Sleepless in St. George

Halloween

2011-11-13T21:21:00.003-07:00

For some reason I can't find a picture of Brooke or Camden on Halloween. Brooke wore my old powder puff jersey and Camden was a scientist. Easton was a cowboy and Addie was Smurfette! I loved making this costume. The only drawback? Pleather! It stinks to sew with, sticks to itself and the machine! I made her hat the morning of the school parade, in about 5 minutes. I went in my poodle skirt and letter men jacket. Inside the pocket was a note my bff wrote me in high school. Wow did it bring back memories! We took the preschool class to a nearby clinic and the kids were able to trick or treat in the offices. Aren't my preschoolers darn cute!?

She really did go

2011-11-13T21:12:00.003-07:00

I had to teach preschool (two classrooms away from Addie's) on her first day of school. I was so sad to miss out on it. My amazing friend Brandy watched her in the morning and then brought her to school and even took her first day pictures.

Piper is one of Addison's besties. They are trouble, especially when you add in their other bestie, Adilyn

I snuck out of my classroom in time to walk her down to her class and kiss her goodbye. I may have even sneaked a peek when they were outside at recess!

Spoke too soon

2011-11-04T10:04:00.002-06:00

Yesterday I bragged about sweet Brooke and then I went to her parent/teacher conference last night. I should have waited until after I went to conferences so I could add all the amazing things they had to say about her. One teacher asked me how in the world I created a Brooke and to give her the secret so she could duplicate it. They all had such great things to say and we were not surprised to hear that she had straight A's! One class she has 112%! Totally not surprised by what I heard, but still thrilled to have heard it!

Brag on Brooke!

2011-11-03T07:07:00.002-06:00

Just need to brag about my Brookie! She has had a big couple of months. Today I signed her progress report...all A's (not surprised at all). Brooke finished her personal progress on her birthday. This is a big deal. Basically she had until she was 18 to finish it and she did it only 2 years! Her amazing personal progress leader Lindsay made her a beautiful quilt as a "way to go" gift! go to Lindzsews.blogspot.com to see it! Brooke was inducted into the Junior National Honors Society and is the Vice President of History for the group. They are going to be raising money in the next few months so they can fund Micro Loans for women in 3rd world countries! Brooke had to give a little introduction at the induction ceremony and did a great job! Brooke has been babysitting like crazy and I have the parents tell me all the time what a great job she does. One day she had 3 jobs...8 am, 1 pm and 7 pm! The best part? She saves every penny. I had her get a debit card when we set up the account and she has only used it once in the 3 months since. Brooke was also selected to be a school ambassador. She submitted an application and a group of teachers chose students to represent the school. They do special events for the school like "say no to drugs week". Brooke went to her first stake dance. None of her friends were available or old enough to go so she basically went alone (we did carpool with a neighbor boy, but they didn't hang out). At the dance she found some friends from school and she hung out with them. They noticed a girl all by herself and decided to ask her to hang out with them. They included this girl the entire night. (I keep thinking of the girls parents. We so hope that our kids will have confidence and feel included. I am sure they were praying that night that their girl would find a friend. Brooke hasn't seen the girl since, but I am sure it made a big impact on her) Brooke was recently selected as one of 8 kids in the stake to be interviewed for the stake youth conference video. The stake leaders prayed aobut which kids should be chosen and Brooke was one of them. On a side note, after the youth conference one of the leaders complimented us because Brooke was one of the few girls that was dressed modestly the entire time and they were very impressed by her! Yesterday a friend stopped me and said she just wanted to let me know what a great girl Brooke was. She put on a Halloween dinner for her son and the big group of kids that all hang out. The meal and decorations were so over the top fun! The 3rd course was meatloaf shaped like rats! At this point I guess Brooke asked her how much work she had gone to for the night. Susan couldn't believe a 14 year old had noticed her hard work and had actually mentioned it to her. It wasn't a "thanks for the ride" kind of moment, but a moment where someone noticed your hard work and actually mentioned it. Susan was very impressed! My friend Brandy calls Brooke and old soul. She is so right on. While I was out of town recently Brooke was at a birthday party. At 11 she told her friend she needed to leave to make sure her dad had put the other kids to bed! Sometimes I wish Brooke wouldn't take so much on herself, but I realize this is her. She is so responsible. She is learning to have more fun, but she does it her way, responsibly! That I am very thankful for!

Done taking a nap?

2011-11-03T07:02:00.003-06:00

Today is day three of me having hardly any voice. I kind of sound like Phoebe on friends when she is sick, which is perfect because my bff's husband sings "smelly cat" to me everytime he sees me! I am thinking it is allergies because it is my only symptom. It is a little difficult to teach preschoolers with a whisper. Yesterday I told the class I thought my voice was taking a nap since I didn't have time to take one myself. At the end of the day one of my cuties in his little tongue thrust lisp asked me "Is your voice finished napping yet?" That my friends is why I teach!

Just breathe!

2011-09-08T06:45:00.002-06:00

I guess because Easton has always had allergies we don't realize how poorly he is breathing. He doesn't get a full blown asthma attack where he is gasping for air, he just is constantly now breathing at full capacity. To help him we are starting a fairly intensive regimen. For 5 days he will: nose spray twice a day, inhaler twice a day and 2 tsp. dose of prednisone once a day. Then if he is going to be doing something outdoors he will do a fast acting inhaler 15-30 minutes before. After 5 days he stops the prednisone and then switches inhalers. He is starting a very high dose *250/50* for two weeks. After the two weeks his dosage gets lowered *100/50*. He continues the nose spray (probably forever) and the fact acting. To top it all off in about two weeks he starts allergy shots, which are kind of a pain in the neck. He goes twice a week to the Dr. to get the shot and then sit around for at least a half hour to make sure he doesn't have a bad reaction. I told Neil last night that I can't wait for him to feel what it is like to breathe at full capacity. Most of the time he is about 70-75%. He has no idea what it is really like to not be wheezy. Most of the time I don't even realize his is wheezy. Like yesterday at the Dr. he was a little wheezy and I had no idea! I guess it is like eye sight...you are use to what you got, then you go to the eye doctor and are given glasses and realize wow I was missing out on so much! This is a long journey we are on, but hopefully one that will help my sweet guy out!

I survived...barely

2011-08-28T17:40:00.003-06:00

I survived sending my baby off to kindergarten. I don't know how I made it! Perhaps I have been so crazy busy that I haven't had time to really think about it, because when I do I start crying. I have never had a hard time sending my kids to school. When Brooke went to school Camden was two and Easton was a newborn. I would put her on the bus and then put the boys down for a nap. It was pure bliss! I would scrapbook one page and then I would do chores without helpers. When Camden went to school Easton was in preschool and Addison was a napper. So I again had a little alone time. When Easton went to school Addison napped for a while, but then gave them up. It has been just the two of us for 3 years. I have loved spending so much one on one time with her. We love to giggle together! For the past year I have known that kindergarten was looming in my near future. I couldn't decide what to do....do I send her or not? I changed my mind weekly. Neil didn't, he knew she should go. I told myself she is so little and barely makes the cutoff by a few days. I would then remind myself that she is soooo ready for school. She loves to learn and is very social. Well I bit the bullet and sent her. I won't lie it was hard. The week before I would tear up just talking about it. So to make the transition easier I got a job...at the school...two classrooms down from hers! I am teaching preschool at the elementary school (finally that degree I paid so much for is being put to use!) I had to prep my classroom on the first day of school. Addison went to her friend Piper's house in the morning. Then her amazing mom Brandy brought her to the school at 12:40. She took the first day of school pictures for me (she is my personal photographer since I always forget to take pictures!) Addie came and got me and together we walked to her classroom and found her chair. The teacher said goodbye to the parents and I walked out. I had done it. I had done it without crying in front of my baby and her class. She looked so little sitting in that big chair. She is a tiny thing in this class full of big kids. I hurried back to my class and got busy so I wouldn't think about it. How did it go? Her favorite thing about it was the smart board (this amazing technology that is kind of an overhead projector and computer mixed into one. Like having an enormous I Pad on the wall) Her least favorite thing was recess, it was hot and boring and she had to wait in line for the bathroom. The next day she wouldn't even say goodbye to me, just ran down the hall and headed into class. I guess I should take it as a good sign that she loves her teacher! But can't she miss me a little? The third day she came home and told me she made 4 new friends, but doesn't know their name. She does know what team they are on (the class is divided into teams). Addison loves school. I know I made the right decision, but it still breaks my heart. The short time we had together, just the two of us, is over. It will never be the same. Now I just have other things to look forward to with her (which I am trying to remind myself every time I get a little weepy) For now I will just be content that I am two classrooms away if she ever needs me.

