Life is Wonderful

Our New Addition...

2011-11-22T13:33:00.000-08:00

Life...

2010-06-23T14:20:00.000-07:00

Riley and I ran a 1/2 marathon a weekend or so ago and LOVED it! It was great to have Riley by my side throughout the whole thing. It was a beautiful race and a beautiful (but rainy) day!
Here are my cute kids with their great smiles! Life is good.

Oh and my sister and my bro in law had their fifth baby, so great! We love little Blake!

2010-05-31T15:52:00.000-07:00

More Pics...

2010-05-31T15:51:00.000-07:00

Family....

2010-05-31T15:47:00.000-07:00

Riley and I just celebrated our six year anniversary, wow! However, it has been eleven years since we met one another. We have come a long way and we have two beautiful children and a very happy life to show for it. Thanks for the fun Riley, here are some recent pictures of our Memorial Day trip and Rigdon's 6 month pictures from JCPenney.

I never do this...

2010-05-03T22:55:00.001-07:00

Here are some pictures of the last few months....

rigdon's first cowboy boots
my smiley boys

riley's hospital stay...five long days

easter in st. george

cute little guy, kenna and i treat him like a little doll

his first haircut. at first he was very content until he heard the clippers and then he was petrified

disneyland with kenna and rigdon, riley had to stay home - we missed you!

rigdon's blessing

he learned to be so smiley with help from his sister

the guys in our family are on a gun kick....silly boys they all belong to the freedom brother's club

kenna building a tower

riley's job lately has been to track, test and monitor bear cubs and their moms

here he is about ready to go into a bear cave to tranquilize a bear....yikes he is crazy!

here he goes...off to his possible death...

here he is doing something with turkeys

cute little cubs were staying warm in his jacket

Honestly, it has been since the birth of our little dude, Rigdon, that I've taken the time to blog (almost six months ago). As some of you may know I was pressured into starting a blog without a real desire to do it because I'm a digital scrapbooker at heart.....and as you can tell the scrapbooking has won out in the end. However, I felt like posting a little something letting you all know we are alive.

Quick update.

Riley just finished his first year of graduate school at BYU. He is still an intern with the UDWR and loving his job and work. He is a biologist and has found his calling in life, I am so glad that he loves what he does and does what he loves! He spent five days in the Heber Valley Hospital a couple of weeks ago, he is recovering and feeling much better. We are both training for a half marathon together that we will be running in June.

In addition to mothering and enjoying my days full of exercising, reading, playing with the kids, cooking and whatever else I feel like doing I have been spending much of my time tutoring math students. This has been a fun hobby for me because all of my tutoring money goes into my "vacation" jar which paid our way to California in February and is also paying mine and Riley's way to Boston, MA this upcoming Friday! That is right we are going on a second honeymoon this Friday for EIGHT beautiful days. We are leaving the kiddos at home and looking forward to a Red Sox vs. Yankees game, historical sites, seafood, Cape Cod and the beautiful ocean that we can see outside of our studio suite!

My two kids are doing well and growing every day! Kenna has a darling personality that keeps me laughing. Just today while we were at the library she pointed to a magazine that had Glenn Beck on the cover and said, "Mommy that is Barak Obama!" I just laughed because this poor girl is way over her head in politics. I guess that's what she gets having a family who is obsessed with Glenn Beck and other political figures! Rigdon is a sweet baby and has a very kind and loving demeanor, he is such a joy!

Another Blessing For Thanksgiving...

2009-11-30T09:39:00.000-08:00

Rigdon Drew Peck has ARRIVED!!!

Our little boy arrive on Thanksgiving Day at 12:34pm which worked perfectly around my doctors and our families Thanksgiving meals. Of course we know they would have sacrificed their turkey meal to be at the delivery but because of the perfect timing everyone was able to do both :)

We arrived at the hospital on Thursday morning around 9:30am and they admitted me around 10:30am. I was at that point dialated to a six. They gave me the epi and from then on it was a pretty smooth delivery. He came quickly and within an hour or two I felt great! We came home from the hospital the next afternoon and because of my wonderful hubby I had the whole weekend to relax and recover with breakfast in bed and EVERYTHING!

Kennady has taken to Rigdon really well. Riley and I couldn't have imagined a more wonderful blessing on Thanksgiving then Rigdon. As most of you know it is a miraculous thing to have a baby and I am so grateful for my beautiful family. I am so grateful to my Heavenly Father for Riley, my two children and the MANY blessings I have been given.

Thank you everyone for your calls, visits, food and thoughtful gifts - we love you all!

The pictures below are in no particular order but they are some of the hospital and the first couple of days at home.

Hey Everyone!!!

2009-11-24T15:08:00.000-08:00

Just as proof I decided to post a picture along with my blog today to prove we are still alive. Let's see what is going on....well really there is too much to say. However, most recently we are so excited and ready for our little guy to come. I am currently dialated to a 5 and ready to go anytime we are now just hoping he'll wait until AFTER Thanksgiving. As for Thanksgiving we are so grateful for the wonderful life we have. We have been blessed with Riley's grad school, his job, the place we live, our family and one (almost two) children that bring us so much joy! As for me I quit 1-800 CONTACTS...yahoo! I quit about 2-3 months ago...see how long it has been since I've posted? Wow. Anyway I worked with them for six years and that company was absolutely wonderful for me throughout my college years and the first few years of Kennady's life. I'm grateful I was able to be home with her and bring in a little money as well. So anyway we are alive and I wanted to let you all know that and I'll try to post something once this little dude comes into the world! I hope you all have a WONDERFUL Thanksgiving holiday! Love, Krista

Deals to Meals and Deer

2009-09-14T05:11:00.000-07:00

On Labor Day my bosses, Shandra and Todd, took all of the Deals to Meals employees to Seven Peaks for the first annual Employee Appreciation Day. We had a great time and they were so generous to give us all such a fun family outing! Thanks guys!

The weekend of Labor Day we spent our time at the Peck cabin hunting, four wheeling and having a great time with the family. I was proud of Riley because he actually got a deer with a bow (first time ever) which means he has now completed the "cycle" I guess they call it. That means he has gotten ( I don't like to say killed :) ) a deer with the bow, muzzle and the rifle - you are such a stud honey!

I had to get a picture of this outfit that Riley was sporting while he was painting the cabin, do you remember those shorts? Wow I'm glad that fad has changed!

This shows you what a cool family I belong too, Grandma's shoot guns and husbands by their wives some pretty scary weapons, congrats Katie on the new addition to your family!

I love that Kennady has a tight grip on the antler of the deer and it doesn't even bug her - she is daddy's little girl for sure!

Up to my ears in....

2009-09-10T04:52:00.000-07:00

I have had two days of sticky floors, sore feet and a steamy kitchen

but I have 102 BEAUTIFUL quarts of peaches to show for it, totally worth it!

The Great Outdoors....

2009-08-25T07:47:00.000-07:00

We went camping with the Peck fam in Beaver for the bow hunt. This is a favorite spot of ours, it is beautiful and very secluded. Randy got a deer on Monday morning, it was a beautiful three point. Riley has the pics on his camera so I'll have to post one later.

Riley, Jordan (Lexi's Boyf), Rem

The boys are looking for Rem's arrow after he took a shot at a nice buck, this was his first year and he did a great job.

Jordan and Lexi

Randy and Diane

We enjoyed an afternoon of "cornhole" which is a game that Reagan built that is pretty silly but VERY competitive.

Court and Lex with "cornhole"

Here is my cute mountain man, Riley buzzed his head before the hunt. I love Riley's overalls he is such a farmer!

Reagan spoiled Nadie with a bunch of 4-wheeler rides.

Another family favorite is Frisbee Golf

Jordan, Lex, Court, Rem

Riley, Me

Here are some pics of Riley's job that he has with the DWR. He is working this summer for the division and for his research project with BYU so he spends his days in the mountains, I think he has found his nitch in life :) He was population counting the other day and came across some moose, it ended up charging him. Luckily, he was in a truck so he is alive to share the story.

Some might look at this picture and think Riley is holding up a DEAD bear.....no no no...it is actually ALIVE!!!! Can you believe that? I am still livid that he would dare sit and hold a LIVING bear even if it is sedated. You never know the medicine could've worn off a little early.

The other weekend the Peck boys traveled to Colorado to see a Chicago Cubbies game, ever since then Riley wants to name our little boy, Rigley (after Wrigley field). Ugh, it will take a TON of inspiration for me if that is the name we choose.

I love this picture - these boys are cubbies fans through the good and the bad and of course with the cubs there is a A LOT of bad! :)

We are aLiVe!

2009-08-06T06:04:00.000-07:00

Here is a quick recap of the last month. Life is great. I hope you are all doing well! Kennady turned two and Reagan turned 25 last weekend, we had a luau to celebrate! I like to make a bday cake that reminds me of Kennady so this year a sea turtle was perfect. First, she LOVES the song "I had a baby turtle, his name was tiny tim..." and second she has a cute rolly neck with lots of skin which reminds me of a turtle :)

She got a bike from Nana for her bday. She also got some cute clothes from my mom - thanks for spoiling her!

The birthday boy, Reagan. We roasted a pig and he had to eat the tongue since the party was for him, ugh!

Riley led some brave souls in the haka dance...hilarious.

We had a hula hoop contest. I took third place, I think the prego tummy helped.

The pig

Here is our little two year old...she is so FUN and FULL of spunk!

