The Neilson's

Update

2012-02-09T23:33:00.000-08:00

I have not been very good at keeping my blog up to date and I desperately want to compile my blog into a book. I am not good at scrap booking or keeping a journal so the little bit I have done in this blog is quite amazing! I have been reading a new book called The Happiness Project, it's all about setting new goals and doing things to help you to feel happier. Thus, my goal for the year is going to be to post one post from the past each week and blog about what is currently going on at least once a month. I am realizing as I am trying to post about things from the past that I am struggling to remember all the details and this makes me sad! You would think that a picture would help.

Anyways, this week has been a little cray. We celebrated my Mother's 50th Birthday on Superbowl Sunday! We had a big get together at her house that was a lot of fun. My poor Grandma Barney isn't doing very well. I had a conversation with her about moving into a semi-assisted living apartment and she is now convinced that I want to institutionalize her. She was diagnosed with Alzheimer's about five years ago. Over the last sixth months she has really gone down hill. It breaks my heart.

Monday morning Dexton woke up feeling sick. Only he didn't communicate the fact he was sick to me, he just said he was tired. So I took him to school late. He had only been there an hour and he called saying he was sick. Unfortunately, by the time I got there he was in the nurses office and had thrown up in the garbage can. I assumed he had the stomach flu and brought him home. In the mean time, Ocianne had been sick with a cold for about a week. She had woke up that morning with a strange zity rash on he face all around her mouth and nose. I assumed she was getting a sinus infection because her nose was disgusting but the rash had me concerned. I took them to the doctor on Tuesday and found out that they both had Strep Throat. This meant one more day at home until the antibiotics kicked in.

Wednesday Kevin called me from work and confessed he wasn't feeling well at all. He was sure he had the Flu. I suggested it was Strep since that is what was going around the house and called the doctor to get him started on an antibiotic. Today is Thursday and he claims he his feeling worse. Maybe he does have the Flu! Not fun! To top it all off, I started feeling sick today. I started myself on an antibiotic and seem to be feeling a little better. Hopefully tomorrow will be a better day. On the bright side, hopefully we are getting all of our sickness over at once! Knock on wood!

Fall Drive

2011-10-15T21:35:00.000-07:00

We went for a drive up American Fork Canyon to see the beautiful fall leaves one Sunday afternoon. Unfortunately, we forgot the camera so we took this picture with the phone. The leaves were so beautiful and I wish I had more pictures to show the beauty of them. Dexton and Ocianne had a wonderful time looking at the leaves and Gabrielle had a great nap!

Western Days

2011-09-28T21:17:00.000-07:00

Western Days take one!

Western Days take two!

As usual, Challenger held Western Day's for the kids at school. Ocianne attends school three days a week and I got a little confused as to which day she was supposed to dress up! Hence the take one and then take two! When we arrived at school the first time and found that it was NOT Western Day's Ocianne just took her hat off and it wasn't that big of a deal that she had dressed up. I don't think the kids noticed. I told her she was lucky because she got to dress up twice! She didn't seem to mind. When it was finally Western Day's, she had a great time singing cute western songs and other activities. The school had a petting zoo come. She was most impressed by the horse, which I found a little funny because she is around horses a lot in Scipio!

Back To School

2011-08-31T21:39:00.000-07:00

During the month of August we have been busy getting in our last few moments of summer fun! We went to Lagoon as a family except for Gabby. We left her home with Grandma Shauna. Lagoon didn't start off too well for Dexton, as we were getting out of the car he burnt the back of his calf on the muffler of the car. It made a pretty big mark on his leg. We made a visit to the first aid center when we entered the park and they were able to help make it feel better so that we were able to enjoy the rest of the day. Dexton is so brave he went on every ride he could with all the older boys. He even went on the sky coaster with his cousin Colton! I think I was more nervous watching him as his mother than he was to go on it. Ocianne is a little more apprehensive. She was crying on the Tilt a Whirl! She didn't like the rides that spun around. She had a great time hanging out with her cousins Dawson and Jarron. Her favorite rides were driving the cars and bumper cars! Dexton also won two stuffed animals, one for him and one for Oci, playing a game where you had to get the ball into a colored hole. We had a great time!
Dexton started second grade this month. I can't believe how old he is getting! He is really growing up! As always he makes us laugh by the witty things he says. He is trying to assert himself and be more like an adult all the time. We really enjoy spending time with him!
Ocianne started her second year of preschool this year at Challenger. She is four years old now going on 16! She is our little drama queen and we love her! I wish she would slow down a little. She loves to laugh and make Gabby laugh. They already feed off each others laughter and I can't help but smile at my two giggly girls!
Gabby is now eight months old! It has flown by! She can say "dadda" and "mama" now. She started pulling herself up on the furniture this month and has mastered going up the stairs. If she could just learn to go down now......unfortunately she isn't interested in that. She has had a few falls down a couple of stairs here and there. She is at such a fun age right now. The kids and us are really enjoying her. She is so sweet and loving we just love her! I had left her crawling around the family room and heard her yelling, when I looked over her headband was down over her eyes! She was still trying to find her way around. I couldn't help but laugh!
Below is a before and after picture.

Ocianne's First Day of Preschool

Dexton's First Day of Second Grade

Gabbby Eight Months Old

Hogle Zoo

2011-07-23T23:30:00.000-07:00

We have been very busy this July, as we are every year. We recently went to the zoo with the Neilson's. It was just the moms, the kids and of course Grandma. She is always a good sport and wants to come along so she can spend time with all of us. I'm not so sure if I was Grandma that I would want to go to the zoo in the middle of July! It was a very hot day but the kids didn't seem to mind. The zoo was having a Jurassic theme and they had dinosaurs all around the zoo. Dexton loved this! He knew about all the dinosaurs and when I called them the wrong name he would correct me and tell me the differences between the one I thought it was and what it actually was. Ocianne kept asking me if they were real because they looked and moved as if they were alive. She walked all around the zoo and didn't complain much at all. She is getting so grown up! Gabrielle did great. She loves being outside and was very pleasant she even took a short nap!

