The Crockett Family

Runnin' and "Cheese!"

2012-01-10T16:05:00.000-08:00

So Parker's new favorite thing is to RUN and RUN and RUN and RUN around the circle at our house. It's even more fun if someone is chasing him, or if he has something in his hands or on his head. I don't know why he gets such a kick out of it, but he loves it! Trey came to visit and spend the night and they had so much fun chasing each other around the circle. Eventually Trey wanted to play with other toys, but Parker kept going for a while.

Trey also taught Parker to say "cheese" at Christmastime. So now every time I get out the camera I get "cheese" and it is usually a very fake smile. Then before the picture is done he wants to see it and so I usually get a blurry picture of him running toward the camera. But it is still cute. Here he is in his new church clothes from Grandma and Grandpa Crockett. What a handsome boy!

Here he is "cheese"n it with dad.

Christmas

2012-01-10T14:52:00.000-08:00

We had such a fun Christmas!!! It was so nice to be able to spend so much time with both of our families. We had Christmas at our house first.

Parker was a pro at opening presents.

It really is amazing, but Parker had no problem knowing what this basketball hoop was for. He picked up the ball first thing and put it in the basket. I have no idea how he caught on so quickly! It's not like we watch sports ALL the time at our house...HAHAHA. Let's just say that he is a daddy's boy!

I got what I had been dreaming of for years... A RED BARN!!! :) Even though I ordered it myself, I was still SUPER excited to open it.

I just have to say, the most exciting part of Christmas for us was having Parker around. He loved opening presents and playing with his new toys. The excitement and joy of Christmas seems to be so much more real with children around.

After our house we headed down to the Falslev's for Christmas Eve and Christmas morning. We had so much fun playing games--especially blindfold. That was one of our favorite games to play growing up and so it was fun to play it with the little boys and know that it is still as fun as it was when we were kids. :) It was also good just to have fun talking and watching Trey and Parker run around playing together.

Christmas morning at the Falslev's.

I just have to say that Curtis got this game from my parents, and we have played it so many times since Christmas. We love it!

My parents also got this little car for the boys...it was definetly a hit! They didn't want to get out of it, so they both decided that they could fit together.

Christmas afternoon we went to the Crockett's house and played games and talked. We spent the night there and had Christmas with them the next day. (Yes, it was 3 days of Christmas, and we loved every second of it!!!)

Here the kids were all watching a movie together...zoned out! Parker has so much fun playing with all his cousins!

The next day we opened gifts, played more games, talked, and had a good time.

Mike wasn't very happy that I took this picture...but it is the truth. I am sure that all the men I know like playing with the little kids toys just as much as the little kids.

We had such a fun Christmas!!! Christmastime always reminds me how truly blessed that I am. Not necessarily because of the gifts (which were awesome) but because of the good families that we have. It is always so nice to be with family and to have such a good time.

Temple Square

2012-01-10T14:21:00.000-08:00

The week before Christmas we went down to temple square with Alese's family to see the lights. We went down early and went to the Church History Museum and played in the children's museum inside it. Parker loved the truck and the fish.

Mostly, he played with these fish. I kept trying to get him to play with other things, but he would have none of it.

We then met up with my family at temple square and walked around to see the lights.

Parker wanted nothing to do with his stroller by this point, and only wanted to be carried...mainly on Grandpa.

Just having fun...

The whole family. It was so pretty to look at the lights with just a little bit of snow falling.

We had so much fun! Thanks to our family for coming with us!

Favorite spot

2011-10-21T12:06:00.001-07:00

This is Parker's new favorite spot. I'm not gonna lie, I think it's pretty funny that he sits still in there but not anywhere else.

3 Years

2011-10-15T10:47:00.000-07:00

Happy Anniversary to my wonderful husband! Where have the last 3 years gone? Honestly it seems like we just got married and yet it seems like we have known each other forever. I love this man and am so excited to spend eternity with him!

Family Pictures 2011

2011-09-28T14:54:00.000-07:00

We were able to get family pictures taken a couple weeks ago. Mel Howlett did them, and I ABSOLUTELY LOVE them! She did a great job! Check out her blog--http://melhowlettphotography.blogspot.com/

I think that the pictures of Parker turned out especially good. It was hard to pick favorites! But here they are!

