Jerrs, Duff, and Stuff

Happy Easter 2011

2011-04-25T11:55:00.000-07:00

Easter morning was a little crazy as we were all so tired from Makenna's birthday the day before. The kids were excited to see their Easter baskets and loved looking inside their eggs to see what treats were inside. Easter morning didn't last very long as we had to hurry and get ready for church. Grandma Savik bought Makenna a beautiful Easter dress and the cutest little yellow Easter tie for Hollis. The kids looked so cute as we walked out the door to go to church -- thanks Grandma!

Happy 4th Birthday Makenna!

2011-04-25T11:36:00.001-07:00

Grandma and Grandpa Savik came down to Flagstaff to celebrate Makenna's birthday with her -- we loved having them! Makenna's birthday was a little different this year because her birthday actually landed on Easter this year so we celebrated it the day before. Even though it was Makenna's birthday Easter eggs still needed to be dyed for Easter the next day so she got to mix Easter with her birthday a little. We started out the day with Makenna birthday breakfast cereal that she herself picked -- Reese's puffs! Then we all got in the car and went fishing at Upper Lake Mary -- it was very windy! Makenna was having fun fishing until Dustin mentioned to her that she was going to catch a big fish, then Makenna didn't want to hold the fishing pole anymore. After fishing we came home to dye Easter eggs and make Makenna's birthday cake. It was very difficult making her birthday cake look like "Strawberry Shortcake" while both of the kids were trying to help -- thank goodness mom was there to help me. That evening I made homemade buttermilk pancakes with homemade buttermilk syrup for Makenna's birthday dinner -- she requested pancakes for dinner. Since I love pancakes, I was completely on board with that. She also got strawberry milk to drink - yum! After dinner Makenna had Hailey and Audrey over for opening gifts and cake and ice cream. Grandma Savik got Makenna "Tangled" for her birthday and she was so excited when she opened it even though we caught her previously opening her gifts in my bedroom right before hand -- the little sneak! Luckily, between her and Hollis they only got 1 1/2 presents open. Makenna ended the night watching "Tangled" with her friends. Makenna also received a birthday present in the mail the day before her party from Grandpa Russ and Grandma Janie. She was so excited when she pulled out her very own pick guitar. Grandpa Savik also went and got Makenna some wiffle balls and told her he wants her to hit 50 balls a day as she is getting ready for T-ball this summer. Although all the presents were great I think Makenna liked her birthday cards the best from both Grandparents. I guess they know how to pick the cards for a 4-year-old little girl. Both cards play music when you open them and she carries those cards around like they are worth a million bucks! Thanks everyone for making Makenna's birthday a good one!

Easter Egg Hunt at the Park

2011-04-25T11:27:00.001-07:00

I organized a little Easter egg hunt and barbeque at the park with some of our friends here in Flagstaff. The kids had fun playing at the park and eating all the candy they found while the adults enjoying conversation and food. Hollis and Makenna are helping to stir some homemade root beer that my friend Jennifer brought -- it was so yummy!

Josh and Rebecca's Sealing

2011-04-25T11:22:00.000-07:00

Dustin and I got to go to Josh and Rebecca's sealing in March at the Salt Lake City Temple. We are so glad we got to be apart of their special day and it was one of the best sealings I have ever been to. Quaid was such a good little baby the whole time and loved looking at all the pretty lights and decorations in the temple. We are so happy for Josh and Rebecca!

New Pics of Makenna and Hollis!

2011-02-18T20:05:00.000-08:00

I am so lucky to have a girlfriend here in Flagstaff that used to take pictures professionally. She does such a great job and offered to take our kids pictures because she had some new equipment she wanted to try out -- thanks Jen!

Valentine's Day - 2010

2011-02-17T20:05:00.000-08:00

Valentine's day was great this year and Makenna couldn't hardly wait for it -- it is so fun when your kids actually start getting excited about holiday's and understand them a little. We started out our morning by having heart shaped pancakes -- they were actually pink but you can't really tell after I cooked them, plus they are wheat. Hollis didn't really care about what shape they were, he just wanted to eat! In the afternoon Makenna and I made heart shaped sugar cookies together and she got to wear her new apron that Grandma Janie got her -- it looks so cute on her! After the cookies were made, Makenna took a long nap in her apron. Just a little side note story -- when Makenna opened this package from Grandma Janie she was thrilled to get this apron and Valentine marshmallows, but the best part was when she then pulled out Mr. Potatoe Head's butt that she had left in New Mexico at Christmas time. She wasn't sure what it was and just kind of looked at it funny and then she continues to pull out her pants that she left there as well and we got the same reaction. Then, she pulls out the pacifier that Hollis left there and says excitedly, "here Hollis, this is for you"! It was so fun to watch her pull the random things out of the package and try to act excited about each one.

Later that afternoon Makenna had some girlfriends over and she got to have a real tea party -- one with girls who actually cared about the process! :) Makenna served them water, candied hearts, and her sugar cookies. Later that night Dustin surprised me with a great Valentine's gift -- apparently, Target sales pre-made "fry sauce"! He knows me all to well. :) Makenna and Hollis also received Valentine's package from Grandma Savik and Makenna's favorite part, no joke, was the princess card! She said, "oh, this is from my best friend"! She then took the card to church with her the next day and I told her she had to leave it in the car and then when we came home from church she brought it into the house and took her Sunday nap with her card in her arms -- too cute!

I also put a random picture of Hollis and Makenna on here just because I thought they were cute and needed to go on my blog somewhere. :)

Fun Stuff!

2011-02-17T19:58:00.000-08:00

Quite often, Hollis is playing dress up with Makenna now. Dustin is not to sure about the outfits he has on sometimes, but he really doesn't know any better at this point. It probably doesn't help that often his big sister is helping him dress up. In fact, I have some pictures that Dustin forbids me to put on our blog -- pretty funny! Hollis is so lucky to have a big sister that cares so much about what he is wearing. :) She often uses the princess blanket Grandma Savik made for her as her picnic blanket now and has her little tea party in the middle of our living room floor -- of course Hollis always has to attend because he is the only other little kid at the house to play with.

Christmas with the Elliott Family - 2010

2011-02-17T13:04:00.000-08:00

We got a huge break this year for Christmas and we were able to stay at Dustin's parents for a whole month! We were blessed to have a little bit of work while we were there -- every little bit helps! :) The kids loved the chance they had to play in the snow and we built a snowman like I have never seen before. :) I also tried to help Makenna make a little house, but it was not so great -- she thought it was the best thing ever, so I guess that is all that matters. Makenna and Hollis had one Sunday together in nursery just as he turned 18 months and then Hollis was by himself in nursery while Makenna attended her very first Sunbeams in New Mexico. She was probably a little confused when we came back to Flagstaff and she wasn't in nursery anymore but in a whole new class. We all went Christmas caroling, which is a huge deal in the Elliott family! The family joke is that their family Christmas tradition is "not" going Christmas caroling. For New Year's, Dustin made his Chinese meal again -- I think this has become a tradition -- 4 years in a row now! We all love his cooking! It was great to be able to take a break from everything and just spend time with family.

2010 Savik Family Pictures

2010-12-03T20:36:00.000-08:00

While we were up in Utah for Thanksgiving, Dacia Durbin (Berezay), came and snapped these pictures for us -- what a huge task for such a large family! It was great to see her and she did a wonderful job!

First Snow Day!

2010-12-03T20:24:00.000-08:00

This was our first real snow day in Flagstaff! We have two huge artificial turf fields right next to the house so I figured that would be the best place to go play in the snow and make a snowman. We are so lucky to live right next to friends who can come play with us. Kristen and Keegan came to play in the snow with us and a new family we have met in our ward, the Larson's. The Larson's have two little girls who Makenna just adores -- her first real girlfriends! They also have a little boy that is the exact same age as Hollis. The first thing Makenna did when we got to the fields was eating the snow and it wasn't too long before Hollis figured it out as well. Once Hollis figured out how to eat the snow, that was all he did. He especially loved sucking on the snowman which wasn't so great because it was covered in the artificial turf -- had to clean out his mouth several times. Makenna was taught how to make a snow angel from the other little girls there and Kristen taught her how to make snowballs and throw them. We finished our day off by making a snowman and the girls decided the snowman needed a bow on its head. It was a fun day with the kids!

