Dimonds in the Rough

Fall is in the Air!

2011-05-29T01:10:00.001-07:00

I love Spring and Fall and wish they would last as long as Summer and Winter do!
I love the increased feelings of gratitude this time of year... for the bounty of life we enjoy! There is a family who puts free veggies from their garden out by the road (on the way to the kids school each day). I love grabbing a squash or two! They are so nice and their acts of kindness and thoughtfulness make me want to do better each day!

We love putting the "fall decor leaves" on our handrails and everywhere else we can find to drape the leaves:)!

Our porch decor is getting trashed:(...

Fall also means back to school which means "falling" for the school clothes!

I didn't even know what TOMS shoes were really before this fall. They actually are pretty comfy...but you still have to pay half Mikelle:)!

The leaves get me every time! Beautiful!

Sharpening Our Skills!

2011-05-29T00:46:00.001-07:00

Part of my new position at the hospital is to help run our annual "skills day" where we pass off our co-workers on the latest skills, requirements, and updates. We run it on 2 days; once at AF and again in Provo! It is a great time to see all my "Valley Girls"(former co-workers) at Utah Valley Regional!
Writing down all of the things that are wrong with the scenario is always a fun station:). You have got to love the obvious things like the O2 tubing around the baby manikin's face:).

Another scenario that had a few "obvious answers!"

OK we get it!

I am so glad I had the opportunity to go to Nursing School! I love this job and everyone I work with! I have been very blessed!

Ward Campout!

2011-05-29T00:16:00.001-07:00

We were able to go up to our ward camp out the last weekend in September. Steve had to finish some things at work so me and the kids pitched the tent!
The kids are all so helpful!

One family made yummy scones for everyone up there!

Mikelle and Madi meet up!

The boys had a ball running through the trees with all of the other boys!

Catching up with our new neighbors!

Bishop and his handsome grandson!

Around the campfire with Steve! Lots of fun! Some of us may or may not have actually slept the night there:)! Fun times! I love the crisp mountain air and the peaceful feeling up there!

Melanie's Happily Ever After!

2011-05-28T22:01:00.000-07:00

Sept 23, 2010 was the day our beloved co-worker, Melanie rode off into the sunset with her Prince Charming! It was so fun to help at her reception and be part of her big day!
We all just pitched in and helped "cater" the event for her!

Julie and Missy hard at work!

By "we" catering...I really mean helping Rhianne! She organized the whole set-up! She is an amazing co-worker and person!

Mel and Sheri!

Esther & family!

My little side-kick insisted on coming and "helping" the whole night! I drilled her before that she had to be good and I didn't have time to bring her home during it etc. and she agreed!

She was especially good at helping to monitor the "take home a bag of candy table; making sure no "bratty" kids came and dumped to candy or touched everything etc:)!

We are so happy for you Mel! What an awesome day!

Mama D Celebrates 75 Years!

2011-05-28T17:30:00.000-07:00

We met up Provo Canyon in September of 2010 to gather with the Dimonds. We were able to celebrate Mom's 75th B-day! What a wonderful family and legacy Mom & Dad Dimond have created!
The leaves were breathtaking! I returned to the canyon like a week later to try and check out the leaves again for a family picture taking spot and the color was gone! It looked like a whole different scene. We are so glad we were able to be there with all the beauty for the party though!

Steve shot a picture of this spot thinking it also looked good for pictures some day:)
Is it too obvious that I love pictures? I want to remember everything in life and pictures seem to do it for me!

I loved Judy's sweater and how it went with the leaves and made them pose:).

We tried to duplicate...but the black outfits don't quite do it:). We have got to branch out in the fashion department:)!

We were all goo-goo and ga-ga over Aimee's new Ethan! He is SO cute!

He and Grandma Judy know how to work the fall colors!

Mikelle & Steffi always love catching up with each other!

Uncle Joe & cousin Mark!

Mark & Steffi!

Michelle is so cute preggers too!

Cameron's face cracks me up! Quite the little ham we have!

Roping the boys in for a pic!

The girls don't mind the pictures as much:)!

Christian was off to play in the water!

The cousins found a great place to play! Aunt Karen was having fun playing with them and supervising!

Kennedy wishes she could marry cousin Sam and she loves making him play with her!

Kari's cuteness passes on to her kids! Awww!!

Tim and Renae always making the trek down from Idaho! We love you guys!

Since their whole family was there, we snapped their picture! They are all so awesome!

Mom & Dad plus all their kids and spouses! What a great family to be a part of!

Until we meet again!...

BFF Drive-Thru

2011-04-30T13:51:00.000-07:00

The Gandolas, our BFF's who have moved to California, were passing through Utah last fall.(Only Heidi was here). I was so excited to meet them in Sandy parking lot as they passed through so I could at least say Hi and give her a hug for a minute in person! There is something about that friend that has been there through it all for you! When we lived right by each other, we shared daily chats, school carpools, venting, YW ideas, trips to the park with the kids, took turns buying the "diet soda" for the day:) ETC! Those were some hard/exhausting days when our kids were smaller and I think I would have died some days not having her friendship!
Here she is with her twin sister! I remember coming to her house one day to drop something off and started to talk to her sister thinking it was her (as I had never previously met her twin)! It was SO funny as I had NO idea they were that identical!
Love ya Heidi!

Oh What Do You Do On Your Furlough Days?

2011-04-30T13:37:00.000-07:00

With budget cuts everywhere these days, including the school districts, Steve had several furlough days scheduled throughout the year. I loved how most of the days wrapped a weekend or something allowing time to do little projects around the house--like draining "the pool" for the summer. We all loved to help.
It felt like it would never drain completely--but finally we were done and able to dump the last little part on the lawn. I was worried about dumping too much on the lawn since we used a salt chlorination pump system--but it turned out OK and didn't ruin the grass! What a great summer it was!

Gustafson Reunion

2011-04-28T23:37:00.000-07:00

We met with some of the Gus side of the family on September 11, 2010 at Layton Park. It was so fun to see our cousins again as time has flown and we have all grown up! I missed a few people in pictures...I will have to shoot faster next time! It was great to see y'all!
Lexie & Mikelle always ready with their pose!

Cute Sara & boys!

Tanner has surpassed his Mom in height!

Aaron & Sheri and their blondie babies!:)

Kyle & Alicia with their 4 girls!

Kenz & Iz!

Julie & Nate!

I don't even know if Preston & Linnea know that we affectionately call them "P &L" but we have loved our time with P & L though the years! They always put so much time and effort into the family Christmas Eve gatherings at their home when we were all growing up! Lots of fond memories!

Me & Cami!

The Dopp crew! Izzy was not in the mood for me as she was ready to go!

Little Aidan also does not care for my picture taking and tries to give me a hard time by looking away! Cami was able to turn and get him to look! He is so darn cute that you can't be mad!:)

Can't resist the girls and their poses!

Cute!

What would we do without sisters?

Me & Kenz! Steve had to leave early before we got his picture:)!

The boys stopped playing just long enough for me to take their picture...

...and then they were right back "at it"...tackling, wrestling etc...

"You are going down!"

"No way dude--YOU are going down!"

Looks like Cameron wins this one!

As my Mom would say...everything ended way too soon! It was great to reunite though! Until next year...

Lion King

2011-03-23T00:17:00.000-07:00

My sister Jennie was able to let us in on accessing her Lion King tickets about a year in advance! We are always so thrilled when a great opportunity comes to SLC so we don't have to fly to NY!:)
The production was so great and I wish I would have insisted that the boys come too but at almost $100 a pop, I didn't want to pay for anyone that wasn't grateful to see it:). I will insist next time though as they would have enjoyed it! Another fun night! Thanks Jennie!

