The Niven Family

NEW BLOG

2010-09-05T19:42:00.000-07:00

Please go here to see my new blog/web site. I have converted to iWeb. :)

My twin and I

2010-08-29T15:15:00.000-07:00

When my Dad and Mom were thinking of possible names for my twin sister and I, they wanted names that didn't rhyme, but that started with the same letter. I became Tami and my twin sister Tara. Both of our initials were T.J. Neither of us have a middle name. Tara got married quickly out of high school and became T.P. (he! he!), for a while. When I got married in 2002, I became T.N. She was divorced about 4 years ago, and just two weeks ago remarried. The funny thing is she is married to a friend's brother. That friend is married to my husband's best friend growing up! And now we once again share the same initials -- T.N. (Tami Niven and Tara Nicosia)

Here's a sneak peek of the wedding pics below. They were married on a yacht at Newport Beach Harbor.

If you would like to see more pictures of the wedding, click here.

Niven Reunion 2010

2010-08-01T14:58:00.001-07:00

This year's Niven reunion was held in Syracuse, Utah, where Bryan's grandparents (dad's side), now live. It was a pioneer theme, with pioneer activities and games, pioneer food, old-fashioned pioneer bartering, and more. We experienced both extremes in temperature that day -- really, really hot, to TONS of rain. Bryan's Aunt Lisa did a great job planning and directing the reunion, but I felt bad the weather didn't fully cooperate!

This is a buffalo chip game where one person was a wheelbarrow and the other person had to "push" the wheelbarrow and pick up the buffalo chips.

Kate was the winner!

My boys were a little shy and didn't want to play the games. I wish I had pictures of the pioneer relay game we played, but I was participating. The boys were on one team and had to put on a pioneer girl outfit and run across, take it off, and then the next person would go, and the girls on the other team dressed up in a pioneer boy outfit. The girls won! :) If anyone has pictures of that game, I would love to have a copy. We also all made potato babies and wrapped them in a baby-sized blanket and put them in a cradle. On one of the games we had to save the babies and pass them over and under to get to safety because their wagon was on "fire". My boys finally participated in the potato baby game, I think because the entire time they kept asking if they could keep them and were excited to get them after the game. Austin was happy just riding on this horse.

Talking and trying to stay cool in the shade.

Bryan throwing grapes in the air and catching them in his mouth.

Austin eating some lunch with Bryan's cousin, Jared, (I think). He and his brothers all look alike. :) Bryan's family has the oldest grandkids. Grandpa and Grandma Niven have 7 kids. Bryan's dad, Jeff, is the oldest child in the family and the two youngest are closer in age to their nephews (Brent, Bryan, and Jason), than their brother Jeff. So Aunt Stacey has two kids the same age as Ethan and Austin.

Each family has a family flag where they have their family motto and then they add an ornament from each reunion. The person in charge of the reunion makes something that represents that year's reunion for each family to add to their flag. Lisa made cute pioneer handcart ornaments for this year. I'm not sure whose flag this is? Do you know Aunt Lisa?

Here's a close-up of part of the flag with a picture of Grandpa & Grandma Niven. Cute. :) I'm such a slacker, I still don't have a flag. I have all the ornaments from the years we've gone, but I still need to make a flag. My problem is I have no sewing skills. That will be one of my goals this year to make a flag!

The boys made a homemade water slide. You're probably thinking, "What does this have to do with pioneers?" This actually wasn't planned as part of the reunion. During the middle of the day we could choose to go to The Pioneer Museum, This Is The Place Heritage Park, or the LDS Church History Museum. Some of the family went to the LDS Church Museum, but the kids were so hot we decided to stay there and cool off with water.

Cooling off! Grandpa & Grandma Niven had this cool earth that sprayed water. Ethan, Austin, Kate, Amanda, Maggie, had fun with this for hours.

The kids drying off on the warm patio.

Jessica and Kate.

Getting the air out. Surprisingly, it didn't pop!

Jessica and Kate showing off their hula hoop skills!

Here's another relay game we played. We had to wash and ring out the pioneer clothes and hang them out to dry. It was funny, Uncle Greg and his son Michael were swinging the clothes line like a jump rope, making it quite difficult to hang up the clothes.

