linda winnie

Oh Boy!

2009-05-27T07:48:00.000-07:00

Tanner John Winnie

May 28, 2008

1:52 p.m.

7 lbs 10 oz

21 inches

Such a cute little baby!

Long story short... in labor all night, Dr. appt early morning,

sent me straight to the hospital, epidural didn't work, got really sick,

baby wasn't getting oxygen, baby born, such a cutie, enjoying the moment,

baby turned blue, nurse took baby away, next thing I knew baby was in intensive care.

Tanner spent the next three days in a oxygen tent, with tubes up his nose,

needles in his hand, then, foot, then finally in his head, where he couldn't pull it out!

Tanner with his big brother Brandon.

Blessing day July 7 1985

The day Tanner got the nickname Trapper!

(Grandpa forgot his name, & when he was blessing the food

he said... we are so thankful for Trapper John, ha ha so funny!)

Also, this was the day Brandon's wife Robyn was born.

(little did Brandon know his future wife was on her way, when

this photo was taken.)

3 months old

First Christmas

One year old

Tanner loved to make messes!

This is one of his favorites, emptying all of the

shampoo & conditioner over everything, and rubbing it all around.

This one is at least cleaner than his favorite mess, which was,

playing with the ashes in the fireplace!

Second Christmas. Look at that face!

This is where Tanners loving pop started.

On a hot summer day in Saint George!

I promise its NOT a Dr. Pepper!

Cheese

Ho Ho Ho

Tanner loves Christmas. He likes to open his presents really slow,

to make them last a really long time.

Love the acid washed jeans.

Tanner wanted to be a Care Bear when he grew up.

3rd Christmas

Trying to get a picture for Christmas cards,

Tanner wouldn't hold still. He loved fires.

( He is excited for those ashes to burn down so he can make a mess!)

5 years old

Halloween Tanners favorite holiday. NOT! For some strange reason,

Tanner has never really liked Halloween. When he was little never liked to dress up,

& when he did, he wouldn't put the on the full costume.

(notice the care bear costume, no head piece, & I had to give him

the sucker just to get him to put it on!)

A bunch of crazies!

Tanner & Brandon sporting their M C Hammer pants!

(you gotta love the 90's)

Swimming in Saint George, awwww such good memories!

Playing in the snow with Amy & Austin.

Cliff jumping in Lake Powell.

Tube wars at Lake Powell.

Surfing in Hawaii!

So many good memories, Tanner it has been a life full of fun.

You make our family so much sweeter!

I wish we could go back and do it all again, I would savor every moment!

Happy Birthday, I Love you more than you know!

Love you forever, MOM : D

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY

2009-05-10T07:11:00.000-07:00

Have you ever met one of those people that just seem to have their act together. They’re always smiling; they’re well like by everyone that meets them. In fact, when you're there friend, it’s usually for life. They seem to be able to do everything, and everything they decide to do is not just 100%, but 200 %. They seem to be oozing with talents and abilities. Besides that, they’re very practical and rarely ever complain, at least out loud.

To top it off they look amazing. In fact, the older they get, the better they look. How can that be?

You can't look at a person like this without feeling admiration for the kind of person they are. Even when they are in pain and not feeling well, you rarely see it in the expression of their face.

They are one of those people that are fun to observe, especially when they are in their zone. Their ability to stay focused, and actually create what they think about is really quite amazing.

How would you like to have the privilege of being married to a person like this? Well, I am. On May 21^st it will be 29 years of life full of glitter. When I say glitter, I really mean it. It usually shows up on face or clothing on a daily basis. That what happens when you are married to a cute consultant.

Live hasn't been easy. We have had our share of struggles and ups and downs of life. That's how it's suppose to be, but it has always been wonderful.

Linda, I want you to know how much I love you. I cherish our life together, wherever the journey takes us. There is not a day that goes by that I don't thank my Heavenly Father for the blessing of having you in my life. Because of you becoming a mother, I became a father and grandpa, and you became the sexiest grandma I know.

Thank you for making me a better person than I could have ever been able to become without you. To me that’s priceless.

