Nate and Marci Bigler Family

2012-02-05T17:53:00.002-07:00

We blessed Cami today at church. I can't believe she's almost 3 months old! We are so glad she's a part of our family!

Cami and her Great Grandma's hands

It's Great to Be Eight!

2011-10-01T12:05:00.000-07:00

Haley is going to be baptized next Saturday. I can't believe she is EIGHT! The years go by so fast. Haley is such a special part of our family as the oldest daughter. She is such a big help to me and her sisters. She has such a beautiful smile and a fun personality. Happy Birthday, Haley--we love you!

California Vacation

2011-07-03T09:15:00.016-07:00

We had such a great time for a week in a beach house that was right on the sand in Newport Beach, California on the Balboa Peninsula. The kids had a blast playing at the beach and going to Disneyland. It was so much fun just being all together.

I still can't believe we got a good picture from a camera on a tripod and a timer with this many little kids! Wow!

Oh how I wish baby Cash was looking at the camera. In all of my dozens of shots of this picture, not one of them had Cash's face. Cute kids! (cropped to 8x10)

For the first time in 3 years all the grand kids were together! They had a blast!

(cropped to 5x7)

American Girl Doll Clothes Patterns

2011-01-05T10:14:00.006-07:00

I found this web site that has official clothes patterns for Amrerican Girl Dolls clothes that they no longer make. Here is the link: http://www.agplaythings.com/AG%20Patterns/DollDressPatterns.html

This coat I made from the Rain Slicker pattern and just made a couple of adjustments to it. Now I have to make one for Haley's doll. She said she wants more of a spring time jacket, so we'll see. This is a good basic pattern that could even be used for a robe or a dress (use the open side for the back with a zipper).

Family

2010-12-01T00:27:00.005-07:00

I wish I could freeze her at this age forever!

This was at Brenda and Adam's wedding reception. I can't believe after all the work I went through making these three dresses--this is basically the only picture of them in them. I guess I could still take more pictures, except now there's snow outside. And two out of the three headbands have come up missing. Arrgh! All in all, it was worth it though.

All 37 of us!

Alyssa and Grandpa

Haley and Kaya

Skirts!

2010-11-21T20:00:00.003-07:00

I haven't posted for awhile, and this is what I've been up to (besides re-painting the whole main area of my house). I wish I could take credit for these DARLING skirts, but Megan Searle made them. I've been making headbands, flowers and other hair "things". Megan is selling these skirts and she has a WHOLE bunch of other fabrics/colors and even sizes for Alyssa (18 months). If you are interested in a skirt you can email Megan at alldolledupgirl@gmail.com or see her blog at alldolledupgirl.blogspot.com.

Haley loves getting her picture taken and these pictures make her look like a TEENAGER! She is growing up too fast!

Brenda's Bridal Photo Shoot

2010-10-09T19:28:00.009-07:00

I was lucky enough to take Brenda's bridal photos today (Nate's little sis). I'll post some here for the family near and far to look at--I'm assuming Adam doesn't look at this blog, hopefully we're okay. What a beautiful bride she is!

Birthday Carnival!

2010-09-12T12:53:00.006-07:00

Since Haley and Raegan only have two days between their birthdays, and since they have pretty much the same friends, we decided to do a joint birthday bash. It was a ton of fun. We had about 35 kids, 48 hot dogs, lots of messy (BLUE!) cotton candy, 1 giant bounce castle, 48 cupcakes, 2 watermelons, 4 gallons of lemonade, way too many nice presents, and a LOT of sunshine!

We had a ticket booth so when the kids came in we could stamp their hand and give them tickets to use at the carnival and then go through the balloon gate. It was surprising to me how literal the kids used the tickets. When they ran out they would come and asked me for more tickets so they could play something else. They loved the tickets a lot more than I ever expected. They also had fun pretending to "work" at the different booths that we made. We had the ticket booth, hot dog stand, sweet shoppe, and they also took turns being in charge of running the games. We also had a CD playing in the background of carnival type music I put together. Haley and Raegan agreed that the blow up bounce castle was their favorite.

A combination of ages, boys/girls, and interests... the "carnival" theme seemed like a good option for everyone to have fun. We played Tic, Tac, Toss where they had to toss coins to get three in a row. Then we had the standard bean bag throw as well as a ring toss. I decided to put points on each of the tops of the bottles and a "Leader Board" to keep track of the score to award the Blue Ribbon winner.

Haley

2010-09-03T23:06:00.000-07:00

I can't believe my little girl is turning 7 next week! She is growing up right before my eyes. She is so much fun, so sweet, and so happy! She is such a big help to me and so responsible. She is growing too fast! I love you, Haley!

New Hair Cut

2010-08-31T09:54:00.004-07:00

Raegan got a major haircut so I had to take an updated picture of her. So cute!

For anyone who is interested, this is the picture before I edited it. I used Picasa and Picnik, both free on the internet.

Early Birthday

2010-08-03T19:34:00.004-07:00

Haley & Raegan both have birthdays coming up, but since we had

a family reunion, we decided to give this new ATV to them early. Haley is a little hot rod!

Haley & Raegan riding on our street with their best friends, Hayden and Noah. Watch out!

San Diego

2010-07-01T13:58:00.001-07:00

Nate had a conference for work in San Diego. I wanted to come along and I brought Alyssa (since we had just left her two weeks ago for Hawaii, I was afraid she would never forgive me if I left her again).

You can always count on Nate to find the best ice cream in town. Wonder why we're wearing jackets? I don't think it got over 69 degrees the whole time. Maybe only for a few minutes. It was a lot cooler than I planned for. It was still fun though.

There is a hilarious story behind this picture. Several times this weekend I had people telling me what a cute baby Alyssa is and like 7 or 8 people actually asked if they could take her picture. Alyssa was loving all the attention everywhere we went. She started waving at everyone, smiling and being her cute self. Well, our last day there we went for a walk and these cute Chinese ladies (no english) asked me if they could take her picture. So they did and it was so funny because they also wanted me to take their pictures with her with their cameras. They wanted so many pictures. I couldn't stop laughing I thought it was so funny. They were hilarious!

Alyssa was my buddy the whole time. She was a great sport. We spent a lot of time here at Seaport Village, Fashion Valley mall and all over historic downtown San Diego. We walked everywhere and had a great time. She love being out and about.

We checked Nate in at the conference the day before it started and Alyssa was once again turning heads. Somebody gave her the cute sticker (fitting for the HR conference). There were between 11,000-15,000 people at the conference! The biggest HR conference in the world. Nate really enjoyed it.

SLC and Hangin' With Dwight

2010-07-01T13:17:00.001-07:00

We were in SLC for a work meeting and Dwight, who lives in Virginia, was in town (for their Dad's 70th birthday), so--we got to hang out with him for the evening! It was great. We had pizza (after much consultation from the iphone and the "urban spoon" app), we walked around Temple Square, toured the Church History Library, walked on the roof of the Conference Center, and listened to the Tabernacle Choir as they rehearsed. It was fun being with Dwight. The kids LOVE him to pieces, as we all do!

We went and listened for a few minutes as the Tabernacle Choir was practicing in the Conference Center. The people who work there said some practices they'll get 4,000 stop in to listen! From the look on Raegan's face you can tell she enjoyed it!

Summer Photo

2010-06-20T22:18:00.000-07:00

Alyssa loves being outside and eating popsicles. I love this photo of her.

Happy 10th Anniversary - Hawaii

2010-06-19T20:09:00.003-07:00

We spent our 10th Anniversary on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. It couldn't have been better! The weather was great and we enjoyed every minute of it. We really tried to see all that we could on the island. Nate surprised me with someone giving me this lei flower necklace at the airport when we first got there.

