The Nielson Family

Happy New Year

2011-01-02T18:06:00.009-07:00

Parker was set on getting a guitar from Santa and he delivered!

And of course a big boy bike for the z-dog!

The most handsome boys in town.

(Zach was insisting he was ready for work in his tie.)

Well, our holidays were great with all the good stuff like, food, family, fun and friends. We went non-stop and ate until we were ready to burst. The kids had so much fun, Parker has been out of school for 2 weeks and is excited to get back. Zach is going to start preschool this month and can't wait to do his homework. The week before Christmas Zach, in all his craziness fell and knocked out his three front teeth (poor little guy) so as you can see that is what he asked for Christmas. We were so lucky to be able to spend the holidays with all our family on both sides. Here are a few pics, we even made the dreaded adventure for family pictures and after a second try were able to get a few keepers except for the fact that now that Zach has no front teeth he looks like he is angry. Hope all is well with everyone and Happy New Year.

Summer Fun

2010-07-28T09:53:00.005-06:00

It feels like summer is flying by but we have been trying to enjoy it while we can. We just got back from camping at Acord Lakes with my family, went jeeping to Copper Globe Mine, and spent the 24th with Danny's family. We had a lot of fun. it was good to get out of town! The kids are doing good and Parker starts first grade in just 3 weeks. He is getting big sooo fast. Here are some pics of our fun! I don't know how to collage pictures on here, so there they all are.

Busy, Busy!

2010-06-05T14:31:00.006-06:00

Family Night at the St. George Visitors Center

Kindergarten Graduation

Zach's first bus ride with his Big Brother

City Library

Finally a green backyard thats not weeds!

Zach's big Day
Parkers Birthday, Best Buddies!

Well we have had a lot to keep ourselves busy lately. I feel like summer just got here and it will be over before we know it, but we are sure enjoying it. We finally got are back yard in. We still have a lot to do but at least we have some grass. Parker graduated from kindergarten and is so excited for first grade, I am not as excited, I am gonna miss having him gone for a full day of school. Parker and Zach are such good buddies and I am sure he will miss him like crazy. Parkers last week of school he had a fieldtrip that me and Zach were daring enough to go on. I felt very daring in taking Zach and he lived up to his name and was marginally good. He loved the bus ride, kept everyones attention at the Library and was crazy at the Park. It was fun to go but I have to say that I don't think I could ever be a teacher. Gotta appreciate those kindergarten teachers. Parker has been enjoying church. He has been learning about the temples and said he couldn't remember seeing one so we made a venture to St. George. It was a lot of fun. Parker was so cute, he had to take his own digital camera. He was walking around making us pose. He was such a little photographer. They loved the statue of Jesus and all the videos in the visitors center. We had a lot of fun! Parker and Zach both had Birthdays. I can't believe they are already 3 and 6. Time flys. Anyway life is good and we are looking forward to a fun summer!

Update!

2010-04-20T22:11:00.004-06:00

I am really having a hard time keeping up on this blog, but everytime I get on to see everyone elses blogs I feel a little guilty I have been so lazy. So for the heck of it here is a little of what we have been up to. We just returned from Disneyland and had such an awesome time. It was the kids first time going to Disneyland and they loved every minute of it! Parker was a dare devil and rode every ride he could get on. His favorites were Thunder Mountain Railroad, and Space Mountain. Zach was pretty daring himself. He was so funny. On every ride he would reassure himself by shaking his head and saying " Not scary." He screamed the whole time on Matterhorn and then when we got off he started laughing and saying "scary tuff". His favorites were Autopia, jungle cruise and the Disneyland train. He couldn't get enough of the train. We went with all of Danny's family and had such a great time. We got home with seriously tired feet and kids. Now everyday we have the kids asking to go back to Disneyland. So now that we have had our vacation we are now focusing on getting our back yard done. It is so much work but I can't wait to get rid of all the dirt. Grass will be coming next week and I will have to post some pics of all the hard work. Well that is about all we have been up to. We have three Birthdays in the family next month and maybe I can post again then.

