The Booners

Oregon Coast and he 4th of July

2011-09-05T08:09:00.000-07:00

Triplets

2011-05-18T22:16:00.001-07:00

Camille, my friend, took these darling pictures! She and another friend also had baby girls just within 2 weeks of when Lizzy was born. We got together today and she took these. She also crocheted the diaper covers and made the bows.

Aren't they such angels? (Yes the angelic sumo wrestler on the right is Lizzy..)

Mothers Day and Portland

2011-05-18T21:47:00.001-07:00

Multnomah Falls

James had a continuing ed course in Portland, so we made it a family trip. The drive was amazing. We witnessed winter turn into spring in a few hours as we drove up north on Highway 97 and along the Columbia River. We stopped by Multnomah Falls, a fish hatchery, and drove over several bridges just for the fun of it.

On Saturday while James was gone, me and the children went to the Zoo. While not even coming close to the Henry Dorley Zoo in Nebraska, it was wonderful in its own right, and it was fun to see the animals again. It was my first go at being in public with 3 children, and all in all, it went well. I have to publicly thank the penguins for entertaining the boys for a good 30 minutes while I nursed Lizzy for the first time in public.

My cousin, Mark Ray, and his family were so kind to have us over for dinner and an evening that James was gone. I was especially thankful, since the hotel we price lined ended up being VERY small. I was inittially excited to spend some hotel time with the children. Hmm, not the best idea.... I ended up almost having a nervous break down with all of us couped up in a 15ft by 15ft room, and no where to hide Lizzy or myself. It's amazing what 2 little boys can get themselves into in just 20 minutes of mommy nursing time in a hotel room! All I can say is 'sorry' to the person who cleaned the room up after us.

We got to see (and touch) the Portland Temple. It was just beautiful! You never would have guess by this cute picture that the mother of the family had a nervous break down 2 hours prior. Thank heavens for 'two hours'. There are many 'two hours' that occur in my life that I am very thankful for. And I'm thankful that children are so Christlike that they only need 2 minutes to forget about a raunchy mother. I wish so many times I could be more like them.

This is back at home. Sometimes Peter and I take pictures and then sing "If you chance to meet a frown." Seeing a picture of himself sad sometimes helps him be happy. It worked this morning.

What is more heavenly than sleeping with a child? It is one of the most rewarding times as a mother. James came home from work during the day and found ALL of us asleep at the same time. He snapped this picture (above).

James made the most delicious (and attractive) egg omelet I think I have ever had for Mother's Day. I am so grateful to be a mother. It has never been as joyful as it is now. It is neat to see the children grow in love for another human being.

Elizabeth

2011-04-26T20:13:00.000-07:00

What is more precious that a new little angel from heaven? Despite the busyness of having two little energetic boys, there has been such a calm and warm spirit in our home since Lizzy's arrival. We are so very thankful to have her here. She is an angel. When an unnamed son was throwing a fit during FHE, and a mother was trying to control an even more raging inner-fit, James handed Lizzy to the 'fit'ting boy, and the fit stopped cold turkey. It is nice to always have a warm sympathic little baby to snuggle up to any hour of the day. There is already a flicker of sadness as I recognize she is getting bigger and these sweet moments will not be staying forever. So, we just try to squeeze in every quiet moment we can with her.

April

2011-04-26T19:45:00.001-07:00

It was WONDERFUL to have General Conference the first week of Lizzy's life. We dressed her up for the first time to attend Conference in our office (you will notice the rest of us were wearing PJ's...) What could be more relaxing, rejuvinating, humbling, and happy-fying than holding a beautiful, week old, doll in a rocking chair while listening to General Conference for 8 hours.

The boys set up their tent in the office where our computer was, and we read in Mosiah about opening the doors of our tent to the prophet. Did they have animal crackers in 500bc?

Dad, Amanda and Seth came to visit the 2nd week in April. Boy, were they a life saver! I took 2-3 naps a day. Dad made every meal, breakfast, lunch, and dinner, they played with the boys a ton, gave Lizzy lots of love, and pampered me big time. At one point, Seth was giving me a hand massage, Amanda was painting my finger nails on the other hand, and dad was reading something to me, all at the same time! We had so much fun together, and I was VERY sad to see them go. So were the boys. Easter was wonderful this year! A highlight was coloring easter eggs (and fingers.. Peter chose the finger dipping method over the medal spoon.) We participated in the community Easter Egg Scramble. Boy was it that! The boys barely managed to each get one Easter Egg. James is already planning strategies for next year's scramble. So am I... not going, and doing our own at home w/ boiled eggs and NO candy!

The boys continue to love Elizabeth. Andrew is getting good at holding her for a few minutes at a time, just long enough for me to change a quick Peter diaper. They love to play 'conductor' where they wave her hands around while singing songs. Lizzy sleeps with her arms above her head probably 90 percent of the time. It is very cute.
Lizzy sleeps with her arms above her head probably 90 percent of the time. It is very cute.

a

Baby Lizzy

2011-03-31T21:04:00.000-07:00

Elizabeth Jane Boone

Our sweet little Lizzy Jane was born at
1:04am on March 28th. It was such a sweet experience getting here! It was a peaceful Sunday. It snowed all day, and when we got back from church, James built us a nice, warm fire. We all ended up falling asleep in the livingroom by the fire (except Peter, who was down stairs in his crib). Since we slept so late, we had a late dinner around 7:30, which James cooked. Apparently he had the touch, because I started having contractions during dinner. It was neat to be in labor at home with the boys. We had the lights off, and just our light wedge on (a flashlight for books), and James read the boys books for a long time. I just paced the floor over and over again. Peter held my hand and walked with me for a good 10 minutes. It was so cute! We called a friend, Tammy Asay, to come be with the boys while we left for the hospital. The drive was just so beautiful, all snowy and quiet. We checked into the hospital around11pm, and she came to us at 1:04am. She was WIDE awake for the first 2 hours. Even nursing, she stayed wide awake. She weighed 6 lbs 14oz, 19 1/2 inches long, the PERFECT size. It is just a treat to hold her every moment. It is so hard to lay her down. I couldn't get to sleep until 5:30am that morning, because I was just filled with such excitement and happiness to have a sweet little princess of my very own. James is such a wonderful dad already, although when he did a chest bump with her the other day, I had to remind him she is a GIRL. Andrew and Peter adore her! I was a little surprised by this. It sure is nice that the brothers have each other, so they don't feel so 'replaced.' The boys loved the jello in the hospital almost as much as their baby sister. Coming home from the hospital was wonderful. Andrew didn't leave the bedroom for a good hour. He watched intently as I nursed her the first time, but didn't ask any questions. He loves to throw her diapers away. Peter loves to give kisses to Lizzy Jane, and continues to point out body parts to us. "Oh! A nose a nose!" "Oh, a ear a ear!" It feels like our family is complete. We are so happy to have her in our family. James is taking good care of me, and our ward has been so incredible to help care for the boys and cook meals while James works half days. We just feel so blessed. Thank you so much for all of your prayers. We know they've been heard. We're so excited for my dad and sister Amanda and brother Seth to come in 9 days!

It's tradition for James to pick out the going home outfit. Andrew thought it was "so cute!"

Christmas and Winter

2011-03-31T20:42:00.001-07:00

2011-03-31T20:39:00.000-07:00

Fall

2011-03-31T20:32:00.000-07:00

Trains

2011-03-26T08:15:00.000-07:00

We had a fantastic Saturday adventure about an hour away at "Train Mountain" in Chilloquin, OR. We had our own driver who took us on an hour long train ride.

