Three Girls and One Boy

Sweet Sweet Girls

2009-03-14T09:54:00.002-07:00

Yesterday the girls came in from walking home off the bus and were so excited. They told me the neighbors were outside pulling their weeds from their front yard (it was very overgrown and a sore spot for Jim). They told me they asked Debra and Bill if they could help and they said yes. I fed them a snack and sent them to help. Before they left though, I got them each a flat head screwdriver (thanks Nana) and instructed them on how to get a root out. I told them that if they were going to help, they needed to get the roots so that the neighbors didn't have to go back and do it again later.

I sent them off, running in their excitement to help others. When they got home, they were so happy they got to help. I asked how the screwdrivers worked. They said that Debra said, "that was sure nice of your mom to take the time to show you how to use those". Then Gracey said that Debra even put her hand shovel down and borrowed Gracey's screwdriver for some of the tough weeds she couldn't get to roots too. I was so happy the girls could help.

It so touched my heart and I was so happy to be able to call Jim and tell him how the girls want to get in there and get things done. I commented to Jim that it's not normal for kids to come home from school and want to clean or weed. Most kids want to watch TV, ride bikes and play. Not mine. I told them to put it in their activity day books as a goal they accomplished for service.

They are in the spirit of service and I love it! Gracey said, "maybe next week we can help them clean their house!" I told her they can help me with that, she giggled.

Debra also told them that she always gets a kick out of hearing them argue over who gets to punch in the code to the garage when they get home from school. She said she can hear them and how sweet it is. Megan and Gracey then told me that they have a plan for next time they walk home. Gracey said, "Mom, when we walk by their house next week, we are going to pretend to argue over who gets to clean the toilet"! I laughed. They do argue over who gets to do that becasue they both love to do it. You would think it would be the opposite, but not with my sweet sweet girls. They blow me away and set such a great example for me to follow.

I love my kids and their sweet sweet spirits.

Reb's School Carnival

2009-03-14T08:49:00.002-07:00

At the end of the carnival the girls showed up with their faces painted. It was a surprise! I must say that I was thrilled they chose to paint their faces and NOT get their hair sprayed with paint and glitter. Phew. I do not even want to know how the parents of those kids got it out of their hair, or their beds for that matter. Gracey could not smile or talk much with the clown paint. It was hilarious. Stake Conference was the next day so it came off for church, they really wanted the paint to stay on though.

Chlo-Chlo, Jamers and L.J. loved the train. It was a highlight. They are all such fabulous friends. I love it.

The "Two Peas in a Pod". They do everything together, seriously!

Megan's goal was to get to the top. She made it half way. Every year she gets up a bit more though. She wants to do it and tries so hard. Then she says, "I can't help it if I got dad's scared of heights genes". She cracks me up!

We went to Rebecca's PTSO school carnival 2 Saturdays ago. It was so much fun. They go all out and Reb does so much for it. It is a true carnival with booths, blow up bouncers, cake walks, silent auctions, Kiss the Pig, Petting Zoo, train rides, bumper cars and even a Guitar Hero station. This is our second year going and it is a great event to attend. There is even a D.J. playing music the whole afternoon. Crazy! It is so much work and Reb is exhausted but she (and her board) do a fabulous job. Once we got there, we found Chloe and she and Jamers would not get out of the petting zoo. Luke screamed every time an animal came near him. I never saw Gracey after she and Cassie found each other (screaming, might I add, upon recognition of each others presence). Megan made me watch her attempt to climb the wall many times and Luke even got to throw a baseball for speed. He was in heaven. Thanks goodness it was baseball because if it had been football we would still be there.

Daddy Daughter Dance Luau

2009-03-06T19:15:00.003-07:00

It was the annual Daddy/Daughter Dance at the girls' elementary school on Friday, Feb. 20th. The girls got dressed up in their cover ups from our trip to Mexico on the Disney Cruise and Party City had enough Hawaiian paraphernalia to choose from to compliment the outfits. As always, the girls danced and danced and danced and the dad's sat and watched and commented on how much energy they all have and how great of friends they have with in our circle of friends. We are truly blessed to have such good friends and cousins around. Jim, Jeff and Brad took Lexy, Bailey, Macy, Megan and Gracey.

Just A Few Tidbits From Our Family

2009-03-06T17:30:00.003-07:00

While we were in Mexico, Rachie came to babysit and visit our kids. She had a blast with them and enjoyed swimming and riding bikes with them. She did have one mishap with Luke and him not making it to the toilet in the Jacuzzi though. She said the hot tub cleared out real quick and no one wanted to swim after that. She also said Luke loved showering and would not get out. I have always bathed him and have never experienced the shower with him. Since being home we have shared a shower or two. He loves it except for when you block the water from him. He likes to ask where it went, then say, "oh, there it is", or he just screams.

Rach also said that at breakfast one morning he started singing Beyonces "Single Ladies" song. She laughed and asked him is he was singing "All the Single Ladies" and he replied, "Yessss". He had since sung it quite a bit. I woke up one morning to him singing the "Ohh, Oh, Oh" part over and over again. It was quite the little alarm clock. Jim is mortified that that is what he insists on singing as the song drives him crazy. Of all the songs on my ipod, he can't believe he remembers that one the most.

Luke is a bundle of joy for us. We love him dearly and although he is hot or cold, his sweetness outweighs any issues we have with him. He rarely says yes or okay. He almost always says, "all right". He drags it out though so it sounds like, "auul riiiight". It is so dang cute.

Rach told me that she asked the kids to clean up and Jameson said, "oh my mom will be so happy, she just loves a clean house". It's a bit scary that she knows that but she is my little helper when we clean the house each week. She knows where the rags are and asks what she can do next non stop as I am cleaning. I hope she continues on that path.

Upon arriving home and getting into the swing of things we had a huge predicament on the Friday we got home. I was running errands with Luke and Jamers and my nephews and Luke started to cry behind me. He was saying, "my nose, my nose". I got out a wipee thinking it was running and looked behind me. I then saw a pink shiny bead in his nostril. I told him to not sniff and popped it out. I thought to myself, "phew, that could have been bad." Well, he kept crying and pointing to his other nostril. As I tipped his head back, I saw another bead in his nostril but this one was pushed so far back I could not get it. It was passed the outer nostril and sitting in the crevice behind in. There is a little pocket that it was resting in. I tried to get him to blow it out but he only was blowing through his mouth. This year in swim he will learn to blow through his nose if it kills me. Apparently he was using his mouth last summer. Anyway, I called the doctor's office and asked for an appointment or if there was anything I could do. They told me to have him sneeze with pepper and see what happens. On the way home to get the pepper, he sneezed on his own. I quickly turned around to find nothing had come out. I was disappointed. I talked to Heather and she said to get a bulb syringe and try and suck it out. I located one after many calls and tried it. He was not too happy and I could not hold him down. I ended up going to the doctors and he pried it out with tweezers that were long and had grips to hold the slippery bead. It took one doctor, a nurse and me to hold him down. He was screaming and not too happy about being restrained but I bet he learned his lesson. At least I hope he has. Needless to say, if it happens again, I will be prepared for what to do. I'll go to Walgreen's, get some tweezers like she had and rope 3 people to help hold him down. He is a strong little guy. After telling Rachie of the experience, she was thankful it happened then and not when she was babysitting the week before.

