Tyler and Amber

Maya found her toes

2011-09-21T16:34:00.000-06:00

The past couple of days Maya has really taken an interest in her toes. She is always grabbing on to them and trying to eat them.

YUMMY!

I love watching little ones as they learn new and figure out new things.

Em's Loses Another Tooth

2011-09-13T16:39:00.000-06:00

Em's lost another tooth. This time she was at school when she lost it. She thought it was super cool because she got to go to the office and get a little treasure box to put it in.

New Digs from Japan

2011-09-05T16:28:00.000-06:00

Tyler brought the kiddos these cool robes home from his trip to Japan.

Tubing

2011-09-05T16:22:00.000-06:00

After our campout at Tyler's parents house we woke up early and headed out to Willard Bay to go boating.

It was actually quite chilly. Allie and Aria were brave enough to get in the water though. Emily and Josh just wanted to put their feet in.

Maya and Grandma enjoying the ride.

Josh thought he should be the one to drive.

The kids all went out on the fun tube Grandma and Grandpa have.

They liked it until they crashed and all ended up in the water.

Geri and I had a blast on the tube. We were jumping up and down, trying to catch air and just being crazy.

Emily was brave and tried skiing by herself. Grandma helped her get ready.

She did pretty good. She was able to stay up for about 5 seconds. We were so proud of her for trying!

S'more Please

2011-09-04T15:57:00.000-06:00

Since it is a holiday weekend Tyler's parents invited us over to sleep in the backyard and roast marshmallows with them and such.

Tyler has been in Japan for the last week +. He went there to help clean up a little and help rebuild from the tsunami damage. He got home about 5 minutes before we left to his parents house.

Joshua looks like the karate kid with this rad head band that Tyler brought back from Japan..

We roasted marshmallows over the grill.

We love s'mores! and we love camping and grandma and grandpa's house!

Maya Can Roll Over

2011-09-03T15:55:00.000-06:00

Maya has started rolling from her tummy to her back. Because I usually take my blog entries and make a book out of them at the end of the year I can't put a video of Maya rolling over so here is a few pictures as she makes her way from tummy to back.

And you will notice in the background that Joshua is working on is headstand skills.

Clean Up!

2011-08-30T20:59:00.000-06:00

Emily and Allie left their toothbrushes and toothpaste and other random items all over the bathroom counter. I just told them to go upstairs and pick up the bathroom counter. Allie (4) replied "How are we suppose to lift up the counter? It's WAAAY to heavy!" Little stink! Just put your stuff away. :)

Hammock Fun

2011-08-26T13:46:00.000-06:00

The hammock in our backyard is one of our favorite places to just chill. It is great for Sunday naps or just relaxing while watching the older kiddos, although they all usually end up in the hammock with us.

Maya was enjoying her time in the hammock.

Fire Station Field Trip

2011-08-26T09:04:00.000-06:00

Allie had her first field trip today. We went to the fire station just down the street from our house. Ty was able to come with us.

Josh and Ty practicing their STOP, DROP AND ROLL skills.

Learning about the big firetrucks.

Checking out the inside of the truck.

Joshua loved all the firetrucks.

What a cutie!

Junior firefighters. Fun field trip for all, but I think Joshua enjoyed it the most.

Emily starts 1st grade

2011-08-23T16:36:00.000-06:00

Every parent asks the question "Where has time gone?" and I am no different. Can my little girl really be in 1st grade?

She is so excited to start 1st grade since according to her "Kindergarten was way too easy".

Time to go!

Emily's desk. She's hoping she gets to sit by some cute boys.

She loved the 1st day of school and Allie really likes riding her bike to pick Emily up from school.

Captain Josh

2011-08-19T16:27:00.000-06:00

Joshua is such a funny kid. He is usually sporting his Woody cowboy hat but today he switched it up a bit.

What a cute little kid. Love his personality.

Dad Pea's his pants

2011-08-18T22:38:00.000-06:00

We had some peas with our dinner tonight. Tyler had to get up from the table for a second and when he sat back down Emily whispered in my ear and started to laugh. Tyler asked what was so funny. I told him Emily put a pea on his chair and he just sat on it. Then Emily pipes up and says "dad pea'd his pants". She thought she was so funny. And I have to admit, I think she was.

Swimming in Eden

2011-08-14T17:23:00.000-06:00

We spent the weekend up in Eden and enjoyed some time at the pool.

Ready, set, fly! Emily getting tossed into the water.

Allie trying to touch the bottom.

Josh getting ready to jump.

Look at that form. :)

Ty and his sexy muscles.

Good Morning!

2011-08-13T09:16:00.000-06:00

Really? I don't know if there is anything better to wake up to than a happy little baby with the biggest smile. Love seeing this little face every morning.

Maya 3 Months

2011-08-04T13:36:00.000-06:00

This little girl is 3 months old already. She is such a cute little stink and such a good girl!

Love baby smiles!

Love those big blue eyes!

Allie Starts Preschool 2011

2011-08-02T14:35:00.000-06:00

Allie has been looking forward to this day for sooo long! First day of big kid preschool- as she calls it. Meaning the one that mom and the neighbor moms aren't in charge of.

Allie is going to the same preschool that Emily went to when she was 4. This year her teacher is doing an advanced class where they focus more on reading. Which we felt was a good thing for Allie since she is already reading on a 2nd grade level and we thought that that would be a little better for her than just learning letters. We don't want her to be too bored. Smart little stink!

This year we are just hoping for Allie to develop better social skills and to bridge the gap between her emotional and intellectual development.

Can you tell she is excited??

Here we go!

And she is off. Here's to hoping for a great school year.

Fun with Chalk

2011-07-28T14:24:00.000-06:00

Emily and Allie thought it would be fun to paint with their chalk so they got their chalk all wet, applied it to their hands and feet and then painted the back patio.

Their final masterpiece.

Camping Mirror Lake

2011-07-25T16:00:00.000-06:00

We went camping at Mirror Lake over the 24th of July with my family. We had so much fun and it was nice having everyone there.

Lunch time in the trailer.

We spent a lot of time fishing in the lake. Here Josh and Tyler are on their way down the the lake. Love these boys!

Joshua loved the water. Despite the cold temperature of the water he walked right in and marched around in it for a long time. He was soaked by the time we were done.

Emily and Allie enjoying some time by the lake.

Josh helped Daddy bring in a fish.

Holy sexy husband!!

No camping trip would be complete without roasting mallows around the campfire and making s'mores.

Crazy sticky hands after enjoying our tasty campfire treats.

Me and Maya staying warm by the fire.

Daddy reading the kiddos a camping story at bedtime.

This the the cute little face I saw when I woke up in the morning. Joshua thought that licorice was appropriate for breakfast. Can't say that I blame the kid. It is tasty stuff.

Little Miss Maya enjoying her time up in the mountains. She is such a good little munchkin. She had a rough go the first night up there because she got immunizations that day but after that she was a happy camper.

We went for a walk around the lake. I had Maya strapped to the front of my in the kid carrier. Joshua got tired of walking so I picked him and gave him a piggy back ride. He fell asleep. Boy, what a sight.

Not sure what this girl is doing? Being a goofball like usual I guess.

Tyler set up his slack line while we were up there. Everyone had a great time testing out their balance and trying to walk across it. My sister, Paige, and I thought it was more fun to do handstands on it.

Emily just before a very graceful dismount, I'm sure.

Miss Allie having fun walking across.

Dad and Maya enjoying the night by the fire.

So much time just "hanging out" in the hammock.

We had such a fun weekend together. I love my family. Love spending time outdoors. Really love spending time outdoors with my family.

POPS Concert

2011-07-17T23:15:00.000-06:00

WSU POPS CONCERT is one of our favorite things to do in July. We love spending time with family, playing games, listening to good music and watching the fireworks.

The kids playing with their cousin Mylee.

Joshua enjoyed flying through the sky.

Maya and Dad chillin.

Tyler decided to do some push ups while we were hanging out and Joshua went up next to him and started to do them too. It was so cute.

Now it is time for the fireworks. I love Joshua's face in this picture. The look of awe and amazement. Oh to be a kid again.

Emily and Allie took pictures of the fireworks.

We found out when we got to WSU that Emily didn't wear any shoes. Seriously? Not sure what she was thinking. Luckily we found a pair of her dress up shoes in the car. Not the most practical things but they were definitely better than having no shoes at all.

Summer Swimming!

2011-07-14T19:59:00.000-06:00

We love swimming at Grandma and Grandpa Spackman's. Even little Maya likes it.

See? All smiles on these munchkins!

No Training Wheels for Miss Allie!

2011-07-12T14:25:00.000-06:00

Allie has learned to ride her bike without training wheels. She just hopped on her bike and went. I didn't have to help her at all.

She is so excited about this! Can you tell?

Josh just blew bubbles while the girls rode their bikes.

Love fun summer days.

Happy Birthday, Joshua!

2011-07-07T21:30:00.000-06:00

My little boy just turned 2. He is such a fun little boy. Always happy and full of laughter. He doesn't talk very much (he has 2 older sisters, why would he?).

