Newbry News

Family Gifts

2012-02-06T21:42:00.002-07:00

Opening gifts from siblings.

After playing with our Santa gifts for awhile we decided it was time to go up the the Christmas tree and open gifts from family members. The kid each had a gift from mom and dad and one from a sibling (whoever picked their name earlier in the month.) We started with the gift from their sibling and every child was very happy with the gift they received. Though they are happy to get a gift I love how they look intently at the kids who's present they bought, wanting to see their reaction. They're so excited for their sibling to get a gift and to enjoy that gift that they bought. It's so fun to see. After those were opened we opened gifts from mom and dad. They were a hit. We had a lot of fun playing with our toys and enjoying the relaxing day together.

The boys, with help from Daddy, opening their sibling gifts.

Hannah got a huge elephant from Dan. I always wanted a huge stuffed animal when I was little. Lucky girl.

Adam got a popper toy from Sarah. He (and Dan) love it.

Gracie got a ballerina dress from Hannah. I think Hannah chose it because she really wanted it, but it turned okay because Gracie loves it.

Dan loves his fishing boat from Gracie.

Ben and Sarah showing off their toys. Ben's light saber set came from Adam (with some help from Sarah) and Sarah got her Littlest Pet Shop toys from Ben.

Hannah and Gracie shared their toy from Mom and Dad. They got 7 princess Barbies, they were in heaven.

The kids with their gifts from mom and dad. Dan and Adam got 'Cars' shaky cars, Ben got a double bladed 'Nerf' sword, the little girls got Barbies, and Sarah got. . .

A phone.
Boy was she surprised. We decided instead of getting her an MP3 player we'd just go ahead and use our 3rd, unused cell phone and upgrade it and give it to Sarah. She was so surprised and absolutely loved it.

The boys playing with their toys. Merry Christmas everyone.

Santa Comes to Visit

2012-02-06T21:10:00.001-07:00

All 6 kids in their Christmas jammies waiting to see what Santa brought.

Christmas came, and what a great day it was. The kids had so much fun with their presents from Santa and from the family. We had so much fun playing as a family and even got a nap (which was kind of bad because we slept right through church, darn 1:00 church.) I hope everyone had a great Christmas. Here's a look at our Christmas.

Adam on his new donkey. This was one of the best gifts Santa brought this year. It has gotten a ton of use by all the kids. Adam certainly loves it.

Dan playing with his new garden set.

Gracie (and Hannah) love their new doll house. Santa will have many years of gifts to give in order to fill it up.

Ben found, and loved his new scooter.

Sarah got another Liv doll and a scooter, among other things.

Dan and Gracie playing with the doll house while Hannah waits for me to open something for her.

Ben got a baseball game. He's pretty good at throwing that ball.

Dan loves puzzles and his new winter puzzle was perfect for him.

Sarah had to take a turn on her scooter.

Even Ben played with the girls and their doll house for a short time. He's such a good big brother.

Christmas Jammies

2012-02-06T19:47:00.001-07:00

Waiting patiently to open their jammies.

Christmas was finally upon us and we were all so excited. We enjoyed another quite Christmas at home and really enjoyed the time we had as a family. We tried to make a gingerbread village on Christmas Eve, but it took too long and we never finished it. We'll have to start it around Thanksgiving next year. Finally it was time to open Christmas jammies and the kids were so excited.

Opening jammies. Sarah always pulls the best faces.

Dan has this present opening thing down. He loved his new Buzz and Woody jammies.

Hannah was the first one downstairs in her new jammies. She was complaining that they were to small. I was so disappointed until Gracie walked down, drowning in her jammies. HaHa. We sent them back up to their room to switch jammies.

Ben and Sarah acting cool. . .

and goofy.

The best picture we got of Dan and Adam. They were to excited to sit still.

Much better girls. I'm glad their jammies fit and that they loved them so much.

After the jammies were opened and put on, it was time to set out cookies for Santa. Bedtime came next and the kids were quickly asleep, dreaming of what Santa would bring them, I'm guessing.

Bouncing Like Kangaroo's

2012-02-06T19:31:00.001-07:00

We miss our Idaho Falls friends terribly and sadly we haven't found anyone here in our new area that the kids can really play with. We live in a neighborhood full of a lot of really little kids and so there are not kids for Ben and Sarah to play with. The ward constantly has people moving in and out and we've just gotten lost in the mass of people. It's probably my fault, but it's made it so we haven't really met anyone. It's been hard on the kids, mostly Sarah. She talks constantly about her Idaho Falls friends and asks when we can move back. I hate it. I'm hoping our next house will provide a larger variety of children and some good friends for my kids.

With that being said, I was leaving Walmart one morning with my 3 youngest kids, when I noticed a little girl walking in that looked strangely familiar. I watched her run up to her mom and as the woman turned around a huge smile spread across my face. It was an old friend from a long time ago, Jillian McGregor. Jillian and I go back to high school days and our story is kind of a different one. You see I've only met Jillian one other time in my life, but I feel like we've been great friends forever. We know each other because of our dad's. They have been friends since college and have managed to keep in touch over the years. When Jillian's family moved back to Utah, when we were in high school, my dad took me to Salt Lake to meet them. We went to a football game and then I spent the remainder of the weekend with them. It was so much fun and something I'll always remember. That was the one and only time I'd ever seen Jillian, but through the beauty of Facebook I've been able to reconnect with her. Turns out she was neighbors with my sister-in-law in college and married a Grace boy just like me. Who knew we'd have so much in common. Anyway, I knew she lived nearby and I was so excited when I ran into her at Walmart.

We talked a little in Walmart and then decided to get our kids together during the Christmas break. She was taking her kids to Kangaroo Zoo and asked if I wanted to come along. It's kind of pricey, but we'd budgeted some money for fun activities like that during the Christmas holiday so I readily agreed. We met that Thursday for some bouncing, running, giggling and talking fun. She has 2 older girls, a boy and a new baby girl. Sarah and her oldest hit it off quite well and I really enjoyed watching Sarah play with someone again. Jillian's boy really liked Ben and Ben did a good job to include him. It was a great day and I think it's about time to get together again.

Sarah and Jillian's oldest going down one of the many slides.

Hannah climbing up to go down a slide.

Adam was very fascinated with the bounce houses and slides. He was not, however, a fan of them. I tried to take him in them a few times and he'd kick and scream and tried to claw his way out.

Gracie just chilling out.

Dan was a little scared of the slides at first, but after Sarah took him on one or two he decided they were awesome. This little boy had a blast.

Adam admiring the slide from a distance. He would just wander around looking at everything and everyone.

The boys in the obstacle course.

Gracie going down the slide on her belly. FUN!!!!!

Hannah wandered around asking me to take a picture of her on every slide. She loved the slides.

The kids ran and ran and never stopped. They were red faced, tired and very happy when we left. Not to mention very cute.

After all of his wandering around, Adam finally found something he really liked at Kangaroo Zoo. The drinking fountain. He was soaked when we left, but he was a happy boy.

Newbry Christmas Party

2012-02-06T18:42:00.003-07:00

It was decided the the Newbry family is getting to large and the individual families are getting too large to get together for Christmas anymore. So, they decided to have a Newbry Family Christmas party this year. It was held on December 17 at April and JJ's house. It was full for my 3 favorite 'f' things: Food, Family, and Fun, oh and presents too. Enjoy the pictures.

The kids got to decorate a different kind of Christmas tree. What a great idea.

Decorating the cousin Christmas Tree.

Cute little Gracie. I love this girls hair.

Ben chasing Zack during a game.

Adam likes Aunt Karen. All the kids like Aunt Karen.

Grandma, Lilly and Gracie

Yummy lunch. Christmas food is so good.

Cute Dan

Nice!!!!

Lilly and Landon having lunch together. These to make me want to have twins

Grandpa handing out gifts from he and Grandma. We got a year membership to the zoo. Awesome gift!

The family opening gifts.

I don't know what Alli's so impressed with, but I love pictures of cousins.

Lilly found a new game. . .

Peek-a-boo!

Mommy

Adam wearing his construction hat from Aunt Mindy.

More Practice Pictures

2012-02-04T20:55:00.001-07:00

Kenny had a few more photo sessions during the month of December. I love it when he takes pictures of the kids. I really think they are a great way to capture the everyday life of a child. The kids are all posing for the camera, minus Dan's coloring which he was just doing and Kenny decided to take advantage of it and practice taking pictures of him. Even though they're posing, it still shows things the kids do most day and shows there personality and typically we don't take pictures of that sort of thing. Maybe that's why I love these pictures so much. Anyway, here they are, some complete with Kenny's descriptions from Facebook. Enjoy! Kenny does such a great job.

Dan jumping on the bed. Classic little kid shot.

Muscle Ben

From Facebook: And this is how our son went blind. One flash to his left, and let him play with the other flash just to finish him off.

Dan coloring. This boy loves to color.

Hannah reading a book. I love the Christmas Believe above her head. I think it adds to the shot.

And the last one is of me. Sorry I normally hate pictures of me, but I thought he did a great job on this one.

Trimming the Tree

2012-02-04T11:10:00.000-07:00

The best picture we could get of the kids with the finished tree.

We were so happy to be able to get a Christmas tree this year. Last year we didn't have the money to get one and we really missed it. Christmas tree's are one of my favorite things about the holiday. I love the lights, and decorations and the smell of pine that fills my house. We wanted to go into the mountains again this year and cut down our own tree, but apparently that's not as easy to do in Salt Lake. No wait, that's not even something you can do in Salt Lake. We waited until a few day into December before we starting looking into tree permits. Next year we'll look earlier. The only tree permits we could find were over in Heber City and those were sold out in the first few days. Oops. We were left with the choices of driving to Idaho to cut down a tree or just buying one from a tree lot. We opted to save the time and money this year and just buy one from a tree lot. To our surprise we found a great tree in Bountiful that was fairly inexpensive. We snatched it up quick and headed home to find a place for it in our house.

Sarah and Ben decorating the top of the tree.

Ben and Hannah decorating the tree.

Dan did such a good job decorating this year.

The tree we chose was perfect for us this year. It wasn't a bushy, typical tree. Instead it was more of an old world, traditional tree. This is exactly what we were wanting this year. Not only was our tree not bushy, but it had little pine cones still attached to it to give it more of that old world look. We had to buy all new ornaments because we had thrown out our old ones a few years ago (they were looking really beat up) and we opted to stay clear of the traditional bulb look and instead opted for Cranberries, candy canes, and popcorn strings. Of course we added a few of our personal ornaments we've collected over the years and there you have it, the perfect Newbry Christmas Tree.

Daddy and Adam helping Ben reach the top of the tree.

Sarah and Dad decorating the tree.

Gracie putting her snowman on the top of the tree, with a little help from Daddy.

Hannah decorating the tree with Ben and Sarah.

The flashes didn't go off on this picture so the lighting isn't very good, but I

Blowing Trampolines

2012-02-04T09:01:00.000-07:00

A look at our damaged window and siding.

December began with a bang for us, literally. The meteorologists in Northern Utah predicted high winds for the evening of November 30th and into the morning of December 1st. High winds, okay, I can deal with that. I've seen many high winds in my life. Not a big deal, right. No one knew how bad these winds would be. During the night I woke up a few times to the sound of the wind blowing outside. Because I didn't get a very good night sleep, I was extra tired in the morning and didn't get out of bed when I should have. That extra 10 minutes of sleep just sounded too nice and so I decided to let the kids play around a little more before getting ready for school.

Looking out our broken window at the neighbors yard. Their rain gutter got hit before the trampoline hit our house. There trampoline sustained some damage also.

Just as I was getting out of bed I heard this extremely strong wind and then a loud crash. Immediately follow the crash I heard 3 kids yelling, "What was that," and little feet running up the stairs and down the hall. When we got to the kitchen I noticed one of the windows in our bay window had been broken out. Upon further inspection, we discovered the neighbors trampoline from a few houses back had been picked up by the wind and blown into the side of our house. It wasn't too terrible, though it frightened the kids really bad, but it did do a little damage to the inside and outside of the house.

Another look at our damaged house.