Andrew came up with the idea of creating the "Thomas-Tiger Restaurant". We made Train menus, and Andrew cheuffered James from the garage to the restaurant on one of his trains. (Yes, a tight squeeze for James.) Andrew was the waiter and it was so cute to watch him write down in his notebook little drawings of what James ordered.

The Children's Museum here in Klamath Falls has a fun train table and display.

Hill Mulford Family Reunion 2010

2011-03-25T15:01:00.000-07:00

Yea for being together!!!!

Some of us got to go to the Temple.

We rented a big house in Kentucky, a central location for all of us Hills, and had so much fun together. It was on 6 acres, and we had a huge lawn and swimming pool to play in.

We had some good one on one time with Andrew and Peter too.

Nerf guns were a HIT!

Preparing for the water balloon gauntlet!

Aaron and Jenny were AMAZING and brought their 3 day old baby to the reunion. Jenny stayed in the 'guest house', and Courtney made a grand appearance outside for family pictures. She is such an angel.

The cousins!

Playing games was such a blast during the reunion... Thuns and Taxis, Ticket to Ride, Take Two, Guitar Hero, Carcasonne... Etc...

Jeff made some homemade bubble mixture. The kids LOVED it!!!!

Silly Uncle Ryan

Every morning we would get together for a family devotional in the big play room

Each sibling was in charge of planning a childrens activity. Ours was a music activity. The children were absolutely scared out of their pants when we did a live enactment of "Going on a Bear Hunt." It concluded in a dark basement with a real live creature under a blanket. Two children were shedding real tears, and the others were pretty scared. It was just Grandpa, and we felt bad that they really thought there was a bear in KENTUCKY of all places. :)

Welcome to Klamath Falls!

2011-03-22T19:35:00.000-07:00

This is Klamath Falls! On our first Saturday in our new home, which happened to be July 4th, we went on a morning hike up "Hog's Back", the hill right above Klamath Falls.

Here's a view of the Basin where we live.

Mt. Shasta is in the background. It has snow on it year round.

The Lake in the background is Klamath Lake, the largest lake in Oregon... and probably the dirtiest... But it sure is beautiful!

There were SO many wildflowers.

It's hard to see, but on James' finger is a frog. The evening this photo was taken, the boys were for some reason having a hard time falling asleep. When we went in to check on them, there was a frog in Peter's bed! We have NO clue how it got there.

Our first experience camping in Oregon was a bloody one.... There were SOOOOO many moscquitos! But luckily there are no holes in our tent, and we had plenty of wood to make a huge fire. This is Cold Springs, close to Sky Lakes Wilderness Area.

This is one of the Lakes....

A few weeks later we went to Shasta Lake. Our friends came up a day early, and as they were driving the boat to the campsite, they saw a black bear SWIMMING across it! They waited for it to cross, then kept on coming!

Our wonderful friends, Miya and Ty, and Tyler and Zane.

On the way back from Shasta Lake we stopped at the coolest Motel!!! It was a Motel made out of real cabooses! IT was so fun to walk around. IN the back ground is Castle Crags.

Welcome to Oregon!

Fairwell Village Green

2011-03-11T12:32:00.000-08:00

What is Village Green? Village Green is... People you love...

The zoo....

Walks over I-80... watching semis zoom underneath you...

Adventures with little friends and big friends...

Parties at the Institute Building....

Making the best of friends... (and going to Omaha events like Olympic swim Trials, amazing concerts, arena football and Creighton Basketball Games, Running races, Creighton Intermurals... etc. etc. etc...)

Music Class...

Baby showers...

And more baby showers... and more baby showers...

Realizing that the present sure beats the past (even high school sports!)

Playing with little friends any time, any day...

And a whole lot more!!!!

Good Bye Omaha

2011-03-11T12:08:00.001-08:00

This is our last lunch in Omaha on a beautiful June afternoon. It wasn't even too hot!

James did an amazing job fitting all of our stuff into 10 feet of this truck. The Elders Quarum was so helpful in loading it all up.

Sky Lakes paid for our move, and we were so thankful that we could use ABF, so we didn't have to worry about driving a big truck.

After we waved good-bye to all of our stuff in the truck, we went to the Botanical Gardens one last time. It was nice and relaxing knowing we had already checked out of our townehouse and all we needed to do was hop in our car and be off to Oregon!

Our first stop to Oregon was Ames, Iowa. Oops! A little out of the way. :) We met up with Aaron and Jenny, and Jason and Rachel. It was HOT, and we sure enjoyed going swimming.

This is Andrew buying a REAL LIVE train ticket! Earlier that month, he had sold bird seed at the Village Green Yard Sale and earned enough money for a "Scenic Ride on the Boone Railroad." Hmm... it ended up not being too scenic, VERY hot, and VERY slow, but we made a memory, and I think we're glad we did it.

These pictures were taken in the minivan on the way to the Grouts trying to keep Andrew and Spencer awake. It worked. Good job James.

Our next stop was Park City, UT, where I got to play in a lacrosse tournament with my sister Emily! What a treat! It was pretty humbling putting a stick back in my hand and playing with her, since she is leaps and bounds ahead of me, but it was so fun to play with her and all of her BYU cougar teammates. Next, we stayed in Utah Valley for a few days, and then headed to Klamath Falls, OR, our new home! A highlight of our drive was stopping in Winnemucca, NV and bowling.

Graduation and Family - May 2010

2011-03-08T20:26:00.000-08:00

Yipee! Finally...a paycheck (I mean, graduation). :) We were so glad to have so much family come to celebrate with us.

Of course, I couldn't have done it without Abby. She kept me in line.

Barbara and Aared and family came too!

Nathan came too. I can't tell you how much that meant to me (James). Thanks Nathan!

Father and Mother came too. And they brought their ping pong skillz! :) I'm not quite sure Aared was able to return this one. But I wouldn't count out his cat-like reflexes. Like Mother's pose?

Priceless moments.

Eating together...isn't it about...FOOD? :)

Jimmy Mouse never gets old for the young, or the old for that matter (I still like it - James). We were so glad to have my parents come and support us. The grandchildren were especially glad.

We also went to the Henry Doorly Zoo, and, of course, had a great time.

Winter Quarters Temple, Omaha, NE. We were so blessed to have lived so close to a temple. More blessed for having gone to it. :)

Mormon Trail Center visit was fun, as always.

Kissin' Kuzinz... Courtney, Camilla, and Andrew. I think we should eat outside more often. Clean-up is much easier.

Again, at the gardens...how cute!

Barbara and James, reminiscing at Winter Quarter Temple grounds....

I think they could have made it!

James and Andrew "accidentally" fell asleep in their tunnel/cave

James' classmates and professors...good memories.

Omaha Botanical Gardens

2011-02-02T14:29:00.001-08:00

Nearly every spring morning, the boys and I would walk next door to the Botanical Gardens.

Happy 3rd Birthday to Andrew

2010-11-12T13:18:00.000-08:00

Andrew chose Lucky Charms for his birthday cereal.

Andrew had a Choo-Choo train birthday party. First, James read stories from a Thomas the Train book he got earlier that day from Grandma and Grandpa Boone

Next, the children decorated their own choo-choo train.

Then we went for a train ride!

The highlight of the party was playing "where is Thomas". One child would leave the room, while another would hide Thomas. Then we'd chant for the other child to come back. They would come back and look for Thomas. They played it over and over, and LOVED it. Andrew is lucky to have such fun friends. We will miss them a lot!

Earlier that day, James helped Andrew decorate a train cake.

We became hooked on whip-cream as frosting.

Andrew got a basketball hoop for his birthday. He loves to play basketball with his Papa. We love our Andrew. He adds so much energy, enthusiasm and excitement to life. He gives such sweet hugs, and is getting to be such a good older brother. Happy Birthday!