Dexton and Ocianne with the elephants (notice the baby)

Dexton and his favorite dinosaur T-Rex

Ocianne riding a wood horse

Gabby in her stroller

Ashlyn holding Mckinly and Dexton holding Gabby

Fourth of July Weekend

2011-07-06T21:50:00.000-07:00

Lake Powell July 04, 2011

We headed down to Lake Powell for the Fourth of July weekend. This year went a lot better than the previous year. We were able to find a pretty nice beach thanks to the high water level. We were tucked back in a nice little cove and the kids were able to put on their life jackets and swim across the bay. A large rock was poking up out of the bay and Oci and Dex claimed it as their island. They spent hours over there with Grandma Shauna. Kevin and Dexton decided to spice it up a bit by jumping off the front of Grandpas big boat. They did it several times and then decided to persuade Ocianne to do the same. She wouldn't have any part of it so Kevin decided to involve me. He asked Oci, "If Mom jumps off, will you do it?" I tried not to have any part of it by saying I didn't want to get my hair wet, but the fact that Oci was willing to do it if I did got to me. I finally gave in after a while. Dex jumped, then I jumped. Kevin then lowered Oci over the rails of the boat and dropped her down to me. She didn't love it but she also didn't seem to mind it. She jumped off three more times that afternoon. Gabby did pretty good. I brought a small blow up pool for her and filled it up with warm lake water and put it on the back of the boat. She would sit and play in it for an hour at a time. Gabby also decided that she wanted to start to learn to crawl on Grandpa's boat. She pushed herself up on all fours and started rocking during our trip. Grandpa's boat isn't the greatest place for crawling. Since we have been home she has continued to try to crawl but she isn't in any hurry. She takes a few crawls forward and then rolls or scoots the rest of the way to get to where she wants to go. All in due time, which is fine with me! My kids have a love for Lake Powell as I do. I am so glad that I have been able to share this with them.


Gabrielle and Dexton

Gabrielle


Ocianne my dancing queen!

Gabby Five Months Old

2011-05-13T22:29:00.000-07:00

This picture is of Gabrielle's first feeding. As you can see she didn't really like her rice cereal all that well! She got more of it on her clothes than in her mouth. All of my kids haven't liked rice cereal and I guess Gabby didn't want to break the mold. She really liked all vegetables and sweet potatoes but didn't seem to care for fruit any more than she did the rice cereal. After a few weeks I tried the rice cereal again with some fruit mixed in and she decided it wasn't so bad. She now eats very well. She eats a large bowl of cereal and fruit every morning and two jars of vegetables every evening. It takes a lot of work to keep those legs looking good! I love her little rolls! At her four month check up the doctor mentioned that her head was looking a little flat and had me take her into a physical therapist to have it evaluated. The physical therapist determined that she didn't need to wear a helmet but that I really need to work on getting her to sit and roll over. She also gave me a lot of other advise to help me keep her off her head. My job got harder as the kids were still in school and I had a lot of running around to do. I had to make sure I got her out of her car seat at every opportunity. This meant that at the grocery store I had to put her in a baby carrier because she wasn't able to sit up in the cart. All the hard work paid off because at her six month appointment the doctor said her head was rounding out. Gabrielle has been such a blessing in our lives. She has been a very sweet and easy going baby. Her little personality is starting to show and it is so fun to watch her grow!

Kentucky Derby

2011-05-09T21:26:00.000-07:00

I mentioned that we were out of town for Dexton's actual birthday, the reason was because we went to the Kentucky Derby for Todd's 65th Birthday! Going there was on his bucket list and Debbie decided to try to surprise him with a trip there and invited all of us kids to come along. I felt a little bad being gone over Dexton's birthday but because the Derby was only on May 7th, there wasn't much I could do. I explained it all to Dexton and he was pretty good about it, he was only a little upset.

It was a quick trip, we flew out of Friday, the Derby was on Saturday, and we went to the Louisville Slugger factory on Sunday and then flew home! The Derby was an interesting experience that I only care to experience once in my life time. First of all, the parking was hilarious! People would have you park on their lawns and in their driveways, they would double and even triple park the cars in their yards. We parked on some guys lawn and he charged $50 a car, we had two cars! I guess that's one way to make some extra cash! I was shocked at how dirty the stadium was and how trashy the people were. It was like sitting in a filthy outdoor casino with a bunch of loud mouthed drunks! Our seats were in the lower section, because we thought the closer to the track the better. Well the problem was, it was hard to see over the fence/wall around the track and we were on benches. In order to watch the race we had to stand on the benches to see. This all sounds fine, until you take into account the trashy men sitting behind us who were all drunk. The Mint Jubilee, the famous Derby drink, was served in a glass cup. People would just throw their glass on the ground thus there was broken glass everywhere! Much to my misfortune, the men behind us were not drinking Mint Jubilee's they were drinking Bloody Mary's. It had been raining early that morning and it was a little chili out. I had bought a new dress and a white trench coat to match before the trip. When the sun started coming out at the track and it began to warm up, I decided to take off my coat. Because the stadium was so dirty I decided to fold up my coat and stuff it into the bag that had our souvenir's in it and placed it under the bench thinking it would be safe. It didn't take long for me to find a cup in the bag and the remains of a Bloody Mary all over my white coat! I was so mad! It was as if they had purposely dumped it into the bag! Well Channy and Nikki were helping me clean off my coat and we kept looking back at the men in disgust. One of the men spoke up asking what our problem was. This opened up one big can of worms! Nikki started getting into it with them, then Kevin and Darren jumped in. Once they started insulting Kevin and Darren, Lacey jumped in. Channy and I were just praying that a fight wouldn't break out! Thank goodness Todd was walking around the stadium with Debbie or one might have! Luckily, one of the drunks calmed things down and we all had a good laugh. After that things were a little better until Nikki caught the dirty old man behind her trying to lift up her dress with the program! Channy said she thought she had seen him trying to do it to mine before the fight! WOW! What a crowd! We ended up having a great time and even bet on a horse. Unfortunately, none of the horses we bet on won the race! It was definitely an interesting experience!
That night we went and ate at an old stake house that was literally in an old home. The food was really expensive and just ok for the price we paid. The atmosphere was really cool though! The next morning we went and had breakfast at this crazy restaurant, which was really good! Then we went and visited the Louisville Slugger Museum. It was pretty interesting, we took a tour to see how they manufactured the bats. Kevin ordered himself a personalized bat with his signature on it. It was a fun trip and a trip to remember that's for sure!

The Kentucky Derby!

