Our NEW information

Sorry for being so slow with this. I'm not going to post our new phone numbers, and address on our Blog. Not that I don't want you all to have our information, I just want to make sure that I know who is receiving our information. I'm not 100% sure of EVERYONE who reads our blog. We are going to send out a mass email to everyone that we have an email address for. Leave me your email unless you know that I already for sure have your email address.

Alive and Well

Well, we made it to our new home town. Price, Utah. We arrived late Thursday night, June 25Th. We drove into town, went straight to our new home to preview it before we bought it the following day. Brian and I were kinda nervous buying our house sight unseen. We were a little hesitant because the house was a foreclosure. Brian's parents, and Dan, and Valarie ( our good friends) both saw the house. We really put a lot of trust in them! Thanks guys!

We closed on our home Friday June 26Th. All went well.... We are officially home owners "again"! Hear is a picture of our new home!

The move out, and the drive out was a little crazy....... Need I say more!

My Mother, and sister Lani rescued our children that Saturday for a couple of weeks. They took them to Canada so the kids could spend some time with their grandparents, and cousins. The kids had a blast, and grandma whooped them into shape pretty quick. They got to help out on the farm, play in the pool, and just be kids. They also got to go to Grandpa & Grandmas new cabin on Echo Lake in Montana. Uncle Chad, and Aunt Lani taught Taylor, McKenzie, and even little Jackson how to water ski. I couldn't believe it.... Little Jackson water skiing! He's ONLY 5 years old! Now that's amazing! ( Lani, I need those pictures). They said it was "really" cute!

Meanwhile...., Brian, and I have been busy, busy, busy!

The movers arrived Tuesday the 30Th of June. We had a few days before they arrived to get the house cleaned, and a few projects done. We've had some good quality time together while getting the house somewhat settled, and ready for the movers to arrive with all of our stuff.

A few of Brian's brothers, as well as Seth, and Hailey came to help us unpack.

John & Clint

Brian & Greg and the BMW ( notice they are out playing with the car while the others are in working, they are so busted)

Hailey was such a good help with Case

Seth was our "chore Boy" he did everything that the rest of us were too lazy to do.

It's so nice to live closer to family for that reason. We didn't even ask them to come help. Now that's some awesome family! Taking our kids for us or a few weeks, unpacking, retrieving our now destroyed car from the dirty transporter, not to mention the many other things they've done for us. We've definitely got it pretty good....

Poor Little Case... OUCH!

Little Case stayed back with us. He's seriously the best little baby. He's been so good during all this craziness. He also got second degree burns on his face the day that we moved in. He fell asleep in his swing in the garage, IN THE SHADE for a good part of the day. When he woke up he was burnt! We couldn't figure it out! We thought that the reflection from the driveway may have done it. We didn't know... then a few mornings later while Brian was in the shower he had been thinking about it, trying to figure it out. He remembered that above the swing that Case was in is a dome shaped mirror, Case can look up into it and see himself, as well as all the little hanging toys. Brian figured that the mirror had probably acted as a magnifying glass and reflected from the sun, onto Case's sweet little face. Poor little baby! He didn't even act bothered by it, or fuss about it.

We felt so bad about it! The one child that was left in our care.... Whenever we went out in public we would place a blanket over him and the car seat, so people couldn't see him. I'm sure people wondered why his blanket was moving around, ( Case was laughing, and kicking it) and why he was covered up. He's all better now. It's amazing how fast his little face healed. He's such a doll!

We sure do love our Case!!!!

4TH of JULY

The 4TH of July weekend, we started by spending some time, and staying the night with Nate, and Lisa Christiansen. ( Our good friends).

( I really need a better picture of you guys, I've got a ton of the kids, just not the whole family)

We went to dinner, ice cream, and went landscape looking with them. They are always so kind to let us stay with them, even if we have laundry to do at their house, and are in need of computer access. It's nice to have such good friends, that we are so comfortable with. It will be great to be able to see them more often.

We also went up to Logan, to visit with Brianne, and Nate. ( My sister, and her husband who just finished up his residency in Michigan) Nate, is one of the new ER doctors in Logan. Candace, and Jason, ( another sister, and her husband) were able to go as well. We had a lot of fun! We did the traditional Lewiston parade. We got to see some of our Griffeth family at the parade as well.

John & Michele Griffeth Family

One of the highlights of the weekend was running into my good friend Tara Coppin. I haven't seen her in a long time. We have some great memories together, and now that we live closer hopefully many more memories to be made.