Diane got luau outfits for the girls, they are adorable.

Riley got Kennady a pink bat, ball and glove for her bday - she loves watching baseball with dad. I'm hoping she'll change her mind and begin loving the food network with me...no luck so far.

Kennady watching her cake turn into one stinkin' cute turtle.

I watched my neices and nephew on Nadie's bday for the afternoon. They were there to help with the cake decorating. The house was a disaster but we had fun.

Here are some pics of the 4th of July

Riley's parents, i love this picture.

Riverton parade

I remodeled Kennady's room since we can't have a purple all with the boy that will be joining our family soon. So I painted it blue..ADORABLE! I will have this color in my house one day...maybe even every room, I love it that much.

I covered our ugly bookshelf with a sheet/curtain that I made with pictures that Kennady loves to look at.

We went camping at the spruces

Riley brought his field guide books to look up every plant, flower and animal I love my biologist!

There is nothing better and more messier than a campfire marshmallow!

We had a chance to go to the temple open house with my grandparents, aunt and cousin that were in town. Grandpa spoiled Kennady and gave her a ride all around. It was a beautiful day!

Ashley and I bought a season pass to Classic, we've been only a few times but it has been really fun! Especially our cafe rio stops after :)

I hope you all have a wonderful last few weeks of summer, I don't post often but I do check your blogs, it looks like life is great for everyone!

Find Out Party...

2009-07-09T08:13:00.000-07:00

Currently I am 4 1/2 months pregnant and we recently found out that.......
As you can see Kennady is totally thrilled to have a little brother...she was all SMILES!

My mom had this silly boy pj outfit that we put Kennady in after our party, she insisted on wearing the booties all night and even the next morning when she woke up. I think this was a Thomas the Train outfit - wow boy clothes are sure different!

The fam humored me (Pecks and Perrys together) and came to our find out party. We had dinner and then opened the envelope with everyone to find out what we were having. Everyone was sure we were having a girl so it was sure a surprise. I had silly party favors for those who guessed the gender correctly!

Babies, Homes, Romance and More!

2009-06-01T05:10:00.000-07:00

As usual we have had a crazy and FUN last few weeks. It seems there is always something going and with Riley gone for his internship a few days a week we cram our days when he is home! Here are a few updates....

Baby #1

Baby Everett Eldon Howell joined the family on May 9th. Angela and Grady now have three adorable boys - he is a chunk and so snuggly!

Baby #2

A few weeks later Baby Caleb Jared Suker joined the clan of now ELEVEN (soon to be 12!) grandchildren...our family parties are getting even more wild!

A New Home

Jared and Diana found a beautiful home in Herriman only a 1/2 mile away from Shan and Angela. They moved all weekend and after their first night in the new home Caleb was born, perfect timing! Included in this fun event is the fact that my parents are moving too! They have lived in their home for 22 years (pretty much my WHOLE life) but they decided to down-size so they bought the home with Di and Jared. It sounds crazy but it actually works out perfectly. This home is huge so it fits them all without a problem. My parents have their own entrance, a kitchen, three bedrooms, bathroom, family room and storage. Di and Jared have three bedrooms, an office, family room, three bathrooms, laundry room and a huge kitchen and dining room. Mom and Dad, Kennady and I will miss the morning walks/runs that we had with you but really you are still only five minutes away so I think we'll be okay! Congrats!

My parent's kitchen

Di and Jar's huge porch

Looking at Di and Jar's front door and stairs

The kitchen for Di and Jar

Camping at Main Canyon

We spent the weekend with the Wright's camping up Main Canyon. It was beautiful and so fun! I am addicted to the king size bed in their tent trailor. I'm not kidding we can even do sleepovers in your front yard :) With the "sticky" situation we got ourselves into the first day I'm glad the rest of the trip went so well - thanks guys!

Kennady tripped but it looks like she was being Bella (brandon and lizzie's dog that she is obsessed with)

Brandon trying to dig us out of a really terrible mess - thanks to Dori and Larry (aka Santa) they saved our trip!Brandon and Lizzie brought Apple Beer which Kennady loved. She was acting so silly and carrying the bottle around we couldn't help but take a few pics of her being "drunk". I'm sure if child services catch a peek at this picture we'd be in trouble but I promise it was just apple juice!Memorial Day

We spent four days at the cabin with the Peck family. Randy made the weekend extra fun by creating competition with multiple activities and games. Luckily Katie was my partner and totally relaxed she didn't mind that I sat a few of them out like the disgusting lizard hunt - way to go Katie for catching one for the team! We had a bike race, penny pushing, lizard hunting, frisbee golf, pool ball hitting, card games, cops and robbers (thanks Ri for being our spy we couldn't have done it without you!), shed hunting, and fishing. Riley and I also tried out our dutch ovens for the first time and made mountain man breakfast, peach cobbler and pineapple upside down cake. The breakfast and cobbler were delicious but the pineapple cake was ugh!

Oh and I can't forget to mention the crazy "Trading Spaces" day that we had the first afternoon we were up there. I've never painted and remodeled a room so quickly - it turned out so cute!

Like Mother Like Daughter

The other day I was doing aerobics. While I'm exercising Kennady usually putters around and reads book or plays with her toys to keep herself busy. Today she got into the cleaning rags and began dusting. I had to take a break and snap a photo because Riley teases me that she has my cleaning obsession - I think he might be right!

The Bees and a Suite

Randy and Diane got a box for the family to enjoy a Monday night game at the ballpark. They had delicious food, snacks and dessert available for us all game long in the suite. The Peck boys were most excited for the team the Bees played because it is the minor league team for the Cubbies! Riley was working his internship that day and night so he missed it - sorry honey we missed you! Riley works pretty hard he is gone two nights a week and wakes up early and stays out late so he is pulling in a crazy amount of hours for BYU and the DWR, luckily we are getting paid for all of this time! I love his master's program!

Five Years Down...Eternity To Go!

A couple of weeks ago Riley and I celebrated our five year anniversary. Wow - I love that guy! We had a gift card from work so we splurged and went to Tempanyaki, a Japanese restaurant - DELICIOUS! We ordered sushi which was so good, especially the pickled ginger? I need a recipe for that if anyone has any idea how they make their shaved ginger taste soooo good? We left with more food than we were able to eat - everything was delicious!

Wow this was a LONG post hopefully I'm caught up for awhile!

The Vacation

2009-05-20T05:41:00.001-07:00

Here are some highlights from the St. George trip (Riley's Graduation Vacation)! What a great time. The weather was beautiful, the late nights were late and the food was TOO filling! Thanks you guys we can't wait to do it again soon!

The St. George home that the Peck's bought - we love it! It is a beautiful three bedroom and two bath.

Crazy Girl!

Trent and Cindy. Trent looks like a pro.

Thanks to Trent peeing on the saddle right before my ride I had a nice soggy seat - ha ha!

She is loving it - like father like daughter.

Cool Dude!

Tristin LOVES horses and I think Kennady might follow in her love for them. They were both so excited to ride the horse.

Little Evan, Evan and Candice

Cindy and Trent

Riley are you scared? Evan thanks for showing Riley how to be a man! :)

So cute. This is Kennady's friend Tristin. They share a birthday on August 1st. Candice (Tristin's mom) and I are both pregnant again and are both due on December 5th! What are the chances???

Timothy Family

I just thought that was adorable. We kept telling her we needed to go and she'd say, "Mo....Mo...." of course that means more more.

We were adventurous and hiked all morning with four little kids - they were great though!

Lee Family

Congratulations Graduate!

2009-05-18T14:26:00.000-07:00

RILEY GRADUATED!!!

At the beginning of this month Riley graduated with his BS in Biology from the U. He refused to walk since he started grad school the following week so we had a family BBQ the day of his last final to celebrate. We had a great time at the BBQ and our adorable family was so cute with the fun presents they gave him. Riley I am so proud of you and your hard work - I am excited for this new phase. Hasta Luego UTES....GO COUGARS!

This picture cracked me up because the kids were playing in the fountain and when it exploded Isaac freaked out - poor ballerina :) The only thing I INSISTED on since Riley refused to walk is that we took fake photos of him in a graduation cap and gown (scrapbook sake). Thanks to Jared my bro-in-law who also graduated from the U he had the cap and gown for us to use..... we'll just ignore the fact that it is actually a doctoral gown....maybe one day????

The Pecks gave us quite the surprise with a brand new SCOOTER for Riley's graduation! We have been loving it - we go on night rides whenever we can. That was definitely a surprise for the two of us!

As a thank you for our parents Riley wrote each set of parents a thank you card and we gave them a picture of our family. In one corner it said, "Thanks for supporting ALL of us!!" and in the other corner there was an ultrasound of our new bundle of joy....coming December 5, 2009!

The three of us now have something in common...something other than being sisters! Our parents were so excited to hear our good news especially since it has taken us awhile to get this new little baby on the way. Thanks for everyone's love and prayers in that regard!

After the BBQ we headed off to a fabulous graduation vacation with some friends. I'll post about that another day because I have 180 pictures to go through from that vacation. Thanks for the fun everyone!

Things I don't want to forget....

2009-05-04T06:30:00.000-07:00

I haven't blogged in far TOO long so I have quite a few posts of random activities that I don't want to forget and since my blog is a help for my journal I figured I'd better do it....