Happy Mother Day to the best wife and mother to our children a man could ever have.

Love forever,

Dave

Mom,

Happy mothers day!!! I hope you have the best mothers day ever! Thank you so much for everything you have ever done! I know how stressed you get when I am always bugging you about dance stuff and that but I’m sorry. Thanks for always being there when I needed you and always bringing my things that I left to school and checking me out to eat something when I didn’t pack a lunch. What would I do if you couldn’t come get me? Thanks for driving me to dance almost every day and also to all the competitions and conventions, but most of all thanks for being the greatest mom anyone could ask for! I love you so so so so much!! Love,

Amy May Yam

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY MOM!!!!

I love you Mom, you are the best mom in the world and nobody can do anything about it! Thank you for EVERYTHING!!! You do anything to make me happy, so for today I will do anything for you to make you happy! Thanks for all of the trips we go on, and DINNER! You make the best dinner in the whole wide world! And thanks for letting me play soccer and supporting me! Thanks Mom you are truly the best and I would not want any mom besides you! I LOVE YOU! A TON!

Love, Austin

Boy oh Boy it's a GIRL!

2009-04-22T08:20:00.000-07:00

Courtney Brooke Winnie

April 25, 1988

5:46 p.m.

8 lb. 5 0z.

20 inches

They say if it rains on your wedding day it means good luck.

This must be true when having a baby,

because it rained the day Courtney was born,

I felt like I was the luckiest mom to lucky to get this little GIRL!

I could tell from the second she was born, that she was a sweetie,

the pink bow looked so pretty in all that dark hair, & after my first

two babies were boys, I made sure she always had the bow in her hair.

The nurses kept asking me if my husband was Indian.

Hummm I wonder why?

Pretty in pink.

Baby Ballerina

Halloween 1988

One year old

1st Birthday

As you can tell, Courtney loved her baby dolls.

She also LOVED her blankie from Grandma Atwood,

& she still does, she said..."it makes me so happy."

Working on her tan.

Courtney has gorgeous skin, that browns

beautiful in the summer. (lucky girl.)

2 years old.

You can tell by this picture what a happy little girl

Courtney was, and she still is always so happy!

3 years old

3rd birthday.

Surprise it's a kitty!

She opened her present to find a kitten inside, she was so surprised,

and so excited! Look at that face. :D

She had Jazzy for 16 years.

Having fun with her big brothers!

She is lucky to have 2 big brothers who love her and look after her so much.

4 years old

Look at all that hair!

5th birthday

Hey, Hey, playmate come out and play with me,

& bring your dollies three, climb up my apple tree.

Courtney Loved playing house,

she is going to make a great mom someday.

7th birthday

Courtney with her best friend, & cousin Karli,

these two were together non stop, they are more like sisters.

Well since their moms are identical twins, they are considered 1/2 sisters.

There's no place like home.

Courtney filled our home with so much joy,

we can't imagine what it would be like without her.

Cinderella

Little Red Riding Hood

Courtney always loved to dress up, she still does!

Courtney is such a sweet big sister to Amy & Austin,

she was the baby of the family for almost 7 years,

so she was very excited to become a big sister.

She is like their second mom.

7 years old.

Happy happy girl!

12 years old

Happy Birthday, to my beautiful baby girl who is now 21.

You will always be my sweet baby girl.

I love you to the moon and back!

Love, Mom : )

spring is...

2009-04-02T21:43:00.000-07:00

Spring is Mother Natures way of saying...

Lets Party!

Hey Mother Nature did you know?

SPRING is supposed to look like this?

Not this!

Can you please get over winter,

and move on to Spring?

so we can...

P A R T Y !

And they came two by two!

2009-02-24T21:46:00.000-08:00

It's a Girl! It's a Boy!

February 24, 1995
Amy Rachel 1:47 a.m. 6lbs 2 oz
Austin Mark 1:54 a.m. 6lbs 4oz

Womb mates.
Bundle of pink, & bundle of blue.
Double trouble.
Happy parents, unaware of what is yet to come!
look at Dave's face, he looks a little freaked out.

