Life is Good--Tales of My Life

Thanksgiving Day 2

2010-11-30T09:05:00.000-08:00

Because I like to have my own leftovers we had another Thanksgiving on Friday. Yummm!

Wouldn't be Thanksgiving without the olives.

Cute shot of Anna.

Getting some love.

The girls.

Anna and Noah.

Anna reading me her Christmas list as I carve the turkey.

Your guess is as good as mine as to this pose.

It was a great weekend with the kids. I took them to get pictures, we watched movies and did crafts. As well as laughed a lot. I am blessed with great kids.

Thanksgiving Day 1

2010-11-30T08:57:00.000-08:00

We went to Marshall's brother, Matt's house for the day. All together there were 8 adults and 11 kids. Leslie did a great job fitting us all at the table.

Marshall's brother Ben and his darling Luke.

This is where the boys hung out. Video games and wrestling ensued. They even stayed when Elianna (she's 3) put on Beauty and the Beast.

Isaac has joined the chess club. He really enjoys it.

Daisy and Leo had fun too. They love it when they can get together.

Putting the final touches on dinner.

Anna going through the buffet line.

A view from outside.

All the festivities tuckered Luke out.

Before dessert the group went on a walk. Tradition for Matt's family.

A lovely family shot at the end of the day. It was a good day. Lots of good food, laughter and fun.

New Bosses in my Life

2010-11-09T08:24:00.000-08:00

I have had some serious health issues the past few years and as little as a year ago I was on at least 7 different prescriptions. A couple for depression, migraine, thyroid just to name a few. At one point I had a drug reaction called seratonin syndrome. Yikes. So with the best cheerleader in my life, a girl could have, I made the decision to be in control of my life, rather than live on medication. I made the decision to get my body moving. I did the couch to 5K. I hated every minute of it and my legs hurt. I thought there had to be a better way. So, I dusted off and replaced the battery on my heart rate monitor my sister gave me a couple years ago. To my shock and relief, after running for 30 minutes, I discovered I was working too hard. Now I walk instead of run, in my target heart rate zone, longer. I still hate it, but I feel better.

The next boss I have is the scale. I HATE the scale. I only get on it once a week. Otherwise I get discouraged and grumpy. But the last couple weeks, the scale has been nice and said what I wanted it too. I am going for slow but steady weight loss. I would love to not have this beast as a boss in my life, but I need to.

The other boss I have in my life is my food journal. I am writing down everything I eat and trying to keep between a certain amount of calories. I have to plan every meal and snack for a few days in advance, planning in treats as well. I also include date night and just try to make healthier choices when out--like only eating half or picking grilled instead of deep fried. I am keeping an eye on my fiber (having had issues for a couple of years, that one is a biggie for me. I never want to drink magnesium citrate again!). As well as cutting out processed foods and breads. The biggest is cutting my ice cream intake as well as the beloved Diet Coke. I have found, that I am not starving and somedays have to make sure I eat in order to get enough calories in a day.

I have been exercising since the beginning of August. Watching what I eat for a few weeks. I am no longer on meds for depression or migraines. And have eliminated all but my thyroid medication. I take iron for anemia, and a few other vitamins for good health, but I am leaps and bounds ahead of where I was just 6 months ago. I will admit, this isn't my idea of fun. But I am dedicated to sticking to it. And now by posting this out in the open for all you to read I have accountability. Anyone who wants to join me, I would love it!

2010-11-08T13:22:00.000-08:00

Meet Daisy. My mom gave her to me last year. She was quite the surprise. She is very sweet and has been a fun addition. The kids LOVE her.
For Fall/Halloween we took the kids to the corn maze. Here's the new man in my life. His name is Marshall and we have known each other since High School.
It was very slippery in the maze. Poor Abby fell 3 times.
She didn't enjoy it all that much!
The boys were our fearless leaders, getting through the maze safely.
My group before the maze.

Getting Back Into Blogging

2010-11-07T17:19:00.000-08:00

It has been far too long since I have posted. As many of you know, life has changed drastically since the last post. I am now divorced and living in Shoreline, WA. The kids and Kevin are in Hillsboro, Oregon. It's not the situation I ever dreamed I would have as a little girl, but such is my life. Life is still good and I have been hiding long enough! Time to get back to showing off my kids!

Here's a recent picture of the kids. Last time they were in town, we went to Pike's PLace Market. And went to the gum wall. Here's Anna, she's 13 now.

Noah is 11.
Isaac is 8.
And Abby will be 7 in a few weeks.

For Mom and Mary--Christmas 2008

2009-01-15T09:30:00.000-08:00

For all of you who live far away and I couldn't get you a cookie platter, here's your virtual platter. Hope you had a great Christmas!

Due to bad weather and stuff, we were forced to celebrate here in Eugene, just us. We missed the cousins, Aunt, Uncles and Grandma terribly. But all in all had a nice Christmas.

Here are the kids sporting their new jammies.
Santa brought Isaac his own bag of those gross, nasty circus peanuts. He was so excited. I think they were gone that same day.

Anna is thrilled with her gift card to Claire's--thanks Grandma. Next time you get to spend the hours it took deciding what to buy.

Abby is thrilled with her new Princess game for the Wii Santa brought.

Cause a boy can never have too many Legos.

Noah had been talking about this Obi-Wan action figure for months. Being oh so interested, I hadn't ever really looked at it. SO glad I got the right one.

Abby loves her Cabbage Patch Dolls.

Isaac got Operation--loves it.

Anna got Pictureka--Abby is scary good at it. It's a fun family game.

And it wouldn't be Christmas without the traditional trifle. Yummm!!!!

Happy Belated Birthday Abby!!

2008-12-04T09:13:00.000-08:00

Abby turned 5 on Monday. The time has flown by--it seems like she shouldn't be so big!! I can so vividly remember the day she joined our family. Isaac kept me company for a while. So new she's still purple!!

Getting weighed--official weight was 7lbs. 4oz.

After she gets cleaned up and getting her first bottle.

First shot with all 4 of them.

Isaac adored her!!! Sometimes too much.

I loved this outfit!

Swinging in Coeur d'Alene.

She loved her little baths in the sink.

Such a happy girl.

Having a bath with Isaac.

Playing at Grandma and Bubba's.

Field trip

Showing off her new clothes.Her new scooter--she never really used it. She preferred the regular razor scooters.

More new clothes--for her second birthday.

At the zoo in Portland.

I love this picture.

Getting ready to jump in Grandma's lake on Christmas--Abby was the only one of mine that did it.

Just having learned to ride her bike.
Abby and Olivia when the girls came to visit this summer.

Unwrapping presents this year. Ellie came to help celebrate.

Gotta love her enthusiasm!!

I wish I had done video on this--she was so excited she was almost crying.

Make a wish!!!

Happy birthday Abby!!!

Thanksgiving Weekend

2008-12-01T10:45:00.000-08:00

We had a quiet Thanksgiving with just us this year. We frosted turkey hand cookies in the afternoon and feasted in the evening. Here are the kids working on their turkey hands. Quickly thrown together pilgrim hats.

This is how we will do turkeys next year. Cutting out each hand turkey took to long!

Abby very pleased with her work.

Isaac was quite happy as well. There is actually cookie under there!!

Anna was not happy with hers and only posed after being threatened.

Noah's was too heavy to lift without breaking.

We had a great long weekend. We played charades and other games. We cleaned up the house and the front yard, visited with friends, slept and ate lots of good food.

Thanksgiving

2008-11-20T08:33:00.001-08:00

Thanksgiving Countdown & MySpace Layouts

Trick-or-Treating

2008-11-04T07:53:00.000-08:00

Once again Anna chose to go out with friends rather than family. But she had her school Halloween Activity Night the week before, so I have a picture of her in her costume. You can't really tell, but that is a bone in her hair. Abby loves being a "witchy" and this year wanted me to make her face green--she wouldn't let me make her neck green. So it looks kind of funny.

Noah went as a nerd--do you know how hard it is to find a pocket protector???

Isaac chose a vampire. He wanted to be something scary and gross--we compromised.

The group shot minus Anna.

Abby's Halloween Party

2008-11-03T15:10:00.001-08:00

Abby had her preschool party on Halloween morning. Gotta love private schools where you can still celebrate a good old fashioned holiday!!! They had a bunch of stations--here she is fishing.

The boys didn't have school again so they had to come. Here they are playing BINGO.

Abby loved this--played it at least 4 times.

Bobbing for apples--highly unsanitary, yet enjoyable!

Ta da!!!

Decorating Cookies and Cupcakes

2008-11-03T09:55:00.001-08:00

Sticking with tradition, we decorated cookies this year. Anna had her friend Maddie over. Noah did his obligatory 3 and then wanted to play video games.

Abby cheesing it up. She would do this all day every day.

Isaac showing off his art work--he's been snitching, you can tell by the black teeth.

Saw these in a magazine and had to try it. I was pretty happy with how they turned out.

Kids finished work--mmmmmm, lots of frosting and sprinkles. Too pretty to eat!

We had lots of fun. I always grumble about doing it, but when it's said and done, I am always glad I did it.

Carving Pumpkins

2008-11-02T15:24:00.000-08:00

Due to Anna's soccer and Kevin's work schedules, we had to cram pumpkin carving in when we could. As the kids get older, they want to participate more and so they might not be as fancy as when Kevin would do them, but they love them. We got a little silly--here's Noah

Isaac

Abby was even brave enough to put her head in.

Kevin

Here's Anna's pumpkin. She did it all by herself.

Abby's--it says Trick or Treat--I think Anna helped her with this.

Noah's--his own design and carving.

Isaac's--he had a bit of help from dad. At least one wanted to match their costume!

More Pumpkin picking

2008-11-02T15:17:00.000-08:00

Here is the preschool trip. Abby and her friend Chance. Trying to find the perfect pumpkin.

Taking a break.

Found it!!!

Pumpkin Picking

2008-11-02T15:06:00.000-08:00

This year we went to the pumpkin patch twice. Once with a church group and again with Abby's preschool. Here's our first trip. Abby and Ellie--aren't they cute??

On the way to the hay ride.
On the hay ride on our way to the pumpkin patch.
In the pumpkin patch.
Abby cheesing it for the camera!

A great end to the fall season!

2008-11-02T14:47:00.000-08:00

Anna's team had a great season. They lost only 2 games and both times to the same team. At the end of the season we had our traditional pizza party. Here is Anna with Shelbey.

The cake I made--Kevin helped with the ball. I also made red and white cupcakes to go with the uniforms.

Anna and her coach--he was giving her her medal. She was hamming it up.

A few of the girls. Oceana, Abby and Mariah. I let Anna go free with the camera.

Here's the team after taking first place in the tournament. Having had to beat Philomath to get there. WOOHOO!!!!! I don't know if there was ever a sweeter victory!!!

Now we are off to indoor--first game is Tuesday!

How we spent our no school day

2008-10-10T18:53:00.001-07:00

We didn't do much, but we did enjoy the 5 minutes of sunshine.

Anna's season is ending soon and the mom who usually makes the cake isn't part of the team family anymore, so I thought I would make one. It's a good thing I practiced, I am not thrilled with the ball. I need to try a different black. I used frosting and I think I am going to try the gel next time. I am also making some soccer ball cupcakes to make sure there will be enough cake for all.

Quick Update

2008-10-09T08:21:00.000-07:00

So we finally heard from Geico--WooHoo!!! The car is most likely totaled. They are getting a rental car for us and applying the other person's deductible towards our claim. I'm not usre I understood it all, but long story short is what we get is the Kelly blue book for the car and a rental until we can replace the car. The guy said they couldn't assign a fault, but looking at thing's Kevin's side of the story was stronger than the other person's. And he promised our premium wouldn't change. All sorts of reasons were given as to why it took so long, the police report was not very detailed, couldn't get hold of the witness. Needless to say I am not sharing the couch with Mrs. Butterworth anytime soon.