Family Pics in Flagstaff

2010-12-03T20:15:00.000-08:00

So we met a great family in our ward and, Jen, just happens to take pictures. She use to do them professionally but now takes them as a hobby -- how lucky we are! She was so good with the kids and they just loved her! Now I just have to figure out how to repay her.

October 2010 Utah Trip

2010-12-03T07:41:00.000-08:00

Makenna, Hollis and Jerrilyn had a great time in Utah. The family showed us a good time -- we went to the pumpkin patch where the kids got to check out the little petting zoo -- they even had a kangaroo! There was also a hay maze there that the kids had tons of fun playing in. After they picked out their pumpkins we went home a carved them. Then, one day, we took the kids to the park and Elle fell of the playground equipment and she seemed pretty bad to Jen and I took her to the E.R. where she got lots of attention and she was loving every minute of it. She kept grabbing her back and insisted that she couldn't stand or it would hurt -- she even had x-rays! Everything seemed to check out fine and then when we got back in the car to go home Elle was standing up and having a good time -- she played us all -- Jen, I and all the doctors! I am sure she was hurting but just not to the extent that she made us all believe -- it was very funny!

St. George Fun!

2010-11-02T10:41:00.001-07:00

Mom had a condo in St. George for the weekend and invited the family to come spend time there together. We had a lot of fun swimming and shopping and the kids had lots of fun on the playground as well. Thanks Mom and Dad!

Upper Lake Mary

2010-10-06T12:43:00.000-07:00

This is Upper Lake Mary -- about 15 minutes from our house.

Elk Watch!

2010-10-06T12:23:00.000-07:00

This is the latest and greatest thing we do together as a family and quite often load up with Kristen, Jamon and all the kids to go look for elk. We always have a great time and the kids love it. They all know how to do their own elk calls -- even Hollis. Often times though, Makenna will say "Here Elk, Here Elk"! Makes me laugh every time. When Dustin went on his hunt this year, Makenna would often include the elk in her prayers -- I guess she hears us talk about them a lot. There hasn't been one time that we have went to look for elk and haven't seen some. We have probably been elk watching about 10 times now. In fact we did that for Dustin's birthday. Some times we will even get to hear them make calls -- so cool! The cool thing is they are only about 15 minutes from the house so we don't have to drive that far. These pictures were taken in August, but the last couple times that we have went they seem to be a lot bigger with bigger racks. We just went out this last week and on our way home it was dark, but no fear, Jamon has this huge spotlight and shines it outside as Dustin drives down the road. We came to this big open field and Jamon spotted like 30 elk -- it was great! There were probably about 5 bulls or so in the group and you could definitely tell which one was the leader because he started to try and push the cow's in the direction they should go. He then started to almost draw a line on the ground with his antlers -- he probably didn't like the spotlight on him. He looked like the biggest one as well. We love to go elk watching!

Flagstaff Fishing

2010-10-06T12:11:00.000-07:00

This was our first Flagstaff fishing trip as a family and it wasn't that great -- we ended up leaving after about 10 minutes and my shoes had about 2 inches of thick mud all the way around them.
We were there just long enough to get these pictures.

Green Chile -- YUMM!

2010-10-05T18:48:00.000-07:00

The first week we moved to Flagstaff I found a place outside of our Farmer's Market that was roasting New Mexico Hatch Green Chile's. Being that we didn't have any left from the year before we loaded up -- 3 boxes! I think last year I only got 2 and it didn't last us the whole year. The only problem with getting 3 boxes is the work it entails to get it in the freezer when you get home -- we got all the roasted part off, deseeded them, and put them in zip lock baggies. Each box takes about an hour or so. I started out doing it with Dustin but then I ended up just bagging them in the end because one of us had to watch the kids. Dustin found some that he left whole so that he can make chile rellanos later. One of the best parts about getting green chile's is the wonderful smell they put off after they are roasted -- our car smelt like green chile for a week. We are so glad that they had a place here to buy roasted green chile because we use them pretty much every week.

Fun on the Boat!

2010-10-05T18:45:00.001-07:00

Josh and Becca took us out on their boat a couple times while we were in New Mexico this summer. The water was perfect and we always have a great time with them. Thanks Josh and Becca!

Toy Story 3!

2010-10-04T21:29:00.000-07:00

Janie, Becca, Gabe, Makenna and I all went to watch Toy Story 3 in 3D -- it was so cool! It was my first time watching a 3D movie. I don't really like the idea of having to wear glasses during the whole movie but it was a cool experience. I guess if you are Makenna though, you just put the glasses on and off as you please. I kept telling her to put on her glasses because when you have them off the screen is a little blurry -- she didn't seem to mind. The movie was great and Gabe paid our way -- thanks Gabe!

Farmington Lake

2010-10-04T21:25:00.000-07:00

This summer while we were in New Mexico we took a night to go up to Farmington Lake to go fishing. Makenna was the only one who got her picture taken because my camera battery died right after I took her picture. This kids had a great time and we had to strip Hollis completely down before we left and dip him in the water to get all the sand off of him.

4th of July Parade!

2010-10-04T21:14:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Julie and Kyle for getting up so early to stake us out a good spot to watch the parade. We all loved the parade and Makenna's favorite parts were the big "Curious George" balloon and all the pretty girls on their pretty floats -- she thought they were real princess's. Makenna blew one girl a kiss and the girl thought that was so cute and waved to Makenna -- she was thrilled!

Happy 4th of July!

2010-10-04T21:07:00.000-07:00

I was also up in Utah this summer for the 4th of July and we went to watch fireworks right outside the Provo temple grounds. Stadium of Fire puts off the best fireworks! We went a little early and sat on the grass as we played cards and ate our homemade caramel corn. Makenna loved the fireworks and was calling them flowers in the sky -- so cute!

Caught in the Act!

2010-10-04T21:05:00.000-07:00

Hollis got caught eating dirt and mom and dad's house and he loved every minute of it!

Festival Days!

2010-10-04T20:51:00.000-07:00

My family showed the kids and I a good time while we visited them up in Utah this summer. Going to festival days was just one of the many fun things we did. There were a whole bunch of little shops that we could look at and Makenna got to have her picture taken with "Bell". The best part was this huge tent that had all sorts of stuff for kids to do for free. Makenna and I made a cool art picture there, painted our finger nails, and made a beaded necklace. Thanks for the fun time!

Mess Maker!

2010-10-04T20:46:00.000-07:00

After a mess like this, I think I am the one that is entitled to get mad -- not the mess maker! I guess after he was done having his fun, he decided he didn't want to sit in his mess anymore. It was everywhere!

Happy 62!

2010-10-04T20:42:00.000-07:00

While I was up in Utah this summer I was able to be there for my dad's 62nd birthday. Mom made him his favorite carrot cake. Happy Birthday!

There's a First Time for Everything!

2010-10-04T20:37:00.000-07:00

Yes, believe it or not, this was my very first time ever mowing a lawn! Is it crazy I had not mown a lawn until I was 25? While I was visiting mom and dad this summer, dad needed help mowing the lawn because his arm was hurt. Dad guided me through it every step of the way and showed me how to do straight lines.

Kiddy Pool!

2010-10-04T20:01:00.000-07:00

This is one of Makenna and Hollis's favorite things to do when they go to Grandma and Grandpa Savik's house. Grandpa gave them a special treat this last time -- he hooked the hose up to the kitchen sink and filled the pool with warm water for the kids. What a good grandpa!

Park Fun!

2010-10-04T19:16:00.000-07:00

Dad found this fun park that we went to a few times while I was up in Utah this summer with the kids. It was a great park because it had a fun playground, a big field, a campfire pit, and a creek that ran right by it -- we utilized all of it! Makenna and Hollis had fun putting their feet in down at the creek and dad insisted that we take a lot of pictures. For family home evening we decided to roast hot dogs over the campfire. We had a great time at the park -- good job dad!

Swimming at Julie's Pool!

