It's The Kaufman Life!

March

2011-08-30T11:53:00.000-07:00

In March:

Garth raced in Finland at the World Championships. He placed 4th and will hopefully race again next year. He's on the left:

Palmer playing in the snow-we were still in MN.I turned 29! Yikes!Since it was my birthday I got to pick the day's activities. Shopping it is. Here is Palmer and I in Fargo at Scheels riding the Ferris wheel.
The family at Cabela's one of our other favorite places to shop!
On our way home from MN we decided to take the scenic route through South Dakota and Wyoming. I think this will have to be a yearly tradition.
Mt. Rushmore:

February-I'm a bit behind...

2011-05-18T07:19:00.000-07:00

Living in Minnesota for the winter is just like one long fun family vacation. Garth works hard with racing but we also play hard. We get to spend a lot of time together. I wish he could race year round!

Here is a rare moment. Peaceful brothers sitting nicely next to each other. I had to get it on camera. Garth is the towards the right in the black sweatshirt w/white FOX logo. He is here with his race team owners (to his right) and a couple fellow racers. His team-Christian Brothers Racing-does snocross and cross country races. They had two races in the same weekend in two separate locations. They flew on a private jet to be able to make it to both. Garth raced a double header in Detroit, MI on Saturday the 12th, getting 3rd in Stock, and then flew to MN for the Walker, MN cross country and got 4th.

Clockwise starting at the bottom left-Carl, Dwight, Logan, Garth, Kari, and Evan up front.

Here's Palmer at the mall play yard in Fargo. We went shopping on Valentine's day (one of my very favorite pass times). It was our first together in over 6 years. Garth is usually racing or traveling that weekend. I love the Midwest's love for hockey! Look at the crowd! We were lucky enough to be in a suite which had our own bathroom and catered food. Thanks again to the Christians (Garth's snocross team owners). Here we are at an NDSU game.

They even have cheerleaders in hockey!

Dexter is still just really really cute! He's not really riding this trike. Just likes to be pushed around and feel like a big boy.

The Boys...

2011-03-01T10:39:00.001-08:00

Palmer is a trike riding machine! I think he'll be ready for a big bike this summer!

The weather was warmish and sunny so we got outside-2/15/11

Dexter is a crawling machine! 2/22/11

January

2011-02-03T20:48:00.001-08:00

January! I'm catching right up! Here's what we did in January-

We were lucky enough to have a snocross race close to home in Sandy, UT. I met up with my sister Julie to shop an amazing sale at Old Navy. Here is Palmer (far left) with his cousins, Kate, Scott and Austin. I'm taking a guess at which one is which. I can't tell them apart yet. I need to spend more time with them! They were all so well behaved. We were able to get some awesome deals!
Here is Garth, snuggling with the boys in the hotel room in Sandy. He's probably one of the only pro racers who does this the night before a race. He balances being a devoted dad and a serious, focused racer very well.Dexter has really picked up crawling and climbing. He climbs to the top of the stairs now in a blink of an eye. I really have to watch him closely!

We went to Aspen, Colorado for the Winter X-Games. Garth and his teammates left 2 days before me. I took on the two boys for a full day of airline travel husband-less. I, of course, was chosen for the full search/pat down because of my baby food (it was sealed, I didn't want them to open them all to test them. They would have gone bad...). It was quite invasive. They even patted down Dexter and a man tried to pat down Palmer but he was not having it. I didn't blame him. Random stranger with blue latex gloves on? I'm glad Palmer was stand offish. I guess it was 'good enough' since there wasn't any bomb residue on myself or Dex. I guess I'll take it for the security of our country...

The weather in Aspen was amazing. Sunny and mid 40's. It was a blast.Here is the living room of the house we stayed in. It was amazing. When we first got there, everyone had to check out all the rooms. The kids were all squealing with delight! It kept going on and on. I never did figure out how many rooms there were. We stayed with one of the team owners and his family, his brother and family, a couple of the mechanics, and a few others. We had such a fun time. I felt like part of the family. We cooked meals together, the kids all played...it was great.

The view from the back patio. Way in the background, up on the mountainside is where the X-Games took place. I also got to go shopping in downtown Aspen, but didn't take any pictures.The starting line. Garth is down on the end.

Panoramic of the snocross track.

Thanks Garth for working so hard for the life we have. We say all the time that right now is what we'll refer to later as "the good ole' days".

December

2011-02-02T10:09:00.000-08:00

December was a super busy, time flying when you're having fun, month.

Dexter won't stop growing, despite my repeated requests. But gosh he's cute. Palmer finds ways to entertain himself with just about anything. Here he is w/two empty cereal boxes. One for his head and one for his toy's head.

We went home to Wyoming to visit our family and even got a visit from Aunt Darcie!

Here is Dexter, Palmer and their cousin Zoie riding the car together.

Here's Grandpa showing Palmer how to sneak around the house and shoot things with the Nerf gun. Lot's of giggling from both parties.

We left Dexter with my mom and went for a short snowmobile ride to find a Christmas tree. Garth spotted this one.Garth carried the tree out on the running board. This picture doesn't do the awkward trip home justice.

Every year we exchange ornaments. This year, we picked out a Cars ornament for Palmer. To him, every semi is Mack, every sporty red car is McQueen. Here he and Garth are putting it on the tree. Palmer makes the best faces!Dexter got the "1" ornament since it was his first Christmas.

Garth got me an awesome jacket to wear while cycling. I can't wait for cycling weather!Christmas eve jammies! Another Christmas tradition.

Dexter is wearing one of Garth's sweaters from his baby days.

Our wonderful friend, Shirley and I made a Christmas Eve's Eve dinner for my parent's and little sister, Rachel. She has been a long time family friend and was so much fun to cook with. She makes everything a party!

Garth and Palmer using Grant's loader to clear out the driveway. We had plenty of snow during December.

Grant pulled the cousins (plus my sisters Rachel and Whitney) around behind the snow machine.

Palmer got a nerf gun from his Aunt Rachel. We taught him how to use the scope to aim. I'm pretty sure he got the target!

After we did Christmas morning festivities at our home, we went over to my parents' for the afternoon. Palmer got this hot wheels set-he was so excited about it-I couldn't get a picture of him looking at me.

November...finally

2011-01-15T19:31:00.000-08:00

In November, Garth turned 27. He has a little more salt sprinkled in with his pepper and I love it. I have seen him grow from a young 16 year old punk into an amazing man, father, and husband.

We got to catch up with life long friends Shirley and her son Shannon. They have been great family friends since I was a little girl in California. We are so lucky to have Shirley living in Driggs now so we get to see her all the time. Everything is a party with Shirley. I have wonderful childhood memories of Shirley and her family. I'm thrilled to have her around and my boys love love love her!

While we were packing to move to Minnesota for the snocross season, Palmer needed to use/wear whatever he could get his hands on as it went into the box.

We've moved ourselves to Minnesota in the first part of November for the past 6 years. We come back at the end of March. Garth races snocross professionally. He races for an awesome generous family that always makes sure to have a spot for me and the boys to join Garth. Here's the team's website: www.christianbrosracing.com
This is the darling house we get to live in this winter. This picture was taken when we first moved here. It was snowy and cold when we left Idaho and arrived here with beautiful fall weather.

Palmer enjoying the last days of nice weather on his trike.

Dex on our walk. He is such a beautiful little boy. Inside and out.
Here's what they do when mother nature doesn't provide. This is one of the snow guns that throws inches upon inches down in no time. This is at the team's personal practice track. Man made snow is what most of the race tracks are made out of on the circuit.

October

2010-12-04T15:21:00.000-08:00

October went like this-
We had a visit from Garth's sister Darcie. We went over to Garth's dad's neighbors and rode their horse.
Here's Palmer feeding the Kaufman's big old draft horse. He was a little intimidated at first but enjoyed it.
Darcie, Zoie, and Mindy.
How fun is Great Grandma Marian? This is in her yard, just up the road from our house. It's a teeter totter and a helicopter. Zoie and Palmer are riding inside while Marian and her daughter-in-law teeter the kids.

Here is Darcie holding Dexter who is growing up soooo fast! It was such beautiful weather!

We couldn't get enough of Darcie so the next weekend, I took the boys along w/Garth's mom, Tina and sister, Mindy down to Logan for more Q.T. We went to see some amazing bright red salmon that were spawning. It was incredible to see them swimming upstream to lay their eggs. I wish I could have captured their color on camera but couldn't. Something you will have to see for yourself.
Here is Zoie, Cooper, Andrew, Dexter, Mindy, Palmer and Tina. Darcie and I were behind the camera, not pictured.

Grandma Tina made sure Palmer didn't fall in and made sure he had a constant supply of sticks to throw in the water and watch run downstream.

Logan had the best farmer's market. There was a great little playground that the kids played at while we took turns looking shopping around.

Andrew, Darcie, Dexter and Zoie.

I put Dexter down on his blanket to play and Zoie put her baby next to him and then herself. I had to share the picture. She loves Dexter and took such good care of him.

October 24th we got a bunch of snow. Palmer woke up and said: "Build a snowman!" So we couldn't resist taking him out to play in it and building a snowman.

Halloween:
Palmer was a monkey, Dex was a shark. We went to Boo at the Zoo w/my best friend Beth and her 3 adorable kids. It was a blast. I love Halloween and dressing up the boys.

We of course took the boys trick or treating to their grandparents. Here is Palmer and his Grandma Tini having a whisk sword fight.
Dex with his Grandma Beth.

Palmer hugging and kissing his brother. They are becoming such good friends.

We carved pumpkins as well-here is Garth's. It turned out the best so it deserves a solo photo to really show it off. Garth is so artistic. He just free handed this!

Here are all of our pumpkins on our porch. Garth's on top, then Dexter's, mine, and Palmer's Mater pumpkin.

