JJCCStanfords

Adam's Canyon

2011-09-04T05:59:00.000-07:00

For my birthday we went for a hike to the waterfall up Adams Canyon. It was very pretty.

Coen was hot so he put his head in the ice cold water.

Then Jon helped him do it again.

Is Diving a Sport?

2011-07-27T11:17:00.000-07:00

Coen jumped off the diving board for the first time last week. He loved it. He came over and asked me if diving was a sport because if so he wants to do it. Look at his form!

The Serenity Prayer

2011-07-22T15:01:00.000-07:00

This is my mantra. I repeat it 5-50 times a day.

God, grant me the SERENITY to accept the things I cannot change; COURAGE to change the things I can; and WISDOM to know the difference.

Living one day at a time:
Enjoying one moment at a time;
Accepting hardships as the pathway to peace;
Taking, as He did, this sinful world,as it is, not as I would have it;
Trusting that He will make all things right if I surrender to His will;
That I may be reasonably happy in this life and supremely happy with Him
Forever in the next

Amen

--Reinhold Niebuhr

Quitchurbellyakin

2011-07-14T15:13:00.000-07:00

As I pointed out to some friends today "I don't scrapbook, I blog." But I guess I don't do that very often either. So this is my family update. It will mostly be long, boring and pictureless. I don't expect anyone to read it. I'm just doing it for posterity's sake.
The highlight of our summer was having Matthew stay with us for a week. He's coming back next week so I guess he had fun the first time.
Coen finished 1st grade with a pretty good reading level and an average math level. He had " the best teacher in 1st grade" Mrs. Burt. He will have "the best 2nd grade teacher" Mrs Potter. He's pretty excited. This summer for him has mostly been x-box, swimming and driving Charidy crazy. He was in the back of the car talking to himself one day and he had some clothes pins. He said "Pinky's are you sad you are always the smallest ones(fingers)" He put the clothes pins on his pinkies and said "Now your not!" It was hilarious.
Charidy is twelve. She will start seventh grade next year. She is dropping Viola and picking up Spanish and Peer tutoring. She went to girls camp in Heber City. Her favorite part was testimony meeting. There is only one girl in our ward that turns 12 this year but she made a few new friends there. Her best friend Julie has been in California so for the most part her summer has been sitting in front of the computer, watching(terrorizing) Coen and swimming.
I can't wait till School starts again. I have a few reasons. 1. The kids won't have as much time to bother each other. 2. I won't have to leave them home alone so much while I am working. 3. I LOVE school. I should probably get signed up for my classes for fall. I know I'm taking Math 1050 but I need to decide on another class. I would like to take Spanish or rock climbing. Neither of which I need for my degree. I could be a student for life though so I guess I can spread it out. I'm still working for FTC, going on 11 years now! I also do the fitness training at the USU gym here in Brigham. For the 3 years I've been a trainer I've never been without a client. Since my hysterectomy almost a year ago I've gained 20 lbs!!! My clients will probably start dropping me because, really, who wants an overweight trainer.
The most depressing part of our summer is that Jon left for pre-deployment training on Sat. I can't believe it hasn't even been a week yet! We miss him. Coen just informed me five minutes ago that everything would be better if Daddy were here. I agree. Right now he is in Idaho till Aug 3rd. He'll be here for a few days and leave for Camp Williams till Sept. In Sept. he will go to Fort Hood and then Afghanistan in Dec. He will be back Sept 2012. If you are reading this our family could probably use a few prayers thrown our way to help us make it thru this.

Best week of my life part 1

2011-05-01T15:18:00.000-07:00

We decided to go on a cruise before Jon leaves for a year to Afghanistan. I could live on a cruise ship or an Island. I've decided Utah is not as good as I thought. This is where we sat and relaxed every night. We had dancers, comedian, and a band. Jon didn't get to dance with the girls this cruise.

Jon got the sunrise the first morning. I was in bed till 9:30 while they all went scuba diving.

I walked around the beach and stores while they were gone.

The weather was perfect the entire week!

In St Kitts we all went snorkeling together. I thought it was the best.

The only thing I wanted to see was Monkeys and Dolphins. I got to hold these guys for $20 and a tongue lashing from the tour guide. It was worth it.

Jon found this shell and brought it up for me to see. It had a very mad fish that didn't want Jon to touch it so it kept nipping at Jon.

As always we found us a crazy tree.

Oh isn't that cute.

Our entertainment between Islands.

In Dominica Jon and the Panters went Scuba Diving. I walked around the beach and stores. When they came back we went with a tour guide up to Titu Gorge and Trafalgar Falls.

This area is where the Pirates of the Caribbean was filmed.

This was a sulfur pool.

Best week of my life part 2

2011-04-02T20:00:00.001-07:00

We talked to some 13 year old girls here. They speak english, spanish, and French. They were fun to talk to. When they had to leave they asked for a dollar "for school". Jon gave them a dollar for a candy bar instead.

In Grenada we went to a beach and bought some fresh vanilla, cinnamon and nutmeg. When we got to this beach they wanted to charge us for the seats/coushins and umbrella. They send the young kids out to ask for the money and if you refuse the big guys come out. Vai paid $15.00 for 4 chairs.

TOBAGO: Jon went scuba diving in the morning. This was where he saw his shark. I walked around the island while they were diving. At the fresh market I was told I probably shouldn't be walking around alone. A few stores down I was proposed too and ensured that my husband could find someone new. When I went to the KFC and saw the $7.00 pepsi I called it a day until Jon came back and we went out to find our shot glass. We found out the currency was $1 to $6 of theirs. We found a ATM and withdrew $60. Only $6.36 was taken out of our account.

FRIDAY: Our last day on the ship:( We hung out by windows so that we could see if we could spot any dolphins. Sadly we didn't.

At the farewell brunch there were ice sculptures,

and fruit and cheese carvings. Not to mention great food.

Here I am picking the chocolate fondu out of my teeth.

Our last sunset on the boat. Thus ends the best week of my life!

Charidy's Birthday

2011-03-03T17:43:00.000-08:00

Charidy had a good 12 birthday! She wanted a cake from the cake boss so Kim made her this great cake! She had a concert that night. She was awesome.

She got her hair cut and styled for the concert.

Grandma's and Grandpa's came up to see her.

She had a slumber party the weekend before. She really wanted to go bungee jumping but we couldn't find a place close enough.

I can't believe she is twelve. She is such a good girl and we Love her SO much.

Christmas

2011-01-16T15:54:00.000-08:00

Charidy's baby pictures

2010-12-29T18:53:00.000-08:00

I'm working on scanning all our pictures to a disk. Here is a small sampling of Charidy.

Coen, Great Grandma Allred and Chi. G-pa and Chi trying to catch fish, or boats, or sticks, or whatever else they've thrown in there.

I know this is gross but I had to post it.