Last week I was cooking dinner and Megan said, "you know mom that ground beef is just a nice way of saying cut up cow". I giggled and thought to myself, :the things she thinks of". A bit later I was doing laundry and heard her tell Gracey that same thing. I was waiting for her to freak out as they were eating dinner (ground beef). I said her name in that mom tone to get her to stop and she said, "but mom, I'm just using the "persuasive technique" that they have been teaching us is school". She is unbelievable.

My last Megan story happened the other night when she was in the shower. I asked if she washed her face and she said she did but only with water. She scrubbed it really good but couldn't use the soap because the box it came in said to not use it by your eyes or mouth. I tell you, that kid is all about the rules! Although sometimes it is a pain and it takes some convincing on my part on somethings, I hope she follows the rules the rest of her life. It takes a lot of convincing and talking when she sees stickers on boats that say to wait 10 minutes after stopping to swim so exhaust will dissipate. It's also not so good when I need to pick them up by the bikes but that's not the "parent pick up line". That kid keeps me on my toes for sure.

One last adorable thing that happened last week was when Jim went motorcycle riding with his friend Saturday morning. Luke was right under his feet, getting out the bike, helping his get his gear on, pulling out his own motorcycle bike. Well, when they hooked up the trailer to haul the bikes, they were tying it down and Luke took his bike to the back of the trailer, pushed it up onto the trailer, right beside Jim's and told them to tie his down too. It was so dang cute. He couldn't understand why he couldn't get his bike to go too. I love that he is so into boy things and such a fanatic about helmets. The picture up top is a picture of him riding after they took off.

Valentines Day in Mexico

2009-03-06T17:14:00.003-07:00

Jim and I loved this picture of Reb. She looked so beautiful.

We decided to make reservations at a restaurant at the hotel for Valentines. We got all dressed up and sat on the deck of the restaurant to eat. The ocean waves crashed right under us. The food was yummy and the ambiance was so nice. We ended the night with chocolate souffles.

Cancun, Mexico

2009-03-06T16:20:00.004-07:00

Eating breakfast at the hotel. Jim has stayed at the Hilton so much that he got free breakfast for us every morning. It was so wonderful. Many who know me know how much I enjoy a good breakfast, especially one not prepared by myself. I had a bagel with cream cheese, omelet, fresh fruit and cold cereal for breakfast every morning. It was AWESOME!
As you will see, most of our pictures are of us eating at restaurants. We made a goal to eat at a new place every night. We only went back to one Mexican restaurant because it was so good the first time.

Jim and Jared decided to Scuba Dive and get PADI certified while on our vacation. Jim really just needed something to do, besides lay by the pool and ocean and sun bathe. Jared took one for the team and says I owe him now. It took up a half day in the pool and almost a full day to actually do the 30 foot dive and testing. They enjoyed themselves and Reb and I thoroughly enjoyed doing nothing. Much to my dismay, the boys took no pictures of themselves on the actual dive. They both had phones with cameras but no pictures non the less.

Jim on the way home took Reb's pillow and snoozed. He really isn't asleep yet and was making fun in this picture but the pillow came in real handy when he really wanted to sleep.

We took the bus everywhere we went for 65 pesos. It was dirty and smelly but inexpensive to use and thrilling to ride it. A couple of times it wasn't so much thrilling as scary. The buses in Cancun rule the road and the drivers assume everyone will just get out of their way. Yikes!

We stayed at the Hilton in Cancun and it was beautiful. The hotel is a 5 star hotel and it showed. We were well taken care of and the hotel was amazing. The beach area was fabulous, except for some rocks, and the pool was gorgeous, and heated! That was the best part. Reb and I are wimps so it was the perfect temperature. After we basked in the sun all day, we would soak in the hot tub for about an hour then head up to get ready for dinner. We ate lunch by the pool some days but made PBJ's most days in the hotel room for quick lunches. We went shopping the night we got there and bought snacks, lunch stuff and bottled water to last us the duration of the stay.

This was our second time to Cancun with Jared and Rebecca and mine and Jim's third time back. It is such a great city and we have great memories here.

Most days we stayed on the beach. The breeze was wonderful and by the pool is often got too hot. We lounged under the Tiki umbrellas for hours, reading and napping.

The view from our hotel room.

Reb and Jared on the city bus.

GO CARDS!!!

2009-03-06T16:15:00.002-07:00

Jim and his brothers, Steve, Greg and Jeff were able to go the CARDINALS game that determined if they were going to the Superbowl. The boys are such great friends and get along fabulously. It was a treat for them to spend the afternoon together and experience the team winning!

Luke Turns 3

2009-03-06T15:52:00.005-07:00

January 8th Luke turned 3. We had a small party at our house for L.J.'s birthday. Heather brought balloons and the kids played a game where you tie it to your ankle and step on others balloons to pop them. If you have a your balloon at the end, you win. It was a very loud game but the kids had such fun. They played it twice. As you can see, we adults plugged our ears. For Luke's birthday Jim and I gave him a ride on RHINO for when we go camping. He rides it everywhere and likes it almost as much as his motorcycle bike Santa brought him 2 weeks earlier.

New Years

2009-03-06T15:46:00.003-07:00

We went camping for New Years right after we got home from Colorado. We went out on Wednesday afternoon and stayed until Sunday. It was nice because where we camp is about 20 minutes from home so we spent New years Day riding and enjoyed the beautiful weather, then the boys all headed into work on Friday and left us girls to play with the kids. Jared and Jim rode motorcycles while we road the rhinos. The kids had a blast riding together and playing with each other.

Christmas Morning In Colorado

2009-03-02T16:27:00.005-07:00

Just awake and ready to open presents. We sang our traditional "I'm so Glad When Daddy Comes Home" and entered the house to see what Santa brought.
Mom and I took pictures with Megan's new camera on Christmas Eve to make sure it was working. We wanted it charged and ready for her to use. Megan took 194 pictures during the time we were there and it was great to actually be in some pictures. I'm always the one holding the camera and I am a horrible picture taker (I forget to do it) so we have many many pictures for our memory books due to Megan.

Gracey got some new clothes from Grammy for Christmas. They were so cute. She really wanted a new bike from Santa so he brought her a purple beach cruiser. She rides it almost every day and attaches papers, water bottles , markers, and toys to the back rack with bungee cords. She will never change.

Luke loved this remote control quad rider. He mastered it super well for being so young. He also got a new bike that looks like a motorcycle from Santa. He did not get off the bike except for to get into the fridge, pour egg beaters into a cup and try and drink it. He also had a break while we were not paying attention and we found him in a corner in the kitchen hiding, eating my sugar cookies. The look of his face was priceless as he gobbled them up.

