Kerry, Miranda and Logan

Family Pictures

2009-12-15T18:34:00.000-08:00

We had the opportunity to have our family pictures taken a short time ago and I LOVE them! They turned out so great. There were a ton that I really liked, but here are a few of my favorites. I can't believe how big Logan is getting. It's crazy to think he'll be in kindergarten this next year.

This is our family...hoping to be more than 3 soon.

Preparedness

2009-12-10T18:27:00.000-08:00

So, I am all about emergency preparedness and over the past few years I have really tried to not only beef up my food storage but emergency supplies as well. On the top of my list last year was a Global Solar Oven. So, with LOTS and LOTS of research, I finally found the best solar oven available and for the best price as well.

After I ordered it and the box arrived on my doorstep, the solar oven was placed downstairs and I kind of forgot all about it. I recently had the opportunity to attend a solar oven cooking class at my local grocery store after which I was re-committed to using my solar oven. It's not only great to have and know how to use in case of an emergency, but it's great to cook with year around as well. You can cook with a solar oven as long as the sun is shining. So, a few weeks ago, I pulled my solar oven out of storage and used it for the 1st time. I was kind of low on prep time for a meal, so I threw in to a pot what I would normally throw into a crock pot for a Sunday meal after church (pork, potatoes, carrots, onion, carrots, cream of mushroom soup, etc...). So into the solar oven it went and a few hours later...ta da....dinner was served.

We were so excited to have dinner already done and to see how great the solar oven really worked, that we had to try it again the next day. So, after a few hours of cooking outside...dinner was served once again. This time I had made a chicken pot pie dish that I found online. So Yummy! I have yet to try to bake cookies or bread in the solar oven. However, if we have a nice sunny day anytime soon, I may make that my next quest.

This is a close up of the pot inside of the solar oven...cooking away by the SUN!

Anyway, I would never have thought I'd be so excited about cooking...especially in a solar oven. But, I couldn't tell you the relief and self of security I had when I actually cooked my first meal in the solar oven. It's just one more thing to help me feel prepared in case at any point in time I don't have the luxury and convenience of using my oven or microwave to cook meals for my family. I'm pretty sure I'll be getting a LOT of use out of it in the summer time too. I don't know about you, but using my oven is the last thing I want to do when it's 100 degrees outside. I think I'll just let the sun do the cooking for me.

Thanksgiving 2009

2009-12-05T17:19:00.000-08:00

This year my parent's decided to come and visit us for Thanksgiving. Not only did my parent's come, but my brother with his wife and another brother with his fiance all came as well. They weren't going to be able to make it to our home until late Wednesday night, which meant I did all of the prep for the food by myself. I have made several turkey dinners in the past, but this was the first time I made EVERYTHING to go with it including; turkey, mashed potatoes, candied yams, pretzel jello salad, rolls, stuffing, gravy, and everything else. Oh, and dessert too. It was a busy few days getting ready and lots of baking, but oh so much fun! It was so great to have family here for a few days and to be able to enjoy time together.

Of course because we were hosting so many people this year and we didn't have enough room at our table, that gave us an excuse to buy a new dining room table which I've been wanting to get for some time now. It seats 8 people...which I LOVE! Since we were hosting dinner for a total of 8 adults and 1 child, we brought our breakfast table into the dining room which was perfect height for the dining room table, which gave us enough room for everyone. Aside from the yummy food, we had a great time visiting, playing guitar hero, visiting craft boutiques, movies, shopping and visiting Temple Square to see the Christmas lights. We also took Grandma and Grandpa to a nearby pond so we could take pictures of them. They turned out so cute. Logan enjoyed the extra attention from everyone and can't wait to visit with Grandma and Grandpa again when they come to visit a few days after Christmas.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Games after dinner

Logan jammin' on the guitar...look at his stance! That's my boy!

Video of the family playing Guitar Hero...so fun!

Temple Square...brr, it was cold!

Picture of Grandma and Grandpa

Pumkin Pie the Hard Way

2009-11-24T16:58:00.000-08:00

This year we had several pumpkins left over from Halloween. Logan and I were out shopping and so I purchased 3 pumpkins to carve for Halloween. Well, it just so happens that Kerry brought home 3 pumpkins on the exact same day to surprise Logan. So, we ended up with not 3, but 6 pumpkins this year...and they were all HUGE. Since we had so many pumpkins that weren't getting put to use, I decided to make Homemade Pumpkin Pie from scratch. I wish I could say it was easy and fun, but that was so not the case. The pies were delicious for sure, but wow...it was a lot of work. So, since it was so time consuming and took several hours in the kitchen, I thought it warranted it's very own post. I do have to say it is nice to have the extra pureed pumpkin in the freezer so we can pull it out whenever we'd like for pumpkin pancakes, pies or cookies. Yummy! So, here was the l-o-n-g process of making pumpkin pie from scratch! Warning...do not try this from home unless you have several hours of free time. hee hee.

So the first step was cutting the pumpkin into smaller
sections so they'll fit in a pot to steam.

The next step was to steam the cut sections of pumpkins
till they were soft which took about 30 min per batch.

After they were soft, I had to separate the pumpkin from the skin
and puree the pumpkin in the blender.

Once it was pureed, it looked like this...

After the pumpkin was pureed, I had to gather the right amount

of pumpkin puree and add the ingredients to make a pie. Once
it was in the pie shell, it was ready to bake. I had a few already made
pie crusts that I decided to use since it took so long to make the filling.

And, last but not least, the finished product baking in the oven. Delicious!

Overall we made a total of 7 pumpkin pies which was perfect since we were hosting Thanksgiving at our home this year. With all of the other food for Thanksgiving, there was barely room in the fridge for the pies. However, we managed to fit everything in. YEAH!

Karate Tournament

2009-11-10T16:31:00.000-08:00

We enrolled Logan in Karate since he's too young to play any other sports right now and he is very athletic. We thought we'd try it for a few months and see how it goes. So far everything is great! Logan is picking up on the moves super quick and is probably the best student in his class (ages 4-6). He practices twice a week for 30 minutes which is the perfect amount of time. It's not only been great for him, but it's been great for me since the weather is turning cold out and this gives him a chance to get some energy out as well. After the first few months of karate, the students were encouraged to enroll in the local tournament which is sponsored by Logan's Karate School and it encompasses all of their schools in the area...which is a lot. Logan was a little intimidated at first, but once he found out there was a medal involved, he was in! So, off to the tournament we went. He was able to show to the judges what is called "star block" and then he was done. After all of the kids in his group were finished, they were all awarded with a medal. Can I just say how excited we were for Logan and for the courage he had to get up and show his moves all by himself. Way to go LOGAN!!! When the judge awarded him with his medal, he was smiling from ear to ear.
Logan continues to work hard during class and is improving every day. We're excited to continue with his classes and to watch him progress. And, we're excited to have the opportunity to watch him participate in other sports when he's in kindergarten next year. He's already informed us that he wants to play football for sure, so we'll have to see about that one.

Here's also a few photos of his first test to advance from a white belt to a white belt with a yellow stripe. He was so excited to get a new belt and can't wait till he gets another one in a few months.

Halloween 2009

2009-11-05T16:14:00.000-08:00

This year for Halloween our costumes were kind of random and they didn't match at all. Kerry had to be Snake Eyes to fit into the theme with his department at work. Logan insisted on being Robin. And, I was so busy with other things that I didn't have a costume at all. Luckily, a friend of mine told me I couldn't go without a costume and so she lent me her sons baseball uniform. He played for BYU and was awesome! We spent the Friday before Halloween at my husbands work party and afterward took Logan to a Karate Halloween Party where there were bounce houses and games. Logan's favorite was the donut eating contest. On Saturday evening, which was Halloween, we spent the evening at Kerry's sister home for trick-or-treating and a family party. We had a delicious dinner, followed by games, crafts, and visiting. Overall we had a great Halloween and luckily this year it didn't snow. YEAH!!! Logan made out with a pretty good stash of candy, but luckily he's not that crazy about candy...unless it's chocolate. The chocolate was gone a long time ago, but he's still working on the other stuff.

The two pictures below are photos of a turret Kerry made for his work party. He is amazingly creative and can make or draw anything you ask him to do. His gun was so great and everyone loved it! He even made it so it would shoot out smoke. I know, I have a super creative husband...which is so not fair because all I can do is draw stick figures and that's about it. hee hee. Anyway, Happy Halloween!

A Special Trip to CA

2009-09-29T18:52:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, we headed to CA to visit my family. My oldest sister went through the Temple for the 1st time and we wanted to be there for her special day. Since we were just in CA less than 1 month ago, we decided this trip was going to have be a quick one. So, we packed up our things, arrived in CA on Thursday the 24th. Friday morning we had a Temple session at 9:45 am. There were several of us brothers and sisters and of course my mom and dad who were able to share this day together.

Kerry, My Brother & Dad

My Brother, Two Sisters & Me
(This picture makes me look short, but my sister with
the red hair is actually 6'1" and my brother is 6'7")

Afterwards we went out to lunch with those in the family who attended the Temple. Then we headed to another one of my sisters' home for a celebration party with family and friends. The food was delicious...Tri-Tip, Chili, Salads, Rolls, Chips & Salsa and of course Cake! My mom is such a GREAT cook! After the party we all headed to my nephews' football game. He is a Senior in High School this year and so it was fun to go and watch him play a game. Their team is ranked #1 and of course they won the game that night. My sister had a football T-Shirt for everyone to wear. Logan LOVED hanging out with his cousins and played with them the entire game.

Logan with 2 of his many cousins

Grandma & Grandpa enjoying the game

Kerry and I together!

The next day we were all tired from the previous day of events, and so since we were leaving that afternoon, we decided to hang out at my oldest sisters' home so we could visit and swim. It was definitely a short visit and the drive was long, but we had a great time and were happy to be there to share the special day with my sister.

Graduating to a BIGGER Bike

2009-09-27T16:11:00.000-07:00

A few months ago Logan learned how to ride his bicycle without training wheels and so we promised him a bigger bike. Well, his cousin in CA outgrew his bike and offered it to Logan. So, since we were just there this past week, we decided to bring it back with us. Of course once we got the bike home and out of the car, Logan immediately had to try the bike out. He did pretty good considering how small his last bike was. So, here is Logan trying out his new bike. A special THANKS to Aunt Heather and his cousin Ethan. Logan is one happy little boy!

Surfs Up!

2009-09-05T13:53:00.000-07:00

This summer we had the opportunity of spending a week at the beach with my parents in California. We were so excited for a such a fun vacation and even more excited to be able to spend time with family. My dad has recently taken a liking to surfing and so whenever he's in Southern California for a job, then he'll spend his off time surfing. Since my dad has a surfboard and we had some vacation time we needed to us, we decided to meet my parents and have a week or surfing and fun. I have to admit, the waves were pretty big that week and so I couldn't get myself to go out where all of the more experienced surfers were. So, I stayed closer to the shore and tried to ride the smaller waves. My main focus was just trying to stand up on the surfboard and not necessarily riding the waves. After a few minutes I decided the surfboard was too short, and I am just not quick enough to stand up before the wave has already passed me by. So, Logan and I stuck to Boogie Boarding which was so much fun! Kerry and my dad on the other hand were out riding the waves the entire trip. Well...they were trying to ride the waves anyway. Kerry briefly got up once and my dad almost got up. I think we've come to the conclusion that the surfboard was too short for the guys since they're beginner surfers and they are both pretty tall. Here's a few photos of surfing and boogie boarding fun!

