Jen & Matt

New Years!

2011-01-21T12:59:00.000-08:00

We had New Years at our house this year. We had my family over for a big Mexican dinner and dessert, which was made by me. I finally got my cake decorating kit out and made a chocolate cake with fresh glazed strawberry filling and chocolate frosting. It turned out fairly well, but tasted MUCH better than it looked!!!

Then we watched Inception together, which is a really weird movie, and Mattie and I were actually able to stay up until midnight this year! So we celebrated with even more sparkling cider. LOL!! :)

Christmas!!!

2011-01-21T12:41:00.001-08:00

This year we had Christmas at my parents house. We slept at our house Christmas Eve (as the couch at my parents didn't sound like much fun) and were over to the house at 7:00 to open presents.

We started out with our gifts from Santa. I got some lotions and potions from B & B Works and some fuzzy socks. Matt got some True Religion cologne, and Macy got a bathtub and hooded towel.

Then we went over to the presents under the tree and spent the next two and a half hours opening up the rest of our gifts. Then it was off to watch Christmas movies and take naps. What a wonderful day!! :)

My swag.

Annabelle wanted to play Santa.

One of Mom's cute Christmas Trees.

Halloween!

2011-01-21T12:25:00.000-08:00

October 31, 2010 - My parents got back from Vermont today, after a week with the new grandbaby, so we had our big annual Halloween dinner! We decorated the place to the hilt, and dragged Grandma over to the house and had a big dinner and dessert, then all went downstairs to watch scary movies (since none of us are into trick-or-treating anymore. LOL!!)

5 Month Ultrasound! What are we having?

2011-01-21T12:13:00.000-08:00

It's a GIRL!!!

Macy Lynn Miller

is on her way!!!

Baby Cohen Arrives!!!

2011-01-21T11:54:00.000-08:00

October 11, 2010 - My older sister, Whitney, (who lives in Vermont) finally had her baby!!

Cohen Eugene Culbertson
Born @ 6:39 p.m.
8 lbs. 1 oz. 19 3/4" Long

He is absolutely ADORABLE, and we are so glad that he's finally here!! And we can't wait to finally meet him after our baby is finally here!! :)

Jen's Birthday!

2011-01-21T11:49:00.000-08:00

July 8, 2010 - Today is my 26th birthday! Unfortunately, it started out like every other day. I had to get up and go to work, which is never fun, but someone's got to do it. LOL!

So after a long day of work, Mattie took me out to the mall where I got a fabulous pedicure, and tips put on my toes. We then went over to my parents house for dinner and presents. I got lots of clothes, an ice cream maker, and a work-out bike!

It was a great day, and later on we found out a little surprise....Matt and I are going to be parents!!! It was a little bit of a surprise, but I can't think of a better gift!!!

Easter

2011-01-21T11:30:00.000-08:00

We finally got moved in and settled into our NEW HOUSE!!! So, we decided we'd celebrate Easter at our place this year. We had my whole family over, and Lindsay's new boyfriend, Tay to dye Easter Eggs Saturday night. Which actually turned out to be really fun because Tay had never dyed eggs before, or eaten a Peep, or even celebrated Easter.

Matt had me up at the crack of dawn Sunday morning because he just couldn't stand to wait any longer to see what the Easter Bunny had brought him. So, we started our Easter at 6:00, and after eating a bunch of candy out of our baskets, made a big breakfast, and then I started cooking our big Easter dinner.

It was so nice to have everyone over (and to actually have room to put everyone. LOL!) But we had a nice dinner, played games, and stuffed ourselves with Peeps for the rest of the evening. I can't think of a better way to spend a day.

My Easter gift from my mother-in-law.

Matt's loot.

Bella checking stuff out.

Matt's 24!!!!

2010-04-09T14:06:00.000-07:00

February 8 - Mattie Moo turned 24 today!!!

The birthday boy started the day off by opening up some of his gifts (Surprise! He can't stand not knowing what he's getting!). In them he received his birthday outfit (a new tradition we started last year), he got a cute shirt and pair of jeans from American Eagle, and some cute new shoes to wear to his birthday party.

Then, he was dropped off at Sunsations where he received a very long, massage, while I ran around picking up his cake, and balloons, etc.

