Mick and Lori's Lovebugs

Shattered thumb

2011-06-15T13:26:00.003-06:00

Our family went to White Wash down by Green River over Memorial Day. A bunch of us were out riding on the slick rock and I stalled it in a bad spot and ended up going over the drop to my left. Only thing that broke was a shattered thumb, (not to mention the bent handle bars and subframe that bent when it fell on me). I feel very lucky not to be hurt worse.
This was right after surgery. There is a plate, 5 screws and some wire in that small bone.

You can see the wire better in this one. Got the stitches out a few days ago. In a splint for a few weeks and then I start physical therapy. Yikes.

Jeepin with Joel and Nicole

2011-05-24T09:33:00.006-06:00

Over the weekend we went out in the jeeps with our friends Joel and Nicole. Went through a couple of Ghost towns. It was so cool to look at all the old stuff lying around.

The wall that we were sitting on was built to contain water behind it.

Someone had staked this claim This is the jeep that we got to drive. I think I'm already addicted to playing in the jeep

This building was in the ghost town of Frisco. A lot of interesting history here that we read about in a book. This town was a mining town for silver. It said their open pit was 900' by 400' and 900' deep. There were 21 saloons in this town. The pit eventually caved in putting an end to the town. All in all $60,000,000 was made in the mine. It was amazing. I want to take the kids back to see it.

Mick hiked back into a cave a little ways and took a picture of us all watching him.

You know, I just couldn't help myself. I had to go check it out.

There is a huge shaft in front of me. The ladder that is right in front of me goes way down and then there is another one off to the side that keeps going. We shined the flashlight down and couldn't see the bottom. Dropped rocks and they just got hung up on the wooden beams in there.

There were also tunnels that went off to our right and to the left. We took a flashlight and followed the one tunnel that had rails going back into it. We got back a ways and it forked 3 different ways. I wanted to keep exploring so bad.

Mother's Day at Mom's

2011-05-10T19:53:00.002-06:00

Bet in Grandpa's sunglasses. She's lucky she didn't scratch em!

Kristen and Chris, my little bro Brian, and my dad.

Mesa Verde Trip

2011-05-10T19:10:00.006-06:00

Last weekend our family went with Mick's family on vacation down to Mesa Verde. Mick and I and our kids had never been there before. I just loved seeing it all. I wish we would have had more time to hike and see more of the things there.
Mick took his camera too, so I actually exist on this vacation!

"Photo Phylis" doing what she loves to do - take pictures.

This was taken at the Spruce Tree House. This one was fun because there were a lot more places you could actually hike around and look in

Emma swiped Ginger's sunglasses. She is always telling me, "take my picture" mom! She poses everywhere.

This was taken at Balcony house. They were built in the cliffs. You hike down from the top and then have to climb a 32 ft ladder to get up to them. The kids did great.

Balcony House behind us.

Balcony House - There was a tunnel 12" by 18" to crawl through.

This was the last ladder to come up and out. There were a bunch of stairs chipped away out of the side of the cliff with only poles and chains between those and a huge drop off. (Sometimes there was a weak little fence there). I was so scared that one of my kids were going to fall. I was right behind Emma and had a tight grip on the hood of her sweatshirt.

Bet in front of the Spruce Tree House

Spruce Tree House - You could actually climb down in a Kiva at this place.

The girls did an amazing job hiking everywhere. Ty was a mountain goat and was long gone by this point.

This was taken at Hovenweep which is a different location than Mesa Verde. Tyler had gotten sick the night before this and threw up all night. Poor little man. Mick and I took turns sitting in the car with him. So it was just the girls on this hike along with Dave and Ginger and their family.

Bethany, cousin Spencer and Emma hiking at Hovenweep.

Goblin Valley

2011-05-10T14:07:00.003-06:00

We went and hiked at Goblin Valley this last weekend at the end of our Mesa Verde trip.
Mick
Mick and Bethany

Hana Bugs

Dad and Emma switched hats

Easter Eggs

2011-04-30T19:59:00.004-06:00

Emma dippin easter eggs
I just love the gloves so they don't get color on hands

Ty is the man... I guess?

Filming the coloring event

1st Sledding Trip of the Season!

2010-01-06T12:58:00.008-07:00

Ty spent a lot of time packing down the snow. We were one of the first people there. It was one of the first good snowstorms of the season.
And he wonders why he gets so cold???

This is the way Bet does things.

But she gets up and is laughing and having a ball!

Bet and Emma go down and both are having so much fun until they face plant it...

Emma did not think that was cool at all!

But Bet just laughed and went back up the hill. Atta girl...

Hana is almost always smiling, so of course she's giggling all the way down the hill.

She got frosted a bit!

I LOVE this shot! Their faces tell it all.

Emma actually did have a lot of fun runs down the hill despite her face dunking.

She did pretty good walking up the hill if she hung onto the sled and Mick or I walked up with her.

Favorite random shots during December

2010-01-06T12:46:00.003-07:00

Hana Bugs is IN LOVE with horses! She wishes we had some, she seems to think they would do just fine in our backyard. I'm quite certain she would ride every day if she had the opportunity. So she has many stuffed and all kinds of toy horses. This one's name is cookie. Her other favorite is name Butterscotch and that poor horse is dragged everywhere - it sleeps with her, it's gone camping and to the cabin, it plays outside, it has joined us for dinner... the list is endless

Now this I had to get in a picture for future reference when she is a teenager. It looked so cute her sitting there scrubbing the dishes and loading them in the dishwasher. She is a good little helper once she sets her mind to it.

Gotta have a snowman every year. I don't think there was too much fighting amongst the three to get it made. I think the scarf was a controversy, but they solved it.

Now this is definitely another family member. This is Froggy. He is Emma's little buddy and I need to get a picture of her sleeping with her arm around him and his little bug eyes sticking out of the covers. He also has gone camping, spent many a night at the dinner table, bed time does not happen until he's found and for a while he sported some nice lipstick. It was fantastic.

Grandma Julie helping Emma learn how to draw.

The kids love to help Grandma Julie make cookies. She is so patient to let them help.

Goblin Valley Camping Trip

2009-11-10T17:08:00.005-07:00

This last weekend we went camping as a family down to Goblin Valley with Mick's brother Dave and his wife Ginger and their kids and our friends Brett and Andrea Ostler and their family. It was the best weather and probably the best trip I have ever had down there. It was sunny and warm during the day and only needed a sweatshirt at night. Sat we hiked the Little Wildhorse Canyon. Ty, Bet and Wyatt went on the 9 mile loop around to Bell Canyon with me. They did AWESOME! Bet wanted to go and I told her she could only come along if there was absolutely NO complaining... and she didn't.

Sunday we went over to the actual Valley of the Goblins. Mick and I and the kids divided into teams and played steal the flag. It was a blast.

For some unknown reason, Ty and Spencer decided to wrap their shirts around their heads. ??? They could be brothers - they have very similar personalities and I even got Spencer confused with Ty a couple of times.

Lucky Bet, she got to go camping with one of her really good friends. They had a "sleepover" in our trailer both nights.