Peter's 1st Birthday

2010-07-20T14:21:00.000-07:00

Peter's first birthday was a blast! It was a little tough for Andrew to understand, but he was pretty good. Peter DUG into his birthday cake with no hesitancy. We all laughed, especially Andrew.

Andrew was a big help opening presents.

Peter, you are a joy to our family! You are laid back, calm, peaceful, happy, smiley, and forgiving. You are a good sleeper and enjoy sharing a room with Andrew. You love to throw your food, bite objects, and put EVERYTHING in your mouth, including lady bugs. We are so glad you are part of our family!

A job on the horizon

2010-07-12T15:47:00.000-07:00

In December during our Christmas break, we left the boys with James' parents, and James and I flew to Klamath Falls, OR for James' first job interview. We loved the small community, the mountains and lakes, the job, the clinic, and especially the co-workers James would be working with. All in all, it felt great. It was SO fun to just be with each other. The plane that flew into Klamath Falls was TINY! It is by far the tiniest plane I've ever ridden on.

This is a picture of Crater Lake National Park from the airplane. It's about an hour north of Klamath Falls.

Yea for getaways! We were so thankful for James' parents and for Mary, James' sister, for watching the children. We are definitely more committed to taking more time for each other.

Then, in January, we flew to Lawton, Oklahoma for our 2nd interview. We were very excited to see Matt and Melissa Godfrey, our good friends from Creighton. We got stuck in Dallas because there was a gigantic ice storm in Lawton.

We spent a night in Dallas, then rented a car and drove to Lawton the next morning.

We stopped in Wichita Falls, where James family lived many years ago.

When we got to Lawton, we were shocked! It really was hit hard.

This is the main road the hospital was on where James was to interview. Well, needless to say, the whole town was basically shut down. The Godfreys didn't have electricity the entire time we were there. Fortunately, they were VERY prepared, and even had a generator, so we, unlike much of the town, had a little light. But, no heat. :) It was very fun, very primitive, and very, very memorable.

Dinner at Outback. It was good, but didn't compare to the beans and rice Melissa made Sunday night (using the generator and a flashlight!)

Bath-time with the lantern.

Good times!

Christmas 2009

2010-07-07T13:23:00.000-07:00

Andrew got to lead the pack this year! Pretty exciting.

Andrew tried out Eva's new PJ's.

The highlight of Christmas Day was playing games! Seth got Monopoly from Santa Claus, so the boys (Great-Grandpa Hill, Grandpa Hill, James, Seth, and Andrew) had some bonding time while the girls had some bonding time puzzling over the puzzle.

Aunt Sarah and Aunt Emily working away

Uncle Seth and James

We were lucky to stay at the Boone's for a lot of the time. It was amazing to have them all to ourselves, and not need to share them with the missionaries at the MTC.

Peter and Colleen really hit it off!

So did Andrew and Camilla

A highlight with the Boones was swimming at the Lehi city swimming pool. The Sampsons, McDaniels, Adam, Father and Mother all came.

We were happy to come home to Omaha. We were especially happy that all of our stuff from our 6 month adventure to Idaho fit in, on, and around our car. It's amazing that you really need very little to be happy. It was fun to go through all of our things in the house after arriving home. Being used to such few things in Idaho, it was VERY easy to donate things to Goodwill. We probably took 3 large trips to the thrift store.

Beautiful icicles on our bush

The Aaron and Jenny Hills were visiting in Omaha for the New Years. We had a memorable trip to the zoo on a cold, windy day. The high that day was -2, with a wind chill of -22. Boy, did the Lied Jungle feel good after running frantically from our minivan inside. One evening at the Bylunds (in Omaha), we attempted several times to put Andrew and Spencer to sleep in separate bedrooms. Finally, we all gave up, and just left the boys downstairs by themselves in the same bed. We went upstairs to play games. We heard laughter every once in awhile. But then it was silent! We went downstairs to find both boys asleep together. How cute!

Snow...snow...snow

2010-07-06T15:12:00.000-07:00

We had a bit of a scare as we searched for our perfect Christmas tree. Dasha and Davie, the dogs, came with us. They were out exploring. All of a sudden they ran straight past us at lightning speed and heading toward home. Their tails were not wagging, and they were not barking. They were obviously scared of something and heading for home. Our search for a perfect Christmas tree quickly ended as we found our ALMOST perfect tree. James chopped it down, and we SWIFTLY hiked home with sled and tree in hand!

Our kind neighbors allowed us to chop one of their trees down for Christmas. It was so neat to just walk out of our front door and walk a few hundred yards to the backyard and choose a tree.

Yes, he is really holding the tree!

One of our daily morning activities was sledding during Peter's nap time. How fun to have our very own sledding hill for a few months.

There were so many GOOD people we met and loved in Grangeville. We will miss them tremendously, and hope to never forget their warm hearts and open arms. This is the Perin family over for a little Sunday evening which we shared music together.

This is Helen. She was an angel mother to me for the 5 months we were there. We got to play music together at the Nursing Home. There were a lot of other wonderful families, but unfortunately we don't have pictures of everyone. The ward was incredible. We loved watching BYU football games at the Lutz' and Peterson's homes as well. Oh, we will miss Grangeville so so much.

Father and Mother visit!

2009-11-29T19:36:00.000-08:00

Dasha and Davy, Andrew's best friends. They are so good with the boys, and we feel safer with them around.

Although, Dasha, the black german shepard has to be locked up at night to protect her from the wolves. She has no fear, so she'd try to take on a pack all by herself if she could.

We're trying to postpone Peter learning to crawl as long as we can so we won't have to worry about the stove. :)

Andrew plays with his trains at least once every day!

A view of Grangeville from the dirt road leading to our home

We were lucky to have James' parents visit us for nearly a whole week! We had such a marvelous time!

Peter couldn't get enough of Grandma Boone's hugs.

Gotta' love Idaho fields...

We visited Dwarshak Dam, the largest of it's kind.

This is a REAL burger! Our nearest Fastfood is 70 miles away, so when you order a burger, you order a BURGER! This one is called the "Lumber Jack." Mother and I ordered the "Lumber-Jill". we split it, and still could barely finish it!

Andrew made us "Scary-Spooky Drink" for our Halloween party. (Rootbeer!)

Splitting wood is a good workout. He who cuts his own wood warms himself twice.

Andrew Joseph with Grandpa Joseph.

Halloween and home

2009-11-29T19:19:00.000-08:00

Andrew was a smoke jumper for Halloween. We rented a truck to go trick-o-treating in style! No, not really. :)
The black is genuine ash from our wood stove. (Nice touch, James)

Part of a smoke jumper's duty is to rid the surrounding area of dangerous varmints.

James took care of the boys ALL day while I played in a community volleyball tournament. For some reason, a day playing volleyball somehow works wonders on my mothering abilities...

They're always cutest right before they go to bed...

Peter and Andrew have worn the same size of diapers as of a few months ago...

We were blessed to go to the Boise Temple in November. It's been tough not living close to a Temple, but sure makes going to the Temple that much more special! We got to stay with Becky Flake Swanger, one of Abby's dear, sweet cousins! Peter dirtied all of is PJ's the first night, so had to borrow some of Emily's...

Now if we have a girl, we know what she'll look like. Pretty cute :)

The Swanger girls!

This is where we live! (The house on the right.) The buildings on the left are just old sheds. Our nearest neighbor is 3/4ths a mile away. We LOVE to sled.

We go outside right before naptime everyday and run up and down the hill to tucker Andrew out.

This day it worked especially well. :) He fell asleep on my shoulder as I was reading him and Peter a book.

This is our snowman family.

Thanksgiving dinner. Yum! We spent the holiday playing football in the morning (James organized it) and the feast and much of the afternoon with the Fosters, the wonderful family we live next to (the house you see in the pictures). We're in a mother-in-law apt. on the side of their house.

