Yee Haw! Everyone loves a RODEO!!

Seriously... are there any two cuter babies on this earth? (Well Noah is missing from this picture... he should be included in the Cutest Kids Club too.)

We had such a fun time when the Ritterb's came to Utah to help us celebrate Pioneer Days!
The Days of 47 Rodeo was a hit. The kids were dressed to the 9's. Madi, Jordie, Ammon, Noah, Zion and Eli all got a pair of cowboy boots for the occation. Eli had a sweet wrangler shirt, jeans and a hat (that stayed on his head for oh about 5 seconds... but oh was he cute.)

We spent a day playing at "This is the Place State Park." The kids had a great time with all of the pioneer activities, trains, Tee Pee's, and the petting zoo. Of course no trip to the zoo or the state park is complete without a trip to Hire's Big H. YUM!

Grandma and Grandpa took the kids to lunch and the duck park... lots of spoiling occurred.

We took the Ritterb's to the Idaho for their first trip to Grandpa Jay's farm. We had lots of fun and took lots of family pictures that were not lots of fun, but they turned out great. (I will try to post those soon, they were awesome!)

Yummy, Yum, Yum. Anyone want a kiss? Mommy does!

I don't know which is sweeter, the chocolate smile or the chocolate brown eyes!!

Either way this baby is DELICIOUS!!

Where does the time go?

***Note I have held off publishing this post waiting to add more photos but photos or no photos... it's time to post!


As I get older, the time just seems to fly past me at lightning speed. It has been two months since my last post, but it just seems like I have only had time for a quick breath. Here are a few highlights for record book.







April-- Carol, Madi, Stevie and Eli joinED the Funks in St. George for 5 days in the sun. We had a great time at the pool, reading, playing games and of course a trip to Pirate Island Pizza.







Shawn stayed behind to work (of course) the attend the Davis County Convention and cast his vote as a delegate. He has been very involved in the politics this year since our country is going to h#*% in a handbasket right now. It is far past time for good people to stand on the side lines, we need to get involved! He also had another performance of The Garden up in Logan.







He then went to New Orleans for a convention for the NPCEA . It is always a good place to mix and mingle with others in the Oil Credit Industry, take some informational classes and of course, squeeze in a little golf too.







Brooke was busy finishing up her last semester at Weber State, starting a new job at Sentinel Field Services and of course watching Movies... if you ever find yourself in need of an appropriate movie quote for any situation just call or text Brooke-- she can hook you up. Brooke also won the highest scholarship from the NPCEA for $1000.00 Way to go Brooke!!!







TJ stayed behind for work, school and to take the ACT and for some long boarding as well. He joined some buddies in an indoor soccer league. They haven't won many (any??) games but it is sure fun to watch them. They are playing in a u30 division and they seemed to get smoked everytime. But they enjoy playing and we enjoy watching.





Madi and Stevie finished out a great soccer season. They are both great little soccer players. They have decided to try out for a competition league. Heaven help mom if they both make it.


Steve did his county report on Utah county (Go Cougars!) and Madi did a country report on Lithuania. Madi also was stage crew extrodinare for the 6th grade Shakespeare play As You like it. Stage crew must run in the family. She did a great job.





Now we can't forget all of Eli's accomplishments over the last few months. He is sitting up "unassisted" now. He can roll over, both ways. But he definately does not like to be on his tummy. He is quite mobile now reaching and scooting and moving all over the place. If you put him down in a location, it is quite possible and quite likely that he will end up in a different location several feet away. He is amazing!! He loves his baby food and his toys. He is the smiliest baby around. And one look from that toothy grin will just melt your heart. At his six month check up he weighed in at 17 pound 10 ounces and 25 1/2 long. His head is at the 66% percentile, 14 percent for height and 49 percenticle for weight. He has great small motor skills. He picked up the toungue depressor and promptly put it in his mouth (He is a brilliant child-- I have never even taught him what a toungue depressor is used for for :)










As soon as we returned from St. George, I started tending two more cute kids-- bringing the total up to 2 kindergarteners and 2 three year olds and of course Little Eli-- so right there we know why the blog hasn't been updated until now. They are all good kids but just for the record 5 car seats in one mini van is really tight-- and it takes a good 10 minutes to load and unload anytime we go anywhere.