When Charidy was 18 months old she was walking around out side and tripped. She hit her head on a sign and it started gushing blood. She walks over to me and points to it and asks "Owie??" She didn't even cry. Surprisingly she didn't need stitches.

Charidy and Madison Hickman. We MISS the Hickmans.

I love this picture of Me and Chi.

Family Pictures

2010-12-21T18:15:00.001-08:00

Thank you Jenny for taking these for us. It's amazing what you are capable of doing in 15 mins!

Halloween

2010-12-15T18:39:00.001-08:00

NAMI walk

2010-12-15T18:34:00.001-08:00

Dinner with snakes and the Aldridges

2010-12-15T18:23:00.000-08:00

Coen went straight to the video games.

See how Charidy's face is a little purple. The Snake was giving her a big hug around her neck!!!

Summer

2010-08-22T08:34:00.000-07:00

Jon has been busy working on our backyard this summer. Can't believe how much energy he has!

The Stanfords came swimming and made this great whirlpool. The current was so strong it was hard to get in and out

Jon was proud of his first attempt of this large slab of concrete.Don't let the machine fool you. He did most of the digging by hand!! Charidy is getting ready to start Middle School. We went school shopping yesterday. She is growing up too fast. USU hosted the first annual Economic Business Summit. I was the only Business student that volunteered to take notes. I wrote ten large sticky pages of notes. I'm not sure how many are legible.

Cody jumped in the River in Morgan and put himself in self imposed time out by sticking his nose in the corner and staying there. It was sad/funny.He has a sore on his chest that doesn't look so good. He gets to go to the vet on Monday to see what is going on. The kids set him up with this bed and put that monkey by his nose to keep him company.

This is our family tree we go to when we are up that way. I fell out of it this time. I'm such a klutz. We had a little talk with the kids about our family tree here. If you know what i'm talking about you'll know why Charidy is still mad at us for not telling her sooner. We went camping up blacksmith fork canyon and came home to find our tree had lost half of itself. Jon trimmed it down so we could try and keep the tree as long as possible. It has some weird disease

Coen decided he wanted an arrow haircut. He only gets to keep it for a few weeks because School starts soon.
He put these goggles over his eyes so he didn't get any hair in them.

Happy Brithday Mommy!!

2010-07-11T17:40:00.000-07:00

Today and for the past 13 years my Mom has turned 45. My Mom is the best person I know. She is such a good example and everyone who knows her can't help but to love her. I'm glad we were able to spend this time together. We went up to Midway for the night. It was so nice. We went shopping and out to eat. We played games and got our butts kicked every time by Sarah. We went to the crater, otherwise known(only to us) as the alien landing site. We got lost and went to Strawberry Reservoir. We went to Park City for lunch had a good nap in the Kohl's parking lot while Brunette shopped. We were sad that Sarah had to leave early but hopefully we can do this again soon.(lets not wait for 11 years again.)

MOAB 2010

2010-06-28T17:42:00.000-07:00

Here are a few more pictures from our trip that I liked.

The youngest Bowcut. In this picture she is playing chicken with the repealers above her. She doesn't look too worried. Below is the youngest Piper. She is enjoying herself in the fresh spring water. Aren't they so cute when they are getting along. I think Coen is trying to squeeze her guts out.

We had a fun trip this week with the Stanford, Bowcuts, and Howe's. We missed Shanon though
We went on 3 very pretty, dirty, long, hot, FUN hikes. We went all the way to Gemini bridges this year. Jon saw a squirrel as big as a dog. (I think the sun was getting to him)

I couldn't figure out these caves. It looks like someone spent a lot of time in them. It has a few "rooms" and reinforced ceilings and cubbies.

I was VERY mad at Jon in this picture. He left me and Charidy on the trail with NO water!!

These were the rocks behind our campsite. I volunteered to stay down and take the pictures

With our mobile home, AC, fridge, stove etc I can't believe we had to be so primitive and do laundry. By we I mean Jon. I was taking a nap in my air conditioned bedroom.

We camped at Ken's Lake. It is about 10 miles away from town. It was a great place to stay. Thanks for finding it Dad.

After our last hike Cody was wore out from jumping in the river a thousand times, trying to jump off cliffs, and climbing up rocks he was more exhausted then the rest of us. He let us use him as a pillow and a foot rest and we even buried him.

Cody

2010-06-08T15:09:00.000-07:00

I haven't officially introduced Cody on our blog yet. He is a two year old golden Lab. He is crazy, fun, loving and smart! I pretty sure he is a keeper because he is still in the house after tearing up our new couch and loveseat. By tear up I mean pieces everywhere and no way to repair it. The funny thing was that Jon and I didn't care much. In this picture Coen and Jon has just has a fun little power struggle and were just making up. Cody got jealous and came to sit on Coen and get in Jon's face. It was way funny. After they banished him from the couch he tried to come sit on my lap while I was doing homework at the kitchen table. He weighs 75lbs and thinks he is a lap dog. He tries to sit in Jons' lap while he's driving too. Fun stuff!

Poor Kid

2010-06-08T14:53:00.000-07:00

Coen got his second set of stitches last month. He was playing on the four wheeler trailer and tore open his knee. He was so brave. He has opened it up a few times since he got his stitches out and his new plan is to stop taking baths and showers until it heals so the scab doesn't get soft and come off. Needless to say he stinks!! I'll have to fool him into some water soon!

Vegas

2010-03-21T18:16:00.001-07:00

We walked the Vegas strip at 10 friday night. It was quite an experience for our kids. They weren't very impressed with the volcano or the fountain at the Belagio. It may have been because it was 12:00 at night but we had to show them the lights! They really loved the pool at the hotels more than anything else.

Disneyland!

2010-03-21T12:21:00.000-07:00

We had fun in Disneyland. We got stuck on the space moutain ride and thunder mountain. It wasn't too bad. Coen complained about not wanting to go on the rides but then loved it after every ride.

POSTED by Charidy.....So we had fun.... well not all of us, I was a little grumpy. HUNTED MANSON was also fun it wasunt that sceary.

Beach

2010-03-21T12:07:00.000-07:00

Charidy did awesome on her boogie board. She was in the water for hours catching waves. Someone came along with two "pass along" kites, they said to pass them on when we were done with them. It was fun. Jon created this castle with the kids. A surf board came up on the beach and Coen got to stand on it. The weather was so nice!

Sea World!!

2010-03-20T20:48:00.001-07:00

We made it to California Monday morning. We went to breakfast and then to the beach where we got a parking ticket:( We weren't able to check in yet but they let us swim in the pool while we waited. Tuesday we went to Sea World! The kids didn't like it as much as we thought but they had fun. Charidy got picked to be the lovely assistant during the seal show.