The best thing about this story goes back to me sleeping in that extra 10 minutes. See normally at the time the trampoline crashed through our window, the kids are all sitting down at the kitchen table having breakfast. Now I don't think anyone would have been seriously injured, but I'm sure there would have been some cuts from all the flying glass. I know it would have terrified all of them and probably me and for that alone, I'm grateful I slept in that morning. I'm choosing to believe that desire to stay in bed an extra 10 minutes or so was a divine inspiration (okay I'm sure it was just me being lazy, but who knows.)

Our broken window. The force of the impact also did some damage to the wall inside the house. Nothing that can't be fixed though.

Kenny got the window boarded up and I spent hours cleaning up the glass on the floor. It seemed everything I thought I had gotten all the glass, I'd turn around and find more. We feel very blessed that a little broken window was all the damage we suffered. Davis county was hit really hard that night and early morning. They clocked wind speeds at 102 in Centerville and near 100 in many other Davis County cities. School was canceled the following day and I decided to drive the kids around to see some of the damaged houses. They were impressed with the huge trees that had been blown over into house, streets, and onto cars. It helped them realize how fortunate we really were. It's amazing what wind can do.

One of the worst houses we saw on our drive. Scary.

Saying Goodbye to the Crib

2012-01-19T21:35:00.001-07:00

Look who has a big boy bed.

December 9th brought a milestone in our families life that I have been dreading for a long time. It came quicker than I expected, which did help. Our crib has been having problems the past year and it finally got to the point where we didn't feel it was worth keeping up anymore. Not wanting to go out and buy a new crib to only use for a few months, we decided to go ahead and transition Adam into a toddler bed. That means no more babies in cribs at my house. I'm left wondering how in the world this happened. It seems like not that long ago that we were putting that crib together for the very first time, awaiting the arrival of our beautiful and tiny Sarah Kate. Now, 9 1/2 years later we found ourselves taking it apart for the last time after having had 6 children take their turn sleeping in it. Where has all the time gone? It's CRAZY.

He loves climbing on and off his new bed.

I'm so excited for the next stage of my life and the lives of my children. They're growing up to be such wonderful, bright, and kind kids. I love spending time with them, getting to know them, and watching them enjoy each other's company. I'm so excited for all the things we can do as a family with bigger kids. I'm excited for the ease of everyday activities that having no babies brings and the sleep I get at night. However, I'm going to miss rubbing my tummy and feeling a little baby in there kicking back at me all the while wondering what this new little spirit will be like. I'll miss holding that child for the first time, looking down at their face and thinking, "Of course this is you." I'll miss cuddling a new sleeping baby, their sounds (yes even their cries) their smell, their involuntary smiles. I'll miss watching them grow and learn all about the world around them. I'll miss their faces lighting up when their siblings come into view. I'll miss their tiny little hands wrapped around my finger. Those first few steps, the first giggles, the first time they roll over. There is so many things about the baby stage that I'm going to miss and while it leaves me so sad in ways, I'm also peaceful. I know this is it. I know we're done and I'm very happy to have the family I have. I just can't believe we got to this point so quickly. In the middle of all the chaos, the craziness, the laughter, the tears, and the mess, my little family has decided to continue growing up. I'm realizing just how quickly all this craziness will be gone and I hope to live in the moment and not the past and not live solely for the future.

And of course you have to stand and walk on the bed. Man he's getting so big.

Back to the big boy and his big boy bed. Though Adam was 10 days shy of 16 months old and our youngest to transition into a toddler bed, he has done pretty well. He loves the new bed and loves that he can get in and out of it whenever he wants. He does fairly well at night, only on occasion having to get in trouble a few times and get put back to bed. He's such a good kid and surprisingly the 2 boys do very well in their room, in their toddler beds. So here's to my little baby whose becoming a little boy.

Christmas Lights and Kurt Bestor

2012-01-19T20:51:00.002-07:00

Hannah and Adam enjoying the Christmas lights.

The Gallivan Center, which is right next door to Kenny's office, had a Christmas tree lighting ceremony the day after Thanksgiving. We decided it would be the perfect way to kick off the holiday season for our family. We called Kenny's sister's to see if they wanted to join us. The only ones who were able to come were April and JJ and we were so happy to have them along. We met at the Gallivan Center and waited patiently for the lights to turn on. Either they were slow or we got the wrong time, but it seemed to take a lot longer for those Christmas lights to come on than I was expecting. It was totally worth the wait though. When the lights came on they made the area so beautiful and brought in such a great Christmas spirit.

This is the best picture we got of Dan the entire night. He's just not much for pictures.

We stayed around for awhile and spent some time watching Kurt Bestor perform Christmas songs with a local kids choir. I was enjoying the Christmas spirit, but the kids were getting a little antsy, so we decided to wander over to the grassy area and let the kids run around. It was one of those magical moments in life. Hearing Kurt Bestor play Christmas songs on the piano while I watched my kids run, play and giggle beneath thousands of Christmas lights. It's memories like those that I live for.

Gracie running around under the Christmas lights.

Adam climbing on a chair. This boy loves to climb things.

Playing tag. Do you think he caught her?

After the kids got too hungry to play anymore we headed over to Trax. We rode the train to the temple stop and before going on temple grounds to see the lights, we made a stop at McDonald's for some dinner. After dinner we made a quick tour of the temple lights. I love the temple grounds at Christmas time, but I must admit the night the lights come on is not the night to bring 6 small kids along with another family that has 4 small kids, to see the lights. We made our trip short because the temperature was getting colder, the kids were getting more tired and we were tired of corralling them. It was beautiful though, and I'm glad we went. It was a wonderful night and the best way to begin the Christmas season.

Most of the kids waiting for the train.

The Nielsen family at the temple lights.

Thanksgiving

2012-01-19T19:43:00.001-07:00

All the kids making turkey's.

We had another low key Thanksgiving this year. It seems as though we're getting good at those low key events. My family was celebrating the holiday in California with my Aunt and Uncle and their kids and my in-laws were in Denver with my brother-in-law's family, so we were on our own. It was nice to spend a quite day at home. I miss the family get together's that Thanksgiving always brought me as a child, but I also enjoy the simplicity.

We started our Thanksgiving day out by making our cookie turkeys from last year. The kids enjoyed making a huge mess and making all sorts of crazy turkey concoctions. It was a lot of fun and I'm pretty sure we now have a Thanksgiving tradition. Not much happened the rest of the day. We played around and then had a simple Thanksgiving dinner. Kenny doesn't like turkey and I'm fine with that so ham it was again this year. I didn't cook as much as I did last year because we never eat it all. I did freak out over the sweet potatoes and Kenny had to send me to timeout, but other than that it was a great day.

The boys hard at work.

Little girls taking time out of turkey making to smile for a picture.

Adam didn't care much for the turkey's, but he loved the cookies.

One of Gracie's turkey's

Hannah proudly showing off her turkey.

Sarah's turkey.

Picture of the Day

2012-01-19T18:39:00.002-07:00

Kenny's decided to do a Picture of the Day folder on Facebook in order to practice his photography skills. We've been so busy lately that it's been more of a "Picture of the Whenever I Get the Time" folder. It's been fun even if he hasn't worked on it as much as he would like. Back in November we got our first and pretty much only snowfall of the season. It wasn't much snow, but it made for some great pictures while that beautiful white stuff was falling out of the sky. Kenny and I headed out to the deck and he practiced some techniques with his umbrella's. I think the pictures turned out great. I got some comments about the above one and how it looks like I'm in outer space and Mary Poppins like it looks. Whatever it is, I think they're pretty cool.

Settling In

2011-12-06T21:33:00.001-07:00

We moved into our new house on November 3rd. It took us a few days to get all our stuff out of storage, but it sure is nice to be in our own place again. Kenny started working as a technical trainer for an attorney's office downtown and though it's not what he ultimately wants to be doing, it's a job and a step in the right direction. We're enjoying settling in and getting back to a normal life. It's been so long that it's taking a little getting used to.

The kids have all enjoyed their new rooms and seeing all their old toys again. Bringing out all their toys was like an early Christmas present. We're so grateful to Uncle JJ and Aunt April who let us stay with them, but is so nice to be in our own place again.

Adam enjoying the little girls new bedroom complete with toys he probably does remember and a brand new bunk bed to climb on.

Dan's ready for bed. Too bad he's a little big for the doll playpen.

Gracie's doing something to make Dan laugh. I love watching my kids playing happily together.

Peek a boo! Hannah loves her new bunk bed.

Halloween

2011-12-04T19:57:00.001-07:00

I'll be honest, Halloween was a total flop this year. I feel horrible about it, but there's no way around it. We didn't move into our new house until November 2nd so when Halloween came we were still in April and JJ's unfinished basement. It didn't provide much opportunity for me to make costumes for the kids, nor did I have very much time to do so. We had no decorations to put up and no real ability to do any Halloween things before the holiday came. We had no trick or treaters come to our house, because we had no house. We had no friends to hangout with and have Halloween party's with. We had no ward, so no Trunk or Treating. And the hardest thing for the kids was no Spooktacular, the Halloween party Rimrock Elementary puts on every year. I felt horrible for the kids. Halloween is, besides Christmas, my favorite holiday of the year. It really was sad to see it come and go and not have done really anything. I guess I'll have to do a much better job next year.

Ben being a bat at the school parade (does the costume look familiar?)

I made Sarah's Vampire costume. It looked terrible and I felt so bad. Better job next year, right!

We were able to do a few thing for Halloween, even though we missed out on so many of the things we normally do. The school had a parade on Friday and the kids walked the halls showing off their costumes. Kenny's work had a Trick of Treat party that afternoon and the kids got to wear their costumes and go trick or treating to all the offices in his company. They did really well on their candy stash. Lawyers sure know how to hand out candy.

I took the kids to Logan on Saturday and went to a Halloween party at my Aunt Cindy's. We were joined by my cousin Kristin and her boys Braden (7) Will (3) Charlie (1). The kids had fun playing Halloween games, listening to Halloween stories, and eating brains and things like that. It was a lot of fun and we were very grateful for the invitation.

Trick or Treating

We came back to Salt Lake on Monday afternoon (the kids had no school on Monday) and we did some trick or treating around Aunt April's neighborhood with our cousins. The kids liked that and even though they didn't know anyone in the neighborhood, it was still fun to go with cousins. One of the neighbors even had a hay wagon they hooked up to a 4-wheeler and were pulling kids around the neighborhood on. It wasn't the greatest Halloween ever, but it wasn't the worst either.

(Note: I did really poorly on taking pictures of the kids this year. Sarah was a vampire, Ben was the same bat he was last year, Hannah was Rapunzel/a Queen (whichever she wanted to be a the moment), Gracie was the witch Hannah was 2 years ago, and both Dan and Adam were firemen.)

Sleeping Boy

2011-12-04T19:51:00.001-07:00

There's not much cuter in this world than a sleeping baby.

Pumpkin Cake Anyone

2011-12-04T19:05:00.001-07:00

Because we were at my parents house I opted not to make a cake for Gracie this year (well, that and because all my cake decorating things were still in storage.) So, in honor of the Halloween season, we got Gracie a cute little pumpkin cake. She loved it which made me very happy.

Now that's the face of a kid who likes her cake.

Blowing out all 4 candles.

Ben liked Gracie's new airplanes so much he couldn't put them down to eat his piece of cake.

Gracie's began eating her piece of cake with one of the little tiny spoons that came with the cake.

She must have decide it was too slow so she went for a faster method.

Hannah and Dan both enjoyed the cake.

Sarah liked it too.

Adam really, really liked the cake. Is he eating that plate!?!

This is what Adam looks like after eating his cake. (Luckily he left the plate intact.)

Gracie Turns 4

2011-12-04T18:48:00.001-07:00

Gracie had a birthday back in October, the 19th to be exact. I know, it was so long ago, we've all but forgotten it even happened. That's what happens when Mommy doesn't blog for a few months. Anyway, Kenny was out of town, with work, for Gracie's birthday so we decided to wait until the weekend to celebrate. We just happened to be in Logan at my parents house so they and my Aunt Cindy and Uncle Rick were able to get in on the fun. I asked Gracie what she wanted for her birthday and she told me she wanted her own Rapunzel doll (both Hannah and Sarah have one), a zombie (remember this was Halloween time), and a rocket that goes "vvvvvrrrrrrooooooooommmmm" (with her hand zooming up in the air.) What a funny girl. Instead of all that she got the Tangled movie, some airplanes, a Tinkerbell book, and a Cinderella Barbie with a dress. She also got a Strawberry Shortcake doll from Aunt Cindy and Uncle Rick, and a Play-dough set from Grandma and Grandpa. It was a good birthday for her.

