Random Photo #2

There's really nothing spectacular in our storage shed but Griffin wanted to get in there so I pretended there were top secret items being hidden.

He was convinced he'd be able to crack the code

(only while in his superhero underwear of course).

--And, yes, by the way....

My efforts to tan to the exact shade of our house seems to have been a success.

Random Photo #1

My sister, Jillian (who will be having baby #1 in a few days -- insert squeal of excitement), called me out on not following through with my "Daily (probably weekly) Photo" idea.

Just random photos that don't necessarily deserve their own post, but ones that I like and have nowhere else to put.

Thanks Sis -- I needed that push.

(A beautiful spider web on our pool fence)

Terrific!

"T, double-E double-R, double-R, double-I, double-F, double-I, double-C-C-C"

--spelling by Goose on Charlotte's Web

WONDER WOMAN

So those of you who know my wife,

know she has turned into a marvelous ,impressive, fantastic, amazing, incredible, (the list can go on and on and on)

RUNNER.

She got back into running about a year ago and has excelled more than I ever could have imagined. She can run forever and it is just not slow and steady wins the race type running but rather she just gets out and SMOKES everybody. She is i

ncredibly fast. I always thought you got slower the older you get but not the case with Carolyn.

Anyways she has been running in different races and doesn't just finish but WINS. I swear that the people who put these races on see Carolyn's name on the sign up sheets and then just put her name as the winner before the race is even run. She is incredible!

So this past weekend she signed up to run in the SAN TAN RUN, WALK, SHOP Race. And let my tell how she did, if you already don't have an idea of what the outcome was.

The boys and I made it just in time to see her take off. Look at how amazing her form is. You blinked and missed it , didn't you? Pay attention.

I was only able to take two pictures before she was out of our sight. Don't you just love her trademark socks.

We all waited at the finish line and this is Griffin worrying if Mom was going to win or not. Look at the nervousness and anticipation on his face. Actually he was just wondering what was taking Mom so long.

Just like I said, she smoked everyone. There wasn't even anyone close to challenge her.

She is amazing!

1ST OVERALL FEMALE and 1ST in her age group.

Congratulations HON! We are amazed by your talents and proud of your hard work. It would be nice though that every once in a while you could let someone else win.

NAH!!!!!!

Father and Sons

I am really starting to like this blogging thing. A monster is being created in me. Carolyn is going to have to fight me now to see who gets to blog first on our fun events. I don't have any competition on this post, because Carolyn didn't come with us. We went on our yearly Father and Sons outing. I told Carolyn I wasn't taking any boys who were still in diapers but I knew Carolyn needed a weekend off with no boys, so I took Treyson (he is close to being potty trained but still quite not there). Anyways, I thought for sure I was going to be eaten alive with three crazy boys, so I wimped out and invited my Dad to come along with us. He saved me and made it a very enjoyable trip. Thanks a ton Dad for your help and the boys really appreciated having you there. Here are a few pictures of the great time that we spent up by Forest Lakes.

My dad spent hours getting the "Spider" ready to ride and the boys had a blast driving around the forest looking for bones and going on adventures.

The boys helped find fire food that kept us warm throughout the night. It was freezing. Note Treyson had to wear his Batman pajamas under his shirt because it got so cold.

We roasted hot dogs and marshmallows until about 11:30 at night and we had a blast. Maybe a little too much sugar cause you can see the glazed over look on Kai's face and the screaming in Treyson.

It was a perfect night for seeing stars and enjoying being out in God's Country. I love going to the mountains and just relaxing by the fire.

My Dad found us all walking sticks and we went exploring around the forest. Luckily we didn't get lost this trip. The Gardner's have a bad habit of exploring and then losing our way back to the vehicles. (I don't get what Trey is looking at in this picture)

We went to a fish hatchery that my Dad took me to when I was little and the kids loved it. We had a great day relaxing and just hanging out together.

I love this picture. The boys love hanging out with Grandpa and would follow him anywhere.

We found a rope swing that was awesome. Kai was the bravest and we had to pull him off of it. He had no fear. I think he gets that from his Mom who is fearless when it comes to roller coaster and other thrill rides.

ME not soo much. Do you see the shear panic in my eyes!

Griffin did awesome too.

But I think the most fear came from when we all watched Grandpa go. I thought we would be dragging him out on a stretcher.

I couldn't let my old man out do me so I got a little crazy and think I had to change my underwear after that little stunt.

We had a blast on the swing!

We also found a tree that was about 20 feet off the ground and had to walk out onto it. Griffin wouldn't stand up and Kai wouldn't let go of my leg. Only Trey and me were able to make it out to the edge of the tree.

