Hand Foot And Mouth

Beckham is on the mend from the hand foot and mouth virus. Apparently it has been going around down here really bad. About everyone I know who has kids is going through it. Its horrible. We got really lucky and he has not had any fever and the blisters have not bothered him. They are on his face, stomach, arms and legs. They don't seem to cause him any pain either. We also got lucky that Jaxan didn't get it.

Who needs Jared..... he went to Costco

Some girls like jewelry and trips to the spa for their birthdays.... not me. I am a simple girl. I was hoping for peet moss and a tire. My love surprised me with this camera today. I am so excited. Costco was having a $90 INSTANT rebate. Totally worth it. Its amazing. I have played with it and gotten to know it during the course of the last few hours. Now I am not going to be come a photographer by any means, but I am very excited for something without blurry pictures. I love that my man knows me so well to know exactly what I would like. I can't wait to try it out on the kids! I am off tomorrow so I may venture out to take some pictures.... 

Camper Redo

I really want to redo the inside of our camper. It needs a little TLC. We are staying home this weekend and I think it would be the perfect opportunity to do it. I am not going this extravagant, but I am hoping to do something like this. Hope it works out!!! After pictures to come.

Memorial Day Weekend

Friday Q and I both had to work. I worked until noon and he worked until 3. I was going to get the grocery shopping done, get things packed, start the ribs cooking and get my hair cut all before he got home. He wanted to just load and go. We had reservations in Springdale for Friday and Saturday night. I got done with work and my A/C wouldn't blow. So on the way to the store I swung by Tech-1. I thought maybe Travis would have a second to look at it. He told me I could bring it back in a couple hours and he would be able to get to it then. Good news though, he thought it was the blower and not the compressor. So I went to Albertsons and Walmart. I had about 20 min before I had to be at my hair appointment. I ran home to change clothes and get the ribs in the oven. Just as I was getting ready to leave the house to get my hair done the daycare called. They believed that Beckham had hand, foot, and mouth disease. My heart sunk. I called the doctors office and they said he was contagious but there is nothing we could do. Its like chicken pox, there is no cure but time. I called my mom to see if she would still take him for the night, but she was sleeping. I canceled my hair appointment and headed to pick up my little man. We went to Target to get a snack, some benadryl, and ibuprofen. Q was still working, nothing had been done for the trip except for getting the ribs started. I was way behind. When I picked him up he didn't look bad at all. He had a little red around his mouth and behind his leg. I thought it may just be from heat. I gave him some medicine and went to my mom's. She said she would take him and just watch him. I told her to call me if he got worse. When I got home Q was there and we had a lot to get done. We had to load the RV and pack everything. It was okay the only thing I forgot was marshmallows. We got up to Springdale with word Becks was doing fine and Jaxan and Ayla were playing great. Good news! We checked in to our spot. It wasn't on the river, but that was okay. It was a huge corner site which worked well for us. We set up camp and ate dinner. The ribs turned out fantastic. We had veggies and potatoes to go with it. Then we went out for a walk to get some marshmallows. On the way back we stopped at Blondies for a milkshake.  Then we went back to the RV. It was super windy and cold. We watched, ahem.... we tried to watch a movie. I was too tired and totally crashed. 

Saturday morning we woke up to this:

Remarkable? I think so. Q made breakfast and we decided to go into town to the Farmers Market. Because of the wind and cold there weren't too many vendors or patrons, but there was a deer. The band was really good too. They played some really awesome bluegrass. 

We walked back through town. We grabbed a diet coke and maple bar at Sol Foods. We went back to camp and had lunch. We cooked brauts out on the fire and then Q watched a movie and I read and took a nap. It was seriously lovely. No worries. No kids. No responsibility. It was great. We rode into the Zion lodge and walked around the shops there. After that we decided we should go back and get ready for dinner and Mika's concert. 

We got showered and cleaned up and went to dinner at Amigos. Chips and salsa, tacos and quesadilla - amazing as always. We had a great time, and the weather was cooperating. 

After dinner we went back to the RV so Q could change into shorts and different shoes. He had some problems with his toe and his knee while we were up there. We walked up the canyon to OC Tanner Amphitheater.  

Mika and the Virgin River band did amazing. I have to admit I lost it once when she played an original song. Seeing her up there with her dreams coming true was slightly overwhelming. She has worked so hard to get to this point. It was a lovely night and it was great to see my bestie and her family. 

We walked back to the RVand we are pretty sure we saw a skunk on our trip back. Yikes! We walked super fast from that point on. We made smores when we got back to camp. They were amazing. Then we crashed out while attempting to watch a movie again. 

This was our view Sunday morning.

