3eppsgirls

Ok everybody my wonderful, fantastic, amazing, brilliant niece so cleverly decided to check "thegirlsandi" to see if some other blogger had already taken it! (i can't believe i didn't think of that! she is such a genius) Turns out somebody had taken it. So i have changed it.

The name of our new blog is going to be "3eppsgirls.blogspot.com"

If you paid attention to the poll, you probably saw that in 1st place it was justusgirls (my awesome niece checked that one as well. turns out it was taken too) well I guess the more I looked at that, the more it bugged me. Want to guess why? JUSTusgirls...I know its probably ridiculous, but I called Justin "Just" for 13 years. So the first 4 letters of his name were not sitting right with me! So i don't mind that it was taken too.

On February 1st I WILL BEGIN THE NEW BLOG!

So I am going to give it 14 days to tell everyone and have you all get your computers prepared...is that what you do? I don't even know what it takes to change it all!

I am kind of excited to start all over. It's going to have a whole new look!

Now, because I am NOT a whiz, if you know how to change a blog name, but keep the older stuff, will you please comment with tips & advice? Thanks!

I look forward to seeing you all visit OUR NEW BLOG ON FEBRUARY 1, 2009!
3eppsgirls

don't forget!! :)

What's in a name?

Okay everyone...and I mean EVERYONE!
I am having a hard time with looking at our blog address "justinsgirlcru".
First of all because he is not around anymore.
Second of all because when we came up with the name I was his girl (get it ...Cru ... first 3 letters of my name)
And third of all because there was us 3 girls and we were like his "crew"
Oh well, enough explaining.
Most of you will understand my "want" to change our blog name address...so PLEASE HELP!

Over on the right --------------------->>>
there is a poll to help us change our name.

VOTE VOTE VOTE

We are without...here's an update

Well as of yesterday the girls and I are without a computer. I figured one less thing to fight about.
I think we might ask santa for a new one...or maybe we'll wait for an after christmas sale! We will be using my computer at work or going to the library for a bit until we can afford a new computer.
Hopefully everyone had an amazing holiday and BLACK FRIDAY experience!
I have never done the crazy shopping day - but maybe there's one for me to try out in the not too distant future!
I guess since I am doing a post, I might as well update everyone...MINUS the pictures! Maybe someone can teach me how to do it on a computer that is different than my own!
The girls only had school for Monday & Tuesday last week.
On Monday we decided to start the holiday season off right... we went on the Heber Creeper's rendition of "The Polar Express". It was so much fun! Even though there was no snow and I did not wear my PJ's...it sure brought the spirit of the season to life. When you arrive at the train station, you board the train. They started off singing Christmas Carols and then they introduce your chef & elves that would be on the train with you. Our elves were "ginger & snap". Our chef's name was "Rupert". The elves went around to each child on the train and asked them what they wanted from Santa for Christmas. (They forgot to ask me...so, Santa if you're reading this, I either want a new computer or a new digital camera...mine is dying.) As the train starts heading to the "North Pole", they pass out the MOS YUMMY chocolate chip cookies and hot cocoa. Once everyone was finished, the elves passed out the story, "The Polar Express". There was a narrator on each train car that read the story along with a fun little CD that went along with the book. then we arrived @ the North Pole, Mrs. Claus got on the train and passed out the recipe for the cookies. (They had joy, and a sprinkle of giggles and stuff like that...so I don't think I could make them too well) Then guess who hopped on the train? SANTA! Such fun! Tara's nephew Tucker was on the train with us. I wish I could post the picture I snapped of him looking @ Santa! It was the TRUE spirit of the holiday! Such innocence & awe! Then Santa hopped off of the train and we went back to the train station. We all went out to dinner at a local favorite..."the train" afterwards.
Wednesday the neighbors came over and played for most of the day. We baked sugar cookies. mmm! I love to watch kids do cookie cut outs, and you know, they were entertained literally for hours! The cookies turned out sooo good...even thought the dough was played with for WAY too long!
Thursday we SLEPT IN! That was the best part of the ENTIRE WEEKEND! Justin took the girls for half of the day. They helped him bake pies to take to Michelle's house for Thanksgiving. Once the girls got back home, we got ready to go to Justin's Mom & Dad's house for dinner. At first I felt weird being there, but I know I am loved by them and I love them and the support the whole family has shown for the girls and I. We had a really fun and relaxing time. Then we went home and watched Home Alone & Home Alone 2.
Friday the girls & I put up most of our Christmas stuff. My parents had gotten us a hotel room at the Hilton in downtown SLC. We had the vice presidential suite! Talk about WOWZA! It was like the size of the main level of my house! Gigantor! It was truely fun! The girls would have been happy to swim from dusk till dawn, but we went to temple square to see lights, the mall, costco, and we watched MammaMia! ... TWO times! I love MammaMia! We popped popcorn and just had a good time! Thank you mom & dad! (oh and btw, the girls did swim for about 4 1/2 hours total)
Saturday afternoon I started to feel as if I had been hit by a truck. We ended up staying a second night in SLC I was so sick! We got back home on Sunday morning and I was sick all day. Justin's parents came and got the girls and took them to the big extended family Christmas Party. I was bummed I couldn't go, but did not want to spread my nasty germs. I slept from 1:30 - 7:00 pm...obviously my body needed it.
And now, it's back to the routine...Holiday is over! So, there's the Epps Girls update until I can get back to a computer...I really want to figure out how to post some of the pictures...we'll see how quickly I become a computer pro!

