The Patterson Family

OAHU

2012-02-13T13:22:00.020-07:00

Entrance to BYU Hawaii

Finally, I am posting about my trip to Hawaii,
but I am not exactly doing it in order.
I actually spent a week in Kauai first, but these pictures are from my
time with Mckenzie at BYU Hawaii, which is on the island of Oahu.
I flew from Kauii to Honolulu on Thursday the 26th.
Loved this flight. It took all of a half an hour....
Once I got there I had to get a rental car and then drive to Laei
where BYU Hawaii is and McKenzie is living.
Thank heavens for GPS. Even with that I found myself lost a couple of times.
Pretty sure the little voice in the box wanted to jump out and slap me!
It seemed most of the time it just said, "recalculating"!

Campus

Beautiful campus but not what I expected.
Kind of located in the middle of know where.
Very small school, and very islandy. (Not sure if that is a word)
But nice and friendly. McKenzie seemed to know everyone.......
We could walk from her house to the school just a few blocks away.
She usually rides a bike.
I could tell she really loves it there.

I loved this tree that looked to me like a big pineapple!
They do have some of the coolest trees and plants on these islands.
I just love them.

One of many afternoons at the beach!

One thing that McKenzie did tell me is that
she knew living and going to school there was not real life.
That someday she would have to come back and join the real world
but for now she was just going to enjoy not living in the real world.
She said that in her classes they are always making announcements like,
"Students, you must wear shoes to class. Flip Flops qualify as shoes"
Now that is funny!

McKenzie and her friend Christian

On one of my nights there we went to dinner at a Thai restaurant.
Never had Thai food before but thought it was good.
The best though was the fried coconut ice cream we had for dessert!
So, so good!!

I just love spending the time with McKenzie.
I miss her and hate having her so far away.
But love that she gets this experience
and loved experiencing some of this with her.

In this picture there was a guy spear fishing, but I cant see him now.....
some of his gear is at the bottom of the picture though
but he is somewhere out there in the water.

One morning when McKenzie had classes
grabbed my camera and went for a walk to the beach.
I was staying at a Condo at Turtle Bay,
it was not right on the beach but I could easily walk there.

A lot of the beaches are sandy but this one was really rocky
which made it fun to explore.

These crabs were everywhere.
They were so fun to watch and so hard to photograph.
It is like they knew you were trying to take their picture
and as soon as I brought the camera up they would scurry under a rock.
They were pretty big too. Not like the small sand crabs in Kauai.

I love how a lot of the trees have their roots growing out of the ground.
That is just so fascinating to me.
They just look so cool.............
Kind of like they could just walk away!!

I love the ocean and could never get enough of it.
Simply Beautiful............

I thought this was interesting.......
This was at the beach I was walking on.
There is a lot of history on this island.
We never made it to Pearl Harbor. We tried, but got lost!!
Next time I am there we will go for sure.

When McKenzie and I have been in New York
we always eat at the Bubba Gump Shrimp Factory
like everyday.....
You can not imagine our excitement when we discovered one at the
Mall in Honolulu! Thought I had died and gone to Heaven!
I took McKenzie, Her roommate Andri, and a friend to lunch there!
As always I had the Crab stuffed Shrimp
and had Calamari for the first time and loved it.
Calamari is squid for those who don't know.
It was sooooooo good!

Yep! McKenzie is holding a deep fried squid....
see all of the tentacles????

If you love Forest Gump the movie you would love this place
just because of all of the little reminders of the movie!
On the Women's bathroom door it says "Jenny" in stead of women.
I loved it!!

My name is Forest,
Forest Gump.
Everyone calls me Forest Gump.....

Best meal of my whole trip!!
And I had some pretty good meals, but I love this restaurant!

At the Ambercrombie store the shirtless models
just aren't on the bags.
They actually greet you as you walk into the store!
McKenzie was actually liking this just a little too much!
Did I mention that this was the most amazing mall I have ever been to?
Oh my gosh, it was the best............
For sure going back next time...........

I think the above trees are the kind Tarzan swings on........
Ya think?????

The Hawaii Temple that is just a couple blocks from McKenzies house.

McKenzies cute blue house that is located
on Kamehameha Hwy!
Try saying that. Nothing is pronounced how it is spelled in Hawaii.
You should hear the GPS say it. McKenzie was laughing about it the whole trip!
You get on this Hwy and it will take you basically around the whole island.
She lives right accross the street from the beach.
Lets just say that if there were a sunami she would be in trouble!

On Saturday I took Kenze and her room mate to Costco
and we stalked their fridge and pantry.
When I arrived, both were basically empty and they were living on Oatmeal!
I am sure they can hardly wait for me to make a return trip!
Honestly, they were all so grateful, how could I not want to do it for them!
Nothing worse than being a poor college student.

Below is their kitchen sinks which also double as their bathroom vanity!

Just for fun!
Mother/Daughter Tatoos.....
They were originally going to match but at the last minute I changed mine
but ended up liking McKenzies best.
Hers is the top
mine is the bottom!

Before anyone freaks,
they were just Henna and were not real.
Mine was gone within a couple of weeks.............

Went to the Dole Pineapple Plantation
where the best part was eating Pineapple icecream!
Yummmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!!

Had this made for Noah. It spells out his name!
He loved it!
Hunter was so jealous and wanted one
which surprised me!
So next time, I will have to go back and get one made for him!
(Yes, there will be a next time)

These are pineapples.
In my mind, I picture pineapples growing from a tree,
but they actually grow out of the ground.
The bush things are the top of the pineapple!

We did some fun shopping
and brought home chocolate covered pineapple for everyone!

Sleeping on the beach!
What a life...........
What you cant see in this picture is that she had sand stuck all over her
because the wind was blowing so hard!

McKenzies transportation!
It is so cute and she has always wanted one.
I wish we could figure out away to get it home
after she is finished with school.

On my last day we were driving by a beach
and I could not believe how big the waves were.
It is hard to tell in the pictures
but they were massively scary and they were not letting
anyone in the water.

The sign says "No Swimming"
I love all of the signs that I see when I am in Hawaii.
I love the little pictures of the people! Like the guy falling head first into the water!
Too funny!
It would lead you to believe that Hawaii is a very dangerous place!

Good Bye Ocean and sandy beaches and warm weather............
Hello cold, dreary, Utah.........

After flying all night I look like something that the dog dragged in.
I was dead tired. Not just from flying all night
but because of the 3 hour time difference that my body was use to.
No matter, I was so, so happy that Noah skipped school
and came to the airport to pick me up.
Being gone 2 weeks was so long,
but I loved my trip.
Loved the time I spent with McKenzie and plan to return in April!
Can not wait!

OUCH!!!!!!

2012-02-10T06:51:00.003-07:00

While playing football at lunch recess
Noahs head made some serious contact with the back of JT Pattersons head!
(Yes, he is a relative)
OUCH!!!!
Unfortunately, mom was an ocean away in Hawaii.
I felt like the worst mother in the world not being there for him.
The school had to call dad in stead.
Everyone knows that mom's always make everything all better
and I was not there to do that!
I beat myself up over that one...............

When I talked to him on the phone he told me that he didn't cry at all...
hmmmmm...........
he looks pretty sad to me! :(

Two days later he looked like this at church!

By the time I got back, a week and a half later,
there were no signs of his black eye!
Sorry that I missed it!!!

22 Points......

2012-02-08T20:52:00.003-07:00

Noah is such an Awsome Basketball player!
At his game on Saturday he scored 22 points.
He could have easily scored more points but he didn't
want to be a ball hog!!
(those are his words not mine!!)

February Birhdays...........

2012-02-08T01:09:00.005-07:00

( Autumn is 23, Daniel 16 and James is 53 not 35)

3 Birthdays in one week,
and a busy stressful week, meant doing our February Birthdays
all in one night again this year!
It actually works out quite well.
We went to Summers and had Papa Murpheys pizza
Cupcakes, (of course) and Chocolate Chip Mint Ice Cream Cake!

When ever I tried to get Bridger to smile for a picture this is what I got!
Dakota was showing me his ski Helmet when Hunter came in for a kiss
that I dont think that Dakota really wanted!

Daniel got 2 more Helmets for his collection.
Now all he needs is one more to have the whole NFL collection.
The one hold out is the panthers and it has been near impossible to find.
But I will keep trying.............

Autumn is actually 23 today!
February 8th!

