Diamond Valley Crew

A Goat is Born

2010-02-09T19:44:00.001-08:00

CLOUDY is his name... and cute is his game!!!

Our youngest goat Dot is the proud mother. This is our first goat born. He is so cute. He is only 8" tall. He is definately love at first sight.

Tropic Reservoir Again

2009-09-16T02:54:00.000-07:00

We love this place. We keep going back to do some more camping.

This is Cami and Cayson.

We found this really cool old tree. I love these pictures, I just wish we had some hairdos going on, but this is how we roll when we're camping.

This is my lovely hairdo. Just call me Pocahontas!

Daddy and Cayson loving the ride.

Maisie came and played at our house for a couple of weeks. She was so fun to have. The kids really love her.

It was also Cara's 2nd birthday while we were camping. All she wanted for her birthday, was a hat and some cake(and maybe a little dirt to go with it)

Grandpa is such a party animal and a good sport!

Service

2009-08-30T17:49:00.000-07:00

I just got back from a great 5th sunday lesson on Service. I had an AHA moment. Have you ever had one of those. When you feel the spirit and just cannnot wait to share what you have learned with everyone you know. I figure if it was an AHA moment for me, then it will most likely help someone else too.

The member of our Stake Presidency said that sometimes we feel overwhelmed by the amount of service that we are expected to give. He said in simpler terms, that we should first serve our spouse, then our children, then our home and visiting teaching families, and then our callings. Finally, after all of these things are done, we can look to lend a helping hand elsewhere. It is not necessarily about the size of your green jello salad or the creativity of your last New Beginnings. It is about serving someone daily.

He counseled us to pray every day and ask. "Please help me to serve whom I need to Today!" He promised that if we would ask sincerely every day, that He would present us with opportunities to serve those people that need us and our skills most that day. That doesn't seem to bad does it. It surely lightens the load of overwhelming service and reminds us of the important things in life. I think that we love most whom we serve most, and also that we are the happiest when we are serving others. Just think how happy we would all be if we could be his tool to serve whom he needed us to serve the most every day. Let's do it!

Big, Huge Bucks!!!

2009-08-20T20:31:00.001-07:00

We went to Tropic Reservoir for our Family Reunion this year. We saw some of the biggest deer ever!!! I had to post these pictures for Scott. He has been telling big stories about these huge bucks and needed proof to back up his tale. I will post on the rest of the reunion when I get more time.

Up in the Night

2009-08-11T02:22:00.001-07:00

I am up in the middle of the night. I have so much on my mind that I cannot sleep. Have you ever had that problem? I think I am having a I miss Cassadee moment. I keep thinking about her alot lately.

Here are some of my favorite things about her that I miss!

I miss going and playing with her on her Make a Wish Playground! She was so excited to get her very own curly slide.

I miss going camping with her. She was always so excited to do anything fun and away from the hospital.

I miss her strength and her constant reminder to choose the right. I was always amazed by her inner strength. She wouldn't move a muscle everytime they poked her with an IV. She always wanted to continue the fight. She gently reminded us of what was most important. She would tell me every time that we passed the temple that she was going to get married there some day. Then she would turn to me and say Mom, have you been to the temple lately? It still amazes me the amount of people she influenced for good. I still have people come up to me and thank me for allowing her to be a part of their lives.

It was always a challenge to try and find things to do at the hospital to occupy our time. She was so happy this day. She found all of the great big hospital syringes in her room and went out in the hall and squirted all of her favorite nurses. If you look really close, you can see her IV hanging out of her arm. She is actually getting chemo right when she is squirting. Most of the other kids were sick in bed during their chemo infusion, but not Cassadee!

I miss her people skills. This is during our trip to Disneyland. She went around and made all 42 people on our trip feel special. She let them know she was happy that they were there with her. I was always amazed at how many kids called to play with her. I can't tell you how many times I had to tell them that I was sorry, but she was too sick to play today.

