The Robbins Nest

Derby death? I don't think so!

2011-08-29T14:53:00.003-06:00

Summer is almost over. I'm usually very sad about this but this year I am counting the days until Christmas.

On June 18th at my very first away derby bout I tore my acl right before the half. It didn't hurt fortunately. I was just skating around the bend and heard/felt a pop on the outside of my knee. I went down feeling like something was really wrong. I got up and was able to skate to the sides but I knew it was not good. I went to see the doc and he ordered an MRI even though he thought it was only a torn meniscus. He gave me the bad news that I severed my acl completely and if I wanted to do anything sports like again (read irish dance and roller derby) then I needed to have it repaired.

I had surgery on July 14, 2011. I had to use crutches for three weeks then I could walk. I haven't been in too much physical pain. The emotional pain from being sidelined from life has been much harder to deal with.

I'm dong well at physical therapy, they say I'm way ahead of schedule pain and range of motion wise but I still have to give my graft st least 12 weeks to mend. I might be able to start exercise in a couple of weeks and maybe be able to start to skate at the four month mark. So maybe in November I can get my sanity back.

It's amazing how much exercise helps you to control your aggression. Or maybe it's slamming into another girl with all my strength that does that.

I miss derby.

2011-03-16T15:59:00.002-06:00

Oh I forgot to tell ya that I had to change my derby name. I wanted Keltic Storm but as soon as I had decided on it a month later another Derby girl in New York had it registered. It takes about six months to get your name registered so she had it before me. It was disappointing anyway. Everyone had already started calling me Storm and I really liked it so I decided to go with "Storm Warning" My derby number is -40 degrees since that is a way cool number relating to the weather. -40 is the only number that is the same in Fahrenheit and Celsius. It's also the temperature that skin freezes instantly. Cool huh???

The St. Patrick's Day parade was really fun this year. We had a few performances that night as well.

2011-03-15T15:38:00.002-06:00

Scrimmage! We play a game every week, I kinda suck now but I think I'm starting to get the hang of it. We had a fantastic party to announce that we are going to a banked track this year. It scares me a little, the speed and the new track. Maybe just the unknown.

2010-12-14T14:36:00.004-07:00

Thanksgiving was wonderful. Both sets of Grandparents were there and brought delicious food. The turkey was the best ever. Salt brining the night before is absolutely the way to go.

Sierra went to a friends birthday where they did the most amazing face painting. How cool is this?

New coat! Sierra's teacher is the best1 She loves her and takes the best pics and sends them to me. She loves her school and is learning SO fast! She is already reading sight words and sounding out everything. She is a genius.

Ward Christmas party. Best. Santa. Ever!

Roller Derby!

2010-11-30T18:43:00.005-07:00

Oh ya baby. I tried out... I made it. I am now officially a Salt City Derby Girl.

My Derby Name is Keltic Storm and my number is #32˚.
Tell me I'm crazy, don't care. I'm doing this and I'm going to love it! Yes I will be wearing fish nets in public. Yes I'm totally fine with that.

Graduating!!

2010-06-01T13:45:00.003-06:00

My little girl is graduating! I'm so proud and sad at the same time.

Cupcake contest

2010-04-07T10:58:00.005-06:00

And the winner is....ME!! Woo! I mentioned that there was a cupcake contest between all the Kneaders pastry chefs. There are three of us at our store so we were able to enter three cupcakes. So last month the other pastry chef and I worked on them and came up with many designs and flavor combos. We picked two that we like and decided to enter them. Last week they came to pick up our entries. The first one we decided to do was a white cake with a little lemon flavor baked into it. After it was baked we dipped the bottom in white chocolate ganache, then filled it with raspberry filling. On top of the cupcake we layered white chocolate lemon truffle filling and put a swirl of raspberry whipped cream. I then put a curl of sugared lemon and some sugared lemon zest for a little flavor pop.
I think it turned out so pretty.

This cupcake won first place.
Click on it for screen size goodness.
The next one was a white cupcake with a chocolate dipped bottom, it was filled with vanilla mousse, then topped with raspberry filling then a swirl of whipped cream on top and a chocolate covered cherry on top. I don't have of pic of this one yet, I could kick myself for not taking pics when we made them.

I'm not sure if this one won second or third place.

The last cupcake was a complete after thought. We hadn't decided on a third design and Joy said whatever you want to do is fine, so instead of taking one of the designs we had done before I had an idea in my head I wanted to try.

We made a white cupcake, and dipped the bottom in chocolate, then I made some chocolate buttercream frosting. I piled it high in the center and smoothed the sides. I then made what I call chocolate "shards". I put a layer of chocolate on a baking sheet, let it cool and then broke it into long pieces. I didn't get a pic of the the ones I entered but here is some I did later that day for Jax's scout banquet. They don't look quite as good as the ones I made for Kneaders but you can kinda get the idea. I was so excited and happy we won 1st, 2nd and 3rd place out of 27 entries. I really didn't think we had a shot since the people that started Kneaders own a store in Provo and their daughter owns the one in Orem. I thought there is no way we have a chance. Woo! It totally made my day!

Beannachtaí na Féile Pádraig

2010-03-17T13:11:00.004-06:00

Happy St. Pat's day!!

I made some yummy treats to celebrate one of my favorite holidays.
These are super easy and sooo delicious.

Green velvet cake balls. Click on the pic...go ahead..I dare ya.

I took a white cake mix, added a lg pkg of vanilla pudding mix, and 1/4 C. chocolate powder and made the rest according to the package.
When it was cool I crumbled the cake in a bowl and added one container of cream cheese frosting and mixed it very well.
Then I formed balls and froze them
When they were cold enough I dipped them in chocolate and drizzled more chocolate on top.

So addicting.

You can do this any kind of cake/frosting mix or even oreo or nutter butter cookies. You don't have to add the pudding mix or the chocolate powder but I wanted to try it.

Cupcakes!

2010-03-12T10:09:00.006-07:00

Mmmm, who doesn't love a good cupcake? Yesterday I spent two hours creating these for a contest. They all have various fillings and toppings.
I think I'm leaning toward the white cupcake with raspberry mousse filling and raspberry whipped cream frosting.
The kids all like the two with the cherries on top.

Sorry for the horrible pic, I only had my phone. You can click on the pic to get a close up view.

We get to enter three since there are three Pastry Chefs at our location. Even if we don't win it was so fun creating such yummy cupcakes.

Sugar cookies

2010-03-04T12:02:00.009-07:00

This is the best sugar cookie recipe I have ever tasted. I know because I make them every day. (wink, wink) these were published on G00d Thin@s Utah. They did a feature and there is a video showing how to make them.

The very best and biggest tip ever is...wait for it....roll out the dough between two cedar grilling planks. (One plank on each side of the dough). You never have to guess the thickness. They all roll out to be the perfect size no guessing and so fast. You might think they are too thick but trust me they are perfect.