BYU Football Team Pre-game Fireside

2011-03-23T00:08:00.001-07:00

The BYU Football team does a Friday night fireside before they play their Saturday games. We had to go as they were at a church right by us and we had it planned for YW before our release. It was so fun to see the players in a spiritual setting. One of the "islander big boys" played a medley piece on the piano that he had "arranged." We later found out that he had done that piece playing by ear. I thought they did such a great job and gave inspiring messages. I have so much respect for Bronco and the boys as they carry all of the expectations and hopes of the students, fans, and the church on their shoulders!
We were able to meet and greet the players after the fireside! I wish I would have studied up to know more of them beforehand:). Great experience!

Fun in the Fall

2011-03-22T23:57:00.001-07:00

Our most favorite thing to do in the fall is take our neighbor's dog for a walk each night! She is SO cute and it is so fun to take her out!
The boys enjoyed reading outside. They have a book report due each month and also have to read at least 20 minutes a night-so sometimes they would just go outside where it felt so nice when the sun was going down.

We tried out the "Unlimited Laser Tag" one day. It was quite the workout for the kids running around in there for over an hour--game after game!

Cheese!

I took Kennedy bowling as I didn't want her knocked out cold in the laser tag room! Lots of fun with the kids and their friends!

Raingutter Regatta

2011-03-22T23:50:00.001-07:00

The scouts did the Rain gutter races this year which was so fun...and almost as competitive as the Pinewood Derby!
The boys and their boats...

Cameron always adding the dramatic "pirate" effect to the pictures:).

Lots of fun and way to go boys!

Kennedy Starts Kindergarten!

2011-03-22T23:03:00.001-07:00

Kindergarten starts about a week later than the other grades so the teachers have time for one-on-one assessments with each new Kindergartner. Finally the day came and we were all SO excited!
Her cute classroom! She was a little nervous and does what I do...the nervous smile or laugh! I said my good-byes and was OK until another Mom in the ward started crying as she was also dropping "her baby" to Kindergarten:). We somehow made it through!

Just as we wiped away the tears, Kindergarten is over and our babies are home within what seems like a few minutes:). SO cute stepping off the bus!

A quick picture with the BFF's!

Off to Subway for a special "first day of school lunch!"

I then pulled the "good Mom card" out and took her to the park as well!

So fun to play...

...and have Mom do a photo shoot with her "tiny!"

Kenz!

What a fun first day of school!

...and many more to come!

School Starts!

2011-03-22T22:46:00.000-07:00

We were able to meet the boys teacher the day day before school started at the meet and greet! We are in for a great year! The school had enough numbers at the last minute to have another teacher-so we are excited about Mrs. Smith as we hear she is GREAT in math!:)
Mikelle off as a big 8th grader this year! I told her to work hard but also "enjoy" as it was one of my funnest years!

The boys up and ready to go!

Of course they have their traditional "Father's Blessing" the night before to help them through their year!

With the kids in school at least for a few hours a day...the Mom's get a minute to breathe! Our YW Presidency was released a few weeks before-so we decided to have a reunion lunch! You get to know each other pretty well working in callings in the church...so it's fun to keep connected!

I'll miss ya girls!

Dr. Arnold Gives Back!

2011-02-12T00:17:00.001-08:00

Our Orthodontist held his customer appreciation day the same night as Desiree's reception... so after visiting with the Crystals, we were off... back down to the Lindon Aquatic Center for more fun! Here is Dr. Arnold in the Dunk Tank!
He was letting all of his patients "have at him!"

We may have had a stow-a-way or two with us for the evening...so we all went and partied!

Christian tries the flow-rider/surfing machine!

Looking good!

He made it on his knees to knee-board!

Dr. Arnold went for the water-ski!

The waves were pretty powerful!

Cameron's turn!

Doing great!

The surf kept sweeping the kids to the edge though!

Mikelle getting her instructions...

Whoa! The "riptide" sweeps her up immediately!

She gets another chance!

Way to rock it Dell!

We had a great time and fit so much in to 1-2 hours!:) Thanks Dr. Arnold! Hopefully the $20,000 in braces we will be spending over the next several years will help pay for the party!:)

St. George Weekend

2011-02-09T21:25:00.000-08:00

This past summer, we were able to stay with Grandma & Grandpa Dimond in their St. George Condo for a few nights! Pictures are in somewhat random order- but here is a picture on the Sunday we attended church down there!
Mom & Dad are always such excellent and gracious hosts!

The boys were so cute tucking in for the night on the couches!

Enjoying the beautiful open greens behind their condo...

Kennedy taking a picture of me & Mikelle!

Of course we had to allow time to check out the ROSS store and other shopping down there!

We told our former neighbors the Becksteads that we were going to look them up and come and visit! We followed up on our promise and it was so good to see them!

Oops-double the fun with the twins same picture:)!

They love to tease each other!

...and golf together on the greens!

Cam practicing his swing!

Ready for the match!

Ready to head over to the pool!

We usually had the pool all to ourselves!

Good job Cam!

Christian the daredevil!

Lifeguards on duty!

Mom & Dad took us to the Dinosaur Discovery Site at Johnson Farm!

Daddy Daughter Date!

It was so interesting and fascinating to see what was "right under the surface" when things were discovered by accident.

Kennedy trying to show off her dinosaur teeth too!

...and trying to scare us!

Some of the cool discoveries! What a fun place to visit and learn about! Not pictured is the trip to the Golden Corral buffet after this:).

To re-pay Mom & Dad for letting us stay with them, we treated to a night at Tuacahn! We have never been (and have been trying to get there for many years), so we finally just did it!

One of this year's productions was Tarzan!

Pre-show pictures...

...and more pictures!

Mama D and Grandpa have been to shows there before so they had arranged the seating on where we could catch a little canyon breeze coming through the outdoor theater etc. It was nice that they already knew the ropes!

Group picture before it starts!

The waterfall area behind the outdoor stage...looks so serene at first look...but it provides the water source to flood the stage for needed parts of the production! I should have tried to get pictures of the set or the flying/trapeze/ropes that were used throughout the production as it was amazing! They announced while we were there that Disney had just given a few theaters the rights to do Little Mermaid next season, and Tuacahn was one--so we will be back for that!

We were able to greet a few of the characters afterward! They were all amazing! What a great weekend! Thanks Mom & Dad Dimond!

Desiree's Wedding

2011-02-03T07:27:00.001-08:00

We were able to attend my cousin's daughter (Desiree's) wedding reception Aug. 21, 2010. She looked so beautiful as well as her whole family!
Her new husband's Mom made about 1.5 million desserts/food for the event! It was AMAZING how much work she had gone to! This was just the dessert table! The "dinner food" was up on the first floor!

Her colors were so fun!

It was so fun to see and catch up with all the family!

It was so wild to see "the kids" all grown up...and then there is Shane that never seems to age at all!

We were able to get a quick picture with some of our cousins!

Now showing our true selves:)...

Congrats Doug and Lisa! What a special day!

Everything was beautiful! Congrats Desiree!

Gus Triple-Header!

2011-01-30T23:41:00.001-08:00

August 15th, 2010 was a day for the record books...first I was released from YW that morning and later that day we were able to go up to my Brother Matt/Kimi's home for a Gus Gathering. It was three times as exciting as we were able to celebrate Jackson's, Ella's, and Shirley's b-days as well as see them in person! To top it off, Chip and Louise from the Gus side were in town as well!
Here is J blowing out the candles!

Great to see the Penman side!

So fun to hear about all of their happenings/service opportunities! It was a great afternoon/evening!

Sunday Dinner

2011-01-30T23:18:00.000-08:00

We tried to have Grandparents and the "BYU family" over monthly for a Sunday Dinner. We told our Gus parents that is was too far to drive after they made the trek several times (although we always love seeing them:)! The Prestons always crack us up and we love hearing about their lives!

We try to do a family night. Grandpa has shared mission stories and tried to teach the kids to play the ukulele!

It is harder than it looks!

Fun times!

