Live, Laugh, and Love!

Mercer Family Photos

2009-11-20T11:48:00.000-08:00

Our Christmas gift from the Davis family was a family photo shoot. We were thrilled! It was FREEZING and windy so that will explain out red noses!

Donna and her boys

Caden - 7 yrs old.

Jeff and two of his girls

The whole Fam

Halloween 2009

2009-10-31T17:29:00.000-07:00

Dillon was Darth Vader, Brooke was Rizzo from Grease, Kelsie was Alvin (the chipmunk), Cade was the Big Bad Wolf, and Paige was Belle. We came in at 40 lbs of candy this year. There were a lot of people with porch lights off. That made Jeff sad.

More Snow in October

2009-10-20T17:00:00.000-07:00

We got dumped on in October and they cancelled two days of school. Then, in November, we got more snow and they even cancelled church. We haven't even gotten to winter yet!

First Snow of the Season!

2009-10-10T13:46:00.000-07:00

The kids were excited to wake up to snow this morning. We got some on Thursday, but it didn't stick. So here we are Oct. 10th, playing in the snow! They had fun until their noses froze.

Columbine High School Homecoming 2009

2009-10-03T14:04:00.000-07:00

Brooke had a group of almost 15 girls come over to get ready for Homecoming last weekend. We had tons of pizza and then every bathroom was full of girls giggling and getting gorgeous for the dance. Gone are the days where everyone has to have a date. Now big groups of single girls go together and single guys go together and then they all dance. I think the girls had a lot of fun. Brooke's group wore black dresses with colored high tops. They were so cute together!

Caden Plays Flag Football

2009-09-26T19:22:00.000-07:00

Caden is having a lot of fun playing flag football this fall. So far they are 4-0. They are quite impressive with their passes, touchdowns, and interceptions. The coaches are great and has made their team quite fun to watch. He is 2nd from the left on the top row.

Brooke as Rizzo in Grease!

2009-09-20T19:27:00.000-07:00

Here are some shots of Brooke as Rizzo. We had to take pictures after the performance because of copyright laws. So I didn't get any action shots, but she was great! She had two awesome solos, and her "Rizzo attitude" was right on! We were so proud of her and she had a ton of fun!

Triathlon - Crescent Moon

2009-09-19T19:12:00.000-07:00

I finished my second Triathlon! I did better than the first one and was happy that my first open water swim went well. Phew!!! Thanks to Stephanie's encouragement!! Stephanie picked me up in the dark at 5:30 a.m. We got to Cherry Creek Reservoir before 6:00 a.m., picked up our packet and walked our bikes down to transition near the reservoir. It was STILL dark---not to mention freezing cold and we could almost see our breath as the sun was coming up. I turned to Stephanie (who is a seasoned athlete, doing multiple races each year) and said, "You actually do this for FUN??!!?! I was still trying to convince myself as I fought back the knot in my stomach as I thought about getting in the reservoir and swimming my 1/2 mile to start out the race. Well, the time finally came and I did finish my 1/2 mile swim, 12.4 mile bike, and 3.1 mile run. YEA!! I was proud of my accomplishment as a mother of 5 with limited time to train. I was also grateful to Jeff and the kids for cheering me on during my run!! So next year I'll be even more prepared. . .

This is what my transition spot looks like. All set up to bike and run after the swim!

Jeff brought Dillon, Cade, and Paige to watch me finish! Thanks, Jeff! I may have even inspired Dillon and Cade to sign up for a Kid's Triathlon next summer. Yea!

Kelsie's 13th Birthday

2009-09-13T19:06:00.000-07:00

It is hard to believe that my lucky Friday the 13th baby is now a teenager!

We had a family birthday with the Mercer clan. Mexican. . .mmmmmm.

Kelsie later had a party with friends. She has the cutest group of friends! We love them all and are grateful for her great group of girls to hang out with. They all had fun at the Mall Scavenger Hunt!

First Day of School

2009-08-24T19:02:00.000-07:00

First day of school for Cade and Dillon. Paige started a week later (I still haven't taken a photo. . .oops!) and Brooke and Kelsie started at 7:00 a.m. Too early to remember to get out the camera.

NYC

2009-08-15T18:13:00.000-07:00

Dillon said, "I've waited my whole life to see the Statue of Liberty!"

FAO Schwartz was a favorite store to visit

You may recognize this Museum from the movie "Night at the Museum"

Rockefeller Center

Central Park

Bridge in Central Park

Sooo hot in Central Park that Cade took off his shirt.

LDS Temple

Jeff and I got second row seats to David Letterman

Broadway

Every night we were all wiped out!

The Hershey Store was hard to beat!

This was a random sculpture of lawn chairs in Times Square.

We found this weird family on the streets.

Kelsie, Brooke, and Cade found Nicholas Cage

And Morgan Freeman!

Times Square! One of our favorite places.

Here is the famous street corner--Wall St. and Broadway!

New York Stock Exchange--

the security around this place was intense!

Brooklyn Bridge

New Jersey Beach

2009-08-13T18:07:00.000-07:00

We all had fun on a relaxing beach day. We body surfed and dug in the sand. A few of us got buried too. Someone accidentally lost their head in the sand. . .

