Arches

I can't believe it is the Holiday season again already. This year has gone by extremely fast. I guess a lot of things have happened this year that have made time go by quickly, but still, I can't believe it's almost Christmas.
We had a fun Thanksgiving. We drove down Thursday morning and had dinner with Chad's Grandparents on the Keyser side. Then we stopped in at Natalie and Doug's for pie. We visited for the rest of the evening with my family. On Friday, Chad and I got up early and went shopping. Actually, I went out with my mom at 5am. Walmart was crazy. They had all of their big sale items wrapped in black plastic in the aisles. Then, when 5 hit, the plastic came off and people were just lunging for the items. The funniest thing to me was the sound. The volume went up and almost sounded like many people were screaming. Luckily, we were able to get what we went for. Then Chad and I went back out later and got a couple of things. That afternoon, we had lunch with Chad's Rowland side of the family, then we met mom to drop off the kids and headed on our way to Moab. We got there around 8pm. Just in time to get something to eat and get a good night sleep, since I'd only had about 3-4 hours sleep the night before.
On Saturday, we went to Arches. I've been there before, but Chad hadn't. And it had been a while for me. (I went there with Breanne and Lisa about 8 years ago. Great trip.) We started out by hiking up to Delicate arch. Of course, Chad dislikes conformity, so we didn't stay on the trail the entire time. There were a lot of people there, so it was kind of nice to take the path less trod. We took a bunch of pictures there then ate lunch. On the way back, we walked down below the arch and just headed off in the general direction, eventually meeting up with the trail again. It was fun.

After that, we went to the Devils Garden trailhead and hiked up to Landscape arch and looked at a couple of other arches along the way. At this point, we had already hiked over 4 miles, but I just had such a desire to go more. We ended up hiking all the way to the Double O Arch, on what was labeled on a difficult trail. It was actually a very fun trail to hike. It involved a lot of climbing on rocks and the sandstone. At this point, we really needed to head back because sunset was in less than an hour. The most difficult section of the trail was just above Landscape arch. We wanted to get there before it got too dark, but as we were going back, we came across another side trail that took us to 2 more arches. We started past them, but decided to go back and go to them. It was definitely worth the side trip. The moon had risen and we were able to get pictures of it through Partition arch. It was awesome, although at this point, it was pretty dark and we were practically running at the end because it was so dark and cold. But we made it and I hiked almost 10 miles. This may not seem a lot to many, but for me it was quite an accomplishment. I've been very limited on physical activities since breaking my ankle several years ago, so I was so excited to have been able to go that far. Although, I'm still paying for it. Today it's much better, but I've barely been able to walk since that day. My ankle just gets so stiff and sore. Anyway, on Sunday, we drove back up into the park and took a couple of short walks to some more arches, then headed home. It was a fantastic trip. It was nice to have a little time away from the kids, although I did miss them. We kept talking about how much fun Myra would have had in the areas we were at.
On the way home, we stopped in a little town called Helper, Utah. To do what, you may ask? Well, last year, we were down there with Chad's parents and we were trying to find a Geocache, but were unable to. So, we decided to give it another try. This time, armed with the right coordinates, it was pretty easy. So now we've found all of the geocaches we've ever tried. Anyway, it was a great trip.

FYI

We just wanted to let everyone know that we recently changed our blog so that now when you leave a comment, we have to review it before it gets posted. We are doing this because we keep getting weird comments posted on our blog and we want to prevent that from happening. Sorry. I hope it's not an inconvenience for anyone.

So, life has been busy as normal, but maybe even more so with the Holidays approaching. Chad is also wrapping up the end of his classes, yesterday was the chess tournament he put together, we are headed out of town and the kids, of course, always keep us busy. Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, so we wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving. We are going to spend it mostly with Chad's grandparents in Salt Lake and we'll stay with my parents that night. Then, on Friday, after a little Holiday shopping, Chad and I, that's right-no kids, are heading to Moab for the weekend. Chad surprised me with a little anniversary getaway. So, Grandma and Grandpa get the kids for the weekend, and we get some time away. We are very excited. Can you believe that Chad's never even be to Moab? I'm sure we'll post a bunch of pictures when we get back.

So, I feel like such an awful mom. About a week ago, Myra woke up with a little scratch on her forehead. Not even band aid worthy. But then she started picking at the scab and now, this is what it looks like. I've been putting ointment and band aids on it since she started picking at it and this morning, when I went to change the band aid, it looked awful. I ended up taking her to the doctors. He's treating her with an antibiotic and some special ointments. I hope it goes away. I guess she had kind of reaction to the band aid, which I thought was weird that it didn't show up until today. I've changed the band aids every day and nothing looked abnormal. Anyway, now I'm worried she's gonna have a horrible scar on her forehead. I feel so bad, like I should have treated it differently. Anyway, hopefully she'll leave it alone now so it can get better. Lexi's had a little cold this week, but she is, of course, as cute as ever.

Well, once again, since this will be our last post for a few days, have a Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Cool Experience

Three weeks ago we had the Missionaries over for dinner. After dinner they gave us a short message and then asked us if there was anyone that we knew who would be interested in hearing the discussions. Since I am a ward missionary and our ward is 6 square blocks, I know about every inactive and non member (not really, it is surprising how many house there are). I gave them this one single guys name and address whom we had visited and found to be very sincere and friendly but had not wanted to meet with missionaries. That same night I received a call from the elders informing me that they had stopped by Riley's house and he had accepted to be baptized. Tonight at the Logan tabernacle we witnessed his baptism. The last three weeks have been a lot of fun, we have had several of the lessons in our home and others I have been able to attend at Riley's house. Anyway my point is the church is true, Pass it on!

