California 2010

We finally found our way to Disneyland. I think our kids were at great ages to enjoy all the attractions and the characters. My family could not have been happier as we approached the park. They really had no expectations which made the day even better.

I was kind of thinking our kids would not really care much for all the characters... I could not have been more wrong. They would have rather met the characters than rode the rides.

One of the families favorite rides was the toy story mania. We had a blast shooting at all the targets... Even dad could appreciate a ride like this

Then there was the beach!

We decided to split up our days at disneyland with the beach in between. It worked out great. The kids LOVED the beach. Little miss Brin would not allow even one of her toes to get wet, but was as happy as could be playing in the sand.

Braden spent his days at the beach exploring every last inch of the beach and water. It was so entertaining to just watch his try to command the ocean to stay back, or to watch him try to outrun the waves. He seriously thought he was in his own little world.

Brook and her cousins spent HOURS in the water. The water was not that warm, but that did not stop these girls. They jumped over hundreds of waves. The next morning(s) Brook would wake up and say "Mom, my body is so sore... What do you think I did?"... Uh, I don't hunny?

Steve and I were not as ready and willing to jump right into the frigid water. But we still had a great time just enjoying the beauty of the ocean.

Isn't the beach a perfect place to get a little rest?

Our last day at Oceanside. We walked down to the beach first thing in the morning to gather some shells. We had such an amazing time. We hope we get the chance to go back again soon.

"Mom, is the snake going to get daddy!"

I can't believe fall is here already, I miss the warm sunny days with the kids wanting to be outside all day. Now, the kids get off the bus, run home, flip on the tv and beg for hot chocolate. But there are also some great things about the fall season.

I love the drive up Provo Canyon on my way to my parents house. The autumn leaves are beautiful right now.

I love how everyone gets into the holiday spirit. It seems like October through December is just one party after another.

My kids love, love, love decorating for the holidays. They will make holiday pictures and tape them up all over my walls.

And I love the fall harvest. My garden got a late start this year, but it was so fun to see my garden grow. We had tomatos, green beans, squash, zuchinni and pumpkins. My kids even got into it and were so excited every time they discovered something new growing in the garden.

Who says you need to buy your kids a new drum set.

Brin celebrated her fourth birthday in September. She got a hand-me-down make-up set that is full of fun stuff.... It is now hidden and will only come out on very special occassions.

Brin is such a happy girl. She is such a tease but also so sweet and concerned with others.

A few weeks ago we went to a church meeting where the speaker was talking about the importance of reading the scriptures. He used an analogy of a snake, where he taught us that we need to stay away from the snake (sin). To help us stay safe we should read the scriptures nightly. As a family, we have set this as a new goal. Our little miss Brin now believes that if we miss a night of reading the scriptures a snake will get us.

Steve had a business trip recently and missed a night of reading the scriptures with us. As we begin our reading Brin stops and asks me "Mom, is the snake going to get daddy tonight?" She was way concerned and wouldn't stop worrying until I reassured her that he would read the scriptures on his own.

I guess fear is a good way to get kids to read the scriptures... Right.

Back To School

I can't believe that all my kids are in school! Brook started school a couple of weeks ago and is loving every minute of it. She has a great teacher and was lucky enough to have some close friends end up in her class as well. She is always coming home from school with a smile on her face.

Braden started school last week and loves being able to ride the big bus. They have been reviewing colors this week, so he comes home with a new song everyday. The problem is, by the time he comes home he can't remember the song anymore and he expects me to know how it goes. He is always saying "oh c'mon mom, stop kidding me and tell me how it goes." ... he really won't believe me. I decided I need to have the teacher e-mail me a copy of all the songs so I can help him remember.

We decided to put Brin in a preschool class a couple of times a week. Her first day was this Tuesday. She had a great time. We had to get her all dressed up and find her a backpack, just like the other kids.

She had show and tell the first day, so I told her to go upstairs and pick out something to bring. She came down the stairs with half a dozen items that she was bringing to show her class. Hopefully her teacher didn't mind too much.

We have high hopes that preschool will help calm Brinley's sassy attitude.... Do you think it will work?

Brinley kept on making new poses for the pictures. "Mom, now take this one."

So now here I am wondering what I am going to do with my time. Maybe I will start blogging more but I wouldn't get your hopes up, I am pretty flaky when it comes to this blog thing. So far I have found plenty of things to do such as; exercise, read, update our budget, and sometimes I think about that I should go grocery shopping. Maybe I can start keeping my house cleaner... but I wouldn't get your hopes up on that either Steve... I'm not going to make any promises.

One Crazy Summer

What a crazy summer this has been for me and my family. We started off the summer with plans to spend a weekend at Lake Powell with my family. We had a great time...but, like most of our other trips to Lake Powell, we always return home with an injury. This time (like most times) it was Steve's turn to be hurt. So if you want the real story keep on reading. If you want Steve's version, you will have to give him a call. We had decided to explore one of the many canyons found at Lake Powell. We got out of the boat and climbed a rock wall to get up on to a plateau area. Up on top there was a little pond of water. The kids were loving our new water spot when Steve decided to scale another rock wall (that was much steeper) to see what was up there. He went exploring for a while and then came back to realize he needed to somehow get down.

We all could see how tempted he was to jump into this small body of water, but like the cautious wife I am, I encouraged him to climb back down. Well, without another thought he had jumped off the 15 foot wall and into the water. When he came up out of the water he was in a lot of pain. I immediately accused him of teasing us... Until he lifted his right foot out of the water and I could see it was severly injured. (For your sake I will not get graphic).