Philadelphia

2009-08-12T17:54:00.000-07:00

Ben Franklin

Betsy Ross House

Liberty Bell

Independence Hall--George Washington

Gettysburg

2009-08-11T17:42:00.000-07:00

Cannon--Cade

It was very interesting to learn all about the Civil War and the sacrifices that

both sides made to fight for what they believed was right.

Washington DC

2009-08-10T17:15:00.000-07:00

We saw the original documents of the Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution at the National Archives. That was really cool.

This is the very center of Washington DC.

Iwo Jima

Washington Memorial at Night

Lincoln Memorial

Jefferson Memorial

We had the rare (10%) opportunity to tour the White House. Luckily the background check they did on our family didn't catch all the crazy stuff Jeff does on a daily basis. :-) While we were on tour, we watched Pres. Obama take off in his helicopter right outside the window.

The Capitol Building

Ford's Theater--this is the balcony where Abraham Lincoln sat the night he was shot.

Air and Space Museum

Washington Memorial

Mt. Vernon - George Washington's Home

2009-08-09T17:10:00.000-07:00

Mt. Vernon was beautiful, set right up against the Potomac River. The estate was massive and it was fun to tour and see where George Washington lived.

Washington's Tomb

Montecello - Thomas Jefferson's Home

2009-08-09T17:02:00.000-07:00

We enjoyed visiting Montecello. It was amazing to learn about Thomas Jefferson and his vast estate. He had many slaves, but treated them so well they received an education better than some whites. He was a very talented President.

Willamsburg

2009-08-08T16:57:00.000-07:00

We visited Colonial Willamsburg. It was interesting to see what the colonies would have been like. We were adjusting to the heat and humidity on this day so it was a bit challenging for the kids at times. There were people in costume, horses and wagons, people dressed up as slaves, towns people, etc. We all enjoyed it very much.

NYC/DC Family Trip

2009-08-07T16:46:00.000-07:00

Here we are on our way to DC. The kids liked the airplane because they could get juice and pop. I always hoped for a nap which didn't always happen. We were all excited for this trip and the kids worked hard to achieve goals that they set several months in advance to "earn" this trip.

Climbing the "Y"

2009-07-27T16:25:00.000-07:00

Dillon insisted that we (Dillon, Kelsie, Cade, Kristin, Mom)

climb the "Y" when we went to Utah. I think he forgot that the climb is straight up the entire way. He wasn't too happy by the time we got to the top. :-) We did enjoy the hike back down and taking pictures at the top. And we had to stop at the BYU Creamery for a cone since it was soooo hot!

High School Friends Reunion

2009-07-25T16:43:00.000-07:00

I had so much fun getting together with three of my High School Friends at the Paradise Cafe in Bountiful, Utah. Laurel came all the way from Texas! Laurel and Marci are on the bottom (L to R) and Sherrie and I are on the top. I didn't know we could talk for four hours at lunch!

Oquirrh Mountain Temple Open House

2009-07-25T16:39:00.000-07:00

I took the kids to the Oquirrh Mountain Temple Open House. My mom and my sister, Pam, came with me which was nice. The kids loved being able to see the inside of the temple. They loved seeing the sealing rooms and looking into the mirrors that make it look like they go on forever, like our eternal family. What a great opportunity.

Girl's Camp 2009

2009-07-17T16:20:00.000-07:00

Brooke, Kelsie and I went to Girl's Camp together. I was asked to be a 1st year leader with two other great leaders. We had 19 girls to keep track of and make sure that they had a great time. I think it was successful. Here is me (bottom left) with all the other 1st year girls and leaders.

Swim Team 2009

2009-06-21T09:02:00.000-07:00

This year, again, we had 4 kids on swim team. Brooke and Cade were excited about it. . .Kelsie and Dillon a little less excited. But with Jeff serving as President of the Swim Team this year, we decided that whether or not to participate was not an option. The kids have been great and have helped me out by riding their bikes over (except for Cade). That has cut my trips over to the pool each morning from 4 down to 2. I can do that. They are doing a great job swimming. Cade wants to swim every event possible--even the 100 meter freestyle. WOW! Kelsie has qualified for League and may qualify for State! Way to go!

Kelsie after her race

I'm not too good at action shots! Here is Cade from the back.

Kelsie doing her "League Qualifying" breast stroke

Dillon and Cade resting under the tent

A friend and Cade

Dillon preparing for heating

Brooke doing the 100 meter freestyle

Dillon's 10th Birthday Party

2009-06-20T09:25:00.000-07:00

Dillon had a very fun birthday. We took 3 of his friends to Pirate's Cove -- a local water park to celebrate. We have a friend in our ward that maintains all the pools at Pirate's Cove and he was so entertained by Dillon's countdown to his birthday on Facebook that he called the manager at Pirate's Cove to arrange something special for us. When we got to Pirate's Cove, the manager gave us free admission (for all 9 of us), a special drink mug filled with toys for Dillon, plus tatoos and eye patches for all the kids. We had sooo much fun! Dillon is lucky he has a summer birthday!