Bridger and Dakota picked out the presents for Grandpa.
A Lego and Kit Kats!
So funny. He had to help Dakota put the Lego together
and then Dakota got to keep it! Smart Boy!

McKenzies Birthday is February 24th.
If she had been here we would have celebrated her Birthday too!
In stead we made signs and took pictures and are sending her the pictures!
We missed having her there.........

Happy Birthday Everyone!!!!

Look who turned 16......

2012-02-03T19:52:00.004-07:00

How can this cute little guy be 16 already???????
Oh how I miss that baby, but love the boy!
(Or I should say young man!)

Happy, happy 16th Birthday
Daniel!!

(and he already got invited to his first girls choice dance!)

Hunters Basketball Game

2012-01-12T21:41:00.005-07:00

All of the boys are playing Jr Jazz this year
which keeps us busy every week going to games.
These pictures are from Hunters game this week.
They played another team from Timberline so all of the boys knew each other.

Hunter is 42 this year and his team wore white at this game.
#44 on the red team made me laugh the whole game!!

Hunter is actually a pretty good basketball player........
He scored several baskets and even made one from Jimmer range...
meaning he got a 3 pointer!
Woo hoo!!

Love, love, love,
the new basketball shoes I got him for Christmas!!

The thing that I noticed about Hunter
is that he was/is just a happy kid out on the basketball floor.
Smiling all of the time and laughing with his team mates
as well as kids on the other team.
He just seemed to have a good time. I like that!

Final Score 33- 25
Hunters team won!
At the beginning of the game I would not have guessed they would win.
Hunters team only had one kid on the bench while the other team had several,
and at one time the other team was up 9-0.
But they slowly pulled ahead and did a great job!!
Way to go Timberline 2!

College History???????

2012-01-12T16:44:00.003-07:00

McKenzie's text book for her History class!
How funny is that.
She was really dissapointed when she could not get into the Hula class
because it was full. Maybe next term!
Is this a real college??? I think I want to go.........

Her house guest!!!
This is funny because I warned her before she left that
the Gekko's just come inside, uninvited!
I had that problem last year when I was there...........
She handled it better than I did,
she just made it their new pet!!

Hello BYU Hawaii

2012-01-10T16:20:00.005-07:00

I stole these pictures off of McKenzies facebook page.
She is loving Hawaii so far,
and she is loving her classes,
and has made lots of new friends!
When I talk to her on the phone she seems very happy!
Who wouldn't be happy living in Hawaii???

(her bed. She has the top bunk)
She is living in a studio apartment with 2 other girls.
Neither one did she know before moving in with them.
McKenzie is very comfortable meeting knew people....
I admire that about her.
She makes friends very easily.

(The closet that they all share)

The kitchen, and a glimpse of the couch that she says is so hideous she will
never sit on it!! She also said one of her roomates loves to cook and
fixes them dinner every night!

Pretty cool shower!

New friends?????

What a Hottie!!!

I think this guy would be a better choice!!
Aside from all of the tattoos!!

Relatives???????

Pearl Harbor

Looks like her first week has been a good one!!

Noah's New Hair Cut.......

2012-01-10T09:17:00.003-07:00

I finally caved in and let Noah get his hair cut the way he wanted.
I don't know what you call it.
Kind of a mohawk, I guess!
This is a little shocking, but I find that I actually like it!
He loves it!!!!
His dad doesn't like it. Says it pains him to look at it!

But, it is just hair. It grows back, and in two weeks you wont even be able to tell.
Plus, it could be so much worse!

This is a weird picture, at a weird angle or something
because his face looks so thin....
No matter, he will always be such a cute boy!
And, you are only 9 once!

Good Bye Utah State................

2012-01-09T20:34:00.005-07:00

Last Wednesday we took McKenzie to the airport to fly out to Hawaii.
The security lines were so long..........................
I found out that if you are nice to the right people
they will put you through to the front of the line............. :)
McKenzie is attending school at BYU Hawaii
and will be there until June!
Lucky girl and lucky me because in 2 1/2 weeks I will be with her!!

It was hard seeing her go even though I will see her shortly.
But she made it there okay and is doing well.

When I got home I found these pictures of her and her room mates
that were taken just a few weeks ago at Utah State.
I think they are so fun.......
looking at them helped with the missing..............

I love the above picture!!

She had such fun room mates this year.
She was always telling me how much she loved them.
I know she will miss them,
but she is off to a new adventure and I am so happy and excited for her,
but sad for me.............

Skiing the Canyons

2012-01-09T12:16:00.005-07:00

Saturday the family went to the Canyons for a day of skiing.
Actually, James took the older boys up Friday night and skied at Park City.
Noah had basketball practice Saturday morning so I took him up after that.
Scott and Summer came up Saturday too, and Dakota went skiing for the first time.
He looked so cute!
It actually snowed on Saturday. Something it has not done a lot of this winter,
and it made it pretty cold!

They look so cute!!

(our condo buildings)

We road the tram from the condo up to the resort.

Then we road the Gondola up to the top of the resort.
Bridger had fun in the Gondola.

Noah

Daniel and Adam

Hunter

Apparently I did a very good job picking out the the skis for Christmas!
The boys said they were amazing!
Skis are so much better than they use to be.
I was laughing though because Daniels friend Adam
was skiing on my old skis that I bought when I was 19!
He said they worked just fine though and served the purpose.

Noah had a great time and is getting to be a good little skiier!

This picture of Summer and her family is so cute because
Noah was not suppose to be in the picture and he snuck in there!
So funny!! And you can tell by the look on his face he knows he is being bad!!

A short video taken from James I Phone!
Dakota did a great job.
Love the harness that Scott has on him........
It was a fun day in the cold....
Summer and I actually spent the afternoon at the out let mall!

Happy Birthday Bridger

2012-01-05T19:21:00.004-07:00

Bridger has turned "3"!!
This is my all time favorite picture of Bridger.
I think it just sums up his personality!!

For his Birthday Summer made him this cake in the back of a dump truck.
It was so cute and so clever!
He loved it!

We also celebrated Matt's Birthday which was Dec. 30th
but he and Autumn were in St. George.
Of course his cake came from Dippity!
Can not have a Birthday without a cake from there!

Bridger with the Dinosaur toys that we got him.
Dakota was so mad!
He said that Bridger got way cooler presents than he did at his Birthday in November.
It reminded me of how Autumn and McKenzie use to be at each others birthdays!
Always mad about what the other person got....

McKenzie made the Nemo bank for Matt because he loves that movie.
And we got him some t shirts and a really soft Jazz Blanket
because Dakota stole his old one.

McKenzie was leaving for Hawaii the next day so we had some Leis for her
and it was a little sad as she said goodbye to everyone.....

I had to include this picture just for fun.
This is the Christmas gift that I got for Summer.
It is a canvased wrap picture of the Manti Temple.
It looks so pretty in her new house!
I love it!

Anyway, it was a fun Birthday for Bridger.
Can not believe he is already 3!!
Life would just not be the same without this little guy!!

The Next Jimmer.............

2012-01-04T19:51:00.002-07:00

Noah is pretty sure he is the next Jimmer!

Duct Tape.......

2012-01-03T15:27:00.005-07:00

In answer to the Question
"Why does a little boy want tons of Duct tape?"

WHY NOT?

Have you seen duct tape lately? It is so cool,
and comes in so many colors and designs....
Who would not want lots of duct tape!

What does one do with Duct Tape?
WHATEVER YOU WANT!!

Noah uses it for everything.
He tapes his back pack, makes bracelets and rings.
Made a cover for his I pod and made a wallet for a friend.
The thing he likes to do most though is decorate his shoes.

BEFORE..........

AFTER..............

and yes.... he will wear them to school like that!!

Whenever we go to the store,
he always says,
"Hey mom, can we check out the duct tape!!
Gotta love this kid!!

And yes he did wear those clothes for a solid week!
In case anyone was wondering.......

Happy New Year 2012

2012-01-03T15:05:00.006-07:00

HAPPY NEW YEAR!
Again this year Noah and I found that we were the only ones home!
We ate Cafe Rio, and built Lego's and watched TV.
As it got to around 10:30 I mainly worked on keeping Noah awake.
At 11:30 we had to go pick up Hunter from a friends house
because he wanted to set off our ariel fireworks with us.
Trying to keep Noah awake in the car proved to be quite the task
but I managed by talking to him and asking him questions non stop.
He was so funny. He kept saying,
"It's okay if I don't make it to mid night. I am tired. I want to go to sleep."
But I knew from experience that if I let him fall a sleep
he was going to be so mad in the morning!
That is what happened last year........

