Ryan and Anji Stephens

Family Pictures 2011

2011-10-23T23:40:00.008-06:00

Utah Half Ironman 2011

2011-09-02T07:59:00.003-06:00

This was by far the funnest race I have ever done because I was able to do it with my wife. Anji's total time was 5:56 (she beat my time last year by 15 minutes and my total time was 5:48 minutes (21 minutes faster than last year).
Also, by the way....not only was this Anji's first HALF IRONMAN, but it was her FIRST triathlon EVER!

--
Ryan Stephens

Here are some more bath pics and some pics of the the time they were with Grandpa and Grandma Findley while we were in Cabo San Lucas

2011-06-27T06:22:00.000-06:00

Got lucky with a bunch of these pics....his personality was really shining today!

2011-06-26T21:10:00.000-06:00

Pretty smile

2011-06-23T17:53:00.000-06:00

More Ironman Pics

2011-05-20T16:48:00.001-06:00

St. George Ironman May 7th, 2011

2011-05-12T18:22:00.000-06:00

Ryan Stephens
Snow Canyon Middle School Counselor

IMSG May 7th 2011

2011-05-11T08:16:00.001-06:00

My Hat!

2011-04-23T19:38:00.000-06:00

RJ getting a swing with mommy.

2011-04-22T19:11:00.000-06:00

My Hat!

2011-03-23T19:07:00.001-06:00

2011-03-23T18:10:00.003-06:00

RJ & Noah Dec 2010

2010-12-19T23:28:00.003-07:00

Merry Christmas!!!
I love my two little boys sooooo much!

Anji's Work Christmas Party 2010

2010-12-19T00:55:00.001-07:00

Noah laughing with Dad!

2010-12-12T23:31:00.001-07:00

What to do...he found out how to climb up on the counter.

2010-12-03T15:11:00.000-07:00

You can't see it in this picture...but there is water EVERYWHERE

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Check out our Double Wide!

2010-12-03T15:10:00.001-07:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Halloween Cuties!

2010-10-30T20:30:00.002-06:00

Booooo!

2010-10-27T13:39:00.000-06:00

Oct 27, 2010 1:20 PM

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Noah after his bath!

2010-10-27T13:38:00.001-06:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Best Buds!

2010-10-26T18:38:00.000-06:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

RJ never liked the swing until we had Noah

2010-10-25T16:02:00.001-06:00

I wondered how long it would take RJ to sit in the baby swing!

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Rj great tape adventure.

2010-10-20T17:44:00.001-06:00

RJ likes tape!

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Tour De St. George 2010 Fall

2010-10-19T14:34:00.003-06:00

Biked 111.5 miles. 6000+ Elevation Climb. 5 Pork Tacos @ Finish line. 6 hours 9 minutes (Eating tacos not included in time)

Ride 'm Cowboy!

2010-10-12T12:54:00.001-06:00

Rj kept riding zowie & calling her his bey gay gay (bicycle). Zowie didn't like it at all!

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

St Geroge Marathon

2010-10-05T13:24:00.004-06:00

Ryan ran the St George Marathon this year. This is his 5th Marathon...and maybe the HOTTEST one he has ever done. The temp that day was the hottest in marathon history (well so Ive been told!). I think many of the runners struggled running in the heat, but Ryan still did very well and I am proud of him...Hopefully next yr we will both be running it!

Pictures of RJ's 2nd Birthday Party!

2010-09-30T13:47:00.005-06:00

Rj's 2 year bithday party...he got a tractor!

2010-09-27T20:07:00.002-06:00

RJ turned 2 this year. We had a party at the park with family, cousin's and grandma Vonnie. Grandma Vonnie gave him a toy tractor and he spent almost the whole party just enthralled with it! Happy Birthday our cute little RJ!!!