The day we came home from the hospital, sleeping peacefully,
but not for long!

Party in their "crib" all night long.
About every hour & 1/2 for the first 3 weeks, to be exact!
Blessing day, Easter April 16 1995

My two babies.

4 months old
Hanging out in the nursery.
I decorated the nursery with a Noah Ark design, (notice the wallpaper)
I wish I had a picture of the little wooden table & chairs I painted,
each chair back had a different animal, & all the way around the table top it said...
and they came two, by two, by two

Look who woke up on the cute side of the crib.

8 months old

Winnie the Poo & Piglet too.

First birthday
Cutest little twins ever!

Digging into the birthday cakes

My little pumpkins
(+little red riding hood in the window, hi Courtney)18 months old

Austins first set of stitches.
A few days after Christmas, Austin fell at a restaurant and hit his head on the corner of a gumball machine splitting his forehead wide open. Pat (my brother in-law) & Dave rushed Austin to the hospital, Lisa & I got the rest of the kids gathered up and took off in a different car. When I got there I told Dave how Amy had cried the whole way there saying over and over, I want MY Austy, that is when he told me that Austin had done the same thing,
he cried for Amy. Second set of stitches.

P.S. Austin received a second set while we were trying to buy a new car, he fell walking up the tile stairs, splitting open the other side of his forehead. His third set came at age 6 when a dog bit him just below his eye, and the fourth set on his cheek bone happened just minutes after we had walked into the grocery store with a bunch of his friends, and I had said... Now no running or messing around in here. A few minutes later, Amys crying, because Austin has blood running down his face! (they were playing tag)
We call him scar face.
Turning Two.

They came two by two was the theme for their 2nd birthday.
I made the cakes to match, a ark filled with two animals of every kind.

Also their presents were wrapped like the animals in the ark.

(you might have to zoom in on this if you want to see the cakes.)

Austin sleeping with his cowboy hat.

My kids are known for the funny things they do while they are sleeping,

Amy & Austin took it to a whole other level. We have many pictures of them

sleeping with all kinds of things.

Amy sleeping with her high heels.

(believe me Amy, the day will come when you cant wait to kick off your heels!)

Third birthday.
They were extra cute this year, so excited for their birthday!
I made Winnie the Pooh cakes, the tree is made out of a ho ho,

& the Pooh characters are made of fondant.

Austin got a construction set complete with tools, he is all BOY.
Amy got dress ups, she is all GIRL.(notice she is already doing her hair!)

I know that all twins are a lot of work, but one day when they were little it hit me, having a girl/boy set of twins is definitely the most work! This is when I realized why.

I was running from the dance studio,

To the baseball field,
then back to the dance studio, and on and on it goes.
It's hard to be in girl places and boy places at the same time.

I had to take this picture of them under Courtney's bed because they
were always finding little secret spots to huddle together and just be twins!

Amy & Austin loved this little red jeep, they would always jump in it together

and take off 4 wheelin' around the neighborhood. Amy was usually the driver,

whipping around corners, zip zagging down the sidewalks, and bouncing up and down the hills!

Boating buddies.

I remember calling my mom and saying... "Mom I wish all my babies could have been twins!"
She said... "are you crazy? But I was being serious. I might have been a little crazy though because I didn't know what I had coming, but when it is all said and done, I would do it all over again.
I am pretty sure this is why my mom thought I must have gone insane.

Partners in crime.

What one didn't think of the other one would.

I really did watch them, I swear! It was amazing how fast

they could make a huge mess.

They loved getting into the nestle quick.

Amy putting on my mascara. She got it everywhere but on her eyelashes.

These are just a few of many messy pictures, I couldn't find the picture of when Austin buttered the cream sofa. Or the picture where Austin took a red & purple marker to the same cream sofa. ahh good times.

