is up in heaven looking down on us!

Mother's Day Weekend 2009

2009-05-13T09:35:00.000-06:00

What a fabulous weekend! It was Troy's weekend off too, which made it even better. On Friday we had Melissa, Jer and the kids, LaRue and Gary over for a BBQ. Hunter and TJ love playing with their cousins. While getting ready for bed, the boys brought me cute little sacks they had decorated at daycare. This is what I found inside . . .

A hand painted pot by Hunter with flowers he planted himself . . .

Here is the flower pot that TJ painted and planted, notice the cute little sack it came in . . .

Hunter is as bad as Troy about keeping secrets, here is the darling magnet he made at pre-school and gave to me on Thursday after school . . .

Before our BBQ Friday night Troy spent the day putting in fence posts for the back yard. Saturday morning after we all slept in a bit, Troy was outside putting up the wood slats to enclose our yard. It looks so nice. Updated pictures will be coming soon I promise!

Saturday night we headed to the Logan Derby. Troy worked in the pit for some friends while the boys and I hung out in the stands. It was the cheapest date I had been on in a long time. Our friend had passes for Troy and I, TJ was free and Hunter was $4 bucks! I couldn't have asked for better kids, they were so good and we had a wonderful time! In heat 3 a muscle car (#28) came out and all of us thought, this car is going to take it . . .

Well looks are not everything, because here is the car upside down after just three hits . . .
The boys loved it, they thought it was so cool! The Sheriff was handing out "junior deputy stickers" to the kids. TJ's stayed on all night long! LOL! While being at home with Troy, Hunter earned $5 helping pick up dog poop. Of course there is always silly gadgets to buy, so Hunter used his money (with a little bit of hlep from mom) and bought a Spider Man light necklace, of course little brother wanted one too! They love them!

The boys were up bright and early Sunday morning, even after being out late Saturday night. LOL! That's okay we all enjoyed the morning, Troy cooked us breakfast, then we headed outside to enjoy the sunshine. Right after lunch the boys took a nap so they were pleasant for Grandma Sue and Grandpa Steve's visit that afternoon.

We needed a cheese grater a few weekends ago but I didn't have one (I always buy shredded cheese), thanks to my cute parents I have one now! I want to take a minute and thank my cute mom! She is wonderful, caring, loving and the best mom/grandma we could ask for! We love you very much!

After dinner on Sunday, Hunter decided that he wanted to try and ride his bike without training wheels, he did so good! He was so excited! Of course he only wants dad's help riding his bike, that's okay with me, whatever he is comfortable with works for me! I couldn't have asked for a better weekend!

Inspiration for the morning . . .

2009-05-05T09:01:00.003-06:00

My cute friend Mindy sent this email to me today so I decided to share with everyone.

Mindy, you are amazing, you always know when to say the right thing! I love you! I needed this today, even being gone a week you knew my attitude needed some improvement!

One day I decided to quit....
I quit my job, my relationship, my spirituality.....
I wanted to quit my life.
I went to the woods to have one last talk with God.

"God", I said. "Can you give me one good reason not to quit?"
His answer surprised me...
"Look around", He said. "Do you see the fern and the bamboo?"
"Yes", I replied.

"When I planted the fern and the bamboo seeds, I took very good care of them. I gave them light. I gave them water. The fern quickly grew from the earth. Its brilliant green covered the floor. Yet nothing came from the bamboo seed. But I did not quit on the bamboo. In the second year the Fern grew more vibrant and plentiful. And again, nothing came from the bamboo seed. But I did not quit on the bamboo". He said. "In the third year, there was still nothing from the bamboo seed. But I would not quit. In the fourth year, again, there was nothing from the bamboo seed. But I would not quit.

He said. "Then in the fifth year a tiny sprout emerged from the earth. Compared to the fern it was seemingly small and insignificant. But just 6 months later the bamboo rose to over 100 feet tall. It had spent the five years growing roots. Those roots made it strong and gave it what it needed to survive. I would not give any of my creations a challenge it could not handle. He said to me. "Did you know, my child, that all this time you have been struggling, you have actually been growing roots. I would not quit on the bamboo. I will never quit on you. Don't compare yourself to others." He said. "The bamboo had a different purpose than the fern, yet, they both make the forest beautiful."

"Your time will come," God said to me. " You will rise high!"
"How high should I rise?" I asked.
"How high will the bamboo rise?" He asked in return.
"As high as it can?" I questioned.
"Yes." He said, "Give me glory by rising as high as you can."

I left the forest and brought back this story. I hope these words can help you see that God will never give up on you........

Never regret a day in your life.
Good days give you Happiness.
Bad days give you Experiences.
Both are essential to life.
Keep going...
Happiness keeps you Sweet,
Trials keep you Strong,
Sorrows keep you Human,
Failures keep you Humble,
Success keeps You Glowing,
But Only God keeps You Going!
Have a great day! The Son is shining!!

Happy Birthday Grandpa Lane . . .

2009-05-03T19:16:00.002-06:00

Today is Grandpa Lane's birthday so we all headed to Layton for a BBQ. Poor Troy worked until 6:30 this morning and the boys and I had him up before noon so he could go us.

We didn't stay long since Troy had to be back to work by 5, but it was nice to get together, and let the cousins play. Of course we can't leave Grandma's house without pictures! I love that TJ and Grandpa have the same crinkled forhead! TJ wasn't very happy because in a previous picture with all the cousins, TJ's poor leg got pinched between Grandpa and the arm of the chair. For once Hunter wasn't sticking out his tongue. LOL!
While we were eating Leann brought out her lovely hat that she will be wearing at the camp fire this summer. Ya gotta love it!

It was nice to see Uncle Craig and Aunt Sandi too. With any luck we will see each other again soon up in the hills camping!

A night at the park . . .

2009-04-27T19:13:00.005-06:00

It wasn't extremly warm outside tonight, but bearable if we put jackets on. The boys were full of energy after dinner so we decided to head to the park. They were making me laugh so I decided to take some pictures with my camera phone.

TJ has this new face he pulls where he crinkles his nose, it looks like he is saying no but I just took the picture at the right time. It was funny!

Watching Hunter this year makes me realize even more how grown up he is. He would have nothing to do with the monkey bars last year, now he can go across them like they are nothing. It looks like he is going to fall, but each time he whips himself around and just keeps on going.

Last year TJ didn't like the twirly slide, he thought it was too high, now he just runs right up there and loves going down. When I told him I wanted to take a picture he actually said "cheese". LOL!Hunter thinks its pretty cool to do tricks off the fire pool too! Crazy boy!

Once again Hunter has to stick his tongue out just as I take his picture. LOL!

All in all it was a fun night. Glad the boys got out for a few minutes to burn off some energy before bed time.

Easter 2009 . . .

2009-04-24T09:03:00.006-06:00

Sorry I am a bit late on posting our Easter pictures. For my facebook family, you have seen these already, but for the rest of you . . . here you go . . .

Here is what the Easter Bunny left for TJ, of course it's still all about Lighting McQueen. The Easter Bunny was smart and got two of everything so hopefully the boys wouldn't fight. LOL!

Hunter still love's Transformers, thank goodness the Easter Bunny remembered . . .