2010-09-26T21:11:00.003-06:00

2010-09-03T14:49:00.000-06:00

New Addition to the Family

2010-08-26T12:49:00.022-06:00

Noah Spencer Stephens
Born Aug 17 @ 10:07 pm
7 lbs 5 oz 20 inches

This is our new little boy born into our family! He is so cute and precious....and yes he has RED hair just like his older brother RJ! (P.S. sorry for the "risque" picture of me!!!)

RJ loves his new little brother. He loves to kiss him and likes to hold him!

Approx 12 hrs after Noah was born he was admitted to the NICU. He was having problems breathing. He also was breathing so hard he developed a pneumothorax (collapsed lung). They had him on a CPAP breathing machine and he had a chest tube to re-expand his lung. He was in the NICU for about 7 days. It is so hard to see your little one like that, but we are so grateful for the care he received and that he was able to come home with us after a week!

Noah leaving the hospital & our cute new little man @ home!

RJ swimming with cousin Kourtney

2010-07-17T22:40:00.000-06:00

Calorie Calculation for a Ironman Triathlon (2.4M/112M/26.2M)

2010-05-24T13:14:00.002-06:00

Calculation for a Ironman Triathlon (2.4M/112M/26.2M)

Resting (basal) metabolic rate: 2257 calories per day
Typical daily activities: 0 calories per day
Calories burned from Swimming: 1490 per day
Calories burned from Cycling: 6648 per day
Calories burned from Running: 3627 per day
Total calories burned: 14023 per day
Note: 3500 calories = 1 pound weight loss

Those are some serious calories.....that equal to eating 6 Med Pepperoni Pizza's at Domino's.

Hey look at me!

2010-05-18T20:43:00.003-06:00

I was at the park with RJ and this lady came up to me and told me that she was from the Spectrum showed me her card and asked if she could take some pictures of RJ. Click Here

RJ feeding Zowie

2010-05-16T09:18:00.001-06:00

RJ at St.George Splash Pad

2010-05-09T17:00:00.000-06:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

St. George Ironman

2010-05-08T09:37:00.002-06:00

I woke up at 6:00am and rode my bike out to Sandhollow hoping to be able to see the Swim. I was able to get about a mile away from the race but didn't get any closer because I didn't want to disrupt the race. I turned around and rode back along the Ironman course on the other side of the street. I ended up riding about 20 miles on the side of the course and had a great time soaking in the Ironman fever that had taken over St. George. Ever since I saw one of the Biggest Loser competitors take on a Ironman, I have had a itch to sign up for one. With my dad passing away recently because of his obesity related strokes, heart attacks, high blood pressure, diabetes, (all of which are preventable)it just fueled my desire to push myself even more and do things I have only dreamed of. I read a great review of the St. George Ironman from one of the participants and thought it would be cool to share it. I really do live in one of the best places on the planet. Here is the link

I am a facial hair growing fool!

2010-05-03T09:34:00.002-06:00

I won a beard growing contest at my work this last week. The losers felt like they were jipped so they had to doctor up a picture to make it looked like they beat me.

I'll bite your face off!

2010-04-26T17:23:00.001-06:00

RJ got into his first altercation today at daycare and this is the result

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

It's a Boy!

2010-04-22T20:09:00.002-06:00

Not sure if everyone knew we are expanding our little family....but today we found out that we will be having another little boy! We are all excited to be having another fun and rambunctious boy at home! I am due Sept 6th, but today the Dr said that I was measuring large for my due date so it will probably be more like End of Aug sometime...but we will see!

RJ got the beat......sort of!

2010-04-19T21:31:00.000-06:00

RJ and Zowie wanted to have a "Sleep Over"

2010-04-07T21:34:00.004-06:00

(Morning of the sleepover) RJ barely got any sleep because "Dolby" had "Ka ka breath"....we ask her to brush her teeth all the time but she just plays dumb and ignores us. We still stress the importance of brushing with her but gave up all together on flossing.

My First Recital

2010-04-07T21:14:00.001-06:00

Easter 2010

2010-04-07T21:12:00.002-06:00

RJ on the Playground

2010-04-07T19:54:00.002-06:00

"Ouch!"