3 weeks

2011-07-24T20:18:00.002-06:00

I can't believe that school will start in 3 weeks! Where has the summer gone? We have had a very relaxing and fun summer. This is the summer I will always remember my kids becoming fish...the kids took swimming lessons and fell in love with the water. Addison is so close to being able to really swim....she loves showing me how she puts her face in the water! Easton is everywhere in the water but has no interest in becoming a pro. Camden on the other hand LOVES swimming. Camden has decided that he is going to swim instead of playing football this fall! The weather in SG has been amazing this summer. I think the highest we have hit is 105! Because of the great weather we have enjoyed a lot of time outside at the park and riding bikes. We had our very favorite babysitter visit us from WA! Becky started babysitting for us when Brooke was one...it was fun to have her come and show her Zions. We went to Disneyland for a week to watch Brooke clog and Brooke was busy with girls camp, youth conference and babysitting. This has been a summer of dreams and I am sad to see it end. I hate getting back into the routine that school brings. I think the kids are excited to see friends again...and they are super excited about the teachers they have. The saddest part....my baby is going to school this year. I have had a hard time accepting this, and tried to convince Neil that I should just homeschool her...he laughed. I know she will love it and do well, but this is my baby, my last baby. Addison has been my side kick...the other kids have been in school for so long that it has just been the two of us. I am sad to see this end, but she is very excited to go to the big school. We are planning on packing as much fun into these next three weeks including a wedding for my cousin and a trip to grammy and papas! Then back to the grind. I guess all dreams must come to an end becausde this summer truely has been one!

It's so far!

2011-06-25T07:28:00.004-06:00

Easton: I want to move my bedroom upstairs into the office and then move the office into the front room.
Me: Why do you want to move upstairs? (He currently has a bedroom downstairs
Easton: Cause then I won't have to walk so far to get breakfast

A kid after my own heart...food comes first!? Monday I had Easton and one other boy show up at scouts. After a tour of the landfill I took them to ice cream. I heard this convo:

K: I think some of my friends come over just to play with my stuff
Easton: That's not nice. I like you just because of who you are, not because of your toys.

Thanks Easton....you just made me feel a little better about my mothering! Now if I could just get him to stop fighting with Camden all the time!

merry-go-round

2011-06-17T06:31:00.002-06:00

We went to Disneyland! Brooke's clogging group was performing there and we were able to get tickets cheaper! Notice I didn't say free or cheap:( While we were in California Adventure the kids of course wanted to go on screamin. Since Addison isn't tall enough we went on the carousel: over and over and over! Then when they big kids were done Easton joined us for one last ride. Addison loved it and we never once had to wait in line for it!

Downtown splash pad

2011-06-17T06:28:00.002-06:00

Brooke has clogging on Tuesdays. They meet in the building right next to the downtown splash pad/river. We normally go every Tuesday and play in splash pad while Brooke is clogging, but this year with the weather and our busy lives we only went once! We packed up a picnic dinner and went and played in the water and enjoyed the sunshine.

Cambo

2011-06-17T06:16:00.003-06:00

Sometimes it is tough being Camden. Most of our friends don't have kids his age (thank heavens for JD!) There aren't any boys in his primary class that go to our school, in fact they both go to charter schools and neither of them are interested in the things Camden is interested in. Camden is also at times a little sensitive and a little bossy. He is just at that hard age and so a lot of the times gets stuck with me while Addison and Easton are playing with friends (which they have a ton of options. I guess everyone I know had kids the same time I had them!) I love spending time with my Cambo. Camden will ask me the most in depth and thought provoking questions. He is a deep thinker and analyzes things. He is getting a little old for the park now, so while the kids play he would prefer to sit and chat with me, which I love! I am praying a new boy will move into the ward and that he will be a perfect fit for Camden. Until them I guess he will keep me on my toes with his deep thoughts. I guess I should of named him Jack Handy!

Inhale, exhale

2011-06-17T06:06:00.002-06:00

One day at soccer Easton came to get his drink and was wheezing. So the next day we were off to the doctor. We only had an hour and then we would need to run to another soccer game. We explained some of our symptoms to the Dr. and then he listened to his lungs. Easton was put on a breathing treatment. Before the treatment his lungs were working at about 75%, after they jumped to 95%! With just one treatment! So Easton has now been diagnosed with asthma (coughing all the time is a symptom that I didn't know about) We now every morning and every night do both a nose spray and an inhaler. He also needs to do a fast acting inhaler right before any outdoor activity that could trigger his asthma. We already knew he was allergic to every grass and plant imaginable, so pretty much before he goes outside to play or participate in a sport/recess. Easton was not very excited for the treatment, but did say it is a lot easier to breathe after doing it! Yeah for modern medicine.

Easton's baptism invite!

2011-06-09T07:56:00.001-06:00

I found a few photos on the computer that I hadn't posted. This was Easton's baptism invite. It's a good thing I have such amazing friends! Valerie took the pictures of Easton and MaryBeth put together this fabulous announcement/invite! I must say, this kid is adorable!

Two months worth

2011-06-09T07:45:00.002-06:00

Well I have two months worth of pictures and videos to blog about, but my stinkin computer won't upload my pictures. Here is what I need to blog about:
1. For two months we lived the crazy life...Brooke and Addison were in dance, Brooke played softball, Camden and Easton played baseball and Camden Easton and Addison played soccer. This meant some weeks we had 6 ball games and 3 soccer games and 2 dance classes, plus practices. What I learned? yes I know I am crazy and no it will never happen again.
2. Addison graduated from preschool. I loved teaching this year and was sad for it to end!
3. Brooke and Addison both had dance recitals. Addison's costume cost a small fortune, especially since she wore it for all of 5 minutes! What I learned? Addison is changing studios! Oh and she gets to start clogging in September!
4. Easton was baptized! He was very excited. It only took him a few months to finally decide it was ok for his dad to baptize him! Whew, I was starting to get a little worried for Neil!
5. Brooke's clogging group performed at Disneyland. She was amazing! We had a great family vacation! Addison got to meet Tangled and Eugene, the highlight of her trip!
6. I went on 3 field trips this year: two with Addie and one with Easton! Have cute pictures from all 3, just can't share them (so mad at my computer right now!)
7. I realized how bad I am at taking pictures, I only got two from Easter, whats wrong with me?

So I have a bunch of posts to do, and will as soon as I can upload this darn pictures!

Proof times have changed!

2011-04-14T08:07:00.002-06:00

A few days ago I walked past Addison's room where she was playing with her dolls (I think it might have been polly pockets or barbies) I love listening to the conversations they have. Usually it is some version of something I would say, but not this time. On this day the two girls were discussing....wait for it.....their websites! What? I guess it was really important they check out each other's website. Proof that times have changed. I am sure my barbies probably were listening to records!

8 is great!

2011-04-03T10:46:00.003-06:00

Easton is getting baptized soon. He turns 8 in May! Where has the time gone? We recently went with my friend Valerie to have pictures taken for his baptism announcement. Val is an amazing photographer and did a great job. To see more of his photo shoot go to valeriehartphotography.blogspot.com Thanks Val!

Just a highlight!

2011-03-20T07:44:00.002-06:00

We went camping with some of our favorite people...the Connors and Dotys. I am busy doing laundry and getting the sand out of everything! I have only done 10 loads so far...but there are many more to do! Here is a sneak peak of some of the fun:

She told me she couldn't see, but it was still fun!

Productivity!

2011-03-12T16:42:00.002-07:00

Today I have had a good day...the weather is nice and I have accomplished so much. Laundry...close to caught up. Painted a bench for my front room (it has been sitting for 5 years in my garage waiting for me) painted a desk for Brooke's room, pulled some weeds (but not enough) Neil helped boys in the neighborhood make their pinewood derby cars, sewed, sewed and sewed some more. I also had a nice lunch with just the hubster! Easton went to soccer practice. Neil took the boys to the hill to jump their bikes. Cam crashed and has a little road rash:( He did cry (miracle)! Brooke has tended most of the day and even took Addison to her second tending job! The weather is perfect, I wish it would last for months and months!

Few videos of the yellow jackets!

2011-03-10T14:22:00.003-07:00

Yellow Jackets play their first game!

2011-03-10T14:13:00.003-07:00

Addison had her first soccer game last night...it was the best thing ever! I love watching 3 and 4 year old kids play soccer. People should be paying them instead of professional athletes. It was the best entertainment I have had in a long time!

She posed with her besties before the game, Adilyn in green/blue and Piper in teal/yellow. Addison is older the Adilyn by a month and Piper by almost a year. Who would have thought? We played Piper's team. The game was fantastic. Addison scored the very first goal, which I sadly didn't get on film. At one point a boy on the other team picked up the ball, ran to his goal, set it down and kicked it in! AWESOME! Towards the end of the game a girl on our team somehow got her head stuck in the net of the goal. It took a few minutes to get her loose! Addison scored one more goal, in the other teams goal, but didn't know it. She was just excited she scored. A boy on the other team took of running and kicking the ball and didn't stop until he was half way across the park, TWICE! I can't wait for the next game in two weeks!

It's all about the accessories!

2011-03-10T13:54:00.003-07:00

Soccer for Addison (well for me) was all about the accessories. First up: pink shoes! I looked for cleats for her, but they are like 20 bucks...and I couldn't find any pink. One day while we were at Play it again sports looking for baseball gloves for the big kids I found these used ones for 9 bucks! She loves that they are pink!

I looked on YouTube and found directions to make Addison hair bows to match her uniform. I got the ribbon at Joann's. I love how they turned out!

