Baker Fam Plus TWO

It's been a pretty exciting few months for the Baker household. Quinn married Brittany Allison in the Las Vegas Temple on December 18th. It was a perfect day, they are a perfect couple, it was the PERFECT wedding. (I do not recommend a seven month engagement however).
Quinn met Brittany through Jordan. So far Jordan is 2-2 with matching up his siblings with their mates. (I know you know I have to say it....can't someone find a girl for Jordan?) Once Quinn and Brittany started dating it went full speed ahead. Quinn liked everything about her from the beginning, and she really is perfect. She's beautiful on the inside and the out. She's spiritual and smart. She's motivated and kind and most importantly SHE LOVES QUINN!! She has exactly the qualities I would have picked for Quinn if I was the one in charge of picking and at the top of the list...she brings out the VERY best in Quinn.




Then shortly after all the wedding festivities were over Danielle and Tyler had a beautiful baby boy on January 10th. They named him Jesse after my father and my grandfather. Jesse was very considerate and waited until Grandma could fly in. He arrived shortly after I landed in Sacramento. He was 5 days late and would probably of been even more if Tyler hadn't of been a man of many persuasive words. He was 9 lbs 11 oz. He looks just like Emree only bigger and more masculine. Being a grandma is something I've looked forward to for a few years now. I have always loved babies and having them around again is very special. Tyler and Danielle are amazing parents. The hardest part is not being near enough to see them often enough.





Welcome to the family Brittany and Jesse. We feel very blessed to have you.

If Quinn can do it, so can I

I sorta gave up on blogging. Really it's just soo much pressure-- To try to make what you do positive, interesting, and funny....it isn't always. But Quinn has motivated me. He recently got married....Post coming next on that. And seriously he is happy. Thank you Brittany!!! And after the marriage and honeymoon they have started a blog! So far Quinn has been the only one to post and I say if Quinn can do it SO CAN I. I promise Quinn something very interesting coming your way VERY SOON!!!

Letting Go of IT

I'm learning to let go of something this month that I have cared about very much for the past five years. I have spent many sleepless hours thinking about IT and all the good times, the bad times, the joy, the memories, the girls. I have loved the spirit of IT, the tradition of IT, and the quality of IT! IT was very hard to walk away from in the first place, but I was sure that things would be okay....they are NOT! One thing I keep telling myself is that IT is not the most important thing, and in the grand scheme of things....IT does not matter soo much. But for now IT does. IT hurts to see the sadness, the pain, the lost dreams and hopes. No one will truly know how much IT meant to me, or how badly I wish things would have gone different with IT. Would of, should of, could of's are sometimes HARD to live with!

That would be an UNDERSTATEMENT!!!!!

To say I had a pretty great weekend would be an understatement.....It was about family and spending time together and the only thing lacking was the rest of the family. I got to go to Spokane Friday and pick up Jordan from the airport. Friday night at the football game they honored Jordan and Reid. They were both inducted into the Hall of Fame at Moses Lake High School. Reid was inducted as a volunteer and as the driving force behind all the volunteers that built the team room. I am constantly amazed at his willingness to help whomever, whenever and grateful EVERY DAY of my life for falling in love with him 28 years ago. He joked that he was a pretty good athlete as well and I completely agree....I like to think that our boys got some of their athletic ability from me but I know it's not true....(has anyone EVER seen me do anything remotely athletic?)
They also inducted Jordan, he was and IS a great athlete. I can't tell you how much joy over the years he has brought us as we watched him excel on the field and court. He was an ALL STATE football player and a college basketball player. He still loves playing everything and he's still the first picked for every team....but the best part of the weekend is that Jordan had no one else to entertain him and he and I got to spend LOTS of time together. It was a GREAT weekend.

Congratulations are in order.......

Obviously I am a little behind on my posts and I've got some catching up to do....but we had a couple of significant milestones in the last couple of months for Mackenzie.....she performed in her last dance recital, she graduated from seminary, she graduated from high school and she turned 18. June was a great month of celebration and we are all so proud of her and her many accomplishments. She is the youngest of all her friends so she patiently waits for her birthday each year, we had dinner at Inca and then we had some friends out for some games and cake and she got lots of things to help with her move out.