2010-10-04T19:00:00.000-07:00

I went up to Utah with the kids this summer to visit the family and while we were there, Julie's invited us to go swimming at her pool a couple of times. The kids really loved it! Makenna liked floating on a noodle all by herself and Hollis really liked splashing. Dad was watching on the side as his arm was still wrapped up and not able to go in the water. Thanks Julie!

Happy Birthday Hollis!

2010-10-04T18:52:00.000-07:00

For Hollis's birthday I made him hot dogs and homemade Mac & Cheese -- gotta love it! I recall asking for the same meal for my birthday dinners when I was a little girl. I made Hollis a train cake made out of spice cake and as you can see he loved it! It was really hard to keep Makenna's little fingers out of the cake until after dinner -- she thought it was the coolest cake ever!

Hollis's One Year Pictures

2010-10-04T18:25:00.000-07:00

What can I say -- he's just so dang cute!

Funny Story!

2010-10-04T18:12:00.000-07:00

Funny Story -- this summer when we were in New Mexico, Josh, saw that the neighbor was burning stuff in his back yard and thought it looked a little bigger than it should. He decided to go over and talk to the neighbor about it. He told him usually when he has that much brush to burn he loads it up and takes it to the dump. The guy insisted that he was fine and showed Josh the hose that he had right there just in case. I don't think it was even five minutes later Josh and Dustin walk outside to this huge fire. That guy must have felt like a moron. I believe he also flooded part of his house from frantically tearing the hose out of the wall. It left a great smell at the house for the next day or two.

Purgatory Trail -- Durango, CO

2010-08-26T16:06:00.000-07:00

While Dustin and I were up in New Mexico this summer we decided to have a night out without the kids. Grandma Janie watched Makenna and Hollis and Dustin and I went up to Durango, CO to go on an overnight hike. I had only done this hike once before with Dustin and it is honestly one of the prettiest places on earth. Dustin used to go camping here with his buddies growing up. They actually carved their initials in some of the Aspen trees at the bottom of the canyon. Dustin still know just exactly how to get to those trees and that is where we set up camp for the night. It wasn't the prettiest spot at the bottom of the canyon, but we just barely made it down there before it got dark and Dustin is familiar with that area -- there is a creek that runs through right by the camp. Dustin pumped and filtered all our water while we were at the bottom of the canyon. I got him this water filter thing a couple of years ago for Christmas and that was the first time I had ever seen it used -- I couldn't believe how well it worked and how cold and fresh the water was. It was a good thing we had it cause we filled our water bottles up often and I wouldn't have wanted to pack all that water in. I am not much of a hiker, but apparently Dustin is. My idea of camping is just getting away together and relaxing -- maybe sitting and watching Dustin fish and just talking. Dustin has a whole other idea of camping. He decided that the one day we were there that we would hike all day. We started out our morning at about 6am at what I thought was just going to be a nice morning hike, but it was so much more than that. That morning we thought we could smell elk bedded down somewhere and we saw a lot of droppings. We stayed in that area for a long time to see if we would be able to spot any elk, but we never saw any. What we did spot was 6 different ticks on Dustin -- creepy! We hate ticks! Then Dustin decided that we needed to hike all the way to where this creek met up with the Animus River. Hiking that much in one day pretty much kicked my butt. When we got to the Animus River I decided I would soak my feet in the ice cold water before we headed back. On our way back, Dustin decided he wanted to fish at his favorite fishing whole. After the fishing we headed back to camp to pack it up and then we had to hike back out of this canyon. I don't think I had ever hiked so much in one day. Towards the end I was having to stop about every minute just to catch my breath. It felt so nice when we finally got to the truck and I could put my heavy pack down. We hiked all day -- from 6am to 6pm when we got to the truck!

Another Trip to Bartlett Lake

2010-08-20T21:21:00.000-07:00

Josh and Becca came to Phoenix for the weekend and I guess we had to get in one more lake trip with everyone before we left. We had a great time with everyone. Some of us picnicked while others were on the boat and then we would trade off. I am not kidding when I say the last month before we moved was literally full with things to do every weekend -- it is a miracle we were able to get it all together on time. Thanks Josh and Becca!

Our Musician!

2010-08-20T21:12:00.001-07:00

Makenna loves music and everything about it. Just from the time she was a baby she responded to music so well. If she was fussing all you had to do was to sing to her or play her a song that she was familiar with and she would stop crying. Music has helped her learning abilities. You would be amazed at how many song's she knows. She has a great memory and memorizes song probably better than I can. I mean, she will memorize a song from beginning to end. We are not just talking about kids songs, but songs that you would listen to as an adult. She really likes country music. Sometimes you don't even know she knows a song until she starts singing it and the only thing you can figure is that she picked it up from the radio. We are not sure how much Makenna will really get into sports, but we are pretty sure she will be very interested in music and want to make it apart of her life -- guess we will just have to see. Makenna saw a little girl on "Barney" playing the violin so she picked up this stick and duster to make her own violin. She would continually play it and sing as she was playing. Such an imagination!

2010-08-20T20:52:00.000-07:00

I guess we must have had a really busy schedule right before we left Phoenix. I remember thinking we are leaving Phoenix in a month and nearly every weekend had something going on up until the time we left -- I remember feeling panicked about how we were going to get everything packed up and done on time. Somehow, we managed to go up to Stoneman Lake area one weekend to hunt out a camping spot for our ward's "Father & Son's" outing. This was actually the second time that we went up to find just the right camping spot. The spot we found the first time was actually already taken by another ward by the time we got up there that morning. We ended up going to a spot that we hadn't even considered the first time we went up to look for a camping area. Makenna likes it when we get on the dirt roads because she knows she gets to get out of her car-seat and help her dad drive. We spent the day at our ward's camping area as a family and then I took the kids home with me that night when all the boys started showing up.

Mesa Temple with Teri

2010-08-20T20:09:00.000-07:00

I was very happy I had the opportunity to go through the Mesa, AZ Temple with my visiting teaching partner, Teri Acevedo, right before I left Phoenix. She was able to go through and take out her own endowments. Glad that I could be apart of her special day!

Compressor Problems

2010-08-20T19:57:00.000-07:00

So a few days before we were to leave our home in Phoenix, Dustin had to replace the compressor. I was very impressed by his skills -- we were pinching pennies with all the moving so Dustin decided to undergo this project that he has never attempted before and it worked! My dad was in town to help us move so he also got to get his hands dirty. They went to Auto Zone together picked up a CD on how to replace a compressor and took a chance. I must say, there were times that we were not sure if everything was going to be ok, but it all worked out in the end.

Look at Me -- I'm Three!

2010-08-20T15:28:00.000-07:00

It is always quite the ordeal to be able to take Makenna's pictures. She has never liked getting her pictures taken. I am hoping she will be easier on me as she gets older. In these pictures you will see happy Makenna, not sure what a smile is Makenna, pouting Makenna, and mad Makenna. I think she is cute in every way!

Hollis's First Hair Cut

2010-08-20T15:16:00.001-07:00

Hollis got his first hair cut at about 11 months. We were surprised when he didn't cry or even fuss about getting it cut. I think the clippers tickle him a little. We were preparing for a fight, so we made sure he had a cookie in hand. His hair was getting long and he had a couple extra long hairs on the top that we weren't sure what to do with. Here are some before and after pictures.

No More Terrible Two's -- YA RIGHT!

2010-08-20T13:26:00.000-07:00

Makenna had a great birthday with lots of friends and family. I attempted to make her a princess castle cake and considering that the cake was completely falling apart as I was making it -- it really turned out great! I have a lot to learn when it comes to making cakes. I was shoving frosting in wholes of the cake just to try and keep it together -- good times! It made the process take a lot longer than it should have taken.

Makenna got lots of great gifts for her birthday. Dustin and I decided it was time for Makenna to have a tricycle because every time we go to "Target", Makenna tries to ride the tricycles. We were able to find a classic Radio Flyer tricycle on Craigslist for $25 still in the box -- yeah! Hollis really enjoyed playing with Makenna's bike as well when she was busy playing with her friends. As you can see there was a poisonous snake that decided to join the kids in the playground area -- don't ya just love the desert!

Happy Easter!