Here is Hunter still trying to wake up and standing at a distance to see what TJ got . . .
Hunter loves to draw, color and cut. He was so excited to get his own "kid" scissors for his projects.
Hunter had to spread everything out so we could all see it, it was cute!
TJ wasn't quite sure what to think, So Hunter helped himself to see what was in TJ's basket.
Then it was time to look for Easter eggs. TJ is so his daddy's son, I love the "you want me to do what this early in the morning" look! LOL!

Once TJ realized there were McQueen eggs full of candy to put in his McQueen bucket, he was all over it . . .
Hunter didn't even bother with his bucket, he just wanted to get his Spiderman eggs before brother got them . . .
I wanted to get pictures of the boys in their Easter outfits before they went outside and played in the dirt. Of course TJ was having no part of it. Once again one of his daddy's looks . . .
Let's try standing so I can see the whole outfit . . . No go either!
Finally after teasing him a minute and him giving me the "are you freakin kiddin" me look, we got a smile . . .
Hunter is full of smiles, then at the last minute decides to stick out his tongue! Hopefully this phase doesn't last long! LOL! Notice the lovely Spiderman tattoo's up the arm, he can't just have one . . .
TJ loves to wear Hunter's Spiderman Halloween costume from two years ago, of course it's extra cool when he can be Spiderman and Hulk at the same time . . .
I guess it's okay to smile and laugh when you are a super hero . . .
I know it's alot of pictures, so just one more. Later that day we moved the boys into their new room. TJ decided it was time to take a break and read stories. LOL!
It was a fun day. Mom and Dad came for a few hours that afternoon to give the boys $5. They love getting money in cards. Troy and Dad installed the new storm door out front and we enjoyed egg sandwiches for lunch!

Happy Birthday Mom and Coloring Easter Eggs . . .

2009-04-11T17:27:00.005-06:00

I want to wish my mom a very happy birthday today. My cute mom is my best friend. Sad that it took moving out and getting married to realize how smart my mom really was! Also my mom is the best grandma ever. The boys love their Grandma Sue.

Mom I wanted to thank you for all you do for me and my family. You are loved and appreciated very much! We couldn't ask for a better mom and grandma. I love you very much! Here are some cute photo's of Grandma and her boys . . .

Today was also Aunt's Kari's annual Easter egg coloring party. Troy stayed home to work on the house. The boys and I had a great time though. Hunter enjoyed coloring Easter eggs. He couldn't smile for the camera though, he was concentrating too hard. LOL!

TJ wasn't so sure at first, he was content on eating his candy and just telling me know what color he wanted his eggs. Most of them are green since that is his favorite color!Here TJ is making sure I spelled his name right before we dropped it in the green color.Once we were done coloring eggs I tried to get TJ to smile with Grandma since it was her birthday, but he was having no part of that!

While the kids were coloring Easter eggs, others hid plastic eggs full of candy for the kids to find. They each got 12 eggs and one with their name on it. The special one of each of them had $5 in it. They though that was pretty cool!
After leaving Kari's I took the boys to the dollar store so they could spend their money. They each got a toy, activity/coloring book, a pirate plate, and Spider Man tattoo's. All in all it was a good day. Wish the weather could have been a bit warmer so the boys didn't have to wear jackets. We are excited for the Easter Bunny to visit tonight and see what fun things she leaves for the boys.

Grandma's 50th Birthday Party . . .

2009-04-04T22:46:00.010-06:00

I had a friend make the cake. I know mom was stressing about turning 50 so there was no need to make a black cake.
The boys were being silly this morning before we headed to Ogden so I took a few pictures.

What was suppose to be a big surprise wasn't such a big surprise after all but it still was a great day. Kinda hard to hide all of our cars out front of the Eagles. Dad of course got quite the ear full before they came in. HE HE HE! Mom thought she was going to the Eagles to help Kari decorate Easter eggs for the children's Easter egg hunt (but there was no hunt this year LOL!) We all hid in the back room and yelled surprise when she came in. I love the pointed finger! Like we are all going to get yelled at or something!

We had quite the turn out, lots of friends, new and old. Of course lots of family too! The kids liked to help Grandma open her gifts. The lovely cane is complements of Jeremy, the only one brave enough of all of us kids to do something crazy for mom. She got a kick out of it.

Troy, I and the boys got her the movie Twilight, a plate and a tile with cute sayings for her house. On one of my shopping adventures with Lisa I found a cute "thank you mom" book that I gave her just from me.

Hunter loves to take pictures with my camera and asked if he could take one of me with Grandma, it's not the best angle for us, but I don't want Hunter boy's feelings hurt when he see's this post in the morning and his picture wasn't included. LOL!Grandma and my cute boys. Don't mind Curt in the background trying to be silly.

Troy was cute and took a picture of me and the boys, since I am always the one snapping pictures. Much better angle this time too. LOL!

I have to say thank you to my wonderful hubby who worked until 6:30 this morning and took a quick power nap to be down in Ogden in time for the surprise party. Troy got to be there for the party, but unfortunately he had to leave when it was over to go to work for the night. I feel bad that it will be such a long night for him on such little sleep. Honey know that I love you and appreciate you very much!

After all the food was put away and the decorations taken down, the boys and I hung around for a bit with my parents. The boys played at the pool table. TJ wanted nothing to do with the colored balls . . . he figured out once they went in the hole they never came back unless you put more money in, but the white ball came out every time! It was cute watching them play. Just before we left, TJ decided to sit at the bar with Grandpa!

I finished out the night hanging out with Shayne and Mindy for a few hours while the boys spent some time with Grandma and Grandpa. I have to say it was a great day and I don't mind being in a little bit a trouble with mom, so worth it today! I love you mom!!!!

Crazy Day for April Fool's Day . . .

2009-04-01T20:46:00.005-06:00

Today the boys got to dress crazy for daycare so they wore their clothes inside out, wanted to wear a pair of my socks and have green gel put in their hair. TJ was not amused at seven this morning when I wanted to take pictures. I love that he picked the hospital socks that were tucked in the back of my drawer.
Close up of the green hair, still no smile of course! LOL!
Even tried to bribe him with fish since he was hungry, still no smile . . .
He was being nice and wanted to share his fish with me . . .
Aw finally after much coaxing TJ finely smiled for the camera!
Here is Hunter. I find it interesting that the stains show on the inside of his shirt, but they don't show on the outside of the shirt! CRAZY! Hunter giggles each time I wear these socks, so I thought it was funny when he picked them for today.
Hunter had no problem smiling and being silly for the camera this morning . . .
Hunter thought it would be cool to wear to different shoes as well. One Bumble Bee and one McQueen.
All in all it was a fun day for the boys. They got to eat sandwiches for breakfast and breakfast "taco's" aka burrito's for lunch.

"Old" McDonald Magic Show & an ankle update

2009-03-28T14:17:00.006-06:00

This past Thursday the Ronald McDonald Magic show (Old McDonald's, as my boys call it) was at Hunter's pre-school. Parents and younger siblings were invited as well. I thought it would be fun to take TJ.

