The Gardiner Gang

Fun at the Cabin!

2009-06-01T20:57:00.003-08:00

This past weekend we went to Gatecreek Cabins with our good friends, the Bentley's. Originally Brett and I were going to go to celebrate our 8th wedding anniversay, but when we saw the pictures of the cabin we thought, "How could we go to such a fun place without our children?" Then when we saw how many beds the cabin had we decided to invite friends to come with us! We had such a blast! Our kids get along so well with the Bentley children, and we think Chance and Lori are pretty awesome too! It was a nice get away, and we wish we could have stayed longer!

This is the "Forget Me Not" cabin that we stayed in. There was a bedroom, living room, kitchen and bathroom on the first floor. Upstairs were four more beds and another bathroom. The boys had fun bonding in one of the rooms, and we attempted to let Maren and Jenna share another room, but that didn't happen! They would not go to sleep! Too much fun to be had I guess.

Crozman, Dallin, Jared and Dane. I don't know if they are excited enough. What do you think?

Brett and I making out by the fire! I'm glad Brett was keeping an eye on the marshmallow so it didn't burn!

Jenna and Maren having so much fun playing on the fence.

Crozman and Dallin are such good friends a get along so well together!

Jared and Dane are in the same Primary class and were in the same preschool this year. They are best buds and are inseparable!

The boys loved the paddle boat and went for a lovely jaunt around the little lake. It was so beautiful!

Jared loved the whole weekend, minus being forced into the canoe. He was not a happy camper, but I think he enjoyed it more once he was in for awhile. However, I don't think he'd never admit it! Hmm, I wonder where he gets his fear of water? It couldn't possibly be from his mother! =)

Jenna, Dallin and I getting a little exercise and enjoying the beauty of the great outdoors!

Chance and Lori cooking us a mean chicken dinner!

Crozman and Brett working so hard. Dallin enjoying the ride! That's my boy!

Aren't they just so dang cute! We are lucky to live in such a beautiful area and have such wonderful friends!

Jenna is such a daddy's girl! She was funny, because whenever she had her life jacket on, she felt like she couldn't move.

My three little angels! I love you Jared, Jenna and Dallin!

Peek-a-boo little miss Jenna!

Check us out! We should start our own red-neck reality show!

Okay, one more thing......This was the local grocery store. I realized the batteries for my camera were dead so I decided to stop by this quaint little place. The second I pulled up, a lady from the house (see picture below) walked up to the store door with a key and opened it. I couldn't believe she was opening it just for me. The store was fully stocked, but price tags were no where to be found! It's a good thing, because I really don't think I would have paid as much for my batteries as I did! Oh well! After I was done she turned off the lights inside the store, locked the door behind us and she walked back to her house. Such a different life!

The store is on the left and her house is on the right. Brett asked if I would want to move to a little community like that. My response was a roll of the eyes and silence. Really, after 8 years of marriage do you really even need to ask such a question? I love you Brett! Happy Anniversary!

Jenna's 3rd Birthday Party!

2009-04-20T05:22:00.003-08:00

I can't believe that my baby is three years old! It seems like yesterday that I was holding onto the porcelain throne for dear life and that my ankles were too swollen to wear any shoes. It seems like just yesterday that we welcomed a precious baby girl into our lives. Jenna has been such a blessing to us and brings so much laughter into our home! We love you, Jenna!

On Saturday we invited four extra little princesses into our castle. Each of the girls looked so beautiful and were very well mannered! The party was hosted by King Brett, Queen Kristy, Prince Dallin and Prince Jared.

Of course Jenna loved being the center of attention and enjoyed her princess friends. We also invited the kids' favorite babysitter, Addison, to help paint the girls' fingernails. She was such a big help!

Jenna loved her pink princess cake and didn't want us to eat her! I must say a huge THANK YOU to my friend Michelle for decorating this beautiful cake. It turned out so cute! We had so much fun and I learned so much from her!

After the girls ate sandwiches, grapes and strawberries they were ready for the yummy strawberry cake. (Jenna insisted on everything being some shade of pink!)

Here the girls are admiring the cake. Maybe Jenna is coming up with a good blowing-the-candles-out plan!

The next 3 pictures crack me up! In the first one she was concentrating so hard on blowing that single candle out. Then she was so mad when it wouldn't go out, even though she practically spit on it! When she finally did blow it out, she was a very happy princess indeed!

As the girls were waiting for their cake, Addison painted their nails. Of course Jenna chose HOT pink! The girls were so cute and held very still.

Jenna was so funny because even though her nails were dry, she was so careful about handling things for the rest of the day. She just kept staring at them because of how beautiful they were!

Jared could NOT wait for Jenna to open this present! It had arrived in the mail earlier in the week and the anticipation was just killing him! What could Grandma and Grandpa Lacey have sent that was so big? It was so cute because after waiting two seconds for Jenna to open it, Jared got impatient, grabbed it away and opened it. It's a beautiful, very soft and very big princess blanket. (There is a picture below.) It was a big hit for the princesses!

Here is Jenna with all of her fun presents! She received paints, a paint book, markers, notepad, a Doodle Pro, two "Groovy" dolls , a bunny and a princess pack containing a brush, comb, mirror, sunglasses, purse and pretend lipstick. (She will get to open our presents later today.) What a fun day! We'll just have to do it again next year!

Easter and Other Fun!

2009-04-12T22:30:00.007-08:00

Happy Easter! We had a fun couple of days leading up to the big event! We started with the annual decoration of the eggs. Who started that stupid tradition anyway? They must not have been a control freak like me!

Okay, so notice my kids and the table wearing protective gear. (I was looking at my sister's blog and her daughter, who is younger than Jenna, was wearing a white shirt!) Hey, at least I didn't make Dallin wear an apron this year! Also notice the dye neatly placed on a pan so that if it spills the mess will be contained! (For those of you thinking I'm crazy, some dye did spill so the pan came in very handy!)

Dallin had fun making his eggs kiss! I laughed so hard when Jared dropped one of his and said, "Hey, we can call him Crackhead!"

Jared was very proud of his colorful eggs. (By the way, Crackhead is the one on the left.)

Nothing better than a finished product! What great sibling bonding!

The day before Easter the kids were invited to a birthday party at the Imaginarium. Dallin loved petting the reptiles, Jared wanted nothing to do with them and Jenna eventually touched the iguana and the snake.

Jenna also had fun with the trains, climbing the rock mountain and coming down on the slide.

I love this bubble thing. The kids pull it up and a bubble surrounds them.

Why pet a turtle when you can eat a delicious cupcake, right Jared?

Poor Jenna was a little sick that day. She looks like she's had a little too much sugar!

Jared was super fast at this bubble thing and completely surrounded himself! Look at his pants. He's completely covered in soap. I guess if I could choose one thing to have all over my kids it would be soap. That's so much better than other alternatives out there. Much better than the cow/mud pies I used to play with when I was a kid!

Once the birthday party was over, we raced to the church for a Primary activity. We dropped the boys off and Jenna and I went to the mall to buy some white shoes and sandals for her. We got back to the church a little early so Jenna could find some egss. As you can see, she was not thrilled about posing for a picture. She wanted to go home and take a nap!

Easter day finally came! The kids woke up a little too early and raided their baskets. We got them all sugared up, took a few pictures and went to church. After our meetings we invited some friends over for lunch. It's always nice to have people come to our home, especially people who bring good food to share!

Jared was very much enjoying his Storm Trooper that he received!

Jenna just wanted the candy! Toys are not necessary when there is candy to inhale!

Our movie-star-in-the-making, Dallin freaks out at the sight of Darth Vador without his mask on!