This is the famous beach from our favorite show, Lost. This beach was way out in the middle of no where. Nothing is out this way except for an Air Force Air Field. This is the beach where the Lost plane crash happened. It was great seeing it in person! We also saw the little cabins that were used by "the others". They are owned by a youth camp. It was funny seeing kids running around. I almost expected the smoke monster to come out from behind the trees.

We got authentic Shave Ice (that's how Hawaiian's say it, not "Shaved Ice") at Matsumoto's in the town of Haleiwa on the north side of the island. It was really good! There were pictures of Hugo and Jin Su Kwon on the wall from Lost. We (mostly Nate) went golfing at Ko'Olau Golf Club in Hawaii as well. This course is ranked one of the hardest public courses in the country and the most beautiful in Hawaii. The scenery was breathtaking. I took 250 pictures during those 18 holes. It was amazing!

This was the gorgeous view from our balcony. The ocean is behind the palm trees but doesn't show up very good in this picture. At night there were torches lit everywhere. We stayed at Marriott's Ko'Olina's Beach Club. I highly recommend this place. It had private beaches with amazing lagoons. It was such a neat resort. There is no other place on the island like this. Everywhere else is very crowded. This was the oasis we came for.

This is the view from the top of Diamond Head. This big crater was used by the military (like 100 years ago) and there were bunkers all over. We hiked up to the top and the views were spectacular in every direction. You could even see some of the other islands in the distance.

Another great thing was that pretty much every meal we had was served with a side of fresh pineapple.

We visited the Dole Plantation and saw a variety of pineapples they have there. Mmmm.

We also went hiking in the beautiful Waimea Valley and swam up to a water fall. We saw all the sites at Pearl Harbor as well which was pretty neat. We took advantage of every minute and saw two movies while we were there. Two thumbs up for Iron Man 2 and Robin Hood! One of the biggest highlights of the island for me was the Polynesian Cultural Center. The place is amazing! We saw the center, had a luau dinner and then a show that was REALLY good. The only thing that I wanted to do, but didn't get to, was go to the Laie Temple. It was closed for renovations. So, we saw it from the outside.

Well, after 10 years, 3 daughters, 5 moves, a few college degrees, more wrinkles than I want to count, and even more gray hair than Nate wants to count (of what he has left), lots of fun trips, many sleepless nights with kids, and all the memories that come with it, it has been a wonderful 10 years! I feel so lucky to be married to my best friend, who still plays jokes on me all too often and brightens my day--I love you, Nate!

Go wild!

2010-05-23T08:53:00.002-07:00

Last weekend we had such a great time in Yellowstone with our great friends, the Hawkes family. Our kids are all the same age and get along together so well! We have been to Yellowstone before during the winter and summer, but the spring was really different and great as well!

It was so much fun being able to see all the baby wildlife. We probably saw 15 bear (black and grizzley) tons of buffalo, TONS of elk, a bald eagle, big horn sheep, antelope, only a few deer, and a wood pecker from a distance. We saw a wolf den, and waited for them to come back out (we just missed the mom and pupps) but they never did. Here are the kids enjoying the park:

These are all the kids (this was the only one I had of all of them) Joseph wasn't too happy to pose on a big rock. But they all had a great time and so much fun together!

Almost ONE!

2010-04-09T08:23:00.003-07:00

Don't you love the drool on the chin?

I just took these of Alyssa this morning. I can't believe my baby will be ONE in a few days! She is so much fun and is so happy. She has a smile that brightens the room! She is almost walking! She surprised me and took a few steps for one of these pictures! I am having so much fun working on her baby book on mixbook.com--the coolest site for making books!

Doe a Deer!

2010-03-31T14:25:00.002-07:00

This is the view out our back window. We've been watching this herd pretty much every day for the last month or so. It has been fun for the kids to spot them and watch them.

Snowmobiling Yellowstone

2010-02-16T10:19:00.007-07:00

Nate and I went snowmobiling in Yellowstone National Park yesterday. For those of you who don't know, you can't go into the Park in the winter without a guide. So we went with a tour group. It was great. We saw a lot of wildlife and we couldn't have asked for better weather. It was a great time!

(click to enlarge this pic)

Can you see the look on this buffalo's face? We had to go passed him just a couple of yards from his big head! I think he was deciding if he should ram us and my camera in his face. Luckily, he decided to conserve his energy as he was climbing a big hill.

The Answer To My Problems

2010-01-28T21:37:00.000-07:00

I have to share this site because I have been looking for something like this for a LONG time. It is digital scrap booking but you don't have to buy any software or pay fees to use. All you do is pay for them to print out your books and you can use all their CUTE layouts! The printing prices are the best I've seen and the layouts really are cute. I have done a lot of research, so here you go-- check it out.

http://www.mixbook.com

Twilight Spoof

2010-01-27T12:57:00.002-07:00

This is a funny spoof on the Twilight movie and LDS singles. I got a kick out of it! Thanks Cort!

http://vimeo.com/8009598

Bitter Sweet

2010-01-25T08:39:00.001-07:00

For the last 18 1/2 months Alyssa and I have been attached to each other in one way or another (9 months of pregnancy and 9 1/2 nursing) and it has been almost 24 hours now since I have nursed her, and she doesn't even seem to care! In that way she is totally opposite of Haley and Raegan. I am happy in some ways, and sad at the same time. My baby is growing up and even crawling now.

Clothing the Naked with a Little Plastic Surgery

2010-01-19T16:16:00.006-07:00

I got tired of naked Barbies laying around, so I painted swim suits, camisoles, and underwear on these Barbies. For anyone else who wants to try it, I just used craft paint (2-3 coats) and sealed it with Mod Podge (at least 4 coats). It dries smooth and shiny! The girls are giving them the test so we'll see how the paint holds up! There is probably a better product out there to use, I just wanted to use things I already had. You can spot which Barbies were mine from 20+ years ago. They have wider rib cages. I think Barbie needs to change the shape just a bit, don't you? No wonder girls have a hard time with their body image. Some people choose to avoid the Barbie thing altogether (and that's fine too), but I had so much fun playing with them as a little girl, that I have just chosen to be selective in what I buy, and to teach my girls how they should dress them. They know if they (the barbies) are wearing a tube top, they need a jacket on, and if they are wearing a mini dress, they use it like a long shirt and put pants under it. We have made some clothes, and when I see decent outfits at the store, I grab them. It puts a smile on my face to hear them playing, and hearing one girl say to the other "that's not modest". They will have to learn this lesson sometime, why not now? And hey, at least they aren't naked now.

Weekend In Utah

2010-01-18T09:24:00.001-07:00

Last weekend Nate had a meeting in Salt Lake, so we went along. While he was busy at meetings we went to the mall, out to eat, and visited Temple Square, and Visitor's Center. One highlight for the kids was going to the top of the Joseph Smith Memorial Building and looking out the big window down at the temple. Some sweet sister missionaries from Nepal and China took us around the Visitor's Center. There is definitely a special spirit with missionaries and in that Visitor's Center.

We stayed at the Grand America Hotel which was awesome! We had the big pool to ourselves and had a great time. The kids LOVE to swim!

We forgot a swimming diaper for Alyssa and she really wanted to get in. We let her splash from the side.

Our room had a few sets of these beautiful mirrored doors and it was so cute to see Alyssa admire that cute baby in the mirror. So adorable!

