St Patrick's Day!

A fun filled weekend all for the kids, oh, and a ton of fun for us adults too!




We decided to treat the kids to the movies and take them to The Lorax. Excellent flick, but the best part was being entertained by the kids! Jadeyn, Austin and Chloe were so excited simply to get together and we filled the whole day for them.



















Before the movie began, they got some energy out on a small playground and proved to us that each and every one of them is a ham as they showed off and made it very difficult to get a perfect picture of all three of them at once. But hey, we have proof of all their antics now!!

In the theater, Jadeyn and Austin had to sit in the same chair and were adorable!














Off to miniature golf. So we've been having unseasonably beautiful weather for March, but today, I think we somehow ended up in Wyoming. The winds came and bow did they ever make their presence known with a vengeance!! But it didn't spoil the fun of golfing. I must brag that I got two hole in ones but I didn't come close to winning!!

We finished off the evening by celebrating St Patrick's day a day late with delicious corned beef and cabbage!!

Old MacDonald Darth Vader Style

SO, one of the toughest things about teaching my sweet boy is he will almost always improvise or negotiate what I am trying to teach him. For example, if I tell him to pick up his toys, he will think about it, maybe challenge it a bit, but then will say, "okay I'll pick up my toys but I will use my feet!"

So on that note, when we ask him to sing a song, he makes up his own words.
Here it is; Old MacDonald Darth Vader Style:

Old MacDonald had Darth Vader…and Anakin…fighting Darth Vader.

With a wong wong wong. With a wong wong wong

With a other wong wong. With a other wong wong. With two wong wongs.

(Is that the light saber making that sound? Whoa.)

That how it goes dad. That how it goes dad. Now you try it dad!

Royal Gorge Bridge and Park

Royal Gorge Bridge and Park
Wow! Spectacular hidden gem in the middle of Colorado. We had never visited before and thought we'd make a day of it. With the amazing weather that we have been having we were so tempted to get out and camp, so this helped satisfy the outdoor craving just a bit. The Royal Gorge is about 3 hours from our home and was well worth the trip.

The suspension bridge is the highest in the county at almost 1000 feet above the river below. Its 1,260 feet long and was constructed in 1929. We walked across it and marveled at the green river way below. Jadeyn got a kick out of laying on the bridge and peeking through the wooden slats. We also chuckled when we saw a huge sign announcing; No Fishing from the Bridge!

We took the tram from one end of the gorge to the other. Basically it was a train car suspended on a cable and felt a little rickety, but hey, its been working for almost 90 years!




















Since it is technically still winter, all the attractions weren't open yet, but we did get to see part of the zoo which proudly boasts of a few rare white buffalo! I'd never seen that before!
The coolest experience was the vertical train ride to the base of the gorge. Somehow, they constructed a vertical rail line that drops at a 45 degree angle! The train car had compartments that were staggered to allow each guest to have a perfect view of the canyon during the decent. It was a pretty sweet ride!



















Jadeyn of course love the carousel and insisted on riding the cat "horse!"

Adventure at Uncle Wayne's

A day at Uncle Wayne's Farm

It's always an adventure to visit Kevin's uncle Wayne. Not only can we experience a wide array of animals, but we can experience a life right out of the old west: leather working (beautiful saddles), curing his own meat, slaughtering his own animals, beautiful log cabin, etc, etc. Its an adventure and a wealth of education!

This last visit was spurred by new baby goats! We just had to go see them but never realized that we would be laughing so hard that tears would start rolling!!!! I never counted exactly how any adults and how many babies there were, but the barn was FULL of goats.
Wearing their personalities on their sleeves, they would stare straight at us with big eyes with the cool shaped pupil as if to ask, uh, what are you guys staring at?? Their floppy ears gave each of them a somewhat startled and curious look, while the little ones were just plain adorable and fuzzy!

Jadeyn immediately took to Pete, a sweet black and white goat who became his instant playmate. Jadeyn and Pete played King of the Castle for a long time vying for whoever could get to and stay on the top of the platform. Jadeyn would climb to the top and Pete would lower his head and "help" Jadeyn up with a nice head-butt! Then they would wrestle around at the top to see who could push the other off!

Whenever Jadeyn would lower his on head, Pete would happily oblige and the duel would be on!
In this video, Pete does the cutest thing, he turns his back to Jadeyn, wagging his tail pretending to not notice Jadeyn behind him. Then he whips around as fast as he can to challenge his competitor!

Uncle Wayne decided to "educate" Jadeyn on how the baby goats drink. Calling Jadeyn over, he reached under one of the mamas and SQUIRT!" Milk all up Jadeyn's jacket and up to his face!! We were all laughing so hard that we barely heard Jadeyn's comment, "Thanks for tasting me some milk!" So after we got cleaned up, we headed inside to enjoy some delicious goats milk and chocolate goats milk! Yum!!

Wyoming Wintertime Grandma Pete's birthday

Grandma Pete and Jadeyn! They sure are both fun to watch. At times neither of them like to have their picture taken so these photos are especially appropriate. I'm still not sure if it is Grandma Pete or Jadeyn who is holding their hand up!!!

We went to Wyoming to celebrate Grandma Pete's birthday and it was so good to see her. She is quite a special lady and we love to be with her. We took her out to dinner to a Chinese buffet and then spent time together at her sweet little home catching up and being entertained by Jadeyn!





















The following day, despite the blistering wind, we decided that we just had to go sledding. As soon as it got above freezing we all piled in the cars to head to the foothills. I'm quite familiar with Wyoming winters, but it still amazes me when the snow can be a fraction of an inch deep on one side of the road and 7 feet deep on the other side of the road simply because of the wind!! A clear road will spontaneously be an ice rink for 30 feet or so due to the blowing snow . Its crazy!