Summer Dance Recital

2011-01-30T01:12:00.001-08:00

Kenz did the fun summer dance week long class with her friends/neighbors!
Sarah does such a great job with the girls all week and then the end of week recital is so fun! It has been a fun summer tradition! Thanks Sarah!

The Bees LOVE Kennedy!

2011-01-30T01:07:00.000-08:00

Kennedy is "extra sweet" (smelling?) to the bees as she has the worst luck during the summer! Here is one day where like FIVE nailed her all at once! Ouch! Poor thing! She is so tough though to make it through! She is the one that only let out a scared whimper when getting her FIVE kindergarten shots! We love ya Kenz! Go away Bees!

The Boys earn their BEAR!

2011-01-30T01:03:00.000-08:00

We are so proud of the boys earning their Bear award in scouts a few months early! They are doing such a great job and it is fun to watch them set goals and accomplish these scouting milestones! Congrats Boys!

Bella!

2011-01-30T00:57:00.000-08:00

It is always so fun to have Bella over to play! She and Kennedy get along so well and they can usually always entertain themselves which makes it heaven for me!:). I love that they live close so they can just "zip down in their golf cart:)!"
They had some fun times in the pool this summer!

So cute girls! Friends forever!

Service with a Smile!

2011-01-30T00:42:00.001-08:00

I had to arrange a service project for all the YW, so I went to the city to see what they needed help with. We were able to divide in 3 groups and clean out a drainage basin, clean playground equipment/tables, and also clean up garbage on the trail surrounding our homes. I was with the basin clean-up gals! Of course we have to have a little fun too...
Ashley taking her bag for a slide before filling it with tumble weeds!

A few more minutes of play before digging in!

Rolling down the basin!

Finally we got to the service project! We even found an old tire in the tumbleweed mess!

The city crew said they would be by in the morning to pick up our "pile." We all had fun while helping out the city too! Great job girls! XO

Melanie is getting Married!

2011-01-30T00:32:00.000-08:00

Melanie from work has waited many years to find her handsome prince, but the day has finally come! What better way to get ready than spending an evening with a room full of friends to help you celebrate! One of the "jokes" of the evening was this 50DDD bra!
Let's be honest...not every bridal shower picture should be posted:), so we will keep this family friendly! In case you can't read the nightgown, one of our former co-workers stenciled "NOT TONIGHT" on the nightgown! So cute! I love these gals! Congrats Mel!

Saying Good-bye...

2011-01-30T00:25:00.001-08:00

Our YW President was moving...
We will all miss her leadership, spirituality, creativity, and fun!

I drove some of the girls to her house after we finished an activity and we were able to leave our good-bye sign etc! We will miss you Katie! Thank you!

Steve Judges the Miss Wasatch County Pageant

2011-01-30T00:04:00.001-08:00

Steve was asked to judge the Miss Wasatch County pageant on July 10, 2010.
He is such a great judge as he has a great eye for talent, interview, and over quality of the contestant. He is frequently asked to judge pageants but can hardly ever do it with his schedule. This one just happened to work out! Here he is as the panel of judges are introduced!

They had some great girls running. One girl had to drop out that day though as she apparently has a medical condition/low blood pressure issue? where she passed out cold during her interview and smacked her head:(. They announced later that she was OK--poor thing!

I had to snap a picture of the husband and wife auditors as it brought back the memories of the 2 or so years Steve and I did it for the Miss Timpanogos Pageant--as well as were the Judges Chairpersons! It was so stressful making sure everything flowed flawlessly from the contestant info bios/booklets to the judges dinner and scoring/tabulating/printing the results! I am so glad we have simplified our lives a little!

Of course the tall blond won (not that she didn't deserve it and not that I have anything against blonds:), I just have a part of me that always roots for the underdog too! I was able to meet up with Steve afterward to grab a treat and then since we drove there separately (he had to be there all day for interviews etc.), I had a very peaceful and beautiful drive home! The lake was gorgeous girls (as Mom would say)! It was like crystal clear glass so I had to get a picture with one hand without taking my eyes off the road! What a fun evening!

International Night at YW

2011-01-29T23:54:00.000-08:00

Never fear...the YW posts are almost done as we are released next month:)! One of our Beehive activities was an international night where we each shared a little bit about a country or place around the world. We always tried to tie our activity in with one of the For Strength of Youth Book topics and this one was on education.

Some shared treats that went along with their presentation.
Some of the treats were not as "tasty" as others but it is always good exposure to try new things! It was a great night!

Ding Dong!

2011-01-29T23:48:00.000-08:00

Kennedy loves to have friends over! During the summer when they play outside more, they often like to ring the doorbell and come and say Hi!
Who can be annoyed when these faces are there to greet you? I had to snap a picture one day to remember the carefree life of a child!:)

Let Freedom Ring!

2011-01-29T21:54:00.000-08:00

I was on the phone, calling work tonight--going to ask them if they needed help at midnight (since we have later church and I don't teach tomorrow)--I quickly hung up when staffing didn't answer as I remembered I had a catch up date with Blogger! It's been another busy week with kids and obligations but I have got to keep my resolution to post everyday (or at least 30 a month:)! Here we are ...The 4th of July 2010!
More action at the Perry's pool up the road! They are so nice to have people over!

Loved the swim attire!

In-coming!

Cute Zonda!

Had to get one of Cam and his "gun show!"

Speaking of muscles...I couldn't help but snap a quick picture of Zonda's trainer and his wife (the blonde)! Oh--if I just didn't like those carbs!

Kenz and the tramp!

The sun starting to go down...which can only mean one thing...

Cul-de-sac of FIRE!

Everyone is looking up! Did someone get some "out of state" fireworks by accident:)?

The fountain-type ones are so pretty and fun to watch too!

The pyro-dads!

Everyone helps clean-up the street after the fun!

The boys continued their fun for the next several nights with a multi-night sleepover at our house with Zak!

They planned out how to tie fireworks together to cause a chain reaction for a longer firework show!

They did a great job even though we had to constantly remind them of safety:)!

Boys will be boys?

They had a blast catching up with Zak for a few days but were tired when it was over!

Happy 4th of July!

Tucker's Baptism

2011-01-22T22:58:00.001-08:00

Sweet cousin Tucker was baptized on July 3, 2010. It was even more memorable as it was his Dad's birthday as well! I almost tear up (no surprise:) when I see people dressed all in white! I love the heavenly/peaceful feeling that comes at baptisms or in the temple etc. when I am surrounded by "my brothers and sisters in the gospel!"
It was so fun to be there and experience this special milestone with him and our other family members! We are proud of you Tucker for following our Savior's example! Welcome to the newest member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints!

Brother E's 80th!

2011-01-22T22:37:00.000-08:00

Steve's theatre mentor and life long friend, Jerry Elison, celebrated his 80th b-day this past summer! Steve has been like family to the Elisons and vice versa. They have worked together since Steve was just a "baby" working up at Sundance for almost 20 years!
The Elison family had pictures and memorabilia displayed at the gathering.

They had photo scrapbooks books to sign...

The school (Orem High) had named the theater after him! One of the placards is shown on the table. I loved the other sign on the table too: "Old age is no place for sissies!"

You know what they say...Behind every good man is a great woman! XOXO Sister E!

Happy B-day Jerry!

Making a Splash at the Ward Party!

2011-01-22T21:57:00.000-08:00

Our ward party was July 4th weekend. Sister Boone got a great deal on a dunking booth and made the Bishopric "go first!" Here is our fearless Bishop leading the way into the freezing water!
Backing up a little...Steve was asked to sing the National Anthem to kick off the party.

Oohh...that voice! O'er the land of the free....and the home of the brave!

After a delicious pulled pork sandwich picnic dinner, Cameron made his way to the hot seat!The onlookers!

Christian trying to dunk the Bishop!

Bro. Wardell being a great sport as well!

I think Christian went right after the Bishop! He is always daring!

Freezing cold water!