Even though this picture makes me really sad, I like to look at it for a lot of reasons. I like this picture because it makes me remember how sick she really was. Even though she didn't act as sick as she should have, I know she was miserable a lot of the time. She had to endure more yucky stuff than anyone should be allowed. I can remember what we were thinking this day and the sadness in our eyes. I knew we were going to miss her alot, but I also knew that she was supposed to go and that she would be in a better place. I love that even in a coma, she is clutching onto her rose to give to Jesus when she meets him. I often wonder what that meeting was like. She was most excited for that moment. We talked about it often. I have to think that they are pretty good friends. I miss you Cassadee!

Just gettin' some ZZZZ's

2009-06-26T03:24:00.000-07:00

Cami has always had a hard time sleeping in her own bed. She would rather be anywhere else. She can often be found on her floor or in the recliner. She also has to have a snack in bed. Never fail, every night I will tuck her in, and she will say, "Mommy, can you bring me something?" Then I get to guess what mysterious food she would like tonight. This night was especially funny because she had to wear her lifejacket to bed also. She keeps us laughing and we love it. Sweet Dreams!

Thumb Sucker

2009-05-30T19:44:00.001-07:00

Cayson is officially a thumb sucker. I think it is so cute. He is also a very good baby who easily comforts himself. I love it right now, but I know I will be hating it when he is 10. Like mother like son right!

Bryce Canyon

2009-05-30T19:40:00.000-07:00

We went camping this weekend with Scott and Kjirsten and Mom and Dad to the Ott property near Bryce Canyon.

It was so fun. Dave took us on a 70 mile 4 wheeler ride. The kids were so good the whole time. We had some great views.

It was so pretty!

Preschool Graduation

2009-05-30T19:34:00.001-07:00

Cami's graduation was so fun. The kids were all so cute and excited.
They sang 5 little monkeys...

and the Ducks on the Farm...

Cami got way into this song were they were supposed to HOP-HOP-HOP

Needless to say, she hopped a little too high a couple of times.

This part brought tears to my eyes. My little girl is going to Kindergarten.

Congratulations Cami!

Where's Waldo?

2009-05-30T19:28:00.000-07:00

I looked everywhere for the girls one afternoon. Finanlly
I heard them giggling and this is what I found. You can't tell from the picture, but they are in the kennel with one of their goats.

Got Milk?

2009-05-30T19:21:00.000-07:00

Our newest adventure is goats. We have 4

nigerian Dwarf Dairy goats.

i have been milking them and using it as a formula supplement.

We love them.

Milk Anyone!!

Cute kids

2009-05-30T19:20:00.000-07:00

A picture says a thousand words

Preschool Quilt

2009-05-30T19:14:00.000-07:00

Cami got to bring home the Preschool Quilt. Every kid gets it for 1 week. They bring it back to class and get to tell all of the fun things they did with their quilt. At the end of the year, one lucky kid gets to keep it.

She had a picnic with it...
She had a nap with it...

She took it on a trip with Daddy, but we didn't get any pictures of that part.

What a fun idea.

You know your baby has a problem when...

2009-05-30T19:12:00.000-07:00

She can fit 3 binkies in her mouth at the same time. Oh dear, I don't think we will ever be able to break this habit.

Don't Faint I am really posting...

2009-05-30T18:53:00.000-07:00

Cami's cute new "do"

Cami wanted her hair cut short because she hates to get it brushed out. We have both been a lot happier since we made the great change.

Cara's new "do".

Cara got into Cami's makeup while no one else was watching. She came out all smiles and announced, "I beautiful princess" Which indeed she is!!!

Christmas Presents

2009-01-14T17:21:00.000-08:00

So Christmas this year was definately funny. Dave and I both shopped separately and I bought the girls dolls and Dave bought them guns. The photos tell all!!!

As you can see, Cami has yet to even notice that she has a baby doll.

By this time, I decided that Cara defineatly shouldn't have a gun and I helped her find her dolly again.

She is a girly girl for sure!!!

Dave surprised me with this painting. I absolutely love it!!!

Introducing...

2008-12-25T17:49:00.001-08:00

CAYSON DAVID COX

7 lbs 3 oz 19" long

December 13, 2008

He is our best Christmas present ever!!!

Cayson has been such a good baby. He is definitely lazy. He seems to sleep all day and for 3-4 hours each night. He is so cute and already has a personality as you can tell in top picture. Everything went better than can be expected and we are so happy to have him here.

