Merry Mittons' Adventures

Rhine River Cruise 2011

2011-12-06T23:45:00.001-08:00

We've been on this cruise twice now and have loved it so much! It's definitely a "DO NOT MISS THIS," in Germany. We were able to see 18 castles along the cruise. My best friend from Las Vegas, Stephanie Busby, came with her husband, Matt Galusha to visit us and we took them on this adventure. We took a nice long, steep walk up to Burg Rheinfels and enjoyed all it's glory. From putting Holly into the stocks, to crawling in old tunnels, it was well worth the climb. Enjoy. And yes there are many more photos to come!!! Miss all our family and friends, but if you find the time come visit us, we'll show you a good time! Guten Tag!

Guten Tag, Germany!

2011-05-10T14:28:00.000-07:00

For those who don't know already, we are moving to Germany!!!!! We got orders to Ramstein Air Base and will be there for the next four years! We can hardly wait.

Justin will be working on C-17s and supporting aircraft that stops in Ramstein as well. He's really excited for the opportunity to learn a new aircraft and for all the experience to come with it.

We enjoyed our time at Kirtland AFB in NM but were ready to accept the challenge of a new place, let alone a new country!

Tiffany and the girls are in CO staying with family until it is time to make the trek across the US again with her mom to PA. Then she'll meet up with Justin to fly out in June to Germany.

Holly is really excited to learn German and has been practicing some words.

We'll post our adventures and show you lots of pictures and if any of you decide to come to Europe stop on by our place for some bratwurst and sauerkraut!

Photo courtesy: www.smart-travel-germany.com

Rylie the Rattler

2010-08-23T12:01:00.000-07:00

Hello my name is Rylie and this is my rattle! I love to chew on it and squeeze it. It's my favorite toy!

1st Day of Kindergarten

2010-08-23T08:14:00.000-07:00

Rylie staring at her sister, the Kindergartner.
Holly ready to leave the house.
Stylin backpack.
She certainly enjoyed playing at the playground before class.

Holly's teacher, Ms. Amy, is great! She has lots of great things for the kids and encourages them to do their best. Holly received a good behavior ticket and was able to go play in any of the play areas of her classroom. She went into the baking room and the painting room. She thoroughly enjoyed school. Her mom and dad worried all day long and her mom certainly missed having her home. Upon picking her up from school though, I was relieved to see how much she enjoyed school. We look forward to many more days and we will be doing a blog about her first year of school.

Sisterly Love

2010-07-05T16:48:00.001-07:00

This scrapbook design personalized with Smilebox

Half way there!

2010-07-01T14:46:00.000-07:00

Way to go Holly, you made it to Lesson 50! Keep it up and you'll be finished by the time you start Kindergarten. We are so proud of you!

Bella, Bella, Bella Dancerella

2010-06-30T07:00:00.000-07:00

So Holly loves ballet. We've told her that she will get to start going after she shows us she's doing well in school. So probably January is when she'll start. We have a friend who makes custom tutus and we got ones made for the girls to wear. We can't wait to do their portraits in them!

Visit Tutilicious on Facebook and put my name down on the wall!

"I Can See Clearly Now..."

2010-06-29T09:06:00.000-07:00

So a few months ago Holly started showing some signs that she was having a hard time seeing things. She could see large objects but when it came to reading on a page, she told me she couldn't see. So we got her to the eye doctor and come to find out, far away and up close she sees blurred images. She now rocks some awesome glasses to correct her vision! She goes back in a couple weeks to make sure the prescription doesn't need to change. Way to go Holly on letting us know you couldn't see very well!

Guess we need to plan some major trips back to Disneyland/Disneyworld to see what she missed!

Rylie's First Month

2010-06-22T09:15:00.000-07:00

This free scrapbooking design customized with Smilebox

Rylie had jaundice for two weeks and had to be under the bili-lights. It was a very trying time for our family and we are so happy for the prayers and thoughts that surrounded us. No doubt it helped. She is healthy now and doing really well. We look forward to the many more special moments we have with her. She is such a joy.

Rylie Noel Mitton

2010-06-11T12:18:00.000-07:00

So on May 12, 2010 our second angel arrived into our arms! Below is her birth story.

