Christmas!

I am sure that everyone in our family had a very Merry Christmas. The kids have been playing with all their Christmas toys non stop since Thursday. I have to admit that I get really excited and play right along with them.

The best part of Christmas for me was spending time with my family. Nothing is more important on this earth than they are. This Christmas I had the opportunity to see 3 of my brothers and sisters from out of town. It was so much fun to see them and their kids and just laugh and play.

I hope everyone else had a great a Christmas too!

The night before Christmas...

The boys got to open some presents with Grandma and Grandpa on Christmas eve. Noah could not believe his luck when he opened his present and found a Wii. WHOO HOO! We have had hours of fun playing with it so far. All the boys got a Texas Longhorn T-shirt from their aunt and uncle in TX. They looked so cute in matching T's.

Then it was time for bed so Santa would come and bring them more treats and toys. It took them forever to finally fall asleep. Matt had to threaten them to get them to be quiet and go to sleep. He told them that he saw Santa two houses down and if they weren't asleep that Santa wouldn't stop at our house. His threat seemed to do the trick because they all fell asleep shortly after.

The Twins are 2 (that birthday really snuck up on me!)

I can not believe that my babies are two! What a whirlwind of a two years that was. Thank goodness I have them in my life. They bring a lot of joy and laughter into our household. On Dec. 23 they turned 2 yrs old and I can't wait to see how they grow in their third year. I have to admit that they do cause a little bit of mischief around here but it keeps me on my toes. I love them so much and if I had to go through everything I did to get them here I would do it all over again.

We had their birthday party at the church gym so the kids could run around and play till they couldn't run any more. Plus we had to find a spot for them to try out their new tricycles.

My Little Boy is 3!

Mack, is just so adorable! Thank goodness he's mine. Happy Birthday to my big smile boy. For his birthday dinner he picked waffles and so, that is what he got. Since he doesn't especially like cake we made an ice cream cake. As you can see Mack likes to do things the unconventional way.
For the past 2 months I have been trying to teach him how to say "I'm three" when people ask how old he is. It wasn't going to well though. Every time he would say, "waffle" instead. Then today on his birthday for the first time when asked how old he was he said, "three". Hallelujah! We love you Mack and hope that you got exactly what you wanted for your birthday. From the looks of it he sure did get what he wanted.

Thankfuls

It is normally a family tradition to list three things your thankful for on Thanksgiving. We didn't do it this year but I wanted to list my thankfuls so my family knew I was trying to keep the tradition going.: )

1. My family- I have the greatest family ever! My husband is the best, he works hard and shows his appreciation for me and all I do. He takes good care of us and I love him tons. My five little boys who are not so little anymore. They bring so much joy into my life with their gentle sweet spirits. I love being their mom. My parents are such good examples to me. They have taught me so much and helped me to love the gospel as much as they do. My brothers and sisters are so much fun to be around! We play games and laugh and I just love being in their company. Grandparents, Aunts and Uncles, Cousins the list just goes on and on, with how much I love my family. I could write a book but I wont, let's just say they're the best and I love them!

2. Prayer- I haven't ever gone to Heavenly Father in prayer and not received an answer to my never ending questions about life. I hope I can teach my children that life is so much better when you pray.

3. Lastly, I am grateful for sleep! Okay I kind of switched gears a little bit. How can I ignore the fact that now that my children are older I can finally get some sleep! Maybe now I will be a little less cranky, lets all hope anyway.

Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving! Its a little late but better late than never. Here we are at my sister's house from left to right, Alex, Annie, Chad, Greg, Michelle, Matt, Me, and Luke. My brother Greg and his family drove from Las Vegas to join us for the holiday too. It was really great to spend time with him and his family. He is getting ready to leave for Afghanistan in April so the more I get to see him the better. Stephanie cooked all day for two days to make this delicious meal. We had appetizers only a couple hours before dinner so I think we were all full before dinner even started. Thanks goodness for left overs because they tasted really good the next day too.

The kids ate their meal together and I don't think they ate any of it. One of them mentioned they wanted a hot dog and that got every ones attention so they all ate hot dogs for thanksgiving. There is something very wrong with that but I guess their only kids so what do you do?

By the end of the day this is how the little ones fell asleep. I think it was all the food! Thank you to my sister for all her hard work on our behalf, we love you!

