The Bliss'

Christmas

2012-01-09T12:13:00.001-08:00

We had another great Christmas this year. My kids love Christmas Eve night at my mom's almost as much as they love Christmas morning! We had our yummy dinner, the nativity, the FINALLY opened presents. I love family traditions!

Every year the kids get a little older but they are always

good sports about participating in Grandma's nativity.

Cute little shepherd

Danny opening the first of many star wars presents

Jonah wanted a cowboy hat so bad, which I thought

was strange but Grandpa Gary came through!

Uncle Russ teaching Jonah the Pink Panther

Onto Christmas morning.....I really wanted to get lots of video this year so therefore there are not many pictures. But here is a little shot of everyone with their gifts. I think everyone was pretty happpy.

Family Party Time!

2012-01-05T10:16:00.001-08:00

We had some super fun family parties for Christmas. For the Bliss family we had dinner and games at the palomar. Once you have over 50 people in your family you've got to get the gym! Hilary was in charge and did a great job.

The kids loved opening presents the most

We played a game where all the dads stood in a line

and the rest of their family had to find whatever they could

in the room to dress them up. Can you tell how much the

guys loved it?!

Stephani wasn't quick enough to get the Christmas

paper so she went for the volleyball net!!

I'm sure Justin is smiling under that party sack!

For the Church family we rented the gathering place and Darlene made tons of yummy food. We always have such a good time when we get together. All my brothers and sister were there....it was great!

The boys! We sure missed Ty this year!

We played some minute to win it games. It was so funny

everyone got laughing so hard!

My battery died before the party was over and I missed getting pictures of the best part! My dad and brothers all had nylons over their heads with oranges down in the legs and had to knock over water bottles. It was so great and I'll forever be sad I didn't get any pictures.

We had a great time celebrating with our families.

Here comes Santa Claus

2011-12-21T06:40:00.001-08:00

I took the kids to IFA to see Santa and ride the wagon. I thought they would love it but Max was the only one who would sit on Santa's lap. I made Syd do it too :) Max asked for a boxing box. Now we just need to figure out what that is! After they saw Santa they got to talk on the radio and tell everyone what They asked Santa for so I hurried and called Justin and my dad so they could hear them. I would have loved to heat Max's little voice on the radio!

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O Christmas Tree

2011-12-21T06:31:00.001-08:00

My dad took us up to Dry Creek this year to find a Christmas tree. We found 2 and they were perfect! We're getting so excited!

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Savannah Georgia 2011

2011-11-16T07:26:00.001-08:00

This trip to Georgia was a complete blast! Every minute was jam-packed with fun. We started out with the Savannah rock and roll half marathon. Talk about the funnest race ever! 23,000 people makes for a very crowded race with lots of people watching. The first 7 miles of the race was total ghetto! It wasn't any neighborhood I would ever dare go into again but it was so much fun to see a whole other culture. And it made me feel pretty blessed too. The last half of the race was into some beautiful neighborhoods. I just wanted to stop and take pictures of every house. I loved it!

At the finish line in Forsythe park. Me, Darlene, Leigh Anne

Ammie, Savannah and Dani

The fountain at beautiful Forsythe Park

You can't go to Savannah without eating at Paula Deen's!

All the fried chicken, mac & cheese, black eyed peas and any other

good southern food you can think of!

Outside the Lady and Son's

I really wanted to see the ocean while we were there so

we took a quick trip to Tybee Island.

Our last day we spent touring the Bells' home town of Madison. It is so pretty there and I love all the historic homes. I'm pretty sure we walked about 1000 miles in the 4 days we were there but it was worth it! Can't wait til my next trip!

Viva Las Vegas

2011-11-02T06:01:00.001-07:00

We wanted one more warm weekend before winter hit so we headed down to Las Vegas over the fall break. Our family has completely outgrown hotel rooms so this time we rented a nice little house.....with a pool all to ourselves. It couldn't have been better. The kids swam, swam and swam some more while Justin and I laid in the sun. It was so fun and relaxing. On the way home we drove down the strip to let the kids see. But other than that there was no reason to even leave the house (except for cafe rio and diet coke)

Max loved floating around

Justin got a nice sunscreen rub down

Lunch by the pool....so fun!

He's ready for a good swim!

Cool guy!

Vacation=ice cream for breakfast!

Me and my kids floating around.

Teenager!

2011-11-02T05:53:00.001-07:00

I have a teenager? Really? I don't know how I feel about this but here it is. I'm a little behind on posting Hailey's birthday but she had a fun day with friends and presents....what more could a teenage girl ask for? Oh ya....a cell phone.

Football!

2011-10-04T14:14:00.001-07:00

Jonah loves sports! Whatever sport is going on at the time is always his favorite. This was the first year he could play flag football and he loved it! He made a few touchdowns and really showed off his speed. I'm glad he has a couple of years of flag football because he's got a lot of growing to do before I'll let him play tackle football! Good job Jonah!

Red Rock Relay 2011

2011-09-13T13:32:00.000-07:00

Wow! What a weekend! This could be one of the best races I've ever done. If you want to call it a race. It was mostly sleep a little, eat some, drive some more and RUN! I have to admit, I got off pretty easy and had much easier legs than my teammates but I loved every minute and loved cheering on my team.....got runs?

Here we are still sporting some energy! We had slept the night before and were still feeling great!

Most of our time was spent in the car. It got pretty smelly after a while!
Here we are with our first leg finished, except Kim. She was sprinting up the huge hill while we took this picture. She did awesome! Her first leg was a killer so I volunteered Cassie to get out and run with her for a while. I'm such a good friend.
Snow van's first legs complete! Pizza Factory here we come!
My second leg was 4.8 miles and was my longest leg. It wasn't too bad, just long and kinda boring. Luckily it was overcast and cool or I would have died! Here I am ready to slap the bracelet on Shannon!
We got to sleep from 11 pm to 1:30 am and it felt great. I was in charge of setting the alarm at 1:30 (seriously) Too bad my phone was on vibrate! To make a long story short....Thank goodness Kim woke up in time, Erin had the car loaded in 2 minutes and I got my running clothes on with one eye open. I was most nervous for this leg. It had the big Veyo hill but it actually wasn't too bad. I'm still pretty sure I slept through that whole run!
39 Kills baby! A kill is when you pass another runner. Its a good feeling :)
And the finish line. What a great accomplishment. I love these girls and I'm so proud of them! This was not an easy thing to do and everyone did great!
Wearing our3 stripes with pride.
And to end the day, the got runs? van got toilet papered.....by our own teammates I'm pretty sure!
This is a weekend I will never forget and I can't wait to do it again!

A trip to Midway

2011-09-13T13:16:00.001-07:00

Where do I start? A couple of months ago Justin and decided to take a trip to New York. We were so excited to go and our good friend Ammie was flying into Utah from Georgia to stay with the kids. It was going to be perfect. Then Hurricane Irene hit the day we were supposed to leave so our trip was cancelled. We were pretty bummed and ended up going up to Midway to the Homestead and staying for a couple of nights. We had a great time and missed the kids so we decided to head up the next weekend and bring the kids. They had the best time (minus swiss days) and can't wait to go back again next year. It really is a fun place.

Darlene and her boys came with us too and we all had a great time. It was sad to see Ammie go. Hopefully it won't be too many more years til we see her again.

More Summer

2011-08-18T13:40:00.001-07:00

Here are a few pictures from some summer fun we had....in no particular order. Apparently I haven't blogged for so long I forgot how!

Face painting at Lagoon

Surprise Party for Syd

Summer Time

2011-07-17T16:05:00.001-07:00

Summer is just flying by and we haven't even done much. The other day I took all 5 kids (something I rarely do) up to the Payson pool. Everyone had such a blast, we will definitely be back.

An attempt to get a picture of all 5 kids....not too succesful

My friends will love me for this pic :)

Some pictureless things we've done this summer:

Quilt camp with the Church girls

A day at 7 Peaks with Stephani's fam

Jonah camping for a week with Grandpa Gary and boy cousins

Tea Party for Bliss girls at Grandma Judi's house

Here's hoping I'll pull out my camera a little more.

Ogden Marathon

2011-06-10T20:58:00.001-07:00

I can't believe it has taken me so long to blog about one of the biggest events of my life! After about 7 months of training I ran the Ogden marathon. (26.2 really long miles) I was so lucky to have such awesome running partners to get me out all those cold early mornings. It was not easy sometimes. It was about the hardest thing I've ever done and I didn't do it fast by any means, but I finished. And that was my main goal.

At the starting line, feeling very scared!

All my kids were there with Justin at the finish line.

They even jumped in and ran the last little bit with me!

My running girls that I love so much. And my dad,

he was our driver on some of those cold early mornings.

Lindsey and I stayed together through the whole race.

I couldn't have finished without her!

Even my mom and dad came to cheer me on.

I was so happy they made the trip all the way up

there. It really meant a lot to me!

Me and my boys

We spent the night up in Eden with the kids and

Darlene and Brayden. It was such a fun weekend.

Running the marathon was a pretty great experience. I'm proud of myself for doing it but I'm pretty sure its not something I want to do again. I couldn't have done it without all the support from my awesome running friends and most of all Justin and my kids. There were lots of morning I was off running instead of home getting them ready for school. But they didn't complain (too much) and were there for me in the end.

Kindergarten Graduation

2011-05-30T08:27:00.001-07:00

I can't believe this little man is headed for first grade! All I ever hear myself say anymore is, "where did the time go?" First he loved school, then after Christmas break he hated it, then he started to like it again just in time for it to be out. He was just glowing during his graduation, loving every minute of it. Congrats my buddy! Love you!

Easter 2011

2011-05-09T06:29:00.001-07:00

This year for Easter we decided we were ready for some warm weather and headed down to Arizona. Justin's mom's family has a big Easter egg hunt and the kids were dying to go visit Ann and her kids so we took off. We drove down with Mike & Steph and so of course our first stop was the Chinese restaurant in Fillmore! We stopped at the Glen Canyon Dam on the way then spent the night in Page(where Justin claims there were bed bugs....YUCK) The next morning we were off to Mesa. It is a way long drive but pretty scenic so that was a good thing. After watching Tangled and Yo Gabba Gabba about 200 times we were there!

Stephani and I decided we have a lot of kids between the two of us

We showed up for the Easter Egg hunt. Most of Justin's cousins I hadn't even met and he hadn't seen in years. I was really glad when Danny got out of the car wearing this. What a way to make a first impression.
As soon as I saw this egg, I knew we'd have some tears!
Somehow my pictures got out of order.....here is my kids and Ann's kids out on the tramp. I just love how these kids can just pick up and have so much fun together even though they don't see each other often.
Back to the Easter egg hunt....Liv, Steph, me & Hailey
The cute girls
Somehow Danny managed to get lots of eggs and no stickers from the cactus.

Jonah was pretty impressed with these big cactus.
Hailey, Ragen & Bethany having breakfast
This is where Danny spent 99% of his time.
Hailey & Ragen making an easter cake, fondant and all. I was sad I forgot to get a picture of the finished product. But it was cute.
Coloring eggs in Ann's backyard
We took a little trip to see the Temple. It was so pretty, I loved it! Justin's parents were married in this temple so that made it a little extra special!
The kids and their sunburns at the temple grounds.
On our way back home the boys really wanted to go back to the Dam and take the tour. It was pretty neat and I loved being so close to Lake Powell......makes me want to go back!
Even though it was a long drive, it was worth it. I love making memories with my family!

