The Tingey Family Website

At Last

2010-09-09T14:31:00.000-06:00

This happened a couple of weeks ago, but I haven't had a working computer to upload it. Here I am singing At Last for one of my band concerts in the park. It was a ton of fun! Let me know what you think!!

2010-09-06T12:17:00.000-06:00

There are going to be a lot of pictures in this post! My computer has been broken, so I haven't been able to post anything. But, here is the catch-up post!

This is a quick video of Emalee's very first hair cut! I'd wanted to cut it for a while, but Kirk didn't want me to. Well, he finally relented and she got a quick trim. My mom was here this last weekend, so I had her do it because I have no idea what I'm doing!

My mom and sister came to visit over Labor Day weekend! We had so much fun! We ate so much junk food, went out to eat, went and saw Eclipse together, and just had an amazing girly weekend! My sister is also pregnant, and it is so fun to be expecting at the same time. She's 14 weeks and I'm 24 weeks, so we are not that far apart. It was funny to see how we are craving the same exact things!

Here is our first pregnant picture together. (I really should have not worn stripes. wow.)

Here's a picture of me and my mom

I had to get a picture of both of them with Emalee.

Here is Grammy reading a book to Em.

Here's the whole group together! I'm gonna miss them so much. I really wished we lived closer.

Emalee found a binder of music that my mom had written. She opened it up, sat on the kitchen floor and gave us a concert! She knew it was music and she really wanted to sing! It was so adorable.

My Big Performance

2010-07-12T21:59:00.002-06:00

I'm a member of the Caldwell Centennial Band, and it is so much fun. I get to play my flute, and I love that I still get the opportunity. I'm probably the youngest player in there, and most of the members are over 70. It's awesome! We do concerts in the park every other Monday night during the summer, and this was at one of our concerts. They always have someone do a kareoke number in the middle to give the players a break, and I was asked to sing! I was so excited! I'm singing 'Don't Get Around Much Anymore' and aside from a big voice in the second verse I think I did pretty good! I'd love to hear what you think!

Kirk was the one who did the camera work, and while I know how to turn a picture 90 degrees, I have no idea how to do it with a video. You'll just have to turn your head to watch me ;)

4th of July

2010-07-06T19:43:00.000-06:00

Here's a little of what we did together on the 4th of July

We went to the Caldwell Parade. Afterward, there was a petting zoo in the park. I was worried that Emalee would be scared of the animals, but she absolutely loved them!! We didn't get the greatest pictures, but here are a few. This is a camel that tried to eat her shoes and her hat.

She's trying to pet a baby goat here.

We finally had to put her in the cage with the animals because she couldn't ever get close enough!

Here she is with a sparkler during our firework show. We had to wait until almost 10 pm because it doesn't get dark until then!

I know this picture doesn't look like much, but to me it's adorable. She was dancing with the sparkler and this is a picture of her dance from behind. She was so cute!

Here is a picture of Emalee and I during our amazing firework show.

This picture has nothing to do with the 4th. This actually just happened tonight. Kirk gave Emalee a bath and then did her hair - this being the result. She knew that she looked funny, and when I wanted to get a picture she just started to cry! It was like she was so embarrassed. It was too funny!

Lots of Pictures

2010-06-29T21:30:00.000-06:00

Last weekend we had the Stephens/Stevens family reunion campout. It was so much fun! We camped just outside of Evanston, WY. It was so great to be with my family again!

Here is Brad, Kirk, TJ, and Lindsay, with Emalee in the front - relaxing by the firepit.

Here is a quick picture that I took of me and my sister Jill.

This is how Emalee ate her meals - we just put a little chair right up next to a log, and she thought it was great! She was such a trooper.

A cute picture of Emalee and her Dad.

This picture is blurry, but this is how her face looked 99% of the time we were there. So dirty!!

And here is a picture of how her jeans looked the second she stepped out of the tent. Covered in dirt.

Emalee had such a fun time with her Grammy!! She didn't want to leave her side!

Here is Emalee with her cousins and Grammy - Hopefully she'll get some more cousins soon!!

We had 3 dogs up there and Emalee followed them around everywhere. I'm so glad that she loves dogs!

A quick picture of Kirk and I sitting by the campfire.

Emalee has had a rough couple of days - which is another completely long story. But, we decided to have a fun day with her today to help her feel better.

This is a picture of Emalee and Dad at the park. The look on Emalee's face completely says how she felt about the park - D IT!

We bought a kiddie pool and Emalee had so much fun!! She was crazy with the hose in her hands. She splashed all of us, but she was laughing the whole time.

Here is a picture of her swimming with her cousins. They had a great time together.

It was a really fun day for Emalee. Hopefully she starts to feel better!!

Some Big Updates

2010-06-17T16:25:00.000-06:00

Here are a few updates as to whats been going on in our lives:

Grammy (my mom) came to visit!! Emalee loves her Grammy and they had such a fun time together. I love the look that Emalee is giving her in this picture.

We went camping for the first time this summer. Emalee was in 7th Heaven! She loved the dirt, the tent, the fire, and especially the smores. This is a picture of her right after she ate a huge marshmallow!

A cute picture of Emalee and her dad right after they shared a smore.

She loved camping so much, but it completely wore her out. We took this picture about 2 minutes after we got in the car to head home. She was exhausted!

And, lastly - drum roll please!!! We are having another baby! This was an ultrasound when I was 7 weeks along, and now I'm over 12 weeks. Our due date is December 29th, and we are so excited! This pregnancy has already been going SO MUCH BETTER than Emalee's. We feel so blessed to be parents again, and can't wait until December!!

A few pictures

2010-05-30T20:18:00.000-06:00

I know that I haven't posted in forever!! 7 months to be exact. So I'm not even sure if anyone is going to even see this post. Emalee has changed SO much! She's walking and bumping into everything. She can say anything - our favorite is 'I love you' which sounds more like 'I view', but it's still cute.

Here she is sitting in one of her cousin's chairs. She always thinks she is such a big when she sits here!

Her grandpa is probably her favorite person on the planet right now. She just loves him! He had surgery this day, and Emalee knew that he needed some comfort. So she crawled on his lap and just stayed there until Grandpa was asleep. And, luckily, her Grandpa loves her just as much!

She loves to crawl up on this little stool and look out the window. She's always fascinated by the things she sees. Especially if a big truck drives by!

Kirk is a t-ball coach right now, and Emalee loves wearing his hat! She will leave it on for a long time - just trying to be like her dad!

This is the face I get to see every morning after breakfast. She's completely covered in oatmeal, because she insists on feeding herself. Messy, but adorable.

Pictures Pictures Pictures!!!

2009-10-21T16:55:00.015-06:00

I've been really bad at posting recently because I've been borrowing my sister-in-laws computer, and I didn't want to take up too much time. But, I decided to just do it tonight. I've got a ton of pictures!

We went out to lunch with Uncle Brent!! It was great to see him again, and he had a ton of fun with Emalee.

