Christmas 2008

We had a really good Christmas this year. Emmary was so excited and I'll admit we used Santa as a bribe to get better behavior out of her, just a little bit though :) Davis was fun because he actually liked to open the presents, but he didn't really care what was in them. I feel like a terrible mom because I didn't take many pictures, mostly we video'd. But the highlight was definately getting Tim tickets to Wicked, as well as the soundtrack. Let me tell you that I stood in line for 9 hours to get these tickets in 20 degree weather and on and off snow. It was a terrible experience to be honest and I would rather travel to another city than have to deal with the Capitol Theatre again. They basically let season ticket holders buy enormous amounts of tickets, so by the time they actually went on sale there were only 6,000 seats left when they started out with 56,000. Anyway, I got some at $100 a piece and the show is on Sunday, and Emmary's birthday, but we will see if we can sell them for different ones once the shows get closer and Utahn's stop being so greedy and asking $300 for a $55 ticket. I'll get off my soapbox now and just say Merry Christmas and that "Happy is what happens when all your dreams come true!!"

Oh and yes Emmary got Kung Fu Panda for Christmas from Santa!

Davis has met his match!!!

Over the weekend I went to a party with a bunch of friends from high school and while I was there Noah Defay totally beat up Davis! Not really, but he fell on Davis, we think, and then Davis bit his lip. It was all swollen and bloody! Sad! But he recovered as soon as he saw the cookies on the table. It really was so good to see everybody!

First Snow

This is the first time Davis has seen snow! He was very excited, as was Emmary and Tim, to take him out for the first time to "Play"- kids don't play in the snow, they just eat the snow! Getting him all bundled up involved some tears but once he was outside and waddling around he was happy as can be. He really looks like Randy from A Christmas Story when he's all bundled up and he really can't get up on his own if he falls over!

Santa Clause or Scary Claws?

Let's be honest, Santa can be a little scary for small kids. When else would we as parents tell our children to go and sit on a strange old man's lap and ask for gifts? It must be confusing to be a child! Santa came to our ward Christmas party and Emmary did okay- she asked for the Kung Fu Panda movie- but I don't have a single picture of Davis because he not only cried when we came near Santa, but he ran screaming out of the room. I also posted a picture of Leah Quinney for Melanie's viewing enjoyment!

Acting Like a Girl!

Our little Emmary is not girly at all- she never has been. And that is fine with us, I don't care that she chooses dinosaurs over dolls, it doesn't bother me. But imagine my surprise when the other night she told me to be quiet becuase the "baby" was sleeping. She took me into her room and low and behold she had put her little monkey to bed. She even wrapped him up in her favorite blanket. Then she crawled in with him. It really was so sweet to see her act girly for once!

Trouble

I have always struggled to get new backgrounds on my blogger site. Everyone says it is so easy, but everytime I try I end up wasting HOURS and just end up frustrated. Which is why I have had the same template for the last year. I found pyzam and decided to try a Christmas theme and it was quite simple and actually worked. The problem is that it erased all of my pictures and link list info. So if you don't see your name on the link list please leave a message so that I can get it added once again to the list. And when the holidays are over, if someone would be so kind as to tutor me through this process so I don't have to do this again I would so appreciate it!

Halloween

I know I'm a little late with the Halloween pictures but better late than never. My kids were bees and my mom made the costumes. Poor Davis will look back on this Halloween as the one where we made him look like a girl!

Tim's pumpkin was the one one that was "Skulvis" He came in 3rd place for his work pumpkin carving contest! I was lame and didn't do one.

I didn't have a black long sleeved shirt for Davis so I put him in one of Emmary's. I also didn't have black pants, so he wore her old tights. I know, I know, lazy mom but in my defense I was on my trip the week before halloween.

Davis and his papa Bob

The kids with Grandma Diane after filling their bags and pumpkins. Emmary traded in her candy for the Tinkerbell movie. I was surprised she fell for it when I brought it up. I tell her Tink came and took the candy anytime she asks :)

Kirtland, Ohio

Tuesday we went to Kirtland Ohio. This was so special for me. I have never been to church history sites before. This was Sharon's 4th time going to Kirtland in the last year, but I think she had a good time as well. The temple was so special, but there was an overwhealming feeling in the Newel K. Whitney store where the school of the prophets it. It was so neat to sit there and imagine Joseph Smith living there and all the things that happened there. I am so glad that I was able to go experience this. And just like my entire Michigan experience, it was cold and there were threatning clouds, but it didn't rain, so we were able to see everything we wanted to see. The last picture in the grid is me and Charlie and Angelo's in downtown Ann Arbor where we had breakfast the day I left. Thanks so much Sharon for such a good time. You were the best hostess and you let me sleep in everyday and be lazy for 5 days. I owe you!!

