Flashback Friday - Happy Birthday, Dad!

(Authored by Aaron) - My Dad, Steve, recently celebrated his 60th birthday on November 28, 2007. 60 years! Wow - What a milestone! What does he have to show for it besides some wrinkles and gray hair? ;) Lots!

What has my Dad done since I've been born? Well.... he's been a firefighter, a stock broker, worked in the oil industry, became a self-employed handyman/licensed general contractor, worked briefly as a community college instructor and recently hired on to do maintenance and equipment installation for a potato chip company. Most importantly, he's been my father, my friend, my mentor, a provider for his family and a leader.

Life has never been easy for my Dad. I've watched him struggle to overcome the many trials and tribulations life has thrown his way, but he's never given up. My Dad always told me growing up that "A winner never quits, and a quitter never wins." He's persevered when things got tough, and I admire him for that.

My Dad has instilled values in not only me, but my siblings, my friends, and countless others who's lives he has touched. Many of my friends father's weren't around when I was growing up. My Dad was a father figure to them, from Church callings to leadership positions in the Boy Scouts of America program. My Dad has provided me with guidance, advice and wisdom, as he has done with my friends. For this I am grateful, and I know many others are, too.

My Dad became a grandfather ("Papa") in 2004 when our daughter, Kaya, was born, and again in 2006 when our son, Logan, was born. I hope that he enjoys his grandchildren as much as he enjoyed his own kids.

So, Dad - Steve, "Papa" - We salute you and express our love, gratitude, and appreciation to you on the celebration of your sixtieth birthday!

We love you!

The Ultimate BYU fan - Ryan!!

Aaron's brother Ryan is one of the ultimate BYU fans. He attended the rivalry game against the University of Utah on Saturday and not only made it on the 10pm news while they showed fans rushing the field, but he got his mug pictured in the Sunday paper. Ryan is on the far left hand side of the picture. He has some dude's hand and cell phone blocking part of his face, but he got ink none the less. Way to go Ryan!!

Do you have a dirty mouth??

Logan must have thought he did, as he decided to take a taste of the bar soap. I came in the bathroom to find some big bites taken of the soap and floating in the bathtub. Thankfully, he didn't decide to actually eat any of it. Look at the teeth marks!! We already have to keep the bathrooms closed since Logan likes to play in the toilet water, eat toilet paper and suck on baby wipes. Do you think I should be giving our son some more fiber?

Home Projects

We have lived in our current home for almost 2 1/2 years. We built our house on 1/3 of an acre. We LOVE our neighborhood and our nice big lot. The only probelm is that we underestimated how much money it would take to fence, concrete, and landscape our entire yard. We were able to lanscape our front yard during the first few months we lived here. Since then, we have spent the past 2 1/2 years killing weeds and keeping our dirt in the back well maintained. Over the past couple of weeks we were finally able to complete our fence and get all the concrete work done. We plan on doing the backyard landscaping in the Spring. Kaya tells everyone that we are going to have a playground in our backyard soon. Heather can't wait to have have a safe place for the kids to play outside!! Here are some pictures. We'll have more to share with you next year

A Tender Moment

A funny thing happened to us while running errands today. Heather & the kids went to the local Wal-mart to finish up some last minute Thanksgiving shopping. Heather has been sick the last few days and was feeling tired, blah and just plain ready for bed. This was about 5:30PM. Heather loaded up Logan in the cart and let Kaya walk along side. (She doesn't ride anymore unless you want to create a scene). They walked in the Wal-Mart like they've done a million times before with Kaya poking along a step behind Heather. Heather got about 10 feet past the main entrance and realized Kaya wasn't right behind her anymore. Heather looked back to see that Kaya had discovered the security monitor that shows people coming and going. Kaya must have looked up at just the right moment, because she realized she could see herself on live TV. Heather found Kaya waving to herself at the TV screen. She then started making faces and laughing at seeing herself on the screen. It was in that moment, Heather was reminded of the wonderful 3 year old she has been blessed with. Kaya is such an amazing child and we love her so much. She can be a real firecracker at times, but it's moments like this that makes it all good!!

Flashback Friday - Serr Family

The picture for this week's Flashback Friday is only 2 years old. Aaron's family (except Ryan) came to our house for Thanksgiving. This picture was taken at the Joseph Smith Memorial Building in Salt Lake. It's not a very old picture, but Aaron's family will be here next week for another Utah Thanksgiving. There's even a chance of snow snowers next weekend!! It's always fun to have family visit and we LOVE getting together during the holidays! It's a special time of year. Enjoy!!

Do you LOVE candles???

This Saturday, I am hosting a Scentsy open house from 6-8PM. This is the hottest new thing in candles. Basically, these are warmers specifically designed melt "Scentsy Bars" into a wax pool that throws the maximum amount of fragrance over the longest period of time. Scentsy Warmers melt wax at a lower temperature so there is never any danger of burning children or pets. There's no wicks, soot, smoke, and these are totally lead free. They also have room sprays and Car Candles. You can learn more at : http://www.scentsy.net/

I attended an open house and booked one of my own. I NEVER EVER do these kinds of parties, however I really liked the product and by having a party I can earn free stuff & discounted items. (Handy for Christmas gift giving this year!!) If you like what you see and you're interested in placing an order, send me an email & we can work something out. I'm not actually selling the stuff, so I will only have a few days to place my orders once my open house is over on Saturday the 17th. Please share with your friends & Thanks for looking!!

Busy Busy Busy Busy....

It seems like the past few weeks have been non-stop. We've been in the process of doing things around the house (inside & out), getting ready for the holidays, visitors, and just keeping up with day to day life and 2 kids. Over the weekend we went down to Heather's Aunt Deb's house in Moroni for a short but relaxing visit. She always has treats for the kids and it's nice to have no internet service, no home phone calls, no fast food, and limited cell phone service. It's almost like camping, but with a warm house and comfortable bed!! Aaron had Monday off for Veteran's Day and we spent the afternoon geocaching as a family throughout Utah County. Here are a few pictures from our adventures:

A nice smile from Kaya.

Logan is a happy camper.

Moose, standing next to a Moose.

An airplane display at UVSC.

Flashback Friday - Happy Birthday Mom!!

Heather's mom will be celebrating a birthday tomorrow, the 10th of November, and this week's Flashback Friday is dedicated to her. She is the world's best mom, mother-in-law, and grandma!! She really is and we are so lucky to have her. She is always there whenever we need her and we can always count on her for love, support, encouragement, advice, guidance, and financial support. Mom is also a hard worker, dependable, and a good friend. We all hope she has a great birthday!! We Love You, Mom & Grandma!!

Flashback Friday - In Memory of...

Ollie Ann Denniston - AKA "Granny"

May 6, 1905 - November 3, 1993

This is Heather's paternal great-grandmother. While looking through pictures for Flashback Friday, I realized that it was around the time of year that our Granny passed away. I was lucky enough to know her until she passed in the Fall of my senior year. Granny loved to write poems and keep journals. She liked to cut out pictures of the great-grandkids and make collages with them. She enjoyed cutting out poems, stories, and anything that inspired her. I think she just like using scissors as she used to cut out all the coupons in the paper including ones for dogfood. (Even though we didn't even have a dog). She was a wonderful and special person who loved everyone and was loved by many. She devoted many years of service to her family and I was honored to be able to do her Temple work just a few years ago. What an inspiration to us all!!