Duff Stuff

Not 30 Yet

2012-01-17T12:01:00.000-08:00

On Sunday Mason officially entered the last year in his twenties, crazy but true.

These boys LOVE their Dad!

Mason saved 2 of his 29 candles, so that Cooper & Dane could each blow one out. What a great Dad!

We Love you Mason! You are the Best!

7 Years!!

2012-01-17T11:27:00.000-08:00

Saturday was our 7th wedding anniversary! That's right...S-E-V-E-N, I can't believe it!

We had a great time celebrating!

Mason and I stayed the night at the JW Marriott Las Vegas Resort, it was fantastic!

I am incredibly thankful to be married to Mason, he is the perfect guy for me.

The last 7 years have been so great!

I am so happy to have such a wonderful, fun, good looking, kind, loving man to share forever with!

Snow!

2011-11-21T10:52:00.000-08:00

A couple weeks ago we headed up to Cedar City for a quick one-nighter. Mason's parents just finished landscaping the backyard of their house there and they wanted Mason's help putting together their new playground. Mason & his Dad finished putting it together not a moment too soon, because a big storm rolled in that night and we woke up to a few inches of snow. Cooper had been hoping for snow, so he was super excited! Cooper & Dane had a great time playing in the snow and building a couple of snowmen with Daddy. It was a great little trip!

Mason's Newest Accessory

2011-11-04T09:47:00.000-07:00

May The Force Be With You

2011-11-03T14:36:00.000-07:00

A few months ago we were at the Duff's cabin and Cooper watched one of the old Star Wars movies on VHS with Mason. Cooper has been completely obsessed ever since, he insisted on having a Star Wars costume this year and has been telling everyone he talks to that he will be having a Star Wars birthday party, the boy knows what he wants! Cooper's obsession has also rubbed off on Dane, so this year we had a couple of Jedi Masters in our house for Halloween, and there was nothing I could do about it. Cooper and Dane are such fun, crazy boys, I love it!

Cooper channeling the force to get into character before we head out trick or treating

Our two Jedi Masters
Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda

The first door

This couple was so cute.
The wife posed with the boys and had her husband take a couple of pictures.

Halloween is so fun with kids!

Stu Miller's "Pumpkin Patch"

2011-10-28T15:43:00.000-07:00

We brought the boys to Stu Miller's "pumpkin patch" yesterday. Well, really it's a dirt lot covered in hay and 32 dollar pumpkins and fun rides for the kids, it's Vegas's version of a pumpkin patch. The boys had a blast on the rides then we headed down the street to Smith's grocery store where we bought 4 pumpkins for a lot less than what it cost to buy 1 at Stu Miller's.

They had that thing spinning so fast we were worried they would lose their lunch.

Before they went on their first ride they were seriously beating each other up, super grumpy, then after the ride they were magically full of brotherly love.

It was a fun Day!

Miles For Better Smiles

2011-10-16T16:30:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Mason ran the "Miles For Better Smiles 5k" at Floyd Lamb State Park. I think that Mason finished in 4th place overall, way to go Mason! It wasn't a very big race, but it was really fun and they had tons of refreshments and a great lunch afterwards!

Some of Mason's friends from school

Cooper & Dane were pretty happy with the shirts and treats they came home with.

Potluck

2011-10-03T15:40:00.000-07:00

While the guys were at the Priesthood session of General Conference on Saturday a bunch of the dental school wives came over for a potluck at our house, it was a lot of fun!

The kids had a blast playing together!

Cooper Loves Preschool

2011-09-15T10:16:00.000-07:00

Cooper started Preschool on Tuesday, and he was so excited, it couldn't come soon enough for him! He has been asking me for weeks when school would start, he was very excited (as you can see by his open mouth in all of the pictures). He had a great first day, and was very happy to go back today, Cooper is going to have a great year!

This picture is from this morning.

Bandaid and a Hug

2011-09-15T09:48:00.000-07:00

Dane is finally getting his second set of molars, well...one of them anyway. He has been pointing to his cheek and telling us it hurt, Mason looked in his mouth and saw the tooth cutting through his gums.

Dane has been very moody, but it's nothing that a bandaid from Dad and lots of hugs can't fix.

17

2011-09-13T21:38:00.000-07:00

My beautiful little sister, Jalidia would have been 17 today. I love and miss you sweet sister.

These pictures are from Jalidia's 15th birthday, my Mom and sisters brought her to the beach for the weekend to celebrate. It was her last birthday before passing away, I wish that I could have been there.

Life is a Gift

2011-09-07T08:29:00.000-07:00

In the middle of August, one of the Duff's close family friends, Rob Hale suddenly had a brain hemorrhage on the left side of his brain. Mason grew up two houses away from Rob, Rob has a wife and two adorable little boys, he graduated from 4 years of dental school and was just a few weeks away from completing his 2 year endodontic residency when tragedy struck out of nowhere. Rob's wife, Mercedi posts an update on his condition each day, I have been inspired by her faith, her love for her husband and the miracles that are taking place in their lives. Here is the link to their blog: http://helpingthehales.blogspot.com/

I am so thankful for my wonderful husband and my boys and that we are so healthy, life is truly a gift and it's always good to be reminded of how precious life truly is and how quickly things can change.

This video was made by Lauren Wilkins for the Hales.

Here we go...

2011-09-06T10:00:00.000-07:00

Today is Mason's first official day of classes at UNLV School of Dental Medicine, he had orientation all last week, but today he starts classes... let the studying begin.

