The Ward Family

Bo's 8th birthday

2011-08-26T12:37:00.000-07:00

Eight years ago today, at almost this exact time, we welcomed our handsome little guy into this world. Bo is such a fun kid. He is also a handful. He has a great imagination and a fun personality. He is a brother though, so he does his fair share of pestering his 2 sisters and just loves to entertain Alivia, his baby sister.

Some of Bo's favorite activities are playing the wii, playing soccer, baseball, wrestling. He loves to ride his bike and go swimming. He loves to ride snowmachines and fourwheelers. He loves to fish and hike. He loves to go camping and kneeboard and tube. He even loves to read. He hates to clean his room and heaven forbid keep track of his shoes. But he can be a hard worker when he wants to. He ended up with one of the main parts at their end of school program and he worked so hard and was so proud of his part.

He is a good student and probably even better socializer. He is constantly asking to have friends come over or go visit his friends.

We love our little man and hope he has a great birthday!

Make a video - it's fun, easy and free!
www.onetruemedia.com

We lost another great man

2011-08-08T17:59:00.000-07:00

My husband's Grandpa Ward passed away this past Saturday. He was such a great and loving man. We will miss him so much. We love you Grandpa!

Byron Charles Ward, 84 died Saturday, August 6, 2011 in Rexburg, Idaho. He was born October 22, 1926 to Charles Clements and Gertrude Stallings Ward. Siblings are: Lila (Joe) Covington; LuDene (Clyde) Lowdy; Glen Ward; Yvonne (Sylvan) Taggart; Wayne (Sandy) Ward; Veda (Bud) Leavitt; Beth Pocock (Wade) Shirley. He married Norma Siddoway on June 4, 1948; sealed in the Idaho Falls Temple June 14, 1949. Parents of; Delvan (Connie) Ward, of Teton, ID; Kristine (Keith) Pryor, of South Jordan, UT; Neil Ward, of Teton, ID; and their sweet special JoAnn Ward. They have 9 grandchildren and 20 great grandchildren. He grew up in Salem near most of his cousins and stayed close to them through out his life. He served in the Infantry division of the Army stationed in Hawaii near the end of World Ward II. After he married Norma they lived in Caldwell until returning to Teton to farm. Later he purchased a dry farm on the Teton Dam Road. He loved farming and used wisdom as well as hard work to raise good crops. Byron was an active member of the Teton LDS 1st Ward and served faithfully in every calling. He served on the City Council and as Mayor of Teton. Many remember him as a strict school bus driver and fun ski bus driver. Byron’s hobbies included fishing, hunting, riding motorcycles, skiing, golfing, camping, and making caramel popcorn and sour dough pancakes. Several of his family have tried to duplicate his recipe but none compare to Byron’s. He enjoyed visiting with the men of Teton at Darrel’s Café and was willing to lend a hand to help anyone. Byron was great friends with all of his siblings and did many things to help them in whatever ways he could. After he retired, if a farmer ever retires, he and Norma spent many winters in Mexico and California. They enjoyed road trips to visit their friends. He quietly took on the difficult task of caring for Norma after she was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s. He had a tender heart, was a loving, devoted husband, a patient and wise father, a trusted sibling, and a fun loving friend. He is preceded in death by his Parents; his Wife; Daughter JoAnn; Sister Lila; Brothers-in-law, Joe Covington, Clyde Lowdy and Ralph Pocock. Funeral services will be held at the Teton LDS Chapel, on Wednesday, August 10, 2011 at 11:00am. The family will receive friends Tuesday, August 9th from 6:30 p.m. until 8:30 pm at Bert Flamm Mortuary, (581 E. 1st N., St. Anthony) and again on Wednesday from 10:00 a.m. until 10:45 a.m. before services at the Church. Interment in the Teton-Newdale Cemetery. The family requests any contributions be made to the Alivia Ward liver transplant fund at Bank of Commerce in Rexburg.

What we've been up to

2011-04-19T08:09:00.000-07:00

Our sweet Alivia ended up with some health problems that we've been dealing with the last couple of weeks. We spent about 10 days down at Primary Children's hospital where she ended up having major surgery to try to correct a condition called Biliary Atresia. I've set up a blog dedicated to her story here. She is doing much better and we hope that things continue to improve.

Alivia

Bo has been involved in wrestling and has been busy going to practices and meets. So far he has won 1st place getting a gold metal 2 times. He went to his first big tournement Saturday and got a 3rd place bronz metal. We are so proud of him. He is a good wrestler, but most importantly, he enjoys it and is having a great time doing it. It is a really good outlet for him.

Kaylee had her piano festival Saturday. This is her 5th festival that she has participated in. She did awesome! She received a 99, her highest score yet. And she received some very good comments from the judge. We are so proud of her and the hard work she put into learning her songs. She has great potential as a pianist if she will stay dedicated and keep practicing.

Sunday was Raegan's 4th birthday. It is so hard to believe she is 4. She is so much fun. She is our little fireball and is always saying or doing something that just makes us go "What the heck did she just say or do?" We love her so much and wish her a very happy birthday! I will do a separate post just for her birthday soon.

14 years and still goin strong

2011-04-19T07:59:00.000-07:00

Happy Anniversary Honey!

I LOVE YOU SO MUCH!

Raegan's point of view

2011-04-17T10:55:00.000-07:00

I often get interesting pictures on the camera if we leave it lying around and Raegan gets her little fingers on it. Instead of just deleting them like I usually do, I though I'd share them with you instead. These are just a few of the gems I found. There are usually ALOT of duplicate pictures so I just posted a few...and these are just from stuff in the last month.

I believe these are chicken bones for the cat

Fun with the Johnson's

2011-03-08T21:46:00.000-08:00

Ryan's cousin, Russell and Tanya and kids, Megan, Justin, Kristin, and Lauren came up to visit us for about a week in February. We had so much fun with them while they were here. They stayed in a hotel so when they first got here, we met them in town and had dinner and then headed to their hotel so the kids could swim.

The next morning, the guys and boys went to a gun show for a couple of hours and then everyone met up at our house and just hung out and visited for the rest of the day.

Sunday, we blessed Alivia

Monday, we headed up to Stonefly Lodge to spend a couple of days playing in the snow and just relaxing. It was so fun to spend time up there together. The kids had a ball playing together...except the ones who were sick. Justin and Kristen ended up with influenza while we were there so they didn't have so much fun. We all took turns riding the snowmachines in a field across the street and we took little trail rides in the area too. Ryan and Russell then got Justin and Bo out behind the lodge and made a trail down the hill to sled on. We all hot tubbed a couple of times and played ping pong, air hockey and pool. We watched movies and played games and read books. It was great!

We came home on Thursday and some of us took off and went shooting guns while the rest of us hung out at home. Russell and Tanya left the nxt afternoon and we spent the rest of the weekend trying to recover from all our activities. We were all so exhausted!

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

baby smiles

2011-03-08T14:09:00.000-08:00

We sure love it when she smiles! She's starting to make a lot more baby sounds too. it is so fun.

Alivia's Baby Blessing

2011-03-08T13:20:00.000-08:00

We blessed Alivia on February 20, 2011.

Dress was made by Great Grandma Muirhead.
It is beautiful! Thanks Grandma!

After church we all headed over to our house for a lunch of soups, salad, bread, drink, cookies and cake. We ended up with 33 people at our house afterwards. It was crowded but so fun.

Thank you to everyone who was able to make it.
It was a great day!