Holiday Vacation

We were lucky enough to go down to Arizona for a week to visit my sister who lives there. Matt and I were a little nervous about the 2o hour drive and how the kids would handle being in the car that long. We decided to split up the drive into a two day trip and stop in Salt Lake City the first day and stay with Matt's sister Erin. Thank you Erin for letting us invade your house and I hope that we didn't do to much damage.

Day two we arrived at my sister Stephanie's house and we were all thrilled to finally be out of the car! Stephanie is such a great hostess and made us feel right at home. I am so grateful for my sister and her kindess. I don't know many people that can handle my big family running around thier house for a week. Steph never complained and my kids had the best time! The weather was awesome the first day we got there so we headed out to a park and let the kids run and play. Here are some pictures from the park. It was a train park and we got to ride on a mini train and check out some real trains that housed some past presidents when they traveled.

There was also a mini city that had a jail and a stagecoach. It was 70 degrees outside and that sure did feel good. Almost December and 70 degrees was a little wierd but I am not complaining.

Noah, Ethan, and Mack sure did enjoy playing all day with thier cousins. I hardly heard a peep out of them because they would just play and play non stop each day. On the way home we decided to drive straight through in one day and I think the kids slept 15 out of the 20 hours we drove. It was probably because they were so worn out from all that fun during the week or maybe it was the lack of sleep.

Twilight Night

I was excited for the movie night with the girls and let me tell you it was a whole lot of fun! It started with dinner because a good meal and movie just go together. Then it was off to the movies. Thank goodness I was with my well connected sister because she knows how to get the red carpet treatment! Megan got us great seats in the movie theatre, she cuts the managers hair, so no waiting in line for us. The theatre was packed with women and a few men waiting to see the long awaited Twilight. The movie was very entertaining and it made me laugh on several occasions. I don't think it will be winning any Oscars but I will be in line and excited again when New Moon comes to the movie screen. After the movie we headed to Applebee's for a late night sweet treat. It seems everyone else from the theatre had the same idea and the restaurant got crowded very quickly. Megan came through again and we were able to get a table within 10 min. Thanks for a fun night out ladies and Megan I am going to start bringing you everywhere!

Shoes, everybody loves them!

I don't know what it is about those high heeled shoes that the twins love but you can see from the picture Luke loves to hang out in them. I think most of it is the great noise they make on the hardwood floors. I just had to get a picture of my little boy in his high heels for posterity. Ethan prefers my boots for his cowboy adventures. I haven't captured that one on camera...not yet anyway!

Helping Hands!

I have more help when I make dinner than I know what to do with! Here is a glimpse of what it looks like at my house in the evening when I am trying to make dinner. All the boys want to see what is going into every pan. They each take turns stirring and pouring. I hope this will make them good cooks when they get old enough. Wouldn't it be nice to have 5 teenage boys who like to cook in your home? Thats what I am hoping for but, I'm not gonna hold my breath. We'll just keep on cooking up something good together for now.

Vote!

I hope everyone out there had a chance to vote and do thier part by participating in this election. The candidates were both very convincing in thier speechs to get the American public to vote for them. I have to admit that my vote was solely based on the moral values portrayed by each candidate. America's moral values are at risk this election and I pray that we as American's can get the right man in office.

My mom's psychic friend ( no, my mom does not see a physic but she has a women in her ward who professes to be one) said to vote for the vice president because that is who will be running the country. I thought this funny so I decided to add it my political outburst.

Trick or treat, smell my feet...

I think this was the best weather we have ever had on Halloween in the Tri-Cities ever! It was great to be able to put on a sweatshirt and go trick or treating.

We started our Halloween adventure at the Uptown mall in Richland. All the stores pass out candy to the kids starting at 3pm. Its a good way to get the trick or treating going. After that we headed over to my mom's house for some dinner. Thanks for the most delicious rib dinner ever mom and dad! After the yummy dinner Matt took the big kids out in the nieghborhood for some more candy! We have so much candy I don't know what I can do to get rid of it.


Now for the costumes. The twins were trains because right now they LOVE trains and can't get enough. Mack initially wanted to be Batman but as you can see ended being a pumpkin. He looks adorable. Ethan was a ninja last year but decided to be one again this year because it was so much fun last year. Lastly, Noah, he just wanted to be scary so he got a hooded cloak and painted his face. We are not sure what he was exactly but it looked scary to the twins so I guess he got his scary wish.