Kids Video

2009-06-18T09:15:00.000-07:00

Kiddo Pictures

2009-06-18T09:06:00.000-07:00

I took some fun pictures of the kids in conjunction with a DVD that Brooke was making for Jeff for father's day. We had a lot of inside jokes that had to do with the crazy fun things that Jeff does. . .like MOIST, DO YOU WANT SOME OF THIS? THE CLOCK STARTS NOW!, etc. The kids had a lot of fun doing these photos.

Does anyone need support?

Happy Birthday, Jeff!

2009-06-15T08:57:00.000-07:00

Jeff had several pre-celebrations. We went to dinner at Sweet Tomatoes with the kids the Friday before his birthday. Then we went out for Mexican food with some friends on Saturday night. Sunday night we invited his parents over to have brownie sundaes. Then on Monday, his actual birthday, he had breakfast in bed, Red Robin for lunch and then went with Dillon to Cub Scout Day Camp. Dillon appreciated him spending his birthday at Day Camp. When they got home that evening we finished off the celebrating with icecream at Cold Stone.

Now we are all going on a diet. . .

Kammi Turns 19!

2009-06-07T08:51:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday, Kammi! We had a family dinner with Matt and Debbie too, to celebrate. Then the next day on her actual birthday, Debbie and I took Kammi to get a pedicure. We had fun in the massage chairs, laughing and enjoying each other. Then Matt, Jeff, Brooke, and Kelsie met us at the Cheesecake Factory for some yummy dinner and cheesecake. It was lots of fun!

Make A Wish!

My First Triathlon!!

2009-06-06T08:36:00.000-07:00

In December, my sister Kristin told me that she had signed up for a Triathlon and asked if I would want to do it. I said, "Are you crazy? I don't swim, or run, or ride my bike!" Well, then the challenge was on because if Kristin is doing it, I COULD DO IT!! I decided that "working out" at the gym just wasn't enough any more. I'd been doing that for 9 years, and now it was time for me to stop taking the easy road and take on a challenge. So I talked to my good friend, Stephanie, who had done 4 triathlons, marathons, 1/2 marathons, etc. She told me over lunch that she'd do one with me and help me with the training. Well, I told her I needed to get in the pool first to see if I could swim. I hadn't swam a lap in at least 25 years. I didn't want to drown. Well, our first time swimming was challenging, but I could see that I could get there. I also knew that I was in good enough shape to work my way to a 5K run and my spin classes would pull me through the bike part. We signed up for a Triathlon in September. Then at the beginning of May Stephanie told me about a "Tune Up" Tri in June that we should do since it had an indoor swim. I knew it would help me prepare for my Tri in Sept so I signed up. Then soon after, my niece Tiffany got excited about what I was doing and signed up herself and her husband (I'm not sure he was very thrilled). So we all did it together and had a blast! It is so crazy that something so physically challenging can actually be fun. . .well when it is over you look back and seem to think so!

So here is a photo of me and my inspirational friend, Stephanie.

Here are the four of us after the race--Andrew, Tiffany, Me, Stephanie!

Andrew took this picture of me crossing the finish line! YEA!

Trying to catch my breath after the race--whew!

Andrew and Tiffany in their race shirts after the race

Trip to Chicago

2009-06-04T08:27:00.000-07:00

Jeff took me on a quick trip with him to Chicago. He went for business, I went for R&R. We had so much fun on the river boat tour. Chicago has a river that goes through the middle of the city and it is lined with all the different amazing skyscrapers. It really is one of the most beautiful cities I've been to.

We saw "Jersey Boys" and I was so impressed with the incredible vocals!

Wow. I'd see it again!!

I believe this was at Memorial Park. There is this huge metallic bubble structure that we had fun taking pictures of with the fun reflections of ourselves and the city lights.

Another cool metal structure in the park

A view of the city from the river

Devil's Head Hike - Memorial Day 2009

2009-05-25T08:15:00.000-07:00

Here is our little hiking group. My niece, Tiffany and her husband Andrew and son Taylor joined us. It was a 1.5 mile hike up almost 1,000 feet in elevation. It was a great Memorial Day workout and we had lots of fun doing it together. We finished just before the rain came.

Dillon, Cade, Paige

Baby Taylor, Andrew, Tiffany

Not the greatest picture of our family. . .

Paige's Preschool Graduation 2009

2009-05-24T07:48:00.000-07:00

Paige graduated from her first year at preschool. She call's her teacher Miss Karen. Karen is a wonderful teacher and she made learning fun. Paige is excited she has one more year of preschool before Kindergarten (and so is mom). She was very excited about each day!

Preschool class

Paige and her special friend, Parker,

who she is certain she will "marry in the temple".

Paige holding her graduation hat because

she just couldn't get it to stay on quite right.

My little graduate!

Dillon's Field Day 2009

2009-05-21T08:10:00.000-07:00

Dillon does the 3-legged race with Alex

Dillon and his friend, Brandan

Sock Toss

Dillon is proud of is red 2nd place ribbon

Dillon had lots of fun at field day--especially the part when we took him to Ihop for lunch. He loves breakfast food! He wasn't too happy with the ribbons he got, but it was the fun that counts!

Cade's Field Day 2009

2009-05-20T07:58:00.000-07:00

Cade with his friend, Ryan.

