Thompson Family

September 2010

2010-12-02T16:41:00.000-08:00

August 2010

2010-12-02T16:12:00.000-08:00

Sage McCoy Thompson born Aug 5th

Neighborhood block party!

Some yummy pickings from the garden

Dad took Talan and McKenna on the ward camp out and left sage and I home to rest!!

July 2010

2010-12-02T15:38:00.000-08:00

Dad built a sand box in the back yard. The kiddos helping dad haul back the sand!!

At the beach riding the Train that Uncle JJ helps with. McKenna didn't like the loud noises!

Tillamook icecream with cousins!

June 2010

2010-12-02T15:29:00.000-08:00

We spent the afternoon with our Cousins!

Talan woke up and put this costume on for the day :) The kids and I decided to go find some garage sales and Talan insisted on wearing his costume-he was really dissappointed when I wouldn't let him wear his underwear on his head when we would get out of the car...he insisted it was 'part of my costume mom!'

hiking with Grandpa

May 2010

2010-12-02T10:44:00.000-08:00

After scottys race we camped out at Cape Look out. We love the beach!

Scotty road Reach the Beach again this year (105 miles) but this year with a couple friends

I love these pictures of McKenna and McKenzie

fishing at G&G McCoy

They wake right up and head out to the dirt pile...they play there for hours!

Talan first year

2010-11-21T21:41:00.001-08:00

Click here to view this photo book larger

We made it!!!

2009-05-01T12:35:00.001-07:00

In case some of you were wondering...we did make it to Portland! On our journey from Idaho to Oregon...don't be suprised but...our phone quit charging! Is anyone suprised?? I didn't think so. So-that is why no one has received a phone call!! Hopefully we can have this sorted out in the next couple of weeks. In the meantime we would love to hear from you...send me an e-mail and I can send you our home number (tstarr510@aol.com). We are living at Grandma and Grandpa Thompson's till about the beginning of June?!
I was lucky enough to find a job the first week here. I work for a Dentist in Lake Oswego on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 6:30am-5:30pm. (it makes for a long day but the hours are good-in 2 days I have enough hours for 2 1/2 days) and then I am at Scotts dads office on Wednesdays from 7am-3pm (my favorite time to work).
Scotty has had some good leads and has been collecting his networking pool but nothing official yet. He is enjoying being the 'at home dad' and is great at it! The kids love being home with their dad ;) I've always thought Scotty was probably better at staying home then I am. He cooks, cleans, and plays...
Talan and McKenna love being at their Grandparents. It's been alot of fun to see McKenna's personality unfold. She sure loves her Grandma!
My family has been at OHSU for my brothers Chemo treatments. It has been a blessing to be close to my brother and family through all of this...
Over all we are glad to be in Oregon. The weather has been good other than the fact that I cannot seem to get warm enough...not sure of the problem there?? Scott was able to get a new road bike for a graduation/birthday gift and he is SOOOO excited! It hasn't came in yet, but he sure cannot wait! He is registered for a race called Reach The Beach. You ride from Beaverton to a town near Pacific City at the Beach-its 100 miles on May 16...he cannot wait. I registered for the Blue Lake Triathlon and my nerves are in full swing. Since the move and work it's much harder to work-out...I miss you Heidi (for many reasons which include being an inspirational work-out partner!)
Thats our update....I'll try and be more consistent and post some pics here soon! We miss and love you all!!

Swim Meet Results**Triathlon

2009-03-29T19:54:00.000-07:00

Here is a recap of this semester...for my own information/records...
#1 January 30
200 Medley relay-freestyle leg
50 yrd freestyle 50:52

#2 February 20
100 yrd freestyle 1:51
200 yrd Freestyle Relay

#3 February 27
50 yrd freestyle 46:36
100 yrd freestyle 1:49
200 yrd medley relay-freestyle leg

February 28 (First Tri)
Swim 400 yrds, bike 6 miles, run 2 miles (all events inside)- 45 minutes

What a great experience!! We started out with the swimming first-my freestyle didn't last long-I would rotate with backstroke to have alittle break but just keep moving...there was 5 in my heat and I completed my swimming portion 4th in my heat. Then I ran downstairs to the stationary bikes-I knew this was were I would have to make up my slow swimming time...so I did! My legs were sure burning but it was really actually fun-I ended up finishing 2nd in the bike portion (that means I caught up and passed 2 people!!!) Boy after that my legs where TIGHT!! It felt so weird trying to stretch out my quad and run down to the field house to start the 2 miles run (22 laps). It felt really good-it was all an adrenaline rush-My goal was to finish in 50 minutes- I really had no idea how I would do and I finished in 45 min! I was excited-I couldn't wait to do the next!!

March 13 #4

50 yrd freestyle 45.78
100 yrd freestyle 1:49.44
200 yrd freestyle relay
100 yrd breaststroke 3:16.26

So this meet Oliver (my coach) e-mailed me the roster since I wasn't able to make it to the pasta dinner-mind you I don't know how to do the breast stroke-I figured it was an error so I e-mailed him back letting him know. He wrote back saying he thought I needed to "spread my branches"...I thought it was totally sarcasm until...at the beginning of the meet he came up to me and asked if I was ready for 4 events, I was confused-he was serious! I continued to tell him I didn't know the stroke and so he said we better jump in the pool and learn!!! OMG!! so needless to say we spent the next 30 minutes ATTEMPTING to learn the backstroke. It wasn't going good but Oliver asked if I would do it! I said I would try my hardest and FINISH if he really wanted me to- so we did!! I thought I was going to die! 100 yrds is along long way especially when you can hardly do something. The thing I love about BYU-I is everyones support!! I am positive I wouldn't of had the same experience somewhere else. So needless to say I completed but very slowly ;)

March 20 #5

50 yrd freestyle 44.56
200 yrd freestyle relay

March 27 Prelims

50yd freestyle 42:04 (1st in my heat-8 second improvement!!)

100 yrd freestyle 1:40:10 (2nd in my heat-9 second improvement!)

March 28 Triathlon!! Swim 600 yrds in the pool, Bike 13.5 miles outside and run a 5K outside! Scotty went to the storage unit to get something for my mountain bike (the road bike we left at Christmas break at my moms ;( and he has been 'jonesing' to ride. He asked if he could just do the biking portion and I said he could if he was on a team...well we found a babysitter very last minute and off we went. It was really fun doing this together as a team!! I met a girl Catlyn right at the beginning of the run and we were slow and steady! We ended up passing alot of people just trucking along- I ended with a 22:10 5K!! I think that is the fastest I have ever ran a 5K even when I ran cross country in High school! Then scotty biked 13.5 miles on a very cold and windy day-but he did awesome for not being on a bike in 3+ months 59:59 then I swam 600 yrds 14:54!! I was excited my goal was 15 minutes ;)

We finished 23rd out of 36 teams/individuals! It was a great experience-thanks Scotty!!

Later that night...was Swimming Championships...my legs where sooo... tired-I think from the run!

March 28 Championships

Well obviously I didn't qualify but I was able to participate in some relays-

200 Medley relay

400 Freestyle relay

This semester was so much fun! I am so thankful for the support Scotty gives me! I realized I miss being on a team and having that challenge. Swimming is a great challenge for me, one of the hardest I have had in along time but what a good experience of accomplishment! I still may not be the fastest but I continued to work hard and improve. I met alot of wonderful people this last semester that have had an impact on me. Thanks Heidi for encouraging me to go out for Swim Team this had to be the best place to learn and have the experience of being on a swim team!! Go Titans-I will miss you-I already do!

St. Patricks Treats!

2009-03-21T22:26:00.000-07:00

March 15, 2009
I thought it would be fun to make sugar cookies and let Talan decorate them for all his friends. So we did, and it was great. Talan had a great time mixing all the sprinkles together and then dumping them on the cookies!! We made St. Patricks day and Easter cookies (since we won't be here for Easter) we made shamrocks, bunnies and ducks! Well...(as you can tell I cannot get the pictures in the right order) We divided all the cookies up in plates for his friends and Kenna got hungry so we put her in her chair to eat-I thought we set the plates far enough away-Scotty and I left the kitchen to look at something and this is what we came back to!! She crawled out of her seat and was into almost ALL the cookies-she had them on her hands on her face-EVERYWHERE-some she just liked the frosting and others she actually took bites out of the cookies! We were laughing hysterically but as you can see she wasn't too happy when we stopped the fun! Needless to say-most of the kids Talan wanted to give cookies to did not receive any!!! Sorry!T

These are the few cookies we saved for our family-Talan already nibbled a bite!