Charidy's birthday and concert

2010-03-07T08:07:00.000-08:00

I can't believe she is 11. She is growing so fast. The 4 of us celebrated her birthday on Monday. She got a bike and some treats to share with her friends and this new outfit. She got her hair trimmed and curled. She is starting to turn into her daddy's girly-girl.
Wednesday she had her orchestra concert, so we had the family come up and have cake and ice cream before the concert. It was standing room only, not only in the house but at the concert also.

On Monday we went to behive pizza

Look at her face. She's thinking, "this isn't my DS!"

She forgot to make a wish. Good thing she got a second chance on Wednesday.

Ah here is her DS.

A Poem By Charidy

2010-02-26T15:16:00.000-08:00

I am

I am from
a swaying Curtain
with a silky pillow
and a gigantic bed

I am from
a big flat screen TV
and a hairy couch

I am from
moving branches
in the breeze
with a huge green yard

I am from
a Dad that says
"You are a team"
when we misbehave

I am from
brownies and skip-bo
with Grandpa

I am from a nice big fire
with oozy s'mores
and lush green fun in the sun

Miss Us?

2010-02-15T11:40:00.000-08:00

It's been awhile, Sorry no pictures with this post. I've been slacking. Here is an update though.
Jon- For the most part he is loving detectives. He as always is doing very well solving cases and finding the "bad guys". He is going to be starting a new project involving gangs. He got a sweet new work car. Its a beautiful blue Dodge Nitro. He (and I) can't wait for this snow to melt so we can play with our toys again.

Me- I have two classes this semester. Math and Psyc. Homework hasn't been too bad. I work in Bountiful two days a week. I work at Anytime fitness every night and I train at the USU gym also. I really love it but the poor kids are taking over the role of being Mom.

Charidy- She is growing up too fast. She will be eleven in two weeks! She is doing good with Orchestra and has a concert on March 3. I can't believe she will be in middle school next year.

Coen- He is liking Kindergarten and likes playing with his friends. He is like a tornado but we are trying to get him to keep the mess in his room. Its not working so good so far.

We are all looking forward to California in a few weeks. It was the kids Christmas present. We are praying every night for our friends and family. We love you all. :)

2009-12-24T19:47:00.000-08:00

Breakfast with Santa, and SNOW!!

2009-12-12T19:56:00.001-08:00

Breakfast with Santa is a Christmas tradition at my moms work. I love it when we can all get together. Charidy did not want to sit on his lap this time.

Snow time means fort time. Jon built this for the kids and then hooked up a heater so they could roast marshmallows. They are so silly.

Thanksgiving

2009-12-12T19:44:00.001-08:00

For Thanksgiving we went to the Stanfords in Morgan. Everyone was there. We had good food and good fun.

The next Sunday Nate, Kamie, Maddie and Dad came up for a second helping of turkey. Too bad I didn't take any pictures.

Jons Birthday

2009-12-12T19:10:00.001-08:00

What an eventful day. We headed up to Park City to do some shopping. Jon wanted some GQ clothes because he has to wear dress clothes to work now that he is a Detective. My radiator decided to go out right about the time we almost ran out of gas and took a wrong turn heading to WY. Luckily we made it back alive and was able to borrow a car from his parents and go to eat at TGI Fridays. Our waitress had the hots for Jon and even sang him a song! To make up for it he finally got his power washer a few weeks later.

Halloween

2009-11-14T13:09:00.000-08:00

Coen pulled his first tooth out at church last Sunday. He showed everyone who would look.

Charidy was a black cat and Coen was a ninja for halloween. We went to a trunk or treat and then to Mom and Dad S for Chili, donuts, and Cider, YUM.

Arches and Canyon Lands

2009-10-19T16:21:00.000-07:00

S.W.AT. call

2009-10-09T12:12:00.001-07:00

http://www.standard.net/topics/news/2009/10/08/brigham-city-standoff-armed-man-threatens-suicide-over-deteriorating-marriage

Random Pics

2009-10-02T13:08:00.000-07:00

Was he ever this little?

Charidy and Cody's first day of Kindergarten. 5YEARS AGO!!!

Thanks Sara for sending me these!

Catch up

2009-09-30T08:13:00.001-07:00

The first day of school was exciting for the kids. Charidy is in fifth grade. This will be her last year in elementary school. She will go to the middle school next year! Charidy is going to play the viola this year. Coen is loving kindergarten. I can't believe he will be 6 in a few weeks!

Charidy broke her arm coming out of the tree to fast. She was excited to get the cast on and have her arm feel better but after four weeks she was more excited to get it off. Jon painted our door as you can see.

My birthday was awesome. Jon took me horse back riding. We forgot the camera though :( School is going well for me and Jon is moving to detectives in Oct. I'm more excited then he is. We will finally have a nice schedule. He will work 4 days a week from 7-5. We will be on the same sleep schedule for the first time in 9 years!

Coen is very sick this week. I am taking him to see the dr this afternoon.

I got to go to the hospital Saturday to be with Kelly and fam while Piper was born(except for the pushing part of course) That was my first time being there right after a birth that wasn't my child! I really liked it. Thanks Kelly and Craig.!

Stanford Campout

2009-08-05T16:32:00.000-07:00

This last weekend we spent with the Stanfords in Mantua. Friday we went to the reservoir to swim. The kids had fun and the boys played 500 in the water.

Charidy spent most of her time with Kailey on the fourwheeler

Coen and Megan decided if they got really dirty we would take them to the lake to swim again. He was covered in this dirt that did not want to come off.

Poor Meg was so cold! She let me hold her and warm her up.

As you can tell by his face Joe enjoyed being the transportation in the water.

YELLOWSTONE

2009-07-27T11:34:00.000-07:00

We had our Allred family reunion this year at Island Park. We had such a great time and everything went so well. On Friday the kids went swimming and then we all floated down the snake river. It only took over 2 hours!

This was the first animal we saw as we entered the park. It crossed the road right in front of my Mom walking slowly like it owned the place.

This Buffalo was just walking down the road all by himself I could have reached out and touched him.

Jon snuck up on this elk and they had a staring contest for a few minutes.

As always we found the coolest tree.

Grandma and Grandpa Allred

While we were eating lunch the kids found a Teeter toter(sp?)

So many mud pots so little time.

This is the Dragons cave. It looked and sounded like a Dragon was in there blowing smoke.

Thanks to all who planned this. We couldn't have had a better weekend!

July Activities

2009-07-21T18:55:00.000-07:00

On the 4th we went to my home town Kaysville to see the parade. When did those get so commercialised? My favorite part are the drums so I would have been fine leaving in the beginning but the kids needed their candy. We slept at my Dads the night before and did fireworks since Jon had to work the fireworks here in BC. That night we went to the Kaminska's to watch fireworks from their backyard.

The Hickmans to visit for tooo short of a month. We enjoyed swimming, eating , and bowling with them. We also got to see Jackson eat his first birthday cake.

Coen had his last t-ball game and did awesome. He even liked playing for the most part. He wants to try soccer next.