After weeks of labor and many trips to Triage, my doctor decided to try to get active labor on its way. She stripped my membranes for the second time and even tried to encourage my water to break. She said that if I hadn't gone into labor by Saturday, this was on Tuesday, that I needed to come in and she'd start me since she'd be on call.

Contractions began around 1 AM and by 5 AM I couldn't stand it any longer. I woke Justin up and we dropped Holly off at our friend's house. The doctor wanted to send me home again and I was having contractions every minute. So my wonderful husband came to the rescue and demanded I be induced and that we weren't going home.

By 9 AM I needed to get the epidural after just having IV medication. The epidural was much easier this time around.

Around 1230 I sent Justin to go down to Subway and get him something to eat, but within 2 minutes of him leaving the room the doctor said I was ready to push. I sent a text to Justin and he returned quickly. After 3 pushes Rylie joined the world.

She was 19 in long and weighed 8lbs. 5oz. We are so blessed to have her in our home. She is such a joy and she and her big sister have a special bond already.

Hop On Pop--Holly's Favorite Book

2010-04-15T14:36:00.001-07:00

Recently Holly has been working hard on her reading lesson book. She has surpassed her first 20 lessons and earned an ice cream outing with her dad.

The other night Justin read Hop on Pop to her and she was instantly hooked. She now reads it to herself and I even caught her reading it to her daddy so he could fall asleep for a well deserved nap.

Easter 2010

2010-04-15T14:30:00.001-07:00

Holly sure enjoyed finding the eggs around the house to put into her basket.
Holly's loot. She got some academic workbooks and lots of candy!
This is Holly waiting for the Egg Hunt that our Wing put on for all the kids. She had a ton of fun and even found one of the prize eggs. It had a McDonald's gift card in it with a lot of candy and Easter toys.

Pregnancy Photos & Family Update

2010-03-17T08:21:00.000-07:00

Okay so I'm not a huge fan of maternity shots, but my dear friend Thaomee insisted I do a few. So I picked my top two favorites and thought I'd share them with our friends and family since we are all so far away at times. The booties are from my mother, she saved them for many years, and we are so pleased to have Rylie wear them for her baby blessing.

Baby Rylie is moving a lot and Holly gets more excited each day to meet her new baby sister. I couldn't be more blessed with my little family. We tease Justin that he'll be forever outnumbered between me and the girls and our dog. Poor guy. Good thing he had 3 younger sisters to prepare him.

Justin is doing well, he was moved to a new squadron that will benefit his career. He's working strictly on the CV-22 Osprey, which is a heliplane for those who don't know. He's liking the guys he works with and they enjoy him there. He is also going to be coaching the softball team for his flight-shop as well. He's very excited to be able to play sports again after surgery.

Holly is actively working on her reading lessons and preparing for Kindergarten this Fall. She can't wait to meet new friends and learn all she can. We know she'll be a very successful student throughout her academic years.

Happy New Year! 2009 in review!

2009-12-31T15:05:00.000-08:00

We hope our letter this year finds you all healthy and happy. A lot has happened this year for our family and we are so grateful to have received the blessings we did. Much has changed and a lot more will change coming up. Here is what we have all been up to this past year.

Justin: recently promoted to Senior Airman in June and is preparing to take the Staff Sergeant test in May of 2010. He’s been hard at work and also enjoyed their softball season, in which his squadron team made it to the Championship! Go Rattlers!! His youngest sister got married at the end of May so we got to take our family vacation with him to that and got to go to Disneyland afterwards! He also had surgery on Nov. 19 to have his patella tendon cleaned up. They think come February he’ll be able to run again. We are so proud of how hard he works.

Tiffany: completed her fitness training program at CNM and has enjoyed her time as being a stay at home mom. She does keep busy though. She took a trip in August with her mom to Pennsylvania and they had a lot of fun driving there. They stopped in Nauvoo along the way. Tiffany also got to go to Washington D.C. with her mom and Holly to see our Nation’s capitol. Upon her return we had discovered that she was going to be expecting our second child. She recently received a call to be the Assistant Base Activities Coordinator for the LDS families in our ward that live on base. Tiffany also keeps busy with the Squadron Spouses’ Group and helps boost the morale of our squadron.