Addison's uniform is enormous. It is so long on her. I put it on her and told her to make a sad face....here is the result:

Then she did a grumpy face:

Then she wanted me to take a picture of her making this face...what? OK!
Then I took it off of her and altered it. I ruched the sides and shoulders with an amazing thing called elastic thread. I admit I felt a little silly while I was making her a tailored soccer shirt, but I wanted her to be able to run in it without falling over and she wouldn't let me tie it on the side

Then she did a happy faceDoesn't it look much better...I think I still might alter it some more to make it a little shorter on her...but I love the finished product.
.
The yellow jackets sure are a lucky team to have this cutie on the team!

Ready for some good weather!

2011-03-09T06:11:00.001-07:00

I am done with the cold...and it isn't even cold here! I am not ready for the HOT...but I am ready for a little more of this....

and I guess this only happens when it is HOT...so I guess bring on the heat!

I am gorgeous!

2011-03-08T14:41:00.002-07:00

Today when Addison was getting dressed for ballet she said "I'm gorgeous". I love that she is so confident...and totally correct. It got me thinking...I hope she doesn't lose that. I hope she continues to love and appreciate all he good qualities. At what point do little girls stop thinking they are gorgeous and start worrying about what they weigh, how their hair looks and what clothes they wear. When do they stop looking in the mirror and think I'm gorgeous. When do they start thinking...wow I have a zip, my skin is dry/oily, my pores are huge, wow is that a wrinkle? I wish I had that confidence. I can appreciate certain things....like I love my think eye brows, even through they are a pain to keep up, but at least I have them! I hope I can help Addison to continue to think these positive thoughts. I hope too that she thinks..."Wow, I am smart" or "wow, I tried really hard the hard work paid off".

Illness?

2011-03-07T21:52:00.001-07:00

I think I have an illness...well another one. Why is it that the thought of Addie's hair bows with her soccer uniform make me giddy? Shouldn't I be more excited about the actual game? I am not....I just can't wait to see how stinking cute she looks in her uniform with the hair bows! Pictures to come as soon as I finish making them!

What a saint!

2011-03-07T21:48:00.002-07:00

Neil is a saint...and not just because he lives with me! That is the first step towards sainthood. The next step was willing take the kids swimming for family swim night with the school. The ENTIRE school and their families were invited to the public pool for free! You know we live in Utah. You know Utah mormons have a ton of kids...and you know people with a ton of kids love anything free! Neil took all 4 kids swimming while I stayed home and folded laundry and cleaned up the dinner dishes. Boy did I get the better end of the deal. No visit to the pool would be complete without some kid pooping! This was the third and final thing that sealed the deal...Neil is a saint!

8 is great!

2011-03-06T18:33:00.003-07:00

Today we had 8 is great for Easton. What does this mean? We went to the church and had a little meeting with all the kids turning 8 this year. They learned about what happens when they are baptized and what group they will start attending (cub scouts or activity days). There are 7 boys and 1 girl in his class. I can't believe he is turning 8! Where did the time go? He is so excited to turn 8 and gets this big grin on his face when we talk about it. I sure am proud of this boy!

great day...but glad it's over!

2011-03-05T20:59:00.002-07:00

Today we woke up early and took the kids to the high school. Brooke, Camden and Easton were all participating in a baseball/softball camp. Can I just say that the field at the high school is gorgeous. I loved being out in the beautiful sun, soaking it in, while I watched my kiddos. I loved hearing the crack of the bat and the sound of the ball hitting a mit! Brings back so many memories. I probably watched a million baseball games my brother played in. I thought it was hilarious that the high school players are growing mullets just like my brother had in the early 90's! Brooke is playing softball for the first time and did very well at the clinic. I was very impressed with her bunting skills! Camden and Easton both did very well. One of the boys in the ward (he is also on the high school team)commented on how well they played. He was especially impressed with Easton's swing since most of the kids his age couldn't hit a thing. Addison was a dream and played the entire 2 1/2 hours without complaining once! After a quick lunch at home we were off again. This time to Addison's first soccer practice. Brooke said she looked adorable out there. Her shirt is so big that it looks like a dress on her! After Addison's practice was Easton's practice. He is such a good little athelete. While at his practice Addison put on her soccer shirt and her pink pettiskirt and danced around the park. I am sure this is a good indication of where her priorities will be this season! While Neil was at the park with the kids I took Camden out to sell tickets for the scout expo. He has set a goal for himself to sell a ton of these things and has done fairly well. Today is the first day of sales and he has already sold 20. After practice we took the kids to ice cream and then back home again. When we got home Camden wanted to go selling some more, so Neil hopped on his bike and Camden on his. They were gone for a good hour or more. Brooke went babysitting for the night, and I stayed home exhausted (oh well I guess I did change out the winter/summer shirts for both boys). We spent the evening watching the new Karate Kid movie....it was cute but just not the same as the original. They never once said "put him in a body bag" and I missed Mr. Meagee (sp). I love days like these where we don't get a ton done at home, but we have a great day! There was no fighting, no video games and lots of laughing. Man am I exhausted. Hope I make it through this week....soccer games start!

Jealous?

2011-01-28T16:45:00.002-07:00

Yeah...I am too. How in the world did I end up with two amazing daughters? Somehow I haven't messed them up! My amazing friend Valerie took these great pictures. I love how they turned out!Addison was so well behaved for the pictures. Anytime the camera turned on her she smiled. She never once said "are we done yet?" Brooke was a trooper and did whatever we wanted her to do!

I love being mama to these two beauties! Head on over to Valeries blog and check out more pictures and see the special she is having...it is a great deal! Thanks Val!

Sunshine and lollipops....

2011-01-24T06:48:00.004-07:00

My kids love to sing that song on Cloudy with a chance of meatballs! Two days ago Easton came running into our room. He had a bad dream....luckily it was 6 in the morning. He said it was about wolves. He also told me that when he had a bad dream it he tried to think of happy thoughts....like lollipops and MATH! I don't know why but this kid loves math. He asked for a math book for Christmas. His uber smart cousin even said that he never asked for a math workbook...and he loves that kind of stuff! Oh Easton....I could write a book with the cute things you say!

Family Reunion

2011-01-17T16:23:00.003-07:00

This summer we had a family reunion in Centerville. My mom's sibilings all made it. My mom and dad couldn't make it because it was right before my dad had cataract surgery and he wasn't really suppose to drive. It was so humid that day...but we had a great time!
Aunt Deb with the nieces:Jamie, Julie, Jennifer, Aunt Deb, Cindy and me!
Uncle Mert/Dave (depending on which family you are in...some call him Dave, we call him Mert), Aunt Deb and Uncle Ron. Uncle Ron is my mom's brother, their mom remarried Papa Egan. He already had a son Mert/Dave. Papa Egan and Grandma had a daughter:Debbi. There you go...confused?
Some of the Boyle family. Grandma is a Boyle and some of Boyle side came! I was in heaven looking at all of the pictures I had never seen before!

addison's second dance

2010-12-22T07:10:00.006-07:00

Addison's first dance recital!

2010-12-22T07:10:00.003-07:00

Addison had her first dance recital last night. It was the cutest thing E V E R! Addison and her bestie Adilyn kept looking at one another and giggling. I asked her if she could see her teacher in front of the stage and she replied..."I could see her hair!" Watch the video to see what she is talking about! Silly girl! On the way home in the car she announced "my recital is over". It was so fun to watch...and only about a half an hour...way to go teacher Trista!The entire class!

The pretty ballerina!

Addison and her bestie Adilyn. Yes Adilyn is younger then Addison by a month. She is tall and Addie is short. Those two sure can giggle and have fun together.

See how the two of them are looking at one another....ready to start giggling again! They both did a great job!

The moment you've been waiting for!

2010-12-22T07:07:00.001-07:00

The carpet is in....it is so lovely I just want to look at it all day. I have also threatened the kids so they won't eat/drink on it! I need to take more pictures now that the furniture is back in.

So cute it hurts!

2010-12-22T06:54:00.002-07:00

Interesting fact #233: It Works for Easton!

2010-12-21T08:44:00.002-07:00

According to Easton: If your teacher tells you that you have to go to the bathroom and you don't have to....push on your belly button. It works every time! ummm...I haven't tried it, but this 7 year old thinks it works.1

Bounce House Water Slide

2010-12-21T08:30:00.001-07:00

While cousin Jake was here we put up the bounce house water slide....it is starting to lose some of it's ummmff...but it is still the best thing I have purchased at a yard sale! Jake is the fairest kid I know...so he wore one of Neil's hats and his sun protecting suit on the slide. What a cute kid!

Splash pad....this summer...someday I will be caught up!

2010-12-21T08:04:00.007-07:00

This summer Grandma and Grandpa came for a visit and brought cousin Jake. We met them in Vegas and stayed in a hotel for a night (basically Addison's favorite thing on earth is a hotel!) Then we headed back to SG for a little sun (ok a lot of sun) The kids had such a great time in Vegas and loved the ride home even more!

While Jake was here we went to the local splash pad...at 6 or 7 at night. We had to wait until it was bearable for the adults to sit and watch....it was still hot! Enjoy the fun through these pics....

The view across the street from the splash pad. I love the colors in SG...we don't have the lush colors of Hawaii...but we have great contrasts with the red dirt!

