My little brother is HOME

Cute boy cousins:
Logan and Beckham look alikes?

I can not believe how 2 years just flew by-it was 2 years ago that Logan had his baby blessing because my family was in town to see my brother off at the MTC. And here we are and he is already back from his mission in Atlanta, GA. Both my sister and older brother who still live in California were both able to make it up to Utah to see Skyler (Elder Blood) arrive home safely. We were thrilled to see him and had balloons and all the fam ready at the airport-he came down the escalator and I totally cried in excitment (I blame it on the pregnancy emotions) or maybe I just felt bad for not writing him enough? Anyways it was a fabulous reunion. It was fast Sunday that week so he bore his testimony at church, we then had his buddies and old mission companions over for a mini homecoming-he officially gets to talk in church on Easter Sunday. We had a wonderful time reminicing and playing games-we also helped him get set up with new clothes and room stuff as he will be attending BYU this Spring semester. He will enter as a Junior because he was quite ambitious before his mission and graduated High School early and got his Associates before his mission. On top of that he entered the mission field 3 weeks prior to his 19th birthday so finally today March 13th he turned 21. Happy Birthday little bro.

Girls Getaway

My freshmen year at BYU was almost 9 years ago, I lived in the dorms at Helaman Halls and had a fabulous group of girlfriends. We decided it was time to finally get together so we planned a reunion in Monterey, CA since most of us live on the west coast. 7 out of the 8 of us were able to attend-so we relaxed, chatted it up and ate lots of junk food. Pictured (maiden names): Debbie Clark (from Conn. now living in WA) Kacey Cozean(from WA living in WA), Anne Parkinson(from UT living in UT), Meagan Nelson(from AZ living in San Fran) Me (from CA now in UT) McKenna Ainge (from OR now in CA) and Megan Gooch (from AZ now in CA) not pictured Courtney Mallon (from Virginia living in Virginia).

Results in...

Paul was quite anxious to find out what we were having so we went to Fetal Fotos last Thursday and found out we are having a...boy!!! We are thrilled for Logan to have a brother close in age and also excited to already be prepared with all the boy things. It seems I am being out numbered:)

Heartbeat Myth?

Paul and I went to my second doctors appointment and the doctor said the heartbeat sounded PINK!!! That is if I believe in the heartbeat myth-but we can find out next week at fetal fotos:) which Paul was thrilled to hear. So we will keep you all updated. We would love another boy so Logan would have a close little brother and we know how to do the boy thing now. But a girl would also be so much fun-mommy would just have to go on some shopping trips-oh darn.

Disneyland '08

Paul and Natalie Burghardt are some of our good buds from USU-Natalie and I are both Californians who were dancers in high school who married a Paul and were due with our first kid in Jan of 06 and ended up having our kids 3 days apart in Nov '05. We have many similarities and our kids have them too-Logan and Nathan are both obsessed with CARS and Winnie the Pooh...needless to say....Disney. So we took a fun trip this past Thursday and took the kids to Disneyland on Friday and California Adventures on Saturday-the kids were way thrilled although at times they were more entertained with playing on the ground with their matchbox cars-go figure.

Airplane ride for the 2 year olds:

Group Picture:

Cars, cars and more cars: Two little buddies:
Had to go on Dumbo 3 times!!!
Going Home:

Whats CALI without Inn-N-Out!!!

Church Cancelled??

As most people know we Belchers are night owls who enjoy sleeping in-so when we woke up one Sunday (around 10 or 11) we had 3 messages that church got cancelled. And the pictures would explain why. Good thing Paul got a snow plow for the 4wheeler this winter or we would certainly be trapped. Our backyard had snow to the top of the fence line and the front had a snow drift of 40 inches Paul measured for the fun of it. We had so much fun with the snow.

