Last of Swimming day

All of us kids and mom & dad (nice glare)

Kinlee, Carter, Dax, Lydia

Luke, Tragen, Brayli

KaReena's family

After Swimming

Jerika & Aunt Cindy, Blake's wife

Nakia, Merrill & Kayla

Shelby, Blake & Mom

Ashlin (Shelby's oldest), Dad & KaReena

Saturday before Easter

The last few years on the Saturday before Eater Sunday mom and dad take all of us to Green Canyon to go swimming. This year I decided I wasn't swimming and I think you can all see the reason. Anyway, Ray was the responsible adult in the family this year and got in the pool, even though he REALLY didn't want to. What a sport. I was really fun though, we stayed around afterward and ate lunch and talked. Ray, mom and Brian (KaReena's husband)

Kelsie (my neice, Shelby's daughter) & I, the non swimmers.

More Ray & Brian

Jerika & Tragen (my nephew)

Below: Kinlee & Carter (my nephew, Blake's son)

The last few years on the Saturday before Eater Sunday mom and dad take all of us to Green Canyon to go swimming. This year I decided I wasn't swimming and I think you can all see the reason. Anyway, Ray was the responsible adult in the family this year and got in the pool, even though he REALLY didn't want to. What a sport. I was really fun though, we stayed around afterward and ate lunch and talked.

A few months behind as usual!!

Dad & I and a little bit of Ray.

Isn't my husband precious?

Happy little family, even after I made Ray go swimming.

Ray's cousins

Ray's counsins, Laina and Chantay, and their kids came last week from California to surprise his Granny for her birthday. It was during the week and luckily Ray was home and he got to see them this time. We went to dinner Thursday night and then some of them stayed at our house that night. It is amazing how the kids hadn't seen each other for a few years and they just kind of picked up where they left off. They had so much fun together and my kids are still sad they are gone. Kinlee asked me this week what I thought about running to California for the weekend. Little does she know the actual driving time required to get from here to there. But, I thought it was cute. She really struggles when any of our over night visitors leave. These are just a few of the pictures, I will post a couple more soon.

Flying a kite in April??

Some of you already know that Ray was gone for most of March to New York, which is so much further than he usually goes. Anyway, while he was gone he bought kites for the girls and so while he was home this week we went to fly them at the park. It was NOT a success!! After all that wind we have had, there sure wasn't any when we needed it. It was family time though and we had a good time.

Look, I did get in the pictures, its my shadow.

St. Patrick's Day Bunco

I hosted bunco at my house on March 17, and you can't have a party on a holiday without taking full advantage of the "Theme" of that holiday. Therefore, everything was green. We had peas, pistachio salad, green bread (see below), green enchiladas, and then I ordered grasshopper cupcakes from the cupcake store in town (they are the center piece on the table) and I can't forget the green kool aid.
These are my bunco friends, minus Nakia, she was late. Anyway, I am on the left (in my cute farm animal apron), then Allisa Carlson, Mandy Davis (who hates all green food, she had a rough night), DeAnn Chadwick, Kathy Davis, Sheila Gummow and Nichole Stanford. We had a lot of fun!!

Kinlee wanted a pictures of herself eating all of the green food. I need to be a fun mom all the time I guess and do things like this more often. Both the girls thought it was pretty silly.

Mom's Birthday.

Yes, I do realize that mom's birthday was in January, and that is how far behind I am and how far behind I feel on everything else.
But, here are the pictures. We all met at Applebees in Rexburg and there were so many of us we had to sit at 3 tables. KaReena was in charge of my camera and nobody would take a picture of her, so she took one of herself. Merrill wasn't there, because he had just had surgery on his shoulder. Shelby and Anita surprised us and came from Utah to eat with us also. It was a really fun night and I know mom enjoyed it, even though we weren't all sitting at the same table.

Brian, Ray, Shawn & KaReena sat together. Don't they look excited.

Isn't Shawn precious?

KaReena's self portrait. Ray still thinks she is adopted and I'm not sure why.

My cute parents.

Mom's Birthday Cont.

Tracy (Shawn's beautiful wife), Kayla & Linda

How many chins does the lady in gray have?

Ben (Nakia's husband), Blake & Cindy his wife

Anita (Shelby's wife), Shelby & Nakia

Hello Everyone

I really wish I could think of something really interesting to tell you this month, since it seems that is how often I am actually writing. We recently found out why Jerika has been struggling so bad in school, and at home with a few things. She doesn't really want me telling everyone, so I am not going to put the reason in here, because she will freak out if she reads it. But, it really isn't too bad, it will be a way however that the school will actually help her from here on out. As for the rest of us, we are just plugging away. I am still making watch bands, which I am keeping pretty busy with. I have been putting them in Traditions, which is a store in Rigby that sells handmade items. Kinlee is dancing her little heart out once a week and she has starting going to Activity days with girls her age from church. Ray is trucking as much as he can, and we are praying hard every day that his boss doesn't decide to close up shop and leave us high and dry. But, I guess life happens and we will cross that bridge when we come to it, if we come to it.

Wow, I am a slacker!!!

I am pretty sure that we have done something newsworthy since Christmas, I am just not really sure what, and I guess I have no
pictures except these that I have dowloaded documenting saild newsworth items. I have super busy making watch bands and I think my family is starting to get a little edgy, but people are loving them and we, Allisa, Nakia (sometimes) and I are loving making them.

Tyler moved back to his moms house after Christmas, which left it quiet around the house and it wasn't in the best of terms with his father. They have since made up, but he is still not going to live here, its too much for me to handle. He will be taking the test for the Navy again and hopefully he will get in, pray for him, it will do him good!!
These last two weeks I am back to working full time at work, thank goodness!! It was a little tight around here for a few days!!

Our Family

I love Christmas Eve!! We all get together at mom and dad's house and eat and then we have a little program. Which normally ranges anywhere from singing, playing the piano, to stories and anything else like that. This year mom and dad sang for us and it was really fun. Also, the little kids acted out the manger scene which went along with mom and dad's singing. Then of course we had all kinds of food and the best part is that we all get along that day. Not like we always fight, but everyone just treads a little lighter that day. Anyway, every other year we spend the night up there, but this was the year we stayed at home and then went to moms for lunch on Christmas day. This is first year that most of us were there, we missed you KaReena, but I don't think they could have made it if they wanted to. The roads were terrible and it snowed most of the day. You really needed 4 wheel drive to get anywhere. All in all it really was a great holiday!! And I am finally getting it posted. Happy New Year everyone!!