FINALLY!!

Our kitchen counter is finally done (well it has actually been done for weeks and I am just finally getting around to posting it). It turned out great, Gary did an excellent job. I am so glad I have a husband who is a perfectionist and likes to do everything himself. Now we just need to replace our stove then I think our kitchen will be completed. On to the next project here we go!!!

For the Love of SPRING!!!

We got our first flowers in our yard and I am super excited for SPRING to come and the dreaded winter to leave!!! Yard work here we come!! Hopefully the weather lasts I don't know how many more of these dreaded snow storms I can take.

How to Cause Every Muscle in Your Body to be Sore!!

Saturday we decided to embark upon a new activity. We went up to Sundance and Garys brother who works there gave us free skiing and snowboard lessons and got us free rentals and lift passes (Thanks Landen!!). This was my second attempt at skiing and Gary's first attempt at snowboarding. It was such a great day!! Gary is a quick learner and was soon flying down the mountain like a crazy man ( I was so worried for the little kids that were also skiing that day!!!) We are still getting over being sore, I have never been sore in so many different places! Maybe this may be a new hobby we can be ski bums!!

In Gary's Dreams!!!

So unfortunately Gary and I had to go to Cabella's so that Gary could see the big elk (or as I refer to it the deer). This elk is the new world record and was shot down in Monroe where Gary is from, and where he loves to hunt. Gary was a little obsessed and thought he needed to take lots of pictures, you would have thought it was his elk.

What a Sweet Girl!!

Our little Mya is getting big. She is such a mellow dog and is so sweet. She definitely thinks she is a lap dog and loves to be held. She better get it all in now, because I don't think I am going to be able to pick her up much longer.

I love to see the Temple!!

So we went to the Draper open house Friday night with my family. May I say it is absolutely gorgeous. I love that it is so high up on the hill and can be seen so far away even with all of those huge houses that surround it. The chandeliers in the temple were my absolute favorite they were so sparkly and big. I was supposed to work and was super bummed that everyone was going without me. Luckily I got put on home call. It was so nice to spend the night with my family and it was so funny to listen to the comments made by my nieces and nephews (my favorite was when my little niece Allie said she did not want to get married till she was growed up and when Nate, her brother growed up he was going to marry her, she is such a funny girl). The houses are crazy up there, they are so huge and most of them are absolutely gorgeous homes, and then there are those that are a bit too extravagent and look more like castles then homes.

Under Construction!!!

Once again Gary has decided he wants to start another home project. Don't get me wrong I love the work he does, I just don't like the mess it makes in the process. So right now we are working on our kitchen counter (meaning my kitchen is down until it is done). When we moved into our house, our counters were an ugly blue color. Too help us survive until now we painted it black, but that was a temporary fix. Gary has decided to lay granite tile. Here are some pictures of the process. I will put pictures of the finished product when my kitchen is back up and running.

Yeah that is my stove in the middle of the floor I guess no cooking for me!!

Trip up the Canyon

This last Saturday was a beautiful day it was fairly warm (well warm for February). We decided to take the dogs up the canyon and take them for a walk. The dogs loved being able to run around without a leash, and it was such a great walk. I was hoping the weather was going to stay this way but then I woke up this morning and my yard is covered with snow (STUPID WINTER!!!) I am ready for the sun to be back permanently, hopefully soon!!

Our Puppy is Getting BIG!!

Mya is getting huge!! I really wish puppies would stay small for a lot longer than they do. We have really enjoyed having Mya, she is a great dog. She is so smart...she can sit and stay and is pretty much potty trained . Gary has done a great job of training her.

Mya is a little obsessive of her toys though. I was trying to entertain her while I exercised so I brought in all of her toys. She moved them all into a pile and sat in the middle just so Toby could not have any of them. What a selfish girl!!!

The Auto Expo

We took our yearly trip to the Auto Expo. Gary is a car nerd so this is an event that he hates to miss. I just like to go pick out my future cars.

Gary is absolutely in love with the Ford FX4 truck. This is him by his dream vehicle.

I on the other hand love the 4 door Jeep Wrangler!!

Gary and I took a vote and this car won the ugly vehicle contest. This is the new Hummer H3T. This picture really does not do the ugliness justice, it is a lot worse in person. We both really like Hummers, but really where did they come up with this??? I am sure there will be someone who likes them!

A First for Everythiing

So unfortunately I got my first set of stitches. I was at my dads house playing with Mya and my dad's dog Amos. Amos was very excited to have Mya there. I bent over to take off Mya's leash when I see a blur coming full speed ahead. I am embarrased to say, my head and Amos's head collided. That dog has a head of steel. He split just below my eyebrow open. I ended up getting four stitches. My eye is now swollen and is black, blue and purple.

Christmas Candy Making!!

Ok this is my final post for Christmas. I feel like I am so behind. Christmas is just way too busy. Last year I decided that I really enjoy dipping chocolates, we decided this is a tradition we want to keep. So these are pictures from our dipping extravaganza!!


Michelle taking charge of the chocolate.

Aren't the chocolates beautiful. Ummm yum!!

As you can see my dad decided that he would be better at eating the chocolates and taking care of Lily. He wanted nothing to do with the making process.

Mistake #1, allowing Gary and Michael to be in charge of some of the dipping. I am just kidding they actually did really well and most of them turned out great. Although towards the end they had the grand idea of throughing the centers all in the pot then pulling them out. Lets just say they weren't fast enough and the centers melted in the chocolate. This was the end of our chocolate dipping fun!

Christmas Party

After Christmas we had a get together with my (Alycia's) family. All of my family was there, besides poor little Jared who is on a mission. It was so much fun to get together, we opened presents, ate treats and played Rock Band. My family is so funny, each person is so different yet we all get along. I love my family!!

These are my cute little nephews Jensen and Jake, playing with their new toys.

We all watched Jakes highlights from his football games. This is Jake and Brayden, they are so funny together and get along so well.

The Rock Band begins. It is so funny to watch my family play this game. Musical talent definitely does not play on our side. You can see Gary in the background waiting for his turn. Gary loves this game and is surprisingly good at it.

Michael is by far the best singer of us all. My niece Allie loved rocking out and dancing to the songs!!

Let it Snow!!!

So on Christmas and for days after it just kept snowing. We had so much snow in our yard, I never thought the shoveling would end.

Gary is as bad as a little kid when it comes to playing in the snow. Gary and Mya had a great time in the snow!!

There was so much snow that when Gary threw the dog in she disappeared, it was so funny to watch and Mya absolutely loved it. She is such a little snow bunny!

Toby was not as much of a fan of the snow. Toby is so small that he had a hard time even walking in the snow. Toby hates winter!!

This gives you an idea how much we got on Christmas day. We could not even pull into our driveway till Gary shoveled a spot. It really was amazing.

Our Christmas 2008

Gary and I decided to start a new tradition. Each year I get a Christmas book from my dad. We decided that each Christmas night we would sleep out by our tree and read our new Christmas book.

This is our family in our new Christmas pajamas for our yearly Christmas PJ pictures.

On Christmas Eve we spent the night at my dad's house, this is by far my favorite tradition. Christmas morning Mya and my dad's dog Amos had a blast wrestling and playing with each other. Mya enjoys seeing Amos and loves that he plays back, Toby is not as kind!!

This Christmas was bit different with Jared, my little brother being on his mission. Usually it is Jared that gets us all excited to get up and open presents. We really miss him. It was really nice to be able to talk to him on Christmas morning and I can't wait for 5 more months to talk to him again!!