tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-252111032024-02-22T14:41:16.657-07:00Mel's Fantastical InsightsMelaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.comBlogger101125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-14226045157365270382019-12-15T15:25:00.001-07:002019-12-15T16:37:54.297-07:00Sunday School Lesson on The RevelationI teach Gospel Doctrine, or basically a bible study class at my church. It is one of my favorite things to do. This week I went a little insane and ended up doing a lot of prep work and just wanted to share it. We always run out of time to study the Book of Revelation in the New Testament, because it comes at the end, and always around Christmas time and everyone does Christmas lessons instead. This year I decided to battle the beast (pun intended) and taught a crash course in Revelation in 35 minutes or less. Obviously I had way more than material than we got to go through. <br />
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Half of these handouts came from <a href="https://byustudies.byu.edu/new-testament-charts">BYU Studies</a> website, which is an amazing source of information if you are looking at a deeper view of your scripture reading.<br />
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Another help was the <a href="https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/ensign?lang=eng">Ensign</a> come follow me article this month by Nicholas Frederick. <br />
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<a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/14PTgMh8ufhKc5DaWF_arfxljaUKl-ufQ/view?usp=sharing">Handouts</a><br />
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There's a lot more info that's in my class notes if you would like that as well. <br />
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<a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/1YMGfiooevGkxN35rsCPab4Aza6QVL51b/view?usp=sharing">Class Notes</a> Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-4518236341082406942018-07-30T00:09:00.001-06:002018-07-30T00:09:51.818-06:00Whale Watching in San FranciscoMy sister and her family came all the way from Idaho to visit us. Naturally we had to take them to the Golden Gate Bridge. It was a typical July day, foggy, freezing, windy and crowded. We battled people on bikes and with strollers and the wind to walk onto the bridge. We had just made it to the first tower when we noticed a whale watching tour boat and joked about how cool it would be if there was suddenly a whale that came out of the water. About ten seconds later, A WHALE CAME OUT OF THE WATER! It didn't ever do the complete National Geographic flip over or show it's tail, but there was a Humpback Whale feeding, and it kept coming up to eat. It was amazing. AMAZING. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYUgwisbISdjaxKc_X_fGOmZBoxBEk8wDIf_PVBk5P0twMFQSBg0AvOvfzYfa2REoL4ir5jX3jGQcMKZpVu4DI_gLLwoVUvfS1x1jbmx5Ih6ugAe7rpqiGRZqS_RFzIMxucbaU/s1600/IMG_0324.JPG" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYUgwisbISdjaxKc_X_fGOmZBoxBEk8wDIf_PVBk5P0twMFQSBg0AvOvfzYfa2REoL4ir5jX3jGQcMKZpVu4DI_gLLwoVUvfS1x1jbmx5Ih6ugAe7rpqiGRZqS_RFzIMxucbaU/s320/IMG_0324.JPG" width="320" height="180" data-original-width="1600" data-original-height="900" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiobBYHVHAfd0E95DiylKe4E23_LY9pjFHNVDGxc71tdjBwiC6nnrsqwnyRFCDLnN9iQm4RJXn9_puUyD6yV4lKFcQfKD6ftlRdnzIdV-5_svX6JLmN7Y2raEt5cmT1RHOA-93W/s1600/IMG_0336.JPG" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiobBYHVHAfd0E95DiylKe4E23_LY9pjFHNVDGxc71tdjBwiC6nnrsqwnyRFCDLnN9iQm4RJXn9_puUyD6yV4lKFcQfKD6ftlRdnzIdV-5_svX6JLmN7Y2raEt5cmT1RHOA-93W/s320/IMG_0336.JPG" width="320" height="180" data-original-width="1600" data-original-height="900" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM7hZecfADLwsuTFAnTrOd_QPDignh9jZEmiIfeIc8qZzhX1M-rva7eom3RGDwAJWf8c_eSIB4QfpgF2ZZSpE2qkKXDQLGKDaWsqsUvDD-jKS8ylVjjdGXoxvt7NLig0mw2b39/s1600/IMG_0347.JPG" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiM7hZecfADLwsuTFAnTrOd_QPDignh9jZEmiIfeIc8qZzhX1M-rva7eom3RGDwAJWf8c_eSIB4QfpgF2ZZSpE2qkKXDQLGKDaWsqsUvDD-jKS8ylVjjdGXoxvt7NLig0mw2b39/s320/IMG_0347.JPG" width="320" height="180" data-original-width="1600" data-original-height="900" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKqA36s4afEEnxjFqP1nKf_t0JnEIbBnnJ2qL4ca_-bgTWo6lsDfzlGMeee1yGJI02icwPygfQQQk8_2JEm09gdbcMY_UXI05mE-b-5aUKeLjz4kC6DGBOzpcmMGmiztiwkYu7/s1600/IMG_0348.JPG" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjKqA36s4afEEnxjFqP1nKf_t0JnEIbBnnJ2qL4ca_-bgTWo6lsDfzlGMeee1yGJI02icwPygfQQQk8_2JEm09gdbcMY_UXI05mE-b-5aUKeLjz4kC6DGBOzpcmMGmiztiwkYu7/s320/IMG_0348.JPG" width="320" height="180" data-original-width="1600" data-original-height="900" /></a><br />
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We spent almost 40 minutes watching the whale, possibly whales at the time. There was one in particular that came over, right below us the kids could all see it, and it was so close we could see the barnacles on the mouth, and it rolled and was putting on quite the show for us. It was an amazing sight and we adults were pretty dumbstruck even as the children froze and whined and grabbed onto us because the wind on the bridge was intense and blowed them around, but we still made them stand there watching the whale until he swam off somewhere else. <br />
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Later, as we walked back to our cars, we noticed a few sail boats hovering in this one spot, and sure enough, right as we looked over there were two whales coming up out of the water and feeding. It wasn't as impressive as the first whale we noticed, and we weren't sure it wasn't the same whale we had already seen, but it was really cool to see them again, even if the kids were much less impressed this time as they had been promised snacks if we just would made it back to the car.<br />
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After the bridge we ended up at Fort Point, where we saw dolphins swimming around, really it was a great animal viewing day. As we watched the dolphins, we chatted with these two ocean research men who travel the Bay and take count of marine life that they see and track the creatures. We told them we had seen a whale under the bridge and asked if they had seen whales this morning. They did confirm there had been at least two humpback whales, two bottle nosed dolphins and plenty of harbor seals swimming around the area. They said we possibly saw a third whale by the bridge but it was most likely that the one we saw was one of the two they had counted. It was nice to be validated by some experts, and they gave us some tips on where to see marine life in the future. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1aiW5e41Jhkp3pC87zmROzBKcVSb-GMpGppbGdr-JPq7E39Xs28PCLhYHltcHQyA3mJesAJP1Yw0ox9VushUcd_Ti18TLo_pvnwt6e8IWR36NnTS7cz7PKDBNOSyW-38VEtuK/s1600/IMG_0414.JPG" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1aiW5e41Jhkp3pC87zmROzBKcVSb-GMpGppbGdr-JPq7E39Xs28PCLhYHltcHQyA3mJesAJP1Yw0ox9VushUcd_Ti18TLo_pvnwt6e8IWR36NnTS7cz7PKDBNOSyW-38VEtuK/s320/IMG_0414.JPG" width="320" height="180" data-original-width="1600" data-original-height="900" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMTlebC91p3Y12Rm7hJ_c82E8k9k6x2Bn-oznJ-lqzlPIBRrJT_JdUaXcn-yUjoCIb9OMWVrg_5ju1_j3UbUg3-7ib5xzjghUAakRBS_xcaxCatrl_XwC6maZ7trMPRGCS9kN5/s1600/YnJ8iWDzTKmFydYj32Kr7w.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMTlebC91p3Y12Rm7hJ_c82E8k9k6x2Bn-oznJ-lqzlPIBRrJT_JdUaXcn-yUjoCIb9OMWVrg_5ju1_j3UbUg3-7ib5xzjghUAakRBS_xcaxCatrl_XwC6maZ7trMPRGCS9kN5/s320/YnJ8iWDzTKmFydYj32Kr7w.jpg" width="240" height="320" data-original-width="1200" data-original-height="1600" /></a><br />
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I know the odds of ever seeing a whale off the Bridge again, at the exact moment while we are there are slim to none, but I am so glad my sister and her family got to experience that with us. While we stood there watching the whale pop up and down, I noticed all the people getting frustrated that we were stopped and in the way and only about one out of every 20 people stopped to even look over the side to see what we were pointing at. Sometimes I am glad that my kids make me slow down and notice things, and I'm glad that I was raised to be an animal spotter. I was also unimpressed by the people who did ask us what we saw, looked over for about 10 seconds and walked away. This whale popped up about every 3-5 minutes, and I think that would have been considered a good waste of 3-5 minutes. Because we took so long on the bridge watching nature, the whole rest of our day was rushed and insane, but totally worth it. It is often the unexpected that brings the greatest joy. Unless it is unexpected traffic, then it just ruins your whole day. <br />
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Also, I know the pictures are from really far away, all I had was my phone and did the best I could. I'm pretty sure if you click on them, they get bigger, but seeing as how I had to reset my password because it had been so long since I signed into Blogger, I could be wrong. <br />
Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-21838347218984634522018-07-29T23:38:00.000-06:002018-07-30T00:10:34.738-06:00The Power of OneI used to love Sundays. I was raised Mormon, a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and we Mormons go to church for three hours every Sunday. It has never been a chore to me, I have always enjoyed it. My children on the other hand, don't love it, and every Sunday there is an epic battle in my home to get dressed for church. Half of them don't want to go and try to finagle their way out of attending, the other half don't mind going but hate wearing anything but active wear. Needless to say I have to now gear up for Sundays. Today was different, and all because of one child. This child. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFSgxfA6VZQ0RdXVu__Z8V5mUVQmPv1j1wvvsOB-HBiWf87xoVWxNITn4m2NEXZqgB0Q-dgrmHbIF-HBZaQq5aGXHCsQ2yfeJz9J4OkZKv9nCAbdkdl54Zd4KCb_zTEyLEqEgp/s1600/5L8c2NCERWGszcqeYe8ZBQ.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFSgxfA6VZQ0RdXVu__Z8V5mUVQmPv1j1wvvsOB-HBiWf87xoVWxNITn4m2NEXZqgB0Q-dgrmHbIF-HBZaQq5aGXHCsQ2yfeJz9J4OkZKv9nCAbdkdl54Zd4KCb_zTEyLEqEgp/s320/5L8c2NCERWGszcqeYe8ZBQ.jpg" width="240" height="320" data-original-width="1200" data-original-height="1600" /></a></div>Alice got dressed today 25 minutes before our normal getting dressed time, without me asking, without me pleading, without me begging and bargaining, and because she got dressed Esther got dressed, and then Daniel and Charlie was the only one who tried to finagle staying home (which is his normal and always has been) yet he chose to wear a vest with his shirt and pants today, go figure. There was no yelling, no pleading, no throwing of shoes and everyone got their snack, went to the car and we weren't late to church. Small miracles, or as Mormons tend to say "tender mercies" were apparent in every aspect of our Sunday today, and I was very grateful. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5wkkiMpav1Of_SggeWT8ZeXZRZrYJBWKm4ftPpYDLf_6yj4QBfBD7chelgLyWV3BYxoVsDFV9EhxRWTQg_Pbx0xHA9gI0EbbctQqfxpuQeNumICC1S4UsdKYzfOb18Iqkic3g/s1600/N2nMOQ0TRUi9b8TdjZ5dzA.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj5wkkiMpav1Of_SggeWT8ZeXZRZrYJBWKm4ftPpYDLf_6yj4QBfBD7chelgLyWV3BYxoVsDFV9EhxRWTQg_Pbx0xHA9gI0EbbctQqfxpuQeNumICC1S4UsdKYzfOb18Iqkic3g/s320/N2nMOQ0TRUi9b8TdjZ5dzA.jpg" width="240" height="320" data-original-width="1200" data-original-height="1600" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJADvIp3NXvv87UgcLz6z8iy-qfn_i73CF5ZZqCJx_vFVTZ372bmoascNK3eWgWLkOYxGYCY2-oZ7haIy9GMjpHezje4QEJX-O3HqtXTcMcN-EDc2hzBrh1yeygFcfYic74tXT/s1600/nQWORFt2SACiGpW%2525mWTP8A.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJADvIp3NXvv87UgcLz6z8iy-qfn_i73CF5ZZqCJx_vFVTZ372bmoascNK3eWgWLkOYxGYCY2-oZ7haIy9GMjpHezje4QEJX-O3HqtXTcMcN-EDc2hzBrh1yeygFcfYic74tXT/s320/nQWORFt2SACiGpW%2525mWTP8A.jpg" width="240" height="320" data-original-width="1200" data-original-height="1600" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkOzzrk2Hykx2LxdHqLeDFYYMubkGMYNIMrdlAltVlDnElDF5_O26JUcHqPZ69YVkMrG_PhJddwlgXKvlAc1ILcv9HQjjIzpO1NHm0yW4Plu4jwBaWfuUG3FgvnWF3o3wlG_RN/s1600/OkgsD9dpSMWiYDjvR%2525RdSg.jpg" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkOzzrk2Hykx2LxdHqLeDFYYMubkGMYNIMrdlAltVlDnElDF5_O26JUcHqPZ69YVkMrG_PhJddwlgXKvlAc1ILcv9HQjjIzpO1NHm0yW4Plu4jwBaWfuUG3FgvnWF3o3wlG_RN/s320/OkgsD9dpSMWiYDjvR%2525RdSg.jpg" width="240" height="320" data-original-width="1200" data-original-height="1600" /></a><br />
Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-5856471269409437452016-09-25T21:29:00.000-06:002016-09-25T21:29:36.585-06:00A Happy WeddingI'm sure I have blogged about all my sisters getting married, but lately the last one of us were married and here are some of my favorite pictures from the party. Happy Wedding Day Britt! <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHPxeJ5rM1Wshy-RrzYwQWzLRXEZFQSohi8vrVfwk0rU21qw26SSaoBkPgWHagCELUCUYlIn8nwVFuJXAVBQn6HFMgGJAWaJjvfChBgmmx9eK5j-4iSAWqHRCwzFYj1HPtZfX3/s1600/DSC_0371.JPG" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHPxeJ5rM1Wshy-RrzYwQWzLRXEZFQSohi8vrVfwk0rU21qw26SSaoBkPgWHagCELUCUYlIn8nwVFuJXAVBQn6HFMgGJAWaJjvfChBgmmx9eK5j-4iSAWqHRCwzFYj1HPtZfX3/s320/DSC_0371.JPG" width="212" height="320" /></a><br />
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All the kids loved the swings at Grandma's house. They also loved running in circles and eating all the things that looked like chocolate. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK7Fw45-IMYlWv4d4_uqiFadZ1B-FQyX3gAvlobTIzRG8gDOhPJRQLg9GftEzDuYmy18Tk-AIT964_whkqBpg3tsJjbwcxvVrACBT5LtLgc1uh9RTOy-VtPhIn_pAt469uAUsG/s1600/DSC_0368.JPG" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhK7Fw45-IMYlWv4d4_uqiFadZ1B-FQyX3gAvlobTIzRG8gDOhPJRQLg9GftEzDuYmy18Tk-AIT964_whkqBpg3tsJjbwcxvVrACBT5LtLgc1uh9RTOy-VtPhIn_pAt469uAUsG/s320/DSC_0368.JPG" width="212" height="320" /></a><br />
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At the end of a very long day, we remembered to snap a picture of Jason and I. <br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig1JLSW0NGjWahFUSqVafwYDsDNa-seqT6dH0tz31I1bosH3sJmAbNEj7E1LYlsT2mcQS5H9Pt4aKn5xzhYE3BKvj_6KVAz-GlgwwH4c50Y53kAwUU_rFUi0YcoT1d_l35FBjk/s1600/DSC_0448.JPG" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEig1JLSW0NGjWahFUSqVafwYDsDNa-seqT6dH0tz31I1bosH3sJmAbNEj7E1LYlsT2mcQS5H9Pt4aKn5xzhYE3BKvj_6KVAz-GlgwwH4c50Y53kAwUU_rFUi0YcoT1d_l35FBjk/s320/DSC_0448.JPG" width="320" height="212" /></a>Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-41463478976395878902014-03-08T12:56:00.000-07:002014-03-11T13:15:59.463-06:00Diaries, Journals and Records, oh my!One of the things we all hope to find as genealogists is personal histories. Wouldn't it be fantastic if everyone could have written even a paragraph about themselves and it aaas preserved and findable? Unfortunately this is not the case. This is actually the reason I began looking into my ancestors about a year ago. I was determined after getting a BA in research aka history, that I could find more information than what we currently had available. I was right in my impulse. <br />
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Our greatest source has been the Daughters of the Utah Pioneers. They have been collecting histories on the pioneers for a very long time, and luckily I have a lot of pioneer ancestors. My first stop at their archives revealed a lot of treasures but one of my favorites has been the personal history written by Mariah Taysom.<br />
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Mariah Jaynes lived on the border of Wales and England in the Monmouth area. She met a Mormon missionary by the name of Charles Taysom and became converted to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. She also became enamored by this Charles and they were soon married. Her family disowned her and she never heard from them again. Charles and Mariah immigrated to Navuoo, Illinois and later came across the wilderness to Utah. They lived in Salt Lake until they were called to settle in the Fillmore area. They built a cabin that is still standing in Meadow, UT, they had to deal with the Indians and grasshoppers and all the troubles of making an area habitable. Eventually they moved to Rockland, ID with a few of their children and remained there until Charles passed away. Mariah went to Montana to live with her daughter until she too passed away. <br />
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Her history is beautiful to read. I loved that it was a personal history. When she talks about her family not speaking to her she mentions how grateful she is that her husband named the children after her family members. At the end, she leaves this poem. <br />
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"If you could see your ancestors all standing in a row,<br />
Would you be proud of them or not, Or don't you really know,<br />
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Some strange discoveries are made in climbing family trees,<br />
And some of them you know, Do not particularly please.<br />
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IF you could see your ancestors All standing in a row,<br />
There might be some of them perhaps, You wouldn't care to know,<br />
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But here's a question, which presents a different view,<br />
If you could meet your ancestors, would they be proud of you?"<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSjcXyLGSUy8D8FaSQiNZ2ZePgCil8hHOsGlOcAG8X_WHbU-nUU4eWz7yTUYDkiJ-A-mcQLSPKOk4RDXfUHrGRkYi9VgvP2pT87SPpKKUNrw_Zjr8ZSwvd2EvWIQjTKzbvvcbg/s1600/IMG_5300.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgSjcXyLGSUy8D8FaSQiNZ2ZePgCil8hHOsGlOcAG8X_WHbU-nUU4eWz7yTUYDkiJ-A-mcQLSPKOk4RDXfUHrGRkYi9VgvP2pT87SPpKKUNrw_Zjr8ZSwvd2EvWIQjTKzbvvcbg/s200/IMG_5300.JPG" /></a></div>Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-33883832361836217032014-03-07T12:15:00.000-07:002014-03-11T12:55:09.508-06:00CookingToday's blog prompt for the Fearless Females was asking about a favorite recipe, or a recipe handed down through generations. I don't know if there are recipes that have made it through the years (mostly I come from a long line of recipe embellishers and non written recipes), but I would like to talk a little bit about the kitchen.<br />
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My grandmother is remembered as always making something for somebody and always wearing her apron. Everyone I have talked to has said that Vonnie was the best cook. My mom says she never remembers Grandma cooking anything fancy but that everything tasted fantastic. Except for the liver and onions that she was fond of. One of the things that she made that she was definitely remembered for was her candy making. Grandma would make divinity for the holidays and piano recitals and a few other occasions. Apparently her divinity was famous because the few who have mentioned it to me get that look on their face like they are remembering the best thing they have ever eaten. <br />
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A large lamentation from Grandma passing away was that she could cook about anything and never wrote anything down. This leads me to one of my favorite memories of my own mother. My grandma could make fantastic pies. Her pie crust was legendary. One year for Thanksgiving my cousin Kathy (who was just a few years younger than my mom)came out to our house and they became determined to recreate Grandma's pie crust. My childhood rendition of this memory is that there were literally pies everywhere. Every counter, table, open space that could hold a pie had a pie. I am not actually sure how many pies there were, enough that it was somewhat ridiculous, I am also not sure if they felt successful in their ability to recreate the ultimate pie crust but I know that they had a grand ole time trying. <br />
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My mother can also make anything she decides is worth her effort. I remember her lacking ingredients, substituting what seemed like ridiculous things and still making the best food ever. I loved eating her lasagna, chicken and dumplings, the pies (seriously the huckleberry pie from last Thanksgiving was the best pie I have ever had) rolls, and just about anything else you could ever eat. My husband gets slightly frustrated when I try to recreate some of her "recipes" (like grandma's they are embellished and just done from sight and smell) and I usually fall short in some way. In fact after the 5th time trying I finally made the minestrone soup the right way, it finally tasted like mom's. I learned a lot cooking in the kitchen with mom growing up. I learned mostly about spices and what things should taste and look like when they are done. I am very appreciative of my mom putting up with all of my questions constantly about cooking.<br />
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One final note on the kitchen. My mom and Grandma were (are) fantastic canners. In this respect though, my mother has taught me how to find the best fruit possible. It is not unheard of for my parents to drive for hours to get the best berries and peaches. My aunt Alice did this as well, she would come to a place outside of Boise every year to get Oregon berries. Unfortunately this is a quirk I have picked up as well. I love this memory my mother recently shared with me. My grandma was dying from cancer and asked my mom to get her some peaches. I know that cancer messes up how you taste things but mom remembers her saying that she opened the wrong peaches, those were the ones her sister had canned and she needed her own because they were the "right" peaches. <br />
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We start them young, here is a picture of my daughter and niece helping to pick apples at Grandma's house. Every year we come up and pick apples and my kids love it!<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOXi4e0eB8vEXbTr3thackGQcT0wbb3lQSCRHaLQE4fvuovpUlDUOvz_cCUTstBTgf6OJH_OlDw4dUXnk6fMhbLCKWj_D7sOQ9ms-kbzSiMrZk79PGomf8dL3B9pklrGVc8aiX/s1600/IMG_0341.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOXi4e0eB8vEXbTr3thackGQcT0wbb3lQSCRHaLQE4fvuovpUlDUOvz_cCUTstBTgf6OJH_OlDw4dUXnk6fMhbLCKWj_D7sOQ9ms-kbzSiMrZk79PGomf8dL3B9pklrGVc8aiX/s320/IMG_0341.JPG" /></a></div>Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-68152025440064410092014-03-05T14:33:00.000-07:002014-03-05T14:34:10.846-07:00MarriagesI am combining the prompts from the 4th and 5th. They ask if you have marriage certificates and then stories about how the people met and later became married. <br />
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I have found a few citations of marriage records but have seen very few, while I am grateful for the indexers who put the information out there I can't wait until they get around to attaching images. Although I guess I can always pay for the actual documents but who wants to do that?<br />
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Regardless, this is one of my favorite stories. My grandma, LaVon Taysom, was the oldest of a lot of kids. When she was a teenager her parents sent her and two of her sisters to live with their grandparents (Hammers) in Pleasant View, UT. While there, they would attend the local dances and she eventually met Marshall Maycock. Now being proper, as they dated, her sisters went with them as chaperones. Eventually LaVon and Marshall decided to get married. She was only 17 so on their marriage certificate her birthday says 10 Jul 1908!! Her real birthday is August 10, 1908. They were married July 12, 1927. I love that they couldn't wait even one more month to be married. That's all I know or can recollect about their getting together. I am sure there is more to it than that but I will leave that to others to fill in.<br />