Tutu Fun!

2010-12-18T08:36:00.001-07:00

Whenever kids come over to play with Addison they always want to play with her pettiskirts. Our neighbor Andrew thinks it is a great idea too!

Once upon a time...

2010-12-13T12:05:00.002-07:00

I found a story Easton wrote for class. It started out as a cute story about his "grampa named Devon" (his cousins name is Devin). Then it turned into a story that only Easton could write! I wish I could scan it, but that techno gene isn't in me and Neil is at work. So I will just type it..the way he spelled it and put the real word in parenthesis! If the word is capitalized it is because he put the caps!

Once upon a time thir wa(there was) a grampa named Devon. he had Brown eyes Blond hair had Braces, and had a circle face. he was a grandparent. One Day he was going to his grandchildren a car hit him he had to go to the hospital he had Died the Children were sad
the End

Of course....only Easton! Man he is cute!

Run, run reindeer!

2010-12-11T16:55:00.005-07:00

Brooke decided to run a 5k for personal progress. Her awesome PP leader Lindsay was her training partner. When the other kids heard about the race they decided they wanted to run the 1 mile fun run. It was a cold morning but luckily there wasn't any wind! They all did great! What a proud mama I was!
Santa and the 1 milers at the starting line!

Camden and Easton at the half way mark!

Camden Crossing the Finish Line!

Catching his breath after his one mile run!

Easton Crossing the finish line!
Neil ran the 1 mile with Addison in hopes he wouldn't be needed! Addie made it to the first corner and her legs were so tired she couldn't go on!
Addison and her friend crossing the finish line!
Addison and her cute friend. Addison's friend Taylor ran with Addie and Neil. Taylor was doing great until santa came up behind her and said "ho, ho, ho" It scared Taylor and she tripped. Neil ran most of the race with Addie on his shoulders and holding onto Taylors hand. What a trooper!
Brooke and Lindz rounding the first corner of the race!
Brooke and her awesome running partner Lindsay! So anxious to begin the race!
Almost to the finish line!
Crossing the finish line!
Very excited to be finished! I am so proud of Brooke and all the hard work she put into training for her race. Can't wait to see her run the next one!

YW ribbon!

2010-12-11T16:09:00.002-07:00

Brooke decided to learn how to quilt for personal progress. She spent the summer sewing here and there when she would get bored. She made it for her clogging teachers new baby! Brooke is turning out to be a great seamstress!

Before and during

2010-12-11T16:05:00.001-07:00

Here is the before and the reason why I am losing it! About a month ago we started finishing the basement. The drywall is now up and painted. Baseboards are on and painted...touchs ups are happening as I type (Neil is a great handyman to have around!) Carpet comes on MONDAY! Once the room is put back together I will post the after pics!

behind...so very behind

2010-12-03T17:15:00.002-07:00

I think my theme in life is being behind! I just can't seem to get a step ahead on anything! This year I am teaching preschool 4 mornings a week. I love sending time with Addison. I can't believe this is her last year before she heads off to school! She is doing so well at preschool. I love teaching and teach with a great friend of mine. She is so creative and we have a great time together. We plan on teaching again next year. This past month has been crazy. In the last month we have gone from a partially finished basement to getting carpet installed next week. Neil has been busy painting walls, staining the floor in part of the basement, and painting baseboards. I can't wait for it to be finished so I can put my house back together. I have half of the toys upstairs making a mess and I can't get to any of my Christmas decorations until the carpet is in. My storage room is crammed full of toys and furniture. I am still working with the cub scouts and love it. Easton officially comes into the wolves in May. He loves hanging out with the older boys. Brooke is busy with clogging and training for her first 5k which is tomorrow morning. I am so proud of the effort she has put into this training! Camden finished up football and is anxious for basketball to start! Every other year the boys get to play on the same team...this is an off year so they are on different teams. This meant we had football 4 days a week!Luckily basketball will be only two days a week! Addison is in ballet. We switched teachers this year and Addison misses her old teacher (I think only because the last teacher gave out suckers at the end of class and this teacher gives out stickers!) I am on the pto board....and stink at it. I wish I had more to give to it, but I am just doing what I can right now. I substitute almost every week at church and have given myself a Christmas present...I decided to not sub for the rest of the year. Ha! That lasted one week. When a friend calls up and needs help I can't seem to say no! I do enjoy working with the kids and helping out, I just feel like I am only giving a half effort to everything. We have had such a busy fall with so many fun experiences...someday I will post pictures of all the activites. I feel so blessed. We have an almost finished house (next up the backyard!) We have great friends and neighbors. We have a secure job that offers great insurance. I just need to keep reminding myself these things when I am feeling overwhelmed....and when I have been breating in the fumes from the sealant in the basement. Seriously it stinks right now! Neil and I are thinking we could charge money for people to come breath it in! We would make a killing today! Can't wait to post pictures of it when it is finished.

eyes of steel

2010-11-05T19:12:00.001-06:00

After hundreds of staring contests I have come to the conclusion that
Addison has eyes of steel. I swear she must never blink! No one in our family can beat her. She is amazing!

Interesting fact #372

2010-09-28T19:39:00.002-06:00

It is much easier to get a pony bead out of a nose then it is to get a barbie golf ball out of a nose. Pencil erasers in ears are even easier then the barbie golf ball.

Stylish

2010-09-25T16:47:00.002-06:00

Today when I was doing Addison's hair she said "Ooh, I like it. Stylish" Only it sounded like stywish! I want to eat her up she is do delish!

Little Miss

2010-08-23T07:40:00.005-06:00

Addison turned 4. I can't believe my baby is 4. Addison was not my easiest delivery...she was my most boring delievery. I literally got bored with the whole thing. Pitocin doesn't work well on me. So I just have the doctor break my water. The nurse wouldn't let me be on my side. If she would have then the delivery would have been a lot shorter. Because of that it was 6 hours. I got bored. I got an epidural...but dont' like them. I didn't really need it...so I was sad I had gotten it. I pushed twice I think. The nurses were sure she would be a boy because I wanted a girl so badly. The nurses all cheered when they saw it was a girl. Neil cried when HE saw it was a girl...I think it was relief that he wouldn't have to have another baby! He was sure that if it were a boy we would have to try again for a girl. When I called and told the kids it was a girl they cheered and started jumping up and down and screaming! It was so fun.

Addison was such a quiet baby. For like the first 2 weeks she didn't cry. She would start to wake up and we would all get excited that she was awake. We would feed her and she was content. She wouldn't take a binkie...but didn't really need one. She was just content. The kids sure loved kissing on her!

Addison is a perfect example of how we are born with a certain spirit. She is still very content. She of course has her moments...but in general is a happy and easy going girl. She loves anything girly and LOVES lipstick and makeup.

Addison loves her friends. She asks to play with them daily! She loves school and has asked when school starts since the last day of school last year.

Addison has a great imagination and tells me some real whoppers. She tells me stories about when she was a boy named Jeremy and the great adventures she has. She talks about all these friens she has...usually they have names like Shena and Kenna. They have sleepovers and do lots of exciting things!

People just love Addie. No matter where we go she gets comments about how cute she is or how cute her hair is. She has wrapped more then one person around her little finger. I often hear her telling he brothers to stopping kissing on her! We love you Addison...you are such a special girl! Can't wait to see how you grow the next 4 years!

Are you shocked?

2010-08-23T07:13:00.005-06:00

Yes I am actually posting....I have sat down to do this all summer...but put it off at the same time! School is in and before preschool starts up I figured I better blog. This summer I went to a family reunion. We started swapping old photographs. I saw one I had never seen before.

My mom and her parents right before her dad left for the war. I love it. I loved how perfectly put together grandma is. Seeing this inspired me to start a blog as a place for the family to share pictures of the family. click here There are some fun pictures on there and hopefully it will grow!

9!

2010-08-08T15:43:00.004-06:00

I can't believe that it has been 9 years. Where has the time gone. Camden was my easiest delivery! I had a appointment with my doctor. I was overdue. I had spent the day mowing the lawn (it took an hour) in hopes that I would go into labor. No such luck. My doctor was running late (not a surprise...he always was). My 3 oclock appointment was at 5. At my appointment he told me to go ahead and go to the hospital and he would induce me. I went home, called Neil home from the farm and got to the hospital at about 7:30 or 8. The nurses got an IV in me and my doctor arrived at about 9. He was just about to break my water when the nurse came rushing in to get him. He was needed in the ER. At women at 35 weeks was in full cardiac arrest. He came back an hour later, she hadn't made it and neither had the baby. He didn't tell me that, but I read it in the paper that week. So at 10 he broke my water....I was at a one. 3 hours later, and no epidural, a chubby 8 lb. 7 oz. beautiful boy was born. The nurses kept telling me how beautiful he was and how they saw a ton of babies but he was one of the beautiful ones. He didn't have that newborn scrunched look. I was in love! I had hoped and prayed for 4 years for this baby, and he took my breath away!