A football fan in the making

2011-01-31T12:48:00.000-08:00

Alivia and Ryan hung out for quite a while like this watching the Pro Bowl on Sunday. I think Ryan is pretty excited about having a football watching buddy.

Alivia Joy Ward

2011-01-23T19:23:00.000-08:00

Alivia joined our family January 20 at 11:06 am. She was 7 pounds and 18 1/2 inches long.

We got to the hospital about 7:40 that morning and were waiting for the doctor to come break my water. She came and got feeling around in there and could tell something just didn't feel right. She was feeling for the sutchers (sp?) on the head and was not finding anything but softness. I've been told for weeks that my baby had flipped and was head down by several different doctors. So it was possible that maybe she had flipped back over. She did an ultrasound and sure enough, her head was not down.

This would not have been a big problem had she not just broke my water and my contractions were already getting harder. She called the on-call doctor and he came in. It was decided that in trying to avoid a C-Section, they would give me an epidural (which I've never had before) and try to turn the little stinker so that I could deliver normally. After the epidural and a long, agonizing time of them working on trying to turn her, they determined that she for some reason would not turn. Then we had a choice of going with a breech vaginal birth or with a C-Section. After talking with Ryan and a few tears shed, we decided not to risk it and to just go with the C-Section.

They turned up the epidural and shortly had me prepped and ready for surgery. What a strange sensation it was. I was told exactly what they were doing as they were doing it. They were talking and joking the whole time, which made me more relaxed I guess. They even asked what names we had to choose from and took votes. The procedure went really well and seemed really quick and then I was holding my beautiful baby girl. They said that the umbilical cord was kindof wrapped behind her shoulder and that was probably what was keeping her from turning. So I'm glad we opted for the C-Section because that potentially could have caused problems with the breech birth.

After several hours in the surgery recovery room, we were moved to a regular mother/baby suite. It took forever, it seemed to get feeling back in my legs and feet, but man once that wore off, I realized the pain. I hurt more from them trying to turn her than from the actual incision. I am so thankful she is here and safely. She sure is precious and we all love her so much. She seems to be a pretty content baby and we're sure gonna enjoy her...especially once I get to where I can move again.

Ryan's big fish

2011-01-19T16:36:00.000-08:00

This past weekend, Ryan took the scouts on a winter campout to Island Park Reservoir. Saturday morning, they got up and did some ice fishing. Although fishing really wasn't great, he did manage to catch this beauty. He was pretty darn excited about it because these fish just don't get this big.

It is a Kokanee Salmon, 19 1/2 inches and 3 pounds. Isn't it a beauty!

Bo's new glasses

2011-01-19T16:31:00.000-08:00

Last week the kids got their eyes checked at school. We were informed that Bo's eyes were not up to par. We took him to the eye doc and sure enough, he has an astigmatism so he got his glasses today. He looks so much more grown up with them.

Honey do list

2011-01-19T16:28:00.000-08:00

We have had a busy couple of weeks doing some home improvements before the baby comes. Here are some pics of what we've been up to.

We painted the baby's room

Raegan "helping" paint the closet doors

Ryan painting the aqua color. It scared us a little at first, but is much better now.

Both colors - aqua and dark brown

Bo being a big helper

Bad picture. The room actually turned out really cute, especially once we got the chair-rail up.

We built shelves in our storage room after nearly 9 years of living in our house. I'm so excited to fill them up. They turned out so good.

My husband bought a roll end of carpet for really cheap so we ripped the carpet out of our upstair living room and replaced the pad and the carpet. We are loving it!

Ryan pulling up the old carpet

Raegan thought it was great pulling up the pad

Starting to install the new carpet

We also had to buy a new crib because ours was on the recall list. Luckily Walmart took it back and gave us a full refund so we bought a new one and spent time figuring out how to put it together.

Ryan also built a few shelves along the top front of our garage for coolers and such.

It's been a busy couple of weeks, but so worth it.

Raegan strikes again!

2011-01-05T12:10:00.000-08:00

It's been quite a while since I've done a Raegan post. Well, she was on a roll the other day. Unfortunately, I only got pictures of one of the mischievious deeds from that day.

We had gone to the store the day before and somehow she talked us into buying some purple fingernail polish. Purple is her color of choice these days. I, being the ding-dong I am, put the polish on the counter instead of locking it away in a safe.

When she came downstairs with her hands and feet painted purple, we knew things were not good.

We went upstairs to find this mess. Fortunately since it was pretty fresh, it came of fairly easily. I'm just glad it was in the kitchen on the tile and not in her bedroom on the carpet or somewhere like that.

What a little stinker we are raising!

My Christmas Present

2011-01-05T11:58:00.000-08:00

I got a new bed and headboard for Christmas. Ryan made it himself. Didn't he do an awesome job! It is sooooo much better than what we had before and it makes the room look so much bigger and less cluttered.

Now he has to build me a matching bookcase and chest of drawers to go with it, but those will happen at a later date.

I sure love our new bed!

2 1/2 weeks left

2011-01-05T11:28:00.000-08:00

I've had several people tell me lately that I need to post some belly shots.

As much as I don't like pictures of myself when I am pregnant, I can't feel too bad about looking like this with 2 1/2 weeks left. I haven't gotten very big with this pregnancy at all, which is fine with me.

Dr says all looks good. The baby is growing and heartbeat sounds wonderful. Can't wait to meet this little one.

Martin's Cove

2011-01-02T19:07:00.000-08:00

In October, while the kids were out for Spud Harvest, we were able to take a trip to Casper Wyoming to visit Ryan's brother. We drug the trailer over there and stopped on the way at Martin's Cove. It was so neat to learn about the handcart pioneers and their struggles. The kids enjoyed pulling their own handcarts around the little pioneer park. We went to the actual cove and the next morning hiked out to Devil's Gate. It was a neat experience for all of us.

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

The next day, we got to Casper and went to the Interpretive Center where the kids got to ride in a covered wagon, again pull a handcart to see if they would have made it to the Salt Lake Valley and several other activities.

Then we spent a couple of days with Ryan's brother and his family. It was good to see them and spend some time with them. Unfortuneately I didn't remember to pull my camera out while there so I didn't get any pictures of them.

It was a fun trip and we are so glad that we got to go.

The Big Hunt

2011-01-02T18:36:00.000-08:00

Ryan went hunting a couple of times in November. The weather was too nice the first time they went out, but the 2nd time and 3rd time, it was a different story. There was snow and they were able to get their elk for the year.

A few days later, he got his deer. We were lucky this year and now have plenty of meat filling our freezer. It sure is good stuff too.

We decided to save some money by cutting the elk up ourselves. Let me tell you, that was something I'd never experienced before. It took about 3 full days to do 5 elk. It wasn't as bad as I was expecting though so that was good.

Kaylee is very excited to get to hunt next year after seeing what her dad brought home. He's pretty happy about that because hunting has been such a big part of his life.

First Snow

2011-01-02T18:20:00.000-08:00

We had such a beautiful summer and fall and then all of a sudden we got a snowstorm in the first part of November. The snow didn't disappear like it usually would. Then we got a huge storm towards the end of November. The kids actually had 2 snow days the week of Thanksgiving because of it. It was crazy! The kids sure enjoyed it. The cat, not so much.

Bo's tooth

2011-01-02T18:01:00.000-08:00

Bo lost a tooth at school and was so excited. He was given a little treasure box to keep it in.