2010-08-10T08:42:00.000-07:00

Makenna had a great time dying Easter eggs with her mom. She got a little antsy and put two tabs in the same glass so we ended up having a pretty dark teal color. We made an egg for daddy, mommy, Makenna, and Hollis -- she thought that was pretty neat that we each had our own egg. On Easter morning Makenna found that she had jelly beans in her plastic eggs so she couldn't wait to help Hollis and show him what was inside his eggs. Hollis wasn't really sure what to think about everything, especially the fake grass.

March Trip to Utah

2010-05-01T10:47:00.000-07:00

We had such a great time seeing all the family while we were in Utah -- unfortunately, Dustin was not able to make it. We did a lot of things together as a family while we were visiting. Jenni took us to a community indoor swimming pool that had a big water slide--what an experience! First of all, I didn't know that we would be swimming in March so I didn't bring my swimming suit. Julie let me borrow one of hers, but I guess it had been a while since she had worn it and didn't know there was no more elasticity in it. The result, the most unattractive swimming suit I have ever worn! It was sagging off of me and it was even worse once it got wet. I was embarrassed to get out of the water. While we were there I thought I would take Makenna down this huge water slide -- I had seen other parents doing it with their children. BIG MISTAKE! As we are going down the slide it is completely dark. Makenna is sitting on my lap, but we have to lay completely on our backs because the tunnel is too short to sit up in. Makenna is stiff as a board and I am trying to make her excited by saying "yee, this is fun"! As we get to the end of the slide we come shooting out of there feet first. I am trying to catch my feet on the bottom of the pool to stand up and I am basically drowning myself to try and hold Makenna up out of the water by her swimming suit straps. I finally am able to stand on my feet, my hair is completely over my face and my whole family was at the end of the pool busting up laughing at the comical event.

One of the highlights of my trip was being able to go to Kevin and Amber Rice's temple sealing at the Salt Lake City Temple. Dustin and I were able to sit in on many of their missionary discussion as Amber became a member of the church. I have never been to a family sealing where their little children came in all dressed in white to be sealed to their parents -- what an awesome experience!

All the cousins had a great time together. Elle and Makenna had fun pulling each other around outside in a little car. Jen and I also gave Elle and Makenna pedicures together -- they love to feel like a big girl! Jen, Julie, and I were able to take Elle and Makenna over to Dacia's house to ride "Little Black"-- I think that was his name. It was my first time to Dacia's house and we had a great time. The girls weren't to sure about actually riding the horse -- maybe because we had to wake them up from their car naps when we got there and then just tried to put them right on the horse. Dacia got out the "buggie cart" and hooked it up for the kids to ride in the back -- they thought that was the best! We all took a turn taking the kids for a spin -- I think the adults had more fun than the kids! Thanks Dacia!

On of the last things we did while we were there was to go to Julie's gym where she teaches. We all went together one night and Julie turned on some tunes for us while we played a little volleyball and basketball. All the siblings got together towards the end of the night and played a couple rounds of "Lighting" -- that was so much fun, but the pregnant lady, Jessica, kicked all our trash! Thanks for all the fun times!

Trip to Flagstaff

2010-03-08T13:48:00.001-08:00

Dustin had his NAU Physical Therapy program interview at the end of February on a Friday. We headed up to Flagstaff on Thursday evening after Dustin got off work and we stayed at a hotel there with his parents -- thanks Russ and Janie! The first night we all got pretty good sleep but the second night, I don't think anyone got any sleep between Russ's snoring and Hollis's crying. We were just happy to have a place to stay though and have a little mini family vacation. Makenna and Hollis both loved the pool. Makenna is always wanting to go swimming. I kept telling her on Thursday (the day we went up) that she could go swimming with grandma tonight if she was a good girl for me. Well, we got there and by the time we really got settled down it was time for Makenna to go to bed. She was so upset with me that she didn't get to go swimming that night with grandma. I told her she could go first thing in the morning when she woke up. Well, she didn't forget and she reminded me that she needed to go swimming as soon as she woke up before we even ate breakfast. We finally found our way to the swimming pool and Makenna knew just how to get there every time we went -- she has such a good sense of direction. Makenna is potty training so we had her in Pull-Ups. When the Pull-Ups get wet, they get even bigger than a diaper if you can believe that. Hollis really liked the pool as well. His favorite thing to do is to splash like crazy.

Dustin interviewed on Friday morning and what was suppose to be a 3 hour interview ended up being 4 hours -- Russ, Janie, the kids and I spent an hour in the car at NAU waiting for Dustin to come out. I had to go to the bathroom so I asked Janie if she wanted to go in to the school with me -- that was probably one of the worst things I could have done. All the people that were interviewing were in there and it looked so competitive. The worst part is every single guy had a suit on and I told Dustin not to where a suit because I thought it would be too over the top -- I was so sick about it and that was all I could think about. Of course Dustin still looked nice, but he didn't have to suit on. I can't tell you how sick that made me! Dustin finally came out of his interview and then we all went out to eat so he could tell us all about it. Dustin ended up having 2 half hour interviews and felt that both went well. We left to go home the next morning knowing that sometime the following week we would find out if Dustin got into NAU or not. Dustin's parents came back to Phoenix as well and came over Monday morning to have breakfast with us before they headed back home. While we were all eating breakfast, Dustin checked his email only to find out that HE GOT ACCEPTED! I can't tell you how happy I was -- I even tackled Janie to the ground. I was so giddy all day. It is just so crazy to have a plan and have it actually happen. Dustin will be starting a 3 year PT program in August so we will be moving up to Flagstaff sometime this summer. We have so much to do around here to get our house ready to rent out so I am not sure how much I will be blogging in the next couple of months. We are so excited to start a new chapter in our life but very sad to leave all the friends we have met here in Phoenix.

Bartlett with Jamon and Kristen

2010-03-08T10:32:00.000-08:00

I think this has to be one of our favorite things to do with Jamon and Kristen -- we love to go camping or fishing with them! We decided to go up to Bartlett Lake on a Wednesday evening just to go fishing and roast hot dogs with the kids -- so much fun! Kristen brought fun buckets and shovels for Makenna and Keegan to play with in the sand, but most of our time was spent trying to keep them out of the water. I think their feet got wet in the first 2 minutes that we were there, but they didn't care even though it was still February -- crazy kids! Dustin and Jamon were good "Boy Scouts" and got us a firing going before they went to go fish. Kristen and I decided to tag along with them and the kids. I held Hollis the whole time in a carrier thing that he was REALLY TOO BIG for. Dustin attempted to show Makenna how to fish and then she found her own fishing pole -- a long stick. After the fishing we all went back to the campfire to take off Makenna and Keegan's shoes and socks that were soaked and tried to dry them by the fire and laid out a big blanket for them to sit on. We then ate some hot dogs and tried to keep kids out of the fire. I think most of the time was spent trying to keep kids out of the water, on a blanket, and out of the fire. Kristen and I remember going camping and fishing before we had kids and how it was so much easier, but anytime Dustin saw us getting frustrated he was quick to tell us "don't get frustrated with the kids because then we will use that as an excuse not to come back and look at how much fun we are having!" It really is true -- even though it is harder to do these things with the kids in make it more fun at the same time and gives us great memories.

Under The Couch

2010-02-23T15:09:00.000-08:00

Makenna and Hollis both love playing under the couch together. The truth is, Hollis only likes it until he rolls himself all the way to the back-side of the couch and then starts crying because he doesn't know how to get back out.

In The Crib

2010-02-23T14:56:00.000-08:00

Every once in a while I will catch Makenna in Hollis's crib with him. She knows she is not suppose to, so she is usually pretty sneaky about it. It doesn't seem to bother Hollis though -- I think he enjoys the company and usually thinks his sister is pretty funny. Also, you will notice Makenna's great outfit. Makenna is in this phase where she likes to dress herself -- even if I have already dressed her for the day. Usually by the end of the day she has on about 3 shirts which amounts to a lot of laundry. He favorite things to put on are pajamas and princess looking skirts. If she can't find any of these in her drawers, because she has worn them all, she will then start going through her dirty clothes which has really become a problem because we are potty training and her wet panties will go in there. She came up to me the other day and she smelled just like pee. I was a little confused because her underwear were dry -- well, she had pulled a shirt out of the laundry that was sitting right under her wet panties and there was pee all over them -- so gross! Maybe I should start putting her laundry basket up on the changing table so she can't reach it, but then that looks really tacky -- what to do?

