Our new house

This was how it all began.... one month ago all we had was a 1/2 acre lot. We spent the morning watching them clear away all of the sagebrush and then they started digging our basement. It was such an exciting day for us. We've been waiting for this to happen for a long, long time. Because of the economy, I'm a little nervous about things, but we decided we had to take the leap sometime. Throwing away money for rent each month is getting old.

Got dirt? The dirt pile was HUGE! The kids had so much fun playing in it. Does anyone need any fill dirt? We've got plenty to give away!

This is Logan and Heather standing in our basement. The weather has cooperated so far and things are moving quickly.

After staring endlessly at blueprints, this became one of our favorite days. It was so fun to walk through our "house" and see where everything will be. At this point, the kids started getting more excited because they could actually see what their rooms will be like.

This is the kitchen and pantry

It actually looks like a house now!!!

Russ and I are so glad that this dream is finally coming true for us. The house is not a mansion, but we know it will be comfortable and it will be home. The house could have been done in December, but I wasn't very excited about moving during Christmas. We're hoping to move in during the first week of January. Superbowl Party at our house!!!

The loves of my life...

A Perfect Day

A few weeks ago it was raining and really cold in Cedar so we decided to head to Zion in search of warmer weather and do some hiking and sightseeing. It was so beautiful there. It was a little chilly once we got there and we were glad we had brought sweatshirts, but the changing leaves scattered among the beautiful rocks made us forget all about the weather. One of my favorite traditions with my kids has always been taking pictures of them in the fall leaves. We went in search of the "perfect spot" sevaral times this fall, but I think my favorite pictures were the ones we took in Zion. Kelsey loves the camera and wanted a picture taken on nearly every rock or under every tree along the trail. I finally got to the point where I pretended to take her picture. Dyllan usually rolled his eyes and gave me "the look". I'm already seeing signs of what he will be like when he becomes a teenager! AAHHHHH! There were sooo many photographers on the trails trying to get the perfect shot. We decided that one of the local colleges must have been offering Senior Citizen Photography 1010. We got pretty tired of going around all of the camera tripods that they had set up EVERYWHERE along the trail! I couldn't believe the number of glares we got from them--they acted like WE were the ones in the way! However, we didn't let them spoil our day and we ended up having a great time. It was our last weekend together before my maternity leave ended and I went back to work. We couldn't have asked for a better way to wrap up my "vacation" time (LOL--I'm sure most of you know that my 10 weeks of maternity leave ended up being anything BUT a vacation!!!).

The wait is over...

After months of thinking about, talking about, and promising everybody, our family blog is FINALLY up and running (thank you Trecia!). My goal was to have everything posted before my maternity leave ended and I had to go back to work--unfortunately that didn't happen. But, better late than never. Now I have absolutely no idea where to even begin! So much has happened during the past year. I have a hundred pictures to post so I hope you will bear with me until I get caught up.
The most exciting thing for us was the birth of Logan Russell Maughan. He was born on August 31, 2008. His delivery was a scary experience and we know how blessed we are to even have him. The cord was wrapped around his neck several times and the umbilical cord wasn't attached to the placenta correctly. Dr. Gray told us that in most pregnancies where this occurs, the umbilical cord becomes unattached and the baby bleeds to death while still in the womb. Thankfully, everything turned out fine and we have a healthy, beautiful baby boy. Russ and I feel that Logan came 2 weeks early for a reason. The "what if's" are scary and not something we like to dwell on. Kelsey and Dyllan adore him and shower him with plenty of hugs and kisses every day. Kelsey is like a 2nd mother to him and is very attentive. She even jumps in to help when I'm changing a yucky diaper.

Dyllan is 9 years old now and doing well in 4th grade. He attends the same school I did when I was growing up and there are plenty of days when I go to pick him up that I find myself wondering where the years have gone to. Dyllan is a pretty tall kid and will probably pass me up within the next year. He loves anything to do with sports (he even has Kelsey play tackle football with him). He has been involved in soccer, football, baseball, and basketball. He swears his favorite sport is football, but I think it actually whatever sport is currently in season. Dyllan is sweetheart and probably the most sensitive out of all my kids. He tends to be a little shy, but if you start talking sports with him, he'll talk your ear off!

Kelsey is 4 1/2 now and still attending pre-school. I can't wait until she is in kindergarten. She is definately ready but because of when her birthday falls, she has to wait until next year. She played soccer this fall and is currently taking gymnastics. I'm sure you'll notice in the pictures I post that she loves having her picture taken. Russ and I think she is going to make us millions of dollars someday. She has been my little drama queen from the day she was born and that definately hasn't changed. Kelsey is a little more sassy than Dyllan, but she is still pretty obedient and sweet. I know I couldn't ask for better kids!

Russ is still managing Cooling Heating Supply. He's been there for almost 5 years. He says he enjoys his job and the people he works with. When he isn't working on my "honey-do" list, he enjoys playing and watching basketball. The theme for the Utah Jazz this season is "Life off-game on" and I told him they must have gotten the idea from him. He loves to watch the games and it's hard to pull him away from them sometimes. Russ quickly learned to control his gag reflex and is such a cute daddy to Logan (as well as Dyllan and Kelsey!). He is so helpful with the diaper changes, feedings, and baths. You can tell that Logan already adores his daddy!

I am still working at the Abbey Inn. I became the Assistant Manager in February and really enjoy my job. I just barely went back to work this week from my maternity leave. It has been an adjustment and I have shed plenty of tears over leaving my tiny baby with somebody else. One of my good friends is tending Logan and Kelsey for me so I know they are in good hands. I think it has been harder on me than it has been for either of them. I love being a mom and wouldn't trade that role for anything. My family brings me so much love and happiness--I can't imagine what life would be like without them.

In our free time, our family loves going to Sand Hollow, Zion, camping, hiking, fishing, snowmobiling, snowboarding--pretty much anything outdoors. We have stayed pretty busy this year and have been on a lot of fun adventures. We try to get out and go as much as we can. We cherish the time we get to spend together as a family and hope we are helping our kids create some special memories. My photo albums have become my personal journal and I love going back and looking at all of the fun times we've had.