Puppies

2008-11-29T20:35:00.000-08:00

This is our Male. We call him Runt just because he started out as the smallest, but he has bypassed some of the others by now. He has a great personality. He is both very playful and lazy at times too!

This is our female Precious. She lives up to her name as she is sweet and laidback.

This is our most outgoing female. We call her Whitehead. She is personality plus!!!

Puppy Love

2008-11-23T15:59:00.000-08:00

We had a litter of puppies and this is what has been keeping us busy lately. We have to feed them every 3 hours. They are getting really cute though and definately super stinky.

If anyone wants an English Bulldog give us a call!!

Dracula

2008-11-04T20:24:00.001-08:00

The girls got these scary Dracula Teeth. They had to wear them all over the house saying Grrr!

Halloween Fun

2008-11-04T20:15:00.001-08:00

Cami wanted to be a "freaky" witch. She was very spooky indeed. She loved trick or treating and ate so much candy she said she is done eating it for a long time.

Cara was just excited to be included in the whole dressing up game. Her favorite part was her broom. She didn't really get into the candy thing very much and ended up sitting with me in the truck handing out candy and saying "HI" to all of the passers by.

Woo-Don't they look SPOOKY!

A Hunting We Will Go

2008-11-04T20:07:00.000-08:00

Cami was ready to hit the hilltops early saturday morning with Daddy. It only took a little tiny shake before she jumped out of bed and rushed to get her hunter orange on. She loved everything about it!

The big kill!!! Cami's response when asked about hunting is, Gutting a deer is not gross it is cool! Uncle Van showed her a "beeping heart" and the deer was already dead. Wow I wonder if all of this education is really considered a good thing.

Tomatoes and more Tomatoes

2008-10-13T19:48:00.000-07:00

Mary Dee came home last weekend with 4 huge boxes of tomatoes. So we went to work. We made 6 batches of salsa and made the rest into stewed tomatoes and juice. I didn't count, but I have 3 full cupboards

Cami was such a trooper the whole day. She help grandma while I was at work, and then kept going after I got home. She sat and peeled tomatoes and filled bottles for 4 hours straight until she reminded me she needed to eat. After a short 20 min break, she was back to work peeling with her very own knife. She was so exhausted that night that she practically fell into bed. We did have to retire her shirt. The tomato juice just wouldn't come out.

Cara also had to be a big helper. She would gather the tomatoes from the box and bring them over to us. She of course took a bite of them most of the time before handing them over.

Mary Dee and Aubrey worked really hard. So hard that they wouldn't even look up for a picture.

CHIPS ANYONE!!!

Target Practice

2008-10-07T03:53:00.000-07:00

Dave's neice Brittany has been going to school at Dixie. She comes up alot and hangs at our house. She is trying to get her Hunter's Safety. So, Dave took all us girls out for target practice.

Britt had some trouble hitting the target until we remembered she was blind in her right eye. Dave taught her how to shoot left handed and she actually started to hit a few!

Cami is always excited to shoot her gun. On the way back home, she excitedly exclaimed, "Britt, you can come to our house every night and we will shoot guns. It will be fun fun fun!"

Aubrey is an ole' pro. She really is a good shot. You should see this girl on a rabbit hunt!

Cara is just happy to be here. She thought the gigantic sand pile was the greatest thing ever!

Chirp E Chirp

2008-10-02T21:05:00.001-07:00

Cami and Grandma found this baby bird in our yard. It had obviously fell out of a tree and needed some love!

I think we loved it a little too much. She was sadly disappointed the next morning when she tried to convince us that Chirp E Chirp was just sleeping and not really dead. We once again got a lesson on afterlife. She was quick to point out that because the bird died in our house, it was part of our family now and we could live with it forever.

Majority Rules!

2008-09-13T14:03:00.000-07:00

So the poll results are in and the majority definiately ruled. We are having a boy. We are very excited, but I will have to say that I am a little nervous. I'm not sure that I know how to do the boy thing. It is weird to think about how different it might be. We are trying to think of some names. I am not sure if we will follow the same "Ca" sequence we have been using, or if we will break out of our shell. Does anyone have any name suggestions that start with Ca? It's fun to hear the options.

