I love reading books by Annette Lyon!

Annette Lyon has a series of books, that I have fallen in love with called the Temple series.

The 1st book -House on the Hill is written about the building of the the Logan temple. The story follows a young girl named Lizzy through the trails she faces growing up, finding herself and her true love.

The 2nd book- At the Journey's End is a sequel of sorts to the first book. It talks about the St. George Temple, and follows a young man named Abe as he searches for the truth and his true love(my favorite so far)

There are also 2 more books in this series Spires of Stone(the Salt Lake Temple) and Towers of Strength (the Manti Temple).
I'm currently reading Spires of Stone and it is a very witty and well written story so far.
I would recommend this series, not only are the stories fun and enjoyable reads, I've learned a lot about the sacrifices that went into building our temples.

I am a Ford Mustang!

You're an American classic -- fast, strong, and bold. You're not snobby or pretentious, but you have what it takes to give anyone a run for their money.

"Take the Which Sports Car Are You? quiz.

Hanging out in the Inkworld!

This is what I have been reading!

Now a movie! (I haven't seen it, but really want to)

The Inkheart series by Cornelia Funke. The 2nd book Inkspell is by far my favorite, but it has a suspenseful ending so of course you have to read Inkdeath, which takes a little bit to get into, but well worth it in the end. I really liked this series. It's a great fantasy!

The Nutcracker Ballet!

On Wed. Dec 3rd, I got to go with Ellie and her 5th grade class to the Nutcraker Ballet!

It was really fun to get to go. This is Ellie, and her McKinen, in front the Capitol Theatre.

McKinen, Ellie, and Vonya

Ellie & some of her classmates, Collin, Wyatt, (Ellie), McKinen, with the Nutcraker.
The most boys in her class were not excited to be there, especially since they had to be dressed up.

Ellie and Maria with the Nutcraker.

Here we are waitin' for the ballet to start. Ellie and I had been to see it before a couple of years ago, so we new what to except, but McKinen hadn't ever seen it, so it was fun to watch it with her. The boys in front of us were quite bored, and one of them even said he would NEVER come back. I think a little culture never hurts anyone.

The Epperson Family Thankful List~A to Z

We are Thankful for many things!
A~ Apples, Airplanes, Aunts, Air, & Angels
B~ Baseball, Beaches, Bugs, Bekah, Books & Brothers
C~ Cows, Cats, Comics, Cookies, & Camera
D~ Dad, Dogs, Dinosaurs, Daddy & Donuts
E~ Ellie, Eagles, Elephants, Eggnog, & Eyes
F~ Family, Fathers, Friends, Fish(Rainbow) & First aide kit
G~ Grandpas, Grandmas, Guns, & Grapes
H~ Horses, Heavenly Father, Holy Ghost, & House
I~ Inventors, Intellect, Ice cream, Imagination, & Igloos
J~ Jump ropes, Jack-o-lanterns, Jesus, & Jewelry
K~ Kola, Kittens, Kitchen & Kites
L~ Love, Lemurs, Legos, Laps to sit on, & Lyn
M~ Mom, Mommy, Momma, & Moms
N~ Nintendo, North Star, Nicknames, Nickelodeon, & Nursery Rhymes
O~ Otter pops, Olives, Opal(Ellie's birthstone), Oranges, & Ocean
P~ Pink, Parents, Prayers, Pie, Penguins, & Poppies
Q~ Quilts, Queen Conch, Quagga, Quarters, & Quiet
R~ Reptiles, Riding horses, Right Angle HVAC, Running, & Remote Control
S~ School, Sisters, Sleepovers, Soccer, & Space shuttle
T~ Teachers, Turtles, T.V., Tulips, & the Tipi
U~ Uncles, Unicorns, Utah, & U.S.A.
V~ Video games, Violin, Vets, Violets, & Vacation
W~ Weston, Watermelon, Whales, & Water
X~ XOXOXO(hugs & kisses)
Y~ Yogurt, Yard, Yo-yos, & You and you and you
Z~ Zebras, Zigzags, the Zoo, & ZZZZZZzzzzzzzz

The Twilight Movie

My sister, Annelisa and my friends Rachel, Teresa, & her daughters Sarah and Shayla all went to the Twilight Movie on Friday night. We had to stand in line(even in Heber) in the cold for around 45 mins. However, we did bring hot choc. to help us stay warm.


