Too Blessed To Stress

Happy 2012

2012-01-05T18:47:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year to ya'll! We rang in the new year with our friends the Saddlers, as we do most years, playing games and stuffing our faces. We are so lucky to have Brenda and Steve as friends. Rick spent the New Years holiday day with Steve ice fishing. He said he had fun, but how is freezing your booty off fun??? I'll never understand ice fishing.

The new year has already brought changes to our home. This week Corbin heads off to college. We are sad, stressed, overwhelmed, worried, and happy all at the same time. We went down the last week in Dec. to St. George and moved all his things down to his new apartment. Corbin and Bethany, Corbin's girlfriend, got a darling apartment together. I must say it's nicer than any apartment I had when I was young.

Here they are on their balcony. Did I mention it was the only apartment we looked at that didn't have cockroaches? So sick!

The Kitchen is SUPER HUGE for an apartment, and they have a washer and dryer....No laundromat! I sure didn't have it that nice in my first place.

I sure hope they get some homework done here.....after all, it is why they are there.

He may be going to Dixie, but I think his heart is in Oregon with the Ducks. :)

I really think they like their new place, and I hope they'll be really happy there. We wish them the best in school and love.

And with a view like this and the nice warm temperatures....it's a safe bet we we'll be seeing Corbin and Bethany sooner than they think. ;)

This is a picture of Bethany and Corbin at Christmas.

We hope all of our friends and family enjoyed their holidays. We sure did.

Christmas 2011

2011-12-16T06:37:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas All! We hope our little note finds you all in the swing of a joyous and fun holiday season. I'ts been a crazy year, and so much has happened, and yet I've only managed to blog 3 times this year. I'm really sad about that, so I'll have to do flash backs to last year in my blog next year. My goal is to keep up on my blog next year, oh....and give up candy. :) Wish me luck.

I really need to update my Christmas Address List, so if you wouldn't mind sending me your current address if you don't receive a Christmas Card from me, that would be awesome! I had a computer problem and lost everything. :(

We know next year has many changes in store for us. We have a lot of balls in the air right now, so stay tuned to our blog to keep up. We hope your New Year will be your best ever. Wishes of Love, Prosperity, Happiness, and most of all HEALTH go out to each and every one of our friends and family. We love you ALL! (hug)

Good Bye My Sweet Sister

2011-10-28T17:39:00.000-07:00

Make every second count, for it may be your last. That's all I seem to have gotten out of my sisters passing so far. It's been a few weeks now, and it still doesn't seem real. I'm still stunned every time I think of her. How could she possibly be gone? How? If you've not heard, my sweet sister Kristi passed away from a massive stroke September 22, 2011. The Stroke was caused by birth control pills, which is unusual, but not unknown to happen.

Kristi G. Bringhurst Clark

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Kristi G. Bringhurst Clark
1970 ~ 2011
Our sweet wife, mother, daughter, sister and friend Kristi G. Bringhurst Clark, age 40, passed away in Salt Lake City, Utah on Thursday, September 22, 2011 following complications of a massive stroke.
Kristi was born November 20, 1970 in Murray, Utah to Vickie Dawn Dorman and Gary P. Bringhurst. She graduated from Davis High School, 1989 and was a barber by trade. She married Anson Bowen Clark, November 28, 1989 in Farmington, Utah. Their son Anson Bowen was the light of her life. She enjoyed rollerblading, tennis, hiking and being outdoors. Kristi loved a joke, piano, music, and was artistic. Kristi was a kind, gentle, loving, and generous woman who brought happiness and joy to those in her presence. She was a devoted wife, mother, and daughter. She is loved dearly and will be missed profoundly. She gave to all who knew her and was an organ and tissue donor in death.
She is survived by her husband, Anson Bowen Clark, their son, Anson Bowen, Farmington, her mother Vickie Dawn Dorman (Steve), father Gary P. Bringhurst (Sandy), siblings, Tiffany E. Gatten (Rick), Jason Bringhurst (Jen), Star Jaques (Jeff), Steven (Emilee), step siblings Jeni Newson, Mandi Young (Brent), Ashley Holcomb (Nate), and many nieces and nephews. Preceded in death by her sister Amber and brother Ryan.
A celebration of Kristi's life will be held at 11:00 a.m. Friday, September 30 at the LDS Farmington Fairway Chapel, 1533 North 1075 West, Farmington, Utah.

Kristi has been with me almost all of my life. She's only 18 months younger than I am. My whole life I've known what she's been up to, what her plans were, where she physically was, and now.... It's like I'm missing the right arm that I've always had...

I had the importunity to speak at my sisters funeral, and talk to everyone there about what I thought of her and how much I loved her. She was a wonderful sister, and person. I know she struggled through life, but it never changed the basic person she was - Funny, Compassionate, Giving, Loving, Strong, Smart, Graceful, Brave. She was all that and so much more. I'm so thankful she was my sister. We had such good times together.

I guess the next few months will be the hardest for my family to get through. I know her son, Bowen, and her husband Anson Clark miss her very much as well. The holidays that my sister loved so much will be the times I miss her most of all. She brightened even the most brilliant lights of Christmas. But, we have no choice, we must move on without her, however her memory will shine on in all of those who knew her. We'll always cherish those sweet memories.

Kristi was an organ donor. She passed on her heart, both her kidney's and her spleen to others in desperate need. I'm glad part of her lives on. I know she would be happy to have given to others this one last time, her final gift to others.

Here is her life in review if you've not seen it on youtube. Just click on her name below.
Kristi Bringhurst Clark 1970 -2011

The following are some of my favorite picture memories of my dear sweet sister.

Tiffany (me), Vickie (our mother), and Kristi. Kristi's first Christmas. Not that I remember much about this picture, it's more the tree in the back ground I remember. Kristi and I spent many an hour looking at our grandmother's Christmas tree. Our grandmother had the best ornaments. Ones with little scenes inside of them. They were magical. Kristi loved Christmas trees, and she owned the last of our grandmother's ornaments.

Kristi and I dressed alike. We often dressed alike because our mother had control over our fashion for many a year. I remember these blue coats, so soft. We both loved them.

Dressed alike again.

And again,

And again. The last two pictures are of us in our Christmas pajamas, alike most years. We looked forward to opening them every Christmas Eve. Kristi loved pajamas.

Kristi, Teri (her friend), Tiffany (me), Brenda (my friend). Kristi and I played a lot together as children, as most sisters do. We shared friends often such as Teri and Brenda who were sisters also. We played house, dolls, barbies, and skated, but one of our favorite ways to pass time was a game we called Charlie. Charlie was a monkey (our brother Ryan.) We'd send him up a tree and make him have a monkey time out. He couldn't come down, and Kristi and I would engage in some other play with him safely out of the way and under our control.

Tiffany (me), Ryan (our brother), and Kristi. I remember this day like it was yesterday. It was our first day at a new school. We'd moved to Kaysville from Granger Ut, and we were a little scared, but boy we loved our new outfits. Kristi hated new school clothes, but these cut off pants and short sleeve shirts weren't the long pants and sweaters she hated wearing on the long, hot first days of school.

Kristi, and Tiffany (me). I shared a bedroom with Kristi for many years, even after I had a room of my own and no longer need to share with her. She hated sharing a room with me. She wanted to be an only child. She hated how messy I was. We had more fights over our messy room than over anything else.

Kristi, Tiffany (me), Ryan (our brother). I remember our first time out skiing. She sat down on her butt and slid to the bottom of the hill with my brother while I coward at the top. I wished that I could be so brave. She was a little dare devil.

Kristi, Tiffany (me), and Star (our sister). I remember our summer vacations to Disneyland. This picture is on Disney's Main St. We loved riding the rides, eating frozen chocolate covered bananas, and all that is magical about Disneyland. Kristi had quite an imagination.

Kristi, and Bowen (her son). Kristi wanted to be a mother so badly. She loved babies. She was so proud of her son. She thought he was the most brilliant, beautiful child ever born. She talked non stop about him all the time. I'm so happy she had that opportunity. It meant everything to her.

Kristi, and Anson (her husband). It seems like just yesterday they were this young. I remember how much fun they had together. I remember their first little place they lived in by Anson's dad's house. She was proud to be on her own. I loved to visit her, and see how happy she was.

Tiffany (me), Kristi, Vickie (our mom). This picture is the hardest for me to post. I have to look through tears to write about it because it's when I'll miss her most. She was so much fun to be with. She always made jokes, and tried to make the best, most artistic cookie. She helped the little kids and licked her fingers when she wasn't supposed to. Man, I'll miss her singing Christmas carols.

Kristi, and Tiffany (me). Happy Halloween Kristi, and Happy Birthday Ryan. I miss you both.

Oh How The Time Flys. Corbin's Graduating, Wow!

2011-06-01T21:27:00.000-07:00

Just watch Corbin grow.

Corbin Newborn

Corbin 2 Years Old

Corbin 4 years old

Corbin in Kindergarten

Corbin 1st Grade

Corbin 2nd Grade

Corbin 3rd Grade

Corbin 4th Grade

Corbin 5th

Corbin 6th

Corbin 7th

Corbin 8th

Corbin 9th

Corbin 10th

12th Grade

12th

Just a little Quiz I like to give my kids at graduation.

1. Q. Can you name all of your teachers in order from kindergarten to 6^th grade?

A. K. Mrs. Nyman

1. Mrs. Gillmore

2. Mrs. Bingham

3. Mrs. Cook (Now Bowen)

4. Mrs. Provost

5. Mrs. Cox

6. Mrs. Sorte

2. Q. Who was your favorite teacher of all time and why?

A. Mr. Carter. He reminds me the most about myself, and he taught me not just academics, but life lessons as well.

Coach Ty is also tied as my favorite. He made me want to be a chemical engineer. He made school fun with the labs we would do.