Halloween 2010

2011-01-02T17:42:00.000-08:00

Ok, I am so far behind on my blogging, I'm gonna try really hard to get caught up BEFORE the baby gets here. Here are the pics from Halloween this year. It was a fun year. The weather was beautiful for the trunk or treat. Then we went around the neighborhood to a few select houses of relatives. We ended the night by going to a Halloween party at our friend's house. It was a fun time.

Merry Christmas!

2010-12-23T06:56:00.000-08:00

And its a....

2010-10-12T13:12:00.000-07:00

If you haven't heard already, we are having a little girl. Here are a couple of the ultrasound pictures we got last month. Bo was pretty upset that he's not getting a brother, but I think he's finally come to terms with it and has decided he'll just have to make her into a tom-boy.

#1, look at that cute little hand

Is that not the cutest little profile picture?

This is the face. Can you pick out the eyes, nose, and mouth?

The Crash-up Dirby

2010-10-12T12:58:00.000-07:00

Ryan and Bo had a guys night out and went to the Crash-up Dirby. Apparently Bo was mesmorized by it. He got so excited when cars started hitting each other. He got into the countdown every time they started a new heat. They had a great time. I think next year, it will have to be a whole family affair.

Big Elk Creek

2010-10-12T12:50:00.000-07:00

A couple of weeks ago, we went with our friends, the Pettersons, the Tuttles, and the Skoys to Big Elk Creek to go hiking and fishing. Well, turns out, we did ALOT more hiking than fishing. We were looking for some Salmon and we never really found the right spot. Oh well, we had a good time hiking and then picnicing afterwards. It was a perfect day for it and it was so beautiful out. We did end up with a couple of good fish right at the picnic area. Ryan waded in the river with a net and caught them.

Raegan is one dirty little girl

The boys were trying to decide whether to use the poles to fish or sword fight.

Ok, maybe we'll just measure and see who has the longest pole.

Look at the beautiful fall colors

the kids found some mini waterfalls

First Day of School

2010-10-12T12:26:00.000-07:00

The kids started school in August. They actually started a week later than originally scheduled due to some technical difficulties in the district. We were fine having an extra week to play before school started.

Kaylee started in fifth grade and Bo in second.

Now that they have been in for nearly 2 months, I'm happy to report that they both really like their teachers and school in general and they are both doing really well.

Soccer

2010-10-12T12:21:00.000-07:00

July was full of soccer practices and games for us. Both Bo and Kaylee played and had a great time. We are glad that July is over though. It was a busy, busy month.

Island Park Reservoir

2010-10-12T12:20:00.000-07:00

I am so far behind on stuff we did this summer. This is one of the most fun activities we had. We went camping with some of our friends at Island Park Reservoir the end of July. We had a great time visiting, swimming, and boating. The kids were even brave and both Bo and Kaylee got up on the knee board. We had a great time!

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Thanks Pettersons and Lerwills!

Relay for Life

2010-08-09T12:17:00.000-07:00

In June, Kaylee had the opportunity to participate in Relay for Life in Rexburg.

We've never really been involved or even gone to the activities, but after doing it this year, I think this is something that we will be involved in on an annual basis.

The Achievement Day girls and our YW from our ward joined teams. They then sold luminari bags and had a car wash to earn money. The night of the relay, they had a booth selling hotdogs and other goodies.

I went to the opening ceremonies and did some walking and came home after the luminari lighting at about 10 pm. Ryan and the other 2 kiddos were there for a couple hours also and did their part in walking the track and partipating in the other activities. I wish I'd have gotten more pictures because it was such a cool event.

Bo climbing the rock wall

Kaylee took pics of random people walking.

I would encourage EVERYONE to get involved in such a great cause....somehow. Even if it is just donating money to the cause or supporting the fundraisers.

Fishing at Teardrop Lake

2010-08-09T12:01:00.000-07:00

We took off one Saturday and headed up to one of our favorite little lakes to do a little fishin. It was a beautiful day and we had a great time. We didn't get many fish hooked, but sure had a good time trying.

The kids had a great time playing in the water too.

On our way home we stopped and fed the HUGE fish near Warm River.

Thanks for the fun day Robertsons!

Happy Birthday Ryan

2010-08-09T11:43:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was my sweet husband's birthday....and I nearly forgot. It's not that I forgot, more that I didn't realize that the 8th was here already. I was thinking I still had a couple days before it got here. Anyways, HAPPY BIRTHDAY Honey! I love you so much and hope you had a great day.

Kaylee's piano recital

2010-08-05T12:49:00.000-07:00

Kaylee had her piano recital in May. She did a great job on her songs. She also had festival earlier and did a great job at that. We are so proud of her and the progress she is making at playing the piano.

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Muirhead Family Reunion

2010-08-05T12:46:00.000-07:00

July 1 - 5 was the Muirhead Family Reunion.

We traveled up to McGrath, Alberta Canada to attend it. It was so worth making the effort. We stayed at a campground just on the edge of McGrath. It was nice; had camp areas with a big open grassy area, a play area, a kitchen and dining area. It worked out nicely for the 110 people who were able to attend. That is not too bad out of 130 something family members. It was so fun to get to know family better....and even meet some that I had never met before.

We left on Wednesday evening after Ryan got done working. We drove to Townsend, MT that night and stayed. Then we got up and were on the road early. We were one of the first to arrive at the campground. It was Canada Day so there were all kinds of celebrations and stuff going on....in the next town over. But in McGrath, it was almost a ghost town. It was weird. Finally, others started showing up later that afternoon. After dinner, we played some games and visited. We went with Russell and Tanya into Raymond and watched the fireworks that night.

On Friday, we went to a hotel in Lethbridge and swam in the wave pool and went down the water slides. It was a lot of fun for both adults and the kids. The big boys, aka Ryan and some of his other cousins, were timing each other going down the waterslides to see who could do it fastest.

Saturday we went to Waterton National Park and did some hiking and exploring around up to Crandall Lake. We went into the townsite of Waterton and visited the falls there and drove up to Cameron Lake. It was so beautiful!

The rest of the time, we just visited, ate, had some games and other activities, ate, visited, oh, and ate some more. We had a talent show and a Muirhead Memories program mixed in there too.

We headed home Monday morning. It was a long drive and a long day. I am happy to report that all the kids DID make it home ALIVE....barely.

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Justin & Krista's wedding

2010-08-05T11:02:00.000-07:00

My younger brother, Justin, got married in May and I am so far behind, I'm just now posting about it.

It was the weekend before Memorial Weekend. They wanted to get married while up camping....so that is what happened. They picked out a really nice spot outside of Driggs. It was open and grassy and had a great view of the river and the Tetons. The only problem was the weather. And considering the time of year, that probably wasn't as bad as it could have been. All in all, it was a great weekend and we are so happy to welcome Krista into the family.

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

you got a little something on your lip

2010-06-10T10:02:00.000-07:00

We made smoothies!

Raegan's 3rd birthday

2010-06-04T16:35:00.000-07:00

My baby turned 3 in April. She is getting so big and she has SO MUCH personality. I just love the girl.

She wanted a pink cake with sprinkles.

Just cleanin up the excess frosting.

She got some washable markers.

Just so you know, it is a GOOD THING they are washable.

She also got some paper to use the markers on, a new swimsuit, some summer clothes, and a new levi dress.

Piano recital

2010-06-04T16:09:00.000-07:00

Kaylee had her piano recital a couple weeks ago. I got most of it recorded. She did a great job!