Mikelle dunking her fellow youth!

Gotcha! A very fun ward gathering!

First Friend Sleepover!

2011-01-19T19:32:00.000-08:00

Kennedy and Maecy got together for a late night...which turned into plans for her first sleepover at our house.
The grabbed their build-a-bears and watched a movie before calling it a night!

So fun! You are growing up so fast Kenz!

Youth Pool Party!

2011-01-18T18:44:00.000-08:00

Summer of 2010 brought the annual youth pool party at the Perry's home. They are always so generous and gracious to have us over! The youth just have a blast!
This is the best I could do to catch Zonda as she is always on the move making sure everything is taken care of!

The party-pooper Priests who didn't want to swim this year:) j/k.

Mikelle & Madi...

So cute!

Sheridan always keeps the party going! She is so fun! The water guns were the hit!

Girls on the tramp!

Models!

Ready...

Go!

Some of the YM leaders! Some of them mock us that we had fifty million planning meetings that lasted hours and I think they never held one:)...whatever works:).

A girl after my own heart...flying high! What a great time we had!

Dinner with the Dimonds!

2011-01-17T10:19:00.001-08:00

We had a yummy dinner with the Dimond siblings the last part of June. Dad had compiled a book of all of his mission/letters etc. He was able to share all of those memories with us.
Tim and Renae always do such a great job of driving down from Idaho to be part of as many gatherings as they can! Tim is now in the Stake Presidency which keeps life hopping! Renae is ward YW President! They had to slip out a few minutes early so they could catch daughter-in-law Sarah coming out of heart surgery/procedure! They are awesome to keep it all going!

The "Fab 5!" All of the Dimond kids have been so wonderful in all they do from church service, to their professions, to personal lives and contributions to society/community! I guess the apples really don't fall too far from the tree as Mom & Dad Dimond set great examples and taught them well! XO Dimonds!

Bear Lake...Back at the Ranch...

2011-01-14T23:27:00.000-08:00

Cousin Aidan wins the cover contest of this edition of the Gus's most beautiful people at the Bear Lake reunion! Darn those blue eyes and cute grin...they get you every time!
Of course a beautiful baby comes from a beautiful mother! Oww Cami!! Don't you love the view of the lake from the cabin we were in! My sister Jennie knows how to "work it" when she is in charge of the "logistics!"
So peaceful, relaxing, and refreshing! I was looking at real estate brochures and talking to people about cabins the whole time we were there! I was in love with the place! I then came back to reality knowing that we have a mortgage and bills back at our own ranch! It is always fun to have a dream though!

We were glad you were in charge of this one Dopps as you totally killed it! (I am trying to update my words from "the total bomb" so I hope I am using the correct hip lingo to say "you did an awesome job!":)

We had access to the pool. Kennedy was in love with Uncle Ryan's toss/tricks!

We loved watching as the water was a little chilly!

More of the Dopps!

Oohh La-laa! (Insert purring cat noise here)...

Daredevils!

Zac Efron...oops I mean Tanner showing off his guns! (Football camps and weight lifting are showing)!

"Chris!"

Love the scapulas!

Cousins chilling around the table!

Don't you hate the paparazzi buggin you Julie?

She got the top of the gene pool!:)

Yo-han (Jon) and mini-Jon (a.k.a. TIGER)!

The cousins loved their "game time" together!

Our teeny-boppers love to catch up and hang out with each other!

Ahhh Cute!

More of Kenz!

A mini-Reid pose!

We all divided up the meals to bring and prepare. Matt & Kimi grilled some awesome kabobs!

The counter was full of everyone's cups! Way to save $$ and not waste!

We prepped our sloppy joes before hand and brought it frozen so we just had to pop it in the crock pot and come back from the pool/beach and it would be ready!

A few treats/drinks here and there...

Splits?

The other reason we are all alive and at the reunion:)...Grandpa Gus! Thanks for all you do!

Many miscellaneous activities filled the time...pedicures for one, courtesy of Mikelle and Lexie!

Cameron & Christian shared a pull-out bed right next to our bedroom. They loved having access to their own TV etc!

It was so fun talking and laughing together...and of course we had to go try the famous raspberry shakes down the road!

A cute picture I forgot to throw in under the lake section:).

Lex trying the shakes too!

Cards with cousins...

We would take walks each night to burn off some calories. Those dirt roads are steeper than they look!:)

Mom was so thoughtful and generous...she made each of the grand kids a special pillow for their first night sleeping in a new place! They all loved them and they are SO soft!

Everyone with their new pillow so they can sleep well!

We better remember this "surprise" just as a family!:)...

The Gus Reunion Talent Show is always a "must see:)!"

Matt & Kimi always keep it hilarious with their "antics!"

So funny!

Their tribute to revolution of dance/music-type production included an Olympic ribbon twirling-type event!

The skill level was definitely a "10."

Matt always does a great impression of The Backstreet Boys?!

Their synthesizer/keyboard talents...

Talent night continued with Hayden taking after his Dad as a magician!

What a pro!

Handsome brothers!

Alex's turn!

Mom & Dad win the "most creative" award for their talent numbers!

Dad sung a song from "Sweeny Todd," (lyrics...No-one's going to harm you...not while I'm around...)

Mom popped up as the different characters during the song...so funny!

Cute Mom & Dad!

Lex performed on pointe for us! Very talented and graceful!

Lexie helping the little girls with their talent!

Aidan's turn...don't be shy!

Cameron represented our family with his karate demonstration. We brought extra boards for family members to break after he was done. Here is J just finishing breaking the board! I wasn't quick enough on the camera...but his smile made my whole trip!

More family members test their "inner ninja!"

Aahh-yaahh!

Good job!

Matt shows us how it is done!

So does Kenz!

Cameron warmed up before his demonstration. He is a member of the "splits club" at karate!

Here he is explaining a few things...so cute and professional!

A few paddle kicks with Mikelle as his assistant!

Board breaking!

Next up are the Porters as the Village People singing Milli-Vanilli style...(lip-sync).

Annis always heads up a good show with her family and notice her authentic microphone!

Tracen giving Mom some loves!

Of course everything on the whole trip can't run perfectly...so we had an incident where the keys accidentally got locked in the car:(.

Thank goodness the technician was available as we drove 2 cars up there (boys car/girls car) and don't have a spare for each other on our key rings!

Sweet Cam didn't mean to lock them in when he went to get something out of the car, but we are mean parents who want to just teach our kids to think through things...so he had to pay 1/2 of the $40.00 fee out of b-day money. We were so glad we didn't have to drive clear home to get another set of keys and so glad it was only forty bucks!

We had a resident "sniper" on the premises who would "get you" with his water gun! We had a few water fights along the way!

Tanner (the oldest grandchild)...a good sport to get pinned by the Young-uns!

Cousins bonds were strengthened...

As it all comes to an end...we are so grateful for family as we know that family it what life is all about! I love the quote by Noah Ben Shea: Family is a way of holding hands with forever! Until we meet again...XOXO Gus's!

Bear Lake 2010 continued...

2011-01-14T22:23:00.000-08:00

We tried to head to the lake on a few of the days there. We "pitched our tents" and let the fun begin! The water was actually fairly warm and so nice!
Cam's turn on the rented kayak (Thanks Jen & Ry)! All of the kids had a blast!

Tracen checking out the water and sand...

Annis-so smart to protect against the sun! I would have a few less brown spots on my face if I would be more diligent!

The water was beautiful!

Trying to take turns with the rafts...

Wait for us!

Oohh Darlie you are so cute!

Hayden posing for me!

I wish we would have applied the sunblock to everyone a few more times than this as Christian got fried!

Jon, Cami, & the Little Dutch Boy asleep! So cute!

Keeping warm when the wind kicked up a little!

Jen & Ryan!

Cute Collin!

The Porters!

The reason we are all living today:)...Grandma Gus! I think Grandpa was tending things "back at the ranch:)."