After being in SL we went down to Orem to see the fam. We went ice skating at the 7 Peaks Arena where the Olympic Hockey games were played. They had these awesome walkers for little kids to skate with and Raegan did AWESOME with it. She just took right off practically running! I thought we were going to have lots of tears that night but it actually went surprisingly great!

Haley's uncle Joe and uncle Dan. They were so great with her and went around with her the whole night. Especially Dan. He hardly left her side. Haley did really great. They really wanted to go ice skating and I'm glad it was fun for them.

Nate and Haley. I was out there too, for the record.

Alyssa Is Nine Months!

2010-01-11T15:20:00.005-07:00

I can't believe it. The time goes by so fast. Alyssa is at the CUTEST stage right now. She waves her hand to say hello, she is scooting all over the floor (almost crawling) running around in her walker, and doing lots of jibber-jabbering. She is alway so happy and is such a sweetheart!

Check Out This Recipe...

2010-01-08T12:14:00.001-07:00

Check out the yummy recipe I just posted on our other blog (Bigler's Belly Pleasers). It is the Jonny Carino's Bowtie Festival under Main Dishes. It's a good one, thanks Stacey!

http://biglersrecipes.blogspot.com/

Alyssa Is Six Months

2009-10-28T11:42:00.001-07:00

I can't believe how time flies! Alyssa is already six months old. She is always so happy and is pretty easy going. She brings such joy to my day. She is my little sweetheart. If only I could freeze her at this stage for just a little longer.

Sweet Baby

2009-09-05T06:55:00.001-07:00

Alyssa is smiling at a month old and is looking at her toys.

Alyssa's Blessing Day

2009-09-05T06:30:00.005-07:00

June 7, 2009

Alyssa was so peaceful that day. During the blessing she looked up at her daddy, watching and listening to him.

Mommy and baby

Proud parents of sweet baby Alyssa

This is the Garrett group that all came from Utah

This is the Bigler group. About half of the people live in Idaho and the other in Utah. We felt so blessed and lucky to have so much support from so many family members. I think there was a total of about 50 people there that day -- all immediate family members!

Alyssa, My Baby Doll

2009-09-05T06:25:00.001-07:00

Here is Alyssa on May 30 she is just over one month old. What a cute little baby doll. I love little girls and dressing them up. She is so sweet!

Haley and Alyssa, there is definitely already a resemblance! Cute sisters!

Memorial Day Weekend Camp Out

2009-09-05T05:47:00.007-07:00

Every year we have a camp out over Memorial Day weekend and this year out of desperation to find any place to camp (everywhere was very crowded) we camped at Devil's Creek. Since I have known the Biglers we have NEVER camped in a "campground" but this year it was the last resort. Marci and Alyssa opted to stay indoors in Utah because Alyssa was only a month old. Everybody else had a great time in the mud and rain! This is Raegan waiting for a ride!

Cousins: Haley, Rylee, Kamille, Raegan playing in Devil's Creek Reservoir

Motorcycle man Mark, Brenda, and Ann

Dwight and Joe acting like their normal selves :)

Haley's Preschool Graduation

2009-09-04T19:07:00.003-07:00

Haley attended Little Einstein's Preschool with Mrs. Grover. She had such a great year and really loved her teacher. In fact, when Mrs. Grover told her students it was the last day she told me that Haley got teared up. She adored Mrs. Grover!

Mrs. Grover

They learned so many cute songs with actions this year and they were able to perform a few of them at the graduation. Good job Haley!

Haley's Spring Ballet Performance

2009-09-04T18:19:00.009-07:00

This was Haley's second year at Petite Ballet. The recital was called "Corduroy" after the children's book. Haley's class was dressed as dolls. Haley is so beautiful and graceful. She had a great year and a fun time with many of her friends in the class.

Haley, Ms Kristen Clayton, Hayley Anderson

Hayley Anderson, Haley, Cosette Cromwell, Aubrey Andrus, ?, ?, ?

Haley's Grandma Rae Bigler and Grandpa Bruce Bigler were able to come watch the performance!

Basement Pics

2009-06-19T11:10:00.009-07:00

I had people ask why I hadn't posted pics of our finished basement, and the reason is that I am not finished decorating it, but I don't know if I will ever be "finished" so here are pics of my work in progress:

The fireplace/tv rock wall that we built in the family room

The playhouse under the stairs. I am making shutters for that window and I will probably do some hand painting around this area. Isn't Raegan a cutie?

This is the wall opposite the rock wall. There is a built-in computer desk over there. We'll put cabinets there sometime.

This is the guest room. We did a cool raised ceiling that disguises where the ugly duct work was.

Bathroom. The toilet and bath are around the corner. We are tiling this floor this weekend.

Haley and Raegan's room. Above the flower over there I painted on the wall "Having a sister is always having a best friend." It doesn't really show up in the picture.

I need to get pictures of each of the girls to put in these frames over their beds. See, I have a lot to do still!? But it has been fun and we are glad to be to this point!

There is also a great storage room but I couldn't take pictures of it very good.

The Commercial

2009-06-08T21:16:00.003-07:00

There are two versions of the commercial. A 30 second version and a 60. This is the 30 second commercial spot with Alyssa being rocked by the nurse and Nate bathing Alyssa with a different nurse.

Alyssa's Commerical for EIRMC

2009-04-26T14:12:00.004-07:00

Just three days after Alyssa was born, she was filmed and photographed for a commercial for Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center (where Nate works). She was in the scene above being rocked by a nurse and in another scene where Nate was filmed as a new dad learning how to bathe a new baby. I'm not sure when it will be airing on TV but we'll have to keep our eyes out for it!

Sleeping Baby

2009-04-26T14:04:00.004-07:00

I know this picture is dark, but it is cute. When Alyssa is just waking up with her eyes closed I whisper close to her saying, "Alyssa, Alyssa" and she starts smiling a lot. She pretty much keeps her eyes closed about 22 hours of the day. She is so sweet that sometimes I just sit and stare at her and kiss her sweet face while she sleeps.

Baby Alyssa Is Born!

2009-04-23T12:47:00.009-07:00

April 14th at 7:30 pm Alyssa was born! She weighed 6 lbs. 1 oz. and was 20" long. She has dark hair just like her sisters did and some cute dimples.

Mom and baby with swollen faces.

She is a gorgeous, tiny baby. We love her so much and we are so glad to have her in our family.

Haley and Raegan are excited to have another sister! They love to pat her head and hold her when they can.

Because I had a scheduled induction I was lucky enough to have my mom there at the hospital with us. She was able to stay and help me for 9 days. We had a lot of fun and she was a HUGE help to me.

My sister, Michelle and her little boy, Cade were also able to come visit for a few days. It was a lot of fun with them here and my girls had a great time with them. Michelle was also a big help to me. You can never have too many helping hands!

Easter Dresses

2009-04-23T12:44:00.001-07:00

Haley and Raegan were excited to wear their new Easter dresses today.

Our Rock Wall Ordeal

2009-04-10T08:52:00.014-07:00

Here is the wall framed in. We installed these mantle shelves that we made from big beams (from our neighbor, Cody). We cut them, sanded them down and distressed the edges and then stained them (only the one on the right is stained in this picture)

Here it is with sheet rock. You can see the dust in the air!

We hired the Ferney and Searle kids to come carry all these rocks from the garage to the basement. They did awesome!

Nate's dad and brother, Mark, came to help us get the "scratch coat" of cement on the wall. Nate and I did the horrible process of cutting and screwing in metal lathing over the entire surface before the scratch coat. It was a major pain and really hard to work with.