Dan saw us wrapping "Tangled and he REALLY wanted it. He didn't understand that we had to wait for Gracie to open it so he cried and cried until it was open and he could hold it. Gracie was nice to let him help her unwrap it.

A Tinkerbell Tag book.

Opening her Strawberry Shortcake doll. I love her face in this picture.

Playing with Ben and her new airplane while waiting for cake.

The Mayan

2011-11-28T13:08:00.001-07:00

After taking pictures of the kids we had to head to the Draper area to look at a house. We had a few hours before we had to be there so we decided to treat the kids to a fun dinner as a thank you for doing so well with pictures, and as a birthday dinner for Gracie. Kenny was leaving on Monday morning to spend a week in Portland training for his new job and he was going to miss Gracie's birthday. We decided having a birthday dinner before he left would be a lot of fun.

At the Mayan after dinner.

We took the kids to the Mayan downtown and had front row seats for the water diving show. The kids had a blast and they even brought out ice cream with a huge candle for Gracie.The kids loved the shows and begged us to stay and watch more of them, but we had to go see the house.

Blowing out her HUGE candle.

Hannah and Ben having some of Gracie's ice cream.

The 4 big kids sharing what's left of the ice cream.

It turns out it was a good thing we went when we did. A few weeks later the Mayan suddenly closed it's doors without telling anyone, including it's employees. I guess that's the last time we go there.

Before we left we took some time to play on the snakes out front.

All 6 kids playing on the snake.

Kids Annual Pictures 2011

2011-11-28T12:49:00.001-07:00

We were WAY late getting the kids pictures taken this year. With Kenny working out of state this summer, the rest of us moving and then being homeless for too many months, we just didn't get it done. After a few try's in the city we finally decided to head up to the mountains for some fall shots. It took a few outings, but finally on October 15th everything fell into place and we got some great shots of the kids.

Sarah Kate Age 9

Ben James Age 7

Hannah Beth Age 5

Gracie Grace Age 3 (Almost 4)

Dan Dan Age 2

Adam Age 1

Rocky Mouth Waterfall

2011-11-22T16:27:00.001-07:00

Kenny took this picture at the bottom of Rocky Mountain Waterfall.

Fall was beautiful this year and we took all the opportunities we could to enjoy the weather and our new home. On September 24th we took the kids for a hike to Rocky Mouth Waterfall. It's a small waterfall just above Draper. The hike was short and perfect for our little kids. When we got there we let the kids climb around on the rocks and explore. It was a great outing and something we'll have to do more often.

The big kids up on the rocks near the waterfall.

Daddy took Dan up to see the waterfall.

Adam had fun playing in and trying to drink the water. Don't worry, we didn't let him drink it.

The big kids and the waterfall.

Sisters

2011-11-22T16:21:00.001-07:00

I love my family! I love the way the kids are spread out. They each have a built in friend who is just perfect for them, but they also get along with everyone else. Kenny got some new lighting equipment and wanted to take some pictures of the kids for practice. Hannah and Gracie were willing to be his subjects and even though they were in dress-up clothes and had messy hair, I love the pictures he took. They show the bond these two girls have.

Cute Sisters!

Silly Sisters!

Serious(ish) Sisters!

Saying Goodbye To An Amazing Man

2011-11-22T15:11:00.001-07:00

I have had the privileged over the past 12 1/2 years to belong to an amazing family who have not only inspired me to be a better person, but have welcomed me with open arms and made me feel loved. At the head of this great family is a man that is like no other. To say he's amazing is not enough. I am so honored to have know him and I feel blessed to be called his family. This man would be Kenny's grandpa, James Skiffington Holderness.

Grandpa with the little girls back in May of 2010.

Grandpa Holderness has been declining in health the last few years, but this April he took a turn for the worst. He was diagnosed with congenital heart failure and was given a few weeks to 6 months to live. We were all so happy when he was able to attend the Holderness reunion back in July and everyone present knew it was special because it was the last one with Grandpa there.

On my way back from picking huckleberries I stopped for gas in Brigham City. I checked my e-mail on my phone and discovered an e-mail from Grandma Holderness. It told of Grandpa's quick decline and unresponsiveness. There were no details just a quick message to let the family know he could go at anytime. I immediately called Kenny, who was still in Grace, and found out none of them had heard anything. Helen and her sister Robin, who was spending the night in Grace, called family in Boise and discovered that Grandpa was indeed very ill. He passed away the following morning, with his wife by his side.

Though we knew it was coming and had months to prepare, the shock of losing Grandpa Holderness was enough to bring tears to my eyes. I will miss that man emensely and even as I write this, 2 months later, I am filled with sadness over the loss of such a great man. Grandpa Holderness was one of a kind. He loved his wife and family very much and you could see it every moment you were around him. He was a very patient man who also enjoyed his independence. He loved Jesus Christ and set such a good example of what a true Christian is like. I feel honored to have known him and to have known him before he started declining in health. I will never forget the example he set for those around him and I strive to be a little more like him every day.

Grandpa had two funerals. One was in Boise on September 12 and the other was in Grace on September 13th. He was buried in the lego cemetery in the land that he loved to spend time in. The family got together for a beautiful funeral and a nice luncheon afterwards. It was so nice to see everyone, it just would have been nicer under better circumstances. We'll miss you Grandpa and never forget you.

Taking the coffin to the van.

The family waiting for the burial service.

The casket bearers bringing the casket to the grave sight.

Helen and her mom, Ardelle, at Grandpa's grave sight.

Huckleberries

2011-11-22T14:53:00.001-07:00

Yummy huckleberries all covered in rain!

We spent some time in August and September in Grace at my in-laws. Kenny was there helping an old neighbor from Idaho Falls finish up a potato shed so the kids and I would go up on the weekends to see him. One weekend in late August we decided to head up in the mountains to check on the huckleberries. To our surprise they were not only ripe, but VERY plentiful. We headed down the mountain and called the family to arrange a huckleberry picking day for the next weekend.

Hannah showing off the huckleberries.

The following Saturday, September 5th we headed up with Gary and Helen, Kingston's and Uncle Patrick's family for a fun filled day of huckleberry picking. It was wonderful, relaxing, and productive. I don't think in my 12 or so years of huckleberry picking that I have ever seen that many huckleberries ready to pick. It was so much fun to sit down, look around and see thousands and thousands of huckleberries. The kids all played so nicely together and it allowed Kenny and I to pick for hours. We got so many huckleberries and I'm so excited to make jam and maybe ice cream this year. We had planned on going up with just our family the follow weekend, but that night, on the drive home, we got some terrible news about Kenny's Grandpa Holderness. We were unable to pick huckleberries the next weekend, but even without that extra day, we got more berries then we've ever had. I love huckleberry picking and can't wait for it to come again next year.

The kids headed up the mountain in Grandpa's Truck.

This is why we came.

Headed down after a long day. Sorry, I didn't take any pictures while we were there. I guess we were too busy picking.

First Day of School

2011-11-22T14:40:00.001-07:00

My 3 big kids on the first day of school.

When school started this year we were still in a temporary living situation, not knowing what the future would hold. We were staying with my sister in-law and brother in-law and decided to just put the kids in school there. They went to Foxboro Elementary in Woods Cross and when August 22nd (the first day of school) came the kids were both excited and nervous. They love going to school and were so excited to start again, but they didn't know anyone in the area and were nervous about making friends.

Hannah, who started Kindergarten this year, came home from school the first day with tons of new friends and a report that she loved her teacher Mrs. Lund.

Ben had a rough start because they forgot to put him on the classroom list so we didn't know who his teacher was. He was late getting there the first day, but recovered quickly and had a great rest of the day. He has made a lot of new friends and he really likes his teacher, Mrs. Larsen.

Sarah was so nervous that first day I thought she may not make it. She missed her friends from Idaho Falls a lot, but after a few days she began making friends in her new class. Now she fits right in and loves school, especially her teacher Miss Henrie.

Adam Turns 1

2011-11-22T13:46:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday Adam!

My baby boy is 1. He had a birthday on August 23rd which means my kids are all growing up and getting big. We had a little party for him at April and JJ's house. Adam got a few toys, had some cake, made a mess, and then went to bed. It was perfect for a one year old.

Adam with his new dinosaur toy.

Adam playing with his new toy from Aunt April and Uncle JJ. Thanks guys.

We bought Adam's cake this year. He enjoyed it even if I didn't get to make it.

Adam had a lot of fun eating his cake.

The kids eating cake at Adam's birthday party.

Memory Grove

2011-11-22T13:31:00.001-07:00

Sarah and Dan hanging out on the grass together. Everyday, I feel so blessed that my kids love each other so much.

We took some time this summer to get out and enjoy Salt Lake. On Saturday, August 20th we decided to take the kids into the city and let them see some of the sights. We began at Memory Grove where we played in the stream, on the grass, and anywhere else we could find. Afterwards we headed to temple square. The kids hadn't been there in years so it was fun to walk through and learn some things and see things they didn't remember. We finished the night with rice krispy treats and lemonade. It was a perfect outing.

Adam, being cute!

Sarah and Ben had fun pretending to be gargoyles.

Adams a big fan of being thrown in the air by Daddy.

Pearce Family Reunion

2011-11-22T13:24:00.001-07:00

The Pearce family reunion this year was August 13-16. We camped at Willow Flats campground where we were able to get back to basics. It was so much fun to see everyone, watch the kids play with distant cousins they don't see very often, and camp in such a beautiful area. I have a ton of pictures so I chose to do them in slideshow format. Enjoy.

Rock Climbing Fun

2011-10-26T21:51:00.000-06:00

We made it to Salt Lake and we're spending some time with Kenny's sister in Woods Cross. The kids were pretty bummed about leaving Idaho Falls so we wanted to find some fun things to do in Salt Lake to get them excited about the move. We found a rock climbing gym and got a trial membership. The kids had a blast climbing and watching all the climbers do their thing. Hopefully we'll be able to continue doing fun things down here.

Ben climbing up the big wall. He did an awesome job. Like father, like son.

And he made it to the top.

Adam did well sitting in the wagon watching everyone. He's such a good baby.

Dan trying out mommy's harness. He also did well hanging out and playing with the older kids.

Sarah helping Dan try his hand at climbing.

Gracie's an amazing climber. This girl has no fear. She got 3/4 of the way up the wall and I think she got more bored than scared. I'm so proud of my little daredevil.

Such a good little climber.

Hannah was a little more nervous, which is typical Hannah behavior. We challenged her to go as high as Gracie and it took some serious willpower, but she did it.

She's a good little climber and I'm very proud of her.

Ben soloing it on the little wall. He reminds me of a frog in this picture.

Nice form Ben.

Sarah was very excited to climb and then got on the wall and remembered she's scared of climbing. It took her a while, but she made it to the top and she was very proud of herself. She even said she had fun doing it.

I got to belay Sarah. A little scary, but fun also.

Moving

2011-10-13T21:03:00.002-06:00

Moving is always such a hard thing for me. I grew up in the same house from the time I was 4 until college and marriage. I never expected to move around so much, but there are a lot of things about adult life I didn't expect. :) I have enjoyed every place I've been able to live and while some I was more excited about leaving than others, I have fond memories of each place. Idaho Falls is one of those places I could see myself and my family living in forever. We spent 3 years of our lives there and they were wonderful years. We had our 2 little boys there, met many wonderful friends, and really grew to love the area. I will miss it dearly and always look back at our time spent there with fond memories.

Moving time came the end of July and I was not nearly as prepared as I would have liked to have been. Luckily for my I had a lot of help from many of the women in my ward. On Tuesday I took my kids to the church to be watched by the young women and then I welcomed at least 10 women into my home to help me pack. I was expecting about 2 or 3 and was totally overwhelmed and overjoyed by the 10 or so that showed up. They packed my entire kitchen, my pictures, my living room, and brought everything up from the storage room. I would have been lost without them and I'm forever in their debt.