Sorry about the shakiness. Ryan was trying to video and wrestle kids at the same time.

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

If you plant them...

2010-06-04T16:02:00.000-07:00

will they grow?

While we were busy planting the garden...

the kids were busy doing a little planting themselves.

The Real Love Story

2010-04-29T12:40:00.001-07:00

One of my friends posted this on facebook and I thought it was so cute, I would share with my readers. This is the real love story.

Cats

2010-03-31T20:52:00.000-07:00

Last fall, we got a little black kitten for the kids. We've never had good luck with cats so we were really surprised that this one survived the winter and has grown to be good mouser. Now that all the snow is about melted, she is really having a great time catching all the fat mice that are out in the yard. The kids thought it was hilarious the way the cat would play with the mouse, throwing it in the air and batting it around. They just stand at the window and laugh. Maybe now is a good time to get rid of Dish since we've got a new source of entertainment. Kaylee took this video this afternoon and they watched it over and over and over all evening long.

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Our very own little Picasso

2010-03-31T20:22:00.000-07:00

Raegan found a permanent magic marker in my office and decided she would do a little decorating. She's been our little picasso so much more than the other 2 kids ever were. I really have to watch her with any type of writing utinsel or I will have more masterpieces throughout the house. The crayon ones are from a while back, but the couch and legs and hands are from yesterday.

Vegas Trip

2010-03-22T16:14:00.000-07:00

Last weekend, we took off and went to Las Vegas for a couple of days. We left on Wednesday after the kids got out of school. We drove to Cedar City that night. The next morning, we got up and went to the Iron Mission Museum. It had a lot of wagons and buggies, stage coaches, even a hurst from a long time ago. It also had a lot of other fun stuff to look at. It had some restored buildings from pioneer times. There was a tiny cabin, a schoolhouse, a jail cell, and several others. Unfortunately, it had snowed during the night so we couldn't go inside any of the buildings. But we had a great time. It was fun too because we had ancestors that lived in Cedar City before leaving on the Hole in the Rock expedition.

After we left Cedar City, we took another little detour through Zions National Park. It had warmed up considerably and it was a beautiful day to be out hiking and enjoying the park. We only did 2 short hikes since we still had to go to Vegas that day. We did the Canyon Overlook hike and Weeping Rock hike and went to the visitor's center. We were early enough in the season that we could drive through the mile long tunnel. The kids thought it was pretty neat.

After Zions, we continued on to Vegas. We stayed with Ryan's cousins that live there. On Friday, we went to the park for a while and then we went downtown and saw the lions at MGM and to M&M World that afternoon. It is a little unnerving with kids down on the strip. But we make it home with them all and hopefully not too much trauma.

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Saturday, we spent the day with my brother's family and my sister's family. It was a chilly day, but we had a bbq anyways. Then we went to a park near their house and froze our bottoms off and then went to my neice's soccer tournement game. It was so cold and windy that we were all glad when the game ended. Then we all went out to dinner at the Sweet Tomato. The food was great, but it is a buffet style restaurant and with tired, grumpy, hungry kids, it was not pleasant waiting in the line for the main course. It was a fun day hanging out with them all though.

Sunday, we just took it easy, went to church with Ryan's cousin, and just relaxed. We left early Monday morning and drove the 10 hours home so the kids could go to school the next day. It was a fun trip and nice to get away from home for a few days.

Sledding

2010-03-02T14:15:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago, we got together with some friends and went sledding on "Ass Crash" hill. It is really called Ashcraft hill, but we think it is hilarious the way my 2 y.o. says it. She has no idea, and it is so cute and so very appropriately named that we don't have the heart to correct her....for now. We had a great time and it was such a beautiful day.

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

School Christmas program

2010-03-02T14:06:00.000-08:00

I went to do an update on the blog and found this one that I never posted.

The kids had their Christmas program a couple days before they got out for Christmas break. It was a cute program with some fun songs.

Bo's tooth

2010-03-02T13:07:00.000-08:00

Bo finally lost his first tooth.

He was so excited!

He was so desperate to lose his tooth he was tempted to let Ryan pull it out with pliers. BUT, Ryan wasn't home and Bo just couldn't wait any longer, so he worked it and worked it and pulled it out on his own.

The Undaunted

2010-02-03T11:24:00.000-08:00

I just finished reading The Undaunted, by Gerald Lund. It is a historical novel about the Hole-In-The-Rock pioneers back in 1879-80. I was anxious to read it because it is part of our family history. It was an awsome book. If you get to read it, look for my family's story in Chapter 63. Their names are Joseph (Stanford) Smith and Arabella (Belle) Coombs Smith.

Rollerskating

2010-01-12T10:48:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago, we got invited by some of our friends to go rollerskating. It has been years and years since I've been rollerskating. I didn't even know there was anywhere around still open, let alone that it was still so popular. We went and had a great time. The kids loved it and have decided that it would be a fun birthday activity. So we may be going every once in a while.

My pictures aren't great because all I had was my phone.

It's the wannie hat

2010-01-11T11:27:00.000-08:00

My husband was Scout Master for 9 years. During those 9 years, he camped almost 12 months every year. He isn't the scout master anymore, but somehow he ends up going on all the campouts anyways. The last one he went on, he was in charge because the new scout master couldn't make it. He couldn't find his hat so I jokingly gave him this pink one to wear. He wore it and it was then named the wannie hat and is going to be given to whomever is being whiny or acting like a wannie on the campout.

Guess who got a hold of my camera

2010-01-11T09:31:00.001-08:00

This is what I got

2010-01-11T09:27:00.000-08:00

Ryan made me a new kitchen table for Christmas. The wood is reclaimed from the old Teton Merc here in Teton. We figured the wood has been in the building for about 100 years. He made it big enough to comfortibly fit 10 people around it with the leaf in it.

My table turned out so beautiful! What a talented and sweet husband I have.

Christmas

2010-01-11T09:16:00.000-08:00

We had a great Christmas this year. We were a little worried because we weren't going to have a very big Christmas. We kept it simple this year. The kids got 2 gifts, one from us and one from Santa and their stockings with a few essentials and some goodies. And then we got a family gift.

Even though it was a smaller, simpler Christmas, it was so nice. The kids didn't even notice the lack of gifts. We spent a lot of time with family and friends and just had a great Christmas. I'm thinkin we're gonna keep things simpler from here on out. Kaylee got a guitar, Bo got an Optimus Prime transformer, and Raegan got a dollhouse.

Bathroom remodel

2010-01-11T08:48:00.000-08:00

Wow, the holidays were busy. I'm gonna try to catch up on all the stuff we have done lately.

Our most recent project, which happened this past week, was a bathroom remodel.

We went from this....

to this...

...in 3 days. It was somewhat of a forced remodel. Here is the story:

A week or two before Christmas, we had a really cold spell go through here. The night time lows were in the -20's and the daytime highs didn't make it out of the negatives for about 3 or 4 days. On one of these days, we noticed we had no water to our tub, which usually indicates that the pipes going to that tub are frozen up. This happens on occasion, but is usually easily fixed with a little warm air. Well, after an hour of warm air and still no water, we kinda started to panic that maybe we were frozen up enough that we would end up with burst pipes. So Ryan tore our tub apart to get underneath it better and get more warmth in there. After getting it all torn apart, we realized that nowhere else in the house had water either. It had actually frozen in the garage where the boiler is. So long story short, we got it all unfrozen, got the pipe insulated better and now had a torn up bathroom we had to fix.

