We Are Really Good Looking!!!

Kite Festival

2011-07-31T15:39:00.004-06:00

A little behind on blogging, but back in April we went to the Kite Festival. The boys like going to this, but unfortunately, there was no wind for the kites. this didn't stop us from having fun though!!!

Fun in the warm....wait cold.....wait warm weather

2011-04-10T18:26:00.006-06:00

So, the weather here has been totally crazy!!! Hot one day, then cold the next! The boys were playing on the slip n' slide a few days ago.....and then it SNOWED yesterday! So really crazy weather. Once it started to get warm, the boys got accustomed to a certain degree of outdoor fun, and they are not letting the weather change that at all.

RIDING BIKES

Boys are still riding their bikes a lot, Skyler especially! Sometimes he scares me with the turns he does. Anyway, I thought his look was priceless here. Think he is giving any indication of a future profession?

CAMP OUT

Once it was warm enough, David set up the tent in the back yard for a camp out. The boys had so much fan, and can't wait to do it again. They keep asking, but it just hasn't worked out again yet. David says maybe next time he will actually make it all night....Last time David couldn't fall asleep, so we brought the boys in.

BASKETBALL

We got the small hoop for the boys, but didn't really have good basketballs for the boys. Well, David surprised them each with a small ball of their own. Seriously, they can stay out there for HOURS playing basketball. David and I have even enjoyed it.....I totally took him at a game of PIG (we won't mention the plenty of other times that he totally killed me at those games).

KITES

I took the boys to Dollar Tree to pick out a birthday present for David. They each picked something out, but we saw the kites as well, and couldn't resist! We had a little wind (at the same time as the snow) and had to test them out. The boys are doing pretty well! SIDE NOTE: Connor wore those silly PJs ALL day that day....even when we went out for the day.

SKYLER IS A BIG BOY

Skyler is SO in to being a big boy, and eating so he can be a big boy like daddy. Or that he gets to lock the bathroom door when he is big like Papa. Anyway, it is SO funny to hear him talk about being BIG. Well right here he was showing us how big his belly is.

NEW SUITS

Couldn't resist getting these for the boys when we saw them at Costco for a reasonable price. They look SO handsome!

Duckie Drop

2011-04-10T16:32:00.004-06:00

About last October, David and I FINALLY bit the bullet and decided to join the Washington City Community Center. They were having a good deal if you paid for a full year. We decided it would be worth it since the have a workout facility, pool, classes and daycare. Now that the boys are 3 and we actually have to pay for them when we go to the pool, we figured with as much as we go swimming it would be worth it. So, anyway, we have been and are continuing to REALLY enjoy the facility.

On March 28, 2011 they had something called the Duckie Drop Basically, the kids wade in the pool, and the HUGE bucket at the top of the playground thing drops a bunch of rubber duckies. The kids each get a duckie with a number on the bottom with a prize based on the number.

The pool was PACKED. And there was a special appearance by THE RED ROBIN!!! Which, Red Robbin happens to be one of the kids FAVORITE places to eat. I think it has to do with the balloon they get when we leave! Regardless, they were SO excited to see him there, but a little hesitant to go say hi...it took them a while to warm up, but they did....and got a free kids meal!

I think this pic is funny because David is trying to suck in his belly, and Connor is just looking at him like...."WHAT are you doing?"

Swim Lessons

2011-02-27T17:34:00.004-07:00

In late January we decided the boys were old enough for swim lessons. With the way the city does them, none of them worked with our schedule until the end of February, and even then, it was a class more advanced then their level. So we decided to put them in a few private lessons to get them up to the level they need to be to take their swim class. The boys really like Miss Erika, and she did a GREAT job with them.

I was never able to teach them anything, so it was always just splashing around and the slide when we would go to the pool. Now that they have a few lessons under their belt, they are little fish in the water. They love to go to the pool, and when we are there, it is rare to see their head above the water. They are seriously little fish!

They start their swim class tomorrow, so we are excited about that!

New Bikes

2011-02-27T17:25:00.004-07:00

Santa brought the kids NEW bikes for Christmas, but we didn't find them until New Years Day! It was such a beautiful day, we took the boys out for their first ride in our back yard. It took them a while to get the hang of it, but they were starting to get in a groove by the end of the day.

Since then we have taken the boys out on running trails and let them ride. They do a really good job and are naturals on the bike! They are having so much fun. KUDOS to Santa on a job well done!

Skyler getting the hang of it!!

Connor concentrating hard!

New Years Eve

2011-02-27T17:21:00.004-07:00

or New Years Eve, David splurrged and got us some fun fire works. Our friends, the Callisters, came with their kids to join in the fun! It was cold, but we still had fun!!!

Christmas with Cassie's Fam!

2011-01-01T13:21:00.006-07:00

This year for Christmas we went down to Vegas for our traditional Christmas Eve party. We started out with dinner, then decorated cookies. Followed by a surprise performance of the Nativity. We used act out the Nativity every year when I was a kid. We finally outgrew it. But now the grandkids are getting old enough, so we decided to surprise Grandma Carma with the performance. Then each of the kids got to do a skit/musical number.

Decorating Cookies

Nativity: featuring Connor and Skyler as Wise Men

Wood boys sing a song

Nelson Boys tell Christmas Jokes

Fife boys sing Jingle Bells

Grandkids sing "Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer"

Seeing Santa

2011-01-01T13:18:00.002-07:00

We went to the Ward Christmas Party and the boys were so excited by the special visiter the stopped by. I totally forgot my camera, thank goodness I had a friend there who sent me these pictures. Otherwise we would have NO Santa pictures for the year!

Fife Family photos

2011-01-01T10:59:00.006-07:00

We had family pictures taken as well. Connor was seriously SO cold, I think he did well considering. Aren't the boys SO cute!

Wood Family Photos

2011-01-01T09:52:00.004-07:00

Thanksgiving weekend we took family pictures with all my brothers and sisters and mom. It was nice to have everybody around. And the kids were such troopers, it was seriously SO cold!

Horse Back Rides

2010-12-04T18:54:00.004-07:00

A long while back I told the boys that when they were potty trained that I would take them for a horsey ride. I told them that you can't wear diapers on a horse. I have a friend with horses so I knew I could make good on my promise. I was VERY surprise when THEY actually approached ME about getting their horse ride. I don't know if they associated it with that they were not in diapers anymore, but they definitely asked me to take them for a ride. So we made the arrangements, and thanks to Tana and Nate for humoring my boys!

SKYLER gets the first ride

CONNOR is next

Halloween

2010-12-04T18:07:00.005-07:00

We had a lot of fun this Halloween season, we started out by carving our pumpkins. The boys didn't really want to dive right in with all the seeds and icky stuff, but still had fun none the less. They each got a pumpkin and got to help mom or dad draw the face and carve it. They loved to take off the pumpkins hat and put a candle in, then put the hat back on...like a puzzle... each night. It was a lot of fun to see them enjoy this so much.

The boys got these fun glasses and teeth at their daycare party, and they loved to run around and scare us and each other. This is Skyler sporting his scary look.

We went Trick-or-Treating at Snow Canyon High School again this year. Connor was Diego with his cool Rescue Pack, and Skyler was Woody from Toy Story. I made the vests and Rescue pack for my boys costumes, and that was fun to do that. I also made the chaps and part of the shirt on "Jessie's" costume.

We went to our ward Trunk-or-Treat, and forgot our camera, then to the outlet malls for some store trick-or-treating, and then the boys went door to door Trick-or-Treating with Dad, while mom stayed home to pass out candy. This time the boys switched costumes, Sky got to be Diego and Connor was Woody.

Saint George Marathon

2010-10-30T21:25:00.005-06:00

On October 2nd Craig and David did the Saint George Marathon. Both coming in around 3 hours and 47 minutes.

Teresa, the boys and I went to the finish line to cheer them on.

Boys turn THREE

2010-10-29T20:01:00.006-06:00

The boys turned 3 in October. We really celebrated by going to LegoLand, but did a cake on their birthday. Papa Craig and Grandma Teresa were in town for the Saint George Marathon, so we did singing and cake with them.

It was super fun to see the boys totally have free rein over the cake. It was Very entertaining.

Connor in Blue and Skyler in Green

At the Beach

2010-10-29T19:03:00.003-06:00

After LegoLand, we headed North to see David's family. We stayed a few days, and couldn't help but go to the beach. We all had fun on the boogie boards. Bryan had fun digging holes for the kids, as usual. Teresa fell in the water. Connor was obsessed with the kite. They both tried to fly it, but there wasn't quite enough wind.

The boys had a LOT of fun hanging out with Grandma Teresa, Papa Craig and Uncle B.

LegoLand part 3

2010-10-24T20:40:00.006-06:00

Safari Jeep Ride

This was probably the ONLY ride where we actually had to wait in a line, but the boys liked it from the day before, so we suffered through the 15 minute wait. The Jeeps were on a track, and the kids got to pretend like they were driving. As you went around, you got to see a bunch of Safari animals out of Legos.