Our Funny Farm

2009-11-19T14:20:00.003-07:00

This past week in a half at our house has been crazy!!! Danny was gone all week on a cruise with his Dad and brother (yes a guys trip, I was bummed not to go). I started a new job the same week at Kolob, so the training was way more hours than I was used to, like five twelve hour shifts in a week in a half, plus I was working the other nights at Dr. Sanders. I will only be working PRN once I am done with training. Thank goodness for such good Grandmas to help watch the little guys. Also, our dumpy dog Molly was on a killing spree with the neighbors chickens. I would take my eye off her for an hour and I would have a dead chicken on my patio, and that was not fun taking care of without Danny. It is a good thing we have such nice and understanding neighbors. So if anyone wants a black lab she is yours. Parker got diagnosed with swine flu the same week, but is doing much better. Zach had 8 cavities that he got filled today. They do the fillings as a surgery in the hospital because he is so young, that was not fun (we had to wait 2 1/2 hours to go back and he was starving) and then he had to have 3 root canals once they got in there. Yes, we feel like bad parents. Although we brushed his teeth good, I guess he was prone to bad teeth because he was born premature. Way sad for the little guy. So I seriously feel like a tired Zombie running a funny farm. I am so exhausted and my house is a disaster and I have laundry coming out my ears. Kids and a house and working are a lot of work. But all worth it right? Next week Zach may have to get his tonsils out so we will see about that. He has really large tonsils and sometimes gasps for air when he crys, and he snores pretty good too. I guess staying busy keeps us young :) Anyway, hopefully better days ahead.

FAMILY FUN - At the Bowling Alley

2009-10-25T20:54:00.004-06:00

He had to ride the horse before he would even think of leaving.

SO CUTE :)

Look at those cute little bowling shoes!

We had a FUN little family night with the kids last night. We went out to eat and bowling with some friends. The kids had so much fun and cute little Parkers exact words were " I loved, loved bowling." Zach would do a little shimmy dance and give high fives after he would knock down a few pins. Parker and Zach both did so good and they even had cute little bowling shoes to fit Zach. I hope we can get out more often and do a little bowling. I really need to work on my game. I think me and Parker got the same score! Anyway, it was a much needed outing and so much fun.

We Have Returned

2009-09-30T15:38:00.008-06:00

I have been away from the blogging world for some time. We have been so busy, not to mention that my computer was a piece and it wouldn't let me upload pictures. So I have a new computer and am back up and running. We had a crazy summer with lots to do. Parker and Zach and Molly (the dog) have had so much fun. We finally put in our front yard and I love not having to worry about all the dirt, we put in sprinklers in the backyard but yards seem to take up a lot of cash so that is as far as we got with the back. Now I just wish that everything would hurry up and grow big and mature. We have a few years before that, but is it so hard not to want it now. We did a yearly trip to the famous Lagoon, which the kids loved. Parker is my little dare devil wanting to ride all the big scary rides but not being tall enough, hopefully next year. Zach was also loving it until he got tired. We got a new little travel trailer and Parker got a fourwheeler for his Birthday so we did a lot of camping with family and friends. It was so fun to get away for quick trips on the weekends and spend time together as a family. Our dog Molly is getting big and a little bit on the mischevious side. Sometimes I wonder what we were thinking allowing the Easter Bunny to bring such a gift, but the kids love her. It is especially funny to watch her play with Zach. He will steal her toy and she will chase him around, he gets so excited and runs as fast he can. Zach loves to tease her. She is such a good dog with the kids so I guess it will be worth it, right? Parker started Kindergarten this year and is loving it. He is so smart and loves learning. I got to go to his class on "Mom's Day", it was so fun to watch him in school. We are so proud of the sweet little boy that he is. I have been extremely blessed with lots of fruit from friends and lots of tomatoes out of my garden. This fall I have already done 40 quarts of peaches, 7 quarts of pears, 35 pints of salsa, 20 quarts of tomatoes and 15 pints of plum jam and 12 pints of applesauce (Parker and Danny did make a fresh apple pie that was absolutely scrumptious). I am so sick of bottling I could just scream, but it is nice to know we have it for food storage. Our garden has also produced 8 pumpkins for the kids so that will be fun to use their own pumpkins that they grew. I am excited for the fall weather. We have already taken the kids up the mountain to see the leaves and Parker is so excited for snow. I don't know if I am ready for snow but the cool weather is feeling ok for now. Well there is a quick catch up of what we have been up to.