Zion Slideshow

Okay, I am tired tonight, but not as tired as I was last night! I am usually pretty emotionally drained on therapy days. The girls had counseling today. And I have not been sleeping well since all of this hit the fan! I sleep really good from about 9:00pm to about midnight and then I am usually WIDE awake until about 4:00am. So for those of oyu who have DirectTV I want you to know that you are paying your hard earned money for info-mercials for at least 3 hours of the night...there's NOTHING on!! Anyway, that's not supposed to be the reason for this post!

I am telling everyone about the slideshow...(above: bottom slideshow) On Friday (the 12th) we spent the day in Zion. We hiked up Echo Canyon. It is a slot canyon that was absolutely beautiful. Jon is a very avid hiker and knows Zion like the back of his hand. We went through a pool of boob-deep muck that smelled like cow-crap. It was kind of black and thick. It stunk so bad. (yes I was gagging...) Jon calls it a sess-pool. Anyway , it was super cold too! I could not believe how COLD it was! you know how when you go to the lake and you think the cold water is going to feel oh-so good and you plop yourself in and it about takes your breath away? Well the sess-pool muck was so cold it knocked the wind out of me, made me have to pee super bad and I felt like I wanted to scream and cry at the same time. (but maybe not in that order!!) Justin was shocked that I had the guts to go through it! It was something I'll probably never get the chance to do again - I had to do it! And besides, Justin didn't think that he would be able to carry me on his shoulders like he did for the girls! It was such a fun day and the weather was perfect! After our hike we went to the Zion Pizza Noodle. mmmmmmmmm.......BBQ Chicken pizza was to die for! We all stunk so bad I'm sure people all around us were either hurling their meals or loosing their appetites pretty quick! After dinner we went back to the hotel to swim. Justin jumped in fully clothed...why you ask? I have no clue. But then he had an asthma attack (or something to that effect) and we literally thought we were going to have to make a mad dash to the hospital. He ended up being okay in the end. It was a lovely day.

We'll keep the blog!

Well everyone, the votes are in...
And the majority of the votes cast suggested we continue the blog where we left off 5 (now 6 ) weeks ago!
I am glad, cause what would I do if I got all the votes back & you'd suggested to delete it? I probably would have ignored you all!!
The point of having the poll was to kind of get the "word out" in a way that way that was easier than running into everyone at the store, having them ask how "we" were and me opening a huge can of worms about divorce and then the tears would start to flow and so on and so on...
So - - once the girls are in bed tonight I am planning on doing a MASSIVE blog update that will consist of 6 weeks. In addition to all of the stress in my life, I have managed to do a few fun things with the kids. I hope you can all find a few minutes throughout the week to catch up on all that the "Epps Girls" have been up to!