Now we were ready to start hanging the rock. We were lucky to have lots of help. Nate's sisters, Sandi, Ann, and Brenda came from Utah to help and we had Matt and Natalie come up from Blackfoot to help. We couldn't have done it without them!

Matt was the designated rock cutter and morter putter-onner. He did a great job. Sandi, Brenda and Natalie worked on this side of the wall.

Ann and I did this side. That is me with my big, pregnant belly.

After we hung the rock Nate and I did the LONG process of grouting in between every rock. This takes a lot longer than you would think. Nate and I made a pretty good team. Nate used a giant cake decorating bag (made for mortar) and he squoze cement into each crack and after it was almost dry, I went over it, smoothing it out and trying to make it look good. Then, after it dried we went back with a big brush and water and scrubbed each rock to make it all clean.

The final process involved Nate and a gas mask. Nate sprayed lacquer over the whole surface to seal all the rocks and bring out their deeper color. It leaves kind of a wet, finished look.

This is the wall almost finished. Nate still has to lacquer the bottom of the hearth and the hearth stones. We ran out of lacquer so he will do it tomorrow morning. We have to do it when we can leave the house because the fumes are so strong. What a long process, but overall I would say it was worth it. I just wouldn't want to do it again being 8 months pregnant! Thanks to everyone who helped us!

What We've Been Up To

2009-02-19T19:08:00.007-07:00

We've been pretty busy lately to say the least. For the last few months we have been working hard on finishing our basement. We've done a lot of the work ourselves, with the help of Nate's brothers, dad, and a few of our neighbors. We've hired out the sheet rock and they should be done texturing the walls by Tuesday. Then we will be doing all the finish work and painting and installing the rock for the fireplace/entertainment area. We are planning to have it all finished before April, hopefully with plenty of time to spare before the baby is born.

This is Nate's brother, Joe, the electrician who came and spent several days helping us and teaching Nate how to wire our basement. Thanks Joe!

Haley was a good helper. She picked up garbage, vacumed, and swept the floors. This is her in her and Raegan's new room.

Nate's brothers Mark and Matt came to help us hang sheet rock so that we could finish the storage room ahead of the rest of the basement. After that day, we decided we needed some professionals to make this big job go faster.

Nate's dad and brother Mark came and helped us get our plumbing done. We decided to rip into the concrete floor to move the bathtub drain a couple of feet. I'm so glad Nate is willing to go along with my crazy ideas! He has worked SO hard and when all the help has left, he keeps working and working. He has learned a lot. Thanks honey!

These are the closets in the family room. They were very tricky next to a finished wall and a dropped ceiling part way through it. Boy are we glad we are done with framing!

I will post pictures in a few days when the sheet rock is finished.

Merry Christmas

2009-01-01T15:42:00.003-07:00

We had Christmas Eve at our house with Nate's parents, Mark, Dwight and Brenda. We had a great cast for our Nativity pageant!

The Air Computer (you've heard of playing an air guitar?)

2008-12-19T12:25:00.006-07:00

Today at lunch we were sitting, eating and listening to Christmas music. We were listening to "Winter Wonderland" and we were moving our hands like we were playing different instruments to the beat of the music. I said I was playing the bells. Raegan said, "Haley is playing the drums and I am playing the computer!" I got a kick out of that one.

Another Idaho Winter, It's Officially Here!

2008-12-18T10:01:00.006-07:00

We had such nice weather for so long and then all of the sudden--BAM--we're in the dead of another brutal winter. When I took Haley to school this morning at 9am it was 1 degree without wind chill. Winters here mean lots of snow shoveling and sledding which the kids love. They have had much more fun this year being pulled behind the 4 wheeler. Last year there was more whining and crying. This year they are absulotely loving it! The only bad thing is that by the time Nate gets home from work it is dark and REALLY cold. We just bundle up really good and enjoy it. We got these good face masks for all of us and I put Raegan's on and she said to Haley "Give me all your money". She said we looked like bad guys. We were warm though! It is funny because so much snow sticks for so long that we kind of forget what our yard and neighborhood really look like underneath all the snow!

Last year they closed school several times, and (if I remember right) they don't close it unless it is -30 with the wind chill. Yes I said 30 BELOW! Burrrrrr!

Haley's New Do!

2008-12-18T09:48:00.002-07:00

Haley's hair was very long down her back and we've chopped it! Actually Haley's Aunt Michelle cut it (Haley has two professional Aunts to choose from who are awesome at doing hair Michelle and Gina! Gina was on her honeymoon). I think it makes Haley look about two years older! It is absolutely DARLING on her!

Oh Christmas Tree

2008-12-18T09:41:00.003-07:00

It seems like every year I do my tree a little different. I thought I would put a picture of it on here in case anyone else is into this like I am. :) It is a pretty big tree so when I took a picture of the whole thing you couldn't really see anything. Anyway, here is my tree this year. Since I took this picture I've added some giant candy canes to it. I love decking the halls!

Another Little Princess

2008-11-26T19:24:00.004-07:00

We had our highly anticipated ultra sound yesterday to find out we will have ANOTHER daughter! I can already tell she's just as beautiful as her sisters. We are so excited and feel so blessed to have her come to our family! Haley and Raegan are pretty excited too! Haley told me that with another girl I'm going to be doing hair all day long. So I asked which one of them wants to have short hair. We will have to do something about that. I love little girls! I can keep making more bows and buying dresses knowing they will get good use out of them!

I am finally done with the majority of my nausea and vomiting! And my weight gain is right on track (I don't know if that is such a good thing) I consistently gain 1 pound every week the entire time. That was the way I was with Haley and Raegan, and it seems to be the same pattern with this one! So yes, I'm already up 20 pounds!

Happy Halloween!

2008-11-04T16:01:00.003-07:00

This year Haley & Raegan's costumes come by way of accessories first. We found their DARLING shoes and head bands at the Disney store. That is how Haley decided to be Minnie Mouse and Raegan was Alice in Wonderland. I had to make the rest of the costumes from there. The best part about it is that they will keep wearing these to play in, in fact, Raegan is wearing her blue dress right now! I don't know if you can see Haley's shoes, but they are mini "high heel" shoes! So hilariously cute and this outfit really does fit Haley's personality!
Raegan is a darling Alice in Wonderland. When she is in costume, she loves to be addressed by her character name. What a cute Alice!

Another Successful Hunt... in MY opinion

2008-10-23T09:33:00.007-07:00

October 15-18 Nate went with his parents and brothers on the annual hunting trip. They didn't get anything...so in my opinion, the trip was a success! I don't mind Nate going, but I don't really like it when he comes home with a huge animal that I am pretty much forced to eat for the next year. I don't mind elk roast, or ground elk (I mix it with beef), but I can only take so much. And and I am SURELY glad he didn't get a deer. I would not even pay for it to get butchered. It is expensive! I love this hat Nate is sporting. It looked like the beard on his face by the time he came home. He says it is really warm, and I believe him.

Where they go hunting there have been a lot of black bear sitings and Nate found some tracks. I'm just glad that he had a gun with him!

This is Nate and brother-in-law Matt Andreasen. They are sitting, aka, "hunting". Matt compared hunting to fishing, and I agree. You do a lot of sitting. They have a lot of fun riding 4-wheelers around and I told Nate that is probably why they don't get anything. The engines are so loud they scare the animals away. Duh! I'm glad they always have a fun time and look forward every year to sitting in the freezing cold, waking up every morning at 5:30am and I am happy at home in my nice warm bed.

They don't call em' Idaho Potatoes for nothin'!

