My brother is married!!!

We had the best week in Utah! My brother got married in the Salt Lake temple last Thursday. He is 30 and has been waiting patiently for the right girl to come along. Kailee is 10 years younger than he is, but they are perfect for each other. The ceremony was performed by my amazing 94 year old Grandpa Richards. He has been able to seal 29 of his granchildren (including Casey and me) in various temples around the country. It was so nice to listen to him speak and reflect back on our temple sealing 14 years ago. This is a picture of Grandpa and Grandma Richards, Todd and Kailee.

Afterwards, we spent a very HOT hour outside the temple (with 10 other brides) taking pictures. Salt Lake has to be the most popular temple for weddings. It was sooooo CRAZY inside...and out. This picture is of the Millar six. My how we've grown and changed over the years! We have added so many new members to the Millar family with spouses and children. It's hard for me to remember a time when it was just the six of us.

That evening we decorated my parents' ridiculously beautiful yard for the reception in Heber. They served a full meal of Malibu chicken, beans, potatoes, rolls, salad and lots of desserts. Mom is so amazing. She can pull anything off!




We got to Utah a few days early and my job was the napkin folding. Aren't they cute? (Mom taught me how to do it...otherwise, I would have no idea.)

Allison and Lydia were enamoured with the whole thing. They kept calling the bride "Princess Kailee." To make them feel a part of it, Grandma let Allison and Lydia carry the gifts to the gift table. Allison took her job ver seriously.

Finally, my mom had asked that my girls surprise Todd and Kailee with a special song. So, as I always do with all things musical, I turned to Casey's sister, Charlotte. She turned a very simple song, "The Sweetheart Tree" into a beautiful arrangement with parts. She came over a week before we left and worked the parts out with the girls. It turned out so great! It won't upload for some reason so for now, I'll just post a picture of them singing. Hopefully I can get the video up soon.

Ward Campout

We just got back from our annual Springfield 3rd Ward campout at Schwartz park. Like very year, it was very well attended and lots of fun (despite my dislike of camping). The only problem was that in the evening, it got down to 45 degrees....we were freezing! Casey and I rarely snuggle in bed (we like our own sides of the bed) but last night, we slept close just to keep ourselves warm. I think we got maybe 2 hours of sleep all night. In the evening, we sang songs around the campfire, roasted hot dogs and marshmallows and just let the many, many children play together.

Casey was our chef for breakfast. He whipped up eggs and bacon on our little campstove.

The night before, Kelli made everyone fresh, homemade benyas in honor of her daughter Lauryn's birthday. She started making them after watching the "Princess and the Frog." They were very tasty and gone really fast.


Here is cousin Drew in mid launch. He made me photograph him over and over again jumping off of a post at the campground park. This was the best one.

The girls were so excited to go camping. We only do it once a year..and that is for the ward campout. I can handle one night of camping...if we go any longer than that, check me into a hotel please!

Summer's half gone!

I can't hardly believe that summer is over half done! Here in Oregon, the weather has been so down-right springlike, it feels like summer hasn't really even started! I look at the weather map and see record highs everywhere else but the Pacific Northwest. This Saturday, we're going to be above 80 degrees for only the 3rd time since summer started. I am NOT complaining...I hate hot weather, and I'm not much of a gardener so this cool weather hasn't affected my "crop" like it has some of my neighbors. Furthermore, with last week being entirely rainy, my lawn looks nice and full!

Since returning from vacation, we had some big events happen! The first, was that Jillian got her braces on! She has been such a trooper through the whole process and they look so cute on her. The challenge of course is to keep her brushing and flossing...and staying away from some of her favorite foods like Dorritos and popcorn! She's doing great though and they make her look so much older.


In 2 -1/2 years or so, she should have straight teeth!

Last weekend, we went down to Medford to see my niece Aubrey get baptized. It was so great to see my parents again (who drove from Utah for the event). Now, we are preparing for a BIG wedding in Utah. My little brother Todd is getting married! We are so excited for him!

Finally, I finished the opening page to our 2011 Millar reunion scrapbook....and I thought I'd share!

The cute girl on the far left is our soon-to-be aunt, Kailee! Aren't they cute?

week 27

I'm slowly catching up!

Sea Life Aquarium, Knottsberry Farm

Knott's Berry Farm was our first stop! We went there as a family before heading down to our Oceanside reunion! Even though the weather was in the high 90's, we had a great time!

As part of our LegoLand 2 day pass, (thanks Grandpa Millar!!) we also got entrance into the Sea Life Aquarium at the front gate of Lego land. Because a big group of adults went golfing, Casey, Aunt Katie and I took the kids to the aquarium for a few hours. It was so fun..and best of all, Lego themed!

swimming in the ocean

Trips to the Oregon coast always mean keeping a super close eye on how deep my kids go into the water. There are some serious undertows on the Oregon beach and we have known some people who have gotten into trouble and even died out there. So, when we went to the California beach, it took me a while to be comfortable watching my little kids go REALLY far out into the surf. I was paranoid that some rogue wave was going to take them out to sea. But, the beach in California is so much safer than Oregon. My kids LOVED body surfing and wading chest deep in the warm water. I eventually relaxed a bit and went "wave jumping" with them. For most of the girls, beach time was the highlight of the trip!

Casey and Charlotte were crazy out there! Casey taught the big kids how to ride a wave from it's beginning, all the way to the shore. Their poor bodies were pretty hammered by the end of the day.

Here is my Maggie on the beach at night. We took a walk on Sunday night on the beach (trying to keep the Sabbath Day as holy as possible despite being on vacation)

Finally, here is wekk 26. I am a week behind so hopefully, I'll have week 27 up soon :)

San Diego part 1

Wow, it's been a while since I blogged!! We just got back (literally...we got in at 3 a.m.) from our wonderful family reunion in San Diego, California. I must say, if there is one place that I think I could tolerate in California, it's San Diego. The weather is moderate, it's very very clean and it's near the beach. I enjoy visiting California but I think I couldn't live there for one main reason and that has to be the TRAFFIC! (and maybe the 110 degree heat through central California) But, we had a glorious time with my family! We stayed at a WorldMark condo on the beach in Oceanside where we played in the pool, toured San Diego and swam...yes, swam in the ocean. (We can't do that in the Oregon ocean) I am still uploading a lot of my pictures so I only posted two highlights for today. The first I actually scrapbooked. It was Casey's first 10K run at Scripp's Ranch in San Diego on the 4th of July. He has gotten himself into pretty decent shape and came in around 300th out of almost 2,000. That's pretty good for a first timer.

My favorite part of the trip was our visit to the Mormon Battalion visitor's center. If you ever get a chance to go...be sure to!! It was so well done and engaging for everyone...even little kids.

In this room, we are packing up to take our 2,000 mile journey with the Battalion.

Jillian was picked to be the laundress for the trip :)

This room had pictures on it that started talking and moving half way through the presentation. It took everyone by surprise!


My 94 year old Grandpa Richards and my 90 year old Grandma came with us on this trip. One night, they set down all of the adults and led us in a tearful discussion on our heritage. His wife, Margaret Jean, died before I was born. Maggie, my 3rd child is named after her. He passed around pictures and taught us about our ancestors. He also told of the times he got to meet different prophets. Thomas S. Monson set him apart to serve in the temple presidency at the LA airport...he served in the LA temple, and was set apart at the airport. :) Gordon B. Hinckley was in his home when he was a regional representative. He also got to meet Heber J Grant on his mission. He served as a bishop for 9 years and a stake president for 10. I am so thankful to have him as an example to my children! By the end of the "talk," we were all in tears and in awe at this wonderful man and the challenges he has overcome!