In mid April we made the decision to rent our house and move over to Hartvigsen's. As soon as we made the decision we had a tremendous peace come over us and things started falling into place and we knew it was the right decision.







So in addtion to our already crazy busy life, we have added a remodel project at Hartvigsen's and have begun packing up at our house. It is a huge and often overwhelming task, but in the end it will be worth the effort. My new mantra is SIMPLIFY (this is definately a forced simplification) and LESS IS MORE!. Less stuff is more time to relax, more money to save, more space to live in. We simply don't need all of the things that clutter up our lives.







We had a HUGE yard sale on May 14 and 15. There were 5 families plus Simple Sayings stuff. It took up everying bit of space from our yard over to Hartvigsen's driveway. It was really quite a site to see.

It was so much work to get ready and work the yard sale. We could have never done it without the help our The Garcia's, Emily Holbrook and Grandpa and Grandma Ferguson. It was very successful but the most exciting thing, was how much stuff we got rid of . We lightened our load, litterally! We were all exhausted when the weekend was over. It was the first, and quite possibly the last yard sale I have ever had, but it felt good when it was all over.

In addition to the over haul of our living arrangements, Shawn and I have begun our "healthy lifestyle" overhaul. It was definately time for a change in our lives. In just 8 weeks Shawn has lost a stunning 38 pounds. He has been so committed to exercising as much as possible and watching what he eats. He looks fantastic and has just 12 more pounds to reach his goal. Way to go Shawn. You are amazing. I am slowly plugging along. I am down 14 pounds and want to lose about 14 pounds more. It is definately taking me longer because I can't cut the food intake too dramatically or little Eli might not get the good "cream" that really adds to his cute cheeks. It feels good and we are both on our way!!!

Shawn's job situation has been very tenuous since Flying J entered bankruptcy about a year and half a go. We have been very concerned about whether or not he would have a postion when the merger with Pilot happens. Again we were blessed just when we needed it. We feel fairly confident that there will be a postion in the organization after the merger.

But, Shawn had some sad news at work this past month. His boss Delwin had been struggling with memory loss and not feeling well for several weeks. He finally went in for an MRI and was diagnosed with a brain tumor. He has had surgery and starting chemotheraphy. He is home recovering now for an indefinate period of time. Our thought and prayers are with Delwin and his family.

Well the bottom line for April and May for the Ferguson family is that we are abundantly blessed. We have great extended family who are opening up their home to us, we have our health (and getting healthier every week. ) Brooke was blessed with another scholarship and we all have good jobs in a tough economy. We are humbled and grateful that a loving Heavenly Father sees our needs and pours out the blessings.

March Madness

21 years ago this month Shawn and I went on our first date. At the time, I didn't know what a SPORTS NUT I was falling in love with. That was the first time I had ever even heard of March Madness. It seemed like every day that month there were basketball games on--- and every single one was important. What's up with that? But over the years two things have never changed.

Shawn is still a sports nut and I am still falling in love with him--more every day.

March is always a crazy month for us. This year (well actually every year-- we haven't figured out how to skip them) we both celebrated our birthdays, soccer practices and games started, Shawn was elected as a county delegate so there have been lots of politics lately and of course March Madness-- which means... you guessed it... lots of (very important) basketball games

In addition to all of the above CRAZINESS we had a few highlights too!

Madi and Abbey graduated from the D.A.R.E. (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) program. They really had a lot of fun learning great life skills in this program. Abbey's essay won for her class and she did a great job reading it in the graduation program.

Brian Kariya ,the BYU football star, spoke at the graduation. He gave the kids great advice to choose good friends and set goals.

Officer Wilco taught the DARE program. The kids loved him. He was a super star to them.

The last Saturday of March we had a family fun day with the Hartvigsen's. The first stop was to Red Robin for delicious Burgers and salads.

For most of us, this was Our first trip to Cabella's. It was very exciting. We had to snap a picture of the WILD ANIMALS at the African Savannah display. Watch out for the little one in the middle. He has 2 sharp teeth!

