THE FLETCHER FAMILY

Girls Camp

2010-07-13T09:46:00.000-07:00

Fletcher Reunion 2010 at Echo Lake

2010-07-04T13:01:00.000-07:00

Memorial Weekend in Park City

2010-05-31T21:33:00.000-07:00

This last Memorial Day weekend, we spent with my family in Park City at Silver Star Resort. It was cold but a lot of fun! We went swimming at the rec center in Kamas. We went to see Shrek Forever and then road the bus up to Main Street to go to dinner at the Red Banjo for pizza. We road bikes and scooters, hot tubbed, roasted marshmallows and made smores in the fire pits, the boys golfed, the kids swam at the resort pool, and my favorite was a game of kickball with the whole family out on the courtyard. We had a great time and it was nice to get away.

Madelyn's Preschool Graduation

2010-05-25T21:57:00.000-07:00

Madelyn finished her first year of preschool, loving every moment of it. Her teacher Miss Dawn is fabulous and Madelyn worships the ground she walks on. She put on this little preschool graduation where all the parents and family came and watched as they promenaded to the graduation music out to their seats and put on a little program for us. It was super cute! Madelyn, Mom and Dad are so proud of you, great work this year!

2010-05-22T21:11:00.000-07:00

I ran today in the Habitat for Humanity 5K Run. It was a lot of fun and for a great cause. I came in 2nd place overall for females and would have taken 1st place in my age category, however the only girl that beat me to the finish line was 16 and the category was 16-29...I'm 30 in 4 weeks, bummer. I would have walked away with a $50 gift card to Target. I had a good time though and felt good about my time and finish.

Last Minute Trip to Vegas

2010-05-18T08:19:00.000-07:00

Our friends, the Petersons called us to see if we wanted to get away for a few days to warmer weather and go to Las Vegas. We're usually not very spontaneous, but we decided it sounded fun and that we would go. We drove down on Tuesday, and fortunately didn't have to stop once. The kids did great! We checked in to our favorite place for families down there, Tahiti Village, and then headed to dinner at the Rainforest Cafe in the MGM. The kids had a great time! The next day we spent at the pool and the lazy river. It was 93 degrees and perfect! The kids were so happy with the sand beach entry pool and floating in their tubes on the lazy river. Life doesn't get much better than that. We hit Jason's Deli for lunch...mmm. Then spent more time at the pool until we were sunburned and worn out. We then went to dinner way too late that night at an international buffet at the South Point Hotel, which our kids were horrible at and the food was average. Then headed back to our hotel and crashed. The next morning we headed out and back home. It was quick, but relaxing and fun and just what we needed to re energize. Thanks Petersons, we had a blast! Here are a few photos.

Thanksgiving Point Half Marathon

2010-04-25T20:17:00.000-07:00

Well, I did it. After 3 months of strict training, I finished 6th in my age group out of 69 women. I ran 13.1 miles in 1 hour and 54 minutes. It was so much fun! There was so much hype and excitement before, during, and after the race. It was a really pretty course. We got to run through the Thanksgiving Point Gardens during the tulip festival and then along the Jordan Parkway Trail. My parents came for the beginning of the race, then found me a few times along the race to cheer me on. Then my little family, my sister and her girls, and my parents were at the finish line. I felt really good and it made me want to do another one. Here are a few photos from the race.

Family of Eight

2010-04-25T17:53:00.000-07:00

This last week we watched my sisters kids while they went on vacation. They have 3 boys and 1 girl + our two. Six kids...it was a little crazy to say the least. You name it, we experienced it. On top of the craziness both our girls ended up with the stomach flu and were throwing up. I don't think I stopped doing laundry, dishes, and diapers the entire time I was there. They're great kids though and we had a fun time at baseball games and practices, Costa Vida, playing outside and the park, Kangaroo Zoo, game night, making cards for grandma's birthday, and just being together. The best pictures we got were from Ty's iPhone.We survived church.A car full...

No more pigtails for awhile for Madelyn...

2010-04-14T21:19:00.000-07:00

Madelyn and I had a day at the salon last Friday. I had been debating about cutting her hair for a long time and finally got up the courage to do it. After we cut it short and Emily styled it, she kept a lock of hair for Madelyn to keep. When she showed it to Madelyn, she said, "Put it back in." Umm...it's a little too late for that. Anyway, she likes it now, but I have to say, it's not as low maintenance as I thought it would be. I tend to want to round brush and flat iron it everyday due to my perfectionist behavior.

Before...

After...

Happy Easter!

2010-04-04T20:44:00.000-07:00

We enjoyed celebrating Easter this year by having an egg hunt and dinner at Grandma Wilkins house the week before, attending Madelyn's preschool party, multiple egg dying occassions with friends and family, and baskets from the Easter Bunny. Here are a few pics from Easter morning. Unfortunately, I didn't get their pictures in their Easter dresses as we rushed out the door to church the Sunday before Easter.

Happy St. Patrick's Day

2010-03-17T20:59:00.000-07:00

Madelyn after her preschool party.

Enjoying the free admission day at the Children's Museum with their cousins.

Kitchen Update

2010-03-13T13:59:00.000-08:00

For the last few months I have been wanting to update the kitchen a little by refinishing the cabinets. I got a few ideas online and from my talented sisters. Here is what the kitchen looked like when we first moved in...extremely boring.

Here is the kitchen now...after glazing the top cabinets a dark brown, painting the bottom cabinets and drawers cream, and applying glaze in the cracks. We also put up bead board below the counters and added some hardware from Pottery Barn. A very needed update. We still have plans to paint the walls tan and get some barstools at the counter, but with time each little project happens.

Fun in the Snow

2010-01-25T09:11:00.000-08:00

New Years Day we went sledding with my family. The kids had a great time!

A few days later we played in the snow in the backyard. Madelyn spent most of the time licking and eating the snow.

Christmas Eve and Christmas Day

2010-01-14T15:12:00.000-08:00

We enjoyed Christmas Eve at my parents' house. We had an incredible steak dinner and then my dad read Luke 2 while the kids acted it out with the little nativity set. The best part was when my mom said, "and the angel said..." and Audrey said, "Ho Ho Ho!" really loud. We had been practicing, "What does Santa say?" It was hilarious. I wish I had it on video. Then we put the girls Christmas pj's on and headed home. We put out milk and cookies for Santa and put the girls to bed and finished wrapping presents. Unfortunately our Christmas pictures didn't turn out very well, so here's the best of them.

Christmas morning we woke up and the girls were so excited. They had so much fun opening presents. Madelyn got a dollhouse with furniture, some dress up shoes, games, princess Barbies, and her stocking stuff. Audrey got sit n' spin, busy ball popper, Mrs. potato head, a shape sorter, a pony, and her stocking stuff. Ty and I got Sonicare toothbrushes, and a few surprises from each other. We had a great morning! We spent the afternoon and evening at my parents' house again. We had a casual dinner, and then opened presents. Madelyn got a Leapster from Grandma and Grandpa, and she was so excited, she could hardly breathe, she said, "This is what I've wanted my whole life!" Then she got some games to go with it. Audrey opened a highchair for her babies and some great church toys (I Spy bag and a dressup wooden doll). Then Ty and I got clothes and some new frames for our family room wall, which we've wanted for a very long time to frame the girls pictures we had taken this summer. We had a good time, playing, laughing, and enjoying one another. It was an awesome Christmas Day!

Wilkins Family Christmas Party

2009-12-21T08:07:00.001-08:00

My sister and her family were going to Hawaii for Christmas this year. So we had a family Christmas party at her house where we had dinner, and the cousin gift exchange, along with grandma's tradition of new pj's for the grandkids and a Christmas book for each family. We also started a new tradition this year, which was an adult white elephant gift exchange, which was hilarious! I also had made a DVD of our California trip back in October that we watched. It was a lot of fun! My sister always does a great job of entertaining. Thanks Kristen for a fun memorable night! Have fun in Hawaii...a little jealous.

Crazy, memorable, fun weekend...

2009-12-21T07:42:00.000-08:00

A few weekends ago we decided to take the girls downtown to see the lights. We thought it would be fun to ride Trax...not such a good idea. We got to the station at 7pm and barely missed the train. So we waited for the next train to come 15 minutes later. We got all bundled in our snow gear and sat there for 10 minutes, sweating because the heaters on the train were turned up really high. We slowly made our way downtown with 2 already tired children. At about 3300 So. the train conductor got on the speaker and announced that there had been a Trax accident and we were holding for a bit until we could get through. We sat there for about 30 minutes. Then finally were dropped off at the Courthouse station and told we had to get out and walk. After a potty stop in a dark downtown basement bathroom, and a 5 block walk, we made it to temple square at 9 pm, 2 hours later. Now everyone was hot and wanted a drink, so we found a drinking fountain and then walked around the lights for an hour, which the girls enjoyed. Who doesn't enjoy the beautiful lights and scenery this time of year? We headed back down Main Street once again for our 5 block walk to the Courthouse station, with 2 tired kids, now cold and screaming. When we got there the train was full and we again had to wait for another train. By the time we got on that train, our kids had lost it. They cried and whined the entire 30 minute ride home with everyone staring at us, irritated. We didn't make it home to put them to bed until midnight. Let's just say we won't be riding Trax downtown again for a long time. Funny enough, the next morning Madelyn asks, "Hey can we ride the train downtown again to the see the lights?" Both Ty and I in unison said, "No!"

The next afternoon Madelyn and I went to see Princess and the Frog. She loved it! It was a really cute show. She was happy to sit there with her giant popcorn and watch the show. It was fun to go just the two of us. She can't stop talking about the movie.

Overall, a little crazy, but fun! Tis' the season.

Silly Girl

2009-12-21T07:38:00.000-08:00

The other day Madelyn came out looking like this...wearing my tall boots. Just another day in the life of my girl. She cracks me up!

Live Nativity in Draper

2009-12-21T07:26:00.000-08:00

We went to the live nativity in Draper a few weeks ago. Again, it was amazing! We waited in line for 2 hours, but it was worth the wait. It really helps bring the true meaning of Christmas to life. It was especially neat to take Madelyn and watch her get so excited to see the baby Jesus in the manger.

Halloween a little late...

2009-11-23T21:20:00.000-08:00

We had a fun Halloween. Madelyn really wanted to be Alex the Lion from Madagascar and so fortunately we already had the zebra costume that fit Audrey, and so she was Marty the Zebra. The girls had fun carving pumpkins, trick-or-treating at dad's office and around the neighborhood, and even passing out candy at our house. Here are a few random photos.

At Ty's office trick-or-treating.

Audrey as Marty the Zebra.

Madelyn as Alex the Lion.

