Not-So-Sunny St. George

Our trip to St. George this weekend got off to a rough start: First, we left a lot later than planned. Second, we ran into terrible weather and it took over five hours to get there. Unfortunately, it was not the sunny St. George we were hoping for. We rolled in just in time to go to bed.

However, the reason we went down was for Katelyn's (neice) baptism which was on Saturday. My friend let us stay at her condo (thanks Barbara!) which had enough room for Adam and Jenn to stay as well. It was nice having our own rooms, kitchen, etc.

Saturday we went to Josh's (nephew) basketball game and then back to their house to play. Of course I forgot to take pictures. We went back to the condo to get ready and then we were off to the baptism. Katelyn asked me to give the talk on the Holy Ghost, which was a privelege. It was a wonderful event (in spite of having to chase Jonah the whole time!) and we were happy to be a part of it.

After the baptism, we headed back to Greg and Jill's for dinner. Wow! Jill knows how to entertain! We teased her about her "light dinner" after we were all stuffed. It was as fabulous as she is!

The kids were delighted to have more time to play. Zoe and Kate, as well as Noah and Josh, are just a few months apart. They have so much fun being together and it makes family get-togethers even more memorable.

Zoe & Katelyn (in her baptism dress).

Something about the girls were horses and the boys were cowboys...

(I just love kids imaginations!)

Tough guys! (Josh & Noah)

Sassy sweethearts!

Jenn tickling Jonah.

Jill getting some smiles from her nephew C.J.

Jenn & Zoe...just hangin'.

The boys eating seconds (nice roll booger, Noah).

At the condo....

Jenn the "dish dog" of the condo.

Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end. We had to get up the next morning and leave, trying to beat the next storm. Hopefully we'll get to stay longer next time!

President's Day Weekend

Okay, so maybe it's not the biggest of holiday weekends, but I have definitely come to love and appreciate our forefathers so much more than when I was younger. I am so greatful to live in this amazing country (despite it's problems) and for all those who have sacrificed to make it such. It is a privilege and a blessing.

Of course, the other great part of President's Day is the three-day weekend. Zoe had a couple of teeth pulled to start it off (she was hilarious under anesthesia), but we made up for it with some bowling on Saturday.

Red, white and blue shoes...how appropriate! It was me, the kids and Nana "Z". We went up to Olympus Hills Lanes. (Sorry they pics are blurry. I have issues with my camera.) Not to brag, but I did have a couple of strikes and even broke 100. The bumpers only helped a little! :)

Zoe took this great (not) shot of me. I normally wouldn't post such an unflattering photo of myself, but she caught it at the perfect time. I was just commenting on my last shot....

It was obviously not a strike. What a beaut! When I got home Chris and I, along with Adam and Jenn, went to see "The Bucket List", which was a cute show. Ahhh...good times!

I am also posting some photos of Jonah from this morning, just because they're cute. He was cracking me up! He was wearing his hat (which he puts on backwards himself), with that water bottle pouch around his neck, standing on the stool and hammering. He carried it all around the house doing "repairs".

Just look at that face!

Happy Hearts Day!

We started the day with our usual Valentine's heart egg-in-toast breakfast. After the kids went to school, Jonah decided he needed a little snack of Cocoa Krispies with Marshmallows (cereal only a Nana would buy!). I poured him less than a 1/4 cup and when he seemed content, I went to check on my blog (like any good and responsible mom would do). However, I left the cereal box on the counter...BIG mistake!

When I returned, I found him on the counter, bag of cereal in hand. At first I figured he was just looking for seconds. But after observing him for a minute I realized that we was digging through, eating only the marshmallows and piling the rest of the cereal in his bowl (and the rest of the counter). What a mess, but it was so cute!

Later that night, we dropped Jonah at Grandma & Grandpa Hardman's and took Zoe and Noah on a date to a "fancy" restaurant. We went downtown to The Roof and were fortunate to have a table with a view of the temple. It was really fun! We had a nice dinner and then sampled all the desserts we wanted (a rarity for my kids)!

Once we were all completely stuffed, we went downstairs to the Main Street Plaza and Temple Square. We didn't walk around too much, since it was freezing, but enough to make a memory. We asked the kids if they wanted to go up to the door of the temple. We found an open gate and went inside. Noah asked, "Are you sure it's okay for us to be in here?", like we were breaking the rules. Chris and I had to chuckle and he laughed along then said, "No really, is it?"

We let them go up on the steps, check out the doors, took a few more pictures and then decided it was much too cold. We picked up Jonah, delivered our Valentine's and opened our own then called it a night. All in all, a great Valentine's Day!

Let's Clarify, Shall We?

Chris was "razzing" me a little about his position in the company, so I thought I would take a minute to clarify his position. It is much more than just "technical support". He is very handy and can fix/build anything we need in our home. His passion is speakers (speaker building), which is obvious from the surround sound he recently installed in our bedroom.

Chris has very strong work ethic and although he has not been technically employed by a company for the last two years, he has been working very hard. It amazes me how much he is willing to give to others.

Chris is also a great dad. He loves to cuddle, wrestle and teach our kids new things. He is serving in the scouts and so our kids (by their request) have been learning to tie different kinds of knots. Currently, Jonah is Chris' shadow. From the time Jonah wakes up, Chris cannot be out of his sight for more than 5 minutes. I don't know how he'll survive if Chris goes back to the "corporate world".

Chris is also a wonderful husband and an amazing spiritual leader. So there is a lot more to Chris' job description than I listed, I just chose one off his list of many. However, I am still the CEE. :)

Yeah Me!

Well...after weeks (okay months) of saying I am going to complete my blog, I finally did. It is not quite where I would like, but it is a start. For years I have been saying that I was going to journal my family, but have yet to do so. I thought a blog would be the perfect way to start. I can't wait to learn more and actually write down the "business" of our family!