Here are the two group pictures we took in Hawaii. This is everyone who came. We for sure missed the ones who didn't come, but thought you'd like to see everyone who was there.
This last picture was taken at Duke's restaurant...isn't the view behind us beautiful??!! I know it's hard to see in this photo, but it was basically grass, sand, beach. We all just kept saying how we couldn't believe we were really there.This is a picture of Hideaway Beach. I don't know if that is the real name, but that's what we called it. So beautiful. The snorkeling was amazing, and right off the beach. This is the beach where I got to see my first sea turtle when I went snorkeling. Amazing. Incredible. 
One of the nights we headed to a mall to see if we could see a performance of Hawaiian dancers. It turned out we were there on the wrong day but I snapped this picture of my mom and Ben because they matched. (Not on purpose)
This next picture is mainly to prove that I really was on the vacation. I did most of the driving in one of the rental cars (we had two mini-vans). This particular picture was taken by Danny who was a picture taking maniac if you ever handed him a camera. 
K - I know that there's two pictures of Danny and none of me and Darrel, but more are coming and I promise some will include us. :)
Johnathan and Zach both had soccer parties and Zach graduated from the preschool that he attends with his friend, Seth. I have to say when I attended the preschool graduation it was nice to go as just a parent of one of the children instead of being in charge of the whole thing. Zach looked so cute in his graduation hat and I loved being the mom who was taking a crazy amount of pictures. This was bittersweet for me. I do want Zachary to be able to go to kindergarten but I DO NOT want my baby to grow up. I can't believe that this is my youngest child. This is nuts! I guess we'll have to get busy one of these days and have ourselves another baby :) Enjoy the pictures from the party and graduation.
Johnathan had his soccer party last night and Zach had his this week also. It's always bittersweet to come to the end of a soccer season. By the time the season is over we are always VERY ready to have it over so we don't have to figure out how we're going to get everyone to practice, and juggle three to four games per Saturday. Plus by the end of soccer season in Las Vegas it gets SUPER hot and games are not so much fun anymore. On the other hand we love the parents of the other players and it's fun to get together and chat with them once or twice a week. There's a certain camaraderie that comes from having your children play on the same team. Johnathan and Zach have both been playing on the same teams for two seasons now and so you start to really for a bond with the other parents on the team. We appreciate the friendships that have all come from our soccer team families. We will miss them but hope to see them again next season when we start the madness all over again. :) 
These last few weeks have been a bit emotionally difficult for me but I'm here to say there's always a rainbow after the rain. I am very blessed and so lucky to have what I have and to be where I am. My family and friends are so amazing. I am blessed and I love my life and I just wanted to share. I took this picture out my parents' window after a huge rainstorm. The picture does not do justice to how beautiful the rainbow was. I didn't have my zoom lens on my camera so I couldn't get any closer but the rainbow was incredible. Just imagine it being about ten times this colorful and amazing and you'll be close. Always look for the rainbow, because it is there...waiting for you to see it.
The first weekend in May I went to Utah and spent a glorious weekend playing. I spent some time with my family, and some time with my friend, Brenda. Brenda and I drove up to Park City Saturday morning and then Midway Saturday afternoon. I've never been to Midway. That is a beautiful little town. I think I fell in love in about 15 seconds. The rolling hills and beautiful green valleys were amazing. I took some pictures of the scenery as we drove home Sunday morning - it was breathtaking. (see below) We had a wonderfully relaxing Saturday and then on Sunday I was able to listen to Brenda's awesome lesson in church and then spend a fun afternoon with my parents, my brother Ben, my brother David and his family, my grandma and our good friend, Heidi. Since every other weekend in May I am being a single mom because Darrel is out of town for one reason or another, this first weekend was so much fun and much needed. Thanks to all who hosted me and let me just relax and enjoy a weekend of friends, family, love, and wonderful scenery.
Zachary likes the movie Enchanted. He especially likes the part where the girl sings for the birds and they come and help her clean. A couple of weeks ago we were cleaning the house to get ready for our company and all of a sudden I realized that Zachary had opened all the windows. He kept singing/humming this tune I didn't recognize. I finally asked him what he was doing and he said he was singing for the birds to come and help. I tried to suppress my laugh because I realized he was dead serious. He thought for sure the birds would come. I asked him if he would please sing for the camera and see if the birds would come. He did. He was bummed when they didn't come. About a minute after singing for the camera he decided that they would come if I sang, because I am a girl. I sang, I didn't video that part, the birds didn't come. He was very disappointed. He's such a funny kid...