We also made a stop at the Living Planet Aquarium in Sandy. We always love to feel the velvety smooth Sting Rays. They also just opened up a new Penguin exhibit. They were pretty fun to watch waddle,dive and jump around. Although, Eli wasn't too impressed. One penguin jumped into the water and startled him so much he started to cry.

But definitely the most wonderful thing that we were able to be a part of this month was the sealing of little David Bruce Funk to his parents Phil and Jenny on March 5th. It was awesome to witness that sacred ordinance at the Salt Lake Temple. Because of Phil's employment at the church, he works closely with the Quorum of the 12 Apostles, so he was able to ask Elder Holland to perform the sealing.

Elder Holland recognized Ike and Gloria (they have been friends forever, since Gloria and Pat Holland were roommates in college. ) He said, "Ike, I didn't know you had a brother." Shawn and Ike look more alike all the time! He reminded us all of the symbolism of the temple and the importance of the sealing ordinance. It was a sacred, special event and so wonderful to see our good friends and their little family all dressed in white. Thanks, Funks for letting us be a part of your JOY!

Club ELI

I am wondering if we should rename our Blog to Club Eli, since most of the focus seems to be on him lately, but how could it not be? He is so much fun!!! We don't want the other kids to get a complex and think that just because ELI has been dubbed the "THE GOLDEN BOY" and that we take 100 or 200 photos of Eli to every 1 we take of them... that we perchance love him more. Because every parent knows that is not the case .... But quite frankily we are really enjoying "The Golden Boy" A LOT! We tell them... they all had their day in the sun, and now it's Eli's turn... the difference is Eli has 6 (well really if you count all the aunts, uncles, cousins, grandmas and grandpas and friends who have been baby deprived for a LONG time-- there is a lot more than 6) extra people to ohhh and ahhh over every smile, every newly learned skill and yes this week... every new TOOTH!!! So if it seems like Club Ferguson has turned to Club Eli... forgive the mommy who is having so much fun with another little Fergie Baby to love.

This weeks milestones:

Figuring out the bouncer... he has mad bouncing skills now.

Learning the life lesson that "Real Food" is Really GOOD--- especiallyBrooke's chocolate and strawberry slushies.

Eli is definately a Ferguson baby, one of their trademarks is to get their teeth early and Eli is no exception! Two bottom teeth popping through at 4 months old!

Just Because...

Just because Eli is so dang cute... we had to post a few more pics of the little guy.

We had to snap a picture of Eli in his cute NY onsie

that Sister Heather Burton sent him from her New

York Mission.

Mmm, mmm good

Eli had his first "legal" taste of real food last night (Brooke has been sneaking him tastes for quite a while.) At first he was just so hungry, he didn't know what to think of the new white, mushy stuff. But then he really thought it was great and couldn't wait for the next bite. YUM! The golden boy took to the white stuff like a champ. Good Job Eli.

Here's to Getting Older!!

40 plus 3 equals 43. March is a big birthday month at our house. Guess who is 40 and guess who is 3 years older. We always have a good time celebrating for a whole week. Dad's birthday was golf themed --getting a new driver and golf pass as well as his favorite treats. Dad also got our first Club Ferguson Blog Book. It is great to look back and see the highlights of the past year. For mom's birthday she got new dishes from Grandpa and Grandma, clothes, cell phone and LOTS of candy.The big surprise of the day was a gift from the heart from Boyd and Julie. Julie explained that 40 is a big birthday, another milestone in life, a time to reach back to your roots but also reach forward. They gave me Julie's beautiful Mandolin. I was stunned. A mandolin is very similar to to the violin, the same strings-- but 2 of each string. So I will reach way, way back into my past about 26 years to when I played the violin. But instead of a bow, you pick and strum like a guitar It has a beautiful sound (well not from me yet... I have a long way to go.) So now I have a new hobby, a new goal--learn the mandolin. I guess it is pretty sweet, after all, to get old!

Sniffle, Cough, Cough, AHHH CHOO!!

