The Howards

Halloween

2011-11-01T21:48:00.000-07:00

We had a lot of fun this Halloween. The night before Halloween we carved our pumpkins, and of course the kids wanted to carve ones that took forever. They turned out super cute though. Olivia didn't like cleaning it out, she decided that I did a better job. Gavin on the other hand loved it, he even did a good job cutting it out. So for Halloween day all I heard all day was is it time to go trick or treating???? When it was finally time they made out with a ton of candy. I'm really not complaining though, because I will most likely eat my fair share. Here is a look at our fun!!!

First day of school! First day of school!!!!

2011-08-31T19:40:00.000-07:00

Today was Gavin's first day of Kindergarten. He was excited! He had his clothes laid out the night before, his Mario backpack was packed and ready, and he actually went to bed when we asked him to last night. He was all ready.... until the bus pulled up in front of our house. While all of the other kids were lined up ready to get on the bus, Gavin inched his way back over to April and whispered, "I don't know what to do." She told him to get on the bus, find a friend, and find your classroom when you get there. Apparently it worked out cause we didn't get a phone call from any crying children. April, on the other hand, might have teared up a little.

Olivia's 3rd Birthday (Posted a few months late)

2011-08-31T19:18:00.000-07:00

Wow my little girl is three now, but acts like she is 10. I asked Olivia what kind of birthday she wanted, and she didn't even have to think about it. She said " I want a princess birthday, with a princess Belle cake." So I went to work and made a Belle cake, I am not the best cake maker, but I don't think it turned out to bad. Some friends and family came over to celebrate with her and she had a blast. Olivia is such a sweet little girl, but sure keeps us all busy. She loves playing with her big brother and being a little mommy to her younger brother. She is always wanting to help me in the kitchen from washing the dishes to cooking dinner or cookies. We sure love her sweet personality. Here are a few pictures to enjoy.

Camping Trip

2011-08-29T20:55:00.000-07:00

This was an awesome camping trip with our family and some of our dear friends! We headed up above Kelly Canyon and found a great new spot to camp. Big flat area with lots of shade, good places for tents, easy access to motorcycle trails, and a small stream near by. We all got dirty but we had a ton of fun. Here are a few pictures of the trip!

This child is ours.... it's Olivia somewhere under all the dirt. She wanted rides on the "loud" bike.

Olivia playing a little game of horse shoes... by herself. So cute!

Ashton's first 4-wheeler ride. He loved it of course. It's in his blood.

Olivia fell asleep on the motorcycle ride again. Yes, this HAS happened before...

Somebody poisoned the waterhole! Well, maybe peed in it or something. J/K! This is the little stream that was a short walk from camp. Great place to cool off....

Gavin was exited about... something.

Happiest baby ever! He loved the outdoors.

Ahhhhh... My girls.....

Gavin was thrilled about breakfast....if you can tell. It was actually AMAZING!

Ashton's Blessing

2011-03-14T22:47:00.001-07:00

Ashton was blessed on March 6, 2011. He was such a good boy, didn't make a single peep. Burgess did a great job blessing him. We were so grateful for the family and friends who were able to make it. Ashton is such a good little boy with a fun personality, and he always has a smile on his face. We just love him to pieces.

Best Christmas Present Ever!

2010-12-26T22:44:00.000-08:00

On December 20th, we recieved the newest addition to our family. Ashton Ivar Howard was born at 2:19 pm weighing in at 7 lbs. 0 oz. and 19 in. long. Both April and Ashton are doing great. Gavin and Olivia were so excited to see him for the first time even though Gavin was a little disappointed that we didn't call him Ridge. Gavin is going to be a great big brother to him and Olivia is trying to help out whenever she can. Her specialty is rounding up all the diaper changing stuff when Ashton needs a diaper change. Well, here are a few pictures of Ashton.

Our Shower Upgrade

2010-12-26T22:21:00.000-08:00

So back in July, after a family reunion, we came home to our "new" house to the smell of mildew and mold in our walk in closet. Come to find out that our master shower had leaked the last time we had used it and soked our closet carpet. After some phone calls, pictures, visitors, etc, we finally got the go ahead in October to get it fixed. And two months later, its finally finished. We love the outcome so here are some before and after shots:

Before

After

photo shoot

2010-10-29T14:41:00.001-07:00

About a month ago our good friend Sarah took some amazing pictures of Gavin and Olivia. They both were very good after they were bribed with a kids meal. It was totally worth the kids meal, I love all the great shots we got of them. Gavin is 4 1/2 and Olivia is 2 1/2. They are just so much fun. They sure keep me busy and on my toes, I don't know what I would do without them. Now that we are adding one more to the family it will be that much more crazier and that much more fun.

Gavin's first day of Preschool!!

