Lil Rach

Baby Love

2012-02-08T13:31:00.000-08:00

In case you haven't heard... we're expecting more love in our family. Due to arrive August 15th!

Hey Santa

2011-12-20T14:08:00.000-08:00

Stockton was such a lucky boy and got to see Santa at the mall. Stockton was so excited to see him, as you can tell by the enormous grin on his face. His Aunt Holly was working there as Santa's helper, so we even got to cut to the front of the line! Thanks Holly! Stockton told Santa that he wants "Chick, Cars, Mack, and Mr. The King.... and Mater" for Christmas. Mater was one that was added to the list. Uh... slight panic. It's a good thing Stockton got his order into Santa on time!

Santa's Helper from Rachel Haider on Vimeo.

Thanks Holly for letting us see Santa!

Labor of Love

2011-11-30T18:29:00.000-08:00

Stockton was getting too big for his crib. After looking for new "big boy" beds, we couldn't find anything we liked or that would match Stockton's other bedroom furniture. Brady had a great idea. He decided that he would sand down his bed from when he was a little boy and restain it for Stockton.

He put in a lot of hours sanding. Thank you, NBA lockout, for allowing my husband the time to do this!

Then he stained it a color we love.

Stockton was so excited for his new bed! It's the perfect bed, complete with drawers beneath it.

Then we ordered a new bedspread for him. I let Stockton choose it, he choose "worker trucks!" He was so excited when they came in the mail! (Note: he's laying on our bed in the picture, not his new bed.)

And here's the finished project! Thank you Daddy for working so hard on my big boy bed! And here's the double bonus, there are actually two beds and they can be used seperate or as bunk beds and Brady finished them both at the same time! So it's ready for future use!

Next we need to get his room all decorated in "worker trucks." We have some curtains and some wall decals that match his bedspread, but we have yet to put them up.

Thanksgiving

2011-11-24T13:37:00.000-08:00

We had a very pleasant Thanksgiving with the Haider Family.

My mother-in-law had made these darling turkeys and we had to write things that we are thankful for on the feathers. This is Stockton's turkey.

He was excited to eat it.

Brady's thankful turkey.

Brady's favorite part: the turkey leg!

Our little family.

Then we headed outside for some football/throwing leaves.

Thanksgiving 2011 from Rachel Haider on Vimeo.

I'm so thankful for these boys!

Later we headed out to Grantsville. All the Dennis Orgill family was down at the Church Street church havin' a party. So we dropped in. Stockton had a blast in the balloon room. They had a couple of huge fans blowing in different directions and it made the balloons go crazy.

Minute to Win it - Thanksgiving 2011 from Rachel Haider on Vimeo.

All the "big kids" were playing some fun "Minute to Win it" Games. Such a fun time!

First Snow

2011-11-05T18:00:00.000-07:00

We got our first snow fall the beggining part of November. It wasn't much of a storm though. As you can see, we couldn't get very much snow to build a snowman. The poor little man was melted by the next day. But, Stockton was still proud of his first snowman of the season!

Halloween Festivities

2011-10-31T21:15:00.000-07:00

We did several fun things to celebrate Halloween.

We made a trip to Gardener's Village to see the witches. We were suppose to go with our playgroup, but we didn't get the memo that they had changed it to another day because this day was going to be so cold. But, Stockton and I braved the freezing temps and enjoyed the witches!

Stockton LOVED this hula hoop witch.

Then the Friday before Halloween we went to Daddy's office to go Trick-or-Treating. All the employees set out candy at their cubicles and some decorated very creatively.

I wish this picture wasn't blurry! It was perfect, Stockton roared at everyone. This is Brady's good work friend, Ryan and he had the perfect reaction! Stockton was so excited to be a dinosaur. And he came up with the idea by himself. He was watching a show one day and they were talking Halloween. He asked me what it was, and I explained it to him. I said, "What do you want to be for Halloween." He replied, "A blue dinosaur." And he never changed his mind.

Some people even make spook alleys. Stockton was very brave and went through all of them!

This was a pumpkin alley. This is where Stockton got his idea for a Mater pumpkin.

Flying Monkeys from Rachel Haider on Vimeo.

One row of cubicles decorated like the Wizard of Oz, complete with flying monkeys! I love how Brady doesn't realize I'm taking a video and not a still shot.

We also went to storytime at the library on Halloween.

A couple of girls from our ward (Kylee and McKinley) were at storytime, too. They are all such good friends!

Of course at night Brady and Stockton went trick-or-treating. Stockton quickly caught on to the idea and didn't want to stop. They hit up almost every house in the ward, those little stinkers.

Punkins!

2011-10-31T15:59:00.000-07:00

We had a lot of fun with pumpkins this year.

Grandma and Grandpa Haider grew these monsters in their garden. They sat on their front porch for a long time, but the night before Halloween, they were STOLEN! Who, how, and why would anyone steal a couple of 200 lb. pumpkins? Crazy, I tell ya!

We carved pumpkins at the Haiders'.

Stockton helped as much as he could. He didn't quite know what to think about the squishy insides.

The whole family joined in on the fun.

Brady decided to do a Detroit Lions logo on his pumpkin.

Stockton requested a Mater pumpkin, so I did one for him.

He loved it!

He also took a liking to Daddy's Lion pumpkin.

It did turn out pretty cool!

Stockton liked roaring at the Lion pumpkin, it was so funny!

Orgill Halloween Party

2011-10-22T20:47:00.000-07:00

We held the "Kinda-Annual" Orgill Halloween party at my house this year. It was a hit as always.

The Dustin Orgill kids.

My little fam. I thought the the little suit I was wearing was my moms in the early 80's. She gave it to me along with a bunch of other costumes a while back. Uh... no... I was informed that it was indeed my Dad's SWIMMING SUIT that he wore in the early 70's. WHAT!? It barely fit me! How the heck did my dad fit into it?! And what the heck was this fad all about for males swimming suits? Gag!

Bryan Orgill fam, with Rachel Ann in the background. (Jackson is the scary guy)

Bryan and Dustin... with their scary costumes!

Dr. Mom and a Lobster.

Stockton roaring for the camera.

He was the cutest little blue dinosaur I ever did see.

Then the WWE crew showed up.

Brad, Niki, and Stratton. Stratton, or should I say Hulk Hogan, was in character the whole time, it was HILARIOUS! He also won "Best Costume."

Donahue kids.

Little Brock as Woody.

Rebecca and Kevin as marathon diehards!

The weather was so nice, we went outside to play a few games and then each of the kids got an exam from Dr. Mom.

Tons of Halloween fun!

Happy Birthday Brady!

2011-10-22T20:21:00.000-07:00

We started the birthday celebration by surprising Brady at work. Stockton picked out the balloons and we hooked it to Brady's favorite candy, Reese's PB cups.

Later that night we went bowling with some family and friends. It was Stockton's first time bowling and he had a BLAST! Although he hated waiting for his turn, so Grandma took him to play in the arcade for a while.

Stockton loves Uncle J.

Stockton did pretty good. And he liked the "slide" for the ball.

Some cologne from Holly and Jace.

Later that week we had some family over for cake and ice cream.

Stockton helped put the candles on and helped blow them out, too.

And of course he volunteered to lick the frosting off the cake decorations! He was excited that he got to keep the tools off the cake.

Happy Birthday Brady! We love you!

Wheeler Farm

2011-10-12T13:04:00.000-07:00

We made a fun trip to Wheeler Farm with our playgroup. First we visited the ducks and geese. It was fun, until one of the geese got a little too demanding and started chasing after people wanting bread.

Pheasants.

Stockton liked all the old tractors.

Pigs! Boy, were they stinky!

All the playgroup kids.

Stockton and I got to go on a hay ride through the farm.

Despite the confused look on his face, this was the highlight for him.

This boy LOVES tractors!

Maine Trip: Day 6

2011-10-05T20:27:00.000-07:00

Of course the day that we left, it was sunny and beautiful. Here's the view from the lake house.

The lake, which had been ugly and grey our whole trip was now gorgeous!

The view of the lake house from the dock. So much fun! Just wish the weather would've been better.

We had about enough time to pack up and drive to the airport, then we were headed home. So sad to leave Maine behind. It was such a fun trip!

Maine Trip: Day 5

2011-10-04T20:06:00.000-07:00

We made a very soggy trip to Camden, ME in hopes of taking a trip on a lobster boat. But, the weather was so horrible that the Lobster tours were cancelled. We did do a little shopping, and headed back to the lake house.

On the way back we stopped at a little seafood shack and bought some live lobsters to boil for dinner. This was Brady's favorite part of the trip!

The lady picking out our lobsters.

Thank you Molly's Seafood!

When we got back to the lake house, the clouds had broken up a little bit, so we were able to spend some time out by the lake.

We decided to build a little fire out by the dock. Dustin, choppin' some wood!

Duster and Loie gettin' the fire started.

Brady and I took the kayak out on the lake for a little spin. It was fun, besides the fact that a HUGE spider started crawling on my face. It had been hiding in the belly of the kayak. Eww I just got the chills thinking about it.