This is what Kirk and Emalee look like every day when Kirk gets home from work! She gets so excited when her daddy comes home!!

I've been going running in the mornings, but it's been pretty chilly. So, I dress up Emalee like and eskimo and she goes with me. She looked so adorable I had to take a picture!

Here she is ready for Halloween!!!

I took her outside a few days ago to enjoy the mildly warm weather. And she is in a ball phase right now - she just loves them!!

She looks adorable in this picture!!! One of my favorites

I gave her a flower and she was fascinated by it.

She loves being up in the air. She grins so big everytime!

She loves being on her daddy's shoulders, too.

Her face is cute in this picture. "Enough kisses, Dad!!"

I cracked up when I took this picture. She looks so annoyed with me.

She loves playing with her spoon after she eats.

Her high chair is right next to the blinds. She LOVES playing with the string. It's so cute. She gets scared when the blinds fall down. That's what the video is below.

Our little crawler...almost!

2009-09-06T11:46:00.007-06:00

She's so funny about not wanting to be on her belly. We always try and put her there so she'll will start crawling. Here are the many stages we go through:

This is how she is at first. She just lays there - almost trying to be defiant! It's so cute.

But, then she realizes that there might be some cool toys lying around. So she starts to explore.

Finally, she gets a toy and it goes straight to her mouth.

Then, she realizes things aren't so bad and she'll lift herself totally up and start to move around a little bit! So close to crawling.

And then we get the look and cry of distress! Please help, she says!! You can see it in her face :) Someday soon, she'll start crawling.

2009-08-30T22:29:00.002-06:00

This is my new favorite!! It's The Book of Mormon Made Easier. It's so great because it has the entire text of The Book of Mormon right there in the pages, but it also offers amazing insights, church history, explanations, and so much more! I would totally recommend checking it out, because I am loving reading the Book of Mormon in this way!

2009-08-25T11:12:00.011-06:00

My last post was completely with out pictures. So now I don't feel so bad doing a post with a TON of pictures!! This has been whats been happening the last week in our home - our basement, I should say ;)

Here she is right after church - waiting for Dad and Grandpa who seem to be worse than Relief Society after church!!

This picture is exciting to me - it's the first time she has ever fed herself! She's only had a bottle for a couple of days, so I think that's a pretty big accomplishment

What a beautiful crown!! ;)

I love how her binky is stuck in her neck. Totally cracks me up!

This is one of my favorite shirts!! It's so true!

Here is one of her cousins that we are living with - Michael. And he was lucky to find an open chocolate pudding on the table!

Here are some of the other cousins that we are living with. They were taking a bath together and I thought it was so cute.

Here is Emalee and Michael

I love this picture. Emalee playing with her Grandpa just before bedtime. He is always so sweet with her, and she just adores him!

Here is Emalee with her cousin Kiersten, playing outside. Emalee loves being outside!

A true post

2009-08-23T21:36:00.002-06:00

As I'm looking back at my blog, I realize that it has sort of become just a picture blog. Okay, let me rephrase that. It has become a 'Pictures of Emalee' blog. Not that that's a bad thing, but I feel that if you look at our blog you don't really know what's going on with our lives! I find myself feeling like I don't have much to post about because I don't have a lot of pictures to take everyday. And in my mind - a post without pictures???? Crazy! Well, here it is ladies and gentlemen. This will be a post entirely without pictures! (Deep breath) Let me tell you what's been happening in our lives recently.

We have moved in with my in-laws. I think that I've been dancing around actually saying it out loud because, honestly, I feel a little embarrassed about it. I loved teaching. It was honestly one of the greatest things I've ever done. However, I love Emalee more. When school got out for the summer and I was able to stay home with her, we noticed a HUGE difference in her! She wasn't as fussy, she started progessing faster, and she was happier all around. But, the bad news - Kirk just graduated and has yet to find a job. Hence, we moved into his parents basement. He's found a job at a call center in Boise speaking French - he's excited about that fact. It will help us pay some bills for now. Also, his Dad has offered for Kirk to take over his business selling insurance. Kirk has been hesitant to do this because... well, let's be honest - I don't know of a single child who says they 'want to be an insurance salesman' when they grow up. But, we'll see how it goes the next couple of years, and see if it is something we can raise a family on.

Emalee has been doing great! She gets bigger everyday! She giggles all of the time, and is such a happy baby. Here are some accomplishments in her life right now
She is sitting up totally and completely on her own! You just have to set some toys in front of her and she could stay there all day.
She is now taking a bottle like a champion. I know this may be confusing. She's almost 8 months old now - but that girl has LOVED nursing! We finally started introducing a bottle. She hated it at first, but now she thinks it's kinda nice!
She is SOOOO close to crawling! She can scoot herself on her tummy in a full circle - 360 degrees. But, she hasn't learned to push herself forward yet. Any day now, is what I'm thinking.

Well, there it is. It's not a complete update, but it's better than what I've been doing. I will try to be less 'picture crazy!!' and post something about ourselves. And, if you've stuck it out and read this far, way to go!

2009-08-18T21:13:00.006-06:00

Here's a little update on life! We are living in Caldwell, Idaho now. For those of you who don't know - that's right near Boise. Kirk is working to take over his Dad's business selling insurance. I'm going to be doing some substitute teaching. The goal is to have me stay home full time though. We are having a great time. Emalee is growing everyday!!! Here are some of the latest photos

Loving her carrots!!

She always looks so cute wrapped up in her towel after bath time!

She has to chew on EVERYTHING!! When will those teeth just come in??

Snuggling with Dad just before bed time.

Here she is in her stroller. She loves being outside!

Her new favorite place - the bouncer!! She gets that thing going crazy!!

2009-07-28T11:18:00.006-06:00

Emalee had her six month check up yesterday. She was 26 inches long and weighs 16 lbs 6 oz. That puts her 50% for weight and 51% for height. Pretty average! She had to get some more shots as well. It was pretty traumatic!! She was so tired that I put her down for a "short" snooze as 6 pm last night, and she didn't end up waking up to 9:45 the next morning! Needless to say, she's a lot happier today :) Here are some pictures that my friend Lacey took of her on Sunday night. So cute!

Emalee at 6 months

2009-07-22T22:54:00.005-06:00

So, I know that I've been horrible at posting recently. I can't say that I'm going to get better though. But, here are some pictures that my sister in law recently took of Emalee. They are so beautiful!

Bath Time

2009-04-22T22:17:00.003-06:00

So, my new favorite time of day is when Emalee takes a bath. She is adorable! I had to take a video of her. This video is so cute - except for the part at the end where I drop the camera. And she is wiggling so much that it's hard for me to keep her covered up - sorry about that. Not much I could do. But, I think this is the cutest video you will ever see! ;)

Video of Emalee

2009-03-27T14:20:00.003-06:00

Sorry about never posting any more!! Here is a cute video of Emalee. It's nothing special, I just think she's pretty cute. I got a new camera for my birthday yesterday, so I thought I would take a video of her.