After our potato baby game, it started to lightly rain at first and we did our bartering underneath the canopies, but pretty soon it was poring rain and we had to run for it to get inside. We had dinner inside and visited some more. It was fun seeing everyone and catching up! Thanks Aunt Lisa for all your hard work!

Ethan's Birthday!

2010-08-01T14:03:00.000-07:00

Ethan had a really fun birthday this year! He had a Toy Story theme party and we got together with family this year. We went to the Veteran's Water Park in Provo and then had a BBQ at the park next to it. The water felt sooooo good because it was soooooo hot (96 degrees). We were sad my sister, Jamie, and her kids couldn't be there; they already had a camping trip planned. Ethan and Jamie's daughter, Layla, have so much fun playing together. But we were so happy that Bryan's brother, Brent, his wife, Jill, and their three adorable girls (Kate, Maggie, & Amanda), could be there. It's been about three years since we've seen them, since Brent is in the Navy. We were so glad they were able to come to Ethan's party! Thanks for coming! :)

I couldn't resist putting this picture on my blog. Tara always pulls a face, and Bailey's face is hilarious since she's tilting her head back. Gavin's like, "see what I have to put up with." ;)

Tara is getting married in two weeks at Newport Beach, which means it's almost time for a vacation! Yipee!

Ethan is going to miss his cousin and buddy, Gavin, who is moving to California in two weeks. I know! We just moved back from California 5 months ago! (Has it already been that long!?)

Happy Birthday Ethan! We love you!

Children's Discovery Garden

2010-08-01T12:39:00.001-07:00

It's catch-up time for me on my blog! In the beginning/middle of July, four girls from my ward and our kids went to Children's Discovery Garden. We each have two boys and they seemed to have a fun time together. It was a lot of fun! I didn't even know this place was there. I am excited that they are having $2 Tuesdays at Thanksgiving Point in August for any of their venues.

Noah's arc is the first thing you come to when you enter the Garden. It has holes all around the bottom of it that squirts water out. I didn't get pictures of everything, but after the arc they have a splash pad and a garden maze.

The next time we go I think it would be better to go to the stuff at the end first. By the time we got to this caterpillar it was too hot for them to climb on it.

Kids can climb up a ladder inside this lighthouse up to a little loft.

There was a fun little stream going over rocks to this little pool, and the kids could put boats at the top and watch them come down.

The boys had a lot of fun and we hope to go back once more before school starts!

Funny faces

2010-07-18T14:09:00.001-07:00

This is Austin's face right before he falls asleep from a hard days' play, and if you can see the head on the right side hanging over, that's Ethan already asleep from a hard days' play!

It's been really HOT here this last week, and we attempted to go the park at 12:00 only because this park has a lot of trees. It was still hot, but they had a good time.

The next couple of pictures are of the many faces of Bryan. We were attempting to have Family Home Evening, and of course, Bryan was getting a little silly.

Here's Austin trying to be like Daddy.

Ha! Ha!

And here's one where you can check out the haircut he gave himself. I think he did a great job. What a hotty! :)

4th of July festivities

2010-07-18T13:17:00.000-07:00

These pictures are all out of order, but are from our 4th of July activities. It's been three years since we celebrated 4th of July in Utah, and the first time where it was just our little family. We went to the balloon fest twice (Saturday and Monday), because the first time it was too windy for the balloons to go up. Monday was perfect weather for the balloons and we were glad we got up early to go back. After the balloons we went to the parade and sat with Kami and Jared Pollock, which you can check out their blog if you want to see more pictures of the parade. It was fun to live so close that we could walk to everything and didn't have to worry about any traffic!

I put this picture on Facebook of Ethan and Austin playing together, but I wanted to squeeze it in somewhere on my blog too. I love it when they play nice and are buddies!

Everybody cheered loudly for the missionaries in the parade!

The boys waiting for their McDonald's breakfast

We found a spot on some grass across from the hospital to watch the fireworks.

Here's one last picture to document that I was there, since I'm usually taking the pictures and not in them.

It was a FUN 4th of July!