Derby Parking

Breakfast at Lynn's

The "Bat" at Louisville Slugger Museum

Kevin standing next to the statue Babe Ruth

Dexton's Seventh Birthday

2011-05-07T22:31:00.000-07:00

Dexton was a little spoiled this year. We made an exception to the birthday party rule which is, you only get to have a friend party on the even years. We decided to invite all his friends from school so they could get to know him better. His party was at Airborne, a place where they have trampolines throughout the building to jump on and do different tricks. The boys had a great time! They had pizza and Dexton had a Star Wars cake. We were out of town on his actual birthday this year so he celebrated his birthday all week long! We had a party for him at home before we left and then he spent the weekend and his actual birthday at Grandma and Grandpa Burk's house. Grandma made sure he had a special day. She took him to his favorite place, the Dinosaur Museum! He got to pick out his own gift from the gift shop there, he chose a large python stuffed animal! He was in heaven!

Friends at Airborne

Gifts From Mom and Dad

Ociannes Fourth Bithday

2011-04-11T22:22:00.000-07:00

Princess Ocianne's Thrown

The Guests of Honor

Ocianne wanted to have a princess party for her fourth birthday. We turned the house into a castle with Kevin's creativity. We created a red carpet and a thrown for her to sit on. Her friends walked down the red carpet to present her with their gift. She had a princess cake and a chocolate fountain for her guests. We played games like pop the balloon at the ball while they danced around. Each princess received a wand and made a crown while the princes received swords and also made their own crowns. I believe it was a success!

Disneyland 2010

2010-12-29T22:47:00.000-08:00

Grandma and Grandpa Neilson decided to give us all a trip to Disneyland for Christmas this year! It was instigated a little bit on my behalf, because Lacey would be blessing Mckinley in January and so why not do Disneyland too! It didn't take long for me to realize that I would be taking a two week old baby with me! What was I thinking! I had to go though, I didn't want Dexton and Ocianne to miss out on the trip. I didn't get to spend much time at Disneyland because it was cold and rainy, which made it hard to go out with Gabrielle. Kevin took the kids everyday and they had a great time despite the rain. Grandpa decided to hire a guide for a few hours one day through Disneyland. This allowed them to jump as an entire group to the front of the line on any ride they wanted! I don't think Disneyland will ever be the same for them, Kevin said it ruined it for him, how can he be expected to wait in line ever again! The trip is a little bit of a blur for me because Gabby didn't sleep very good in the hotel so I was extremely tired. I am glad that I went though so that I could be apart of some of it! The kids had a great time! Thank you Grandma and Grandpa for a wonderful trip!

Neilson Clan Disneyland 2010!

All the Cousin's!

Dexton had his face painted like a pirate! RRR!

Dexton, just hanging out.

Ocianne, just saying "Hi!" Trying to stay warm.

Hanging out in the hotel. Dexton thought me wearing the pirate hat was hilarious!

Waiting in line at It's a Small World. Lacey and I with the babies!

Just waiting.

Riding It's a Small World.

Dexton can't get enough Pirate! Eating at the Blue Bayou.

Draper Days and Ute Stampede Rodeo

2010-07-20T22:30:00.000-07:00

Every year around July 16th we have Draper Days and the Ute Stampede Rodeo. This has been a tradition we have done with Grandma and Grandpa Neilson for about five years now. We usually miss Draper Days because we head down to stay in Scipio to attend the Ute Stampede Rodeo in Nephi but this year we decided to go over to the Draper Days carnival for a few hours before driving down to Nephi. The kids had a great time and wanted to buy everything in sight because the Draper Days carnival doesn't have much in the way of rides! LAME! Dexton bought a Harry Potter Wand and Ocianne bought a red sequin purse and a red matching necklace with dangle earnings. They also got their faces painted. Dex had a big black widow painted on his cheek and Oci had Minnie Mouse painted on hers. After about an hour or two we piled in the car and headed down to Nephi. The fun continued on! Nephi knows how to put on a carnival and a rodeo! The kids rode rides and ate hamburgers and cotton candy. We then went into the arena and watched the rodeo. It was great, as always. We had amazing seats this year, they were actually in the bleacher section and covered so we weren't in the sun! The best part was that our bums weren't rubbing up against the strangers legs behind us like in years past and the kids weren't wiping their sticky cotton candy hands on the ladies shirts in front of us! We actually had room to breath! Thanks Grandpa for finding us better seats than usual! We had a wonderful time!

Dex with his Black Widow


Ocianne with her Minnie Mouse


Dex is the third one from the left, then Jennaca, Jaylynn, and Kelli


Ocianne and Dawson (you can see her purse here!)

Dexton and Ocianne at the Ute Stampede Rodeo!

Primary Parade

2010-07-12T19:51:00.000-07:00

In July the kids had a primary parade. It was really cute. The kids all came to the church with their bikes, scooters, roller skates or whatever they had to ride around the church parking lot with. We however broke all the rules and brought the power wheels Jeep. Because we had been out of town for much of the month of July we were unaware that they had banned anything that was motorized. Yes, we were a little embarrassed but we sure as heck were not going to squish it and the kids back into the car to trade it for something else. We had barley been able to get it to the church as it was. We were trying to fly low under the radar but of course there were a few people here and there who couldn't resist teasing us about breaking the rules. One person, however, went a little too far. They thought they were out of hearing distance and made a rude comment regarding our mistake. It was hard not to take offense, but we did our best to not let it ruin the fun. The kids had a wonderful time decorating the Jeep. Dexton drove it around while Ocianne waved like a true princess! She already has the wave down for when she is crowned royalty and standing on a float in a real parade one day! It was so cute! We couldn't help but laugh and comment about her prince driving her around and her smiling and loving every minute of it. It was if she "knew" everyone was there to see her! It was adorable! Too bad we didn't quite catch the wave in the picture.