Holly: is learning to read and is preparing herself for Kindergarten next year. She cannot wait to start school and works very hard on her lessons with her mom. She certainly enjoyed all her trips this year between Disneyland and Pennsylvania. We figured out that she’s been to 22 states and she’s only 5! Wow! She is very excited to be a big sister next year and practices on our friends’ babies. Holly has enjoyed being in our new home as well. We moved across the base and she loves her new room and loves being closer to the playgrounds and her future school.

We are looking forward to the next year and to the arrival of our little girl! May the Lord continue to bless you all and have a great holiday season.

Love,
The Mittons—Justin, Tiffany, Holly, & Rylie

Merry Christmas & welcome Rylie Noel to the family!

2009-12-25T05:00:00.000-08:00

We had our 18 week ultrasound on Dec. 23, 2009. So far everything is going well with the baby and it is officially a girl!

Rylie Noel--we try to keep names that are from family origins. Rylie is English and because I have a Christmas deal with girls, we went with Noel for the middle name.

We are so thrilled to welcome Rylie to our family. The next few months will fly by and we'll get to hold our little angel. Holly can't wait to meet her little sister and teach her all about being a girl.

13 week utlrasound, but now we are 18 weeks!

2009-12-21T08:00:00.000-08:00

This is our 13 week ultrasound that took place on November 12, 2009. We are so excited to welcome this new angel into our family. Our next ultrasound will be on Dec. 23, 2009! What a great Christmas present to find out whether it's a boy or girl. We got a stocking for the baby and have it filled with stuff for the baby, but also a t-shirt we got Holly that says, "Big Sister 2010," on it.
We plan to let her open it on Christmas morning to find out if she is having a brother or sister. We'll make the announcement on here that same day, as well as on Facebook, and via text message.

Holidays over the last year

2009-12-20T16:43:00.000-08:00

So I've been a super lame updater. I haven't posted the pictures from our amazingly fun trip to Disneyworld at Thanksgiving last year and our trip to Disneyland this past summer. SO here you go! Please enjoy some of our favorites.

It's Official!

2009-10-15T13:52:00.000-07:00

It's official! We are expecting our second child. I am 8 weeks today. We cannot wait to meet him/her. We find out on Dec. 23,2009 what we are having and can't wait for that special Christmas present. Holly is very excited to be a big sister and can't wait to help Mommy with the baby. The doctor even gave her her own ultrasound copy that says, "I'm the big sister." Our doctor is super nice and we are thrilled to have someone very attentive.

The doctor doesn't want me to lose any more weight however she is allowing me to go past the 1st trimester if I do. She said that if it doesn't stop then it's ice cream everyday for me. I won't complain on that one. But of course we hope that it won't come to that. So far the baby and mommy are doing great and the baby has a good strong heartbeat.

We should get to hear it at our next appointment in November.

Hill AFB Museum

2009-06-28T07:08:00.000-07:00

We took Holly and my grandma to the Hill Air Force Base Museum in Roy, UT. Justin's sister, Ashley, and her fiancee', now husband Jason, met up with us there. We had so much fun looking at all the aircraft. We even got a private tour of my grandfather's plane that he use to fly, the P-38 Lockheed Lightning. Holly thought it was so neat to see Grandpa Thomas' airplane. She loves seeing the planes fly because she knows her Daddy helps them to fly. Justin told us all about the HH-53 Pave Low helicopter. He missed working on it by 3 months when they retired the it from the Air Force. The Marines still use them today. Holly also got to see the C-130 up close with her dad as you can see. That's the major aircraft Justin works on. She loves to learn about his job and she couldn't be more proud of what Justin does. Thank you honey for your service to our country and the sacrifices you make. Thank you to all our armed services men and women for the sacrifice you and your family make!

Silly Silly String

2009-06-18T08:33:00.000-07:00

Holly had never experienced Silly String until her Daddy decided that it was time. He bought her a yellow can, being as that's her favorite color. As you can see, she didn't have the control he did, but nonetheless she had a blast. It was so much fun. And at Grandma Thomas' house there's always room to run and have fun.