Dance Competition

2011-04-18T12:39:00.000-07:00

Hailey had her dance competition in St. George this weekend. We always look forward to getting down there this time of year. The girls did great on their dances and we all had lots of fun. Unfortunately, this is the only picture I took all weekend! This was just one of the many times we went out to eat......don't worry, the moms were there too.

Such pretty girls!!

Drew, Khloe, Hailey, Sydni, Olivia, McKenna, Macey

More from Danny.....

2011-03-22T08:23:00.000-07:00

Whenever I open the computer I find pictures funny pictures of Danny he has taken with photo booth. This was one of my favorites.

This kid never quits! Here are a few recent things he has said that I wanted to record.

For family home evening we were talking about natural disasters and what to do in the situation. We were telling the kids if there was a fire upstairs they would have to break the window and jump out. Jonah was talking about all the ways he could break the window then Danny piped up and said, "It won't be hard for me. I'm a Jedi Master and I will use the force to break the window."

The next morning Danny woke up and came downstairs and reminded us we hadn't talked about what to do if....."Aliens attack our planet"

Danny was eating his breakfast and we were talking. I told him he and I were best friends. He said, "actually mom, we're lovers."

Danny came home from school and I asked how his day was and what he did. "Nothing, just went to the principals office." After he told me what he did I tried to convince him going to the office was bad and he just didn't understand. I asked what the principal said to him and he said, "He just asked me if I knew how to milk the cows." He must have forgot the part where he got in trouble.

"I can't wait til dad's a grandpa and he has really hairy arms."

"When I'm a Grandpa, Sydni will probably be dead."

Our Vacation

2011-03-09T10:59:00.001-08:00

After a long stressful time on the dairy for Justin we decided we needed a break! We decided to spend a week on the island of St. Maarten and visit a couple of other islands while we were there. I couldn't have been more happy to see some sun after a long winter. We spent a lot of time laying on the beach and it was sooooo nice! We didn't arrive til late afternoon so the first day we just ate dinner then went to bed. We were so tired! The next day we just hung out on the beach right outside our hotel. The water was so clear it was awesome!

This is our hotel from the beach. The hotel was pretty nice and we couldn't have asked for a better location! Right where we stayed is where the cruise ships would dock so there was always lots of people and lots going on.
I think my favorite part of the trip was no cell phones! Justin hasn't been off of his phone much in the last 6 months so it was really nice having no interruptions. And after our days at the beach we would go back to the hotel and skype with the kids so it worked out perfect.
On our 3rd day we took a boat over to a little island called Prickly Pear. Its close to Anguilla which was another island I really wanted to visit but we didn't get the chance. But Prickly Pear was gorgeous and we had tons of fun snorkeling here.

The only thing on this island is this little shack/restaurant. People take boats over here every day to work at this little place and the food was so so good!
I think my favorite part of the trip was the day we went to St. Barts. I got a little sea sick on the boat ride there, but once we got there I was fine. This is definitely the island of the rich and famous. I was hoping to see some celebrities but no such luck. If I could I'd vacation here only! Another cool thing is it's owned by France so my passport now has a French stamp so ya for me!
We spent most of the day right here under these (expensive) umbrellas. We had lunch here and just laid on the beach and swam in the ocean. So relaxing!
After a while we decided to walk around the island a little. We found this cool old church and looked around in some shops. Too bad I didn't bring a few thousand extra dollars with me or I would have bought something. We also found a fun little ice cream shop where we had yummy gelato and did some people watching, my favorite!
We knew we were close to shell beach so we decided to check it out. It was exactly that....shell beach. There were small patches of sand but pretty much all the ground was covered with these little shells. They were so neat and made for some easy cheap souveniers!
Leaving beautiful St. Barts at sunset.
The traffic on the island was so insane! It took us a couple of days to get brave enough to actually drive anywhere. But we were glad we did, other than when we got to our car someone had thrown a rock through the back window. We drove around and saw tons of beaches we loved. This is orient beach and was one of our favorites. We ended up coming back a second time.
We had to find the beach where the planes came in. The runway was literally right next to the beach and when the planes landed you could almost reach up and touch them. It was crazy, and a little scary!
We had heard that there was a night club called Bliss but since we're not really the clubbing type we never went in, but we thought we better at least get a picture, too bad I closed my eyes!

We had such a great time and when the time came, we were ready to head back home. Another highlight of the trip was seeing our good friends Tom and Leigh Anne in Atlanta. They live about an hour from the airport and drove in to see us. I thought it was the perfect way to end such a great trip. But it was too good to be true.....when we got back to SLC around midnight not only was it a blizzard outside but our car battery was dead! After about an hour of waiting and working on the car we were headed home....going 30 mph! I didn't think we'd ever get home but we finally did. And now, we can't wait to do it again!

Happy Birthday Danny!

2011-02-20T18:26:00.000-08:00

Danny turned 6 on the 19th. I can't believe my little guy is getting so big! I'm not big on birthday parties but Danny REALLY wanted one this year so I rented a bounce house and put it in the palamor. It was a hit! He invited just a few friends and they were entertained the whole two hours.

His birthday party was the day before his "real" birthday so on Saturday we took the family bowling. Danny has been wanting to go bowling for a long time so he had a great time!

Danny shares his birthday with his cousin, Karson. So on Sunday we had his family over and opened some presents. I guess you could say Danny had a weekend of birthday fun! And he loved every second of it!
Danny is one hilarious kid. I feel like I should pack around a pen and paper to record most the things that come out of his mouth. Here are a few......

*Danny, do you like your teacher?

No! I LOVE her!

*The other day the kids got off the bus and Uncle Nate happened to be down there so he offered the kids a ride. Danny climbed up in the truck and said, "Dad, you look just like Nate"

*Dad, will you turn on club penguin?

-I don't know how

-Do you know how to spell club?

-Yes

-Do you know how to spell penguin?

-No

-Do you know how to spell WWWdot?

*Mom, when I get bigger and I'm a mom, I'm going to marry you

*My two favorite planets are Saturn and Earth

Christmas!

2011-01-08T10:03:00.001-08:00

We had a pretty great Christmas this year. Mrs. Clause thought she had it all under control, the Santa decided (on Christmas Eve) to be extra generous. But it was all worth it to see the looks on the kids' faces!

Do you think Hailey was a little excited about
her ipod touch?
He's his daddy's boy....all things Star Wars!

Our little bookworm and her new kindle

Jonah has been begging for a dirt bike for

a long time. His face went from.."oh my gosh

a motorcycle!!!" to...."oh crap, I don't even know
how to ride a motorcycle" But it didn't take him

long to figure it out!

Max does not enjoy getting his picture

taken, so here's the rest of the bunch.

Not Pictured: Danny, too busy playing his DSi

Programs, Programs and more programs!!

2010-12-28T16:29:00.001-08:00

We got to go to lots of Christmas programs this year. Kids sure make life busy, but super fun! Our first concert was Hailey's 6th grade orchestra concert. She plays the piano and I'm so glad she does. It's going to help her a lot....even if she doesn't believe me! The next day was Syd's band concert. She is playing the clarinet and really likes it. 5th grade band concerts can be a little noisey but it was still fun to see her sittting up there with her class.

Next, Hailey had a dance recital. She loves dance and gets better every year. I didn't get a good picture of her dancing but it was a super cute dance and her and her cousin Olivia were cute partners.

Then Danny had his Kindergarten program. This may have been my favorite program of all. I just love his age, especially this time of year. All the kids were so cute and excited! Danny and his cousing Phoebe look like they could be twins!

Last was Jonah's dance program. I didn't get a great picture of him either, but he has some pretty good moves. He even had a speaking part totally memorized that I didn't even know he was doing! He did great. It was a fun, busy week of programs!

Church Family Christmas

2010-12-28T16:12:00.000-08:00

This year we had our Church Christmas party the day after Thanksgiving at the tumbling building. The kids had a great time running and flipping around and Russ and LeAnn fixed a yummy dinner. I love spending time with my family!

On Christmas Eve we always have a prime rib dinner, orange rolls, potatoes and grandma's famous ribbon jello. We had our traditional nativity play. Grandma made a new rule, if you're 20 or older you don't have to be in the play. Brayden was pretty excited about that...Ty, not so much. But the big boys are good sports and do it anyway. This year Taya was Mary and Jonah was Joseph. So cute

After a few of the kids did a little talent show the kids talked my mom into pulling out her accordian. I have no idea how she plays that thing, but she still can.

Jonah gets baptized

2010-12-06T09:17:00.001-08:00

Jonah has been so excited to get baptized. He couldn't wait to wear a suit, it's all he wanted and he looked pretty handsome and grown up wearing it! His dad baptized him and Grandpa Gary confirmed him. It was a special day. We were so lucky to have so many family members there to support Jonah. Congratulations buddy! I'm so proud of you!

Grandma Judi made Jonah this candy grahm. I wish the picture was better so you could read it. This is what it says:

To our precious "sweettart" Jonah. U R A "Big Hunk" of a "Bliss" Today is better than a "100 Grand" "Payday"because of your Baptism and Confirmation. The Holy Ghost descending like a "Dove" is "mint" to guide you on the "Rocky Road" of life. "Twix" the ups and downs that may come your way use him "Good & Plenty" He will a "lifesaver" to you "Now & Later" "mounds" of "hugs" and "kisses" Love Grandma "Bliss" and Grandpa "Bliss"

(it's pretty great when there is chocolate with your name on it!)

Happy Birthday Jonah

2010-11-26T21:04:00.000-08:00

I can't believe my little guy turned 8 today! Jonah had a fun day playing with cousins. He spent the morning at the cabin with Grandpa, Uncle Bryce and Mason shooting clay pigeons and playing in the snow. Then it was party time. We just had some family come over for cake and ice cream and it was lots of fun. Jonah has some great cousins and loves spending time with them. Jonah has liked the Colt's ever since Grandma and Grandpa went on their mission to Indianapolis. Austin Collie was in my parents ward so he then became Jonah's favorite player. I've never been real great in the cake department but I really wanted to try to make fondant. I figured I could pull off a white cake with a blue horseshoe. I thought it turned out pretty great. (Thanks to Ann and Margo and their help) He liked it too. Happy birthday big guy!

A few things about Jonah:

He is REALLY smart. Not sure where he gets it from but he is super smart. He does great in school, is an awesome reader, and is always asking me questions that let me know his brain is working overtime. During his baptism interview the bishop even told him the Lord has blessed him with a great mind.

He is a good friend and loves to play with friends. He is lucky to have lots of good little buddies this age.

He really likes sports and his hoping to grow sometime soon and be able to play sports. He especially loves watching his cousins play.

Halloween

2010-11-24T18:27:00.000-08:00

I got the flu super bad this year for halloween. So even though I dressed up my kids 5 times, I hardly got any pictures at all. We had a fun halloween party with some friends, then Justin took the kids trick-or-treating while I stayed home in bed. I was so so glad he did that! The kids also had a piano recital they got to dress up for so we definitely got our moneys worth out of our costumes this year! Hopefully next year will be better.

