Back to school night. After we met Ryker's teacher we took him out for a Snowie.

Ryker's first day of school. He was so excited and he had so much fun.

Toby Keith Concert

Rick and I at the Usana Ampitheater before the concert started. This was our first time at Usana and we loved it. So much nicer then being stuck in the hot Delta Center, it was nice being in the outdoors listening to music.

Trailor Choir - He is singing Baby Got Back.

Trace Atkins - He was fun, Rick liked him better than Toby Keith. I disagreed but whatever, he did do a good job.

The other T.K. in my life. My favorite male country singer. LOVE him!

Mazza

What's wrong with this picture? Well we are eating somewhere other than, Cafe' Rio or Rubio's. Our neighbor suggested, Mazza a restaurant with Middle Eastern Cuisine and Rick was actualy excited so we went. Here's what we ate....
LAMB SFIHA
A Middle Eastern mini pizza, made with lean ground lamb, onions, tomatoes, pine nuts and seasonings. Served warm with a cucumber yogurt dip.

TABBOOLEH
Freshly chopped parsley mixed with finely diced tomatoes, green onions and bulgur wheat seasoned with a minty blend of lemon juice and extra virgin olive oil.

CHICKEN SHAWARMA Thin slices of chicken breast marinated and stacked on a standing grill, broiled & served on a pita flatbread. Seasoned with garlic spread, tahini, fresh greens & Armenian pickles.

MEDITERRANEAN STEAK AND CHEESE

Thin slices of beef sirloin marinated in a spicy garlic lemon sauce, broiled and served on a toasted French bun with a creamy garlic spread, Mediterranean cheese and fresh greens. Rich in flavor and textures.
CREAM PHYLLO ROLL
Delicate paper thin phyllo roll stuffed with our signature cream pudding. Baked to a golden perfection and sweetened with orange blossom syrup.



BAKLAWA FINGER Delicate roll of phyllo dough stuffed with sweet cashews and drizzled with orange blossom syrup.

HOMEADE LIMEADE Flavored with orange blossom water

I'm sure I could leave it at that, but needless to say Rick was not thrilled and I LOVED IT! So fun trying some place new, and I enjoyed all the different tastes.

Sisters Night - Making Bucket Lists

A bucket list is a list of things you want to do before you, "kick the bucket". We got together to watch the movie and make bucket lists of our own. We didn't actually get to the movie because we wanted to talk, but we did make our lists. We missed Lena and Niki but they will both be in town this weekend and we get them to do thier lists then. It was nice that at least one sis-in-law could make it.

It’s difficult to understand the sum of a person’s life; people will tell you it’s measured in the ones left behind, some believe it can be measured by faith, some say by love, other folks say life has no meaning at all. Me, I believe that you measure yourself by the people who measure themselves by you.
Morgan Freeman in the Bucket List

Double Rainbow

Took this picture puling into our neighborhood.

YW Boating Trip

Well, we weren't out for long, because our beautiful sunny day turned rainy and cloudy just as we set out, but we had a good time anyway. The water was the perfect temp., the tube was super fun, and we had a yummy Subway dinner. But alas the lightning and thunder ruined it for us. Of course as soon as we were pulling away from the harbor it cleared up :)

Oh well. we did see a beautiful double rainbow as we pulled back into the neighborhood.

Twin Baby Girls

Me with my cute twin neices, (Malia & Layla). They are finally home! :) They are so sweet, Malia has the fattest little cheeks, and Layla has the cutest little piggies!

2nd Place In Paintball Tournament

Rick is part of the National Guard paintball team. They had a tournament yesterday and came in second place. The only lost 2 out of 12 games.The 2 games they lost were games that Rick sat out on :) This is him wearing his medal.

The Third Musketeer

William Joseph, your name from birth,

B.J. For short cause you're so down to earth.

It's 1984 and now our trio's complete,

Little did we know, the third Musketeer we would meet.

Brothers by blood, friends from the start,

Two Musketeers left, both with a hole in their heart.

