The Garner Family

"A" Mountain

2012-01-21T19:48:00.000-08:00

We went to Tucson today and while driving home on the freeway we were passing A Mountain and the girls, who are always interested in it, asked if you could drive up to it. E and I were like yes. So they asked if we could go. For as long as we have lived here I have never taken the girls up there, which is strange because when I was little we would always go up there either with my parents or my grandpa. I have decided I need to do more things like this for my kids. Spontaneous adventures... Those are things they will always remember.

They were so excited to be up there and to climb on the "A". They had some fun and were totally not ready to go home.
Hailey helping Aubry down.

The beautiful city view.

Texas Roadhouse

2012-01-21T19:35:00.000-08:00

H decided for her birthday that she wanted to go out to eat at Texas Roadhouse (my fav!) and go shopping. She invited 3 friends to come but only one could come, so she asked her sister to join us. It was fun and she even sat on the saddle and got a big "YEEHAW!" from the waiters and waitresses. We went to the mall and Target afterwards. It was a nice evening.

Bowling for New Years Eve

2012-01-21T19:32:00.000-08:00

Wow my posts are little out of order. But on New Year's eve during the day we were trying to find something to do with the girls. There weren't a whole lot of movies out that we wanted to see so I thought of bowling. We always forget about it! Everyone had so much fun. Aubry was hilarious! We definitely need to do this again.

Then we went out to lunch at Applebee's. The girls were excited to go out to a "nice" place to eat.

H Turns 12!

2012-01-21T19:30:00.000-08:00

I can't believe my baby (big) girl is 12. It seems like just a few years ago she was a baby. She has matured quite a bit in the last couple of months. Her birthday fell on a Wednesday so she was excited to be able to go to mutual that night. Then that Saturday was a temple trip for our ward youth. Josh and I were able to accompany the YM and YW to the Gila Valley Temple. It was so wonderful to be there with H and watch her interact with the bigger girls. I am so lucky to be able to be one of her YW leaders also. I hope the next 12 years with her will be just as good as these last 12 have been.

Cake for the Birthday Girl

2012-01-21T19:27:00.000-08:00

For H's Birthday we had dinner and cake a few days early. Since her birthday fell during the week it is too hard with our busy schedules to have cake and a good dinner for her. M and R came down for dinner and we had cake and cupcakes for dessert. It was nice for our family to be together.

Slacking

2012-01-15T16:47:00.000-08:00

There have been so many things I have wanted to blog about lately but I just can't seem to find the time or know where to start. I promise I will be back soon!

Jesus wants me for a Sunbeam

2012-01-02T08:49:00.000-08:00

Aubry was so excited she is a Sunbeam now. I went and peaked in on her during sharing time and she was being such a big girl and having lots of fun. She loves Sister Kartchner her new teacher.

Merry Christmas to Me!

2011-12-26T07:41:00.001-08:00

This is my Christmas present from Josh. I am so excited about it and can't stop playing with it! He is the best I have to say.

I had to take this picture of Sierra before bed last night because she looked so silly and cute at the same time.d

Christmas at Grandma's

2011-12-26T07:37:00.001-08:00

After church we went up to Josh's parents so the girls could open their presents. They had a good time playing with their cousins.

Christmas Morning

2011-12-26T07:26:00.000-08:00

Our Christmas morning was nice and relaxing. The girls didn't get up till 6:30 which I was pretty shocked about! The pictures below are in no particular order. But they show all the fun the girls had.
Aubry and Ryan
Heading off to church
The sleepyheads Emily, Megan and Ryan
Not sure why she is mad.
Sierra got her feet pajamas!
Riding their new bikes from Santa.
Aubry is a hot mess Ryan told her.
Hailey my tom boy
Sierra looking cute in her new clothes

Emily and her precious cow pillow pet.
Sierra and her bike
Hailey and her bike
Aubry and her princess bike
Hailey got an ipod

Christmas Eve

2011-12-26T07:19:00.000-08:00

Santa

2011-12-26T07:18:00.000-08:00

Santa was at our ward party, so Sierra and Aubry got to see him and tell him what they wanted for Christmas. Hailey was staying the night at a friends house and wasn't with us. Aubry asked for a bike, scooter and a Lalaloopsy Doll. Sierra asked for a bike.

Winterhaven Festival of Lights

2011-12-26T07:05:00.000-08:00

Thursday night we went to Winterhaven in Tucson. It is a pretty big neighborhood where almost all the houses are decorated for Christmas. There are themed ones, funny ones and some pretty neat looking ones. It was pretty cold outside and windy but we still had fun.

Baking

2011-12-26T07:03:00.000-08:00

This year I decided to make cinnamon rolls for some family and friends. I thought I did a pretty good job. Between Thursday and Friday I made 5 dozen cinnamon rolls. Everyone loved them!

Holiday Programs

2011-12-26T06:56:00.000-08:00

Both girls had holiday programs this year. All of the 3rd grade had their program right before school got out so Josh and I went to watch Sierra. It was hard to see her because she was behind lots of kids. She did have a speaking part and did a great job!

Hailey was behind this tall girl during her choir concert but I still was able to sort of get a picture of her.

Gingerbread Houses

2011-12-26T06:43:00.000-08:00

This year the girls and I made gingerbread houses out of graham crackers. It was an interesting and fun thing. The icing wasn't cooperating but we still had fun!

Our Christmas Tree

2011-12-05T19:48:00.000-08:00

I waited to put our tree up till Michael and Amy left so I could rearrange some things. The girls did such a good job decorating while dad watched TV and I made dinner. This was the first time I didn't have to rearrange too much!

Playing sorry after decorating.

Its always fun to pull out the ornaments the girls have made in the past.

Kitt Peak National Observatory

2011-12-05T19:43:00.000-08:00

On Mike and Amy's last day with us, we decided to visit Kitt Peak National Observatory just west of Tucson. Michael and I had been there as kids so we thought it would be fun to visit with everyone. I let the girls stay home to go. Well we weren't anticipating the weather to turn so cold so fast and when we got to the top of the mountain it was 32 degrees, windy and freezing cold. With just our light sweatshirts we braved the mountain air and did our tour. It was fun but next time we need to visit in the summer!

Some of the telescopes.

The view to the south from the top of the mountain.

My Poor Sick Baby

2011-12-05T19:42:00.000-08:00

Poor Aubry got sick while Michael and Amy were here. She had such a horrible sore throat and congestion, she didn't eat for about 3 days, didn't talk for 3 days and ran a fever for about 4 days. We finally could get her into the doctor on Tuesday and they gave her some antibiotics. Good thing it wasn't strep, just something else they weren't sure of. She has never been that sick and I was a little worried. But now that she has taken her medicine she is back to her ornery self!