Sock toss

Field Day got long for Paige

Cade had a lot of fun at his field day and was happy he got mostly 1st and 2nd place ribbons. For lunch I took him to Subway and he ate a footlong ham sandwich, chips, cookie, and a drink! I couldn't believe it!!

It's Saturday! 4th grade Musical

2009-05-20T07:30:00.000-07:00

Dillon was excited to play the groovin' cool piano man/teacher. He did a great job and got a lot of laughs. He loves being on stage.

Dillon is in the bottom center in the yellow shirt.

Dillon is on the bottom left--yellow shirt.

Brooke is Growing Up!

2009-05-19T07:23:00.000-07:00

Brooke was so excited to get her braces off! Then we headed straight to the DMV to get her driving permit. YIKES!!

Here is Brooke with her new, cute haircut! She wasn't sure about going shorter, but after everyone couldn't stop complimenting her, she decided maybe it was a good move.

Brooke's 15th Birthday Luau

2009-05-15T07:38:00.000-07:00

Brooke celebrated her birthday with her friends by going to a beach boy concert put on by a band called the "Kahuna Beach Party." They had a blast dancing and enjoying the music. Then we had a sleepless sleepover. It was a very cute group of girls!

Can you find the gum at the bottom of the whip cream?

Make a wish! This was mom's attempt at making an icecream cake.

It tasted better than it looked!

They sang "happy birthday" to Brooke and did a great job embarrassing her.

First 5K--Columbine Run For Remembrance 2009

2009-05-09T07:26:00.000-07:00

I talked Brooke into doing our first 5K together. Neither of us is a runner (well, I'm trying to be). I ran it with a friend and she ran/walked it with a friend of hers. But we cheered each other on and had a great time up at the school with the hundreds of other people. I ended up getting 7th in my age category. I was happy with that.

Visit to the Denver Zoo

2009-04-20T07:17:00.000-07:00

Here are the Mercer monkeys! Dillon, Cade, Paige

Gorilla

Dillon, friend Alex, Cade with the elephants getting their bath in the background.

Elephant getting a nice shower and drink.

Easter Morning 2009

2009-04-12T06:55:00.000-07:00

Here are the three youngest on Easter Morning. I'm not sure why my older girls didn't get in these photos. Maybe they didn't want their picture taken. The kids all got a 2008 yearbook in their baskets that I made for each of them to keep plus a few other goodies. We had a huge egg hunt (125+) eggs to find. Lots of fun!

Caden's 7th Birthday

2009-04-10T07:11:00.000-07:00

Caden had his birthday party at the Shrine Circus! They loved all the amazing acts and the animals. Here is the tiger show.

Here is our huge group. Very captivated by the show.

Happy Star Wars Birthday!

Cade with his group of friends.

Spring Break in New Mexico

2009-04-05T15:58:00.000-07:00

The good thing about Jeff having a large sales territory with his job is that once in a while we can manage to get a free trip out of tagging along on his business trip. For Spring Break we went with Jeff down to New Mexico while he visited hospitals. Our first stop was in Albuquerque. Here we visited several fun museums. Then we went to Las Cruces where we visited the White Sands National Monument. It was amazing to see endless white sand dunes and with all the wind you would have thought we were in a blizzard! They even have to plow the roads. Then we went on to the Carlsbad Caverns. This cave has a room almost 800 feet underground that could fit over 6 football fields inside. See the amazing formations we found inside this cave. We all had so much fun exploring this cave. It was nice to enjoy 70 degree weather and sunshine while Denver got snow. Happy Spring!

Crazy Kelsie and her "GIG"

2009-04-01T07:04:00.000-07:00

This shows exactly how crazy Kelsie is. She just randomly does stuff like put a million hair ties in her hair and tie on a balloon . . .I don't get it either.

Here is Kelsie and her GIG (girls in glasses). They are a cute group of girls at the theater. They have so much fun together. Kelsie is on the far right of the first photo below.

Bomma's Funeral

2009-03-29T17:17:00.000-07:00

Kelsie, Kristin, Sharon
Debbie, Brooke, Kammi
Sharon, Karen, Debbie
L toR: Donna, Pam, Bryan, Karen, Sandi, Sharon, Debbie, Kristin, Kammi, Dad, Mom

(in order of age for the kids)
Uncle Tom, Mom, Janet, Bob (Bomma's kids)

Kids taking flowers to remember Bomma
Pallbearers: Front - Jesse, Tom, Bob, Bobby

This week we went to Bomma's funeral. Bomma is the name I gave my maternal grandmother and it stuck. We all loved Bomma very much and were sad to see her go, but happy to know that she would be reunited with loved ones that passed on before her. I look forward to the day that I can be reunited with Bomma and Papa. We did enjoy seeing aunts, uncles, and cousins that we hadn't seen in years. What a blessing to be part of such a wonderful eternal family!

Annie

2009-03-24T09:23:00.001-07:00

I love this picture of Kelsie as Annie. We were so proud!

Kelsie as Annie with Daddy Warbucks

Annie and Sandy

Annie with President Roosevelt (Dillon)

President Roosevelt and secret service

Kelsie as Annie with Daddy Warbucks (Brian)

Dillon as Bert Healy the announcer

Dillon in the dancing Production Number

Kelsie as Annie with Grace and Daddy Warbucks

Kelsie as Annie with Ms. Hannigan

This is Dillon as Michael the servant on the left, and Kelsie as Annie on the right.