Dexton and Ocianne

Forth of July Weekend

2010-07-08T16:56:00.000-07:00

Just before the Forth of July holiday I had a little scare. I started bleeding a little. I was afraid that I might be loosing my baby girl. My doctor had me come in for an ultra sound to make sure everything was okay. Thank goodness all was well. To my surprise the doctor said we could go on our family vacation to Lake Powell, as planned, and not to worry. We headed down to Powell for some fun with Grandma and Grandpa. Grandpa said we could take the "Big" boat to the beach, which is a treat these days. Ever since he has gotten his slip and ski boat he rarely lets us camp on the beach. What fun is Lake Powell without the beach! Well, we found a great beach for the kids and were having a great time. On day two, we were all lounging about and my Dad was cleaning the boat, a common occurrence. None of us were paying any attention to the weather. The wind was slowly picking up and this is usually a sign to batten down the hatches and secure the anchors. Well, by the time we realized how bad the wind was, we were in trouble. We had backed the big boat up to the beach the wind had pushed us further back. The props were hitting the beach and one of the side anchors was coming loose. In hindsight my Dad made a tragic decision, to pull the front anchor and have Kevin pull the big boat out from the shore using the ski boat. Keep in mind, the only able bodies were my Dad, Mom, Kevin, and well Me! I threw the kids down into the cabin of the big boat and frantically told them to put on their life jackets on and not to come out no matter what! Kevin jumped into the ski boat and tied a rope to the back of the boat. My Mother held the end of the rope and climbed onto the bow of the big boat securing the rope to the railing. As Kevin headed out into the middle of the Lake the rope began to tighten. He was being bounced around by the waves and having a hard time controlling the ski boat. My Dad started the engines of the big boat and let the front anchor loose! This is when all heck broke loose. Kevin couldn't get the ski boat to pull the big boat away from the shore. Every time he floored it he was yanked sideways along the shore line. In a matter of seconds the big boat turned sideways as well and was parallel to the shore! My Dad jumped out to try to push the boat off the shore and I couldn't help myself from joining him. He yelled at me to stop and get back on the boat, but I was stubborn and wouldn't. My Dad and I couldn't get the boat to budge, the wind was too strong. Kevin kept trying over and over again to pull the boat out. He was frantically working to keeping the rope out of the prop and making sure he didn't hit the beach himself. He was having a difficult time. After what seemed to be a long time, and feeling like getting the big boat off the shore was hopeless, we stopped and thought things through. I convinced my Dad to let me onto the ski boat to help Kevin with the rope. After a couple of tries we got the big boat straightened out and away from the shore. My Dad was pretty upset by the whole situation. He felt horrible that I had done so much to help and was worried I had put the baby in jeopardy. At the time, I thought I was making all the right decisions. Looking back I shouldn't have tried to help push the boat away from the shore. Luckily I didn't hurt the baby and we made it back safely to the slip. We decided to spend our last two nights in the slip and only venture out to the beach during the day with the ski boat. We found out the hard way that we just didn't have enough capable adults to manage the two boats in a storm! We ended up having a wonderful time and all ended well!

Ocianne on the ski boat!

Ocianne being a diva in the cabin of Grandpa's boat.

My Dreaded 3oth Birthday

2010-07-02T16:00:00.000-07:00


Monterey California

I have been scared to turn 30 for the last two years! When I was turning 28 I thought it was my 30th Birthday! I guess I just wanted to get it over with or something. My Mom was the one who reminded me that I was only 28 that year. My sweet Husband who knew how much I was dreading this and planned an amazing trip for the two of us. We drove to LA to spend a couple of days with Darren and Lacey because Kevin and the boys were going to a Dodger vs Yankee game with his Dad. I was able to go shopping with Lacey and spend some time with her while the guys were at the game. We had a great time. We then headed North up the PCH, a dream of Kevin's to drive. I was worried I would get car sick being that I was pregnant but other than being jerked around here and there I did fine. We stopped off at Hearst Castle on our way. It is an amazing Castle built on a hill top in the middle of nothing but fields. Other than the view of the ocean, it reminded me of the land of Scipio. I couldn't help but suggest to Kevin that maybe he could build his French Chateau on Todd's Scipio property one day! We had a great time touring the castle. We then finished our drive up the PCH to Monterey CA. We arrived that evening at our hotel and went to dinner at a delicious Mexican restaurant. We loved the town of Monterey. It is a quaint little town with a lot of unique shops and restaurants. We spent the next day, my birthday, walking around the Fisherman's Wharf and eating lunch at Bubba Gumps. That night we went to a great French restaurant for dinner and to a movie. It was a very relaxing vacation and we had a wonderful time together. I love you honey! Thanks for making me feel special and planning such a wonderful vacation! And a great BIG thanks to the Grandma's who were willing to watch the two little ones while we were gone!

Kevin at the Dodger vs Yankee Game

Driving up the PCH

Hearst Castle


Outdoor Pool at Hearst Castle

Indoor Pool at Hearst Castle

Lunch at Bubba Gumps


Fisherman's Wharf

The sea lions stunk so bad!

Bee's Game

2010-06-10T16:10:00.000-07:00

In June we were able to go to the Bees Game with the Neilson family. The kids had a great time! Kevin bought us all hats, except Oci she wanted a we're number one hand. Dex caught one of the baseballs from the game! We had a wonderful time!

Kindergarten Graduation 2010

2010-06-07T13:19:00.000-07:00

Dexton standing with his class for graduation.

Dexton holding his diploma.

Dexton graduated from Kindergarten June 2010. He looked so handsome. They sang some very cute songs and the principal presented them with a diploma.

Animal Report

2010-05-20T12:50:00.000-07:00

In May Dexton had to do an animal report for kindergarten. He was assigned the platypus for his report. He had to find out some facts about his animal and make a diorama. He made his platypus out of clay and decorated a shoe box to look like it's environment. It turned out darling.

Dexton's Sixth Birthday

2010-05-10T11:07:00.000-07:00

Dexton turned six this year! The kids get to have a friend Birthday Party on the even years so he was very excited! He wanted to have his party at Boondocks. He invited his cousins Jennaca and Ashlyn and some boys from the ward. The kids had pizza and cake and played arcades and in the jungle gym area. They had a great time. Dexton's big birthday gift was a DSI XL! He also got a new baseball bat and a Razor scooter that sparks when you hit the break. Dexton is growing up so fast I can hardly believe my little boy is six! He is so much fun and says the funniest things! He is wise beyond his years. He remembers things like his Dad so I have to be very careful what I put into that brain of his! He loves Dinosaurs and knows everything about them. He is also very curious about science. This year in Kindergarten he learned about germs and I wish he would have stayed home that day because now hand sanitizer is his best friend and he washes his hands a ridiculous amount! The biggest problem with his cleanliness is that his hands are becoming dry and cracked from all the washing! And being that he hates lotion I have no choice but to tell him no more hand sanitizer! Kevin keeps telling him he is going to be a plastic surgeon because he likes washing his hands so much! He responds and says he is going to be a scientist and Kevin tells him that a doctor is a scientist. He is defiantly smart enough to be a doctor that's for sure! I love him so much and I am so proud of him! He is such a good heart-ed boy. I tell Oci all the time that she doesn't know how good she has it, because she has the best big brother any one could ever ask for!

Happy Sixth Birthday Dexton!

Opening Gifts at Grandma Neilson's

The Party at Boondocks!