2010-10-07T10:14:00.000-07:00

Can you believe it Gavin is in preschool. He was so excited to go he woke up extra early to get ready. When I went to drop him off he ran in all by himself and didn't even look back. He is growing up way to fast. After I picked him up I asked him how his fist day was? He said " mom it was so awesome I had so much fun and there were lots of kids there to play with." I am so glad he is enjoying learning and is coming home everyday with something new to tell me or show me.

Fun at the Fair

2010-10-07T09:53:00.000-07:00

We made it to the Blackfoot Fair this year and had a blast. Our fun neighbors the Butters came with us. We sure have a great time with them. Gavin and Olivia had so fun just running around. There favorite part was the rides of course. Gavin was finally tall enough to do a few this year but Olivia on the other hand could only ride on one. I can't believe how fast they grow.

Gavin and Burgess waiting in line for the ferris wheel.

Gavin and his cute friend Amarah sitting in a big tank.

Summer Madness

2010-08-02T13:44:00.000-07:00

It has been such a long time since I have posted. We have had such a busy summer. From birthdays, to reunions, to camp outs, oh and moving into our new home which we love. It's crazy how fast time flies. Here are a few pics of our life. I will try and post a little more often.

Happy 4th B-Day Gavin

2010-03-03T07:58:00.000-08:00

My crazy Gavin just turned four. He is growing up so fast. This year he was so excited for his birthday, everyday he would say "mom is it my birthday yet"? I finally showed him what day it was on the calendar so he could count down on his own. He just loved looking at the calendar everyday and saying "it almost my birthday".

Gavin really wanted a super mario party. You can not find anything super mario in the stores, and you have to pay a fortune online for anything so I decided to have his party at the gym I coach at. It turned out so fun. The kids jumped around like they were Mario and Lugi. Thanks to everyone who came, it was such a blast. Gavin we love you so much. You are so fun to be around and have such a fun personality. There is never a dull moment with you around, you always make me laugh and have such a great imagination. Here's to another year of fun adventures, and seeing you grow into such a big boy!!! LOVE YOU!!

Gavin and his peace sign

Boys will be Boys

HAPPY BIRTHDAY

Four years old

Who can jump through the hoop?

Is it my turn yet?

Ring around the Rosies

Road Trip

2010-01-20T18:32:00.000-08:00

The beginning of January we went to Arizona with my sister Lacie and her husband Max, and Max's sister Jessa and her husband Trent. They of course had tickets to fly and we got to enjoy the 13 hour road trip. I can't complain to much about the drive there since the kids did amazing. We only stopped twice for potty breaks once to eat lunch, and to look at a dam. The drive actually went by pretty quick.

We had so much fun though while we were there. The house we stayed at had a heated pool outside that we kept nice and warm. Gavin wanted to be in the pool all day every day. He even got brave enough to put on some goggles and look under the water. That is huge for Gavin since he hates getting water in his face and ears. I guess I just need to take him swimming more often. Olivia on the other hand wanted to get out after being in there for five minutes. Why couldn't she be like her cousin Bailee who was a water bug. The weather was so nice, it was about 72 the entire time. While back home it was in the negatives. We enjoyed just being able to lounge around and visiting with everyone. There were some fun bike trails that we went on, they led to a bunch of different parks that the kids loved.

One of the days there we went to the zoo. I have never been to a zoo that you could feed the giraffes. Gavin was a little scared to feed it at first, but Olivia didn't want anything to do with it. We were there for a good part of the day it was so much fun. There was this little cat that was just sitting in the corner of it's cage, and everyone was trying to get it to walk around. As soon as Olivia walked up to the window it ran over to her and started playing with her it was so cute. She played with it for about ten minutes. The cat was not happy when I took her away, it jumped up on the window and started pawing at it. It probably didn't help that Olivia was screaming Kitty while I was taking her out, she just loves cats.

We were not ready to go home, we could have stayed there another week instead of coming back to cold Idaho. Thanks Lacie and Max for such a fun vacation. We should definitely do it again.

On the drive home we drove past the hoover dam, to bad it was so dark you couldn't see much but it was still fun to look at. Then we drove by Las Vegas. I have never seen Vegas so it was probably better that we were driving at night. It was so fun to see it all lit up, maybe one of these times we will be able to stop. We stopped in St. George that night at a condo Burgess' parents were at. They following day we had lunch, and took it up to the red rocks with his parents. We had fun climbing on the red rocks and just getting out some energy before we got back in the car to finish the drive home.

Now that we are back we wish we could have the weather of Arizona. It is so cold right now and there is still snow. I think I am ready for summer to come. Sorry this was so long so thanks for reading. Here are some pictures of all the fun we had, so enjoy..

What to sleep with??