Emma was Wyatt's little buddy and liked to hang out with him.

Too freaking cute to leave off this post.

Wyatt took this pic of our family. Way to go man! I just told him where to stand and zoomed it in and he did the rest.

So Brett told me he didn't think I could get up here. Well of course I had to prove him wrong. Andrea told me that they hadn't brought their I.V. equipment with them and there wasn't enough room to land a chopper. Brett took this shot once I got up there. I had an escape plan if it broke off.... JUMP!

Bethany and her cousin Gavin.

Brett and Andrea and their family.

Dave and Ginger and their family.

This rock formation looked like Gary the snail off of SpongeBob. The kids had to ride on top of him!

Mom's Birthday

2009-11-10T15:00:00.000-07:00

Kristen and Mark
Mom always has so much help opening her presents.

I got to see my nephew for the first time. Ty was sick with the flu when he was born and so we didn't go to see him because we didn't want the baby to get sick. Then I was never able to go up when they were at home. He was a month old when I finally got to love him!

Emma was so excited to be able to help feed Clark. She told me the next day that she wants a little sister...

Halloween

2009-11-10T12:00:00.000-07:00

Kristen put together a party for the employees at Xpress Bill Pay and their families for lunch on Friday. She gets this wild idea to make me a princess... Me a princess??? Yeah right. She pulls out her dresses - let's just say I could hardly breathe in this dress!!! :)

Kristen was a little kitty cat.

I have no idea what in the world Mick was. He and Kristen went to Walmart earlier in the day and a guy that was stocking shelves said "excuse me man" and Mick asked him if he said man or mam and the guy said "hey man, whatever". Kristen said he got the weirdest looks.

Ty and his friend Bailey were zombies. They were CHOMPING AT THE BIT to get out there and get trick or treating. Notice the huge pillowcase for his bag. They got the whole neighborhood done in one night and he was set. He came home and emptied it all into his drawer and is set for the next few months!

Now this is the cutest little dr. that I ever did see. She was a "SCARY" one though - thus the paint on her face.

Bet and Ariana didn't want to be just regular princesses, they wanted to be DEAD princesses.

It was only a minute before they all had everything dumped out on the counter or the table checking out all their goods.

If she looks hard enough, maybe she'll find some more in there!

Going to the Zoo

2009-10-06T15:42:00.004-06:00

One thing that my grandma Johansen was always good at was spending time with the grandkids and doing fun things with us. My mom wants to be like that and one of the things she wanted to do was take us to the zoo. Considering it was Aug, it was amazingly cool and we had a great time. Not only did Mom pay for us all to get in, but she paid for the train and merry go round rides as well.

Brian called mom while we were getting on the train. All the kids were yelling hi to Uncle Brian.

So after walking around all afternoon, everyone is looking just a little tired! Right after we took this picture Emma wondered off while we were all looking at something and it took us a while to find her. Talk about give her mama a heart attack!!

Being on the merry go round is not exactly my favorite thing because I get so dizzy. But the kids made it fun because they were so excited. I couldn't help but laugh and have a good time myself.

Ty shares my excitement for going round and round and didn't want to go for a ride.

So intent on that gorilla. What is he saying Lucious?

First kiss Bethany?

Thanks mom for taking us all to the zoo. We really all had a good time. My favorite part was watching the baby giraffe. He was so dang cute!

Homemade Waterslide!

2009-10-06T14:32:00.004-06:00

We went up to the Resevoir in Spanish Fork with Mick's family. The fun thing is, we put a piece of vinyl up on the side and Mick's dad throws water up on it to keep it slick and we slide down it on tubes.

What's with the pout Lucious? . . . Probably not getting her way...

Poor Hana. She actually got on one of the rafts with me and we ate it when we hit the water. But we both sat and laughed and laughed, that is once I could catch my breath - that water is COLD!

Fishing up Mayfield Canyon

2009-10-06T09:23:00.005-06:00

In August we went up Mayfield Canyon with Chris and Kristen and their friends Mike and Brenda. We took Ty and Bethany's friends up with us. I drove up with Bethany and her friend and they sang the same Hannah Montana song over and over again all the way up. I will always think of this camping trip when I hear that song. It was so nice to get away from everyday life for a bit and just chill out away from cell phones and the pager.

We drove down to Town Resevoir to go fishing with Chris and Kristen. Kristen was so patient to help the kids put the bait on, cast it in for them and then help them pull them in. All the kids caught a fish.

Kristen was the first one to set the standard of catching a fish. The kids were so excited watching her.

They even needed to "pet" the fish. It was cute to watch them be so curious about it.

This is one of my favorite shots. Luckily I snapped it just in time to catch the look on her face. She was so excited to have caught the fish.

Even I caught one. The kids wanted me to kiss the fish. Why??? I'm not sure. I got close, but didn't quite kiss the little guy.

As usual a wrestling match started.

It wouldn't be a trip anywhere without Lucious having some sort of meltdown over something. Luckily she has her dad that has more patience and tolerance for her drama than I do. She used all mine up the first year and a half of her life.

Mick was messing around trying to get the fish to bite Tyler on the ear.

Yes she does have her swimsuit on!

Swimming at Mona Resevoir

2009-10-05T14:19:00.007-06:00

Festivities at the Park

2009-07-27T23:17:00.004-06:00

We went to the park in Nephi on the 4th of July and the kids all got tickets and could go on any ride or do any activity that they chose. The blow up slide was the big hit for all of them. They would go again and again. I took a bunch of pictures because it was so fun to capture the looks on their faces each time they went down.
I love how Bethany looks so terrified. . . she didn't ever act like she was - she was laughing the whole time. Where did this look come from I wonder?

Of course, Ty can't just go down the slide normally. He must do all sorts of acrobatics as he takes his turn.

It took Emma a while to figure out that she needed to give a ticket to the lady every 2 turns. She would just go busting up the steps before the lady could stop her and go again.

Hana would just giggle and scream every time that she went down. It doesn't take much to make her happy.

This little ride is so cool. It is just some little tire swings that go around in a circle ran by a little engine. The kids think it is awesome.

Later on during the day, we went down to Delta to the Demolition Derby. It was AWESOME! Justin and Lara were there and so were David and Carrie. The kids loved it - the girls were especially excited because "Herbie" was racing the figure 8 race. For the most part, the weather held off for us. It rained only once during for about 5-10 min and we just put the blankets that we were sitting on over our heads and kept on watching. The fireworks were great and right at the end when we were leaving it downpoured. We were drenched by the time we got back to the car. But we had so much fun and that's all that counts! Like a dork, I forgot my camera, but Mick took some pics with his phone. I will post as soon as I get them off of it.

Fireworks!

2009-07-27T22:56:00.005-06:00

Fireworks in our family are a big deal - we all love them, and have a great time setting them off. We are all huge pyros and love to watch things burn and explode.

This year was especially fun because Ty was lighting off the fireworks and it was fun to sit back and watch him give us the show. My favorite was when he threw the flower up in the air and out in the street right before the car drove by, I just know they appreciated that one as it went spinning off underneath their car.