Nana made sure Jamers had a new blanket to open on Christmas morning. I called a couple days before Christmas and mom ran to Joann's and got the kit, sewed it and mailed it so she would have it to open. She sleeps with it every night and loves it so much. It is very warm.

Megan really wanted binoculars and books for Christmas this year. I asked her why she wanted them and she said so she could look at the world. Santa came through and delivered them for her. She wore them the whole week around her neck. When we drove anywhere, she looked out the window and enjoyed the scenery through the binoculars.

We were so happy to be up in Colorado to enjoy the snow and to get away from the hustle and bustle of the "real" world. We love spending Christmas up there. There is something so special about Colorado for us. It is truly God's Country and so amazing.

Purgatory, Colorado

2009-03-02T16:18:00.003-07:00

Since we were up in Colorado for Christmas, we decided to have some fun. We took Megan and Gracey snowboarding at Purgatory for a day. Jim even taught himself how to snowboard and did super well boarding with his brother Steve. I chose to ski and not try something new. I know I can ski and didn't want to be on my bottom falling all day long. Lift tickets are way too expensive for that. Ha! I ended up skiing by myself as the boys were slower than me in learning. I put in my ipod and enjoyed myself immensely. The only issue I had was all the snowboarders in my way. I was terrified of hitting one! They board for a minute then sit. Mind you, they do not sit on the side of the slope. They sit smack dab in the middle or where ever they feel like it. I think they should make the right side of the slopes "skiers only" and the left side "snowboarders only". That way we can relax while we ski. I was a wreck! The girls did okay. Megan fell a lot and loved it when the instructors were there but fell apart when we were there. Typical. Gracey absolutely loved it.

Jameson turns 5

2009-03-02T16:06:00.002-07:00

Jameson decided she wanted to eat at "chinese" food for her birthday dinner. We did not plan a party but decided to have Reb's family meet us there at the last minute to eat. Whenever we eat at our favorite chinese restaurant, the kids put the napkins on their heads (like Peter Pan) and think it is so fun (thanks to Papa Updike). It is a tradition now and they sit with the napkins on their heads until the food comes. They introduced Reb's family to it on this special birthday dinner. What a great time our kids all have together.

Finally! A New Family Picture!

2009-03-02T15:52:00.003-07:00

We were able to go home to Hemet for Thanksgiving this year. We left Thanksgiving morning, very early to get there in time to take family pictures. We went to the Coldplay concert the night before for Jim's birthday present from July with friends and had to go in the morning. It worked out great and I was so happy the kids were cooperating and happy. We have not had a family picture taken since Luke was one year old so it feels go to check that off my list of things to do. We are so very blessed to have Rachael and her amazing photography skills. This was so fun and I appreciate Rachie for sharing her talent with us. I finally got my wall done of the kids in Idaho and this with it. It has been so neat every night to walk in the family room, sit down and look at my beautiful kids and their pictures. I love it. It is my most favorite part about my whole house.

Halloween 2008

2009-03-02T15:22:00.007-07:00

Halloween this year was so fun. We went to Heather and Jeff's cul-de-sac again and trick-or-treated. Luke was way into helmets and motorcycles so his outfit was easy. I just went to the camping trailer and pulled out his helmet and an old shirt. Done. Jamers was all about Rosetta from Tinkerbell and friends this year and wanted her costume so bad. We couldn't leave Walmart with out it. Gracey was an awesome witch. She could not decide what to be and wanted to match Cassie (no surprise there) so we found her costume at Cracker Barrel of all places. Reb bought Cassie the same one and they were twins again this year. Last year they were both brides. Megan chose another book character. If you remember last year she was Nancy Drew. This year she read all the Harry Potter books in order from 1-8 (or 9?) and then backwards from 8 (or 9?) to 1. She wanted to be Hermine from the books. I am interested to see what character she picks next October.

Gracey and Mommy Time

2008-10-16T16:06:00.003-07:00

Gracey and I had the chance to go to the Cardinals VS Cowboys game this weekend. Megan went with Jim to the SUNS game earlier in the week so it was Gracey's turn to go with one of us. They so look forward to their alone time with us and it is so good for us. The game was AMAZING and we won! It was very exciting.

Jim as a Woman

2008-10-16T16:01:00.003-07:00

Megan is way into dressing herself up, so a couple weeks ago, she decided to dress Jim up while he and Luke were watching a football game. He's going to kill me for posting this but I could not resist.

Luke's Disappearing Act

2008-10-16T15:55:00.003-07:00

This week I needed to drive the kids to school having missed the bus, so we when we went to get in the car I could not find Luke. I yelled his name, looked all over the house, in the front yard and back yard twice and started to panic. I checked the garage twice and still nothing. I sent Gracey to find him too and she yelled for me to come in the garage. Upon entering it, I saw her standing in front of the suburban and she told me to come look. I walked to the front of the car and saw this...Luke in an American Girl sled, Jim's goggles on his head and his motorcycle gloves on his hands. What a stinker! He wouldn't even smile, he thought he was in trouble. I was a bit miffed that he said nothing with me yelling for him. He is into hiding.

Soccer Fun

2008-10-16T15:50:00.002-07:00

Gracey has signed up for soccer and is loving it. She discovered it upon entering the 3rd grade at recess. She is getting better with each practice and game. This is a great picture of her seeing as how at the practice she was practicing goalie and was making a pile of grass with her shoes. Watching that brought back memories of me in soccer, defending the goal and the ball going through my legs because I was day dreaming. It is scary how the apple doesn't fall far from the tree. Here she is at least prepared for the ball and ready for anything. We had a talking to after the grass pile practice. It worked!

Lake Powell Trip September 2008

2008-09-22T15:15:00.004-07:00

Megan posing for the camera, oh to be 10 again

I had to take this picture of the girls holding hands in the front of the boat. They had just finished bickering and fighting over towels when we started to go and I looked up and saw this. Jim was driving over bumps, going fast, swerving, and they were holding hands for comfort. I know that they will forever be friends and this just melted my heart. They are so good to each other and such sweet hearts.

We went to Lake Powell again for a quick weekend trip and it was a blast. We knew we would not be back again this year so we headed up for the weekend. As you can see, we did a lot of tubing. We had to yell and the kids over and over again to come in because it was time to go back to the house boat. They would not get in the boat. We had to threaten to leave them!

We did have a rope mishap when Megan and I were about to tube and I learned real quick, that I would never last on Survivor. Now, let me just say that I knew before that I couldn't last due to the dirtiness that I would have to endure and the lack of food, but now I know that I would for sure not make it through any water challenges.

