Live..Laugh..Love

Catch-Up (sort of)

2011-09-27T17:23:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted in so long that it appears everything has changed on blogger. I don't know if I can even figure out how to post. I guess we'll find out...

Here are a few pictures of what the kids have been up to for the past 6 MONTHS:
(in no particular order, since I don't know how to use blogger anymore)

The girls entertaining Bentley. He loves to watch them perform for him.

This little boy is loved so much. We had him for about 4 months and we still get to keep him overnight about once a week. He is a joy.

The kids all participated in Track and Field this year. Reed and Montana went to the Junior Olympics in Spokane, Washington. They had a great time and did very well.

Montana with one of her medals. She competed in High Jump and Shot Put

Montana sizing up the competition

Relaxing under the SportsBrella in between events

So sweet!

Grandpa teaching JJ how to shoot a shotgun

JJ throwing the Discus at the District Track Meet

2011-03-27T23:24:00.000-07:00

In keeping with my current trend of blogging about once a month, I thought I would add a few pictures from the month of March.

Here's what we've been up to:

Celebrating JJ's birthday

We had this cute little girl for about a week

She loves being outside and spent a lot of time in the backyard playing with every ball we own

I took her to an event called "Princess for a Day"

She got to pick out a pretty dress, get her nails painted,

and they put lip gloss and glitter on her.

She got to dance with a "real" princess!

Hank and I went to Las Vegas with our friends Amy and Kyle

We went to watch BYU play in the MWC tournament

It was a lot of fun. Sally and Brad met us there and

hung out with us for the weekend.

We sat behind some awesome BYU fans.

The Jimmer during warm-ups

This is Baby B. We're not sure how long he's going to be with us, but we are loving having a baby in the house. He's so sweet.

I would post a picture of Reed, but he won't let me take a decent picture of him. He does take a lot of self portraits that I find on my camera, but he's always making some crazy face. I don't think he would appreciate me posting those.

Valentines Day 2011

2011-02-21T13:25:00.000-08:00

These are the cute valentines Montana made

She wrote "You can count on me when things get sticky"

Heart shaped potato I found and cooked for my valentine

along with flank steak, salad, cauliflower, and sparkling cider

Delicious heart shaped flourless chocolate torte

Montana set the table and put this confetti around each plate

After dinner I went upstairs and found this on my door

and this on my bed

Enter 2011 Already

2011-02-12T15:12:00.000-08:00

My blog has been sorely neglected. The last post was Halloween pictures and it's now the middle of February. I thought I would make a token effort to post something from the year 2011. This picture was taken in Puerto Penasco, Mexico, at my brother's condo at Las Palomas. We went there for New Years. It's a great resort right on the beach. We had a really fun time.

Halloween 10

2010-11-02T09:10:00.000-07:00

Our little Candy Corn Witch

with her Candy Corn fingernails

Butterfly turned Fairy

(the costume was the same)

He didn't dress up, but he did carve a pumpkin with heart eyes!

Goodbye for Now

2010-10-08T22:12:00.000-07:00

My sweet Grandma passed away yesterday. When I got the news I had a good long cry, talked with my husband and my sister, and spent the rest of the evening thinking about all the good times I shared with her.
She was such a good woman and I learned so many things from her simply by observing how she lived her life.
She had been deteriorating slowly over the past few years and it was sad to see her lose her memories and her independence. But I will never forget the last time I saw her. In July we were on our way to Utah. We stopped in Ontario to visit with Grandma at her nursing home. When we walked in, she got the biggest smile on her face and she didn't stop smiling the whole time we were there. Sure, she asked the the same questions over and over, and she didn't call us by name. But she knew we were family and that we loved her. And we felt her love for us. It was a very sweet visit and I'm so grateful that is my last memory of her. Goodbye for now Grandma. I love you so much and can't wait to see you again.

