Ryker's Special Day

Ryker was blessed in Sacrament Meeting today by his daddy. Jed gave him a beautiful blessing. He looked so handsome in his blessing outfit Grama Carole made. I'm not sure it would have fit much longer givin' the way this boy is growing!

We are so grateful to the family that could come and share in this day with us. We had a small lunch afterwards before everyone headed home.

We love you Ryker and are so glad you chose to join our family for eternity!

Grandpa & Grandma Valentine

Shane & Talease

Grandpa Mark & Grandma Carole

Nathan, Mariann & Talon

Jess

Proof that Tawnya, Landon & Reese were here too...

New Nephew

Check out this cute little guy. Baby Daxton made his appearance a couple weeks early on Kody's birthday. One day we'll have to have a joint party!! He weighed 7lbs 6ozs... 2 pounds lighter than Ryker (it still amazes me how big our boy was)! He's absolutely adorable and I wish I was there to give him lots of lovin'. Christmas can't come soon enough!

Love you guys!

My sister Shara and baby Dax.

He's Two...

and definitely acting his age!

Happy Birthday Kody! We love you. We are glad you are part of our family. You're extremely busy and keep us on our toes. You bring a smile to our face everyday!

Some of your favorite things are...

• giving kisses and hugs(especially to Ryker)
• telling everyone "hi" (especially Ryker)
• water... play in it, swim in it, drink it.
• the little stuffed puppy that you have to sleep with.
• the "popcorn" song
• having your arm and head rubbed
• having mom or dad lay by you while going to sleep
• playing with Lucas (or messing up what he's doing)
• playing (or sneaking) outside
• food... pretty much any kind.
• saying "stuck" and "mo"

Time with Family

Me and the boys spent a week and half down in Arizona. Jed didn't get to stay quite that long. We left Monday the 29th to go stay with Shane and Talease and then headed the rest of the way on Tuesday. Jed had the idea to go Tuesday so we thought we'd surprise everyone by showing up on their doorstep. We left St. George about 3 and of course, the surprise didn't quite turn out how we'd planned. Once we got to Las Vegas, the car started shaking and pulling to one side really bad. We exited in hopes of finding a tire store, but drove around for about an hour looking... until I finally convinced him to stop and ask someone! We had to get two new (used) tires for the front. They had started separating. I'm extremely glad that we were in a town when this happened. After 2 hours in Las Vegas and a few detours to get to the right freeway... we were off again. I finally called Shara about 9 (8 her time) to let her know that we should have been arriving in a couple of hours, but instead we had about 3 or 4 more to go! I didn't want her freaking out when someone started knocking on her door at midnight. The boys rode pretty good. Ryker wanted fed about every 2 hours and cried if his arms weren't tucked under the blanket. We were never more happy to see the Higley exit! Jed drove the whole way and got pretty tired the last 15 minutes.

We did get to surprise my mom the next morning when Lucas walked into Grandma's house. She obviously wasn't expecting us to be there until that evening. It was good to see her and my grandma and give them each a hug. Later that afternoon, my dad, Jess, Tawn & Landon arrived. There was a big family get together over at Jeanie's that night. It was so fun to be together as family and visit with so many of my cousins.

Thursday was Grandpa's funeral. Everything was perfect. It was emotional for me to see my grandpa, but also reassuring to know I'll see him again. Each of his children talked and did a wonderful job remembering his life. All the cousin's sang "Each Life That Touches Ours for Good" which I knew would be hard for me since I had a hard time just practicing it! He was carried in the back of my uncles truck to Virden, NM for a graveside service. Virden is about 4 hours from Mesa and they were going there and back in the same day. We decided to stay back in Mesa since we had just had a major travel day and a baby to stop and feed. Shara also stayed back since she's so close to having her baby. It was a great tribute to Grandpa to see all the people who came to both services.






All the grandkids except 4.




Arriving in Virden fashion... back of the pick-up.




My grandparents headstone... their 3rd one to be exact!

The rest of the weekend was spent hanging out, swimming, eating & visiting. Jed, Jess & my dad left early Sunday morning. The boys, Tawn and myself stayed for a few more days so my mom could come back with us. I was glad Tawnya stayed to help me with the kids. They were extremely busy. Between my three and Abby, there wasn't much down time. Nap time was a welcome part of the day. Lucas spent one night over at Grama Great's house with Grama Carole and Tawnya. He loved having all the attention to himself. Shara showed us how to make the cute onesies with the appliques on them. She had given me two for Ryker and now I can't wait for him to wear all the other ones... they are so cute.