Dustin and Rachel tried to go out on the kayak too, but there was a mishap during the launch, which resulted in a soggy and cold couple. Poor guys! At least Loie's got someone in her "Fall out of a kayak in Maine" club now.

Brady tried some fishing out on the dock a little more.

Then it was time to cook the LOBSTAH!!!

Into the pot she goes!

And a few minutes later she comes out nice and red and delicious!

We both enjoyed a whole lobster dinner our last night in Maine. DELICIOSO!!!

Maine Trip: Day 4

2011-10-03T19:34:00.000-07:00

On our 4th day we made the trip over to Mt. Desert Island.

Our first stop was Somesville, where some of our friends live. There is a cute little bridge over a creek. We've seen this on calendars and stuff. And it's right across the street from our friend's house.

Here are some mums... oh yeah, and we are on the bridge in the background.

We stopped by our friend, Wendall's house. He's such a great guy!

His house is right on the water, on Somes sound. This is the view from his dock. The tide was out, but still gorgeous!

Our next stop was Bar Harbor. Great shopping, great food! And of course, LOBSTER!!!

We ate at this fun little diner. Not really what I had in mind for good seafood, but it was pretty good. And their blueberry pie was to die for!

Next we made our way to Acadia National Park. This is the only sand beach for hundreds of miles. See that big wave? Yeah, it got Brady. This was about 4.5 seconds before he got wet from the knees down and .... dropped his new camera... in the Atlantic Ocean. Nice one Brady. Luckily the memory card survived. The camera on the other hand has now become Stockton's camera!

I'm trying really hard to smile in this pic. In reality I was pretty upset about the whole camera thing. But, it's not the only camera fatality our family has had in Maine. My mom and her camera tipped over a kayak and fell in a lake when I was in high school.

Next stop: Thunder Hole. It's kinda like a cave that has been carved out of the rock by the waves. When the waves hit just right it makes a big boom and splashes really high. We came at the perfect time. Notice the idiots on the rocks above. See how the rocks are wet? I wonder how they got wet? Probably because their are man-eating sized waves, you ding dongs!

This is the trail head of the Precipes Trail. My dad and I hiked this when I was 13. What were we thinking? The top of the mountain is in the clouds in this picture and it's basically a trail that climbs shear cliff faces. At some spots, we had to inch our way across ledges or hold on to rod iron rails to climb the shear rock faces. So spooky!

Next we visited Astacou Gardens. They are some gorgeous Japanese gardens that were breathtaking.

Dustin and Brady posing nicely by the little Japanese ornamental garden thingy.

Here's some sample pics of the gorgeous plants.

On the way home we passed through a town called "Stockton Springs." Of course we had to stop and get that photo.

Maine Trip: Day 3

2011-10-02T14:46:00.000-07:00

Day 3 of our Maine trip fell on Conference sunday. We decided to take a scenic drive to Moosehead Lake and listen to General Conference on the way.

The colors were so beautiful! It was probably the most beautiful and relaxing session of conference I've ever had.

We took a break to stretch our legs and we stopped at the trailhead of one of the country's longest trails. The Appalachian Trail goes all the way to Georgia.

Brady hiked down a little bit and the trees opened up to this beautiful lake.

Once we got to Moosehead Lake we went to a little place that my parents found on one of their many trips to Maine. It's a little cabin resort on the lake called "The Birches." The lodge was a rustic old cabin built a long time ago. It was so quaint with the big cozy fire place.

Brady and my dad ordered whole lobsters.

Of course my dad was stoked.

This was Brady's very first whole lobster and he was pretty excited about it. This is the before shot.

After shot. See the contentment on his face and the butter dripping down his chin!? YUM!

Maine Trip: Day 2

2011-10-01T14:31:00.000-07:00

Our first stop was Portland Headlight. It's one of the most recognizable lighthouses you'll ever see. This is because it's the oldest functioning lighthouse in the US. It was commissioned to be built by George Washington in the 1700's.

Brady loved the rocky coast. He said that's what he imagined Maine to look like.

He liked this ship wreck site.

Our next stop was Freeport, ME. It's the outlet store capital of the world! They had tons of outlets, including L.L. Bean, which took up like 6 different buildings! We ate lunch in a little hole in the wall and had a delicious lobster roll and cup of clam chowder. HEAVENLY!!!

We then drove a couple of hours to Rome, ME. Where we rented this beautiful lake house, called "Somerset". It's on Long Pond, which is part of the Belgrade Lakes. It was GORGEOUS!

Brady fished off the dock for a little while before it got too dark.

Then it was off to dinner at a little local joint. Brady got the fried seafood platter! Holy Moly, it was huge! I got a haddock sandwich. Haddock is a delicate white fish from the east coast. It tastes just like halibut to me! YUM!

Maine Trip: Day 1

2011-09-30T14:28:00.000-07:00

Well, technically the first day we just travelled all day. The second our plane touched down in Portland, it started to rain. And the clouds didn't break much until we took off. That night we ate dinner with my mission friend (see below). Then I hit the hay early, while Brady stayed up and watched the BYU vs. USU football game on cable.

Maine Mini-Mission Reunion

2011-09-30T13:41:00.000-07:00

We made a trip to Maine. One of my mission companions, Kendall Michaelsen Hood, lives just a couple hours away from Portland. So she and her cute family made the trip up and had dinner with us.

It was so fun to meet her kids, who I've only seen via blogs and facebook. Thomas is Stockton's same age, and I know they would be great friends! Abby is 10 months is a little beauty!

I loved visiting with Kendall and catching up with her. And most of all reminiscing about the good ol' mission days. Brady loved talking to her husband, Kenta. They quickly found a common passion: college football. They could've talked for hours!

It just love this girl! So many wonderful memories made with her. Thank you Kendall for making the trip up to see us! Eres LO MAXIMO!

Dinosaur Museum

2011-09-14T13:29:00.000-07:00

One day we went to the Thanksgiving Point Dinosaur Museum with some friends. Stockton loved it and asks to go back all the time.

Matching the dinosaurs to their cutouts.

Playing with toy dinos.

Playing in the sand and water. I love how Stockton's little friend, McKinley is making a bouquet out of the palm trees!

Building a dinosaur with McKinley's mom.

Stockton roaring like a dinosaur!

YIKES! A big shark!

And of course, mom's favorite dinosaur... the BYU-a-saurus!

Trying to Catch Up

2011-09-07T21:33:00.000-07:00

After a very busy summer, I'm trying to catch up on blogging. So over the next few days you will see a few posts pop up. They may or may not be in order. Stay tuned...

Tangled Party

2011-09-03T14:51:00.000-07:00

For Anellina's 3rd Birthday, she had a Tangled Party! They had all kinds of fun activities.

Coloring pictures from Tangled.

Stockton pointing out "Tangled."

Being a little rowdy.

Loving Poppa!

Opening presents.

Then RAPUNZEL CAME!!!! Aunt Holly and Jace dressed up like Rapunzel and Flynn Rider. The kids loved it!

She read the story of Rapunzel.

And played fun games with the kids.

So fun to have celebrities at the party!

Then we played "Pin the nose on Flynn." Stockton did pretty good!

And we enjoyed "Tangled" cake. It was such a fun party and the kids had a blast! Happy 3rd Birthday Anellina!

Lina's back in town!

2011-09-02T14:36:00.000-07:00

Anellina and her family came into town for a few days. Lina and Stockton had tons of fun together. They loved watering and picking flowers outside.

Running around.

Playing on the helicopter.

More running around inside.

They rode around on the deck for a while. Anellina figured out a way that she could get a ride on the back of Stockton's trike. She had to stick her legs straight out, but they had a blast doing it. Anellina kept telling Stockton to "Drop me off here, at the airport." And he'd let her off by the back door.

One evening we went swimming at Jace's house. It was a bit nippy, but so fun! Stockton and Daddy went down the big slide together.

SPLASH! Notice: no nose plugged and eyes wide open. Yeah, it was a little traumatic for Stock. He told me later, "Next time I go down that big slide, I'll close my eyes."

Holly and Lina played cute together.

And Grandma Shawna was there to give a helping hand, too.

We had a BBQ and then just as we were getting ready to leave Stockton got sick and threw up in the car. Little did I know that it would turn out to be a HUGE deal. He threw up the whole way home... and kept throwing up for 6 days straight! The poor little guy was so sick and we think he picked up some nasty bug at the splash park. It was so sad. And sadly a lot of the family caught it too :(

Orgill Family Swimming Party

2011-08-29T11:52:00.000-07:00

All the Orgill Cousin's went in together and rented the pool at Deseret Peak Complex.

Stockton ventured into the water with Grandma Orgill, despite cold temperatures and the wind.

Splashing with cousin Emily.

Stock and I went down the water slide about 80 times together. But, once the sun went down, it got too cold and we snuggled up together in a towel.

Trying to stay warm! Brady wasn't feeling well, so he didn't get in. Stratton and Alex goofing off with Brady.

I gave my mom some wonderful birthday gifts. Pink Flamingos... what else!?

Throwing the football to cousins as they jump off the diving board. It was such a fun night with family!

Fun with Grandparents

2011-08-28T11:27:00.000-07:00

Stockton loves his grandparents.

Stockton giving some love to Poppa during a trip up to Logan.