2010-01-20T18:20:00.000-08:00

Gavin is such a silly boy. After we put him to bed he always is looking around his room for something to sleep with in his bed. Here are some of the crazy things he ends up finding. I can't find the picture of him wearing his big elephant slippers, but it was so cute. I can't wait to see what else he will come up.

Christmas 2009

2009-12-30T14:01:00.000-08:00

The Holidays have been very busy, but very fun. Gavin was so excited this year for Santa to come. Christmas Eve my sister Lacie and her husband Max, oh lets not forget cute little Bailee and my mom came over for a while and played some games and of course to eat lots of yummy food. My kidos sure loved grandma reading them a couple of Christmas stories before going to bed. That morning the kids didn't wake up until 8:30 it was so nice. We enjoyed opening gifts with just our little family. It was nice to have it kind of quite. After gifts were opened we headed to Blackfoot to spend some time with Burgess' family. We sure love getting together with family and friends. We hope all of you had a wonderful Christmas like we did.

Now we are off to Montana to spend the New Year at my sister Natalie's house, and to see my niece get baptized. We sure love ya Aubree. Have a safe and Happy New Year!!!

It's Official

2009-12-08T12:16:00.000-08:00

My 19 month old Olivia is officially potty trained. She decided to start all on her own, so I decided to take advantage of the situation. I ran to the store and bought her some panties. It has been almost a week now and for three days she has had no accidents. I am so proud of her, she is such a smart energetic girl. I guess my baby is not much of a baby anymore.

First Annual Turkey Trials

2009-11-28T22:15:00.000-08:00

We couldn't have asked for a more perfect day for the first annual Turkey Trials. It was a brisk 35ish degrees outside with a light breeze from the southwest. The sun was shining and the riders were ready to go.

To start things off we had the Men's 125cc division. Riders entering the division included Ben "The Tank", Quinn "The Beast", Burgess "The Prodigy", Evan "The Crash Dummy", and Jake "The Snake". It was an incredible start to the proceedings. Here are the results:

Place	Rider	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3
1st	Evan	43.7	42.8	-
2nd	Burgess	46.7	44.5	43.5
3rd	Quinn	44.2	43.8	38.2*
4th	Jake	46.4	52.4	45.2
5th	Ben	50.6	47.1*	-
* Using Quinn's 350cc bike

Next up was our fearless Women's 125cc division. Riding was Robin "The Terror", Sandy "The SlammaJamma", Nellene "The Bean", April "The Beaner", and Bethany "The Undertaker". All had great showings for the day. Here are the results:

Place	Rider	Round 1	Round 2	Round 3
1st	Robin	51.7	49.5	48.1
2nd	Sandy	56.0	53.9	50.6
3rd	April	57.0	54.0	51.0
4th	Nellene	58.2	57.4	54.4
5th	Bethany	1:05.7	-	-

Ok, it really was a great time and thanks to Dad for letting us rip up a little pasture and thanks to Quinn for allowing us to rally his new bikes! Next year will be even better. Hope to see everyone out again. Here are a few pics for your enjoyment!

There is a new house on the market.... yeah, it's ours.

2009-11-11T21:19:00.000-08:00

Tell your friends and neighbors and relatives and anyone else that might be in the market, we are selling. We are not leaving the area, just looking for something bigger.

For pictures and info click http://rigbyhomeforsale-347madsen.blogspot.com/

Pumpkin Patch

2009-10-19T15:33:00.000-07:00

Saturday was such a nice day. So we took advantage of it and went with our fun friends and there kids to the pumpkin patch. The kids had a ton of fun finding just the right pumpkin. There was a straw maze that Gavin could not get enough of, I think he went through about 3 times. Surprisingly Olivia made it through the maze all on her own, I just followed behind her. When she ran into a dead end she would come running right past me to go another way. It was so fun to watch them both having so much fun. I sure love my kids!!!

Halloween Party

2009-10-19T15:15:00.000-07:00

Every month one of our neighbors is in charge of throwing a neighborhood party. I got October, so of course it was a costume party for Halloween. It was so much fun. We ate lots of food and played lots of games including musical chairs. It was the funniest game to watch. Thanks to all of my neighbors and my sister Lacie for such a great night. We can't wait for next months party!!!

David Cook Concert

2009-09-08T22:35:00.000-07:00

So April's lucky streak had a nice little peak the other day. She got a phone call from The Buckle and they told her that she had won VIP David Cook tickets. She was pretty excited. So we hired a baby sitter and had a great evening. And yes, we were close enough that we could have played his guitar. Here are a couple pics.

