Nichols Family

October

2010-12-14T19:42:00.000-08:00

We went to Thanksgiving point to go to Cornbelly's and didn't know it didn't open until later in the evening. Oops, I guess we should have checked the hours before we left. But we ended up making it a whole day trip. We went to In and Out burger for lunch, headed back to Thanksgiving point and went to the dinosaur museum, then went over to Cornbelly's. It ended up being such a fun day...until we went back to our car to leave and we had a dead battery!

Our cute little dinosaur and butterfly

Ashton's party

2010-10-13T20:58:00.001-07:00

For Ashton's party we went to bouncin' off the walls again. We had such a fun time last year that we decided to go back. Every time Ash saw pictures of his last birthday he would tell us that we wants to do that again.
We took Ash to Toys R us to see what he wanted for his birthday and we came to the motorized vehicles and he found this John Deere tractor that he fell in love with! Needless to say leaving the store was a huge screaming fight!! From that point on anytime anyone mentioned his birthday the only thing he would talk about was his tractor and trailer that he thought he was going to get. It was the best surprise ever! His little face lit up when he saw it. I'm pretty sure Darren and I both cried when we saw his excitement! Thanks Grandma and Grandpa Nichols and Grandma and Grandpa Marzo for going in on it with us! And thanks to everyone else for coming and sharing Ashton's special day with us, and for all the wonderful gifts!

Ashton is 3!!

2010-10-13T20:24:00.000-07:00

Seriously where has the time gone? We love Ashton so much, he makes our lives so fun and entertaining! There is never a dull moment with him and we love it. He has the sweetest little personality and has the ability to make everyone around him laugh. We were truly blessed the day he came into our lives!

He had to use "sharps" to cut the ribbon!

The past 6 weeks...

2010-10-13T19:35:00.000-07:00

I can't believe our little Briana is already 6 weeks old! It makes me so sad to see her growing this fast. But also very grateful that she's growing and healthy. We love her so much and feel so blessed to have this angel in our home. Ashton is so cute with her. He refers to her as "my baby" and to himself as "the big brother". He loves to hold her and touch her cute little ears as much as possible! He is such a good brother!

The newest Nichols

2010-09-21T18:48:00.000-07:00

Briana Jo Nichols

This kid cracks us up!

2010-07-19T07:16:00.000-07:00

He went through this phase where he had to have this shirt of mine with him all the time. It was so funny.

Wearing his helmet while playing basketball...

Silver Lake

2010-07-18T18:35:00.000-07:00

We enjoyed a beautiful Saturday afternoon up at Silver Lake a few weekends ago. Ash had such a good time running around with Jack, playing in the dirt and feeding the ducks.

Playing at Bear Lake

2010-07-18T18:26:00.000-07:00

Dancing at the beach, this boy has some awesome moves!

Big boy bed

2010-04-21T08:08:00.000-07:00

Ashton had so much fun "helping" his Dad make his big boy bed! Everyday he tells me "Mom, Daddy made my big boy bed for me." It's so cute, he absolutely loves his new bed. And we love being able to snuggle him in his bed every night before he falls asleep!

It's a GIRL!!!

2010-03-13T19:35:00.000-08:00

I love her arm in this picture

Her sweet profile.

Making cookies

2010-02-25T07:26:00.000-08:00

Ashy and I made cookies yesterday, can I just say how wonderful it is to have an oven that actually works?! I've been promising him for the past few weeks we could make cookies but I just haven't felt up to it. So yesterday morning I felt really good so I told him today is the day. He had so much eating the chocolate chips and helping me pour in the ingredients.

Pouting because I wouldn't let him eat anymore cookie dough...

2010-02-25T07:18:00.000-08:00

After a year of trying... I'm finally pregnant!!! We are so excited. Ashton insists on talking to the baby every night before bed and wants to show the baby all his toys. It's so cute. I'm 12 weeks along now and I'm due September 5th. I can't wait!!!

