Brian and Jennifer Family

A New Year!

2010-01-05T13:13:00.001-08:00

I know I have said this before, but this time I am really going to try to blog better! Now that I have my new DSLR camera I got for Christmas (thanks to my wonderful husband), I can take better pictures and have more to talk about. I have realized over the last year that time is flying by and that we need to enjoy more moments together with family and friends. I wish we could slow time down a bit to enjoy the things that matter most in life, but since we can't...we just have to MAKE the time! I am looking forward to a new year with some great resolutions! Happy New Year to all my wonderful family and friends!!!

Following Through...

2009-04-22T17:39:00.000-07:00

Just so I don't let down my friend (Landee) and get her hopes up for nothing, I am following through with an updated post (of some sort-it might be from months past-we shall see in a few...)
After further review....the winner is:
PINEWOOD DERBY 2009

Here we have the "lucky" car Brian and Cooper built! It is a beauty I will have to say-Great job boys!!!

Cooper...checking the track...making sure it is level and ready for his car...TO WIN!!! Will it, Will this be "our" year this year...Will we have tough competition...

Well-not exactly! But we took fabulous 3rd Place (Not to rub it in Landee-we are still friends right-You know I luv ya!!!)-We thought we had it this year-the Fowlers were out and we were ready... but the competition WAS tough-Great racing everyone!
All kidding aside-it was a ton of fun and everyone was happy. Next year we will be ready...It is our last year-then that phase is over and done. Get ready...Go...Race is on for next year-See you all then!

So I've Decided....

2009-04-21T09:10:00.001-07:00

I have decided today that I am going to be better about posting and updating my blog-I could really use this as a journal and scrapbook for my kids. Funny things happen all the time and I am missing it-What is wrong with me? Is life really that crazily busy that I can't find time to enjoy the things that matter (thanks for the reminder- btw Eve!!!). It's ridiculous I tell you!!! So I have changed the look-a new start you know-and am working towards getting caught up with some past events. I know I have said this before-but this time it's official! Stay tunned.....Soon!

It's About Time!!!

2008-12-30T20:26:00.000-08:00

WOW! I can't believe how long it has been since I have updated our blog. I guess time got away from us. So...I will do my best to catch you up on our happenin's over the past two-YES two months!!!

First of all...BYU vs Air Force Game in Colorado Springs!

We all went to the game. Brian's two brothers flew in from California to go with us, and we took our friends boy, Jacob, with us. Even though it was a bit cold, we had a great time!!! BYU won of course so that made it better. Of course we have much thicker blood than the California guys (who thought it was really cold here)!

Kennedy looks so cool with my sunglasses on! She really is a "mini-me"!!! Just blonde hair, blue eyed and way too cute!!!

Next we have....Thanksgiving in California!

After driving for 13.5 hours-STRAIGHT (and listening to Cooper say "Are we in Gramm Gruntion yet?"), we spent a few days in Hesperia, California with Grandma & Grandpa at their house. The kids loved jumping on the "little" tramp and playing games. We of course, just loved spending time with them and having great discussions. Brian ran the Hesperia Stake Turkey Trot (5K), on Thanksgiving morning, and placed 3rd! It was a bit rainy that day (who would have thought we would leave warmer weather in Colorado to have colder weather in California), but he won a nice water bottle anyways. Of course, I think he is the most amazing person I know!!! I am a bit partial though!!!
After that we all got ready and drove down to Carlsbad, California (by San Diego). It only took us about 3 hours to get there-Traffic stinks in California on a holiday.
Once we arrived, Tanner, Cooper and Kennedy went straight out to Uncle Russ's pool and backyard. They love it there! They enjoy playing games like "Ladderball, and ping pong", Swimming in the cold 65 degree pool and sitting in the hot tub. We all enjoyed playing lots of games together. Of course the food and eating was great too! I gained 4 lbs, but what is the fun of Thanksgiving if you can't enjoy it! And we all did that is for sure!!! Here are some pics of the kids hard at play!!!

Cooper on the boogie board-Look at his cute smile!

Tanner on the boogie board-

Kennedy and Tanner together-How cute!