Despite all of our efforts and Mom's total compulsion of wash, sanitize, wash, Lysol and sanitize again our family lost the battle to the winter germs and illness had an almost complete invasion of our home. Only Brooke has managed to avoid the germy gunk. Just days after mom started her in home daycare, she and Eli caught a cold. We were so worried about little Eli being sick but a trip to Dr. Evan put our minds at ease that at least we weren dealing with the dreaded RSV but just an bad chest cold instead. Poor little guy was so miserable yet he was so sweet and in good spirits. Dad got his semi-anual sinus infection and TJ, Madi and Stevie all followed with the same cold and a variety of other symptoms... strep, ear infections, throwing up, runny nose... well you get the picture. It is not good. We weren't alone in our misery. Hartvigsens and Funks had their own versions of the junk. We can't wait for spring. Bring on the SUN!

And baby makes 7!!!!

7

must be our lucky number. Stevie said a long time ago it was his favorite number and now we know why. It takes 7 different, unique individuals to make our own wonderful family. Baby Eli fills in the gap that for a long, long time we didn't even know was missing from our family circle. So to celebrate his completing role in our famly, we had a PARTY in his honor. He was given a name and sweet blessing by his dad. Eli, it was was no easy task to come up with a name for you. This time around we had a really difficult time coming up with a name. Before, it was much easier for Daddy and I to agree on a name but now there are 4 other people with definate opinions on names. When we found out that you were a boy-- the kids immediately nick named you "Sven." We wanted a good strong Scandinavian name to honor our Sweedish and Norwegian heritage. From the very beginning we knew your middle name would be Jennings after your great-grandpa Elmer Jennings Hartvigsen. We definately wanted a family name but it was tough to find one that would work in 21st century. Horace, Elmer, Adolf, Junior, Ebenezer were just not going to work. Dad lobbied hard for Ebenezer and call you "Ben" but Eli, I had your back. No Way! Dad started pushing hard for "Driver" (after the Packer player Donald Driver and of course he does love his golf.) Nope! Then what about "Packer" after Elder Packer he said. Like anyone would believe that! Sorry Dad! So for months we went the rounds trying to all agree upon a name. At one point mom thought we had all agreed upon "Bennett," but then everyone backed off that name too. Mom was starting to panic, we need a name for this baby! Since the middle name was already decided to be Jennings, we thought it would be fun to come up with a non Elmer "E" name, so you could be called EJ after your grandpa Hartvigsen. Mom liked Erik-- a strong scandinavian name. But Dad thought that was just too ordinary. Then Brooke suggested Eli. Hmmm.......???? everyone paused. Yes, what about Eli? All of a sudden it just seemed to work. And with that our baby "Sven" became Baby Eli. One of our sweet Sunbeams was little Eli Nokes, we loved him and we loved the name. We asked grandpa Jay where the Jennings came from in his Dad's name. He seemed to think that his Grandma and Grandpa chose it after the poet and politician William Jennings Bryan. And so we all could finally agree on Eli Jennings Ferguson- EJ for short.

On the first Sunday of the new decade --January 3 2010 baby Sven officially became Eli Jennings Ferguson. Lots of people who loved you Eli came to help us celebrate. Here is a list of who came:Dad, Mom, Brooke, TJ, Madi, Stevie, Grandma Great (Helen) Ferguson, Grandpa Jay, Grandma Liz, Grandpa Ike, Grandma Gloria, Great Uncle Glenn and Aunt Marilyn Goodrich, Great Uncle Bill and Aunt Carol Burton, Joe, Sandi, Molly and Morgan Hartvigsen, Boyd, Julie, Karl, Ashley, Katie, John and Tricia Webb, Greg, Jill, Alex, Tyler, Janice and Abbey Hartvigsen. Our good friends the Funks Bishop Phil, Jenny, Kaleb, Hannah, Hailey and David and the Edelmans Rocky, Shannon, Rachel, Raegan, Rocky III and Russell were also there too.

Alex made the trip up from Cedar City to be here with Eli on his special day.




Bishop Funk holding the little guy!