Stockton loves playing with all the old toys at Poppa's house.

Dumping marbles into a pie tin.

Then pushing the marbles around with a tractor.

Stockton adores his Grandpa Orgill. He loves when Grandpa reads him stories and takes him for walks up to "two waters." (A canal bridge, there's water on one side of the bridge and on the other side of the bridge, thus "two waters.")

Stockton also loves his Grandma Shawna. On her birthday, he wanted to be right in on the action. He loved it when we sang to her, he thought we were singing to him, too.

And he had to help her blow out the candles, too!

Playgroup

2011-08-26T19:55:00.000-07:00

All during the summer we were involved in a playgroup in our ward. Stockton looked forward to it every week and we had so much fun with his friends! Here's some of the fun times we had with our playgroup.

Wild West Park in West Jordan with our neighbor Ethan.

Our neighbors Brittany and Matthew.

Playing at Classic Skating Fun Center.

Stockton loved all the blow up toys inside.

And he liked all the little rides and playing "tokens" (all the arcade games).

Then we went for a dip in the kiddie pool. Stockton loved going down the froggie slide.

Another day we went to he splash park in Herriman.

Some of our playgroup friends.

Playing at the pool.

Snack time.

Stockton over took my lounge chair!

Summer Memories

2011-08-18T12:16:00.000-07:00

Stockton loved playing out in the yard all summer long. We would go out and he would find some fun games to play.

He would pick mommy's flowers...

...and put them in my hair.

Then of course he found a cone to put on his head.

I love this pic of him running away and the cone falling off. But, of course it was the summer of potty training, so no pants were being worn. Thus it is censored for the masses.

County Fair

2011-08-12T14:35:00.000-07:00

We went to the County Fair again this year, since it's just a few blocks away from our house.

First we visited the petting zoo, Stockton was kinda scared of it this year. Although he liked the zebra!

Then he spotted the pony rides and he was so excited to ride!

Then he spotted the motorcycles! What a little stud!

Then he saw the giant slide. He just had to go down!

We ended the night with the demolition derby. Stockton loved watching the "trucks crash!"

Stockton catching a ride on Daddy's shoulders on the way back to the car. What a fun night with the family!

Home/Visiting Teaching

2011-08-10T19:40:00.000-07:00

There's a couple in our ward. She is my visiting teacher and he is our home teacher. They have a boat and go out all the time. So for the month of August they took us boating for home/visiting teaching. The best home/visiting teaching lesson I've ever gotten, by far!

Only my second time wake boarding. And Brady's first time (he usually water skis.) He did way better than I did! Two seconds after this picture was taken I did a total face plant.

Sister and Brother T.

Tubing on the giant tube. It was fun, except that Brother T is a CRAZY boat driver and gave me a nice whiplash on this thing!

Playdough!

2011-08-08T19:28:00.000-07:00

Ever since his Aunt RoShawn gave him some playdough for his birthday, Stockton has loved playing with it. Sometimes he asks me to make some pretty funny things out of the dough. Please observe:

"Daddy's fo-whee-wa" (4-wheeler)

"A ball hoop"

"A geen ball hoop"

"My sandbox"

Girls' Camp

2011-08-06T14:50:00.000-07:00

I got to go to girls' camp this year. It's the first year that I was able to go the whole time. It was quite the adventure! We went to a place called Reid Ranch. We stayed in tents, but we had some nice facilities and activities, like showers, a pool, three meals a day served to us, paddle boats, and horse back riding!

We did some crafts. Here the girls are making t-shirts with the word "BOOT" which stood for "Build Our Own Testimony."

At the lake.

In the paddle boats.

Swimming!

Hiking.

Horseback riding. The girls were excited about horseback riding, but some were pretty nervous. They went a couple of times while we were there. On the second time around I was the only leader that went with them. Something spooked the horses and they all started to turn around and run back down the mountain. A total of 15 girls were thrown or jumped off their horses! Only me and one other girl stayed on! There were a lot of bumps, scrapes, and bruises. And one girl hit her head and hurt her leg pretty bad. But, luckily there were no serious injuries. It was honestly one of the scariest moments of my life! I'm just so glad that it all turned out okay.

After the whole ordeal, the cowboys came to our camp and explained that the horses must have smelled something that made them turn and run like that and apologized for what had happened. All the girls were head over heels for the cowboys, so they loved the visit!

Lots of fun memories with a fun group of girls!

July Fun

2011-07-31T20:22:00.000-07:00

Here are some random shots of fun things we did during the month of July.

Fireworks at Grandma and Grandpa Haiders.

Notice the blow torch that Uncle J is carrying- the ONLY way to light fireworks ;)

Chowin' down on some corn from Grandma and Grandpa Haider's garden. Yum!

Helping mommy wash dishes. This is one of Stockton's favorite activities! He'll wash dishes for hours if I let him. Unfortunately it usually ends up with more work for me cleaning up spills all over the kitchen.

One day while washing dishes, Stockton said to me, "Look, Mommy, I made a tower!" I was quite impressed with his balancing act.

10 Year Class Reunion

2011-07-30T21:03:00.000-07:00

This summer I was in charge of my 10 Year Class Reunion. It was so much work, but so worth it! We had a great turn out and it was so great to see old friends.

Rather than posting it all again, please visit our class blog: http://grantsvillecowboys2001.blogspot.com/

I was voted as "Most Recognizable." Which means I look like I'm still 18? Sweet! I'll take it!

A HUGE thanks to Megan Butler Grover, Stephanie Camp Talbot, Marci Askerlund Hall, and Traci Millward Jensen who were on my committee. And another HUGE thanks to all our spouses! You guys made this whole thing possible!

Emily's Birthday

2011-07-24T20:44:00.000-07:00

Emily turned 11 and we had a fun family party in the canyon above Mapleton.

The gorgeous girls: Rebecca, Emily, Heather, and Ashley

The gang, just chillin' around the camp fire.

Emily and her beautiful and delicious cake.

The Donahue girls: Ashley, Danielle, Emily, and Heather.

Goofin' off with Grandpa Orgill

Grandpa played some upbeat primary songs for Stockton in the car. Stockton LOVED them. Grandpa let us borrow the CD on the way home and then we had to get one of our own and it's one of Stockton's fav's.

Stock and Brock in a cousin's embrace.

Potty Time!

2011-07-14T20:35:00.000-07:00

Stockton has been potty training. He's been doing very well! We kicked off his potty training with a potty party. It was "Cars" themed. When he woke up in the morning I had pictures from "Cars" in the bathroom and I had a "Cars" chart and stickers, and new "Cars" underwear. I also had a gift for him: a potty-training doll. Stockton was so excited for the doll. I asked him what he wanted to name him and he said, "Baby Mud." Stockton taught baby Mud how to go potty and then carried him around with him all day.

Snuggling up with Baby Mud and his new underwear. Each time Stockton went potty I rewarded him with a sticker, a snack, and juice. He probably had 10 juice boxes (Cars themed of course.) Which then encouraged him to need to use the potty. Then by the end of the day he had gone a gazillion times in his potty. It was a great way to start off the whole process.

4th of July

2011-07-04T12:07:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful old-fashioned 4th of July in Grantsville with my family.

Stockton loves his Grandpa Orgill.

And his cousin Brock. (When I first took this picture I thought it was so cute, then I realized that it looked eerily familiar... http://awkwardfamilyphotos.com/2011/06/28/brothers/)

Cutie cousins.

Gorgeous girlies.

Here comes the parade!

Stockton loved the firetrucks of course!

Of course there always has to be a few strange parade entries in the G-ville parade, right?

And the returning attraction. I can't believe that horse is still going!

We came back to my parents house for a BBQ and the kids played in the sprinklers. Stockton is throwing his bouncy ball that he caught at the parade.

Gotta love the "sprinkler to the face" face.

Brady had to get in on the fun, too.

We then headed down to the carnival at the park.

Stockton rode on the swings with his cousin Shae.

We came home and did sparklers then sat on our deck and watched fireworks all over the valley. This was the first year that they legalized aerial fireworks and it was CRAZY! There were gazillions of fireworks going off all around us. I've never seen anything like it!

Zoo!

2011-06-30T18:55:00.000-07:00

RoShawn and her kids came to visit for a week. Poor Anellina broke her foot the week before they came. So we were in search for entertainment that didn't require her to walk. So we packed the kids in the stroller and away we went!

Stockton had had enough of the stroller, but insisted on walking backwards.

Roarrrrrrring like the dinosaur.

Of course the playground was a hit.

Taking a rest with Grandma. What a fun day!

First Date?

2011-06-30T18:45:00.000-07:00

Stockton had a play date with his little girlie friend, Olivia. They had tons of fun.

Stockton was feeling pretty confident.

They even got close.

So he busted a move.

And he even got a little lip action when they parted ways. Pretty good for a first date!

What a Character

2011-06-27T21:38:00.000-07:00

Stockton's Aunt Holly has the funnest job. She dresses up as princesses for birthday parties and other events. Stockton had the chance to see her in action.

First he saw her as Snow White at the library for storybook character day.

RoShawn and her kids were in town and were able to join the fun, too!

