Noel & Cheryl Smith Family

Cousin Christmas Exchange 2011

2011-09-01T14:23:00.000-07:00

Tristan - Logan
Kylee - Ashlyn
Davis - Aubrey
Preston - Noah

Ashlyn - Kelsie
Autumn - Tristan
Aubrey - Preston
Noah - Kylee

Logan - Autumn
Kelsie - Davis

Memorial Day Options

2011-05-11T10:09:00.000-07:00

Twin Lakes State Beach, Santa Cruz
(allows bonfires, would have to get there early) (40 min)

Our backyard, now is fenced in
Relax in the hammock/redwoods - free :)

Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk & Wharf
Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk -http://www.beachboardwalk.com/ (40 min)

Big Basin Redwood Loop Hike (0.8 mile)

Big Basin State Park (hiking, biking, etc) - http://www.bigbasin.org/index.html (5-10 min away)

Seymour Marine Wildlife Center

Loch Lomond

Boulder Creek Golf & Country Club -http://www.bouldercreekgolf.com/golf/proto/bouldercreekgolf/ (1 min away)

Henry Cowell State Park (hiking, etc) - http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=546 (15 min away)

Natural Bridges State Beach - http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=541 (40 min)

Walking around Capitola Village and beaches (40 min)

Train Ride (15-20 min)
http://www.roaringcamp.com/

The Newest Noah

2011-01-31T12:39:00.000-08:00

My 10th grandchild was born 9 Jan 2011 at 6:27 AM. Noah Thomas Elias Smith weighed 7 lb. 15 oz. 21 inches. Mom and baby are home and doing great.

The Keysers Visit

The Hunters Visit

Christmas 2010

2010-12-31T12:28:00.000-08:00

Anissa's Baby Shower

2010-12-17T12:47:00.000-08:00

Apple Hill 2010

2010-10-31T12:46:00.000-07:00

Bakersfield Visit

2010-09-08T09:17:00.000-07:00

BEST Campout 2010

2010-08-31T12:43:00.000-07:00

Christmas 2010 Cousin Exchange

2010-07-10T14:05:00.001-07:00

Tristan gives to Kelsie

Kylee gives to Ashlyn

Davis gives to Autumn

Preston gives to Aubrey

Ashlyn gives to Davis

Autumn gives to Tristan

Aubrey gives to Logan

Logan gives to Kylee

Kelsie gives to Preston

Carmel Trip

2010-03-05T12:23:00.000-08:00

Smith Family 2009

2009-12-15T15:11:00.000-08:00

Christmas 2009 Christmas Exchange

2009-08-21T10:57:00.001-07:00

Tristan gives to Ashlyn
Kylee gives to Logan
Davis gives to Aubrey
Preston gives to Autumn

Ashlyn gives to Kelsie
Autumn gives to Preston
Aubrey gives to Kylee

Logan gives to Davis
Kelsie gives to Tristan

A "Wicked" Day with the Girls

2009-06-14T22:38:00.000-07:00

Birthday Celebrations for Autumn and Logan

2008-09-02T20:02:00.001-07:00

The afternoon was spent in Old Town Sacramento for Autumn and Logan's birthday. We spent part of the time at the California Sate Railroad Museum. Where the cousins could play and be with each other. We had a great time. Then we ate dinner together and went back to the Becky and Art's house for presents and cake. I think Logan and Autumn loved their presents.So Happy Birthday to Autumn turning 4 on September 8th and Happy Birthday to Logan turning 2 on September 14th!

Preston Dances

2008-08-10T16:15:00.000-07:00

So on Friday when we went to the Antioch Water Park. They had a DJ with music playing. They also had a dance contest every 30 min. and the winners get ice cream. Preston wanted an ice cream so Becky tried to get him to dance and he would not do it. Well while Becky was on the slides with the kids we captured this on video...

Cousin Jam Session

2008-08-07T20:16:00.000-07:00

Kelsie's Baby Blessing

2008-07-29T09:52:00.001-07:00

Mark your calendars:

Kelsie's Baby Blessing will be on Sunday, December 28th at 12:30pm at our ward building.

I figured it might be better to have the blessing in December before we switch time slots to the morning time for those driving over.

As of right now, Kurt's parents along with Rachelle & Dane will probably be flying out the Friday or Saturday before the blessing.