I made TJ a hat for Christmas and we don't leave the house without it. "Old McDonald" kept calling TJ Frank Sinatra and saying "Singing in the Rain". TJ didn't find it funny but at least he gave me a cute smile for the picture.When Hunter's class came into the gym, Hunter boy ran straight for TJ and I. We gave him a kiss, but I told him he should sit with his friends from school and we would see him afterwards. It was good plan since TJ wasn't too impressed with the show. He needed a drink and to go potty several times. Hunter thought it was great! He has a habit of sucking on his fingers when he is excited. Of course my phone camera doesn't take the best pictures, but at least you get the idea.
Ronald put on an okay show, the last 20 minutes was great and the kids loved it. I think he spent too much time at the beginning talking so the kids weren't too interested until he pulled out the balloons at the end. He had a great message about reading books and Hunter had a great time so I guess that is all that matters.

So about my ankle . . .

I called my OB's office because Troy has been freaking out about the swelling, insisting it was my heart. Deb, my doctor's nurse, just chuckled as she listened to my story. Basically it is a stress pocket, I have irritated my ankle enough and once it's ready to heal the swelling will go down, could take four to six months to heal, all depending on my body. The brace really wasn't doing anything, my ankle was still swollen at night so I took the damn thing off. After the orthapedic surgeon had tried everything to get the swelling to go down, he would have come to the same conclusion Deb said, different mind sets I guess. So lesson learned, call Deb first, when something is wrong before we fork out hundreds of dollars to have someone else try and fix whatever is wrong with me!

Belated Birthday Wishes . . .

2009-03-26T08:41:00.002-06:00

We want to wish Grandma Leann a very happy birthday! I am sorry we missed it on Tuesday! Hope you guys have a great time at the sand dunes this weekend! One of these times we will make the family trip! Love you!

Beyond Frustrated . . .

2009-03-18T08:30:00.003-06:00

Back on February 23 the SpringHill Suites in Logan opened up. Most of you know I am the admin for the project managers who ran the construction of this. It was an exciting day for all of us, after 14 months, the hotel was finally open. On that day I was back and forth between the hotel and my office, we are in the same complex. That night my feet were exhausted, I thought to myself "WOW fat so we need to work on this a bit." I took my shoes off and my left foot instantly started to swell and bruise. I don't remember stepping wrong or hurting it in anyway, Troy insisted that it was the boots that I was wore. Whatever!

As we watched 24 that night my foot got more swollen by the minute. But once again I didn't think much of it, it would be fine in the morning. To add insult to injury the next morning we had ice rain and I fell not once but twice walking into work that day! GRRRR! I continued through the week nursing my ankle, but each night it kept getting more swollen. The weekend was awful and by the following Monday (March 2nd) I was loosing circulation in my foot, it was ice cold and white. I panic and called my orthopedic doctor who did my knee surgery a few years ago. No sense in seeing the redneck doc in Tremonton, go straight to the specialist.

So in the last two weeks I have had X-rays that show no broken bones, an MRI that shows pockets of fluid and so much swelling that my joints are started to leak due to the pressure, but really no other damage, I have been on a heavy dosage of steriods for seven days to shock my system and help the swelling, to no avail, and then had blood work done to see if I had gout, an infection or several other issues I can't pronounce, just to have the blood work come back as normal! Does this look NORMAL to you?

Now I am not a skinny girl, but I have always had cute ankles and this is NOT cute! So for the time being I am in a boot for the next three weeks to keep the pressure off of my ankle to try and control the swelling. I go back the first week in April to see what happens next. So now I am just telling everyone I have an alien disease because I am tired of the "are you freakin' kidding me" look everyone gives me when I tell them I don't know what I did. It takes special talent to trip on flat surfaces, and I have that special talent!

Kindergarten Round-up . . .

2009-03-12T10:20:00.002-06:00

WOW! Where has the time gone? I can't believe it's already time for kindergarten. It seems like yesterday when Troy and I were sitting in the doc's off, right after mother's day to get confirmation I was pregnant after several years of trying and triple the dose of fertility pills. I blinked again and I was going into labor at Flying J with my cute friend Christie counting how long my contractions were! Now five years later, Hunter and I went this morning for his kindergarten testing. Hunter boy has been so excited for months, it was nice this morning to have him get right out of bed, he picked out his clothes last night, the morning went off without a hitch! LOL!

While I was filling out the paperwork they took Hunter. 15 minutes later he came running back with a cookie and a book. "Look mom I got a cookie and it's before lunch!" I looked at the teacher who brought him back expecting an update on Hunter and all she said was "thanks for coming in". Wait, what, that's it? She proceeded to tell me that if there was a problem with anything they would have come and talked to me. The school hasn't determined if they will have all day kindergarten yet again next year so hopefully mid-June or so we will know if Hunter will go to an am or pm class or my first choice, all day kindergarten.

As we were walking to the truck I asked Hunter how it went. He told me that he wrote his name, even used a lower case "e", which is huge right now because he always wants to write an "E". He did his shapes and colors, then goes "mom, they only had me count to 10 and I can count to 100." I just hugged him and told him I knew how smart he was and before long he could share that with his new teacher in August. He has learned the months of the year and knows he will start school in August, it's cute to hear him sing about it!

A night of grocery shopping . . .

2009-02-28T07:43:00.004-07:00

It finally worked out that I was able to go with Lisa grocery shopping at Smith's last night. She helped me save $62 bucks, it was fabulous! I have kinda slacked off the last few months with my coupons, but going to really try to stay on top of things and go with Lisa once or twice a month. Of course once I drop her off, she sends home 2 more large grocery sacks full of treats for Troy and the boys from the Johnson grocery store she has in her basement. Lisa you have a big heart and I love you!

After our 3 hours at the grocery store we decided to hit McDonald's for an ice cream cone for the ride home. While driving home on main street in Brigham, I get pulled over. I realized when I pulled out of McDonald's I was speeding and before the cop pulled me over I slowed down, but of course it was too late. It took me a minute to pull over since the movie theater was packed and being main street there wasn't much room to pull off the side of the road.

Now once I get nervous I start to talk really fast! The officer is like "first you need to calm down and take a deep breath." Then Lisa and I just started to laugh. The officer then proceeded to tell me they were looking for alcohol. I told him we had ice water and diet coke on the rocks would he like to smell or have a taste. By that time back up had shown up and a lady officer was shining a flashlight in my truck searching for booze. I told the cop that we had been grocery shopping and he was welcome to look. Good thing I didn't stock up on beer for Troy! LOL!

After he took my registration and drivers license I rolled up my window so Lisa and I could continue talking and enjoy our ice cream cones. I didn't notice him coming back so he had to tap on the window and scared the shit out of me, I got ice cream on my nose! I didn't get a ticket thank goodness, he just told us to be safe and slow down. Lisa and I laughed all the way! Never a dull moment when the two of us are together.

A night out with friends . . .

2009-02-24T14:24:00.006-07:00

Last Saturday a group of us from high school met for dinner and then went to Rumors, a club in Ogden for drinks and dancing. It was so fun to see everyone again. Of course I took the heat for not drinking, but hey I had one long commute ahead of me, I don't take any chances when it comes to that stuff! The teasing was all done in fun. DeWayne was nice enough to text me at 1:30 in the morning to let me know that everyone was home safely, some things with me never change! Thanks DeWayne!

I feel really old though because I didn't know one song at Rumors. I like my cousin Nichole's excuse, it's because I am married to a redneck cowboy and we just listen to country music! LOL! I still had a great time though. Rochelle and I manned the table while everyone else got their grove on!DeWayne hasn't changed in 15 years! Always taking care of us and making sure everyone is having a good time!