Bear Lake and other fun

2011-09-08T14:45:00.000-07:00

We went to Bear Lake with Curtis' family for our reunion this year. It was so much fun! We were able to rent a cabin. I didn't really get any pictures of the cabin, but it was so nice to have a place to shower and clean up after the beach. Parker liked playing in the sand and just standing in the water. It was hard to tell if he liked it or not...he had such a serious look on his face!
Grandma and Parker. Mostly Parker just wanted to stand in the water, and when I would try to get him out, he would get upset.
We also went to Minnetonka cave. It was Parker's naptime, so he wasn't the most happy child when we went in...
Cousins!!!
Like I said, not the most happy child...but on the way back out of the cave he was much happier!
On the day we were packing up to leave all the kids wanted to sit on the 4-wheelers...
Parker and Jane just pounding away on the table...
All in all we had a great trip! I think that my favorite memory would be of Curtis, Matt, and Jeff killing a couple of mice really late at night. I'm not a huge fan of mice, but I think that Curtis' sister Sherry dislikes them more than I do. Let's just say that I won't ever forget the memory of 3 grown women standing on couches while their husbands try to kill mice that were running across the floor up into the chimney. I do have to give them credit though--they did get 3 mice while we were there. Good job guys!

Just a few more pictures of our little Parker...he is getting so big!
He really likes to help mom "mop" the floor. He also likes to help me "do the dishes." Sometimes he is a really good helper...other times I wonder how he can makes messes so fast!
He is growing so fast! I can't believe it sometimes. He is saying lots of animal noises and is starting to say a few words. He gets so excited when I understand what he is trying to tell me.

The Zoo

2011-07-30T12:12:00.000-07:00

One thing that Parker loves is animals. Anytime that he sees a new animal he points and says, "OH!" So we had SO much fun taking him to the zoo. We actually went to the Willow Park Zoo and Hogle Zoo. Willow Park has a TON of birds...and a few other things. Parker's favorite part there was the ducks.

Like Father like son.
This is us riding the train at the zoo. Grandma taught him how to say "choo-choo."
Looking at the monkeys...
Riding the carousel was pretty fun too. Parker really liked it-especially the 2nd time and he didn't want to get off! He liked waving to Grandma and Dad as we went by.
Parker's reaction each time he would spot an animal: point and say "Oh!"
My favorite part of the trip: watching Parker and Trey run from different window displays of monkeys and follow each other saying, "OH!" and pointing. SO CUTE!
Grandma listening to what Trey was telling her.

We had so much fun! It is so fun to see Parker discover things for the first time. Priceless, actually.

First swim

2011-07-08T12:01:00.000-07:00

We went over to Curtis' parents house for a little 4th of July get together and they had a kiddie pool there. Parker wasn't so sure about it at first, but then decided that it was the best thing ever. He didn't want to get out!Somehow Curtis decided that I needed to get thrown in the pool...I would never do anything to deserve that! HAHA! Let's just say that next time I pour cold water down his back, I will have a much better escape route planned.

Camping

2011-06-30T11:39:00.000-07:00

We went camping with my family this month. It wouldn't be camping with my family unless motorcycles/4-wheelers are involved. So Parker got to have his first rides. He didn't really like it that much at first...but he was teething at the beginning of the trip, so you have to give him a little break. By the end, he had a good time.

I think that he just liked sitting on the 4-wheeler the best...
We had 1 ride that I could have done without, (Parker almost fell off the 4-wheeler...don't worry, no one was hurt! It was still a little scary though.) but other than that, we had a great time!
I have to say that I was bummed that I didn't get a picture with all 3 boys! I've decided that I'm not good at taking pictures when other people are. My mom and sister-in-laws took a bunch, but I didn't get any. It was fun to get together with my family and let the little boys play with each other. They are all so cute!

Summer is here!

2011-06-30T11:11:00.000-07:00

This summer has gone by so fast! First, these 2 girls are getting married! I am so happy for them! I was so sad when Meghan and Amanda moved to SLC to teach...but now we know why!

Then we went to Temple Square with some good friends. Of course I didn't get a picture of everyone...we had a good time though. We ended up spending most of our time at the Church History museum. They have the coolest kids area...Parker loved it!