He did a really good job and had fun!!

Talan loves to help me cook, he pulls up the stool and has to dump and stir everything in so I decided to make him an apron...I think it's boyish! The bottom has 3 pockets he loves to put the spoons and measuring cups in his pockets until I need them. He is such a great helper...sometimes more than needed ;)

Green Canyon Hot Springs

2009-03-21T22:20:00.000-07:00

March 14, 2009
Brooke invited us to go to Green Canyon Hot Springs with all her family that live around Rexburg. The kids had a great time! I didn't get to take pictures in the pool but here we are getting dressed. Talan had fun playing with his noodle and beach ball and McKenna was in a 'whale baby floater' thing and was so relaxed. she layed her head down on the front and just chilled. Sometimes she would have her eyes closed and then open and look around. There was SOOO many people there but we still had a great time. Thanks Brooke!

(Thanks Kim and Bailey for the swimming suit, if we didn't have it poor Kenna would have been naked!)

Fire Department Play Date

2009-03-21T22:13:00.000-07:00

March 12, 2009
Katrina invited us to their play date to take a tour of the fire department...the boys loved it!! Talan did get alittle scared when they put their masks on, then he doesn't want anything to do with the trucks-he hugs an hides behind my leg! They let the kids look at the ambulance and walk through-Talan didn't want anything to do with it until Grey and Jett ran through at least 10x's then he asked, "momma, can I go in the truck?" it was cute-he was so cautious looking at everything and then climbed out slowly.

Grey, 3 little girls, Jett, Talan-they were all excited about their little coloring booklets they all received!

Thurman's in Rexburg!!

2009-03-21T22:03:00.000-07:00

March 11, 2009-Today I got a call from my great friend Brooke says she was in town...I was so excited, the best part is the vacation is longer than just a weekend it's about 3 weeks long! Talan, Jett and Grey play so well together! We have had alot of fun already. They went with us to UV play date at Arctic Circle, another play date to the fire department, green canyon hot springs with Brookes family, and of course lots of time between our apartment and her in-laws home where they are staying. We wish we lived closer-but they still reside in good ol' Kentucky :) Every morning at 5:30 we have been going to the gym together-it's been fun having a partner-it surely makes me get my butt out of bed with out hitting the snooze button when I really feel like 'snoozing'!! Brooke cuts hair great and suggested cutting McKenna's hair...so here is her 3rd hair cut at 13 months!! I bet not many 13 month old girls can say that ;0) It looks so cute! Now it looks so much fuller. She has a little 'Stack' now...

Jett and Talan playing between the apartments in the snow (that is mostly gone now!!!)

They where trying hard to get this darn car to cooperate...determined little boys!

Girly Hair

2009-03-21T22:00:00.000-07:00

I was excited about McKennas hair...this is our new creation-I think it's adorable! It was fun to incorporate braids, and then all her hair is off her neck.

Fun times

2009-03-21T21:55:00.000-07:00

(March 7, 2009)

McKenna and Talan LOVE bath time!!Look at me...my bows match my diaper!! I am already color coordinating ;)

Yep, we are in cloth diapers!

Beautiful Weather...finally!

2009-03-21T21:39:00.000-07:00

Starting yesterday we had a fabulous day!! The sun was out and it really wasn't windy. Friday we babysat Brookes boys Jett and Grey while she was able to get some shopping done and Talan loved it! We spent almost the entire day outside at the playground between the apartments. The only time we came in was to lay McKenna down to nap and ...eat! I even got a tan line! People were amazed at the swim meet wondering where I got a tan line already!!

Today was another great day. I spent most of the day at the school. The university put on a conference that had some great classes. I went to "How to cook with wheat" (which I am most excited about-I am already applying what I learned-we are making wheat berries and growing wheat sprouts...I'll keep you posted on how it goes?!), "The Book of Mormon at Breakfast" (we are most successful in the morning-I am excited to apply what I have learned-prophets here we come on the Honey Bunches of Oats...), and "Frugality" ( I think we are pretty frugal but there is always room for improvement). Talan's good friend Gunner had his 3rd birthday party today so they went to the fire department to see the fire trucks and then home to the play ground for cupcakes. Scotty said he was still alittle scared (we went 2 weeks ago with a play group and last summer...the firemen are a little scary to him) but McKenna had a great time. Then Mr. T just road his bike all around and used my ladle to dig in the snow that is still present. This afternoon we enjoyed the company of our neighbors Melinda and Galen eating cinnamon rolls and enjoying the sun! (Thanks for the wheat...I'll keep you posted Melinda!)

2009-03-21T21:36:00.001-07:00

Talan, Daddy day!

2009-03-13T22:13:00.000-07:00

(March 7)
Last Saturday Scotty thought he would take Talan to the Airplane Museum at the airport...he loved it! Scotty said he was a little nervous to get on some of them but still had a great time, I wonder how long his love for planes and pretty much anything cool that flies will last?? After the museum they went out where daddy sometimes off-roads and found this...some crazy guy thought the ice was thick enough to drive on...they where skeptical about the rovers abilities...but, to their suprise it performed easily!!

Letting the wiggles out!

2009-03-13T22:11:00.000-07:00

March 9
A few weeks ago I took the kids to artic Circle to run around their new play ground to give Talan room to run so for the first time we decided to try McDonalds play structure as well...Talan loved it! They had a lot of cool slide. It was great to let him run around, and then fall asleep for a nap afterward!

Does it look like I am having fun??

He saw a girl older than him climbing the post so he kept trying!!

St. Patricks art...

2009-03-13T22:08:00.000-07:00

(March 5)
With the really, really cold weather poor Talan has been getting really 'stir crazy' so I decided we needed to have more organized activities so due to the holiday coming up we made a shamrock. Talan colored macaroni noodles in zip lock bags with food coloring, then we cut out a shamrock from a paper plate and he painted it-which is always one of his favorite things to do then we decided to glue to noodles on the paper-he was bored of that part pretty quickly...he eventually told me to do it, he didn't like getting the glue on his fingers :0)

Gotta love the "cheesie" smiles!!

Future band star

2009-03-13T22:05:00.000-07:00

(March 5)
We have one of those flute things...I cannot remember what they are called for the life of me-McKenna and Talan love to blow on it and make it whistle...

Milk???

2009-03-13T22:00:00.000-07:00

(March 2, 2009)
So miss McKenna cakes has not been liking milk!! I started to try and give her milk one week before she turned one and...not too successful! I have tried all % of milk, cold-warm-and pretty warm. Then we tried Soy milk since I usually have it on had-and-she seemed to like it for about a week then started letting it dribble out her mouth. Then we tried Almond Milk-and, the same thing drank it for about a day and then not again. So I took these pictures because...she drank a whole cup of milk for me at dinner ONE night. I thought we made a break through but it only lasted a night ;) I continue to give her a little each day and hopefully eventually she will agree!

2009-03-06T21:02:00.000-08:00

The first five people to respond to this post will WIN

something made by us!

Our choice.

For you.

**Please read the fine print.

This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:

1. we make no guarantees that you will like what we make!

