The Story Of Us

Well, I guess it's time to join the blogging nation! Who knows how much I'll keep up with this, but I've had a few requests to give it a try...so here goes!

The picture above was taken of us by us on Christmas morning! I love to take pictures and honestly have way too many, but there really aren't many that I'm in. I prefer the other side of the camera!

So, that's the family. Ryan, Me, Brooklyn (9 1/2) and Rylee (7). Our girls are our lives.

Brooklyn is in 4th grade and will be 10 next month. How did I get old enough to have a 10 year old? She is either going to be a Rock Star or a OBGYN when she grows up. The plan is...if she doesn't make it to the finals on American Idol, she'll go the Med School. It's always good to have a back-up. She gets all A's in science and is currently in Dance and Guitar lessons. I guess she is on her way. She has the sweetest personality. Sometimes I worry that people might take advantage of her, because she will do anything for anyone. She is always trying to resolve arguments between her friends (and if anyone knows 10 year old girls, there is always lots of drama.) She is ver protective of her little sister and always does her best to make Mom and Dad proud.

Rylee is the clown. We certainly don't have to worry about people taking advantage of her. She is a straight shooter. If she doesn't like the way things are going...she'll tell you. And not nessisarlly in nice terms! Rylee loves school and does very well in it. She is sometimes afraid of trying new things, but when we finally get her to, she always wishes she had done it all along! She is also in Dance lessons and played softball all summer. Next month she starts piano. We'll see how that goes. She's not very patient. She likes to be moving. At the moment she is going to be a Vet when she grows up. She would like to do C-Sections on turtles and things like that. Both girls are very into High School Musical right now. Zac Efron is hanging all over their rooms. (Thats his picture on Rylee's shirt.) Rylee just thinks it cool, but Brooklyn and her friends squeel with delight every time they see him.

We are currently living in Carrington, ND. We moved to this little town almost 3 years ago. Seems like we've been here forever. It was a hard move, leaving all our family, but we really love it out here. I always considered myself a "City Girl", but I have to say that small town life really agree's with me. Ryan loves it as well. Never has he been able to fullfill his passions (hunting and fishing) like he does out here. A 5 minute drive in any direction and you can be hunting deer, ducks, geese, dove, pheasant, etc. What more could he ask for? I thought I'd get bored here, but I was very mistaken. See, the great thing about a small town is, everyone is involved in everything. So, instead of being bored, I jumped in and got involved in EVERYTHING! It has been a hard lesson, but I am currently practicing the art of saying No. It's one thing to be bored, but it's quite another to be trying to do too much. So, I have weedled down my extra curricular activities to: work, I manage the Carrington Fitness Center while the kids are at school. I'm a personal trainer and a group fitness instructor, so I'm able to use both those ceritfications at my job. I love it. There are a lot of "older" people who come to my gym, so I have all kinds of Grandma's and Grandpa's taking care of me. Baking me things, bringing me treats out of their garden, etc. I'm also teaching Dance. That one is a great activity as both my girls are involved. I teach Kindergarten - 7th grade. We perform at high school basketball games and do 2 competitions each year. And of course I'm a mom and a wife and if thats not a full time job, then I don't know what is!

As a family we love being outdoors. Ryan takes the girls hunting (a nice break for me), we all go fishing, boating, whatever. We also like to vacation in Salt Lake whenever we can. We love our little town, but we sure miss our family.

Well, thats a start!

This is Brooklyn working very hard to cross the wake!

Rylee, enjoying the ride!

Us...on the boat.