Life with Amy & Austin has been a fairytale.
Thank you guys for making my dreams come true, I LOVE you!
Happy 14th Birthday, Love Mom : )

Valentine "delivery" 1982

2009-02-13T19:41:00.001-08:00

My Special Valentine Delivery

Brandon David Winnie

February 13 1982
8 lbs 4 1/2 oz

21 1/2 inches

Blonde hair & blue eyes

Bringing with him, a love a mother can feel with every inch of her body, and with every breath she takes, a love that is so strong & so real, that she can not even begin to describe!

long story short.... week over due, arrive at LDS hospital 10:00 a.m. nurse wants to send me home, cant because i have toxemia, & high blood pressure, cute YOUNG intern comes in to break my water, (yikes, where is my OLD doctor!) labor pains get intense, want epidural, nurse says NO, she'll be back in 1 hour! Dave watching chart, telling me how big & long my contractions are! (that helped) over a hour later Dave leaves to take a potty break, I scream.. THE BABY'S COMING! That got the nurses attention, room fills up fast, cute young intern is back, I push & push I rip, he cuts, I make loud noises, I push & push, make more loud noises, baby is born, baby placed in my arms, we bond, & my life is changed forever : )

(Yes that is the cute young intern!)

Here are a few snippets of our life with this sweet little bundle of pure JOY!

Bringing home baby, Riverton Utah

Proud Daddy

3 months

This face shows you what a happy baby Brandon really was. He was so good & easy going. He hardly ever cried. Once he had a pretty high fever so I took him to the doctors, when the doctor looked in his ears he said, isn't this baby screaming his head off all night? these are the worst ears i've ever seen! Brandon hadn't even made a peep!

6 months old

You can see how chubby he is in this picture. He LOVED food (still does) I would make a bowl full of cereal and by the time I would get another spoonful of oatmeal, he would have his mouth wide open & ready for more! He would always make yum yum noises when he ate. (still does)

This is typical Brandon, always getting into food. Dave, Brandon & I were just chillin on the bed watching t.v. one night. I guess we took our eyes off our bowls of ice cream, and Brandon's chubby little hands were in it so fast, next thing we knew there was a sticky, gooey, mess.
Brandon was known as the human vacumn, at family parties he would always go under the table and eat anything that fell on the floor. Mashed potatoes were even known to dissapear right off peoples plates. : )

Our family's first Christmas.
Look at that cute little boy! I made his outfit, mostly because I probably couldn't afford to buy the one I wanted, but also because I secretly wanted to be a fashion designer. The overalls, are green velvet I cross stiched the little reindeer.
Ha ha before you judge, just know I had a NO money budget, and its not like I had access to a store with great fabrics and supplies!
Brandon's First Birthday.
He was so cute, he loved everything. Digging into the cake, opening his presents, playing with his toy top. I remember I saved this outfit for him to wear on his 1st birthday, it was a 18-24 month size, he was so chubby I couldn't get it snapped closed!

He loved that top, the faster I would spin it the faster he would clap!

Brandon got the chicken pox...
Right after his first birthday! So as you can see, this was a problem because he was still in diapers, so it took forever for his little bummie to heal, because you cant let little boys run around naked for very long.

Such a snuggly little boy.

18 months old
Always happy, always smiling, always laughing, my little buddy!
Easter 1983

Brandon with cousins Brian & Justin
oh my goodness!

Our little hiker

Funny Bunnies
Halloween 1983

Brandon with his side kick Tanner

Brandon was a sweet older brother, (most of the time) he always let Tanner tag along.

Jazz Fan
So many of Brandons birthdays consist of Jazz balloons, Jazz wrapping paper, & a basketball cake. He loved the Stockton to Malone days, playoffs, going to games at the delta center, greeting the players at Millionair airport after a big win or a loss.

Turning 8

12th Birthday
We took Brandon & his friends for his birthday party to meet Karl Malone & get his autograph. We had Karl sign his basketball birthday cake, with frosting in a pastry bag. Karl thought it was so cool, & said he had never signed a birthday cake before.

Life happens fast, & then your baby is 27! I can remember all of these "Brandon moments" like they were tomorrow! (it's a Brandon comment} And I love this sweetheart baby of mine 27 million times more than the day he was born, and I look forward to the next 27+ years to come.

