Memorial Day Trip Part 2: Phoenix

It took us about 6 hrs to drive from Chinle to Phoenix because we stopped to eat lunch, then took the kids to see the Meteor Crater. This is a HUGE hole in the ground ( 2 miles in diameter and 600 ft. deep) caused by a 150 foot meteor that hit the Earth about 50,000 years ago. We left the camera in the car and didn't get any pictures :(

After arriving at my sister Missy's house, we ate dinner and went on a walk. The subdivision she lives in is very family-friendly with many parks and water pads. We went to a fun park a few blocks away and let the kids stretch their legs after a day in the van. The next morning we got up early and went to the Phoenix Zoo. It was perfect weather - in the 80's, cool for Phoenix at the end of May. The following pictures were taken at the zoo:

Jeff and Carter having a close encounter with a squirrel







Playing in "Frog Glen"

The "big" boys


We had a good time, but Mathison was definitely ready to leave at the end of our 3 hour visit!


After the zoo, we drove to the Desert Ridge Shopping Mall for some lunch. This is an outdoor complex that has some really fun activities to try besides shopping. We ate lunch, then everyone headed over to the arcade. Well, everyone but Krissia - she wanted to shop :) After some friendly competition we collected our cheap prizes and drove back to the Colton's house. Prior to coming to Phoenix, one of Del's former Acclamation students, Sally (Cooper) Wright contacted us. She lives in Anthem (a short drive from No. Phoenix)and wanted to get together with us if we were ever in the area. We made plans to meet that evening with Sally and her family at one of Anthem's neighborhood parks for a picnic dinner.

It was so fun catching up with her and seeing her cute family! The younger kids also really enjoyed themselves at the Anthem Park. Mathison discovered that he LOVES sand:

...touching it

...lying in it

...and even EATING it!!


Jefferson, Carter, and Ethan had fun splashing around in a water pad and climbing on the rocks:

We ended the night by hanging out at Sally's house, where she treated everyone to ice cream as we reminisced about the good ol' "Accla" days.

The next day found us at a water park. Our camera had temporarily gone missing, so I didn't get any pictures :( It reminded me of 7 Peaks in Provo, with various slides, a wave pool, lazy river, and child section. Again, everyone enjoyed themselves - especially Jefferson, who had a little "romantic" encounter :) After coming home and cleaning ourselves up, the adults decided to have a night out. We ate at the Cheesecake Factory (girls' choice) then followed up with a movie. We ended up seeing the new Indiana Jones movie. The general consensus was that it was good, but not "WOW". There's just something about seeing a geriatric Indiana Jones that makes some of the adventure scenes seem a little unbelievable :) When we got home, we put the younger kids in bed and spent some time playing games (we won't mention who won, since it wasn't me). We got up early the next morning, knowing we had an all-day ride ahead of us.

We had a wonderful time in Phoenix; even the weather was great. Thanks so much Missy and McKay for letting us stay with your family!!

Memorable Memorial Day Weekend Part 1: Chinle

Hi everyone, I hope you had a fun holiday weekend - we sure did. We decided to take a road trip to Arizona and visit family members; we left early Saturday morning and returned home late last night. I've decided to post pics and details about our trip in three parts to avoid giving any of you readers Carpal Tunnel Syndrome :)
This first installment is about the time we spent in Chinle, AZ, visiting my parents.

It took us about 5 hours to drive to Chinle. This town is in the middle of the Navajo Reservation and is located in a very desolate area. Although small in size, Chinle had a few amenities that surprised us like some fast food restaurants, a large community center, and a full-sized LDS church. We arrived around 1:30 and had no trouble locating my parents' trailer, which sits in the LDS church parking lot. My kids were surprised to see Grandma and Grandpa living in a single wide trailer after being used to their big house and yard in LaVerkin :) We had to cross a cattle guard while driving into the parking lot; when Del asked my father about it, he said that it was to keep out wandering cows and horses. Del assumed my dad was teasing him until we started driving around and saw several wild cows and horses along the sides of the road!

After we ate lunch, my parents drove us to Canyon de Chelly National Monument. This is quite an extensive area that holds many Anasazi ruins. Because it is situated on Navajo lands, tourists are not allowed inside the canyon unless they pay for a guided tour given by Native Americans or are personally invited by a Navajo who farms property inside the canyon. However, there are several lookouts situated around the top of the canyon, and my parents drove us to three of these spots. We were able to look down into the canyon at the ruins; from our height, they almost looked like sand castles on the canyon floor:



Everyone seemed to have a good time, although it was a little chilly due to the wind.




My mother had prepared a pot roast dinner for us when we returned. We finished the evening by watching the Work and the Glory III with my parents, then somehow found a place for everyone to sleep in the tiny trailer!