Princess Paws had 5 kittens on Sunday.

We got Chairdy's room painted and this wonderful blue paint spilled all over our 2 year old carpet! :(

Jon made the S.W.A.T. team and had his first call out last week at 3:30am. We are all very proud of him. I registered for school and I'll start on the 24th of Aug. I'm excited to start! I'm taking Math, English, Computer and Psych.

T-ball

2009-07-11T20:52:00.001-07:00

He is such a cute kid. T-ball is not his favorite thing.

He wants to quit everytime we go to a game or practice. Oh well we'll see how long we can keep him at it.

Swimming

2009-07-03T11:29:00.000-07:00

Camping

2009-06-28T19:39:00.000-07:00

I've seriously been slacking in blog area. This was our camping trip a few weeks ago. Where did June go by-the-way???? Charidy got this new four wheeler and loves it. She starts ATV class this summer. She has tons of fun on it. We found some good mud puddles on the way up the mountain. I seem to be the only one that was covered in it though.

Jon and the kids tried to start a fire with the wet firewood. Very entertaining for me:)

Coen found a fly friend that stayed on his hand for an hour or so.

I still need to blog about Coen's T-ball and the kids swimming lessons that ended today. Also my poor bird spires passed away today after what I can only assume was a dog induced heart attack. :(

Things are going my way

2009-06-18T09:00:00.000-07:00

I got a call last week saying Coen will go to all day kindergarten so if he is going to be in school all day why shouldn't I? I am going to take some business management classes so I can reach my goal of owning a gym in 9 years and 2 months. I've also put a little money away for that day this month. Pat me on the back!

Pretty Nails

2009-06-08T17:24:00.000-07:00

I trade this girl personal training for nails. So I took Charidy and Lizzy to get pretty nails today. Here is the before.

After. They had a fun time.

Coens Preschool Graduation and MY new pets

2009-06-04T16:09:00.000-07:00

Coen is now a Preschool Graduate! They sang us a bunch of songs. Everyday he asks if he can go to Mrs. Munz house and when he can play with his preschool friends. It's going to be a long summer.

I have wanted these for some time now and always talked myself out of it. They are zebra finches. I had them when I was growing up and love to listen to them. The kids have named them Spires and Princess

Memorial Day Camping

2009-05-25T21:03:00.000-07:00

This was the view from my front door this weekend

Friday afternoon we headed up to Blacksmith Fork Canyon to fight the masses for a camping spot. I've never seen so many people pull to the side of the road and park their trailer or set up a tent and call it home for the weekend. It was very funny! We found our spot in between the road and the river and called it good. We made hamburgers and hot dogs on the grill in our electrified trailer:) (I love trailer camping!) Sat we drove around looking for places to hike. This is a cool waterfall we found. It was fun until the man made rock slide almost killed us all.

Wish this could by our new family picture.I loved this tree. I could hang out in it all day long. The branches grew everywhichway!

They didn't catch anything fishing but had fun throwing in their lines anyway.

This was Sly's first time sitting in the back of the truck. She would have liked to stick her head over the side like real dog but Jon had her "seatbelted" in.

Charidy's last Preformance

2009-05-18T19:58:00.001-07:00

Charidy was so nervous for this but did great! Now she wants to take Martial Arts.

Our Cruise

2009-05-16T09:24:00.000-07:00

AAAAAHHHHHHH. After a 12 hour drive we made it to our ship! It was a relief to finally get there. I was certain something would happen and we wouldn't be able to go. For the first few hours we waited up top for our cabins to be ready. We took a nap in the sun after lunch and got our first sunburn on one side of our body. Then we took a nap until we took off.

Good bye San Diego see you on Thursday.

As we were leaving sail boats kept playing chicken with us. The ship whistle made us all deaf for a few hours.

Sea Lions hanging out on the buoy. We could hear them barking before we saw them. The only sea life we saw because we slept thru the dolphins:( CATALINA ISLAND

Our ship from Catalina Island

We rented a paddle boat and went around the pier of the Island.
The closest I got to eating a lobster. Blech! I accidentally ate salmon cream cheese thinking it was strawberry. Not the greatest moment for me.

ENSENADA! They parked us this close for a few hours just to tease us.One of the dancing shows.

Jon got picked out of the crowd to go dance on stage! Shake that booty! The ship was so beautiful!

Our towel buddy that they made every night they did housekeeping. They came twice a day to make the bed and clean up. We had room service a few times also. Between the chocolate cake and hot chocolate I'm surprised we can still function.
Here we come back to the real world. No more housekeeping and endless meals for us. If the ground would hold still for a minute that would sure be nice.

We had a great time and after 3 weeks of being gone Jon is happy to come back to his own bed. Thank you to everyone that helped with the kids while we were gone. We really appreciate it!!!

The view from my front door.

2009-04-26T13:38:00.000-07:00

Well maybe not till we retire but I'm sure its the view we will see a ton this summer. We went up to Matua to test out the new trailer Thursday night. The kids found these little tunnel things growing everywhere. We couldn't figure out what they were.

We heard water close by so we went for a short hike to find it. We found this is such a cool tree growing out the side of the mountain, and we found the source of the water.

Making this fire was only the third time Jon burned his arm and eyebrows off that day.

MMMMMMM s'mores!

Easter, Babysitting, and Jon's new toy.

2009-04-19T15:08:00.000-07:00

Man they grow up to fast! We had a good Easter. Sat we went to the Stanfords to decorate eggs, and play a rousing game of Chicken foot down. Only with a bunch of competitive people like the Stanfords can that game be rousing! Mom and Dad may not invite us back. Sunday we went to my Mom's house for yummy food and games. Aunt Kim made this darling outfit for Charidy. Skirt, shirt and cute flower clip for her hair. She looked so cute. Thanks for staying up till 2am to make it Kim!!

On Monday and Saturday Charidy "babysat" the neighbor kids so that I could watch their 6 week old baby sister Kathrine. She had a good time and did well entertaining them.

And last but not least Jon finally decided what to do with his military bonus. He drove to Arizona with my dad to pick up this huge new addition to our house. He got it here and decided it may be too big and he might turn around and sell it.

New Tricks

2009-04-10T19:14:00.000-07:00

Jon decided to play limbo with the four wheeler and the trampoline. Weirdo! One time the kids jumped when he was under there and almost broke his back!!!

Charidy learned how to do a front flip on her own today. She is very proud of herself and so are we.

Sooooooooo Windy!

2009-03-29T07:13:00.001-07:00

Fear......relevant or irrelevant is still fear. When I was 4 I had a nightmare every night about a giant stepping on my Uncle Alans house and smashing every member of my family in it. My parents had me sleep with my sister. When I was in Jr High I had a dream about "The Great Earthquake" that would put Davis County under the Great Salt Lake. In my dream I was floating above my house with VHS tapes all around me. I remember going into my parents bedroom when I was younger and my Dad would not let me sleep in there. I thought that was horrible! We have horrible winds here because our house is so tall and our siding beats against the side of our house. Charidy learned about Tornadoes last year and has been obsessing about them every time it gets windy. Here's how the conversation went last night.