My FAVORITE PICTURE! Steve and mini-Steve!

Sweet little girls!

The un-official sand castle contest!

Looking good Christian!

Jackson went to town "dripping" this fortress around him, layer by layer! It was so impressive!

Kennedy! I just loved her in the life vest! She looked so cute!

Cameron having a ball creating "old-warty- monster-type skin" on his hands and feet with the sand!

Eeeewwww!

Showin off their "hot bods!" They deserve it as they are at the gym everyday while some of us are having "one more teaspoon of mini-chocolate chips with our breakfast:)!

Nate trying to catch a few "z's" but the sun is right in his eyes!

Hours of fun!

Matt posing for me!

The kids were so brave! I guess it helps with a life vest eh? We are not the best swimmers!

I was going to rent the family a boat so we could try water skiing but we were having so much fun just playing around in the rafts and talking that we thought we'd save that for another time! It was so fun to be at the lake and be together! There is still more to come!...

Ninjas and Tigers and Bear (Lake)...Oh My!

2011-01-14T14:53:00.000-08:00

The Gus Reunion was at a cabin by Bear Lake this year (July 15-18th). We started off the 3 1/2 day event at the Minnetonka Cave for a group tour.
We all made it there safely and were just waiting for the next tour to leave.

"Darlie and Dell!"

Let the cousin fun begin!

Sweet little Tracen, Tommy, and Jeff.

The Dopp clan getting excited:)!

The "husbands" can't wait for the tour to begin:)...

Finally we are on our way in. We went from like 90 degrees outside to 40 degrees inside the cave! It felt nice but glad we brought sweatshirts too!

Our tour guide...we wondered if they get sick of it (saying the same things over and over all summer long). Hey-it's probably a fun job though right?

Some of the cool formations inside...stalactites, stalagmites etc. etc.

It really was neat to see and provided a little variation from Timpanogos Cave which is the one we always see.

Some of the formations were huge!

I don't think it was this picture, but we were disappointed to hear that boy scouts had entered the cave years ago and disrupted/destroyed a section of the formations! Naughty boys!

Cool!

We tried to stick together but there were a LOT of stairs and it was slick in some places-so we were delayed at times...

Cute Pop with the kids and cousins!

Our teen and tween cousins!

At the very bottom of the cave, they turn the lights out for a minute and show you something cool! I don't want to spoil it for you, so I won't tell what it is... (LOL i.e. I just can't remember six months later)! It was neat though! It was something sparkly or light and we all got the giggles down there as they talk about "the wedding/marriage room" etc!

Another picture by the "BIG" formation at the bottom of the cave.

The Porters...minus Annis and Tracen. Baby Tracen decided after a few minutes in the cave that it was not for him, so Annis took him out before we got to far on the tour. She said she had seen it before...I think with the scouts...so she said she was good:).

Cheese!

Julie & Nate!

"Warming up" after the cold cave:). Stay tuned for MUCH more action from the GUS reunion 2010...This was only Part 1!

The Parade Wave!

2011-01-12T21:24:00.001-08:00

This summer, our little "tiny" was asked by one of her friends to be in the Cedar Hills Parade with her.
She was excited to do it...here they are lined up waiting for their turn "to go!"

We saw Cameron's karate school. He decided not to "do it" this year.

Here she comes...

Terri was a trooper to walk by them the whole time so they didn't speed or crash into other participants!

All over! It's like a one mile route. Happy Cedar Hills Celebration day!

Happy Father's Day Steve!

2011-01-12T21:16:00.001-08:00

Happy Father's Day to our sweet Pop!
He does so much in, out, and around the house! What a guy!

Near Father's Day, Steve had to attend a negotiations conference for work. It was on Harvard's campus so he brought all the kids a shirt home from there. He is just more than we could have ever asked for in a Pop! XOXO

Camp Award Night

2011-01-11T22:47:00.001-08:00

I think all girls like to "re-hash" the good times...so we have the annual camp award night on the Wednesday following girls camp. Each girl received a cute award that tied in with something she did or helped with at camp that made her unique.
We re-lived the camp songs...

and more songs etc...

...and then watched us all on the "big screen" as I took all of my hundreds of pics to Sister Miller who painstakingly compiles them on to the video set to music. We had a technical scare that night but we always have "Brother Weaver to the rescue" to help us out and save the day! I had to get a picture of Jenny's cute outfit here...you can never tell she is expecting until the end of her pregnancies!

She is amazing with her computer/photo abilities and always makes the video so cute! She spends many hours that she doesn't have all in love for the girls and the YW program! Thanks Jenny! We all appreciate you so much! XOXO

Girls Camp 2010

2011-01-10T23:24:00.000-08:00

I have to laugh as I am hearing my Brother-in-law (Ryan's) voice saying how most people at the gym have broken their New Year's resolution by the first Thursday...well I tried not to (with blogging one a day) but ended up working 3 shifts in a row at the hospital (to cover for 2 people and then one shift of my own), plus having Stake Conference...so I once again was trying to just live and survive life let alone blog it! Anyway...here is the Summer of 2010 Girls Camp pictures! This will be overkill with some even out of order...but hey, this is real life right?
Capt. Moroni who will be introduced later...

I said these would be out of order...but oh well! These were one of the pillow treats we left on the girls' pillows each night. The theme of camp was "United We Stand" and our ward's interpretation of it transitioned into "U-Knighted" we stand (using the knight/armor of God analogy)...hence the sword "hand-outs."

The girls on the confidence course completing "the Spider's Web" challenge (getting girls through the web of ropes from one side to the other using different "passages" for each girl)!

Mikelle on the climbing wall...

She makes it of course!

Certification...putting up tents again...

... and learning water purification techniques.

Former Miss Utah Jill Stevens (now Shepherd) came and spoke to the stake one night. She was a soldier (and medic--now a nurse) and gave a very inspiring talk. I am dying I didn't take notes to remember more now!

Kicking back before it's our ward's hour to work on the Stake Humanitarian service project in the lodge.

Keeping in good spirits in spite of not getting the best sleep!

Cheese!

Always making our Priesthood leaders feel welcomed!

One of the many hikes! With Sister Earl and Dittmar on board, we were sure to always be hiking!

Staking out our place in the amphitheater before the whole stake arrives!

The camp songs change so much through the years!

The Johnsons have been the camp caretakers for YEARS! Here he is with his fake buck teeth and glasses to try and make camp orientation/rule explanation more entertaining!

The YCL's leading some camp songs trying to get the energy up!

Our "leader skit" (a take off of synchronized swimming) that kind of bombed because we couldn't even see through our goggles at night etc. It was a nice try and good idea though!

More swimming...

More of the skit but was probably laughing too hard to remember what we were supposed to be doing?

Pictures of the YCL's and the faith walk on the final night...

We went in groups to their different "stations" and they each shared their testimony of Christ in different ways to us.

Always the best "spiritual part" of camp!

Such great leaders in every way!

Let's start at the very beginning:)...We are ready to go!

After setting up camp, we were up first on zipline!

Home Sweet Home for the next few days!

Along with the United We Stand theme...Capt. Moroni and his title of Liberty made a visit to each ward camp...we all signed the back of this banner stating that we would stand for Jesus Christ!

The girls with "Moroni!"

Group scripture study...

Senor Hance getting the dutch ovens going! Yum!

More scripture study/discussion group time.

Kiss the Cooks! Hance Brandy & Mickie! I can't believe I don't have a picture of Brandy and Mickie in our tent...one night we stayed up WAY too late talking and laughing our heads off!

Our own knight (named Sir-Hance-a-lot after our awesome cook) standing with our fearless President Katie!

Our own banner/theme of our ward camp.

Skits...of course involving our knight in shining armor!

Kathleen & me trying to "gird up our loins before our Beehive fireside night! We will always laugh how nervous we both get to put that on-but it always turns out fine and then we are done with our part!:)

Practicing the skit!