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Family legend has it that Amos Maycock and Mary Humphries met while he was part of the rescuers of the Willie Handcart Company in which she was traveling. Eventually the two were married. Now whether they knew each other from the tragic events of the Willie Handcart Company or just from both their families settling in Pleasant View, I don't think anyone knows for sure. It would make a great story though if the handcart story was true.<br />
Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-41585502134028246692014-03-04T14:28:00.000-07:002014-03-04T14:28:07.940-07:00AliceYesterday's blog prompt on women's family history is to tell if you are named for some ancestor in your family. You can tell how awesome I am at keeping up with these. I am not named for an ancestor, but my daughter is.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKcBl7sO_SsUTITVv1p13w1IpgbjktyHwe8apo3gtloaYZeaQ0ATquo6tqNA5Rx87nWc2wOfUsrFdj4Jii8_89ERT_IMiBeX86ruYFNgbxsIJgeXplGc445_U1wqRr785L8Bmk/s1600/2014-03-03+08.27.52.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKcBl7sO_SsUTITVv1p13w1IpgbjktyHwe8apo3gtloaYZeaQ0ATquo6tqNA5Rx87nWc2wOfUsrFdj4Jii8_89ERT_IMiBeX86ruYFNgbxsIJgeXplGc445_U1wqRr785L8Bmk/s200/2014-03-03+08.27.52.jpg" /></a></div><br />
Ask my son and he will tell you the story of his name, how there are many many Daniel's and Daniels on our family tree. He had me print out a family tree so he could circle them all. While he was doing that he ran to his sister and showed her all the Alice's that he could find. In my 8 generations there are about 5. Obviously that's give or take since I am not going to count sisters, daughters that I am unaware of, etc. But Alice is definitely a family name.<br />
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Alice was destined to be Ruby. I met Ruby and David Haight at a missionary homecoming in Burley, ID many years ago. Since I met them I have loved the name Ruby. While Alice was being bathed and monitored my husband decided that Ruby should not be her name, we decided on Alice. Daniel (our oldest) had been calling her Alice for awhile so we just tell him that he named the baby. <br />
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I have 2 Alice's that have meant a lot in my life. One is my aunt, my mother's sister. She was our family genealogist and passed away the first year my husband and I were married. She was always super nice to me and I loved going to her house out in the middle of no where Idaho. She would tell me stories about my mom as a kid, and about my grandma and grandpa. I loved hearing her rattle on about all the family research she was doing and wish I would have paid more attention to what she told me. When she passed away it was the first time I really felt the sadness of missing out on all the information that died with her. I am glad I got to spend many a snowy nights with my Aunt Alice. Sometimes when I am researching a family name I can remember her telling me about that person or place. To me I remember her as being gentle and calm, I hope my daughter grows up to be like that. <br />
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The other Alice I have not met in this life. She was my great grandmother. Her name was Alice Mercy Marshall Maycock, or Mercy Alice, or even Mary, depending on what record you find. She was an amazing woman from what we gather. She lived a life of service even though she was never in fantastic health herself. She came to the Maycock farm to help my great great grandmother and it was there that she met and married John Maycock. John left on a mission shortly after they were married, in his journal he records at least weekly that he received a letter from his Wife. They ran a dairy farm and were very active in their community. She had two little boys and passed away when both of them were very young. She fell during the winter and never fully recovered, and then passed away in the summer of 1910. My grandpa had very few memories of his mother. We were lucky enough this last year to retrieve a copy of her history that a loving cousin had written after her death. I am forever grateful for that, almost everything we know about Alice comes from that history.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://familysearch.org/patron/v2/TH-303-39748-111-10/dist.jpg?ctx=ArtCtxPublic&session=USYS7E6EE0FDEFCB109FC5140B7C49FC86CA_idses-prod04.a.fsglobal.net" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://familysearch.org/patron/v2/TH-303-39748-111-10/dist.jpg?ctx=ArtCtxPublic&session=USYS7E6EE0FDEFCB109FC5140B7C49FC86CA_idses-prod04.a.fsglobal.net" /></a></div> Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-5268939113247925372014-03-02T22:25:00.001-07:002014-03-04T11:26:12.524-07:00Women's History MonthMarch is such a great time. One of the things I have found in my many "Pinteresting" moments was a blog that had a bunch of writing prompts on female ancestors during the Month of March which is Women's History Month. Woohoo!<br />
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So I am already behind, always, but I will answer a few of the prompts since I find them interesting.<br />
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For March 1st, the prompt was do you have a favorite female ancestor? I have always had a hard time narrowing down my favorite of anything. I can't ever decide on a favorite song, or hymn or artist or author. I love so many things! It is obviously impossible for me to pick my favorite female ancestor but I will restrain myself and choose just a few to reminisce about.<br />
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First of all one of my favorites is Mary Humphries/Humphris/Humphreys. I have already blogged about her but she has always been an inspiration to me after knowing that her family traveled in the Willie Handcart Company. Mary came from England, settled in Pleasant View, UT, and then raised a family while surviving the polygamy era. <br />
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Another ancestor of mine who is very intriguing is Dorothy Maycock. She is a huge mystery to the family. We know who her parents are. We know that she had some children out of wedlock. We are fairly certain of who the father was but cannot be too certain. She is one who I wish we had more information on.<br />
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I have recently learned a lot about Mariah Jaynes Taysom, another ancestor who came from Wales. She married the missionary who brought her the gospel. She was then disowned from her family after she joined the LDS church. They traveled to Nauvoo, then to St. Louis, and then finally to Salt Lake. From Salt Lake her family was asked to settle the Fillmore area. They endured hardships with the Native Americans in the area and eventually moved to Rockland, ID. It was there that her husband Charles passed away and then Mariah went to live with one of her daughters in Montana, until her own death. <br />
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A newly found heroine has definitely been Mary Davies from Wales. She and Mr. Daniel Daniels first heard the gospel after the death of their two very young daughters. She embraced the gospel immediately and was soon afterwords baptized. Daniel followed her actions eventually and then became a leader among the Welsh immigrants. They came to Salt Lake with Captain Dan Jones in the first group of Welsh saints that immigrated. Eventually they settled in Malad, ID where Daniel was the first Branch President over the Malad Ward. <br />
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This is just a smattering of some of the women whom I have desperately tried to find information on over this last year. I am so excited that with the "inter web" and many other sources have helped me in my search for these women, and of course with the search of many others. More to come tomorrow.Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-47534475174799356792013-12-06T15:41:00.001-07:002013-12-06T15:41:09.462-07:00It's the most wonderful time of the year....Christmas time again! I can't believe it. I have truly become horrible at blogging. I admit total defeat. I am glad that blogger still lets me have a blog despite all my inconstancies here. Anyway, this holiday season started like all the others and still has caught me by surprise. Let me explain my newly found hesitancy with Christmas time.<br />
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Many of you (although I doubt anyone reads this anymore), are aware that Jason has had a lot of health problems the last few years. For the last 2 Christmas and Holiday seasons I have basically been a single parent. Jason has been a great sport and participated in like 3 activities each year, but they have been severely limited with his constantly being on a riding scooter. Plus we always tend to be sick on Christmas. 2 years ago when I was pregnant with Charlie we didn't start our celebration until almost noon because my kids were so sick. They opened their stockings laying in my bed and it was the saddest thing I have ever seen. When this Christmas time came around I looked at all that needed to be done to make it magical for the kids and instantly became tired. Needless to say I still have pumpkins on my porch and no Christmas tree, lets be totally honest here I don't even have a clean place to put it. Instead of Jason having surgery in time for the holidays I have been pretty sick and have just barely started to recover. Plus having Thanksgiving so late really put a rush on the Christmas decorating. I keep telling my kids we will get a tree, maybe this weekend, who knows, there's always Christmas Eve right?<br />
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I hate Christmas shopping. I am horrible at organizing anything. My time and my life always seem to be getting away from me. Buying presents is no different. I always want to start my Christmas crafts and shopping in August. I never do. This is the worst I have been, I only have shopping done for one child and it's the 1st week of December! I haven't even bought a single thing for Daniel yet. I don't even know what to get him. Oh well, 3 weeks left. Every year I vow to be better prepared, I am doing it right now as I sit here reminiscing, and somehow I know that next year probably will be about the same.<br />
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My kids love Christmas, like all kids should. Really, I do too. I love all the Christmas baking and the going to different places to see lights and Santa. I love the magic and love that abounds all over at Christmas time (except the vacancy of it at places like Walmart and whatnot). Anyway, I shouldn't be so cynical. To try to ease my burden with the holidays I asked the kids what are our "traditions" to see what they expected me to plan and do. Even with young kids they had quite the list! I was surprised when they both claimed they loved going to the Alpine Living Nativity, and the boat "ride" down the Provo River. They wanted to go to Temple Square and Thanksgiving Point to see the lights. I actually didn't expect them to remember anything and was hoping we could just stay home and make cookies and pumpkin bread. Jason suggested buying a fake tree and the kids (and I) quickly protested. Kids are definitely set in their ways at a young age.<br />
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I love to cook and bake and the last few years have actually done very little of it. Especially around the holidays. I haven't made fudge in 2 years! We have tried a variety of things to help Jason and all of us be healthier and that has been anywhere from no grains, no fat, low calories, high calories but no carbs, no gluten but lots of fat, and everywhere in between. The biggest problem that has been created from this has been that my kids are addicted to bacon. Bacon has been approved on everything we have tried, except of course the Standard American Diet (SAD) which is where you limit your calories to starving quantities and eat no fat but plenty of carbs. Anyway, that is a rant for another time as there is actually no science to back that up. Back to bacon, so bacon has been plentiful around here the last few years. My kids eat bacon as I imagine construction workers would, by the pound. When we don't limit them Daniel Alice and now even Charlie will eat all there is to be had. So one Christmas we told Daniel we would make so much bacon on Christmas morning that he could eat as much as he wanted. No limit! He was so excited. The funniest thing that year was we had my family all over for that breakfast and Daniel ate 1 piece and then went to play with his cousins. This year however we kept hearing about our traditional "bacon contest." It took me awhile to figure out what he was talking about but I guess in his mind this non limited bacon breakfast has been adapted into a contest. I can't wait to see how much he eats this year. Apparently he has even told his 1st grade class all about our bacon eating.<br />
