Guess who's on the move??

Yep, she's a crawling--and she is one busy little gal! Since she finally transitioned from the "army crawl" to the real thing, she has been living it up!

One of her favorite places to crawl under--and this is her "frowny face," but she is actually playing with her new bottom teeth. :)
And just a few days ago, she started to do this--woah baby! She is a woman with a mission I tell ya--Is this exciting and fun? For sure. Is it a bit scary for Mom? For double sure! However, we really have enjoyed seeing this milestone happen, and Ella is so very pleased with herself you can't help but laugh when you watch her joy.
See what I mean?
Here's just a shot of the whole family at a recent ward luau potluck--sounds crazy, but the food was pretty good and we had a fire dancer to boot! Well, that's all for now.

Hike to Falls in Rocky Mountain National Park

The beginnings of this hike were not too promising because we took the WRONG TRAIL. We were with my cousin Rick and his family and all started going up this very NARROW trail that was VERY steep. ALso, we didn't hear any water. Finally it dawned on us that it was not right! I felt bad, but Rick and Fran were very positive about it they were like, well, at least we saw something pretty. So, we had to get one shot together...

So, unfortunately Rick and his family had to leave and catch their flight back to Calfornia, but we decided to still look for the right hike. We found it and started up the trail, baby and kiddos in tow.

Let's go Daddy!
Action shot
These were the lower falls, called Copeland Falls. Since it was a pretty short hike up to these, we decided to keep going and make it the higher ones. The weather was so nice and everywhere we looked there were more beautiful things to see. It was also fun to meet other hikers on the way, some from exotic places like New Jersey. Another couple came up to us and had very strong British accents. Jack was like, "So, where are you from?" I looked at him like, "Are you kidding me? Did you hear them talk??" Then, they said, in their lovely British voices, "Oh, we're from Texas."

SO pretty

Getting close with nature.
Dad's idea--what a mastermind photographer he is.
This bridge was great to play Poo Sticks on--of course Jack decided to use a LOG instead of a stick, which totally beat all of our sticks. But the theory didn't hold true the next time, when Angie tried the same thing. So, I have yet to learn the way to find a perfect Poo Stick.

Here we are when we finally made it to the bigger falls, or cascades. Most of the way we all cheerfully kept trecking along on this hike, but I must admit that toward the end there was one member of the fam (she will remain nameless, but her name starts with an S and ends with the center of the universe) who was having some trouble being, well, full of her namesake. Anyhow, we finally relented and told her that we would do a five minute break IF she promised not to complain anymore. That seemed to appease her and she kept her end of the deal. Now, before you start to think we are horrible slave driving parents, let me explain that this hike was barely 2 miles long. Yes, it was a bit uphill but it really wasn't too bad. AND, once we got to the top EVERYONE was happy we had done it. It was BEAUTIFUL, and the nice spray of water felt SO GOOD. The hike back was great, being all down hill.
Ella was amazed at it all......
And she obviously wore herself out with that little two mile trail.It was a great way to end our fun vacation, and we now officially want to live in the Rocky Mountain National Park, in the summer that is.

Protect Marriage

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints just issued this statement on its official website:

Preserving Traditional Marriage and Strengthening Families
In March 2000 California voters overwhelmingly approved a state law providing that “Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.” The California Supreme Court recently reversed this vote of the people. On November 4, 2008, Californians will vote on a proposed amendment to the California state constitution that will now restore the March 2000 definition of marriage approved by the voters.
The Church’s teachings and position on this moral issue are unequivocal. Marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God, and the formation of families is central to the Creator’s plan for His children. Children are entitled to be born within this bond of marriage.
A broad-based coalition of churches and other organizations placed the proposed amendment on the ballot. The Church will participate with this coalition in seeking its passage. Local Church leaders will provide information about how you may become involved in this important cause.
We ask that you do all you can to support the proposed constitutional amendment by donating of your means and time to assure that marriage in California is legally defined as being between a man and a woman. Our best efforts are required to preserve the sacred institution of marriage.

We are very excited about a proposition to protect marriage that will be on the ballot in Arizona this November. Our friends, Mark and Marily, have some great information on their website about this issue. If you would like to learn more about how YOU can GET INVOLVED, simply link onto the Mark and Marily site under my family and friends link. (Sorry, I wish I was cool like the rest of you and could do that cool link thing--anyone want to give me lessons?) Back to the topic at hand--it is VERY RARE that the LDS Church will get involved and support a political issue, so we thought it was important enough to post about as well. We will keep praying and fighting to protect marriage in our state and country--we hope everyone else who reads this will as well.

P.S. More "non-political" and "less serious" posts to come. :)

Colorado Family Reunion

We had a wonderful time at a family reunion on my side this week. It was quite a drive up to Rocky Mountain National Park in Estes Park, Colorado, but so worth it. We were able to see some relatives I hadn't seen in many years, and it was great fun to get catch up and meet some new kids as well. We stayed at the YMCA in Estes Park, and it was super--lots of fun stuff to do.

On the way up, we stopped and stayed with my old college roomie Angie (Strong) Johnson. It was great to bond again and share mom stories.
Her daughter Cassidy is a cutie pie!
Then we were off to the reunion! Here are a few highlights from the trip--there are WAY more pictures that this, and many more events, but blogs are not photo albums so I am just giving a sampling here.

My brother Danny and his family live in North Carolina, so they had yet to meet Ella. Krisztina and Alexandra both had a great time showering her with attention. We were pleasantly surprized to see how well she took to people--she just LOVED all the attention she got all week. Here's studly Logan rock climbing.
Truth be told, Angie was the real stud--she climbed all the walls to the top--she is so fearless! (P.S. Sunny the dreamer opted out of this and decided to enjoy the beauties of the area and bond with her little cousin Alyssa instead.)
My Mom was REALLY intent on winning this game. Unfortunately, I can't remember if her team did or not--good work though Mommy!
Did I mention that Ella enjoyed the attention she got all week?
I love this picture of Becky and Danny because they totally look like brother and sister! This was at our campfire and song night.

