Merry Christmas to our friends and family!

Here at the Davis family we are turning over a new leaf!  We are trying our best to get a Christmas card out to many of our dear friends and family this year.  I know I have stated on many occasions in the past that this was our goal.  Years have passed, and so far we have been unsuccessful in our efforts (or lack thereof. . .)  So, we consider this year a triumph!  Here is a little taste of our year in review.

So just to catch up a few of you we haven’t talked to in a while, life has been a bit of a whirlwind for us this year.  Last January we accepted a job that moved us out of the great state of Utah.  This was a surprise to both Jeremy and I as we were pretty sure we were never moving out of Davis County, let alone the State!  But regardless, when an answer to prayer comes, you follow.  Even if that takes you to a small coastal town with no sidewalks, no on-street mail delivery, and fewer children than we are use to.  (Lets just say there are less kids in our ENTIRE school district as there are in ONE of the nearest high schools in Davis County.)  It has been a huge change of pace and a grand adventure! 

Although sufficiently stunned, our kids took the move like champs!  It only took a few trips to the beach to solidify that.  We have spent countless hours in the last 6 or 7 months exploring the coast line.  We love to get out and walk along the beach.   It is a bit surreal to watch the waves crashing on the beach and fully realize that we live here.  I think we are all still a little stunned.  Beachcombing doesn’t ever get old.  No matter how many sand dollars, crab, or starfish we find it is always amazing.  It is a little piece of heaven.  Connor, Parker and Avily have definitely become beach kids. 

The only thing we like better than going to the beach is TAKING people to the beach.  Our family has been blessed with many visitors over the summer months.  Taking visitors to explore the tide pools, or on sand dollar hunting expiditions, or bonfires on the beach are a few of our favorite activities.  If any of you find yourselves out this way we would love to see you and show you around.

Now that it is cold and we have less of a desire to explore outside, we have quickly become busy with all sorts of other activities.   The kids have us running between dance, basketball, scouts, swimming and chess club.  We are always on the go!  Despite the small amount of children that live in our community, they have great youth programs.  There is something for everyone and countless opportunities to be involved.  They have enjoyed having the opportunity to try new things.

Jeremy and I have also been busy.   The job that brought us to the coast has been fantastic.  It is challenging and exciting.  Jeremy enjoys what he is doing and works for wonderful people.  We feel really blessed to have such a great job that has brought us on a grand adventure. 

We are also blessed with a wonderful new ward family.  When interviewing for the job Jeremy was asked if we would get lonely up here away from family.  While we do miss our friends and family back “home”, Jeremy explained that we would find plenty of friends here at church, which we have.  It didn’t take too long before we were right in the thick of things.  Jeremy is currently serving as the Ward Executive Secretary and I am the Young Women’s President.  It has been great to work with the young women in our ward.  We are a small group, but we have such a good time together.  I work with 2 awesome ladies and the girls always make me smile.  I love the young women’s program and feel blessed to be a part of it. 

All in all, this year has been one of adventures and firsts for our family.  It has made me cherish life, family and friends more fully this year.  I have a new resolve to keep in touch and to keep a record of our adventures.  We appreciate every opportunity to connect with our family and friends.  Whether that be through a phone call, text, facebook, email, blogs. . .We love it all!  My goal for the new year is to get back to blogging.  You can find our adventures here.  I hope that this new year finds you all well and enjoying your own adventures!  We love you and wish you a very Merry Christmas and joy, success, and happiness during the new year!

Love,

The Davis Family

Puppies!!!

Meet Rocky and Bosco, the cutest birthday present a girl could ever hope for. This week we added them to our family. They are 12 week old Shih Tzu puppies. We have had such a great time getting to know these little guys. We first saw them when they were 3 weeks old. It has been a long wait, but we were so glad when these guys were big enough to bring home. Thanks to the Ouzounians for taking such great care of them for the first three months. They are the sweetest puppies ever!
Bosco - Loves to sit IN your lap and give you lots of kisses. He also loves exploring outside. We are finding out that he likes to chew on just about anything in the yard. (I do mean ANYTHING. Snails, cat poop, sticks, rocks, weeds, etc.) He is super playful and sweet. He loves to play hard and then curl up and sleep on your lap.
Needless to say, all of the kids are delighted. Shih Tzu's are very people oriented. They get really excited to see people. You can be gone for an hour and get the warmest puppy welcome home. Tail wagging and lots of kisses.
These puppies are just Avie's size. They will only grow to be about 12 lbs. They have already figured out that Avie is an easy mark when it comes to begging for food. If she doesn't feed them directly, she is sure to drop a treat sooner or later. Yum!