Christmas 2008 Cousin Exchange

2008-07-29T09:48:00.000-07:00

Tristan buys for Autumn
Kylee buys for Ashlyn
Davis buys for Logan
Preston buys for Kelsie
Ashlyn buys for Tristan
Autumn buys for Kylee
Aubrey buys for Davis
Logan buys for Preston
Kelsie buys for Aubrey

Maui 2008

2008-07-18T07:50:00.000-07:00

Preston's 3rd Birthday!

2008-06-19T21:40:00.000-07:00

Preston turned 3 years old today and the girls and I were able to go to his party. Here are some pictures from today.

Happy 3rd Birthday Preston!

2008-06-18T08:37:00.001-07:00

Hope you have fun at your party tomorrow!
Love,
Uncle Kurt, Aunt Rachel, & Logan

Dad's Eulogy

2008-06-15T21:57:00.000-07:00

I typed up Dad's Eulogy I wrote, so we have an electronic version on my blog. Thought I'd share! Click HERE.

The Girl's Dance Recital

2008-06-09T14:10:00.000-07:00

On Sat. we went to Kylee's and Tristan's dance recital. They did very good, but the show was very long. Here are some pictures and a video of the dance Tristan and Kylee were in together.
That evening and the next day for dinner we celebrated the girl's dance recital, Preston's 3rd Birthday, Father's day with Art and Noah and Tristan's 5th grade graduation.

Belated Mother's Day!

2008-05-19T10:35:00.001-07:00

Pictures from our Mother's day lunch in Brentwood:

2008-05-06T09:34:00.000-07:00

Political Science for Dummies

DEMOCRAT	You have two cows. Your neighbor has none. You feel guilty for being successful. You push for higher taxes so the government can provide cows for everyone.
REPUBLICAN	You have two cows. Your neighbor has none. So?
SOCIALIST	You have two cows. The government takes one and gives it to your neighbor. You form a cooperative to tell him how to manage his cow.
COMMUNIST	You have two cows. The government seizes both and provides you with milk. You wait in line for hours to get it. It is expensive and sour.
CAPITALISM, AMERICAN STYLE	You have two cows. You sell one, buy a bull, and build a herd of cows.
BUREAUCRACY, AMERICAN STYLE	You have two cows. Under the new farm program the government pays you to shoot one, milk the other, and then pours the milk down the drain.
AMERICAN CORPORATION	You have two cows. You sell one, lease it back to yourself and do an IPO on the 2nd one. You force the two cows to produce the milk of four cows. You are surprised when one cow drops dead. You spin an announcement to the analysts stating you have downsized and are reducing expenses. Your stock goes up.
FRENCH CORPORATION	You have two cows. You go on strike because you want three cows. You go to lunch and drink wine. Life is good.
JAPANESE CORPORATION	You have two cows. You redesign them so they are one-tenth the size of an ordinary cow and produce twenty times the milk. They learn to travel on unbelievably crowded trains. Most are at the top of their class at cow school.
GERMAN CORPORATION	You have two cows. You engineer them so they are all blond, drink lots of beer, give excellent quality milk, and run a hundred miles an hour. Unfortunately they also demand 13 weeks of vacation per year.
ITALIAN CORPORATION	You have two cows but you don't know where they are. You break for lunch. Life is good.
RUSSIAN CORPORATION	You have two cows. You have some vodka. You count them and learn you have five cows. You have some more vodka. You count them again and learn you have 42 cows. The Mafia shows up and takes over however many cows you really have.
TALIBAN CORPORATION	You have all the cows in Afghanistan , which are two. You don't milk them because you cannot touch any creature's private parts. You get a $40 million grant from the US government to find alternatives to milk production but u se the money to buy weapons.
IRAQI CORPORATION	You have two cows. They go into hiding. They send radio tapes of their mooing.
POLISH CORPORATION	You have two bulls. Employees are regularly maimed and killed attempting to milk them.
BELGIAN CORPORATION	You have one cow. The cow is schizophrenic. Sometimes the cow thinks he's French, other times he's Flemish. The Flemish cow won't share with the French cow. The French cow wants control of the Flemish cow's milk. The cow asks permission to be cut in half. The cow dies happy.
FLORIDA CORPORATION	You have a black cow and a brown cow. Everyone votes for the best looking one. Some of the people who actually like the brown one best accidentally vote for the black one. Some people vote for both. Some people vote for neither. Some people can't figure out how to vote at all. Finally, a bunch of guys from out-of-state tell you which one you think is the best-looking cow.
CALIFORNIA CORPORATION	You have millions of cows. They make real California cheese. Only five speak English. Most are illegal. Arnold likes the ones with the big udders.