It was another very HAPPY HALLOWEEN. We hope everyone else out there had as much fun as we did!

Carving Pumpkins

Our annual carving of the pumpkins was last night and boy did we have a good time! I think we made seven pumpkins all together. Ethan went with a spider design and he loved it but I don't think you can tell from the picture. I really loved how the white pumpkins turned out especially when they are lit up.

Noah carved his own pumpkin for the first time this year and it turned out very well! He has a really great imagination so he ended up with a scary face that had scars all over it and knives coming out of it.

We tried to get a picture of all the pumpkins and kids outside but that didn't happen for us. Luckily grandma and poppa were there to take a

photo but its on grandma's camera so I will have to get it from her next time I see her. The little boys felt the need to run around without their shirts on and yes it was freezing outside but they didn't seem to mind. I think they were distracted by all the cool pumpkins to really care about the cold.

Matt and Amy dress up for Halloween

Matt and I went to a Halloween party last night and we got a little creative. Matt really wanted to be Jack from the Jack in the box restaurant ads. I didn't know what could go along with that so I thought I could be Jack's favorite meat...beef! This picture doesn't show that I have a udder, but I did and it was disgusting to look at. My kids couldn't take their eyes off it! Noah told me it looked like I had four penis' and Ethan tried to milk me. Disgusting! I will say that we had the most original costumes at the party. There were a lot of jokes about the cow udder. If you're going to be a cow you must be pretty confident in your self image. Matt could barely see, breath, or hear with the Jack head on. I made it out of plaster and its really heavy. Matt had better wear it every Halloween for the next 5 years to make up for the time it took me to make it. Anyway, the outfits were a big success and we can't wait to wear them again next weekend! I will post a picture of my udder later for all you people who are dying to see it.

I finally finished the cargo net!

Let me start out by saying, " Man that was a lot of knots!" So, Matt decided that he was going to make a fort for the boys with some left over wood from his parents house. It's still a work in progress. As a funny side note, Saturday while Matt was working on it Ethan came up to him and said, " is that the best you can do?" That kid is something else...Back to the fort, Matt didn't want to just build a ladder because he thought the smaller kids would fall and get hurt. I came up with the idea to get a cargo net for them to climb up on. I thought we could just go out and buy one. Apparently, there aren't any nets in the Tri-cites so I decided to make one myself. I found and pattern online and got to work. Hours...and hours later I finally finished. Its five feet wide and 12 feet long and I'm never making one again! Boy, I sure must love my kids.

Is it because I have a broom in my hand all day?

A couple of nights ago Matt, the kids, and I were watching a halloween cartoon on TV and everytime the cartoon witch would appear Mack would say, "there's mommy...". I am wondering where this is coming from? Do I really look like a witch, green, big nose, wart, wicked laugh, pointy hat, and crazy hair? I finally decided it must be because I have to sweep our kitchen floor 20 times a day so I always have a broom in my hand. Matt thinks this is just hilarious of course. Okay, it is a little bit funny... I guess.

Noah lost a tooth!

This year has been a kids nightmare. Noah has had to have 4 tooth pulled, 3 cavities filled and spacers put in. I have to say that he has endured it all really well. For the past 2 weeks he has had a loose tooth that wiggles every time he smiles or talks. I kept trying to talk him into pulling it out himself but of course he is not happy about the thought of having another tooth pulled out. While playing outside the other day with a friend the tooth was finally knocked loose. Noah was wrestling with his friend, Sanford, and his mouth was covered when the tooth was knocked loose and he couldn't spit it out so he ended up swallowing it! Noah was fine but very worried about the tooth fairy giving him money without any tooth. Matt, of course, couldn't resist messing with our kid told him he would have to keep an eye out every time he went number 2 to find the tooth. This disturbed Noah but it also disturbed me and probably everyone else who has heard the story now. The children in our family have learned not to take Matt very seriously and now you all know why. Half the time when the kids hear something from dad they ask me if its true. Anyway, Noah wrote a note to the tooth fairy explaining the situation and it turned out great! I will have to post of picture of Noah without his tooth very soon!

They all sat still long enough...

Matt was able to get a picture will all 5 kids sitting still long enough for us to capture an image. Way to go honey! In the evening we like to sit in the backyard and let the boys run and play till they don't have any energy left in them. There aren't very many warm evenings left so that the boys can stay outside and play till 7pm. I will miss that soooo much.

