Mini M & M's

Dribble and Shoot! Basketball 2011

2012-02-01T16:09:00.000-08:00

The boys had a great time playing basketball this last year. This was Brock's first year and we weren't sure what to expect. He played soccer last year and really liked it (in fact he wants to play again) but he was always so hesitant to even touch the soccer ball. He would just run with the "herd" and really never showed much interest in wanting to get in and kick the ball. Of course he was barely 5 at the time and had never played or watched anyone play the sport before. But.....he did have A LOT of fun which is really all you can ask for. So therefore, we wondered if he would even want to touch the basketball. But.....he pleasantly surprised us! He not only had a ton of fun, but he worked really hard and enjoyed dribbling, passing, and shooting. We were so proud of him!

Cannon also enjoyed his first year of basketball here in Idaho. It really helped that he ended up on a team with 5 of his classmates, one of which has become one of his best buddies. Cannon really loves the game of basketball and we had a great time watching him play. Now onto the next sport! :-)

Christmas Party with the Bruschke's

2012-01-02T18:57:00.000-08:00

We had a fabulous time as always celebrating Christmas with the Bruschke's. It was especially fun because my sister and her family came into town from Nebraska. For some reason I didn't get a picture of us together:-( Grandpa and Grandma Bruschke gave my kids pillow pets which they have been wanting for a very long time, along with a couple books and flashlights. This year I was lucky enough to pull my brother Brad's name out of the hat for our gift exchange. He jokingly sent me an email a month or so before Christmas telling me a hand gun was on his wish list. Yeah right!! Since that was way over our gift limit I made a trip to Walmart and bought him a nice plastic pistol. It was definitely a good laugh and maybe someday he will get himself a real one:-)

Christmas Party with the Morgan's!

2012-01-02T18:16:00.000-08:00

It was a different Christmas this year for us and our families since not living in Utah anymore. Normally we would have spent Christmas Eve with the Morgan's but since we wanted to be home in Idaho for Christmas our get together ended up being a few days before Christmas. I can't say that I liked it that way either as it was just another reminder that life really is different for us now. I love being with family during the holidays so it was hard knowing we basically had only one day to spend with each side of the family. But on the other hand I really enjoyed being in Idaho just with my little family on Christmas and not having anywhere to go.

At the Morgan party it was definitely the year of University of Utah gifts and we loved it! Grandma Morgan gave the boys U of U jackets, cute U of U decorations, a U of U quilt for our card table, along with many other fun things from aunts, uncles, and cousins. We also got to meet our new beautiful niece Taylee. She is such a cute little thing and Whitney is so happy she finally has a girl cousin on the Morgan side.

Cannon's Birthday

2011-12-11T14:48:00.000-08:00

Cannon was really excited to turn 9 last Friday. He was also really excited to have his birthday announced on the intercom at school and to be able to go to the principals office and get his birthday necklace to wear throughout the day. In fact, I didn't realize how important this necklace was to him until he got home from school that day and was unable to find it in his backpack. Needless to say, he was in tears:-( Thankfully, his teacher had it for him on Monday in class. Turns out he had dropped it on the floor on his way out......typical Cannon:-)

Friday evening we let him pick where he wanted to go for dinner and what activity he wanted to do. He choose Olive Garden for dinner because of there delicious salad and breadsticks, and then a late night of video games with his friend " E." It was very low key but I think they had a lot of fun.

A few things we want to remember about our 9 year old:

* His favorite food: salad, corndogs, chips & salsa, hashbrowns.

* His favorite color: red

* His favorite TV show: any sports game....especially football or Wipeout.

* Favorite things to do: play sports or video games.....but mostly sports:-)

* All he wanted for his birthday was ticket's to the Utah football game, and football flags.

* One important thing I want to remember is a couple days ago we went to his school for a "breakfast of champions." Cannon was one of two kids that his teacher picked from her class to attend this breakfast and receive an award from the school for someone who makes "responsible choices." I was truly SO proud of him!! I hope he continues to make good choices and continues to be a good example to those around him. We love you buddy!

Utah Football Game

2011-12-02T19:18:00.000-08:00

All this kid wanted for his birthday was to go to a Utah Football game. Thankfully, the Ute's were playing the day after Thanksgiving.....and thankfully we were able to get tickets thanks to Ryan's brother Shane. Oh, and thankfully we were already planning on being in Utah. Guess it was meant to be! We had a great time and Cannon was on cloud 9. Brock decided he didn't want to go, which worked out well since it was super cold and he probably would have only lasted 10 minutes. We told Cannon he could pick someone to bring with us to the game and he picked his cousin Davan. The two of them had a great time cheering on their Utah Ute's!

Thanksgiving in Utah

2011-12-02T18:49:00.000-08:00

All the grandkid's minus Kinnie and Andrew who live out of state.
Can't get any better than that!
The girlies having all sorts of fun!!
The big girlies having all sorts of fun in the kitchen! My fabulous sister-in-laws!
The two "B's" having dessert.......
Brock inhaling his pumpkin bread! What a fun fun weekend!!

Halloween 2011

2011-11-16T14:30:00.000-08:00

Whitney the fortune teller!

Cannon the zombie!

Brock the pirate!

We made it through 0ur first Halloween in Idaho! The kid's had a great time trick-or-treating with their Daddy (for about 30 minutes before he was off to Montana...boo!) and then with me for the rest of the evening. It was different this year not doing our usual traditions of soup and scones with our neighbors in Herriman, and not having my mother-in-law here that always hangs out with us Halloween night and helps pass out candy, but we still did it here with just our little family and it was great!

Brock's Halloween Parade

2011-11-06T19:18:00.000-08:00

Brock's teacher Mrs. Hymas dressed up as a bumble bee.
Cannon happy to see his brother!!