We built our house in 2001 and went really neutral and boring on everything. So we are slowly going through and painting some color and changing and updating stuff. We were going to get to this bathroom eventually, but now we just had to do it. We removed the rest of the tile from the walls, tub, and floor. We replaced a bit of sheetrock, repainted, replaced the fermica counter with a new granite one and rebuild the surround around the tub and retiled everything. We are so happy with how it all turned out. Now all that is left is to get new towel hangers, toilet paper hanger and get some new rugs that match our new bathroom.

If you are in the southeastern Idaho or western Wyoming area and need some tile work done, Ben is awesome. Here is a link to his website. Give him a call.

Boys and their toys

2010-01-11T08:16:00.000-08:00

I found these pictures on the camera. Ryan must have taken them. He's really just a big kid and he loves his big kid toys. Apparently enough to take pictures of them.

Just spreading some Christmas cheer

2009-12-08T22:15:00.000-08:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Happy Thanksgiving!

2009-11-26T07:25:00.000-08:00

I am so thankful for everything we have. We have a happy and healthy family. We have such wonderful extended families as well. We have a warm home and food and clothes. We have great friends and neighbors. We live in a great country. We have jobs.

I know this barely scratches the surface. One day a year is hardly adequate to express thanks for the many blessings we have in our lives.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Veteran's Day salute

2009-11-11T09:52:00.001-08:00

Thank you to all our Veterans!

This morning as I was getting kids ready for school, I asked my 9 year old daughter if she was excited for the Veteran's Day program at school. She said she was and then added that they were even going to have a real live veterinarian speak.

I had to giggle a little.

Grass

2009-11-06T13:03:00.000-08:00

Since we built our house 8 years ago, we've had a patch of weeds growing next to our driveway. We decided it was time to clean it up. We rolled out sod on it and made more yard. It will be so nice to have grass there next summer instead of weeds. Looks much better now.

Big zucchini

2009-11-06T12:58:00.000-08:00

Our friend gave us 2 zucchini a couple of weeks ago. They were huge. The biggest one was 22" long and weighed in as 12 pounds. The kids thought is was funny to hold it treat it like a baby. I wouldn't have wanted to squeeze that size baby out.

Halloween

2009-11-06T11:39:00.000-08:00

We had a fun Halloween this year.

Friday night, Ryan and I went to a Halloween costume party with several couples from our ward dinner group. It was a lot of fun. We had some dinner and then played 2 lies and a truth. We had some good laughs and got to know everybody a little better. We discovered that there are some pretty good liars in the group. After the party, a few of us ladies went to the Haunted Mill.

Aunt Jamima

Jack Sparrow and his girlfriend

MMA Fighters

Couple of goofy basketball players

Zorro & a gypsy

jailbird & Bob the Builder

Saturday, we took the kids to trunk or treat and then later after it got dark, we took them around to some of the neighbors and other people who don't do the trunk or treat thing. Then we came home and watched "Monsters vs. Aliens". We were all exhausted by the end of the day. It was a lot of fun though.

a stylin witch

A leopard

a dead pirate

one tired little leopard

Pigs

2009-10-14T12:44:00.000-07:00

As of late, Bo has had an obsession with pigs. Not just pigs in general, but pigs doing things.

Yesterday, the wind was blowing outside and out of nowhere, he pipes up "It is colder than a pig on rollerskates." Don't know where that came from.

This morning as the kids were watching for the school bus, he grabbed my hand and said, "Mom, your hand is warmer than a pig making sunshine."

He is such a funny kid. I don't know where he comes up with a lot of stuff, but it sure is funny sometimes.

We'll see what he comes up with next.

Meadow Lake pics

2009-09-23T08:48:00.000-07:00

A while back I posted about Bo making the hike at Meadow Lake. We have received some pictures from that campout and hike. Still so proud of him.

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Tauphus Park Zoo

2009-09-16T21:01:00.001-07:00

Last week me and Raegan went to the zoo with a couple of our friends. After the zoo, we went to a little play area nearby and ate our lunch and let the kids play. We all had a great time.

It sure was nice being the one with the least number of kids there.

Camping with Oversons

2009-09-16T20:30:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago, we went camping with our friends, the Oversons. We went to her parent's property that is on the way to Driggs. It was a beautiful spot and we had so much fun....once we got Raegan fed. She was a very grumpy girl until we ate dinner and realized that she was just hungry. She didn't tell us that though.

We had a great time riding four wheelers, playing some baseball and the kids loved climbing the trees. Some of us even snuck a nap in.

Thanks Overson's for the fun time!

We Remember

2009-09-11T07:58:00.000-07:00

It's like buttah

2009-09-01T11:19:00.000-07:00

I've been asked what Raegan does while the kids are at school. The 2 pictures below are just a couple of examples of what she has done with all her spare time.

On the first day of school she dumped her cold cereal all over the kitchen floor. While I proceeded to clean that mess up she went to the living room and emptied all my music out of the piano bench... alot of which was loose papers. That gave me a project to do of figuring out which songs each page goes to. That was fun! Then she headed downstairs to the playroom to empty the bookcase of all the kids books. Needless to say, she went down for a nap after that.

Yeah, it's butter.....all over the side of my cabinet.

Here are a couple of other pictures of things she has done in recent months.

She used up all my foundation on her face, hair, arms

She filled the bathtub to nearly overflowing when I

realized where the sound of water running was coming from.

But, how can you stay mad at such a cute little stinker.

Bo's 6th birthday

2009-08-28T10:45:00.000-07:00

My little man turned 6 on Wednesday. I can't believe he is that old already.

Happy Birthday Bo! We love you very much!

Raegan's haircut

2009-08-21T11:18:00.000-07:00

I got sick of Raegan's snarly hair and her not allowing me to brush it that I decided it was time for a haircut.

Turned out so cute, that Kaylee decided she wanted her's cut off the same way.

Then we had to shave Bo's and Ryan's heads. Now everyone is ready for a new school year.

1st day of school

2009-08-21T10:50:00.000-07:00

School started yesterday. My kids were so excited. They were up at 6 am, on their own. They were dressed and had gone out and fed the cat and dog. Then they came and woke me up at 6:30 because they needed breakfast. They both said they had fun at school. It was a nice day at home for me and Raegan. It was so quiet all morning. We picked Ryan up from work and went to lunch to celebrate. Then we came home and Raegan went down for her nap until after the kids got home from school. I might, just might, be able to get the house cleaned and get some other projects done now if every day was like yesterday. :)

This morning was a completely different story though. Kaylee's alarm went off at 6:22. She rolled over and shut it off and rolled back over and went back to sleep. Bo was sure he didn't need to go to school today. He was too tired. It took both me and Ryan to get him up and dressed and going this morning. Maybe he'll decide to go to sleep when we put him to bed next time.

He was the talk of the ward.....again

2009-08-17T09:30:00.000-07:00

I don't know what it is about Bo, but he seems to be the talk of our ward quite often.

He went with his Dad on a scout campout on Friday. They went to Meadow Lake. On Saturday morning, they went on a 6 mile hike and he apparently was the pace setter. My husband said it was quite a hike too. He said you went up about 1700 feet in 3 miles so it was pretty steep. Not only was Bo the leader of the pack, he talked non-stop the whole way. Both Ryan and one of the other leaders had to tell them that they had to catch their breath before they could answer his questions. Ryan said that several times, Bo would be so far in front that he would be sitting on the trail waiting for the rest of the group to get there and then would take off again when everyone else sat down to take a break.