Weekend at the Cabin

2011-08-29T14:09:00.000-07:00

We took advantage of Mason's last weekend before starting dental school and headed up to Mason's parent's cabin on Kolob Reservoir. It was so nice to relax and enjoy the beautiful cool weather up there, I think it was around 110 degrees here in Las Vegas all weekend, so it was the perfect weekend to escape the scorching Las Vegas heat!

There seemed to be a lot more Horny Toads than usual, we caught tons of them. Dane even caught one all on his own! He sure loved those things!

Cooper caught a bunch of Horny Toads too!
I love little boys!

First Day of School

2011-08-29T08:50:00.000-07:00

Today is Mason's first day of Dental School. He has worked so hard to get to this day and I am so proud of him. I know that he is going to be a fantastic dentist. Good job Mason, I love you!

Hooray for 4 more years of school

Visiting Daddy at Work

2011-08-24T12:20:00.000-07:00

Today is Mason's last day working as a Dental Assistant at Anthem Pediatric Dentistry. He starts Dental School on Monday, at UNLV School of Dental Medicine, so he will be a professional student for the next 4 years. Mason wanted to get Cooper and Dane in for a Dental Exam and cleaning before he quits, so I brought them in yesterday. This was Dane's first visit to the dentist, but Cooper is a pro, and set an awesome example for his little brother!

Cooper was perfect the whole time, he let Dr. Cox check his teeth, Mason clean his teeth, Geralyn take x-rays, he even let Dr. Cox and Mason replace a filling that had gone bad (it had some decay underneath it), Cooper let them do it and held perfectly still without any kind of sedation or numbing.

Pretty darn impressive for a 4 year old, if you ask me.

Dane held perfectly still for his exam and cleaning.
Good job little man!

Dane let Mason put sealants on 4 of his teeth.
He got a little wiggly by the end, but he did awesome for a 2 year old!

Dane was so proud of himself afterwards. I can't believe how big my little guy is getting!

Quick Trip to Utah

2011-08-15T14:54:00.000-07:00

We got back late last night from a quick weekend trip to Utah Valley. We met up with my family to celebrate my Dad's 49th birthday, and my Grandpa Burton's 80th! We drove to Provo on Friday after Mason got home from work, we stayed two nights and left to come back home Sunday evening. The 6 hour drive each way wasn't too bad, but I definitely wish that we could have stayed longer to spend more time with my family and to visit our friends in Utah.

Saturday we went to dinner at Brick Oven and we all stuffed ourselves full of yummy Pizza, Salad and Apple Beer. After we ate, we went for a walk up to BYU campus, with the size of our family it felt like we were our very own parade. While we were walking, a storm rolled in and started pouring on us, it was so fun, I love summer storms.

Sorry for the blurry iPod pictures

Jared!

Janessa, Cooper and Jasmine

It's Raining!

Cooper and Jasmine

Cooper and Grammy

Dane

My Wonderful Parents

Jared & Jeremiah

Jason, Jared, and Jeremiah

HOUSEBOAT FUN - part 2

2011-08-11T13:16:00.000-07:00

We spent a week on a houseboat on Lake Shasta in California with my family, needless to say it was an absolute blast. We used to rent a houseboat almost every year when I was a teenager, and it is seriously the best vaction ever, I'm so glad that we've started doing it again! You don't have to worry about clothes, makeup and all that stuff. It's such a fun break, you just play every day, all day, from sun up to sun down. I love it! I love getting to spend so much time with my family!

Cooper & Aunty Jilli are best buddies!

Dane loved going on long rides with Mason

Cooper having a "picnic" with Aunty Jasmine. He had "picnics" with his aunties about 15 times a day.

Dane & Aunty Jasmine

We had to get creative with nap time.
Mason is the best Dad, he's always so patient.

Jared & Dad

My Dad decided to bring one of our surfboards on the trip, we all thought it would be a waste of space but it ended up being one of the favorite toys. We all had hours of fun playing with the surfboard.

Cooper with his Aunty Jilli, and Gramps

Dane was a brave boy, and loved going off the slide all by himself! The slide drops off like 5 feet above the water, so it's pretty intense for a two year old!

I love Jared!

Dane playing with Uncle Josh

Cooper & Aunty Jasmine

Dane & Aunty Jayla

Cooper "diving."
Cooper liked jumping off of the top of the houseboat into the water just like all of his aunts and uncles.
It was high....Crazy kid!

Gramps got Dane to sleep one day by swimming across the lake and back. What a good Gramps!

Cooper & Dane love their Grammy!

Gramps caught a turtle just like last year. The boys loved it!

Cooper with his aunties, Jennalise, Jayla and Janessa

We spent more time "surfing" behind the waverunners than wakeboarding. It was fun to have a new challenge, it was really hard to stay balanced enough to get up on that thing.

Cooper and Uncle Josh

Dane & Daddy

Dane & Aunty Jayla

Cooper & Aunty Jilli

Cooper playing in the water with Grammy & Gramps

Jasmine doing sit-ups on the surfboard

Cooper & Aunty Jasmine

Josh did a backflip off of the surfboard, I'm so mad that I didn't get a better picture of it!

Dane & Uncle Josh

Cooper & Aunty Janessa

My brother Josh and me.
He's tanner than me... so what?

Cooper on a ride with Uncle Jeremiah

It's amazing how fun it can be to throw rocks for hours, and hours and....

Naptime

Off to catch some frogs

My cute sister Jasmine and me.

Janessa & Josh doing flips off the slide.

Cooper & Grammy ready for bed after a long day of fun!