Kentucky Falls

2010-09-19T21:24:00.000-07:00

These are some pictures of our day hike to Kentucky Falls with the Schultz cousins

We started out with a little lunch in the parking lot

Posing for a picture before hitting the trail

Cousins

Amanda taking a rest on the mossy rock

Cute Emma

JJ and Montana exploring the bottom of the waterfall

Sisters

Grandma and Grandpa

Montana took this picture of the tall trees

Picture of the Falls from the trail

Random

2010-06-09T19:49:00.000-07:00

Just a few snapshots of what we've been up to lately...

Celebrating birthdays...

Shelter Care--We had this little cutie for a month

We actually had a sunny weekend in May!

Hank took Reed to a football combine and the girls and I headed to the coast.

SB 2010: Puerto Vallarta

2010-05-10T21:59:00.001-07:00

I think it's about time I finished up the recap of Spring Break 2010, since it's now almost Summer Break 2010...

Our last port was Puerto Vallarta. We took the city bus to a beach where we knew there would be parasailing, since some of the braver members of our family wanted to try it.

Reed was the first to go. Here he is receiving his pre-flight instructions.

JJ really wanted to do it, but when she got all hooked up, she looked a little unsure about the whole thing. But she insisted on going ahead with it.

And she loved it!

Here she is pulling on the strings in order to make the parasail go in the right direction

Here is Reed enjoying his ride

Hank got a little carried away with swinging his legs around

and he kind of fell out of his seat.

He ended up "hanging" instead of sitting for his ride.

Then we were off on our next adventure.

We took the bus to Playa Mismaloya

for some swimming and snorkeling.

We got off the bus and then walked down

this little alley all the way down to the beach

We met this little boy "Lafa"

He was 4 years old and was hanging out at the beach

while his dad was off selling things.

He hung out with us for quite a while.

He didn't speak any English,

but Hank was able

to communicate with him in Spanish.

He was a friendly little guy.

We never did meet his Dad and thought it was

kind of strange for him to be on the beach

without any supervision...

The girls sharing a limeade

This little girl LOVES being in the water and hardly ever came out!

Here we are waiting for the bus to pick us up

and take us back to the pier.

Reed on the bus

SB 2010: Mazatlan

2010-04-09T18:46:00.000-07:00

Our second day in Port was Mazatlan.

We took a water taxi to Isla de Piedra (Stone Island)

It was just our family and a bunch of locals on the water taxi.

Most of the tourists get to Stone Island by the

excursion boats. They bring loads of people there to snorkel

and then take them back to the marina.

JJ was brave enough to pose with these iguanas.

You couldn't have paid me to do this.

Gives me the willies just looking at them.

Montana got her hair braided by a nice Mexican lady on the beach

The beaches in Mazatlan were our favorite

sandy not rocky

We swam, body surfed, and snorkeled

By mid afternoon Reed had enough sun and

wanted to head back to the ship before the rest of us.

He took the water taxi back from Stone Island.

I think he was pretty pleased that he found the way by himself.

He missed out on the cab ride to the marina/plaza though.

He had to walk through town

because he didn't have any money with him.

The Salvation Army was outside singing to the passengers

as we boarded the ship after our day in Mazatlan.

The children hold buckets out to gather donations.

SB 2010--Cabo San Lucas

2010-03-31T16:10:00.000-07:00

The kids waiting for Dad to exchange our American dollars for Pesos.

We had fun swimming and snorkeling in Cabo. Rather than taking the expensive excursions the cruiseline offers, we like to venture out on our own. We took the public transportation (subercabo) to a more remote beach called Chileno Beach. It wasn't crowded with tourists and there were no vendors coming by every few minutes to sell you their varied necklaces, baskets, dresses, purses, tatoos, bracelets, chimes, sculptures, etc.