Kennedy trying to catch a wave-Isn't she adorable?

Cooper surfing!

Cooper jumping off the "Rock"!

Tanner-A regular surfer dude!!!

Some of the things we did while in San Diego... We went to LaJolla Beach to see the seals. Check out how many there were:

The kids had fun playing on the beach-even though it was kinda cold! They don't care when it comes to water!!!

This is us going out on a big rock to get a family photo! The humidity was awful...My hair looks crazy!!!

Kennedy loved playing with her new cousin "Ryder" while the other kids played soccer and frisbee by the beach.

Kennedy taking her turn with the frisbee!

Cooper playing with the other cousins by the beach! What a great action pic!!!

Playing with the boys!!! Tanner and Cooper love sports-Anywhere!!!

We also went to the beach and "attempted" to play a little family beach volleyball. We had fun anyways-even if we weren't pro's yet!

All my wonderful BOYS! I love them all so much!

Super beach pose-Brian thinks he will be famous-I hope-Chaching!!!

Kennedy just wanted to play at the park, by the beach, instead of volleyball with the rest of the clan!

Come on, I know you are jealous of the muscles!

After all of that, we went to the cliff where hang gliders like to fly. That was pretty cool to see them take off right over the ocean. We got a great family photo with the hang gliders behind us. Again, the humidity was awful...I don't think I would survive long living in San Diego with all the moisture! But that is just me! I always love to visit though!!!

The kids wanted to hang glide, but it takes many, many hours of training and LOTS of money-both of which we didn't have! It was fun to watch though!

As you can see we had tons of fun while visiting the fam in Southern Cali. I think the highlight of the whole trip was taking the kids to In N Out Burger. It was their first time trying the ultimate burgers and wow-they loved them. Tanner ate 1.5 hamburgers, fries and a chocolate shake. Cooper ate 2 hamburgers, fries and a chocolate shake. And Kennedy...well, she ate 1 hamburger, fries and a shake.

After our weekend down in S.D. we went back up to Hesperia to listen to grandma and grandpa give wonderful talks in church. All the family was there that could be, so it was wonderful to get all the insight together. Then we had a wonderful dinner and the kids finished playing with all the cousins before heading back home. Here are some of the grandkids together. I think this will be a favorite photo!

Finally...We ventured home-Another 14 Hours! It is always great to visit, but great to get back to normal life too. We had a blast! Thank you to all who made the weekend GREAT!!!! We love you all!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Stay tuned...For the next update-Christmas!

Happy Haunting.....

2008-11-06T10:54:00.000-08:00

Well another year of Halloween craziness. Tanner, Cooper and Kennedy were all some type of "sport" this year. The kids all had class parties which is challenging to get to all of them, especially when I am in charge of one (Cooper's). But I made it around for at least a few minutes to see all the fun they were having with the Halloween festivities. It is so great to see your kids having fun! I LOVE being a mom!

Kennedy wanted to be a cheerleader! OH-NO...Not just any cheerleader but a High School Musical cheerleader. We had to go around to 3 different stores to find a costume with "EHS" on the front. We finally ended up finding one at our grocery store "King Soopers". Who would of thought....She was just as happy as could be!

Cooper wanted to be a lacross player. So we called around to some friends to see if we could borrow their equipment. He was so excited. He now wants to play Lacross next season. We will see!!!

Tanner wanted to be his favorite football player LT (Ladamian Tomlinson) with the San Diego Chargers. I am not sure why he is his favorite player, but none the less....he is.

Trick or Treating was great for the kids as always. And this year the weather was 78degrees so it was a beautiful evening for the kids to go out. They all went with some friends and their parents so Brian and I stayed home-to answer the door-and watched Deal or No Deal! It was so quiet!!! I thought we would have had more trick or treaters this year because it was so warm outside, but we didn't.