Stockton was totally stoked when he saw Spiderman there, too!

There were all kinds of characters there. Jack Sparrow did such a great job. He tried to have Stockton wear his hat, but Stockton was a little leery.

The Star Wars Storm Troopers and Darth Vader were there. All the kids were deathly afraid of those "scary guys."

There were fun activities and games to play, too.

A few days later Holly was dressed up as Rapunzel at a Daddy Daughter night at Chick-Fil-A.

Stockton even got a kiss from her. (See the lip print on his cheek?)

Not surprisingly Stockton was more interested in the Chick-Fil-A cow! Typical boy.

He's had fun with all these characters. Later I showed him the pictures of Holly dressed up as Snow White and Rapunzel to see if he really recognized her. When I asked him "Who's that?" he said "Snow White." But, then when I asked him who Rapunzel was he said, "Aunt Holly." Clever little man!

Country Fest Parade

2011-06-18T21:07:00.000-07:00

We started a new family tradition of attending the Country Fest Parade. This year we just rode our bikes to the parade route. We got there early so we could find a spot in the shade. But, man we should've been looking for a spot in the sun. It was COLD, windy morning! Luckily we had thrown in jackets at the last minute.

Stockton like the Bob the Builder on this float.

He LOVED the fire trucks!

He was bouncin' to the music every time a band went by. It was so cute!

Moab

2011-05-09T13:27:00.000-07:00

For our 4th Annivesray, Brady and I had a nice little weekend get-away to Moab. It was so warm, and I loved every second of it! I'm so sick of the cold. The first day we visited Arches National Park where we saw a few of the sights.

Balanced Rock.

Turret Arch.

North and South Windows.

Then that evening we went on a Sunset Jetboat tour down the Colorado River.

The scenery was breaktaking! If you haven't ever done this, do it!!! After the tour was over they had a dutch oven dinner for us.

The next day we headed back to Arches. First we hiked to Delicate Arch. It was amazing! Definately one of the highlights.

Yes that is us standing under the arch. It's a lot bigger than I thought it was!

On the way back down Brady found what could possibly be the smallest arch in the park!

We saw some petroglyphs.

Then we hiked through Devil's garden and saw a few more arches.

Landscape Arch. We were in awe at how long and narrow it is!

Tunnel Arch.

Pine Tree Arch.

Then we went on a hummer tour, crawlin' over the rocks near Moab. It was such a thrill! This is the hummer behind us going up the "desert fin" that we had just gone up. If you can't tell, there is a steep drop off on both sides. YIKES!

The hummer ride definately got the blood pumping. It didn't help that the driver was half nuts. But, it was tons of fun!

Up on top of the rocks we had a great view of the Colorado River and on the other side is Arches National Park.

Then we ended the ride at a gorgeous view point overlooking Moab and we watched the sunset.

Then I drove us back. Yeah, right!

The next day we got up and headed home. But, we took a detour on Highway 128, which has been voted one of the best Scenic Byways in the US. It was gorgeous! I highly recommend it! I have been to Moab a couple of times but never did this much adventurous stuff. It was such a blast and so close to home! I can't wait to come back again and again!

Easter Weekend

2011-04-25T12:49:00.000-07:00

We had such a great Easter!

The Easter bunny came on Saturday, because he was so busy on Easter Sunday.

The Easter Bunny brought Stockton a tricycle! Too bad he can't reach the peddles even though the seat is adjustable! Poor kid got his mom's legs.

Searching for Easter eggs. He had a hard time gathering Easter eggs. He just wanted to take his time and open each one and eat the treat inside before moving on to the next one. I don't blame him!

Saturday afternoon we went out to Grantsville for the Orgill family party. And look who showed up!!!! The EASTER BUNNY! Stockton was so excited. (By the way, it's really my brother Brad in the costume.)

Showing Grandpa Orgill the yummy candy inside the Easter egg.

Finding eggs with Brock.

Oh, here's a good one!

That night we colored eggs at the Haiders,. Stockton and Anellina hadn't seen each other for months and had a blast together.

Easter Sunday started out with church. What handsome men!

Then we headed to the Haiders' for another Easter egg hunt. It was not very warm outside so we did the hunt in the basement.

Anellina was so excited to find the pink egg!!!

Giving all the eggs to Grandma as they found them.

The Easter Bunny left a message on the eggs, you could read it when you lined them up. It gave a clue to where their Easter baskets were hidden.

They found their Easter baskets upstairs in the front room! Then there was another clue in their baskets leading them to another surprise.

They found it in the dryer!

Yay! New spring outfits!

This was Stockton's favorite toy in the Easter basket. It's a little bunny and carrot fan. I told him to keep it away from his eyes... so what does he do? Luckily the fins are a soft foam.

Stockton loved being with Baby Carsten. They are about the same size! Sheesh!

The day ended with Stockton showing Anna his new hele-ca-ca teeter totter that he got for his birthday. Then Anna and her family headed back to Colorado. It was a sad parting for the kids. The next day Stockton said to me, "Want Baby Carsten, Anna, Ama (grandma) over here." He was missing them already.

Such a fun weekend with family! I am so grateful for all my blessings, especially the Atonement of Jesus Christ. I'm grateful that he suffered and died for me, but more importantly that he LIVES for me!

Happy 2nd Birthday Stockton!!!

2011-04-13T21:28:00.001-07:00

I can't believe my little Stockton is 2 years old! He has been looking forward to this for along time. He has been talking about turning 2 for weeks! If you asked him how old he was going to be he would say, "TWO!!!" Then you ask him what kind of party he was going to have, he would say, "BIRTHDAY party!!!!..... Buzz & Woody!" Well, the Buzz & Woody party did not disappoint him! Tons of our family showed up and it was so great to have them there to celebrate!

Everywhere you turned you saw Buzz & Woody.

He had a lovely Toy Story cupcake display.

One of his favorite gifts was this Woody hat. He loved it and started putting it on everyone. (I got it at the dollar store! What a bargain!)

He got a "fwee slide!" (He can't just say "slide" he has to add "weeee" in front of it, but for some reason says "wee" with an f.)

The Haiders spoiled him with this "Hele-ca-ca" teeter totter. They know how obsessed he is with helicopters, so this was perfect! He LOVES it!

Blowing out the candle was hilarious! He couldn't quite get it, so mom had to help... just a bit.

He chose a cupcake with Rex on it.

The next morning he was loving playing with all his new toys. Then he asked to watch "Buzz & Woody." As he watched I set up all his presents to take a picture. He set Jessie and Woody up by the TV. The chair he is sitting on is also a Toy Story chair. And yes this is Toy Story 2 that he is watching, it just happens to be a random part with an American Flag in it. And this is the picture that turned out best!

Stockton we are so happy to have you in our family! You make us proud to be your parents. You are so much fun and you make everyone around you happy! We love you!

(And if you've made it to the end of the post, I don't know what the monkey is going on with these spacing issues! Blasted blogspot!)

Spring Snow

2011-03-09T14:36:00.000-08:00

I am so ready for spring! But, Mother Nature had different plans I guess. We got a lovely snow storm in the first week of March. Of course Stockton loved every second of it... while it lasted that is.

Taking a ride on the snow shovel!

Falling in the snow.

Mowing the snow.

Trying to throw snowballs at the airplanes in the sky.

Just Goofin' Off

2011-03-09T14:10:00.001-08:00

Here's several random photos explaining what we've been up to lately... it looks like we've just been goofin' off!

Found daddy's sun glasses!

What a stud!

CHEEEEESE!

Finger-lickin' good Valentine's cookies.

Beautiful PINK roses from Brady for Valentine's Day. It only took several very subtle reminders to remind Brady that pink roses are my favorites. He should know by now, don't you think?

Watching videos of Anellina, in heels of course.

Crashing while watching shows has become a regular occurrence.

Obsessed much with stickers? He did this to himself.

Then took them off his face and placed them on my pants.

He asked me to take one more pic of him. Oh, looks like one sticker is there to stay.

Crawling in the laundry basket is always fun.

Almost as cool as chilling in G-ma and G-pa Orgill's fridge!

Celebrating my b-day at the parents' house.

Stockton loved playing with his cousins and thought he was a big kid!

February... time to re-evaluate

2011-02-01T12:39:00.000-08:00

So February is here, which I can't believe. This is the wonderful month where we start our new years resolutions over again because we didn't do so great in January! And that's exactly what I plan to do. So I wanted to re-evaluate my goals and start again.

My Uncle Joel, who passed away last July used to set goals in five different areas in his life: personal, physical, intellectual, spiritual, and financial. He said that's how my grandpa used to do it. So that's what I've done.

So here are my goals for 2011 and how I've been doing on them:

PERSONAL

One deep cleaning or organization chore each week- this has been awesome! When I just focus on one thing a week it seems so much more manageable. And I feel like I've been able to get a lot done. I've cleaned out the pantry and the fridge, deep cleaned the bathrooms, and organized our kitchen desk. This week I've started to organize Stockton's baby clothes and put them away in storage.

Date night twice a month- this has more than exceeded my expectations. We've actually gone on a date once a week and it's been amazing!