We had an interesting experience after our day at Chileno beach. We sat out by the highway waiting and waiting for the bus to take us back into town. The subercabo was supposed to come by every 20 minutes throughout the day. It goes back and forth on the highway all day between Cabo San Lucas and San Jose del Cabo. According to everything we read, we were supposed to sit out by the highway and just flag the bus down when it came by. But it never came. We waited and waited. We started getting a little nervous about getting back to the pier in time to get back on the ship. After sitting there for about 45 minutes, we decided to have a prayer. Shortly afterwards, a car stopped. Hank went and talked to the nice young couple who had just arrived at Chileno beach to spend the rest of the afternoon. They asked what we were doing and then offered to give us a ride back into town, which was about a 20 minute drive. They had a little car, but said we could all fit in. Hank and Reed each held one of the girls on their lap and I sat in the middle. They dropped us off a few blocks from the harbor and we made it back just in time. Hank tried to pay them for their trouble, but they absolutely refused to accept any money. They just wanted to help us out. We were so thankful and couldn't belive they would go so far out of their way to help strangers.

Off

2010-03-11T22:23:00.000-08:00

Hooray

Birthday Girl

2010-03-08T18:51:00.000-08:00

Wearing the birthday girl badge

Sisters

Getting her ears pierced

The requested "Peace Sign" cake

Eating pizza and cake/ice cream before SPLASH

Opening presents

(pardon the posers)

Valentines 2010

2010-02-09T21:32:00.000-08:00

Thanks, Margaret, for sharing this idea on your blog.

Valentines done.

Phew.

Family Fun

2010-02-01T16:59:00.000-08:00

The kids had Friday off from school

so we packed up and took off for Sunriver

for some family time

We played games

and played in the snow

yes, she is in her jammies

with no coat, hat, mittens, or boots

(sorry, mom)

The happy snow couple

We read and relaxed

and played more games

This is Hank's 'game face'

He takes his game playing very seriously

don't mess

The view outside our bedroom window

Godspeed

2010-01-19T21:22:00.000-08:00

It's amazing how quickly they work their way into our hearts.

We only had these little ones for 6 days.

I transitioned them to their foster home today. It hurt my heart.

Because it hurt their hearts.

The baby had become quite attached and didn't want to leave.

He was clinging to me and crying.

The older one was trying so hard to be brave.

He had asked if he could stay here longer.

It will be their 4th home in just over a week.

Hopefully it will be a more permanent situation for them.

We love you guys and we'll be praying for you.

Happy New Year !!

2010-01-05T22:24:00.000-08:00

Ski Trip to HooDoo

2009-12-29T13:21:00.000-08:00

Will I ever get a normal picture of this kid? He's such a poser, bless his heart.

Hank took the kids skiing for their first time yesterday. I didn't go because of: my knee, my back, and my fear of icy roads. I stayed home and had some alone time...I did a little shopping, got my hair cut, watched a movie. Fun times.
The kids had a blast on the slopes. Well, except for JJ. She didn't love it so much. She got tired of falling down and not being able to get up. She ended up sipping hot chocolate in the lodge, playing her DS.
Montana took to it like a duck to water. Hank was planning on teaching her a few things before hand, but I guess she just put her skiis on and took off. She and Reed had a GREAT time and can't wait to go again.

Christmas Morning 09

2009-12-26T11:04:00.000-08:00

Waiting on the stairs to see if Santa came...they don't look too worried

Posing with their new penguins

Man Child

STATE CHAMPIONS!!!

2009-12-12T22:45:00.000-08:00

Congratulations to the SHELDON IRISH!!

2009 STATE 6A FOOTBALL CHAMPIONS

Way to go, guys. You worked hard for it!

It was an awesome, undefeated season.

Snowflake Makers

2009-12-01T22:23:00.000-08:00

Supply them with paper, scissors, and tape and they will be happily entertained for hours.