September

2010-12-01T14:32:00.000-08:00

September...The highlight of this month was definitely the Motocross of Nations race just outside of Denver in Lakewood, Colorado. Garth's very generous boss of more than 10 years gifted this awesome experience to us. We are so grateful to have the Urbans in our lives and to be a part of theirs! Love you Urban fam! My parents were also kind enough to let us borrow their camper that we drove down there and were able to stay right at the track. It made taking the kids that much easier.

Here we are huddled under the shade from our umbrella. It was SOOO hot. I LOVED it!!
Here are the wonderful Urbans. Kui and Bill. Love them!! This is a good view of track.

This is Brandon, Carissa and little Addi. Brandon is the son of Bill and Kui and a long time friend of ours.

Walking from the track to the camper. This pack was a lifesaver. Palmer loved the view.

Garth's good friend Rory and his brother came from Minnesota to watch the race too. It was cool to get to see him this summer. We usually only see him in the winter time. He is also Garth's snocross mechanic.
Dexter is just cute cute cute.

Palmer was playing outside and I found him hiding in the peas. So sweet. He was so content to sit in the peas and eat. Whenever we'd get in the car to run an errand he would have to get a handful to snack on in the car. I love that he loves fresh peas so much.

He also loves the service berries that grow around the house. We picked huckleberries a couple times this summer so he thinks all purple berries are huckleberries. He pulls a branch down and nibbles up all the berries.

August

2010-11-21T12:18:00.000-08:00

August was such a fun filled sunshiny month. Here's what we did:

Dexter has been growing like a little weed. He's so sweet and easy going. Dexter sucks his thumb. Mostly when he's tired sometimes when he's hungry. I think it's adorable, probably because I was a thumb sucker too.
Garth and I celebrated our 4 year wedding anniversary on August 18th. We are so lucky to have found each other. We have the best marriage and such beautiful children.

I really enjoy spending time with my two boys. They keep me on my toes!

The little Alta elementary school has the best little playground. We ride our cruisers up there from our house.

We love a visit from Darcie, Garth's sister. She always prepares the most amazing delicious (and nutritious) food. I wish she lived with us!! I am a better person when she's around!

Palmer looks up to his cousin, Cooper. He tries to copy whatever he is doing. They have very similar personalities. It's fun to see Palmer trying to be a big boy!

More splash park. This time, we met up with my brother Jake and his two boys (who are the same ages as my boys-almost exactly). Here is Palmer with Kai.

Love love love little Kai Kai.

July

2010-11-10T20:55:00.001-08:00

Now that our family is in Minnesota for the winter, I have the internet again! I feel like I've joined civilization again. So-I can catch up on what everyone has been doing and catch my own blog up on our summer adventures. Life has been great. It's very busy w/two small boys-never a dull moment. I wouldn't change anything! Here are a few of the things we did in July.

Petting zoo at the Teton County, WY fair:

Splashing around in Grandma Beth's wading pool with cousin Zoie:
I am so proud of Mindy's painting, that I had to brag it up on our blog. Even though I didn't contribute at all to this-it's totally worth sharing. Mindy (Garth's sis) is already a successful artist and was commissioned to paint in a consignment store in Driggs. She painted Disney princesses as well. She has an amazing talent!! I could go on an on...
We enjoyed our fire pit several times. We made s'mores (my personal favorite) and cooked with the dutch oven a couple of times.
Just a typical day w/Aunt Rachel (my sis). She is painting a star on Palmer's cheek
Garth and Palmer painting
And of course little (chub a lub) Dexter enjoying playing on the floor mat. He's always along during our fun but is usually on my hip and I'm taking pics. I feel bad there aren't more of him. Typical 2nd child I guess.
Fourth of July parade in Victor. A yearly tradition.
My 10 year high school reunion! Everybody looked great-it was fun to see them and hear what everyone has been up to...I'm on the far right w/baby Dex.
Palmer played outside a lot! This was in June. Long sleeves and a puffer vest. Only in Alta, Wyoming.
We enjoyed the carousel at the splash park in Rexburg with Palmer's girlfriend Emrie. Just ask him if he loves her and see him cheese up a big smile!

Before and After

2010-07-06T11:36:00.000-07:00

I repainted a couple of our old ugly dressers and they turned out pretty good if I don't say so myself. I sanded them, painted them, re-sanded them to expose a little wood and rubbed on some wood stain. It was so much fun. Now I'm just looking for the next thing to paint.
This one is in Dexter's room now:

This one is Palmer's:

Palmer is 2!

2010-06-29T12:39:00.000-07:00

I can't believe that my little baby is already 2! Palmer Christian turned 2 April 19th. We celebrated his birthday with his cousin Kai who turned 2 April 17th.

Palmer:
-Loves climbing on anything and everything
-Loves balls-basketballs, footballs, golfballs...and throwing them!
-Can put on his own shoes (sometimes even on the right feet)
-Loves to brush his teeth
-Loves to jump on the trampoline, and on the bed!
-Can spot a deer from across the field (must have come from his dad!)
-Loves being read to.
-Copies whatever his dad does.
-Sleeps in a big boy bed

We love Palmer to pieces. He has a great sense of humor and loves to laugh. He is a big helper and is such a great listener and such a joy to be around.

We even enjoyed a visit from my Great Uncle Jim (Dexter's middle name is James after him) and Great Aunt Anita all the way from New Jersey.

Easter

2010-04-06T19:07:00.000-07:00

Easter was so fun this year! All the holidays seem better w/kids!
Saturday we dyed eggs at Garth's mom's house. Palmer was a crack up! He was very intense. He was all quantity and no quality. He was a speed dyer.
Sunday, Palmer started off w/a basket from the Easter bunny. It had stickers, play doh, and candy.
Palmer is still half asleep here:

Then we had Easter lunch at Garth's mom's house followed by an egg hunt.
Here he is with his cousin Zoie:

Zoie loved Dexter. He is just a little too irresistible!
Palmer and Zoie even went on the sleigh to help feed the cows.
I thought this was so cute-
We wrapped up the day with a quick visit to my mom's where we took our yearly Easter family shot-
Here is Dexter- 1 week old:

Dexter James Kaufman

2010-03-25T10:14:00.000-07:00

Short version:
Dexter James Kaufman
Born 3/22/2010 at 4:40pm, 5 weeks early
5 lbs. 12 oz., 17 inches long

Really Long version:

2:00am Monday morning my water broke. I didn't really know what to do for a couple seconds. I was pretty sure I'd be having him early so was overly prepared but for a second had no idea the next step. Garth was in WI for the weekend for his last race of the season so I was at my mom's house (since I was on bed rest). I called the after hours number and told them my water broke, knocked on my mom's bedroom door, and she and I headed over to the Jackson hospital (about an hour away).

3:30am we got checked in and hooked up to the monitors. I was having contractions ever 3-4 mins.

4:00am I was dilated to 4cm and 80% effaced. Garth was at the Milwaukee airport trying to get home as fast as he could. He was scheduled to arrive in Jackson at 1pm. The doctor told me he probably wouldn't make it in time. I continued contracting every 3 minutes for the next 9 hours but not really progressing. Dexter wanted to wait for his dad!

12:45pm Garth arrives at the airport and I was still only 5cm dilated. I got an
epidural and was able to enjoy the rest of my labor. After Garth got there things finally took off-I really think Dexter was waiting. We all wanted him there. My mom was there with me the whole time and was my own personal nurse through the day and the most uncomfortable parts-pre epidural.
Passing the time texting and surfing

4:40pm Dexter arrives! His pediatrician was there and checked him out right away. Since he was 5 weeks early, he was on the border of them wanting me to deliver somewhere else that had a NICU. They thought I was too far along in labor to make it anywhere.

Tuesday evening-the hospital provided a lovely 'candle light' dinner in room for Garth and I.

Wednesday-Dexter only had to stay an extra 12 hours or so-just to keep an eye on him, then we were sent home Wednesday afternoon. He's super healthy and strong. We are so excited to have him (and it's also a bonus that I'm not on bed rest anymore-I still had another week).

Vote to name this belly!

2010-03-15T08:01:00.000-07:00

I am 34 weeks +1 day and still not 100% settled on one name. So I decided to take a poll from you-my most trusted blogging friends. A little background on the choices-Garth's dad's name is Warren, my Uncle, Great Uncle and Uncles above him have the name James.
I have my favorite but wanted input from all ya'll!

The poll is just to the left of the post...

Bedrest Birthday!

2010-03-14T17:37:00.000-07:00

I've been on bed rest for a little over a week now-since last Saturday. On Monday, I turned 28-yikes! Thanks to my wonderful mom, step dad and little sister, I still got to celebrate. My mom made an amazing lasagna, followed up by her incredible chocolate cake. They even got me presents!!

Rachel(12) whipped up this pillow down in the sewing room while I took a nap! So impressed!

Unexpected Hospital Stay

2010-03-06T12:27:00.000-08:00

WARNING!! LONG POST!!