Family Dinner #2

2011-12-05T19:39:00.000-08:00

On Sunday we had a family dinner with my mom's side of the family. We had my grandma and my moms' brother, Uncle George, and my mom's sister, Aunt Kathy and lots of cousins and their kids. It was so nice to see everyone and the kids had a ball playing.

The 4 generations on my mom's side. My grandma, Uncle George, cousin Casandra and her daughter Jessica.

Hailey and Jess

I was bad and didn't take more pictures. I was too busy visiting and playing hostess. Next time......

Family Dinner #1

2011-12-05T19:35:00.000-08:00

After the zoo we went to Uncle Scott's (my dads youngest brother) and Aunt Casey's house for dinner. It was really nice, we had pizza and got to visit with Scott, Casey, Andrew and Uncle Dave. We always have a good time with the Fortmans.

Aubry started getting sick, that evening and it just got worse as the weekend progressed. (more in another post) So she wasn't much fun and just layed around. She love having Aunt Casey baby her!
Uncle Scott and Andrew

Ryan, Megan, Emily and Amy

Having fun and visiting.

The girls playing in the dark out back.

Zoo Time

2011-12-05T19:26:00.000-08:00

Michael and Amy came to visit us this last week. We are always so excited to have them come and stay with us. It was a busy week but we had fun.
The first "real" day they were here we went to the zoo. We always have a good time there and the girls love it.

The girls and Uncle Mikey.

Me and Sierra.

Aubry and Hailey

My favorite pic of the day, Emily and Aubry.

Trying to get them all to look is a chore.

Bathroom Remodel

2011-11-17T18:56:00.000-08:00

We have been planning to redo the girls' bathroom for over a year now. But when the funds are low you have to wait. So we were slowly buying the things we needed the last couple of months tile, grout, texture, screws, sheet rock, etc... The list goes on and on. We finally had everything and Josh went to work. It took him 13 days to get it all done mostly by himself. We had some help from our friend Josh and Levi. Emily and I even helped hang sheet rock and we painted. It looks so awesome, just in time for Thanksgiving at our house and Michael and Amy's visit. There are still some little things that have to be done but they are not a huge project.

I forgot to take a before picture of the bathroom so this is all I have once Josh tore it all apart.

The sheetrock going up.

Taping and mudding.

Texture and paint.

Finally, the tile....

And the finished product. It was hard to get good pictures but got some from all angles.

Halloween Carnival

2011-11-02T18:23:00.001-07:00

Our ward had a Halloween Carnival Saturday night. The kids had lots of fun playing games, eating dessert and playing with their friends. My pumpkin even won 2nd place in the pumpking carving contest!! I was way excited. I was a slacker and didn't take pictures Monday night when we went out trick or treating but we had a ton of fun!

Hailey as a Fairy

Aubry as Tinkerbell

Sierra as a Pirate

My niece Kenna as Cinderella

Hailey and her friend Becca

Sierra and my nephew Lance

Aubry and her friend Morgan

Pumpkins

2011-11-02T18:19:00.000-07:00

Saturday is a Special Day......

2011-11-02T17:47:00.000-07:00

Saturday was a busy but lazy day. Sierra had soccer in the morning and then my grandma came to spend the day with us while my Aunt Kathy went to the temple. We watched Halloween movies, frosted sugar cookies and decorated our pumpkins. I was very tired at the end of the day. But it was nice to just be at home and not have to go anywhere. YAH for Saturdays!!

Aubry's pumpkin

Sierra's pumpkin

Hailey's pumpkin.

My pumpkin. YES, I had to buy myself one to carve!

This was the 1st year I didn't get stuck gutting the pumpkins and carving them all myself. The girls did their own!

Grandma playing with Aubry.

Harvest Party

2011-10-16T10:58:00.000-07:00

Friends from our ward the Hall's have a Harvest Party every year in October. It is such a fun time to visit with friends and the kids can run all over and play with their friends. We had good food, the kids played games and got prizes and Josh played horseshoes all night with the men. Us girls had a wonderful time chatting and laughing. Thanks to the Halls for another fun evening!

Playing in the corn AGAIN!

Sierra and her friend Kayla conspiring, I'm sure!

Apple Annie's

2011-10-16T10:46:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we went to Apple Annie's pumpkin patch in Willcox after Sierra's soccer game. Megan and Ryan came down to go with us also. A couple of friends from work went also. We rode the hayride to get our pumpkins, it was a pretty warm day but we had fun. Sierra and Aubry went in the corn maze with my friends Lorraine, Tammy and Julie and her family. They had lots of fun. Sierra had gone there last week and got a pumpkin so only Hailey and Aubry picked one for themselves.

Hailey's pumpkin

Sierra trying to help Aubry put hers in the cart.

Aubry's pumpkin.

On the hay ride.

Playing in the corn while we waited for our hay ride.

Hailey kept finding corn all day in her shoes and pants.

I actually caught Ryan and Josh unawares!

1st Soccer Game

2011-10-16T10:38:00.001-07:00

Sierra had her 1st soccer game of the season yesterday. Her team is the Vipers this year and she had a great coach. They did pretty good the 1st half of the game but the 2nd half not so good. They lost 5-3 but they tried their hardest. Heres to a great season. GO VIPERS!!

Rodeo Time

2011-10-09T20:38:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was Butterfield Days here in Benson. Once again I was on the Rodeo committee and so our big day had arrived. Sad to say though that this was my last year being on the committee. I just felt like with school going on for me my life was getting too busy and I feel I need to focus more on my church calling also.

The day was pretty good. We went to the parade of course first. It was pretty short and the girls and even Josh were a little disappointed with the lack of entries this year. The morning started out cool so we had to make a pit stop at Circle K for some yummy hot chocolate!

Then it was home to rest for a bit before we had to go to the arena to get ready for the rodeo. The girls had a blast and were very tired this morning. Sierra did the Calf Scramble and Boot Race like usual and I actually got my camera out for it. YEAH for me! We had fun visiting with friends all day!

Sierra getting ready for the Calf Scramble.

Chasin' after that calf.

Getting ready to race for their boots.

Stopping to get the boots on, as I was yelling at her to just run!!

It was a fun day but today we are all tired and sore not ready to get up in the morning for work!

Growing Up

2011-10-09T20:34:00.000-07:00

My little Aubry is growing up too fast. This girl is only 3 but she thinks she is atleast 5 years older. I had to share these pictures and new thing she is doing.