The next two pics are of the kids at our annual Stonegate Ward Trunk or Treat party. Since we couldn't find Lacross gear in time for this, Cooper decided to come dressed up as Michael Phelps. Funny story... He decided to come down wearing his Build A Bear basketball shorts (I know you are thinking..."He fit into them?") and yes he did. He had his Build A Bear sunglasses on, which looked just like a pair of goggles the swimmers wear in the Olympics, and strutted his stuff saying..."Hey I am Michael Phelps" (I wish...we would be rich!!! JK). Anyways, I told him that would be hilarious to go as and so he did. The only problem is the party was outside and he would have been too cold. And the Build A Bear shorts had a hole in the back for the tale )Cooper thought that would be a little strange) so he put sweats and an under armer on. We also won the pumpkin carving contest this year. The kids decided to do the wolves pattern (out of this book we have), of course it was the hardest one, and THANKS to my mom...who carved the pumpkin out...we won! The kids were way excited!!!

As always...they got WAY TOO MUCH CANDY!!! I tried to get them to take it in to an orthodontist who gives $1/pound of candy in exchange, but no takers!!! Maybe next year!

OH...I forgot about the LAST DAY of Fall Break!

2008-10-29T16:10:00.000-07:00

All I have to say is High School Musical 3! Yep...we went to the very first showing in Parker. 10:10 am on Friday morning. We got our tickets online (Thanks to Cami-big smile!) and got there 40 minutes early. There was already a line of kids and moms (some of them more excited to see it than their kids). But we got great seats and we love it. It reminded me of Grease back in my day...only better for the kids.
It was great fun. I think Tanner said one time that it was boring, but....I think he really liked it. He is getting to that age-you know....
So we made it through Fall Break and school has started again. The kids were really excited to go back and get in the routine of things.

Last Day before the last DAY of Fall Break!

2008-10-29T14:55:00.000-07:00

As one of our last hurrahs....we decided to go back to the Lone Tree Rec Center to go swimming. It was great to have all the kids play and have fun instead of fight and not get along. Cooper decided to make a funny face! That he loves to do! He sure is a cute boy-and a great swimmer! We had a great time despite having to wait two separate times because p__p was found in the pool! I know disgusting.....But at least I decided to ask for a refund or something and you guessed it....I received a free pass to go another time! So it is always worth asking for something you want!

Cooper loves to jump in and make the biggest splash he can...at least to him it is big!

The kids always love when I get the camera out so that they can be in pictures. This was Kennedy's turn and as she was going around the lazy river she told me to snap a shot and....this is what we got! Isn't she cute!! Her eyes match the pool.
She had to pass a swim test to be able to go into the lazy river by herself, and of course....she did great!

Oh and one more pose....She was trying to scare me! But it didn't work-she is much too cute!!!! I am scared for the future with her.

Now for Tanner...He was in the lazy rive as well and as I snapped this shot I thought it showed his cute smile. I think the expanders are working and making his smile bigger. I think I have the two cutest boys in the world. I know...you agree too.

After the second time of getting out of the pool and waiting for the p__p to be cleared out (for another hour) all of the other people in the whole pool left and went home. We decided to stay and so we had the pool to ourselves. So...the life guards decided to play catch with the boys. Here is Tanner running (in water) to get the ball. Boy how my boys love to play with any type of sport ball. That is their life and they are good at it! They definitely have some natural abilities.

As you can see the kids had a great time. They went down the water slide and in the hot tub (of course I had to either get in with them or sit on the side while they were in there), played catch and raced around and around the lazy river. It was a wonderful, relaxing last day before the last DAY of fall break.

Hope you enjoyed the pics! We sure do!!!

Flips & Flops!

2008-10-22T09:13:00.000-07:00

OK, so...all the kids decided to take turns doing some gymnastics. Of course that is what Kennedy is doing all the time, but this time the boys wanted to join in.

Here is Kennedy doing a handstand and a back kickover and a cartwheel. Boy does she ever like to tumble all day long. It is always, mom or dad...watch this!

Now for the boys...Tanner and Cooper trying their best to keep up with their sister. They did pretty good! At least they made the attempt.

Inches Taken Off!

2008-10-21T13:40:00.000-07:00

Well we finally did it! Kennedy got her hair cut!-Short!!!
She has wanted us to cut it for so long now, but I have been putting it off because I wanted it to stay long. I know-selfish reasons! Well I finally realized that she needs to make that decision for herself-and she was right! She said she would be cute with it (how could she not be cute!) and I admit I really like it!!!