Our little police officer had been counting down the "sleep's" until the day came for his class Halloween Party and parade. Unfortunately, the school does not allow the children to dress-up with the exception of the Kindergarteners. Therefore, the parade consisted of walking around the school, and through all the classrooms. Cannon had no idea about this school tradition, which explains the big smile on his face in the above picture when his little brother entered his classroom. Super cute!! I must say that only having to dress-up one child for school was cake:-)

Frightmares......

2011-10-29T20:05:00.000-07:00

We had a great time at Lagoon a couple weeks ago with the Gadd's. It is alway's a fun time being with them......the kid's adore each other, and they are basically family to us. Whitney was very apprehensive about going because she gets so nervous around "creepy people dressed up in creepy costumes" but wanted to hang out with Miss "M" so bad that she braved the "creepy people." :-) Brock was able to go on a lot of rides he wasn't able to go on last year because he was too short. He loved the creaky old white rollercoaster, The Bat, Bombora and the Wild Mouse. Whitney, Cannon and myself braved the Samurai due to some peer pressure from Miss "M".......I'm not sure if I will ever ride that one again:-) That ride is brutal!! Or maybe I am just plain too old now. Thanks Gadd's for a super fun night!! Until next year!

Eagle Hills Hoe-Down/Carnival

2011-10-26T12:48:00.000-07:00

Every year the Elementary School Cannon and Brock go to holds a Fall Hoe-Down. It is open to the public and apparently it is a pretty popular event in the community. Due to lack of funds they slimmed it down this year, but hey........we Morgan's don't know the difference. They had a bunch of games for the kids, a rock-climbing wall, golf cart rides with their teachers, and of course cotton candy.

Brocks awesome teacher Mrs. Hymas! We love her!

Brothers

2011-10-25T15:45:00.000-07:00

Love these two little monkeys and how close they are becoming. The other day we were working on a poster for Brock's class and he had to answer the question, "What is your favorite thing to do?" Brock's response....."play with my brother." Melts my heart!

Things we are doing as Idahoans.......

2011-09-14T16:11:00.000-07:00

Playing in the water.......Brock pretending he is shooting a machine gun or something. Crazy kid!

Making new friends........

Visiting different parks. This is Ann Morrison Park in Boise. The kids had a great time feeding all the ducks and geese....and there was a lot!!!!

I even got in on the fun........

Having fun with our new patio set and fire pit. We love to eat outside and of course make s'mores!

We also had a fun visit from Grandma Morgan!
Fun at Lake Lowell playing on the beach and fishing!

We are having a great time here in Boise exploring new places to go. We are obviously using our GPS a lot still! :-) We know there are many fun things to do and see here and can't wait for what else we find.

New City = New Schools

2011-09-07T12:23:00.000-07:00

Last week the kiddo's started school. I don't know who was more nervous me or the kids. I had such mixed emotions about the start of school. I absolutely loved having my kids home for so long but I was also so anxious for them to be able to meet some friends. There are many options for schools here in Eagle. 3 different Elementary Schools and I think 3 Charter Schools. We choose the Elementary School that is located right in our sub division. I love that it is convenient, and so far I have been SO impressed with the principal and staff at the school. There are many things that are different with the school here compared to our past school in Herriman. Here the parents are solely responsible for all school supplies. The school has a VERY LONG detailed list of items the children will need. We are responsible for literally everything from pencils, paper, erasers, tissue, hand sanitizer, crayons, markers, scissors etc...... There is also a registration fee for each child. School lunch is more expensive and they don't get half day on Fridays. Sort of a bummer on that one as it will make it harder for quick weekend trips to Utah:-) They do have teacher collaboration day on Wednesdays where the school starts 15 minutes later. Yeehaw!! Anyway's so far so good.....both the boys are integrating well and I am super excited for them!

It is totally and completely NUTS that I have a middle schooler. I will say that I was very bummed about the fact that my kids will never be in the same school together....EVER! I was looking forward to this year at Herriman Elementary as all 3 would have been together for one year. Oh well things change and you just gotta roll with it. Whitney is doing well and if anyone can just "roll with things" she can. She is great that way. She was really happy the second day of school when she met a girl that had just moved here to Idaho from Orem, Utah. They had that in common and apparently really hit it off. She also met a very nice girl last week who so happens to be the niece of some very good friends of ours in Utah. We had thought our paths would never cross but the world is very small and out of all those 6th graders they met and became friends without even knowing about the connection until yesterday (one week later.) I am happy for her and I think she will have a great experience.

Here are the first day of school pics. BTW.....did I mention I have a Kindergartener? My word where does the time go?? I'm happy for him because he is so happy to be in the "big" school. I also LOVE his teacher Mrs. Hymas. Of course I really truly am NOT looking forward to next year when he is gone all day. I will be a very sad mommy.

A few summer highlights.....

2011-08-24T12:05:00.000-07:00

"Where did the summer go" is a question I have heard many times from many different people in the last couple of weeks. It is definitely a valid question but one I sure don't have the answer to. Summer's sure does come and go very fast. I will say that this is the longest summer we have ever had as we have alway's been on the year round school schedule. We get breaks all year long which isn't a bad thing but never have we EVER had a three month break! I must say......it was AWESOME! Anyway's here are a few things we did this summer. I unfortunately was without camera a lot of the time so if these seem completely random......well they are.

We started our summer off with a baseball tourney in Idaho Falls with Cannon's baseball team. We almost didn't go for various reasons but are so glad that we did. We sure are going to miss this team!

While in Idaho Falls we visited Bear World. It was totally worth it. The bears (and there's a lot) basically roam around and will even come right up to your car. The kid's thought it was the greatest thing ever.