3. Q. Who was your best friend in Kindergarten?

A. Kaydee Jensen

4. Q. Who is your best friend now?

A. Darren Stapleton, Jessica Watson, Lyndsie Adams

5. Q. What was your favorite subject in school?

A. Home Release (:

6. Q. What was your favorite school lunch?

A. What’s that?

7. Q. Who was the first girl you liked?

A. Kaydee Jensen

8. Q. Who was the first girl you kissed?

A. Kenzie Fisher

9. Q. Who is your girlfriend now?

A. Bethany Williams (: (:

10. Q. What do you want to be when you grow up?

A. Chemical Engineer or Businessman (:

11. Q. What did you want to be when you were in kindergarten?

A. Professional Soccer Player

12. Q. What was the most outrageous thing you did in school?

A. the Floor is Lava!!!!

13. Q. If you could do school all over again, what would you do different?

A. absolutely nothing (: I had a splendid time (:

14. Q. Where do you want to live someday?

A. Coeur d’Alene right on the lake (:

15. Q. If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go?

A. Kenzie made me jealous of Italy sooo…..Italy!!

16. Q. What is your favorite song?

A. Dirty Bit – Black Eyed Peas

17. Q. What is your favorite color?

A. Green

18. Q. What is your favorite restaurant?

A. Tona!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

19. Q. If you had $1,000. What would buy?

A. I’d put it towards someone to copy off of in college

20. Q. Who inspires you and why?

A. My older brother. He shows me what not to do so that I can do it anyways (:

We Can't wait to see Corbin graduate tomorrow. Good luck Corbin! You have a bright future ahead. We LOVE YOU!

That Festive Time of Year

2011-01-02T12:00:00.000-08:00

As I wrap up our year I've looked back and have seen all the time we've spent with our Family and Friends, but the Holiday's are always my favorite part. I love all of the parties. I appreciate the effort everyone makes to get together and spend time. I wish we did it more often.

Thanksgiving-
This year we had a quiet Thanksgiving at home with our little family and Challis' housemate John. The kids like to spend Thanksgiving at home, so they can lounge in PJ's, watch football and eat their favorite foods prepared in our traditional way. I on the other hand would love to go anywhere where anyone else is willing to to all the work and cook. Although, I have to admit it's nice to have our family recipes at the table. If you got a Christmas Card from us, you'll recognize the picture below of our family. I believe I said it represented the "true" us, and it does. Challis out on his own alone at one end. Corbin bridging from adolescence to adulthood. Me clinging close to Channy my last little bird in the nest, and Rick up higher than us all; head of the house. He'd tell you, "They just never leave any room for me."

Brothers will be brothers, and whenever they get together....there is always this...

There were some peaceful moments too.

We all enjoyed our time together, but it didn't last long and Rick was off to stand in line for Black Friday at Best Buy, and it was freezing! Corbin joined him out in the cold dark night, so we could all have Christmas gifts for...less. Corbin did set his snowboarding pants on fire though, so the overall cost wasn't so much less in the end, but I'm sure it's a night neither one of them will soon forget. *smile*

Cookie Party-
I always say I make cookies ONCE a year, but the truth is, I always have help. Our annual Cookie Party was so much fun. My niece Kylie is the most dedicated cookie maker there is. When you give that girl a task....she sees it to the bitter end. She loves to make cookies too. She put out more cookies than any other person at the party. She is not only creative, she is responsible, helpful and patient.

Here Ky is helping her sister.

My niece Rylie on the other hand is out and out TROUBLE. She's 2. She's messy, loud and mischievous. Mostly she enjoyed eating cookie dough. She is our only little one, and she makes everything more hectic and more fun all at the same time.

My nephew Bowen is an artist. He is a cookie creator, not just a decorator. He has some of the best ideas, and while he doesn't put out quantities of cookies, he puts out quality cookies. The boy makes a cookie you can be proud of.

Challis and Melissa joined in our little party. It's apparently the first cookie party that Mellisa has attended in the 5 1/2 years she's dated Challis. She said, "There sure are a lot of cookies. Do they last you the whole year or something?" No wonder she's so skinny. She's be shocked to know I ate most of them by the end of the week. :)

Channy doesn't put out many cookies at all. Mostly she hides. She's to cool for cookies. It's her age. But I caught her here and there.

Corbin and Morgan were there too. Morgan should be a professional cookie artiest. They were so beautiful you could hang them. Corbin's, golf coarse, cookie became the most copied.

My sister Kristi and her Husband Anson came to help out and make a few cookies of their own.

Grandma and Grandpa Dorman came and supervised cookie making as well.

Rick and I are always happy for everyone to come. And once again we had a wonderful time.

Christmas Dinner Party-

This was our first Christmas Dinner Party and I hope that we'll do it again. My sister Jennie and her family came along with her mom and step dad. My nephew Chance came over for the first time. My mom got to meet Jennie's mom Patty for the first time, and Jennie got to meet my sister Kristi. We had a delicious meal.

Then we played games. I always love a good party game, and everyone is always a good sport to join in.

We played Guess What I Am For Christmas. I was surprised there were not duplicates. It was such fun, and my mom won. Above Steve, my mom and Kristi.

Patty and Jennie

Rick, Patty's husband, doing dishes. Do all men named Rick do dishes????

Me explaining all the rules.

Corbin and Morgan

Kyilee, Chantel, Corbin and Morgan

Jennie's family got us Just Dance, and we danced the night away. Corbin and Challis take each other on. Corbin can shake it, so he won.

Our favorite head to head of the night. Troy Vs. Rick...Ummm, wrong hand Troy. I guess that's why he lost.

We even got Chance to shake it against Kyilee.

Thanks to everyone that came we really enjoyed your company.

Christmas EVE-

Christmas Eve we always open our new PJ's. We love new PJ's.

The Kids, Challis, Chantel, and Corbin. Channy is holding her first Christmas gift from a boy.

My PJ's were soft and warm. I love Christmas Eve. I always got new PJ's every Christmas as a little girl. There is just something special about new jammies.

This is one of my first Christmas' and I'm willing to bet my grandmother made my new nightgown. She sewed a lot of my Christmas PJ's. I looked so forward to opening them every Christmas Eve. It's the one tradition I really hope my children use in their families when they have families of their own.

Rick Showing off his new PJ's.

We play games Christmas Eve too.

And lastly Rick and I watched the Kids play Just Dance.

Then we went to bed to wait for Santa.

Christmas Day-

We always have so many things to be grateful for on Christmas Day, Friends, Family, and all the special gifts they have given us. Thank You! Each and everyone. We have enjoyed them all.

After we open our gifts we have family and friends over for a yummy Brunch. It's our favorite part of the day. Some people love the Egg and Sausage Casserole, But Corbin and I love the French Toast Casserole with Vanilla Syrup. Needless to say I gained 4lbs over the Holidays. Every pound was worth it. :) But most of all we love the people that share our table on Christmas Morning.

WE hope your holidays were filled with as much love and joy as ours. Merry Christmas ALL!

Rolly Polly Fish Head

2010-12-31T13:50:00.000-08:00

Challis has had a good year.....I think. He turned 20 this year, and we went to McGrath's for some delicious sea food. He got a job working for a gentleman up in Eden. Challis has been to several states working for him. He spent most of the summer on the road working. He's decided Black Foot Idaho isn't really the place for him, as he spent a good chunk of time working there. I think the more he traveled the more he appreciated living in Utah. Below he wears the fish head at the restaurant so they can sing happy birthday to him.

Challis also changed places of residence. He went from living on Zach's couch to living at his friend John's where he has a room of his own. Below are him and John.

Challis still spends a great deal of time with Melissa. Don't ask us if they are together, we don't know, and clearly neither do they, but we all love Melissa.

We love it when they both come around. We miss them being around all the time.

Dance and Sing

2010-12-31T13:30:00.000-08:00

So, what's Channy been up to? She does the typical, 14 year old, teenage girl stuff. She dances and sings around the house ALL DAY LONG! So, she found a way to do it in school too. Channy, was in Girls Choir the first part of the year. Her group had fun at their Spring performance, and we enjoyed it too. Why she has stripes on her face...we have no idea.

This year in school Channy has dance and Advanced Choir. Rick really enjoyed the Dance performance. She did a great job. Below she's in yellow and all blurry because...she's dancing. :)

Channy tried out for Advanced Choir and made it. She loves to sing. REALLY, loves to sing. She's had two performances this year. I do have to say the Holiday concert was over 2 hours long....really long! But her group does really well. Corbin really enjoyed some of their performances. They sang the song Africa. It was a popular pop song when I was young, and they did a really outstanding job on it. Advanced Choir will be competing the beginning of the year, so we wish them luck. Below she is in her Advanced Choir Dress. She thinks it's the ugliest dress EVER! Her grandmother and I think it's the worst dress EVER because it's really hard to hem...If you could only see the laughs we've had over the stupid dress.

A few more things about Channy....she's tall! How did all of our kids get so tall? She's up to 5'8" now. Our kids like to call us the little's, or their elf parents...rude! Channy turned 14 this year. My baby! 14! Her best friend is Maddi King. They spend a lot of time together, going to the mall, the movies, and texting boys. If you are Channy's facebook friend you know she's "in a relationship" every other week. Not really, but I think it means she text's that boy a lot now. :) Those boys never last long, and we do give her a hard time.

Just DANCE!

2010-12-02T14:37:00.000-08:00

Corbin's been to a couple of dances this year. He knows how to bust a move I hear...Or slam dance, which I'm sure his dates just love. Corbin took Rachel to Home Coming. She was a very nice girl....who still awaits her pictures...RUDE! Boys....what ya gonna do? Rachel looked really beautiful in her pink gown though, and Corbin looked right hansom.

A big group of kids came to eat dinner at our house. They had Steaks as big as their heads and Chantel and her friend Maddi served them up.

Channy and Maddi

The Food

Our friend Ryan, who just so happens is a Chef helped us out with the BBQing and saved our lives. :)

Corbin's friend Lindsey was Home Coming Queen. She's just so cute.