Joshua LOVES Woody and Buzz from Toy Story. ABSOLUTELY LOVES THEM! He was Woody for Halloween last year and he wears his Woody hat every day and usually falls asleep with it on. So when I asked Josh what he wanted his birthday cake to look like it was no surprise when he said "Woodo!" (That is what he calls Woody).

The Woodo cake.

Mater and Lightning McQueen are Josh's other loves just behind Woody and Buzz. So he was super stoked when Grandma and Grandpa Conlin gave him this Mater bubble blower toy.

Woody and Buzz jammers.

McQueen sunglasses and Woody/Buzz flip flops. What a stud!

Josh L.O.V.E.D his cake. He was so excited about it.

Blowing out the candles.

I think everyone knew how much Josh loves Woody, Buzz, Mater and McQueen because that seems to be what everyone gave him. He even got Toy Story tattoos.

Joshua had a great birthday! So glad he is part of our family. Love you Joshman.

Just Fishin'

2011-07-06T22:10:00.000-06:00

We decided to enjoy the nice summer weather and go fishing together as a family.

What a poser! I mighty cute one though.

Oh look! I was there. I think Emily took this picture to prove that I do actually take part in the activities that we do. I'm just always the one behind the camera.

My 2 favorite boys! What a great moment in time!

Maya slept the whole time!

We have so much fun together fishing. Tyler is always always fixing someone's line so he stays might busy. We enjoy spending time together and relaxing.

4th of July

2011-07-04T22:01:00.000-06:00

We love the 4th of July (or 3rd of July since the 4th was on Sunday this year). We always have so much fun staying up in Eden then going to the Huntsville breakfast and parade.

This happy little girl is 2 months old! That big smile and chubby cheeks make me melt. Oh how I love her.

We ate breakfast in the park and then got ready for the parade. The kids were super excited for all the candy they knew they were about to get.

Miss Maya enjoyed her first parade.

Hooray! We love the parade- Actually we just really like the candy.

The kids enjoyed feeding the cows.

After the parade we went to the clubhouse in Eden and went swimming. We didn't swim very long though. It was rainy, windy and cold.

Everyone enjoyed the fireworks!

2011-07-01T22:55:00.000-06:00

It was the neighborhood party/BBQ up in Eden today.

My hot hubby!

Seriously love this girl. She can be such a goofball sometimes.

Emily always has a smile on her face!

Time for dinner and popsicles.

They had a little face painting station set up. We all decided to get our face painted. The lady doing it did an amazing job.

Our little flower child.

Butterfly babe!

Josh trying real hard to hold still.

Arg! Joshua the pirate.

The kids got got pick out the designs for Tyler and I.

Maya even got her face painted.

2 super cute girls.

Family photo!

We had such a fun time swimming, eating and getting our faces painted. What a great way to start the weekend.

Music in the mountains

2011-06-26T14:42:00.000-06:00

Last night we went to a concert at Wolf Mountain. We laid out our blanket, enjoyed a picnic dinner and listen to some fun music.

So much fun together as a family!

Keely and Tyler

2011-06-16T22:18:00.000-06:00

My sister, Keely, got married today! She and Tyler Fry were married in the Salt Lake Temple.

Emily and Daddy spending some quality time together.

Dad and the kiddos.

Ty chasing after Joshua while we were waiting for Keely and Tyler to come out.

Caught him!

Keely on her special day.

The newlyweds.

Emily and Tyler

Emily and Allie

We tried really hard to get a family picture but the kiddos didn't want to cooperate.

Congrats Keely and Tyler. We wish you the best. Now things will get interesting with 3 Tys in the family.

Em's First T-ball Game

2011-06-15T14:09:00.042-06:00

After a couple of weeks of practices, Emily finally had her first T-ball game. The kids still have no idea what is really going on but it is super fun to watch them.

Getting ready to play.

Emily up to bat.

Emily on 1st with Dad as the 1st first base coach.

Em's going for the ball.

So excited to be playing.

Slugger! Pretty impressive when you can't even see the ball because the helmet is covering your eyes.

Running in to home.

Getting a high 5 from Dad as she goes to the outfield.

Team cheer at the end of the game.

I'd like to think that by the end of the season they will understand the game a little more but I'm not sure that is really going to happen. It is super fun to watch them though.

Summer Time= Picnic Time

2011-06-14T15:46:00.010-06:00

The kiddos got a new little picnic table for the back patio. Hurray for being able to eat lunch outside and for not making messes in the house.

I think the table and little umbrella are super cute and the kids love it which makes it even better! High five.

OOOOHHHHH! Love those little lips.

I know this is kind of a funny picture. I'm sure she was talking to me about something. I like this picture because I can see the gap she has in her gums and it doesn't show up usually when I am taking pictures and I wanted a picture so I would remember it.

SMILE

2011-06-13T15:42:00.002-06:00

This is Maya's first smile that I have caught on camera. I love little baby smiles!

Maya's 5 weeks

2011-06-08T15:37:00.016-06:00

5 weeks old already

She has found her fist and tries to suck on it.

Can you tell they are related?

Maya's Blessing Day

2011-06-05T19:32:00.017-06:00

One of my favorite days is when my little ones are given a name and a blessing by their dad. It is such a special day and I love seeing my precious little babes all dressed in white.

My beautiful girls!

Sweet little Maya sleeping on my lap.

Joshua loves his little sister, even more than I think he loves his cowboy hat.

Tyler gave Maya a beautiful blessing. He is an amazing daddy and loves his little munchkins so much.

We tried really hard to get a decent family picture but the kids just weren't having it. Joshua wouldn't take off his hat, then he kept running around, Allie started crying because the sun was in her eyes and she wanted to go inside. So this is best we could get. Oh well, still love them all!

Maya 1 Month

2011-06-04T17:32:00.001-06:00

My little bean is 1 month old already.

She has beautiful, big, blue eyes just like her sisters.

She is a pretty good little baby. She sleeps most of the day still and only wakes up once at night.

Last Day of School

2011-06-03T16:51:00.001-06:00

All smiles as she gets ready to leave to school on the last day.

Walking in to school for the last time as a kindergartener.

All done! I can't believe my little girl is moving on to the 1st grade already. Emily you are so smart. You learn things so quickly. You are the sweetest little girl who is always concerned about others. I love you so much! Nice job this year in school!

Emily's 1st Tball Practice

2011-06-01T16:37:00.001-06:00

Emily just started playing Tball this year. She is really excited about it. Today they had their first practice. It was fun watching the girls learn how to play, and quite comical too.

Emily taking a turn batting.

Pretty sure she has no idea what is going on. But at least she looks cute doing that.

Trying to catch the ball.

Didn't quite get that one.

I am excited to watch her progress as the season goes on.

Sunday Smiles

2011-05-29T16:35:00.004-06:00

Just wanted to share a few pictures from today that made me smile.

Emily snuggled up by Maya just before church. Emily is the biggest helper ever. She loves her baby sister so much and is always willing to help watch her so I can get things done.

Maya all ready for church and looking so cute.

We went to Tyler's parents after church for FHE. Allie and Josh enjoyed having Great Grandpa Conlin read them stories. I love moments like these.

Maya listening to Grandpa Conlin tell her stories.

Kindergarten Program

2011-05-27T18:16:00.003-06:00

The kindergarten put on a little program for their families to show them how much they learned this year in school.

Maya waiting for the show to begin.

Josh and I enjoying the show. Well, I think that he is enjoying it?

Little Miss Emily getting ready to hold up her letter for the song. Check out that sweet bandaid on her forehead. She crashed on her bike a few days ago and still thinks it needs a bandaid.

They sang so many cute songs. They even sang the ABC's backwards. I was pretty impressed. The program was so cute and it even made me get a little misty-eyed as I thought about how my little girl is growing up.

Getting a big hug from her dad after the program.

Emily and her amazing teacher Mrs. Hinckley. Mrs. Hinckley was so great at finding ways to challenge Emily throughout the school year so she wouldn't be bored. She is an excellent teacher. Emily really liked being in her class.

2 Weeks Old

2011-05-18T15:51:00.000-06:00

I just took Maya in for her 2 week check up. Poor little thing was not so excited about getting poked again. She has been poked so many times the last 2 weeks getting her bili rechecked and what not. I think she has about had it.

The other 3 kiddos waiting patiently at the doctors. What well behaved children I have. Well, at least for the picture.

Maya's 2 week stats:
7.08 lbs 15%
20.1 inches 41%

She is doing very well. Her bili is normal and we aren't doing bili lights anymore. We are adjusting to 4 kids pretty well. The older 3 help out quite a bit, which is nice.

Giant Pillow Fight

2011-05-17T15:49:00.001-06:00

Tyler was selling some backpacks and used pillows to fill the packs with so you could tell what the packs actually looked like. Well, those packs are all sold and so he brought about 15+ pillows home. What does one do with that many pillows? Have a huge pillow fight of course!!

Here is Allie getting clobbered by dad!

