All the adults hanging out and discussing all the fun stuff that we never get a chance to discuss when we aren't together!
Violet smiling big-I think she like chocolate frosting!!
Ryan giving a huge smile for the camera- we are so excited for our Ry to have a friend so close in age!! (They are only 1 month apart!)
Ryden had a terrific 1st birthday. He woke up to toaster waffles (it was a school day)-one of his favorites. Then we went shopping and had lunch with Aunt Jaleen. Later we had pizza at the park with a few family and friends. It was fun to spend time with Ryden's Uncle Trevor, Aunt Jocelyn, cousins Violet & Lucas, Aunt Jaleen, Uncle Jonathan, Uncle Broc, Aunt Joanna, friends Jeff, Amy, Alyssa, & Ryan Young (Ryan is Ryden's age), and of course his parents & siblings! He had two favorite toys of the evening-his fire truck from Dad and his music "thingy" from Mama & Papa. He also received so many cute clothes that we can't begin to explain how cute he has looked this past week in his new gear! :-) So, Happy Birthday Ryden and thank you to all that came to his party, send gifts or cards (any money went to new clothes since he has outgrown all of his old clothes-notice the upcoming pictures-anything he is wearing is new!), or gave him a quick phone call. We appreciate it and love our friends and family dearly! Thanks again! (I will try and post a few more pictures too!)
Ethan had a great birthday! He was very excited to yank the carseat out of the car and leave it on the porch-probably the highlight of his day. The two things he wanted the most (and asked for) for his birthday were Yu-gi-oh cards (provided by Mama & Papa) and clothes (Mama & Papa, Mom & Dad, Aunt Jaleen, & the $ from Grandma & Grandpa Isom went to clothes-Ethan was STOKED to say the least. He is a clothes horse.). I should also give a huge honorable mention to the bat from Uncle Broc & Aunt Joanna since he didn't ask for it, but LOVES it and the fact that it is blue-he likes the skateboard from Garth too! He had a terrific day and a baseball cake later that night. He went to bed very happy and dreamed of his presents and the field trip he was taking to the zoo the next day with Dad as his chaperone!
Here are the kids just hanging out in the yard. I thought everyone might just like to see some pictures!
Shelby had her Activity Days recognition night on Friday. Obviously this picture is not that great, but it is the only one I took since I was running back and forth trying to make an effort at playing the piano in between the girl's little talks about their grandmas, mom, & themselves. She did a great job and it was extra-special because Kendra made it as well. Oh, on a personal note I was called today as Primary President of our ward! Pretty intense! Have a great one-I will try and post more pictures soon! Janelle
We took Garin & Jace to lunch after their last basket ball game at Islands! As you can see they had fun and so did we! I think we need to take the kids and friends out more often! Garin is lucky to have such a great best friend!!
I have had a few requests for a picture of the pool (pre-landscaping which we are having plans drawn up now). Anyway, here it is! We are liking it, now we just have to get the solar panels and hook them up so that we can enjoy it year round!
Ryden seems to think being a general contractor is all about coloring and "working" on plans! Here he is playing with Garth's plans and you can definitely tell he is loving it! (I should probably mention that the kids always say that Garth is coloring his plans since he uses the different highlighters to label the different plan parts!) Anyway-here is our RyRy!!
Garth's 35th Birthday present! We had a bit of a scavenger hunt-clues for each stop that lead to Peohe's, Triple Espresso (comedy), and then to the Marriott on Harbor Drive with a balcony overlooking the bay and city (can you tell we had city?). It was very relaxing and I think Garth had a great time. He was surprised-which is always fun and I am already planning his 40th!
Here are a few of the Easter pictures. They probably aren't the best, but here they are anyway. The day was very mellow, not a big deal at all. Garth and I even had the chance to take a quick nap. Broc & Joanna, Jaleen, & Jonathan were all here.
This is just a cute picture of the three little kids in boxes. March has gone pretty well. It has been super busy and I must admit I am glad it is over! Let's see...Garin and Shelby had their school play and did a terrific job! Garth and I sure have cute pirates! Garin finished up his short basketball season today-he loves his trophy! We took Garin and Jace to Islands to celebrate! I have a cute picture of them, although I haven't uploaded it to the computer yet! Garth is super swamped with work and we miss seeing him more! The good news is that he is very good at what he does and we are proud of him! The kids are excited to have the next 2 weeks off of school for Spring Break. I am excited to have the Space Derby done, play over, yearbook pages completed (I am over the kindergarten), Primary responsibilities done, and just the day to day stuff that includes the 6 kids and Garth that seems to have stockpiled in March! I think that is about it for us! We hope that you are enjoying this a little bit better than the website that I never seemed to be on top of! Anyway, here is a short glimpse into what is going on with us!