Thursday night at 6:30 or so I started noticing I was having frequent contractions. I started keeping track at 7pm and was having them regularly 3-4 mins apart. I called the after hours on call doctor and she told me the typical-drink 2 big glasses of water fast and rest and call back in an hour if nothing has changed... My wonderful mother came over at 8 and sat with me while I was monitoring my own contractions, giving me moral support. Nothing changed. Some were more like 2 mins apart. I called back and was told to go in for monitoring. Garth is in Wisconsin for one of his last races so Palmer and I are on our own! Palmer was in bed already so Garth's mom dropped everything and zipped over to stay with him.
So we (my mom and I) headed over to Jackson (there are no OB docs in Driggs) and got checked in around 10:20pm. The roads were horrible and I was wondering if it was even worth it.
They put me on IV fluids right away-explaining again-dehydration causes contractions. I was on the monitor for about an hour with continuous contractions so was given a shot (terbutaline) to try to stop them. It didn't do much, so they checked to see if I was progressing into labor. I was slightly dialated (1cm) and 60% effaced. Then I got some oral meds (nifedipine) to try to relax my uterus. (Too much info??-sorry). I was still continuing to contract. They gave me some steroids (betamethasone) to boost the baby's lung development-I'm not even 33 weeks yet (out of 40). Those shots were AWFUL!!
I stayed overnight Friday while they watched me and waited to see if I continued to progress in labor. They were thinking about sending me down to the University Hospital in Salt Lake (which is also where I had Palmer at 34 weeks-completely different circumstance) because the baby would be so premature. They don't have a NICU in Jackson.
I had some tests done to see if I was susceptible to pre-term labor. Those came back negative which was reassuring. That test is good for 10 days-then I may have to get it again to see if I'm putting off the hormone that would indicate pre term labor...
All Thursday night through today-Saturday, I've continued to have contractions while on medication but never progressed in labor. During our two night stay I had another shot of terbutaline, more steroids for the baby, and more nifedipine in effort to control the contractions.
This morning they sent me home w/nifedipine to take ever 6 hours and am on strict bed rest for the next 3 weeks. Then I can stop the meds and go into labor whenever it happens.
My mom stayed with me the entire time sleeping on those terrible beds in my hospital room and was my own personal nurse. She has taken me in along with my darling son has been waiting on me keeping me down. Rachel is of course a big help too. Palmer requires a lot of attention! :)
Jackson Hospital labor and delivery room (I'm a little puffy from the IV fluids)

Daddy!

2010-03-02T12:19:00.001-08:00

Dads are the best. Garth was home for the last 10 days between races and we made the most of it. Here's what I have pictures of:
Open gym at our community center:

Bed time stories:
Snocross Racing:

Feeding cows with Grandpa, Aunt Julie, & cousin CW (and horses-Prince and Queen):

Valentine's Day Cookies

2010-02-11T13:45:00.000-08:00

Last night Palmer and I went over to my mom's house and made butter cookies with her and my sister Rachel. For Christmas my mom got me a bucket of 101 cookie cutters so we used some fun shapes from that kit to make them. That paired with the perfect cookie recipe, courtesy of our family friend, Sheila, made for a fun family activity. Palmer was very helpful! He got to wear his cute little apron his Auntie Darcie made for him for Christmas...It matches the aprons Darcie made me and Garth a couple years ago.

Random Happenings

2010-02-10T11:53:00.000-08:00

I built Palmer a fort in the corner of the living room. He loved it for about a week-then I got sick of it and took it down. Any chance Palmer got, he forced me or Garth into it with him saying "hide? hide?"

While we were in Salt Lake to take Garth to that airport, Palmer and I stopped by my sister Julie's house to visit. The weather was so nice, Palmer and his cousin Kate even got to play outside!

Last but not least here's a belly shot-just for kicks. It's the only one we've taken, just last week-28 weeks.

A visit from my BFF!

2010-02-05T09:49:00.000-08:00

I am so lucky to have such a wonderful person in my life who has been my best friend for the past 16 years. Wow! That makes me feel OLD! She lives a little over an hour away so we get to see each other often but in little spurts. A couple weekends ago she and her three darling children came for the weekend. I had so much fun staying up late (for me) and watching movies and talking. Palmer had a lot of fun playing with the kids. I hope we get together again soon! Love you Beth!
Here are the kids getting ready to head outside to play in the snow:
Palmer and Olivia are on the top step, Gabe and Emmy at the bottom
Here is Palmer throwing snowballs for Duke

Set your DVR to record!

2010-01-25T15:43:00.001-08:00

The Winter X-Games are this week/weekend! Garth is competing in the SnoCross event on Sunday.

10:00am-3:30pm (MT) Live on ESPN: Skier X Men's & Women's Finals, Snowmobile SnoCross, Snowmobile SnoCross Adaptive, Mono Skier X Final, Snowboard Slopestyle Women's Final, Snowboard Slopestyle Men's Final

HERE is a well written article on Garth written by Erik Skogman for the Countdown to Winter X blog on ESPN.

The Sandy, UT snocross is also being aired this Sunday on Versus at 2:00pm (MT).

Jackson Rec Center

2010-01-23T13:01:00.000-08:00

Garth, me and Palmer all went over to Jackson to swim a earlier in the week. The Jackson rec center is awesome. It has a nice little warm pool ranging from 1-3 feet in depth. There is a slide and a couple water falls. Palmer loves going down the slides. I love how the water feels on my big ole belly!

The next day we went back over for a date. We went to the elk refuge and took some great pictures through Garth's spotting scope, then had sushi.

I had to take him to the airport the next morning to send him off to Minnesota. He's racing the rest of the national circuit and will be back home in the middle of March. We sure miss him already. I'm staying home to be close to my docs for the rest of my pregnancy.

Shakopee, MN National Race

2010-01-22T08:54:00.000-08:00

Today and tomorrow Garth races in Shakopee, MN at Canterbury Downs just outside Minneapolis. If you'd like to watch the live lap results free(w/out picture or sound) click HERE.
Or go to the ISOC's homepage and pay $7.95 to watch live picture and announcing (totally worth it!).
He starts qualifying around 4:00pm Central Time with finals beginning after 7:00pm (CT). Click HERE for the full schedule for the weekend. He is in the PRO SUPER STOCK class today and PRO OPEN class tomorrow.
Palmer and I stayed behind sadly enough. Canterbury is one of my favorite races. I have an OB Checkup today. Glucose testing and blood draw. Yuck. So we'll be faithfully watching from the computer for this race and for the rest of the season. Now I join the ranks of the 'winter widows' who loose their husbands for the winter. I will definitely have to find a hobby. As if Palmer doesn't keep me busy 100% of the time! I welcome visitors if anyone is up for a weekend getaway!

Sandy, UT race this weekend!

2010-01-03T14:51:00.000-08:00

Garth races in Sandy, UT this coming Saturday, Jan. 9th! Click HERE for the schedule of events. Garth races in the PRO SUPER STOCK and PRO OPEN classes. He probably won't even start his qualifying rounds until after 2:00pm. Opening ceremonies for the finals is at 7:00pm with Garth's first final around 8:30pm (my estimate). It is lots of fun to watch all the racing of course but can get a little chilly standing around as it is at the primarily outdoor Rio Tinto Stadium so bundle up!
Click HERE for ticket info or buy your tickets the day of the race at the stadium.

Christmas Time!

2009-12-28T09:36:00.000-08:00

We drove back from Minnesota last Sunday and Monday and have finally slowed down enough to post some pictures. We decided this year to decorate for Christmas. We usually don't since we are home only a few days before Christmas and then leave shortly after to go back to MN. But having kids makes celebrating a priority! So we did the full traditional family Christmas. We took snowmobiles to get a tree, decorated it, baked, visited family, while squeezing in unpacking from moving me and Palmer home...busy busy busy. We are so glad we did it all though. We're still enjoying our tree (with my lovely tree skirt and matching stockings)and it feels a lot more like the holidays.

From Duluth to Milwaukee!

2009-12-18T10:46:00.000-08:00

Garth's first race was last weekend. He never ceases to amaze me. He had a couple rough qualifiers in the stock class.
In his first qualifier-his goggle strap broke and he had to pull off the track for a new pair (w/out goggles you get disqualified, safety issue). Luckily his mechanic is on top of it and had a spare pair in his backpack. He still managed to pull a 6th place finish out of that one. Then in his final-he had to start in the second row but powered through lap by lap and finished in 3rd, less than a second behind 2nd!
Podium left to right: Dan Ebert (2nd), Tucker Hibbert (1st), Garth (3rd)

In Garth's Open final he had terrible visibility, so wisely chose to play it safe and ended up 8th at the checkered.
Today he's in Milwaukee, WI for round 2 of the AMSOIL circuit. Palmer and I stayed home to cheer from behind the computer screen. Then we'll be on our way back to Idaho for the holidays with family.

Season Kick-Off!

2009-12-09T12:35:00.000-08:00

This weekend marks the kick off to what hopes to be a great season of racing. Garth races at the Spirit Mountain ski resort in Duluth, MN this Saturday and Sunday. For live timing and scoring of the races click HERE. It's a live feed of info received from transponders on each racer's sled. Each time the snowmobile crosses the finish line, info is updated.
Watch at these times for Garth
(STANDARD TIME! DON'T FORGET TO MAKE THE NECESSARY TIME ZONE ADJUSTMENTS!)
-Saturday: Pro Stock
Round 1: 3:00pm ST
Round 2: 4:40pm ST
LCQ: 6:00pm ST
FINAL: 7:30pm ST

-Sunday: Pro Open
Round 1: 10:30am-ish ST
Round 2: 12:30pm ST
LCQ: 2:00pm ST
FINAL: 3:00pm ST
or check out the complete race weekend's schedule HERE

There will be at least a couple HEATS in each ROUND so if you don't see Garth #48 in the Pro HEAT you are watching, keep watching, he may be in the next one.

It all sounds a little confusing but if you want to watch/listen and have a question, just call me...It's pretty exciting watching the live timing if you aren't at the race. I've watched it that way before and was on the edge of my seat the whole time!

Other fun links:
Live webcam of race venue: CLICK HERE
Garth's Team's Website: CHRISTIAN BROS RACING

Fighting Sioux!

2009-12-04T18:04:00.000-08:00

We went to our first college hockey game last weekend. Palmer loved loved loved it. We had lots of fun too. The stadium was super nice. We were there from 4 until 10:30pm and Palmer was into it the whole time. We might have a future hockey player on our hands...

Salem Sue

2009-11-25T11:36:00.000-08:00

Well-we've made the trek to Minnesota for our winter life. We left Driggs and drove up to Cooke City, MT where there was enough snow to ride. Garth and some of his teammates rode for a couple days to break in their sleds (and their bodies!). On our way out of Cooke City, you go through Yellowstone Park. We saw all these animals:
Coyote-

Big Horned Sheep-
Elk-
Bison-
A trip to the hot tub with the boys!-
And in North Dakota, Salem Sue! The biggest Holstein cow in the US?