Here we are in the Theatre before the movie started. I even wore my "I Run With The Pack" shirt for the event.
Verdict:
I liked it. I didn't love it. I had a hard time with Robert Pattinson being Edward, but he tends to grow on you after a while. When the vamp family comes into the cafeteria for lunch the 1st time they do look beautiful! They left out a few key things that should have been in there for the next movie, but we will just have to wait and see. I wasn't too pleased with Jacob, but I always imaged Steven Strait in that role. However, I did love the Prom. It was my favorite part. So all in all I give Twilight **** Stars. The book, as always was better.
Now we will just have to wait until the NEW MOON movie comes out filming is going to start after the holidays.

What do they think?

What is something mom always says to you?
Ellie: She calls me Ellie Angel
Weston: Have a good time at school
Bekah: Clean your room
Ray: I love you, Ray

What makes mom happy?
Ellie: When I help her
Weston:When I’m a good cub scout
Bekah: When I listen
Ray: When I clean my room

What makes mom sad?
Ellie: When we go somewhere without asking
Weston: When I’m mean to my brother
Bekah: When I don’t do what I’m asked
Ray: When I be naughty

How does your mom make you laugh?
Ellie: she tickles me
Weston: She laughs at my jokes
Bekah: By tickling me
Ray: When she eats my Sweet Baby Ray ribs

What was your mom like as a child?
Ellie: She had reddish blond hair like me
Weston: She was nice, but her brothers were big teases
Bekah: a girl
Ray: She liked playing with her toys

What is her favorite thing to do?
Ellie: read
Weston: Go to the zoo with my kids
Bekah: Make Cookies
Ray: Make Cakes

What does your mom do when you're not around?
Ellie: Go to the store
Weston: Read her book
Bekah: Sew
Ray: Sleep

What is your mom really good at?
Ellie: Being a good friend
Weston: Helping us grow up
Bekah: Sewing
Ray: Making Cookies

What is your mom not very good at?
Ellie: Climbing trees
Weston: Getting lids off
Bekah: Crocheting
Ray: Opening jars

What does your mom do for her job?
Ellie: Tends daycare kids
Weston: Help us
Bekah: makes food for us
Ray: Teaches me at preschool

What is your mom's favorite food?
Ellie: Chocolate
Weston: Chocolate & Peanut Butter
Bekah: Pasta & Chicken
Ray: Chips & salsa

What makes your Mom proud of you?
Ellie: When I practice my violin without being asked
Weston: When I do good on my reading
Bekah: When I do good at school
Ray: When I clean my room

What do you and your mom do together?
Ellie: Go on Mom/daughter dates
Weston: Go to Cub Scouts
Bekah: Snuggle in the bed
Ray: Read stories

How are you and your mom the same?
Ellie: We both love to read
Weston: We both like to tease
Bekah: We both have reddish brown hair
Ray: We play the computer

How are you and your mom different?
Ellie: I have blond hair and Mom’s is reddish brown
Weston: I have brown eyes & hers are blue
Bekah: I like information books
Ray: Mom’s tall & I’m short

How do you know your mom loves you?
Ellie: She takes care of me.
Weston: She helps me and takes care of me
Bekah: She hugs me
Ray: She gives hugs and kisses.

Where is your mom's favorite place to go?
Ellie: Shopping
Weston: Go away with just DAD
Bekah: to Park City
Ray: out to eat dinner

The 4th of the 4th!

This picture is the last time all of my brothers, sisters, and parents, were all together at one time.

It was for my Uncle Dale's funeral which was a sad, but good day.

(L-R) Camille, Annelisa, Tyler, Me, Mom, Dad, Corey, Jacob, Krystalina, and Emily

The 4th of the 4th challenge is to go to your fourth picture folder, and find the fourth picture and write about it. I didn't know what picture it would be, but this is a good reminder for me, and even though I miss my Uncle Dale a lot, it's good to reflect on all that he taught me and all the he stood for. It will be 2 yrs ago this March. In some ways it seems longer ago than that, and in others it seems not quite so long ago. Around the time of his passing we made a book for my Aunt JuLee with all of our memories and pictures of Uncle Dale in it.

This is what we all wrote for the book.