All the kids

The other dance Corb went to this school year was Sadie's. Lady's choice, and his favorite girl, Morgan, asked him. He was really happy. They did the Amazing Race for a day date, and Corbin and Morgan came in 2nd place. Here they are dressed up for their day date.

They ate at Red Robbin and went to the dance. Here they are in their matching shirts.

They went in a huge group of kids. I guess the bigger group the better these days.

Tiffany's on the move

2010-09-28T19:18:00.000-07:00

Rick's broken foot has slowed him down, but I've managed to stay on the move all summer. I really have missed Rick's company, and I would have hiked more if he would have been able to, but I've got great friends that keep me moving and motivated, so here's what I did this summer.

Ogden 1/2 Marathon
I just jumped into this race at the last second. Rick hadn't sold his spot, and he had gone to Germany, so I figured, what the heck, I'll run the 1/2 with my friends. They all kicked my butt because I hadn't trained, but I had a good time. I finished 1:52. Not too bad. I was happy with the time and it's a really well run, beautiful race. I love it every year.

Little Red Riding Hood 80 mile bike race
This was my first "bike race". It is all women racing. It's so well put on it's not even funny. It's a huge eating fest. I swear to you I ate way more calories than I burned off, but boy did I have a good time. We stayed a Rachel's house up in Hyrum the night before, then laughed and sweated, and biked the next day. I would do it again for sure.

L to R Trisha, Rachel, Jen, Me, Angela, and Stephanie

Trish, Angela, and Rach checking to see where our next feeding will be....not far is the answer. lol

I can't wait for next year.

Ragnar
Yet another One Night Stand. That's right, I ran with my team from the past two years. This is our last year and I'm really sad about it. I hope I find another team to run with next year. This was the first year I ran Ragnar without Rick, and "some people" thought I might be high maintenance without him to take care of me, but I was totally fine. I had a blast. This year we did an ALL GIRLS car and an all guys car. I love all the girls I ran with, so I had a total blast!

The Team - Becky

The Girls- Lauren, Stacy, Me, Becky, Teresa, Missy

Stacy Strong at the start line with one of the Biggest Looser contestants. Runner One must run 21 miles.

Stacy - And we're off

This year will be known as the year of the flag. We had to use these flags every time we crossed a street, and boy did we use them, hee, hee.

We even did the can-can with it.

Missy Nichols was our second runner and put in 13 miles.

This year will also be known as the year they tried to take away our music. I even started a facebook page to protest, but they gave back our headphones. Woohoo! Look how beautiful this race is.

You literally live out of a vehicle for 2 days. You get to know your friends really well. Teresa, Missy, Becky.

Becky was runner 3. She put in 18.4 miles

Being a good cheer leader is a team requirement. Becky getting her cheer on. :)

Becky getting aid from team mates. Lauren is holding out a neck tie she made that you put ice in. I call it the life saver.

Sometimes when you're done...You feel a little sick. Becky knows how to push until you puke.

Teresa was runner 4. She ran 13.1 miles for us, and the girl can cheer.

She's also a strong runner.

She also knows how to drive a large vehicle.

Lauren Halverson was runner 5. She ran up Avon for us and ran a total of 14.6 miles

Lauren getting ready for her run. This included, texting her parents that were running an Ultra, eating a chocolate doughnut, drinking an AMP, taking No Dose and Leggs. I told her it would kill a woman my age, but when you're 19....anything goes.

Best of all she can do tricks. She may be the best cheerleader of all.

I was runner 6 with 18.1 miles, and I enjoyed every second of it....until

My Achilles started acting up. I spent some time getting it worked on, and all was well.

The girls and I finished our night runs then "slept" on the floor at a school.

We didn't finish as well as we did last year, and I really missed Rick not being there, but it was fun all the same. I'd do it again if someone wants me on their team. :)

Waterfall Canyon
I love a good hike, and this was one of my first for the year. I took some of my boot camp girls up to Ogden. There's nothing like being in nature and having a good workout. I love the outdoors...as long as I don't have to sleep there. ;)

L to R Carrie, Me, Steph, Heather, Lori, Angela, Sarah

Timpanogos Cave

Me, my sister Jennie and our families had a good time on a hike to the cave this summer. Jennie lost her cookies at the top....come to find out...she's prego. So, yeah! I'm going to be an Aunt once again.

She doesn't look like she feels to well does she???

It's a good little hike if you don't hike much.

It really is beautiful.

The Heart of the Cave.

Then we went to the lake. The kids had a good time. I think this is a beautiful picture of my niece Ky.

My brother-in-law Troy fishing

Even Corb gave the water a try.

Top of Utah 1/2 Marathon

I spent a lot of time training for the Top of Utah this year, and I did it with some great friends. It's the race I looked forward to all year long. I ran it last year with my friend Angela as her pacer. I just couldn't wait to do it again with her.

We stayed the night at Rachel's house, and we had a pasta party to get all carb loaded.

L to R Jen, Rachel, Angela and all the yummy pasta.

Me and Lori

Then the next morning it was peanut butter and honey sandwiches and off we went. L to R, Lori, Cammie, Angela, ME!

Off we went to the porta-potties....Where every race starts. :)

It was a sprint to the finish 1:49:58 by my Garmin.

It about killed me.

In the end, I was just proud of myself. It felt so good.

L to R Lori, Me, Angela I'm so lucky to have such inspirational, supportive, beautiful friends. Love these girls.

Adams Canyon
I got to hike Adams Canyon many times this year. I love this waterfall. It's beautiful all year round. This picture is from the first time I hiked it this year with some of my friends.

L to R Melissa, Jaquoy, Me, and Angela. What a great hike. I loved every second of it.

This was the last time I hiked Adams this year. It was the first time Rick could hike all summer and I was so excited for him. It was such a beautiful day, and it was his first time on this hike. He loved it....until!

I ended up here....at the emergency room. Lucky for me it wasn't broken. But it will take a good long time to heal.....So, here's to next summer...I look forward to it. Until then, I sit back and enjoy the fall. Happy adventures to you all.

Summer - Nothin' But Parties

2010-08-22T13:46:00.000-07:00

We kicked off summer with a Memorial Day BBQ. My Mom, Steve, Star, her family and her in-laws came. I think we always have a great time when we get together. I love it when I get to hang out with my family. I wish we did it more often.

Jeff had surgery on his knee and Rick had a broken foot. Woohooo! Can you say PARTY?

Rylie tried to find trouble wherever she could. Nothing new about this from a 2 year old. One thing I have to say about her....she hates me. I have no idea why, but she does. It's kind of funny, when my heart isn't broken over it.

Corbin had a great time. Can you tell?

(Retta, Star, Ron) It was a great night to sit and listen to old stories. I always love it when Retta and Ron come. They always make me laugh.

(Rylie, My Mom and Kylee) Kylee showed up late. I'm glad she at least likes me.

Who is Steve texting?

Even with a broken foot, Rick always helps out.

Edgar Cousin Party.

(Brandie, Jennie, Me, Cara, Shelley, Mindy)

I got to meet some of my cousins for the first time. It was such a fun time. They are all darling girls. We went to Mindy's beautiful home and got to know each other. Some of them hadn't seen each other in a long time so I wasn't the only one catching up. They've all been so welcoming to me, and it's really appreciated. I'm only sad we didn't get Marty and Aunt Linda before they left.

Girls only Eclipse Party.

There's nothing better than girls night, and what better excuse for one than a great vampire movie? Some of my friends and I took our girls to the Eclipse movie. We really enjoyed it. Woohooo! It was hot!

I think it's easy to see where Channy's and my loyalties lie in this saga.

Alice is my favorite girl in the book/movie too, but I guess Maddie and Brenda like her a lot!

I guess the same goes for McKenzi and Heather.

Boo! Kristi and Katie are Edward fans.

Jennie, Carley, and Casidy are on team Jacob with us.

The whole group.

Happy Birthday Kylee

We went to Kylee's 9th Birthday.

I invented an attachment so Corbin could pump up the swimming pool.

And the girls had a great time.

And the trouble maker (Rylie) looked for trouble.

Chantel and Star.

Grandma helped out too.

4th Of July Party

Chantel rode on a float in the Kaysville City parade. She is on the back of the float to the right.

Then we enjoyed a delicious BBQ over at the Saddlers, and played games after.

Family BBQ

Rick's family cam to town so we thought it would be the perfect opportunity to combine with Tiffany's family and BBQ.

We enjoyed dinner then played some games. We really had a good time.

Gatten Family Reunion Party.

The Gatten family hasn't had a get together in decades, but the aunts and Uncles decided to start up the family tradition again and do Tri-annual family Reunions. Sounded like a good idea to me. This time it was held at Layton Park. It was fun to see relatives we haven't seen in a long time, and some that we've never met.

The food from Tasties was yummy.

There was a pretty good turn out.

Uncle Jay gave a an introduction and his brothers and sister spoke.

Several family members enjoyed Surf-n-Swim

Some volley ball was enjoyed

Chantel participated in arm wrestling

Some people made their own fun.

The bottom line is...We all enjoyed each other.

Uncle Jay's 70th Birthday

We were delighted to be invited to Uncle Jay's party. There's just no way he could be 70. Jay is one of the best story tellers. I enjoy being around him every time I have the chance. I learned a lot about him at this party just from the table decorations. Like the naked picture I stared at while I ate dinner...What?

Uncle Jay with Aunt Tora showing he can still wear out a dance floor at 70. Uncle jay had a great turn out with his family, friends, and co-workers, and we all enjoyed a delicious dinner.

Jays daughter Sheri and son Danny

(Oren, Danny, Sheri, Mike, Nathan) All of Jay's kids.

It was a great night.

Mirror Lake Dinner with the Saddlers

It's really unfortunate that we haven't gotten out more this year. Rick's broken foot has detoured us from many camping and hiking adventures. But, we did manage to get out and go to Mirror Lake with the Saddlers. We enjoyed a lazy day of canoeing, game playing, fishing, dinner and a camp fire.

Chantel loves to camp, so she was so excited to get out in the canoe and paddle off.