The kids all ganged up and doggy piled on top of Tyler.

Don't even try to escape!

So much fun. I bet Ty and the kids were throwing pillow around for at least 30 minutes. It pretty intense and there were no serious injuries sustained by any of the parties participating. :)

1 Week Old

2011-05-11T17:03:00.000-06:00

Little Maya is 1 week old already. She is a pretty good baby and the older 3 kids love her so much.

Joshua loves Maya so much just doesn't understand what the word "soft" means yet.

Emily and Allie picked out this huge bow for her to wear.

Cute little smirk.

So cute and precious. Love this little one!

Allie is 4!

2011-05-08T21:00:00.000-06:00

Our little smarty pants Allie just turned 4. With Maya being born just a couple days ago we really tried to focus just on Allie today so she would really feel how much we love her.

Allie wanted a bubblegum machine birthday cake.

A Rapunzel princess dress! Super excited!

Happy Birthday Allie! You are such a sweet little girl. This year has been a little rough on you. It has been difficult for you to learn how to deal with things that weren't going your way but you have learned how to cope a lot better and it is nice to see that beautiful smile on your face again. You are so smart. You are reading on a 2nd grade level and love new books. You are so excited for preschool this fall. You love playing princesses with your big sister Emily and love your little brother and sister so much. You love to ask questions! We love you so much. We are so glad you are a part of our family!

Maya the Glow Worm

2011-05-08T16:54:00.000-06:00

Because of the bruising to Maya's face due to the umbilical cord being so tight around her neck her bilirubin levels were a bit too high so she had to have bili lights to help bring those levels down.

You can see her face is still bruised but looking a lot better.

Our little glow worm

Maya Conlin

2011-05-06T15:37:00.004-06:00

MAY 4, 2011

I woke up today knowing that today was the day our little Maya would be entering the world (well, I really hoped it was the day). I had a doctors appointment in the morning and was hoping I was dilated far enough for Machel to send me to the hospital. May 5 is my sister's and father-in-law's birthday so I didn't want Maya being born on that day and then May 6 my midwife's daughter was getting married so today had to be the day! Fingers crossed. I had been going in every day for the last 1.5 weeks because I don't feel many contractions but when my body decides it is time things seem to go very quickly, and I don't want to be stuck and home delivering my own child. Well, today when I went in I was dilated to a 4-5 but not actively contracting. Machel told me to go home and walk around the block and then come back. Well, I went on a quick walk with the kids but Tyler was out working so I put Joshua down for a nap and got things ready. Mostly I just sat back and relaxed. Tyler got home a couple hours later so I left the kids with him and headed back to the doctors. This time she put me on the monitor and I was contracting a little bit more and I was a 5. So she sent me up to the hospital. My sister Heidi went over our house to watch the kids and Tyler headed up to the hospital to meet me.

In knew it was busy up at the hospital and so I was going to have to dilated on my own so they would admit me. So I parked my car on the very back row in the parking lot and walked up and down every row very quickly. Then I ran up all 4 flights of stairs to labor and delivery. I got checked in, they took my medical history and vital signs. The nurse was a little concerned when my heart rate was 110. I told her not to worry, I had just ran up 4 flights of stairs. She laughed. She then checked me and I was dilated to a 6. Wahoo! I was staying. She called Machel and Machel said she was headed up to break my water. I was checked into my room at 5:40 pm.

5:47 pm- Machel broke my water. Maya was still pretty high up in my uterus and needed to drop down so we figured it was going to take a little while. I was a little bit uncomfortable but not too bad. I laid there and talked with my friend Carie, who had just gotten off work and stopped by to see how I was. Tyler was watching videos on his phone trying to get himself ready for the adventure that we were about the embark on.

6:29 pm- Dilated to an 8+Maya still up pretty high. Not too much pain YET!

6:43 pm- Dilated to a 9, baby finally decided to drop down lower. Now I am uncomfortable and remember what pain really feels like.

6:57 pm- Completely dilated and getting set up for delivery

7:03 pm- Maya was born. The cord was wrapped around her little neck very tightly so the poor little thing came out with a super purple head and face. She weighed 6 lb 15 oz and was 19.5 inches long.

They placed Maya on my chest right after she was born. Then I cut the cord (Tyler cut Emily's cord and that was enough for him). This is when I asked if we could go home yet. They wouldn't let us. Darn.

6lbs 15 oz

Just had another cute little baby and feeling great!!

Look how purple her face is next to her arm. So sad.

We called the kids and told them they had a new little sister (we kept the sex of the baby a secret from everyone this pregnancy) and had them come up to the hospital to see her. They got there just in time to watch her get her first bath.

All clean!

Big sister Emily holding Maya. Don't be worried about her purple/bluish complexion. She was breathing just bruised.

Joshua loving his baby sister and giving her kisses.

Allie excited to have another sister!

Another bruised face picture. Still might cute, though!

MAY 5

Daddy getting his snuggle time in.

All ready to go home.

Family Room Redo

2011-04-27T15:35:00.000-06:00

The other day we were at our friends house for a party when Tyler got the idea that he wanted to redo the family room. So the next day he called our brother-in-law Matt and went to work.

Before picture (OK this picture is way old and the furniture was not in the same place but you get the general idea)

Tyler bought these ridiculous outfits for him and Matt to wear as they painted.

Getting to work.

AFTER!

I think he did a pretty good job. Now to get going on the rest of the house.

Easter 2011

2011-04-24T22:04:00.000-06:00

On Saturday we had an Easter egg hunt and Great Grandma Spackman's. My kids went straight for the eggs that had candy in them and left the hard boiled eggs for everyone else (they take after their mom!).

Joshua found a Buzz Lightyear action figure while we were there and he would not put it down. He carried it around all day. It was rather tricky going home without it. He looked mighty cute carrying it around while he was searching for hidden Easter eggs with his daddy.

Emily looking for more loot.

Josh and Buzz

Allie loading up her bucket

Our cute kiddos!

That night we colored our Easter eggs

Easter morning. Tyler decided the day before Easter he was going to redo the family room so our house was torn apart with fresh paint on the walls and no where for Easter baskets except on the floor. It worked.

HERE FISHY FISHY

2011-04-22T16:38:00.011-06:00

The kids love to go fishing, and while the weather has been a little less than ideal we decided to bundle them up and take them out fishing anyway.

Joshua wasn't stopped by the cold. He played in the water the whole time. He was soaked from head to toe by the time we left.

Josh helping Daddy with the fish we caught. This is just before he gave the fish a big ole kiss. YUCK!

Little Miss Allie practicing her casting skills.

Me and Josh hanging out enjoying our time out by the pond.

Emily Turns 6

2011-04-11T16:18:00.002-06:00

I'm not sure who pushed the fast forward button but someone must have because my little girl just turned 6 today and I'm not sure how 6 years have already gone by since she was born.

I love this little blue eyed babe. Emily you are so smart and have such a tender heart. You are always doing things for other people, writing notes to people telling them you love them and you are always helping mom and dad. You excel in school, you are a great little artist and we love you so much!

A new scooter. This is the only thing she asked for.

Emily wanted a dragon cake for her birthday. This is the fire breathing creature we came up with. Emily thought it was the coolest thing.

The princess and her dragon cake.

Happy Birthday Ems! We love you.

Once There Was A Snowman

2011-04-08T16:06:00.031-06:00

This spring has brought some crazy weather. Here it is the beginning of April and we are getting dumped on by a huge snow storm. I'm not complaining. Okay maybe I will a little bit since I am 5 weeks away from having a baby and so I can't get out and go skiing and really enjoy all the snow that we have. Okay, I'm done.

The kids were excited when they saw all the snow and asked Dad to build a snowman with them.

Here's Josh helping dad push the bottom of the snowman.

Allie getting ready to start the next snowball for the snowman

Joshua enjoying a "snow cookie" as the girls call it.

Getting ready to stick the snowman together.

Tyler and the munchkins with their beautiful snowman!

Skating at Daddy's Work

2011-04-06T16:05:00.000-06:00

Tyler recently moved the business out of the house and into a warehouse. Wahoo! The kids love going to "Daddy's workshop" and running around. Today when we went out there they got out some Sector 9 longboards that Tyler was going to sell and played around of them for hours.

Allie cruisin around pretending she was flying.

Emily put her socks on her hands because the grip tape on the board was tearing her hands up.

What a fun day!

Gifts From Greece and Turkey

2011-03-29T17:15:00.002-06:00

Tyler just got back from a 2 week long trip to Greece and Turkey. At the beginning of March Ty said he had an itch to travel somewhere internationally. With me being 7 months pregnant it wasn't a good idea for me to be running around the world with him. :( So I told him he had the month of march to plan and go wherever he was going to go but he had to be back before the beginning of April because after that it was too close to our baby's due date for him to be traveling around. So he and his brother, Andy, quitckly planned a trip to Greece and Turkey.

He brought the kids home some nice gifts.

