Going on an EGG hunt

Our neighborhood always does a fun Easter Egg Hunt the weekend before Easter. Everyone brings a breakfast treat to share, the kids find eggs & get too much candy, while the adults get to relax & chat. The weather was awesome & the food was great-but the company was even better!

Owen with his Easter lootAveree & Adee with their eggs

It is always a mad dash for the eggs!

Reese wasn't quite sure about all this...but Happy Easter anyway!

Locks of Love

So, Averee's hair was getting too dang long to manage, and with summer coming she needed a shorter 'do. I figured I would mention donating her hair to Locks of Love to see if she was interested-and she was! But when I asked Adelyn, she said that she 'was growing her hair out like a princess'. :0) However, when I am about to cut off Averee's 10 inch ponytail, Adee decides that she now wants to 'give her hair to girls with no hair'-how cute! But when I measure her hair we realize it isn't long enough. She was heart broken! She cried for 5 minutes straight, just bawling! So I try again & if I put the ponytail high enough then we can get the required 10 inches. Needless to say, her hair is pretty dang short in the back! But it is worth right? What a great cause & I am so proud of my girls for being so selfless.

Here are the before pictures...

Here are the after pictures...

We immediately headed to a nearby salon to 'fix' their crazy hair. The girl behind the counter gave me some strange looks-can't blame her though, the girls hair looked whacked! I am sure they all thought I had tried to cut their hair myself, so I loudly said 'Yeah, their hair looks a little silly cuz we just did Locks of Love' and the receptionist goes 'Oh good, that explains alot!'. :0) I love how their hair turned out-it will be so nice for summer. And even though Adee's is a little short it totally fits her spunky personality!

p.s. Adee is hilarious- she keeps telling everyone that she gave her hair 'Lots of Love'-so cute

White Sands Hike

Some great friends of ours-the Page's-took us on a cool hike called the White Sands Trail. It was a great little hike, long enough that the kids feel like they accomplished something but not so long that we had to carry them. They had so much fun playing in the sand & rolling down the hill. We just ADORE the Page's. Our kids are the same ages & they are so fun to hang out with. Love you guys! Reese was a little stinker & kept trying to body slam their baby Sara. So Danny finally figured out how to keep her out of trouble...

The Red Hill...from a different perspective

Remember when we used to go park up on the Red Hill & make-out? Oh, I mean...look at the city lights? ;0) Well, we took the kids up there for a picnic & a hike. They loved it! We will definately be doing more of this soon!

11 years & counting...

Yes, another anniversary has come & gone. I say this every year, but where does the time go? Seriously! We have been so blessed & I wouldn't change a thing. We have had our ups & downs but they have only made us stronger & brought us closer together & closer to the Lord.

It was Danny's turn this year to plan what we did for our anniversary. He had me quite fooled...at one point I was sure he was going to take me to the shooting range. Which would have been fun... however I like what he came up with much better. :0) He surprised me with a couples massage-heaven! Then we got some dinner at Bajio & headed to a movie. We saw Valentines Day-it was pretty funny & quite cute. At least until the gay guys at the end-UGH! Anyway- it was a great nite spent with my main squeeze. He is so good to me & so good for me. What would I do without you Babe? Love you forever...

Averee's Big Day

Averee has been planning her birthday for months! I don't know where she gets that from? ;0) She finally decided on taking a few friends to see Princess & the Frog, then going to Krave for frozen yogurt. Works for me! It was nice to have so little to do or plan & no big mess at our house. She invited her BF's Brielle, Aspen & Emma. She made me so proud when, completely on her own, she said she really wanted her sister Adee to come too. AHHH shucks-she is such a good kid! It was so fun to pick up the girls, give them their crown & head to the theater. I really lucked out cuz it was now at the dollar theater-sweet! I got them each their own popcorn, drinks & candy. After a quick potty stop we got settled-in for the flick. Of course they each needed another separate potty break-they ARE girls after all! It was a cute movie & the girls really liked it. Then we headed to Krave-my favorite! They each picked out what frozen yogurt & toppings they wanted. It was quite comical to see the different recipes they came up with :0) After they had their fill we headed home. It was cute to see the girls interact & feel so grown up. Averee had a blast & that is all that matters-SUCCESS! We love you Averee! You are such a sweet girl with a tender heart. Even though we are so much alike that we drive each other crazy sometimes, I know we will always be best friends! Love ya~