The day after we got back from Idaho Falls Ryan left to train for his new job. I don't even know what he is doing in the picture.....but it looks interesting:-) He is being trained to do something I guess:-) He was gone for a very long 3 weeks. During that time I was busy at home trying to pack up the house to move to Boise. Once he got back (and left again for some additional training) we had only a few days to get completely packed. It was so insane. But thanks to many helping hands we got it done and made it to Boise.
On our way to Boise we stopped in Twin Falls for a few days. Our house wasn't ready for us yet so we were able to spend some time with our good friends the Reeder's who so kindly let us crash at their place, even though they had only been in their new house for a few days. We went and saw Shoshone Falls which was absolutely amazing.
Wyatt, Porter, Whitney, Cohlton, and Cannon (Brock didn't want to be in the pic.)
Hauling some of our things to Boise. Should of taken a picture of our big ABF truck:-)
Whitney at the Boise Zoo. We have also ventured to numerous parks, been to a couple movies, went to a fantastic water park and hoping to find many more fun things to do here in Boise.

Yippee....no more training wheels!

2011-08-24T11:44:00.000-07:00

It took moving to Boise and living on a flat street for Mr. Brock to finally want to take his training wheels off. Ryan got his work out running along side of him for an evening but now he is a pro!! Biking is pretty big here in Eagle. There are a lot of bike trails and parks with bike trails. It honestly looks super fun. I haven't had a bike (it was a maroon 10-speed to be exact) since I was in high school. I'm thinking it is time for a new one. Everyone should have a good bike right? :-)

Our new house!! Visitors welcome:-)

2011-07-28T10:13:00.000-07:00

What we are going to miss!!

2011-07-25T16:03:00.000-07:00

We made it to Boise.......and for those of you who didn't know.....we moved! :-) So if this doesn't make me a better blogger than nothing will! All I can say is I will do my best.

It was very difficult to leave a place we loved so much. We had the best neighbors ever, the best ward, absolutely terrific friends for the kiddo's, and just a fabulous community in general. We will miss it tremendously but definitely know we are where we are supposed to be at this time in our life. I hope in time we will feel the same way (if that is possible) about the neighborhood and ward here in Eagle.

This is what we are going to miss.......along with grandparents and good friends (you know who you are!)

A Day That Can't Be Neglected: Cannon's Baptism

2011-05-04T14:07:00.000-07:00

Cannon's Baptism: December 18, 2010. It was fun to have this special day right before Christmas! I think he looked mighty handsome in his first suit and he actually loves to still wear it to church. Cannon had a lot of support that day from family and friends. Unfortunately, I had a bad mommy moment and forgot my camera that day. Thankfully my sweet friend and neighbor saved the day!!

My baby is 5!!

2011-05-04T12:41:00.000-07:00

Brock had a fun birthday this year because he officially had is very first birthday party with friends. His only requests.....sugar cookies, pirates and pinata's! We figured that was doable! We played "pin the flag on the treasure map", decorated sugar cookies and of course had the good old-fashioned pinata. What more could a little boy ask for. We love you Brockstar!!

Family Pictures - Oceanside Sept. 2010

2011-02-13T14:36:00.001-08:00

Spiders, Lizards, Snakes Oh My!!!

2011-01-24T19:59:00.000-08:00

Cannon had quite the birthday party this year, thanks to Scales and Tails (which I highly recommend.) Go here to check them out: scalesandtails.com As you can see below we had a house full of family and friends of Cannon's. And also as you can see below.....snakes are not one of Cannon's favorite's. He comes by it rightly as I am not a fan either! It was cute to see him nervous but at the same time trying to act brave......seeing as he had the eye's of two cute girl's from our neighborhood and in his school class watching him. Definitely couldn't whimp out!

It was a great party but mom was glad to get the creepy spiders, scorpions and other yucky reptiles out of her house!

Happy Birthday to our big 8-year-old!! Baptism pictures coming soon!

Catch Up - Halloween

2011-01-05T17:59:00.000-08:00

Halloween party and Grandpa and Grandma Bruschkes!

Getting ready to go trick-or-treating!

Catch Up - School Halloween Parade

2011-01-05T17:50:00.000-08:00

Whitney and her cute friend Sami.

Cannon and his friend River and Luke.

Catch Up Time-Flag Football

2011-01-05T14:11:00.000-08:00

We had lots and lots of fun watching Cannon play flag football. He really enjoyed it and is looking forward to tackle football next year, although his mother is a touch nervous! :-)

California: Part 2.....The Beach

2010-11-16T13:13:00.001-08:00

Usually when we go to Disneyland we stay in Disneyland. Like we literally don't do anything else other that go to Disneyland for 5 days straight and then we come home. We conversed with our friends and decided it was about time we take our kid's to the beach and by golly we don't regret it! The kids absolutely loved it (and so did the parents!) The weather was absolutely perfect and the condo was gorgeous (thanks to our friends parents.) There is just nothing better than hanging out on the beach. We stayed in Oceanside just outside of San Diego. We picked a great week to go because California was having better weather the week we went than they had all summer.....and we were there at the end of September!! We got lucky!!

California: Part 1

2010-11-09T12:55:00.000-08:00

We had the best time at "The Happiest Place on Earth" a couple months ago with our great friends the Gadd's. It was our first time going when all the Halloween decorations were up and the characters dressed up in their costumes. The picture above is in front of the Haunted Mansion which was decorated fantastically for the holiday season. The sun was in Brock's eyes so he would not look at the camera.
The two "C's" getting ready to watch the Angels game. Brock and I didn't go to the game but had a great time just the two of us hanging out in Disneyland. We saw the Pixar Parade and went on whatever rides he wanted to:-)

Goofy being a goof!

The kid's getting their picture taken with a talking parrot!
These two were glued at the hip the entire week. They walked around Disneyland either interlocking arms or holding hands. So funny! They get along perfectly and love being together. They are also such great helpers with the younger kid's.
Good times had by all......other than the barfing part!!!

