High Adventure

Ashlee and Emily had a great opportunity to go on the high adventure with their Venturing Crew in June. Mike got to join them for the last three days. It was a fun filled 5 days!

Day 1 - Biking Dead horse State Park, Zip lining Entrada, Swimming at Mill Creek
Day 2 - Mountaineering Mount Mellenthin, Biking Hazard county Trail La Sals, Climbing La Sals
Day 3 - Cayoneering Bill Negro Canyon, white water rafting in the Colorado River
Day 4 - Kayaking in Lake Powell
Day 5 - Exploring Goblin Valley

Emily cliff jumping at Mill Creek

Ashlee cliff jumping at Mill Creek

Mt Mellenthin

Katelyn Brunsdale, Michele Johansen, Haley Brunsdale, Emily, Sarah Brunsdale, Zoe Sheffield, Ashlee

Ashlee biking Hazard County Trail- La-Sals

Michael rappelling at Bill Negro Canyon

Emily rappelling

Ashlee about to rappel

They rappelled down and then went swimming at the bottom

Camping right on the water at Lake Powell

Playing water polo at beautiful Lake Powell

Emily and Mike enjoying the kayaks

Exploring Goblin Valley

Brittany and Danielle's Kid's Camp

Brittany and her friend, Danielle Kemp, planned a fun and successful kid's camp this summer. They had two sessions, one in June and one in July! All the kids that participated loved it. They charged $1 per day per child and had lots of fun activities planned. They had a water day, craft day, pirate day, cooking day and many more.

Tyler, Porter and Jarom on pirate day!
We were so excited that Danica and her boys came for the last 3 days of the first week. It's always fun to have them visit. Tyler especially enjoys having four extra boys around the house!

Jarom, Tyler and James made a fort one night that they were very excited to sleep in.

James, Tyler, Sharkie, Abram, Brittany, Porter, and Jarom having fun in the pool.

Arizona in August

Emily and Ashlee went to Arizona to spend a few days with my sister's family. They had so much fun and really enjoyed this time with their cousins! Thank you, Cheeri for their visit.

Ashlee and Breanne

Brooklynn and Emily

Breanne, Ashlee, Emily and Brooklynn

Hiking to Timpanogus cave

On August 10th we hiked to Timpanogus Cave. We had not been in the cave for 10 years! We hiked to the cave the summer after we moved to Utah, but before we moved into our house. A few years ago we did hike to the cave, but didn't pay to go in. We live less than 5 miles from the entrance to the cave and so we figured we better go before having to girls go to college. Going in August at 4:30 p.m. is pretty hot as can be seen in the following sweaty pictures. We thoroughly enjoy our time together!

We left from the bottom at 4:30. The cave entrance time for leaving at 4:30 is 6:00. We arrived at the top around 5:10. We were glad they let us go in with an earlier group at 5:20.

Looking a little hot and tired at the top ! ; )
Brittany and Amber

Brittany, Emily, Tyler and Ashlee enjoying the cool cave.
(Cool temperature and cool formations!)

During the hike up we were saying that we were going to jump in the pool the minute we got home. While we were in the cold 45 degree cave, we changed our minds. The hike down was warm again and I think a few of the kids did get in the pool.

Ashlee's dessert experiments

Ashlee is took a Pro start class in school this past year. It is class sponsored by the National Restaurant Foundation to prepare students for the hospitality industry. She enjoyed experimenting at home, usually with desserts.

This is a dessert that Ashlee made for her daddy close to his birthday. The cup is made completely with chocolate and it is filled with ice cream and raspberries.

Kids say the cutest things!

(Tyler reading to his cousin, Avery)
Two nights ago as Tyler was going to bed he told me that his legs hurt. I warmed up some rice bags, put them on his legs, and tucked him in bed. I told him that he was probably having growing pains and I explained a little about that. He said, "Or I am just really tired." Usually he won't admit that any behavior or feeling is because he's tired! The next morning he walked up to me standing tall and said, "So, do I look any taller." It took me a few minutes to realize that it was because of our conversation the night before.

Utah Summer Games in Cedar City

We had a great time in St. George this past weekend. We stayed with Roger and Jill and had fun visiting with them and the kid's all really enjoyed their cousins. On Saturday Ashlee had a gymnastics meet (part of their Summer Games) in Cedar City. She was so excited to have her Nana Jody, Aunt Melanie, cousin's Katie, Hailey, Emma, Chloe and her family there to support her. She did very well. She took SILVER all around! Gold on vault, Bronze on bars, bronze on beam, fourth on flour. She did so well and we are so proud of her. We are sad to see gymnastics end for her, but excited as she moves on to the next step in her life!

Tyler and Heath showing off their cool boats that they made with legos.

Brittany, Emily, Christian, and Michael had fun in the pool until midnight Friday and Saturday night.

Ashlee and Sara sporting their medals they won at Summer Games.

Ashlee's fun "end of senior year" events

Prom

Ashlee went to prom with Colton Barfuss. She had a great time. About a week before prom we decided that I was going to make her dress. It was my first Prom dress and we were both very pleased with it and she looked beautiful! (And there was no unpicking like with her homecoming dress!)