2. What we create will be just for you and will completely help you feel our honor and gratitude.

3. It'll be done this year.

4. You have no clue what it's going to be. We are pretty crafty people, so who knows? Not you, that's for sure!

5. We reserve the right to send you whatever it is we feel most excited to make and deem suitable for you, our loyal blog reader....and a word of caution:

6. Don't expect something expensive, we are students near starvation! But, we do have quite a scope for the imagination. ;)

The catch? Oh, the catch is that you must re-post this on your blog and offer the same to the first 5 people who do the same on your blog. ...We'll be checking! :)

Talan...Talan...Talan

2009-03-06T20:25:00.000-08:00

This post is devoted to Talan! His imagination has gone crazy, and I love it! I keep wishing I would write down all the cute things but I never seem to do it! It's fun you can talk to him almost like any other adult-and he responds in almost complete sentences ;) Lately he has been having imaginary people. When we were playing with his horses and dinosaur there was an imaginary "horse doctor" and today he had an imaginary brother that was going to come over-his name was Henry! He has done great going the bathroom and has been able to wipe his bum all by himself, he's doing a pretty good job. A couple days ago I was in the kitchen feeding McKenna while Talan was going to the bathroom, he wanted me to come see him and then he walks out of the bathroom and says he is a "chicken." The sight I saw: Talan walking out with his pants off, sticking his bumby out and shaking it with toilet paper sticking out his bumb like a rooster!! He kept shaking it and saying he was a chicken! So it sounds pretty bad but it was really funny!
This is a picture of Talan with my swim cap on, he thought it was really funny!
Talan is all about trying to make funny faces! Here is his most common face!

If were not making faces then we are building. He starts off with building the cabin or "spaceship" and then you incorporate the trains. He continues to be amazed by space ships and planes. After watching Horton Hears a Who now he imagines we are on a little planet...called "Planet Who"

With the cold, cold weather we try and have "play dates" sometimes to have some interaction. These are a couple of Talans buddies, Henry and Gunner. The gate is to keep the babies-McKenna and Jack away from the train track! The weather has been beautiful with the bright sun, but very, very, cold! Talan loves to see the sun and then says, "it's a good day mom" It sure is a good day but really, really cold with the wind. When it is really windy he says it is "a hard wind." To get some of the built up energy out we have gone to Arctic Circle and played on there new play structure and today we went to McDonald's to play-he had a great time!

2nd Swim Meet-complete!!

2009-02-25T21:24:00.000-08:00

Last Friday was my second meet, and I survived again. This week I competed in the 100yd freestyle and 200 freestyle relay where I only have to swim 50 yrds. Knowing I was swimming the 100 the night before gave me butterflies all day!! I can consistently swim 75yrds but 100 I usually stop for a second, or two...or three! Well...I did it! My goal was to FINISH! My time was well...slow to say the least but I wasn't too far behind the last person. For you swimmers my time was 1:51...ok you can stop laughing ;) This just again means I have room for ALOT of improvement! Some days I will have to admit I do not want to go to practice but as always when I'm done I'm glad I went. Swimming is definitely not something that comes natural to my body. This is probably one of the hardest things I have ever done! I am so glad the support that Scotty gives me and the encouragement-it has been great to have such a challenge every week! Our next meet is this Friday...I'm anxious to know what events I will be in?? Oh..I am also going to be trying a mini-triathlon the school is putting on!! I am very anxious and nervous mainly for the swimming section. I say mini because we swim 400yds, bike 6miles and run 2 miles... a little short from a sprint tri...

Happy Valentines!!

2009-02-14T21:13:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a special Valentines day! Today was a little different for us. Scotty last minute headed to Reno Nevada yesterday morning to go to a large construction conference that had a career fair today with over 50 construction companies. He said things went really well he felt the trip was worth it! Well, Talan loves it when we decorate with streamers so of course we have new hot pink streamers across the ceiling and as most of you do the table is all decorated red, white and pink with heart confetti, balloons, fun plates and table cloth...McKenna got a new pink stuffed animal dog and Talan a mini lego set that makes 3 different planes! He loves it but it may be a challenge keeping all the small pieces away from Kenna-we will see how long it lasts. Talan was so excited when he woke up to see everything decorated. I wish I was able to get some pictures but Scotty has the camera so we pulled out the video camera (which I wish I did more often!). Talan helped me make this new recipe I found called Caramel Apple oven pancake...it was so good!! I ate probably more than half-sad but true! After breakfast we played and then decided to venture to the cheep theater and watch Bolt...I was a little worried taking the two kiddos by myself-I haven't taken Kenna to a move since the summer. She actually didn't do too bad. When there was about 30 min left she started to get really antsy so I stepped out but Talan did great. It was cute he would come out and check on Kenna and I to "see how we were doing" ;) I told Talan he could pick out dinner and his choice...mac n' cheese with hotdogs! It's been along time- and actually I was a little excited-it hit the spot oddly enough! It was really sweet a couple families from the ward brought over yummy sugar cookies and valentines for Talan.

Journaling

2009-02-10T09:36:00.000-08:00

McKenna has become quite the talker/babbler! A couple days ago we noticed she was saying "whats that?" We ask her that alot and she caught on. Yesterday I was getting a drink for Talan and she got all excited and kept asking, "Whats that?" Then I told her what is was and she said "oh" with her lips in a perfect circle...it was precious! So we as parents may be the only ones who know what she is saying-but it's cute ;)

Yesterday between preparing all our paperwork for taxes and playing with the kids Talan looked different to me...he is becoming a true little boy that is growing up! It's been so fun to see his creative imagination! Lately he is all about Super Hero's (because he is one and will only wear super hero underwear!) and space ships (he wants dad to draw them constantly and fly paper airplanes that are space ships that fly to the moon-the moon is our living room light!). He of course still wants to build everyday with his lincoln logs, legos and have the train tracks go through and around his buildings! Talan has started asking why, whats that....the questions that can sometimes drive me crazy all the time!! Those little minds are so curious! He loves to play with his friends and really likes to show them how to do things-draw, build...

McKenna's 1 yr Check-Up

2009-02-05T12:30:00.001-08:00

Today McKenna had her one year check-up. She received 5 injections...poor girl! But she did great! Here are her stats:

Weight 16.4 lbs. 1%

Height 26.5 in 1%

Head circumference 16.8 2%

BMI 16.4

So as you can see...she is still quite little compared to others. She is only in the 1-2 percentile! But she eats way more than Talan-go figure! Our kids don't have much hope looing at their short parents ;)

25 Random facts about me

2009-02-04T21:02:00.000-08:00

I was asked on a different website to do this and thought it was a little interesting so I thought I would share...
This is alot...we will see what I come up with!
1. I hate washing my face at night...I know I need to do it but I rarely do-hense the zits!
2. I love to read, doesn't mean I have time for it. This is a new thing in the past 5 yrs...I used to hate to read!
3. I love peanut butter-Adams Natural Crunchy!
4. I am not a big fan of chocolate...crazy I know!
5. My favorite color to wear is black
6. I love chick flicks-pretty much anything I am not much of a critic
7. I am a calorie counting fanatic...it's not crazy, I'm just aware!
8. I don't listen to CD's often . I like the randomness of the radio.
9. I really like audio books for those long runs!! Especially when I 'm not on shuffle ;)
10. I enjoy cooking now that I plan ahead!
11. My hair is naturally red-I probably will never dye the entire thing until there is too much grey to cover with highlights!! Hey maybe I'll go natural-all grey....
12. I don't mind cleaning toilets but I hate cleaning the floor
13. I miss school sometimes, but I love my job as a dental hygienist
14. I cannot sing-but I like to try
15. I'm not a big fan of dogs...I hate it when they lick me...but I do like gizmo and fletcher especially after their bath!
16. I love excerise-running, eliptical, swimming, cycling...i cannot wait for the ice to melt!
17. I love playing with my kids and wish my husband was always home!
18. My favorite color is red
19. I like to sleep with the window open and a down comforter year-round
20. I've lost 45 pounds since having my baby girl!! YA!
21. I like to get dirty
22. I love camp fires especially with friends
23. I want a simple life...easier said than done sometimes
24. I'm a pack rat...just ask scotty
25. I went through hunters education class when I was like 10 yrs old? (or sooner??)

Strawberry Jam

2009-02-04T19:44:00.000-08:00

Talan has always been such a good eater. He eats avocados, oatmeal...almost anything-but he doesn't eat very much...he's our little bird! Lately his favorite thing is Low-sugar Strawberry Jam!! He wants it on EVERYTHING! He also has recently loved green salad and dip the lettuce into ranch or at least that was until two days ago when he wanted to dip his lettuce in jam-yes, jam...he has dipped a mini corn dog in his jam as well as adding jam to celery like I do peanut butter. I am sure like everything else this phase will fade...

I can do it!