More Pictures of Emalee

2009-01-25T15:34:00.009-07:00

I am so lucky to have a sister-in-law who is an AMAZING photographer! Lindsey came up to my house yesterday and took a billion photos of our little Emalee, and here are just a few. I'm so excited to see all of them! You should check out her photo blog!

Pictures of Emalee

2009-01-21T16:27:00.012-07:00

We certainly love our little girl. She is doing so good and gaining weight everyday :) She's been here for a week already, and it's amazing the changes she's made. She's already growing up so much! We will definetly post a bunch of pictures!

Emalee Karen Tingey is Here!!

2009-01-15T00:42:00.000-07:00

After 19 hours of labor, our little one finally arrived!! My water broke on the 13th at 10:30 pm and we went straight to the hospital. I wasn't in much pain for most of it. Before the epidural I thought that I might die! But, I received the epi at 7:30 this morning, and it seemed to be smooth (but slow) sailing from there. Finally, about 4:45 they told me that I was dilated enough to start pushing. And then it was really quick! She came out at 5:14 pm, she weighed 6 lbs 9 oz, and was 19 1/2 inches long. And she's perfect!! What a cutie! I immediately crashed after she was born and took an hour nap. But, we've been chillin' with her ever since. She's already making the funniest faces, and we love her so much! Pictures will be coming soon!

Cute Video

2008-12-10T14:00:00.002-07:00

I thought this was pretty funny! If you are a fan of the old school video games you'll love it :)

Thanksgiving Break

2008-12-02T11:39:00.005-07:00

We had a great Thanksgiving break. We decided to go down to Vegas to visit my Dad and brother. It was great! The coolest thing we did was go to the Shark Reef at Mandalay Bay on the strip. I had never seen a shark before, and it was so cool. Here are few pictures from the Shark Reef.

On the way home from Vegas, I started having a lot of pain in my left side and it went all the way across my stomach. By the time we stopped in Kaysville to see my mom, I thought I was going to die - literally. So I had to go to the emergency room at Davis Hospital. They were running tests all night, and finally found out that I have hydronephrosis - which means that my kidneys are abnormally swollen and have fluid built up around them. They also found out that I have kidney stones in both of my kidneys. It was a miserable night - but things are getting better, and I'm not in so much pain anymore. Here is a picture of me right before they started doing all of their tests.

Pregnancy Update

2008-11-17T15:46:00.004-07:00

I know that some of you have requested a pregnancy update, so here it is!!! I'm 29 weeks along today, and I feel like things have started to get better. Instead of dropping weight like crazy, I'm finally starting to put a little on. I think I'm only down about 33 lbs now, and that's coming back up from 38 lbs lost. The barf count is slowing down too (which I'm thrilled about!!). I've thrown up a total of 105 times now, and hoping that I'm completely done. But, everytime I say that I end up throwing up the next day :( I've been having some problems with my kidney on the right side. I've been having a lot of cramping, and the doctors finally found out the I've got a bunch of fluid building up around my right kidney. It's been causing me a lot of pain, but I have some pain meds to deal with it and it seems to be getting better. Other than that its just been the usual aches and pains that come with pregnancy - achy back, crampy legs, being tired all of the time, etc. Our little baby is moving a ton though!!! She's so cute. However, I think she is finding her way to my ribs - she's kicked them a few times and it's hurt a lot, but I'm more worried about when she starts using my ribs as a foot rest!

Here's a picture of me today - 29 weeks along.

And here is Kirk at 29 weeks. No explanation needed. Sympathy accepted. Oh how I love him!!!

Fall Concert 2008

2008-11-16T10:42:00.003-07:00

Here's some pictures of a Band Concert that my Junior High and High School kids recently did. They played great! I just wish that we had bigger numbers. We'll get there though!

Late Halloween Photo

2008-11-15T09:09:00.003-07:00

Here's a picture of us being Cavemen on Halloween. Our costumes were a hit!!

2008-11-03T15:47:00.000-07:00

Happy voting tomorrow!!!

2008-10-20T15:18:00.001-06:00

I thought this was an interesting video.

More Prego Pics

2008-09-20T10:58:00.002-06:00

Here is my belly right at 20 weeks along!

Overdue Update

2008-09-14T21:12:00.007-06:00

Time for an overdue update. Hopefully this will fill you in on what's been going on!

Can I just say - I love my job! I have always been a band geek, and it's the coolest thing in the world that I get to be in band all day long! And I'm really lucky that I get to deal with such a wide variety of ages. I get to teach 5th-12th grade everyday. Now, it is kind of a hassle to drive to three different schools everyday, but it's worth it. All of the bands are getting better and better, and I get so much support from the community - it's like they think I walk on water! Hopefully I can keep fooling them :) I'm just really lucky that I get to go to my dream job everyday. I'm having a blast!

Okay, now onto some baby updates. I have still been really sick!! I've now thrown up 95 times, and I've lost 38 lbs. This last week was really rough for me. On Tuesday, I started to have really severe pain on the right side of my stomach again, and I was worried it was that blasted ovary! I called the doctor from the school and they told me to come in right away. It turned out to be nothing, and they weren't concerned. But they did happen to do an ultrasound, and we were able to find out the of the baby early!! Drumrole please.................... we are having a little 'girl!! I'm putting a picture in, but nobody seems to understand it. It's upside-down because I think it's easier to see that way. But, just know that the arrow at the bottom is pointing directly to her "girl parts." And the other picture is just a cute one of her profile. I love it.

I loved this!!

2008-08-30T12:14:00.001-06:00

Take
the Quiz and Share Your Results!

I took this quiz online and found out that I'm a Bella! I never really thought of us as similar, but who knows. It was fun!!

Prego pics

2008-08-19T19:11:00.004-06:00

I'm really starting to notice a change in the size of my belly recently, so I decided to take some belly shots. This is me right at 16 weeks along. It's pretty exciting, because I'm starting to really feel the baby move! It's not a ton, but last night the baby was going crazy! It made me smile. One of the pictures I have my hand underneath my belly, but you can't see my hand so the dress just looks funny. That's why.

Surgery

2008-08-06T15:19:00.007-06:00

On Monday we had a huge scare. About 11:30 in the morning I started to feel some cramps on the right side of my stomach. I always get little cramps, so I wasn't too worried, but the pain started getting worse and worse. I called my doctor and they told me to come in. We went in about 3:30 that afternoon, and the pain was so bad!! The doctor came in and started pushing on my stomach, and trying to figure out what was wrong. That made the pain even worse. So, he told the nurses to draw my and then get an ultrasound to see if they could figure out what was happening. I know it's weird, but ever since I've had a blog I have to take a picture of everything. So, this is a picture of me crying from pain after they took my .

Then, they got an ultra sound of the baby, and the baby was doing just fine. It's now starting to look like a baby, and not some swamp-thing :) Here's the picture of the ultrasound.