Door:Creak
Charidy: Mom...Mom....MOM
Me: What
Cat: Meow
Jon:ZZZZZZZZZZZZ
Charidy: We can't sleep its too windy and we are in Coens room with the music on. What causes Tornadoes??
Me: You don't have to worry about tornadoes here just listen to music and you'll fall asleep
Cat:Meow
Chariy: K :(
Me: and get the cat out of here
Jon:ZZZZZZZZZZ
Door:Creak

Then I was wide awake thinking of things I should have said. At least I didn't yell at her(this time) I should have said a prayer with them. I should have made sure they were all tucked in. But I sat there for another hour thinking. Then I went and checked on them, but only because I needed to go to the bathroom. They were sound asleep.
Today I will research Tornadoes with Charidy and show her why its so noisy when its windy. Maybe that will help her fear a little bit.

(note to Charidy and Coen: Parents are not perfect and they make mistakes. Maybe if we can grow and learn together you won't have to make as many mistakes as we do. And people should not be held responsible for things they do or do not say at 2:30 in the morning.)

New Hobby

2009-03-16T16:31:00.000-07:00

Charidy got this bow and arrow from my Dad for her birthday. She has practiced twice with it and loves it.

Coen and Sly run out and get the arrows and bring them back to her. What a team.

Ambassador Award

2009-03-05T19:24:00.000-08:00

Jon got an award at the City Council Meeting tonight. This was for the shooting last February. Isn't he handsome.

Charidy's Parties

2009-03-04T15:24:00.000-08:00

Charidy wanted a silly string war at her birthday party. She had fun.

Talking girl talk over pizza and pop

All her friends that came to the party

Playing Apples to Apples

She really really really wanted this plant. When she saw all the presents on the table she was sad because she didn't think any of them were the plant.

Her loot

She told me that she wished everyone would have a good time at her party

Her new Four Wheeler

10 years ago today

2009-03-01T11:43:00.000-08:00

It was a snowy morning. We had to be at the hospital at 6:30am. Since I had been on bed rest for 4 weeks they decided to start me. I was dilated to a 4 and ready to go. They put me on the Pitocin and we waited and waited. In the middle of True Lies(during the good part Jon says) Charidy made her entrance. The Dr used the suction 3 or 4 times so she came out with a bit of a cone head. She weighed 7lbs 3 oz and was 19 in long. Jon cut her umbilical cord. He said it was like cutting hard spaghetti. She was a happy healthy baby. When we took her home from the hospital we were listening to a country station and she cried until we changed it to rock. She was such a happy kid and made everyone happy around her. She was a great sleeper too. Charidy is so sweet and still wants everyone to be happy. Her wish on the birthday cake tonight was that everyone would have fun at her party. She likes to swim and she loves animals. We love you Charidy!

Please send clothes

2009-02-25T19:03:00.000-08:00

Economy got you down? Charidy has the answer for you. Recycle those plastic bags and make clothing. As you can see Charidy is working her magic using WalMart bags and hair clips, slip on some tights underneath and you got an inexpensive (and cute might I add) outfit. Coen became the Incredible Hulk and ripped his off. He is so strong.

Fetch

2009-02-13T19:31:00.000-08:00

Sledding

2009-02-13T18:21:00.001-08:00

We took the kids sledding at Watkins park today. Coen kept tackling Charidy at the bottom of the hill. It was funny. He would stand right in her way as she was coming down. Sly had a fun time running around all over. She is a fast dog! She's very good at coming when we call her name.

Wait for it.

2009-02-13T08:07:00.000-08:00

Snow Fun

2009-02-11T15:41:00.000-08:00

I wanted to get a picture of Coen riding the snow plow with Jon but I didn't find my Camera in time. Here he is on Monday all dressed up to play in the snow. He definitely doesn't take after me

Charidy got home from school and started right in building a snowman. Coen is bringing in her backpack.

TADA!! She made him a tie and called him a missionary. How cute. I think this is actually the first snowman made this year at our house.

Our Family Grew by 4 Feet

2009-02-10T19:56:00.001-08:00

Meet our new addition Sly. She has decided Coen is her favorite but Charidy is coming in a close second. She can sit, roll over, shake, and best of all doesn't bark. She is so sweet and has a great personality. We are excited to go 4 wheeling with her because apparently she likes to do that. Jon has been looking for a Shiba Inu for months now and was so excited to see her on line last night. She is 8 months old. I think she will fit in well as a Stanford.

You know Jon must like her if she can sit on the couch with us.

Now if the cat can just make peace with her.

10 years WOW!!

2009-02-05T19:21:00.000-08:00

Man how time flies!! I can 't believe its been 10 years already. We surpassed the predicted 6 days to 6 months! Yeah us!!! 10 years ago today Jon and I said I do. When Jon was driving to the ceremony there was a little road rage incident and Jon actually got in a fist fight on the side of
I-15. Good thing the bruises didn't show up in our pictures. I can't believe how far we've come, individually as a couple and as a family. I love my life and I'm excited to see what the next 10 years will bring. I love you Jon thanks for saying I do.

The Cat Came Back

2009-01-29T09:46:00.001-08:00

I guess Phantom is a good name for this cat. One day she's here the next day she's gone. Coen is sad that she doesn't remember him. If he gets too close the cat runs away. He is happy that she is alive and not in the pound where he thought she has been the last few months.

How many lives does Jon have left?

2009-01-23T11:41:00.000-08:00

At least this time when he called he didn't say "I got hit by a car, I'll call you back" At least this time he gave me all the information before he flew off to save the rest of Brigham City.

So Jon got hit by a car. I've quit counting how many near death experiences this is. I've told him it's time to give the angels a rest and go to Detectives. He won't listen. I may need to get his Mom involved. He might listen to her. Or his Chief I could bribe his Chief.

I'm going to try to get Jon to tell the story. But for now know he is only bumped and bruised. No blood No broken bones although he did say he wished it was worse so that he could have had the rest of the day off. Stayed tuned for more adventures of Officer Stanford.

GO COEN GO

2009-01-15T15:04:00.000-08:00

Coen did so good learning to ride without his training wheels today! He's a fast learner and its a good thing Jon is fast on his feet and a good catcher!

Jon decided to commandeer both bikes and test them out for a minute
Charidy got a new bike from her friend K'lee.

Food and the Full Moon

2009-01-11T16:04:00.000-08:00

Charidy made her first pizza tonight. She did an awesome job reading the directions on the box and starting the oven. She grated the cheese and sprinkled that and the ham on top. I can't believe she will be ten soon!!

Last night the moon was the biggest and fullest that it will be until 2016. I wish the picture was better but it looked very pretty.