I love Cami Jo and Candice. It was great to see them both again the other night!AWWW . . . Josh and Rochelle, the cute happy couple! Josh was just sucking up for his comments at dinner . . . being married out of convenience. It wasn't meant how it sounded but it was sure fun giving him grief for it all night long!
Not quite sure what is going on here, but thought it was a funny picture. Nice expression guys!

Here are all of us girls, left to right: myself, Rochelle, Cami Jo, Carrie, Candice and Laura.
It was a fun night out and I look forward to the next outing! Thanks for the pictures Carrie, good thing you always have your camera!

TJ's first ear infection . . .

2009-02-20T09:17:00.004-07:00

TJ has been recouping from an ear infection, the poor little guy. Tuesday night about 9pm he woke up just a screaming! When I went into his room he was holding the side of his head and said that it hurt. TJ is still in the race car toddler bed so my first thought was he rolled over and hit the side of the bed. I cuddled him for a minute, tucked him in and he was out. Not 15 minutes later the screaming started again. That's when I knew it was something more. So from 9pm to 2am TJ and I were up every 20 minutes trying to make him feel better. Nothing worked, not snuggling, not Tylenol, not even a warm wash cloth.

Just before 11 the poor kid threw up everywhere! I put him in a warm bath and got his favorite blanket in the washer. He was devastated that he couldn't have his blanket back right away, but once I gave him my fleece blue blanket (yes the same one I have had since High School! LOL!) he was content for a bit. Of course once his was washed and dried I put his blanket on his bed so when he woke in the morning he would have it.

TJ and I headed to Logan first thing Wednesday for his doctor's appointment. It was confirmed TJ had an ear infection. Not bad to be two and just having his first ear infection. Since Troy was sleeping after all working night, Hunter was a pre-school I decided to take TJ to work with me for a bit. He was a trooper. I brought the DVD player so he watched Horton Hears a Who and CARS. We had lunch in the breakroom and a friend here at work even bought TJ a monster truck toy that she saw while getting gas! He was pampered all day! As you can tell from the picture below, it's hard work spending the day with mommy at work. LOL!

TJ slept for almost two hours that afternoon while I worked. Troy called while TJ was napping and I couldn't see any point in waking him up just to meet Troy so instead of being at work with me for just a few hours, it ended up being all day. Glad I have good bosses, they would rather me bring in my two year old, than work from home. LOL!

Monster Jam for Valentines Day . . .

2009-02-16T19:08:00.005-07:00

Troy got this past weekend off since he moved to nights this week so I decided to get the boys Monster Jam tickets for Valentines day. Best money I have spent in a long time!

When we first arrived the trucks were just driving into the arena to get ready for the show, TJ first noticed them on the big TV while enjoying cotton candy & Hunter was just a giggling . . .

We had the camera ready once the big trucks started the show. This first one is for you Jamie. . . The boys didn't want to wear the ear plugs, but when the big trucks came out I made them put them in, this is Hunter being not so happy with me!
TJ didn't know what to think, he sat on either mine or Troy's lap when the trucks came out. He talks non stop about it now so I know he had a great time! I was a bit excited too! LOL!

Hunter could hear the motorcyles, oh I mean dirt bikes, as Hunter keeps reminding me, but he couldn't see them . . .
But boy once they game out he loved it!

TJ thought the dirt bikes were pretty cool and kept making noises with his mouth! It was very funny and dang cute!

TJ loved that the cotton candy, he ate it threw the whole show! LOL!

We have decided we would like to go to the motorcross in April when they come. What a fun birthday for me, a day with my boys watching motorcycles!

Enjoying our Saturday as a family . . .

2009-02-07T15:49:00.004-07:00

Since Troy had the day off we decided to head to Ogden for the day. The first of December was the last time we saw Kellie. We headed to her shop for haircuts. Kellie of course has to spoil the boys with colored gel. LOL!

After our haircuts we headed to grandma and grandpa's house for the afternoon. My sister and family gave Grandpa a digital frame for Christmas so Troy, I and the boys bought a memory card for his birthday and loaded 200 pictures of the grandkids for him to enjoy. Easiest and most enjoyed gift we have given dad in years! It has been nice to spend the day as a family!

Happy Birthday Dad!

2009-02-03T06:15:00.002-07:00

I just wanted to take a minute and wish my cute dad a very happy birthday!

Dad, you have taught me alot in my life, even more so now that I am a mom, you have always been there when I needed. We don't always see eye to eye and have bumped heads a few times, but I want you to know that I love you so much! You are so good to Troy too. He loves and respects you very much.

Our boys are very lucky to have you as their Grandpa! They think the world of you and love you tons!
Dad is always telling the boys "no whining at Grandpa's" so for Christmas I had the perfect sign made!
I think it is so cute how TJ calls my dad . . . Grumpa, TJ couldn't have given him a better name. From the scowl on their faces you can see it's a family trait. LOL!Happy Birthday dad! Sorry we won't see you for your special day, but we look forward to spending some time with you and mom this weekend! Have a great day!!!!

Dinner tonight. . .

2009-01-29T22:05:00.004-07:00

So to some, you will think, "what's the big deal?" To those family and friends who know me best will go "WOW, finally!" Let me explain . . .

Troy and I don't normally take the boys out to dinner, unless it's Wendy's or the local diner here in town. First we can't justify $50 for dinner, second I am just an over paranoid mom who doesn't want to have the hyper, wild child in a restaurant that everyone is looking at. Our boys struggle sitting still so it's just better and less stressful to have dinner at home.

Today at work my boss came out and said he had $100 gift certificate to Blackstone that needed to be used. We have heard rumors that the restaurant was closing, so rather than have it go to waste, he invited his son-in-law (my other boss) and family, plus Troy, I and the boys. My first reaction was to immediately decline. Nice thought, but are you kidding me? I thought I was off the hook because they were not going to meet for dinner until 7:30. Sweet that is TJ's bed time! Well after trying to confirm whether or not the restaurant was really closing it's doors or not, it was decided that dinner would be at 6. My boss was not taking no for an answer!

I called Troy and he thought cool! Of course cool for him, it was his night to cook and now he doesn't have too! When I told Hunter we were going to dinner with my bosses and their families, he yelled "HURRAY mom and what are their names?" He wants to know everyone's name, even strangers he says hi to in passing, he always wants to know their name. LOL! I had anxiety for an hour. What the hell am I going to do at a restaurant with two boys who are used to eating at 5:30, only order mac and cheese when we go to the local diner and really struggle sometimes using their quiet voices.

Troy worked hard today, plowing the snow, moving the trailers around before the snow melts, TJ had an accident while taking a nap so he had to do a load of laundry and he even loaded the dishwasher! WOW, I guess his reward was drinking beer all afternoon! Now let me tell you my boss is the Stake President so Troy was warned that no alcoholic drinks would be ordered at dinner. Troy did pull it off really well though and wasn't toasty enough that he was slurring his words, but was in no shape to drive! I thought oh gosh, what have I gotten myself into! LOL!

