Life is good

Halloween

Cat Lovers!

Indiana Jones and Jane (from tarzan)

Alex the Adventurer (from his book)

Davy Crockett

Prince Caspian (Narnia)

Black Bart (a villian)

Joycelyn learns to water ski!

Joycelyn got to go to Lake Powell for a week of fun in the water and sun. She learned to water ski and was the champion at staying on the big tube they pulled behind the speed boat. She came home very tanned and bubbling with fun stories to tell us. We were glad to see her for a bit before she then left again for girls camp.

Horseshoe Lake Fun!

We went to our favorite camping spot! The mountains were cool, green, and we had a marvelous time together. This is our Jaydon happily fishing in the creek. He did not get a fish with his trusty pole, but he and Izaak caught a minnow with a little net! What a great adventure. Thanks family for enjoying the beautiful world with us. We Kayaked, hiked, biked, and loved being outside in the great outdoors!

PS. This was a great year for wild strawberries.(yummy)

Happy News

We have wonderful news! Our Sweet Celeste and her good husband Casey are expecting a baby!!! Celeste is due in February. We are all very excited and happy. The boys are ready to be uncles and the girls are looking forward to being aunts. Katie said that she has been praying for them to have a baby. We are thrilled and Dale and I are amazed that we are grownup enough to be grandparents. Didn't we just get married ourselves? Wow what a wonderful event to look forward too! A new little person to meet. We have missed having a baby around our home. Celeste is glowingly happy. We are blessed.

Personal Best Record

Oh before I go. I need to let you know that I hit a personal record last week. I went kayaking 4 times down the salt river! It was wonderful. I had a great week. I still feel happy and refreshed. I saw grey herons, buzzards, fish, muskrats, lots of birds, wild horses and great sunsets and mountains. Two trips were family trips, us and another family. One trip was with Joycelyn and her friends (river guide duties). One was a morning trip with my sisters Sean A'lee and Nancy. This was a very deluxe trip from the Saguaro Lake Ranch. We put in at their beach and got a longer very scenic run with not much kayak carrying!) Very fun!

This is one of our sunflowers that I wanted to put by my great summer weather post but I am not sure how to change it. So oh well, I am learning and getting better at being high tech and Celeste will be so proud of me for posting something! :)

Welcome Elder Durfee to the MTC

This is a proud mom putting
Elder Durfee's name tag on at the
MTC. What an honor to officially
welcome Kenton to Missionary Service. I am glad we had the
opportunity to take him there and
share a special memory with him and
Dale. Elder Durfee is now in Colorado and we are enjoying his letters. He is working hard and doing well. I made a batch of bread and instead of lasting for a day, it lasted for a week! We do miss our Kenton. Dale took a leaf out of the table and I cried. We are adjusting to such a small family. Only 6 kids at home. One person gone leaves a big hole. I decided that we are truly sacrificing by sending off a missionary when we were kayaking last week and we were carrying all of the heavy kayaks down to the river without Kenton's big muscles! Ha Ha! Honestly we know he is where the Lord expects him to be and we rejoice in this happy day. We are blessed to have a missionary in the field.

Heavenly Summer Weather

Dale & I just returned from a lovely refreshing bike ride. The last couple of weeks have been delightful. The evenings are refreshing and lovely, the days are not overly hot and we are very thankful. We feel blessed. This is how summer was ment to be! We can swim and still enjoy playing and being outside. We have a tandem bike and have really enjoyed visiting with each other as we ride. We give thanks for the beautiful weather.

He even LOOKS like a missionary!

Kenton reported to the MTC today. He is going to be a great missionary. It finally hit me that he was leaving last week when he gave his farewell talk. He did such a great job, he looked like a missionary and everything. We will all miss him a ton, but know this is where he is supposed to be.

Kenton and Ryan ... I mean Elder Durfee and Elder Durfee

The Big 12

Happy Birthday! Alden turned twelve today! He is so grown up. I was wracking my brain trying to think of something wonderful to get him. thankfully inspiration from mom hit! He wanted a book...I had the perfect one in mind. Hatchet by Gary Paulsen was the perfect adventure story for a young boy. Alden loved it and read it in 24 hours. He has become an avid reader and told me he read four books in the time it took me to read one I borrowed from him.

Happy Smile :)

We are enjoying holding the kittens!

Can you spy two kittens in this picture?

Hint: check the pocket

YEA! He liked the book

He was excited to open presents

The coolest experience for Alden was on Sunday when he was ordained a deacon. Grandma and Grandpa Bevell, Casey and me, Brother Asay (home teacher/scout leader) Kenton and all of the Dale Durfee family were able to attend the joyful event. Alden bore a sweet testimony and everyone could feel the spirit. It was so special! Then Kenton and Alden went together and did fast offerings. It was Alden's first time and Kenton's last time--as he was getting ordained an Elder a few hours later. What a neat thing :)

Junior Prom

Joycelyn was ravishing for prom! I did her hair and Mom made the flowers. She looked gorgeous! We had a great time taking pictures of her.

Sisters

Sisters Picture!!!

For Easter Mom gave each of us girls shirts and flower clips she made.

We absolutely loved them!

Happy Easter!

Dyeing easter eggs is fun to do, fun to do, to do to do!!!

Grandma Bevell's Easter Egg Hunt

Saturday Morning Grandma Bevell held her famous egg hunt. This is the BEST Hunt Ever!!!! There were about 4,000 plastic eggs, hard boiled eggs, and other candy hidden all over their three acre lot. Its all about quantity not quality. the eggs are filled with things such as: jelly beans, skittles, suckers, sweethearts, peanuts, fishy crakers, little toys, and the ocational chocolate. Kenton go the award for the most eggs with 354 (he wins every year-we never learned his strategy). Most kids got atleast 100 and even Jaydon got 67. It is so fun to watch the kids get all excited and race around picking up eggs.

Here are the kids patiently waiting inside for the egg hunt to start.

Katie(making a great face), Breck, Alden, and Tori

Dustin, Dayson, Izzak and Jaydon

Kenton, Jared, Joycelyn and Justin

Chelsey and Celeste

Aunt Judy and Mom

Jaydon hunting for eggs!

Jaydon chowing down! Dad helping Dustin cound his eggs


Now it is the adults turn to hunt for eggs. Grandma saved some eggs and the older children have hidden them in the front yard. (Joycelyn did a gret job taking the pictures here!)

Celeste and Mom looking very wet

Grandma Bevell watching the hunt

Dad climbing the palm tree!