The ski rope got wrapped around the propeller and we had to get it undone. We were not sure what to do, and Jim was ready to get pulled in, when I suggested we find a razor blade (in a tool box) and we could cut it. Well, Jim went under the boat one time and I knew he was not going to get it done. He is claustrophobic anyway and under the water, not so good. So, I, who never put my head under the water or swim unless I am teaching, jumped in, grabbed the razor blade, took a deep breath and swam under the boat to start cutting. I learned that I could hold by breath for a long time, but it was very difficult to stay under and I would float to the top. The scariest part was being out of breath and trying to get out from under the boat quick enough to catch some air. It took a lot of attempts under the water, a lost razor blade (on a break it was washed off the back step of the boat), some slices of my fingers and hands but we did it! It was a great accomplishment for me and I hope to never have to do it again. Jim commented that I was a wimp and never go out of my box, but when things need to get done, I step up and get them done. It has to be a desperate situation though. He was pretty impressed with me I must say.

The best part was that when I lost the razor blade, we weren't sure what to do...but, Valerie had put in my stocking a little device with knives, pliers, a flashlight, etc. that is all decorated in pink rhinestones. I haven't had to use it, ever, in 2 years and I remembered it was in my purse. I pulled it out and used the jagged knife feature and it saved the day. It was a great stocking stuffer. I knew someday it would come in handy.

Luke's New Portraits

2008-09-22T15:02:00.002-07:00

Rachie just put these up on her blog for me you use in a Gap entry for new models. I just love this little guy with all my heart. He is my little buddy. Luke always has a kiss and hug for me and is such a bundle of energy and joy. He makes my days so full of laughter and love. He is the only child of mine that never argues or tries to negotiate. What ever I say, he agrees to. I know this will change soon, but for now I cherish more than anything. He is so full of it. Last week he had 2 black eyes, yes 2! One from falling off the church organ bench as I was trying to lead the choir after church with 4 kids running around, and the other from falling on the rocks in the pool while swimming. I must say, he is so tough. He whimpered for both and the goose eggs were gigantic. I can't believe he did not cry longer. That's my boy though, ready to move onto the next thing.

Rhino Weekend Away!

2008-09-18T21:00:00.004-07:00

Heather, Sarah, Cindi, Melissa, Kim

Jim and Sarah at the top of the mountain pass

Jim was so happy to be doing something other than working. He loves this stuff!

Sarah and Heather

Beautiful Landscape

The whole group of riders

Jeff, Brad, Jim, Richard, Jeff

Our group from Arizona...

Top row: Heather, Sarah, Trina, Cindi, Melissa, Marcy

Bottom row:Jeff, Jim, Kenny, Brad, Richard, John

Jim and I decided to put together an adult trip to Colorado over Labor Day weekend. We invited 6 couples to go with us to take the Rhinos over the jeep passes above Silverton, Colorado. It was great because the Rhinos go so much faster than jeeps do. We went for the weekend and it was very fast and short, but worth the drive. We spent one whole day riding hard in the cooler weather, colder weather and even through rain storms. It was hilarious and quite the adventure. Thank goodness we were all prepared with snow gear and rain gear. We stayed relatively dry considering the down pour we went through. It was comical for Jim and me in our Rhino. Me trying to tie his hood on with frozen hands while being pelted with rain, in the face, fogged up goggles and all. It's a trip none of us will ever forget.

After our long day of riding, we did nothing. The next day, we wives watched 2 movies and ate snacks. The boys went out for a ride up Middle Mountain by the cabin and were poured and hailed on the whole time. They were freezing when they returned and were so wet they had to strip down in the front side porch area and wrap in towels to get to the showers. They were muddy but had so much fun.

We drove home the next day and it was a pleasant trip, aside from our driver letting his car run out of fuel between the cabin and town. It added an extra hour and a half on the trip home, but we didn't have kids so we did not care one bit. We also had a let down as the donut shop I love was closed for the Labor Day holiday. We even special ordered a dozen pine-cone donuts and they said they would be ready for us Monday morning. The girl must not have realized they would be closed for the holiday. I had to settle for McDonald's breakfast instead. Not near as good!

We are so blessed to have a beautiful place to stay at while we visit another one of our favorite places on earth. It is absolutely breathtaking in the mountains and so relaxing. The country market store is our favorite place to eat and we so enjoy Colorado every time we are there! It is such a beautiful house and very comforting. We are so lucky!

First Day of School 2008

2008-09-18T20:02:00.003-07:00

Megan 5th Grade

Gracey 3rd Grade

School started in August and I sent two off to school this year again. Megan is now in 5th grade and loving it! She gets to rotate classes and her teacher is her student teacher from her 2nd grade year, Miss Priser. She was so excited to start school since she didn't want it to even be summer last year. She is an avid reader and crazy for learning. I keep catching her up at night reading by the light of her closet. I told her the other day that I was going to take all the light bulbs out of her room if she didn't quit it. She giggled. She also was excited about 5th grade because she got to start stings. She is learning the violin in school and every 5 days gets to go to the strings class. She also signed up for choir and is enjoying singing and learning. I am helping her with the violin as I can play it. She gets frustrated very easily. I played plucked on the string her assignment today and she said, "but Mom, you're a professional!" I told her that I was not that good but I started out just like her and couldn't get upset with it or it would be harder. She is very hard on herself if she can't get things done efficiently.

Another example of this was her contact appointment. We decided to get her contacts for when she fights and practices Karate so she can see better. They would not let her leave the eye store without putting them in herself and taking them out. She was crying in frustration but would not stop. Even when I told her over and over again we would come back another day. I finally had to take her hands away from her face, get the contact out she did get in and make her leave. Needless to say, Jim took her 2 days later to try again. I was not doing that again. I did not have that much patience. She is super diligent. She is so sweet. She was worried we'd never get them in and I would have spent all that money on the exam and the contacts (since I had to buy them upfront to order the kind we wanted for her) and I would have wasted money. What a sweet and thoughtful joy she is to us.

Gracey started 3rd grade and was not as excited about school! She could be on summer vacation year round if it was up to her. It would give her more time to play school and be the teacher. Her Papa asked her today if she would rather come to his office and work for him instead of going to school and her eyes lit up and she yelled YES! She is doing well in class though and studies hard after school to get things done so she can play.

She discovered soccer this year at recess and wears tennis shoes every day to play. She is now signed up for the city soccer league and it will start soon. I can't wait to see how she will do. She is on a team with her best friend so she should have so much fun.

Gracey continues to be such a joy in our household. She is so helpful and such a care giver to all. She is so compassionate and loving if someone is hurt. She always looks for a solution to a problem and figures other things out. We are blessed to have her care free spirit in our lives. Everyone who meets her, knows how special she is.

Idaho Portraits

2008-09-18T17:49:00.003-07:00

Gracey- 8 years

Jameson- 4 years

Megan- 10 years

Luke and Jameson

All the kids

This apple tree I grew up eating from. There was nothing better than a green sour apple, a salt shaker and my grandma's front porch steps. If you look closely, you can see my grandpa's silo's in the background.