We got up and had breakfast. Then we went out for a walk through town. We hit some of the little shops and did a little shopping. We have decided it will be a perfect place to do some Christmas shopping. We ate at Amigos one last time before we pulled out of town. On the way out we saw that the Springdale Market was open. They usually have fresh apples there from the orchards. We got some delicious ice cream there and a lemon bar. We stopped and got a refill on our diet cokes and headed home. On the way we decided to swing by Kolob for some fishing. It was a lot longer drive than we thought. It was a beautiful drive and the reservoir was beautiful. It was cold and windy and just perfect up there. 

It was the perfect end to the perfect weekend! 

Today, Monday, we had a picnic with my mom, Lyn and Lance. A few people dropped out so we had TONS of food. It was delicious though. It was a beautiful day in the 80s. The kids had a blast at the splash pad. They loved chasing Q around. 

OS you can't totally tell from the pictures but Beckham's blisters have got a lot worse. His legs are full of them, his cheeks and chin are bad and his belly has some. Its so sad. They don't seem to be bothering him or hurting him. That is a huge bonus. I have been diligent in giving him benadryl and ibuprofen. We could have another 10 days of this. He's a trooper. I am glad that Jaxan didn't get it. We are just having to watch him really close so that he doesn't share drinks or utensils. I am hoping we can keep him healthy and happy the rest of the summer. 

Sand Hollow Trip 1 for 2012

Our first camping trip with the kids for the year couldn't have been worse. 2 parents, 3 kids, 2 dogs and a load of whoops'. For starters Q was driving us all down to the lake on the 4 wheeler. The 2 dogs, 3 kids and I were sitting on the trailer being pulled behind. Me, knowing very little about driving in sand, freaks out because he started driving too fast and I was afraid of Becks falling off backward. He stopped the 4 wheeler and ta da..... we were stuck! It just got better from there. Becks was tired due to no nap he whined and cried in the water once we got there. Q went to take the girls out in the boat and realized he didn't have the plug, so he had to drive back to town. I found that Sky and Jaxan don't like my tinfoil dinners. We didn't take the boat out and the girls just rode the 4 wheeler around. We finally got Becks to sleep. It was time to make smores, and guess who forgot to pack the graham crackers.... me. So we roasted marshmallows and had them with reeses peanut butter cups. Then got the girls to sleep. WHEW. We survived the first day. Bunches of whining, crying, questions and boredom. Oh and ants. Lets not forget ants that had taken over the campsite. Did I mention that I hate camping in the heat.... and it was hot.
The next morning we got up and thought we would take the boat out. I was a royal beast and not looking forward to it. By the time we got out there it was too warm for fishing. Beckham whined when the boat stopped so we could fish. We finally entertained him with worms. Sky and Jaxan were bored. I was ready to pull my hair out by the time we got back to the RV for lunch. We saw that Alpine had got off her leash. She had wriggled her head out of her collar and she was sitting under the trailer. I got lunch made and when I went out to ask Q a question. When I went back in the RV Alpine had eaten all the rest of the lunch meat.
By this time I was nearly in tears. Everything was going wrong and I was hot. We ate lunch and Q decided to take the girls down to the beach to swim and play. I took Becks and the dogs home. When they got done with the water he said both girls were complaining of itching. The next day the girls had welts all over their bodies from swimmers itch. They had both showered with soap after playing in the water. I think its going to be a while before we hit up Sand Hollow again.  That was a horrible camping trip.

Swimmers Itch

The girls and Q stayed at the lake later on Sunday.
They all ended up with swimmers itch. The girls have it so bad they look like they have chicken pox.
Beware of sand hollow . . . its vicious.

Happy Birthday Grandma Brailey

Q's mom put together a surprise party for Grandma Brailey. She invited all the family. It was a busy Saturday, but Uncle Shorty, Pat and Jenny and their kids came. We had a great time and Grandma was very surprised. That was the best part. She was so happy and loved having everyone together. 

Happy Birthday Grandma Brailey here's to many more. 