Fire Truck Relay

This was a competition where you pump the firetruck from one end of the course to the other...all of 20 yards probably. You get out and one person pumps the water as the other aims in this window to "put the fire out". I don't know that the boys got the full idea, but we had fun none the less.

Airplane Ride

This was a ride that we did OVER and OVER without even getting off. It was awesome. But basically you just sit in the plane and it goes in circles.

The Aquarium

We met up with my friend Cami and her son Ian and walked around the Fish Aquarium. It was fun to see all the fish. You can see Connor got a really close look from inside a bubble.

These pictures to not represent EVERYTHING that we did, just what we happened to capture on film. We also did the Water Park, but didn't get any pictures of that. Needless to say, we had such a blast there, and the boys absolutely loved it. They were talking about going back, but we had to explain to them that we couldn't go back for a while. It broke their hearts!

LegoLand-part 2

2010-10-24T19:10:00.004-06:00

Mystic Tower

Basically you are cranked up and then dropped and bounced a few times.

Boat Ride

This was on of many boat rides that we went on. The first time we went, Connor was crying the whole time. I was getting tired of him "chickening" out right before we got on a ride, so I forced him to ride....But after a while he liked it. They boys could actually steer the boats, with the help of us.

Helicopter

I think this was one of Connor's favorite rides. A pretty simple ride, you just sin in the helicopter and you can go up and turn in circles.

LegoLand

2010-10-24T17:59:00.005-06:00

Fir the boy's third birthday we took them to LEGOLAND. We went the week before they turned three, so we didn't have to pay for them. Strategic planning on our part, right? Uncle B was kind enough to join us, and the boys loved having him around.

We started on Thursday afternoon at Legoland, then went back Friday morning, did the waterpark on Friday afternoon, back to Legoland for a few more rides and then the Aquarium.

We seriously had SUCH a blast! We hardly had to wait in ANY lines, and if the boys wanted to ride again, they didn't even have to get off. It was SO much fun!

Here are just some random photos, then Iwill post more from their favorite rides.

Sky on the leisure boat ride where they get to see lots of Lego animals.

Cassie and Sky go down the big slide

This was a 4D movie. We wore these 3D glasses and it was so funny because the first time something appeared to "come at us", Skyler was swatting at it, and got a little scared and sat with David the rest of the time. It was funny.

Connor and Skyler wait ever so patiently for Daddy and Uncle B to ride a "big kid" roller coaster. They were just a little too short. One of only a few rides they couldn't do.

Giraffe made of all Legos!

Uncle B...need we say more!

We are on that roller coaster, I promise! This was probably the most intense of all the rides the boys could do, and they LOVED it. They wanted to keep going. I think we rode it probably 5+ times. It was a pretty good coaster for the little guys, hey, even for us!

Boys love trains, so we couldn't pass on this ride.

Cassie and Sky on an airplane.

This was a shooting game. You would ride around on the little car track, and you had a lazer gun and would shoot at some targets inside. They would keep a score, so of course David and Bryan had to have a little Brotherly competition. Sky has taken a liking to the guns.

Kokopelli Triathlon

2010-10-22T10:15:00.004-06:00

On September 18, 2010, I did my first Olympic Distance triathlon.

distances were:

1.5K Open Water Swim (about 1 mile)

33K Bike Ride (like 22 miles or so)

10K Run (6.2 miles)

I have only ever done Sprint distances before, and kinda wanted to challenge myself a bit. My goal was between 3 hours and 15 minutes and 3 1/2 hours. I was pleased when I came in just under 3 hours and 15 minutes. I raced in the Athena (big girl) division and took first....out of 2, but hey!

bib number:	302
gender:	F
overall place:	172 out of 191
division place:	1 out of 2
gender place:	49 out of 54
time:	3:14:40
pace:	0:
swim:	31:10
t1:	3:11
bike:	1:19:37
t2:	2:21
run:	1:18:22
penalty:	0:

SWIM:

I started in the last wave of the Olympic distance racers. As I started, I realized my arms were tired from my swim workout the day before. So I took it easy. I was pleased when I finished my first lap in less than 15 minutes. I was feeling VERY confident in my swim, and finished it in less than 30 minutes, then had to run to transition.

BIKE:

I hopped on my bike, and headed out. Now, this course has a HUGE hill that I absolutely LOATH. I was nervous as I approached it, though I train on it so I don't know why. As I looked out around me, I realized it was a beautiful day, and I am not in this to win, or to kill myself, I only wanted to finish, so I was going to enjoy it! And I did, I absolutely LOVED the bike ride. It felt good, and I had so much fun!

RUN:

Well, what can I say about the run....it SUCKED! I started at about 11 AM, so it was already getting hot. I don't think I took enough "fuel", and I broke down about half way, and had to walk/run the rest. But hey, I finished!

POST RACE:

As soon as I crossed the finish line, I hopped in to an ice bath. This was my first ice bath and it felt REALLY good! Grabbed some food, cried a little, and packed up to go...I really wanted an ICEE so we stopped at the gas station, I ran in got the ICEE, ran to the bathroom and threw up about a gallon of water!

Where were the twinkies?

They were such sports waiting and watching with Daddy and Grandma Carma. They had shuttle going from the race to the cars, so Grandma Carma took them on the bus about 10 times. I think they had fun. After they would take about running in a race. It was so cool. And as you can see, they were tuckered out by the time we got home and settled. Thanks to Grandma Carma for helping entertain them!

Victoria, Canada

2010-09-20T20:09:00.009-06:00

Last stop....Victoria, Canada. We were planning to spend out time with my boss, Wendy and some other friends. When we got off the boat, there was a line for a cab...so Wendy was so kind to just get us a limo for a few hours of touring. It was so awesome.

TERRY FOX

This is a statue of Terry Fox. This description of him is taken word for word from Wikipedia:

Terrance Stanley "Terry" Fox CC OD, (July 28, 1958 – June 28, 1981) was a Canadian humanitarian, athlete, and cancer research activist. In 1980, with one leg having been amputated, he embarked on a cross-Canada run to raise money and awareness for cancer research. Although the spread of his cancer eventually forced him to end his quest after 143 days and 5,373 kilometres (3,339 mi), and ultimately cost him his life, his efforts resulted in a lasting, worldwide legacy. The annual Terry Fox Run, first held in 1981, has grown to involve millions of participants in over 60 countries and is now the world's largest one-day fundraiser for cancer research; over C$500 million has been raised in his name.

We thought this was a super cool story, so we had to take a picture.

To read more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terry_fox

BEACON HILL PARK

This was a beautiful park that had great landscaping. There were peacocks running around. I tried to spook them to see if they would open up for us, but had no success. This was just a pretty place to stop.

WORLD'S TALLEST TOTEM POLE

VIEW OF THE CITY

We tried to make it in time for the sunset, but we didn't, because I had to stop and take a picture with the totem pole! But it was still a great view.

SOME COLLEGE

The cool thing about this college was that there were seriously HUNDREDS of wild bunnies hopping around. I don't know that you can see them in this picture, and of course, these were more photos that were lost. Hopefully I will try to get some from my boss who maybe took some.

CRAIGDARROCH CASTLE

AKA...My future home

It was dark, so it is very hard to see its beauty. But I have never seen a castle, so my group was kind enough to humor my desire to see it.

PARLIAMENT BUILDINGS

THE EMPRESS HOTEL

I guess this is a pretty big or well known hotel????

Skagway

2010-09-20T18:19:00.006-06:00

On Thursday we ported in Skagway, Alaska. We couldn't decide what to do, so we just walked to town. We saw a lot of boats on the dock. In Skagway they did a lot of train rides. Again, this made us think of the boys, and how much we missed them. So we spent a lot of time watching the trains, filming them and taking pictures for the boys We walked around town and saw some cool building and what not.

After we walked through town we found a cool hike to a small lake. It was a good, pretty hike and a way to kill some time. Unfortunately we managed to loose the pictures from the hike. If we ever are able recover those pictures I will post them.

After the hike we went to a sea food restaurant right off the dock. David had a Salmon Sandwich or something, and he loved it so much he wanted another. But then he decided that if he did, he might get so full it would kill the perfection. I thought that was funny.

All in all, Skagway was a fun day! then back to the boat for a full day on the ocean.

This is the top of a trash can, and David just thought it was SO funny

David being inappropriate with Sarah Palin

Juneau

2010-09-19T19:17:00.007-06:00

Salmon Bake

After the glacier, we ported in Juneau, Alaska. Our group had arranged for a lunch-ish meal at the Thane Ore House which was a Salmon Bake. I am not a huge fan of sea food, but this was pretty yummy. They also had a museum there that we were able to go and look around.

Mendenhall Glacier

After the Salmon Bake we shared cabs to go to Mendenhall Glacier. This was so awesome to go see. We were able to go to different view points and look around. They even had some hikes that would get you close to the base of it. Unfortunately time did not permit us to do those hikes. The bright blue parts of the glacier was where a HUGE chunk had fallen off that morning.

Around Town

Once we were done with the glacier we went to Juneau. David wanted to go see the Governor's home (former home of Sarah Palin), but it was too far away. We did see it on the way out to the glacier though. While in town we bumped in to some friends and shopped around. I got a beautiful pearl necklace! Then it was back to the boat.