On another note, I took Noah to the doctor the other day for frequent stomach aches. He had to "pee in a cup" giggle, giggle. (Just in case that needs clarifying--that was Noah's reaction). Everything checked out normal and we had to go down to X-ray to make sure it's all clear. Now we are awaiting results on that and keeping a "poop calendar" (Noah's words again). The joys of parenthood. If the result come back clear, I get to start him on Pepcid AC and see if that helps. There is also the possibility that it's just chronic tummy aches--as the doctor said, it's a bit nebulous,but very common. Kind of like growing pains. Not a real satisfactory choice in my book. And he goes to the allergist on Monday--hopefully they will be able to answer some questions and tell us how much wheat we can have in his diet.

Isaac's new smile--again

2008-10-08T10:02:00.000-07:00

Isaac lost another tooth. Now he is missing both front teeth. This one came out as he was eating, so thankfully we had none of the hysterics that come with pulling a tooth. Goofy shot, but you can totally see the spaces.

Anna's sleepover

2008-10-08T09:52:00.000-07:00

Anna had a sleepover last weekend. She plays soccer with Justice and we finally managed to get schedules to coordinate so we could have her over. We brought her home after soccer practice and the girls had to get all ready before we could go to dinner. Abby loves it when the bird is out.

After dinner we did a little shopping at the mall.

You gotta love Claire's right??? It's always fun to try things on.

I love this of Abby--she loves boas.

That night we made sock monkeys and watched a yawner of a movie (Ballet Shoes). But the girls still managed to have fun.

Cute girls!!

In the morning, I made a big breakfast and waxed their legs. We were going to paint toenails, but ran out of time so I just had them pick out a favorite color to keep. They both picked purples. It was a fun time.

My life since school has started....

2008-10-08T09:41:00.000-07:00

consists of soccer and soccer. Between Isaac and Anna I haven't had an evening off from soccer since September 24. The last couple of days I even had the joy of trying to be in 2 places at once. Monday, thankfully Anna's coach was willing to take her to her game and keep an eye out for her while I ran to Isaac's game. Yesterday Anna had to miss some of practice because Isaac had another game. There is a light at the end of this soccer tunnel. Both Anna and Isaac end next weekend. But then Anna's indoor starts. But that is only 1 day a week and lots of fun.

Everyone was kung-fu fighting--I mean playing soccer! Isaac taking a goal kick.

Having fun. He enjoys soccer and shows some skill. He handles the ball pretty well and can do a drop kick better than Anna. Anna has been working with him and it shows.

Way Overdue

2008-10-08T09:30:00.001-07:00

Kevin got hit by a truck a while ago (I just got the pictures). The driver ran a red light and BAM!! We are still waiting on insurance to come through. Not impressed with Geico at all. One would think that since both cars involved carry Geico, it would go fast. Needless to say, we will not be in one of those Geico commercials endorsing how quickly they made it better. We have been down to one car for the last month. Thanks to the nice people Kevin stays with and friends he hasn't been completely without transportation. But it would be nice if they could just make a decision.

Raingutter Regatta

2008-09-25T08:46:00.000-07:00

Noah had his Raingutter Regatta for cub scouts last night. His boat from this year never got finished--Mom lacks the skills to build a boat (and in all honesty, the desire to learn how). But luckily he found last year's boat and was able to race that one. He came in second--he couldn't get his breath for the last race. And since you need to be able to breath to win...

He had a great time.

Afterwards they enjoyed making ice cream sundaes and goofing off.

Abby and her little friend, Collin. Isn't he the cutest???

A shout out to Anna for taking the pictures. Another successful regatta behind us. Thanks to those who put it on!!

Isaac's New Smile

2008-09-22T08:34:00.001-07:00

Late Friday night after much wiggling, squirming and chickening out, Isaac lost his very first tooth that wasn't pulled by the dentist. Here is his new smile (and his shaggy hair). The tooth fairy had to leave change because that was all she had--good thing he didn't mind. He has 3 more loose up on the top. I think for Christmas all he'll be wanting is his two front teeth!

While the kids are gone...

2008-09-19T17:01:00.000-07:00

Abby and I will play. I took her to a favorite park and we played for an hour or so. We walked down by the river.

Slid on some slides.

Played "jail".

Climbed (and posed).

We had a great time. It's kind of fun to have time with just one. I think she likes it too.

2008-09-16T21:19:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I have posted any updates on our activities. But there hasn't been a whole lot to report!! Yippee!! I am so happy to have things be a little quieter for a little bit. The kids are loving school. Sorry, no picures. But I will post new ones soon.

Isaac did cause a bit of excitement as he fell off the monkey bars and hurt his arm. It hurt really bad at first, he even lost all color to his face. It made the people at school nervous, so I had to promise to take him to the doctor to be sure it wasn't broken. It wasn't. Now it only hurts if he has to clean or do something he doesn't want to. He also isn't eating his lunch at school. I had to threaten him that I would come and sit next to him to be sure he ate. He would just rather play.

Anna is loving middle school. I am sure she will follow in my social steps--I worked hard to earn that Most Talkative award in high school. She is busy with soccer and is lucky to have such a great bunch of girls to play with. She is also lucky to have a great coach, who takes the time and effort he does with them. They sure love him. As Abby and Isaac would say, "Coach rocks!" Anna has really improved over the summer and is playing her heart out. It's a pleasure to watch her play.

Noah is Noah--not much changes with him it seems. He is a very consistent child. He is mastering his sounds that annoy his mother and doing it well. He is enjoying school and comes home very day with a smile. He is going to be going to an allergist to see how we can better manage his wheat allergy. We are avoiding it, but his skin still isn't clearing up.

Abby is loving preschool. She would go every day. I think she enjoys her time alone with me and seems to have inherited the shopping gene from me. Every day when school lets out, she asks me 2 things, 1. "Can we eat out?" and 2. "Can we go shopping?" She is truly my child. I have to admit that I am enjoying my time with her as well.

As you can see, things are boring and calm at our house. If only I could keep up on the housework, life would be great!

First Day of School & other events

2008-09-04T17:19:00.000-07:00

So yesterday was the first day of school. I had 4 going to 3 different schools. First to leave were the boys. Noah is a 4th grader and Isaac is a 1st grader. They have a 3 minute walk to the bus stop--I was not invited.

Next off, was Anna. Her first day in middle school. Since we only live a 3 minute walk (in the opposite direction of the bus stop) she is my first to ever walk to school. She was nervous and wanted me to walk with her.

This was as far as I was allowed to go. I want it to be known that I was fully dressed and not in my normal see the kids off jammies. So Abby and I just stood there and waved and watched her go. A first for me--I haven't been the source of embarrassment before.

And last to go was Abby. Off to preschool. Oh happy day for both of us.

She went here last year and loved it. Her teacher, Miss Claudia, was Isaac's teacher and so it was a bit like going home for her.

They had tables set up with activities to distract the kids. Not that Abby needed a distraction. She sat right down and got to work and had no further thought for her old mom.

Straight from getting the kids to school, it was off to feed 90 hungry missionaries. I was helping my friend Hilary since it fell on her shoulders. It was a great success. My only sad complaint was I was not home when the kids got home from school on their first day. I don't think it affected them like it did me.

Another big event this week was Kevin getting in an accident Tuesday night. A Ford 250 ran a red light and took out his rear passenger side. Now we are in the waiting game for the insurance company to kick in. The thing that really is sad is that he can't make it home to see us this weekend. Anna has a soccer jamboree this weekend, playing 6 games in all--but thankfully due to the coach's schedule, we are able to be done by 9:30 Saturday morning. So we will head up to see him. I much prefer it when he comes home, but we do what we have to do. I will post pictures as I get them.

Because I know you all were wondering how my burn was healing, here is an update. It now itches like crazy.

One of those weeks

2008-08-28T09:04:00.000-07:00

I haven't been very good at updating. This week has been one I can hardly wait to be over. I have had a migraine for the last week, which always makes things nice. Not to mention my hair seems to be falling out and everything is going right through me--I know TMI. We started our week by running to get everything done before school starts and haven't stopped yet. I am hoping that once school is in session, things will slow down. We have had soccer practice and Anna's open house for middle school. Those lockers are kind of hard and we spent at least 30 minutes with her trying to open it herself. She saw most of the girls from her soccer team and that helped her feel better. She is one nervous kid. I finally made it to the grocery store yesterday, but had such little time got out of there with only half of what we needed. We have had cereal twice for dinner already this week. I made dinner for a woman in our ward that just had a baby (eked that in between the store and open house), but while taking it out of the oven, dropped the pan on my arm and now have a 3rd degree burn on my arm. I stung for a bit, but oddly, doesn't hurt. According to everything I read, it's because I have some nerve damage. I have to say I am grateful for that. I don't have time for pain.I also lost my cell phone--took it to park day and can't find it. I am sure it is around somewhere. Today should be a quieter day and it is looking up as I haven't got a bad headache yet. We have soccer practice from 6-7:30 and a preschool open house from 6:30-7:30. I promised the kids I would fix dinner so I have to go to the store as well. Truly I am glad tomorrow is Friday and I can end this week. I am hoping that by ending the week, things will start looking up. I know everyone has these weeks. But I just had to vent. Hope everyone is having a better week than us!!!!

Unwanted Visitors

2008-08-21T10:04:00.000-07:00

So last night as I was falling asleep I saw a couple of shadows on my blinds. I had to get up and investigate. This is what I found. 2 of these giant spiders crawling around. I hate spiders. When I was little we used to cover them cups and wait until my dad got home to get rid of them. This isn't the greatest picture, but I wasn't about to get close enough to get a better one. And the two spiders wouldn't cooperate so I could get them in the same shot. I knew I could not sleep with these two monsters in my room and nobody was around to help me get this. I did think of waking up Abby, our spider killer, but since it was after midnight I decided to let her sleep. I went after them with the fly swatter. I could see evidence of having gotten one. But not the other one. Needless to say I couldn't sleep for a long time. Did I mention I hate spiders???

Weekend Update

2008-08-18T09:03:00.000-07:00

We took off Friday to spend some time in Portland, school shopping, visiting Kevin and just plain old having fun. I didn't take as many pictures as I should have. We shopped along the way and just took our time. The kids were fascinated by the temperature gage in the car. At it's highest it said 110 degrees. That is too hot. But thankfully we were in the cool car with slurpees. We got to Portland and hit some of the stores we don't have down here. Then we had dinner at:

It has a corn rotelle that Noah can eat. You get sick of eating lettuce wrapped burgers or tacos. It was as usual, yummy.

We got up Saturday morning and went swimming.

Dads play differently than moms.After swimming, Kevin had to work--he was on call and got a few calls. So the kids and I had another lettuce wrapped burger--we wanted to try a pizza pace that had gluten free crust, but it was closed. And then we hit Washington Square. Since it was 100 degrees outside, so did everyone else. It was too crowded, but our mission was accomplished. I had to exchange the kids shoes at Nordstrom (I got them during the sale, but they didn't fit for Abby and Anna). The boys were happy to see a Lego store and could have spent the whole day there. As it is, they spent the rest of the day looking in the catalogue and talking about it.

Before we went up there, I looked on line at where we could eat that were wheat free. We went to a place call Corbett Fish house. Everything there is made with rice flour and Noah safe. The kids were not super thrilled--it's not the fish they grew up eating. But Kevin and I liked it. Because it's only dredged in rice flour, you have more fish taste and less batter taste. Kevin and I shared the full boat and it had a few pieces of chili-dipped catfish, yummy but with a bit of a kick, halibut, cod and oyster. Not liking oysters, we substituted for more cod. The pieces were more like nuggets, but they were good. The sad thing is, Noah wasn't thrilled and it was for him that we went searching for this place.