Wishing you a Happy Birthday Brandon, may all your birthday wishes come true.
I Love you, Mom : )

Navi Baby

2009-02-03T10:23:00.000-08:00

This little baby girl warms my heart!

It is so hard to believe that Navi will be three months old in three days, she's not a new born any more : ( but each month brings many new and wonderful surprises! She is smiling so big, gooing all the time, and blowing bubbles all over her precious little lips.
Take a look at these adorable pictures.
Courtesy of Courtney Brooke Photography of course : )

I cant get enough of ...those cheeks, this nose, these lips, that face,

my baby Navi!

Twas the season...

2009-01-01T21:01:00.000-08:00

Maybe its because i refuse to listen to Christmas music until after Thanksgiving, or maybe its because Christmas songs can take me back, in a instant to Christmas as a little girl. (awe such sweet memories) anyway for some reason i cant seem to get Christmas songs off my mind.

Our Holidays started out with...

I DECKED THE HALLS WITH BOUGHS OF HOLLY,

I love Christmas, and I Love decorating, but for some reason i don't like decorating for Christmas anymore. I don't know why, I guess its because it is just so exhausting, and takes so much time. I always wish i could spend a day at a nice luxurious spa when i get done! This year I didn't get out a lot of my decorations, and i really missed it, so next year I promise, no matter what, I am decorating everything! (well, only if i can get a massage!)

FA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA

OH THE WEATHER OUTSIDE IS FRIGHTFUL
BUT THE FIRE IS SO DELIGHTFUL
And so are my neighbors in Autumn Ridge.. I was in charge of our neighborhood charity drive this year, and our friends, the Debenhams, helped us pull it off, this is how it works... Every year the first Monday in December the neighbors get together and bring unwrapped gifts and or money donations for the Boys & Girls Club of Sandy. This year we built a big bonfire in our driveway, roasted some hotdogs, and had hot cocoa. Friends & neighbors young & old come bundled up to enjoy the evening together. It is a great way to start the holidays off, giving and sharing what we have with those who are less fortunate, This is what Christmas is all about. Thanks Lynda Orme for starting such a great tradition!

Me & Mona

A bunch of friendly neighbors

Courtney with cute laura & Ellie

LET IT SNOW! LET IT SNOW! LET IT SNOW!

I'M DREAMING OF A WHITE CHRISTMAS
and this year my dream came true! We had so much snow, I loved it!
Every time I was in a great mood this holiday season I noticed it was when it was snowing!!! And I'm not just talking a few flakes either, i am talking a snow globe kind of snow storm, (my favorite kind.) and all though i love to be home baking cookies, or making a delicious soup for dinner when it snows, I'd much ratter be out in the middle of a snow storm. How else can you

really enjoy it?

MAY ALL YOUR CHRISTMASES BE WHITE!

DON WE NOW OUR UGLY CHRISTMAS SWEATER APPAREL
We attempted to make gingerbread houses this year. We mixed, & rolled, cut, & baked, & assembled our little gingerbread houses... then the night we got together to decorate them the kids decided to have a ugly Christmas sweater party! We had so much fun laughing at each others hair styles & ugly sweaters that we didn't quite finish our houses, but they still looked great, and we had such a fun time. Ugly Christmas sweater party is here to stay. And next year we will start making our gingerbread houses Thanksgiving weekend, then MAYBE we will get them done!
FA LA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA

DASHING THROUGH THE SNOW

Call me crazy but we spent the day before Christmas Eve snowmobiling! The crazy part is, I had so much shopping left to do, but it was so worth it, because OH WHAT FUN IT IS TO RIDE! It snowed the whole day (which I loved!) we had some veggies, chips & queso dip, pulled pork sandwiches, hot cocoa, & chocolate chip cookies. Which all tasted so good after being out in the cold mountain air. The kids had a blast driving the snowmobiles through the freshly fallen snow. Thanks Debenhams for planning it, & thanks McDougals for letting us enjoy your cabin!