President Hinckley's Viewing

I grew up loving President Hinckley mainly because my mother always said if your Grandfather (her dad-who passed away when she was 21) were still alive that is exactly what he would have looked like. So when ever I saw him I thought of my Grandpa who I would one day meet. And the funniest thing happened when Logan was born, while in the NICU all the nurses thought he looked like the prophet so they would take pictures of him-I still have a poloroid they gave me. Logan had his new hair with a receiding hair line, a cute little face and they added some glasses...it looked like the Prophet or as my mom said her father.
I kept hearing on Thurday that the line for the viewing was only 45 mins to 1 hour 15 so I thought I can do that! So Paul and I went at 3:30 pm on Friday and waited as time slowly crawled by. It was finally 7:30 when we moved from the main conference area to upstairs. We were walking in the Hall of Prophets and all of a sudden it was so reverent and peaceful. We get to the end room and there was President Hickley with the cutest grin on his face. Just looking at him you knew he completed his assignment here on earth above and beyond-he was such an amazing Prophet. I only can think how excited he was to see his wife on the other side-can you imagine the embrace. I received a poem on one of my emails that I thought was sweet.

Prophetic Passing

I imagine he’s running to Marjorie now,
Yes, running, not waving his cane.
I see him embracing his father and mother
While they keep repeating his name.

I see him now meeting his forebears,
Brother Brigham and Joseph are there.
Sweet reunion of prophets, united by service
That only such noble men share.

I see him embraced by the Savior
While Father says, “Good and well done.
So faithful in stalwart endurance, I welcome
My noble, most excellent son.”

I then hear the ripples of laughter
As he says the reception’s just fine,
But he hopes that he’ll get an assignment or two
Since there’s no need to waste any time.

I hear his clear voice in the stillness
At the close of this sweet Sabbath day,
Have faith and move forward – there’s work to be done.
President Hinckley would want it that way.

Anna M. Molgard
January 27, 2008

Discovery at the Gateway

I couldn't get a babysitter for Logan one night at a Jazz game so I decided to ride along with Paul and go hang out at the gateway during the game. Logan and I had a blast!!! We went to the Gateway Discovery and played and played until it closed at 9:30 pm at night. They had zones of different areas like a construction site with a cool little crane to lift blocks, a grocery store, farm, water area and a younger kids play place (and cute dress up outfits at each zone). They have an exibit coming Feb 8th with Sesame Street that teaches kids about the human body: lips, nose, eyes etc. They said its over a million dollar exibit and totally amazing so we are excited. Paul was jealous after I told him of all the fun things but no worries I got the family an annual pass:) So if anyone wants to explore the Gateway Discovery give Logan and I a call and we will join you.

Jazzing it up with the McAllisters

We had a fun date night with Susie and Spencer at the jazz game-I think its funny though when girls get together for a sporting event we tend to miss the whole thing because we're talking the whole time.

Father like Son

So I walk into the office and Logan is imitating daddy on the phone. He actually was making chit chat with no one on the other line-it was too cute.

At last entertained

So we finally joined the rest of the world and got a DVD player installed in Paul's truck. Logan absolutely loves to go in the car now. Seriously what did families do before this?

Snow Suit

At the beginning of January I suited up Logan to go play in the snow and I was amazed he wasn't very excited about stepping in the snow. But then just yesterday we attempted to make a snowman and again not very interested but then he learned how to throw snowballs and it all changed. He loved throwing snow-such a boy.

08-08-08

Our newest addition should be making an appearance on Aug. 8th!!! I am currently 12 weeks pregnant and feeling great. I have a new doctor, Steven Terry and he seems wonderful- I figure anything can be better than the last go around so I am looking forward to a whole new experience. Logan is currently obsessed with babies so it will be fun when he realizes whats going on. Paul wants another little boy but I will be thrilled with either-the Chinese calender says its a girl so we'll see if their 2 for 2.