At Kailey's baptism we re-discovered a new cookie recipe thanks to Kims friend. Now I remember why I forgot it. I will share it with you so we can all gain 5lbs a week together.
Take one box of cake mix any flavor. Put in 2 eggs and 1/2 cup oil or applesauce. Mix and cook at 350 for 8-10 min. So far we have made the Devil chocolate, yellow, and strawberry mix. That was all this week. Tonight we may have the funfetti mix. We are in trouble!!!!

Misc fun from the Holiday

2009-01-05T10:27:00.000-08:00

My siblings.......Nuff said

Toasting in the new year with sparkling cider

Coen is showing these guys how to play chess.

MANDY!!!

The Neve's joined our band and rocked the basement with Charidy.

My Sue Sue's....not sure where that term of endearment comes from but here we are.

2008 let be forgot

2009-01-01T10:07:00.000-08:00

It is the eleventh hour of our new year 2009. Charidy is sleeping, Coen is playing Kung Fu Panda on our new PS2, Jon is working, and I am reflecting.

2008

For our 9th anniversary Jon and I went to San Diego. We went to Sea World and Coronado Island. We went to the Zoo and ate at expensive places. It was great fun.

In Feb I get a text from Jon in the middle of the night saying"I'm ok I've been involved in a shooting. At 3 am Chief Tittensor brings Jon home to talk to us about stress management and what to expect in the coming months. Jon handles having an AK47 pointed at him pretty well. He starts a workout program and works out everyday for months and months. It helped with the nightmares a little bit.

In March our peach stealing cohorts, the Perry's moved 5.6 miles away. Thus effectively ending the crosswalk plan.

We discover a new Sport called lawn boarding with our new 4 wheelers.

In June Jon's Great White Hunter gets smashed along with his bike. At least he got a new car and bike. Summer starts and we go Four Wheeling every week.

In July I decided to become a personal trainer. I passed my test and I now have 4 steady clients. I teach a class at the church on Monday's. I've lost 10 lbs and feel so great!!

Jon turns 30 and I throw him a surprise party. He also gets a new smile thanks to Dr Murdock.

Coen gets his first set of stitches in the head

Our friends the Hickmans leave us for bigger and better things in Pennsylvania :( in Dec.

Jon finishes our basement for our Christmas present. And we discover a new passion in the form of RockBand 2.

Overall we've had a great year. We've learned many new things and are grateful for all that we are blessed with every day. Happy New Year everyone.

Tis The Season

2008-12-25T13:44:00.000-08:00

Two very excited children look to see if Santa braved the storm

Looks like he made it!

Surprisingly they didn't go for the big ones first!Here are the boys playing with their new toys in our now FINISHED basement!Then out to finish the annual snow monstrosity

I love my little family!

HUH?????

2008-12-20T12:09:00.001-08:00

Yes people that is a rake. Maybe it was the carpet fumes. Maybe the lack of oxygen to his brain due to the cold he has. Either way I think he has officially lost it. My husband is raking the snow because there are branches mixed in. Did I mention it is snowing and COLD out there right now. It could be worse I guess. He could be sitting on his lazy butt playing with the computer. ;)

Almost done!!!!

2008-12-20T08:18:00.000-08:00

The Carpet is almost done! Yeah!!! .

Randomness

2008-12-18T12:54:00.000-08:00

The basement is almost done!! I can't believe how much time Jon has put into it. I did a coat of primer and I think it took me 3 hours. I also can't believe how little Jon has complained about doing it. I was so tired from doing the painting. He sheet rocked the whole thing by himself. If that had been me I would not be able to move for 3 days. Not only does he move after he goes to the gym and runs 3-5 miles and lifts weights. On a side note the other day the kids were both in trouble so they had to stand in the corner :(
they have taken to holding hands when they are in there together. I wonder if they have figured out this gets them out faster cause it melts our hearts. In Kims words......... all together now aaaaawwwww!!!!!

Also Coen has turned into his Dad's kid. He lays his clothes out the night before that he wants to wear. His new favorite is this vest. The other day he wanted to wear all white. Now if we could just get him to agree to cut his hair he would be a mini Jon all the way.

We finally Did it!!

2008-12-15T19:17:00.000-08:00

We finally decorated the tree. We've only had it in our house for about a week. But oh how it shines now.

Busy Weekend

2008-12-14T12:40:00.001-08:00

Jon had an awards banquet on Friday night. He got three awards. One for bike control, one for physical fitness and one for two DUI's in one night with a total of 9 for that month alone. Most only have 9 in their whole career. I'm very proud.

Then off to a neighborhood christmas party. 15 couples were there! It was very fun. We played some kissing games and the newlywed game. It was fun getting to know people in our ward a little better. They are all so fun.

Yesterday we celebrated Christmas at the Stanfords. Jake is leaving for the MTC on Wed so we did it early. We all ate too much and then ate again. The kids had a blast and we all got spoiled like always. We even had our white Christmas.

20 Things I like about my Jon

2008-12-11T11:32:00.000-08:00

1. He sings in the shower.
2.If he likes a song he will play it over and over and over
3. He is a good Daddy
4. If he puts his mind to it he can do ANYTHING(plumbing, electrical, engines etc...
5. Most wife's say "I should leave for a week and see how he copes" Jon would not only cope but do it better then me.
6. He knows every bad guy house in our town.
7. He calls his Gramma at least monthly
8. He loves his Mom
9. He's funny when he's tired(most the time)
10. He has style and as much as he pretends not to like to pick out my shoes and pants he really does.
11.He is good with talking about his feelings and writing nice love notes.
12. He likes to eat healthy(shrimp and rice YUCK)
13.He can name any car in the dark by the headlights
14.He excels at all of his jobs within the first 3 months if not sooner.
15.He likes all kinds of music
16.He has interests and hobby's.
17. He doesn't like sports or hunting
18.He likes chick flicks more then I do.
19. He likes squeaky cheese.
20.He knows what he wants and how to get it.

Breakfast with Santa and Cookie Houses

2008-12-07T09:30:00.000-08:00

Every year Santa comes to my Mom's work to talk to the kids. This year Charidy asked for another Webkinz and Coen asked for a remote control motorcycle. The kids enjoyed spending the day with their cousins.

That night we went to the Stanfords to make the annual cookie houses.

Much concentration goes into this process.

It's always a tie between Shanon and Jon who finishes last. Shanon was still working on hers when we left.

Superman ended the night doing push ups with 4 kids on his back! Amazing!