After dinner it was time to head home. We got a spectacular lightning show most of the way home and even some rain. And early this morning it poured. Although it was before 6 am, it was a beautiful sound. It meant it wouldn't be so freakin' hot anymore!!!!

Random Thoughts

2008-08-14T11:12:00.000-07:00

* It is very wrong for me to get excited that I got gas yesterday for $3.75 a gallon. It still cost me $90 to fill up. I coasted in on fumes. It was exciting to realize though, that I hadn't filled up since July 17th.

* We went school supply shopping yesterday. Got all the stuff on Noah and Isaac's lists. Got new lunch bags as well. Spent $70. Still have 2 kids to buy for. Anyone else see something wrong with this picture?

* I have to admit to enjoying the Olympics this year. I stay up every night and watch them. I have them recorded though, so I don't have to watch the commercials. I think my favorite is Michael Phelp's mother. And I need to admit to fast forwarding through routines to see if the gymnasts fall before going back and watching it--it just makes me nervous!!!

* 18 days until school starts!!! I am looking forward to routine and a schedule once again. I will have to admit summer hasn't been as bad as I had dreaded. Thanks to all those that visited and made summer fly by! The kids were really good. It is a bit daunting to think that Anna will be entering middle school this year. It should be noted that 3 out the 4 children will be in school all day!!!

* We have been on a basically wheat free diet for 3 weeks. Noah's skin is much better. He hasn't thrown up from coughing and his breathing is much improved. Aside from being sick of Mexican themed food, we are doing pretty well. Although I could go for a big, huge donut!!! My favorite are buttermilk bars.

More Soccer Camp

2008-08-11T20:32:00.000-07:00

Anna went to soccer camp again last week. She complained of being sore-- I took that as a sign of a good camp. She got lucky and one of her teammates was also signed up for camp as well. Here's Anna with Maddie. The last day they invited the families to come and watch them do some drills.

I should have had Anna wear her striped socks so she would stand out.

The kids, plus Ellie (my friend Hilary was sick and so I scooped Ellie up for the morning, much to the family's delight--we just love this little girl. Her parents are OK too.). Every time the camera comes out Ellie settles into this cheese position--I love it.

The kids were bored, but well behaved. I especially liked the way that Charlie was lying.

Anna and her favorite coach.

The whole group.

Practices have begun. It seems as though I have blinked and out break from soccer is over. Not to mention summer.

Even More Visitors!!

2008-08-11T19:53:00.001-07:00

Thursday afternoon when I went to post these pictures, the Internet was down. So I am a bit slow in getting this post up. Last week we had more visitors. My good friend from Spokane, who is living in Sisters, OR now, packed up her 3 kids and ventured the 2 hour drive to our house. Her husband was on the 50 mile hike for his ward, and as you know, Kevin was up in Hillsboro working. It was great fun having Lonnie and the kids here. The first day we splurged and went to the cheap seats and saw Space Chimps, which the kids loved. We also splurged with a fine dining experience at the Buffet ( I had 2 coupons for 2 kids free with one adult). It is a place that the kids love to go to and it has better options for wheat free dining. We also went to park day with my ward for a bit. Here's Porter, Abby and Makenna.

Isaac being the daredevil.

Makenna, 7, showing her climbing prowess, as well as her cute smile.

Abby, showing her climbing abilities.

That afternoon, some of the group went blackberry picking. It's just around the corner from our house. Makenna and Abby showing off their treasure.

Anna

Lonnie and Abby.

After they came back in with their berries, we made milkshakes and had ice cream with the berries on top. It was a heavenly treat.

That night we took the kids to Applebee's. On Wednesdays the kids meals are only 99 cents. It was perfect because we were doing a bit of shopping and then off to the pool. We got a ton of stares whenever we went out. We were a bit of a freak show with just 2 women and 7 kids. Here's Isaac and Porter.

The girls: Anna, Makenna, Abby and Charlie.

It seems to be tradition for me to take friends to the pool. The pictures may get old, but going never does. Abby posing, with Makenna and Porter in the background.

Lonnie and Charlie.

I loved this picture of Porter.

Once again, the girls. In the distance you can see Noah and Isaac playing.

Anna and Charlie.

Lonnie headed back Thursday afternoon. We had lunch at DQ before she went. Noah tried some chicken strips and ended up with red splotches on his inner elbows. Guess that wheat thing is for reals. Not long after Lonnie left, my friend Laura's, three children were dropped off to spend the next 2 days with us since Laura and her husband had gone to a wedding in Palmyra.

It was a busy week and to top it off I taught in Relief Society on Sunday. The topic was Finding Hope and Consolation in the Time of Death. It was a tough one for me, as the subject hits very close to home. I struggled through it and it was hard for me to follow my thoughts and notes. I am hoping that it wasn't just one big confusing mess. Have I mentioned I hate teaching???

Block Party

2008-08-04T08:17:00.000-07:00

We had our annual Block Party this past Saturday. We live in a great neighborhood and have wonderful neighbors. We had lots of good food, good company and good times. We brought our slide and here are the kids all lined up getting directions on how to play nicely. Having fun.

All the kids waited very patiently.

It was a bring your meat and something to share BBQ/potluck.

This is Newman, for an older dog, he manages to get a hot dog from Abby each year. He sits patiently waiting....

This is Isaac and his buddy Trey. Trey lives to the left of us. He is such a sweet boy. I love that he and Isaac enjoy playing together. No worries when they are together. They are both going to be in first grade.

Trevor and Curt.

We had a major Star Wars battle going on--as well as Ping Pong.

Isaac.

Andrea and Charlie. They belong to Trevor (in photos above). We love these guys. Abby thinks she is going to marry their older little boy, Carson. Andrea is patient enough to let Anna hang with her, a lot. Of all the neighbors we will miss, they are probably the ones I really wish we could bring with us.

We are so lucky to have a neighborhood where people get along and genuinely like each other. The party started at 4 and went strong until 10. Another successful block party. I am seriously thinking of crashing next year's!!!

More Visitors

2008-08-01T09:36:00.000-07:00

My friend Heather, her 4 children and their dog came for an impromptu visit this week. They arrived late Monday night and stayed until Thursday afternoon. The first night they were there, she got the kids settled and we then proceeded to stay up until about 6:30 am. Needless to say, we didn't do a whole lot Tuesday. Although the kids got along famously and had a lot of fun playing together. That night we went to bed a little earlier (at 4) and were better able to function Wednesday. We went to the park for Park day in our ward and then we went swimming. That night we went to bed earlier, 3 am. I told Heather if she stayed a bit longer we would eventually get to a decent bed time. But that is probably not true. When we served together in Stuttgart, our heads would hit the pillows at the 10:30 bedtime and we would then proceed to talk the night away. We never seem to run out of things to say. I can honestly say I do not laugh as hard or as consistently as I do. Sometimes our husbands just look at us and wonder how some memory could really be that funny. Here are some pictures of what we did.

Believe it or not Perry, Heather's 2 1/2 year old is having fun here. I was lucky enough to be bale to swim with Lilah the whole night. When she got cold I got to get out, bundle up in towels with her and hold her while she slept, and watch the others have fun swimming.

James, 6, playing in the water.

Abby and Grace, both 4, got along so well. They had so much fun together, it was truly a delight to watch them together.

We went to Skinner's Butte park. Here is Lilah on the picnic blanket. Such a happy, good natured, chubby baby. An absolute joy.

It took about 5 minutes and lots of dragging to achieve this masterpiece. I thought it would be a great picture and probably would have if all had cooperated. But really 8 kids and cooperation? What was I thinking?

This was Perry's hiding spot.

Looks like they were playing Follow the Leader.

Abby, in jail.

Isaac, with Grace and James in the background.

Anna and her new best friend, Cindabella Buzz. Heather's kids named her. She's 3. Anna had her sleep in her room with her and took her for walks. She is a great dog. Patient with kids and listens well. Anna wanted to keep her.

Grace refused to smile for me. I count this as a victory.

My boys playing on the swings.

The girls played dress up. Grace really is happy and asked for her picture to be taken.

Even Lilah got to play dress up.

Perry would randomly just start wrestling with Isaac. Isaac enjoyed it and it was fun to hear Perry laugh.

The house seemed awfully quiet when they left. There was lots of noise, laughter and fun while they were here. We are so glad Heather was willing to drive down with 4 kids and a dog to visit with us. The kids are already talking about next time. Thanks for coming!!!

Good News

2008-07-28T18:37:00.000-07:00

As I have been researching what Noah can eat and what he needs to stay away from, I found some good news. McDonald's is off limits. Even their french fries have wheat and soy. Lucky me, I can now honestly tell the kids that we can't eat at McDonald's.

As for other fast food places, most of them have a convenient chart that lets you know which of the "big 8" allergens are in their foods. So at a quick glance we are able to tell what Noah can have. It is limited, but at least there are options.

On another fun note, my friend, and old mission companion, is on her way down to my house with her 4 kids. I have so much fun with her. We used to stay up until all hours talking while on our mission.

Just in Case....

2008-07-26T20:41:00.000-07:00

you wanted to follow our dietary journey into a wheat free and soy free world, I will be posting what we eat and recipes on the What's for Dinner site. So click on when you feel like and explore with us.

More on Noah

2008-07-24T10:23:00.000-07:00

Because I am so overwhelmed by this, I am feeling the need to share. As I was researching soy allergies, this is what I found. I did read that soy oil and soy lecithin do not tend to cause allergic reactions because the soy protein has been removed.

Common Sources / Foods Containing Soy

Baby food
Canned fish
Chocolates (creamed centres)
Cooking oils
High protein bars / foods
Ice cream/frozen desserts
Dessert mixes
Margarine
Mayonnaise
Meat products
Powdered meal replacers
Sauces (asian, gravy, soy, Worcestershire)
Shortenings
Soy/tofu cheese
Soy yogurt
Baked goods
Breakfast cereals (mixed grain/multi grain)
Infant cereals
High protein flour and bread
Stuffings
Mixed sprouts
Salad sprouts
Salad dressings
Canned soup/dried soup mixes
Vegetarian meat replacers
Frozen dinners
Mixed bean preparation
Prepared sauces eg. Barbecue, oriental etc.
Chocolate

Between the two lists, I am thinking a list of foods that he can eat would be a whole lot easier to deal with. My pantry and food storage are filled with these things.

Noah's News

2008-07-23T21:50:00.000-07:00

Last week Noah had a blood test to see what he is allergic to, in hopes of getting his eczema and asthma under control. The results came in today:
High--Grasses and Mold--(Eugene has some of the highest, if not the highest, in the country for both these)
Moderate and need to be avoided--Wheat and Soy
Mild--Corn

What this means is, Noah will be on 2 allergy medications, a nasal spray and have his inhaler at the ready at all times. He will continue to have to use steroid ointments and AquaPhor twice a day and try to keep all wheat and soy products out of his body. Here's what I have found so far:

Common Names of Wheat and gluten containing products / Always contains it

Gluten /Vital Gluten
Durum wheat
Triticale (wheat and rye blend)
White flour
All-purpose flour
Wholewheat flour
Semolina (refined durum flour)
Couscous (cracked wheat)
Kamut
Spelt
Graham flour
Bulgar (partially cooked and toasted cracked wheat)
Wholemeal flour
Plain and self-raising flour
Barley (extract, flavour, flour, malt)
Farro
Farina
polenta

Common Sources / Foods Containing Wheat

Bread – pitta, Chapatiis and naan bread
Most kinds of rye bread (unless states 100% rye)
BAKED GOODS - Cookies, Pastries, Buns, scones, cakes, muffins
Pizza
Battered or breaded products
Pastas
Baking powder
Packet sauce mixes
Seasonings
Dressings and sauces
Condiments
Vinegar (if derived from wheat grains)
Tinned soups
Most breakfast cereals
Some rye crispbreads
Crumpets, pancakes (buckwheat pancakes unless states 100% buckwheat)
Pies
Sausages
Ice cream
Taramasalata (contains breadcrumbs)
Mustards and mayonnaise (check labels)
Stock cubes
Beer, vodka, gin
Soy sauce
Ready-made foods, sauces
Most muesli’s
Candy

I am going to the bookstore tomorrow to check out cookbooks and get a feel for my options. If anyone has any good recipes, suggestions or info, I would be grateful!!!