Charlie Brown Christmas

We were a bit pathetic this year with the Christmas Spirit...or maybe just Christmas organization. I threw out my artifical tree last year in hopes to start getting a real tree but what of course happens we wait for the last minute and couldn't find a Christmas tree lot. Until...it was Christmas Eve and we were up in Park City at Paul's dads house celebrating together. They hadn't decorated their freshly cut tree so they offered their tree to us but I only wanted a mini one for Logan so we cut the top 3 feet off of it and brought it home. Paul configured a stand for it, decorated with ribbon and lights and placed a angel Moroni statue on top-ta da we had a tree. We stayed up late wrapping presents for Logan- he really didn't need any more toys but he finally got the concept of opening presents and he loves it. So I ordered a bunch of his favorite Disney Cars so he could open an assortment of boxes. I just had a video of Christmas day so you just get to see a picture of Logan with the tree the day after-its the perfect Charlie Brown Christmas tree (we even took off the lights ba humbug).

Typically we leave town for Christmas but because this month was so crazy we figured to stay put. And we were glad we did. We spent Christmas Eve with Paul's dad and family, did our own thing Christmas morning, did Christmas lunch with my mom and mike and Christmas dinner with Paul's mom and family. So New Years resolution: I am going to start my preparations earlier next year-oh wait thats what I say every year.

Viva Las Vegas!!!

So we were crazy and went to the BYU vs. UCLA game in 40 degree weather. Who would think Vegas got that cold? (We could not consume enough hot chocolate) It was a tough game to watch- BYU was at their finest :) after a few mistakes we were worried. But some how they blocked that final kick and redeemed themselves-thank goodness. The rest of the trip was fun with good food IN-N-Out all the way!!! It is seriously the greatest- we ate there at least 2 or 3 times within 3 days-you have to order animal style its the only way to go. We had a good time...Go Cougars!

The Culprit

The electronic problems with one of cranes kept us in New Mexico a bit longer than expected. So we were there on Paul's 31st birthday with no cake or presents :( Logan was a good sport he hung out in the truck with mommy because everyday we thought we were leaving so we packed up all our items every morning and went to the power plant for the okay to leave (it didn't happen until Friday night).

Logan loved the hotel we stayed in because all the appliances were at his level-the fridge and microwave. He loved putting all his toys in the microwave for some strange reason and he never pushed the buttons-okay once there was a dial in one of the rooms and he put a can of juice in it!!! Paul shut it down before anything happened. Logan I think enjoyed the trip the most 24 hours a day with both mommy and daddy.

Caramel Nut French Toast

1 c light brown sugar
1/2 c butter
2 T light corn syrup
12 slices honey white bread (or use Kneaders)
3/4 c raisins (I like to use golden)
1 c chopped nuts
6 large eggs
1/2 c milk
2 t grated lemon rind
1 t vanilla extract
1/2 t ground cinnamon
1 c whipping cream
1/4 c powdered sugar

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Combine first 3 ingredients in a small saucepan; cook, stirring constantly, over medium heat 3 to 5 minutes or until sugar dissolves.

Pour brown sugar mixture into an ungreased 13x9 inch baking dish. Arrange 6 bread slices in brown sugar mixture, cutting slices as necessary to fit in dish. Sprinkle raisins and 3/4 c pecans evenly over bread. Top w/remaining bread slices.

Whisk together eggs, next 4 ingredients, and 1 cup of whipping cream. Pour egg mixture over bread slices in baking dish.

Bake uncovered for 40 mins or until a wooden pick inserted comes out clean.

Drizzle with maple syrup and remaining chopped nuts-and ENJOY!!!

BBQ Pork Ribs

Sauce:
1/4 c. chopped onions
3T worchestershire sauce
2T Vinegar
1/8 t garlic powder (or clove of garlic)
dash red pepper
dash of chili powder
1/2 c. brown sugar
3/4 c. ketcup

(I typically double this recipe because I like to have extra sauce)

Heat in sauce pan and bring to a boil. Add 1 T flour to thicken. Pour on meat and bake @300 to 325 for 2-3 hours.

Pork: I use boneless country style ribs-lately I have been using boneless shoulder and its good!!!