Tickle Me Hollis!

2010-02-23T14:31:00.000-08:00

Dustin almost always can get Hollis to laugh. I don't understand why Hollis will smile and laugh more for him than he will for me when I am the one home with him all day. Makenna was the same way. All Dustin has to do is look at Hollis and Hollis will give him a big smile. Hollis is always so happy when Dustin gets home from work and really likes it when his daddy says "hi" to him.

Happy Hollis

2010-02-18T15:46:00.000-08:00

I can never get the kids doing what I want them to when I pull out the camera, but Dustin was getting Hollis to laugh pretty good and I thought it was cute, so here it is.

Clap for Hollis!

2010-02-16T22:24:00.000-08:00

Hollis has just learned how to put his hands together and clap. I was clapping for Makenna earlier this week and saw Hollis watching me and trying to clap as well. We have also seen him trying to clap when he has seen Dustin clapping -- I think it is just so cute! Also, we have heard him say "mama" and "dada" a few times but it isn't very consistent yet. He usually only says "mama" when he is crying and upset.

Tubby Time!

2010-02-16T22:12:00.000-08:00

Makenna loves her bath time crayons -- thanks Aunt Becca! Oh yes, the scum you see around the edges of my bath are permanent -- you can scrub as hard as you want but it won't come off. I am not a dirty person!

Johnny Cash!

2010-02-16T21:27:00.000-08:00

Both Makenna and Hollis have loved when Dustin sings and plays his guitar. Dustin found a Johnny Cash song that he just learned to play so he thought he would share it with the kids. Instead of teaching our kids primary songs, we like to teach them about cocaine and shooting a woman down. I thought it was hilarious so I thought I would share it with everyone even though Dustin would probably rather have me not.

Getting Into the Chocolate Again!

2010-02-16T21:17:00.000-08:00

It is so hard not to laugh when she does things like this. When I told Makenna to give me the candy bar, she ran and shoved as much of the candy bar in her mouth as she could.

Charlie and The Chocolate Factory

2010-02-16T20:38:00.000-08:00

One of Makenna's new favorite movies, other than "Barney", is "Charlie and The Chocolate Factory." I am not so into the "Barney" thing, but she loves it -- especially all the little songs! Anyway, every time Makenna watches "Charlie and The Chocolate Factory," she has to make sure you are paying attention to the movie just as much as she is. She has her favorite parts and it is important that we both watch them. She gets really excited when the little boy gets sucked up the pipe after drinking chocolate. This video doesn't do justice for Makenna's reactions and expressions. She remembers little lines from the movie as well, like -- "Hey little boy!" or "Chewing, chewing, all day long," or "Good morning star shine, the earth says Hello!" I think that is how those saying go -- she would know better than I would. She is very smart and remembers songs and lines from all her favorite movies -- it is more entertaining watching her sometimes, rather than the movies.

Sleepy Kids

2010-02-16T20:23:00.001-08:00

I just happened to get pictures of both the kids sleeping this last month. Grandpa Russ accomplished the task of putting Hollis down for a nap all on his own -- way to go Russ! Makenna on the other hand, put herself to sleep reading books. Most of the books in this picture are from Jase and Steph (some old books of Jett & Cooper's) -- thanks for the books!

Makenna Entertaining Herself

2010-02-16T19:58:00.000-08:00

Shout Out for Jenni!

2010-02-16T19:41:00.000-08:00

I just thought I should give a shout out for Jenni who taught me how to do these awesome picture collage things. This is really gonna spiff up my blog. Right now I have the lamest blog and am hoping to learn new things to improve it. I am so jealous of other people's blogs and still have a lot of learning to do. I don't even really know how to make a blog or how to put the songs on it -- thanks Kristen for doing that for me. Anyway, any one that wants to teach me something new about blogging, it would be very much appreciated. By the way Heather, (yes, you Heather Brady) your blog is always so cute! Back to Jenni -- thanks sis! I love this new picture thing.

First Times!

2010-02-16T18:33:00.000-08:00

We have some first times for both Makenna and Hollis. Hollis just started the "Gerber" baby foods at about 7 months. I think the food in the picture he is eating is probably squash. Hollis is now 8 months and feeding him can be quite the task. He has now figured out how to play with his food. Every time I give him a bite he blows the food back out of his mouth and it goes everywhere -- it probably doesn't help that Makenna thinks it's funny and starts to try and do it with him. I am still not sure what his favorite food is -- he likes it one day and hates it another.

These are just some fun shots that I took with Hollis. I don't have very many pictures with him so I thought I would take some. I feel like Makenna has a lot more pictures than Hollis but it is probably because she is the first child. I guess I need to try and do better with Hollis.

Makenna is now 2 1/2 and just had her first haircut. I cut her hair myself and originally only wanted to take about 1 inch off and it ended up being more like 3 inches when all was said and done. I kept asking Dustin, "Does it look even?" -- His response "Sure, that looks good enough. Just stop while you are ahead." My thoughts to his comments were that he really didn't care and you can't stop if it isn't even -- I don't even know why I asked! It is hard enough trying to get her to hold still but it is even harder when some of her hair flips up while other parts of her hair curl under. Anyway, I think it turned out good for a first hair cut.

Makenna got a whole bunch of random dress up clothes for Christmas -- some were old things of mine, some from Savers, and just other stuff people gave us to throw in. She loves her dress up clothes! She dressed herself in all three of these pictures. What a goof ball!

Merry Christmas!

2010-01-05T08:21:00.000-08:00

Julie's Fun Game

Dustin Playing The Guitar

Christmas Dinner

Cousins After Church

Makenna Playing Outside

New Year's Eve Dinner

Jen & Trent's Dinner

Makenna & Elle

Game Night at Julie's House

Playing at Julie's Gym

Trip to The Temple

"The Night Before Christmas"

Christmas Morning

Dustin and I were able to go visit my family in Utah this year and had a really great time. Everyone was able to make it except for Kam and Jess -- I really missed them. Mom made Makenna and Elle little blankets for their dolls that have the Disney princesses on them. Makenna's is purple and Elle's is pink. Dustin had tons of fun with Ryan and Meagan's boys. He was just as excited to see them as they were to see him.....I guess he needed someone to play with. Dustin played football with them and had the boys stuff their shirts with pillows -- they had a great time. Makenna didn't get to go outside a whole lot because she along with lots of the other children had a runny nose and cold. I, on the other hand, spent one whole day sick with the flu....not too fun. Mom and Dad took the kids for us one night so all the adult kids or brothers and sisters, could go play games at Julie's house -- it was nice to get away without the kids. Dustin and I gave Jen and Trent a candlelight dinner at Julie's house for a Christmas present. Julie did an awesome job being our waitress! The kids had lots of baths together and Makenna felt that she, as the older cousin, needed to wash Elle's hair....poor Elle! Trent took Dustin and Ryan ice fishing -- Dustin loves to get out and do things like that. Last time Trent took Dustin ice fishing, Dustin was the only one not to catch a fish. This time, Dustin was the only one to catch a fish -- crazy! Julie also put together this really fun game for us -- see the pictures where we are going crazy with snow gloves, hat, and scarf on. It was nice for us all to be able to go to church together and have so many dinners together. Everyone took turns with meals and Dustin and I had dinner for New Year's Eve. Dustin and I made our traditional Chinese food (well mostly Dustin -- I just made the rice). The Durbin family came for New Year's Eve and we had a lot of fun with them. Anyways, we had tons of fun and can't wait to see everyone again.

Makenna Christmas Caroling

2010-01-04T20:33:00.000-08:00

Not sure how to turn this post around. Makenna is singing "Silent Night" at the Terry's house.

Christmas Sunday

2010-01-04T20:25:00.000-08:00

These pictures were taken after church because I forgot to charge my camera before church. They kiddo's didn't get too mangled up at church so I thought I would attempt pictures of them in their cute little Christmas outfits again.