The next morning, my mom got up early to fix us her traditional pancake breakfast. We left for church 20 minutes early; although my parents' trailer is in the church parking lot, that building is being renovated so the ward has to meet in Many Farms, a town about 15 minutes away. We attended the Many Farms Ward, and were quite impressed with the reverent feeling present. One of the talks was given in Navajo; although we couldn't understand the language, the spirit was quite strong. After sacrament meeting, one of the missionary Elders took this picture of us:

We then drove back to the trailer to pack up and head off to Phoenix. It was so nice seeing my parents again - especially in the mission field. Our family had a very nice time for the short period we were in Chinle!

We've hit 18 months!

My beautiful, blond, baby boy turned 18 months old this week. Where does the time go?? Although toddlerhood is bringing it's typical challenges, the joy this little spirit brings into our home is more than worth it; we feel so lucky to have him as part of our family - even if it did take 10 years to get him here :)

MATHISON'S STATS
WEIGHT: 22 LBS (7%)
HEIGHT: 31.5" (25%)
TEETH: 8

THINGS THAT MATHISON LIKES
climbing (grr)
dancing to music
Yogos snacks
running away when someone asks him to come here
anything to do with trucks
slides (he even uses the backrest of our bathtub as one)
Baby Einstein videos
numbers and shapes (he can recognize 1-5 and a star and circle by sight)

Here are some recent pictures of our little guy:

Just Make Up Your Mind!!

I am so tired of the fickle, wacky weather we've had the past few months.

One moment it is broiling hot, the next moment....it's SNOWING!!

We've had near-record breaking heat the past 4 days, so I was all geared up and ready for summer. Today brought a 40 degree drop in the weather and a half-foot of snow in the mountains. Go figure.

Whatever happened to having spring?

Krissia Turns 15!!

Krissia had her birthday a few days ago; I can't believe my little girl is fifteen! She's really excited because she's now old enough to get her learner's permit. I'm just not ready to have two children driving - mentally or financially.

We held a family party for Krissia on Thursday morning before school. Her gift from Del and I was an I-pod.

Krissia seemed pretty excited to get it; she's been wanting one for a while now :)

On Saturday afternoon, Krissia invited several of her friends over (girls only) to play games and have a BBQ. Everyone seemed like they had a good time.


Here are 15 things I like about Krissia:
1)She is beautiful, inside and out
2)She's a tomboy like her mother
3)She's very mature for her age
4)She's an incredible athlete
5)She is a wonderful help around the house
6)She's a top student
7)She truly cares for other people
8)She's very goal-oriented
9)She's not afraid to stand up for what she believes in
10)She has a strong testimony of the gospel
11)When she does something, she gives it 100%
12)She's extremely outgoing
13)She is a very genuine person
14)She's eager to try new things
15)She is a good listener

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KRISSIA - WE LOVE YOU!!!!

School Spirit

How far would you go to show your school spirit? Would you go to school dressed like this?

I think some of us would; after all, many of those 60's styles are back in fashion. However, I'd bet that few of us would dare to go looking like THIS:

This was for crazy hair day - and yes, that is a flower pot (styrofoam) that is under Krissia's hair. She paid one of the students from CEU's cosmetology program to come and do it for her. It worked - she won the overall prize for the day :)

This is what her hair looked like when she took everything out

Afterwards, Krissia's hair was so stiff with paint and hairspray that it felt like you could take a strand and snap it right off. It took just as long to "undo" the hairdo as it did to put it together!

Prom Pics

I've had several inquiries about prom pictures; Bronson's group wanted to save money, so they went over to Rachel's house after the promenade and had her dad snap some photos. The pictures aren't professional, but they sure are fun. The theme was "Viva Las Vegas" and the kids had a great time playing the part.


Here's the official group photo


Viva Las Vegas gangsta style


The boys are showing off Rachel's father's firearm collection


Doesn't Bronson look happy!

Mother's Day

Let me begin by saying I absolutely LOVE being a mother. There is a depth to my soul and facets to my life that have been added to by my experiences as a mother, and I have gained a greater appreciation for and understanding of my Heavenly Father and his love for me. I feel that I have been doubly blessed, as I have been sent wonderful children to guide, love, and care for.



I have to admit that I always didn't feel this way; enjoying motherhood was something I had to grow into. Luckily, I've had several wonderful role models to help me along the way. My own mother and DEl's mother are both incredible women who have successfully raised large families and still show their love and devotion to their loved ones through constant service to their children and grandchildren. My grandmothers have also provided positive examples for me; I am so grateful for the amazing heritage I've had and can only hope that I will continue the wonderful tradition of maintaining a strong family.