My little darlings all being bribed to smile! Just kidding, they're always this happy when I make them sit on a hard bench and pose! I sure love my kids! Happy Easter! (Sorry Brett, we didn't get any pictures of us this year!)

Gone Fishin!

2009-04-05T20:40:00.006-08:00

On Saturday we had fun at the annual Sportsman Show. The kids have been looking forward to it for months now. It was only a few years ago when Dallin caught his first fish there! They turn the local convention center into an outdoorsman type shrine! It's really not my cup-o-tea, but the kids love that they have fish for them to catch, or should I say "TRY" to catch.

We thought this bear was a fun way to capture the events of our day. It's hard to believe that this guy in the background begins with a piece of wood, starts his chainsaw, and begins carving.

The kids loved the bus ride downtown. They picked us up at Walmart, which saved us a very long walk or $5 in parking! Score!

Dream on Dallin! You'd better start doing lots of jobs if you ever want to own one of these!

Maybe you guys can pool your money! Jared LOVED climbing on all of the 4 wheelers! He's born to ride!

Hang on girl! Jenna also wishes she had one of these, except she'd replace the camouflage with HOT PINK!

Well here it is, the moment you've all been waiting for! Who will catch the first fish? Look at the concentration on their faces. I loved how the people running the event kept telling the dads to let the kids do the catching! Brett was so patient with the kids. When I was back helping them, I just wanted to place the hook right in the fish's mouth and yell, "Fish On!" Anyway, they stock this "pool" with little trout, and let hundreds of kids fish all weekend. They have the local DJ's and news anchors wear microphones and entertain the adults while they wait in line all day. Can you think of a better way to spend a couple of hours on a Saturday? (Hmm, let's see.....the spa, taking a nap, watching a movie. Okay, so those wouldn't be very good memories for the kids now would they?!)

Well, little miss Jenna caught her first fish and won this Barbie fishing pole! I was so excited because I had just purchased one to give her for her birthday, so now I can take it back! This nice man asked us if he could take a picture with her to hang in his Sportsman Warehouse store. We'll have to go check it out! (I could not get her to smile. She wouldn't even do her "tilt and smile" move that she does so well!) Oh by the way, Jared and Dallin left empty-handed. They were pretty good sports about it though and are excited to try again next year!

I don't know what cracks me up more in this photo, Jenna or Brett! Jenna loved her new friend! She was so excited to take it home with her! (Don't worry, I scrubbed her mouth and lips after this picture.)

Jenna showing off her HUGE catch! We're so proud!

Jenna loved watching Daddy cut the guts out! She was just so proud of her little catch! (Don't you just love her hairdo? I worked hours and hours to get the perfect messy look!)

Jenna thought her little fish was pretty darn tasty! She shared a few bites with Dallin, but pretty much ate the whole thing by herself.

She licked the platter clean. Well she wanted to, but I wouldn't let her eat the skin. YUCK!

Mush! Mush!

2009-03-29T18:03:00.012-08:00

Well, I can now say that I'm a true Alaskan! I have done it all and can now move to a warmer state! Okay maybe not, but this weekend I did something I never thought I'd do! Brett surprised me for my birthday with a very non-traditional gift. (He actually knew better than to surprise me, so he ran this by me first. Smart man!) Before my birthday (see prior March 2nd entry) he said, "What would you think of driving a dog sled? I was trying really hard to be excited because he was working so hard to find a perfect gift for me, which is not an easy task. Inside I was screaming, "Is this man crazy?! It's so dang cold outside and I really don't like animals! What is he thinking?" Instead I calmly replied, "Okay, tell me more." After a little coaxing from my awesome husband and some research, I actually got excited! I was even happier when Brett found some friends of ours willing to watch our kids for the weekend. Thanks Bentley's! We owe you big time!

So with that introduction, let me guide you through our fun-filled day! (I know it's a lot to read, but hopefully very entertaining!)

When we got to Paxson Lake, we were introduced to Zoya and John, the owners of the dogs. Not only were they great hosts, but were a lot of fun to talk to. We learned so much about the dogs, (They own over 50 of them. In fact all of these dogs were right outside their front door.) what they eat, their different personalities, etc. You can look up their website for more information. http://www.dogsleddenali.com/

You can see their home in the upper left hand corner of the picture. There is a truck partially covered with snow and another car completely covered in snow and ice. There is a glacier that is beginning to take over their property. John said the water from the glacier travels underneath the snow, so both vehicles are stuck there until May or June when it warms up. I really don't know how they do it living there. I told Brett not to get any wild ideas!

After visiting with Zoya and John we got aquainted with the dogs, the part I dreaded most. I just knew the dogs would sense my lack of true love for them and would toss me off my sled or something. They were actually very well behaved and didn't try to jump on me or lick me so it was fine.

Then they showed us how to harness the dogs. They were so patient with me because I did it three times slower than John did!

Brett caught on very quickly and looked like a pro within minutes!

After harnessing the teams we took a little ride, about a mile or so, to help us get used to the feel of the sled and everything. He prepped us beforehand saying, "Remember the brake is your friend!" He also told us that no matter what, we were not supposed to let go of our sled because then the dogs would get loose. I just knew I was going to bite it and have the dogs drag me across the frozen lake! Well, I'm happy to report that I didn't fall off the sled that first run. I pretty much partially braked the whole time so that the dogs wouldn't go too fast. (They were probably thinking, "What is this lady's problem? What a whimp!") In fact Brett started behind me, but then caught up and passed me within seconds. Oh well!

It was a fun, quick trip and I thought, "Piece of cake! Bring on that 6-7 mile (each way) run!" What a nightmare that turned out to be! I started out fine, just cruising along, until one of my lead dogs decided to make a U-turn. (Remember the whole sensing my dislike for animals theory?) I immediately put both feet on the the brake and decided to see if they would somehow miraculously turn around. Brett was following me and his dogs got too close to mine and they all got tangled. John had gone ahead with a different dog team and one of his dog handlers, Chad, was ahead of us on a snowmobile. Chad turned around and came back to help. (I'm sure he thought we were total idiots!) After spending about 15 minutes untangling the dogs we got started again.

I was cruising along for about a minute when that same crazy lead dog, Chucky, did it again! At that point I began to be concerned for our 14 mile journey! A few minutes later, John came back to see what was going on. He switched Chucky with a different dog, and then we were off again.

I did pretty well for a few minutes and then the hour and a half nightmare began! My sled kept tipping over! Did Brett's tip over? Did John's tip over? Oh no, just mine! I would put all my weight on my right foot, steer my sled right and I would still tip to the left! Now remember the goal is to not let the dogs get away from you, so picture this...... I'm hanging onto the sled for dear life, while at the same time trying to stand up. Each time I attempt, I sink into the snow up to my waist. When I would finally get both feet onto my left ski (I guess what you need to know is that while driving the team, you stand on two skiis that are attached to the sled.) I would command my dogs and they would take off, which would cause me to lose my balance and then the whole process would start again! This went on and on and on. John kept coming over to give me pointers, but nothing would work! Poor Brett had to watch all of this from behind and really couldn't do anything to help. Every time he would offer a suggestion I would yell back at him out of pure frustration. (At this point I wanted to kill him for even suggesting this ridiculous idea! I couldn't believe I was paying these people money for this torture!) Anyway, to make a long story even longer.... my blood sugar was a mess because it was now about 2:30 and I hadn't eaten, and my legs and arms felt like jello from having to lift my big'ol body up over and over and over again!