Several Attempts at a Family Picture

2010-01-04T20:12:00.000-08:00

All I wanted was one nice family picture and this is what I got...Makenna makes me laugh when I look at these pictures -- she's a difficult one! These were taken at Dustin's graduation.

Yeah...He Did It!

2010-01-04T19:40:00.000-08:00

Dustin just received his Bachelor's Degree in December. It is crazy that he actually has it because that is all we have known the past 6 years we have been married. It is a stress reliever to have this part of his schooling done -- now on to Physical Therapy School. Dustin took 19 credit hours his last semester, worked, and did his calling.....WOW -- I could never do that! He also graduated with an awesome GPA, but I won't say what it is because he doesn't like me to talk about him. Anyways, I am so proud of him! Not sure of our plans for the next year....only time will tell. The goal is to go to Physical Therapy School sometime in the near future. Good job Dustin!

Makenna Attempting to Feed Hollis

2009-12-03T11:56:00.001-08:00

Makenna was suppose to be helping me clean up and the next thing I know she is trying to feed Hollis. I guess it looked more fun than her dolls -- this was the real thing! It just lead to a lot of frustration because every time she tried to give him the bottle he would try reaching for it and knock it away. It didn't take her long that she figured out the only way to make this work would be to pin him down.......poor little Hollis! Although, I think he thought it was a game and was a real trooper through the whole ordeal.

Thanksgiving with the Elliott's

2009-12-03T09:55:00.001-08:00

We did Thanksgiving with the Elliott's this year. The whole family was there....yeah! That first picture is of Makenna snuggling up with Grandpa Russ with Mocha's travel blanket....YUCK! Anyway, we got there late Wednesday night and both of the kids got a cold Wednesday morning before we left. It was a night of H-E-DOUBLE HOCKEY STICKS! I think that was the worst sleep I have got since Hollis was born. He would sleep for only about 15 minutes and then wake up crying.....that lasted all night. At 5am I finally had Dustin go out to the car and get Hollis's swing to see if he might sleep in that -- we had tried everything. Luckily, he slept in the swing from 5am-6am and then woke back up. That was the most sleep we had all night. Then my wonderful mother-in-law took him at that point so that Dustin and I could sleep for another 2 hours. THANKS JANIE! Every night was a little rough there but that first night was definetly the worst. I would always have to go to bed early when everyone else was playing games because I didn't know how much sleep Hollis would give me that night. Besides that, the food was good and we had a lot of it -- thanks Steph and Janie. They did all the work, I just made a few pies. The boys and Janie, Steph, and Becca played an early morning Turkey Bowl. I just watched from the car with my sick kids and recorded a little bit of it for them. We played cards and Josh and Becca taught us the game MAFIA which was a lot of fun. You can't help but really get into that game. Maybe I will teach it to my family at Christmas time. I am sure they would like it a lot. We also did a little shopping or more like "window shopping." Then Dustin took me, Janie, Russ, Josh, Becca, and the kids up to Bayfield, CO to see what it looked like up there. I really liked it up there. It is very pretty and it started to snow on us a little which I loved! The video is in the car on the way back from Bayfield. Makenna was making up her own song and insisted that Grandma Janie did all the actions with her. It was hilarious! She did it a few times. Anyway, we had a great time!

Tis The Season!

2009-12-03T09:34:00.000-08:00

I just love decorating for Christmas! I decided we were going to make it a family night and I was going to listen to Christmas music while decorating, have Dustin get pizza, and then we would watch "How the Grinch Stole Christmas." I had Dustin go get the movie and pizza. Dustin really didn't want to watch the Grinch movie and wanted to get something else. I told him this was Makenna's night and insisted on him getting the Grinch movie with Jim Carey. I was so excited to watch the Grinch movie with Makenna for the first time and thought she would absolutely love it. Well, we only got about 10 minutes into the movie and Makenna was begging us to shut it off because it was SCARY! I guess I haven't watched that version in a while and truthfully, the Grinch is a little scary in this version for a 2 year old. I felt really bad and a little bumped out. Dustin then asked Makenna if she wanted to watch football or the Grinch and she actually said football. So we decorated for Christmas and watched football.

Little Dustin

2009-11-17T14:15:00.001-08:00

Now you can't tell me that the picture of Hollis in just his diaper isn't totally a Dustin facial expression! I couldn't believe it when I saw it! As for the other pictures -- I am just trying clothes on Hollis for family pics. They are size 12 months and he is only 5 months (but a very big 5 months). They were really cheap at Target and it was the only black shirt I could find and the smallest size. I decided to take it home and try it on and if it didn't work I would just take it back, but I think it works good enough. As for the stocking in the background -- it is Hollis's for his first Christmas!

Veteran's Day Parade

2009-11-12T09:59:00.000-08:00

My friend, Kristen, invited me to go to the Veteran's day parade downtown with her family. Dustin was working so he wasn't able to go with us. We had a very fun time but didn't stay for all of it because there were 109 floats and we were only on number 65 when we left and we had already been there for 2 hours -- not to mention, we were also getting very hungry. The kids had fun though. This was the second year we had taken them.

A Day at The Park

2009-11-12T09:52:00.001-08:00

Russ and Janie came to Phoenix this last weekend so the family decided to get together and have lunch at a park. We brought Kristen, Keegan, and Tracee along because they are practically family and we love to spend time with them as well. Makenna and Keegan loved playing in this bouncy thing. We are not really sure who's thing it was but we let our kids play in there anyway -- oh ya, and Josh and Coe too! I guess it was just too tempting for the older kids. There mother had to go get them out of there. We really had to keep an eye on Makenna though because there was so many people there and she would just take off for the play equipment if we weren't watching. It was a fun day at the park though.

Trick-or-Treat

2009-11-04T16:32:00.001-08:00

Angie and Cort came to visit over Halloween weekend and it was great to see them. Cort helped Makenna carve the pumpkin because Dustin was doing Physical Therapy volunteer work and homework at the school. Dustin then rushed home to make some Chili for our ward chili cook off and I made moms peanut butter pie which was so yummy! I was on the phone with mom a lot trying to make sure my pie crust was going to be okay and wanted to make sure my pie filling was the right consistency -- thanks mom! After the chili cook off the kids did trunk-or-treat. We then went to the Terry's like we do every year and ate lots of candy there as Dustin and Jamon took Makenna and Keegan to some houses in the neighborhood. Makenna had so much fun with Keegan. By the end of the night, Makenna who was suppose to look like Cinderella looked more like a drug addict. It was a very fun night and I am so glad that I have kids to dress up....so much fun!

Trying out the bouncy chair!

2009-10-24T14:06:00.000-07:00

Wow! Looks like his daddy -- did you see that eyebrow facial expression? He always looks at the camera this way -- like, what is that thing? So we decided to try the bouncy chair. He liked it for a little while but didn't really get the bouncy part down. Maybe he will like it a little more once he figures out how to bounce. He mostly just stared at the lights a little confused and sucked on the edge.

Day At The Park

2009-10-24T13:48:00.000-07:00

My friend Amber and I took our kiddos to the park to get out of the house. The weather is getting so nice here in Phoenix -- I really should get the kids outside more since they have been cooped up in the house all summer. They loved being able to go outside and play on equipment that wouldn't burn them. We decided to have a little picnic while we were there and that was fun also. Hollis is next to McKenzie who is 3 months older than him but only a pound bigger....crazy! She is always trying to roll over and eat him with her new teeth when we lay them next to each other. FUN TIMES!

Sleepy Makenna

2009-10-11T14:14:00.000-07:00

Just a funny video -- I think it is so funny when this happens to Makenna. It is so entertaining and then I start to think that maybe I should stop filming and actually put her down for a nap.

Dressing Up!

2009-10-11T14:02:00.000-07:00

Makenna decided to play dress up while Dustin and I were watching football. I guess she was getting bored of us. She had so much fun just doing her own thing.

Just Bored!

2009-10-08T14:41:00.000-07:00

I was just bored so I decided to try and snap some pics of the kiddo's. As you can see, I have just gotten them ready for the day but I have yet to get myself ready....oh well. Makenna was having fun with Hollis on the floor. You can tell that he likes Makenna.