All in all, the week was great! We enjoyed being out in the sun and Logan loved being able to visit with Grandma and Grandpa. While we were in Southern California, we also made a quick trip (actually we were there for quite a while...there was lots to see) to the Griffith Observatory. Little did we know that while we were there, the observatory was honoring Buzz Aldrin. Buzz Aldrin was the 2nd person to step foot on the moon as he was on the same mission as Neil Armstrong. So we listened to his speech and snapped a few photos of him as well.

Oh, and I almost forgot...when we arrived at the hotel we were staying in for the trip, we noticed a huge crowd behind the building and across the street. So, of course we went to check it out. Guess what it was? It was the show CSI Miami filming. So, if you were ever curious, CSI Miami is filmed in southern CA. Our hotel was next to the building they use to shoot their scenes for the Crime Lab. Since we were the only spectator there watching them film (they were just finishing up), they let us take a few photos after they were done. Cool huh!

Eating out with grandma and grandpa! Grandpa's favorite
restaurant because you can watch surfing on the big screen.

We had a great trip and can't wait again till next summer where we can hopefully have a vacation at the beach again! Or, hmm....Hawaii is sounding pretty good too.

Better Luck Next Time

2009-08-19T22:19:00.000-07:00

Ok...here's the thing. I LOVE to sing. But, I don't really enjoy singing where other's can hear me. I don't mind singing with groups and I don't mind singing in front of Kerry and Logan...but that's about it. So, this past Sunday we were getting ready to have company for dinner and I was busy getting things done in the kitchen and of course I was singing. Kerry's been trying to get me on video for years, and so this past sunday was no different. Luckily I spotted him in time, and so his attempt failed. Here he is tyring to get me to sing and I'm hiding in the pantry. hee hee. At the end you'll hear Logan trying to defend his mom and trying to snatch the phone which is doing the recording. Enjoy!

Failed attempt at trying to record me singing

Playing with Friends

2009-08-18T23:27:00.000-07:00

Logan had a few of his friends over yesterday and when I went to check on them, they were in Logan's room sitting on his bed reading a story...or at least Logan was trying to read the story to them. It was so cute. Here's Logan trying to read to his friends...

Reading to Friends

Next they decided they wanted to be workers and so I had to get all of the tools out for them to play with. Here they are all dressed and ready to get to work. It's pretty funny how one minute they'll be dressed as pirates and then the next they'll want to be something else. I've learned to keep the halloween costumes out all year long because the kids love to dress-up in them all of the time.

My busy worker talking on his play phone.

The County Fair

2009-08-17T22:32:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday we didn't have a whole lot going on and so we decided to head over to the County Fair to see what fun things were happening there. Of course once we arrived, Logan quickly spotted the tractors. So, we had to take a couple of photos of those. Logan thought the Pink tractor was pretty cool. Maybe we'll have to convince Grandpa in CA to get one so Grandma can go out and join him while he's playing in the dirt.

The PINK Tractor

Logan showing off the newer model of tractor

They had a fun little tractor for the kids to drive.

Next we headed to see all of the animals. They had cows, sheep, pigs, chickens, roosters, bunnies, and a few other animals. The chickens and the sheep were Logan's favorites.

They also had huge displays of different sorts of entries for the fair. They had all sorts of fun things to look at including; clothing, quilts, decorations, books, and even food. Well, after walking around for a while, Logan found the LEGO display. Apparently there was some sort of Lego club or association that had a huge display of Lego's up for everyone to see. We probably spent at least 20 minutes there checking out all of the fun things they've made. Logan has a thing for Lego's lately. That's all he wants to play when he goes to Grandmas here in UT.

Logan insisted I take this picture.
He thought it was a pretty cool Lego Man!

They also had some pretty fun activities for the kids. Logan was able to make a hat, a top (those toys that spin), and he also hadhis face painted...a basketball or course.

UDOT was there to remind kids about being safe. So, here is Logan trying to drive the remote control truck and stay between the lines. He kept asking if he was going to be able to take the vest home.

And, finally after a fun afternoon, we are headed home. Actually, before we headed home, we went to the grocery store to pick up a free cake Logan had won during a cake walk they had for the kids. YEAH for Logan!

Can we keep him?

Kennecott Utah Copper Mine

2009-08-12T18:25:00.000-07:00

It was family day on August 1st at the Kennecott Utah Copper Mine, where one of Kerry's brother works, and so we were invited to attend. We didn't have to persuade Logan too hard to want to go since it has two of his favorite things...BIG Trucks & BIG Tractors. When we arrived, we were given a backpack with some fun things for the kids to enjoy (coloring books, crayons, chap stick, etc...) and then we made our way to the BIG Trucks! They had a few of their trucks and tractors on display which Logan LOVED! The best part was that they allowed people to climb on to and walk around on the top of the trucks where the drivers usually are. Afterwards we enjoyed a nice lunch and ice cream before heading back home! We had a GREAT day and enjoyed spending time with our family and climbing on the trucks. I think this must be Heaven for all little boys...and probably some daddy's too. Here are a few fun photos from our day...

This was our group of those who were able to attend!

This is a Caterpillar D11R. It weighs 124 tons!
It is 15 feet tall, 34 feet long, & 20 feet wide. HUGE!!!

My two boys lovin' it!

This is Logan and one of his aunts sitting in the
driver seat of a Komatsu Truck.

There is Logan at the bottom of the truck by the tire.
Again, this is a Komatsu Truck which can hold up to 320 tons

(22 school busses). This truck costs as much as 103 new cars.

Logan and Kerry climbing down from the Komatsu Truck

That's one BIG truck...that's all I have to say!

Rodeo Time

2009-08-10T22:19:00.000-07:00

I was so excited to go to the Rodeo in town this year, since I had never been. However, I missed being able to go by one day because I was still on bed rest from in-vitro. So, I had to forgo my ticket and so Kerry and Logan invited Grandpa to go with them instead. Logan insisted on wearing his cowboy hat and everyone said they had a great time. I'm looking forward to being able to go next year! Here's a photo of my boys at the rodeo.

Infirtility

2009-08-06T20:45:00.000-07:00

Kerry and I LOVE being a mom and dad to such a super sweet and special little boy. We can't imagine our life without him and thank our Father in Heaven daily for sending him our way. As much as we love being parents, Logan is excited to someday have a little brother or sister and talks about it all the time.

The past few years have been especially busy for us in trying to build our family. In July of 2007, we tried to have a baby by trying in-vitro and unfortunately, were unsuccessful. In July of 2008, we found out we were chosen by birthparents in the state of Washington to adopt a baby boy. It wasn't until the morning of placement, while we were in Washington, that we received a call letting us know that the birthfather changed his mind and we would be going home without a baby. Then, in July of 2009, we decided to give in-vitro one last try. We worked with a world renowned specialist from California and were ready to go once again. July was a l-o-n-g month for us filled with shots, medication, surgery, bed rest, and then the two long weeks of waiting to find out if we would be able to have a child or not. Unfortunately, once again, the in-vitro was unsuccessful.

After our experiences over the past two summers, it wasn't the news we were hoping for. However, Kerry and I both felt at peace with the results and knew that we would be blessed with children when the time was right...and we just needed to be patient. We know that we will have additional children someday and that Logan will get to be the big brother he talks about all the time. We have faith in our Father in Heaven and know that we will be able to add to our family someday and will LOVE every minute of it!

Anyway, the reason for this post wasn't to make people feel sorry for us, but more for us to have a chance to share with you our experiences of trying to have children. Life isn't always easy, and we all have our trials. We are just so glad that we have the knowledge that if we will put our faith in and trust in the Lord, then we will be blessed with another child when the time is right. Right now, we are enjoying and LOVING being a mom and dad to the sweetest boy on the earth. We love his birthmother and the sacrifice she made for him and for the most amazing gift she has given us.

The dreaded shots. The first night I was supposed to take the shots,
I sat in the bathroom for 30 minutes trying to convince myself
that I was brave enough to give the shots to myself
(in the stomach). Finally, Kerry convinced me to let him do it.
Although, even after I said yes, it took another 15 minutes for me to
let him. The first shot was kind of scary since neither one of us has
ever given anyone a shot before. However, the shots weren't so bad
after all, and the rest of the shots were nice and quick.

Signing paperwork before extraction of my eggs.

Goofing off with the funny gown I had to wear.

This is what happens when Kerry is left alone in a room
filled with medical supplies for 30 minutes (during my procedure).
I know...he's hilarious!

And, Logan snuggling me on the couch while I was on bed
rest for 3 days. I LOVE snuggling that little boy!

There's a Cowboy in our house!

2009-07-29T19:45:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned before, Logan loves to dress up. He changes his outfit at least twice a day. Here he is wearing his "cowboy" outfit. I'm not sure how the army shorts and the T-shirt qualify as cowboy clothes, but I'm not going to argue about that with a 4-year old. So, here's our fashionable little boy, I mean cowboy...

At least he's wearing all green, so he kind of matches...right?!?

Learning how to vacuum...He's such a great helper!

Logan working hard!

Random Photos

2009-07-21T21:05:00.000-07:00

Here are a few random, but cute/funny pictures we thought would be fun to share...

Logan getting ready to swim in the backyard...showing us his muscles.

Logan has this fascination with Indiana Jones because of
a game he played a while ago. So, he comes out of his
room and says, "Look, I'm dressed like Indiana Jones."
We had to giggle a little, but were actually impressed because
his outfit is pretty close to what Indiana Jones would wear.

And of course, our Pirate Logan. He LOVES
to dress up in different costumes/outfits! I can't
wait to see what he wants to be for Halloween!

Beard and mustach, courtesy of Kerry. He is the
artist in the family. Logan LOVED it!

Logan had a blanket that he absolutely LOVED and
would carry around the house all the time. It was very
well used and was pretty much falling apart. One day, he
willingly decided it was time to throw his blanket away
and so of course Kerry and I said ok. The first few nights
without his blanket, he decided he needed a stuffed animal
to sleep with and so this is Logan snuggling with his yellow bear.
I'm so glad we didn't force him to give up his blanket and that
he decided when he was ready. Now, he doesn't sleep
with anything and is getting to be way to grown up.

I'm not sure where Logan picked this up at...it must
have been all of the sports games we've seen with the cheerleaders
or something like that. Anyway, Logan decided he wanted to
show mom and dad what the girls do. So, take a look...

Swim Lessons...Again

2009-07-17T19:22:00.000-07:00

Logan had his second session of swim lessons the past few weeks and he was amazing! I couldn't believe the difference between the 1st and 2nd sessions even though they were only a few weeks apart. It was so fun to watch him swim with his head under the water and actually trying to learn how to use his arms and his legs. Here are a few pictures and video clips of our super great swimmer! Go Logan!!!

Learning to float on his back

Learning to use his arms and legs

Just came up from under the water

Going down the slide by himself...no help from the teacher

And yes, he actually jumped off the diving board. He
was a little nervous at first, but then decided he wanted
to try it like the rest of the kids in his class. He was GREAT!!!

Logan jumping off the diving board! Whoo Hoo!

Independence Day

2009-07-05T07:45:00.000-07:00

The 4th of July is always a fun day for our family. We are always up early (sometimes too early) to watch a TON of Hot Air Balloons lift off. We are able to walk around on the field as their filling full of air and it's amazing to see how they actually work. I think as much as Logan enjoys walking around the field and checking everything out, I think Kerry might love it even more. Once we've had a chance to watch the balloons, we head over to the city parade where there is LOTS of entertainment, treats and fun! Once the parade was over, we headed back home for an afternoon nap. We had been up early for the balloons and knew we would be staying up late for fireworks, so we all enjoyed some down time so we would be rested for the rest of the activities. The entire evening was spent with our family close by. We enjoyed a delicious bar-b-que and then fireworks. Logan loved running around with his cousins and spending time with them. We love the 4th of July and the traditions we have together as a family! Here are a few fun pictures of our day together... (I forgot to bring my camera for the fireworks and bar-b-que, so there's not too many pictures).

