Go Utes :)

 

O.K. Everyone....

Let's go out and have some fun!!!!

Go Utes :)

My garden runneth over!

This summer I have had a BUMPER crop of veggies.  Earlier this summer, I was not so sure that anything would survive. Record breaking heat, early heat, no rain....all of these conspired to do my garden in. But it persevered!  Now we are reaping the benefits :)

Needless to say...much canning & freezing are taking place!  

Back To School :)

Hmmmm.....Back to School.....
*School supplies
*Backpacks
*Fall Leaves
*Cooler Weather
*Alarm Clocks
*Awakened by Early morning Band practice across the creek
*Lunch Boxes
*Happy Parents
*Schedule & structure
*Missing my baby girl 

All of these things come to mind when school time approaches.  I'm always torn. I love having Gracie home during the summer. I love lazy mornings, riding bikes, movies and just the fun of summer. But I also crave the schedule that school brings.  I'm much more productive when I have a schedule. So, with a heavy heart....I took Gracie to her first day of her last year of Elementary School. In other words...6th Grade. 

                                                             1st Day of School Pic

Luckily, we had some fun activities to get Gracie excited to start school. Dad & Chyrl (ok, mostly Chyrl) planned a fun Back to School party for the kiddos. There was pizza and root beer floats, and a fun time capsule. Chyrl had the kids write what their goals were for the school year. She put them in a box and when we have our Out of school party in May, we will open the box and read the goals. We can see which ones were accomplished.  It was a fun night and we loved getting together.   We also went to the Back to School day at Brookside. Gracie was able to meet her teachers and see who would be in her class.

Dad, Chyrl, Bryn, Gracie, Katie, Jackson, Melissa

Cousins:)   Bryn, Melissa, Gracie & Katie

 

and in come Charlie & Lola...

Now meet the two newest and possibly(ok, definitely) the most high maintenance members of the Thorpe Family :)
Charlie (brown dog) is a 2 year old Mini Australian Shepherd.  He is just a little guy and has the craziest eyes I've ever seen on a dog. But we love him.  He recently decided that riding in the back of Jeff's truck wasn't fun enough and decided to hurtle himself out of the back of the truck (while we were driving). It was quite the traumatic experience for the family, especially Gracie. She was the one who saw him jump out and land on the road. Well, after a few surgeries to repair a shattered pelvis, the cone of shame and quite a few trips to the Vet to repair stapes...he is starting to recover. He has finally started to put weight on his leg and walk on all fours. Yay :) 

Post surgery...Poor Charlie :(
He is such a snugly dog and would love to be held 24/7.

Lola (black dog) is Charlies sister, from the same litter. Of course, they are as different as can be! Lola is definitely the alpha female. She pretty much tells Charlie what to do (and Charlie just obeys). She is about twice the size of Charlie and Gracie and Jeff have taken to calling her Fatty McFats. (Hopefully that doesn't give her a complex!) But her girth doesn't slow her down one bit. She is a fast runner and can jump onto just about any piece of furniture.  When she is excited, her whole back side just waggles back and forth. It's the best!!  Really she just believes that she is the princess of the house and should be treated as such :)

She prefers that I just place her food directly under her mouth. That way she doesn't have to move any more than necessary :)

Pretty much their favorite spot in the house....This used to be a nice big comfy chair (for me!) in our bedroom. Tucked into the bay window with a beautiful view of the backyard, creek & mountains.  Now it's a great view for the dogs.

Baby Girl

Gracie @ 2 months old

Gracie today....

My baby girl....aka....Pook, Puff, Graclet, Gracie McNacie (ask Grandpa Petersen), Grace (Uncle Greg & Cousin Porter), Cee Cee (Uncle Clark), GeeCee (youngest cousins).....

What she loves.... giggling, riding bikes, watching movies, art projects with her aunts, playing with friends,  music, American Girl dolls, hanging out with cousins and family, helping her Mom & Dad, sleeping in and staying in P.J's all day, BACON, traveling,  her doggies, cheer, tennis, reading. 

What I love about Gracie.....her smile, her belly laugh, her love of animals, her sweet spirit that cares for all around her, her love of her family and friends, her willingness to try just about any food that I put in front of her (at least one mouthful), her love of travel and adventure, her beautiful brown eyes, the fact that she has more stuffed animals than I can count and she knows each and everyone's names, that she still loves to watch cartoons with me, she still holds my hand in public, she loves to snuggle, she still wants a good "tuck-in" and "I love you" before bedtime, she still wants me to read her the same books before bed that I have read her since she was born. 

What her Dad loves about Gracie..... their shared "freaky music gene", that she wants to play golf with him and still yells "Good shot Dad" whenever he hits the ball, their bi-annual father-daughter trips, her silly laugh, her cheesy grin, their shared love of "BBQ Pitmasters", "Diners, Drive-In's & Dives" and the "Big Bang Theory", that she will sit with him on Sunday and watch golf and actually knows what's going on, her snuggles, her "Hi Daddy's" on the phone.

This girl is the miracle of our lives.  She was 9+ years in the making and worth every single minute! She is a joy to have in our home and makes the journey so much more enjoyable :)

Why, Hello Jeff :)

Meet my hubby Jeff....

He loves.... Me :)  Gracie :)  golf, University of Utah Utes, everything red (shoes, trucks, clothes, barns, hats), biking, music, I-Pads-I-Phones, the newest and greatest of electronics,  football (College & High School), freaking people out by growing out his hair :), practicing medicine, delivering babies, watching the Big Bang Theory with Gracie, St. George Utah, traveling, his family and friends.

What I love about him.... his long hair :), his smile, his love of all things Utes, he adores his daughter, his conviction in his beliefs, his love of his family and loyalty to friends, the way he still looks at me, his strong work ethic, his "freaky music gene", his willingness to try new things including all of the travel that I drag him on! These are just a few things about him that I love.

What Gracie loves about him.....their bi-annual father-daughter trips, learning how to play the guitar from him, watching the Big Bang Theory with him, his sense of humor, his love of music and willingness to share it with her, playing golf with him. 

He is a pretty great guy, my hubby.  I think I will just keep him :)

Welcome to my little blog :)

Hey Everyone!  Welcome to my little blog!

For the last 4-5 years, I have had a blog on my Mac site and I loved it. On a daily basis I sing the praises of my Mac. But on June 30th, came the first cursing of the Mac!  They cancelled the Mobile Me feature and left me "blog-less"!  I can no longer publish that blog. Cursed!!

So I have decided to make the jump to Blogger. I have absolutely no idea what I am doing but I will give it a whirl. 

Stay tuned as I post some intros and try to get the hang of this one :)