Garin is an awesome kid! We think he is extremely good looking in his Rusty hat! Garin is doing great and will be joining a basketball league in Alpine with his best friend Jace. So, I will have a bit of driving, but he will have a lot of fun! 
Here is Trevon posing for the camera! I just thought that since I had the other kids I should probably add this one as well! We think he is cute!
Here is Shelby playing with Ryden! Ryden is just about 9 months now and is crawling everywhere and standing up next to anything he can possibly manage. He is still an absolute joy and we are really enjoying having him around everyday! We love our little RyRy--his smile melts all of our hearts! Oh, and today his first tooth broke through!! Yeah Ryden--we think you are pretty special!
Here is a quick picture I took of Ethan on Valentine's Day at school! I thought it was a pretty cute picture of him. He is loving Kindergarten and thinks his teacher Mrs. Wynn is about 100 steps farther than perfect! (I must admit-I agree!) Anyway, here is the latest picture of Ethan!!
Here is Shelby on here 9th birthday as she was opening some of her presents! Her birthday dinner is Sunday, but she had some of her favorite Mexican food for her birthday before Activity Days. We took balloons, gift bags, and cupcakes to Activity Days to have fun with her friends at church! Anyway, she had a Strawberry Shortcake themed day and loved every minute of it! Her Mama & Papa plus Uncles Jonas & Jaren are in town too so that was extra special as well. After birthday calls and emails from many family and friends she had a lot of fun! Thanks to everyone for their love and cheer. Happy 9th Birthday Princess Shelby!!
Here is Starlee smiling for the camera since she is SUPER excited to be a big girl and get her hair cut and styled!! Thank you Aunt Joanna! :-)
Okay, here is Starlee's first big girl haircut at the salon by her beautiful Aunt Joanna. She loved it and wants to go back already! She loved having her hair washed and curled. She also mentioned that she wanted to do a repeat manicure when she asked to "next time get my nails painted too -- again." Her haircut looks too cute and I had a lot of fun taking her for her big day (she came along with me). I will include some more pictures as well of her exciting milestone!!
It seems like it has been awhile since I have posted. Everyone here is doing great! The kids are enjoying school and all that comes with it. Garin & Shelby are involved in the school play and love every minute of practices and all that it entails. Shelby was one of the few 3rd graders to get a speaking part.! Yeah! Ethan loves kindergarten and loves that he is our only kid to have Garth come on 2 field trips in 1 school year. Garth has had a lot of fun going with him and has been able to fit in a field trip with Garin as well. Starlee and Trevon are doing great at home and in preschool. Their teachers are so sweet and they love them! Ryden is getting so big so fast! He is crawling and it it so funny to see him coming down the hall or "sneaking" off to Shelby's room. He is quite the joy in our lives! We all have so much fun with him!
We took the kids to Sea World today since their Uncle Terry (Garth's brother) was in town. They loved it!! Ethan says his favorite part was Shamu, Ryden's seemed to be the Shark Encounter, and the other kids I am not sure. They sure seemed to love Shamu's Happy Harbor. It was so much fun!! The tidepools were wonderful and of course the Sea & Otter show are a must. The best part is that we got our fun cards so now we can go all year.
We are headed off to the desert this weekend with a bunch of friends and are pretty excited to get a quick trip out of town!
Well, I had better sign off! I have a lot to do still, but wanted to give a quick update as to how we are doing! We hope all of our friends and family are well!!
Love,
Janelle & family
So, here are a couple of pictures of Thanksgiving! As you can tell we had it outside and that there were quite a few people. You can't tell, but my parents and 2 younger brothers, Jenna & Casey, and Garth's brother Chad came down. We had a great day and felt really blessed to spend the day with everyone! I only wish the weather would be great enough to have Christmas Dinner outside as well, but I doubt it. It has only been about 70 degrees most weekdays. We were able to jump in the jacuzzi that night and that felt great! Right now we are looking forward to Christmas vacation and heading up to Utah the week after Christmas. We postponed our desert trip since it is a little easier to take a desert break from school since it is closer. Everyone is doing really well! The kids are getting so big and are very excited about Christmas! Well, that is about it for the Isoms right now! We hope everyone is having a terrific holiday season!