He bought Josh home this sweet costume. Josh says he is Abu from Aladdin when he puts it on. Tyler bought it for him because Emily and Allie are always trying to dress him up in princess costumes and so he thought he would buy him a costume that Josh could wear instead of a princess dress.

The girls got some beautiful scarfs, mirrors and a magic carpet.

We are so glad that Daddy is home safely and that he had a great time.

Josh's addiction

2011-03-25T17:07:00.006-06:00

Joshua absolutely loves Woody and Buzz from Toy Story. He can't go anywhere or do anything unless he has Woody and Buzz with him. He even found some toy horses in the toy box that he uses as Woody's horse Bullseye. He can't say Bullseye so he just neighs like a horse if he can't find where he is.

Josh has his sheriff hat on just like Woody. Josh is also so concerned about Woody's hat. If he can't find Woody's hat he runs around yelling "HAT, HAT" until you find it.

Having his entourage of Woody and Buzz is a must at bedtime. He even has to have a Toy Story book with him when he goes to bed.

It is so stinkin cute watching him run around with his pals, Woody and Buzz, but it also brings many challenges when Woody and Buzz can't be found. Woody and Buzz were lost for 3 days and it was not a pretty site at our house while they were lost. I finally got online and ordered new ones. It wasn't 10 minutes after I had ordered them that I found the old ones. They were at the bottom of the laundry basket. Maybe I should do the laundry more often eh? Now we have 2 sets so hopefully we can avoid the terrible event of not being able to find at least one Woody and Buzz.

Allie's Field Trip to the Vet and Frosted Rock

2011-03-22T20:45:00.000-06:00

Allie had a field trip for preschool today. They went to the vets and learned about how animals need to go to the doctors and all about what they do at the vets.

They learned about x-rays and were able to see a dog in surgery (through the windows of course).

And saw dogs on "vacation" while their owners were away.

Joshua was loving this field trip. He loves animals.

Then we were off to Frosted Rock to learn how they make ice cream and of course partake of some of the yummy stuff!! (and yes it was before lunch, but I don't think that there is a bad time to eat ice cream).

Allie and Josh enjoying their ice cream. They were both very nice and shared with me.

That messy smile says it all.

Play Time

2011-03-11T20:27:00.001-07:00

Allie and Joshua were upstairs playing for about 10 minutes and I hadn't heard much noise coming from the room so I got a bit nervous. When I went in this is what I found...

I was seriously shocked. I thought I was going to walk into a disaster area. They were so stinkin cute and had to run downstairs and get my camera so I could pictures of them. They would give each other food and were pretending to eat it.

When Josh saw me he turned and said "Cheese".

Then he came and gave me a bite of his food.

So glad my kids play together so well (well, sometimes they do). They are such cute little stinks and I am glad I am blessed to be their mom.

Jazz Game

2011-03-05T20:12:00.001-07:00

After my grandpa's funeral a bunch of us went down to the Jazz game. My brother-in-law Matt works for the Boys and Girls club and they had some extra tickets so a bunch of us went down to the game.

We rode the bus down with the kids from the Boys and Girls Club. My kids thought it was the greatest thing.

Joshua loved sitting with his dad. Both sporting their Jazz hoodies.

Keely and Tyler. I told them this was going to be the picture they used on their wedding announcement.

Love this picture of my boys just chillin on the bus together.

I only got a few pictures on the bus ride and forgot to take them at the game. The game was on OT thriller that the Jazz won. Glad that almost my whole family was there together watching it.

Grandpa Winfield's Funeral

2011-03-05T19:48:00.002-07:00

On Sunday February 27, 2011 my Grandpa Winfield passed away. Just a few days shy of his 90th birthday. My kids haven't really had anyone really close to us pass away so I didn't know how they were going to handle hearing the news. After I got the call from my mom I went down to tell Emily and Allie. When I was done telling them Allie looked up at me and said "That's okay! We will see him again when he gets his bones back." Love that little 3 year old and her sweet understanding of resurrection and the plan of salvation. The next day at lunch Allie asked "Does Great Grandpa have his bones back yet?" I said no and that it would be a long time before that happened. Emily then pipes up and said "Yeah, Allie, it is going to be a long time. Like 10 months or more." LOVE IT!

Today we were going to have a big birthday party for my grandpa but instead we had a funeral for him and reflected on his life.

The funeral services were great. My mom and uncles did a great job talking about my grandpa and the life and example he lead. There were many moments of tears and laughter.

Grandpa was a HUGE BYU fan. He had all the BYU football games recorded. So at his grave all the great-grandkids were given blue and white balloons (some had a big Y on them) and they all released them into the sky.

Grandpa, you are a wonderful man. You are a great example. You will be missed.

Happy Birthday Grandpa Winfield

2011-03-02T19:29:00.000-07:00

Today would have been my grandpa Winfield's 90th birthday but he passed away 3 days ago. We had a big party planned for him this weekend but instead will be having a different get together in his honor.

The kids and I decided to make a birthday cake in his honor today. Since it is Dr. Seuss' birthday today also we made a cake (made of cupcakes) that resembled the hat of The Cat in the Hat. The kids all had Dr. Seuss shirts on and Josh wore his Cat in the Hat hat.

Happy Birthday Grandpa! We love you and will miss you.

Emily's Taking Piano Lessons

2011-02-15T19:25:00.000-07:00

Emily just started taking piano lessons from a cute little lady in our ward. Em's is really excited about it right now and hopefully it will stay that way.

Time To Eat!

2011-02-11T19:08:00.003-07:00

This little angelic face thinks that meal time really means it is time to try on new hats or test out the strength of his arm by throwing his food across the dining room. Don't let that sweet little smirk fool you!

Yep, pretty sure he is still the cutest little boy even with a bowl on his head.

Bowling for Family Night

2011-02-08T15:49:00.001-07:00

Emily got a coupon for 1 free game of bowling from school for entering the writing contest. Emily thought it would be fun family activity to go bowling for Family Home Evening so that is what we did last night.

Emily getting all lined up.

Check out Allie's form.

Joshua trying to heft his 6 lb ball off the ball holder and down the lane.

Joshua's turn.

Emily took this picture of me.

Tyler's turn to show what he's got. Let's see if he can back up all the smack talk he was throwin' down.

Bowling is hard work when you are only 19 months. Time for a break and some lemonade.

Tyler and I checking out the score at the end of the game. The look on Tyler's face shows how surprised he is that the two of us tied. Yeah, that'll teach him to talk smack! And I was bowling with what looks like half a bowling ball stuffed in my shirt.

What a fun night together as a family. Thanks Emily for doing so well in school and suggesting that we do this.

2011-02-04T15:11:00.000-07:00

Every month Emily's school has a writing contest. One of the goals Emily set at parent teacher conference last quarter was to enter the writing contest. January's theme was "My favorite winter activity is..."

Here is Emily's story that she wrote.

My name is Emily. I like the winter. I like to watch it snow. But my favorite thing to do is play in the snow. I like to make snow angels. I like to make snowmen. I like to go sledding. I like to ski. I like to throw snowballs. Winter is fun.

Not bad for a kindergartener. Good job Em's!

Meeting Addison

2011-02-01T15:51:00.001-07:00

My sister Heidi had her baby last week. Little Addison was born 4 weeks early and weighed 5 lb 15 oz. Botb her and Heidi are doing well. We went over to their house to see them and snuggle with the tiny little bundle of joy.

Joshua was in heaven. He loves babies. He snuggled her, gave her kisses and was so gentle. Well, until I tried to take her away then he wasn't so happy and was grabbing at the blanket trying to pull her back to him. He would yell "Baby, baby" and got so mad. Apparently he didn't think his turn with the baby should be over. Pretty sure Heidi was about ready to have a heart attack. At least I know when we have our little one in a couple of months he will be excited.

Allie getting her turn. She would get mad at me if I tried to help her hold Addison. She was sure she could handle things on her own.

This definitely got Emily excited for our little one to come. She was so gentle with Addison.

We are so glad little Addison is here. Glad she is doing well and she survived the mauling from my kids.

Field Trip to HAFB Museum

2011-01-26T16:37:00.001-07:00

We went to the Hill Air Force Base Museum for a preschool field trip. There are 2 neighborhood preschool classes so we all get together for field trips.

Allie and Joshua checking out all the planes.

Buckle up!

Joshua loved donning his flight suit and checking out all the jets. Pretty sure he could have been happy here all day long.

Check out that pouty lip! She was not happy about having to go. There were still more things she wanted to do.

Allie and the rest of the preschool kids. (still unhappy)

Joshua had a blast! Allie enjoyed most of it :) Maybe we will try and go there again when we have more time and so Allie will be able to have the time she wants to check things out. She can't be rushed!

Tyler's Birthday!

2011-01-23T16:24:00.003-07:00

Once again Tyler got to spend his birthday at another trade show. This is something we are quite use to since it happens every year. This year the trade show was in Salt Lake so he was able to be home that night so we could give him his presents.

Emily and Allie had a great time helping Tyler open his presents.

