Ouch!!

Has been Darin's motto for the last couple of years. When he started getting frequent migraines that were so bad they were making him sick and his left arm would get tingly, we knew it was time to get some answers and figure out what was going on. In May we started in St. George with Dr. Root who ordered a bunch of x-rays, a bone scan & an MRI and discovered that Darin had a bulging disc in his neck that would need surgery. After researching doctors to find the best we ended up in Vegas with Dr. Duke, who did his surgery! On the 27th  Darin was driving to work when the office called to let him know everything had been pre-approved and asked when he wanted to schedule his surgery, he said: "as soon as you can get me in" and she said: "well he has an opening this Thursday!" A little surprised Darin said: "OK, but let me make sure I can get it off" He got everything cleared and was at the hospital the next day getting registered and was ready for surgery on Thursday! It was all a little crazy and last minute and we owe a huge THANK YOU to Jon & Ann for taking our kids! I am so thankful for family that's so close and who love my kids, I'm glad Darin found Dr. Duke, I know he was in the best hands possible for this surgery! and we're both hoping for a speedy recovery!

Kicking off the season

Degan had his first soccer game bright and early this morning!! He did awesome getting the ball and being aggressive!! He tripped a kid on purpose to get the ball and was pushing the players when they got to close, he even got hurt when he was going to kick the ball and his cleat got stuck in the grass and he fell on top of the ball, but he jumped right up and started playing!! It's going to be a fun season watching him play!!

Hoooooop There It Is!!

How many people does it take to hang up a basketball hoop?

Dillon, Thayne & Richard against Darin!!

After being in our house for almost 5 years we FINALLY have something in our backyard besides sticker bushes and dirt!! We've had it up for a few days now and the boys are loving it!!

Degan...Degan...Degan...

Picture Darin & I shaking our heads in disbelief and laughing at the same time!! Today was like any other day until about 12 o'clock when I got a call from Shelby (Brekan's mom) telling me that Degan got off the bus at her house with Brekan!! Now this little play date was not prearranged by Shelby or myself! I couldn't believe that the bus driver would just let Degan off at a different bus stop but Shelby said it was a different bus driver they'd never had before! Shelby thought about putting him back on the bus, but she thought they both looked so cute walking up with the biggest grins on their faces!! (Ya because their little plan had worked!!) When we went to pick him up a few hours later and asked why he got off at Brekan's house he simply said "Well Brekan wanted to play with me today so I got off the bus at his house!!" I can totally see them sitting on the bus hatching their little plan!! I'm just glad he got off at Brekan's house and not some other random friend I don't know!!

Busy Day!

Saturday was a busy day, we started the day off at a local outdoor flag raising ceremony in honor of Constitution Day and so Dillon could pass off a few things in his scout book! FYI: I love that the "Jones" street sign is in the background!!

Dusty Boy saluting the flag, I tried to put his hand over his heart but he insisted on saluting like the veterans!!

While we were out learning about the constitution, Darin was at home overseeing the concrete pour for the basketball court! Can't wait to play on that!!

The boys left their mark! to bad Daxton's not here yet it would've been cool to have all their handprints!

Than to finish off the night and Sunday morning Darin & I went to the Hard Rock Casino to watch Brian Deegan & Dave Mira dook it out and some crazy drunk guys in the row in front of us too! The Mira & Deegan fight was much more entertaining though. It was such a close fight that after the 3 rounds they had to do a sudden death round to decide who the winner was, I thought it was a draw cause they both had good rounds and threw some pretty good punches, Darin wanted Mira to win but Deegan ended up winning! but when your fighting for charity it's all good and they both were good sports! I'm sure there will be a rematch in the future though!!

The Sick Bed

Whenever the boys are sick Daddy always makes them a "sick bed" on the couch right in front of the TV!! This last week the boys caught a lovely little bug from being in school I'm sure. Degan got it first and Dillon was taking really good care of him getting him ice packs and whatever he was asking for! He was running a fever and was shivering like he was cold, so what does Dillon do? Piles every blanket that we have in the house on top of him to keep him warm!!

Flashback Friday

Jean & Noah Hillstead

Grandma & Grandpa's House

I found these pictures of my Grandpa & Grandma's house tucked away in a folder labeled "really old pics" they were taken back in August of 2004 when I went to Wyoming for my Grandma Hillstead's funeral. Dillon was almost two and we made the long drive with Jim & Carla. Seeing these pictures brought back so many fond memories of my summer vacations spent at my Grandparents house as a kid! It always seemed like we were there during the fair, so we had to take Grandpa to the horse pulls, the rodeo and the races!! Krishna & I would spend our days outside riding horses or on an old ornery pony named Obleeo, who bucked every kid off who ever rode it!! I'm not sure why we kept riding him but we did!! We would play in an old wood shed with our cousins Adam & Anthony or go to their house and jump on the tramp or watch movies! There was a post office just down the street so we'd walk down to check my Grandma's mail and inside was a candy store with a bunch of penny candies to choose from! My Dad would take us fishing in all the creeks and when we were unsuccessful he would take us to the "fish farm" where we were guaranteed many fish, he would also take us to the Red Baron for hush puppies & ice cream!! My Grandparents house was nothing fancy but it was a place I loved to go and looked forward to spending those few weeks of summer break there eating my Grandma's homemade bread, cinnamon rolls, jams, & chicken noodle soup and helping her in the garden and with all her chores. When my family went to look around the house in 2004 it hadn't changed a bit the appliances were all the same and still worked! the box of spools we all played with as kids was still there in the same spot it always was, the Vaseline jar that supported the fridge was still there after all these years! The wood burning fire place and the chair right next to it I always curled up in to stay warm all looked exactly the same! You never would've known that my Grandma was worth over one million dollars when she passed away, she didn't need or want any of the worldly things, she was a wise woman, and a hard worker. I feel very lucky that I got to call her Grandma!!

I Work Hard For My Money

Dillon got his first official job picking up dog poop at Uncle Jim & Aunt Carla's house for $3 a week! They have 3 dogs so by the end of the week there is a lot of poop to scoop! He says he's saving up for an I-pad!! I know it's an ambitious goal but at least he has a goal and hard labor will make him appreciate it even more. Good Luck Buddy you can do it!!