Bliss Family=Spontaneous

2010-10-28T08:03:00.001-07:00

Who decides to go to Disneyland and leaves 2 hours later? WE DO! Wow! After some ultra quick planning and packing we were on the road. We drove all the way to Anaheim in one day, spent two days in Disneyland, then drove home. It was a super quick trip but tons of fun! We packed in as much as we possibly could in two days and still didn't see everything!

Syd me and Hailey waiting for the Aladin show to start.

Danny knows how to wait in line.

Bumper cars in Bug's Life

Syd in the bumper cars

Waiting in the LONGEST line. The new Toy Story 3 Ride.

Totally worth the wait!

At our hotel

The kids were afraid we wouldn't have time to swim so we took a little break from Disneyland and went back to the hotel to swim for a while. It had this fun little waterslide and the kids loved it!

If you know Danny, you know he has quite an infatuation with Star Wars. Last time we were in Disneyland Jonah got picked in the Jedi training show. I knew if Danny didn't get picked this time he would be crushed. So we got to the show nice and early to get a front row seat. He even wore his Star Wars shirt in hopes of getting picked. Well, it must have worked. He got picked and it was probably the best thing that has ever happened to him!

Working his Jedi skills. He takes this very serious!

Riding the Matterhorne Bobsleds

The Haunted Mansion

I skipped out on the tea cups but the kids loved it.

On our last night we went to the midevil times dinner and show. It was really fun and the kids loved it. Especially this kid!

Now we are home and it almost feels like we never left! It was a great time though and we can't wait to go back again someday!

Fall

2010-10-20T11:49:00.001-07:00

Delta had a fun little fall festival last weekend. The weather has still been so nice so I thought I'd venture out with 5 kids (I never do this) and go have some fun. The kids loved painting pumpkins and doing all the little games. Hailey was with us too, but she's 12 now so she is WAY too cool to hang out with the family. So she had fun running around with her friends. I love fall!

Cedar Canyon Half Marathon

2010-09-24T08:08:00.000-07:00

This could possibly be the ugliest picture of me of all time. But too bad, its the only one I've got and this race was just too fun I have to blog about it. This was the first half marathon Cedar has done and it was AWESOME! I loved it (sans mile 11.5 to mile 12.5) It was all down hill with a few little up hills at the end but I made it through. I don't know if it was the race I loved or the company. Dani, Dana and I all stayed together and finished together. How fun to visit with two of your best friends while running a half marathon. And thanks to Dani for being my cheerleader when I needed it most! I will definitely be back to this race next year. Oh....and I got my best time yet!
Amber, Dani, Mirinda, Dana, me, Marci, Lydia
Good job Everyone!!

Just a few more

2010-09-23T07:28:00.001-07:00

I know I've already blogged about this relay, but there were a few more pictures on the website so I decided to to put a few more on here, just for laughs.

Can't wait til Next Year!

Happy Birthday Syd!

2010-09-10T13:50:00.000-07:00

Sydni had her 10th birthday on Aug. 17th. Every year seems to go a little faster than the last. She lucked out and had all her girl cousins in town sleeping at my mom's house (minus Bethany and Ragen) But she still thought she needed a party so we had a few friends out to the res. Luckily herBF Macey has a super nice dad that offered to take the girls on his boat. They had a blast! Thanks Van. Happy Birthday Syd! We sure love you lots!

Team Hollywood!

2010-08-31T06:58:00.001-07:00

What a weekend! I wish I could go back in time and do it all over again! 5 of us ran a 31 mile relay. 2 legs each and each leg was around 3 miles or so. It was such a blast! We dedcided to drive the course the night before and it was great! I took the girls on a little off road adventure. I'm pretty sure some of them may have wet their pants! After a little shopping at wal-mart, decorating the car, and modeling our sweet costumes it was off to bed. 3 in one twin bed I might add! Its okay...we slept sideways and it worked out great!

You should have seen the looks we got when we pulled up to the starting line. We were pretty much the only team dressed up. But hey, it got us a prize! People were even asking to take our picture!
Can you spot Madonna at the porta potty?!

Madonna handing off to Dolly! Too bad it was so windy, it made it hard to keep our wigs on! But we did pretty good!

MJ to Elvis. Once again, the wind has blown the wig off. Hats off to Marci! She conquered angry man like no other! Way to go Marci!

Here we are at the finish line. 4 hours and 45 minutes! I was pretty proud of us. Especially my teammates, they really had to pick up the pace since I'm the slow one of the group. All the legs were challenging in their own way and everyone did so good! After literally hiking up the last hill (more like mountain) it was great to see my 4 teammates at the top! How could they not put a smile on my face! By the time I was to the finish line I was beat. But Michelle wouldn't have it! I grabbed her hand and we sprinted to the end! Thanks to everyone for the best weekend ever!!!

Park City

2010-08-12T20:40:00.000-07:00

We decided to have one last little vacation before school starts. I had never been to Park City (I know, I can't believe it either) so we headed up for the weekend. We stayed in a condo at The Canyons and had the best time. Saturday we went to the zoo for a few hours then the kids couldn't wait to get to the condo and swim! Sunday we spent the day at the gateway. Justin took the kids to the movie while me and Hailey did some school shopping. I think I have trained her well. She can out-shop me any day. Monday we headed up to the Park City resort where we did the Alpine slide and Alpine coaster. It was so pretty up there and so nice to be out of the heat for a while. We will definately be going back some day.

Max did not like watching us swim from the room....No Fair!!

Max didn't like the gateway fountains quite as much as the other kids.

2010-08-05T13:26:00.000-07:00

We finally got around to having Max's birthday party. I was gone to girl's camp when he turned two and I just haven't had time for a birthday party! I decided to do a little beach themed party and I thought it turned out pretty cute. Max hated the candles and wouldn't go near them, but no worries...Danny was totally happy to blow out the candles for Max. Happy Birthday Max! Love you!

Another race

2010-08-03T21:08:00.000-07:00

I ran another half marathon that I wasn't ready for. I didn't like it too much and this is the only picture I have. Thanks Michelle.

They're Back!

2010-06-25T18:07:00.001-07:00

The year came and went and my parents made it home. My family got together over memorial day weekend to get some spring cleaning done around their house. We wanted to play when they got home, they didn't have time to clean! It was fun just all being together.

Mike and Jeff pulling weeds.

FINALLLY! The kids couldn't wait for Grandma and Grandpa to pull into the house. I think my dad started honking around Holden and pretty soon we could hear it!

A big hug for Grandma from Danny Syd and Jonah

Max doesn't remember Grandma too well, but he loved her right away. I think the feeling was mutual.

Max and Grandpa getting to know each other again while Danny just hangs on and hugs.

The kids had so much fun making signs and posters and hanging up balloons. After the grand arrival we all sat in the backyard and had lunch....and laughed at how it felt like they'd never really left. But they did, and they were great missionaries, and they loved every minute of it, and I'm glad they're home.

Play Ball!

2010-06-15T08:21:00.001-07:00

We've been spending a lot of time at the ball park this summer. Sydni is in softball and really likes it. She's not the best player on the team, but she's learning.
Jonah is loving coach pitch. He seems to love every sport, and is a pretty good little athlete. He can't wait to hit a home run! Its been such crazy weather he had a lot of games cancelled. But it all worked out great since they're making up their games and Grandpa Gary will be here to watch!

Lets be honest, Danny is in it for the treat after the game. But its still good for a laugh!

I think we're in for many more summers at the ball park. And thats okay with me!

Stock Show

2010-06-04T08:51:00.000-07:00

Sydni decided to do the stock show again this year. After a couple of tragedies with her lambs, she finally got one that didn't die and decided to show a little heifer calf too. She totally fell in love with that calf, it was cute. She ended up winning 3rd place with her calf and got a plaque and a trophy. Pretty exciting!

Learning to shave her calf to get ready to show

walking, walking, walking her calf. Lots of work,

but it paid off.

Cute little cowgirl

Ogden Half Marathon

2010-05-16T12:59:00.000-07:00

We had so much fun running the marathon relay in Ogden last year, we decided to go back again this year. But instead of the relay we had some run the 5k some run the half and the really tough ones run the marathon! Once again, it started with lunch at the cheesecake factory....the best part. We learned from our mistakes last year, so this year it was no hotel for us. Instead we got a house right on pineview reservoir. It was so nice! We had so much fun just hanging out together. I was nervous about the weather, but it couldn't have been better. It really was a fun run.
Lunch time!
the half-marathoners: Tiff, Dani, me, Amber

I seriously couldn't have ran this race without Amber

She was the best running partner for me!

The whole group. I love all these girls!

Congratulations to everyone that ran. Especially Michelle and Shannon for running the full marathon. You guys are awesome!

A Day at the Zoo

2010-04-18T08:50:00.001-07:00

Finally!! A nice day! So we decided to have a spur of the moment day at the zoo. It was lots of fun, the weather was perfect, and the kids had a ball.

St. George

2010-04-16T12:37:00.000-07:00

Hailey had a dance competition down in St. George last weekend so we decided to make a weekend out of it. The sun felt soooo good and Hailey did great dancing. Great weekend with friends!

Brianhead

2010-03-08T19:34:00.001-08:00

The kids had Monday off so we decided to head down to Brianhead and try out the tubing. None of us ski or snowboard so tubing is our winter sport. I couldn't believe how much the kids loved it and never got tired of it. It was a perfect day and not busy at all so it was really fun! The kids are a little disappointed that we decided to try this out at the end of the season, but we'll for sure be back next winter!

Wrestling

2010-03-08T19:20:00.001-08:00

Jonah is wrestling again this year. Why does he put me through this?! He loves wrestling and is getting pretty good! He took 1st in the Delta Little League. Then he went to two Bantam tournaments and took 2nd at both. Great job Joe!

Danny thought he'd try wrestling. He got a concussion in his first match so I think we're pretty much done there. He sure loved his 4th place medal though!

Danny's Birthday!

2010-02-26T14:42:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday Danny! As you know, I'd rather do just about anything than a birthday party. So we loaded all the kids and headed to Pirate Island Pizza in Orem. It was pretty much a new and improved (and sanitary) Chuck E Cheese. Everyone had a great time, thanks to our friends Casey and Ashlee for tagging along so Danny could have a friend with him!

the birthday boy....dang side-ways picture!
All the pirates singing happy birthday to Danny

Danny got a new bike and an optimus prime transformer

Blowing out all 5 candles

After telling Danny about 500 times to come in the bathroom and comb his hair, he finally came in and told me so so proudly, "I'm 5 now so when you yell at me, I don't get scared." Thats the truth!

Indianapolis

2010-02-19T19:59:00.001-08:00

Well, my trip has come and gone. Time sure has a way of flying by. It was great to see my parents! I'm glad I saved the trip for the end of their mission and not the begining. I'm missing them bad all over again and glad they're almost done. The weather ended up being crummy so we spent a lot of time just hanging out and visiting. It was great....so relaxing. They did drive us around and show us where their office is and a few other places. I was pretty proud of my dad, we never got lost! Some of the missionaries came over one night and you could just see the love they had for my mom and dad.....especially my dad! It made me realize why they are there. I guess I can share them for a little while.
The AP's and my dad
Lucas Oil Stadium. Go Colts!