Parker loves these little guys so much. Parker has a hard time waking up in the mornings but if I send the puppies in to wake him up, it makes him REALLY happy. They come in and crawl all over him until they can find his face to kiss. For Parker it is the best way to start the day.
Rocky - Loves to be near you, but isn't nearly as invasive as Bosco. Rocky will curl up at your feet. He is most adventurous in the house. He was the first one to figure out how to go down the stairs and how to get around the gates if they aren't shut just right. He loves to go outside, but he is the first one in the house and at your feet.

Both of these little puppies are so loyal and sweet. We are working on potty training and so far we are doing pretty good. We are no where near accident free yet, but all things considering they are making great progress. I know that we have crazy puppy days ahead of us, but they are really pretty good little pets. I am really glad we got both of them. They are so social it is good that they have each other for the times when the "people" have to attend to life. We are so happy and grateful to have these little additions in our family.

Thank You Good Friend!

Mokie Davis
June 2008 - February 2011

What a character!

After his first hair cut. I absolutely loved his velvety ears.
Before his first hair cut. I must admit, we did let it get too long. He looks like a wild animal!
We took this picture the very first night we got Mokie.
This one too. He was so darn cute. I was smitten by his freckled nose instantly.
A few weeks later. He is getting bigger and so playful.
Sweet puppy!

There is nothing in the world like having a good dog. I know, dogs come with poop, fur, scratching, barking and a few other general annoyances. However it is still true, dogs are great!

We thoroughly enjoyed our dog, Mokie. I miss hearing the tags on his collar jingling as he ran around the house. Or having him curl up beside me on the couch after a long day. He was a wonderful friend and companion. Don't get me wrong, I don't miss his little accidents nearly every time someone came to the house. I definitely don't miss chasing him as he bolted down the street either. But I do miss coming home without him to greet me. I miss seeing his head poking out of the cat door in the garage when I pull up in the van. I even miss the fact that I am not constantly tripping over him too. He wanted to be where ever we were. If we were sitting in the living room, he was sitting on the ottoman. If I was cooking, he would park himself right in front of the oven or wait for me on the dining room rug. I even miss getting up in the morning and having to watch where I put my feet for fear of stepping on him. We love you Mokie! Thank you for being our great friend and companion.

Jeremy Got a NEW JOB!!!!!

Jeremy got a new job, and we are going to PARTY!
Come celebrate with us:
This Thursday
between 6:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m.

We'll have cake, ice cream and good company!!!!
Hope to see you there!

Oh The Things They Say. . .

It's been a little while since I have written down the clever, and down-right funny, things that my kids say. So, I thought I would post a few that have given me the giggles lately.



A few weeks ago Parker was the V.I.P. in his kindergarten class. As part of his special week, the whole family got to visit his class and tell them fun and interesting things about him. After we were done telling our stories, the class got to ask him a few questions. One child asked him what his favorite flavor of ice cream was. Parker's reply: "TWIST!"

Maybe we have been through the drive through window too many times. . . you know "What kind of ice cream do you want? Vanilla, Chocolate, or TWIST?"






Parker was trying to say 'open seasame' but couldn't quite say it correctly. That is when Connor took it upon himself to correct him.

"Parker it's OPEN SAYS ME! You know like, I say open and it does."






Recently we have taken our kids to do a little Christmas shopping. Like every good parent we made them swear to keep our Christmas Surprises a surprise. Yesterday, out of the blue, Parker came up to me and announced: "I hope that you and Dad aren't Santa Clause next year. These secrets are killing me!"





We can even put Avie in the mix this time. She only says a few words, but she can definitely communicate.

While trying to check out at the grocery store the other day, Avie stopped dead in her tracks by the candy bars. Eyeing a Hershey's Bar, she looked at me with big hopeful eyes.

"Not today Avie. Come on."

Avie: Scowls and picks it up.

"Put it back Avie. Let's go."

Avie: This time she adds a growl to her look of death.

Laughing, I say, "Okay, bring it here."

Avie gets a big smile on her face and hands me the candy bar. I promptly put it up with the rest on the groceries. This was the WRONG thing to do.

Avie: Gives me a HUGE scowl, screams, and walks herself right back to the candy bars again to pick up a new one. I guess she needed chocolate immediately. By this time, the person behind the checkout stand was in a fit of laughter. She might not say much, but oh boy can she get her message across. She isn't even 18 months old yet and already a diva. Oh what are we to do?