Dillon as the Apple Seller

Kelsie as Annie with Sandy the dog.

Kelsie as Annie - becoming quite the vocalist.

Tomorrow, tomorrow, I love ya, tomorrow, you're only a day away!

Beauty and the Beast -CHS

2009-03-24T09:17:00.001-07:00

Brooke was in Columbine High School's production of Beauty and the Beast. She had so much fun being a villager and the whisk. We enjoyed watching it and seeing what a great job the kids did. We are friends with Belle, Hailey Beutler, and so it was really fun to watch how amazing she was on stage.

Rockin' Out!

2009-01-20T18:29:00.000-08:00

Cade rockin' out!

Dillon burning it up!

My cute little guitar hero boys wanted mohawks for CRAZY HAIR DAY at school. So I agreed to cut the sides short for a day and spike the middle. I don't know if these pictures are good enough for you to see their crazy hair, but they thought it was awesome. The next day, after school it was gone. They were cute and excited about it.

Can You Pour Water Sideways?

2009-01-15T18:24:00.000-08:00

Dillon won first place in his 4th grade division of the Science Fair. Yea Dillon! Not bad for putting it together in one hour the night before (yea, Mom!) And yes, you can pour water sideways using a physics concept called cohesion. . .try it! As a side note, Dillon also participated in the school's spelling bee two days later. He was the only 4th grader that qualified and so he competed against 5th and 6th graders. He made it to the 4th round and beat out half of the older kids!! Way to go!!

New Year's Eve 08-09

2009-01-02T18:20:00.000-08:00

Cade, Cale, Paige, and Carli had so much fun blowing horns to celebrate the New Year! It was a blast having a quiet New Years Eve and celebrating with Matt & Debbie, Sharon & Spencer (and kids), Kristin, & Forrest. We had dinner, and SNACKS and more SNACKS, and games and lots of noise makers!

Christmas Morning 2008

2008-12-25T18:10:00.000-08:00

Kelsie and Brooke were all about Twilight and electric blankets!

Santa brought Cade a video rocker chair and an xBox game

Dillon was a very good boy and so Santa brought him the electric guitar

that he'd had on his Christmas list since July! Now he needs lessons.

Paige was happy with the puppy stroller set she got from Santa, but especially liked the candy and nuts! She wasn't too excited about Santa before Christmas, but decided Christmas morning that he was okay.

Here is the cute bunch anticipating finding out what Santa brought the good Mercer kids!

We were very blessed to have many nice gifts under our tree thanks to the generosity of many family members. We were grateful for each one! Thank you!

Christmas Eve 2008

2008-12-24T18:00:00.000-08:00

We acted out the nativity story with our family at Grandma and Grandpa Mercer's house. Jeff and I played Mary and Joseph, Kelsie was the shepherd, Paige the angel, and Brooke, Cade, and Dillon were the three wisemen. So cute. . .except for mom.

Posing with Santa

2008-12-20T18:39:00.000-08:00

Here we are with Santa! You can see how happy Paige was to be within 10 feet of Santa. What a cute bunch of kids. . .hope they're on Santa's good list!!

We Got A Job!!!

2008-12-15T17:36:00.000-08:00

What a blessing to be employed again, especially in this economy where people we know and love are being laid off every week! Jeff will never again take his employment for granted! Unemployment is a trial that is very stressful, faith trying, and yet a blessing in disguise. Every time we have been through it we are humbled to see the Lord's hand in blessing us. We don't even try to add up the numbers to find out why we still have money in savings and how our one month's salary lasted for 5 months and through Christmas. I will ALWAYS pay my tithing first, avoid debt, and live frugally because you never know when you will have to live on very little. All of a sudden, our 10 year old Suburban is looking pretty fine when I know it is paid for and we don't have to worry about making a payment every month. We are blessed that it keeps running, along with our 12 year old Honda. I know that with the Lord's help we CAN do hard things. With a little effort and faith on our part, he will make up the difference for our weakness.

I am sooo blessed!

By the way, Jeff is working for a company called Language Access Network selling video interpretation services to hospitals. It is similar to a job he had a couple years ago and so he has a jump start on his sales with the contacts he has maintained. We are hoping his hard work pays off soon! Right now he is traveling 3-4 days a week trying to cover his 15 state territory as the mid-west sales VP. Go Jeff!!

Christmas in Nauvoo

2008-12-12T18:34:00.000-08:00

Jeff and I were asked to play Joseph and Emma Smith in a little play at our ward Christmas party. It was more work than I expected, but ended up being pretty fun. Jeff was thrilled to finally be on stage with me. I think people called me "Emma" for a few weeks after that. It was a bit tricky to figure out how to curl my hair like that! I could never be a pioneer!

Papa's 62nd Birthday

2008-12-01T17:57:00.000-08:00

We celebrated Papa's birthday over Thanksgiving weekend while several of us were there from out of town! Wow was there a lot of smoke from those candles! We love you Papa!