More than any of my kids Camden really gets into what interests him. For a while it was superman. Unfortunately there was a wiggles kick...where he would only watch the one wiggles video and wanted to watch it everyday all day! The yellow power ranger rulled at our house for about a year. Yellow was the color of the year. He only wanted to eat on a yellow plate and drink from a yellow cup. Star wars was another obsession (that still lingers at this house thanks to youtube. Did you know that grown men spend hours making their own star wars movies. Camden loves the grocery wars one. All the guys are different fruits and veggies. Yoda is Yoga...and yogurt guy!)

Camden is very tender hearted. He is also a deep thinker. He asks me questions all the time that really make me think. Sometimes he is such a old soul.

He is also a great giggler. He loves to tell jokes and is a terrible liar. When he lies he gets this sheepish look on his face and can't make eye contact. If I probe a little more and ask if he is sure that is the truth he usually answers with "oh I forgot".

Camden is a great brother. Brooke was smitten with him when he was born. She was 4 and so excited to be a big sister. When he was a week old I found her next to him on the couch reading him a story.

Camden loves an adventure. He loves to play sports (especially if he wins) and loves to go geocaching. He enjoys talking to adults and takes what they say to heart. The other day we were somewhere and he suddenly says "look, that looks like an ark of the covenant" A few weeks ago in church they talked about that and he soaked it in. His all time favorite teacher is Suzanne Smith. He LOVES her. He loves talking to her and talks all the time about when she was his teacher in primary!

We love having Camden in our family. He is such a sweet boy. He has a great testimony and is a great example to us! Hope you had a great birthday Camden!

Til we meet again!

2010-06-15T07:25:00.006-06:00

We moved to St. George the week before Brooke started 1st grade. The first day of school she made a new friend, Mairead. She had also just moved here. Lucky for us she had a younger brother, John. The kids became fast friends and have stayed friends.

We just learned that John and Mairead are moving. We are so sad. So I took the kids to the splash pad to play. Some where I have a picture of them playing at this same splash pad many years ago.

They are the kind of friends that can get together for hours and there aren't any squabbles and not once do they say to me "we're bored". The girls even entertain the boys.

We will miss them terribly!

There must have been something int he water at this splash pad, because it made the girls very silly! So then the boys joined in and entertained themselves for another half hour!

On a side note...when I look at these pictures I am struck again at how beautiful it is here. Really...I get to sit at the park while the kids play and enjoy this amazing view!

Camera Happy!

2010-06-15T07:17:00.004-06:00

Today when I was getting pictures off the camera I found these:

Camden and Addison had their own photo shoot. They make me happy. Pictures I would never take that show our crazy lives!

18 months?!

2010-05-29T09:57:00.002-06:00

Today I finally took the 18 month shorts out of Addie's drawer. They still fit her....just a little daisy duke on her. Maybe this will help her to stop climbing into the car through the window! I suppose it is time to give up this size....she is 2 1/2 months away from being 4. What about the 24 month shorts you ask? Some of them are still in the drawer. If she wears 24 month shorts I don't have to roll them like I do with 3T. Her "boyfriend" Tyson was so sad that she isn't going to kindergarten with him next year. He said to her, "well if you would just grow Addie you would be able to go with me" Neil's grandpa is VERY short....like comes to my shoulder...so maybe she has his height. That's ok with me. I know she is eating healthy. On Wednesday she had beans for breakfast and lunch. Her favorites are black beans, but garbonzo or great northerns will work too! She would prefer to have beans over a McDonalds happy meal! YEAH! Now I just need to convince the other kids to love beans!

Schools out for summer!

2010-05-27T20:38:00.004-06:00

I can not believe that it is the end of May and we are in the 80's. I am loving it! It was so beautiful today. I took a break from deep cleaning my kitchen to walk to the school and pick up the boys. When we got to the school the bell rang. The first kid that walked past us (with his air guitar) was singing "Schools out for summer". I gave a little chuckle, but he turned around and walked past us again this time with hands in the air shouting "victory, victory, school's out for summer". Wow...I guess he was excited. How long do you think he was home before he told his mom he was bored?

Almost famous!

2010-05-13T08:18:00.004-06:00

Back in 2008 we were in a commercial. It was for Neils recycling program. I have since lost oh...about 30 pounds. Can we do a reshoot? The kids look so young! My biggest complaint? Why do they have so many bum shots of me!?

Oh...and that isn't our house. Fake house...fake 4 wheeler in the driveway! Real cute kids. Real car. Real cute husband!

Sob...I am so sorry!

2010-05-13T08:10:00.002-06:00

One night Neil and I went on a date. Lindz called and asked if Brooke was busy cause they wanted to go out. Brooke was busy, but we had the neighbor girl coming to tend...so send your kids on over. Two hours later I get a phone call...and Sam (the sitter) is crying. She just kept saying she was so sorry. I finally got out of her what happened. She was going to paint the girls nails. Andrew wanted to also. So he managed to pry open his own bottle of polish. So we get this:

Lessons we learned:
1. My friend's husband is the best carpet cleaner in the world. I was going to post an after picture...but I can't find the spot. It took him like 10 minutes to get it up! If you need your carpets done let me know! He is FABULOUS!
2. Sam will never paint nails inside again!
3. Andrew has brute force! He can and will open anything! It's a good thing he is so dang cute and I love him to death!
4. The carpet guy said if you are going to put polish on carpet you should do it the same way Andrew did. He dumped it! He didn't fling it. He said normally if falls off of tables...so it goes flying. This results in lots of little spots. Andrew was kind enough to dump...which makes it much quicker to clean up! So...ummm...thanks Andrew!?!

Baby Shower!

2010-05-13T07:49:00.004-06:00

Twilight Edition! (All my friends in SG have posted this...months ago...but friend out of state haven't seen this!

We had a surprise baby shower for Alissa and Valerie. We held it the night that New Moon came out on DVD. They thought they were coming to watch the movie. Here is Alissa's confused/surprised look when we yelled "Surprise". We then had to tell her it was a baby shower!

Valerie gave us the same look...you just can't see it in the shadow!

So she pretended to be surprised for another picture!

My friend Brady did these amazing cupcakes. She made the toppers and used "Forks" to stick them in the cupcakes. (The people in the book live in Forks Washington for all of you out of the loop!)

Liz and Kristen made this amazing salad bar spread. Wowzers it was yummy. Can I also add that I LOVE Craisins on salad! (But I don't love them plain)

The decorations were perfect for the theme!

I went online and found this great templete to download. The juice was yummy!

How sad is it that I only got pictures of two of the party guests? Suzi and Kellie! I didn't even get a picture of Lindz, Liz and Kristen. They worked hard planning the party!

Alissa opening gifts!

The guest of honor. They were suppose to be induced on the same day...but Val was induced early. Alissa had an adorable little boy named Ryker. Val had an adorable little girl (with tons of hair. She reminds me of Brooke) She named her Renesmee.

JUST KIDDING...she named her Adeline Lilly! It was a fun night!

Basketball!

2010-05-13T07:39:00.003-06:00

Camden and Easton played on the same basketball team this year.

Neil wasn't the coach...until he went to the first practice and the team was given to him! He had a great time. (Camden just recently asked when he was going to get a real coach since Neil is always his coach!)

The boys had a great season and gained a ton of new skills!

The boys have such different personalities and it really shows when they are playing sports!

They also have very different builds! I love seeing Eastons chicken legs and Camdens stocky legs run down the court!

They both get VERY excited when they score! Next year Camden moves up to the next age level:( That means two teams to coordinate. Maybe Camden will get his wish for a new coach!

Pinewood Derby

2010-05-13T07:29:00.002-06:00

Clear back in March Camden had his first pinewood derby.

The scouts worked very hard on their cars.

Somehow this is the only picture I have of Camdens car. It is the one at the very end. See that little piece of wood at the far end? Umm...ok...so I need to get another picture!

I was in charge of snacks. Earlier in the day I went to the movie theatre and told them what we were doing. The manager had them scoop up all the popcorn they had popped for the day, bag it up, and give it to me! FREE Movie popcorn...that was like $1000 bucks in popcorn (man they charge a ton for that stuff). The spectators at the derby got to eat as much as they wanted! Addison and Easton loved watching the race.

There is a guy in town that owns an amazing track. We paid for him to come and time the race. He said our boys had the fastest cars in town! We had a great time! Can't wait for next year!

Playgroup tea party!

2010-05-12T17:56:00.002-06:00

Addison has playgroup once a week. Each mom takes a turn, which means 3 weeks off! One week we had a tea party!

Princess Lexi! She LOVED the cookies!

So did Princess Bella!

Princess Addison!

Princess Kara would take a sip of tea/water and say..."satisfactory" Ha! She cracked me up!

All 4 girls in their pretty princess outfits!

Tea Time!

2010-05-12T17:51:00.002-06:00

This post should have happened about 3 months ago...but hey...I've been a little busy!

One day Addison wanted a tea party with her friend Auri.

So we got the tea party ready and the girls had a fabulous time!

Ignor my messy unfinished basement!

Instead focus of these two beauties...and their tea party friends!

Sewing for sweet Ivy!

2010-05-12T17:38:00.003-06:00

I spent many hours working on a blessing dress for my hairdresser/friend's baby girl Ivy. This is sweet Ivy and her big brother Wrigley (he is the smartest/cutest thing).