Table time...

Morning breakfasts with Hance & Bro. Routh getting it going!

It was fun to have unrushed time to talk with the leaders and girls on the hikes! Hey!

It was a little muggy so the steam water felt great!

Mikelle making it over the climbing wall!

Twin sisters Lisa and Lauren giving everyone a boost to start the climbing wall...

More confidence couse...It gets a little easier each year:).

Cute!

A little photo shoot while we are there:).

The Hunt sisters remind me of my family as we also had 3 girls in a row like they do!Cute!

The leaders "supervising" the certification going on out on the field!

Then it was time for a massive water balloon fight!

So fun!

Guest fireside speaker Jill Stevens Shepherd.

More ward fireside talks!

We were starting to drag a little half way through camp, so our fearless leader Katie gave us a Presidency Pep talk to keep the energy and spirit up to finish camp! Here we are right before the Humanitarian project!

We worked on quilts, coloring book pages etc. for kids around the world!

Service/clean-up project! This group wins!

Fun games on the field!

Another gorgeous hike!

A chance to journal in the woods! Very peaceful and relaxing!

Sister Soelberg (one of our YW Secretaries), brough her new baby up one afternoon! So cute!

Camp Director and YW Secretary Sister Earl was able to drive down to home each night to see her darling baby boy!

Lacey making sure we are ready to go with the window paint!

The caretakers without the buck teeth in! They are amazing and live at the camp in their house year round! Brr-zee!

An ankle injury the final night! Ouch!

After a fun and spiritual week, it was over and we unloaded at the Earls. You can see their dog in the picture above--he is as big as a pony!

So fun to go to camp together!

Final food clean-up for the cooks! It's a wrap! Home to showers and beds!

Yard Sale!

2011-01-06T07:37:00.000-08:00

Our awesome neighbors with whom with share a driveway with asked if we wanted to do a yard sale together this past summer. We had never done one before but she is a pro-so we thought it would be fun (and clear out some of our stuff:).
We had to rope off our driveways so people wouldn't drive up.

Together we had quite the spread and people started coming before we even opened at 7:00 a.m. I was so excited as I kept thinking "what if nobody comes?"

We were able to downsize by selling a ping pong table, battery powered driving cars, a birdcage, decorations, clothes, costumes, etc etc.

Yeah! We made a couple of hundred bucks to use for the kids new school clothes! It was so fun!

I had to take a picture of our first customer! She bought my sister Julie's lamps and I was so pumped we had business! Maybe a new annual tradition?? We'll see...

A Heart of Gold...New Batteries Included!

2011-01-05T23:20:00.000-08:00

This past summer, Grandpa Gus had his pacemaker "fired-up!" He had been hearing a "beeping sound" for QUITE a while and he discovered it was his pacemaker trying to tell him the "batteries are low!" He was able to get in to everything shaped up again!
We all hate being "the patient" but Dad takes the cake at not wanting to. It is great to see how he gives the medical and auxiliary personnel a run for their money; he loves to keep them on their toes! We came to give him our love and support as we love him and are so proud of him doing what he needs to do/taking his health matters into his own hands! It has been approx. 20 years (help me Mom with the dates:) since his heart attacks and bypass surgery. It makes me so sad to think that he lost HIS Dad when he was in high school from a sudden heart attack! I am so grateful he has been a fighter and been here for my whole life as well as our kids! We may all have some unlucky genetics, but we have the best family in the world!

Everything went well! My sister Jennie is BFF's with the cardiologist and his family (in their ward), so he had to give us the courtesy picture on the way out:)! He was very nice.

Kennedy giving Grandpa her best! Even though we know he doesn't want to babysit "any dang last one" of his precious grand kids:)...we know he loves us all with all of his heart! I have a feeling that love will "keep firing" for a lot of years to come with all those new wires and batteries!

After leaving Ogden, we had to stop by Matt & Kimi's to see their home makeover! They are such a darling couple and we love their energy, creativity, youth, and HUMOR!

Kimi passed on a cute little purse to Kenz as the letter fit! Thanks Aunt Kimi! We were also able to pick up a few of Kimi's things to sell at our upcoming garage sale! Here's to a wonderful family!

School is Out!

2011-01-04T22:05:00.000-08:00

I am pretty proud of myself getting one post done a day until I catch up (gotta love New Year's Resolutions:)! I may even have a habit formed by then to keep up! The end of the school year came and we said goodbye to Mrs. Friel. She was being re-assigned to another school for next year. We will miss her southern accent and energy!
Good-bye to the bus driver:). He probably couldn't wait until the last kid stepped of the bus to shut the door and yell my brother's famous line..."So long suckers!"

Oh how we will miss Mrs. McKell. She loved the boys and we loved her!

As soon as the bus pulled up, it was time for our neighborhood "Mom's against kids!"

We all brought the water balloons again and it is so fun!

Too bad some of them hurt when you get nailed by them!

The "party" is growing every year!

Fun times! We pick up all the balloon pieces off the lawn and head home to start summer break!

The "opening" of the backyard pool... We had been planning on taking a year to just kind of relax at home and not feel like we had to rush to 7-Peaks or other venues 24/7. It was so nice that the kids could play and I could still get things done around the house while keeping an eye on them. It was the best 100 bucks (or so:) we have ever spent! I think it was 3,000 gallons of pure heaven on hot days!

Cute!

The only problem was that is was a bit on "the cool side" to start with!

Christian claims he is "cold-blooded" and they got used to the temperature pretty quickly! We also got smart and purchased the solar blanket covering to heat it up when not in use. It worked and made it about 10 degrees warmer.

Modeling for us...

More posing for Mom!

Thank goodness we have our own pump man! He had the idea of using the salt water system for the "chlorination" process. I was so glad I didn't have to do the weekly chemical checks etc. I thought it would be all gross and salt-watery but it was great! The pump gave us a few "pump pressure" problems, but was otherwise wonderful!

Mr. Daredevil...

Hey girls!

They loved the goggles!

More pics...

Attempted drownings:)...

Kiss the girl...

Cam's favorite thing: R&R!

Reverse drowning attempts!

Now it is looking a little too posed...

Let the summer memories begin!

Memorial Day 2010

2011-01-03T20:21:00.000-08:00

I was excited to go to Carson's grave this year on Memorial Day!
I think some of it was because I found these gorgeous flowers...

...at this price:).

We love to come and visit even though we always cry:).

Can't wait to see you again! XOXO sweet baby!

Tross in Lacrosse

2011-01-03T01:11:00.001-08:00

I have looked at my pictures and I am getting hopeful as I am only a few hundred posts away from documenting 2010:). Just keep swimming right? Anyway-Christian (nickname Tross) discovered Lacrosse this year and loved it! He was so disappointed that there wasn't a "tournament" at the end of the city game season as they were undefeated!
They were great players and they had great coaches who really took the time to help them learn, grow, and succeed!

One of the "pep talks."

We found out about a last minute lacrosse camp put on by high school lacrosse players. I guess the word didn't really get out on it as Christian and Max were the only ones to show! They basically had a week of private lessons each morning for a week for like $25 or something! They learned a lot and I think the high school players had fun as well even though I felt bad that their "money maker" didn't provide too much cash for them. I tried to just stay and watch most days as I walked laps on the track that was close.

We fell in love with the game as well. Here is Christian "scoring" on warm ups.

I should have cropped this one...he is in the orange shorts.

I had no idea what "cradling" the ball was until this year!

Face off!

The boys trying everything out at the lacrosse equipment store.

I love how they hold their sticks up in the circle for the team chants/rally calls.

Mr. Tough-guy!

At practice

I just had to take one more with the gorgeous mountain behind him!

Cameron was able to try the sport a little as they let him in on a few practices.

He had to use his b-day money to rent his own equipment though as his karate is all we can do right now.