Complain less, compliment more- I'm doing pretty well on the compliment part, but not so well on the complaining part

Write more thank you notes - I've done okay

Finish Stockton's scrapbook through 2 years, Finish first two years of family scrapbook - Oh man, I haven't done anything on this. Maybe I need to set more short term goals, like one page a week. Okay that's my new goal, do one scrapbook page a week!

PHYSICAL

Exercise 2-3 times a week- I've done pretty good, it didn't help that I hurt my back for a week.

Eat less sweets and pop, eat healthier snacks - I've done pretty good on this. Having clementines and yogurt on hand has really decreased my chocolate intake.

INTELLECTUAL

Continue listening to books on CD- Check. I this goal last year too and I listened to tons of books in the car. And I've loved it! Right now I'm listening to Anna Karenina.

Draw a picture of Stockton- Oh, geez. Haven't started on this one.

SPIRITUAL

Scriptures and prayers daily- Okay, maybe I don't want to talk about this one. I'm still in 1 Nephi Ch. 1... don't hate.

Temple attendance once a month- CHECK!

Have more charity- I'm not so sure about this one. How do I really measure it? One minute I feel so charitable, the next minute I need to work on the whole "not easily provoked" thing.

Work on Personal Progress - needs improvement.

FINANCIAL

Continue to price match at Wal-mart and clip coupons - I've definitely been doing this and I've saved quite a bit!

It's amazing how much happier I am when I accomplish these goals. It's like a weight being lifted off my shoulders when I can check one thing off my list. So I will continue to work on them and improve myself. Here's to successful February!

Puppy Bus

2011-02-01T12:26:00.000-08:00

The other day Stockton put all his stuffed animals in the laundry basket and was pushing them around. He told me it was his "Puppy Bus." I guess he chose that name because the biggest stuffed animal was a blue puppy. And he loves busses these days.

Then he decided he wanted to get in the bus. He scooted to one side and told me to get in, too. I stood in there with him, but he wanted me to sit down.

I tried to squat down and I lost my balance and fell back and caught this pic on the way down.

Stockton thought it was the funniest thing ever. So he tried to fall out, too. (Sound familiar, Sharon? It must be genetic... trying to fall.)

He could not stop laughing. It was such a sweet moment with my cutie little boy!

In other Stockton news. He loves putting mommy and daddy's shoes. He looks pretty glum in this picture, but he really was excited to be wearing Daddy's basketball shoes.

And here he's got on daddy's earmuffs.

I love this kid! Never a dull moment!

Christmas 2010

2010-12-26T21:10:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful Christmas holiday. It was so much fun to see Stockton experience Christmas at this age . He doesn't quite understand what is going on yet, but he loves it anyway! We spent Christmas Eve with my family. We had wonderful food, a "concert", and exchanged gifts.

Stockton was fascinated, but slightly frightened, by Grandpa's choo choo train.

Stockton got a toy helecopter, or "hele-ca-ca" as he says it. He LOVES that thing. He pulled it all around the house.

Then he discovered there are balls that you can push down into it, and that occupied him for a while.

Stock and Brock... two handsome boys! (Can you tell which one has a father that is 6' 3" and which one has a father that is 5' 8"?)

Alex got a Beatles poster. He was so amazed by it, he just sat and stared at it all night. He is a HUGE Beatles fan if you couldn't tell!

It was such a fun night with my family.

We then headed to the Haiders' house, where the kids opened their Christmas pajamas.

Jordan holding brand new Baby Carsten, who was dressed for the occasion.

We all then headed over to our house to open our big gift from Brady's parents. A new BBQ!! And Stockton got one of his own, too! This gift was sitting in a box in our garage for a few weeks, with a blanket covering it and instructions not to peek. We guessed it was everything BUT a BBQ! Brady's Dad and brother set it up while we were at my family's house on C-mas Eve. What a great surprise!

Then it was off to bed. Reading "Night Before Christmas." Or as Stockton calls it "anta book." That's right... anta, with no S. So we tried to get him to say "Sssssanta." He thought we were telling him to say it quietly, so now he says "Shhhhh .... anta" in a whisper. So cute!

Well Santa did not disappoint this year! Stockton got spoiled rotten! He got a toy cleaning kit with a toy broom, dust pan, and dust buster. He vacuumed Grandma's carpet for a good hour!

He got a plush Buzz. He got tons of Toy Story things, include the movie, clothes, and underwear. He also got a lot of Cars things, including clothes, vitamins, and a sippy cup.

He got a Tickle me Elmo, and loves it! He also got Elmo books, stickers, and potty training chart.

This was just a sampling of what Stockton got. Some of his other favorites are his "apples" (play food), toy fishing kit (homemade by RoShawn and darling!), his "Anna Book" (a photo book with tons of pictures of him and Anellina) and a basket ball hoop from Uncle Jordan!

Grandma Haider's special gift was copies of Stockton and Anellina's scrapbooks. RoShawn and I have been working on them digitally and finally got them printed. They turned out so cute!

Later that night we talked to some of Brady's family in CA on the iPhone. Brady's Uncle asked Stockton what he got for Christmas. Stockton knew exactly what he had asked and rattled off, "Buzz and Woo-ya (Woody), Cars, Elmo." So cute!

Stockton had such a fun day. And was worn out from it all, but still was so excited to play with all his new toys.

We put him to bed, but at two in the morning he woke up asking for his toys. He would not settle down until he got to play. So, Brady took him out to the family room and turned on Toy Story and Stockton played with his "cooker." I guess he likes his gifts!

It was such a fun Christmas and we did get spoiled rotten. But, the best part was being with family and reflecting upon the birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ. It makes me so happy that Stockton can recognize the baby Jesus just as much as he can recognize Santa.

Let it Snow!

2010-12-26T21:09:00.000-08:00

Last week Anellina stayed with Grandma Haider for a few days after her baby brother Carsten was born. One night she came over to play with Stockton. It had just snowed a few inches so we decided to go out and play!

Brady took them for a ride on the four wheeler.

Then he pulled us on the sled behind the four wheeler.

Then we decided to build a snowman! Here's the bottom layer of the snowman.

The snow was so wet and heavy that Brady collapsed after lifting the second snowball up unto the base of the snowman.

Anellina helping to roll the snowman's head.

The finished product! That's one tall snowman! We didn't get a chance to put a face on him or anything because of a much needed potty break. But, we had snow much fun!

Food, Friends, Fun!

2010-12-26T19:17:00.000-08:00

We got together for a much needed group date with my high school friends. We met at Texas Roadhouse and had a blast. I don't think we've all gotten together with our spouses for about 3 years. We were only missing Julie and Joe, but I guess we'll give them a break, since they live in Florida. It was a lot of fun to catch up. Loff you guys!

P.S. Yes I am standing up in this picture... stop laughing.

David Archuleta / Mormon Tabernacle Christmas Concert

2010-12-26T18:44:00.000-08:00

I tried so hard to get tickets the the MoTab Christmas concert this year. Why? Well, not because they are the best choir in the world, not because they put on one heck of a good Christmas concert... but because the guest singer this year was a someone that maybe you've heard of...his name is DAVID ARCHULETA!!!!!!! To say the least I'm a huge David Archuleta fan. (See past post.) So I was utterly disappointed when I wasn't able to get tickets. I was considering buying them, or freezing my nose hairs off in the standby line to try to get in. But, then a Christmas miracle happened. My sweet co-worker, Chuck, who knows what a Archie fan I am offered me two tickets. I have bowed to him every time I've seen him since. How can you possible thank a person enough for such a kind deed?

So knowing that Brady would probably rather get a root canal than go to a David Archuleta concert, I invited my sweet mom. We had a blast! We got uptown way early and ate a lovely dinner at Little America. Then we took TRAX up to Temple Square and enjoyed the lights. We then got to our seats a full hour and a half early. (Which it was a good thing because thousands of people didn't make it in the doors and were turned away. I had no idea that any of that was going on outside.) But, the time went by fast because the choir and dancers were still practicing because we went for their dress rehearsal performance.

David Archuleta was AMAZING! His voice is like buttah! I could have listened to Silent Night 100 times. Of course by then I wouldn't have had any more tears left. It was simply incredible. After it was all over I just wanted to sit down and watch it all over again.

My mom and I took our time getting out of there. We didn't want to fight the crowds. We meandered through Temple Square and saw the gorgeous lights. Then once we got back to Little America we were so freezing so we stopped in for some hot chocolate... and had to sneak in a slice of cheesecake, too!

It was such a wonderful night and I will never forget it! The music was amazing, the lights were so beautiful, and most of all I loved sharing the whole experience with my wonderful mom.

San Francisco

2010-11-14T19:30:00.000-08:00

Brady had a work conference in California last week, so we made a fun little trip out of it. We left Stockton home with grandparents for three days (the longest we've ever been away from him! It was hard, but a much needed break.) We spent two days in San Francisco. The first day we took a city tour and got to see a lot of the main sites.

Golden Gate Bridge was awesome! Can't believe they built it in 1937! How did they do it?

We took a fairy over to Sausalito and had lunch. Such a quaint little town, wish we could've had more time to spend there!