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Christmas can be really fun. I am glad that my kids know that it is about Jesus Christ, His birthday, He is the reason we give gifts, and how we really try to look for ways to serve other people. I wasn't sure how well I had been teaching them these truths the last few years but I guess something has stuck around. Alice has been teaching Charlie about the nativity characters, Daniel has reminded us of the scriptures and what they teach. I am grateful for the last few years because we really spent a lot of time together as a family doing simple things. I hope that we can as they say "avoid the rush" and enjoy the spirit of the season. <br />
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Anyway I really hope that everyone has a great holiday season. I hope Charlie doesn't destroy my tree and break all my lights, but I am not holding my breath on either of those. Regardless I know he will eat lots of cookies and be a blast to watch decorate them. Here are some pictures from the last 2 Christmases. Merry Christmas!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidIvlnBr3hiJAcGHGDrQSVj4qD7XqQC09XI2nNrRySRleS7DmOcKCEtWLtTRT-mAuhJYgoxaOQhmehKIjJqOpbrW2l44IkFnrltSWalTaugqKRYSwFTgaBE4D_sp5dYbV-EZVY/s1600/DSC_0061.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidIvlnBr3hiJAcGHGDrQSVj4qD7XqQC09XI2nNrRySRleS7DmOcKCEtWLtTRT-mAuhJYgoxaOQhmehKIjJqOpbrW2l44IkFnrltSWalTaugqKRYSwFTgaBE4D_sp5dYbV-EZVY/s320/DSC_0061.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSPc3YhqP1YpMQ84YGHjhBflOWyec4OK_Xd6MWtgLgi4-9G5uLONlIa3p6NGhjN3cGkcZnIcTnSmdHBe9WWb792qaohMqZnIvF-EN2_jgoaXyfL7nsw0bwj2mlrJchNpPD1zu1/s1600/IMG_0058.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSPc3YhqP1YpMQ84YGHjhBflOWyec4OK_Xd6MWtgLgi4-9G5uLONlIa3p6NGhjN3cGkcZnIcTnSmdHBe9WWb792qaohMqZnIvF-EN2_jgoaXyfL7nsw0bwj2mlrJchNpPD1zu1/s320/IMG_0058.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSurpKGzcJ5rbLaLtEkS51bs7mBs105HLErSjfwNG0gMyK8NLdz5uqMMIU0nfFQNdzrfG0_zOENry550qh-64T4-gEHRusdif0yUDVivikDAAD70jIL5wtBl3hkmWEtk806E_v/s1600/IMG_0081.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSurpKGzcJ5rbLaLtEkS51bs7mBs105HLErSjfwNG0gMyK8NLdz5uqMMIU0nfFQNdzrfG0_zOENry550qh-64T4-gEHRusdif0yUDVivikDAAD70jIL5wtBl3hkmWEtk806E_v/s320/IMG_0081.JPG" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbGBJEQn0rGCEKCnzABV76SyJTVU3TBfD3LE2pNSFygEot4I-Wj4Bmq2hE-zTCha9tVs_zz7AQ8lB2cEHRAX8pezL0PYIp2D8Ai2Szv_kQtXwCV_EdrjxgnGgOOBBxLXU5V8Xg/s1600/IMG_1559.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbGBJEQn0rGCEKCnzABV76SyJTVU3TBfD3LE2pNSFygEot4I-Wj4Bmq2hE-zTCha9tVs_zz7AQ8lB2cEHRAX8pezL0PYIp2D8Ai2Szv_kQtXwCV_EdrjxgnGgOOBBxLXU5V8Xg/s320/IMG_1559.JPG" /></a></div>Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-57257254403159677322013-07-24T14:15:00.000-06:002014-03-04T11:27:09.108-07:00Family HistoryIt being Pioneer Day I figured I might as well share with my viewers (all 2 of you) the real reason I don't blog much anymore. It is family history. I spend so much of my very limited computer time researching dead and forgotten ancestors that I have let it take up almost all of my spare time. A lot of my spare time has also been traveling around Utah to meet with cousins, very distant cousins, grandparents, cemeteries and libraries and old pioneer places trying to track down as much info as I can. My children are tired of our family history trips but they still manage to drudge along with me. I figure they will look back and laugh about it one day. <br />
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Pioneer Day makes me think of all my wonderful pioneer ancestors. My favorite pioneers are my Great great grandfather Amos Maycock and his wife Mary Huphris (Humphreys, Humphries, Humphrys, or any other way you can think to spell it). So here is a shortened story of their journeys.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6UjiNUd-TA8Zm5H5MIx6JmLx-0DZvzm0u9KH8v3Z2qI29jFIAtddwtfEyhLPdJ3P1ot8Dp0hyphenhyphenIWOgXZfPlY_X2XNRUdpIxy25hjuFSi11gczAP0t02xKzxwuzz5pVST_o89ND/s1600/dist-1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6UjiNUd-TA8Zm5H5MIx6JmLx-0DZvzm0u9KH8v3Z2qI29jFIAtddwtfEyhLPdJ3P1ot8Dp0hyphenhyphenIWOgXZfPlY_X2XNRUdpIxy25hjuFSi11gczAP0t02xKzxwuzz5pVST_o89ND/s320/dist-1.jpg" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKgfRPUx3hsL1Q_5Jam17E6qOs65EzDYg6Ue5L4sy-y9mWnXxp0yMAhIzs7RKIkku_9L9vczTsl_FbrzSeah-O1GrBxKEfedUlhq2AEYwnfMdPXKEt2mXYVD6uEQgt559xULZ-/s1600/dist.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKgfRPUx3hsL1Q_5Jam17E6qOs65EzDYg6Ue5L4sy-y9mWnXxp0yMAhIzs7RKIkku_9L9vczTsl_FbrzSeah-O1GrBxKEfedUlhq2AEYwnfMdPXKEt2mXYVD6uEQgt559xULZ-/s320/dist.jpg" /></a></div>Amos started his journey in England. He was the son of James and Esther Maycock and born in the New Bold Pacey Parish area of England. Which is Ashton, right next to Stratford of Avon. I like to think way back on the line someone knew Shakespeare but no proof has surfaced as of this date. Esther passed away in England and James took their children to America. 2 daughters died on the ship. 2 sons decided to stay in St. Louis. But James and Amos, and John (Amos's brother) continued on their journey to Salt Lake City. Amos was 16-17 when they crossed the plains in 1850. James remarried in Winter Quarters, and the new wife came along with them. I know they had a wagon with oxen pulling it and a cow traveled with them so I assume they were not destitute. They settled in Springville and then during the great fleeing panic when everyone moved from northern utah to the south to escape the army, they traded their land for land in Pleasant View and moved up there. <br />
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Mary Humphries' father George had been disowned when he joined the church so he and his wife Harriet and their 8 children boarded a ship to America. George was promised in a blessing before he left England that if they chose to go to Zion that their family would all make it alive. With this faith they decided to come. Mary was 14 when her family joined the Willie Handcart Company. Mary at times would have to pull the handcart as they all became weak from their ill fated journey. Her brothers would shoot game (mostly fowl) to add to their meager diet of 1 tablespoon of flour a day. Even with their 8 kids, Harriet often shared their food with a widow woman and her two sickly boys who were also in the company. Despite all their hardships, the family walked out of that disaster with only a few frost bitten toes. Mary had to have a few of her toes removed. She never shared much about their journey. The Humphries settled in Pleasant View after coming to Utah.<br />
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When Brigham Young sent round the call to have volunteers go rescue the saints on the plains, Amos Maycock was one of the first volunteers and traveled with the first round of rescuers. It is family legend that Amos and Mary met on the plains, but it is more likely that their families met by becoming neighbors in Pleasant View. Amos and Mary married in 1861 and had 4 children. <br />
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Amos became one of the first Bishops in the North Ogden area. He helped dig the aqueduct that still carries water from the mountains into Ogden. He served a mission to the Eastern states in 1876. He was also a volunteer in the Black Hawk War. He helped people plant orchards and develop the land, his family had the first apple orchard in the Ogden area. The Maycocks also raised horses and began a dairy farm which provided milk and butter to some of the local schools. He built a large home with 2 "apartments" in it to accommodate his family. Amos also had the burden of living a polygamist life. He was later imprisoned for this action. He passed away in 1889, 2 years after his release and everyone says he was never the same as healthy after he spent time in prison. Mary passed away in her home "suddenly after a big breakfast" as her obituary says in 1907. <br />
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Their house still stands in Pleasant View today as does their legacy. Amos and Mary have truly become some of my ancestral heroes over the years. I am very grateful to be their descendant. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirpAs9bUikdT1GpW1IouSGXF4miU-6YdDAX-ZmmP_HCqvuQO7vFKAIyDsmw2IjzZ7v4TNYu5YG-nvxalo9GpZLoJ7vzqoNVO90znrWmgBbetPuXEakhIlZk6sGtRpJiRGrgnqr/s1600/Maycock+house+1873.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirpAs9bUikdT1GpW1IouSGXF4miU-6YdDAX-ZmmP_HCqvuQO7vFKAIyDsmw2IjzZ7v4TNYu5YG-nvxalo9GpZLoJ7vzqoNVO90znrWmgBbetPuXEakhIlZk6sGtRpJiRGrgnqr/s320/Maycock+house+1873.jpg" /></a></div>Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-29597810730561349182013-06-15T22:50:00.001-06:002014-03-04T11:26:32.356-07:00YellowstoneMy family goes to Yellowstone every other year. I love going. I love almost everything about Yellowstone, the animals, the geological features, staying in the cabins, and of course watching my kids have a good time. Here are a few of the highlights of our trip.<br />
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As many of you know, Jason has been having a hard time walking for about 3 years. While super annoying to him, it also has been hard on the kids. Most notably Alice. We pulled up to our first hike, the Norris Paint Pots and Alice proceeded to cry for about 20 minutes because she was too tired to walk. About the time she started being ok about walking (and after about 20 people on the trail tried to help us with her), Charlie ripped off his shoes and threw them into the hot springs. I was able to grab one but the other shoe was no where to be seen. I was mortified, not that I had a horrible child, but because I was so afraid Charlie's shoe was going to ruin the hot springs. Kids.<br />
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Here is us at Lower Falls or maybe Upper Falls in the Canyon area of Yellowstone. My family usually stays in the cabins in this area as well. It is great because it is so central to our favorite things to visit.<br />
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Our trip was so fun, we saw the wolves, a fox, bison, elk, deer, pronghorn, black bears, baby black bears, birds and a ton of beautiful wildflowers. I would try to find more pictures but there are still so many to go through. Alice threw many more fits but she still managed to hike a few miles on her own. Charlie did not throw anything else into anywhere inappropriate. Daniel was awesome until our last two days and then was so tired he just cried. All in all, success of a trip. <div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikMllS8Yj5WiRjkyf9368Wjkd1OQsq9-cqMGmitnPkUaiUPCjNkVpfS_WYO0S-BpyvShQc2B16teH-YS6ohOimLmBL1tmZ4T7RdPZJ_aCAM3OaHYBgq1Q9O4cv3Js8c8lVTt6P/s1600/DSC_0185.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikMllS8Yj5WiRjkyf9368Wjkd1OQsq9-cqMGmitnPkUaiUPCjNkVpfS_WYO0S-BpyvShQc2B16teH-YS6ohOimLmBL1tmZ4T7RdPZJ_aCAM3OaHYBgq1Q9O4cv3Js8c8lVTt6P/s320/DSC_0185.JPG" /></a></div><br />