Its pretty sad that a 3 yr old can do her own hair when her big 12 yr old sister can't even put hers up. Aubry is now putting her own hair in a pony tail and its not to bad for her being 3. Take a look.

I guess its all down hill from here......................

Rapunzel in the making

2011-09-16T18:11:00.000-07:00

Well it was bound to happen sooner or later. Aubry cut her hair. Now in these pictures you really can't tell but when you tried to put it up it was totally noticeable. So I took her today to get her hair cut. Now the funny thing is that her excuse was "Eugene always cuts Punzel's hair!" Tangled is her favorite movie and she knows it almost word for word and if you have seen the movie than you will know what she is talking about.

Here is the before.....

And the after. So cute and adorable!

How do you cope after 10 years?

2011-09-16T18:00:00.001-07:00

Last Saturday September 10, 2011, was the 10 year anniversary of my mom's passing. I should have totally done this post then but I was having a hard enough time that day, I don't think I could have done it. This past year has been really hard for me and I'm not sure why. Each year the September 10th passes by and it doesn't bother me. But this year it has been different and it wasn't just the day it has been the whole last year. I think I never really had time to grieve 10 years ago when it happened because there were things that had to be taken care of like: my daughter, my sisters, my job, my life basically. And now I look around at the relationships people have with their mothers and I don't have that. I try to not let it bother me but deep down it does. So I will try to move on now and just remember her for the great person and mother she was. I am so grateful for the time I did get to spend with her and cherish all those memories dearly. I love her so much and miss her more each day.

Now here is to her, Paula Jean, the best mother, friend and confidant that anyone could have asked for. And here is what she is missing out on: a great family, wonderful children, beautiful granddaughters. But I know she is looking down on us and smiling for what great people WE have turned out to be.

Ruthie-Baby turns 87

2011-08-21T15:16:00.001-07:00

Last Saturday my grandma Burns turned 87. So on Sunday my Aunt Kathy invited us all over to celebrate her birthday. We had lots of fun visiting and good food. It was nice to see our family and to catch up and to tell stories. My grandma is the best lady and we love her dearly!

Here is Aubry and Warren playing in the hammock.

Ashlynn, Sierra and Sabra.
My Aunt Kathy, Grandma and Uncle George.

My sassy grandma Ruthie-Baby.

1st Day of School

2011-07-29T15:58:00.001-07:00

Yesterday was the 1st day of school for our kids. Our school district went to a modified school year. So they start at the end of July, have a 2 week break in October, December and March, but then still get out the same time in May. I am kind of excited about this schedule. I am happy the kids are back in school because there is a little more structure at our house when school is in. Here's to a great school year. My pictures are a little backwards but you get the idea.

Aubry and Kenna(my niece) holding hands as we are leaving the school.

Sierra outside her classroom.

My two big girls.
Aubry thought she needed to pose with the girls too.

Sierra the third grader.
Hailey the big 6th grader.

Pioneer Day Celebration

2011-07-29T15:39:00.000-07:00

Our Pioneer Day Celebration this year was a lot of fun. The rain didn't even damper anyone's spirits. It was held at a family in our ward's ranch and it was combined with the ward that we share our building with. There were lots of people in attendance, which made for a fun time. They had lots of games planned for the kids and adults along with horseback riding for the kids. They even did some tug-of-war contests between the 2 wards. They started with the elders quorom, then the young men, young women, primary and even the relief society sisters.

Here is Hailey with the young women.

Josh with the elder's quorom.
Our nephew Lance(in the blue shirt) chasing the greased pig.
Sierra and her friends Amity and Bailey eating cotton candy.
Aubry's blue face after the cotton candy.

Seattle Trip

2011-07-18T18:14:00.000-07:00

I had to attend a conference for work in Seattle last week. What a better place to do a little work and have some fun. I was excited to be able to go and visit some friends/family for a couple of days while I was there. Even though I knew I would miss Josh and the girls. I flew in Saturday afternoon and went straight to Michael and Amy's. The next day, I went to sacrament with Karen and her family. It was so nice to visit and catch up with her. Then it was off to my Aunt Kathy's for a late lunch and visiting with her, Melissa, Kyle, Craig, Evalina, Michael, Amy and the kids.

That evening I drove to downtown to my hotel. I got checked in and up to my room I went. How exciting to have a hotel room to myself for 4 days. This was the view from my room. How beautiful.

On Monday, I was only in a class for the morning. So in the afternoon I walked around downtown. I went to Pikes Place, down the the waterfront, back up to Westlake, on the Monorail to the Space Needle then back to my hotel. I was the total tourist! It was fun though because the last couple of times we have gone back to WA it was more visiting than site seeing.

My hotel, The Westin.

On Wednesday, we only worked for half a day, so I thought it would be the perfect opportunity to go to the temple. I drove over to Bellevue, did a session at the temple (wow it is way bigger than I ours I can say that!). Then I took some pictures and went to Bellevue Square mall.

It was a fantastic trip and was so grateful that I got to visit with Karen, Sandi, Janene, Melissa, Aunt Kathy and Michael and Amy. Till next time...........

Happy 4th of July

2011-07-06T18:53:00.000-07:00

Our Fourth of July started out pretty uneventful but ended up being a fun day. We were a little disappointed since the fireworks were cancelled in Benson due to the dryness and all the fires around the state. So we went to the parade as usual with Mindy, Ephram and the kids. Then off to the park to look at the booths and the annual water fight. It got too hot so we weren't there too long.

Sitting at the parade Orion, Lance, Leif (standing), Sierra and Kenna

Lance, Sierra and Aubry
Hailey crying the sun was in her eyes.
Megan and Ryan.
Aubry, Mindy and Kenna
In the afternoon, we went up to Josh's moms to bbq with Mindy and Ephram. Josh's parents are out of town but we partied without them. The girls swam and we visited. It started raining as we were bbqing the meet and the girls were swimming, so we had to rush into the house fast. As we started cooking the meet inside the power went out. What a funny, eventful afternoon atleast we had some good laughs.

Swim Time

2011-07-01T14:33:00.000-07:00

Josh's cousin was in town last weekend, so the family decided to have a bbq and swimming at his Aunt Debbie's house. Josh opted to go with his friend to some cage fighting at one of the casino's, so it was just me and the girls. They had a great time swimming with their cousins they never get to see.

Eating Great-Grandpa Garners' homemade ice cream. YUM.

Day Four- The BEACH

2011-06-03T17:19:00.001-07:00

Before we traveled home it was pit stop at the beach. It was too cold and windy to swim but the girls had fun putting their feet in and running in the sand. This was the coldest day while we were in CA which was perfect.