After what seemed like an eternity, John came over, unzipped my sled and took out a big bucket and put it on his snowmobile. I guess it was filled with 40 pounds of meat to feed to the dogs. He hadn't realized it was in my sled. After that I didn't fall at all! It all made sense! I really wasn't an idiot! There was a reason that my sled kept tipping over. This bucket kept rolling in my sled, causing my sled to tip. When I would try to go it would roll to the other side for a little bit and then roll right back. After the discovery was made, my life seemed perfect! Within a half hour we made it to the little cabin for lunch and a well needed break! Yeah!

Brett and his team. I told Brett I was glad he couldn't hear all of the choice words I was using every time I tipped over! I still love him though!!

My patient, wonderful team! I stayed nice and toasty with my goggles, facegear and other snow clothes!

Chad cooked some mean potatoes and moose steaks. This was my first time eating moose! Not bad!

We wanted a picture of the little cabin. It had a little bunkbed and table. I loved how John ate his meal with his pocketknife! As we ate, John told us stories of some of the races he has participated in. It's just so fascinating to me that people have this as a lifestyle. His wife is so dang cute, used to be a model in Wisconsin, has raced in the Iditarod and will race again next year. They live in the middle of nowhere, have compost toilet in their house (It was a big toilet that you had to use a step stool to get on and you don't flush, kind of like a porta-potty minus the smell. It was a very cute bathroom too!) and take care of and race dogs all winter. Amazing!

The view was just beautiful and as we rounded the corner near the cabin we could see the river. It was just so pretty with the mountain behind it!

I loved the trek home! Even though it was windy and the snow was blowing everywhere, my sled only tipped a couple of times. When it did I was able to get it going again without any problems. The time zipped by and we got back so fast! (It took about an hour on the way back, but that was much faster than the two and a half hours it took us to get there!)

I can't tell which one of us this is (I think Brett), but it was just a gorgeous day!

I know this is Brett because I would have never let go of my sled and stayed on. He was a pro!

This is my favorite shot of me, at least I'm pretty sure it's me, because of the way the sun is hitting. It's just a great way to summarize a wonderful day!

I know this post was mostly full of complaints, but much of that was simply for your entertainment. =) Once the bucket problem was solved I had a wonderful time and really enjoyed the dogs and the experience. Would I want to do it again? Maybe. Although you really should ask me another time when every muscle in my body isn't screaming with pain! Maybe I should extend my birthday another day and get a massage tomorrow! I love you Brett!

Go Away Ash!

2009-03-29T17:22:00.000-08:00

Well it finally happened! Ash from Mt. Redoubt blew into Anchorage. I really couldn't complain too much because church was canceled today. (Man that is soooo bad of me to be so excited about that!) We had fun spending time together at home playing games, singing songs and taking naps. (I really enjoyed the nap part of things!)

Our lovely white snow, that I wish didn't even exist at this point, is now a dingy gray.

It looks like someone came by with a big pepper shaker. Snow cone anyone?!

I just can't even wait to start the cleaning process. This stuff is everywhere! Let the fun begin!

Another Year Wiser?

2009-03-02T17:59:00.005-09:00

Well another year has come and gone. More gray hairs, (I've even given up on pulling them out. I decided if I kept that up I'd be bald soon!) a few more wrinkles, (Botox, save me!) and one more year of surviving Alaska! (Sarah Palin gossip really helped this year fly by!) Okay seriously, this year was a great one! I am getting used to Alaska's darkness and long winters. Maybe my "happy lights" and vitamin B's did the trick! Thanks Costco!

As you will see below, I had a very fun birthday! I must say that if you haven't signed up for Facebook you must! I have never had so many "Happy Birthday" wishes in my life, well except for when I taught school. I heard from so many people that day.

So I started my day going to Jared's preschool with Brett and Jenna for Jared's special day! (Brett had the day off, which was wonderful! I think I will request that every year!) Anyway, about once every month and a half a parent goes in to help with a center at school and provide a snack for the children. Jared helped with calendar time and got to bring a special toy from home to share. It's so fun to spy on him and see how he interacts with other kids.

Later that day we invited our friends, the Geroux's, over to help us make pizza and party with us! Jared, Dallin and Jenna made the cutest cards for me and gave me some spatulas. I'll have to remember to use those when they misbehave!=) Brett's gift is coming later. Stay tuned!

Here's the pizza crew! Shouldn't I get some sort of commission from Pam, Prego, A&W and Dole for the advertising? We made a canadian bacon/pinapple pizza and a 1/2 cheese, 1/2 pepperoni one. They were so yummy!

They loved adding more and more cheese! Marci and Mikaela were very big helpers.

My favorite part of the day was when my friend surprised me with this beautiful cake. I LOVE lemon cake and this was so perfect! I think Brett was so relieved when my friend, Michelle, offered to make this. That let him off the hook. The whole day I kept thinking, "When is Brett going to make my cake? Has he forgotten about me? He's in big trouble if he forgets." (You know how those pretend conversations go that you have with your spouse? They start small and then escalate into this huge thing. Before you know it, you're mad at the person and they haven't done anything to deserve it? Am I the only one that does that?!) So, thanks Michelle! You are the best!

After the pizza party, we went to watch a local high school basketball game. One of the girls that I teach in church was playing so we wanted to go cheer her on! Jenna was quite the cheerleader as she yelled, "Go Cara go!"

All in all, turning 38 was a pretty painless experience! Thanks everyone for spoiling me!

Who Needs Disneyland?!

2009-02-25T21:15:00.013-09:00

So we were supposed to go to Disneyland last week, but things just didn't work out. We decided to have a fun weekend around here instead. (Our kids are so sheltered. They really don't even know what Disneyland is they didn't know what they were missing.)

We spent a little time earlier in the week touring local hotels. Then we let the kids vote on which one they liked the best. I must say, they chose well! (There was one hotel that had a view of the pool right as you walked in the main entrance. Not wanting to personally turn away business, I immediately vetoed that one. Notice there are no pictures of me in the pool! There is a reason for that!) Enjoy the pictures!

This kids loved playing on the balcony outside of our room! For a split second we really thought we were in California until reality set in and we had to come in out of the cold!

While the kids were waiting for their dinner at Applebees, we played a little "I Spy" with them. It kept their attention for a very long time!

Don't you just love taking pictures of yourself with your camera? I didn't want to be too vain, so I had the kids pose with me. Dallin will love the flared nostrils some day!

I look stoned, but I promise I'm only drinking chocolate milk!

I've got to teach this girl how to pucker up! Then again, there is really no hurry!

I LOVE this picture! They were so excited to go swimming!

Dallin is our little fish and recently learned how to swim! We are so proud of him!

Jared, on the otherhand, takes after me when I was his age and enjoys the pool from a distance!

Jenna loved being able to "swim" with this cute tube!

Nice back float there Dallin! Look at that form!!

We pretended that we were on a sunny California beach! Needless to say, we did not leave with tans! We have come to accept the fact that we will be pastey white for the rest of our lives!

After swimming, the kids watched a movie. Jared was very much at home as you can see!

Dallin, Brett and I watched Monk and Psych. If you've never seen those shows you are missing out!

I loved the fact that I didn't have to do any work. It was fun and relaxing! Can I go back every day?

After such an exciting evening they finally crashed! Ahh, the silence! (Is that bad of me to say?)

Aren't they so cute when they're sleeping? Well, they're always cute, but I just love it when they're asleep!

We had a great time and didn't even have to clean sand out from between our toes, peel because of sunburn or spend a ton of money! (Okay, so I'm just trying to be positive! Aren't you proud of me!)