Washington

2010-02-03T14:26:00.000-08:00

We decided to head to Washington to visit the Pigs 2 days after Christmas and had planned a big surprise for them! We were just going to show up on their doorstep without them knowing we were coming... So 15 hours later we arrive at their house and we notice that only one light was on in the house. So we just figure that it was around the kids bedtime so they had turned the lights off. Well after ringing the doorbell 5 times, knocking on the door and peeking into a window we figure they weren't home! You can imagine our disappointment. So we get loaded back in the car and luckily we bought us a trusty GPS before we left so we find us a hotel to stay in for the night. Needless to say we were exhausted by the time we got there and crashed right away. The next morning I text Pig and say you guys better not dilly dally on your way home (we found out later that night they were still at Dani's sisters house and they live about 2 hours away)... SO about 3 hours later, after breakfast and a trip to the car dealership (our check engine light came on right when we got to Maple Valley, luckily it was covered under warranty!) we got back to their house. It was such an amazing trip! We had so much fun and it was so good to see Pig, Dani and the kiddos! Thanks for such a fun trip and for letting us stay with you guys!

Fall fun

2009-11-29T20:27:00.000-08:00

Ashton and his favorite Piggy!

Ashton jumps off everything he can lately.

I love watching his hair fly while he's running!

Ashton loves to feed the cows and the horses at the farm!

Tayli, Jack and Ash all took turns jumping from the rock.

After his birthday party...

2009-10-09T14:03:00.000-07:00

Ashy's birthday lunch

2009-10-09T13:16:00.000-07:00

Bouncin' off the walls!

2009-10-06T11:41:00.000-07:00

For Ashton's second birthday we went to Bouncin' off the walls! It was so much fun! The huge slide was the best part of it I think. There was not a moment when there wasn't someone on it. And the adults had just as much fun... if not more fun than the kids! Thanks everyone for coming and sharing his special day with us! Love you all!

I love this boy so much!!!

2009-09-18T20:10:00.000-07:00

Some um... interesting pictures!

2009-09-18T19:06:00.000-07:00

I'm pretty sure Julie and I sat at our computer taking these pictures for 2 hours straight!!! Then when Darren got home we did the same thing. My favorite one is the one of Darren looking a little pinched. haha It kills me every time I see it!

Fun with Jack

2009-09-18T18:35:00.000-07:00

Camping

2009-09-14T08:03:00.000-07:00

We went for a quick overnight camping trip a few weeks ago up at the Spruces campground. It was so nice!!! We had the best spot up there, it was off the road, up a big hill, and away from all the other campers. We were so worried about how Ashton would sleep in the tent but he did great! We didn't bring his little crib because I thought it would be better for him to just sleep with us that way I knew he was covered and warm all night. When it came time for him to go to bed he crawled up into my arms and said " I go na-night Momma." So we carried him into the tent and laid him down, kissed him goodnight and he was gone! We were so surprised by how easy it was. He's such a good boy!!

Enjoying a sticky, delicious s'more!

Yogurt

2009-07-06T15:46:00.000-07:00

Ash insist on drinking his yogurt instead of eating it with a spoon...The result? A HUGE mess! There was one point were he put the bowl on his head and said "my hat".

Ashton Idaho

2009-07-06T15:27:00.000-07:00

We stopped in Ashton Idaho to have a little picnic and to take Ashton's yearly picture in front of the Ashton sign. While we were there we visited some of Darren's relatives and went to some of his favorite places where he spent a lot of time when he was younger.

Yellowstone

2009-07-06T15:15:00.000-07:00

Ash fell asleep with a muffin in his hand and all over his face.

The water was so cold Dar's flip flops froze to his feet!

2009-07-06T14:41:00.000-07:00

When I get Ashton out of the tub he loves to run around naked...I don't let him do it very often because he always ends up going potty on the floor, so when he gets the chance he takes full advantage of it!

Bear World

2009-07-06T14:11:00.000-07:00

On our way home from Yellowstone Darren surprised us by stopping at Bear World! We've been wanting to go for a couple of years now but just haven't done it. I was SO excited to go mainly because Ash would be able to see the animals pretty close up and I knew he would LOVE it! So we get to the window to pay and the prices seemed kind of high for a quick drive through this place...but it was so worth it! We saw so many bears it was crazy! Everywhere you looked there was a group of them. It was so awesome! And we were surprised to find out that you can drive through it as many times as you wanted. They also had a little petting zoo and a little enclosure that had a bunch of baby bears. It was seriously so much fun!

