Fun Photo Shoot for Father's Day

First, I want to start off by saying, "please bare with me. I took over 500 photos and it was SO hard picking out a few to share!!!"

I had a couple of friends who were interested in having me take pics of their kids for a Father's Day gift for their husbands. I was thrilled at the thought (I love taking pictures!!) and flattered that they would want me to do so :)

I think the pictures turned out really cute. They were taken on June 10th, 2009. Here a few of them...


I start off with this photo for the sole reason that this is a typical "Hannah pose" and she loves it. Almost everytime I take pics of Hannah she strikes this pose. It dates back to Easter of 2003. It's now become a tradition.


So, I really had a hard time picking which photos I would add of Livy because they were all so cute!! She's such a pretty little thing. If things work out as Greg and I have planned, she'll be our daughter-in-law in about 19 years :)


Handsome Gabers. We were just driving along and Ashley saw this old building so we checked it out. We found this vintage looking spot and began taking photos. Then a girl came out, with a HUGE dog, from the house next door. Ashley asked if it was her building and it turned out to be but the girl said it was ok to take pictures, so we were happy :)

Then it was off to find another spot to take more fun pics. As we were driving we see this wonderful barn but it's in someone's back yard. We realize that the home was for rent, and after knocking and getting no answer, we decided that it was fair game. Barn pictures...here we come!!


Little Olivia (neither her nor Gabe were in the mood to smile).

Can't get a boy to smile, give him a tool to smash the "coming out of nowhere" crazy ants that were crawling all around him...that'll put a smile on his face!

Beautiful Hannah. I was gonna have her climb inside so I could get a shot of her looking out the window but since we were trespassing, I thought better of the situation.

Off to another location, a park in Highland. It was drizzling but the trees kept us pretty dry.

Hannah on the awesome red bridge.

Jaxon posing by the stream

Got a smile from Livy! I think Ashley was acting like a monkey or something, at this point. It turned out beautiful though.

Gabe's turn by the bridge...Ashley still being a monkey!

We had the kids climb onto a really cool tree branch that spanned out over the grass. At first they were pretty hesitant (you can't tell by this shot but it was pretty high. I'm standing on a hill so that I'm level with them) but they finally gave it and we got some cute shots.

Jaxon always had a big smile on. I love this photo.

Beautiful Hannah and the tree. She was the hardest to get up there. It took both Ashley and I to do it.

The fun red bridge that I turned to black and white. Love this photo!

Livy on the tree. We tried to get Gabe to go up but he wasn't havin' it!

Caden with a big smile.


By the end of the day, this is what taking pictures was like!! The older kids were still somewhat hanging in there but the two little ones were FINISHED!! The older kids got a kick out of Ashley trying to get Gabe and Olivia to sit up!

Good times...can't wait until I get to do it again!! :)

Mother's Day

Mother's Day is always a special holiday for me. I love the fact that I have been blessed with the gift of motherhood and that the Lord has allowed me to raise two of his amazing children. Greg and I both feel it's important to celebrate Hannah on this day, as well, because we want her to know that the most important title she will ever have, is the title of "Mother". Greg always has flowers for her! He's such an amazing Daddy!


Hannah with her pancake elephant that her daddy made her for breakfast. All the girls get spoiled in our household on Mother's Day.


All the girls and their flowers from Greg.


Hannah and Grandma sharing a laugh about something that Hannah wrote in the card to her grandma. What a special moment to capture on film.

Me and my most cherished title..."Mom" written by the hands of my precious Hannah.

I made my mom and Hannah a special Mother's Day gift. During one of our past lessons in Relief Society, a sister in our ward brought a frame she had that had 4 or 5 generations of mothers in it. I thought it was a wonderful way to display the love of mothers so I borrowed the idea. My mom is a family history nut like myself so she started crying when she opened her gift. I explained to both of them that the gift was very simple and very inexpensive BUT that it was of great worth because of what it represented. I hope and pray that my family will be sealed together and that I will dwell with all these wonderful mothers for eternity.

Here's my mom explaining to Hannah the generations. She had several stories to share with her as well. Hannah was so excited to get the pictures hung up in her room. I hope it helps her realize that she's a special link in a chain that binds us all together.

Me and my miracles!!

Every year, I feel so grateful to be celebrating such an amazing day. I would not be the woman I am today without the amazing influences of my children. They teach me so much each and every day! They are such great examples to me, not only of obedience and faith but also of kindness and forgiveness because I am not at all perfect but they love me anyway. I'm so blessed to be their "mommy".

Playing "Basset-ball"

Gabe loves basketball and it's so fun to watch him. We got him a little basket that suctions to the fridge and he stands under it all the time trying to get the ball into the basket. I tried to convince him that we should lower it to his level but he insists on having me put it higher. He makes the shot, every now and then, and he gets so excited!! I'm sure he'd love to be a basketball player when he's older but at the rate he's growing now (still in 24 month clothing) I'm not sure he'll make the team :)


Here he is focusing on his target...


then he shoots...and if I remember right, I think this shot actually made it in!


The joy of a boy and his basset-ball!!!

Gabriel's 3rd Birthday

Here we are celebrating our little Gabe's 3rd birthday. These are photos from his party with his friends. We held it a bit early (April 25th, 2009) but Gabe didn't seem to care. We had his party at Backyard Adventures in Draper, which the kids seemed to love.


First there was yummy food and fun with friends.


Gabers blowing out his candle. Hannah had to end up helping him with this because he just kept spitting all over the cake...yummy!


Gabe loved opening his gifts. He got several balls, an airplane, and a fun puzzle. He was very excited!!


Here the "kids" are having fun on the blow-up toy!!
L-R: Greg, Sterling (our Bishop) and Steve (our 1st counselor)

We ended up having a party for the family a little closer to his birthday. Gabe loved the fact that he had TWO days that he got to open up presents! He's come a LONG way from his 1st birthday when he cried non-stop because we were encouraging him to open his gifts!

