Grand Targhee

Again, I realize that it is now only four days before Christmas and I am only now posting a few pictures of Thanksgiving, but for me it is progress. Can we keep that in mind? Also I noted that I have only one faithful reader of my blog anyway and she is at my house at least three times a week and knows everything that happens here so what is the big deal if I am a few days, weeks or months behind in my blogging efforts? So here goes...for Thansgiving this year our family was invited to spend the weekend in Driggs, Idaho with my brother and his wife. We left in the late afternoon of Wednesday and arrived safely that night. The drive was uneventful which is just the way we like it. Because it was late, there was not much to do except visit for a bit and then turn in for the night. Thanskgiving day arrived and only then did we see the most beautiful view that my brother and his wife enjoy every day from their kitchen and dining room windows. It was so beautiful! The Grand Teton Mountains covered in snow and with the sun just peeking over the ridge. Breathtaking! What an amazing way to start Thanksgiving day! We have such an amazing world to live in and be a part of. So the day continued as it does with most of the women in America...cooking, cooking, cooking. It was fun to be in the kitchen with my sister-in-law who is a wonderful gourmet cook! By that evening when we ate our Thanksgiving meal with their daughter and her family and BriAnna and Kristopher and Abby we were treated to many delicious and tasty dishes. I will reluctantly admit that we did have a few problems with the turkeys that we cooked, but in the end it all worked out great. The next day we went up to Grand Targhee ski area and got personal ski lessons from none other than my brother who is amazing on skis. He taught us everything we needed to know to have a great day on the mountain. Actually in all truthfulness he could have taught us a great deal more, but we are beginners and he had to impart of his knowledge only as we could handle it. It was a great day and I was very surprised at how much I enjoyed skiing. I could really get into it if I had the money to spare. After the great day we had on Friday it was decided that we would like to ski again on Saturday. It was another great day to ski. By the end of the day Megan had gone on the chair lift (which was a big deal for her) and we were all feeling like we had made good progress. The whole weekend was a blast! Thanks to Ken and Ruth for their hospitality and generousity. We will definitely be back for more.

Halloween.. a bit late!

So, I know that it is only a few more days until Christmas, but I was going through some of my pictures and I came across these great photos from Halloween! I guess that by now you have all figured out that my life is not really all about blogging (I only do it periodically to satisfy my lovely daughter, BriAnna who wants me to become more proficient at the computer). So on to the Halloween pictures. BriAnna found Abby's adorable turtle costume at Costco and it inspired her to make four more costumes for herself and Kristopher and Megan and Spencer. Too fun! She is a go getter that daughter of mine!

So the other night...Ok it was several weeks ago, Megan and a few of her friends were at our home watching a movie when all of a sudden they broke out the guitars and starting singing to the music on the movie. They were really rocking out and having a great time doing it. I just love having my kids friends over and I love watching them enjoy life. Maybe we can all learn a little something form each of them.

So I figured it was time to do a short re-cap of our summer time activities. We were very busy with Megan's play and Spencer's Eagle Project and with family visiting from North Carolina. First: Megan was in a play this summer. The play was "Once Upon A Mattress". She did a great job and I think she had a good time. We had a great time watching the play and think she was the best! Next: Spencer worked hard on his Eagle Project this summer. His project was to put up some bat houses at a park here in Lehi. He had a ton of help from many different people and he couldn't have done it without any of them...thanks to everyone who helped him. I believe that he is almost done with the paperwork now and then we will be having his Eagle Court of Honor! Yippee!! Last, but certainly not least was all of the fun that we had with our family this summer. My sister and her family made an unexpected trip out here and we enjoyed spending time with them as we went to BYU and did some bowling, ice blocking, baseball and a great big cousins sleepover with a hot dog roast and everything. It was so great to be able to spend time with all of the family. We are now ready for fall! My favorite time of year next to spring. I guess that spring is my favorite because it is followed by summer and not winter...which is my least favorite time of year. I hope that all of you enjoy the fall leaves as much as I will.

Megan and I returned last Saturday from southern Utah where we enjoyed four days with the Young Women in our ward and some of the Young Women leaders at girls camp. It was so great to be able to go along with these wonderful girls! They are such fun to be around and such great examples, not only to me, but to each other as well. We went to Capitol Reef and to Escalante and did some hiking and played in the waterfalls. We also got to shoot rifles, sing songs, play games, and just have a great time.

Charlie Horse!

Megan and I went horseback riding on Saturday. A sweet lady in our ward who has horses offered to take us riding and so last Saturday we went and learned about horses and then went riding. I have to admit that I was a bit nervous, not being an animal lover and all, but we had a great time. Megan loved it and had the horse trotting and even cantering for a bit before our time was up. The name of the horse that Megan was riding was Charlie horse. So cute! The horses were so gentle and really fun to ride. The only problem now is that Megan is convinced that she needs to take riding lessons. Maybe we can come to some sort of agreement about me never hearing about how she needs a dog in exchange for riding lessons. Sounds good right?