My wet baby girl tripped and a wave got her, so she is soaked.
My toes, I was definitely not getting in the water!

After the beach it was off to Yuma to spend the night with Josh's sister and her family. We had a great visit with them but were definitely ready to go home. I didn't post all my pictures on here because that would be too many. So if we are Facebook friends you can view more there!

Oh and I have decided not to make my blog private so no worries!

Day Three- CALIFORNIA ADVENTURE and back to Disneyland...

2011-06-03T17:14:00.000-07:00

The third day it was off to California Adventure. But first a pit stop at Disneyland till CA opened up. We rode a few rides and visited with TinkerBell and Fawn. Aubry was in heaven! We stayed in CA for a couple of hours then it was back to Disney for the remainder of our time.

The girls waiting for Toy Story Mania
With Lighting McQueen and Mater.

Riding Flix's Fliers in Bugs Land.
Josh and Sierra on Grizzly River Run.
Paradise Pier.

Day Two- DISNEYLAND

2011-06-03T16:59:00.000-07:00

Finally the day had come, DISNEYLAND. We had a blast riding rides, eating and shopping. The girls don't like to go on the fast rides but we still had fun riding the ones we did. We did get to go on Splash Mountain, Thunder Mountain and Indiana Jones which are some of the good ones.
Josh and the girls waiting in line to get in.

Emily and Becca.
Aubry so ready to get in.

Aubry with her new baby Sleeping Beauty.
Just thought this was cute of the girls being nice to each other. Doesn't happen often.
On the teacups.
Waiting for Daddy and Aubry to get off the riverboat.
Our new hats for the day.
On Dumbo, the first ride of the day.

Aubry and Daddy on the riverboat.
Actually a picture with Mickey Mouse as we were leaving for the night.

Day One- The Drive

2011-06-03T16:34:00.000-07:00

So we headed to California on Thursday, May 26th to have a fun and exciting vacation at Disneyland. When we got there we checked into our hotel, ate some dinner (pizza) and decided to walk through Downtown Disney. They have a bunch of shops, restaurants and music. The girls had fun but then it was time to go back and get some sleep for the next day.

They look a little tired after being in the car all day.

The Tower of Terror from our hotel room.

Happy 9th Anniversary

2011-05-25T11:14:00.000-07:00

Today is Josh and mine's 9th wedding anniversary. I am so grateful that he is my husband and eternal companion. I don't know what I would do without him.

HAPPY ANNIVERSARY JOSH!!! I love you!

Ward Party/ Campout

2011-05-25T11:08:00.000-07:00

Last week we had our Ward Campout/Party. It was a lot of fun, we didn't camp because Sierra had a baseball game the next morning. They barbecued the kids played, rode in the canoes and about gave me a heart attack playing on the dock at Kartchner's pond.

Track and Field Day

2011-05-25T11:00:00.000-07:00

Sierra had her Track and Field Day last Friday. I always loved these as a kid! The whole 2nd grade did great and they had fun. Good thing it was a nice day and not too hot outside. Sierra ended up winning 3rd in the 50 yard dash and 2nd in the relay with her team.

Here they are getting ready for the relay. Sierra was the first runner, her friend Tana was 3rd and Jared was 4th. Boy, Jared is a fast runner!
Having fun, waiting for the day to start.
On your mark, get set.......GO!

Crazy Hair Day

2011-05-25T10:51:00.000-07:00

Sierra's class has done some different themed days till the end of school. Last week on Thursday it was Crazy Hair Day. Not sure if this qualifies as crazy hair since it turned out sort of cute. But she liked it.

Where Dreams come true.............

2011-05-17T20:05:00.000-07:00

We are so excited to go on vacation next week to Disneyland. This is like our 4th time going with the girls but it is always fun every time. So my next post will probably be of our California adventures. Till next time!

Happy Birthday 3rd Birthday Aubry.

2011-05-17T19:57:00.000-07:00

Today Aubry turned 3. I can't believe my baby girl is so big already. We had a birthday party for her on Saturday after Sierra's baptism. All Aubry wanted was a pink party. Not sure what that meant but we had to have a Disney princess and pink cake. It was such a nice day visiting with friends and family. I love that we are all so close.

I had to put this one in because it was so cute. My friend Lorraine bought the girls Just Dance 2, so Sunday morning this is what I wake up to, Aubry trying to dance. It was so funny. I know the picture isn't great but you get the idea.

Baptism Day

2011-05-17T19:51:00.001-07:00

On Saturday Sierra had her baptism day. She had been excited for this day all year. We had lots of our family and a few friends come for the baptism. It was a really special day.

Here she is with Grandma and Grandpa.
All of us.

Happy 8th Birthday Sierra

2011-05-17T17:57:00.000-07:00

I can't believe Sierra is 8 already. This was very exciting birthday for her because she got to be baptized. She had a birthday party on her actual birthday, with some friends. They made little pizzas, opened presents and had ice cream cake. They all had a fun time.

Easter Sunday Dresses

2011-04-28T20:42:00.001-07:00

It was a little windy Sunday morning so our pictures didn't turn out the best but you get the gist. :)

Easter Egg Hunt 2011

2011-04-28T20:28:00.000-07:00

Our Annual Easter Egg Hunt at Josh's parents house was a success again. There was a lot more people this year but it was fun and the weather was perfect.

Aubry not wanting to use the spoon for the egg relay.

Megan and Ryan

Josh and Megan during the egg toss. Josh and his partner Eric won.

Emily and Becca with their lucky egg.

Aubry couldn't wait to get her hands on the candy.

Sierra found the lucky egg, too.

Hailey hunting for eggs.

The big kids watching the hunting.

Hailey, Sierra and Lorraine being silly.

Book Publishing

2011-04-28T20:21:00.000-07:00

All of the 2nd grade classes wrote stories and they got published in a book. So a couple of Fridays ago, they had a book reading. Aubry and I went to listen to Sierra read her story. She was so upset in the morning saying she didn't want to read her part out loud because people would laugh at her. But they ended up just finding their parent and reading it to us. I think that is why she had the sad face here at first.

With the book "Our Favorite Vacations."

2011-04-20T07:53:00.000-07:00

We are going private. There have been too many wierdos commenting on my blog. If you want an invite send me an email @ shannygirl79@hotmail.com or leave a comment with your email address.

Thanks!