Funny side note story about this day. By this day I was so wet and cold all the time. Seriously, ALL my clothes were wet from that morning being out on the boat. So I bundled up in as many dry layers as I possibly could. My hair was down and I looked in the mirror and had to laugh. I told David that I looked like a total BOY...he came in to the room and totally laughed at me, and said, "well, at least you look like a 'pretty' boy!" then went on to compare me with Sunshine from Remember the Titans. Anyway, funny little side story.

Tracy Arm Glacier

2010-09-19T18:49:00.005-06:00

On Wednesday morning we headed up Tracy Arm to see a HUGE glacier. I didn't really know what to expect, but they said we might see some whales and ice, so we got up at the crack of dawn to head out to the deck, and Oh My GOODNESS was it COLD!!!!

We walked around the boat watching all the ice and the awesome scenery. We went to the front of the boat a couple of times, but I was so cold, I couldn't stay up there too long before I went somewhere warmer. David was so much tougher stayed up there quite a bit.

Once the glacier was in sight I went back up to the front. I honestly thought it was just a pass, just more water off in the distance, it was so funny.

Ketchikan

2010-09-15T20:24:00.010-06:00

After a full day on the boat, our first stop was Monday morning, in Ketchikan, Alaska. I think we ported at about 6 or 7 AM. David and I woke up to find that it was very WET outside. We ate breakfast and headed to our room contemplating whether we wanted to the Lumberjack Show excursion. Well, as we were discussing it in the elevator, a nice lady said she had one ticket and we could take that, then we would only need to purchase one more ticket. We asked why she didn't want it, and she said her husband was fishing and she didn't want to go alone. We offered for her to come with us, but she insisted that we take her ticket. Such generosity from a total stranger.

AROUND TOWN

So after we followed this nice lady around the boat for about 20 minutes as she tried to find her cabin, we set out for Ketchikan. It was very wet and rainy as we left. Within about 15 minutes, we were totally SOAKED. But we had fun just walking around town and taking pictures.

THE GREAK ALASKAN LUMBERJACK SHOW

This was seriously one of the highlights of my trip. It was so fun to see the amazing things that these men can do. The had a competition between 2 teams, the USA and Canada. I guess it was what they used to do a while ago. They did a series of events. It was so fun to watch them!

Chop through the wood stump

Axe Throw

Chopping a stump again I think

Putting planks in the tree, and "topping it off"

Tree climb...this was amazing

Log Run

Log Roll. And this was more than just keeping up with your opponent. They would kick water up at each other, anything they could do to distract eachother.

Of course we had to have our picture taken with them!

I bought the boys some long johns, with the bum flap at the souvenir shop...we'll have to get picture.

MORE AROUND TOWN

After the show, it wasn't raining anymore, and we had dried off, so we walked around some more.

We made our way to a famous street, which the name slips my mind. All the building are on stilts or whatever, and the street is on the water.

This was a famous....well, you should get the point from the phrase below. It is a museum now, but we didn't make our way in.

There was a HUGE staircase up the mountain, and we had some time to kill, so we hiked up those stairs.

What a view!

Walked through the tunnel, the boys would have LOVED that!

Then back to the boat!

Alaskan Cruise!

2010-09-11T20:59:00.003-06:00

David and I had the wonderful opportunity to go on a 7-day Alaskan Cruise, without the kinda (thanks Grandma Carma). The boys were good sports about it, they knew that mom and dad were going on a boat, and they were going to Grandmas. Thanks to Academic Innovations, our employer, for making this possible.

The journey began on Sept. 28th, with our flight to Seattle, WA. We stayed the night in Seattle, and went out to eat with some of my co-workers. After dinner we went out shopping for pants, because I totally forgot some dress pants for dinners....lovely...no denim rule for the restaurant.

On Sunday we boarded this ship. We couldn't believe how HUGE the ship was. We couldn't help but feel guilty that the boys weren't with us to enjoy the BOAT!

The first night on the boat was fine, but I woke up Monday morning feeling VERY sea sick. Fortunately it passed by dinner time for the first FORMAL night. The ship took some very pretty pictures of David and me, which we did not purchase. I am hoping to get some of the pictures that a co-worker took though, and once I get them, I will post!

From here on out, I will simply post a bunch of posts from each of our ports... as I get to them.

Another Hatch Trip

2010-09-10T19:08:00.008-06:00

At the beginning of August we took the boys up to the Hatch House for the weekend. We were lucky to have Grandma Carma join us.

THE RODEO

While there the boys attended their FIRST rodeo. As expected, Skyler was very interested in the sport, while Connor played around on the bleachers.

A little story behind this picture. Skyler is wearing his Aztec Warrior Hat that he made at daycare. He loved this hat, and wore it until it fell apart... you will see it falling apart in the pictures below. And he is holding a purple rectangular key chain that he called his camera. The boys kept playing with it, and saying, "Cheese!"

BRYCE CANYON

Trying to get as much use out of our Park Pass, we went in to Bryce for a few short hikes and look out points.

After the wonderful sights, we stop in the little Bryce town to look around and get the boys some ice cream. Which was a huge mess! They had fun walking around and seeing the wagons.

It is so fun to see them on this horse and in the jail....I have pictures from when I was a kid in these same places. If I can find them, I will post them as well. Just kind of fun to see them doing the exact same things that I did when I was a kid and we would go to Hatch.

THROWING ROCK IN THE RIVER

Any time there is a chance to throw rock in a river, we simply MUST take it. We actually went a few times, they boys enjoy it so much. The first time, Connor fell in the river. I think the ground just gave way under him, and he slid right in. Fortunately it was in a place that the current wasn't strong enough to do anything, and it wasn't too deep. But once he was in, he couldn't get out himself.....because of the current. He just looked up at me scared to death...it was actually kind of funny. Afterward he thought so too!

Eventually the boys figured out hitting rocks with sticks, which is now their new thing. They don't quite have the hang of it, but they are certainly trying!

24th of July

2010-07-30T15:44:00.004-06:00

For the 24th of July we invited Cinthia and Landon and their kids over for some fireworks. The kids all had such a blast watching the show and lighting sparklers. Make for a great evening.

Hot Air Balloon Festival

2010-07-25T17:00:00.005-06:00

The weekend of June 25, we went up to our cabin in Hatch, UT. The next town over, Panguitch, UT, was having their Hot Air Balloon Festival. This was actually why we went up for the weekend. We seriously had SO much fun, we will probably make this an annual thing we do. My only regret was that we didn't actually get to RIDE in a balloon, but I think we will try to work something out for next year so we can.

During the day they had a little carnival type thing going on in town. Not super impressive, but Sky got to jump SUPER high on the trampoline and thought that was SUPER fun.

After the carnival thing, we met up with my sister and her family. We took some of her kids and went in to Bryce Canyon for some sight seeing. Unfortunately I didn't catch any photos of that :( Afterward we took the kids to Subway...as you can see, Connor was totally BEAT! David got all the kids a Push-Pop. This was the twinkies first experience with a push pop...how do you think they did?

At night all the balloons go on to the 2 main streets in Panguitch and inflate the balloons. It was really cool to see the night sky lit up with all the balloons. These pictures were taken on my phone, so not the greatest, sorry.

WE HAVE LIFT OFF
The next morning, we went to the open field were probably over 30 balloons were getting ready to take off. It was so AWESOME to go walk around among all the balloons and be right in the action. There was one balloon shaped like Smokey the Bear, that was pretty cool. The boys had such a BLAST.

One sorta funny side story about this fun experience. Skyler is starting to..."control his bladder." Though it is usually only when it is convenient for HIM. He goes when and where he wants whether it is in his diaper, the toilet or the dirt, but he does have control of it. We are out among all these beautiful balloons, watching the sky fill up. I am with Connor walking around and David is with Skyler. I am looking up, and then turn to David, then look down at Skyler...who has stripped down to his birthday suit and is now watering the grass in the middle of this HUGE field for everybody to see. I scream to David to stop him (David was looking into the sky as well, so he missed the show). I run over...at this point we couldn't really stop him, so David stands on one side and I stand on the other to cover what we can. I car drives by, seeing this spectacle, and the lady is just laughing at us, as I am laughing, hiding my head in shame. Anyway, it was funny!

New Back Yard

2010-07-24T20:04:00.006-06:00

For the last 2 years we have had dirt for a back yard, and a 5 foot drop off in to a revene behind our house. Needless to say it was not a friendly backyard for 2 toddlers. Papa Craig and Grandma Teresa decided it was time to put up a fence and give the back yard a facelift.

RV parking BEFORE

RV parking after with the new SWING gate

Pilasters go up for the gates

Side yard wall goes up

View of side yard wall from the front

Underground Trampoline

Finished up the retaining wall. Most of it was already done when we moved in, but we had about 3 feet on one side and 10-15 feet on the other to finish it up.

Think the boys enjoyed the tractor in the back yard? They LOVED it and Skyler even got to go for a ride! Connor just enjoyed watching it.