Our California Trip

2009-11-02T06:50:00.000-08:00

A couple of weeks ago we took a trip to California with my family. We have been waiting a long time for this vacation. My parents bought a time share in Newport Beach through Marriott almost 2 years ago and we got to use it for the first time in October. This vacation was our Christmas present from last Christmas. It was all worth the wait...we had such a good time! Ty and I decided to start driving a day ahead of when everyone was leaving and stay in Las Vegas overnight. So that's where our trip began. We stayed at the Tahiti Village Resort. Our girls' favorite part was the pool. It had a beach sand entry on one side, and a lazy river across from the pool. Here are a few photos in Las Vegas.The next morning we got up, swam some more and then headed on to California. When we got there we stopped off at Fashion Island to have lunch and shop around and then on to the resort. We stayed at the Marriott Coast Villas Vacation Club Resort. It was really nice. Here's the view off of our balcony. After we all gathered on Saturday, we had dinner and just hung out. We were all pretty tired from traveling. Then Sunday we went to church, Kim and Abe's old ward from when they lived in Newport Beach when they were first married. Then that afternoon we walked around the resort and enjoyed some of the ammenities...the kiddie park, the putting green, the sandbox, and the coy fish pond. The kids had a great time!
Bright and early Monday morning we headed to Disneyland. We went hard and fast all day long. We rode a lot of rides that day in both parks, visited Toon Towne, watched the Pixar parade and the fireworks. The kids had a blast. Here are the photos from that day.
Tuesday, it rained off and on all morning, so finally when it cleared up a little, we headed to the beach. Audrey loved the ocean, Madelyn slept through most of the beach trip, so we didn't last very long because it was so windy and cold. We went back to the resort and got in the hot tubs, which were much more enjoyable.Wednesday morning we headed back out for another day of Disneyland. It rained most of the day, unfortunately. However, it made for an opportunity to ride a lot of rides because there were not a lot of people there. After lunch we met up with our good friends, the Petersons for a few rides and then headed on our own ways, but it was fun to see them for a short moment. Overall, it was a wet, fun, and full day.

Thursday, was a nice day so we went swimming, took naps, and headed to one of our family's favorite beaches, Balboa Beach in Newport. The kids had a great time digging in the sand, and we even built a slide with a plastic tarp that we had from the rainy day at Disneyland. Ty and I won the couples' paddle ball tournament by a long shot, we were pretty proud! Then we had a shake at Ruby's Diner and ended up going back to the condo for a bbq and more hot tubbing...another fun day!

Friday, was our last day at Disneyland, so we got up early and arrived there as the gates were opening. We decided to split up and do what each individual family wanted to do first. So Ty and I ran through the gates and headed to Fantasy Land, we rode several of the little kiddie rides and then went on It's A Small World. We then ran to California Adventures when it opened to do Toy Story and then stayed there and did several rides until lunchtime, including the Muppets in 3D show and the Crush show. We played in Bear Country and went back to Bug's Land (Madelyn's favorite in California Adventures). After naps in the stroller we headed back to Disneyland and didn't get much accomplished, because it was Friday and 92 degrees, it was packed. We watched the parade, rode just a couple of rides, ate dinner, and finished off the evening with the Matterhorn, which was Madelyn's request each night before leaving the park. It was her favorite ride in Disneyland. She couldn't stop talking about how she didn't close her eyes and she was so brave. We rode that ride about 10 times when we were there, thank heavens for the speedy lines and the rider switch pass. Overall, we had a great time in Disneyland, both the girls had so much fun! We packed up the next morning and headed home. The girls did great on the way home, and we made really good time, even with a pit stop in Cedar City at Cafe Rio. Thank you Mom and Dad for another memorable family vacation!

Madelyn's 3rd Birthday!

2009-09-30T12:08:00.001-07:00

A few months ago I decided that I wanted to have a carnival party for Madelyn's 3rd birthday. So...the plans began. I pictured this outdoor carnival in my backyard, parents and kids wandering out from game to game, eating carnival food, and having a good old time. After all the planning and preparation, the day came and at the last minute, it was too windy to set up. So we crammed 40 people in my house, and tried to still eat and play all the games. To say the least it was a "circus". But it was a lot of crazy fun! We had corn dogs, nachos, giant pretzels, popcorn, and drinks for dinner. Ty was tying balloons for the kids while they were eating and playing games. Madelyn had such a good time! We had the pleasure of our friends Tim and Kim Shirley there taking pictures of the whole thing. They did such a great job! Thank you to all that came and celebrated Madelyn's birthday. We'll never forget it or the mess that was left to cleanup afterwards...Enjoy the pictures. For more information about Tim & Kim Photography, visit the link to their photography blog.

Madelyn's 1st Day of Preschool

2009-09-01T07:06:00.000-07:00

Madelyn is now going to preschool called Discovery Corner Preschool and she loves it! Her teachers name is Miss Dawn and she gets so excited to go every Tuesday and Thursday afternoon. She is learning a lot and has met a lot of new little friends. To be honest, it's a nice little break for me too, because Audrey naps the whole time Madelyn is gone, it's fantastic! Anyway, here a few photos from the 1st day.

Madelyn and Miss Dawn Madelyn and one of her best friends, Addison

Aiden + Anais at Target!

2009-08-29T10:55:00.000-07:00

My favorite thing that I received when Audrey was born was Aiden + Anais muslin swaddlers. They are thin and lightweight for swaddling (especially great in the summertime), yet big so that you can actually wrap them up well. Well Audrey is obsessed with her swaddlers. She now balls them up and cuddles with them when she sleeps. She loves to rub her face in them and I never worry about her being too hot because they're so breathable. She cannot sleep without them. Unfortunately, they are not a cheap commodity. The only places you could buy them were at boutique shops and online and they were about $45 for a package of 4. The other day I was at Target and I happened to see that they have them there now in the baby section and they are only $29.99 for a package of 4. For anyone having a baby soon, these are one my top ten, must haves list. Check them out at this link...Aiden + Anais for Target.

http://www.target.com/gp/search/179-8215718-7889451?ie=UTF8&search-alias=tgt-index&viewID=drill-down&field-keywords=aden%20%2B%20anais

Two New Temples...One Weekend

2009-08-22T21:15:00.000-07:00

Friday, Ty and I were able to go to the first session of the dedication of the Oquirrh Mountain Utah Temple inside the temple, with my parents and my brother and his wife. My dad was the superintendent of the project of building the temple and so it meant a lot to him to watch the process from start to finish and finally dedicated. It was really neat to be sitting inside there knowing that President Monson and the general authorities were just down the hall. I was really glad I was able to attend and I can't wait to someday actually go there to do temple work. Then on Saturday, our ward (old ward now) went as a group to do an endownment session and go to lunch afterwards. I went alone because Ty had to go to the stake baptism and then he met me there and did initiatories. It is such a beautiful temple. It was really cool to actually be in the temple after I had been to the open house 6 months ago. I feel so blessed to live in Utah where we have so many temples all around us. It was a great weekend!

A Bittersweet Day

2009-08-16T21:45:00.001-07:00

Well, today we woke up late, rushed to get ready for church and showed up a few minutes after the meeting had started. (We have 8:30 am church, it's hard to be on time.) I walked in to the chapel and it was dark. I was really confused, so I sat down and the counselor in the Stake Presidency was at the pulpit with a map. I knew what that meant...ward split. We had one about 4 1/2 years ago. As he was explaining where the new boundary lines were, I could see this little chunk out of our ward, about 20 houses that were told that they would be going to a new ward. Us being one of those. Actually the boundary line is our next door neighbor. Keep in mind that Ty's up front conducting the meeting as 1st counselor in the Bishopric. He found out about 2 minutes before the meeting started. I immediately felt sick to my stomach and couldn't help the tears from coming. We have been in this ward for 5 1/2 years and have served in many callings in the ward, including presidencies and bishoprics. We have a lot of friends that we will be leaving behind. We also now have 2:30 pm church...yuck! Come fall and winter, we will be leaving church in the dark. At least it is only until the end of the year and then our new ward is actually heading to a new building that will be done at the beginning of the year. We look forward to meeting new friends and serving in a new ward, however we are sad to leave. To say the least, I balled through the whole 3 hour block. I guess that's life. Anyway, I'm so proud of my husband for serving so diligently and making me proud. I love you honey!

24th of July Evening

2009-07-24T10:37:00.000-07:00

For the 24th of July, my dad is building a project up at Alta Ski Resort and wanted the family to go up there and have dinner at the midway lodge that he built a few years ago. So we drove up the steep, crazy road in 4x4 cars and parked at the lodge. My dad had brought up a bbq and some awesome steaks that we cooked up along with corn on the cob, potatoes, and fruit. It was the best steak dinner I've had in a long time, and probably the only one I'll ever have in the middle of a ski hill. My dad drove up a four wheeler from his job and we got to take turns driving around the mountain. It was absoutely beautiful. Ty and my dad went all the way to the top where the lake is. The kids had a lot of fun hiking around, four wheeling, and throwing rocks in the stream. We were so secluded up there and it felt like we owned the mountain. It was a really fun night.

First Birthday Photos of Audrey

2009-07-13T14:28:00.000-07:00

Last week Audrey turned one. I can't believe how fast that year went by. Crazy! A week before her birthday we had some friends Tim and Kim Shirley take some pictures of Audrey. Here are a few of my favorites...

Audrey's First Birthday Party

2009-07-13T09:59:00.000-07:00

We had a fun little birthday party for Audrey. We had some friends and family over and had dinner and cupcakes and ice cream. Then we had a pinata for the kids and watched her first year video that I had created. She had a great time eating her cupcake and opening a few little presents. Here are a few photos...

4th of July

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

We had a fun 4th of July this year! Our nephew, Tanner had come done from Canada to visit for a couple of weeks. He reports on August 5th to the MTC in Provo, then he will be serving in Chile. He is a great kid. Ty took a few days off and we picked him up from his other grandma's on the 2nd to spend a few days with us. We went to Cafe Rio, the boys played lots of Xbox and computer games and went to the movies. Then we went rock climbing at a new little place we found in Draper. Even Madelyn tried out her new body harness on the rocks. She was brave, I'm proud of her. It was the first time for me to climb outdoors in a really long time, so I was a little rusty. But it was still a lot of fun. The morning of the 4th, I made a big breakfast and we took Tanner back to his grandma's. We then brought the girls home for naps, and then that night we headed up to my parents' house for a bbq and some good times in their new, fun backyard, which we now call "Grandma's Park". She also had a helium tank from their neighborhood parade that the kids filled up balloon after balloon. Later, we went to Jordan High School and sat on the lawn to watch the Sandy Days' fireworks. Grandpa bought all the kids glow sticks, which they had a lot of fun with until the fireworks were ready. It was a great firework show. We then took our exhausted family home and put them to bed. It was a great weekend! Here are a few photos.

Happy Birthday to Me.