2010-04-07T19:52:00.002-06:00

26.2 Baby!

2010-03-29T19:49:00.000-06:00

RJ just got done running a marathon in his onesie....(perfect weather this time of year for a onesie...everybody is doing it here in St.George).

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Rj cleaning up the house

2010-03-17T15:17:00.000-06:00

Yep he threw away perfectly good bottles of pizza sauce, pineapples and olives. He must not like pizza much.

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

RJ "Eating" his breakfast

2010-03-07T08:36:00.001-07:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

RJ in the car.

2010-03-05T23:26:00.000-07:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Look what I found......

2010-02-06T18:07:00.000-07:00

I was cleaning RJ up after "Ma Ma" gave him some Mac and Cheese and I noticed something up his nose. We tried to get pictures of it all the way up in there but they turned out to blurry. "Nurse Anji" (on her day off) performed a little minor surgery. We told RJ that it might hurt a little but he said, "Da Da, RJ, Ma Ma GO GO GO" which means, I will be fine if daddy is with me but I want Ma Ma to leave so she won't hear me scream and freak out to much. We appreciated his concern and he self-sacrifice but since "Ma Ma' is doing all the handy tweezer work it really wasn't possible. We offered to go buy him some whiskey to deadend the pain but he refused and just wanted me to hold his hand and said, "RJ NO" which means, I won't move or cry go ahead and perform the surgery or it could of meant, get your hand off my head and get me out of this chair.....we really couldn't be that accurate with the translation with all the adrenline pumping in our veins. "Nurse Anji" went to work and about 5 long seconds later we had it out with no tears (just like he promised or didn't .....we are still not sure) We had to stick it back up in there a little bit to get this picture but "Nurse Anji" promised that he wouldn't be harmed in doing so and as you can tell by the picture he looks quite happy.

RJ 16 months old

2010-02-04T12:16:00.000-07:00

Time really flies, I can't believe he is 16 months old. He is so cute and has the funnest personality. He jabbers and jabbers all day long. We can make sense of a few words like...."dog", "outside", "book", "Go", "da da", and "hat"! We are so blessed with this little one!!!!

St. George Half Marathon

2010-01-24T12:12:00.012-07:00

First things first....Does anyone else think I look like sloth from the Goonies? Man I need to do something with my hair before I run. Waking up and running isn't a recipe for a good picture as you can tell. Oh well, even if I am U...G...L...Y and I have no alibi, I still have the cutest wife and kid by my side and thats what really counts. One crazy thing that happened during the race was a horse for some reason jumped the fence and was running the course with us. It happened right in front of me and for the first couple minutes of watching this big burley beast run wild on the course I was afraid that we were going to have some seriously hurt people, but the flood of runners acted like a moving fence and kept the horse confined to a relatively small area. As I continued running, I saw more police cars converging on the place where the horse ran wild and later saw an ambulance heading that way also, on any other day I would of enjoyed watching the local authorities try and coral the horse (I am sure I could of gotten some good video footage) but I was on a mission and didn't want to get distracted from my goal. Overall the race was lots of fun, I didn't talk to anyone....and as I was approaching the finish line and looked up at the official time I first hoped that it was under two hours and then I was shocked to see that it was 1:46:00. Fastest time yet.

Christmas Eve 2009

2009-12-24T15:11:00.001-07:00

Top of Angels Landing 9:30 am...nice run up and an even more amazing view.

-- Sent from my Palm Prē

"Tag Your It!"

2009-12-19T17:25:00.002-07:00

This is a picture of one of the "Hand Offs" during the St. George Expedition race. Someone else took the picture but we found it on Facebook and liked it so much that we wanted to post it here.

Diaper Cakes!