This willow tree is so old and provides so much shade and beauty down by the rivers edge.

Cousins- Caden 12 years, Luke 2.5 years

Cousins again

Running through the clothesline...GiGi (great grandma) would have had a heart attack if she say this happening on her property, with her towels and sheets...PRICELESS!

Rachie took these gorgeous pictures of my kids in Idaho. She is so talented. If anyone is interested, she is coming to Arizona in October to visit and would love to take your pictures for you. She is making a trip to Utah too in September, so get a hold of me if you want a session with her there.

We love Idaho so much and always have a great time with my family. We swam in the river, played at the sand bar, ate Big J's, had many shakes, ate all of Aunt Malee's cinnamon rolls up and had fresh raspberries every day. What a treat it is to be able to visit and stay at a place we love so much!

Family Portraits

2008-09-18T17:47:00.004-07:00

My sister Rachael has a side job/hobbie of taking photographs. She is amazing at what she does. Here are a few that I have gotten my hands on lately of me and the girls, our family in April and my whole family in April as well. We were all able to get together and surprise my parents for their birthdays. It was a great weekend.

Swimming in the Summer

2008-09-18T17:19:00.006-07:00

How cute is he?

Luke swimming to safety

Daddy catching Luke

Jameson swimming freestyle

I had to share these adorable pictures of two of my swimmers. Luke was always so cute with his goggles and Jameson loves to swim. As many of you know, I teach swim lessons during the summer and my littlest two got lessons this year. Luke was quite the swimmer and fearless. Once he figured out how to use his arms and look at the bottom of the pool, he was amazing. I could throw him in and he would turn and swim to the wall or step to save himself. Jameson also got lessons and at the first lesson was swimming the length of the pool, perfect freestyle. She also learned the butterfly, breast stroke and back stroke. She can do front flips and back flips as well. She told me one day that she wanted to learn how to dive. I was busy reading in the shade watching them so she said, "oh, never mind, I remember how you taught Jackson in his lesson" and I watched her do a beautiful, perfect dive. You can imagine my excitement! She continued to dive all day and eventually moved to the diving board and performed it flawlessly there as well. Maybe some day she'll be the girl version of Michael Phelps. Who knows. For only 4 years old, she's talented, and naturally so.

Colorado with the Kids- July 2008

2008-09-18T16:54:00.003-07:00

In July I headed up to Durango, Colorado with Jamers and Luke to pick up Megan and Gracey who had been visiting their Grammy for a week. Not only was I thankful that they were gone for the week to give me a break, but Gracey got the chicken pox while up there and Megan had pink eye (or a stye). I was so grateful to Valerie for being a trooper and taking such good care of my girls. They went to the melodrama and did many other activities each day such as hiking, playing spoons, playing PR (progressive rummy) and watching movies.

When we all got there we relaxed, read books and went to the cemetery one day to visit Gma Ethel and Gpa Earl's graves. My older two girls knew Earl and loved him dearly. They never got the chance to meet Ethel as she passed away while Jim was on his mission. The head stones have pictures of Ethel and Earl on them and the most amazing thing happened while we were visiting the graves. Luke walked right up to Gma Ethels picture, waved and said, "oh, there's Grandma". Valerie and I looked at each other and I asked him who that was as he said back that it was grandma. I asked him where grandpa was and he said he didn't know, but there was grandma, pointing to the picture. It made up both tear up and it was another testament of heaven and the veil to us. When we were leaving he walked up to her picture and said, "bye Grandma" and waved goodbye to her face. It was so sweet.

It made Valerie and I remember when Megan was 2 and hanging out with Grammy, looking through a photo book. She pointed to Ethel's picture and said, "oh, she was always so nice to me." Again another example of heaven and who is waiting for us up there.

The last picture is of Megan dressing and I had to take a snap shot of it. Does she remind you of anyone? My dad used to do a skit imitating Johnnie Carson when he would read the cards touching them to his head. I had to laugh and catch the image.

4th of July Weekend and Lake Powell

2008-09-18T16:12:00.004-07:00

For the Fourth of July weekend we headed to Lake Powell with just our family. We have always gone with large groups and taken the house boat out and anchored down. Well, this trip it was just us and a short trip at that so we stayed in the marina on the house boat. It was so relaxing and low maintenance! We took food but ended up eating out at the restaurant at the marina. It was fabulous! There is a ski boat that is left up there in storage for our use so we drove up in the suburban fast and came home fast. We boated and tubed with the kids close by the marina and as you can see from Gracey's expression, they were not too happy when Jim made them fall off the tube. They would not get off though when it was time to stop! We had to get mad at them to get out of the water. Needless to say, it was my best Lake trip to date since it was so relaxing! I did miss the crowd though too.

Disney Cruise

2008-09-18T15:38:00.003-07:00

We were fortunate enough to go on a week long Disney cruise out of L.A. to Mexico with Jim's family in June. It was the best vacation EVER! Having never been on a cruise, I was worried about being motion sick, the cramped spaces and Jim getting bored on a ship. I was so wrong! I was in heaven! Not only did I have a head waiter who cut up the kids food and let me order anything I wanted off the menu, but the drink waiter delivered diet cokes with lemon one right after another! Plus, there was a room steward who organized clothes, cleaned the rooms and bathrooms, turned down beds, made beds and even folded my kids blankets for them. I was in shock. I figured he had a little bell that would ding the minute we left the rooms because no matter how long we were gone for, he always freshened things up in the room. I must say that the first week back to reality and cooking and cleaning for me was very tough. I got so spoiled and we are already planning our next Disney Cruise.

The service was impeccable, the food phenomenal and the ship was so clean and run well. It was amazing. Jim's parents go on cruises a lot and they said this was the best one for service and the best food by far!

We were each given $100.00 to spend what we wanted it on my Jim's parents and I got a massage along with Jim. The kids got beach towels, stuffed animals, their hair braided and cover ups. We also had them help pay for tipping our fabulous room steward and explained how great he was and how we needed to thanks him with our money so he would know how much we (me) appreciated it.

Each day and night on the cruise had a theme night and you can see that the Pirates of the Caribbean night was our favorite. We had such a great time dressing up and dancing in to the late night. We even got to see fireworks shoot off the shop!

We stopped in Cabo San Lucas and Megan Jim and I went on a canopy tour with zip lines, rock climbing and repelling. Megan was unbelievably brave and quite the trooper. She is so athletic and loved every minute of it! She even rock climbed the big rock and Jim had to use the ladder. Ha! We flea market shopped in Mazatlan and rented a van that held all four brothers, wives and kids and toured the city. In Puerto Vallarta we swam with the dolphins. It was amazing and so fun! What an experience! I will post our dolphin swim when I get the pictures from my sister in law.

We loved every minute of it.