Cooper & his awesome Gramps

Packing to go home :(

HOUSEBOAT FUN part 1

2011-08-01T17:15:00.000-07:00

We spent all of last week on a houseboat at Lake Shasta, CA with my family, it was an absolute blast! We had so much fun that I am still exhausted even after being home for a couple of days, we played hard everyday from sun-up until sundown. It was so nice to be able to spend so much time with my family. My brother Jason was even there, which was great because Jason lives in Ethiopia and doesn't visit very often. We missed my brother James who wasn't able to make it and we always miss my beautiful sister Jalidia.

We have a lot of fun together!

Thanks Mom & Dad for such a great vacation!

DAD

Mom

Mason

Cooper
4 years old

Dane
2 years old

My Brother Jason, 24

My sister Jasmine, 19

My sister Janessa, 19

My sister Jennalise, 18

My brother Josh, 15

My brother Jeremiah, 14

My brother Jared, 14

My sister Jamie, 12

My sister Jayla, 11

My sister Jillian, 8

Good Times!

Penny The Puppy

2011-06-16T15:00:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago Mason came home from work with a cute little puppy for Cooper and Dane. During the day Mason's Mom called saying her neighbor had a puppy that someone gave them to find a home for, she said it was really cute, little and free! We couldn't pass up the opportunity, so Mason picked up the puppy on his way home from work and surprised the boys!

We named her Penny, and Cooper and Dane absolutely adore her. Cooper loves holding her and still says just about every time he holds her "I think she likes me!"

I didn't really want a dog, but I wanted her for Cooper and Dane and now I must admit that I really like Penny. The first week was hard, she barked nonstop at night because she hates being alone, but now she hardly barks at all and she is really friendly with people, which is great. Mason installed a doggie door and that has helped a lot with the potty training.

We know that Penny is part Chihuahua, but that's about all we know, we don't know how old she is or anything.

Dane loves feeding Penny, he follows Penny around with little pieces of dog food.

Penny is a really cute little puppy, and the boys are adorable with her!

We're so happy that Mason brought home such a fun surprise!

"Finally Got Graduated"

2011-06-16T13:02:00.000-07:00

Cooper graduated from Joy School. He had a great year learning with his friends and going to all of their houses. We had a fun graduation pizza party at the park, after we got home Cooper said "Mom, I'm so glad that I finally got graduated!" He was very proud of himself.

Cooper just received his Cap, Diploma and Alphabet Book.

We missed a few of Cooper's joy school friends at the party, Kenna was out of town and sadly, Kallie and Porter moved away.

Camping

2011-05-23T10:56:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we went camping with our Church ward, the boys had an absolute blast! It was way too cold at night but the boys slept great, Mason and I were the ones tossing and turning all night, but I think that is just part of camping. This was Dane's first camp-out and he loved it, we'll definitely be camping more this summer.

Cooper loved collecting firewood.

Dirty little Bums

Mason trying to get Cooper to look at the camera and smile.

Dane loved collecting rocks and showing each one to us.... "Mommy, rock!"

I love these two boys!

Cooper was fed up with me and my camera.

Cooper was super annoyed.
Mason reminded me of one of my Grandpa Burton's favorite sayings,
"You can ruin any good moment by taking out a camera." Cooper agrees.

Cooper found a flower and brought it to me all on his own.

Cooper and his good buddy, Isaac

As a service project we sanded and painted a gazillion wood blocks to send to children who don't have any toys,
and the guys planted trees around the campground.

Newport Beach

2011-05-16T15:50:00.000-07:00

We spent Mother's Day afternoon enjoying beautiful Newport Beach.
The boys loved the pier, we saw 3 seals and two dolphins!

Dane didn't want to leave the pier, he loved watching the seals, birds and dolphins.

Cooper had a blast running away from the waves, until....

...one of the waves caught him and knocked him down.

It was a cold day, especially for us Vegas folk.
Poor Cooper.

What a fun Mother's Day! I am so blessed to have my two precious boys!

We had so much fun in California.

We want to go back again this summer, when it's too hot here and perfect there.

I miss my Omi & Opi

2011-05-16T11:07:00.000-07:00

While we were in California we stayed at a hotel in Irvine. Sunday Morning (Mother's Day) we drove by my Omi & Opi's old Irvine house, my Mom grew up in this house, it's where my parents met, and it's where my Omi and Opi lived until they moved to Oregon by my family when I was a teenager. We got out and let the boys play at the park just down the street from Omi & Opi's house. Being at that park made me so happy, everything about it brought back so many happy memories with my Omi and all of my cousins, the smell was just like I remembered.

My sweet Omi passed away from cancer two and a half years ago, and Opi just hasn't been the same ever since. Being at that place, remembering my wonderful grandparents when they were young and healthy was really fantastic. I am so blessed to be their granddaughter.

The pool was closed for remodeling, but it was so fun to see.
I have so many happy memories of Omi bringing my cousins and me swimming there.

"Magical Kingdom of Disneyland"

2011-05-16T09:29:00.000-07:00

We went to California for Mother's Day weekend, it was great! We spent Saturday at Disneyland and California Adventure. This was Dane's first trip to Disneyland, he loved the rides, but hated the lines and didn't understand why we would just stand there forever watching other people get on the rides, it made him furious. Cooper was happy all day, he enjoyed every minute of it and kept telling us that he wanted to go to the Magical Kingdom of Disneyland every day! Cooper never calls it just "Disneyland" he always calls it the "Magical Kingdom of Disneyland."