It was like a scene from star wars sometimes when they "practiced!" It was a fun new adventure trying Lacrosse!

Jr. High 5K

2011-01-03T00:48:00.001-08:00

Mikelle's Jr. High does a "healthy activity" (5K) at the end of each school year. Here she is with her BFF's after the run!
Some students didn't look too enthused about it, but I thought it was a great idea and should do it with them next year!

We came to cheer her on!

Mikelle & Laken

More of "our favorite students!:)"

The Parkers "tore it up" running with their kids!

Mikelle & Syd bringing it in!

More of the Parkers!

We should have counted this as a ward activity too:)! You go girls!

Looking good!

You guys are hard core!

The cute Principal on the bike as the medic? I think that is her! What a fun activity!

Yard Makeover

2011-01-01T00:43:00.000-08:00

For Grandma and Grandpa Dimonds' gifts (b-days, Mother's Day, Father's Day etc) for the year, the family gave them a front yard makeover!
As many family members as possible went to help.

It started earlier in the week with sprinkler repairs, curbing being poured and ended with weeding, decorative rock being laid etc.

Joe headed everything up but all the siblings are such great hard workers!

Great job Dimond family! Mama D and Grandpa loved it!

Blake Powers!

2010-12-31T20:07:00.000-08:00

You know how I like to name drop! Get this, my Brother in law is famous! He has his own mentalism/hypnotist show! Check him out on-line or in the papers for show times as his shows are still going strong even though I am posting this like 8 months later:).
The show was so fun but I said I would only come if he didn't make me go on stage!

Some of my family members "took one for the team" (me) and provided a hilarious show!

Blake's assistant or intro act had Kimi picking a certain card number etc...

Blake (don't worry I will never tell your other name:) did a great job on stage!

Entertainment...

Matt could also do a show by himself!

Lots of fun scenarios introduced...

Everyone who was roped in!

Julie, Kimi and Matt showing us their moves!

More action!

I think we had Thriller or something going here...so funny!

Wrapping it up...

Final moves

More Thriller moves

More!

Work it Julie!

"Bringing them back" and then taking the final bow! Great show! Way to follow your dream Blake!! XO

Kennedy's Pre-School Graduation

2010-12-31T19:21:00.001-08:00

Our baby is graduating! She was able to attend both years of pre-school with her cute friends! We would often trade off having the girls over to one of our homes after school to give the other Mom's a few more minutes to get errands done.
Miss Liza has been wonderful teaching both Kennedy and the boys!

Mama D and Grandpa were able to come!

All of the girls had a crush on Cooper! I had to get a picture of these 2 cuties in case they needed it for their wedding video someday:). I am a meddling Mom who is always on the lookout for her babies!

Aren't they adorable?:)

We are so proud of you Ken-D!

Saying their "good-byes" as they are all going to different schools next year!
Congratulations Kennedy for knowing your letters/sounds and singing the loudest (hilarious) on the songs etc. You are so precious!

Girls Camp Kick-off

2010-12-31T19:08:00.000-08:00

Girls Camp kick-off was a blast! We held it at Sister Earl's big and beautiful backyard!
After a spiritual start, the girls got into tent groups and came up with tent names with a purpose.

The theme for the stake was: United We Stand. We just built on their ideas to make our ward camp the strongest we could.

The girls in our ward are amazing with their unity, service, and friendship with one another!

The older girls are the "YCL's" (youth camp leaders) who really take an active part in leading the younger girls. Sheridan is amazing and was one of the YCL's who came up with the whole theme for our ward (using the whole "knight" theme complete with the helmet of truth etc).

After all of "the work" was done, we made smores to get us all pumped up for the mountains a few weeks later!

My Beehive adviser loves serving in YW as her daughters are all in there! (#3 daughter came in to YW just as I was getting released in August:(.

Brandy and Kathleen (the 2 Beehive advisers)...we have had a LOT of laughs and good times together. There is something about working closely together in callings that seals your friendships for life! Girls Camp here we come!

Year End School Dance Festival

2010-11-07T20:42:00.000-08:00

Each grade performs a dance out on their field at the end of the year. It has become a tradition that all the kids look forward to!
The boys got into it the best they could!

Mikelle was awesome to get up close to take some pictures!

Their grade did "Revolution of Dance" this year.

The famous sprinkler move...

Until next year!

Last Day of Pre-School

2010-11-07T16:39:00.000-08:00

Here is Kenz's last day of preschool! It is hard to believe we are to this point!:) We gave Miss Liza flowers on the last official day as we knew it would be hard for her to "pack them out" at the upcoming night-time preschool graduation. So long pre-K!

3rd Grade Egg Drop

2010-11-07T15:55:00.001-08:00

The boys participated in the 3rd grade science-type experiment project at school. They had to figure out a way for an egg to "survive" after being dropped off the roof of the school.
Of course we had to call in the "big guns" (Steve) to help with this one.

He helped them carve out styrofoam balls for the egg to rest in.

The principal dropped them off the roof one by one.

It was fun to see the different methods everyone used!

There were boxes and parachutes...

We went for the bubble mailers after wrapping the styrofoam egg protector in duct tape.

The chicken way to go was hilarious!

More parachutes! Some worked and some didn't.

Cameron ready to see if his baby survived the crash!

Darn it! A little cracked! Cam was such a good sport even though he was a little bummed it broke.

Nice try though!!

Christian's moment of truth...

Will all of the extra duct tape pay off?

Still peeling off duct tape...

...and it paid off! Christian's survived!

He was pretty excited! Nice job boys!

Last but not least...I had to take a picture of cute little "Monty" (Monterey). She may or may not have a little crush on Christian. I was at the school one day to sell play tickets and she comes running up to Christian after school and gives him a huge hug yelling "Christian!":)

Hot Mama Dancers

2010-11-07T14:11:00.000-08:00

Our mama dance class recital was in May. We were able to have it at the new Rec. Center this year which was so nice! Our teacher and BFF Lacy added a hip hop combo to our dances to perform this year. Here we all are trying to be "the bomb-diggity mamas."

Here is one of our "across the floor" combos.

We do jazz and lyrical "full length" dances as well.

Ow! Mamas!

When Lacy told us we were doing a hip hop combo this year, I was bummed out as my body moves in sharp moves and some of hip hop is more awkward for me. It turned out to be my favorite dance! I tried to get into it by searching all over town for the "gold bling" to spice it up. Thank goodness for Steve's cousin's store "Plato's Closet" who at least had some gold bling to choose from!

The start to our Jazz dance! We will never forget this one! (Inside joke: a sit, a sit, a sit-pop sit).

At least 2 of the moms were pregnant this year! I love how Shandi always dances up until right before she delivers!

My fat-girl bling!

Me and Lacy! How long has it been- 10 or 11 years of DansAgain? She always reminds me I was her first call from her ad in the city newsletter! Now she has like 6 classes and 50 dancers! We were meant to be dance BFF's!

Our First Teenager!

2010-11-06T16:40:00.000-07:00

I can't believe our little Dell (nickname) is now a teenager!
She wanted to shop at the Park City Outlets with her b-day money!

Found some cute shoes... She is a smart shopper and returned with some good deals and cute clothes!

The "stuff"

I came to the school and took her to Subway for lunch on her special day!

The Gus gathering for the May b-days!

Her friends decorated her locker. They are all so cute!

Felicia even surprised her and stopped by to wish her a Happy B-day! I can't believe they both grew up so fast! It seems like they were just barely having their "dance showcase" in our front yard (in our other house).

We love you Mikelle and are so proud of the incredible young lady you are!

Mikelle's Money Maker

2010-11-06T14:41:00.001-07:00

Mikelle's friend and her Mom who does vinyl let Mikelle help them sell treat jars to earn extra money for "their expenses." It was a fun little project for them and they were able to buy some cute "white stitch" jeans with their money! If you want to order one or know a Mom or Grandma that needs one, Mikelle can help you out! Thanks Kristin & Maddie!

