Grandma Simper

This great lady passed away and returned to her Heavenly Father, on the morning of February 27th. She had just turned 87, and lived a life to be proud of. She suffered a massive stroke on the Tuesday before, and put up a good fight. She will be missed terribly.
Grandma Simper was the greatest. She always was so excited to see us, she always had a smile on her face (even in the tough times) and she always had cookies and candy when we came to visit. She was very kind, loving, and thoughtful. Her and my Grandpa spent 68 years together. They did everything together from sitting on the patio, growing a garden, hunting, fishing, camping and loving their family. I want to be just like her when I grow up.
I love you and I will miss your smiling face everyday.

Wow!

I suck. I haven't posted in 7 months. I would like to say I have had a lot of things keeping me busy, but I don't. Kinzie quit gymnastics in April and I thought for sure with all the extra time, I would get things done, apparently that was not the case. I think I have less.
Since my last post, Colton has started the 10th grade at Lehi High School, where I work 40 hours a week. He is driving with his learners permit and he has made a lot of new friends. He is taking tumbling and hoping to perfect his full. He is getting good grades in school, and we are proud of him.

Kinzie has since quit gymnastics and has turned to cheer. She made the 7th grade Willowcreek cheer squad. She just finished in November. She did awesome. She also has made a lot of new friends, one of which has moved to South Carolina. She misses Ashley alot. Kinzie is also in tumbling. She is trying to perfect her standing back tuck, and hoping to learn to do a full. I also did not post on her birthday. I told you I sucked. She is now 13 and is growing into a beautiful young women. We are so proud of her.

Jaycie is now in the 4th grade, and she is keeping us on our toes. She is in tumbling with Colton and Kinzie. She is perfecting her back-handsprings, and hoping to learn and perfect a round-off back tuck. She also has great friends. She is doing good in school and we are proud of her.

Not to much has happened in recent months, although I was finally able to visit my sister Jen in Missouri. I spent about a week out there with her family. It was so good to see the kids and spend time with them. Missouri is a beautiful state. Very green. The only thing I disliked was the humidity. It was stifling.

We had a friends who beat cancer,and that is a miracle. We are thankful that everything turned out so well, and we are hoping he stays cancer free.

Jeff is still with Lehi Police and is enjoying his job. It would be nicer if we could get a raise though. Maybe this year, keep your fingers crossed.

With the new year just around the corner, I am vowing to do better at blogging. Wish me luck.

HaPpY BiRtHdAy CoLtOn!

This handsome star is now 15 years old. I can't believe it. Where does the time go? Seems like yesterday he was 3 years old stripping of his clothes and singing about being a handsome star. Now he is driving the girls crazy, and hanging out with friends. Thankfully he has grown out of the stripping faze. (I hope). We love Colton because he is so sweet. He loves animals, his mommy, dad, and his sisters. He has a gorgeous smile, and he is funny. He is very responsible, friendly, smart, driven and protective of his family. We are so proud of the young man he is becoming.


On a side note: he just got his learners permit today. He passed on his first try. Now he is bugging us to drive, every chance he gets. For now he will be learning to drive in the Yukon..........
Soon to be driving this.

He wishes.

Spring Break '10

For spring break this year we went to California for 8 fun filled days. The first four days were spent in Disneyland where we were able to celebrate Jaycie's 9th Birthday. We also spent those days with everyone else in the whole wide world. It was so stinking busy. We also lived through an earthquake, just the tremors of one, but still it was exciting. Despite the earthquakes, one day of rain, and millions of people we had a blast. The next 4 days were spent in San Diego. We will be returning there. Often, I hope. It was great. After days of running around Disney, it was nice to relax on the beach.



Since we were in Disneyland on Jaycie's birthday we took her to the Town Center, where Goofy sang Happy Birthday to her. She was pretty excited. We also went to eat at Outback for her birthday dinner.

We went with Kinzie's best friends family. The Shepherds. We had a fantastic time. Thanks for going with us.

In front of "It's a small world." Kinzie, Chantelle, Colton, Jaycie and Jace.