2009-06-25T13:10:00.000-07:00

So it's been a really long time since I blogged, life has been crazy! Well almost a month ago I celebrated my 29th birthday. It was a great few days actually. On Thursday morning of my actual birthday, my cute friend Kim brought over these delicious gourmet cupcakes from Beyond Glazed. Then Madelyn had a mini dance recital and so Ty and I went and watched her dance. It was pretty hilarious, although cute. Then the girls and I went downtown and met my sisters and their kids for lunch at the Gateway and then headed to the Discovery Gateway Children's Museum. We had a great time! My sister, Kim also bought a 6 month pass for her family and got an additional card for free, so now I have a pass too! Next, my sister, Kristen paid for me to go and get "Sparkle Toes". I chose the color "pink cadillac" and almost a month later they're still on and looking good. They're great! Thanks Kris! We headed home and because Ty had bishopric meetings we decided we would go out on the weekend. So that night while he was at his meetings, I went with my friends Liz and Valerie and their kids to McDonald's in Lehi and got ice cream while the kids played in the new musical playland. All day I received phone calls and cards in the mail, treats from friends and family, and nice gestures from so many people that I love. It was a great day!

Then on Saturday, which was when Ty and I celebrated, he let me sleep in, made me breakfast in bed, and then we headed to the Lehi Roundup Parade. The girls loved it! It was really a lot of fun. They fell asleep on the way home and so we put them down for naps and napped ourselves. That night, we dropped the kids off at my parents' house and he had made reservations at Macaroni Grill, our favorite restaurant. Then we got in the minivan to drive over to the mall to do some shopping and all of the sudden I hear our wedding video music playing. I was confused. He parked and told me to get in the back seat. Our wedding video was playing in the DVD player. He had contacted the original videographer of our wedding and gotten our wedding video put on DVD, then also got all the original raw footage and everything on an external hard drive. That way we will always have a copy and we can even edit it ourselves or add things onto it. It was something I had wanted to do for a long time, because the only copy I had was on VHS. We then shopped in Fashion Place, Old Navy, and Target. We also picked up a slice of cheesecake at the Cheesecake Factory. After Ty had had all the shopping he could handle, we decided it was time to go get the kids. So we came home, put the kids in their beds, and watched our wedding video while we ate cheesecake. It was a fun night! Happy Birthday to Me!

The yummy cupcakes from Beyond Glazed from Kim Shirley.

Madelyn and I at her mini dance recital.

The darling cupcakes that my sister-in-law Jill brought from Dear Lizzy's Boutique. They were really yummy too!

Fabulous Photos...

2009-06-16T23:11:00.001-07:00

Lacey Dastrup aka Studio Posh Tots had asked me if she could take the girls photos. I needed some updated photos anyway. Well, she was fabulous! She spent a couple of hours with the girls at a fun park in American Fork. I can't wait to see all of the pictures she took when we meet next week, however here is a little preview of a few that she posted on her blog. Priceless...

Lagoon Trip

2009-06-16T22:33:00.000-07:00

Last Friday it was our Stake Lagoon Day. We took the girls and some friends, the Peterson's with us. We just used the free entrance pass and the free ride tickets on the stake pass. The girls had a blast. We rode the merry-go-round, which Audrey cried when we took her off, and then had dinner in Pioneer Village. I had memories of seeing the smokey corn on the cob that was barbecued and always wishing I could have some, so that's what we searched for. Instead my childhood memories had sadly turned into a dried out, machine-smoked piece of corn, prepared by some high school boys getting by on the Lagoon summer job paying minimum wage, which then Ty shaved off the cob with a knife so that the girls could eat it easier, disappointment. Then we rode the train, and had some ice cream, which the girls loved, hence the photo below. Liz and I kept watching the Sky Coaster thinking that it looked a little crazy and fun, so we decided to go for it and ride that baby. While we waited in line, Ty took Madelyn on the Tilt-A-Whirl, and they giggled the whole time. Once we got suited up, I motioned for Ty to take our picture and then Madelyn noticed me and started freaking out. She then cried the entire time that I was on the ride until I was holding her in my arms again. She thought that I had signed up for the death sentence...poor girl. At least I know that she loves me that much! The ride was really fun. Enjoy the video...

Before we left. We paid for a few ride tickets (2 for $1) and let Madelyn ride the kiddie bumper cars, which she kept begging for. She loved them, and was actually pretty good at it. Overall, we had a great time and Madelyn still can't stop talking about it. Thanks Peterson's for a great night!

Madelyn's 1st Dance Class

2009-06-10T23:02:00.000-07:00

We signed Madelyn up for a little dance class recently at Dance Academy. Her first class was last week and shes had her 2nd class yesterday. The teacher is fantastic. Madelyn is in the class with a few of her friends who are all 2 and 3 years old. They are taught jazz, ballet, tumbling, and singing. Yesterday after coming home from class, Madelyn was saying, "Mom we were doing battements [bat-MAHNS] in class today." Hilarious...Anyway, it's really cute, and she's having a lot of fun. The pictures aren't the best but there are a few of the first class, the best that I could get from the doorway, and then right before we left for the 2nd class.

Memorial Day Weekend

2009-06-07T20:19:00.000-07:00

Brett and Kristen, my brother-in-law and sister were brave enough to invite all of my family up to Park City to stay in their new 4 bedroom condo. We had a great rib dinner Sunday night, let the kids play for a while then put them to bed and stayed up and watched "Mall Cop", which was so stupidly funny. With it being so late we all just laughed so hard, including my mom who laughs so hard, she cries. Then the next morning the guys went golfing and the moms and kids went on a walk around the resort and went swimming. We then met back up for pizza and then ended the day with a trip up to Park City ski resort for a ride on the Alpine Slide and the kiddie rides for the little ones. Ty and I actually took Madelyn on the slide and she had a great time. Ty took her and I took my nephew and we raced down the mountain together. My parents took Audrey on the merry-go-round and she didn't want to get off, she loved it so much. I wish I had a few more pictures, but I forgot my camera, but my dad actually took this one of the whole family. It's the best we could do with 23 of us. We had a great time!

Well Deserved Night Out

2009-05-17T19:24:00.000-07:00

+ = Great Night!

This last week was crazy! We spent Mother's Day driving in the car, coming home from our 1600 mile round-trip to Canada where we went to attend Grandma Fletcher's funeral, which was nice, but a long trip. While there, I found out I have an eye infection and can't wear my contacts for 2 weeks while I use an antibiotic drop, which then my glued-on-one-side glasses broke on the other side. So now my glasses are glued on both sides. I know, I'm a total nerd. I think though I could find $400 to go somewhere else than a new pair of glasses. Then Madelyn had her share of naughty little behaviors such as, drawing all over the computer screen with pen, dumping out half of a 30 oz. brand new can of formula into the wet sink and then mixing a whole spice container of poppy seeds into it, sucking on Audrey's pacifier multiple times, etc., etc. Audrey also had a rough week trying to get back on a schedule, then getting Bronchiolitis for the 2nd time and her 5th round of ear infections...we scheduled the ear tube surgery for June 2nd. So...finally last night Ty and I went out to dinner and a movie while my mom watched the girls, and we actually got to talk and be together without any interruptions. We went down to Gateway and ate at Biaggi's and saw "The Ghost of Girlfriend's Past". Yes, my husband is great and went to a chick flick with me. It was actually pretty good. So after a crappy week, the date definitely made up for most of it. Thanks for a fun night Ty, I love you!

Anne, Eliza, and Madelyn = Trouble

2009-05-04T22:27:00.000-07:00

Tonight we went to my parent's house to finish setting up a swing set that they had purchased for the grand kids and to have a barbecue. Just as we were finishing getting the food ready, my mom happened to walk in to the laundry room to find a horrific disaster, all she could say was, "Oh no, oh no, oh no." There the three little trouble makers, Anne, Eliza, and Madelyn were standing in the middle of a huge mess. They had dumped four huge Costco sized bottles of bubbles, 409, Spray 'N Wash, and Tide all over the floor and were just swimming in soapy bubbles. Well to say the least, they were in big trouble. We stripped them down, rinsed them, put them in pajamas, and sent them to time out. An hour later, 10 towels, several garbage bags full, and lots of "I'm so sorries!" later, we about got the mess cleaned up. If it was any old laundry room it would be no big deal, but my mom's laundry room is her stash room, so the floors were covered in stuff that should not be covered in bubbles. These three little girls were born just weeks within each other and have a lot of fun together, but are also trouble. You little stinkers, it's a good thing that we love you so much!

Matilda Freda Phillips Fletcher

2009-05-04T22:14:00.000-07:00

Ty's grandma passed away last Friday night at age 94 after battling with her health for some time now. Her and Grandpa Fletcher, two little love birds just celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary on April 12th. We are headed up to Canada for her funeral, which will be on Thursday this week. The last time we saw her was almost 2 years ago when Madelyn was only 9 months old. She was a sweet lady and had such a special spirit about her. We love you Grandma Fletcher and can't wait to see you again.

Tubes???

2009-04-29T14:25:00.001-07:00

Well after Audrey's reoccurring ear infections (4 episodes in 5 months), we decided to talk to the Ear, Nose, and Throat Pediatric Specialist about getting tubes in Audrey's ears, mainly because the nasty side effects that come with taking the antibiotic each time. After checking her ears, taking pictures of the inside of them, and having a hearing test, the doctor said that we have two options 1) Wait it out. -or- 2)Have tubes put in. I can't decide what to do, and am just wondering what experience you've had with your own kids. Leave a comment with your opinion, which will maybe help me make up my final decision.

From Father to Son

2009-04-27T12:16:00.001-07:00

Yesterday my whole family went to my parents' sacrament meeting because my dad was being released as Bishop and my mom and dad would be speaking and sharing their testimonies. We went to support them and have dinner together afterwards. The Stake President got up and released my dad and then called the new Bishop along with his new counselors. They read my brother's name "Justin R. Wilkins as 1st Counselor". We all just looked at eachother in shock. My brother and his wife moved back from Arizona 9 months ago so that my brother could work on his PhD at the University of Utah. They moved into his wife's parents house while her parents went on an 18 month mission to Fiji, which is actually in my parent's ward as well. They plan to be there for another year and then my parents are going to Arizona for two years to build another temple and then they'll move in to their house while they're gone to finish the last little bit of Justin's school. So...one gets released and the other gets called. Out of myself and my three siblings, now 3 out of 4 men are 1st counselor in their Bishoprics. Kind of crazy! Congratulations Justin and good luck Amber!

Hot Grocery Deals at Albertsons

2009-04-25T22:30:00.000-07:00

This is what I got on my shopping trip to Albertsons for a grand total of $49.68. The promotion at Albertsons is: When you spend $10 on mix 'n match participating products, you get an "instant" $4 off (no limit). Then you can use manufacturer coupons on top of that. What's great about this promotion is that you don't have to do multiple transactions, because the $4 comes off instantly. It's basically like getting 40% of your grocery bill not including your coupons. I just love a good bargain!

(1) Ritz Crackers
(2) Suddenly Salad Pasta Salad
(2) Betty Crocker Cookie Mix
(2) Supreme Brownie Mix
(2) Betty Crocker Potatoes
(2) Betty Crocker Muffin Mix
(2) Hamburger Helper
(1) Chicken Helper
(3) Betty Crocker Variety Fruit Snacks
(4) Pillsbury Grands Biscuits
(1) Jello No Bake Strawberry Cheesecake
(1) Taco Bell Taco Shells
(2) Fiber One Snack Bars
(8) Kraft Deluxe Macaroni & Cheese
(4) Betty Crocker Warm Delights
(1) Betty Crocker Warm Delights Minis
(2) Taco Bell Salsa
(2) Old El Paso Enchilada Sauce
(1) Imperial Margarine
(6) Betty Crocker Frosting (to go with all my cake mixes that I got on the last promotion)
(10) Yoplait Light Yogurt
(3) Ready to Eat Baby Carrots

Audrey = 9 months, 19 lbs. 4 oz., 29 in.