A New Addition to the Family

2009-04-18T22:00:00.007-06:00

I thought that I would post a little about our Easter weekend, better late than never. The Easter Bunny made a special delivery to our house, a darling black lab. Parker and Zach were so excited and we all decided on the name Molly. She is turning out to be a little disastrous but a pretty good dog. She loves the kids but has had a few incidents of knocking poor little Zach to his bum. But he loves her! It is so funny to see how excited he gets with her. Parker is being very responsible trying his best to scoop up the sweet little droppings that she leaves for us (several times a day). She has already been a guest at Parker's preschool for sharing time and she did really good with the kids. She is going to be an outside dog and Parker is so excited to help Danny build her a dog house. Well we hope that the decision to allow such a delivery from the Easter Bunny ends up being a good one. So far not too bad!
We also had a busy Easter weekend. Grandma Bev and Grandpa Jeff came to visit from Monroe and came to the Easter egg hunt with us. It was fun to have them visit for the day. We colored Eggs, ate lots of candy and had a Easter egg hunt with all the cousins at Grandma and Grandpa Sutherlands. We had a lot of fun! Parker could even tell us the real reason why we have Easter. He is getting so big and so smart.

Watches

2009-04-16T10:26:00.003-06:00

For those who don't know I make these fun watches that are like the known brand called bumbles, but half the price. Anyway, they are way fun and if you don't have one then I am the person to talk to. There are so many different styles you can do with whatever colors you want and they look so cute on. So accessorize yourself and get a watch and if you have a watch just keep getting new fun bands. They are $25 for the watch and band and $18 for just a band. So if anyone is interested I can send you pictures of all the watch faces I have as well as closeups of the bands.

San Francisco Vacation

2009-04-03T16:26:00.018-06:00

Last week my Mom and I went on a girls trip to San Francisco, California! It was so much fun. We ran like crazy and were pooped by the time we made it back home. The weather was awesome, the locals told us we were lucky to have such great weather in San Francisco. So we did about everything possible from riding over the Golden Gate Bridge to the giant Redwoods and Sausilito, Alcatraz, Chinatown, Lombard Street, Ghirardelli Square, Union Square, Cable Cars, Bay cruise, and the Broadway show Wicked (which was way good!!), and yes we may have rode bikes around San Francisco and the beach. We looked pretty hot cruising on our bikes. We ate a lot of sour dough bread, delicious fish and chips, and awesome Chinese in Chinatown. We even got to walk through a open house of an apartment for rent. Only $5,500 a month for a one bedroom on Lombard Street so we will be looking into renting that. haha. We stayed for four days and three nights so by the time we got home we were dragging for several days. It was so much fun and if you haven't been to San Francisco you have to go! I loved it but I loved to get home to see my cute family I missed them sooo much. Danny thanks so much for letting me get out for a quick vacation and thanks for an awesome trip Mom. Here are just a few picks of our little adventure.

Getting Some Sun !!

2009-03-20T10:46:00.007-06:00

It is finally starting to warm up and we are getting way excited. So the other day we decided to get out and enjoy the sun and have a picnic with the cousins. The kids had a lot of fun and it felt so good to be outside again. I love summer and can't wait for it to get here!!

Smartest Little Boy in Town

2009-03-12T11:06:00.008-06:00

It has been awhile so I thought I would do a little blogging about our 4 year old Parker. Parker has been going to preschool now for 7 months and he loves it! Every Friday is sharing time and he is always thinking in advance about what he wants to take. He has learned how to write his name without any help, and it looks pretty good. He is now working on his last name. But one thing that he was way excited about was that he can say the Pledge of Allegiance by himself. So here is a fun video of him reciting it. He got a little camera shy and needed a little help, but not much. What a smart little boy! We are so proud of him and happy that he loves learning.
We Love you Parker!

Parker's Dog

2009-02-19T14:48:00.003-07:00

I had to share this story because I couldn't stop laughing and am still laughing just thinking about it. So Parker and Zach were playing in the other room and I kept hearing Parker say fetch so I went to see what was going on. Parker had a little blue plastic ring and was throwing it and telling Zach to go get it. So I told Parker that Zach wasn't his dog and Parker's reply was " Ya he is, watch. I throw this and then tell him to go get it and he runs and gets it and brings it back to me." Zach was laughing the whole time and thought it was great, sad for the little guy. Parker was impressed with himself that he had taught Zach how to fetch . I guess Parker doesn't need a real dog if he has a little brother.

The Jeepster

2009-02-17T21:17:00.009-07:00

The Sweet Ride!