We are glad that he was able to be home with us for part of his birthday. He is the greatest dad and husband. He is such an amazing person and we are glad that he is ours! Happy Birthday Toque! I love you.

Magic Night

2011-01-15T15:12:00.002-07:00

Emily's school had a magician come to the school and put on a show for the kids and their families. Emily and Allie absolutely love when Tyler does little magic tricks for them so we pretty much had to go to this.

The kids thought everything he did was so cool.

He put a big needle (about 10 inches long) through a balloon. Emily was sure it was going to pop so she had to cover her ears. To her surprise it didn't.

Tyler and I even got to go up on stage and assist. We were pretty amazing assistants, it's a natural talent that we both have. :) We had such a fun time.

Family Skate Night

2011-01-12T14:46:00.003-07:00

Emily's school had a family skate night at Classic Fun Center in Layton. Emily was beyond excited to go.

When skating on the carpet the girls did fine but once we got out on the slick rink the girls had a difficult time keeping their balance so Tyler and I ~~got to break our backs~~ were privileged to try and hold them up the whole time.

Joshua enjoyed his ride around the skating rink. The only time he had a hard time staying upright was when the girls pulled his stroller over.

This was really a fun family activity. Tyler and I had a great time and good laughs as we thought back to the days when we were younger and would go skating all the time. We laughed at the games boys and girls would play trying to get the cute boy/girl to slap their hand as they skated around and how they still play those games at the skating rink. HMMM?? I wonder if I would have slapped Tyler's hand had we gone skating at the same place or if he would have slapped mine? I guess it doesn't matter, we just skate hand in hand now (well when both our hands aren't busy holding up a little child).

Pretty, Pretty Princesses??

2011-01-06T13:46:00.001-07:00

Allie got a game called Pretty, Pretty Princess from one of her friends for Christmas. Her and Emily absolutely love to play it. Another thing they love to do is play games with their dad. So, it is only natural that that they combined the two of these things, right??

Well, Tyler is a great dad and willingly plays their princess game with them.

It's not hard when you win EVERY time though. Yes, it is true. Every time Tyler has played he has won. The girls get so mad about this. Tyler doesn't let their anger get to him, he just sits back and looks at all his bling in the mirror admiring his beauty.

Despite who wins they have a great time.

Oh, I forgot to mention, Joshua was feeling left out and he had to get in on the fun too. I know it is sad to see my little boy all decked out in jewels and a crown but maybe since he beat Emily and Allie they will stop asking him to play.

Snow Day!

2010-12-30T10:26:00.000-07:00

We spent the week after Christmas up in Eden. We wanted a nice little retreat and a break from the world. While we were up there it snowed and snowed and snowed some more!! That put smiles on our faces and then we put our snow clothes on and went outside for some fun.

Emily and Allie enjoyed making snow castles with their little shovel and bucket.

The snow was still coming down while we were playing but that didn't stop us from having fun.

Josh liked playing on the driveway where it was shoveled otherwise the snow was too deep and he couldn't move around.

Snowball fight! I don't know if they actually ever hit each other with a snowball but they had fun trying.

Christmas 2010

2010-12-26T23:30:00.002-07:00

The rush! The thrill! The anticipation! Oh, to be a kid on Christmas morning! Actually, I quite enjoy watching my kids on Christmas morning.

Joshua was the 1st one downstairs to inspect everything out. Well, actually the only thing he was interested in was his basketball hoop. This kid LOVES balls so he was absolutely in heaven when he saw what was waiting for him.

For family home evening a few days before Christmas we all wrote notes to each other and then put them in an envelope, sealed it up and then stuck it in that persons stocking. So the first thing we did Christmas morning (besides Josh shooting some hoops) was read those letters. It was so nice reading those letters and it brought a nice spirit into our home.

Now let the mayhem begin!

The girls both got helmets to wear when they go skiing.

Josh loved his Woody and Buzz toys. About 1.5 weeks before Christmas Josh noticed Woody and Buzz on his wipes container and carried around for days and even had to go to bed with it. I thought these little guys would be more fun to play with and snuggle with than a wipes container.

We spent the rest of the day visiting grandparents and great-grandparents.

Puzzles and books to keep the girls entertained. Wahoo!

Sleeping bags from Grandma and Grandpa Conlin!

We had a great Christmas. Let us not forget the real reason for the season!

Christmas Eve 2010

2010-12-24T22:23:00.002-07:00

Like every year in the past we got together with Tyler's extended family on Christmas Eve for some tasty food and for the kids to reenact the Nativity. Emily and Allie were angels and Joshua was a cow.

Then Jordan, Tyler, Jeremy and Andy sang us a few Christmas songs.

And Tyler and Andy yodeled for us all.

And as per tradition all those who are newcomers to the group (or somehow have evaded the embarrassment in past years) go up and perform The 12 Days of Christmas- with actions.

The part the kids most enjoyed was seeing Santa and telling him what they wanted.

Tyler and I even joined in on the fun.

New Name

2010-12-17T22:20:00.001-07:00

Allie has a hard time dealing with things when they don't go exactly as she wants them to go. It can be quite challenging for the rest of us(mostly me) to say the least. The other day something set her off and she was throwing quite a fit. Joshua and Emily were trying to eat their lunch while Allie was hollering away. Now understand that Joshua does not talk a lot, although he is becoming more vocal. So as he and Emily were sitting there eating their lunch Josh turns and points to Allie and says "Whaa, whaa". That was his name for her the rest of the day. Every time we would ask him what Allie's name was he would say "whaa, whaa". We all (minus Allie) got a chuckle out of it. If only that was enough to teach her not to throw fits.

Gingerbread Houses

2010-12-08T21:00:00.002-07:00

As per tradition we had our annual family gingerbread house making night. Well, I think it is a candy eating night combined with a little house decorating.

Emily and Allie had a lot of fun decorating their houses.

Emily said her house was like the witches house in Hansel and Gretel.

Allie house was named the party house.

Tyler created a trailer park masterpiece. He said the little brown chocolates represented all the dog poo around the park and the broken grahams where piles of trash laying around.

Joshua had fun munching the treats and playing with dad's trailer park teeth.

Field Trip To The Grocery Store

2010-11-30T13:10:00.001-07:00

Allie's preschool class had a field trip to the Winco grocery store down the street.

They got to go in the bakery and watch them make some bread in the big mixer.

Then we got to go in the back storeroom to see how they store all the extra food. They also got to check out all the really big refrigerators.

They let each kid pick out an apple to take home and eat..

Then they learned about how the checkout process works and about bagging the groceries. The kids had a great time learning about all the things that happen at the grocery store.

Halloween

2010-11-01T12:03:00.001-06:00

Emily and Allie had a Halloween party at their friend’s house a few days before Halloween. The kids had so much fun.

We played some fun games like pin the nose on the pumpkin.

Then we made some tasty spiders.

Then the kids all helped make some witches brew. They each got to add a special ingredient such as a frog, eyeball, spider, skull, and snakes. YUMMY!! While the brew was brewing we made some tasty caramel apples. The kids had a great time.

Halloween afternoon we had a ward Halloween party. We ate dinner there and then had the kids parade around in their costumes and show everyone how awesome they looked.

Pretty sure these 2 girls were the prettiest princesses around!

Joshua was a handsome, little cowboy.

Miss Allie as "Crimson Princess" as she so named herself.

Emily as "Pink Princess"

It was raining just before we headed out to go trick-or-treating but stopped just in time for us to head out and enjoy a chilly night collecting some tasty treats. The girls were pros and Joshua caught on very quickly. He looked so cute standing on the porches holding out his treat bucket.

Apparently Tyler has had SOOO much fun dealing with people from his trailer park that he decided to dress up like one of his tenants. I can honestly say he wasn't very handsome looking. When we were at the ward Halloween party the Bishop came and was talking to me and gave me 2 little treat bags and said "here's an extra one so you can take one home to Tyler." I kind of gave him a confused looks then turned to Tyler who was standing right next to me and said "Here you go babe." The Bishop looked at Tyler and just about dropped to the floor. He did not recognize Tyler at all. It was quite funny.

The Land Down Under

2010-10-23T13:54:00.011-06:00

My sister, Keely, and I just got back from an amazing trip to Australia. Tyler, being the awesome husband that he is, told me to plan a trip (using my passport) and get away for a little while. He would stay home and take care of the children. Really?? Who could pass up that offer? So Keely and I planned a trip to Australia. We went October 12-22.

This is going to be a VERY brief summary of our trip. I have made a book on Blurb that describes my whole trip. I don’t really want to type it out twice and I am not going to load 1000 pictures onto my blog.

We started our trip out in Sydney. We rented a car but took it right back because driving in Sydney is absolutely crazy and we didn’t want to die. We spend our first day walking around the city checking out all the sights. We went and saw the Opera House and the Sydney Harbor Bridge then we went to the Hyde Park Barracks for a history lesson.

October is international food month in Sydney. They have a celebration every day/night celebrating a different culture/type of food. It was noodle night when we were there. We joined the locals and enjoyed sampling some different foods from the different vendors that were there.