Last Flaming Gorge Trip of the Season

2010-11-09T08:23:00.000-08:00

Cute Whitney!
Cuddling with my cute niece miss "S."

Swimming in "our cove."

Fun with uncle Brent on the wave runner!
The two "B's" having fun on the tube!

To Close for Comfort: The Herriman Fire

2010-10-04T12:14:00.000-07:00

These are pictures we took from our driveway of the Herriman fire that started Sunday September 19th. We were on I-15 heading home around 4:30ish and saw there was a fire on the mountain. We didn't think much of it other than we figured it was probably caused by Camp Williams. A few hours later we could tell it was getting larger but still not too worried. The winds were very strong and the smoke smell was starting to get bad and at about 8:00 the fire creeped over the mountainside to where we could easily see flames. We were not concerned about our house but started worrying a bit about all the homes on the hill but felt sure the firefighters would get it out. The winds kept getting stronger and stronger and the fire started to get more and more out of control. We started hearing about all the mandatory evacuations and people only having 5-10 minutes to grab what they could. We decided to get a few things together just incase. The smoke smell was awful and there was ash flying everywhere. I of course started worrying about Brock and his asthma issues and wondered if we just shouldn't leave but knew that everyone else who were on the mandatory evacuation were also trying to leave.....not to mention all my kid's were asleep and I was trying to pack for our Disneyland vacation! :-) We ended up just watching the fire from our house until about 12:30 am. We ended up being one block away from the mandatory evacuation and are so thankful to all the people who worked so hard to put this fire out and to save sooooo many homes. They estimated approx. 1,000 homes to burn and only 3 were completely destroyed. My kids were thrilled that they cancelled school the next day, but me on the other hand was not so thrilled because of all the last minute errands I needed to run before our vacation the following day:-)

First Flaming Gorge Trip 2010

2010-08-05T08:48:00.000-07:00

Isn't this the most beautiful picture of the lake? This is about 6:00 in the morning right off of swim beach where Ryan and his brother were fishing. BTW....they caught three good sized fish there which is great. There isn't a whole lot of fish action at times in this particular spot.....so YEAH!!!!
The kid's playing with their Nintendo DS's. Man those come in handy!!

Brock, cousin Davan, cousin Bodie, Cannon and Whitney playing at the swim beach.

Just the Boyz

2010-07-28T15:32:00.000-07:00

A couple weekends ago our church had a "stake fathers and sons" campout up Payson Canyon. Cannon was especially excited because last year they all were kicked off the mountain due to some wildfires. He was definitely upset that the camping trip was cut short. If I remember right they were told to leave around midnight. So needless to say he was really excited about the weekend with his dad and his brother and especially the idea of sleeping in the mountains in a tent. So what did Whitney and I do you ask.......well we had a great and quiet weekend:-) It was so much fun just hanging out with her. We went to see Letter's to Juliet (very good show) went to dinner and then the next morning we met up with our bestest friends and went shopping and then to lunch. I told Ryan he could take the boy's camping whenever he wanted!! :-)

This was Brock's first experience camping and he absolutely loved it. He can't stop talking about it. I was a little nervous about him going but so glad that Ryan took him and that he had fun. Guess he's not my baby anymore.
Fishing at Payson Lake

All-Stars

2010-07-14T09:37:00.000-07:00

It has been a crazy season of baseball for our family. It has honestly taken up any spare time that we had but it also became one of our favorite times of the year. I will have to post some pictures later of the regular season but these are pictures taken during All-Stars. Being somewhat new to this crazy sport thing (for those with small children you just wait......the older they get the more intense and competitive it gets) I didn't realize that after the regular season there is an All-Star Tournament. Ryan and I had to cancel two little weekend vacations because of it.....at least we'll know for next year:-) They take the top 24 players in the league and make 2 teams.....an A team and a B team. Cannon was able to play for the A team which is really awesome because he was already playing a year up in the regular season and then made the A team as a 7 year old, playing with and against 8-9 year olds. We were really pround of him......he was the very youngest player on the team. And even more awesome than that was his Dad got to be one of the coaches, so it was a great experience for both of them. The team ended up taking 3rd place in the pre-tournament and then lost their first two games in the main tournament which meant they were out. All in all it was a really fun experience and bittersweet that it had to end. I'm sure next year will come around before we know it!

Cute little Cannon!

Ryan hasn't worn a baseball uniform since 1992. He still wears it well I might add:-)

One last "Dog's in the House" cheer!!

Whitney's Spring/Summer Dance Shows

2010-07-14T08:48:00.000-07:00

Whitney and her dance class at Lagoon practicing their routine.

Their little pep talk with each other right before going on stage. Who know's what they are really saying.....they are probably just giggling and trying not to be too nervous.

Picture taken right after her spring recital at Riverton Highschool. She did such a great job and we are very proud of her!!

The Volcano's

2010-06-18T19:31:00.000-07:00

Brock had a great time playing t-ball this year. I think he was mostly excited to be doing what his older brother was doing. He also picked to be number 11 just like his brother. Pretty dang cute if you ask me. He loved putting on his "volcano's" shirt and hat each game, using his favorite orange bat, and of course getting his treat after each game.

Whitney Turns 10

2010-05-12T14:43:00.000-07:00

Happy Happy Birthday!

2010-05-11T08:37:00.000-07:00

Our baby turned 4 years old in March! I literally could look at his smile all day! We told him that he could pick his most favorite place to eat and we would take him there for his birthday dinner and he picked Cafe Rio. He requested sugar cookies for his birthday treat and had a great time hanging out with his cousins. Happy Birthday Brockstar!!