Another Tea or "Hot Chocolate" Party

2009-09-09T12:09:00.000-07:00

Tea Parties have become an every day occurrence in our house. It is the first thing Makenna wants to do every morning and that is usually how I get woke up (thanks a lot Gabe.) I decided to spice it up a little bit this time and we had real hot chocolate with water and milk to pour in our cups with Oreo's to eat....YUM! You can see a little hot chocolate moustache on Makenna in her pictures.....she really liked that hot chocolate even though it didn't mix real well. I mostly enjoyed the Oreo's. Hollis was a supervisor at our tea party and was a good sport while we had it. I can't believe Makenna actually let me take a picture of her......now we just need to work on the smiling.

Little Man is Growing!

2009-09-01T20:37:00.000-07:00

So everyone has been harassing me for pictures of Hollis.....so here you go! Hollis had his 2 month check up today at the Dr. and everything is good. He said not to worry about his bowl legs or his problem with bowel movements. I guess not having a bowel movement for days for a breast fed baby is more common than people know about. He weighed in at 13.12 lbs (50-75%) and 25 3/4 in length (95%). Just a really healthy boy! He had to get 5 shots and this is why he has so many band-aids on his legs in the picture. He is a very happy boy and I tried to portray that the best I could in the video....enjoy!

You Can Fly, You Can Fly, You Can Fly!

2009-09-01T20:17:00.000-07:00

Makenna loves playing the piano at Grandma Janie's house. She also loves the movie, Peter Pan. This is the best I could do for getting her on camera singing....you can fly, you can fly, you can fly! It was hard to be sneaky about it and not let her see me. The was an everyday thing....along with some Cinderella songs and Troubadour.

Makenna's First Tea Party

2009-09-01T15:13:00.000-07:00

Uncle Gabe got Makenna a Disney Princess tea party set while we were up in New Mexico this last week. She absolutely loves it and plays with it every day. Grandma Janie gave her real water to pour and a marshmallow for everyone's plate. Grandpa Russ made it even more fun by really getting into it! : ) Makenna loved that grandma, grandpa, and Gabe all sat down with her for some fun. When they aren't around she will sometimes get her dolls and set them up to have a tea party with her. She was given another tea party set from Alina's mom when she was first born that is so dang cute except that it is real porcelain and I don't want her to break it so we are saving that one for when she gets a little older. I don't think I ever had a tea party set when I was growing up but Makenna makes it look like so much fun!

Utah in July

2009-08-06T20:18:00.000-07:00

Makenna, Hollis and I went up to Utah over the 24th of July for a week and a half. Dustin was at Lake Powell with his family and I didn't want to even try to attempt that with the kids so Julie came and picked us up in Page.....thanks Julie! Probably one of my favorite things when I was up there was just having some adult conversation through the day and Julie would watch the kids for me everyday so I could take a nap.....loved it! Mom also got a little kiddie pool for the kids to play in and they really enjoyed that. While we were up there we got to see Ryan and Meagan and their kids. Makenna really loved getting to know her cousins better. We watched Julie and Meagan run in a race....props to them! We were also able to go to Spencer's birthday party and baptism. Crazy that he is already that old! I was also able to go see Ange Durbin and she so graciously cut and colored my hair for a spoken deal.....thanks Ange! We also went to the Berezay Ranch and saw Dacia (and the new babe, Brooklyn), Don, and Janice and had dinner with them. Makenna loved the chickens, ducks, dogs, slide, swing, trampolene, and kiddie pool they had out there. She just loved being outside since she never gets outside here. Janice went and showed all the kiddos the chic's that they had there and Makenna thought that was great also. And last but not least, we got to go to the Mecham's and catch up with all of them. It was so great to see Heather. Her little girl, Liv, is so cute and looks just like Heather. While we were there Makenna got to go out and see the little pony they had there. We just had so much fun.....thanks to everyone who made it fun for us!

HOLLIS IS FINALLY HERE!

2009-07-28T21:14:00.001-07:00

Can't take the time to write about this blog because Hollis is crying and I need to go and take care of him.

Bowling Fun!

2009-07-28T20:53:00.000-07:00

I was very lucky to have a very supportive family to be there for the birth of Hollis......well, atleast they thought they would be there. Janie was there for about 3 weeks waiting for Hollis, Julie was visiting me for the summer, Russ and Coe came down for the weekend, and my parents were there for a whole week, and no baby! I felt so bad that Hollis hadn't come when everyone was there. He decided to come 5 days late and came on the 23rd of June. Anyway, while everyone was here we were all able to go bowling together and had a very good time.

Makenna getting ready for a night out on the town!

2009-06-04T14:21:00.001-07:00

We were at Josh and Becca's house and Makenna came running out into the living room with something on her face. No one knew what is was, but then Makenna took us to where she had all of her fun. She found Grandma Elliott's make-up and was attempting to put Mascara on. Atleast she knew where to put it.....I think she did pretty good!

Makenna & Her Boyfriend, Keegan

2009-05-16T11:35:00.001-07:00

Well, what can I say......I think the pictures say it all. I think we can expect to hear wedding bells in the future!

Falling Asleep on the Toilet

2009-05-09T08:30:00.000-07:00

Sorry, not sure how to turn video

I forgot I had this little video on my camera to share with everyone. Perhaps I didn't put it on because it shows just how bad of a mother I really am. This was when we were trying the potty training thing and Makenna was getting very sleepy sitting on the toilet so I hurried and grabbed the camera. I didn't expect her or I was thinking at the time that she may crack her head on the counter and fall off. Luckily, she didn't and woke herself up when she was falling. I will say it freaked me out when I was recording and there is no way that I could have caught her. I know, everyone is thinking........what a bad mom!

Makenna Turns 2!

2009-05-08T13:25:00.000-07:00

Makenna had Keegan and Mason (she only has boy friends) over for her birthday. They played outside together in this kiddie pool......and no, it is not the one I am using for my delivery! It was about 95 degrees that day but then when they went out there to get in it, the wind started blowing a little so the kids weren't to sure about being in the water. I think they had fun for the most part though. Makenna's cake was a cowgirl theme so we made a little coral out of toy farm animals and then wrote everything with "Twizzlers." It was fun to watch Makenna have her own little day!

It's Growing!

2009-05-08T13:17:00.001-07:00

We have a chili!

This is one of our squash plants that is growing like crazy!

Our first RED tomatoe!

Tomatoes, green beans, cucumbers, squash, chili's, and corn

Our squash plant that is over taking the garden

Well, this is our first time planting a garden and we think it is going pretty good. Next time we plant, we would like to grow more stuff and spread out the plants more so we will be making our garden larger. It has been so much fun to watch it actually grow!

6 Weeks to Go!

2009-05-05T19:22:00.000-07:00

Ok, so technically it is 6 1/2 weeks to go but who's counting! According to me it should be more like 5 weeks, so I guess we will just see. These pics are for you dad....enjoy!

Optional Dresses for Makenna

2009-05-02T12:26:00.000-07:00

Ok, here are the 4 dresses that I found. You will only see Makenna in 2 of the dresses because she doesn't like me changing her that many times and of course not smiling because that is just Makenna. I was surprised that she even looked at the camera for me. The first dress was very pretty, but wasn't as fancy as two of the other dresses. It also was a paler yellow. The second dress I think might be a little to short for Makenna. Also, very cute but not as fancy as some of the others. The third dress was very fancy (something that you would definetly see at a wedding) but was the palest yellow of them all. It was almost close to a cream color, but was yellow. My favorite dress on her was the fourth dress. It is a cloth material on top and then flows into a light see through mesh (I am not good at discribing material). Then, where the material comes together it has three yellow flowers across there. It the back it ties into a bow. It was fancy enough for a wedding, a good length, and what I thought was a good yellow. I think Makenna looks better in this color of yellow rather than the really pale yellow. Not to mention, it was a really good price...$15! Usually dressses like this will be more like $30. I ended up buying the fourth dress just incase you liked it.....I didn't want someone else to take it. If you don't like it or want to keep looking, it won't hurt my feelings. I can always take it back. Just let me know what you think.

Lunch Time!