This bike wheel was his favorite...when I finally pulled him away from it, he cried for quite a while and tried to get back to it.

SO TIRED! When we got home, Parker just snuggled up with Daddy.

ONE

2011-06-07T17:23:00.001-07:00

I really can't believe that my little baby boy turned 1! Time flies when you are having fun I guess. We just let Parker go at the cake...
Turns out, he didn't really "go at it..." He just wanted to be fed...but he was still a happy boy! Parker got these 2 balls for his birthday and carried them around our house all morning long...he is growing up to be just like his Dad...

I just couldn't help but include this picture...they both had on their "Peru slippers." Did I mention that Curtis is such a great Dad? Well, he is.

New House

2011-05-10T21:30:00.000-07:00

We're finally moved in to our new house! We love it! A special thanks to our families for helping us remodel and move into our house. I've decided that it really is amazing what a new coat of paint, new trims, and new carpet can do for a house. I promised some before and after pictures...here they are!

The Bathroom

BEFORE

AFTER
The Living Room

BEFORE

AFTER

The Kitchen

BEFORE

AFTER

The Dining Room

BEFORE

AFTER

It's always nice to see all the work you have done come together. It really feels like a new house and we are loving it!

Parker as of Late...

2011-05-09T22:13:00.000-07:00

Parker is getting SO BIG! I can't believe that time can go so fast! It's unbelieveable that so many new things can be achieved in so short a time. I wish that I could learn things as fast as Parker learns them. The learning curve sure slows down as I get older. However, I think that Parker is just as cute as ever! Here are some of my favorite pictures lately...

On Easter in his new church suit...

He wasn't sure what to think of the grass...actually he didn't like it at all.

He got really tired one day when I was painting, and so he just fell right asleep in his bouncer...he is such a good boy!

He likes to help...kind of.

He also loves dandelions.

Now he is pretty much fearless when it comes to try and walk...he hasn't gotten it all the way down yet, but he's getting closer all the time!

He is pretty much what our lives center around. He makes us so happy!

Getting so BIG!

2011-01-18T16:36:00.000-08:00

We have been having so much fun with Parker lately! (Not that we didn't always have fun with him...) He started army crawling a couple of weeks ago and he is curious about everything. (While I was typing this he got in the garbage can...Parker as he's putting a wrapper in his mouth: "Look what I found Mom!" Me:"NO! That's gross. Get out of there." as I move him to another part of the room...now he's crawling back for it.) I guess that is what happens when they start to become mobile...

BUT for the most part it is so fun to see him learning new things and growing up so fast! I also took him to get his vaccines the other day and I let him have a sucker after he got his shot. I was so surprised at how well he did at putting it in his mouth. He would take a lick, take it back out, decide he liked it, and then put it back in his mouth. It was really cute. I didn't let him have all of it, but he enjoyed the part he did get!

As for other things happening here, we are coming along on our house...we hope to have the kitchen all finished by the beginning of February. (Let's keep our fingers crossed!) I'll post pictures as soon as it is all done.

I'm also thinking about starting a preschool next year in our home...we'll see if all the details come together and work out, but it should be really fun. I'm a little nervous about how it will all pan out, so wish me luck!

Holidays

2011-01-01T16:24:00.000-08:00

We had a great Christmas and New Years. Unfortunately I'm not very good at taking pictures when there are a lot of people around...but I did get a few of Parker opening his presents at our house on Christmas. He really loved the wrapping paper, but he did seem somewhat interested in a few of his gifts...

Mostly, we just had a great time with both of our families over the holidays!

Recent Happenings

2010-12-13T13:25:00.000-08:00

We had a great Thanksgiving. We had an early Thanksgiving with Curtis' family and then spent Thanksgiving day with my family. We feel really blessed to have such great families.

One Monday night before Thanksgiving it was Curtis' turn to give the lesson for Family Home Evening. So he suggested that we just try to list all of our blessings. I'm sure we didn't even get half of them listed, but we sat there for a good 20-30 minutes listing blessings that we had received. I guess it just made me EXTRA grateful for all that I have been given in my life. It was also a lesson that I will probably never forget. Now with Christmastime here, I am truly grateful for the gift that Jesus Christ gave all of us--that precious and priceless gift of the atonement.