So a few miles into the foothills there was a mighty drift (okay it wasn't that mighty, but I have to say that to help my father-in-law feel better!) and well, the RAV got stuck!!! Nice thing for us is we had the new Jeep all ready to go with a tow strap and got it pulled out in a jiffy! Needless to saw however, no sledding, so we headed to Pizza Hut and ate way too much!!!

Oh yeah, another crazy thing: in the new vehicle, we got 5 miles per hour better gas mileage on the way home to Colorado than our way there simply because of the headwinds and tailwinds!!

Another highlight of the weekend was Darlene and I got to go to Buzy Bee, the Lyman craft store that all my sister in laws rave about, and I finally learned why the place is so awesome!! Wow! I could easily spend a fortune in there!!

The Mighty Rock Wall

The Mighty Rock Wall

We took Jadyen to the Longmont Rec Center to go swimming which was humorous enough. He takes after (sorry to say) the Cottrell side of the family when it comes to swimming. Definitely not my side. My side are all fish and Kevin's side avoid water at all costs!!! Dang! But after a little while in the water he got more brave and really did have fun!
After swimming, we took him to the Rock Climbing wall where he watched a few older kids climb about 10 feet and give up. Well, our little 3 year old was determined to try it. The first climb he made it 2o feet and came back down immediately saying he wanted to try it again. This time he climbed all 30 feet to the top so he could ring the bell! He was adorable and everyone watching was quite impressed!

Here is the first video where he is climbing with all his might with a little break to give me a high five.


The second video is when he reaches the top and proudly dings the bell (only once! we were surprised that he didn't go crazy on that bell!) and then calmly and properly makes his descent!

Grandma Essie

Esther Larsen Johnson

Grandma Essie
1918-2012

My Grandma filled her life with beauty including the countless rose bushes in her back yard. I feel that the 21 bushes we have planted in our own yard can be a tribute to her. Especially the coral orange one we planted; a color that always makes me think of her!



She passed away on February 15th and I was honored to be able to go home to be with my parents at her funeral. It was a truly special time and and so glad I was able to go. It was important for me to be there for my parents as now my dad doesn't have either of his parents here. He and my aunts and uncles put together a very special tribute to her with the funeral and it truly was a celebration of her life.















An amazing thing happened. At the viewing, funeral and grave site, it was quite emotional. Everyone was allowed to mourn her loss. But then as soon as we returned to the chapel for the luncheon, the whole spirit changed and we all celebrated her and our memories and it was a time to catch up with relatives we haven't seen for many years!


Obituary - I felt that the family did an amazing summary of Grandma's life.

Esther Larsen Johnson

Our mother and grandmother, Esther Larsen Johnson peacefully slipped away to join her beloved husband, Earl Fisher Johnson and daughter, Patricia Ann who had preceded her in death. She died on February 15, 2012 of natural causes. Before passing on, she felt great comfort from her family close by her side; they all received greater faith in God by her strength. She was 93 years young and had lived alone in her home since her husband's death 23 years ago. Being the youngest and twelfth child of Almartin and Ellen Francis Comish Larsen, she will be greeted by a host of siblings and loved ones who have preceded her in death.

Esther, or Essie, as most people knew her, was born Sept. 20, 1918 in Preston, Idaho. Shortly after her mother’s death, Essie lived with her older sister, Loretta Monson.

At this time, this beautiful 17 year old Homecoming Queen met Earl. It wasn’t long before her handsome Prince convinced her to marry on Oct 25, 1937 in the Logan Temple. They lived in Twin Falls and Lewiston before settling in Boise for the past 70 years. To their marriage was born, five children, Richard Earl (Lawana) Johnson, Boise; Patricia Ann Johnson (deceased); Michael Clayne (Marilyn) Johnson, Florida; Debra Lynn (Kelsey) Royball, Star; and Scott Earl (Danna) Johnson, Boise. She had 18 grandchildren, Sheri, Shelly, Vicki, Jennie, Julie, Chad, Kelly, Jennifer, Rebecca, Brock, Guy, Jamie, Beau, Chris, Jacki, Mandi, Megan, Jason and 36 Great Grand Children.

As a stalwart daughter and local leader of the Daughters of Utah Pioneers, she took great pride and wanted her children and grand children to know of their Pioneer heritage. She was especially proud to have been named after her grand mother Esther Comish, who also met her husband as a 17 year old teenager while crossing the plains with the Mormon Pioneers. And, that her Grandfather, John Comish helped build the Logan Temple where Essie and Earl were married decades later. Essie never learn to drive a car, but it didn’t stop her from serving as a dedicated member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She served in many callings as teacher, councilor, secretary and President of the Relief Society (twice) and as Primary President. Most mothers were naturally a little fearful of their children learning to drive. instead, she encouraged each to learn because they quickly became her chauffeur to help with her callings! Her children were also the few who rode in taxis and busses.

She will always be remembered for her beautiful yard filled with flowers of every kind which she shared with everyone. Many happy hours were spent in the small back yard with family and friends. Her love of the family carried over in every aspect of her life. Wonderful Sunday dinners of roast, potatoes and gravy, birthdays, treats, and holidays were always a treat in her home.

She made Christmas Eve a tradition that will never be forgotten with a beautifully decorated house full of family, dinner, snacks, treats and warm fire in the fireplace.Santa would always arrive with a bag full of gifts, just at the right moment as we burst into Christmas songs. It was always a magical night at Christmas for everyone.

The funeral service is planned for February 21, 2012 at the LDS Eagle Second Ward Chapel located at 700 West State, Eagle. Family and friends are welcome for a viewing 10-10:45 AM in the Relief Society Room prior to the Service at 11 AM, Tuesday, February 21, 2012. Interment will be held immediately at the Dry Creek Cemetery.