2nd Annual Fundraising Yard Sale

We were able to host our 2nd annual fundraising yard sale on Friday and Saturday this past week. This year the proceeds went towards Pam's (Mike's mom) medical bills. She is currently going through chemotherapy for breast cancer.

I was at our house organizing the items to come over and didn't get a "before" shot of everything that was there. The entire yard, side yard and driveway was packed with treasures! 

We had a TON of stuff!!! We have very generous friends and neighbors who donated a lot of items for the sale. THANK YOU!!!

This picture shows what was left over at the end. 

Towards the end of the day we were all pretty tired, but still had enough energy to have a little fun!

Faron found this jacket and was kind enough to model for us......I just keep singing a certain song from Tommy Boy everytime I see this pic :)

Kenneth had his turn with the lovely coat....with Jamie and Emily.

The left over clothing filled the entire back of Mike's truck. The hand you see sticking out belongs to Kenneth. He was buried pretty good.

We had this truck full of shoes and clothing and then another entire truck and trailer full of items that we donated to DI.

This year was another fabulous success.

Thanks to everyone that helped out!!!!

Janey's Accident

Janey had surgery on her right arm today. She broke both bones in her arm while doing a cartwheel - while on a mat at gymnastics -she wasn't even messing around. How weird is that?

Since she broke both bones, she said her arm was all floppy - GROSS!!

She wasn't feeling the best, but after a bit Kenneth started picking on her and she perked up a lot!

Kenneth picked out this fluffy green pillow for her to help keep her arm elevated.

Mother's Day Dinner

We had the opportunity to host Mother's Day dinner at our house this year. My mom, sister, and niece came. My cousin, Jamie, and her family were also able to join us this year. 

We used Grandma Halterman's china this year. I don't use it very often, but I like to on special occasions like this.

Hugh entertained us with funny faces, while Bryce shared dessert with him. I have to mention that Mike made the dessert for tonight. It was a super yummy chocolate cake with a chocolate sauce on it served with vanilla ice cream. Yummy!

Janey entertained Hugh for a long time and chased him around.

Jamie helping Joel get on the rocker, while Melissa slows Janey down from chasing Hugh.

It was fun to spend the afternoon together and catch up with family.

Family Visit

My sister and nephew from Texas came for a visit. Michelle was picking Tavin up at BYU in Provo and they decided to make a trip up to see family in Idaho.

  

She was surprised at how much Kenneth has grown. They measured feet and check out the difference in size! I know the picture is super fuzzy....but that was the best I could get in that light.

A New Addition to the Family

Mike's brother, Danny, called Saturday morning (March 17th) to tell us that his wife who was 27 weeks pregnant woke up really sick and he had to take her to the hospital. Leslyn was having some major complications and ended up having an emergency c-section that morning. Little Nicholas Patrick was born weighing in at only 2 pounds! He is so teeny....but he is a miracle.

He was transferred to a larger hospital about 30 minutes away that has a NICU with all the equipment, doctors and nurses to take care of him. After he got settled at the new hospital it was amazing that all he was hooked up to was oxygen and a feeding tube. For being so small he is doing amazing! Mike was able to stop with his parents that afternoon and see him for a few minutes. They all said he was doing great.

When you see his tiny hand you realize just how teeny he is. Danny said that Leslyn is doing better. We hope for a quick recovery for her and that baby Nicholas is able to join his two brothers at home soon.

Family Reunion Part 1

Last Thursday we headed out to the middle of nowhere Wyoming for Mike's family reunion.

We were able to meet up with Pam and Delbert and have lunch with them in Jackson Hole.

We went through about 25 miles of road construction near Togwotee Pass. Since we were driving so slow we were able to check out lots of cool looking construction vehicles.

Notice the legs hanging out from underneath the tilted cab?? Not where I would want to be. These trucks were HUGE!!

We have never driven through Togwotee pass - it was beautiful!

The elevation is around 9500 feet at the top - so we were able to see snow in July. I am still a little baffled why there was still snow when it was about 70 degrees outside.....hmmm...

It was a long drive, but we pulled into camp around 6pm.

It was 97 degrees outside (which is really HOT for us Idahoans!)

This is what our campground looked like.....

Yep...it was flooded!

Luckily, there were enough campsites that we were able to just shift to a spot on higher ground.

Dinner with Mike's Family

While Mike's brother, Danny, was home from Iraq on a 2 week leave he wanted the whole family to get together for dinner. Mike's mom and dad and 5 of the 7 siblings and their families were able to get together. It is hard to get a picture of 20+ people - especially when they are all more interested in their food! Most of the little kids were sitting at the other end of the table - so you can't really see them.

We had a good night just visiting and spending time with the family.

Danny Comes Home

eMike's brother, Danny, has been deployed to Iraq since October. He was able to get a couple of weeks of leave and come home. We were expecting him to be at the airport just before 6pm. His plane was late getting into Salt Lake, so he missed his connecting flight. Since we had a few hours to kill, all of the family went out to grab a bite to eat while we waited. Kenneth was really intent on his ribs :)

Boys are so funny.....they won't hug each other. All the women gave Danny hugs - but the men...nope (except Dad). Kenneth was happy with a handshake.

He looks good and we hope he has a relaxing time while at home.

Chrome in the Dome

We took a quick drive to see a car show today called Chrome in the Dome.

Mike really likes old cars - especially Corvettes - like the one in the picture.

Mike's parents went with us. We had a nice afternoon just wandering around the show and then we went out for lunch.