Oh one more thing! Although Brett and I didn't want to swim Saturday morning, we let the kids splash around. When we walked into the pool area one of Brett's patients was there cleaning. She gave him and hug and told me that he always treats her so well and is the best dentist. About 15 minutes later she showed up with a paper for Brett to sign. She told us she wanted to thank Brett by giving us her "Friends and Family" 50% off discount. (Thanks Blanca!) Add that to the $20 gift card to Target that we received for staying there, and our room ended up being about $20! Can you say WAY CHEAPER THAN CALIFORNIA! (Tammy and Nat--I don't even want to hear about what we missed, okay?=) I'll live in total denial!)

Sledding Fun!

2009-02-07T23:05:00.002-09:00

Last night our friends invited us to go sledding. We went to a nearby school with a not-so-steep hill. Some of us had a blast. (I'll let you figure out who did and didn't have fun!) Brett was sick so he stayed home.

Dallin and Logan couldn't get enough sledding in and were so bummed when we had to leave!

Jared liked playing in the snow, but when I forced him to go down on the sled with me he went kicking and screaming the whole way! Later I asked him why he had been so upset by the whole thing and he told me, "When we hit the jump I almost went poops in my underwear!" Okay, that could've been a little traumatic!

Jenna HATED every second. I just didn't get it because she loves playing outside in the snow.

Dallin and I went down and few times and every single time I hit that darn jump! My back paid for it the next day, but it was worth it!

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-26T17:48:00.010-09:00

We had such a fun Christmas in the Gardiner home. Although it was below zero, Santa and his reindeer still managed to make it to Alaska! The reindeer even ate the frozen carrots that were left outside. The kids slept in until 7:00 and I couldn't wait any longer, so I made more noise than usual and guess what?! They woke up! (Brett loves this side of me! When we were first married, he thought I was crazy waking up at 5:00 to open presents. He said, "We don't even have kids! Why are we waking up so early?") After opening presents we had a pajama day, lounging around sleeping and playing with toys.

Jenna did not want to wake up! She just kept yelling, "Back to bed! Back to bed!" (Hmm, I wonder who she takes after?) In fact, after she woke up and saw the presents she ran back downstairs and tried to sleep. I didn't let her, of course, because I was so excited!

This notebook was the first present Jenna opened. A few minutes later we handed her another present and she said, "No, I already opened one." It took a lot to get her to give in and open more. Man I could have saved a ton of money!

Dallin and Jared had no problem tearing into their gifts!

Santa made Jenna's Christmas dreams come true. She LOVES being a princess! (She's really into posing half tipped over....something new for her, maybe associated with princess status.) I love the high heels and crack up as I watch her trying to walk in them. She kind of reminds me of myself, which is why I avoid them at all cost!

Jared was so happy when he opened his new train cars and cargo set. He also loves his basketball, soccer ball and football. When he gets excited he talks a mile a minute. It's so dang cute!

The kids loved the choo choo train that Santa brought. Too bad he forgot to bring the batteries to make it run! Poor Santa just had too much on his mind! Dallin got spoiled this year too. He loves his new dinosaur book, bubble gum machine and underwater dino and guy. He is so passionate and yelled and screamed with excitement every time he opened a gift.

Jenna was dying to go out and play almost all day! So late afternoon, she finally got herself dressed in Jared's coat and hat and went outside. The two of us ended up in the garage, sitting in the van, listening to her favorite songs. After that, I pulled her in the sled and made snow mountains with her. What a fun day! I wish we could celebrate Christmas every day!

Pre-Christmas Festivities

2008-12-24T15:29:00.008-09:00

It's been awhile since I updated our blog, so I thought I'd share some of the fun things we've been up to this month. We are so excited for Christmas and have been very busy preparing for Santa's arrival!

On Sunday morning we all got dressed up in our Sunday/Christmas best and headed off to church! I can't believe we actually got a couple of good shots of the kids. (I admit, I was being a little, okay a lot, psycho as I was trying to take these in a hurry before running off to choir! I hope Santa will still come and visit me!)

Behind those beautiful smiles they're saying, "Please Mom, can we be done?!"

My friend, Erika, and her husband invited us over for a fun party. Santa came and Dallin finally got to tell him that he wanted a "dinosaur underwater sea diving guy." Man, it's amazing that Santa gets it right every time, even with a description like that!

The boys and I spent some quality bonding time making gingerbread cookies for Santa to eat.

They were YUMMY! We did manage to save a few for Santa though! Hmm, for some reason I really don't think Santa really needs them.

Jenna is so excited for Christmas and loves her little reindeer that one of my past students gave me.

Yeah! We did it! We actually made a gingerbread house this year. (Okay, so I cheated a little and bought a kit, but at least I made time to do it!) Mom, I will never know how you had the patience to do several, made from scratch, each year!

Okay, I look so stoned in this picture, (Hmm, could it be all the frosting and candy I ate?!) but I just think Brett is so dang handsome, so I had to post this!

Wait! Santa has aged a lot since the above picture with Dallin! (I just had to explain to Dallin that Santa can't be everywhere and sometimes has elves help him out! Whew! That was a close one!) Jared wasn't too sure about the whole Santa thing. He chatted with him from a distance, but wouldn't sit on his knee. I can't say I blame him! He asked for a cargo addition for his train set.

Jenna loved this first encounter with Santa. (The second one didn't quite go as well.) She asked him for princess clothes.

Look! It's Joseph and the Coat of Many Colors and Mary! Some of us had fun dressing up for our ward party and some of us didn't. And no, there will not be a baby filling that manger any time soon!

Once there was a snowman! Dallin and Jared built this cool dude all by themselves! Don't you love the leaf eyes? We still have a few inches of leaves under our snow!

We had a fun playgroup party at our house! The kids exchanged gifts, ate lunch and had a great time!

Halloween Fun!

2008-11-01T11:38:00.007-08:00

Happy Halloween! We hope your day was as fun as ours! Our kids did very well scoring candy for their parents, um I mean, uh... for themselves. They enjoyed "trunk-or-treating" at the church as well as knocking on a few doors. It was pretty chilly so we were home by 7:15, although it felt like 10:00!

Yesterday the kids began with pumpkin pancakes for breakfast. Why not start the day with chocolate chips and syrup?!

Mr. Crocodile, Jenna the unicorn (I know...hideous costume but it was warm and free. Besides that, the cute little girl makes up for it!) and last, but not least, Dash. This picture was taken last week at Dallin's school Halloween party. They had fun playing games and even went through the haunted hallway. Jenna is still talking about the "scary guy" that was there!

Our playgroup got together for our annual Halloween party. The kids had fun playing "Hot Hook," (It's like hot potato except played with a hook hand.) "Pumpkin, Pumpkin, Bat," and a balloon popping game. They also ate pizza and frosted cupcakes. Thanks Hayley! You are the best party thrower in town!

Boo! Can you say VERY SCARY UNICORN!!!! Maybe we could call her Dracucorn!

Okay, so last year I carved our pumpkin by myself because our kids were grossed out by the guts inside. As many of you know, when I was about 7 years old this girl in my class brought pumpkin seeds to school to share with her friends. Her dad had laced them with drugs, so those of us who ate them got pretty sick. To this day I can't stand to look at a pumpkin seed. (Maybe I should get therapy!!!) So until my kids get bigger and can decorate their own, I made an executive decision that we would decorate our pumpkins with markers this year. For those of you who think I'm a party pooper, I just have to let you know that I even let them use permanent markers. That's a big step for me! =)

The sugar high wore off quickly. Once Jenna was in her seat in the warm car she went to unicorn land. I was very bummed, however, when she got home and was wound up from her 5 minute nap.