Well I MADE It!

2008-10-17T18:07:00.000-07:00

Wow! Can you believe it! 2 Times in one week posting to our blog. I am gettin' the hang of it! You will definitely see more of us-Lucky you!!!

Well today (Friday) is the last day of the first week of Fall Break and you guessed it...I made it through!!! I didn't think I would, but somehow I did. The best part of the week was overcoming a fear of confrontation of mine (a big fear of which I don't like) and realizing that it really isn't bad to have to talk to someone about something you want (i.e. more babysitting money). I was able to just do it...after not sleeping all week and losing 5 pounds-A SUPER BIG PLUS!!! (definite big grin) because I was so worried about it! I definitely learned a big lesson and was able to overcome a weakness of mine (I know what you are thinking..."but you don't have any weaknesses!" hee hee hee...-AND YES, I do!) What a wonderful feeling to rely on the Lord to bless me and help me through some struggles. I think our week next week (the last of the weeks off for Fall Break-yipee) will be much better.

Thanks to ALL who gave me such great strength and support this week! I truely felt your love!

How Much Do I Love Blogging?

2008-10-14T04:15:00.000-07:00

OK...So I woke up today around 3am (yes 3am-could not sleep! Bummer) and decided to go on my blog and do some updating. I realized (reading other friends blogs) that I am at the bottom of their list! Not good!!!
Sooo......
I decided that since I am up (earlier than expected) that I would fill you all in on what has been happening in our lives.
Then... Tanner came down saying Kennedy is crying and can't find you (I guess our house is really big this early in the morning! Good thing I don't have to clean this early.)
Sooo......
I went upstairs and she said her head hurt and she also felt really warm. So of course I take her temp and...you guessed it...she has a fever. Of course on a day when I have sooooooooooooooooooooooo much to do. Cooper had strep throat last week and I guess it is running it's course with the others. WOW!!!
I have been so stressed out anyways. This is all coming off a day (yesterday..Monday) of complete chaos!!!

I have started watching some kids (two to be exact: Ages 10 (boy) and 8(girl)) before and after school and then when they are on break (ALL DAY!!!)
I was definitely thinking it would be easier than it is...None the less-the reason I couldn't sleep...The kids are off for fall break now-2 WHOLE WEEKS!!!!!!!!!

Sooo......
I was having a couple of bad days (women stuff-you know the drill) and was feeling better today thinking I am just going to make the best of everything I have to do this week (babysit-ALL DAY/EVERYDAY, do vinyl lettering for 3 Fabulous Friday's (all on the same day), make meals for a service project for Young Women's (which is at my house today) and keep from going insane) and have a positive attitude.

Then.....Whamo!
No.... Kennedy needs extra assistance!-I guess another trip to the nurse is in order today. Chances are she has the crud!-Strep!!!

Sooo......
My updating might have to wait until tomorrow! We will see how the rest of today goes! I know...You don't think I will! But...Just wait! There is a first time for everything! You know you luv me anyways!!!!

Summer Vacation: Bear Lake

2008-08-22T14:47:00.001-07:00

This is our summer vacation at my uncles cabin in Bear Lake, Idaho.
We absolutely love to go out there and enjoy the beautiful surroundings.
This was a special trip for us as it was the last family get together we had
with Grandma Stewart, who passed away shortly after that. It was her
last request to all be together. WOW! Did we enjoy our time together!We had
so much fun. As you can see in some of the pictures (click on the picture and you can sort through them) we went wakeboarding, four wheeling, skeet shooting,
sat in the hot tub and just enjoyed our time together. We loved playing
games together and had WONDERFUL food. What a memory!
Bear Lake is a piece of Heaven on Earth!!!

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How Exciting!

2008-08-22T11:20:00.000-07:00

Today is the day I decided to start our family blog. I am so excited to get this far and see all the things I can do. It is so much fun. I am sure I will continue to update this as time goes on. I love my family and can't wait to share our great memories with all my family and friends. Much better than scrapbooking!