Flaming Gorge/ Green River

Hey, look at me go! I got the pictures uploaded from the other camera, so I can finish writing about our trip! The truth is, I have a million things to do today, but I feel crappy, so I'd rather sit. This at least makes me feel like I've accomplished SOMETHING. Here's beautiful Aubrey by the beautiful Green River.
The one and only picture taken of me the entire trip. I made Brandon take one so there would be proof I was even there. When you look at the picture, you'll know why there weren't more taken. ;)
Cooper in the "ancient torture device". (You might remember our pictures here awhile ago.)

It was so beautiful! Really, you should all come see this amazing place and we'll meet you there!
Tyler in "the hand".
Aubrey looking out on the river.

Brandon, Melissa, and Haylee in the bundle.
In case you were wondering where the Green River got its name...
Walking along the bridge.

Josie had seriously THE cutest pants ever. I should've taken more pictures where you could see them. I think it's a shame that she'll grow out of them, and I think it's a shame I don't look that cute in jeans.
Sorry, Melissa, this was the best picture I got of you with your kids. :)
Tyler, Payton, Josie, Aubrey, and Cooper. Too bad I couldn't all get them smiling at once. It just never works with that many kids together! They're cute anyway!

Josie and Payton. This one is for you, Melissa! I'll email you a few more cute ones.
Handsome Tyler, posing for his magazine cover.
I don't know what Cooper is sneaking up on, but it looks like he's doing a good job!

Red Canyon Lodge

Yay! We did it! We went for a fun-filled two night vacation to Red Canyon Lodge near Flaming Gorge with Landon and Melissa and fam. It was fun, relaxing, enjoyable, great, and fantastic! I hope we get to go again. Here's Josie, demonstrating how much fun it was for the kids to run back and forth between our cabins. (That door adjoins the two.) The first night it was my turn to cook dinner, so I planned this whole baked ziti and italian sausage dish. When I got there, I realized.... no OVEN in the cabin. How dumb am I? I've been there, I just didn't inspect very close! So, I swallowed my pride, and went to the Lodge restaurant and asked if they'd bake it for me. They did, and it was really good. How nice is that?

Brandon and Landon went fishing on Saturday in Green River. We all went together at first, and went on a little hike, then Melissa and I left the men behind to catch some dinner. Melissa and I walked up the steep stairs and trail to get the vehicles to pick up the kids. We decided if we did that everyday, we'd be in SHAPE! It was far too short though, since it was one of the only moments we were without kids!!
This is how Brandon felt about his fishing trip. He's saying "it was cold, but I had fun".
This is what Melissa and Haylee did while the boys fished. I actually held Haylee most of the time they were gone, while I played Tetris on Melissa's phone. That stupid game is so addicting! It was just torture to sit there and hold a sweet, cuddly, sleeping baby.

Here's Cooper, Payton, Josie, and Tyler watching a movie on Brandon's laptop.
Oh, back to the fish... this is Landon trying to get Payton to touch it.
And, he did! Then Payton went over and poked it with a stick a few times. Funny cute boy!

Josie, showing her princess smile. The kids were all so good, except for maybe when we went to the restaurant at the Lodge to eat. We had a few meltdowns. I'm sure the other diners didn't mind, though. It's always fun to go out to eat and have crazy kids next to you.
I think I'm the only one who didn't have a nap while we were there. I should've had one... we stayed up way too late both nights, talking and playing Phase 10. It was going to be Phase 5, but Brandon just didn't want to stop. He loves playing games so much! Just for the record, Landon was the biggest loser. :)
This is Haylee, with a nice full belly. She was so cuddly! I miss her so much!

Landon, giving up Cooper's hiding spot for hide and seek.
Luckily I thought to grab some crayons and notebooks on my way out. The kids colored a lot. Josie even drew some beautiful trees. This is Payton, demonstrating his coloring skills.
Aubrey, playing with the train. Hmmm... I wonder whose feet those are.

I took some pictures at Flaming Gorge, but unfortunately I took them on the other camera. Who knows when I will get around to uploading those. ;)

All in all, it was a perfect weekend. I only wish it could've lasted longer! Thanks, Landon, Melissa, Josie, Payton, and Haylee, for sharing it with us. We hope next time we can get the whole family to come!!

Tess

Meet... Tess!! She has a name! Although we did think she should be named Houdini. Tanner spent a lot of time on Monday trying to rig the gate so she couldn't escape again. ay-yi-yi. Why do we have to have a dog?? Just because she's so stinkin' cute!

Oh, funny side note... Melissa and Landon were considering naming their dog Tess too! This is becoming a little weird...

Tanner and Leisha came to See Us!!!