Student of the Month

We were so proud when Hannah came home with a paper that explained to us that she had been selected the "Student of the Month" for the month of March. She was so excited because she said that she had wanted this since she was in Kindergarten (I didn't even know they did "student of the month" at her school). Greg was able to go over for the ceremony on April 3rd, 2009, which made Hannah so proud! We, and a bunch of our friends from our ward, cheered for her so loudly that Mr. Stubbs commented on the fact that he hadn't heard such a loud cheer for a "Student of the Month" before. Hannah was nervous but she was very proud of herself. While her teacher, Mrs. Webb, spoke of the things that Hannah had done to recieve this honor, Hannah just sat there grinning from ear-to-ear. I love seeing her so happy, especially when it's from such an accomplishment. I'm sure her self-esteem went up several notches after this award.

Hannah receiving her award from Mr. Stubbs, who I believe is a Vice-principle.

Hannah with her teacher, Mrs. Webb.

At one point I looked around to check on Gabe, and he had made himself at home with the kids who were watching the ceremony. He looked so cute sitting there. Gabe can't wait to go to school like his "big sissy".


Me and my amazing little girl, who seems to be growing up right before my eyes!

Hannah, Gabe and Daddy. Hannah was so thankful that her Daddy could come see her get her reward. I don't think it would have been the same if he wouldn't have been there.

Congratulations on such a big accomplishment Hannah! You are completely amazing and I love you!!

Crazy Hair!

Our little buddy is known for his "crazy hair", we call it "buddy hair". In the mornings it is COMPLETELY out-of-hand! Sometimes when I'm lazy and haven't cut his hair, his faux-hawk gets HUGE!!! I took a few pics (March 24th, 2009) because words cannot describe how crazy his hair really is. See for yourself...

The side view

and the front view. Notice the funky "Flock of Seagulls" flip on the top of his faux-hawk....pretty cool, if I do say so myself!

Now you may be thinking..."There is NO WAY his hair just does that by itself" but I'm here to say that it does. I didn't touch it at all before taking these pics but I definitely did after :)

A New Addition

Hannah was so excited to get new glasses. Everyone in her school class had recently done the same so it was "cool" to have glasses but not just any pair of glasses, they had to be thick plastic glasses. Hannah picked this pair out all by herself. I think she did a wonderful job!! They look terrific on her. Once she wore them to school, she couldn't believe how much better she could see. She was thrilled that she could see clearly across the room. In a few years, she decided she's like to wear contacts but for the time being, the glasses are GREAT!!

Hannah and her cutesy glasses on March 23, 2009. I believe this was taken the day after she actually got her glasses.

Reigniting an Old Flame

Over the past few years I have had less and less time to do what I like to do. So, I've decided that I need to start making time for things that I enjoy, especially those things that encourage family history. One thing was to update my blog, which I'm in the middle of (as you know) and the other is to once again, spend time scrapbooking. Little Gabe only has about 8 pages complete, compared to Hannah's 8 BOOKS, so I've decided that I need to get my rear end in gear.

So, yesterday I actually sat down and did one page for Buddy's book! Yippee for me!! But what's even more exciting is the fact that I actually used the "Cricket" machine that Greg gave me on Valentine's Day 2007!!! Yes, you heard me right....2007!!! And I'm thrilled to report that I ABSOLUTELY LOVE IT!!!! It is so much fun! I can't wait to do another page again tonight, if I can get the kids in bed at a decent hour.

So, here's to reigniting an old flame....scrapbooking! I'm so glad that we've been reunited :)

Hannah's 1st Time Making Jam

Hannah really wanted to learn how to can jam so on February 16th, 2009, when the strawberries were on sale, we got to canning! She thought it was a wonderful experience and she couldn't wait until she could actually taste it (we already had an open jar of jam in the fridge). It was a fun bonding moment for us and a great learning experience for her.


Hannah with her strawberries


Hannah thought the blender was the funnest part. Here she is with the pureed strawberries.


Pouring the strawberries into the pot to cook.

Stirring the pot...Hannah's REALLY good at this!! (he-he)

Jam has now been poured into the jars...almost done!!

Hannah and the finished product. I'm so thankful for the Relief Society mini-class that taught us the "just turn it over to seal the lids" theory. It worked perfectly!! Yummy-yummy!

Hannah was so proud of the finished product. Now she can't wait to see what's next on our canning list.

Valentine's Day!

We love Valentine's Day at our house. I bought some fun plates and cups for the kids to eat their breakfast on, this year. The plates were shaped like hearts and the cups had floating glitter and hearts in them. The kids thought they were great! The first pics were taken on actual Valentine's Day. The later photos (at Hannah's school) were taken on February 13th, at her school party.


Gabe and his fun plate and cup. Looks like he ate all of his food...that's a miracle! He must have had pancakes.


Hannah and her fun Valentine's stuff.


Gabers digging in his Valentine's gift bag...wonder what he got?!?

Airplanes, of course!!!!

In Hannah's bag she got tons of lip gloss, jewelry, and these fun socks. I'm not sure what her fascination is with these type of socks, but she absolutely loves them!

Hannah's hairdo for school. I love fixing her all up in red. She looks so good in that color!

I helped out at Hannah's school party so Gabe got to come along. He had lots of fun with the older kids.

Beautiful Hannah...my beautiful lady in red! Hannah really loved this shirt because it was so soft, like velvet. The pin she's wearing was mine when I was a kid. So funny to see her wearing it. It just means I'm getting old!

Hannah's bucket of valentine's.

My two Valentine's...I love you babies!!

Kisses -n- hugs -n- hugs -n- some loves!!