I thought this was so sweet. Hana is such a loving little girl.

We had boxes and boxes of sparklers and they found all sorts of things to do with them, including burning the ants.

I love this shot because she is just watching it so intently.

This one makes me laugh. Emmers was running around with her little torch there.

I am not quite sure what this crazy look means, but I think she is by far the most ANIMATED child I have. My pictures of her are always so fun because I never know what kind of expression is on her face! :)

My kiddos

2009-07-26T21:51:00.002-06:00

This was at Grandma Wadley's funeral. I thought they looked so cute, oh I better say and handsome - Ty doesn't necessarily like being called cute anymore.This is definitley a shot for the fridge. These two are such good little buddies.
Bet takes such good care of Emma. She watches out for her, sometimes a little too much - Emma doesn't like being bossed around so much by Bet.

Dang my baby is growing up!

The whole fam!

2009-07-26T21:22:00.004-06:00

My family was all able to get together at Grandma Wadley's funeral. I know, I know. . . why in the world would we take our picture in front of the hearse? True Johansen humor right there I guess, we were all so wound up and thought it would make the perfect backdrop. No one EVER claims that my family is normal! It was so awesome to be able to all be together. We went back to the church after the graveside service and had lunch and then Mick took the kids home and I was able to hang out with Kristen and Brian for the afternoon. That poor boy, we dragged him all over the place. Good thing he claims to love being with his sisters! That evening we all went out to eat and I truly felt sorry for that waitress, my brothers gave her such a hard time. We didn't want to leave either, they were probably about ready to kill us because it had already closed and we just sat and talked and talked. I truly have the best family anyone could ever ask for!

Riding Again!

2009-05-17T21:27:00.004-06:00

Riding and camping are probably the things our family loves to do best together. We were going to go camping this weekend, but Mick and I decided to actually work in our yard for a few hours instead of play the whole weekend (yeah I know, what a concept). So we loaded up and went out on Saturday. Dave and Ginger were out there with their kids and so were Kieven and Kori and their kids. Our kids had such a good time riding with their cousins and friends. They were even trying to catch some airtime off of a jump. Broken bones here we come!

Bethany took her cousin's bike for a ride and she did really good on it. Mick has said it was ok for her to ride the bigger 4 wheeler around and I have been kind of nervous about that. Mick and I went for a ride that afternoon and when we got back, Bethany had tagged one of her smaller cousins with the 4 wheeler riding through camp. She won't be riding the big wheeler again. We'll have to see if we can find something smaller for her to ride.
Not only do they love riding, but they love playing in the dirt as well. There is always a layer of mud in the bottom of the bathtub when they get done. To me that means a good day of fun.

Ty riding with his cousin Gavin.

Field Trip to Hogle Zoo

2009-05-11T22:53:00.003-06:00

Ariana's Kindergarten class went on a field trip to Salt Lake City to the Hogle Zoo. Since they wouldn't allow younger siblings on the bus, I drove up separately with Emma and met them there.
I had a blast spending time with my girls. They were so much fun to watch because they were just fascinated by all the animals, especially the monkeys. Mick had told them earlier that the zoo is where their mama belonged... punk.

Ariana just LOVES animals. It doesn't matter what kind she loves to play with them and watch them. Her very favorite animal is a horse. She loved seeing the zeebras because they were as close to a horse there as she could find.

This was an elephant statue that Ariana had heard about at school that actually sneezes at you. She was so excited when she finally found it.

This was the long awaited train ride! Mick had given each of them their very own dollar and they kept it in their pocket so they could pay for it. I am so glad that I was able to go with Hana and Luchy. They are such sweet little girls and someday they will have other fun things to do than go to the zoo with their mama.

Ride! Ride! Ride!

2009-05-11T22:36:00.003-06:00

Our family just loves to go ride! We headed out for the day to Cherry Creek. It was rainy in the morning, but about lunch time it cleared up some. It looked great all the way out. Once we pulled up a big storm came in and we all sat in the trailer and watched it hail and then turn to rain. After about 10 min., it cleared up and there was blue sky. Only in Utah!
Our friend Joel that we have been riding with since we were first married came out with us and brought his son and two other boys. He brought his KX 65 for Ty to ride. Mick is helping him get it started and from then on, Ty rode it the WHOLE time. He just loved it. He keeps asking if we can go again and take that bike. He's hooked like the rest of us!

The girls didn't want to stop riding either. Bethany rode the 4 wheeler around a little track that they had out there and she pretty much rode it the whole time we were there too. Emma would much rather hop on the bike with mom or dad. Ariana was a little more content to go for rides on the back with Bethany. We are so lucky to have such a fun sport that we can all do together as a family. We all loaded up on the bikes and 4 wheelers and went out for a ride. Bethany was a little nervous because she hadn't ridden the wheeler that far by herself before, but she did great. And what can I say more for my little man Ty? He did awesome in that sand on a bike! It is really hard to ride in and he kept at it!

As Bet was riding the wheeler on the track she found the mud over and over again. It was all over her! I had to get a close up so we had proof of the good time she was having!

This is what happens when Luchy has to get off the bike. It is a very sad day when her riding is cut short. I had to document for the future. We always have the smiling pictures of her, but we need the other half of her cheery disposition!

Kristen was brushing Emma's hair. I was surprised that Emma let her do it so willingly. Emma HATES for me to brush or style her hair. What a gorgeous sister I have!

Hillclimbing in Mayfield

2009-04-30T16:12:00.006-06:00

Mick and his brothers have been dying to go hillclimbing down to Mayfield all winter long. There are some of the biggest hills down there that I have seen a motorcycle climb and these boys do it. They truly are very talented riders that can ride on any terrain put in front of them.

Tyler is half boy half mountain goat! Every hill the guys would climb, Ty would be up top watching them from up there. These hills were more like mountains.

Mick getting to the top!

This is Mick's brother Dave climbing. I love this shot because it shows how steep and high this hill is. I am standing about 2/3 the way up to take pics.

This is Mick's brother Dave - kinda funny because I was so excited that I got this shot and then I asked if he was ok. I don't worry to much about Mick climbing. Out of all the styles of riding that he does, this is the safest to me. Motocross and the desert are high speed and I worry about how hurt he could get when he wrecks doing that.

The kids were such good sports. They hung out and watched Dad climb and played in the dirt.

Emma was the most impatient, only because she wants to be riding on the bike - not watching others. She had fun with her little cousins though and once I pulled out the grub she was much more content. (She really is a lot like me!)

I had so much fun taking pictures of my sister-in-laws and nieces. These are just a few of the fun ones that I took. This is Ella and my sister-in-law, Laralee.

This is my sister-in-law Kenna and my niece Kaylee.

I just loved her hat!

I am ALL DONE with class!