Journals!

2010-11-06T14:34:00.000-07:00

Almost done with the YW activities I wanted to remember, but Lacey taught us how to make her "journals."
All the girls had a good time and were creative!

We tried to tie all of our activities into topics from the For Strength of Youth Booklet.

Oh Tiny!!

2010-11-05T18:36:00.000-07:00

Kennedy is such a sweetie! Here is a photoshoot that Mikelle did! (Since she is the youngest, we call her our little tiny). Love ya Kenz!

Ward Humanitarian Night

2010-11-05T16:28:00.001-07:00

Sister Sidwell is our Ward Humanitarian Leader and organized a humanitarian project night. Here are the pics from that night!
Vangie & Yo

Caught Brother Hilton in his most excited pose:)!

Hey!

Sisters in Zion!

Bishop Allen & crew

More work.

Cute helpers!

Making bead toys with the boys

So cute! Everyone had a great night helping out!

Preschool Day at Jr. High

2010-11-05T16:14:00.001-07:00

Mikelle was able to take Kennedy to her CTE class in April for preschool day. They did lots of fun activities like painting with string, fruit loop necklaces, story reading, and puppet plays. It was so fun for both of them!

Getting Ready for Girls Camp

2010-11-05T15:57:00.000-07:00

Alyson (youth camp leader) and I were in charge of teaching rescue breathing at stake camp certification.
Mikelle and Madi were trying not to laugh!

Our girls are so awesome!

The YCL's put on a cute skit and had us sing camp songs as a stake to get us pumped for girls camp!

See ya at camp!

Sisters Scrap Book Weekend-Spring Edition

2010-11-05T14:42:00.000-07:00

I am finally blogging our sisters scrapbook weekend from April. We were able to get away to Park City. My sister Jennie always finds us some fun places to stay that will fit all of us and our budgets!
The treat table! Ya..the soy nuts sat there all weekend! We are more into the chocolate.

My sister's baby came this time as he was still under the age limit to qualify!

Bath after dinner!

Getting dried off.

Pics of me and Jennie out on the deck. Loved the view and surroundings!

Hot Mama!

Catching up with Kimi!

Jen & Tracen

Relaxing in the hot tub.

Catching up while relaxing.

We each take a turn cooking meals. We all loved Annissa's kabobs and had to steal her marinating recipe!

I loved taking walks in the crisp air and beautiful area.

It was a fun weekend reading book group assignments, watching DVD's, hitting the outlets, and enjoying each other's company. I had to get some pics of the condo when we were on our way out.

At lots of SBW's, I will "sacrifice" and take the pull-out couches etc...so this time, the sisters insisted I take the private room and bathroom. It was so heavenly to have the peace and quiet! Thanks gals!

Until next scrap-book weekend...

School Play Liaison

2010-11-05T13:28:00.001-07:00

For the last few years, I have served as the PTA liaison for the school play. Twice a year we have to "move the platforms" to and from the storage.
Steve is so good to "get roped in" to the scenery committee and also usually ends up helping to design the set.

The other dads are so good to help as well. Some of their kids don't even go to the school anymore and they still bring their truck/trailer to help!

Rebecca is so wonderful to write the scripts and run the whole school play each year! She and her husband are so talented and dedicated to do this for the school!

Joseph Smith Movie

2010-11-05T12:10:00.000-07:00

We went up to the Joseph Smith Memorial Building with the youth to watch the Joseph Smith movie. Even though I have seen it before, it is so inspiring!
We had to take 2 separate pics as there were so many youth!

The party on the way home.

Waiting to get out of the parking garage...

My cute co-pilot .

Another activity Kenz had to tag along to--little sweetie!

I put together treat plates for each car that drove up to SLC. It was so fun to go but we got back late on a school night--otherwise it was such a great time!

Cinco de Mayo

2010-11-05T11:19:00.000-07:00

Yeah! We have internet connection at our Scrapbook Weekend
and so I have a weekend to catch up the last 6 months of blogging! Here are a few pics from our YW Cinco de Mayo activity!We learned types of Latin dancing from Lacey!

We served up main dish and dessert quesadilla dishes after a brief "cooking demo."

The queen of dance teaching us her moves!

All the hot mama YW in the next few pics!

Kenz tagged along to activities until Steve got home from work. She loved to come!

Chicas!

Nothing like sisters!

Always creative!

Mi amore Mikelle!

Put Your Shoulder to the Wheel, Push Along!

2010-08-21T23:49:00.000-07:00

Back to Spring Break...it was so fun to have my Mom come down and stay a few days at our house! On her last night here, we were getting ready to go out for a girls' night out, when she accidentally missed a step in our garage and took a nasty fall! Our GNO was at the ER instead! I felt so bad for her as her pain was "a 10 or a 20" on the 0-10 rating scale! She ended up needing the equivalent of a shoulder replacement a few days later! I went to help her in the hospital. She was a trooper and found ways to push through every painful moment!
Some of her pretty flowers!

The nurse in me just had to see the incision on her shoulder! Looks good; free from signs of infection...wound edges well approximated etc:).

After her discharge from the hospital, she was able to stay at a rehab-type center (or as she calls it..."The Taj-mahal!" She was able to receive physical therapy and continued with home health physical therapy after that. Because of her diligent efforts in her exercises/rehab, she can now lift her shoulder well and does the "parade wave" whenever she gets the chance:)! I am so glad she is feeling better although I don't anticipate she will ever come and visit us again! She went through enough! Way to push through with your shoulder! We love ya!

A Little More Room to Breathe!

2010-08-20T15:08:00.000-07:00

The Wednesday after Spring Break, Cameron was scheduled to have his tonsils removed. He has had strep throat frequently and we were pulling our hair out trying to keep him well! Finally we were able to get into surgery!
Being brave!

Waiting to go in with that stoic smile!

Anesthesia and Nursing come to do the "pre-flight" check!

Dr. Heidi Heras is pretty much the "go-to" gal for this in Utah County.

...and they are out!

Recovery room was rough! Lots of pain! I think Cameron also must have a little reaction to coming out of anesthesia as we have the same thing happen if he has nitrous at the dentist!

The crushed popcicles were the favorite! (Microwave the popcicle for 15 seconds and you can crush it into a nice icee)!

Gross picture but the doctor was amazed at how relatively large his tonsils were! She also showed us how "cavernous" they were, harboring "the germs" which was why he couldn't stay better after antibiotics. What a relief they are finally out!

Yeah!!

All the tonsils you ever wanted to see! Picture overkill! I should have put a quarter next to them instead as the dime doesn't do it justice:)!

We gave him a little basket filled with things he could eat and a little light reading too!

Feeling much better when on the pain meds!

Cam was so cute to leave this sign outside his bedroom door when he wanted to sleep. The Grandparents sent well-wishes! Now Cameron can breathe better at night; NO MORE SNORING! Yeah! He feels like he has a little more energy in the day since he is sleeping better with his new and improved "airway area!" We love ya Cam!

Ready Or Not...Here We GO!

2010-08-20T00:37:00.001-07:00

This post will of course be out of chronological order, but just had to report that ready or not, our YW days are over! (Hopefully you can zoom in on our President in this camp picture holding the mormon-ad sign saying "Ready or Not.") Our Presidency was released on Sunday following the departure/move of our YW President a few weeks ago. It was so depressing with her gone that I am glad they released the rest of us too as it was not the same without her. My mind is finally "gearing down" as it was in over-drive for 2 years, 24/7, thinking about these fabulous girls and everything that goes along with this inspired program! I managed to gain 10 pounds from the "cortisol producing factors" of this calling but wouldn't trade the amazing experience, relationships, and period of spiritual growth for anything! I guess one positive outcome of the release is that I will know have Wednesday nights to catch up our blog! Maah-waah!! Love ya YW and YW leaders! Off to Primary I go! I will miss you!