I wanted to buy Jonah an Austin Collie jersey so bad.....

til I saw the price tag! Ouch!!

Dad, Mom, Me

The girls. Leaving for the airport in a blizzard!

It was so fun to take this trip, and I couldn't have done it without Justin keeping ALL the kids! He's awesome.

2010-02-10T09:37:00.000-08:00

I get to see these two in a couple days. Its been 8 months and 2 days since I've seen them (whose counting?) I'm so proud of them for serving a mission but I can't wait to have them back. I am lucky to have such great parents.

Hailey's friend

2010-01-13T15:36:00.000-08:00

Hailey has made a special friend in school this year. I never really thought Hailey would be interested in helping handicapped kids but she has really proven me wrong! She loves to visit Talyea every day during recess. She reads to her and paints her fingernails. Today was Talyea's birthday so Hailey planned a little surprise party for her, and she loved it! After school we took her some presents at the care center. I'm so proud of Hailey, I really believe she has a gift!

Snow Fun!

2010-01-08T12:37:00.000-08:00

Justin took the kids and some of their friends sledding over Christmas Break. They LOVED it! I was perfectly happy to stay home with Max in the warm house. I sent plenty of hot chocolate to keep them warm while they were gone. Good times! (why is this post blue and underlined? I don't know)

Merry Christmas!

2010-01-07T09:24:00.000-08:00

Whoa! What a year. Christmas came and went in a blur and I hardly took a picture! We were so busy this year I feel like I hardly took time to slow down and enjoy it. Here is a little of what we did:
Danny had the cutest preschool program, but when I pulled out my camera...the battery was dead. But I did have my video camera so I do have some video. Hailey had her first orchestra concert. She is learning to play the violin and doing a good job. I hope she will stick with it. Have you ever been to a 5th grade orchestra concert?! They can only get better! Jonah's whole class wrote letters to my parents on their mission. I thought that was pretty sweet, and so did my mom and dad.
I was in charge of the Bliss family Christmas party this year. That was a little stressful...there are a lot of Blisses! It turned out great though, thanks to lots of help from the family. We had a good dinner, a nativity with LOTS of angels and shepherds and opened gifts. When I pulled out my camera, my memory card was full. Nice. Christmas Eve dinner with my family was at my house this year. It was a little lonely without my parents but we still had a great time. We opened our gifts from them and we are all official Colts fans now! Justin set up a video messaging online so they got to see us all. It was fun.....til the call came from the dairy that two workers decided they didn't want to work Christmas eve night and Justin ended up milking all night!! Lets just say Santa did not like working alone.
When the kids woke up they were pretty excited to see what Santa had brought and I think everyone was happy.
I really wish I had more pictures :(

Next year I'm going to do better.

Max with his farm.

Here are all the Colts fans on Christmas Eve

Danny the little shepherd boy

Making Gingerbread houses at Grandma Judi's

Hailey got her reborn doll, Syd got her ipod, Jonah got his nintendo DSi, and Danny got his dinosaur castle. All in all a good year.

A trip to Texas Part:1

2009-12-16T06:55:00.001-08:00

Our family took a road trip for Thanksgiving this year. Justin grew up in Texas and still has one sister that lives there so we decided we'd get a motorhome and take a drive half way across the country! It sounded really fun til it came time to pack and go. But it was definitely a trip we will never forget. We had a great time! Our motor home isn't exactly brand new :) it was a total trip back in time!!! It is definitely the way to travel long distances with five kids. We listened to books, ate breakfast, lunch and dinner on the road. The best part was just letting the kids sleep while we drove early in the morning or late at night. What a trip!
This is Max after I told him he was going to be in his
car seat for the next 24 hours or so

Hailey and Claire helping with the Thanksgiving food

Black Friday!!! Woot Woot!

Of course the best part of the trip was getting to spend time with Heather and her family. We only get to see them about once a year so it was really fun to be able to spend time at their house. Our days and nights consisted mostly of movies, dutch blitz, yahtzee, dr. pepper and lots of food! What more could we want?!

Here we are ready to pile back in the RV and head home. The ride home wasn't nearly as fun and exciting as the ride there, but we survived......and we hope we can do it again!!

Bliss and Christiansen kids!

We did take a trip to Justin's home town and our first house we lived in on the dairy. When I have time I'll post part 2!

Want to see something cute?

2009-11-16T12:01:00.000-08:00

Could these be any cuter? Brittni Schroeder is a friend of mine from High School turned awesome photographer!! I love these! Did you notice Max is missing? He wasn't in the best of moods, so we're hoping to get him later. I could look at these all day. Thanks Britt!
Check her out at pocketsfullofposes.blogspot.com
There is a link on my blog

Happy Halloween!

2009-11-04T11:37:00.000-08:00

Halloween came and went in a blur this year! Is our school district trying to punish us by having Red Ribbon week and Halloween in the same week?!?! Pretty much every day was Halloween for us, and when you have 4 kids in 3 different schools....things can get confusing! I do wish I would have got more pictures of the kids though. They looked pretty cute. But since we barely were making it to the bus in time, there was no time for pictures.

Sydni was a go-go girl. She looked so cute in her costume. She went trick-or-treating with her friends this year and LOVED it! Jonah was a vampire and Danny was Mario! When Danny got his costume, I was seriously in love with it! It was so cute on him! But after putting the mustache and inflatable belly on him 500 times, I got really tired of it. But it was a hit on Halloween! Max was a 5th child, which means, he probably won't dress up until he starts school and demands to.

After some fun trick-or-treatin we came home and had soup and a movie with Kim and Cory. We made homemade root beer too and it was delicious!

Hailey was a zombie this year. Her dance team does Thriller so she decided her dance costume would make a good Halloween costume. Easy! After her Thriller performance on Thursday night Justin took the girls to the Pizza House for dinner. They were supposed to be at the daddy daughter date at the skating rink, but since Justin couldn't skate they didn't want to go. Anyway.....Hailey took my camera to the Pizza House and LEFT IT THERE!!!! It has a memory card full of pictures! I am dying over it. So if you find a camera and there are pictures of my kids on the memory card.....PLEASE return it to me!

Happy Halloween!

Poor Dad!

2009-10-29T06:16:00.001-07:00

About a year and a half ago, Justin came off a horse and broke his leg. He was in a boot forever and it still kept hurting. After seeing several different doctors, he finally got an MRI and we found out he had a cyst growing in his bone and needed surgery. :( They got in there and found way more than just a cyst. There was torn cartilage, a bone spur and pieces of bone just floating around causing pain. Poor guy! He made it through surgery and is recovering well. He is so excited to be pain free!! While spending the first week in bed with his leg elevated, he had lots of company!!

I can't wait til this is all healed and we can start running together again! Maybe even go to Disneyland!!!

Camping Trip

2009-10-10T15:43:00.000-07:00

We finally took a couple camping trips this year. We didn't camp at all last year (who wants to camp when they're pregnant?) The kids were so excited to go! Our first campout was to Lehmans cave with my family. Darlene and her family came and stayed the whole time with us and Mike and Russ' families came for the evening. We had so much fun...to bad I forgot my camera. We went through Lehman's cave and the kids did some other hikes. We ate way too much food and got really dirty. Thats what camping is though, right? We were a little stressed after driving two hours and not being able to find a camp site. But we did a little investigating and found a group circle that we had all to ourselves! So it was great!

So great, in fact, that we went back again! This time with the Ekins family. Our kids are all pretty close in age so they had lots of fun. We ended up in the exact same group circle and had it all to ourselves again (after a few little run-ins with some forest rangers) It was definately colder the second time. The days were nice, the nights we froze. The last day we were there Justin woke me up and said it was snowing! SNOWING!!! And it snowed all day! I couldn't believe it! The kids loved it but it was a muddy mess so we packed up and headed home. Shanda had bought all the food for dinner Sunday night, so we took it up to my dad's cabin and ate there. It was lots of fun......and warm!

It was a fun time and I'm looking forward to more camping trips next year!

Oh Max! So dirty!!
You can't tell too much, but the white stuff on
the ground is snow!

Luckily Klell and Shanda had a nice big camper

we could all eat in! I think the kids would have eaten

outside in the snow if we would have let them!

Max, Justin and me....trying to stay warm!

At the cabin. We haven't been up here since my

parents left on their mission. I am obviously excited

to be back!

Eating Shanda's yummy dutch oven dinner

Happy Birthday Hailey!

2009-09-23T07:44:00.001-07:00

HaPpY BiRtHdAy HaIlEy!!!!
It seems like Birthdays always go on for a few days around our house. Hailey's was no exception. When it comes to birthday parties I am definately a loser mom. I will bribe my kids with just about ANYTHING to talk them out of a party. Hailey has caught on to this little trick and had been talking about what she wanted to do for a year! Going to Provo with Mikah, eating at the Pizza Factory, and getting pedicures. So....thats exactly what we did. Hailey and Mikah have been best friends since they were about 3. They have also loved make-up, fingernail polish and all other things girly for that long also, so this was right up thier alley. It was a fun day and Darlene came along to keep me company.

Hailey and Mikah eating at the Pizza Factory
Getting pedicures. I think I need one for my b-day too!

The finished product

We ended the day with a stop at the Sweet Tooth Fairy. YUM! So many cupcakes!

Then on Tuesday (the real birthday) we took the family bowling. It was a lot of fun. After that Justin grilled us some steaks for dinner, Hailey's favorite. Then Darlene and Jeff came over to have cupcakes and ice cream and open some presents.

Darlene gave Hailey this make-up bag...she was so excited!
Then it was the moment she's been waiting for!

Hailey has been drilling me on her present forever!

When I rolled out the suitcase that matched the make-up

bag, she was pretty excited!

My little masterpiece. It turned out cute, but why do

things always look so much better in my mind? It tasted

good though.

Happy Birthday Hailey! Hailey is such a sweet girl. She is such a big help around the house and with Danny and Max. Her and Sydni are the best of friends and I love watching them grow up together. This year Hailey has made friends with a severely handicapped girl in her school. She spends every recess visiting with her, reading to her, or painting her fingernails. She has even made a few trips to the care center to visit this little girl. I am so proud of Hailey for this. Not just anyone has what it takes to be friends with someone so handicapped. She has now decided when she grows up she wants to be a nurse who can work with kids like that. We love you Hailey!

Hobble Creek Half Marathon

2009-08-23T21:24:00.001-07:00

2 Half marathons this summer? Are you kidding me? If it wasn't for the girls weekend getaway, I probably would not have done this race. I was really not ready and when the race started, it showed. I was actually feeling pretty good until about mile 9 and I was pretty much done. The race started way too late making it hot towards the end. Not to mention the hills I was totally unprepared for. I was pretty much hating life for the last 4 miles but I (very slowly) finished. I did have an awesome cheering section when I came in to the finish line since all my friends had finished about a half hour before me!!! Yes, I am that slow! But I have to remind myself.....when I started running I couldn't even run around the track one time! I have come a long way since then and I hope next summer I can do better. It was a fun weekend with great friends that I love!