I LOVE Christmastime. Mainly just because it is an extra time to celebrate the birth of the Savior and reflect on all the things that he did for us. However, I also love all the decorations and things--even though I'm not that great at decorating. (A couple neighbors, Alex and Cooper, helped us decorate our tree this year...thanks guys!)

So before Thanksgiving my Mom wanted to get pictures of her 3 grandchildren taken together. Here are a few that were taken. JC Penny did them, and I think they turned out so cute!

Also I bought Parker some church clothes for Christmas (12 months) thinking that they would fit about right in time for Christmas...and then I started to realize that they were probably just right for now. He is getting so big! I thought this picture was SO good.

Finally, Parker is getting to have such a cute little giggle...I hope this video works because to me it is priceless!

Isn't that what life is all about?

Washington DC

2010-11-20T12:37:00.000-08:00

Our trip to Washington DC was so fun! We went to Gettysburg the first day we were there. (There were a lot of really cool red barns! So I had to include a picture of one.) I think that this was one of my favorite parts of our trip. I learned tons about the civil war that I didn't know before.

Our second day we went to Mount Vernon. It was so fun to see how George Washington lived. This is us behind his house with a gorgeous view of the potomac river. The trees back there were beautiful! We picked a perfect time to visit.

In front of George Washington's home.

On Sunday we were able to go to the visitors center, see the temple, and walk around the temple grounds.

The rest of the time we went into downtown DC. There were so many things to do there! When we went to the natural history museum, Parker loved looking at the bright colored fish.

We also got to visit some of the monuments. They were so neat. Going to visit all the historic places made me really proud to be an American...and also really grateful for the people who sacrificed for our freedom.

Parker loved his stroller most of the time. He also loved his little suit we put him in. He would be so calm and usually fall asleep in it. We started to call it his "magic suit" because it always put him to sleep.

In front of the capitol.

Most of all, we had a great time visiting Bill and Deanne. It was so fun to see them and let them see Parker for the first time.

Our House

2010-10-12T15:47:00.000-07:00

So here are a couple of pictures of our new house. We've been doing some remodeling...so the before and after pictures inside the house will come later!

A couple of our favorite things about this house are:

The backyard...

The park across the street...

and much more...

I just had to include a picture of my favorite boys!

And so it begins...

2010-09-17T11:09:00.000-07:00

Father and son watching football...I guess it is that time of year! (I just didn't think that Parker would be as into the game as Curtis.)

We also bought Parker a bouncer. He loves it!

Here's just a couple of pictures of him smiling...he is getting so fun! He giggled for the first time the other day when I was tickling him. SO CUTE!!!

As for other news, WE BOUGHT A HOUSE!!! We are so excited!

Family Events

2010-08-14T12:50:00.000-07:00

So we have had a lot of family events this past week. Parker was blessed on August 1st. We were glad to have most of our families at his blessing. I was going to try to get more pictures of Parker in his blessing outfit, but he decided to poop all over it after this picture...so needless to say, it didn't happen.

Then Jason and Charity got married on August 7th. We are so excited to have Charity and Jace in our family!

I thought this was a great picture of Grandpa Falslev and Parker...

Then the next day was baby Jane's blessing...I didn't get any pictures of that, but it was a great day!

Parker keeps growing and growing. He's getting to be a big boy! He still loves his bathtime. He's grown all the way into his robe...

He is such a good baby! We love him. He rolled over for the first time this past week. I couldn't believe it!

Parker's First Adventure

2010-07-27T10:22:00.001-07:00

Last weekend we went down the Snake river with my family and some of my cousins. It was SO MUCH FUN!!! We were a little nervous about taking Parker camping, but he did great! (Don't worry, Parker didn't get to go down the river....Grandma Falslev watched him while we went.)

Here's all of us that went down the river the time that Curtis and I went.

So when it was time for bed, we bundled Parker up really well! It was really cold, so I was nervous he would be grumpy, but he slept the whole night, like usual. When he woke up at about 6 to eat, I needed to change his diaper. So since it was still super cold, I changed his diaper as fast as I could. He didn't know what to think of being that cold. But when I wrapped him back up in his covers, I got straight smiles for about 10 minutes. He loved being warm again!

Isn't he just the cutest little guy ever?!