We let him get out of his car seat so he could see better, and he HAD to sit on Dar's lap and drive the car!

Painting

2009-07-06T13:54:00.000-07:00

This boy loves to paint! And to make a huge mess...

I love the paint in his dimple!!!

Sleepy boy

2009-05-03T21:12:00.000-07:00

Nothing beats a Sunday afternoon nap!

Ashy Boy

2009-05-03T20:24:00.000-07:00

Calling Daddy!

TaDa!!!

When things get a little quiet you can usually find Ashton sitting on the couch with our computer in his lap!

I love this boy so much!!!

2009-03-22T21:32:00.000-07:00

Happy Anniversary Darren!

2009-03-17T09:22:00.000-07:00

I love you so much Dar!!! Thanks for 2 amazing years of marriage!

Booster seat

2009-02-20T12:10:00.000-08:00

We got Ashton a new booster seat once he started showing interest in sitting at the table with us. He LOVES it so much. When he was in his high chair he would throw all his food on the floor and squirm until we got him out of it. The night we got it home and sat him in it for dinner he was so excited and acted so much better, he sat there and ate all his dinner and not one thing ended up on the floor. It was wonderful!!!

Silly

2009-02-20T10:38:00.001-08:00

Darren is so funny! He was outside shoveling the snow and I looked out the window to find him wearing a winter coat with gloves...and flip flops with shorts!!!

Random pictures of the past few months

2009-02-20T10:04:00.000-08:00

He thinks he's so COOL now that he can climb up on the kitchen chairs and sit like a big boy.

Ashton was driving around on his four wheeler with a drink in one hand...and a cookie in the other. He's very talented!

Ashy and Takaiya love to crawl into the cabinets on our entertainment center. Silly kids!!!

I told him to smile at me and this is what I got! He's becoming such a cheese ball!

Thanksgiving

2008-12-26T09:40:00.000-08:00

2008-12-26T09:25:00.000-08:00

Ashton's first hair cut

2008-12-25T20:17:00.000-08:00

Before

After

Abby

2008-11-15T14:45:00.000-08:00

Introducing the newest member of the Nichols family...Abby!!! She's a 10 week old golden retriever great pyrenees mix...we think. She is such an adorable dog! Needless to say it was love at first sight!

Halloween night

2008-11-04T09:41:00.000-08:00

Last canyon trip of the year...

2008-11-04T09:24:00.000-08:00

one year ago...

2008-10-02T20:02:00.002-07:00

Ashton's 1st birthday party!

2008-10-02T20:02:00.001-07:00

He didn't like playing in his cake.

This is as dirty as he got!

Football

2008-10-02T20:02:00.000-07:00

Three silly girls racing up the hill.

I think Tay won.

Dar doing what he does best...

I love the comparison of their hands in this picture.

2008-10-02T19:48:00.000-07:00

Playing in the fridge...

Oh man! Mom caught me!

He loves pushing everything around.

Mowing the lawn with Dad!

2008-09-07T11:11:00.000-07:00

2008-09-07T10:29:00.000-07:00

He had a potato bug...

I'm trying to get as many pictures of him crawling like a stink bug before he stops crawling all together.

He loves pushing the chairs around in the kitchen.

Em's got the magic touch.

Ash loves visiting Grandma and Grandpa!

He loves his big boy car seat.

Ash is walking now! Yay!!!

Walking has been wearing him right out!

There was a squirrel in our back yard...kinda random!

Yummy!

Jackson had so much fun painting!

The famous bath tub

2008-08-14T11:38:00.001-07:00

All the kids enjoyed a nice warm bath before bed. Tayli and Grayden got in first and giggled the whole time...of course I didn't have my camera at the time! Next we put Ash in. He wasn't quiet sure at first but he finally relaxed and had a good time. Dani had Grayden all ready for bed when we decided to put him in the tub again so we could take some pictures with Ash. They turned out so cute!

Richmond's cabin

2008-08-14T11:27:00.000-07:00

We went up to the Richmond's cabin this past weekend but we only have a few pictures of it because it rained pretty much the whole time. The first morning we went down to the river and Tayli and Darren started throwing rocks into the water...next thing Darren knows a rock hits him on the back. So Dani tells Tay to throw the rocks only into the water and to not throw upper hand since they always go the opposite direction, so Darren jokingly says "oh I'm sure it won't be the last time this trip that I get hit with a rock"...and not 10 seconds later he gets hit in the back again. It was so funny, Talyi kills us. We had such a fun time thanks for having us up!