Dane loved the Finding Nemo Submarine

Cooper waiting in line to ride The Matterhorn for the first time.

Dane was barely tall enough to ride The Matterhorn
He loved it!

This is Cooper's new pose for pictures, his face looks at the camera but not his eyes. Silly boy!

We love It's A Small World!

Dane really loved the Jungle Cruise!

Believe it or not Dane was posing in this picture and saying "cheese"
he was begging me to take his picture and it took me a minute to realize it, so he was frustrated with me.

The day we were there was the World Premiere of the new Pirates of the Caribean movie. It was CRAZY! They had Mainstreet all roped off with a carpet for the movie stars to walk down and there were people camped out all day waiting to see the stars. There were news crews all over and a helicopter flying overhead all day long. Disneyland closed at 5:00 for the premiere and we headed over to California Adventure for the rest of the evening, it was crazy crowded at California Adventure.

The "World of Color" show in California adventure was AMAZING! It was like the water show at the Bellagio on steroids. It was very, very cool!

Walking back to our car, we partied all day, our feet hurt, we were wiped out...
yep, it was a successful day at Disneyland.

I Love My Cooper

2011-05-02T14:16:00.000-07:00

Here are some pictures of Cooper from my iPod

Cooper makes me smile.

Easter

2011-05-02T13:48:00.000-07:00

This year we kept Easter pretty simple and tried to focus more on the real reason we celebrate Easter, the Atonement and Resurrection of our Savior Jesus Christ. Cooper loves learning about Jesus and I am always surprised at the details that he remembers. We are so thankful for our Savior and the Hope that He brings to each one of us.

I forgot to get a picture of the boys in their handsome Easter outfits, but I love these pictures of them at Grandma's house.

Dane with Ben and Lia

Grandma reading a book about Easter to the older boys

Grandma put on a really fun Easter Egg hunt for all the kids. We are so blessed to live so close to Mason's family.

Brothers in a Bunkbed

2011-05-02T12:54:00.000-07:00

We weren't planning on Dane moving in with Cooper for a few more months, but this just kind of happened one night and now Dane sleeps in Cooper's room a few times a week. Dane turned two and now he thinks he is a big boy just like Cooper, he tries to be just like him. It makes me so happy that Cooper and Dane love being brothers so much, they are such cute little buddies.

We're So Glad When Daddy Comes Home

2011-05-02T12:02:00.000-07:00

Cooper and Dane are so happy every day when Mason gets home, so am I! We are so blessed to have him.

Boys and their toys...

2011-05-02T11:46:00.000-07:00

My Mom gave Dane a really fun little motorcycle for his birthday, Dane loves it and so does Cooper. Cooper always wanted to be on the back of it, but it's not very big so it didn't work very well.

My Mom heard about how much Dane & Cooper both loved Dane's motorcycle...now Cooper has one of his own.

Thanks Grammy!

100% Binky Free

2011-05-02T11:25:00.000-07:00

The week before Dane turned two I decided that it was time to take Dane's binkies away, I decided it would be nicer if we waited until after his birthday to do it. So two days after Dane turned two I cut the nipples off of all of his binkies. He did a lot better than I thought he would, for a couple of days he still wanted to hold the binky in his hand while he slept even though he couldn't suck on it. Naptime is a lot more of a hassle now, and he wakes up earlier in the mornings but his speech has improved a lot! I should have taken it away like a year ago, but I guess that I was scared to.

As a replacement for his binkies we bought Dane this glow in the dark teddy bear.

I love seeing Dane's handsome face without those darn binkies in his mouth.

Baby Dane is 2!

2011-04-04T17:32:00.000-07:00

My little man, Dane turned 2 yesterday and I seriously can't believe it! I am so thankful for my Dane and the blessing that he is in my life. Dane is such a sweet boy, we are very blessed to have him in our family.

Prepare yourself for picture and video overload

I love this handsome little man

Dane and his cinnamon roll breakfast

Cooper told Dane to make a silly face

Mason asked Dane how old he is... we're still working on holding up two fingers

Dane loves the motorcycle from Grammy & Gramps

Dane loves dogs. This is my attempt at a dog cake.

Dane & Cooper both love the book from Grandma & Grandpa
The book has Grandma's voice recorded, reading the whole book.

Who doesn't love to watch someone else's thrilling home videos? Here are a bunch for your viewing pleasure. ;)

The next post is also about Dane's birthday festivities.

Saturday Fun For Dane's Birthday

2011-04-04T15:21:00.000-07:00

My Dane is two! Dane's birthday was on Sunday this year, so we went out Saturday night to have a little fun. We had planned on taking him to the zoo because he loves animals so much but by the time the afternoon session of General Conference was over on Saturday and Dane woke up from his nap we decided that there wasn't really time to go to the zoo.

We decided to bring the boys to the Lion Exhibit at the MGM Grand to see them feed the lions... it was a flop. The lions were asleep, we waited around for over a half an hour to see the scheduled feeding, but they never fed them, the boys were super bored so we left.

After seeing the sleeping lions we headed over to The District at Green Valley Ranch to ride the Carousel a couple of times. The Carousel saved the day, Dane and Cooper both loved riding it! Then we went out for some yummy frozen yogurt.

We love our Dane!

Shake that Booty

2011-03-31T17:17:00.000-07:00

This is Cooper's Maraca Dance... it makes me smile.