We're goin' on a bear hunt

2009-11-29T19:09:00.000-08:00

If you look closely, you'll find a beautiful black bear. We were able to go hunting with some friends in our ward. We tramped around with the hounds, and knew we were close when we accindently stepped in some FRESH scat! The hounds treed the bear. James was a lot closer to the bear than I was when I took this one. What a neat experience to see it so close.
We had a moment of silence, and our friends talked about what a blessing it was that they'd have meat for the winter.

Beautiful animal...taxidermist estimated 350 lbs. That's a big black bear for this part of the country. The taxidermist also said he noticed a number of wolf teeth marks on the hide.

The next weekend we went on our first family business trip to Coeur d' alene where James went to a PT conference. The boys had fun wrestling in the hotel!

Lake Coeur d'alene

Red River Hot Springs

2009-10-04T19:47:00.001-07:00

We had a fantastic weekend near Red River Hot Springs. This is the cute little cabin we stayed in.
The Hot Springs were technically closed and under construction, but we heard no one would mind (or know), so we went anyway. :)

There was a fun innertube that the boys enjoyed playing in, especially Andrew.

Notice our happy smiles... RIGHT before Andrew said.....

"Look at that! A snake!" (I guess it pays when you don't pay!)

Our sweet 80 year old hostess of the cabins let Andrew and James take a little spin on her 4 wheeler.

Peter's a good little sitter these days.

We love Idaho!

We met a man that was training for the Iditarod. He hooks his dogs up to his 4-wheeler since there isn't snow yet, and runs them into the ground every day. He trains his Alaskan Huskies for a living! We LOVED listening to his dogs all night, especially knowing they were tied up, AND that we were in a cabin, not a tent...

September Family Doings

2009-10-04T19:32:00.000-07:00

Andrew and Peter have lots of fun playing in the "box," or "kitchen," as Andrew calls it. He cooks mommy many a fancy food.

The next four pictures are at the Grangeville Farmers Market on a beautiful Saturday morning. Abby and her fiddling group played for an hour or so. James and the boys spent the hour doing a photo shoot of sorts. Shot #1: all together.

#2: Andrew pulling Peter...Peter fell asleep.

#3: Peter...asleep.

#4: Peter waking up... Andrew lookin' for some love.

Abby and I (James) played in a softball tourney on one Saturday with a team made up of hospital employees and spouses. We had a super good time. Abby's batting average would be all star in the MLB. We won third place. (yes, there were more than three teams...)

Am I (James) doing this enough? Like my pretty aprin with "sister-friends..." on it?

This is our wood stove, our only source of heating our place. Here, Andrew puts his (my) gloves on and starts building. He loves "building fires."

"Five Little Monkey's Jumpin' on the Bed- Andrew Style"

Sock Taste Testing

Heaven's Gate and Seven Devils

2009-10-04T19:26:00.001-07:00

This is atop Heaven's Gate Lookout, overlooking Hell's Canyon and Seven Devil's Mtn's. It was a beautiful little hike and view. From this location we could see four states: Idaho, Oregon, Washington and Montana. Neat huh?
Seven Devils layout. (He devil, She devil, The Goblin, The Ogre, and three others I can't remember)

Seven Devils lookout.

Sevel Devils Lake. No, we didn't go swimming in this one...

Smoke Jumpers

2009-10-04T19:18:00.000-07:00

Smoke Jumpers are pretty popular heros out here. We took a tour of their base here in Grangeville. It was pretty cool. This is what they wear when they go fight fires. For those of you reading this that have no idea what they are...they are the first line of defense for forest fires out here. They parachute in and then dig, cut, etc to prevent fires from spreading.
Here is the plane they jump out of. Andrew really liked it.

Then, a week later, Abby and the boys watched them jump and parachute as an exibition for the elementary school. Fun stuff.

Push-ups

2009-09-06T20:07:00.000-07:00

Abby's brother is challenging the family to do 100,000 push-ups by the end of the year. This is James and Andrew puting in their pushups for the day.

It's a bit easier in the river, according to James. I think if I tried to do more than 3, I'd probably suffer from hypothermia! This is the Southfork of the Clear Water River.

Boones in Idaho

2009-09-06T19:44:00.000-07:00

Hi There! This is where I live! Well, over the hill, down about 20 miles, off of the Grangeville Salmon Road.
This is my new wrestling gear with my daddy. We have a hard time getting to bed as early as mom would like, because daddy doesn't get back from the PT Clinic until 7. Oh man, it's late.

Since we live on 100 acres, and don't have neighbors, we go on lots of adventures, like the Idaho County Fair!

The Sheep think they're pretty cool. We have sheep by where we live with some SCARY sheep dogs that scare the cougars away. (I'm not allowed to play outside by myself because of the cougars. I guess I should get an "Andrew" dog, instead of a sheep dog.)

Daddy doesn't have to work on Fridays since he works 4 10 hour days, so on the weekends we like to go camping. This is a picture of the Gospel Hump Wilderness Area and the Frank Church River of No Return Wilderness Area.

Peter and I got to ride in packs into a sub-alpine like. It was BEE utiful.

I even picked huckleberries! Daddy was on the lookout for bears. A few people thought we were crazy to not take a gun.

This is Moores Lake in the background.

We also found some blackberries. Mommy got carried away.

Here I am on a walk on a beach of the Salmon River.

Since the nearest Wal-mart is 70 miles away, we've started ordering diapers by the 400's online. I like Luvs more than Wal-mart's anyway.

But Peter misses the Wal-mart brand.

While mommy was practicing bluegrass music with some new music friends, I rode on a BIG grain truck with Daddy and watched the wheat being harvested. This is a bankout wagon, but the combines were cool too. My neighbor was driving one of them.

I got my first sleeping bag last week!

I actually slept quite well this night.

This is a picture of mom sitting by the Selway River right before I hit her with an apple from a wild apple tree.

The tall grass in this picture is called Snake Grass. It reminds me of the rattle snake I saw just a few hours before this picture was taken. It rattled for me, and was a little scary, since I was only a few feet away.

2009-07-13T13:53:00.000-07:00

Someone talked about teaching children to work in Sacrament Meeting. We've been working on working with Andrew, and it has been VERY fun!

We have also been working on time-outs. Andrew just gets so crancky sometimes. When he does, he goes to time out on the stairs, and then he gets to come back whenever he decides to be happy. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't. It always works for James, but never for Abby...

Ode to April

2009-07-13T13:26:00.000-07:00

One of our favorite places to be is in bed with our kids. Andrew loves 'nugle' time (prounounced snugle without the s...)
We were treated with a visit from James' parents, Joseph and Alisyn Boone

We celebrated Andrew's second birthday while they were here. They took him to the zoo and to the Trail Center. We also had fun going out to eat together, celebrating Easter with each other, and going to the Temple. Abby didn't to the dishes once, thanks to James' Father.

It was so special to see Father and Mother interact with the children in such a sweet way.

Two weeks after that, Abby drove to Utah with the boys for Emily's wedding. It was a tough drive, especially since Andrew threw-up 3 times, and there wasn't any extra help. But we did it, and it sure put into perspective what the pioneers did without cars from Omaha to Utah!!!

Amanda and Andrew having a smiling war.

It was such a joy to spend time with family in celebrating Emily's marriage to Ben Wright. He is such a fantastic guy.

A highlight was the wedding luncheon at Los Hermanos. This is Joshua Hill, and Peter, taking in the aromas at the restaurant.

Aaron and James found the t-shirts in the nick of time... We LOVE specialty drinks from Los Hermanos! Recently a friend, Brian Glazier taught James how to make 3, our favorite being the diablo verde. (I hired James to make them for a relief society book club. YUM!)