We coped with the long hours in the car with the IPod. It was a huge change from traveling with Palmer before. Evening is the toughest when it gets dark at 5:00 and Palmer isn't ready to close his eyes-but he can't see to play with toys...so out comes the IPod. We got free podcasts of Sesame Street from ITunes and and AUX cable to plug the sound right into the truck's speakers. Entertainment for hours. And Palmer has a SHORT attention span. It totally does the trick! I highly recommend it.

No trip through ND would be complete without a trip to Space Aliens. It's a restaurant/arcade/extra terrestrial museum of sorts full of artifacts and souvenirs. We played Deal or No Deal and won the max amount of tickets (I didn't take any of the banker's deals and ended up opening my own case!) and bought a bunch of crap w/the tickets. So much fun...

She's Crafty

2009-11-17T12:54:00.000-08:00

I've decided this year to decorate for Christmas so I made our stockings and a tree skirt. It was a LOT of work. Way more than I thought it would be. It took me 12 hours with help from my mom for the last 8. My little sister Rachel helped by keeping the machines threaded and feeding us (among other things).
Garth even stopped by and helped trim and iron...but mostly kept Palmer happy and occupied. It was a family effort for sure. Here is the finished tree skirt:
The bigger stockings are for me and Garth (mine is the stocking on the right with the beaded trim), the elf stockings are for Palmer and his baby brother on the way and the smallest one was a sample my mom made up first to make sure no step was left out...we're using it for Duke (our dog).

The pictures don't do them justice. They turned out so pretty!

Hunting season is finally over!

2009-11-15T11:10:00.000-08:00

I get my husband back. This past season Garth was hunting any chance he got. Morning and night. Before work and after. It paid off for him though. Here is a picture of his big 6x7 bull elk.

The Doctor Said...

2009-11-05T17:47:00.000-08:00

It's going to be a...BOY! I haven't blogged much about my pregnancy-so here's a little update. I am due April 28th (Palmer will have just turned 2!). I had my level 2 ultrasound today, at only 15 weeks rather than the typical 20 weeks (because of my previous pregnancy turning high risk in the last few days and early delivery), and the doctor reassured me that my chances of getting preeclampsia again are low. A 1 in 5 chance. Which sounds a lot better when said-4 out of 5 chances are-I'll have a 'normal' pregnancy. I love getting an ultrasound. They looked so closely at every little detail and can even see arteries and the way the blood is flowing! How fun for my son to have a brother! ...and soon I will have 2 wild boys running around!!

Halloween

2009-11-02T13:52:00.001-08:00

Halloween was so much fun this year. We didn't do too much-just my mom's house and Garth's grandma's to show off Palmer's cute costume. Then trick-or-treating at one friend's house then our night was over. Seeing Palmer in his dinosaur costume was the best part though. He never complained or wanted it off. He got all the candy he could ever need and got to eat all he asked for. He was definately buzzing off all the sugar. It WAS Halloween after all...

Here's Palmer in his car seat with a blue mouth already from a dum-dum.

Here is Garth with his Grandma Phyllis (and Palmer of course). Her house is always decorated for the holidays. Palmer loves his great grandma!

Ball...

2009-10-30T21:10:00.000-07:00

Yesterday at my mom's house Palmer said, "Ball."!! He was referring to the golf balls my sister Rachel was washing and decorating. Palmer is 18 months old and doesn't talk. At all. He has said "Dada" (of course) for a couple months but nothing else. Just a lot of grunting and whining. We were so proud and very surprised! He loves throwing balls, especially for Duke (our dog). So it only makes sense that his first (real) word would be ball...

This video is from today at our house.

Halloween Party

2009-10-27T18:11:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, Palmer and I went to a Halloween Party at my best girl friend, Beth's house. She is an amazing cook and made 3 delicious soups. Then we carved pumpkins-Palmer dove right in watching the other kids for cues on what to do. I haven't carved the outside, yet, but we gutted it out and cooked the seeds (my favorite!). The we (well Beth) made carmel apples and we dipped them in whatever toppings we wanted. Nerds, oreos, chocolate malt balls, M&M's, pistachios with craisins and ginger...whatever we wanted. Beth's carmel put Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory to shame. Seriously. We're looking forward to Halloween this Saturday and trick or treating with Palmer.
I apologize for the sideways filming. I had to to get Palmer and his pumpkin together.

New Mommy Wagon!

2009-10-04T06:54:00.001-07:00

Yesterday we got a new addition to the family! It helps with accommodating our coming baby addition as well! Love it love it love it! But we traded in the ole reliable Civic. It broke my heart a little. Why do I get so attached to inanimate objects?? It's a 2009 Toyota Highlander. It's hard to tell from the pictures but it's greenish. It seats 7 total with a third row. It is AWD and drives great. We bought it from Hertz in IF. They were easy to deal with and gave us a great deal on our trade in.

New Snocross Schedule for '09-'10 season

2009-10-01T11:31:00.000-07:00

There is going to be a race in Sandy, UT on Jan 9th! I especially mention this because it's kind of our 'local' race and is closest to our family and friends out West. As I get more information on this race, I'll post it.

Nov 27th‐29th AMSOIL Duluth National Spirit Mountain, Duluth, MN

Dec 19th & 20th Potawatomi National* Milwaukee Mile, Milwaukee, WI

Jan 9th Western Nationals* Rio Tinto Stadium, Sandy, UT

Jan 23rd & 24th Air Force National Canterbury Park, Shakopee, MN

Feb 5th & 6th Eastern Nationals Finger Lakes Gaming & Casino, Farmington, NY

Feb 13th & 14th New England Nationals* Rockingham Park, Salem, NH

Feb 20th & 21st Canadian Nationals* Hiawatha Horsepark, Sarnia, ON, CA

March 6th & 7th Hayward 300 LCO Casino, Hayward, WI

March 19th‐21st Nielsen Enterprises Grand Finale Grand Geneva Resort, Lake Geneva, WI

The Mighty Hunter

2009-09-25T15:37:00.000-07:00

Garth is obsessed with hunting. OBSESSED. He talks about it all year. He gets tags to hunt black bears, deer, and elk. So here he is with his big mule deer. So proud. It's still in the velvet, meaning his antlers are still fuzzy. Garth worked really hard to get this deer. He shot it with his bow. He also wanted me to add that it grosses around 220 B&C. (That's the score for the measurement of the antlers which is great especially since it was shot with a bow!)

Oh and by the way

2009-09-23T14:18:00.000-07:00

I'm pregnant! Hence the new baby ticker on my page!

Finally...

2009-09-23T13:24:00.000-07:00

I have the Internet again. I have felt so out of touch without it.

In August, we enjoyed a visit from Garth's sister Darcie and her two kids-Cooper and Zoie. We picked huckleberries and raspberries and made jam. That was a first for me. I've never canned anything before. It was so much fun spending time with her. She is amazing. Her kids are so much fun-Palmer loved the company.

Here is Darcie and our beautiful raspberries.
Zoie

Cooper

We also celebrated our 3 year wedding anniversary. We went to Salt Lake and stayed in a beautiful room, ate sushi for dinner and shopped at IKEA (my favorite) and Cabela's (Garth's favorite). My mom watched Palmer so it was just the two of us.

Garth and I at dinner

Our view from the hotel. The weather was perfect.

Our garden is amazing...

2009-08-05T12:25:00.000-07:00

Not to brag but our garden is beautiful. It's growing like crazy. We are growing carrots, peas, onions, broccoli, Swiss chard, spinach, red leaf lettuce, head lettuce, beets, tomatoes, peppers, pumpkins, zucchini, yellow squash, and corn. YUM!

Teton County Fair

2009-07-30T13:09:00.000-07:00

We went to the county fair on the 24th. We watched my sister, Rachel, and Garth's sister, Mindy, show their pigs for the 4-H auction.

Here we are w/my cousin Mike in the background. We took a couple pics trying to get Palmer to look and he is making a funny face in all of them. We had no idea. Haa haa-love it!

Here is Garth with the giant 1200 lb pig! This picture doesn't do him justice. He was HUGE!!

Palmer and his balloon. He was inseparable from it for days. Until, sadly, he popped it.

We checked out the petting zoo and the goat helped himself to Palmer's snack tray and all his cheerios.

Palmer walks!

2009-07-19T20:11:00.000-07:00

At 15 months today-Palmer has been walking for about a week. He is totally a walker now though-no more crawling. He's still a little wobbly but is adorable toddling around the house. Now that his hands are free from crawling he usually carries something in each hand with him around the house. In other words-he can make the house twice as messy, twice as fast. I guess it's time to teach him how to clean up his toys after he's done playing right? Wish me luck with that...

Sorry about the sideways film job. Now I know better. But you get the picture.

Porter Park

2009-07-18T12:48:00.000-07:00

Porter Park is this amazing park in Rexburg that has a darling little splash park within. My friend w/her 3 kids and my oldest bro w/his little man met up and we let the kids play. It was so nice to cool off on a hot summer day (which I love and can't get enough of!). Anytime anyone ever wants to go-let me know we'll meet you there!

Boise

2009-07-06T11:34:00.000-07:00

After visiting friends in Rupert, Palmer and I headed to Boise for 4 days to visit my brother Robert, and his wife Rebekah. We haven't seen each other for quite a while and we took the opportunity to catch up and spend some QT together before he was off to Southwest Asia for the air force for 6 months! We are so proud of him.

Boise is an awesome town. I would love to live there someday...

Here is Rebekah and Palmer in her backyard. She got him this really cute dog that blows bubbles that he was totally fascinated with:

Uncle Robert (my bro) with Palmer playing the xylophone at an awesome splash park in Meridian:

Rachel, Me and Palmer, Robert, Rebekah, and our mom-Beth at dinner the night before Robert left for the Air Force: Robert at the airport with his massive luggage at 4:30am!