For the recipe and video just click on the link. Oh, and I also put in almond instead of lemon flavoring in the frosting, but that is totally your call.

http://www.abc4.com/mostpopular/story/Kneaders-Sugar-Cookies/tE2aCurRMU6kN_GXt_f8Qw.cspx

Nutmeg is the secret ingredient in the dough. Just beware if you make them, I won't be responsible for how many you eat. They are amazing.

Banana cookies

2010-03-03T13:34:00.003-07:00

This is the absolute BEST way to use old bananas. It's way easy and so much better than banana bread.

Banana drop cookies

1/2 C. softened butter
1 C. sugar
2 lg. Eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 C. mashed bananas (2 med size)
2 C. flour
1 1/2 tsp. Baking powder
1/2 tsp. Baking soda
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/2 C. chopped nuts (optional)

Mix butter and sugar together and beat until fluffy, add eggs one at a time, add vanilla and beat well.

Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, salt and cloves.
Add to mixture alternately with the bananas.
Stir in nuts if you want them in.
Mixture will be slightly runny. Drop by teaspoons about 2 inches apart (they spread quite a bit) on a greased cookie sheet.

Bake at 375 for about 10 min. Just until bottoms start to brown. They will look underdone on top. Remove immediately and frost when cool.
Banana frosting ( This is what makes them so good)

Stir together 2 C. powdered sugar, 1/4 C. mashed banana (1 small), 1 tsp. Vanilla, 2 T. softened butter. You can add more sugar to make the frost as firm as you like it. I like mine to be thin so it’s like a thick glaze.

I made mine a little big so I got about 2 1/2 dozen.

2009-12-17T16:08:00.002-07:00

Sunday was the best day ever. Scott was able to get some tickets to the spoken word and the Christmas Program. He could only get four so Jackson was a sweetie and let the girls go with us while he stayed home with Sierra.

The program was amazing and I think I'm now a big fan of Natalie Cole. Her voice was beautiful.
I especially loved her voice when she sang "The Holly and the Ivy". the absolute best part was at the end when Pres. Monson thanked her for coming and told her "We are so proud of you" then gave her a hug and kiss on the cheek. It brought tears to her eyes as well as ours. THEN they had her and the other guest turn to the choir and they sang "God be with you til we meet again". She broke into tears. It was just so moving. She thanked the church and said how wonderful everyone had been to her and her staff and it was one of the best experiences of her life. wow. She is the coolest.

After we went to brunch at Little America. Soooo good. The girls loved it.

A visit from Santa while we ate. He loved Noelle's red and green bands around her braces.

I love this gingerbread house at the Hotel.

2009-12-02T16:22:00.003-07:00

Thanksgiving!

We were supposed to go to Ken and Shan's house for Thanksgiving but Jackson came down with strep. We were worried he would give it to everyone even though he had started antibiotics, we debated going or staying. We thought Scott's parents were not going because they were getting over colds, and then we thought Ken and Shan were going to her parents instead. Long story short we ended up getting everything we needed the day before and as I was deep into preparing dinner Darlene called (Scott's mom) saying no, everything is still on and to come up. *sigh* Too late. Oh well. It would have been nice to be with everyone for dinner but this was ok too.

Ash helping with the stuffing.

Goofing off with Halloween costumes while bringing up the Christmas decorations.

Mmmm, potatoes.

Sweet potatoes with lots of butter, brown sugar and
marshmallows. YUM!!

Turkey!

So strange to just have the six of us for Thanksgiving. It was quiet but still wonderful. It would have been nice to have our parents there.

Sierra the silly.

Bingham Ball 09

2009-11-21T15:42:00.002-07:00

I don't have any pics of Ash at Bingham Ball yet, I didn't get any but Ashley assures me she will get me some. I did get a pic of the fruit tart I made for the dessert.

2009-11-01T15:36:00.004-07:00

Halloween 09!! So much fun, the weather was so nice.
Sierra got a little cold so we got the car and did a few more houses. Click on pics for up close and personal..:)

She loved dressing up as Snow White, she even had
the cutest shoes that lit up as she walked

Ash found her own Ninja costume and played the part perfect.

Noelle was out trick or treating , Ash said she would photo shop her in later.

Joey's party was so much fun! I made bread bowls,broccoli cheese soup and licorice caramels. Joey made the most delicious soup, it was weight watchers so that's what I had. There was cake, cookies, bruschetta, cheese, fruit, meatballs, artichoke dip and a cheese ball! I could have gone crazy but I was so good. I had a bite of Chloe's birthday cake..it was a bundt! I had to. I had so many comments on my feather eyelashes, I'm glad I decided to wear them.

2009-10-20T09:20:00.003-06:00

I just found all my old neighborhood buddies! Thank you Tamera!! I see many of them on facebook but this is even better.

It has made me realize how much I miss them all. I had hoped to keep in touch and let myself believe that nothing would change because I wasn't moving very far. It seems though that it changed everything. I felt like a part of me had been amputated. To see all the family pictures and what everyone is doing. It's like the phantom pain of that part that is gone. It makes me so sad, and happy at the same time. I have made some incredibly wonderful friends where I am now but they can never replace the friendships I had. Sometimes it's good to open up wounds, clean them out, let them heal. It hurts but you know it will get better.

Guess what?? I got a job! I actually got a job I had been wanting for about a year. I am the assistant pastry chef at Kneaders. It's part time and perfect. I am so excited. I start tomorrow.

Change can be good.

2009-10-19T18:01:00.005-06:00

Cornbelly's at thanksgiving point Sierra and Noelle LOVED the corn pit. I could hardly breathe in there because of the corn dust. They were covered in it.
In the corn maze. We got so tired that we ended up quitting halfway through. Sierra was dragging and so was I. Noelle of course had tons of energy.

Sierra wasn't so sure she liked the maze. She was worried we were lost.

Ashley went to Homecoming Saturday night, she looked gorgeous!

Birthday Bash 09!

2009-10-06T14:28:00.006-06:00

Yep, It's that time of year again. Four birthdays in three days.
This year was my 40th and wow did it come with a bang. So much fun. Take a look.

2009-06-22T18:12:00.002-06:00

2009-06-22T11:39:00.002-06:00

2009-06-22T08:45:00.005-06:00

Last weekend we went on our Stake Pioneer Trek. We had eight "kids" in our family five boys and three girls.

We had prepared for several months, going on hikes, making our family flag. We had a BBQ with all the kids trying to get them excited to go.

We were fortunate that this wasn't a survival trek, we could bring snacks and even our deodorant and tooth brushes. Yea!!

The first day we went five miles. We came upon a part were the water was up to our knees. The mud underneath was slimy and sucked at our shoes. The smell was horrible. I'm guessing it was from the dead carp that we saw floating around us.