Parker and his daddy all bundled up.... All in all it was a really fun trip! We were glad we got to go.

As for other things happening...baby Jane arrived and Parker is no longer the youngest cousin! Crazy how time flies. This is the two of them together.

I really couldn't believe how big Parker was compared to Jane. He is growing so fast! Parker is also getting really good at holding his head up and looking around while he is on his tummy...

He is just our little happy boy!!!

1 month old and counting!

2010-07-09T11:49:00.000-07:00

Some things that I have learned about being a mom:

You have no idea when pee or poop might come. (Including when you are changing a diaper!) As Curtis would say, "You never thought you would love someone that peed on you, did you?"
I'm grateful for a washer and dryer so I don't have to wash all his dirty clothes by hand, because he goes through a lot of them!
Sleeping babies are so cute.
Time to do things that doesn't involve changing diapers, feeding, or rocking isn't as free as it used to be.
Having a baby snuggle up next to you and sleep is priceless.
I never knew that you could instantly love someone so much.
A smile can melt your heart.

All in all, I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE being a mom. Parker is such a good baby as well. Last night he slept for about 7 and 1/2 hours. (I know, I'm SO lucky!) We feel so blessed to have Parker. He has brought a very special spirit into our home. Having a little baby completely changes your life, but it is so worth it!

Now, I will give you a WARNING: This post contains A LOT of pictures! What can I say, he is just so cute!!!Parker in his robe after getting a bath. He loves his bathtime! (I even get him wet sometimes and he doesn't seem to mind. He usually just looks at me seeming to say, "What are you doing?" I'm getting him started on being a good waterfighter for the future. What can I say, he does have Falslev genes...)
Parker asleep on his daddy. (Curtis is such a good daddy by the way!)

Parker and his cousin Max.

Here is one of the cutest smiles ever!!! He gets really happy in the morning and smiles a lot.

He also loves to sit in the rocking swing. It never fails that he usually falls asleep in what looks like uncomfortable positions. However, when I tried to move him the other day he started crying. Then when I left him alone he went right back to sleep. It must not be that uncomfortable for him.

He is also a pretty strong little guy. His neck muscles are getting strong and so are his legs! He loves to look around everywhere.

Another one of those cute little smiles that can melt your heart...

I just love this picture...it just goes to show that he is a happy baby.

In this picture he was almost giggling. It was so great. I'm glad that I got some of it on camera!

Parker and his other 2 cousins. Trey is about 6 months and Jace is about 2 months.

Parker, Jace, and Trey again.

Jace was really happy in this picture. Parker was asleep and even though his ear is being grabbed, it didn't bother him in the slightest. (He sleeps like his mom...)

Parker with his cousin Justin.

This is when we were taking him home from the hospital...This was the other day...He is getting SO BIG!

HE'S HERE!!!!

2010-06-04T20:08:00.001-07:00

Parker Lynn Crockett arrived June 3, 2010. He weighed 8 lbs. 11 oz. He is 21 inches long. We are so glad that he is here safe and sound! We aren't biased at all, but we think that he is the cutest little guy ever!

He ended up not wanting to come out...so I had to have a C-section after 14 hours of labor. Needless to say, we are VERY relieved to have him here safe and sound, healthy and happy! (Well, he's happy most of the time...as you can see he doesn't like it when you take away his blankets...)

Here he is just yawning away...

Our cute little family.

Here he is with his eyes open. He has the biggest eyes!

We feel so blessed to have Parker in our lives! He has already been a wonderful addition to our family!

What has been happening lately

2010-05-29T09:43:00.000-07:00

So, Curtis told me that I could post this picture if there was an explanation...so here it is. For one of my callings at church we were invited to attend a daddy daughter nerd night. So we were supposed to dress up as nerds. I really didn't think that Curtis would look that good as a nerd, but I was wrong! He won the award for "Best Costume." I have to say that I agree with the award. He is such a good sport!

On May 20th we had the wonderful opportunity to go to one of my best friends' weddings. It was such a beautiful day! I love this picture with her grandparents in the background because it reminds me what love can grow into. I was once again reminded how blessed I am to have a temple marriage. I'm so excited for Megan and Jeff and their new adventures together!