Memorial Day Weekend

2009-06-10T09:06:00.000-07:00

Over Memorial Day weekend we made a 650 mile trip to Utah from New Mexico. It was certainly long, but we endured it well. We saw some neat rock formations between New Mexico and Colorado around the border. Then in the Canyonlands area we saw a neat round rock. We also saw the Hole in the Rock museum as we were passing into Moab. We then went up to my Grandpa Nicholls' gravesite to place flowers on. As a neat surprise we saw that they had the Vietnam Memorial Moving Wall on display. We took Holly to see it and taught her about the sacrifices made during Vietnam and that her Grandpa Nicholls fought that war. She enjoyed helping do flowers and couldn't help be her divaself and pose.

Rockstar in Training

2009-04-10T13:24:00.000-07:00

Holly loves that we have Guitar Hero. She begs to play it everyday, but not in the whining sense. She loves to play the game with Justin and all of his friends. She's pretty good and singing to some of the songs. So we've decided she can be our ballerina-rockstar child.

She'll keep right on track with beat to most of the songs and is trying to figure out how to use the guitar. She's pretty good on the drums though.
This her preparing for her favorite song, "What I've Done" by Linkin Park.

This was Holly waiting for her dad to start Guitar Hero.

Holly, Flower Girl-to-be

2009-03-29T13:42:00.000-07:00

Here's Holly in her new flower girl dresses for Ashley's wedding. Isn't she absolutely adorable? My friend Jamie did an amazing job on the pictures. The one with the little fairy on it really touched Holly and made her cry. Mostly because she loves Tinkerbell and fairies now.

Justin and Tiffany's Christmas 2008

2009-01-11T07:26:00.000-08:00

Justin and I certainly spoiled each other this year. It was a lot of fun to get things for each other that we had been wanting for some time.

Justin's Loot:
Kenmore Gas Grill
A Life of Integrity: Hyrum Smith--it's a biography about his grandfather
I Am Legend
Propane tank
New church pants
Aeropostale shirt
Book of Mormon 1830 Replica

Tiffany's Loot:
Reflections of Christ dvd
JCPenney gift card
Toss the Guilt and Catch the Joy by Merrilee Boyack
Family necklace
CTR Spinner ring
Aeropostale lounge sweats
Love Letters of Joseph and Emma
Fleece throw blanket

Christmas for Holly 2008

2009-01-11T07:17:00.000-08:00

Holly certainly had a great Christmas this year. We didn't think we'd do a Christmas this year after our vacation, but knowing Holly she wouldn't let that slide. She fully expected to follow the traditions of a Christmas story each night, making yummy goodies, making cookies for Santa, writing him a letter, and seeing how sneaky Santa would be this year.

Holly's Loot:
Princess Jasmine
Prince Eric
Beast
Princess Memory--thanks Grandpa Nicholls
Princess Yahtzee--thanks Grandpa Nicholls
Purple velour outfit--thanks Grandma Nicholls
Boots--thanks GMA Mitton
Tinkerbell Jammies & Movie--thanks GMA & GPA Mitton
Tinkerbell toothbrush holder
Charlotte's Web--thanks GMA Nicholls
Mariposa--thanks GMA & GPA Mitton
Baseball w/glove
Pooh Bear
The Infamous Yellow Train--thanks GPA Nicholls

Hollywood Studios/Magic Kingdom Memories 4

2008-12-24T07:27:00.000-08:00

Our trip came to an end the last day as we went to Hollywood Studios. Holly got to go to see Playhouse Disney, Little Mermaid, and Beauty and the Beast musicals. It was so much fun. Tiff got sick and had to rest in the park for a few. Holly was presented with a special exclusive pin for the commerative year at Disneyworld by a Cast Member. We went one last day to the Magic Kingdom and enjoyed our last ride on It's a Small World, which became Holly's favorite. We had so much fun being with family we didn't want to leave. We will cherish these memories forever.

Epcot Memories

2008-12-24T06:58:00.000-08:00

While at Epcot, we traveled around the world in a matter of miles! We went to China, France, Japan, England, Canada, America, Germany, Italy, and Morocco. Jason ordered in French for some crepes, glacee', and some delicious patisseries! It was so much fun. We ate our way through Epcot almost. The Fish N Chips were divine! Justin got to become the court Jester of the famous Shakespearean play, Romeo and Edna. That's what he gets for being a grump some of the days. It was a lot of fun and we got to find Justin's family name in the book of names in England. We even got to go to the Test Track and race a car, we went Soarin over California as well. Holly loved flying on that one with her Daddy.

