Lovin' Park City

We love our family tradition of going up to Park City for a week every year! We spend July 4th in P.C. enjoying the mountains, parade, park silly days, pool, restaurants, hiking, alpine slide and so much more! Our family has said many times that going to Park City for the week is one of our favorite vacations!

Chief Master Sergeant Ceremony

Hill Air Force Base Biography – Dale “Russ” Johnston

Chief Master Sergeant Dale “Russ” Johnston is the Chief Enlisted Manager of the 67th Aerial Port Squadron, Hill Air Force Base, Utah. He provides leadership and guidance for over 160 personnel and serves as a principal advisor to the Squadron commander.
Chief Johnston enlisted in the Air Force Reserves in March 1988 after graduating from Layton High School in 1986. After basic training he completed the Air Transportation Specialist Course at Sheppard AFB, TX and was subsequently assigned Hill AFB. During his career, Chief Johnston was voluntarily activated in support of Desert Storm/Desert Shield with tours of duty at Bergstrom AFB, Texas, and George AFB, California. In 2004 he was activated in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom for 365 days, tours of duty included a deployment to Tallil AB, Iraq, with follow on tours to Charleston AFB, SC, and Rhein Main AB, Germany. He was activated again in 2007, deploying to Bagram AB, Afghanistan, in direct support of Operation Enduring Freedom.

This is a night that we will always remember, watching our Husband, Father, Son, Grandson, Airman and Friend accomplish such a monumental goal. Less than 1% of Military members make it to the rank of Chief Master Sergeant, so yes, we are proud!

That's what friends are for!

Before and After!

Proof that things do get better with age!

I love my best friends, we have known each other since elementary school.  We make sure to carve out time to meet for lunch, shop, laugh and even sometimes cry.  I love my besties!

Who needs teeth anyway?

I've tried to explain to my kids that it is so worth getting your teeth pulled, money!  After the first time the "Tooth Fairy" came to Jake he started trying to loosen his teeth before they were ready.  If Nana Swan was here she could pull any tooth, she LOVED to pull teeth and was pretty good at it.  Too bad we didn't keep a tally of all the teeth, kids and grandkids, she pulled!

But I deserve my own dog!

Russ was deployed again this time to Afghanistan in 2007, before he left Jake new just how to work getting himself a dog. He told his Dad, "But Dad, I deserve a dog if you are going to be gone for a long time. Megan gets to sleep with Dayzee every night, I will need a dog to sleep with!". Of course it played on Russ' sympathy and without a discussion, Russ agreed. Never mind the fact that a 5 year old can't train a dog, a teenage just doesn't, so it was my responsibility. I might add, Spike is a very well trained dog, and I named him! I fell in love with him the second I saw him. He loves to snuggle and show off, he is the funniest dog I've ever known. We love our Spike, he was more than worth the headache of having a new puppy while Russ was away! Jake and Spike are the best of buddy's, every boy needs a dog!

Cousins are those childhood playmates who grow up to be forever friends!

How lucky my kids are to have so many cousins and have them all living so close to each other! I'm sure they will look back on their childhood and remember the many family parties and get togethers with fond memories!

What I know for sure!

I know that my Mom loved me! I know that what I am today, the woman that I want to become and the family that I have is because of the influence of an amazing Mother. I know that my Mom taught me how to cook, clean, make a house a home, debate, forgive, pray, listen, talk, laugh, learn to overcome, hang on, buck up, understand, study, meditate, tell a story, think out loud, say too much and LOVE! I hope that I can be the influence of good for my children and that they can understand that I loved them as much as I know my Mom loved me. I figured this out later in my life while my Mom was sick that she really did know what she was talking about.  How I wish I had one more chance to tell a loving Mother just how much she taught me and… that yes, she was right! I love you Mom and miss you every single day!

Reflections... A Different Kind of Hero

Megan entered the "Reflections Photo Contest" at school, the theme was "A Different Kind of Hero".  Meg decided (all on her own I might add) that she would dress Jake up in Dad's uniform and have him hold a picture of Russ in Iraq.  Her write up was, "My little brother is A Different Kind of Hero, he is only four years old and he is having to be the Man of the House while my Dad is deployed.  He is doing a great job filling his boots."!  She got a sheet, put it over a chair and took the picture.  Megan ended up going to District!