As for us, we are still WAITING for our little baby boy to get here...baby Parker apparently doesn't want to come. We are anxious to have him here all safe and sound. He was supposed to be here 2 days ago, and so we are hoping he gets here sooner rather than later. Hopefully I will have some good news to post SOON!!!

SPRING BREAK!!!

2010-04-08T11:07:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I really love being a teacher! Especially when that includes good spring breaks! Since I had a week off this year, and it was supposed to snow in Northern Utah, we decided to head south where it would be a little warmer. So we randomly decided to go to St. George on Friday, left on Sunday and came back on Wednesday.

We were able to listen to General Conference on the way down to St. George, and once again realize how blessed we are to have a living prophet and apostles on the earth today. It always seems like they know just what to say, and I felt like it was a lot of things that I needed to hear. How blessed we are!

On Monday it rained most of the afternoon in St. George--we were just glad it wasn't snow. So we went to the temple that morning. It was a little windy. I think that the St. George temple is GORGEOUS with the red rocks in the background. I still wonder where they got the white stone to build the temple...

Then that afternoon we met up with my parents and my 2 little sisters. We went to Brigham Young's house and went shopping. The next day we decided to go to Zion's. It was perfect weather! Just warm enough for a sweater and not too hot. We did a couple of easy hikes and were able to enjoy the beauty of nature. Here's my parents on the hike.

My little sisters...Jannalea got sick on Monday and she was a trooper! We were really glad that she felt better on Tuesday so she could go hiking with us.

Last, but not least, is Curtis and me on one of the trails.

We also were able to see a couple of my really good friends. One of my mission companions and an old roommate. It was SO good to see them and to be able to catch up!

Before we left on Wednesday Curtis got to go golfing. All in all it was a great trip.

Now with just a couple of days left of spring break, I need to get on the ball with everything else I need to get done! We are so excited for our little baby boy to get here. (Not any earlier than planned of course!) It will be fun to finally see him and hold him! It's going to be a busy next couple of months with school ending and getting ready for the baby, but it will be good. I must say that I can't complain one bit about how great life is...good family, friends, and lots of blessings!

It's been a While!

2010-03-21T17:24:00.000-07:00

I can't believe how fast time flies! We found out in January that we are having a...BOY!!! We are really excited. He moves around a lot and he is doing really well. Only 10 more weeks to go! (That also means that there are just over 10 weeks of school left.)

We have been really busy, but now that I am finally blogging I can't think of what we have been so busy with! Life mainly, just the same old things. We have been to a lot of Aggie basketball games, spent time with our families, and been really busy with work.

I do have to say that I am SO excited that Spring is here! With the time change we actually get home when it is still kind of light. In January I had a student ask me if Spring was ever going to get here. I told the student that we had a ways to go because the first day of spring was on March 20th. Now that it is here, I can't believe that time has gone so fast!

Christmas Fun

2009-12-31T11:01:00.001-08:00

I love Christmastime and the wonderful feelings that come with thinking more about the Savior. I know-I should think about him more through the year, but Christmastime seems to make His birth so much more real to me. When I think about all the things that the Savior did for us, I am truly in awe. I am so grateful for all of the blessings in my life-especially great family! Both the family that I was raised in and the family that I married into.

As a teacher I think that I get more excited for holidays simply because my students are SO excited. But this year seemed to be a little different. Every year we are supposed to give a list of students who need coats to the police department for a fundraising thing that they do. I had 1 student this year that didn't have a coat. I will never forget the look on that student's face when they came back into my classroom and told me that they had received a coat. It reminded me that there is so much more to Christmas than just getting presents. It's about being more of a Christlike person and trying to help others see how much Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ love them. That is truly what Christmas is about. After that experience I was once again reminded how blessed I really am. I am so grateful for little tender mercies that help remind me what is really important in life.

As for Christmas itself, we spent Christmas Eve and Christmas with my family since Curtis' parents are on a mission. We had a good time with my family and enjoyed the time we spent with them.

The day after Christmas all of Curtis's brothers and sisters came to our house to celebrate Christmas. It was so much fun to watch the little kids open presents and play with their toys. They are just SO cute! We had a good time with them too.

Our little baby is still doing well. We find out if it is a boy or a girl on January 18th. We are really excited!

Updates on Exciting Things!