The Third Edition

2010-04-29T10:41:00.000-07:00

The night before I ran the Salt Lake Half Marathon I found out we were expecting our third child! This was a little bit of a surprise. My due date was December 18, 2010. We were hoping for a February baby. Kevin was not happy that this poor child would be having a December birthday, he thought that was a crappy deal for the child. But what could we do! I was certain we were having a boy because I was so sick! I actually had to go on anti-nausea medication. I was a little sick with Dexton but nothing a few crackers couldn't fix and nothing bothered me with Ocianne. So when they told us it was a girl you could have knocked me over with a feather!

My Second Half Marathon

2010-04-23T19:41:00.000-07:00

I ran my first half marathon back in November 2009. It was the Snow Canyon half in St. George. It didn't go so well for me. I wasn't dressed right so I was hot and it was a lot harder than I had expected. So when my Mom asked me back in January to run in the Salt Lake City half marathon this April I wasn't all that jazzed. I agreed to do it though because I decided I needed to do it at least twice just to see if it was really that bad or if it would be a better experience going into it a little more prepared this time. I have to admit, it was a lot better! I new what I was getting into and I trained really hard for it! I know it was hard on Kevin to let me go run for three hours every Saturday, but it made a huge difference! I ran the entire race! I had to stop a little toward the end to stretch my knee. I was so mad! My knee didn't bother me the entire time I trained but the last three miles my knee started aching! Oh well, a quick stop and I was on my way again. There was no way I was going to walk across the finish line! Kevin and the kids came to cheer me and my Mom on. My Dad was there too! However, about a minute before I crossed the finish line the first marathoner crossed, it was a big deal. He finished in like 2 and a half hours. So Kevin and my Dad missed me. They were too busy talking about the marathoner! Oh well! I finished in 2 hours 22 minutes. Not too shabby! My Mom finished a little behind me. We had a lot of fun!

Ocianne's Third Birthday

2010-04-23T19:12:00.000-07:00

I can't believe how fast the last three years have gone! My baby girl is no more a baby! She will be starting preschool in the fall and she can't wait! She has been wanting to go to school for a year now and we keep telling her she can go when she is three....so why can't she start now? She is so grown up for her age in so many ways. She wanted her own makeup so I bought her some eyeshadow and she has to wear it every day and put it on when I put mine on! Easter morning she wanted to put it on before going out to do the Easter Egg Hunt. She was all upset when I told her there wasn't time. What am I raising! I tell her she is just like her grandma Shauna! We do have a few guidelines, like no makeup to church and there will be no makeup at school either! She loves to dress up. She is always dressed up like one of the princesses! It varies from month to month. Right now she is always Ariel. She always refers to me as Belle when she is a princess and I am to call her by the name of the princess she is dressed as or she corrects me by saying, "Mom, I am not Oci, call me..." She cracks me up! Sometimes she drives me crazy but that is usually when she is acting like me! She is a lot like me in so many ways it is scary! She loves to talk my ear off, especially in the car! And when I am not listening she try's to get Dexton to listen. A funny story about this is when we were in St. George over Easter. We were driving in the car and Oci kept on saying, "Dexton!" He finally responded by saying, "Oci, I am not talking to you any more! For the rest of the trip I am not going to talk to you in the car!" She sat there for a minute all upset. Then she yelled at the top of her lungs, "DEXTON!" Kevin and I just busted out laughing! Dexton started laughing too! She stuck out her lip and said, "Stop laughing at me!" She is such a sweet girl and she is definitely all girl! We love her so much!

For her Birthday she wanted an American Girl doll like her cousins! We bought her a doll and few clothes to go with it. Probably her favorite part was the bag full of accessories for her dolls hair. Grandma Debbie bought her a beauty station for her doll. It came with pretend nail polish and stickers for her dolls nails. She calls it her "tollish"! Grandma Shauna and Aunt Michelle bought her the Strawberry Shortcake Berry Cafe and some of the accessories to go with it. She is definitely spoiled! She also wanted an Ariel cake and insisted that Ariel be in her pink dress, not her shells! She got it, it only cost me an arm and a leg and going back to the store twice because the first one fell! Luckily they took the fault for it falling and made me a new one for free!

Happy Third Birthday Ocianne!

Opening gifts!

The Ariel Cake!

Easter

2010-04-23T18:35:00.000-07:00

We went to St. George for Easter with the Neilson clan. While it wasn't especially warm, it was better than the cold weather back at home. The kids had a great time with there cousins. We went swimming at the Washington County Rec Center a couple of days....this is always a must while we are there! The kids can't get enough of this place. It worked out great because it is indoors. We also went to see the movie How to Train a Dragon with the kids. It was such a great show! If you haven't been it is a must see movie! Kevin even liked it and he normally "hates" kid shows! The kids had an Easter egg hunt on Easter morning around the house and over in the rocks across the street. Me and the kids stayed down there for an entire week to help fill Dexton's two week Spring Break! It was great!

Looking through Easter Baskets and

the Easter Egg Hunt!

Disney on Ice

2010-04-23T18:18:00.000-07:00

Grandma Shauna took all the grand kids to Disney on Ice. We had a great time! We got there early so we could see Tianna and the other princesses. Oci was so enthralled! The kids enjoyed the entire performance. When Ariel came out, Oci was upset that she wasn't in her dress. She didn't like her dancing in her shells! I'm pretty sure it was just due to the fact that a princess is supposed to wear a dress, although I wish it were a modesty issue! Maybe one day when she gets older that will be more of an issue!

Riley, Dexton, and Ocianne

Ocianne, Jack, Grandma, Riley, and Dexton

Dexton's Karate Promotion

2010-04-23T18:07:00.000-07:00

Dexton received his orange belt in Karate. This promotion was bigger than he had been used to. His other promotion always took place in the studio. This one was at a local Jr. High auditorium. There were a couple hundred people there. They combined the Riverton and South Jordan studios. All the kids had to go through and do three routines. It was fun to watch and Dex did a great job!

