Football Begins!!!

The start of a new era for both Utah and BYU football. 

                                         Utah is now a member of the...

Dave, Val & Mark heading to the game

BYU is now independent and to show there support Mark, his dad and brother Dave all too a rode trip to Mississippi to see them play Ole Miss.  They had an amazing time and enjoyed the great southern hospitality they were shown.  They were invited to enjoy some good southern b-Que at a tail gate party before the game and loved the experience they had.  While at the game they ran into there Uncle Steve and his boys, who live in Iowa, at the game so later they were able to meet up for dinner. They sure enjoyed this little quick trip to the good ole south.  They only thing that would have made it better is if they could have somehow met up with our nephew Aaron who is serving his mission in the Jackson, Mississippi mission but he was just a little to far away. 

Dave & Val at the Ole Miss stadium before the game



Dave visiting with an Ole Miss fan



August 2011

 Our August was filled with family time.  We got to celebrate Tyler turning one.  He is such a sweet loving little boy and always a joy to have around.  

Benda, Val, Addie & Sherilyn celebrating with Ty









The big birthday boy - loving his yummy cake









Aidan, Tracy and John - enjoying the big birthday celebration



A few weeks later Dave, Kelly, Ava, Luke & Logan ventured from Richmond, Virginia for a few weeks with the family.  It is always good to have them come out.  We sure wish that they lived closer so we could spend more time with them and get to see these cute kids grow up. 

Ava, Luke & Mark - making ice cream for the reunion



Cute Logan



and his cute twin brother Luke 



Orlando - July 2011

Lazy River at JW Marriott's

Sherilyn & Mark Medievel Times

Paul & Catherine - Harry Potter's village Universal Studios

Mark & Catherine after the Jurassic Park ride

Mark & I in front of the most awesome hotel- JW Marriott can't wait to stay here again

Well I must say I have not been good at keeping up my blog which is sad as it can be like a journal to me so here goes a bit of an update since the last one over a year ago.  We have had the wonderful opportunity to once again travel to Florida last July with Mark's brother Paul & wife Catherine.  It was for Mark's work convention so part was work for the guys but fun for us ladies.  We stayed in the most amazing hotel that had a lazy river at the pool so needless to say that is where we spend a lot of our time.  We went to a dinner at Medieval Times which was a one time thing, Steak N Shake for a few to many shakes, shopping, dinner at Bubba Gumps, lunch an Maggiano's and Universal Studios.  We had a great time at Universal Studios except for Mark getting sick along with Catherine as well.  Loved riding the awesome rides and seeing Harry Potters village.  Over all it was an great trip.

Memorial Weekend

We started of our weekend by heading to Gateway for a much needed dinner at California Pizza Kitchen with Paul, Catherine, Hallie & Ty.  Hallie loved it.  We did a little shopping and she had to show Mark a bracelet at one of the stores that she said was so beautiful.  She loves her Uncle Mark and knows that he will do anything for her.  After a fun evening of food, shooping and spending time with family went went home and packed up the car for a weekend of camping.

We left Saturday morning to meet my family at Jolly's Ranch for a little weekend of camping. It was not ideal weather for camping but we were able to have fun anyway.  The guys were able to get in a round of golf at Hobble Creek golf course and had a super time.  That evening we sat around the camp fire enjoying some smores and marshmellows.  It did not rain on Saturday until really late after we were all in bed but it was pretty cold.  The next morning we woke to overcast skys but not rain which was nice however by eveing the storm rolled in and some of us staying in tents decided to pack up and head for home.  We left about 11:00.  Here is a few pictures of the fun we had. 



Luke sporting his shades upside down



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Rachel, Mark & Paul enjoying a game of Rook



Molly & Lestar take a spin in the jeep



Cute baby Alyssa

 

Kyler such a cheese and adventurous boy.




Brandon - enjoying a little gooey smore!!!



Marlene, Kristine, Kelsie & Klyer enjoying what little sunshine there was



Lizzy & Ethan enjoying some time around the fire!