Las Vegas

2010-04-01T14:19:00.001-07:00

We had a fabulous time with our great friends the Gadds who so kindly invited us to join them in Sin City:-) Ryan and I hadn't been to Vegas in almost 13 years and it was incredible how much it had changed.......except for the obvious things that will never change!! We went to the M&M Museum, The Rainforest Cafe, The MGM Hotel to see the lions, The Aquarium at Mandalay Bay and of course swam everyday. The kids would have been just fine if that was all they did. The best part about Vegas was the incredible weather we had. It was so nice to see the sunshine and wear short sleeved shirts!!! Next vacation with our traveling buddies......Disneyland!!!

Cannon thought the Komodo Dragon was pretty cool.

Lion at MGM. That guy is crazy........but pretty incredible to watch.

Brock at the Rainforest Cafe

Waiting for the fountains at the Bellagio

Best Buddies

2010-03-09T11:43:00.001-08:00

Cannon (yes I'm using full names now) had to say goodbye to his best friend and next door neighbor Benjamin a few weeks ago as his family moved. We all had to say goodbye to the best neighbors and friends anyone could ever ask for. We knew we had something good but didn't realize how good until they were gone. I could write a novel about why they were so awesome but wont because this post really would end up being a book:-) I am really mad that I didn't get a picture of all the families together but at least I got one of the kids.

The Morgan, Thompson and Kruckenberg kids!

Bruschke Cousins.......Christmas 2009

2010-02-19T15:37:00.000-08:00

Kiddo's singing Joy To The World at Grandpa & Grandma's.

"W" loves hanging out with her cousin.

The whole gang!!

Better Late Than Never.......Christmas 2009

2010-02-19T14:30:00.001-08:00

Morgan Christmas Party

2010-01-06T13:41:00.000-08:00

Visit With Santa

2010-01-06T08:32:00.000-08:00

"B" making sure Santa knew he wanted a "Thomas the Train" and "the brand new Ice Age movie." So hilarious!! "W" and "C" both asked for a Nintendo DSi's.

First Big 2009 Snowfall

2010-01-06T08:06:00.000-08:00

Snow=Happy Kids!!

GNO Christmas Dinner

2009-12-16T10:42:00.000-08:00

Michele, Brooke, Gretel, Margaret, Mary and me!

I had to get a picture this year of all these fabulous girls who I have known basically my whole life. Every year I forget my camera and so happy I didn't this time. We started a tradition a number of years back where we have a nice sit down dinner during the holidays. It is alway's so much fun. I am so thankful for these girls. We always have a lot of good laughs. Lots of fun memories......especially because we have all been great buddies since we were like 5 years old. Before we know it we will be sitting around the table with wrinkled faces and gray hair talking about how we remember having conversations about kid's who spill bottles of honey on recently cleaned carpet! :-) Good times!!

Mr. C's Birthday

2009-12-14T19:38:00.000-08:00

Mr. "C" turned 7 last week! He was off track so we got him for the whole day. The night before his birthday we told him he could pick any restaurant to go eat at and he picked Tepanyaki. He loves, loves, loves the noodles there. His meal consisted of soup, salad, and noodles and he was in heaven. He opened his presents that evening and got a skateboard, PS3 Madden 2010 NFL game, and a puzzle. He was one happy kid!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY BUBBA!!!! WE LOVE YOU!!

A couple day's after his birthday we had his party with friends. He was so excited for this day as he has only had one other birthday party. He really wanted a Star Wars party so we did a little "Jedi Training", had chocolate donuts, opened presents and did a Darth Vader pinata. He had tons of fun being with his friends.

"C" blowing out his candles.

The whole gang!!

Trick-or-Treating

2009-11-09T09:40:00.001-08:00

"W" as a Skeleton Bride, "C" as a Skeleton Pirate, and "B" as a Race Car Driver.

The whole Trick-or-Treating Gang!!!

Halloween Fun at Preschool

2009-11-09T08:11:00.000-08:00

"B" as Jeff Gordon the Nascar Driver

Pumpkin Carving

2009-11-07T06:57:00.001-08:00

Girl's Trip to San Antonio

2009-11-03T12:06:00.000-08:00

A couple weeks ago I got to spend 5 day's with two of my favorite people!!! A third favorite person was unable to be with us and has already been warned that she MAY NOT miss another girl's trip in the future.....right Mar? We had a terrific time and can't wait to do it again!!!!
The reason for this trip unfortunately has to do with our age and the fact that one of these gals lives out of state which means we don't get to see her very often. We said a number of years back that when we turned a certain age we would take a girls trip. It was exciting that the time finally arrived but depressing that we reached this particular age soooooo fast. But hey.....we definitely made the most of it!!!

Had to get a picture in front of the Alamo. It was smokin' hot and humid on this particular day and we were sweating like pigs.....and frankly quite miserable. I don't know how people stand the humidity!!! Thankfully we had 3 great days with hardly any humidity at the end of our trip. The two older folks in the picture are my hubby's uncle and aunt. They were kind enough to let us stay in their home and drive us around all day everyday. They were incredibly generous!!!!

Standing at the Riverwalk. We took the little boat ride and went in a few of the shops.

San Antonio Temple

Do we look like we are in highschool or what???? Uncle "J" loves cars and took tons of photo's and video of us posing and sitting in them. We definitely had a good laugh and thought I had better share at least one of the pictures. I'm a bit nervous as to what he plan's to do with the video.

I wish I had taken more pictures of our trip but the Alamo, Riverwalk and the Temple is pretty much all we did other than shopped, shopped, shopped!! I didn't really want to carry my camera around while we did that.....then I wouldn't be able to carry as many bags. :-) We went to an outlet mall that had 300 stores....so between all of us we had a trunk full of stuff. We were literally there all day. We also spent an afternoon in a quaint town called Fredrichsberg. We also took a day and got massages and pedicures and then saw a movie. We needed a day like that after all the shopping. :-) Thanks to my awesome hubby for being mom for a few days!!!