At the airport saying goodbye.

L to R: Me, Palmer, My mom-Beth, Rachel, Robert, Rebekah, her mom, sister Deborah and husband.

I also got to see my good friend Rheanne who lives in Boise and we went to the zoo.

Palmer on a baby tiger:

Rheanne and Palmer going down the giraffe slide:

Palmer and I hatching out of an egg...

Rupert

2009-07-05T09:55:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we spent some time in Rupert, ID catching up with some good friends of ours. They have a beautiful spot on the Snake River.

Here is Meisha and Palmer on the hammock:

Palmer playing in their awesome sandy beach:

Garth wake surfing:

Meisha taking Palmer for a ride-Palmer was up for anything and everything!

We had so much fun. Garth rode his road bike and dirt bike while I hung out at the river oasis. Not pictured (shame on me) are the wonderful Urban family and Mark Melehes. They were such wonderful hosts and showed us a great time. We hope to go again soon...

In June...

2009-06-23T13:33:00.000-07:00

With only one week of June left, I thought I'd get around to posting about this month. Why is the time passing by so fast?? WHY!!!

In the beginning of June, Palmer and I made a road trip down to Utah to visit my sister Julie and her family with my parents, sister-Rachel, and sister-in-law Mindy. Here is my mom and step-dad with Julies 4 month old twin boys.

Here is Palmer watching High School Musical, listening through the earphones. This only lasted a moment, then he wanted them off but loved all the singing and dancing in the movie! I have to admit-I did too.

Then my friend Rheanne came for a weekend visit, and we realized Palmer is a pool shark. Here he is making demands with a pool stick.
We also hung out with my friend Bethany in Idaho Falls a couple times before getting groceries. We've sorta made it a tradition to eat lunch at a park then let the kids play. She has 3-her youngest is Palmer's age so it's lots of fun!!

We had a relaxing Father's Day. Garth is the best dad. He is so much fun. Palmer has a special laugh when playing with him. Kindof like a "I'm getting into trouble with dad" laugh. Here is Palmer about a month ago-he still isn't walking so we borrowed this baby and stroller from my mom for something for him to walk behind. He loves pushing her around the house. One night I was getting dinner ready and heard Palmer's 'playing with dad' laugh and saw this come around the corner...
Palmer thought it was so funny that he was in the little stroller. I think Garth thought it was just as funny! Don't worry mom-the stroller and baby are still safe...

Lightning...

2009-06-09T21:03:00.000-07:00

As hard as this is to believe, I feel weird even saying this-Garth got struck by lightning Friday afternoon in Cooke City, MT. Don't worry-he's fine. He was testing next year's race sleds with Arctic Cat and a crazy electrical storm came in with no warning. Lightning struck the top of the mountain they were riding on about 100 yards away. They immediately headed down the hill to take cover in the trailer. Lightning was striking all around. 100 feet away, 50 feet away, everywhere aroumd them. Then Garth heard a loud bang and woke up 15 feet from his snowmobile numb. He thought he was paralysed. He slowly got feeling back and got up. Both of his hands were flopping around so he thought he broke both wrists. Riding his sled was out of the question, so he just started running for cover down the mountain. Lightning was still hitting all around him and he finally made it back to safety after flagging down his fleeing friends and catching a ride down on the back of one of their sleds.

He was really sore from his muscles convulsing. He compared his body's reaction to someone getting tasered. Other than that though, no other injuries or burns...

We are feeling very lucky that Garth didn't get hurt or worse...I think we'll play the power ball...

Garden Perfection!

2009-06-05T11:03:00.000-07:00

We planted our garden last Sunday. Can't wait for the fresh veggies!

For those of you that don't know Garth that well-he has crazy OCD. Here are the perfect rows marked by stakes (which he made himself so they were all exactly the same), and twine. Once everything starts to grow, it will look so great. Now if only his side of the closet looked like this...

Here is Garth finishing the fence to keep the dogs and cows out-the garden is up at his grandma Phyllis's house. The dirt is so rich there so we should get a great result.

Palmer was such a good sport and hung out in here a lot of the day. His Aunt Mindy took really good care of him and played with him the rest of the time.

The Zoo!

2009-06-01T11:35:00.000-07:00

Saturday, we met up with two of my bros-Jake and Brian with their families, had lunch (thanks Ang! So good!), and went to Tautphaus Park Zoo. We all enjoyed ourselves. It's so fun to hang out with our fam and have cousins for Palmer! I love being part of a big family.

Palmer taming the king of the jungle!

Sloth Bears! Palmer's favorite-he had a mini meltdown when we moved onto the next animal.

Here is Palmer looking at the sloth bears. He was waving his arms and kicking his feet.I had to put this picture in. I thought is was really funny how Garth and Palmer are equally uncomfortable with the giant penguin. Same look-they must be related...

In May...

2009-05-29T08:53:00.000-07:00

Duke got sprayed by a skunk...

We went on lots of bike rides...

Kai, Jake and Angie came for Memorial day weekend...

Time goes by so fast. Life is good. I'm so lucky that I get to stay home with Palmer so I can enjoy these moments that pass so quickly. Thank you, Garth, my wonderful husband for working so hard. I'm looking forward to what June brings...

Easter Pics

2009-04-25T19:38:00.000-07:00

Easter Morning!

This was the best picture I had of his handsome boy outfit we dressed him in. Cute either way...

Palmer makes the best mean bunny face!

We got dressed up for fun and so that Palmer didn't feel overdressed in his sweater vest.

Palmer is 1!!

2009-04-20T10:05:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Palmer! We had a party for him and his cousin Kai (who is only 2 days older than Palmer!) at my brother Brian's house. Where does the time go??

Palmer:

-loves to smile at everyone

-says dadda for dad

-says dodda for Duke dog

-crawls like a maniac

-loves to climb on the dishwasher

-likes shoulder rides

-loves to swing at the park

-is a great shopping companion

-loves his family

19 hours later...

2009-03-31T13:31:00.000-07:00

...we're back in Idaho. Race season is over. It went by so fast. We had so much fun and are excited for next year. Garth ended up 2nd in the stock class that he was tied for first in. Levi LaValle won the final race beating Garth out of the championship. It was kind of a bummer but good to see someone get it who works really hard and deserved it just as much as Garth did.

The trip home was a little longer than usual. We had to detour around flooding roads in North Dakota. We drove through a town that was flooded already. The water level was half way up the first story of people's homes. Sad.

Palmer was not happy about being in the car that long. Neither were we. It was nice to get home...

Here we are at the end of the year banquet at the Grand Geneva in Lake Geneva, WI:

Left to Right: Garth, Alicia, Samantha (Rory's girlfriend), Rory (Garth's mechanic)

One last race...

2009-03-17T18:24:00.000-07:00

Only one race left to go! Where did this race season go? It has been a blast and Garth has done well (which always makes it more fun). The season finale is in Lake Geneva, WI. Garth is going into the weekend tied for first place in the Pro Super Stock year end points, which will make Saturday's racing very exciting. Every race will count towards the points. I'm excited to go back home but sad the season is coming to an end.

Palmer

2009-03-11T19:48:00.000-07:00

Palmer is growing so fast. He is so much fun. He loves to get into my purse and pull stuff out of it. He also recently figured out how much he loves to climb up on the dishwasher. Evertime he hears the drawers pull out he comes crawling in really fast to try to make it in time to get into it.

He loves shoulder rides with dad. They have so much fun together! Garth is a great dad!

Here he is at a hotel having an orange. He was liking the rinds better. They probably felt good on his little teething gums!

Farmingon, NY

2009-02-18T18:59:00.000-08:00

Last weekend Garth raced in Farmington, NY. Palmer and I stayed home in Minnesota because it was too far for Palmer to be in the car for. (Nice excuse huh-too long for anyone to be in the car, over 20 hours!) He has had fun though and says the fans in NY are the best! They always show up in huge numbers and cheer really loud.

In the stock class on Saturday, he got 2nd place! Yay!!! That's Garth on the left, Shaun Crapo on top of the podium, in first, and Levi LaVallee on the right in 3rd.

On Sunday, Garth got 4th in the open class. All in all a very good weekend! And a happy Valentine's Day gift to get on the podium! I watched/listened from Kari's house. Kari is one of the team owners' wives. We watched online which was very stressful. I would much rather be there in person.

Next weekend Garth will race in Valcourt, Quebec in Canada...

Valentine's Day

2009-02-16T15:00:00.000-08:00

Thursday, my good friend and cousin-in-law, Mandi and her husband Tucker came over on Friday to visit me and Palmer on the way from one house the their other house. They are so thoughtful and brought me flowers and chocolates for Valentine's day since my husband is gone for another week racing out East. It made my day! (no vases on hand so I used the blender!)

Then the next day (Valentine's Day) the floral shop delivered some beautiful flowers from Carly and DJ, who we live with this winter, who were so thoughtful to make sure I felt loved on Valentine's Day, since again, Garth is gone.

Then the florist went back out to her van for another delivery of lovely flowers from my wonderful husband, Garth! I felt totally spoiled and totally loved. Even though Garth is gone, this was still a really good Valentine's Day!

2009-02-16T09:48:00.000-08:00

Brainerd, MN

2009-02-10T15:17:00.001-08:00

This past weekend brought us to Brainerd, MN for another race on the Amsoil Champion Snocross Tour. On Saturday, in the stock class, Garth made it right into the final, skipping the LCQ. Off the start, Garth was in 5th place, and by the end made it up to 3rd! Another podium in the super stock class! The second one of the race season. We were all very excited. Garth's dad, Warren, drove all the way to MN from ID to cheer on Garth and watch him race in person. That was Garth's first podium finish at a race that Warren has been there for.
In the open/mod class, Garth had another impressive show, ending up in 5th place after the 25 lap final.
My friend Emily came to the race too. We got to watch from inside the heated suites. Dwight, Garth's team owner, made sure we had wristbands so we didn't have to stand out in the cold with all the other devoted snocross fans. We felt so spoiled!
Tomorrow afternoon, Garth will start the drive to NY for the next race in Farmington, NY. Palmer and I are staying behind. It's just too far. After the NY race, Garth and his team go on to Valcourt, Quebec in Canada.
Here are two pictures from the Canterburry, MN race where Garth got 2nd. Sorry no pics from Brainerd yet.