Getting our carbs at the Brick Oven!
HA HA! The best part of the whole trip was shopping at the DI. We decided to go get sweatshirts we could wear before the race started, then chuck them once it warmed up. Tiff wasn't with us at the DI but she wanted something too! It was too good, how could we not buy her the sweetest slicky sweat suit in the whole store! We were laughing so hard picking out just the right thing! Who could have parted with this leapord print Ceaser's Palace sweat suit?! Its a beauty! We waited til the next morning to tell her we actuall got her something "normal"

After the race. (k, I don't even know who the girl in the hat is)

Chelese, Shannon, Stacia, Cassie, Tiff, Dani, me

Showin' off the big guns! ps...don't mess with Stacia

Oh ya! We did it!

HOORAY! I barely had the energy to pose for this picture!

As much as I hated this race, I'm already thinking about more races to come. CRAZY!!

Happy Birthday Sydni!

2009-08-23T20:44:00.000-07:00

Sydni turned 9 last week! I can't believe how big she is getting! We had a birthday party for her on Sunday with Grandma & Grandpa Bliss and Lindsey's family (we missed Grandma & Grandpa Church though) Then on Monday we took Syd's best friend Macey to 7 Peaks. Lucky for me Amber came along so we had lots of fun. She wanted to eat at the Red Robin afterward and got a free chocolate cake for her birthday....and I never pulled my camera out once. But it was a super fun day! Sydni is such a fun girl to have around. She always keeps us laughing and is so so sweet. Happy Birthday Syd!!

First Day of School!

2009-08-23T14:59:00.001-07:00

What can I say? I'm just not one of those moms that cry when school starts. We've had a great summer and the kids were just as ready for school to start as I was. So far they've loved it. Hailey is in middle school this year and really likes it. She can't quite figure out her locker yet, but when she does it will be the best decorated locker in all of 5th grade. She's had lots of fun buying magnents and a white board and other stuff to make it snazzy so hopefully she'll be able to open it by herself soon! :) She really likes her teacher and has made new friends already.

Sydni is in 4th grade this year and I really can't believe it. She also likes her teacher and has friends in her class so she is loving it. Since the south elementary combined with us this year she gets to see lots of friends and cousins she hasn't gone to school with before so she is enjoying that.

Jonah started 1st grade this year. I know his teacher is awesome because the girls had her. He has lots of friends in his class too. Mrs. Fowles said he is a good reader and writer. She told him to practice by writing letters to Grandpa Gary. We'll see. I can't get him to write anything. But I am glad he likes to read.

Last but not least....Danny is FINALLY a "school kid" Thats what he calls himself! He is probably the most excited kid I've ever had. It doesn't take much to make him happy (or mad) but going to school is definately at the top! He has only gone one day so far but loved it. I hope he listens to his teacher better than he listens to me!!!

I can't believe they're all in school. Who would have thought this day would ever come?! Luckily I have Max to keep my company (or take a nap with)

Happy 1st Birthday Max!

2009-08-12T21:34:00.000-07:00

I am really behind on this post! July 28th Max turned one! I really can't believe how fast this year has gone by. We were on vacation for Max's birthday so he got to celebrate at Lindsey's in California! It was lots of fun! He loved his party hat, cake and presents. He thought it was really funny when we were all singing to him too. I just love this little guy!
Dig in! He loved getting messy eating his cake!

He really didn't know how to open his presents, but no worries!

He had lots of help!!

A few milestones for Max:

*finally sleeping in his crib in his own room and out of mine!

*8 teeth

*Went from crawling to walking in pretty much one day

*Loves ALL food

*says "hi"

*LOVES Backyardigans (not really a milestone, but a lifesaver for me!)

This is our last first birthday. I finally feel like one of those moms that hates to see thier baby grow up, but I'm totally looking forward to more fun years with Max!

Bryce Canyon Half Marathon

2009-07-20T21:11:00.001-07:00

I can finally say I have ran a half marathon. I've had this goal for quite a while now, and I'm happy to say I achieved it. I'm not much of a goal setter so it felt pretty great. I'm definately not the fastest, but I was pretty much there to finish and not die! Even though I almost did at mile 12! I couldn't believe I had 11 miles behind me and only one to go and all I wanted to do was lay down and be done! But my super sister-in-law Hilary got me through!

Here I am coming into the finish line. I actually started sprinting here,
but this picture makes me look like I was walking! Not So!
Me, Hilary, Misty - hooray for us!

Not only was it a weekend of achieving goals, but also a girls weekend! Nothing can top that! I have some pretty great sisters-in-law I was able to spend the weekend with and it was sooo much fun! We laughed til we cried! I rode down with Heather, Stephani, and Misty to Cedar where we picked up Hilary. Of course we had to carb up :) so we headed for the Pizza Factory...my favorite! Then it was off to Bryce Canyon. We had good intentions of a good nights sleep before the race but with 5 girls in one tiny hotel room, no such luck. But it sure was fun!

Misty, Hilary, me, Stephani, Heather - I just love these girls

After the race we decided to take in a little scenery. I heard the run was pretty scenic but somehow I missed that. Heather had never seen Bryce Canyon and the rest of us hadn't been in a while so it was fun to see.

us girls again - Heather, me, Steph, Hilary, Misty

Stephani and I

Thanks to my awesome sisters-in-law, that are more like real sisters to me! I can't wait to make this a tradition and do it every year.

More Summer Fun!

2009-07-13T12:25:00.000-07:00

This summer continues to keep us busy! Justin got a wild hair and decided it would be fun to take the kids to Lagoon! Of course they thought this was a great idea also, so away we went. We went up Sunday after church and spent the night in Orem and headed to Lagoon Monday morning. (after a long night of Jonah screaming with a tooth ache!) We spent the whole day at Lagoon and had a great time. It was HOT but still fun. Hailey was a daredevil as always, and rode everything. Syd did pretty good this time. She's getting a little more brave all the time. We put big shoes on Jonah and set his hat high on his head and he was barely tall enough to ride the white roller coaster and a few other things. He really wanted to go on the collousus, but about half way up that really steep first part he changed his mind! Too late buddy! He decided it was pretty fun though and ended up riding again. I decided I must be too old because every ride seemed to hurt my body!!!

Syd, Max and Hailey at the motel
Danny on the merry-go-round. He is so easily entertained!

After an hour of waiting in line, they didn't even get wet! Hailey, Sydni, me and Danny on the BAT!

On to the 4th of July. This is always such a fun holiday in our little town! People come from all over to celebrate the 4th in Delta! The day before we let the kids decorate their bikes and be in the kiddy parade. Jonah and Sydni thought it was a race so I got stuck helping Danny down main street. About two pedals down the road he got too tired so I Pushed him the rest of the way. Pretty sure we won't be doing the kiddy parade next year! :) On the 4th I got up early with my girls and we ran a 5k here in town. Hailey and Syd thought it was about the hardest thing they had ever done, but they made it....even over the 8 foot fence!! After that we watched the parade and the kids got tons of candy, as usual. Hailey was in the parade this year with her dance class so that was fun. Thanks AGAIN to Russ and LeAnn for letting us sit at the laundromat. It's pretty much the best seat in town! Then it was off to the park for tritip sandwiches! I live for those every year...they are the BEST! The rest of the park day consisted of fighting with the kids over hermit crabs, bouncy slides, etc, etc. I don't think my sister really likes hanging out with me and my children at the park! Too bad for her! We ended the night with a big BBQ at the Bliss' and fireworks. It was a long day, but sooo much fun!

Jonah and Syd....Danny hadn't made it to the park yet! :)

Hailey, Hilary, me, Syd, Misty, Erica after the 5k

Hailey with her dance group

All of Justin's family has been here so we've been spending lots of time with them. We love going up to the canyon together. We brought 4 wheelers and Grandpa Bob brought his horses so everyone had a great time!

Max gets the graham cracker part of a s'more!

We had some black bath water goin' down the drain that night

Me and Danny going for a 4wheeler ride

I haven't updated in a while because.....

2009-06-28T10:37:00.000-07:00

...there has been NO TIME! So much for June! Wow this summer is really flying by! We are livin' up every minute though! I really didn't think we were involved in too much this summer. Never mind! So far we have been......

Learning to sew
Hailey spent 3 days at a 4-H sewing camp that she loved! This is right up her alley. Not to mention she's pretty darn good at it. Maybe now she can teach me to make PJ pants and aprons!

Playing T-ball

Jonah is in T-ball again this summer and loves it! The first few games were freezing cold, but it has finally started to warm up now so thats good. He especially loves being on a team with his best friends Walker, Austin and Jarrett!

Learning new tricks.

Sydni, Jonah and Danny are all in summer tumbling. They love it and are getting pretty good. I need to get a few more pictures...this ones not too great! But they are getting better, and hope to be doing back handsprings by the time grandma and grandpa get home!

Playing at the Res!

"Whats the res? Is this the res? I want to live at the res!" Danny's feelings about the res!

Eating our first nectarine!

Right down to the pit! Max loved watching the kids play in the water and eating his nectarine. He was pretty sticky and sandy when it was over, but he sure had fun!

Learning to Swim

Danny and Jonah both just finished up swimming lessons! Danny passed level 1 woot woot! Jonah didn't quite pass level 3 but it's pretty tough so thats okay. Maybe next time (or the next)

I didn't know what to think when they told my little guy to jump in the deep. But he did it and did great!

What a dive!

A few other picture-less things......

Hailey went to science camp in Cedar City with her cousin Olivia and had the best time!

We went to the temple in St. George with Darlene and family to see them get sealed! YAY!

Spent the day at the res with all the sisters-in-law! Super fun but......33 kids between us all! Whoa!

Spending time with Hilary's family

Lots of training for my half marathon! another Whoa!!

Enjoying sleeping in and no homework!!!

Last but not least....Saying goodbye to Grandma and Grandpa Church for a year! I didn't get any pictures of this tearful goodbye but they are doing good and we are surviving without them! I am so proud of them for going on a mission and am thankful for the example they are to myself and my kids! We love them!

Now on to the rest of the summer!

Georgia!

2009-06-06T16:58:00.000-07:00

The girls and I have been looking forward to this trip for a LONG time! We are lucky enough to have some great friends in Georgia that we got to go visit. The Bell's had a dairy here in Delta for a few years and we got to know them through that and since then have become life-long friends. It's sad to have them live so far away now, but at least it gives us some place fun to go and visit!
The trip started out with Ammie's 18th birthday so she and I went and got pedicures and manicures and out to lunch. Later that night was Ammie's graduation, so that was fun. The weekend was birthday parties and laying out by the pool. They showed us a great time at the "duck pond" where we swam, canoed, jumped on the tramp in the pond, and went off the zip line! It was so high but I was brave! Hailey too! Syd thinks maybe next time she'll try:)
They live in a cute little historic town, so Monday we walked around and shopped. My favorite thing to do!
The rest of the trip pretty much consisted of laying out by the pool, eating, talking, laughing. I even introduced them to homemade root beer which they loved!
It was such a fun relaxing trip! I loved it!
A big shout out to Justin who stayed home with all the boys! WOW! What a great husband! I was so home sick for my boys, but I knew they were taken care of. Thanks babe!

Sydni's favorite part was taking pictures out of the airplane. There were about 20, but I'll just share one!

Ammie's graduation and birthday

Hailey by the pool

The slip n slide crash!

Ammie and Syd on the slip n slide

Syd + Ammie = best friends!

Ammie, me and Syd. Happy Birthday!

Hailey on the zip line. Yes, she was screaming!

Syd and Ammie.....again

and again......