Okay, I know, I've been bad. I have to apologize to the six people who read my blog...it's been over a month since I posted. Over a month!!! I can't believe what a slacker I've been. I've done a bunch of stuff and taken pictures of most of it. I just need to get my rear in gear and keep y'all updated. I only have a few pictures to post today. I have some of Easter, Spring Break, soccer, random, etc. Maybe you'll get a retro post at some point, maybe we'll just have to go from here...I'm not sure yet. I'm taking baby steps so I don't overwhelm myself on my first day back :) I know, I'm such a lame-o. Enjoy a post from April...before it becomes May.
Last Friday I went to St. George and took some "groomals" for a couple. Apparently this is the new thing...to take the pictures of the bride and the groom before the wedding day so it's more relaxed for everyone involved. I thought it was a great idea. This couple was amazing to work with and so much fun. We started in ancestor square and finished up at the temple. All these shots are from our temple session so enjoy...
Okay, I totally stole this off Jerolyn's blog (word for word). I wish I had the same creative writing skills she has but at least I'm owning the fact that I am totally stealing her words. I was one of the first five people on her blog to comment and I'm so excited. Maybe by posting this I'll actually have five people comment on my blog :)
Pay attention kids!
Here's the dealio:
The first five people to comment on this post will get something made by me. My choice. For you.
This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:
1- I make no guarantees that you will like what I make.
2- What I make will be just for you.
3- It'll be done this year.
4- You have no clue what it's going to be. It may be a story. It may be photography, I may sew or stitch(ha,ha) or bake something. Who knows? Not you, that's for sure!
5- I reserve the right to do or make whatever I want!
The catch?Oh, the catch is that you must re-post this on your own blog and offer the same deal to 5 of your own lucky blog readers. So, the first 5 people to leave a comment telling me they are in, win a FAB-U-LOUS homemade gift by me!
Oh, and be sure to post a picture of what you win when you get it.
Good Luck!!!
This is one of the most beautiful things I have seen and heard in a long time. I just had to share it.
Well, it's here....soccer season has begun. It was not a great beginning for either one of our teams but we have great faith that it's only gonna get better from here. Before I go on about our games I just have to say, doesn't Johnathan look so much older in this first picture. I cut all my boys hair this morning and then we went to soccer games and I took pictures. When I downloaded these pictures to my computer I noticed how much older Johnathan is looking...well, and Zach for that matter. I can't believe how big my boys are getting. With my birthday coming up this week, I guess I'm just feeling old.
Anyway, sorry, back to the games. Both our boys lost today but they both played hard and we were super proud of them. I got more pictures of Zachary's game than Johnathan's game because I had to leave Johnathan's game in the middle to go take pictures of some kiddos at the park (they went well, you can see a few of them at portraitartbyangela.blogspot.com if you'd like).
So, without further ado....here are the soccer game pictures from today.
I only have about 15 minutes of free time this morning but I wanted to hop on the computer really quick and wish my 'baby' boy a happy birthday. Zachary turns 5 today. I can't even believe it. I'm already tearing up thinking about him going to kindergarten next year. He is getting so big. I can't believe that my baby is five. Zachary was born exactly one week before my birthday five years ago today. He was the best birthday present I could have asked for. After having Johnathan more than five years earlier we had kind of a tough time getting Zachary down here to our family. I've always felt very blessed to have this special spirit in our home. He has so much personality and makes me laugh every day. He is kind of spoiled because he has no younger siblings but we try to keep him in check. :) Happy Birthday Zachary!!!
Sorry, the picture is from our snow day this year. I couldn't really find a better one with so little time. I'll try to hunt up some baby pictures for you later.
We had a FABULOUS weekend with the Armstrong family. Such good friends we have. We love having company here in sunny Las Vegas and it was a pretty beautiful weekend to host people who are tired of winter :) On Friday night we went out to dinner as couples and then Saturday Darrel and Brian had a good time looking at fancy cars in the morning then met the rest of us at Alex's soccer game. Following the soccer game the dads took the kids to SkyMania and the moms went shopping. Saturday night Brenda and I were able to go to dinner and a movie and Darrel and Brian took Alex and Alyssa to the Blue Man Group. They had a great time. Sunday was Stake Conference and then both families took a ride to the Hoover Dam. Alex and I were very nervous the entire time (neither one of us is very excited about heights) but we had a good time. They left this morning and so I guess it's back to real life for me. A big thanks to the Armstrong family for such a fun weekend.
