Justin's Senior Pictures

That smile gets to me every time!

When Justin and Kayla went to Boise for a tour of BSU and BSU cheer tryouts, we decided to turn the trip into a photo shoot so that we could use our favorite photographer, Michelle Ray. She had done senior pictures for Levi, Erika, Vivien, and Derek, as well as the past six years of family pictures for us and we couldn't imagine anyone else doing senior pictures for Justin.

Spencer and Michelle were kind enough to let us stay at their place which gave Michelle and I time to visit while they were on campus and then we spent the next morning doing pictures around Meridian. Michelle doesn't just takes photos, it's an experience full of laughter, jokes, borderline inappropriateness, and the pictures come back to us with full memories attached.

It was a real struggle to choose which pictures I would post here so I lumped them into categories.

 His Smile

and as Michelle requested, his smolder.


Our Music Man

Working the street for a little college funding.


The Cheerleader

They take this gig seriously!


"It looks like he's . . . leaning." 

Sit Skills . . . and don't forget the smolder.

A healthy dose of silliness,

and time with his girl, Kayla.

It is quite evident by this post that I can't choose a favorite picture to hang on the wall and I had the same problem when Levi had his senior pictures taken. I decided with Levi's pictures that I would do a book of all the pictures, which I have done for each of my seniors.

It wasn't until we were looking through all the printed books that we found twinner pictures of Derek and Justin doing the same goofy pose with their guitars.

Michelle did not tell them to do that, she's just quick with the camera to catch candid silliness.


Our love for Michelle grew even more when we received the CD of originals in the mail. The front cover had us laughing hysterically.

Evidently she got a little carried away with editing but we absolutely loved the result.  Staring at Justin's face over and over again seems to have created a mild crush on him, which I completely understand and have a similar problem with.

Memorial Day and Bear World

Grandpa Jessie Evans served in World War I

Grandpa Vern Fullmer served in World War II

We spent our Memorial Weekend at Grandpa Jesse and Grandpa Vern's graves as well as telling stories and visiting the graves of some of our other Evans and Fullmer grandparents. Hyrum always loves hearing stories about Grandpa Jesse because he is named after him and Grandpa also spent many of his younger years in Hibbard (like Hyrum), even being baptized in a river somewhere out here in Hibbard.

It was nice to share the experience with Max and Zane since these are their grandparents as well.

Sandwiched between our Saturday visit at the Menan Cemetery and our Sunday visit at the Sugar City Cemetery, we had a picnic in Idaho Falls and visited Bear World.

This poor bear gets fingers up his nose every time we are there. Such a boy thing!

Feeding the deer never gets boring, it's actually quite relaxing being around such a serene animal. We learned this trip not to touch their fuzzy antlers because they have hundreds of nerve endings in them and it hurts them when touched. That's why they jump back or jerk their head away if your hand goes near their antlers.

The highlight of Bear World every time!

We always have at least one we want to take home with us, and we usually have at least one who wanders right next to the van. How can something so cuddly and soft with gentle eyes and a huggable face be so dangerous?

On Sunday we took a drive over to the nature park where we had scooter races and our monkey boys hung out in the trees.

MAY

Erika, Kailee and Derek came for a brief visit so that Erika and Derek could participate in the final concert conducted by Mr. Hansen, the orchestra teacher. All previous students of Mr. Hansen were invited for a come-back performance and a farewell for his retirement. I admit, it left me teary watching them play violin and cello on stage again.

Nathan was so excited to have Derek home with his cello. Nathan first played a couple of his piano songs to which Derek improvised to make it a duet and then they pulled out the 5th grade music and Derek once again created his own version of the song so they could play together. It was the perfect boost Nathan needed to renew the excitement that he'd had at the beginning of his orchestra year.

It's adorable to see them glancing at each other out of the corner of the eye waiting to see who was going to start. It provided a good laugh and then Nathan counted them in.

My Little Fish

Nathan and Hyrum can each swim the full length of the pool, do back stroke, and are learning how to dive with Rolayne Waldron, their swim instructor.

Aaaah, Sweet Summer!

Finally!! The weather is warm enough for a lemonade stand!

The boys raked it in during their first attempt. Other neighbor kids have had a stand at the entrance of the subdivision so it was our turn. However, we were determined to change the reputation of our local country corner. Previous stops to support our neighbors left us with a bitter, bland, warm, or barely-there lemonade experience so our plan was to please the senses, spark the insulin, and carbonate the belly. Hyrum decided to make the "secret family recipe" round in the family cookbook and headed off to the stop sign to impress the neighborhood. Fizzy Raspberry Lemonade did the trick!

Hyrum even had the brilliant idea to use our tiny paper cups for free samples which got rave reviews and brought on additional sales and repeat customers at 50 center per cup. When the goods were gone and mess cleaned up they counted their loot and behold... $28!! Not bad for a couple of hours greeting friends on the corner. They were very impressed with how they had turned $6.28 worth of product into $28, and were very happy to split the profit.