A Little Bit of This and That

Here are a few random pictures that make me smile.
First of all, is a picture of crazy hair day at school. There very few crazy hair-do's that you can do with short boy hair. Connor and Parker had a good time with it anyway.
A little Sunday reading anybody? Jeremy and I have been trying very hard to read scriptures with the boys every night. It made me happy that Parker was excited to read our scripture reader one Sunday afternoon. Now if we can just keep up the good work . . .
These pictures are for our favorite Aunt Brook! Thank you so much for the box of clothes. Avie was immediately drawn to this pink tutu.
No outfit is complete without a little bit of bling! So pretty!!!
Cheese!!!

Halloween 2010

I realize that Halloween has come and gone weeks ago, but I thought I would post these pictures anyway. These are the best I could get while listening to the kids BEG to go trick-or-treating. It rained here on Halloween so the kids got out early, and were done early too. Thank heavens for that! That way there was less candy hanging around for me to steal :)
My Karate Zombie. . .
Dan Kuso, the Bakugan Brawler (if you don't know what this is just google Bakugan. As far as Parker is concerned they are the coolest things ever!)
My little tinkerbell. Avie even got out in the rain to do some trick-or-treating. I am sure she will absolutely love it next year. By then she'll really get what's going on.

A Spooky Night for an Alzheimer's Benefit

Jeremy has had the opportunity to work on the committee for the Davis County Gala this year. The committee began planning the event late last winter, and have worked hard to put a fabulous evening and silent auction together. This year, the committee played off the Halloween season with the theme, 'Mystery Manor.' It was a really fun and fancy black tie event. It was fun to get dressed up and go out. I was lucky enough to have TWO dates! There were places at my table for me to sit by my Dad, and my Husband, but both kept themselves pretty busy working the event. My Dad got to come take pictures of the event and all of the people who attended. He did an awesome job, and I thought I would post some of the pictures to remind us of the super fun evening. I realized later, that I never got any pictures of me, or my dates, all dressed up. You'll just have to imagine how fabulous all of us looked. The picture above is of the entry foyer. What else says Spooky Night like a hearse!
Isn't this organ awesome! What a great find for the committee. It didn't really work, but I thought these two characters set the scene as they pretended to 'play' it. Guests had the opportunity to have their fortunes told by a gypsy, just inside the conference center doors.
It was amazing to see all the generous donations that were made. Many local families and businesses donated baskets/products/services for the benefit. Gala attendees were able to 'bid' on the items at the silent auction. As a result, the gala earned a lot of money for the Alzheimer's Service Program in Davis County. One of the neat things about the Gala is that it earns money for a different Davis County Charity every year. All of the money stays here in the county and benefits the people who live here. Jeremy had a lot to do with the silent auction this year. All of the people I talked to said that the auction wouldn't have happened nearly as smoothly without him. I must admit, I think he's pretty awesome!

I can't move on without thanking all of our good friends that we 'hit' up for baskets and items for the event. You guys are awesome! Thank you, thank you, thank you.



Of course all of the decor was themed. This is one of the signs that told you what section of the silent auction you were in. I think the committee members did a great job transporting us to Mystery Manor.
They had an awesome dance group from Syracuse High School provide a bit of entertainment before dinner. They preformed a dance number to 'Thriller.' The dance number seriously made the night memorable. Dancing Zombies, thunder, lightning, fog, and swinging chandeliers. . . Seriously spooky.
What cute (?) zombies!
I had to include a picture of desert. The first is a white chocolate skull (garnished with strawberry syrup) and filled with a super yummy chocolate mousse. The second is a solid milk chocolate coffin, complete with a white chocolate skeleton and a similar mousse. (If you couldn't tell, I had the privilege of eating the skull. . .)
The entertainment for the evening was Kimberley Locke. She was the 3rd runner up on the 2nd (?) season of American Idol. The entertainment was excellent!
Just to finish up, I thought I would post a picture of the dining hall. It was a formal and fancy event despite the haunted theme. Even the waiters and waitresses were dressed like zombies for the night.
I can't wait to see what they come up with for next year!

Avie's Love of Art

This post could have had many titles. You pick.

a.k.a. "Don't you love my new lipstick?"

a.k.a. I'm glad Crayola products are non-toxic.

a.k.a. One of the reasons why I will never be Mother of the Year. . .

a.k.a. Avily as the evil villain, Joker.