It was a beautiful day. I wish we could have gone on a hike.

Yum, yum, yummy! Hot Dogs!

I guess it wasn't really that cold....according to the guys, but Brenda and I thought it was cold.

There's just no way not to have fun with this family. :)

Edgar Cousin Party (2)

Brandie came back to town so we decided to have another cousin get together. This time I got to meet all of my cousins kids and husbands.

Me, (my sister) Jennie, (cousins) Cara and Brandie

(Cousin) Mindy, me, (Cousin) Brandie

Aunt Linda, Cara, Brandie

(Cousin) Cara, (Sister) Toni, (Cousin) Brandie

(Jennie's mom) Patty, and (Sister) Jennie

(Niece) Kyilee, (Cara's daughter) Ashley, (Brandie's daughter) Emma

It's been a great summer to PARTY!

Rick's adventures

2010-08-15T12:54:00.000-07:00

For those of you that don't know, Rick switched up his job this year and took a position working in Customer First for Westinghouse. His new job has entailed a great deal of traveling this year. He's been lucky enough to have some fun opportunities to go to a few places he has never visited - Like Germany, Sweden, and Minnesota. He's off to Pennsylvania today and had a layover in the Detroit airport. He says it's one of the most amazing airports he has ever seen.

The following are pictures from his travels this year.

Germany.

Windeck Castle. I think the castle is just beautiful and I was so dang jealous I didn't get to go after seeing these pictures.

Talk about a room with a view.

For sure I could live here....In this castle. Rick said I'd never be able to eat the food though.

Rick went to a International Hockey League playoff game while he was in Germany. He said it was fun.

I'm not sure what building this is but it sure reminds me of the Connecticut Capital building. It made me wonder if Richard Upjohn had visited this building before he designed the Capital building.

All the old churches made me jealous too. This looks like the most amazing trip. I really hope I get to go someday.

Oh the German Beer Gods. Well, I told you I'd give you more info on Rick's broken foot. He broke it here in Germany. No, he wasn't drunk. He was totally sober. He doesn't drink. He fell down some stairs coming out of a Pub he was visiting with his coworkers (mind you, they all were drinking.) They all said it was the wrath of the German Beer Gods for not drinking their beer. Rick was in a boot for over 10 weeks. His foot is still broken and it will likely take at least a year to heal, so no running for Rick this year. He as been kind of sad about that.

Sweden.

Well looky here. We found Rick in another drinking establishment. The Sweden ice bar. What can I say, it's his coworkers favorite past time. This was a pretty "cool" bar though. Even the drinks are served in a glass of ice, and they give you these "cool" Harry Potter robes to wear inside to keep warm.

Rick's cranberry juice served up in ice.

Harry Potter robes for everyone!

They had some really cool ice sculptures in there too.

More sculpture.

They had the royal wedding of one of the Swedish Princesses while he was there. Rick said it was crazy with security. This is the castle, but it must be the back side because it's really ugly.

This must be the front.

The whole front.

I think Rick enjoyed the country side of Sweden more than the city.

He loved these homes along this canal. Look at the roofs and walls. It would be a pretty peaceful place to live.

This picture makes me jealous too. :( I wanna go!!!!

More cool churches I would have liked to see. This is a tomb inside the church.

The stinking rich. This is the church where Rick learned about the "stinking rich". If you don't know, the rich would buy burial plots under the church floor. They weren't buried very deep and in the summer especially when it was warm the parishioners were treated to their decaying stench during services.

This building's archway leads from the newer and more modern part of Stockholm to the "old town". I'll show the difference.

Shopping in the modern part of Stockholm.

Shopping in old town.

Some of Rick's coworkers having dinner on the waterfront.

The waterfront.

I think I could live here too....but Rick said the food sucks here too, and I'd never make it, ha, ha. There are so many other great pictures. I wish I could share them all. Rick is one lucky guy. He's had a lot of fun adventures so far this year.

A Really Bad Week This Spring

2010-07-06T14:05:00.000-07:00

This spring we had really bad week as a family.

One night Corbin pulled a really late night (early morning) doing homework with his friend Lindsey Adams. I woke him up the next morning and he got in the shower. I went up stairs and heard this loud banging, so I ran down stairs. Corbin was having a seizure. Chantel called the ambulance while I tried to help him. He'd hit the water temp on his way down and was being water boarded with scalding hot water until I got to him. As a result he had his face burned.

Below you can see his face during a High School Soccer game. He got a concussion 2 days later at another game, and was out for much of the soccer season.

2 nights after Corbin’s seizure we got a call from Challis. Corbin handed us the phone and said, “This isn’t a good call.” Challis and his friends had been on a trip to Moab and didn’t make it. Challis was driving, overcorrected and rolled his car several times. Lucky for everyone there were no permanent injuries to him or the other 2 boys, but the car was a total loss.

Below is a picture of the car.

When I was talking to my friend, Stacy Strong, I said, “This has been one of the worst weeks of my life.” She said, “Really? Because I think someone’s really looking out for you. Both of your sons could have been dead this week. I think you’re pretty lucky.”

Just goes to show….It’s all how you look at it....

Guns, Rhino's, and Fun

2010-06-28T14:34:00.000-07:00

This spring we went up to Monte Cristo to hang out with my sister Jennie. They were up there camping with family. It was a wonderful camp site. Turns out, it belongs to a guy Rick works with (Dave Lee), who just happens to be Jennie’s second cousin (small world.) It was quite the surprise. The kids had some firsts up there. Corbin got to shoot a gun for the first time…..And….He liked it. Guess he’s a Gatten after all. Dang it!

Chantel got to drive her first Rhino, and she shot a gun for the first time….And I didn’t get a picture of either…Dang! But, here are her and her cousin Austin headed out for a ride on the Rhino.

Chantel has had a great time getting to know Austin. It's been fun for her to have a cousin her age to hang out with.

Oh, Chantel also dyed her hair brown too. Just a little, FYI

We all took a ride on the Rhino, and got to see the beautiful scenery. Some of us had more fun than others. *wink* Oh, and another FYI, Rick broke his foot. More on that in my next post.

We got a little more excitement than we bargained for while we were there. A couple of guys that were invited up, left after the BBQ and headed for home. However, they didn’t make it far before one of them crashed his bike. He was a lucky one, only a bit of road rash. The ambulance came and hauled him off and his bike got put on a trailer to be hauled home.

Well, it sure gave us all something to talk about.

It was great to hang out with Jennie and Troy again. I also got to meet several members of her family including her mom, step-dad, aunts, and cousins. That was really fun.

Here is Jennie with her grandparents. They were just darling. I really enjoyed them.

We really had a great time. There is nothing like a good group of people, new experiences, a little excitement, nature, and great food. Did I mention these yummy Snookies Jennie's mom made? OUT OF THIS WORLD.....YUMMMMY! Two thumbs way up for Big Horn Ranch.

Easter

2010-06-07T19:17:00.000-07:00

I know, I know it's so wrong that I'm so far behind on my blog. I'm totally embarrassed that I'm posting Easter in June, but what can I say, I've been busy. That's the story and I'm sticking with it.
We had a great Easter at our house. My mom, Steve, and my sister Kristi and her family came.

Steve and my mom

Anson and Kristi

Rick and Me

Chantel and my Nephew Bowen

We had a great time stuffing ourselves and playing games after dinner. We always enjoy spending time with our family.

Meeting My Other Edgar Sisters and Family

2010-05-11T12:44:00.000-07:00

The moment I've been waiting a life time for happened in April. The day I got to meet my sister Kim. Kim is my OLDER sister...well, 7 days older. My whole life I've wondered what she looked like....did she look like me? After all we share 50% of our genes, and who knows we could look like twins.....Yeah, but we don't. Here we are.

She's darling, but she looks like her mom, and I am a pretty good mix of our dad and my mom. She was really fun to get to know. I think we are NOTHING alike, but I just loved her. She lives in Colorado, is a nurse, has no husband, no kids, and loves to travel. She's adventurous, and interesting, and has this earthy peaceful aura about her. Although, if my life had taken another path I think we’d have been more alike. I loved listening about her life’s story. I was so happy she came to visit for our Birthday’s. It was really special for me. What a great gift.

I also got to meet my middle sister Toni. Do I look like her? No, not so much. She’s short and has green eyes. Seriously, no one looks like me? Here is Toni with Kim and Me.

Toni lives in SLC. She was fun to get to know too. She told me stories about her life and about her 3 boys that she seems to love dearly. Here they are.

So, now here are all my sisters and me on my father's side.

Me, Jennie, Toni, and Kim...I don't think any of us look alike in this picture.

Jennie had the reunion at her house. It was a lot of fun, and I'm so glad she was willing to do it. They've all been so nice to me. Here is everyone that showed up to the party.

I also got to meet Kim and Toni's sister Heidi. She was just darling. I loved getting to know her also. They are a really nice family....That now I'm a part of. :) Kristi was also there. Kristi was like a sister to Jennie growing up. Our father raised her, so she's like part of the family also.

Back row: Kim, Me, Jennie, Kristi

Front row: Heidi and Toni.

It's a crazy life, but it's my life. A family here, a family there, a bit of family everywhere...

Getting to know Jennie and her family

2010-04-30T18:38:00.000-07:00

It’s still snowing here in April, so I don’t think it’s completely off base to post my sledding adventure with my “new” sister Jennie and her family. If you’ve been out of touch I have 3 new ½ sisters. I’ve really enjoyed getting to know them.

This winter we hung out with Jennie and her family and went sledding up past Timpanogos cave. It was really beautiful, I’d go as far as breath taking. It was bitter cold though. I had a broken tail bone so I couldn’t sled, but Rick, Corbin and Channy did.

After sledding we went to dinner at Wingers. The kids loved having a popcorn fight. Uncle Troy started it, so they think he’s great. Corbin hit on the waitress, and we all got a good laugh out of that because she was a couple years older than him.

We all enjoyed our time with them. So happy I found them.

