FUN FUN FUN! We had such a great Christmas morning. Santa found our little house and boy we must have been good. Chandler is the proud owner of Legos, a giant box of army men, and some big trucks. Brinlee is now the adoptive mommy of Violet Harley (her new Cabbage Patch Doll) and will host any of you with her new tea set. 
Every year I look forward to Christmas Eve and a nativity scene with little children. It has been a while. It was so special this year to have our little ones play the parts of Mary and Joseph. I don't think they quite understand fully the significance of this small play. I hope that as they grow David and I can teach them what a great gift the birth of our Savior is. 
These pictures make me laugh. I love to have things perfect, sometimes I get a little crazy and when it doesn't work out I am mad. Not this year. The kids were so funny and couldn't stop running around in their little costumes.
What do you do with a little boy on Christmas Eve? This is the first year he has really understood what was going on. We have watched lots of Christmas movies and in each one there is always someone baking cookies for Santa. Chandler was so excited! He decorated them himself and even made a special snowman sandwich.
Chandler and Brinlee both love to color. The other day we colored some special pictures for Santa. Brinlee scribled and tasted her crayons, while Chandler stamped and did some watercoloring. 
She just couldn't keep those darn crayons out of her mouth. We have alot with teeth marks in them.
Chandler really loved the stamps. He stamped for 30 minutes, it was great. If any of you know where I can get some cheap let me know. It is something I am willing to spend money on.Did you know they have lights at the zoo? We didn't either, one of David's co-workers told us about it and we decided to check it out.
To start things off both of our children fell asleep on the way down (this is something that NEVER happens). Them falling asleep turned out to be a very good thing. They were still a little drowsy so a stroll through the Christmas lights was even more relaxing. Most of the animals were in their hibernation so we didn't see many. We did see the tiger's, Santa's reindeer and all the snakes and birds our little hearts could enjoy.
Chandler and David by the Gingerbread house. We have been reading the Gingerbread man and Chandler loved the little boy and girl.
It has been a while, two months to be exact. Last post I promised some pictures from my sisters big day.
Hailey and Justin were married October 2 at the Petetneet (?) museum. It was a really nice ceremony preformed by President Bart Olsen. It was fun to get to share in such a special moment in their lives with them. 
The reception was great to. Cheese cake was served and it was fun to catch up with some long lost friends.
Congratulations Mr. and Mrs. Jensen!
Going back to the good old days we took the kids to where Daver popped the question. We climbed the tower, sat in a covered wagon and played in a tepee. 
When we told Chandler the Hogon was a house it looked at us like we were crazy. He still had a good time pretending it was his home.
Annual trip to the Dinosaur Museum. Last time we were down Chandler could not stop talking about it. It nearly drove us crazy. That kid loves Dinosaurs and Grandma makes our trip so much more fun.
After the Dinosaur Museum we headed to Bluff. First we had a yummy lunch at Twin Rocks and then went over to the visitors center. Brinlee taught us a little something, Chandler tried to escape to the old Bluff Fort and we gained a greater respect for the Hole in the Rock Pioneers (if you don't know about their journey YOU NEED TO LOOK IT UP).
See that crack just above the "This is where we hiked to" caption?
Well that is where we hiked to (duh).
Since we have been married David has always wanted to take me out to Lewis Lodge. I have usually been pregnant so it hasn't worked out. Well this trip was perfect for the hike. It wasn't too hot and I am not preggers (the perfect combinations for hiking).
Starting out the hike you are not quite sure where you are going to end up. We scaled some slick rock and ended up looking in to a giant canyon (top left). This is the point where I say "Where is the ruin?" and David laughs and says "In that tiny crack."
Standing there looking at the canyon we both felt so small in comparison. I thought that once we got into the ruin we would be far from the cliffs. Was I wrong! Straight plummet to DEATH(bottom right)! What in the world were the Anazi people thinking? And how did they build in such tight places on the faces of cliff? What did they do with their children?
P.S. ours were on top with Grandpa and Grandma
The Anazi people were truly insane as well as incredible builders. Even after years of weathering the Kiva was in pretty good shape and still had most of it's roof in tacked. The only thing that was strange is there were no petroglyphs. We had a great time and there was no crying.
About 40 miles south east of Blanding is Hovenweep National Monument. In the middle of nowhere is a little canyon full of ancient ruins. It is a cool place and an easy hike to see some history. Curtis and Kristin were able to come with us and we had a blast. The Anazai people were incredible builders(and a little crazy with their cliff dwellings). Building round buildings out of sandstone perfectly straight with no modern tools is amazing. 
At the beginning of our adventure the kids were asked to participate in the Jr. Ranger program. They had to complete a number of tasks such as: connect the dots activities, decorating pots ect. Chandler chose to do the connect the dots activity and circled all of the number fives and drew a big letter A. He is a real overachiever.
When we finished our hike we went back to the rangers station where the kids were sworn in as Jr. Rangers. It was so cute and they were all so proud of themselves. 
Jr. Rangers Chandler, Ethan, Maggie and Ben.
If you are ever down south you should head on over to Hovenweep.
Arches is really an incredible place. I had never been their in all of my years of being from Utah and really wanted to go. Dave had been a few times and didn't mind taking another trip into the park. First we stopped for quick potty breaks and water refills at the visitors center and then we were off. 
There are so many cool things to see. The middle picture is a place called down town(or something like that) it really looks like a city. The arch at the bottom is the arch Daver hiked/ran in to. I should have known I would love it so much since Monument Valley is one of my most favorite places in the world.
Against better judgement, the advice of the in laws and common sense we decided to hike to Delicate Arch with the kids. It was hot, they were tired and we didn't have the patience to make it all of the way. At the half way point(you know right before you start going straight up hill on the face of red rock) David says "I will just take the kids back to the car, drive around and come back to get you." Really? So big mama hiked to the arch by herself and enjoyed every minute of it. It really is amazing, and I am so glad I did it. Thanks David for being such a stud and taking the kiddos!
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Our little baby Brinlee is one year old (yesterday the 20th).
Please enjoy one year of Brinlee in pictures.
Isn't it funny what entertains children? Chandler and Brinlee would be content just to dump out all of the toys and just play in the baskets. Brinlee especially loves doing this. Anytime she finds a basket, box, or anything she can sit in she plops herself down and plays. 
Over Labor day we headed up to Kaye and Matt's. While we were there we went to the Willow Park Zoo, had some yummy pizza, did a little shopping and went fishing. Chandler was the mighty fisherman catching the biggest fish. It was his very first fish and he was excited and a little frightened. 
This weekend we were invited to stay in a cabin near Mirror Lake. We had a great time hanging out with Mike, Emily and the kids, Matt and Kaye, Jill and Jodi. No fish were caught but we had a great time eating delicious food and catching up. Thanks for the invite Mike and Em!
Love is really in the air lately. Kaye and Matt were married July 30th, and had the BEST WEDDING EVER. Can't go wrong with soft serve ice cream and some serious dancing.
Plus, my sister Hailey and her true love Justin were engaged yesterday!. They will be getting married October 2nd. We are so happy for you guys.