2009-12-15T14:31:00.001-07:00

These are diaper cakes I made for 2 for my friends baby showers. The top one was for emilee who is about to have a little boy and the bottom for Joelle, who's little girl is due next month. If anyone really knows me....I have a bad case of craft-impairdness, so these we a huge accomplishment for me and they were way fun to make too! Now the rest of my friends need to have babies...so I'll have an excuse to make them again!....Anji

Anji's work party 2009 (Dec)

2009-12-10T19:33:00.000-07:00

B-Cuz! (Busselbeerg Cousins)

2009-12-10T18:03:00.006-07:00

Here is a collage that I complied of the 45 mile (St. George Expedition) race day. The name of our team was B-Cuz which stood for Busselberg Cousins. I am going to remember this day for a very long time because it was spent with family doing something that wasn't easy but super good for us and lots of time to talk and enjoy the experience......always a good recipe for great memories. I have wasted lots of Saturdays in my life but this one will never be in that category. I am grateful to my cousin Randy for putting the team together, running the first leg of the race and passing the Santa team (even if we did blow the lead in the radio hand off....he will never forgive me for that......I was hungry and wanted some potato chips!) and to my nephew, (The Bennie winner!) Brandon for running up Snow Canyon (Say it ain't Snow!) and the final stretch of the race in record time, my beautiful wife for showing us all even with a bum knee that you can still run 6 minute miles uphill, while chewing gum and sporting sunglasses, and to my lovely cousin Melody who broke a personal record for how many miles she has ever run in one day. Even though we didn't break any land speed records....running in any race is better than sitting on the side lines and watching people live life.

It's getting close to mine and Rj's bedtime. (Zowie is always game for a nap)

2009-12-10T17:41:00.000-07:00

St. George Expedition 50 Mile Relay Finish Line

2009-12-05T18:08:00.000-07:00

Snow Canyon Half Marathon

2009-12-01T15:04:00.005-07:00

Here are some awesome photo's of me and my cousin running the Snow Canyon Half Marathon. I knew that they were taking some pictures of me so I was hamming it up a bit. I never knew how good I looked in spandex.....I need to make a mental note to wear them more often out in public. What Form! (ps if anyone is wanting to by the orginals of these photos you are welcome to contact TSS photography)

RJ and Grandpa watching the BYU Utah game....go Cougars!

2009-11-28T18:34:00.000-07:00

-- Sent from my Palm Prē

Wedding fun and fun with the cousins

2009-11-22T20:31:00.002-07:00

This weekend was Mindy's wedding (Ryan's Niece). Rj had so much fun playing with his cousins and playing in the leaves at the temple.

Photo opportunity while waiting for Mindy to come out of temple

2009-11-22T18:01:00.003-07:00

Snow Canyon Half Marathon

2009-11-07T16:43:00.001-07:00

Randy Paul and I at the finish line of the Snow Canyon Half Marathon.

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Morning Ritual

2009-11-04T07:38:00.000-07:00

For the last couple weeks I've been making protien shakes for breakfast and one day I decided that I would see if RJ liked them and after that we became protien shake sharing buddies....I am much better at sharing then he is....but he is catching on. He cries sometimes when its my turn for a swig but after he calms down I give it back to him and that how we pass the time as I drive to work and he gets driven to the sitters.

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Happy Halloween!

2009-10-31T19:56:00.009-06:00

A little cute Dragon wishes you all a Happy Halloween!!!! Ryan's sister Aimee let us borrow this costume for RJ. It fit him perfectly. We only went Trick or Treating to one house....Grandma Vonnie's! She gave him some Gold fish crackers and he couldn't have been happier. RJ loves his crackers....its pretty much the only word he says right now....."CAA CAA"

Catching up on the last couple months!!

2009-10-30T21:24:00.009-06:00

I had to start off by posting some super cute pix of RJ. I can't believe he is already 1 yrs old!!!!
I got a new job 2 months ago...which is one of the many reasons why we haven't posted on our blog lately. I worked almost 7 yrs as a RN on the Medical/Oncology unit @ the hospital and I moved to work in SameDay Surgery. I mostly did this for better hours (no more weekends or Holidays!!) and able to spend more time with my new little family.....it sure was hard leaving wonderful friends who were basically my "work" family. In the pic above is my last day at work with 2 of the many friends that I had the privledge of working with....I miss you guys!!!!!!! However, I do LOVE my new job!!! love everyone I work with, the hours, and its been fun to learn something new!