Additional 72 Hour Kit items

2008-05-05T19:59:00.000-07:00

Our Emergency Prep Specialist recently passed out a list of 72-hour kit items. She had several items listed that I hadn't thought of before...so I thought I'd pass them on!

*Dust mask
*Warm hat
*Local map
*Permanent marker
*Paper & tape
*Photos of family members/pets id purposes
*Extra prescription eye glasses
*Extra keys to house and vehicles

Kylee's 9th Birthday Luau

2008-04-21T17:10:00.000-07:00

Kylee had a really nice birthday luau party on Saturday. There were 24 girls having a blast. The games kept the girls busy for the 3 hours. We all had a great time and Kylee did too.

Chile Lime Chicken Tacos Recipe

2008-04-17T17:24:00.001-07:00

I haven't tried this yet, but I found the recipe and it looked really yummy so I thought I'd share!

"The key here is the chile lime chicken burgers which are nicely flavored with cilantro and lime. You don't need to add any more spices. So if you need a good meal in about 20 minutes check this out.

Here are the ingredients you'll need:

* Trader Joe's Chile Lime Chicken Burgers, (these are in the freezer section)
* Fire Roasted Guacamole,(if you have time make my guacamole recipe, you can't beat fresh)
* Trader Joe's Corn Tortillas
* 1 lb. mild cheddar cheese, grate the amount you think you will need
* 1 or 2 cans of cooked pinto beans
* sour cream, optional
* 1/4 cup of vegetable oil per can of beans

Directions:

Start cooking your beans first. Pour one can of cooked beans in a sauce pan and add about 2/3 cup of water, 1/4 cup of oil, pinch of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder. Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to medium and boil until you are ready to serve (about 15 to 18 minutes). Turn off the flame and mash with a masher.

Prepare all your condiments next. Grate the cheese, stir the guacamole (if store bought) or make homemade guacamole
(my favorite).

The box of chile lime burgers contains 4 patties and will make about 8 to 10 tacos depending on what all you put in them. I cooked 2 of the burgers and 1 can of beans and it matched up nicely making about 6 tacos.

Cook the burger's according to the directions on the box. When you are ready to serve the tacos, sprinkle water on three corn tortillas and place them on a paper towel in a dish. Cover with another paper towel and cook about 35 seconds on high. Cooking times may vary so adjust as needed.

Take a piping hot corn tortilla and layer your ingredients down the center of the tortilla starting with the beans, then the meat, cheese and finish with a dollup of guacamole and sour cream. These are really tasty. I know your family will enjoy them. My son devoured them."

Happy 9th Birthday Kylee!

2008-04-15T11:33:00.001-07:00

We wanted to wish you a Happy Birthday! Logan can say your name now!

Easter Weekend

2008-03-17T16:12:00.000-07:00

Do we still want to try to make an Easter egg hunt Saturday morning? I was thinking it may be a lot for the little girls after traveling and with Noah & Anissa having to get ready for camping....but we could do whatever. Logan hasn't ever been to one so he's not missing anything. :)

Remainder of the weekend:

Friday night Kurt & I are planning to go the 8pm session at the temple. Mom said she'd babysit for us.

Saturday lunch at Tilden Park (each family pack their own)
If we don't do the Easter egg hunt we can meet before lunch...if we do we'll do the fun stuff after lunch (Little Farm, Steam Trains, merrygoround?). We'll have to coordinate or follow each other in. There isn't cell phone reception inside the park.

Saturday night we'll go out to dinner for mom's birthday. Mom, do you have any suggestions? or at least what type of food sounds good?

Sunday morning--easter egg hunt
Each family brings their own hard boiled eggs (we're making a dozen) and some plastic filled eggs (I just bought like 16)

Church is from 12:30-3:30 (Kurt usually has a meeting at 10:30am...but maybe they'll cancel it?, and I usually try to put Logan down for a nap at 10:15ish)

Easter dinner when we come home.

Assignments:
Rachel & Kurt - pancake mix, spiral cut ham, green salad, Mom's B-day cake
Mom - orange juice, fruit (if we want...I have oranges on my tree), veggies, rolls
Noah & Anissa - eggs (for breakfast), bacon/sausage, potatoes

Am I forgetting anything?

