Just Want to Wish You a Merry Christmas!

What's a Mother to Do

Here are Joey's clean jeans at the beginning of family pictures --

Here is Joey taking a break from family pictures --

Check out Joey's knees at the end of family pictures --

Love this conversation Joe had with his Dad right after Joey used some Christmas money to buy a football--

Dad: How many footballs does Joey have?
Joe: One less than he wants.

Yes Joey has quite the collection of footballs, basketballs, baseballs, soccerballs, and .....

Happy Birthday Tommy!

Tommy

Things about Tommy:

• Loves trucks, cars, and choo- choos

• When we say let’s go get in the car he says, “No truck”

• Has 3 favorite blankets he likes to carry around all at once – one has trucks on it

• Loves going to his Nursery class at church

• Likes to pull out our music stand, put a book on it, and sing and lead the music

• Favorite book is, “The Mitten” by Jan Brett and loves to sneeze like the bear

• Likes to watch sports on TV and says, “GO! GO! GO! GO!”

• Whenever he hears the garage open and Joe is coming home he runs to the back door to greet him. He also runs to the front window when he hears the bus come.

• Almost always says, “No” when you ask him a question ... even when he means yes

• When we go to the grocery store he loves to point at different food and other items he knows the name of and if he doesn’t know the name he says, “UMMMMMM good”

• Is like a squirrel he finds treats and toys and then scampers away and hides them trying not to get caught

• Likes to close his eyes so we will say, “Where did Tommy go?” He also likes to put his blanket on his head or on others and have us say the same thing

• Loves to say, “Bye bye, see ya!”

• Loves fruit – melons of all sorts, bananas, strawberries, apples. He is a good eater and will eat almost anything. Favorite treat is a fruit roll up – he says, “lollup”

• Loves the vacuum. He also points them out when we are in the store and often likes to open the closet where we keep it and get it out.

• Wants to do what Joey is doing whether it is playing outside, practicing the piano, doing homework, doing chores, etc.

• Often stops in the middle of what he is doing, folds his arms and says a prayer

• Is very good at puzzles, especially if it has trucks and cars in it

• Loves to get water from the fridge door and pour it back and forth into 2 or more cups

• Likes to ride his scooter and bike. He also likes to try and get on Joey’s bike and scooter.

• When taking the Sacrament at church insists on putting his used water cup back into the “garbage” part of the tray by himself

• Is a climber! He moves chairs all around the house to get what he wants

• Likes to click his tongue like the metronome when Joey is practicing the piano

• When we are driving around can spot a truck and says, “Truck!” many times a day ... he is the only person we know that loves the road construction around our house and will really miss it when it is gone

• Joey and Tommy love to run outside when Joe leaves for work, get in the back of the truck while he backs out, and then give him knuckles, high-fives, and blow kisses

Tommy's Favorite Toys

.... anything that can go go go or vroooommmmm!

October Fun

Dixie State College Homecoming Parade

Joe's Grandpa, Sam Brooks, Sr., slept on the steps to make sure he was the first student to register 100 years ago. Sam Brooks, Jr., Joe, and our boys all rode in the truck while holding the picture of Sam Brooks, Sr which hangs in the Gardner Center of Dixie College.

Joey's Baptism

Trip to Southern California

Halloween

EiGhT is GrEaT!!!!

WOW! How did you grow up so fast????
HaPpY BiRtHdAy JoEy!!!!!!!

"Y"ard Work

Go Cougars! We are read"Y"!!!!
Joe went a little bit craz"Y" this year.

Hey Everybody It's Family Night ......

Monday nights are always interesting at our house. Joey was in-charge of the Family Home Evening treat this week. Yes we had Doritos Stadium Nachos inspired by Steve Madden. YUM! It's always fun to see what Joey will do with his FHE assignment each week .... keeps us on our toes.

What's All the BUZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

Who says you need hair to be handsome?



Joe needs to get a mole removed from the top of his head and has Doctors orders to cut his hair as short as he feels comfortable ...... today was the day. His awesome co-workers Eric and Andy Dodge didn't want him to do it alone so they also shaved their heads.

TaKe Me OuT tO tHe BaLlGaMe

Phew we made it! Joey has been begging to go to a Roadrunners game all season. We went on Friday, July 30. They ended up playing their very last home game the next night and are only playing road trip games because ..... the team has run out of $$$. Bummer for them!



Joey got to race the mascot! It's not hard to get picked when there aren't many fans there. Joey got 2nd place. You can see in the picture that one of the kids got a head start. The winner got a five game pass to future Roadrunner games. Bummer for them!


So no more peanuts and Cracker Jack or the funny chicken dance ..... hmmmm maybe next year.

Some Summer Time Fun

Memorial Day -- Joe's family has a wonderful tradition to visit the cemetery where his grandparents are buried on Memorial Weekend then we have a pot luck dinner at his sister's house. Always a fun time to reminisce about ancestors and tell our children stories about their great grandparents.

Our friends from Holland came and visited us with Joe's parents.




I did a summer centerpiece tutorial for my sisters blog

Aspen Grove Family Reunion

We spent the first week of July at Aspen Grove Family Camp up Provo Canyon. It was an extended family reunion for my side of the family and we had over 100 people there. It was really fun to see cousins, cousin's kids, aunts and uncles, etc. It was nice to get away from the heat and enjoy that fresh mountain air.

We also opened a time capsule that we sealed in 2000. This is a tradition my grandparents started in the 80's. Joe and I had written letters to ourselves that we opened. In 1990 I wrote that I hoped we would have a son and name him Joey. I don't ever remember thinking that or writing that!!! Would have been nice to remember that when our Joey was born and he wasn't a GIRL like the doctors that had performed the 2 ultra sounds told us :) Funny how many things have changed and some stayed the same the past 10 years. We wrote letters and included pictures in the time capsule that will be opened in 2020.

Every night we had a family devotional where my aunts and uncles took turns telling stories about my Grandma. So glad she is still here with us to hug and cuddle my boys.

This is a picture of our awesome golf team for the biennial Gardner Open Tournament. My cousin Ken and my cousin Jay's son, Jeremy, were members of our team. Now there are a lot of different levels of golfers in this tournament and I am proud to say that I was a contributing member of our team this year and had some long drives. Not bad since the last time I golfed was at the tournament 2 years ago. The secret to my success .... my sandals, a tooth ache, and rented clubs.

Here is Joey getting ready to climb the rock wall.

Swim Team -- Joey did really well this year and we are so proud of him!

Joey's biggest fan! So fun to hear Tommy cheer, "Go go go go go go!"

Tommy loves to help mow the law! In fact both our boys love to mow the lawn. Hope this lasts for years and years.

Wow! The summer goes by so fast.