LAUGHING ALL THE WAY!
SANTA CLAUSE IS COMING TO TOWN

This Christmas Eve it was just the Winnie crew,

it's a good things we like each other!

ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS YOU... BABY
I got a early Christmas present, a granddaughter! Her name is Navi. As you can see she is so precious. I can't get enough of her. She is the best Christmas gift of all.

FA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA AWWWWW!

SILENT NIGHT, HOLY NIGHT, ALL IS CALM ALL IS BRIGHT

December 28 was Navi's blessing day. Robyn's brothers & sister were all in town for her blessing. She was blessed her in our home Sunday afternoon, around 2:30 p.m. Brandon gave her such an amazing blessing, there was a really strong spirit here, what a special day. This sweet little baby girl is so loved. Navi was sleepy all day, & she was so good during the blessing, she even giggled, how cute is that! This is such a great time of year to have a new baby, & to see her dressed in a beautiful white gown, i have no words, only tears!

Navi's blanket is the blanket Brandon was blessed with almost 27 years ago. Crocheted by Dave's mom, to our surprise the design on the blanket is the same design that is on Navi's dress! And the really freaky thing is... things that I used for my babies are now heirlooms!

MOTHER, FATHER, & CHILD

HOLY INFANT SO TENDER & MILD
Chicken curry haystacks & sticky rice with all the toppings, black berry & pomegranate salad, coconut & chocolate cupcakes for dinner.
Thee cutest great grandparents, grandma & grandpa Atwood
The Winnies & the Rupps

SLEEP IN HEAVENLY PEACE, SLEEP IN HEAVENLY PEACE.

OH HOLY NIGHT, THE STAR IS SHINING BRIGHTLY
Finally to end our holidays in style, we hiked to the STAR! For the past three years on New Years Eve, we have hiked to the star, & it is always the highlight of our holidays. We are so lucky to have an amazing neighbor named Harold Haugen, who 5 years ago had a dream that he put a star up on our mountain, & that year he made his dream come true. He hikes up every night to fill the generator with gasoline, which lights the star. I always have such a peaceful feeling on our journey to the star, there is just something about climbing up a mountain in the snow at sunset, seeing the twinkling lights from the houses below, reaching the top to see this giant star shining in the dark. It is breathtaking. This star brings so much happiness to so many people. It helps to reminds us all, the true meaning of Christmas!

Starting out
At the top (look at that view!)

This year we built a fire and roasted hot dogs.

Dave hiked to the star with Harold almost every night.Star man! Harold Haugen.
View of the star from our front door. We love it!

OH NIGHT, OH NIGHT DEVINE

THROUGH THE YEARS WE ALL WILL BE TOGETHER

SO HAVE YOURSELF A MERRY LITTLE CHRISTMAS NOW!

Love, the Winnies

FA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA LA

Best Day Ever!

2008-11-06T22:00:00.000-08:00

Today really is probably one of the best days of my life, thats because its the day I became a Grandma! Our sweet little baby girl was born at 12:00 p.m. Weighing in at 8 lbs 7 oz & 21 inches long. She has a head full of beautiful dark hair, the cutest little ears you have ever seen, & light brown eyebrows that look like they were drawn on with a pencil. She has a nose that is as cute as a button, Lips that look like a perfect little heart, and the most beautiful complexion, soft as a baby's bottom. Oh I wont even get started on how cute her little tushie is! So basically what i am saying is.... she is PERFECT!!! And I LOVE her so much I could cry. Oh wait I already did :)

Here are a few pictures so you can see for yourself that she really is all that, and that i am not just being a "grandma" ENJOY!

There's a new girl on the blog!

2008-11-05T22:09:00.000-08:00

Well i finally got a blog. I've been going to get one for a long time, but just didn't get around to it. But now... I've got something to blog about! I am going to become a grandma tomorrow, I can't wait to meet her. I've heard being a grandma is the best and I BELIEVE it! I am ready to begin this new adventure called grandmahood! Be sure to check back to see all the cute pictures Courtney takes of our sweet baby girl! :)