Yes, I was there that early in the morning...
someone had to take the pictures. :)

Here's Logan admiring Star Wars characters during the parade

Food, Food & MORE Food

2009-07-01T10:26:00.000-07:00

We have really been having a lot of fun with our garden this year. As I've mentioned in previous posts, this is our first time having a garden in our new home since we've only been here for a little over a year. It seems like different plants grow differently depending on where you live. So, we over-planted our garden this year to get an idea of what would grow well here and then we'd be able to better plant the things that do well the following year. Well, except for the watermelon and cantaloupe, EVERYTHING so far has grown really well. Our garden is a bit on the full side and we have food everywhere. I am definitely not complaining though. Even though we are definitely enjoying the food from our garden it is quite a bit of work too. So far we've been pretty good about taking care of it as a family and sharing in the responsibilities. I can say that Logan is great at spotting the weeds and is a HUGE help when it's time to weed the garden. Not only does he enjoy pulling the weeds, but he's been having a lot of fun picking the peas as well. Here are a few pictures of our super great helper!!! It's so fun to watch how excited he is about helping to gather food from the garden. Hopefully, next years garden will be just as great!

Swim Lessons

2009-06-26T20:17:00.000-07:00

Today was Logan's last day of his first round of swim lessons for the summer. He is taking lessons two times this year and each session lasts for 2 weeks. Since today was the last day of lessons, the kids were able to jump off the diving board and play on the slide. Logan had no interest whatsoever to jump off of the diving board...but he did manage to go down the slide. He just made sure he was on his teachers lap. Here are a few pictures from his last day of swim lessons (at least for the first session).

This is Logan under the water. The first few lessons

he didn't want to put his head under at all, but after a few

days, he decided he really liked it. So, here he is showing off.

Logan getting ready to go down the slide again.

After two weeks of very basic swim lessons, Logan passed the class and is ready to move on to the next level. YEAH!!!

Summer Fun

2009-06-24T17:32:00.000-07:00

I've had several friends and family ask me when I was going to update our blog. I hadn't realized that it has been several weeks since our last post. The funny thing is, we haven't gone anywhere or done anything that would keep us from writing. We've just been busy with the every day events of life (playing, bar-b-ques, swimming, etc...). So, here are a few favorite photos from our last few weeks. Enjoy...

Our Garden - this is our first year planting a garden
in our new home since we moved here last year and
it took practically all summer to landscape the yard.
We weren't really sure how well certain plants would
grow in this area, so we planted a LOT of things. So far
everything has been growing really well except for the
watermelon. So, our garden is going to be a little crowded
this year and we are going to have lots of food - which
our family, friends & neighbors will LOVE.

Logan on the trampoline playing after we just
went swimming. Wow, the water was cold!
This is one of his favorite places to be.

Logan is taking swimming lessons this year for the first time.
He loves the water and LOVES swimming. His teacher
is so great with him. I was kind of bummed because
we missed the mommy & me class by 1 year (it's for 3 & under).
So, this year I get to watch him take lessons and then
we can go swimming in the pool together once lessons is over.
He is currently in his 2nd week of lessons and is doing great!

Another one of Logan's' favorite things to do outside
is to ride his bike or scooter. We asked him to make

a cool pose and this is what he came up with. hee hee

Our super sweet and amazing little boy - learning
& growing every day! He is growing up too fast!

Twinkle Little Star

2009-06-06T20:50:00.000-07:00

This week we've spent the majority of our time outside playing and having fun. The weather has been great and so we've been taking advantage of it before it gets too hot. Yesterday the posts for our fence in our backyard were installed. YEAH!!! This coming Friday they will install the slats and then we will be able to enjoy a little privacy in our backyard. I am so looking forward to that. We also had the privilege today of attending one of our many nieces baptism. Logan was pretty excited to attend and it was a special day for our family and a great learning experience for Logan as well. After the baptism, we spent some time at a family members home for lunch and cake and ice cream to celebrate our nieces baptism and birthday. Tomorrow we will also be attending a baby blessing for the same family. May and June have been a busy month filled with special occasions for our extended family members. :)
Here is a picture of Logan and I after the baptism.

So, tonight we were all in Logans room getting him ready for bed and tucking him in. We always sing a few songs together as a family before bedtime. Tonight one of the songs Logan chose was "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star." Right before we started to sing, he runs over to the other side of the room and starts to lead (conduct) the music. It was the cutest thing ever and so Kerry pulled out his phone to record Logan without him knowing. We started the song all over so we could record the entire thing. So, here is Logan conducting the music to "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star." He is so stinkin' CUTE and we love him so much!

Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star

Family, Food and Fun

2009-06-01T19:09:00.001-07:00

This past weekend we were together with family for a baby shower for my sister-in-law. Her baby was born 2 months pre-mature and is still in the NICU at the hospital. The baby continues to grow and develop every day and is doing great considering how pre-mature she was born. She has almost reached 5 lbs and if all continues to go well, she will hopefully be able to join her mom and dad at home in a few weeks (hopefully at most 1 month). This coming weekend we have several more family events to attend including a baptism, birthday, and a baby blessing. So, since we have so much going on with the family lately, we decided to take a sunday off (since we usually have dinner with the family at grandma and grandpas home) and enjoy time at home with just the three of us. We had a great time playing on the trampoline, bar-b-quing, and enjoying time together as a family. Here are a few photos from our sunday at home.

My two boys playing on the trampoline

Yummy Bar-b-que chicken

Homemade Limeaid - it was soooo good!

Working Out

2009-06-01T14:57:00.000-07:00

Our health insurance company sent us a complimentary Sesame Street video that focuses on exercising and staying healthy. Of course Logan had to check it out. Here he is "working out".

Here he is afterwards hiding in a box with a plan to surprise daddy.

Memorial Weekend

2009-05-26T10:51:00.000-07:00

First of all, our family would like to pay tribute to all of the men and women who have served, continue to serve, and have died while in the service of our GREAT country. If it weren't for so many willing to fight for the freedoms we enjoy today, our country would be in a much different place. So, for all of you, we say THANK YOU!

Traditionally, we spend Memorial weekend camping, or hanging out with the family and having bar-b-ques. However, this year the weather wasn't very cooperative and it rained almost the entire weekend. So, camping was out of the question since we weren't too excited about camping in the mud. And, a bar-b-que was out of the question as well. So, we spent the weekend going to see a movie, playing games inside, celebrating Logan's cousins birthday, and we even managed to squeeze in a project for the house. We moved into our new home one year ago and since then most of our tools have been stuck in boxes in the garage. It's been hard trying to find tools when we want to do a project around the house. So, yesterday, Kerry decided we'd spend part of the day building shelves in the garage. It was a lot of work, but we are sooooooooooooo excited to have them done and to have some organization in our garage. We now know where everything is and it was so great to be able to get everything out of boxes. Anyway, it was a fun, busy and great weekend. And most of all, we were able to spend an extra full day with Kerry...which is always GREAT! Here are a few photos of our weekend.

Logan chowing down on Popcorn while
at the movies. We saw Night at the Museum 2.

After the movies, we stopped off at the store
and they had some sort of celebration going on
with hot dogs, and bounce houses for the kids. Here's
Logan getting ready to slide down on the bounce house.

Logan playing with his tools while
Mom and Dad are working.

Mom getting ready to cut a piece of wood for the shelves.

Dad working hard to build the best shelves ever!
What would we ever do without him?

Here's a short video of Logan singing with
our work earmuffs on. He's such a great helper!

Sprinklers and Snow Cones

2009-05-16T20:51:00.000-07:00

As I've mentioned in previous posts, it's definitely starting to warm up here in Utah which means it's time to turn on the sprinklers. Today we spent the later part of the afternoon adjusting the sprinklers in the backyard. We had them installed last year, but by the time we were done with the majority of the landscaping (since we did most everything ourselves) it was the end of the summer and we didn't need to use the sprinklers anymore. Most of the watering, we just did by hand. So, today was the first time we've actually used our sprinklers since they were installed last year. Kerry was such a trooper and made all of the proper adjustments that the sprinklers needed (along with moving a few too) so that the lawn, plants, and garden all had great water coverage. By the time he was done, he was soaking wet and super muddy. After all that fun in the yard, we had dinner and then headed down to the nearest snow cone place for a yummy treat. Here are a few photos of our fun day! We LOVE Saturdays!

Here's Kerry moving the 1st sprinkler
after having adjusted a few others.

Logan had a blast running through the
sprinklers while Kerry was adjusting them.
Anytime I say he can put on his swim suit,
he goes strait for the goggles. Cute huh!

Kerry needed a place to set the dirt so it
wouldn't get all over the grass, so he grabbed
the closest thing to him. hee hee

Logan & Mommy taking a break
while Daddy cleaned up.

Our colored tongues from the snow cones.

Yes, we ate them all...they were delicious!

Dinner Time

2009-05-12T21:12:00.001-07:00

Yesterday we spent practically the entire day working in the yard. On Saturday we had brought the wood chips for the playground area into the backyard, but ran out of daylight to get them into the playground area. So, yesterday was a day full of weeding (lots and lots of weeding) and then laying down weed fabric, and spreading out 4 cubic yards of playground wood chips. By the time Kerry arrived home from work, I hadn't even had time to think about dinner. We were all super hungry and so dinner needed to be something quick and tasty! So, we all gathered together in the kitchen and decided to make bar-b-que pizza with our leftover chicken from Sunday's meal. Here is our work in progress...

Logan rolling the pizza dough into place

Kerry cutting the chicken into small strips

Logan and I pouring bar-b-que sauce onto the crust

As I was getting everything onto the pizza,
Kerry and I glanced over at Logan and found him
nibbling on the block of cheese. We had to have
a little talk about having us cut a slice for him instead
of eating the entire block of cheese. hee hee

I had intentionally left the camera lying out so I could take a picture of the pizza when it was done baking. However, we were so hungry, I completely forgot until Logan had 1 bite left. So, you'll just have to image how tasty it looked. Yummy!

Springtime!

2009-05-12T20:54:00.000-07:00

Spring is here and we are loving it! It's been so nice outside lately we've been taking advantage of the weather and having fun in the sun. Here are a few things we've been up to the past few days...

Water games with friends & mom.
I had the hose...hee hee

Logan laughing just after I sprayed him.

Kerry borrowed his grandpa's tractor and trailer
so we could take the many loads of mulch
and wood chips that were dumped in our driveway
into the backyard to finish our landscaping. I thought
that was a much better idea than bringing 1 load
at a time in a wheelbarrow. Isn't that the coolest tractor!

Of course Logan wanted to climb
on top of the tractor for a picture with dad.

Friday night was the Father & Son's outing with our ward. We needed to be up early on Saturday to attend Kerry's grandpas funeral and so the boys decided not to sleep over at the campsite. Instead they spent the evening fishing at the campground with the ward and then came home and pitched a tent in the family room. Logan was so excited to still get to "camp out" and think Kerry was pretty excited to enjoy camping in a warm house. It was so cute to see them snuggled up inside the tent "camping".

Farewell Grandpa

2009-05-07T20:17:00.000-07:00

Kerry's grandpa who was 96 years old passed away this last Sunday. He had been in the hospital for about 2 weeks and it was evident that his time here on this earth was coming to an end. Grandpa had lived an extremely healthy and active life. It was only until about 2 years ago that he and his wife weren't able to live alone in their home and needed to be watched a little more carefully. We feel blessed to have been able to visit with him in the hospital about 1 week before he passed away. Kerry and I both felt that was our time to say goodbye and to let him know how much we love him. We are comforted with the knowledge that families are forever, even after this life, and that we will be able to see him again. His funeral services are going to be held this weekend where we'll be able to gather with several family members to celebrate his life. He is survived by his wife and sweetheart of 70 years, 7 children, 38 grandchildren, 81 great-grandchildren, and 2 great-great-grandchildren. He is loved dearly by so many and will be greatly missed. We love you Grandpa!