2008-10-09T19:14:00.006-07:00

No, these are not small loaves of bread these are POTATOES from our garden! Harvesting potatoes is so much fun! It is like when you are a kid digging in those sand bins where someone has hid treasures and you have to sift through until you find something. At first I was finding small, and regular sized potatoes, feeling a little disappointed. Then, when I almost got to the end I reached in, feeling around and I pulled out these monsters! I told Raegan to come see what I pulled out of the ground and she said screaming, "Oh my gosh!". We had 5 that were this huge size. I think one of these could feed our whole family!

This was such a fun summer with good food and lessons from the garden. I've never lived anywhere long enough to be able to set up a garden this size, so it was a real learning opportunity. I'd grown a few things here and there, but this was great! We always had great gardens as kids and I really wanted that for mine. We had carrots, LOTS of tomatoes (some were soft ball size), potatoes, peas, strawberries, beans, cucumbers, lettuce (really good), and some pumpkins. We had a great harvest and learned a lot of what to do and not do for next year. This was a blast! I highly recommend raised garden boxes to anyone thinking of having a garden. I only pulled LITERALLY probably 10 weeds all summer. I had great soil and a good drip system. It really was fool proof.
Corn from my garden was not good, or maybe I should say it was so good that all the bugs ate it. Whenever I needed corn shucked I set it on the back porch and most of the neighborhood kids would come running to help. They love helping with the corn!

We will try to get more pumpkins next year! The pumpkin vines grew like crazy, I should have kept them under control from the start. We did have a bunch of tiny green ones that never got big enough in time. It seems like every time I went out to check on them the vines had grown a few more feet! It felt like I was pruning them like crazy, but I guess it wasn't enough. Oh well, look at that cute smile!

The Twilight Saga

2008-10-01T19:29:00.011-07:00

I just finished reading the Twilight saga--the four book series. I LOVED it to say the least! If any of you are thinking about reading this series, I would say "do it!"

Although, I do think it is for mature readers (not your 12 year old or anything).

I can't wait to see the first movie coming out November 21!

Great story, great plot, great characters--I loved it, can you tell?

Bigler Baby #3!

2008-09-29T14:53:00.003-07:00

I guess I should make my announcement official and post it on my blog. We are having a baby due April 20th! I'm hoping he/she is not born on that day since it is also Hitler's birthday. Haley was almost born on 9/11 so we are making close calls. All kidding aside, we are SO excited for this baby! I am 11 weeks along.

The girls are very excited for this baby. If we say a prayer without blessing the baby and saying that the girls (especially Raegan) will be good big sisters, we have to say the prayer all over again. Raegan I think is the most excited. She tells everyone wherever we go. She even said last night that she wanted to help me eat so she could feed the baby. She wants to name the baby "intsy". I don't know where she got that from.

I had my first appointment almost two weeks ago and we were able to see on the ultra sound the tiny baby and it's little heart beating. It's really in there! Anyway, we are pretty excited to say the least! April is going to take a long time to get here for us!

Missionary Mark

2008-09-29T14:41:00.002-07:00

Mark just left the MTC to go to the Little Rock, Arkansas misson for two years. He is going to do awesome! He has had two older brothers and dad missionaries to look up to. We love you, Mark!

Cabin Weekend!

2008-09-29T14:17:00.010-07:00

Part of our wonderful July included a weekend at Timberlakes Estates in Heber Canyon. We were there from July 11-14. Nate had a conference at the Zermatt Resort in Midway (just a 10 minute drive to the cabin) so it worked out perfectly. Nate and I stayed at Zermatt for two nights and then went to the cabin Saturday afternoon (after our kayaking trip!).

Thanks mom and dad for a great weekend!I have never seen so many moose in one trip in my entire life. We saw probably 6 moose and several deer from this awesome view!

Cade and Grandpa. Cade was a little scared of 4-wheeling.

Or is he scared of Grandpa's goggles?
Aunt Gina with Matthew and Cade. The kids LOVE her!
Haley and Jackson and Cade. We brought our 4-wheeler and used up every ounce of gas we had! We wished we would have had more! There were a lot of beautiful roads and lakes to see here!
I can't say enough about the good food we had while we were here! Each family was in charge of a dinner and boy were they good!

Nate and Cade starting up the brickettes for a dutch oven dessert! Mmmmm!
Amanda brought a fun craft for the kids. The kids arranged colored beads into shapes and then melted the beads together to make fun shapes! They loved it!
I cannot document this weekend without mentioning Rock Band. This is Mark being very serious about his guitar performance! We had a great time also playing games and watching movies! Great times!

July was a BLAST!

2008-09-29T13:27:00.011-07:00

We arrived in Utah late on July 3rd and woke up bright and early (as tradition) and went to the Provo Fredom Festival Parade at the traditional spot by Great-Grandma Garrett's house. This is the best spot because we know we are sure to sit with relatives from the Garrett AND Fuhriman sides! We had a special treat this year because Brad and Amanda and their family were able to come from Texas!

Haley and Daddy's self portrait Michelle, Gina and Mom holding Matthew.
We are related to most of the people in this picture! What a group!

After the parade we went over to Uncle Brigham & Aunt Julie Young's house in Provo for a picnic/BBQ. We decided we need to make this an annual event! When Grandma and Grandpa were living we used to swim at their pool every July 4th. Now we need new traditions! The Young's have a beautiful backyard, great for slippin' slide! Way to go, Haley!

Haley, Ali, Raegan, Jackson, Aunt Jana Wheadon, Grandma and Grandpa

Ali, Grandpa and Haley

July 6th we celebrated Matthew's first birthday. Matthew was born like 3 months early (I can't remember exactly how many weeks) and has overcome a lot and is just perfect! He has the CUTEST smile! Happy Birthday Matthew!

Camping With Searles!

2008-08-20T15:42:00.013-07:00

June 13th we went camping with our neighbors, the Searles. We went near Palisades Reservoir which isn't a far drive from here. We had a great time!

You can't go camping without bubbles, right Raegan?
Ryker and Raegan loved climbing these little trees pretending like they are monkeys... ...and when they weren't in the trees they were sitting on the 4-wheeler pretending they were driving.

We had a great camping spot that was wide open, but with trees and a short ride away from the river.

I had to convince Raegan to stop laying in the grass by showing her the huge ants close by!

Kenasyn and Haley, aka, "beach babes"

Busy Summer

2008-07-01T14:33:00.004-07:00

Nate is playing softball on a men's league team and a co-ed team with people from the hospital. I have been happy to fill-in when needed! I have been playing on a tennis team with five other ladies. We have had matches twice a week for about six weeks. Each match consisted of two sets of doubles and a singles. It was SO much fun! Haley and Raegan have enjoyed coming to all the games. We love summer time!

Nate has been hitting several home runs this year and made some pretty amazing catches, ones that look like they are out of reach, and then somehow he gets there and makes the catch!

T-Ball

2008-07-01T14:16:00.006-07:00

This summer I had the fun opportunity of coaching Haley's T-ball team. We had several kids from our ward and some were friends of friends. It was a great group and we had a fun time! It was a pretty busy season--we had games twice a week for the month of June.

Our team was a little younger than most of the other teams, but they learned a lot and I think by the end of the season we even got a few outs! Fortunately in T-ball we get to bat 10 people each inning, regardless of outs!

Emily, Kenasyn, Aubrey, Kace, Ali, Kyler, Zach, Haley, Rilee, Paxton, Hailee, Hayden, Payton, Brody (not shown, Kamrin)

Tag!

2008-06-12T11:24:00.005-07:00

I was tagged by my friend, and now tennis buddy, Stephanie Godfrey.