2009-11-23T15:16:00.000-08:00

Well I haven't updated our blog for quite a while, but there have been several changes in our lives!

FIRST:
YES, you guessed it, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE A BABY! We are really excited for this new adventure in our lives. The baby (we don't know if it is a boy or a girl yet) is due on May 27. It was so fun at the first ultrasound to actually see that there was a little, living baby inside of me. The baby moved around so much! We asked the doctor if this was normal, and the doctor said that our baby was the most active one she had seen all day long. She told me to enjoy my sleep while it lasts!

SECOND:
Curtis' parents left for their mission last week. It was really hard to see them leave, but also exciting at the same time. My mission was one of the best experiences of my life and so in some ways I am a little jealous of the time that they get to serve the Lord, but on the other hand I'm excited for the new adventures that we have in our life here. We wish them the best on their mission and know that it will bring not only them, but us many blessings. We will miss them greatly, they are a huge blessing in our lives.

THIRD:
Because Curtis' parents are leaving, we are in the process of moving into their house. It will be a good experience for us.

Other than that, life has been really good to us. The other day one of my good friends posted a link on facebook to a youtube video that was about being thankful. It totally changed my attitude that day-because I was not in the best mood. I realized that I really don't have any reason to be grumpy. I have SO MANY wonderful blessings in my life! When I think about all the things that Heavenly Father has given me, I am truly grateful for all of the blessings in my life. My list could truly go on forever, but here are a few things that I am thankful for: my wonderful husband, my family, Curtis' family, the gospel of Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ himself, the atonement, a job, a wonderful class this year, the USA, a warm home, food, laughter...there are just so many things to be grateful for!

I hope that as Thanksgiving comes this week we will remember how blessed we have truly been. If you want to check out the link on being thankful here it is:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tuwid8_O8dk&feature=player_embedded

Yellowstone Trip

2009-10-14T16:29:00.001-07:00

We celebrated our anniversary a little early this year because UEA was earlier this year. (Last year we got married over my UEA break.) We decided we wanted to go somewhere, so Yellowstone it was! We had a great time, even though it was a little cold!

This is a picture of us near the lower falls. It was a lot of stairs, but totally worth the hike!

We didn't see as much wildlife as we would have liked to, but we finally did get a good picture of this buffalo!
It had snowed the day before we got there and so driving around was really pretty! We were glad that there wasn't any snow on the road.

This is a picture of an elk bugling. It was really neat to see that!

All in all it was a relaxing trip! We had a really good time.

Peru trip!

2009-08-05T16:40:00.000-07:00

Our trip to Peru was so much fun! It was such a good trip and I can't believe that it has come and gone already! The first day we went to Lima.

I wanted to get a picture of the ocean, the cliffs and the sky rise buildings...so this is what you get...

This is us at the temple in Lima. It was really pretty!

This is in Cusco at a place called Qoriqancha. The bottom part of this building was from the Incas.

This is me trying to go down the rock slide. Curtis and Bill had gone down before and I was a little worried...so the tour guide told me to spit on my hands so I wouldn't go as fast. Well, I was a little dehydrated because of the high altitude and so it was a little hard. Mike offered to spit on them for me, but I told him I could manage without his help. :)

This is just before a little cave that we went through. It was VERY tiny and pitch black inside!

This is at Sacsayhuaman. It was a fort that the Incas used. They carried the rock behind us 4 km to where it is at now. Curtis kept saying the whole trip, "They are just good at stacking rocks...it's in their blood." and he was right because EVERYWHERE we went there were stacked rocks.

This is us hiking up Waynu Picchu. We had to get up at 3:30 in the morning to get in the bus line by 4. They only let 400 people a day climb this mountain. It was a very steep climb! The view was totally worth it!

This is the view from the top of Waynu Picchu.

After we hiked Waynu Picchu (yes it is that tall mountain in the background.) we went on a tour of Macchu Picchu.

Then we went to a petting/feeding farm to feed different kinds of llamas and alpacas. No, Curtis isn't kissing the alpacas, it just looks like it!

This is overlooking the Sacred valley.

These are some ruins at Pisac.

Curtis in time out at Pisac...(just kidding, he wasn't really in time out...)

This is our whole group at Ollantatambo.