D is for Disneyland

After much anticipation- we finally took the kids to Disneyland. It was such a great trip. The kids had a ball & made everything so fun. Except for the part where Owen didn't want to walk anywhere...besides that they were so good! Here are some of the highlights: Even though I was SO excited for this trip (I couldn't sleep the nite before!) I was NOT excited for the car ride. But the kids did awesome-we were pleasantly surprised. When we first got to California we headed to the beach. It was a little chilly but that didn't stop the kids from playing in the water. Owen was a little nervous at first-he wasn't quite sure what to think of the waves. But after awhile he was right there in the middle of it all. Of course Mickey Mouse was a big hit. Owen just stared & didn't say a word :0) This is a perfect time of year to go. It was not crowded at all. We didn't hardly wait in any lines. We even rode Splash Mountain 5 times in a row without getting off the log! We got to see pretty much all the characters we wanted. Almost all the princess', Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Mr. Incredible, FroZone, Mater & Lighting McQueen (Owen freaked out!), Queen of Hearts & White Rabbit, Pluto, Winnie the Pooh, Tigger, Eeyore, & TinkerBell. It was fun to see it all through our childrens eyes, to see how excited they were & how much fun they were having. The kids even had a great time on most the rides. Averee did better this trip, but she was still pretty scared to go on very many things. Adee was completely the opposite (as usual). She went on everything she was tall enough for including: Splash Mountain, Big Thunder RailRoad, Tower of Terror, & Space Mountain. It was awesome! She loved it so much & it was fun to see her having such a good time. We got some pretty weird looks each time we took her on the Tower or Terror :0) I am sure everyone thought we were such mean or bad parents-but she loved it & so did we! She cried for 10 minutes cuz she was too short for Screamin at California Adventure...but maybe next time!

We had a great trip and fit so much into so little time. We went to Disneyland, California Adventure, Knotts Berry Farm, the beach, swimming pool, & a science museum. The kids were completely bushed each nite-love it! Danny's brother Ryan & his cute family came too & we were able to spend most our time together-awesome! Nothing better than cousins & Disneyland! My parents & sister Alesha came too which made it even more fun. They are the best & my kids adore them. Thanks guys!

This is what I have been up to...

So, for a few years now I have been working on this off & on. Well, I finally kicked it into high gear & got it done. The recipes are even all printed out & in cute little recipe binders. LOVE IT! Feel free to browse & try out a few recipes. And who knows-I probably got one of the recipes from you! Enjoy! ">http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.mealsmatter.org%2FCookbooks%2Fmarenjones%2Fjonesfamilyrecipes%2F&h=470b045e1a7338b21cd674a104df0302

P.S. this site rocks...may favorite feature is the shopping list. You can pick a recipe, add the ingredients to a shopping list & it even catagorizes the whole list for you; dairy, produce, seasonings, bread, freezer, etc. Gotta love that!

The Cake Boss

Why is it that men get better looking with age but as women we just...look older? Danny is the ripe old age of 32 this year-where does the time go? We kept it pretty low key this year since we are headed to Disneyland soon. So in an effort to be frugal I had the kids each pick 2 things from the dollar store to give their dad. They came up with some 'unique' ideas...

*Averee picked out a back scratcher & a lint brush

*Adelyn picked out beef jerky and a clip-on light

*Owen picked out hand sanitizer & a pedometer

Now the best part- he made his own birthday cake! For days I kept asking what kind of cake he wanted & he wouldn't really say. Meanwhile we have been loving the show 'Cake Boss', if you have never seen it you should really check it out. They make awesome cakes & deal with some hilarious family drama at the same time. Anyway- Danny decides to get all creative & make his own cake. He did a red velvet cake with strawberry filling, vanilla frosting & white chocolate chips on top. It was SO yummy! I was seriously impressed :0) But I did feel a little bad that he made his own cake-oh well, he seemed to enjoy being the Cake Boss for a day!

Happy Birthday Hot Stuff! We love you so much!

All over the place!

Reese is all over the place! Now that she has mastered crawling, we can't slow her down! When she is crawling she usually has something in at least one of her hands-sometimes both. She is such a busy body :0) She is such a happy, smiley baby. She has brought so much love & laughter to our family. We love our little rug rat!

Lights at Temple Square...

We decided that since none of our kids have seen the lights at Temple Square, we would make a trip to Salt Lake. It has a big hit! The kids loved it & were in awe of all the lights. I still can't imagine all the time and man power it takes to do those lights-amazing! Luckily it wasn't as cold as we expected. Here are the highlights... This was everyone's favorite: a nativity scene out on the reflection pool in front of the temple, complete with floating candles on the water. It was breathtaking! Oh & love that cheesy grin!

Danny was busy trying to keep Reese happy & warm :0)

Yes, I know Averee's coat is unzipped :0{

We made the trip with some great friends of ours-the Krispins. Jenny & I have known each other for about 10 years-we met playing volleyball. Our other volleyball friend-Andie- has moved to Salt Lake & we miss her tons! Luckily-the weekend we went up was her 40th birthday, so we got to celebrate with her. Love you girls so much!

Averee was so cute-she couldn't wait to see baby Jesus in the Nativity program. She kept asking when the lights were going to come on where Jesus was laying. And yes-I tried ALL nite to keep her coat zipped up! UGH! :0)

It was a great but quick weekend. I think the kids liked the hotel room as much as anything-they were bouncing off the walls when we first got there. We stayed right by Thanksgiving Point & did that on saturday morning-the kids had a ball in the dinosaur museum. Then of course we had to hit Cabela's :0) We left saturday afternoon-just as the storm moved in. On the way home we stopped at Cove Fort-which was a bigger hit with the kids than I expected. I think we may have found a new Christmas tradition!