Spring Soccer

Nine consecutive Saturday mornings ranging from wind, rain, frost, and extremely low temperatures to sunny and warm, with one satisfied sporty boy burning his energy and going for the goal.

Sporty Flashback

Derek age 11   ~    Justin age 9

Back in the day, the chosen summer sport was baseball. . . at least for one year. 

Derek and Justin each gave it a good effort but each found it was not their thing. 

Derek's passion was in that wooden, leaning shed behind him where he spent hours working with wood, tools, and piles of recycling to create the inventions his mind came up with. Being in the middle of an extreme growth spurt didn't make baseball fun for him. Running hurt because he is flat-footed and throwing hurt because he felt like his elbows would pop apart. 

Justin found that he truly preferred gymnastics and standing in a field or dugout just did not burn the energy busting inside him. He struggled when team members whined and didn't put in their best effort. Gymnastics was all on him and he wanted to improve and do his best. 

Summer came full of sunshine and green grass, enticing us to soak in its rays and roam barefoot in our beloved acre of the world. A freshly tilled garden calmed my anxious excitement of all the big events coming in the next few weeks. My calloused hands and newly planted rows were the trophies that I proudly cared for.

Nathan and Hyrum joined in the gardening care as they treated their individual apple trees with additional water and words of encouragement for a bounteous harvest.

Our cheerful innocence, as we took pleasure in each day, was sorely met by the notorious winds that tend to sweep through Rexburg.  For the second year in a row the playhouse lost its battle against the blustery gusts as it toppled once more to a heap on the ground.

Weakened through the torture of such a tumble twice over, it was time to turn the 2-story Chattel house into a single story Rambler. Derek took over construction with Daymia as his apprentice.

Levi took over the grill while Hyrum set up a full picnic and together they provide our first outdoor dinner of many throughout the summer.

Our productive evening ended with a volley of jokes, laughter, and occasionally, the ball.

This family of mine is pure joy! They are my laughter, my heart, and my forever!

Idaho Falls LDS Temple Open House

 

Levi (25), Nathan (11), Hyrum (9)

Levi got off work early in Idaho Falls and met us at the bus location for a ride over to the temple. It was almost like a trip back in time to walk through the temple. Nearly everything was the same as it was in the 1990's when LeRoy and I would attend that temple because the Rexburg Temple had not yet been built.

I almost felt like I was in my parent's temple. It wasn't until the tour that I realized I had always felt that way about the Idaho Falls Temple. The paintings, color scheme, layout, and the fact that it was the temple where my Dad received his endowments, all made it feel like it was from a generation ago whereas the Rexburg Temple feels like mine. I've vacuumed the baptistry, dusted the entry, cleaned out the lockers and attended there more times than I can count. Still, it was great to walk through the Idaho Falls Temple to let the boys have whatever experience would be specific to them.

The boys loved and admired the murals in each room but seemed a bit frustrated that it was a silent tour and that they were shushed a couple of times. They wanted to ask questions and Levi wanted to share memories. When we walked into the baptistry Levi started to tell the boys that he had done baptisms there, one of which was for Great Grandpa Levi Edwards that he is named after. A worker tried to shush them but I signaled a plea to her to let them talk. This was a brother moment and I didn't want Levi's memory and sharing of it interrupted. When it became an actual realization to Nathan that he would get to do baptisms at the temple in just one year he became very excited and I'm grateful to Levi for sparking that excitement in him.

Our bus ride preceding the tour and our drive to dinner after the tour were anything but reverent. Our favorite photo from the bus is the selfie of Levi and Nathan with the guy behind them photo bombing. 

Nathan and Hyrum wanted to ride in Levi's car to Chuck-A-Rama (or Upchuck-A-Rama as I call it) and due to his fancy car and speedy skills they got there before we did. They sent us a couple of Snaps questioning our whereabouts to which we Snapped back at the closest stoplight. They were particularly fond of the Devil/Angel photo of LeRoy and I, finding it quite appropriate to our personalities.

d'Evegnee Sleepover

While the older two thirds of the d'Evegnee family went to France for the LDS Temple open house, the younger third spent a week's worth of nights with us.

Though our days were mostly filled with school, homework, and trips back and forth into town, our evenings were full of laughter. For FHE we pulled out the photo booth props and took pictures to put on cards that we wrote to family members. Charlie was such a good trooper to smile and participate after he spent the day coughing and throwing up with a slight fever. His smile gives nothing away.

When the cards were all finished we roasted s'mores for treats. It was wonderful to have our table surrounded with kind words, silliness and sweets. The kids all got along so very well.

Charlie and I spent our mornings with Charlie Dog; reading and relaxing. Charlie chatter on the drive to Kindergarten was entertaining and educational. I kind of wanted to keep him forever. 