Also we went on the Stagecoach ride which was pretty fun. It was a little shorter than I thought it would be but it is on the original road that the stagecoaches have always used. The kids thought it was fun and that was the best part. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0CX0gewgDOBzpE0sS4-xHxWzd0YbyxMLbjDYPHKpZUpDtv0_KRF4B1f8QSjJe7IA20Wn8YWQZXQdeTzO8bIgoI1a848TwXKLgGIfQOv9DAGPhyphenhyphen79d1dKm4-PyS_S7_Eo1Uo6P/s1600/IMG_1974.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0CX0gewgDOBzpE0sS4-xHxWzd0YbyxMLbjDYPHKpZUpDtv0_KRF4B1f8QSjJe7IA20Wn8YWQZXQdeTzO8bIgoI1a848TwXKLgGIfQOv9DAGPhyphenhyphen79d1dKm4-PyS_S7_Eo1Uo6P/s320/IMG_1974.JPG" /></a></div>Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-35448428250601177822013-04-08T15:06:00.002-06:002013-04-08T15:06:40.166-06:00Spring BreakI apologize ahead of time, some of the pictures are sideways, yes, I know. I am sure that I could reopen them in some other program to fix them all but then I probably wouldn't have time to actually post. So I figure you can all deal with it.<br />
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I decided that for once I was not going to just sit around and wish my house was clean and wish that the kids made it easy for me to go somewhere with them. So instead we rested on Monday and then on Tuesday we set out to go to the Discovery Gateway. We were getting dressed and I was putting the last of the laundry away when we heard screaming. Yep Charlie needed stitches. So off to the Doctor we went and he ended up with 2 stitches in his head. Go Charlie! He is definitely "that kid."<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw5JeTbd7nCrqHryndeJ1lAHe9LpX3ffAMwg49ZYe02cgi_JUe78E3qMBEc3D9qIU_63vPC2bDeHM0bjDPVKIH49ZY86HcF7H282IjMDa4P2zLcrqqzlkWxMmAPmliJu_mf3yH/s1600/IMG_0953.JPG" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgw5JeTbd7nCrqHryndeJ1lAHe9LpX3ffAMwg49ZYe02cgi_JUe78E3qMBEc3D9qIU_63vPC2bDeHM0bjDPVKIH49ZY86HcF7H282IjMDa4P2zLcrqqzlkWxMmAPmliJu_mf3yH/s320/IMG_0953.JPG" /></a><br />
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Needless to say that put us a day behind in the plans. On Wednesday we went to the Thanksgiving Point Farm. Charlie thought all the animals were there for him. I was so worried he would fall and smash his head but he didn't. He loved the goats who came and licked his hands. Alice and Daniel really wanted to go on the pony rides so we waited FOREVER but eventually all 3 kids got to ride the sad looking ponies. We stayed there for almost 2 hours which is longer than I have ever stayed before. It was a nice day outside and I am glad we enjoyed the sun.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCt6-jQNL_tXdEDW3XNRzbAdwNGsgUWWRhK6u0scRhb3YZxAiNoDJKX2sAEFJHsK_U6sxR1WNkPwsTclCLNaXCJSKpQClMjJBTuUUMpfDJ3hgu7JIkGt21fneJuJfqUGs_PyNs/s1600/IMG_0957.JPG" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCt6-jQNL_tXdEDW3XNRzbAdwNGsgUWWRhK6u0scRhb3YZxAiNoDJKX2sAEFJHsK_U6sxR1WNkPwsTclCLNaXCJSKpQClMjJBTuUUMpfDJ3hgu7JIkGt21fneJuJfqUGs_PyNs/s320/IMG_0957.JPG" /></a><br />
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Thursday we finally made it to the Discovery Gateway. This has got to be one of my favorite places to take my kids. I was worried it was going to be so crowded but it was not. The kids had a great time, we never got lost from each other, and other than Alice's meltdown when I said it was finally time to go home it was pretty awesome.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6YrVu7yiO9XA96FO-P9BagTX3neu7fYbSIfl-7c0qAQFYFSag7pBjIBY_dhric239GbdZ9kz_6ETSGJL_DkJzEyBJDTp4ybrhiidLe3If6CfJwBDdKuCMn_wDT3mJSHSnwISr/s1600/IMG_1768.JPG" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6YrVu7yiO9XA96FO-P9BagTX3neu7fYbSIfl-7c0qAQFYFSag7pBjIBY_dhric239GbdZ9kz_6ETSGJL_DkJzEyBJDTp4ybrhiidLe3If6CfJwBDdKuCMn_wDT3mJSHSnwISr/s320/IMG_1768.JPG" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhMIKEcHxXtddy3wbV-m2BMoEg3f89PKGlKXGzw7idJaUISItqSvFjM8_JcT32kcI4PqNPQ2QUNi4ypz9LSVStPlN_zObJ5YvOtVYzKbIDc3FMbZ5Bb0o32W_RWqxZMRIA68sn/s1600/IMG_1776.JPG" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhMIKEcHxXtddy3wbV-m2BMoEg3f89PKGlKXGzw7idJaUISItqSvFjM8_JcT32kcI4PqNPQ2QUNi4ypz9LSVStPlN_zObJ5YvOtVYzKbIDc3FMbZ5Bb0o32W_RWqxZMRIA68sn/s320/IMG_1776.JPG" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ5jS9F1QB5Dfco8RUtkxAYlqBJWYGufeCr8W8QAgVo7-Ca65j1F4tbU-VCvxZJGjhPr30oXaBaupr79kx0qs56BDr6KaMzp07_Mzd9TKw1T1VFlyFTtLhOHvb5qqHqIqRuy3E/s1600/IMG_1773.JPG" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ5jS9F1QB5Dfco8RUtkxAYlqBJWYGufeCr8W8QAgVo7-Ca65j1F4tbU-VCvxZJGjhPr30oXaBaupr79kx0qs56BDr6KaMzp07_Mzd9TKw1T1VFlyFTtLhOHvb5qqHqIqRuy3E/s320/IMG_1773.JPG" /></a><br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDMqt-_ABXgTc9PUVx8dSJef5cS6VinOSLDzRWZdryMyQIWcslnFfI1kH6t_uMqBQ-9id3fr78Uyu3sQvC80AdnY-oshwOXtMOaI9Z0lMLKcaamVztaFmIfRYxoPp6eRmynie7/s1600/IMG_0964.JPG" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDMqt-_ABXgTc9PUVx8dSJef5cS6VinOSLDzRWZdryMyQIWcslnFfI1kH6t_uMqBQ-9id3fr78Uyu3sQvC80AdnY-oshwOXtMOaI9Z0lMLKcaamVztaFmIfRYxoPp6eRmynie7/s320/IMG_0964.JPG" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikj2Oi547TtR30kGost9meBDOfaWQ6JYTQF0TtSnsW6s1suRjD-ujCCs_YT9HY0lhaGShXRsAEAAyKle5-eCiQPEEOhAIEdytrwK6wVNmZXvysn6lPTkyu-Qum4FfBgcSAXJk7/s1600/IMG_0979.JPG" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikj2Oi547TtR30kGost9meBDOfaWQ6JYTQF0TtSnsW6s1suRjD-ujCCs_YT9HY0lhaGShXRsAEAAyKle5-eCiQPEEOhAIEdytrwK6wVNmZXvysn6lPTkyu-Qum4FfBgcSAXJk7/s320/IMG_0979.JPG" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXlVNAGG4Ksfh2gHSRbV_aD4KIvBawnYhtC7ZH6S5GG5L9WDkNH9CinM_7h5HDeWNc9Ub4jHz5DPIl9RwkkumpwKQ0lAR5SEPTAeCfMgEfv-Sbgrv02s4gE8GR5i0bDRpVA0nn/s1600/IMG_0971.JPG" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhXlVNAGG4Ksfh2gHSRbV_aD4KIvBawnYhtC7ZH6S5GG5L9WDkNH9CinM_7h5HDeWNc9Ub4jHz5DPIl9RwkkumpwKQ0lAR5SEPTAeCfMgEfv-Sbgrv02s4gE8GR5i0bDRpVA0nn/s320/IMG_0971.JPG" /></a><br />
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Other than that my kids and I enjoyed being outside. Last but not least I was able to go to General Conference with my dad. It was awesome.<br />
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6tXcCBl66yL1U5L2YG35cELzyI8FRUUkoe-00evqwwLRlX4jMiHREK1wFeFsUuscB-GcCuzF6wdq5AVXQoU8OF74BU8hs7iw5KKt0P_anJk8R9-JnhRDsJNxG9juqPUJ9H5FK/s1600/IMG_0986.JPG" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6tXcCBl66yL1U5L2YG35cELzyI8FRUUkoe-00evqwwLRlX4jMiHREK1wFeFsUuscB-GcCuzF6wdq5AVXQoU8OF74BU8hs7iw5KKt0P_anJk8R9-JnhRDsJNxG9juqPUJ9H5FK/s320/IMG_0986.JPG" /></a>Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-13915627768314286392013-03-14T22:36:00.003-06:002013-03-14T22:36:55.192-06:00Tired BloggingI obviously have not been very good at blogging since Charlie has been born. I am a busy mom of 3 with a husband who has a fairly demanding job, so I am just claiming the obvious of at the end of the day I would much rather be asleep than on the computer.<br />
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Charlie just turned 1 year old. This is him moving boxes at Grandma's house so that he can slide down the stairs. <br />
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Around here we call Charlie the "book murderer." Charlie can take board books and within a few minutes rip it apart.<br />
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Charlie is also very skilled at screaming and attacking the kids. Hilarious! But to this day the funniest thing I have seen him do was "car jack" Daniel. We have one of the little tikes red and yellow cars and Daniel was riding in it, Charlie chased him down, opened the door and grabbed Daniel by the sleeve and ripped him out of the car. Then he got in and yelled at Daniel until Daniel started pushing him. I laughed so hard, and have tried so many times to get Charlie to do it again so I could video it, oh well.<br />
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Daniel has just started piano lessons, which he loves. Alice is finally loving to learn and really enjoys going to preschool. She also has discovered that it's not so bad to walk. She walked all the way to the school with me to pick up Daniel and then they raced each other all the way home. I love when they get along.<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDE5daZtikjn4I7eobOumybzon85hKImz2v7me0zJQwjO1ddHLiGvc8b-t7dUMbkR0QjZpf2Idzmk2WdVjrrg4fD7tYxW-xXl2M5NNeB5ZJA3h2xdjmkwJ6IjF13ESCO6bOR2e/s1600/DSC_0009.JPG" imageanchor="1" ><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDE5daZtikjn4I7eobOumybzon85hKImz2v7me0zJQwjO1ddHLiGvc8b-t7dUMbkR0QjZpf2Idzmk2WdVjrrg4fD7tYxW-xXl2M5NNeB5ZJA3h2xdjmkwJ6IjF13ESCO6bOR2e/s320/DSC_0009.JPG" /></a><br />
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My little sister leaves on her mission to Philadelphia next week. This has caused a lot of mission discussion in our home lately. Mostly I am trying so hard to get more organized so that I can believe myself that we will actually send her mail. The best part about her leaving is I convinced my mom to order homemade chocolate truffles from our good friend and now we have a ton of them sitting in our house! The hard part is trying not to eat too many before they are delivered tomorrow.<br />
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Wow I guess today was a lot about nothing. Jason's left foot is healing pretty good although his right foot still seems to be bugging him. We also seem to finally not be sick for the first time in 5 days. That sadly is a record for the last 5 months. I am hoping that we never are sick that constantly again. Well that's about it for today.<br />
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Oh yeah! Here is our favorite thing about Daniel right now. He is always reading. I love it!<br />
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Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-20598546040676295112012-12-26T15:35:00.000-07:002012-12-26T15:35:14.819-07:00Snow!I don't know about you guys but man we have a lot of snow! Merry Christmas to us! Last year we barely got enough snow to cover the yard in a light dusting a few times, this year, well let's just say I am grateful for my neighbors who come to shovel my driveway.<br />
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This is Charlie's first real time in the snow, literally, I put his snow pants on and stuck him in it. He is not a fan.<br />
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Regardless, we have had a super crazy year, which I guess all people with 3 or more kids can say. In the last 13 months we have had 2 ankle surgeries, a new baby, a new nephew who came with his own special issues, a neice, another pregnant sister, a mission call for another sister, and a mom and dad who seem to now live in Utah. And that's only on my side of the family! Thus blogging has fallen way behind on my priority list. <br />
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I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and has a Happy New Year.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQlnxR4cmNa-mXLNYB_tHqpaGRKQCV3G-pX4UoNvgHPtTcPcR_hhDCay0Zi6t05ilkWJX4QiTORG9fyQW84l-RzyXy3WvRDfUf6Y_IDMP1S_un2BfyAfuSXo-tCpdy-zFkXzIP/s1600/3333_101.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="320" width="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQlnxR4cmNa-mXLNYB_tHqpaGRKQCV3G-pX4UoNvgHPtTcPcR_hhDCay0Zi6t05ilkWJX4QiTORG9fyQW84l-RzyXy3WvRDfUf6Y_IDMP1S_un2BfyAfuSXo-tCpdy-zFkXzIP/s320/3333_101.jpg" /></a></div><br />
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Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-47840487656633840082012-08-09T16:40:00.001-06:002012-08-09T16:42:01.728-06:00Life in NarrationI constantly think about posting on my blog. My kids are so cute and funny. We constantly are going places and seeing amazing things. My husband and I are overly opinionated and boy could I write about any political issue or person if I really felt like it. Most of all, I feel like my mind is always in constant narration.<br />
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Regardless of all the reasons why I should write more, there is one big reason why I do not.<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZBy-qXxNulowQFVenYNNWVALsl19FbANw54m2d8kdlHWh4QOcb602T9454sGILoKCN6Yj15dLr3vkgKbryquQR6BVGAksrAUK6VfYOqEeop0YWiS8XfcbPMSaThGE8vZhwgUt/s1600/IMG_0801.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="320" width="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZBy-qXxNulowQFVenYNNWVALsl19FbANw54m2d8kdlHWh4QOcb602T9454sGILoKCN6Yj15dLr3vkgKbryquQR6BVGAksrAUK6VfYOqEeop0YWiS8XfcbPMSaThGE8vZhwgUt/s320/IMG_0801.JPG" /></a></div><br />