2009-04-22T20:37:00.000-07:00

So we finally got in to her 9 month checkup and she is in the 50th percentile for weight and 90th percentile for height, crazy. She doesn't seem that tall to me but I guess she is compared to other babies at 9 months. She was also diagnosed with her 6th and 7th ear infection (4th episode) and so we're probably going to have tubes put in her ears. Anyway, she is not quite crawling yet, but very close, which I'm in no rush to see her move from her 3 foot radius, but she does roll a lot and is starting to sort of scoot. She's saying "mama" and "dada" and drooling a lot, but still no teeth. She is finally taking a bottle and sleeping through the night. Hallelujah for waking up in the morning and realizing that both the kids slept through the night and so did I. Audrey, we love you, keep on growing and smiling!

Easter Sunday

2009-04-18T07:59:00.000-07:00

We had a fun Easter this year. We went to our early church @ 8:30 am. Madelyn actually let me curl her hair with the curling iron for the first time. Unfortunately it didn't hold all day. I guess I need to try sponge rollers the night before. After church we came home, took a little nap, and then we gave the girls their Easter baskets. Madelyn was so excited about everything. Especially the kid scissors, which she's been asking for, for several weeks now. I decided that since she will be going to preschool in the fall she needed to learn how to use them, we'll see how that goes. Hopefully she won't be cutting the whole house up. She also got a Cadbury DairyMilk chocolate bunny, which is what she asked for from the Easter bunny "Lots and lots of chocolate." Audrey got a new sippy cup, some new pacifiers, and some baby snacks. Then we headed up to my mom & dad's house for dinner. My mom always spoils us on holidays. She had done an Easter egg hunt and dyed eggs with the kids the Friday before. Then on the table was a treat bag for each person, which included lots of candy for the kids and a Cafe Rio card for the adults with some more treats. Then she gave each family a really neat Easter book about Christ. It was a great day!

Easter Eggstreme!!!

2009-04-11T20:59:00.000-07:00

Today, Ty and I took the girls to Thanksgiving Point's Easter Eggstreme event. It was a lot of fun! We got there just before the 0-3 yr. old egg hunt was beginning and there was a 20 minute wait to buy your tickets and get in, so we missed the first hunt. Once we got in, we waited for a few minutes and decided to send Madelyn in with the 4-6 year old hunt. Even though they had said no parents, the parents stormed the field with their kids, so I followed along and videotaped and took pictures. She filled her basket with as many as she could before the eggs were all gone, which was in about 2 minutes. It was crazy! Of course she had to open a few right then and eat the candy inside.

We then walked around and did some of the activities that were there...bean bag toss, ring toss, the bunny hop sack race, and the inflatable relay race. She really wanted to ride the cow train and get her face painted, but the lines were really long. So we we convinced her to leave and go to Del Taco instead to play in the playland. It was just built down the street from us, and she keeps saying she wants to go there as we pass it. In fact about a week ago we drove through the drive thru and then when we brought our food home, she was all disappointed, and I said, "What's wrong?" and she said, "Mom, we're never gonna make it." I said, "We're never going to make it where?" She said, "We're never gonna make it to that playland." So today we thought that we'd better go. We ate lunch and played in the playland, then got a balloon from a clown that was there. Madelyn asked for a purple dinosaur, which was a little random. I guess she likes Barney??? Anyway, we headed back home and everyone crashed, so I ran errands by myself, which was heavenly except for being at WalMart on Saturday, I'm really starting to hate that place. For the most part it was a pretty good day. Here are a few photos.

Random Pics from the Week

2009-04-06T20:03:00.000-07:00

My girls are starting to play more together. This is what Madelyn wanted to do one day last week...push Audrey in the doll stroller. Audrey actually thought it was pretty funny. I'm not sure why Madelyn is holding her head, she's probably trying to get her to look at the camera, funny though that she's not looking herself. This is what I found one day while putting Audrey down for a nap...Madelyn asleep in Audrey's carseat. She was obviously tired that day. Funny that she even tried to put the straps on her shoulders...just a little too tight. Audrey at the zoo. I love this age when they'll finally smile for the camera.

We went to the mall with the Finlinsons and they were giving out bunny ears. So here's some silly pics that Vall took of the girls wearing them.

Home Decorating Job in St. George

2009-03-30T20:07:00.000-07:00

My sister was hired on by some of her neighbors to redecorate their vacation home in St. George. 3 1/2 weeks ago we piled Kim and her 4 girls and me and my 2 girls in my mom's Expedition and headed down to check out the place and evaluate what needed to be done as well as have a little vacation. I was the designated babysitter while she met with subcontractors, etc. To say the least the place needed a little update, it was pretty outdated. She was very productive with the help of our cousin's husband who is a home builder in St. George. She lined up subs for carpet, paint, granite counter tops, and tile all in one day. We were able to swim, visit a couple of parks, shop, dine out, and manage the 6 crazy girls, ages, 9, 7, 5, 2, 2, and 8 mo. When we left we had completely stripped the house of bedding, wall hangings, decor, etc. and cleaned the place pretty thoroughly. As we were leaving on Sunday, the owner called and said, "Oh I just wanted to let you know that my niece is coming down in 2 1/2 weeks for her honeymoon." "What?", is what we were both thinking. So the challenge began. She had 2 1/2 weeks from start to finish to completely remodel and redecorate this home.

She began scheduling subs literally on top of each other. Fortunately with the economy and the badly hurt housing industry in St. George, they were all desperate for work and willing to start right away. She shopped everyday for furnishings, bedding, and decor, put it all in her minivan and 2 weeks later Kim, I, and Audrey headed down to complete the place. When we arrived, it looked awesome, with just the carpet, paint, and tile done, but the paint fumes were so strong that we couldn't sleep there so we ended up staying in a hotel the first night. The last hotel room that we could find in the whole town since it was college spring break. As we hit the pillow at midnight, Audrey woke right up and did not want to go back to sleep. So the first night we got about 2-3 hours of sleep. The next day was Saturday and we worked from 7 am to about 1 or 2 am the next morning. Slept for a few hours, then got up and finished cleaning and making the final touches. My sister did an amazing job, on a very slim budget as well. I learned a lot of really important design tips and had fun doing it as well. The owners were thrilled to say the least and quite a bit surprised. It by far exceeded their expectations. Here are a few pictures of the bedrooms she decorated. Unfortunately, the counter tops were not done and some of the furniture didn't get delivered by the time we left, so she didn't get finished pictures of the bathrooms and kitchen, which looked great minus the granite. I wish I had before pictures so that you could appreciate the transformation.

In return for my help she's helping me redecorate my bedroom and part of my family room...pillows...she says pillows make a room. So I will post some pictures of my house later when we're finished.

Deal of the Week!

2009-03-11T21:14:00.001-07:00

So I am getting a little addicted to all of these coupon stock up sales and have decided that I'm going to really get on board with this and post my deal of the week. So here's what I got at Walgreen's today for the blue light special price of ... $45 with a total savings of $112.

(4) packs of Huggies diapers

(4) boxes of Huggies wipes

(2) packages of Pull-Ups

(2) boxes of tampons

(3) boxes of Kleenex

(1) 12 rolls Scott toilet paper

(2) Glade air freshner kits

(1) box of aluminum foil

(1) Colgate toothpaste

(3) Garnier Fructis hair care products

(9) packages of Wrigley's gum

CoNsIgNmEnT SaLe...Coming Soon!

2009-03-05T10:52:00.000-08:00

Here is some info on my favorite consignment sale that I go to at the Hilltop United Methodist Church in Sandy (985 E. 10600 S.) I actually sold about 34 items last fall and made a quick $90 by just getting rid of a few things I didn't need rather than dropping them off at the D.I. It is twice a year and it's coming up soon, and if you have young kids and want a good deal on clothes, toys, strollers, baby gear, etc or want to sell some things, I highly recommend it. If your interested, here's their advertisement from their newsletter:

Calling All Sellers! Spring UMW Children’s & Maternity Consignment Sale to be held April 17-18. The sale accepts gently used, quality spring & summer items such as: clothing, strollers, toys, books, DVDs, bikes, cribs, outdoor toys and much more. New this year—seller packets will be available on the church website (www.hilltopumchurch.org) March 23rd. Sellers keep 70% of the selling price. The remaining 30% is used by UMW for local, national and international mission work.

Calling All Volunteers! Volunteers make the sale a success. Volunteer sign-ups will be available on the bulletin board March 23rd. All volunteer shifts are 3 hours and earn you one ticket per shift to the private pre-sale on Thursday, April 16th. Volunteer Opportunities:

· Floor/Security – Thursday p.m., Friday or Saturday
· Tagging/Seller Check-out – Thursday p.m., Friday or Saturday
· Breakdown – Sat. – 2-6 p.m.
For more information , contact Gygi at 619-7035.

If you have more questions you can leave a comment or call me and I'd be happy to answer them. I can't wait, this sale is one of my highlights throughout the year. I just get so excited when I come home with so many fabulous things for such a good deal. Happy consigning!

I Couldn't Get Enough of A Good Deal.

2009-02-23T23:41:00.000-08:00

I had to go back to Albertsons. I went again with my friend Liz after we put the kids to bed. 5 transactions, and $50 later...this is what I came home with. My pantry is now stocked. In the front...I also picked up some good Valentine's stuff for next year (90% off). Total savings = $179.73. Overall between the two shopping trips, I spent $60.69 and saved over $250. There's still tomorrow for anyone that wants a good deal. I live for these kind of deals. Score!

Great Deals at Albertsons!

2009-02-22T15:18:00.000-08:00

Yesterday I went to Albertsons and with my coupons and their in-store specials, I got all of this for $10.69!

(12) cans of Progresso soup

(5) Betty Crocker cake mixes

(2) Betty Crocker brownie mixes

(1) Betty Crocker cookie mix

(1) tub of Betty Crocker frosting

(2) Pillsbury Grands biscuits

(1) Pillsbury cinnamon rolls

(1) Pillsbury crescent rolls

(2) boxes of Fruit Roll-Ups

(1) bag of Cheerios snack mix

(1) box of Chex mix snack bars

(1) loaf of Grandma Sycamore's wheat bread

(3) Roma tomatoes

(1) package of Huggies Pull-Ups

I was a little shocked when I walked out of the store. I love good deals! These are going on through Tuesday, February 24th if anyone's interested, and I'd be happy to explain how to get this. I'll probably go back on Monday to get more.

Silly Girls!