WICKED

Randy and Diane are so generous in every way but especially when it comes to giving their kids a little bit of culture...they have taken us to Les Mis, Riverdance, Mama Mia and now WICKED!!! My parents always get tickets and come with us as well so it's a pretty fun night. My mom and I went shopping that afternoon to get fun outfits for our date. We all went to PF Changs for dinner - oh I'm drooling about it now even a week later, it was delicious!!! For those of you who have enjoyed Wicked you'll agree with me that it was fabulous. The music was great and the story was so creative - thank you Randy and Diane for the fun and FREE night! My mom and dad at PF Changs
Some of the Pecks at the Capitol Theater

Randy and Diane

Dinner at PF Changs

Right before the play

GREEK EASTER

Riley's mom is Greek and so are the other fifty million aunts and uncles on that side of the family. Each year Yia Yia (Grandma Goris) gets us together for a HUGE gathering of Greek relatives for Greek Easter. It was a beautiful day in the sun with the most delicious Greek food.

The grandkids were attacking Papa (Randy)

Randy and Diane sitting in the sun watching the rest of the family playing catch

Riley and Yia Yia

FAMILY HOME EVENING IN THE GARDEN

My Grandma and Grandpa Perry have been out of town for almost four months so the garden and WEEDS were out of control. They are returning home tomorrow so Riley and I recruited the help of our family to get the garden into shape for their return. It looked so good after everyone put in a few hours and helped one night for FHE. We were so grateful for the help. Not only will G & G Perry appreciate but so do Riley and I we would've been working on the weeds for DAYS...

Even the tiniest of the kids helped with the weeds that night...

Good little Jake he is a big helper...

Livvy and Conner

Riley, Me and my mom. It was good my mom was there because we took out a few things that we thought were weeds that she replanted - thanks mom!

Diana the Queen...she is on a bedrest for the baby that is growing inside so we'll let her be lazy this one time...

Kennady and Allie the princesses....they took after Diana's example!

EASTER

The Peck Easter is something I look forward to EVERY year. I think it is because they spoil the adults and not the kids...finally one of the holidays we get a little bit of fun :) Randy and Diane set out an adult Easter egg hunt and we totally walk away with a large loot of stuff. This year RIley and I got three new DVDs, $25, $10 gc to Chilis and $10 GC to the movies....we couldn't believe our good luck! Thanks for the fun memories we love it....

Here we are holding the goods from the easter egg hunt...

Of course the kids don't get left out completely they also get a TON of candy!

Laurie and I love this tradition

Hunting for eggs

The cute Peck family...I love them!

Randy and Diane with Kennady and her Easter shoes. She was so excited about these that she did a little dance....

THE LITTLE RASCALS

It is dangerous to let the three of these kids play together all alone for very long...it undoubtably ends up in trouble!

The three of them got into Shandra's make up bag and through base all over her bathroom and all over themselves. They also through many things into the bathtub and filled it with water. The bathroom was a mess....

They were caught in the act but still smiling...

All of the goods that were soaked with water and covered in makeup

KENNADY

Here are a few shots of Kennady, she loves to pick out her shoes and hats for the day. We often go places with mismatching shoes because that is her responsibility

Riley often wishes he could see Kennady more but he spends a lot of time at school so we wanted to see if she would fit in his backpack....she did so I think I might send her with him tomorrow.

2009-04-10T05:38:00.000-07:00

DAVIS 302 REUNION

The six of us went to California Pizza Kitchen to start the party off and the food there is SOOOOO good! Courtney promised that she wouldn't let any of us order a boring (normal) pizza like pepperoni, cheese, etc. I thought she was being silly until I tasted her Sante Fe Pizza - wow I'm still craving it again and it is only 7am right now! After dinner we went back to the hotel and stayed up way too late. I was the first one to fall asleep so of course Kakes took an awful picture of me sleeping with my eyes and mouth half open - poor Riley you deal with that everyday! Below is the "Camera Nazi" aka Janelle. This picture was totally on accident I just thought it was so funny I had to put it on my blog. Janelle wanted us to put away our cameras so we could just hang out so we don't have many pictures thanks to her :)

A Big Girl Bed

Yup, that is right Kennady has now graduated to a big girl bed. The first night she stayed in her bed but cried periodically throughout the night (like every hour on the hour...ugh) the second night she got out of her bed but slept much better. I think we'll get the hang of this soon. Her first nap in the big girl bed was great. She slept for two hours until we had some visitors so I think this will be a good thing - congrats Nadie! As you can tell her purple wall doesn't match the bedspread so how do we feel about lime green?

Davis 302

2009-04-03T06:30:00.000-07:00

To some of you this building might not be familiar, however, to me it used to be home. It is Davis Hall in Logan, Utah. Oh, the good memories that were shared in this beautiful brick edifice - tonight we are having the First Annual Davis 302 roommate reunion at a hotel in Salt Lake City. We are playing WITHOUT the hubbies and the kids and we can't wait! I'm sure we'll stay up too late and laugh too loud...I'm so EXCITED!!!

2009-03-24T11:48:00.000-07:00

Lately, I have felt like my life could be described by the scripture that says, 'I will open up the windows of heaven and pour you out blessings and there won't be enough room to receive them..." Of course I was paraphrasing but we have been blessed with so much lately I can't help but feel that way. As most of you know Riley was accepted into BYU last week for graduate school - hello we couldn't have been happier about that. However, yesterday we received some more good news that brought our happiness level OVER THE TOP! Riley was chosen to be an intern for BYU through the DWR and with that ALL of his tuition, fees and books are paid for for his two year Masters program. He also receives a nice salary each year as an intern - yahhhooooo! We both feel extremely blessed to have it all worked out so perfectly. I thought I would just share with you the rest of our great news.

2009-03-23T07:21:00.000-07:00

St. Patrick's Day

I absolutely LOVED the warm weather this week. For St. Patrick's day we had a BBQ at Riverton park with Cam and Amy and of course cute little Brycson. It was such a beautiful day I'm glad we spent some time in the sun. I was proud of Riley when I got home from VTeaching that morning he was in green and he had Kennady dressed in green, too! However, the outfit he had her in was so goofy so I had to change her to something else :)

I was too slow with my camera they were holding hands on their way to the playground but I missed it by just a second...too bad it was pretty cute. Of course, Kennady was holding Brycson's hand in one and a potatoe wedge in the other - boys and food are her two favorites!

Garage BBQ

Riley and I have been feeling antzy for summer so on Saturday we had a BBQ in our garage because the weather was too windy to have it outside. Courtney and Rem came to eat with us - thanks for coming over you two.

Kennady adores Rem, she especially loves losing her hands in his HUGE hair! She always reaches for his poofy hair whenever she gets a chance.

I love this picture - Courtney you are beautiful!

TWILIGHT EXTRAVAGANZA

My friend Cindy threw a Twilight party for some ladies in the nieghborhood on Saturday night. Some of you might know that I thought Twilight was AWFUL the first time I saw it in the theater. My friends in the ward really liked it so I thought watching it with them again would give me an opportunity to change my mind....well it didn't. However, I think it might have been because we all talked and laughed our way through the WHOLE movie! I loved it!Cindy is my favorite - she had the house all decorated for the party, everything was in red to symbolize the blood sucking vampires....ooh. Candice helped make the cookies with red frosting...everything was adorable.

Oh and don't forget our blood-colored punch.... Here are the girls alive and the one below is us pretending to bite one another. I know totally cheesy but really we were at a Twilight party so how much cheesier could we be?

Rise And Shout A Cougar Is Out...

2009-03-17T04:26:00.000-07:00

I am so excited to announce that Riley was accepted into BYU for his Master's program....YAHOO!!!!

As most of you know Riley has worked so hard these last five years and will be graduating from the U at the end of April with his BS in Biology. He has taken some EXTREMELY difficult courses and worked so hard. Ever since last November Riley has spent many hours emailing, calling and traveling to schools all over the place. We've been to Fort Hays, KS; Laramie, WY; Utah State and BYU. Our first meeting with any school was at BYU back in December. After Riley's not so optimistic interview we went to lunch at the BYU creamery and pretty much ruled out the fact that BYU was an option for us. I had told Riley all along that BYU was the school I was praying for but if our family had other plans I would be okay with that too. Whenever Riley and I felt discouraged we would talk about a line in his patriarchal blessing that says, "pursue your educational goals..." and we knew we had to do our part if we expected the Lord to bless us. In our research and trips to Utah State we met a professor who is a liason between Utah State and the DWR. He gave us the information for an internship and recommended that we contact a professor at BYU. The professor's name was totally unfamiliar to us and we were shocked to think we had let a professor slip through the cracks whom we didn't contact. I have no doubt the Lord was guiding our family and because of Riley's efforts doors continued to open. After our trip to Fort Hays we decided not to apply because it didn't feel right for our family, everytime we talked about FH we felt uneasy. As far as Wyoming and Utah State nothing panned out with those two schools because of lack of funding, thanks to a poor economy. That of course left BYU as our last and only option for graduate school. Riley had a few interviews and felt good about them but we couldn't help but feel anxiety thanks to our original meeting at BYU that left us feeling inadequate. We received the letter in the mail yesterday and instantly we both felt sick thinking we would've heard through a phone call instead of a letter. Riley had been in contact with his potential advisor and we thought we would've heard from him first if we were accepted. Riley was so nervous he refused to open it immediately. He said he wanted to shower so he had time to prepare mentally for whatever answer we received. That left me with nothing to do but analyze the letter to every last detail. Initially, I thought it was thick enough for an acceptance but by the time Riley was finished I was convinced we weren't accepted because it was too thin, I was going crazy! Anyway, we said a little prayer before we opened it and when Riley began reading and I heard "Congratulations...." our tears of joy began to run and it took a minute before we could read anymore. Not two minutes after we read the letter Riley's advisor called to congratulate him so we knew it was for sure. I am so proud of Riley. It was one of the happiest moments for me when I was able to see Riley's joy and to know that his efforts were good enough and that he is now seeing the fruits of his labor. Riley and I are so grateful that our prayers were answered and we are excited for this new phase in our lives. Go BYU!!!Riley made sure to call his mom and dad very first and of course they were thrilled! We had a get together planned last night at the Madsen's so we were able to share the big news with the Perry clan all at once. We have such a great family that has taken so much interest in Riley's schooling - thank you for all of your prayers, pep talks and advice. I'm so glad we get to stay close by - we love you guys! Proof that it is official....