Left to Right: Garth (2nd), Tucker Hibbert (1st), Levi LaVallee (3rd)

This is how we typically look at the races. Palmer goes in his baby sling and gets zipped up in my coat. He wears his arctic cat bobble hat (which he gets tons of compliments on) and just hangs out. He usually falls asleep!

Aspen, CO

2009-02-04T09:49:00.000-08:00

I haven't posted about the X-Games race yet! It was so much fun! Garth ended up doing pretty well. He got right into the final, getting 3rd in his qualifyer. (They took top 5) He got a dead last start though, as usual, and fought up to 3rd. Garth is always testing my heart strength. He starts out in the back, stressing me out, and then just works his way up as far as he can. I guess it's better than starting out in front and getting passed and ending up in the back though-right? This was his fourth year going to the X-Games for SnoCross and his first year making the final.

Then in the final, just a couple laps into it, he got t-boned in a corner bending his frpnt ski. He got going again and could tell something wasn't right and got bucked off bad. Then he was out. He pulled off the track and cheered on his team mate and friends that were still in the race.

Palmer and I got to fly (rather than make the 17 hour drive from MN) with the team owners and their family. Which was so much help and made it a lot funner. We all stayed in a house together and made smores over the log fire! I loved it. I absolutely love smores. I've been known to make them at home over our electric stove if I'm really craving one.

This is me and Josie, one of the team owners' daughters (9)

Palmer is officially crawling!

2009-01-28T12:30:00.000-08:00

Yay! Finally. And much less frustrated while playing. This video was taken yesterday and I feel like today he is faster and crawls further! He is already 9 months old and growing up way too fast. He is so sociable. He loves smiling and getting people's attention...

My good friend Emily came for a visit and played and played with Palmer. I credit him finally crawling, to her. Palmer had to show off and show her what he could do!

WINTER X GAMES 13, JANUARY 22-25, 2009

2009-01-19T16:39:00.000-08:00

Garth will be competing in SnoCross at the Winter X Games January 23rd and the 24th. The Winter X Games is the premier winter action sports event in the world. The annual event features athletes from around the globe competing for medals and prize money in the following sports: Skiing, Snowboard and Snowmobile.

Winter X Games 13 will air live on ESPN and ABC and will feature nighttime events. The event will remain at Aspen/Snowmass through 2010, for a total of nine consecutive years (2002-2010).

Friday 1/23: SnoCross Round 1-ESPN HD 9:30-11:30pm ET
Sat 1/24: SnoCross Final-ESPN HD 9-11pm ET
Event Schedule
TV Schedule

Garth's First Podium of '09!! Shakopee, MN

2009-01-12T09:11:00.000-08:00

here is part of the press release from ISOC's homepage:

Kaufman Shows His Stamina While Tucker Pulls Away in Pro-Open

In Pro-Super Stock a melee, immediately following the start, set the stage as Ryan Simons, TJ Gulla, Ross Martin and Andrew Johnstad, all legitimate podium contenders, were forced to regroup and/or re-tether and work from deep behind the leaders. That set the stage for another Tucker Hibbert victory, continuing his unbeaten streak for the season and further securing his points lead.
At the close of the first lap of the 26 lap final, it was Tucker edging out Polaris pilots Levi LaVallee and Brett Bender with Garth Kaufman (Cat), DJ Eckstrom (Pol), Brett Turcotte (Cat) and Shaun Crapo (Pol) rounding out the seven riders in the 16 rider field. The running order remained consistent for over half the race, as Tucker began to checkout and encountered back runners on lap nine.
While the Tucker Hibbert show continued at the front, it was Garth Kaufman who perhaps put on the second most impressive ride of the night, as he slowly edged towards the front, picking off Bender on lap 16 and then having an impressive battle with Levi during the closing laps. The two swap the bridesmaid position several times during the closing laps, with Kaufman eventually getting the bouquet. At the line is was Tucker, who lapped every sled in the field except the top four riders, followed by Kaufman, LaVallee, Bender and Eckstrom to complete the top five.

Baby's First Christmas

2009-01-05T08:21:00.000-08:00

We came home for a couple weeks for Christmas. We stayed at my mom's since someone is staying at our house and taking care of it and our dog-Duke. We got a lot of snow and had a lot of fun! Here are some pics from Christmas morning and our stay in Alta:

From Minnesota to Idaho and Back Again!

2009-01-02T09:39:00.000-08:00

We got to come home (to Idaho) for a couple weeks for Christmas. We were going to drive home and checked on plane tickets-sometimes they are really cheap if they need to sell them last minute. We flew home Monday afternoon and were supposed to get into Idaho Falls at 10:50pm. Long long story short we didn't get home until Tuesday at 5:30pm. And then didn't have our luggage-it was lost for two extra days. As was our car seat. So we borrowed one from the airline which was probably 10 years old with no padding and cut into Palmer's neck. Here is the only picture I took of waiting in the airport. Neither one of us was into taking pictures. I knew I needed one for the blog though.

We had a great time home and and a wonderful Christmas. (Separate blog)

Our trip back to Minnesota was better-we sat on the tarmac for 2 hours from Minneapolis to Fargo so were late coming in. Other than that though-it all went smoothly. Palmer is a champ-I even had a gentleman come up to me after that flight and congratulate me for keeping Palmer under control and was very grateful to be on a flight with a well behaved child.

Ironwood, MI

2009-01-02T09:19:00.000-08:00

Better late than never right?

Garth raced in Ironwood, MI the weekend of December 12-14. It was a crazy track-lots of riders were injured. Some severely. Sadly, a fellow pro racer-Mike Schultz-broke his leg so badly that it had to be amputated right above the knee. It was pretty scary to say the least. Garth's goal for that weekend was to ride safely and make it out with no broken bones, or worse...

Results:

Pro Open: 4th

Pro Super Stock: 13th (his spark plug cap came off so he was only running on one piston)

Here he is with Rory Beckman, his mechanic. They make a great team! We are so lucky to have him back with us this season. Rory has been his mechanic since the first year Garth raced the national circuit except for last year.

Well, comming soon...

2008-12-26T20:35:00.000-08:00

Garth raced in Ironwood, MI, we traveled home to Idaho from Minnesota which is a whole separate blog in itself-long delays...lost baggage...That's the very short version, and Palmer had his first Christmas! And broke his first (and second) tooth! When we get back to MN, I will catch up w/photos of all.

I hope everyone had a great Christmas and Happy New Year!

Hill City, MN

2008-12-15T11:53:00.000-08:00

Garth raced in Hill City on December 6-7. It was a regional race-meaning smaller than the nationals he races. He did great! He won his open final and got 2nd in the stock final. Palmer had fun. We stayed at a fun hotel with two water slides! Garth took Palmer down the little kid slide.

Palmer does pretty good in the car. He was sleepy and didn't have his pacifier so he fell asleep sucking on one of his caterpillar's antenna. Poor baby. He is so sweet.

Almost 8 months...

2008-12-14T15:07:00.003-08:00

And Palmer can already read!!

Duluth, MN

2008-12-14T10:53:00.000-08:00

Duluth, MN
November 28th-30th

A quick explanation: Garth races at the Pro level in the national snocross series. There are two classes-Stock and Open or Mod. Each class has it's own qualifiers and a final. That's the basic explanation. Any questions just ask...

In his stock final he got a bad start and worked his way up lap by lap, passing rider after rider to an impressive 6th place finish.

Garth had the fastest practice lap times but had a little trouble in the open final. He got hit in a corner, bending something in his steering so he couldn't finish. He ended up 14th, out of 15 because he made it further than one other guy who broke down in the final.

Overall a good weekend. Palmer did pretty well and suprised me with how fast he adjusted to life on the road. We were up in the lodge the whole day with a lot of other people who were loud, cheering, and clapping and he got used to all the action. He even napped in the middle of a race outside! I had lots of help from my lovely friends. The next weekends were even easier.

Follow Garth's Race Season...

2008-11-25T11:38:00.001-08:00

I added some links above to follow Garth's racing. You can check out his team's site, his series, his schedule...and even watch his lap times live while he is acually racing. His first race is this coming weekend. I'll post his results after it's all over! Wish us luck!

Milestone!!

2008-11-15T14:30:00.000-08:00

My little son, who not so little anymore, can officially sit up all on his own. For quite a while. Sometimes he gets really excited (or a little unhappy) and kicks his little feet and goes backwards, bonking his head. But for the most part can sit unassisted and play with his toys. I am so proud. He is so coordinated with his hands now and pulls his pacifier out of his mouth and puts it back in. Pretty cute. He is growing up too fast!

Oh! And to those that have asked-Palmer is doing great in his cloth diapers. They have been leak proof (unless they get too full) and he hasn't had a single blowout. He's wearing one in the picture. And-I like them too.

You're My Guitar Hero!

2008-11-11T12:30:00.000-08:00

So...Garth was obviously very bored one evening after Palmer went to bed and felt the need to rock out. Neither one of us had played Guitar Hero for months so we got it out, dusted it off and ROCKED. Garth got all dressed up and then picked out my outfit and made me dress up with him. I really wasn't into it at first but was trying to be a good sport and it ended up being pretty fun. I know we are lame but I thought these pics were too good not to share!

We have arrived...