Animal Kingdom Memories

2008-12-24T06:42:00.000-08:00

We had a lot of fun in the Animal Kingdom. The Tree of Life was amazing. See how many animals you can find! Monkeys in the morning greeted us as we made the trail to Mt. Everest. What a rush that ride was!!! I believe my dad went on it at least 10 times the days we were there. A little duck came to talk to Justin about eating his cousin's leg. Ha ha ha. Holly had a ton of fun up at the petting zoo and finding bugs with Grandma Nicholls. Each park had a Christmas tree that was decorated to fit the theme of each park. I loved this one because of all the hand carved wooden ornaments.

Magic Kingdom Memories 3

2008-12-24T06:35:00.000-08:00

The Parade of Dreams was awe inspiring. Holly couldn't take her eyes off of it. The fireworks display at night was so amazing and brought tears to my mother and I's eyes. It was so beautiful all covered in lights as if it were an ice castle.

Magic Kingdom Memories 2

2008-12-24T06:26:00.000-08:00

Holly got to meet a lot of her favorite Disney characters. Suprisingly she was never afraid. She loved her time with the Princesses and had to tell each of them their story. Sleeping Beauty even Christened Holly with a special princess kiss that lasted the whole day on her cheek. As you can tell, her Mickey ears fit her perfectly too. Capt. Jack Sparrow even picked our little princess to be a part of his show, but once she got up there, she freaked. Good girl, be scared of boys! While waiting for the parade, she got to meet the talking trashcan from Tomorrowland and do the hokey pokey with Grandpa and the trashcan. She certainly enjoyed her time with her cousins and Goofy sure fit in along with them.

Magic Kingdom Memories 1

2008-12-24T06:16:00.000-08:00

Here is our first day at the Magic Kingdom. We made Holly face her fears and took her on Snow White and Peter Pan. She was not happy with us, but the minute we took her on a roller coaster in Toon Town, she was diggin it. We were able to see the Welcome Show at the opening of the park, which was a real treat. The castle was spectacular!

Happy Anniversary Modern Molly Mormon!

2008-12-07T05:26:00.000-08:00

It's the one year anniversary of Modern Molly Mormon and the founder and I are so excited we've made it this far.

Head over to Modern Molly Mormon this week for a giveaway everyday! Lots of prizes including free blog layouts, beauty supplies, Books, and much more!

Family Vacation 2008

2008-11-18T05:23:00.000-08:00

photo courtesy: www.floridatravel365.com

2 more days and we'll be on a plane with my parents on our way to Orlando, FL. My oldest brother and his family are driving Thursday and Friday from Connecticut. The magic begins for our family on Friday as we enter into the Magic Kingdom! We'll be spending an entire week at Walt Disneyworld and enjoying our much needed vacation. I'll be sure to post lots of pictures as Holly explodes at the mere mention of Disneyworld!

Halloween 2008

2008-11-04T10:18:00.000-08:00

Happy Halloween! I know this is a little late posting, but it's here! Holly sure enjoyed dressing up as Sleeping Beauty! She thought it was so fun to see other little girls as the other Disney princesses. She went out for an hour with her dad and then I took her for the last hour. By the end of it, she was ready to crash. She sure got a lot of loot!

Here are our 3 little pumpkins. Mine is the silly face, Justin's is the skull, and Holly's is the Sleeping Beauty. Hers was tough to carve, took near 2 hours to do all the detailing. Thank heavens I had the best tools.

Holly's Holiday Photos

2008-10-24T07:00:00.000-07:00

We had our dear friend Jamie take Holly's 4th year photos. Holly picked out her new holiday dress and where she wanted to take pictures. She surely hammed it up for the pictures. Enjoy!
Such a girly girl!
This is my favorite one of all. These two are each others' worlds. Justin showed up just as Holly finished her photo shoot and Jamie captured a beautiful moment between the two.
So angelic.
This little girl loves her daddy.
Super silly girl.
She loved to twirl around the whole time.
My little mischievous girl.
So perfect.
My little angel.
Is she a diva or what?