We also ran into our good friends John, and Julee Sanchez, and their cute kids.

The Sanchez Family

We've been able to see them a few times in the last couple years. They are really good friends of Lani, and Casey. We knew them while we lived in Logan, but most of all we've gotten to know them better when we've been out visiting Lani, and Casey, and they just happened to be going through town at the same time. They have been such a great support to Lani. They have made many trips to visit Lani, and Casey in Vegas. They were able to come to Casey's funeral and spend some time with the family. We sure do appreciate all the love and support that they have shown. We are especially glad because of the friendship that we've developed.

One of the main reasons for us going to Logan for the 4Th was, we've been wanting to put a headstone on our babies grave. We were able to go the the cemetery, visit the family grave site, and see how much room we had for a headstone, and just get a few ideas. What a feeling of comfort we felt at the grave side.

That evening we enjoyed watching the boys, Brian, Nate, and especially Jason light fireworks.

They were very entertaining! We got quite the laugh. The kids were pretty cute to watch as the fireworks went off. It sure was weird without our kids being with us on the 4Th.

These are Brianne, and Candace's cute little kids.

It's amazing how much more you can enjoy other peoples kids when yours aren't around to distract you. We sure had a lot of fun with them. Our children still had a ton of fun though. They got to celebrate....... CANADA DAY !

CANADA DAY was July 1st while they were in Canada. The kids had a lot of fun things to tell us about. They said that the parade was the smallest that they had ever seen, ( I think there were maybe 3 floats, and 50 horses) and that someones float had a swear word on it....

One of the floats said " The Dam Float"

another said " The Biggest Dam Float"

and the last said " The last Dam Float"!

I laughed, only because I'm from Hillspring and understood the joke. My kids, not so much! I thought that now would be a good time to teach McKenzie how "swear words" really are spelt.

A family that works at the dam by the town, and is in charge of maintenance of the grounds entered the float in the parade.

Anyways, Thanks everyone for a great weekend, it was fun to see everyone, and visit with you all!

Quick Trip North

We decided to go get our kids a little early, and relive my mom. She was at her cabin with eight grand kids. We thought she could probably use a relief. We enjoyed our quick trip to Montana. It was only about 9hrs from Salt Lake. The cabin is beautiful, about 6000sq. ft. It's HUGE! Great for family gatherings! We were especially excited to see our children again. Nobody loves our kids like we do. What a big help it was to have them gone for a while so that we could get our new home in order. Thanks Mom, Lani, and Diana, We really appreciate your help!

The Cabin

A look from the back of the cabin

The Cabin has its own little bay, and then opens up into the lake.

The kids had a blast at the Cabin, and are already talking about going back in a few weeks. What a great place to go, and spend some time together. The pictures really don't do justice. The Cabin, and views are beautiful!!!

Crazy Griffeth Family...

On the way home we got to stop at "hotel HULL", (my sisters house) for a few nights. We attended Dave and Jill's (Brian's little sister) newest little baby, "Knightley" baby blessing on Sunday. The blessing was beautiful, (even if we had to hear it from the hall).

Mom and Dad with the three newest grand babies #31, #32 , & #33. ( I think) Treyton, Case, and Knightley.

Afterwords we got to go to Jill's for a Family Dinner. Great food, and entertainment! Never a dull moment with the Griffeth Family. This is only two of probably about 25 pictures we tried taking of the family, and you think it's hard getting little kids to cooperate for a nice little picture....... Try getting this bunch to take a picture. Now that's a headache!

Greg, John, Mike, Clint, Brian

Jill, Mom, Dad, and K'Lyn ( we were missing Jeff)

The girls doing what they do best, being wild, and crazy! Just like their Dad's...

Savannah, Abbey, and McKenzie

Even the boy cousins enjoy and have a lot of fun together, even if the "girls", sorry, "boys" do dress up like little girls. Boys.... This picture will haunt you forever!!!

Jackson, Taylor, and Pratt. ( not the best picture of Taylor, or Pratt. You really needed to be present to get the good laugh)

Home Sweet Home

The kids were excited to get home! They couldn't wait to see their new bedrooms. Brian, and I had been so busy painting, and organizing. You know me, I go through EVERYTHING..... That way I know where everything is, and can give everything a new home! (ha ha)

( Backing up to the first day we pulled into town June 25Th).