I just wanted to leave you with something I wrote for my mother several years ago; may the Lord bless all of you in your endeavors on this very special day.

A MOTHER'S PRAYER

Lord, may my home be full of light and love
Where harmony unfurls its wings, I pray;
And souls express the teachings from above
Reflected through my actions day by day.

And let this home withstand the Tempter's lies -
A shelter from the world's stormy seas.
For as I gaze into my newborn's eyes,
Revealed are echoes of eternity.

And if that child walks through a darkened hour -
especially should they stray, or even fall;
Help, guide, protect that spirit mine through birth!
Please be there, Lord, through inspiration's power
As I perform the greatest work of all -
The duty of an angel here on earth.

Putting My Best Foot Forward

That's what I would be doing right now if I HAD a best foot.

I visited a podiatrist in Utah County yesterday, and it appears that I have two bum feet. I've had a bunion on my right foot since high school and it's been giving me some trouble lately, which prompted the doctor's appointment. It's going to require surgery in the next year or two; I was okay with that diagnosis because I had pretty much figured that out on my own.

My left heel has really been bothering me the past few weeks, so I decided to have the doctor take a look at it since I was already at the office. He decided to take X-rays "just in case". Surprise!! I have a bone chip the size of a large fingernail floating around in there. Apparently, I broke my heel at some point (the doctor said it's been at least 5 years ago) and since I didn't get it treated, it didn't heal (or should I say heel, lol) right. He thinks that some scar tissue formed around the bone chip, anchoring it in place, and that I've done something recently that caused the tissue to detach and allow the bone chip to begin moving around again. This is something that will need to be fixed pretty soon; we're looking at the beginning of next month, when the kids are out of school and can help me with Mathison.

As we were discussing surgery options, Del suggested that I get BOTH feet operated on at the same time and "just get it over with". He changed his mind when I pointed out that he'd have to take at least a couple of weeks off of work to push me around in a wheelchair - not to mention run the household as I would be basically bedridden until both feet healed :)

Bronson's Big Day

I received a HUGE surprise 11 days ago when I received a text from Bronson at school telling me that he was going to ask a girl to Prom. A couple of hours later, he sent another text with the exclamation, "She said YES!" You can imagine how eager I was to ask Bronson who he was taking to Prom and how he'd asked her. It turns out that she likes to read, and he slipped her a book with a note inside. That was so Bronson! The girl's name is Rachel, and Bronson met her in Debate class.

We decided to buy Bronson his first suit instead of renting a tux. He and Del made a trip into Provo and found an awesome suit. We already had a tux shirt and ended up renting a vest and tie that matched Rachel's dress.

Bronson pulled another surprise on me by announcing that he offered our house as the meeting spot for the group day date! This is only the second time this year that he's invited anyone over to our house, and this is quite a milestone for his improvement in his social skills.

The day before Prom, Bronson drove Rachel home to see where she lived and to meet her parents. Rachel's dad ended up showing Bronson his firearm collection :) I guess that Rachel is the youngest of 5 girls, and their father has the tradition of showing all the girls' dates his guns! Luckily, Bronson thought it was funny.

Last Saturday afternoon, 5 couples showed up (all from the debate team) to hang out downstairs. They played pool, air hockey, and all sorts of video games. Judging from the sound level, they had a great time! After the girls went home to get in their dresses, two of the guys stayed here to get ready.

Doesn't Bronson look handsome? I don't have any pictures of Bronson and Rachel; we didn't see her again after she'd left to get ready, and it was all I could do to get Bronson to let me take these pictures :)

At 5 p.m. Bronson picked Rachel up for dinner and was reminded by Rachel's father that he keeps his guns fully loaded. After dinner, the kids participated in the promenade (Bronson wouldn't let us come), had pictures, then went back to the dance. When Prom was over, Bronson took Rachel to Sonic for some ice cream.

When Del asked Bronson the next morning if he'd kissed Rachel, Bronson said no. However, he did admit to holding her hand :)

Way to go, Bronson!

A Popular Guy

This past week has been rather busy as it was finals and graduation for CEU. There seemed to be banquets every night, and on the occasions I was able to attend it was fun to see Del interact with his co-workers and students. It was obvious that he has made a positive impact on those around him in his short time on the CEU campus.

My observation proved correct during the Honors Banquet held Friday night, where Del won a special award. The Student Association gives out two special awards each year: one to an outstanding professor, the other to an outstanding staff member. The students chose Del as the outstanding staff member this year! This is quite an accomplishment, especially since it is only his first year at this campus. Del was quite surprised and pleased to be singled out for this honor.