Gracey's Baptism - March 1, 2008

2008-09-18T15:38:00.000-07:00

Gracey's baptism was so amazing. It was such a special day for our sweet little girl. She was very pensive and quiet for the day. Gracey tends to soak in as much as she can as to not forget anything. When I was getting her ready she asked why we go under the water and I told her that our sins are washed away and we are clean. She thought for a minute and said, "so the water gets really dirty and they have to get clean water for each person getting dunked?" I got a good laugh out of it and explained that it is just symbolic. We had a big luncheon afterwards with our fabulous friends and family.

2008-05-19T14:09:00.003-07:00

These pictures were taken as we were waiting for sweet Gracey's horse riding lesson to end. The trainer we go to is amazing and their land is a kids paradise. They have dogs, horses, playgrounds, bikes, trikes, baseballs, bats, hoops, swings, dirt, mud, cows, manure, motorcycles and most importantly to Luke, helmets. As you can see in the picture.

When we arrive, he can hardly contain his excitement and need to get unbuckled from his car seat. He immediately runs into their garage and puts on a helmet, gloves (backwards) and sits on the child size bike. I can sometimes coax him out to play on the toys, but he always has a helmet on whether on the teeter totter or playing ball.

I have to dress the other 3 children who are not on the horse in pants and rain boots to keep them as clean as possible. It is hard for me, but nothing a box of wet wipes can't fix until we can get home for a bath. I have to strip them all down and clean them as best possible before they can get into my car again. They hate that part, but the reward of a 2 hour playtime at a horse ranch is well worth it. Megan stares at the cows mostly and is fascinated by them.

Gracey does not have a picture attached, since she must concentrate on the horse, and cannot seem to do that if she knows she is being recorded by camera or video. She is so darn adorable! They claim she is a natural and she loves it so much. They have her walk, trot and lope (gallop) in circles and then forms or patterns they are teaching her. It is vital that she direct the horse not with the reigns, but with her head. The horses are very in tune with the rider, and does what it is told by body movements. When she sits on her back pockets and says "whoa", the horse will stop. She can be at a gallop, going towards the fence and it will stop just short of running into the fence when she tells it to. She has also learned to "spin" circles and go around and around by digging in her heel and sitting on the pocket she wished the horse to go in. She can spin him pretty fast and it is so fun to watch. She then stops the horse by simply pulling back and sitting on her pockets and saying "whoa".

It may surprise you all to know that the only thing she really struggles with is speaking loud enough for the horse to hear her as well as the trainer. Most of us know that Gracey says what is on her mind always and it is usually at one level. She is very calm on the horse and her trainer asked me if she was shy since she could never really get a response from her when asked a question. I laughed and told Gracey to answer loudly and be confident. Last week after 2 months of lessons, they have moved her to the large arena so she has more room to maneuver the horse.

Since it is summer now, and hot already, we will be having lessons early in the morning. When I say early, I mean like 6 am and it is a good half an hour from our house. I'm not too sure how I will finagle it since the other three children will still be in bed, but we will figure something out. The kids usually sleep from 7 pm to 7 am, so we will see how tired they all are at waking up at the crack of dawn to get there. I would have her stop for the summer, but I stopped karate last year with Megan for the summer with all our trips and me teaching swim it was overwhelming to get her there. I regretted it the first day in the Fall when we took her back. She needed to continue as well as Gracey will need to. There is no use in starting all over again.

I am hoping to get a picture of Gracey on her horse one of these days and will post it as soon as I get a good one! I need Rachie here to take action shots with her fabulous camera and her expertise.

Karate Again

2008-05-17T14:43:00.003-07:00

I know, it seems like this is all we blog about but really we do have more involved in our lives. Just wanted everyone to share in Megan's excitement. She earned her purple belt and was able to break two boards with her running kick. It was very cool. She only had to kick it once and it broke. The picture is not all that great but it's all I have.

Surprise!

2008-05-17T14:17:00.004-07:00

We had the chance to get together as a whole family the first weekend of April and surprise my parents for their birthdays. Rachael set the wheels in motion months and months ago and we all arrived at various times throughout the day to see them. They had no idea any of us were coming! It was so fun!

One of the kids favorite things to do when we visit Nana and Grandpa is to visit the Minor's zoo. There were horses there as you can see from the pictures and that is all that needed to be there. We visited them twice and took carrots the second time. What great memories our kids will have doing these things with Nana.

National Kumite Champion!

2008-05-17T14:01:00.005-07:00

As you know from our previous blog, that Megan had the opportunity to go to New Mexico to compete in the National Championship Tournament. We took the family to New Mexico and stayed at the Marriott where the tournament was being hosted. A lot of kids from our Dojo went and participated in the tournament. Megan did very well and won all her rounds. She was named the National Champion for sparring in her division. We are so happy with the progress she has made in this sport. It blows my mind every time she fights! You really see it when they fight at the Dojo. The Sensei's have them fight each time they go to practice so they are very good at it, all of them. Megan can fight older boys and girls who are at higher levels and hold her own! Most people are shocked to hear that she fights! She loves to read and is so reserved that it comes as a surprise to them.

For instance, the other day I had a sitter and I was running errands. I drive down the street to get to our house and I see a lone child, walking slowly and no other children in sight. Now, keep in mind, there are about 20 kids that exit the bus at the same time and there were no other kids ANYHERE! I know it's Megan and I pull up beside the "pokey puppy" and roll down my window. She keeps on walking, nose in her book until I finally say her name. She is so surprised to see me driving along side her. Needless to say, we had a discussion about how she can not read from the bus stop home and she must be aware of her surroundings. She could get taken very easily or run over and never know what happened.

Since the tournament, Gracey has signed up for Karate and is loving it as well. She moves in slow motion, which surprises us because she usually has so much energy. hen we took her to her first tournament 2 weeks ago, she did very well and came in second in her fighting. It was only she and Cassie (her cousin) fighting in the division, but I was so happy to see her moving quickly and actually hitting and kicking. She came home with a trophy as well and was so excited with it all. Sadly, I did not have my camera, so you'll have to wait to see Gracey in her karate gear with a trophy on a later blog.

We also signed Jamers up for Karate and she lasted only one week. She just wanted her mommy the whole time so we decided for her to make the decision herself when she gets older.

Luke is so ready for Karate. He loves it. When we get there, he puts on the sparring gear and mouth piece of Megan's and punches walls, the bags, and practices with Megan. I can barely keep him off the mat during class and have now resorted to strapping him in his stroller during the time we can watch. He loves to watch and cheer everyone on. When he is 3 he can officially begin "Lil Kicks" and it's gonna be great. The only downside to him watching Karate and practicing is that he tends to want to punch and kick anyone around so we have to keep reinforcing that he can only do it at the Dojo.

Easter

2008-05-17T13:46:00.004-07:00

Easter was fun as always! The Easter Bunny hid the baskets very well this year! The kids and Jim had a very hard time finding where they could possibly be.