After the ultrasound, I don't think that I've ever been in so much pain in my life! I was basically hysterical, and my body was covered in sweat. I started throwing up because the pain was so bad. They knew that they needed to get me into surgery right away. Well, when they cut into my stomach, they realized that my ovary on the right side had completely twisted and the supply was cut off and it was dying. They were able to fix it and now everything should be okay. I'm putting a really small picture that they took while they were inside my stomach. If you want to see it, you can click on it and make it bigger.

I'm not sure what all of the pictures mean, but the one on the bottom right is of my ovary. You can see that it's black and gray - almost completely gone. But, thank goodness they were able to save it, and I'm doing okay now. I feel really tender where they cut into my stomach, and it really hurts to stand up and sit down. I should be much better in the next couple of days. Here is a really bad picture of me, still feeling really groggy, after the surgery was over.

Everything is okay with the baby too. We are so blessed that everything ended up turning out alright. Hopefully pregnancy will be smoother sailing after this.

61

2008-08-04T11:44:00.005-06:00

61 is the new number. "New number for what?" you might ask. Well, 61, as of yesterday, is the number of times I have thrown up in about a month and a half!!!! Pregnancy is the pits!! And here is another number for you - 27. That is how many lbs I've lost!!! I'm not as bothered by that number of course :) But, it has made me really worried about how my baby is doing. The baby is doing great!!! The heartbeat is strong, and all is as it should be! My baby is a trooper :)

We had a scare last week. I couldn't stop myself from throwing up, and I knew that something was not right. Luckily, we had a doctors appt on Monday, and they seemed worried about how much weight I'd lost and how dehydrated I was. So, they made me stay there for an extra 2 hours so they could hook me up to an IV and pump some meds and fluids into me. It made me start to feel better, and the week following seemed to go pretty well - I only threw up a few times.

A horrible picture of me hooked up to the IV

My hand with the IV - and my really cute watch ;)

They had to basically put my hand in a cast afterward!!

We are just so glad that the baby is doing okay. I'm 14 weeks along today, so I'm hoping that I will stop being sick anytime now. Well, hopefully before I have to start teaching again in 2 weeks!!

Crazy Husband

2008-08-04T11:39:00.003-06:00

My husband was shaving his head, and thought that it would be hilarious to leave a Mohawk!! And not only did he just take a few pictures, he actually left it for three whole days!! We only went out in public once together, and I was dying the whole time. He thought it would be great to wear a BYU-Idaho t-shirt while he had this crazy hair!!

Sometime I don't even know what to do with him!! :)

Tanner

2008-08-04T11:26:00.009-06:00

We were so lucky to have our nephew Tanner come and visit us!! He lives in Pennsylvania, and flew out here to spend some time with his favorite Uncle Kirk!! We had such a blast having him here, and were exhausted by the time he left :) I'm just going to put a bunch of pictures of what they've been doing to whole time he's been here.

Here are a bunch of pictures of Tanner and Kirk at Lagoon - they did the skycoaster and the catapult!

They went golfing, and I decided to just ride along with them. I felt like a crazy lady on that golf cart!!!

They bounced back to Lagoon later in the week. Here are a few pictures from that

Here is Tanner with his 2nd favorite uncle Brett :)Tanner feeling sick and tired after too many rides!

We had so much fun with Tanner here!! It was a party for a whole week! We hope that he comes to visit us every summer!

Melaleuca Picnic

2008-07-19T18:33:00.006-06:00

Today is one of our favorite days of the year, because it was the Melaleuca Picnic!! (side note - Melaleuca is a company that both Kirk and I work part time for.) We love it because there are fun games, a bunch of free food, and they do a huge prize drawing at the end. (another side note - we didn't win anything this year!! we were bummed.)

I had to get a picture of this - they have about 50 actual pigs that they cook and lay out on a table like this, and just scoop some of their parts on to your plate. Meat really grosses me out right now, so it was hard for me to even take this picture!

Kirk and I in line for a three-legged race. We totally rocked! Okay, well we didn't win or anything, but they did give us free movie tickets just for doing it!

We went to the picnic with our good friends the Jensen's. This is Kirk and McKay with a huge piece of the pig from the first picture hanging out of his mouth. Yuck.

Kirk, getting ready to kick some butt in a gunny-sack race! Okay, he didn't win this time either - but it was hilarious just to watch him!! And luckily, I got a video of the whole thing. I'm sure that he is going to love that this is on our blog :)

I love that he tried to put on his hat over that huge wig! We had a great time at the Picnic today!

Memory Tag

2008-07-17T15:11:00.003-06:00

So, I may have stolen this from my friend Sami's blog, but I thought that it was such a great idea. And it was really fun to read the memories that people were leaving in the comments. So, think hard and leave a memory!!

1. Add a comment of a memory you have of the 2 of us together...it can be a recent memory or a memory of way back

2.Add these instructions to your own blog and wait for the memories to roll in!

Miss Utah

2008-07-14T15:22:00.014-06:00

We had a great weekend! It was the Miss Utah pageant, and my sister had to give up her crown. A lot of our family was there, and it was awesome to spend some time with them.

A blurry picture of Kirk with our cute nephew Cameron. Kirk can always get him to smile and laugh. It was great.

This is my brother Mitch. I had to get a picture of him in this outfit - It was my parade marching uniform in High School and I'm so glad that he's in Marching Band!! Way to go Vibraphone!!

Kirk at the Gateway mall wearing some way hot sunglasses :)

It doesn't look like anyone can pull off these sunglasses - even you, Brad

Kirk and I just outside Capital Theater before the pageant started.
Our camera started to freak out - so the rest of the pictures are a little blurry.

Kirk with my brothers Brad and T.J.

Me and my Dad - He drove up from Las Vegas

Me and my brother Brad - I kind of look like I'm on :)

This is a video of me and my brother's and Jill singing during the pageant :) We grew up singing barbershop with eachother, and it was nice to perform together again! We only got about half the song because our camera is retarded!!

My Secret Obsession

2008-07-10T13:36:00.002-06:00

I don't know if all of you watch it or not, but So You Think You Can Dance is my all-time favorite show!! I just love it! Even more than American Idol. So, if you are not watching it, it's never too late to start!

I think that my favorite couple is Katee and Joshua! They danced so beautifully last week! So, I've posted their dances in case you missed it :)

4th of July

2008-07-08T16:02:00.007-06:00

We were so lucky this 4th of July to have Kirk's sister and her family come and visit us!! We love it when they come. We had a ton of fun just hangin' out, playing games, feeding the ducks, and lighting some fireworks!!

Kiersten and Brennan feeding the ducks down the street from our house

Kirk's sister Amy, her husband Scott, and their littlest Michael

The only picture I got of fireworks - a sparkler :)

Cute Michael just chillin' on our couch. He is the happiest baby ever!

I put this picture in because I have the coolest step-mom in the world! The medicine that the doctor gave me for morning sickness is really helping me feel better. And my step-mom sent me these beautiful Sun-flowers with a card that said "Glad you are feeling better!" Isn't that so nice?! What a cool step-mom I have.

I'm so glad that we had such a fun fourth. Amy gave me some great pregnancy and parenting advice. And Kirk is still Uncle of the Year - he is so amazing with kids!!