Working on a path to the gate that goes to the hill behind the house. Still trying to decide what to do with this half of the yard.

Back yard

Side Yard

The boys have SO much fun riding their bikes, playing on the trampoline, getting wet on the slip and slide, with the sprinklers or hose, getting dirty in the dirt, riding their quads, etc. The boys are learning so many tricks on the trampoline! It is so nice to send them in the back yard and just let them play, and know that they are confined to the back yard, since we have the beautiful gate done! I am a happier mother now that this is available to me...thanks Papa and Grandma!

More fun in May

2010-07-24T19:36:00.004-06:00

Special Easter Egg Hunt with Grandma Carma

Back in May when we went down to Las Vegas, my mom (Grandma Carma) did an easter egg hunt for the twins. Let me back up a little to explain... Grandma Carma always does an Easter Egg hunt for the Grandkids at her house Easter weekend. For whatever reason, we were not able to make it this year, so she held about 15-20 eggs aside for my boys and did a SPECIAL egg hunt, just for them, the next time we saw her.

SKY's Gymnastics Class

We try to go to open gym when we can, and I kinda sneek Connor in :) They don't seem to mind.

Sky's gymnastics class moved days, so this was a picture of his class on his last day. I am hoping that the class goes back to its original day once school starts so I can get both him and Connor in a class for a few months.

Spring Fun

2010-06-28T21:18:00.005-06:00

KITE FESTIVAL

I know this is SUPER long overdue, but hey, better late than never.

I April we went to the Kite Festival that St. George puts on every year. Didn't manage to get any pictures of all the kites in the air...oh well.

The kids had a lot of fun here, and it was a GREAT afternoon. Skyler got to ride the train being pulled by the tractor. Both Connor and Skyler had a lot of fun in the bouncy houses and on the inflatable slides.

ULTRA MARATHON

Also April, David and Craig attempted the first 31 miler Ultra Marathon. Unfortunately David had to hitch a ride back in a cop car, but Craig finished strong.

David can't handle being consistently surpassed by his "old" father, so he has big ambitions for the St. George Marathon.

o

Aflac Iron Girl

2010-05-23T20:58:00.007-06:00

On May 15, 2010 my friend Cami and I (Cassie) participated in the Aflac Iron Girl Lake Las Vegas Women's Triathlon. This was 800 Meter Swim - 30K Bike - 5K Run.

This race has been by far one of my most FAVORITE triathlons I have ever done. It was a womens only event, which made it kind of unique. There were just so many added perks that made it so much fun. There was an expo at check in where we got some free-bees. When we got out of the lake from our swim, they handed us hand towels, and that was a first for me! At the finish line we got our finishers medal, ice cold sponges, water, Gatorade and recovery chocolate milk. After the race there was a nice breakfast for all the racers. Like I said, just some little perks that made it so much fun! I will definiately do this race again, or another Iron Girl in another city!

It was so nice to do this race with my friend Cami, even if she did finish like a half hour before me! But it was great to see her, and hopefully we can do another one together next year...make it an annual thing.

I went to check in and rack my bike the day before the race so I decided I would drive the bike course. I was seriously SO scared, it was like 11 miles uphill, and then 7 miles down hill. I was so concerned with the bike, I didn't even worry about the run....and that was what killed me. The first mile of the run was basically downhill, the second was up and down, and the last mile, you had to run back UP the hill you came down...not fun at ALL, and I had to walk more than I would like to admit. The swim was OK. I got caught up in a lot of people and and to stop mid swim to go around people, etc. I think next time I will go on the outside where there are less people, even if it does makes the swim a little longer.

Here are my results

bib number:	481
gender:	F
location:	Saint George, UT
overall place:	270 out of 645
division place:	38 out of 81
gender place:	270 out of 645
time:	2:13:21
pace:	0:
swim:	19:50
tran1:	7:09
bike:	1:12:01
tran2:	2:15
run:	32:05
penalty:	0:

And for more pictures go to http://www.asiorders.com/view_user_event.asp?EVENTID=63125&BIB=481
Though some of those people are not me!

SWIM
Though I am probably not in any of these pictures, and even if I was, you couldn't tell, but you get the point

BIKE

RUN

AT THE FINISH WITH CAMI

Fife Family Trip to Zion

2010-04-19T21:15:00.009-06:00

At the end of March we went to Zion with David's family. Randy and his family were there as well as Papa Craig, Grandma Teresa and Uncle B, unfortunately Tim and his family could not join us, and they were missed.

We rented a cabin/house just outside of Zion. It was a huge house so there was plenty of room for all of us. During the day we would go hiking in Zion and then go back to the house and relax in the hot tub. After those long days, Connor and Skyler were so worn out, they would go right to bed.

We really had a lot of fun while on this trip.

Bryan was determined to bring this log from the other side of the river, and finally Papa Craig went in as reinforcement, shoes and all. They finally got the log over.

Picnic lunches every day

Look out point

Papa Craig and Cassie's classic muscle photo op

The twins had a lot of fun throwing rocks in to the river, we learned that Sky has quite an arm! He had a blast doing this, and could stay there all day if we let him.

Fife Fam

The kids!
Imagine how hard it was to get this shot!

Who is that in the distance...Grandma Teresa and Randy?

The little ones had it easy riding in the back packs. Bryan was such a trooper and always had one of the twins...like he had a choice though. I (Cassie) tried to carry them, and they wanted nothing to do with me!

Chilling at the water falls

More ZION photos

The deer we saw on our way home to the cabin

EATER EGG HUNT

The Easter Bunny fame while we were at the cabin. The kids made out like Bandits...and so did the animals, who scored a few eggs left out on the porch

While at the house, the boys would have so much fun playing outside. They like the snow, and loved to make snowballs. Connor would dribble the basketball, and it was really impressive. They also would trek through the mud, and that drove me nuts. Connor decided once to park it in a sticker bush, and wasn't too thrilled with that outcome. Luckily somebody brought tweezers.

Sky at Gymnastics

2010-04-19T20:46:00.003-06:00

Skyler has been taking gymnastics classes for the past few weeks. He loves jumping down the loooonnnggg trampoline, but doesn't really do it the way he is supposed to. He has fun learning on the bar. He also enjoys jumping on the trampoline and doing his sit-down/stand-ups. He is one of the only kids in the class that can almost do it. Skyler does really well with taking turns and listening to the teacher. While Skyler is in gymnastics, Connor is in the Community Center's day car which has a park...so he would rather be there anyway...and sometimes I think Skyler would prefer to be there as well! On Fridays they do an open gym, so I sneak Connor in to that, so they both get to kinda run around and do what they want.

On the long trampoline

practicing his sit-down/stand-ups with his coach
before attempting on his own

Waiting his turn with the other kids in the class

Hanging from the bar

Trying to smell his nose

Fun at the pool

2010-04-19T20:26:00.003-06:00

We have been having a lot of fun spending time at the pool. They closed the pool we normally go to, so we haven't been going as much in the evenings, but we are trying to pick up the habit again. During the day a different pool has a parent/tot swim time where they open up the little kid section of the pool. The boys love to go down the slides. It is nice to go at this time because we don't have a lot of competition, which we would have here in the evenings.

Skyler and Connor

Connor

Connor

Skyler

Skyler

New Years Eve

2010-01-09T23:44:00.002-07:00

For New Year's Eve we went to a friends house and did some dinner and fireworks. It took the boys a minute to get comfortable with the fireworks, but once they did, they loved them, and were sad when they stopped.

Sky and David

Connor enjoys watching the show

Christmas Fun

2010-01-09T20:22:00.005-07:00

Christmas Eve

We had a lot of fun celebrating Christmas. We had Papa Craig, Grandma Teresa and Uncle Bryan (aka Jesus). Grandma Erma was around for a bit as well. We had the Fife's famous tacos for Christmas Eve, then we let th boys open up their new pajamas to sleep in. After that, to keep with the true meaning of Christmas Papa and Grandma told the story of the nativity as best they could to two 2 year old using a felt board. After the boys were in bed we had some fun playing Scrabble and opening a few gifts of our own.

Christmas Day

The boys had a lot of gifts to open, and were kind of overwhelmed. Once they opened a few, they wanted to enjoy them, so we set the gifts aside and let them open them throughout the day. We are so grateful for all the wonderful things that our family and friends gave to us and have really enjoyed everything.

Grandma Connor got this cool digital photo frame from her kids. There were pictures of all her family, kids and grand kids. We tried so hard to help her understand it, but I think she might need some reminding.

BTW...if you are curious about the Uncle B being Jesus, it is a funny story. I have been making more of an effort to teach the kids about Christ, but am at a loss how to do that with two year olds, and we don't have a lot of things around the house geared toward two year olds. Anyway, I have an I-SPY bag that happens to have a small picture of Jesus in it. I was sitting with Skyler before bedtime doing the I-Spy, so I found the picture and asked Skyler... "Who is this?" He thought for a moment, looked up at me and grinned is cheezy little grin and said..."Uncle B!" At the time Uncle B had longer hair and a beard. Anyway, as embarassing as this is for me to admit this failure in my parenting, it is kinda funny.