2009-04-28T21:47:00.004-06:00

My last day was Saturday! I took my written and practical test for the HazMat Ops class (Yuck). Luckily so far I have passed the written and practical tests for Fire I and II. I could have sworn that I failed the written on those two - they were so dang hard! I have also passed the HazMat Awareness written test and my practicals for HazMat Ops. I still have a few weeks until I find out if I passed the written exam from last Sat. If that comes back all good, I will be officially Fire I and II certified with the state. It has been so much work (a whole lot more than I anticipated), but I have learned so much and made really close friends w/ the others on the dept and surrounding depts. I have really missed being home with my family and having spare time to get things done. I am so excited to have my life back and I have so many big plans and projects to get going on. Thanks to my buddy Mick for taking care of my kids while I was gone every Tuesday and Thursday nights and all day every Saturday. What a trooper. My kids were also awesome. It was hard for them to have their mama gone all the time. I couldn't have done it without their support.

Hiking in Goblin Valley

2009-04-28T21:31:00.004-06:00

Mick took the kids down to Goblin Valley with his parents, Justin, Laralee and Ella, and Pete, Kenna and Kaylee, I had one last full day of Sat. classtime of HazMat Ops and had to stay behind to go to that. I was so bummed I didn't get to go with them. Goblin Valley is one of my very favorite places to go with my family. They left Fri. afternoon and stayed in a hotel in Green River. The kids played in the pool that night. Emma was quite the little water dog!

On Sat. morning they got up and drove over to Goblin Valley to hike around and play on the Goblins.

Little Lucious stayed behind with Mick's parents while he went on a little hike w/ the older 3. Emma got away from them and as soon as they turned around she was gone. Someone picked her up and took her to the ranger, worried that she was lost. Apparently, they didn't ask around to see if she belonged to anyone in the area. The whole family searched for a bit and were getting pretty worried. They finally found Emma sitting on the ranger's tailgate eating some Oreos and drinking a Capri Sun. She didn't seem to mind at all. Kind of scary that she would just go to anyone like that. I feel bad that she scared everyone so bad. I am so glad that she is ok and someone honest found her that was trying to do the right thing.

Mick said the girl's would hike around holding each other's hands. So cute!

Ty is the mountain goat of the family. There isn't anywhere that this boy does not dare go!

Ty just loves hanging out with his uncle Justin. The two hiked all over together. Ty was born while Justin was on his mission. It didn't take them long to become little buddies when Justin got home.

After they got done climbing on the goblins they went over to my very favorite hike called Little Wild Horse Canyon. It is so incredibly beautiful.

Mick said all the kids hiked their little tail ends off and did so well.

This is an example of how beautiful the hike is to walk through.

Bethany's Birthday

2009-04-28T21:10:00.003-06:00

Bethany turned 9 on April 17th. We had a birthday party for her w/ some of her friends. Of course, we had to have the traditional pinata. It doesn't do any good to put blindfolds on the kids because Mick has WAY too much fun pulling that pinata all over the place making it hard for them to nail it. It is so funny to watch them. They go to smack it and he yanks it up and it starts it swinging and he'll drop it down and it will bonk into them. Some of them try so hard not to get frustrated. It is hilarious to watch.

It was windy and cold outside so we ended up in our beautiful garage. The kids didn't seem to care at all, as long as that pinata was chuck full of candy!

Ty and his girlfriend Makenna.

Egg Coloring and Hunting

2009-04-28T19:36:00.004-06:00

While we were camping out to Cherry Creek on Easter weekend, we colored easter eggs and had an easter egg hunt. It is actually quite nice because the mess is outside and it doesn't matter as much if things spill.

After we colored the eggs, I put them in the fridge in the trailer. All of us go out to the sand dunes and make little trenches down a dune and race our eggs down the hill. Right before we were going to head out, I discovered that Hana and Emma had decided to "eat" all the easter eggs in the trailer. The shells and crushed up pieces of egg were all over the table, the seats, the couch, the counters, and the floor. It was everywhere. Let's just say I was not a happy camper! I have no idea what possessed them to do this, but it stunk and it took quite a while to clean up. Luckily some of our friends had a little vacuum out there and I was able to clean it up easier with that. So there were not any eggs to race down the hill this year.

Then we came back and had the candy hunt. Most of us were too lazy to put candy in plastic eggs and we just hid the candy around camp. The kids don't seem to care anyhow about the eggs, they just want what is inside!

Ty loaded up pretty good, he was on the move and didn't waste an ounce of time looking.

Emma had fallen asleep and I went to wake her up because I thought she would be sad if she missed the candy hunt. Oh no! She did not want to be bothered. I brought her outside and she just boobed and bawled and carried on, so I took her back inside and she threw a fit on the couch. I should have just left the beast sleeping.

Bet and Hana came away with a pretty good haul. They had their easter baskets, but for some reason they wanted to use baggies instead. I do not know. . . It wasn't too long after this that it started to rain. I was so glad that the weather held out good for us all weekend. We really did have a great time in spite of the egg mess and Emma's tantrum! :)

Camping Easter Weekend

2009-04-20T14:22:00.006-06:00

Off to Cherry Creek we went for Easter weekend to go camping with a bunch of friends.

Hana Bugs

The kids had spring break the same weekend so we were able to leave Wed. evening and stay until Sat. night. Most of our other friends came out either Thurs. or Fri. Thurs. was a fun day because it was just our family for a while and it was good to spend time together. Ty had me running from tree to tree using them as our hideouts and a stick as my gun. I had to explain to him that I didn't fit in his hideouts quite as well as he did. I had sticks and dirt all over in my hair but we had a blast. Dad and the girls were the enemy in the trailer and we were spying on them. I told him that I would have loved to have had someone as cool and imaginative as him to play with when I was a kid.

The weather was supposed to be crap, but it held out for us until Sat. afternoon. We didn't care though, a bunch of us geared up and went out for a ride in the rain. I loved it. I had to take my goggles off though because I couldn't see a thing.

Ariana had a blast riding around in this little jeep. At one point there was a whole cluster of kids running behind it and holding onto the bumper to be dragged around in the sand.

There were so many kids for our kids to play with. Bethany and Isiac (Ray and Joanne's little boy) were the "hot" little item. They imformed us all that they were more than just friends. When someone asked Bet what that meant she said " you know... he likes me and I like him!" Good answer Bet!

My little Kitties

2009-04-20T13:29:00.003-06:00

Bethany painted little kitty whiskers and noses on herself, Hana, and Emma. Most of the time they pretend they are horses, but today they were in for something different I guess. These were their "beds". Emma had lost interest by this point when i took the picture. The next day she was still into the marker thing and drew a wonderful mural on her wall in her bedroom. I just have to say. . . whatever. Glad it came off and at least it wasn't permanant marker!

Family Night up the Canyon

2009-04-20T13:10:00.004-06:00

For family night a few weeks ago we went with our really good friends, The Magnusson's, up Nephi Canyon for a bbq. To say it felt good to get out in the fresh air up the canyon would be a HUGE understatement. We roasted hotdogs and played in the fire. Mick even gave a little lesson and the kids actually listened! What a fun night.

Check out the Kool-Aid on Emma's face!

What a cute hubby I have. I have such a great little family that I just love to be with. I am going to be so glad to be done w/ all my classes so we can officially start having fun as a family for spring!!!

Tyler and Makenna are "more than friends" and are always very excited when our families get together.