We had a blast playing in the river and felt bad for all the fisherman because I think my boys scared the fish away within a mile of where we were playing with their screaming and throwing of rocks. The water was freezing but we had a lot of fun playing in the water and giving the boys a bath from getting filthy dirty during our campout.

I love my boys! We had a great time and are already planning our next trip. Next time we are bringing Mom with us. We missed her but I think she had a good time spending the whole weekend alone and doing her "Girl stuff". She deserved the weekend off but we really did miss her. She would have made the trip even funner.

One last shout out to my Dad. Thanks a ton for coming with us. It wouldn't have been as fun without you. It brought back a lot of great memories of camping when I was growing up and I hope my boys can have the same great memories. I love you POPS and we have to do it again real soon.

"ROBOSAURUS!!"

The first time I saw the word "Robosaurus", I was reading an article in the paper telling about this monster truck show out at Firebird International Raceway.

I just KNEW my boys would love it.

So we went.

And may never go again.

Partially my fault, though.

All day long, the weather was perfect, but then the wind picked up and I didn't anticipate how chilly it would get once the sun went down..... and I hadn't brought coats or blankets.

We had to walk around the whole arena to get to our seats, which was good because we got to walk across this awesome bridge:

...and meet Robosaurus in the flesh..... I mean.... steel.

This demolishing destructor of doom has some loyal fans, I tell you what!

Check out this guy:

Adorned in his shirt purchased in 2006!

(Or maybe he found it at the Goodwill thrift store 2 days earlier.)

Also sitting close to us were some very excited boys.

One of which is wearing a machine gun around his neck -- just in case you didn't notice.

No machine guns for my boys, but they were sharing in the excitement for sure:

They really liked the motorcyclists doing tricks on their bikes.

In all honesty:

the cars were cool, but almost too loud.

the monster trucks... awesome... but the crew took WAY too long to set up for each "scene".

and also... it was cold..... and windy, but I already said that.

It was though -- really cold.

The kind of cold where your kids seem to have twice as much energy while their bodies are naturally trying to get warm. Shivering, tense bodies, running around back and forth in the 10-15 feet of open bleachers we had next to us.

(Sigh.)

Finally, after 2.5 hours of waiting, it was time for...........

R-O-B-O-S-A-U-R-U-S !!!!!!!

(Wide-eyed excitement)

It stomped (rolled) around....

....breathing angry fire.....

...terrorizing and crushing any puny cars left in his path.

The boys seemed to enjoy it and only remember the good parts the next day when telling family and friends.

I wish my memory was as selective as theirs.

I don't think I'll be seeing Robosaurus for a VERY long time.

CAROLYN DEWITT GARDNER

This is my first attempt at blogging, so I know it is not going to be comparable to the quality and humor of what Carolyn publishes. I am calling this post "Tribute to Carolyn - The Love of My Life" I have the most amazing wife in the world and am soo blessed to be able to call her mine and to be with her in this life and throughout the eternities. I want to show just a glimpse of the AWESOMENESS that I get to live with on a daily basis:

She is the coupon queen. She spends countless hours on cutting coupons and saves a lot of money. Pretty soon she is going to be seen on those new TV shows of crazy couponers.(is that a word)

She has a smile that lightens up my life and is contagious.

She is drop dead gorgeous. As soon as I began to take notice of girls, I was smitten by her beauty. I only ever dated one person ,and that was her ,because I knew I would never find a better match for me. She took my breath away when I first met her and continues to take my breath away every day of my life.

She is an incredibly talented runner. I am amazed how fast and how long she can run. It is hard for me to admit, but she is way out of my league when it comes to running. I also love how she will never flaunt her success but is very humble with how great she is. She has won many races and you will probably never even hear about them. She is incredible!

She loves an adventure. If it is not climbing to the top of a mountain it is her dragging me onto a roller coaster where I scream like a girl and she just laughs her head off. Thanks for pushing me to my limits and making me enjoy high adventure.

Anyone that knows Carolyn already knows this but she is HILARIOUS! You can't be around her and not just break out with laughter. She is always doing things that at times make me roll my eyes, but in reality make me laugh and chuckle inside. Thank you for your ability to laugh at yourself and not be so uptight. It is soo refreshing and enjoyable to be around her. I love and envy her humor!

CAROLYN-

You are the love of my life and truly do bring the meaning to living. You give me the desire to be a better person. I thank you for your loving kindness and am so grateful to have you in my life. The smartest thing I have done in this life is to marry you. I know our future is bright and full of happiness cause I know I will be with you for time and eternity. Thank you hon for who you are and for sharing your amazing qualities with me. I am blessed to know and have you to be mine!