Next we were off to the Blue Mountains for a couple of days of hiking. Beautiful! is the only way to describe this place.

The Three Sisters. The rain let up just enough for this rainbow to appear right behind The Three Sisters.

The next day in the Blue Mountains was absolutely freezing!! It snowed on us all day long. Good thing we had good gear to keep us warm. We went on a nice long hike down into the Jamison valley.

Can you see the snow coming down? To get back up out of the valley we had to hike up 861 very steep steps. It was a killer workout.

We were then on our way back to Sydney for a good nights sleep so we could catch our early morning flight up to Cairns.

Upon arriving in Cairns we hired (rented) a car and drove up to Cape Tribulation. Driving here was 1000 times better than driving in Sydney. The roads are wider and there are less people. I have been on a lot of road trips but I can say that the drive from Cairns up to Cape Trib is probably one of the most beautiful drives I have ever been on. You have the ocean on one side and the rainforest on the other side. The drive through the Daintree rainforest made it feel like you were in Jurassic Park.

We enjoyed some kayaking. Of course our luck with bad weather continued. It rained on us and it was super windy. We had 4-5 foot waves the whole time. Sometimes the waves were even bigger. Keely got tossed into the drink when we were hit by back to back 7 foot waves.

Good thing we didn't let the bad weather bother us. We still had a blast.

Climbing up to get a coconut. Pretty sure they were 100 feet up there so we decided to just grab one off the ground. SUPER YUMMY!

The amazing coastline of Cape Trib. Where 2 world heritage sites meet. Right behind where I was sitting in this picture the rainforest meets the Great Barrier Reef.

Next we were off for a day of snorkeling. This was our 2nd (and last) day without rain or snow. Right when we jumped in the water there was a black-tipped reef shark right underneath us. Too bad we had to hear about it from the girl next to us. Some how both Keely and I missed it.

I think I'd rather swim with this fellow anyway.

Mr. Turtle and a huge bat fish.

After snorkeling we went and grabbed some ice cream and went on a walk along one of the many boardwalks they have there. As we rounded the corner we came up this guy (actually this one is a girl). It is a cassowary. A flightless bird related to the emu and ostrich. It is endangered. There are only about 1200 in all of Australia and 65 up in the Cape Trib area where we were. It is very rare to come across one in the wild. Keely had always joked about running into one. Although joking might be the wrong word. Keely was terrified of running into one. You see they can kill you with just one kick. Kind of scary, eh?

The Cairns Night Zoo was a great adventure. First they fed us some super yummo food. Then we were off to check out the animals. We were able to pet some koalas!

And feed kangaroos. I have dreamt about this day since I was a little kid. My bed was littered with stuffed animal kangaroos and koalas. I have always wanted to be able to pet a kangaroo or koala and I was finally able to.

Our last day in Australia we spent at a croc farm. We learned about how they raise crocodiles there and use them for clothing, purses and the like. They farm them so that people don't hunt them out in the wild, which is illegal. While we were there they asked for a volunteer to help them feed a quoll. My hand quickly shot up. A quoll is a relative of the Tasmanian devil. They are feisty little things and aren't afraid to attack people. If they bite you will you have to be on a plethora of antibiotics because of all the bacteria in their mouth. They are carnivores. I got to feed this quoll some dead baby chicks. It was pretty cool. Keely was jealous that I got to be the one to do it I think everyone else there was glad they weren't.

We only had 29 hours of flights and airport time before we got home. SOOO long. We flew from Cairns to Guam to Hawaii to Texas to Utah. On the flight from Hawaii to Texas a guy who was sitting 2 seats in front of me got up to go to the bathroom and got dizzy passed out and hit his head as he fell to the ground. And wouldn't you know there was no doctor on the flight so I had to play nurse. Maybe I should mention he did it a second time. Seriously? Oh, well! Glad I could help. I was even more glad when that flight was over.

I had a great trip. It was a nice break from everything. It was nice to come home though. I missed my husband and kids. Thanks Toque for letting me get away from it all for a little while. You are the greatest husband ever! Now lets go on a trip together!!

Fire Station Fieldtrip

2010-10-04T13:34:00.006-06:00

Emily had her first kindergarten fieldtrip. They walked across the street to the firestation. Tyler was able to go on the fieldtrip with her.

They went on a tour of the fire station and the firemen taught them how to stop, drop and roll. They then were able to check out the fire trucks and ambulances.

Emily's whole kindergarten class and her teacher, Mrs. Hinckley.

Emily said her favorite part of the fieldtrip was learning about how to be safe.

A Trip To The Union Station

2010-09-30T22:42:00.002-06:00

Allie had her first field trip for school the other day. We rode on the Frontrunner train from the stop near our house to the Union Station and then let the kids explore there and see all the trains.

Emily and Allie loved the train ride. They kept saying "This is like the train you and Daddy rode in Switzerland." They were so excited to be just like Mom and Dad (any guesses on how long that will last??)

Josh-man was stoked about the Pringles he got to eat on the train.

Emily and Allie had a blast yelling "ALL ABOARD" as they played on the trains.

Allie checking things out from up front.

Joshua couldn't get enough of the trains. I loved how he would stand on his toes and watch the toy train go around the track.

This shot was painful to get. There always had to be 1 kid goofing off, looking off to the side, playing with their hair or siblings hair, pointing at the camera, etc. etc. This was the best shot we got.

Fun fieldtrip!

LOTOJA 2010

2010-09-13T21:56:00.002-06:00

Well, he did it again. My dad rode the LOTOJA again this year. I think this was his 5th time riding it. CRAZY. Well, this years race started off a little crazy. The night before the race my dad was getting all of his stuff ready when he noticed a big old crack in his bike frame. UH OH! There was no way he could possibly ride his bike. So he went in to the local bike shop and talked to them. There was nothing to be done to fix his bike so they grabbed a rental bike stripped everything off of it and put all my dad's bike components on the rental frame. Whew! Disaster avoided.

There was drama when it came to the feed zones this year. There were traffic problems that were holding people up so they weren't getting to the refuel zones in time to give their rider all their stuff and then there was a big accident between a car and a bike that held people up even more. Riders were so frustrated and didn't have any of there food, drinks etc when they needed them. Before all of this drama Tyler and I decided to skip one of the feed zones and go on up ahead and just wait at the next stop. This way our kids could get out of the car, eat their lunch and just play for a bit. By doing this we avoided the traffic mess and we were able to make it to the feed zone that all the support crews were missing. We helped load some other riders up with Gu and water and whatever we could find to help them on their way. It didn't look like my mom was going to make it to that feed zone and she had all my dad's special electrolyte drinks and stuff. We gave him what we could and sent him on his way. Luckily my mom was just around the corner and saw my dad as he was riding off and was able to get him restocked. Another disaster avoided.

The kids were so good. They just chilled in the back watched movies, colored and read books.

There was some bribery with treats involved too!

My dad finished strong. His time was 9hrs 43minutes. AMAZING!

After the race it was time for a little Bar J Wrangler action and a yummy dinner.

Diggin in.

What a fun trip! Can't wait to do it all again next year.

Emily Lost A Tooth

2010-09-10T08:51:00.090-06:00

Emily has had a loose tooth for a couple of days now. She thought it was fun to push on it with her tongue and show you how it would wiggle.

Yesterday after she got out of the shower and was getting ready for bed she said her tooth was super loose and she wanted us to pull it out.

Tyler tried to pull it out but it wasn't quite ready.

Emily was so excited about her tooth that there was no way I was getting her to go to sleep. She would run around the room and then run back to me and say "Wiggle it again, Mom. See if it will come out." So I would wiggle it and she would run around the room again and ask me to wiggle her tooth again. Over and over!

Finally, out came her tooth. When I pulled it out she looked at me with wide eyes and asked if I pulled it out. I replied yes and showed her. She jumped up and down and excitedly said "I want to go see in the mirror." When she came back she was crying. With tears streaming down her face she said "I'm bleeding." (I did warn her before that most likely this would happen, apparently it didn't sink it.)

We got the bleeding stopped and she was all smiles. I think at this point I had finally recovered from yanking her tooth. I'm not going to lie, that was not my favorite thing.

Emily's 1st tooth she lost (minus the one the dentist had to pull because of an abscess from a rogue filling)

When we woke up this morning Emily showed me the money the Tooth Fairy left her. I forgot all about the Tooth Fairy coming so I was really surprised to see the 5 dollar bill Emily was holding in her hands. I told Tyler that apparently the Tooth Fairy hasn't been affected by the economy and left Emily $5. With a look of true surprise he asked if I was joking. Then I found a $1 out on the kitchen table. I asked if that was the money she got from the tooth fairy. She said that she really got the $5 from the Tooth Fairy but when she came down to eat breakfast she couldn't find where she put it so she went up and got the $1 out of her piggy bank. She then found the $5 again.

Emily did not want me to take a picture of her with the $1 bill. She kept saying "That's not the money I got."