Homemade Rootbeer

2008-11-20T17:45:00.000-08:00

Jeff has carried on the tradition of making homemade rootbeer from his childhood. Our kids love doing it each holiday season. Everyone has their own special job. Kelsie and Dillon fill the jars, Cade carries the jar to Jeff to be capped, Brooke rinses off the bottle, and then Paige dries it and puts it on the table. We usually make it right before Thanksgiving so that it can "brew" for a week or so and then we can enjoy it for the month of December. I think I am the only one that has not converted to the yeast taste, but everyone else loves it.

There's a Monster in My Closet

2008-11-15T17:28:00.000-08:00

Brooke played the "Dream Queen" in her play and did a great job portraying a crazy, bipolar queen. We enjoyed watching her at her best.

Halloween Candy 2008

2008-11-01T20:49:00.000-07:00

Well, we hit another record trick or treating last night. Jeff stayed out until 9:30 trick or treating with four of the kids and collected 32 lbs of candy. Then Kelsie came home from her friend's house this morning with over 18 lbs of candy. That totals 50 lbs. Well, we couldn't stop there. Columbine High School had their annual "Trick or Treat Street" the day after Halloween this year and so candy donations hit a record high. Four of our kids went and that run totaled another 18 lbs. So we now have candy, candy, and more candy. . . 68 lbs.!!! We gave away two big bags, filled a big bowl and then bagged the rest in gallon ziplocks and filled the freezer. Jeff says that if he doesn't get a job, we can live off candy. I'm already sick of it. I shouldn't have eaten any and now have eaten more than my share. Hershey's chocolate and Swedish fish are my weakness. Here are some photos of Jeff in his glory. Good grief. You can see we had to "sort" the candy. That is the fun part.

Halloween 2008

2008-10-31T19:06:00.001-07:00

Paige the "Witch", Brooke "Sally"(from the Nightmare Before Christmas), Kelsie the "prisoner", Dillon "The Cat in the Hat", Cade the "Power Ranger."

For those of you who know Jeff, you know that acquiring candy is the name of the game. In his words, "Time is Candy!" He has been known to "make" the kids continue to trick or treat in the cold because "we have to beat last year's record." I think we usually end up with a ridiculous amount like between 30-40 lbs. of candy. Tonight Kelsie did not trick or treat with us. She went with a friend and Jeff said, "You better come home with 20 lbs. of candy, or don't come home." She just rolls her eyes and says, "Whatever!" Tonight it all started with Jeff putting Cade and Paige in the double stroller and running full speed down the street from house to house. Luckily Dillon can run fast enough to keep up! We'll see how much they come up with after 3 hours of trick or treating. I have to make him come home by 9:00. Here are a few photos of the kiddos in their costumes. By the way, it was still over 70 degrees when we started out. That is a record for Denver!

Pumpkin Carving - 2008

2008-10-31T18:56:00.001-07:00

These are the Crazy pumpkin carvers: Brooke, Cade, Paige, and Dillon

These are the cute pumpkin carvers!

This is the pumpkin carved by the crazy/cute pumpkin carvers!

These are the cuties that picked out the pumpkin to be carved.

Paige's 4th Birthday - 10/18/08

2008-10-31T18:48:00.000-07:00

Paige had two of her best friends come over, Sawyer and Rachel, for a "Fairy Party"

Paige LOVES Hannah Montana!

Good thing cake tastes good, no matter how ugly. . .ha, ha.

Kelsie Turns 12!!

2008-10-10T16:39:00.000-07:00

It is hard to believe that 12 years ago, on Friday the 13th of September, our little Kelsie was born. Now she is a real-live pre-teen, complete with attitude. Just ask her. She is all about social events with her friends, her cell phone, and experimenting with hair styles and makeup. She is also VERY excited to join the Young Women at church. We sure love having her in our family!

Way Out West In A Dress--Jeff's Show 10/08

2008-10-10T15:59:00.000-07:00

Jeff played the characters, Clarence, and Lady Clare Rawl. I'm not sure it was his favorite thing to wear makeup, heels, a dress, and a wig. He did a great job and everyone got a good laugh!

Jeff as Lady Clare Rawl

Carrie O'Key, Rogain, Lady Clare Rawl, and Melody Plunkett

Lady Clare Rawl with his/her adopted family:

Donna, Dillon, Caden, and Paige.

The Story of the Velveteen Rabbit

2008-09-13T10:05:00.000-07:00

Kelsie, Dillon, and Cade opened their first night of "The Velveteen Rabbit" last night. Kelsie played the Skin Horse (with lots of lines and several solos), a toy doll, and a tree. Dillon played the main little boy, Andrew, a clown toy, and the gardner Peavey. Caden was Raggedy Andy, the Doctor, and a bunny. In all, I put together 10 costumes for this show!!! Ugh. That is my contribution. They did all the hard work of memorizing lines (I think Dillon had almost 100), learning dances, and acting. They did a great job and it was a very cute show. Paige loved watching with Mom, Dad, and Brooke. Here are a few pictures of them.