Leigh Anne and me

again....

at the cracker barrel before we had to leave...so sad

Me and Leigh Anne

Thanks for such a fun trip "ya'all" Can't wait til next time!

the Stock Show

2009-06-04T18:54:00.001-07:00

After 3 long months of taking care of lambs, it was finally stock show time. The girls were less than thrilled (so was I) about having lambs. Getting them to feed the lambs twice a day was almost impossible, not to mention making them actually get out in the pen and work with them. I was expecting a total disaster once show time came. But lo and behold....they did great!! I think they might have even liked it a little bit! Especially when they got their check! :) Good job girls!

Graduation(s)

2009-05-22T16:44:00.000-07:00

I can't believe my little nephew Brayden is graduated! I guess he's not so little anymore. I just love this kid and have forever! I spent much of my younger years tending him and loved every minute of it! It has been so fun watching him grow up. Love you Brayd!

See what I mean, not so little anymore!
I cannot believe these are my two nephews! WOW!
I'm so glad my little boys have such good examples to follow.

And on to our next graduation. Hailey is leaving elementary and heading to the big Middle School. She couldn't be happier, but I have to say, it's a little wierd for me. Didn't I just barely go to that school? She can't wait to be able to chew gum and wear flip-flops. It's gonna be great! Hailey is such a good student I know she'll do great in middle school.

Her school had a breakfast for all the kids leaving. This is not the best picture of me, but I'm really not used to being up and at it by 7am!! But it was worth it. Congrats Hailey!

Ogden Marathon Relay

2009-05-17T16:59:00.000-07:00

Me and a bunch of my friends decided it would be fun to run a marathon relay! Turns out...we were right! We had such a fun weekend eating out, shopping, laughing (HARD), not sleeping, and running. We headed up to Salt Lake on Friday and the first stop was, of course, the Cheesecake Factory! Sooooo good! Then we went and shopped for a while before heading up to Ogden. We got to Ogden and went to the expo to pick up our packets and ran into about 20 people from Delta. That always happens! Then it was off for more food at the Pizza Factory, then we drove the marathon course. We got back to our hotel and really didn't sleep at all. Thats another story! Anyway, it was up at 4:30 am to get ready to load the bus. It was so fun watching all the runners coming down the canyon. Our team came in 85 out of 130 teams, so I thought that was pretty okay. It was such a fun weekend and we can't wait to do it again!

The Cheesecake Factory!

We had to take a break from shopping to get a foot rub!

"So NOT team Edward" Good job name stealers! They were

39 out of 130 teams!

Go Team Edward!!!!

Tiff, Melody, Kim, Michelle, Me (wishing I would have put

my shirt back on)

Both teams together!

Thumbs up! We're done, we did awesome, and we'll be back

Next year!

I could not have done this trip without my awesome husband. Max and Sydni both ended up getting sick the day I left, but he was a trooper and took such good care of them. Thanks Justin!

Update!

2009-05-14T08:30:00.000-07:00

Wow! We have been REALLY busy! As crazy as summer will be, I am ready for school to be out. We have been doing a lot lately, but I haven't been doing so good at taking pictures.

The Kindergarten was out for three days, so me and some friends decided to take the kids up to Jumpin' Jacks in Springville. It was really fun, and the kids loved it! We will probably be going back there again since the girls didn't get to go and "Thats Not Fair" (this phrase is now like swearing at our house and if you say it you get your mouth washed out with soap!!)

Hailey had her end of the year dance recital, and did great. She has really loved dance this year. The girls also had their end of the year piano recital. They don't particularly love piano, but they are doing good. We have watched a track meet and baseball game. I hope my boys get their cousins athletic abilities! Hailey and Syd are in the children's choir and they had their program this week. You would not believe how good they sound! Poor Jonah was determined not to miss a day of school this year, and came down with influenza the last week of school! What a bummer! Hailey is going to Middle School next year and couldn't be happier. My parent's still haven't got their mission call yet, so we have no idea when they are leaving! Well, thats about it in a nutshell. I am going to try to remember my camera more often!!

Random Weekend!

2009-04-28T12:11:00.000-07:00

Hailey had a dance Competition in Cedar this weekend so we packed up the WHOLE family and headed down to watch her. She did good, as usual. She has loved dance so much this year, it's been really fun. After she was done we decided we didn't really want to go home...so we headed down to St. George. We had no intentions of staying over night, so we stopped at Target to buy swimming suits and toothbrushes! What else do you need? It wasn't as hot as I would have liked, but it was definately warmer than Delta! The kids had a great time swimming, I stuck to the hot tub! On Sunday we went to the Golden Coral! You would have thought my kids were in heaven!!! They couldn't believe you could keep going back for more...with a new, clean plate and fork even! Yes, we definately got our money's worth! I love random fun!

Denver

2009-04-22T20:58:00.001-07:00

Justin had some Dairy meetings in Denver for a couple of days, so I decided to tag along. It worked out great since our friends Casey and Ashlee were going. I don't think the guys had quite as much fun in their meetings as we did shopping, but it was a fun little get-a-way! As usual, we ate lots of good food! We found a new resteraunt that could just be a new favorite! Buca di Beppo. I found one in Utah and can't wait to try it. Of course, no trip is complete without finding a cheesecake factory, another favorite! We had to drag Max along, but he did sooooo good! He is such a good baby. Thanks to Casey and Ashlee for the last minute invite, and thanks to everyone who helped with the rest of the kids! It's always nice to get a little break, and it's always nice to come home. Danny told me he was glad I wasn't lost anymore!

Max REALLY loved the plane ride. He is usually really mellow, but something about this little cooped up airplane brought out the maniac in him!!

Volleyball

2009-04-22T20:53:00.001-07:00

Hailey was old enough to play volleyball this year and she absolutely loved it! Especially when they won!! The first game we watched was pretty much torture, but by the second and third game, they were really catching on! Hailey did great on her serving and had a few more hits that actually made it over the net! We will be glad next year when she can play in the BIG gym instead of the little gym and we'll actually have seats to sit on! Good job Hailey!

Yay!

2009-04-08T21:19:00.000-07:00

After a long day we are finally home and happy to say all went well. Syd is known to be a little of a drama queen, but she did so well! I was so proud of her! I was a little nervous about when they would take her from us, but she was totally fine. They had given her an anti-anxiety med that was supposed to calm her down. YA RIGHT! She got the giggles so bad she had us all rolling! She was laughing her head off when they took her away! Oh well, at least it made it easier on us. Primary Children's is a great place. Everyone was so kind and helpful. When you go to a place like Primary's, it sure doesn't take long to realize how blessed we are! One day in there and I'm exhausted! Some families practically live there! Healthy children are such a blessing and I'm thankful for this small ordeal Syd had to go through to make me realize how truly blessed I am! She still can't open her eyes, so I am hoping by tomorrow she can and we can see for ourselves how great it all turned out! Thanks to everyone who called, stopped by, texted, prayed for us today. It was all very touching!

Me and Syd waiting in pre-op
She really liked the ID bracelet for some reason~its supposed
to be the focal point of this picture!

Feeling goofy after her medicine. She couldn't stop laughing!

Attempting to open her eyes, the not so fun part

No thanks, she wants her special blanket from grandma Church

and a wash cloth to cover her eyes!

Bye-Bye Funny Eye!

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

Syd has always been the CRAZY one of the family! She has also been the one that....if it's going to happen....it's going to happen to her! She's the only one of my kids who has been in the hospital, the only one who has broken a bone. Actually both arms at the same time! She has fillings in almost every tooth. Yes, this girl keeps life exciting! When she was about three years old she figured out she could turn one eye in and keep one eye straight. We called it her funny eye! She would do it for people and we would all laugh. Then when she was in first grade we noticed it was turning in all by itself. To make and EXTREMELY long story short....3 years and 4 doctors later, she is finally getting surgery to fix it. We are so excited! (and a little nervous) The doctor says its a pretty common procedure and is same-day surgery, so hopefully everything will go smooth and those big blue eyes will be straight! So tomorrow morning we will be off to Primary Children's Hospital for surgery....we'll keep you posted.

:) I don't think Sydni or Hailey would be very happy with me sharing this picture!

8 months!

2009-04-03T15:31:00.000-07:00

I can't believe Max is eight months already! He is still as sweet and loveable as ever! He FINALLY got his two bottom teeth! His absolute favorite thing to chew on is my flip-flops! GROSS! He can't quite crawl yet but he can definately scoot anywhere he wants. He loves bananas and sweet potatoes, and pretty much anything else you will let him eat! We haven't had him weighed lately, but about a month ago he was already 22 pounds! He's a big guy! Love you Max!

Weekend in St. George

2009-04-03T15:14:00.001-07:00

I have been slacking in the blogging world lately. We have been pretty busy, and will probably stay busy until school gets out. Last weekend we went and spent the weekend in St. George. It was super fun! Brayden was running in the track meet and Justin has been helping coach the track team so we loaded the fam and headed down. We stopped in Cedar and got to see Ann and her kids for a minute. Then we spent the evening in St. George watching the trackmeet. The next day was the finals so it was fun to watch and sooooo warm! Mike and Lisa and their kids came over from Kanab so all the kids were having a ball playing together. We lost Danny and finally found him laying on the grass with some random girl watching a movie on a little DVD player. It was so funny! He's really good at making friends!

Brayden did so good! He ran 4 races and won all of them. He is quite the runner! The boys ended up taking first out of 22 schools so it was pretty exciting!
Brayden with a few of his biggest fans - Jonah, Danny, and Jake!

I can't believe out of a whole weekend this is the only picture I got!!

XXXS wrestler

2009-03-19T09:17:00.000-07:00

I always wanted a wrestler! But everyone was right! It is STRESSFUL! Even when they're only 6! Jonah loved every second of it though, and can't wait until next year! He looked so cute in his XXXS singlet! :) I have to say, I was a pretty proud mama....he did really good. Even when he got beat he took it well and was ready to go again. It's so sad to see them grow up, but so much fun too!

2009-02-27T16:59:00.000-08:00

As I was wasting time on the computer today, I came across a blog of a friend of a friend of a friend. AKA total stranger! (I'm sure I'm not the only one who does this, right?) Well, this stranger whom I now know a lot about had 4 kids, thought she was done, got pregnant again....sound familiar? Anyway, she had posted an awesome poem about how kids grow up so fast and how we will miss all the things they do. (Yes, I have heard this a million times) But this one hit me a little harder than others and I started thinking about my own kids. They are growing up faster than I ever thought possible! Hailey in particular. I never take the time to tell her how great she is....how beautiful she is....how much I appreciate her! I've got to do better, I thought to myself! I will do better!

In the middle of my blog-stalking, Hailey had asked if she could make cookies, which she does often. Sure, just don't forget the sugar and crisco this time! I tasted the dough and it was delicious! I ate way too much! The cookies turned out great. Then she decided to take a bath......then I smelled smoke!!

Whoops! She forgot she had a batch of cookies still in the oven when she decided to take that bath! I'll admit I freaked out a little....but then tried to go back to the blog of the total stranger and remember that these are the things I will miss some day!

And another not so positive note. We now know our smoke alarms DON'T WORK!

2009-02-27T16:52:00.000-08:00

Dear Max....PLEASE grow some teeth! This is getting really OLD!!!