We had his family, and mine, meet for dinner at Johnny Carinos, again this year - Matt's favorite restaurant. (Excuse me, ALMOST the whole family, minus Shane, who for the second year in a row, ditched Matt to go hunting! Thanks a lot Shane. ;)

We had lots of food, and a big fabulous cake from The Cookie Basket! And Mattie was all smiles from all of the attention and great gifts he received from everyone!

Happy Birthday Hunny!!!! I love you tons!!!!

Baby Ezmai!!!

2009-11-24T08:41:00.001-08:00

August 27, 2009 - Baby Ezmai is finally here!!!!

I got a call at 3:00 this morning telling me that my little niece was on her way. I was so excited!!!

My sister has waited 4 long years to adopt a baby, and she's finally here! She flew out to Colorado this morning to be there when she was born.

Ezmai Sarah Culbertson was taken by emergency c-section early this morning and weighed in at 5lbs. 1 ounce, and is 19 inches long. During delivery she inhaled some amniotic fluid and has pneuomonia so she gets to spend 2 weeks in the NICU.

Little Tayeson is so glad to finally have a sibling!! He is so glad to be a big brother - he has become quite the mother hen, always looking out for his baby sister.

Congratulations Whit & Eric - we can't wait to meet her!!!

Tayeson holding his baby sister for the first time. So cute!!

Baby Ezmai getting her first gift - from her big brother of course!

Sleepover!!!

2009-11-24T08:22:00.000-08:00

September - Melissa and Shane wanted to go out to dinner (by themselves for once) so I offered to take the kids. We had all 3 until they were done with dinner, then they came by and grabbed Ledger and the other 2 stayed over for a sleepover!!!

We had soooo much fun!!!

We made homemade pizza for dinner, baked and decorated cupcakes, painted little glow-in-the-dark ceramic figures, and ended the night by watching the corpse bride.

We were all exhausted when bed time came at 11:30. The kids wanted to sleep with us so we all crawled into our little queen size bed. And needless to say, Uncle Mattie doensn't deal well with being over crowded so we ended up sleeping on the floor, and gave the kids our bed. :)

We love spending time with our little nieces and nephews and are definitely going to have to do this again some time!

Ledger LOVES his Uncle Mattie and always has a big smile on his face for him.

Bella

2009-11-24T08:19:00.000-08:00

August 31, 2009 - Today was our 1 month anniversary, and because Matt had been working so many nights and leaving me at home by myself, he decided I needed something to keep me company. So, he got me Bella....a cute little 5 week old Tortiouse Shell Kitten, that I adore!!! She is our newest addition, and was followed closely by our 2 pygmy goats, Momma and Junior, but they're just rentals. We have to give them back this winter.

It's always exciting at Miller farm. LOL!!

Honeymoon In Yellowstone

2009-11-12T08:52:00.000-08:00

August 1st - 4th, 2009 - Right after the wedding we took off for Pocatello to stay at the Black Swan Inn in the Tropical Jungle suite. It was awesome! There was a huge hot tub in the middle of the room with a waterfall, our bed had silk sheets and leopard fur on it, and the shower was built for about 8 people.

When we got to the hotel we ordered domino's pizza. Nothing had ever tasted so good. We were starving! And it was 1:00 in the morning, and they were the only restaurant open - and thank goodness for delivery - that way we didn't have to leave our room. HeHe!We were up bright and early the next morning and all excited for Yellowstone! (Matt hadn't been since he was very little, and was way excited.)

We arrived in Yellowstone at about noon, and decided we would head right to the bear and wolf exhibit. There was a ginormous grizzly in one pen that walked right up to the fence - and just plopped down to watch everyone that was watching him. It was funny - and way neat to see one so close. The wolves were super lazy and were all asleep.

We spent the next few days driving around in the park where, unfortunately, we didn't see any animals besides elk and a couple of buffalo. And no males, just the does, but a few fawns which was neat. We were really disappointed.

Matt did a lot of fishing while we were there. I spent a lot of time getting eaten by mosquitoes. That was a lot of fun.

We spent a lot of time walking around town and shopping, and eating huckleberry icecream, which is Matt's new favorite.

We stayed in a cute little cabin in town, and yes, we did spend a lot of time there.