A Day at the Park

2008-03-12T20:50:00.000-07:00

It was such a beautiful day we decided to take a walk to the park and have lunch!
Preston loved the little slide. Logan never went down a slide by himself UNTIL today. The funny thing is that he wouldn't go down the little slide--only the middle and big slides. Even funnier...he'd only go backwards. Check out the video on our Keyser Family Blog.

Snow Day

2008-03-12T20:45:00.000-07:00

Playing in the snow & Ski lessons in Tahoe.
February 28, 2008

Mom's Choice?

2008-02-14T11:06:00.000-08:00

Since it will be mom's birthday I think we should let her choose what we do on the Saturday before Easter! i.e. beach, park, city What sounds good to you mom?

Mom--by the way if you don't want to sign up for a google/blogger account...you can leave comments anonymously.

Easter

2008-02-11T20:26:00.001-08:00

Becky informed me today, that they ARE planning to go to Utah Easter weekend. So that being said, I thought it might be fun to celebrate Easter at our house since there won't be such a big group. I was thinking weather permitting, we can pick something to do together on Saturday (i.e. go to the beach, SF, Tilden Park) to celebrate Mom's birthday and then everyone can spend the night here. We have church in the afternoon (12:30pm), so we could have an Easter egg hunt in the morning. A couple weeks ago I bought a spiral cut ham (half) that we could use if you guys think that it would be enough for everyone. We can talk about other food details later...we do have like a month and half! Just let me know your thoughts!

Family Pictures

2007-11-08T10:31:00.000-08:00

Adult Guys-black with jeans?
Adult Girls-red with jeans?
Kids-whatever they have with jeans? Logan will be wearing a red polo with black sweater vest

Also, we were thinking about taking the picture in a different location. Any suggestions? Do you still have to pay to go into Cameron Park Lake?

Thanksgiving Dinner

2007-11-08T10:28:00.000-08:00

How does this sound to everyone? Did I miss anything? When is everyone going to get here?

Turkey - becky
Stuffing - mom
Mashed Potatoes - anissa
Yams - mom
Green Bean Casserole doubled - anissa
Lemon Jello Cranberry Salad - becky
3 dozen Rolls and 2 cubes of reg butter - rachel
Spray Butter - Anissa
2 small or 1 big Sugar free cool whip - Rachel
2 small or 1 big Sugar free cool whip - Anissa
mom - vanilla ice cream
house and paper products and cleaning of house - becky
clean up - everyone

Birthday Celebration on Wednesday and for Thanksgiving (everyone to make 2 pies)
Becky - pie - coconut and apple
Rachel - pie - cherry-o pie
Anissa - pie - chocolate cream pie and ?? or cake
Mom - 2 pumpkin pies (1 reg and 1 sugar free)

15 people total

Rebecca Hunter

Apple Hill

2007-09-26T14:27:00.001-07:00

After talking to Anissa yesterday we've hoping to be in Cameron Park on Wednesday, October 10th by lunchtime. I still have to work out the details of getting to her house (driving or BART), but I'll be there. We're looking forward to going to Apple Hill on Thursday. Anissa suggested we bring the kids Halloween outfits to take some pictures. I thought that would be fun if Logan's gets here in time. I ordered his costume online. He's going to be a penguin! If anyone still has questions about how to post on here let me know! It's really easy. I can even show you how to do it while I am there in October. It is easiest if you already have a gmail account set up, but I don't think you HAVE to.

Family Pictures

2007-09-26T13:58:00.000-07:00

I was just starting to think about what we wanted to wear for this years family pictures. Do we want to do what we did before or change things up a little? I found a few pictures online from local photographers (like this one, or maybe this one, or perhaps this one . Also we don't have to do it at Serrano if we don't want to...although it is easy, pretty, and close. Just thought I'd throw ideas at there so we can start thinking about it!

Idea Behind Blog

2007-09-21T17:30:00.001-07:00

Hi Everyone,
I thought that since we don't live down the street from each other we could use to let everyone else know what is up or discuss upcoming family events-- That way everyone knows what is going on. It's easy to leave comments, etc. If you want you can start your own blog and then leave this one for mom, or only use this one. Doesn't matter to me! Let me know if you have questions about anything and I can help you out! It's really easy to use once you get the hang of it.

Through the Years...

2007-09-21T16:34:00.000-07:00