Good News!

I am officially out of my first trimester of pregnancy and feeling much relief! Today I had my second appointment with my doctor and listened to the heart beat again. I can't tell you how reassuring it is to hear that little swish-swish. I wish I had my own Doppler machine at home where I could listen to it anytime I wanted to! Four weeks ago, I had an Ultrasound and watched our little Peanut's heart beating. Peanut is the nickname that the boys have bestowed on the baby.
Being pregnant in my 30's is a lot different than in my 2o's. Although physically, I definitely feel older and I get tired easier, emotionally for both Danny and I, we are so excited and are feeling a bit more sentimental about this pregnancy. Probably because it will be our last, and we want to enjoy every minute of it. Except for the vomiting.
Our baby is due on March 10th and we will find out the gender in October. So, I will be posting updates! But, please send us all of your positive energy and prayers for a happy, healthy safe pregnancy and baby!

A Busy, Fun Saturday! Did I mention we met Floyd Landis?

On Saturday, Danny and I loaded up the kids to go watch Stage 5 of the Tour of Utah. We cheered at the finish line as all the riders came in and then we decided to take a walk up by where all the team cars were sitting. We look over, and we both see Floyd Landis standing by his team car talking to people. Danny and I have been fans of Floyd for years, and it was hard to keep our emotions subdued...we didn't want to seem like the crazy out-of-control fans. Danny walked up to him and said, "Do you mind getting a picture with me and my son?" So, I took their picture and then said, "Can I have my picture taken with you too? I love you too!" and Floyd laughed and said, "Sure." So I pass my camera to Danny and I put my arm around Mr. Landis and he says to me, "Sorry I'm all wet." and I look at him and reply, "It's all good!" and he laughs again and says, "Yes it is!" It was one of those experiences that you get more excited about the more time goes by. He was very nice and I'm so happy we had the opportunity to meet him! After we finished at the Tour of Utah, we headed up to Sandy for the Monster Jam Monster Truck show, featuring "Grave Digger"!

The boys were so amped up. They were cheering and dancing to the extremely loud music...

Look at Jesse's face....he just cracks me up! He kept making his monster truck sound effects, but it makes him look a little constipated or like he has a case of really bad road rage...As you can see, there is no lack of testosterone at our house! Anyhoo, that was our Saturday...it was a great day, but boy, I was exhausted by the time it was over. And hot. And very sticky...

Kickin' It Ranch Style

Last weekend, we had the opportunity to go up to our sister in law Candice's family ranch. So, we borrowed my cousin's trailer (thanks Jason!) and headed down to Fountain Green, Utah to spend the weekend with our family. It only took us about an hour and fifteen minutes to get there, but it was so QUIET and so beautiful it felt like we had gone miles away from the city. Candice's parents Sue and Russ welcomed us with a delicious dutch oven dinner (and Candice made a yummy peach cobbler!) and they showed us around the ranch. Sue has a horse named Andy who performs tricks. We couldn't stop laughing as Andy smiled, bowed and blew raspberries for us! There were also several farm dogs to dote over.

The next day we got up, and we rode a sweet horse named Bow (or Beau). He was very gentle and good to the kids, and we had Uncle TJ to show us around. James kept telling everyone that this was the best camping trip he had ever been on!

Candice's Dad Russ was awesome! He saddled up this little miniature horse named Trouble and took all the kids on a carriage ride. Trouble looks like a slow sausage with short legs, but her looks are very deceiving. She can run! And Fast! Plus, Trouble was aptly named...she had quite an attitude! You could see in her eyes that she thought she was the biggest horse in the corral.

Up the road from the ranch was a Fish Hatchery, so we took the kids over there to check out the rainbow and albino trout. The kids found fish food, and when they threw the food in with the fish, they created a feeding frenzy and the fish would jump and splash around.



The ranch had a great play area for the kids. They especially LOVED the tire swing, and anyone who had the opportunity to be the "pusher" got a full body workout!

It was so fun to spend time getting to know our family better and just hanging out and relaxing with everyone! Thanks for inviting us! We had a blast!

Cecret Lake

One of my favorite places to go in August, is up to Albion basin to see all the wild flowers in bloom. My mom and I took the kids up to Cecret lake for a picnic. It's a great hike for kids because it's long enough that you actually feel like it was a real hike, but it's not so long or steep that it's difficult for them to finish. The only problem is, is that it has become a fairly popular hike, so when we pulled up to the guard station at the top of Little Cottonwood Canyon, we were not surprised to hear that the parking lot was full. But my mom and I decided that we would drive up there anyway, and that we would use all of our positive thinking and will a parking space to be open just for us. Well, the positive thinking worked, because we got the LAST spot at the trail head parking, and there was a line of 3 cars behind us! We started up the trail and we were so excited to be up there. It smells so good, and the wildflowers did not disappoint. We had timed it just perfect and almost everything was in bloom. As we got up the trail to where you can see the small mountain you climb up and over to get to the lake, a new waterfall was cascading down the rocks. Jesse loves waterfalls, so he was so excited about the "surprise waterfall". We ate lunch at the lake and watched all the tadpoles swimming and the pot guts begging food off of hikers. On our way down the trail, James and my sister Carly got a little bit ahead of us, and James, who is my little rock climber, scaled this huge boulder and was perched on top like he was the king of the mountain. I yelled down the trail to him and said, "James, you wait till I get there to help you!" And my mom, who was in close proximity to James, heard him reply under his breath with a great big eye roll, "Oh, for the love of God!" It's so nice to know that I am turning into the voice of reason that he so completely respects!!! But, he waited until I got there to get him down...not that he needed my help....it was more for my own peace of mind. We managed to get everyone down to the car safely and decided that it was a perfect day for snow cones, so we headed down the canyon for a sweet treat. It was a great afternoon!