That night we had a wonderful dinner of chicken, salad, fruit and apple or cherry pie with ice cream. After dinner we learned some fun square dances and pioneer dances.

The clouds were dark and threatened to rain but it never did. The night was cold and the tent was small but we made it though the first night. The next morning we went five miles and stopped for lunch.
I brought with us a five pound sack of flour that we wrapped in a baby blanket and carried all the first day and half the next. At one of our mid-trek family activities we told stories of pioneer families that lost child after child and the hardships that they endured. We buried our flour sack baby by the side of the trail and all felt a small part of the sadness and sacrifices the pioneers made to come to this valley.

After lunch we went another five and half miles. The boys pulled through many places that were covered with mud..or mud and water. That night we rested in the shade after we made camp. We had another wonderful dinner of fried chicken, potatoes, beans, salad and fruit. Dessert was cherry and chocolate cheesecake. Yum! We were fed very well. I can't imagine going on a trek were we had to make our own food. After dinner we had a devotional and testimony meeting. We have some amazing kids in our stake and in our own ward.

The next morning was our last and we slogged the last five miles through mud and and water that was freezing. We also had the Women's pull. The men and women were separated and each had their own little meeting. The men played games and told stories and the women were entertained with a skit. We then had to pull our handcarts with only the women in our family through a half mile of freshly turned up dirt and sand. We had to rest several times, I was red faced gasping for air and dripping sweat. When I saw the men come around the corner half way into the pull I teared up and wanted to let them help us. We finished the pull with help from two of the stake women leaders but no men. We all made it through and I was very quiet for the next mile until we had lunch. It was quite the experience.
We had another mile to go after lunch. We went through a "river" that they made for us. We were all happy and excited that it was almost over. We came through the bushes and the kids families were lined up cheering us on. It was such a great moment to see them all there. As soon as we got done the clouds opened up and it started to rain.
It was almost as if it were waiting for us to be done and held back until the very last moment.

We had such an incredible experience. I would do it again especially now that it's over and I can look back and see all that we felt and learned over the three days.

Easter 2009!

2009-04-14T18:58:00.006-06:00

The Weather was beautiful in sunny St. George.

If you look really close you can see Jax's camo egg Scott had hidden in the tree. He never would have found it without some help

2009-04-01T16:10:00.002-06:00

A few more pics that Jamie took. I stole them from her blog, heh,heh.

2009-03-31T16:30:00.003-06:00

This is usually me. It was nice to sleep baby free for once.

Crazy hair day! If there was a prize she would have won.

Sierra's Popeye look. "I'm strong to the finish when I eats me spinach"

2009-03-23T16:25:00.003-06:00

We had a ton of fun at the Aquarium. Thanks so much to Judy and Jamie who invited us. Sierra loves Shaylee and had a great time.

The girls loved the puzzles and didn't want to leave.

This is my favorite picture. Sierra showing Shaylee the spider.

Primary activity

2009-03-23T16:22:00.001-06:00

We had a Primary Activity where we did a treasure hunt.
I made seventy five "treasure" cup cakes. They were a hit!

2009-02-26T16:24:00.002-07:00

Raspberry pie, right before it goes into the oven.

Hot pie!

Sierra looking at the pie being made.

Sierra is mad because she didn't want all the kids in the picture.

Now she is happy.

2009-02-26T16:12:00.002-07:00

Jackson and Noelle's braces.

2009-02-20T12:00:00.001-07:00

Swimming with the stingrays.

2009-02-20T10:30:00.003-07:00

More Disney Cruise pics!

2009-02-20T10:05:00.001-07:00

2009-02-20T09:59:00.001-07:00

The whole adorable group. They went to see taken then out to dinner.

Sweethearts Dance

2009-02-20T09:55:00.003-07:00

Ash and her buddy Dylan at the Sweethearts Dance.

2009-02-01T19:53:00.005-07:00

Disney owns our souls as well as most of the money we had.

The Disney Cruise line was all that we expected and more.

The food was amazing, the people were the most kind and friendly and willing to do anything to help us have the best time. (except for the customer service guy who was a bit cranky on the last day)

My pics are all out of order and I just can't seem to figure out how to do this so they aren't. :( blech.

This is the last day on Castaway Cay. The water was beautiful, the weather was a little cool. Imagine our surprise when we got fried. Thank goodness we put sunscreen on most of our body parts. My left arm and neck and chest were toasted, Sierra's left arm, Jackson's back, Ashley's neck, and Noelle's head were all loved a little too much by the sun.

This was our ship, the new one on the left not the Flying Dutchman on the right.

Swimming with the sting rays in Grand Cayman.

Sierra having fun in the sun eating an endless supply of cheese pizza. I think Jax ate his weight in pizza every night.

My favorite activity when I had a moment without kids.

Sierra and her friend Jill in their princess dresses. Sierra loves Sleeping Beauty.

Sierra slept through four out of seven dinners.

The big screen over the kids pool was so cool! They showed movies all day and night until midnight.

Key West was pretty once you got off the main streets that were lined with bars and shops.

We had to try the chocolate covered key lime pie on a stick. I like the traditional pie a little better. Sierra only liked the chocolate. No lime pie for her!

This is Noelle's face pretty much every time she looks at Jax. It's a poster for annoyance. The kid knows how to get to his sisters. One day they are going to get him back and wow.....I don't think I want to be there to see it.

Sierra had Mickey icecream bars every time she was awake for dessert.

The first thing we did after getting on the boat...EAT!! yum-o.

The welcome party. Sierra had a blast getting her dad with the sparkle stick.

2008-12-15T13:32:00.007-07:00

The big annual Robbins Family Christmas party!
Everyone looks forward to this party every year. Yesterday all I heard is "when are we going??"

We have a yummy dinner then we play Bingo or what I like to call "blood bingo". It was pretty tame last night. No tears or blood were shed this year.

We then exchanged our Christmas gifts, I love this part. I love to see how everyone likes the gifts they were given. Shan gave Sierra a barbie car with a barbie in it. It was so cute, she loved it. What was even cuter is that Shaylee loved it too. Sierra was sweet and shared it with her. That little Shaylee is the cutest thing ever, well it may be a tie for cuteness with Sierra. Ha!

We usually celebrate Noelle's birthday at our Christmas party since it falls either on her actual day or close to it. This year it was on her day. She wanted a big fudge-y chocolate cake, and Costco has a really good one. I just wished the whole things was eaten last night. Now I have a quarter of it staring at me all day.

Happy 11th Birthday Noelle!

Me and my gorgeous sister in law Judy. I had to get a pic of us since we totally matched in our black.

Noelle, Cody and Maddy playing cards.

I wished I had taken more pics. I just always forget when the party is in full swing. Everyone is coming over next Tuesday for dinner, so I'll try and get more then.

