Parry Family

Playing Catch Up

2012-01-17T11:49:00.000-08:00

Firehouse Subs rocks! Go on your birthday and get a free sub. They're delicious! Take the kiddos and get a free fire chief hat with kid's meal purchase.
Time for our annual Nativity play! Joseph leading donkey with Mary and child to Bethlehem.

Baby Jesus laying in a manger

The proud parents

Angel showing everyone exactly where the King is at. His words went something like, "Baby Jesus, right here!!"

After his award winning performance, the angel found a more interesting form of entertainment. Snowglobe....with a train!!

The long awaited Santa visit. Lexi was very quick and told Santa exactly what she wanted. Unfortunately, Santa wasn't wearing his hearing aid or maybe forgot what she said because he apparantly did not bring what she asked for.

Landon on the other hand had an extensive list. "I want Legos and Transformers and Cars 2, and... and...etc."

"I'm forgetting something, what is it?"

"Let's see...is that everything? I think that's everything, unless you can think of something I forgot!"

Brennan saw everyone get handed a treat after sitting on Santa's lap, so he simply said, "Santa, candy!"

A fun family night out to the LHM Family sing-along. The kids had a blast!

Brennan had a hard time sitting in one place, so he kept making the rounds trying to escape up the stairs!

So fun to have Holly and Courtney visiting from S.C!

Jason on his phone, of course.

All ready for snow! Too bad there isn't any.

Grandma pulled out chimes this year for a lovely rendition of "Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer." Maybe next year it will actually sound like a song!?

Even the adults got to play.

Grandpa reading a christmas story. Is it time for presents yet?!

His face says it all.

An uniflated snow tube can double as a stage to sport some dance fever.

Grandpa's train is always a big hit!

Mark and his amazing camera skills. I didn't need that half of my head anyway.

He put this together by himself!

Lexi loves her princess polly pockets!

Fur Real friends. A fabulous family pet. No hair, no smell, no vet, no chewed up shoes, no pee on the floor, and only occasional barking. Perfect!

Brennan has a small obsession with trucks. He plays with them all the time!

Our New Year's vacation in St. George was a lot of fun. The kids loved hiking around the slot canyon and found lots of "homes".

Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season! Love to all!

"Happy 'Ween"

2011-11-06T18:43:00.000-08:00

Brennan loved painting his pumpkin! Thank you g-ma and g-pa for growing all our orange canvases!Landon's masterpiece.

Lexi's vampire pumpkin

Beware of the black cat!

Landon's school parade.

Playing 'Pin the Spider ' at the class Halloween party

The kids made 'Cookie Monsters'. I thought they turned out pretty cute...I mean scary.

Trunk or treating at Landon's school

The vampire, the prince, and the black cat. What a crew! They're all smiles knowing that a lot of candy is in their near future.

I was thankful for a beautiful, warm night!

Our cute neighbors were so excited to have trick or treaters. We were their first trick or treaters ever and they have lived in their house for over 14 years! She made individual bags for the kids with their name on it complete with toys and candy. Brennan caught on to the halloween phrases pretty quickly and was soon telling everyone "happy ween, tank u!"

The kids went trunk or treating with g-ma and g-pa while mom and dad got a much needed night off. It was definitely a Happy Halloween!

A Special Day

2011-11-03T12:24:00.000-07:00

It was a very special day for Lexi. She was excited and nervous and happy all at the same time. She is very grateful to all her friends and family that came to her baptism!

Lexi and Dad ready to leave for the church

Lexi and her cousins at the church. Lexi has the cute baptism book that the Primary presidency gave to her.

There was a lot of waiting once we got to the church, so taking pictures seemed to help with all the wildness and running around.

Lexi in her beautiful white dress, appropriately posed.

Lexi is such a sweet girl! I am so proud of her and all that she does! She is loving and kind, and is a great example to her brothers, whom she dearly loves. She always tries hard to do her best at everything she does. She lights up a room with her smile and loves to giggle. We love you Lexi!