We have church at 11 and I was in charge of the Easter Program, so we got ready and arrived early enough to get great seats. I chose seats in the third row from the podium since I had to be up in the choir seats throughout the program. Megan and Gracey were singing in a primary group I worked with to sing with the choir so I wanted them close. I practiced with my choir at 10:30. Ran around setting up microphones and getting folders passed out and finally sat down in the pew, waiting for Jim to arrive with Luke. I was frustrated since I was nervous and had a lot to do, plus get in my seat before the meeting started. Right before sacrament started, I said to my friend, "where the heck is my husband? He only had to get Luke and himself here". She turned around and looked back and said, "he's sitting in the back". Lo and behlold, there is Jim with Luke on his lap, just calmly sitting. I sent Jameson to collect him and move his body up to sit with us.

I took my seat and the program went extremely well. It was such a special program with narration and special musical numbers. We had a beautiful meeting and the spirit was so strong. I sang a solo called, "Whole Again" that I sang last year and was asked to sing it again. It is my favorite song and was able to record it for my Dad's Christmas present this year. The choir was unbelievable! It amazes me how we always practice and how much I plead for people to come and join us, and the day we perform, the choir stands are full to capacity and they sound so wonderful. I love my calling and according to the Bishop, I am never being released. His wife is the ward music coordinator and they love music so we have programs quite often. We put on a Young Women program this year and a Christmas program. I am so thankful to have a Bishop who loves music and knows that the spirit testifies so strongly through it.

After our meetings, we headed to Reb's for a fabulous dinner. We had great food (as always) and an easter egg hunt for the kids. Then the older "boys" threw footballs and plastic eggs in the front yard (with the kids trying to catch them, but with no success) until we headed home. What a great day we all had.

2008-05-17T13:25:00.003-07:00

On Feb. 22nd the school hosted their annual Daddy Daughter dance and this years theme was "Gals and Pals". The kids were so excited, especially Gracey, since she loves everything horses. The school provided dinner and there was a DJ there and they danced the night away. They even got to line dance and had a session of instruction. The girls love being alone with Jim so it is so great for them.

A Trip Back in Time...

2008-03-05T15:02:00.004-07:00

Eric Cutter, who works with Jim at Knight Refrigerated, had a birthday party and it was 80's themed. We had such fun dressing up and especially trying to put our costumes together. I am so glad that we do not have to dress like this every day. Jim and Jared were true sports dressing up. They both have NEVER put on a costume of any sort! The mullet and rock wigs were priceless. Megan and I both won gift bags because she was voted best dressed kid and I took home the best dressed adult woman. There was 80's music playing and 80's decor everywhere. They even had an air guitar contest for the different age groups for the kids inflatable guitars. Luke loved this part! It was a great way to celebrate a birthday and spend time together as families.

Gracey's 8th Birthday Party

2008-02-12T14:19:00.004-07:00

We decided to go camping for Gracey's birthday at our new favorite camp site. It is only 15 miles away and such a great find! We took a long rhino ride in the morning and then served everyone lunch. She did not want a cake and insisted on me making sugar cookies for her friends to decorate. I made lots of heart shaped cookies, gave the kids frosting and sprinkles and they went to town.

I love that one my kids favorite things are my sugar cookies. I actually did a demonstration on how to make the dough and bake them for the Laurels in our ward in the beginning of February and my girls were so worried about them not being my special cookies anymore since others could make them. We had to have a talk about how we share things that are special to us so others can enjoy them too. They were still very concerned. So sweet!

Karate Kid

2008-02-05T20:45:00.000-07:00

Last weekend we went to the State Karate Tournament with Megan so she could try to win and go to the National Competition in New Mexico. You have to place 1st, 2nd, or 3rd in any event to be eligible to make it to the Nationals. She of course went in claiming she would place in State, place in Nationals, then she could go to the World Competition. I told her that if she made it to the World Tournament I would take her to New Orleans! I then told her one step at a time.

Well, she performed her "Kata" (which is forms, sort of like a dance they do if they were to be attacked). Keep in mind that she does not like this as much as fighting, but I tell her that she has to do it to practice. I tell her that the only reason I sing in front of people is because Nana always made me perform, whether I wanted to or not. So, her Kata went well, she did all she was supposed to but did not place. She was not interested in that anyway so it did not matter.

Then, it was time to spar (Kumite, sounds like ku-me-tay). She loves fighting and is shockingly good! She got in there and her first competitor was her height but rather large in stature. Keep in mind that Megan fights boys every time she goes to class and beats a lot of them, but for some reason she was hesitant to get in there and get it done with the girls she does not practice with. After a couple bouts, she finally realized that she was strong enough to take the opponent. She won her first round and waited to fight the next girl.

The second bout was for 1st and 2nd place. This time the liitle girl she was up against was a lot shorter and smaller in stature than Megan. Megan was very hesitant again and I could tell she did not want to hurt her. In the Dojo if a younger kid or less advanced student is sparring with a more advanced belt, they take it easy and let them learn techniques and how to get around blocks, etc. Well, Megan was acting as if this girl was not an orange belt! We kept telling her to go for it and finally it clicked. Megan won and was so excited!

On the way home, we asked her about the competition rounds and she said she was afraid she would hurt the little one. Jim told her that it was doing the little girl a huge disservice by going easy on her. I told her that if she was an orange belt and in the sparring area, she had to earn it to get there, so to attack no matter what. It is Megan's job to do that no matter the size. Megan thought the little one was younger in age. We had to explain that Megan is very tall for her age and that although she was smaller, she was not younger. The first competitor Megan thought was older because she was bigger. We told her that no matter the size, they were orange belts just like her and to fight hard.

We have booked our rooms in New Mexico and look forward to our family trip there on March 27. Megan has a goal to practice her Kata really hard so she can place in that too. She will also continue to fight and practice blocks. We will let you know how it goes in New Mexico!

Megan about ready to fight. They must bow to the judge and each other before assuming fighting stance.
Megan and Sensei Jasmin right after the fight and awarding of her trophy.
Proud dad and Megan.

A Day in the Life of Sarah...

2008-02-05T19:51:00.001-07:00

What a day today was! Jameson, Luke and I went to Target, purchased items for Valentines sugar cookies and came home. Upon arriving home, I put the car in park and proceeded to push the button that automatically opens my trunk of the suburban. I always use this feature, but only when I am in the back of the vehicle to "catch" anything that has fallen in transit. Many a time, I have had to catch falling items. So, the one time I do not get back there and open it just happened to be today.

After pushing the button, I heard a crash in the back of the car and knew something had fallen. I was hoping it was not the 2 cartons of 18 eggs I had just gotten. I walked to the back of the car and saw eggs splattered across my garage floor. I cleaned it up salvaging about only a dozen, made my dough so that I could use four of the broken eggs with out wasting them and went on with my day.

Fast forward three hours...Luke was not asleep yet and Gracey gets home from school. I am typing on the computer and talking to Rachie and ask her to get Luke up. I loose track of time talking with Rachie and suddenly there is a loud, blood curdling scream from Gracey (my dramatic one). I panic, thinking there is a scorpion or a snake in the house. I ask her, "what?", she says, "Luke just dumped over the Superbowl cupcakes that look like a football". I calmly walk into the kitchen and this is what I see...