2 Wheels!

2011-03-31T13:05:00.000-07:00

Cooper learned how to ride his bike without training wheels about a month ago, it is so cute! Last year we bought Cooper a Strider Balance Bike (it's a bike for teaching kids how to balance, it doesn't have any pedals to worry about) and he learned how to balance really well on it. So we finally tried taking the training wheels off of his "real" bike and he just rode right up the street! He still needs some help getting started because his feet don't really touch the ground, but he can ride his bike really well, he can turn around and everything, he loves it and Dane loves cheering for him!

Cooper riding his Strider Bike last year

This is Cooper last year with his Strider Bike

Fun Weekend with my Mom and Sisters

2011-03-29T11:56:00.000-07:00

My Mom and two of my sisters, Jasmine & Janessa came for a quick weekend visit at the end of February. We had so much fun having them here! I only wish that they could have stayed a lot longer and that all of my sisters could have been here!

We didn't tell Cooper that they were coming, he had heard us talk about it a few times but we just told him they were coming in a month because my Mom & sisters really wanted to surprise him. I went to the airport alone to pick them up and when we got home my Mom and Jasmine & Janessa rang the doorbell and Cooper answered the door. I wish so badly that I had my video camera, Cooper was so cute, he just stood there staring, with his mouth wide open for like 30 seconds without saying a word and then fell back stiff as a board as if he fainted. He couldn't believe they were really here!

Dane & Cooper love their wonderful Grammy!

Mason brought Jasmine and Janessa to ride all of the rides on top of the Stratosphere.

I Miss You Jalidia

2011-03-13T06:32:00.000-07:00

Today marks 1 year since my beautiful little sister, Jalidia passed away. Just thinking of that awful day makes my heart race, the memories are so vivid and so painful and so hard to shake, it's been difficult to sleep this week.

My heart hurts, I wish that I could see Jalidia's beautiful smile and hear her giggle. Jalidia always gave the most loving hugs and she never wanted to let go, I sure wish that I could hug her now. I miss my sweet little sister.

I Love You Jalidia.

I'm so thankful that you will forever be my sister.

God be with you till we meet again.

6 Years Married to My Best Friend

2011-03-11T09:46:00.000-08:00

January 14th was our SIXTH wedding anniversary! Mason's Mom watched the boys for us so that we were able to go away for the night. We stayed at the Aston Montelago Resort at Lake Las Vegas, and we had a wonderful time, it was just what we needed.

I am so thankful for my Mason, he is the perfect man for me. He truly is my best friend and I love him with all that I am. We have been through so much together, a lot of really great times as well as some very hard times. I am thankful for Mason's strength and his unconditional love, he knows everything about me and loves me anyway. I love you Mason, everything about life is better with you!

Winter Wonderland in Oregon

2011-02-01T13:50:00.000-08:00

Cute Cooper

Cute Dane

Dane & Cooper with Aunty Jayla

Mom & Jasmine

Jennalise pulling the little ones

Cooper with Grammy & Aunty Janessa

My Cute Mom & Dad

Janessa & Jasmine

My cute Mom insisted on making a snow angel and taking a picture on the fun tandem bike, then unfortunately she was right back in her wheelchair.

Cooper with his Uncle James

Dane & I pulled Cooper behind the 4-wheeler on a sled

Christmas Morning with my Family in Oregon

2011-02-01T08:57:00.000-08:00

I sure love these handsome Guys

Cooper & Grammy

Dane opening a gift from Grammy & Gramps

Dane loves his Pillow Pet.
Grammy wanted to give Dane a real puppy for Christmas, I said no.

Aunty Jasmine gave Cooper his favorite gift of the day, a remote control Ninja Turtle on a skateboard! Cooper loved it! Too bad the toy didn't survive Christmas day.

Jayla & me

I've never seen someone so excited about a change counter... Jared is awesome!

Jillian loves Mason, she gave him an RC Helicopter

Christmas Eve with my Family in Oregon

2011-01-31T12:20:00.000-08:00

This year we spent the Holidays with my family in Oregon, and we went to a cabin for a few days for Christmas. We were in Oregon for a week and a half, and it was wonderful. I hadn't been home since my sweet sister Jalidia's funeral in March, so it was very bitter sweet. It was very hard to be home without her there, but I feel like it has helped me appreciate my family even more, and Christmas meant more to me this year than ever before. I am so thankful for the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ, and I am so thankful that because of Him my sister lives on and I will be able to be with her again one day. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas filled with love.

Cooper with Grammy & Gramps

Dane with Aunty Jasmine

Mom & Me

Dane loves his Grammy!

Dane & Aunty Jasmine

Jared helping Dad with the Christmas Story

Cooper helping Gramps tell the story of Baby Jesus

Dane with Aunty Janessa

The Giving Game

Dane with Aunty Jennalise & Aunty Janessa

Cooper fell asleep eating his dinner

Jillian & Me

Cooper loves his Grammy!

Cooper was very excited about his new Christmas Eve jammies.

So surprised....pajamas!

Mason & Jared

I don't know why I'm holding a diaper....I must be a Mom.

Christmas Before Christmas

2011-01-27T12:29:00.000-08:00

We spent Christmas in Oregon with my family this year, but the night before we flew to Portland we got to have a mini Christmas with Mason's parents. We love them so much, they're great!

Live Nativity

2011-01-18T12:09:00.000-08:00

One of the Stakes here in Las Vegas puts on a live Nativity play each year in December, we brought the boys to it with some friends and it was really beautifully done. Cooper has been in love with the story of baby Jesus ever since going to the live Nativity. He loved seeing all of the animals, especially the real donkey that Mary rode on. After the play was done they invited the children up to see the set, the animals etc. I was really touched that the first thing Cooper wanted to see was the Baby Jesus, he couldn't wait! All through December when Cooper's friends Kenna or Kallie would come over all they wanted to do was act out the real story of Christmas, kids are so innocent and sweet, I love it!