Provo Trail Fun

2010-06-13T15:07:00.001-07:00

This weekend has been a rainy one, but we were able to get out before the rain came back Saturday afternoon and get some exercise on the Provo trail. Bryan and I were on rollerblades, Ethan was on his bike, and Austin was in his stroller, with ME pushing of course. I really don't think I could go roller bladding without the stroller....it's my support ;) We had tons of fun and were very tired afterwards! We used to roller blade the trail when we lived here before, but I probably hadn't been in over two years!

This picture is scary of me, but it's the only one I am in!

Ethan was worn out too!

My Crazy Boys

2010-06-13T14:59:00.000-07:00

My boys thought of a clever way to use the boxes that are all over our house right now with the move. So excuse the boxes in the video, we aren't all the way moved in yet. Things to watch for: Ethan wearing goggles on his head and Austin falling over in the box at the end of the video, (don't worry, he wasn't hurt). :)

Summer + Pool = fun!

2010-06-13T14:49:00.000-07:00

We decided to buy a cheap $10 pool for the boys to play in for the summer. Hopefully it will last all summer! They were having a blast jumping into it over and over. Here's a short clip of them jumping in.

New Place!

2010-06-13T14:38:00.000-07:00

Well, we are officially in our new place! When we moved back to Utah from California in March, we stayed in my grandparent's basement and did some "house sitting" while they were traveling, and then we ended up staying a few months longer because we were trying to buy a house. (Thank you Grandpa and Grandma, we love you!) Buying a house didn't work out for us, though. :( The lenders are really strict now with all the economy has gone through and being self-employed doesn't help! We are going to try again next year. We found a great townhome to rent, though, and we are excited about it. The boys have a decent-sized backyard and we have two levels. It's nice being close to lots of things: the library, parks, a water park, the Provo River trail, lots of places to eat, the mall, etc.

Memorial Day

2010-06-13T14:30:00.000-07:00

On Memorial Day, before getting together with family for dinner, my Grandparents took us to a couple of cemeteries to see the graves of their parents. My Grandma brought some pictures of them so they could see what they looked like. They were quick visits since our boys are still pretty young and haven't totally learned being respectful to those that have passed on. They thought jumping from headstone to headstone was great fun! We will definitely continue this tradition and hopefully it will start to be more meaningful in the future!

Sugar-free Diet Starts Today!

2010-06-01T05:01:00.000-07:00

Back in 2001, before I was married and before I had kids, I was successfully sugar-free. By my definition that didn't mean completely no sugar, as even bread has a little sugar, but for the most part I didn't eat sugar for well over a year. I had small-portion meals several times throughout the day with high protein to help the hypoglycemia, and the only cereal I could find back then that didn't have sugar was Shredded Wheat cereal or Shredded Wheat N' Bran. I would eat that or homemade oatmeal with fruit on top, and yes I did have milk. This diet didn't come because of wanting to lose weight or that I thought sugar was bad, but because I found out I had hypoglycemia in 2000, and my doctor scared me into thinking if I didn't shapen up my diet I would soon have diabetes. The first few weeks were tough, as I was in college and living with roomates who loved to cook desserts. After a few weeks, though, I found I didn't even crave sugar, and after a few months, the thought of dessert made me sick. I felt in control.

Now, nine years later with a husband who loves "cupcakes and candy", as his mom teases him, and two boys that love treats, I have struggled with being sugar-free. Nine years ago it was a lot easier, I just didn't buy things that tempted me. The hard thing now is I feel like I am cheating my boys of a good childhood if I don't make the occasional chocolate chip cookie. Growing up, my mom or one of my sisters would make them every Sunday.

So, the reason for this post is this: I am publically stating my goal of being sugar-free, knowing this will help me fulfil it. Starting today, June 1st, I am cutting sugar out of my life for three months (June-August). I may even go longer, but if I give myself an end date instead of saying I will cut it out forever, I think I can manage better.

Wish me luck! I will keep you posted!

School's Out For Summer!

2010-05-30T16:22:00.001-07:00

Ethan finished his first year of school on Friday the 28th. We went over to my parents where Ethan and Austin had fun in the sun with their cousins. I just noticed Layla in the background above the slide pouting :( Also baby Rocco is on the bottom right wondering why all these big kids are in HIS pool!

We are excited for a fun (and warm) summer!

April showers brings May.......snow?