Clearly, Kennady is so happy for her Daddy too!

My sister the super star!

2009-03-16T05:11:00.000-07:00

It was so fun to go to Good Things Utah with my sister Shandra and yes, her fan club! She owns a business www.dealstomeals.com and so she was invited on to explain her company. She and Todd have worked so hard to get this business running and I'm so proud of you two! Shan you did such a great job I was especially intrigued with your description of the canned goods :)This is Shan and Todd in the green room, I told Shan she needs to send a autographed picture of herself so it can be hung on the walls with all of the other famous people! Here are the fans that came to support Shan. She had a lot of friends from the ward, family and of course my wonderful in-laws. Laurie (my sis in law), Diane (my mom in law), and Yia Yia (my gma in law), and of course our friend Lori came to support Shan as well - I have such a great family I love you guys!Here is the big group

2009-03-16T04:22:00.000-07:00

I caught Riley singing this unusual and kind of disturbing song in the shower, where did he come from? Mom and Di you might recognize the message...

A Must See On TV!!!

2009-03-12T18:43:00.000-07:00

My sister Shandra is going to be on Good Things Utah tomorrow, March 13th! We are so excited for her and know that she will do a great job! If any of you are around feel free to tune into Good Things Utah at 10am on channel 4. My sister owns her own company, www.dealstomeals.com, and will be discussing grocery saving tips and meal planning! Shan I am totally proud of you - GOOD LUCK!

I hate blogging!

2009-02-25T20:25:00.000-08:00

I am on vacation and I have spent the last TWO hours on this stupid computer (most people in my family don't say stupid but I don't care in certain circumstances it is acceptable) either way I've been stuck on this stinkin' thing for too long and I will no longer post a thing until I return home and have nothing better to do than sit inside while it is snowing. As for now I am going to enjoy the sun. Adios.

Kennady vs. Pen

2009-02-12T09:02:00.000-08:00

SHE LOST I must have scared her by my reaction because she burst into tears...sad little thing!

Any Excuse For Fun...

2009-02-12T08:26:00.000-08:00

This last weekend Jared had his 30th birthday - wow are we really getting that old? Anyway, we all dressed up in 80s attire to celebrate the many generations he's lived through...anything to make our parties more entertaining! Thanks to the Peck women (Lexi and Diane) I was able to pull together an 80s outfit for me, leggings and all! I loved that Kennady let me rat her hair and she looked adorable in her leggings
Di put together this really fun movie with questions and things about the 80s and Jareds life. You did a great job Diana everything was so fun and the food was DELICIOUS!

Legging Girls!
Don't worry I have REALLY ugly green and blue eye make-up on...they aren't black eyes!

I loved Diana's outfit and Jared's stylin' leisure suit oh and seeing Diana's hair made me wish crimping was back in style - I LOVED THAT!

I had to post a picture of Todd's good looking outfit and his 15 inch in-seam...ha ha...nice Todd! Also, notice the pegged pants All of the kids were so excited for this birthday party they were even dressed for that occasion.

I think Riley really pulls my tight to the body shirt off really well - honey you can borrow it anytime!

Here are the 80s chicks surrounding the birthday boy - I loved Ang's bright pink lipstick and Shan's green ensemble!

Jared thanks for having a birthday so we could celebrate in such a memorable way! Happy 30th!

Dance Off...Kiss Off

2009-02-12T07:16:00.000-08:00

This last weekend our stake had a Valentine's dinner and dance for the couples in our ward. When Riley and our neighbor Jason read that announcement they told each other they would definitely make other plans that night...ha ha...little did they know their wives happily signed them up in the other room :) It was so fun. Cindy and Jason we missed you but I am so grateful that you watched Kennady so we could have a romantic night out - sorry she tried to beat you up! Our stake went totally over the top for this activity we had such a great time. They decorated the gym with huge curtains so it felt like we walked into a tent, the table decor and everything else was really quite nice. We were also served potatoes, roast and a delicious cake. To top it all off we had a live band for dancing after dinner - oh I was in heaven. Thanks everyone for the fun and I'm looking forward to our "Cereal Buffet"...anyway here are some photos. Jeff and Shelley
Candice and Evan

Betsy and Abe

Sarah and William (they are WONDERFUL dancers, unfortunately Riley and I weren't great students!)This picture is to show the live band I think their name was "Midlife Crisis"
Sarah and William win the romantic kiss awardWay to go Jeff!

Yuck! I swear Riley and I are better kissers than this picture gives us credit for!You can tell Betsy and Abe have been married the longest...totally perfected!Way to go to Evan it must be something about the Young Men leaders that make them aggressive kissers!
Thanks everyone for the fun!

New Thing...

2009-02-09T06:31:00.000-08:00

I was on the church's website, www.lds.org, and saw this new thing the church now has Mormon Messages on YouTube. If you have a minute check it out it's pretty cool, http://www.youtube.com/MormonMessages.

Blogs are made for bragging...

2009-02-06T07:55:00.000-08:00

Growing up there was a lady down the street from me (family you will know her, Lynette) who made the best rolls and baked goods. Everytime I was at her house they had the most delicious things to eat. I decided then and there that I wanted to grow up to become like Lynette, well no one told me how difficult it would be to bake bread. After five long years of countless failed attempts I believe last night I made my first official baking success. I used the Lion House Roll recipe that can be found on my sister's blog, www.myfoodstoragedeals.blogspot.com, and with the extra tips from my Aunt Kath I believe I have acheived my goal. Now I might not be able to duplicate them but at least I'll know that once in my life I made a stinkin' good roll! This really is the best recipe they are soft and most and really dense - they aren't airy like most homemade bread. I also got ambitious and made homemade pigs in a blanket - oh my word I was in heaven! I used the really yummy Nathan's hot dogs (pure beef) and I felt like I took a trip back to childhood - really they were so good! Don't worry Riley and I didn't eat all six ourselves we made double for lunch today! If you think this sounds like a healthy meal I'll just tell you that we ended the night with homemade cinnamon rolls - can you tell we are on a diet?

Thanks for letting me brag and share in my joy - I can now die in peace knowing that I acheived my goal!

Hello...

2009-02-04T14:55:00.000-08:00

For whatever reason Kennady has the wrong idea about "Hello" she says it when we tuck her into bed...funny girl!

We Are Home....Finally!

2009-02-04T04:50:00.000-08:00

It's been a long time but we are home from Kansas - wahoo! If any of you were bored enough to read the post I made while I was there you'll know that it was a vacation full of unfortunate events. However, once we got home the DVD player miraculously started working and our laptop has now been fixed and returned by HP. Sadly, there is no way out of the $160 speeding ticket Riley received for driving 19 miles too fast, oh well. Here are a few pictures of the trip... On our way home we were forced to drive as slow as 20 mph due to ice on the roads...we counted and it was near 12 or more cars that had slid off of the road. There was even a van that slid off of the road right in front of us and into the gully...scary! We were so grateful that we arrived home safely.
Riley is embarrassed because I'm taking pictures on campus - lame!

Here is the Biology building where we spent the majority of the time visiting with professors. It was a beautiful campus.

Unlike Riley I don't mind being cheesy and taking a picture!

Riley's look says it all, this is how we spent the night celebrating my birthday - good memories!

Inside the student center on campus

I do have to say that the midwest has some pretty incredible sunrises - try to ignore the dirty window.

Of course I had to document the speeding ticket with a picture

I look happy but honestly I really wanted to stab that laptop with the screwdriver I had in my hand...I just didn't think HP could fix the puncture wounds

Oh delicious my stomach is growling just thinking about the Texas Roadhouse scones.....aaahh! Yum! I know there were some annoyingly funny events through this trip which made it even better for Riley and me. If any of you are looking for a vacation I totally recommend Hays!

Update on Hays...

2009-01-22T08:23:00.000-08:00

Riley and I are still enjoying ourselves in Hays, Kansas. The midwest is truly a welcoming and friendly place. The longer we are here the more comfortable we have become. Dr. Finck took us out to dinner last night at the Rooftop, it was a lower class knock-off of the Roof in downtown Salt Lake City. He has insisted on purchasing our meals ever since we've arrived and we have truly appreciated his generosity. He is the professor that opened his home up to the two of us. We are staying in his spare bedroom.

Yesterday we were so excited to meet a fellow graduate student from Bountiful. At that time I was feeling a little homesick and then we met Christian who told us about himself and his wife. Christian and his wife are members of the church and he raved about the wonderful ward and people they have met while they have lived here. I loved the instant connection we felt with him as he told us about the town, his mission, the ward and the area. I am so grateful to be a member of the church and to find an instant friend in even the most remote areas. Christian and his wife Molly are taking us to lunch with the other graduate students this afternoon. I will definitely press Molly for all of the details about moving away from family, etc.