I'm not sure who is the bigger pyro - Tyler, Mick or me!! We all love to play in the fire. Maybe Ty will grow up to be a firefighter too!

Brian came to visit!

2009-04-16T14:19:00.003-06:00

My brother Brian surprised our family by coming up to visit a couple of weeks after he got back to the USA from Iraq. I am the lucky one because I am on the way to Salem from Cali and he stops to see me first! :) I had gone to pick up pizza and I pulled in and his car was out front. They had just pulled up and I did a double take. I was so excited I didn't even take the time to pull the suburban into the garage, I ran over and bulldozed him over (as much as you can a buff marine) and hugged him and screamed. He laughed so hard. Boy I love that little bro of mine.
So Brian and Maribel wanted me to take their pictures in the snow so we went up the canyon. It was a great day for it. We had so much fun. Little lucious got to go with us.

Brian snapped this picture and I was so impressed.

I wish they could live closer because I have so much fun when I'm with them. We are probably going to go on vacation to California this summer and so we'll get to see them then.

Spring Fever

2009-04-16T13:59:00.005-06:00

We went to my nephew's baby blessing the first of March (I know I am WAY behind on my posts!) and it was such a nice warm day. All of us sat outside and took in the sun. We have missed the warm weather so much!
This is my coordinated little man that did not learn any of this from me. I am still trying to get the guts up enough to learn how to do a backflip. He learned how to do this in two tries. Man I would give anything to be that coordinated.

So Ty was trying to teach me to do an ariel (spelling?) last year and he and the girls laughed so hard at me. I am a dork. I would always put my hand down. One time I chickened out last minute and who knows what I looked like but the the kids will never let me live it down. I would venture a guess I looked like a goober!

Bethany was fun to watch because you never knew where she was going to land. Now she is a little bit more like her crazy mother!

Is that sun bright Bet and Hana? I thought it was a fun picture anyways.

Happy little Lucious! She was giggling and did not want to get off the tramp when the big kids came along to boot her off to do their tricks and be scored by uncle Justin. It was fun to see our family and kick back in the sunshine.

Firefighter Class

2009-02-08T23:20:00.004-07:00

Right now I am in a class to get my Fire I & II certification. It has been a combination of a lot of hard work and so much fun. The only bummer is that it takes so much time, luckily it is only a few months until my family sees me again! On Saturday, we did the Proprane Prop and it was a blast - not literally thank heavens. Mick brought the camera down and took some pics of us playing. Mick wants to join the fire dept. in a couple of years. We both have a lot of friends there. A lot of them I actually work on the ambulance with too and I love them to death and trust them with my life. (I guess I better!)
These two yayhoots have been so sweet to help me when being a girl gets the best of me and I can't quite do all that the guys can do. They pitch in and help me so much. I'm so glad that I'm in the class with them!

When we were backing away from the tank after it had been shut off, the hose nearly knocked me on my butt because of all the water pressure. I could not believe how much strength it took to hang onto that nozzle! I would never have lived it down - of that I am certain.

My Old EMS buddies!

2009-02-08T23:08:00.002-07:00

Last weekend I got to work on a call with my old buddies from Santaquin. Both East Juab and Santaquin got paged to the same call and I was so excited to see them. Nothing like putting a patient in the chopper with some of your best friends - old and new. It was one of the hardest things I ever had to do to leave my EMS buddies in Santaquin when we moved to Nephi and these two are among some of them that I missed the very most. We have so many fun memories and they taught me SO much. I am the EMT I am today because of these two and the others there. But I will have to say that I have grown to love my crew in Juab County so much. I could never leave the amazing people I run with now. I am so lucky to work with people that have heart's of gold like those from Santaquin and Juab County. I love them so much.

Trip to Midway Cabin

2009-02-08T22:33:00.007-07:00

A few weeks ago we went up to my grandparent's cabin in Midway for the weekend. We snowmobiled in and stayed a couple of nights. It is the best place to relax and be SO LAZY! Grandma and Grandpa Jorgensen, Alan and Emilie and Sammy, Mama Jo went up with us. We ate, played games, ate, watched movies, talked and laughed, ate some more and went snowmobiling and sledding. So much fun!!

I guess I forgot to put that we read stories too!

Isn't this old boat awesome? We hooked it up behind our vintage 76 Panther and hauled the kids around in it. We have such state of the art machinery at our fingertips!

I'm not sure if Emma can even see where they are going.

I have the sweetest grandparents ever and I am so lucky that I get to go spend time with them like I do. I'm really glad that my kids know them so well. They are so much fun.

Story Time

2009-01-20T10:20:00.003-07:00

I was in the laundry room folding clothes and I looked over and saw this. Emma just loves to read books. She will bring a book up to me and ask me to read it to her. I have made it my goal to stop whatever I'm doing and read it to her. Someday she won't want mommy reading her stories anymore.

Airborn Sledding!

2009-01-10T22:07:00.006-07:00

We had our very first sledding adventure of the New Year. There were jumps at the bottom of a couple of the sled hills and thanks to my new found toy from Mick on Christmas, I was able to catch some pretty fun shots. It was a warm day which was perfect to be outside. We invited our good friends Brett and Andrea to come too.
What a good daddy Mick is. Our kids think the world absolutely revolves around him... as they should. Mick and I were saying that it was nice because we are finally to the point that we can go sledding with the kids and don't have to pack them up the hill every time. It makes it so much funner when you you aren't completely dead after 2 runs. Emma actually climbed the hills most of the time all by herself.

Ariana spent most of the time sliding down this hill on her hind end. She got moving pretty good too. She is always so animated at everything she does.

Even Lucious catches air off the little jump at the bottom of the butt hill. It was so cute to watch her hike the hill and slide down and do it over and over again. It's amazing how something like that can keep a little one so entertained for such a long time. She loved it.

Bet did pretty good about not landing on her head until this one. Luckily she wasn't too hurt.

Then Mick and I decided that we needed to get in on the action. . .

When you were a kid you didn't really worry to much about flying off jumps with just a little tiny piece of plastic between your tailbone and the ground, but as an adult. . . in midair you realize that this is going to kick my butt. The very first run I went down, Brett told me he scored it a 1 and so I couldn't be judged with just a 1 so I had to go up the hill even farther to get a better score. Luckily I did better the next few times around.

I love this pic because Hana is just a squealing and laughing all the way down the hill with her daddy. Mick has his foot out as if that's going to stop them from the jump at the bottom.

Christmas Day

2009-01-10T21:15:00.004-07:00

We had such a great Chrismas this year! I was so excited for all the things that I was giving everyone and Mick gave me the best and nicest present I have ever gotten on Christmas. I got a new camera. . . Oh yes, the one that I have drooled over for a VERY long time! I was beyond excited and very surprised. He gave me the lens first and when I opened it and saw it sitting there, my eyes about popped out of my head. Then he asked if that was the right lens for my camera and I realized that he meant my old camera. I had to hurry and put on my happy face because I didn't want to act diappointed with his present. Then he asked if it was the right brand. When I saw it was a Canon lens, I bet I had a grin from ear to ear. What a turd to tease me like that! He definitely got the "best husband of the year" award for that one. I had my nose in the manual for about an hour after that. I have had so much fun using it since then. It takes pics so amazingly fast. He is so sweet and such a good hubbie to me. Thank you buddy!
Bethany wanted a 3 barrel so bad. I think she looks so beautiful with her hair done like that.

