August Camping at Bryce Canyon

We had a family gathering at Bryce Canyon in August and all camped out together.

Bob and I and Jenn and Michael all set up on Friday afternoon. We expected Ryan, Heather, Nathan and Janelle and family on Saturday morning.

We were all going to meet at the Bryce Canyon Visitor's Center - it was the free national park weekend for August.

We took Lady and Sammy - the dogs - cuz this would be Ryan's last chance to see Lady considering he will be in Oregon for 4-5 years and she is over 8 years old and although she loves going for a ride, she doesn't do too well on long trips. Ryan was so surprised!! Lady loved it all but was so exhausted she begged to get into the tent and sleep on Saturday night.

Saturday night it got down to the low 30s and most of us were quite cold. Nathan did not like camping at all and so of course, his mommy and daddy did not have a good time either.

The grandkids all enjoyed running around and gathering wood for the fire on Sunday morning. We were together for all too short a time but at least we pulled it off - have to plan for a longer reunion next summer!

Help Me Someone!

Heather, Kim, anyone, help me. I am trying to figure out how to change my background because as you can see it is almost a year old! But I need lessons!!!! It isn't working!!

Brytnie & Kallie's Message To Their Dad

Brytnie & Kallie have been in Idaho for several weeks now and it has hailed three times! Kallie said she wanted to see snow so we can blame it on her. It has also rained every day they have been here so far. Very unusual spring/summer for Idaho Falls area. They wanted to send a special message to their Dad in Arizona for Father's Day, but of course, the rain and wind had to show up when we recorded this. So, here is their message, with a bit of Idaho thrown in too.

Video of Nathan

I am going to attempt to upload a video I took of Nathan on Mother's Day weekend. I already tried to make it a private video on YouTube but didn't have luck. So, this is Nathan and Ryan and Heather (and I hope it is ok to post this - if not guys, let me know). So cute!

Welcome Nathan Carl Bartron!

Our newest grandbaby was born on April 2nd to Ryan and Heather who live in Bountiful, Utah. We went to visit when he was 3 days old and got some pictures with both sets of grandparents. Nathan is a good combination of his parents but seems to have inherited the "Bartron Scowl". We are excited that they are only about 3 hours away and hope to get to know Nathan well before they all move away in the Fall. Ryan will be going to grad school somewhere - will update that later. Here are some of the pics we took on the way to Bountiful and while there.

Mesa Family Fun!

Avery Thomas Smith - our latest grandchild. Avery is number 5!! He is adorable!


Bob, Jennifer and Pat spent several days with Dan and Janelle in Mesa. We took two family pictures, but this was the best one. As you can see, Jarin had something going on and the tension was building. We only got to take two pictures and the one after this shows a miserable Jarin after being slapped loudly by his sister. After that, the opportunity was over and we got what we got in terms of pictures. But, at least we got a picture, which is hard to do considering we were trying to get 8 kids and 5 adults to be "picture perfect". The odds were against us!!!

Kallie's Baptism

We went to Kallie's baptism on Saturday, February 28th and it was a very special day. Kallie looked beautiful in her white dress and she was supported by lots of family. Doesn't she look happy with her Mom?!

December 2008

We love the sunsets here in Idaho. This was taken from our front door one night. We have the best view. Some nights it is like our very own outdoor movie with the scene constantly changing and showing the most magnificent colors. The sunrises can be just as beautiful but with different colors. Wow!


We have quite a few Birthdays in December. Bob's was on the 7th. He wanted a cheesecake. Dan and Ryan also had birthdays this month.

We celebrated Jennifer's Birthday on the 23rd. She had a delicious yellow cake with two flavors of frosting. It was so good!!!! Jennifer was born on her Aunt Deb's Birthday.

Snow, snow snow!! It started the Saturday night before Christmas and didn't let up until Monday afternoon. Then the wind started. And, on Christmas eve it began again and continued all Christmas day. We measured 19 inches last night but that could be affected by blowing and drifting, so we could have more or less, but just look at Bob's truck! Our neighbor came over with his backhoe after the first batch but now we are pretty well snowed in. Good thing we don't want to go anywhere yet!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to all family and friends! Our day was spent with Jennifer and Michael, Ryan and Heather, and lots of good food. We all helped prepare the feast and played games. By the end of the day we were a little tired but took time to pose for this group picture.

Happy Birthday Brytnie!!!!

Brytnie's Birthday is October 20th. She is going to be 9 years old!!! Here is a special message for Brytnie from Grandma, Grandpa, Aunt Jenn and Uncle Michael......HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!! We love you very much!

Pat's Birthday and Our Visit to Bountiful

October 3rd was Pat's birthday. She enjoyed cards, cake and flowers!

We spent General Conference weekend with Ryan and Heather in Bountiful. We saw the Saturday afternoon session of Conference in the Conference Center. We drove up the mountain to see the Bountiful Temple. The weather was rainy and stormy most of the time we were there. We enjoyed the time we spent with Ryan and Heather. Their apartment is cute!

Horseback Riding

Our neighbor kindly agreed to let Janelle and the kids ride horses and she also taught the older girls how to handle a horse by themselves. Brytnie and Kallie learned how to go forward, backward and turn. They rode on Sandy. Andi and Jarin rode on Sylvester, the donkey and also Sandy, but Sylvester was the most challenging. He was a bit stubborn. Janelle had a nice long ride and even got to run. Thanks Bobbi Jo for all your time and help!!!

Family Picture Time

The Bartron Family and the Ward Family!! We really enjoyed getting to know the Ward family some more. We were together for the wedding in 2006 but it was great to get together again and hope to do it more in the years to come. So glad you could all make it here!!

Ryan and Heather Graduate from BYU-Idaho

Ryan and Heather graduated on Friday, July 18th!! After a lot of hard work, it was great to see them finally finished and very happy. We had a celebration with all of our family and Heather's family too. They traveled over to Rigby/Rexburg from the Tacoma, Washington area. We had fun playing games and eating, and eating. What is a celebration without food??!!!

Yellowstone National Park and Old Faithful

We took Janelle and kids to see Yellowstone National Park and Old Faithful. The scenery was amazing! We waited an hour to see Old Faithful go off but it was all worth it, especially to Jarin who clapped and cheered when it went up into the air.

Wagon Ride

Our neighbors took us all on a wagon ride down along the Snake River. We saw a new baby horse, threw rocks in the water, and ended the evening with a beautiful sunset.

Avery Was So Cute!

We loved seeing Avery!! Jenn taught Michael how to change a diaper. Avery began to smile and try to talk while he was here. Michael and Avery and Jarin looked so comfortable together.

Along the Snake River

Today we went to Idaho Falls and walked along the Snake River. The kids had a great time. We took a picnic lunch and they ran and played along the path. Avery looked especially cute after his bath. This is a busy week for us so I will post more in a day or so.