This summer it was fun seeing Mike, Heather and their kids a few times, since they moved from Illionois to Provo it seems like its easier to see them. Spencer was born 2 days before RJ and this summer was the first time they were old enough to play and interact with eachother. Rj's favorite game to play when they were together was "taking the binky" away from Spencer and of course the classic pic of "hair pulling"! It is so fun to see them together. RJ is soooo hyper and seems to get into EVERYTHING and we are hoping that Angelic Little Spencer will rub off on him eventually!!!

The last couple months have flown by so fast and we have done some pretty fun stuff. Ryan ran a marathon and a couple half marathons. I ran a few half marathons, but injured my knee right before St George marathon. :( It has been fun for us to share our interest in running. We haven't really ran races together since before we were married.!! Here are a couple pix after the Provo half marathon. This race was a little bit bitter sweet for me because I ran my best half marathon time and received a top 25 award so I was super stoked, however this race is where my knee injury began. :(

Love the Stephens Family

xoxoxoxoxoxoxox

Long Over Due Cruise Pictures

2009-10-17T16:19:00.005-06:00

Royal Caribbean has the best night entertainment of any of the cruise lines we have been on so far.

Really don't like this picture of me. Anji looks good. This is the day we rented a scooter and rode all over the island. (Anji's favorite day) We had a good time going to the beach and eating exhaust fumes.
This is the day in Key West....funnest day on the cruise....hung out on the beach and rode these bikes all around....got out my Palm Pre and went and found some geocaches and then we left some travel bugs that we had brought from Utah. (We put some miles on those travel bugs!)
This is us on the Island of Coco Kay. Went snorkeling and swam with 5 huge Manta Rays. They had at least a 6 foot wing span.....I was by myself so Anji didn't get to see them. (I saw two other little Sand Rays but they were only about 2 feet across).
This is Anji in front of the Atlantis Hotel before the security gaurds told us to move our Scooter. We went to the Lagoon and saw million dollar yachts lined up for miles. Ahhhhh.....how the other half lives.

2009 St. George Marathon 4hrs.

2009-10-05T16:53:00.005-06:00

I love the Red Rocks behind me couldn't get a better picture of the Marathon in my opinion. This was taken right in front of the house I grew up in on Diagonal right after I kissed my wife and son. Anji was suppose to run the marathon, but she hurt her knee a few weeks before. She really wanted to run, but wasn't able to. So the day before the marathon I decided to run in her place!

Really don't like this picture (the only one that looks cute is Anji...both RJ and I are showing are bad sides). I wasn't feeling very good at the end of the race...about passed out. Then I tried to eat a thick slice of Great Harvest bread and couldn't swallow it nor choke it up. I was still able to breath but it felt like I had a frog stuck in my throat and I got a little panicky. As you can see in the picture I survived the bread and I was really enjoying that ice cream cone. After this picture, RJ pretty much ate the rest of it for me. I only wanted to go home and go the bathroom and take a shower. (I really despise public bathrooms and try to avoid them at all costs...especially port-a-potties)

I was bushwacked and really just wanted to sleep. Didn't sleep well before the race and waking up at 4:15 am to run didn't help. I will say that this was the best marathon I have ever run in the terms of recovering. I didn't feel a 100 percent but I didn't feel like death warmed over like I did in the past marathons I have run. Anji is excited because we talked about some other marathons it would be fun to run. I don't think she ever thought I would run another marathon (probably because I have told more people then I can remember that I wouldn't....I am a huge hypocrite)

RJ's New Haircut!

2009-10-05T16:51:00.001-06:00

RJ's First Birthday!

2009-09-30T19:03:00.005-06:00

Top 4 Smartest Investors........ in the World!