Happy 4th Birthday Holly

2008-10-21T21:12:00.001-07:00

Here is the balloon bouquet for Holly's birthday party along with her table spread. Those presents are just from us and my parents. She got a ton more from our close friends here.
That's the super cute banner I found at Party City that matched her stuff perfectly.
Holly loved her Tinkerbell candle. She could hardly wait to blow it out and make a wish.
Fun little streamers to add more flair to her party. I'm sure they'll stay up for the week. Or at least until I decide to get on the counter to take them down.

Her shirt says it all, "I'm the Princess and we'll do things my way." Needless to say, Holly's 4th birthday was a blast for all. She had so much fun. She got lots of fun toys and very thoughtful gifts. We are so happy to see our little angel grow up and become her own personality.

Holly's 1st Sleepover

2008-10-02T07:18:00.000-07:00

Holly had her first sleepover two months ago. I know, I know, she's only 3. But the neighbor girls love Holly and she adores them. So we made cupcakes, watched movies, colored, and they all went to bed at a decent time. Then I got up and made them all breakfast and they watched cartoons. They had a good time.
As you can see, our dog, Haily, got in on the fun too.

Little Miss Sassitude

2008-10-02T07:09:00.000-07:00

Holly got this adorable outfit from her Grandma Nicholls. She has good taste. See below the conversation she had with her babysitter.

Sitter: Holly I like your outfit, it's really cute.

Holly: My grandma Nicholls gave it to me.

Sitter: She has good taste.

Holly: Ewww, she doesn't eat it silly.

We all got a good laugh out of that one.

Check out the new Fall/Winter catalog!

2008-09-04T13:49:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone! So the new catalog from Scentsy is out! There are a lot of fun new scents and great new warmers. My favorite new item is the plug-in warmers, they are the perfect size for a bathroom or laundry room. The scentsational options are endless. Go check out the new catalog here at my website. You'll love what you see.

Chai and his story

2008-08-26T11:52:00.000-07:00

There is a dog who recently has been damaged by a dog toy. I encourage you all to read his story here, and let the company know of your distaste. We love our animal and we feel for those poor animals that are abused, hurt, beaten, etc.

Rock On Sistah Friend

2008-08-17T17:08:00.000-07:00

So my darling friend, Jia, decided to award me for my minimal efforts on blogging, but I'm slowly getting the hang of this. Below are some blogworthy reads of mine and you'll see why. Here are the rules if your blog is on here and what to do with the Rock On Sistah Friend award.

Dicks Family--My sistah from anotha motha has a great blog. She's my sistah from our pre-existence and I loves her very much. She is the ultimate Air Force wife and has taught me so many things.

Ward Family--Kenyen was one of my first friends when I moved to Fallon, NV. She's a dear friend to me and her daughters and sons are all our adopted children. We heart the Wards!

Mills Family--This girl Tiffini rocks! She's a great mom to two beautiful sons and she always makes me laugh on our myspace group. She's a wonderful gal and a great inspiration to many!

Tiffany's New Business

2008-07-25T06:27:00.000-07:00

So Tiffany has started a new at home business for fun on the side. She now sells wickless candles, warmers, car candles, and room sprays. I like it because she gets to meet new people and it keeps our home smelling good. Here is her website so you can go check it out!

www.scentsy.com/tiffanymitton

P.S.
Tiff told me about the deal they have in August. 10% off everything in the Spring/Summer catalog being as it's the last month to order from that catalog.

Summer Bash

2008-07-24T11:18:00.000-07:00

So while Justin was gone on TDY(temporary duty) to NC, Holly and I had the opportunity to go to the Summer Bash again this summer. It was a hot day, but we had a lot of fun seeing the aircraft, old cars, and seeing friends working different booths. Eve 6 came to play for the event and Radio Disney was there to provide lots of entertainment for the kids. Enjoy the pictures.

This is the aircraft that Justin was away learning to work on. It's the CV-22 Osprey. It can fly in both helicopter or airplane mode. The rotary blades tilt to give it that ability.
A beautiful mustang. But, there's an even sweeter ride below.
That's right, the 1969 Chevy Camaro Super Sport. She's beautiful!
This is the HH-60, or Pave Hawk, aka Blackhawk. I got to fly on this back in April. Justin also works on these. Well, the brake systems anyways.