I thought this pic was so cute of Grandma Julie showing Lucious that there was one more present for her under the tree. We went by Mick's parent's house that afternoon and stayed for a few hours. Grandma and Grandpa gave the kids some really fun things. They also got presents from Justin and Lara and Pete and Kenna. Thanks you guys! You are all so sweet. I am so lucky to have good inlaws that I get along with so well.

Mick knew that I was snapping a million pics with my new camera. He always calls me "Photo Phylis" and he told me that I was "Turbo Photo Phylis" that day. So he was really hamming up looking in his stocking. You would have thought there was an envelope for 100 grand in there.

We have started getting together as a family on Christmas night at my mom and dad's house to have family dinner and open presents. It is really cool because it always seemed like after Christmas morning the day was so blah after the excitement was over. This way it stays an exciting day right until the end. My grandma and grandpa Jorgensen and grandpa Johansen came down. It is always good to see them. I have been so lucky to be as close to my grandparents as I am. I really miss my grandma Jo. She was an awesome lady who was always doing things for others. She was so cool and laid back. Truly someone I want to be like. My brother Mark and his wife Shae, my brother Alan and his wife Emilie and little Sammy, and my sis Kristen and her husband Chris were all there. The only ones missing were my little Bro Brian and his wife Maribel.
The kids could hardly make it through dinner, they were so excited to rip those presents open! I think it is so funny because in all the pictures that I took after dinner, they all have red punch mustaches. Thank heavens none of that landed on Mama Jo's carpet. Not a good thing.
Now this child looks psychotic. And thank you mama jo for the automatic dart gun that has had darts flying at my backside since Christmas. That gun packs some power I tell ya. I think the only thing that would have made it better would have been to get Mick one. Actually, maybe not because I would have truly been caught in the crossfire. Mick has shot this gun just as much as Ty has. And he thinks he has grown up!
Grandpa Jorgensen helping Lucious get the ribbon off her present. Grandpa is so cute with my kids. He will tickle them and they just love it. I remember loving that as a kid. We'd finally escape and then we'd go back for more. I hate for someone to tickle me now. What was I thinking back then?
Mom and I had both given Bethany scrapbook things on Christmas so when I pull my stuff out to make cards, she can do that with me. Mick and I were trying to think of things to give the kids that wouldn't just be all toys to go in the toy box that won't be played with within a week or two. She has made me so many sweet little cards since then. I gave Ariana some things too and they have both had so much fun making things together.
I was so sad to take down the Christmas tree and put away all my Christmas decorations this year. It has been such a great season. My kids are the perfect age and it makes it so much fun. It is truly my very favorite holiday.

New Pajamas for Christmas Eve

2009-01-04T21:04:00.003-07:00

Every year the kids get to open one present on Christmas Eve and they are always new jammies to wear to bed. (My mom always gave us pjs too, but she would actually sew ours every year. That just isn't happening for my poor kids.) The kids were a little OVER anxious this year. They were asking to open their presents after breakfast. It was Christmas Eve after all they informed me. Christmas Eve was a lot of fun this year. The kids were pinging off the walls by late afternoon and I had to keep reminding myself how excited I was as a kid the day before. We have dinner as a family on Christmas Eve night w the nice dishes and the candles lit. The kids absolutely love it.

We sat together by the wood burning stove and read the story of Jesus' birth out of the scriptures. The girls were so wound up, they didn't really listen all that well. It's kind of hard to have a spiritual moment when they keep giggling and poking each other. I'm hoping that somewhere in there they will get something out of it.

The girls wanted to model their new pjs. Bet and Hana's were Hannah Montana and so they are posing as rockstars. Emma picks up on everything they do and has to do it to. I have to laugh because Hana hasn't wanted to take those pjs off since. Every day during Christmas Break it was a fight just to get her dressed every day because she wanted to wear them ALL day.

Ty had to pose too of course. That is a killer sword made out of the wrapping paper roll. Very intimidating Bones.

Christmas Eve Sledding!

2008-12-30T22:10:00.006-07:00

On Christmas Eve day, Mick got a wild hair to pull out the 4 wheeler and pull the kids behind it in the snow out in a field across the street from our house. Our very good friends, David and Carrie, were on the same brain wavelength (as always) and had gone out to play in the field too. Thanks heavens Mick has me to "weigh down" the back end of the 4 wheeler to give it traction so it will go in the snow. Isn't he so lucky to have a bigger wife than he is?

Carrie and I decided to brave the tube with David pulling us around. All I could do was laugh as we were going faster and faster. He even almost rammed us into the other 4 wheeler - I seriously thought we were going to nail it, but we only hit it with Carrie's foot. He's a wild man!

This shot says it all. . . he is having a blast!

Bethany and Brittany

I felt like the mom off A Chrismas Story getting Emma all bundled up in her snow clothes to go outside. Hey, but at least she stayed warm! After being a good sport about being pulled around in the sled, she opted for hanging out with dad on the 4 wheeler. She must have figured it was safer there. Or maybe the fact that she didn't have snow flying in her face. Can't say I blame her.

Ariana also voted after a while to hop on the wheeler with Mom and Dad.

My little man.

They couldn't figure out how to fit all 3 of them on the tube, so they just had Bet pile on top of them. Whatever works. . . and it did.

I love this shot because they both have their faces buried to keep them from getting snow all over them. I don't think Ty can even see where he's going his hat is pulled down so far.

My family

2008-12-28T14:50:00.003-07:00

My brothers and sisters are some of my favorite people in the whole world. We got together at a family party the Sunday before Christmas and we spent more time with each other than any of the other cousins, aunts and uncles or grandparents. We just plain and simple have way too much fun together.
Alan is my huge teddy bear brother. His hugs just swallow you whole. He is such a sweet guy.

My mom and Kristen (A.K.A. Kita) and me.

Mark and I were best friends growing up. We had so much fun together and our imaginations never stopped.

We had to prove that Beener was there! We sure wish that he was. We all miss him so much. I think Mick did a pretty good job of putting him in there!

Gingerbread Houses

2008-12-16T20:54:00.003-07:00

Last year we started a little tradition of decorating gingerbread houses at mom's. I spend more time laughing at everything going on than actually decorating my house. Mick deserted me this year and went in to sleep on the couch. Big bum. Then he comes back at the end to give his 2 cents. It was not wanted. . . let's just say that. Just because the dumb shrubbery tipped over and my wreaths did not look like wreaths! See what happens when the main contractor leaves the job site?