At the top of the mountain, there is a book that you can sign. Bo signed his name and age. He was so proud. The funny thing is that my husband couldn't finish the hike because he forgot his anti-inflammatory for his plantar fascitis and had to turn around about half-way up because he couldn't hardly walk anymore. Bo has no problem reminding Ryan that he didn't make it to the top of the mountain.

So we get to church yesterday and we hadn't hardly made it in the door before someone had him stopped and was talking to him about his hike and high-fiving him for finishing it. Several times throughout the day, I heard people make comments about him to other people. When we got home, Ryan said that Bo was the talk of elder's quorum.

I'm so proud of my little man. He will be an awesome scout someday if he keeps it up. He was all about jumping in there with the scouts and helping cook dinner and doing the hike and such.

Nichols Family reunion

2009-08-15T10:52:00.000-07:00

This year, we had a Nichols family reunion. It has been probably close to 15 or 16 years since the last one. We rented a lodge on Bills Island on Island Park Reservoir. It was a great place to stay and was right on the water's edge. We went up from July 30 - August 2. There were only a couple of people missing out of the whole family. After so many years, everyone must have been excited to see each other. It was fun to see all my cousins grown up and with kids that looked just like them when we were that age. We had a great time visiting, relaxing, boating, swimming, EATING, EATING, and Eating some more. Here are some pictures taken at the reunion.

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Thank you Nichols family. It was so much fun! Lets not wait so long for the next one.

MOM your ride

2009-07-30T13:43:00.000-07:00

Saw this video and thought it was so funny.

Hotdogs anyone?

2009-07-24T15:18:00.000-07:00

Last night, there was a fire fighter training on a house just around the corner from us. It was a very old house, rumored to be one of the originals in town. It has been abandoned for some time now and has been falling apart and becoming a big eye sore in town. The current owner donated it to the city, which in turn allowed the fire department to use it for training. It was pretty cool to watch. It must have been pretty exciting because I think most of the town showed up to watch it burn.

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Camping at Island Park Reservoir

2009-07-21T13:06:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, we were able to go camping with some friends up to Island Park Reservoir. We went boating, water skiing, wake boarding,tubing, and swimming. The kids had a great time in the tube, even my 2 year old. The first day was pretty lax. The second day, it got a little wild and kids were flying out of the tube. It was a lot of fun packed into a 26 hour period. We all came home exhausted and very, very red.

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Thanks Pettersons for going with us and providing the boat!

4th of July

2009-07-21T12:37:00.001-07:00

We had such a fun 4th of July. It started out at 6:45 over at the school. They had a flag raising ceremony and a community breakfast. We left the kids in bed to sleep and Ryan and I went over for it. It was fun to visit with everyone that was there.

After breakfast, we went home and got the kids up and headed into town for the parade. We met a bunch of friends there so we could all sit together. It was fun to watch the kids play and enjoy the parade.

After the parade, we ran home and got food and headed down to my parents house for a Smith Family BBQ. I forgot my camera so I didn't get any pictures there. We had some dutchoven chicken and potatoes and lots of salads, Aunt Carolyn's rolls and lots of desserts. We were stuffed, but had lots of fun visiting with family.

We headed home later in the afternoon to start getting ready for the bbq we were having at our house that night. We did hotdogs and bbq and had salads. Right as people were showing up for dinner, we had a downpour so we moved everything into the garage to eat. Luckily it didn't last long and we were able to head outside and visit and the kids ran and played. I didn't get many pictures that night either. I was too busy hosting. We ended up with around 45 people here that night. We had a 2 hour fireworks show and everyone went home completely exhausted.

Make an on-line slide show at www.OneTrueMedia.com

It was such a great day!

Daddy Daughter Date

2009-07-21T12:27:00.000-07:00

Kaylee and Ryan went to a daddy daughter date earlier this month. They had it at the Thompson Farm, which is a big barn that they have restored and now is used for parties, weddings, proms, etc. It was a western them so Kaylee and Ryan both wore their cowboy clothes. They had baked potatoes and chili and after dinner, they learned some sqare dancing. They got their pictures taken. Both Ryan and Kaylee had a great time together.

Tate Wesley

2009-06-30T16:27:00.001-07:00

Ryan's brother, Rob, and his wife Angie were blessed with a beautiful baby boy a couple of weeks ago. We can't wait to meet him. The kids already call him Tater Tot.

Congradulations Rob, Angie and Carly!

Summertime fun

2009-06-29T07:30:00.000-07:00

The weather has been so strange the last couple of weeks, its been hard to get out and do much, but we have been able to have a little fun.

We went camping to Moody Meadows with the Ashcraft family from our ward last weekend. Each month, we are put into dinner groups in our ward. It is so we can get to know different families in the ward other than the ones we usually hang out with. This has been so much fun. We've gotten to know so many more people so much better. Anyways, this campout was our dinner group for the month. I forgot to take my camera so I didn't get any pics of the campout. We ate lots of good food and after breakfast Saturday morning had a fun little game of baseball with the plastic bat and ball we took. We actually had good weather the whole time we were there.

We got to doggy sit for Uncle Neil while they went to Las Vegas for a couple of days. The kids thought it was great to go up and feed the dog and take him outside to run and play several times a day. They even thought it was such fun to take him out to do his business.

Tuesday, we went down to my mom's and played beautyshop. We got our hair done and just had a fun time at "Grandma's house".

Wednesday, we went to the Rexburg Spray Park. I think this is about the first nice day we've had and been able to go since it opened. We got there in time to get some free lunch and then the kids played for hours. There were a ton of people there and the kids really had a great time. Raegan loved it. She was actually big enough to go run through the water by herself.

This past weekend, we went camping again. We went up to Teardrop Lake. Our friends, the Bakers, from the ward, went with us. And my parents also came up. The problem with being by this little lake was there were a ton of mosquitoes. We just about got carried away by them. Luckily, it rained as we were getting up there so it subdued them quite a bit for Friday. We were able to cook and eat and visit outside until the rain hit again later that night. We had a pretty good thunder storm roll through.

The next day was nice until around 2 o'clock. Then the mosquitoes came out in full force. We decided to not stay and get eaten alive. So we packed up camp and headed down to Ashton for a milk shake at the Frost Top. Then we headed over to a park to eat them and let the kids play for a while. There was a merry-go-round at the park and the kids just loved it. I even hopped on and rode it for a couple of minutes. Unfortunately that is as much as my body can handle anymore. I remember riding the merry-go-round for all of recess in elementary school. It was fun. Very nostalgic. The kids rode it and rode it and rode it. Bo was ready to puke so we drew the line on that and make them go play on something else for a while before we got back in the pickup.

After the park, we headed up Island Park way. We have another favorite spot up there called the dike. It is on Island Park Reservoir by the dam. We thought we'd check out the mosquito situation up there and either stay there or come home. Luckily, there was not hardly a single mosquito, except for the ones we brought with us in the camper. So we decided to set up camp there. The kids had a great time fishing and riding their bikes around the campground. We went for a couple of drives and even got to go mudding a little bit. The kids were just sure we were lost. They were a little worried. We drove over to Buttermilk Campground to the boat docks there to try the fishing. And we drove over to the west end campground Sunday morning to check things out there. We headed home Sunday afternoon. Despite the mosquitoes forcing us to re-locate, we still had a great camping trip.