I think Dash is done being Incredible! We drove for about one minute and Jared was out. It's a good thing he was clicked in. It would have been just tragic had he fallen out of his seat into the empty candy bags behind him!

Excitement, Embarrassment and Pain!

2008-09-23T15:45:00.002-08:00

Dallin finally reached the milestone that he has anticipated for many, many long months. HE LOST HIS FIRST TOOTH! He hates seeing blood so I thought he'd be freaked out, but the tooth practically fell out when he touched it. He was so excited and celebrated by doing a dance and going crazy. He had huge expectations in the Tooth Fairy department. He thought maybe she'd bring a whole dollar. (Man, I hate inflation!) I told him that his tooth was pretty tiny so maybe the Tooth Fairy would wait until a bigger tooth came out before she started handing out dollars!

Ouch! Jenna likes purple so she decided to add a little to her face. She was running through the living room and tripped over Brett's foot, which sent her flying into the rocking chair. I was cuddling her and Brett and I were saying, "Jenna, it's okay. Be tough!" She just kept crying though, which is very unlike her. Then I noticed the big bump and we decided maybe we should show a little more empathy. (Once again, we deserve the Parents of the Year award!

Dallin wanted to be like his sister so somehow he managed to flip our heavy oak dinner bench on his toe. This picture really doesn't portray the way it looked. It was so swollen and had a bump under the toenail. After being uncomfortable throughout the night we took him to the ER. He fractured a bone under the nail and has to wear a boot for 4-6 weeks. Joy! I hope it doesn't snow while he has to wear it!
Dallin loved hanging out on the couch being waited on hand and foot! I don't know what they're looking at in this picture because the t.v. is located on the other side of the room.
This is my favorite picture and Jared will be so mad at me some day for exploiting him! The night that Dallin broke his toe he wanted to sleep in our bed. Jared didn't want to sleep alone so we let him sleep in our bed too. A couple hours later I heard a sound downstairs. When I saw Jared sitting there with his pjs down around his ankles I thought, "I can't believe he wet my bed!" I was so mad! After examining our bed I realized that it wasn't wet at all. Then my eyes were drawn to a glistening puddle on the floor. It dawned on me that Jared thought the little table was the toilet. I started laughing so hard and ran up to get Brett. Of course I just had to get a picture! Brett strategically placed the alarm clock and I clicked away. The next morning when Jared woke up he asked why he had different pajamas on. He didn't remember any of it!

Back to School!

2008-08-28T20:38:00.000-08:00

Okay, I'm going to try to hold back my level of excitement with this post. Some moms really dread their kids going back to school because they miss them so much when they're gone. How do I say what I'm feeling without looking like a terrible mom? I AM SO ECSTATIC THAT I CAN BARELY CONTAIN MYSELF!!! Don't get me wrong! We had a very fun summer, but the arguing was getting pretty annoying and my house needs a major overhaul!

Jared is so excited for preschool this year! On his first day he took his three books that he knows how to read to share with his teacher. Look at that smile! Can life get any better than that?!

The day after Jared started preschool Dallin went to first grade. He came home and said that first grade was very boring because there were no toys. Man, it stinks to get older!

Hmmm, Jared is smiling, Dallin is smiling and Jenna is very sad that she can't go to school with the big boys. She's probably just thrilled to get to stay home alone with Mommy! No worries Jenna! I have big plans for us!

Fun at the Fair!

2008-08-27T20:57:00.001-08:00

Man I love the fair! I love watching my kids have fun, the food is great, I get to hold hands with my cute husband, and if you're a people watcher like I am, you can't find a better place to be entertained! No really. The hosts of "What Not to Wear" would be beside themselves as to what to do! They could do 2 years worth of shows with what they'd find here! Gotta love it!

The zoo train is always such a big hit! I'm sad that Dallin will probably want nothing to do with these rides next year! What are we going to do when he wants to go on the twirl-spin-and-barf rides? Brett and I don't do well with those. I guess we'll have to invite a friend! Aunt Shannon or Aunt Natalie?!!

Jenna was in heaven. She loved this ride and the helicopter one too.

I grew up on a ranch, so as a child the animal barn was my least favorite place to be! My kids love it! I wish I never would have introduced them to the rides! I could have saved a lot of money over the past few years!

The kids loved this little bunny. The little 4-H boy was so nice and patient to let all of the kids pet his little rabbit.

Dallin saw these and just had to drive one. He promised he'd go home and do lots of jobs to pay for it! He was so careful to stay on the dirt path. Even though he got lapped a few times by the other drivers he got out at the end and said, "I won the race and I didn't even drive off the road!" That's my boy!

Fun in the Sun!

2008-08-12T16:05:00.006-08:00

The other day our friend Hayley invited us over to play in their new pool. In the early afternoon she started filling the pool with the hose. She also added hot buckets of water to make it a little warmer. (It was only about 66 degrees outside so we knew the sun wouldn't heat it too much.) She even hooked the hose to her kitchen faucet so she could add more hot water. Two and a half hours later (and no hot water to be found) the pool was still filling up! I couldn't believe Owen, Hayley's son, just dove in face first. The water was FREEZING!! Later the pool buckled and the water started flooding their backyard. It was so funny watching our delayed reactions. "Hey, where's all this water coming from? Augh!! Hurry! Fix the pool!" I'm sure her husband was delighted when the lawn was way too wet to mow that night!

While Owen and Dallin enjoyed the water, Quinn, Jared and Jenna had fun playing with the toys!

TENNIS ANYONE?

Last night for Family Home Evening we took the kids to try out their new tennis rackets that Grandma and Grandpa Gardiner gave them for their birthdays. We had so much fun attempting to hit the ball! We learned two things from the whole experience.....One, Jenna needs her own racket and two, we definitely need to go again. We had a blast and we all need a lot more practice. Help us, Uncle Steve!

You go girl! Jenna loved this, but didn't last too long. She ran to play on the slide while the rest of us played some more.

Look at that form. Actually Jared did pretty well when he wasn't being a wild child!

After Brett worked with Dallin on keeping his forearm straight, Dallin started hitting the ball a lot better.

Randomness

2008-08-03T21:39:00.006-08:00

This week was actually pretty uneventful, except for the fact that we had two sunny days. One of those days was spent at the zoo and the other at two different parks. I've learned that when the sun does pop through this summer I need to drop everything and go out and enjoy it!

This is Jenna's new dollhouse. This is where she will eat, sleep and pretty much live until she outgrows it! Our friend was having a garage sale, so I couldn't resist! (Just what I need....one more big toy in my house!) The kids have been having fun though! The house is already filled with stuffed animals. I'm sure in future years Barbies will take over!

Dallin was so excited for me to take this picture so we could put it on our blog. This is a snow leopard from our zoo.

Brett taught the kids what an owl says.....

"Hooo, Hooo, who's your daddy?!

This is Jenna's version. These kids don't stand a chance
with us as parents! We are such nerds aren't we?!

SCORE Jared!!

2008-07-21T21:08:00.001-08:00

I can't even tell you how excited I am today! Jared has been saying every day that he is going to score a goal on the last day of soccer and he did just that! The past few games have just been killing Brett and me because he has come so close to kicking that darn ball into the net. He had been the only one on his team that hadn't scored and had been feeling a little sad so I was just praying that it would happen.

The coach, Shannon, was cracking me up. Every pre-game drill was focused on getting the ball to Jared who then was supposed to kick it in the net. She told all of the kids to let Jared kick the ball a lot. (We felt bad because some of the kids took that literally and were scared to even touch the ball!) All of the parents were cheering him on and wanted him to play extra minutes. (They probably just wanted to silence the psycho soccer mom!)