Don't get me wrong, Charlie is awesome but come on! He is not even 6 months old and he sits up, crawls, fusses because he can't get to Daniel and Alice fast enough, refuses to eat cereal or any other baby food, won't drink from a bottle, already has one tooth and most of the time hates Jason. Now sure, him not being on a set schedule is my fault, as I never live life in any sort of organized way. (I do try it just never works out.) But Charlie often drives me crazy. <br />
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Then when he isn't driving me crazy these two are:<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_kf-Qw6BFLdhpC2VVDrm97Qc930V_0HcgpquFlIwbpgkM6ocP8enX3P9rkgSQuv5shaE4yZIpjJM-oOq7d_N7qFNpp0Q-EGN-eGResayvr5nUwOB7nHxEsl58B0BuTLFcTtrO/s1600/IMG_0898.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="240" width="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_kf-Qw6BFLdhpC2VVDrm97Qc930V_0HcgpquFlIwbpgkM6ocP8enX3P9rkgSQuv5shaE4yZIpjJM-oOq7d_N7qFNpp0Q-EGN-eGResayvr5nUwOB7nHxEsl58B0BuTLFcTtrO/s320/IMG_0898.JPG" /></a></div><br />
Oh well right? It sure is an adventure having a family. This month my goal is to organize my desk/mail area. Which I would say is going great except I am staring at the last suitcase from our Disneyland trip to be unpacked. <br />
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I have decided to do something with my talents and am starting music classes at my house. Piano lessons for beginners and group music lessons for 3-5 year olds. I think I might add a kindergarten kids class because I just realized that though Alice will be home for one of the classes Daniel will not and he would love it. Anyone else got a kindergartener who wants to come? More info on that is located here: <a href="http://musicalmelanie.weebly.com/">musicalmelanie.weebly.com</a><br />
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I can't believe how fast time flies. Hopefully it will not be another 3 months before I post again.Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-14314862911489920752012-05-11T15:55:00.000-06:002012-05-11T15:55:05.758-06:00Alice Turns Three!Way back in April it was Alice's turn to have a birthday. She is adorable. She of course wanted a butterfly birthday and the hunt for butterfly things began! Luckily Target had butterfly party stuff (score!) and ROSS had a few butterfly random things that little girls would like. So it was fairly successful. For her party I found in Women's Day a butterfly cupcake recipe from Bakerella. I figured I could certainly get those done, apparently I learned nothing from Daniel's birthday. Now we didn't want to go through the whole shabang of party but we realized that Alice has never had a true birthday party so we invited some friends and cousins over and she had a "real birthday" according to Daniel.<br />
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When the kids arrived at her unofficial party, the cupcakes were made, not frosted and the wings for the butterflies were being assembled. It was a step above the needing my sisters to frost things like at Daniel's party so I call it a success! While the kids played I finished up the cupcakes. They did not look as cool as the ones in the magazine but Alice knew they were butterflies and was so excited about them. She loved opening presents and had so much fun with "her friends." I can't believe my littler girl is three! And yes those are butterflies on her dress as well.<br />
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Here are three things I love about Alice:<br />
1. When this girl is happy, it is magical. She lights up the whole room with her big eyes and happy smile and ridiculously cute laugh.<br />
2. She loves her brothers. She calls Daniel "her Daniel man" It is wonderful.<br />
3. I love that she loves to help me, she cooks and cleans and weeds and plants and takes care of her baby, all in stride with mom. <br />
<br />Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-71044893916635319992012-05-11T15:43:00.001-06:002012-05-11T15:43:40.190-06:00Daniel turns Five!I know right, two posts in a row after months of nothing. Go me.<br />
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Daniel turned five in March. He was so excited. He has a habit of declaring what type of birthday he should get. Last year it was space, and yes he excepted all space toys. This year was Star Wars and he expected all toys from that genre. Needless to say thank goodness Williams Sonoma had a bunch of Star Wars stuff for cakes and cupcakes. <br />
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For his birthday weekend, Grandma was here so she took Daniel and Alice and their cousin Josh to Kangaroo Zoo. Now for those who have not been, Kangaroo Zoo in Lindon is super fun. A little pricey but man they had so much fun and ended up exhausted so who can truly complain? It is a whole bunch of bouncy things for the kids to play on. Mostly slides and a few houses. Especially since it ended up that Grandma paid! Daniel would have never left but Alice almost fell asleep on the floor. Charlie did great and slept the whole time. Way to go!<br />
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For his birthday, it was embarrassing and I am glad I have such great sisters and friends. We had a lot more planned but a certain three week old made it impossible to do anything and eventually we even ended up with store bought frosting for the cupcakes. I know that may not be gross to some of you, but man I was upset. But eventually the cookies got frosted and the cupcakes got devoured and Daniel got a light saber so he was happy. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQB-GQpC9DPMwNzNvu3xDej2Wa0D-GrpVZMxew77myV24hbtHUf1KB1oHxs8zQMhk3YjRJE2sdZHTSpOlbBswV8LH_YyiBongiTMvG69Bz6uUSw-b6Zw3l50_wH60lVRvHJ6cQ/s1600/IMG_0349.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="240" width="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQB-GQpC9DPMwNzNvu3xDej2Wa0D-GrpVZMxew77myV24hbtHUf1KB1oHxs8zQMhk3YjRJE2sdZHTSpOlbBswV8LH_YyiBongiTMvG69Bz6uUSw-b6Zw3l50_wH60lVRvHJ6cQ/s320/IMG_0349.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-gpUmPAuOongj6fordI1YpCsccAxEPPsoYgaLbJotqPlfSgstO5JPkRsb9IZPoq9SP9DwdTJVf2cTU3rF8qn6VELBDmk9ajRvJwjRfmF4boXNnJijnqgE-rvTw6Hlogan_Cv6/s1600/IMG_0325.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="240" width="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-gpUmPAuOongj6fordI1YpCsccAxEPPsoYgaLbJotqPlfSgstO5JPkRsb9IZPoq9SP9DwdTJVf2cTU3rF8qn6VELBDmk9ajRvJwjRfmF4boXNnJijnqgE-rvTw6Hlogan_Cv6/s320/IMG_0325.JPG" /></a></div>This picture makes me laugh, I love that at kid birthdays all the kids are so stinking excited about opening presents.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQnip3JkuZMV3kufWjtL8UEk8p_lcz5aMuT1OUxmM_Jo9FxdJPlJy0CCBqsTcoFUM-EPw8M9M5VLgOR5VwUpTm-b1gzuuu3hDImtxxChAFFwNW0C6wMrOmBIFo7YCnxcdI9jKM/s1600/IMG_0359.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="240" width="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQnip3JkuZMV3kufWjtL8UEk8p_lcz5aMuT1OUxmM_Jo9FxdJPlJy0CCBqsTcoFUM-EPw8M9M5VLgOR5VwUpTm-b1gzuuu3hDImtxxChAFFwNW0C6wMrOmBIFo7YCnxcdI9jKM/s320/IMG_0359.JPG" /></a></div><br />
Just because he turned five, here are five things I love about Daniel.<br />
1. His curiosity (while it truly may kill him) is crazy and I love how much he loves to learn.<br />
2. I love how close he is to the spirit and that he knows Jesus is real.<br />
3. Daniel is a very kind hearted person who cares about how other kids feel.<br />
4. I love that his "knock knock" joke phase is over and I survived it.<br />
5. Daniel cracks me up with all his ridiculous phrases, like "my brain is heavy!"Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-92026881156861084442012-05-10T14:20:00.000-06:002012-05-10T14:20:00.229-06:00Why I don't buy baby clothes...This shirt was awesome and I loved it. I wanted something to put Charlie in for church so I bought it (it was on sale for under $5). Washed it, put it on and behold the Charlie Chunk! At least he wore it once right? This picture is about 3 weeks old and low and behold the shirt totally doesn't fit now.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZdcWIh-PP7fTD_fVZuL7iG0nhtFbtr0SnlHkq0ZeOYMxAaUkP2aN6wXDwvhm7liLDgAfe0sRCExILscT-Czcw0jMUU1BdZPK3LCbBQAD2H2Z3Nmz4DiRnBLvj6WJLT2iWtc-W/s1600/IMG_0419.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="240" width="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZdcWIh-PP7fTD_fVZuL7iG0nhtFbtr0SnlHkq0ZeOYMxAaUkP2aN6wXDwvhm7liLDgAfe0sRCExILscT-Czcw0jMUU1BdZPK3LCbBQAD2H2Z3Nmz4DiRnBLvj6WJLT2iWtc-W/s320/IMG_0419.JPG" /></a></div><br />Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-48700879322853035382012-05-10T13:58:00.000-06:002012-05-10T13:58:10.270-06:00Charles Jason WebbI know I know, is Charlie already 3 months old? Pretty close. Holy cow! I guess I should make more of an effort to write on my blog. Things are busy, I either you know, eat or shower or do dishes or laundry and by that time my kids won't let me on the computer. Oh well. So here is Charlie's story.<br />
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I went to my doctors appointment on a Wednesday and was not progressing at all. So I decided that I could walk this baby out! I spent the next two days at the dinosaur museum, the aquarium, the park (since it was totally warm in February go figure), and taking my kids for walks. By Friday night my feet were so swollen they hurt and I was so tired. Of course, with the heartburn I was having I didn't go to sleep until close to midnight only to be woken up around 2 with what I thought was hip pain from all my walking. Every 15 minutes I woke up with horrible hip pain. Finally around 3:15 the pain was so bad I couldn't fall back asleep, duh! That's when I realized it was contractions. I did what anyone does and started the laundry, woke up Jason, and we called a friend. I wouldn't let us leave until I put the laundry in the dryer, so around 4:30 we left for the hospital. Needless to say we were super tired when we got there.<br />
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Eventually Charlie was born, at 11:12 am, February 18th. 7 pounds and 12 ounces. 20.5 inches long. This is after I progressed, got an epidural, had my contractions stop, was started on pitocin, turned my epidural down, and then pushed the kids who would not move down out. We were so excited it was a boy! We were all guessing and then we sat holding him and running through names, and decided he looked like a Charlie. <br />
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The kids came to meet him later and we have adorable pictures of that somewhere. Alice has been enamored from the start while Daniel was a litte more apprehensive. The cutest thing ever though was the second day, the kids brought back packs of toys so they could stay for awhile at the hospital. Daniel pulled out a book from his bag and asked if he could read it to Charlie. He then read the whole thing to him and it was so cute most of us were crying. Daniel, always so thoughtful. Alice mostly tries to kill him with love. Other than Charlie taking a month to decide if he was ever going to gain weight, he has been fine. Now he is Chunky Charlie and my biggest kid. He is already wearing 3-6 month clothes. It's so crazy.<br />
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The only thing I am having a hard time with Charlie right now is that I have tons of yard work to do and he can't always come outside. But I can't complain, he sleeps from 10:30 pm until 5 am so, I am just super lucky. Charlie right now is so cute and smiles and laughs and is very serious about playing toys. We definitely love him!Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-13352538398404904362012-03-26T13:42:00.001-06:002012-03-26T13:42:39.436-06:00New Kid PicturesWe had Charlie on February 18, 2012. More info coming soon. But here are his one month old pictures.