The Painted Ladies. This was one of the highlights for Brady because these houses are in the opening shots of Full House. He was so stoked that Bob Saggett had stood in this very spot! So when we got back to the hotel we had to watch all the many versions of the opening song of Full House several times on YouTube. Brady thought the painted ladies were famous because of Full House. I probably just should've let him believe that, because he was very disappointed when I said they were famous before that show and they filmed the picnic scene there because the houses are a San Francisco icon.

Stockton Street.

Lombard street. Yes we are standing in the middle of the road and that car is about to hit us. But, hey we're all tourists, so they were understanding.

Chinatown. A lot of people say they love Chinatown. I was a nervous wreck there. (Of course I'm a nervous wreck anywhere in public after a certain incident that most of you already know about. ) I think it would've been different if it weren't starting to get dark at that time. I wanted to go in some of the shops, but I was so scared for my safety I just wanted to get out of there more than anything.

We had a very romantic dinner at Scott's Seafood Grill.

The next day Brady's uncle and his family met up with us. They live about an hour and a half away from San Fran. They took us around to more sites. First we went to Muir Woods. (How does Brady have only a T-shirt on and I have two awkward jackets on?)

The Conservatory of Flowers at Golden Gate Park.

The Conservatory was GORGEOUS! So many exotic and beautiful flowers. I love orchids and there were hundreds of them in there!

Japanese Tea Gardens with Brady's uncle and cousins.

The view of the city from the top of Telegraph Hill at sunset. It was BEAUTIFUL!

Coit Tower. Too bad it was closed for renovations :(

We ended our night eating at Bubba Gumps Shrimp company (sooo yummy) and topped it off with a ice cream sundae at Ghirardelli Square.

We spend that night at Brady's Uncle's house and went to church with them the next day. I flew out Monday morning and Brady stayed for his conference for a couple of days.

It was such a fun trip! And I definitely want to go back!

Halloween Festivities

2010-11-14T18:40:00.000-08:00

The Friday before Halloween we went to Gardner Village. Stockton loved just running around and seeing all the witches.

He was facinated with the witch flying on a bike.

We celebrated Halloween on Saturday like most Utahns. During the day we went to Haiders and picked out pumpkins from their garden to carve.

The Haiders had a HUGE pumpkin they had grown in their garden, it weighed 86.2 lbs. Check out the size of that "plug" compared to a normal pumpkin!

Stockton loved the big Jack-o-Lantern! It was bigger than him!

Brady carved a scary pumpkin and I carved one that looked like Elmo for Stockton. (On a side note: Yes, that is my mom in the background. Why is she at my in-laws house you ask? Well, it's because they were on their way to my sister's house and wanted to stop and see Stockton in his costume, so they came over to the Haiders since we were over there.)

Stockton loved his Elmo pumpkin. Turned out pretty good.

And Brady's was scary! It looked great!

It was such a cold, rainy night. We only took Stockton trick-or-treating to two houses. Then we snuggled in and had "Dinner in a pumpkin."

It's basically ground beef, rice, mushrooms seasoned with Worcestershire sauce (or soy sauce, either one) and brown sugar baked in a pumpkin. My friend Eli first made it for us a couple of years ago and it's kinda become a Halloween tradition. It's so yummy!

We only had a few trick-or-treaters. I had enough candy to give each of them a whole bag... but I didn't... so we now have a life time supply of peanut butter cups.

After Stockton went to bed, Brady and I watched a scary movie called "Stevie." Why is it that we love to scare ourselves out of our whits? I don't know exactly, but it's tradition.

Trick-or-Treating at Mommy and Daddy's Work

2010-11-09T22:25:00.001-08:00

Stockton was so lucky and got to go trick-or-treating at both Mommy and Daddy's work.

I don't know which one is the bigger nerd! I was laughing so hard when I saw this picture! Like mother, like son I guess. But, I'm not just any nerd. I'm a structural engineer... since I work for a structural engineering firm. My outfit is complete with a pocket protector and a University of Utah tie to add to the nerdiness.

The two Sesame Street characters. The funny thing is, this guy's last name is Burt. So it was actually a pretty hilarious costume.

All the Reaveley Engineer's folk in their Halloween garb.

I switched costumes for Brady's work. Their trick-or-treating was a WAY bigger deal and there were tons of people there and so many fun things for the kids!

People had all kinds of decorations and music. Stockton is obsessed with pumpkins. So he liked this little pumpkin decoration.

One section of cubicles was even made into a spook alley.

Stockton loved it. This room was only lit by a black light. Stockton liked it when I smiled at him and my teeth were glowing! He was pretty enthralled!

We saw this tall pumpkin dude on stilts. Stockton very was frightened/fascinated.

Stockton knew just what to do. Take the candy and put it in his "buck-ock" (bucket.) He got all sorts of candy. Most of which he cannot eat... so that means mommy and daddy have to eat it!

Another Elmo? What the?!

It was such a fun day for Stockton. He was way into it. I'm sure next year will be even better!

Quick Visit from Anna

2010-11-09T22:18:00.000-08:00

Anellina came for a quick visit a couple of weeks ago. They only had a little while to play together so they got right to it!

They were screaming and havin' a blast together!

Pretending to be airplanes.

Loving being with Grandma.

Talkin' on the phone to each other.

These kids LOVE each other. It's so much fun!

Happy Birthday Brady!

2010-11-09T21:59:00.000-08:00

We celebrated Brady's B-day a couple of weeks ago. He got a new camera for his birthday. He took it out of the box and there were already pictures of Stockton holding a "Happy Birthday Daddy!" sign on the camera!

Unfortunately we all got a stomach bug , and we were all sick for his birthday. We had a fun night planned, but it didn't pan out.

So Brady took a day off once we were feeling better and went fishing with his dad. The fall colors were gorgeous and they had a great time.

Brady had a little bit of birthday luck as well. He caught the biggest rainbow trout he's ever caught! It was 25" long and it was some good eatin'!

We went out to dinner with Brady's family to his favorite place, SkyBox.

Stockton was so hyper, and everyone helped keep him entertained.

Happy Birthday Brady! We love you so much and appreciate all you do for us!

Lagoon

2010-11-09T21:19:00.000-08:00

A few weeks ago my sister and I took our kids to Lagoon at the spur of the moment. The weather was perfect and it was so much fun!

I took the older kids on a couple of the big rides. This is in line for "The Bat." I told Ashley and Emily to look scared... and these are the faces I got. (It's actually pretty typical, because Ashley isn't afraid of anything!)

Stockton on the ONLY ride I could get him to go on by himself. After this my sister took him for a little while and it freaked him out to be away from his mommy. So after that he would only go on rides with me. So he wouldn't go on the boats...

...but, he went on the mini Tidal Wave... go figure. He loved being with his cousin Brock. He says "Bock." He had to have "Bock" in his sight at all times. It was so cute!

Frightmares was going on and there were some pretty scary things hangin' around.

We went on this new ride Odysea, well it was new to me at least.

Stockton loved it until he got squirted in the head with a stream of water. Mommy didn't realize she had to control the the fish we were riding in to dodge the spitting sea animals!

So then we thought we'd go on the carousel... pretty safe right? Nice and calm for Stockton... no spitting dolphins or anything.

Stockton choose this horse to ride on. I should've taken the first clue that it was a bad choice because it was the tallest one on the whole ride. Stockton was scared while we were strapping him on, but there was a funny guy next to us that told him to "Hold on tight!" and got him to laugh.

But, then the ride started. Oh boy! Stockton was NOT havin' it! He started to bail off the horse, but he was strapped on. I was trying to hold him on, and he was kicking and screaming and pulling at my hair, knocking my sunglasses off, I could hardly reach him on the horse, it's goin' up and down, we're going round and round, and my sister is laughing her head off at me. Then they STOPPED the ride for us!!!

I switched Stockton to a much safer, stationary, and LOWER tiger. And off we went, it was MUCH better the second time around.

Stockton didn't dare ride the cars, but he braved Puff the Magic Dragon. This was his face the whole ride. (Reminds me of the home videos we have of my brother Dustin on Thunder Mountain Rail Road when he was five.)

And notice the death grip on the bar. But, after the ride he would clap his hands and say "Yay!!!!" So I guess he liked it.

We all piled in for a train ride.

And after that, Stockton was pooped. It was such a fun day and we created so many fun memories!

Stockton at 18 Months

2010-10-22T11:36:00.000-07:00

Stockton is growing like a weed! He's not stocky any more, he is tall and skinny! We took him for his 18 month check up and he weighs 23 lbs (13 percentile) and is 32.28 inches long (47 percentile!!!!!!!!) He nearly doubled his percentile in height from 12 months! I can't believe it!

He is so much fun and keeps us laughing all the time.

He loves to pretend to talk on the phone. The other day he was having a conversation with Elmo, Bob the Builder, and Goliath (from Liken the Scriptures.) These are his favorite characters from shows he likes to watch.

We have this owl that sits out on our deck to scare away pigeons. Stockton likes him, so I brought him inside one day. I look over and this is what I found. It's so typical of Stockton. He loves to share his food with mommy, daddy, and now the owl. (We'll mention the owl in the video below.)