Kenna, Kallie, Cooper and Dane
Kenna and Kallie are two of Cooper's best little friends.

Santa Clause

2011-01-17T23:17:00.000-08:00

Both boys were a little unsure about Santa this year.

Cooper's 4th Birthday! (Way back on November 15th)

2011-01-13T13:30:00.000-08:00

Cooper's 4th birthday birthday was November 15th, and I'm just now getting around to blogging about it. I've been slacking big time but in my defense, our computer has been broken since the middle of November. For awhile we were worried we had lost all of the pictures from our hard drive, thankfully the computer repair guy was able to recover everything and put it on our new hard drive.

Cooper had a great birthday, and I still can't believe my baby is 4! I am so thankful for my Cooper, he is such a gift in my life and he has taught me so much! I love you buddy and I'm proud of you!

Pin the ball on the bat

Dane & Ben

Obstacle Course

Cooper telling Grandma thank you

Cooper telling Parker thank you for his present

Cooper is closing his eyes waiting for his present from Mom & Dad

Ragnar Relay Las Vegas 2010 - 195 Miles

2010-11-20T15:40:00.000-08:00

Mason ran his 4th Ragnar Relay last month with Team Chasqui and had a blast! He has started talking about how next year he wants to try running a Ragnar with an Ultra Team (team of 6 rather than 12), he is nuts! I don't know if he'll really run it on an Ultra team next year, but I'm sure he will someday. This year he ran about 20 miles, on an ultra team it would be double the distance.

Well done Chasquis!

"Halloween is Spooky"

2010-11-02T15:05:00.000-07:00

Cooper was super excited for Halloween this year. He kept telling us "Halloween is Spoooooky."

Dane loves all the candy that Cooper brought home, but he didn't care for Trick or Treating and he despised his costume.

All of the cousins except for Parker...we missed you buddy.

Fun with Stacey

2010-10-20T12:34:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday my good friend Stacey from Utah called me to tell me that she was here in Las Vegas visiting her in laws. I was so happy, we met up at Target for lunch and it was great. Sure, it was nothing like the old days when we would go out to lunch and talk for hours, I had my two boys with me and she had her two girls, it wasn't very relaxing but it was lot's of fun. I hope you come again soon Stacey, maybe this time we could even get lunch somewhere a little classier like McDonald's or something.

Cooper was so excited when I told him that we were going to Target to see Pearl. The whole way there he pretended that he was talking to her on the phone and was asking her what "section" she was in. I think Cooper & Pearl are pretty darn cute together!

Cribs are for Babies

2010-10-19T16:08:00.000-07:00

Dane has been able to climb out of pack and plays for months now, and on Friday he realized he can climb out of his crib too. Friday morning when Dane started making noise Mason & Cooper went into his room to get him. Mason sat on the rocking chair for a minute and teased Dane a little bit (all good Dads tease once in awhile), from our room I heard Mason say "Do you want to get out of your crib Dane?" That's when it happened, I guess Dane assumed his Dad had given him permission, so he climbed right out. Mason said that Dane climbed out like a stealthy spy, like he had done it a hundred times before.

I had to tuck Dane in like 5 times for his nap on Friday... there was just no keeping him in that crib, he just climbed out over and over. Saturday we set up Cooper's old toddler bed and Dane loves it, he went right to sleep, he has done great! He feels like a big boy and loves it!

My Nursery Boy

2010-10-10T16:46:00.000-07:00

Dane started nursery today!!

Dane was very excited to start nursery at church today. He went right in and started playing with the toys, and didn't even notice when I left. When Church was over and I went to pick him up they were playing with bubbles and he didn't want to leave, I guess that's what you call a successful first day in nursery.

I sure love my handsome little man!

I seriously can't believe that Dane is officially 18 months old! I love him to pieces. He is my sweet little cuddle bug, he gives me big hugs all day long. It just makes my heart melt when he runs from across the room to wrap his cute little arms around me for a few seconds.

I love you Daney-boy, you are such a blessing in my life!

Cooper's 1st Soccer Game

2010-09-28T12:40:00.000-07:00

Cooper had his first soccer game on Saturday, it was lots of fun to watch. It was really hot and Cooper was grumpy at first but once he started playing he did great and had a lot of fun. He even scored an awesome goal! Go Sharks!

Cooper's Grandma & Grandpa came to watch and Grandpa took lots of great pictures for us. Thanks Allan!

Cooper's Team: The Sharks

Cooper means business. Check out the clenched fists.

This cute little girl was an awesome little soccer player. She probably scored like 15 goals. After the game when the teams shook hands Cooper told her "You're.. You're just too good."

Cooper was upset that he tried to score a goal and it didn't work.
He kept telling us "It just won't work!"

Cooper getting some tips from the Coach.

13.1 Cedar Canyon Half Marathon

2010-09-23T13:47:00.000-07:00

On Saturday Mason ran his 3rd 1/2 Marathon and he did an awesome job, especially considering that he trained for less than weeks beforehand! He set a personal record, finishing in 1hr43min and had an overall pace of about 7.53 min/mile, I think that's super fast for 13.1 miles!. I'm so proud of him!

Mason & his brother Warren both ran and they both did fantastic, finishing within a few seconds of each other.