Thursday night the Call's had a baby shower for Shara. I was glad we were able to stay and go to it. She got a lot of fun things for their little boy. I know she was glad that he didn't come while we were there, but I would have loved to see him. He'll be well taken care of with Abby around! She was very helpful with Ryker... sometimes a little too much!







Abby and Kody were great buddies and enjoyed crossing into each others personal space! Abby liked to reach out and pinch his cheek until she got a reaction. He'd usually retaliate by giving her a kiss on the head. Towards the end he got a little more aggressive and would push her down. A couple fun things they did were...

• Play in the bathtub with their clothes on... a few times
• Kody drenching Abby in some nice smelling air freshener (so much that her hair was dripping).
• Spread lotion and diaper rash cream on the crib

They had so much fun together!

It's amazing how this pretty blue eyed girl could do this to ones face...

We left Friday morning to head back to Utah. We took turns driving and it actually wasn't too bad. Ryker was a complete angel the whole way and only made a little noise when he wanted fed. Lucas and Kody did really well together and only slept from Holden to home. We dropped Tawn off with Landon and Reese in Holden. She missed Reese a lot and was excited to see her. It was nice to finally pull in the driveway! It was nice to see Jed. We missed him and (I think) he missed us!

Thanks Aaron and Shara for letting us disrupt your lives for so long. We had a great time.

Look Who's Smiling

He's now 6 weeks old and cute as ever.

We got back from Arizona on Friday and have lots to post about... stay tuned!

I Remember...

Grandpa & Kody



On Friday night my Grandpa Clouse passed away. It feels a bit surreal right now. He died with his daughters (my mom) and Grandma all with him. I have a special place in my heart for my grandparents and love them so much.


For awhile I've wanted to write down things I remember about them or doing with them, but never got around to it. It makes me mad now that I didn't do it sooner. But I still want to remember everything so I'm doing it now. (In no particular order)


I REMEMBER...


Spending many summers and Christmas' visiting Grandpa and Grandma in Virden.



PEPSI!




Riding on the tailgate and singing "to the dump, to the dump, to the dump dump dump" as grandpa or grandma drove the pickup up to the big hole in the ground... the Virden dump!




Helping grandpa irrigate. Riding with him to turn on the pump and walking along the ditch as he started every tube. He'd tried to teach me, but I'm not sure I ever got one started.



Visiting grandma at the post office and being treated to a dum-dum every time we went. I also remember getting to stay with her once and having to hid behind the counter every time a customer came in.




Grandpa paying me to touch the electric fence. I'm pretty sure I only did that once!



Playing with all the cousins down at the river, in the ditch by the house and every time they flooded the lawn.




Grandpa's endless supply of certs and lifesavers in his closet.




Shopping with Grandma at Boyd Brother's and always leaving with a bullet Popsicle... the best!




Their year supply of pop (mostly Pepsi) in the fridge in the shed.




Every time Grandma would come to Utah, we would stop at Pikets so she could by some new clothes.




Staying an extra week in Virden one summer. I got extremely homesick and I'm sure they were never more ready to send some one home!! They spent a lot of time trying to keep my distracted.




Spending 2 of my favorite summers living with them in Mesa. Once when I was 16 and again when I was 19.




Playing Runs and Bunches




Doing crossword puzzles every morning and trying to fill in the ones Grandma had missed, but hardly knowing any of them. I preferred the one in the T.V. Guide!




Watching Who Wants to be a Millionaire every week and thinking we were so smart!



Having family prayer every morning before I would head to work.


Yelling for Grandma cause there was a blasted cockroach and I was to chicken to step on it. I did get braver as time went on.




Grandma got a long stem white carnation for Mother's Day. I always thought it was funny cause their was no note, ribbon, or even a leaf on it. We decided to experiment and put it in water with food coloring to see if we could get it to change. The next morning I came up the stairs and it was pink. I couldn't believe it had worked. And then they both started laughing. Grandpa had got up early and dunked the flower and fooled both me and grandma. I look forward to my call every Mother's Day to ask grandma what she got this year.


Missing them so much after I moved back home that I went back down to spend Christmas with them.



Having Grandpa and Grandma attend our wedding in the Logan temple.




Visiting them not long after Grandpa had his stroke. He was using a walker and Lucas would sit on the seat while Grandpa took him for rides out to get the mail. Lucas was about 18 months. Lucas fell in love with Grandpa and actually learned to say "grandpa" on this trip.


Grandpa and Lucas



Every time I call on the phone, all I have to do is say "Hi Grandma" or "Hey Grandpa" and they'd know exactly who I was.



They have always made me fill special and loved!