2009-02-04T19:36:00.000-08:00

As most of you know McKenna turned "1" last Friday and well...she doesn't roll over from her back to stomach without some encouragement! Don't get me wrong it's been a blessing in terms of her sleeping. She lays on her back in the crib and kicks her legs and talks to herself, then falls asleep. Today after her nap I heard her talking to herself and then suddenly I heard her mobile music on which meant one of two things her legs kicked it and turned it on which she has only done once in the whole year or she sat up and turned it on! So I rush up to her room and there she is standing at the side rail talking away!! We were so excited for her!! Until bed time...she laid down great like normal and then soon enough I here her crying awfully-and there she is standing up! I am excited for her to roll over on her own free and will now...but not too ready for this new adventure!

A bad day!!

2009-02-02T07:17:00.000-08:00

Yesterday...Sunday-I thought started out great. Scotty had a meeting at church and wasn't sure when he would be getting back before church so I thought I better get ready early and start getting the kids ready so we didn't feel so rushed. The morning went great! Kids were both in good moods and we were all able to get ready and scotty came home earlier than we thought ;) For once I didn't feel rushed to get to church. If you know me I tend to be a little bit of a procrastinator but it feels so good to just be prepared especially for a day I want to be relaxed. So we get to church and due to the construction of a new building we have church inside one of the Universities buildings. Our first meeting is in an auditorium setting which can be difficult when you have kids and may need to get up because crying, need to go potty...Scotty always says, "To be early is to be on time, to be on-time is to be late, and to be late is unacceptable" I think is a good philosophy but sometimes being early isn't to our advantage. When we are early to our first meeting we usually have to move toward the center...so that's what happened. McKenna wouldn't take a nap before church so she was getting restless and Talan was just whining!! By the end of the first hour I was ready to go home-and scotty could tell but I knew going home wouldn't make things better even if I thought it might-so I said we needed to stick around and go to the rest of our classes. Which I am glad we did. Did I feel completely happy and back to normal, no, but I was uplifted. A light bulb came on- I think this is a concept we are all aware of but sometimes I need it spelled out to apply. "The Lord is not going to do things for you that you can do for yourself." Someone gave a great example about the rising up of Lazarus. Jesus had the people their do everything they could do for themselves-show Jesus where the tomb was, open the tomb, unwrap Lazarus...but Jesus did all the things they were incapable of doing-rising Lazarus from the dead.

Wonderful Day

2009-01-31T21:19:00.001-08:00

Today started out hectic but ended great. We were lucky to be invited to attend my cousin Jerome's sealing to his wife Kelsie and their little boy Hayden. Everyone invited went through an endowment session first, which they had so many family and friends come to support that we filled up a room 50+ people! Then after the session we all went straight to the sealing room for them to be sealed. It was really special to see everyone in their temple clothes. It's such a great feeling to know that we are sealed for all Eternity and will be with our families forever. I was really moved the most when they brought in their little boy to be sealed to them!! It was so special to see the three of them together...the spirit was so strong. I feel so fortunate to live so close to the temple. Scotty and I took more advantage of the situation last year-each of us went weekly by ourselves. This semester we have not done as well...It was great to spend time with family. We will surely miss everyone if/when we move!

First Swim Meet

2009-01-30T21:37:00.001-08:00

Today was my first swim meet!! I was sooo....incredibly nervous today! But...it turned out ok. I participated in the 200 medley relay-freestyle leg and the 50 yd freestyle. I think I swam better during the relay since it was the first event and first heat! My time for the 50 freestyle was 50:52. So for any of you swimmers out there...that's not the greatest ;0) I am reminded that it just means I have ALOT of room to improve!! It's great though, my team and friends were very supportive and positive so I had a good experience! Go Titans!!

McKenna's 1st Birthday!

2009-01-30T20:34:00.000-08:00

I attempted to make Kenna's great birthday cake...I thought it turned out cute...it could have been better but I liked it. It definitely doesn't compare to my sisters master pieces! She is the baker of the family!
Good morning!! It was cute we decorated the living room and kitchen with streamers and balloons. Talan has anticipated this day all week. When he woke up this morning and went downstairs then I heard him walking upstairs and this was the conversation:
Talan- "dang it..."
Mom- whats wrong?
T-It's Kenna's Birthday tomorrow!
M-no, it's today.

T-today? YA, lets go mom-get Kenna...happy birthday Kenna!!!

Kenna was so excited! She didn't want to even open her presents-all she would look at was the cake! Once we put the cake in front of her she went to town eating it like crazy and laughing!!!

Talan ate his cupcake and wanted more...so he started to grab for Kenna's cake and she gave him 'THE LOOK"

Yummy!
She ate more than I could imagine-we were curious to see how she would feel late ;) Well as she was winding down she started to scratch at the inside of her left arm were she tends to have eczema...so I was thinking since it was covered in frosting maybe it was irritating her skin so I wiped it down then started to notice she was getting hives on her wrists as well! So-we decided to end the festivities of eating cake and gave her some benadryl and a good bath! It did the trick. By the time she was done bathing her arms looked alot better...this poor girls skin is so sensitive! We had a great day celebrating McKenna and can't believe how fast her first year went! We love you Kenna cakes!

Mississippi Caviar

2009-01-26T20:31:00.000-08:00

So here is my first recipe! I received this from my Uncle Don who cut it out of his local paper in Rupert! And-we LOVE it!! It's perfect as salsa for chips or side to chicken, beef or eggs.

1 (15oz) can black-eye peas, drained
1 (15 oz) can black beans, drained
1 (15 oz) can whole kernal corn, drained
2 lg tomatoes, seeded and diced
1 med onion, diced
1 med green bell pepper, diced
3 TB minced garlic (about 8 cloves)
1/2 bunch cilantro, chopped (about 1/2 cup)
1 jalapeno pepper, seeded and finely chopped
Juice of 1 lime
1 tsp Italian Seasoning
1 (7oz) package dry Italian dressing mix (such as Good Seasons)
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup vinegar
Combine first 11 ingredients (peas through seasoning) in a large bowl. Stir well.
Combine dressing mix, oil and vinegar. Pour over pea mixture. Stir well. Chill at least 2 hrs. Serve with tortilla chips. Makes about 8 cups.
ENJOY!
(1/2 cup=130 calories, 7g fat, 4g protein, 14g carbs, 3g fiber)

I Survived!!!

2009-01-26T20:10:00.000-08:00

Today was my first swim practice...yep I joined the BYU-I swim team! Crazy I know!!! Heidi has been great over the past few months teaching me how to swim-and I think I have came along way! Well a couple months ago she brought up joining the team and honestly I thought it was totally out of my league. We talked about it off and on and had came to a decision that we weren't going to try out and just continue to meet together each week and swim. Well back and forth, back and forth-yes, no, yes, no-here we both are-team Titans!! I really wasn't sure what to expect and kept asking Heidi several questions. The 'unknowns' are what make me the most nervous! So I went-and I survived!! I didn't make all the times but I just kept telling myself "just keep swimming, swimming, swimming..." ;) (off of Nemo-just in case you weren't sure) I completed about 2000 yds which is more than I have ever swam at one time! I'll keep you posted how it all continues! Keep me in your prayers that I don't drown!!

I thought I'd share...

2009-01-25T20:42:00.000-08:00

So I am going to use this blog of mine basically as my journal. I read on someones about 2 months ago that her blog is solely her journal...I've thought more about it and really like the idea-it's always been really hard for me to keep a consistent written journal and I tend to post about my family which is what would be in my journal. So you may see more narratives-feel free to skip over if I bore you ;0) BUT...I love going to peoples blogs that share talents, crafts, music, but especially recipes....so I thought I would try and share my favorite recipes and then my blog could maybe be useful or helpful for you! Over the past few months I have cooked more than I have over the past 8 1/2 years of marriage! Thanks to family and friends who have taught me!! Believe it or not...I actually really like to cook now!! My brother would be oh-so proud! One of my good friends and I have been sharing our creations together which has been alot of fun to add some good recipes to the collection! One of our favorites to experiment lately with is quinoa. Scotty has never really cared for rice but he loves quinoa and its so, so, good for you!

Talan's First Talk!