Stockton loves to read books. He would read them all day long. He loves to point out the objects in the books and make noises like the object/animal. His favorite book is an Elmo book that he picked out by himself. He also likes to pick books out at the library. Last time he picked out a car book and about 3 animal books.

Stockton's favorite foods include macaroni and cheese, ham, fruit snacks, broccoli, grapes, chips, cookies, and crackers.

Stockton's favorite things to do is play with cars/trucks, read books, color, watch shows, "help"mommy fold laundry, go on bike rides in the bike trailer, play with Uncle Jordan, and look at Anna (his cousin) on the computer.

Some of the words he says most often are cai (car), a-pe (airplane), hele-caw-caw (helecopter), bu-bye, hi, mama, dada, moi (more), Anna (his cousin), Bock (Brock, his other cousin), Elmo, Bob, Ay-ay-ath (Goliath), wa wa (water), bub-bos (bubbles), nigh-nigh, all done, all gone, and lately... pa-ke (pumpkin.)

He loves to say animals sounds and point out parts on his body, which you will see in the video below. It is kinda long, but super cute. It pretty much sums up Stockton at this age.

18 Month Interview from Rachel Haider on Vimeo.

Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread

2010-10-17T07:57:00.000-07:00

There no better way to celebrate the over abundance of zucchini like Chocolate Chip Zucchini Bread!

Prep time: 15 min.

Cook time: 1 hour

Ingredients:

3 cups shredded zucchini (2 to 3 medium)

1 2/3 cups sugar

2/3 cup vegetable oil

2 teaspoons vanilla

4 large eggs

3 cups all-purpose or whole wheat flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ teaspoon ground cloves

½ teaspoon baking powder

½ cup coarsely chopped nuts (optional)

¾ cup chocolate chips (definately NOT optional! I like to use semi-sweet)

Directions: Move oven rack to low position so that tops of pans will be in center of oven. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease bottoms only of 2 loaf pans, 8 ½ x 4 ½ x 2 ½ inches, 1 loaf pan 9 x 5 x3 inches, or 5 mini loaf pans with shortening.

Mix zucchini, sugar, oil vanilla and eggs in large bowl. Stir in remaining ingredients. Dived batter evenly between pans.

Bake 8 inch loaves 50-60 min., 9 –inch loaf 1 hour 10 min. - 1 hour 20 min., mini-loaf pans 40-50 min., or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 10 min. in pans on wire rack.

Loosen sides of loaves from pans; remove from pans and place top side up on wire rack. Cool completely about 2 hours before slicing. Wrap tightly and store at room temperature up to 4 days, or refrigerate up to 10 days.

Options:

Cranberry Bread: Omit zucchini, cinnamon, cloves, and chocolate chips. Stir in ½ cup milk and 2 teaspoons grated orange peel with the oil. Stir 3 cups fresh or frozen (thawed and drained) cranberries into batter. Bake 1 hour to 1 hour 10 min.

Pumpkin Bread: Substitute 1 can (15 ounces) pumpkin (not pumpkin pie mix) for the zucchini.

Uncle J

2010-10-17T07:03:00.000-07:00

Brady's brother, Jordan, has been recovering from ankle surgery. So sometimes he needs some cheering up. Every few days he calls and asks if Stockton can play. Stockton is more than willing to play with his Uncle J. Usually these play dates consist of:

Stockton body slamming Jordan, over and over and over!

Stockton pinned him down!

Playing on the iPhone.

Talking a walk on Jordan... please be careful with the ankle Stocky!

Coloring.

When Stockton isn't body slamming Jordan, he likes to get down and look into his eyes, or snuggle up to him.

These two are best buds. It's so cute!

Another Logan Trip

2010-10-17T06:45:00.000-07:00

We made another trip up to Logan over conference weekend. The first reason we went was to visit Poppa and Teenser. Teenser fell and broke her hip, so we went to go visit her to hopefully cheer her up. She did perk up a bit when Stockton she saw Stockton. (For those of you who don't know, Brady's Grandma suffers from Alzheimer's and has been in a care facility for almost a year. She can't really carry on a conversation very well, because she's very confused. This makes her sad most of the time. But, kids really make her happy.)

Stockton and Poppa out on the porch swing.

This was the second reason why we went. The USU vs. BYU game! We had awesome seats that Brady's friend Zac got us again. Of course for me it was a miserable game because BYU lost. But, these two cheered their hearts out for the Aggies. And it was still a fun time.

Teenser loves cats, so she has several cat decorations around the house. I didn't realize just how many there were until Stockton recognized every single one and meowed when he saw them. He was pretty much meowing the whole time we were there. Here he is petting the rock cat that looks like their real cat, Shadow.

We stayed for the morning session of Conference. Stockton was running all over the place and wouldn't let us listen very well. So we took him in the other room and listened on the radio and tried to get some of his wiggles out.

Cousins!

2010-09-15T14:09:00.000-07:00

Lately we've been able to baby-sit some of Stockton's cousins. He's loved getting to know them better. My sister's boy, Brock came over one day.

Stockton and Brock loved crashing trucks into each other.

And who said trucks are just for boys? Anellina came to play the last couple of days and these two have had a blast together!

Rolling around on the floor just laughing so hard. Who knows why?

Hot Diggity Dog from Rachel Haider on Vimeo.

They both love Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. They got so excited with the Hot Dog song.

Watch it over again! from Rachel Haider on Vimeo.

Anellina was pretty adamant about watching Mickey again.

They wandered off into the laundry room and I found them both in the laundry basket.

Cutie little cousins on the front porch.

Grandma Haider came to pick up Anellina and both kids were loving being with her.

Aggie Country

2010-09-15T12:39:00.000-07:00

This last Saturday we went up to Logan to take Brady's sister, Holly, to lunch for her birthday and to visit Brady's grandparents. We watched the BYU game with Brady's grandpa and to say the least we were very disappointed with it. BYU was blown out by Air Force.

But, Brady's friend, Zac, got us tickets to the Utah State game. So we went. It was our first Aggie game and we went into it with very low expectations. But, we had a blast! Our seats were great! Stockton was loving it and would clap every time everyone else clapped. And the Aggies played awesome!

Zac is the manager of the Pita Pit and was handing out coupons most of the time, but he did come sit by us for a while. Stockton loved sitting on Zac's lap.

Later we went to the Pita Pit with Zac and ate. It was so yummy! If you haven't been there, go! And if you're at the Logan one, just ask for Zac and tell him that the Haiders sent you and he'll give you a deal.

It was fun little day trip up to Aggie Country.

Fun with Anellina

2010-08-22T19:54:00.000-07:00

Stockton's cousin Anellina was here this week, so she and Stockton had a lot of chances to play.

They swam in the little pool together. They had a blast!

Splashin' from Rachel Haider on Vimeo.

All of sudden it started to rain, so we came inside. It was over pretty quick so we headed back out. Here they are waitin' out the storm together.

After getting in and out of the pool so many times, the pool started to get blades of grass in it and it kinda grossed out Stockton. So he didn't want to get in anymore. Anellina tried so hard to get him back in. She would take him by the hand and pull him, but he wouldn't do it.

Pullin' faces!

Anellina's 2nd birthday party was on Saturday. It was a full-blown Mickey Mouse party!

Stockton's favorite part was the little slide they had set up. He went down that thing about 80 times... and I'm sure he would've done it all day long if we would've let him. (Holy Moly, does he look like an Orgill in this picture, or what?!)

They played a game with Mickey bean bags, and had fun putting them over the different Disney characters.

Anellina with her Mickey Clubhouse cake! So cute!

Just Bein' Cute

2010-08-22T19:24:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to post these pics of Stockton being cute. We went out to check on the grass, how it was growing in the front yard and to water the flowers.

Stockton just sat on the porch so cute and posed for this picture and even smiled on cue. I love this little boy!

He spotted the watering can and was more than eager to help.

Walkin' Backwards from Rachel Haider on Vimeo.

Stockton has been into walking backwards and spinning lately. I don't really know why, but I'm glad I caught it on video.

County Fair

2010-08-16T21:47:00.000-07:00

The Salt Lake County Fair is held just a few blocks from our house. So we decided to take advantage this year.

First we went to the Demolition Derby! Oh yeah! There's just nothin' like a bunch of run down trucks revin' their engines, rammin' into each other, and flingin' mud into the crowd! It brings out the inner redneck in all of us!

It was the first Demolition Derby for both Brady and Stockton. Of course, they both loved it. Stockton was getting a little bored waiting for it to start. But, as soon as he heard the truck engines coming into the arena, he was mesmerized.

We wanted to see what else the fair had to offer and found this petting zoo. There were a gazillion little goats and sheep running around. I didn't know how Stockton would react, because they all thought he had food and kept nipping at his hands and bumping into him. If you think about it, they are his same height... imagine a hairy horned creature coming right at you. He was a bit jumpy, but he loved it! He kept backing away, then getting closer and squawking at them. It was hilarious!

Petting Zoo from Rachel Haider on Vimeo.

Demon goat!!! This picture freaks me out just a little. The evil eyes and the human-like mouth on this goat is just too much for me to handle.

There was even a little pony hangin' out in there.