2008-11-04T18:54:00.000-08:00

On Saturday night around 9:30pm we left our beautiful home in Teton Valley and drove cross country to Minnesota. We left at Palmer's bedtime to try to make the 18 hour drive a little less torture for our little man by having him sleep through the first part. We were really dreading the whole thing because Palmer can't hardly make it the hour and a half drive to Idaho Falls for the day. Well-it was a breeze. Palmer slept all night only waking up around 5:30 to have a little milk then back to sleep until 7:30 or so. He took his normal naps during the next day and we were here in Fertile by 2:30pm Sunday. Painless.

Garth packed the truck like a pro. We brought way too much stuff but he got it all here.

Here is a pic of Garth's team's race shop.

We moved to Minnesota just for the winter. Garth races snocross and his team is based out of Fertile, MN. The first race is Thanksgiving weekend. If you want to find out more info about his team and the circut he races check out: Christian Brothers Racing. I'll keep everyone updated...

Tree Frog!

2008-11-03T19:28:00.000-08:00

For Halloween Palmer was a tree frog! He loved his costume. He was a good sport and hung out for a couple hours in it. Halloween was just as much fun for Garth and I as it will be for Palmer. He's been sucking on his bottom lip lately-I think his poor little gums hurt from teething.

October Pics

2008-10-24T11:31:00.000-07:00

I finally downloaded my camera onto my computer. Here are some things we've captured on camera of our lives during October...I've been working less and have had more time to spend with family and friends. It's been so nice.

Lunch at 'Scratch' with my momma!

My boys! Sporting their very stylish Wayferer sunglasses.

This is how I have to do a lot of things. With my monkey on my back. Palmer loves to be in his sling. I love to have him close too.

Visiting Palmer's Great Grandma Phyllis.

October has flown by! I'm looking forward to Halloween and the rest of the holidays. November we will be in Minnesota preparing for the beginning of snocross season. We won't be back until March...I am excited but sad to miss Thanksgiving and Christmas at home in Idaho/Wyoming.

One Word

2008-10-12T20:31:00.000-07:00

This is a fun one! Try it!

1. Where is your cell phone? Purse
2. Where is your significant other? Playstation
3. Your hair? Blah
4. Your mother? Amazing
5. You father? Example
6. Your favorite thing? cupcakes
7. Your dream last night? weird
8. Your dream/goal? Alta
9. The room you're in? Family
10. Your hobby? Palmer
11. Your fear? freezing
12. Where do you want to be in 6 years? warm
13. Where were you last night? home!
14. What you're not? selfish
15. One of your wish list items? bumper
16. Where you grew up? Califordiho
17. The last thing you did? Rocked
18. What your wearing? personal...;)
19. Your TV? 27"
20. Your pet? Emotional
21. Your computer? Friend
22. What do you think of tags like this? Fun
23. Your mood? Content
24. Missing someone? Yes
25. Where would you rather be? Bed
26. Something your not wearing right now? socks
27. Favorite store? amazon
28. Your summer? robbed
29. Love someone? Garth
30. Favorite color? plum
31. The last time you laughed? recently
32. Who will participate? Sheena?

Have you seen these?

2008-10-05T17:12:00.000-07:00

Self Feeders!

They are great. You can put just about anything in the mesh compartment and give them to your baby without the fear of choking! Today we put some slightly cooked apples in one and gave it to Mr. Palmer. What a treat. It was like candy! He loved it and couldn't get enough. He sucked all the juice out and was a little upset when it ran out. All through it I was practicing 'more' (in sign language) when he would set the feeder down and then give him the feeder again.

PS-Thanks Robert and Rebekah for getting these for Palmer. We all love them!

Baby Sing Language Anyone?

2008-10-04T06:13:00.000-07:00

So now that Palmer is closing in on 6 months (on the 19th!-I can't believe it), I have been looking into starting to teach him baby sign language. My best friend Bethany taught it to her kids and I loved that they could let her know when they wanted water, milk...and so on. Any suggestions? A good website? Book? Anyone have any experience with it?

Please help if you can...Blair Morgan

2008-10-01T14:42:00.000-07:00

End of Competition for Blair Morgan
By Chris Lee

It has been confirmed by doctors that the back injuries Blair Morgan sustained during a practice session accident for the Montreal Supercross on Saturday, September 20 have resulted in permanent paralysis for the multi-time motocross and snowcross champion. The accident, which occurred on a jump, caused Morgan's middle back vertebrae to separate and sever his spinal cord.

Thirty-three-year-old Morgan underwent emergency surgery at the Montreal General Hospital and has been progressing well since. According to his physician Morgan is paralyzed from the chest down. The Prince Albert, SK native is expected to be transferred to a facility in Saskatoon within the next week, where he will focus on recovering and working closely with physiotherapists.

“We are deeply saddened and concerned with the recent injury to our pro racer and personal friend, Blair Morgan, last weekend in Montreal. Blair has been part of the Blackfoot Family for the last 10 years and has always been the true professional, both on and off the track,” said Team Yamaha Blackfoot Racing's Jason Mitchell.“He has a huge fan base and following wherever he competed and was a role model for all the young riders in both dirt and snow. We know that Blair is a fighter and if anyone can work his way through this new path in life it will be him.”

Morgan's tragic crash has sent shockwaves through both the motocross and snowcross world, where his absence on the racetrack will be missed in the coming years. In addition to winning eight national Canadian motocross championships, Morgan won numerous world titles, including a record five WinterX Games gold medals, in snowcross competition.

“Like everyone else, we have been severely affected and deeply saddened by Blair Morgan's accident and subsequent career-ending injury. This turn of events cannot be described as anything less than a tragic loss for the sport of motocross in Canada and international snowcross racing,” said CMRC president Mark Stallybrass. “Blair has been a great ambassador for the sport of motocross, and has always conducted himself in a positive and professional manner at CMRC nationals for over a decade. Our thoughts and sympathy are with Blair and his family."

If you wish to donate to help Blair and his family financially: http://www.sellyourevents.com/BlairMorganFamilyTrustDonation.aspx

Or buy a shirt with proceeds going to his relief: http://www.sellyourevents.com/OPERATIONINSPIRATION7c.aspx

Cloth Diapers?!

2008-09-22T08:21:00.001-07:00

To a lot of you (most of you) this will come as a big surprise! My newest bloggable life change is making the switch to cloth diapers. Now, before your jaws drop on the floor, cloth diapers like my mother used to use, and her mother, are a thing of the past. Now they go on almost just like disposables. They have velcro closures (some have snaps) and are super soft against baby's skin. They have microfiber inserts so are very absorbent. And are adjustable in size by snaps to create the perfect fit for a growing baby. I will still use disposables from time to time like when we are on the road traveling and don't want dirty diapers sitting around for who knows how long until we can wash them. (All though I may master using them even while traveling, this winter!). Garth suggested using them in the morning until Palmer takes his morning BM-he's usually pretty regular-so we don't have to deal with dumping poo in the toilet. But now they make these awesome sprayers that hook right into your toilet plumbing that act as mini sprayers so-if we get those, he's even agreed to rinse poop off of the diapers! I know it all sounds so fun.

My reasons for making the switch:

#1-Waste-I felt personally responsible for filling up the landfills with just my disposable diapers each time I throw out a grocery sack full of them. It takes 500 years for one diaper to decompose!

#2-$$-Eventually the price will pay off. Every time I use a washable diaper, I replace the cost of using a disposable. Even with the use of water, detergent and electricity to wash, I'm still saving money in the long run. Especially if we have another baby, I will use them with that baby too!

#3-Materials-Using the ultra soft cloth diapers is much better for baby's sensitive skin. I don't even want to go into what disposable diapers are made up of. It's really quite alarming what they put in these products that are used on little babies.

Check out the website and see what you think about them. They are the one size cloth diapers 3.0. http://www.bumgenius.com/

Best of all-Palmer is darling in them!

Palmer's First...

2008-08-25T11:55:00.000-07:00

...Pool Experience! It was so much fun. Darcie took us while Garth got some alone time back at her house, recovering from his wisdom teeth extraction (see below post). Palmer didn't know what to think right away but saw his cousin Zoie having so much fun and warmed up right away. It's amazing that they have a natural ability to swim already. Plus he has no problem floating. He is very buoyant!

This was the only picture that turned out of us in the pool. That is me w/Palmer though. All the others were blurry. Maybe because he was swimming so fast! Haa haa!

...Rice cereal! He loved it. I've heard such funny stories of babies just hating the stuff but he smiled and cooed and opens his mouth for more! I really wanted to wait until he was 6 months old and exclusively nurse until then but when I go to work, he really fights Garth on the bottle. So I wanted to try another option so Garth can feed him while I'm gone for hours on end. It can be really frustrating for both of us and a little heartbreaking that he will get so hungry rather than take a bottle. We've been practicing a lot with an Adiri bottle, which seems to be working the best, and he may be getting a little better but definitely prefers nursing. We have tried every bottle out there, I swear, and every kind of pacifier (which he doesn't like either)...so after his 4 month check up, the doc gave the okay to start trying foods when we felt ready.

Palmer is in the 50th percentile range now with his weight, height and head circumference. We are so proud. He started out so small (4 lbs) and has caught up so fast! He now weighs 14.5 lbs, and is 25 inches long! It must be all that nursing :)

Wisdom Teeth...

2008-08-22T12:44:00.000-07:00

Poor Garth got his wisdom teeth out on Saturday (the 16th) in Salt Lake at a place called Wisdom Teeth Only. Meaning...exactly that. All they do all day is wisdom teeth extraction. Garth and I walked into the office around 10:15 and were on our way (minus 3 wisdom teeth) by 11:00. From the waiting room I could hear the drill going almost the whole time as the doctor had to drill Garth's bottom teeth and suck out the pieces rather than just pulling them because they were so badly impacted. Garth should have had them out 6 years ago but put it off until now. And only because I made the appointment and then told him the time and date he was getting rid of them. They've bothered him pretty badly for the past 4 years on and off. They've been the worst the past 2 years and I'd had enough of him complaining and never doing anything about it.