I remember very well when we first moved from western Washington state where I grew up to Utah I thought, 'oh my gosh this is so ugly'. I was in between my ninth and tenth year of high school. I loved the green grass and the green trees of Washington. The mountains were covered in the most beautiful pine trees and everything always smelled so good. Well, usually it smelled like rain but to me that was beautiful. Then we moved to Utah and the mountains had no trees on them. The landscape was different and the summers were HOT. After a few years Utah beauty grows on you. Now I look at the mountains and think about how majestic they are and I see the beauty around me. When I was newly married my husband and I moved to Idaho; Meridian, Idaho to be exact. We loved it there. We thought the mountains were beautiful, the trees were wonderful. We loved to drive up towards McCall and see the river and pine trees. In the Fall when the trees would lose their leaves it was a sight to behold. I know it's no East Coast, but to us it was Heaven on Earth.
A few years ago we moved to Las Vegas. It is a desert here in all aspects. The ground is only green if you water the heck out of it, or put in fake grass (which even some houses in our neighborhood have by the way). SOME of the trees lose their leaves, however, not in the gorgeous way you see in some other states. But, like I said in the title, the beauty really does grow on you. It's a different kind of beauty, the raw, ruggedness kind. The beauty of Washington state is different than the beauty of Utah, which is different than the beauty of Idaho, which is different than the beauty of Nevada. The trick is to see it everywhere.
This past weekend I was fortunate enough to take my camera with a friend and go explore some of the beauty of Nevada in the form of Red Rock Canyon. We had a wonderful time photographing nature (well, we mostly photographed rocks, but that's still nature...right??). We got to see some of the raw and natural beauty that Las Vegas has to offer; and here are just a few of the many pictures I took that day...enjoy.
Okay, for those of you who have me as a friend on Facebook these are all new pictures. For those who don't you'll still get to see new pictures, you just won't know what the old ones were :) Anyway, I aplogize for the lack of blogging. It seems like everytime I write a post now I am apologizing for my lack of postings. Maybe I should take a hint.
This past weekend we had a girl's weekend in Vegas. My mom turned 60 this month and to celebrate, her daughters, and daughters-in-law came to Vegas to party (mom style). The only one we were missing was my sister, Missy, who we would have LOVED to have but was sick and stuck at home. Everyone arrived on Friday night, we stayed up really late chatting and then had a fun filled Saturday. We went to the Outlet Mall and to In-n-Out, Target, Nordstrem (sp?) Rack, then to the Grand Lux Cafe for dinner and on to the Blue Man Group....and oh, the fun wasn't done yet, we topped off our day at the Peppermill (which incidently hasn't changed since it was built in either decoration or what the waitresses wear). It was a GREAT day and we squeezed every ounce of fun we could have out of Saturday. We also on that day managed to fit it Joy and Amanda on the Lazy River of the resort and taking Darrel to the airport before meeting some of my favorite people at the Grand Lux for dinner. WOW, hopefully that all just made sense.
Here is Elise, Angela, Mom, Jackie, and Joy posing in front of the Blue Man Theater. Amanda was snapping our photo.
Mom and Amanda getting ready to enjoy a fabulous sundae from the Peppermill.
Darrel got up early Valentine's Day morning, went to the store, came home with roses and stuff to make me breakfast. What a guy!!! How lucky am I? He's a keeper for sure. Just wanted to share. 
BEWARE: post below is a modge podge of thoughts...proceed at your own risk
I am a lurker...there I said it. I love to read blogs and see how everyone is doing, but I rarely de-lurk to comment. I'm trying to be better because I know how nice it is to get comments on your posts; I love them myself. However, right now, I am a lurker. What I'm wondering is...are there anonymous meetings for lurkers? :)
I'm also way behind posting on this blog. Johnathan's birthday came and went and I didn't even make mention of it on this blog. Sorry, Johnathan, I really do love you. I took pictures at his party yesterday and will share them soon. Maybe I'll have some time this evening and I'll plug in my camera and dump some pictures. Johnathan is now 10. I can't believe it. I feel like the last ten years have FLOWN by. I blinked and now I have a twelve year old and a ten year old. In March my baby will be five. Where does the time go??? When kids are little and toddling around you feel like time just stands still and you'll never get passed this phase, but when they start school time starts going in warp speed and it won't slow down for anything. I can only hope that as time speeds by we are being good parents and teaching them everything they need to know to be good men.
Today I am singing in church. I like to sing...been doing it since I was four years old, but I still get nervous to sing in church. When I was growing up and our family was touring the U.S. singing at state and county fairs I would never get nervous before a show, even if we were the main act of the fair. But, singing in church has always given me butterflies. Thankfully, I'm not singing a solo...merely singing the alto part of a beautiful song with a lovely lady who is singing soprano. I'm sure it will be fine, but still...nervous, I'm just sayin.