Cedar City put on a great race, everything was organized really well. Mason & Warren said that the course was beautiful. I hesitate to say it, but I'm kind of considering running it with him next year. I have a year to try to get ready for it, so why not?

Our BIG Summer Project

2010-09-22T15:57:00.000-07:00

We now have a usable, playable, enjoyable backyard! We love it, it was a ton of work but now that it's done it was definitely worth it. We started working on the backyard the beginning of June and finished it the end of August. Anybody who has been to Las Vegas knows that June-August are the most miserable months we have, and the heat is intense! We got very sweaty! We would start working every night around 5 and stop around 11. We worked pretty much every night except for when we were out of town. When we moved in there was already a retaining wall but we pushed it back about 4 feet to give us more usable space and we added two more rows of bricks to it. That may not sound like a big deal, but out of everything we did the process of moving the wall back was by far the hardest thing. First we had to take down all of the bricks to get them out of the way, and each one weighs 60 pounds, with a total of 245 bricks that equals 14,700 pounds! Then the real work began, we spent hour after hour after hour, night after night digging away at all of the extra dirt. Mason and I each had our own pick axe and got very familiar with it, this is the definition of backbreaking work, man was it hard dirt! Mason built a grate that we poured all of the extra dirt through to separate the dirt from the rocks. We kept the dirt to smooth out our lot and hauled away 8 big truckloads of rocks and big boulders to the desert. Once we had that done the rest seemed like a piece of cake and was kind of fun because things started to look good. I'm really happy with how everything turned out.

This is how real boys go #2

Dirt Biking in Undies

This is a picture of the grate that Mason built to sift our dirt. I'm so glad that he is so handy, he did a great job on everything, smoothing out our lot, building a nice straight wall, installing the sprinkling system. He's great!

The boys loved "helping."

Finally...the day for grass has come!

I made Mason take a picture of the tools he made before we got rid of them. The picture above is the ramp Mason made to push the wheelbarrow up into his Dad's truck so that he could just dump the wheelbarrow rather than us having to shovel into the truck. Below is a picture of the grate for sifting dirt and something he made to help smooth out the dirt, I thought it was pretty clever.

My Little Soccer Player

2010-09-17T10:21:00.000-07:00

It's official, I am now a Soccer Mom! Cooper had his first Soccer practice yesterday! Cooper's cousin, Parker is on his team, it's going to be a blast. It was so much fun to watch all these 3 year olds running around trying to play soccer. When practice was over Cooper said "Mom, that was so much fun!" When we got home Cooper went right to the backyard and practiced for about 45 minutes, he wanted me to keep blowing the whistle like the coach (one whistle means go, two means stop), and he kept asking Mason to build him a goal. It's fun to see Cooper so excited, but it sure was hard to get him to come inside for the night!

I Miss You Jalidia!

2010-09-13T12:37:00.000-07:00

Wow... I did not anticipate today being so hard! Today when I woke up I knew that it would be a hard day, but I felt strong, now I find myself overcome with emotion. Today is September 13th, my beautiful little sister Jalidia's birthday, she would have been 16 today. Today would have been a day filled with excitement for her, finally old enough to date cute boys and get her driver's license. Today would have been such a happy day, but Jalidia is not here with us, today marks six months since the day she left this life. I can't believe it's been 6 months, it seems like it's been so much longer than that, but at the same time it seems so vivid, like we just lost her yesterday.

I can quite honestly say that this has been the most difficult and trying time in my entire life. Never has my faith in our loving Savior Jesus Christ been so tested. I have had moments when I feel great peace and comfort and then other moments when it feels impossible to feel anything but deep sorrow and despair. What I have learned is that even in those moments of darkness and loneliness we need to hold onto the times when we have felt the love and strength of our Savior and hold onto that. What I want more than anything right now is to wrap my arms around my sweet little sister and tell her how deeply I love her and miss her, there are many things I don’t understand about this life and why we have to endure the private trials that each one of us face, but one thing I know is that the only way I will be able to be with my sister again is through our loving Savior Jesus Christ. He is the only way; I know that it is through Him that my sister lives on, just as each of us will after we have left this life. Jesus said “I am the resurrection, and the life, he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live!”

Elder Donald L. Hallstrom of the Presidency of the Seventy said "Throughout the world and among the membership of the Church, there is great joy and great pain. Both are part of the plan. Without one, we cannot know the other. “Men are, that they might have joy” (2 Nephi 2:25) and “for it must needs be, that there is an opposition in all things” (2 Nephi 2:11) are not contradictory; they are complementary. In describing how he felt when he turned to the Lord, Alma the Younger said, “My soul was filled with joy as exceeding as was my pain” (Alma 36:20).”

I have learned that life is so very good, even when it is so terribly difficult. The challenge is recognizing the good, and being grateful for all of it. It's easier said than done, and it has been a daily struggle for me. But I know that the days when I turn to the Lord for strength, His love helps me get through the pain, and I am able to better recognize how very blessed I am.

I have found great comfort in the book "The GATEWAY We Call Death" by Elder Russell M. Nelson of the Twelve Apostles he says "Each marvelous moment is both a mystery and a miracle. While mourning, may we not take life's wonder for granted." "Those we call dead are not dead at all. They are alive---on the other side of the veil.... The happiness found in this life is only a sample of the everlasting joy that awaits us later. If any of us mourn for lost loved ones today, we can be comforted and know that in due time "God shall wipe away all tears... and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain. (Revelation 21:4)"

I am grateful for my life, I am grateful that sweet Jalidia is my sister, that we will all be together again as a family after this life. I love my sister, and I love my Savior Jesus Christ who made it possible for me to be with my sister again. I love my sweet husband who has loved me and strengthened me through these difficult months, I am grateful for my two precious boys who remind me every day how fun life is, I love my amazing Mom and Dad who continue to be wonderful examples of faith and strength to me, and I am so thankful for each and every one of my 12 brothers & sisters and all that they have taught me. Life is hard, but it is so good, and I'm grateful for each day that I am blessed with.