Parker Wrenching

Just going topless

So my sweet husband has a new project. Just one of many. I have been giving him a hard time about all the money he is dumping into it, but I think in the end it will probably be pretty sweet. He has been soo excited about it that I thought I would show him how much I love him by devoting this post to him. He bought this sweet 1971 ride about a year ago and has slowly been fixing it up. He just ordered new tires and seats so he can get it ready to turn it into his main ride. Parker and Zach love the Jeepster just as much as him. They are always in the action and he is so good to let them help. He is an awesome Dad and I guess he could have worse hobbies. I Love you Honey and yes I love the Jeepster.

Our little Ham steak

2009-02-12T16:18:00.005-07:00

Zach is such a little ham. He insists on feeding himself and with a utensil. So the last time I put him in the highchair I got a lovely surprise. He had more of an oatmeal bath.

Lately he has been doing this funny face were he bites his teeth together and smiles. It looks even funnier in person. He is always coming up with the funniest faces.

Our Humble Abode

2009-02-12T15:19:00.009-07:00

I have had a couple people ask me for pictures of our house, so here are just a few. We did most of the work ourselves and still have many projects that need finishing. But we are in and that is all that matters. The kids love that they can run around and don't have to worry about being loud, and they don't hold back.

Surprise

2009-02-12T14:47:00.011-07:00

Yesterday my Mom and I threw my sister a surprise baby shower at my house. She has had a rough pregnancy so we thought that she would enjoy it. It was kind of a last minute idea but we were able to successfully keep it a secret. She was so surprised she started to cry. Parker insisted on staying for the party and was a big helper, and Zach and his Dad were kicked out. Lindsay got lots of good stuff and we had lots of fun.

Finally a Mantel

2009-01-26T21:04:00.004-07:00

After just 10 months of being in our home my talented husband has finally built and put up a mantel for our fireplace. I love it and feel like it just finishes off our family room. Just one more project checked off the list.

Grandma's Birthday

2009-01-26T14:17:00.006-07:00

Grandma Joanne had a Birthday on January 12. Grandma Raedawn had us all over for dinner and of course the kids were all way wild, but we did manage to get this picture of all the cute grandkids minus Josh's baby Alli. We wish she could have been there. What cute kids we all have!!

Scrub a Dub Dub

2009-01-26T13:24:00.004-07:00

Parker and Zach always want to get in our bathtub so we loaded them in and added bubbles. We may have added a little too many. Once we turned on the jets Zach almost disappeared. They had so much fun. They are such good little buddies.

Vacation!

2009-01-26T11:04:00.006-07:00

This past weekend we went to St. George for what Parker kept referring to as our vacation. Danny's parents had to come to St. George for meetings so we rained in on their fun and stayed with them in their hotel room. We did some swimming, which the kids loved, and I even broke down and got in a swimsuit. The pool was way warm so even Zach was excited to get in on the action. Parker is a water dog so of course he loved it. Lets just say Zach was not much fun in the hotel room. We set up his portacrib and he fell asleep but then he decided to wake up at three in the morning and refused to go to go back to sleep. So Danny and I had to take him for a ride in the car to a gas station to get some apple juice. Lets just say it was a long night. We did shopping, hitting lots of good deals. Danny let me purchase a leather chair for my front room, which was way needed. So overall it was a fun vacation even if it was only 45 minutes away.

A Little About Us

2009-01-12T15:21:00.011-07:00

Parker is 4 years old and such a fun kid to have around. He is such a good big brother and is so sweet to Zach. Zachary is 20 months old and soooo busy. He keeps all of us on our toes. I don't remember Parker ever being this busy, but it is so fun to see there darling personalities and how different they are. Parker is always trying to get Zach occupied with something else so he doesn't have to share his toy. It is so funny to hear a 4 year old bargaining with 1 1/2 year old. Danny is trying to get a normal life back after only being in are house almost a year and there is still projects to finish. He is still trying to find the time to "do something that he wants to do." I guess that is what he gets for being so dang talented. As for me I started a hobby of making beaded interchangeable watch bands and constantly have Parker asking me why I like to bead so much. I don't even do it that much, but since I borrowed his little organizer box for beads, he is really worried about when I am going to stop. So this is a just little about us.

Trying something new

2009-01-10T23:23:00.000-07:00

This is my attempt at a blogspot. I have been told by so many people that I need to do one and I have finally broke down and given it a try (even though Danny just thinks that I will be on the internet all the time rambling about weird stuff). I was given the idea to use blogs as kind of a journal. So that is what has inspired me to start my family blogspot. So I guess I am officially a blogger.