2009-02-22T14:51:00.000-08:00

Audrey - The other night when Ty was at Bishopric meeting I let the girls stay up a little late. We were watching Toy Story and Madelyn wanted her slinky out when she saw the slinky dog on the show. Audrey got a hold of it a little while later, and I had to grab my camera. She was going crazy with that thing. Silly Audrey, we love you.

Madelyn - After church today, Madelyn was playing in her kitchen. She had set up all the stuffed animals and dolls in her strollers and shopping cart in front of the kitchen, singing, "He knows the way." Then I overheard her saying to them, "Elmo's the prophet so he gets a drink first. Here Elmo.", and handed Elmo a cup. Apparently they were singing the song "Follow the Prophet" in nursery today. Kids say the silliest things. I guess we need to have a lesson on the prophet tomorrow night for FHE.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2009-02-16T20:02:00.000-08:00

We had a great Valentine's Day this year. Being on a Saturday, we had the whole day to spend together as a family. We started off by having waffles, eggs, bacon, and juice for breakfast. Then we cleaned the house along with our normal Saturday routines. We made little treat bags for friends and neighbors that we delivered. Then that night we had planned a dinner with our friends, the Finlinsons and the Petersons. Liz had set it up so great, with a candlight dinner and all (She's always got it so put together, I'm a little envious.) She even set up a little table for the girls to sit at. We had pork tenderloin, with a honey dijon sauce, red potatoes, asparagus, and salad. Then we played the Newlywed Game while the girls bounced in Peterson's bounce house full of balloons. I had also made some simple, little Valentine crafts for the girls to do. We ended the night with a delicious desert that Liz had made...Chocolate Molten Cake. We put our girls in their jammies, and they were sound asleep by the time we drove down Peterson's street. It was a great day, and well spent with the ones that I love!

A Minivan for Me?

2009-02-04T08:11:00.000-08:00

With all the road trips we've been taking lately, we've decided that we need a little more space, so Ty and I test drove a Honda Odyssey the other day. I loved it and he is still not sure if he can be a miniman, although he says it will be my car. I reassured him that I won't think any less of his manhood. When I got behind the wheel I felt like such a mom (PTA, soccer games, dance lessons, grocery shopping, here we come!), but it has a lot of convenient features for kids...automatic doors, lots of cargo space, DVD player, seating for eight...hee/hee. Anyway, looks like we'll probably be getting a minivan soon. It's kinda funny to me, but I'm also super excited!

Madelyn's First Date

2009-02-02T09:27:00.000-08:00

Madelyn has been having a hard time sleeping lately. We were having to lay down with her until she was asleep, and then she was coming out in the night and trying to get in our bed. Well we were getting pretty tired and exhausted of the little routine, so...we started a bedtime chart. If she will "go to bed like a big girl without crying" and stay there all night without coming out until morning she gets a little sticker on her chart. After 5 stickers, then she gets a prize. After earning her first prize, it was working really well. She's been sleeping through the night and staying in her bed until morning. Ty told her that for her next prize, he would take her on a date. So she earned her next 5 stickers on Saturday morning and she chose to go to Cabela's with dad. So Ty took her to get a Frosty at Wendy's. Then they went and watched the horses in Alpine at a favorite little spot they have, then ended up at Cabelas's to see the fish and the wildlife animals. They both had a really good time, and it was a nice break for me.

Ty and Madelyn headed on their date.

Madelyn's bedtime chart.

Disneyland Trip

2009-01-28T08:40:00.000-08:00

Our family went to Disneyland with two other families that are friends of ours, the Petersons and the Finlinsons.We had a lot of fun!

Day 1, Wednesday, January 21st:

We left in the afternoon and headed to St. George. We met up with the Petersons and had Cafe Rio, then did a little shopping and got ice cream. We then headed to the house where we were spending the night, which was a home show home a few years ago, it was really nice.

Day 2, Thursday, January 22nd:

The next morning only 20 minutes out and 2 potty stops later we got headed towards Baker, CA where we stopped at the Mad Greek for some lunch. Wow, we won't be stopping there ever again. The food was not that great to say the least. Then we continued on to Anaheim, CA where we checked in at our hotel, the Desert Palms Hotel & Suites, which was just down the street from Disneyland. We had a large suite that had two rooms connected with a shared vanity. Let's just say it was a little cozy, but it was cheaper to share than to get our own rooms and it was fun for Madelyn and Alexa to be together.

After unpacking, we headed to Disneyland. Ty and I bought annual passes since we're going back with my family in October. Madelyn and Audrey were mesmerized as we entered into the park. We headed towards Pinocchio and Snow White, and after those two, Audrey was screaming, they were a little too loud and dark. So then we went on a few happy rides after that...Dumbo, the Casey Jr. Circus Train, the Carousel, and Alice in Wonderland. Our last ride of the evening was the Matterhorn, Addison, Madelyn, and Alexa were now tall enough to go, which is amazing because it was fast and a little scary for the girls. Madelyn was covering her eyes most of the time. Here is a video clip talking about the ride the next day...

Then we headed back to our hotel. Our kids both crashed on the way home.

Day 3, Friday, January 23rd:

We headed back to Disneyland in the pouring rain that morning. Fortunately our stroller has a great rain cover that kept the kids dry, and I had bought an umbrella in St. George so we were prepared, however while waiting in lines was when we got really wet. The girls also couldn't help jumping in the puddles. We headed back to our hotel after lunch to change rooms because our room was right next to the pool and the elevator and it was really loud. We then gave our girls a little nap and changed clothes. Then we headed back for more fun. We ate at a great little Mexican place for dinner and then went and watched the show Fantasmic. We finished off with a few more rides. We played hard and stayed until the park was closed at 10pm. Here are the rides we rode that day: Buzz Lightyear, Space Mountain, Jungle Cruise, Pirates of the Caribbean, Winnie the Pooh, Splash Mountain, Indiana Jones, Finding Nemo, and Autopia.

Day 4, Saturday, January 24th:

It was raining a little in the morning, but fortunately it didn't last long. We spent most of the day in California Adventures. We first rode Monsters, Inc. then headed to Disney Animation and saw Turtle Talk with Crush, which was fun. Then we saw the Disney Playhouse show, which Madelyn loved because that's mostly what she watches on tv. It was fun to watch her get so excited when each new character came out. We then rode Toy Story, which was one of our favorite rides. Then the adults took turns with the rider switch ticket and rode California Screamin', which made me feel like a teenager again. We then had lunch and then spent time in Bugs Land and rode the rides there and saw the show, "It's Tough to Be a Bug". Next we went on Soarin' Over California taking turns with guys and girls, and then watched the Pixar parade, although Madelyn had fallen asleep and missed the whole thing. Then we took turns as couples and rode the Tower of Terror, wow! After that we headed back to Disneyland and ate dinner. Madelyn wanted to ride Dumbo one more time and then the guys offered to take the girls back to the hotel and put them to bed while Liz and I rode a few more adult rides. We took the offer and ran around riding Star Tours, which made us sick, then Thunder Mountain Railroad, Splash Mountain twice, and finally ended up with Space Mountain. We were very tired and dizzy by the time we were done. So we headed back to the hotel and crashed.

Day 5, Sunday, January 25th:

We packed our things up, ate breakfast, and loaded the car. Then we drove down to the ocean in Newport and drove down Balboa Island. We headed home stopping at In and Out Burger on our way out. We drove as fast and hard as we could knowing that we would be hitting a storm soon. We stopped in St. George meeting up with the Petersons and had a late dinner at the Cracker Barrel, which was very average, then headed back on the road at 9:30pm. Sure enough we hit the storm in Cedar City, where it was snowing pretty hard. It took us 5 1/2 hours from St. George. We drove between 30 and 40 mph on horrible roads. We didn't get home until 3 am. We were exhausted.

We had a great time and look forward to going back in the fall with my family! Here are some pictures from our trip.

Draper Temple Open House

2009-01-17T20:08:00.000-08:00

Today we had the opportunity to go to the Draper Temple Open House with my family. Wow! It was absolutely beautiful or should I say stunning! This morning I told Madelyn, "We're going to see the new temple today." and she said, "Yes, and we're going to get married!" Not quite. When we got to our assigned church, we watched a video on the importance of temples. Then we boarded a bus that drove us to the temple. We walked all through it and then they took us in to a sealing room where they talked to us about eternal families and the importance of the ordinances that are performed in the temples. Next we were ushered through a heated tent to the LDS chapel nearby where they had cookies and bottled water along with missionaries to answer any questions along with beautiful pictures of Christ and other temples around the world. Finally we took the bus back to the church where we had parked. On the bus ride back Madelyn had to sit on a sister missionaries lap because it was so full and Ty was standing, and she was telling the sister, "When I get big like mom, I'm going to wear a white dress and get married in the temple. And when I turn eight, I'm going to get baptized." It's amazing what a two year old remembers. Anyway, what a neat experience to be in the Sealing Room with my little family and look through the mirrors and see us all together and know that we are eternal. I'm so grateful for my own sealing and temples that are so available to us. I encourage anyone who hasn't gone to go. It's amazing. Here's the link to reserve tickets...http://www.lds.org/reservations.

Christmas in Canada

2009-01-05T10:05:00.001-08:00

This year we went to Canada for Christmas to be with Ty's family. We were gone for 2 1/2 weeks. We left on the 18th and headed to Ty's parents in Stirling...14 hours later we arrived. The kids did pretty well. We spent a few days hanging out with family there, then on the 20th headed up to Ty's sisters in Calgary for a day. They had twins, Rosco and Atalia a month before we had Audrey and they also have Gatlin who is just a few weeks younger than Madelyn so it was a little crazy to say the least. Then on the 21st after church we headed up to Banff, which was absolutely beautiful. It is a national park nestled in the Rocky Mountains, and the mountains are stunning. We spent 3 days in Banff. Ty's parents for Christmas got all the families rooms at the Douglas Fir Logde. There was a huge indoor playground for the kids and an indoor pool with two big waterslides, which Madelyn loved. We played there all day Monday. Then our kids crashed at 7pm so we went out to dinner with some of our family while Ty's parents stayed in our room and watched our kids, which was nice. Then Tuesday we went to the Banff Springs Hotel and toured around. Here are a few photos.

Then the girls walked through all the little shops while the guys stayed and played with the kids at the hotel. That night we all met at the local LDS church and had pizza together. (It's the only place that would accomodate all 35 of us.) Then Christmas Eve we headed back to Lethbride and went to his sister Alauna's house to stay for the next few days. We had dinner at another sister, Marina's house and watched the Nativity Story. Then wrapped some gifts and went to bed. Christmas morning we went upstairs to open gifts and Madelyn grabbed the first one she saw and started ripping open the paper regardless of who it belonged to. We stopped her and she flung herself on the floor and started throwing a tantrum. Here is a picture the first few minutes of Christmas morning.Here are a few more pictures from the morning while opening gifts.

We then went out to Ty's parents for breakfast and then met at their church and had a big lunch. Then we went back to his parents and opened some gifts and played games and hung out the rest of the night. It was the first Christmas I have been away from home ever. It was quite different but good to be with Ty's family. When I called home my mom started to cry. They told us that they had given each family a week trip in California and three days in Disneyland in October of this year.