Thanksgiving 2008

2008-12-02T21:16:00.007-07:00

Click on any of the pics to get a larger view.

Turkey Day! We had a great time. It was so fun to have it at our house again. The turkey turned out juicy and moist. The rolls were light and fluffy. (We almost didn't have any because I made a huge mistake when I made them) Darlene (Scott's Mom) made the most wonderful yams. They were a huge hit. I want some right now. My Grandpa's sister was able to come. I haven't seen her since his funeral. She could only remember me as a little girl but she looks so much like him it felt like he was there with us.

This is a new recipe I tried. It's a chocolate-pecan-caramel cream pie. It was harder than I thought it would be. The custard layer took me three tries. It was pretty good though. Ash loved my razzleberry pie I made a little bit more. I think I need to teach her how to make it. I keep trying to teach the kids how to cook but it gets so frustrating. They don't seem to love it like I did at their age. My sister and I would try and see who could make the same dish the best. Maybe they need a little competition. The stuffing ended up wonderful even though I couldn't find the pecans. I think Ash threw them away when she was helping me clean up. It's probably a good thing since it forced me to abandon my idea of making pecan squares. I soooo didn't have time for that.

Sierra making her sad and her mad face. She loves the camera.

Dance night!

2008-11-15T20:54:00.015-07:00

Ash is such a cutie, She went to the dance with one of her buddies. Her boyfriend's parents won't let him take the same girl twice in a row. She didn't mind too much. One of Ash's good friends took him so they could all go together and still have a great time.

I told them to make a goofy face. They weren't too creative. Ash got a little more silly when she got some red lipstick on. All the girls that came over looked great. There was six couples so a total of twelve. Since it was girls choice I offered to make dinner. I told them they just had to pay for the meat. They all wanted to save a bit of money so they quickly agreed. One of the girls even had a friend that would do some great pictures so they wouldn't have to spend too much on them at the dance. This was such a great way to go.
They took a bunch of pics together and some with just couples. I can't wait to see all the fun pictures she took. Ash is between her date and her boyfriend. You can click on the pics to see them bigger with more detail.

I wanted the table to look beautiful, they seemed to love the cranberries in the sprite. I hope they enjoyed this as much as a fancy restaurant.

For starters, a spinach, romaine salad with cranberries, almonds and a raspberry vinaigrette dressing.The main course was oven roasted beef tenderloin finished on the grill with shallot burgundy sauce. On the side bow tie pasta with spinach ravioli with pesto sauce and steamed broccoli (obviously).

Dessert was Oreo, chocolate, strawberry parfait with a tuxedo strawberry on top.

I would totally do this again. I had a great time and I think the kids really liked the food. I can't wait to hear how many dances her date let her dance with her boyfriend. ;)

2008-11-10T13:09:00.002-07:00

Ok, here is what's been going on for the last two weeks.

Ash got her wisdom teeth out.

She did great, she was out of it for a bit but then was fine later on that day. She didn't even bruise or swell up.

Halloween was fun, not quite as eventful as usual. I ordered a Sleeping Beauty costume to go with Scott's Buzz lightYear but it didn't fit right. Apparently it is made for girls without boobs of any kind. I ended up wearing all black and a witches hat. Sierra was happy I was also a witch. Ash didn't even dress up at all. She didn't like the Gogo girl costume she picked out.

Jackson only wore his costume for the picture, and Noelle had to have a costume of a real person for school. Her teacher had them do a report on a real person and make a poster of them. That was the only way they could dress up at school. She really wanted to be someone scary. Oh well. I guess he meant well but what a way to take the fun out of Halloween.

Sierra is the most adorable little witch ever. She had the most fun. It started to rain while we were trick or treating and she started to get cold. I kept asking her if she wanted to go home and she would say "no, almost done." So cute. I guess Halloween really is for the littlest ones.

The next day the fab Hubby took me to Mama Mia in Vegas. We both loved the movie and thought the theater production would be awesome. We were wrong. It was mediocre and now I know why they are closing. We still had a great time just being together.

Now I'm getting ready for Ash to go to the Ball on Saturday. I ended up offering to make dinner for her and all her friends. I just told them they had to pay for the groceries and I would make it wonderful. We found the perfect dress, it was 50% off. Woo hoo!

That's about it. Oh I did rear ended on Saturday. It's just a little dent, it shouldn't be too much to fix. They may not even want to go through their insurance. I felt bad for the girl. She is 19 and she cried like she had killed someone. Poor girl. Scott is coming home from St. George in a bit so I better get going on the house. I love to have it all sparkly and de-cluttered when he walks in. Off to work!

2008-11-10T12:01:00.007-07:00

Disneyland in October! The weather was beautiful, the decorations were spectacular. The crowds...well it was UEA weekend. So we pretty much shared the park with all of Utah.

Sierra loved seeing her favorite characters. She ran up and hugged each one and had the biggest grin on her face. She wasn't scared of any of them.
We love the churros in Disneyland, they are the best. We have a hard time walking by one of these carts without getting one.
Sierra had so much fun posing for the camera.

She had the best time, even now she reminds me daily that she loves Disneyland.On the last day Scott got the cinnamon roll he had been craving the entire trip.

And I got my giant smoked turkey leg. I promise it's to die for.Haunted Mansion was the most popular ride since they only decorate it like this for Halloween to Christmas.

Sierra getting us all to do mad and sad faces. We would take her picture then she would say "okay, now a sad face."

This is the crowd in front of the Mansion. It was packed!
This is the side of the Mansion, all the people behind Scott and the kids were IN LINE. I have Never seen the line go out of the gates before. We were right by the entrance to the train. I tell you it was crazy. We got some fast pass tickets so we didn't have to wait.
Sierra was so excited to see Mickey, then she got all shy and hid in my hair. She gave him the biggest hug ever though.
This moment made the whole crowd behind us say "awwwww."

Time for a little rest and more posing from Sierra.

Some of the characters were in costumes.

Canning the fruits of my garden

2008-10-15T13:26:00.007-06:00

Tomatoes are taking over my kitchen! Last year I planted four plants, they produced way more than we could ever eat. Being the lazy person I can sometimes be, I left them there all winter. In the spring we weeded all the dead plants. I guess the seeds were in the ground because later I had little tomato plants all over the place. I did plant a few and for some reason they didn't do as well as the volunteer plants did. So what am I going to do with all these? And why is this post underlined?? Grrr! I have the hardest time posting here.

I ended up with seven jars of salsa and seven quarts of Scott's Mom's green tomatoes. I did add some cauliflower. I found a site that said you could do that. I also did seven quarts of crushed tomatoes. I hope we will eat them. I think they will look pretty on the pantry shelves though.
Here is a close up of the green pickled tomatoes. Scott loves them. Jackson about hurled when he walked in the house. He has a serious problem with the smell of vinegar. The whole house reeked of it. I thought the smell of dill would linger but the vinegar killed that smell. They look yummy. I've never loved pickled veggies. If we end up having to eat them to survive I suppose I will learn to love them. I am excited for the salsa though. I just hope it's spicy enough to make Scott happy and yet mild enough that we can all enjoy it.