If you look carefully on this mountain-it is straight across from Ollantatambo- you can see the storagehouses the Incas built. When the Spanish conquered the Incas, it took the Spanish 40 years to use all the things in the storagehouses. Now that is some good food storage!

After Cusco we flew into Juliaca and then on to Lake Titicaca.

Marianne, Bill, Deanne, and Curtis on one of the floating islands at Lake Titicaca.

This is the president of one of the islands. He is showing us that they use the roots of reeds to keep the islands floating and then they put sticks in each of the square pieces to tie them together so that their island stays together.

He also told us that they have to rebuild their homes every 5 months because that is about how long they last. They also have to lay down new reeds every 1-2 weeks. It was so fascinating how they lived!

This is a picture of Mike and Marianne riding on a tricycle in Puno.

After Puno we flew into Arequipa.

This is at the square in Arequipa. It was gorgeous!

Then we went on a tour to go see Colca Canyon-the deepest canyon in the world. This is on our way there. You can see the volcano Misti in the background.

On our way to Colca Canyon we went over some pretty high mountains. This is at the highest point we reached--almost 16,000 feet. It can be fairly hard to breathe that high up because of the altitude. However they stack rocks up at this point as an offering to nature so here Curtis is trying to stack his own rocks!

This is at a dinner show in a little town we stayed in that night. Somehow I was chosen to particpate in this show...(I blame it on Curtis.) They dressed me up and taught me a little dance.

This is Curtis at Colca Canyon. I couldn't get a good picture of the whole thing because it was too big!

This is us at Colca canyon again.

After we finished Colca canyon we went back to Arequipa and went on a tour through a really old convent. It was really neat.

Curtis standing in one of the courtyards.

While we were in a couple of different places we were able to see some of the members that Curtis worked with on his mission. This is Hermana Maxi. She was the sweetest woman ever!

This was the first baptism that Curtis had on his mission. When he was baptized he was in a wheelchair and when we saw him he was starting to walk again.

This is at the airport in Arequipa when we began our trip home. It was an AMAZING trip! We had a lot of fun, but it is always good to be home.

Fun Stuff!

2009-07-11T15:29:00.000-07:00

So to catch up on what we've been doing lately...the last weekend in June we went camping with Curtis' family. Everytime we get together with his family, I am reminded how blessed I have been to have married into such a good family. We had lots of fun watching our nieces and nephews play with each other and play in the water.

Here's Justin just relaxin' in the sun.

Emily loved the water!

I thought this was the cutest picture of Max and Curtis. I think Curtis was trying to figure out what Max was looking for. But they do look like they are having a deep conversation!

Then on one of Curtis' days off we went down to Salt Lake and we went to the zoo! Yeah, I know, as my Mom put it, "you don't have any kids yet..." We had a good time anyway!

After the zoo, we went to go see the Joseph Smith movie at temple square. Every time I see that movie, I grow in appreciation of what Emma Smith had to go through and how much those early pioneers sacrificed. I am so grateful to be a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints!

This week my sisters came up to visit while my parents were back east on a church history tour. We took them over to Minnetonka Cave. I had a pretty bad sunburn from floating down the river on the 4th of July, and so the cave temperature felt great!

Now we are just getting ready to go to PERU! We are so excited! I just hope that we make it back in one piece!

Summer so far

2009-06-20T15:17:00.000-07:00

So this summer has been so busy so far! I kept telling myself that when summer came, life would slow down because I wouldn't be in school. Unfortunately it just doesn't work that way!

After school got out Meghan, Amanda, and I all celebrated by having a cookout. Too bad it has rained almost every day since summer started. We had a hard time getting the fire started, but Meghan turned out to be a fire-making expert. Here's us just as it started to rain before we ran for the car!

I am going to miss these 2 girls so much next year! I honestly don't know what I'm going to do without them!

I also made a very short trip with my parents and my little sister to Las Vegas to see my cousin go through the temple.

This is us at the Las Vegas temple. I love that temple! It is gorgeous!

While we were there, we also went to the M & M factory in Henderson and saw a cactus garden. That was fun too.

It's Time

2009-06-20T14:53:00.001-07:00

So I had a technology class this week for school and started a school blog, so I decided that I should start one for Curtis and I. Hopefully it goes well!