Me and Jennie

Kylee (Jennie's daughter)

Corbin

Chantel and Kylee

Rick

Troy and Jennie

Austin (Jennie's son)

Chantel and Rick

After we were done sledding....We saw the sign..Ooops!

It really was beautiful.

The last of Mexico...Cabo

2010-04-23T16:16:00.000-07:00

1 small boat, 2 non English speaking captains, 20 passengers, 0 life vests, 1 huge ocean, 2 whales = One Adventure none of us are likely to forget. It was tense at moments, but now….All I can remember are the funny parts. The negotiations for the boat ride were pretty hairy, and more than one kid did an impersonation of me walking down the dock with a flock of Mexican men pecking at my heels, but we got where we wanted to go in the end, although be it very slowly. That boat barely moved in the water. Note to self – Next time pay the extra cash for the preplanned excursions….It’s worth it.

In the boat

(I broke my tail bone on one of the benches when I slipped getting back onto the boat)

Corbin and Rick.

We did make it to the beach after an hour on the water, and it was clear and beautiful....although a little more cool than I like. The beach in Cabo was like little pebbles, not like the soft sand of Mazatlan. The kids were a little disappointed by that, but I was just excited to snorkel and enjoy the marine life along the coral reef.

Corbin, Tiffany, Rick

Tiffany

Steve

Several people took the canoes out and paddled around.

Lyssi, Loren, and Brennon

It was a great vacation. The kids still talk about it months later, so it was worth every penny. We'd all like to do it again.

Here are some of my favorite shots of the trip.

Wish we were there again.....

More Of Mexico

2010-04-13T12:22:00.000-07:00

Mazatlan!

Mazatlan was the favorite stop for everyone....except Rick that is.You see, Rick was sick. Poor Rick slept in a lounge chair by the pool the whole time we were there….Well, enough about Rick.

The rest of us enjoyed ourselves immensely! The Girls all got their hair braided. They looked so cute.

Chantel

All the girls

The boys body surfed

Corbin

The boys

Even some of the big boys tried. :)

The boys also did some Parasailing

Corbin

Tammy even did water aerobics

We all played on the beach

Taylor and Corbin

Brenda

Me and Tammy

Corbin and Channy

The kids really loved the shopping also. Trust me, they shopped until they dropped.

The kids loved it so much there they all left their mark.

We'll have to go again so we can get a family shot.....When Rick is feeling better. :)

Mexico

2010-04-10T18:25:00.000-07:00

The first stop was Puerto Vallarta. There weren’t a lot of flashy or touristy things going on at this stop. Old Mexican charm was the theme here. We went by van to a little beach that had old chairs and little tables covered in old table cloths. The kids played in the sand, and some of them went out on a boat to snorkel. The fish were beautiful. I wish I would have gone, but only the dads went. The moms stayed behind to watch the kids that stayed to swim and play on the beach. We had some delishous fresh Mexican carne asada tacos...yummmmmm, and a warm coke. I don't mind my coke warm....if the water and the beach are warm. :)

The Family

The kids

The tables by the beach

The Island they snorkled at

The boat ride out

The fish

Corbin enjoyed the snorkeling

So did Rick

Channy stayed on the boat

Beach play

I think the thing the kids will remember most about this stop is the LOOOOONG walk we took through the city. We saw a lot of nothing, but we sure slept good after.

The kids goofing off (Save Taylor!)

Corbin packed a lot of girls around on this trip....Here it's Taylor.

The best part of the walk....was the bus ride back. My feet were blistered and I couldn't walk back. Gotta love the Mexican bus system. lol

The Ship

2010-04-02T12:46:00.000-07:00

We went to the Mexican Riviera on a beautiful ship called, The Splendor. I have to say, I really enjoy ship life. Besides the yummy food all day and all night, there's great music, fun games, relaxation, waterslides, miniature golf, shows, and we even got a water show from the dolphins swimming along the ship. Not to mention I sleep like a baby on a ship. Just thinking about it makes me want to go back....right now.

Corbin enjoyed Cruzin'

I think the kids were tired the whole time because they hardly ever slept.

One of our favorite things to do is just hang out and play games. We sat around this table and played games almost every night.

The kids hung out in the hot tubs. Swam and went down the waterslides.

While the adults enjoyed chillin' and reading.

Maddi and Channie enjoyed some golf.

And Rick and Corbin played some ping pong.

I think the most fun we all had was the scavenger hunt. Adults against Kids.....I think the kids won...DANG!
You had to take a picture with the thing you found. This picture was of an American working on board the ship....You have no idea how hard it is to find an American working on a curise ship. She was a Hip-Hop teacher for one of the kids clubs.

But, the best part of all has to be the free ALL-YOU-CAN-EAT ICECREAM!!!!

I do enjoy life on a ship.....until it rocks to much that is.....I did get sick on the way home. :)

Mexico Made Me Lazy

2010-03-22T15:31:00.000-07:00

Ooooh, I've been so lazy since we got back from Mexico. We went in January for a family vacation. Challis didn't come but the rest of us went. We took the kids on their first cruise. The ship was The Carnival Splendor. The destinations were Puerto VAllarta, Mazatlan, and Cabo San Lucas. There were 2 other families that went along with us, our good friends the Saddlers, and the Batemans who we didn't know that well before, but we got to know really well on the trip.

We drove to California in a 4 car caravan. I really love a good road trip. There's nothing better than sitting on your butt with a good book and junk food. We got there and stayed the night then got up the next day and drove to the port. We were all sooooo excited. Here are most of us in front of the ship before we got on.

Here were all of the kids. I have to say that it was great to have so many kids. They all got along and had such a great time with each other.

My favorite part of the cruise is ALL of the food. I'm notorious for ordering 3 appetizers, 2 dinners, and 2+ desserts. Needless to say I always gain a TON of weight, but it's soooo worth it. Corbin really loved all of the food too. He takes after his old Mama. :) Here are a few pictures from dinners.

All of the boys, (Yellow) Stetson, (Blue) Corbin, (Purple) Landon, (Green) Parker

The Girls L to R (White) Haylee, (Blue) Madison, (Black and Purple) Chantel, (Black) Emily, (Red) Lissie, (Black) Taylor

The little girls Lorin and McKinley

Brenda and Steve

Brennon and Tammy

Me and Rick

2010 - Happy New Year!!!!

2010-01-28T10:09:00.000-08:00

Wow! Another year down. We spent the last night of 2009 with our dear friends the Saddlers. We love them! We also had over some other dear friends Kristi and Troy Nye, and Heather and Brian Saddler. We played games all night long and ate a ton of yummy stuff.

Rick, Tiff, Brian, Heather, Steve, Brenda, Troy, and Kristi

Riley, Madison, Kinley, Chantel, and Katelyn

We played a lot of card games.

Played a wicked game of All Play Pictionary. Girls against Guys (Girls won!) But, my favorite thing happened just after the new year.

We took the balloons behind Brenda, and...

We popped them to get our New Year's Fortune.

It was a blast! Hope you all have a wonderful 2010!

Corbin's 17th

2010-01-28T09:10:00.000-08:00

I can't believe Corbin is already 17. He has grown so much this year. He's quickly approaching 200lbs and is 6'1". I always knew he'd be a big boy....Maybe because he was 9lbs 3oz when he was born, hee, hee. We love him to death. He's a kid with so much potential, and I hope he lives up to it. His new favorite quote I see written all over, from his Uncle Jay, "To whom much is given, much is expected." So, I know he thinks about where he is going.

On his birthday we got together with my "new" sister Jennie and her family, my sister Star and her family, My mom and Steve, and a couple of Corbin's favorite friends, Jessica, and Jayden. We went to dinner with Jennie's family and the girls then met up with the others at Boondocks for some lazer tag and games. It was really snowy out, so we appreciate that everyone came. We had fun.

Guess what Corbin's favorite B-day gift was? GO COLTS!

His second favorite....Ok, maybe it was the cash from everyone. :)

L to R, Jayden, Corbin, Jessica, Chantel, Challis, Austin, and Kyilee.

Kylee, Riley, Star, and Jeff

Jayden, Corbin, and Jessica

Grandma Dorman, Challis, Channy

Thanks for coming everyone, and thanks for all the great gifts. Corbin loved them all.

A Wonderful Holiday Season with a Facebook Christmas Miracle

2010-01-03T12:25:00.000-08:00

Where last I left off I was baking cookies with the family, but what you didn't know was....I'd found my long lost sisters....ON FACEBOOK! That's right. I facebooked my sister, Kim Edgar, that I'd wondered about and googled unsuccessfully in past years, and found her in Denver Co. And in finding her I found my sister Tony Plexico and my sister Jennie Furse. It was a little scary at first but eventually after much email I met Jennie and her darling family for the first time up at her home in Lehi. I think she's darling and I've enjoyed getting to know her. Here is a picture of the two of us,Jennie and I.

This was our first Christmas with Challis living away, but he came home to spend the night. Rick and I both said how good it was to have him home for the night and have us all together. We opened Christmas PJ's Christmas Eve and played a couple of games...Just like the old days. It was a really fun night.

Chantel

Corbin

Challis

Then the next morning woke up to the kids laughter, and open our Christmas gifts. We all got wonderful things, but our favorite is a cruise to Mexico in January. We can hardly wait.

Channy got her first cell phone and clothes.

Corbin got a new cell phone and clothes.

Challis got cash and clothes.

Later Christmas morning we had a yummy brunch at our house with my mom and Steve, my sister Star and her family, and Star's mother and father-in-law.

Rick worked clean-up all day long. He's the best husband EVER! Thanks honey. :)

Then we played games and enjoyed each others company.

Kylee (my niece and me)

Wii Bowling

Grandpa Dorman, Channie, and Chal

Chal and me.

It was a wonderful Christmas. We were so happy to have everyone there.