A Little Work, A Lot of Play

2011-07-18T12:41:00.000-07:00

We have been able to get out and do a few things this summer amidst the whole putting in our yard saga that pretty much consumes all of our "extra" time. Our first outing was to Hogle Zoo. The kids had a blast, especially Brennan who loves to chase any kind of animal.

They have "Zoorasic Park" at the zoo right now, and the kids loved the dinasaurs more than the real animals!

Brennan was not so sure about the rides at the Bouncy House, but he absolutely loved going down the inflatible slides! I was holding him so I didn't get any pictures, but believe me his smile could not have been bigger.

Here's where the work comes in...or was it play? Mark drove this bobcat all day long and had a smile on his face the whole time. By the end of the day, we had a level yard. I have to say I was pretty impressed.

We stopped at Cove Fort on the way to our family vacation in St. George. There was a wonderful, shady picnic area where the kids had a blast just running around. The tour of the fort was fun too!

There was a free petting zoo on the way. It was a big hit!

Brennan loved the animals from a certain distance. This encounter with the goat was a little too close for him.

The boys love to dance and sing together. Brennan wants to do everything his big brother does!

Lexi at her science fair. She did a great job on her water cycle experiment and presentation.

Having a little snack together.

Mark has always wanted to snow ski on the 4th of July. This year his dream came true!

Preschool Graduate

2011-05-31T08:23:00.001-07:00

Landon was so excited for graduation day! He has loved every day of preschool and learned so much. His teachers are so wonderful and have taught him everything he needs to know to start "big kid school." We are so proud of him and all that he has accomplished!

The lighting for the program was not compatible with our camera, so even though we took a lot of pictures, only 4 came out half-way decent. (Good thing I video taped the whole thing!) Landon backstage getting ready for his graduation march.

Some of his preschool friends

This was the cutest song of the program! During the song, they do different things to the friend next to them, like: tweak their nose, bump their hip, shake their hand, and here they are hugging. It was hilarious!

Way to go Landon! You are going to do great in big kid school! We love you!

Turning the big 1

2011-03-26T20:05:00.001-07:00

I can't believe my baby is one already! Where does the time go? He is such a cutie and we are enjoying watching him grow! He started walking about a week after his birthday, he has 4 teeth, says "hello" and "bye-bye", and gives the sweetest kisses ever!

He is our #1 allstar!

Occasionally, his brother lets him play with the toys he received.

He started off a little timid and slow, but once the sugar hit the tongue, he was all for it!

He loves his ride-on toy from his great-grandpa!

He is riding his cousin's toy that she got for her birthday a few weeks before. I'm pretty sure it was the look of pure joy on his face that let great-grandpa know what he wanted for his birthday. We love you buddy!

Fall Festivities

2011-01-22T17:15:00.000-08:00

Our family's first ever visit to Cascade Springs. It was a beautiful little hike that winds its way around several flowing springs. Kid and stroller friendly, although a little crowded on conference Sunday.

We were able to get one good picture of the whole family and it just happened to be on my camera!

Brennan loved riding around on his daddy's back! Landon tried to find a way to get a ride too.

Our annual visit to "the witches" at Gardiner Village is always something the kids look forward to. It was so crowded the day we went that we had to park about a half mile away. I decided that I'd rather make the trek than listen to the whining if I turned around and went back home.

One picture to show that Brennan was there. He was so interested in the sucker that this kid was eating that the kid had to come stand next to me so that Brennan would actually look my way!

Halloween! Halloween was a couple of days after we moved, so we decided to reuse costumes from previous years. Lexi was Hanna Montana for her school party. Her friends didn't even recognize her. Love the pose!

Brennan made it into the duck costume that each child has worn for their first Halloween, but only for about 5 minutes and then it came off.