Jennys and University of Michigan

On Monday we went to a farm called Jennys. It was so cold so no one was there besides us, but that's okay. We got some hot pumpkin doughnuts- YUM- and hot apple cider- also YUM. Then we drove along the Huron River- gorgeous- and went to campus to walk around. Sharon took me to the law school and I was amazed. The place looks like it came straight out of Harry Potter. It was like a castle with a courtyard in the middle, and a lot of really smart people walking around. The bottom row are more from Jennys.

Michigan

I just got back yesterday from a trip to Michigan to visit Sharon. I had so much fun!!! One of the highlights was going to the Michigan vs. Michigan State football game last Saturday. That stadium isn't called the Big House for nothing! I couldn't believe how many people were there. This was made clear by the line we had to wait in just to go in our section and walk down to our row. The first row of pictures are Sharon and I waiting in line. There was 110,146 people in attendance at the game. You can't even imagine what that many people crammed into one space feels like until you are there. The middle picture is what we saw coming into the stadium. We had 8th row seats right in the end zone so we felt like we were right in the action. It was freezing cold and Michigan lost, but it was a really close game and an in state rivalry so there was a lot of excitment. Pretty much everyone was drunk but us though!! This is something that I will never forget!

Halloween Activities

I know everyone has these same pictures on their blogs, but it was fun. We obvously went to Gardner Village with some great friends from the ward and then we went to Thanksgiving Point for the Barnyard Boo. The kids rode horses and that was the highlight.

This Kid Will Eat Anything

No wonder Davis outweighs most 2-3 year olds- he eats everything. But don't worry Ariel, this isn't poop! The top row are Davis after eating sand in the sand box. The 2nd row is what happens when Davis eats chocolate pudding. He loves the stuff but he is in the independent stage and won't eat unless he can do it himself. He gets more on his face than in his mouth! The 3rd row is just my little man one day in a cute outfit. His aunt Michelle got him this shirt and it looks so cute on him. He won't stand still though when I try and take his picture so I have to chase him around and catch him when he least expects it.

We Have Contact!!!

Yeah- we finally got DSL. So I will give a quick recap of the last 3 months- thanks for being patient. Here is the newest addition to our family- Our new van!! Now I swore up and down that I would never be a mini-van mom, but let's be honest. You can't beat the gas mileage and the extra space a van has to offer. And the Odyssey is the van that I loved because I can push a button on my key fab and my doors open and close- Fabulous!! We got a 2005 with 35000 miles and we got a great deal at Forrest Motors in Provo. We love it and are very happy with our purchase. Emmary is so funny, she used to hear me complain every time we went to Costco that I didn't have room in my car for all the big stuff we buy there. So after we bought the van she said, "Now we can go to Costco and fit all of our food!" 3 year olds don't miss a thing do they?

We're Alive!!!

Yes we are alive and well. We are living with my mom and dad and are working on getting DSL (hopefully this week!)It is impossible to try and blog with just dial up. So if anyone wants to get together we are pretty free. Plus we have free babysitters now!!
Tim's job is going great and he really enjoys this new company. He is working as a civil engineer for a company called Parsons Brinkerhoff- it's on Winchester by Fashion Place Mall. He is doing roads and traffic engineering now and it sure feels good to be employed again. We got renters in our house just 1 week after we moved and things are just working out. Funny story- Tim interviewed with the City of St. George before we moved and they couldn't hire him because they had budget issues and had to put a freeze on hiring. So Tim looked up in SLC and that is how we ended up here now. Tim's 2nd week of work the City of SG called and said they were hiring now and wanted to know if he still wanted the job. He just had to say no thanks. Then, 1 month into this new job he finds out that Parsons is opening an office in St. George and wanted to know if he wanted to transfer down. I said yes at first, but then we realized that we wouldn't be able to live in our house so we decided to pass. They said to let them know if he is ever interested in transfering in the future and we can come back. Isn't life just funny? We believe that the Lord had to work pretty hard to get us out of St. George and now we have had 2 chances to go back and have turned them both down. But we are very happy and enjoying this new chapter in our lives. I will post more pictures soon!

Camping

We had our first camping experience this weekend. It was a lot of work, but it was nice to get up in the mountains and get some fresh air. It was awesome to have 4 extra hands to help keep my kids safe. And my parents had the tent trailer, which made life easier:)

Davis' new obsession: Climbing in and out of the stroller. I documented the steps. First he climbs, then he throws himself over the bar. Take a closer look and the second picture on the top row and you will see his face is twisted- Hilarious! Second step is resting for a minute. Step Three he scoots all the way to the end then flips on his belly, then touches his feet down. Step Four: Applause! Then he starts all over again. This kept him and us entertained for a good hour.