About an hour after they left my wonderful mother-in-law came to help. She spent the night and the 2 of us were able to get many things done. Sometime you need an outside person to come in and look at the situation and take charge. That's what Helen did. I had no idea what the next move was and I was still fighting the flu so I had no ambition whatsoever. Helen was a huge help and I'm so blessed to have her as my mother-in-law.

Hannah and Dan helping wash the door while grandma snaps picture.

We had to go say bye to Mr. Guymon. He sells cotton candy at the farmers market in town so on Saturday morning we dropped by to let Sarah say bye.

Mr. Guymon gave her a going away present of a jar filled with cotton candy. It was entitled "The BFG's Dream Jar" (The BFG was a book they read in class) and it was filled with cotton candy. The writing on the jar reads: 'If you open this jar, you will dream about a young, brown-haired girl who left a place called Terabithia (the student-chosen nickname for their classroom) and traveled to a new home. She went to a new school, learned new things, and made new friends. Something that wasn't new was her love of learning and her imagination. And those helped her biggest dreams come true.' He was an amazing teacher and I wish all my kids could have had him as a teacher.

After a week that seemed like an eternity and a lot of help from many neighbors and friends, I was finally done putting everything in the garage where we were leaving it all until Kenny was able to get time off to help load the truck. I was exhausted and very ready to be done with the whole process.

I had the 4 oldest kids sleeping in Ben and Sarah's room so I could clean out the little girls room. We'll all miss this great big room.

The following week we left the kids in Grace with grandma and grandpa and Kenny and I headed to Idaho Falls to load the truck. We planned on getting it done on Saturday, but we quickly realized it was going to take a lot longer to load than we originally planned. We loaded the truck the entire day Saturday and then late that afternoon we watched the storm clouds roll in. We crammed everything back in the garage just in time for the rain to come crashing down. Realizing that the rain wasn't likely to end anytime soon we decided to call it a day and we headed to a movie. It was a treat we weren't planning on, but we don't get out much together, just the 2 of us, so it was extremely nice. We spent the night on our mattress in the back of the U-haul truck, and woke up the next morning ready for another day of packing. The day started fine until Kenny started feeling sick. Turns out he had the flu I had been fighting for over a week. He did a great job helping load the truck while feeling so yucky and just as evening approached we were ready to head out of town.

A few of the things we'll miss about Idaho Falls:

Our friends and neighbors and our kids friends.

Our beautiful house that was perfect for our family.

The windmills. Whenever I saw them I knew I was close to home. I love those windmills.

The view out the back of the house. I loved having horses in the backyard and the view of the hills and again, those windmills.

The falls themselves. We had so many fun outing to visit the falls.

The close proximity to Yellowstone and other beautiful areas.

Rimrock Elementary and all it's wonderful teachers. It's going to be hard for any school to be as wonderful as Rimrock was. It's so hard to leave a great school.

The small town feel.

Speech and the wonderful people the kids worked with.

Surprise Going Away Party

2011-10-12T22:01:00.001-06:00

I got a call from a good friend of mine two weeks before we moved from Idaho Falls. She said her daughter, Clarissa, and a neighbor girl, Carol, wanted to throw Sarah a going away party. I was so excited and I knew Sarah would absolutely love it. We chose the date of Tuesday, July 26th and I was told make sure it was a surprise. We told Sarah she was going to have a play date with Clarissa, but she was not expecting the surprise that was waiting for her when she got there.

SURPRISE!!!!!

Yeah! She was surprised!

Sarah has a scrapbook she's making of all of her Idaho Falls friends and I told her I'd take a picture of her and Clarissa before she played. It was a handy excuse to take the camera and get some pictures of the event. Sarah was extremely surprised and excited for the party.

They each got masks and Sarah got a crown. What nice girls!

All the girls who were there to surprise Sarah (and AJ, of course.)

After the initial surprise the girls had a little popcorn and we took pictures of Sarah with each of her friends for her scrapbook.

Shaylee came late so we had to get one more picture of all the girls.

Silly picture time!

Clarissa, one of my favorite little girls and such a good example to Sarah. Clarissa threw the party and we're so grateful to have known her and her family.

Carol, another one of my favorite girls and a fellow party thrower. I'm so grateful Sarah has had great friends like Carol to surround herself with.

Carina, Sarah's longest Idaho Falls friend and our neighbor.

Destiny, our neighbor across the street who Sarah plays with often in the summer.

Shaylee, a friend from school and church.

Teja, a great friend from the ward. I wish these girls had been able to play together a little more.

Whitney, Sarah's best friend from Mr. Guymon's class. We'll sure miss Whitney.

Gabriela, Sarah's friend in our neighborhood who was out of town for the party.

After pictures it was time for dancing. What little girl doesn't love to dance? I snapped a few pictures and then decided to allow Sarah some time with her friends (and I needed to get home to rescue grandma from the other 5 kids.) Sarah said she had a wonderful time and was so surprised. I'm so grateful that she has been able to have so many wonderful friends. Their influence on her has been so fun to watch and I hope that wherever we go she'll be able to find friends as wonderful as this group of girls.

Dancing time.

Oh, to be a kid again.

Speech

2011-10-11T20:55:00.000-06:00

There are many things about Idaho Falls that we will miss and one of those things is the Speech and Language Clinic and the wonderful speech therapists our kids were able to work with. Hannah has spent over a year working with Jamie and we have been so pleased with the progress she has made. Jamie is amazing and Hannah has responded to her so well. She looks forward to every Tuesday when she gets to go see Jamie and do crafts. We're so grateful to Jamie for all she's taught Hannah and all she's taught us as well.

Hannah and Jamie on the last day of speech.

About a year ago we noticed Daniel was showing signs of having the same speech issues that Hannah has. We jumped on it really quick and got him evaluated and qualified for speech. Gracie, who has picked up a lot of Hannah's speech, was also evaluated and she qualified to take speech. They were both given Amber as their speech therapist. I remembered Amber from a few years back when Hannah original speech therapist had a baby and I was very excited for the kids to see her. Amber was wonderful and both kid's speech grew by leaps and bounds while seeing her. Dan started saying sounds and then words and Gracie worked hard on kicking her habit of talking like Hannah. We will miss Amber and all that she taught the kids.

Daniel and Gracie with their speech therapist Amber.

Shoshone Falls

2011-10-11T14:21:00.000-06:00

Shoshone Falls, Twin Falls Idaho

On our way home from the Boise reunion we decided to make a short stop in Twin Falls. There are beautiful falls there called Shoshone Falls that Gary (my father-in-law) used to visit often with his father when he was a boy. I'd never been there and was excited for the chance to stop with family and extend the reunion just a little.

Our family in front of the falls.

Mindy's family in front of the falls.

Grandpa telling Sarah stories about when he used to come to the falls with his dad.

After looking at the falls, Grandpa took us to a stream with a small waterfall of it's own. The kids had a lot of fun splashing in the stream.

Hannah hanging out by the small waterfall.

Lilly and Landon headed to the waterfall.

Adam loved the water and just had to get in, even if it was kind of cold.

Adam in his happy place, the water.

Holderness Family Reunion

2011-10-11T14:09:00.001-06:00

Back in July we were able to attend the Holderness Family reunion in Boise. We debated for a long time whether or not to attend this year, due to our upcoming move and the many unknowns in our life. However, with Kenny's grandpa's health declining we knew it was the last reunion with him, so we decided it was an important trip and we needed to go. I headed out on Friday morning and met a bunch of the family at Roaring Springs water park. At first I thought I was crazy for taking all 6 kids by myself, but there proved to be plenty of willing hands to help me and we all had a great time. I was even able to get away from the little ones a few times and take the oldest 3 on a few water slides. It was a great day that would have been better only if Daddy had been able to join us.

The Lazy River. What fun!

My cute little baby LOVES the water.

I didn't see Ben most of the time we were there. He was off riding water slides with cousins and having a blast the entire time.

Grandma helping Gracie snap a picture.

Gracie's turn to smile.

Hannah and her cousin Savannah.

Doesn't she look like she had a lot of fun?

Waiting in line for lunch with DanDan.

Hanging out with the little boys and Grandma.

Saturday brought a lot of family time, a magician, and Daddy. We began the day by hanging out at the hotel. It's amazing how cool it can be for kids to hang out in a hotel, especially when the hotel is full of cousins. At noon we headed downstairs to see the magician. The kids had a blast watching him set up and they could hardly wait for the show to begin. The magician didn't disappoint and Hannah, Ben, and Sarah were even chosen to be part of the show. Towards the end of the show the kids looked over and saw Daddy sitting there watching them. He had arrived from Washington and we were all so happy to see him.

The kids watching the magic show.

Hannah's turn to be a volunteer. She was a little embarrassed and a little confused by the magician.

Hannah got to ride a magic carpet and it seemed as though the carpet was floating in mid air. Of course she couldn't see it and was not terribly impressed but the other cousins in the audience were.

Ben and Sarah got to roll the big dice for one of the magic tricks.

Dan was happy to see Daddy and enjoyed wearing his sunglasses.

After the magic show the magician made balloon creations for all the kids. They each got to choose what they wanted and there was a wide variety of creations in the room when everything was said and done.

Hannah was one of the first to get a balloon and she chose a ladybug. Her balloon popped within a few minutes, but the magician was nice enough to make her another one. This time she tied it on her wrist so it wouldn't break again.

Dan got a turtle and he carried it around everywhere with him until it finally popped that night.

Gracie got a heart hat and had to have pictures with her cousins who also had balloon hats.

Gracie and her favorite cousin Gabbi with their balloon hats.

After the magic show we had some lunch and then hung out with Daddy. We ran a few errands and then headed over to Kenny's Uncle Kevin's house for a family dinner. It was a lot of fun to hang out with family and to watch our kids play with cousins that they don't get to see very often. Family time is the best part about reunions. After the dinner it was back to the hotel for some bed jumping fun and then sleeping time.

Playing with cousins at Uncle Kevin's.

My little boys sharing a bed and having a bottle. These boys sure love each other.

Hannah jumping from one bed to the other.

Gracie wasn't brave enough to jump the gap between the beds so she improvised.

The girls got really creative on finding ways to get from one bed to the other, a human bridge.

Sunday morning we packed up the room and headed back to Uncle Kevin's for testimony meeting. Kenny has an amazing family and it is always so wonderful to hear their amazing testimonies.

The entire clan after dinner on Saturday night. What an amazing group of people.

Grandma Holderness has always paired off the kids and taken pictures. These are the pictures our family was in.

Mom and Dad's group (the oldest cousin group.)

Sarah's group with Jonathon, Devin, Missi, and Alex

Ben's group with Savannah and Alli

Hannah's group with Ella, Cadence, Kieran, and Samantha

Gracie's group with Zack, Lincoln, Michael, and Jaden

Dan's group with Ava, Carlie, and Mable

Adam's group with Bailey, Cooper, and Kody

After testimony meeting we were able to go back to Grandma and Grandpa Holderness' house and have the kids be welcomed into the Silver Dollar Club. It's a club Grandpa had made up for all the great grand kids. They each got a silver dollar, the oldest child in each family got a dollar Grandpa had saved from his parents. It was such a nice thing for them to do for each of their great grand kids. I just feel bad I didn't have my camera for pictures. I'll have to get them from my in-laws. :)

Grandpa and Grandma Holderness. They have built an amazing legacy.

Virginia Weather

2011-09-09T00:30:00.000-06:00

We had some crazy rainstorms in July. They were uncharacteristic of the west, but they were so awesome. They totally reminded me of the rainstorms we had in Virginia. I had to snap pictures is was so cool.

This storm started out as just rain, a lot of rain.

Then it turned to hail.

I love this shot of the hail in the tree.

And, of course, the best storms end with a rainbow. I'm so going to miss this view.

The Zoo For The Last Time

2011-09-08T23:26:00.000-06:00

I know I've said this before, but I absolutely LOVE the Idaho Falls zoo. It's not very large, but I think it's a great size, actually big for a small town zoo. I am really going to miss it.