At mid night I got pre occupied with Hunter doing something
and it was Noah who said, "Hey Guys, it's 12:00"
Sure enough it was!
Noah was so excited to have actually made it to mid night!!

Our stash of Fire Works!

For whatever reason Hunter and Noah were under the impression that it
was ok to discharge some of these in the house
and they made quite the mess!!
The big ones we took outside and shot off! They had so much fun
other than the dog going crazy.
We ended up having to lock him up in the car, because nothing else could contain him!
He loves fireworks so much he always ends up getting burned! Stupid dog!

Our New Years Eve Cup cakes!!

Happy New Years everyone!
Lets hope this New Year is a Good One!!

Christmas 2011

2012-01-03T11:38:00.007-07:00

Noah's letter to Santa, plus Santa's reply........
We decided that Santa would really like Chocolate covered Strawberries
and Vitamin water this year...........!
I know Mrs. Santa certainly enjoyed it!

The tree after Santa......

The 4 kids we had at home on Christmas morning...
this year we are down by 2.
It seemed so strange.......................
Santa makes it easy on us and on the kids,
everyone gets their own wrapping paper. It makes finding gifts
pretty easy.

Noah's first gift was a Pirates of the Carribean Lego ship!

So funny that the first gift Hunter opened were Reindeer boxers!!

Daniel of course got plenty of Vikings gear.
Christian Ponder Jersey and hat!
I made it easy on myself this year. I gave Daniel my credit card
and he sat down in front of the computer and ordered many of his gifts!
First thing he did was get on NIKE ID and design some new Basketball Shoes.
I just wrapped them when they came.
I surprised him with a few things though.
He got a new Leather football, JIMMER Kings Jersey,
snow skis, a few movies and games for his Xbox
and some clothes.

McKenzie was sure that I could not come up with anything that she could use in Hawaii,
but I surprised her with a Kendel, (she loves to read) a new Camera, (Autumn and Summer set up a blog for her), several fun shoes, clothes,
and I found a store at the Fashion Place mall called flip flops and was
able to get her some fun flip flops for her adventure.

Noah wanted this Jacket more than anything!
Everywhere we have gone this last week he always receives several compliments on it.

Hunter always wants the funniest stuff.
He kept telling me that he wanted a sock monkey, so I was so excited when I found
this University of Utah Sock Monkey.
He got a new Saints Jersey.
He also got skis, games for his xbox, a couple of Star Wars Legos, (the really hard ones),
clothes, ski coat and gloves, and he also got a JIMMER Jersy!

The mess after..................

I surprised Noah by redoing his bed with Dolphin Bedding.
He has said that it is his favorite present!

Noah got several Lego's and Bey Blades.
A new Electric scooter, a new Dolphins Jersey, and of course he got
Jimmered too, with a Kings Jersey!
Noah had asked Santa to fill his stocking with Duct tape,
and Santa came through BIG Time with the duct tape!!

After church, Christmas Round 2 started with the married kids coming.
It looked like Santa had come again, only this time bringing their presents
and putting them under the tree!

Dakota was the funniest!
I gave him a big remote control Hummer. I thought it was a great gift.
He opened it, looked at it and said, "This is boring!"
Summer had told him that if he was good
Grandma and Grandpa might get him a Wii for Christmas,
so that is what he was expecting.......
Well Grandma did come through and get him the Wii,
which he declared was not boring and
he was very excited about it and the Skylander game we got them to go with it.

We got the married kids things for their New Houses.
And I think that everyone was quite happy with their gifts.

Funny story about Noah.
He wanted a new Jersey but could not think of a player
so I had it made with his name on it and his favorite number.
He told me that he hoped that when he is in college the dolphins are really
bad so that when he gets drafted "First" into the NFL the dolphins will pick him!
This boy has "BIG" Dreams!!

Already to go out and ride his scooter!
Lucky for him he got a scooter and not skis like the other boys!
Not a lot of snow this year. None on Christmas day,
so it made it easy to ride the scooter outside!

Of course we don't forget Aspen at Christmas.

It was a very good Christmas!
The best part was having the whole family together!

Christmas Eve.....

2012-01-02T17:03:00.006-07:00

"CHRISTMAS EVE"

We spent Christmas Eve like we do every year.......
The boys spent the morning getting the sleigh down the driveway for Santa.
Putting out the luminaries, and just getting the house ready for Santa.
Surprisingly this year, I was entirely ready for Christmas
and avoided the panicked mood that I usually find myself
in on Christmas Eve.

We then met the rest of the family at Ihop for a late lunch,
which actually should have been called a late breakfast because that
is what everyone ordered. Breakfast Food.
We then headed off to the movies and saw the movie
Arthur Christmas!
Very good movie to see on Christmas Eve.
Kind of made you feel the Christmas spirit which has been
a little hard this year due to the lack of snow.....

After the movie we then headed to our house
where we had lots of food, including popcorn from the new popcorn popper.
Noah has always wanted to have one of these,
and Bridger loves watching it pop!

When Summer was a baby my mom sent us stockings.
Through the years we have been adding to them.
We started out with 3 and now have 14!!

I am running out of places to put them.
Thanks to my mom for always getting them for us!
Hopefully the lady who makes them never dies!

The kids love these stockings because they can really stretch
and Santa can really stuff them full of goodies!

The best part of the evening is the kids exchanging presents.
Names are drawn at Thanksgiving,
and it is always fun to see what they give each other.
This year it was fun to add Rachel and Matt to the bunch
just to add a little more variety.

Bridger got a cool fire truck. Dakota got a Dr. Dreadful Lab
so he can make all kinds of gross food!
Scott got a Cabellas gift card and Jerky from Bobby.
Summer got some throw pillows from Daniel.

Summer gave Noah a very cool Dino Lego which he loved!!!!
Notice his very, very cool Jimmer pajamas!
I love how Jimmer is the "i"!

Autumn gave Hunter a movie and a case of his Favorite
Hi Chew Grape flavored candy.
He loves this candy so much he has asked Santa to fill his
whole stocking with it..........

Matt gave Daniel a new Basketball.
Autumn won the award for the night
for the best Wrap job on that basketball!
(Daniel spent the whole night out on the sport court playing basketball.
Santa was getting very impatient waiting for him to come in and go to bed.
Midnight is a little too late to be out playing.)

Rachel gave Mckenzie a very cute purse and stationary,
for all of those letters she is going to be writing us from Hawaii....

McKenzie had Matt and got him a Star Wars puzzle, (he likes puzzles)
Star Wars shirt and a sweatshirt.
Scott gave Autumn a new scarf and a gift card to her
favorite "California Pizza Kitchen"!

Noah gave Bobby "Kung Fu Panda" His favorite movie
and a very, very large Beef Stick! Another of his favorites.
Hunter gave Rachel a Magnet board for their new house.

Another tradition that we have,
that has become many families Christmas Eve traditions
is having a Santa at the bottom of our driveway.
We have done this for about 12 years now
and I dont think we can ever stop because I have had so many people tell me
that they bring their families up to our house every Christmas Eve
to see our Christmas lights and let their children have one last chat
with Santa before Christmas.

Several of the cars waiting in line to talk to Santa.
Sometimes there will be like 30 or more cars lined up down the road.
It is a constant stream of cars.
I gave Santa over 600 Candy Canes to hand out this year and he
handed them all out.

Aspen's star above the guest house.
If you go to the cemetery and stand at her grave and look
up at the mountain you can see her star.

Christmas Eve is always fun with the whole family together!
Kind of organized CHAOS!!

New Christmas Tradition

2011-12-28T23:52:00.013-07:00

This year we started a fun new tradition.
We did a family progressive dinner that started with
appetizers at Autumn and Matt's house.
Autumn and Matt even wore the same Ugly Christmas Sweaters that they
wore to a party in High School.
I thought it was so funny that they still had them.

They served Spinach and Artichoke dip that is one of my favorites.
They even had fun Soda's and party favors......

It was fun because we got to see all of the kids houses decorated for Christmas!
Autumn and Matt were the only ones with a flocked tree!

McKenzie brought a friend Jaxon, whom we all really liked!

Hunter and Matt still have their bromance thing going on.....

At the Patterson Christmas party at Grandpa Patterson's
I brought this fun little Santa bathroom get up as a white elephant gift
and Autumn got it! How funny!

