Swan Family Party

On Christmas Day, I packed up my belongings and a bunch of Christmas presents and took off for the Magic Valley. What normally should be a measly 2.5 hour drive immediately turned into a 5 hour drive because of the crazy snow storm we got that day. I-84 was closed so I had to take the 15 to Pocatello and then cut over through American Falls, Raft River and then on to Jerome. It took me 2 hours to drive the first 71 miles. It was awful. The wind was terrible and the snow was coming down so hard that you couldn't see anything in front of you.

This was my view near Tremonton and that was when the going was still easy and it was daylight!
Colton kept calling me every half hour to check on me and so did my parents--mainly to beg me to turn around. But I kept trudging along and finally made it to the Swan house around 10:15pm Christmas night. After helping Marti wrap some gifts, we went to bed while we waited for everyone else to get in the next day. Heather and Jason took the scenic route--through Malta and the only thing they actually saw was some guy's tractor barricading the road. Even Jason--with his superhero driving skills--thought it was against his better judgement to go around and they ended up turning around and taking a different route. They left about 3 hours before the Collins' Clan, but E'lise and Co. managed to beat them.

Once everyone got there, we had a great dinner and then settled downstairs to open presents. I've never seen so many presents in my life in one room. I think that Libby thought we were all crazy, but we stayed in that room until everything was opened--sometime around 11:30pm.


The Swans open gifts in order from youngest to oldest, so it took FORever for my turn to come. But it was well worth it. I got spoiled this year. Vinnie aka DD got me a crock pot and some socks, Marti and John got me a digital picture frame, heart craft, and popcorn. Colton got me a wallet, a Foodsaver, and a Garmin Nuvi 760 (with bluetooth). He definitely hooked me up this year! We made a scavenger hunt for Vinnie and his new shotgun that Chollo Clause brought him.

I got Colton a sawbuck, some pants, some boots, and some shoes (originally for his birthday). His parents got him some panyards to go with the saddle and a new jumpdrive.

We spent the next few days hanging out, feeding cows, watching Biff try to maneuver the front loader with a cornstalk bale on board, eating, eating, and eating. Thanks Curt!

Buckaroo Biff at his finest:

Colton and John doing what they do best:

Biff in his element with the girls:

My baby with the baby:
Vinnie rigged up a bedliner and turned it into a sleigh that he pulled us behind on the 4 wheeler. And it was a blast!

This was definitely a memorable Christmas.

Christmas Eve

This year I decided to spend Christmas Eve with my family. This year was supposed to be my parents' turn to have Christmas Eve at their house, but because Brandon is working in Seattle and Kelsey is living with my parents, the Muir family opted to spend Christmas in Rexburg to make things easier. So my parents and Jake decided to come down to Farr West and spend Christmas and Tyra and Brock's house. Since Colton and I aren't married yet, I thought it would be best to take advantage of the chance to spend the night with my family too.

Everyone rolled into town around 4pm and after a last minute run to Lee's Marketplace, I arrived at Tyra's house to find French dip sandwiches, green salad, lime jello salad, Peppermint Trifle (yum yum yum), and lots of pistachios, m&m's, and pumpkin bread. After binging on all the delicious food, we bundled everyone up and took off around the neighborhood to carol to the neighbors while Karlee rang each doorbell and delivered some pumpkin bread to them and play dough to her "friends". The carolling was fun although it wasn't exactly what Brock had been hoping for. He had been planning this particular event all month long and was really disappointed when my dad decided not to bring down the trailer that Brock had been planning on lighting up and having us all sit on as we drove around singing. Brock even bought a special Santa Clause hat with a Philadelphia Eagles emblem embroidered on it. Not to mention the hours and hours that Brock, Ty, and myself spent rehearsing the previous night on the XBOX--we didn't go to bed until 2am because we spent all night watching Tyra make the mousse for the trifle while we took turns singing to songs on their Karaoke game. Brock was so insistent and exciting for this carolling expedition that Tyra bought him a Music Maker harp with a bunch of music to take with us. Too bad the music that came with it didn't fit the harp!!

After we got back from our singing gala, we read Luke 2 to the kids and acted out the story for them with their Little People nativity set. Grandma read the Night Before Christmas to the kids and we even saw an elf outside the kitchen window, which actually ended up terrifying both Karlee and Kade! Then we sang some songs around the piano and put the kiddies to bed. After making sure that the presents we'd brought for each other were wrapped and put in the right spot, everyone all went to bed while Jake and I watched The Christmas Story.