I got the fabric at an heirloom sewing shop in Provo. I could spend an entire day in that shop! I got this amazing silk that was a dream to sew...except it frayed like CRAZY!

Mendy and I spent a long time at the fabric store picking out the right trim. Let me tell you that St. George needs an heirloom fabric store...JoAnn's just doesn't cut it. We got the best they had. I think it ended up being beautiful trim!

I fell in love with this dress. Mendy found a dress online and told me that was what she wanted. I ended up making up the pattern....and boy did that make my sewing brain think (which it loves to do)

I felt honored to sew such an important dress for such a special little girl. I can't wait to do another one. Who's next? Mendy? Lindz? Me? (Nope...Neil would have a heart attack!)

Really really hate

2010-04-23T17:38:00.002-06:00

I am sad. The day after losing Lisa to cancer I lost another of my friends fighting cancer. They were both amazing women with great faith and I will miss having them in my life.

I hate breast cancer!!!

2010-04-21T20:21:00.002-06:00

Seeing 3 of my friends suffer, one passing away today....I have to say I hate it!

Easton competes with Addie!

2010-04-19T20:49:00.003-06:00

Easton is in competition with Addie for awesome quotes. Two from today:

Brooke asked Easton to show us some hip hop dancing "I can't, I retired"
One point for Easton!

Addison scored a point of her own when this conversation took place:
Mom: come on Miss...lets hop in the car
A: tomorrow call me jerk
Mom: jerk isn't a nice word
A: Easton calls me jerk, and jerk is a silly word!

Addie quote

2010-04-19T08:12:00.002-06:00

This morning I heard Addison say to Easton, "I am a genius"! yes she is!

Where have I been!

2010-04-19T06:30:00.002-06:00

Since our trip to California things have been a little crazy. Here are the things I need to blog, but haven't had time for:

*Helping with a New Moon baby shower for my friends Alissa and Valerie...it was a fun night!
*Easton getting his tonsils out:Easton was a trooper....he must have the highest pain tolerance. If you ask him how it was he will tell you it wasn't that bad! This made for a very happy mama...only two nights were we up to give him pain meds....just in case. I didn't want him to go a long time without the meds!
*Brooke and her clogging group getting 1st place at competition...they qualified for nationals! Brooke and her partner Alissa also won first in their pairs dance!
*Camden playing on his competitive soccer team! I love watching these boys...they work hard and it shows!
*Camden and Easton playing baseball...with Neil coaching again! There is nothing like baseball...and both boys are playing so well!
*Addison started ballet...she is so cute in her little leo and leg warmers!
*Sewing: I have been crazy busy...blessing dress for friend, chair recover for another friend
*Scout Expo: Camden sold the most tickets in his pack...he worked very had, I made him do it himself. We watched as he went door to door and gave a little prepared speech!
*weekend in Vegas: We made a very quick overnight trip to Vegas to see my sister on her way through town and then have dinner with our friends the McKellebs! Wish the trip had been a little longer!
*Easter....I was a bad mom and got like 1 picture:( The kids did have a great day though.
These are the things I hope to get posted...we will see if it happens!

Cali Day 4...Picture overload!

2010-04-19T05:24:00.009-06:00

I am sure you thought that Day 3 was our last day in California, but it wasn't! I just haven't had time to post! Our last day in Cali. was spent at Disneyland! The lines were fabulous (average was 15 to 20 minutes), weather was perfect and the kids were fantastic! It was a great day!
A Pink Castle!

This was the reason Addison came to Disneyland. She LOVES Pink Castles! I am always a little disappointed walking through the castle, but Addison loved it!

Waiting in line for the princess meet and greet was our longest line. Addie and I waited for 40 minutes while the other kids went on rides. It was so worth the wait! Addie loved meeting the princesses!

We told Prince charming and Princess Aurora about her boyfriend Tyson. Princess Aurora said, "Oh how lucky, you already found your prince charming" The prince said, "Tell Prince Tyson if he needs any tips on being a prince to call me" They were very cute with her!

Cinderella (actually all three of them) talked in tiny voices and said words like "lovely". They definitely acted their part!

Addison was a little shy with them, but talked nonstop about them on our way to meet up with the family!

There is a teacup for picture taking....this in the only time we were in a teacup. The teacups had a really long line, so we skipped them!

Addison and I went on the Winnie the pooh ride while the big kids were on splash mountain. We then got in line to meet Winnie the pooh and tigger! Addison loved that Pooh kissed her on top of the head! I have to say....I don't love the pooh ride:( I guess I am not a fan of the rides where you just sit there in a car and see pictures of the movies (Mr. Toads, Roger Rabbit etc.) Addie didn't seem to mind it though.

All the kids loved riding on Autotopia. Easton drove while I got a workout pushing the gas pedal. Why are those things so darn tough to push? Easton was very serious about his driving! (notice the tongue) It is tough to drive when you can barely see over the steering wheel!

While the big kids were on space mountain Addison and I spotted Donald Duck. Donald was walking around this fountain area and didn't stop walking. Kids could come and walk with him, but he just kept going and going. Addison joined in and walked with him holding his hand. Then his annoying man came up and pretty much shoved her out of the way so he could get his picture with Donald. Notice the look of disappointment she has. I think she was a little creeped out by him. This ended her Donald walk. I really wanted to say something like "Go ahead and shove the little kid out of the way, jerk!" But I didn't, we were in the happiest place on earth, right!?

Toon Town!

Posing on the firetruck

Easton did not want his picture taken!

Meeting Minnie and Mickey!
I love Minnie and Mickey's houses! They are so cute and interactive. Sam LOVED posing for pictures in there!

*Notice this is the only picture of Camden! He didn't want his picture taken, and I was with Addison most of the day while he was on the big rides with the big kids and Neil.

We had a great day at disney. We arrived when they opened and left when they closed. We then drove home, got there in the middle of the night, woke up and left the next morning for my cousins wedding in Provo that night. We went to the wedding reception and left the next morning to head back home. It was a crazy spring break...but we had a great time. I hope Neil has a conference next spring break...fingers crossed for Hawaii!

Cali Trip...day 3

2010-03-30T05:53:00.003-06:00

On day 3 in Cali we headed to the beach. It was a little chilly...but we had to go!

The girls applied sunscreen!

Lots of running around and splashing happened!

We were the only ones there for the most part. No one else in the water. A few people walked down the beach in pants and sweatshirts! We were troopers and stuck it out for a few hours!

At one point Camden decided to throw a cracker to a seagull. BIG mistake. They wouldn't leave him alone...so this is how Camden and Easton finished their snack....under their sweatshirt and towel...they would tell me they wanted another cracker and I would slip it under the towel. Addie kept telling me to chase the birds away...so I would run after them...they would fly away...and return a minute later. Camden has vowed to never feed a seagull again!

We then went back to the hotel and swam until Neil was finished with his meetings. We all went to pizza (heaven...haven't had pizza forever!) We sat and ate pizza with the view of the temple out the window. Addie decided she would get married in this castle temple instead of a pink castle!

First sign of spring!

2010-03-23T09:04:00.002-06:00

Spring is here! How do I know? The 60 year old, bikini clad speed walker is oiled up and soaking in the rays and she cruises down the parkway trail. I knew it was coming, but why does it make me take a double take every year (day if I am being honest). So along with that comes the beautiful weather. I just wish it would last (the weather, not the bikini walker)!

Cali....day 2

2010-03-17T07:48:00.002-06:00

Our second day in California we went to Balboa Park. Let me just say that I could spend a good month there. Balboa park not only houses the San Diego zoo but there are also a ton of museums! We went to the air and space museum. It was very windy that day so we didn't want to be outdoors. The girls and I loved the museum.

The boys thought it was boring after about 10 minutes. I could have stayed another 2 hours!

We did learn a ton of interesting facts.

We were only asked 3 times this day if "all those kids" were mine. We were only asked once if we were Mormon! I guess 5 kids in California is a lot?!

After the museum we went to the park and played. The kids had fun on the slides. We then went back to our room and ate and went swimming. We swam until Neil was done and then spent time with him. It was a nice relaxing day after spending the day before walking and playing like crazy!

Blast from Christmas past

2010-03-15T20:55:00.003-06:00

I forgot to post these pictures in December. Each year around Christmas the kids start circling things in the ads they think they want. Such as this:

Easton thought this gun in the rite aid ad would be awesome. Then I turned the page and saw this:

Wait for it:

Awesome! My kid obviously has no idea what beer is. He must think it is root beer! Awesome!

Spring Break....Day 1....Legoland

2010-03-15T20:31:00.004-06:00

In January Neil mentioned he had a conference in San Diego. It happened to be the week of our spring break. We packed up and headed to the warmth....but got lots of rain and wind. We still had a great time! Our first day there we went to Legoland.

Camden is wearing his "chicks dig pink" shirt. His cousin wore this same shirt to legoland 2 1/2 years ago when we went with him to legoland!

Our 5th kids (aka Sam our neighbor) came with us. It was a little overcast that day. That meant fewer people at the park. I was told there were 3000 people there that day, in the summer there are 8500! The lines were short and everyone got in all the rides they wanted!

On the way in there is a Lego family!

We had our picture taken with them and used the dad as our substitute dad for the day!