Christmas Tree in November

2009-11-29T23:01:00.000-08:00

The day after Thanksgiving is the earliest we have ever gone hunting for our Christmas Tree. It wasn't pouring down rain, everyone was home at the same time, we figured why not? We went to a tree farm that is owned by someone Hank works with. The only problem is they only had nobles and our kids are used to doug fir. So we heard quite a bit of complaining about how the trees were all ugly and didn't have enough branches, etc. But we were finally able to come to an agreement on one and I think we all came home happy.

Joshua

2009-11-15T10:56:00.000-08:00

The kids have been begging us to open up our home again to take in foster children.

We have been kind of licking our wounds and taking some time to heal from our loss of Christian.

We got a call from DHS last week regarding this little boy who just needed respite care for 5 days.

It seemed like a good way to get back into it, so we took him in and loved every minute of it.

He was so sweet and polite. Montana really took to him quickly and they played together a lot.

They made up games, read stories, rode bikes, and colored.

It was a good experience for all of us.

Halloween 09

2009-11-10T16:21:00.000-08:00

When I was a younger mom, I was all about "happy" halloween costumes. My first born's costumes consisted of pumpkin, clown, fireman, cowboy, football player, duck fan, etc. My daughters would dress up as a raggedy ann doll, bride, cheerleader, princess.

Every year they would beg to be the character from Scream with blood squirting down their faces. (what is the appeal with that costume anyway??) Every year I said no.

Over the years, I guess my resolve has weakened. I have slowly given in to the scary, gory, and ridiculous. I still don't like it, but I've decided it's not quite the big deal I used to think it was. It's one night (or two or three, if you count the school spooktacular and the church harvest party!) of dressing up and if it makes them super happy to be a freaky looking vampire or a witch, let them have their fun.

Christian's Slide Show

2009-10-10T22:16:00.000-07:00

This is a slide show that Reed and I put together. It's a little glimpse into our time with Christian.

http://www.youtube.com/user/irishbigboy87#p/a

P.S. So I guess "they" (youtube) muted the audio because it was copyrighted or something. It kinda takes a lot away from the feeling of the slide show, but you can just pretend you're listening to "I Wish You Peace" by the Eagles, "Beautiful Boy" by the Beatles, and "Goodnight, My Angel" by Billy Joel.

P.P.S. Update: Reed was able to get some audio back on, but we weren't able to use all the same songs we had originally used. I guess it's better than no audio.

Catch Up

2009-09-11T15:48:00.000-07:00

Things have been kind of crazy around here and I haven't posted very much about our summer. Here are a few random pictures to try and catch up (in no particular order)

Grandpa and Reed went fishing at Diamond Lake

We had a friend take some family pictures

We rented a boat and took the kids tubing

We celebrated the 50th anniversary of Hank's parents at a family reunion

This is his parents with all 10 of their children

We visited family in Utah

These cousins call themselves "Team Jelly"

(It's a combination of both their names)

This is "Team Kaylemad"

Reed was practicing his photog skillz.

He told us just where and how to pose.

It Only Hurts When I Breathe

2009-09-03T00:01:00.000-07:00

I went running yesterday morning on this lovely bike path by the river. It was a cathartic experience. I was listening to my ipod when a song by Shania Twain came on. I wasn't expecting the emotional response that came with it. She talks about someone who is no longer in her life and starts the song with "Hope life's been good to you since you've been gone." She had me right there. I started crying. Then she goes on and says "I'm over the worst and I feel so alive...I can't complain...I'm free again..." Then comes the ironic part. "And it only hurts when I'm breathing....my heart only breaks when it's beating..."

Here I was running down the path with tears streaming down my face. I passed several people who acknowleged me and I tried to offer a hello and a smile, but I'm pretty sure they thought I was crazy.

I've never experienced anything quite like this pain before. I've lost both of my grandpa's, which was hard. But they were both older and it was almost a relief when they passed on because they were moving on to a better place.

With Christian (I'm using his real name, I'm such a rebel) it's like he died but he didn't go to a better place. He went to live with an ex-felon who has a history of domestic violence, alcohol/drug abuse, has *EVIL* tatood onto his hand, and likes to brag about the size of his ______. He won't allow Christian to have any contact with us whatsoever. He took him to live in California and that's that.