A couple of days into the trip I started to not feel so well, I had a hard time sleeping, my back hurt badly, and a few other things. After a completely sleepless night Monday night before we went home, I'd had it, and decided to go to the clinic the next morning. So I was at their door at 8:00 when they opened, and found out that I had a roaring kidney infection. After taking some horse pills and getting a couple shots in my backside (that hurt bad!) I returned to the cabin to pack up and go home. I'd had it.

We did stop and go to Bear World on the way home. That was a lot of fun. We saw black bears, grizzly bears, baby bears, wolves, moose, elk, albino elk, buffalo, birds, and a whole petting zoo of animals. We stopped and had lunch and fed bread to the ducks, and food to the fish. Matt wanted to pull out his fishing pole, but I told him I didn't think that was a very good idea. LOL!

The Wedding!

2009-10-16T19:21:00.000-07:00

July 31, 2009 - We finally tied the knot!!!

I was so nervous all day long! I couldn't hardly sleep the night before, and I spent the whole morning packing the rest of my stuff and moving it over to the new house. The rest of the day was spent getting my hair and make-up done and picking up my dress at the steamers.

I got home at 5:45, 15 minutes before the wedding - and had to HURRY to get ready. I was totally panicking, and thought I was going to throw-up.

Right before we went out I heard a knock on the door, it was my Mattie, he had to come and tell me he loved me before we went outside.

I wasn't planning on crying, but as I was walking down the aisle I looked up at Matt and he was crying, so I started crying too.

I was so nervous - boy was I glad when it was over!

Right after the reception we jumped in our car which was covered in balloons and cute little writing all over the windows, and headed to Pocatello and stayed in the Rain Forest suite at the Black Swan inn. We finally ate our dinner at 1:00 the next morning, dominoes pizza. It has never tasted so good!!!

The next morning we got up and left for West Yellowstone.

Our beautiful cake - we had my parents original wedding cake topper to put on our cake! It was so neat - 28 years later and it was still in perfect condition!

My parents.

Matt's Dad and Step-mom.

Grandma Joyce and Grandpa Kenny looking great!

The wedding party.

The Louder boys.

My Grandma C. and sisters.
Our guests.

Behind the scenes. My FABULOUS family!!! They were so awesome! They did everything during the ceremony!

Wedding Rehearsals

2009-09-12T12:53:00.000-07:00

Thursday - July 30, 2009 - Today is the day before our wedding! There is so much to do!!! We spent all day decorating and getting hair cuts, clothing steamed, etc. It was crazy!!!

We had our wedding rehearsal at 6:00. All of our wedding party came to practice and we had a run-through with the bishop. I'm not quite as nervous now, that I know what to expect. But the butterflies are definitely there. I can't wait!

After the wedding rehearsal we headed over to Matt's favorite restaurant, Johnny Carino's for our rehearsal dinner. We rented the patio and had it all decorated in our wedding colors, brown, baby pink, and off-white. It looked so pretty.

After a great meal, we handed out the gifts to our wedding party. Ryker, our ring bearer got a bug box to carry his little critters around in, Hallie our flower girl got pretty earrings with a matching bracelet and necklace to wear to the wedding, Sean, Matt's best man, got some cologne along with Tommy, the other groomsman. Whitney, my maid of honor, and Lindsay, my bridesmaid received horshoe pendant necklaces, my mother a pair of pink pearl earrings for the wedding, my dad a picture of Matt and I with a cute Father poem (I wouldn't have made it through this whole ordeal without him!), and to Matt's mother Kim, and father Terry, a tile that says - Thank you for raising your son to be the man of my dreams - Love, Jen 7/31/2009.

We had a blast - then it was off to work for me, I had timecard input to finish, and it took until 2:00 a.m. So much for my beauty rest tonight.

Bridal Shower

2009-07-11T13:06:00.000-07:00

Friday, July 10, 2009 - My soon to be sis-in-law, Melissa, was kind enough to throw me a Bridal Shower tonight. As usual, it was organized to the T and was totally over the top and fabulous!! Martha has nothing on you Liss! :)

We started off by playing games, for the first game, everyone was given a ring, and they weren't allowed to say wedding, Matt, or Jen or they would lose their ring, and whoever had the most at the end of the night was the winner. Liss lost hers in the first five minutes. For coming up with these games, she sure wasn't very good at them. LOL!!! ;) The second game Liss passed around a jar of mini candy doves and everyone had to guess how many were in the jar. I was closes! I think I was off by 5 or 10. Then for the third game, Melissa filled a tray with all sorts of things that had to do with marriage such as: A baby, money, candle, gardening gloves, KY, Twilight, pictures, the temple, etc. and we had 1 minute to look at it, then she took it out of the room, and we had to try and remember all 15 items on the tray. I could only remember 10. My friend Alyssa won for most, and my Grandma for remembering the least. Lindsay ended up winning the ring game. (We each won a VERY cute Pink! prize.)