1. What time do my kids wake up? Around 6:30--even if they go to bed at 10!

2. On a good night, what time do my kids go to sleep? 8:15 but lately more like 9:30!!
3. How long have I been a mom? It will be 5 years on September 10

4. How old was I when I became a mom? I was 23
5. What's my favorite kids' show? I like the movie "Enchanted". We love to dance and sing the songs together.
6. My least favorite kids' show? Sponge Bob
7. Favorite chore? I like doing yard work. Is that a chore?
8. Favorite meal to cook? tacos they are easy and all the kids love them
9. What's the meal cooked most often? I make tacos a lot because they are quick and yummy.
10. What's your kids' favorite meal? pizza night
11. What's my favorite thing that Nate does with the kids? Running around the house tickling them.
12. What are the 5 things that make me smile while being a mom? 1: Watching the kids play really cute with each other 2: Seeing the kids stand next to their growth chart and wanting to see how big they've grown (they do this about every-other day) 3: Watching them learn to do something new--especially when it was hard to begin with. 4: When the kids obey. 5: When they tell me they love me.

13. Where do you want to take your kids someday? when they are older-- to see historical sites back east and church history sites.
14. When was the last time Nate and I went out - without kids? June 6, our anniversary, we went to the temple and Olive Garden.
15. One thing you never said you do as a mom? Let my kids scream and cause a scene in public.
16. Favorite past time with my kids? I love holidays like July 4, Christmas, Thanksgiving, especially when they get to experience something for the first time. I also love camping with them and going on rides on the 4-wheeler.
17. Favorite quality that my mom has? She is full of patience! I don't know how she raised so many kids with so much patience!
18. Advice for new moms? Eating food off the floor is not going to kill them (Steph, I agree)
19. What's a scary or heartbreaking moment you've had? Haley's stomach problems she has had for the past 2 years. It is hard to see your kids go through something and you just want to take it away. Also, watching Haley or Raegan falling down the stairs--it is horrible to watch and it happens so fast that you can't do anything about it!
20. When was the last time your kids said I love you? Probably last night before bed.

I am going to tag: Megan (get you blogging again), Amanda and Michelle

EIGHT Years With My Sweetheart!

2008-06-05T19:29:00.005-07:00

June 6 is our EIGHT year wedding anniversary! After two kids, five homes, two graduations (since our wedding day), a lot of camping trips, job changes, sleepless nights with kids, rice crispy treats, pranks, road trips (mostly to and from Idaho), fishing, many bowls of ice cream shared, a LOT of home improvement projects (some crazier than others), weekly pizza night, singing, many Christmases, BYU games, birthdays, our memorable trip to Cancun, FHE's, all the mountains and caves we've explored together, laughing, soft ball playing, Lake Powell memories, movie making, knee surgery, tonsillectomy, tennis lessons, watching our sweet daughters grow, frozen water line repair, trips to Cali, all the MANY game nights, roller coaster riding, nail-biting four wheeling adventures, 24 and Lost addictions, and all the ups and downs. . . I can say that I am more in love than ever before! I love you Nate!

Memorial Weekend Camping Trip

2008-05-27T16:17:00.017-07:00

(Almost) all the Biglers went camping for the annual Memorial weekend camping trip. Rain was in the forecast, but we were lucky enough to only get a few scattered showers...except for Monday when it POURED! We camped near the town of Downey, Idaho (which is kind of east of Malad).Haley took the above picture of herself. She's pretty good, eh?

We were near a really nice 4-wheeling trail that crossed a creek about six times, leading up to three beaver dams that were amazing! Those were some busy beavers!
This is Nate fixing his crash site. He likes to go on night rides, and one night he and Mark took off up the trail. Quite awhile later Nate came home with a story that included crashing into the corner of a tree and flying over the handle bars. After taking the tire apart and removing a large chunk of bark, it was up and running again for the next day.

Steep, muddy and potentially dangerous are music to Nate's ears. We go 4-wheeling in pairs, not only for the company, but because each 4-wheeler is equipped with a winch on the front to pull each other out when we get stuck! Nate's dad got stuck in a pretty big rut! They eventually made it to the top and the trail goes on for quite awhile. We turned back because of the high chances of being struck by lightning. It was a little scary driving on top of a mountain with a big piece of metal on my head riding on top of a big metal object! Not how I want to die! We did see a pretty big moose up there! And Nate saw a heard of deer on a different ride. It is always fun seeing wildlife!
Another memory that we will take from this trip was one night I was putting the kids to bed in the tent and heard what sounded like kids playing in the trees. Then I heard what sounded like either a fake or real animal call. It was pretty quiet, so I was listening for 'kid' noises and didn't hear anything. "Could it be an animal?" I thought remembering Nate's dad saw two mountain lions last time he was here. Then, I heard some quiet crunching of the forest ground outside my tent and some scary breathing. My heart was pumping! I heard Nate drive into camp and I starting yelling "something is behind my tent, I'm serious, get over here!" and Nate's dad had a big spot light that shined into the trees. My scary animal turned out to be some guys that were out there with a can and a rope (to make a bear call) and they were out to scare people. I thought it was pretty lame of them considering they looked too old to be pulling pranks on complete strangers! After yelling at them and chasing them away, my heart eventually slowed down. We think they were from a group that was partying in a nearby camp.

The kids loved piling on for their turn!

I think the good food is the main reason we go camping in the first place. It is not unusual to have a dinner that requires 6 or more dutch ovens! Grandma even singed her hair while lighting the grill! What sacrifice!
Haley and Raegan did very well going potty in the great outdoors! This is our lovely outhouse tent. It is a big step up from the tarp held up by ropes inbetween trees! I do miss the old toilet seat attached to the something-or-other above a big hole in the ground!

Hey, at least they look cute while being drenched with rain! The kids had fun that weekend riding bikes, walking down to the creek ("crik" as the Biglers call it), learning not to drink out of the creek (thank you Kendall), playing with glow sticks, blowing bubbles, they loved sleeping in their sleeping bags, and being with cousins!

We washed out hair with WARM water outside of Ann's camper! Thanks Ann! It was really refreshing!
Since we were camping over a Sunday, we had church together in the camp. I gave a thought, Mark led the music, Nate gave a talk, Kara and McKenzie did the children's storys, and Nate's dad bore his testimony. I think it was a good memory for everyone.

Preschool at the Zoo

2008-05-27T15:22:00.007-07:00

For the last day of preschool Haley's class went to the Idaho Falls Tautphaus Park Zoo. Raegan and mom went along to help.

This is Haley's Opps-A-Daisy Preschool class with Ms. Kymm. Haley had a great school year!

Thanks Ms. Kymm!

Haley's Spring Ballet Recital

2008-05-27T08:52:00.013-07:00

May 17, 2008 Haley had her Spring Ballet Recital entitled, "The Giving Tree" and Haley's class did a dance dressed like apples. They were the youngest class and definately the CUTEST!

The 'Apples' with Ms. Kristen Clayton. She is a great teacher and the girls adore her! Raegan is excited to start ballet. She loved seeing sister on stage!

I didn't take very many pictures of the actual performance because I was too busy watching it! But Nate did get it all on camera for hours of enjoyment!

This was the whole 'Petite Ballet' group! Too bad you can't see most of the kids.
Haley and her best friend, Kenasyn Searle. They do just about everything together.

We went to Leatherby's afterwards with our adopted family (the Searle's) to celebrate! Haley loves root beer floats! I just noticed we didn't get any pictures of dad--he was there too!

Our Backyard Progresses!