Gavin and Olivias Photo shoot

2009-08-12T07:43:00.000-07:00

I finally got around to taking Gavin and Olivia for there pictures. We took them more towards the evening so the lighting would be better, and my kids we not cooperating very well. I thought that we weren't going to get very good pictures, but look at how well these ones turned out. My friend Sarah took there pictures she did such a great job thanks Sarah. To see more of Sarah's photos go to sarahlanaephotography.blogspot.com she really does do a wonderful job. I only posted a few of there pictures, there was just to many to choose from.

Memorial Day Camping

2009-06-10T12:04:00.000-07:00

Yes, we're a little slow at getting another post out. We have been a little destracted by our facebook accounts. Hopefully the newness of that is wearing off and we can focus on our blog again.

We had a great weekend a couple weeks ago. We went up to Kilgore and camped with a couple friends and their families. The kids had a blast. Olivia probably ate more dirt than food, but she had fun doing it. She could have survived on her own - anything edible on the ground she found it. Gavin had fun playing with the other boys. He also found his new love, Aaron's kid dirtbike. I'm sure he asked me at least every hour if he could ride it. I had to admit, he did look pretty cute on it.

Overall, it was a great weekend. Hopefully we can do it again soon. Here are some pictures for you all to enjoy!

Aaron's amazing fire building skills.
Gavin keeping warm by the fire.
Gavin likes Daddy's BIG boots.	Olivia posing in front of the tent.
Olivia after a meal of dirt and other misc items.	Gavin going out on his very first solo dirtbike ride. He was excited!
The big boys and their big toys.	Gavin and Cooper day dreaming.

Easter Easter Easter !!

2009-04-15T10:49:00.000-07:00

We had a fun Easter!! On Saturday we took the kids to Madison's community egg hunt. Gavin got a bunch of eggs, he was so fast. I was surprised oh well Olivia did. I thought she would pick up one, sit there and chew on it. As soon as she saw what Gavin was doing she started putting them in her basket, it was just too cute. Later that night we colored eggs, it was a little messy but they loved it.
Sunday the Easter bunny had hid eggs for Gavin and Olivia and left there baskets full of fun things to eat and read. Then we got ready for church. I dressed them in there new Easter church clothes, and I have to say they are the cutest kids ever. For lunch we headed to my moms house and had a fantastic Easter meal. Thanks mom in was delicious!!!

Happy 3rd B-Day Gavin!!

2009-03-03T09:43:00.000-08:00

Gavin was so excited for his birthday this year. He kept asking when he gets to make his cake. So this year he helped make his dinosaur cake, he had a blast licking the frosting of his fingers. We took him and some of his cousins to McDonald's to play on the toys and to get out some energy. Then we went to Grandma V's house to open presents and eat cake. We sure love you Gavin and all the adventure you bring us. You are growing up to be such a fun boy with a great personality. We look forward to this next year. We love you Gavin !!!

Island Park!!

2009-02-25T11:55:00.000-08:00

A few friends and us decided it was time to have a trip with no kids. We rented a cabin in Island Park for three nights (Thanks Aaron). We went snow machining, sat in the hot tub, played lots of games, ate a ton of food, watch a few movies, and just enjoyed conversations. Our kids had a blast staying with Grandma and Grandpa Howard. Gavin said he played outside with Grandpa in the snow, and that he was a very good listener. I am glad they had fun.

Burgess

April

Burgess and April

Ty, Burgess, Aaron, Kris

Pam, Kaylynn, April, Sara

Mommy WOW

2009-01-18T15:32:00.001-08:00

I'm A Big Kid Now!!! I thought this day would never come. Hooray it's finally here. Gavin finally decided that it's cool to use the potty. He still has his accidents, but it sure beats all the diapers. Way to go Gavin you are such a big boy.

I don't feel so good

2009-01-18T14:41:00.000-08:00

My poor little Olivia is not feeling so good. She is always such a happy girl, it is so hard to really now when something is wrong. When she wouldn't smile and would scream when I put her down, I knew something was wrong. So off to the doctor we went. This is what we came home with. Good ole' nebulizer. She has to use this every 4 hours. She doesn't put up to much of a fight, so that is good. We hope she will get better soon. We sure love you Olivia!!!

Mom what is this?

Not this again!!

We finally got a smile from her, while resting with mom.

Christmasm 2008

2009-01-07T08:18:00.000-08:00

We has so much fun this Christmas. We started our Christmas the weekend before in Blackfoot with the Howards. It was so fun getting together with everyone. We spent a lot of time outside playing in the snow and sledding. Christmas eve my dad came over, we made cookies for Santa read a Christmas story, and watch It's a wonderful Life. Christmas morning we did on our own, and was so much fun. Gavin had a blast opening all of his gifts. As soon as he woke up he ran in to get us. He just wanted to keep opening more and more. Olivia got some fun toys, but I think she enjoyed the wrapping paper and bows a little more. That evening we went to Rexburg to visit with my family. Almost everyone was there, we sure missed you Lacie, Max, and Bailee.We enjoyed visiting, eating, playing games and pulling kids behind the four wheeler. It is so nice to be with family, especially this time of year.