After visiting the Potato Museum with Cami and her girls we headed back to the house to visit and catch up. After about an 30 minutes at the house we decided to leave the kids in the watchful hands of Samantha and Sarah and we headed to Cafe Rio for lunch. Yummy! It was so nice to go out without kids. Thanks Cami.

When we got back the kids were restless and wanted to go do something. We decided to take them to the zoo. It was a ton of fun. The weather was beautiful, there were a number of baby animals, and the kids had friends to hang out with. It was the perfect outing.

These pelicans were awesome. They kept trying to eat things out of people's hands, mainly cell phones, sunglasses, and the kids water bottles.

The kids were so excited to see the peacock in all his glory.

Gracie just had to say hi to him.

Love this picture of a baby llama. (Stole it from Cami's blog.)

Petting a big llama.

Ben took a little time to play on the mini playground.

Adam enjoying a little time with the goats even though he couldn't go in.

We let the kids go in the goat cage to pet them. They were fine at first, but then some of the goats decided to play.

OK maybe they were having a little bit of a fight.

I've seen goats do that on TV, but never in person. We watched for a little bit and then decided it was probably best to get the kids out.

Of course we had to have a picture on the tiger. Too bad Cami's oldest, Darin, was at scout camp and couldn't make it. Ben sure missed him.

Having a drink in the lions mouth is fun, but it's even better 3 at a time (with 1 on top.)

When it was time to see the baby zebra, Gracie wanted a better look, one without the fence in the way.

Hannah and Julia had to get in on the fun.

If you look close you can see the cute baby swans.

The zoo was a lot of fun and we ended the day with a trip to McDonald's to eat and play in the play area. It was so much fun to see Cami and her girls. I love the time we get to spend with them. Thanks for coming up.

Potato Museum, Um Yes Please

2011-09-08T22:30:00.004-06:00

So, my great friend Cami decided to come and visit me again in July. She has been so wonderful to me and is always willing to go on trips up to Idaho Falls to see and play with me. For the longest time we've talked about going to the Potato Museum in Blackfoot, so, knowing it was our last outing in Idaho Falls before I moved, we decided to go for it. I met her in Blackfoot on the 14th for a fun filled trip down potato lane.

All the kids in hanging out at the sign in front of the museum.

As cool as the potato museum sounds to everyone, I must admit I didn't think there'd be many people lined up to learn about potatoes in the middle of July. To my surprise when we drove up there were 2 senior citizen tour buses already in the museum enjoying everything potato. It was a little crowded, but we didn't mind too much. Besides all the old ladies loved looking at and commenting about my cute little boys. I'll take that any day.

The museum was small which was perfect for the kids, less boredom. It featured many wonderful potato items from the largest potato chip in the world, to old farm equipment, to a large collection of Mr. Potato Heads. What more could you want in a potato museum.

Julia, Cami's daughter, looking at the worlds largest potato chip. Yuck, I mean Yummy! (I didn't get a picture of this with my camera so I stole this one from Cami's blog. Thanks Cami.)

Gracie ready to sort potatoes a long time ago. Show us how it's done Gracie!

Ben and Hannah smiling by some kind of old farm equipment.

Ben wanted a picture of himself sitting on the Spudnik. I'm not sure he was suppose to be up there, but there were no signs saying not to, so we went for it. . . quickly.

Then, of course, Gracie had to have a turn.

Dan wanted a turn too, but he wasn't too sure about it once he got up there.

Sarah and Samantha being willing to let me take their picture, well kind of willing.

Gracie checking out the Mr. Potato Head collection.

After seeing all that was inside, we let the kids go play on the old train car next to the museum. They had a blast climbing all over the thing and pretending to drive it. Ohh to be a kid again.

Most of the kids 'posing' for a picture on the train car.

Even Dan had fun climbing on the train.

Hannah having fun on the train.

Beating The Heat

2011-09-07T23:10:00.000-06:00

This is one happy baby.

There was something wrong with our furnace/AC in our house so for the last part of the winter and we had no heat and the we had no AC in the summer. For the most part it wasn't a problem. In the winter the kids had little heaters they used in their rooms downstairs and the fireplace still worked upstairs. In the summer it took awhile for the heat to set in. The first part of July it started getting HOT. There were days the temperature in the house would reach 91 and we were all roasting (even the downstairs didn't cool us down.) Dan and Adam's room was in the front of the house so they would get the afternoon heat. I felt so bad for them. We had one fan in the house and the boys quickly learned to love the fan, especially Adam.

He LOVED sitting in front of the fan. What a cutie!

Fireworks

2011-09-07T22:33:00.000-06:00

We did the fireworks quickly this time and I must say, with a bunch of little kids in tow, it was the perfect way to see them. We arrived down at the Greenway just before dark, had a little birthday cake thingy for Dan, and then watched the fireworks. We were able to get a pretty good seat and the kids were so excited. Too bad the fireworks lasted too long. I loved it, but about 3/4 of the way into them all the kids were bored and wanted to go home. Really! My kids are so weird. I guess I'll have to work on that.

Gracie enjoying the show.

Fireworks! Pretty!

Sarah and I watching the fireworks. Adam enjoyed them as long as someone was holding him.

Because the kids weren't too interested in watching the fireworks, we decided to pack up and be ready to leave just at the end. It's amazing the difference it made. We had very little traffic problems and were able to get home in record time. All was going so well until about 5 minutes from the house when Kenny realized he no longer had his phone. He was sure he had it at the fireworks so, he dropped us off at the house and I put the kids to bed while he went back to look for it. Amazingly enough he found the phone, unharmed, right where we had been sitting. It must have fallen out of his pocket or something. We were so happy to have it back and though the kids claimed boredom during the fireworks show, they all loved it and want to go next year.

Dan's (Other) Cake

2011-09-07T01:07:00.001-06:00

The cake from Walmart. Had a rough ride to the fireworks. :)

Because it was the 4th of July when we celebrated Dan's birthday, we decided to take his cake to the fireworks. Life's been so crazy lately with Kenny being gone and the uncertainty of everything that I just decided this year to forgo making the cake and go ahead and buy one at the store. It was a hard decision, I don't know why I care so much about the cake, but I think it was best for me (and everyone else.)

We didn't want to sit and wait for the fireworks forever because we knew the kids wouldn't enjoy that so we purposely went late to the fireworks. We still managed to get a good seat, but it didn't leave us much time for Dan's cake. We sang to him, he blew out the candles, and everyone took about 3 bites before the fireworks began. It turned out to be just enough time and a lot of fun for the birthday boy.

Dan couldn't wait to blow out the candles so he started picking at the frosting with his fingers.

Blowing out his 2 candles.

Gracie enjoying her cake bites.

Cute little Hannah eating cake.

A great picture of Sarah enjoying her cake. :) I think I caught her off guard.

Presents For Dan (Finally)

2011-09-07T00:37:00.000-06:00

We finally got around to having Dan's party on July 4th. Kenny got home from Washington on the 1st, but Dan wasn't feeling really well so we decided to wait on his party. Finally, on the 4th, we decided to have the party whether he has feeling good or not. As you can see in the pictures, he wasn't feeling the best, but hopefully he enjoyed it anyway.

Dan with his gifts. We're such bad parents this year, we didn't even bother to wrap them. Sorry Dan!

Daddy helping Dan open his tunnel.

Dan liking his tunnel, but not quite sure what to do with it.

Adam showing Dan how to use the tunnel.

Now he gets it and enjoys it.

Dan was very interested in his water toy until Ben wanted to be "helpful" and squirted Dan with the ball.

This is what Dan thought of that. Poor kid!

Adam (on the other hand) LOVED the new toy. Then again, he LOVES water of any kind.

Daddy trying to help Dan learn to love is toy.

That wasn't too successful. He really just wanted to play in his tunnel.

The other kids, on the other hand, loved the new toy.

Dan and Gracie enjoying some Chicken in a Bisket while the other kids played with the water ball.

I'm happy to report that after Dan got some sleep and became less grumpy he actually did enjoy his water ball. The tunnel has been a huge hit and he even plays with his cars. So even though the opening of the presents didn't go so well, they were good choices for him. Man I love this little guy.

Our Own Airshow

2011-08-29T14:07:00.003-06:00

On the 27th of June my kids were acting especially tired so I decided an early bedtime of 8:30 was in order for that day. So I had the kids come inside around 8:00 and we started getting them ready for bed. Just as I was about to send them downstairs, we heard a plane over our house. On Dan's birthday, the 23rd, we'd had a crop duster flying over the field behind our house and it sounded as though he was back to finish the job. As much as I wanted the kids in bed, I knew they wanted to go see the plane, so I allowed them outside in the PJ's to chase after the plane as it flew over our house over and over.

Ben and Gracie chasing after the plane.

Gracie and Hannah

Adam was in bed asleep, but Dan was terrified of the plane. It flew really low sometimes and the noise scared him. He'd grab on to me and bury his head in my shoulder. Sarah ended up taking him in the house because it was so scared. I guess it's good he was so young last year when we went to see the Blue Angels practice. The kids didn't end up getting in bed until 9:30, but that's OK. They (minus Dan) had fun and really, how often do you get your own 'air show' (as Ben called it) right in your backyard.

Look Who's 2

2011-08-24T13:31:00.007-06:00

DanDan with his cake.

Dan's birthday was on a Thursday this year. That meant Daddy was still in Washington and we didn't want to have a party without him. At the same time we didn't want to just ignore that Dan was now 2, so I decided to make a cake and allow him to open Grandma and Grandpa's birthday present. I was stressed, you know single parenting 6 kids, and I had asked the older kids to take Dan outside while I put frosting on his cake. Less than 2 minutes later they all came in asking (more like begging) to go play with friends. I then had a bad mommy moment. After they wouldn't listen, I decided to let them go to their friends. Sarah was the only one who stayed to help me with Dan. Therefore, Sarah was the only one who was able to come to Dan's little party (hence the bad mommy moment.)

When I was done frosting and writing on Dan's cake (it looked really bad, but he didn't seem to mind) I had Sarah and Dan come in. We sang to Dan, which he really liked and then he got to blow out his 1 candle (that's all I had.) It was REALLY lame, but he was so happy and really, isn't that what birthdays are about. After he blew out candles it was time to eat the cake.

Dan's really badly decorated cake.

Blowing out his candle.

I cut up a little piece of cake for Dan and Sarah and immediately Dan put his face right in the cake. It was so quick I didn't even have time to grab the camera. I guess he's learned a little about birthdays from his older siblings. Sarah, who is normally too old to put her face in the cake anymore, followed Dan's lead after he told her to. She really is a good big sister.

I didn't get a picture of his putting his face in the cake, but you can see the cake all over his face.

Sarah really went for it.

Dan and Sarah had a lot of fun and I think Dan really enjoyed the attention he got from us. The three other kids were very disappointed when they got home that evening and discovered they had missed the cake. I told them that because they weren't willing to do what they were told and help me with Dan, they weren't allowed to the party. Ben was really mad and both Hannah and Gracie cried, but after talking to them for awhile they understood why they didn't get cake. Surprisingly after that the kids were much better when it came to playing with friends.

Sarah with a clean face and a cute smile.

Dan enjoying his cake. (Notice Gracie in the background, she was so sad she didn't get cake.)

A Little About My 2 Year Old

2011-07-08T22:23:00.005-06:00

One of my favorite pictures of one of my favorite little boys. Happy Birthday Monkey Man!

My little man turned 2 on June 23rd. I can't believe how fast these two years have gone. In so many ways Dan has always seemed older than he is. He was born with a ton of hair, which has always made him look older than he is. He's definitely our most serious kid and this has also made him seem older. Then, of course, he has a little brother 13 months younger than him and having another baby so close, sadly, made it so Dan had to grow up quicker than was fair and quicker than Kenny and I would have liked. I guess, considering his serious personality, of all the kids, he was the best one to have to grow up quickly. (Another sign Heavenly Father knows what he's doing.) Even with all that, I still can't believe it's been 2 years since I first held him in my arms at the hospital. I remember that day and that moment vividly. He was born with a figure 8 knot in his umbilical cord and he was sooooo purple when he was born. Our doctor told us he'd heard of 13 births with figure 8 knots and of those 13 births only about babies 3 lived. Dan is our miracle baby and, still, 2 years later, I look at him and count my blessings that he lived through delivery and is such a healthy little boy.