2009-08-07T06:37:00.006-06:00

Here are the very best, smartest, investors that I know (in no particular order)

Evonne and Jack Sharpe-Both of them have spent numerous hours talking sense into me, helping me financially and doing the final check on my many papers that I had to turn in..... all the way through my Masters Degree.
Tom and Jolene Findley-Thanks for trusting me with your daughter and all the time, energy and love you have shown me since.
Hildegard Scheuber- I never told this to you while you were alive because you didn't want me to know (Don't be mad.....my mom can't keep a secret because she is a horrible liar). Thanks for my mission...I love you for helping me do that.
Anji Findley Stephens- Thanks for taking a chance on me, being my wife, supporting me, raising our little rascal, and encouraging me to be healthy.

Day 2 of Cruise

2009-07-24T13:01:00.001-06:00

Woke up around 9am and went running 7 miles on the tredmill while Anji slept in. After working out went to eat breakfast ate lots of fruit some eggs. Left ship walked off boat rented scooter. Drove to Alantas and saw some expensive Yachets and lots of things we could never afford. Got back on the Scooter and drove around Paradise Island. Found a nice beach went swimming and ran into some fellow cruisers from vegas. Ate lunch like a couple of beach bums with some fruit we packed off the ship. Got back on scooter and headed to the bigger part of the island.

We were told that the whole island was only 21 miles around so we decided to drive around the whole thing. We saw some really nice neighborhoods and some serioulsy scary neighborhoods. I can't tell how crazy the traffic was and Anji was sure to let me know everytime she saw her life flash before her eyes. We lived and with a little humility on my part we were able to find our way back to the cruise ship.
We dropped off the scooter and Anji hit the shops....I tagged along to keep her out of trouble. Got back on the boat took a nap before dinner.

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Day 1 of cruise

2009-07-24T12:43:00.001-06:00

Once we got on the boat and settled the first big thing we did was go meet our dinner mates. They were two guys named Chun and Eric. (no they were not gay although we thought that at first also) from Virgina. Both were currenty going to college in their junior year. Kind of skipping ahead with this but we really got to know Chun a lot better than Eric. After the second nigh, Eric stopped coming to dinner I was worried that we offend him somehow but Chun assured us that we hadn't he just was tired and not hungrey for dinner. There is always tons of food on the cruise and you can easily get full and not hungrey if your not careful.

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Dana, Jake, Maddy and Kathrine

2009-07-24T12:32:00.001-06:00

A day or two before we flew out...Anji and I remembered that Dana and Jake live in Miami. We called and after talking they offered us to pick us up at the airport ...we cancelled our hotel reservations and Jake picked us up from the airport. We had some great talks in the car as we drove home and after the kids went to bed Jake showed us some video footage of his "special training". I was able to go running in the morning and despite the heat and humidity was able to run around 6 miles. We had a blast hanging out with them and the kids cried and didn't want Anji to leave on the cruise when they dropped us off at the boat. One day I hope that we could go on a cruise together with them...they would be fun to hang out with no matter where you are. We love you guys and thanks for all that you did for us.

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Anjils favorite airport......

2009-07-24T12:12:00.001-06:00

Well, we are on our way to the Bahamas and we had a lay over in Kansas City and Anji is in love with this airport!...I don't want to steal her thunder so when you get a spare moment be sure to ask her about it.

We are missing RJ already. We sat right behind a little girl about RJ's age and she was good for the most part but she did have her moments...didn't bother me as much as it used to because every she would cry it reminded me of RJ.

Anji loves to sit next to the window and I hate sitting in the middle seat so we had a stranger between us...I pretended not to know her and was asking for her phone number and trying to find out where she lived....I thought it was pretty funny but I am sure I was the only one out of the three of us.

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Rj and Murphey

2009-07-04T13:29:00.002-06:00

RJ had sensory overload with being around an actual puppy that didn't run away when he invades their personal space

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Up up and away.......