Ashton in Ashton

2008-08-14T11:18:00.000-07:00

We stopped in Ashton Idaho on our way home from yellowstone to take Ashton's picture in front of the welcome to Ashton signs...

Yellowstone

2008-08-14T11:10:00.000-07:00

We took so many pictures this trip it was ridiculous, so I thought it would be faster to put them on a slide show.

Stair master

2008-07-22T11:48:00.000-07:00

Ashton loves to climb up the stairs and venture into the front room to look out our glass door hoping that Daddy is home!

2008-07-22T11:36:00.000-07:00

Ash tried G-mans helmet on! It was so hard for him to keep his little melon up.

A coke and a smile

2008-07-22T11:14:00.000-07:00

Sorry Pat...Coke was all we had.

Goofball

2008-07-22T11:11:00.000-07:00

snuggler

2008-07-22T10:33:00.000-07:00

Ash isn't very snuggly anymore now that he has found his freedom in crawling so we have to enjoy it whenever we get the chance!

It lasted all of 5 seconds!

Gagger

2008-07-22T10:25:00.000-07:00

Darren gags really bad whenever he's changing one of Ashton's stinkers...so to prevent that from happening he's started to shove 2 wet wipes up his nose!

Bear Lake

2008-07-07T20:48:00.000-07:00

Thanks Skip and Sharay for having us up at the cabin! We had so much fun with you guys!!!

He was trying to close the door on me...

Darren's idea of watching Ashton.

Sharay was cleaning while all the hunting was going on.

Dar and Timmy standing guard. Pot guts beware...

Ash loved hunting pot guts with Uncle Skip!

Ashton had so much playing with other kids toys!

Logan canyon

2008-07-07T20:11:00.000-07:00

We went on a drive up Logan canyon and it was beautiful! We spent most of the day taking pictures and taking in the beauty of the canyon. We went on a dirt road and followed it for hours and came across this perfect little stump and decided to take some pictures on it. Ashton was so sweet he just sat there and posed on it for me while we took his picture over and over. He is honestly the most perfect baby!

Tummy time

2008-06-17T13:33:00.000-07:00

I love how he has his little feet crossed!

Bath tub

2008-06-17T13:19:00.000-07:00

Ash loves to brush his gums and scrub the tub with my toothbrush! Little stinker

His little piggies were so wrinkly from being in the tub for so long. He loves bath time

2008-06-17T13:12:00.000-07:00

Dave's modeling the new summer fashion line for JcPenny's!! ha ha Dave your awesome.

Tayli's Dance recital

2008-06-17T12:53:00.000-07:00

Tay did such a great job at her dance recital, we were all so proud of her! She is such a beautiful dancer.

5 dollar foot long

the proud daddy!

2008-06-16T16:10:00.000-07:00

Darren and Dad had some pictures like this taken on the Corvette when Darren was a baby so we had to take some of Ash with Dar and with his grandpa!

Random pictures of Ashton

2008-05-29T21:51:00.001-07:00

He's rockin his little cub hat...notice all the drool on his chest?

Riding the train at the zoo

Sleepy little peeper!

Ashton with aunt Lisa

Ash with Grandpa Marzo

First thing in the morning...

He loves sitting like a big boy at the kitchen table

Ashton loves his baby eintein movies!!!

Nerf therapy

2008-05-24T19:02:00.000-07:00

Some couples spend upwards of $100 an hour for therapy...for us all it cost was $8.99 and a trip to Toys R Us. If your marriage ever is on the rocks try a Nerf air dark gun and your problems will be solved! Ha ha

2008-05-19T12:44:00.001-07:00

Every time Ash goes to Grandma and Grandpa Marzo's house he gets a little taste of everything...thanks to Lisa and Mom. This time he had his first taste of yogurt and peanut butter and jelly. Needless to say he loved them both! He would lean over to get the spoon in his mouth and would grab onto my hands to ensure that he would get some.