Friends

2008-07-21T09:26:00.000-07:00

I'm sure you all have someone in your life that even if it's been a couple of years since you have seen them, when you finally get together, it's as though it was just yesterday that you were together. Our friends Peter & Lonnie are like that. We were in the same ward in Spokane way back when Peter & Lonnie had just gotten married and we just had Anna & Noah. They are now living on the other side of the mountains from us in Sisters, OR. (it's only 2 hours away and we saw more of them they were in Utah and we were in Spokane) They came for dinner yesterday. Here is their daughter Charlie--she is so sweet. Even though it was the first time seeing me, she was ready and willing to let me hold her and hug her. Abby LOVED having Makenna here.

I was trying to remember the first time I met them and can't really remember. I just look back on our time in Spokane (before they ditched us for Utah) and it seems like they were always there. Celebrating birthdays, New Year's, getting 2 months of home teaching for the price of one by coming at 11 and leaving at 2, and lots more.

It would be nice if they would start looking older--make us old people feel a little better!!! But no, they're just as darling as ever.

From just our two kids when we first met, to this brood. They all played so well together--the only squabbling was between Abby and Isaac.

This is how we found Abby a few minutes after Peter & Lonnie left. After the week the kids and I had, I don't blame her.

It was a great ending to a wonderful, but hectic week. I can't even begin to explain how happy I was to see them again. It was kind of like coming home. You only get that with a few people in your life. And these are truly 2 of my very favorite people in my life. Thanks for coming!!! See you next weekend!

Visitors!!!!

2008-07-19T16:31:00.000-07:00

My sister's girls, Maggie (10) and Olivia (14) hopped on a plane and came and spent the week with us. (Have patience-- I have updated and posted a lot of pictures--just keep scrolling!!!!) Abby was in heaven with her cousins here.

We went swimming at Amazon twice--once with Hilary, Mark & Ellie. Anna & Maggie went with Anna's coach. Since we were in the high 90's, it felt good. The kids especially liked this slide. But they shot through so fast I kept getting just splashes.

I was thrilled that Isaac and Abby could go down the slide by themselves.

Maggie and Noah were brave enough to go off the platform. Noah even cannonballed--but then his rear was sore. He went off the platform 17 times.

Anna, Olivia & Maggie

We also managed to squeeze in a movie, shopping and lots of laughter. It was hard to let them get on the plane this morning (but even harder to get up before 6 to get them there!!!). I was good though, and waited until they were out of sight before the tears fell. I love these girls and am so glad they were able to come stay with us. I don't see near enough of them.

Going to the Beach

2008-07-19T15:39:00.000-07:00

On Thursday we climbed into the car and headed for the coast after soccer camp. It's only about an hour away. Our first stop was the Heceta Head Lighthouse. It's a half mile hike up to the lighthouse. A very pretty view from the top. This lighthouse is one of the most photographed lighthouses on the Oregon Coast. I'm sure it's much more fantastic when you can see the water and scenery.

All the grandkids (except Makiah, who is too young, 18 months, to fly down to Oregon to visit).

After the lighthouse, we stopped for ice cream and salt water taffy. It is a tradition. Our family's favorite place to visit on the coast is the Oregon Dunes Overlook Day park.

This is the view as you come out of the little forest that leads the way to the ocean. They may look like small hills, but they are huge. Our legs felt like Jell-o afterwards.

This is the view just as you start on the trail back to the car. We had to get to the top of that big hill.

Once at the coast it was beautiful. we gathered sand dollars and seashells.

Drew pictures.

Had the beach all to ourselves for as far as we could see--both ways.

Played a bit in the water--just our toes. It was freezing!

And wrote names in the sand.

On the way home, the kids found things to do to entertain themselves. Such as rolling salt water taffy into a ball,

or balancing sand dollars on noses.

All in all, it was a fun day. The car is filled with sand and I am sure there are some nooks and crannies where you would still find sand on the kids. My only complaint is that it went by too fast.

Soccer Camp

2008-07-19T15:26:00.000-07:00

Anna and her cousin, Maggie went to soccer camp at the University of Oregon this past week. A few of Anna's team mates also went. They had a blast.

They practiced inside on the football field. Last time it was too hot to be outside. And I think they were trying to be prepared.

Here are the girls the last morning.

A group shot during the morning meeting. They really separated the ages this year and so the groups were small. Anna and Maggie only had 7-8 girls in their group. It was recommended by the head of the soccer department that the girls do the residential camp next year with the older kids. I'll have to think about that one.

The last day they have a contest to see who can get the most "ducked out".

Their coach was also a good sport. Not only did he spend his vacation taking girls to and from soccer camp, he took them swimming and on a hike. It is a brave man who is willing to be in a van full of girls and do all that. We are so lucky to have him!!!

More Birthday Pictures

2008-07-19T12:39:00.000-07:00

At the coast.

We waited for Kevin to get home to have cake and presents. Here's Anna and her presents. All clothes and a book ( I keep forcing them on her!). Scary thing is, Olivia and I did most of the shopping at Forever 21 and other teenager type stores. All gathered round the food! We had burgers and baked beans.

What party would be complete without leg wrestling??? With Olivia, leg wrestling isn't too far behind. She is quite good. Although I want to point out that I can beat her in arm wrestling. Here is a play by play of her losing to Kevin.

This one is so for you Olivia!!! I love you!

Soundly beaten.

The other kids had their try. Here's Maggie and Isaac.

Maggie was kind enough to let Abby win.

Blowing out the candles and being the birthday princess.

Happy Birthday Anna!!!

2008-07-18T15:51:00.000-07:00

Some may have noticed I took a week off from blogging. We had special guests at our house (my nieces, Olivia & Maggie) and we have been very busy!!! Anna celebrated her 11th birthday on Thursday and even though I was a loser and didn't get the blog updated in time, we did spend a wonderful day at the coast. And, as with the other kids, the only pictures we have stored in the computer are from the end of 2003. Here she is the night before Abby was born. Her first time holding Abby--she is so happy to have a sister!!

We have lots of these shots!!!

Abby's blessing day.

Halloween--isn't she cute!!!

Lovin' the boots!!!!

I just liked this one.

She is going to hate this one!!!

Having fun at Grandma's house.

Anna and a couple of friends from soccer.

Red Robin after a day at the beach, on her birthday.

Keeping Cool

2008-07-12T08:18:00.000-07:00

It has been in the high 90's the past week. One morning my friend Hilary and I piled in the car and went to Amazon pool. I didn't get very good pictures as I was the only parent to my three (Noah was at day camp for scouts) and Hilary was too busy chasing Ellie who didn't want to be touched. She thought she should roam free as she pleased. Sitting pretty enjoying an otter pop.

This pool has 2 shallow pools, a huge big pool with a few diving boards and a slide that drops off. It also has a sand area and these little water spouts. The kids had a blast even though not everything was open due to swim lessons.

Anna and Ellie-- a brief moment where she was still.

It doesn't seem to want to be cooling down anytime soon. I really wish it would rain!!!

Happy Birthday Mom!!

2008-07-10T09:33:00.000-07:00

Happy birthday to you!!! Mom was born about 29 years ago today. She was born in Seattle and has spent her whole life in the Seattle area. She went to the U of W to become a nurse but chose to stay at home with the kids. She married my dad and they had 2 beautiful girls and managed to take in a couple of wonderful boys who look to them as parents. She is now a very young and beautiful grandma to 5 darling girls and 2 handsome boys. She has been a wonderful wife, mother and friend. I am so glad she is mine. Here she is with Dad when Anna was baptized. With 3 of her girls.

With all 4 of mine.

And with the youngest, Makiah.

From all of us in Eugene, We love you and hope you have a great day!!!

Our House Guest

2008-07-07T21:15:00.000-07:00

Meet Callie. She belonged to the father of a dear friend. He recently passed away and my dear friend was driving 1 hour (one way) a couple of times a day to feed Callie. She was staying at her mother in law's for a family reunion. When I heard this, I volunteered to let Callie come to our house. I would do pretty much anything for this friend as she was one of my pillars when my dad died. Callie came on Saturday. She was so sad, you could see it in her eyes. It broke my heart. She probably could have slept on my bed if she could have gotten her fat little self up there. This is how her life here was. The kids adored her and wanted to be with her every minute. She finally took refuge behind the couch.

Abby was very good at reminding me when she needed her medicine (so she can fly) and that she needed food. Callie was very good at letting Abby pet her all day long and call her, "Girly".

Isaac so wants a dog and loved Callie from minute one. He quickly volunteered to pick up the poop and take her on walks. He cried as we left her. This is one boy who should have a dog. Unfortunately for him, he has a mom that is through with the cleaning up poop stage in life. I do love dogs, and even I was sad to give her up.

Anna was very good with Callie and really the only person besides me Callie would go for a walk with.

Noah was the only one who managed to dodge the pooper scooper duty. Not quite sure how he managed that one. He, too is very sad to have had to give her up.

Callie will soon be on her way to live with a family member in Arkansas. She was a very quiet and easy house guest. She only barked a couple times. It was fun having her and great for the kids to work on the responsibility of owning a pet. And although the experience was great, we still only have pet rocks in this house.

Happy 4th of July part 2

2008-07-05T15:04:00.001-07:00

We went to our friend's house for a yummy dinner and great company. I just had to show off my Jell-o, it turned out so cute. Ellie enjoyed the darling red, white and blue cupcakes her mom, Hilary made.

Here's a shot of our desserts-- that yummy lemon cake from Costco, cute star cupcakes, the Jell-o and root beer floats. Considering that followed a delicious meal of grilled burgers and hot dogs, homemade potato salad and baked beans, watermelon and chips.

Isaac on top of the slide.

Abby and Ellie having fun.

She loves the water and kept pouring buckets of icy cold water all over herself.

All the kids playing.

Noah and Isaac playing with bubbles.

After indulging we went downtown to watch the fireworks put on by the city. Ellie kept saying wow and look and awesome. Our whole family enjoyed that probably more that the fireworks. On our way home Abby and Isaac fell almost immediately asleep. Good times were had by all. Thanks to Mark and Hilary for a great night.

Happy 4th of July part 1

2008-07-04T16:37:00.000-07:00

Every year the ward has a breakfast and parade for the kids. They always love this. Abby posing with her bike.

Anna and Ellie--too cute!

Isaac and Noah--they had some good looking bikes!

Abby suprised me one day and recited The Pledge of Alliegance. She learned it at school

Cooking Lesson #3

2008-07-01T18:53:00.000-07:00

It was Noah's night tonight. We went with something quick and easy that he loves. Cheeseburgers. I should have grilled them, but it was too hot and the air quality is so bad, those of us with allergies are hiding inside! He had lots of fun smooshing the meat. As you can see, not everyone wanted a cheeseburger, so Noah was a short order cook. Hot dog for Abby, turkey burger for me.

Here he is with his dinner. He was pretty pleased with himself. I only had to call him back into the kitchen 4 or 5 times. It was a good thing we were in a hurry and only had chips and slurpees with it. Cooking does not hold his attention.

The happy family.

Anna made tacos/taco salads on Sunday. We counted that as her turn, but I didn't get her pictures taken. I'm going to count her next turn as her first. All the kids, except for Noah, have taken to helping in the kitchen. Maybe if I could find a way to make cooking like a video game....

Weekend Update

2008-06-30T08:40:00.000-07:00

We had extra visitors this weekend. Kevin was putting the slide away and there was a family of snakes underneath it. They were pretty fast, but I managed to get this one. The kids were fascinated.

