Miner Kimi....

Kimi's boyfriend Matt came down from Carson to visit again and it has been fun to go out with them. We went to dinner with them, Tiffany and Garrett and Tracy and Buffy last night and then to a movie and then we went out to the mine this morning to take Matt on a tour underground. It was fun. We realized Kimi hasn't been underground since she was 9 years old.... wow! We had a great time. I love watching Thayne at work. Garrett and I have laughed about it before. That he gets in his element and instantly he is aware of everything around him. It was the same today....but he always amazes me and we enjoyed the tour.

I always feel a little like an ant in an ant hill... there is a whole world going on underground and it just amazes me that there are somewhere around 100 people under there working. We were talking to one of the men underground about how important mining is... and yet how little people know about it.... what isn't grown must be mined, and yet without mining it would be hard to even grow what we need. I am grateful for those that do this work!
It's always amazing to see the size of the equipment running underground....

Pointing to one of the refuge chambers....there are computers and phones and all kinds of technical 'stuff' down there including a way to track the men and equipment so that everyone can be accounted for at anytime... the safety of the employees is so important.

Pointing out another refuge chamber....

Kimi checking out her daddy's sweet ride! :)

Good thing we were with 'authorized personnel'....

Waiting for the equipment to pass...

Well... because he was there, he might as well get people back on task! =)

Kimi had fun but she thinks she will leave the mining to the men in our family and stick to being Teacher Kimi....

Heading into a heading...

The sky is falling, the sky is falling... or, "is it raining?"

Kimi and Matt...

And this is why....

And this is seriously why I will never be able to grow a garden at my house. Not that the ground is good enough to actually grow something... but even if it was, we get this and more through our yard on a daily basis. I remember the time I walked out my front door to see a huge buck just inches away eating my beautiful roses.... they are barely even scared of us. The kids throw open the doors and can get almost close enough to touch them. Notice how they just turn and look at me like they are a little put out that I would stop. I will dream of the garden I could grow if only these crazy animals would stay away!

My Gabe Fix

I doubt that being 'grandma' will ever get old, though I don't think that I will ever get over being a mom to a newborn either.... but I am constantly amazed at the love I feel for this new little boy in our family and the desire to see him daily! I love watching my kids go ga-ga over him. The kids start yelling "dibs" the minute they know we are going to see Gabe. Yesterday Garrett, Tiffany and Gabe came out and kids were lined up at the door waiting to get their hands on this sweet baby boy. Nate of course claims him as his own and pats his chest and says, "Me" meaning "THAT BOY IS MINE!" and you must ask him permission to hold Gabe. He is usually kind enough to let you hold him... you just have to ask first! Garrett, Tiffany, Thayne and I went to the 4pm movie and I got to snuggle with him the entire time. I just kept smelling that newborn smell on the top of his head and loving the feeling of having him snuggled contentedly against my chest the entire time.... on our way home from the movie Thayne said he was going to clean up (since he came right to the movie from work) and hold our baby! I laugh because he is so protective of him, yet he tries to act so tough like this little boy hasn't melted his heart. I had handed Gabe back to Tiffany so I could get dinner cooked and Thayne came out of the bedroom after getting cleaned up and said to Tiffany, "You want me to take him don't you?" Tiffany only laughed and said, "Sure...." because I think it kind of makes her laugh how Thayne acts. Like he sits back thinking he should share but he wants to get his hands on 'his' baby. Of course Gabe and grandpa promptly fell asleep. We had to laugh because they looked a lot alike sleeping soundly on the couch... Gabe looked completely at home snuggled on grandpa's belly!!! It's so fun watching our family grow this way!!!

This is the text Garrett sent me today... showing how cute he looks in the outfit Nate wore 2 years ago! Last night right before Gabe got ready to go home!!!

Tiffany said it was funny because Kami keeps track of how many times she has held Gabe. This is her saying she has only held Gabe TEN times now!!!

Love the funny faces he makes....

Right before the left Garrett scooped up Kami and Nate to give them squeezes and loves... and yep, Gabe definately has your lips Garrett!!! :)

This is 2 days ago when I ran into town to get my Gabe fixed. I took a friend, Shawna with me so she could meet my little grandson... I even shared and let her hold him a few minutes....

Just taking a few of the hundreds of pictures I have of Gabe....

Yesterday getting ready to go to the movie with grandma!

More cuteness....

This face is adorable.... and I am not the least bit prejudice! Have I mentioned how much I love Tiffany for giving him to us!!!

Another funny face.... or is it, "Oh my heck, who are all of these people????" :)

Awwwwwww.... because you know... everything he does is adorable!

Nothing better than grandpa's belly for a cat nap....

I have seen pictures like this at least 15 kids before Gabe!

Nate not sure he was ready to let Gabe go home last night! It is really funny because everytime we call Thayne 'grandpa' Nate starts looking around for pictures of my dad... we tell him that his dad is a grandpa and he shakes his head no and points to my dad's picture!!!

Happy Birthday Caitlyn....

Tonight we hosted a dinner group and Caitlyn and Jace had stayed to eat with us. Since her birthday is on Tuesday and she will be back at school we had a little cake and sang happy birthday to her. 20 years old... and what a big year she has in front of her!!! We are so grateful she will be officially joining our family! It was a really fun night visiting with friends from church and with Caitlyn and Jace, and Tiffany and Gabe also came out because Garrett was working.

Happy Birthday Caitlyn... I am so excited to get to call you daughter.... you have been a blessing to our family for a very long time and it's exciting to think that June will be here very soon and you will be part of our family.... forever! Yay! Love ya!!!

Air Supply....

Last night Thayne and I went to the Air Supply concert. We had 2 extra tickets so we took my brother and his wife and we had the best time! Thayne wasn't sure he was excited about going but we were all happy that we went by the time the show started... they put on a very, very good show! It was fun just hanging out and enjoying the music and the show! We have yet to be disappointed at any of the concerts we have gone to and it's a fun date to run over and have dinner before the show. A great night all around! Definately on our list to see again!

Gabe is growing...

Tiffany told me yesterday that Gabe is already up to 9lbs 14oz!!! He was 7lbs 9oz at birth, came home at 7lbs 1oz on Sunday the 10th and is already almost 10lbs! Slow down baby!!! He is doing fantastic! Time flies when you are trying to hold on to every ounce of that amazing newborn stage!!! Way to go Tiffany.... you are the best mommy!

I hope they call me on a mission....

I have to say that these are my favorite... this kid is a ham and he makes me smile constantly when I watch him! He's practicing to be a missionary already!!! He has the strongest little spirit and we love to just sit back and watch him grow..... we were at a church meeting one time and a lady talked about having a little girl who wouldn't hold still while they had family prayer... somebody else said it was hard to get a teenager to hold still. We were just talking about that because Nate folds his arms and sits reverently through prayers or priesthood blessings. Sometimes he will squint, trying not to open his eyes... but if he sees us look at him he squeezes his eyes closed and continues sitting quietly! He's just amazing! Look out world, here he comes!!!
Looks like a little business man... and funny thing is... he loves to act like he is texting with my phone!

Smartie pants...

Love it....

I love these...

Silly boy....

And my favorite scripture is.....

Surprise.....