It's been so hard to deal with. I've grieved a lot, and just when I think I'm all cried out, something will trigger a huge emotional response. I worry so much about how he's doing and what he's feeling, and whether he thinks we've just abandoned him.

If you're the praying type, would you please offer up a prayer for him today?

Our Little Starfish

2009-08-16T21:37:00.000-07:00

I'm sure you've heard the parable of the starfish.

One morning a man was walking on a nearly deserted beach. He came upon a woman surrounded by thousands and thousands of starfish. As eagerly as she could, the woman was picking them up and throwing them back into the ocean.

Puzzled, the older man looked at the woman and asked, "What are you doing?"

She responded without looking up, "I'm trying to save these starfish."

The old man chuckled and said "There are thousands of starfish here. What difference can you make?"

Holding a starfish in her hand, the woman turned to him and, gently tossing the starfish into the water said,

"I made a difference to that one!"

Little Guy's permanency hearing was Thursday. The judge ruled in favor of reunification with his biological father. They picked him up on Friday morning to take him down to California. We are devastated. He was with us for 2 1/2 years and we love him like our own. We were hoping for a different outcome, but we have faith that this is the Lord's plan. We can only pray that he is in the Lord's hands and that we somehow were able to make a difference.

Grandma Dorothy

2009-07-14T22:43:00.000-07:00

On the way to our family reunion in Bear Lake, we stopped in Ontario to visit my sweet Grandma Dorothy. We don't get to see her often and it was so great to spend some time with her.

I'm not sure if she knew exactly who we were. She never called us by name, but she knew that we were related to her somehow and I hope she felt our love for her.

We certainly felt her love for us.

What a wonderful lady.

LOVE YOU GRANDMA !!!

Surprise Visitors

2009-06-14T22:35:00.000-07:00

We were pleasantly surprised this evening by a visit from our cousins who were traveling through town on their way home from a wedding. They live in Boise and we don't get to see them very often. We were so glad they stopped by to say hello.

Their son Keaton is the same age as Reed. They have both always been off the growth charts. They have traded back and forth growing spurts and it's always fun to see who's taller each time they see each other. Keaton was definitely taller this time. He has passed up Reed by a couple of inches.

He's a Little Teapot

2009-05-26T16:17:00.000-07:00

Little Guy invited me to his preschool a few weeks ago for a Mother's Tea. Little Guy and his preschool friends performed some of the songs they have been learning this year and presented us with a few homemade gifts, like the beautiful flower I'm wearing in the picture.

Montana's Three B's

2009-05-05T21:49:00.001-07:00

Birthday

She requested a triple layer plain chocolate cake

It was a breeze to make compared with previous cake requests

Bishop's Baptism Interview

Baptism Day

We got Bass

2009-04-24T10:05:00.000-07:00

There is a big pond at the end of our street. Every afternoon this week, Reed and his friend Kameron have gone fishing there. In fact, they have been fishing this pond for a couple of years without any luck.

They fish for 3-4 hours at a time and come home empty handed

Until last night. We got a call around 8:30 pm that they had caught a 4 lb. bass. I send Hank down to the pond with the camera. (As it turns out, the fish wasn't quite 4 lbs, more like 1-2 lbs., but that's how it is with fishermen. They get a little carried away with their estimates.) But just look at the excitement on their faces. All their hard work finally paid off.

Little Guy Turns 4

2009-04-19T21:03:00.000-07:00

Little Guy recently celebrated his 4th birthday.

He really wanted a "Mator" cake, so I did my best to oblige.

He LOVES his new "cars" scooter

It was a bittersweet day for us, because we know it may

be the last birthday he gets to spend in our home.

We would have never guessed we would have him this long.

He's been with us for his 2nd, 3rd, and 4th bithdays.