I do have to say the night actually went rather smoothly. Darren and Katie have 3 little girls, 5, 2 and a month old baby. You know my kids don't get out much because when the waitress brought out the carafs of water, Hunter boy goes "WOW mom those are big glasses of water." LOL! I was releaved to see that mac and cheese was on the menu ($6.95 though! are you freakin kidding me?!) Hunter, bless his heart, when his plate arrives, yells "mom it's not yellow, how come it's white?" Once we convinced him that it was okay to eat white cheese and noodles he loved it. TJ was a champ as well. Before dinner arrived the boys had warm bread, my salad had dried cranberries and TJ could not get enough. Troy ordered prime rib and it arrived with green beans, which are the boys favorite veggie. They were long and skinny . . . Hunter loved them, TJ freaked out and said he didn't want to eat a snake! Of course that made everyone laugh! I ordered chicken alfredo. It was okay, the few bits I got to have. It never fails, no matter what time dinner is, the boys alway have to go potty right in the middle. So I took both boys, well by the time they were both done with their business, everyone was done with their dinners. I wasn't willing to keep everyone waiting just so I could finish so I put it in a box and will enjoy the leftovers for lunch tomorrow.

So Mom and Shelly we (more to the point I) survived. It's not anything I want to try again anytime soon, but just thought I would let you know that I was a big girl and we took the boys to a big kid restaurant! Yes I know people do it all the time, but it was outside my comfort level and a big step for me. LOL!

A night out with friends . . .

2009-01-25T08:51:00.006-07:00

Troy and I went to Nichole and Clint's last night for a BBQ and a few games on the Wii. Grandpa Lane and Grandma Leann took the boys for a few hours, so it was a good night for all! Shayne and Mindy, Ann and Kevin joined us for the evening as well. Congrats to Uncle Shayne who bought a new Dodge truck, it's beautiful! Now Nichole and I get to hear how Shayne got a new truck and how much Troy and Clint want a new one. LOL!

Of course the night of playing games cannot be without Troy antagonizing Nichole! I forgot my camera at home so they are not the best pictures, but my camera phone is all that I had.

Once Shayne figured out how the gadget worked, he hit a strike or a spare everytime. He kicked everyone's butt at bowling!
I love how Baxtor and Harley are right in the middle of things and could care less about us bowling and having a good time!Mindy was a trooper and played bowling with the Nichole and the boys as well. We have decided that we like playing bowling on the Wii much better than at the bowling alley! LOL!

It was a fun night. Troy and I are truly blessed to have such wonderful friends and family. I know we don't get together as often as we should, but know that when we do it's appreciated more than you know!

Nichole and Mindy . . . I hope your heads don't hurt too bad this morning since you had to taste test just a few (LOL) bottles of wine, since none of them tasted just right. Love you girls!

TJ is a big boy . . .

2009-01-20T13:19:00.002-07:00

It's been a week of potty training with TJ with no accidents! HURRAY! We started on the porta potty about a month ago, but we put him in big boy underwear this past week so now he wants to use the regular potty like his brother! Glad it has been a smooth transition. I can't believe how big he is getting. I am so proud of him! Way to go TJ!!!

A difficult decision . . .

2009-01-13T19:59:00.003-07:00

A few weeks ago Diesel nipped at TJ and it freaked me out. Diesel is a good dog but I was not longer comfortable having him around the boys. We are not sure why Diesel decided to snap at TJ since they have been buds for a year. Troy and I were sick about it for days and come to the decision that we needed to get rid of him. We didn't want him to go to the pound and put down . . . just to a good home, with older children so he could have the attention he so deserved.

It was a very difficult decision for Troy. Here we have his dream dog, and his wife pushing to get rid of him. It was a hurdle that Troy and I had to overcome, but we did it together and I love Troy more than ever for supporting me in this, no matter how much it broke his heart.

After posting an ad, a guy called Troy this past weekend inquiring about Diesel. They had a female St. Bernard that unfortunatley lost the battle with cancer. His 6 year old granddaughter was a mess, so he thought Diesel would be perfect. Mario brought his granddaughter Raven up tonight to get Diesel. She had fallen asleep, but would have a wonderful surprise when she woke up! He was a true dog lover for sure . . . he had a truck but instead brought his car so Diesel wouldn't get cold on the ride back home to Layton. A true dog lover to let a 150 pound drooling dog hang out in the back seat. LOL!

Diesel will be missed dearly, but I truly believe we made the right decision and he has been placed in a good home. Jake and Charli are a little bit lost too, but with time we will all learn to cope.

Playing the Wii at Aunt Nic's and Uncle Clint's . . .

2009-01-11T08:51:00.003-07:00

Yesterday we went to Nichole and Clint's for a BBQ. They got a Wii for Christmas so after dinner we all decided to have some fun.

Troy decided to beat Nichole at the cow game he had to stand rather than sit!

Then of course the boys have to compete!

Hunter wanted a turn with his dad so Uncle Clint helped him get the hang of the game.TJ was far more interest in watching Lightning McQueen than playing the Wii!It was a fun night. Thanks Nichole, it was nice to spend a night out of Tremonton! LOL!

Girls night out with Lisa . . .

2009-01-03T08:27:00.003-07:00

Last night Lisa called and asked if I wanted to go to see Twilight with her. She had free movie tickets, which made it even better. I know I am late seeing the movie, but we really had a good time. I am still one of the few Jacob fans . . . Edward was okay, and I liked him better in the movie than in the book, but sorry Edward fans, I am still a Jacob fan!

Once the movie was over we wanted some ice cream, well at midnight, our choices were very slim in Logan. After driving to the south end of town and back to the north end of town we settled for McFlurries from McDonalds. LOL

It was a really fun night. We stayed up chatting until 2 this morning. Lisa, you are a true friend and I love you very much! Lis, I have decided one thing though . . . I am too dang old to stay up until 2am and then be bright eyed and ready to be up with the boys at 7 :30. It's okay though it was so worth it!!! I look forward to the next girls night out, which we need to do much sooner than later!

Hunter turns 5 and Happy New Year!

2009-01-01T21:08:00.011-07:00

I cannot believe the 2008 is already over! Boy does time fly. Speaking of time flying, Hunter boy turned 5 yesterday! We had his party on Saturday. It's all about Transformers still at our house. Troy and I gave Hunter a portable DVD player with the new Hulk movie. I have decided it's more of a gift for mom that it is for Hunter. LOL! The boys are so quiet when we go for rides in the truck now. The golden rule dad always said, "silence is golden" I truly believe that with the boys!

Great Grandma Poorte made the trip with Grandma Rue. Hunter was excited to receive $5 from Grandma Great!

Thanks Aunt Kari for sending the $10 with mom and dad. On Sunday we headed to Logan and Hunter bought his own copy of Iron Man so we didn't have to borrow it from Bryan and Kristi anymore.

My parents bought Hunter Wall E and the new SpongeBob game for his smart cycle. Grandma Rue gave him a new game and outfit.

Like I said it's all about Transformer's at our house. Bryan, Kristi and the kids gave Hunter Bumblebee. TJ gave Hunter Jazz. The second picture is Uncle Clint and TJ playing with Hunter's new toys. LOL!

Here is the cool new jacket that is part of the outfit that Aunt Nic and Uncle Clint gave Hunter. It's his new favorite thing to wear! It's a must have every where we go! LOL!

The weather was still pretty snowy, but we were glad that he still had a nice party! We don't do much for New Year's Eve, we like to just stay home. Bryan, Kristi and the kids came over for the night. We just hung out, enjoyed some taco soup, munchies and played cards all night! We are old and boring. . . 20 minutes after the ball dropped, the lights were out and Troy and I were in bed! LOL!