Meet Alpine

We are proud to announce the newest members of our family ...... Alpine. Here is the story on how she got to our family.
After trying and trying to work with Harley and her tearing apart our garden, yard, and using the hallway as her own bathroom, we were done with her. We put her on craigslist and didn't get any hits. Q ended up taking her to the Washington City Pound. For 3 days after we had quite a few texts and calls asking about her. I talked to a lady that went to the pound and got her. They love her. I am happy for that. She is a sweet dog, just not right for us.
Q and I have both wanted a shepard. He used to have one and I fell in love with Missy up in Idaho. We have been looking and looking but they aren't a dog that many people part with easily. He told me he found an add on craigslist and he called on it. She's a very timid and shy former K9 dog. She didn't make it in the K9 program because of her meekness. He went over and met her. I really really wanted him to go her. Being an amazing husband, he went and got her. She was terrified and hid the first night. The next day she was a little better but she was still terrified of us. It got me worried that she may not be a good fit for us.
Friday morning I was loading the kids in the car and Alpine split. She went running down the street and turned the corner. I thought she was out in the back yard but I didn't worry about shutting the front door. Q jumped in his car and we drove all around looking for her. She was no where in site. I was the only MA at the office and Q had just started his job so we had to both get to work. He called the shelters and police departments and gave them a heads up. At lunch I called them again and she had been sited by Middleton. That is about 4 miles from our house. I drove all over the Middleton area and couldn't find her. St George was going to send out an Animal Control tuck to search the area. I thought I might go home and just see if she found her way home. I thought this would be impossible since she had only lived with us a day and a half. She had never been out on a walk or had any reason to know how to get back. I pulled up to the house and there was Alpine laying on our porch right by our front door. I was blown away. I ran up to her and gave her a huge hug. I put her in the back yard and went back to work. We got really lucky to have had her come back. She proved at that point that she really was meant for us.
Since then she has really opened up to us and she trusts us. We all love her and we are glad she chose us.

Mothers Day

If I Knew As A Child If I knew as a child what I know now, Mom,
I probably wouldn't have made things
so hard for you.
I would have understood
that you were looking out for my best interest.
even though it may not have seemed so at the time.
I would have known how difficult it is to let go,
to stand back and let someone you love
learn from their mistakes.
I would have realized
how fortunate I was to have a mother
who was always there for me,
even after an argument,
even after I'd said things
I shouldn't have.
While it's too late for a lot of things
it's not too late for me to tell you
that I appreciate how loving you are,
how giving you've always been
and that even though
I may not always be good at showing it,
I love you very much.

I am so thankful for my mom! Even though I have a lot of second moms and moms in law - I only have one mom! I feel blessed for all she has done for me. I am thankful she sat quitely by and let me make mistakes so I could learn. She bailed me out more than once, and I am sure she will again.

I love the bond that her and Jaxi have. It reminds me so much of my grandmother and me. They are so close and Jax loves going to her Grammy's house.

I got very lucky to have such a wonderful mom who is not only my mom, but my friend.

Hi Ho Hi Ho a Fishing We Did Go!

Jaxan and Beckham went home with Mike on Thursday night after her kindergarten program. They were going to be there until Saturday night. Q and I decided that when I got off work Friday that we would go up to Enterprise for the night. We wanted to do some fishing. We left Friday afternoon and got up there at prime fishing time. We set up camp in Honeycomb Campground. Spot 21 was right by the dock. It was perfect. We took the boat out. The boat is awesome. The only problem is that it takes on some water, about 2 gallons by the time we got done. We can fix it with some silicone, and it didn't slow down our fishing. We found a little cove that we fished in. Q got the biggest fish of the trip that night. 

When the sun started to go down we docked the boat and got warm. The wind picked up and it got cool and I was freezing. Once we got warm we headed to the shore to fish until the sun went down. 

I haven't been camping in a couple years. It was a lot of fun, but I got sick. I forgot to take my stomach medication. I had made tin foil dinners to take up with us before. We made those and then went to bed. I was beyond exhausted and I didn't feel well. I was hoping that waking up the next day I would feel much better. 

Good news, I did! We got up loaded the boat, took down camp, and headed for the water. We went out by the little cove we had fished the day before. We were catching them left and right. I would set my pole down to start to read and I couldn't even read a couple sentences before I would have a hit. I even caught a bass on power bait.

My mom and Lyn came up and had lunch with us. Then we all went out fishing for a couple hours. Q and I were in the boat, my mom was in the pontoon boat and Lyn was in a float tube. Lyn was fly fishing and the weather was just a little too warm to catch anything. They were all on the bottom, but he did have a couple strikes. My mom caught 2. She caught one with a worm and one on power bait. 

After the fishing adventure we went to Marvs for a milkshake and a burger. It was a perfect ending to a wonderful weekend. 

Thursday was a big day for Jaxan. She went to the regional science fair. There were 19 other kindergartners participating. Q and I took her to lunch at McDonalds after she sat and explained her project to the judges for 2 hours. We went back to the college at 1:30 for the awards ceremony. She ended up taking 3rd place. I was shocked. We worked really hard on her project, but it was really simple. The teacher from her school said she was very smart. She knew everything about her project and could answer all the questions the judges asked her. We were so proud of her. Q and I decided to celebrate with a trip to Menchies with her.

Then later that evening Jax and the rest of the kindergartners from Sandstone put on their kindergarten program.It was entitled Oh The Places You'll Go.