Click on picture to enlarge to get the full, wet, effect!

Worth the Wait!

2009-02-23T19:43:00.000-08:00

Back in November of 2007 (feels like forever ago) Justin surprised me with tickets to Celine Dion for our anniversary. I had been wanting to see her in Vegas forever and then it ended and I was so bummed out. So when I saw these tickets I started screaming I was so excited! He had lined up babysitters, we were going to spend the night, it was going to be great. Plus....it was only two days away! WRONG! I got looking at the tickets and they said Nov. 2008. Oh! What a bummer! Poor Justin was so disappointed! Oh well, at least we had something to look forward to next year. Well, November 2008 rolled around (we'd had another baby by now, and didn't know if the concert was even a possibility) And come to find out, the concert had been postponed to February! We were begining to think this just wasn't meant to be! Lucky for us, time flies, and let me just say....It was worth the wait! It was the best concert I have ever been to. (Not that I have been to a lot, but still) She was totally amazing! I loved every second of it! We had incredible seats too, so that was just another bonus! When she walked out on the ramp we were only 8 rows back! It was awesome! It all worked out great. My super awesome mom kept my kids (with a little help from a great sister and sister-in-laws) and we got to spend the night. A night away is nothing short of a miracle when you have five kids! It was so fun to spend time with Justin. We ate A LOT, shopped just a little (I didn't marry a big shopping fan) and had a great time. Now Justin thinks he's already off the hook for our anniversary this year....wrong again!! :)

Waiting for the concert to start

I couldn't believe how close we were!

I'm so glad we snuck our cameras in! :)

How can someone sing so good, and look so good too?! WOW!

Another 5k

2009-02-21T16:44:00.000-08:00

Today me and a few of my friends ran a 5k here in Delta. Actually, I better give credit where credit is due...Stacia ran the 10k. It was a lot of fun and the weather couldn't have been better. Looking forward to the next one! Afterwards, we all went to the Rancher for breakfast to celebrate Kim's birthday. It was lots of fun....Good Job Girls!!

Tiff, Stacia, Michelle, Amber, Me (wish you were here Kim!)

8 Things!

2009-02-18T14:59:00.000-08:00

I've been tagged....twice! So here it goes.

8 things about me......

Here are the rules:
1)Post rules on your blog
2)Answer the six "8" items
3)Let each person know they've been tagged by leaving them a comment

Favorite TV shows:
1. Biggest Loser
2. American Idol
3. The Office
4. Oprah
5. Friends
6. I don't watch anything else I guess
7.
8.

8 Things I did yesterday:
1. Ditched Tiffany and didn't go running!
2. Got the kids to school
3. Washed sheets
4. Vacumed
5. Dusted
6. Made dinner
7. Exercised
8. Watched AI and Biggest Loser

8 Things I look forward to:
1. Spring
2. Going to Georgia
3. Going to Lake Powell
4. Summer
5. the Marathon Relay with my friends
6. Watching my kids grow
7. Pigging out tonight after I weigh in at WW
8. Spending time with Justin

8 Favorite Restraunts:
1. Ruby River
2. Texas Roadhouse
3. The Cheesecake Factory
4. Olive Garden
5. Red Robin
6. Cafe Rio
7. CPK
8. The Pizza Factory

8 Things on my wishlist
1. Straight eyes for Syd
2. Lose my last 7 lbs.
3. Go on a vacation alone with Justin
4. Kids that clean up after themselves
5. Take my family to Hawaii
6. Be the best mom ever
7. Be the best wife ever
8. Have a little more time

8 People I tag
1. LeAnn
2. Misty
3. Tiff
4. Melody
5. Michelle
6. Jamie
7. Stacia
8. Kim (again)

So Proud!

2009-02-10T06:35:00.001-08:00

http://ut.milesplit.us/articles/21674

I just have to brag on my cute nephew. I am so proud of him! Wish I was fast!!!

6 Months!

2009-01-31T13:59:00.000-08:00

I can't believe Max is already 6 months old! He is such a good baby and we love having him around. He loves to chew on EVERYTHING and can sit up now. He's not a huge fan of cereal yet, but he's getting a little more used to it. I hate to say it but he loves TV already! He loves to watch the wiggles with Danny while Danny dances and sings around him. We love you little guy!
We took the kids up to the cabin for the day just to hang out and get out of the house for a while. Grandpa Gary burns names into this log when they come to visit. It looks like we have taken the last of the log. Good thing Max is the youngest!

A Birthday Shout-out!

2009-01-24T09:58:00.000-08:00

To my BFF Kim! We have been friends since we were dressing kittens in doll clothes. We made Hogi's and Yogi's together in High School, then when I moved over to Chevron, you always brought me cookie dough. We both moved on to Cedar and had some good times there. Even better times coming back to Delta on the weekends for toilet papering in the big brown van (courtesy of Cassie). We even slept in that big brown van a few times and woke up to find frost on the INSIDE of the windows. Why did we think that was fun?! Scaring each other sick at the cabin and doing blue darts til we laughed so hard we peed! Being a shoulder for me to cry on when I find out Hailey was coming into the picture. When you said you were dating Cory, I laughed...I thought you were kidding! But what a pair you two are! We lost touch for a few years, but I'll never forget when I looked out the window and saw Cory looking at the apartments across the street. I couldn't believe it! Now our husbands are friends too! Our trip to Cancun when you almost killed Cory, going camping in tents with both of us pregnant (our poor husbands)! Driving around Oahu having the time or our life and eating lots and lots of food! Finding out we're pregnant, finding out we're not. Shopping trips, rez days, just calling to talk. You have been such a good friend to me for so long. I hope you have a great day....you're a great friend.....you deserve it!

Something to blog about

2009-01-18T09:31:00.001-08:00

January is one long....boring month. Nothing too exciting has been going on at our house. Finally this weekend we were able to have a little getaway. We left for Cedar on Friday and spent the night with Justin's sister Hilary. It's always fun hanging out with them and all our kids are the same age, so they have lots of fun too. Then on Saturday my friend Tiffany and I were signed up to run a 5k in St. George so we headed down there early in the morning and met up with her. We were both a little nervous since we haven't been running for too long and we've never run three miles without stopping. But I have to say we did pretty good. We ran the whole way and never stopped to walk, plus we ran a little faster than we usually do (which still isn't really fast) so I think we were both pretty proud of ourselves. Plus the weather was awesome, so that's another bonus. I love St. George.....in the winter.

Then Justin's sister was nice enough to keep all the kids for the day so Justin and I could have a day together. After the race we went to the temple, then to lunch at outback - thanks to Michelle. It was a really great day!

My pictures are in wrong order as usual - this is after the race. We made it!
About to run

One more funny story...I really wanted Justin to be at the finish line so he could take our picture coming across. He sat there with his camera ready for about ten minutes just waiting. Pretty soon some poor girl starting puking right before she crossed the finish line. Justin was a little sidetracked by that and totally missed me crossing. By the time I found him, he was still waiting for me with the camera! :) Oh well, maybe next time.

In 2009.......

2009-01-08T08:29:00.000-08:00

Is it smart for me to POST New Years Resolutions? NO! It is not! Because then everybody knows my faults and will be watching to see if I really do all the things I say I am going to do this year. But since everyone that reads my blog probably has a lot better things to do than check up on me and how I am doing with my resolutions, I guess I will go ahead and post some

GoAlS fOr ThE nEw YeAr!!!
-Keep working on my Patcience. This will probably be a goal for me for the rest of my life!
-Be a better mom! Always! Do the little things that are bigger then I realize...Like...Reading stories, tucking them in at night, saying I love you more, just taking more time
-Be a better wife. Even if it's dinner on the table at night and clean socks and underwear in the drawers instead of in the dryer for a week! Remember to tell Justin I love him every day!
-Lose the baby weight. Typical resolution, I know. But it really has to happen!
-Keep running. I am not much of a runner, but I try and I want to try harder.
-Make a quilt. I just want to learn.
-Be a better friend/person. I want to be the kind of person that calls or drops in for no reason, just to let you know you are thinking of them. I have good intentions of doing this, but I seem to chicken out. I want to learn to recognize when people need something, and be there for them. So many have done it for me!!
-Tighten up my spending habits. I don't need everything I see, I have plenty. I need to save my money for a rainy day......or when the milk price plumets!!
-Family Scripture Study, Family prayer, Family home evening. We are doing better, but it's easy to sleep those extra 15 minutes in the morning. But I am recognizing how much it helps our family.
-Realize that a happy family is more important than a clean house. I do realize this, I just can't seem to make it happen.
-Date nights with Justin twice a month!

TOP TEN REASONS 2009 IS GOING TO BE GREAT!!
1. Going to GA in May to see one of my very best friends!
2. Max will turn one! I love when they get a little older!
3. Justin and I will celebrate 10 years of marriage! And hopefully celebrate somewhere warm!
4. I won't be pregnant in the summer!!!
5.Going to Lake Powell with my family! (this better happen)
6. I will have grass for summer playing instead of sand!
7.Kim will be the same age as me!!! :) I know she can't wait to be 30!!
8.Every years just seems to get a little better!
9. Sydni will be done with eye therapy and hopefully have perfectly straight eyes!
10. I will stick with all my resolutions and feel so much better about myself!! :)

Mamma Mia!!

2008-12-31T12:06:00.000-08:00

Justin is always wanting to have guys over to watch movies, so I decided it was my turn! I got all my sisters-in-law to come over and watch Mamma Mia. Justin gave it to me for Christmas and I have been wanting to watch it ever since. We had popcorn and treats and a great time! Thanks girls! Twilight Party next!!!

Lindsey, Loreen, Steph, me, Misty, Hilary, Misty (Linds loved the popcorn)
Getting ready to start the show!!!

How could we not dance to "Dancing Queen"!?!?!

Sing it Lindsey!!

Steph and Hilary - Hilary is really getting into it!

What a fun night! I love all these girls, they are so much fun! We missed Heather though!

5 months!

2008-12-30T11:07:00.000-08:00

I'm a little behind on this one, but Max turned 5 months on the 28th. He is still such a happy little guy, and our family seems complete with him around. He loves his older brothers and sisters, espcecially Danny. (for some reason) He is so smiley and laughs like crazy! We sure love this little boy!

Church Family Party

2008-12-30T10:36:00.000-08:00

I was in charge of the Church family party this year. It took a while to settle on a date,but we finally decided the day after Christmas and everyone was able to come. It was so much fun. I fixed taco salad for dinner then had a ice cream sunday bar. Everyone seemed to like it, especially the kids and the whipped cream and sprinkles!! After we ate we played-Do you love your cousin- Then all the kids opened their gifts, then the adults opened theirs. It's so fun to get toghether, we always have such a fun time. I have the funniest brothers in the world, so we never stop laughing! Thanks for such a fun party everyone!!

Kyle with his Titans mug - Go Titans!!
Max and his present

Grandpa asking Jonah if he loves his cousins!

Getting ready to play

The fam! (some of them anyway)

Christmas Day!

2008-12-30T10:06:00.000-08:00

We had such a fun Christmas this year! All the kids seemed to be at just the right ages to be SO excited for Santa to come! Justin told the girls they could come out at 7:30! So mean! They woke up at 5:58 (according to Hailey) and watched TV until about 7 when we told them they could come down. We let Danny sleep in until he was ready to wake up on his own. It was better than dealing with the monster he would have been. When he woke up he looked over the banister and said, "my tracks are here" It was so funny. He had been dying for some train tracks for so long. It was such a fun morning!