The smell of frsh cut grass in our minds will trigger,

How we forced you to line trim, because we were bigger.

Sunday dinner, Dad will still grill your steak, medium rare,

We'll place it on the table, by your empty chair.

25 candles, we'll blow out, every February seven,

You will not be forgotten, just because you're in Heaven.

Sitting in front of the T.V. watching memories of days gone by,

Laughing at you so much, it's hard to cry.

These memories that you've left us, we'll share with your "baby Gurl",

Your memory will live on through her, our dear brother, "Burl".

So here's to you, on your last day here,

Our brother, our friend, The Third Musketeer.

We love you, B.J.

Kelsey got some balloons to let go after the funeral. A little color and happiness in a dark and sad day.

Me with my balloon for B.J.

Rick speaking at the interment, he was so sad it was hard to get his words out, but he did a great job.

The pallbearers: Rick, Matt, Little Russ, Big Russ, Andy, Jordan, Bubba, and Kelsey's Dad

Sea World

Cirque De Le Mar-This is one of my favorite things at Sea World, it is so amazing to see all the feats of strength and acrobats. These two guys made up for me not being able to see The Thunder From Down Under in Las Vegas. J/K

The kids waiting to see the new Sea lion and Otter show. Most of the shows were new this year and this one was really, really cute and funny!

Jade and Brooke

Brooke & Ryk in the new Sesame Street playground. It was so much fun, they could have played for hours.

Rick, Russ, Jade, Ryk & Brooke riding Atlantis. Look at Brooke she is sooooooo freaked-out!

Knott's Berry Farm

Knott's Berry Farm

The old mine ride. Ryker looks REALLY scared! This was the only ride Teek was able to ride.

We watched a Peanuts On Ice show, It was quite good!

This was the only ride with a long wait, it took us like an hour to finally board and the ride lasted all of 10 seconds. Brooke was so scared she kept thinking she would turn back and go find Dad and Teek but I made her stick it out, she cried and cried, but got over it in the end and ended up braving several other rides she was scared of.

Oceanside California

Teek and Daddy
The kids all worked hard on this creation and yet they loved watching it get washed away.

Me and Brooke going out to catch some waves.
We drove all the way to California for the beach and every time we were there we only stayed a few hours because the kids wanted to get back to the pool at the hotel. We could have saved ourselves a lot of money if we had just taken the swimming everyday for a week :)

We had one last beach day planned and then we were going to go to Buffalo Bills and Ride Desperado and spend the night there, but the kids didn't want to do another beach day so we came home 2 days early, which is so not like us, Rick has never driven straight thru, we always stop and spend a night in Vegas or St, George. I feel really luck y that we cut our trip short and were able to be here home when we heard the news about B.J. passing. :(

Jade and Russ had so much fun on the skimboards.

Brooke found a live starfish!

Las Vegas

Ryker Bear & Papa Bear @ the Bellagio Gardens. The vests on the bears are made of flowers.

Me and Brooke infront of the moss frog.

Jadeybug & a flower ladybug

Brooke & Jade infront of a flower snail.

Excaliber, where we stayed.

Russell's A Teenager!

13 years ago, on July 28th, I had my first child at age 20. He weighed 7lbs. 6oz and came by way of a c-section. He was named after his Grandpa and his Dad. He has always been a good, happy, curious, ingenuitive, helpful kid. He loves scouts, sports, and the outdoors; everything from, fishing, hiking, camping, riding bikes, swimming, four-wheeling, boating etc. If it can be done in the outdoors he loves it! He has broken his femur, been hit by a car, and had stiches twice. He gets good grades and makes a friend out of everyone he meets. Here's hoping he stays as good through his teenage years as he did through his childhood years. Happy Birthday Russ!

Random Vacation Pictures

Brooke playing in the punching bags at Sea Worlds new Sesame Street play area.

Dad giving Teek a zurbert.

While the rest of us were on a ride that Ryk couldn't go on he played a carnival game and won this huge bear.

The kids playing in the sand.

Teeky laying on the beach.