Drum Role Please!!!

2008-06-30T22:31:00.004-06:00

We are having a baby!!!!!! I can't tell you how excited we are! We took a home pregnancy test 1 month ago, and today I just had my first doctors appointment. They told me that there is less than a 5% chance that I will have a miscarriage, so I've decided to spread the news far and wide!! Here's a picture - I had to scan in the pictures, and I'm not any good with high tech stuff. Sorry!

I have been sicker than I've ever felt in my life!!! I've thrown up 30 times (yes...I am counting), and I've lost 19 lbs! I can't eat, and I'm miserable. However, I was given a miracle prescription at the doctors office today, and I haven't thrown up for at least a few hours!!! And I was able to eat a couple of crackers. Amazing! We have been trying for over 2 1/2 years for this baby, and we can't believe that it's finally here!! My official due date is Feb. 2, 2009. So exciting!!!

Kiersten!

2008-06-26T17:31:00.001-06:00

Kiersten - if you read this, need an invite to view your blog!! I'm dying to see what you've been up to! janelletingey04@gmail.com Thanks!!!

Vacation

2008-06-23T14:22:00.010-06:00

I haven't posted in a while because I've been on VACATION!! It was wonderful. I drove with my family to a little mountain place in California called Pinecrest. My aunt and uncle have a cabin there, and my family tries to go every summer. I haven't been back there for about 8 years and I missed it so much! I got to see a bunch of places that I used to live, and it brought back a bunch of memories for me! I was so bummed that Kirk was not able to go - he couldn't get out of work and school. But, I'm dragging him with me next year for sure!

This is a picture of the cabin we stayed at which was right next to the lake

And here is a picture of the lake! It is so beautiful.

Here's a picture of me, brother Mitch, and nephew Drew on our first hike

Here's the whole fam - minus Jill.

Brad and I jamming to Jack Johnson in the middle of the forest.
Just hangin' out with Bigfoot at the Strawberry General Store

This is the town of Twain Harte where my family used to live. It was named after Mark Twain and Bret Harte. It's such a tiny town, but we all loved it!

This was one of the house we lived in. I sprained my knee and my ankle at this house!

This is our second house in the area - my step-dad killed a bear in the front yard!!

This is my elementary school! I wish I would have taken a picture of my very first band room :)

Overall, it was a wonderful vacation. It was so great to see my step-sister Julie and her husband Joey again! I hope I get to go back to Pinecrest every summer!

Strawberry Whipped Sensation

2008-06-10T13:20:00.006-06:00

So, I haven't really posted in a while because I haven't been doing anything - and I love it!!! School is out for the summer, so I've decided to sleep in, relax, read books, and do whatever I want. It has been wonderful, but not anything that I can really post about. But, I did find this amazing recipe!! It is so easy and soooo yummy. It's also great for summer, and it looks beautiful!

4 cups fresh strawberries, divided
1 can (14 oz.) Sweetened Condensed Milk
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 tub (8 oz.) Whipped Topping, thawed, divided
10 Oreo cookies, finely chopped
1 tbs. butter, melted

LINE 9x5-inch loaf pan with foil, with ends of foil extending over sides of pan. Mash 2 cups of the strawberries in large bowl. Add condensed milk, juice and 2 cups of the whipped topping; mix well. Pour into prepared pan.

MIX chopped cookies and butter. Spoon over whipped topping mixture. Cover with ends of foil and gently press cookie mixture into whipped topping mixture. Freeze 6 hours or until firm.

INVERT dessert onto serving plate when ready to serve; remove pan and foil. Spread remaining whipped topping onto top and sides of dessert. Slice remaining 2 cups strawberries; arrange over dessert. Store leftovers in freezer.

The oreo crust is what makes it insanely yummy! We served it to a bunch of people and they all loved it! And just a note - it really does need the whole six hours to freeze. Give it a try!!

Leatherby's

2008-05-24T14:08:00.002-06:00

A new Ice cream shop opened up in town called Leatherby's. Kirk and I were on a date and we decided to check it out. I could not believe how expensive it was!!! You had to give them an arm and a leg just for a milkshake! So, being the poor couple that we are, we decided to split a milkshake. It took us a little bit to realize how cheesey we looked, but I decided to capture the moment anyway. :)

I love it!

Crazy Nephew

2008-05-11T18:25:00.004-06:00

A week ago, Kirk and I were in Boise for our newest nephews - Michael- blessing. Isn't he adorable?

Well, the day of his blessing, his older brother Brennan smashed his finger in the door right before church. He was crying and it was very dramatic. :) Well, after many hugs and kisses from his parents, and a bandaid, he seemed to be doing alright. But, little kids always want to show off whenever they have a bandaid, and Brennan was no different. Here he is in Sacrament meeting showing Uncle Kirk and I his hurt finger. :)
Isn't that hilarious?! We just about died laughing when he showed his "owie" to us!

Beginning Band

2008-05-09T18:48:00.007-06:00

Yesterday, my 6th grade Beginning Band had their very first concert ever! We played fabulous songs like When the Saints Go Marching In, and Lightly Row. They were so great! One of them asked me before the concert, "Mrs. Tingey, is it normal to feel like you're going to throw up?" They were really nervous! They played the concert during the school day in front of all of their classmates. Here are a bunch of pictures:

They worked so hard, and I'm so proud of them! Some days I think that I have the coolest job in the world. :)

Mr. Darcy

2008-05-01T17:56:00.003-06:00

Growing up, I never even cared about Jane Austen or Pride and Prejudice. Luckily, I had a wonderful roommate in college (Adrian) who introduced me to the A&E version of Pride and Prejudice. I have been in love with it ever since!! I've watched it at least a dozen times since - and since it is so long that is no small feat. I think that I fall in love with Mr. Darcy every time!! And who could blame me?!

Now, because I love the movie so much I have been scared to read the actual book. What if I didn't like it?! Could I really claim to be a Pride and Prejudice fan? Well, today I can say that I've officially finished Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice, and I think that I loved every minute of reading it! What a wonderful book! I know that books are always better than the movies, and that is even more true with this book! So, if you haven't read it, go out and read it. I would like to start another Jane Austen book. I was thinking of Emma or Sense and Sensibility - any suggestions?

My Dearest Hubby

2008-04-29T19:43:00.002-06:00

So, today I've decided that husbands are wonderful. Well, I actually decided this long ago, but today I was more aware of those feelings. I had a really long day at school, and afterwards had to spend a million dollars at the dentist office. I was bummed about going home to an empty house because my husband would still be at work, and I knew that our house was a wreck. Well, I walked in to find all of our laundry folded and put away, the bed made, and the house picked up. I was able to just sit, relax, and watch American Idol without stressing about my house! He just seems to always know when it's going to be a long day for me, and does everything he can to make it better! How did I ever get so lucky? :)

Singing

2008-04-28T15:11:00.006-06:00

One of the great parts about my job as a teacher is that I get to teach grades 5-12. I only do band with the 7-12 graders, but my 5th and 6th graders I do band and general music with. I love doing the general music classes! We get to sing fun songs, play a bunch of musical games, and in the process I hope they learn a little bit about music. Sometimes it's a little hard to get kids to want to just sit and sing a bunch of songs in a row - so, to make it more exciting I had them sing their songs in a bunch of different ways: tongue out, lying on the floor, backwards in their chairs, and everyones favorite - upside down. The kids thought it was the craziest thing ever! - They are so easy to please :) I just got to sit and watch them attempt these songs upside-down, so I thought I would take a few pictures
The kids had a blast - and they were excited about singing all of the songs we needed to learn!