They initially acted as if I was dishing out cruel and unusual punishment when I would interrupt their playtime with dinner,  but they would get right back to their games and imagination afterward. Nearly every meal conversation was full of jokes and puns.

Marie spent her birthday with us so we did our best to ward of the homesickness with a happy cake and making banana splits since every one of Marie's conversations somehow led to bananas.  We then went to the Lego Batman Movie where we filled an entire row with popcorn and laughter.

Peter, Marie and Charlie were so patient and a great addition to our family but after almost 2 weeks of being without their family, they were so ready for home. After spending an extra night with us due to flight delays, they woke early on Saturday, packed their own stuff and waited and waited near the front door. When I told Marie that their mom was on her way over I got this candid reaction.

The Paris France LDS Temple

Bruce & Marie Hafen (Sarah's parents), Peter, Eric, Holden, Ethan, Eve, Sarah
This trip was a dream come true for Eric and Sarah who each served their missions in France.

Spring

2008 ~ 2017

All growed up and looking sharp!

After spending a couple of months working from home (and more specifically, a desk in a closet in his basement bedroom at Erika's house), Derek started work at Marketstar/AdRoll in Ogden. He continued living with Bret and Erika for the first month while he did his training and looked for an apartment.

I was so impressed with his enthusiasm for the job, especially considering how nervous he was to start it. It's a big job! He found several bargains on really nice clothes and set his new standards his first day of work in his fancy blazer and a killer watch to boost his confidence a bit. He has kept his own personal dress code since. I am so very proud of him! Six months later the job still scares him and occasionally he has thoughts of finding other work but he moves through the fear and is conquering.

Daymia and Levi provided their 3rd annual Easter Egg Hunt. I didn't realize it was a tradition until just now but for the last 3 years they have made Easter fun for the boys. They are so great to fill plastic eggs, hide them around the yard and then cheer the boys on as they frantically search the yard for sweet treasures. Brock helped in the hunting, Levi helped in the counting, and everyone joined in the eating.

Miss Kailee Jo somehow manages to keep getting cuter! She climbs in and on everything and pals around with her Daddy in the garage or at the skate park. She suddenly looked so much older when her teeth popped through. Her smile brightens the day!

Vivien and Gabor are forever busy with school. They keep us updated through spying pictures that they take of each other and we love it! If I could have a magical wish, it would be to spend a week with these two.

Nathan went back in time and became Theodore Roosevelt for a day. His best friend was Elvis. Fifth grade history came to life as each student reported on their researched person and presented their poster of information. Nathan, Hyrum and I all learned as we worked on the poster together and we now have a desire to go see Mount Rushmore since Theodore Roosevelt is one of the presidents carved into the mountain there. Our favorite fact was that our snuggly "Teddy Bears" are called teddy bears because of Theodore Roosevelt. Nathan was also impressed that a Navy Aircraft has been named after him.

LeRoy's grocery shopping abilities require a stroll down only one isle . . . carbohydrate.

If given the choice of shopping with only one parent, the boys would choose Dad every time!

Nathan's 11th Birthday

Nathan's birthday dinner included his favorite foods: "white noodles", peas, ham and cheese roll-ups, deviled eggs, and to fit in basketball theme we also had Gatorade and Turnovers.

He easily handled the candle lighting and carefully considered his birthday wish. As he blew out the candles he was thrilled to see that they would relight since they were sparklers and had a big cheesy grin on his face when teased that each burning candle represented a girlfriend.

Again, LeRoy was overjoyed to have his youngest sons interested in sports and after Nathan received a football and basketball as gifts, they promptly went outside to use them. Occasionally, Nathan was distracted by the thundering Thor hammer that he also received.

Hyrum's 9th Birthday

After Justin's birthday in February, Hyrum begged me to make the same cake for his birthday, only he didn't want the cake, just the frosting. However, the rest of us really love the whole cake so he got both.

We overdosed on the ooey gooey goodness of the cake . . .

while Hyrum was completely content to lick his way to a frosting sugar high.

LeRoy was thrilled to FINALLY have a sport themed birthday for one of his kids. It only took 25 years but he now has his football and basketball loving boys.

Hyrum felt that being a whopping nine years old  meant he could light his own birthday candles. It took a little skilled suggestion from Justin but he got it done.

Daymia and Levi went straight to his list of favorites and gave him candy and money.

LeRoy and I gave him the much anticipated and hoped for Wolverine claws (which caused a bust of laughter when the two outside fingers collapsed down but the middle finger didn't) and a football that we all signed in metallic silver permanent marker.

Cousin Max was so thoughtful to consider Hyrum's love for building when he sent a set of wood pieces with instructions that he created all on his own. Hyrum was impressed and ready to build.

My favorite part of birthdays is seeing my kids celebrate together and love on one another.