Welcome Home Jason....Our Hero!

My cousin, Jason, came home
from his second tour in Iraq
on March 29th. We were all
very thankful he arrived home
safe and sound.

Here are some pictures
commemorating that
wonderful event!

You'd never know that
Michael had been hitting
people while waving the
flag. We had to be on
alert all the time to make
sure he was aware of
his surroundings.

While in Florida on Spring
Break we made welcome
home signs. My cousin,
Aaron, is holding a sign
along with Mom and Emily.
They were a great addition
to the welcome home festivities.

Jason is the third soldier
from the right. I didn't
realize I got him in the
picture until I downloaded
it on my computer.

My Uncle Randy welcoming
home his oldest son. Words
can't express all the joy we
felt getting to hug him and
welcome him home.

This is the whole gang who
gathered to welcome Jason
home.

Jason with my parents.

Michael was so excited
to see Jason. This was
a fun moment for the
both of them.

Emily and Michael with
their hero!

Soldier Boy. ..Welcome Home!

A Couple of Days at the Beach!

We had a great time in
Florida over spring break.

Of course a trip to the
beach is on the itinerary,
my kids would never
forgive me for not including
this adventure.

Here are some photos of
their happy time!

Mimi is the sandcastle
queen when it comes to
her grandchildren. This
was the one built on our
first day on the remains
of a previous sandcastle.

Talk about body expression.
Is it Brrr? Is it surprise?
It is definitely something.

Emily was so excited
because I let her wear
a two-piece swimsuit.

2nd sandcastle....this one
built with our cool new
sandcastle making equipment.

Ohh....I love how Emily
is holding onto Michael's
arm. How sweet!

Going for lunch! Got em!

I know...Lots of pictures.

We had a great time!

Couple more from Kennedy Space Center

Thought I'd share a
couple of the pictures
we bought at the Kennedy
Space Center.

I couldn't resist this one.
I'm such a sucker for
unique pictures.

Last of the ski photos.....

Our professional pictures
came in and I wanted to
share them with
you. To bad the light
was so flat on our first
day of skiing in Utah.

I thought our photographer
did a good job getting
everyone in the picture.
Look at that Michael! He
is tearing it up.

Emily skied much better
later in the week. She had
lots of fun posing for the
camera!

Now this is what I
call an action shot. Could
Michael look anymore
intense? We didn't get
any pictures where he
skied with his mouth shut.

Kennedy Space Center

During our spring break we
took a day trip to the
Kennedy Space Center. Here
are just a couple of pictures
from that excursion.

When we first walked in I had
to grab this picture of the kids
in front of the huge NASA
sign. Having a couple of
space buffs in the family,
we were all raring to go
and explore the center.

Astronauts Emily and
Michael ready for their
space walk.....

That building in the distance
is where they get the
shuttles ready for their
missions. The building covers
8 acres of land. Yikes!

Standing at the rear of
one of the rockets used for
the Apollo missions.
I can't remember the name
of this particular rocket....ask
Michael or Kenneth if you
want to know.

One of many cool space
crafts located at the Center.
We had a great day and
can't wait to go back!

Easter Pictures

We celebrated Easter in
FL with my parents and
my grandparents. We
had a great day!

Emily got a panda Webkinz
and named her Dee after
Mimi's black and white
puppy.

Michael got a monkey
and immediately named
him Michael Jackson. He
later decided George
(Curious George) was a better
name for him. I was glad
he decided to change it.

Hunting eggs.

Look...I found one!
After a bath, fancy clothes
and a 1 1/2 hour drive to
see Granny and Chief.

Emily cleans up good!

"Pink. Why do I have
to wear pink?" So said
Michael on seeing his
Easter clothes. I told
him "Real men wear pink."

Michael and Emily with my parents.

Granny and Chief weren't
left out of the picture taking.

My parents took Granny
2 dozen roses and we had
to use them for a photo op.

Lovin' the roses.
Granny taught the kids
how to play war. They
had a ball with it.

Last of the Ski Pictures!

One Word: Gorgeous! By the way....their looking
at their Daddy.

Emily made a big step
this year and actually rode
the ski lift by herself a
couple of times. I don't know
who made the bigger step,
Emily or me. Talk about
having your heart in your
throat. I was a wreck!

We went to the Utah
Olympic Park and got
to see a bunch of great
stuff. The kids loved
trying out the bobsled
as well as the luge and
skeleton.

Each took their turn with
the Olympic Torch. There
was a large museum area
highlighting the 2002 Salt
Lake Games. It was neat
to look back and remember
some of the touching stories
as well as a great tool to
teach the kids about the
different winter sports.

Skiing at Snowbasin

Yes....more ski pictures. Deal
with it ok? I took around 300
hundred so the 10-15 I share
with you is small potatoes!

These are all pictures taken
at Snowbasin ski resort. We
started going there when we
started taking the kids. They
have a great daycare facility
and that was top priority.
We realized the skiing was
top notch and kept coming
back! Emily had a great day. We
had a little fresh powder to
deal with and she did terrific!

Michael is all about
the skiing. In this photo
he actually has his hands
out in front of him.

Yea Michael!

Playtime in the snow!
Michael getting ready
to slide down the hill
like Emily in the picture
before.

Emily and Michael skied
through the terrain park.
I banned them from any
of the apparatus....tables,
poles, barrels etc. They
just skied the 6 hills. When
skied with plenty of speed
you can catch some big
air at the tops of them. My
kids cruised over the first
three hills because they
were little. The last three
hills were much bigger and
it was all Emily could do to
get to the top. Michael
wasn't even able to do that.

Pretty good one of
Michael in Kenneth's
sunglasses.

Cheese...I am a
squinty-eyed girl!

Family shot. It was a
great day to spend as
a family. Can't wait for
next year!