Hopefully we'll have many more with him.

His permanency hearing is next week, so please keep us in your prayers!

SB 2009: The Final Chapter

2009-04-14T22:10:00.000-07:00

I'll bet you're tired of looking at pictures from our Spring Break...ok, this will be the last post about it. I just couldn't stop before posting a few more pictures of our stay in San Antonio with Brad and Sally. We went to this small amusement park with indoor/outdoor activities. It was a fun filled afternoon.

JJ climbing the rock wall

Montana waiting patiently for her turn on the bungee trampoline

JJ on the bungee trampoline. It's super blurry because I didn't use sports mode, but it gives a good idea of how high the kids were shot up into the air. They screamed and laughed and it was so fun to watch!

Brad and Reed on the outdoor ride. I don't know what it was called, but I know it would have made me throw up if I tried to ride it. It took them way up high in the air and then suddenly dropped them really fast. I don't understand what is fun about that.

Hank, Montana, and Reed in the bumper cars. Reed was very frustrated that he wasn't able to pass his dad.

The final picture is to complete the story that Sally started on her blog. Hank and Brad were racing down the big slide on their gunny sacks. Hank was laying down (against the rules!) in order to increase his speed. When he got to the bottom of the slide, he couldn't stop. He kept sliding across the floor and rammed into the gate, which busted into several pieces. He layed there for what seemed like the longest time and then looked at the girl running the slide and said, "Excuse me!!" For the rest of the day, we saw park employees talking about him and telling the story of how he broke down the gate. He was quite the celebrity that day.

San Antonio

2009-04-10T09:15:00.000-07:00

After our cruise, we were able to spend several days with Sally and Brad hanging out and exploring San Antonio. What a great place! We loved it.

We really enjoyed our tour of the Alamo. I wasn't prepared for the emtional response I would have there. I guess I had never put much thought into that battle or what those men sacrificed and what they were fighting for. When we walked into the shrine behind us I was overwhelmed with feelings of admiration and respect for the courageous men who fought there for their freedom and their families.

We took a cool boat tour of the River Walk. It was fun and interesting. This was a picture I took during the boat tour. I can't remember what the significance was, but I thought it was cool picture anyway.

After the boat tour and walking around a bit, we found a mexican restaurant that had been highly recommended. We ate up on the outside patio where there was a nice breeze. Tyler was there in the empty yellow chair, but I'm not sure where he is in this picture...maybe he's hiding under the table.

More Random Pics

2009-04-09T14:22:00.000-07:00

Having never cruised before, we weren't prepared for what an ordeal debarkation is. We thought we were being so clever by waiting around on the ship until most of the people were off. We figured we were avoiding the crowds. What we didn't account for were the lines at customs. The kids were trying to find interesting ways to pass the time while we waited and waited. Reed organized a race between the girls. I was taking pictures when I was approached by someone who worked there and told that cameras weren't allowed. I thought that was a strange rule, so I questioned them about it. I was told that people weren't allowed to take pictures in customs because if someone accidentally caught an employee on film doing something illegal or allowing something illegal into the country, the photographer could use the picture as blackmail. Hmmm. Sounds like some paranoid workers to me. **If you happen to see some illegal activity in this picture, please do not use it as blackmail.

Our first stop after getting off the ship was the Bass Pro Shop. Hank and Reed HAD to stop and look around. We didn't have any room in our suitcases to purchase anything, but they had fun looking and dreaming. They looked at all the fishing boats and picked out their favorite one.

Reed picked out a tractor he liked

For lunch on the way from Galveston to San Antonio we stopped at an authentic Texan BBQ that Sal and Brad had recommended. It was an interesting ambience with dead animal heads all over the walls, but the food was really good. (don't you hate it when people take pictures of you while you're eating?)

Random Cruise Pics

2009-04-07T15:44:00.000-07:00

It was a simple request. I wanted a picture of the kids in front of their cabin door. Reed thinks it's really funny to make a face right when I click. I was planning on only posting the one above, but maybe I will post a few of the more interesting ones to deter him next time...