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp__0bWAsKaHnmA9fZcdPZUBWM0wlg3eBMCqu1IBA0Bb6eBjBj9XWyx2qEm5ffwpsfF5Y8HEBHAnsnzxYM2fYyYkEjS9Uc4PJEdgwXKw7jpkGX4UJ7p7kb4nuSngSXsJ6fiwhU/s1600/1548_73.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhp__0bWAsKaHnmA9fZcdPZUBWM0wlg3eBMCqu1IBA0Bb6eBjBj9XWyx2qEm5ffwpsfF5Y8HEBHAnsnzxYM2fYyYkEjS9Uc4PJEdgwXKw7jpkGX4UJ7p7kb4nuSngSXsJ6fiwhU/s320/1548_73.jpg" /></a> </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdIzpARKVEOvDA99hchqw3ykj_NngfA7yj7APWZ9RFpva-1EWivz_N12eOF8oeeDkG30Mi_Nxt9jylTYedefyVSKaGkwtvNvX3MO7raZT_sVutbc2hGocqV7RV7qxW-rJYjGGQ/s1600/1548_49.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdIzpARKVEOvDA99hchqw3ykj_NngfA7yj7APWZ9RFpva-1EWivz_N12eOF8oeeDkG30Mi_Nxt9jylTYedefyVSKaGkwtvNvX3MO7raZT_sVutbc2hGocqV7RV7qxW-rJYjGGQ/s320/1548_49.jpg" /></a> </div><div style='clear:both; text-align:CENTER'><a href='http://picasa.google.com/blogger/' target='ext'><img src='http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif' alt='Posted by Picasa' style='border: 0px none ; padding: 0px; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: initial; -moz-background-origin: initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: initial;' align='middle' border='0' /></a></div>Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-39477470631353365322012-02-14T16:43:00.000-07:002012-02-14T16:43:12.889-07:00February so FarThe random things that get accomplished when you are waiting out your pregnancy. I have been cleaning like crazy and keeping up with laundry so my day to day chores have actually decreased. That is also because we have been hiring a house keeper which, why we haven't before is beyond me. We are finally feeling better other than aches and pains, I have canceled church for us until after the baby is born. I can't stand being sick anymore. The baby is due officially in ten days and we had a fake out last Friday, but are still impatiently waiting. Up until the last two weeks I was not swollen to ridiculousness, which now my feet are just comical. I mean who gets stretch marks on their feet? I also now can't sleep, either my back hurts or my hip or my lovely sciatic nerve which is awesome. As I said, impatiently waiting. So here's what I have been doing.<br />
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I wanted to make my kids something to remind them they were once babies and that babies don't just cry, eat and poop. Even though, I mean let's be honest those first few weeks they don't do much else. I can pretend though, for the sake of my other kids right? Once upon a time I loved scrapbooking and worked on them constantly. Oddly enough Daniel's scrapbook is complete up to three months. The scrapbook for Alice is still in the planning stages. So with some help with my mom we came up with this idea instead. It may not be amazingly adorable and I refused to be ultra picky about the text and just wrote it out with a marker. But they turned out so cute. I show a few pictures from each child's hospital stay, first visitors, and first few weeks. They took about 30 minutes each, then I laminated them, then took them to be bound. Total cost was $2.41, for the binding. I love them and hope the kids do too.<br />
<div style='text-align:center;margin:0px auto 10px;'><a href='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgrC_2Q6i_Q6gv387W6z3WcnaQqACRZ42Is3TCSFvAwukll3nFSHEyv9u2khpNyr7fTJPKF3SIcxrkqtwcKqFnEjT4dnLCkFG4jYVq1ELJKOIllkbYhUFrTw47vIflszvlpcqQ/s1600/IMG_0165.JPG'><img src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgrC_2Q6i_Q6gv387W6z3WcnaQqACRZ42Is3TCSFvAwukll3nFSHEyv9u2khpNyr7fTJPKF3SIcxrkqtwcKqFnEjT4dnLCkFG4jYVq1ELJKOIllkbYhUFrTw47vIflszvlpcqQ/s320/IMG_0165.JPG' border='0' alt='' /></a> </div><div style='text-align:center;margin:0px auto 10px;'><a href='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguA1RCeOQnNuHJkONbhPl03KDATluFxxgjJ8hIrr4TTaZhmdkPFhyQfDuQ9vlGoMgqTGGDLOFZHbjUK7jzCaYS8a2r9hWLzuM7vEeQRpjcAQ-KP1Zq_oG9_K7lZ6MmDMrbxKnP/s1600/IMG_0164.JPG'><img src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguA1RCeOQnNuHJkONbhPl03KDATluFxxgjJ8hIrr4TTaZhmdkPFhyQfDuQ9vlGoMgqTGGDLOFZHbjUK7jzCaYS8a2r9hWLzuM7vEeQRpjcAQ-KP1Zq_oG9_K7lZ6MmDMrbxKnP/s320/IMG_0164.JPG' border='0' alt='' /></a> </div><div style='text-align:center;margin:0px auto 10px;'><a href='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhYR8bsCY0LMzzWdG5erxlI_ZJMPNTEqnGLS1XsWS5X6c1_sKHMFZYIKubNcKShq6JBr2juMhzErkEA4JVLIWUeecteNqjInnJn3OP-nt-S7ETlVfy8oJQO4wAnSLEgXnaFjEn/s1600/IMG_0166.JPG'><img src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhYR8bsCY0LMzzWdG5erxlI_ZJMPNTEqnGLS1XsWS5X6c1_sKHMFZYIKubNcKShq6JBr2juMhzErkEA4JVLIWUeecteNqjInnJn3OP-nt-S7ETlVfy8oJQO4wAnSLEgXnaFjEn/s320/IMG_0166.JPG' border='0' alt='' /></a> </div><br />
My other fun craft was these owls. My friend had finished some and told me where to get them so off to the wood store we went. Alice chose the paper for the small owl and chose the orange paint. I was dubious at first but it turned out adorable. The sweetest thing was when it was all done and I said "let's go put it in your room." Alice said "nope, for the baby." Loved it! These were also super easy and took one day from start to finish (mostly just to let the paint dry). If you want your own, we just got them at The Wood Connection up in Murray. <br />
<div style='text-align:center;margin:0px auto 10px;'><a href='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzWzbK5GVzM6WQdw1X0IgA_M66AansK-PoSrfM1-lht2t1Nc-QRZxR1vJxRJekEXvZiBxcgP7X67VtBLcqI2hZoNwVBuKOWOf-qRXSxTm_aPuOMjy8-yGdF4C9t4qyoSvshGSR/s1600/IMG_0167.JPG'><img src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzWzbK5GVzM6WQdw1X0IgA_M66AansK-PoSrfM1-lht2t1Nc-QRZxR1vJxRJekEXvZiBxcgP7X67VtBLcqI2hZoNwVBuKOWOf-qRXSxTm_aPuOMjy8-yGdF4C9t4qyoSvshGSR/s320/IMG_0167.JPG' border='0' alt='' /></a> </div><div style='clear:both; text-align:CENTER'><br />
Today for Valentine's Day I was a slight slacker. After Friday I thought we'd have the baby, but since it is still not here, after I dropped Daniel off at preschool Alice and I went and bought balloons, a red table cloth, and hit Papa Murphy's for some heart pizzas for dinner. The kids loved writing out Valentine's for all their cousins (sorry Steph, we'll mail them soon), and they loved receiving them in return. Daniel filled them out for his preschool class with comments like "this one is for so and so even though they don't play with me and so we are not friends." Kids are so funny.Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-16066776441349212622012-01-30T14:14:00.000-07:002012-01-30T14:16:48.556-07:00Christmas and beyondI am not usually this bad at updating, regardless here is a quick recap of the holidays. <br />
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We bought aquarium passes on google deals and they have been worth every penny so far. Jason loves to take the kids there. Although I heard when they passed Thanksgiving Point on Saturday that Daniel was really concerned that we did not have a current pass there. The things kids worry about.<br />
<div style='text-align:center;margin:0px auto 10px;'><a href='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzylesr0I-MT2X1n97GxuVR9hX_ZO7NtH3IVW5QXEIVg7Gt7ZeL9qmfgkbb8E3pO6slZgX-Y9XYdcgzRIRJHXPPyNV4Yl9ZPFN7dZY0vIcHrhmUnV5IQlyAZeEJcp1P1blhEgR/s1600/IMG_0086.JPG'><img src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzylesr0I-MT2X1n97GxuVR9hX_ZO7NtH3IVW5QXEIVg7Gt7ZeL9qmfgkbb8E3pO6slZgX-Y9XYdcgzRIRJHXPPyNV4Yl9ZPFN7dZY0vIcHrhmUnV5IQlyAZeEJcp1P1blhEgR/s320/IMG_0086.JPG' border='0' alt='' /></a> </div>I took the kids to the live nativity in Alpine. With the help of my sister and bro in law and their cute little boy. We did not freeze but it was chilly. My kids loved it and we would totally go again. Alice loved looking at all the animals and Daniel asked all the Jerusalem shop keepers everything about what they were making. Alice also really liked the baby Jesus and if it wasn't for a gaggle of girls behind us who would not shut up I am sure I would have been more in awe like my little girl. <br />
<div style='text-align:center;margin:0px auto 10px;'><a href='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicKBbZlU73iXYc0b2EzRDRZZI5DKc8T41Oj0J4uhi5LXcU8DSRyBXaOK6mhRhqO6LFPdedEiS0GiY6rCtpplLLyswRxUrMqnkJacDwZmOsOek0K64DbQ1gpVXJbbyYX2dayKne/s1600/IMG_0058.JPG'><img src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicKBbZlU73iXYc0b2EzRDRZZI5DKc8T41Oj0J4uhi5LXcU8DSRyBXaOK6mhRhqO6LFPdedEiS0GiY6rCtpplLLyswRxUrMqnkJacDwZmOsOek0K64DbQ1gpVXJbbyYX2dayKne/s320/IMG_0058.JPG' border='0' alt='' /></a> </div>We took the kids on this boat ride on the Provo river where they had all these lights on the river banks to look at. Now my kids totally loved it and Santa came on a canoe and gave out candy and everything. They thought it was so awesome. It was ok for the price. We would definitely go again but with slightly lower expectations of the lights. But it was really fun.<br />
<div style='text-align:center;margin:0px auto 10px;'><a href='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiXKg1gf0KUMQijXx1IivcsOFUen_rdmaF9FuznRWSlHbwFOEkicDo6spZH4OR1g-FjhYXJyc384n600a27JwIZxi0fff27zg1hFihUag7MSnNWazQPBVgv3Sn3L-ABKq_mqs2/s1600/IMG_0081.JPG'><img src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiXKg1gf0KUMQijXx1IivcsOFUen_rdmaF9FuznRWSlHbwFOEkicDo6spZH4OR1g-FjhYXJyc384n600a27JwIZxi0fff27zg1hFihUag7MSnNWazQPBVgv3Sn3L-ABKq_mqs2/s320/IMG_0081.JPG' border='0' alt='' /></a> </div>This was Christmas. Daniel and I both had unexpected stomach problems and for a long time in the morning no one could even get out of bed. We opened stockings in my room and Daniel laid on the bed and slowly pulled out like half the stuff in his stocking and then just gave up. I have never been more grateful for new movies than I was on Christmas. The kids and I watched three movies and did nothing. We had our Christmas dinner on New Years and it all worked out in the end.<br />