Cookie Party

2009-12-21T11:17:00.000-08:00

Every year my mother's grandchildren gather at my house to roll out, bake, frost, decorate, lick their fingers, and eat pizza. It's an event that I look forward to every year when we all gather and enjoy CHAOS! But, it really is an enjoyable chaos. There's always one kid that seems to enjoy the cookie party more than any other, and that's our Kylee. She is a little Martha Stewart. I hope she never looses her love of baking because it's so darn cute. She'd roll, and cut, and roll, and cut, and Rick would stand by the oven alternating batches in, and batches out. At one point Kylee looked over at me and said, "I could make a million cookies." And according to Rick, she did.

Kylee (my sister Star's daughter)

And after she baked, she frosted and decorated. She is an awesome decorator. She worked so hard, and finally she looked and me and said, "Man those look so delicious. Could I eat this one? I made it." And I said, "Kylee, you can eat any cookie you'd like. After all, you made almost all of them." It was so darn cute. I wish I could freeze her at this age forever.

Little Rylie kept everyone busy, especially my mom. She really enjoyed eating the cookie dough. Grandpa had to take it away so she wouldn't get sick.

Grandma had to hold her most of the time after that because she was so fussy.

But, she did frost a cookie too.

Bowen has quite a cookie decorating talent. He's very artistic. He promised to bring his violin next year and play some Christmas music for us, and I'm holding him to it.

Bowen (my sister Kristi's son)

Channy baked all day long with me. She even made some of the cookie dough. She loved having her grandpa here.She made a Dallas Cowboy cookie.

Chantel

Grandpa Dorman

Corbin and Challis made very few cookies, but we were glad they came to hang out.

Corbin

Challis

Kristi and Anson were at the party also. We are always happy for them to come and bake with us.

Anson and Kristi

In the end we have yummy Christmas cookies that I will eat for the next 5 days straight, and then run off for the next 3 months. Seems worth it at the moment, but not so much in January. :)

Rick and I enjoy it most after all the flour is off the floor and the frosting is off the chairs and we can reflect back on our memories.

We wish you ALL a Very Merry Christmas!

Thanksgiving Dinner

2009-12-01T17:05:00.000-08:00

The kids begged to stay home for Thanksgiving this year. So, I had to cook....Cooking sucks. It's only the second time I've had to do the whole thing by myself, but they were all happy not to be drug around to relatives houses. So, I guess it was all worth it in the end. All the food turned out too...that's a plus. We had Chantel's friend Montana over for dinner. She's a darling girl and we are always happy to have her here.

Next year, we're goin' somewhere else. Who wants to cook?

I do have a great husband though. He always does dishes. Gotta love him for that. :)

Turkey Leg Run - Farmington

2009-11-26T11:45:00.001-08:00

Wooohoo! Happy Thanksgiving everyone! Hope you all have a wonderful day and all the food is good. We are just hanging out watching football and playing XBox with the kids. I did run a race this morning. Had to work off some of the food before I ate it. It was a really fun race. I ran it with some really great people that I just love to death. It was a hard race with a lot of up hill, so I'm happy with my time. 23:29.

Love to all the family we'll give you a call later.

Me, Loisanne, Heidi, Heather, Angela, Russ

Syracuse Football

2009-11-23T15:33:00.000-08:00

Well, the Syracuse Football season has come to an end. Their record for the year was 9-3. Not bad. They lost in the playoffs, but we sure had a great time cheering them on, and before you know it....Corbin's senior season will be here.

Corbin

Oh, where oh where has the time gone.

2009-10-28T13:32:00.000-07:00

There was a little girl,

Who had a little curl,

Right in the middle of her forehead.

When she was good,

She was very good indeed,

But when she was bad she was horrid.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

It's a poem that my mother and my grandmother used to say to me all the time as a little girl. But, the truth is, it fit's Channy pretty well.

My baby turned 13 today. No more little ones around the house...Just teenagers....All 3 of them. I was looking through old photographs of Channy today, and of course it brought tears to my eyes to see how fast the time has gone. She was my sweet little girl I dressed in pretty little outfits. Then she was my little tom-boy that dressed in her brothers old clothes, and refused to wear dresses anymore. The tides have changed once more, and fashion reigns the day. Today she begged to wear the new clothes she knew I'd bought her....After all girl's got to look pretty....especially a teenage girl.

Fall Family Pics

2009-10-17T17:42:00.000-07:00

Today I took some fall pictures of the family. Let me tell you it was no small job. No one likes their picture taken...what's that all about??? But, this is what I got for my efforts.

Titan Homecoming

2009-09-27T08:45:00.001-07:00

I was thrilled when Corbin decided to go to homecoming. After all, you only get to go to High School once. Corbin has had a rough time of late, and I knew a little dancin' would cheer him up. He invited Kirstin a Titan Cheerleader to insure it was extra cheery. :) He doubled with one of his Titan teammates (Zach) and another Titan Cheerleader (Kaylee), and it really did the job......He was definitely cheered up. They are all great kids. I love to have them around.

They started off with a day date. Breakfast at Granny Annie's in Kaysville (side note: Annie's is his grandma Dorman's favorite breakfast establishment.) Then on to the Gateway for a picture scavenger hunt. After that, ice cream at Cold Stone. Then back home to get ready. (We went shopping last minute for a vest at the mall.) Then the boys went to pick up the girls and met at the park (because parents don't pay without pictures. lol) After that, they went to dinner at Chili's, and then to the dance (I'm told Corbin is a dancing machine. He danced with everyone's date.) After the dance the whole group came to our house for a movie.

So, let's do the math - Shoes $40, Tie $10, Vest $30, Corsage $ 30, Breakfast $8, Camera $12, Ice Cream $7, Dinner $30, Dance Tickets $15, Pictures $45, Movie $5 -A smile on Corbin's face PRICELESS! (Don't ask Rick if it's Priceless...you may get another answer)

Corbin did play in the winning Homecoming game against Roy score 47-0. Here is a picture from the game. We are pretty CrAzY fans. We wear Property Of Titan Football T-shirts, wave blue and white pompoms and ring cowbells. Were down right embarrassing; no wonder Corbin pretends not to know us.

This pic is of Kinley.

Corbin and Kirstin

Corbin and Zach

Kaylee and Kirstin

Zach and Kaylee

The Girls

The Boys

Awwww.....to be young again....Now that would be priceless...

Football - It's a rough sport

2009-09-20T10:21:00.000-07:00

Syracuse High Football

It's been a really tough football season for Corbin. He started off the preseason with a bad sprained ankle. That took a few weeks to heal, and then just when he was back.....something life changing happened to him....He had a seizure. He was lifting and just went down. It was a grand mall seizure (8 min long) an ambulance was called to take him to the hospital. His team mates were very frightened and shaken. After tons of tests, X-ray, blood, CAT, MRI, EEG and so on he was diagnosed 6 weeks later with Epilepsy. Then just when he was back, the Davis High JV team dislocated and tore his shoulder. It was very painful to watch him have it put back in. So, now he's in physical therapy again. He is determined to play against Syracuse's biggest rival Clearfield High School in 2 weeks. Rick suggested he take up Chess Club next year in place of football after Rick got the $1300. ambulance bill. Somehow, I just don't see Corbin switching it up like that. :)

Syracuse High Schools record so far 3-1
GO TITANS!
Corbin doing his job in defence.

Run For Your Heart

2009-09-12T14:00:00.000-07:00

Run...Swim....Bike

Well, I've done a few races this year that I haven't talked about, so here goes.

Woman of Steel:
I did this race in the spring, but I didn't get a chance to talk about it because....Rick erased my pictures, and I had to wait until Rachel sent me one. This was my first tri. It was a mini tri. I'd never make it on a real one. I just can't swim all that well. It was a 300 meter swim (don't laugh), 12.4 bike, and 5K run. I did it in 1:20. It was fun. I made a new friend Angela Porter during all of this. She helped me train for the swimming. We would swim at 9:00 pm. and it about killed me. I also met Angela's friend Rachel. We had fun hanging out and carb-loading the night before. Here we are just after the race.
Rachel, Angela, me.

Top of Utah:
So, then I helped Angela out a bit. She decided to run her first 1/2 marathon, so I thought it would be fun to go along and support her. We did Top of Utah 1/2 marathon. We stayed at Rachel's house the night before, and I got to know her and some of her awesome friends. We carb-loaded and laughed all night long. It was a great time. I'm so happy I went. It was a great race and I would love to do it again next year. Angela's time was 2:16. I was so proud of her. She did so well. Here we are at the start, and a couple from the race.
Me and Angela on the bus ride up to the top.

Top of Utah

The people on our bus. They thought I was crazy. They loved my flash going off while they were still 1/2 asleep.

Our group up at the top.

Rachel and her sister Leslie running

It really was a beautiful race, and I'm totally doing it again.

Thanks Rachel for letting us stay at your darling home. I enjoyed myself so much.

The Classic:

I did this race today and maybe I'll add a pic if I ever find one. So many of my great workout friends ran this race: Stacy Strong, Teresa Odekirk, Steph Buckway, Lois and Mike Cattleman, and Leesa Stofferahn. I loved this race. You do all the up hill at the start...my kind of race. My unofficial time is 50:24. I can't wait to run again with my friends in the Snow Canyon 1/2.

My baby is 19

2009-09-04T12:45:00.000-07:00

Challis' birthday is Aug 22, so my post is a bit late. We had a family lunch for his birthday at Chili's. If you are wondering where Challis has been in all of my posts...well, he moved out this summer. He has a place in Layton with a couple of his friends. It's a bachelor pad for sure. It smells bad and all. The place is a wreck. But, he says he enjoys his freedom, as most young people do. He's working at Smith's still and is attending Weber St. My greatest concern is that he seems to keep loosing weight. Without someone to feed him on a regular basis, he just seems to forget to eat. I don't understand it, as I'm always looking forward to my next feeding, but it clearly is the case. 6 foot 1 inch and 130 lbs seems pretty thin. So, if you see him. Please feed him.
Channy, Chal, Corb

The Bachelor Pad

Who are you at the ZOO?

