Jex/Gardner Cabin Week

Right after we got back from Kentucky in March, we went to the Ashton's cabin at Mammoth Creek for 5 days with the Gardners.

A little background: We moved into our home in March of 1998. One day, after we had our solar screens installed, a nice couple--Norm and Natalie Gardner--pulled up outside to look at them. We began talking and found out they were moving into our neighborhood soon. We realized almost immediately that we were both members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. We were so excited and became friends instantly. It was a bonus that both families had 4 children at the time and that the children were all about the same ages. By August or September of that year we went camping together. This began many wonderful years of sharing vacations, babysitting, game nights, new babies, etc. They moved to Arizona 3 years ago and we were so afraid we'd never see each other again. But, obviously, that has not happened, and we are so happy!

Now, on to Spring Break! We met at the cabin on a Tuesday and stayed until Saturday. There was still snow everywhere, so we were able to get in some major sledding! The weather was so nice that most of the time the kids didn't even wear their coats. They would sled until they were soaked through, come inside and get warm and dry and fed, then go back out and start the whole process all over again.

Those not sledding would stay inside and play games or watch movies or read. Megan was a trooper; she must have played Candy Land a dozen times!

Here we all are watching "Enchanted."

The little kids--Kimberly, Kaitlyn, Emma, and Kevin--just played and played and played.

Although I love babies, it was sure nice to have bigger kids that could entertain themselves! We ate wonderful food, stayed up late talking, and just had a blast being together. It is a memory we will always cherish. We love you guys!

Things I've been thinking about.

There are a few things I've been thinking about that I need to write down before I forget them.

Rebecca makes us laugh. Ever since she has been out on her own, she has used "Dadquest" to help her navigate the city. "Dad, I'm on Charleston and Buffalo. Isn't the temple close by here?" (For anyone who doesn't know Las Vegas, the answer is, "No, it's on the opposite side of the city.") And "Ask.mom" is her other favorite source. "Hi, Mom. When you cook corn on the cob do you just boil it or what?" My response is usually, "Don't you have a cookbook?" (I know she does, because I gave it to her.) She replies, "Yes, but I'm at the store." In her defense though, I wish I would have had those sources at my disposal when I was first married. A phone call to my mom was expensive, so I saved them for really important things like..."How do you make lima beans and ham?"

Which leads me to remember the three worst meals I ever cooked when we were first married. Craig was a trooper and tried everything I made, but even he agrees that these were BAD! One was a venison roast. Craig had gone deer hunting with his dad and brothers, and--lucky us!--he got a deer. We, of course, had it butchered and rented a locker at the meat company to store the venison steaks, venison burger, vension roasts, etc. Well, one day I decided to cook a roast. I put it in the crock pot with onion soup mix just like a beef roast. It cooked all day long, so it was really tender, but it was so gamey that we just couldn't eat it. I never did learn how to cook venison to make it enjoyable. Any suggestions?

The second disaster was chili. My mom made chili alot when I was growing up. I often saw her use what she called a chili brick. This was a block of chili--the saucey stuff with spices--minus the meat and beans. It always tasted so good when she made it that I thought I could figure it out on my own if I just had the chili brick. So, I bought the chili brick, read the directions, and made the chili. I was so excited for dinner that night, but when I tasted it, something was not right. I added a few more spices of my own; still not good. I added some tomato sauce; no good. I had Craig taste it; nope. We added ketchup; yuk! Finally we threw it out and probably had sandwiches for dinner, I don't remember. Anyway, it was bad. I don't even know if you can find chili bricks in the stores anymore, but I wouldn't recommend it.

I've saved the best for last. Chicken and rice is a staple in our household, as I'm sure it is in most. One Sunday, when we lived in Payson, AZ, I decided to try cooking it in the crock pot instead of the oven. Back then, I used whole pieces of chicken, bone and all. So I mixed up the rice with the cream soups and milk, put it in the crock pot with the chicken pieces, sprinkled the top with onion soup mix, turned on the crock pot, and we went on our merry way to church. When we got home, there was a terrible smell and when I lifted the lid on the crock pot, everything was foaming! It was so gross! We didn't want to just throw it away, because it smelled so bad, so we dumped it over the side of a ditch that ran along the house where we were living. I don't know if the chicken was bad or what, but I haven't tried cooking chicken and rice in the crock pot since then. I wonder if the javelinas ate the chicken?