Well for those of you near Nadie kiss her often for me. Love you all.

Romantic or ridiculous????

2009-01-21T13:52:00.000-08:00

At certain times in our lives we can find ourselves in a place where we never expected to be - today happens to be that day for Riley and me. At this very moment we find ourselves in Hays, Kansas. For your enjoyment I will sum up the events leading up to our arrival in this darling little town....

Every year around my birthday (January 20th) Riley and I do all that we can to take some time off from school and work to enjoy a birthday vacation. Those few days usually include eating, relaxing, romance, shopping, and just having fun together. Our plans this year were tweeked just slightly. My birthday vacation somehow morphed into a college visit for Riley's graduate school. However, I'm pretty easy going (in some ways) and I had no problem with that I was just happy to get out of town and spend five days of one on one time with Riley. Even with that said I was a wreck early Tuesday morning when we dropped Kennady off at Laurie's house, this picture gives you an idea of what Riley had to deal with that day,

It didn't really help when Kennady happily waved goodbye to us at the door...kids...they don't appreciate us do they? (Thank you Laurie, Diana and mom for taking care of her so well - I love you all!) Anyway, after a few minutes on the road my sadness was pretty much all gone and I was simply excited for our roadtrip.

I had packed snacks, books on tape, music, movies, portable DVD player and my laptop for some fun digital scrapbooking on this 13 hour (one way) drive. I was determined to be entertained the whole trip. After listening to the inaugural address Riley and I thought we'd jump right into a book on tape so I put the cd into the portable DVD player which I had borrowed from my aunt but unfortunately our car is too loud and the DVD speakers were too soft so we couldn't hear a thing. It's alright though because we had our laptop so we listened to the book on tape using our laptop until the battery ran out.

So as the vacation progresses we stop for gas and Riley comes out of the station with a car adapter,

it was my birthday yesterday so he said it was an early birthday present. I was just thrilled because now we would be able to hear our book on tape through the car speakers. I just knew that would help the hours fly by so I was excited to get back on the road again to start our book one more time. Well I plugged the adapter into the DVD player and to my surprise the DVD player no longer worked. We were shocked and totally bummed because now that we had the ability to hear the book the DVD player wouldn't even work. To make matters worse I had promised my aunt that we would replace it if we broke it so of course we had to brake it.

Well it worked out alright because we just talked and enjoyed one another anyway but I was still fuming that we'd have to buy a new DVD player. However, Riley is so cute and wasn't even worried about it. After 8 hours of driving we reached Aurora, Colorado where we had a hotel for the night. We were both looking forward to a yummy birthday dinner at

that didn't let me down because the meal was so delicious and we hardly had to wait for a table. We had decided to go back to the hotel to relax and play some cards and just hang out for the night. Once we got back to the hotel we wanted to send a quick email to the professors in Hays just letting them know were were on our way. To our dismay our laptop wouldn't turn on....we didn't know what to do. We tried a few things but eventually we decided to call HP for a little assistance. We were both sick with the idea that our laptop could be broken. We called HP and after an hour and a half I was so frustrated I was almost tempted to do the following with the computer,

However, I knew that wouldn't help the situation so I followed their instructions. They promised that the problem could be resolved if we could get our hands on a screwdriver,

and open the bottom of the computer. Riley ran to the car but he only had a huge screwdriver which of course didn't help with the micro-sized screw in the bottom of the computer. Of course the little Indian girl didn't understand that we were in a hotel with no access to a mini-screwdriver but she continued to insist that we get one. So of course Riley and I rush to get instructions to the nearest which of course they had exactly what we needed...I love Walmart for that reason we can always count on them. We return back to the hotel which by now it was a little after 8pm. We call HP and they walk us through the instructions and another 55 minutes later they say, "Sorry, you will need to ship that back to us so we can fix it for you". AAAAAaaaahhhhhh, we had just spent my whole birthday night talking to HP when we could've been relaxing and having a good time, we were bummed. By the time we calmed our furious nerves we were both so exhausted from the day of driving that we went right to bed.

We woke up this morning at 4:30am so we could arrive at

to begin two and a half days of shmoozing prospective professors. Which now that you can see the FHSU mascot you will realize it is a tiger but I'd bet there isn't a tiger within a two day drive of this little town...we were confused???? Anyway, the drive wasn't that bad except all we saw for the full 400 miles was the following,
That's why I wasn't too surprised when Riley's foot became a big hunk of lead and he began driving 90 mph in a 70 mph area. I really can't blame him though we were all alone with no access to music or books on tape and now with our portable DVD player and our broken computer I couldn't even scrapbook. We had nothing to do but eat sour patch kids and drive fast at least until,

good old Wyatt from the Kansas Highway Patrol surprised Riley with a $160 welcome to the state. We were of course thrilled. Well anyway we recovered from that set back and arrived at the beautiful campus

Every professor has been so great and willing to spend time talking with the two of us. One professor welcomed us and even gave us a printed, "Itinerary for Riley Peck" we are scheduled with tours, meetings and lunch/dinner dates all day long. He was even kind enough to take us to Chinese this afternoon for lunch,

For those of you who know Riley know that he is a lover of Chinese so we were thrilled especially when Dr. Finck said this was the best Chinese in town. Well let's just say the chicken tasted very similar to
I can be a picky eater at times but I knew it wasn't just me when Riley whispered to me after the meal if I had liked it...I could tell in his eyes he felt the same way. Well it looks like on our itinerary we have plans in seven minutes....

"5:30pm Proceed to Dr. Elmer J. Finck's house".

Love you all!

Happy Happy Birthday To ME!!!

2009-01-05T06:13:00.001-08:00

I LOVE cupcakes and anything sweet so the background is a celebration of my birth (later this month) and baked goods!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

2009-01-03T16:41:00.000-08:00

Hello Everyone - We are alive and doing well. December was a busy and wonderful month! We had a great time with family celebrating the holidays and eating a TON! We had a great Christmas this year with our traditional sleepover with the Perry family, you'll see below that the family had a special visitor (Santa) on Christmas Eve - wow the Perry grandkids will be "believers" for life after that Todd - way to go! We also spent Christmas day with the Peck family and had a wonderful time enjoying each other's company. Riley made Kennady alphabet and number blocks for Christmas and he found mine and Kennady's cute pj's - I thought Kennady just looked adorable in those plaid things! Well the New Year came and went and unfortunately Riley and I left the New Year's party early to go to bed at 10:30pm...yup...it doesn't get better than that! Well now life is getting back into the normal groove. I just wanted to let you know we are alive and happy since it's been a month since I blogged!

Our special visitor!

Merry Christmas

2008-12-08T06:50:00.000-08:00

Last night I had the opportunity to watch the broadcast of the First Presidency Christmas message. I am always touched by the humility and love of these brethren, especially when they testify of our Savior and His birth. I believe it was President Uchtdorf who described the simplistic surroundings of the first Christmas. He was not born in a mansion with fine silk and a warm bed. Instead, He was born in a manger and wrapped in swaddling clothes. The birth and life of Jesus Christ is the most important event that occurred in history and yet it was accompanied by the most humble of surroundings, I love that simple lesson. If those surroundings were enough for Him I imagine a humble Christmas celebration should be enough for me. I am grateful for the reminder that the real and only important gift was already given so many Christmas' ago. I imagine the best way to celebrate His birth is by following His example and serving others, I hope we can all find more joy this season by doing that!

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

*If you missed the broadcast you can watch it at www.lds.org!

How Much Pie Should One Person Eat?

2008-12-02T20:20:00.000-08:00

Riley and I haven't been up to too much except for eating 2-3 pieces of PIE every night for the past week! You might think I'm kidding but it's true we have been pie eating fools - but if we can't do it during the holidays when can we?

The three of us on Thanksgiving day. We were with the Peck fam on Thursday. We spent ALL day eating, looking through the ads and playing at a school's gym. Randy surprised all of us with a Christmas bonus for Mountainland Exteriors (his business). Randy and Diane are so generous Riley and I are so grateful for the extra money!

We played in a gym and Riley was pushing Kennady around in this garbage can - I'm sure it was clean. She thought it was so funny. The other neices and nephews wanted to do the same thing but unfortunately they fell face first on the tile floor - it didn't work out very well for them :(

We played dodgeball and as you can tell the guys didn't take it easy on any of us...they threw so hard and fast that I spent all of my time in prison.

Friday we spent another Thanksgiving with the Perry family at my church. We played a bunch of crazy games - the Perry family is sure a riot to be with!

One of the games that we played was Human Paper, Rock, Scissors. You can imagine how silly this game can be especially with a bunch of silly adults...unfortunately in our fun we trampled a few kids - oh well parents need to have fun too!

It is definitely safe to say that my favorite thing about Thanksgiving is BLACK FRIDAY. The Peck women sure know how to shop. We begin at 4am and usually collapse late that afternoon. All of the Peck women participate and are assigned a HOT item to run after and retrieve. This year I give the MVS (Most Valuable Shopper) to Lexi. She sacrificed her fingers and almost her life to get a KitchenAid - thanks for the good memories ladies!Lexi the MVSThe Goods

We are smiling in front of Target, mainly because we weren't waiting in the huge line to enter the store. I'll tell you a secret all civility goes out the windo on Black Friday - the Peck women butt in line. Yikes, don't tell anyone!