When we first pulled into town towards our neighborhood I have to admit That I was a little nervous. As we were driving down this, what seemed to be a very long road. We passed a house with a cow tied up to the tree in front of the house, a few houses up from that, there were a few goats in the front yard, and then we almost hit a chicken or a pheasant, we're not so sure what it was, and then the best was the mange looking dog that ran beside our car barking at the tires..... I about died! I was laughing so hard but I honestly had a few tears in my eyes at the same time. Trying to hide back my emotion so the kids, and Brian wouldn't see, I tried to be very positive and act excited because what I could see on their faces was pure joy, and excitement. That's what it's all about right..? Besides, this is what we had been praying for, and we knew without a doubt that this is where the Lord wants us...

We met our neighbors, they are all soooo nice. We have a good variety of ages, adults, and kids. There are about eleven homes in our subdivision, with about that many more still available to purchase. The neighborhood has a great view of the mountains in all directions. We overlook a dried up water bed that is full of mature trees. It really is beautiful!

Here are some pictures of our new home:

The Front Entry

A neat stone arch way that creates an open feeling in the Front room and the Front Entry way

Part of the Front Room

A look from afar into the Kitchen, and dining area. ( as you can see in the background, we are in the process of adding some cabinets) I'll add more pictures when it's complete.

A TV area in the Basement

A Fireplace area in the Basement. We also have a Fireplace upstairs.

Jackson's Bedroom

Case's Bedroom

Taylor's Bedroom

McKenzie's Bedroom BEFORE

And AFTER

This was a surprise for her. She picked the color out though. She had been wanting this bed set for a long time. Her friend back in Wisconsin has the same set. McKenzie honestly has been checking the Pottery Barn Catalog for the last 6 months for this set, to see if it would go on sale. Finally it went on clearance so I snagged it without her knowing. She loved it!

McKenzie was the only one that got a new bed set. The boys were just fine with that, We were kind of worried about that one.

This is a fun little mini-Kitchen area in the Basement by the Home Theater area. You can also see my pile of picures that is waiting for my personal interior decorator to arrive from Wisconsin. ( Ha Ha)

I'll add more pictures of the exterior of the house another time. It was too dark outside when I started this post, I wouldn't get very good pictures in the dark.

So many neighbors have stopped by with bread, cookies, vegetables from the garden, or just a sweet little hello, and welcome to the neighborhood. It's kind of overwhelming for us, in a good way. We have found everyone to be so extremely friendly. It was funny, Brian was asking the neighbor about an alarm system for our house. The neighbor laughed and said," we don't even LOCK our house, or our cars". Another experience we had was, we were supposed to meet a lady at our house so she could measure our counter tops. We missed her by a few minutes. We ran into her a day later at a restaurant and apologised for not being home to meet with her, and wondered when she wanted to come back to measure. She informed us that she just let herself into our home, and measured it with out us. We didn't know what to think, nor did we realize that we left the door unlocked. oops! It just goes to show you what kind of town we live in. Everyone is so trusting, and kind. McKenzie said, " why does everyone in the stores always talk to me?" It's true! I swear the whole town knew who we were before we moved in,no joke! I guess I'd better REALLY watch what I say.... unfortunately I've had a few too many learning lessons in the past few years to prepare me.

One more thing, and then I'll be done. One of the neighbors warned us that when making a phone call, leaving a message or making an appointment. Don't expect anyone to get back to you for a few days, be sure to give them about 3 days to return the call..... This doesn't fly with me! I'm not the most patient person in the world. We've made lots of calls, and are still waiting for some people to return our call. The cabinet man, the garage door guy, the roofer, the tile guy. I guess we'll just wait.....! We did FINALLY get our Internet after about 2 and 1/2 weeks, and 8 different phone calls!

We have a lot to get used to, but are settling in just fine. The kids have enjoyed meeting some new friends. We sure do miss our friends from Wisconsin. I know we'll be able to see a lot of you in the near future. We were kind of torn in a way, a few days ago, one of the jobs we had been waiting on in Milwaukee finally came through. The CEO called and told Brian that they were ready to take him on and were really excited to start working with him. Brian then proceeded to inform him that he couldn't wait for them, and that he found a different job. The CEO felt bad that they had to keep putting the job off because of a hospital merger, but did wish Brian the best of luck in his new practice, and offered him a standing offer. We have also got another call from a Physician in Chicago who is looking to add another associate. He had really hoped that Brian was available. Both of these job offers were great, however we know we've made the right decision. I told one of my great friends from Wisconsin about this, she said, " it must not have been meant to be". She's right! Timing really did play a big part in our decision. You know me though, I'm always doubting!!!

I promise to be better with our Blog now that I have Internet. I also look forward to checking out your blogs as well. What a great way to keep in touch....