I know I'll think of more as time goes one. I'm going to miss my grandpa a lot. I'm grateful for eternal families and I'm glad I'll finally get to give my mom and grandma a big hug this week.


Grandpa, I love you!

F.O.U.R

The four week old...




How is that possible?!




He's started sleeping between 5-6 hour stretches at night which makes me happy! Apparently he's a growing boy cause he stills sleeps a ton during the day too. When he's awake he loves to look around, but isn't to fond of his tummy time! He's developed a good set of lungs over the last week or so, but luckily doesn't use them to often. His brothers adore him and Kody has taken on the role of second mother. He loves to hold him, pat him, rock him, ssshhhsshh him, and shove a binky in his mouth! If it were possible... he'd feed him too!

I offered him his first bottle today and he took it like a champ! He's also adjusted to the "cuter"
binkies. No more big green things.

He's just so darn cute... I'm so grateful he's part of our family.












The (almost) twenty four month old...







He's made us all aware that he'll be two in a couple of weeks. Kody loves to make the messiest messes... and I wish it were just with toys!

Exhibit #1... the other day he woke up from his nap, but I didn't hear him get up. Pretty soon I see him walk out of my bedroom. I could see white stuff all over his lips and shirt. I ran to the bedroom to find he had taken my tube of lanolin cream (for nursing) and 3 tubes of diaper rash cream and frosted my night stand and sheets.

Exhibit #2... he's obsessed with water. It drives me crazy!! He likes to climb on the counter in either bathroom, turn on the water, and dump it on the floor. If we've forgot to lock the doors we know exactly where to find him, usually with a huge puddle or soaking wet carpet

We tried to buy a gate to block off the kitchen, but we can't find one that will fit! It's his favorite room in the house. He can now open the fridge, climb the drawers to stand on the counter, use the water dispenser on the fridge (we now use the lock mode), empty the dishwasher, play with any dishes in the sink and, again... dump out water all over the floor.


I think I spend more time chasing this little boy than I do anything else. I welcome nap time with open arms!


Despite his busy personality he's also one of the sweetest little boys. He gives great hugs and kisses. He loves to have his arm rubbed while he's trying to go to sleep. He can make us smile and laugh all the time. Love you Kody Boy!







The four and a half year old...





I love this little boy. He has so much personality. He can talk you ear off about anything and everything. He's loves to play the Wii and doesn't like that we have to limit his time (or that we use it as incentive)! He's learning that his brother follows his example and some times that doesn't turn out like he wants.


He's been playing Smart Start baseball with his dad, which he completely loves. They teach the fundamentals and rules of teeball and then they get to play a little game. He's improved a lot and his dad even bought him a new bat.


He's currently a big helper with chores and prefers to do 4 since he's 4 years old. Some mornings he loves to surprise me by making his bed right when he wakes up. He still loves to be read to and can recite almost any book back to you. We like to play a game where I start singing a song from a movie and he tells me the movie. He's got quite the list that he can name.

I'm so glad when daddy 'stays' home...

Lucky for us, Jed was able to take Thursday and Friday off last week. I wanted him to take a couple of days off after our mom's left to help me out a bit. I figured it wasn't to much to ask since he's only had off the day that Ryker was born. It was so nice to have him home. He took Lucas golfing which I gather was quite an experience. Lucas talked the entire time and got some looks from other golfers. They got rained on a bit, but I'm pretty sure they had fun together.




Friday morning we headed up to Honeyville for the weekend. It was our 10 year class reunion Friday and Saturday and we were in charge. We planned a dinner in Logan that was catered by Hamilton's. It turned out really good after a minor mishap. The address they had given was wrong which meant all the invitations were wrong. Not a good start, but everyone took it good (I think). It was great to see those that came and I think everyone had a great time. Saturday we planned a family activity at the Brigham pool. We're thankful to those that came with their families. It wasn't as warm as I had hoped but the sun did shine and the rain held off until we were out of the pool about 5 minutes. Our kids had a blast. I love their faces on the two pictures below! Thanks to everyone who came... and I'm very grateful that I don't ever have to plan it again!!







After the reunion we stopped by to see Grandma Valentine. We love visiting with her and hearing all the fun things happening in the family. She's an amazing lady.



We headed back Sunday after dropping my mom off at the airport. Last week my grandpa Clouse had surgery and things aren't going so well. She flew down there to be with my grandma. You can read the updates on my mom's blog. It's hard to watch people you love go through these things... especially from a distance. Grandpa... we love you!

And to Jed, our dad's and grandpa's... Happy Belated Father's Day. We love you all!