Our Friends the Hickmans

2008-12-02T19:07:00.001-08:00

We will miss you!!! Dave I've never seen you unhappy. You always have a great attitude about everything. Jenny you've taught me so much. I've never heard you talk badly about anyone. Your glass is always half full even when you have no idea what is in store for you. You are a great mom and a great friend. We will miss you all. Love Janna

Just gotta say you are like a brother to me. I will miss your cool stories and ideas. Jenny you are funny I cant remember how many times you have locked your keys in a vehicle. You both and your kids will be missed very much by the Stanfords. Yours truly Jon

Thanksgiving

2008-11-30T08:45:00.000-08:00

We start off the day with Coen jamming to his CD Jessica Sanders made him for his birthday. He asked me if rock stars wear necklaces. I told him to call it Bling. I then told him to show me his rock star moves.

Meanwhile Jon was playing in the pig bowl with all the cops in Box Elder County. There was a mad rivalry going on with people stealing trophy's and vandalizing cars and offices underwear and shirts were torn, there were a few injuries but no one went to the ER this year. It ended with a dog pile on Mike London.

Jon scored a touchdown, it was a great catch

Jon made our first Turkey this year. He takes the innards out(yeck!) and dumps a bottle of honey on top, then covers it in sugar, next comes the Mt Dew(probably should have gone on before the honey clogs all the pores) then some soy sauce and lastly the Dt coke in case the Mt dew was too flat. The turkey was great the gravy...... not so much. It was more of a sweet glaze. We are so proud of ourselves for having our very own thanksgiving day just the four of us.

More of Jon's birthday

2008-11-18T13:16:00.000-08:00

Jon wanted to climb Ben Lomand for his birthday. He got about this far and realized the snow was not going to help with that goal.

So we went to my Dad's house and practised our mad rock band skills

Our Fun Weekend

2008-11-16T09:08:00.000-08:00

Here we are Fri night ready to leave to Midway for a relaxing night in.

We get about 3/4 a way there and get a call saying Coen bumped his head and needs stitches. So we make an illegal U turn and race down to hold his hand while he gets his first set of stitches. He did awesome! It's so hard to see your kids suffer like that.

So after that excitement we decide to see Quantum of Solace 007. It wasn't the best. We get to Midway about 11:30 and crash(in the bed not the car). After waking up and going to the gym and for a short swim we go to see the crater at the homestead. We are thinking of taking scuba lessons there. We headed into Park City to find a jacket for Jon. Task completed and I lock the Keys in the Trunk!!!!! Being on a time frame and everything this really messed up my plans. So Jon hikes to Walmart and buys a steel rod duct tape and a dowel. An hour later we are on our way back to Brigham for a goodbye party for Jenny and Dave:( Meanwhile Karrie and John are saving me by running all over Brigham getting everything ready for the party. THANK YOU!! We get to the party and it is a success. He was surprised! Thank you to everyone who came and kept it a secret.

Calling all Bloggers

2008-11-09T07:54:00.000-08:00

Have you noticed the BLOG world is mostly silent right now? Is that because everyone is out trying to enjoy the last few minutes of above 32 degree weather? No...... there would be pictures of that. Is it because everyone is hiding because they know the under 32 degree weather is coming? I know.... the holidays are coming up and you feel you need a break from what is to come. Come on people don't you know you are my entertainment? I have no TV. I have no interest in the xbox. The DVD player is broken. I don't have a book that is keeping my interest right now. For the love of all that is holy Post PEOPLE post!!!

A Coen funny

2008-11-07T11:17:00.000-08:00

We were looking at flashcards and a nine came up. He said 9. I flipped it upside down to see if he would say six.

Me -"what's this?"
Coen-"an upside down nine"
Can't fool him!

Trick or Treat

2008-11-01T11:40:00.001-07:00

Here we are ready for trick or treating with ghostly orbs flying around us. Can you see them? You can't tell but I'm wearing Jon's police belt and his police shirt. He made a good thug. The kids had fun and the weather was awesome

Jacks

2008-10-30T18:22:00.001-07:00

TA DA !!

Coen's Tag

2008-10-27T18:20:00.000-07:00

I am- a ninja
I know-my Mom
I want- remote control airplane
I have-a video game
I dislike-when its dark and I can't go outside
I miss- dad when he goes to drill
I feel-happy
I hear-cars going when I am outside
I smell-cookies when mom cooks them
I crave-Halo
I cry-when someone hurts me
I search-gold
I wonder-that someone is invisible
I regret- i don't know what
I love- mom and dad and mine sister and mine grampa and mine gramma
I Care- um what does care mean
I worry-what does that mean
I remember-i don't know
I believe-Jesus is in Heaven
I dance-i don't dance
I argue-when sister argues with me
I write-that someone got thems head off and bleeding
I win-the ball game at chuck e cheeses
I lose-a video game
I wish-that mine gramma was here and I had a flying skateboard part
I listen- my disk that has halo and numa numa
I am Scared-that a monster gonna come
I need-mine parents
I forget-all about mine other day
I am Happy- right now

Scroll down to read Charidy's Tag and our bear lake trip

Charidy's Tag

2008-10-27T18:06:00.000-07:00

I am- a cat
I know-Halloween is coming
I want- a whole lot of candy
I have-2 cats
I dislike-caramel cause it sticks to your teeth. It's evil
I miss- our dog scooter, even though he pooped everywhere
I feel- Happy because its Halloween
I hear-Bells ringing
I smell-candy
I crave-candy because it's good
I cry- When I know Daddy's going to war
I search- for the ends of the rainbow
I wonder- if summer lasts forever
I regret- breaking Grampa's glass globe thingy
I love- my family
I Care- about my family
I worry-about Dad
I remember-my first day of gymnastics
I believe-i remember when I was 18 months old and i cut my head on a sign.
I dance-to music
I don't- want summer to end
I argue-with my brother
I write-my memories in my diary
I win-on webkinz
I lose-to daddy on risk
I wish-I could fly
I listen- to my CD
I am Scared-of water and the seaweed
I need-nothing, I have everything I want
I forget-sometimes what I ate and I wonder where it went
I am Happy-cause my birthday is coming up
I tag Coen!

BEAR LAKE

2008-10-26T14:44:00.001-07:00

This weekend we took off for a mini vacation. The Hickman's joined us for some swimming and relaxation. Although there was not much sleeping to be done between the dying cat eating the garbage, Coen's foot hurting and Charidy coughing we had fun. For dinner we had every meat but fish on the Bar-B-Que.

Punkin Huntin

2008-10-23T19:23:00.001-07:00

The Hunt was succesfull! Stay tuned for the Jack0 lanterns.

Progress

2008-10-18T19:49:00.001-07:00

Jon got all the sheetrock up today. He's only had to superglue the cuts on his finger 2x. His thumb is numb from contact with the hammer but he's cruising along. It's going to be nice to have that extra space.

Five years ago today.