Jordon and Ryan doing what they do best!

Uncle Seth with Spencer Hill and Andrew

Before Sarah had to catch her flight home, Abby and her siblings and dad hiked up to the Y to a 'special spot.'

Don't lose hope

2009-07-12T21:21:00.001-07:00

We ARE still alive! Mom gave this lacrosse stick to Andrew, but while he was sleeping, Peter stole it and got some shooting practice in.

March Gladness

2009-04-11T13:18:00.000-07:00

Andrew and Uncle Cam two years ago
Andrew and Peter, two days ago

Andrew has a few 'musts' for night time. His 'choo choo' blanket, his 'a-moh' (animal) blanket that his Aunt Amanda made, his choo choo piwo that his Grapa (really Grandma) Boone made him, and his lion that Aunt Sarah gave him. How 'bout that hair?...let's cut it.

Andrew and Peter are becoming friends! Andrew hits Peter rarely now (we went through a little stage...) and just loves him to pieces. Every time Andrew hear's Peter making a sad sound he exclaims, "Oh! A kiss a kiss." He runs over to him and plants a kiss SQUARELY on his forhead.... One time when Andrew did this, Peter gave him a smile! It happened to be his 2nd authentic smile, and Andrew was excited! Peter smiled again. Of course as the mother, I was VERY jealous because I spend hours a day trying to get him to smile. But at the same time, it was so sweet. :) Andrew loves to 'cuddle' with Peter, which is another hard thing

James has been incredible. A few weeks ago, I played in a Pit for 7 brides for 7 brothers at Pappilion High School. He watched the boys every night for a week, and then he got SICK.. and then he had finals. Poor guy. Here he is asleep. He didn't even wake up when Andrew sat on his lap. But, now he's healthy and happy (because his finals are over. Yeah!)

Sarah, James' sister came to visit for 2 days. We had a wonderful time with her, especially since we got to celebrate her birthday with her.

Andrew's special reading spot. We didn't know this was the case 'til we found him here. Who knows how many times he's done it...

Anatomy 101

2009-03-24T10:15:00.000-07:00

One week old...

2009-03-07T18:32:00.000-08:00

Andrew chose this outfit and the hat this morning.

When Andrew was first born, we thought, how will it ever be possible to have another child and love him as much as we love Andrew? Well, somehow it is possible! It feels so right and complete to have a family of four now. We are so grateful to have two boys! Andrew loves Peter, and gets a big grin on his face everytime he hears Peter. He'll say one of five things: "Happy! Sad... Wake! Beby... Peto!"

Adventures with Grandma Boone

2009-03-07T18:21:00.000-08:00

James' mother came into town for a week to take care of our family. Boy did she! She became a special friend of Andrews, though poor Grandma had to endure being called 'granpa' all week. Mother washed our clothes, fixed our meals, did the laundry, cleaned our house, and best of all loved Andrew to pieces! Here are some things she taught Andrew this week:

What dimples are.

How to make bread

That milk comes from cows, but not these ones, because for some reason, they don't have utters (this is at the Children's Museum)

How to tap out simple rhythms (weekly music class)

If he rides happily in a shopping cart for 2 1/2 hours at Wal-mart, Grandma will make him PJ's out of Choo choo fabric!

How to read!

Thank you SO much mother for everything you did for us! We love you!

2009-03-01T20:11:00.000-08:00

Thanks for the pictures Grandma Boone.

To see Peter's first week from Grandpa Hill's point of view, click on link to right "The Hill Family." There are lots of fun pictures.

Welcome to Earth

2009-03-01T19:41:00.000-08:00

8lbs 3 oz

6:59am

Feb 25

Apgar Scores 9/9

21 inches

Peter Jeffrey

Andrew was hesitant to hold Peter for several minutes, until James said, "Andrew, catch!" He quickly put both hands out, and "caught" the baby.

Grandpa Hill arrived the day before Peter was born. The timing was a tender mercy. Andrew fell in love with Grandpa. The morning after Grandpa Hill left, Andrew brought me two fruit cups. He handed me one and said, "Andrew" and handed me the other and said, "Granpa!"

Pointing to his 'mandible'

Andrew went on a special date with Daddy and chose this outfit for his little brother. (Mommy had to bite her tongue when she saw the non-winter friendly outfit, but we had plenty of blankets...)

Homeward bound!

We were SOOOO excited to go home!

Abby and her wonderful, wonderful 'birthing companion'

Regulation states the carseat handle must be lowered completely down. This required the drivers seat to be pushed all the way forward, making for a tight fit!

Grandpa Hill offering Peter his first stool softner (in the form of a prune). He didn't take it, nor did he need it!

Thank you Grandpa Hill!!!

A little discovery...

2009-02-04T18:16:00.000-08:00

2009-02-01T19:07:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to Emily who is engaged to be married to wonderful Ben Wright on April 23rd in the Timpanogas Temple.
Andrew got some choo choo trains he was pretty excited about! He sees choo choos where ever he goes. It is cute, but sometimes as parents we feel bad and don't know when we should let him know that certain things aren't really choo choos. SHould we teach him, or let him live in a blissful world of choo choos everywhere?

When we got back home from Utah, we got to spend some time with Abby's brother, Aaron and his family. Spencery and Andrew had a great time playing choo choo's and watching the coo coo clock. Their little Joshua was just 3 months old, and such a doll!

It was great spending time with James' parents! We are excited to see them in a few months after our baby is born. They have loved serving in the MTC, but are happy now to be visiting all 9 of their children.

Andrew loved playing Joseph in the nativity (for the second time)

Christmas was delightful! It was especially fun to spend time with Sarah, Abby's sister, and her family. Andrew loved playing with Nathan and Eva.

December w/ Nathan and Julia

2009-02-01T18:53:00.000-08:00

Nathan and Julia and family were SO sweet to take us under their wings for a few weeks while James did a clinical rotation in Cedar City, UT. Andrew LOVED playing with Brooklyn and Courtney.

We were able to celebrate our 3 year Anniversary (without Andrew!) in magestic Zion National Park. It has just snowed about 10 inches, and was breathtaking. We went on a few little hikes, and stayed at a Bed and Breakfast. We were SO grateful to Nathan and Julia for watching Andrew so we could enjoy some couple time. :) Above is Court of the Patriarchs.

This is Weeping Rock

Angel's Landing

It was special to reinacte the nativity with little Andrew. He loved baby Jesus. Luckily, we had two, so both Andrew and Courtney could be Mary. :)

The children loved visiting the St. George temple. An hour we got back, they were building with blocks. Andrew suddenly got a look of epiphany on his face, and said, "Temple! Temple!" So, now whenever he builds a tower with his blocks, he calls it a temple.

Sister Hannah Hill

2009-02-01T18:50:00.000-08:00

Hannah, my dear sister, is leaving tomorrow, Feb. 2nd, to the Czech Republic mission! She is such a good example to all of us, and I love her so much. We are excited for her to preach the gospel.

2008-12-15T07:26:00.000-08:00

Andrew has been trying to learn to count from his cousin Spencer, and is doing pretty good!

Thanksgiving in Colorado

2008-12-11T12:39:00.001-08:00

Thanksgiving was a treat for us this year! We spent it in Colorado Springs w/ 4 of James' siblings: Nathan and Julia, David and Allison (thanks for hosting us!), Adam, and Barbara and Aared. I believe this shot was taken after the men had just completed doing ALL of the thanksgiving dishes. They deserved a rest!