The New Car

2010-04-23T17:52:00.000-07:00

Kevin bought a new car in February! He bought it online from Georgia. They were not able to ship it to us because of all the crazy weather we were having across the country! When does it ever snow in Georgia! So we set off for an adventure and flew to Georgia to pick it up and drive it back ourselves! And what an adventure it was. The first day we drove from Georgia to Tennessee. We spent the night in Tennessee. The plan was to head north and then west. Well when we woke up there was a thin layer ice and snow covering the ground! We watched the weather and it was going to be snowing the entire way if we took our planned route. We decided against this for two reasons, first we figured no one new how to drive around here in these conditions and they had nothing to properly remove the snow, second Kevin's car was rear-wheel drive. So we decided it would be safer to head south and then go west. The Weather Channel showed that this route would be dry. As it turns out, we still had snow! So much for the Weather Channel! We drove from Tennessee to Little Rock. While we were there we stopped for lunch and were doing some other things. While talking in a parking lot, Kevin's car started to over heat! Smoke was coming from under the hood! I was freaking out! I thought the worst, we bought a lemon! Kevin quickly found an Infinite dealership close by and we drove the car there. We got there minutes before they were closing. We ended up staying in Little Rock for 2 days! Nothing major was wrong with the car and most of it was covered under warranty. What and adventure! It was definitely more than we had bargained for! Needless to say, we were in huge hurry to get home to the kids because of this little set back. Once the car was repaired, we drove from Little Rock to Albuquerque. I took over driving through Oklahoma for the first time. I guess I was a little too anxious to get home because there I got my first speeding ticket ever! I was so mad! The guy was so rude and didn't even lower my speed! How rude! The last day was the longest, we drove from Albuquerque to good old Utah! We got home at around two in the morning! It was a long trip! We had a lot of fun together despite our little set back! What a way to celebrate ten years together!

Waking up in Tennessee!

The windmills of Oklahoma...right where I got my ticket.

The Hoover Dam...so close to home, yet so far to go!

Random Thoughts

2010-03-25T19:16:00.000-07:00

As I have entered this new world of blogging, I have realized that blogs aren't just about family vacations or major events. I have been reading all of your blogs and realized that my blog can be more like a journal instead of a documentary. So I hope you don't mind if some of my posts become a little more personal and maybe a little more boring for some of you to read. Please know that I don't expect you all to read every little thing I post, but feel free to read them if you wish!

Ten Years Together....

Kevin and I have been married for ten years as of March 18th! The years have flown by because I have spent them with my best friend! As I look back over the years I can't believe how much has changed. I feel that we have grown closer and stronger over the years. I am so grateful to be married to such a wonderful man. Kevin has been working very hard over the last two years to build his own company. It has been very touching as a wife to watch him. I have seen him at his best and worst through all of this and I am sure he has seen me at mine as well. The personal sacrifices he has made for himself has been very emotional for me. As I watch him struggle to balance work and family it amazes me how much he has had to give up. One of those things has been sleep. He works a lot at night when the kids and I are sleeping in order to spend time with us in the evenings and be apart of other family functions. As Dexton says, "Dad has to work all day and all night!" He has given up golf and many other leisurely activities he enjoys as well. All for the sake of our family! However, I think golf will be coming back this spring, and he certainly deserves it! He is doing very well and I would be lying if I didn't admit that I am extremely proud of him and all he has accomplished! He has impressed me more than ever! (Please take note, I said impressed, Kevin claims there is little he can do to impress me :-) I guess I don't do a good job at praising him!) Kevin, I love you! Thank you for a wonderful ten years! I look forward to the next ten!

New Years 2010

2010-01-06T22:39:00.000-08:00

Sledding

We went to Scipio, Utah for New Years with the Neilson family. We always hope there is snow this time of year down there because the only fun thing to do down there is sledding. Sledding keeps the kids entertained for a few hours at a time and we don't mind taking them! This year the roads were covered in snow, so we were able to hook the sleds up behind the truck and pull the kids on the road. I know, I know, this sounds very dangerous, but in Scipio there is not a soul around. You might pass a farmer or two, but down there, people are used to this sort of thing. I thought Kevin was nuts all these years he told me about doing this when he was a boy and now I am allowing my children to participate in the same activity! We blazed a couple of trails up at Todd's property as well. This might sound like it would be safer than the road, but we soon found out that the more times we pulled the kids around the same trail, the more eroded the snow became and rocks began springing up! Unfortunately, for Colton, he became the victim of one of those large rocks. He was laying down on his stomach, and out of no where he hit a half buried rock beneath the snow and took a big hit to the gut! He and the sled went flying into the air. We could tell he was hurt. Luckily, no major harm was done. I think he must have gotten the wind knocked out of him. We were nearing the end of sledding when this happened. Needless to say, he did not want to go back out on the sled again!
Dexton had a wonderful time when we could get him out there. Every time we said, "Hey, get your snow clothes on, were going sledding!" He would whine and complain. Finally, Kevin asked him if he had fun sledding. His response was, "Yes." So we would make him get dressed and join the rest of the kids. Who knows what his deal was. I just don't understand five year old boys! Dexton had the unfortunate reputation of getting plastered in the face with snow every time he went.....maybe that's why he didn't really want to go! The last day we went out sledding, we asked Grandma if she had anything around the house that we could put on his face to help protect it. The best she could do was an old ear band. As soon as Dex put it on, he began complaining of the horrible smell it had! We laughed, because, unbeknown to him, it had been used as more of a sweat band! It did a fabulous job keeping his face free from the snow! In the pictures of him, he looks like the abominable snow man! He was happy as a hog in mud! Not a bit of snow was touching his skin! He had a little trouble seeing though, all he had was a narrow slit between his hat and the ear band to see through! Too bad we didn't think of this the first day! Ocianne was not too fond of the sledding. She hated getting the snow in her face as well. She was a good sport and would give it a try, but she always ended up crying and wanting to stop! Too much like her mother I guess! We all had a wonderful time sledding!

New Years Eve

On New Years Eve, we let the little ones stay up until midnight with us. They were actually pretty good. I thought for sure I was going to have to put Ocianne to bed at some point, but she managed to maintain herself! We started the evening off by going to dinner in Richfield at Steve's Stake House. After, we made our usual trip to the Walmart. When we got back, the kids played Rock Band and the men played Halo. So what did the women do? Well, we managed the kids and sat and visited. Later on, we made banana splits! It was a fun night! We were all sure tired the next day, of course. Dexton was so tired, I found him asleep on the game room floor with his ipod in. He had been taking turns playing the wii and while he was waiting for his tun, he crashed! When I picked him up and put him to bed, he didn't even budge! Now that was one tired boy!