Her last dance recital was a few days later and her and 6 of her good friends are leaving a very large hole at the studio. They have been amazing performers, great teachers and outstanding examples and their shoes are nearly impossible to fill.... I have been involved with dance for 15 years and had our own studio for 10 years all because I wanted my daughters to have a quality program, and now I will have no daughters at the studio.... It's a very weird feeling.






Seminary graduation came next and of course I think that was one of her most important accomplishments. WE have two great seminary teachers at our high school and Mackenzie loved them both. Our students are lucky enough to have released time and we really do view it as a blessing in the lifes of our children. Mackenzie's testimony grew because of her time in class with Brother Welty and Sister Payne.



And last but not least was high school graduation....it was a VERY HOT day at Lion's field, but a very memorable one. It's an end to a chapter, but a beginning as well. WE are so proud of you Mackenzie. WE look forward with great anticipation to see the next things you will take on and accomplish. Mackenzie is working in the fall to save some money and plans to attend UVU starting winter semester.







And best of all, we were lucky enough to have Grandma Jewkes share in ALL the festivities!!!

Save the DATE

I have been a little busy as of late and haven't had a change to blog....I'm going to try and be better. I'm going to catch up. But for now I really need to just tell you the best of news.....Quinn is engaged. He has been dating this wonderful, adorable girl named Brittany Allison from Las Vegas. They met in Utah. Jordan dated her sister and him and Brittany were friends. Jordan invited her to a night of bowling with the boys and Quinn was invited as well. They didn't really talk much that night and were not formally introduced. After the evening, Brittany told Jordan that she would like to meet his brother-Quinn, she thought he was cute. And so the story began. They hung out for a week or two every night at Jordan's. Finally Quinn had the guts to ask for her phone number so he could ask her out on a date. I have never seen Quinn more happy. He is talkative and smiley and fun to be around....if you know Quinn, you will know that is not typical behavior for him. Brittany is just perfect. She's kind and sweet and smart and patient and puts up with all Quinn's sacrasm and jokes. We are so excited to have her in the Baker family. They have chosen December 18th as their wedding date in the Las Vegas Temple..... Save the Date!! More information coming...

Spring Break Continued.....

Besides our trip to Forks, WA for Spring Break we spent a couple of days in the Seattle area. I pricelined a hotel and got a beautiful Doubletree Inn right next to our favorite mall. We were lucky enough to get a beautiful view room on the PENTHOUSE level and for a little extra Valet parking. Because we were feeling so special we went ahead and ordered room service as well. It wasn't the best creme brulee' we have ever had, but it was the most expensive.



We had a wonderful lunch at Rainforest Cafe. Yes, most of the crowd was much younger....and the kids tease me, but I just love that place. It makes me feel like I'm at Disneyland and I'm going to walk out of it, turn to the left and get in line for the Matterhorn.

We spent quite a bit of time at the mall, but here we had to split up. Kenzie LOVE's Forever 21. Easton heads to the nearest Gamestop and you can find me in any store that sell's clothes Emree's size....(because she REALLY NEEDS some more clothes). Reid always likes to always say, "Look at all the money you saved....".

WE watched 'How to Train a Dragon' in Imax. It's cute, but not really worth $16. But we each had our own little bag of candy from the Sweet Factory, which makes almost any movie completely worth watching. I do have to say the picture and sound were incredible.





WE rode a ferry on our way to Forks which was exactly like the movie, 'Deja Vue', and we went to Mount Vernon to the Tulip Festival. I have heard about the Tulip Festival for 20 years, ever since I moved to Washington and this year I told the kids, "I'm going no matter what!"....They just didn't know they were going with me, but they were good sports. The problem was the weather. It was freezing. It was windy, and rainy and windy.....did I mention the wind? We weren't really prepared and all we could do was barely get out of the car, walk as fast as we could possibly walk to the fields, quickly snap a picture of the beautiful tulips and run right back to the warm car. I can only imagine on a very warm, sunny day with no wind how beautiful it might really be.







It's been a tradition of ours to do something for spring break. Reid is always busy planting and unable to get away so the kids and I have gone somewhere almost every year. When the kids were little it was much harder of course. This year I realized my time with Kenzie is very short. She's a senior and soon will be leaving our house to an apartment of her own and her next big adventure. I love every minute I get to spend with my kids. They are strong, valiant spirits and they make me so proud. I love to see them interact with each other and the friends they are to each other.

Spring Break next year, how 'bout it Easton?