2009-08-18T11:32:00.000-07:00

Rick's Work Party

Rick's work did a work party at the Hogle Zoo this past weekend. You can really tell our family is getting older. Chantel was the only one we could get to go with us, and the deal breaker was that she had to be able to bring a friend, so Montana came with us.

The party started off with a little face painting. You could be painted like any animal in the zoo. I have to say, the people were quite talented. The girls looked really cute.
Channy getting painted

Montana

Both girls

I enjoyed the zoo. I love looking at all the animals, but I do feel kinda bad that they are all caged up for my viewing pleasure. Still I do have my favorites.

The Meerkat: I am fascinated by the Meerkats. I became addicted to this show I started watching at my many visits to the Dr.'s office with Corbin. It's called Meerkat Manor, and it's on Animal Planet. Seriously, it's like an animal soap opera. Love it! So, I had to take a pic of this little guy.

The Giraffes : They are the coolest; Those long necks are amazing. There was a new baby with her mom, and I could have stayed all day and watched. They were so dang cute. I got a pic of this little nuzzle. What a loving moment.

Bears and Elephants: As a kid the bears were my favorite, but they never move. We had after hours passes, so the animals were up and moving, so that was fun for a change. I was most excited to see the new baby elephant that was recently born at the zoo, but, NO! They did not have her out. There were a few animals missing that used to be there. My all time favorite was the Hippopotamus. I love how fat they are, but Hogle Zoo got rid of there hippo, and I missed it terribly.

We also had dinner and watched bird show, but the girls said the best thing was the Merry-go-round. They rode it over and over, and over.

Rick and me at the bird show.

It turned out to be a fun time and Corbin must have missed us after all because he sure called a lot. :)

A Visit to Aunt Tammy♠

2009-08-09T08:25:00.000-07:00

Davenport Washington

We went for a visit to Rick's sister Tammy's house. We've never been to visit and they finished building a new home in the past year, so we thought it was about time. Rick, Corbin, Corbin's friend, and I went. It was fun for the boys to see some small town living. Some parts they liked, and some parts they didn't like so much.

I personally am a huge fan of small town living. I love the little houses and the fact that you can know everyone in town. The small family owned businesses are so personal, and I prefer a slower pace to life, but I think someone forgot to tell Tammy that's what small towns are all about because that family goes 100 miles an hour (and most of them in a car getting to the next event.)

Corbin wanted to move in with Tammy for one reason and one reason alone....The Bike! I'm not a fan of motorcycles, and will never own one, so Corbin took full advantage of the opportunity to ride. Thanks Austin for sharing your bike with him. He really enjoyed it.

My favorite part of the trip was the Hiawatha Trail. I loved this! I wish it was close to my house. I'd use it all the time. The Hiawatha trail was absolutely beautiful! It's a wonderfully maintained bike trail that goes along the railway that used to exist from Taft Montana to Idaho. We rode bikes on the trail, but I'd love to run it. The views from the trestle's are breath taking. The only thing I'd really do different would be to use better lighting through the tunnels (there are several). It was a little scary not being able to see where you were going. I really hope I get to do it again someday. I'm sure Rick would like to do it again also. He ended up riding Austin's broken BMX bike the last 1/2 of the ride, and didn't have much fun at all.

Rick's favorite part was Roosevelt Lake. He flipped over it (see pic). Roosevelt Lake was beautiful also. We really had fun there. Rick really loves the water, so he enjoyed this part of the trip the most. We rented a pontoon boat and cruised the lake. We tried to pull some tubes and got a lot of laughs at the kids expense, but he best part was cliff jumping. What fun.

Corbin tried to flip. :)

Tammy and Boots

Corbin and Ryan

Corbin was almost underwater and Ryan sat back with his seeds and had a good time. It was so funny.

Austin

The worst part of the cliff diving was climbing up the cliff. This is Ryan going up.

Tammy and Rick jumping. It took Tammy a little while to work up the courage, but she did it!

Austin jumping

Corbin doing a toe touch.

Me and Cole....Cole talked me into it.

Ryan the muscle man.

It really was beautiful.

We enjoyed our visit, and hope to get there to visit more often. When we left we took Amanda (Rick's niece), back home with us for a week. We enjoyed several activities with her and enjoyed her company. Here she is with Corbin at the airport ready to go home.

Holiday fun

2009-08-05T09:42:00.000-07:00

The 4th of July.

It's one of my favorite holidays, the 4th. It's warm you can BBQ and hang out until late playing games. And then the night ends with a big bang. What better day could you have? So that's just what we did. We had our good friends the Saddlers over along with the Brother's family. It was fun.

We played a few games. Had a BBQ, and went to the Davis High Fire works.

The kids played while the food cooked, and put on some holiday spirit. Here Madison Saddler and Chantel show off their handy work.

Chantel plays a game before dinner.

Then we ate. There really is nothing like sharing a good meal with the Saddlers....as you can see.
What's up with putting things up their noses????
Steve.

Taylor.

Rick.

Corbin.

Dessert.

Then it was off to the fireworks. Davis High had the worst fireworks ever, but we still had a good time.
Channy, Madison, and Kin

The Brother's family

Brenda and Steve.

Rick and I

It was a fun 4th.

2009-08-02T16:25:00.000-07:00

One Night Stand....AGAIN! Woooohooo! (Ragnar)

2009-08-02T12:06:00.000-07:00

Ragnar 2009 Wasatchback

Well, we did it again 187.9 miles of running, friends, fun, and pure exhaustion. We (Rick and I) ran for team One Night Stand again. If you're wondering where we got the name....well, one of your runners is standing all night long. A team has 2 vehicles, and 12 runners (6 in each vehicle). The race is a relay. I have to say it's one of the best races out there. I had an even better time the "second time around". We laughed, cheered, supported each other, showered with each other (girls with girls...if ya know what I mean), ate together, ran together, and slept very little together. Who thought running could be such a freakin' good time? K, the shower was a little weird, but when you're dirty, and exceptionally tired....you just go along with it, and try not to dwell on the fact you're bare-ass naked for the world to see. Then when you're clean and refreshed, it's all just a foggy memory. Let's face it, I'm still traumatized by the whole thing. And yet, I still can't wait to do it again....the race....not the shower.

I love that I get to do a race where I actually get to see Rick. Rick is a much better runner than I am. He pulled 6:30 min miles on his first leg then slowed to about 7 min miles for his next 2 as he wore down. But, I was really proud of him. I enjoyed seeing him run and cheering him on. Here Rick is giving a "thumbs up". That means he is feeling fine and does not require attention or water.

It's one of the most beautiful races out there. The scenery is breathtaking at points going over 6 mountain passes. And some of it you don't see at all because it's pitch black out, and you pray you are still going in the right direction...I'm just gonna say....I may have lost track of which way the road was going at some point. You wear head lamps, and can only see about a foot in front of you. Here I am in celebration of 21 kills I got running up East Canyon. A kill is = to the runners you pass - the runners that passed you. I was pretty happy. I didn't get any kills on my first run. Van 1 was all about kills. We were stoked when we got tom mark a kill on our vehicle.

Here you can see the red markings going around the window "kill markings".

Here are a couple of my favorite scenery pics.

The things I'll remember most about this year's race, besides the shower and the kills are...When I got to exchange 30 and van 2 wasn't there. They had gone to the wrong exchange. Here I am with no one to hand off my slap bracelet to.

I'll also remember the rain. It just started to rain on my last leg, but it poured on van 2, and they froze their butts off. Last year it was so hot. I'm not complaining. I think this year was so much better as far as weather goes. Here is Chris running in a down pour.

I'll remember Rich riding with us because his team was busy putting one of their own in an ambulance. Here's Rich.

But most of all I'll remember what a great time we had. Thanks so much to our team. They are all great people.
Van1
Rick Gatten, Tiffany Gatten, Stacy Strong, Jeff VonCollin, Vic Jensen, and Ray Holt.

Van 2
Maria Weller, Teresa Odekirk, Stephanie Buckway, Missy Nichols, Craig Nichols, and Chris Nichols.

One Night Stand

Leaving Elementary Behind and Looking Forward to Jr. High

2009-07-24T09:00:00.000-07:00

6th Grade Graduation

Chantel graduated from 6th grade this year, and I think I'm as happy as she is to be done with Elementary. Chantel went to all 7 years of grammar school at Bluff Ridge Elementary. It was a brand new school when Channy started school. It's a very bright, fun school to get an education in and we've considered ourselves lucky to have had our children attend school there.

Channy's graduation was a 50's Sock Hop theme, and the kids did a great job on the program. Grandma and Grandpa Dorman attend along with myself. I thought I may shed a tear or two at the ending of an era in our lives, but....not one. :) Maybe I'll leave that to another day.

When I think back on this year, I'll remember it most as the year Chantel discovered boys...lots of boys. She just can't stop talking about them.

Channy sitting on the stage steps before the program.

Channy's been lucky to have had so many great friends along the way through Elementary. We live in a great community with great families....a very diverse community with Hill Air Force Base so close by. Channy has learned so much from her friends and their families. And we've all enjoyed getting to know these cute girls.

Hanna, has been Chantel's friend since they were 2 years old.

One of Chantel's favorite parts of 6th grade was DARE. Officer Penrod, AKA Officer Stanley is by far the most popular individual at Bluff Ridge. Channy thinks he walks on water.

Channy with her grandparents. She was so happy they came.

Chantel and her loving mother.

One last hug from Mrs. Sorte. I'm pretty sure she's glad I don't have any more children. She is a great teacher and I'm very grateful to her for all of her hard work.

Channy was so happy to be done with another year of school she danced with Janelle.

These girls are so excited to move on to Jr. High. They will attend Legacy Jr. High (if it's finished in time) It's looking like a beautiful school. Chantel can hardly wait. Jr. High...here she comes.

Snow Shack Baby!

2009-07-16T22:32:00.000-07:00

Every teenager needs a summer job and this year Corbin's manning the Snow Shack at Lowe's in Layton. He's one heck of a snow cone maker. They are icy and delish!