My Guitar Hero

2008-04-20T20:55:00.004-06:00

Okay, so I may have stolen this picture from my sister-in-laws blog, but I just couldn't resist. I have the cutest nephew ever! Here we are together playing Guitar Hero, and he absolutely loved it! He was the cutest thing to watch. He was sticking his tongue out the entire time because he was really trying to concentrate! I love getting to spend time with my nieces and nephews any chance I get.

Favorite Past-time

2008-04-18T17:12:00.004-06:00

A new thing that Kirk and I love to do is feed the ducks. We live in a beautiful part of town - right next to the temple and some beautiful water falls. It is a very peaceful place, and we love to go there with a big bag of bread and feed all of the ducks and geese and other weird birds that decide to show up. Kirk took a picture of me throwing some bread - it was dark so the lighting is not very good.

And the backdrop to the water is beautiful - the Idaho Falls Temple reflects so nicely that we took a bunch of pictures last night.

We absolutely love living in this area - especially now that we get to feed the ducks!! :)

Weekend Home

2008-04-14T14:55:00.010-06:00

It's always so much fun to go home! We never want to leave once we're there. We had a really great weekend in Kaysville, Utah. It was my Grandma's 80th Birthday Party, and all my brothers and sisters came home for it. Kirk was in heaven because he actually got to golf for the first time this season, and he rode some motorcycles and four-wheelers. I never seem to get any pictures of myself in there because I'm always the one taking the pictures!!

Here's Kirk with my two brothers and my step-dad about to go golfing!

Here he is with his golf clubs Just a side note - Kirk had the best score golfing!!! My brother Brad came in a close second. This is a good start to the golfing season.

Here is Kirk again on the four-wheeler with our nephew Drew. They were trying to do "mean" faces. That's the only way Drew would let us take a picture :)

Here's some pictures of my brothers Brad and Mitch on the motorcycle. Not long after these pictures were taken Mitchell crashed on the motorcycle, and the bike stopped running. Way to go Mitch!!

Here is a little video I took of Kirk on the four-wheeler. He was a little afraid to go up the hill that you see, but he finally got the courage to do it. He was like a little boy when he came in the house and said, "You have to come outside and watch me do this!!" It was really cute.

And I thought this last picture was a very handsome one of Kirk, so that's why I'm including it.

Overall, we had a very nice weekend, and a wonderful break from the grind.

Being a Band Teacher

2008-03-29T10:03:00.008-06:00

Well, I cannot tell you how much I love my job. It's the coolest thing in the world to me that I actually get to be a band teacher, and that I get to earn money for doing it!! I just love it. Last month my band took a trip to Boise because we were playing pep tunes for the State Basketball Tournament.

This is the High School Band. We went to the Old State Penitentiary and did a tour there. It was pretty cool!

This is my all time favorite picture!! At one of our games that we had to play at, none of my tuba players showed up. So, I had to save the day and play tuba with the pep band!! It was so much fun. The flute is my main instrument, so switching to the tuba was quite a difference! :)

Switching topics a little bit - I've been taking a cake decorating class. I can't say that I was very excited about it. The instructor could hardly speak two words of english, and it was a pain in the butt to try and make so much frosting!! But, I was able to make a couple of cakes. This was my first one:

Not bad right? I took it to the teachers lounge the next day, and it was gone within a couple of hours. Here's my second cake:

This one started to down the middle. Oh Well. But, the roses on the top were so hard to make, but they looked so pretty! Here's a close up of them:

I made this cake on my birthday, thus the reason it says Happy Birthday to me. I'm glad the cake class is over. It was a little too stressful to me. But, hey, at least I learned a few things.

Update

2008-03-27T15:20:00.001-06:00

I promise everyone that I will update my blog soon!!! I've been such a huge slacker with it - but that will change. You can expect an update very soon!! Thanks for being patient!

Tragedy

2008-02-16T12:24:00.002-07:00

It was a very scary day for all of us at Snake River High School yesterday. We had a student who became suicidal and came to school with a gun. They put the school on lockdown, and there were a ton of police with assault rifles searching the school for the student. The students were terrified, but around 4:30-5:00 they were finally evacuated. They cleared out the school because they were worried that the student might cause harm to others or to himself. By the time we were all evacuated we were so relieved that no one was hurt. However, the police finally found the student. He walked out to a field behind the High School and shot himself. I was so devestated to learn this news. I cried for a long while last night. This is such a close-knit community, and they care for eachother so much. I know that this is going to be so hard for everyone. My prayers go out to the student's family. I've posted a news link down below for more information.

http://www.localnews8.com/global/video/popup/pop_player.asp?ClipID1=2201587&h1=Snake%20River%20High%20School%20Student%20Found%20Dead&vt1=v&at1=News&d1=577567&LaunchPageAdTag=News&activePane=info&playerVersion=1&hostPageUrl=http%3A//www.localnews8.com/global/story.asp%3Fs%3D7881748&rnd=54320776

Baby Instructions

2008-02-09T12:22:00.000-07:00

In the past few months, our family has been blessed by three new baby's! Adylae Reid, Jay Tingey, and Michael Thompson. Here are their pictures:

I felt that it would be appropriate to give these new parents some instructions when it comes to dealing with their new babies. To help, I've included some illustrations below.

New Book of Mormon Challenge!

2008-02-04T06:43:00.000-07:00

I don't know if you've heard, but there is a Book of Mormon Challenge going on to honor President Hinckley. All you have to do is read the Book of Mormon in 97 days. Sounds easy enough, right?! Well, to help, you can track your progress at www.hinckleychallenge.com I'm really excited about this, and I'm putting a picture on the side of my blog to track my progress as well. I think everyone should do this! It's not only a great way to honor President Hinckley, but also a great way to strengthen your testimony of the Gospel and enrich your life!

Pictures of Miss America

2008-01-29T16:20:00.000-07:00

Well, I know that some of you are dying to see pictures of the behind the scenes at Miss America. I was hoping to bring my camera in to take a bunch of pictures during the pageant, but was told that I would be thrown out if I did. So, I got some pictures of the after party stuff. This was the first time I got to see Jill upclose. I gave her a huge hug!!

Here are those mean judges from the Reality show that didn't like Jill very much. My Aunt went and chewed them out when she saw them. It was hilarious!

Jill made the judges do push ups with her!!