He thought it would be a walk in the park...

We made it to Logan and decided to stay the night with his sister Darcie rather than continue the suffering in the car. She and Andy were such awesome hosts and took such good care of all three of us.

Garth is just feeling better now. And it's been over a week.

During the week of recovery-on Monday, the 18th was our 2 year wedding anniversary, Palmer's first pool experience, he tried rice cereal for the first time, and liked it ...

Random Summer Happenings

2008-08-13T11:29:00.000-07:00

This summer has gone by so quickly that I haven't blogged about all the fun things we've been doing. Garth is so busy with work, training to get ready for snocross, and now hunting season is upon us, that it seems like he doesn't get a lot of time to just relax at home with me and Palmer. So we try to combine some of those activities and spend the time together. One of the best ways to do it is hiking. We go places that he can bring binoculars and look for traces of deer and elk and try to get a little exercise at the same time. When his sister Darcie and her partner Andrew were here with their darling daughter Zoie, we rode the lift to the top of Targhee and hiked all around the backside. It was scary (for me) at times walking on very steep side hills on shale with Palmer in the front pack and ledges with steep drop offs. It was beautiful. Then Palmer had a massive blow out about 2 hours into the hike. We brought a spare onsie (always...Palmer loves to blow out his diap) and got him pretty clean with wipes but it's hard in the dirt. We've gone hiking several more times since then and it gets more and more enjoyable as I get in better hiking shape. Plus Garth carries everything. Including the baby. What a nice husband right?

Then last Saturday we went to the Tauphus Park Zoo with some of my family. My sister Melissa and her husband Zac are moving to San Diego so we had one last hurrah. My mom and Grant were there with Rachel who turned 11 that day! Combined party. Brian and Elise came too with their 3 adorable kids. I love seeing all the animals. We went to Leo's pizza after that for the kids to play on the toys and we binged on pizza...

This has been the shortest summer I can remember. It's about half way through August and it's already cooling off. I am looking forward to winter though because snocross season is so fun. I don't have to work and we get to travel around with fun people to races. It feels like one big vacation.

We have lots of fun together and love each other more and more everyday. We are surrounded by people who love us and couldn't ask for anything more...sorry for the cheese but I'm just feeling really blessed and lucky to have the life I do.

Reading is Fun!!

2008-08-11T07:51:00.001-07:00

After a long break from reading, years, I'm embarrassed to say...I have renewed my love for it. The Twilight series has something to do with it, I'm sure, but before I read those (obsessively) I read some other greats. I recommend: Not Without My Daughter, The Kite Runner, Memory Keeper's Daughter...I recommend reading. It's a great pass time. I've have the TV on less and less which is such a great feeling. I don't want Palmer growing up to be a vegetating TV kid. We plan to use the TV less and less and replace it with enriching activities and games for Palmer that require active imagination, not to mention activity. So I thought it would be easiest to start early. I've been reading to him since he was about 2 1/2 months old and he truly loves it. It calms him if he's fussy and entertains him endlessly. Now at 3 1/2 months, I can see him actually looking at each page's pictures back and forth while I read.

Last night after a short hike up Teton Canyon, he was crying pretty hard once we got in the car. I think it was a combination of being hungry, tired and a little over stimulated. I sat in the back with him and he was inconsolable. So I pulled out a Slednecks magazine from the back of the seat and started showing him the pictures and reading random things off each page. He stopped crying right away! He looked excitedly at each page and I know that if I hadn't read books to him everyday before now, that magazine wouldn't have interested him at all. Thank goodness for books!

So read to your kids!! And read for yourself...

Palmer absolutely loves The Very Hungry Caterpillar. The bright simple pictures on each page are so fun for him to look at. Plus the story reminds me of Palmer. ...but he was still hungry...

Bouncy Chair!

2008-07-25T09:10:00.000-07:00

I never knew how fun a bouncy chair could be for a 3 month old! He really shows very little interest in toys but was really having fun in his bouncy chair. I just think Palmer is so cute that I had to share these pictures...

Palmer's Story

2008-07-21T13:47:00.000-07:00

I thought I'd share my birth experience with the blogging world since I started our blog after Palmer was born. It was an amazing and scary experience that is worth passing on. All the below pictures are at the University of Utah Hospital in Salt Lake City (UT). The staff there was absolutely amazing!!...

I went in for my scheduled 34 week OB checkup on Wednesday, April 16th, in Jackson Hole, and had high blood pressure. I've had low blood pressure at every other appointment so that was a little red flag. They re-tested several times with the same results. I was then admitted into the Jackson Hole hospital for 'observation'. I was told by my doctor that I would probably have to be on bed rest for the remainder of my pregnancy. I was about to be discharged to go home when they decided to keep me over night on an IV and continued observation. Thursday afternoon after several blood tests, they diagnosed me with preeclampsia. I ended up getting life flighted down to Salt Lake on Thursday evening. They were worried that with my high blood pressure, I could have a seizure or have a stroke. Then after a couple more tests and an ultra sound, it was decided that I needed to be induced to protect me and Palmer. While I flew down to Salt Lake, Garth had to go home and pack our things and rush down to the hospital worried sick about me and our baby. Friday at noon, they began inducing me. After 12 hours on one drug to prepare me for another 17 hours on Petocin I looked like a stereo system with all the wires and tubes I was attached to. We had several scares as Palmers heart beat would dip with contractions. The team of doctors was amazing and did an excellent job with my situation. Palmer came into the world with a support team of 3 pediatricians and I had 5 of my own doctors and nurses to deliver me safely. At 5:01pm on Saturday. April 19th, Palmer was born with his cord wrapped around his neck. The doctor took care of it quickly and delivered him safe and sound. He is such a strong man, he impressed everyone with how resilient he is. He only weighed 4 lbs, 6 oz. But was 18 1/2 inches long. Everyone thought because he was so early (5 1/2 weeks) that he would be in the nursery for at least two weeks if not until his due date which was May 26th. He was only there for 4 days proving to everyone that he was a fighter.

Now at three months he is right on track and has caught up to any other full term baby. He amazes me every day. He is a great eater and has hit his milestones like he should be. At his two month check up he weighed 11 lbs, 4 oz and was 22 1/2 in long! He'd already gained 7 lbs and grew 4 inches in two months of life! So now at 3 months I can only guess he's gained another couple of pounds and gotten even taller.

It all happened so fast it's hard to believe he is already here and getting so big. Being parents has brought me and Garth even closer together and we are truly one little happy family.

Still Pregnant-in SLC. We were in a beautiful room! It was a very nice hospital.

Right ater delivery, Palmer on receiving unit holding onto dad's hand. He scored a 9 on the Apgar test! Way to go!

Garth was hardly ever away from the nursery and fell in love with Palmer right away. He fed him all the time including a bunch of middle of the night feedings!

This is a good representation of how small Palmer was compared to Garth's hand. -look how skinny his little legs were-same size as Garth's thumb!

Update

2008-07-09T15:04:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend of the 4th, we had two family reunions. The Durtschi side (Grant and all his brothers and sisters and their families) as well as the Hibbert side (Garth's mom's dad's brothers and sisters and their families). It was fun to see everyone and get together. I think it was a lot of stimulation for Palmer because he mostly slept the whole time...I had to work a couple of the evenings so we missed some of the festivities. On Saturday morning we went hiking up Teton Canyon with Garth's sister Darcie, her boyfriend Andrew and their adorable 6 month old, Zoie. It was so beautiful up in the mountains and we couldn't believe how crazy fast the water was. The flowers were beautiful. It was so fun to have them stay with us and we wish they all lived closer. Palmer is fortunate to have many cousins that do live close to grow up with and play with. It's nice that we do get together so often.

4th of July

2008-07-05T06:29:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was such a fun and full day. We went to the 4th of July parade in Victor in the morning where we rode around on our cruisers with Palmer in a front carier. Then had lunch at Grandma Marian's for the Durtschi family reunion. It was so nice to see everyone. The weather was great. Not too hot, not too cold. Then our little family headed over to Jackson because I had to work. Garth and Palmer came too to keep me company but mostly because Palmer refuses to take a bottle and would rather starve and scream the whole time I'm at work than put it in his mouth! Any suggestions would be appreciated. I had an hour break between appointments so we went out to sushi and I fed Palmer. Then we got home around 10pm just in time for Driggs's fireworks. They were short and sweet. We watched from Garth's grandpa Ned's house. It is also Garth's dad's birthday on the fourth so there was a quick birthday celebration after the fireworks then we were off to bed. My most exciting news though was that Palmer slept almost 6 hours in a row last night! Which was so suprising because he slept a lot of the 4th away. It's just too cozy being caried around in the front pack and too hot to hardly stay awake I guess. I'm just hopeful that this is the beginning of the end of 2-3 times a night feedings...

First Attempt At This Blogging Thing!

2008-07-02T11:49:00.001-07:00

So here is my first attempt. Julie has inspired me to get with it and start my blog. So here is the beginning. Plus I have such an adorable baby that I owe it to the world to show him off. A quick overview of our lives:
Garth and I were married August 18th, 2006 and reside in beautiful Teton Valley, Idaho. Life has been wonderful to us. He is lucky (and talented) enough to race snowmobiles professionally in the winter which takes us to Minnesota and surrounding areas for a good 4 to 5 months out of the year. I work for a great little spa in Jackson Hole, WY where I've been since 2004. I love being a massage therapist. We have a beautiful baby boy Palmer Christian Kaufman who was born (5 1/2 weeks early!) on April 19, 2008. He is doing very well and is such a blessing in our lives. Last summer we bought a condo just North of Driggs and have loved having our own place and some more room. We have 3 beds/2 baths so we have room now for visitors so bring 'em on! I don't want to make this too long though and discourage myself from keeping up w/blogging so...that's all for now.