Getting Ready for Christmas

2010-01-09T15:32:00.005-07:00

We had a lot of fun getting ready for Christmas. The boys experienced their first Christmas tree, and helped the best they could to hang ornaments. They also enjoyed the decorations around the house. My favorite decoration growing up soon became their favorite. The crank ice pond with the twirling skaters. They loved to listen to the music and watch the skaters....so much that the pond is no more :( I am hoping David can fix it for next year. They also liked this inflatable snow globe with a snowman inside.

Connor and Skyler decorating the tree

Skyler decorating
\
Connor enjoys the snowman.

Connor admiring the pond

We also had a lot of fun doing a chocolate calendar to count down to Christmas.

Vising Santa

We went to see Santa at Albertsons. They boys were a little timid, but eventually warmed up. They loved to give him "booyaas"

Skyler and Santa

Connor and Santa

We also went to see Santa at the mall on Christmas Eve with Papa Craig and Grandma Teresa. This time they didn't want to sit with him, but we still got some good shots.

The boys then got to ride a couple rides.

Thanksgiving Weekend

2009-12-19T12:22:00.004-07:00

For Thanksgiving this year we went down to Las Vegas to spend it with all my (Cassie's) family. All 5 of us siblings and family were there, so it was a lot of fun to see everybody. The cousins all jumped on the trampoline quite a bot. We also took the kids to the little municipal airport in town. We ate lunch and watch planes land. It probably wasn't a SUPER busy day at the airport, so there weren't a whole lot of planes, but fortunately there was one plane that must have been practicing taking off and landing becasuse we saw that plane like 15 times, and the kids didn't know the difference, it was awesome. We also saw a helicopter. The boys really love planes and helicopters right now. I don't know how but anytime we go outside the start yelling, "airplane" and I think they are just doing it...but then I look where they are pointing and...theres a plane, that I would have NEVER noticed. It was a fun weekend and good to see everybody!

While working on Thanksgiving Dinner, somehow this plastic cutting board stuck to the bottom of a pan that was on its way back in to the oven, a GREAT mess to clean up while stressing about dinner :) Kristy is showing off the handy work!

The kids on the trampoline

At the Airport

Other fun pictures from November

Halloween

2009-11-25T09:25:00.004-07:00

I am FINALLY posting pictures of Haloween. I tried to be creative and do another TWIN themed costume, so they were MARIO and LUIGI. Skyler was Mario and Connor was Luigi. For Halloween we went to the High School and did their trick or treating through the halls. We also went to our ward Trunk or Treat. The boys got their costumes all wet at the ward activity, so when we got home we changed them out of their costumes. Connor didn't seem too interested and had a hard time even giving the candy to the those that came by the house. Skyler was very wrapped up in the spirit on Halloween, and loved answering the door and handing out the candy. I decided that he should be rewarded, so I threw on an extra costume my sister let me borrow (the elephant) and took him out trick or treating. It was seriously SO much fun. He was so cute, he learned not to walk on the grass, to go to houses that had porch lights on, to have his bucket when he knocked (it was kinda heavy so I was holding it), and to say trick or treat when somebody came to the door. Only he held his hand out instead of the bucket. By the time we got home, Connor seemed to be in a more chipper mood, so we threw a Dragon costume on him and David and I took the boys to a few more houses. We really had a fun time.

Staheli Family Farm

2009-11-08T19:44:00.004-07:00

The weekend of October 23, my sister, Erica, and her boys were in town. David and her husband, Heber, went up to Provo for a football game. We had a lot of fun that weekend. One thing we did was to go to Staheli Family Farm. Our cousin Cinthia also went with us. The boys had so much fun on the corn slide, then the petting zoo. Eventally the did the train ride (pulled by the tractor). And finally they enjoyed the tire swing made to look like bulls. Skyler absolutely LOVED the train ride and seeing the cows during it. He would have riden it all day. Connor enjoyed the tire swing, and it was quite a challenge getting him off.

Random Fun

2009-11-08T18:44:00.004-07:00

The boys are silly, and learning to play together

Skyler is still a happy little boy, and is learning so much. He knows some of his colors and shapes. I would say his favorite colors are Orange and Green. He also loves the moon and animals. He is a little sponge and loves to learn and talk.

Connor is a silly boy. He loves to color and to point out shapes. His favorite is the circle, then probably the triangle, heart and star. But he is definitely a circle fan.

On Fridays we like to go outside and watch for the trash truck. The driver is so awesome and totally entertains the kids and honks the horn. One day he came back with, probably his boss or something, and gave the kids each a hat, a toy figurine trash can and a coloring book. It seriously so nice.

Boys turn 2

2009-10-14T15:13:00.010-06:00

Starting the Day
October 1st marked the boys 2nd birthday. We still feel they are a little young to go "all out" for their birthday, so we kept it simple again this year. It is starting to get a little cool here, especially in the mornings so I dressed the boys in a beach bum fashion, shorts and a sweat shirt. Skyler picks out some of his own clothes and shoes, and he chose to wear slippers this morning.

Dinner with some family
After their morning milk, we were off to daycare. They had a pleasant surprise when Grandma Carma picked them up early. She brought them home and they played with Grandma Carma and Papa Craig, who was in town for the marathon. We had a little pizza for dinner.

Presents
After Pizza it was present time. They still don't really understand this concept. Skyler was the first to open his presents. I made them quilts, G-ma Carma got them these cool microphones and toy cars, and Papa Craig and G-ma Teresa got them puzzles and these super cool night lights that are like stuffed animals that project stars and a moon onto the ceiling...it looks like you are outside. The Lounsbury's got them GIANT coloring books as well as new crayons.

Cake & Ice Cream
Grandma Carma made the boys a cookie cake. And I heard they got into the frosting a little premature (Their poop was blue the next day). Our cousins Cinthia and Landon and their kids made it for cake and ice cream as well.

Family Photos
To mark their 2nd birthday, we went an had family pictures taken. The boys were VERY rambunctious, and I was glad we got a couple good ones.

In a few days I will try to post info about the boys individually...give all these pictures a moment to sink in!

St. George Marathon

2009-10-11T18:15:00.006-06:00

On Oct. 3rd David ran the St. George Marathon. Papa Craig was going to run it as well, but due to injury he was unable to. He was a little sad that he had to stand in the cheering section with us, but I was very grateful for his help with the Twinkies, and we are so proud of all his other marathons he has done, including Boston! GO PAPA!!!

Anyway Skyler had a blast watching all the racers come in. He really get in to these things, it is so fun. Connor on the other hand was more concerned with the balloon that was tied to a stroller about 10 feet away, and that he couldn't have it.

David ran the marathon in just under 4 hours. I am going to make him come and tell a little about it...

Well the I woke up the marathon morning tired and not ready to run, but I was going to make myself do the marathon. My goal was under four hours and I got that. The race was going great till about mile twenty and then I broke down. That is the problem with being sick for a month and not doing a long run. Next year I hope to break the three hour mark. We will start training this week.

Well, Oct. 1st was the boys 2nd Birthday. I havn't posted anything yet because I am waiting for our family pictures to come back. But here are some random photos to tide you over until then.

Connor had fun playing with Papa's glasses (above) and I can't believe he still sleeps like this (below)

Skyler is such a ham it is funny

This is the boys favorite place to eat now on the little bar stools.

The boys love their Grandma Carma, and when she comes to visit. Sometimes she surprises them and picks them up from Daycare.

Cassie's Triathlon and Family Salt Lake City trip

2009-09-28T19:39:00.005-06:00

On September 19 we took a trip up to Salt Lake City for my (Cassie's) triathlon in Daybreak. My old college friend was coming up to do this with her Dad, and asked me to do it as well. So I agreed. This was another Sprint Tri, but I am not sure the distances were 100% accurate.

SWIM
We were supposed to do a 750 meter swim in the lake, but due to an outbreak of Round Worm, there was a last minute lake closure. To compensate for that leg of the Tri, we were bused to a community pool (not like a city community pool, but like a sub division community pool) where we swam 75 yards...yes, 75 yards, 3 lengths of the pool. We were in the water for probably a minute and a half. Then we had to run back to transition about 1.2 miles away. Anything we took with us to the pool, we either had to leave there or run back with.

BIKE
For the most part the way out was up hill with a couple of down hills, and a pretty good head wind. A little before the turn around point, we went up a pretty good hill that was a mile long. It was torture in the head wind, then you go down hill, then up a pretty short steep hill. I remember when I was going up the hill, I felt like I was standing still, and Cami (my friend) came WIZZING by me SO fast going the opposite direction. I knew the down hill part was coming up before the steep hill, and I would get a break, and so I was going down, and still working so hard...DOWN HILL, yeah, it stunk! But the way back was SUPER fun, going downhill with the tail wind, I think I was pushing 40 MPH. I would say the bike was about 11 1/2 miles or so, and a true Sprint tri is 12.4 miles I think.