The Army was following Jill around making some sort of documentary. It was kinda cool.

Here's a cute picture of me and my mom waiting to see Jill after the pageant was finally over.

Overall, everything went great! We are all so proud of Jill for being America's choice. She did so great, and never once compromised her standards. Way to go Jill!!

Miss America is Here!!

2008-01-26T15:09:00.000-07:00

The Pageant is on tonight!! Make sure that you all watch! I'm down in Vegas right now about to leave for Planet Hollywood where the Pageant is being held. I'm so nervous, but really excited to see her. It's been a long week for my sister. She's had her ups and downs when it comes to her performances and interviews. But, we know that she's supposed to be here, and she's never prepared for anything harder in her life! So, make sure you tune in tonight on TLC. It's going to be a party!! Go Miss Utah!!

Miss America

2008-01-05T11:04:00.000-07:00

For those of you who don't know, there is a new show on TLC called the Miss America Reality Check. The first episode was on last night, and it will be on every Friday for the next three weeks until the pageant. The cool thing about the show is that we can vote everyday online and get Miss Utah (my sister!!!) into the finals of the whole pageant!! Last night was a great episode because Jill was put into the top 3 out of all 52 girls!!! I was so excited! But down below I'm giving you two different links. One link is to go and vote for her - which all of you should!!!! :) and the second link is to watch a cute video of the Reality Check where they feature Jill alot!

To vote: http://tlc.discovery.com/tv/miss-america/miss-america.html

The video: http://tlc.discovery.com/tv/miss-america/video.html?playerId=1351302826&titleId=1364230192

For those of you who don't know Jill, in the video she is the one who is talking with another girls hands behind her back. When you see the hands talking - she is the hand that says she loves all of the cameras in her face. Hope you like the video, and go and vote!!!

Christmas Vacation

2007-12-27T10:15:00.000-07:00

Well, it's sad to say that our Christmas vacation is already over. We are both back to work at Melaleuca. But, we did manage to go over to the Boise area to visit Kirks sister and her family. We had such a fun time! She's got the custest kids. We were also able to see Kirks brother a couple of times and he has a brand new baby! That brings our total to 24 nieces and nephews!! Crazy! Here's some photos of our vacation.

This is me with Amy's (Kirk's sister) kids - Kiersten and Brennan. So cute!!!

Kirk holding baby Jay. He was only 11 days old in this picture :)

Look how cute he is!!!

Me holding baby Jay for the first time. I can already tell that I'm his favorite Aunt!

I had to put a picture of this in. Amy and I made the most amazing Christmas Eve dinner!! It was my first turkey and it was a success. I was so proud of what we did that I had to take a picture of it!! :)

Graduation

2007-12-20T21:13:00.000-07:00

Well, it has certainly been a while since I've posted anything, but life has been crazy! First of all, I've finally graduated from BYU-Idaho!! I'm so excited! Graduation was on the 14th of this month, and I had a lot of family come up for it. It feels so good to finally be done. I received a Bachelors of Music in Music Education. Here's some pictures from the big event

This is Kirk and I at the Graduation Luncheon

Me and my Mom :)

My Dad and Step Mom drove up from Las Vegas

I thought this was a cute picture of me and my sister Jill

I've also officially started my new job as the Band Director at Snake River High School, Junior High, and Middle School. It has been so much fun! I've been there for two weeks now, and I just love it. It's definitely going to keep me busy though!

Elf Yourself!

2007-12-08T13:36:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I saw this on a few other peoples blogs and I thought it was so funny! So, I had to do it for Kirk and me. http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=1243841648 Just click on this website!

Christmas

2007-12-06T14:46:00.000-07:00

So, it's no contest that I have the cutest nieces and nephews in the world. I was home for Thanksgiving and got to hang out with two of my nephews Drew and Cameron. Drew has started learning Christmas songs, and I got a few videos of him singing with my mom. He's so adorable!

Student Teaching

2007-12-05T22:52:00.000-07:00

Well, I can't believe it, but today was my last official day of Student Teaching. What a great experience it was! The kids were so great, and I'm so lucky to have had the chance to teach them. They gave me the cutest gifts today to say goodbye! I start my new job at Snake River High School on Monday. I'm nervous but really excited at the same time. But, I'm really going to miss being at Bonneville High School!

Miss Utah

2007-11-25T11:04:00.000-07:00

This is my sisters DVD that was sent in the TLC network for the Miss America Reality Show that will air 4 weeks before the pageant in January (one episode each week). All of the Miss America contestants were sent a list of questions, and a prize went to the person who could answer each of the questions most creatively. And guess who won! - My sister Jill! I couldn't figure out how to upload the entire video. There are some cute pictures of her in some different costumes that you won't get to see here, but we were able to upload all but the last two minutes. It's a really funny DVD!!

Orchestra Concert

2007-11-21T13:46:00.001-07:00

So, this one is mainly for Mom and Dad in Germany. Brett (Kirk's brother) had an orchestra concert last Wednesday, and since I was already in Rexburg I was able to go. I snuck on stage for the first picture - Brett was warming up right before the concert began.

I tried to get a group picture of everyone in the orchestra on stage - but it ended up looking like a picture of the back of a bunch of balding heads. :)

The last picture is of Brett right after the concert.

It was a great concert - I really enjoyed it! Brett was sitting all the way in the back, so I didn't really get to see him, but I'm sure that he played great. Hope you enjoy the pictures Mom and Dad!

Exciting News!

2007-11-09T10:24:00.001-07:00

So, I've not said anything about this in our blog for fear that it is too good to be true. But, as soon as I'm done student teaching I will start my new job as the Band Teacher at Snake River High School, Junior High, and Middle School. The coolest part about it is that my Grandpa Bruce was also a band teacher back in the day, and in about 1954 he was the first band director at Snake River High School. So, I get to teach at the same school my Grandfather taught at. I was able to visit the school yesterday and got some pictures of my new band room!

Can you just picture me standing up in the front of the room teaching my band students? :)

My favorite part is the light fixtures and the wierd paint on the wall. Very 70's!

Those of you who know me well will know exactly why I'm excited about this picture! Brand new marching band uniforms! The school spent a huge amount of money on them, and they only used them for one year! I couldn't believe it when I saw all of the perfect uniforms in the closet!

Joy!!!