Next we went to Bobby and Rachels for soup!
It was yummy!
They have the only real tree. We have never had a real tree before
so everyone thought that was pretty cool.

Bobby has a little media room and Hunter and Dakota had fun playing X box.

Not really sure what is going on in the above picture!
A little awkward!!

Autumn and Matt changed out of their Ugly Christmas Sweaters!
Pretty sure Matt was wearing a womans sweater so it was probably a good idea!

Next we went to Summers and Scotts house for the main course.

They had Turkey and Cranberry Crescent Sandwiches
and they were soooooooo GOOD!

By this time everyone was ready to gel in front of the TV
and watch the Monday night football game.....
But that did not last long because we had to head to our house
for Rasberry Bread pudding
and to start building our yearly family Ginger Bread houses.
This year I informed everyone it was going to be a contest
and a prize would be given to the winner.
Some took it a little more serious than others........
After we were finished we could not decided on a winner
so I decided the only fair thing to do was post just pictures of the houses
on facebook, with no names attached and let people/friends vote
for their favorite. It was not even close who the winners were.....
I will announce the winner at the end of the post!!

Autumn and Matt were very creative and made
the Salt Lake Temple,
complete with the reflecting pond.......

Bobby and Rachels house.
I really liked the Icicles.

McKenzie and Jaxon decided to go for a beach theme in honor
of McKenzie shipping off to Hawaii to go to BYU Hawaii on Jan. 4th.
(Did I mention that we really liked Jaxon?)

Hunter's house.
I helped him out by adding the red frosting. I hate it when the edges are not done.
Someday he will smile descent for a picture.....I hope......

Dakota worked so hard on his.
I love the gum windows!

Summer ended up doing a Santa Sleigh because Bridger took over her house.
She only used Reeses candy, and I love the way she made the reindeer.

Bridgers house! Love it!
He really got into it too and required very little help from his dad!

Daniel did not put much effort into his.
He said that he was busy watching the Football game............
McKenzie could not stand it so she finished his house for him!
But I forgot to post a picture of her finished project,
but take my word for it, it was a huge improvement.

And the WINNER was none other than the Hershey house
constructed by Mom and Noah!
We were accused of cheating............
I think next year everyone will just need to try a little harder,
although I did love them all.....................

Noah enjoyed spending the Prize which was a $50.00 visa gift card!

It was a very fun night......
A tradition we will continue!!!!

Cubs and Santa

2011-12-08T21:25:00.002-07:00

Tonight was the annual December pack meeting
where the Cubs get to have a meet and greet with Santa.
We only have 5 cubs!

Noah with Santa, above
and Dakota and Santa below......

The Newly Weds with Santa for their first Christmas together...

Even the dogs wanted to have a little word with Santa.......
I for one can tell you that these dogs are not on Santa's good list!!

The Elf on the Shelf............

2011-12-06T13:03:00.002-07:00

Noah came home from school last week and all he could talk about
is the Elves that apparently everyone had living at their house
keeping an eye on all of the kids and reporting back to Santa.
I knew the story he was talking about, but honestly thought he was a little to old
to be wanting an elf at our house.
Well, I thought wrong, and I had to spend Saturday finding an Elf to live at our house.
Every night in the middle of the night, the Elf moves to a new spot
so it can spy on Noah and report back to Santa.
Every morning, Noah looks high and low for the Elf, which he named Bernie.
It actually has been kind of fun having the Elf in the house
and I have noticed that Noah is trying really hard to be good,
so that Bernie can give good reports to Santa.

This morning was kind of funny though.
Bernie was sitting up on the lamp hanging above the kitchen table,
I thought it was a pretty clever place for Bernie to be,
kind of swinging there on the light.
Noah though, was only concerned with how uncomfortable that
might be for Bernie sitting there with that metal piece
between his legs!
Only a boy would think of something like that!!

New December Tradition????

2011-12-06T09:04:00.002-07:00

Soooooo, it happened again!
Same car. Same Driver. Same fence!!!!
Hmmmmmmmmm!
Noah called it a December Christmas Tradition!
Wrecking moms car, in the snow, on the driveway!

Not nearly as bad as last year.
But wrecked still the same!

The fence is a little worse this year though.

Can't quite understand what it is about this spot!
Must be the combination of the steepness, (which it does not look steep in the picture)
the angle, and the way the ice builds up right at that turn.
Hitting the rock wall doesn't help a lot either.
Apparently somebody thought that because the car had new tires on it,
it would not be a problem.
Problem is, somebody forgot to tell the new tires they were not suppose to slip
and were suppose to grip that ice!

Live Nativity..

2011-12-04T18:26:00.007-07:00

HOLY CAMEL!!!
Yes, this is a real camel that lives just down the road from us.
There are actually two of them! They are pretty cool!
They use them as part of the Live Nativity that they do every year.
We took Noah last night and went to it.
They have done it for the last 8 years in memory of Irene Hayes
who died of Cancer 8 years ago.
I never really knew Irene Hayes until ten years ago.
Her and her husband came to the Mortuary after Aspen had died
and helped me to make molds of her hands and feet.
For Christmas that year she gave me a glass box lined in pink silk
with a ceramic sculptures of her hand and foot inside.
It was a priceless gift, given to me by someone who did not really know me,
and it meant so much.
A year later, Irene was diagnosed with cancer and passed away.
So every year I attend the live Nativity in her memory and think of her
and the gift that she gave to me.
Anyway, it is a Journey to Bethlehem
complete with Roman soldiers and towns people, shepherds and animals.
They do a really good job,
and at the end of the journey you make your way to the stable
where you find the baby Jesus.
It is a very neat and humbling experience.....

Not really sure that Jesus had a binky, and a pink one at that,
but it was a very precious sight, and the spirit was strong.

As it is every year, it was a very neat experience.

Santa.........Ho Ho Ho!

2011-11-28T19:16:00.003-07:00

Today I once again dragged my boys to the Mall
to get their yearly picture with Santa!
I have 14 years of pictures now!
I display them all and love to look at them and see how my boys have all grown up!
At nearly 16, I can not believe
that I can still get Daniel to sit on Santas lap!
What a great kid!

While Santa was talking to Noah he asked what Noah wanted for Christmas.
Noah told him "Duct Tape".
Funny thing is, Noah was dead serious!
He loves duct tape.
And now it comes in all kinds of cool colors and designs.
Gotta love that kid!
He wants nothing but duct tape in his stocking!

2011-11-23T09:07:00.002-07:00

Happy 6th Birthday Dakota!!

Can not believe Dakota is already 6 years old!
He started Kindergarten this year and is so grown up!
He thinks anyway!

We love Dakota and can not imagine life without him!!
I think at times Noah can imagine it, but he would miss him.........

Painting........

2011-11-22T20:46:00.002-07:00

A couple of weeks ago I flew out to Oregon
and my sister Tammy and I helped my mom paint her house.
Her kitchen was white and she picked out green.
I really liked how it turned out
and I think she loved it.
Tammy and my nieces thought it was so funny that I had never
painted the inside of a house before.
We have always hired it out. But I think I did a pretty good job,
although Tammy towards the end was wishing we had hired it out!!!

Tammy and I also surprised my mom by taking her to get her hair cut, colored and styled!
I think she looks great, and I think she too was happy with the results.
I was happy that I was able to take the time and spend with family and help
my mom. I enjoyed the time spent with her and Tammy and her family!

Sidelines

2011-11-07T08:15:00.005-07:00

(They even have the same #15)

Last Friday Night Lone Peak played in the Quarter Finals
against Northridge.
They won, but it was their toughest game so far.
They are by far the top High School Team in the state
and have the #1 High School Football Player in the State, Chase Hansen
who also happens to be our neighbor.
Noah was able to get a sideline pass for this game and was able to
watch the whole game from the side line!
This is like a dream come true for a 9 year old.
Chase also happens to be his football hero and
Noah loved that he was able to get his picture taken with Chase!
I am sure this will go on Noahs
"Wall of Fame" with pictures of all his other top players!!

Noah

2011-11-02T14:53:00.002-06:00

I was looking through some old pictures on the computer
and found this recording that Autumn had made of Noah when he was about 3!
So, so cute. Love his voice and the cute little faces that he would make!
Can't believe how fast he is growing up!

Happy Birthday Summer and Noah

2011-10-30T08:34:00.006-06:00

On Friday the 28th, we finally were able to get the whole family together
for our Halloween Party to celebrate
Summers 27th and Noahs 9th Birthdays!