After playing games, we had treats. Liss had her chocolate fountain going, so we dipped marshmallows, nuts, cinnamon bears, pretzels, strawberries, and cherries in it. It was fabulous!!!

Then came time for the gifts. Each person invited was given a special time, like 7:00 a.m. - you had to buy the bride something you could use at 7:00 in the morning. Such as bedding, or items to use in the kitchen for making breakfast (great idea Liss!). So I ended up getting, a Target gift card from Alyssa, Cracker and Bread Baskets along with Chili bowls from Grandma Joyce, a vaccuum from my family, a mini vacuum from Aunt Connie, a special mop/swiffer sweeper from Aunt Cathie, a book and $ from Kim, soup bowls and a serving tray from Aunt Peggy, lingerie from Cindy, an afghan from Grandma C., and lingerie from Grandma T.

I had an awesome time and can't thank everyone enough for the lovely shower and the awesome gifts. They will all be put to good use!!! :)

Jen's 25 Birthday!

2009-07-11T12:36:00.000-07:00

Wednesday, July 8, 2009 - Today was my 25th Birthday! And it was fabulous!!

To start the day off, I received a phone call from my most favorite person, Mattie. He just had to call me at 6:00 in the morning and sing me Happy Birthday. (I was appreciative at this point, but still a little grumpy for being woken up so early.)

Then I got to work to find a huge chocolate cake with lots of pink! on the front counter and a big bouquet of balloons from my Dad.

Right around lunch time Melissa wandered in with little Hallie and Ryker with a beautiful gourmet brownie and cute cupcake balloon. They kidnapped me from work and took me out to the Garden Cafe for lunch. Which was awesome. Thanks Guys! :)

As I was walking out the door for lunch, there was a BEAUTIFUL bouquet of flowers dropped off by a florist. From Mattie! :)

I went home and had Papa Johns for my birthday dinner, and opened the rest of my gifts. I got a cute Sinful t-shirt and earrings from Lindsay, Towels (for the house) from my Grandma, a toaster, more towels, an iron, an ironing board, and mixing bowls from my family, Twilight! from Jen at work, and a new bike from Mattie.

Dinner was then followed by even more chocolate cake, and then we headed over to Baskin Robbins to meet Melissa and her family for icecream.

It was the perfect day!!!

Graduation!!!

2009-06-25T07:16:00.000-07:00

June 24, 2009 - We were given a very special occasion to celebrate today - Mattie's graduation from Drug Court.

They had a nice ceromony at CSI - where he and 19 other people graduated. Matt gave an AWESOME speech that had myself, and the rest of his family, all in tears.

It's been a very long and challenging year, but Mattie has overcome everything that's been thrown in his path along the way - now he's free. No more probation! And tomorrow he'll start a whole new life.

I know I speak for myself, and the rest of your family when I say - We are so proud of you Matt. We knew you could do it!

Love you Babe!!! :)

Engagement Photos!!!

2009-05-12T20:09:00.000-07:00

Saturday, May 9th - We had our engagement photos taken at the temple. These are our favorites (of our 200!)

Harts

2009-04-27T16:55:00.001-07:00

Thursday, April 23, 2009 - I received an invitation from Hart's Tux & Gown, saying that they were going out of business and are clearancing everything out. So, I went over there after work with my little sister and my mother and found a bridesmaid dress - Was $165.00, on sale for $95.00. And the cutest little flower girl's dress for Hallie - Was $95.00, on sale for $62.00.

Victory Purchases!!! Thank goodness we can cross something else off of the list!

(The picture below is Hallie's dress.)

Yard Sale!

2009-04-27T16:53:00.000-07:00

Saturday, April 18, 2009 - I spent the last week getting ready for our annual yard sale. I want to get rid of as many things as possible so I don't have to move them all into our new house.

We ended up having a TON of stuff because Liss brought a bunch of things over too.