We trick-or-treated at my sister's house this year. The kids had so much fun spending Halloween with their cousins! We've got the superhero duo Batman and Spiderman, a lovely kitty cat and Jessie (from Toy Story)

Brennan and his cousin Allison were in hog heaven playing in the bucket of candy!

Miscellaneous fall happenings...

How many giant goose-eggs can this kid get? You can still kind of see the tail end of the matching goose-egg on the other side of his forehead. He has a helmet I promise!

We finally sold our house!

Cheer, Cheer for Old Notre Dame

2010-11-19T09:57:00.001-08:00

Seven years after leaving Indiana, we were finally able to make our way back to the midwest. As soon as we found out that the Utes were playing the Irish, we started making plans for this trip. We thought it would be fun to take the whole family along! We were all a little sleep deprived by the end of the trip (some of us more than others), but it was totally worth it.

Here are the kiddos waiting for our flight to leave SLC. It was a first plane ride for all the kids! Lexi and Landon fought over who got to sit by the window so we split up, and not halfway through the flight Landon fell asleep! So much for the view.

The kids loved using the hotel crib as a playroom

Mark and I in front of our apartment

It was a beautiful day Friday afternoon and we spent a couple hours walking around on campus. Here is the Golden Dome.

Inside the Golden Dome. The trumpet section of the ND band plays the fight song inside the building. It is really loud, but the kids had fun watching and listening to this fun tradition!

Kids playing in the fall leaves. They were happy to get out of the car and run around after the drive from Chicago.

Outside the bookstore. It was too crazy inside for two rambunctious kids and a stroller!

I was able to go to a surprise birthday party for a good friend and former co-worker while I was there. He was so surprised to see me! It was fun catching up with him and his family!

Nieves, Sherrie and their kids Lauren and Brayden. Brayden had enough of taking pictures so that is him in the corner playing with a toy.

The kids made fast friends and loved playing together!

Game day on campus! Us in front of "Touchdown Jesus" (the library).

Kids in front of "First Down Moses"

At the MBA tailgate. It started to rain, but wasn't very cold!

At the stadium in the north endzone. Our tickets weren't the best, and Landon said,"Next time can you tell them not to put us way in the back?"

It rained the entire first half, and Lexi's face pretty much sums up how they felt about being there!

Our wonderful friends the Crowders who gave us the best accommodations!

Together with the Trytkos! Chris and Abby were very kind to watch Brennan for us while we went to the game.

There is a path that goes around this little lake on campus. Mark and I used to walk around it all the time. So even though it was cold and windy, we made the kids walk around it. They actually enjoyed it!

Our amazingly delicious Chicago pizza at Giordanos. This pizza is a must have if you are ever in Chicago!

The kids at Shedd Aquarium watching the dolphins swim.

Playing in the submarine!

Mark and the kids in front of the Chicago skyline. (I was in the car with a sleeping baby) It was a fun trip and I hope that the kids will remember it!

Lexi Turns 7

2010-10-01T14:21:00.000-07:00

Where does the time go? I can't believe Lexi is seven already! She is such a cute girl and we just adore her! She loves playing with friends, riding her bike, coloring, writing stories, and singing. Mostly, she loves to play with her brothers! She is a wonderful big sister and helps me a lot with baby Brennan.

Lexi chose chocolate cake with pink frosting and helped me decorate it! Landon thought that he would help her blow out the candle.

She received her first set of scriptures with her name engraved on them and has been reading them at night all by herself.

It's a pillow...it's a pet...it's a pillow pet! Yes, thanks to the many infomercials on Qubo channel, Lexi is the proud new owner of a unicorn Pillow Pet that she named Diamond.

Lexi decided a long time ago that she wanted to go to Chuck'a'rama for her birthday dinner. It is kind of a joke in my family because that is where my grandparents insisted on taking us for our birthdays and we got really tired of it over the years. I don't think I had been to chuck'a'rama in probably 15 years, and you know what, it was pretty darn good! We love you Lexi!