My mom is turning 60 this year. Next month, actually. All she wanted for her birthday was for her family to be together. Well, we can't get everyone, but we did plan a nice girls weekend here in Vegas the weekend after her birthday. I am so excited. All my sisters and sisters-in-law are coming (except my oldest sister, who is miserably sick and pregnant). We are going to have a fun-filled weekend, and probably go see the blue man group at the Venetian. I got a three bedroom condo for two of the nights and we are going to party. What fun!!!
I warned you that this post was going to be modge podge. I didn't really have anything to say, as you can clearly see, I just felt bad that it had been so long since I posted. I promise to post pictures soon - those are always the best part of my posts anyway. My command of the English language and all its nuances are lacking, and so I make up for it with my fabulous photography :) Hey - I'm just glad you guys still read this blog...
Much to Darrel's chagrin it was family picture time this year. Sorry to all those who sent me cards and didn't get one in return. My hope is next year...
We did get our family pictures done, thanks to a little help from my mom. Darrel's sister, Della, had asked me to take her family pictures when we came to St. George and I agreed. I just figured that would be the perfect time to get ours done also. We just thought it would be just as easy for them to snap a picture of us once I was done taking theirs. It was really cold the day I went to take Della's family picture, so our little family decided just to snap a few for us in the morning and then I could leave them in the warm condo while I went with Darrel to take the others. It was cold and Zachary was not happy (as evidenced in some of these pictures). I have many more with him scowling but I'm just choosing to share the ones I've decided to blow up and print for my house. Needless to say we were all glad to get them done and we accomplished all our pictures in about 20 minutes time. Bonus. So, Darrel, another year to wait for me to stress out about family pictures again...anyway everyone...enjoy.
Sorry these pictures are so late. Being better about my blog is one of my new year's resolutions. I promise I will be better. These are just some random pictures from Christmas. We had a great Christmas vacation. My boys had a fabulous Christmas...we are very blessed. It was really fun having my mom, dad, and my brother Ben around for all the festivities. We had Christmas at home and then went to St. George for a week of fun and relaxation. I'm in total denial about my life starting back up again...back to our normal routine. I really do love vacation.
Here is Zachary enjoying his Lego Star Wars pajamas.
Alex and Johnathan got MP3 players from Santa Claus.
We've got snow in Vegas...and it's still snowing!!! I took these pictures almost an hour ago and it's still coming down. Holy Cow!!! 
When Joy and Steve moved away last March and took our best playmates away I thought we were sunk. Daniel and Zachary spent hours upon hours together and loved playing together, being together. Zachary would wake up in the morning and ask about Daniel. He would ask about Daniel before going to bed every night. I thought we were truly sunk. I understood why they had to leave, although it didn't make me happy AT ALL. I knew that I would miss Joy A TON and always be upset about it, but I didn't know if Zach would ever understand. He still doesn't understand why Daniel had to leave and we still miss the Laytons every day, but thankfully Zach has found Seth. Seth has become our new everyday playmate. Zachary and Seth love playing together, being together, and last night after having spent pretty much every minute of the day together, they were still sad to say goodbye. Zachary woke up this morning and asked when Seth was coming over to play. I will never be okay with the fact that we lost the Laytons, but I am so grateful for good friends, for me and for my children. The other day in preschool Zachary and Seth were playing over by the white board together. I walked over there after a while and found that they had drawn this...isn't it cute??!!!
Hello - sorry for the hiatus from blogging. It seems like this month is screaming by. I swear the time goes faster and faster. We went to Darrel's parents in Arizona for Thanksgiving. It was so good and the company was great. We did a little "day after Thanksgiving" shopping (but not at 5am). It snowed on Thanksgiving Day which my boys loved. I'll have to post the pictures I have of the boys having a snowball fight with their cousins. We went out to eat with all the adults and we saw Twilight with all the girls. It was a blissful 4 days of hanging around - we barely saw our boys, especially Zach. He bonded with Martin and Michelle's son Ethan and we never saw him. He was in high heaven at Grandma's house. It was a great vacation for all of us.
The weekend after getting home we attended Alex's last soccer tournament of the year. (Extended season starts in January) The team played awesome and they ended up winning for their division. The team played both Saturday and Sunday, however, Alex honored his priesthood, kept the Sabbath Day holy and only played on Saturday. I did get updates on Sunday as to how the team was doing, however. They won all their games in shutouts. The games scores were 4-0, 3-0, 9-0, 2-0. Needless to say the boys were thrilled and it was so fun to watch them dominate on the field. Below are some pictures from the second game on Saturday. These pictures demonstrate the wrong way to head the ball....
Okay, here comes the ball and Alex is gearing up for the hit.
Right on the top of the head...you might think this was a good hit, but...
Ah well, it was all for a good cause and Alex is no worse for the wear. It's a good thing he's such a tough kid. 