Every year Riley puts up a Christmas Village underneath our Christmas tree...we never thought much of it until this year now that Kennady is around. It was pure torture for her not being able to touch EVERYTHING! At first we thought it was cute that she was helping Riley...After a while we got sick of telling her, "No, no..." or "Be careful that could break...", etc. We did what any parent would do and placed our cute little daughter in a plastic tub to keep her away from the village pieces. She didn't let that stop her though...She eventually got the Gum Drop Tree and brought it into the plastic tub with her...she was sure it was real candy until she plucked on off and ate it :) Luckily, she took it right out after she tasted it!
Kennady is giving Riley a hug for saving her from the plastic prison... I've been really impressed ever since the village was finished she has only touched it once - I'm sure it is tempting but she justs sits and stares at it! Thanks Riley for the fun tradition.

I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season!

First Snowman of the Year

2008-11-12T06:13:00.000-08:00

For those of you who don't know I live in my grandparent's basement. It has been wonderful to live here and to have a close relationship with them. I have come to admire them even more with everything they teach me. Kennady has also loved living with Grandma and Grandpa. They adore her and she TOTALLY adores them. She refuses to come to me if she is with Grandma Lucy - they are definitely best buds. Anyway the other morning when it snowed my Grandma was outside shoveling so Kennady and I came to help and the three of us ended up making a snowman instead.

Kennady really wanted to help but she couldn't figure out how to walk or even sit in the snow. Once she realized what we were doing she started patting some snow to make the head - it was pretty cute!

Grandma Lucy and Kennday

I think she was sad because she just knocked off the arm of our snowman -

how terrible after all of her hardwork :)

Keep Up The Good Work...

2008-11-10T05:51:00.000-08:00

Kennady is helping Riley study for a test.....
Most of you know that Riley is finishing up the last year of his Bachelor's degree at the U. He is graduating in Biology which has caused him to take some very trying classes. I always thought my degree in Mathematics was somewhat difficult...Ha! I didn't know difficult until I looked at one of Riley's textbooks! The stuff he is required to know and the terms he has to understand, let alone PRONOUNCE, are out of this world. Literally, I wouldn't be surprised if some of the terms and words he uses are from a long lost language off of the planet Saturn. For the past few months the hustle and bustle of Riley's life has stepped up a notch or two. He is currently working for the Division of Wildlife Resources 10-20 hours a week, working for Mountainland Exteriors at night, as well as his new position this semester at the Museum of Natural History as an assistant to a Professor which is an additional 15 hours a week. He recently studied for and took the GRE (entrance exam for graduate school). A little side note about the GRE we received his scores back and we couldn't have been happier with the results. The scores were right where they needed to be to make his application competitive - way to go Riley! He is currently emailing professors and researching different topics for his Master's project as well as applying to five different schools for Fall 2009. He is dealing with all of this in addition to the difficulty and stress that a typical semester of college provides. Wow...who needs a nap after hearing all of that? Riley, I am so proud of you. I am constantly amazed with your ability to handle the stresses of life with perfect balance and ease. With so many areas fighting for your time and attention I know your faith and family are always in the forefront. I admire your commitment even when times get difficult and our goals seem out of reach. Thank you for working so hard to provide for our family and to prepare for our future. We have many adventures coming our way and I can't wait to experience them with you! I love you.

YES on PROP 8!

2008-11-05T05:46:00.001-08:00

I usually keep my blog light and fluffy without a lot of opinions and feelings. However, today I want to talk about Proposition 8. I was anxious all night to hear the results of the Proposition in California. This morning I sat down at my computer and the first thing I did was check the polls. To my pleasant surprise the most recent results show that the majority of Californians have voted to ban same sex marriage. Wow!?! Who would have thought? I am so grateful for those who voted based on their moral beliefs and not on the popular trends of this generation. In my short life I have seen a rapid increase in the deterioration of values and moral beliefs and I have felt uncertainty for my children's future amid so much corruption. I know many of you can relate with my feelings and concerns as a parent. I feel a sacred responsibility to lead, teach and set the example of righteousness for my children so they will be armed with confidence and peace throughout their life. I have always known that this peace can only be found in my membership in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints and through faith in my Savior. Even with that knowledge I have felt bombarded with opposition from all areas of life mainly the media. The media in all of it's forms; television, fashion styles, movies, hollywood, magazines and music, the internet and even the news. I have looked outside of family and friends and thought where have all of the good people gone? Where are the people that will oppose all of the ugliness on television and on our movie screens? Where are those that still believe that marriage should be between a man and a woman? Where are those that believe children should enter this world with two loving parents who are legally joined as husband and wife? I guess the answer to these questions is that the good people are still here and the proof is with Proposition 8. When it really mattered and our standards were called out on the carpet those who believe in the true definition of marriage responded and the prayers of so many were answered. I am grateful for the many who spent their time and money to get the Supreme Court decision overturned and the true sanctity of marriage restored to men and women. I am grateful to them for preserving all that is good in this world for my children and their future. Thank you everyone who helped on Prop 8 I am forever grateful to you.

SUPER PECKS!!!

2008-11-03T04:42:00.000-08:00

Let's just say I went a little over the top this Halloween. I couldn't help it though I'm always looking for ways to embarrass Riley and I think tights were the perfect ticket this year! Actually, Ri didn't put up much of a fuss when he found out about the tights - should I be worried? My Grandma had a ton of extra fabric so it made it easy to throw some costumes together and spend close to nothing for them - thanks Grandma!

"Two of these things are not like the others....." just kidding Ang! My sister had her two boys be cowboys while the other kids were all super heroes. It would be interesting to see who would win a brawl two cowboys with guns or six super kids....hmmm. Diana sewed the other five super kid costumes - I owe the cute idea to her.

We began the night by carrying Kennady around while trick or treating...... After some time she chose to walk rather than let us carry her....

She then realized that Riley and I were only holding her back and she was off on her own with her bucket and all....

Riley and I couldn't believe that Kennady ditched us so soon on her very first Halloween I thought that might happen when she turned 15 YEARS not 15 MONTHS! ( I know we don't look sad but we were crying inside )

Here is Kennady the morning after Halloween still high on her candy intake - it was 8:30am and Riley insisted on letting her eat a Kit Kat and some candy corns as a reward for her hard work the night before. Thank you Kennady (and Rem) for trick or treating all night so Riley and I can refill our candy supply :)

I think Randy looks pretty good with blonde hair - but really ANY hair would be nice :) I absolutely love Halloween with the Peck family. Everyone dresses up and we spend the night handing out hot dogs to the trick or treaters.

Laurie made Jacey's cute witch costume - it was absolutely adorable! Luckily she promised me that Kennady can borrow it when she is older.

Lexi was a poodle skirt gal and Courtney was some country singer that I've never heard of before...not surprising I'm really out of the "cool music" loop these days. I spend my time enjoying Wee Sing Silly Songs and the Children's Primary Song Book.

Katie and Reagan said next year that they'll have cute matching costumes. I can't blame them they are still newleyweds and hardly thinking about silly things like Halloween costumes!
Grandma and George they were awarded the scariest costumes thanks to good old Wallie's World

Last but not least here is my brother in law, Dave. Well, well, well what do I say about Dave? In the past he has been the Joker with a tight green spandex outfit and Napolean Dynamite with huge hair and big glasses. This year we were all disappointed in his lack of participation. I know I'm not supposed to do this Dave but I ADMONISH you to do a little better next year so you are picture worthy. (This picture was taken months ago since I didn't take one of him on Halloween due to his lame non-existent costume).

I hope everyone had a wonderful and safe holiday...HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Pumpkin Patch and Wedding Pictures (Below)

2008-10-13T06:20:00.001-07:00

Every year the Peck family has the first FHE in October at the pumpkin patch! It is a fun tradition that we all look forward too!Leave it to Carter to pull a funny face there is no doubt he is his Father's son!
I love this picture because it expresses Kennady's true feelings about my obsessive picture taking. This was the seventh picture in the same spot and I'm sure she's thinking, "Enough is enough...."
Uncle Reagan was pushing her around like a little pumpkin...she loved it.
The fam. I love Kennady's smile and how she is so willing to share it I love to pinch her chubby little cheeks! However, we are all "extra" smiley in this picture because Laurie came up with a very unusual but funny sound to get us to laugh - thanks Laur!
Nana and Papa with the grandkids, Jacey was having one of those emotional female days - we are all entitled to them every so often.

Here Comes The Bride...