Next we checked out all the booths and ran into our friends the Doxeys, who were there promoting their rain gutter business, Ace Gutters. So Stockton got to play with his friend Riker. They are about the same height. But, Riker weighs a few more pounds than Stockton. The sad thing is, Riker is six months YOUNGER than Stockton. Poor little Stockton, he's going to be small forever. But, you can't get a great dane out of two chihuahuas.

Grass at the End of the Tunnel!

2010-08-13T23:04:00.000-07:00

We have been working on getting our front yard in and it's been a very long process. Major props to Brady and my father-in-law Rob who have worked endless hours in the 100 degree heat and even more hours after the sun has gone down. And of course thanks to little Stockton who is the best helper ever! After months of planning and a lot of man hours we finally have grass growing in our front yard!! Yippee!

Here are a few pictures of the process.

Stockton operating heavy machinery... I know it's not recommended, but hey, we needed all the help we can get on this project!

Anticipating the glorious green grass! Thanks to Uncle Jordan for supplying this high-powered mower to get Stockton into practice. He's gonna need it, being the oldest son!

You should've seen the delight on Stockton's face when they started testing the sprinklers! It was pure toddler nirvana! But, man... you should've seen the dirt ring after his bath that night!

Going for a ride in the wheel barrow with Grandpa! So much fun and excitement out in the yard! WAY better than anything I could be doing inside.

Baker Family Reunion

2010-08-05T22:52:00.000-07:00

This past weekend we had a family reunion on Brady's mom's side. It was held in Durango, Colorado and it was a BLAST!

We stayed at the KOA and we shared a little cabin with Brady's sister's family. Stockton was so excited to be with his cousin Anellina. They had a ton of fun together and if for some reason they got separated Stockton would call out for her: "Ana!" And she would call for him "Tah-ton!"

The first day we went to Mesa Verde and saw the Indian cliff dwellings. It was so cool!

The little kids loved it once they were out of the back packs and could run around.

This is Spruce Tree House. It was nice, because it was a self-guided tour, but there was a park ranger there to answer questions.

Then we took a tour of Cliff Palace. This was with a tour group and we hiked down in to these ruins together.

Some places got a little tight on the way down! Stockton had been so tired before we started the tour, so I gave him his bottle and pretty soon....

... he was out! He slept for most of the tour. He woke up at the end, when everyone started clapping.

These ruins were so amazing. The indians lived here in this natural alcove, but had to climb out to farm and hunt. We had stairs and ladders to help us, but the Indians just had little hand holds they carved into the rock... yikes!

Climbing up out of Cliff Palace.

Heading up one of the ladders.

The second day we went river rafting (photos pending.) It was such a blast. At one calm part in the river, Brady's sister Holly acted like she fell in. Then two of the guys pulled each other in. Long story short... every person got in the river! It was freezing! It was overcast and probably only 75 degrees that day. But, it was still so fun and made the trip memorable.

The Slide from Rachel Haider on Vimeo.

Uncle Jordan playing with Stockton at the KOA playground. I think Stockton liked it.

That night we had a big dinner all together and got to visit. Here's Stockton meeting his new cousin Landry for the first time.

We got matching Durango t-shirts for the kids and they both wore them the day we left. They are also sitting on their matching chairs that they got from the Easter Bunny.

It was such a fun trip, but it was LONG drive, about 6.5 hours if you didn't stop. Stockton was sick of it and had to find ways to relax... notice the foot up on the cooler. Thank goodness we borrowed a portable DVD player from my sister. That saved us!

And notice the ba ba. After this trip we said bye bye to the ba ba. I was just holding on until this trip was over with, because I knew we couldn't survive the drive without it. We have gone nearly 72 hours without a ba ba, and everything has gone really well.

Stockton at 15ish Months

2010-08-04T11:43:00.000-07:00

I've been meaning to do a post for Stockton's 15 months. But, life happens and now he's pushing 16 months. So some of this data is now skewed.

Stocky is no longer Stocky! At his 15 month appointment he was in the 13% for weight at 24% for height. The first time in his life that he has been taller rather than fatter. He weighed almost the same as at 12 months, but he was more than an inch taller. You grow boy! So here's Stockton at 15ish months.

He's very curious and into everything. Climbing on and in everything he can find.

He loves helping his mommy clean... which is actually quite nice. He loves to help vacuum, dust, and do laundry. Of course he's not very good at folding the laundry, but he does a great job of UNfolding it once it's folded!

Stockton is finally in a big boy car seat. He loves it!

Stockton is a definite ladies man... with no pants, nonetheless. Sure this is his second cousin, but that doesn't stop him from flirting with, chasing, and even tackling the girls. He will do anything to have contact with them.

Stockton still loves trucks. He had a blast in this truck cart at Home Depot.

More trucks. He found this lid to a tupperware bin and thought it would be fun to drive his trucks around the rim. Very clever.

Stockton is a little smarty pants. He catches on to a lot of things. While he was he was being baby-sat by his grandma she said, "Who ever wants a cheese stick raise your hand!" His little hand went straight up in the air and he started running for the fridge. He does it all the time now.

He knows where all his body parts are. My favorite is when I ask where his teeth are and he gives me a darling cheesy grin. It's also funny when you ask him where his tongue is, and this enormous, adult sized tongue comes jetting out of his mouth... thanks for passing that on to our son, Brady! Brady's trying to teach him how to touch his nose with his tongue. He's almost got it.

I've taught him that you have to blow on food when it's hot. The other day we were getting in the car and he reach up and grabbed the handle and it was hot. He immediately pulled his hand away and started blowing toward the car!

He knows probably over 20 words. Most of them are pretty common like, "Mama, Dada, Night Night." But, I love it when he says "Jay Jay"- for Uncle J (Jordan), and "Ana" for his cousin Anellina. Other fun words include "Gabba "(for Yo Gabba Gabba, his favorite show), "Up", "Ham", and "Tractor."

Unca Joel

2010-08-04T11:42:00.000-07:00

My uncle, Joel Ivan Orgill, passed away on July 7th. He passed away from cancer, and his beautiful wife Lynne is suffering from almost the same kind of cancer. He was such an amazing example to me. He was witty, he was creative, he was a spiritual giant, he was a great leader and he was just fun to be around. His funeral was not your typical funeral. I think I laughed more than I cried and that's how he would've wanted it.

He requested to be buried in a pine box. They brought out sharpies and everyone could write messages on the box. Some of the messages were so touching.

This one from his son Jed was one of my favorites "Return to Sender."

I also liked this one from his son Justin "Contents: World's Greatest Dad!"

The four Orgill brothers.

Joel's family.

After the funeral I felt so inspired to become more like my Unca Joel. I wanted to study the gospel more, I wanted to serve better, and I wanted to develop my creative talents. I think Joel gave me just the push I needed with that last one. I've been meaning to get back into drawing and I've wanted to draw a picture of Stockton. But, I lost all my art supplies when we moved. So I was determined to go buy more, but hadn't gotten around to it, because they are expensive. Well, the day after Joel's funeral I had the sudden urge to organize my wrapping paper... why on earth would I want to do that?! Well, right in the middle of the Christmas wrapping paper there was a bag, inside the bag were my art supplies! I can't help but thinking that Unca Joel was there, guiding me along.

Discovery Gateway

2010-08-04T11:41:00.000-07:00

A few weeks ago we visited Discovery Gateway Children's Museum while RoShawn and Anellina were in town.

Uncle Jordan came with us, too. Notice Stockton holding his wrist up. He hated the feel of the wristband they gave him, and he had torn it off within about 2 seconds.

The kids had so much fun! They were just so excited. I was afraid that Stockton was going to be tired and onry because it was his nap time. But, he was stoked! I also wondered if he was going to be too little for some of the activities, but he knew exactly what to do. It was so cute!

Forty gazillion balls in one place!? How could life get any better? (The only way it could get better if it germs did not exsit. I was a nervous wreck the whole time, thinking of all the microbs all over these toys and trying to keep them out of Stockton's mouth.)

Stockton spotted the toy vacuum right away. He loves toys he can push in front of him.

He also spotted a stroller with two black babies in it. He pushed this around all over and it was hard to pry away from him. His daddy would be proud.

Anellina and RoShawn enjoying the toddler area.

Stockton loved this little slide. He would climb up it and then slide down and go right back up again.

Of course he found a TRUCK!!!

The little grocery store was so cute.

Anellina made a delicious looking sandwich in the deli.

If you haven't been here, I highly recommend it. The kids LOVE it! It is a little choatic, so be prepared. And wash your hands after you leave!!! It's also a little pricey, but you can usually find 2 for 1 coupons in the paper.

July 4th

2010-07-04T19:43:00.000-07:00

Our long time friend Rafaela (Raffy) Petracco was in town this weekend! She came to Grantsville as a foreign exchange student from Brazil during high school. We got to be such good friends while she was here. It has been 11 years since I had seen her and it was so great to get to see her and visit with her today. She looks exactly the same and is just as sweet as ever. She is such an amazing person. She is now an OB/GYN and has been practicing for a few years in Brazil. Recently she started doing a research program at Yale, so she'll be in the US for a few more months. For the 4th she decided to come visit G-ville. I was so happy to see her! I missed her!

Love you Raff!