Opening Ceremonies

2011-04-11T19:47:00.000-07:00

This year Sierra decided she wanted to play baseball again.... oh whoa is me.............So I signed her up, after a little drama regarding sign-ups, she was ready for coach-pitch. This is only her 2nd time playing and she definately needs some practice. It was a little stressful getting her to practices between being at the hospital and work, but we got it done and on April 2nd, the season was ready to begin. Sierra's team this year is the Diamondbacks (YEAH ARIZONA!). Josh was very excited for this too, when she played T-Ball 2 years ago, she had the same team. Here she is during the National Anthem. Up to bat....Swing Batter Batter, SWING!

Playing centerfield......

Here's to a good season!!! GO DIAMONDBACKS!!

Atleast something good came from this.........

2011-04-11T19:44:00.001-07:00

As most of you know, about 3 weeks ago Josh was in the hospital because his appendix had burst. Poor baby!!!!!!!!!! He ended up being in there for 7 days and then was home the next week just trying to finish recuperating. He is doing so much better and I know that Heavenly Father had his hand in it. If it wasn't for all the prayers from our family and friends and the 2 blessings he received, it really could have turned out worse. Everyone kept telling me, "You know people die when their appendix bursts", thanks people not that I wasn't stressed enough. So when he did come home from the hospital and was up walking around, I told him "Wow you are a lot skinnier", He lost about 15 lbs. He than proceeded to tell me, " Atleast something good came from this whole thing!" MEN!

The Zoo x 4

2011-04-11T19:36:00.000-07:00

From my last post you saw that the girls and I went to the zoo while they were on spring break. Then Aubry went with my sister Megan and her bf Ryan that next Friday. Then the next day (Saturday), Josh's sister Mindy came to town and we went again with them. Not to mention a week later Aubry went with Mindy and her family again. So poor Aubry was totally zooed out. But we had fun! Here are some pictures from our visit there with Mindy, Ephram and the kids, Dona (grandma) and Josh's brother Austin and his girlfriend. A really nice lady took our picture for us.

Grandma and almost all the grandkids, just missing 2.

All the kids.

A Day at the Zoo

2011-03-20T14:25:00.001-07:00

I felt bad all last week because I had to work and the girls were on spring break. I usually try to take atleast one day off during spring break but we want to go on vacation at the end of May so I really need to save my time for that. But good thing I am off on Friday's now! So I decided we would go to the zoo. We have a annual pass, so its free to get in which makes it even better. We had a quick lunch at McDonalds then off to the zoo. It was a perfect, sunny, warm day out which made it even better. The girls had fun........

Happy 32 to me!

2011-03-15T20:20:00.000-07:00

Well another birthday has come and gone and nothing exciting has happened. Why do we always think that when we get older that stuff is supposed to happen. Well it doesn't. I do alway enjoy my birthdays and get very excited about them. But for some reason this year it just wasn't as exciting as I wanted it to be. So now I can say I'm 32, my friend at work said atleast I was still closer to 30 than 40 (which is true). So heres to another year and hopefully this one will be as great as last year was.

(The only recent picture of myself, since I don't usually take my own!)

Girl you such a diva............

2011-03-07T16:41:00.000-08:00

Need I say more.......................!

Uncle Levi

2011-03-07T16:34:00.001-08:00

I think I cried twice over this boy yesterday. This is one of Josh's younger brothers and he left to go into the Air Force today. He is such an awesome young man and we love him dearly. The reason he had me in tears is he bore his testimony in Sacrament yesterday and then when we had to say goodbye last night. We hope he does great and is safe.

Aunt Megan

2011-03-07T16:30:00.000-08:00

The girls sure do love their Aunt Megan.........

The Fortman Family

2011-02-14T18:24:00.000-08:00

While Michael and Amy visited in December I thought it would be nice for us to get some family pictures done. We hadn't had a family picture since Emily was a baby so like 15 years or so. And now that we have spouses or significant others for the most part, I wanted to capture us at this time. Everyone was good sports about it and we had fun too. My friend Sarah always does a great job on our pictures.
Being goofy like we are...

The siblings.

Aren't we a great looking bunch!

I even got Sarah to snap one of our little family. Much to Josh's dismay.....

Science Fairs.....REALLY!?

2011-02-14T18:15:00.001-08:00

I am going to put this question out there, Who REALLY likes Science Fairs anyways??? To answer, Definately NOT ME! But what are you going to do when you child has to do one as part of their Science grade, chin up and do it. Well or in my case have your sister who lives with you do it! Now that I have a middle schooler, I guess I am stuck doing projects for the next lets say 7 years (Sierra is not too far behind). And I NEVER had to do one when I was in school, so I am not sure what really goes into one. Thankfully we had Emily to help us make Hailey's first project a success. Now she didn't receive a ribbon but atleast it got done and might I add ON TIME. So heres to our first Science Fair Project. Till next year.................

Ladycats Basketball

2011-01-21T11:02:00.001-08:00

Yesterday Hailey had her first basketball game as a Benson Bobcat. It was so exciting to be there to watch her play a "real" game. She got to start which I thought was great being a 5th grader. And the best part was that they won 11-4. It was a good game and she did awesome.
Congratulations to the "C" team on their first win of the season!

Pounds or Coach

2011-01-21T10:43:00.000-08:00

I started this healthy habits challenge with my mother-in-law and a bunch of other ladies. Today is day 5 and so far so good. It hasn't been that hard just the no drinking soda. And for those of you that know me I LOVE Diet Coke! I have even exercised all 5 days which for me is great because usually by day 3 I am making excuses not too. So here it the purpose of the title of this post.

My wonderful hubby gave me a little incentive. We went to walk last night and he had asked me if I had lost any weight this week yet. I said I wasn't sure because I hadn't weighed myself yet. So he proceeds to tell me that if I can lose 20lbs that he will buy me a Coach bag! WHAT???? I so didn't believe him, but he said that he was serious. So that is my big incentive, I have always wanted a Coach bag and here is my chance to get one. GOOD LUCK TO ME!!

11 on 1/11/2011

2011-01-21T10:33:00.000-08:00

I have totally slacked on my blog lately, and I have some catching up to do.

Hailey turned 11 this year. I can't believe she is getting so big. I still remember her as my curly head, chubby girl. She is now my big middle schooler and is getting so tall and thin. We love her bunches!

Happy 11th Birthday to my Hailey-girl!

Eating cake on her 1st Birthday

Me and Hailey

Christmas Day - Take 3

2011-01-01T16:05:00.001-08:00

Then it was off to Tucson, to have dinner with my mom's side of the family. My cousin Rachel was in town from Utah, so it was nice to see her and her family. I was able to snap a pic of my grandma with Sierra and Hailey.

Here is my grandma with some of her great-grandchildren. I think there are only 6 missing which is pretty good.

And grandma with her grandchildren. There are 8 missing here.