Some of the family round the fire!
This was Saturday night before the rain.
Michele, Alex, Rachel & Mike

Lestar enjoying her marshmellow

Lily & McKenna - two cuties



Krystal & Kelsie - best friends & cousins




Sunday evening around the fire - down comes the rain.




Spencer & Randy trying to enjoy the fire!!!











Hello Again

As many of you know I work for a CPA office so between the months of Jan to April not much happens except for work.  It is so nice to have another year of it over and now have so much to look forward to.  I am so happy to finally get to see that maybe "SPRING" has finally arrived.  It has been a long, cold and wet and we are all ready for some good days with a lot of sunshine.

We are heading to Alaska this year with our good friends the Heumann's to celebrate their 20th wedding anniversary and our 15th wedding anniversary.  We are so excited to get to go see this beautiful part of our country and to get to spend time with our wonderful friends.   Then we will be heading off to Orlando for Mark's convention and also to get to spend some time with Mark's brother's family, Dave, Kelly, Ava, Luke and Logan who live in Virginia and we do not see often enough.  We miss them and look forward to some time with them in Florida as well as when they come out for a long over due visit in August.  It will be a summer filled with lots of good times.

Farewell 2010 - Welcome 2011

We had a great Christmas season and enjoyed much time with family and friends.  It was a busy month but I can say I enjoyed all the good times we had.  We had a couple of company parties, neighborhood parties and was able to spend wonderful times with both our families.  We went to zoo lights with some of my family, attended the Festival of Trees, was blessed to do tow Sub-for-Santa and reflect on our Savior Jesus Christ.  It was a great way to end an incredible year.  We were truly blessed and hope that as the new year begins that we can continue to serve others and to draw closer to our Savior.

This year at my extended family party my sister heard that my Aunt Charlyn had been writing here history and she was so gracious to share it with my sisters and I.  I must say it has been one of the most precious gifts I received this Christmas.  I am one of the youngest of the grand children on my moms side of the family and the youngest on my dads side so I was not lucky to be blessed with knowing my grandparents.  I have been truly humbled to hear of the incredible struggles my grandma had after my grandfather passed away and she still had children at home to raise.  She raised two wonderful boys and five incredible daughters.   When my grandfather passed away she still had my uncle Raymond, my aunt Charlyn and aunt Karma still living at home.  They did not have a lot and were considered poor but because of the love of the Savior and the testimonies that were shared they may have been poor by worldly standards but were so rich in the matters of the gospel.  I  was brought to tears as I read of the incredible faith that my Aunt shared, the love of the gospel and the great power of prayer.  My testimony has grown as I have read of the struggles my grandma had but how she remained a faithful, loving, caring and spiritual leader to her children.  I feel truly blessed to have such an amazing legacy.  I love my Heavenly Father for blessing us with a wonderful grandma and grandpa who raised their children in the Church of Jesus Christ and kept them grounded in knowing what truly is important in life.  I can say that I was also raised but to wonderful parents who brought with them the teaching of their parents and am so grateful that they raised us in the gospel and helped to know what is truly important and that is to have faith in the Savior and to live the gospel to its fullest.   Thank you Aunt Charlyn for sharing

May this New Year find each of you being blessed even more.  We are so grateful for the examples and love of each of you in our lives and are better because of each one of you.

Merry Christmas

This year has been an incredible Christmas season for Mark & I.  We have enjoyed many wonderful parties with family and friends, Christmas shopping, zoo lights, going to Jazz games and just enjoying this wonderful time of year.  We are so grateful this year to have been able to help out those who are less fortunate this year.  We helped do a couple of sub-for-Santa's along with both sides of our family and help provide three families with a Thanksgiving dinner.  As one of our traditions is to attend the Festival of Trees and was able to bid on some wonderful donated items to help out the Primary Children's Hospital.  We are so grateful for this time of year where we get to be with all those we love.  We are most grateful for our Savior and the opportunity we have to reflect on all that he represents.  We have been blessed so much because of the sacrifice that our Savior made for each one of us and hope that each of you will take some time out of the hustle and bustle to reflect on all that He has given you.  We are so grateful to all our family and friends and this time of year and always.  We wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a prosperous New Year.

