CHRISTMAS 2016 / February 3, 2017 by Ren Wightman

For Christmas we were fortunate to have Brandon, AJ and Max in Utah. Katie, Bryce and Josie were going to travel to Utah from Idaho but weather permitted that from happening. We were also lucky to have Grandpa Dutch join us. And of course Ed and Karri joined us. We received snow on Christmas morning which made the day that more magical for the kids. Jude received an Amazon Kindle. Both Abbey and Penny received a Critters doll house set. And of course, they were all spoiled rotten. We did a Christmas Even Party where we had a photo booth set up. Below are the pictures from that.

I also put together a little Christmas video

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JUDE! / April 5, 2016 by Ren Wightman

This past Saturday (April 2) was Jude's birthday. Our oldest is nine years old! We've always said that he is the heart beat of our family. I believe my wife said it best: "Jude threw us into the challenging world of parenthood. His imagination is still alive and well. He still fights 'bad guys' daily with the plot getting more developed everyday. He is a spirited, stubborn, hard headed, active and a smart boy. He is one of the most fun kids to be around, always up for doing something fun."

Since Abbey's birthday is eight days away we decided to do a joint birthday activity but only celebrated Jude's birthday (if that makes sense?). We took Cooper, Jackson, Maliya and Marisa to Provo Beach Resort for a few hours. After that we had pizza, came home and opened presents and had cake. Provo Beach Resort was surprisingly empty, which we were happy about. Probably because it was Conference weekend. Jude and his buddies did laser tag twice, spent their $10 arcade cards in a record five minutes, and played in the giant playground. All in all all the boys and girls had fun. We are grateful for all the friends both Abbey and Jude have. We're also grateful for the grandparents, aunts and uncles who thought of Jude on his birthday.

From left to right back row: Cooper, Jude, Marisa, Jackson. Front row: Abbey, Maliya.

Enjoying the birthday present Jude received from his great Grandpa Willis and VR.

The day before Jude's birthday, Grandpa Willis and VR dropped off some birthday presents.

I didn't get a lot of pictures of the kids at Provo Beach Resort, but I did snap this beauty.

SUNDAY WALK / March 24, 2016 by Ren Wightman

This past Sunday (3/20/16) we went on a walk at Bridal Veil Falls. Over the past several years this has been one of our favorite places to go when we want to get outdoors. It's up Provo Canyon, has a nice walking trail and a beautiful waterfall(s). When we started our walk the sun hadn't completely made it over the mountain. We walked in the shade and the kids were struggling to stay warm. By the time we made it to the waterfall the sun was on our backs and we started to warm up. Of course by that time the kids were hungry and needed to use the bathroom.

The kids had never used a porta potty so they thought it was funny. After using the it Abbey said "I got to pee on a juicy poo."

WARM SATURDAY / February 20, 2016 by Ren Wightman

We finally got a warm Saturday. To celebrate, Penny decided to bring her tricycle out of winter storage. She received this tricycle as a birthday present from her Grand-parents back in December.