Karlee and Kade finally (I say finally because a 6am start on Christmas morning when I was little was actually a very late start!) woke up around 8am and then the chaos began. The kids were more interested in the fruit snacks that Santa left in their stockings than they were in any presents! But the houses that Tyra painted for the kids were a huge hit and so was the cell phone that I gave to Kade.

We had a yummy breakfast and then tried to get things organized and loaded up so that we could all go home. It was storming again and it was snowing and blowing hard, so everyone was anxious about the roads. And my age is really starting to show because I've found that I get worried about shoveling my driveway before the snow gets packed down or it gets icy. Ridiculous. I never thought I'd turn into one of those people. Needless to say, the Williamsons did a fabulous job of hosting on Christmas Eve 2008. And as we all drove out of site, Brock was busy building a 14 foot snowman!! Wonder what next year will be like???

Polar Express

This year for Christmas, my parents decided it would be a blast if we could get everyone together for a weekend and take the kids on the Polar Express (aka the Heeber Creeper). They bought the tickets for everyone to go and arranged for us to stay at Temple Square at Bishop Beckstead's apartment afterward.

It was rough getting up there because we got snow dumped on us all morning long. The original plan was to be up in Heber at a local burger joint by 3pm--there is an electric chain at this restaurant that travels around the ceiling and we figured it would help get the kids in the mood. In addition to that, my mom bought all the kids pajamas, beanies, and mittens to wear on the train. But the snow made the trip slow and I had to wait for Colton to finish up with the recruits that they had in town. We made it to Heber at 4:15pm (thanks to a grey Dodge and 4 wheel drive), just in time to shove down a burger, fries, and a shake & then we boarded the train.Once we were aboard, we spent the first 40 minutes of the ride rearranging kids on our laps, dropping straws on the floor, spilling hot chocolate on our pants, listening to Kaden cry and Karlee talk about Crocodile Lake.But it was all worth it when those kids saw Santa standing outside at the North Pole. They passed out Polar Express books and everyone followed along as they read it out loud.Santa got on board the train on the way back and passed out a bell to everyone and Mrs. Clause got on long enough to make Kade scream. Kennedy entertained us with her singing and jokes (brown chicken, brown cow) while Kelsey sat wondering where her child got her antics from. Mason spent his time on Colton's and Jake's lap. Brock dedicated the first two verses of The Grinch to Bishop Leonard, resigning to the fact that he should not continue the song, and Grandpa Jeff & Grandma Jenni took hundreds of photos. After the train ride was over, Jake took off to Provo to pick up his lady friend while the rest of us made the trek through Parley's down into Salt Lake. We had planned on hitting the lights at Temple Square, but the kids were all tired and would rather stay at the apartment and take turns riding Red Rose (an electric horse that Kennedy proudly named). Colton & I took Brock and Tyra with us to pick up some pizza and spin cookies on the crowded and snowy SLC streets. We all were pretty tired, so we went to bed and my dad took us to breakfast at JB's the next morning. The kids were fascinated by the buffet and Karlee proudly announced that she had gone both pee pee and poo poo to us and the other JB's patrons when she exited the bathroom proudly.

It was such a fun weekend. I love spending time with my family--especially when everyone is there. Brandon was in Seattle working and we sure missed him, but I love being around my parents, sisters, brother-in-laws, brother, and nieces & nephews. I love you guys! What a fun way to kick off the Christmas season...

adric's blessing

Yesterday was Adric's baby blessing, so after I taught my last Sunday School lesson of 2008, Colton and I rushed out to Farr West so we could go to Ty and Brock's ward. Brock did such a good job and blessed him with the confidence that he will be able to accomplish great things and over come some very small imperfections.

Afterward, we ate honey baked ham, homemade rolls, salad, and watched the NFR--which is a recipe for this:

showdown in missoula

Like I mentioned earlier, I lucked out and got a chance to travel with Colton and the rest of the team on Friday to Montana for the WSU-UM football game on Saturday. We left Friday morning for the airport at 8:15 and our flight took off around 11. When we landed in Missoula, it was COLD! But we boarded the bus and took off for the hotel so that the boys could get ready for practice.

While the guys were all standing outside in the freezing temperatures at practice, the girls all boarded up on the hotel shuttle and took off for the mall. Sheena, Shauna, Beth, Lindsay, and I went to the Mustard Seed for lunch and then off we went to scour the stores for some warm gloves, hand warmers, jeans, and boots. Kelly and Suzie also went with us and when we got back to the hotel, we spent the rest of the evening relaxing.