Uncle Dale was a big tease. He teased me. -Ray

Uncle Dale was fun. He would rake up the leaves for us to jump in. –Weston

I loved Uncle Dale, because he loved me. He let me pick tomatoes out of the garden.
-Bekah Susan
I loved Uncle Dale, he let me help plant the garden, and taught me how to do it right.
He showed us how to rake the leaves into piles. He took us on nature hikes and always answered our questions. –Ellie Jo

Uncle Dale taught us so many things, how to plant and water the garden, how to work hard, how to do things right the first time.
He was a good listener and helped me to solve my problems and get back on the right track. He knew just how to teasingly encourage me to do better. He was a great example, and had to great testimony of the gospel.
He was fun. He told us to hide in the corn so we could sneak out and kick-the-can. I loved the fact that he was a Grandpa to Dad’s grand kids too. He included everyone. My children enjoyed the time spent on picnics and hikes with Uncle Dale. -Heather

Uncle Dale was always interested in how things were going in our life, and how he could help. He was a big tease, but it always made me feel like I was part of the family.
-Lyn

A weeks worth of pictures!

One of my favorite cousins, Kim & her soon to be husband Andreas, & Me , and my sister, Annelisa, at Kim & Andreas pre-wedding reception. They are getting married in CA. on Aug 16th. She is only 1 year younger than me, and look at that hunk she found! I am so happy for her!

Ellie's Locks of Love

Bekah got her hair cut short of school this year, because she would never let me do it, and it was mostly just a scraggly mess. So I traded Amanda a cake for a cut, & Bekah got a cute bob for school, that she can do herself.

Ellie was going for just a trim, but decided she wanted her hair cut short too.

So after a locks of love measuring, we discovered that she had just enough to do it.Before!
After!
She is very proud of herself for growing the whole 12 inches before she got it cut.
Now she is going to donate it to Locks of Love.

Bekah, Amanda, and Ellie.

We are so glad that Amanda would do this for the girls!

Thanks! Aunt Mandie!

How do you keep a bunch of kids busy for 2 hours?

Put a bunch of balloons on a trampoline, and let the kids pop them until they are gone!

So Much FUN!

My Obsession

I LOVE the Twilight book series by Stephenie Meyer.

My girlfriends & sisters & I have been waiting all year for the last book in the series to be released.

So on Friday, Aug. 1st, my girlfriend, Sally & I went down to Provo to the Breaking Dawn release party at Borders books. We went out to dinner first, at the Olive Garden. Yummy! Then we went to the Mall and bought these shirts for the party!

My favorite guy character in the books is the "werewolf" Jacob Black, so my shirt says "I run with the pack" and Sally likes the vampire, Edward best, so her shirt says "One Bite is all it takes". We had a lot of fun at the party and got to meet a lot of interesting people and make some new friends.
This is me answering my question for the trivia contest. My question was "What did Jacob call himself in the tent?" from the Eclipse book. Space Heater! Luckily for me I got a Jacob question!
The store had a T-shirt contest. This shirt won 1st place! Very inventive! These other shirts were just some of my favorites.

Cute Pregnant Lady's shirt! I ordered the book online from Amazon, however I couldn't wait. So one the way home Sally & I stopped by Smiths, where another one of our friends, Miss J, was saving us a place in line to buy Breaking Dawn! Kinda crazy that there would be a line at Smiths in Heber!
Well, I started reading the book Sat. morning at 12:30a.m. and after some sleep that morning and some more reading Sat., and Sunday after church, I finally finished it Monday morning about 3 a.m.!
It was weird, but good! I'm sure, I'll like it more after I read it again!
However, Sally has my book now, because hers is stuck in transit in Denver for some reason. So I will have to wait until I get it back!

Pre-1840 Classes-OPTIONAL

At Nationals they offer free classes in different Pre-1840 subjects for adults and teenagers to take. Usually they have kids games for the children(3-12) during the time of the adult classes so more people can participate. I am usually involved in helping with the kids activities, they get to listen to Indian legends, bead necklaces, learn to play and make games like Turtles & Bears, and learn what kids did in the pre-1840's

This year I was asked to do kids trade blanket instead, so the only pictures of kids games I took were of the last event,

the Candy Cannon.

Candy cannon is a small cannon loaded with wrapped candy, a little black powder, and the plug. It's noisy and the kids love it, except for the pieces for candy that got blow apart by the black powder.

Lyn went to 2 classes this time. One was on shooting Primitive Bow & Arrows, which he is been thinking about getting into. He said the class was very interesting and informative. He also went to a Survival Class, and got a lot of good ideas of stuff to take not only to Rendezvous, but also when he is hunting.

This is Howdy teaching the class on bow & arrows

My favorite class took was the class for Quill Work. The demonstration was free, but the class cost $15. We received hands on instruction from Jean, and got to quill this medicine bag. I learned 2 different stitches, and also learned that I enjoy quill work. Our instructor Jean, said that my work was pretty good for a 1st timer, and that my stitches will get better with practice. Now all I have to do is find someone to shoot me a porcupine so I can salvage the quills, and get to work.