We had a fun visit from Tanner and Leisha during the kids' spring break! There's not much to do here, so we made our own fun! Tanner mastered the Marble Solitaire game, we made Leisha play Settlers for her first time ever, and we took them to 7-11 for dinner! (It's not the gas station... we're not THAT bad here! ;) On Monday, while Brandon was working, we all got to dye easter eggs. Here's Tanner and Leisha's beautiful art. I think Tanner took this very seriously. He was hand painting one of his eggs.
Tyler looks like he's going to eat his eggs! And he did... he ate three boiled eggs soon after this picture was taken.
Aubrey's beautiful "green-themed" egg collection. The middle one is really neat in person.
Cooper's fun eggs. He drew the cutest smily face on one egg, then covered it with one of the shrink wrappers. It's still cute, though! I made some too... I just didn't take any pictures of myself. ;)

I'm a Pushover

Look what happens when I say "no". Here's Brandon's new puppy. She's a German Shorthair/Chocolate Lab mix, which means she was free. (That part is good, at least.) She is like our dog, Molley, who we got when we were in Newton. Hopefully she acts more like Molley and less like Trout and Max.
She doesn't have a name yet, but we were thinking maybe we should follow the tradition of using Hannah and Jake's girl's names, and name her Annie. ;) In our defense, Hannah told us to name our last girl dog Molley, and it was long before her Molly was born. Cooper thinks we should name her Olley.
They're so cute when they are little. Too bad they grow up to be big naughty dogs that I have to take care of.

You know how hard it is to get Brandon to smile for pictures? He smiled in every picture today. I'm glad he's happy. Lynda, take note for future family pictures.... have Brandon hold a puppy.

She has three perfect spots, right in a row. It's kind of funny.

Can't. Move.

I. am. so. exhausted. I would substitute High School ANYDAY over 1st graders. Holy crap. Elementary teachers are amazing. That's all I have to say.

Cooper's First Loose Tooth!

Cooper, who will turn 7 next month, just got his first loose tooth! He is so excited! He was a little bit concerned that everyone else his age already had lost teeth, and he hadn't, but Aunt Melissa (dental hygenist) says it's good to lose them late. So, watch for future jack-o-lantern pictures of Cooper!

Running in Place at a Stop Light

I've heard lots of people talk about those silly runners who run in place at stop lights. I admit, I kind of thought that was silly too. But that's when I lived in a place where I could run 10 miles and not encounter one stop light! Now I live in a place that in a one block distance I had to cross at 3 lights! I also have a lot of stops at crossroads where I have to wait for cars. So, it starts getting ridiculous. You almost feel like you're waiting more than you're running. So, just so I didn't look too silly, I ran in circles at the stop light instead of in place! ;)

Proof That My Kids CAN Be Quiet

What I've Been Up To

I learned how to make this fun bag at my quilting retreat, and I'm hooked! My next step is making it in different sizes. These are all pretty big... a perfect small diaper bag size.

This is the first one I made at the Quilting Retreat. I made it for Melissa. I just love the fabrics! It was one of the most fun things I've ever sewn, and it turned out so cute! I love love love the ties on the sides. That is one of my favorite things about these bags.

Here's the detail of the button I put on the second bag. I loved how the button echoed the fabric pattern! I haven't decided for sure what to do with this bag yet. It may be the first one I sell, or I may just keep it for myself! :)

This one I made for Hannah. I love the colors! Melissa and I are going to make more bags when I go up there this weekend. I can't stop!

Womens Conference

I went to a wonderful Womens Conference today. It was for this whole area, so there were TONS of ladies there! The speakers were great, the music was great, the spirit was great! I am so glad I was able to go.

The theme was: O Lord, thou art our father; we are the clay, and thou our potter; and we all are the work of thy hand. -Isaiah 64:8

The speakers were Liz Lemon Swindle, and Shanna Labrum. Sister Labrum and her husband just returned from serving as Mission President in the Phillipines. She spoke so beautifully, and humbly, and was a wonderful example of allowing the Lord to shape us, and make us into something beautiful. Sister Swindle was amazing. I loved finding out about her as a person, and not just an amazing artist. The things that really touched me were finding out how intensively she studies the life of Christ to do her paintings. (I was sitting just 3 rows back, so I could see her scriptures... they were proof of what she said about studying!) Also, how much she relies on the Spirit to help her in her painting. She told some amazing stories. The thing that probably touched me the most, was when she shared her deepest reason for painting these pictures of Christ... to share her love of Him, and to testify of Him.

I loved the theme too! It was such an uplifting morning!

Since You Asked...

I got a few questions, so I thought I better give some answers!

Melissa and Tanner or Leisha, no Cooper did not break both his arms, and yes, I'm saying bum wiping never ends... at least when your kid is Cooper. He is so silly about it. He'll sit on the potty and call for me forever. He has wiped his own on occasion, but for some reason he really doesn't like to. (Not that I like to either...)

Leslie, I would LOVE to be your personal trainer! Too bad we don't live close to each other. I'd have to tell you to "do as I say, not as I do" though! ;) If you ever need any email support, let me know!

Tanner or Leisha, the Red Canyon Lodge is only $85 a night for a nice cabin with a kitchenette and everything... in the winter. We're going the very last days of winter pricing. Yay!!! Do you guys want to come?