Cade as Raggedy Andy with the China Doll and Raggedy Ann

Kelsie as a Southern Belle Doll

Dillon as a Toy Clown

Cade as a bunny

Cade as Raggedy Andy

Dillon as "Andrew" with mother and Uncle Brad

Kelsie as the Skin Horse with the Velveteen Rabbit

Dillon as "Andrew" with his rabbit

Cade as the Doctor, with Mother and Uncle Brad

Grand Lake with the Macfarlane Family

2008-09-07T17:29:00.001-07:00

We had a great time in Grand Lake with the Macfarlane Family. Cathy is Jeff's sister and they came from Utah to Grand Lake, CO. We had so much fun hiking around, BBQing and making Smores with their family! Thanks for all the fun, Cathy and Larry! We love your family! 7/08

Museum of Nature & Science

2008-09-05T21:55:00.001-07:00

Cade and Paige landed on the moon. Cade's jumpsuit was about 6 inches too short.

Watch out for the dinosaurs behind you!

How tall are you compared to the T-Rex?

We took one last trip to the Museum of Nature and Science with the kids before school started. They had lots of fun exploring, especially the dinosaur exhibit.

First Day of School

2008-09-05T21:46:00.001-07:00

Paige on her first day of Preschool

Cade on his first day of 1st grade

Dillon on his first day of 4th grade

Brooke and Kelsie go to school so early that we didn't remember to pull out the camera!

We'll have to post updated photos at a later date.

Labor Day Camping 2008

2008-09-05T19:12:00.001-07:00

Pam and Grammy on the hike

"Whew this hiking is tough!" said Paige.

Awesome pizza--Cale and Cade.

Grammy's tent was too small for a nap so she opted to sleep under the tree.

Sand castle, or mud pie?

The cousins had a blast together! Quite the little hikers and climbers.

From left to right: Cade, Kelsie, Paige, Carli, Dillon, Cale.

Chatting with the girls. . .Mom, Sharon, Kristin, Donna.

Cale and Cade had some help from Spencer making this awesome sand castle.

The Mercer family on top of a HUGE sandstone!

Brooke, Kelsie, Dillon, Donna, Cade, Paige, and Jeff

Cade, Carli, and Dillon digging in the sand.

What a blast we had camping in the wind, rain, and sun at Arches National Park. We hiked up to Delicate Arch--a hot, tiring hike, but a beautiful view! Grammy even made it! What a fun time all together. The kids were troopers!

The Mercers and the Miskhos! 8/08

2008-08-06T07:15:00.001-07:00

Jeff, Donna, Mike, and Linda

Matthew Miskho, Dillon, Cade

Maddie & Michaela Miskho, Brooke, and Kelsie

Ian Miskho, Paige

Mike Miskho and I finally reunited after 12 years! Mike and I lived next door to each other for over 10 years and even walked together in graduation. We have sooo many memories of growing up that make us laugh. We had so much fun talking about the good old days and meeting each other's families. We didn't realize we only lived 75 minutes from each other and so when we discovered how close we were, we got our families together. We found we had friends in common, Rob and Kris Baer, who are now in Mike and Linda's ward. We had so much fun getting the three families together at Boyd Lake in Fort Collins. The kids had a blast together. We enjoyed our time with the Miskhos on the boat and at their home afterwards. We are already making a plan to see each other again!

Mercer Reunion 2008

2008-08-06T07:00:00.000-07:00

Cade, Dillon, and Paige

Mercer Cousins

Paige and Cade

Bob and Irene (his sister)

Jim, Lotte, Irene, Bev, and Bob

We held the Mercer Reunion in Utah this year. We had nearly 70 people attend. The kids had a blast reuniting with their cousins or "friends." On the 4th of July we had a group of us that hiked up to Mt. Timpanogos cave--one mile UP! It is quite a challenging hike, but Cade made it on his own! We had a lot of fun getting together with family.

BBQ in the Canyon with Grammy and Papa 7/08

2008-08-06T06:49:00.001-07:00

Cade & Dillon

Kammi playing Red Neck Horseshoes

Kelsie roasting marshmallows

Brooke enjoying a s'more

Pam and Grammy

Brooke, Papa, and Kenobee

My parents now live in Utah, and have for the past 3 years. We finally took advantage of them living so close to the mountains and went up to the Canyon to have a BBQ when we were there for our last visit. We had tons of fun roasting hotdogs and smores, playing by the stream, and playing "Red Neck Horseshoes." I was there with all of my kids, Grammy, Papa, Kammi, Trevor (Kammi's special friend), Kristin, and Pam. We had so much fun that we NEED to do it again!

The Mercer Kid Dolphins! 5/08-7/08

2008-08-06T06:41:00.001-07:00

We had four kids on swim team this year. I can't say they all were excited about it. However, Mom likes them to get up early and exercise! I just can't stand a summer with laziness and sleeping in every day. Yes, it is kind of a pain for me to drive over to the pool three times each morning for everyone's practices, but it is worth it for a few weeks. Cade went from hardly being able to swim 25 meters freestyle, to beating Dillon's time! Watch out Dillon! They all did very well and we were proud of their accomplishments. The boys were excited about their trophies. Jeff served as VP and next year will move up to President--like it or not! :-)

Cub Scout Day Camp 6/08

2008-08-06T06:33:00.000-07:00

Dillon had tons of fun at Cub Scout Day Camp. There were so many fun things to do. Even Mom got to go up and have fun with the boys! He is excited to be a Bear now. If you know Dillon, you can imagine how much fun it is for him to keep track of his accomplishments and see them sewn on his shirt. He loves it when I sew his patches on his shirt right away so that he can show off his hard work.