Colton was busy in meetings all night and I didn't want to mess up his pre-game routine, so I left him to do his own thing and I settled in for the night and started watching the 2nd round of the NFR til I fell asleep. Until midnight when the fire alarm rang! It never fails...every time we play in Montana, some weird stuff like that happens. In the past, we've had people knocking on our hotel room doors, 4am phone calls, and stuff like that. Hmmm...coincidence? I think not.

Saturday morning was a rush. I went to breakfast with John and Marti at Finnigan's and then we packed up all of our warm gear and hiked over to the stadium. The Montana fans were all decked out in their maroon and they were everywhere--you couldn't see a single person who wasn't decked out in Grizzlies gear. The stadium there is incredible. It it loud and it feels like the fans are virtually on top of the players and the field. We settled into our seats and the game got started. We looked pretty shaky in the first half and it seemed like we were a little nervous. But we played hard and had opportunities, but just couldn't finish. The final score was 24-13.

After that, several of the kids had to undergo random drug testing, and because they were so hydrated from the game, it took FOREVER for them to be able to finish the tests. We had to wait on the airplane on the tarmac for them. Colton's parents even ended up staying the night because they gave some of the trainers a ride to the airport, so it threw off their plans to travel back to Jerome that night.

Once we landed in SLC, our bus wasn't there so we had to wait for it. When we finally got in our bus, it got hit by one of those sliding security gates and scraped along the side of the bus for about 10 feet. We had to wait while the airport security came and took pictures and exchanged info with our driver. Then when we hit South Weber, there was an accident that had caused the road up the hill to close down so we had to get back on the freeway and go all the way around to Riverdale and then back up to the Dee Event Center. Then we had to wait about 20 minutes at the stadium for our bags to arrive.

It wasn't a good day for the Wildcats.

But it was a fun trip and a historical year for WSU Football--one that will be remembered for years to come.

girls' night out

To celebrate my mom's birthday this year, the girls in my family got together last night and we went to Logan to Pickleville Playhouse's production of "Santa Claus's Party". We had dinner catered by the Coppermill at the Eccles Conference Center on Utah State's campus and then we went down into the auditorium for the production.

The show was great and it's always a great time when I get to hang out with my sisters, mom, and grandma. We laughed our heads off at the creepy elf, my crying, and the whistling boys as we walked across the Quad on our way back to the cars. We definitely need to do this more often!

being single still has its perks

I've been trying to decide all week long how I'm going to get to Montana this weekend for the quarterfinal FCS game in Missoula. I thought I'd drive up to Jerome on Friday afternoon and hop in with Marti and John. Our plan was to drive to Salmon Friday night and then finish the trip to Missoula Saturday morning. After the game, we'd drive all the way back to Jerome and then I could make it back early Sunday morning for Adric's blessing.

Well that would've worked fine, but I knew it meant lots of hours in a car. And I've sort of grown accustomed to flying everywhere. In other words, I'm spoiled.

So Colton came home tonight claiming that he had some exciting news. He finally told me that the coach's wives were all going to be able to fly on the chartered flight for free. I didn't get how that was exciting news for me since I'm not a wife. But then he informed me that I am the ONLY girlfriend that gets to go...Yee haw! What a great surprise.

So I guess you don't have to be married to catch all the breaks...

happy birthday mom

Happy Birthday Mom! 52 isn't that bad...

• She has always placed her family ahead of herself.
• She works out at least 5 days a week and eats well too.
• She is a hard worker--Del Monte, Hobb's mink farm, etc.
• She is a great example of living the gospel and having a strong testimony.
• She is always there for me and is protective of my feelings.
• She loves me unconditionally.

You're the best mom!

a weekend to remember

Man oh man. What a weekend. We flew out on Thursday morning headed to Portland State for the Big Sky Tournament. When we arrived, we drove straight to Elmer's for brunch and then to get checked in at the Red Lion. After a short practice, everyone showered and got dressed for our team Thanksgiving dinner at the Black Angus. It's funny how shocked I am every time I see our girls dressed up--we really do have the best looking team around. They all looked so cute...I guess it's just surprising because I only see them in sweats, spandex, and t-shirts.

Our dinner was ok--but it was nothing like the Swan's...

But, I enjoyed every second with Jesse, Steph, and Brynlee at my table and I also loved every sip of those Shirley Temple's.

Portland State put together a banquet at one of the host hotels and when we arrived, they had each of our girls sit at different tables with players from the other teams so that they could play a few games and get to know each other. (Eastern cheated of course.) And they hooked the coaches up with a HUGE gift basket. They had also prepared a highlight film and a slideshow announcing the All Conference Teams. Congrats to Leah (Honorable Mention), Chelsea (2nd Team), and Brittney (1st Team) for earning those awards.