RUN
Good run around the lake. It had a pretty view the whole time. Pretty flat, about 3 miles, and a true Sprint tri is 3.1. Really not much to say here. I was bummed there was only 1 aid station, and I thought there would be 2.

FINISH
The boys were so patient the whole time, from what I understand, and I was excited to see my friend Amber after the race, I didn't know she was even coming out. And, David was watching the bikers coming in as I crossed the finish line, so he didn't get to see me, or get any pictures. So the pictures below are just random shots. Eventually the race will post their pictures, and I might have some in there, so if you want you can check on the races's web site. Once they have them, I will post as well:

http://www.ustrisports.com/daybreak.htm

RESULTS
http://www.onlineraceresults.com/race/view_individual.php?make_printable=1&bib_num=679&race_id=12246&type=result

bib number:	679
gender:	F
location:	Saint George, UT
overall place:	214 out of 327
division place:	27 out of 47
gender place:	80 out of 153
time:	1:36:00
pace:	0:
swim:	14:27
t1:	1:45
bike:	48:08
t2:	1:08
run:	30:33

The Trip
While there we met up with as many people as we could. We saw my cousin JanEtta and her son after the race, as well as my friend Ashley and her family. We went to dinner at their house Saturday night. Skyler LOVED their motor Jeep thing, but Connor was a little timid, and stayed safely in the manual car. We also saw David's cousin Caroline. We stayed with the ever so hospitable Glenn family, and had a great time visiting with them, and taking the boys to their FIRST football to see one of the Glenn boys. Skyler LOVED it. Not really the game, but the social aspect with all the people and the clapping. Connor liked it, but not as much and I think just wanted to go home and sleep.

On the way down we had to take this shot of Connor sleeping, and then Skyler saw the camera and kept saying "CHEESE" over and over, so we had to snap a couple shots of that as well. They did so good on the ride, and gave us more confidence to hopefully make this trip again soon, and not wait another 2 years.

California Trip

2009-09-20T19:30:00.002-06:00

Over Labor Day we went down to California to see David's parents, and took Uncle Bryan along with us. We had such a fun time, but didn't really take pictures of everything we did. Here is a list of some things we did:

Santa Barbara Zoo
Beach (twice)
Aunt Marylin and Uncle Dennis' for a BBQ with the cousins. Super fun to see all them again
Hanging out at Grandma and Papa's farm house
First experience with tofu
Got to see lots of trains

Here are some pictures at the BEACH

The park at the beach, Skyler must see an airplane.

Skyler got to boogie board

Fun in the sand with Grandma and a new friend

The boys and mom go buggie boarding

Uncle B buries Skyler

Poor Connor had a rough time with the sand in his eyes

Then Skyler and Uncle B bury Connor

Flying the kite

Skyler can't get enough of the buggie board

Just relaxin with Grandma Teresa

At the SANTA BARBARA ZOO

We took the boys on the train ride. Connor was scared at first, and we almost didn't let him go, but eventually he calmed down, just in time. Skyler absolutely LOVED it and was so attentive and acting like a big boy!

Closest thing to a petting zoo experience when they got to feed some sheep through a gate

Papa Craig just had to be a goof

Watching the turtles

Just walking around, looking at everything. Boys were pretty interested, and had a fun time. Skyler especially liked the zoo, and spent a lot of time on Papa's shoulders.

August

2009-09-10T20:46:00.008-06:00

The boys are so much fun, we are always busy and entertained by what they will do next. Here are some pictures to re-cap the month

BOYS LOVE TO EAT
Just not always at designated mealtimes

Licorice does qualify as a meal

The boys take after Papa Craig and love to each Grandma Sycamore

What can we say, Daddy keeps the boys on a very nutritious diet, tonight they got chocolate pudding for dinner.

Wouldn't eat my mashed potatoes at dinner, but they cleaned the bowl after

Connor LOVES yogurt

What came first, 2 beaters to accommodate 2 kids....
or 2 kids to accommodate 2 beaters?

WHAT'S A BED?
Sometimes Skyler forgets

FUN IN THE RAIN

HELPING WITH THE DISHES

The boys love to help. Skyler especially likes to assist me in daily chores. He helps me with dishes and puts the silverware away... sometimes he gets a little sidetracked.

COMPUTER TIME

They boys are learning how to play nice on the computer as they learn shapes, colors, etc.

We also went to California over the weekend. I will post that tomorrow hopefully.

Locks of Love

2009-08-16T19:24:00.006-06:00

About a week ago, I decided that I was so sick of my long hair. It takes forever to dry, and I don't even own a blow dryer, so I was always going to bed with it wet. Connor LOATHES my hair and anytime it is down, he brushes it off my shoulders, which is why it is up so much of the time. I liked to wear it down, and it was long, and it looked good, but I hate my hair in my face. Anyway, I just decided that I was SICK of it, so I figured if I was going to cut it, I would cut enough off to donate to Locks of Love. This will be my second donation. When I called my neighbor to cut it, I told her my only requirement was that I could still put it in a pony tail. So there are lots of cute layers, and it still goes into a pony tail. I can't get it to look as good as she did though :( And I even went and bought a blow dryer!

One word to describe how I feel: LIBERATED
One phrase to describe how I feel: LIKE A WEIGHT HAS BEEN LIFTED

Donation (May 2005)

Donation (August 2009)

Summer is FUN

2009-08-02T13:29:00.007-06:00

The boys are growing up SO much lately it is amazing. they are learning to communicate with us which is AWESOME. They are also learning to play with eachother more and more every day. Skyler is super good at helping me clean up, but Connor needs a little work on that. Connor makes the messes and Skyler cleans them up.

Right now the boys are really in to stickers, especially Skyler. They help at church for sure, but sometimes this is how he ends up.

They also like to climb in things still. The newest thing they have found it is to empty out the linen closet, and climb in there.

24th of July
We did our own little firework show on our driveway for the boys. Connor was scared silly, and didn't really care for the loud noises at first. Skyler was scared a little at first, then came around, but didn't want to leave my side.

Splash Pad Fun
We have taken the boys to the splash pad near our home a couple times. We like to go to this one because it isn't really busy. It is hit-n-miss on if they will like the water that day, which is another reason we like this one because they have a fun park not 15 yards from the splash pad. There is lots of grass for the boys to run around, a basketball court to play with daddy, and a pickle ball court that they like to run around in. Yeah, we like to come here, if for anything else to wear the boys out!

Skyler

Connor

4th of July in Hatch

2009-07-06T19:10:00.009-06:00

So in family tradition we went up to the "Wood" family cabin for the 4th of July. There with us was Jared and Jen and thier family, Dana and Kimo and their family, and Kimo's mom, and our mom. We had such a fun time. It is such a small town, we just let the boys run around outside and play on this little bike/scooter thing in the street. We were actually unsure that we would be able to go because there was a chance that Skyler may have had Hand, Foot and Mouth disease. He had sores all over his tongue, and hadn't eaten much, due to the pain, all week. We decided to try it out though, and it was totally worth it. They had so much fun, and really enjoyed spending so much time outside. We also got to sleep in the basement, which is definitely an experience, the cabin is not the most glamorous of cabins, and needs some work, but is seriously SO much fun. But anyway, David sleped in bed with Skyler and I sleped with Connor. We don't really have the opportunity to cuddle up with the kids to sleep, they would rather be in their beds, so for me this was a treat to share a bed with Connor. David said that Skyler was a bed hog...which I can see. That was why they didn't last too long sharing a bed.

HATCH TOWN PARADE
Well as soon as we got there Connor spotted a boy with a patriotic bunch balloon, which punch balloons are one of his FAVORITE toys right now, so from that point on, he had nothing else on his mind. Eventually the boy was so awesome and just let Connor have the balloon. My mom also gave the kids pinwheels, and Skyler loved his. He had a hard time getting it to work, but that didn't stop him from trying. Mom helped a little. Then we just waited and tried to grab the candy. The boys didn't really get it, but I think they still had fun watching all the cars. Connor was trying to go in to the street, and almost got hit by a quad.

FOOT RACES
Skyler and I have been practicing for the last few months for the foot races they do at the "Carnival" type-ish thing, so we were VERY excited. Anyway, they called the one year olds, and Connor didn't want to stop swinging, so it was just Skyler. They said, "Ready-Set-Go" and Skyler didn't know what to do. I tried to help him, and I think I was the only parent shoving her kid down the lawn, everybody else was waiting at the finish line calling their child. I probably looked like a total fool, but either way, we had fun! I don't think he won, I think my nephew, Aiden, did. GO AIDEN!

FIREPLACE FIASCO
I was in the kitchen prepping for dinner and asked my mom to help me keep an eye on Connor. Needless to say, I don't think either of us were paying much attention until my nephew Jay came in and told us he was in the fireplace. Of course we had to take advantage of the photo opp before cleanup started. Thank goodness Grandma Carma was around to take care of that part!

MOTORCYCLE RIDES
One of the perks of going with family is that you get to benefit from all their fun toys they bring. My sister-in-law brought her beach cruiser (bike) that was white with pretty pink flowers and a pink basket in front, as well as a children's seat attached behind the back seat. I didn't get any pictures of it, but I took the boys on so many rides, it was GREAT.