2008-10-13T05:11:00.000-07:00

This weekend Reagan and Katie were sealed in the Mount Timpanogos Temple. The wedding festivities began with a wedding dinner on Thursday night. The Peck family sure knows how to throw a great party! We had the dinner at the North Hampton Inn in American Fork. The food was absolutely FANTASTIC! They had two options; steak and chicken cordon bleu. I chose the chicken and it was honestly the size of my calf and the steak was almost the size of my foot - Riley and I were in heaven! After a delicious meal we had the traditional wedding toasts where everyone gives advice and usually sheds a tear or two. However, Reagan wanted to spice up the party a bit and throw in some Greek traditions (Reagan's mom is Greek). After each toast the "toaster" had to break a plate by throwing it on the ground. Diane found the plates for only $0.50 which is a great deal except they were almost a 1/2" thick - some had to try multiple times for the plate to finally shatter - it was hilarious! The next morning we had a beautiful ceremony at the temple. It is a favorite of mine to attend the wedding ceremony and to enjoy the spirit inside of the temple. The sealer gave some beautiful but very simple advice to Reagan and Katie. He advised that they lose themselves in the service of one another, he also adviced that they compliment and express their love often and easily. He counseled them to attend the temple frequently with one another and to set an example for their children. He reiterated many times how important it is to follow the example of those who have gone before and to continue to set an example for their children who will follow. I treasure moments like this because they are simple reminders to me of my many blessings. Riley, Kennady and my family are everything to me and because of the sealing power we will be together forever and to me that is exactly what heaven should be!I think the wedding colors were beautiful and fit a fall wedding perfectly. The men had brown tuxes and the girls were in champaign, gold and pink. We had some scary moments with the bridesmaid tops but thanks to Cindy (my neighbor) and a long day of shopping we found something that wouldn't be humiliating! I really thought everything looked beautiful that night at the reception.
Here is my cute little Kennady Lou! I think I kissed her cheeks off that night - she looked adorable. Thanks to my girlfriend all of the flower girls had matching bows and pearl bracelets - they looked so cute!
Here are the handsome men - Reagan wanted the groomsmen in cowboy boots which sounds silly but I thought their whole get up looked fantastic!
My little family - if it looks like we are freezing it's because we are! Luckily, the outdoor wedding was moved indoor so we only had to endure the cold for the pictures. Thank you Randy, Diane, Annie and Sam for a wonderful wedding weekend! Everything flowed so well and will be a wonderful memory for all of us! Also, congratulations Katie and Reagan! Like they care though they are on their honeymoon and I'm sure checking blogs will be the last thing on their mind :)

To Murder or Not To Murder...That is the Question

2008-10-03T05:17:00.000-07:00

Many of you are aware of my husband's love for hunting (aka murdering). I knew this was something he enjoyed before marriage and I was willing to accept it with open arms. He has always invited and encouraged me to accompany him on his hunting trips and so I have grown to LOVE hunting with him. I think the reason is in four years I have ALWAYS missed the actual kill of the animal. So hunting was more like a beautiful ride through the mountains looking for beautiful animals - enjoyable right? I was sure naive to think my lucky and bloodless streak could continue for much longer. Last weekend Riley took Kennady and myself on an antelope hunt let's just say not one, not two, not three but FOUR dead antelope later I think I had hit my limit of death for a VERY long time. Let me just say that my hot dog in my chili dog was left untouched that night for dinner. No matter how unappetizing this experience was I will still support Riley, I'll just make sure the killing happens when I am not around :)The men and their kill...ugh!
Brandon, Riley, Reagan, Cory
These boys are just so fun that even though there was a lot of blood that weekend they made it enjoyable - thanks guys!

We slept in Brandon and Lizzie's tent trailor. I have been converted and someday when Riley and I have money we will get one that king sized bed was heavenly!
We drove around in this truck looking for the antelope. That of course got uncomfortable on the bumpy roads so someone came up with the idea to place our chairs in the back, Could we be anymore "White Trash"? However, our comfort was first priority and we hunted the hills in style!
I think Kennady supports her Dad's hunts 100% she smiled the whole trip!
There is nothing like a family photo with a dead animal - a little morbid don't you think?

Eighty Seven He's Almost In Heaven (not really it just rhymed!)

2008-09-23T05:55:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Grandpa Perry

This weekend was my Grandpa's 87th birthday and oh what a birthday bash we had! I'd just like to say I don't think there is any other family like the Perry family that is more willing to PARTY!!! My uncle Doug came into town from Oregon to celebrate my Grandpa's birthday with him. My Dad, Uncle Doug, Grandpa and my uncle Alan attended the BYU game on Saturday afternoon. A few of the other family members decided to get together at my place for the game on TV before cake that night with Grandpa. Diana and I had talked and we planned on making pizza for our families. Thinking we'd need a couple of pizzas to feed my mom and the rest of us we thought one batch of dough would be just right. However, the Italian blood must give my family an increased ability to sniff out pizza, before the night was through we had a huge group to feed - I absolutely loved it! We ended up quadrupling the dough and mass producing eight large pizzas. I think after that night any plans that Diana and I had about opening a pizza parlor are now officially dead - just kidding it really wasn't bad we had a good time! I'd just like to say thank you to my wonderful family who is so supportive and eager to spend time with one another - you are all welcome back ANYTIME! Cousin Jeffrey, Alayna, Grandma, Cousin AJ, and Jared all hovering over the oven for the next available piece of pizza
Trying to get a smiling picture of my Grandpa is virtually impossible. I'm not kidding I have about five shots of this same pose with his birthday cake and then with my Grandma and these are the BEST out of all of them. If anyone is photogenic in my family I know it comes from dear old Grandma Lucy!

Shake your bon bon....

2008-09-17T04:57:00.000-07:00

For those of you who don't know a bunch of ladies in my neighborhood get together at the church nearby and exercise four times a week. We do a variety of things; step aerobics, strength training, the ball, and my absolute favorite ZUMBA!!! Ruth is our teacher and she is phenomenal! She is fantastic and has all of the right moves! However, she still smiles at the rest of us and tells us we are doing a great job, she's a good liar! :) From the moment Zumba began in our ward I was hooked. I love to goof off and dance around so I guess Zumba takes care of that urge I have every so often to barge into the nearest high school stomp and groove a little bit! I have invited all of my family to join in the Zumba fun and I have successfully converted all of my sisters and just the other day my MOM joined the group. Yes, my darling and spontaneous mother was finally convinced to come to Zumba with us. She was great at it and not at all inhibited to show her moves. I just wanted to publicly thank my Mom for being so willing to get out and try new things. I have learned so many things from my Mom and the one I am grateful for today is her willingness to live life to the fullest. Thanks Mom for being so much fun - I love you! I have included a link so you can see the incredible moves we have learned....Enjoy!

P.S If you are interested about joining our Zumba fun let me know and we'll welcome you with open arms!

http://mail.google.com/mail/?zx=g4fbjtzu6qy2&shva=1#inbox/11c701ec4bedec4b

It's been too long...

2008-09-12T04:51:00.001-07:00

Hello Friends and Family,
It's been over a month since my last post and I've realized many people have believed me to be deathly ill or vacationing somewhere exotic. Sadly, I am not vacationing and luckily I am not ill. So you might be wondering what has caused the lack of contact with all of you....it is really quite simple, DIGITAL SCRAPBOOKING! Every extra minute I have on my computer I use it to digital scrapbook and because of that my blog suffers, boo hoo. It's really okay though I've totally enjoyed every minute of scrapbooking my cute little family. I have included an example of the title page for this year,

I want you all to know that I still make time to read all of your blogs and I love them. It is so great to be able to see what everyone is doing and how all of the families are growing and changing. So thanks everyone for being much more dedicated to your blog than I am. Here is a quick recap of what we have been up too...

We spent a day at Echo Reservoir with some friends. I've realized I am the BIGGEST chicken when it comes to water skiing I am impressed with myself because after many attempts I eventually made it across the wake without falling! It was quite impressive.

Evan, Tristin, Candice and Little Evan. They were all stuck in the mud.
Like every loving mother should we attempted to bury our children in the mud.

Cindy and Trent (Sorry Jason I didn't have a picture of you!)
The three of us on the "breathtaking" beaches of Echo
Unlike myself Riley is an absolute animal and is more than willing to try. This is one of the few times he has been wakeboarding and the moment he was up he was jumping across the wake....crazy hubby!
Kennady was in childhood heaven. She played in the mud all day long.
Another weekend we went to Left Fork Camping Ground in Huntington, Utah. It sounds like a crazy place to go but the whole family traveled down to watch a pageant. We stayed in my dad's hometown of Price, Utah. Riley, Kennady, my parents and myself traveled down earlier in the day to do some hiking.

Mom and Dad
It was a beautiful hike that at times led us along a little tiny, itty bitty pathway that had a mountain on one side and a deep river on the other. Luckily, we all returned without harm.
Grandma Lou and Kennady Lou. I think Kennady gets her beauty from her namesake!
I think Kennady might be growing out of her Bjorn. She does incredibly well in that thing and loves to dangle on Dad while he is walking.

Our next big adventure was the FLOOD. Yes, we had a flood. One morning I woke up to work and I realized that the carpet around my office desk was a little moist, strange. So I walked into the kitchen to get a rag and I stepped into two inch water on our kitchen floor. It was quite a remarkable site to behold at 5am - I could barely think straight. I woke Riley and we began the process of salvaging all of our food storage that was piled all over the floor. We were truly blessed because we lost such a small amount of food it couldn't have worked out better. The cold room, our dining room, the kitchen, the hallway and the carpet around my desk were soaked with secondary water from the sprinklers - it was really quite disgusting to see the clumps of goo on my tile floor after we dried out the water. My grandparents, my aunt, and my DAD were incredible about getting our home back together again. Thank you Dad for being so willing to rush up and help the moment it happened. I know I can always call on you to be there whenever I need you, which is good for me but not always good for you :)

We spent Labor Day weekend at the Peck's cabin. The Peck boys wanted to teach us girls how to bow hunt....yeah right....I think it was simply a reason for the boys to put their arms around their ladies :)

This is my new (soon to be) sister in law, Katie. I just love her. She grew up in a family of four girls, just like me. She hates it when the boys "fluff" at the dinner table, just like me. She is in love with a Peck, just like me. Pretty much we have a lot in common and we were meant to be in the same family. I am totally thrilled to have her in the family I have loved getting to know her. The only thing I think she shoots the bow better than I do and I don't like that!