2009-07-03T10:06:00.000-06:00

I caught RJ in this position on wednesday. I don't know what it means but it's the first time I have ever seen him like that. Could it be foreshadowing of the walking stage?

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

When your running into first and you feel a sudden burst........Diarrhea Cha Cha.....Diarrhea.

2009-07-02T16:41:00.004-06:00

RJ has had a bit of the runs (also known as diarrhea or if your from Utah.... Hershey Squirts). So he has been getting lots of baths (as most of his clothes and everything around him gets soiled lots of fun for mom and dad) and he has been quite Musical (also known as the farts) lately. Here was a pic that I shot after one of his baths.

On a side note: RJ has spent most of his young life being constipated and we have always wished he could have a BM (also known as a Bowel Movement or in this house its called a "Poopy") once a day. So we went from one extreme to another. Just goes to show you that you need to learn to find happiness no matter what the situation.

Another side note: Since RJ has been more mobile he likes to chase Zowie. She will be a couple a feet away from him and the RJ will get all excited and do his little army crawl and get real close to the object of his desire and then Zowie gets up and moves. RJ cries and the cycle repeats itself with RJ once again going after Zowie. It's kind of funny to watch and made me reflect on some of the silly things I have done in my life that didn't make much sense. Well got to be going thanks to my Mother we are going to the Temple today.

RJ getting his Haircut

2009-06-30T23:05:00.010-06:00

This is RJ getting his haircut at the beauty college. (Technically this is RJs 2nd haircut. Ryan actually took him a couple months ago to get a few loose hairs snipped. But this is probably his 1st REAL haircut.) I just love the Car Smock they used...as if it makes it all better!! I love my 2 boys and thier new hair cuts!!

Another PhotoShop Adventure

2009-06-30T11:02:00.002-06:00

Here is something else I created in PhotoShop. Believe it or not this little thing has quite a bit a time into it. Lots of fun and I think everyone should have the opportunity once in their lifetime to be able to see their name in burning flames with stars surrounding it.

With a rebel yell he cried- "more, more, more"

2009-06-30T09:26:00.003-06:00

Anji wanted me to take a picture of his "Mowhawk". When he is a rebellious teenager I will know where it all started and who to blame.

2009-06-28T20:46:00.005-06:00

Went on a walk today, it was hot but it was good to get out and exercise. I looked for the "Southgate" geocache again and didn't find it but we were able to take these pictures (which I think are some of the best pictures of my two most favorite people).

RJ THE BRUISER....

2009-06-27T19:14:00.002-06:00

Rj just got done with his first MMA fight with himself. Good news is that he won bad news is that he lost also. Just goes to show you when you use anger as your primary coping mechnism everybody loses. Honestly, I have no idea how he got it I noticed it right after I caught his cousin Courtney hitting him....it was just on his back and totally unrelated to the incident (I think).

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Since RJ has been more mobile......trouble, trouble everywhere.

2009-06-23T13:52:00.004-06:00

Anji has been really worried about baby proofing the house. She has covered all the electrical sockets, hidden all the loose wires but she doesn't seem to be able to do anything about our cobra problems. I Snapped this shot of RJ before she woke up in the morning. Man he loves those cobras...can't keep him away from them.

World Traveler......

2009-06-23T09:11:00.005-06:00

RJ recently took a trip to the beach without us....(since he just learned how to drive). He sent us this Pic with the Caption, "Having the time of my life". I am glad to see that he is still driving in his car seat.....the extra height gives him some more visibility.

Photo Editing Class....

2009-06-23T09:00:00.000-06:00

Had some fun as you can see with the latest class in getting my technology endorsement. Here are two picture the first one is a before picture and the second is after I worked my magic on it.
Before Photoshop:

After Photo Shop:

30 minutes in 2 minutes...

2009-06-21T21:54:00.006-06:00

I wanted to show how much RJ is moving around so I did a little time lapse videography.

RJ's Army Crawl.......