All of us wives were 6 months pregnant... except Allison, bless her heart, who was 8 1/2 months pregnant!! While shopping together on a girls night out trip, a woman was trying to sqeeze past all of us in a dressing room (she ended up not fitting....) She just laughed, and then laughed harder when she found out we were all sister in laws, and that we had two other sister in laws who had just had babies. :) She asked us what kind of water we had been drinking.

Andrew had fun playing in the snow, and didn't want to take off his ski bibs.

Uncle Adam 'training up Andrew in the way he should go...'

Brotherly love in the kitchen can go a long way!

Fairwell to Fall

2008-11-16T19:37:00.000-08:00

It is a blessing to live next door to the Botanical Gardens. Andrew and mommy enjoyed the lovely scenery every day it was nice until the rain hit last week.

Someone's getting tired.

have any good captions for these two pictures?

Happy Halloween

2008-11-02T19:34:00.000-08:00

Of all of the aggresively natured costumes pictured, it's quite ironic it is the candy corn attacking the lion. :) Kids sure are cute dressed up!

A good friend, Angie, took these pictures. Miss Lady bug is one of Andrew's good friends, and they see eachother at least once a day!

Fall Fun

2008-11-02T19:06:00.000-08:00

We had fun attending a barnyard social a few weekends ago. Included was a chili cook-off, square dancing, s'mores, and touching real live horses.

We had the chance to run away to Woodbine, Iowa with some friends, Casey and Bobbi, and enjoying a BEAUTIFUL evening on a lake and some nice scenic walks with Andrew.

COURAGE!

Boo!

2008-10-29T10:08:00.000-07:00

Andrew learned a new word, and loves to use it when he's cuddling with us in bed in the morning, and wants to get our attention. This video is dedicated to his great Aunt Ilene. :)

Half Marathon Half Pregnant

2008-10-14T10:40:00.000-07:00

We did it! We finished the Crazy Horse Half Marathon healthy and happy. Several months ago we decided to run a 1/2 marathon. Then we found out we were pregnant. We kept running, and decided to keep up with our plans. The training was so much fun with our friends the Godfreys, and even more fun running the race with them, and also 6 of Abby's siblings and both parents.

There's nothing like working on a goal as a whole family. It was so satisfying and encouraging to be working together as a team, and a blast to ALL be together!

Our trip to the Black Hills, South Dakota started with an enjoyable drive from Omaha to Kadoka, SD. Sarah, Abby's sister flew from Philly to Omaha, so is was a treat to have her along in the car and talk and talk and talk. Andrew especially LOVED having her along!
We stayed in Kadoka the first night at a cute little hotel w/ the Godfreys. James managed to talk our hotel host into a free room, so we all got beds! Wow, that is something else.

The next morning we visited the Badlands National Park. Wow, the west sure is spectacular.

We went biking and hiking and enjoyed some incredible views, and nice warm hugs.

That evening we met up with the rest of my family from Orem. We all ordered all-you-can eat, and all-you -can-take-home-in-one-doggy-bag pasta dinner. Thanks mom and dad!

Andrew and Gabe had a great time cheering eachother on.

We all stayed together in the same lodge up in the mountains. The Cedars smelled SO good, and the colors were just incredible. Race day morning we got up around 4:30am, stuffed ourselves full of oatmeal, and headed for Crazy Horse Monument were our race started. Melissa and I were thankful to have happy boys along for the adventure, but even more glad to have strong husbands to push the strollers the whole 13.1 miles. Thank you!

Andrew had a luxurious ride. A perk with having a big stroller on a big race is that you can bring all the warm clothes you want, and shed them as you go. Hopefully Andrew was okay with that.

Right before the race.

Cute Godfreys getting pumped for the race.

Sisters Hannah and Sarah crossing the finish line. Sarah was lucky enough to get two different finish times, since she crossed twice. We were SOOO proud of Hannah for kicking her knees into shape for this race. She's had two knee surgeries, and has been so tough and determined. We love her, and are going to miss her terribly when she leaves on Dec. 3rd for Prauge, Chezck Repbulic, where she'll share the gospel of Jesus Christ for 18 months. But we are so happy for her.

We had a fun ride back to our lodge from the race finish in a VERY comfy bus.

Mt. Rushmore was breathtaking. Did you know Thomas Jefferson started on the left side of George Washington?

Sarah, Abby's sister

Missing Mama

2008-09-28T18:41:00.000-07:00

This is a picture a friend, Angie Despain, took (our favorite photographer!) while Andrew was playing with Lucy, Angie's cute little girl. Sometimes it is natural for me to be concerned about Andrew being too 'clingy'. Well, yesterday, James and I talked about a lot of different parenting concerns and questions, and we both decided it's better to have a child that loves you 'too much' than too little. So, instead of being concerned about Andrew loving me 'too much', I'll just love him all I can, and not worry when I see pictures of him like this gazing out the window...

lunch?

2008-09-22T20:48:00.000-07:00

The day this video was taken, Andrew had awakened at 3:30am, and not gone back to bed. The video was taken at lunch time while I was grocery shopping. After 'lunch', James tried to put Andrew down for a nap. He was AMAZED when Andrew couldn't fall asleep, even though he had got up at 3:30 that morning! After James showed me this video, I told him it was clearly because of his 'lunch full of sugar.' James response: "Sugar? Oh, is there sugar in homeade strawberry jam? I thought it was just mashed up strawberries." Oh dear.....

Nauvoo and family

2008-08-08T11:25:00.000-07:00

We were so blessed to attend the temple while we were in Nauvoo, on Pioneer Day. We walked along the Trail of Hope near the Mississippi River in the morning, and then each attended the Temple. What an incredible experience. We are so thankful for the early Saints who sacrificed all they had.

Beautiful temple grounds

From Nauvoo we traveled Champaign, IL to visit Aaron (Abby's brother) and Jenny and Spencer. Andrew and Spencer had SUCH a good time together!

Wow, what self control not to jump on such an incredibly fun looking object!

Who's trying to hold who's hand?

One of our hopes on our trip was to see a great lake. Well, boy did we! We camped at Indiana Dunes and had NO idea it would seem JUST like the ocean without the salt. It was just beautiful. We had PB & J on the beach in the evening during the sunset. How romantic! Andrew had a blast too. We highly recommend this destination. The water was nice and warm too. The waves were the perfect intensity for us.

From Indiana to Ann Arbor Michigan, we stopped at the College Football Hall of Fame (James' and Andrew's pick). It ended up being a LOT of fun! We drove by Notre Dame and chanted for Rudy.

It was a blast visiting Jeff (Abby's brother) and Jenny, and their three boys Jeffrey, Jonny, and Benjamin. Ben taught Andrew how to jump off the couch! Andrew went fishing for the first time with his cousins, and we caught six rainbow trout! Yum.

Andrew enjoyed wearing the headlamp while camping. He did great sleeping in his pack n play in the crib too! He slept all night for our 4 nights (2 in nauvoo, one on lake michigan, on near Kirtland) of camping exept once, when he decided to snuggle with his Mom in her sleeping bag. BOY was it TOASTIE!

Kirtland, Ohio was an incredible experience. What a historical, spiritual place. We also visitied the John Johnson Farm (above). Here we are standing on the very step (original) that the prophet Joseph Smith preached from the morning after he was pulled from his bed in Hiram, Ohio, and tarred and feathered....nine days from Omaha to D.C. more pics below...

Washington D. C.

2008-08-08T10:02:00.001-07:00

James is enjoying his first Physical Therapy rotation in Sterling Virginia. We are having a great time living so close to D.C., and living with his Aunt Deon and Uncle Steve.

The Library of Congress. We were able to see Thomas Jefferson's library. He is an outstanding example of a well-read and well-rounded reader! Andrew thought feeding the pigeans was more fun than the Air and Space Smithsonian.