Other than the snakes, we had a quiet weekend. I find I like those. It was just too hot to be outside. I am not a fan of the high 90's, overcast and the air filled with smoke from the fires in California. I am suffering from allergies. For those of you who don't know, we live just downwind of the grass capitol of the world and Oregon has the highest pollen/grass count of the country. So my house is shut tightly with the air conditioning on and we go outside as little as possible!!

The highlight of the weekend was when my friend Heather and her family came for a visit. It was short and hectic and sadly I did not get any pictures. They were on their way home from Bandon and a week long family reunion. Heather and I were companions together on our mission. We have kept in touch and try to get together whenever we can. She lives up by my mom now, so that helps.

Sunday was a quiet day. We played a few games as a family and fixed dinner as a family. It was kind of nice. The best part was, we even cleaned up as a family. We were going to make ice cream, but it's been so long that I forgot it takes a while for the drum to freeze. So I am off to find another ice cream maker, or just another bowl so we can have twice as much. When I looked at the bowl, I realized, we are no longer a one bowl kind of family.

Now we're off to Target and Costco!!

Cooking Lesson #2

2008-06-26T21:48:00.000-07:00

Today was Isaac 's turn to help in the kitchen. He didn't really care what he made, just as long as he got to cook in the crockpot. Go figure. He chose enchilada casserole, spanish rice and refried beans. Such a poser. It was an easy dish for him to help with.

I think tearing up the tortillas was his favorite.

Here is the final result.

He looks pretty pleased with his meal.

The kids have been loving this and it hasn't been so horrible. I like seeing the joy on their faces as they complete their tasks and they seem to enjoy dinner more.

Next up: Anna

To All My Friends in or from the Seattle Area

2008-06-25T09:52:00.000-07:00

So I was thinking a get together would be fun. I would be willing to plan it and get everything coordinated. What I need from you is dates and times you might be in town and if you are interested in this. I am thinking--my mother willing, a BBQ at Mom's with swimming, bocce ball, croquet, all sorts of fun things. Just comment when you might be in town or email me.

Cooking Lesson #1

2008-06-24T20:18:00.000-07:00

Anyone who knows me, knows I have many quirks in the kitchen. My food has to be color coordinated, it has to be attractive and I never test a new recipe with anyone other than family to name a few. In my attempts to loosen my control and pass some time this summer, the kids are participating in cooking dinners. Each child has an assigned night and gets to help plan the menu. We look at the ads and see what's on sale, listen to our cravings and plan from accordingly. Abby wanted to go first. She picked Hamburger Patties in Gravy. Here she is fixing the corn. Since you can't get the potato pearls in cans anymore, we decided to try the ones from Costco. I'd have to have them side by side to see if I could tell a difference. They are no substitute for the real thing, but I am not ready to have Abby wielding a knife (as she was a very hands on helper!) Here she is stirring the potatoes.

I think this was her favorite and most successful dish. Berry blue Jell-o with pears. She was so proud she stirred it all by herself!

She got to bless the food and have the very first bite. We all had to thank her for her meal. When I hadn't, I got a reminder to:"Say thanks for fixing my dinner, Mom".

Next is Isaac's turn.

Weekend Update

2008-06-23T08:36:00.000-07:00

Friday was a quiet night due to a horrible migraine. Anna was a great helper and fixed chili dogs for dinner.

Saturday I watched a friend's children (2, 9 & 10) so she could have a night away for her anniversary. My friend Lark and her family came over for dinner--to give me adult conversation since Kevin was on call and help out with the kids. Not that the kids were hard, but her husband helped me get the slide set up and the grill going. We grilled hamburgers, turkey burgers, hot dogs and chicken & apple sausages. But the main event was the slide. They always have so much fun on this and this was the first time of the season. Kevin showed up in the middle of it as a surprise. He has a friend at work who volunteered to take his Saturday night so he could come home. It was a nice surprise. The shots aren't all that great, but the kids didn't really want to stop and pose. Except for mine of course.

We are the popular ones on the block when this comes out.

Abby--posing as only she can!

Yesterday we made it to church--all 6 kids in tow. And because I had so many leftovers, I asked my friends Mark and Hilary to come for dinner. We had a nice evening, good food, good conversation, good company. Good times. I think their daughter Ellie, might have had the most fun. She's a year and a half and was having so much fun playing with the kids and outside.

By bedtime I was ready to collapse. And now it is Monday morning and another week has begun. Our first full week without school. I'll let you know if we all survive!!!

Abby's New Smile

2008-06-19T19:29:00.000-07:00

Abby's look was forever altered today with the removal of one of her front teeth. She was a very brave girl and didn't complain once (until she got home!). She even let Dr. Dunne know they were still friends before leaving the office. I'm sure if he didn't have the nitrous oxide (that is what she is breathing in this picture), she probably wouldn't like him as much. Right after getting up from the chair. I love that summer has brought out her freckles--or is it the paleness from just having a tooth yanked from her mouth?? I opt for the former.

I was so glad to walk into my room and see this. Normally I cringe when one of the kids fall asleep before bedtime, but she was not having a good time and was letting me know it every 30 seconds or so. I looked at this as a blessed reprieve. Of course tonight at 11:30 when it's just the 2 of us, I won't be singing that tune. Never satisfied, I know.

The gaping hole the tooth left behind.

Her new grin. This picture is after nap. She woke up happy and feeling no pain. She got to pick dinner and had tomato soup and jell-o, with apple juice. She kept asking if these were things that Isaac had picked when he had work done. I so wish my kids would not try and keep a mental tally of who got what!!!

It's a pretty cute smile, but it makes her look older. Wasn't quite ready for the baby of the family to start getting visited by the Tooth Fairy!

School's Out...

2008-06-19T19:15:00.000-07:00

Last day of school was yesterday. Of course I was scrambling getting last minute details done. Here are the cupcakes I made for their teachers. They also got a Willow Tree angel that each child handpicked for the teachers. Here's Noah with his teacher. Sometimes his talkative ways are too much for anyone. And she had to deal with it everyday!

Isaac graduated kindergarten and is now on his way to 1st grade and all day school!!!

The last day of school was always hard for me as I wept all the way home because I would miss my friends. There were tears and sadness from teachers and children yesterday. I know this sounds like a bragging moment, but I have really good kids and the teachers all enjoyed having them in their classes. I think my kids had great teachers. Noah could have been pushed a bit harder--but I could have pushed harder as well. All in all it was a successful year that we are sad (some more than others) to see be over.

Abby's tooth

2008-06-17T16:42:00.000-07:00

So we woke up Saturday morning to a puffy lip. She complained the night before that her lip hurt. I figured she had just bumped it and it would be fine in the morning. WRONG! I put a call in to the dentist and soon heard back from one his wonderful women that work with him, then a few minutes later, heard from him.

She had had some work done on this tooth. The first time it ever got worked on, the original dentist didn't do it properly or get all the cavity out and so it had to be fixed. Last week the filling fell out and we were in to get it repaired. Almost a week later, this. Dr. Dunne--who is a great guy and the kids adore him--called in a prescription for her to try and get the infection down. We are on that for 10 days, but go in Thursday to have him look at it. It is our hope to keep the tooth, but it probably won't be. I have to give him credit for trying, this was the third attempt to keep her smile intact. We'll see on Thursday whether the smile is the same or if she is going to be wanting her front tooth for Christmas.

Field Day

2008-06-16T16:11:00.001-07:00

Things are a lot different than when I had field day at school. There isn't any competition for one. But the kids all had fun anyway. The parachute brought back memories. I loved that as a kid. The water station was everybody's favorite. Thankfully summer seems to have arrived and we were able to enjoy the nice weather. Abby was a good sport as I had to wake her up in order to get to Isaac's and Noah's. Then she and Isaac had to be schlepped back in order to not leave Anna out of the festivities.

Play day at the Park

2008-06-11T20:34:00.000-07:00

Play days at the park have begun again. My friend Lark called me this morning and convinced me to go. Because it's good for the kids, I went. They had a blast. Isaac thinks he is quite the expert climber. I love this little girl. Her name is Ellie and I would keep her if I could. She is just darling. Great job catching herself here. And good mom that Hilary is, she is running to save her. What do I do? Pull out the camera because it's such a priceless picture. (I would have saved her--after the picture was taken)

Isaac and his friend Jacob on the teeter-totter. Jacob's older sister was on the other side being a great helper to the smaller kids.

This thing spins round and round. It took me a minute to figure how it worked (I sat down, pushed with my legs a couple times and then sat criss-cross applesauce), but once I did I went so fast I almost puked. I am not a good one for round and round toys. Abby loved it though.

One of the kids that came to play got to ride this cool tractor from his house. He had no problems sharing.

I think that Kara might have had the most fun. Lark told her not to get wet. She was hilarious to watch. I think she had sand in every little crack and crevice and it was glued to her face because of her runny nose. I love this little girl.

Dad

2008-06-09T11:21:00.000-07:00

Dear Dad,

It was 2 years ago today that you were taken from us. I wanted you to know, that we are doing pretty good. We miss you every day and wish that you were still here. But we have learned that our ways are not always the Lord's ways. (Some of us have taken a lot longer to learn than others!) I wanted to thank you for being my dad. For teaching me so many things. Strength through affliction, the value of hard work, humility and gratitude just to name a few. You never once yelled at mom. There was never a question that you loved her. You did more than just love her, you adored her. The kids and I talk about you all the time. Even though a couple of them were too young to have clear memories of you to last a lifetime, know that they are being raised to know you. Enough time has passed that mostly we laugh and smile with remembrance, but tears are still shed for you. Please know that we know that you are watching over us and loving us where you are. I miss you dad and love you more than I could ever say!

Love, Kimberly

Here's Dad playing with the kids.

Fixing the best sausage, gravy and biscuits ever made.
Even though the voice was gruff, it only hid the big softy inside.
Always supportive of the kids.

I can still hear his laughter. For those who have heard it, you know what I mean!

He loved the babies and they loved him.

He served his country in Vietnam and quietly instilled faith and patriotism in his family. He put this flag pole up right after having been at my house helping me put up a fence.

*Arah, I had this all done before reading your tribute to Sierra--weird!

Weekend Update

2008-06-09T11:09:00.000-07:00

This weekend Kevin and I watched P.S. I Love You. Grab a Kleenex!! I wept through the whole thing. But I do have to say I enjoyed it. I would highly recommend this to anyone who wants a good cry.

This is the best book I have read in a long time. When I finished reading it, I immediately went online and ordered one for my mom and one for my sister. Even if you don't enjoy reading, this is an absolute must.

Our weekend was nice and quiet. We (Kevin and the kids)worked in the yard when weather permitted. The kids went to a birthday party down the street.

Yesterday we grilled turkey burgers for dinner, played a few games and watched a National Treasure 2 together (I snored throughout it, I was informed).

Not an overly active weekend, but after having had soccer and busyness it was a welcome change.

Anna informed me that there are only 6 1/2 more days of school. By the end of the day that will be down to a devastating 5 1/2. Maybe if the summer weather would ever come I might not be so grumpy about it...nah, who am I trying to kid???

Hope you all had pleasant weekends.

Noah Updates

2008-06-04T14:59:00.000-07:00

Noah became a Bear last night. Here we are after he pinned the mother's pin on me.

Here Noah is with my friend Nicki, the Den Leader.

So Tuesday night was the third of 3 installments of Music nights at the elementary school. Lucky me, the way they broke it up I had kids in all three nights. Lucky for you I only brought the camera one night. The video is so typical boy. Mostly just standing there, barely moving their lips and smiling.

Feeding the Goats

2008-05-31T08:07:00.000-07:00

We went out to the goat farm yesterday when the kids got home from school. They love going there. It's a great farm with a cute store filled with local produce, great baskets from Ghana, ice cream and other goodies. It also has a playground for the kids to play on and animals to feed and visit.