Herriman Fire

2010-09-20T13:22:00.000-07:00

I know it has been a long time since I last posted anything. I am planning on updating my blog in the near future, but this couldn't wait. This picture does not represent how serious and scary this situation was last night, but it was as close as we could get, and wanted to get for that matter. I have never experienced the threat of a fire before, and I never want to again. Our family and our house are fine. We were not part of the 1,500+ homes that were evacuated. However, many of our friends were evacuated and still are not allowed to go back to their homes. We are supposed to start building a home in two weeks in the area of the fire. I do not know at this time how close the fire came to our lot. From my bed, I just watched the flames blanket the hillside and worried. The firefighters fighting this fire are incredible! They saved so many homes that could have so easily been burned to the ground. I will post more information as soon as I can. This was definitely a night that I will never forget. I am thankful that no one was seriously hurt, and that only four homes were lost. It could have been much worse.

Brennan Mark joins our Family

2010-03-13T10:21:00.000-08:00

Brennan was born on Feb. 22 just after 1:00 in the afternoon.

He came out screaming, which is a good sign, but was also a sign of things to come.

True to the Parry infant tradition, Brennan is colicky!

He weighed in at:

Big brother and sister meet him for the first time.

I was very happy that the hospital visiting policy recently changed so that

my kids could visit me and the baby.

All bundled up and ready to go home.

He is definitely a cutie, and looks exactly like Landon.

Brennan meets his cousin Ali for the first time.

She is exactly 4 weeks older than him, but is clearly twice the size!

The days continue to melt into each other. I am still in a sleep-deprived fog

most of the time, but have somehow made it through the first 3 weeks!

Brennan is our precious little baby boy and we are so happy to have him as part of our family!

Christmas Part 3 (Christmas Day)

2010-01-30T12:35:00.000-08:00

Lexi was very excited Christmas morning to go downstairs and see if Santa had come. It was difficult for her to wait the 15 min. for me to do hair/makeup and wake up Landon, but somehow made it. Santa did make it to our house and here is some of the loot...

Landon got a Batman action figure that took him all of 4 weeks to break and is no longer with us.

Lexi got a ski helmet, which has already come in handy on the slopes this year.

Landon received Legos from Santa, which has turned out to be the favorite toy for everyone in the family, except mom who is constantly picking them up!

Landon got a cash register, pots and pans, cooking utencils (so that he doesn't "cook" in my pots and pans and ruin them anymore) and lots of fake food for his picnics and trips to the pretend grocery store.

Lexi got a watch set from g-ma and g-pa Coops. It has interchangeable faces and bands that she uses for just about everything except telling time.

Landon got more construction trucks to add to his collection. He now has a whole fleet of Caterpillar trucks. He should start his own constuction company!

Another favorite toy was this transformer, which he can transform back and forth by himself! Thanks everyone for a great Christmas!

Christmas Part 2

2010-01-14T14:24:00.001-08:00

Ward christmas party! The primary did a wonderful nativity story reenactment. Lexi was the only angel that had wings. She did have a fabulously constructed halo made out of tinfoil, but unfortunately it did not survive the dress rehearsal. The angel's did a lot of standing around while the shepherds got into a kicking match...it was pretty hilarious.

Santa Made It!

When Santa came into the room, Landon was busy making a craft. I said, "Landon look who's here!" He looks up momentarily, then goes back to his craft. He looks up a couple more times and then says to me, "Is that the real Santa or a pretend one?" I did my best to dodge the question.

Landon learned a little something from last year. Last year he sat on Santa's lap and asked him for a lightning McQueen car. He was very disappointed when he got off Santa's lap and all he received was a candy cane. This year, he was smarter...he sat on Santa's lap and asked for a candy cane. Just look at the excitement on his face when he got what he asked for!!!