It was fun, I can't believe I got it done before we leave tomorrow for Disneyland. I feel so proud. *sniff,sniff*

Birthday Bash 08!

2008-10-06T13:42:00.005-06:00

The big birthday weekend is finally over.

It all started with my birthday on Thursday. Scott took me out for lunch and gave me tickets to Mama Mia in Vegas. I ate raspberry chocolate cake and clam chowder with yummy sourdough bread. I can honestly tell you I didn't feel even a little bit guilty. I found this amazing cake store called Nothing Bundt Cake. They have these little individual cakes called bundtlets. Perfect for one person.

As I was savoring this perfect slice of heaven, my wonderful friend Joey brought me another one! Oh the day just gets better and better!

So I didn't eat that one all by myself since I was starting to feel a little sick from gobbling down the first one. I shared it with the kids.

I did get a big one for the big dinner and birthday celebrations.

Later that night we went to one of those Astro Burger (one of those yummy greek burger places.) The kids all had cheeseburgers and Scott and I had gyros. So yummy....until I threw up later that night. I guess I wasn't used to so much crap. Anyway, I enjoyed most of it.

See my bodybugg on my arm? I've had a few people think it was a tatoo. huh? really? ok.

The next day (Friday) was Scott's and Ash's birthday. It was pretty quiet for me we did go out for dinner again since it's a tradition. They picked our favorite pizza place. We had salad, pizza and spumoni with rum sauce. I gave Scott one of those flip camcorders. They are way cool. I can't wait to put up some of them. Sierra slept all through dinner since she woke up at 6:30 in the morning. Her normal time to wake up is anywhere between 8:30 and 10:00.

Here is Ash and her best friend. I can't believe she is 17! That freaks me right out.

Here is the Scott doing what he loves. Who knew you could surf behind a boat? This was just last weekend down in St. George.

I had to put one up of him smiling. He is such a hottie! Yum!

Then came Saturday and little Sierra's birthday. Three years old. She gave me the best birthday present. She pooped in the potty! Yes, she finally did it and we celebrated. There was much rejoicing. ha!

We spent the day getting ready for all the family to come for dinner and cake on Sunday.

She got her first crown and princess jewlery and shoes from her cousin Jamie.

She then did some Irish dancing on the kitchen floor. So adorable.
Grandma gave her a cute crayon apron and a huge coloring book. He other Grandma gave her some books which she loved. She also got a fun little Brat doll from her Uncle Ken and Aunt Shana. They are so awesome. Uncle Ken did have fun teasing Ashley about her boyfriend. She get two dozen red roses from him. He is a sweet kid.

So we are all another year older. I don't think I'm any wiser but at least I'm thinner than last year which is almost as good in my book. ha! Woo Hoo!

Here are some more fun pics from our trip to St. George and Sand Hollow.

Scott's Alaska trip

2008-08-18T17:53:00.002-06:00

Last week Scott was gone to Alaska fishing and it was a pretty sad week around here. I was fine during the day but when at night I missed him so much. Sierra kept saying "I miss Daddy" all week. At night she would look at his side of the bed and ask "where is Daddy? On vacation? Ya, Daddy on vacation." It was so sad. I missed our nightly walks. I found out it's no fun to walk alone.

We talked almost every night. He didn't get a lot of sleep.

He loved Alaska. He thought it was so beautiful there. I have to agree from the pics.

He caught this weird spiny fish that has a venom on it's spines. He got a little cut on his finger. It was swollen with a little bit of pus. Another guy up there caught one and kicked back into the water. The spines went right through his boot. That stupid decision had him limping the rest of the week.

He saw a ton of whales and some Orca. They were out in freezing water with a big pod of Orca around them. One of the guys with him got totally freaked out.

He caught the biggest Salmon of the trip. Yummm!

He caught about five halibut. Ken and our neighbor Dallen caught two each. Dallen's friend that was with them on their boat had to leave because his Dad died. They didn't catch as much as they wanted but all three got about forty-fifty pounds of fish. They share all the fish they catch.

He loved the area they were in. This is the little cabin he and Ken stayed at.

Here are a few more pics.

The reflection in the water is amazing.

Scary fish. I can't remember what Scott said these are called. Way ugly.

More of the area where he was.

Jelly fish. Eeek, it's good he didn't go swimming.

I was wishing I was there with him when he was describing how beautiful it was, not to mention all the animals he saw. Then he described the little alumnium boats and the cold and how it rained every day.

I decided I would much rather go on a cruise to Alaska. I don't think sitting in a little boat in the ocean with rain coming down all day would be so much fun. Unless of course you are a guy, fishing with other guys.
When I went to pick him up he took forever. He and a few others were standing around the carousel waiting. His 50 pound box of fish never came. Delta took it and a bunch of other baggage off the plane. It was supposed to come yesterday. Hubby called and called and no one knew where it was. We were so disappointed. We knew that even if they did find it, it most likely wouldn't be good anymore.

It finally came today and it was still a little frozen. I threw that into the freezer. The fish that wasn't frozen was still cold so we are eating that tonight. Fish tonight! Woo!!!

2008-08-06T12:32:00.001-06:00

A round of antibiotics and a week in sunny St. George has helped kicked the crap out of Jackson's lungs. We were planning on going camping up high in the Uintah mountains. We went up last Sunday to find a spot. We found a nice place but it was only fifty degrees. We decided that Jackson didn't need the cold. We thought a week of 100 to 115 degrees would be better. It was. We had a great time over the holiday. Pioneer Day for those of you who are thinking "what holiday?"

24th of July is Pioneer Day in Utah and it is just as big or bigger than Independence Day. Same kind of stuff going on. Parades, fireworks, picnics. That sort of thing. It's great.

The kids got to swim a lot and just relax. Sierra loves the water until we try and get her to swim or float. She then screams her lungs out. Hub thinks its good for her.

Our friends that live there have a pool at their house and they have a little boy a month older than Sierra. Ya, he can totally swim. At least he isn't potty trained yet. HA! Well, neither is Sierra but we are going to work on that very soon.

No signs that Noelle is getting sick. Hopefully she will pass this one by. I hope.

Celtic Celebration 2008!

2008-06-16T18:58:00.003-06:00

I feel so loved!

We had our big Celtic Celebration last week and so many of my family came.

The Wasatch Pipe band

My parents were there. I told them they didn't have to come but there they were sitting with Hubby and the kids. My Aunt and three cousins came as well as a really good friend that I've come to love a ton. It's really amazing when you find a friend who is so much like you that you just become fast friends.