Completing the Update...

Okay back to the update. Justin was out of town doing a job and was gone from Wednesday to Monday (2nd year in a row without him here for my b-day :( sad huh?) He thought it was a great idea for us to go and have fun. So since my sister & her family was going to be in Moab, I thought it would be well worth the 3 1/2 hr. drive to hang out with them since we don't usually see them 2 times in a month! I invited Tara to go with us since Justin was gone. She said she was up for anything!! Sunday morning (after we cleaned the house...) we headed to Moab. We ended up not going the "normal" way. We went the scenic route, and based on the amount of time we were in the car on the way home, it was no different in time, and it was really pretty. When we got down there we checked into the hotel, let the girls swim and then we all went out to dinner. If you're ever in Moab, I recommend the Moab Brewery. The food was great and it was well priced. After dinner, we went back to the hotel and got ready for bed. I was going to call Justin and let him know our plan, but I decided to wait until morning since he didn't have good reception anyway. The next morning we got up & ate and I called Justin's phone, he answered singing "happy birthday". He had gotten done early and got home @ 2:00 am! Then we all headed to do the Delicate Arch Hike. Thank the Lord for the cloud cover on my birthday...that was present enough! When we started the hike it was 96 degrees at the end of the hike it was 104! I'm glad we went when we did! For a minute, Tara Janine & I thought we were dying, and then we see this womanhiking with a backpack that was probably as heavy as she was. Right then & there we decided to STOP complaining! So if you don't recognize a woman in the slideshow, just know, she was our motivation! We had so much fun together. Tara & I figured out that the last time either of us had been to Arches was in 8th grade for Outdoor Ed....like 17 years ago! Wow, saying 17 years ago makes me feel REALLY OLD! After our hike we went our seperate ways. The Moses Family headed to their reunion and we headed home to meet Justin for dinner. On our way, we stopped in Green River and bought melons....mmmm! Overall I had a stupendous birthday! Thank you to everyone who helped make it awesome! And thank you Justin for buying the software for your wife who decided to be an airhead and DELETE all of the pictures that she had taken. Yes, you read it right...I DELETED ALL OF THE 188 PICTURES I TOOK IN ARCHES!!! But thanks to technology and my sweet hubber, they were recovered for me to put on the blog!! Thank you Justin! :) Enjoy the arches slideshow (above)


Here are a couple pictures of Justin's weekend.(It's actually his best friend Jon in the pic...I'm sure someone got a picture of him!)

Justin had to go to the hospital on my birthday...while working, a grinder he was using kicked back and sliced his arm. He thought he might have broken it, thank heaven he didn't, he does have ligament damage though. Not fun! So there's the wrap up of our weekend! I'll try to be better at posting at least once a week!

Catchin' Up! (its been a while!)

So much has gone on so I figured I better take a few minutes and catch everyone up!!

The girls and I went with Melinda's Family to the Utah Valley Llama Fest. What an event that is! If you are interested, it is held the 3rd weekend in July in Spanish Fork at the Lotus Temple. (It was a really beautiful temple. We even got to go inside a look around) They had a Llama rodeo, a petting zoo, food and music. It was a ton of fun! Here are a few pictures...

Then on Pioneer Day, Melinda & Rod marched with their Army Unit in the Day's of 47' Parade. We had Reid sleep over and we went to SLC and watched the parade. It was fun! I enjoy stuff like that. It did start to get pretty hot - then it was not so much fun! Here are a few pictures from the parade...
I LOVE THIS PICTURE OF MELINDA WAVING!!!
After the parade, we went and met up with Richard & KayeDawn @ Fort Douglas for "family day". It was fun. There was games and food and prizes. Reid was not feel ing too well, so I brought him home while Melinda & Rod finished working.