2009-06-21T20:32:00.004-06:00

Last week I took a video editing class and learned about stop animation. I was hanging out with my mother on father's day and decided to have a little fun with my camera phone. I know it's short but you can see that RJ is starting to get mobile.

Midway Utah Summer Conference 2009

2009-06-18T08:22:00.005-06:00

We had a fun weekend with Anji's family in Midway Utah. Every year I go to a summer counseling conference and usually I spend it with other counselor in some hotel in SLC. This year we booked our condos and I commuted to SLC. I had loads of fun and hope that this becomes a tradition. It feels less like work and more like a vacation when my family is there.

Teaching RJ to drive....yeah my kid is a little ahead of the curve

2009-06-12T12:40:00.000-06:00

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

2009-06-07T20:21:00.000-06:00

This is where Anji found RJ

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Reverse works.....

2009-06-07T09:39:00.001-06:00

Anji came and got me and wanted me to come see where she found RJ. It really isn't a big deal but given the few seconds of worry that RJ cause her...its worth mentioning. Anji laid RJ on the ground to get some tummy time and went into the kitchen...when she couldn't find him she looked a little harder and he had reversed himself right back into a little cubby hole. Picture will be coming soon

-- Sent from my Palm Pre

Zowie giving me kisses

2009-05-31T14:43:00.003-06:00

This is a little clip of Zowie giving me kisses and RJ just loving it. RJ just can't get enough of Zowie unfortunately the love doesn't go in both directions. In Zowie's defense most kids can be really mean (unintentionally) to animals. Zowie has put up with a lot of hair pulling and general harassment from RJ and lot of other kids at this age and a little older. Zowie's initial reaction with RJ is to keep her distance....and I let her. I don't want to hinder Zowie from doing what comes natural when she starts to feel anxiety and that is to get away from the object that is causing the anxiety. I am trying to help Zowie feel more comfortable with RJ and I have been feeding her with RJ close by trying to send the message that...Hey yeah there is a baby next to you but your Ok …..no one died and your actually doing something that you love doing......Eating....so be happy and enjoy the world! I hope that one day soon I will have RJ feeding Zowie and throwing the ball to her, being soft (but more importantly) not grabbing her nose and feet and trying to chew on them.

I wish I were like you easily amused.

2009-05-31T14:25:00.003-06:00

I love how kids have such a fresh take on life. It makes you stop and think about everything we take for granted. Here is Zowie just doing a little Roll over trick and yet RJ thinks that it is the coolest, funniest thing he has ever saw in his short little life. Carpe diem Son.....Carpe diem!

Illegally running with Zowie during race (again)

2009-05-31T14:15:00.003-06:00

Anji is such a rebel that she blatantly disregards race rules time and time again. It clearly states that running with pets is prohibited but does she care....no! She endangers the lives of all around her (including the livestock in the fields surrounding) with this little stunt. I am posting this evidence as proof that she indeed broke the rules and ask for the officials of the Hurricane Half Marathon to ban her for life for pulling this little stunt.

Dancing with Grandpa

2009-05-31T14:00:00.004-06:00

This is RJ and Grandpa dancing. Typically son you usually dance with members of the opposite sex but since you are so young we let Grandpa teach you a few moves.

I love to laugh.....haha ha ha....long and loud and clear

2009-05-31T13:48:00.003-06:00

RJ loves to be tossed around. I am sure that this isn't good for your kid....I hope that he doesn't lose to many brain cells.

Silly hat day...

2009-05-31T12:03:00.002-06:00

Thanks to Aunt Aimee we had this awesome hat at our house and the day Anji ran the Hurricane Half Grandpa and Grandma Findley thought it was cold enough to warrant wearing this one-of-kind-winter-wonder-head-gear. RJ is a little on the chunky side (ok...he is a lot on the chunky side) and because of that he runs on the hot side of the body temperature gauge and seems to enjoy having less clothes on (Ok.. he seems happiest when he is naked). Even though he wasn't a happy camper this picture was too cute to pass up.