2008-05-21T16:15:00.010-07:00

Ever since the snow melted, we have been spending many countless hours working on our backyard. With the help from our AWESOME neighbor, Cody Searle, and Nate's brother, Mark, and Dad, we put in our sprinkler system. We have 1/2 acre lot, which is twice the size of our yard we did in Farmington. It has been a lot of work.

Mark and our other awesome neighbor, Doug McLaren, helped us bury our trampoline--actually, I hired a guy to dig the hole, but there was still a lot of work to get it perfectly into the ground. This time around (we did this in Farmington too) we lined the inside with 1/2" pressure-treated plywood. It actually worked pretty good.
Haley and Raegan didn't waste any time! They were excited to start jumping!

We built three 4'x10' garden boxes with a drip system to it. I still need to add the rest of my "good" dirt - based off of the square foot gardening method. I am excited!

We decided to save ourselves a couple thousand dollars and we planted our own grass seed. Nate is raking it into the dirt. We'll have to see how it turns out. By the way, before we seeded, I raked our ENTIRE yard to get all the rocks out! What a job! I like working outside, but that job got old really quick. I am glad we can take a little rest now, well, after I get my garden planted.

Last year we had a big retaining wall built around this area. This is our fire pit and walk-through garden spot. It is just big enough, but not too big to handle. I just ordered 5000 seeds for a pretty irish moss ground cover that will grow around most of this area.

Strawberry Jammin'!

2008-05-21T15:31:00.003-07:00

May 9, 2008 we found strawberries for $1.25 a pound, and since we just recently finished our last jar of homemade strawberry jam, we jumped at the chance! We made 15 jars of yummy jam! Haley loves to help. She was good at putting the strawberries into the blender, pushing the buttons, and stirring all the sugar! Raegan is a good helper too!

Gotta Love Idaho

2008-05-21T15:03:00.010-07:00

We visited Yellowstone Bear World on May 2, 2008. It is only about 20 minutes or so from our house (it is between Idaho Falls and Rexburg). We saw 37 bear, a heard of elk, a big moose, and a few deer. It was neat to see such amazing animals up close, and a good reminder that I NEVER want to come face to face with any bear in the wild! Haley & Raegan were a little nervous seeing these animals just a few feet from our car! I don't blame them!

Bear World has a small petting area (no, there are no bear here). Raegan LOVES seeing and petting all the animals. She freaked me out a little when she went running up to a bunch of angry, squaking geese!

Help, anyone!

2008-04-17T11:32:00.002-07:00

Does anyone know how you can print your blog like a scrapbook? I have been keeping up with my blog better than my scrapbooks lately (sad). Or, does anyone recommend any digital scrapbooking software or ideas? I am struggling with printing the digital scrapbooks and I just need ideas.

Raegan is a BIG girl!

2008-04-11T13:36:00.005-07:00

I have been wanting to start potty training for awhile now. Raegan hasn't wanted anything to do with underwear or even pull-ups, but she was practically changing her own diapers! So, four days ago she took off her diaper in the morning like she normally does, and I didn't put a new one on (she had her night gown on). I kept a close eye on her, and when she was frantically asking for a diaper, I said she should hurry and sit on the potty. Ever since then, she hasn't wanted to put a diaper back on, which can be a good or bad thing, considering nap and bed time. She is doing really good and hasn't had an accident for two days! I guess she was ready. Now she thinks she is so old. She walks around the stores with me, not in a shopping cart, with her hands in her pockets. Now she's big and has to do EVERYTHING herself! Finally, after 4 1/2 years I don't have anyone in diapers! Wahoooo! I'll never forget that as Raegan learned to talk, she would thank me every time I changed her diaper. She is so polite and SO sweet!

If you're in the market...

2008-03-20T14:50:00.006-07:00

My new toy is now a great love of mine--my new imac! In case you have never seen one, the very tiny (I should clarify, THIN - this screen is 20" wide) screen holds everything: the cpu, speakers, dvd drive, camera, microphone--EVERYTHING! So, if you are in the market for a new computer, I highly recommend the imac. Now, if I could just figure out how to use it...

I have been able to set up a wireless network (with the help of an Indian tech support guy) between all computers and I'm trying to get my mac so I can watch (and burn to dvd's) tv. Cool!

(for a good laugh, check out Andy's blog with the YOUtube video about the macbook AIR and apple's obsession with thin!)

Seeing 20-15!

2008-03-20T09:52:00.005-07:00

I had Lasik eye surgery yesterday and I'm happy to report that this morning I am seeing 20-15, which I guess is better than 20-20! The surgery itself was quite the experience (to say the least), but today I can say that it was worth it!

March 22: Today I noticed I am missing about half of my eye lashes! They tape them back for the surgery! I don't remember being told that in their disclaimer! Ahhh!

California Vacation!

2008-03-14T15:02:00.010-07:00

We had so much fun on our California vacation this last week. We were there for 6 awesome days. It was 80 degrees a lot of the time and felt like summer. We visited (and stayed with them) my sister, Michelle, and her hubby Joe and baby Cade. We went to a swap meet, took a boat ride, played at the beach, and of course, went to Disneyland and California Adventures. It was so much fun!

The girls had a great time riding in the airplane!

This was on our 2 hour boat ride from the Dana Pointe Harbor. We saw about a dozen sea lions and probably about 50 dolphins! It was so much fun!

We had fun feeding seagulls bread. Haley even made a friend. Nate was throwing bread in the air for the birds to catch in their mouths.

We had fun at the park! We had almost forgotten about nice weather and playing outside!

Nate waited in line for 1 1/2 hours so that Haley & Raegan could meet the princesses! They got to see Snow White, Jasmine, Mulan, Pocihontas, Ariel, Alice in Wonderland. We saw Cinderella and Sleeping Beauty from a distance. Wow!

Cade was such a trooper! We figured we drove in the car during that trip about 12 hours going to all our activities and Cade did really good! And Michelle, bless her heart, what more can I say--I love her to pieces! Haley loves to go on rides with her daddy. They went on Thunder Mountain! She also went on Splash Mountian, Soarin' Over California, and the Wild Rapids ride. Daring girl!

Some of you were wondering about the lines--it was great! The longest we waited was about 20 minutes (except for the princess line). Actually the Soarin' Over California and the Hollywood Tower Hotel (awesome by the way) were maybe 35 minutes. Overall, it was a great time of the year to go. I heard the week before we were there was even better. I highly recommend this time of year for Disneyland!

This is Michelle and I (with some random people) on the California Screamin' ride. One of the BEST roller coasters! Wahoo!

2008-02-28T16:56:00.003-07:00

This movie is of Haley, Raegan and their best friend, Kenasyn. They love to watch this over and over, so we thought we'd post it here for their convience. Enjoy!

Girls Can Dance!

2008-02-28T16:48:00.001-07:00

Don't send a lame eCard. Try JibJab Sendables!

Tag! I'm it!

2008-02-26T13:49:00.007-07:00

I know I've been tagged a few times before, and now that I am actually keeping up with my blog, I will accept my latest invitation, thanks Michelle...

10 things you don't know about me:

10. Even though I suck at dieting, it makes me feel better to buy lower-fat foods. I love finding good tasting foods with low fat/sodium/calories and high fiber! (Did I mention they have to taste good). I actually I feel bad for people who buy regular stuff when the lower fat stuff tastes the same. You don't have to do that to yourself! :) [Whoh, that was a little over-the-top]

9. I am a serious news junkie. I have to watch the TODAY show every morning right at 7:00am (even if that means stopping my workout), at least for the first hour or so while I am making/eating breakfast with the fam. And I have to watch NBC Nightly news at 5:30pm! I have had this news habit ever since I've been married. (8 years!)