HE'S THE ONLY ONE THAT THOUGHT IT WAS FUNNY!!!

Helmet Boy...

2008-02-01T16:36:00.001-07:00

We went camping the last weekend of January and Luke found Gracey's motorcycle helmet. He would not take it off! He always put it on backwards and it had to be fixed quite often. However, once it was on right, he just walked around camp tapping it and saying "emet". Then when it was time for naps or bed, we would remove it and he would scream,"emet, emet, emet"! Boys are such boys!

Christmas In Colorado

2008-02-01T15:54:00.001-07:00

Our family had such a great Christmas! Jim's parents let us use their cabin in Colorado to have the holiday with the Brinton Clan. We all arrived on the Friday night before Christmas Day and enjoyed our relaxing vacation immensely. I am happy to say that it was the first time EVER that my mom relaxed! She and my dad (as well as most of us) took naps every day, watched a lot of football, read books, sat and visited and did not much more. That is why we love Colorado so much. You can go up there and for a week and never leave the property.

We had Jim's uncle that lives there get us a tree and we were able to decorate it with all of Valeries fun Gingerbread themed decorations. Reb and Jared did all the shopping before we arrived so there was no reason to leave the house. We sat in the hot tub, the kids sledded and the snowmobiles were used!

The house was full of helpers, big and little and it showed me how great a family I really have. Everyone helps each other our so much with our children and all are always taken care of. This Christmas will forever be remembered!

The kids played in the snow, watched the snow fall and even made a snow fort. Jim and Luke cleared the driveway for hours. We thought Luke was freezing and tried getting him off Jim's lap a couple of times. He wanted none of it and screamed to stay on the tractor. Little boys and big boys are just alike. Mom, Dad, Kurt, Jim, Rachie, and Tyson went on a Rhino ride up the mountain. They had a blast and my dad got a little crazy and daring! Needless to say, my mom was very nervous with him fishtailing everywhere!

Halloween with Three Girls and One Boy

2007-11-01T15:10:00.001-07:00

Halloween was a treat this year as expected. It amazes me how excited kids get when they dress up and get so much candy they do not know what to do with. Needless to say, I feel sorry for teachers the day after Halloween. My Thursday after Halloween was horrendous. The kids were out of control. I can only imagine having 36 bouncing off the walls. We went to our old neighborhood for pizza and visiting doors, then to the church for "trunk-or-treat".

Our first girl Megan loves the Nancy Drew series of books and has immersed herself in them since last April when she got her first 6 book set from her Uncle Steve. Aunt Rachael has collected them through out the years so she graciously let Megan borrow all the other volumes for her reading. When I asked her what she was going to be for Halloween months ago, she did not hesitate and said, "Nancy Drew". Her costume was so easy! We found a "preppy" outfit (like the ones the actress wears in the new movie out last summer) and I got a magnifying glass. She has so much fun!

Our second girl Gracey...Can you say ELIZA look-a-like? This picture takes me back to the days when we would dress Lou up in white dresses and walk her down mom and dads stair case in our house. Reb and I called her "Eliza" all night. Gracey loves to dress up and pretend all sorts of things. She reminds me so much of Rebecca and myself. We loved to play and pretend and it scares me how much she is like me. She also was very quick to choose her costume this year. All we needed was a veil and flowers to complete her costume as we had this white dress already. She let me know the morning of Halloween that she wanted her hair "just like Nana did it for your wedding". I told her I did my own hair for my wedding, but I would be happy to help her out. We ended up pulling it up for the veil we got and it was beautiful. I told her that she was so lucky that her hair would not be an issue on her wedding day. Along with Rebecca's invitations, my flower and hair skills, Nana's cooking, Rachael's photography and all the other Aunts decorations abilities, our weddings for the three girls should be pretty low maintenance. I then told her to remember that she had to be 25 or through college to get married, she said, "okay". I am sure that okay will change to arguments someday so I will take it while I can get it.

Our third girl Jameson was a whole other story with her costume decision or I should say decisions (plural). She changed her mind so much. I did not even buy her a costume as she could not make up her mind from day to day. The morning of Halloween, she wore her "Genevieve" costume from Barbie movie The Twelve Dancing Princesses. It itched an hour into preschool so we threw on her Sleeping Beauty costume. It itched an hour later so we tried the Little Mermaid costume. It itched by the end of preschool so I took off everything, put on a ballet skirt and told her to put of her ballet shoes (Megan's really old ones). She loved being a ballerina. She wears this often at home so she was excited and I know it would be comfortable. She was hesitant to wear her ballet shoes outside but I told her we would wipe them down when she was done so they wouldn't get our floor in the house dirty. I have trained them young.

Our one boy Luke was so much fun to dress! I thought hard for awhile about his costume and came up with a Karate boy outfit and he was going to wear Megan's Karate sparring gear on his head since he loves to wear it. Well, I ordered his costume online, it was a 2-4 but upon dressing him discovered it was for a 2 year old who was only in a size 1. It was small and he cried with it being so tight. A friend of mine went to Party City and got some Harley tattoos for me and Reb made him a "live to ride" shirt and he fit the part of a Harley Rider so well. He was digging it! He kept on the bandanna all night and everyone thought it was the coolest costume. I was so happy that people were around to help me out! Luke did not trick-or-treat. He sat on this four wheeler all night (after we unplugged the battery) and at the trunk or treat, he sat in the trunk and played. It was great! I must say that dressing boys will be easier than girls each year. There is no hair to do and so much less fuss over the outfits. I was happy to not have another "princess" to dress this year.

Fall Fun

2007-11-01T13:25:00.000-07:00

We went to Colorado over Colombus Day with Jim's parents and Reb's family. We has a great time and the colors were absolutely amazing. I have never in 12 years of marriage been up there for the colors changing. I could not believe it. It was beautiful. We drove for miles through the tree lined country roads and went jeeping one day to see the changes. I will never forget it. I now have a glimpse of how wonderful it would be to live in Connecticut in the Fall. Mom and Dad have always talked about the changes and I was happy to see some.

The kids loved the leaves and had fun with them. Below is a picture of Jameson throwing a fit because Gracey ruined her pile of leaves. She is so hot and cold. Jim and I do not know what to do about her sometimes. She is so loving, sweet and happy and the next minute, grumpy, sour and sad. We let her pitch her fits by herself and often put her on the naughty spot. A couple weeks ago I had to pull over to a parking lot on the way home and put her on the curb by herself. The rest of us sat in the car waiting for her to "do her time" on the "naughty curb". It nips the problem in the bud for awhile then we have to reiterate proper behavior again shortly after. I hope it will end soon and I am very consistent and do not let any behavior like that fly around me.

Getting Started....

2007-08-16T18:23:00.000-07:00