Last night, we headed up to Green Canyon to swim for a couple of hours and then came home and roasted hotdogs and marshmellows. It was a beautiful evening so we lit a couple of fireworks to kick off the week. What a fun night!

We've had a fun couple of weeks!

The last days of school

2009-06-10T06:32:00.000-07:00

It was a very busy week last week with all the last days of school activities.

Monday Kaylee had her school program, "The Cheese Stands Alone". What a cute program! She played the cat and did such a good job.

Wednesday, they had a family picnic day and field day. Kaylee participated in the relay race. And then they had probably 10 different stations that the kids went to and did different activities. It was such a beautiful day that I ended up staying the whole time. It was a lot of fun to watch, and they were more than willing to let the younger siblings participate, which was nice.

Bo's kindergarten graduation was on Thursday. It was also a very cute program. He did a great job on his speaking parts and the songs he participated in.

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Friday was Kaylee's last day of school. It lasted 2 hours. Don't know why they even bother, but oh well. She was able to ride the bus home with her friend to have an end of the school year slumber party.

It has been a good school year....and I'm kinda sad to see it go. What am I gonna do with the kids all summer??? We'll figure somethin out.

Photo shoot

2009-06-02T12:28:00.000-07:00

It was such a beautiful day the other day, I took Raegan out and attempted to get some cute pictures of her in the yard. She didn't cooperate very well, but here is what we got. There are still a few cute ones, but not exactly what I was hoping for.

Kaylee's piano recital

2009-06-02T12:18:00.000-07:00

Kaylee had her piano recital last week. She did such a good job! We are proud of her and what she has accomplished this year in piano. She played 2 songs and received her certificate from Festival. She got 97 out of 100 points at Festival. Not bad for her first time.

While people were playing their pieces, Miss Raegan was doing some interpretive dancing. It was pretty cute, but I wasn't quick enough with the camera to get any video. Guess you'll just have to take my word for it.

Afterwards, we all went out to celebrate with ice cream.

Teardrop Lake

2009-06-02T12:06:00.000-07:00

One of our very favorite places to camp is Teardrop Lake. It is a small lake nestled in the forest right on the border of Yellowstone Park. It is such a fun place to camp. Since it is so high, it usually is not accessible for camping until mid summer. We decided to drive up there and see how far we could get. We got to the lake, but it was a little exciting. As you can see, there was still some snow. Ryan did have to shovel us out once on the way out. The snowdrift won that little battle.

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

The kids thought it was great to play in the snow around the lake. What a fun day!

Bo was so funny. I don't think he stopped talking the whole time we were gone. We had a running commentary of all the days' events. It was funny why we were busting through snowdrifts, he we just sure we were going to die. He told us to just let him know when we die. Also, this little lake is in the heart of bear country and so we told the kids to watch out the windows for bears. He was just sure we were gonna become "bear bait". What a funny kid!

AAHHWWW! I'm sooooo tired!

2009-06-02T11:58:00.001-07:00

The kids wanted to watch a movie and sleep in the camper the other night. This is what we found the next morning. Love it! They had been snuggling together, but by the time we got the camera, Bo had rolled out of the snuggle.

Jumping must have plum tuckered her out. She was dead asleep on the trampoline in this picture.

This is what I got when I told him he had to shut the TV off and either go outside or take a nap. Apparently he opted for the nap. He looks pretty dang comfortible.

4 staples later.....

2009-05-07T12:40:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, Bo went and got 4 staples in his head after falling backwards into a table in my living room. I was in the kitchen making dinner when it happened. He came in screaming and at first we didn't see the blood. And then it started gushing. I've learned through experience that you do not panic. You clean the blood off and see what is underneath. Well, that is what I did; however, Bo didn't get the memo and he freaked when the blood started dripping on the tile. After finally convincing him that it was not that bad, he settled down ....a little.

Having been through this multiple times, I was prepared. I got my anticeptic and my liquid stitches and went to work. Apparently it all burns when applied to the wound. Again with the freaking out. I once again got him settled down and was able to apply the liquid stitches and hold the wound shut long enough for it to dry. It was a good size cut so I figured this was just a temporary fix.

When Ryan came home about an hour later, Bo didn't want to show him because he knew what was coming. Sure enough, Ryan gathered him up and headed to Urgent Care. Bo called me on their way home to tell me what a brave kid he was. He didn't even cry when he got the staples.

This obviously is not the first time we've had to do this. This, in fact, is the 3rd time we've taken him in for stitches. I remember atleast 2 other times that he probably should have gone in, but we doctored him up instead. That doesn't include the time we took him to ER because he fell over the banister to our stairs. Falling about 12 feet to the bottom of the stairs. I was 9 months pregnant, but I gathered him and carried him up the stairs and was checking him out when my husband walked in. That little incident ran about $2000 after all the x-rays and and MRI to make sure all was well, which it was. He didn't even bruise.

So now that he's had his stitches (staples) for the year, we should be good for another 12 months or so. Hopefully....

Raegan's 2nd Birthday

2009-04-21T20:03:00.000-07:00

Friday was Raegan's birthday. We didn't do a whole lot that day. That evening we had all the family over for presents, cake and ice cream.

She got lots of fun clothes and toys. She was very excited about the clothes. She had to go and try them all on with everyone there. She is such a cutie! I can't believe it's been 2 years.

Easter 2009

2009-04-20T12:32:00.000-07:00

We had a fun time this Easter. My sister, Elissa, and her kids came up from Utah. We pulled our camp trailer down to my parent's house and we just partied all weekend.

Thursday night we just hung out. Friday, we went to lunch at Leo's and let the kids play for 3 hours. That night, we just stayed home and watched movies. Saturday morning, the weather was beautiful so we pulled out the guns and shot skeet for a couple of hours, then we had an Easter egg hunt and a weiner roast.

It was a fun weekend and it was nice to get to see Elissa and the kids.

What a smarty pants!

2009-04-01T08:59:00.000-07:00

This morning when I got in the shower Raegan was in her diaper and bathrobe. When I got out this is what I found.

She had put her dress on....backwards so that she could do the zipper up. And she also put on matching shoes.

I asked her where she was goin and she told me "up the road". I asked up the road to where and she said "up the road to church".

Since she was all dressed up we decided to do her hair up pretty and paint her fingernails, too. I guess there is a little bit of girl in that tomboy.

Miss Raegan

2009-03-24T12:48:00.001-07:00

She loves chocolate!

Aren't these sweet sunglasses? She thought they

were.

Do they think its summer?

2009-03-24T12:36:00.000-07:00

Last Friday, we had a very nice day.

If was great! It melted a lot of snow.

It was probably um....mid 50's.

I turn my back for a few minutes and this is what I find.

My kids all had their swim suits on and were out jumping on the trampoline. I did put my foot down at them putting the sprinkler on though. I love the pics of them walking through the snow with their sandles or socks on.

I think they are more than ready for summer to get here. Guess I'll have to hide the swim suits until I think it is warm enough to sport them.

He ditched us!

2009-03-16T11:26:00.000-07:00

Another little note about church yesterday.

I am the choir director in our ward and with it being Ward Conference, I had a short practice before church started. So Ryan was in charge of getting the kids to church...and on time.

My kids came in about 10 minutes before church was to start, but without their dad. I asked where he was and my daughter told me that he just dropped them off and left. I was a little baffled, but thought that maybe he had forgot something at home and ran back to get it. But he never showed up to church.