<div style='text-align:center;margin:0px auto 10px;'><a href='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixBwdK5l10mYIOjrZA_1KpfuRHeaLt2h-YxW2wb9zTsU858bW0ZMeqFsfQhVCvBevLjB8NThMLpEAKr3yKvT0lqhJK0YEPMbwXCq-2IKEMpgdqQeoLDnzii-oHeKaWvdtptKM3/s1600/IMG_0125.JPG'><img src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEixBwdK5l10mYIOjrZA_1KpfuRHeaLt2h-YxW2wb9zTsU858bW0ZMeqFsfQhVCvBevLjB8NThMLpEAKr3yKvT0lqhJK0YEPMbwXCq-2IKEMpgdqQeoLDnzii-oHeKaWvdtptKM3/s320/IMG_0125.JPG' border='0' alt='' /></a> </div><div style='text-align:center;margin:0px auto 10px;'><a href='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVJ-y-ExWA0s5tsrHgfZOvdO_gCAmbsa91o5waAqanP7GRVGoGiqSxIQSBRK63lcHpCXJaaLieYkyZnMUiGdAUqueYnrt1P7vyGvayJeaJMyUoPkqxwKyvaFmviynGPDxhPJVf/s1600/IMG_0133.JPG'><img src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVJ-y-ExWA0s5tsrHgfZOvdO_gCAmbsa91o5waAqanP7GRVGoGiqSxIQSBRK63lcHpCXJaaLieYkyZnMUiGdAUqueYnrt1P7vyGvayJeaJMyUoPkqxwKyvaFmviynGPDxhPJVf/s320/IMG_0133.JPG' border='0' alt='' /></a> </div><div style='clear:both; text-align:CENTER'><a href='http://picasa.google.com/blogger/' target='ext'><img src='http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif' alt='Posted by Picasa' style='border: 0px none ; padding: 0px; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; -moz-background-clip: initial; -moz-background-origin: initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: initial;' align='middle' border='0' /></a></div><br />
We had a lot to be thankful for last year. Jason's surgery went really well and so far has been cheaper than expected (hopefully when our last bill comes we will still think so). The newest Webb is expected soon, within the month, so hopefully that goes well and I will definitely post about that.Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-33649284549435901012011-11-27T19:08:00.000-07:002011-11-27T19:18:10.508-07:00Autumn TimeI know it is not truly Autumn time anymore but here is a catch up of what we did this autumn. First, the last three years we have gone to my parents in Idaho and picked apples. While there we also went to one the best pumpkin patches I have ever seen, in Idaho Falls. There were so many pumpkins, gords, and a train and maze for the kids. The kids loved it and to be honest, so did I. <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqw5Y4any_A7yMMgT23XYw9hYeRWI7VctsqyVP0RgaagE0R73hOkJPAsRcLgYRlHvIcHm2692EJgONhxDccqQ6eXcBrVoPQo5wjDTl75LzYAqrKkpd3OO2lr30knIW0NkEOeHB/s1600/IMG_1327.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="240" width="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqw5Y4any_A7yMMgT23XYw9hYeRWI7VctsqyVP0RgaagE0R73hOkJPAsRcLgYRlHvIcHm2692EJgONhxDccqQ6eXcBrVoPQo5wjDTl75LzYAqrKkpd3OO2lr30knIW0NkEOeHB/s320/IMG_1327.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEBRVwIzEhyq6V5z1o8SE6IdcKS0I0WIRdWVP2yFRn4LekEvRZigyVOsWik7qOdMdX1M_zGF0Ny6H8YWSyktIvgy61xPlrLsampwa4fEXVxpBj8SboFd1kqeyoGSYTtXzgEdd8/s1600/IMG_1300.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="240" width="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiEBRVwIzEhyq6V5z1o8SE6IdcKS0I0WIRdWVP2yFRn4LekEvRZigyVOsWik7qOdMdX1M_zGF0Ny6H8YWSyktIvgy61xPlrLsampwa4fEXVxpBj8SboFd1kqeyoGSYTtXzgEdd8/s320/IMG_1300.JPG" /></a></div><br />
Then we had a really fun birthday for cousin Josh. He turned three and they had put together these really cute ideas for pictures. Alice kept sneaking into other people's pictures which I thought was awesome. She loved holding up lips in front of her face. Daniel tried on the clown nose and kept it on for quite awhile. My kids are pretty cute.<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVTzwJAGtwUAPMr64XREoxlnYpEbPRuUpUcD22ZTwzj6w_QzSNwdodFAi8Q8hvEE7ZBlJ6EUBwNikNSqzSm_tmBdXLN18d0V5zbXtMJwcVOCmXzo1C5KJdL8yY68uRJwvSgx_8/s1600/DSC_0435.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="214" width="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVTzwJAGtwUAPMr64XREoxlnYpEbPRuUpUcD22ZTwzj6w_QzSNwdodFAi8Q8hvEE7ZBlJ6EUBwNikNSqzSm_tmBdXLN18d0V5zbXtMJwcVOCmXzo1C5KJdL8yY68uRJwvSgx_8/s320/DSC_0435.JPG" /></a></div><br />
For Halloween we had a small gathering of children over to make monster cupcakes and cookies. The kids had tons of fun and I think I would have had more fun except of course I was slightly disorganized. One day I will get with it, not for awhile though. Then we went trick or treating on Halloween and I was so glad that it was warm. Last year was so cold and my kids froze, but this year they made it through a huge part of our neighborhood. Jason was designated the neighborhood walker while I read a novel and answered the door. It was awesome.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6xAI9H7nLkXwj1bvyaIFZa2rzUQSKHy2x4nx5-TEbZIYxvJHI5TLxtPn_4FbduOJhnIaOdZjcIb6kZTnEb2wuM8xQqqF4iIgrrZpwfqbpQvcXd8J4zrAxBSuqwQosQ_vGfRX1/s1600/DSC_0554.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="214" width="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg6xAI9H7nLkXwj1bvyaIFZa2rzUQSKHy2x4nx5-TEbZIYxvJHI5TLxtPn_4FbduOJhnIaOdZjcIb6kZTnEb2wuM8xQqqF4iIgrrZpwfqbpQvcXd8J4zrAxBSuqwQosQ_vGfRX1/s320/DSC_0554.JPG" /></a></div><br />
Thanksgiving was a blah holiday around here. Jason was pretty miserable from having his foot cut into and I was exhausted. Jason's dad was nice enough to bring us a nice thanksgiving meal that was still warm when it showed up. We were very grateful for that. I was especially grateful for the wonderful pie my mom sent home with my sister and truth be told I have eaten most of it already. Eating too much pie is one thing I have decided to blame on the growing baby. We had much to be thankful for this year and are very grateful for the blessings that we have received this year.<br />
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There will hopefully be a following post soon about our already crazy and busy winter. But for those who are curious, Jason's surgery on his ankle tendons went well and he is recovering as well as we can tell. His doctor appointment tomorrow should bring more info on that. We are hoping he will have a working foot by the time the baby comes which is in about 12 weeks from now.Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25211103.post-19034464156045123732011-10-04T16:51:00.002-06:002011-10-04T16:53:50.586-06:00I really should wake my kids but... My kids are sleeping and I am slightly bored. Not that there is a lack of things to do at my house. I could clean, put away laundry or do the dishes. I could even make dinner, ha! I even called Jason at work to chat. What a day.<br />
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We find out on Friday how our little baby is doing. Jason and I have decided not to find out the gender of our baby, but I love to hear guesses and name suggestions. Unless of course we are having twins, which for some reason both Jason and I find ourselves dreaming (nightmaring) about. I guess we will get to find out soon.<br />
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Summer has officially ended over here as has Jason's job in American Fork. He switched jobs in September and we are still getting used to his new commute. He works in Orem now and is liking it ok. New jobs are always hard. We are grateful that even after the switch in insurance we did not have to change doctors for me. Hooray!<br />
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Daniel is still playing soccer, it ends this week. He has scored two goals this season and has made huge progress, considering we did not teach him before hand anything about soccer. He still likes to pull out his mitt and play catch with mom everyone now and then. He keeps bugging me about swim lessons. <br />
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Alice is officially a 2.5 year old girl. The drama queen reigns here I am afraid. Some days she cries non stop and at everything. It is horrible. But on days where she is happy and cute and doesn't try to beat Daniel up, she is a joy and a wonder. She loves to play outside and eat blue yogurts and cookies and ice cream. Her and Daniel could eat us out of house and home when it comes to pears and raspberries, and they are obsessed with pumpkins right now. Anyone have a good pumpkin cookie recipe? <br />
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I do have to say Alice is trying to learn to go potty in a potty. After hours and hours and days and days of sitting her on the toilet, she has still yet to pee. We have however soiled and soaked numerous pairs of underwear. I thought potty training Daniel was hard. If she didn't know how to take her diaper off and love sitting on the kid potty I would not even bother. So here is hoping one day soon she gets it. Last night she sat on the potty and washed her hands, I picked her up and she saw herself half naked in the mirror. I said "who's bum is that?" She did not answer but looked confused. I said "is that Alice's bum?" She said "No, T rex bum." Melaniehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07962762052944306978noreply@blogger.com3