"Ferguson to Edelman" Future BYU football stars. Daddy and Rocky Edelman are already planning the atheletic future of these two buddies.

Grandma Great held and patted Eli's back all afternoon saying " shh, shh, shh." She called the next day to see how Eli's "little cold in his eye" was doing.

Grandma Gloria wrote down some of the blessing that dad gave you.

The Blessing of Eli Jennings Ferguson, by his father Shawn Isaac Ferguson, January 3, 2010

Our Father in Heaven, in the name of thy Son Jesus Christ, and by the power of the holy Melcheizdek Priesthood, we take this infant in our arms to give him a name and a blessing. The name we have chosen, by which he will be know upon the records of the church during his mortal life is Eli Jennings Ferguson.

Eli, at this time we would like to give you a blessing. We bless you with a strong body. And that your mind will quickly obtain a testimony of this beautiful gospel.

We bless you to become an important family member and to enjoy your life.
We bless you that your body will be strong and we bless you search the scriptures.

Pray and listen to your mom and day who love you dearly. Many people love you. They are excited you are here. We bless you to build strong friendships with these people.

We bless you that one day you will go on a mission and gain a stronger testimony.
When the time comes, we bless you to find a beautiful woman and be sealed together.

Eli, we are so grateful you are here. we bless you with health and strength.

We give you this blessing in the name of Jesus Christ, Amen.

Of course in following with mormon tradition, we gathered for a delicious luncheon afterward. There was a delicious deli platter and chicken salad to go with the yummy croissants with a varity of salads and deserts completing the menu.

We all had a great time visiting and loving our new " Lucky Number 7"

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

It is interesting how that simple and common holiday greeting has almost gone extinct in our Politically Correct (Morally Incorrect) world. It is so sad that we can't wish others a Merry Christmas for fear of offending their religious feelings. What a sad commentary on the status of our country that the very focus of CHRISTmas has been removed. This Christmas season, I tried more than ever before to wish every store clerk, every stranger and every friend that I came in contact with, a "Merry Christmas." I would never be offended if I were wished "Happy Kwanza" or "Happy Chanukah" so it is silly that others are offended at the simple wish of Merry Christmas.

How grateful I am for Jesus Christ, that we can celebrate His Birth, His Life, and His Atonement. We are so blessed to have the knowledge of the Savior on our life. I hope we will never be ashamed to proclaim that we are BELIEVERS and FOLLOWERS of JESUS CHRIST.

Our family had a wonder Christmas season this year. It started nicely at the ward Pancake Breakfast. There were lots of special guests this year and everyone had a great time. The Cat in the Hat served green eggs and ham. Woody and a cow served chocolate milk. Buddy the Elf served pancakes with syrup and candy canes and candy corn. The Grinch and Cindy Loo were there along with Frosty and Santa of course.

The Hartvigsen Christmas party was tons of fun too. We ate delicious soups, rolls and desserts. Then we played our annual gift swap game-- but this time instead of socks, gloves, bracelets, ties and books like we have done in the past, we traded $5 gift cards. It was a riot! The most highly prized gift cards were the Burger King cards with 4 teenage boys that was a hot card. The funniest card was when Tyler got the Victoria Secret gift card-- boy was he sweating it , until Anna came to his rescue and snatched it from him. Jill got a Justice gift card that Abbey was eyeing. Madi being in the Christmas Spirit, didn't take it from Abbey. Brooke and Katie and Alex were all coveting the Barnes and Noble gift card-- but Brooke prevailed and got that one (which was fortunate because she got another one on Christmas that she could combine it with.)
The Home Depot was another hot card, Julie's friend from college, Judy, who joined our party ended up with that one. Grandpa Ike, Grandma Gloria and little Eli will be eating at Subway together and Daddy and Madi will be shopping at Walmart and Target. Stevie is going to treat us all to dinner one night with his Little Caesar card. I stole the Wingers card from Uncle Joe (I am still craving those Sticky Fingers-- that craving didn't end with the pregnancy.) It was a lot of fun-- so much fun, we decided to do gift cards again next year-- that will give a whole year to come up with some really creative ones.

