brace yourself...

this is why Marisa isn't smiling much in the previous pictures at the Canyons.

slowly catching up...

...I have had a difficult time keeping up with blogging. I guess we are just too busy living!

So, since I've been gone....

We celebrated Michael's "13th" BIRTHDAY! We had cake and presents on his actual day...and then we all went skiing/snowboarding at the Canyons! Here are a few pictures...

some more...

As promised....

...some pictures from the past few months.

I'm back!

I'm going to try to keep up with my blog again. Things that have happened since my last post.

Thanksgiving! We traveled to California and had a wonderful Thanksgiving celebration with Grandma and Grandpa Parkin et al. We went to the beach - rented one of those dorky 4 person bicycles (two of them), saw "Wicked" at the Pantages Theatre and ate way too much because Grandma is such a good cook!

December came and we had a fantastic Christmas celebration at home! Uncle Scott and his girlfriend Cherie spent Christmas week with us and we had so much fun with them. The kids got everything the hoped for (I think) and Mark and I gave each other a CRUISE to the Caribbean in February! December also brought another houseguest.....Richard from Haiti. He arrived the day Scott and Cherie left. Richard was accepted into BYU's English Language program. He stayed with us until January 26th. He is now living in his own place close to BYU.

January came and we celebrated Katiana's "14th" birthday! We had a party at the bowling alley complete with "cookies and cream" ice cream cake! She even had a fellow bowler ask if he could BUY a piece of her cake for $5 buck! I think it was a successful birhtday party!

February came and went in a blink! Katiana was baptized on February 1! This was a wonderful day for all of us. She was absolutely radiant! Grandma and Grandpa came to tend our children while we (Mark and I) ran away to the Caribbean for a little sunshine! We had a fabulous time. We were able to visit: Aruba, Curacao, Grenada, Barbados, St. Lucia, Dominica, St. Kitts/Nevis, Tortola/Virgin Gorda and San Juan. I love the Caribbean. I love its beauty and its beautiful people. I might live there someday! We came home to more snow then we left. The day after we came home we took Katiana to the temple to be sealed to us forever! It was a beautiful day. Dad was able to perform his first temple sealing and our family was beautiful all dressed in white. We waited a long time for this day. Dad pointed out as he talked with all of us that we had waited 30 months. It was so rewarding to accomplish this important event for all of us. It brought a sense of relief and a sense of excitement to see our family change with the addition of beautiful Katiana. I didn't cry as much as I thought I would.....perhaps because I just felt so happy after all the struggle to get her home -- GOOD DID WIN over evil! She is a member of our family now eternally!

I will post some pictures from the past few months. I love you all!
tash

a mouse in the house...

Well, I'm admitting we found a mouse in our house last week! Three years with no *signs* of mice....and 10:30 p.m., watching the news, I see a *flash* of something, run along the wall in my family room. So, I turned my attention to the magazines on the floor right there and sure enough right before my eyes the little critter ran back from were it came!

Something about *knowing* there is a mouse in the house creeps me out! Last time this happened Mark ended up going to the grocery store right then and there to purchase a mouse trap! (Of course, wild broom flailing was involved too)

This time I left the broom in the pantry and just kicked the house plant container where I thought the little guy was hiding, did a little creepy dance and returned to the couch disgusted we had a mouse in the house!

Funny thing.....next morning as we were going through the usual routine of getting the children out the door to school.....Zac was putting on his shoes in the mud room with me saying "come here so I can squirt your hair"....and as he jammed his foot into one shoe he pulled it off quickly and sad "something fuzzy is in my shoe!" I went over and to my surprise a little mouse, on his back, looking dead was in his shoe! Of course this is when I did the creepy dance again and THEN...I realized the fuzzy little critters whiskers begin to slowly twitch! THAT IS WHEN THE really good creepy dance came out with me holding Zac's shoe and Katiana laughing and Dad and Zac completely amused ....and me screaming "what should I do with it?!" I quick, ran into the garage and thought (outloud) *put it in the trash can*......to which Zac protested with his sweet, sensitive heart "you can't just throw it away". I explained that it was a field mouse and I was just putting him in the trash can until I could take it across the street and let it go find a new home where it belonged! AND yes, I did take the mouse across the street to the "new house"!

We are still trying to figure out how Zac picked up his shoes and walked from the family room to the mud room without the mouse jumping out. Mark has a theory about it. He thinks the mouse was in a "stink induced coma" or "high on stink" is what I think he said......hee, hee, hee.......serves him right!

I did it!

...I went running yesterday! After a several week disruption in my *routine* (my definition of *routine* = try to run 3 times each week -- heaven forbid I commit to certain days....if I can just get out ANY 3 days I am successful!!!). It was a good run! The air was crisp and it made me feel alive! Louie was happy to tag along and being the good dog he is.....he took care of his business at just the moment I felt overly winded! good dog!

So, I'm happy. Now I have to stand up from this computer and go run TODAY before Zac gets home!

Au Revoir!