2008-10-16T08:36:00.001-07:00

After trying to get pregnant for a year, and nine months later Coen joined our family. Dr. Bitner was going to start me on the 16th. 2 weeks before my due date because Dad Stanford had moved to Japan and Mom and the kids were following him soon after. Jon and his brothers were all born on a Thursday with a 6 in the date so it worked out well. I was going to bed the 15th thinking this was going to be another long sleepless night when at 1o:30 my water broke. Exactly 4 hours and 15 min later Coen was born. He was having problems breathing and I was having problems hemorrhaging so I didn't get to hold him till 6am! He had lots of dark hair and his skin was dark also. He had a raspberry on his forehead and on the back of his neck just like Charidy. When he breathed he would make a grunting/sighing noise. That made sleeping quite difficult. He woke up every three hours or more for a very long time. Coen loves to play video games and follow Charidy and her friends around. He is a very sweet boy. I have spoiled him from day one and if I don't stop soon his future wife will hate me! We can't imagine our life without Coen and are so happy Heavenly Father let him come to us.

Jon's family has a tradition that you get donuts and juice on your birthday so we've carried it over to our family tradition. He was very excited for that. Tonight we are going to Chucky Cheeses.

Tag i'm it.

2008-10-14T19:49:00.000-07:00

I am- A Wife, A Mother, A Sister, A Daughter, A friend, A Personal Trainer, A Resident Finance and Eligibility Specialist.
I know-Winter is on its way
I want- Spring to be on its way
I have-small feet
I dislike-Sea Food, and the smell of it in my house
I miss- Warm weather
I feel-Blessed
I hear-Coen and Charidy being nice to each other
I smell-Cat Urine
I crave-Hershey's hugs
I cry-not often enough
I search-for my keys in my huge purse
I wonder-what my kids will be like when they grow up
I regret- my attitude
I love-Jon, Charidy, Coen and Heater vents, Trees, the Gospel, My car, My job, My Family
I Care- If you don't like me
I worry-About everything.
I remember-When we would party when someone bought new shoes
I believe-In friendship
I dance-with Jon
I don't- Want to see my kids hurt
I argue-When I have to
I write-on my blog
I win-on Webkinz
I lose-when playing against Jon
I wish-I was better
I listen- to NPR
I am Scared-of everything
I need-to be important
I forget-what I'm supposed to be doing
I am Happy-When everyone else is(co-dependent much?)
I tag YOU!

Crafty Me!

2008-10-10T18:30:00.000-07:00

This project was only 8 months in the making. My Dad made the shelf and the frames for me. I painted it and with Jon's help put it together. I'm so proud of myself!

I got this idea from the Kottage Kupbord. I made this one for Charidy and she helped me pick out all the stuff for it.

Quirks Tag

2008-10-04T20:09:00.000-07:00

1. If i touch an animal I have to wash my hands right after or I can feel the germs crawling up my arm.

2. I don't like anyone to touch my feet. Feet are gross and I hate touching socks

3.I can't use a wash rag twice. If i wipe a counter down and put the wash rag down I have to use a new one.

4. I hate facial hair on a man. Jon grew one for Peach days last year and didn't get kissed for a month.

5. I need sleep. If I am not home in bed by 10p.m. I get mean.

6. I hate crowds. Too many people around me gives me anxiety.

I tag anyone who wants to play. I think it's fun.

Field Trip

2008-10-02T17:42:00.000-07:00

We went on a field trip to Hardware Ranch today to learn all about nature and such. Interesting stuff.

Frontrunner and Friends

2008-10-02T17:37:00.001-07:00

Friday night we went on the Frontrunner with some friends. We rode it to SLC and then got on the Trax to Trolly Square and ate at the Spaghetti Factory.

We got to know a few people from our ward a little better. We both had a fun time and enjoyed the company. We only almost got dead once when we decided to jay walk. Not a smart thing in SLC. We got home about 1am and still haven't recovered from our late night. I don't know how Jon stays up all night to work graves, I know I couldn't do it!

Kitty

2008-09-30T19:17:00.000-07:00

Jon and the kids are no longer allowed to be near small animals anymore! Meet the newest member of our family. It doesn't have a name yet but if it doesn't stay off my computer it won't need one!

The basement

2008-09-30T18:17:00.000-07:00

Yeah we are getting a basement. Superman is building it. When he puts his mind to something he does it. We hope this will make our house livable for at least another year. Hopefully by then the economy will figure out its goal in life.

We do have a crack in the foundation. That's no good. When the sprinklers come on the water comes in our basement. But SM can figure it out. He's good like that.

4 Wheeling and Rainbows

2008-09-22T10:57:00.001-07:00

If you look close enough you can see the double rainbow. It was huge and very pretty
On Sat we were going to hike to Ben Lomond but Jon was tired from his run and cleaning the whole house yesterday so we(Me Jon and Chad) just went to some cliffs. As you can see in these pictures it was pretty windy! It's amazing how much more fun it is to 4 wheel without the kids.

Jon is Superman!

2008-09-19T21:01:00.000-07:00

I came home from work today to find the house completely clean!! I've never seen the bathroom floor so spit shiny! From top to bottom the house was clean, even the laundry and dishes were done. The floors were vacuumed and mopped! This was after he did his PT test for work and ran 1 1/2 miles in 9 min 38 sec! Wow how awesome is he. Oh and did I mention the Mayor's Award he got yesterday? I'll just say it again, Jon is Superman! Thanks for all you do I love you!

Why Parents drink (pepsi)

2008-09-18T17:04:00.000-07:00

A father, passing by his son's bedroom, was astonished to see that his bed was nicely made and everything was picked up. Then he saw an envelope propped up prominently on the pillow that was addressed to "Dad." With the worst premonition, he opened the envelope with trembling hands and read the letter. Dear Dad: It is with great regret and sorrow that I'm writing you. I had to elope with my new girlfriend because I wanted to avoid a scene with Mom and you.I have been finding real passion with Stacy and she is so nice. But I knew you would not approve of her because of all her piercings, tattoos, tight motorcycle clothes and the fact that she is much older than I am. But it's not only the passion... Dad, she's pregnant. Stacy said that we will be very happy. She owns a trailer in the woods and has a stack of firewood for the whole winter. We share a dream of having many more children. Stacy has opened my eyes to the fact that marijuana doesn't really hurt anyone. We'll be growing it for ourselves and trading it with the other people that live nearby for cocaine and ecstasy. In the meantime, we will pray that science will find a cure for AIDS so Stacy can get better. She deserves it. Don't worry, Dad. I'm 15 and I know how to take care of myself. Someday I'm sure that we will be back to visit so that you can get to know your grandchildren. Love, Your Son John PS: Dad, none of the above is true. I'm over at Tommy's house. I just wanted to remind you that there are worse things in life than a bad report card.... which is in my center desk drawer. I love you. Call me when it's safe to come home.

Silly Family

2008-09-11T18:07:00.001-07:00

I came home from work and Jon and Charidy come riding up on the four wheeler covered head to toe in Mud. So they had to show Coen and I what they were doing. Keep in mind its 65degrees out there! The church baseball dimond was a great red neck swimming pool. We had it all to ourselves.