I honestly sat down at the computer for 5 minutes. I am searching for storage solutions for my house and wanted to take just a moment to look at ikea.com while waiting for Parker to get home. (There is so much crap that needs organized over here. Blah!) Avily was never out of my sight. I was watching her out of my peripheral vision the whole time. However, I neglected to notice she had found one of the boys stray markers. Isn't she pretty?

Needless to say, I am searching more diligently for storage solutions now that it is nap time. Do you think a box with a pad lock is over-kill for storing markers?

Major Update. . .

Okay, okay. We really are alive. We've had a very busy couple of months.
The end of summer and the beginning of school has made life a little crazy. Here are a few random updates. I posted about 5 different posts today so if you would like to view all our adventures, keep reading.

Connor got glasses to start out the school year. Isn't he super handsome.
Isn't Avie the cutest baby ever? I snapped this picture at the perfect moment.
Avie enjoyed the ribs we had one night for dinner. Yum!
Avie is also learning to color. She is fascinated with drawing. Especially if markers are involved. Watch out Picasso. . .
Parker is my tough builder guy. The side rail for his bed broke awhile ago so, the two of us decided to build him a bed. He did great with the nail gun and the drill (with a little help of course.) I think we have a little contractor on our hands.

St. George Wildlife Museum

We had a great opportunity to go to St. George with the majority of the Davis family. As part of the trip, we spent an afternoon at the wildlife museum. I think all of the kids loved it, but Parker was especially happy to be there. (He LOVES animals. I think he absorbed everything the tour guide told us.) The museum is filled with hundreds "stuffed" animals from many different regions all over the world. The tour guides taught us about many different animals and areas of the world. (Useless fact, did you know that an alligator's snout is rounded and that a crocodile's snout is pointed.)
After the complete tour of the museum they had an activity for the kids too.
They all worked hard on their coloring project.

Let me pause here to tell you the creepiest part of the museum. You would think that a museum filled full of dead animals would be pretty creepy, right? The animals weren't all that bad. In fact, the animals were quite interesting. They worst part of the whole tour were the two education rooms. In one room they had a few animals that had been prepared so that the kids could feel what their different pelts/skin felt like. (The bear cub in the picture above is real.) I will look at dead/"stuffed" animals all day. But don't ask me to handle one. YUCK!!!

(What do you call animals that have been to a taxidermist. I know that "stuffed" isn't the right term. . .)

The second creepy room was filled with dead bugs. They lure you into the room by putting the most beautiful butterflies in cases on the back wall. It wasn't until we got inside the room that you can see all the other disgusting creepy-crawlies. They even have the sound of cicadas chirping in the background. It gave me a MAJOR case of the willies!

DOUBLE YUCK!!!I must admit, I think that the boys thought touching the animal pelts was pretty cool. Especially because they got to dress up in camouflage to do it.

To tell the truth, I think the bug room was particularly yucky because the day before this I had a little run in with a scorpion. That's right ladies and gents. A SCORPION! I could drag this story out, but I think I'll just hit the highlights.

-Jeremy, Avie and I went shopping.
-I piled a bunch of clothes on top of the stroller. (With Avie in it.)
-I left Avie with Jeremy, took the clothes and went to try them on.
-I noticed something crawling on a pair of jeans as I was taking them off/hanging them up.
-I realized what it was.
-I FREAKED OUT!!!
-Got dressed. (without screaming in terror.)
-Poked my head out of the dressing room and flagged down a store clerk.
-The clerk gasped.
-Caught it, and took it out.

First of all. It was only a small scorpion and it was a creamy color. (It was about as long as my pinky finger and it was a creamy/off-white color.) I found a little reassurance in this.

Until I found out that these are THE WORST KIND!!!

It was at the wildlife museum that they taught me that the smaller/whiter the scorpion is the more deadly it's venom is.

Lovely.


Just lovely.




I realize that no one likes little creepy-crawly things but I think I am forever ruined. I am still having horrible nightmares about little legs crawling all over me and Avie. Thank heavens I took the scorpion with me to the dressing room.

The First Day of School

Both boys were so excited to start school this year. I can't believe how big they are getting. Connor has Mrs. Johnson this year. She is new to the school this year so it is kind of an adventure. Parker is so happy to have Mrs. Stanford for kindergarten just like Connor did.
Off to school. The first of many trips. . .
Avie is not ready to go to school. She really wanted to do what the kindergarten students were doing. (Much to her brother's distress. . .) Sorry the picture is sideways :)

I want to go back to kindergarten. What fun! Especially when your day begins with toys and fun projects. Those were the days.