Holidays

Some of my  favorite things about the Christmas season:

I love the decorations and lights and the festive fell they bring.
I love spending time with family.  We are so blessed to have wonderful family's.
I love giving to others.  Being able to help others at this time of year to make there holidays better is what brings us so much joy.
I love the beauty of the snow and how pretty beautiful it is to see a blanket of snow out the window.
I love that we have so many opportunities to serve others.
I love listening and singing all the wonderful Christmas Carols.
I love going to see all the beautiful light displays at Temple Square and the Zoo.
I love all the yummy treats.
I love to go to all the many parties and spending time with all our many friends.
I love little kids and seeing their eyes light up as they talk about Christmas and the excitement of seeing Santa.
Most of all I love that we are able to remember our savior born so many years ago in a humble stable and be reminded of the great blessing it is to each one of us.  Our Savior is the greatest gift we will ever receive.  May we never forget that that is the true meaning of Christmas and the reason we celebrate this beautiful time of year.

DISNEYLAND

On June 5 we flew out with Mark's parents, Val & Benda, to meet John, Tracy & kids in Southern California for a few days of fun in the sun. We stayed at the Marriott Hotel right next toe the convention center and about two blocks from Disneyland. It was a beautiful hotel and very convenient to all we wanted to do. We got in some pool time then enjoyed a wonderful dinner at Bubba Gumps. The next day we headed to Disneyland for two full days of fun. It was not to busy there and got to ride several rides many times. It was so much fun to be with John, Tracy, Aaron, Aidan, and Addie and Mark's parents. We loved riding rides like Splash Mountain, Tower of Terror, Screaming, Souring Over California, Space Mountain, Indiana Jones ride, and many others. We rode Tower of Terror and Splash Mountain four times in a row. Needless to say after four time on Splash Mountain we were drenched. We also got to ride one of my favorites Space Mountain two times in a row. We ate at some great restaurants and were able to have a great birthday dinner for Aidan at PF Chang's. We enjoyed our time together and were glad we was able to spend time together as a family. It was great to spend some time with Aaron before he leaves for his mission to Jackson, Mississippi in August.

John, Aidan, Addie, Tracy & Aaron. It was so much fun to be with them. We are sure glad that they were nice enough to invite us to join with them.

Val, John, Aidan, Aaron & Mark

Tracy, Addie, Benda & Myself

Aaron, Aidan, Tracy & Addie on the Matterhorn

One of our favorite rides - Tower of Terror

Addie with her favorite - Winnie the Pooh

MEMORIAL WEEKEND

Over Memorial Weekend we went camping with my family at Hobble Creek in Springville. We had a great time and it was fun to get to spend some time with my family. We had lots to eat, great weather and many good laughs. We love to be in the outdoors and be able to enjoy all the beautiful surroundings God created for us. The kids played from the time they got up until late at night. The guys all enjoyed and afternoon of golf on the beautiful Hobble Creek golf course. We played games, talked, played at the play ground, enjoyed smores around the campfire and made many more wonderful memories. A few had to work and missed having them with us but hope they can join us next time around. Here are a few fun pictures of our outing.

Lizzy, Lindsay, Krystal & Kelsie
Tyler, McKay & Lestar
Mark, John, Brandon & Treyson playing Risk. Treyson loves to play Marks army

game and loves that his Uncle Mark will play with him.

Sophie
McKenna & Lilly
Cynthia- just after she finished washing her hair. Boy did we all get a good laugh.

The Newlyweds - Spencer & Jess
Phil Bates & Rachel Teran
Dylan
Kyler
Luke
Treyson - showing off his army guys
Me and my shadow Ethan - He didn't want to look at the camera