Of course I was able to get this amazing Birthday cake from Dippidy!
Did not even look real!
Noah is officially a 3rd of Summers age on this Birthday,
so we only put 9 candles on the cake and imagined that we times that by 3
to get 27 for Summer. Dumb I know, but I did not want to stick all of those
candles into that cute little Jack O lantern.

The girls in our costumes.......
Summer is the big Angry Bird,
and no, Rachel is not pregnant, that is her costume.
I informed her that when she is really pregnant
if she looks that cute we will all hate her!!

The boys! Can you guess which one is Noah?
He went for scary this year!

Yes, I think he is very scary................

Love Mario and Super Man!!

McKenzie and her friend Macy were babies!

Bobby and Rachel.
Bobby was Buzz Light Year and was missing from the boy picture
because he had to run off to a football meeting.

Loved, loved Autumn and Matts Costumes!
They were my favorite!
I guess I can say that without offending any one else,
I hope!!

Summer and Scott were Angry Birds!!
For Summers Birthday I got her a new lense for her camera,
running clothes, a cute frame thing for her house and a gift card to Rod Works!

Of course the best part of any birthday is opening presents!!
Noah is into Hex bugs this year and got a lot of them!
As well as a new football, because we do not have enough of those,
and a flying shark, that I need to take pictures of once we get it flying!

Dakota was a Swat guy
and Bridger was a shark,
although I am not sure I actually saw him in his costume.
I will try to get a picture on Halloween, if he stays in it long enough!

It was a fun party!
Thanks everyone for coming and going along with the costume theme!

Happy Birthday Summer and Noah!!

BYU vs. Oregon State

2011-10-22T23:01:00.005-06:00

On October 15th, Daniel and I took a late flight to Eugene
for a quick trip to visit my family and go to the BYU/Oregon State Football Game
that was played in Corvallis.
We went with my dad, my brother Dan and Kathy.
My Sister Tammy, and Mark, Karly and Mika.
It was so fun to do that with them.

My family is a little worried about being late for things, so we were there
about an hour early! Obvious from the picture above.
We had great seats. They were high, but we had an excellent view of the whole field
and of the Jumbo tron, which they only had one of,
so the people that were sitting underneath it could not see it.

Great field. The stands were almost vertacle it seemed!
I watched people nearly have heart attacks climbing up to their seats.
I am not kidding either. Lucky for me I have been going to the gym
so I could run and get food for everyone!! :)

We did not sit in the BYU section, but we did have a few BYU fans among us.
Tammy went to Oregon State so she was the lone fan in our group!

Looking into the stands I felt like we were surrounded by a bunch of hunters
all decked out in their orange!
As I looked accross the field it was obvious where the BYU section was!

Riley Nelson is the new starting quarterback for BYU and I love him!
He is really fun to watch. He throws well, but he also can run!
I also like JJ below. He has a last name but I can barely say it,
let alone try to spell it!!

My Dad!
He ahs been having some heart and blood pressure problems lately
and was not feeling well at the game.
Of course he did not say anything about it til the next day.
I am so glad he went to the game with us though.

Not a very good day for the Beavers.
Still 3 minutes left in the game and nearly all of their fans had left!
Final Score was BYU 38 Oregon State 28!
Sorry Tammy!

My Family.....
We had a really great time. So glad Daniel and I went.
After the game we went back to my dads where we all
watched University of Oregon Play Arizona!
UofO won!
It was nothing but football all day long!
Kind of like "Heaven"

Daniel and I flew back home on Sunday.
We were gone less than 48 hours.

Autumn and Matts Wedding Pictures....

2011-10-16T18:59:00.009-06:00

Autumn and Matt
October 7th, 2011

2011-10-16T18:48:00.004-06:00

Saw these pictures on facebook and thought they were so cute.
Do not know where she is, who she is with, or anything about these pictures!
But it does look like she is having a lot of fun!

Love this picture!
Next thing you know she will be bringing me home a pet pig!
She did bring me ducks once!

Maybe she will fill me in on all of these and then I will share!
For now just enjoy seeing McKenzie!
I know I enjoy seeing pictures since I rarely see her anymore.........

In Memory of Aspen

2011-10-14T10:00:00.002-06:00

Cannot believe it has been 10 years........

Make a video - it's fun, easy and free!
www.onetruemedia.com

Autumn's Bridal Shower

2011-10-12T21:48:00.007-06:00

This is the announcement that Summer designed! So Cute!!

Autumn had a big Bridal Shower
that Summer gave her on Sept. 29th.
It was at Summers new home and the completion of her home
was determined by this shower.
Before Summer ever started building her home she
planned for it being done in time to host Autumns shower.
They moved in just a few days before......

Everyone knows that the best thing about a Bridal Shower is the food!
And apparently the food is all about presentation.......

These are the Wedding Cake cookies designed t look like Autumns wedding cake!
Which is actually going to have blue frosting just like this!

All of Autumns best friends from high school!
Jackie, Courtney, Kelsey, Megan and Christina.

Summer, Matts sister Camber, who went to school with Summer, and Chantel

Tia and Becca

Autumn and Jackie
Jackie is one of Autumns Brides maids and will be giving a speech at her Wedding dinner.

McKenzie and Rachel

It was a fun shower and Autumn got tons of things for building her and Matts Nest!
Thanks to all the friends and family who attended,
and to Summer who went to so much work and opened up her
brand new home to everyone!

Picket Fence Films: Autumn's Bridals

2011-10-10T12:11:00.001-06:00

Click on the link below to watch the video that was made at Autumn and Matts wedding photo shoot!
So fun! I love how Happy they are..............
So happy they are married and that Matt is now apart of our family!
I will be putting up wedding photos soon........

Picket Fence Films: Autumn's Bridals:

Sophomore Football

2011-10-04T15:29:00.003-06:00

I can't say that this has been Daniels favorite year of football.
probably far from it.
His sophomore team has only won one game,
and have pretty much taken a beating in the rest of the games.
But he is just thinking of it as a learning year.....
probably a good attitude to have.

When I take pictures most of the time I have no idea what I have taken a picture of until
I get home put them on the computer and look at them.
That is how it was with this game.
I was so very surprised and so very happy
to have the above shot and below shot of Daniel #15,
who plays deffensive corner and safety,
breaking up this pass near the end zone! Had no idea he could jump so high!

Still love the shots from behind,
only in high school they don't get their names on their Jerseys!

Bobby and Rachel....

2011-10-04T15:18:00.004-06:00

Here are some of Bobby and Rachel's wedding pictures.
Still do not have them all,
but I thought these turned out really, really nice!

And he SCORES..........

2011-09-25T08:50:00.004-06:00

(Noah lined up on offense)

Wow! Finally a football blog!
Yesterday Noah's team played the West Lake Thunder.
They won, not sure what the score was but we won by two or three touchdowns.
Big play for Noah came towards the end of the game.
I noticed that they put Noah out on offense. Usually he plays defense.
They were close to the end zone so I knew this play had to be going to Noah.
Lucky for me I am so observant, because I was able to run to the end zone
and catch the whole scenario on my camera.
Talk about being in the right place at the right time....
I am usually not this lucky!

The ball is snapped and Noah takes off to his left.

Apparently #19 does not think of Noah as a threat because he lets
him just run right by him.

Noah turns and finds himself completely open........

Catching the ball, he turns and heads for the end zone......
no one is even close to him!

TOUCH DOWN!
Actually it was just for the extra points...
same thing though when you are 8 years old!!

Being congratulated by a team mate.......
Not sure how I was able to still take pictures at this point
because I was jumping around and screaming in the end zone!

Noah usually acts like it is no big deal.....
cool as a cucumber walking off the field, but once there
I was able to get a shot of a pretty happy boy!!
He had a good game, as he also got another fumble recovery.
His 3rd of the season!

Noah's coach told me that Noah can catch anything thrown his way.
(Comes from practicing with a brother who played quarterback)
But he cant run a route for anything, (we will have to work on that)
so these extra point plays, close to the end zone are perfect for him!

This last week I have been using a new lense on my camera
that I am sure is going to cause a lot of lense envy by others.
It is pretty amazing
and I am hoping to notice a huge improvement in the quality of my pictures.
I can already tell the difference
and as I use it and get use to it I am sure they will just get better!