We told Hunter that we would take him bowling for his birthday. It didn't work out yesterday, but we took him today and what a hoot that was! He had never been before, so that made the experience even more special for his birthday. The gal at the local bowling alley was darling with the boys. Once she realized it was Hunter's birthday she gave him a free t-shirt, of course he had to put it on right then.

TJ wasn't so sure about the shoes, but once he put them on he wanted me to take a picture. LOL!

Hunter being the birthday boy got to go first. Here is dad giving Hunter some direction . . .He actually did very well. Yes we had the bumper pads up, he shot an 84, which is much better than I can shoot on a good day.

TJ was still a little too small to roll the ball down the lane so we used the ramp instead, dad would set the ball . . .

Then TJ would push it!

Afterwards TJ got so excited he had to a do a little dance! He was so dang cute!The boys didn't know what to think the first time Troy got a strike and the pins went a flyin'!

All in all it was a great 2 days! We went to my parents this afternoon for dinner. Melissa, Jeremy and the kids came over as well and the cousins had a great time playing. Due to the weather they didn't make it to Hunter's birthday party, but gave him a new transformer for his collection today! It's a jet, I think Starscream?! Heck I can't keep them straight. All I know is he was was excited and he had to sleep with it tonight.

Merry Christmas 2008

2008-12-26T11:24:00.003-07:00

Santa definately didn't forget our house this year! The boys ended up with Vtech laptops, leapsters, Curious George animal with book, match box trucks, learning books, pj's and new toothbrushes. Santa was smart and brought 2 of everything! Makes things nicer in our house with two boys who want what the other brother has! LOL!

I got Troy a new grill for our counter. Also a DVD cleaner (much cheaper than replacing our DVD's), a new belt and boxers. We have an anatomic clock as well, but Diesel ate the sensor at our old house so it no longer tells us the outside temperature, so I got Troy a new one. I didn't know you could just replace the sensor until after the gift was bought so now we will have one for the trailer too! I wanted some turtlenecks so for the first time in years, Troy actually went shopping! I got some beautiful turtleneck sweaters, a nice pair of comfy jammie's and new house slippers! One for inside and one for outside. He is tired of me stealing his each time I need to run outside really quick!

We got hit with a really bad snow storm so unfortunatley, my parents or Troy's mom didn't made it for a visit. Grandpa Lane and Leann made it though! It was really nice to have some one on one time with them. Leann made a cool candy book. She got tired of looking in this book or that book for a certain receipe so she collected her favorites and put it in a binder. I was lucky enough to get a copy! Thank you Leann. I look forward to attemping to make candy next year! She and Lane also gave us a movie gift card. Make note Nichole and Mindy for our date night in January! No excuses from Troy now that we can't go! LOL! The boys got books, trucks and pj's too. Thanks Cathey and Makiya for sending the boys presents!

Aunt Nic and Uncle Clint got the boys gift cards so I did some shopping and put the gifts under the tree. The boys were excited when they got Kung Fu Panda and Horton Hears a Who. With the gift card I also bought the boys underwear. Hunter has been asking for boxers like he dad and at the moment it is all about Transformers in our house. TJ loves Thomas the Train so hopefully that will be more incentive for him to go potty more often in the big boy potty! Thanks Aunt Nic and Uncle Clint! You are loved more than you will ever know!

Bryan, Kristi and the kids came over in the afternoon for dinner. The kids spent the day playing their DS's and leapsters. Towards the end of the night I got a cute picture of all the kids sitting on the couch in their pj's playing their games. Hunter wanted to play in the snow all day, so once Tori and Dallas arrived, they played outside for a bit. When Hunter was done, he was a snowball front to back. His snow pants and coat were soaked, they weighed as much as he did! LOL! Bryan brought over the Hulk movie. Hunter and TJ thought it was awesome! At one of the fight sceens, TJ was funny he kept saying "scare me" as he was laughing at the TV. Goofy kid! We, the adults, spent the night playin Skipbo.

It was different not having my parents here for the day. We did enjoy the day though and I think we had a really nice Christmas. We missed having Travis this year, but we talked to him last night on the phone. Sounds like he had a really nice Christmas too! We look forward to his summer visit! Now the fun begins on taking the holiday stuff down, putting all the new toys away, hanging up the new clothes and hopefully getting the house back in order! I am one that usually likes the tree up through the New Year, but tomorrow is Hunter's birthday party and our living room is really small. I thought we should take it down today, but Hunter wants it up for his birthday, so we will see who wins! LOL!

Love to all and I hope everyone had has wonderful Christmas as we did!!!!

Christmas Eve 2008

2008-12-26T10:31:00.009-07:00

Troy and I had to work on Christmas Eve, but we were lucky enough for the storm to hold out so we could make a trip to Ogden. We started the evening out at LaRue's for dinner and presents with Melissa, Jeremy and the kids. Hunter got the the airplane set for his Geo tracks, TJ got a new little people's racing set, Troy and I got a canning pot. LaRue thinks I can learn to cook salsa and do some canning! She forgets I can't cook, I can just bake. LOL! It will be fun to try and learn new stuff. Troy and I are excited! We all got pj's from Grandma too! Melissa, Jeremy and the kids gave Hunter a SpongeBob plug and play it and TJ a new tractor. LaRue collects Nutcrackers and a few years ago the Wizard of Oz Nutcracker's came out so we gave her the Tin Man. Last year I couldn't find them so this year she got two. We found Dorothy and the Scarecrow. They are very cute. It was a nice visit. Before we left the boys had to put their new jammie's on. Kung Fu Panda for Hunter and Lightning McQueen for TJ.

We headed to my parents next. Since a storm was brewing they didn't know if they would make it up Christmas day so we decided to take presents to them just in case. We all made out like bandits. The boys got new clothes, fish crackers, fruit snacks and new drink cups. Mom and dad stocked our freezer for our Christmas gift! That will last us 6 months or more! Thank you and we love you!!! We never know what to get my parents because they always tell us "nothing". I had little signs made for all the kids and came across one that said "No Whining at Grandpa's" and just knew dad needed that since he always says that. We got mom a really pretty pink pearl necklace and earring set. Then I found a cute "Grandparents" picture frame and put a picture with them and the boys when Travis was here in the summer.

Grandpa really liked his new sign, we had to take a picture with he and the boys!!!

Just thought I would show you, I wasn't kidding when I said my parents stocked our freezer for our Christmas gift!!!

Presents with Lisa and Gracie . . .

2008-12-26T09:07:00.004-07:00

Thackeray 2008 Christmas Party . . .

2008-12-26T08:34:00.008-07:00

Carolyn and I have been friends for over 10 years now. In the summer we have our annual Bear Lake Trip and in December we are included with their family Christmas party. We look forward to each year because there's great food and the boys get to see Santa. Unfortunately we missed the dinner part since the freeway was closed last Saturday due to idiots who couldn't drive in the snow . . . but we made it in time for Santa! We always have a chat with Hunter before hand to remind him that Santa is not scary and that it is okay to sit on his lap. No hesistation this year!

TJ freaked last year when Santa called his name, but not this year! The second Santa mentioned treat, he was off. That's all he cared about was the treat, he could have cared less about the present! The second picture is my favorite. I love how he is holding Santa's hand and just looking up listening. So precious!