These little goats had no ears. It looked kind of odd.
The kids love to feed the ones that are up high. There's a cup on the pulley that you pull up and then drop into a bowl for them. I'm always afraid I'm going to get beaned from above with one of their little pellets.

Anna is ever resourceful and spends the first few minutes gathering up feed that has been spilled or dropped. I don't really have to give her a quarter for feed, just for fairness.

Abby was a bit afraid of the goats, but Paula promised to keep them from getting her. These ones were a bit funny and kept trying to eat my bag, Paula's purse and belt.

The kids always have a blast here and the fact that it is only 5 minutes away is wonderful. I had a run in with allergies and my eyes were almost swollen shut, so we had to bail early. We went straight to the store for eye drops.

Today we are off to Portland. We are ditching the kids with Kevin and off to play sans kids. We will meet up with them tomorrow before Paula has to fly out. Then it will be back to life as normal. Anyone else up for a visit??? We love company!

Abby's Graduation

2008-05-30T08:16:00.000-07:00

Abby graduated from the 3 year old class last night. She is officially on summer vacation and headed toward Pre-Kindergarten. Abby has an enthusiasm for singing.

Getting a hug and her certificate from her teacher.

This is a good example of her enthusiasm. We got there a bit late and I had to trust Anna to get pictures and video. I think she did pretty good. It's a bit dark in the chapel, but the sound is great. You can totally hear Abby--as we did way in the back.

Proud graduate.

Celebrating afterwards at Dairy Queen. My friend Paula got into town on Wednesday and is here through Sunday. Abby is so happy.

Soccer's over for Anna!!!

2008-05-27T08:18:00.001-07:00

We finished up soccer this weekend with a tournament. Anna's team was playing up and faced girls older than them each game. Saturday, was a tough day. Apparently our girls are not practicing mean enough. They got beat up and by the end of the second game I was tense and frustrated. I was not pleased with the officiating and at times could not keep my mouth shut. I should have looked around for my dad!!! I know that calls will be missed or wrong, it's when they are not equally called that I have a hard time. Sunday they were fired up and played their hearts out. Kevin was the fun dad and painted a flame on all of their cheeks.

Isn't she the cutest??? We started bringing a little chair and snack just for her.

Anna and a couple of her teammates.

The whole team.

Both games on Sunday went to a shoot out. They won the first and lost the second. But the way they played was phenomenal!! So now we have a month or so off before soccer camps begin and then there will be another tournament in August. We love this coach and most of the girls on the team. It has been such a good experience for Anna. I am sad to think of the time we have to leave this team. I am thinking we will try to continue to play in the tournaments as long as they do and as long as we are within a couple hours from them.

New Smile

2008-05-22T10:40:00.001-07:00

Isaac and I went to the dentist yesterday. Poor kid, he's had thousands of dollars put into his mouth and it just doesn't seem to end. It's a good thing we love our dentist and the kids actually look forward to seeing him. His mouth is small and so he needed to have a crown adjusted (to allow room for a permanent tooth to come down), sealants on his molars and two teeth pulled. Since I am a fan of getting it done and over with as fast as possible we did it all yesterday. Here's the before. You can't really see the teeth that are getting pulled, they are on the bottom. But it's a cute grin. They gave him this magic potion (a liquid sedative/relaxer--not quite sure what it is, but it's great!) to drink and about 15 -20 minutes later this is what we have. It makes them walk like a drunk and have slurred speech. He kept asking why he couldn't sit up by himself. (Side note: Abby is incredibly weepy on this medication, guess that means she would be a sad drunk--Isaac would just be a mellow one)

On the way home.

It's hard to see, but there are giant holes in his mouth. He was very sleepy until a few minutes before the kids got home, then he seemed to start being himself. He ate a big dinner of homemade clam chowder, jell-o and cantaloupe.

Here are the teeth. I can not see how the dentist can pull them. I can't do it with hardly any root, but these roots are huge. Gives me the creeps. He put them under his pillow for the tooth fairy. Unfortunately the tooth fairy forgot and will have to pay a little extra to make up for it.

Happy 6th Birthday Isaac!!!!

2008-05-19T21:18:00.000-07:00

Here's a look at Isaac through the years. We got our camera in 2003 and haven't scanned in pictures from earlier. Here's Isaac his first Easter. Isaac at Grandma and Bubba's house.

How cute is he????

Bringing in the new year in style.

He decided to snack on markers one day.

Loving his sister a few hours after she was born.

Everyone needs a good tub shot.

Cute boy in cute jammies.

He hated his hat, but loved his cake.

At Silverwood.

At Grandma's with Louie.

At a family favorite place to eat. With soup, his favorite food.

Swimming at Grandma's.

He went head first over the handlebars. To date our worst accident.

Sporting his new swim goggles.

Happy 6th Birthday sweet boy!!!!

Birthday Festivites

2008-05-19T08:40:00.000-07:00

We celebrated Isaac's birthday this weekend since Kevin wouldn't be around on Tuesday. We started the morning off with donuts from his favorite place. They are huge!!! And yummy. I love fried bread!

For his fun family activity Isaac decided on swimming. He chose a place called Splash. It has a wave pool and a slide. As well as a toddler pool and a pool for smaller children. Here's Abby hamming it up for the camera.

Noah coming down the slide.

Isaac in the wave pool. Later Kevin took the kids to the deeper part of the wave pool where they got bombarded, swallowed lots of water, got tummy aches and Isaac barely made it out of the pool before throwing up.

Anna and Abby.

After swimming we went to Red Robin Yummm!! (Abby walks around singing that from the commercial). The kids always like to use their free meal card for their birthday. I think they really just like being the only one to get a sundae.

Isaac didn't waste a drop, nor did he listen to his mother an using good manners.

Presents!!!

All he really wanted were Legos-- he got a few but will get to go pick out what he really wants with his presents from Grandma and Jodi's group.

The homemade dinner at home. He picked Brats and Burgers, Fruit Kabobs, Chips , Cream Soda and Root Beer.

This one is for Grandma. He loves onions!! Yuck!!!

Cake and Ice cream time. The candles always taste the best. He wanted an Indiana Jones cake--I am not an artist, so we put Legos on top. He was happy!

Week in Review (Backwards)

2008-05-15T22:39:00.001-07:00

My mom came down Monday for a visit and left this morning. She introduced me to this yummy cake. You can get it at Costco in the freezer section. If you like lemon, this is the cake for you. I think I could eat it by myself. Mom helped me through a tough spot for me on the aprons and we finished Abby's. It looks lovely with her outfit I know.

I've decided to go green the fashionable way. Mom showed me how to make these bags and I whipped this one up this afternoon.

This print is from the Elvis series--it's called Blue Hawaii. I loved it. These are my bags for shopping at Target, the library and all those good stores.

Abby's little bag for her dolls and for going to church.

Isn't it cute??? I will be making a couple bags for the boys (in boy print of course), with drawstrings, for their Legos.

While Mom was here, Abby finally got to go to Build a Bear with her gift card Grandma gave her way back in December for her birthday (she has been waiting). Loser that I am, I forgot the camera.

This was my card for Mother's Day. I am not big into the traditional Hallmark cards. I hate spending a small fortune on a cheesy saying. So this is what my kids did for me. I loved it.

Soccer is over!!! (For Isaac)

2008-05-15T22:20:00.000-07:00

We went to the obligatory pizza party after Isaac's last game. Here he is with a soccer buddy. Here's the whole team. His coach had never played or watched soccer. Apparently they called around looking for parent volunteers. I was out of town and missed that call.

Getting his trophy. Isn't that why you play soccer???

An action shot. He was a real hustler and never stopped running the whole time he played.

So ends the first season of Isaac's soccer experience. It was fun to watch him. I was especially thrilled when one of the boys stopped pushing his own team mates to get to the ball. He enjoyed it and we will be continuing. Anna and I talked about stepping up to the plate next season and coaching (if they need someone).

Random Thoughts

2008-05-08T08:04:00.001-07:00

*Oh happy day!!! I just had to publicly announce how happy I am that Jason Castro finally got voted off last night. If ever there was a time to pull out your happy dance, this was it!!!! Although to be perfectly honest none of the last three really wow me.

*Oh happy day, part 2. Anna had her last soccer game of the season last night. She is participating in a tournament over Memorial Day, but that's basically just practices until then. Isaac will be done on Saturday.

*The kids do not have school tomorrow, yet again. They have 3 more days off before school is out for the summer. The only one I agree with is Memorial Day. Every time I turn around the kids are not in school. Bet you can guess how thrilled I am for summer vacation!!

*I made a goal to read the Book of Mormon in 40 days with my friend Lark. I got stuck on 2 Nephi and all the Isaiah comparisons. I am a few days behind. Anyone else struggle through the Isaiah chapters? When we finish reading it, we are going to go out for a nice dinner.

*I needed to get the kids some new clothes--they were looking kinda ragged and tight. I came up with a genius plan on how to hand them out. For every room they helped clean, they would get an article of clothing. My house got cleaned that night. Now all I have to do is go through and put the finishing touches on the rooms. Too bad this only works every so often. It would probably be cheaper to hire someone--wouldn't that be lovely?

Making Cookies

2008-05-06T16:30:00.001-07:00

I've had a craving for homemade cookies and when I asked the kids what kind they wanted, no one could agree. In order to keep the troops happy, I made both. Here are the yummy snickerdoodles. And here are the tasty oatmeal cookies.

May Day Deliveries

2008-05-01T19:17:00.003-07:00

As many have commented, the celebration of May Day is close becoming extinct. I looked up the meaning on Wikepedia so you all can know one of the meanings of May Day. hope you all had a great day!! We sure did.

The day was a traditional summer holiday in many pre-Christian European pagan cultures. While February 1 was the first day of Spring , May 1 was the first day of summer ; hence, the summer solstice on June 25 (now June 21 ) was Midsummer . In the Roman Catholic tradition, May is observed as Mary's month, and in these circles May Day is usually a celebration of the Blessed Virgin Mary . In this connection, in works of art, school skits, and so forth, Mary's head will often be adorned with flowers. Fading in popularity since the late 20th century is the giving of "May baskets," small baskets of sweets and/or flowers, usually left anonymously on neighbors' doorsteps. Here's a couple of shots of our May Day cones. Unfortunately many of the doorknobs did not allow them to be hung. But the kids were pleased with them anyway.

Anna holding up a bunch before soccer practice. I told her she would rather have them taken before she was all sweaty.

Noah is consistent in who he chooses. He has never picked a different family. I'm just glad I really like the family he chooses.

Abby picked my friend Lark. She adores her. We got lucky and they weren't home, so she was able to successfully ding-dong ditch them.

Isaac picked Baby Ellie. She and her parents came for Easter. I'm not 100% sure we didn't get caught there.

The last one the kids walked down to our friends that they love. They have a son that is Abby's age and she wants to marry him. I had to tell her to stop kissing the poor boy.

Happy May Day!!!

2008-05-01T08:25:00.000-07:00

I love May Day. I can remember as a child walking home from school, picking flowers to fill my homemade container for my mom and then leaving it on the porch, ringing the doorbell and running. I don't think my kids know what May Day is. They haven't made the woven cones to fill with flowers, nor have they left any on someone's doorstep. So today when they get home from school, we are going to deliver some flowers to people we know. I may even see if I can whip up some woven cones. For all of you who do not live close enough to receive flowers from us. Here's a virtual bouquet and best wishes to a lovely May Day!!!

Relief Society

2008-04-28T12:52:00.000-07:00

I do not wait for moods. You accomplish nothing if you do that. Your mind must know it has got to get down to work. Pearl S. Buck

I had to teach Relief Society for the very first time in my life yesterday. There were 3 conference talks to work with and the one that stuck with me throughout the month was about procrastination. Procrastination is such a big issue in our family--one of us is list oriented, one of us isn't. There wasn't really a whole lot new to the subject--we all know what it is. We all do it and we all have a story or two we could share. But as I was preparing, something really stood out in my mind.