Christmas Fever

2008-12-12T23:50:00.001-08:00

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Let it snow, Let it snow, Let it snow

2008-12-08T19:05:00.000-08:00

Finally, it looks like Christmas!!! The first thing I heard this morning was "Mom, come here". So I went into the kitchen, and there was Gavin staring out the back window. When he saw me he said "look mom it's snow......., I go play"? So of course I had to go dig out the snow clothes and luckily most of them still fit him, except for his gloves. Hence the girly Minnie mouse gloves that had to make due. He had so much fun playing in it, he could have stayed out there all day.

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree

We put our tree up a couple of days ago and decided to finally take some pictures. Gavin had a blast decorating it, but Olivia was rolling around next to him taking all the low hanging bulbs right back off. All you could hear was " Stop it Olivia". Olivia loves to stare at all the lights on the tree, and to lay right underneath it. They are just the cutest kids. I love them to pieces. The holidays are so much fun. Happy Holidays to you all.

Halloween Fun

2008-11-03T08:05:00.000-08:00

Halloween was so much fun this year. Gavin was finally old enough to know what was going on. He would walk right up to the doors knock and say trick or treat all by himself. He was the most handsome pirate around. When his basket started to get to heavy for him he refused to let anyone help him with it he just wanted more candy. At our ward carnival they had bob for apples. Gavin was watching all of the older kids bob, to see how it was done then he knelt down at the side of the pool held onto the sides and stuck his head right in no hands at all. He was such a pro, and came up with a good apple he was so proud of himself.

Olivia was a chicken, oh she was adorable. She never fussed about being in her costume. Of course she had no idea what was going on, but everyone thought she was so cute. Watching Gavin was so much fun for her, she would laugh at him every time he would run over to her in his pirate costume. She sure loves her older brother.

Family Pictures

2008-10-07T12:49:00.000-07:00

So we finally got around to taking our family pictures. They ended up turning out better than I thought they would. Wow it is a little difficult to get two kids to cooperate at the same time. It seemed like that either both of them wouldn't smile, or one or the other wasn't. So I wasn't sure how they would turn out. Luckily though I am very happy with the final product. Thanks Annalee.

Kelly Canyon Adventure

2008-09-26T20:49:00.000-07:00

April allowed me to take a trip up to the mountains this last weekend with a friend of mine to go motorcycle riding. We took on some pretty narely trails, but it was a blast. By the time we got to the top we were both exhausted.

Enjoying the view. Behind me was just part of the canyon we were riding up.

This was one of the tougher parts of the trail. Aside from the two foot ruts, the step hill, loose dirt, and big rocks in all the wrong places, there was a very dead cow just off to the left of the trail. It took us a couple tries getting up this, but when we did, we were very happy to be away from that smell!

This is the top of Garnes. If you look close you can see the Tetons and Driggs in the bottom of the valley there. It was an awesome view all around.

Greatest Weekend Ever, but not really!

2008-09-09T21:31:00.000-07:00

Ok, so let's get this rolling. First off, the fair! We'll kick it off at a couple of weeks ago. April's back started hurting. Nothing major, but still...painful. But she's a tough woman, so she pushed through the pain. We went to the fair on Saturday. Gavin had an amazing time. He got to ride rides, pet some strange animals, and eat lots of food.

Now the fun begins! By the end of the fair, April really isn't feeling very good, so we start heading for home. By about half way home, we decide that it's time to go to the doctor. We ended up going to the emergency room in Rexburg. Come to find out...no she's not pregnant....she is carrying her first kidney stone at a whoppin' 5mm. That's almost twice as big as the tube it's trying to go down. Not fun. After pumping her full of morphine and keeping her over night, they sent us down to Idaho Falls to see a specialist. They said they were going to blast it out with a procedure that sounds like "Lythotripsy". Not really sure how to spell that. Anyway, they couldn't do that till Thursday, so they put in a stint, and sent us home for a few days.

Now, I'd like to say that this was the end of our weekend...but no, it's not. On Monday, while trying to give April some quiet time, I took Gavin on a 4 wheeler ride (He was wearing his helmet). We were riding behind our house going over bumps and hills when Gavin lost his grip and his face went flying into the handle bars. He has done this many times so I wasn't too worried. But then I turned him around. His face was covered in blood. I felt like such a schmuck! So to go along with April's first kidney stone, Gavin got his first stitches, complements of his father.