Lexi's experience was a little bit different. She had been waiting very patiently in line when her very rambunctious brother jumped up and hit her in the chin which caused her to bite a rather large cut in her tongue. I had to pull her out of line and race to the bathroom where I tried to get the bleeding under control. I think she was crying more because she thought she was going to miss Santa than the pain of having a gaping hole in her tongue. She got back in line and tried to compose herself before it was her turn, although she was very concerned that Santa was going to notice the blood on her shirt. I think she was a trooper and pulled it off very well. I on the other hand was ready to go home and go to bed!

Christmas Part 1

2010-01-14T13:40:00.000-08:00

Our Nativity Story Tradition.

This is one of the kids favorite christmas traditions! They get better and more creative with their parts every year.

Mary (great with child) and Joseph

traveling to Bethlehem on their donkey

baby Jesus in his manger

a shepherd came to worship Jesus

Going to see the Lights

Cute Cousins!

the whole gang, minus the photographer....Mark

Halloween

2009-12-12T17:48:00.000-08:00

Now that it is almost Christmas, I figured I should get my Halloween post up. Lexi was a Barbie princess and Landon was a pirate. Landon has finally stopped saying, "Rrrrr-matey" all day, but only because he has recently discovered He-Man. He now runs around the house saying, "I am He-man, the most powerful man in the universe. I have the power!" It's great!

Kind of looks like a drunken pirate

Landon's preschool class at their Halloween party

Lexi's kindergarten class singing "Witch's Brew"

Just leaving to go Trick-or-Treating. The weather was a perfect temperature, and even better than that, we were only out for an hour and the kid's pumpkins were full to the brim!

Fall Fun

2009-11-03T19:48:00.000-08:00

We love to go to Gardiner Village in the fall and "spy" all the witches.

Landon wouldn't get anywhere near this spider. He must get that from me.

This is my favorite! Landon trying to mimick the witch.

We took a drive up Millcreek Canyon to take a look at the beautiful fall leaves.

Lexi turns 6

2009-11-02T15:27:00.000-08:00

Princess for a Day

Her present from g-ma & g-pa Coops was perfect for the party!

The royal guests made their own tiaras and crowns

A princess for a princess!

Rescue the princess game

A true prince can tell the difference between store bought and homemade!

A princess cake destined to be devoured

Looks like it was a hit! Lexi is definitely the princess of our family. She is such a sweetheart and we love her so much. Happy birthday Lex!

Lexi starts Kindergarten

2009-10-05T12:55:00.001-07:00

I can't believe my little girl is growing up so fast! She was so excited for school to start. She has been in school for a few weeks now, and says her favorite part of school is recess. She enjoys riding the bus to and from school and has made a lot of new friends. I was able to go to school with her to celebrate her birthday and read one of her favorite books to her class. It was a lot of fun! I am so proud of her and all that she is learning and the fact that she is such a good reader! Keep up the good work Lex!!

Where have we been?

2009-10-05T12:00:00.000-07:00

So, you might be asking: "what have the Parry's been up to the last 5 months?" That is a good question. This post will hopefully cover the last 5 months. For starters, I am five months pregnant...so that has a lot to do with it. I've only been past the "yucky stage" for a couple of weeks now, but I am definitely feeling better. I have my ultrasound this week! Also, we put our house up for sale, but due to the falling house values we have decided to stay put for now. The rest of the summer will speak for itself.

Landon spent as much time as he could riding on the 4-wheelers.

Lexi graduated from Little Scholar Academy Preschool.

We had a lot of fun up at the property this summer with our cousins!

We got in our fair share of pool time. The kids started swim lessons this summer and both of them did really well. They can't wait for next summer to come so they can go back to the pool!

The highlight of our Bear Lake trip this summer was that Mark competed in the Bear Lake Classic Triathalon. He tore his MCL two days before the Spud Man and had to drop out. After a lot of dedicated rehab, he felt that he would be able to participate in the Bear Lake Classic. However, he got the stomach flu that week. (Most of the Parry side of the family shared this strain of the flu with each other over a 3-4 week period.) We tried our best to talk him out of participating, but he knew he had put too much time and effort into training this year to not try. It was fun to watch and cheer him on!