2010-05-30T16:14:00.000-07:00

The transition to spring has been an interesting one in Utah this year. It seemed like winter was over several times and then all of the sudden there would be another snow storm. This last one was most surprising because it was May 24th, near the end of May. We woke up to snow and it didn't stop for several hours! The boys talked me into getting out their winter coats that were already packed away to build one last snowman. They had a blast, and it wasn't too bad of a storm because the very next day was in the 70's I think.....weird huh? I think that's how all winters should be, a day of snow followed by a day of sun!

My Baby's Three!

2010-05-30T16:02:00.001-07:00

Well he turned 3 on May 14th, so as always I'm a little behind. It's weird for me to think that when Ethan turned 3, Austin was just a couple months old. We are so grateful to have Austin in our family. He is very sweet and kind. He is quick to give hugs. I love how he likes to wear just one sock around the house, and has since he was one. We all get a kick out of him calling eyebrows, "eye browns." Austin is very creative and clever. In fact, Ethan has been surprised with some of the things he's come up with and always wants to copy him.

We love you Austin!

729 days and counting...

2010-05-02T16:46:00.000-07:00

Bryan and I celebrated our 8th anniversary yesterday, May 1st -- well we didn't really celebrate it, as he is in Jerusalem, Israel right now and I am in Utah. ;) --but we were able to iChat and see each other on our laptops. He showed me and the boys where he was staying, and he even took us out on the roof and showed us his view. I was just thinking back on how we went to New York City for our 5th anniversary and how fun it was! I was also thinking how in just two years it will be our 10th anniversary and how we better start saving our pennies so we can go somewhere fun for our 10th! Happy anniversary, Bryan! I love you! :)

Our wedding day was seriously the most perfect wedding day ever!

Freezing cold in New York City, but loving every minute of it in 2007.

Hmmm.....what can we do to top New York City for our 10th? Any suggestions?

Bryan in Jerusalem

2010-04-30T17:54:00.000-07:00

Bryan is currently in Jerusalem working on probably what will be his greatest piece of art. The topic is Christ's mortal ministry. While he is there he hopes to update his blog frequently with pictures he takes. You can go to Bryan's blog to see what he's added so far.

Easter fun!

2010-04-11T17:36:00.001-07:00

My cousin Jenisse took some pictures of all my parent's grandkids. Two of the grandkids are missing from the group, so we did another quick picture on Easter day when we had everyone, but I don't have that picture yet. It was windy and cold, so it was a little hard to get them all to smile and to stay still. First, here's a picture of my twin sister, Tara, me, and Jenisse.

We had an Easter egg hunt the day before Easter. This picture is priceless. The youngest kids were allowed to go out first, and Ethan was pretty devastated that he wasn't in that group. You can see him crying and waiting to go out. Sad! :(

He looks happy now, but very cold!

Enjoying the yummy treats!

Temple Square

2010-04-11T16:10:00.000-07:00

The Monday night before General Conference, my sisters and I, (and Bryan), took our kids to Temple Square to walk around and see the Visitor Center and Conference Center. My twin sister couldn't be there, but we took her two kids with us. Thanks Gina for the family picture!

The kids had fun climbing up all the stairs of the Conference Center and seeing the waterfalls. I love the expression Kyle is making in this picture. He looks so mischievous, like he's about to take off running or something. :)

Hurray for cousins!

2010-04-11T14:50:00.000-07:00

Now that we are back in Utah, Ethan has a handful of cousins to play with, as most of my family is here. Here they are just a week or so after we moved back with Layla and Millie. Layla is about two years younger than Ethan and Millie is about two years younger than Austin. Both Ethan and Austin get along really well with Layla. She cracks me up. She is always smiling and happy and just takes charge of all the kids she plays with.

Magic Carpets

2010-04-11T14:36:00.001-07:00

I'm not crafty in any way, but I admire people who are, and I enjoy following one of my sister's friend's blog The Creative Homemaker, who amazes me with her craftiness. :) My oldest sister, Gina, came down from Colorado for a visit and I convinced her to help me make these magic carpets that can be used for Family Home Evenings or General Conference. My sister picked up the carpet samples from Home Depot, where you can just ask if they have any expired carpet samples. Apparently everyone else must be making these too because the guy working there said he saves them for moms that come in asking for them. I had two different sizes, so I made the smaller one for Austin. I think they turned out pretty cute!