Ashlee and her group match perfectly and they didn't even plan it.

Tea Party
Ashlee and some of her friends planned a fun Tea Party date that was in our backyard. Ashlee's took Evan Braithwaite. Amber, Emily, Brittany, and Tyler were so excited to help.
beautiful girls
Yummy food and great company!

Seminary Graduation

Papa Jones, Nanny Jones, Dad, Mom, Ash, Grandma Nance, Papa Russell

Graduation

Ashlee and Josie Nilson, one of her best friends.

Whitney Robinson, Erika Bunker, Ashlee
more best friends

with Papa and Nanny Jones

Erika, Amber, and Ashlee
Best friends! Amber is very close to all of Ashlee's close friends and Ashlee is very close to Amber's close friends. I love how close they are as sisters and friends!

Amber, Mrs. Wolsey (one of the girls favorite teachers), Ashlee

Erika and Ashlee on their way to get there diplomas after their names were called.

A fun Spring full of soccer and dance!

Emily had a few dance competitions this spring and her team did really well! This one was taken in Kerns at the competition Dance-A-Rama.

Brittany played soccer on two teams again this year. Mike coached her recreation league and co-coaches her competition team. Both teams played well this year. Next year Brittany will play AAA with Michael co-coaching again. This is a picture of her at the Lone Peak soccer camp. She loved it and learned a lot!

Tyler loves soccer and is very good!

He is very excited that his dad will be his coach next year!

Ashlee is going to BYUI this fall

Ashlee received a full tuition scholarship to Brigham Young University Idaho where she has been accepted into the Interior Design program.

Happy 20th birthday, Amber!

Happy 20th birthday to our sweet, precious Amber. You are such a joy in our lives. You are beautiful, sweet, loving, kind, talented, a great example and a hard worker.

Amber loves: Harry Potter, Anne of Green Gables, Pride and Prejudice, the rain, playing the piano, Michael Buble', art, and her family!

Amber on her 1st birthday.

Bailee (4), Ashlee (1 1/2), Amber (3)

Amber and Aunt Danica

8 and getting ready to be baptized

14 years- Polynesian Cultural Center in Laie, Hawaii

15 years

Ashlee and Amber

A beautiful bridesmaid at her cousin, Bailee's wedding.

Some funny things Amber has said or done:
2 - Amber would sing and dance for everyone. She loved to perform and everyone loved to watch. However, no one could laugh or she would stop what she was doing and would say, "Don't do that. That's not funny!" Then she'd carry on like nothing happened.

2 1/2 - Amber had a bad cold. She was frustrated and said, "My nose doesn't work." A few days later, she had decided to accept it and thinking it was a permanent problem she said, "My nose doesn't work any more."

3 1/2- She asked me to leave the room because she was going to do something she wasn't supposed to do. She wanted to jump on the couch and thought it would work to just tell me to leave!

2-presently - loves to watch, quote, act out, and sing many movies. Her favorites when she was little were: Cinderella, Little Mermaid, "Rodin Ho" (Robin Hood), The Wizard of Oz, Jungle Book, and more. Currently she has too many to list, but she secretly would love to be Hermione Granger. Her life is and has always been full of performing, singing, and pretending. Many times she would dance in the isles of the grocery store and it would take a few minutes to snap her out of it to go to a different isle.

For Amber's birthday and family home evening, we all went to see Peter Pan at the high school. We all really enjoyed it. The acting was wonderful and the flying scenes were amazing.

Our neighbor Michael Hoggard was Captain hook.
Two of Ashlee's best friends were in the play. Josie Nilson was Peter Pan and Erika Bunker was a lost boy. It was fun to see the kids we know in the play. It was a funny and entertaining show.

A Bridal Shower for Kimmie

Last night I gave a neighborhood shower for Kimmie. The theme was "My favorite things". The gift idea was to bring Kimmie one your favorite things that she could use as a newly wed. There were a lot of great ideas and we had a lot of fun visiting. Tonight, Amber and Kimmie's sister Ashlee are giving her a shower for friends from high school and friends in the singles ward. They've planned a great party. Kimmie has been a regular part of our home and family for the past 10 years. She and Amber have been inseparable that whole time. It has been a bitter sweet experience for Amber. She is so very happy for Kimmie and grateful that she has Andrew, but she is going to miss her best friend as Kimmie moves on with her life with her new best friend.

Leslie Brown, Debbie Sampson, Guymons ( Kim, Kimmie, Emily, Ashley), Margo Lamoreaux, Lillian Anderson.

(Just a few of the great neighbors that were there.)
Ashlee, Ashley Guymon, Amber, Kimmie, Orlynne Sampson, Lora Katzenbach,
Kilee (Kimmie's niece), Katelyn Reese, Ali (Kimmie's niece), Emily Guymon
(Just a few of the great friends and family members that were there.)

Baby shower fun

Last month my sister in law, Jill, gave her daughter, Kelly a baby shower in our home. It was fun to visit with Kelly and other family members and celebrate the soon arrival of her baby, Preston.

Kelly with the cake Jill made.

Ashlee, Danica, Kelly