Aunt Mel with Ella--how sweet!
Oh my--can it be any more precious--this is my Great Aunt Evelyn--she is still very perky and lots of fun! Obviously her and Ella got along great!
Oh yeah--what's a campfire without "A Tooty Tah!"?
Here's another one of the games we played--the classic toothpick and lifesaver relay race.
Horsebackriding was really fun--they actually let us do some trotting, which they normally don't on these kinds of rides. Of course, bums were very sore the next day, but that's all part of the experience right?

The kids had never gone before, so I was happy to see they weren't scared of the horses or going up those sides of the mountain--their mom, however, was a bit wimpy. The wrangler had to ride in front of me when we went on steep parts to make sure I didn't faint!
Keep those doggies movin' cowboy!
Here's a few more pics of the campfire and song night. This is my sis-in-law Krisztina.
Here's Logan with Mel's boyfriend Matthew--he SO wants to learn guitar now!
Here's Ella enjoying nature. It was really cool because our back door went right out into a little hill with grass.

Here's a few excerpts from the family talent show. My cousin Kelly and her family did a cute dance number.
My cousins Molly and Cinnamon did a really fun talent--they played songs with Snapple bottles! This is my cousin JR and Melanie's boyfriend Matthew jamming out on the guitar. It was pretty good--and they just got it together while they were up at the reunion together!
My brother Danny surprised us--or at least me--by reciting a Shell Silverstein poem "Sara Silvia Cynthia Stout Wouldn't Take the Garbage Out." The kids loved it!
We also did some talent as well--the girls and I sang "Matchmaker" and Logan and Jack did "If I Were a Rich Man" from Fiddler on the Roof. Yeah, have the video but no pictures. It was fun though--overall just a great time with great people. We also went on a beautiful hike, but I want to do a separate post for that because I'm pooped and ready for bed. Thanks to everyone that helped and came to the reunion--it was AWESOME!

Pass the Peas Please!

We had WAY too much fun watching Ella try peas tonight..I just had to post about it.

At first she was a bit shocked by it. She saw me come over with a bowl and a spoon and she got all excited like she always does--I have only given her rice cereal and some oatmeal, and I recently made some carrot baby food for her which she liked at first but hasn't been too impressed with lately (so now I am wondering what I will do with all these little containers of frozen carrot puree in my freezer, but that is another story) so I thought I would make some peas out of some of the peas we were having with our own dinner--then it's almost like she is eating along with us!
Well, as I mentioned, the first bite was quite a shocker. She totally went for it all happy, and then her face crunched backwards in a bitter retreat--however, no crying happened, and she still seemed interested, so we perservered...
She became more trusting of the green goo as the spoonfulls continued to approach her mouth...
She finally welcomed it in with open lips and an open heart..yeah! Success with one green veggie--for now!

On a side note, Logan absolutely LOVES peas--I mean, we bribe him with more peas to finish other things on his plate! So, maybe if Ella keeps this up some day they will compete for the last serving--right now Logan always has the dibs on it!

SUPER GRANDPARENTS!

So, my mom and Lyle did us a super favor by staying with our kiddos--yes, even with little Ella--while we were gone this last Friday night for Bishop's night at Girls' Camp. It is always such a neat experience to go up there, but I must admit it was a bit tough to leave the baby. I know my mom could tell this by my giving her a ridiculously long list of instructions, as well as me trying to give her a tour of the house and Ella's diaper bag. However, she patiently listened to me and didn't even poke any fun. I wish I had some more pics of their time with Grandma and Grandpa, but we forgot to download the pics off their camera before they left today. However, I think this shot says it all:

GO SUPER GRANDMA AND GRANDPA!!

Lyle even taught the kids some new Rook moves, which happens to be their new favorite card game, and I think it is Lyle's all time favorite card game.

Even though it was a bit hard to leave, it really was SO nice to be away with Jack up in the cool pines and visit with so many wonderful people and experience such a great program. We also went on a little hike the next day in Payson and had a little lunch there. So, I was able to pamper Jack a bit for Father's Day and we were able to be "just the two of us" for a little while. Thanks again Mom and Lyle--you two are the BEST!

Oh, and this has absolutely nothing to do with the rest of this post, but Ella has her first official hair do because she now has enough hair for one-if you look closely you can see the little tuft coming out of the bow--not quite ready for a french braid, but still a great style yes?

Father's Day

If the kiddos look tired--that's because they are--except for Ella of course--she is always bright and cheerful each morning around anywhere from 5:30 to 6:00. The other ones decided to get rid of some of their shut eye to see Daddy off on his special day before he leaves for all his fun Sunday meetings. We had a quick breakfast and opened some presents and cards--Grandpa Lyle was their as well so we were able to have a double Father's Day/Grandpa's Day breakfast.
What a super husband and father I have here--here's him and Ella playing a little "peek a boo."
If our children ever win any chess tournaments--it will NOT be because of their mother--Jack has taught them many a cool strategy in his patient and encouraging ways. (i.e. "Oh YES, I am going to get your rook--hee hee! My guy is totally set up to get it from you and--WHAT? Oh man, you totaly just blocked me! Darn it!")
He definitely does his fair share of baby duty--but he loves it so much it really isn't a "duty" to him.
I love my rocket scientist husband and I feel so blessed that he is a partner with me every day and will be forever as we travel this crazy parenting road together. Love ya honey!