The Apostle Paul, by Rembrandt (one of Abby's favorite Artists)

Luckily, Andrew fell asleep our entire time in the National Gallery of Art. Yipee!

Andrew and Mama go here just about everyday, a few minute walk from where we're staying. So beautiful!

And windy has stormy eyes...

2008-06-30T11:56:00.000-07:00

According to a neighbor, in 52 years of living in Omaha, Friday night, 27 June, was the worst storm they had encountered. Around 5:00pm, the skies were beautiful, and not a breeze was felt. Just 15-20 minutes later, the skies were turning black, and suddenly the trees began to sway back and forth. 100mph winds along with nickel sized hail caused enormous damage! We were actually in Council Bluffs when it happened. We watched in a matter of minutes the roads turn into rivers. A garbage can from taco bell floated down the road. When the storm was over we could not get from the Kanesville Tabernacle to the car, because a gully full of water several feet deep. James ran around the block, and drove it around to another entrance.

As we drove home, we were amazed by the damage! Gigantic cottonwood trees right on the road we live on had been completely uprooted and were laying into the road, against houses, and into power lines. Because we had company (cousin Anna Foister, her husband and adorable children), and it was getting late without electricity, we hurriedly made dinner on our GAS stove, and after the 7 children were asleep, James and I walked over to the Godfrey’s home, some good friends and neighbors. We immediately noticed their shattered front window. Apparently a large porch swing from a few townhouses down had been picked up by the wind, slammed against their window, and dropped into their beautiful flower bed. The scary thing was that Melissa was just a few blocks away from home in the car in the heart of the storm, and Matt and their baby Gabe were downstairs listening to the shattering of glass wondering where their wife/mother was! She could see branches flying around her, and had to dodge a swinging power line. Just a few minutes after she had told us this, we listened to their hand generated radio and learned that a few miles from where we had been in Council Bluffs during the storm, a tree like so many here, had fallen on a car and killed 2 18 year olds, and inured a 15 year old in the back seat. We were so grateful our friend Melissa was safe!

The next day was unique: quiet, still, and tranquil. We walked around and saw the damage of our townhouse area, and also our completely destroyed garden! Very sad… The once thriving tomato plants are now just little stubs. . James enjoyed not vacuuming (no electricity). Several neighbors were worried about the meat going bad in the freezer. One friend, Todd, drove around for 2 hours looking for ice at gas stations and stores, but no luck. We decided to have a HUGE BBQ, and go all out with our meat in the freezer, since there were no generators for sale any where close, and we figured we would probably lose most of our food. We grilled salmon (YUM!), and ate a few other delicates! The electricity ended up going on for some of us, but, is still off for MANY others in Village Green- the 4th day now.

Wow, I was sitting under this very tree less than 2 hours before the storm!

What's wrong with this picture?

A nest we found in the garden overturned after the storm.

College World Series

2008-06-30T11:17:00.000-07:00

It was fun to feel like ‘the hosts’ of the College World Series for a week and a half, with Rosenblatt Stadium just a 15 minute walk from home. We walked over several times during the week, and had a great time attending 2 games. The first was Miami vs. Stanford, and the 2nd was Fresno vs. Georgia. Wow. What a game. It was the championship game (possibly, if Georgia won. If Fresno won, they’d play the next day. Well, going into the bottom of the 3rd inning, it was 5-0 Georgia. Fresno had the bases loaded, and a homer was hit! They ended scoring 6 runs that inning! That’s more than the entire game the day previous! It was such a fun atmosphere, especially since Andrew wasn’t with us this game. Fresno ended up taking the trophy home with them, thrilling considering they were the last seeded team in the tourny.

Kissing Kraze

2008-06-19T17:22:00.000-07:00

Ever since Andrew learned how to kiss a few weeks ago, he's had this desire to kiss just about anything, especially friendly looking strangers. Just last night we were at a College World Series Game, and a heavy-set gentleman was sitting behind us. As we slid into our seats, the man said hello, and Andrew puckered up his lips. It was quite a cute sight. Here are a few of Andrew's favorite 'things' to kiss.

Arches National Park

2008-05-21T11:06:00.000-07:00

If you care, try your luck at the arches quiz. The following 8 arches each have a name. See if you can guess which is which: Delicate Arch, Landscape Arch, Wall Arch, Partition Arch, Tunnel Arch, Pine Tree Arch, Double O Arch, and Navajo Arch.

Colorado Springs Road Trip

2008-05-21T10:23:00.000-07:00

Our first stop in Colorado Springs was "Garden of the Gods." This was so much fun to enjoy with David (James' brother) and his family. David found a hocky puck in the bushes, and the boys had a blast rolling it through peoples legs, down the rock formations, and down the trails.

This rock formation is called kissing camels. In the picture it looks really close, but it is actually hundres of feet away. Just beautiful...the rocks that is... :)

Click on this one and look at the zoomed up version...it's beautiful!

Our next stop, after sonic (YUM) was the olympic training center. We went on a tour with just about 10 other people, and got to sit right down with the men's olympic gymnastic hopefuls during a mock meet. We sat there for an hour, and just watched them do there routines. WOW! They are so strong! So, look closely to see if you will recognize any of there faces in August at the Olympics. The one puting on chalk in this picture was the US Champion in 2005. Really amazing.

Here is Andrew and Andrew together. How sweet!

(This gymnist's name is Andrew)

We also were able to see the wrestling team working out, and just missed the trampoliners. (I didn't even know trampoline was an olympic sport!). We started talking to a really freindly wrestler while watching the gymnists. A while into our conversation, we learned his name was Stephen Abas and he won the silver in wrestling last olympics (120lb/55kg weight class), and is hoping to get the gold this year. The defending gold medalist will be wrestling in the weight class above, so he is excited to hopefully go all of the way. We also met a medal hopeful in the triatholon, Matt Seymore.

Andrew was a sweetie on our road trip to Coloado Springs. This is his first time in his new carseat. Though he doesn't seem too excited, he slept for nearly 2 hours straight during is first ride!

He was happy to arrive in Coloardo, and see everyone.

Utah Trip!

2008-04-23T15:11:00.000-07:00

Andrew had SO much fun with his Uncles and Aunts. Uncle Seth loved playing with Andrew after he got back from school everyday.

Andrew got his first swimming trunks from the Easter bunny this year. Wow, I think we all wish we'd look as cute as Andrew in a swimming suit. What a figure!

On Easter, it was neat to visit mom's grave and remember all of the sweet memories we have of her. We are so thankful for the Resurrection, to know we will see our loved ones again.

Easter egg dying was a hit. Cameron was the master!

Uncle Cam and Aunt Maddy taught Andrew how to do the trick!

Andrew and I took advantage of the beautiful mountains while in Utah. We went on at least one hike everyday that it was sunny. "How beautiful are the mountains"

Bath time was more fun with cousin Spencer, but still not as fun as it has been in the past....

For James' sister Sarah's birthday, we attended the Dance Sport competition at BYU. WOW. It was awesome. There were some incredible dancers!!!! Of course the company was even more enjoyable.

Andrew walks

2008-03-24T19:22:00.000-07:00

We guess Andrew has an affinity or kinship with Easter. He was born on Easter, and has begun to WALK on Easter. :)

p.s. This is in Utah. Abby's younger sister Amanda is the loud voice you hear at the beginning. Cameron Mulford, Abby's brother, makes a cameo appearance. Good coaching Cam!!!

Future Conductor!

2008-03-07T15:54:00.000-08:00

This is at Abby's most recent orchestra concert. Andrew did this on a number of occasions, especially when the beat picked up. He's a prodigy, we think. :)

During intermission, he got a hold of the conductor's baton. He thought that was a lot of fun, as did we.