Dakota's Soccer

2011-09-25T08:22:00.002-06:00

Dakota has been playing soccer this year and loving it.
I think he might just be more of a soccer player than a football player.
Yesterday I went to his game with my camera
only to discover I had left my memory card in the computer at home.
I dont get to go to many of his soccer games
because they usually conflict with Hunters football games.
During half time I ran over to Summers house and took her memory card from her camera,
only to discover that my camera was not compatible with her camera
and even though the card said empty,
it was not and all that was left for me to use were 5 pictures.
So I had to be selective and could not take a billion pictures like I usually do.
Here are the 5 pictures! They ended up being good ones I think!

Love that his tongue is sticking out.
That is called concentration!

Dakota plays on a team that only has one other boy and the rest are girls.
Some of those girls are dang good!
Dakota is fun to watch. He really gets into it and looks so cute!
I would not mind if he did become a soccer player.
If he got really good, sometimes they let the soccer players be the kickers on the football team.
Summer had a friend in High School who did that. (Dallas Zurcher)
That would be like the best of both worlds!!

This could possibly be the best part of soccer when you are 5.
Treats at the end of the game!!

(Was not such a good morning for me. After the whole memory card fiasco
I then went to the gas station, because I was basically running on fumes,
only to discover I had left my purse in the other car and had no credit cards.
Lucky for me the day did get better.............)

Noahs version of BYU/Utah 2006

2011-09-23T08:44:00.004-06:00

Noah is so funny! He always runs around the house with a football
and does a narration of the final play of the 2006 BYU/Utah game.
I love watching and listening to him.
So this morning I decided to tape it.
We had to take a lot of takes because he kept getting attacked by the dogs.
Finally after locking up Stockton and then Malone,
we were able to get a good one.
You have to listen carefully, but he has Greg Wrubells commentary down pretty good,
as well as Quarterback John Becks moves......

We have two versions. First one is complete
the second one he had a little problem with Malone!!
You gotta love this kid!!

Beautiful Bride...........

2011-09-20T09:47:00.003-06:00

Last night Autumn got her Bridal pictures taken.
I snapped a couple with my camera.
Can't wait to get the photographers pictures back.
They are going to be so beautiful............

Autumn makes a very beautiful bride!!!!!!!!!!

If Noah had been in the game...........

2011-09-18T10:45:00.004-06:00

Things would have been different!!
Noah drew this picture last night while watching the BYU/Utah game.
If Noah had been in the game, he would he would have caught every pass,
held on to every ball and scored every touch down.
The final Score would have been Noah 54 and Utah 3.

(Noah told me what to write! Love his confidence!!)

Just when you thought it could not get worse...

2011-09-18T08:49:00.009-06:00

IT DID!!

Wow! Where to begin! The above picture should have been a sign........
I will start by just posting the end score of the game.
BYU 10 - Utah 54
Let me first say that it was not that Utah was so good,
it was more that BYU was so BAD!!
Honestly, Noah's team of 8 year olds does not have as many turnovers
as BYUs offense had last night.
By the 2nd half I could not do anything but laugh.
Daniel just sat there with a blank look on his face and shook his head on occasion.
But for me it became unbelievably funny.
I tried not to laugh, but it was better than crying. It was seriously painful to watch.

The above picture pretty much sums up the whole game!
Greased hands!
BYU could not hold on to that ball.
BYUs offense pretty much handed Utah all of there points
on a golden platter!!
It was so UGLY..................

Very best part of the night?????
Jimmer was there!
Some lucky little boy got his Kings Jersey signed by him!
I gotta get Noah a Kings Jersey. Too bad we wont be watching him play this year!
It is going to be a long winter without NBA Basketball
An even longer football season if BYU continues to play like they did last night.
OUCH!! Painful!!

Andrew George Game Winning Touch Down - BYU vs Utah

2011-09-17T12:33:00.002-06:00

Another favorite Rivalry ending. 2009!
By George, I think he caught it!
So, I cried after this play. Really did!

Can hardly wait for the game tonight!!

BYU vs. Utah 2006 Final Play Must See!

2011-09-16T19:50:00.001-06:00

Favorite BYU vs. Utah Moment! Daniel and I can hardly wait for the game tomorrow!
First home game of the season.
With both teams changing conferences,
this game does not nearly have the same feel as past games,
but we are still really looking forward to it!

Go Cougars!!

Grandpa's 90th Birthday

2011-09-16T08:45:00.003-06:00

Grandpa Patterson Celebrated his 90th Birthday Yesterday
with a big Party/Open House.
It was attended by lots of family and friends.

Bridger loved the cake...............
and Dakota loved climbing in the trees in the front yard!

Happy Birthday Grandpa Patterson!!

It's all about the shoes.......

2011-09-13T12:36:00.003-06:00

I am a little slow on blogging about football this year.
It is not that I haven't taken pictures...
I have......Hundreds!!
Just been too busy to go through all of them.
But I do have a minute to blog about the boys football shoes....
I love shoes. Always thought it would be cool to have the boys
play soccer because the shoes were so cool.
Football shoes have always been very boring....Black and White....
until this year!!
I actually let Daniel design his on line on NIKE ID,
(tad bit expensive to let all the boys do)
so they turned out really cool, in the school colors,
and they have his name and number. Love, love his shoes!

Hunter picked out some bright Yellow football shoes!
We get so many comments about his shoes.
Everyone loves them, and I love them because when I am trying to spot
him on the field I just have to look for his shoes.
They confuse people sometimes because they think a flag has been thrown.
Funny!

Noah got blue shoes!
He really wanted red but I thought
they would clash with the maroon of his pants.
Besides, red would be like promoting Utah!
We want to promote BYU!
These also make it easy for me to find him when he is in a pile of bodies on the field!

Loving the shoes this year! I guess they can stick to football!!

Big Time Bed Head.....

2011-09-12T11:53:00.003-06:00

Woke up this morning and found McKenzie sleeping on the love seat like this.
It was as if she fell asleep mid laundry.
I think she was watching TV and folding clothes or something.
She does have a bed, and this does not look comfortable.
You would have thought she would have at least moved to the couch
where she would have atleast had some leg room.

Sleeping like that leads to some lovely bed head though!!!!
She was so proud of this look that she made this picture her profile
picture on face book!!
Lovely McKenzie!!!!

When the World Stopped Turning: A 9/11 tribute

2011-09-11T13:06:00.000-06:00

I am posting this for Hunter, who was 3 at the time this happened.
He has been so fascinated with
9/11 and has been asking so many questions.
It is hard not to watch and not get emotional.
Wow! 10 years. I remember this well,
but for reasons other than the actual events!

May we never forget..................

Spider Boy???

2011-09-09T19:10:00.003-06:00

Funny experience at the gym today.
While I was working out with my trainer Sarah,
a guy, who was wearing a wife beater, big bulging muscles,
the typical gym rat guy who walks around like he is all that..
walked up to us and told Sarah that there was a spider
by the piece of equipment he was working on
and was wondering if she would come get it,
or call maintenance or someone to come get it
or kill it for him
because he just did not do spiders very well.
I was lying on a mat doing crunches
just looking at this guy wondering if he was for real.
He was totally serious.
I just burst out laughing.
I could not believe that this big tough guy
was afraid of a spider. Seriously?
I lay on the floor laughing as I watched Sarah who is about 5'2
walk over to where the spider was with a guy who was about 6'3
and built like a truck.
She stepped on it and walked back over to me trying not to laugh
as the guy went back to his work out.
Needless to say we laughed the rest of the workout
and now refer to this guy as spider boy......not to his face though!
So it was a wolfe spider and they are a little bigger than your average spider
but honestly, what a big woos!!!

If I had, had my phone with me I would have taken a picture of the guy
but the picture below gives you an idea...........

Bobby and Rachels Wedding

2011-09-05T14:30:00.013-06:00

(The family waiting for the bride and groom to come out)

I don't have the professional pictures taken of Bobby and Rachel
and the family at the temple and at their dinner yet,
but I do have the ones that I took on my camera.
I think they turned out pretty decent and are pretty fun!
It was a great day, and we are all very happy for Bobby and Rachel!

Noah looking pretty good in his new suit!

Dakota looking all grown up!!

The boys!

Noah and Mom!

I love how cute the boys all looked in their suits,
and I thought the girls looked really pretty!
We really have some pretty good looking kids and I am so proud of all of them!

The girls!!

Bridger was just having too much fun!!

Me with my dad.............

Me with my mom..................

Matt trying to keep Bridger contained.....
not an easy task!

Still waiting for the Bride and Groom.............