Our purple faced little boy, after he got some color back to his face.

Dan is unlike any of my other kids in so many ways and, of course, like them in many ways. I've always thought he was very intelligent (what parent doesn't think that of their kids?) but he's been the slowest to do just about everything. He was the slowest to sit up, crawl, and walk (minus Sarah, but she was just to chicken to walk so that doesn't count.) His language has been delayed like Hannah's so he's been slow to talk. Thanks to speech and the wonderful Leap Frog video "Letter Factory" he has improved immensely in his speech, but he's still behind where he should be for his age. However, despite his language delays, his intelligence seems above where it should be. He always been very good at following directions, way before he should have been able to, he picks up on things quickly and when I try to teach him something he seems to get it and remember it quick. I'm excited to see what this little boy has to offer in the years to come.

Despite his seriousness, he's also such a goofball. As a baby I always felt bad taking him places because women would come up to us and make faces and talk to him trying to get him to smile and he would just sit there with his serious face. We could get him to smile and laugh, but it took some work and it was always worth it. The older he's gotten the more lively he's gotten. He runs around making the goofy noises that all toddlers make, he loves to play games with the older kids, especially Ben. I love watching those two boys running around the house, Ben chasing Dan and both of them giggling to the point that Dan falls over. It's so cute to watch.

Dan's our tantrum kid. All the kids threw tantrums, but not like Dan. I don't know if the other kids just didn't like to throw tantrums or learned quickly that they didn't solve anything, but all of them stopped the tantrums, for the most part, after a few months. Dan, well, he always throws tantrums. If he doesn't get his way he'll throw something or hit something or throw himself on the floor. I'll admit, it's not my favorite thing about him. I often wonder if because of his language delay, he feels he has no other way of releasing his anger and disappointment or maybe he thinks he has no other way of communicating that he's upset. Whatever the reason, I've been trying to work with him on it and we'll continue working on it. Hopefully Adam won't pick up the habit.

Dan at his one year picture. Such a cutie!

Let's see! What else about Dan? He loves to be outside. He'll come and grab my hand and take me to the back door and point while saying "side" over and over again. I think if I let him he'd spend the entire day outside. I wish so bad that we had a fenced yard and I could send him out on his own. It is nice, however, to have the older kids to go out with him when I can't.

He loves water and isn't afraid of it in any way. This causes fear for me and probably will until he can swim (and I'm sure even after that) but I'm glad he's comfortable in the water and I think as he gets older we'll be able to teach him to respect water. When we go swimming he's always jumping in and going under without any fear. Whenever we see water he's always right there to point it out. He loves to walk down by the river, but is not a fan of getting in because it's to cold. That's just fine by me. I'm hoping he'll take up swimming when he gets older just like Kenny. Maybe even be a lifeguard like his Daddy.

Some of his favorites: He loves cheese. If I can't get him to eat anything I always have cheese as a back up (as long as he gets to get it out of the fridge by himself.) His favorite movie (at the moment) is Veggie Tales. Particularly the Larry Boy movies we've been checking out at the library. These have been a major source for tantrums. When I tell him no movies he'll often throw himself on the floor and cry "Airy, Airy." It took me awhile to figure out that "Airy" meant Larry Boy, but luckily he's pretty patient with me. He also likes "Boom Boom" which is the Scholastic movie of the book "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom." Great book and a cute little movie with a fun tune for kids. It's another movie we check out from the library a lot and I think it's helped him with his speech as well. He loves his Daddy and often cries for him when he's not here. The last time he left, Dan cried and cried when he saw Kenny packing up. It was so hard to watch him. I felt so bad for him and for Kenny. That boy loves his Daddy.

He's recently discovered a love of facial features. Particularly the eyes, ears, mouth, nose, and hair. He'll spend forever pointing mine out and smiling and giggling the entire time. I love this stage of learning and discovery, it's such a blessing to watch. He loves car rides, his giraffe bike, and his little brother Adam. I'll often catch him walking through the house calling "Baby" or "Amma." As long as Adam can tolerate the roughness Daniel uses on him occasionally, because he's only 2 and doesn't understand, I think they'll be great friends when they get older.

So, that's a little about my Dan. He's a great kid and I'm so happy to have him in my life. He fell on the garage steps tonight and got a little scrap on his head, right before bed. I picked him up and hugged him for awhile. After he'd settled down I took him in his room to change him into his jammies. As I looked at his still sad little face, I had one of those aw haw moments. He's been getting over a cold and has been REALLY whiny lately. It's gotten to the point where, at times, I think I may go insane. I've just assumed it's because he's been sick and sometimes when we don't feel good it just feels good to whine. He's feeling better now though, so my patience with his whining has gone way done. As I looked tonight, at the face of this precious little boy, I think I saw the reason he's so whinny. With 6 kids it's often hard to spread my time evenly between them. I'll admit, with all the stresses of our current life, I've had little time and energy to spend with my kids individually. Dan has suffered because of this, they all have. Daddy's gone and Mommy's too busy keeping things going to spend much time playing and interacting with him. That is going to change. He's growing up fast and I don't want to miss these fun years of his life. Most importantly, I want to build that bond that will be so important later in life. I want to make sure my little boy knows I love him and that I would do anything for him. I want him to know that he and his siblings are the most important thing in my life. Sadly, even though I feel that way, I don't think I act that way a lot of the time. Dan craves that time with me that is so far and few between. His face lights up when I sit and hold him and talk him through the parts of our faces or when I dance in the kitchen with him. We all need a little more of those moments in our lives. I think it would make everyone happier and my kids deserve that happiness.

We Go Because That's Just What We Do

2011-06-19T23:26:00.002-06:00

I read an article back in the day. Sadly I don't remember when or where I read it, but something in it has stuck with me for years. I believe it was in the Ensign and I read it when I only had Sarah Kate, but I'm not completely sure. Anyway, in this article the woman was talking about making a decision to always go to church. She said that she and her husband often felt that church, with their little kids, was pointless, meaning they didn't get anything out of it, but they had made the choice to go no matter what. It was the routine of it that they were hoping would positively affect their children. I remember thinking that was such a good idea and though life in church can't be that bad, I needed to incorporate that philosophy into my life. HaHa! It's funny sometimes just how naive we can be.

This adopted philosophy has carried me through a lot over the years. Our current, never ending trial has often left me feeling unworthy and unwelcome, at church, in a way. I remember one time in particular, back in February of 2010. I actually blogged about it because it made such an impact on me. Anyway, I was having a hard time and it was that philosophy of just going because we go, that really got me to church that day and kept me there. I was feeling very inadequate and unworthy to be at church and I excused myself during sacrament and locked myself in the relief society room to cry out my sorrows. It took all I had to stay, but I finished my meetings and God blessed me with the assurance that I did belong in church and that he did love me. It was a very tender moment for me and I'm grateful that I had this philosophy in place to help me make it to church that day.

Today this philosophy is helping me in other ways. I often still feel inadequate (Satan knows just how to work me) but I'm able, most days, to remember God's love for me and to work through those feelings. Now, I'm understanding just how this women from the article was feeling and I'm seeing how the philosophy helped her. Six kids 9 years old and under in sacrament at 9:00 am by myself is no cup of tea. I dread church. I know that's a horrible thing to say, but I wake up every Sunday praying that we can make it through the next few hours. I've discovered that getting a side bench is necessary for there to be any chance of a successful sacrament meeting, so as I rushed the kids out the door a little late today I prayed that I'd find a bench where I could sit on the end and successfully trap the kids in. Luckily I got the last side bench right up front between the bishops wife and the Godfrey's, a family of four kids whom are roughly the same age as my kids. They're one of those amazing families with wonderful, quite kids whom everyone, I'm sure, looks at and admires. I know I do. Anyway, I sat down, looked at who was around me and instantly felt sorry for them. Aw the joys of parenting.

I probably set myself up for it, but today was a particularly difficult Sunday. Sarah was a grouch because she was still tired and had to be woken up (I can totally see that the teenage years are going to be fun with her :) In her defense I do rely on her more than I should and she generally does a good job helping. Ben was pretty good and only a dozen times or so needed reminded to settle down and that I couldn't help him find pictures in his look and find book. The little girls whispered a lot and kept trying to stand on the bench, but other than that they did quite well. Daniel, well, he had a rough day. He woke up early which I knew right off the bat was going to be bad. He spent most of sacrament in silly loud mode and I couldn't calm him down. He would try to stand and sit on Adam, who was woken up early by Dan and was hungry and exhausted by the time sacrament started. It was a mess. Dan was all over the place and with 5 other kids to watch and listen to and remind to be reverent I was overwhelmed and not enjoying myself.

Finally, with about 10 minutes left in sacrament, I had had enough. Sarah had taken the little girls to the bathroom and I was left with just the boys. I tried to feed Adam a bottle of apple juice because he was starting to fuss. Dan decided he wanted a bottle and he completely lost control when I wouldn't give it to him. He started bawling as loud as he could, threw himself on the floor and had a tantrum. He's my first tantrum kid and I'll be honest, it's not that much fun. I looked at Ben, told him we were leaving, and picked up both little boys in my arms and walked the entire way down the chapel isle and out the door. I was so embarrassed. I met the girls in the hall and we hung out there until sacrament was over.

Right before the closing prayer, Dan's nursery leader came out of the chapel with her little boy and headed to the nursery. She ask if I wanted her to take Dan with her. He seemed more than willing to go so I pawned him off to her and waited for sacrament to be over so I could go retrieve our stuff. I took the girls to primary and slowly headed back to the chapel hoping everyone would have left by the time I got there. Nope, both the bishops family and the Godfrey's were still there. I felt this overwhelming need to apologize, which I feel after each sacrament meeting, and they told me they were so amazed at how well I do with my kids. What a sweet thing to say, but really, so not true. I was exhausted and emotionally drained so after cleaning up the tornado we had left on our bench, I took Adam to the car, put him in Dan's seat and turned the movie "Chicka Chicka Boom Boom" on for him and sat in the front seat and had a good cry. Sometimes crying can make things all better. :) I stayed in the car through all of Sunday School and even went home for a few minutes to clean myself up. Then, I headed to Relief Society to have a wonderful lesson on missionary work.

As I sat crying in the car during Sunday School I kept thinking to myself, "Why do I even bother coming. I'm not getting anything out of this and neither is anyone who happens to be sitting next to me." When we got home from church today I asked the kids what they learned. Hannah told me all about Alma the Younger and how he was once a bad guy who tried to get others to do bad things and not believe in Jesus. Then he turned good and started believing in Jesus and teaching all the people about Jesus. Ben said he learned about the atonement and how when we make mistakes Heavenly Father will forgive us because of Jesus and that we can be better just like Alma. That's why I go to church. Just like the lady in the article from all those years ago, I go to church for the routine of it and for the lessons that my kids are getting from it whether I am or not. We had an amazing bishop when we lived in West Valley and he got up one sacrament meeting and told us that we belonged in church. He said, whether we had crying, wild children or no one but ourselves to worry about, we belonged in church and that's where God wanted us. I go because that's where Heavenly Father wants us to be and because I am shaping the lives and views of my precious little children. It's not always as rough as it was today, but even on those rough days I know I'm where I need to be for myself and my kids. Someday soon, I'll look down the bench at my quite, older children and be reminded of these Sunday's that we came and struggled through sacrament. I'll marvel at the children I have and probably miss, in a way, the crazy days that I'm living now. For now, we'll keep going because that's just what we do and that's where we belong.

Baby Bird

2011-06-16T16:02:00.004-06:00

Our little baby robin friend

On Monday I had put the little boys in bed for naps and sent the other f 4 downstairs. I put Grace and Hannah in bed and told Ben and Sarah it was a nap or at least a good rest day. They were whiny and acting really tired and I needed a break. About an hour later Sarah came upstairs to tell me there was a bird in the window well. Sure enough, she was right. Somehow a little baby robin has falling in one of our window wells. I took the guardrail off to see if it would fly out. It was too young to fly and though it tried really hard, it just never quite made it out.