Mohawk

2008-05-19T12:32:00.000-07:00

Zack chopped his mop off and styled his hair to match Ashtons. Handsome little devils huh?!

Highchair

2008-05-19T12:13:00.000-07:00

Thanks Grandma and Grandpa Nichols for my new highchair!!! I love it!

2008-05-19T12:00:00.000-07:00

We had Ashton's pictures taken for Mothers day and they turned out so cute!!! We haven't had the best of luck with Kiddi Kandids in the past but we thought we would try them again... we were very thrilled with what we got this time.

And everyone says he looks just like Dar...

2008-05-08T19:32:00.001-07:00

MyHeritage: Look-alike Meter - Blank family tree - Ancestory

mmm...green beans!

2008-05-06T19:28:00.000-07:00

Ashton loves him some green beans!

Double Big Gulp

2008-05-06T19:08:00.000-07:00

One minute Ashton is drinking his bottle...the next he's ripping the drinks out of our hands trying to figure out how to suck a straw.

2008-04-25T17:29:00.000-07:00

I've been tagged by Lindsay... Here it goes:

A.ATTACHED OR SINGLE? Attached
B.BEST FRIEND? Darren
C.CAKE OR PIE? Ah, cheesecake
D. DAY OF CHOICE? Saturday and Sunday, Darren is home with us!
E. ESSENTIAL ITEMS? Diaper bag, camera, lip gloss, ipod
F. FAVORITE COLORS? Purple
G. GUMMY BEARS OR WORMS? bears
H. HOMETOWN? Salt Lake City, UT
I. INDULGENCE? Going to gymboree and chocolate
J. JANUARY OR JULY? July
K. KIDS? 1 so far…
L. LIFE ISN'T COMPLETE WITHOUT? Love, family & Dr. pepper
M. MARRIAGE DATE? March 17th, 2007
N. NUMBER OF BROTHERS AND SISTERS? Too many to list
O. ORANGES OR APPLES? apples
P. PHOBIAS OR FEARS? Spiders and semi’s on the freeway…they freak me out
Q. QUOTE? “Love is life’s greatest joy”
R. REASONS TO SMILE? Darren, Ashton, Hearing Ash talk through the moniter in the morning, Jackson saying “I love you Nana”, summer, & Christmas morning
S. SUPERMAN OR WONDER WOMAN? Superman
T. TAG 5 PEOPLE- STD Motorsports- aka Skip, Tim & Darren, Luke & Marie
U. UNKNOWN FACT ABOUT ME? I hate to shave my legs-everyone who knows me knows that! I hate to sleep alone, I’m scared of every noise
V. VEGETABLES? Love peas and corn
W. WORST HABIT? I’m an awesome starter…poor finisher
X.. XRAY OR ULTRASOUND? ultrasound
Y. YOUR FAVORITE FOOD? We could be here for days- grilled cheese for starters Z. ZODIAC SIGN? Libra

This is for you Darb

2008-04-25T13:12:00.001-07:00

So Darren has been constantly complaining about the counrty music on our blog... so i added his favorite song on here to make him happy! It's the booty song!!!

Happy late birthday Darren!

2008-04-24T20:57:00.000-07:00

Don't send a lame Birthday eCard.
Try JibJab Sendables!

Yellowstone

2008-04-23T13:25:00.000-07:00

I have such a hard time deciding what pictures to use on here since I have so many dang cute ones so here's a bunch from our trip.

Yellowstone animals

2008-04-23T08:44:00.000-07:00

This was our first Yellowstone trip this year and it was so much fun! We didn't see as many animals as we normally do, but that was do to all the snow that was still there. The first day we drove around the park all day long and only saw elk and buffalo, we went back to our hotel a little discouraged thinking that we came way too early but, the next day really paid off. Darren wanted to go to Old Faithful figuring that we won't see any animals anyway so we may as well go see that and we ended up seeing two grizzly bears about 90 yards from the road. It was so amazing to see the grizzlies that close to the road and that close together. We also saw a coyote and 2 bald eagles while watching the bears.
Mom and Dad thanks for letting us stay in your hotel room with you guys! We had a blast. And Jul thanks for letting us drive with you and Jackson, it was so fun spending time with you!