Landon's Birthday Bash

2009-05-04T14:33:00.000-07:00

I think it is safe to say that Landon had a better birthday than he ever could have imagined. The celebrations started off with dinner at 5 Guys Burgers and Fries (better than In-n-Out!) followed by a trip to Nicklecade. That was definitely a hit with the kids and the adults! After all the nickles were gone, we headed to grandma and grandpa Parry's for presents. Landon got a red (Utes) chair, a classic pony riding-stick that neighs and makes other loud noises (not so classic), and a Cars backpack!

The following morning he got his presents from mom and dad!

On Sunday he had a combined birthday party with his cousin Spencer at grandma Coops. It was a lot of fun and he definitely was spoiled! He finally has boy dress-ups now and doesn't have to borrow his sisters anymore!!

Thanks everyone for the best birthday ever!!

Easter

2009-05-04T14:03:00.000-07:00

Yes, we did have Easter...this post is just a teeny bit late. The kids had a blast finding the eggs the Easter Bunny left for them.

They looked adorable in their new Easter outfits!

A Dream Come True....

2009-03-18T14:58:00.000-07:00

We decided a couple of months ago to surprise the kids with a trip to Disneyland. We waited until three days before we were going to leave to tell them. I bought them each a Disney activity book (to keep them busy in the car) to open when we told them.

After what seemed like an eternity (for all of us) we finally arrived at Disneyland.

Lexi loved the teacups

Landon loved riding in the pirate ships on the Peter Pan ride

Other Pics...

After three days of Disneyland it was time to head back home. We were all exhausted, but we had a great time together. My favorite moment was at the end of the first day when we were leaving the park. We were standing there watching the firework display when Lexi wrapped my arms around her, looked up at me and said, "Mom, it's a dream come true!"

A Proud Mom Moment

2009-02-23T15:32:00.000-08:00

I was getting ready in the bathroom one morning when I heard the kids being a little too rambunctious on the bed. I was about to get after them, when all of a sudden it got very quiet. Usually, that is a bad thing.....but this time it was just the opposite. Lexi had picked up a library book that had several Disney short stories in it and asked Landon which one he wanted her to read to him. He picked out a story and Lexi read it to him....every word on every page of the book without any help! It was definitely a great
mom moment!!

Winter Wonderland

2009-01-26T12:24:00.000-08:00

What do you do when there is over a foot of snow in your backyard? Play in it! We've had a blast during the month of January playing outside in the cold, wet, white stuff. Here are some of our adventures...

Snow fort in the backyard

Sledding at the park

There must be a little bit of her dad in her after all. On her second try at skiing, Lexi skiied down the hill by herself four times!!!

We went tubing with some of our ward friends and had a great time!!

Santa Visits

2009-01-01T19:47:00.000-08:00

Christmas came and went so fast! It was a miracle that Santa made it to our house with the blizzard and almost a foot of fresh snow! We had our camcorder all charged and ready to go when the sleepy kids we dragged out of bed came down the stairs to see what Santa had left. But, that is all that we were able to record of our Christmas morning because after the kids made it down the stairs, the camera ran out of tape! Lexi got the Ariel doll she asked Santa for and Landon got his McQueen race car. After all the gifts were opened it was off to g-ma and g-pa Coops for more presents. It was a little scary getting there because you could not even see the road! The best moment at my parent's house was when Landon quietly disappeared and returned a little while later riding on a Star Wars four-wheeler! My parents had taken the four-wheeler out of the box, put it together, and had it charging in another room with the door shut. They had rewrapped the empty box for Landon to unwrap and then were going to bring it out to show him. Needless to say, it was a waste of wrapping paper. I can just imagine Landon's face when he opened that door and saw the four-wheeler just sitting there waiting for him to hop on. Yep, leave it to grandpa and grandma to get the largest, loudest, but way cool gift of Christmas 2008! After some yummy breakfast it was off to g-ma and g-pa Parry's. Lexi got hooked up with a new Barbie and Landon loves his new Caterpillar fork-lift. All in all, it was a great day! We hope you all had a very merry Christmas!