Holly sure enjoyed her first cotton candy. She didn't quite get to eat it so she spent a good hour just licking it until she discovered she could eat it. LOL.
Here she is groovin with her cotton candy next to the H-60.
Check out those rotor blades! They are monstrous. I'm always in amazement at this aircraft.
Here's Holly sporting being a crew member of the UH-1 Huey. My dad use to jump out of these. I could have flown on this instead of the Blackhawk. No thanks! Holly calls it Grandpa Nicholls' Helicopter. I raised her well Dad!
Just another shot of the Blackhawk.

Bella Dancerella

2008-07-24T10:47:00.001-07:00

Here is the ballerina in training! Holly loves to wear her tutu and dance to her Bella Dancerella video with all her favorite Disney Princesses. Watch out American Ballet Company!

4th of July Madness

2008-07-24T10:42:00.000-07:00

So on the 4th of July, Justin decided to see if Holly truly was his own. Like there is any doubt, but to each their own I suppose. His test was to see if Holly still liked lemons like he did. He'll drink lemon juice straight like it's nothing. He's such a lemonhead. So he gave Holly one of those little lemon juice bottles to try. Poor thing didn't know what was coming.

After about a 2 minute reaction, that's the face we got. I think Justin forgot it's concentrated lemon juice, not a real lemon. She use to love to suck on lemons as a baby. Good girl grew out of it.

Born to Ride

2008-05-21T13:48:00.001-07:00

Justin's grandparents have a ranch at the base of the Big Cottonwood mountain range. His uncle, Jared, now runs the ranch. Out there they have a massive herd of goats, the mustangs, pigs, and the chickens. Holly even got to hold a kidd that was a couple days old. Below are a few pictures of the ranch with the mustangs out grazing.

Holly has always loved to ride on 4-wheelers since she was still in her mommy's tummy. Now look at her. She was born to ride.

This is the view from Justin's parents' house to where we would go riding.
Beautiful riding country. See those bright green leaves peaking out? That was actually a drop off down into the gorge. Holly was so worried we would fall, but her daddy was experienced in the terrain and made it an adventure.
Justin's mom and dad hit a huge mud hole and luckily we were behind them and were able to miss it. As you can see they didn't quit get out of the hole so easily.

Initially, we all had a blast. Justin and I rode each 4 wheeler back into town while Holly and her Grandma and Grandpa took the trailer back to a friends. It was a lot of fun.

No More Monkeys Jumping on the Bed

2008-05-21T13:46:00.000-07:00

Holly sure had fun playing with Grandpa Mitton. Little did I know when things got quiet in the house they were up to trouble. This is what I found.

Weekend in Utah

2008-05-21T13:36:00.001-07:00

We got to go home to Idaho over Mother's Day weekend and as a special treat we got to spend time with Tiffany's grandma. We spent the night and went shopping together too. Holly and her dad went to the Teddy Bear Workshop and made a bear to remind her of her daddy. His name is Hercules after the plane that Justin works on and he's decked out in camoflauge , just like Justin's uniform.
Holly relaxing.
Holly and Great-Grandma Thomas watching tv together.

2008-04-26T18:39:00.000-07:00

Make a slideshow - it's easy!

Time Out For Women

2008-04-24T07:22:00.001-07:00

So I had the privilege of attending Time Out For Women again this year. Such an inspirational weekend and a nice time out with the girls.

The Primary President and I. It was nice to see her there.
Me and two best friends, Jia and Sabrina.
Sharon G. Larsen, Elia Gourgouris, Emily Watts, S. Michael Wilcox, Mary Ellen Edmunds, Kenneth Cope, Cherie Call.

Cherie Call singing He Gives Flowers to Everyone.

Easter Egg Hunt

2008-03-19T17:58:00.000-07:00

Our Wing(a group of squadrons) had a Children's Easter Egg Hunt party last weekend. I'm a member of the Spouses' Group and was privileged to help plan. I also got to have dinner with a bunch of Commanders' wives and fill all the Easter eggs for the hunt. We had over 75 plastic eggs filled. It was insane. The kids got to prance around in a basket parade with the Easter Bunny. Justin's Commander was voted to be the Easter Bunny. Holly would only say hello to him and shake his hand, but refused to take a picture with him. Below you can see the fun she had.