To the Zoo with Abby's sister Hannah to see the EMT certified polar bear...and more

2008-03-07T15:32:00.000-08:00

"How do you do, Mr. American Alligator?"

Hannah, Andrew, and Abby, how cute! (with black bear in background). It was super-fun to have Hannah visit us for the weekend! Thanx Southwest low fares.

Andrew had lots of fun at the petting zoo, including riding, petting, grabbing, pushing and biting.

This was a good review for us on CPR. 30 Pushes, 2 breaths, repeat... Who said polar bears weren't intelligent? They got more than a sense of smell of up to 40 miles... :) Every time the bear began his compressions Andrew began dancing.

Children's Museum

2008-03-06T09:34:00.000-08:00

Hand eye coordination practice. :)

James and his classmates won the intramural championship basketball game. Good times! I (Abby) and Andrew loved going to the games.

It's official!

2008-02-17T17:46:00.000-08:00

Andrew crawls! He uses a unique style with the left leg and right knee. That wasn't the style he was coached in, but...whatever works. :) To his credit, he also does much better on carpet.

2008-02-17T17:42:00.000-08:00

Before...

during...

and after putting in new laminate flooring in our kitchen. We love it, especially when we spill. :)

2008-02-03T17:53:00.000-08:00

Andrew can do this forever it seems. He did it during the duration of family scripture study a couple days ago. He loves it. He is super-determined and extremely focused.

2008-02-03T17:43:00.000-08:00

Andrew is slowly learning how to get from here to there. We're not sure if we should call it a crawl, scoot, or slither.

2008-02-03T17:27:00.000-08:00

January Fun!

Abby got a perm. Cute, huh? (James is writing)

Andrew's first fast food experience...he loved the fries. We loved the whoppers (for free).

Relaxing pose after crawling practice...

This is his first real Sunday outfit. Abby just didn't want him to get used to wearing jeans to church. :) Andrew loves to stand up along chairs and such, can pull himself up if the conditions are just right, and still does not crawl. Mmmm...

2008-01-15T19:36:00.000-08:00

We had a fun flight to Utah for Christmas. We traveled with Aaron and Jenny Hill, and their son Spencer (Aaron is Abby's brother). We sat across from each other, and played two full rounds of rook. Who said traveling with children can't be fun! Andrew did fantastic on his first flight.

We had so much fun making Christmas candy together, and delivering it. If you ever need a candy recipe without Chocolate, James is your man!

Before leaving Omaha, we had a "Christmas Feast" with a few of our friends. We were worried about fitting everyone around our little kitchen table, until James came up with the ping pong table plan. We had PLENTY of room, as you can see, though we had to use a few different table clothes!

2008-01-15T19:30:00.000-08:00

The Omaha Children's Museum is a fun place to visit. Andrew's cousin Spencer found Andrew in the grocery store portion of the museum... a great find for a great price. :)

2007-12-07T15:58:00.000-08:00

Andrew's first visit with Santa was exciting. He went straight for the beard!

New Hair-do

2007-11-19T16:37:00.000-08:00

No, we didn't do this...this is how Andrew's hair was when he woke up on Sunday morning! Darling, huh? We didn't realize how long his hair on top has gotten. He doesn't grow it on the sides so well. :)

p.s. the third picture caught andrew right in the middle of a sneeze.

2007-11-12T13:53:00.000-08:00

Today, Andrew woke up a little boy, rather than a little baby. If you look closely you can see his two bottom teeth. (Click on picture to enlarge)

2007-11-08T11:30:00.000-08:00

A nice little nap... Andrew loves to grab onto things right before he falls asleep, especially necks, hair, cheeks, ears, and noses. From experience, the nose hurts the least!

Busy Halloween

2007-11-08T11:24:00.001-08:00

Santa got tuckered out on Halloween watching all of the boys and girls trick-or-teating (an excellent time to see who is naughty or nice).

First Piano Lesson

2007-10-25T21:09:00.000-07:00

This is Andrew and his first lesson, self taught.

The piano we got from a neighbor who was trying to get rid of it. It's a little harder to fit our ping-pong table in the room, I must admit, but it's worth the sacrifice. :) hehe. The piano is pre- World War I, made in 1916. We think it adds a lot to the home (especially when Abby plays).

Fall Break Adventure

2007-10-23T20:11:00.000-07:00

We camped at Lake Jacomo, about 20 minutes South of Independence, MO.

Andrew is getting to be a great camper, even if it is thundering and pouring!

Fall Break Adventure day 2

2007-10-23T19:52:00.000-07:00

Here we are at Liberty Jail. In this exact spot, Joseph Smith, Hyrum Smith, and a few others spent 4 months. It was a very tender experience to be there, and read D&C 121-123 in the very place that it was revealed to the Prophet Joseph.

Mahoney State Park

2007-10-11T07:26:00.000-07:00

Camping at Mahoney State Park with the Platte River in the background. We had fun cooking tin foil dinnners, flying a kite, roasting marshamellows, and sleeping soundly knowing that there were NO bears in Nebraska!

2007-10-11T07:19:00.000-07:00

We loved General Conference, especially hearing President Hinckley speak, and sustaining Pres. Eyring and Elder Cook.

2007-09-30T18:52:00.000-07:00

This was the biggest one yet! We just had to share. :)

click on the picture to see an inlarged version...if you dare...

2007-09-28T13:34:00.000-07:00

Abby is practicing hard for her audition next week for Symphony Omaha. Andrew (and Papa) really love to listen to Mama practice.

p.s. she's in...the conductors basically begged her, she's so good. They were licking their chops the moment the horse hair made contact. :)

2007-09-28T13:31:00.000-07:00

Hey, Andrew, what are you reading there?...

Let's take a closer look........

2007-09-28T13:27:00.000-07:00

"I hope they call me on a mission..."

2007-09-28T13:01:00.000-07:00

Blue 22! Blue 22! Set...HIKE!

It's like all the stories you hear about the great athletes that started playing baseball with a stick, or soccer with a rock...remember that with Andrew, it was a fresca bottle. :)

2007-09-28T12:56:00.000-07:00

Welcome Home Daddy! Ya wanna wrestle?!?

2007-09-28T10:55:00.000-07:00

This is Andrew's newest trick...sitting up. It's been a couple weeks now and it is super fun. Andrew especially enjoys it.

Nebraska State Fair Sat. 25 Aug

2007-09-01T20:12:00.000-07:00

The state fair was real fun, including: motorcycle stunt riding, jumping dogs, dog shows, exotic animals like a kangaroo, alpaca, camel, and pot bellied pigs; a smoked turkey leg to eat, the Platteview marching band, birthing pigs, tap dancers, clydesdale horses, toyota tundra test drivin' and lots of tractors...

We'll put some pictures on if we can. This was last saturday by the way.

This Saturday (1 Sept) we went to the old market and got some fresh tomatoes and corn, went to the Amistar casino across the river and watched the BYU game in a sports bar. :) Go Cougars! We love everyone who visits this page! :)

Omaha Royals Baseball !!!!

2007-08-24T21:16:00.001-07:00

Friday night we went to Rosenblatts stadium to watch the Royals play vs the Round Rock Express. We had tons of fun. A nice man gave us free tickets as we approached the gate, we were allowed to smuggle in our dinner (yummy hogi sandwiches that Abby made...so good), and we got five free loaves of Sara Lee bread--2 whole wheat and 3 honey wheat. The game was followed by some fireworks that looked like they were going to fall on top of us. We had fun, lots of fun. Andrew looked so cute with his baseball shirt and cap. Stay tuned for state fair news...we're going tomorrow, Saturday.

p.s. In the picture Andrew is showing his new talent of sucking his bottom lip. He does it all the time. He doesn't take the pacifier, but he sucks himself to sleep. Very cute!