California

2009-09-28T13:15:00.001-07:00

"R" and I were able to spend a few days in California a couple weeks ago. He was there for a business meeting so I met up with him a day later. It was the first time I had ever flown anywhere by myself. I was very glad everything ran smoothly.....especially the flight there:-) We had such a great time! Here are a few pictures from the weekend. Thank you "B's" for letting us crash at your place. You guys are awesome!!!!

Breakfast on Manhattan Beach.

Manhattan Beach Pier

Laguna Beach

Dodger's Game......"R" was on cloud 9.

Lake Powell September 2009

2009-09-26T08:15:00.001-07:00

We had a great time in Lake Powell a couple weeks ago with some awesome friends in our ward. We had such a fun time boating, playing in the sand, jumping off the houseboat, sliding down the slide, jumping on the water trampoline, playing games, watching movies, face painting and just hanging out with friends. The weather was perfect!! And the kids loved it!!!

Don't know why it say's the year 2004. Ignore!

This is "R" in the back of the boat paddling us out.......proceed to the following story.

Lake Powell isn't Lake Powell without an adventure, right? One day 3 adults (myself and "R" being 2 of the adults) and 10 kids ranging from ages 3-12 went on a boat ride to hike some Indian ruins. It is about a 30 minute boat ride and about 15 minutes into it the boat overheated. We sat in the middle of the channel for about 15 minutes to let the boat's engine cool off and then we headed back to the houseboat. We were approx 5 minutes away from the houseboat and the boat was running great so we turned back around and headed back to the Indian ruins. The boat did great and we got there with no other problems. We hiked to the top looked around for a bit and then headed back down. When we got to the boat we were hot and very thirsty and pretty much downed all the water and gatorade we had on the boat. We all got ready to head back and the boat wouldn't start......it was completely dead! Ummmmmm.......what to do? The two men on the boat ("R" being one of them who I might add had a cracked rib at the time) started paddling us out. The poor guys were just sweating like pigs and had very little water left at this point. We eventually got more out in the open and started having other boaters stopping to see if we needed help......which obviously we did. One boat had an extra battery which wasn't what our boat needed, one boat just went right by video tapping us ......guess we did look kind of weird. 2 men, one woman (me) and 10 freakin kids! Another boat went by and called us Jon and Kate plus 8. Nice!!! Anyway's long story short a very nice family from Kaysville, Ut told us they could at least tow us to the marina. 3 broken ropes and 3 hours later we finally made it to the marina at about 8:30 at night. I forgot to add that not only did we not have enough water, we had no food and no cell phones. Dah!! We thankfully had a group of incredible kids with us who remained calm and didn't complain even though we know they were a bit frightened and starving. I also might add that because we had no cell phone so we knew that the other parents at the houseboat were probably in a major panic. I would have been, not knowing what was going on, if we were safe, etc. We had left at 2:00 and by now it is 8:30 and its dark. We walked the docks trying to find someone who could help us and we found a couple different people who were willing to help. People really are amazing! We all piled in to this man's boat and headed out in the pitch dark, lightening all around and the other "R" who thankfully knew how to get us back to the houseboat. A 20 minute boat ride took us almost 2 hours in the dark. We finally arrived back at 10:30 to moms, dads, kids balling their eyes. They told us they had done everything they could back at the houseboat to help us but kept running into problems. Everyone was definitely relieved! Like I said always an adventure......we are just glad nobody was hurt.

This is "W" with a couple of her friends still smiling as the men are paddling us out. They didn't know at this point how long they were actually going to be sitting in this boat:-)

"W" and "H" after their tube ride!

"C" and "K" getting ready for their tube ride!

Me and "B" getting ready for our tube ride!

Building a sphinx and pyramid out of sand.

It really turned out amazing. Wish I had a better pic.

The mummy!

Kid's having fun on the water trampoline.

First Day of School

2009-09-05T20:15:00.000-07:00

The big 4th and 1st grader!!!

Can you say.......Girls Camp!

2009-08-14T13:30:00.000-07:00

I had the opportunity to spend five days with the best Young Women leaders and the BEST Young Women ever.......I know I'm biased but SERIOUSLY.....they are incredible people. We went to the Heber Valley Camp which was an amazing place, not to mention my kind of camping......cabins, bathrooms, showers, cooking equipment, crushed ice and beautiful scenery. I was called to be the Assistant Camp Director and was really excited about it but also a bit nervous because I don't know the first thing about "camping," and I knew I would have to leave my kids (not very good at that) but knew there was a great Director that would tell me what to do. BUT..... then she had to be released because her husband got a new job out of state. AHHHHH......NOW WHAT!!! Turned out that I became a "Co-Camp Director along with the Young Womens President (not like she had anything better to do.) We had seven weeks to basically plan camp but we did it along with the all the Young Women Leaders who never complained for a second!! Thank you Thank you!! It was an incredible week......but glad it is over too :-) The only downfall of being at camp was the fact that my sister had her baby while I was gone! Oh, well!

Funny story! Found out at camp that my friend (the one at the end on the left) and I both have family from Whitney, Idaho. Her Grandmother is a Weaver.....well my Grandmother is also a Weaver. WHAT! We did a little research and found out that her grandma and my grandma are cousins.......that we both have the same great great grandfather.....which means my great grandpa and her great grandpa were brothers. I have known this friend for 4 years. Who would have known. My grandma has passed away but her grandma is 92 and is still alive. She knew all about my sweet grandma. My mom couldn't believe it when I told her. Such a small world!

Last Day of School

2009-08-01T10:21:00.000-07:00

"C" getting his High Flying Hawk Award.

This is what "C" calls girl trapped......doesn't look like he minds:-) The little gal on the right is our next door neighbor and one of his best friends.