I don't know whether she got $5 or $1. I do know that she was one excited little girl and thinks it is cool that she is missing a tooth. She really likes the fact that she has another loose tooth now. How much will the Tooth Fairy leave next time?

Allie Starts Preschool

2010-09-01T11:20:00.002-06:00

Allie started preschool this week!

She has been looking forward to this day for a long time. We are doing a neighborhood preschool this year and then I will put her in an real preschool next year. I really had a hard time deciding what to do for preschool this year. Allie knows all her letters upper and lower case, the letter sounds, can count to 100 and is already reading (not just recognizing a couple of words, she is full on reading. CRAZY!). I decided to go with the neighborhood preschool and just have her focus on social skills and what not figuring that would be the most important thing for her to focus on.

I am glad that she is excited for school. I am excited to help teach her preschool and watch her and her friends learn and grow. Have fun in school Al!

Emily Goes to Kindergarten

2010-08-28T21:25:00.000-06:00

My little girl just started kindergarten. Emily was beyond excited to start school. August 23 they had a little back to school morning where the kindergartners got to check out the classrooms and then they signed up for their kindergarten screening test. Emily's test was that afternoon. She did great. They tested them on letter recognition, letter sounds, shapes, colors, numbers, some math and reading.

Emily all ready for school to start

She looks excited to me.

The kindergartners had the rest of the week off until yesterday, Friday, where they had the parents go with them for about 30 minutes and then they finished up the day on their own. (Monday will be their first full day on their own)

Emily walking in to the school with her friends Mason and Averie. So grown up!

Emily and her friends, Rhett and Gavin, listening to the librarian read them a story.

I am glad that she is excited to be in school. I am excited to watch her learn and grow throughout the school year.

Tyler's Lasik

2010-08-27T16:58:00.001-06:00

I was talking to my mom and told her that for Christmas I was going to give Tyler the $$ for lasik. He has said for years that he has wanted it done but has never done it. The day after I had this conversation with my mom Tyler and I were talking and he told me that he just made an appointment for Lasik. SERIOUSLY??!! Every year he ruins my plans for gifts to give him. Big or small, it doesn't matter. So why should I think this should be different. I am excited that he was able to have this done.

They have a TV screen in the waiting room so everyone can watch the procedure. I really enjoyed watching them all until I had to watch Tyler's. Then it was just weird. I recognized Tyler's eyes.

Getting ready to go!

Yeah, you see that flap? Crazy huh?!

Tyler got to wear these sexy bug eye shields over his eyes.

I spent the rest of the day sticking eye dops in his eyes every 15 minutes. He can see perfectly well now without glasses and is loving it! Merry Chrismas Toque. Love you

Matryoshka doll

2010-08-17T16:28:00.002-06:00

Tyler's dad has been working in Russia for a couple of months and will be there for a few more. Tyler's mom was over there also during the summer but had to come back for work. She just got back the other day and brought Emily and Allie Matryoshka dolls to paint. Matryoshka dolls are a set of dolls of decreasing sizes placed one inside the other.

Emily hard at work

Allie having fun painting.

Allie's masterpiece. Her smallest doll somehow escaped the picture. It might be inside one of the others.

Emily's dolls.

Allie fell asleep right after she finished painting hers.

They had such a fun time painting these. Thanks Grandma and Grandpa.

Camping at Blacksmith Fork

2010-08-15T15:30:00.000-06:00

We went camping over the weekend with my family up at Blacksmith Fork near Logan. Tyler wasn't able to come with us, he was playing mobile home park business man, but we had a great time with my family.

Joshua loves hanging out with Ty. They both just sat in their chairs and chilled.

Me, Ty, Paige and Keely practiced our survival skills. We practiced starting a fire with flint and steel.

After a few attempts we succeeded.

Our camp site was right by the river.

The kids loved playing in the water. I thought that the water was painfully cold but the kids didn't seem to mind. Joshua loved it. He loved just splashing the water everywhere. He even sat down in it.

The girls spent most of the day in the water looking for snail shells. Allie got brave and laid down in the water. They had so much fun.

Apparently it was exhausting playing in the water because this is how Allie fell asleep.

Josh loved it up camping. He loved all the dirt. This kid was beyond filthy. But he loved every minute of it.

It was such a fun weekend. Loved all the tasty food, spending time with my kids and family, relaxing and just enjoying nature.

Happy Birthday to Me

2010-08-07T22:32:00.003-06:00

My Birthday was earlier this week. I turned the big 29! Tyler has been gone a lot lately with trailer park stuff and what not so he gave me the greatest present ever. A weekend away with him! He arranged a babysitter for the kiddos (my mom and sister, Thanks guys) and told me to pick a place to go. Tyler and I have wanted to go up to Jackson Hole and watch the Bar J Wranglers for quite some time but never have made it up there for one reason or another. We have seen them when they come to UT to perform but we wanted to see them in Jackson. So that is where I picked for us to go.

Me and my goofy hubby! He is always making me smile.

They serve you a nice chuck-wagon dinner before the show. They serve up to 700 people in 20 minutes. It's pretty amazing. My steak was very good.

Love watching these guys perform. They put on a great show.

Saturday we walked around Jackson, checked out the shops and enjoyed being together.

We went to The Bunnery for lunch. It was very good and we enjoyed eating our tasty lunch outside on their little deck. It made me feel like I was in Europe again.

I had a great little weekend away with my husband.

Swimming Is Fun

2010-07-13T18:53:00.001-06:00

The kids have had so much fun swimming this year. They are all little fish.

Joshua loves sticking his face in the water and blowing bubbles.

Allie loves just laying on her back and floating around the pool. She does swim a little but mostly she just likes basking in the sun.

Emily loves the water!

She loves wearing her goggles and looking under the water.

And she loves having Paige throw her in the air so she can do flips and dives.

Tyler bought me a waterproof camera for Christmas last year and my sisters and I have been having fun playing with it.

So much fun!!

The Josh Man Turns 1

2010-07-08T17:14:00.002-06:00

My little boy just turned 1!

Josh's sweet dump truck cake.

Has it really be a year since this day when I was getting ready to go to the hospital to have him?

1 year since this little guy joined our family? I guess it has!

Tyler's parents are in Russia for 6 months or so, so we got the web cam going so they could watch Josh open the present from them. How cool is that?

Trucks and dinos! Wahoo.

We had family over that night for a little party.

Where he opened more gifts!

We sang Happy Birthday!

And munched some tasty cake.

Josh always scrunches his nose up when he thinks something is funny.

I love this little guy. Even when he wipes frosting all over my fast. He is so smart and has the cutest personality. He is always happy. He absolutely loves his older sisters. He gives the greatest hugs. He can say quite a few words but won't say them if/when you ask him too. He has said: mom, dad, dog, book, done, uh-oh, duck, wah-wah (water), tuck-tuck (when I tuck him into bed), hat, hi, bye-bye, ball. He is definitely all boy! He loves playing in the dirt, he loves dogs, balls and trucks. He climbs on everything.

Joshua we love you and are so glad that you are part of our family. We bring such a special spirit into our home. Happy Birthday!

4th of July Festivities

2010-07-04T16:25:00.002-06:00

Like last year, we started our 4th of July festivities, that actually happened on the 3rd of July, up in Huntsville.

We started the day off with breakfast in the park

The kids waited patiently for the parade to start.

The girls had fun waving to the people in the floats and tractors and running out to get candy. They made out like bandits and had a huge bag full of candy.

After the parade the kids went and played at the park for a while. Emily mastered the rings and loved that she could do them all by herself.

Later that afternoon we went swimming at Grandma and Grandpa Spackmans.

After swimming we fired up the grilled and enjoyed some tasty hamburgers and hot dogs. Apparently we weren't feeding Joshua enough so he dumped the bag of chips out on the patio and helped himself.

We finished the night off watching the fireworks from Ryan and Heidi's house.

Family Vacation

2010-06-30T15:00:00.004-06:00

Tyler told Emily that when he bought a mobile home park he would take her and the rest of the family to any place in the world that she wanted to go. At the time I should have been educating her on foreign countries since her knowledge of any outside world is limited. But I didn't. Well, in February Tyler did it, he bought a trailer park. (Yes, I know it sounds glorious, you can stop laughing now, although we can share stories about it that will definitely throw you into a fit of laughter.) Now it was time for Emily to pick the family vacation destination. Where else would a 4 year old (at the time) pick? DISNEYLAND of course. WAHOO, road trip!

Our 2 little princesses loved the giant princess castle.

They also loved the princess show with all the different princesses.

Don't eat the apples! Allie was a bit apprehensive at first about getting very close.

Emily and Allie absolutely loved riding on the Buzz Lightyear ride. But all their excitement didn't compare to Tyler's love of the ride. Put that laser gun in his hand and say good-bye Zurg!

Buzz thought that Emily and Allie did a great job helping him defeat the evil Zurg.

The Josh Man was worn out from the battle and just couldn't stay awake.

We watched Kobe Bryant ride the tea cups and the Alice in Wonderland ride with his girls. We were probably the only ones not going crazy about his being there.