We enjoyed 4 days in San Diego. This is all the kids wanted to do. Which was fine with us. We all love, love, love the beach.
This was the view from our hotel room. It was right in the beach.








We went to La Jolla beach in San Diego, and watched these little critters for about an hour. They were great. The kids loved them.

Happy 9th Birthday Jaycie!

This is an old pic. Haven't uploaded the new ones yet.

Happy Birthday Jaycie Bug Magnusson.
We have been in Disneyland so this post is a couple of days late. We spent Jaycie's birthday and Easter in Disneyland this year. It was the best birthday ever.
Reasons we love Jayc:
1. She has such a loving personality.
2. She loves to cuddle
3. She still sleeps with her "love" blankies every night. She can't sleep without them.
4. She is very literal minded.
5. She comes up with some pretty funny comments. (see other posts)
6. She is a teaser
7. She hates to be teased
8. She shared good
9. She has mastered the back handspring,and is currently working on her tuck.

We love you Jaycie. Hope you had a fabulous day.

Hello, Hello, is anyone there?

Yes, we are alive and well. I just have had no time to do anything other than work, be a chauffeur, a maid, a cook, and a babysitter. Things are going great at our house. Nothing much has changed except Kinzie has finished her Level 7 gymnastics season, and she did amazing. Sadly she will be moving on from this stage in her life. At the end of the month she will be trying out for 7th grade cheer. I am sure she will do great. It is a little weird for me though since I used to make fun of cheerleaders when I was young. Rest assured, I won't make fun of Kinzie.
Jaycie has also moved on from gymnastics and is now doing tumbling with Colton. All 3 kids are amazing how they can throw their bodies around the way they do. Kinzie will join the other two at tumbling class as soon as this month is over. Now that we won't have gym on Mon, Wed, Thurs, and Friday we should have a little more time. Ahh, who am I kidding, it will fill up with something else. Well hope you have a wonderful week. I am hoping to post some pics from Kinzie's last meet. We will see if it happens.

Thoughts!

You know it's not to often I feel like being "thoughful" in my blog. But with the holiday season and recent events I thought I would be a little mushy.
I haven't been in the Christmas spirit this year. Maybe it was the fact that it snuck up on me so stinkin' fast, or the fact that I haven't had time to do anything. Including blog.
This past Tuesday my cousins 4 year old daughter past away. Her intestine twisted and she bled to death. The Dr. told my cousin and his wife that she should have been in tremendous pain. She was not. I believe our Heavenly Father needed her to come home and helped her to do so with as little pain as possible. When I heard the news my heart just broke. In no way should a parent have to go through something like that. My cousin and his wife are troupers though. We traveled to Mountain Home Idaho on Thursday night and went to the funeral on Friday, which would have been her 5th birthday. Her parents did a beautiful job on the Life History. I am so very grateful that my kids are healthy and here where I can hold them and tell them I love them.
This this was the start of me getting the Christmas spirit. Not the death of a child, but the realization that it doesn't matter what is under the tree, or how many presents we need to buy, but what matters is family. Whether it's immediate or extended. When they hurt so do you. When they lose you lose. And when they love, so do you. It made me realize how important it is to tell the ones you love how much they mean to you.
Saturday morning I went with Jeff to Cops, Kids and Christmas. Lehi Police take about 35 kids to see the lights at Thanksgiving point, with lights and sirens blairing, and this year Texas Rhodehouse provided us with our breakfast. After breakfast we take the kids to Smith's Marketplace where each child gets a $100 gift certificate to spend on whatever they want. It was so fun to watch all these kids shopping for things they would normaly never get.
During our shopping trip one gentleman came to Jeff and donated $50, while another lady came to Chief and asked if she could donate a Guitar Hero game for the Xbox. This my friends is what finally clinched it for me. The generosity of some people astounds me. This is another aspect of what Christmas is about. Giving. Not for the glory, or the pat on the back, but because it makes someone else smile. Or in my case, cry. So with this all being said, I wish you all a Merry Christmas, and make sure you tell your family members how much you love them.