Four Years

Today is our anniversary. Chad and I were married 4 years ago, on November 15, 2003. Although Chad thinks it's only been 3 years. That's what he's been telling people, so I imagine if they think about us having a 2 1/2 year old, things don't quite add up. Anyway, it's been a wonderful 4 years. We are truly best friends and are looking forward to many more years together. Here are a bunch of pictures of us and our kids. I was kind of sad as I was going through pictures to find out that we don't have a lot of pictures with just the two of us. There's the kids in all of them now. We'll have to work on that in the future. Anyway, Happy Anniversary Chad. And to many more to come.

Busy

So, this month has already been quite busy! I have really enjoyed blogging and always think of things I want to add. It's fun to get to share my family with all of you. The girls continue to grow and amaze us. Myra is, of course, as busy as ever. And Lexi is almost the exact opposite. She's so content to just sit and look around. It's hard to believe she's been with us for almost 8 months. Time sure flies! Chad has been very busy with work and school and I'm busy sewing and I wish I was busier with selling, but I'm getting there. I'm pretty proud of my newest blanket, so I'm just gonna post a picture so you can see it. I hope it sells. I'm getting ready for another Craft Fair this Friday, so hopefully I do well at that one. We are getting excited for the upcoming Holidays. It's a great reason to visit with all of our family. It's especially fun lately seeing our family, because Myra knows who all of her grandparents and aunts and uncles are and she gets so excited to see them. This past weekend, my cousin Paige got married(which was a beautiful wedding!, we are very excited for her and her new husband, Chris.), so Myra got to stay with her Aunt Natalie and Uncle Doug and visit with cousin James. She had a really good time, while Doug and Natalie had a very busy time, I'm sure, with 3 kids. Myra also got to see Grandma and Aunt Bre and Uncle Danny, which she loves. She was really sad to leave though. She keeps asking if Grandma is coming today. Or, wants to see the video of James on the computer. She remembers things so well.
Another exciting thing in our family has to do with Chad's church calling. As a ward missionary, he has gotten to do some door knocking and it looks as if it's paying off now. They met a guy in our neighborhood, Riley, and have visited with him several times. After having the missionaries over for dinner one night, Chad suggested they go talk to this guy. That night, they called back to say he had decided to get baptized. We've been able to have the discussions with him in our home and it's been a very spiritual experience for us all. We are excited for what is happening and if all continues to go well, Riley will be baptized November 20th!
Well, with all that's going on, I thought I'd post a music video for you to enjoy. I hope you enjoy the pictures of mostly the kids. Who else would we take pictures of?

Somersaults

I just thought I'd post this quick video of Chad and Myra doing somersaults. I thought it was really cute. Myra loves playing with her dad. (Dad's are much more fun than moms, or so I'm told. :-))

Bye, Bye, Binky

This past week we got rid of Myra's binky. She has only used it during bedtime and naptime since she was a year old, but we decided it was time for it to totally be gone. Unfortunately, we were as hooked to it as she was. It was just so easy for her to go to bed. All she needed was her binky. Well, we had been going back and forth on how and when to do it, when I was at the store with Myra and she found a My Little Pony toy she really wanted. I told her she could have it if she gave up her binky for it. She said okay, so I bought it. When we got home though, she decided she didn't want to give up her binky for it. So, I put it on top of the fridge and later that night she said she wanted the toy again. I told her she had to throw her binky away and explained that once it's in the garbage, it's gone. So, she went up, brought her binky down and threw it away. She played with her pony all night, then it was bed time. Of course she wanted her binky and didn't want her pony any more, but we explained she had made her decision. She screamed, very loudly, for about an hour before falling asleep and staying asleep throughout the night. The next day, she asked for it during nap time and when I reminded her that she had thrown it away, she said okay and went to sleep. That was it. She has slept just as long, although I think it takes her longer to fall asleep. Tonight, about 30 minutes after putting her down, I went in her room to find her light on and her jumping on the bed. She's such a great girl. Anyway, now that the binky trauma is over, time to hit potty training hard!
On Sunday, I wasn't feeling very well, so Daddy got Myra ready for church. This is how she turned out. I think he did pretty well! He even did her hair.







Gangster Myra!

Lexi and Dad

Lexi is such a good and patient baby she hardly cries, sleeps through the night and just loves to sit there and watch us. Because she shows so little emotion I'm not sure if she or I like this game more. But I can tell that she likes it because she smiles when we start.

Trick-Or-Treat

Another Halloween has come and gone and all we have to show for it is a very hyper two year old, and these pictures, of course! Myra didn't really understand it much, but when I tried to explain Trick-or-Treating to her today, she was very excited and wanted to go right then. In fact, she kept coming out of her room during nap time to see if it was time to go Trick-or-Treating. Finally she took a nap and when she woke up, that's the first thing she asked me. Then I had to make her wait longer until Dad was home. We went over to our friends, the Day's, so that Myra and Camille could Trick-or-Treat together. It was so cute. I think Myra mostly enjoyed ringing the doorbells. Then we had dinner that night with the Day's. It was a fun Halloween. The pictures above are of Myra, Camille, Lexi and Madelynn. There are also some pictures at our ward Halloween party.

My two Babies

Lately, Myra has decided that if Lexi is doing something cute, she needs to do the same thing, then she says, "Look Mama, your two babies, take a picture." Of course she rarely smiles for the camera, but in these instances, she seems to like her picture taken. So, here are some pictures of my two "Babies."