Happy Thanksgiving 2009

We've had a lot going on in the past month. One thing I'm grateful for is that the school semester is over and I only have one left until graduation. Brooklyn is very excited for graduation so that Mommy doesn't have to go to school anymore. On the other hand, Brooklyn LOVES going to school. At preschool they had a Thanksgiving feast. Brooklyn talked about it for days. This got her warmed up for the family festivities.
On the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, I took the kids over to my parents to begin baking and preparing for Thanksgiving dinner. Peeling the apples for the apple pies is one tradition that is my personal favorite. We get a little music going and the dancing and peeling commences. ;)
Later that night, we went down to the Barker's and had dinner and celebrated Hayden's birthday. It's sad that this will be our last Thanksgiving with Poppy in this life but we are grateful for all the wonderful times we have had with him.
On Thanksgiving we went back over to my parents and stuffed ourselves silly. There was so much delicious food. I should have taken a picture but just to give you an idea we had 10 pies and there were only 11 adults. The great thing about that is that there are leftovers to enjoy for days!
I love Thanksgiving and the opportunity to reflect on the things I am grateful for. I am especially grateful for family this year. Brig and I are very blessed to have wonderful families that love and support us. I am grateful that our parents taught us the gospel principles and encouraged us to choose the right. I am grateful to be a mother. I look forward to seeing the smiles of my little ones each day. There is so much to be grateful for!

Jerry Lynn Barker

1952 ~ 2009

Jerry Lynn Barker died December 6, 2009 in Payson, Utah. He became the first child of Jay Keith Barker and Fay Lorraine Partridge on July 10, 1952 in Payson. He spent his childhood growing up next door to his Grandpa and Grandma Partridge, who greatly influenced his life. Jerry and his family enjoyed camping, hunting and fishing in Mapleton Canyon, the Uinta Mountains and Fish Lake.

Jerry attended grade school at Peteetneet and Payson Jr. High. Jerry was a tackle on the Payson High School football team. He had wonderful memories playing with his teammates, who took State in the fall of 1969. He graduated from PHS, and played football at Ricks College for two seasons. He served an LDS mission to Seattle Washington. Jerry continued his education at Utah Technical College and graduated in Drafting and Design. He married Bonnie Jean Porter in the Manti Temple on February 22, 1975. Jerry interned at Valtek/Flowserve in Springville, Utah and became a full-time employee. He recently received his 35 year certificate from Flowserve, where he worked in several Engineering management positions and enjoyed his loyal Flowserve friends.

Jerry enjoyed working in the Young men and scouting programs. He became a mentor to many boys and encouraged them to earn their Eagle Badge, live the Scout Oath and Law and serve a mission. He served on many Timberline courses and loved the time he spent with the scouts and the good men he was with. He had the opportunity to be with his three sons on Timberline courses. Jerry was presented the prestigious Silver Beaver in 1995, and was a member of the Woodbadge Fox Patrol. He served in three bishoprics as the 2nd Counselor

He was a loving husband and father who taught his children to serve others and work hard. Jerry was a fun grandpa who played with his grandchildren and loved taking them boating and fishing. He enjoyed spending time with his family at the Barker Cabin near Fish Lake.

Jerry was preceded in death by his parents. He is survived by his wife, Bonnie and their children: J. Brig (Ashlee), Megan (Casey) Williams, Jill, Dayne (Laura), and Hayden. His Raspberry Princesses: Chelsey and Brooklyn, his little buddies: Jackson, Jace, Jayson and Kale, and his special birth granddaughter Alyssa Faith, will all miss their "Poppy." He was a helpful brother to Mardene, Becky (Doyle) Olsen, Jayeleene (Mike) Edwards, and Kelly (Tess) Barker. He is also survived by his much loved mother-in-law, Ella Porter.

A viewing will be held Wednesday, December 9, 2009 at Walker Mortuary, 587 S. 100 W. in Payson, Utah from 6:00-8:00 P.M. and the Payson Utah Stake Center 650 W. 800 S. in Payson on Thursday, December I0th from 9:45 to 10:45 A. M. The funeral will follow at 11:00. Interment will be in the Payson City Cemetery.

Growing Up SO Fast!

Jayson is the best baby ever. My family teases me that he is a little monster because he is so good. We are so blessed to have him in our family. He is just growing way too fast. He has a couple teeth on the bottom and working on getting teeth up top. A couple months ago he started crawling. He was pretty slow at first but now I have a hard time keeping track of what room he is in. He loves his sister Brooklyn and wants to play with her all the time. Jayson pulls himself to a standing position on everything. He'll be walking in no time. I'm just enjoying every stage my kids go through. I love being a mom!

Happy Halloween

I love the traditions we have in our family for Halloween. Each year we go over to my Mom and Dad's and have home made chili, broccoli potato soup, and witch's brew (root beer). We also go trick or treating around the neighborhood. One tradition that started a few years ago is to put each grandchild in a big pumpkin on their first Halloween. Thus, Jayson had his turn in a pumpkin this year. He was such a good sport. Brooklyn just had to be Belle. She loves the Disney princesses! Brooklyn is also fascinated with witches. We went up to Gardner Village a couple of times to see all the different witches. Brooklyn's favorite was the witch that smashed into the building! Jayson was our little tiger. He is such a wild little guy ;)

Brooklyn's Dance Class

My good friend Jamie and I decided to sign up our girls, Brooklyn and Bella, for a community education dance class. It was an interesting experience but the girls had a good time together (and that's what really matters). Brooklyn's teacher would often use Brooklyn as the leader and she loved that. Now Brooklyn thinks she should be the leader for everything. Here are a few pictures throughout the weeks.

Hee Haw Farms 2009

Recently, Brooklyn's preschool took a field trip to Hee Haw Farms. Brooklyn just loves playing with her little friends Ellie and Memphis. We had a great time on the hay ride and looking at all the animals. They had the biggest pig I've ever seen weighing in at 1200 pounds. That's a lot of bacon! We ended the trip by going through the pumpkin patch and picking out a pumpkin. Where will we go next?

Fall Fun