After church, I was finally able to find all the children, which is quite a feat anymore. They just remodeled our church and there are a lot more hallways and foyers to lose kids in. I think they need to provide tracking devices or something. Anyhoo, that is a whole difference story.

We made it home and Ryan was a sleep in the recliner. I learned that he had gotten sick right before church and supposedly had told Kaylee why he was not coming to church. She didn't hear him, I guess.

My father-in-law asked my son, Bo, why Ryan wasn't at church and Bo's response to him was "HE DITCHED US!" That is so typical Bo. We all had a good laugh about that.

Rollercoaster Ride, by Bo Ward

2009-03-16T11:19:00.000-07:00

During church, I often let my kids draw in an attempt to keep them somewhat quiet. I'm not sure why Bo decided to draw a rollercoaster, but as it turns out, it didn't help in keeping me quiet.

The funny part is that he announced to me to look at the ones upside down. "Hey Mom, look at them smiling while they are upside down."

Those are the biggest frowns I've ever seen. Reminded me of my husband. He doesn't do loopy rides...he makes big "smiles" too. I couldn't help but laugh at his little picture with the smiles and standup hair.

Singing in my sleep

2009-03-12T12:47:00.000-07:00

The other morning my dear husband informed me that I had been singing Hawaiian songs in my sleep during the night.

I am in a women's chior in Rexburg and this spring we are having a Hawaiian themed concert because one of our directors lived in Hawaii for about 6 months the end of last year.

Here is one of the songs we will be singing. Should be a fun concert, just ask my husband.

I've been tagged!

2009-03-03T10:42:00.000-08:00

This is the 6th picture in my 6th folder. Not sure if I'm playing right, but my photos are not organized at all right now. I have lots of folders that just have 1 or 2 pictures in them so I had to go all the way to folder 6 to make this work.

This is my baby Raegan, who is not much of a baby anymore. I had dressed her in her blessing dress that I bought off Ebay for $10. I wanted to get some pics taken before the actual blessing day because it tends to get busy. She was about 2 1/2 weeks in this picture. She will be 2 years old next month.

I tag Whitney and Jeralyn and anyone else who wants to participate. :)

Chili Cookoff Champions!

2009-03-02T11:50:00.000-08:00

Ryan and Bo went to the father and sons banquet on Saturday. They were having a chili cookoff.

We have a great recipe that is Ryan's Grandma Muirhead's recipe. He decided to go ahead and give it a try and he won 1st place with it out of about 8 other contestants.

Here is the trophy.

Congradulations guys!

Snowmachine ride

2009-03-02T11:20:00.000-08:00

This past weekend, I went on my first and probably only snowmachine ride this winter. I don't get to go often, but I sure had a great time. I went with my husband, Ryan, the Roberts', the Weekes', and Lerwills. Although, the Lerwills had to leave because of machine malfunction so they didn't get to actually ride with us.

We unloaded at Bear Gulch and rode a loop up past Pole Bridge Campground and ended up down at Mesa Falls. It was a beautiful day and a fun ride. My poor body is feeling the 55 mile ride though. And I am proud to say that I only got bucked off once and it was because I was trying to be adventurous and go over a small jump....sideways. Not a good idea, but like I said, I was being adventurous.

Here are some pics of the trip.

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Family Home Evening - Tubing

2009-02-19T12:37:00.001-08:00

Last Monday night, we got together with several families and went sledding just out of town. There were a bunch of little kids and a bunch of slightly bigger "kids." We all had a great time. Unfortunately, I was having such a good time that I didn't get my camera out very early into the evening so many of my pictures are a little dark. Here they are anyways.

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

After tubing, we gathered at our friends house for soup and hot chocolate and some good visiting. It is great to have such awesome friends!

Valentine's Day

2009-02-19T11:46:00.001-08:00

I know I'm a little late on getting this posted.

We had a good day. Ryan presented me with a beautiful flower basket. He rarely gives flowers so I was thrilled to get them. And he had a friend personally make the arrangement for me. He was so thoughtful. Later that afternoon, we took the kids to Rexburg to one of our friends and they went for a sleigh ride behind his sleigh he uses to feed his cows. I think he was just looking for extra help feeding so he invited us, but the kids had a great time nonetheless. They said they would go feed cows again. After the sleigh ride, we were pretty chilled so we went to Joe's and got a hot chocolate and cheesecake.

Make an on-line slideshow at www.OneTrueMedia.com

That evening we went to a Valentine Dinner that our Young Women's group puts on for the adults. It is a fund-raiser for girls camp, but it is such a great evening for us adults. There was great entertainment and games and even a little dancing. It was a fun evening.

Ice Skating

2009-02-06T12:07:00.001-08:00

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

5 little monkeys

2009-02-06T09:48:00.000-08:00

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Norma Siddoway Ward

2009-01-31T21:11:00.000-08:00

My husband's Grandma passed away this past Thursday. We will miss her a lot. We can only imagine what a reunion she is having right now. We love you Grandma!

Norma Ward

Norma Siddoway Ward, age 79, passed away peacefully on Jan. 29, 2009, in Idaho Falls, Idaho, of causes related to Alzheimer's.

She was born June 25, 1929, in Teton, Idaho, the oldest child of Ernest R. and Geneva Irene Parker Siddoway. Her siblings, Harold (Noreen) Siddoway, Carol (Keith) Hansen, and Erna (Cal) Whitaker, were some of her best friends.

She married Byron Charles Ward on June 4, 1948. Their marriage was solemnized in the Idaho Falls LDS Temple on June 14, 1949. She grew up, raised her family and created a lifetime of memories in Teton. Norma was an active member of the Teton LDS 1st Ward and enjoyed singing in the ward choir. She served on the Fremont County Planning and Zoning Board and the County Library Board. She helped start Teton's Fourth of July Fun Days and was a willing worker at all church and community events. After her husband's retirement, they spent time each winter making memories and friends in Keno Bay, Mexico, and Desert Center, Calif. Her hobbies and talents included sewing, crocheting and quilting, bowling, walking for exercise, gardening, doing puzzles, skiing and golfing. She was and excellent cook and delighted in doing things for her family. She often worked alongside Byron on the farm. She was diligent in making sure their daughter, JoAnn, had every opportunity to experience all of life that she could. Norma was a hard worker, a peacemaker and a sweet friend with a very tender heart who had an incredible ability to love everyone. She was always helping people and had a strong testimony of the restored Gospel of Jesus Christ.

She is survived by three children, Delvan (Connie) Ward of Teton, Kristine (Keith) Pryor of South Jordan, Utah, and Neil Ward of Northridge, Calif.; nine grandchildren; and 15 great-grandchildren. She is preceded in death by her parents; daugh- ter, JoAnn; brother, Harold; sister, Carol; and brother-in-law, Cal.

Funeral services will be at 11 a.m. Monday, Feb. 2, in the Newdale LDS church, 350 Church St. in Newdale, with Bishop Blair Poulson officiating. The family will receive friends from 9:30 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. Monday before the services at the church. Burial will be in Teton-Newdale Cemetery under the direction of Bert Flamm Mortuary. The family suggests contributions be made to the LDS Humanitarian fund.

Savanna Grace Nichols

2009-01-25T18:43:00.000-08:00

Look at my beautiful new niece, Savanna. She was born January 21. She weighed in at 5 lbs 11 oz, and was 17 inches long.

Congradulations Johnny and JaNay!