It is something Elder Hallstrom said. "However, for many "someday" never comes, and even for others who eventually do make a change, there is an irretrievable loss of progress and surely regression."

I had never thought of it that way before. I have a friend who just lost her dad and it reminds me a lot of when I lost mine. The big difference is, my friend has never been to the temple and was beginning to prepare to go so she could go through with her dad. He passed away a couple of months ago and she never had the chance. She had been waiting to be able to go through with her husband. Now she will never have the opportunity. When I read irretrievable loss, I couldn't help but think of her.

I think I am grateful for being able to prepare the lesson--the giving of it is another story. As always, I learned more than I could possibly have shared.

Here's to hoping we all can reach down and find some motivation within ourselves and make our lives as happy as I know you deserve them to be!!!

Be miserable. Or motivate yourself. Whatever has to be done, it's always your choice. Wayne Dyer

Really???

2008-04-25T09:29:00.000-07:00

I have mentioned in earlier posts that I watch American Idol and I would like to know how many of you are really voting for this guy??? I will grant that he can do a few folksy songs, but to have made it this far.... Really????? I so preferred that cute boy from Australia. I am ready for him and Brooke to go. Anyone else agree with me????

Sleep Well???

2008-04-23T11:14:00.000-07:00

I am having trouble sleeping. Not sure why, but I am waking up quite a bit throughout the night. With sleep (or lack of sleep) on my mind, I thought of these pictures of Isaac. He is our child that can sleep anywhere--as the pictures prove. I'm sure everyone has a hard sleeper in their family. I hope you enjoy pictures of ours! Here's Isaac at Grandma and Grandpa Stoddard's house.
Too tired to get dressed. I am not sure why he is at the table naked--not sure I want to know.

We were on vacation here. Even though Kevin and I had grown up in Seattle, we had never shown the kids the touristy things. We bought City Passes and sis them all in about 4 days. We were all tired. we just didn't have the luxury of a stroller to pass out in.

How can he breathe???

Crashing with his cousin Olivia. I am pretty sure we have more than one shot like this. Isaac adores her--as they all do.

Crashed on Grandma Stoddard's couch. Around the corner the kids were coloring Easter eggs. Good thing he didn't realize what he was missing!

I love it when they sleep like this!!!

Scout Carnival

2008-04-21T10:35:00.001-07:00

Saturday was the Scout Carnival for the city of Eugene. Kevin and the kids were all excited to go. Noah came in second for his age group.
This is the open class race for 3rd place. All the cars are ours. Anna was very disappointed she didn't win. Isaac was the one who came home with this trophy. Kevin was in awe of the track--says it's perfect. He said next year, he'll have to design cars for both tracks (for the stake track, which is need of help and the stainless steel perfect track), since they are so different.

They had an obstacle course for the kids. Here they had to move the boards as they crossed and continue making bridges in order to finish.

This one was harder than they thought. In fact Kevin took a video of them giving up and quitting.

The monster trucks are always fun. Abby thought it was so cool to fit in the tire. (The bag of chips she's holding is from being brave when she got lost. She went up to a lady in uniform, told her her name and that she was lost. Kevin said when he went racing in looking for her, he felt as though everyone was giving him the evil eye. I think all the kids have been lost now at one time or another.)

Isaac in the tire.

2008-04-18T11:20:00.000-07:00

I saw an article in a magazine the other day. It was about what you could accomplish in a short amount of time. Everyone has a few minutes here and there in between errands, dinner, homework, etc. It got me to thinking and figuring out 20 things I could do in 20 minutes. I am going to post it somewhere I can read it and remind myself that I can get a lot done in 20 minutes.

20 Things to do in 20 Minutes
1. Answer email
2. Pay online bills
3. Make all the beds in the house
4. Declutter something, i.e. junk drawer, a pantry shelf, top of nightstand or dresser
5. Watch a 30 minute show that you have recorded
6. Update your blog
7. Make up some cookie dough
8. Plan the menu for the week
9. Do your hair—a change from the ponytail!
10. Read a couple of chapters in a book
11. Go around the block a few times—get the heart pumping
12. Relax, meditate or try a yoga pose or a few stretches
13. Attack the To Iron pile
14. Reach out and touch someone—call, write or email a friend
15. Do a crossword, sudoku or other mind game—www.thinks.com
16. Play a game with the kids
17. Make play-dough
18. Paint your toenails
19. Work on a craft/sewing project
20. Clean your purse/backpack/car

Abby's Spring Concert

2008-04-17T19:42:00.000-07:00

Abby's Praise Jesus concert for school was tonight. I am hoping that we will no longer be singing at the top of our lungs as we go down the aisles at the store. One really good thing is that they keep it short and sweet. It is about 15 minutes. Woohoo!!! Here's Abby as one of God's little lambs. For some reason the pictures and video are always hit and miss at the kids' school functions. I could have smacked the lady in front of me. You would have thought hers was the only kids there. Notice the posing at the begining that interferes with her singing.

There's more where this came from. I did three of her songs, but figured you would only want to watch one. I'll pull them all up years from now--kind of like the clogging Arah!!

Conversations with Isaac

2008-04-16T13:29:00.000-07:00

We were in the car running errands listening to music. The song, When the Sun Goes Down by Kenny Chesney is playing.

Isaac: "it gets hotter when the sun goes down? Hmmm, how does that work?"

Me: "Oh look guys, green slugbug no slugbacks!!!"

They got balloons from the lady at Fred Meyer & we're off on another errand.

Isaac: "I am the world's greatest ballon blower upper!!"

And the winner is.....

2008-04-14T08:36:00.001-07:00

NOAH!! We had Pinewood Derby on Friday night. This is something that Kevin and the kids really look forward to. I have decided that the Father's get more emotional and into than the kids. This year Noah really put a lot of work into his car. He did the carving out of the middle and shaved off the nose some. Kevin took it back to work with him just to sand it. He mailed it home and then we painted it. Here it is before the wheels are on. Like I said, the family gets into this. Here are the cars from the past.It's a bit hard to see, but Superman (the blue one) has never been beaten. The girly one was Anna's and took a trophee in the city open races.

Here are the cars from Friday night. It's always fun to see what the boys come up with.

The boys lining up for their awards. Noah came in first. He won all his races and got a certificate for Most Unique car. He also got a huge bag of licorice.

Next Saturday is the Scout Carnival and more Pinewood Derby races. The kids and Kevin are very excited for this. The nice thing about the carnival is the open race so all the kids get a chance to have their car race, not just Noah. I like it because it gives me some alone time.

This was bizarre!!!

2008-04-03T08:27:00.000-07:00

So I had a hard time sleeping last night and I was up at 4 watching t.v., flipping channels. The Discovery Channel was showing the Birth Day show. I think I see my doctor who delivered Anna, so I stop and watch for a bit. It is in Seattle, it is my doctor, but what's bizarre is it is Burke Burkhardt's wife giving birth. There's Ann taking pictures and we even got to share a phone call to Br. Burkhardt. This was a boy my sister used to babysit, a boy we watched grow up in the ward, pass the sacrament, go on a mission. Haven't seen him in years and then I see his wife give birth???? Bizarre!!!! (and to be honest, not really how I would have liked to have seen his wife for the first time)

Tagged

2008-04-01T17:07:00.001-07:00

My friend Jenny tagged me. And as you all know, I always feel guilty if I don't do them. It's a little late, but I was gone for a week.

1. Favorite shoes right now??? Love me my flipflops!!! Notice the slippers are even flipflops!
2. New Year's Resolution: As always--I hate my thyroid.

3. Are you listening to music right now?

4. If I had $200 to spend on myself.... it's not a huge amount for a big purchase, but it could be fun to just blow it at Target. I love retail therapy.

5. My favorite place in the city I live in. I live in Eugene, really, what can you expect?

6. Just finished reading? I read Good in Bed (nice title I know)and saw this movie. I really like her.

You all know the rules, if you are reading this, Tag you are it.

Spring Break 2008

2008-03-31T10:33:00.000-07:00

Monday March 24: As we were scrambling around trying to get ready, it was suggested that we only go halfway since we had so much to do. If we left at noon, we could be in LeGrande by 6 and even if we left at 3 we would be there by 9. I am sure it will come to no surprise, that after helping the house recover from the Easter festivities and packing we were pulling out of the driveway at 6. We had hours and hours of this. Not sure if this was coming or going. Does it really matter???

We have several of Abby like this.

We pulled into LeGrande at around midnight and it wasn't too difficult to settle down and get to sleep. It is very exciting to sleep in a hotel, you know.

Tuesday March 25th:

We got up and ate breakfast. I am seriously considering investing in some cereal and juice dispensers. Apparently it tastes better if it comes that way. It was the best breakfast ever!

We were on the road just after 9:30--be very impressed. We pulled into Pocatello just after 4 and the kids were very happy to see their grandparents. We had a nice relaxing evening of dinner and conversation. Since we had last been there, Joan had converted Russ to the late side and he stayed with us into the night.

Wednesday March 26th:

We had a quiet day (if that is even a possibility with 4 children) at Grandma and Grandpa's. The kids made cookies with Joan. In fact this ended up being lunch. You gotta love vacation diets!

That night Kevin and I went on a date while the kids stayed with Grandma and Grandpa. It was our first in almost 2 years. It was fun.

Thursday March 27th:

We were heading to Utah so we had to pack everything up again. We also went and visited Kevin's cousin Earl on our way out. I forgot to take pictures--I am so sad. They just welcomed their 5th on March 13th, so I got to hold a brand new baby for a bit while we chatted and the kids played. Our kids adore Earl and his family. It is always a highlight of the trip to see them.

We headed to Robert and Kerri's around 7 and stopped for a yucky dinner in Brigham City at the Sonic. Everything I ordered, they were out of: ice cream, chili, chicken tenders, tater tots, corn dogs. It took forever and was cold. We won't be going back.

Friday March 28th:

We got up and got ready to go to the sealing. We dropped the kids off at Uncle Neal's (they were lucky and got to spend some alone time with their Aunt Regina and her kids) and tried to find the directions to the temple according to Mapquest. Even though we got turned around, we managed to be the first ones from our side of the family to be there--very noteworthy for us!!! The sealing was wonderful and that little Bo looked like a perfect little angel and was so good.

After the sealing Neal and Stacy had a luncheon. Bo was so well behaved, he got passed around and no nap, but was still a happy sweet boy. Here are some random pictures from the luncheon.

Bo with Uncle Mike (Kevin's sister Shelley''s husband)

Me with baby Aubrey. Such a tiny sweet little thing.

Isaac and Aubrey

Anna with Aubrey

Outside the temple. The men of the family with Bo and Stacy--where's Grandpa?

Bo with Grandma and Grandpa

Sometimes you just need a little of space. Unfortunately, with my kids that's rare!

Abby outside playing with Shelby.

Everyone gathered at Robert and Kerri's that night. Kylie had some drama with her first loose tooth. After many attempts, lots of freaking out....the tooth was still there when we left for home yesterday. I do have to say that in Kylie's defense, her daddy needs to hone his tooth pulling skills.

Mark and Regina's Ella and Blythe with Aubrey. So cute!!!

After the luncheon Kevin and I took the kids to Cabella's. We explored and had fun seeing all the animals.

We did have a meltdown--Isaac was so disappointed that 1. the animals weren't real and 2. he couldn't eat there. It was a proud moment.

Kevin enjoyed himself too.

After that we met Rachel (Goodwin)Williams for dinner. This is Kevin and Lucy. She is sooo cute.

It was a lot of fun to see Rachel and catch up on life. It had been too many years since I have seen her and although I get updates from her mom via my mom it was nice to see her face for reals.

