Sweetheart smiles are the best

Calle's field trip to Thanksgiving Point's Cornbellys! (Calle is sliding with her teacher, Holly.)

Utah State Fair Fun!

Pony rides at the fair... is there anything more fun? Christian loved his pony even more when he found out his name was "macaroni". Larkin's cute pony was named "crystal".









































Baby versions of animals seem oh so much more cute than the bigger ones, and seem to smell less also.

Christian's 1st...

Apparently, at 6 years old, the tooth fairy is not real. And while being "not real" is up to $1.00 a tooth! You gotta wonder where they get this stuff.

The Best Example

I forgot to post this before...but here it is- one of THE best YouTube videos I've ever seen. One of the instructors at Education Week used this as the best example in his scripture study class. He asked why we complain we don't get more out of our scripture study when we know we can fix the problem for ourselves. Hysterical video...really.

Go to my "Favorite Links" section on this blog and click on "Trapped on an Escalator"

First Day of School

1st Grade...where does the time go??? I'll tell you where, in long, long, long frustrating hours of entertaining children alllllllll summer long until you crack up! Oh, sorry, well maybe we better not reminisce.

Calle is sooooo glad to be back in school again.

Christian is finding old friends and adventures every day.

They both are adjusting to the new sleep, school, and play schedules (and so is Mom).







My two little stay-at-home with Mom tots, are keeping me just as busy as before. So much fun, so little time!

Highlights from hillbilly...home

Recently, my sister and I, along with our parents drove to California for, of all things, a family reunion.

Way above the sunny beaches, the glamour of Hollywood, the ‘Bread Basket of California”, the Bay Area, and about an hour above the, little known, capital of Sacramento…there’s a tiny town within a farming/agriculture community where we grew up.

The family reunion was for our Dad’s ‘Newton’ family. He’s pictured here (in the middle) making only 8 of the 13 children of my Grandma & Grandpa Newton. The others couldn’t attend because of health problems and one brother has already passed away. The reunion was a hoot! We’re very glad we went and reconnected with our roots, so to speak.

My sister, the photographer, took over 800 pictures on our trip…these are just a few of the highlights. My favorites have to be of the seemingly endless sunflower fields. My least favorites... the ginormous spider webbed in the gigantic cactus at the end of my brother’s road and the road kill…oh so picturesque.

All photo credit must go to Ann Ormond, photographer extraordinaire, with very few exceptions.

Happy Birthday!

Calle & Christian...our biggest miracles from the smallest of sizes, just turned 6 years old!

So much joy and so much adventure all rolled together!

Top 10 Best Times Ever!

Wiggle women riders unite! Love you guys!!!

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Milestones

Doesn't hitting milestones tend to set you pondering...introspective moments, I'm calling them.
This is what I've calculated:

-29 years plus several more (but who's counting)
-14 jobs (the best and most challenging is being a Mom)
-1 most awesome, I'm talking 'the best', husband
-4 beautiful children
-1 speeding ticket
-2 sets of scriptures
-7 major surgeries
-2 times almost dying
-3 red sports cars
-7600 pairs of disposable contact lenses (okay, no I really don't know how many) :)
-1 official half marathon (the 13.1 club)
-203 miles ran (Dec 30, 08 - Jun 30, 09) ((that's like running from my house to Beaver, Utah))
-2 root canals (ouch!)
-a bajillion bad decisions and mistakes (not to mention bad hair days)
-a quadjillion diapers changed (still going)
-a couple hundred thousand desserts with caramel in them (still not enough)
-some of the greatest friends in the universe
-not enough: books read, prayers said or dates with my hubby
and
much, much, much appreciation for this life the Lord has given me and all the lessons learned (and still learning)

Find beauty...give love...share laughter

It's inherited...

Larkin's got Mommy's famous sneer!
(You'd have to see the pictures when I was her age, hysterical!)

By the way, Happy 4th!!