I had been working really hard to get all my steps down and I felt really good about them all.

My dress was still a little tight across the front (ahem) but it felt better in the tummy area which makes me very happy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

We went to St. George for Father's Day. It was so hot but the swimming pool took care of that. We had a great time.

Scott took me on a killer three hour bike/hike in the red hills.

I thought I was going to collapse but when I took a second to look around at the cliffs I noticed how beautiful it was. Even if I was gasping for air and sweat was running down my face. Scott took a small tumble on some slick rock but was overly tuff about it and wouldn't let me baby him. *pout*

Scott's parents helped us get all the furniture for the St. George house put together. We got everything all at once at Ashley Furniture. It's is really good quality but when you get it from them you have to put it together. It took us a while but wow is it great stuff.

We cooked Scott and his Dad a yummy breakfast on Father's Day then came home. It was a great weekend to lay by the pool and just relax.

Memorial Day 2008

2008-06-02T16:28:00.001-06:00

Memorial Day is the day for remembering our loved ones. What I remember is that since I was little our family got together and had a picnic, barbecue, or a get together at a park or in the canyon.

So, in the spirit of our family's Memorial Day we went to St. George. My grandparents had a condo while I was growing up. Some of my most wonderful memories are of our family going to St. George. I thought of my wonderful Grandma the whole time we were there.

Here we are hiking on the gorgeous redrocks above the city.

Ash and her good friend Megan holding up a big overhang.

I was holding my breath as they sat under this big rock.

Big cracks in the rocks were kinda spooky. You could see all the way down. In some of the other areas you can walk through the cracks. I did that when I was little. Maybe thats where I got my fear of being stuck.
Jackson did a big leap over a crack.

Noelle in front of a beautiful rock with holes.

Everyone hiked up to the top of the biggest rock while I stayed with Sierra.

Sierra got tired of being carried and wanted to "rock climb" too

A fun jump to Daddy.

Hiding in the rocks

We had so much fun. This is such a beautiful place to spend the weekend.
We also went to the pioneer home of Jacob Hamblin.

A very old Book of Mormon

The kids got to see how hard life was for the early pioneers.
I hope they came away feeling very grateful for all they have. I know I did.

2008-05-05T17:16:00.000-06:00

Sierra got her first haircut!

Her hair had finally reached past her collar and it was time to get a little trimming done.

Here she is pre-cut

We went to this adorable little kids haircutting place called Cookie cutters. I like anything with cookie in the title. I was secretly hoping they would give out fresh cookies with each haircut. Jackson even got a buzz cut while he was there.

Sierra sat in a cute little fire engine and watched Elmo's World while she trimmed up her fuzzy ends.

Then she got a little blow out style. After the haircutting was done they gave her a balloon and let her go down the slide.

It was a great first hair cut experience.

Cancun baby!

2008-04-16T12:09:00.004-06:00

Ok, so now for the best part of the last month. Our fab trip to Cancun! I can't remember the last time we went somewhere for a whole week alone. We went to Chicago but that was for business and it was only a few days, so that didn't count.

We walked into our hotel and see this right away.
This is the view from our room.

We stayed at an all inclusive, (all food and drinks included). Oh yes, we took advantage of that I tell you. Since we don't drink any alcohol we made sure we made up for it in food, diet coke and virgin pina coladas. HA!
The first full day we spent lounging around on beach chairs by the Ocean. I can't believe how warm the water was.

Scott kept trying to tempt me into the water.

But, this is all I did for the first hour.

There is nothing so wonderful as lying in the sun by the Ocean reading a great book with a cold drink close by. I was in Heaven.

Unfortunately I was in the sun a little too long and I got a slight sunburn. Only on one shoulder and my chest. Weird huh?
Later that night they had a big buffet on the beach with a big dance show after.

We sat a a big table with a bunch of people who couldn't believe we didn't drink. "Why? Why don't you drink"? I guess we were something of an oddity at a resort where everyone drank...all day...from morning to early the next morning. Um, diet coke no ice please.

One day we took a tour of Chitzen Itza. The Ruins were spectacular. Our guide was amazing. He had such pride for everything he was telling and showing us. It really made me look at Mexico and it's peole in a different light. Did you know the government offers college for free? How amazing is that? Anyone can become a doctor, lawyer, anything they want to for free. Amazing.

Here is the big temple that is so famous because of the all the astrology connections. On the Equinox the shadows make it look like snakes are crawling down the the steps.

The Mayan calender was more accurate than anything anyone has ever seen before. It also ends in 2012. Our guide said they have figured it out to be December 23 at 5am to be exact. Everyone has some pretty fantastic ideas why. Aliens anyone? hehe.
Here are some carvings on the ball court.

Apparently they cut the head off the captain of the winning team. Why the winner? Because he was worthy to be received by the Gods. I think I would throw the game. Yikes!

This is carvings of skulls on a platform where they did human sacrifices. Ick.

We walked a ways down to this sacred water hole. There were illegal vendors all the way down on both sides. They called to us to buy their stuff the whole way.

When we walked back the heat was unbearable. I thought I was getting heat stroke. Have you ever been so hot that you thought you were going to die? My stomach started to cramp up even though I had a ton of water I think I sweated it all out. After we left we ate and then went swimming in an underground cave called a cenote. It was amazing. It was cool temperature wise, and the water was cold as well. We almost didn't get in because we had a long three hour ride back to the hotel and didn't want to be wet the whole way. I didn't care, Scott said I should get in and that's all it took. I got in and it felt fabulous. The sticky heat washed away as little black fish swam all around me. Scott watched for a bit then couldn't stand it and got in right after.

Of course we froze all the way home because the driver had the air conditioner on to 16c. So that's what... below freezing? Ok, so it's 60 degrees but still freaking cold when you are wet. Finally someone braver than I was spoke up and they turned it off.

The next day we went snorkeling, I figured out I have a slight fear of heights because when I put my face in the water I kind of freaked out a bit. Once I got over the hyperventilating I was able to relax and enjoy it. It turned out to be my favorite thing. Scott got a little motion sick from the waves so we didn't go out the last time plus my life jacket had rubbed a spot on my arm raw. We did meet some really great Canadians that were in our van. We talked the whole way there and back. They really made it even more fun for us.

The last day we just lazed around the entire day and had lunch by the pool. I have a whole new appreciation for calamari.

The trip home was long but not bad, the Atlanta airport was huge! We had to take a train, shuttle thing-y to get from the international part to the other gates. So cool. We almost missed our connecting flight because they switched gates and didn't announce it they just put it up on a board thing that you don't usually check because you go by your tickets. So that was exciting.