All three of them assisted Diane in getting the bow pulled back, it is much harder than it looks.

I think Riley wanted to dance with me more than anything!
My shot
I just think Kennady has a really cute baby bottom so I love this picture.

Well that's our family for the last couple of weeks. Riley is back in school so our summer adventures our over for a time. However, we look forward to the many holiday parties I know we will have.

(Mom, how did you like my REALLY long post....hopefully it won't keep you up until 2am!)

The party continued...

2008-08-04T05:32:00.001-07:00

Kennady and my friend's daughter, Tristin, have the same birthday. A few of my friends in the ward got together to celebrate their birthdays. We decorated cupcakes, opened presents and just played. I just have to say I have the BEST neighbors in the world - thanks for the party!Kennady, Tristin, Isabelle
She is still smiling because I let her devour a whole cupcake!
Tristin
Isabelle
Little Evan was sad he couldn't decorate a cupcake with the girls...

I think Kennady was confused...she kept frosting her tongue and not the cupcake!
This is one of my favorite pictures - she didn't care that the cupcake wrapper was still there she was digging in anyway!

Happy Happy Birthday...

2008-08-04T04:59:00.000-07:00

This weekend Kennady turned 1 year old. We had a great time celebrating her birthday with friends and family. I'm sure every parent feels that their children grow too quickly and I am not the exception. I remember so clearly the feelings I had when I saw her for the first time and it's hard to believe that it has been a year since that time. She has added so much love and happiness to our home - it is a privilege to be her mom. We love our happy and SMILEY Kennady Lou!For a minute Kennady seemed more interested in the tinfoil than the actual cake.
She wisened up

This is my cute mother-in-law, Diane and me

This is my brother-in-law, Dave. Some Peck family with Lexi's boyfriend Zach
Riley's siblings
We bought Kennady this classic Walmart grocery cart for her birthday. She loves food so it was only fitting that we bought her fake food to play with.

It seems that Kennady was born with a big smile on her face so when we were contemplating ideas for her cake it was only fitting to create a little smiley person. I had the idea for the cake and my sisters, Diana and Shandra really made it come together - it was adorable!
Me and my father-in-law, Randy
My cute parents

My siblings

Riley and I were so grateful for all of the support we received from our family. We realize a 1 year old birthday is somewhat unneccesary but we love the supportive family that will get together anytime and for any reason. Thanks everyone for all of your help! We love you.

We're Back....

2008-07-28T06:13:00.000-07:00

Here are a few pictures of our cruise to Jamaica and the Cayman Islands. We had such a great time with the Peck family - they are CRAZY!! Really though we made a lot of wonderful memories that we'll smile about for a VERY long time. This picture was taken on the formal night of the cruise - everyone dressed up and looked great! Randy and Diane won the best dressed award for the couples - they matched perfectly!
This was at the top of the Dunn's River Falls - it was breathtakingly beautiful!
My cute hubby wrote this on 7 mile beach on the Cayman Islands. (Thanks Laur for the idea!)
We buried Katie and Reagan in the sand - we thought this would be great picture footage for the upcoming wedding video!
This picture is just a slight preview of the hilarious dares we did late one night. This is my brother in law Dave standing in the lobby wearing Lexi's short shorts, sunglasses and sandals at almost 1am. There were too many funny and embarrassing dares to mention them all but I couldn't talk about this vacation without mentioning at least one of them.

The first night we arrived in Florida we went to out to dinner and then to Mama Mia. Mama Mia had such addicting music (Thanks ABBA!) we couldn't resist singing and dancing in the theatre. The singing and dancing continued even until the next morning when you can see we had a couple's Mama Mia Dance Off - thanks to my great partner Riley, we won $5.The next morning Randy surprised us all with a Cadillac Escalade Limo that escorted us from our hotel to our cruise ship. It was such a thoughtful idea on Randy and Diane's part - it made the excitement that much greater for us.
The two of us toasting to the carefree week we had ahead....don't worry it's just water!
In Jamaica we hiked the Dunn's River Falls. It was probably my very favorite part of the whole trip. It was absolutely beautiful. It's hard to tell but Riley and I are surrounded by the most beautiful rainforest.
It wouldn't be a great cruise without a little romance.

Thank you Randy and Diane for everything you did to make this a once in a lifetime experience for all of us. You two planned this vacation perfectly and I'm grateful for all of the time and money you put in to making it so wonderful. Riley and I really appreciate it and will remember this trip for a very long time! We love you.

Our Family's Newest Edition

2008-07-17T05:30:00.000-07:00

My darling, handsome, and hilarious brother-in-law Reagan is off the dating market - and I couldn't be happier. He officially proposed to his girlfriend, Katie, on Tuesday, July 15th. He anticipated a VERY romantic proposal in the mountains overlooking the valley and the sunset. However, it ended up with him falling in the river and proposing there (completely soaked to his thighs!) Nevertheless, Katie said yes and we are so happy! She is beautiful and very kind and the absolute perfect fit for Reagan. They have so many exciting things in their future and I just want to say CONGRATS to the two of you. We love you!

ANCHORS AWAY!!!

2008-07-17T05:10:00.000-07:00

For those of you who don't know Riley and I are heading out of town tomorrow morning at 5:30am...wahoo! We are flying to Florida where we will jump on a beautiful cruise ship and sail off into the Eastern Carribean sunset. Thanks to my very generous in-laws we will be traveling with the whole Peck family (even the newest edition, Katie - CONGRATS!) Riley and I are so blessed for the many opportunities we have had to travel while we have been poor college students. We realize it is because of the generosity of our parents and we are very grateful to them. Thank you - we love you guys! Hopefully, one day we'll be able to pay back the favor to them and to our children. Speaking of children Kennady will be staying with my sister, Diana. Ri and I will miss her like crazy but we trust Di completely and we know Kennady will have a great time with her cousins. Here's a little tip Di, watch out for the rock walls...just teasing! Well until we return I hope you all have a wonderful week with whatever you may be doing. (This picture was taken on a previous cruise trip a couple of years ago)

"Oh I wish I were a little bar of soap...bar of soap!"

2008-07-09T15:09:00.000-07:00

I had family in town this last week from California. To save ourselves from boredom Riley, Jordan and Home Depot provided us with an afternoon of fun - thanks! We had such a great time we continued the fun with the Peck family a few days later.

This will most likely be the ONLY post I ever have with me in a swimming suit....enjoy it while you can!

Yuba, Yuba and a WHOLE lot of Tube - a!

2008-07-09T14:39:00.000-07:00

I know I had mentioned previously that we went to Yuba - here are the pics! We had such a great time - thanks to those who planned the trip. We're planning on it now every year - thanks for the new tradition! I just loved Kennady in her life jacket. She was adorable. Her chubby cheeks hung all over the life jacket and yet she still couldn't stop smiling. Every time the boat started to move she layed there lifeless - it was hillarious. I think it rocked her into a state of comatose.

Riley and Kennady
Here is a picture of the boys and their "tube wars". We had three tubes and the boys jumped from one tube to the other. You can't really tell but in this picture there are four boys on one tube. I'm not sure if there was ever a winner of the wars (I think it was just an excuse to wrestle and be crazy!) I made sure that my tube rides were nice and relaxing - thanks Brandon and Lizzie!
Kennady and Krista. Kennady loved the water.
The boys.

Here you go....

2008-07-03T05:57:00.000-07:00

Like my sister mentioned in my first post she is literally FORCING me to do my blog. She even posted pictures for me so all I had to do was write a little something. However, those didn't pull up on my computer (sorry Di). I decided I would post some so Diana will get off of my back, just teasing. Riley and I are loving this summer. Riley took the summer off so we have made it a family goal to go somewhere every weekend. So far we have done it. We camped on the beaches of Yuba and stayed at the Peck cabin. (We only made that family goal two weeks ago...but 2 for 2 isn't shabby!) We are planning a trip to Main Canyon next weekend. If anyone would love some traveling buddies just let us know we are up for anything! Well I hope everyone has a WONDERFUL 4th of July.

Kennady and I hanging out at play group. My little swimmer. She was playing in the pool with her little friend, Evan. She is a flirt because she attempted to kiss him many times (too bad Kennady he wasn't interested!)
My sisters and I started a tradition for Father's/Mother's Day. We are too poor to buy gifts so we take our parents out to dinner. We usually go out with my mom and then with my dad but this year we had one big Father's/Mother's Day dinner. We went shopping later - that's a scary combo with five girls and my dad!
Riley and I love parades....and really, "Everyone Loves A Parade!!" (Laur you'll think that was funny :)). Anyway, we are now looking forward to the annual Riverton Parade tonight on the corner of 134th and Redwood Road. That has become a Perry, Peck, Madsen, Compton, Suker, Howell, friends and neighbor tradition! We love it!
Riley and his little girl - she is totally a daddy's girl!

Wild Sleeper!?!

2008-07-03T05:27:00.000-07:00

The other morning I heard Kennady squawking in her bedroom. I went to get her and I found her smiling up a storm with her arm hanging out of her pjs. I'm not sure what she does while she's sleeping but it doesn't sound comfortable. I ran and found my camera because I thought it was pretty funny that she wiggled her little arm out of her sleeve. Uncomfortable or not she still slept through the night

without a peep! I love my "Wild Sleeper"!