And then the grandchildren and her kids, my Uncle George and Aunt Kathy. Just missing my mom, but I know she was with us.

Christmas Morning - Take 2

2011-01-01T15:57:00.000-08:00

Then it was off to Grandma's to open presents, have breakfast, see what Santa put in our stockings and to have the White Elephant.

Then we went home to rest for a little while before going on to our next adventure. The kids decided to try out the Monopoly Electronic Banking that Emily got for all of us.

Christmas Morning - Take 1

2011-01-01T15:45:00.000-08:00

I think Santa was too good to the kids this year! Every year we say we are going to cut down on what we buy the kids but it hasn't happened. I think they all loved their presents. Megan and Ryan even enjoyed the few things they got. Hailey to a new basketball and a Buzz Light Year doll.

Sierra got a new soccer ball and a Woody doll, Emily got a new Ihome for her Ipod.

And Aubry got her Bumblebee Pillow Pet and a Jesse Doll.

Whose smiling now??

2010-12-21T15:47:00.001-08:00

Obviously not Josh! The picture from my work Christmas party. I didn't think it turned out too shabby, except for the non-smiling husband. But I suppose I can live with that.

Future Cats

2010-12-21T15:30:00.000-08:00

Finally I remembered to take my camera to Hailey's basketball game. This year her team was the Pistons. She had some high school boys as her coaches and they were great. Hailey's team went with only losing 2 games. Which was great! She did so much better this year and was much more aggressive. Mindy, Ephram and the kids were able to watch the last 2 games of the season so she had a large cheering section. With us, grandma and grandpa, Mindy, Ephram and the kids and Levi.

Sierra holding Marek.

Kenna watching the game.

Sierra and Lance, these two look like they could be siblings.

Lance.

Aubry and Kenna, the girls are like twins!

Getting ready for a good play?!

Warming up before the game.

And the good news is that she made the middle school girls "C" team for basketball! She is so excited. Go Bobcats!!

Elves Gone Wild

2010-12-21T15:26:00.001-08:00

My boss at work has this thing with Christmas. HE LOVES IT!!! He has about 15-20 trees in his house and usually its a theme or color coordination. Then right before Christmas he has his Annual Chili Party. I have been the last 2 years, but mostly to see what he has done with the trees that year. I couldn't help but to share a few of the pics I took with my phone of the lovely trees.

Happy Holidays to all.

2010-12-16T19:11:00.000-08:00

This year has been full of may challenges, excitement and changes for our family. I got this idea from another friends blog and thought it was a great idea for those that I didn't get cards out to. Sorry! I am just going to recap a few of our highlights.

Hailey's adoption by Josh was finalized in January and she turned 10
Josh was out of work for 3 months but now has a great job with wonderful people.
Emily turned 16 in February.
I got guardianship of Emily in March and she was finally able to get her liscense.
Hailey was baptized in May by Josh.
Emiy was able to participate in the Temple Cultural Celebration for the dedication of the Gila Valley Temple in Safford.
Sierra turned 7 and Aubry turned 2 in May.
We went to the temple and were sealed in July.
August brought the start of school, Emily is now a Junior, Hailey is in middle school 5th grade and Sierra is in 2nd.
October I helped with my 2nd Benson Butterfield Rodeo and had a great time with my wonderful friends.
November brought Michael and Amy to visit us for 9 days and I was very teary eyed as they left.
December has been pretty uneventful but I hope the New Year brings great things to us.

Love to you all and I hope Santa brings you all you ask for.
Shannon

Holiday Program

2010-12-16T18:56:00.000-08:00

It was sort of bittersweet this year to only have 1 holiday program to attend because Sierra is my only one in elementary school now. So my father-in-law and I went yesterday to watch the 2nd grade have their little play. Sierra was just a singer but all the kids did great.

I think it got a little boring just sitting and waiting to sing.

My Super Heros!

2010-12-10T11:16:00.000-08:00

My friend Sarah gave these superhero capes and masks to Sierra and Aubry a while ago. They were playing the other night and I thought I would snap a picture of them, because they looked so cute. Hailey is supposed to be the villian.

Brother Love.............

2010-12-10T11:08:00.000-08:00

My brother Michael and sister-in-law Amy were able to come down the week after Thanksgiving and spend a week with us. It was wonderful to have them here and to catch up. I miss them so much and wish that we lived closer. We didn't do a whole lot while they were here but still had a nice time. The last night they were with us we went to ZooLights at the Reid Park Zoo in Tucson. We had fun with everyone. Even Megan and Ryan were able to spend alot of time with us. We had some family pictures taken by my good friend Sarah and played tons of MarioKart on the Wii. We will miss them lots till the next time they get to come down. Of course I didn't take hardly any pictures while they were here but here are some from our night at the zoo.

2010-12-08T08:59:00.001-08:00

I am so behind on blogging hopefully I can catch up this week!

The Deathly Hallows

2010-11-19T13:22:00.000-08:00

So I am definately a Harry Potter freak and I am so excited for this movie! Tomorrow morning we will be in the theater waiting to watch it. Watch for more details.....................

Amarillo by Morning.................

2010-11-19T13:16:00.000-08:00

A co-worker and I had to trave to Amarillo, TX last week to do benefit open enrollment meetings for a cooperative there that we work with. I was excited to be able to get to go on a trip without kids. Awful of me huh! We had a really nice time till Friday morning we woke up and it was snowing. We were a little worried about driving in it and if we were going to be able to get home when we were supposed to. Well much to our dismay, Dallas was having some bad storms (rain and wind) so the flights leaving there kept getting cancelled all day. So needless to say we didn't end up leaving Amarillo till almost 8:00 p.m. (3:00p.m. was our original departure) and we left Dallas a little before 10:00 p.m. We got home to Tucson around 11:30 p.m. What a long day traveling! I am grateful I got the chance to go on the trip but if I don't see another airport for a while I won't be sad.

Family Memories

2010-11-06T20:20:00.000-07:00

Well I did want to do a little update on some other things that have been going on lately. My dad was in the hospital last week and was not doing very well. So Josh and I did go and visit him a couple of times there and got to see my uncles. I really love them, they always make the best out of any situation! Hopefully my dad will clean himself up because we do miss him being around. Then we had another tragedy hit, my Aunt Suzanne (my mom's brothers wife, I know complicated) passed away last week. So they had her service today and it was so nice to see all my cousins and aunts and uncles. I miss all the get togethers we would have at my Grandma Burns' house and all the laughs. I got a good laugh at my Aunt Kathy talking with my cousin Richard about me and my cousin Rachel always being the boss. We definately were and still are. It makes me remember being at my grandparents on their big back porch playing school or something and me bossing everyone around or it being Rachel doing it. We had so many good memories.
I just want to say that I am thankful that we could grow up so close together and that have so many fun times and great memories. I love you all and thank you for being you!!