The very last play of the game he booted it in! As you can see from the video, I was very excited! I captured the goal but then my memory card was full. So went crazy and then it ends. The cutest part took place after he made the goal. All of the kids ran over and hugged him and were jumping up and down. (I swear it was straight out of a movie!) As I was wiping tears away I looked over to see another mom and the coach crying too. It was just great to see how everyone helped my little boy achieve his goal!

The greatest part of all was that Grandma and Grandpa Gardiner were there to see both boys play! They both earned little trophies and got some cool visors to keep the rain, oh I mean sun, out of their eyes!

After the big game, the kids enjoyed pizza and yummy cupcakes. We really had fun this year and will miss going to soccer.

Fish On!

2008-07-19T23:50:00.000-08:00

In Alaska when you have a fish on your line you yell, "Fish On!" to let everyone around you know to get out of your way so you can land your fish. Well let me just tell you that Brett and I had some massive fish on this weekend!

Brett's parents, brother and 7 other guys (Bart's brothers-in-law plus one of Brett's friends) came to town to fish and enjoy Alaska. We fished the Kenai from 6:00 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. and here are the facts.... (It's late, I'm tired so I'm trying to keep this short!)
**I out-fished my husband again! (3 for 3)
**I caught the biggest fish! (50 pounds)
**I'm really humble about it!

Actually, Brett and I were really glad that we both caught fish, but were bummed for everyone else. (Another guy caught a 30 pounder, but everyone else got skunked. Because it rained in the mountains three days earlier, the water was really murky so the fish couldn't see the bait. There weren't many fish being caught in other boats either.)

Okay, I love my triple chin here, but this fish was so heavy! I couldn't even lift it off the ground!

Out of the goodness of my heart I let everyone pose with my fish. (I am such a brat, aren't I?!) These are Brett's parents, Errol and LeiMomi Gardiner. We had a lot of fun with them in our boat.

My stud of a husband pulled in this 40 pounder. He is actually strong enough to lift his up!

Here's the gang! Although we only landed 3 fish for 12 people, (five other people had bites but were unsuccessful hooking and landing the fish.) everyone still had lots of fun!

Happy Birthday Dallin!

2008-07-05T23:22:00.000-08:00

I can't believe I have a 6 year old now! (I guess many people my age have teenagers, but it's still a shock to me!) Dallin wanted a sports party this year. The kids had fun out in the yard playing, "Soccer Ball, Soccer Ball, Baseball" (Duck, Duck, Goose), frisbee, soccer and a tag game. After we wore them out the kids ate pizza, opened presents and played with the things he received.

Dallin was so excited to receive his very own pastels and drawing pad from Grandma and Grandpa Lacey. He also received a tennis racket, some sticky ball paddles, lots of art supplies, a Webkinz, a dino cave, some dinosaurs and some other fun things.

Dallins' friends were very generous! He's a very spoiled and lucky boy!

Can you tell I said, "Say cheese!" Here's the soccer cake that took way too long to decorate. Dallin made my day when he said, "Mom, that cake is awesome!" It was all worth it!

Happy Fourth of July!

2008-07-04T22:47:00.003-08:00

Ever since moving from Utah, I've struggled with the way we celebrate the 4th of July in Alaska. It's just not the same watching fireworks in broad daylight! This year we decided to go downtown to the parade. Wow, talk about exciting! (Okay I was kidding! It was the most boring parade I've ever experienced.) I do have to say that the chubby rollerskaters and the belly dancers with bellies like mine were the big hit! Pathetic huh?!

What's more American than a hotdog bun? Jenna enjoyed watching peoples' doggies and liked waving her flag.
It's pretty sad when the most exciting part of the parade is cheering on the pooper scooper who follows the reindeer. (I bet you've never seen a reindeer in your parade, have you?!)

Since good 'ol mom and dad were too cheap to buy tickets for rides, the kids sat on the front of the fire truck instead. Woo hoo!

I love my little patriotic family! (Nice sweatshirts and jackets in the middle of the summer huh?!)

Happy Birthday Jared!

2008-06-28T22:27:00.000-08:00

I can't believe my little guy is 4 years old! Jared had a fun zoo party. His friends came over, ate hotdogs, played together and ate cake and icecream. The party went so fast that we didn't even have time to play the fun games we planned. Bummer, huh? (Dallin, Jared, Jenna and I played them later. Talk about ultimate fun! It's just not quite the same without more people!)

Man, I love this little guy! How can you not just adore that smile! After sticking all of those animals on the cake, I realized I should have sanitized them first. (Just kidding! They were clean!)

Jared got some fun gifts for his birthday. He received Tinker Toys, 2 Transformers, a Carrs carwash, a magic show box, a tennis racket and some other fun things. Dallin could not understand why he had to wait a whole week to open his!

We wanted to do something fun for Jared's birthday (Does he look like he's having the time of his life?), so we went to the airshow. When the boys heard the first loud jet fly by they started crying. (It was actually more like hysterical screaming!) So after sitting in traffic for an hour and a half to get there, we left after about a half hour. Man, I hate it when that happens! Sorry Jared! Happy birthday anyway!

Camping

2008-06-22T21:48:00.000-08:00

You know it's been a good week for Brett when he's convinced me to go camping! How can I turn him down when he, along with 3 kids, bat their eyes at me and beg?! "Please Mom, please can we go camping! We promise we'll be good!" And they were very good. It's just so fun to see how excited they get!

We arrived at our campsite pretty late (11:00 or so), but still had plenty of light to set up our tent. (I love not needing a flashlight here in the summer!) After awhile all of us fell asleep except Jenna. She was so wired, jumping from one sleeping bag to another saying, "Night night!" I don't even know when she finally crashed.

I think they're a little excited! What do you think? I didn't even have to ask them to smile for this picture!

Brett did a great job teaching the kids how to build a perfect fire. He is a true Eagle Scout!

The boys had fun crumpling up the newspaper for the fire.

Get some wood for that fire, Jenna! She just had to be one of the boys!

While Brett worked so hard making a nice fire to keep us warm, I went all out on breakfast! Pancakes are just too much clean up! Fruit Loops are the only way to go!

After a nutritious breakfast consisting of sugar, the kids loaded up on.... more sugar! Dallin just had to make a GBD marshmallow! (golden, brown delicious) He did a fantastic job!

Fun With Grandma and Grandpa

2008-06-13T20:53:00.000-08:00

We were so excited to have Grandma and Grandpa Lacey visit us. They missed their grandkids so much that they just had to come! (I think they may have missed me a little too!) As you will see from the pictures below, we had a great time!

The boys got some dinosaur cookie cutters at a garage sale and have been dying to use them. Their mean mom hadn't done it yet, so Grandma came to the rescue. (Hmmm, I'll have to hide those cutters until she comes again. I'm not a big fan of making sugar cookies!)

Yum! Dallin really enjoyed testing the finished product! Yikes! I think his lips are stuck together!

Great decorating skills, Jared! Is that a stegasaurus or a diplodocus in your hand?

Grandma and Grandpa even got to enjoy a couple of soccer games and a sunny day while they were here!

Dad is the best chef around. Look at those colorful veggies and our skinny Grandpa!

Jenna is giving Grandma a round of applause for playing her favorite Primary song, "Popcorn Popping."
Jenna warmed right up to Grandpa when he was here and loved to sit in his lap and look at pictures and video clips from his computer.

Soccer x2

2008-06-02T16:46:00.002-08:00

Let the games begin! We officially started our first soccer season today. It's kind of a crack up with these younger kids. They all chase the ball at the same time and don't even care if they steal it from a teammate! Dallin and Jared both ran hard and chased the ball so much! They'll get the hang of it I'm sure.