2009-01-25T18:40:00.000-08:00

Our little boy is growing up!! He went to his first day in Primary 3 weeks ago as a Sunbeam and he loves it! Well today he gave his first talk! He held up a picture of Jesus with 4 children and he repeated what I read on the back of the picture about how Jesus loves all people and wants his children to be happy. He did such a good job, you could hardly hear him but he didn't act too shy! We love you Talan!

Little prayers!

2009-01-22T23:23:00.001-08:00

Earlier this week we noticed McKenna folding her arms and mummbling during prayers! It's so precious. Yesterday when I was putting Talan down for nap I had finished nursing Kenna and was burping her while Talan and I were saying a little prayer and I felt McKenna push off my chest, then I looked down and she had her hands folded with her head down. Even though she didn't see anyone folding their arms for prayer just the tone of our voices she knew what was going on...sometimes I think she says 'amen' :)

West Yellowstone

2009-01-20T20:29:00.000-08:00

For the 3-day weekend we went to West Yellowstone. The weather was absolutely BEAUTIFUL! We of course decided to go Friday evening about 4pm but first we went to the temple to do sealings...so we didn't head out of town till about 7:30pm. We are well known for our last minute planning, but the trips are always so worth it! Thanks Heidi for the yummy cookies that we enjoyed on our drive..thats as far as they made it!
We went to the Discovery Wolf and Bear Center. Talan called it the 'Zoo' The Grizzly Bears were HUGE! It was fun to see them play together and look for the food the keepers hid.

Talan enjoying his cereal-w/o milk lately?!

McKenna did great! She loved being all bundled up in the backpack!

We didn't bring a sled..oops...so

Talan found a pile of snow where we were staying and slid down on his bumby! It was pretty cute.

At the Discovery Center!

I am going to try and be better!

2009-01-14T15:42:00.001-08:00

So if you really care to see ALL of our happenings in the month of December you will have to click 'old posts' at the bottom...we will see how I do this month!

McCoy's

2009-01-14T15:38:00.000-08:00

Papa and Talan building castles with blocks...

There was a little bit of snow at my parents and Talans first idea was to go make snow angles...he loves it!

Clean up

2009-01-14T15:35:00.000-08:00

McKenna helping Grandma clean up the Christmas decorations! Grandmas house is always so wonderfully decorated...it felt so festive-we loved it- as well as the kids!!!

New Years Eve

2009-01-14T15:28:00.000-08:00

For New Years Eve we followed Katie and her family to our friend Kim's for a party. It was alot of fun-we ate alot of yummy food and had some great conversation. The kids had a great time playing together-I was suprised that the kids stayed awake until the ball dropped with-out any melt downs!! They all played so well together. Talan loved the airplane...Thanks Reid. McKenzie and McKenna even went to bed in their porta cribs with all the noise!
McKenzie and McKenna having fun together!

Katie and McKenzie-

All the kids watching a movie seeing if they will fall asleep

Christmas Day

2009-01-14T15:19:00.000-08:00

Baby Kaleb enjoying his sleep even with all the craziness.

Talan and McKenna taking a bath with their new bath toys...ya

McKenna enjoying eating while we open gifts. She wasn't all too interested. Only in the toys that Talan had. Grandma and Grandpa gave each family a Wii with Guitar Hero and Scotty has sure been enjoying playing...everynight!

Grandma J and Kenna cakes

Christmas Eve

2009-01-14T15:11:00.000-08:00

For Christmas Eve everyone comes over to the Thompson's for Dinner and fun!
Bailey and McKenna enjoyed rearranging all of Grandma J tuperware!

McKenna wasn't too sure of Grandpa! For the first few days Kenna was giving everyone 'the look' which was actually quite cute.

Bailey and Talan singing and dancing to "ring around the roseys"

SNOW!!!

2009-01-11T21:01:00.000-08:00

It was FABULOUS! Portland broke records for snow fall in the past 40 yrs!! It was great! Talan loved it especially for the first few days he constantly wanted to go sledding!

Scotty, Jessica and I enjoyed the snowfall in the hot tub, it was great! The unfortunate time happend when after one night of major snow fall the power went out for a couple hours and messed something up with the hot tub...and scotty and Grandpa couldn't get it working :( So no more hot tub for the rest of the month, which was actually pretty sad!

The first big snow fall Scotty and Talan sledding down the culda sac (sp?).

CATCHING UP

2009-01-11T20:59:00.000-08:00

So-sorry I am so, so bad at updating 'the blog'. So over the next couple days I am going to try and catch up and then try and not only make 1-2 posts per month...we will see. The downfall I forget I cannot move around posts so you get to read from most current down-sorry or not?! I will try and be better!

Continue our journey-

2009-01-11T20:51:00.000-08:00

So in the morning we heard that the pass to Hermiston was closed but as the day went on we decided to head out and hope it opened...we were stopped before Baker about 2 hours and time actually went by quickly. Scotty has a CB radio in the Land Rover and we had a good time listening to the truckers and letting McKenna out of her seat to stretch. We made it to my parents in Hermiston around 8pm that night and felt that it was unsafe to go through the windy Gorge till morning. We headed to Portland in the morning and this is what we saw...the roads were coated in ice! It was a long journey but the worst stretch was from Hermiston to Portland...so I missed my first day of work with Dr. Thompson but glad we made it home safely!

The Beginning!!

2009-01-11T20:43:00.000-08:00

So this is the beginning of our journey to Oregon for Christmas. We left Rexburg on Saturday Dec 12, 2008 to head toward Logan Utah to my Uncles for my Grandma's 80th birthday. It was great to see family we don't see too often. That afternoon we headed to Sandy UT to see Katelyn and Dallins house they bought a year ago and their two pups Macy and Max...the kids were a little scared at the Yorkies at first but they soon warmed up. Thanks for letting us stay with you, it was fun! We left Sandy again in another snow storm! We went to my Uncle Don's in Rupert ID for a gourmet lunch that he made (Thanks again) and then to my Sisters in Twin Falls ID where we stayed the night! We love staying with 'Aunt Shell' Talan adores her and the girls. Jonathan and Mr T are playing so well together. Hopefully they will be close cousins.

I can help mom!

2009-01-11T20:40:00.000-08:00

McKenna has become quite the little helper!! She loves to sort anything...she picks it up and tosses the item over her shoulder :)

Family Pictures

2009-01-11T19:45:00.000-08:00

We had some family pictures taken. Here are a few of our favorites!

The Dentist!!!

2009-01-11T19:29:00.000-08:00

Talan had a tooth that the enamel didn't form completely (enamelhypoplasia-for you dental junkies :) on 'T'. We had it looked at during the summer and the Dentist said he would probably be ok to wait another 6 months till he was a little older and could have a better experience....well right before Thanksgiving he started picking at the tooth after eating something and said it hurt!!! oh-no!!! He is really good about brushing his teeth and letting me help everytime but I will have to admit we are not perfect...believe it or not there are some days his teeth does not get brushed!!! I am sure this is REALLY had for a Dental Hygienist to admit-but it is true :) Anyway I look back and behold the tooth has cavitated!!! Not a good sign!!! I get him to the pediatric DDS here in town as soon as they could get him in and they couldn't get x-rays since he kept gagging so talking with the Dentist it was looking like a pulpotomy and crown-I truely wanted to cry and I think the DDS could tell-so he reassured me it wasn't due to neglect! Which I know it's not and I know the caries process but this wasn't supposed to happen to me! Well we were scheduled to come back in the next afternoon to receive treatment and Talan did great! It was funny because I got to experience what alot of my patients parents experience. When I have little kids come to see me at the office I encourage the parents to stay in the waiting room-I have learned from experience that most kids behave better when the parents don't come back so...I wasn't going to come back but I kept walking by the hall to see how he was doing, I really wanted to be there :) Well I went back to see the PA's they took before treatment and they looked great! The Doctor said we were sure lucky-even though it was cavitated it was very shallow-he was able to fill the tooth even without having to use the "sleepy juice." So to make a long story short...Mr. T did great!! And Dr. Mauseth was amazing with him!

Talan did great with the Nitrous Oxide!

My big boy!

His favorite part was the slide in the waiting room!!!

Garret and Talan making a road!