Hunter got a new Spider Man game! Thanks to Aunt Lisa and Lindsay for helping Santa get that present. Kinda a little history about that present . . . last year Aunt Lisa gave Hunter a Spider Man game. He played it constantly. While we were packing and moving this summer we had a neighbor boy stop by and play with Hunter. Well the boy ending up stealing the game from our home. I confronted him and his parents but they stood their ground. I find it very interesting that a 10 year old would have the same game that is intended for 5 year olds, but whatever! So since then Hunter has talked non stop about asking Santa for a new game. I had looked everywhere. I finally told Lisa the story and she was able to look back through her stuff and get me the name of the right one. Lindsay, a friend I work with, ordered it for me through her account on Amazon. So thank you very much Lisa and Lindsay for helping make Hunter's visit with Santa extra special this year! He was so excited when he got the game!!!

TJ loves magnics. He has the ABC's and animals. So now he has the car wash one that has a train, a boat, a plane and car that makes all sorts of noises and sounds. It's cute to watch him play with it now. He is getting too big too fast!

As we are getting ready to leave I realize we didn't have a family Christmas picture yet so Carolyn took one of us. Of course being the end of the night Hunter was ongry, but oh well at least we got one this year! Now that I am back on Weight Watchers hopefully next year I won't have 14 chins! LOL! I just love ALL my boys, they are the cutest!

Grinch Hair . . .

2008-12-22T08:48:00.005-07:00

The boys and I went to get our haircuts on Saturday. Hunter boy wanted colored gel in his hair so Kellie added green and yellow. TJ wanted to be just like big brother! LOL! They went all day telling everyone they had Grinch hair. It was cute! I need to find some hairspray (non colored of course!) that lasts like that crap . . . the boys still had green spikey hair on Sunday and it took 2 washings to get their hair back to normal! It was worth it though, they loved it!

We are going private . . .

2008-12-18T08:46:00.003-07:00

I have decided to mark our blog as private. I will be changing our blog this weekend. If you are family or a friend who doesn't leave a comment but just likes to see what is going on in our lives please leave me a comment or send me an email so I can give you permission to view our blog. You will have to then log in to view our blog. I will be adding all my fun blogger friends so if by chance I miss someone please send me an email. Love to all!!!!

Happy Birthday to Troy!!!

2008-12-08T10:15:00.004-07:00

Today is my cute hubby's birthday! Yes he is the old guy of the family! LOL! Troy is 38 today, which by no means is old but he will always be older than me (and yes older that Nichole too!). She likes to make that point with Troy often. She sent him a cute birthday card that said "Thanks . . ." and then she wrote on the side "for being older than me!" Nothing like family love!

Troy had to work this past weekend so the boys and I made him his favorite cake yesterday. The boys were cute, they loved poking holes in the chocolate cake before we poured on the sweetened condensed milk and carmel. Then of course they had to have a spoonful of each! LOL! The cool whip got all over their noses while trying to lick the lid. They weren't too sure about the toffee bits until I made them try a taste and then they wanted more!

Troy was in desperate need of a new winter coat so my parents went in on a Carhart coat with me and the boys. Of course I gave it to him a week ago because he was hanging Christmas lights and didn't have a warm coat, sucker I know! Saturday we stopped and Smith and Edwards to get the hat that goes with it. Now he is all set to work in the freezing temperatures at work and will be toasty warm when the snow hits and he is out playing on his 4 wheeler.

Thanksgiving 2008 . . .

2008-11-27T19:01:00.003-07:00

It has been a nice relaxing day here at home. After enjoying blueberry pancakes for breakfast Hunter wanted to play Twister . . .

We watched the Macy's parade and the dog show. Later in the afternoon my parents came up for the dinner. Before the feast was ready, Grandpa and Hunter enjoyed a game of golf . . .
Troy did a wonderful job on the turkey, it was delicious!!! Thanks to my dad for making the gravy. That is his specialtity so we were glad he jumped in so I didn't take the easy way out making gravy from the package. LOL!Thanks to my cute mom who helped feed the boys and of course put the kitchen back in order. My mom and dad made wonderful pies for dessert, pumpkin cheese cake and apply pie. Hunter is not much of a dessert fan, but he devoured Grandpa's apple pie. TJ enjoyed the "punkin pie".

Just before bath time TJ had to read his favorite story . . .
I hope everyone enjoyed their holiday as much as we did! Now I need to get busy and get ready for Christmas. Hunter is excited that his dad will be putting the lights on the house this weekend. Santa will definately be able to see our house once Troy get's finished. LOL! Love you all!

Birthday wishes and a trip to the dentist . . .

2008-11-20T14:26:00.003-07:00

We want to wish Aunt Nic a very happy birthday today! She is a wonderful person and a very great god mother to our boys. We love you!!!!

Happy birthday to my dear friend Kate. She will always be older than me! LOL! Unfortunately after 20 years of being friends I forgot to call her on her birthday. I shouldn't have forgotten because she shares the same day as my parents anniversary. Bad friend this year! Know that you are loved Katie and we miss you guys! We are looking forward to a fun boat ride next summer at Bear Lake! Glad that our friendship hasn't changed over the years, despite our busy schedules and distant of travel to see each other.

Also I want to send birthday wishes to my great Angie! She and I have been friends since we were kids. We grew up clogging together. We don't get together as often as we both would like, thank heaven for our kids birthday parties. LOL! That's when our paths tend to cross. Ang, I love ya dear and truly appreciate your friendship!

Yesterday we took the boys to the dentist. We have been preparing for weeks, telling the boys that is a nice place to visit, reading SpongeBob's book about his trip to the dentist and just talking about what to expect. It really went quite well. Hunter went first and sat back in the chair and let the hygentist clean his teeth. He thought the suction hose was so funny! He thought the flouride was delicious. When the dentist came in he wanted to count how many teeth Hunter had. Of course he counted silly and Hunter kept correcting him. Once Hunter got out of the chair, he looked right at me and goes"I was so brave huh mom!" TJ was a little hesitant at first but once the hygentist gave him a new tooth brush and he got to brush his own teeth he was set. For the dentist to look in TJ's mouth, TJ had to help hold the mirror and look at a book. LOL! Our dentist was so sweet with the boys, we will definatly go back to him. All in all the boys teeth are healthy. TJ still doesn't have his 2 year molars, poor kid, I thought we were done with teething! Hunter has a little yellow spot on one of his front bottom teeth that the doctor wants to remove. We go back next month, should be a real treat, Hunter on laughing gas! LOL!

Happy Anniversary, some more great deals and our cute boys . . .

2008-11-16T14:29:00.004-07:00

Happy anniversary to my cute mom and dad yesterday celebrating 33 years! Unfortunately my mom has had the flu for a week so she spent the day on the couch. We usually do dinner on Sunday with my parents, but she was still too sick today to come up. Dang it! I hope you get feeling better soon mom! We love you!!! LaRue came up for the afternoon and the kids had a fun day with their grandma.

Lisa and I went shopping Friday night and I got some killer deals. The steamer veggie packages were $1.27 at Wal-mart. They actually rang up $1.08 and Lisa had ten $1.00 off coupons so I got them for .08 cents a piece! She didn't think I could beat the .27 cents she paid earlier in the week, but lucky for me I did! Lisa also shared her deodrant and kids toothpaste coupons, final price for deodrant was .17 cents and kids toothpaste was $1.75. She got several feminine products for free after using her coupons, I think we made out like bandits! Smith's was still having their mega deals so we both saved and stocked up there too! Lisa you are a god send and I appreciate your help with getting me going on saving money with my coupons! I was really hesitant to start the coupon cutting with pinching your pennies, but after saving almost $300 this month I am hooked!