8. I get into politics. I believe that if democrats had brains they would be republicans. But not all republicans are created equal, sorry John McCain.

7. I love handiwork and building things. This year I will attempt to be a mason and stone my fireplace wall/raised hearth area in our basement!

6. I like economics. I like to follow what's going on in the national/global markets

5. I now like blogging and reading other people's blogs. Thanks to my awesome family, I really like texting too.

4. I am a bargain shopper. I like finding a good deal, who doesn't?

3. I love gardening, but not quite keeping up with Christy!

2. I like cooking/baking/eating. I love finding new yummy recipes!

1. I, like Michelle, I admit to watching a bit of TV. I am hooked on: Lost, 24 (I am having withdrawls), The Office, Prison Break, Divine Design (and most shows on HGTV), and The Biggest Loser.

I am going to tag: Megan Searle (I guess you need to start a blog :) ), Amanda Garrett, Kami Blanchard (what is your blog?), Lori Allen, and Julie Bigler.

Help! Vote For Your Favorite

2008-02-26T12:54:00.009-07:00

Option 1- Big Flowers

Option 2 - Bright Bed

We are finishing our basement and I am thinking ahead for the girls' bedroom (they are sharing a room so whatever the choice, there will be two of them) and need some input. FYI these are from JCPenny.com, cute huh?

Ok, you all weren't much help because I had 8 votes at there was a tie. I guess I'll keep thinking about it. Thanks for all the input!

Happy Birthday Grandpa Mike!

2008-02-19T19:33:00.006-07:00

Happy Birthday Dad (Grandpa)! The girls wanted to give you a birthday message! We love you! Have a wonderful birthday!

Raegan was a little tired by the time we took this last one!

The Snow Cave Adventure

2008-02-17T09:36:00.007-07:00

My brother, Mark, and I (Nate) had a rough night last night. It all started off by watching "I am Legend"...intense/scary/wow! Then at 10pm we started off into the mountains to build a snow cave to sleep in. On the way, we had a slight delay while getting stuck. Thank goodness some other weirdo (like us) was up in the mountains after 10pm to pull us out. At 10:30pm the first shovel full of snow was removed. An hour and a half later we were finished with our cozy little (and I mean little) cave. After we realized we were frozen to the core, we went home at 5am. It was worth it!! In hindsight, we recommend: 1) start digging in the daylight, 2) dig a bigger cave that you can situp in (other wise getting your frozen clothes back on while laying down is a tough chore), 3) bring foot warmers to put inside your sleeping bag, 4) bring foot warmers for frozen boots, 5) bring hand warmers for frozen hands, 6) are there leg and face warmers??, finally 7) bring a bigger candle to glaze the inside of the cave

...and keep you warm.

What's Up Dog?

2008-02-11T19:10:00.001-07:00

We are major fanatics of "The Office" and one night we decided to try out one of Michael Scott's stupid jokes. So we played it on Haley. A little background, Michael tries the joke several times on everyone in the office and it just never quite works right (typial). He walks up to someone and says "It smells like up-dog in here" and they are supposed to say "what's up dog?" and then he is supposed to say, "nothing, what's up with you?". So we were all laying around one night and we said to Haley "it smells like up-dog in here" hoping she would fall for it. She said laughing, "I tooted." We couldn't stop laughing and now Haley thinks that

passing gas smells like up-dog.

Try These!

2008-02-11T10:28:00.000-07:00

My new obsessions -- Oreo Candy Bites and Quaker Mini Delights - Chocolately Mint. They are so yummy with so little calories! Try them! Try the Chocolately Mint with a glass of hot chocolate [go Megan!] (you can find fat free and/or sugar free hot chocolate but sometimes I just splurge and go for taste!) The Mini Delights are by the rice cakes aisle in the store. Mmmmm!!

Raegan's "Polka Dots"

2008-02-09T08:06:00.000-07:00

Yesterday morning Raegan woke up with a few spots on her face and as the day progressed it got worse. I took her to the doctor to find out she had ear infections in both ears and the hives were probably just from that. I guess the body can show infection through rash and hives. This morning she had hives all over her body, but she has not complained once and still has that sweet smile on her face! She calls them "polka dots!"

Rexburg Temple Open House

2008-02-07T11:18:00.000-07:00

We are excited to have a another BEAUTIFUL temple among us only 30 minutes away in Rexburg! It is so beautiful with amazing murals done by a local artist. There is wheat depicted in the carpet, railings and stained-glass windows since Rexburg is in an agricultural area. It sits on the hillside next to the BYU-Idaho student housing. It was so neat to see the THOUSANDS of people come through. It had such an amazing spirit there. Haley and Raegan were so excited to go inside a temple for the first time! We went with a lot of Nate's family and had a great time. It was like 3 degrees in that picture! I think this is the first temple dedicated by President Monson and President Eyring will be there too. The dedication was posponed a week due to the passing of our dear President Hinckley.

New Paint

2008-02-07T10:59:00.000-07:00

I told a couple of people I would put pictures of our kitchen/family room since I recently re-painted the whole thing and made curtains. So here they are:

Ballerina Girl

2008-02-07T10:24:00.000-07:00

Haley has really enjoyed taking ballet lessons and she is actually very graceful. She had a parent's day in December where we were able to come watch a dance from the Nutcracker they learned. She takes the classes with her best friend (who lives across the street) Kenasyn. They are two peas in a pod! Raegan is so cute and loves to dance around with Haley. She will soon be taking lessons as well! Haley and Kenasyn are now preparing for their spring performance.

Our Latest Hobbies!

2008-02-07T09:56:00.000-07:00

We have been slowly working on finishing our basement. I persuaded Nate into moving the drain for our bathtub, and it actually wasn't that hard of a job. We moved it about 2 feet to make room for the closet in the girls' room. We are still in the framing stage but are looking forward to electircal very soon and having our fireplace getting started. Our (Nate's) other latest "hobby" has been shoveling snow. Every morning we wake up to either several inches of new snow (yesterday was at least 6") or we get huge drifts of snow that make shoveling a daily task. We have school (preschool and ballet for us) cancelations very often and we haven't left our house since Saturday (kids were sick for church). This weather we have has been a huge reminder to me of the importance of having a food storage! Some towns outside of here are declared "disaster areas" because they have so much snow and delivery trucks were not able to make it in to deliver food (St. Anthony and Swan Valley). This picture of Nate is in our backyard where we have a snow drift that is reaching 5 feet high. We will surly have flooding in the spring if we don't get the snow away from our house!

The Bigler Family Moves...again

2007-07-23T20:02:00.001-07:00

Idaho Falls

For the second time in one year, we move again. Nate got a new job as the Director of Human Resources for Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center in Idaho Falls. This is a great opportunity for Nate to work at a much larger hospital--and he is really liking it.

Fun in the sun

2007-07-23T19:48:00.000-07:00

We had a lot of fun riding in Farmington Canyon several times before we moved. We got to ride with Sandi (Nate's sister) and Wayne and their family a few times which was really fun.

Summer is Officially Here!

2006-05-29T09:05:00.000-07:00

We purchased a camper about a month ago and we know that summer is officially here because we have finally been able to use it!

Camping in Diamond Fork Canyon

Haley loves to camp and use her new pink fishing pole!

But most of all she loves to play in the dirt and be outside!

Camping at Jordanelle Reservoir

Our Little Family

2006-05-29T08:46:00.000-07:00

We thought that creating this web page would help

us keep all of you up-to-date with what we

are doing and how are kids are growing!