Christmas Eve is always a special night of tradition. This year Grandma and Grandpa Ferguson joined us for a delicious dinner of Sticky Fingers (guess who planned the menu.) The kids implemented a new tradition last year that they were excited to continue, open their gifts to each other.

Brooke had TJ-- she gave him another prized Burger King Gift Card
TJ had Stevie-- he gave him a hacky sack
Madi had Eli-- she gave a bottle of baby bath and a tub toy
Stevie had Madi- he gave her two cute flowers for her hair.

Eli had Brooke-- He gave her a leopard print snuggie.

Then of course there was the Christmas Eve PJ tradition. Only this year... mom didn't do so well with the PJ's. Brooke, Madi and Stevie's were all too small (maybe I am subconsciously hoping they are not growing up) TJ's Call of Duty Boxers fit him well though. And I just re-gifted a pair of Eli's own jammies back to him--he has so many he will never wear them all as it is.

After gifts we watched our yearly Christmas Eve movies -- The Greatest Christmas Pageant Ever in honor of Aunt Sharmayn and Mr. Kruger's Christmas in honor of Grandma Janice.

All the kids had a sleep over-- lock in-- in Brooke's room with complete instructions not to leave until we came and got them on Christmas morning.

Mom and Dad were able to get to bed at a reasonable hour on Christmas Eve -- thanks to Mom spending all morning the day before wrapping. I wasn't too happy with Shawn for ditching me on our scheduled wrapping night so that he could watch a basketball game. He was in hot water until Christmas night when I made him move and remount the new TV to a lower position. At that point, I was in hot water and so it was all equal and a Merry Christmas was had by all.

This Christmas we promised the kids that there would only be a few gifts for each of them under the tree since our upcoming Disney Trip was our big gift. Mom and dad had 3 gifts for each child and Santa came through of course.

Because TJ isn't coming to Disney with us, his big gift was a 32gb Apple I pod and the others got a Disney Gift Card.
Brooke got a Barnes and Noble gift card and some camera accessories from Santa
TJ got an X box gift card and some I tunes cards. Santa gave him a skull candy case for his i pod.
Madi was spoiled with a new Nancy Drew game and a Visa gift card for some clothes shopping. Santa brought her a speaker docking station for her Zune
Stevie got a Wii game and a Visa gift card as well. Santa spoiled him with a totally cool nerf dart machine gun with an extra clip and extra darts
Eli got a travel bed and new stroller in preparation for his first vacation. Santa brought him a Little People Farm
Dad got a new razor and a super hero EFX bracelet and some m&m's and some super cool York Peppermint Patty ear buds. He also got a photo calendar and a little picture book from Eli.
Mom got an awesome digital Christmas ornament with pictures of the kids on it and a gift card for some new clothes.

Stevie gave us a picture frame he made in scouts and a fabulous calendar that he made at school.
Grandma and Grandpa gave the kids a coupon for a treasure at Disney and some treats. TJ got an extra clip for his nerf gun and some money toward his AFY this summer. For mom and dad they had our carpets cleaned. A wonderful treat! They also gave us a cute little clock for the family room. They spoiled us as always.

Grandpa Jay sent a check for the kids that we will put toward their Disney and AFY trips. Of course he gave us the traditional yearly proof coin set too.

Sweet Great Grandma Bateman gave all of her Great Grandchildren a $2-- another fun tradition. She sent Shawn and I a $10 bill. That is a very generous gift with so many grandchildren and great grandchildren. Mom and Dad gave the family a new flat panel TV to go over the fireplace in the family room and Santa gave the kids Beetles Rock Band.

Our RitterB cousins gave us a cool new clue Spy game that even sends text clues to our cell phone and a baby Einstein’s DVD to make Eli the smartest baby ever.

Grandpa Ike's custom made omelets and sweet rolls made Christmas Morning perfect. The best part of the whole holiday was spending it with eachother.

Brooke even enjoyed the holiday despite the chipmonk cheeks from the wisdom teeth surgery on the Dec 22nd.

While all of those gifts were fun and exciting, they don't compare to the wonderful gift of Eternal Life from our Savior-- the reason we say "Merry Christmas."