Grandpa, Kerry's Dad holding
Logan (3 months old), & Kerry

Apples and Fun!

2009-05-02T20:34:00.001-07:00

Well, today we had planned on working on our backyard. We still need a few loads of mulch for the garden and flowerbeds and wood chips for the playground. However, we woke up to puddles of water outside and it was still raining by the time we got out of bed. In fact, it seemed like it pretty much rained the entire day. So, since the weather wasn't very cooperative with us we decided to spend the day doing other things instead.

We watched Horton Hears a Who (one of Logan's favorites), went shopping, planted a few more strawberry plants in the yard (when there was a 5 min break in the rain), played games, and of course made yummy treats. We had several apples in the refrigerator that were starting to get soft and not one of us in this house enjoys soft apples. So, we decided to make an apple dessert. We made two batches...one for us and one to share with a neighbor. After making the dessert, we still had plenty of apples left and so we decided to make some apple pie filling and bottle them to add to our food storage as well. Tomorrow after church we're going to our friends home for dinner, so we may just have to bring apple pie for dessert. Yummy! Anyway, even though we didn't get anything done today that we had planned, we still had an enjoyable day spending time together.

An apple dessert I made from one of
my recipe books...I don't even remember
what it's called. But, it sure was tasty!

A few of the jars of apple pie filling.

Basketball Time!

2009-05-01T21:23:00.000-07:00

We LOVE basketball at our house! Kerry played while growing up with family and friend and different leagues and I played all throughout high school as well as in college. We were so excited when Logan started to show an interest in the sport as well. Our friends approached us and asked if wanted to get season tickets with them to the NBA D-League Team here in Utah. We thought it would be a great opportunity to get out and spend time together as a family and to give Logan exposure to Basketball as well. So, of course we said Yes.

We have absolutely LOVED having something so fun to do when we'd normally be stuck inside since the season is during the cold and snowy winter, and Logan is learning so much about the sport as well. We have a basketball court (1/2 court anyway) in our backyard and every time we go outside he has to shoot around for a while and pretend his team is winning...even if he's not really playing anyone. I do have to admit, he has quite the shot for a 4 year old.

We decided with all of the free T-shirts we received during the season (which all were too big for Logan) we'd use them to make a quilt so that he would have something to remember all of the fun we had at the games. So, I went to work and did my best to come up with a design for the quilt with the shirts we had. There were only a few games left in the season and we wanted to get all of the players signatures on the quilt, and so I had to make the quilt fast. The team owner was so kind to take our quilt and have all of the players sign it before one of their last games of the season. We were all pretty excited about that and even more excited that our team did so well this year. GO FLASH!

Logan with his quilt and a signed game basketball
shoe from Kosta Koufos (re-assigned from the
Utah Jazz for a few games).

Kerry and the Mascot with the quilt

Court side seats for a game.

Flash player Ronald Dupree, Logan and me

Flash player Kosta Koufos, Logan and me

Time for Strawberries

2009-04-29T13:31:00.000-07:00

Just last week one of the local grocery stores had an unbelievable deal on cases of strawberries. So, lately we've been enjoying homemade strawberry pie, strawberries with practically every meal, and of course strawberry freezer jam. I love this time of year. It's a great opportunity for us to stock up our shelves with food from the garden and yummy jams as well. Our garden has been started with the cool weather vegetables, and as soon as it warms up a little more, we are ready to plant the rest of the garden vegetables. Logan's excited to help bury the seeds and to watch everything grow. Now I just have to get him excited about wedding too. hee hee

Anyway, I didn't even think about taking a picture of the pie, but here is a picture of our homemade strawberry jam. Yummy!

Loganisms

2009-04-26T16:13:00.000-07:00

Here are a few fun comments from or conversations with Logan...

Mom: "What did you learn about at church today?"
Logan: proudly shows me the picture he colored during class
Mom: "What's that a picture of?"
Logan: "Adam and Steve"
Mom: trying not to laugh, "You mean Adam and Eve"
Logan: "Yep...Adam and Eve"

Logan: "Mom, what's got com?"
Mom: "what?"
Logan: "you know like your website."

"Gur-prise" = Surprise

"Grill" = Girl

"Chotty-Chops" = Karate Chops (like back massage)

"Packback" = Backpack

While looking at pictures from Miranda's phone he asked, "is this for your blog?"

Logan: "You're a Tootie da Tootie!"

Dad: "...then one day you can get married too."
Logan: (thinks) "Do I have to wear a fancy shirt?"

Logan: (Toots)
Dad: "Logan!"
Logan: "sorry, I'll make my bum stop."

Logan in reference to his toy cell phone: "When I'm at preschool and the phone rings, if it's a boy or a girl, just talk to them....ok."

Bar-b-que Time

2009-04-26T15:39:00.000-07:00

Since Spring is officially here and we are near the completion of landscaping our backyard, we thought we'd enjoy a night of roasted marshmallows using our fire pit. Last Saturday morning (1 week ago), Logan and Kerry spent the morning fishing. Logan was excited to report that they caught 3 fish, although they let 2 go because they were pretty small. He was so excited to come home and show me his catch. So, guess what we had for dinner that night. Yes, you guessed it...Fish. It was Yummy and even Logan enjoyed it. Logan and Kerry also came home and surprised me with strawberry plants and flowers for the yard. Logan was also very specific about where he wanted me to plant the pretty flowers he brought home for me. They ended up in a planter pot on our front porch....so CUTE!!!

Logan and Daddy's catch!

Snack Time

After a fun morning of fishing with dad, we decided we'd spend a few hours working on our backyard. We're getting closer to being done and I am happy to report that all we have left to do is get a few loads of mulch for the flower beds and garden area. Then we'll have the entire rest of spring, summer and fall to enjoy the backyard. YEAH!!! I'm so glad we worked hard last summer when we moved in to our new home so we can enjoy being outdoors and so Logan can have a fun place to play. After a full afternoon in the sun, we decided that we'd give our fire pit a try for the first time since we just finished it a few weeks ago. So, with roasting sticks and marshmallows in one hand and chocolate cookies in the other hand, we enjoyed a tasty treat. We had so much fun together as a family and even had several people the next day at church ask what we were doing in our backyard. We had such a great time, that we invited Kerry's family over for a hot dog roast and potluck the next day for Sunday dinner. We enjoyed the fire pit we built at our last home as well and so I'm sure we'll spend lots of time around it in our new home as well. Here are a few pictures of our fun time together as a family. I wouldn't want to spend my Saturday evening any other way than having a fun time with those who I love.

FHE at the Park

2009-04-16T20:11:00.000-07:00

This past Monday we decided since it was so nice outside, that we'd have Family Home Evening at the Park. So, after dinner we headed to the park to play. Well, everyone else must have had the same idea, because it was a pretty happenin' place. Anyway, we had a great time and it was so nice to be outside again to enjoy the warmth and the sun.

To give you an idea of the crazy weather here in Utah...Monday was mid 60's, nice, sunny and warm. Then, Tuesday rolls around and it rains all day. Wednesday was a day filled with snow. Yes, you read it right...SNOW in mid-April. In fact we woke up this morning to a couple of inches of snow on the ground. Crazy huh?!? Anyway, the weather is supposed to warm up this weekend and early next week we are supposed to hit over 70 degrees. YEAH!!! Logan and I are both ready for bike rides, playing in the yard and fun at the park.

Here is a short video clip of Logan at the park having some fun for FHE!

Easter Morning

2009-04-14T11:35:00.001-07:00

This year our church doesn't start until 1pm on Sundays and so we had plenty of time to enjoy Easter morning together as a family. The first thing Logan asked after waking up is if the Easter Bunny had come to our home. So, of course we had to get up and check it out right away. It was still pretty wet outside since it had rained the entire day before, and so the Easter Bunny hid all of the eggs inside. Logan (with a little help from mom and dad on a few eggs) found all of the eggs in no time. After seeing what the Easter Bunny had left and eating a tasty breakfast, we headed to church for a wonderful Easter program. I didn't have to teach in Young Women's this week and so I was asked to sub in Logan's class. I was able to teach a bunch of 3-4 year olds about Easter and the Resurrection. I was so amazed that Logan knew all of the answers. We have talked about the meaning of Easter several times, but it was so nice to know that he remembers specific things about the special event. It was a happy moment for Kerry and I to know how blessed we are with such a sweet and smart little boy. Sunday evening we were able to have dinner at Grandma and Grandpas with all of Logan's aunts and uncles and cousins. After dinner Grandma planned a special spiritual Easter Egg hunt for the adults and a fun Easter Egg hunt for the kids. It's always fun to enjoy the holidays with family close by. We hope each of you had a Happy Easter! Here are a few pictures from our special day...

The Easter Bunny must know how much Logan
loves Pirates because he left him a Pirate Ship.

Logan on the hunt for eggs

Happy Easter!

Easter Fun!

2009-04-11T14:17:00.000-07:00

So far today we've had lots of fun getting ready for and celebrating Easter. This morning we were up early for an Easter breakfast and egg hunt at our church. We enjoyed pancakes, bacon and eggs with our friends and then the kids were able to go on an Easter egg hunt inside the building (since it was raining outside). Here is Logan finding a few eggs.

He spotted one behind the door - all
of the other kids had missed it.

After the party Logan was excited to see all of the treats that were inside of his plastic eggs. It's candy time! Actually he doesn't really have that much of a sweet tooth. In fact, we still have a ton of his Halloween candy left from last year. He'll just eat a few pieces and be perfectly satisfied.

After the party, we decided to sit down as a family and decorate Easter eggs for the Easter Bunny to hide tomorrow. I'm glad we didn't make them earlier in the week because now our fridge smells like eggs every time the door is opened.

The beginning

A work in progress

Logan wrote his name on the egg which
I am super impressed with because it's
a wax crayon that goes on clear. Not bad huh!

Kerry's eggs or should I say "eyes." hee hee

Almost finished

For my sweetie & best friend!

The finished masterpiece!

Happy Easter!

Stop, Drop & Roll

2009-04-11T14:00:00.000-07:00

I'm in a group with several mom's in my neighborhood where we teach Preschool to our children on a rotating schedule. This past week we had preschool at our home and the topic was Fire Safety. We learned all about what to do if there is a fire in your home, about firemen, and about what to do if by chance you catch on fire. The kids had a great time learning about the importance of fire safety. It's so fun to watch Logan learn and grow and interact with other children his age. He is growing way too fast. In fact, this past Thursday I took him for his 4 year old check-up and he is in the 95% for his weight and 91% for his height. His eye sight is great and he had his shots for kindergarten. It's hard to believe he will be in school in 1 1/2 years. What will I do without my little guy by my side all day?

Anyway, here is Logan demonstrating "Stop, Drop & Roll."

Stop, Drop & Roll

It's Wii Time

2009-04-11T13:33:00.000-07:00

Logan loves to play the wii and so we use it as a reward for him. When he's had a good day, he gets to play with his dad for 30 min in the evenings. The other night he was playing a game and bouncing around while he was playing and so I couldn't resist catching it on video. It's so fun to watch him play. Here's my cute boy caught in action!