While we were there we met the dark side:

Took a nap on a park bench with a stranger:

Saw where the three little pigs were hanging their drawers out to dry:

Went on an African Safari where we saw Zebras:

Saw dinosaur eggs:

We even rode on a camel:

Our friends the Werners were also in San Diego and we had a great day with them! We took a ton of pictures....maybe I need to just make a slide show out of them....but overall we had a great day with no whining!

Give up?

2010-03-03T08:59:00.002-07:00

This morning Camden asked me this question, "Mom, when you were a kid did you ever have to give up on a dream that you had?" Wow! I asked if he had been discussing this at school and he told me that he hadn't, he just was thinking about his dreams. He dreams of winning the pinewood derby tonight! We ended up having a great discussion about how some dreams we can work at and others are full of luck. If he dreams of being a doctor there are things he can do to make it happen, but winning a contest is full of luck! What a smart kid!

My life is the movie Toy Story!

2010-02-18T07:41:00.002-07:00

Addison has learned to write her name. One Sunday during sacrament meeting she was practicing her A and I showed her the rest. Since then she has been writing it like crazy. The problem? She signs her name on EVERYTHING! Yesterday I found it written on her arm (crazy thing about that....it was on her right arm and she is right handed!) This morning I found it on the computer screen! Yes the computer screen. She told me she was sorry and that she wrote it for me. I told her she was going to do a chore because she did something naughty. She asked if she had to clean a carpet square (that is what the boys have to do when they do something wrong. One area of carpet has to be cleaned!) As I started to type about her signing I found she has written her name on a check I got for my birthday. So now I live the movie Toy story...where the kid signs all his/her favorite things! Good thing she is so cute!

Mom my tooth is loose!

2010-02-14T17:22:00.002-07:00

Easton and Addison are always telling me they have a loose tooth. So one Sunday when Eastons friend had lost a tooth I wasn't surprised to hear that Easton's was loose too! Then the next day I came home to this...

One week later he had lost the other front tooth...I just need to get a picture of that! I guess I better listen when he tells me his tooth is loose!

Sitting around eating bon bons?

2010-02-14T17:05:00.002-07:00

Nope. About a month ago I took almost everything out of the office/sewing room/ black hole! It took me almost 3 weeks to get everything back in the way I wanted it.

We had two base kitchen cabinets in the garage waiting to be used. I had Neil put them together and then we went to home depot and got the counter top. The drawer face came off of the one cabinet...but Neil just needs to put it back on....just didn't do it before I snapped a picture. I moved all my thread from different catch all locations and put it on the one rack that I got at Joann's. After I had it all organized by color I found that Addison had fun rearranging it all! What a big helper! In the front of the picture you can see my new cricut I got for Christmas!

Because the counter top is on top of kitchen cabinets the desk is a little high. I looked for chairs with backs and they were expensive. One day at Ace Hardware I was buying fabric...what a shock...and saw this chair for $20! It is very comfortable! Under the desk are some drawers to organize projects. Neil is going to drill a hole in the counter top for my sewing machine cord as soon as I decide where I want it. I want to sew a little more before I decide for sure!

Inside the closet I have organized like crazy. I went to the dollar store and got shoe boxes (great idea Val). This shelf has boxes of projects I need to finish. I decided not to buy another project until one of the boxes is empty. I have 9 boxes of projects...so I am trying to be better at finishing some!

At Walmart I got these drawers. I have one for each kid. Now when they bring home a school project I want to keep or if I have pictures I need to put in their scrapbook I put it right into their drawer!

Turn your head sideways to get the full effect. On the bottom right is my serger and other sewing machine. It needs to be serviced...then I can have both up and running and switch between two machines instead of switching thread! The shelf above that is sewing notions. I grouped everything into different boxes. Hair bow supplies, ric rac, stamps. The shelf above has sewing projects and more crafting supplies. The next shelf is more unfinished projects. And the top shelf is jewelry making supplies and batting! To the left of the shelves are the kids drawers. Under that are the four drawers full of fabric. Each drawer has a different type of fabric: cotton, minkie, flannel and interfacing/batting! The tall stack of drawers on the left hold all the other misc. supplies I have. Ribbon, glue, paint, scissors etc. I love that everything is labeled! The top shelf? Well just pretend it isn't there....I ran out of steam. I need to finish a few projects and most of that shelf will be empty! So there you have it...the beloved sewing room...which is no longer the black hole of the house!

Stomp?

2010-02-14T17:01:00.002-07:00

For some reason Addison calls stamp "Stomp". She loves to stomp and one day looked like this.

She was persistant and covered all exposed areas...including the TOP and Bottom of her feet! And yes this is what her hair looks like before I do it for the day!

Camden plays basketball

2010-02-14T16:50:00.003-07:00

Camden is playing basketball...with Easton (only I just noticed that the only picture of Easton is blurry...so I need to take more pictures this week) Somehow Neil ended up as the coach...again! The boys on the team listen to him MOST of the time! Camden is having a great time and I love watching him improve.

Another installment!

2010-02-14T16:43:00.002-07:00

It is time for another installment of "Where will Addison fall asleep" This time she has chosen.....

the back of the couch. Minutes after this she rolled off onto the couch...and bad mother that I am I giggled a little!

I also need to add that most of the time she does this at 2 in the afternoon....not at midnight cause I don't put her down. NO....she just needs a little cat nap!

More of Awesome Easton!

2010-01-31T07:34:00.002-07:00

Easton is at that age where is says so many awesome things. Yesterday while we were driving in the car he started to sing, which is very common for him. His song went a little like this:

"Don't you wish your girlfriend was Hot like me? Don't you wish your girlfriend was a freak like me"

AWESOME!

I guess the kids have seen the chipmunks a couple of times because this morning while in the tub Addie sang:

"boom a chicka wow wow, chicka wow wow"

AWESOME!

I wanna Pop, Pop, Pop, I wanna Shasta!

2010-01-28T16:44:00.002-07:00

Brooke needs a little help. She is collecting soda cans for habitat for humanity. She is hoping to collect about 500 cans. The cans will be turned in for cash for habitat. If you drink any pop....even a can or two...please give us a call...Brooke will come and pick up your cans! Thanks for your help...service to pass off for her young women's program!

Thinking of Megan

2010-01-27T18:04:00.002-07:00

My thoughts today are with my friend Megan. We went to high school together and through facebook we reconnected. This morning her sweet baby Ella Pearl passed away. She was a tiny little thing born with trisomy 18. They didn't think she would live long enough to leave the hospital, but this little fighter lived for over 100 days. We are praying for Megan and her family.

Lonely....I'm so Lonely

2010-01-21T16:08:00.002-07:00

Totally have that song stuck in my head! Thoughts recently:
1.I am sick of the rain! An entire week of it is making my kids stir crazy
2. I am organizing my office and I want it done now....I moved most everything out and it is piled in my bedroom. I just haven't had time to finish...maybe on Saturday.
3. I have a million projects I want to make. I am afraid that when Addison goes to first grade that I will spend all my time and money sewing. Quilting, clothes, baby items, felt food....the possibilities seem limitless (until I look at my sewing room/office!)
4. My kids are so darn cute and say the funniest things...today Addison was doing situps with Brooke!
5. I love listening to the playlist on www.vintagefern.blogspot.com Most playlists I mute...this one I turn on while I am working in the junkroom (you know the office/sewing room/junkroom) My favorite song on it right now is "Fly Away" by Ingrid Michaelson. The first line is "I will live my life as a lobstermans wife" I love it!
6. I love that brooke is old enough to babysit....running to the store for a gallon of milk is a lot easier now.
7. I ordered the cutest fabric today....I am giddy to think that it will be coming to my door soon.

Random thoughts...now I am off to tackle another portion of the office...one day and shelf at a time right?

A Pink Castle!

2010-01-07T16:25:00.002-07:00

The pitter patter of little feet, the smell of a freshly bathed baby, the chin quiver a baby makes while sleeping. These were parts of being a mom I knew I would enjoy. Conversations like today I didn't expect. I hear Easton and Addison arguing....actually Addison was yelling!

The part I understood went something like this:

Addison: NO a Pink Castle
Easton: No the Temple
Addison (slightly louder): NO a PINK CASTLE!
Easton: No the temple

A door slams and Addison stomps upstairs. "mom, Easton is not my brother. He said I had to marry Tyson in the Temple, I want to marry him in a new pink castle"

I remind her that she can't marry Tyson for a very long time. We probably shouldn't worry about the pink castle right now! These two make me laugh everyday!

New Favorite quote!

2010-01-05T07:23:00.002-07:00

Last night Easton came up to me holding his tennis shoes and said "mom, these shoes are sooo last year"!

Jesus wants me for a Sunbeam!

2010-01-04T10:49:00.002-07:00

My last baby is finished with nursery and is now a sunbeam:( Addison was excited to go to the big girl class but will miss going to nursery with her buddy Andrew! She spent a lot of time in nursery watching out for Andrew. Most of the time when I asked her what she did in nursery she would answer "Kara (or another kid) pushed down my Andrew" Yesterday she walked right into primary without a problem. She did however tell everyone that her name was "Maddie" and not Addie! What a girl!