Over the next week and a half we hung out with each of the different siblings and their families...ate a lot of food, played a lot of games, and dealt with a lot of toddler tantrums and baby cries. It was fun. Then on Friday, January 2nd we packed up to come home, drove one hour in crazy, windy, snowy weather and the border was closed because I-15 in Montana was closed, so we turned around and headed back to his parents for another day. On our way back, our car overheated and we barely made it home after several stops, prayers, and then driving at 30 mph. We stayed another night, got the car fixed (replaced the thermostat and flushed the radiator) and headed home on Saturday, the 3rd. Wow, I've never been so happy to pull into my garage as I was the other night. 17 days is a long time to be gone from home. Here are a few other pictures from the trip.

This is Alauna and Austin's front door after a big snow drift that blew in from a field behind their house. So then they dug a little tunnel for the girls to play in. Crazy!

Madelyn stuck these stickers from a create a face sticker book on her own face. Silly girl! A random picture of the girls.Our little Christmas tree that we decorated in our hotel room in Banff.Audrey and her Aunt Marina and cousin Holly.Ty and Madelyn just after coming down the waterslide.

Audrey and her Teething Biscuit

2009-01-05T09:44:00.000-08:00

Audrey has started eating solid food now, and she can't get enough of it. I pulled out a teething biscuit for her, and it was a huge mess, but made for some cute photos.

A Little Christmas Here and There

2008-12-14T09:19:00.000-08:00

Well the other night we attempted to make a gingerbread house with Madelyn. Let's just say it didn't go as planned. Two hours later it was only a house standing with no candy on it and it's still sitting undecorated on the kitchen counter. We had good intentions of involving Madelyn, however as seen in the photo, we just ended up giving her some leftover Halloween candy and a blob of frosting on a piece of cardboard to make her think she was really helping decorate the gingerbread house. I don't think she cared as long as she got to eat some candy.

Friday night we went to our ward Christmas party and Madelyn wanted to sit on Santa's lap. The whole time in line she was hugging my leg and acting nervous. Once we got up there, she sat down on his lap mesmerized that she was looking at Santa in the face. Then said in a really serious tone, "I want a bell" before he even said anything to her. Let's just say she's been watching Polar Express everyday for the last two weeks. It was pretty funny.

Happy Anniversary!

2008-12-10T23:01:00.000-08:00

It's our 6th wedding anniversary today, and I just wanted to let Ty know how much I love and appreciate having him in my life. Thanks for all the laughs, tears, heartaches, and joys. I love you! Here's to many more amazing years together.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2008-11-29T10:17:00.000-08:00

We started off the Thanksgiving holiday by making pumpkin chocolate chip cookies for our neighbors and delivering them. Then we headed up to Park City with my family and stayed in a house up there through Friday. We watched a lot of movies, sat in the hot tub, and ate a lot of good food. We hung out and relaxed a lot, it was a lot of fun. Thanks mom and dad! On Thanksgiving night, after we put the kids to bed, my mom and sisters and I went to the Park City outlets for the midnight madness sales. I scored 4 pairs of winter Gymboree jammies for the girls for just over $20. Then I went back to bed for 2 hours and got up to go to WalMart at 5 am with my sister. We got some more good deals there on toys and a big selection of $2 DVDs. I love all these crazy sales, and even more I love watching people go crazy over them. 'Tis the season! Last night we put up the Christmas tree and decorations. Madelyn had such a good time helping decorate the tree. It's hard to believe that we will be heading to Canada for Christmas in just 2 1/2 weeks. You have to love every minute of this time of year, because before you know it, it's here, and then gone again. Happy Holidays to everyone!

Madelyn's Drawing

2008-11-18T20:24:00.000-08:00

A few days ago, Madelyn was drawing on some paper. She said, "Mom, look it's Alex and Liz.", our friends, as she was drawing the circles that represented faces, and then she drew the crooked little half circles, which are not even on the faces and said, "They're happy, here are their smiles." I thought it was so cute, so I scanned it in and had to share it.

First Theater Experience for the Girls

2008-11-18T19:56:00.000-08:00

Last weekend our friends invited us to see Madagascar 2 in the theater. Madelyn had been asking to see the "move it" show for a few weeks so we decided we would go. Even though it was a really cute show, Madelyn was just way to overwhelmed with the whole experience. She went to the bathroom twice, to the drinking fountain twice, was in and out of her booster seat a million times, and then we finally ended up buying her a little bag of popcorn, which she actually sat still with and watched the rest of the movie. Then, Audrey...she fell asleep right before the movie so we thought we were set, but it was so loud that she woke up ten minutes into the movie and was awake the rest of the time, and not very happy. It was crazy! Well...let's just say we won't be doing that again for awhile. Although, after we left we were talking about it in the car and I said, "Madelyn, that movie we saw was called Madagascar 2. Can you say Madagascar?" and she said, "No mom, it's not, it's called I Like to Move It Move It!"

Happy Halloween

2008-11-01T20:37:00.000-07:00

This year as Madelyn is getting older we had a fun time celebrating with her. The night before we carved pumpkins. Madelyn had so much fun pulling all the seeds out and helping us carve them. Ty and her kept some of the seeds to bake. We started out Halloween night with the traditional soup in pumpkin bread bowls that my mom brought us. Then I took the girls trick or treating while Ty stayed home to pass out candy. Madelyn had such a great time. I took the stroller so that I could push her between houses, but she wanted to do it by herself. She would walk up the steps and knock on each door, then say, "Trick-or-Treat!" It was really fun to watch her. We only made it to about 10 or 15 houses in 1 hour, she was a little slow. Towards the end it was a little rainy and so I convinced her to hop in the stroller so we could head back home. She thought it was pretty fun to trick-or-treat at her own house. Then later we had some friends come over with their kids. We played games, decorated cookies, and made witches brew out of treats with the kids. By the end of the night the kids were full of sugar and empty on sleep so we decided to call it a night. We had a great time! Today, Madelyn said in a sad voice, " Mom Halloween's all over." Until next year...now we're off to thinking about Thanksgiving and Christmas. I can't believe how fast the holidays come. Here are a few pictures.

Odyssey's Thriller

2008-10-28T21:16:00.000-07:00

Last night my mom and sisters and I went to see Thriller performed by Odyssey Dance Theater at Kingsbury Hall. It was awesome. There were a lot of really great dances performed and a lot of hilarious comedy mixed in. It really put me in the Halloween mood. I can't wait to go back next year! It was nice to leave the kids and have a night with the girls. Then we went for desert after at the Dodo, which was also fantastic! We chose 5 deserts and shared them all, and had a few minutes to chat and catch up. Thanks ladies for a fun night away!

No More Diapers for Madelyn!

2008-10-23T21:31:00.000-07:00

Yes you read right, Madelyn is wearing underwear and using the potty regularly and hasn't had an accident since Tuesday morning. We didn't really plan on doing it this early but after a few "poopy" incidences and spending $50 on diapers every couple of weeks for the two girls, I decided it was time. It all started on Sunday night when she pooped on the potty for the first time so Monday morning we put her in underwear and decided to stay home for the next few days minus Kindermusik, which is Madelyn's favorite thing. We had a few accidents on Monday, and one on Tuesday morning when I was about to throw the towel in. Then she came to me on Tuesday afternoon and said, "Mommy I have to go poop on the potty." So we proceeded to run to the potty and since then she hasn't had one accident, including 2 trips to Walmart, and a day at grandma's house. She is doing awesome! I didn't realize it would be so slick. We're so proud of her, she's growing up fast...getting rid of pacifiers and diapers all in one week. Way to go Madelyn!

Audrey's New Trick

2008-10-20T12:18:00.000-07:00

Audrey just started learning how to roll from her tummy to her back. Here's a little clip of the rolling trick.

Here are a few pictures I took of her yesterday after church. Thanks Lily for the cute dress!

Having Fun at Cornbelly's

2008-10-18T07:55:00.001-07:00

Thursday night we went to Cornbelly's at Thanksgiving Point with the Finlinsons. We had a great time, besides the cold temperatures. There were lots of fun activities for the kids...a hay ride, a cow train, corn digging, a jumping pillow, horse swings, a mini maze, giant slides, a pumpkin princess and her carriage and more. We couldn't get Madelyn out of there without kicking and screaming, but we were all freezing. We convinced her to leave when we told her that we were going to have hot chocolate when we got home. Madelyn keeps asking when we will get to go back. We're going to go back in the day when it's a little warmer this time.

Bye Bye Paci!

2008-10-14T20:26:00.000-07:00

We actually did it! Well as many of you know Madelyn has been obsessed with her "paci" since the day she was born. We have been trying to decide when to get rid of it because it seems as though the attachment is just getting stronger the older she gets. With Audrey being born recently and her taking one as well, we knew that she would just try to take the baby's pacifier away, so we've been letting her have it mostly at nap and bed time. Lately she's been fighting the nap and throwing the paci down saying, "Mommy no no nap today." So today I just decided, it's time! So I asked her if we should get rid of the paci for good and we could trade it in for a toy and she said, "yes." So I took full advantage. We went all around the house and found them all and put them in a bag and then went to The Red Balloon toy store and let her pick out a toy in place of the pacifiers in the bag. She chose this cute Melissa & Doug wooden cookie set after looking at several things and thinking to myself that we were never going to get out of there. So then we took the pacifiers up to the cashier and gave them to cashier in place of the toy. Then I told her to say bye to her pacifiers. She said, "Bye bye pacies." Then we started to walk out to the car with the toy in hand, and it hit her, then she started to say, "No I want my pacies." So then I had to distract her and remind her that we traded in the cool toy for them instead. I felt like I had taken her best friend away. It was kind of sad. Today she has done pretty good. She has asked for it a few times and again I had to remind her. But when Ty came home she said, "Daddy, I gave my pacies to the lady and got a cookie set!" She went to bed okay because she was really tired, but I know that she'll probably be waking up in the night asking for it. It will be good in the long run if we can just get through the next few days and nights. Here she is saying cheese with her new cookie set.
The Melissa and Doug cookie set. It's super cute!

I Am in Love...

2008-10-09T07:10:00.000-07:00

I just wanted to say how in love I am with this little girl. She was kind of a hard baby to begin with and now she is just fabulous. I can't get enough of her. She's smiley and happy, she eats and sleeps good now and every time I hold her I just want to squeeze her and kiss her. She's great, and what's even better is she can't get into any trouble yet other than blowing out through her diaper. It's funny, when she was born I thought that she was going to be a little more petite than Madelyn and sure enough, she followed suit and is chunking up just like Madelyn did, hence the pictures. Here are a few pictures that I have taken recently. The older she gets the more I think Madelyn and her look similar, so I posted a comparison picture so that you could see.

Audrey loves her baths.
Audrey at 2 1/2 mo.

Madelyn at 2 1/2 mo.

No Hands in Our Poop!