Joshua taking the ladies for a ride through Mickey's Toon Towne.

Check out those muscles!

Not sure why we think rides that make us want to puke are fun?

Emily and Allie both went on the Matterhorn twice. The first time down Emily said she didn't like it but then decided she wanted to do it again. She really liked it! Allie kept her hands up above her head the whole ride the second time. She said "that ride is really fun but I don't like that big mean monster in it."

We love Mater and Lightning McQueen.

Josh was so excited to ride by himself!

Josh loved stealing Tyler's hat and putting it on his own head. He would scrunch his nose up and get a big ol' cheesy smile every time he did it.

Emily and Allie also loved riding the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. They liked the fact that it had little waterfalls to go down.

Emily also went on Splash Mountain with Tyler. She wasn't the biggest fan and said she wasn't going to go on it again until she was 10. As the day went on she said "Splash Mountain was scary but I want to go on it again next time we come, maybe when I am 6."

After 3 days at Disneyland we drove down to San Diego and headed to Sea World.

We saw Shamu first and sat right up front in the splash zone.

The kids thought it was cool when Shamu would jump out of the water and do tricks.

It didn't take long for us to get soaked!

We then checked out the Cirque de la Mer show where Tyler was picked to entertain the crowd. And entertaining is what he did. I think the old lady next to me was about ready to take Tyler home with her, I was a little worried she was going to have a heart attack she was laughing so hard. People who were at the show watching stopped us throughout the day and told us how funny they thought Tyler was.

The kids loved seeing all the animals. Josh called everything a dog.

Emily and I went on the Shipwreck Rapids ride together. I got soaked, Emily grabbed the towel that belonged to the lady next to her and hid under it.

We ended the night by watching another Shamu show from the splash zone, again! This time we brought towels to hide under.

The kids making Shamu tails with their hands chanting "Shamu, Shamu".

We spent our last day in San Diego at the beach.

We started off by eating breakfast on the beach. YUM!

We spent our time splashing in the water, looking for seashells, building sand castles and relaxing.

This was a day that Josh thoroughly enjoyed. Whenever we let him walk around at Disneyland or Sea World he would go straight to the flowerbeds and play in the dirt. This little guy was going through major dirt withdrawals apparently so a day on the beach was just what this little guy needed.

Tyler went out and enjoyed some boogie boarding.

A few more days at the beach would have been nice but our time was up. We went and bought some beads at the bead store down the street and then started on our way home. We stayed in Vegas over night and then on Saturday we drove the rest of the way home.

I woke up that morning not feeling so well. As the day progressed I figured I had heat exhaustion. I was sick beyond belief the whole way home. Then in the no-mans-land between Vegas and Mesquite we had a blow out on one of our tires. It was 100+ degrees outside. The spare tire was under all of our stuff in the back of the car so Tyler had to empty all of it out. The jack was under the back seat and in order to get to that Tyler had to take out all 3 car seats. It was a mess and all of our stuff was piled up on the side of the road. I was too sick to help so Tyler had to do it all by himself. He changed the tire like a champ and then we headed to Mesquite to buy a new spare. What a mess. Tyler was busy getting the new tire and such, I was curled up in the waiting room too sick to care about anything and my kids are running around making a mess. I ended up throwing up in the bathroom at Big O Tires. Glorious! We got back on the road and finally made it home without any other major problems (besides traffic).

What a fun and adventurous week! LOVED IT!!

I Can Do It Myself!

2010-06-17T17:34:00.001-06:00

Josh doesn't always like when I feed him. He grabs the spoon away from me and tries to do it himself. Things tend to get a little messy at this point.

Soon the spoon is thrown to the floor and he digs in with his hands. Things get a lot messier now.

And of course to show that he is done he throws everything, including the bowl, on the floor. It is now beyond messy anywhere within a 5 foot radius of where Joshua was sitting. At least he enjoys it right??

Here Puppy Puppy!

2010-06-14T16:57:00.002-06:00

Today is my dad's birthday so we went out to my parents house for a BBQ with the fam. There is a hole in my parents fence and Josh would go over to it and look through.

He loves dogs (from a distance) and the neighbors have one, so he would look through the hole, point to the dog and say "Daw, daw, woo woo woo".

My little man is getting so grown up. He is such a happy little guy. It is so much fun watching his little personality emerge more and more every day.

2010-06-09T16:47:00.000-06:00

Tyler had some skateboards out that he was selling and Josh thought it would be fun to hop on one of them and play.

He looked so cute on it. If he is still playing around on skateboards in a couple of years and if he is anything like his father a trip to the doctor to fix a broken bone will be in our future. Better start stalking up on Sharpies so you can all sign his cast. Maybe if I start praying now I can prevent that from happening!?? Worth a try!

Fun in the Sun

2010-06-08T16:18:00.000-06:00

We busted out the slip-n-slide and pool today and enjoyed a little fun in the sun (and water).

Josh didn't like being splashed by the slip-n-slide so he stayed away but he enjoyed watching the girls play on it.

Josh LOVES water and he loves splashing in it.

Emily practiced holding her breath underwater.

Adams Canyon

2010-06-04T15:51:00.001-06:00

We went hiking up Adam's Canyon today with Jeremy and Trisha and their family. Tyler is still in Ohio working on stuff at the mobile home park so he wasn't with us. Tyler's mom hiked a little bit with us but for most of the time there were 7 kiddos taking 3 adults for a hike. For the most part the kids did great.

Emily would pull this pose as she told Allie to pick up the pace.

Allie was too busy doing this to go any faster.

Me and the kiddos.

The whole gang at the 2nd waterfall.

We didn't hike up to the top waterfall. The kids were getting a bit worn out and were ready to turn back. On the way down Allie was holding my hand down a hill; she got a couple steps ahead of me and slipped. I tried to pull her up so she didn't crash (which I did successfully), but by doing so it pulled me forward and with Josh on my back there was too much forward momentum and Josh and I went sliding head first down the mountain. I split my chin open on a rock and Josh got a little goose egg on his forehead. Nothing major just a little scary for Allie and Josh. I probably should have had my chin stitched up but I just cleaned it up and taped it together when I got home.

Girls Spa Night

2010-06-03T16:23:00.000-06:00

Tyler has been out of town for a couple of weeks. He has been back in Ohio fixing some things up in the trailer park, moving trailers in, painting and what not. My sister, Keely, has been staying at our house while Tyler has been gone. The kids and I have tried to get out and do fun things to make the time pass by more quickly and to save my sanity. We have been to the park, duck pond, library and have spent endless hours jumping on the trampoline.

Well, the other night we wanted to do something totally different. After Joshua was asleep in bed we went down to the kitchen, got some items out of the refrigerator and created our own little at home spa.

Emily tried a nice yogurt and honey mask. Allie wanted nothing to do with it!

When we got the strawberries out and started smashing them to make our strawberry-lemon mask Allie jumped right in. We didn't smash the strawberries up enough so our mixture was pretty lumpy.

Emily and The Runt just chillaxin'.

Allie was loving this all so much she had to help Keely put stuff all over my face.

We all looked like we had a bad case of chicken pox or measles. We were laughing so hard. Seriously, this just looks wrong.

The girls kept asking "Can we eat our face?"

Oh boy, aren't we a sight for sore eyes? We might not look pretty here but we had a blast! We were all laughing so hard the whole night and as an added bonus our skin felt so nice after too.

Besides doing facials we painted our nails.

And to top it all off we enjoyed some tasty mango-coladas! SO YUMMY!! Talk about a relaxing night full of giggles and fun. It was just what we needed to help get us through these weeks without Ty.

Preschool Graduation

2010-05-22T16:00:00.001-06:00

It is hard to believe that my little girl is 5 and just graduated from preschool. Emily absolutely loves learning. She loved every minute of preschool. She is definitely ready for kindergarten.

Emily got all E's on her report card. She is excellent at reading, can count to 100+, can count by 10's and loves learning new things.

Emily's preschool class.

It was pretty windy the day of graduation. Emily's graduation cap blew off as soon as she walked outside. She held on to her cap as tight as possible the whole rest of the ceremony. Her cap looked more like a 3 cornered hat instead of a graduation cap.

Emily getting her dipolma.

The kids put on a little program for everyone.

Emily and her teacher, Mrs. Green. Mrs. Green is an amazing teacher, Emily learned so much in preschool.

Attack of the Little Brother

2010-05-21T18:47:00.002-06:00

Joshua is 10.5 months old today. He has been walking for about a week now. He is still a little unsteady at times but is quickly getting the hang of it. He gets the biggest grin on his face as he is toddling around. It is so stinkin' cute.

He also gets a huge smile on his face when he attacks his sisters.

Allie often starts falling asleep while we are eating dinner so we tell her to go and lay down. She barely makes it out of the kitchen before she falls asleep. Josh LOVES to go over to her while she is sleeping and pull her hair, climb over her or body slam her. Most of the time Allie sleeps right through it.

Look at that evil little grin. How could he possibly be doing anything mischievous with a smile like that??