So we made it through the weekend...finally. But, somewhere along the way to Thursday I lost my debit card. My truck decided to stop working (battery problems) and took it out on my mother-in-law's car. Explanation: She tried to give us a jump and it fried her battery.

Thursday came and the Lythotrasidofsgflask..... thing went perfectly. April was pretty sore but is doing just fine now. Hopefully she'll never have another one of those. And hopefully we won't have another Labor Day Weekend filled with this much excitement.

Reunion Camp-out

2008-07-28T14:19:00.001-07:00

Here Kitty Kitty

2008-06-27T13:58:00.001-07:00

We decided that Gavin needed a pet to keep him busy. Luckily this kitty is really good with Gavin and lets him carry her around. Wow this poor kitty sure takes a lot from him. I thought that getting a kitty was going to be like having another baby, but she is such a good kitty. She knows were her litter box is and how to use it, and all I do is leave water and food out for her and she is good to go. Having a pet has been so much fun!

Gotta love Daddy!!!

2008-06-17T17:53:00.000-07:00

Saturday in Rexburg was the air show. I was amazed at how many people were there. Luckily my mom lives right next to the golf course, so we parked at her house and walked less then a block to the park. It was like we had front row seats. Gavin loved all of the airplanes, we didn't have to entertain him at all. Burgess would stroll him around in his stroller up and down the path to get better views and some of the planes. Gavin loves to spend time with his dad. As soon as daddy is home Gavin never leaves his side. They enjoyed spending time with each other. Olivia and I sat and watch how much fun they had together. We sure love our dad and all he does for us.

We decided that we needed to get Gavin a helmet when he rides the quad and the motorcycle. We searched for a helmet that would fit him, and came across this Lightning McQueen Helmet. We thought that he wouldn't want to were it, but we told him that the rules are he can't have a ride unless he has his helmet on. His helmet went right on his head, and he ran right up to jump on. Burgess loves giving Gavin rides. My only fear is that since he is already addicted now, I am in big trouble once he can drive one all on his own.

Little bit of hard work

2008-06-16T13:18:00.000-07:00

There was so much to do over the weekend. There was finally good weather that we could go outside and enjoy the sun. We have been meaning to buy a few trees to put in the yard and haven't got around to it until now. We bought three trees and planted two of them in the back yard and one out in the front, who knew trees could be so expensive. We had to load one on the quad to get it into the back yard, it was to heavy to carry the whole way. Gavin even helped plant the trees. The yard looks so much better. It gives us a tiny bit of shade.

Olivias Big Day

2008-06-16T12:48:00.000-07:00

June 1st was a big day for our little Olivia. It was her blessing day! We had a lot of family that was able to come and spend this special day with us. Olivia just fits right into our family, she balances things out. She is such a calm baby, she just sits there and observes what is going on. Gavin on the other hand is always go go go. I sure love my family, we have so much fun together I couldn't ask for anything different!! Thanks to everyone who made this day so special for us. It really means a lot.

Girls Weekend

2008-05-27T15:18:00.000-07:00

Memorial weekend my sisters and me and my mom all went to Billings Montana to have a girls weekend at my sister Natalie's house. Of course we all left the kids at home to have some time with just us girls. Oh, I guess I did take Olivia but most of the time you didn't even know she was there. She was such a good little girl. Thanks to all of our husbands they kept the kids for the weekend, so I am sure it was not the long weekend they were looking forward to. We sure love them. While we were in Montana we ate a few fun places like the Rib and Chop house. WOW my ribs were amazing. We also went to Red Lodge, which is like going to Jackson. We walked around and went into all the little stores. While we were there we ate at this fun pizza restaurant. We all ordered different appetizers and shared them, they were all so good. I think I had the most fun just being able to spend some time with my sisters and mom. It's not very often that we can all get together as just the girls. Thanks to my sisters and my mom for such a fun weekend I love you all.

Photo shoot

2008-05-19T13:21:00.001-07:00

I was a little nervous to take Olivia and Gavin to get there pictures taken. Gavin is definitely a two year old, and doesn't want to do anything that he is asked. I had my friend Annalee take there pictures, and she did a fabulous job. She had Gavin smiling for almost every pictures, I can't even do that. Olivia was just a little angel, she was awake the entire time, and hardly fussed and all. We got so many great shots they are so hard to choose from. So here are a few for all to enjoy. Thanks Annalee for such great memories.

As for being a mom of two, it has been so wonderful. The adjustment hasn't been to bad. Gavin loves being an older brother, he is always wanting to help out with her and loves holding her. Olivia has been such a great baby, she hardly ever cries which is a huge change from when Gavin was a baby. I only have to get up twice with her at night to feed her, so I can't complain at all. I love being a mom. I have the greatest kids. Gavin is so outgoing ,has a wonderful personality, and loves the outdoors. It's hard to even get mad at him, because as soon as you see his big blue eyes filled with tears all you can do is want to hug him. (WOW I love his eyes) Olivia is like my little princess. I just love to be able to cuddle her. When I pick her up from sleeping she does this cute little stretch while making a kissy face. (Its so adorable) Being a mom is the most wonderful thing.