It was truly a trip to remember. Oh and we had the best couples massage ever. ;)

Thanks to Scott's parents Jack and Darlene for taking such great care of our kids while we were gone. Sorry you didn't get much sleep and that Ebby got chocolate poisoning. Oh and thank you for doing all those cool things that we never have time for like cleaning the garbage can, the garage and fixing Noelle's dresser. Great idea to move her clothes to the closet. She loves it like that. You guys are awesome! We love ya!

St. Pats, Easter, Jr. Prom

2008-04-15T15:41:00.004-06:00

This has been such a crazy month. So much has happened and yet I just couldn't seem to find time to write about it all.

It started with St. Patrick's Day. It was so fun, seeing all those people lined up along the sides of the streets to cheer us on.

Then Ashley took off to San Diego on her orchestra tour. She had a great time and loved having so much freedom. It was so hard for me to just let her go knowing she wouldn't have anyone there to tell her what was what. She did great and made me proud.

Next along came Easter and a trip south to St. George. We were invited by our friends to stay with them in their condo. We were worried we would get on their nerves being so close but I think we just all became better friends

Ashley got asked to Jr. Prom by a adorable boy who she has had a little crush on for a while. We had so much fun shopping for a dress. She was so cute, she didn't want a dress that was too immodest and at first wouldn't even look a dress unless it had full on sleeves. I finally convinced her to look at some others and she could put a short satin jacket over it if she felt uncomfortable. Dad even approved and said she looked great and totally modest.

Robbins Look-alike Meter

2008-02-26T18:34:00.001-07:00

MyHeritage: Family tree - Genealogy - Celebrity - Collage - Morph

Robbins Look-alike Meter

2008-02-26T18:25:00.001-07:00

MyHeritage: Look-alike Meter - Family search - Pedigree

Robbins Look-alike Meter

2008-02-26T18:21:00.001-07:00

MyHeritage: Look-alike Meter - Geneology

Robbins Look-alike Meter

2008-02-26T18:11:00.001-07:00

MyHeritage: Family tree - Genealogy - Celebrity - Collage - Morph

Sierra's favorite song, besides Whinnie the Pooh of course.

2008-01-05T17:12:00.000-07:00

Sierra loves this song!

2007-11-08T13:55:00.000-07:00

Ok here are more of the family pics that Liz (Dilly Dally Art) took. I think the last time we had a real family pic taken was when Noelle was two and that was at Krappy kiddie kandids.

Liz was so sweet and amazing and wow, she made us look pretty darn good.

This is going on our wall

One of my favs

This is going in with our Christmas cards

A rare smile from Sierra

Gorgeous Ash

Liz is better than a plastic surgeon at making my wrinkles disappear. Ha!!

My freaking adorable Hubby

Jackson and his blazing smile

Noelle, the most photogenic of us all.

Yipee, another smile from Sierra!

Anyone who e-mails me their address will get a christmas card!!

2007-11-03T13:07:00.000-06:00

More BBQ pics!

The food tasted great! Who doesn't love a hotdog roasted over the fire?

Little Shaylee was too cute for words!

Jamie is the cutest little mommy.

May favorite pic of the night.

Sierra's lips were so red, I don't know if she ate something they just looked really red.

She had so much fun on the quad. At first she didn't want anything to do with it. Later we saw she had climbed up all by herself and was checking it out.

Dad and Sierra having a blast.

Cutie pie Jason, (Scott's Nephew)

Ashley and Me

2007-11-02T22:34:00.000-06:00

We had a ball sitting around the fire rosting smores

2007-11-02T22:26:00.000-06:00

We had a great late summer BBQ in Liberty at Robbins estate. I t was so much fun!

2007-10-25T16:47:00.000-06:00

Wow, it's been a while since I've added
anything. October really flew by.
It's our favorite time of year
so I'm not surprised.

Scott's 40th birthday was a blast.
I really played up the whole death thing.
His cake was a coffin with black
roses on top. I could really kick
myself in the head for not taking any pictures.
I was running around trying to talk to
everyone and I just spaced it. I'm such a blonde.

Sierra turned two can you stand it?

We went to chuck -e- cheese, she loved all her presents, I was surprised how interested she was in opening them.
Ashley turned 16. Yes she can now drive and date. I don't know which one I'm more terrified by.
She had a fotball game to go to so that's why the BHS on her cheek.

Sierra and her big fluffy tutu. I want a friend of mine to take some 2 year old pics of her. She just did our family pics and they are amazing.

Go here to www.dillydallyart.blogspot.com (or you can click on the link up on the right) to see her amazing work and some of our family pics.

2007-09-24T14:31:00.000-06:00

Chicago pics!!!

Here we are having the best dinner of the whole trip. We are at the very tippy tip top of the Hancock building. Outside the windows were hundreds of spiders that looked like black widows. I couldn't imagine how they survived the wind and the cold being that high.

Another one at the Hancock building, you can see a great view of the city behind me.

I can't believe how big this city is, it seems even bigger because of the lake. I'm used to the mountains of Utah, so without them it seems huge!

This is us infront of the Biggest and most complete T-rex. I believe it is the one used on "Night at the Museum" Her name is Sue. She is at the Field Museum. They also have the Lions from the movie "Ghost and the Darkness" If you havenn't seen that one, it would be a great one for Halloween, it pretty scary especially since it's a true story. Man eating lions....Shiver.

White sox game. So fun! We didn't see the end because it was raining so hard. I love the rays in the clouds in this pic.

This was one of my favorite things we did, we had dinner at the museum of science. We got to eat at the base of the only captured german sub. We were able to walk through it and hear the stories from the war. It's amazing how it seems more "real" when you are standing in the same place that they stood and placed your hands on the very same rungs of a ladder that all those years ago others were had climbed up.
Sorry it's a bit blurry.

Ugh, sorry I'm in them all. There were no kids to place in front of stuff. I hate our pics of stuff without people in them.

Anyway, it was a really amazing place to go. Lots of stuff to see and do.

2007-08-21T16:45:00.000-06:00

I couldn't resist those eyes peeking out from under
her hood. We had to wake her up to go look at a
hot spring in Yellowstone.

I got smile a few seconds later.

The Dragons breath hot pot was stinky! Sierra
kept saying gross and yuck.

This is the coolest dinner theater ever!
We had a great dinner and then went into a
theater to watch "Seven brides for seven brothers".
The kids had never been to a live musical and they
loved it! They had a slow motion fight scene that was
hilarious. Sierra looks so cute sitting on this saddle
at the bar. She may need a pony. ;)

Noelle looks so cute in braids, too bad she
hates them.

Jackson Hole was so fun, we couldn't wait to
get up to yellowstone.

Sierra likes to load up on as many toys
and doodads as she can hold.

The latest disneyland photo with Mickey.

The baby ducks were almost as cute as Sierra!

Hot tubbing with all the cousins!

Grandma's birthday dinner was a huge success!