It's Wii Time

Conference Weekend

2009-04-06T13:41:00.000-07:00

We have a family tradition of going camping on conference weekend. We pack up our gear and head to a lake a few miles away from our home and enjoy the outdoors while listening to conference on the radio. It's so great to be able to lay down on a blanket in the sun or to sit by the lake and fish while listening to the words of the prophet and other church leaders. Saturday evening, Kerry and all of the other guys head back into town for the Priesthood session while the ladies enjoy time with each other and the kids. This year because the weather was snowy, rainy and cold, we enjoyed conference from the warmth of our home. We love being able to listen to conference and after each session, we feel so blessed to be a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. We love that we are able to listen to a true and living prophet who guides us and helps us to strive to be better so that we can live with our families for all eternity. We truly are blessed. Anyway, here are a few things we did this conference weekend.

I started this lap quilt Saturday during the afternoon

session of conference and finished it Sunday morning.

I made this quilt from all of the free T-Shirts

we received at the basketball games. We're

hoping to take the quilt to the game and have

all of the players sign the blank white squares.

Wish us luck! Logan was so excited about the quilt.

Logan and dad getting ready to race cars in-between

sessions of conference on Sunday afternoon.

Logan racing his car and LOVING IT!

Daddy and Logan - Best Buddies!

Logan & Daddy racing cars

Learning to Write!

2009-03-30T14:51:00.000-07:00

Logan will be in his 2nd year of preschool next year and in order to attend, he'll need to know how to write his name. So, we started off tracing his name to better familiarize himself with the letters. Then we thought we'd give the actual writing (without tracing) a go. So, here is Logan's first attempt at writing his name. He did such a GREAT job and we are so excited to see his excitement as he continues to learn and grow! Way to go Logan!!!

1st attempt at writing name

2nd attempt at writing name

The finished product!!! YEAH!!!
LOVE that cute smile!!!

Outside Play Time

2009-03-19T11:23:00.000-07:00

We've had several days of warm weather lately (in the 60's) and so Logan and I are taking advantage of it and spending lots of time outside. We are both excited to be outside again and to enjoy the sun. Spring is one of my favorite times of the year! Here's Logan enjoying play time in our backyard.

Playing on the trampoline.

Digging in what will soon be my garden.

Playing on his digger

It's Birthday Time!

2009-03-19T11:04:00.000-07:00

Well, yesterday was my birthday and I officially turned 33 years old. It's funny because when I was a teenager, I always thought anyone over 30 was soooooo old. Now that I'm actually in the 30's I don't feel old at all. Maybe that's because I have a 4 year old and he keeps me young and active. I had a great day yesterday and celebrated last night with Logan and Kerry taking me to Tucanos for dinner. Thanks Kerry & Logan for such a fun evening! We'll be celebrating again with Kerry's family on Sunday. Here are a few pictures of our night out!

Here's a short video of Logan at Tucanos

Happy St. Patrick's Day

2009-03-19T10:54:00.000-07:00

This year the Leprechauns stopped by our home and changed all of our food Green! Yikes! Dinner featured Corn Beef, Green Mashed Potatoes and Gravy, Green Jello, Broccoli and Green Milk. Logan and I also surprised Kerry with Guitar Hero (which included the guitar, drums and microphone) for our Wii. He was super excited to say the least. hee hee. Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Here's Kerry pretending to be rocking out!
Can you guess what Logan and Kerry did
all evening while I went to Mutual with the YW?

Grandma & Grandpa Comes for a Visit

2009-03-19T10:00:00.000-07:00

My mom LOVES genealogy and frequently comes to Utah to attend BYU's many genealogy conferences. The conference my mom was attending was held on Friday and Saturday of last week and so my parents decided to come and stay for the entire week. Logan of course was ecstatic to have grandma and grandpa around and of course to be spoiled and have all of their attention for an entire week. We had a super fun and very full week planned with grandma and grandpa. On Monday we took them to a basketball game. The team lost, but we still had a great time. I was even sprayed from the mascot with a TON of silly string. It was all over.

On Tuesday we had reservations to attend the Draper Temple Open House. We often talk to Logan about Temples and how special they are and so it was great to be able to take him inside and to show him the House of the Lord and convey to him the importance of Temples and the Spirit that is felt within. He was so cute walking around holding a pamphlet they gave us at the door and trying to convince us it was a map of where we were going. It was also fun to be in the Temple with my parents. My dad and I had the opportunity to do the lighting for a Temple that was built in California and so we usually pay extra attention to the lighting in the Temples too.

On Wednesday, we took Grandma shopping. And on Thursday we spent the afternoon at the Family History Center in Salt Lake while Logan and grandpa explored the city. Here are a few pictures of Logan taken from grandpa.

Logan posing in front of the handcart at the museum

Logan in the Joseph Smith Memorial Building
overlooking Temple Square & Salt Lake.

On Friday we took Grandma and Grandpa to another Basketball game. This time the team won and we even came home with a free T-Shirt too. I think we have about 10 of them now. My parents enjoy watching basketball because they had to sit through many years of basketball games while several of their children played in High School and I played in College as well. Before the game started we picked grandma up from her conference and went to dinner. Here is grandpa being silly and entertaining Logan. And, I can't forget a picture of my two favorite boys!

On Saturday while my mom was at her conference, my dad and Kerry built shelves in my laundry room for my birthday present. I have a huge laundry room, and so it's so great to be able to fill some of that space with shelves and to get things up and off of the floor and a little more organized. Now all I need to do is paint and the project will be completed. YEAH!!!

Kerry and grandpa working together.

On Saturday evening, we picked grandma up from her conference and headed to Salt Lake to attend Disney on Ice. Saturday was also my parents 40th wedding anniversary and so it was a special treat for all of us. The show was called Mickey and Minnie's Magical Journey where they featured several Disney movies including; The Lion King, Lelo and Stitch, The Little Mermaid, and Peter Pan. Logan's favorite was of course Peter Pan. We brought our camera with us but discovered that after the first picture, the battery was getting low. So, the pictures are not the greatest, but here are a few from the evening.

Waiting for the show to begin.

Grandma & Grandpa are good at spoiling the
grandkids. Here Logan is with his cotton candy
and his fish hat from The Little Mermaid.
He wouldn't take the hat off all night.

Grandma, Grandpa & Logan

Overall, we had a GREAT time and LOVED having Grandma and Grandpa come to visit. We're always sad when they have to go home, but are planning to see them again in a few short months.

Painting, Sushi, Fishing - Enjoying Life

2009-03-04T18:34:00.000-08:00

Wow...the past few weeks have gone by sooooo fast. We've had so many things keeping us busy, I didn't even realize it had been so long since our last blog entry. So, here is a quick update on what's been happening at our home.

Kerry and I are pretty open to various food types and every now and then when we eat out we'll choose a Tai, Japanese, or Chinese Restaurant. Kerry has had Sushi a few times while out to lunch or dinner with his business associates. However, I have never had the opportunity to try it. So, recently Kerry decided to take Logan and I out for dinner at a Sushi Restaurant. I was a little hesitant to try raw fish and it took forever for me to decide what to order since I wanted to know for sure what I was getting. With lots of great help from the waitress, I ordered my first sushi roll...and, it was delicious. I was pleasantly surprised at how great it was and decided I would for sure try sushi again. I'm sure it will take me another 15 minutes to decide what to order and lots of help from the waitress too. Logan wasn't too excited about dinner and he thought it looked funny. So, he munched down on noodles and steamed peas. Yummy. He did however LOVE playing with and trying to eat with the chopsticks. He insisted on bringing them home too. The waitress even brought out coloring crayons for him to draw with so he'd be entertained during dinner. Anyway, here are a few pictures from our dinner out at the Sushi Restaurant.

*Pictures taken with cell phone.

Sushi Roll

Logan playing with his chopsticks

We moved into our new home in May of last year and we are the original owners, and so luckily we didn't have to do any remodeling or fix anything before we moved in. However, the builders chose to put carpet in our formal dining room and anyone with children knows that carpet, food, and kids don't really go so well together. So, we decided to rip out the carpet and put down a laminate wood floor that matches our kitchen. I didn't even take into consideration that before we could lay down the new floor, we'd have to take all of the baseboards off too. Needless to say, the project was a little more time consuming than originally planned. I'm sure Kerry knew that was an important step in the process, but it hadn't even crossed my mind. Once we had the new floor in, we thought if we're going to paint, we should probably do that before we put the baseboards back on. So, off to the paint store we went and now we've been busy painting as well. Since we were already in the painting mode and had finished the dining room, we thought we'd paint a little in the kitchen and family room too. 1 1/2 weeks later, we're almost done with everything. We'll put the baseboards back on this Saturday and then we should be finished. YEAH!!! Overall, it was kind of a big project, but it will be nice to enjoy it when its finished. And, I am so excited that we can now eat in our formal dining room. Hmmm...now I just need to go shopping for a bigger table since we have so much more room. We'll have to post pictures of the new changes when we're all done.

Even though we've been busy making a few changes in the house, Kerry and Logan took time out on Saturday to go fishing for the first time this year. The weather was finally warm enough to be outside for a little while. They didn't have any luck catching anything and Logan lost a few hooks, but they had a great time. Logan called and invited grandpa to come fishing too. Here are the 3 fisherman.

*Pictures taken with cell phone

My two favorite boys!

Logan fishing with his Scooby Doo fishing pole

Grandpa & Logan getting ready to fish

Another fun day in the snow

2009-02-23T14:14:00.000-08:00

Kerry's grandparents have a couple of older snowmobiles that have been sitting around for years. And Kerry's brother, who is great at fixing anything, was able to get the snowmobiles up and running again with a little work. So, on Valentines Day since there was a light snowfall and since they live only a few streets away, Kerry and Logan headed over to his grandparents home to play in the snow. Logan loved being on the snowmobile and Kerry had a great time with his brother towing him from behind on a snowboard. Here are my two favorite boys playing in the snow. It's getting warmer here and I'm not sure we're going to have very many snowy days ahead of us till next winter. YEAH!!! Oops, did I say that out loud. hee hee.

Kerry and Logan playing on the snowmobile

Kerry being towed behind the snowmobile on a snowboard.

If you can't tell by his form, he's a great water skier.

My cute husband!

Logan and Grandma playing in the snow.
Logan insisted on wearing 2 hats.

Happy Valentines Day

2009-02-15T16:50:00.000-08:00

We just wanted to wish everyone a Happy Valentines Day. Together as husband and wife, we enjoyed a special evening with great food and great conversation. I love my husband and am so grateful that we have all of Eternity together. Here are our 2 special bouquets for the day.

Beautiful Bouquet of Flowers to Miranda from Kerry

Bouquet of Chocolate Covered Marshmallows
to Kerry from Miranda & Logan

Adding to our Food Storage

2009-02-13T22:45:00.001-08:00

Our family really feels it is important to keep 1 year of food storage and to do all we can to have the necessary supplies in case of an emergency. When we were little my mom did a lot of canning, however, it wasn't until Kerry and I were married and we were in a house of our own that I decided I needed to be more prepared and to focus on food storage. Kerry's various family members have plenty of fruits to share from their orchards and gardens and so quite a bit of the fruit we bottle, we get for free. We try each year to take advantage of their generosity and bottle as much as we can.
This last year, we discovered that you can bottle meat. We thought that would be such a great addition to our food storage and so for the past 6 months or so, we've been working hard to incorporate various meats into our food storage. I was able to get an awesome deal on ground beef this week from a very generous neighbor who works in a meat department at a local grocery store. And so for the past few days, we've been busy bottling (pressure cooking) 40 lbs of ground beef. This past fall we bottled chicken, pork, sausage, meatballs and ground beef. So, it was great to be able to add a little more to our food storage. The process is a bit time consuming but it is so worth it to add food to our storage shelves and to know that if something were to happen, we'd have food for our family.
Here are a few photos of the ground beef we bottled. I know, not too exciting...but putting the finished product on the shelf is pretty rewarding.