Here they are.....
Mr and Mrs Robert Patterson!

First thing Bobby said after they got out of the Temple
was, "Where are my brothers"!

Bridger and his favorite Uncle Bobby!

I thought the above picture was kind of cute of Bobby tying Rachels shoe.
And I love the below picture,
can't help but wonder what this conversation was that was taking place
between Bobby and Noah...........

Hunter and Noah could hardly wait to get their flowers.
(I can't spell that other word. I tried!)
Daniel and Mason, Rachel's brother have become fast friends
the last few weeks and have a lot of fun together.

Dakota spent the whole evening playing monster trucks.

Bobby with his brothers and sisters!

Mckenzie and her Grandpa Stoneberg

Everyone at the dinner enjoying the YUMMY food!!

With two of his favorite missionary companions.
Elder Dom Maruai and Elder Nick Taylor.
These two are the best and were a great example to Bobby
in the beginning of his mission.
It was so fun that they were able to come to his dinner!

Summer and Scott
They had a babysitter take Bridger home for the evening
which made it a little more enjoyable for everyone,
including Bridger!

Hunter and his new sister in law.....

Cutting the cake.........

First dance as Mr. and Mrs.

The next in line to get married......
and it is only 5 weeks away!!

I love that these 4 get a long so well......

Bobby and a bunch of his friends from High School.
They have all been friends forever!

Noah getting his groove on...................
I was laughing so hard when I saw these pictures!

These are all boys that Bobby has coached in football.
I know he was happy to have them there.

Mr. and Mrs. ???????
Too funny, these two!!

Terrance giving Bobby some good advice for his Honeymoon.
I would repeat what he said to Bobby, but this is a family blog.....
I assure you it was very good advice though!!

Just Married...
and off on their Honeymoon!
Congratulations
Bobby and Rachel!!

Rachel and Bobby

2011-09-04T08:10:00.001-06:00

Click here to view these pictures larger

Bear Hunting.....

2011-08-31T08:18:00.006-06:00

My Nephew Drew shot a Bear Yesterday with a bow!
How cool is that.
I asked my brother Dan if he was bear hunting or just happened upon it.
He said he was bear hunting,
but if it had been an elk he would have been elk hunting!
Whatever that means..................
My dad was with him, and my dad will be here tomorrow
so I am excited to hear the story on this.
My Dad was hunting a few years ago for deer and just happened upon a bear
and shot it. He now has that Bear skin hanging on his wall.
I love that bear skin, and someday it will be mine.
As much as I love it though, I hope that someday is not soon..................

Congratulations to my nephew Drew!!

An old lady in a dress and tennis shoes.....

2011-08-24T16:50:00.003-06:00

Everyone has been bugging me to post pictures from Oregon.
So, I am going to start by posting just a few at a time
or I may never post any.

We spent a Sunday at my sister Tammy's house.
The boys love it there because they think Tammy and Mark are fun.
Also they have a basketball standard.
Somehow talking about basketball got Tammy talking
about how she could beat anyone of them at a game of HORSE.
Of course the boys thought that was the funniest thing they had ever heard.
They have all seen me play basketball, and laughed hysterically...
Well, Tammy is nothing like me, they would soon find out.
She played in High School, and I think secretly goes out and practices shots to this day.

The whole time they were playing everyone would say,
"You are going to let an old lady in a dress and tennis shoes beat you?"

She played Noah first, and did beat him, he is only 8, but put up a good fight!

Next, she played Daniel.
Their game of HORSE lasted forever...............
they were matching each other shot for shot.
There was no way Daniel was going to let his aunt, in a dress, beat him.
He was sweating but he did win. BARELY.......
That would have been embarrassing.
By the time it was Hunters turn, he saw what he was up against
and gracefully declined.
I think he said he had a head ache!!!!!!

They had a lot of fun playing basketball with their
"Old Lady aunt, in a dress and tennis shoes"
Who knew she would be so good?
Actually I did! Tried to tell them........

When they were not playing basketball,
they were glued to facebook.
Sometimes chatting with the same girl at the same time.
Hunter hated that.
I feel bad for him because all of the girls his age that he likes
think his older brother is so hot!!
I think Hunter better just get use to it.
Kind of how it works in the real world!
All the girls like the older boys.
Just sad when your brother happens to be one of those older boys!

First day of 3rd Grade

2011-08-23T10:28:00.003-06:00

Noah making his "Sad, I can't believe school is starting already", face!
Not to mention that he hates his new haircut!
But he does love his new shoes for school!!

Noah is starting 3rd grade and his teacher is Miss Warwood.
Hunter is in 8th grade this year,
and Daniel is a Sophomore at Lone Peak.
Autumn and Bobby will be continuing at UVU
and Mckenzie is continuing at Utah State until January.
She will then be attending BYU Hawaii and is so excited about that!
Too bad, I will have to make a trip or two out to visit her!
It will be tough!

It is hard to believe that summer is over and school is starting again.
Where did the summer go! Time does seem to have wings.
I have to admit though, I have been looking forward to this day since about the end of June!!

Autumn and Matts House

2011-08-23T09:59:00.005-06:00

Sunday evening the whole family went to Autumn and Matts house
to check it out!
It is near completion. Just another week or so.
Just needs carpet, appliances, all of the touch ups, blinds,
and clean up.
It has turned out so nice and Autumn and Matt have put a lot of work into it.
Matt is there everyday working on it.

Over the week end they had been working on a water feature that
will drop down into the back yard.
In the above picture everyone is checking it out,
but I did not get a picture of it. I will post the finished project when it is done.

The back of their house and the deck that Matt and his dad built
with help from Daniel! He will be happy I included his name
because every time we are there he mentions that he helped build the deck!

Another view of the back of the house and deck!

The kitchen! Love the white cabinets!
They still need the handles put on and the fridge needs to be brought in.
It is a great kitchen and they have wood floors through out.

I loved this picture of Autumn and Hunter!
Hunter is a very cute boy when he is not making a face.

Summer and Noah by Autumns fireplace.
Take a good look at Noahs hair.
Shortly after this he got it all cut off! He was not happy about it!
And when he saw this picture, he missed his hair so much he almost cried!

The toilet in Autumns master bath is comfortable according to Summer!

From their family room they have stairs going upstairs to their bonus rooms!
I love how open it is in her kitchen family room area!

Bridger demonstrating why it is so great to be a boy!

Dakota and Bridger love the construction sights!
Give a boy a pile of dirt and a shovel and they are happy for hours!

I am so excited for all of my kids to have houses!
It has been an experience having them all building at the same time
but the end results are really great and they all seem happy.
Summers should be finished in September sometime.
I will post pictures soon!

Primary

2011-08-21T21:42:00.002-06:00

At church I teach the 10 and 11 year olds.
I started out the year with 9 kids,
and it was already one of the biggest classes
and the class with some of the most difficult kids.
In the last 2 months we have had several new families move in
and of course each family happens to have a 10 or 11 year old.
My class is now at 15. Ouch!!
I do love these kids but it is a very difficult class to teach.
They are a tiny bit, well, a lot out of control.
Last week I told them that I did not think I could keep teaching them
because most of them never listened and I could not continue to talk over them.
(I do have about 4 that are really good and really want to listen)
Anyway I told them that I was going to let them start taking turns teaching the lessons.
Some of them thought that was a great idea,
until I told them how I was going to behave while they were teaching.
I told them I was going to lean back in my chair, sometimes falling over in it.
I was going to turn the lights on and off,
yell out answers when I was not asked, or better yet completely talk about something off of subject to someone clear across the room.
Beg for treats non stop. Ask to go get a drink and go to the bathroom a million times.
Tell them how stupid the lesson is.
And my favorite thing which I could hardly wait to do,
I was going to crawl in and out the window.
They all looked at me like I had lost my mind................
I am actually afraid that I just might lose my mind if things don't change!!

After class, Rachel Morrin handed me the note above!
What a sweet girl! I guess maybe I am not the worst teacher in the world after all.
I actually felt a little guilty for about losing it in class!

Today, primary went a little smoother.
Chairs were still knocked over, lights were still switched on and off,
and I don't think anybody really listened,
but at least nobody climbed out the window!!
And I managed to smile at all of their little antics and I gave them great treats!

Bobby and Rachels House.......

2011-08-16T21:00:00.005-06:00

In just a little over two weeks Bobby and Rachel will be getting married!
Bobby mentioned the other day that he felt like they had been engaged
forever and he is now ready to get on with the rest of his life!
Well, that will be happening very soon!