Our Little Ones

2008-12-23T13:22:00.000-08:00

This past weekend, I attended a funeral for a 4-month old baby girl that past away from SIDS. She is the daughter of a neighborhood friend that moved about a year ago. It was the hardest thing I have ever sat through in my life. It is amazing how much an infant can touch our lives and in such a short amount of time. I recently saw my friend at the grocery store and met her little girl for the first time. I remember distinctly her beautiful smile. That day, my friend's biggest concern was what kind of cake to buy for her husband's birthday. One month later, her world was completely turned upside down. I came home from the funeral and just hugged my kids and cried. I was just so grateful to have them. So, next time your kids are fighting or driving you crazy, take a minute to be grateful that they are actually there to drive you crazy!

Picture A Christmas

2008-12-16T20:08:00.000-08:00

Picture A Christmas is one of my favorite Christmas songs. It really helps me to visualize the scene in Bethleham that “sacred, silent night.” I decided that it was important for my kids to know what Christmas is really about. When I was little, my cousins and I would all get together and act out the Nativity scene in the Bible. I looked forward to it every year. Every year I hoped that I would be picked to be Mary, but alas, every year I was an angel. Even though there are only four in our family, I thought my kids would enjoy doing this too. They absolutely loved it and wanted to keep acting all night! Here are the pics!

Mary and Joseph walking to Bethleham

Joseph handing baby Jesus to Mary

A shephard abiding in the field (or just striking a pose)

An angel (yes, again) bringing good tidings of great joy

The shepard visiting Mary and Joseph in the stable

A “wise” man traveling from the East

We really enjoyed our little Natvity Play and I hope you did too! Merry Christmas!

Thanksgiving

2008-12-06T20:12:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving weekend was a lot of fun. It started out with the perfect thing...a trip to the gym! Mark played in his annual Turkey Bowl with his high school buddies at Albion Middle School. Then it was back to the kitchen. This year was my first attempt at making rolls and I am happy to report that it was a success! They were so yummy! We ate a wonderful meal with all the trimmimgs at my parent's house. My brother and his family drove from Montana arriving at 1:30 AM. It had been a year and a half since I had seen them!! My niece Olivia was only 3 months old the last time I saw her and now she's almost 2. It was great to spend time with them. After dinner and watching the rebroadcast of the Utah/BYU game, we hit the road for St. George. I wouldn't let the kids have any drinks during the drive because I was determined not to make any stops. But, after Mark downed 2 Diet Mountain Dews we had to make a potty stop in Beaver. At least we went to, according to Aunt Shana, "the nicest gas station bathrooms on the I-15 corridor." We arrived at my bro-in-law's house in Hurricane around 9PM, but didn't get the kids in bed until 10:30.
I decided to get up at 5:30 and do some Black Friday shopping on-line. Shortly after I crawled back in bed, Mark got up to go referee the Dixie Invitational soccer tournament. The rest of the weekend was a blur of hikes, swimming, pancakes, kids running everywhere, football, driving inbetween Washington and Hurricane, more pancakes, more kids, and a lot of laughter. The highlights of the trip for me were:
The patio on the roof at the Marsh's house--the scenery is so beautiful!
In-n-Out--always delicious and cheap
Live Nativity at Tuachan--short and to the point
Sacrament Meeting in Hurricane--really good talks, and Lexi sat with the Marsh's!
Having all the cousins play well together all weekend!

our family photos

2008-12-03T15:35:00.000-08:00

We recently had our family pictures taken, so I thought it would be a good time to start a family blog.