Now we had all the kids and an injured man up this canyon and we knew he would not be able to walk back to the boat. Luckily we had two of my Brother-in-laws with us that were a big help to Steve. After finally getting everyone back into the boat we had a 3 hour boat ride back to shore where Steve could get help. On the way back into the dock the wind began blowing really hard, making huge waves in the lake. Needless to say, it was probably one of the worst rides back into shore for everyone on that boat, especially Steve.

Finally we get to the urgent care in bullfrog only to find out that they don't have an ex-ray machine. The doctor looks at Steve's foot and determines that he has only dislocated his ankle bone. They plan to sedate him and pop the bone back into place. It takes 3 doctors to pop his ankle back into place... and a lot of pain for Steve (which luckily he can't remember).

Afterwards, the doctors put Steve in a boot and tell him that he will be walking on it the next day. So Steve and I go back to our campground, put him in bed and decide to finish out our vacation. The next day, Steve still can't walk and is in just as much pain as he was the day before, but Steve is determined to let us stay the rest of the weekend on our trip.

Poor Steve spent the next two days being dragged around on a bumpy boat and sleeping in a tent... What a trooper!

We finally get Steve to a doctor on Monday (the injury happed on Thursday). And the ex-rays show 3 broken bones and several dislocated bones, torn ligaments and tendants along with the severe bruising and fracture blisters all over his foot and up his leg. It was one huge mess.

Due to all of the swelling, he was not able to go into surgery for another week. So again he sits with a damaged foot for another long week and weekend.

The outcome of the surgery was 3 internal screws and 2 external pins, no driving for 8 weeks, no walking for 8 weeks. After 8 weeks he can drive and walk as long as he is wearing a specific boot for driving and walking.

It is now August 27th. As of last week, he can drive (yippeee!). All I can say is, it is easy to take for granted your health until you are faced with something like this. It has been a huge struggle for us all, but we have come out of this just fine. The kids have all stepped up to help out, especially our little Brook. We are so thankful that it was ONLY his foot, he could have easily been paralized. We are so thankful that he is ok and that in a couple of months will hopefully be feeling better.

We still have until the middle of October to wait for the internal screws to come out. Then he should be able to walk and drive again without a boot. Until then, I am threatening Steve to do everything that the Dr tells him to do. And no more acting like he is 19 again.

March Madness

If you ever wonder what my two younger kids do while Brook is at school, here is a good idea. Some days they are a little more creative then others. Today they decided to put on their "Masks" and play cops and robbers. I guess I need to invest in some real masks. It is fun to see them play so well together.

Our oldest daughter turned 7 this month. I can't believe how big my kids are getting. Birthdays give me the opportunity to brag about my amazing kids... So here it goes. I absolutely adore Brook! She is such a sweet and sensitive girl. She loves to read, go to school, dance, sing, act and says that when she grows up she is going to be a singer (like Carrie Underwood), act (like Gabriella on High School Musical), dance (like all the girls on Dancing with the Stars) and be a mom (like me). She is so creative and fun to be with. She is so good to her brother and sister, and her brother and sister love her so much. I could not have asked for a more beautiful girl (inside and out). She is my sweetheart.

Brook gets up so early in the morning, but she knew that our family has the tradition to serve the birthday person breakfast in bed. So she stayed in bed as long as she could... but got a little bored, so she decided to go play with her brother and sister. She kept on checking on me and the breakfast. When I finally had breakfast ready, Brook ran up the stairs and hopped back in bed and anxiously waited until we all came up singing happy birthday to her with her food.

She got to open a couple of cards and gifts before school, one of which was from her Grandma Jody who is on her mission... She took the gift card and got herself a Gabriella barbie and the barbie bedroom set. We are now at the end of March, and Brook each night takes Gabriellas shoes off her feet and tucks the Barbie into bed. It is pretty cute.

Brook has decided to forget about the cute decorated birthday cakes... She has taken after her mother and goes for the Strawberry dessert cake. Yummy!

To finish off the month of March, Steve left for a business trip. We all hate to see these trips approaching but are so happy and releaved when he returns home safe. This is Steve and the kids right before his trip... We love you Daddy! Hurry home!

February Fun

This year for Valentine's Day we decided to do something a little different. Our kids (mostly the oldest) is always so excited for every holiday and has come to expect a day full of fun and gifts. We have made a decision to try to eliminate a lot of the extras and just try to make it a simple and fun holiday. So for Valentine's Day, I decided to send the kids on a scavenger hunt around the house. There were several clues that would lead them to different spots but before they could get their next clue they would have to give each other hugs or say something nice about each other, or in the picture below they were to hold hands to the next destination.... Valentine's is all about love... right!

They all had a blast finding all the clues. One of their favorites was running out to the mailbox to find a letter for them... They love getting their own mail.

At the end of the hunt, there was a poem and a box of donuts for them. I really think that they all had a great day and it turned out to be inexpensive, yet so much fun for them. We had a great day!

January Memories

This day was full of mixed emotions as we said our goodbyes to Mom and Grandma as she flew out to St. Louis, Missouri to serve a full-time mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. We are so proud of her and love getting her letters. She has been gone only for a few months, but has already touched the lives of so many people. We love you Grandma... keep up the good work.