Then there were the REAL toys. My brother, Jared, took Skyler on a ride on the quad. When it was Connors turn, I think the loudness of the quad scared him (loud noises do that to him, don't get me started on the lawnmower). After seeing how much fun Skyler was having on the bike, I think Connor was jealous. Anyway I ended up taking him, and he absolutely loved it.

AT THE FIREWORKS SHOW...
Believe it or not, Hatch actually get a pretty good firework show. So we went just outside of town (a whole mile away) and parked and waited for the firework show.

While we were waiting the older kids got to do some fireworks so I brought some glow sticks for the little ones. Skyler loved the glow sticks and wore them around his arms all night

The boys kept us on our toes as they ran all over the place, and my mom kept ALL the kids busy with her pocket full of candy! Skyler even ate some, my mom was quite proud!

Once the fireworks started the boys were finally still. Connor was a little scared at the loud noises, but that was over within seconds. They sat on our laps and just looked up in the sky, it was a lot of fun!

Kids are growing up

2009-06-24T16:07:00.005-06:00

So the boys are really growing up. They are starting to listen to us better, and learning a lot. They understand what we are communicating, and that is super fun now. They are picking up on words. Words that they say (though we might be the only ones to understand) are: please, more, cookie, shoes, juice, bye bye, milk, help, cheese, no, ball, papa and poopoo (they get those pixed up sometimes, sorry papa Craig) and that is all I can think of right now. They are so cute, they say "PEEEEZEEE" anytime they want something, and when you look down at them rubbing their chest (the sign for "Please") and a HUGE grin as they say it, it breaks your heart if you have to say no. Skyler can count to 3, but 2 is definitely his favorite number, 1 and 3 are hit an miss. We say 1, 2, 3... GO. He also mimics me when we go through books and say the colors, he also says apple. Connor can say GoGurt (their favorite after nap snack) and mama. As they are learning more, we aren't signing as much, but we still work on it, and I can definitely see how signing has helped with their communication.

The boys are also learning to play and associate a bit more with each other. They push each other around in the laundry basket (until they broke it) and in the toy cars. I think a language of their own is in the works, because they talk to each other and seem to understand each other, though we have no idea what they are saying. They like to sit next to eachother and eat their snacks on the couch. They love to jump on their trampoline, sing and dance. They like to head bob to rap music in the car. We go to the pool about once a week, and they love to go down the hydrotube slide. They really like balls and balloons, especially punch ball balloons. The boys go everywhere and keep us on our toes, and are seriously so much fun it is ridiculous!

I looked out the window and what did I see...... A chicken staring back at me!

That's right, we were sitting around one afternoon, and out of no where a chicken shows up on our front porch.

For Fathers Day I dressed the boys up (see below) but Skyler's shirt, boots and pants were on the big side, I asked David if he looked like he was going to go in to a school with a gun or something, but he said the tie pulled it together, but once we changed him out of his chirch shirt and tie.... I dunno, what do you think?

Sleeping Patterns:

Toddler beds have been a REAL challenge and we have to stay in there with them until they fall asleep. We did get a music player that projects an image on to the ceiling, and that seems to be helping. I think the fact that it stays light so long doesn't help very much either.

Connor still sleeps with his blanket in his mouth

Skyler loves to look at his books before bed

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY
In tribute to David for Father's Day, I would like to say how awesome of a Dad David is. He is so good with the boys, and so supportive of me. I couldn't have asked for a better guy. For Father's Day I got the boys all matching ties, and they looked SO cute for church. I had to speak in church, which was OK I guess. I got to get up and publicly make fun of David for forgetting me on Mother's Day. So I guess we are even!

Utah Summer Games Sprint Triathlon

2009-06-16T13:07:00.004-06:00

So I know we haven't posted in a while, and I promise I will do a family post in the next few days. I wanted to do a post on the Utah Summer Games Sprint Triathlon I did last weekend (June 13, 2009). The triathlon consists of a half mile swim, 12 mile bike ride and a 5K (3.1 mile) run. I have been training a bit with the Southern Utah Triathlon club and learning so much. I am really enjoying this sport and changing it up from just running.

So to start out the day I woke up at about 5 AM and left the house with my bike stuffed in the trunk of the Jetta. I got to the lake and set up my transition station. Went and got branded with my race number, division and age on my arms and legs, then basically waited until my wave of swimmers left.

We got in the water, and it was chilly (thank goodness for the wetsuit Dana let me borrow). This was a new experience for me swimming around so many other swimmers, getting kicked, kicking others, running into people, dodging other swimmer, etc. I did the swim, and it was a little more difficult than I expected. This was probably the longest open water swim I have done thus far, and it didn't help that the water was a bit on the choppy side due to the overcast weather.

I got out of the lake, and walked/ran on the asphalt, that had tons of little rocks digging in to my bare feet, to my transition station, got dressed, put on my super cool new shoes and started off on the bike.

Now... anybody who has done this bike course know a little something about..."THE HILL!" This is a hill that is pretty steep and is about 3/4 of a mile to a mile long. You hit it about 3-4 miles into the bike ride. Up until this point I had not been successful at completing the hill without having to stop and walk at least once. This was the thing that made me most nervous about the race, because I was afraid if I got off, I wouldn't be able to get back on. Well, I am proud to announce I made it up the hill without stopping! I am super glad I got my road bike fixed up for this. I bought it about 8 years ago, never road it, and it has been hopping from garage to garage all this time, and taking up a permanent residence in David's Grandma's basement for the last 5-6 years. I took it in to the bike shop and asked what the lesser of 2 evils was, the half way decent mountain bike, or the old road bike. HANDS DOWN it was the road bike, and I seriously LOVE my "new" old bike!

During the bike ride it started to rain just a bit. It was nice because it wasn't so hot, BUT being from Vegas... land of the "slipper when wet" roads, this made me a bit nervous. I did take caution and had a safe bike ride.

Then I got off my bike, put it back, and started right on my run (keeping on my cool new shoes...that's why I got them, good for the bike and the run, since I don't have shoes that clip in to my bike pedals). As I exited the state park, what did I see... my ever so supportive hubby cheering me on! That was so great! I had a strong run, and about 2 miles in I started to wear a blister, since I wasn't wearing any socks. This didn't slow me down though! And I finished the race. Now, I am NOT built for speed, so my time wasn't the fastest, but I felt for ME.... I had a strong race. I didn't even stick around for results, I just packed up the bike and headed home.

We didn't have a camera, so here are a few pictures from camera phones

My transition station

David catching a photo on my run

See the Zazoosh (not so flattering) photos:

The Swim
http://www.zazoosh.com/photos/215100807

The run
http://www.zazoosh.com/events/searchPhotos/215?evtId=215&query=262&x=0&y=0

I am bummed I didn't get a picture on my bike, so sad!

I notice that I squint my eyes, so I always look like I am in pain... I promise I'm not :)

Here is my results page as well, again, my times are not very good
http://www.milliseconds.com/participants/detail/805585139

Basically the times went like this:
1/2 mile Swim: 21:57
Transition S2B: 4:40
12 mile Bike: 56:38
Transition B2R: 1:20
5K (3.1 mile) Run: 31:53
TOTAL: 1:56:31

My goal was 2 hours, and I didn't even think I would do that, so mission accomplished!

new blog

2009-05-26T21:56:00.002-06:00

instead of the running dad it is www.fifedogrunning.blogspot.com

Joys of sick kids

2009-05-07T11:45:00.004-06:00

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Isn't lovely having sick children, especially when they share everything. There are just so many perks... Getting out of work is definitely a plus right, especially when you still have to pay the babysitter for not babysitting a full week, when you didn't bring in any income. That is just lovely, right! Plus, your... YOU time is taken from you for the whole week. Remembering every 3 hours... Did I give them Tylenol or Motrin last? Which is it this time? How much? Did it bring the fever down? Baths at 10 PM at night because despite a full day of being medicated, the temperature is still peaking at a lovely 103 degrees. Kids sleeping in your room... just to be safe, but ultimately end up in bed with you, and then you end up on the couch, because all they want is Daddy. Saving money on food because they wont eat. I would have to say the one actual, REAL, good thing is that we haven't had issues with the toddler beds, they basically beg us to put them to bed. It was cute though yesterday, Connor laid down on the couch most the afternoon, and he held on to that balloon almost the whole time.

An Eventful April

2009-04-24T13:28:00.007-06:00

This April has been full of fun and exciting events. this will be a long post, so don't say I didn't warn you!

COMPANY

Lets start with the (Randy) Fife family visit.

Randy and Jenny and their four kids drove all the way from Wisconsin to California, and were able to stop for a day on their way home. We had a fun time playing outside and going to the pool. I don't have any pictures of that, but I am sure I will have pool pictures eventually, we plan to return a lot because we had so much fun. We even took the boys down the slide.

Here are all the kids trying to pose for a picture:
Connor, Joshua, Alan, Skyler, Elizabeth and Rebekka

EASTER

For Easter we went down to Las Vegas and celebrated with Cassie's family. We had an Easter Egg hunt at Grandma Carma's. We let the toddlers go out first to get the eggs that were just in the grass and stuff, and then the older kids got to go out.