Always tell those whom you love that you love them, you never know when you will see them again.

Each day is a gift.

Enjoy Life!

Cooper Is Growing Up!

2010-09-09T10:21:00.000-07:00

This week Cooper started preschool/joyschool. He has been so excited to start, and he loves it! He goes with a group of kids that he knows from church and the moms take turns teaching it. My Cooper sure is getting big!

Cooper loves showing off his giant muscles!

I sure love this kid!

Cabin Time

2010-08-17T16:02:00.000-07:00

Summertime always means it's time to go play at the cabin that Mason's parents have by Kolob reservoir. We love it and always have a blast. We went last month for a quick little getaway, just the four of us. It was too quick we only stayed one night, but crammed in as much fun as we could before we had to leave. We sure love that place!

Boys will Boys!

Cooper REALLY wanted a picture with Dane, but Dane wouldn't cooperate.It made Cooper pretty upset.

Cooper always loves finding Horny Toads at the cabin.

We went for a really long ride and Cooper & Mason ran out of gas.

Luckily Mason got it going again and made it back with just enough in the reserve tank.

That sure was fun!!

Such a wonderful Example

2010-07-30T11:22:00.000-07:00

Mason & I lived in Utah when this car accident happened, I remember hearing about it on the news. Such a heartbreaking story.

This video is deeply touching, it's absolutely inspiring to me.

I think it's so beautiful when he says "I'm grateful that God allows tragedies and trials to occur in our lives, not because they're easy or because they're desired, but because they help us love."

Mason is Super!

2010-06-21T14:05:00.000-07:00

I am so lucky to be married to Mason! He is the greatest Husband & Father, and I just love love love Him!

Cooper & Dane love their Daddy!

We had fun spoiling Mason yesterday.

He works so hard for us and we are grateful for all that he does for us!

All of the boys were excited about Mason's new saw.

This is what happens every day when Mason get's home from work.

It's time to wrestle!

One of the things I love most about Mason is how much he loves our boys, they're his little buddies and he is our hero. We love you Mason!

I Love Being a Mom

2010-06-15T15:35:00.000-07:00

Here it is just a few days before Father's Day and I'm just now posting these pictures from Mother's Day. I had a wonderful Mother's Day, and Mason spoiled me as usual. Mason made me a Mother's Day feast for breakfast, he made me yummy Waffles with fresh Strawberries & Whip Cream, Orange Juice, Bacon, Eggs and Cinnamon Rolls! Every year he makes me so much food for breakfast that I don't know how he expects me to eat, but it sure makes me feel loved, I am one lucky lady.

I love being a Mom, I love my two crazy boys more than words can say. I am so thankful for the blessings that they are in my life. Their sweet smiles & innocent sense of humor has helped carry me through these past few months. When my sweet sister, Jalidia passed away in March, my heart broke and I didn't know how I would smile again. Cooper & Dane quickly brought a smile back to my face and helped me rememeber that each day is blessing, life is to be lived, cherished, and to have fun! Cooper & Dane, I love you! I am so blessed to be your Mommy!

Mason gave me a Flip video camera. He said it's for capturing all of my Mothering memories. I thought it was such a sweet idea, and I love my Flip, it's fantastic!

Father's & Son's Campout

2010-06-15T14:10:00.000-07:00

Last month Mason & Cooper went to their first ward Father's & Sons campout. Mason said it was more like sleeping in a tent in a big grass field than it was camping but they still had fun. This year it was at the county fairgrounds, hopefully next year it will be a better camping spot. Cooper still talks about their camping trip all the time. Next year Dane will get to go too, but this year he stayed home and partied with me.

Our New Home

2010-06-14T18:24:00.000-07:00

We bought our first house & moved in the beginning of April! We love it, and we are all so happy to be here. We were in a 2 bedroom apartment before, and Dane was sharing a room with Mason & me...well really, we were sharing a room with Dane and he was not sleeping well at all. On his birthday he got his very own room and magically slept through the night! Woohoo! Cooper loves our new house too, he has been a much happier boy since we moved in, because he has more freedom and lots of new friends. It is great, we love our house!

We've been doing lots of painting since we moved in.

The boys love their new backyard, it's pretty small and nothing but dirt so far, but they love it!

You can tell these pictures were taken back in April because it is definitely not sweatshirt weather in Las Vegas anymore. I love how Cooper is helping Dane with his hood, he's such a good big brother. It was super windy that day, check out Dane's rad hair!

Easter Post in June?

2010-06-14T17:57:00.000-07:00

I know it's June & these pictures are from Easter. I've been neglecting the blog a little bit, better than neglecting my boys though. We had a really nice Easter. We watched General Conference, and both sessions were two of the most beaustiful sessions I have ever heard, full of strong testimonies of our Loving Savior, Jesus Christ and the reality of the resurrection. It was absolutely beautiful, and exactly what I needed.

Then we went to Mason's parents house for a yummy Easter dinner & Easter Egg hunt for the kiddies, and another little birthday party for Dane. It was great!