Their new house in Saratoga Springs is now finished.
Just landscaping to finish,
but they have started moving somethings in.

I love their Kitchen!
They have the biggest pantry! Pretty sure they will not be able to fill it!

Another view of the kitchen along with the family room!
They are very excited about their new house and how it has turned out.
It has 3 bedrooms and two bathrooms.
And an unfinished basement for future growth!!
One room they have turned into a media room
with a big screen mounted on the wall!
So Bobby!!!

Unwanted Visitor.....

2011-08-08T15:57:00.004-06:00

Found this friendly little neighbor on the pool cover this afternoon!
After cautiously removing him with a shovel,
I discovered he had probably been out on that pool cover a little too long in the sun
and had baked to death!
He was still soft and squishy, but he was very dead!!
Very happy about that, because I am not thrilled when I have to kill them!

Hunter attempting to be the suns next victim!

And just a bit of upcoming news.....
2 more weeks and school starts! Lately just the thought makes me smile!

Dinosaurs at the Zoo...........

2011-08-08T13:18:00.009-06:00

Summer and I took the boys to the Zoo because this year they had Dinosaurs at the Zoo!
It was really fun, because in stead of having just one area where the Dinosaurs were,
they had them set up randomly all over the zoo.
It was so cool because they moved and made noises,
and some of them even spit!

These were the spitting ones!
No one seemed to mind being spit at because it was so hot,
and it was just water and cooled everyone off!

We also experienced the fun of the other animals in the Zoo!
Bridger was so cute and got excited over every animal that he saw!

Dakota t the famous Lion drinking fountain.
I have pictures of each one of my kids when they were younger
at some time or another drinking out of this fountain!

A lot of the Zoo has been redone to put animals more in their natural habitat.
They are in the process of redoing the area for the Polar Bears and penguins and stuff!
The boys had fun pretending like they were part of the construction crew.
Even Hunter!

I thought it was so cute that Bridger, who we got the wagon for
was pushing while Dakota was riding.
Bridger love walking and looking at everything,
whereas Dakota hates walking!

The Carousal!

Bridger of course picked the only animal that did not go up and down.
Summer was not sure if he noticed or not!

Dakota waited a whole other turn and rode by himself
just so that he could ride on the Praying Mantase.

I love watching the Gorillas.
They are fascinating to me because they are so big and scary!
This one was just disgusting.
First he threw up in his hand, and if that was not gross enough,
he then ate it! Yuck!
Then for whatever reason in typical guy fashion he played with himself!
Could have gone all day without seeing that!

We did have a fun.....very hot day at the Zoo!
I liked the Dinosaurs best!

Zoorasic Park!

2011-08-08T13:00:00.000-06:00

Video of the T Rex at the Zoo.

Bobby and Rachel's Wedding Announcement

2011-08-07T23:14:00.002-06:00

Lake Powell 2011

2011-08-07T22:07:00.005-06:00

(Summer and Scott in the back, Dakota fighting with Noah, Autumn, Matt, Hunter in the water, Daniel and Bridger in the water)

The weekend of the 24th several of the family went to Lake Powell
before everyone got busy with Football, School, and eye ball deep in wedding stuff!

(Noah, Matt, Daniel and Hunter)
Matt came with Autumn and all of the boys had so much fun!
They love Matt and could not be happier about him joining our family!
He seems to fit right in!

Scott looks pretty comfy laying back enjoying the sun!

(Daniel, Hunter Matt, Scott and Noah)
Every year they have a sand castle building contest.
I did not hear who won this year, but in the past it is usually Scott!
Autumn said that Matt and Scott got way more into it than the younger kids!

(James, Noah, Autumn and Matt. Hunter standing and watching)
Wow! I am impressed with the cliff jumping! Not!
Before they left I said don't jump off of anything too high!
I think it would have been ok if they jumped off something a little higher!
That is a pretty whimpy cliff, if you can even call it that.
Looks more like a ledge..............

(Hunter, Noah and Bridge)
Hiking to the Indian Ruins.

Fun in the water!
Bridger really loved Lake Powell and was so good to always wear his life jacket!

Autumn and Matt!
All of these pictures I stole from Autumns blog!

Cooking over the campfire.

Summer and Scott beating the heat by putting their chairs right out into the water.
I guess they had problems with the air conditioner on the big boat,
and it was very hot!! With out it! Especially sleeping at night.

(Hunter, Matt and Autumn)
Best part of trips to Lake Powell is the tubing!

Trying to figure out if Summer pushed Noah out of her tube,
or if Hunter pulled him out..........
he is the one going into the water head first, it looks like with some help!

Cute, cute couple!

(Scott, Summer, Matt and Autumn)

Surfing behind the boat!

Noah loved Surfing with Scott!
Autumn said he had the biggest smile on his face the whole time!
He was so excited to tell me about it when he got home!

So glad they had a fun time!!!!!!!!!!

Autumn and Matt Engagements

2011-08-06T22:47:00.008-06:00

Autumn and Matts engagement pictures.
These are just a few of my favorites,
but they were all really good!

This one shows how tall Matt really is.
Even with Autumn wearing heels.

The dreaded kissing ones........

The above picture is my favorite!
It is so Autumn.........
We all love her laugh!

Who is this???????

2011-08-04T22:00:00.002-06:00

Does anybody recognize this kid?
Could it be the same kid who two weeks ago looked like this?

Love his new haircut but it is going to take a little getting use to.
Fortunately, he likes it too!
So glad football started and he decided it was better to have short hair
for the season!!

Noah's Happy Day!

2011-08-02T22:35:00.001-06:00

7 years ago on July 25th 2004
we were up with Noah at Primary Childrens Hospital after a near drowning
accident that required him to be resesitated and flown up to
Primary Children's by Life Flight Helicopter!
Miraculously after just one night in the hospital he was able to come home
with seemingly no side effects from the experience.

A very tired and upset looking mom!

When he got home from the hospital we celebrated his very first "Happy Day"!
Because it was a very happy day for all of us
knowing it could have had a very different outcome.
We came up with the name "Happy Day"
because Noah associated every cake with a birthday,
but could not say birthday so he would always just say "Happy Day"

Every year since that day we have celebrated his Happy Day with a cake and presents!
Spoiled little kid, but we are really so happy he is still with us,
and it is a day to celebrate that!

7 years later standing by a life flight helicopter just like the one he rode in!
Even taking a turn at pretending to fly it!

Noah loves the Hamburger cakes!

One of these days Dakota is going to be mad that Noah seems to have two Birthdays.
For now he has not figured it out yet.

Blowing out 7 candles..........

Best part is the presents.............

Dakota excited to display Noah's new Lego remote control train
and train station!

August 25th is always a great day.
We always end the night with fireworks in celebration!!

No Fireworks???

2011-08-02T12:51:00.005-06:00

As you drive in to our neighborhood there is the above sign.
I have been trying to figure out exactly what that means.
Does it mean No Fireworks in the open spaces, National Forest Property,
or at the Rodeo grounds or the Bowery Camping Ground?
All of which are in our neighborhood.
Or does it mean "No Fireworks" anywhere.
Not even at our houses on our own personal property.
They really need to be more clear on what they are talking about.
We could have asked the Fire Chief what that meant,
but I decided against it, and if we got in trouble we could just play dumb!
So for the the 4th and the 24th of July we enjoyed our Ariel Fireworks.
Nobody said anything. Pretty sure they could be seen by all,
and it is not like we could hide where they were coming from.

Below is an example of what could be seen coming from our house!

The first video is of our Dog Malone going crazy
trying to get to just a normal firework.
We have to lock him up behind the fence because he will just grab them
and run off with them even when they are shooting off.
Last year he had singed hair on his face.

The 2nd is an example of our ariel fireworks that we shot off
whether we were suppose to be doing it or not!
Hope the neighborhood enjoyed the show,
and luckily we did not catch the side of the mountain on fire.
I was a little worried!

Just a Bee Sting!!

2011-08-02T12:45:00.003-06:00

Last week at work Daniel got stung by a bee next to his eye!
The picture above is the day after the sting.
As bad as it looks this is actually an improvement!
He is very allergic to bee stings and within 1/2 an hour of the sting
the whole left side of his face was swollen and he could not see!
I promised Daniel when I took this picture that I would not post it,
but seriously, how can I not!

Noah and Hunter doing their best at impersonating Daniel
with his swollen Bee stung face!!