Moving Day

2010-03-07T20:08:00.000-08:00

On the morning of our moving day we woke up to pouring rain. Our prayers were answered, though, and during the hour and a half that we had many great volunteers from our ward to help us load the boxes into the truck, we had no rain!

While Bryan was getting the tarp set up, I ran with the boys to the store to get some rain ponchos, (just in case), a plastic cover for my queen bed, when I realized the other package didn't come with two like the twin package did, and some donuts for our helpers. I couldn't believe my eyes when I came back and there were about 20 helpers, AND they were just finishing up! I missed the entire move! It took them only an hour to load everything, even though we were on the top floor of a third story apartment, and there are four flights of stairs to get to the top! Bryan said they made a line-up on the stairs and just passed the boxes along. Thank you Camarillo 5th ward, you're amazing!!

Bryan's dad using his engineer skills to pack the truck just right! Thanks Jeff!

This is how it looked when I walked in after returning from the store! It's empty!

Trying to entertain the boys while we cleaned the place, with the help of my amazing mother-in-law! Thanks Barbara!

Ethan's Goodbye Party

2010-03-07T19:34:00.000-08:00

Ethan's Kindergarten teacher was so nice to have a goodbye party for Ethan before he moved. The kids all signed a card, a few students made goodbye cards of their own, his good friend Joshua gave him a present with all sort of fun things to do while traveling, and the class gave him a framed photo of the entire class. They also got to eat cupcakes. Ethan will miss his great class and teacher!

Farewell Camarillo

2010-03-07T17:57:00.000-08:00

Well, we moved to Utah. I have mixed feelings about the move, especially now when I glance out the window and there is snow everywhere, and then I look at pictures of our time in Camarillo and think of the great weather it always had! I know it's the right move for us at this point in our life, but I hope that sometime in the future we can call Camarillo home again. We are currently in Alpine, looking for a place in Provo. The only thing negative I can think of about California is the cost of living. We are hoping to buy a townhome or home here in Utah and will be paying less on a mortgage payment than renting a two bedroom apartment in Camarillo! Here are some pretty shots of Camarillo and the area where we lived. A lot of these were taken with my iPhone, so not the best quality.

A drive I often took going up and down Potrero Canyon to teach piano lessons in Dos Vientos

I loved driving down and seeing the Channel Islands and the beautiful sunset.

There's something very cool about fog.

Our water fountain outside our place

Love the Spanish architecture

The huge field in our community

This is a picture of the almost-completed new pool and gym. This is looking out of our bedroom window. They already had one pool and gym on the other side of the community, but it was going to be so nice right across from us!

Farewell Camarillo, hope to see you soon!

Bryan's Going to Jerusalem!

2010-01-18T10:50:00.000-08:00

Bryan has had many great opportunities with his talent as an artist. He had a Light Source podcast interview by studiolighting.net, he has had his work published in the exclusive Black Book, he has been a VIP spotlight on Dynalite's web site, and he has even been interviewed by a London Photography Magazine, Digital Photographer, to name a few; but I think the latest project he is about to venture on is by far the greatest opportunity and the biggest blessing of his career. He has been chosen by Artist Guild International to be a part of their Art of the Restoration exhibit. To explain what the Artist Guild is, here is what their web site says,

"Artist Guild International is a cooperative of 60 plus outstanding Latter Day Saint Artists. They are commissioned to create a masterpiece in their style of art, based on their own vision and interpretation of a gospel theme, with emphasis on Christ’s ministry for this exhibit. The Buyer’s purchase makes it possible for the artist to have the time to produce the art work that otherwise may not have been created."

You can click the above link to see the other artists who will be working on this exhibit and to read more about each one. Bryan will be traveling to Jerusalem to create this great piece of art early this spring and then the exhibit to display the artists' work will start off in Los Angeles the end of 2010, and then travel to Seattle, Washington; SLC, Utah: Denver, CO; Chicago, Ill.; Nashville, Tenn.; Atlanta, GA; New York City, NY; Washington, D.C.; Paris, France; London, England; Madrid, Spain; and Rome, Italy. I am very excited that he has this opportunity and I know it will be his greatest piece of art!