2009-04-23T13:52:00.000-07:00

Makenna fell asleep eating her lunch. She was having a really hard time keeping her head up. At one point in the video, she slightly open her eyes, looks at me, and then closes them as if I wasn't there. She was really tired!

Makenna Potty Training

2009-04-23T13:13:00.001-07:00

So we started potty training this week and I hate it! I don't wish this upon anyone! You will see in one of Makenna's pictures that she is crying, and truthfully, that is what I felt like doing as well. We went the first two days with her knowing she wasn't suppose to potty in her underwear but not knowing exactly how to prevent it. There were lots of messed for me to clean up. Right when I was about to give up I called up mom and Janie to vent and basically tell them I can't do it anymore. Janie told me she was watching "John and Kate Plus Eight" and they would make their kids sit on the potty until they went even if they were crying, so she told me I should try that. Well, the first two times she sat there for 45 min. until she went, but it worked and she did go. The next time was an hour and a half....talk about a sore bumb! Ever since that time it has ranged from 1/2 hour of sitting there until about 2 min. of sitting there.....it just depends on how much she really wants that Jelly Bean. I would say about 80% of the time she balls her eyes out and I have to sit there and listen to it so that I don't miss it when she goes pee.....it is very trying! Not only that, but during the time she is on the potty I can't move; therefor, I don't get anything done. The underwear over the bathtub is from her first day potty training and she wet her pants 5 times in about a 4 hour period. Target didn't have any of the thicker panties so I am picking some up at Baby's R Us today. I think those panties are so cute though! So far we haven't had any accidents in her panties since I have been forcing her to go on the potty. Now I just need her to start going herself.....any tips are welcome......I have no clue what I am doing! The last picture is of Makenna in what we call her "Big Girl Bed Time Panties." She thinks those are cool because they have the Disney princesses on them. Hopefully, this doesn't last much longer because I feel like a prisoner in my own home.

Pinetop with the Terry's

2009-04-20T17:10:00.001-07:00

We had a really fun time with the Terry family up in Pinetop this last weekend. They rented a big cabin for all of us to stay in while the boys were hard at work on the Terry's family homestead. There was a lot of food to eat, movies to watch, and games to play. Keegan and Makenna sat in this huge chair together while we were antique shopping. It was great to get outside and everyone played wiffle ball together. There was a ton of toys for Keegan and Makenna to play with when they got there but I think their favorite was this Jeep. Makenna couldn't quite reach the pedals so Dustin pushed down the pedal with a stick as he tried to stear at the same time. They loved it! Thanks Terry's!

Makenna getting into candy

2009-04-14T18:17:00.000-07:00

I caught Makenna getting into the candy above the sink. She did a pretty good job of getting the wrappers off, but when she couldn't, she would just put the whole thing in her mouth and then spit out the wrapper when she was finished with the candy. She is so sneaky and very quite....I had no idea she was doing this! The scary thing is she had to climb up there herself to get it.

Easter 2009

2009-04-14T18:09:00.000-07:00

HAPPY EASTER! AGAIN, IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO GET A PICTURE OF MAKENNA!

Jerrilyn and Makenna's Trip to New Mexico

2009-03-26T16:04:00.001-07:00

Sorry it took so long for me to get these on here. I guess I am just trying to get my house back in order from when I was gone and get back into routine. The house was actually very clean when I got home but then between Makenna and I, we messed it back up again trying to get errands done and neglecting the house.

Makenna and I were able to go up to New Mexico to attempt to help Janie with her mother who is needing her time right now due to falling and breaking her hip. It is a very slow recovery process but Janie has been great with being there for her mom. Janie enjoyed having Makenna there to play with when she had a little down time. She said she needed some young blood to play and be with since she is always at the rehabilitation/retirement place.

Makenna was able to help Janie drive back to the house in their neighborhood. Makenna was getting so excited about it, but as soon as I pulled out the camera she was very serious and would hardly look at me. She doesn't like it when I pull out the camera....it never fails! I thought that most kids liked that kind of thing, but not Makenna.

Makenna also loved the swing. She always wanted to go out and swing, but most of the time the wind was blowing pretty good and it was too cold to go out. We took her out as often as we could. Janie put the towel around her head to block the wind on her ears.......she looked so cute. The first day was really the only nice day there and so Makenna was treated to a popsicle by Russ when he got home from work.

Makenna's favorite way to count is to get up on the pool table and have someone roll the balls to her as she counts them. She loves to do this!

The first video is of when we arrived in New Mexico. No one had any idea that we were coming so I tried to get as much of it on fillm as I could but had to turn off the camera for fear of what might come out of Janie's mouth. She is going to kill me when she reads that part, but oh well!

I was very nervous to take the 6 1/2 hour trip with Makenna by myself because I have never done that before. Makenna did a lot better than I thought she would. I just made sure to stop every 2 hours to give her a break and let her run around. We stopped at McDonald's in Kayenta and I let Makenna go play in the big play area because she has never done that before. Well, she loved it and climbed all the way up in there. When it was time to go I realized she couldn't get back down on her own or didn't know how. So, huge pregnant me and to climb up in there with my purse and all to go get her. That was miserable.....I barely fit and I am sure that it was comical for everyone watching. Now the next step is to attempt a trip with two kids and maybe even try to make the 10 hour drive to Utah.

The Garden

2009-03-19T15:26:00.000-07:00

This is our garden that Dustin pretty much did all by himself with the little help from Makenna. We gave her, her own little shovel and bucket so that she would feel productive. I took a picture of what it looked like before we starting doing anything (just a lot of rock). I then took a picture of the garden after Dustin had dug up all the rock and you will see the black tarp that was under it that he also had to pull up. Finally, the last picture is a finished product of our garden. It might not look like much now because you can't really see many plants growing, but we are hoping that will soon change. The plants are in but we would still like to plant Marygolds around the garden, give it some kind of a wood border, and put in a drip line system.

Random Pics of Makenna for Dad to Look At

2009-03-19T11:53:00.000-07:00

These are just random pics of Makenna for dad to look at. I am trying to make the most out of having this fabulous camera. I guess my daughter thinks she is a thug or something. She loves putting on her dads hats. This hat is the "Wheaties" hat that Julie got Dustin for Christmas a while back. Then, there is Makenna trying on clothes again. She must really want to go swimming because she has her bathing suit on inside out with her life-jacket. She would get really frusterated trying to get up on the couch with it on. It wasn't as easy for her as it normally is. Today she was trying on her tights for church, but didn't have much success getting those on. On another day, Makenna decided she wanted to sit in her stroller that she pushes her baby dolls in. I was really surprise that she got in there and fit. I had to take her out right away though, in fear that she would break it. The video is of Makenna pretending to talk to someone on the phone. She can go on forever and she was actually talking on the phone about 3 minutes prior to me even getting out the camera. She thinks she is really having a conversation with someone and it is very serious. She doesn't always use a phone though, she will find random things that she thinks looks like a phone and use that. What an imagination! She is full of surprises and random things to watch.

Spring Training in Arizona

2009-03-09T20:00:00.000-07:00

Today Coe, Caitlin, Makenna and I went to the Dodgers and Texas Rangers Spring Training game. It started out by Coe trying to embarrasse me pulling into the parking area. He had the windows down and wanted to blare Def Lepard infront of all the men that direct you where to park. He thought that was pretty funny. Makenna really enjoyed being outside. She got to have a hot dog, but her favorite was the Doritos that dyed her fingers orange. I am noticing that my face is getting a lot rounder when I look at these pictures......not a good thing! Just before we left, we took Makenna over to the Carousel because she had a ticket for a free to ride. This was her very first time riding on a Carousel and I am tempted to make it her last. When I tried to put her back in her stroller to go home she arched her back and made a huge fuss over not getting to go on the Carousel again. My thought was......we better never take her to the fair. Don't worry....I am sure we will. All in all, we had a great time!

Makenna on the Harmonica

2009-03-05T10:29:00.000-08:00

Dustin just taught Makenna this morning how to play on his harmonica. It didn't take her very long to learn how to blow in and out of it - she loves it! Everytime I get the camera out she acts a little different than she normally would. Normally, she will cheer for herself when she makes noise with it and she does this little squaty dance to her rhythm as she is playing it.