Unfortunately these two pics of "W" turned out so dark. This is her getting her High Flying Hawk Award. At the beginning of each year their elementary school has different items/goals that each grade has to pass off to earn an award. To be honest its not the easiest thing in the world to do......they really do have to work at it. So way to go kiddos!!!!!

St. George Trip

2009-08-01T09:26:00.000-07:00

We decided in June kind of last minute to head down to St. George. We swam, saw the movie Up, ate at Pizza Factory twice and walked around the St. George temple. It was nice to get away with just our little family.

"C" was so proud of this picture. We are sitting inside the play area by the pool. Hate close-ups but too funny not to add it:-)

Mr. Farmer Tan

"W" helping her little brother get used to swimming on his own with a life jacket.

At the St. George Temple

Mom's 60th Birthday

2009-07-18T13:40:00.000-07:00

We celebrated by going to the Cowboy Grub......it's pretty much a family favorite. Good times!! This is the whole gang except for one sister-in-law who was at home with some sick kiddo's. We were planning on going miniture golfing afterwards but the weather wasn't cooperating so we ended up at my parents house for a night of games. It ended up being a ton of fun.......and we even got my dad to play which is usually unheard of (not a fan of games)......thanks DAD!!

My sister and I took my mom (hooray she took the day off) out to lunch at Rumbi Grill on her big day. There were big thunderstorms going on during lunch and we left just before a huge down pour hit. Parts of I-15 were like a river. It was a crazy drive home.

Our First Flaming Gorge Weekend for 2009

2009-06-18T21:17:00.000-07:00

Grandpa B with the boys roasting hotdogs. This was just about one of the only moments the whole weekend where it wasn't raining. It was cold and wet the whole time. We still had fun playing games inside (sorry no pictures) and watching TV.......which is only fun to some:)

Grandpa B taking little "B" on a lawn mower ride. It was great fun for a 3 year old......he was offered a motorcyle ride but turned that down along with the rest of our kids. Whimps :-) I grew up riding motorcyles and my dad would take me on rides all the time. Maybe eventually they will give it a try.

Little Miss "W" Turns 9

2009-06-18T21:04:00.001-07:00

"W" big birthday present. She was so excited to finally get a bike that she could ride. We gave her a bike a couple years ago and thought she would grow into really fast. Well she didn't and hasn't been able to ride a bike for a couple years. It is great that she can now ride her new bike around the neighborhood with her friends instead of having to ride her scooter all the time.....and the good thing is, we have a bike for her ready to go when she gets a little bit bigger. We love you Sis! We couldn't of asked for a better kid!!

Spring = Baseball

2009-05-19T15:33:00.000-07:00

"C" getting ready to bat. Gotta love the stance:) Cute little rear end! Go #8!!!

"C" playing catcher. He wasn't so fond of playing that position a few weeks ago but now loves it. He switches from playing catcher to playing third base usaully. Oh, these sports......they can take over your life:) We do love watching him play.

YouTube - jon schmidt coldplay

2009-04-25T15:55:00.000-07:00

I saw this on my facebook this morning and just had to share. I have already listened to it multiple times today:) Jon Schmidt is always incredible but the guy on the Cello is Steve Nelson who is my friends little brother. He is amazing. I think it is awesome.....two great songs put together. The story behind the whole thing is cute too. Enjoy!!!

YouTube - jon schmidt coldplay

Easter Day

2009-04-18T15:17:00.001-07:00

Easter Egg Hunt Phase 1

2009-04-18T14:41:00.001-07:00

The two "B" cousins so happy they found eggs and that they can be wild and crazy together!

Cousin "B", "W", and "B" with their bags full of eggs.

The grandkids listening so intently to grandma. I'm sure they just wanted to dart out the front door so they could start finding their eggs:)

Grandma Bruschke explaining the rules for the Easter egg hunt. My cute pregnant sister is on the left. Just wanted to make sure I cleared that up just in case anyone thought it was me looking pregnant:)

Easter Egg Hunt Phase 2

2009-04-18T14:08:00.000-07:00

Grandma Morgan with all of her cute grandkids each holding their Easter sacks. We had to do the Easter egg hunt inside because of the weather....go figure:) I think Grandma prepared about 70 eggs to hide. That is a lot of eggs.

The grandkids dying Easter eggs with Grandma Morgan. We were so happy she was able to be here with us to celebrate. She has had many health problems recently and has been either in the hospital or at a care facility for the past 4 1/2 months. She is doing well and is feeling better everyday. It was great to have her back for Easter as she was in the hospital for Thanksgiving and Christmas:( She started this Easter egg dying tradition when the kids were small and they each look forward to it every year.

"B" Mans Birthday

2009-04-15T20:22:00.000-07:00

Our little man turned 3 a few weeks ago. He loved every moment of every celebration. It is so fun when they finally get that it is "their" day. He ended up being sick with croup a few days before his birthday so we thought we had better do something low key. So we went and saw Monsters vs. Aliens. Here are a few birthday pictures. We love this kid!! Maybe he will be potty trained by his 4th birthday:)

Lost Dog For a Day

2009-03-22T18:05:00.000-07:00

A few days ago "C" realized that our dog Gator was not in the backyard. At first I thought that was not possible. We have had this dog for 7 years and he has never escaped or gone missing. I checked every possible inch of the backyard and "C" was right our Gator......the hubby's hunting buddy was gone. We had been gone pretty much all day and didn't notice he was missing until 3:30, so we weren't sure how long he had been out. Our gate was completely shut and there was no way he could fit under the fence so we were completely stumped as to how he got out and where he was. So we hopped in the car and started driving around trying to find him. Of course nothing. I called the animal shelter and they didn't have him.....yet anyways. We searched for him for hours. Once "R" got home from work he decided to head out one more time before it got dark and if he didn't find him we would call the animal shelter the next day to see if he was turned in. As "R" was driving he happened to see the animal control car driving in one of the neighborhoods he was searching in and waved her down. Well after a few hours of our kids freakin out that we would never see our dog again ("W" even said that she would give us all of her money to help get him home) the "dog catcher" had him. We only had to pay a small $55.00 fee to get him back:) We still have no idea how he was able to get out but at least he's back......I guess:) BTW.....The little dog Griffin in the picture escapes all the time but he always comes back its the big dog that obviously doesn't know his way around our neighborhood:) Also, "B" sneezed right when I was taking the picture.

