Our weekend in So Cal

We drove down to Apple Valley last weekend to visit Will's family and participate in a baptism and baby blessing. Rachel did really good on the drive down but got antsy and bored pretty quick on the way back. Next time I'll remember to bring the portable dvd player! I wasn't very motivated with taking pictures so here are the few I took of Rachel. Really its more fun to see pictures of her than us anyway.

Cuddling in the car

Playing at Greg & Heather's house

Riding the boat in the mall

throwing pennies in the fountain at the mall

Rachel loved the fountain. She kept asking for more pennies, good thing I had a lot of change.

18 Months!

I just wanted to share how big Rachel is getting. Time flies! I thought she was looking especially cute this morning so I had to catch a few photos. When I look back on my photo albums, I think I haven't taken enough pictures of Rachel and our family in general so I try to take as many as I can when I do remember. ( Hence 4 pictures from this morning all at once) Rachel also blinks every time the camera flashes so I have to take a ton of the same shot to get maybe one or two decent ones. In most of her pictures she has both eyes closed or half closed. These are the good ones that I posted. Funny side note: every time I take her picture she says "cuuuuuute" right after. I guess she got it from me because I say cute when I look at the photo on the camera screen. She is such a little sponge that absorbs every thing she hears and then repeats it. That is usually good but can be bad sometimes when Daddy says "crap" in front of her and she repeats it.

Spread the Word!!!

I have been making hair clips and bows for girls and I am ready to start selling them. If you would like to see more pictures and purchase some go to www.giftpenguin.com to order. This is my friend's website and she is helping me sell them. These are so cute in little girl's hair and are perfect baby shower gifts! Please tell everyone about the site. If you live in my area you don't have to pay shipping, we can set up a time to meet. Thanks!

Gratitude

Today being a patriotic day, I would like to express my thanks and Gratitude to all the men and women who serve our country. This includes Police, Fire and Military. I am especially grateful that my husband returned home safely from the war in Iraq. We wouldn't be a family otherwise. The Lord truly blesses us every day!

Antelope Island

We went camping with some friends friday night on Antelope Island, which is out on the Salt Lake. It was pretty stinky down by the water but it was cool to see all the Bison roaming the island. We brought our bikes and went for a ride around part of the island and we toured the historic ranch that has been on the Island to maintain the animals since the late 1800's. The island was originally used by Brigham Young to keep the herds of the church. Ranchers lived on the island to maintain the animals and ownership has changed through the years. The Bison were brought there to rebuild the population after it had almost been extinguished by westward settlers. We were going to stay Saturday night too but left early because a storm was coming in and we were tired of being in the sun all day. I guess on day of fun was sufficient. Sorry I wish I had taken more pictures but I didn't bring my camera on the bike ride and Will and Rachel slept in the car while I toured the historic ranch. So I've only got pictures of the lake shore. I thought it was strange that we only saw two antelope since that is what the island is named for. I enjoyed our stay but Will was not very impressed so we probably won't go there again. It was good to experience it once though. now I can say that I have touched the great salt lake.

Flashback Friday!

Here is Rachel's first couple days in the world. The first picture is of me and Rachel the morning ofter she was born. I didn't want any pictures until I had a shower.
The second of just Rachel is on the morning we were taking her home, we put her in her new outfit just before we left. Daddy picked it out. It was cute but really big even though it said newborn. Its hard to believe how much she has grown already. Sometimes I miss cuddling with a brand new baby.

I love you!

I told my mom that Rachel could say "I love you" so she asked me to make a video of it. We think it is so cute especially because she will say it randomly throughout the day. We don't have to tell her to say it. I guess its because we tell her that we love her all the time and we say I love you to each other, she picked up on it. it makes me smile every time she says it no matter how I am feeling.
PS sorry the video is sideways, I forgot that you can only turn the camera long ways for pictures not videos.

Petting zoo

We had fun at the petting zoo today! Rachel loved to see all the animals. She was mostly interested in petting the goats. Other than that she would make the animal sound when I pointed out the particular animal but wasn't showing tons of enthusiasm. She just wanted to get out of the stroller and run around exploring. I had Cory with me too so I wasn't comfortable with letting two toddlers run around the barn area with all the people and horses around. I did let them out to pet some of the goats and to play in the kid size jail house. Rachel threw a fit when it was time to go.The best part about the zoo was that the kids were free because they are under 3 yrs. So I just had to pay $2 for me. what a cheap, fun activity. I think I will take them again next week.

Flashback Friday

This is Will during Christmas of 1984 at age 3 yrs. That is his mom in the background.

ITS ALIVE!

I found this pumpkin hiding along the fence. Its huge already!
my zucchini got really big in just a few days
Its kind of hard to see but I have a whole string of tomatoes now!
This a a frenzy of ants that were near my garden so I sent them back where they came from. I hope god accepts ants into heaven and he doesn't consider me a murderer.