Skyler immediately went for his new slide (I got both those slides and a mini swing set off Craig's List while we were there for SUPER cheap, and the boys love them). Once he figured out the eggs contained special treats, he was a little more interested.

Connor LOVED the egg hunt, he found about 3 eggs, parked it, and sat there and ate all their contents. He was so fun to watch. His mouth was so full of candy the whole time. Then he had to start sharing with my nephew, Aiden.

After all the eggs were accounted for, and the sugar kicked in, the older boys all decided it would be fun to jump all over their Uncle David. What a good sport to let them abuse him like that.

On Easter we went to Erica and Heber's house for the Easter Bunny. Again, the boys didn't realy get it, but they REALLY enjoy their new sandals and sidewalk chalk.

Another egg hunt, and Kale was SO helpful

Not much of Easter dinner made it into Connor mouth! That was fun, good thing Grandma Carma was around to clean him up!

ABOUT THE BOYS

This month Connor is starting to talk a bit more, and sign a little more as well. I think he is learning quite a bit from Skyler. He became a master at climbing out of his crib. His hair is groing in thicker and longer since the "BUZZ" a few months ago. He is such a cuddler, and ever since his we have tried putting him in nursery at church, is even more so clingy than ever. Which is odd, since he goes to daycare three days a week. He also discovered corn on the cob, which is what he is eating above. He seriously eats it until it is JUST the cob left, and then he tries to eat that. He is a good eater, but at snack time if you hand him a snack, he will gum and and chew on it for as long as you let him. But once he knows there is more coming, he will shove the whole thing in his mouth and ask for more. He tought Skyler a new trick the tub where they jump in the air and land on their bumbs. Water, of course goes EVERYWHERE, and I am soaked, but that doesn't stop them. The first time he did it, Skyler was already out, and just laughing histarically at Connor doing this, I had to film it it was so funny. Every once and a while there is a collision, but that doesn't slow em down!

Skyler is seriously our little ham. He is talking more, and every time he sees the camera, "CHEESE" with a HUGE grin on his face. It has been making it hard to get candid shots of him. He is doing well with his sign language and can really communicate that way. He learns the sign, and then learns to say the work. So his vocabulary grows through the signs he learns. It is kinda interesting. He can also count to at least 3, though he skips 1. "Two, Tree, GOOOOOO" and down the slide he goes, or off on a run, whatever. But yeah, he counts a lot, and that is fun. He also loves to read books, and takes them to bed with him. I wish I was better about taking the initiative to read to him more, he is seriously a little sponge, and learns so much. He is also SUCH a tease, and loves to do things just to get a reaction, or fake like he is going to do something, to get a reaction.... the spanking....totally worth it to him. Maybe we should think of another form of disciplin. He is also a tough kid, I can't tell you how many bumps on the head or scratches, whatever he has gotten this month, and it is just a little cry, and off he goes.

NEW BEDS

Well, as was mentioned above, Connor became a MASTER at climbing out of his crib, sometimes I would find him asleep on the floor. We would have to put him back at least 5 times a night sometimes, despite our efforts in training. Skyler likes to climb out as well, but isn't nearly as skilled, to him it was more of a game, to tease us like..."looky here, I am climbing out" and then back in bed he would go. Well, he fell out once, and started crying, so we went and put him back, and didn't think he would do it again. That lasted a few days, and out he fell again, and started crying. The next day we decided that was it. If they were going to be climbing or falling out of bed, we should move them into their toddler beds (which I purchased off Craig's List in Vegas for super cheap about a month ago). I (Cassie) took apart both cribs, all by myself, and brought these in (they were already put together). The boys thought it was SO fun to watch mommy do all this, and they would jump on the mattresses, it was so fun. Once everything was ready, they LOVED it, and went back and forth running and jumping from bed to bed. Life was good until it was time to go to sleep. Lets just say it has been a hard adjustment, and one of us usually has to stay in the room until they are almost asleep, keeping them in bed. They wake up earlier because they can go play with their toys. It does get better every day. And now their room is a place they enjoy and love to play. They can stay in there unsupervised, and it makes it nice for us as well. The cribs just took up so much space the way we had to have them in there...dang blinds!!!!

Connor's Bed

Skyler's Bed

TRIATHLON

Cassie had her first triathlon. We were supposed to go to Phoenix this weekend for Dana's boy, Ty's Baptism, but weren't able to make it. Which now I feel bad about because my mom, Erica and Jen all went with their kids. Jen is in an arm sling due to a fall she had a couple weeks ago, in addition to by brother somewhat being out of commission due to his torn ACL. Anyway, my mom has been doing what she can to help the two of them out. Well, while in Phoenix, my mom fell and broke her arm in two places near her sholder. So she wasn't really able to help Jen out with the kids during the trip. Well, anyway, I felt REALLY bad I wasn't there.

Anyway, back to the point... We decided not to go to Phoenix that weekend, and I was pretty bummed about it. I saw this triathlon was going to be that same weekend, so I signed up for it to cheer myself up, and started training. It was a Sprint triathlon with a 1/4 mile swim, 10 mile bike ride and a 3 mile run. It was a LOT more competitive than I thought it would be, and I felt quite ridiculous doing in on my free mountain bike, and $20 Wal-Mart helmet and people with thousand dollar road bikes and helmets that make them look like aliens, passing me like I was standing still. Either way, I had a LOT of fun, and finished very strong, I never hit a wall like I thought I would. I felt good about my time until I saw the rankings, and then felt rather stupid. I really want to keep doing them, but don't want to put money into it by getting a road bike. So I kinda have to let my ego go, and realize I am in this for fun, and to accomplish things, and not care about how stupid I look. I really did enjoy it, and would love to do more of them. Utah Summer Games....here I come!!! (Assuming the ego thing passes)

David and the boys made it out during the run portion, here I am starting my second lap of the run (the course was the same for the beginner and the sprint, with the beginner being 1/2 half the distance, so for the sprint, you just did 2 of everything.)

Crossing the finish line

Checking my final time of about 1 hour and 40 minutes. I was pretty average on the swim and run, but the bike ride KILLED my time.

See, I told you this would be a long post, so thanks, if you made it to the end, for sticking around. If you didn't read everything, I am not offended....It really is about the pictures!

What is going on here?

2009-03-27T12:33:00.005-06:00

Isn't it odd that last week I boasted about getting to put my kids in shorts and flip-flops and how cute they looked. Well this week, they are in jackets and beanies... What's the deal?

Is it just me, or does my son somewhat resemble Dopey from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs? He always was my favorite, I always thought he was cute!

So, today as I was con my computer, I had to e-mail my boss, the kids were playing so quiet and good, I thought I would check my facebook. Then I realized the kids were too quiet. Which means they are in trouble, so I went to check on them, and this is what I found. Them totally covered in soil from this plan, the moss everywhere, the soil covering the WHOLE counter and the floor. These picture really do no justice to the mess they created. So what did I do... I did what any good mom would... wanted to get mad, but couldn't help taking advantage of the photo opp. Stripped the kids down, threw them in the tub and left them there while I cleaned up.

Good weather = Fun times

2009-03-19T20:46:00.003-06:00

Last weekend on March 14, the Fifes did a 10K. Teresa went walking while David, Bryan, Craig and I ran the Spectrum 10K. The twinkies had fun with a babysitter. Craig finished around 43 minutes, David at around 46 and Bryan was kind enough to hang back with me and finish at 1 hr 5 min. This was an improvement of about 6 minutes off last years time for me. Unfortunately the camera didn't have batteries, so we have video footage, but no still shots, and our computer isn't smart enough to do videos. Anyway, zazoosh was there taking pictures, so on the link below you can see pictures of the four of us.

http://www.zazoosh.com/events/searchPhotos/187?evtId=187&query=fife&x=0&y=0

The weather has been so great lately. Still kinda cold in the morning, but by about 10 AM it is great. So Wednesday I broke out some of the kids new summer clothes (I bought on clearance last fall) and their new flip flops, that they LOVE and can't wear enough. Skyler wears them until I MAKE him take them off to sleep, and as soon as he wakes up... he wants them back on. Anyway, these pictures are all inside, but we did go to the park and have some fun.

We have this little car, and if I push them, I make them put their feet up, so I don't run over them.... I think Skyler wants a ride :)

For a very brief moment, they figured out they could push eachother when mom is busy.

Here they are just TOO cute in their summer clothes.

Connor LOVES his food, he was real hungry can you tell?

Skyler LOVES to give kisses! MMMWWWAAAA

They both LOVE their daddy!

New blogs....

2009-03-15T19:45:00.003-06:00

I am trying a few new blogs.

www.thisblogisforjenny.blogspot.com

and...

www.therunningdad.blogspot.com

The first blog is for my sister-in-law Jenny...Happy Birthday. You will have to check out the jokes I played on her and vote on them...

The second blog will be motivation for me running and beating my Dad. Also getting that awesome body.