So Thankful for November...

My favorite thing about November is that it seems so quiet & peaceful. The calm before the crazy storm of December! We had a great Thanksgiving. It was with my family this year & it was at my house-a first! :0) We even had my Grandma Funk from Richfield come down. It is always so good to see her & the kids love her to death! Of course I always forget to take pictures of the feast...someday I will remember! Thanksgiving weekend we did a fun hike called Yankee Doodle Canyon. You repel down into a slot canyon-it was gorgeous! Then there were a couple other repels & mostly a slight down hill hike till the end when we had to hike right back up out of there-awesome! I hadn't repelled in years so Danny made me wear a helmet :0) But it was just like riding a bike. Danny has really gotten into it. He has gotten all the repelling gear & goes quite a bit so I am excited to have this hobby we can do together.

Who's that hottie? :0)

Not my best angle ;0)

This is the beginning of the hike-the repel down into the canyon-what a rush!

October flew by...

October flew by so fast! I love Halloween & we had a great time celebrating this year...

We had our annual Couples Halloween Party & yes-costumes were required! It was a blast! We had yummy soups & salads, a delicious chocolate fountain, & some serious games of Mafia! You can never have too much Mafia right? Here are a few pics from the nite... This is Rachel & Glen Page...is that his real facial hair? I am still not sure...:0)

This is Sandra Dee & the Bearded Circus Lady-I mean Josh & Britnee Fenton. His legs were oh so smooth :0)

White Trash! I mean...Mandy & Trevor Fenton-Love you guys! P.S. that is NOT his real belly!

Here are the Laubshures & the Andrus'. Ross (Reno 911 cop) won for 'Best Costume'-you should see the daisy dukes hiding under the table! The funniest part-he tied for 'Worst' & 'Scariest' costume too! :0)

Reesie Roo is growing up WAY too fast! But what a cutie huh?

Each year we decorate Haunted Houses-so fun! There is so much fun halloween candy to choose from. Owen surprised us all & did a really good job on his house all by himself. I just had to show him how to work the icing one time & he was good to go...

Adee was more worried about fitting all the candy on her house-but it turned out pretty good anyways :0)

Averee was a little more choosy about the placement of her candy. I don't know where she gets that from! ;0)

Here is our sweet little ghost. Every one of our kids has worn this same costume on their first Halloween-too cute!

Here is Ariel, Hannah Montana & Spiderman. Hilarious-I know! :0)

Well, until next year...Happy Halloween!

update central...

The time really does fly-sorry I haven't updated the blog for awhile. Ya know how it is-life just gets in the way sometimes :0) Here is a quick update for the last couple months: I can't believe Reese is already 3 months old! She is such a good baby- smiles all the time & even sleeps thru the nite most of the time. Crazy huh? We have never had a baby do that so soon-and completely on her own-I haven't even tried to get her to sleep all nite-she taught herself! :0) We have really lucked out with such an easy baby this time around. She is such a cutie & the other kids are so good to her!

Reese was blessed in August-what a great day! We had lots of family & friends celebrate the special day with us. This pic is of both sets of grandparents. We are blessed to have so much of our families living near us. Makes the special occasions quite an event. :0)

Averee has started 1st grade & is loving it. I think her favorite part is eating lunch at school :0) My favorite part- uniforms! No more morning stress-she can completely get ready on her own. It has been so nice. Adee had a hard time at first with Averee gone all day-but now she likes being the BIG girl at home & bosses Owen around like no one's business! Poor guy :0) For Labor Day we went to Danny's parents fishing property in Beaver. The kids had a blast catching fish-they each caught a couple using their cheap little kid poles. Surprise! It was a gorgeous day & Reese slept thru most of it!

Also in Beaver, there is a subdivision at the base of the mountain where a lot of deer hang out. We love to go here to feed them apples. As you can see they are really tame & love people. They come right up to the car & eat out of your hands. This is the highlight of every Beaver trip. One of the big males actually had Danny pinned up against the car trying to get at the apples faster than Danny could cut them-pretty crazy!

Well, that is about it. Adee & Owen have both started preschool & are loving that. Owen was a little hesitant at first since he never really goes anywhere by himself-he always has the girls with him. But now he loves to be a BIG boy & take his Cars backpack to school. As for me, I am just battling the buldge (baby weight) & have lost about 10 pounds in 4 weeks. Not too shabby. I am at that super annoying stage where nothing fits but I don't want to spend money on clothes that I won't be in for very long. Tight clothes are a pretty good motivater :0) Also, we just had our Primary Program yesterday & we survived! Hooray that is over! The kids did so great on their parts & they all sang so good & loud. We have about 70 kids & I am super proud of each one! Now I can take a deep breathe & relax...at least till Halloween! :0)