Halloween

2010-11-05T18:54:00.001-07:00

Finally I am getting up my Halloween pictures. I guess better late than never..... We carved our pumpkins on the Friday before Halloween. Or should I say Emily and I carved the pumpkins, Hailey did a little but gave up fast and went onto frosting some Halloween sugar cookies I made.

Sierra picked out this design.

This was Emily's pick.

And finally Hailey's pick. I have to say I am getting good at these specialized ones. I am very proud of myself.

Then on Saturday night we went out trick or treating. Here is Aubry as a witch. This costume has been worn by Hailey, Sierra, my niece Kenna and now Aubry. I am so glad it has lasted this long.

Sierra the witch also.

Hailey as Alice in Wonderland. I have been wanting this girl to be Alice for years now and she just finally agreed. Oh well I guess its because the new movie is so popular now.

We went out trick or treating with Josh's mom and my friend Collista and Sarah and thier broods. We had tons of fun but we were missing Josh's sister Mindy and her family. Maybe next year they will be back!

Play Date

2010-11-05T18:49:00.000-07:00

A couple of Friday's ago, I watched 2 of my friend Sarah's kids. They were the best! She told me I was brave to take the 3 of them (Ella- 5, Leif- 3 and Aubry - 2) to the park and then to Walmart. But they were so good and had lots of fun.

These two have a love hate relationship.

Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-23T13:45:00.000-07:00

Megan and Ryan came down this weekend to stay with us and they thought it would be fun to take the girls to Apple Annie's in Willcox to pick some pumpkins. I have never taken them (gasp, I know) so I was excited to go. My friend Lorraine from work came with us too. Josh and Emily were at a Youth Conference for church and they were doing a handcart trek all day. My pictures are not in order of how things went but oh well you can get the idea. :)

Sierra and Lorraine next to Lorraine's pumpkin.

Aubry and her pumpkin.

Hailey and her pumpkin.

Aubry holding the cart for us.

Megan, Ryan and Sierra deciding.

Sierra with her pumpkin.

On the hayride to go pick the pumpkins.

On the hayride.

Playing in the corn waiting for the hayride.

Trail Dust Town

2010-10-23T13:33:00.001-07:00

The 2nd grade classes went on a field trip on Friday to Trail Dust Town in Tucson. Sierra was very excited that I was able to go with her this year since I am off on Friday's now. Aubry wasn't the happiest camper while there but we managed. Trail Dust Town is this litlle "old west" town in Tucson and they have an amazing steak house there called Pinnacle Peak. No we didn't eat there but the kids got to watch a gun/stunt show, ride a little train around the town, look at all the little shops, and ride the carousel.

Aubry ready to ride the train.

Sierra on the train.

Dressing up like a civil war fighter.

In the museum.

Sierra "In Jail"

Harvest Party

2010-10-17T14:56:00.000-07:00

Lately my posts have just been quick updates to things we have done. Maybe next week I will have some more interesting things to post.

But for now, we went to a Harvest Party that our friends from church were having. It was a great time. The girls had loads of fun and were thoroughly exhausted by the time we got home.
In this picture they were doing the "Corn Swim", the tank was filled with corn and there were candy corns hidden throughout. If they found one they got a prize. All the kids there loved it.

The hayride through the pasture.

Hailey and her friend Summer.

Aubry petting the horses.

School Pictures

2010-10-15T13:58:00.000-07:00

So for the last 2 years I have refused to buy school pictures. They never turn out and then you end up having to have retakes done and then those don't turn out and you are stuck. So last year and this year my friend Sarah who does photography has taken the girls pictures. She does an amazing job. Here are a few from this year.

Rodeo Weekend

2010-10-10T14:36:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was Butterfield Days here in Benson. We started the day off with the annual parade in town. My grandma came and spent the morning with us while Aunt Kathy went to the temple. It was great to have her with us yesterday. Then it was off to the park for all the booths and food.

Then it was off to the arena to prepare for the Rodeo. It turned out great this year and I thing our little committee is finally on a roll working together. I love each of these ladies and their wackiness! They make it a fun filled day for all.

From left to right our Benson Butterfield Rodeo committee: Me, Delane, Heather, April, Mary and Lorraine.

For more information on our rodeo please visit our website at http://www.bensonbutterfieldrodeo.com/ or visit us on facebook at Benson Butterfield Rodeo.

License to Drive

2010-09-25T13:51:00.000-07:00

We have a new driver! Emily took her driving test yesterday and passed with flying colors. I am a little nervous about her driving alone but she is way excited. It is nice that I can send her on errands now!! Safe Driving.................

Sierra's 1st Soccer Game

2010-09-18T11:11:00.001-07:00

Sierra had her first soccer game on Wednesday. Her team name is the Pythons. She did awesome at her first game. She is much more aggressive and is not afraid to kick the ball this year.

Now to Pick Apples

2010-09-04T16:55:00.001-07:00

Then around 9:00 a.m. it was off to the apple orchard to pick apples. We started down the path to find our apples. It was really not good pickings this year, most of them were still kind of little so we had to really search for some good ones. But I think we found some and they should be some good eating.

Josh, Lance, Sierr and Aubry searching.

Dona, Aubry and Kenna- these girls love their ma-maw.

Hiking back up the hill and it sure was getting hot!

Sierra enjoying her apple.

Aubry loved it!

Waiting.......

And a kiss from my big girl!

Breakfast on the Mountain

2010-09-04T16:44:00.000-07:00

Today was that day for our annual trip to the Angle Orchard on Mt. Graham in Safford. We always start the day by meeting at 5:00 a.m. at Circle K by my house, then we make our way 1 1/2 hours to our usual spot on the mountain where Josh, his dad and his brother has the fires started. Then they proceed to make breakfast while we all sit and chit chat with those we haven't seen in a while. Josh's family have been doing this for more than 20 years and it is a fun tradition to keep alive. I took lots of pictures while we were there since Josh's sister Mindy and her family came in from Yuma to be with us this weekend.

Emily looking not very happy.
Kenna and Aubry- these cousins sure do love each other.

Aubry thinking she's fishing in the creek with a stick.

Sierra and her Uncle Aaron

Hailey, Kenna and Lance

Emily, Becca and Austin- these 3 have a love hate relationship!