The Party has Arrived!

2008-04-20T20:39:00.000-07:00

So, after months of waiting, our little girl has arrived! Olivia Grace Howard - the cutest baby girl ever! Seriously!

She arrived Wednesday after noon (April 16th, 2008). She weighed 7.0 lbs and was 18 1/2 inches long. Everything about her is perfect....except her third arm. Just kidding! She doesn't have a third arm. She really is perfect. April is doing great and healing nicely.

Thanks everyone for all the phone calls and visits.

Ok, so now for some pics.

Frisbee Golf

2008-04-10T10:07:00.000-07:00

Gavin and I went to the park in IF to eat lunch with Burgess and a couple of his friends. Gavin was enjoying playing Frisbee golf, when one of the other Frisbee's caught the wind and headed right for him. Here are the results. I guess it doesn't matter what sport you are playing they all seem to be a little dangerous. OH well, accidents happen.

Happy Easter

2008-03-26T12:04:00.000-07:00

I know I am a little late at posting Easter pictures, but Gavin was so excited when he woke up to find a trail of eggs leading to his basket. After looking in his basket he realized there were more eggs to find. He carried his basket around to collect all of his eggs in. When he would see another one he would look at us and say "Oh another egg" and run to get it. It was so much fun to watch. Since we we don't have church until one, he had plenty of time to get all sugared up. We had a hard time trying to keep him quite in Sacrament so it was nice to be able to take him to nursery and get rid of some of that energy. All in all we had a great Easter.

Prego Friends

2008-03-26T11:32:00.000-07:00

How many friends do you think can be pregnant all at once? Well I have 5 from high school including me. Then I have one from college, and I can't forget Lacie Pearson who lives in Arizona. That leaves the final count at seven. Wow that is amazing. I love to get together with the girls, it gives me time to get away and to catch up on all that is going on with my friends. As soon as all these little ones arrive, we can have one large play date with kids all around the same age. I just can't wait.

Tara, Stevie, April, KimJodie, Stevie, April, Kim
April, Tessa

April, Tessa

Birthday Boy

2008-03-03T14:41:00.000-08:00

Our little boy just turned two!!! We had such a fun birthday party for Gavin. He loves watching Mickey Mouse Clubhouse. When I was choosing invites to give out he found a Mickey Mouse invite, so of course we had a Mickey Mouse birthday party. Two of my sisters and there kids were in Rexburg visiting so we had his cousins at his party. Gavin got spoiled this year. He had so much fun opening his presents, and loved every single one of them. We spoiled him a little more, and bought him a Mickey and Minnie Motorcycle Cake. WOW!!!!! That was a treat for him. I am so glad that he had such a great time. He is growing so fast and learning so much.

Ethan and Gavin

Ethan, Gavin, Isabelle, and Aubree

Dylan, Aubree, Ethan, and Gavin

BIG BIG BELLY

2008-02-04T15:39:00.000-08:00

So i haven't taken very many pictures of the belly. But since everyone keeps asking to see how big I am getting I decided to take a few. Here is one of them, it might be the only one your going to get. I still have 10 weeks to go and already I am not sure how she is suppose to get any bigger. I feel like there is no more room in there for her to grow. We are so excited though for a little girl to add to our family. We are not sure if Gavin understands that there is a baby in moms tummy. He will come up to me every now and then pat my stomach and say "Hi baby". Other times we ask him were the baby is and he just looks at us like what are you talking about.
I think he will be a great big brother. He loves little babies.