Apples to apples is the favorite game of the night.

Since we don't have a slide, Sierra makes do with

the big dirt pile in the garden.

Ashley performing at the Celtic celebration.

Noelle's dance.

My group, we were all so nervous. I don't know

why we have all performed so many times.

Disney in June

2007-07-10T16:34:00.000-06:00

We had a fab time in Disneyland. June was beautiful, hot enough to swim at the pool and yet not too hot that we had to spend all our time there.

It was extra special because it was Father's Day. We had a wonderful Sunday breakfast at the hotel, there were all sorts of characters wandering around. Sierra loved them all.

This pic is worth a thousand words, she loved the big dancing bears
the best and even danced with them.

She gave chip a big hug them promptly push him away.

Dad got a big kiss from Sierra
and then a big hug from photogenic Noelle.

Dinner with Snow White and Ariel

Memorial Day Weekend.

2007-06-01T15:42:00.000-06:00

Memorial Day weekend !
We went camping and had the most fabulous time!
The weather was beautiful in the high Uintahs. The nights
were a bit cool. We didn't see any animals. My Mom
warned us there were bear sightings all over. Oh well.

Scott teaching the kids how to burn the forest down.
Just kidding. He was far, far away form the trees. It only looks
like he is starting the tree on fire.

Sierra loved camping. She was first afraid of the dandelions
that were flowering around our camp, but as soon as I showed her
they were OK she got over it. She then picked up every twig, and rock she could find
Here she is fascinated by a pine cone stuck to the branch.

Scott is the master at grilling!

Mmmmmm, a fire feels so good! We ate smores until
we were sick!

This is what camping should be! Dirt is good! That is
her own hand print on her face btw.

Sierra kept kissing Daddy over and over. She is so sweet.
He was trying to take a nap and she wouldn't let him.
I don't think he was too mad.

This is just about the most precious pic ever.

Is this kid handsome or what? I love the fuzzy
pic of Ash in the background. She hates it when I
take close-ups of her. She is gorgeous.

I have this huge space at the bottom of my post.
I'm having a hard time trying to figure out
how to work blogger. I can never get my posts and pics
together without it taking forever. Grrr...
Oh well. It works.

2007-05-17T16:32:00.000-06:00

Big news! I cut my hair! Yikes! It was traumatic but I

knew I needed to do something different. I saw a pic of Jenny

McCarthy and I loved her cut so I took the pic to the

mall and said "do this!" Well it turned out so white I looked'

like an albino..a little too white. I went back the next day and

had it fixed so here is the result.

Lizzie is getting so big. She has a little bit of a lynx markings above her eyes.

Proof that Sierra is into everything!

2007-05-16T18:45:00.000-06:00

She loves to go into the pantry and pull out
anything that looks good. Scott called me in to
see that she had dumped out the cereal. Ya gotta admire
a kid that can take care of herself ha!

Sierra keeps getting into my makeup. How on earth does

a one year old know where to put lipstick? I hardly ever put it on.

I guess it's from the kids putting lip gloss on her.

More Easter at Lake Powell

2007-04-19T15:11:00.000-06:00

Sierra trying to be like the big kids. It lasted just until she started

coloring on the table.

Feeding the fish at Dangling Rope Marina

Scott is in one of his rare moments of relaxing on the boat.

Look what I got to do all Easter weekend! I was in heaven I tell ya!

Jackson and Noelle had so much fun playing cards. I think they

wore out Grandma's skipbo cards.

Sierra is obsessed with books. She says "readabook" all in one word

She even got Grandpa to read one to her. Right now her favorite

is "Old hat new hat".

Easter at Lake Powell

2007-04-15T18:17:00.000-06:00

It was warm enough for the kids to jump in and play in the red sandy beach!

The kids loved feeding the enormous carp at the marina.

The cliffs were amazing!

Sierra Looking adorable.

Like Mother like daughter

2007-04-02T14:54:00.000-06:00

Sierra loves to climb up on anything. I found her plinking away on the keyboard at the computer desk. Hummmm...Maybe I'm spending too much time there. Ha!

What does a kitty say?

2007-04-02T14:44:00.000-06:00

Sierra and Daddy doing all the animal sounds. She won't usually do it on cue. If you ask her what anything says she won't say it but then a few minutes later she will be walking around saying "meow".

St Pat's day! 07

2007-03-19T15:19:00.000-06:00

St. Patricks Day was so fun! I didn't think it would be that great since I wan't dancing in the parade this year. Scott had to take Ash and Jackson up to Brighton for their snowboarding lessons so I got to take Noelle to the parade. She threw a fit when we told her she had to miss the parade and go snowboarding. this was her first year dancing in it instead of riding in the trailer. Her new traditional Irish dress was just finished a few days before. No way was she missing the parade this year.

Sierra loved the parade. It was about 70 that day and she was clapping along to the music and waving to the people who came to watch. There were so many people this year. I'm sure it was because of the warm weather. Sierra's shirt says, "Dad's lucky charm". Even though I didn't get to dance I still dressed up and pushed Sierra down the parade route behind Noelle.

A video!!

2007-03-19T15:15:00.000-06:00

2007-03-05T19:06:00.000-07:00

Sierra can't wait for spring. She loves the tramp.

Crappy cell pic. Scott got a new camera and ....wow it takes great pics.

Biiiiiig difference.

I can't believe it's been nine months since we moved. It feels like yesterday. I'm still holding onto old frindships I made the last nine years. I did get a lunch invite today so that is hopeful. Scott is gone to Vail skiing with Ken. Ken's company took him and his partners fo a few days.

2007-02-25T16:33:00.000-07:00

Me and my Mom at "It's a small world". It was so fun.I had Sierra then passed her to Mom, then back to Dad. Jackson got a turn then Noelle. Everyone wanted to hold Sierra because she was enthralled with all the colors and the music.

Sierra loved the fish at the Rainforest Cafe

Scott"s Parents Jack and Darlene were very happy to see everyone because they have been soaking up the sun in Arizona for the winter. They were so great to let us drag them all over the Happiest place on Earth!

Bunkbeds were a perfect option at the hotel, although in the middle of the night Jackson sat up and cracked his head twice. He doesn't remember it, he also talks in his sleep. He kept yelling at Noelle in the middle of the night...."mumble,mumble..Noelle! C'mon!....mumble,mumble"

I think I'm going to start putting a tape recorder in his room when he sleeps.

2007-02-23T17:26:00.000-07:00

Okay here we go. This should be fun.

We just got back form a big family va-kay to Disneyland. We had a wonderful time!

It was the first time the kids had ever been on a plane. Scott hired a limo to pick us up from the airport. I think their eyes were going to bug out of their heads when they saw it.

We were joined be My Mom Kim, my Aunt Nona, her two kids Chloee and Devin and Scott parents Jack and Darlene.