Cami wins First Place

2008-08-24T14:49:00.001-07:00

Cami entered a coloring contest for the Town and Country Bank. She colored a Mini Cooper car and won first place. She won a $50 savings account. She was very excited. The top picture is the front page of the bank news letter. That is Cami posing with the Bank President. He said her smile was electric and he wanted to use her for their commercials. I thought I had explained everything so well to her about what she had won, but I guess I was mistaken when we went to the bank to claim her prize. She whispered in my ear. Mom, when are they going to give me my account? Turns out she had no idea what an "Account" really was. Now she just get really excited every month when she gets her own letter in the mail.

Camera Fun Again!

2008-08-03T21:09:00.001-07:00

COUSINS BY CHANCE...FRIENDS BY CHOICE!

Tate • Maisie • Cami

Cara

Maisie the Beautiful

Size Matters!!!

2008-08-03T20:56:00.000-07:00

This is the campground at Main Canyon. Some of the kids favorite activities were throwing rocks in the creek and playing hide and go seek. Maisie and Cami had to make some camo for the hide and go seek game.

We went fishing at Strawberry Reservoir. Cara pretty much cried to whole time. She hates lifejackets. Here is a rare shot of when she finally gave in.

Maisie and Cami had a lot of fun together. All of the Potter kids were fun to take camping with us!

Cami was so excited to catch this 23" trout. Look close she could hardly hold it up. She had to stick her whole hand inside!

Memories Tag

2008-07-21T20:44:00.000-07:00

Memory Tag
1. As a comment on my blog, leave one memory that you and I had together. It doesn't matter if you knew me a little or a lot, anything you remember!
2. Next, re-post these instructions on your blog and see how many people leave a memory about you. It's actually pretty funny to see the responses. If you leave a memory about me, I'll assume you're playing the game and I'll come to your blog and leave one about you.
This tag can be for anyone in our family.

The BIG Flood!

2008-07-13T20:04:00.001-07:00

This is why we live in St. George in July.

This used to be our driveway!

Dave was trying to save the driveway, but it was a lost cause.

This was our cutest big awesome tree out front. Cami is standing in our front yard.

Turns out we are Boat People

2008-07-13T19:56:00.000-07:00

I never thought it would be true or ever happen, but we bought a boat. It is a Party Barge pontoon boat and big enought to hold true to it's name. We took it out on Saturday with Scott's family.
This is one of the few rare moments that Cara smiled the whole day. She was mostly miserable because of her lifejacket.
She also was caught kissing Anne. Cute Kissing Cousins anyway!

Cami thought this whole boating thing was the greatest ever. She tubed with Uncle Scott and swam and jumped off rocks and mostly just had a blast

Yes that is Scott wakeboarding behind the pontoon boat!

PS thanks for the picture Kjirsten. I stole them off of your blog!

SMF Reunion

2008-07-09T19:11:00.000-07:00

This past week was the annual SMF family reunion. We go with my mom and dad and all of my brothers and sisters. We went camping to Southfork where we always went camping every year as kids. We tubed down the river, tried to catch squirrels, made clay animals and mostly played in the dirt.

It was fun had by all.

A camping we will go

2008-07-09T19:06:00.000-07:00

We went camping up by Strawberry with Jill and her family. We fished and rode 4 wheelers and had awesome food. We had so much fun we are a going back again in a few weeks.

Happy Birthday Cami

2008-07-09T18:59:00.000-07:00

Sorry I know it has been a while, but I will try and be better. Cami got a great swimming pool for her birthday. We have been having a great time swimming every day, but we have also had a horrible infestation of wasps. YUCK!! Cami is 4 and is as tomboy as they come. Her favorite things are hunting for pirates, playing with any kind of ball and wrestling with the dogs.

She is so cute and we love her!

Loads of Dirt

2008-06-11T20:06:00.000-07:00

I was busy whacking some weeds while I thought the kids were innocently playing in the rocks. Boy was I ever surprised when this is what I found. Cara had a mouthful of dirt and Cami was busy throwing it as high as she possibly could. They were having a ball. Sugar and Spice and Everything nice right? Not my girls they can hang with the best of them.

Camera Fun

2008-06-11T19:53:00.000-07:00

I have been playing with my camera lately. Here are some fun shots of my beautiful girls.