2009-01-11T19:22:00.000-08:00

Caralee made some really cute pajama pants for Jon and Garret and had some left over fabric I could make Talan some to match-so we were also attempting to copy the pattern and maybe I could make Scotty some later...well what a bother...so the boys decided to turn the paper into a race track! It was cute-Talan wanted to draw a Temple to visit and he even drew a Moroni on the top but when we asked him who it was he said it was a "penguin" (LOL). I thought it was adorable, kids minds are so creative!!

FHE

2008-12-08T19:58:00.000-08:00

Our friends Nicki and Ryan Nichols invited our family to go sing Christmas songs at the nursing home with them and a few other families. Thank you so much! We had soo..much fun-Talan loved it-he continued to sing songs all the way home :) We enjoyed some really good sugar cookies, brownies and yummy frothy (sp?) hot coco before we headed out. Scotty and I both know we don't have the prettiest voices to be singing but we really enjoyed our time there and it seemed like the residence did as well. One little old man even had Talan sit on his lap, it was precious! I love this time of year. We all tend to be a little more thoughtful and go out of our way to make others feel special more often than normal. Thanks again for a memorable FHE.

First SNOW

2008-12-08T19:45:00.000-08:00

I awoke at 4:30am to hearing the snowplows!!! I love what they do but boy are they loud! It worked out ok since I had to get up at 4:50 anyway to get ready to go swim with Heidi...but still-it took me a little while to realize what all the noise was about, I couldn't believe it SNOWED!!! Ya-so I truly do have mixed feelings. I love the snow but not for 9 months so I sure hope it doesn't stick around that long! But it did feel a little bit warmer today :) Talan was so excited to see the snow-he wouldn't stop asking if we could go outside and play starting at 6:30am! We finally went out around 9:30 and played for about 2 hours, it was so much fun! Here are some pictures the fabulous photographer Heidi took with her new camera-the kids look so cute. Heidi helped the boys build a snowman-I am sure Heidi has had alot of practice growing up in Alaska!

Kaden, Gunner, Talan-cheese
Kaden, Brooklyn, Gunner, Talan - Making Snowangels

Gunner and Talan hugging Mr. Snowman...how cute!

Thanksgiving at the McCoy's

2008-12-03T20:39:00.000-08:00

We went to the festival of lights at the Fairgrounds and there was Santa...ya. So we decided to take advantage of the moment-and McKenna as you can tell gave 'the look' but she didn't cry-that's an improvement from Talans first sight of Santa! It was cold but we enjoyed walking around looking at all the lights. Scotty was the only brave guy to come :) This was the first time in a very, very long time that we were all together. Michelle and all her family and all our family plus my cousin Brandon came to my parents for the week. We had alot of fun. Unfortunately Dad got sick, then Scotty, and Brandon and eventually Sam...do you see pattern-all the guys :) Hopefully JW lucks out and doesn't get whatever was going around!

Talan loves driving his car-he had alot of fun driving him and Jonathan around! Two peas in a pod. They played really well together this week! We went bowling one afternoon and Talan had a blast...as you can see! McKayla and Sierra had fun letting him help them bowl!

This is a better sight than the past 2 years! Ya! He actually had fun with Santa!

Twilight Midnight showing!!

2008-12-03T20:32:00.000-08:00

(Nov 21, 2008)
A few of us where die hard enough to go to the midnight showing of Twilight!! We had a great time! It was even Lindsays Birthday at midnight...what a great Birthday :) We arrived 1 1/2 hours early hoping we just wouldn't be sitting in the very front row...well needless to say we weren't early enough-we were toward the end of the line and ended up in row....2 (ha, ha) at least it wasn't row 1!! Even with that it was still really good. Some people had been waiting in line since 7:30pm...wow. Thanks again girls, I had a great time!

Cute kids and books

2008-12-03T20:13:00.000-08:00

Talan and McKenna both LOVE books...this was a fun day of the two of them sharing books. Talan is particularly fond of ANY book that contains animals!!

McKenna just looked adorable! ( I am a little partial though :)

They are in a stare down...Kenna has started giving 'the eye' she looks down at you and tries to roll her eyes up into the back of her head...it's really quite cute!

Talan sure is a great big brother, sometimes wants to be a little too helpful but he sure does love her, and you can tell she loves her brother-he can always make her laught!!

Show your muscles!

2008-12-03T20:08:00.000-08:00

(Nov 9, 08)

This is Talan running around after church...dad stopped him and said, "show me your muscles"...and this is what he did! Periodically he will ask me, where are your muscles momma? Show them too me. I guess we like to flex our muscles around here :)

Madagascar 2-Opening day!

2008-12-03T20:02:00.000-08:00

(Nov 7, 2008)
Talan was anticipating this movie for 2 weeks!! He saw an advertisement on the TV and wanted to watch it. After explaining to him that we cannot watch it for two weeks later that day when we were driving around town he asked if we were going to the theater....I couldn't believe it! So when the opening day came we made an event out of it. He wanted to wear his Madagascar sweater/outfit and we watched the first one. At the movie we even bought a kids pack-which was a little popcorn, candy and drink in a little box-he thought is was pretty special!!

I can move...

2008-11-06T20:40:00.000-08:00

This past week McKenna has learned that she can get around!!! She does exactly what Talan used to do. She keeps the one leg bent and straightens the other to push off and move. Another freq. move is to get on all 4 and she rocks and bounces forward to move her legs forward. She looks like a little frog. And of course the usually scoot, turn, and roll...to get around! She is just too cute! Now she can entertain herself a little better and doesn't panic when I walk out of the room :)

SNOW

2008-11-06T20:34:00.000-08:00

Talan was so excited to wake up to snow!!! As soon as dad got home from school he was headed out the door to 'make foot prints.' Talan has so much fun with his Dad...they are both so lucky!

Attack of the Ducks

2008-11-06T20:24:00.000-08:00

11/03/08

A friend reminded us about feeding the ducks at the ponds at the nature trails so...I thought I would take the kids out. Talan really enjoyed feeing the ducks at Hat Rock with Grandma and Grandpa Mac. Well...these ducks and geese knew exactly what they wanted. Right when we pulled up they started to swarm to car! Talan kept saying, 'the ducks are going to eat me mom!" I thought it was cute but he just hid behind my leg and I used the camera case to lightly swing around to keep a barrier. We fed the ducks our bread as quickly as possible and ran off! We decided to go for a walk on the nature path and stopped at the ponds to through rocks...so much more fun! McKenna really liked watching the ducks she would turn her head as far as she could when we ran off :0)

So much hair!!!

2008-11-03T21:28:00.000-08:00

Kenna has so much hair and I am still learning how to do it! We attempted to put a little braid and Kenna did really well...sporadically I get in the spurt to try something new. Thanks Hilarie for the motivation. Hilarie did a 2 linking pony tails with 3 link...(not sure if I explained that right) but it turned out really, really cute! I love having a little girl :0)

Trunk or Treat

2008-11-03T21:12:00.000-08:00

Our building complex put on a trunk or treat that was really fun. There were several 'trunks' to 'treat' and Talan made out with a ton of candy!! I finally had to hide it so he would quit asking. Talan as you can see was Tiger again (this is his last year costume) and McKenna was going to be a strawberry but I miss placed her strawberry hat...darn it! Some thought she looked like strawberry shortcake :) Luckily the weather was great. It was a little chilly but much better than last year-ya!

Pumpkin Painting!

2008-11-03T20:59:00.000-08:00

We kept putting off carving our yearly pumpkin and finally set a date to do it the night before Scotty flew out to California...but the day and night ended up being way too busy so needless to say it didn't get done :( So, the next day I thought instead of carving the pumpkin we could paint! Talan has loved painting lately and really enjoyed painting the pumpkin, he said it was a 'scary monster.' BUt as you can see McKenna wasn't having the same fun! She wanted to touch the plate of paint and Talan's painting job and he wasn't letting her!

The Allens wanted to have a Halloween party so we helped plan! It turned out to be alot of fun, the families seemed to really enjoy the scavenger hunt! Here is Talan and Brooklyn posing in front of his nice paint job!!

Scotty suggested the we dress up as ran over cyclist for our costumes...so here is my effort :0) Talan helped 'tie-dye' his shirt and pick out the design. It was fun to see the different designs! Daddy was impressed. Talan and Gunner. They had alot of fun at the party together.

Sunny Days!