The Finished Product

36 Jars of Ground Beef - YEAH!!!

Pork & Chicken - bottled this past fall

Happy Birthday Logan

2009-02-09T20:46:00.000-08:00

We thought since today Logan officially turned 4 years old, we'd celebrate with a few pictures over that past 4 years. It's hard to believe our little boy is growing up so fast. Can he just stay this age forever? We sure LOVE YOU LOGAN and hope you always know how special you are and how you are loved by so many people, near and far.

February 2005

February 2006

February 2007

March 2008

Jan 31, 2009

Little Boys are Treasures

Little boys are treasures

Who are worth their weight in gold

And charm everyone around them

From the time they're hours old.

They're Mommy's little darling,

They're a special pal to Dad,

And they bring the very happiest days

A family's ever had!

Utah Boat Show

2009-02-08T19:20:00.000-08:00

Kerry grew up with boating being a HUGE part of his childhood. Each summer his family would take several trips to Lake Powell and stay there for at least a week at at time. There was plenty of time for family, swimming, boating and fun. We hope to carry on that tradition with our own family as well. When Kerry heard there was a boat show going on this weekend, Logan, Kerry and Kerry's dad spent Saturday afternoon at the show. Logan kept saying that he didn't want to watch a movie about boats, so after explaining that a boat show meant a room full of boats he can walk around and look at and even climb into, he was in for the experience. They even had an indoor 170' lake where pro riders were demonstrating the newest tricks.

With over 500 boats to explore, they had quite an eventful afternoon. And, I had a quiet afternoon to prepare my YW Lesson for church, my Preschool Lesson for Monday, update the blog and clean the house after the party. It's amazing how much you can get done when the house is quiet. :)

Anyway, here are a few pictures of Kerry and Logan's afternoon.

Logan posing with the buoy

Checking out all of the fun things in the boat.

Daddy and Logan - having so much fun!

Grandpa (Kerry's dad) and Logan

Video of a pro rider and his water trick

Ahoy There Matey!

2009-02-07T15:04:00.000-08:00

Logan's 4th birthday is on Monday and so we celebrated today with 8 of his friends. Ever since our recent trip to Disneyland, Logan has been fascinated with pirates. So, we decided to have a Pirate themed Birthday Party. We had picked up some inexpensive pirate costumes and passed them out to his friends with his birthday invitation. We had 8 little kids running around for 2 hours today and Logan loved every minute of it. We played "Walk the Plank", "Tick Tick Tock" and had a Treasure Hunt. I attempted to make Pirate Cup-Cakes and they turned out ok...they definitely didn't turn out like the picture online. But, they passed for a bunch of 3-5 year olds. hee hee

Here are a few photos from Logan's birthday with his friends.

These were the invitations we passed out to his friends.

Pirate Logan getting ready for his party.

Mom and Logan before the party begins.

Logan walking the plank with dad in the

back keeping it from tipping over. Of course after

I took the picture, I went over to hold his hand.
Wow...that shark looks pretty scary. hee hee

Logan with his best friend.

Our group of pirates.

Hotel Mishap

2009-02-02T22:08:00.000-08:00

As soon as my brothers wedding reception was over, we packed up our things and headed back to Utah. We decided to split the drive in half and instead of spending all day in the car we had booked a hotel in Las Vegas a few days earlier. We had left California later than we had anticipated and so after 6 hours of driving and a few stops here and there, we arrived in Las Vegas at 1:30 in the morning. When we went to the Hotel to check in, the manager tried to tell us that they were all sold out and that the room they had reserved for us had a horrible odor and they couldn't let anyone stay in the room. We were pretty sure they went ahead and sold our room to someone else thinking we weren't coming since we had arrived so late. After a few minutes of them trying to convince us there was room at "Hooters" and us telling them we would never stay there, let alone take a little boy there, they went ahead and gave us their Presidential Suite for the night. Even though we were only there for a short time, we made the best of our stay in the Presidential Suite.

Logan enjoying a bubble bath.

A happy little boy with LOTS of bubbles.

View of the bathroom from bedroom

Separate room - Entertainment room

Dining Area attached to entertainment room

Logan checking out all of the fish,
sting rays & sharks in the lobby aquarium.

California Wedding

2009-02-02T21:26:00.000-08:00

There were so many pictures we wanted to post from my brother's wedding that we thought it warranted it's own blog entry. Wednesday night Kerry and my youngest brother planned a bachelor party for my brother getting married (nothing too crazy of course). Thursday night we spent the evening in the Temple. Friday was dinner with both sides of the wedding parties families. And, Saturday was a 10:30 morning wedding at the Temple, pictures is the park, and a reception at 4:00pm. It was a great day and even greater to be able to share this special day with my brother.

This was too funny of a picture to not include.
This is the night before the wedding at dinner with
both of the wedding parties families. We're outside
waiting to be seated...just being silly.

The happy couple...my brother & his bride.

Kerry loves taking pictures. He had our neice
and nephew pose for a picture at the Temple.

Logan and daddy at the Temple.

Family photos at the park following the wedding.

A few of Logan's many cousins.

More of Logan's cousins.

Another picture of a few of Logan's cousins.

All 5 sisters together at the reception.
I am the 2nd oldest daughter.

At the end of the reception, Logan was sitting
against the wall tired and ready to go. It had
been a l-o-n-g day. He's trying to figure out how
to play his cousins hand held Nintendo game system.

Gone to California again!

2009-02-02T20:39:00.000-08:00

Well, it's been a few weeks since our last post, but that's because we've been vacationing again in sunny California. One of my younger brothers was getting married towards the end of January and so we decided since we were already taking the time to travel to CA for the wedding, why not spend an entire week visiting with our family. We had a great time and the weather was so much warmer than here in Utah. It was so great to spend a full week without any snow on the ground. Logan had a blast climbing up and down grandpas tractors, riding the 4-wheelers with his daddy, playing with his cousins, aunts and uncles and visiting with grandma and grandpa. Here are a few pictures from our trip.

This is the lake I grew up swimming in...all the time.
It's only 1 mile from my parent's home in CA.
(This was taken during the summer a few years ago.)

My adorable husband & best friend!

My 2 boys by the lake

Mommy & Logan walking along the shore.
The lake is partially drained in the winter and
the run-off from the snow fills it again in the spring.

Short video of Logan at the Lake

This is Logan in the bottom right corner.
We're playing outside my parent's home with his cousin.

Logan climbed up onto the rock and asked me to
take his picture. This is in my parent's backyard.
They live in the mountains where most of
their property is surrounded by National Forest.
We love visiting and spending time where everything is so green.

On Sunday evening, the family gathered together
for dinner at my sisters home. Here is Logan with Grandpa.

Here is Grandma singing "I'm bringing home
a baby bumble bee" with a few of the grandkids.

Out to lunch with Grandma

Daddy making a funny face for Logan while eating out.
Logan took this picture...not bad huh!

A Trip To The Museum

2009-01-21T18:06:00.000-08:00

The company Kerry works for is pretty great about giving their employees several paid holidays throughout the year. Martin L. King, Jr. Day was no exception and so Kerry was able to spend the day with Logan and I. Since we had tried the weekend before to go see a movie as a family, we thought we'd try again. Sure enough when we arrived, the movie was sold out. What are the odds of that happening 2 weeks in a row? Crazy huh! Well, since we were already in town, Logan was ready for an adventure of some sort, and we had even invited grandma to come with us, we decided to go to the local museum. It had been several years since Kerry and his mother had been there and Logan and I had never been at all. It wasn't quite what we had invisioned the day to be, but we still had a great time. There was plenty to see at the museum and we even arrived in time to see a presentation about several animals. Logan even had the opporunity to touch a lizzard and a snake that the presenter had brought with her. It was a great opportunity to learn about the world around us and Logan loved every bit of it. Afterwards, we headed home and had a few friends over for dinner and games. Overall, we had a great day and LOVED being able to spend another full day with Kerry. Here are a few photos from our trip to the museum.

*These were taken with a cell phone.

Logan touching a lizzard

Mommy & Logan growling like a bear

Mommy giving the lion a kiss - ok, so not really.

Logan with a kiss for daddy

We thought this was the cutest bear at the museum.

I know, it's only cute because it's not

alive & won't bite my head off.

Logan and his buddy "Hippo"

That's one big mouth!

All Dressed Up

2009-01-14T21:51:00.000-08:00

Kerry and I are pretty good about letting Logan pick out what clothes he wants to wear unless we're going somewhere kind of important. So, the other day, I asked him to go put on his play clothes and this is what he came out of his room wearing. After a brief conversation and Logan reassuring me that everything matched (since his shirt and pants both have blue on them and the tie had lines just like his shirt) I couldn't make him change. Besides, the only place we had to go that day was a quick trip to the grocery store. He was so proud of his outfit and he wore the tie all day. I do have to say he was the hit of the store. He had several ladies comment on how nice his outfit was. It was definitely an interesting combination of clothing to say the least, but so funny and cute as well. I thought it warranted his very own blog entry. So, this one is for Logan. We LOVE you!

Our Saturday Afternoon

2009-01-11T15:52:00.000-08:00

Yesterday afternoon we decided to go to the movies as a family. Little did we know everyone else had the same idea. Once we arrived, the movie was sold out. Since we were already out and about we decided to make the most of the afternoon and went bowling instead. None of us are very good at bowling and so I won't mention any of the scores. However the important thing is that we had a lot of fun as a family...even if we were the worst bowlers there. hee hee. Bowling sure is a lot easier when playing it on the Wii. Here are a few pictures of our bowling experience.

*The pictures were taken with a cell phone

Logan anxiously waiting for his turn

Mommy and Logan

Logan on the floor watching his

throw & hoping to knock a few pins down

Excited about his throw!

Daddy & Logan - Bowling Buddies

Guess Who Game

2009-01-09T18:05:00.000-08:00

Here's a little guess who game.
Are you ready?
Ok, can you guess who is sitting with Kerry and Logan?
If you live in Utah, this may be an easy question.

Do you need more time to think about it?

Have you taken a guess yet?

Ok, drumroll please.......

Jerry Sloan (head coach of the Utah Jazz Team).

Did you guess right?

Last night we had the opportunity to attend a semi-professional basketball game. This week all of the scouts for the NBA teams come and watch the semi-pro teams in our conference play, and this year it just happens to be in Utah. Just sitting a few rows away from us we noticed Jerry Sloan. So, we had to take the opportunity to have a picture with him. We had a great time and our team won too, which makes the experience even greater! Here are a few photos of our fun night out.

Logan enjoying the game

Mom with the noisemakers they pass out to the fans.
The kids sure love them, but I'm not so sure about
the adults after the first 10 min of the game - they are loud.

20 min before the game ends, Logan
is sound asleep and snuggling with dad.

Let It Snow

2009-01-06T10:15:00.000-08:00

Winter is definitely here in Utah! We have received nothing but snow lately. And even on the days where there hasn't been any snow, it's been too cold to melt the snow that covers are home and yard. We're having a great time playing in the snow, building snowmen and snow caves, and having snow ball fights. Oh, and of course we can't forget all of the shoveling. Grandma and Grandpa gave us snow ball launchers this year for Christmas and so that makes the snow ball fights much more fun for mommy and daddy. hee hee. We've also been enjoying snuggling up in blankets, watching movies and sipping hot chocolate - mommy's favorite thing to do in the winter. Logan LOVES the snow and every time we go out to shovel he asks if we can have a snow ball fight. Who can resist that? Anyway, here are a few photos of fun in the snow!

Gathering snow for a snow ball fight

Playing in a snow cave daddy and Logan built together

Shoveling time - Logan's such a GREAT helper

Our home covered in snow

Merry Christmas

2009-01-03T18:28:00.000-08:00

This was our first year spending Christmas at our own home. We spend every other year in California with Miranda's family and the other years weve stayed the night at Kerry's parents home. This year since Logan is getting older, we decided to have Christmas morning together with just us three and to give us the opportunity to start our own family traditions as well. We had a party Christmas Eve at our home with Kerry's family and then Christmas Day around noon we headed to Kerry's parents for dinner and a gift exchange. Here are a few pictures highlighting this Christmas season. We hope you had a great Christmas and Happy New Year as well.