I was laughing my head off watching Brett pace the sidelines. I could tell he just wanted to give pointers and it was killing him to watch these little guys run around like chickens with their heads cut off! We were so loud compared to the other parents who were there. Hopefully they won't think we're too obnoxious by the end of the season!

Strike a pose soccer boy! Dallin's looking forward to scoring lots of goals!

Jared was so fun to watch today. He ran around the field with a huge smile on his face the whole time. He really didn't even come near the ball, but he loved kicking the dirt and having fun with the kids on his team! Jared's favorite part of the game was the chocolate pudding after the game ended! He also loved his new uniform and even slept in it!

Run, Dallin, run! Look at that determination! (By the way, both boys get all of their athletic talent from their mother! Ha ha!)

Although Jenna is too young to play, she cheered from the sidelines! "Go Fireball Munchkins!"

Spring is in the Air

2008-05-27T16:29:00.004-08:00

The sun is shining, (kind of) the mosquitos are thick and everything is so green and beautiful! Spring has definitely arrived so we decided to beautify our yard with these lovely flowers. While Jenna was napping, the boys dug in the dirt, played in the water and investigated the creepy crawly things that are making themselves at home in our yard.

Awww, isn't Dallin such a good boy to help his mommy!

I have such nice boys! They were so proud of their finished product!

My Baby's Growing Up!

2008-05-23T21:25:00.002-08:00

My baby has officially graduated from kindergarten! I can't believe it! Everyone always says to enjoy your kids while they're young because they grow up so fast!

Dallin had a wonderful year at school. He loved his teacher, Mrs. C, and really took off with reading and writing. Of course he especially loved the social aspect of school! He is so girl crazy already! We are soooo in trouble!

I am amazed by how much he learned this year. Brett and I are in shock because when we were kids, kindergarten was a time for learning ABC's, numbers and colors! Now they enter first grade already reading novels, publishing books and doing algebra! (Okay, a little exaggeration, but it's fairly close!)

Dallin loved his teacher......"with the long, blond hair"! He was so well-behaved that he didn't even have to pull a single card the whole school year!

Dallin's school put on a very fun field day for the kids. He was anxious to get the potato sack race started!
SWING batter, batter! I taught him everything he knows!

Dallin and his friend kicked everyones' cans in this race! They really worked together and were pretty fast!

Happy Mother's Day to Me!!

2008-05-11T17:13:00.010-08:00

Okay, so the snow is gone, my depression is over and I'm ready to blog again!=) This has been such a wonderful weekend. Yesterday Jenna and I had fun hosting a baby shower, cleaning the garage, shopping, and getting cleaning projects done while the boys went on a Father-and-Sons campout. Whoever planned the campout on the same weekend as Mother's Day deserves a medal! I was able to get so much done and had fun spending time playing dollies with Jenna. The boys had a blast on their campout and were so excited to tell me all about it when they got home.

Mommy spoiling continued early this morning when Dallin slipped a present under the door. At school he had made a spectacular picture frame for me with a handsome picture of himself inside. Then I was treated to a lovely heart pancake breakfast, made by Brett and the boys. I even got to eat off of the red plates!

I am the luckiest mom in the world! I received a soft pad for my lawn chair, plants for the flowerbeds and lots of beautiful cards! (Jenna was just a little unhappy this morning!)

The best present of all was having my hunk-of-a-honey make dinner for us! We had chicken with potatoes and carrots, a salad and angel food cake topped with whipped cream and strawberries! Yum! While he was busy in the kitchen, I took a nap and called my mom! Can life get any better than this?!

Oh, aren't they cute! Dallin and Jared really wanted to take the big tent, but Brett wanted the small one so they could stay warm. A compromise was made, and they ended up with the small tent inside the big tent. That gave them room to stand up and have room to hang out but kept them nice and toasty! (I swear my husband is a genius!)

They came home and told me that they didn't have any success fishing. Hmmm, I wonder why?! I mean I'm the queen of casting (ha ha) and even I can't cast my line that far! (Later they did go down and actually fish in the water!)

I sure love my boys! Jenna and I enjoyed our clean, quiet house and girl time, but we sure missed these handsome fellows!

Go Away Winter!!!!

2008-04-27T21:44:00.007-08:00

Our snow was almost gone....for the second time. Our weather lady said, "There will be one to two inches of snow on the upper hillside." Hmmm, I think she was a little off!!! (Can you just hear me screaming that, with heavy sarcasm!) Our one to two inches turned into 17 inches on Friday night! I was thrilled and spent most of the day Saturday down in my room so I wouldn't bite any heads off! (Brett just loves my weather moods!)

Jenna's little car is kind of trapped! A lot of it has melted today, so it gives me hope!

What a stud! I'm so glad Brett is around to calm our household when things like this happen! =) (This was Friday night and it snowed 6 more inches over night!)

Jared and Jenna had fun playing in the paths that Brett made with the snow blower. Dallin was inside with the stomach flu, missing out on all the fun.

The boys threw a lovely picnic together for us to enjoy. They invited their furry friends and had delicious food for us to enjoy. It was pretty cute, because they did the whole thing by themselves. Jenna was napping, which explains why everything stayed untouched and in order!

Happy Birthday Jenna!

2008-04-27T20:32:00.010-08:00

Jenna had such a fun birthday last week! She received some clothes, a tricycle, a tutu, a little broom and dustpan, and a doll set complete with stroller, highchair, swing, baby carrier, diaper bag, bed and carseat. However, her baby doll, Mylee, was the biggest hit. (She named her doll after a friend of hers in the nursery at church.) Jenna loves feeding her, pushing her in the stroller and putting her to bed. She and Jared have had to compete for the fun dolly toys! (Jared is very into this whole baby thing! He hoards the dolls in his bedroom!)

Jenna's ladybug cake was a big hit and very yummy! It was probably the easiest cake I've ever made! Jenna wanted to feed her baby some cake too, but plastic bananas were a lot less messy! Jenna will make such a good mommy some day, don't you think?

Jenna's friend, GiGi, gave her these beautiful jewels! Dallin doesn't think it's very fair that girls get all of the fun toys!

I have no idea what fashion statement Jenna was trying to make, but it reminds me way too much of Michael Jackson! We had a little party with our playgroup friends. They had fun playing ladybug games and painting ladybugs. Jenna has pretty good dating odds some day, don't you think?! We do have girls that come to our playgroup but they weren't able to come.

Yum, yum! Lip smackin' good! Jenna was ready to devour these, but was very patient to let me get this picture.

Dinomania!

2008-04-13T22:10:00.007-08:00

HELP! My house is being taken over by dinosaurs of all types, colors and sizes! Save me! (I know this is a lovely picture of Dallin, but I just had to show all of you what I experience on a daily basis.) Most of you know that Dallin is a big lover of dinosaurs. He has quite the collection and I think owns every kind that Anchorage sells! He has quite the imagination and can impersonate a T-Rex better than anyone I know! He just cracks me up!

Of course his "real" dinosaurs just aren't enough so we trace, color and cut out more each day! But wait, the real fun comes when those same pens, pencils, markers and crayons used to create additional dinosaurs become dinosaurs themselves! He lines them up on counter tops, floors, tables, bathtubs....anywhere! I wanted to get Jared some Tinkertoys for his birthday but as you can imagine, I'm very, very afraid!

Oh no, not Jared too! Move over groceries, make room for the dinosaurs!

Even Superman is not powerful enough to stop them! (FYI, I did not set this picture up. This is what I found when I walked into our computer room!)