Sierra and Lance

Dona (my mother-in-law) and her newest grandbaby Marek

Pretty Pretty Princess

2010-09-04T16:38:00.000-07:00

Every Sunday when Aubry gets dressed for church, she has to ask us all if she is pretty. Then she twirls around calling herself a "Pincess". She is too funny... So last Sunday I asked her if she wanted me to take her picture and of course she said yes.

1st Day of School

2010-08-12T10:12:00.000-07:00

Today was the girls started school. I was very ready for them to start school and they were ready too. Emily is going to be a junior this year, Hailey is in 5th grade which is middle school here in Benson, and Sierra is in 2nd grade. This year will be a big adjustment for Hailey, since she will have to change classes. But she is so excited to be a "big" kid this year! I think I am more nervous than she is.

Even Aubry had to get her picture taken!

Sierra in her classroom.

Hailey with her Language Arts teacher Mrs. Fetter.

3:10 to Yuma

2010-08-01T16:14:00.000-07:00

This week was a crazy but good week. I started working 4 10 hour days this week and totally loved it. Between working longer days and meetings at church it meant for a tiring week. On Thursday, we had dinner at my mother-in-laws since it was Josh's sister Mindy's last night here. We took some pictures of the grandkids and grandma since little Marek was born not long ago and Mindy, Ephram and the kids are moving to Yuma and we won't see them as often now.

On Friday, Hailey and Sierra had a dentist appt in Tucson so we spent most of the day there. We did some school shopping and had lunch. It was a fun day spent with my girls. Then that evening we went back to Tucson to watch Emily's friend Becca and her marching band peform. When we left Benson it was raining and I was a little worried we were going to get rained on sitting outside at Becca's school. This is was it looked like in the east as we were sitting in the bleachers.

Beautiful!!

Then this is what it looked like as we were getting ready to go. As we got down the road, it started pouring and we had to pull over and say a prayer since my mother-in-law could not see where she was going it was raining that hard. It was a little scary but we made it home safe and sound. Aubry had stayed with grandpa when we went to the show and he said when the storm hit their house it was horrible. Lightening, thunder and heavy rain, Aubry was freaked out and was crying and clinging to him the whole time till Josh got there to pick her up.

Then on Saturday we went to Yuma to help Mindy and her family get settled. Josh drove the moving truck over very early in the morning and the girls and I went later on. It was nice to be together as a family that day. We helped with what we could getting unpacked and picked up. It was a long day! We were out the door by 5 a.m. and home around 8 p.m. It is about a 4 1/2 hour drive over there! We will miss them so much now that they have moved but hopefully we will still seem them often enough. I had to take this picture of Aubry and Kenna playing dress up. They were too cute.

Josh starts a new job tomorrow so we hope that goes well. The company he was working for was getting very low on work and they told him last week they only had about 2 weeks left of work then they would start laying people off, they had already taken a 10% pay cut too. We were starting to worry but on Wednesday, one of the counselors in the bishopric offered Josh a job! It was an answer to our prayers. He will be back working closer to home.

Saturday

2010-07-25T07:16:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was Pioneer Days, we celebrated the day with the other ward that shares our church building. They started off with a trek that was about a mile long. It was very hot and humid, so by the time we were done I was very hot and sticky. Then we went to the little school in Pomerene and had games, crafts and ate lunch. All in all it was a nice day to spend with family and friends.

Hailey was totally done by this time and was pouty!

Aubry getting a drink of water.

Sierra and Aubry.

When we got home we just layed around for a while and then the girls wanted to run in the sprinklers out front. I was suprised Aubry wanted to too. She never wants to. But they had a fun time.

Dance Camp Pictures

2010-07-18T06:54:00.001-07:00

I promised pictures from dance camp once I got batteries for my camera. So here they are. They didn't turn out so hot but the high school gym is not good for lighting. Oh well Enjoy.

Going to the Temple

2010-07-17T18:56:00.001-07:00

So finally the day came. We were able to go to the temple and be sealed. It was a fantastic day, with lots of family and friends. We had many of our ward family, the Mattice's, the Fenn's, the Collier's, Brother Richardson and the Elders, Brother Kartchner, Bishop Owens and many family members, Aunt Kathy, Richard, Beth, Mindy, Ephram, Carol, Mom and Dad, Casandra and Bill.
Also, our Bishop we had years ago and who married Josh and I, was there with his wife. I wouldn't have asked for a better group, I love all these people dearly , they are the reason that I am started going back to church. They have loved me inspite of everything. The girls were so precious and beautiful in their white dresses when they came into the sealing room. They did exceptionally well, hmmm except Aubry, she stood at the altar for about 10 seconds then started dancing around the room. Please enjoy our few pictures we took after. Aubry was not cooperating as she was getting tired, hot and hungry.

Where am I going?

2010-07-11T13:42:00.001-07:00

Most weeks when I am ready to post to my blog I sit and contemplate what to say. Today I didn't think to much about it so we will see what comes. Our last 2 weeks have been good, just playing the wait game till our temple day on the 17th. Well it is finally here (well in like 6 days) but we are all very anxious and excited. Now we can say FINALLY "I love to see the temple, I'm going there....."
Las weekend we celebrated the 4th of July our usual way, with the parade, waterfight, barbecue with our ward and the fireworks. My camera batteries when I went to get my camera to take to the parade on Saturday, so the couple of pictures I got were from my phone. We had the pleasure of having our niece Kenna and nephew Lance with us at the fireworks and to stay the night, as Mindy(Josh's sister) thought the baby was really coming. But he was just teasing and they were sent home. It was a little lonely at the fireworks just being our little family with Lance and Kenna. Josh's parents were out of town still and his Aunt Wendy went to Phoenix and Mindy and Ephram were at the hospital. I did have to text my mother-in-law and tell her it just wasn't the same with out her there. Maybe next year.

On Monday, Josh and I were both off so we went to the zoo in the morning with the girls it was a good day and the kids always love the zoo.

The girls did attend dance camp the week before last but alas my camera batteries died and I can't get the pictures off till I go buy some new ones. I will post at a later date. Emily is off to girls camp for the week and we will definately miss her around our house. She is a youth leader this year so they go up on Saturday before all the other girls go up on Monday. I think she was excited to go this year. Then she will be home for 1 day, then off to Cassandra's ( my cousin) to babysit for her while Jessica is at camp. Oh how I miss those girls camp days. Her and one of her friends did have a disagreement last weekend and I asked her if they would be able to get along while they were at camp? I told her that we ALWAYS had some kind of drama at camp. Those of you who are reading this know what I am talking about! :) But we always were friends again by Thursday evening for our ward testimony meeting. I think that is the only time I have bore my testimony in front of anyone. Thank you girls for making those years the best!