MY MAN

2008-02-04T14:45:00.000-08:00

What is his name? Burgess Alma
How long have you been married? Four years
How old is he? 27
How old are you? 24
Who eats more sweets? Oh that would be me for sure.
Who said "I love you" first? Burgess did. It kinda suprised me so like an idiot I stood there in silence for a while.
Who is taller? It's not very difficult to be taller than me. So of course that would be Burgess
Who can sing better? WOW Burgess for sure, he has an amazing voice. If only I could carry a tune so I could sing with him.
Who is smarter? Burgess for sure wins there.
Who does the laundry? Mostly me. Unless we have a sick child in the middle of the night, he would rather do the laundry than tend to a pucking child. He is very helpful when I ask for his help.
Who does the dishes? Mainly me.
Who pays the bills? Burgess does, but he wishes that I would help out more with them. I guess I will have to work on that.
His guilty pleasures? POP, Computer games, dirt biking.
Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? If you are standing at the foot of the bed then that would be him.
Who mows the lawn? Most of the time Burgess does. I do every now and then, but with another little one to be here in 10 weeks i'm not sure if I will get the time to mow it as often.
Besides you, who is his best friend? That's a tough one because Burgess has several really close friends.
Who cooks dinner? Again, mostly me.
Who drives? Burgess does most of the driving. If it's dark though he does it all.
Who is more stubborn? Hard to say...Propably me though
Who kissed who first? Burgess kissed me first. He just couldn't resist!!!
Who asked who out first? We had the same group of friends, so we were around each other quite a bit. But when it came down to an actual date he asked me out.
What was your first date? We went snowboarding at Kelly Canyon. It was so much fun. We wish we could go a little more often.
Who proposed? That would be Burgess of course. He had a wonderful romantic evening all planned out for us. Inluding Dinner, flowers, a note, a ring and much more. Even though we were outside and it was super cold it was one of the best days ever.
Who has more siblings? Burgess has five (3 brothers, 2 sisters) and I have four (1 brother,
3 sisters).
Who wears the pants? We try to share them...but right now I would have to say me. Being pregnant he does a lot for me when I ask him. What a loving husband.
What is your favorite thing about him? He's hard working, good looking, ambitious, talented, smart,an amazing father and the greatest husband. I am SO lucky! Whats not to love!!!

Holiday Fun!

2008-01-14T09:46:00.000-08:00

We had a very busy Holiday. To start off we had an early christmas at Grandma V's house. Most of my sisters were there and my grandparents. We had lots of fun playing games, talking and opening presents. On Christmas Eve morning we drove to Utah to spend Christmas with Burgess' family. We spent Christmas at his brother Quinn's house. Even though there was a house full of people it all turned out very well with very little chaos. Gavin had so much fun playing with all of his cousins and is still asking about them everyday. A couple of days later Nellene, Burgess' sister got married so we enjoyed going to the wedding, it was a wonderful day. Last but not least we went snowboarding in Huntsville, while we were there it snowed about 9 inches. I stayed on the little hills of course, and let Burgess go on the fun stuff. All in all we enjoyed the time spent with family and friends. It was so good to see everyone.

The votes are in!

2007-12-27T09:29:00.000-08:00

Ok, sorry we have left you in anticipation for so long. We kind of got busy with the holidays.

So, in answer to the questions............It's going to be a GIRL!

Everybody that guessed a girl, you are still our friends. Those of you that guessed boy.....well.... Just Kidding! We are really excited. April is thrilled to buy girl cloths. Burgess is a little uneasy on trying to raise a girl.

Well, got to go for now. More holiday cheer to spread!

We have some news!!!!!

2007-12-20T19:48:00.000-08:00

So I bet you really want to know, don't you. Well we will tell you, but first you have to guess. We found out what we are having. Here is our little one in action. Now you guess what it is. Enter your guess as a comment. I'll give you a hint, it's a boy or a girl. If you already know, don't give it away!

Oh Christmas Tree...

2007-12-04T20:53:00.000-08:00

It's Christmas time and we are getting ready! We got a tree and decorated it on the first day in December. We are feeling festive now! We let Gavin put some ornaments on, but now he thinks they are his toys to throw across the room. (Don't worry, they are plastic.)

Here is the family, cheezen' it for the picture... at least Gavin is. I'm pretty sure he got that from April. Just kidding! He loves to have his picture taken.

And for the results!!! It's a fake tree, and I've never really been a fan of them. But with the decorations and lights on, I think it looks pretty good myself. And this prelit, lights already on the tree stuff...how awesome is that?! You can also look at it this way... we just saved a tree. We are such environmentalists.

Thanksgiving Weekend

2007-11-25T12:37:00.000-08:00

We had a great Thanksgiving weekend. We started out in Island Park visiting April's family. We just stayed inside, kept warm, played games, ate a lot of food, and of course, our annual Halo Tournament.

Gavin had a ton of fun walking around in the snow. I liked looking at his footprints in the snow.

For more pictures of Gavin in the snow, click here.

After the fun stay in Island Park, we headed down to Blackfoot to visit Burgess' family.

My name is Cornholio...

2007-11-19T12:39:00.000-08:00

So the other day April and I were talking in the kitchen when we heard Gavin say "Mom?". April told him that we were in the kitchen and a moment later this strange child came running around the corning with a huge grin on his face. Somehow he had pulled the back of his shirt over the back of his head and was running around with his arms flapping and just a happy little face showing. Not sure how or even why, but April and I were rolling!

Here is the little monster!

Newbie

2007-10-29T13:52:00.000-07:00

So I just signed up for this thing. Give me some time!!!! (That's what she said!) NO TIME!