We ended up making $800.00!!! In 6 hours, not bad! I think we did awesome! And it was kinda fun.

Easter 2009

2009-04-27T16:30:00.000-07:00

Sunday, April 12, 2009 - We woke up very early (7:00) to get ready for church and, Matt was dying to see what the Easter Bunny brought him. LOL! He ended up getting a large basket full of candy, a frisbee, waffle balls, Mountain Dew, and 2 DVD's. Shooter and Eagle Eye. And I got a very pretty bouquet of flowers and lots of candy.

After church we ran home and did some baking to take over to Melissa's house for a barbecue and an egg hunt. We invited our friends, Mike, JoLynn, and little Isabel over as well and we all had a lot of fun!

Ryker's Birthday Party!

2009-03-28T09:35:00.000-07:00

Saturday, March 21, 2009 - Matt, Tommy and I headed over to Thanksgiving Point for Ryker's birthday party at the Dinosaur Museum.

That place was a blast! They had cool exhibits and fun things to watch the kids do, like play in the erosion center in the sand and water, and in the giant sandbox where they dug up dinosaur bones.

After the museum, the girls left and went over to Roberts, and the guys went over to Cabelas, and we all met back over at Betty and Paul's house for pizza and birthday cake.

Later that night we headed over to the Gateway to do a little shopping, then went to Applebee's for appetizers and dessert, then headed to the movie theatre where we watched Taken. (It was an awesome movie!!)

Wedding Dress Shopping!!!

2009-03-28T09:25:00.000-07:00

Friday, March 20, 2009 - Kim and I left at 10:00 and headed down to the salon (where she works) to get eyelashes put on. We had skipped breakfast that morning so we headed down to Mimis for some lunch, and I had the best pot roast I think I've ever had! Then we headed over to Frenze Bridal to begin our dress shopping.

I started out by just walking around the store and picking out various dresses to try on to see what I liked, when the sales-woman asked if I would be willing to try on a brand-new dress that they had just received and thought I was the only one small enough to fit into it (the dress was a size 8 - yikes!) So I said sure and she put that one in my room for me too.

I tried on the first dress that was ok - but nothing special, and then tried on the dress that the sales lady picked out for me, and I knew immediately that it was the one!!!! But, I wanted to make sure so I tried on about a dozen other dresses, but they didn't even begin to compare to "my" dress. I tried "my" dress on again, just to be sure, and I was!! So we matched a veil, tiara, earrings, and garter to the dress and put in our order for the dress to be made (evidently a size 0 isn't as common as one would think.) It will be here June 20th and it is absolutely gorgeous!! It is what they call Diamond White, with a big poofy "princess" like skirt, and a bodice adorned with rhinestones, swarovski crystals, and I believe a few pearls. It has a train in the back, that after the wedding can be pulled up and pinned in the back so there are 3 gorgeous layers with rhinestones at the top in the back.

I'm so excited, and so glad that I didn't have to go all over town!! Trying on those HEAVY dresses is a lot harder work than it looks. So - now I'm REALLY excited for the wedding!!!

Utah

2009-03-28T09:19:00.000-07:00

Thursday, March 19, 2009 - Matt, Tommy, Shane and I made the long drive down to Salt Lake after work. Shane was going to meet up with his family that was already down there, and we were going down to stay with Matt's mom. Our mission this trip, to find the perfect wedding dress!

Boys Night!

2009-03-16T17:44:00.001-07:00

Thursday, March 12th - Shane found out my three brothers had just bought the new Halo Wars and was dying to play it, and Melissa had her book club (at their house) that night, so Shane and the kids came over and had a game night with us.

As you can see from the pictures, the boys were glued to the t.v. all night, but Matt and I had a craft night with the kids. We made our own soap, complete with spiders and goldfish in the middle, and then spent the rest of the night coloring and putting together a wooden frog for Ryker and a peacock for miss Hallie.

Needless to say, we had a ton of fun and can't wait to have them over again soon!!!

Tagged: 4th Picture, 4th Folder

2009-03-16T17:39:00.001-07:00

This is the 4th picture in my 4th folder. These are my grandparents, holding their great-grandson (my nephew) Tayeson, when he was about a month old. This is the last time they were able to come to Twin Falls, my grandmother has since fallen into bad health and they can no longer travel. This was such a fun and exciting time for my family. The first grand baby and we hope there are lots more to come!!