It can get lonely when there are no customers.
It's been slow lately so stop by and see him Wed and Fri nights...

....bring a large tip. :) He needs the money.

We sure enjoyed our visit recently. Cooled us right off, and it's been hot, hot, hot!

Never fear, I didn't break my diet....they have sugarfree.....that's right.....sugarfree....run don't walk!

Channy, Kort and Cole highly recommend it.

Cheers! Come get yours before summer's over.

Family Pool Party (at Tom's)

2009-07-16T21:06:00.000-07:00

Our last day with Donna was at a Pool Party that Tom and Brooke put together. We had quite a turn out, and a ton of fun.

Tom and Brooke have a community pool and rec facility that we were able to use. It was the perfect place to get together have some fun in the sun and eat. We started off at the pool. Here are some pics of Tom torturing, I mean playing with his children.

Matt and Misty getting out of the pool so we can go and eat.

Channy giving her dad a hug while he visits.

Rick and Uncle Jay. Uncle Jay always has an entertaining story or a joke....must have been a good one.

Then we were off to eat. The best part of any party.

Brooke made a great salad, and Alisha enjoyed some also.

I think Donna and Wendy were glad to see everyone. They seemed to enjoy themselves.

Aunt Tora helps out with the pizza. We were lucky to see Nate and Annette and their family who just happened to be in town. Misty helps Hailee get some dinner.

Aiden, Caden, and Kara filling up on chips.

Amber.....how does she stay skinny and eat pizza? Lucky girl.

Cute little Em found a great place to eat.

I wish you could have heard the conversation the little boys were having. They were making me laugh. I think they had the best time of all.

After dinner some visited and some played a game of volley ball. The kids had a great time learning to serve the ball and the men that played were very patient.

Others enjoyed the playground.

In the end we were all tired and there were a few tears when it was time to leave.

We all got in our cars to go (Mylee in her's), and were so grateful to have spent time together.

Thanks for a great time guys....all our love to you until next time.

Syracuse Days

2009-07-16T08:30:00.000-07:00

That's right, we put on a parade and fireworks when we have visitors. Syracuse Heritage Days was going on while Donna the kids and Wendy came to visit, so we went. The kids loved the parade, well mostly the candy, and the adults enjoyed the fresh air and entertainment.

We all enjoyed the doughnuts, but no one enjoyed them more then Rylie. That girl enjoys food I tell ya.

Ry, shoving it in her mouth. NUM, NUM.

She also loves a big kiss from her grandmother.

Tiff's mom and Steve came.

Kathy Brothers, Cole, and Corbin were there too.

Along with Stacy Brothers, and Seth.

Spencer was there for the candy.

Donna, Kara, Aiden, and Jason waiting in the shade for the parade to start.

Rick and his mom.

Rick and Donna

Then the Parade started. You can see the thrill of a parade on Aiden's face as he watches the fire trucks go by.

Then the scramble for candy began....That's really what a parade is all about. Aiden, Kara, and Spencer making the mad dash to beat other kids to the loot.

Jason isn't sure what you do with more than 2 pieces of candy when he's handed a third.

But he figured it out...put one in your mouth.

Kara watching the parade go by.

I think she ended up with her fair share of candy.

Aiden had his fair share too.

But, he left in unattended and Jason tried to haul it off. It was so cute.

The parade wasn't all about the candy though. We came to watch the people we knew in the parade also. Channy and Kylee were on a float, and Rylie got swept away by her grandma Retta down the parade route.

Cute little Kort was in it also. She was all sweetness and smiles until Corbin started bellowing out, "Titan's RULE!" (Kort is a cheerleader for Clearfield, the Titan's rivals) She gave him a dirty look....Good for her.

It was a great parade. The fireworks however left much to be desired. We had to watch them from the car because there were so many mosquitoes outside. When will they ever get them under control!?

Another Day...Another Adventure.

2009-07-05T10:41:00.000-07:00

Layton Park

Day two we planed to go to the Dinosaur Park, but the forecast was...RAIN! And then, it didn't rain. so we went to the Layton Park at the last minute. We grabbed Tiffany's niece (Rylie) and went to play.

We love Layton Park with its pathways along a little river where you can feed the ducks and climb a tree or two. They also have a great playground.

You can see in Kara's eyes she really had a great time even though she wanted to go to the dinosaur park more than anyone. She's just a sweet little thing.

She's getting a little sand out of her shoes here, but never a complaint.

Tiff's niece Rylie was just as sweet. She enjoyed every second of the park.

You can see by Rylie's smile she always loves the outdoors.

She's a curious little thing and wants you to go where she chooses to explore.

I think she ate more bread than the ducks....She does enjoy food. :)

Jason had a great time too. He really liked the ducks.

He's a little climber.

Guess Jason got his love for climbing from his brother Aidan. He was always up a tree.

Aidan waited patiently for his turn to dig in the sand, and I think it was wort the wait.

Wendy and Donna were just happy for the kids to get out some of their energy. Three kids really can wear you out.

All and all the day wasn't lost, just delayed. We all enjoyed the fresh air.

A little Visit

2009-07-05T08:28:00.000-07:00

Last week Rick's mother, sister (Donna), and her kids (Aidan, Kara, and Jason) came for a little visit. It's a good thing Challis moved out so we could have 2 guest rooms. :) It was good to see them all. It's amazing how fast kids grow when you you only see them every couple of years.

Our first adventure was to Roy Water Park. It has rained almost every day here this summer, but we got a few hours reprieve and took advantage of it. It was cold when you were wet and the wind kicked up, but the kids toughed it out. Even Wendy (Rick's mom) got in. Ok, I was the only one that isn't that brave. :)

Wendy, Kara, and Channy (We got Channy out of school to go. Lucky girl.)

Aidan. He got cold, but he did go down the BIG slide.

Channy, Tiff, and Wendy.

Rick and Donna. Rick got off work early and surprised us. We were happy he came.

Kara. I think Kara liked the treats as much as the water. In my opinion, Kara may have enjoyed the whole trip better than anyone else. She was a good little thing.

Channy had a great time playing in the water with Kara.

Rick and Tiff.

In the end, another storm rolled in with full force winds and we cleared out of there at the speed of light. We had fun, even if it only lasted a few hours.

Waterfall Canyon

2009-06-27T10:45:00.000-07:00

This spring all the members of our family have enjoyed hikes to Waterfall Canyon in the Ogden Wasatch Mountains. This year we have had a tremendous amount of rain, so the rivers are ready to spill over the banks. All this water makes for a spectacular waterfall.

If you've never made the hike, you really need to. You must do it soon though because as the summer goes on the waterfall pretty much dries up.

Corbin and Kortney hiked it for a fun day date, and got lost. They really had a good time though, and said it was worth all their efforts.

I took Channy and a couple of her friends one day. They complained the whole way up. They said, "They were going to throw up and die!" But once we reached the fall everything was forgotten. On the way down, they said, "This is the best day I ever had. Thanks so much for taking us."

Challis and Rick have also been up this spring. I think its definitely a family favorite. We suggest you head on over the the 29th st. Trail head and get hiking!!! But beware of the scenic route....you may get lost....We all did. :)

High School at 40.

2009-06-14T07:25:00.000-07:00

Lunch with high school girlfriends.

My best friend from high school, Chris Teeslink, came in town this week. I hadn't seen her in 19 years. So, I invited some of our other friends from high school and put together a lunch. It was so good to see all of them. Some of them I hadn't seen in 23 years. They are all wonderful women. It was fun to see how we had, and hadn't changed.

Becoming mothers changed every one of us, and all of us are in different stages of motherhood. Chris is a new mother to a five month old son that is just darling, while Laura is the mother of a young man in his mid twenties that has a son of his own. She seemed to be over joyed with being a grandmother.

Some of my friends are seasoned career women Like Kim, and some have recently graduated and started careers like Jill and Laura who are now teachers. Some enjoy being self-employed like Heather, Crystal, Diane. Some of us are perfectly content to employ all of our energies in the title of Mother... for now, like Rebbecca, me, and Chris who has taken a hiatus from nursing to attend to her new son.

I think we are all somewhat the same. After all, we carry our past in our present, and we are all bound by our childhoods and those friendships. I could see the in their eyes, smiles, and laughter the beautiful young girls who were my childhood friends.....All of their faces just slightly weathered by life.

We all have had our challenges in life, some with heavier burdens than others, but I felt like all of us radiated love and happiness. We haven't been broken. And, at this stage of life, our 40's, we are all focused on our inner beauty. Our focus now is on love, health, and happiness, and not so much on our hair or clothes. I found each woman absolutely beautiful....more beautiful than ever. I soaked in the richness of the difference, likeness, and absolute uniqueness of each individual. What lovely women these girls have grown to be.

What a wonderful way to spend a few hours. I only wish I had the opportunity to see them more often, especially my friend Chris who now lives in Arizona. She was always such a giving, loving friend. There is still nothing like her hug. I missed her terribly, but I'm so grateful she is so happy now.

Thank you ladies for a wonderful lunch.

Me, and my best friend from high school, Chris Teeslink

Heather, Becca, and Diane

Crystal, and Kim

Jill, Chris, me, Laura

Once is enough!

2009-06-07T07:36:00.000-07:00

Ogden Marathon.

Rick ran the Ogden Marathon last month. It was his first Marathon ever. Rick is a great runner, but even this was tough for him. He had a great first 1/2 running fast and strong, but then the cramping set in going into the canyon. He struggled with his second 1/2. The cramping made him stop and go the whole way. A stranger helped out giving him electrolyte tables, and Rick credits the stranger's help with letting him finish. Somehow, there's always that special stranger who helps out....thank heavens for them. Rick stopped about 100 ft from the finish trying to find the will to finish....he eventually found it and finished 3:39. We couldn't be more proud. He said, "Never again!" Honestly, he's only run one time in the last month. I think it took everything out of him. But, he'd better get running soon, he has a race in 10 days (Ragnar.)
Rick after his finish.

My mom, Channy, Cole, and Corbin came out to support him.