Christmas

2009-12-26T23:14:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful Christmas! We went to Grandma Neilson's home the Sunday before Christmas and had a wonderful dinner and the kids performed the Nativity. We also sang Christmas hymns around the Christmas tree. It was nice to take the time just before Christmas and focus on the true meaning and remember the birth of the Savior.
We spent Christmas Eve at both Grandparents home and exchanged our gifts. Dexton got some DS games from his Grandma and Grandpa Burk and Ocianne got a Snow White doll. At Grandma and Grandpa Neilson's Dexton got a much needed punching bag and boxing gloves. We are hoping this will help him take his aggressions out on it instead of his little sister! Ocianne got a swan princess castle. They enjoyed playing with their cousins and playing games. When we got home from the grandparents, Kevin suggested to Dex and Oci sleeping together in the same room as we did when we were kids. Of course they were ecstatic! I was a little weary on how this would all work out being that Santa needed to come. They came out once and then decided they had best go to sleep or Santa would pass them by.
Kevin and I got to bed late of course, and it felt as though we had just gone to bed when I was awakened by two small children saying, "It's Christmas!" I noticed it was still dark. I scrambled for the clock hoping it wasn't really time to get up. It was 4:00AM!!! Dexton had woken up and woke up his little sister who was dazed and confused but had decided she'd best get up too if it was Christmas! I told them they had better go back to sleep and that it was NOT time to get up! What a mean mom I am! A few minutes later I heard noises and got up to find Dexton climbing back in bed. Later that morning I asked Dexton if he had sneaked downstairs to see if Santa had come and he said, "yes"! That little stink! I asked him if he looked at everything and he said, "yes"! I was a little bugged. But what can I expect. The poor kid was sooooo excited and I had told him to go back to sleep. How can a five year old go back to sleep wondering if Santa had come and what he had brought?
We had a wonderful Christmas morning! The kids had a great time playing with their gifts. Santa brought Dexton his ipod, which Mom and Dad were not sure about. He also brought Zhu Zhu pets for both him and Oci. Oci got an armoire with a piano which she adores!

Merry Christmas!

Karate

2009-12-26T22:44:00.000-08:00

Dexton was finally able to pass off his T1 routine at karate and earn his yellow belt! He has been looking forward to this for weeks. Every week he goes he earns a tip. Once they have earned eight tips they are then able to pass off a routine and earn a belt. This was Dexton's first time since he began taking lesson's to pass off a routine. He practiced for a few day's before and just before Christmas break he was able to pass it off! I wasn't sure what he was more excited about, passing off his yellow belt or the fact Christmas was just days away! He did great!

Video of Dexton doing his routine:

Video of Dexton receiving his yellow belt:

Merry Christmas

2009-12-06T21:19:00.000-08:00

I hope all of you are enjoying this wonderful holiday season! This year my heart has been full of gratitude. I have so many wonderful blessings to be grateful for. I have a wonderful and healthy family and they are my choicest blessings. I try each day to look for the good in my children. Some days are easier than others. I feel so blessed to have them in my life and I am really trying to enjoy every day with them. I love my husband dearly and I am so grateful for all he does to provide for our family. He has been working very hard over the last two years to get his company off the ground. In-spite of the economy he is prevailing and doing very well. I know our Heavenly Father has blessed us immensely. My testimony of the blessings of paying tithing has been enriched. I know that when we put our trust in the Lord and do what he asks of us "all thing shall work out for thy good." I love you all and wish you a Merry Christmas!

Halloween

2009-11-23T14:21:00.000-08:00

Sorry for the late post, but I thought I should post Halloween before Christmas! My my how the time has just flown by! Dexton was a Magician for Halloween this year and Ocianne was Cinderella. They were adorable! Oci had a hair piece for her hair and it looked soooo cute! She looked like she was five with it in her hair! We went to Grandma Debbie's house for her Halloween party on Friday night. I dressed up as Snow White and as usual, Kevin wanted nothing to do with dressing up so grandma gave him a clown wig for the pictures! HAHA! The kids had a great time playing games and bobbing for apples. Dexton also had a Halloween parade at school and sang some fun songs for the parents. Hope you enjoy the videos and the pictures!

Carving Pumpkins

Bobbing for Apples!

Happy Halloween 2009!

Like Father Like Son

2009-11-10T22:13:00.000-08:00

Today as we were getting ready to leave the house and go meet Kevin for dinner Dexton had an idea! He told me that when he grows up he would like to own his own restaurant. He is going to call it the Noodle Bomb. He said, "I can see it in my head. The bomb is going to be made out of noodles. And in black letters it is going to say "The Noodle Bomb". It will be in a BIG building."
I said, "Wow! That sounds awesome! I hope you do that one day!"

Scarcrow Festival

2009-10-31T18:03:00.000-07:00

I took the kids to the Scarecrow Festival at Thanksgiving point on Friday October 16th. The festival is put on by the kids at the boys and girls club who are struggling with different challenges in their lives. It is pretty pricey to get in and then you have to pay for a lot of the other activities which is a little annoying. I guess my money is going towards a good cause though. The kids had a great time. There were lots of blowup slides and games for the kids to play. Dex had a blast with his friend Jake on all the blowup's. Of course, Oci didn't want anything to do with them they were "scary!" I got her to go down one slide with me and that was it for her. Her ticket was pretty much a waste of money. Oh well what can you do!

Karate

2009-10-16T08:55:00.001-07:00

Dexton began taking karate lessons this week. As many of you know he has been waiting all summer long to take lessons. Because it is a six month commitment I told him we had to wait until the fall. He is loving every minute of it! Yesterday he passed off some things to get his white belt. His instructor had him break a piece of wood with the back of his hand! He was so impressed by himself! He was able to bring the wood home with him, which is now in two pieces. He was trying to break one of the pieces again with his hand like he had at his lesson. I finally said, "Dexton, the wood was split a little bit in order to help you break it. I don't know if your going to be able to do that again without it being split a little." He was a little disappointed. After that, I didn't have the heart to tell the poor kid his instructor helped break the wood too!

Fast and Testimony Meeting

2009-10-16T08:38:00.000-07:00

Last Sunday was Fast and Testimony Meeting. While I was sitting there, the thought occurred to me that I had never really discussed what that meant with Dexton. So I leaned over to him and whispered, "Today is Fast and Testimony meeting, people will be going up to the pulpit and bearing their testimonies today. Do you know what a testimony is?" He replied, "No." I tried to then explain what a testimony is as best as I could in lame mans terms. I said, "Just listen to the people going up today and you will see what I mean." After about 20 minutes Dexton looked at me and said, "I want to bear my testimony." I looked at Kevin and said, "Do you want to take him up?" Kevin told him that we should practice his testimony at family night and that way he could go up next month and do it all by himself. Dexton was disappointed and wanted to practice right then. So I started going over some things he could say. He looked at me and said, "I'm ready." I said, "No lets just wait." No sooner did those words come out of my mouth when Dexton stood up and started down the isle as fast as he could toward the pulpit. Kevin and I just looked at each other like are you going to go after him???? I took pity on the poor boy and hurried up the isle after him. I arrived at the front row of the chapel just as he arrived at the pulpit. His eyes were big, it was as if he was thinking, "What have I done!" I sat on the front row and looked up at him and helped him say the following.... "I'd like to bear my testimony, I know this church is true. I am thankful for the prophet. I am thankful for my family. I am thankful for my teachers. In the name of Jesus Christ amen." He did great! And everyone thought he did it all on his own because I wasn't standing up there behind him! I guess I have learned that I should be doing a better job teaching my children things at home during family home evening!