Family Christmas Newsletter 2009

2010-01-18T10:47:00.001-08:00

I ended up just emailing our newsletter out, I think the day before Christmas. Sorry if I missed anyone.

Beach in December

2010-01-17T15:19:00.000-08:00

Bryan's sister, Jessica, came home for Christmas break and she came with our family to the beach, and for some kayaking. It was a PERFECT day: nice weather, no wind.

Christmas 2009

2010-01-17T14:14:00.001-08:00

We had a wonderful Christmas, and hopefully the boys will have great memories when they get older of spending the night at Grandpa and Nana Niven's house. Here are some pictures from Christmas........

Helping Nana with the flannel board story of the Nativity on Christmas Eve.

These boys are very tired on Christmas Eve and ready to go to bed!

And the grand finale............ Barbara got us all matching Team Edward pajamas that we got to open on Christmas Eve......too funny!

Gingerbread Girl Play

2010-01-17T13:55:00.000-08:00

Ethan's kindergarten class put on a "Gingerbread Girl" play that was so cute! Ethan chose to be a goat for the play. All the kids did a fantastic job, you can really tell they must have practiced it quite a bit. Here's a video of Ethan's part with the other goats.....

Here are a few pics...

Thanksgiving 2009

2010-01-17T13:20:00.000-08:00

I didn't take any pictures on Thanksgiving since I forgot my camera, but I got a few on my iPhone and a few from Bryan. We went over to Bryan's parents and had a very yummy dinner and a great time visiting Bryan's Great Aunt and Uncle who I met for the first time. Earlier, the boys helped Grandpa put up the lights and even got to ride on Grandpa's firetruck he made when Bryan was little.

Posting Away

2009-11-17T22:28:00.001-08:00

Wow! Four posts in one night! I'm on a roll.....actually I'm just sick and should be resting in bed. So this will be a short one. My husband just finished his latest Reality Shoot image of the Hopkins family. Check it out here.

This is Halloween......

2009-11-17T21:45:00.000-08:00

Bryan decided the kids were old enough (?) to watch "Nightmare Before Christmas", (his personal favorite Halloween show), and now both of them have been marching around singing, "This is Halloween, This is Halloween...." I should have got that on camera. Anyway, we had a fun Halloween.

This pumpkin was the one Ethan picked from the pumpkin patch for his school field trip, and he let Daddy carve it for him.

Last year Ethan was Buzz and Austin was Spiderman. This year Ethan was able to reuse his costume and Austin dressed up as Woody.

Ethan is trying to show Austin how to push his "power buttons." The fun of having boys......everything is about superheroes and pushing their power buttons.

This next one cracks me up......for some reason Austin is holding his hat in a way that reminds me of some musical where the cowboy is singing to his lady. And Austin loves to sing!

These next two are from Ethan's Halloween party and parade at school.

Field Trip Fun

2009-11-17T21:30:00.001-08:00

One thing I like about Ethan's school is the high parental involvement. I enjoy going in once a month and teaching them about the Composer of the Month, and I also get to help out occasionally with centers, activities, and field trips. Hmmm..... I guess that's why I'm even busier now with Ethan in school. We've already gone on two field trips, and they have another one planned in a few weeks. The first field trip was to an Apple Farm in Ojai, and the second was to McGrath's Pumpkin Patch here in Camarillo.

The first day of school Ethan met a boy in his class named Joshua, and they have been buddies in school ever since. I guess Joshua has an older brother named Ethan, so he connected with him right away.

Off To School

2009-11-17T21:15:00.000-08:00

Ethan turned 5 in July and started Kindergarten in August. He's almost been in school now for three months and is really enjoying it......except for the part where he has to wake up early and get ready. We are still struggling with that. Here are a few pictures of his first few days.....

Handing in his name tag at the end of the day.....
Austin was so funny the first week or so. He insisted I pack him a lunch and was very disappointed that he couldn't stay with "E-E" as he calls him.

There is a really fun park next to Ethan's school that I would take Austin to every day the first week as he adjusted to his brother being at school. Now he calls this park "my preschool."

Summer Fun

2009-11-15T19:13:00.000-08:00

I am a little slow at getting this up, but here are a few of the fun things we did this summer.

Ethan turned 5 in July and got this Tony Hawk bike for his birthday.