Favorite Touch- TTA

My favorite touch would 1st be the Hugs & Kisses from my family. I love to snuggle-snuggle with my kids and sing the Snuggle Puppy song! They also love my tickle kisses!

It's also great to snuggle with my husband, especially when I'm cold.

He is my own personal heater.

Another favorite touch is to have my feet comfortable.

Bare Feet is best,

but if I have to wear shoes they better be comfortable ones.

The following story will illustrate my point.

Before Rendezvous season started this year, my husband knew he needed to rebuild his moccasins, however he never got around it.(not that he was lazy or anything like that. He just didn't have time) Anyway, Sat. the 1st day of Nationals. We were just setting up camp, so he wore his boots all day. The next day was Sunday and so that he could go to church, I let him were my moc's and I wore my Pre-1840 lace up boots, that really aren't that comfortable. (black-pic above) I guess women in that time period just didn't know any better. So by the end of the day my feet were killing me. So I told Lyn I wasn't going to wear these boots much longer. So we went shopping up to Trader's Row(that's the place all the traders set up shop in a general area) So after walking around and shopping for a while I found a trader that had moccasins for an affordable price. ($125) So I told Lyn to come try them on, so he did and then told me how comfortable they were and said " Heather, you should really try on a pair too." He should have known, that comfortable shoes are my downfall, especially when my feet are killing me!

Needless to say he left the trader's shop(South Fork Trader's out of Livermore, CO) with two pairs of new moccasins instead of one.

Actually, the trader gave us a deal because we bought 2 pair. So it all turned out good in the end, and I have the most comfortable pair of moccasins I have ever owned.

Favorite Taste!

I have a lot of favorite foods, but my Favorite taste will always be Chocolate!
I love Chocolate dipped strawberry shakes from Dairy Keen.
I love Molten Chocolate cake from Chili's, actually I just found the recipe at http://www.topsecretrecipes.com/, I'm going to make it for my friends birthday in Aug.
I love Anything with Chocolate & peanut butter.
I love Chocolate raspberry candy bars(the ones in the gold wrapper that are made in Utah)
I love my Grandma Berg's Qatmeal Choc. chip Cookies
I love Chocolate Zuccuni bread
I love Chocolate covered raisins.
Anyway, I allegric to corn syrup, so I can't have most candy stuff.
So my endulgence is CHOCOLATE!

My Favorite Smells

I love the smell of pine trees anytime of the year.

I love the smell of rain! While it's raining and just after.

I love to wake up to the smell of roses from my rose bush that my husband picks for me sometimes.

I love the smell of baby magic lotion on babies.

I love the smell of fresh baked bread.

I love the smell of homemade apple pie.

I love the smell of my pumpkin spice candle during the holidays.

I love the smell of my husband just out of the shower, even better when he wears cologne.

My Favorite Sounds!

It is very hard to pick my favorite sound. So here are a few of my favorite sounds, some are better than others.

One of my favorite sounds is waking up in the morning and hearing the birds singing out my bedroom window. Sometimes I just like to lay there for a minute and listen. It's so peaceful.

A silly sound I like to hear is my kids remembering to flush the toliet without being reminded.

I love to listen to my husband play the guitar, and I love it when Ellie plays primary songs on the piano on Sunday mornings before church.

I love the sound a baseball makes when it hits the bat!(both Weston & Ellie are playing this summer)

I love it when Bekah breaks out into the silly songs she makes up, some of them are quite entertaining.

I love the sound for laughter, especially my children and husband laughing together,
and Ray's giggle when he is teasing someone!

I am grateful for the quiet after the children have gone to bed!

My Favorite Sight!

Today's journal entry is all about my favorite sight. Unfortunately, I couldn't decide on just one. So here are my top 3 favorite things to look at.

1st is my children, when they are smiling and happy and having a good time.

They were all blessed with their Dad's dimples, so when they smile they are irresistible to me.

2nd I'm a sucker for a cute cowboy & my husband Lyn's,

Wrangler Butt still drives me Nuts!

The fact that he is making dinner is an awesome sight too!

3rd The Heber valley side of Mt. Timpanogos is beautiful!

It's the sight that I missed the most when I lived in the southern states,

and will always remind me of home!