2008-11-02T20:49:00.000-08:00

Since the weather has been so nice and soon to go we have been trying to take every advantage of it! Talan has formed himself his own little mud hole by our apartment! He loves to fill up the squirt bottle and make mud he said it is for the pigs...but the only thing he uses is his cars and skateboard! I love boys who love to get dirty...it all washes away :)

Jon gave Talan a ride around the complex on his dirt bike. Talan even asked him to do a 'wheely' at then end...and Jon did! Talan had a huge smile!! Thanks Jon!

McKenna looks 'cute' mom

2008-11-02T20:41:00.000-08:00

The kids being silly!! Talan loves his little sister...he thought is was 'cute' to give McKenna a hat, she liked it too! McKennas current favorite toy is taking apart all the puzzels and chewing on the pieces! (As you can see Talan got a hair cut...Scotty cut it last Sunday while I was taking a nap! He looks so different. My big little boy.)

Beaver Dick Park

2008-11-02T20:24:00.000-08:00

The past three weekends the weather has been wonderful!! To take advantage of this weather we have been going out to Beaver Dick Park to have a bon fire with friends before the snow starts to stick!! We love fires...Talan has been able to play with his friend Garret while we roast marshmallows, hotdogs have hot coco and enjoy some dutch oven cooking :0) This last weekend we roast apples on the fire...yum, yum!

Scotty, Talan and Garret

Our friends Caralee (who will be missed come December), Samm and AJ

Caralee and I mixed up a suprise (hamburger, bacon, potatoes, carrots, onions, mushroom soup and cheese)for dinner. After we arrived at the fire I realized we forgot a large metal spoon to stir things around and help serve so...Jon found a piece of finish work someone left behind and widled a spoon!

The spoon worked great for stiring and serving ;)

Talan got a little tired and fell asleep bundled up in his chair.

Ward Relay

2008-11-02T20:13:00.000-08:00

So this is early October news but I just downloaded the pictures. Our ward participated in the Spirit Ward Relay...and our ward won..we completed 30 laps as the first married ward! I almost didn't go until Susan's husband called and said we should go...so I packed the kids up in the stroller and we ran to the stadium to help run a few laps! McKenna did great as well as Talan until the mascot came around...he has always been scared of dressed up characters. He came running over to me hugging my leg almost crying about the 'Pirate'...yep he thought the Viking was a Pirate and he was really scared :0) Talan's friend Gunner wasn't too fond of the mascot either! All in all Talan had a good time running and playing with Gunner and Dexter.

Heidi and baby Jack

Hike 'R' Mountain

2008-11-02T20:04:00.000-08:00

After the Talans birthday party since the weather was so nice we decided to take a hike up 'R' Mountain. Scotty has hiked if for a geology class but we have never gone together. Talan wanted to walk and we put McKenna in the back pack. Iwas curious to see how well Talan would do. Over the summer he hiked pretty well by himself but there were always times when he wanted to be carried. Well...he did great!! He hiked the entire thing up and down all by himself. There were some areas that were really rocky that you had to climb up and he climbed without hesitation!! We were so proud of him.

Talan turned 3!!!

2008-10-20T19:07:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Talan!! Boy how the time flies by. Talan knew exactly what he wanted this year. He informed me he wanted a 'Train Party' and a 'Chocolate Birthday Cake'! So of course that is what he got for his special day! The weather was amazing. Nice and sunny and no wind...odd for Rexburg! Talan thought the cake and decorations where 'really cool, mom' He spent the morning hanging out with dad while I cleaned. They went and washed the Rover, went Rock Crawling and while they were at Beaver Dick Park a guy offered to give him a ride on his boat-ooh, awhh. Scotty said he had alot of fun. His party went great they played a bean bag toss game and pin the face on Thomas the Train.

Cell Phone Tragedy!!

2008-10-16T20:47:00.000-07:00

So I think our one family cell phone :) has had it...it's been ran over, dropped, thrown, drooled on...and has survived a good 2 1/2 years...well it has decided to quit charging!!!! Honestly the hardest part for me has been not being able to make the long distance calls that I have been wanting to make over the past few days and the alarm clock issue! Yes I use my phone as an alarm clock right under my pillow...now I have to use an alarm clock that I paid $1 for at a yard sale that Scotty really doesn't like :) He insists on using an alarm clock that he has had since he was like 14 or 15 yrs old...it's actually sort of cute.

So anyway we are in the process of decided to buy a new phone via the web or some other resource or to cancel our service all together and be 'cell phone less' What an odd idea this day in age! Scotty is having mixed feelings-he loves the idea of being touch less but he has also realized the nice convience as well...

Meanwhile if you need to reach us call the HOUSE phone or e-mail...we really aren't avoiding you...we just can't call!!!!

I have been Tagged!

2008-10-15T21:25:00.000-07:00

(sorry this took so, so ,so long Brooke :0)
Tell about 6 unspectacular quirks of yours-

Tag 6 fellow bloggers by linking them ( I don't know how to link :) I tag- Katelyn, Hilarie, Kathryn, Marnae, Sokimna, Diane

6 quirks....

1. I like to scratch my head...it doesn't itch or anything it just feels so, so good! I love it when scotty sits by me when we are watching a movie and he will rub and scratch my head, the bad part is I will probably go bald sooner!! I loose alot of hair sometimes...?

2. I really don't love chocolate! I know I am weird...unless it is a troufel (sp?) -thanks Hilarie-they just melt in your mouth. I prefer sour candies or vanilla ice cream!

3. I really like to read! This is new for me in the past 5 years! I love starting a new book and cannot wait to finish it to start another. It was great nursing McKenna, thats when I got alot of my reading done but she seems too interested in the book I am holding than nursing so that had to stop...therefore my reading has decreased dramatically as well :( I still haven't finished the partial draft of the 5th book to twilight)

4. I love to go camping with family! I don't care that I cannot shower for a week or have the normal amenities that are at home. I love the brisk morning air and noise of the morning birds...I love sitting around in camp chairs reading or talking. I feel I have 'no worries' when I am camping...mom, dad and JW I wish we were camping with you right now!

5. I have to burp! It's a problem, I know! Sometimes too often and it's not always lady like :0) I just don't like air pressure build-up...it's too uncomfortable. I try to be somewhat careful who I am around though. But, sometimes it happens and some people are annoyed..or maybe disgusted?!

6. I have a "clear" mole on the side of my left arm...and I hate it when people notice it and want to touch it. The mole tends to be extra sensitive!

Straw maze

2008-10-15T20:41:00.001-07:00

We went to a Straw Maze outside of town with our friends the Allens!! It was so much fun. We thought it was going to be a corn maze and when we showed up and saw the straw bales I wasn't sure how fun it was going to be?? But...the kids and us adults had a great time. Hilarie and I were mainly with the kids running around when we were seperated from the dads. We thought we were making progress until we found Chad back at the beginning. Chad and Scotty had made it to the end. Scott was going to go from the end and Chad from the beginning to try and find us. Needless to say there was a whole other section we hadn't explored yet! The people who put it together did a great job. While we were waiting for Scotty to make it back out when ran into some friends from the ward who planned a work party and let us join in on their donuts and hot coco. Thanks Katheryn and Adam!

Woohoo!

2008-09-15T23:18:00.000-07:00

So Grandma J gave me some great news...about Twilight! I guess there was going to be a 5th book...check out this site http://www.stepheniemeyer.com/

We can read the partial draft to Midnight Sun!
And yes...I have already started!

Fun times!

2008-09-15T23:09:00.000-07:00

Talan and Brooklyn!! They were playing up stairs a little too quiet to so I went up to check on the two of them and found them in the bathroom with a bottle of lotion!! The lotion was all over their hair! They said they were getting ready for church (ha, ha) I guess lotion and mouse are the same :)

Saturday afternoon we took the 4-wheeler out by mesa falls to ride along an old rail road. It was really fun imaging what explores thought when traveling through such beautiful wilderness. On one of the breaks Talan of coarse was right in the sand building a 'sand castle'. Scotty said we traveled about 38 miles...my tail bone could definently tell the next day :)

Cute Pics!