Vanessa, I'm not teaching aerobics... it's a toning class--weights and abs and stuff. I'm sure you are in better shape than I am. Seriously. You'd do fine. Is there a gym in Loa? ;)

Melissa, how about we clean together while someone else takes care of your kids? That would make both of us happy. I actually cleaned 1 1/2 houses today with Brandon and all of my kids. I think I will not complain about cleaning by myself anymore!!! (Brandon was great... the kids... didn't enjoy it so much.) I can't wait for Red Canyon Lodge either!!! If we have the time of our lives, maybe we can convince everyone else to go there for a big vacation (like the Oregon coast vacation.)

Felicia, you would clean houses if you got paid what I'm getting paid. I thought I'd never clean houses either. In some ways these houses are better than cleaning a normal house, because there is no grossness. Nobody has lived there yet. It's just a lot of dirt and scraping adhesive.

Whew. Hope I didn't miss anything!

Since I Have Nothing to Say...

I'll just do a Random Thoughts post! I'm sorry, Hannah, to deprive you of my extremely interesting blogging this week! ;)

I have 3 houses to clean this week, so I cleaned one on Wednesday (7 hours), spent 3 hours at one today, and I'm going to finish that one (it's a big one) and the other one tomorrow, with Brandon's and Aubrey's help. I'm excited to have someone there with me. I get pretty lonely cleaning a house all day by myself, and long for someone there to share the workload... and the money!

We're finally getting a hint of spring here! It's fun to see the ground, and be able to walk on the sidewalk! We're going to have a ton of yardwork, and cleaning up to do (leaves, garbage, etc.) when the snow is all gone. I already threw away some very very rotten moldy pumpkins left by the previous owner.

Aubrey had two babysitting jobs last week! She was very excited, and got to babysit just one little girl at each place. One of them will probably be a continuing job most Saturdays.

We're going to be signing the boys and Aubrey up for baseball soon. That's the sport they love to play, and since I'm a mean mom that doesn't let my kids play every single sport, that's the one we do!

We have a fun little getaway planned for the end of this month at Red Canyon Lodge (where I had my quilting retreat)! Melissa and Landon are coming, and we have 2 cabins reserved for 2 nights. We're all so excited we can hardly stand it! Brandon and Landon are going to fish the Green River, and Melissa and I are going to have a fun time with the kids.

I've taught 2 classes so far at the gym here, and so far so good. I've been a little sore after each one, since I was lazy and didn't do anything for awhile, but it definitely feels good to exercise again. I think the people here will need a little time to get used to my class, but they'll learn to love it. ;) They've never done toning with the ball, stretching on the wall, etc.

If anyone has any questions for me, feel free to ask! I'm really having a hard time thinking of anything else even remotely interesting to write!

Oh, shoot, I lied. I just got up to wipe Cooper's bum, and my legs are really stiff! I've just been cleaning all day, so I didn't notice until I sat down for awhile how sore I am.

Quick Note

I know you are all just dying to know what is going on in my extremely exciting life! I haven't been able to blog much, because I've been having too much fun! I subbed at the High School Thursday and Friday, and it was great! Easy as pie, and I got a lot of reading done. ;) I've been sewing up a storm since then, and hanging out with my kids and hubby.

Vanessa, you brat!

Okay, so I love Vanessa, and she's not really a brat. But she tagged me, so you all will have to skip this post if you don't want to be bored silly. ;)

10 years ago I was: living in Smithfield, Utah, Tyler was a baby, and I really don't remember much else. I was probably a much nicer person than I am now. Oh, and we were close to buying our very first house... a 100 year old charmer in Newton.

5 things on my to do list for today: I already checked one bathroom off the list, and running (I got to run outside!! Yay!!!) but I need to clean the other bathroom, go talk to the manager at the gym, so I can start teaching a class there tomorrow, get the house clean so I can substitute at the high school Thursday and Friday (for the health/fitness teacher... so P.E. maybe? or Health class?), read my scriptures, do some laundry, oops... I think that's more than 5.

If I were a billionaire I would: Buy a ranch for Brandon. Give money to my family and friends and random strangers. Travel. Have a cabin in the mountains. Give Oprah samples of all my favorite things. :P

3 bad habits: Laziness, Procrastinating, Popping zits. (I know, you didn't want to know that.)

5 places I've lived: Newton, Utah, Missouri (for a month or so), New Hampshire (for a month or so), Swan Lake, Idaho, Bountiful, Utah.

Jobs I've had: Violin Teacher, Fitness Instructor, Floral Counter and Cashier at Mac's Hobbies and Crafts, Racquet Re-stringer at Al's Sporting Goods, Utah State Fair Ticket Sales (really... sit around and play card games all day.)

Thing most people don't know about me: I think I'm pretty much an open book! I've got to think hard about this one... Oh! Here's one only 2 people know so far... I just got called to be our ward Activities Chairman. Don't ask me how I feel about it.

you're tagged: the first four people that tag themselves, and do this on their blog, and comment here to let me know will get a big surprise!!

Answer the questions and post them on your blog. Leave me a comment when you're done-then you tag 4 new people! Ahhhh, good fun!