Our San Diego vacation

In January, over MLK, Jr. weekend, we went to Solana Beach near San Diego, CA. Our friends, Brian and Melinda Ashton, have a condo there and let us use it for the weekend. The weather was perfect; we couldn't have asked for better. The zoo was lots of fun and the beach was wonderful as always. The tide was way out, and there were cool rock formations we walked out on. We saw all kinds of interesting things. We have totally been blessed with such good friends and family. Love to you all! (Check out the slideshow to the right. I can't believe I figured it out all on my own!)

Two down, four to go!

Congratulations, Tara, and class of 2008! You did it! What a fun day we had a Tara's graduation. Her good friend, Kat, was Salutatorian and gave an excellent speech that brought a tear to my eyes. The band was able to play during the graduation ceremony, so Tara and her pals had one last hurrah! Band has been her life pretty much for the last 4 years, so it was significant that it ended the way it started. Tara is wearing about a million cords that represent all the clubs she was involved with: Band, YRC (Young Republicans Club), Peer Helpers, and the Honors cord. Okay, not a million, but alot! She was beautiful and confident and we were very pleased.

Spring sports

I realized today that I don't have any pictures of Logan on this blog yet, so I'm posting some of him playing baseball. He had a great spring season; his team went undefeated. His favorite thing about this year was that he got to play catcher. He has been wanting to for a year or so now, but having glasses made it difficult. This spring he got contacts and that has made all the difference. He loves being the catcher, and he's really good at it.

Kevin also played baseball for the first time. It's a crack-up to watch 5-year-olds play. They spend more time checking out the kites being flown nearby, or the ladybugs crawling through the grass, than actually playing the game. I think having older brothers has helped him, though, because he was one of the few who could hit the ball.

Steven has found a new love: VOLLEYBALL! He made the JV team as a Freshman (#16) and had a fun season learning the game. He went to a three-day volleyball camp in February in preparation for try-outs and I'm sure that made a huge difference considering he had never played the game before. He is now playing club volleyball through the month of June and will probably be attending a two-day camp at UNLV in July. He's having a blast and we couldn't be more excited.

Freeway the Dog

This is Freeway. On March 7, 2008, Craig and Tara and her friend, Kayla, were traveling to Cedar City for Senior Day at SUU. At about mile marker 4 in AZ, (that's between Mesquite and St. George) they saw a small animal on the side of the road and realized it was a puppy. They hurried and turned around and went back to get him. Apparently he had been abandoned in the desert, because there is nothing around for miles. I got a text on my phone that said, "Um, we just found a puppy and his new name is Freeway." Naturally I responded with, "What?!?" They took him into Cedar City and Craig found a vet to check him out. Other than being dehydrated, he was in good shape. Craig asked me what he should do with him and I said, "I guess you better bring him home." So, they brought him home and we have a Chihuahua named Freeway. He's a good puppy and we're glad to have him. Looking at this picture I can tell that he's grown since March. His ear was still floppy then, but now it's straight. We think he's about 6 or 7 months old now. Poor Freeway--saved from an untimely death and brought to live with 3 brothers!

Eagle Scout

Yay! Steven is an Eagle Scout! We are so happy to have 1 down and 2 to go. He worked really hard and did most of the work himself. He also had AWESOME scout leaders. His court of honor was so nice. Craig arranged for the LVMPD Honor Guard to do the flag ceremony. It really made the evening something to remember. Steven shared the night with his good friend, Aaron. They have been friends for about 9 or so years, so it was neat that they got their Eagles at the same time. Craig's parents came, plus his nieces and nephews that live here. We ended up with a pretty good sized family photo. I know that this experience had a huge effect on Steven, and it will be something he values forever. (P.S. I guess you noticed that Steven is taller than both of us!)