Favorite Places Close to Home

Sorry this is late the kids were sick Yesterday and I forgot it was Tuesday
-Grab lunch: Dairy Keen (Home of the Train)
-Go for a date night: The Cobbler House for dinner.(My favorite place in Heber)
-Pick up creative stuff: 2 places in Heber, Seasons of Home(quilting) in Midway, and the Memory Box(scrapbook/cards)
-Keep the kids busy: The Cobblestone park is their favorite place to play, and I can take my shoes off & walk in the volleyball court sand and pretend I'm on a beach somewhere!
-Get wet: Kamas pool year round, and the bottom of Bridal Veil Falls in the summer.
-Buy a treat: Dairy Keen-best shakes and ice cream cones around.
-Get some fresh air: go on a hike, picnic, cookout, or drive up Snake Creek,(Midway) UT.
-Splurge: Shopping-Park City Outlets(I love Old Navy) to Eat Out: The West Gate Grill @ the Canyons in Park City. The food is amazing!
-Drive away for the weekend-With the kids, camping in Strawberry or up Lake Creek, Just us, the Timpanogos Inn in Lehi, UT. (We stayed their for our 12th anniversary and it was nice to get away)

My Favorite Summer Memories (growin' up)

Today's post is all about Summer Memories.


The Berg's have always had a garden, and a lot of my summer memories were made around the garden. When I was growing up we were all taught to garden by the hand of my Uncle Woodrow. He was an amazing gardener and could almost grow a car from an old tire. He was particular, and everything had to be done right, but it's always better to learn the right way to do something than the wrong way! My Dad and my Uncle Dale were taught the same thing and have taught us all that way too. Anyway the garden was Uncle Woodrow's joy when he was alive and we still try to make it a thing of beauty now. Everyone who can, helps plant, weed, water, and harvest the garden. It's an all summer job, but fun too!

When it's time to bring in the harvest, it's a big job, and usually the Lord blesses us with a bumper crop, enough to feed 15 families and sometimes more. When we were young, we all had to help with the canning process. My Dad even helped(and still does). Tomato juice is the worst and makes the biggest mess, but we were always laughing while we did it. I still enjoy canning vegetables with my Mom and now my kids are learning how to do it too.

Tell All Tuesday!

I recently came across a blogspot called Tell All Tuesday. The idea of this site is to get you thinking about stuff that should be recorded for your posterity or just ideas to post on your blog. Anyway, I got this idea from a friend's blog and combined it with the Tell All Tuesday idea. So check our blog every Tuesday and hopefully there will be some kind of new post.

ABC- All About Me
A-All time favorite food: Any kind of Pasta!
B-Favorite Book: The Mark of the Lion Series by Francine Rivers
C-Car: Dream car is a corvette, now I'm driving a S10 Blazer
D-Fav. Dessert: Cheesecake
E- Essential Item: Water
F-Friends: I'm lucky as my sisters have become Moms they have also become my best friends.
G- Goals: Exercise more
H-Hometown: Heber, UT.
I- Indulgence: Chocolate
J- January or July: I really like the fun sledding trip we go on as a family for Lyn's b-day in Jan. every year, yet I also love the time we spend together at the rendezvous' in July. I do like to be warm more than cold. So I guess July.
K- Kids: 4 Ellie-10, Weston-8, Bekah-5, and Ray-3.
L- Life's incomplete without: My family
M- Maiden name: Berg
N-Number & Names of Siblings: 8, Me, Corey, Tyler, Jacob, Annelisa, Emily, Camille, and Krystalina
O- Occupation: A Preschool teacher before I became a stay at home Mom.
P-Phobia or fear: I'm very claustrophobic, and I HATE elevators!
Q-Fav. Quote: "Cleaning and dishes can wait til tomorrow, for babies grow up we've learned to our sorrow, so fly away cobwebs, dust go to sleep, I'm rocking my baby and babies don't keep."
R- Fav. Retail store: Old Navy
S- Fav. Soda Pop: Diet Coke
T- Tell All Tuesday Tag: Annelisa, Jenny, Wendy
U- Unknown Fact: I couldn't ride a bike til I was 8, and I still don't like to ride very much.
V- Fav. Family Vacation Spot: Yellowstone National Park
W- Worst Habit: Interrupting others.
X- X-ray or Ultrasound? Which one have you had most: Ultrasound(Complications with all of my pregnancies)
Y- Yard work or House work: Yard work!
Z- Zodiac: Sagittarius

My Snowman Collection!

As many of you know I LOVE Snowmen! This is truly only part of my collection.
I usually put my collection up around Jan 1st and leave it up til Easter.

However, Easter was early this year and there was still snow on the ground so I left it up. My sister, who has been enjoying Japan instead of a Utah winter this year, asked that I take it down before May 1st when she comes back to Utah, to ward off anymore snow. What do you think?