I think this next picture is hilarious. From the left is Gavin, Bailey, Austin, and Ethan. Gavin and Bailey are my twin sister's kids. They live in Utah and came for a visit in August. Bailey is making a peace sign with her fingers and Austin is trying to figure something out with his. ;)

Ethan surprised me on this next one. I didn't think he would want to try the zip line, but he didn't want to stop!

Days at the beach.......

Fun rides in Bryan's kayak....

Pirate Days

at Channel Islands Harbor

Santa Barbara Natural Museum

Butterfly Exhibit

with Kami, Ian, and Quintin

Ian and Ethan

Wings Over Camarillo

It started out to be very windy, but not for long. We had fun watching all the planes.

Wish I Were a Farmer

2009-10-24T06:55:00.000-07:00

As I plan out my day of things to get done, I realize I am going, going, going from early morning hours until after the kids have gone to bed and I am struggling to keep my eyes open. And while I have thought of several blogs in my head that I could post, I have not found the time to actually 'blog' them.

Seeing my husband's latest work of art, (and also going with my son on a fieldtrip to an organic farm yesterday), makes me wish I were a farmer. Some people would disagree and say, "but then you have to wake up at the crack of dawn." Since I currently wake up at 5:00 a.m., which to me is the crack of dawn, I naturally started to compare the pros and cons of being a farmer.....okay, maybe just the pros. Instead of waking up extremely early to sit in front of a computer, typing speedily away at doctor's clinic notes, hoping to find some time for some physical exercise, I would be able to go outside for most of the day and enjoy nature with the bonus of physical exercise, a sun tan, and growing our own food. Sounds good to me. :)

With that thought in mind, click below to see Bryan's latest image he created for XanGo's Go Magazine:

Bryan's new image

Underwood Family Farms

2009-08-12T15:38:00.001-07:00

This summer we have had a fun time going with friends different places. One of the places we have gone to is the Underwood Family Farms. We've gone to the Moorpark location twice and Somis location once and had a great time! The kids got to pick strawberries and blueberries, see goats, horses, pigs, etc., ride a little train, and go on a tractor-pulled ride. I'm always taking pictures of my kids and I'm never in the pictures, so thanks Jen for taking this one of us!

Ethan's 5th Birthday

2009-08-02T20:14:00.000-07:00

For those of you who don't know, Disneyland is letting you go for free on your birthday this year. We decided it would be a good time to take Ethan for the first time, and also because Austin was free, since he is under the age of 3. We were hoping to get there early, but had a rough morning and didn't get there until noon, but we made up for it by staying until midnight! We had a fun time and I'll share a few pics here, but if you want to see more I post all my pictures on a site my cousin created called Louish Kids. So you can go here to check them out if you'd like: http://www.louishkids.com/4.1795.louish The night after Disneyland, Ethan was lucky to have both his grandparents over for cake and ice cream! He had a great birthday!

God Gave Us Families

2009-07-24T07:33:00.000-07:00

I am currently serving as a primary teacher and I'm really enjoying it. I especially like Sharing Time and singing all the primary songs, maybe even more than the kids ;) Ethan is in Sharing Time as well, but he sits in front of me and so I never know if he is singing the words. Recently the Primary Presidency gave all the kids a CD with all the songs they will be singing for the Primary Program in the fall. We love listening to it and it's a great way for them to learn the words! I am pleased to report he does know the words, well most of them. I know I just posted a video of Ethan singing, but I couldn't resist this one. He is such a cutie! He's just singing the chorus here. To get him going I have to say the first word, so he starts off "......gave us families." Turn up your volume, he's singing pretty quiet. It's kind of early to tell, but I am hoping the boys get Bryan's genes for singing and not mine!

Succumbed Blogger

2009-07-16T16:21:00.000-07:00

Well, I've succumbed to the blogging madness. I promised a couple of people before I moved that I would start a blog and now it's nine months later! I don't know how often I will be able to keep it up, but better late than never, I guess. One of the setbacks of starting a blog was where to start. I've decided to post a video of my boys singing, "I'm So Glad When Daddy Comes Home." I guess it's really just Ethan singing with a little encouragement from Austin. Then if I feel so inclined to add things from the past, I will, AND CAN, because this is MY blog. :) Hope you enjoy!