Rachel and I go way back. It makes me feel so old when I say this, but I babysat for her parents for years growing up. I started at 11 (what were they thinking????) and Rachel was 5, her sister Julie was 3, Jonathan was brand new and David was a few years younger than me.

If I were better at this I would have edited out the reserved parking sign.

The kids adored Lucy and played ring-around-the-rosy with her as we said our goodbyes.

Lucy is such a doll and so well behaved. She didn't complain once and it was a long dinner.

That night we visited with a fe of the brothers and their wives and then stayed up until almost 3:30 talking to Robert and Kerri. It was fun. I can't remember the last time I laughed so hard. I am pretty sure it has been almost 2 years.

Saturday March 29th:

Because of the lateness of our getting to bed and the fact it didn't look as though Robert and Kerri's family was going to be able to join us, we chose to stay home so the kids could play and we could spend more time with them. Kevin and Robert took the kids geocaching for a bit and then it was time to get ready for Paul and Misti's dinner. Because I spaced and didn't take pictures, you will have to imagine the events of this day.

Sunday March 30th:

A day both highly anticipated and dreaded. We woke up to snow. I hate snow. We were going to Aubrey's blessing first. We had directions, but I hadn't thought to read them before everyone left us. They started from a road I wasn't sure how to get to. So after a long detour through BYU, we got to the building and I dropped Kevin at the door and told him to run in. The kids and I quickly followed, but missed the blessing. I was disappointed. As nice as the testimonies were, I did not drive 14 hours to listen to those.

Right after that ward was over--time to scoot to Neal and Stacy's building for Bo's blessing. We sat in the back as to not disturb anyone as we did the bless and ditch. We had 14 hours on the road ahead of us.

A random picture between Paul and Misti's building and Neal and Stacy's

We made good time and since it was vacation, took the kids to Chuck-a-Rama. It was in memory of Kevin's childhood when his grandparent's took them sometimes. In my head right after Chuck-a Rama, I think of Barf-a-Rama from Stand by Me. So I always laugh at the name.

As buffets go (and we know--the kids LOVE them), this wasn't so bad. They had 10 million drink options and a nice salad bar. Abby and I ate turkey, which was actually really good. I just think the name is so funny!!!

That added some time to our drive home and when we hit the Blue Mountains and were greeted with heavy snow and ice, it was such a treat. It took us about an hour to get through. I was very grateful for the mile markers since they were my visual to staying on the road. We rolled into the driveway about 3:15. I could have cried I was so glad to see home.

It was good times had by all. We were very grateful to have been able to make the trip and see the new babies in the family. The next time we see them, they will undoubtably be no longer babies and walking. We have to watch them grow up through pictures, so to be able to participate in something for real was nice for a change.

Now it's off to unpack, clean out the car, get real food in the house and get ready for school. tomorrow

Over the river and through the woods....

2008-03-24T10:02:00.000-07:00

We are in the throes of getting ready to go. It has brought many questions and memories from the kids about family and cousins and all that. My favorite conversation was with Abby and went like this:

Abby: " I like those big girlies that were at Grandma and Grandpa Stoddards"
Me: "You mean, Janae, Shaelyn and Tiana?"
Abby: "Yep. And I also really like the Nerd"
Me" "The Nerd?"
Abby: "Yeah, you know the guy who played hide and seek with me and played the marble game with me."
Big light bulb over my head: "Oh, you mean Leonard, Aunt LeeAnn's husband."
Abby got really excited and said: "Yes, him."

We got a huge laugh over that one and hope that Leonard can enjoy it as much as we did. We love you!

OK--we are off for a week of adventures with family and friends. I will update if I can, but it might be a while. Here's hoping you all have a wonderful week. Love to all!

Easter Celebrations

2008-03-24T09:37:00.000-07:00

We had some good friends over for an evening of coloring eggs and dinner. I made pizza dough and the kids had individual pizzas, while the grown ups had the good pizza. We had about 7 dozen eggs and a crowded table. Here's Noah showing off his art work. This is my friend Lark and her daughter Kara, along with Abby and Isaac. Lark is one of my lifesavers here in Eugene. She is my lunch date to yucky pizza, but great conversation. She is one of the readons I have managed to survive without Kevin being here during the week.

A view from the other end of the table. Egg coloring is serious business. And just in case you were wondering, Monday kicks off National Egg Salad week. Although with so many eggs, most end up in the garbage.

Bragging moment, because it's just so darn cute!!! I made a cake for dessert.

The kids loved it.

Here's something I find very noteworthy, Lark's husband, Rob made a cake as well. It was quite yummy ( I ate it after church straight from the plate). I am just so amazed the husband made a cake.

Sunday brought on the Easter dinner. The tradional ham and cheesy potato feast. We had a great family from the ward over. They have an adorable little girl, Ellie, who is almost a year and a half. I should have taken pictures. She had so much fun, at one point she stopped in her tracks, stomped her feet and squealed in delight. My kids adored her, probably too much. Her mom and dad are really nice and the best company we have had since Saturday night. Actually in all honesty, there are a select few people here I would love to hang out with and we did that this weekend. So even though we are supposed to be on the road on our way to Idaho and Utah, it was well worth the delay.

To Do List

2008-03-19T14:52:00.000-07:00

Anyone who knows me, knows that I love lists. I make a to do list continually throughout the day. There are few better feelings than crossing something off my list! But somedays it seems like the list is eternal and there is no way humanly possible to get it all done. Especially before a big trip. My question is, how do you know you've done enough if everything isn't crossed off the list? And can you sleep at night if it's not?

Here is an example of my To Do's:

1.Help kids get ready and off to school
2.Take medicine (I have to put it on the list otherwise I forget)
3.Exercise
4.Get Abby ready
5.Clean the diningroom/entry (my sewing room at the moment)
6.Clean the livingroom
7.Clean the eating area from breakfast (and if I am honest, some of last night's dinner--depending on the day)
8.Clean kitchen from making lunches and anything else that needs to be cleaned
9.Do a load of laundry
10. Take a few minutes to work on sewing projects while waiting for Isaac's bus
11.Fix lunch
12.Run any errands that need to be done--grocery store, Target, etc.
13.Work on sewing projects a few more minutes while kids have snack and do homework/talk about their day
14.Work on bedrooms or bathrooms--whichever is worse
15.Take Anna to soccer
16.Fix dinner, maybe relax for 5 minutes
17.Pick up Anna
18.Eat dinner--but quick, Scouts starts in 15 minutes
19.Take Noah to scouts
20.Clean up after dinner
21.Get smaller kids ready for bed
22.Pick up Noah
23.Have treat, brush teeth, and tuck kids in
24.If I have energy this is where I work on sock monkeys or read and watch t.v--and yes I do both at the same time.

Ahhhh, the life of a mother!!!!

Update

2008-03-17T10:24:00.000-07:00

So Thursday night a whole family of frogs moved into Abby's throat. On Friday she has a fever and was happy to lounge about watching t.v. all day. Of course she couldn't, we had to get Isaac to a party and run a couple of errands. With the promise of a slurpee, whe was ready to go and was awesome. But you kow she is really sick when we are at the toy section and she doesn't want to get out of the cart.
By Saturday she was feeling better, but not well enough for us to go up to Portland and visit with Kevin since he was on call this weekend. Instead, Kevin came down Saturday night in hopes that he wouldn't get a call on Sunday. We had a pleasant few hours on Saturday and loved having him home in Sunday.

Kevin has maintained, in all the years I have known him that his foot is better looking than mine. Can you help us put this argument to rest? Mine are much prettier--DUH Kevin!

A Day in my Life

2008-03-13T19:48:00.000-07:00

Some days are just sooo busy. Here's what I did today.

I saw these aprons in a craft store and thought they would be fun to make. I am not one who enjoys sewing. I am forever calling my mom and asking questions. But this was so cute in the store and it didn't look too hard. This one is going to be Anna's. It will have a tie at the top (I think that is where it will get hard for me). This one is Abby's. I have gotten a little further on hers than Anna's. But I do feel the need to say this has been more of an ironing project than sewing. I honestly do not know why I take on these projects. My mother is forever telling me I need a hobby. I guess this is a way to try and find one. F.Y.I.: March is National Craft Month.

This morning I dropped Abby off at preschool and then I went visiting teaching and brought fresh, warm cinnamon rolls to my sisters. I made the dough up last night after getting home from Scouts and Activity Days and tucking the kids in.

They looked pretty even without the frosting. I haven't made these in about 10 years. It was a new recipe and I think I got pretty lucky. (For anyone who knows my quirks in the kitchen, it was a huge step for me to take a new recipe, untested, to people.) F.Y.I.: March is National Bake and Take Month.

After rushing home from visiting teaching to greet Isaac's bus, I picked up Abby from preschool and went to lunch with a friend ( a highlight of my day, we go to this pizza joint that has a play structure and have a nice few hours basically uninterupted. It is moments like this that help me go on). Rushed home to meet the kids from school and had a few minutes to relax(???) before having to get Anna to soccer. While Anna was at soccer, I took the rest of the kids to WalMart for a few essentials and a birthday present for a birthday party Isaac is going to tomorrow. Ran to get Anna and quickly stopped to get dinner fixings. Inhaled dinner and now it is time to tuck the kids in and get ready for another day. WOOHOO!!!

I hear you!!!

2008-03-11T14:37:00.001-07:00

I have gotten a lot of comments as to my picture not making it on the blog. It is hard to get pictures of me when I am the only adult at home to take pictures. We are going to Utah and Idaho for Spring Break and Kevin is coming with so I promise to take pictures at that time!!!

Random Thoughts

2008-03-10T21:13:00.000-07:00

1. I HATE doing the cans here to get our deposit back. It smells like fermented fruit, stale beer and it's sticky. It never fails that the machine is going to not work properly or you are at the wrong store for your returns. All for a nickel. But since I am a diet coke addict, it adds up to about $15-20 every 4 months or so.

2. I LOVE it when I get complimented on the kids. For example, I was at dinner with them tonight and a nice man came over for the sole purpose to tell me I was doing a good job and that the kids were very well behaved. (My mother will have a hard time believing this because we had a very horrible dining out experience. They always save it up for visits with my mom or in-laws)

3. I am so happy that Danny Noriega got voted off American Idol. He drove me absolutely bonkers!!! I could have done a happy dance I was so excited!!!

4. It is fun to go through the mail thinking it's just junk and finding a check for $26.99 as a thank you for being a customer with Qwest.

5. Soccer season is once again upon us. It's always such a treat to being doing this by myself and trying to be in 2 or 3 places at once. So far it's just Anna, but I am probably going to get Isaac involved. Noah doesn't really care for it--he is more an individual sport kind of guy, and that's OK.

Happy Birthday Kevin!!!!

2008-03-10T10:26:00.000-07:00

This weekend we celebrated Kevin's birhtday. It was Saturday, March 8. He started his day bu going with the cub scouts and planting 50 trees along side a river. Torture for most of us, but Kevin loves this kind of activity. Anna and Noah went with and they all came home having had a blast. We actually had a pretty lazy weekend--not so much fun for the kids, but great for the adults. The kids took Kevin to Red Robin for dinner--they love to have them sing at your table. And we puttered around town and ended the day at Dairy Queen. Sunday was the church, adjusting to Daylight Savings and his birthday dinner. The kids weren't impressed at all by the lack of activities but it wasn't their birthday. Here are some fun pictures of Kevin(please note, I left all the really horrible ones out, I was very nice when I could have been mean!): Kevin and Isaac at Grandma's lake

Kevin and his mom at Anna's baptism.

In Seattle when we did a Seattle vacation.

Abby's birthday.

Pig pile on Daddy.

I loved doing this with my dad.

Red Robin Saturday.

Anna was in the bathroom at Red Robin and missed the singing, so here she is with Kevin at Chuck E. Cheese.

Happy Birthday to a wonderful man and great father!!!!!