Marshmallow Mania!

2008-03-31T22:28:00.007-08:00

Picture this....The Gardiner Gang has just wrapped up a nice Family Home Evening by playing the game "Don't Eat Pete!", (If you've never heard of that game and don't know how to play you must ask because kids love it! You'll notice the chocolate chips stuck in their teeth. We really do brush, I promise!) when Dr. Gardiner, the king of sugar, starts chucking marshmallows
everywhere! The boys run to their positions, behind the counter, and open wide! A few lucky ones end up in their mouths, while most others have to be chased down and picked up! My kids love this and it just cracks me up every time I see it happen.

The master thrower at work! My kids are so lucky to have such a fun dad!

Dallin and Jared look like they're experiencing lock jaw, but are actually preparing for the big catch!

Jenna is usually right there by the boys, but being trapped in her high chair didn't stop her from joining in. Dang my kids have big mouths! They must get that from their father! =)

Happy Easter!

2008-03-23T23:05:00.006-08:00

Happy Easter everyone! We had such a fun weekend! Before I begin, I just want to say that I hope all of you are enjoying your beautiful flowers and green grass! I have finally realized why you dye eggs. It's because of people like us who have to hide the eggs in the snow! But take notice, it was warm enough that the kids didn't wear their coats! Yeah! Saturday we took the kids to a local park for an egg hunt. When we got there they turned us away because there were so many people there already. Our boys were so upset, so we made the best of a bad situation, with the help of our always optimistic dad/husband. (The kids are so lucky to have the dad they do. I would've just told them to deal with it and that we could try again next year!) We decided to have our own Easter egg hunt in our yard! We ran to the store, bought more candy (along with everyone else in Anchorage), called some friends to join in the fun, and filled the eggs. The kids loved eating all of the candy, oh I mean filling all of the eggs. (I got confused between the two. I think they put one candy in each egg for every five they stuffed in their mouths!) Then Brett hid the eggs really well!

I just love this picture! Jared had tripped over something and his eggs spilled. He didn't even get upset. He just picked them up and went searching for more! He said the funniest thing later in the afternoon. "Mom, that was so fun! I didn't just find eggs! I found dog AND moose poop too!" Lovely! I bet all of you are jealous!

For those of you who know Dallin's personality, you can just picture how excited he was for this big event! He loves stuff like this! After the egg hunt, he organized a hunt to look for dinosaurs in the back of the yard.

Jenna loved finding the pink eggs, as you can see! She just wanted to sit right down in the snow and eat her candy. She loves her hat and boots and wears them around the house every day.

Okay, so I just had to get a picture of them in their cute springy Easter clothes. Miracle #1- all three are looking at the camera. Miracle #2- They don't have any chocolate on their clothes. Miracle #3- Jared is smiling! (Hmmm, maybe it was the Peeps-eating bribe that worked!)

"Mom, You're the Best!"

2008-03-15T21:44:00.009-08:00

Spring begins in less than a week and as you can see, our flowers are in full bloom and we're experiencing balmy weather here in Alaska. Oh how I wish that were the case! It was a relatively nice day today though, (about 30 degrees) so we decided to get out and walk to Dallin's school.

Isn't this kid so dang handsome?! I was so excited when I saw Dallin hop on the swing, pump his legs and swing without saying, "Mom, will you push me?" Man I love what school teaches our kids!

Pretty in pink... and hand-me-down blue gloves. (Can you believe I let her out of the house like that? I'm kidding!!!) Jenna loves this swing because she just gets to hang out and enjoy the ride!

What a smile! Jared found an "ice pizza" on the ground! So is it calorie free since you can see through it? Mmmm, mmmm good!

There were two older boys at the playground when we were there. They stomped on some ice until it broke and then began splashing around in the freezing water. Dallin was just dying to join the fun, but I think I have been successful (some would view it as unsuccessful =) ) at instilling fear in him when it comes to activities like this. (Hey, don't get me wrong, I love for my kids to have fun but I didn't want him to be freezing on the walk home.) For those of you who know me well, you would have been proud of me! I resisted my control-freakishness (Is that even a word?!) and said, "Go ahead Dallin. You can play in the water." His response, followed by a big hug, was so cute, "Mom, you're the best! Thanks!" He had a great time and within five minutes was soaked from stomping, splashing and rolling in the water. Afterall, that's what polar bears do!

Party at the Gardiner's!

2008-03-07T14:21:00.018-09:00

Happy Redneck Birthday to me! I recently returned from a trip to Arizona, so I was gone for my birthday. Brett and the kids surprised me last night with a very fun party full of nasty teeth, princess plates, a heart cake, cards and presents! No worries, Brett will get us into his office ASAP to take care of our teeth. It's a good thing we have immediate access!

Hey, Aunt Natalie! Can you clean our teeth? I think you may need to teach us to floss better too!

For those of you who grew up with me, you'll remember how pathetic I was at blowing my birthday candles out. I was always made fun of and have been scarred for life ever since. For those of you who weren't as fortunate, watch my kids in this clip. I've taught them everything I know!

Only In Alaska!

2008-03-05T21:07:00.010-09:00

The past two weekends Anchorage celebrated Fur Rendezvous. Sounds exotic doesn't it?! It's actually a time when all the trappers come together to trade furs, and lots of people gather to watch dog sled pulls (including the famous Iditarod), freeze to death, view the ice sculptures (Dallin enjoyed this ice slide), freeze to death, and ride carnival rides in the freezing cold darkness! Sounds fun huh?! Actually it was a ton of fun and a lot warmer than last year! We really do feel bad for all of you who only get to enjoy a fair type atmosphere during the summer months!

It's so crazy to watch everyone get all dressed up in their winter gear and freeze on the carnival rides! We even got to see fireworks in the dark! (During the summer you can never see them because it's light all the time.) This is just the most insane state I've ever lived in!

Enjoy this Running of the Reindeer video clip! I can't believe I wasn't there in person! Maybe next year!

Jenna's Big Girl Adventures

2008-02-03T20:46:00.000-09:00

Okay, so I'm not trying to play favorites by focusing this entry solely on Jenna, but she has just been cracking us up. (I'm sure I'll spotlight Dallin and Jared later on. I would hate for them to feel cheated and have to go to therapy later on in life!)

Jenna discovered Mommy's makeup! She is especially fond of how the mascara just glides over her entire face and hands. She was very good to keep it on her body and off the furniture. Good girl! (She wasn't too thrilled with me taking this incriminating photo!)

Jenna is loving her potty chair! She pushes it around saying, "Poppy, poppy!" Every once in awhile I can get her to try and use it for its intended purpose, but no success yet. I'm quite relieved for now though, because sanitation will be an issue when she does really use it. At this point she thinks it's for stepping in, hiding toys, and her head fits just perfectly in the bowl! Disgusting!

Happy New Year!

2008-01-18T22:54:00.000-09:00

One of my New Year's Resolutions was to get this blog up and running. Now that a little over 2 weeks has passed since setting my goals, I've given up on a couple of them and now have time for this one! Don't you love it how that works?!

We had fun ringing in the new year with friends, games, puzzles and food. Jenna celebrated around 8:00 p.m. and then went to bed while the rest of us partied until about 2:00 a.m. Brett, my crazy hunk-a-love, stayed up until 8:00 a.m. working on the puzzle. Dallin was so upset with the neighbors for not having fireworks this year. How dare they not spend their hard earned money to entertain us! (It hasn't even entered Dallin's mind that his tightwad parents could buy some. SHHH!!)

Jared, Jenna and Dallin really know how to ring in the new year!