Addie without her butterfly wings and Andrew as Yoda at the ward Halloween party!

She really did turn 12....I just didn't get around to blogging

2010-01-02T08:19:00.003-07:00

My baby turned 12. The age didn't really bother me, although I do feel old. I had a harder time thinking about her going to young women's. Our time with her at home is flying by. I only have 6 years before she heads off to college! Back to the party...

There was A TON of giggling going on....maybe due to sugar overload?!

That darn whipping cream ran out!

Games were played!

A plate full of whipping cream with m&m's in it...try to get them out with only your mouth! This induced more giggling!

This fabulous cake was from Lin's.

Now a note about Brooke....Brooke is such a wonderful girl. She takes school very seriously. We went to her choir concert and I saw the honor roll list. I asked if she was on it and she told me no. She was right...she was on the high honor roll because she had all A's...not even an A-! Brooke enjoys trying new things. This year she tried running with me (hated it), played soccer (would have had more fun if her team had won 1 game), took piano lessons (sad the teacher isn't teaching anymore...so we need to find a new one) took a volleyball class (none of her friends were interested so she decided to do it alone, she made a really great friend and fell in love with volleyball), went repelling (was very nervous but tried it anyways and had a great time), started a new school (loves switching classes and doesn't enjoy p.e.), babysat, babysat, babysat(she loves it...her biggest complaint is that the kids have to go to bed so she get bored. She loves to entertain them when she is there, she isn't big on just turning on a movie for them) Started young women's (she loves going and I don't think she misses primary one bit) Sewing (she made her friends Christmas gifts this year...she is getting better all the time, maybe I will teach her clothing this year!) Braces (she got her braces off and didn't break one bracket the entire time she had them on. She wears her retainer without complaint and has never lost it) We love having Brooke as part of our family. She is such a big help with her brothers and sister. She has a great testimony and is very kind. She worries about hurting others feelings and is extremely honest. We love this girl.

The rest of Christmas morning

2010-01-01T10:28:00.003-07:00

We had a great morning...the kids got so many fun things and enjoyed spending time with their cousins. Their cousin Egan (14 1/2) got an "Earthquake" for Christmas. There is a great ice cream parlor in Reno, Swensons. The "earthquake" is an 8 scoop and 8 topping sundae. If you can finish it in an hour you get your name on the wall of fame. Egan finished it in only 45 minutes! It was fun for us all the watch. He shivered the entire time. The lady working there did mention that most people do it in the summer time!

Christmas morning

2010-01-01T10:14:00.003-07:00

Presents from Santa unwrapped...the gifts behind them will be unwrapped later in the day.

Santa gave both boys a mp3 player!

Addie loves little people. Santa gave her a new tree house.

At 4:30 in the morning we hear this sweet little voice say "Easton, turn on the light" She got all the kids up to go see if Santa had come to Grandmas. Brooke, the sweet girl, kept telling the kids to be quiet or they would wake up mom and dad. Finally at 5 I gave in and let them open their presents. Addie did take a VERY long nap that afternoon!

This picture is terribly blurry but I love how it captures Addisons imagination. Grandma gave Addison American Girl Bitty Baby Twins. She promptly named them "Linda" and "Johnny" She loves to read to them and push them in their stroller. Often we have been told to "shh" because Linda and Johnny are sleeping!

Opening one gift before going to Grandmas

2010-01-01T09:55:00.004-07:00

Some of the gifts were so big we didn't want to haul them to Grandmas...then haul them home. So a few days before we left the kids got to open a present.
Camdens gift wasn't big....
but a DS sure makes an eight hour drive seem a lot shorter!
Easton was in need of a bigger bike....poor kid was sick that day so he didn't get to ride it until we got home from Grandma's house!
Addie loves her Pink Kitchen. She told Santa she wanted one after seeing it in the Target ad.
This is what Addie would look like if I didn't put her hair up every day. I LOVE rubber bands for hair!
Somehow we didn't get a picture of Brooke with her new ipod...another gift that makes travel a lot easier!

Lazy Bones!

2009-12-23T07:26:00.003-07:00

Man have I been lazy with my blog this school year. We have been crazy busy at our house. With 4 kids in school, 3 with homework, 3 sports at the same time, me working at Addies preschool 3 days a week, church and life! This holiday season I tried to slow things down a little. Instead of making plates full of goodies I only made caramel sauce (heaven in a jar). I did a first for me and said "no" when asked to sing at the ward Christmas party (it was a week away). I instead helped my friends make quilts for another friend. I have a friend with breast cancer. She wanted to make a quilt for each of her 5 children for their first born children. The week after Thanksgiving I gathered fabric from my quilting friends. Two quilters were generous enough to offer to quilt them for free! We got together twice a week and worked on these quiltes. I spent a lot of time sewing. I put the binding on most of them. It took a lot of time. It was SOOOO worth every minute. It was the best thing I have ever done in the month on December. We went over to her house yesterday and gave her all the finished quilts. We helped her wrap them and put them under the tree. We were all reminded how precious our families are, how important our health is to us and what great friends we have. So my excuse for not blogging? I was busy creating memories for a family going through a difficult time!

Korea?

2009-12-01T08:03:00.002-07:00

Last night after the big kids went to bed I had a chat with Addison. I love to ask her questions and see what her answers are. I love the way her mind thinks. A few of the awesome things she said last night included:

me: what is grandmas job?
A: Ummmm (tapping finger on chin) I don't know
me: what is grandpas job?
A: oh, he is on a mission

and another one:

A: I want Andrew and Auri to come over and play....well the point is you see

(what 3 year old says "well the point is"

We have a favorite missionary....he is in Korea...and his last day is Friday. I was talking to her about Duncan and he comes home next week.
Me: Duncan comes home next week, he is in Korea
A: EWW...poops and Diarrhea....Duncan has rhea?
me: (after trying really hard not to laugh) no Korea, not diarrhea, Korea....like China it is far away (Duncan's dad works in China)
A: Oh China...Phil goes to China
Me: what does Phil do in China
A: he feeds people...bones....big bones and little bones (what?)
then noticing her dad is sitting across the couch laughing
A: Dads joking me

Oh the funny things this girl says!

Scientific Fact

2009-11-28T07:38:00.002-07:00

I think that it has been scientifically proven that kids will only get the stomach flu in the middle of the night....never in the day time. Thanksgiving morning (by morning I mean 2 am) we were "Thrilled" to wake up with Easton and the flu. That night I was fortunate enough to go to bed and feel the same flu visit me. Friday morning Addison joined in (at least she waited until 6 am) Then in the middle of the night last night Camden started in...all night long. Poor guy. My house is germ central. Today I will be cleaning like crazy instead of the fun things I had planned (although I am running to Joann fabrics because interfacing is $2.99 for a full bolt!) Why can't the flu visit us next time in the middle of the day?

we love/hate the microwave

2009-11-17T12:43:00.002-07:00

A few weeks ago Easton made microwave popcorn. While he was getting a bowl for it Addie pushed the popcorn button again. Minutes later the house stunk. There is almost nothing that smells worse than burnt popcorn....maybe burnt ramen. We know this because last night Brooke wanted to make some ramen. She forgot to add the water. Neil ended up throwing the bowl away. The burnt popcorn smell had finally gone away...and now the house stinks like burnt ramen. Wow I love the microwave...until it produces a burnt masterpiece!

No Guts No Glory!

2009-11-02T08:38:00.002-07:00

The kids had a great time carving pumpkins (Brooke was at Young Womens) I love that Addie thinks the guts are great and Easton is totally grossed out!

Put him in a body bag!

2009-11-02T07:09:00.002-07:00

Before watching my kids obsession with "put him in a body bag" you need to look back at the orginal:

This is how my kids entertain themselves...give them a camera and they remake their favorite part of the "karate kid"

Playing with Andrew wears me out!

2009-11-02T06:54:00.002-07:00

It is no secret that Addison and Andrew are best friends! It is so darn cute watching them walk down the hall at church holding hands. Once a week the two of them get together and play. On one of these playdates they sat down to watch a movie...so of course Addie was out. I guess another picture to add to her "sleep anywhere" post!

Redemption

2009-10-28T12:53:00.002-06:00

After the funny/interesting things Easton has said in the last few weeks (including asking if the "F" word was a bad word), Easton has redeemed himself. Last night at dinner he was "helping" Addie say the prayer. He blessed the food and then said "we are thankful we are warm and cozy in our home" and "please bless us that we will live with Heavenly Father again" It is so cute to hear Addie try to copy what he tells her to say. Most of the time she ends up saying the last two words of his sentance. Hearing Easton give a prayer is one of the perks of being a mom.

It's faster this way!

2009-10-18T19:24:00.002-06:00

Today Easton came into my bedroom to get his hair combed. I noticed that I could see an orange shirt under his dress shirt. I said, "East, you have to wear a white undershirt...take it off" A minute later I asked Neil to pull down Eastons pants...they were a little high on his waist. Neil tries to but realizes Easton has shorts on under his dress pants. When asked why he had both a shirt and shorts on under his suit Easton replied, "I wanted to get dressed faster after church" Oh this boy makes me laugh. Of course...wear two outfits at once so that it is quicker to get changed later!