2007-11-09T10:19:00.000-07:00

Kirk and I have just purchased our very first washer and dryer!! We've been without them for about a month and a half and it has been the biggest pain in the butt!! Luckily, we have good friends - McKay and Paige - who have been letting us do laundry at their house. I'm sure their just as excited as we are about the washer and dryer :) It is great the joy you can get from just doing a load of laundry at your own house!! Here's a picture of them

Pictures of Kirk

2007-11-01T17:12:00.000-06:00

So, my husband is going to love me for this one :) These are my favorite pictures of Kirk - and they've all been taken within the last two months. Some of them are super funny

Sometimes I think I have the craziest husband ever :) But, I wouldn't have it any other way

Wii

2007-11-01T16:39:00.000-06:00

Sunday night, my little brother Mitch came up to visit! Well, I guess he's not technically my little brother - this is the first time he's ever been taller than me!!! It was so great to have him here. He didn't have school on Monday or Tuesday, so he decided to come up and check out the band program where I student teach. He is in 9th grade, and a really good percussionist. Well, he brought up his Wii so we could all play together. Here are some funny videos of us playing :) The first one is of Mitch and Kirk playing each other, and the second one is of McKay and Kirk. I was laughing so hard just watching them! (I'm the one you can hear with the really annoying laugh in the background)

Miss America

2007-10-16T13:16:00.000-06:00

So, I've had this blog for a while, and I can't believe that I've not said anything about this! If you are not a fan of Miss America, I think that you should become one this year. My sister will be competing!! She won the title of Miss Utah at the end of June this year, and will be competing in Miss America in January. So everyone should watch. I'm going to try my best to actually be there for the competition to see her.

She is also making history. I think that she is the first woman who is a war veteran to compete in the Miss America Pageant. Below is a picture of her as a combat medic in Afghanistan.

So, make sure you are watching this year to root her on. It should be pretty fun to see!

Amazing Pictures

2007-10-16T12:56:00.000-06:00

My mom sent me these pictures in an email. It didn't say who the artist was - but it did say that he was featured in Readers Digest. He only does things like this with his hands. I just thought these pictures were so great! Hope you enjoy them. Just FYI - if you want to make the picture bigger, just click on it.

Homecoming Game

2007-10-09T20:36:00.000-06:00

Here's kind of a fun video. Last Thursday, Bonneville High School had their Homecoming Football game, and the band played at the beginning. This is the closest thing to a marching band that Bonneville has. The video was taken with a cell phone camera, so it's not very good quality. But, if you look really close you can see me directing the band. Student teaching has been great, and I'm going to miss these kids when I go to a different school.

Promotion!!!

2007-10-09T20:28:00.001-06:00

Kirk received a promotion at work!! We are so excited. He works on the French team at Melaleuca in Idaho Falls, and was given the job as a supervisor over some of the French, Spanish, Korean, and Russian associates. He's been waiting for a position like this for a long time, and we are so glad he's finally got it!

2007-10-09T16:37:00.000-06:00

As many of you know, I have been furiously trying to learn how to play the guitar for student teaching. I had never played the guitar in my life when I found out that I was going to be teaching a beginning guitar class. (I was so stressed out about it that I was losing sleep!!) Well, Kirk took this video of me a few weeks ago and I thought it was fun to see my amazing guitar skills :-) I'm not that great - but I'm getting better everyday. It's been fun to try and pretend I know what I'm doing in front of a class of 20 students~!!

Chuckar's

2007-09-15T11:53:00.000-06:00

Kirk and I have been in Eastern Idaho for... way too long now, and we had never been to a Chuckar's Baseball game!! Well, we finally decided to go during a Melaleuca night with our friends McKay and Paige and their little boy Camden. Here are some pictures:

Kirk and I together - with McKay deciding to randomly stick his head in the corner of the picture. Thanks McKay... :)

Not the greatest picture of the field

McKay - with his wife Paige hiding behind him. She loves pictures just about as much as I do.

Their cute little boy Camden. He had a lot of fun!

The Chuckar's won - 8 to 1, so it wasn't really that much of a nail biter. We still had a really fun time at our first Chuckar's game :)

Student Teaching

2007-09-15T11:40:00.000-06:00

Well, I'm finally in my last leg of being a student. I'm student teaching this semester at Bonneville High School, and then I will get my Bachelor's Degree!!! I've had such a great time already. I've only been there about 3 weeks, but the students have been great. We are getting ready for a Halloween concert that will be on Oct 24. Here's some pictures of the band playing at some of the football games.

I've learned so much about myself as a teacher already. It has been so fun to be teaching such a great group of kids! I'll put some more pictures on of our Halloween concert coming up.

Vacation

2007-08-22T18:14:00.000-06:00

We finally took a vacation, and decided to go and see family in Las Vegas for a week, and then in Ohio. We had such a fun time!! Through the trip, we got to see 14 of out nieces and nephews, and I think Kirk went home with the "Uncle of the Year" award. He was so great! I'm going to post a bunch of pictures, because they are alot more fun than me describing what we did.

Teej and me at his home in Vegas - then with Drew

Cute Pictures of Baby Cameron!!

Dad's dog Rowdy, and Brad's dog Ella - so adorable!

Brad and I at Smith and Wollenskie's ( I'm sure I spelled that wrong). It was the most expensive restaurant I've ever eaten at - but the dessert was amazing!!

A great view of the strip from on top of the Eiffel Tower. It was so windy up there!

Two of my cute nieces - Audrey (left) and Eliese (right)

Kirk trying to show off wake-boarding. This was his first summer getting out of the water - he loved it!

We wish we took more pictures. It was so great to spend some time with family. I'm so glad we got to see Teej and Lind's home before they move to Utah. It was so fun to see Brad at work. We finally got to see Gaylinn's beautiful home in Medina - and were so glad that Joy was able to make it out with her kid's. And I'm sure that Kari and Dirk felt our timing couldn't have been better :) Good luck with the move to Pittsburgh!

A New Member to our Home

2007-08-05T20:35:00.000-06:00

Well, as many of you know, Kirk's brother Brett is living with us for a couple of months. To be honest, I was a little nervous :) , but it has really been great! Kirk is excited to have someone (other than me) to hang out with. Granted, there has been a lot more wrestling, and a lot more X-Box (as you can see from the photos). But, all in all, it has been really nice to have Brett here and get to know him better!

Melaleuca Picnic

2007-07-22T21:39:00.001-06:00

We went to the Melaleuca Picnic yesterday. We had a lot of fun with friends, and a bunch of free food! They had 40 whole pigs lined up that were cooked and they fed to the 4,000 employees that came. We were hoping to win some prizes in the drawing, (especially when they announced they were giving away 50 26" LCD TV's) but we didn't win anything. Oh well, we still had a bunch of fun. Here are some random pictures, I'm not in any of them (surprise surprise). I couldn't get a good picture of Brett - hence the weird picture with the water bottle. And, no, the baby isn't ours - his name is Kaden, and he belongs to our friends Sarah and Kaili.

I'm Done!!!!

2007-07-17T14:42:00.000-06:00

Well folks - it's official!! I just finished my last final yesterday, and I will never have to take another final again!!! Hallelujah! After I student teach in the fall I will receive my diploma. I never actually thought I'd make it this far :)

Conducting Debut

2007-07-14T16:08:00.000-06:00

I recently had my conducting debut! It was a great band concert, and it was such an awesome experience. It was so much fun to be up there on the podium for the concert. However, the only bad thing about the concert was it hurts so bad to play the sax!! I couldn't feel my bottom lip by the time it was over. Still had fun though!

June 24, 2007

2007-06-24T12:58:00.000-06:00

Yea, we have a blog! We will start updating it soon.