Fair Days in Heber always starts off with a derby, and for the last 6 years we have made it a bit of a tradtion. The first year it was on my birthday. Part of the fun is getting together, having dinner, cake& ice cream and then heading to the Derby. This year was by far one of my favorites! The rain made it so fun! At first it was a bit discouraging, but it let up and cooled down the hot evening. Melinda & Rod came up for it and they ended up leaving early. Shortly after they left, the rain stopped! (too bad they didn't stay!) At one point, we noticed all of the people's hair around us was standing UP!! Straight UP! (the lighting was a tad-bit scary) But over all I think we all had a great time! I don't know what it is about cars & trucks crashing that is so fun! I LOVE IT! Someday I think I'll drive my Honda in the Herby Derby! now that would be an AWESOME birthday!!

So there's a bit of an update...there will be more to come!

Off to Nauvoo, Illinois

The flight to St. Louis was lovely. The girls love flying and it just makes my ears plug! We got a rental car and for $3/day more we got to upgrade from a chevy cobalt to a ford fusion. Totally fun to drive. (horrible lower back support & uncomfortable seats…I don’t recommend buying one!) The girls posed for a picture by it. We had a 3 hour drive to get to Nauvoo from St. Louis. I had TBS by the time we arrived. (tired butt syndrome) We stopped in Troy, Missouri for dinner at a Carl’s Jr. As we were pulling out of the parking lot there was a semi-truck with a ramp coming out of the back. Upon further inspection…it was a pizza place. So funny! I've never seen anything like that before!

Once we got to the house we hung out with my sister& her family. It was awesome! Lots of late nights & early mornings!

More to Tackle

A few more things we tackled in Nauvoo were: Homemade bottled root beer from the “Community of Christ” gift shop. It was pure enjoyment. After drinking; Kyle, Janine & the 5 kids performed as a root beer bottle band. Then we headed off to the Browning home & Gunsmith shop. There is a gun in there worth over a half million dollars…wowza! Kaden, Kyle & my dad enjoyed this stop the most. There was a beautiful garden in the back of the house and I think that maybe the girls quite enjoyed that part! We also went to pioneer school and basically played MAD-GAB. She had us try to figure out words from the spellings that the pioneer children did. These days we call it “sound spelling”! So she showed us a word: “shouzse” - give up? The answer is shoes. Or: “cubordse” - answer is cupboards. It was pretty fun. We all got an A+. We went to the printing press and to the post office. The kids and Kyle all tried out a yoke. It was empty, of course! It is pretty amazing how much technology is a factor in all of our lives. What a difference with newspapers and the postal service between now & then! We also took the kids to do some pioneer activities. They pulled each other in a hand cart, did log-sawing and just had FUN with their cousins! Oh, and by the way, Janine and I convinced mom to plop herself up into the hand cart for a quick jaunt! We had fun….made mom a bit nervous, and it was well worth it. Hopefully she enjoyed herself!

The Nauvoo Pageant

The Nauvoo Pageant is part of why we went to Nauvoo. My dad is in the Nauvoo Pipe Band. They start the Nauvoo Pageant and then have a part in the pageant towards the end. We went to the show both Friday and Saturday night. It’s pretty funny cause by 9:00 in the morning half of the seats are covered in blankets and taped off for families of the casts, or just people who want a good seat! (we had one blanket and a man gave us some duct tape!) On Friday morning we watched the pipe band practice and taped off our seats. The pageant was so amazing. I’d have seen it a 3rd time if it was on another day we were there. I loved it! The music, the story and the acting was great! I even saw a friend who is in the “blue cast” as a stage manager. Imagine that. I had Janine take a picture to document it! So if you go to Nauvoo, make sure you go during pageant time (July-Aug) it’s highly recommended!