St. George

2009-10-04T09:21:00.000-07:00

Our family went to St. George for Conference weekend to get out of the cold! We went to the pool to enjoy the warmth of summer one last time. The pool was a little cold though. I don't think they had turned the heater on yet! But the kids still had a fun time!

Uncle Darren flipping Dexton in the pool.

The Splash Park

St. George has this awesome water area on main street. I don't know what to call it other than a splash park. There is a fun little stream and all these red rocks for the kids to play on and a little water fall. They also have a fountain pad similar to the one at gateway for the kids to run through. The kids loved playing there.

Doing a little sunbathing (that's my girl!)

Just playing around....

Jennaca, Dexton, Jaylynn, and Jarron

The Zoo

2009-10-04T09:00:00.000-07:00

Great Grandma and the kids have been asking to go to the zoo all summer! And all summer I have said, "No, it's too hot!" Well it finally cooled off a little last week so we went just before it got cold! We had a great time!

Great Grandma Barney and the Grand kids.

The Tiger's

This was a fun day to see the tigers. The male tiger had been separated from the baby cubs and the mother. He was just sitting in the river bathing himself, as cats do. Then he started walking around up at the top of his cage! We couldn't believe how BIG he was! We weren't able to see the baby cubs, unfortunately, because they were sleeping.

The Gorilla (which is no longer there)

The Train Ride

Great Grandma, Michelle, and Jack

Baby to Kindergarten

2009-08-17T20:55:00.001-07:00

My Baby boy has sure grown up!

Dexton's first day of Kindergarten

It sure is crazy how time rushes by. Sometimes I can't believe I am a mom and have been married for almost ten years now. It seems like yesterday when I started Kindergarten. As a mother you have mixed feelings about your children growing up. It is wonderful to watch them grow and change over the years, but it is sooo hard to let go. Let go of what some of you wonder, he's only in Kindergarten. I know I still have many wonderful years that await me with Dexton, but I guess that is what makes Kindergarten a little hard. It is the first step that makes you realize as a parent that your child really is gowning up! I must admit, I didn't shed a tear when I dropped him off at school his first day. It wasn't until I got home and read the sweet poem his teacher was handing out, to the parents as they dropped off their children, that I began to ball like a baby and wish I hadn't bothered to read it! Needless to say, Dexton hasn't seemed to miss me at all! Which, is wonderful! I am glad he loves school! Every time he see's his picture of his first day, he asks me, "Mom, am I scared or sad?" My response is, "I don't know, why don't you tell me!"

The Burk Family Vacation

2009-08-13T21:44:00.000-07:00

Well, as I stated below, we started our two week vacation with the Neilson family. The Burk family vacation just happened to be planned the very next week. The kids and I didn't even come back home to take a break. Kevin drove home from Scipio on Sunday night with Darren to work for a few day's before meeting up with us in California. Lacey drove from Scipio with me to California to help me with the kids. We dropped Lacey off in LA on Monday and took a break for a few hours. Then the kids and I drove the rest of the way down to San Clemente to meet up with my family. We spent the next three day's at the beach trying to recoup from being away from home for sooooo long. Kevin flew in on Thursday night and Lacey picked him up from the airport and they met up with us at the beach house. On Friday we went to Sea World and had a blast! Saturday was our last day at the beach with my family. We loved hanging out at the beach! We spent hours there! We met up with Darren and Lacey that night in LA and went down to the pier at Santa Monica on rode a few rides. On Monday night we went to a Dodger game and had a blast! We headed home that night. All together we drove over 2,500 miles with the kids. Amazingly, they were great! Needless to say, we had a wonderful summer and lots of fun! Now we are all trying to get back to real life!

The Beach in San Clemente CA

2009-08-13T21:32:00.000-07:00

Dexton, his cousin Riley, and Oci

My cute nephew Jack!

Dex wanted to snorkel in the ocean, but he soon realized that wasn't possible on the beach with the big waves coming in!

Wipe Out!

All Ocianne did the entire time at the beach was play in the sand, she didn't care much for the water.

The last day at the beach, Dex found this strange "thing" floating in the water. It didn't seem to be alive, it smelled fishy, and Dex wanted to keep it! NO WAY!

Sea World

2009-08-13T21:27:00.000-07:00

From Left to Right: Dexton, Jessilyn, Grandma, Ocianne, and Justin

Faris Wheel at the Pier in Santa Monica CA

2009-08-13T21:25:00.000-07:00

The Dodger Game

2009-08-13T20:22:00.000-07:00

The Neilson Family Vacation

2009-08-11T20:52:00.000-07:00

We began our two week summer vacation with the Neilson family. We started our vacation by driving to Panguitch Lake. On the way we stopped at Big Rock Candy Mountain. We stayed in Panguitch for two nights in a cabin. Dexton and Kevin had a blast fishing! We then headed off to Bryce canyon and spent the first day driving though the canyon visiting all the look out points! The next day we went for a 3 mile hike. Kevin carried Ocianne the entire way on his back! Dexton walked the entire way without any complaints! That evening we drove through Zion's on our way to St. George. We spent three day's in St. George relaxing and swimming! And of course we had some In N Out. We finished the vacation off in Scipio. There the kids played with their cousins and rode horses with Dad. Dexton rode a sheep in the rodeo and had some battle wounds to prove it! We had a great time!

2009-08-11T19:57:00.000-07:00

The battle wounds from the sheep ride!

Fishing at the Grove in Scipio

2009-08-11T19:53:00.000-07:00

Ocianne fell asleep on our way to the Grove. She looked like a little angel!

Horseback Riding in Scipio

2009-08-11T19:50:00.000-07:00

Zion's

2009-08-11T19:49:00.000-07:00

The Hike in Bryce

2009-08-11T19:47:00.000-07:00

Bryce Canyon

2009-08-11T17:18:00.000-07:00

Panguitch Lake

2009-08-11T16:25:00.001-07:00

Big Rock Candy Mountain

2009-08-11T16:23:00.001-07:00