Steve, Andy, Todd and Justin hit the race circuit and draw quite a fan base








prosperity
















































frog patrol




















our only girl, and oldest, turns 5!
























caleb earned his 'beary brave' award SEVERAL times this year












worthy priesthood holders



















































motoadventure 2010
on top of squaw peak


dusty toothpaste










favorite part about this Canton excursion was watching Heather with the homeless cart
























































lucy had a tough year with many skunk encounters and topped new years' off w/ a trip to the vet to staple up a wound ... hence the cone of shame [for 15 days] :(


Brooke is such an adorable cheerleader and we LOVE pep rally's with her







school lunch w/ haley mae





great blessing to spend 36 years with this crazy man!

lots of laughs in the spaces of time xo






coaching Brookie Brooke on her first fondue party ...

there is a skill!



















































giddyup!














3 new baby bumps

Emma was due 2/1
Ashley 3/17
Chris 5/25





Brooklyn and Brody decided they didn't want to wait until 2011 and arrived Dec 15th







Justin and Emma are elated Brooklyn came home yesterday and Brody has a few more days to grow in the NICU
blessings, blessings!!!







Whew! I feel better and can let the sun set on 2010. A year riveted with challenges, yet grateful for the tender mercies of a loving heavenly father who promises all things work together for our good, if we walk uprightly. We will claim those blessings along with express gratitude for having each other to lean on, giggle and cry with, and it's evident ... we are growing in strength.
Bring on 2011! xoxo

Keeping up with life ... (sort of)

The sun rises and sets too quickly in this household. We do our best to suck the joy out of each day which leaves little time for blogging. I feel like the prodigal daughter coming back, but my desire to journal outweighs the burden of this beast.

I really dropped the ball a year ago, albeit a few pics trickled through, but feel the need to properly close '09 with a few more.

Please indulge me with patience, ... and don't judge.

"Every man's memory is his private literature. ~Aldous Huxley

Broken Bow '09

We snuck a trip in September to our favorite place - Oauchita on the Oklahoma side. It is so serene and peaceful you can feel the worries drift away!







We rented this cabin and all snuggled in for a cozy getaway ...
life doesn't get better than this!














We brought the jet skis and Steve and I had fun shooting Andy's runs trying to capture the impossible photo














Papa won the lottery to get to be the first to double ski with Haley Mae!






























Easy to find joy in these days!

little people birth days

A year-in-review wouldn't be complete without celebrating the little ones that brighten the days!

Tanner - 2 years old Sept 2

Cash - 2 years old June 14

Haley Mae - 4 years old March 21st

Haley, Cash, Tanner, Gavin and Caleb, 5 little angels (most of the time), fill a space in our hearts we didn't know was empty. xo

The faces of summer '09

peace in the kingdom
everybody swims - even the babydoll
this is a face we'd love to have home more often - i miss you heathy jane!Ash & Bobby livin' on the edge!
Too hot to play sand volleyball, but perfect for a sand castle building contest

Too hot to play sand volleyball, but perfect for a sand castle building contest


yep, and she has 2 months left!































enjoying some sister time - not enough of it!
There's no place like home ... except Grandma's
Andy and baby Gavin

The circus is in town!

These are a crack up!

Another canine in the ark ... we rescued "Lucy Lu" in August. A LOT of puppy left but she is very sweet and grateful to have a home!

Meet the neighbors! We LOVE our fatty cows but they are not so fond of our dogs. Roxy and the late Daisy Duke loved to terrorize them and I'm fearful they will drop of a heart attack. Lucy is amused by them and tries to get them to play (hopefully that's the puppy in her and not indicative of her mental capacities)

Future Builders of America! Never too early to teach work ethic! Thanks Home Depot and Lowes for this great community service!

sharing bibs and breakin mac 'n cheese together!

Meet Kate! A new baby makes you feel so close to heaven! A joy to share in this special 'birth day' with Ryan and Lindsey!

Circle power

We snuck in some family pics while Heather was in town for Thanksgiving to document the power of this growing family circle. I love the girlie shots!

Women power!

We were fortunate to catch the last day of Abby's Caleb belly.



It's been stated before how I love circles, round things, hug circles, polka dots, donuts and round tables that include everybody, and recently ran into this cute article about circles that echos my sentiments. Love it - gotta share:

“Circles,” Ensign, Feb. 1993, 61
When I was a Laurel, I had a wonderful teacher, a young mother who particularly loved to teach us about making homes for our own families in the future and about developing in our homes a special circle of love.
Now that I am married, I am discovering all those circles she taught us about—and some she didn’t. First, there is the circle around your middle that keeps growing and growing till you feel like one big circle—and sometimes that roundness won’t go away easily after the baby is born.
Then there are circles of open mouths crying to be fed, circles in the bottoms of baby bottles, circles around eyes, crayoned circles on the walls. And just when you think you have adjusted fairly well and those circles from dirty dishes and those circles in the bathtub diminish, that circle in the middle starts all over again!
Thank goodness for the other circles that make these circles worthwhile—the circle of family prayer and the circle of priesthood holders giving a blessing. The circle of little arms giving big hugs, and the circles you dance in when your baby takes that first step.
Now I understand why my teacher wanted us to learn about that circle of love. You can’t live in it without becoming well rounded!

Love the circle! xoxo

more baby!

It was a treat to buddy with Tanner during baby time and have him around 24/7. Nothing like waking up to a smiling toddler! We kept busy and this was our banner project to welcome home Mommy and Caleb.

These are out of sequence as everyone is home now, but can't resist posting a few more of the new snuggly, not yet scrubbed up baby pics and moments that melt in your heart.

this is an lds approved temporary tattoo!

Papa is already signing him up for Moto Adventure 2019! (sorry Ab's, looks like he's in!)

Our two newest family members! Meet Brooke and Caleb! xo