Carthage Jail

Sunday we all slept in…thank heaven! It felt so nice! We got up and headed out to Carthage. It was about a 30 minute drive from Nauvoo. When we got there we ate lunch and then went on a tour. We watched a little video about the history of Carthage Jail. It is where Joseph & Hyrum Smith were martyred. The Jail had such a somber mood. It is such a beautiful area. We all really enjoyed it. There is so much history there! I didn’t realize that the jailers family also lived in the jail. I had always imagined it so much more prison-like. On our way back to Nauvoo, Kyle got a flat tire. Thank heaven there was a gas station & a DQ right there! Kyle & I went to Keokuk, Iowa’s Wal*Mart to get a tire repair kit while everyone else ate ice cream and told jokes. I think we all pretty much just enjoyed each other’s company.

Some COW!!!!! :)

For those of you who know my OBSESSION with COWS…this one’s for you!

I know an OX is not truly a COW…but close enough I say!! I kissed an OX today. “gary” was quite friendly. I tried to just say hello and talk a little to “gabe” but he was a tad-bit grouchy. I sang them my little cow song. It goes something like this…”oh some cow and you want to go-wa la doodie and la-donda oh you little cow…” I could have stayed with those oxen all day if they would have let me. The 2 men that were there were probably certain that I was “on something”, but I wasn’t I was just overjoyed!! Tika & Carsun were so embarrassed, but gary & gabe made my day! (that’s why they get their own post& slideshow {below})

Busy Day in Nauvoo

Monday Dad only had Piping practice in the morning. So we tried to get as many things seen as we could, because it was really our last full day in Nauvoo. We went to the Family Living Center, where we were able to learn about different things in the everyday life of a pioneer. We made a rope, learned how to make candles, bread, rugs and flax. We also went to the Brickyard where the kids each got a souvenir Nauvoo brick. The kids really enjoyed all of the different things and I hope that they also realize how lucky we are today.
We also went on a Carriage ride pulled by 2 gi-normous Clydesdale horses. It was called ‘ The ride to Inspiration Point’. It was so beautiful. So peaceful. It took about 45 minutes and my butt was so sore from the oh-so uncomfortable benches. I loved it. I think it is one of my favorite things we did.
Monday we also saw a program called “Just Plain Anna-Amanda” It was put on by some of the younger service missionaries. It was geared for a younger audience, but I thoroughly enjoyed myself. Towards the end they asked Carsun to come up on stage. They had her SHOUT her name and then they sang a song about just being you. As we left the theatre, I took Carsun’s picture in the better light and as we walked away they all yelled goodbye to Carsun. Then one of the girls shouted, “You’re important!” Carsun said, “I was only a little embarrassed, cause I’ve been on stage before!!”
We went that night to a show called “Rendezvous in Old Nauvoo” It was put on by the Senior Missionary couples. I tell you what…I have not laughed that hard in quite a while! Later in the evening, we went to “Sunset by the Mississippi”. It was a whole lot of singin’, dancin’ , and laughin’. It was a beautiful setting. The sun set behind the stage area, the crickets chirping and fireflies lighting up the night sky… just a great time!

Farewell to Beautiful Nauvoo

Well, we left Nauvoo at 7:45 am for our 3 hour drive back to St. Louis. I love the mountains of Utah, but I LOVE all of the different shades of green that they have in Illinois. They could make an addition to Crayola Crayons’ Green pallet!
My Mom is staying until Saturday and my Dad is in the Pageant until July 27. My sisters family & us girls all left the same day. So we decided on our way out of town, we would stop and take some pictures of the beautiful Nauvoo Temple.
Halfway to St. Louis, my sisters car had a tire blow out and they made me continue on for fear I’d miss my plane. The girls and I got to the airport, (I made it…all by myself!!) and about 20 minutes later, my phone rang. It was my sister and they had just arrived! We all met up for lunch and had just enough time to catch our flight! After a 3 hour drive, a 1 ½ hour flight, a 20 minute potty break in Albuquerque, and another 1 ½ hour flight, (with a baby shrieking & screaming & crying ALL but 20 minutes...ugh!) we finally made it back to Utah. Good, dry Utah!

The Girls are OFF...

Tomorrow morning the girls & I are headed to Nauvoo, Illinois. So, just so you know, I haven't forgotten about all you fellow "bloggers". I'll be updating y'all on the trip next week!