Glad I could save money on groceries because a light bulb went out on our big screen TV Thursday night. The dang thing was $200 to replace! Oh well, not something we expected, but needed to fix. Unfortunately we had to cancel our date night with Nichole, Clint, Mindy and Shayne with this added expense. Good thing we have great and understanding friends. I look forward to rescheduling!

Happy birthday to Nichole on Thursday! She threw herself a birthday party Saturday, it was fun to get out and have lunch with the girls! While I was in Ogden Troy was home with the boys. TJ was suppose to be taking a nap . . . RIGHT!

Unfortunatly those are not washable markers and the poor kid has to wear the stuff off! LOL! I tried to scrub off what I could but there are still faint lines on his cute little face. He knew he was in trouble the minute I opened the door. Hunter boy had left out his Spider man markers and TJ decided to help himself. Sorry the pictures are blurry I am having issues with my digital camera. GRRRR!

I know this is a long post, but it's been a week and alot has happened. Last night Troy built a fire in our fire pit. While the boys and I were inside for a minute Troy raked the coals. Well the rake broke and we walked out just as Troy put down the metal piece of the rake. Not knowing what had just happened and before Troy would say "don't touch" Hunter went over and grabbed it. Holy crap he made an awful scream! The poor kid had black plastic burned into his skin. I wish I would have taken a picture but that wasn't the priority last night. We brought him in the house for a cold wash cloth and ice cubes. He cried and shook for almost an hour. I felt awful, Troy felt even worse and blamed himself. After convincing Hunter that the aloe vera plant wouldn't hurt, Troy cut off a small piece and laid it on the burn. It helped immensely! I thought for sure this morning Hunter's hand could be blistered, but there is only a tiny blister on his index finger. Thank goodness because it could have been alot worse! Hunter has learned he does not touch anything by the fire without asking first!

Thanks a ton . . .

2008-11-08T22:42:00.003-07:00

to my cute friend Lisa! We went grocery shopping today with her shoe box of coupons and she was nice enough to share. I have been dragging my feet on this whole pinching your pennies thing, but after what I saw today, I need to get started!

Thanks again Lisa, you are a true friend and I love you very much!

All is well here. Troy is working this weekend. Brianna and Brittnay came and watched the boys for me so I could grocery shop and get my nails done. Troy brought home crates of wood so he can build a deck in our patio area. That will be nice and plus it will get rid of the mud that is there now. Troy completed most of the fence repairs that we needed done to contain the dogs. We just need to find that magic money tree for gates. LOL!

At the boy's daycare they have been talking about having an emergency plan in case of a fire, earthquake, etc. and tonight before bed Hunter was telling me how important it was to have a fire alarm so I showed him where ours was. He thought ours should have a big light on it, like the one at school, I just smiled and said it still works the same, it will make a loud noise if there is a fire. He also told me about calling 911 in an emergency. I just amazes me how fast he is growing up!

The other day I was empting out my purse with change and got out the coin jar. I gave the coins to the boys to put in their banks, it was the first time that TJ actually wanted to participate. The boys sat at the table and put coins in their banks for almost an hour. It was cute. TJ's is a big pig and sings "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star". Every once in awhile TJ would turn the pig around and kiss it on the nose. It was funny! Hunter's is a cow bank, every so often each boy would say MOO MOO. While I was making dinner Hunter was teaching TJ the words to the song. Just another great memory to add to the file box when they are fighting and crying. LOL!

Diesel has finally realized that if he is not so rowdy in the house he gets more time inside with us. With the weather turning bad I have been trying to work with him on his house manners. LOL! I am still struggling with the counter surfing though, Drives me crazy!!! He is just such a big dog, like a bull in a china cabinet. I feel guilty leaving the dogs out all day and half the night until I go to bed, but this little house isn't big enough for two busy little boys and three rowdy dogs. We still have a lot of work ahead of us with Diesel, but these little steps makes things a tad bit easier. We have been spoiled for so long with Jake and Charli, we hardly know they were around because they find a corner and sleep, but Diesel, hell he's an area rug in a room!

Happy Halloween . . .

2008-11-01T00:44:00.005-06:00

Hunter has recovered from Wednesday. THANK GOODNESS! Here are the boys out on our front lawn just before we headed out trick or treating . . .

Of course TJ wanted to take a picture by our spider after they stood by the pumkin . . .

How can you resist this cute little dragon?! Then of course, it's all about Transformers at our house . . . Hunter as Bumblebee . . .
We had a fun night. We were invited back to our old neighborhood for a party at the park. It was kind of like a trunk or treat, but instead everyone was in lawn chairs handing out candy. The kids had fun and Hunter enjoyed spending time with his old friends for a bit. The weather was nice and since we haven't done the time change yet, it was fun to be out before dark and not have it so cold!

Small world, we ran into Troy's friend Christopher. He is dating a girl here in Tremonton and just happened to be at the same park party. We haven't seen him since last summer. After trick or treating we came home for a warm bowl of chilli. I have to say it turned out quite yummy for my first attempt at making it from scratch rather than opening a can of Nalley's. LOL!

Christopher and his new friend, along with Kami and Lindsay (cute girls I work with) all joined us to finish out the night for a fire at our fire pit.

My poor Hunter boy . . .

2008-10-29T07:23:00.002-06:00

Is home sick today, DANG IT! He woke up this morning at 3:30 complaining of a tummy ache. I told him to go potty and I would get him something to make him feel better. He came running into the kitchen screaming that his tummy hurt and he was going to throw up. I tried to get him to go back to the bathroom but he wanted a bowl instead.

To give you a little history on the bowl . . . since Hunter was one, at least once a year he gets the flu where he throws up constantly every 30 minutes, on the dot practically! When he was one he didn't fully understand that you had to get to the bathroom to throw up, so instead we gave him a bowl so we didn't have to clean up the mess every 30 minutes. Thus he is used to the bowl, and it's far more convenient than running to the toliet every 30 minutes. We just made a little bed on the floor in our room, that way I can get up with him as he needs and he isn't waking up TJ.

Poor little guy. I feel so bad for him. I know I have to keep give him sips of water to keep him hydrated, it's just sad to see it come right back out 30 minutes later. Here in a little bit when TJ wakes up I will go and get some Sprite and with any luck he will be able to keep that down.

Not that I wish my kids sick or anything, but I am glad that it happened today rather than on Friday for Halloween. He has been looking forward to wearing his costume and his little heart would have been broken if he had to stay home.

Loyalty . . .

2008-10-24T13:48:00.002-06:00

You can't buy loyalty, they say
I bought it though, the other day
You can't buy friendships, tried and true
Well just the same, I bought that too.
I made my bid and on the spot
Bought love and faith and a whole job lot
Off happiness, so all in all
The purchase price was pretty small
I bought a single trusting heart,
that gave devotion from the start
If you think these things are
NOT FOR SALE
Buy a brown-eyed puppy with a wagging
tail!

This was included on a dear friends funeral announcement and I loved it so much I had to share it with all my dog loving friends!