We had a pretty killer fence around our property until Emma got up on the table to help Alan and Emilie by putting sprinkles in their front yard and she mashed it with her butt. It was hilarious. Alan and I were laughing saying mom would have had a heart attack if it had been her house. Hers was perfect in every way. Ty made all the little icecicles hanging from the roof. I did not have the patience for that. He patiently made them all the way around.
The kids are truly like their mother, one piece of candy in the mouth and the next on the house. I think I spilled more of the little candies on the floor than any of the kids put together. Their little house turned out so good. Pretty soon Ty just had the frosting bag up to his mouth squirting it in there for easier access. If I was a frosting person I would have done the same thing. Mom told him to knock it off and he said "but my dad said it was ok." She didn't have much to say to that.

There were sprinkles ALL over the floor. Mom says that next year we get to do it at my house.

Emma helped me build the fence. How ironic considering her butt flattened it so fast. It was cute having her put her little candies in random spots all over.

It was so much fun to do this. I love to spend time w/ my family. It is only my memories and relationships that I will keep with me forever. Alan and Em came w/ Sammy. Chris and Kita were there and Mom. Mark and Shae couldn't make it this year - hopefully next. And I just could never see my dad decorating a gingerbread house. That is not his style whatsoever. :) The funny thing is that I forgot that our houses were in the back of the suburban for a few days and they rode around all over the place. Definitely good times together.

My Little Bro the Marine

2008-12-10T23:21:00.000-07:00

My younger brother Brian, sent me an email a few days ago with a couple of pictures. He is serving in Iraq until the first part of March. He was promoted to Sergeant last month. He will never quite know how proud his sis is of him. He is an amazing person with the funnest personality. He makes me laugh repeatedly when I am with him or when I talk to him... and his laugh is contagious. When he called me last month, I squealed like a little kid when I figured out it was him on the line. How would it be to know that your sister adores you that much? We talked for well over an hour. I wish we could talk all the time. He told me the sunsets in Iraq are pretty cool and I told him to send me a pic. Yeah, they are pretty cool.

There is something sobering about seeing my little bro in his camies in front of all these military vehicles. Makes it a reality. My mom said she sat and cried when she saw the picture.

The young women in my ward made cards for all the marines in Brian's plattoon. Here they are showing off the cards they got in their package. He said they were pretty excited to get them. I bet they don't get fun things in the mail hardly ever. My heart goes out to these guys during the holidays. I know that they are all missing their families and want to be here. We sure miss them too. I can't wait til Brian gets home and I can hang out with him again. I love you Brian!

Decorating the tree

2008-12-09T20:27:00.000-07:00

The first family night in December the kids were begging us to decorate the Christmas tree. They would have never let us rest until we had done it! I didn't put one ornament on, I just sat watched and took pictures. It was a lot funner that way I thought.

Can poor Emma even see what she's doing with her hair in her eyes? By the end of the day her hair had fallen out of it's clip and being the mother of the year that I am, I had not redone it. It was so cute how she decorated, she hung everything in little clumps. I have not had the heart to move anything further up towards the top where it is ornament deprived. It is special just the way it is.

On tip toe to reach that perfect spot.

This picture makes me laugh. Hana always has the funniest facial expressions. You can read her like a book just by her face (kinda like her mama). She's apparently pleased with the spot she chose.

They even all clapped when good old Dad put the star up on top of the tree. They were so proud of the finished product.

Getting wood or playtime?

2008-12-04T11:32:00.001-07:00

We recently put in a woodburning stove in the living room area off the kitchen. So we went up to Mick's parent's cabin and got a truckload of wood for the winter. We've used it every day since we got the wood and it sure is nice, especially at night after the kids go to bed to curl up on the couch in front of it.
Mick really gets into his wood cutting. Apparently the chainsaw made him feel well.... I'm not sure. He's a nut!

Little Lucious was such a good helper to carry her logs over to the truck. I think it's really good for them to learn to work when they're young. I'm really glad my parents made me work as hard as I did when I was younger. I sure didn't like it at the time, but it has stuck with me now in the real world. Thanks mom and dad.

Bethany was stacking the wood at first in the truck. But it got all crazy in there after a while. She did her best though.

Ty and Bet would carry a couple of loads over to the truck and then they would announce they needed a "break". There was a rope swing right by where we were cutting that would tempt them beyond their limits. How convenient for them. Pretty soon they were over there playing on that instead of working. Eventually it would turn into a fight over whose turn lasted the longest on the swing. It just wasn't FAIR.

It was fun to watch these two play on the swing. It was so cute to listen to Hana and Emma giggling while they tried to hang onto it. Emma landed on her rear a couple of times and they would both just laugh and laugh.

Bowling on Turkey Night

2008-12-01T09:18:00.001-07:00

When I was little, my grandparents would have all the cousins come for a sleepover at their house on Thanksgiving night. When we got older, they took us bowling. We've done it every year for a long time. This year grandma and grandpa invited the whole family, not just grandkids and that was a blast.

The kids were so excited to go all day long. I think Bethany did more dropping the ball than actually rolling it.
Gotta have a shot with me and my little sis. I think we have way too much fun together!

Ty was so good to help his little sister. It was fun to watch them. I was surprised that no one got their little fingers smashed in between the balls this year. It seems like one of the kids always does.

Bethany took some pictures with my camera. I think she actually did a pretty good job. I think she had more fun taking pictures than bowling.

I think it is so cool that we have stayed as close as we have as a family. Grandma and Grandpa are so good about getting us together to do fun things.

Holiday Bingo

2008-12-01T08:41:00.000-07:00

My grandma Johansen started a tradition when I was little to play bingo after Thanksgiving dinner. A few years ago, Mom and I made up our own game. After someone won, they got to pick out a wrapped prize, the next winner could steal one of the others that had been won or pick their own. You would think that only the little kids would want to play, but all the adults get into it too. Mark was getting all bent this year because he wasn't getting bingo. He would say he got it every time. Mama Jo didn't believe him when he finally did.

Poor Bethany didn't win until the very end. She was so patient. Good thing Grandma Jacki rigged it or I don't think it would have happened at all.

I don't think Mick was quite as excited as it appears over his winnings. The kids were his best buddy because it was filled with candy.

Emma was the first one to win. She was so excited with her prize. How perfect for her. Good thing no one had the heart to "steal" it from her.

Hana just loves her cousin Sammy. He loves to be involved with whatever the kids are doing.

Turkey Day

2008-11-30T18:46:00.000-07:00

Our family went to my mom's for Thanksgiving dinner this year. Everyone was there except my little bro Brian and his wife Maribel - we sure missed having them there!

It was so much fun to get together and pig out. For once I didn't eat so much I felt sick. I think I did more laughing than actual eating which is highly unusual for me! The best part was that Kristen set the kids down at the other end of the table by her and Mark so they had to get the kids plates ready. I got to sit at the other end and enjoy the feast. Thanks Kristen!

Mama Jo was the true chef, but Mark did help cut up the turkey. The rest of us were goofing off so bad I think she was ready to pop us one! Alan started throwing pieces of roll and of course they had to be thrown back.

The kids were more interested in the candy in the nutcups. Emilie made really cute place setting cards. Even little Sammy got one! The best part was that mom dug out my old plate that I made when I was 7 and put that in my place while everyone else got the china. It was so funny.