I left it down there for about 30 minutes to see if it could get out on it's own. When it didn't I decided to get Sarah's butterfly net to help it out. By this time all the kids were up, none of the oldest 4 ever napped, and they wanted to help. Sarah said she wanted to be the one lower down to get the bird out, but when it came time she chickened out. Ben asked next so I let him go down. I wanted him to catch the bird in the net, but he helped it up instead. It jumped over the edge of the window well and ran straight along the side of the house. Straight into the next window well. It was so funny. I was helping Ben up and Sarah started yelling, "No birdie, no, no." Then I heard her say OHHHHH! I couldn't believe it. It was hilarious.

Ben helping the bird up and out of the window well.

The robin hanging out on the little girls window sill.

I let Sarah get the bird out the second time and I told her to try really hard to catch it in the net. She did a great job and she climbed up and out of there with the bird safely relaxing in the net. She of course, wanted to keep it, but I made her set it lose back by the back fence. I don't know where it's nest is or I would have put it back. I really hope it's still alive and I feel kind of bad I didn't look harder for it's nest. Hopefully it's mom found it and it's safe in it's nest.

Sarah trying to catch the baby bird.

Resting in the butterfly net.

Everyone wanted to watch Sarah let the bird go.

Wearing Mom's Clothes

2011-06-16T15:32:00.004-06:00

My goofy kids dressing in my clothes. (I have know idea what Ben's doing in this picture. Being silly like always, I guess.)

Kenny came home last weekend and so I spent most of Friday cleaning and getting ready for him. I wanted to have the house clean, the laundry done, and all those other annoying things done so I didn't have to worry about them when he was home. I was cleaning the kitchen during nap time and I sent Ben and Sarah into my room to sort out the clean clothes. I could hear them in there giggling (which I LOVE to hear) and having a great time together. About 30 minutes later Sarah came out with one of my shirts on and her shirt on over it, but not pulled down all the way. I laughed at her and told her she was a silly goofball. She was headed back to change when Ben came out in my pink shirt I wear over my white one. He made me laugh right out loud. What a goofy bunch of kids I have. I just had to grab the camera to take a picture for Kenny. It's silly things like this that make me love being a mom.

Ben decided he wanted to be Tarzan. Doesn't that shirt just scream Tarzan?

Where's The Flooding?

2011-06-16T14:51:00.006-06:00

Sarah walking in the flooded Snake River enjoying a view of the Temple.

I've been hearing for weeks now about how we're suppose to be having this horrible flooding season. The Snake River is suppose to overflow it's banks and flood as much, if not worse, than it did in 1997 (which apparently was a bad flooding year.) I've been waiting for this flooding, but it just hasn't happened yet. Temperatures have, for the most part, been unseasonable cool which has kept the snow pack in the mountains and out of the rivers. I still think warmer weather will hit and that snow pack will melt and come downstream, but so far we haven't seen it. In fact, I heard on the news last night that the snow pack in the mountains north of here are at 415% of normal. Yep, all that has to come down sometime so I'm sure we'll be seeing flooding eventually.

For now we wait. We'd had some warmer weather the first few days of June so on Sunday the 5th I decided to take the kids to the river for a walk. The weather was beautiful outside and I thought is would be a nice Sunday activity. I wanted to see if the river had flooded at all and if the river had risen since the last time we were there. I let the girls stay in their church dresses thinking it would keep them out of the water more. Boy was I wrong. As soon as the kids saw the flooded sidewalk they went running for it. Oh well! We had a nice stroll along the flooded river and thought it wasn't very leisurely, the kids had a fun time and it was nice to get out as a family.

Normally there's a little cliff down to the river. Notice the river has almost overflowed it's banks.

Further upstream, above the falls, the river had flooded a little. The kids had a lot of fun walking and playing in the water.

Dan sat in the stroller and watched the other kids play. He wanted to get out so bad, that is until I finally let him out and he felt the cold water. He didn't last too long before he decided to get back in the stroller.

Ben pushing the boys through the water.

The girls walking along the flooded sidewalk.

On our way back to the van.

I think we'll have to head back down to the river the next time we get some nice weather. Well see if there's even more flooding.

My Little Sugar Snitch

2011-06-16T14:23:00.003-06:00

Gracie LOVES sweets. She loves snacks and anything with sugar. I constantly catch her sneaking in the pantry and grabbing any form of snack or sugar she can find. On this particular day I had made peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch. Everyone was done eating except for Gracie when I decided to put the little boys down for their nap. I left Gracie in the kitchen by herself to finish her lunch. When I walked back in the kitchen from putting the boys down this is what I found:

She'd gotten the strawberry jam off the counter (I hadn't put it away yet) and the knife I used to make the sandwiches and she helped herself. I was able to snap this picture before she noticed I was watching her.

Then she saw me and knew she was caught. I'd talked to her before about not eating jam out of the jar and she knew she was doing something she wasn't suppose to be doing.

But she didn't care.

This sort of thing has been popping up all the time with Gracie. I was outside doing yard work one day just in front of the boys window so I could listen to them while they were sleeping. I heard them wake up and a few minutes later I could hear Gracie in their room with them. She was suppose to be outside playing, but she had snuck inside and, I guess, had heard the boys so she went to see them. I figured I had a few minutes to finish up the section of weeds I'd been working on and about 5 minutes later when I went to get the boys I found Grace sitting in their room eating from a sippy cup full of sugar she had helped herself to. What a little sneaky nerd. I've got to keep a close eye on her.

Burn Anyone

2011-06-16T08:46:00.005-06:00

Gracie's bandaged owie. We went through a lot of princess bandages.

Kenny had to head back to Oregon around lunch time on Memorial Day. He was in the bedroom finishing up his packing and I was making Cup a Noodle for the kids. It's one of those meals that I don't make very often and they were so excited. Gracie's soup was sitting on the stove in it's little cup waiting for the 3 minutes it takes to cook. I was doing dishes in the sink and Gracie was so excited she got on the stool and grabbed the cup before I even noticed. Being only 3 she's not very smooth in her movements and the cup, full of hot water, immediately splashed all over her hand.

She didn't seem in pain, more just mad that she had spilled the water. She did drop the cup which shot hot water and noodles everywhere. This is where my steller parenting skills came in. I actually got mad at her. I was so frustrated with the kids, I was exhausted (story of my life) and I knew Kenny was leaving again for at least 2 weeks and I was just in an all around grumpy mood. Not that any of that is an excuse, but I have to think of some of the reasons I got mad at her in order to change that behavior, right!?! Anyway, my first instinct was to get mad at her. I yelled and asked why she picked it up after I had told everyone to leave them alone and stay out of the kitchen while I cooked. Then the thought came to me that the cup a noodle was probably pretty hot. I backtracked quickly and asked if it hurt. She said a little, but never cried. We ran it under cold water while I got her a baggy full of ice. I made her another cup a noodle and she ate it at the table with her ice pack on her hand. After lunch she took her ice pack off, said it didn't hurt anymore and went on her way.

The next day she woke up complaining that her finger hurt. She had a gigantic blister on her middle finger. I popped it to release some of the pressure, put a band-aid on it, and then we headed to the dentist for her appointment. She didn't complain about it the rest of the day, but that night before I put her in bed I took the band-aid off to find the blister back and bigger than ever. I popped it again and re-bandaged it.

Her poor hand was so swollen.

The following morning she woke up crying because her arm hurt so bad. I took a look at it and notice she was red starting at her finger and going halfway to her elbow. The blister was back, but she complained that her wrist (where it was red) hurt the most. I knew something wasn't right so I called the doctor. Turns out the blister had gotten infected (probably because I kept popping it.) The doctor wrote up a prescription for the infection and then drew a line around the red/infected area so I could watch it and make sure the infection didn't spread. Gracie thought is was really cool that the doctor drew on her. "How silly," she said.

Her blister, drained, and the drawing of infected area down her arm. Poor kid.

After a few days on her medicine her infection had gone away and she was feeling much better. I kept the burn covered until just a few days ago when we were finally able to take and keep the bandage off. She was such a good girl throughout all of it. I, of course, feel like a horrible mother. Instead of immediately running her hand under cold water I chose to yell at her. I'm working on controlling my stress and learning to accept that I have a lot to learn. I'm glad she's doing much better, but man, did it look awful there for awhile. She's a brave and tough little girl.

Tubes Again

2011-06-15T22:01:00.005-06:00

In the hospital bed waiting to go back for surgery.

It's been a good 6 months or so since I first noticed Hannah's hearing declining. We took her to the ENT in January and he decided, rather than immediately put tubes back in her ears, he would put her on a nasal spray that often clears up chronic fluid in the ears. I figured it was worth a try, but unfortunately Hannah wasn't one of those lucky kids that the nasal spray works on. After 3 1/2 months of being on the nasal spray I took her back in. I kept having to repeat myself because she'd tell me she couldn't hear me, her speech was going backwards and she was talking more and more in her throat. Dr. Hanks said her ears were still full of fluid and we decided to opt for permanent tubes. These don't fall out on there own and will need to be taken out in 4 or 5 years. I feel so bad that she needs to go in for tubes again, but they made such a big difference last time. I'm hopeful they'll make a big difference this time as well. She starts school in the fall and her speech is going to make things hard enough. I want her to be able to hear so she doesn't have to deal with that as well.

So, I scheduled her to get her tubes the Friday of Memorial Day weekend because I knew Kenny would be coming home that weekend. Kenny came home late Wednesday night and he offered to let me take her to the hospital on Friday while he watched the other kids. This time went much smoother than last. With no tonsils to take out she didn't even have to be put to sleep. It was much easier.

Notice her orange bear. It's the same one she got last time she was there. She wanted them to be twins.

We headed to the hospital about 6:30 on Friday morning. We had to wait a least 2 hours before they finally took Hannah back for surgery. By the end Hannah was getting very bored and really wanted to be done. Luckily they had some things to keep her busy like Disney Channel, PBS and coloring books.

Coloring while waiting to be taken back to surgery.

They finally came and to take her back for surgery. She was more than ready to go and wanted to get done. She waved bye to me as the nurses took her back to the OR. It was a quick 20 minutes and she was done with surgery. I went back to her room to wait and about 10 minutes later they brought her back. She was awake and happy and she wasn't in any pain. I was so surprised by it all. She remembered her last trip to the hospital when she got tubes in and her tonsils out. That visit was filled with Popsicle's and Popsicle's were exactly what she wanted when she got out of surgery this time.

She waited all morning for this Popsicle.

After her Popsicle the nurse asked her if she wanted ice cream. Sure why not! It's only 10 in the morning. Popsicle's and ice cream for breakfast. Hannah LOVES the hospital.

After her very traditional and healthy breakfast she was ready to go. Because she was doing so well they only kept her for about 30 minutes. She desperately wanted to get home to play with the other kids and I was just happy she was doing so well.

Waiting for the nurse to bring her paperwork for me to sign so she can go home.

After all the paperwork was signed the nurse asked Hannah if she wanted a wheelchair. She had no idea what the nurse meant, but she said yes anyway. When the nurse brought her the chair her face lit up and she said, "Do I get to ride in that." It's kind of funny how a trip to the hospital for surgery can be such a treat. Hannah loved every part of the hospital trip and I'm so glad it went so smoothly.

Hannah riding in the wheelchair on the way to the van.

When we got outside Hannah looked up at me and said, "Mom I can hear." That was music to my ears. I haven't had to repeat myself to her (at least not unless she's choosing not to hear me) and her speech has caught right back up to where it was before she stopped backtracking. I wish we would have done this in January, but I'm glad it's done and she can hear finally. Dr. Hanks did well and so did Hannah. Yay for tubes!