Emmary's First Haircut and Sleeping

The day after we moved up to WJ we went to Cherry Hill with my parents. I forgot my camera so the only picture we got was Emmary asleep in the car. She looks so weird when she sleeps in the car!! Then I decided to give Emmary her first haircut ever. I was so scared to cut off the curls and I cried afterwords but it turned out okay. Obviously the bottom row are the new pictures. It's still curly but there are no tight curls anymore. But it still curls so wa-hoo!!

Fun With Friends

Emmary hanging out in our empty entertainmnet center just before moving.

We were so excited to have Sharon and her boys come visit St. George. Our kids played together so well and it was so great to have Sharon come chat until the wee hours of the morning. It was perfect timing because Tim had gone up north to start work while I stayed and packed up the house.

Girls Night!! We went and saw both of the shows at the Tuacahn back to back. It worked out perfect because Shaylah took Tim's tickets and it turned into a girls night out :)

Matthew and Davis would so be trouble with a capitol "T" if they got to see eachother every day! But they are so cute.

An Update...

"They say the Lord works in mysterious ways, and in my case very mysterious.." ($5 to the first person to tell me what movie that is the opening line for!) We have had a very life changing couple of months. Thanks to everyone who offered so many prayers in our behalf. They have been answered but not in the way I wanted them to be answered. I heard once that when we pray and ask for something we will get one of three answers:
1. Yes
2. Not now
3. I have something better in mind
I guess our answer was number 3 because we have to leave St. George and move up to West Jordan. That is not the worst thing in the world, we are very excited to be close to family and friends again, I just never wanted to leave St. George. I have often times joked around that Tim should just buy me a graveplot because I never want to leave. Life has something different in mind for our family right now. Tim interviewed up in the SLC area while we were up north for the holidays and he got a couple of offers. He decided to take one and it is really so good. He really liked the company and he is able to make SO MUCH more money up there than here. But the downside is that we can't sell our house so we will have to carry part of the costs and rent up north. Luckily he will make enough money for this not to be a financial burden, but it is still emotionally hard to think of someone else living in my home that I built with love. Tim will start work on Monday and I will hopefully be able to join him by next Friday. So for all of you who live in the area, let's hang out!!! I will post more information when I know what is going on, but thanks again for all of your love and support.

4th of July

We had a fun 4th of July. We went to the St. George celebration and as you can see by the look on Emamry's face, she was so excited to go. She happied up once we got there. We went early to beat the heat, but it didn't quite work. We cooled off in the shade and ate cotton candy. It was the big hit of the day and it was Davis' first time on the taste buds. He couldn't get enough, obviously. They had some fun rides and Emmary loved the swing ride. I actually got a shot of her going around. Then I went down the giant slide with her. After going home to cool off, our friends Jeremy and Katie came over and we grilled and them watched fireworks. All in all it was a fun day! God Bless America :)

Random Pics

These are just 2 random pictures that I thought were cute. Emmary spilled Toffee chips in our pantry and I went in the kitchen and found Davis chowing down on them. I don't blame him. I would probally eat them off the floor as well!! He just thought it was so neat to have them stick to his hand while he licked them off!


Here are our baby frogs, or as Emmary calls them, "Froggy man!" We got some tadpoles from Gunnison and they all turned into frogs. They really were so cute, but we just can't house frogs right now when we are trying to find a way to house ourselves, so Tim took them down to the river and set them free.

What is That Thing!?!?

Tonight we were grilling some shish-ka-bobs for dinner and Tim had been out with the grill but he came inside to grab something. I was busy getting things ready, but I turned around and Tim had no clue that this HUGE bug thing was on his back. I couldn't even talk, I just started screaming like a banshee and told Tim to run outside. So, like the obedient person he is, he just went running and I shut the door behind him as I continued to scream my face off. I finally managed to yell to him that there was a bug on his back. So then Tim starts spinning around like a dog chasing his tail, trying to get the bug off. He is yelling at me to help him, but there was no way I was getting withing arms reach of that thing. So he finally flicks the thing off and it flys up on our door and he gets a look at the thing. We are both stunned- it looks like a grasshopper on steroids!!! It was a good 6 inches long and had these nasty looking legs!! Yuck. Anyway, I guess that's what happens when you live in the desert.

The Fowers Family Reunion Part II

Sorry, it would only let me download 4 pictures at a time for some reason. This was fun; All the men decided to launch water balloons. This is Craig and Curtis launching, and guess who was the target...




Yep, Tim was the target by the stop sign holding out his shirt. This entertained the men for a good hour.

This is Emmary getting tad poles.

Here is Isaac beating the pinata. Nice Swing!

And here is the newest Fowers family member: Harrison. He is so sweet :)