Such concentration!

2008-11-26T11:20:00.000-07:00

If ONLY she had this kind of concentration to help clean up her room and the hundreds of toys she delivers to every room in the house. Don't look now Mick, but she's got your phone and it will never be the same when you get it back!

It's Santa!

2008-11-25T22:07:00.001-07:00

The girls got to see Santa at the store. They were SO excited. They get so shy when they get up there on his lap and don't have a whole lot to say. Highly unusual for them!

Vegas Endurocross

2008-11-25T21:32:00.000-07:00

Mick and I went down to watch the Endurocross in Las Vegas. It was such a cool event. They had made the track with tires, rock beds, logs and other things. The riders were so impressive. I would have been whining big time to have to ride something like that. Justin, Lara and Ella rode down with us. That made it a lot of fun. Ella was such a good little girl. I couldn't believe that she rode all that way down and back without crying. We watched the qualifying races on Saturday and met up with some other friends there. We hit the buffet for lunch - wahoo! All you can eat food and dessert. I think I saved more room for all the dessert. The main event Sat. night was so much fun. I was excited to come back to see the kids. It was great to have a break, but I missed them a bunch. They got to go to Mick's parents and stay. Vacations go by so fast.

Ty's 10th Birthday!

2008-11-24T21:52:00.000-07:00

Wow! Ty is 10 years old. He's my little man. For a party this year Ty wanted to have a sleepover with a couple of friends. Pizza and video games were all it took to make those guys happy. EASY! Grandma and Grandpa Johansen came down on Sunday and had dinner and brought a present and then Grandma and Grandpa Deschamps came down on Thursday for dinner with a present too. 3 party days. What a lucky kid. I just love the look on his face in the picture when he's looking at what he got. Great big smile, totally happy with it! Emma was right there in the middle of it and wanted to see everything. It doesn't seem like that long ago the nurse brought Ty in that first night to eat and I looked at those big wide blue eyes and it was all over, I loved him forever. All the nurses said he was the cutest baby in the nursery. Next thing I know he'll be graduating from high school. And I'm sure those big wide blue eyes will make some lucky girl love him forever too.

Emma's Leaves

2008-11-13T14:35:00.000-07:00

I have almost 3 hours every day after I take Ariana to Kindergarten to spend with Emma. She is my little buddy and hangs out with me in whatever I'm doing. Today, I was raking leaves and she says "You're making that for me!". I really didn't have the heart to tell her that I was actually planning on picking them all up. So she jumped in and started playing. I grabbed the camera and just tried to catch the fun. I didn't get much done. . . but I don't think I will worry too much about that in 20 years will I?

Wedding Pics

2008-11-09T22:01:00.000-07:00

Ariana and Emma were such good sports coming along with me while I took my friend's wedding pictures. They both work on the ambulance with me and I work with him on the fire dept. They wanted some on the firetruck and I thought they were SO cute! They are such a cute couple. Emma and Hana just love Jen and thought she looked like a "princess". They would hop in my truck and start honking the horn which would make Marcel laugh and bam! We'd get a great shot. They're such good helpers.

Halloween Costumes

2008-11-09T21:44:00.000-07:00

Halloween was awesome this year! It was so warm. I remember taking Ty in a blizzard one year. Ty and Bet both went on their own with their friends. Ty came home with a crapload of candy. They must have been cruising and covered a lot of territory. Emma wasn't so sure the first couple of houses, kinda dragging her feet and once she figured that people were putting goods in her little bucket she was all over it and was leading the way. Mick wore that little red Wendy's girl wig. People would pass us by and order hamburgers and fries. As we're walking along he says "My hair has so much bounce. . . it must be the conditioner I use. What a goober. He made me laugh. Kristen and Chris came down and went trick-or-treating with us too. Very fun night.

Carving Pumpkins

2008-11-09T21:38:00.000-07:00

Fun pumpkin carving festivities at the Deschamps household! There were seeds flying every where but in the garbage can. I am still finding seeds in random places throughout the house over a week later. How the heck? The slimy guts are way too "gross" for the two older girls. Emma seemed to think it was great to scoop them out. Ty and Bet were carving their own and I was wondering how long it would be before someone stabbed themselves.

Camping to Cherry Creek

2008-10-30T22:20:00.000-06:00

For Fall Break we went camping out by Cherry Creek. We left Thurs. morning and came home Sun. morning. We didn't want to come home!! We went with a big group of friends. A couple that I run on the ambulance with, Brett and Andrea and their family, came out with us and we had so much fun with them. Eric and JoDee Nelson, Steve and Leah Dozier, Keiven and Kori Verwer and Chris and Kristen all came. There was tons of riding, sand, more riding, sand, and more sand! Ty and Wyatt climbed trees for most of the time. Brett tried to teach me to shoot. Key word there... tried. I couldn't hit a moving target very well. They still tease me about it. We were out on a family ride on Fri. and found a girl on the trail that had broken her arm. We kept joking saying that we were on vacation and didn't want a "call", but when it came down to it it was kinda cool to help her out. Chris wrecked out on a ride with Mick and hurt his ankle pretty good. Mick buried the kids in the sand. Ty and Bet kept up the tradition of fighting over who got to ride the 4 wheeler. Mick and I even got to go out on a few rides. Fun to have Leah there to ride with. I'm sad that the camping season is over. I'm already excited for spring!!

Capitol Reef

2008-10-09T22:41:00.000-06:00

Mick and I went down to Capitol Reef for our 13th anniversary. Mick's parents, Justin and Lara, and Pete and Kenna had gone down there the day before and so we hiked with them for a bit on Saturday. It was pretty much a rainy day, but we were able to get a few hikes in here or there. Mick and I didn't care that it was raining. Just hanging out with each other without the kids in tow was good enough for us! Sunday was nice and sunny so we got a really fun hike in by Chimney Rock. Chris and Kristen came down and stayed with the kids while we were gone. What a great weekend!

Fall Pictures

2008-09-29T21:32:00.000-06:00

I took the kids to the cabin up Nephi Canyon to take their pictures in the fall leaves. It was a lot of fun. Emma told me not to take too many because she wanted to go play. She must know me well. There is a reason why Mick calls me "Photo Phyllis". I thought their pictures turned out really cute. They all cooperated so well for me.

Mayfield Campout

2008-08-13T23:00:00.000-06:00

Our family loves to go camping together. A couple of weeks ago we went up Mayfield Canyon with a bunch of friends for a 4 day camping trip. Tyler and Bethany fought over who rode the 4 wheeler constantly. It was going all day long with one or the other riding it. The weather was so much cooler than it was down in the valley. At night there would be lightning to watch in the distance that was incredible. We went on family rides on the 4 wheelers, blew bubbles, rode on the 4 wheelers some more and sat around the campfire at night. One day we went down to Town Resevoir and paddled around in the one man rafts. The water was quite nice. The kids loved riding in the back of the truck there and back. The whole trip was a blast. We really didn't want to have to come back to reality when we were done.

Family Slide Show

2008-08-13T22:53:00.000-06:00