2008-09-15T23:02:00.000-07:00

Here are some cute pics of McKenna...I cannot believe how fast she is growing! She is sure developing her own little personality:)

Labor Day Weekend!

2008-09-15T22:40:00.000-07:00

Katelyn, Dallin, Eric and Cassie came down for the weekend to take Eric and Cassie to the Oregon Coast. It's always so much fun to have all the family in town.
Talan and Great-Great Grandma, with a smile!!

We love having the chance to see Great Grandma and Grandpa Thompson.

Talan wanted to go run into the water at Seaside...crazy little kid that is obsessed with water! Well Jessica and Katelyn said the would take him out to get his feet wet. Talan thought that was really neat and as time went on he got braver and braver until one time when he turned to run away from the tide and fell flat on his face! It was pretty funny but he was a little scared...but not for long. After he calmed down and took his wet shirt and pants off he wanted back in...I didn't bring any other clothes so the only option was to strip down to the diaper!!! I am a crazy mom I know but the weather wasn't actually all that bad and I kept felling his legs which were actually pretty warm (he is just like his dad)!!! After awhile dad bought a kite and Granpa helped him fly it then the sat in the sand and built 'sand castles' for along time. What great day at the beach! Later of coarse we walked down the main strip and let Talan ride the carosel...as you can see he had alot of fun.

Aunt Katelyn and Mckenna...how adorable!

Scotty is all about camp fires!! It was great to have a fire in the back yard when ever we had the energy to do so :)

Aunt Kim and Bailey...we miss you!

Jackie is in Town!!

2008-09-15T22:35:00.000-07:00

Jackie thanks for making time in your busy, busy schedule to see us!! It has been way...too long.

I am geared up and ready to go!

2008-09-15T22:28:00.000-07:00

Whenever Dad gets home from work and geared up to go for a bike ride Talan ALWAYS wants to go so today he geared up just like dad...helmet, gloves, glasses and of coarse style :)

Someday he will be able to come along!

Mount St. Helens

2008-09-15T22:23:00.000-07:00

Another hike exploring!! Talan really enjoyed it. All along the hike he gradually filled his pockets with rocks. He has become quite the rock collector. The weather was great. This is the first time I can remember being on top of the mountain were you could see!! Usually there is dense fog that you cannot see past the rock wall at the look out!

Mt. Hood

2008-09-15T22:19:00.000-07:00

(August 16, 2008)

We went for a drive and hike up to Mt. Hood. What a beautiful place! Talan likes to call it 'mountained hood' McKenna is such a trooper. We are training her early for all the hikes and adventures that are sure to come.

Look at me mom!

2008-09-15T22:13:00.000-07:00

(August 11, 2008)
Talan as usual come wakes up and come into our room between 5am and 6am. Well one morning I was a little tired and kept trying to bribe Talan to go back to sleep...well all of a sudden I wake up and I can see that Talan has his lamp on that is by his bed so we can read books to him before he goes to sleep. So, I was think maybe Grandma was in the room but then realized the actual bedroom light was not on which grandma would have turned on and I heard Talan talking. I decided I better get my butt our of bed and see what is going on, well this is what I found! He pulled a folding chair up to the crib and climbed in. When he saw me his first words were, "look mom, Kenna's awake!" Oh, I wonder why??

FOOD!

2008-09-15T22:09:00.000-07:00

McKenna's First Rice cereal!! August 12, 2008. Boy does she like real food. Now she cannot get her eyes off your food when you are eating around her. Wow she is growing up so quickly!

Murrayhill Ward Camp-out!

2008-09-15T21:55:00.000-07:00

We were able to go to the ward camp-out at Fort Steven's along the Oregon Coast! The weather was wonderful all weekend. Talan had a great time playing in the sand and riding his bike...he would ride his bike around and around the park making sure he hit every puddle! When he was riding around our site he decided to plant a tree (twig) in the trunk of his trike :) We were able to do some hiking around the sites. Grandma, Andrew, Jessica, Scotty and I road our bikes to Battery Russell..ok so it was raining then. It was really fun though!

It's breakfast time!

Summer Fun with Taylor and Haley

2008-09-15T21:47:00.000-07:00

Talan always looked forward to playing in the water at Taylor and Haleys!

Haley and Talan found a Slug...how fun!

We visited Tualatin Fire Deparment and explored a fire truck. Papa would be proud. Thanks for such a fun summer Taylor and Haley!

I am WAY Behind!!

2008-09-15T21:29:00.000-07:00

Sorry I went over an entire month before posting any of our great adventures. So I am going to attempt to make up for it. So much happened during August!
On July 26th one of my greatest friends from High School got married at Eagle Rock Lodge near Eugene Oregon and asked Talan to be one of the ring bearers. He was so adorable carring her 'Mr. Wrinkles' and Danielle was absolutely beautiful! The wedding wasn't until Saturday evening so we spent the morning exploring the beautiful mountains and found a lake we could rent a boat and float around in. Talan thought is was pretty cool! Michelle at the wedding was teaching Talan how to play the viola (sp?), hopefully Talan will have some musical talent :)

McKenna-Picture perfect!

2008-07-23T14:36:00.000-07:00

Who me?

Beautiful Sight

2008-07-23T14:33:00.001-07:00

It's not too often they are both asleep at the SAME time! They were surely warn out at grandma mc's

Off-road

2008-07-23T14:29:00.001-07:00

Scotty went to Browns Camp with Uncle Chris to explore with the newly finished beast! When they were home Talan wanted to go for a ride in 'Talan's Jeep.' Scotty has taught Talan how to eye Land Rovers, Land Cruisers and Jeeps...yes at the age of 2 he can tell them all apart :)

4th of July

2008-07-20T14:07:00.000-07:00

For the 4th of July we went camping up by Ukiah with my family. It was so much fun! Grandma Mac made a sand box to play in that he enjoyed when we were at camp. I was curious to see how our 'bike rides' would go. My family is all about riding 4-wheelers so about 2 years ago we bought one from my parents. Well, the rides went good. Talan sat in the front while dad drove and I had McKenna in her Snuggli while I sat in the back. Oddly enough McKenna loved the rides and fell asleep everytime! I was amazed someone could sleep on such a bumpy ride!

Uncle JW showed Talan how to hold a weed...he thought it was pretty cool! Grandma Mac always brings Talan his favorite Apple Jack cereal!

One of the days we road the bikes down to the river. Uncle JW actually floated down a little ways in the freezing COLD water. Talan enjoyed sitting in it and of

course throwing rocks!

Thank you Grandpa and Grandma Mac for taking us camping...we loved it!

Hot Air Balloons

2008-07-20T13:55:00.000-07:00

The day before we headed to Walt Disney World there was a Hot Air Balloon festival in Tigard. I really wanted to take the kids early in the morning to watch. Well, early ment we needed to leave the house at 5:45 am! We were going on an adventure! I thought it would be early enough for Scott to come with us before he went to work..but apparently it wasn't therefore it would just be myself and the kids! Needless to say I packed a 'sack breakfast' the night before and loaded the kids in their pjs. They had a blast (so , Talans face appears a little confused!) Now everday when dad gets home from work and we talk about our adventures for the day, Talan almost always says he saw a hot air balloon! The things they remember :)

Look mom, I can ride!

2008-07-20T13:45:00.000-07:00

Talan has recently learned how to ride his little bike!! Usually he just pushes on the ground with his feet but now he can use the pedels! He is becoming such a big boy :) His favorite place to ride is in the garage since the concrete is nice and smooth, he says he likes to go FAST...aunt Jessica has a little scooter that he like to scoot around as well. Yesterday dad was going on a bike ride (road bike) and Talan really wanted to go for a 'bike ride' with dad. Someday soon we will all be riding together. Scott is planning on riding to Mt. Hood before we move back to Rexburg...he is amazing!

McKenna's first beach trip!

2008-07-19T18:09:00.000-07:00

Last weekend the Thompson family decided to drive to the coast. In the past we have been very lucky to go and have great weather...well this trip the sun was out and it appeared to be great but the wind was blowing like crazy, therefore a very cold trip! Kenna did great though, except when I had her facing the wind she would gasp as if she couldn't breathe :( We hiked through a cave and then drove to the Tillamook Cheese factory to have a picinic and of coarse buy squeecky cheese!