Maybe its Matt who gets to sit and enjoy his time outside and I end up mowing the lawn while holding two of the five. It doesn't look as relaxing as it should. I sometimes do get to mow by myself if you want to call that relaxing.

Consequences of Blogging

This is what was going on behind the scenes the last time I was writing on our blog. My three little angels, Mack, Luke, and Hunter found themselves some markers and went to town coloring. I found marker on the walls, chairs, couch, floor, and table cloth. They were very thorough, lucky for me. Washable markers are washable thank you crayola. I have learned my lesson and the quiet always comes before the storm. Now whenever it is too quiet I know something is up with my little three amigos.

Here is a picture of Mack in his time out but he was not in the mood for pictures after a stern lecture. This isn't the first lecture about coloring on the walls but hopefully its the last.

Poor Noah has been sick with this allergic reaction since Friday. The poor kid has been itching like crazy. We have taken him to the doctor twice already and I have to take him in again this morning. We are worried that his allergic reaction is due to mold or mildew from the recent flood. I am praying that we don't have mold because that would be a nightmare. You can tell by the picture how happy he is, so keep him in your prayers. Ethan fell on his bed and that is why he has the big goose egg on his forehead. As usual we have a few issues but doesn't everybody?!

Mack is smiling as always. He is my little ray of sunshine.

Ethan's First Day of Preschool

Ethan has told he "hates" school for the last week. I have been trying to prepare him for the return to preschool but I don't think it helped much. Last year we had the same problem but it never lasts, thank goodness. Once he gets going Ethan really starts to enjoy his time at school. His teachers love him to death because he has a great personality. I wasn't excited about having to drive him 3 times a week but I found someone in my neighborhood who is taking their daughter to the same class. Yeah for carpooling! We love our Ethan and we know he is going to learn a lot this year from school to prepare him for kindergarten.

This morning all the boys got together and decided to have thier very own birthday party. As you can see from the picture they sat on the ground with all the pots and pans and sung happy birthday to each other. I love it when they all get along so well. It was only 2 minutes later I had 3 out of the 4 standing around me crying. Its an emotional roller coaster around here each and every day. Is that the way it will always be?

First Day of School!

Noah's First day of 2nd grade! He wasn't very excited for summer to end but this morning I could tell he was pretty pumped up to get to school. He has Mrs. Beaver and I hear that she is a very nice teacher and I know that Noah is a good kid so they should have a great year together. I am happy to see Noah ready for an excellent year of learning and making new friends. Matt and I are very lucky to have him for a son and he is very helpful at home with his little brothers. We love you Noah!

Here is a picture of Noah with his friend and neighbor Sanford. Sanford got a new haircut for the first day of school and I think he looks ready to rock the school year!

The Flood...again!

So here we are again with another summer including another flood. Matt and I cannot believe that this could happen a second time. What happened is the canal ditch up on the hill gets infested with gophers and they put holes all over in it and then it breaks and we get overflowed with water. The irrigation district in charge of the canal didn't "think" this would happen again so they didn't line the canal the last time this happened. Last summer at about this same time we were flooded as well. Here are some pictures of the horror we experienced this weekend.

We are hoping and praying that there isn't any really bad damage since the water can enter our crawl space whenever it floods. Last time there was a lot more water than this but a house can only take some much water!

I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream...

For family home evening we decided to break out the ice cream cones and of course it was a hit, well...for a while anyways. I've tried really hard to keep the kids outside and active all summer long. Mostly so I didn't go crazy trying to keep my house clean. You moms know what I'm talking about. Here is Hunter after his chocolate cone.

Mack is always the easiest to get a big smile out of. I just love him for it too!

Then there is Luke, and it can be really difficult to make him sit still long enough for the camera to capture an image. He is still adorable even covered in chocolate.

Ethan would eat ice cream for every meal if I would let him. Our dentist will get a vacation home out of us here shortly.

Camera shy is the last thing Noah would ever be. Wanting to be silly is just more fun!

And of course here is the scream portion of our ice cream night. What kid wouldn't fight over the amazing window squeegee?!

I for one will be sad to summer end and school year begin. Its been a lot of fun to spend quality time with all my boys. There have been a lot water fights, slip and sliding, Lego's, video games, and of course ice cream. Who could ask for a better time than that, not me.