Our Little "B" Man

2009-02-25T19:33:00.000-08:00

Can I just say that I love this kid more than life itself but can I also say that none of my kids have kept me on my toes like this kid has. I joke around all the time saying he is why I only have 3 kids because I swear he is like having 2 kids in one. He's just a big tease and likes to push your bottons but at the same time I have never had a kid that is alway's so good at saying please, thank you or your welcome. Anyway's this is a picture of him trying to feed the fish. It took about 2 or 3 times for him to dump an entire container of fish food in the tank for me to realize I better move it to a spot he cant reach:) duh!!! The second picture I had to post because I just love the smile. We were at a University of Utah gymnastics meet and that was about the only smile we got out of him. He was completely uninterested in the whole event.

Happy Birthday Grandma

2009-02-16T13:58:00.000-08:00

My sweet Grandma turned 87 on February 12th. My cousin and I and whomever can come take her to Training Table each year on her birthday. I'm not sure if Training Table really is her spot of choice but thats where we go. This year we had a huge group.....it was great. In the past we would usually hit Old Navy afterwards where she would by our kids an outfit. Now doesn't that sound backwards? She buys our kids stuff on her birthday. She is the best! She is where I inherited my love for shopping....back in the day my cousin and I were her shopping buddies. She never had any daughters to buy cute girl clothes for so my cousin and I were spoiled rotten on our shopping ventures. We alway's had so much fun. Now at 87 shopping has beome more difficult, although I gurantee she could still go on the rollercoasters at Lagoon:) Love ya Grandma!!

Junior Jazz

2009-02-16T12:53:00.000-08:00

Over the past few months "C" has developed a major love for basketball. He just played his last Junior Jazz basketball game which he really looked forward to each week. This kid loves the game. Most kids at this age just like to shoot the ball and thats all they do when they get the ball, most of them don't even dribble yet. It is hilarious! Any of you who have watched 5 and 6 year olds play know what I'm talking about:) Whether its shooting, defending, dribbling or stealing the ball "C" just plain DIGS it! He also got to play with his cousin which was a lot of fun. We will have to see but so far I'm invisioning going to a heck of a lot of basketball games down the road:)

Just couldn't resist.

2009-01-31T19:29:00.000-08:00

I love this picture and had to post it. "B" absolutely loves sleigh riding. It is so cute to watch his little marshmellow body with all his gear try and walk up the hill. Good thing Santa brought him his own sled for Christmas.....it was definitely a must have.

The Blog Neglector!

2009-01-31T19:15:00.000-08:00

YES.....I've been slacking on my blog! I can't really figure out why other than...1) I am a techo-nerd (if that's even a word) trying to upload pictures. I got a new camera for Christmas and don't know how to do it yet. For some reason I think I can't post without a picture. 2) Facebook has taken first priority.....if I'm on the computer I go straight to facebook (it's an evil time waster but fun!) 3) We are boring and don't have anything to blog about:)

Christmas Eve Surprise

2009-01-04T21:56:00.000-08:00

Surprise surprise! My sister announced....well actually my niece announced that she is going to be a big sister.....look at the shirt. I just have to say that my family was clueless:-) nobody noticed until my sister made it completely obvious. Too funny! Congrats sis!

2009-01-04T21:45:00.000-08:00

We spent Christmas Eve this year with the Bruschke's. My Grandpa and Grandma Johnsen started a tradition when I was young where each family presented something for the "program"....a talent, a story, a skit etc.... So my parents have kept the tradition going. This is a picture of "W" and her cousin singing Away in a Manger. They did a great job. And a picture of my brothers kiddo's performing...too cute!

Holiday Pictures

2009-01-04T21:27:00.000-08:00

The kids visit with Santa. "B" was there but of course didn't want to have anything to do with Santa. Not surprising for a 2 year old...right?

Zoo Lights

2008-12-10T20:56:00.000-08:00

So....we are trying to make an extra attempt as a family this year to take advantage of all the fun holiday activites out there to do. We headed up to the Hogle Zoo to basically freeze and to enjoy the amazing lights. The kids had a great time and though they were expecting to see more animals they were at least able to be totally entertained by a few monkeys, the siberian links that were scratching on the glass wanting to play with the kids hats and a yawning snake....it was late:)

Happy Birthday!

2008-12-02T22:13:00.001-08:00

"C" turned 6 today and I think we heard him say, "can you believe I'm six" at least 15 times today. Well in all honestly we can't believe he is 6. He keeps us all laughing on a daily basis and his favorite gift he recieved today was an all-weather nerf football. At the moment the kid is obsessed with football....I wonder where he gets that from:) Happy Birthday kiddo!!

2008-12-02T22:00:00.001-08:00

Tis' the Hunting Season
"B" is already taking an interest in all of his dad's hunting gear.....could this be a sign that his dad could have a future hunting buddy!

The First Morgan Feast

2008-12-02T21:51:00.001-08:00

We officially made our first ever thanksgiving turkey dinner with all the fixins' It turned out great and was a lot of fun to spend the day with "R's" sister and brother and their spouses and kids. We stuffed our faces and played a lot of rockband.

Post Number One!

2008-11-10T22:40:00.000-08:00

It's official....we have entered the blogger world due to extreme peer pressure:) I swore I would never be a part of it (it was more of the commitment issue than anything) but enjoy....while it lasts!