Thanks for the tag Liss!

The New Addition

2009-02-19T15:23:00.001-08:00

February 11, 2009 - I got a lovely phone call at 5:30 this morning, from my older sister. I ignored it until about the 15th phone call, then called her back to find out that I was going to be an auntie (for the second time), in October. I'm very excited and am hoping they'll move closer to home so I can help her!! Congratulations Whit & Eric - we totally need another Tayeson!

23!!!!

2009-02-19T15:20:00.001-08:00

February 8, 2009 - Today Matt turned 23! We went to church early, then had a big dinner of steak and salmon just for him, and a big cake for dessert! He got a lot of great gifts - shoes, clothes, gift cards to Sportsmens (go figure), and even a case of mountian dew from his cousins. But the most exciting thing for him was to get a phone call from his dad in China! Happy Birthday Mattie! Love you tons!

The Big Birthday Party!

2009-02-19T15:10:00.000-08:00

February 7, 2009 - Tomorrow Matt is turning 23! And we decided to go ahead and have his birthday party tonight with all of his family. So, to start the day off I went and picked him up at 9:00 and took him to breakfast at I-Hop, then on to Auntie Karen's for a haircut, then to get a manicure and pedicure, and last but not least, an eyebrow wax. LOL! And I had an outfit delivered to him from Hollister Company to wear to the party. He looked hot!!! We reserved the patio at Johnny Carino's for the party and I decorated it to the hilt and we all had a great time!!!

Goin' Back to Philly

2009-02-19T15:06:00.000-08:00

February 4, 2009 - Whit, Eric, and little Tayeson headed back to Philadelphia today. We were all very sad to see them go, but Eric will graduate from Medical School in a couple of months, and he will hopefully take a job up in Boise. That way we can see them whenever we want!

Ledger's Baby Blessing

2009-02-19T15:00:00.000-08:00

February 1, 2009 - Today we all got up bright and early to go to little Ledger's Baby Blessing. We were lucky enough to have Matt's mother, Kim, with us for the occasion. Afterwards, we all headed to Shane & Melissa's for a brucheon (which was awesome!). And we had a lot of fun just hanging out with the family. :)

We've finally set a date!!!!

2009-02-19T14:58:00.001-08:00

January 30, 2009 - Matt and I have finally decided on the date for our wedding. It will be Friday, July 31st. One year to the day that we started dating. We'll have the wedding outside at dusk, and an intimate dinner for the wedding guests under a huge tent afterwards, with candlelight and the whole works. We'll have our reception at the church Saturday evening. We're so excited!!!

Our Crummy Weekend

2009-01-26T10:56:00.000-08:00

Friday - January 23, 2009 - We had quite an exciting weekend, unfortunately not in a good way. It started out with my Mother being horribly sick and in bed Friday night (she ended up staying there all weekend.) And on Friday night around midnight we got a hysterical call from my little sister, Lindsay. She had gone to get icecream and drive around for a while with her friend, and 3 girls she was babysitting for the weekend, when they were T-boned by a little highschool kid, going 60 mph (on a 25 mph street), where they were spun around, and went up over a curb into someone's yard, hitting a huge pine tree. The front and side airbags were deployed, and thank goodness everyone was wearing their seatbelts, so everyone was fine, except one of the girls got a laceration on her head that required 60 stitches, and the car is completely totalled. The kid was cited for initentive and careless driving. We took Lindsay to the ER on Saturday because she was so stiff and couldn't move, especially her neck, luckily she's fine, she just has a very bad case of whiplash. Then my grandmother (she's 84) was very ill as well, we went over to see her, and found her on the floor. She had passed out and gotten sick. But she's ok as well. So, thank goodness the weekend is over, and hopefully things can just get back to normal.

The Return

2009-01-26T10:54:00.000-08:00

Saturday - January 17, 2009 - We picked Dad and Tommy up at 2:00 in the morning. They were exhausted, and hadn't slept a wink on the bus because the driver kept falling asleep and they were terrified. They were thrilled to be home and had a great time on vacation. They can't wait to go back next year!

The Cruise

2009-01-26T10:52:00.000-08:00

Sunday - January 11, 2009 - We said goodbye to Dad and Tommy for a week. They went on the company cruise from L.A. to the Catalina Islands, and Ensenada Mexico. They were excited to go, but were definitely not excited about the long bus ride down there.