Danny was so excited to play with his tracks, he didn't even
have time to put his pants back on!!
Oops...this picture got in twice. Syd asked Santa for Webkinz
and she really loaded up on them!

Hailey started screaming when she saw her ipod! What a girl!

New matching Christmas pj's

Jonah loving his leapster tag book, this kid is obsessed with

learning to read!

Jonah and his speed racer race track!

Danny with his tracks. He even got an awsome table for them

Where is Max? Peacefully sleeping through it all. What a lucky little guy!

After opening presents Grandma and Grandpa Church came over to see all the stuff. So did Darlene and her boys. Then that afternoon we went back to Darlene's for lunch. It was so yummy. That night we went to the Bliss' for Christmas dinner. Yes, we ate a lot today!

Hoodies

2008-12-27T11:33:00.001-08:00

Every year my mom and dad give all the kids a new hoodie! They love it, and they're always so cute. This year we got a picture of everyone in their new hoodies......except we forgot about Max. But he got one too!

The Nativity

2008-12-27T08:52:00.000-08:00

Every year my mom does a little live nativity with all the grandkids while my dad reads from the scriptures. It always turns out so cute and it's so fun to see all the little kids dressed up. Although......most of the kids aren't so little anymore. What good sports the teenage boys are to dress up for the nativity. I guess it's just too hard to say know to Grandma!

Hailey, Taya, and Rylie....the angels

All dressed up. Except Brayden, he was the donkey that carried

Mary in.....too bad we don't have a costume for that!

Syd was so happy to be Mary this year, especially with a real baby Jesus

What a cute little shepherd

Jonah and Danny as shepherds
Even though the big boys might not love dressing up, I am so happy we do this every year. I am so guilty for getting caught up in all the hustle and bustle that I have a hard time slowing down and taking the time to remember why we really do have Christmas. This nativity is such a good reminder for me and my kids. Thanks Grandma!

Christmas Eve Party

2008-12-27T08:40:00.000-08:00

My mom's Christmas Eve party has been my favorite thing since I was little. I remember feeling just like my kids, like time for the party to start would never come! This year was especially great when a special visitor stopped by! Danny could hardly contain himself! He told Santa he wanted tracks and trains!!

After Santa left, we ate the best dinner ever! Prime Rib! Everything tasted so good, and no Christmas eve dinner would be complete without my mom's jello ribbon salad. The kids would almost rather look at the jello than eat it........almost!

Christmas Eve

2008-12-27T08:35:00.000-08:00

ChRiStMaS eVe!! According to Hailey, this is the longest day of the year! My kids were so excited for Christmas this year! To make the time go by.....we made some cookies for Santa!

12 Days of Christmas Tag

2008-12-19T08:42:00.000-08:00

Thanks for the tag...I really needed to update SOMETHING!

1. Emberassing Moment: Well, I have fallen down about 3 times in the last couple of months, thats never good. Then there is that one running incident a few chosen friends know about.....I think I will keep it that way!

2. Best Friends: Justin, my kids, my mom and sister. I am lucky...I have a lot of great friends!

3. Things I buy regularly: milk, bread, diet coke

4. Places I want to go: Hawaii, New York, on a cruise, Georgia (in May! yay!)

5. Goals for the upcoming year: Lose some weight, run some more, gain patience, be a better mom and wife.

6. Things people don't know about me: I actually like to clean most of the time, but my room is always a complete disaster, I love having my babies sleep with me, i have Britney Spears on my ipod, I kind of love the song ice ice baby!!,

7. Things I would never say: I can't seem to get pregnant! I'll just have water, wow we are early!, sure you can stay up late! I love getting my picture taken!, I'm not at all tired! 5 kids is so easy!

8. Things I love about the Christmas season: Christmas eve dinner at my moms, reading my kids letters to Santa, Danny asking every five seconds if Santa is coming, seeing lots of family, shopping!!!

9. Things I say to my kids: Hurry, we're late, where are your shoes, be nice, I love you

10. Things I do often: clean, yell at my kids (trying to do better on that one) talk on the phone, text, play on the internet, watch the wiggles with Danny

11. Things I would rather not live without: Justin, my kids, my family, my friends, food, clorox wipes, diet coke, a car, disposable diapers, DVR

12. Friends I tag: Misty, Loreen, LeAnn, Katherine, Ashlee, Melanie, Michelle

Finally....

2008-12-07T17:50:00.000-08:00

Last weekend I was bugging Justin to get the tree in. Well, he finally did it and there it sat undecorated for a week. So we decided to have Family Home Evening a day early and decorate the tree. It turned out okay I guess. I told Justin I want to go shopping the day after Christmas and get some new ornaments. I've never been able to have such a big tree before. We are excited for our first Christmas in our house!

Four Months!

2008-12-07T17:46:00.001-08:00

Well, I'm a little behind with this post but oh well. Max turned 4 months on the 28 of November. So I guess he's more like 4 1/2 months now. He is still so much fun and such a good baby. This is his new BUMBO chair and he loves it! It totally cracks me up to see him sitting in it. Pretty soon he'll be sitting up on his own. Happy four months Maximum!

Thanksgiving 2008

2008-12-02T13:00:00.000-08:00

This was one of the busiest weekends ever, and I never once pulled out my camera! Thanksgiving morning started out with a rainy 5k at Thanksgiving point. We spent the night in Orem the night before and when I got outside to head up to Lehi it was pouring!! I just about wipmed out and headed back into the motel, but I decided to tough it out. I'm not the fastest runner, but I didn't come in last place....so that is a good thing!

After the race we came back home and hurried to get ready to go to dinner at my moms. In case anyone doesn't know, my mom is the best cook ever. Everything tasted so good and I was sad when it was over! (I think I love food too much) Everyone was there but Mike's family. It's so much fun to be with my family, I just love it! We spent most of the day at my mom's and by the time we got home I was ready for bed!

On Friday morning I went shopping. Not the crazy black Friday kind of shopping, just good 'ol Delta shopping. Webkinz were half off! Hooray! Since Sydni asked Santa for 20 of them. Hmmm....maybe five or six Syd! And all shoes were 40% off, so Justin is now off the hook for a Christmas present! I love shoes! The rest of the day was spent with all the cousins playing at our house. My kids love their cousins so much! Mike and Lisa showed up in the evening and ended up staying at our house, it was way fun! Rick, Lindsey, and Nate all stopped by too so I decided to give Justin an early birthday present so we all watched Hancock in the theater room.

Saturday all the girls went to lunch (missed you Darlene) and to the tree festival. We got their a little late, so we didn't really get to see the trees, but it was fun anyway. There were some really cute trees too. I called Justin and asked if I could buy one...he said NO! We really didn't want to take any kids to lunch with us, so I said they could all just hang out at my house. I think there were 17 there in all!!! The house was still in one piece when we got home, so that was a bonus! Thanks to Kyle and Bethany for babysitting, and to Ty and his friends for keeping Kyle company while he babysat! :) That night was the light parade so we went and watched all five minutes of that. Justin's birthday was Saturday so we went to his mom and dads. Kind of a lame birthday for him, but oh well. Every day seemed like a party!

We had a great holiday weekend, and are looking forward to Christmas!

The Polar Express

2008-12-01T19:10:00.000-08:00

For Jonah's birthday we took the kids up to Heber City to ride the Polar Express! They were all really excited, but when we got on the train and it finally started moving.....Jonah informed me it was NOT a magic train and it was NOT the real Santa! Oh well, we tried. It was a fun little family overnighter anyway. (and beats the heak out of a birthday party)

Jonah helping lead us in Christmas carols.
Danny whispering to Santa what he wanted, I hope Santa heard!

Jonah, mom, Max

The kids waiting to get on the train. It wasn't as cold as it looks!

Max was all bundled up.
Me and my fab five!

Happy Birthday Jonah!

2008-11-26T09:09:00.000-08:00

Jonah is 6 today! He is so excited to turn 6. He has always been such a fun little guy and I'm so happy to be his mom! He is a pretty good kid most of the time. Some of Jonah's favorites in life are: going to school, playing with his big boy cousins, watching his big boy cousins play sports, hanging out with grandpa gary, and shooting his gun he won at the NRA banquet! Happy Birthday buddy, we love you!

Jonah's birthday also marks another anniversary. My Grandma died the day Jonah was born. It was a bitter sweet day. She was in the hospital for a couple of weeks before she died and every time I would come in, she wanted to know if I'd had that baby yet. No, not yet. Then she'd ask again what I was going to name him so she could tell him to hurry up! So sweet and so sad! I really miss her and think about her and my grandpa a lot. They were the best!

Happy Thanksgiving!

2008-11-25T17:53:00.001-08:00

For Family Home Evening we decided to make a list of some things we were THANKFUL for. With all the excitement of CHRISTMAS we forget about Thanksgiving. I try to be thankful all the time, but it's nice to have an excuse to really stop and think about all that we have. I know I have more than I could ever ask for and I am Very Thankful! Here are a few things the rest of my family is thankful for:
JUSTIN: Hailey, Sydni, Jonah, Danny, Max, Darla, church, sun, cows, friends, Dad, Angelina Jolie, star wars, our house, work, USA (so far), grass, lawn mowers, computers, families, the priesthood, good health.

DARLA: Justin, Hailey, Sydni, Jonah, Danny, Max, our house, our car, music, running shoes, my ipod, my dishwasher, Christmas, food, Heavenly Father, Jesus Christ, the scriptures, church, pianos, computers, the priesthood, parents, good friends, our year supply, hot baths, pepsi

HAILEY: mom, dad, family, grandparents, food, house, ice cream, Max, best friend Mikah, Christmas, pioneers, Jesus, hair, build-a-bears, trees, stockings, computers, dog, cats, horses

SYDNI: family, friends, food, water, pilgrams, cousins, grandmas, grandpas, dishes, furniture, paper, our house, our car, TV, Christmas, Thanksgiving, turkey, clothes

JONAH: my family, my mom, my dad, my granpo, my dad, my sisdr, my bruvr, my babiy (Jonah insisted on writing his own, so he didn't come up with too many)

DANNY: my friend Guy, my friend Mel, my dog, Maxies, Jonah, Christmas, my house, my room, my jammies, Santa, windows

I really do have so much to be thankful for this year, and every year. Happy Thanksgiving!!

Midnight Madness!

2008-11-22T13:12:00.001-08:00

Finally, after much anticipation........we watched Twilight! All I can say is, Dang it!!! I was not expecting it to be as good as the book, but I was still a little disappointed. Oh well, there's nothing like staying up all night with your favorite gals. Kim and I got to the theater around nine, the went and stood in line at about 9:30, then they opened the doors at 10. I couldn't believe how many people were there, especially teenagers.....we felt OLD! :) But it was still fun, and I think I have recovered from my lack of sleep. We are so proud of Tiffany for waking up to come and staying awake through the whole movie! And to Michelle....we missed you, but don't worry you didn't miss much! I'm so lucky to have such awsome friends!

Kim, Kathy, Stacia, Tiff, Me, Ashlee