Chunky Monkey

2008-04-15T13:16:00.000-07:00

We took Ashton to his 6 month doctors appointment last week and he weighed in at 18.92 pounds and is 26 inches long! He is getting HUGE. His doctor is now calling him a chunky monkey... It must be all the peaches and pears and the occasional taste of ice cream he gets.

Silly pictures of Ashton

2008-04-15T12:48:00.000-07:00

More Moab fun!

2008-03-27T19:20:00.000-07:00

Easter Sunday

2008-03-27T18:49:00.001-07:00

"WHAT THE FREAK?!?!"

2008-03-27T18:31:00.000-07:00

The log won the first round...but there will be others! Just teasing Josh we love you, thanks for making us all laugh.

Biking!!!

2008-03-27T09:51:00.000-07:00

2008-03-27T09:37:00.000-07:00

Chelse, Darren, and I went for a beautiful drive looking for Kens lake, it was supposed to be 3 miles ahead from where we were but for some reason we ended up 15 miles up the mountains. Darren got lost. It ended up being a ton of fun and a gorgeous view.

Our cabin

2008-03-27T09:32:00.000-07:00

Easter weekend 2008

2008-03-27T07:57:00.000-07:00

This was our first vacation with Ashton and i would say he did pretty good. The first night in the cabin he froze his little tooshy off and we couldn't get him to sleep in his crib. So he ended up sleeping in between Dar and I (not that i minded much i love sleeping with him)but he fussed most of the night and when we did finally get to sleep we woke up to a sick baby. After that night though we just put him in bed with us and didn't have to many problems with him.
It was a really interesting trip for Darren and I, our lives have changed so much since our last Moab trip. We've realized how much they've changed, but this trip kind of put it into perspective of how different it is now. We went from getting up and going all day not having to worry about anyone else but us, to making sure we have enough diapers and wet wipes for the day. And trying to figure our how we are going to heat up Ashton's bottles out in the middle of no where so he'll eat. And fretting over making sure he had enough sunblock on so he didn't get burned.
It's amazing how much becoming a parent changes every aspect of your life, but amongst all these changes brings the greatest joy and love we've ever known! We absolutely love and adore Ashton and everything he brings to our lives!

Fun at the park

2008-03-11T17:35:00.000-07:00

Julie and all her kids were over at my house today and we decided to go to the park to play. It was so nice outside again so we had to take advantage of it. Jackson was so cute he went down the slide with josh over and over and over again. Josh took Ashton down the slide once as well and i don't think Ash knew how to respond to it, he kind of had a look of shock on his sweet face.

A spring stroll

2008-03-11T16:58:00.000-07:00

I took Ashton outside for a walk yesterday for the first time. He really seemed to enjoy it and didn't make a peep the whole time. We were out for about an hour and a half and I thought he would have fallen asleep by then but when we got back home he was still wide awake taking everything in.

Strip tease!!!

2008-03-09T21:23:00.000-07:00

To help with our families finances Darren has been moonlighting as a chunkndale dancer. Fat boys need some lovin' too!

Ashton's blessing

2008-03-09T21:13:00.000-07:00

2008-03-09T21:05:00.000-07:00

Bringing Ashton home

2008-02-28T20:45:00.000-08:00

These are some pictures of the day we brought our little angel home. It's amazing how much he has grown since then. We used to call him our little peanut because he was so small but now he has become our little walnut...he's gotten so chubby.

Ashton and Mom goofing off

2008-02-28T20:38:00.000-08:00

Tummy time

2008-02-28T20:26:00.000-08:00

We're trying to teach Ashton how to roll over... but his belly gets in the way.

Ashton loves spending time with his cousins

2008-02-28T20:09:00.000-08:00

Snoozing

2008-02-28T20:00:00.000-08:00

The other day i came home to Darren and Ashton taking a snooze together. They look so much alike in this picture. I love my boys!!

Swimming

2008-02-28T19:09:00.000-08:00

For Tayli and Grayden's birthday we went swimming at the Lehi recreational center. Ashton LOVED the warm water, and loved playing with his cousins. They had such fun slides and activities for the kids...including Darren. We had an awesome time!

2008-02-28T14:43:00.000-08:00

Our sweet baby boy

2008-02-28T14:36:00.000-08:00