Pretty Princesses

2009-01-19T11:50:00.000-08:00

Saturday, January 10, 2009 - Saturday night Shane and Melissa went out to dinner, and asked Matt and I if we would watch the kids. We love watching the kids and were more than happy to do it - but I don't know if we'll be asked back. We spent the whole night dressing up BOTH children as pretty princesses. Ryker even wanted to wear a dress to church the next day. Oops!

Miracle

2009-01-13T08:11:00.001-08:00

January 7, 2009 - Matt and I decided that we'd finally had enough of the cold, so we headed over to Hagerman to go to Miracle Hot Springs. We had the whole place almost to ourselves, which was neat, so we had a lot of fun swimming around and Matt enjoyed laughing at me and my doggy paddling. Guess we'll have to make a few more trips out there for some swimming lessons. LOL!

Hop 2 It - Round Two

2009-01-13T08:07:00.000-08:00

January 6, 2009 - We decided we hadn't gotten enough of Hop 2 It the first go around, so we decided to take Cindy's little grandson, Jordan, and the rest of the crew back for more fun. This trip only lasted a couple of hours and we all ended up with a lot of burns, cuts, and bruises. We had a lot of fun, but I think it'll be a while before we go back.

Just another day...

2009-01-04T17:19:00.000-08:00

January 3, 2009 This morning we woke up at the crack of dawn - 8:00 (ugh!) so we could have a big family breakfast at Golden Corral. After stuffing ourselves, we all came home to take a nap.

That afternoon, Matt got the pleasure of going back to the bridal expo with me to see if we'd won $1,000.00, a honeymoon, or a luggage set. We hung around there for an hour and of course, we didn't win a thing. Oh, well. Matt really enjoyed it, so that's all that counts. :)

Then we went to yet another CSI basketball game. The last game in the tournament. They kicked butt, yet again. Go Eagles!!!

Bridal Expo

2009-01-04T17:09:00.000-08:00

January 2, 2009 The girls headed over to the Ballroom for the Bridal Expo, to get some ideas for the upcoming wedding. The place was packed, and we were sorely disappointed for the vendors, but were able to get a couple of great ideas.

That evening we met up with the rest of the family and headed to CSI for the men's basketball game. And CSI kicked butt!!!

Hop 2 It

2009-01-04T16:58:00.000-08:00

January 1, 2009 We decided to start the new year off by checking out the new bouncy houses over at Hop 2 It. The whole group of us went - Matt, Whitney, Eric, Tommy, Brett, Ryan, Tayeson, Hallie, Ryker, and myself. We spent 4 hours there and the big kids were complaining the loudest when we finally left. The kids were all starving, so we picked up some pizzas and went home to watch a movie, Robots, where just about all of us fell asleep. It was awesome, and we can't wait to go back!!

(More pictures coming soon.)

New Year's

2009-01-02T12:13:00.000-08:00

December 31, 2008 We lazed around the house all morning, and around 2:00 we decided to go bowling. So, we headed over to Bowladrome to play a few games. In the end, I think my 4 year-old nephew, Tayeson, ended up beating everyone, even though we were all on the bumper lanes.

That night we had a big family dinner followed by The Office marathon. I think Eric and Whitney are the only ones that actually made it to midnight. The rest of us were out by 11:00.

Christmas

2009-01-02T12:05:00.000-08:00

December 25, 2008 Matt spent Christmas Eve and morning with my family. We were also lucky enough to have my sister, brother-in-law, and little nephew here from Philadelphia too. We spent the first part of the morning opening our gifts from Santa, followed by our usual Christmas Breakfast, and then spent the remainder of the morning opening the rest of our gifts.

That evening we went to Grandpa and Grandma Miller's house for a nice dinner and gift exchange.

Benelli "Elli" Miller

2009-01-02T11:54:00.000-08:00

December 23, 2008 we got a new member of the family. Benelli "Ellie" Miller is a 7 week old chocolate lab and was my gift to Mattie for Christmas.

The Engagment

2009-01-02T11:47:00.000-08:00

December 17, 2008 Matt and I got engaged! We're planning on being married in June in the LDS church, and then we'll be sealed a year later in the temple. We can't wait!!!