We are a Happy Family

I know that Mother's Day was over a week ago, but I wanted to take a minute and write about the best Mother's Day I have had to date. It all began with my wonderful husband giving me 5 new work-out shirts. What a thoughtful gift! I have been wanting some new shirts for quite a while so I was very pleased. Then my 16 year old son got up early and made me breakfast...not breakfast in bed because we have early church, but breakfast non-the-less. He made pancakes and not just ordinary pancakes, but pancakes that said MOM. Of course they were so delicious and much better than the oatmeal that he and a sibling attempted a year or two ago. It was very sweet of him. Then my 13 year old daughter presented me with a beautiful necklace that she had made herself which I promptly put on and wore to church. Upon arriving at church I was surprised to see that my son was the youth speaker that morning...a fact that was indeed a surprise for not only me, but my husband as well. Spencer was quite pleased that he had managed to pull off that surprise. Good job Spencer! Then after church my oldest daughter gave me a framed family picture that we had taken just before McKay left on his mission. This brought me to tears. Each gift that was given was thoughtful and meaningful to me and I couldn't ask for a better husband or children. At about 2:30 in the afternoon we were able to talk to McKay. What fun that was. He sounded great and is doing well. My life is so full of blessings as are all of our lives if we will just look for them and recognize them. Mother's Day has never been my favorite day of the year, but thanks to my family, this year was great! Thankyou!!

Scotland, Edinburgh Mission

Most of you probably know that our son, McKay is in Scotland serving a two year mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. He recently sent some pictures of his first month in the Missionary training Center in Preston England and his first few days in Scotland. We hope that you enjoy his pictures as much as we have! If you would like to view all of the pictures he sent check out this site: missionsite.net and search for mckay livingston. You may also leave him a message in the message section if you would like to and I will e-mail it to him. Thank you so much for all of the support that all of you have given to McKay and our family. We appreciate your love and prayers on McKay's behalf!

Crazy Hair!

I don't know why, but I couldn't resist posting this picture of Spencer. This was taken only a few years ago when we first moved into our home in Lehi. I can't beleive how much Spencer has grown in the last few years. I am not quite sure what was going on that day, but I do love this picture! I am sure that it will somehow make it into his wedding video when the time comes. Love ya Spencer!

Happy Birthday Megan!

Megan's 13th birthday was on Saturday and we wanted to do something special for her so we surprised her on Friday afternoon with a trip to Midway with her cousins. The weekend was a big success because so many helped us with our secret plans. A friend of mine asked Megan to babysit on Friday afternoon so Megan would not suspect any other plans. Of course this was all just a set-up and there really was no babysitting job. The Aunts and cousins all agreed to come and keep it a secret. Grandma and Grandpa Scott arranged for the accommodations and BriAnna packed Megan's bags for the weekend and left clues on the front door to help Megan figure out what was going on. We also had a great time making Megan's birthday cake. It was cupcakes that we frosted to look like spaghetti and meatballs. We spent Friday afternoon and evening playing and swimming and watching movies. Then on saturday we spent the day shopping at the outlets at Park City. We had a blast. The only problem was when the fire alarm went off when we lit the birthday candles. Oops! Happy 13th Birthday Megan! We love you!

I Hope They Call Me On A Mission

The last week has been filled with so many blessings and a lot of emotions. McKay was set apart on Wednesday evening as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. He will be serving a mission in Edinburgh, Scotland for the next two years. After he was set apart, we went to our favorite place...Roxberry. The following morning we all went up to the Salt Lake City airport to see McKay off to Preston, England where he will be at the MTC for the next three weeks before heading to Scotland. The plane was delayed about an hour and so we sat and waited together. Finally it was time to say goodbye. We will miss McKay terribly for the next two years, but we are so proud of him and will be praying for him every day! We hope the people of Scotland enjoy him and his love of life as much as we do and that he will be able to share the good news of the gospel with those who are searching for it.

More St. George pictures.

We have been to St. George twice in the last few weeks. Once with "the girls" and the second time we decided to take the boys along. I must say the girls trip was much more peaceful but definitely less eventful. We stayed with some friend's who built a second home with a great basement for guests. We went to In-N-Out Burger three times and played at the sand dunes on four wheelers and generally had a great time. That is, until Kristopher had a little accident. Then we stayed at the hospital for several hours while he had a very skilled doctor place between 50and 60 stitches in his head and also tried to set his nose which was broken. Kristopher is recovering now and he really didn't ruin all the fun. We still had a great time and enjoyed the sunshine and company. I am currently trying to convince Doug that he should get a job down in Utah's dixie, but so far I don't think he is convinced.

Guest Blogger!

We all know how much mom loves actually posting, so given the choice between posting or holding the baby, she had a hard time deciding which she wanted to do more. And so, here I am! Abigail Kate was born yesterday afternoon and she is happy and healthy and everyone is doing well! It has been so fun to have visitors over to the hospital to meet her and we are constantly amazed at how easy going she is. She hardly ever crys or even fusses, and that has only been when she is hungry or needs a diaper change and as soon as we help her she stops crying! Her hobbies include napping, eating, and long walks on the beach, and she is loving being alive so far. Also noteworthy, girlfriend is not opposed to keeping things including bows and headbands on her head. I knew she would love being a girl =)

Santa was Good to Us

We had a great Christmas filled with gifts and family and friends. McKay was happy with his "mostly mission" Christmas and Spencer was excited to get Wii fit and Megan almost burst with happiness when she opened her "BeDazzler".