Paige Gets Into Lipstick! 6/08

2008-08-06T06:23:00.000-07:00

Paige is certainly a girly-girl. And isn't afraid of getting into trouble. We have had our share of makeup and nail polish on the carpet and it can all be credited to her. Kelsie caught her in the act and recorded the evidence!

Happy 9th Birthday, Dillon!

2008-08-05T22:21:00.000-07:00

Gosh, it is hard to believe that Dillon is now 9 years old! For his birthday he invited a few friends to go to a water park near our home called "Pirate's Cove." They had a blast! I was pregnant with him when we moved into our house and I remember the summer he was born because we were working so hard to put in our yard. I was laying sod just a few weeks after having him. We love having Dillon in our family!

Eagle Mountain Rodeo

2008-08-05T22:15:00.000-07:00

We visited Grammy, Papa, and Kammi in Eagle Mountain while Brooke went to EFY at BYU. Their ward had a rodeo while we were there. Unique, I know. Everyone in their ward owns at least one acre and most have some type of livestock. We had lots of fun watching them all compete on their horses, show their sheep and we enjoyed the hay ride.

Dillon Takes First Place!

2008-08-05T22:02:00.000-07:00

Dillon participated in his first pinewood derby, and thanks to Dad's help, took 1st place!! He was so proud.

ATVs in Cozumel

2008-08-05T21:55:00.000-07:00

The ATV jungle tour wasn't exactly what we had expected. We were driving over LARGE chunks of limestone and kicking up so much dust, that we had dirt mustaches. In fact, we had dirt in place you couldn't even see. . .even the shower had quite a battle getting all of it off. I think we all had fun except for mom (well, she probably wouldn't do it again :-) I'm not sure I would recommend it.

Carribean Cruise--April 2008

2008-08-05T21:47:00.000-07:00

In April I got to go on a cruise with my parents, two of my sisters, Pam and Kammi, and a friend, Maddie. We left from Fort Lauderdale and cruised to Belize, Cozumel, and Key West. We had so much fun together, relaxing in the sun and playing in the water, and eating fabulous food!

Family Photos--November 2007

2008-08-05T21:39:00.000-07:00

Here are some photos we took November 2007. . .I know, I'm finally posting and updating this blog!!

Snow White Again and Again

2007-12-26T10:37:00.000-08:00

After going to DisneyWorld, Paige became obsessed with Snow White. She got a Snow White dress for her birthday and insists on wearing it every day. One day it was up in her closet and she wanted to wear it. She decided to empty all the clothes out of her drawers to make a pile big enough to stand on so she could get her dress. Ugh! The other picture is of her and Brooke in their Snow White dresses. Brooke was Snow White in a musical almost 2 years ago, so her dress is getting a little small. Paige thought it was sooo awesome to have Brooke wearing the same dress as her.

Christmas 2007

2007-12-26T10:21:00.000-08:00

We realized after opening all the gifts that we forgot to take pictures! But we did have lots of fun and the kids were thrilled that Grammy and Papa along with Great Grandma and Grandpa Hunt gave them an xBox 360. Brooke was especially excited about the Guitar Hero III and Dance Dance Revolution 2! We finally have something for teenagers to do when they come over to hang out. Dillon and Cade enjoyed telling Santa what they wanted for Christmas. Paige didn't like Santa so much. Jeff and I had fun hosting the neighborhood progressive dinner for the 9th year in a row!

Florida Vacation on the Beach

2007-11-07T16:14:00.001-08:00

Here is one more Disney photo and some pictures of our fun on the beach. We love the warm waters of the Mexican Gulf. We had lots of fun getting sandy.

Happy Halloween 2007

2007-11-07T14:26:00.000-08:00

When it comes to Trick or Treating, Jeff says, "Time is Candy!" He has a reputation for getting a lot of candy on Halloween night. We even had a whole group of kids that wanted to join us because of his reputation. Here are some photos of the kids in their costumes. Paige was Snow White, Cade was Spiderman, Dillon was Dash, Kelsie was Spiderella, and Brooke was a dead fairy. We had a fun filled evening and at the end of the night Jeff was disappointed that we only got about 30 lbs of candy. He told the kids they were all grounded. We did find a lot of homes that weren't handing out candy and that slowed down our pace. I think we've been on a sugar high for a week now.

DisneyWorld Vacation

2007-11-07T14:17:00.000-08:00

We had a blast at DisneyWorld from Oct. 5-13, 2007. We flew into Tampa, then we drove to Orlando to begin our 7 day excursion through DisneyWorld. We had tons of fun with Mickey and the gang. Paige was a bit scared of the characters, so she isn't in some of the character photos. Cade was brave enough to go on several of the scary rides like "Tower of Terror", "Space Mountain", and "Expedtion Everest". Dillon braved the "Rockin Rollercoaster" which goes from 0-60 in about 5 seconds and immediately goes upside-down in the dark. He was silent the entire ride and then at the end broke down in tears and exclaimed "I hated that!" Cade actually wanted to go on that rollercoaster, but was too short. Maybe next time. Paige asked everyday when we can go back to DisneyWorld and see "The Nemo Show". She loved the shows.