The next morning we got up bright and early for our match with Montana. It was such an intense game and I thought things were going to go well for us as we scored the first 3 points, but Montana battled back and from then on it was anyone's game. The match was long and ended up going to 5 games. It wasn't looking good for us because we were down 8-3 at the turn, but little did we know that it was far from over. We came back and ended up beating them 15-12! It was such an emotional game and we felt like we had a great chance against Eastern in the semi-final.

After a quick lunch and shower, we resumed our post on the visitor's bench and began our match against the #2 Eagles. We ended up losing in 3 and we were all very disappointed. Eastern outplayed us for sure, but that is a lot easier to do when you sat on your butt all morning while the other team was playing a tight 5 game match. The coaches are going to revisit the format of the tournament for next year when they have their conference call. It just puts the lower seeded teams at such a disadvantage to have to play back to back in the same day, so a 3 day tournament would be better. Anyway, Portland beat Northern Colorado in the finals and ended up winning the whole thing in 4.

After the match, we got our flight changed and I decided to see what my chances were of getting a flight to San Luis Obispo instead of Salt Lake to watch our football playoff game. I found one that connected through San Francisco, so I checked with Colton to see if someone could pick me up at the airport there and we bought the ticket. (He actually paid for it and said I only needed to pay him for half of it. What a sweet boy.) I figured I could drive back to Utah with his parents, so we bought a one way ticket.

I had Nancy take me to the airport bright and early on Saturday morning so I could catch my 7:30 flight. Too bad we didn't end up taking off til 9:45! San Francisco was too foggy to allow flights to come in or go out, so they issued a ground stop and I had to sit on the runway for two hours. It was ridiculous. When we finally landed in San Francisco, I was afraid I'd missed my connection so I took off running through the airport and barely made it to board the the puddle jumper into San Luis Obispo. Fortunately, that flight had been delayed by 45 min so I actually made it!

John Swan and Monty Hadley picked me up at the airport (at 2pm after I should've landed at 11:30am) and we went to the mall to hook up with their wives. We went to Pismo Beach and had lunch in a little restaurant right on the pier. The weather was gorgeous and it was funny to think that I'd been in the rain earlier that morning.

We stopped at a grocery store to pick up some snacks so that we could tailgate in the handicapped parking lot (thanks to Monty's permit) with the Carpenter's. When we got to the campus, all we could see was a sea of green. Their whole town must've been there to tailgate next to the stadium. They had their band out playing the whole time and even a corner where all the little kids played games while their parents drank beer and ate ribs. It was quite the site. And we really stuck out in our purple!

Once the game started, it was non-stop excitement. Cal Poly led the nation in offense going into this game and we had to completely change our defense in order to stop them. This put a lot of pressure on Colton because it meant that there would be three safeties in the game. He was nervous all week long but it sure payed off! His guys played unbelievably well and ended up with 3 picks and one of the DB's had one as well. The game was back and forth the whole first half and normally, I'm not a yeller. But I couldn't help it at this game. It was honestly the most exciting game I've seen since good old PHS won the state championship my junior year in high school! We led at half 28-21 and ended up beating them 49-35. Tim Toone is the man. He had some BIG catches when we needed them most and Josh Morris shut their big reciever (Ramses Barden) down.

It was so much fun! Somehow, Colton managed to hook me up so that I could fly back for free on the team's chartered flight, so no 13 hour drive! So after the game--and lots of pictures (which I will post when I can get my hands on Marti's camera)--we boarded the bus back to the Santa Maria airport. They herded us through a hanger where there were five people with metal detector wands who took turns patting us down. Trust me, there is nothing like getting felt up because your underwire bra beeped in front of an entire football team! Luckily for me, Vicky McBride had to endure the same agony and embarrassment. We took off around 1:30am and didn't get back to Ogden til 4am. Despite the team's jokes about the Swan family section (because Biff sat on our row) or the lovebird section (because Etuati and his girlfriend were sitting behind us) on the airplane, it was fun. Traveling with a bunch of boys is WAY different than it is with our girls...Now we're heading to Missoula to face the Grizzlies for the 2nd time this season in the 2nd round of the FCS playoffs. We beat them earlier this year, so I'm excited to see if we can keep our streak alive!

It was such a great weekend overall. I'm so proud of our girls this season. 21 wins is the best season we've had since 1988 when they won it all. We overcame some difficult obstacles and managed to do it with the smallest team ever. I will really miss our 2 seniors. I feel like they've been here as long as I have and it has been so much fun to see them grow as players and people. I can't imagine the locker room without them...