Making cookies for Santa

Logans letter to Santa

Jewlrey from Logan for mom - Kerry informed me Logan

chose it all by himself. Great job...I LOVE IT!

Matching basketballs for my boys. Now we just need
the snow to melt so we can use the court in our backyard.

A great big hug for dad after opening his gift from Logan

Disneyland

2009-01-03T17:48:00.000-08:00

Well, Christmas has passed, parties are over, family has come and gone, decorations are put away, and now I have time to update our blog. A week after Thanksgiving, we had the opportuntity to go to Disneyland with Miranda's family (not quite everyone could attend, but we still had a rather large group). We spent 3 full days at Disneyland and California Grand Adventure. This was Logan's first trip to Disneyland and he LOVED it! We had stayed at the Disneyland Hotel and so we were able to ride the Monorail into the park...which was so nice. Fortunately Logan is pretty tall and so he was able to go on all of the rides except for Indiana Jones. He loved Space Mountain, Splash Mountain, Pirates of the Caribbean, the Matterhorn, and all of the other "big" rides. He wasn't scared at all and in fact wanted to go on the rides as many times as he could. We have never been to Disneyland at Christmas time and so it was great to be able to see the park decorated for the holidays as well as to watch the Christmas parade. It was spectacular. Anyway, after 3 eventful days and very little sleep, we were definitely all tired and ready to go home. Logan is already telling his grandma and grandpa that he is ready to go again. Here are a few photos of our trip.

Arriving into Disneyland from the Monorail - one super excited little boy!

Tarzan's Treehouse

Breakfast at Goofy's Kitchen at Disneyland Hotel - Logan is being shy & it's 7 in the morning

Rowing in the canoe

Crossing the bridge on the Pirates Island

Riding the Ferris Wheel

Jungle Cruise

Cookies For Daddy

2008-12-21T17:33:00.000-08:00

Logan loves to visit daddy at work and so we thought we'd surprise him this past Friday and bring cookies as well. Here are a few pictures of Logan decorating his cookies as well as a short video. They turned out super YUMMY!

Logan's Cookies - Sugar cookies with frosting

Mommy's Cookies - dipped in
chocolate & crushed candy canes

Thanksgiving in California

2008-12-17T21:18:00.000-08:00

We had a trip planned the week after Thanksgiving to Disneyland and since we were already going to be in California, we decided to spend Thanksgiving with Miranda's family. The food was great (as always) and the company was even greater! It was so fun to be with so many family members and Logan had a blast visiting with his many CA cousins. This time we came to visit, grandpa had lots of fun new toys to play with too. So, with rides from Grandpa and Daddy, Logan had his first ride on a 4-Wheeler. He loved every bit of it, but I think he loved most the helmet he had to wear.

Logan LOVING riding on the 4-Wheeler

Daddy & Logan

Grandpa & Logan

After spending 5 days at Grandma and Grandpas house, we decided to head to Southern CA before the rest of the family joined us at Disneyland. We wanted to have a few days to visit museums and spend time at the Beach. It was unusually warm while we were there and so we decided to play a little in the water.

Logan is a little hesitant at first

Slowly warming up to the idea of getting wet

Running from the waves with Daddy

Soaking wet from his waist down -
Logan decides he loves the Ocean

After two days of playing and time together with just the 3 of us, we met up with Miranda's family and headed to Disneyland...that will be a post for another day.

Photo Gallery

2008-11-26T09:21:00.000-08:00

Here are a few of our favorite photos over the years. To see more recent photos, please visit our blog posts with updates and photos. Enjoy!

Disneyland

Making cookies for Santa

Shish-kabobs for dinner

Playing in the Ocean

Ocean in CA

Thanksgiving in CA

Stay Puft Marshmallow Man & Fireman.

Kerry made this costume from scratch

and took 1st place at his work party.

Halloween

Snuggle Time on the Love Sac

Family Photos

Dad playing on the bobcat. Actually, he's bringing

dirt to our backyard so we can finish landscaping.

Thanksgiving Point Gardens

Dinosaur Museum - playing in the sand

Dinosaur Museum

Picking apricots at great grandpas house

so mommy can make apricot Jam

Mud bath in the backyard

Manti Pageant with grandma & grandpa

Fishing by our home - another great catch

At the Pike Street Fair in Washington

Logan and Kerry made a zucchini race car.

After several races, they took 1st place.

Trip to the state of Washington

Easter

Another trip to CA - playing on the tractor

with grandpa and cousins.

Aquarium - touching the sting rays

Safety Fair

Another year - another one of Kerry's

creations. He took 1st place at work.

Halloween

Fire Truck getting ready for the parade

A few relatives from CA came to visit,

so we spent lots of time outside in the

hot tub, which had cool water for the summer.

4th of July - fireworks

Fun in the boat

Tubing time at the lake

Reading time with dad - one of

Logan's favorite things to do.

Logan - 2 years old

Reading time (or should I say play time) with dad

Haircut with dad

Petting the animals at the zoo

Laser Tag with the family in CA

Testing out the water

Together Forever

A special hug for mommy

Feeding the giraffe at the zoo

Logan playing on Grandpa's tractor in CA

Picinic at the lake

Fun in the snow

Our family 2005

Kerry's work of art.

Swimming in the Lake

Yosemite Valley - On our way to

visit grandma and grandpa in CA

Our Temple Sealing to Logan

The adoption is finalized 6 months

after Logan joins our family. YEAH!!!

Kerry's graduation from college with his BA.

Logan's first fishing trip.

Our sweet little baby boy joined our

family in 2005

The view of the lake by my parent's home in CA.

A few of the boys going for a ride in

in the jeep while visiting family in California.

Kerry is a great help in the kitchen

Having fun while cleaning

It started with just the two of us.

Kerry's Family

2008-11-25T23:15:00.000-08:00

(There has recently been two more baby additions to the family.)

I am the 2nd oldest of 4 siblings. I have one older sister and two younger brothers. I was born and raised in Utah. Growing up, our house was only about 100 yards away from my cousins’ house. They have 9 kids in their family so I knew what it was like to have a lot of people around, at least to play with. We had some acreage so we would spend many hours out running and playing games outside, catching frogs, tadpoles, and snakes, swinging on the swings and riding bikes. For Halloween each year we would pull my Uncle’s flatbed trailer behind his tractor. While enjoying a hay ride, we would drive around to each house in the neighborhood where what seemed like 30 kids and a couple of dogs would bombard each house for tricks or treats.

I also have many, many memories going on vacation with my family. My Parents must have loved to make memories because it seemed like we were always going and doing something together. My Dad would take us fishing to some of the local Hot Spots or Camping up the Canyon, visiting Yellowstone National Park, Boating at Bear Lake, Flaming Gorge, and of course Lake Powell. Naturally a big segment of our lives was boating and water sports. Many of our family pictures were with us dressed in matching Lake Powell shirts or holding a Slalom Ski, Knee board, or an oar with a vista as the drapery to the picture.

Our family has also been really big into Short Wave Radios. Almost all of us are licensed and before cell phones came out, we’d use them to communicate. As a family we’ve won an award for having the most members with licenses.

Sunday’s were a time to visit the Grandparents house. Many Aunts and Uncles on my Dad’s side would bring their families so it would sometimes turn into a weekly family reunion. I was raised being taught that a family that plays together grows in friendship and love toward each other. So appropriately, some of my best friends in life are members of my family and I love them very much.

Miranda's Family

2008-11-25T23:04:00.000-08:00

(minus 1 brother with his wife & 3 children - there has also been 2 baby additions & 1 marriage since this picture was taken.)

I am the 4th oldest from a family of 10 children (yes, we are all from the same 2 parents). I was born and raised in California and lived there till I graduated from college. I feel blessed to have been from such a large family. I can truly say that aside from my husband and son, my family members are my best friends. I grew up in a small community which gave me lots of time to play with and develop great relationships with my siblings.

My parents made sure that each of their children had the opportunity to choose something (sports, music, etc...) they took a particular interest in and afforded us the privilege to excel in whatever it was we enjoyed. I was able to start piano lessons when I was 3 (almost turning 4) and did really well with that until my interests turned toward sports 10 years later. I was always really tall for my age and so when the coaches came to me and encouraged me to get involved, I couldn't resist.

All throughout High School I enjoyed being involved with Volleyball, Basketball, Softball, and Track (High Jump). I even went on to play Basketball in College and enjoyed that as well. For the past few years, I have been involved in a Women's City League Volleyball team and look forward to that ever year.

It is so great to be able to visit with my family now that the majority of us are older and having families of our own. Family get togethers are always HUGE and full of excitement. I treasure the time we get to spend with my family and look forward to every visit.

Our Adoption Story

2008-11-24T22:50:00.000-08:00

Even before Kerry and I were married, we had always talked about how we both wanted to have a large family with several children. We had also talked about the possibility of adopting and how we would love to offer a home to as many children as we could provide for. After several years of not being able to get pregnant and several visits to doctors and failed procedures, we decided to begin our adoption journey.

In the fall of 2004, we were so excited to find out that we had been selected by our birthmother to adopt her baby boy. The baby was due in February and so we had quite a few months to prepare for his arrival. We had such an amazing few months getting to know Logan's birthmother as we exchanged letters. We also had the privilege of meeting with not only her, but her family members as well. It was so great to see how much our families had in common and to discuss the hopes and desires our birthmother has for her son. We feel so blessed to have the honor of sharing with our son, the many wonderful people who love and care for him.

After months of anxiously awaiting the arrival of Logan, we received a call that he was finally here and baby and mom were doing great! At that moment, we were so thankful to our Father in Heaven for blessing them both during the delivery and that both baby and mom were doing well. Our prayers were answered two days later as we entered the LDS Family Services agency and our birthmother presented us with little sweet Logan. Many tears were shed from all who were present. Our hearts were broken as we thought of the tremendous sacrifice our birthmother was making because of the great love she had for her son. At the same time, we were in awe at the great trust she placed in us to raise and love this precious little spirit. Our birthmother had asked that Kerry give Logan a father's blessing while she was in attendance and during that time we were all overcome with such a sweet spirit and a true testimony of the beauty of adoption. As time drew to a close and we left our separate ways, we couldn't help but to embrace our birthmother and express our deep love for her and for the wonderful gift she had blessed us with. She will forever be a part of our lives and hold a special place in our hearts.

We know firsthand the wonderful blessings that come through adoption and are so excited to welcome another little miracle into our family and home.

About Logan

2008-11-23T22:41:00.000-08:00

Logan
Ethnicity: Caucasian & Puerto Rican
Age: 4
Education: Currently learning ABC's and 123
Religion: Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
Height: Hmmm...He is tall!
Eye Color: Hazel
Hair Color: Sandy Blonde
Interests: Loves to be read to, coloring, riding bikes, going on walks, playing on the slide and swings, picking berries in the backyard, swimming, loves to be tickled and gives lots of kisses and hugs.

Logan written by Mom and Dad

We are also excited to share a little about our son, Logan. He brings so much joy and love to our family. He has such a love for life and definitely enjoys being a little kid. One of Logan’s favorite things to do is cuddle up with mom and dad and read. Even if we’ve read the same books over and over again, he can sit there for what seems like forever just listening, learning, and laughing. He also loves to play outside with his cousins and friends and also enjoys sliding down the park slide and playing on the swings. Another one of Logan's favorite things to do is turn on the radio and dance around the living room with mom and dad. He is so full of life and so much fun to be around.