Daddy helping out.
Look Mom, I got lots of eggs!
Already has a chocolate mustache.
Justin's Commander.
Face painting time.
Finding more eggs with Dad.
Having so much fun finding eggs.
Daddy helping her out.

Oh and a side note, I spent that whole morning help put out all the eggs for the different age groups. We had the entire park covered in eggs. What a blast!

Park Pleasures

2008-03-19T17:55:00.000-07:00

So I have a daughter, whom is fearless. She loves to go on slides and at our park here on base, we have two playgrounds. One is for kids 6 and above, the other is for 5 and under. So Holly is so tall that she tends to get bored on the little ones' playground and she has braved to go on the big kids' slides. But, alas, we kept her from doing so one day. She hadn't been to the park in a while and she certainly enjoyed herself. She got to play for a bit until it was time for our Easter Egg Hunt party with the squadron.

Side sliding.
Checking to make sure no one is pressuring her.
She loves the curly slide.
Going up the stairs to find fulfillment.

Sledding Sandia Crest

2008-03-12T15:09:00.000-07:00

So our friends Randy and Sabrina took us up to the Sandia Crest here in ABQ. We found a nice little area to do some sledding. The girls didn't last long. Holly didn't like falling out of the sled too well. Justin had too much fun and ended up bruising his leg on a rock. Genius! Randy hurt his hip at one point. Us gals took the pictures to document our husbands' stupidity. Ha ha ha. Holly got tired and decided to play with snow instead. At one point I crashed and burned trying to avoid a tree. Enjoy the best photos below.

Here Randy and Callista, Justin and Holly are waiting to race down the slope.
The ride to an adventure.
Woah Dad! Slow down!
I slid backwards.

Holly and I taking off down the hill.

Ballerina In Training

2008-02-29T06:31:00.000-08:00

I have the most interesting little girl. She loves to watch Barbie movies and has learned to pick up on some of ballet moves in them. Barbie in the Nutcracker is her favorite. So of course we had to get her ballet clothes. Her Grandma Mitton bought her this adorable tutu at Claire's and I found a leotard for her to wear with it. She then proceeded to find a bow to wear and found an adorable, matching handkerchief.

There's my little ballerina diva.
I love the bow in the back. It's so her.
She's not a ham for the camera or anything.

Miniature Golf

2008-02-18T20:51:00.000-08:00

So off to the Hinkle Family Fun Center today. We took Holly to go miniature golfing for the first time. She was a natural. Our friends, Randy, Sabrina, and little Callista came along with us.

The girls sure had fun riding on the miniature carousel.
Holly loved riding this.
She's a natural, just like her mommy!

Making Noodles with Grandma

2008-02-18T20:48:00.000-08:00

Holly had a blast learning how to roll out the dough for noodles.
Holly sure had a blast getting covered in flour and she even liked eating the raw dough. Yep, that's right, raw dough! Just like her mommy likes to do. It's in our blood.

Rattlesnake Museum

2008-02-18T20:30:00.000-08:00

So when Justin's parents came to visit us for the weekend we had the privilege of going to the Rattlesnake Museum in Old Town Albuquerque. Holly had a blast looking at all the snakes. Her mom, however, freaked out seeing a salamander. Holly even had the guts to have her picture taken with Grandpa Mitton and a python! Of course, she wouldn't touch it. Smart girl. Here is a taste of some of the pictures we took.

Brave girl in front of the glass.
Sneaky snakes. This one thought he could hid from the camera.
This one wasn't very good at hiding was he?
Smile for the camera!
This guy was huge! Hairy little spider.

All Because Two People Fell In Love

2008-02-13T07:30:00.000-08:00

Tiffany, the beautiful mother/wife, is going to school as a fitness major and working hard to be the best stay-at-home-mom she can be.
Holly, the gorgeous princess, rules the world and is turning into quite the character. She loves to dance and sing and of course, cause her mother to grow gray hair. Shhhh, don't tell!
Justin, the darling husband/dad, is in the Air Force and works hard to keep our birds flying.

That's what it really comes down to. I decided to start this blog about our family and share with friends and family our pictures. We do so many things together and it's hard to be away from them. So here you will find the journeys and tender moments we wish to share.