Herriman or BUST

So we left Sunday the 9th to go to New Mexico so Paul could help with some technical difficulties with one of our cranes and...we are still here 5 days later. I am definitly learning how to get around in Farmington, New Mexico. It is a bit of a shock to me because I have never seen so many Native Americans-in California or Utah- it is a little different being a minority. (I keep hoping to spot Jacob-heheheh if you catch my drift). Logan and I were sitting in a hamburger joint the other day and he kept saying "He Haw" (his donkey impression) but it kept coming out as "Ye Ha" kinda like a cowboy and then I thought this was a bit weird my little white boy with his typical mohawk (which orginates from the Indians) was running around saying "Ye Ha" and suddenly I was hoping no one was being offended by these random things.

P.s. the picture of Logan is from Dec 06 the hair hasn't changed

Flashback Jazz Birthday '06

I thought it would be fun to flashback to the other party in '06.

The carwash and crane cakes were pretty cool.

4th Annual Jazz Birthday Bash

To celebrate his birthday Paul started a tradition 4 years ago by inviting his close buddies from high school to a Utah Jazz Game. (It started because we would buy a car from Larry H Miller and get 10 free Jazz tickets.) In 2004 we went to Z-Tejas for dinner and then went to the game. In 2005 Paul gave his tickets to his friends and stayed home because he was still laid up from his accident. But he was thrilled to carry on the tradition. Then in 2006 we decided to celebrate both Paul (Dec 10th) and Corey Bruse's (Nov 30th) birthday at the same time-so the party grew a bit. We now get the top boxes at the Jazz game and they cater with dinner and all-its a blast!!!

Logan's 2!!!

November 25th was Logan's 2nd Birthday and all he wanted was Disney's Cars. So we got him a Cars cake and he literally drove the car off. Grandma Cher Cher got Logan the Cars comforter set and he jumped up and down shouting "Cars, Cars." My mom got him some cute clothes that are in the top picture of the blog.

Thankgiving at the Dunes

We had a great time this Thanksgiving!!! We headed southwest and went to the sand dunes-Logan and I's first time ever. We have a membership to Toyshare so were took some dune machines and a motorhome for the big adventure. It was a bit cold so I was thrilled for the heater and plumbing and Logan was thrilled to have his DVD player:). I had to layer and layer Logan and his largest jacket I could find was his Halloween costume so YUP he was a zebra out on the dunes w/goggles and all. Logan absolutely loves 4 wheelers but Grandpa brought a Rino which is like a zupped up golf cart-I strapped his carseat in and off we went.

For our Thanksgiving dinner Grandpa Dave deep fried the turkey and it was good!!! We all brought dinner items and had a full blown dinner. Good Times.

Bella has been casted!!!

So I am one of those crazed fans of the Twilight Series. Paul and I went to the District the other night and saw Dan in Real Life (it was great) and I passed by a poster that was titled something Bella and I only thought SWEET. I knew they were making a movie I just didn't know how quick. Supposivly they have not casted Edward (can't wait to see who they choose) but they did cast Kristen Stewart as Bella. They said they'll start filming in Feb-can't wait.

Carmel Apples...Yummy

I'm Enrichment Leader for our Ward and I love it!!! We just had our November Enrichment and we had a Nordstrom personal shopper come and she gave us lessons on how to dress for our body type and she also gave advice on upcoming fashions. It was a nice Enrichment because the speaker took up most of the time so I focused my efforts on refreshments...thats were the carmel apples come into play. I tried a few recipes but all the carmel wanted to come off so I revamped my plan and unwrapped over 300 carmels. My friend Susie and I stayed up pretty late and dipped the apples into the carmel. The next day we dipped them into chocolate and then into different toppings-oreo, toffee, peanuts and reeses peanutbuttercups (we did about 45 of them).

Paul was in charge of watching Logan that night so he ordered Logan's most favorite thing CHEESE PIZZA. Before I left I had to get a picture of Logan 2 handing it!!!