2008-10-01T19:36:00.000-07:00

Madelyn went pee on the potty for the first time today! It was pretty funny when she started to go, she was so surprised and thrilled that she was actually going because she's sat on the potty many times and nothing has ever come out. I let her pick a treat and call Daddy and Grandma to brag about the news. It was a good thing that came out of what started out as a bad thing. She came to me about an hour before and said, "Mom, I went poop in my diaper." So I said, "Okay, Madelyn let's go change it." Then she said, "No, it's on my hands." as she showed me her hands, and sure enough, or should I say gross enough, it was. So I began freaking out and took her upstairs to clean her off, when I found the evidence...toilet paper and Audrey's hooded towel with smeared poop all over them. When she went, she got some toilet paper and tried to wipe her bum by sticking it down her diaper, it got on her hands, so then she tried to wipe it off on the towel. So I lectured her about how we don't put our hands in our poop and we wait for Mom to wipe our bum. Then I threw her in the tub. After the tub, I said, "So what did you learn today?" and she said, "No hands in our poop." Then I explained to her about wiping when your on the toilet and we tried sitting down on the potty, and success, so we'll see where it goes from here. Hopefully she will remember, no hands in our poop!

2 Year Olds = Big Emotions!

2008-09-30T20:11:00.000-07:00

Wow, Madelyn has been very emotional lately. She has these extreme positive and negative emotional peaks. So yesterday she was asking to watch a show and had pulled out all these old VHS tapes, so I grabbed our wedding video and put it in. She was thoroughly enjoying the photo montage at the beginning and then when it got to our reception when we cut our wedding cake and I tried smashing it in Ty's face, she came up to me crying, literally with tears in her eyes and said, "Mommy smashed the cake in daddy's face." and she would not let it go. She just kept crying and crying saying the same thing over and over, like she was so concerned and disappointed that I would do that to daddy. It was pretty funny.

Madelyn's Two!

2008-09-25T13:21:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Madelyn! She turned 2 on Sunday and we had a fun, yet casual day. We decided that since we did a big party for her 1st birthday that we would just keep it simple this year by having cake and ice cream after Sunday dinner at my parents. However this year I did want to get her a kitchen for her birthday because when we go somewhere that has a play kitchen that's all she wants to play with. I have been shopping online for the last month and the one that I liked just happened to come to Costco last week for a lot less than I found it online for, and most online stores were back ordered until late November anyway. We let her open it Sunday morning and it took Ty awhile to put it together. She loves it. Grandma Wilkins gave her some dishes and some play food to go with her kitchen. She is always telling me now that she wants to "cook some food." This morning she brought us all cupcakes in bowls in bed and said, "Mommy here's your breakfast. Daddy here's your breakfast. Baby Audrey here's your breakfast."

Here are a few photos from her birthday.

I also took her to her two-year well checkup and she now weighs 26 lbs. and is 33 1/2 in. tall. She is in the 50th percentile straight across. Her doctor said that she is talking well beyond the average 2 yr. old and seems to be doing great. He commented how enjoyable the visit with her was compared to most toddler checkups. He told me not to worry about her still sucking her "paci" when she sleeps, which was reassuring since I am worried about it. When he walked out she said, "Dr. Stampfl went ba-bye mom." Madelyn, mom and dad love you and we look forward to another year of laughter and joys!

Instant Family of Seven

2008-09-22T13:27:00.000-07:00

This last week, Ty and I took our girls up to my sister's house and babysat their three boys while they took their baby and went to Lake Powell with some friends. It was a little crazy, but we made it through, 15 loads of laundry, and 25 bowls of cereal later. There were a few times that I felt like I was in the scene of a Nanny 911 episode, like when Max(8) was at school and all three kids Henry(4), Charlie(3), and Madelyn(2) were all swinging and crying because I couldn't be pushing them all at the same time. I also was wearing Audrey(2 mo.) in the Baby Bjorn at the time trying to push them and calm them down...crazy! Anyway, it made me realize how much we need a son someday for Ty's sake, but yet how grateful I am for my IUD for now!

Miniature golfing at Mulligan's...yes everyone was staring at us like wow, that couple is crazy, they have 5 kids, and 4 are 4 and under.
Charlie golfing or in other words, Charlie running around the golf course swinging a putter at everything in sight and throwing everyone's balls off the green and in the water.
Madelyn caring more about the sunglasses, than where her putter or ball were. By the way she asked for the pink ball, and then when we would help her put, she would take her ball from where she hit it, put it two inches from the hole and then hit it in. She also would say after everyone hit their ball in the hole. "You did it Max! You did it Henry! You did it Mommy!..." and so on. We let about 5 other groups pass us up and go ahead of us, because each hole took about 15 minutes, it got a little crazy. By the end, Ty and I were very ready to go home.
All the kids eating cereal one morning.
Max came home from school on Friday and said, "My teacher taught us how to make smores in the microwave.", which I thought was a little wierd, but we decided to try them so here's Madelyn eating her microwaved smore.

Thanks boys for the fun week!

An Audrey Update

2008-09-10T09:52:00.000-07:00

Audrey is growing fast. She is now smiling and cooing a lot. She gets easier everyday, thankfully. She's almost 2 months now and weighs 10 1/2 lbs. Here is a funny little picture I took of her the other day at the end of a smile.

This is Audrey with her two cousins, Lily (5 mo.) and Ryan (2 1/2 mo.) Don't you love Lily's rolls, she's adorable and so easy going. Putting up with three older brothers is not the easiest thing, but she's great to tolerate it all.

Presley's Party

2008-09-10T09:09:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago, one of Madelyn's little friends Presley had a western birthday party where they got to have horse rides and come in their western gear. Ty got all excited and got out the cowboy hat for her to wear. Funny enough, when we got there, Madelyn's other friend Anna was wearing the same shirt so we had to take their picture.

Lesson Learned...Don't put your toddler and your car keys in the car together without buckling them in!

2008-08-26T15:41:00.000-07:00

Yes, last night I did this. I was leaving a birthday party with Madelyn and when we got to the car I put her in her carseat without buckling her in while I loaded up the car, which meant throwing my bag and my keys on the passenger seat in the front like I always do. I began talking to a friend, watching Madelyn through the window climb out of her seat and into the front passenger seat, then to the driver's seat. She then began playing with all the buttons, which included the automatic lock button. I went to get in to put her back in her seat and leave when I was finished talking and realized she had locked herself in and there sat the keys on the seat. My friend and I were trying to get her to unlock the door, but she couldn't figure out how to push the button up to unlock it, only down, which is lock. After 10 minutes of panicking, we called our friend's husband out to help...I didn't dare to call Ty and tell him what my irresponsible self had done. The friend came out with a hanger, and then it dawned on me that my back window was broken and could be slid up and down from the outside, so I slid the window down and rescued the keys and my carefree toddler who was clueless about what was going on. I have to admit, I was a little ashamed and embarrassed about my irresponsible behavior. So in conclusion, don't put your toddler and your car keys in the car together without buckling them in!

My Two Girls

2008-08-25T16:12:00.000-07:00

I decided to put the girls in these matching shirts a few days ago. This is one of the only things that I have matching for the girls, (A) because I already had a lot of clothes from Madelyn that I passed down to Audrey and (B) a lot of stores don't make matching things in both 0-3 and 2T. I attempted to take their photos and here's the best I could get out of both of them.

One Word...

2008-08-14T15:15:00.000-07:00

My friend Jami tagged me awhile ago and I guess it's time to finally do this.
1. Where is your cell phone?... bag
2. Your hair?... blonde
3. Your significant other?... Ty
4. Your mother?... Kathy
5. Your father?... Ron
6. Your favorite thing?... family
7. Your dream last night?... didn't
8. Your favorite drink?... juice
9. Your dream/goal?... triathalon
10. The room you're in?... family
11. Your child(ren)?... sleeping
12. Your fear?... robber
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years?... vacationing
14. Where were you last night?... Costco
15. What you're not?... skinny
16. Muffins, bluberry or poppy?... poppy
17. One of your wish list items?... basement
18. Where you grew up?... Utah
19. What you read last?... email.
20. What are you wearing?... green
21. Your TV?... Toshiba
22. Your pets?... none
23. Your computer?... Dell
24. Your life?... crazy
25. Your mood?... tired
26. Missing someone?... nope
27. Your car?... Jeep
28. Something you're not wearing?... jeans
29. Favorite Store?... Target
30. Your summer?... baby
31. Like someone?...yes
32. Your favorite color?... blue
33. Last time you laughed?... yesterday
34. Last time you cried?... recently
YOUR TURN... Liz Peterson, Valerie Finlinson, and Wendy Knight

Audrey's Blessing

2008-08-11T16:29:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we blessed Audrey. Ty's parents came down from Canada to be there along with a lot of other family and friends. Ty again gave another neat blessing, and then we had a lunch at our house afterwards. To end the evening off, we went to our nephew, Max's baptism. It was a busy, but great day! It's hard to believe that Audrey's almost a month old already. Time goes fast when you're life revolves around sleepless nights, dozens of diapers daily, breastfeeding every couple of hours, and toddler tantrums...isn't motherhood great!

Audrey and Grandma Fletcher

Madelyn before church. Audrey curled up in all that dress in the swing. She slept there through the whole party.
Bad timing to attempt the family photo at the end of the lunch with an overtired toddler and a hungry baby. That was the best we could do.

Crazy Hairdos = Need for a Haircut

2008-08-11T11:51:00.000-07:00

Madelyn has had some crazy hairdos, and here are the photos to prove it...

So we figured it was time for a haircut to even out all her ends. She did great and she would tell you that the best part was the sucker at the end. Thanks Emily for doing a great job!

The Girls' Rooms

2008-08-06T09:23:00.000-07:00

A few of my friends have asked me to post pictures of the girls' rooms on my blog. The first one is the nursery when Madelyn was born, there have been a few minor changes since then, and the second is Madelyn's big girl room.

Fabulous Photo Shoot!

2008-07-25T08:38:00.000-07:00

A friend in my neighborhood offered to take some pictures of the girls. I am really pleased with how they turned out. She did a great job! Here are just a few of my favorites. Thanks again Cynthia!

Photography by Cynthia Robins

Audrey Lane has arrived!

2008-07-21T21:58:00.000-07:00

Our little girl has arrived. She was born on Sunday, July, 13th at 1:29 pm weighing in at 7 lbs. 6 oz. and was 20 in. long. She has been such a good baby and has been very tolerant of her older sister Madelyn who has struggled a little this past week to understand why the attention has to be divided between her and her sister now. Everyday she gets a little better, and each day becomes a little less stressful as a mother of two. Ty and I are pretty worn out, but it is all worth it because we adore our little Audrey. Here are a few pictures.

Proud sister!
On our way home...this was our awesome labor nurse!

It's a girl!