We have been so blessed to have Logan in our lives and thank Heavenly Father every day for sending him our way. Our lives have also been blessed by getting to know Logan’s birthmother and her family. She is such a sweet spirit and someone we can truly call our friend. We love sharing pictures and letters with Logan's birthmom so she can watch him grown and enjoy life. Logan is so blessed to have such a wonderful birthmom and we want him to know of her love for him and the love of so many others as well.

I am certain that as we welcome a new little baby into our family and home, Logan will be a very loving big brother. He is so full of hugs and kisses and I know he's going to want to share that with his new sibling or siblings. Logan is gentle, loving, always shows concern for others and is such a special blessing to our family. We love him so much.

About Miranda

2008-11-22T22:34:00.000-08:00

Miranda
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Age: 33
Education: Bachelor of Interpersonal Communications
Occupation: Stay at home mommy (I absolutely LOVE it!)
Religion: Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
Height: 5'11"
Eye Color: Blue
Hair Color: Sandy Blonde
Interests: Family, teaching Logan, basketball, volleyball, camping, hiking, singing, music, gardening & landscaping, photography, scrapbooking, riding bikes, learning new things, education, and so much more..

About Miranda written by Kerry

I’d like to tell you a little about Miranda. One of the first things I noticed about her is her soft, soothing voice…one of encouragement. She is very patient and loving and has a way of becoming your friend and helping you to achieve your goals. She also has a beautiful smile that dazzles me every day. We get along great because we both know how to laugh and love. We spend many Sunday mornings laughing and rolling around in “Tickle Wars”.

As beautiful as Miranda is on the outside she’s even more beautiful on the inside. Since the day we met, my expectations of what my wife would be have been left far behind. She is more than I could have ever imagined. She loves to show her love for people by serving them. And when someone is in need, she doesn’t hesitate to help where she can. She is very thoughtful and caring and often puts little “I Love You” notes on the mirror or in my lunch letting me know that she cares.

Miranda has a great love for Our Heavenly Father. It’s easy to notice that the gospel is very important to her as she takes her callings in the church seriously and serves with great love. She also feels strongly about education and has worked hard towards graduating from a University with her Bachelors degree in Interpersonal Communications. One of Miranda’s greatest blessings in life is being a mother. I love watching her with our son, as he loves to cuddle up to her while she reads him stories, as she takes him for walks or plays with him in the park. She shows him so much love and compassion. How I became so lucky to be her husband I’ll never know. I love my wife eternally and am grateful for the exceptionally great mother that she is.

About Kerry

2008-11-21T21:49:00.000-08:00

Kerry
Ethnicity: Caucasian
Age: 31
Education: Bachelor of Business Management
Occupation: General Account Manager
Religion: Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints
Height: 6'2"
Eye Color: Blue
Hair Color: Brown
Interests: Family, education, travel, water skiing, fishing, hiking, camping, basketball, speaking Spanish, singing & guitar, games, watching sunsets, entrepreneur, and the list goes on...

About Kerry written by Miranda

I would like to introduce you to my husband of 9 years, Kerry. He is not only my best friend, but one of the greatest blessings Heavenly Father has brought into my life. Kerry is the kind of guy that lightens up the room when he walks in. People are most drawn to him by his warm and loving smile. He brings so much humor into our relationship and is always full of laughter. A day doesn’t pass by where he doesn’t make me laugh and smile.

Kerry has been blessed with a great education and has completed his Bachelors Degree in Business Management. He loves his job working as an Account Manager and is very successful at it. He is very creative, hardworking, and artistic and is always looking for ways to improve and excel in the business world. When my husband is not at work, he likes to have fun. He enjoys everything from water skiing to hiking, horseback riding, basketball, camping, and much more. Kerry absolutely loves children and they love him. So many times I’ll find him playing hide and seek with our son, wrestling, and often sitting down reading a story or two. He has such a strong testimony of our Heavenly Father and is such a great example to me as he fulfills his many church callings. It is such a blessing to have a worthy priesthood holder in our home and to know that it is a place where the Spirit can dwell.

Kerry is such a strength to me in every way and I am so blessed to be his eternal companion. Kerry is such a wonderful father and I love watching him interact with our son and the love he shows towards him. I am very grateful for a husband who demonstrates his love for us daily and does everything in his power to ensure that we will have an eternal family.

You and Your Baby

2008-11-20T21:35:00.000-08:00

Birth Parent Relationship

If we are blessed to have you as our birthparents, we look forward to the opportunity to work together with you in this adoption experience. Our next child will know of your great love for them and the sacrifices you have made in their behalf. We plan to be very open with all of our children about adoption and look forward to them not only knowing of their birthparents love, but their lives as well. We want you to know that we already have a great love for you, even though we have not met, and pray for you daily.

What Your Baby Will Know About You

Our son, Logan, is old enough now to know what adoption means and we enjoy showing him pictures of his birthmother and her family and letting him know how he is loved by so many people. One of his favorite things to do is to help pick out mothers day gifts and draw pictures for his birthmother with special messages. Your baby will always know that you chose adoption because you truly love them. We know that your love for your child will last forever and we will do our part to communicate that to them.

Your Baby's Place in Our Family

We want you to know that our home is a place where our children are able to feel of our Heavenly Father’s Spirit and to know how precious and loved they are. We are so blessed to have Logan in our lives and are so excited at the possibility of welcoming another baby, or two, or three.

Our Family

2008-11-19T21:37:00.001-08:00

{click on photos for larger image}

Dear Birth Parents,

Rarely a day goes by that we don’t think of you, wondering what you’re like and what your hopes and dreams are. We have a tremendous love and respect for the decision you are faced with at this time and pray that you will feel the loving arms of your Father in Heaven wrapped around you. May the Spirit bless you with the comfort and peace you need as you consider our family as a home for your precious child.

We have been married for almost 10 wonderful years. We met shortly after Miranda moved to Utah and fell in love instantly. Within nine months we knelt across from each other in the temple and were sealed together for time and all eternity. Since the first day we met, we have continued to strengthen our relationship and can honestly say that we are best friends. Our love and friendship has continued to grow in numerous measures since the adoption of our son, 4 years ago. Together we enjoy many of the same interests, such as: spending time with our son, hiking, camping, going to the movies, taking trips, reading, and spending time outdoors.

Not only do we have a close unity as an immediate family, but we also have very close relationships with our extended families as well. Every Sunday we enjoy getting together with Kerry’s family for Sunday dinner. We also have monthly activities with our many cousins who live just a few short miles away. This is especially fun for the many nieces and nephews who can’t wait to get together spending time playing games and chasing each other around the house or yard. We have a tradition of spending our summers with Miranda’s family in California at Disneyland and at the lake, which is only a mile from her parents’ home. We also love taking trips with her family to Yosemite National Park, and enjoying the day hiking to the waterfalls, and picnicking near the lakes. We have many special experiences with our families that we hold dear to our hearts and look forward to the many more memories we will have the opportunity to make in the years to come.

We look forward to the day when we are able to share the love and many wonderful things we enjoy with your child. Our family is one where there is constant love and kindness. We love taking walks together, playing in the park, and just spending time together strengthening our family unity. We will do everything possible to help your child find and develop their individual talents. We love so many different things and want them to have the same opportunities we had to excel in sports, music, art, and anything else they may find an interest in. We look forward to sharing with your child the knowledge of our Heavenly Father and that they are loved by many.

We have a strong testimony of the miracle of adoption and are surrounded by a supportive and loving family who cannot wait to once again share in our adoption experience. It is through the miracle of adoption that we were blessed with our first child, Logan. Miranda not only has an aunt who was adopted while at a young age, but she also has a sister who has placed a child for adoption many years ago as well. We know through adoption the Lord is able to bless the lives of many. It is because of experiences like these, that we feel so strongly about adoption ourselves.

I’d like to tell you a little about Miranda. One of the first things I noticed about her is her soft, soothing voice…one of encouragement. She is very patient and loving and has a way of becoming your friend and helping you to achieve your goals. She also has a beautiful smile that dazzles me every day. We get along great because we both know how to laugh and love. We spend many Sunday mornings laughing and rolling around in “Tickle Wars”. As beautiful as Miranda is on the outside she’s even more beautiful on the inside. Since the day we met, my expectations of what my wife would be have been left far behind. She is more than I could have ever imagined. She loves to show her love for people by serving them. And when someone is in need, she doesn’t hesitate to help where she can. She is very thoughtful and caring and often puts little “I Love You” notes on the mirror or in my lunch letting me know that she cares. Miranda has a great love for Our Heavenly Father. It’s easy to notice that the gospel is very important to her as she takes her callings in the church seriously and serves with great love.

She also feels strongly about education and has worked hard towards graduating from a University with her Bachelors degree in Interpersonal Communications. One of Miranda’s greatest blessings in life is being a mother. I love watching her with our son, as he loves to cuddle up to her while she reads him stories, as she takes him for walks or plays with him in the park. She shows him so much love and compassion. How I became so lucky to be her husband I’ll never know. I love my wife eternally and am grateful for the exceptionally great mother that she is.

Now it’s my turn to embarrass Kerry. He is the kind of guy that lightens up the room when he walks in. People are most drawn to him by his warm and loving smile. He brings so much humor into our relationship and is always full of laughter. A day doesn’t pass by where he doesn’t make me laugh and smile. Kerry has been blessed with a great education and has completed his Bachelors Degree in Business Management. He loves his job working as an Account Manager and is very successful at it. He is very creative, hardworking, and artistic and is always looking for ways to improve and excel in the business world. When my husband is not at work, he likes to have fun. He enjoys everything from water skiing to hiking, horseback riding, basketball, camping, and much more. Kerry absolutely loves children and they love him. So many times I’ll find him playing hide and seek with our son, wrestling, and often sitting down reading a story or two. He has such a strong testimony of our Heavenly Father and is such a great example to me as he fulfills his many church callings. It is such a blessing to have a worthy priesthood holder in our home and to know that it is a place where the Spirit can dwell. Kerry is such a strength to me in every way and I am so blessed to be his eternal companion. Kerry is such a wonderful father and I love watching him interact with our son and the love he shows towards him.

We are also excited to share a little about our son, Logan. He brings so much joy and love to our family. He has such a love for life and definitely enjoys being a little kid. One of Logan’s favorite things to do is cuddle up with mom and dad and read. Even if we’ve read the same books over and over again, he can sit there for what seems like forever just listening, learning, and laughing. Logan also loves to play outside with his friends, ride his bike around the yard, and playing baseball, basketball and fishing with dad. We have also introduced American Sign Language to Logan and he has taken to it quite well. It has been so great to watch him be able to communicate with us when he wasn’t at the age of where he could talk yet. Together as a family we have been able to learn and grow in numerous ways. We have been so blessed to have Logan in our lives and thank Heavenly Father every day for sending him our way. Our lives have also been blessed by getting to know Logan’s birthmother and her family. She is such a sweet spirit and someone we can truly call our friend. We have regular communication with Logan’s birthmom and love sharing pictures and letters so she can watch him grown and enjoy life. Logan is so blessed to have such a wonderful birthmom and we want him to know of her love for him and the love of so many others as well.

We are very thankful that you have taken the time to read this letter and to learn more about our family. We want you to know that our home is a place where children are able to feel of our Heavenly Father’s Spirit and to know how precious and loved they are. If we are blessed to have you as our birth parents, we look forward to the opportunity to work together with you in this adoption experience. Your child will always know of your great love for them and the sacrifices you have made in their behalf. Again, we wish to express our love for you and want you to know that you are in our prayers daily. We pray that the Lord is blessing you as you make this difficult and important decision. We love you and hope to meet you soon.

With Love,

Kerry & Miranda