Logan, How I Love Thee

2011-06-15T20:52:00.005-06:00

Kenny was suppose to come home the weekend of May 21, but I got a call from him that Friday saying they were staying in Oregon to work over the weekend. School was almost out and things were really crazy at the house. With Kenny gone I was having a hard time figuring out how to be a single parent. The kids were pushing the boundaries to see what they could get away with and I just really wanted a break. When I heard Kenny wasn't coming home I made the quick decision to leave. I needed out of Idaho Falls and I was getting out. So, I packed while the kids were in school and when they got home we headed for Logan. I hadn't been out of Idaho Falls since before Adam was born (that was over 9 months) and I was in desperate need of a change of scenery. The drive was long, but this kids did fairly well and it was very worth it.

Walking around the neighborhood with Grandma and Grandpa.

On Friday night we hung out with Grandma and Grandpa. We had pizza for dinner and took a walk around the neighborhood. The kids played the Wii and then I put them to bed. It was a nice relaxing evening, just what I needed. Saturday's weather was wonderful which I totally didn't expect when I decided to go. Luckily I packed shorts just in case. Saturday morning I headed off to visit a friend from high school. She cuts hair and had agreed to fix the horrible cut that I had gotten a few weeks early. While I was gone Grandpa and the kids set up the tramp so when I got back everyone was hanging out in the back enjoying the nice weather.

Jumping on the tramp. Grandpa's always good to set the tramp up for the kids when we come visit on warm days.

If the kids are lucky, Grandpa might even jump with them.

After some fun in the backyard we headed to Chuck-a-Rama for lunch. My Aunt Cindy joined us and so did my cousin Daniel and his two kids Luke and Layna. It was so fun to see them. Dan heads to the mid west in about a month to do his residency (he's going to be an ER doctor) so it was great to see him before he moved. His kids are so cute and they are getting so big, so fast.

When we were done eating we went back to grandma's to nap the little boys. I let the little girls stay up because it was a special weekend and besides, I knew they wouldn't sleep anyway. After naps was bowling time. I called my cousin Kristin and they met us at the bowling alley. The kids had a blast bowling and the adults had fun watching. (I was the only adult who bowled, thank you very much.)

The stroller of bowling shoes. Now that's a lot of yellowish-green and orange shoes.

Ben's in total concentration.

Beautiful Hannah

The 2 babies! My cousin Kristin's little boy Charlie is 6 weeks older than Adam. It's going to be so fun to watch these two when they get older.

After bowling we headed back to the house where I left the kids with grandma and grandpa so I could go have dinner with some friends. It was so nice to have some adult time. I've missed it so much. I met Cami, Tara, and Jessica at the Copper Mill for dinner and then went to the mall to return some stuff for Tara. After that we went out for desert and just talked. It was so nice to see them and to spend time without my kids. I miss having friends and I've decided I need to find a way to get some.

We went to church on Sunday with my parents and then we were suppose to head to Kenny's sister's house, but there was an accident before we left. My mom's dog was playing outside when it ran out in front of a car and was hit and killed. It was such a sad thing to have happen. I felt horrible for my mom who had to go pick her up and put her in the box I had gotten. Dad was still at the church (he's in the bishopric and often doesn't get home for at least an hour after church gets out.) I'm glad I was there for her, but at the same time I felt so bad that we were there. Telling the kids was so hard and I felt bad my mom had to deal with that also. Hannah and Sarah cried and cried (they're the most sensitive.) We had a nice long talk about death and then, when Grandpa got home, we buried her in the backyard. It was such a sad thing for everyone, but it was a good lesson for the kids.

After Cassie was buried and the kids were over the initial shock of the whole thing, we packed up to head to Kingston's. We were a few hours late, but no one else had arrived yet so it was OK. We spent the rest of the evening hanging out with Kenny's family. It was so fun to see the Kingston cousins whom we haven't seen in almost 9 months and to see Grandma and Grandpa Newbry whom we haven't seen since Christmas. We left way late and got home around 11. Everyone was tired and both the kids and I slept through our alarms the next day. Ooops! The kids ended up being about 30 minutes late for school. It was the first day they were late all year and Sarah was devastated because she was trying so hard for the perfect attendance and no tarty award at the end of school. Luckily it was the last week of school and they had already determined who got the awards and who didn't, so she got one despite the tarty. I dodged the bullet on that one. No matter what, it was worth the trip. We had a great time and can't wait to go back when it gets even warmer.

3rd Grade Banquet

2011-06-15T18:30:00.005-06:00

Sarah and her favorite teacher of all time, Mr. Guymon

For the end of school Mr. Guymon decided he wanted to have a banquet for his class. He held a fundraiser during Family Reading Night in April and raised enough money to pay for the banquet and for the end of the year field trip to the zoo. So on Thursday May 19th I got a babysitter for the little kids (which they LOVED. They've never had a babysitter and they thought Cassidy was awesome) and Sarah and I headed out to her banquet.

When we arrived there was Little Ceaser's pizza and Capri Suns for everyone. Is that not the perfect meal for a 3rd grader? It was delicious and it was eaten up rather quickly. After some eating and mingling the program part of the evening began. Mr Guymon had a medal made for each kid the front had 3rd on it (for 3rd grade) and the back said "2010-2011 BE EXCELLENT Mr. Guymon's Class" How cool is that!?! I know as a kid I would have loved one of those. Mr. Guymon said he tried so hard to come up with the perfect 2 word saying and he kept coming back to "Be Excellent." That's what he wanted for all of his students. To try the best in everything they do and to strive for their excellence. What an amazing guy. I'm so glad Sarah was able to be in his class this year.

Mr. Guymon then proceeded to call each kid up individually and tell them why they are remarkable and in what ways they have touched him and helped him grow this year. It was very sweet to watch each student go up there and hear their teacher sing their praises. When it was Sarah's turn, I'll admit, I got teary eyed. It was so wonderful to listen to my child's teach talk about how wonderful she is and how much he enjoyed having her in his class.

Sorry about the video. I still don't know how to use the camera.

After everyone was presented with a medal the class had a gift for Mr. Guymon. On of the mothers had a picture framed for him with signatures from each of the kids. It was very sweet and he even got a little teared up. They also gave this 2 giant bags for tootsie rolls because during the ISAT test he gave the kids a consistent supply of tootsie rolls.

It was a fun night and I'm so glad I was able to go with Sarah. I really wish Kenny had been here to see it, but he was is in Oregon and couldn't come. We're grateful to Mr. Guymon for all his hard work this year. It made such a difference in Sarah's life and I know it made a difference in the lives of all the other kids in her class. I hope all my kids get a Mr. Guymon teacher sometime in their lives.

Sarah with her best friend Whitney.

We had to get a picture with Mr. and Mrs. Guymon. They are such a cute young couple. Awww,those were the days. Sarah loves Mrs. Guymon too. She would often come in and help and Sarah thought she was so neat.

Mother's Day

2011-06-15T15:33:00.009-06:00

Mother's Day this year was like the past few, nothing special. That's OK. We're busy and poor and there's not much that we can do so just being with my family is good enough for me. Kenny did get me a card and had all the kids sign it. It was an awesome card too. It read (with a picture of a momma bird in her nest with a blanket over her, obviously in bed, and 3 baby birds giving her bowls of food): "Happy Mother's Day! Today WE get to regurgitate breakfast for YOU!" The inside says, "Only the best for you, Mom! Happy Mother's Day!" What a goofball. It totally made my day.

We went to church and then enjoyed some time at home. Kenny was in town and we loved having him home for the weekend. Ben and Sarah did make me some Mother's Day gifts in school and church. I love getting gifts from my kids and the homemade ones are the greatest.

For Activity Days a few weeks before Mothers Day, the girls were asked to bring in a picture of them with their mom. After looking through pictures for at least half and hour I finally determined that I didn't have a picture of just Sarah and I that was even close to recent. So, out to the old truck we went on Sarah's request. In less than 10 minutes we had a great shot of the two of us (see above) and we sent it off to Walgreen's to be printed. It was a hit at Activity Days and my friend, who is one of Sarah's leaders, was amazed that we had just shot the picture less than an hour before. It's amazing what you can do with a great photographer as a husband and modern technology.

I didn't know what the picture was for until the Tuesday before Mothers Day. Sarah had a very special Mother's Day Activity Day's. I had such a fun time with her. We played games and had a nice cinnamon roll and yogurt treat. At the end we were giving this fun paper:

Love it. If you notice on the side there's a checklist of all the things I am Awesome, Brilliant, Sweet and Funny to name a few. Apparently, according to Sarah, I'm not Brave or Energetic. HaHa! Maybe I should work on those. The bottom reads (with her words in red) When asked about this honor, her child had this response: "my mom rocks! She is very considerate. When she tells jokes, it makes me so happy. I love doing things with her, especially fun things. She is so good at making me laugh. She really is the best!" How sweet! Thanks Sarah!

Ben made me a card at school. I love when he makes me things at school because he can never last until Mother's Day to give it to me. This year he lasted maybe 20 minutes before he was in his backpack getting it out for me. What a cutie. This is it and I still have it hanging on my fridge:

Outside

Inside

Could This Be The One?

2011-06-15T10:09:00.004-06:00

We've had so many picture trips to try and get Adam's 6 month shot. I think we're about out of time (now that he's almost 10 months old) and we need to decide on one. This picture was taken after our picnic right as it began raining. I'm sure with all we've taken we'll be able to choose one, maybe.

Picnic At The Park

2011-06-14T16:01:00.004-06:00

After the zoo we decided to have a little picnic by the falls. The weather was starting to turn cold, windy and cloudy, but we were determined to enjoy the outdoors as long as possible. We headed to Walmart and got a few snacks and drinks and then went to Wendy's for some hamburgers. The kids actually ate well (I guess all that walking at the zoo made them hungry) and then they enjoyed playing on the trees and running around. It was such a nice early afternoon. I love day's like this. They're the picture perfect day's that memories are made from.

Ben climbing the tree

Daddy helping Dan walk around on the rocks.

My beautiful Sarah. She's getting soooo big.

Adam's so happy after getting a bottle. Man that baby can eat.

The girls hanging out on the tree.

Zoo'n It

2011-06-14T15:59:00.006-06:00

Kenny came home from Oregon the weekend of Mother's Day. I was so nice to have him home and it was so nice that the weather cooperated and we were able to take the kids to the zoo. I love the Tautphaus park and zoo. It may just be a little zoo, but it's perfect for our family and it's actually surprising just how much is there. We thought a trip to the zoo would be a perfect welcome home daddy/Happy Mother's Day mommy kind of outing. The kids hadn't been to the zoo in over a year and they were very excited to go.

Kenny helping Dan feed the ducks.

Adam enjoying the ride.

Dan REALLY enjoyed the goat where you get to go in and pet them.

Dan particularly liked this goat.

I love his expression (Dan's not the goats)

This is one of those shot I wish we'd gotten from the other side. I can just see the excitement on his face.

Hannah and Sarah petting a goat and probably asking the zookeeper way to many questions. :)

Sarah having some one on one time with a donkey.

Gracie and Hannah had their monkey shirts on and wanted a picture with a monkey.

Hannah was playing with this monkey. She'd stand there and the monkey would bang on the glass. She put her hands on the glass and it would bang and try to hit her hands through the glass. It was so cute. We tried to video it, but the monkey was pretty much done by the time we got the video camera out.

Kids Spring Concert

2011-06-08T14:03:00.004-06:00

The kids had their spring concert on May 5th. Kenny had already left for Oregon so it meant that I would be taking all 6 kids to the concert by myself. I'll admit I was not looking forward to it. The kids were, however, and I just knew we had to go. So I loaded the kids up in the car, nice and early (I know, I'm never early) just to make sure we could find a spot suitable for all of us. Both Sarah and Ben did a great job on their song. They went by grade so Ben went first and sang a song called "Teamwork" and then Sarah's grade sang "Wick" from The Secret Garden. I love listening to little kids sing. Sometimes it's good, other times it's well, awful. I love it no matter what.

Ben Walking On Stage To Sing

Sarah Singing With Her Grade

So, just how did I keep the little kids busy during the concert? Well here's how.

I gave the little girls the little camera and put them in charge of taking pictures while I video'd. That worked pretty well until Hannah wouldn't share.

I strapped Dan in the stroller and refused to let him out. Surprisingly he didn't fight me.

Even though I thought the kids behaved rather well, I was still ready to go after Sarah's grade. Sorry to the 4th and 5th graders. I'm sure your songs were lovely.