The Angel Moroni is Up

2008-07-12T15:52:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, Madelyn and I went with my mom to my dad's jobsite (the Oquirrh Mountain Temple) to witness the 30,000 lb. spire and the angel Moroni go up on the temple with the help of two cranes. Despite the long wait and the wind, it was a neat experience to be there when it all took place. There were several hundred people to witness it along with channel 2 news with reporters on the ground and in the air. Follow the link below to see reports of the excitement. http://www.kutv.com/mediacenter/local.aspx

Baby on the Brain

2008-07-08T12:31:00.000-07:00

With only 6 days until my induction, I got reminiscing about Madelyn when she was born. I was so emotional when I delivered, that when I held her for the first time I was crying looking at her thinking, "How could my husband and I be blessed with such a beautiful little baby." She was such a cute little thing, and hardly made a peep those first few weeks. She is so full of energy and gives us a run for our money now, but oh how we love her. We can't wait for her to meet her new little sister. Here are a few pictures from when she was born.

Our 4th of July

2008-07-05T10:09:00.000-07:00

Normally we spend time with family on holidays, but my parents were going out of town and all of our siblings were doing things with their in-laws, so Ty and I decided to do our own thing and the day turned out to be really fun. We started out the day by going to the annual Brighton Breakfast up Big Cottonwood Canyon. The singles' ward that Ty and I met in is the ward that puts it on, so we thought we would take Madelyn back to our roots. The food is average, but the atmosphere is fun. You're in the mountains and they have a little parade and live music. It brought back a lot of memories. We then headed to Cottonwood Heights Recreation Center to swim at the outdoor pool. Then that night we went to our favorite burger place, JCW's, which is conveniently down the street from us now, and had a burger, cheese fries, and a shake. I highly recommend it. Then finally we went to our friends house to watch the Thanksgiving Point fireworks. It was a great show, except for the 30 minutes it took us to get just 2 miles home. Overall, we had a great time celebrating the 4th, and being the last holiday we'll celebrate as a family of 3!

The Brighton Breakfast...Madelyn's favorite part...the balloon.

At the pool...wearing mom's flip flops,

playing in the water,

and going down the frog slide.

Dinner with friends...

Party at Finlinsons...

Madelyn wasn't sure about the Sparkler.

Watching fireworks...

Indecisive...Which Bag?

2008-06-30T18:40:00.001-07:00

I am having a hard time finding a diaper bag that I like, and because I'm so indecisive I'm asking for your opinion. So I'm going to take your vote out of my two favorites, and want you to leave your vote as a comment.

1) The Petunia Pickle Bottom Glazed Boxy Backpack

or...

2) The Storksak Pewter Hobo Bag

A Long Summer's Day...

2008-06-24T14:26:00.000-07:00

On Thursday, I had a doctors appointment that morning. Hurray, I'm actually dilating this time and we scheduled the induction with the hospital for the 14th. When I came home, we had a few hours to kill before we had to drop Madelyn off at my sisters to go up to girls camp for the bishopric dinner. We drove downtown to Ty's work and waited out front while he made a few calls to clients, then spontaneously we decided to ride TRAX in the free fare zone to Gateway since Madelyn loves trains. She was so excited about it. Then we had lunch at Costa Vida, got my ring cleaned at J. Brooks, which is just about too tight now with the swelling of pregnancy, and headed towards the fountains. Madelyn got sprayed right in the face while looking down at one; she had more fun watching the show with the music with her dad. Then I scored a pair of sunglasses at Forever 21 for $5.80. We rode the train back to Ty's work, dropped Madelyn off and headed up to Heber Valley Camp already tired. When we pulled up to the campgrounds Ty had to help me squeeze my tennis shoes on and tie them for me because I couldn't bend over, then we hiked down and then up another hill to eat dinner, then sit on a wooden bench for 2 hours listening to singing trees and speakers, which would have been lovely if I wasn't pregnant. I'm in YW's and was kind of sad when I found out that I couldn't go being pregnant, but after being there for dinner, talks, songs, desert and testimony meeting around the campfire until 11:30 pm, I was done! As soon as I got in the car, I ripped off my shoes, socks, and sweatshirt, lay my seat back, and turned up the AC for the drive home. What a day. I'm just surprised I didn't go into labor that night. Here are a few pictures from the downtown adventure.

Sandy fun!!!

2008-06-18T14:20:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I went to my sister's house. We were all in her backyard. The kids had their swimming suits on because they were in and out of the kiddie pool. Madelyn and her cousin Annie went down to the sandbox to play. I happened to look down and see Annie thinking that she had taken her swimsuit off, and when I went to see what was going on...and this is what I found. The girls were filling up their swimsuits with sand. My sister and I grabbed our cameras. It was hilarious! The best part is that we had them stand up, Annie's waddling with what looked like a sagging pregnant belly, and Madelyn looked like she had big rolls around her tummy and couldn't even stand up because it was so heavy. When she finally got up, she was pulling on her swimsuit, and sand was pouring out the legs. I haven't laughed that hard in a long time. Enjoy the clip!

Attempting to leave the house...failed.

2008-06-16T10:50:00.000-07:00

The further along that I get in this pregnancy the harder everything has become...getting out of the house is one of those things. I had just gotten us all ready to leave for errands and told Madelyn to go downstairs to go. I ran around upstairs picking up quickly and making her bed and came downstairs to get her in the car and go, and this is what I found...

Needless to say, we didn't leave for a few more hours. Madelyn is sleeping in a bed now and so she is getting up a lot earlier, which is hard. However she's doing great in her bed. I'll post some pictures soon of her new room.

Fun with the Hose

2008-06-16T10:38:00.000-07:00

On Saturday I mowed the lawn, yes 35 weeks pregnant because Ty's back has been bothering him and I wanted to get it done. Madelyn came out side with me and after I was done I let her play in the hose. She ended up soaking me and herself. It was pretty funny.

Just Being a Kid!

2008-06-12T13:31:00.000-07:00

Our friends, Alex and Liz have a big blow up bouncer like you play in at the jumping places and Madelyn loves it. She always is saying, "Alex, bouncer." Last night we had a bounce session in the backyard. When Madelyn bounces in it, she gets this crazy, staticky hair. Here are a few photos that Liz took.

Fun with the girls in St. George!

2008-06-02T14:14:00.000-07:00

We decided to take a girls trip with the kids to St. George this last week as one last out before the baby comes. Mandy and Anna and myself and Madelyn drove down on Memorial Day night and stayed through Friday. We met Marissa and her little family down there on Tuesday and went boating at San Hollow. We had a lot of fun. Madelyn and I even rode the tube, yes I know at 33 weeks pregnant, not the best thing, but it was actually really fun and she didn't want to get off. Then Josh took all of us to dinner that night at the Pizza Factory, and after we went to Nielsen's Frozen Custard. The next three days, Mandy and I and the girls had a lot of fun going to the pool, visiting a few different water play areas and parks, watching movies, shopping, eating treats, and relaxing. Here are a few photos from the trip.

On the boat.

Madelyn and I tubing.
Marissa and Mandy tubing.

Madelyn crashed on the boat.

Gotta love Nielsen's Frozen Custard.

The girls and their pacifiers. Madelyn also insisted on wearing the life jacket around.

At the St. George Historic splash pad...

Madelyn did this for about 45 minutes...filled up the bucket in the waterfall and dumped it off the edge, over and over.

At the Hidden Valley park/splash pad.

Thanks Mandy and Anna for a fun trip!

Dinosaur Museum

2008-05-31T16:08:00.000-07:00

Last week when it was so rainy we needed an out. Madelyn and I went to the Dinosaur Museum. That Thanksgiving Point pass has really come in handy. She had a great time...

looking at all the exhibits,

checking out the shark, smiling at the boys,
and digging in the sand for dinosaur bones.

July 14th is coming quickly!

2008-05-31T15:19:00.000-07:00

When I saw my doctor last week, he said he would induce on the 14th if I haven't had the baby yet, which with the history from my last pregnancy, I won't be going into labor on my own...I guess you never know. However, I'm sort of stressing. Even though I want the pregnancy to be done, I'm not sure I'm ready to be a mom of two; that's just over six weeks away!

Fun with Family

2008-05-21T08:13:00.000-07:00

Last week Ty's sister Alauna came with her husband Austin, and their 14 month old daughter Mary. We had a lot of fun shopping, going to baseball games, visiting Thanksgiving Point's Farm Country and Gardens, swimming, eating out, etc. I didn't get many photos, but here are a few of the highlights. Thanks guys for coming from Canada to see us, we'll see you in Banff at Christmas!

Madelyn riding the sheep

She couldn't wait to get on the horse...
She was really excited and wanted to do it all by herself. At one point she even held on with one hand and waved with the other hand. It was funny, Austin said she looked like a little rodeo queen.
Madelyn with her cousin Gracie riding the bear statue.
This was at the end of a very long day, and one last attempt to get the girls together for a photo...they wouldn't let go of their moms, so don't mind the exhausted, hugely pregnant person in the photo.

Wonderful Mother's Day...

2008-05-19T20:05:00.000-07:00

I know this is a little late, but I haven't had one second to post recently. My Mother's Day was a great day this year. Ty is not one for gifts, but is very thoughtful. This year, he surprised me with breakfast in bed. I took a picture because the way he presented it was neat. He says the eggs were supposed to represent rays of sunshine with the cheese strips and then he made waffles with three different dipping sauces, and strawberries to top it off. Then he gave me a pampering morning...fortunately he didn't have bishopric meetings, which was a gift in of itself. He let me soak in the tub, filed my heels and massaged my feet, then clipped, filed, and painted my toenails (since they're a little hard to reach now with the protruding belly). The rest of the day he took good care of me and let me relax doing dishes and watching over Madelyn. I love being a mom, and am excited for baby number two to come. Thanks Ty and Madelyn for a wonderful day!

Look who got into mommy's lipstick...

2008-05-07T15:21:00.000-07:00

Madelyn, of course. I always know something's up when it gets a little too quiet in the house, which is what happened last night as I was making dinner. I couldn't help but laugh and snap a few photos.

Kids Say the Darndest Things...

2008-05-05T15:09:00.000-07:00

We went to Thanksgiving Point's Farm Country a few days ago with some friends. Madelyn loved riding the horse and didn't want to get off. After prying her off, she was saying, "Again, again!". Then as we were walking out of the area, one of the horses was peeing. Madelyn said, "Mommy, dripping water." I thought that was pretty funny. Unfortunately my camera batteries were dead and I didn't get any photos of the trip, but we had a good time and will definitely be back because we bought a annual pass for all of Thanksgiving Point to keep us busy this summer.

Boredome...Homeade Playdough

2008-04-25T13:48:00.000-07:00

Madelyn and I were both going a little stir crazy waiting for Ty to get home, so we whipped up a batch of homeade playdough. I got out her IKEA cookware and sat her at the table, and she had the best time, and even better, she sat there for almost an hour content as could be. For anyone interested, here is the recipe:
2 c. flour
1 c. salt
2 c. water
3 tsp. cream of tartar
2 Tbsp. oil
food coloring
Mix dry ingredients in a bowl. Mix color, water, and oil in pan. Add dry ingredients to water in pan. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until it pulls away from the sides. Dump out of pan and knead until soft. Store in refrigerator. Makes 12 good sized balls. (I halved the recipe for less).