Notice the girls are cooperating in every picture. Thank you, girls.

These are our waiters, Wayan and Anold. They were great.

Our room steward, Jorge, was awesome too. He made us little towel animals. The kids were excited to check and see what animal he made for them each day. He would do a different one for each of our rooms.

Look at JJ's face. Poor little thing. I thought it was strawberry smoothies they were giving away in the diamond store. So I gave the kids each a cup full. After they drank them (and almost barfed) the store lady came running over telling me in broken english that those were alcoholic. Turns out it they weren't really smoothies, but strawberry dacquiris. Oops. Sorry kids. How was I supposed to know?? I'm still paying for that one with Reed. He thinks it's hilarious to talk about his mother leading him down the wrong path.

Cozumel

2009-04-03T11:51:00.000-07:00

The second port we stopped at on the cruise was Cozumel. It was awesome. The beaches were much nicer than in Progreso. And the snorkeling was better, too.

We rented a jeep when we got off the ship and drove to a beach that we had researched...Playa Azul.

Playa Azul was much less crowded than the bigger beaches close to town. The water was a beautiful color of turqoise blue. It was just like it looks in the travel magazines.

This is a conch that Reed found while snorkeling at Playa Azul

Progreso

2009-03-31T09:53:00.000-07:00

I have so many pictures and so many things to say about our trip, that it's hard to narrow it down. We took a cruise out of Galveston to Mexico and the Western Carribean. We went out of Galveston because we went to visit Sally (my awesome sister) and her family in San Antonio. More about that in another post.

Our first stop on the cruise was the port of Progreso. We only had about 7 hours before we had to be back on the ship. We spent about half of it at the mayan ruins. We hired a tour guide to show us around the grounds. We learned a lot of interesting things there and really enjoyed it. Then we spent the rest of our time in port at the beach.

The girls had their hair braided by a Mexican woman on the beach

The boys had fun in the ocean. The snorkleing wasn't very good in Progreso, but they had fun trying.

Dzibilchaltun

2009-03-30T14:12:00.000-07:00

This is one of the ancient mayan ruins we visited in the yucatan peninsula. It was about a 30 minute drive from our port in Progreso, Mexico. We took a taxi there and our driver waited while we toured the ruins and then took us back to the beach.

It was so interesting to see the ruins of a civilization that lived there in 500 b.c.

This was part of their marketplace

This is the Temple of the 7 Dolls

(Harold is trying hard to look like a true tourist)

The 2 ladies sitting in front of us thought they were clever pretending to be part of our family

This is the Ceynote, a natural waterhole, on the grounds of the ruins.

There were tons of fish in there, some of which would come up and nibble on your feet when you stepped in the water. (I didn't stay in very long for that reason)

Shout Hoo-Ray

2009-03-06T12:28:00.000-08:00

One year older and wiser, too. Happy Birthday *clap* to you.

And so ends another birthday extravaganza.

She really, really, really, really, really

wanted a sleepover this year.

I agreed. (Not sure why.)

She invited 4 friends and 1 sister.

1 throw up (went home), 2 dramas (with crying), 1 movie, ToNs oF JuNk FoOd,

17 episodes of Hannah Montana, lots of giggles and good times, not much sleep.

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall

2009-01-29T20:48:00.001-08:00

Who's the sweetest sister of them all? SALLY! Check this out. I saw some mirrors that I thought were cute on another blog that I read sometimes. I commented on that blog that I liked them. Sally, who also reads that blog sometimes, noticed my comment. She went and bought the exact mirrors at Ikea and then modge podged them with cute crafty paper and gave them to me for Christmas. Didn't she do a great job?

Once a Monkey, Always a Monkey

2009-01-23T14:54:00.000-08:00

Remember this post from over a year ago? Today I put Little Guy in his room for some "Quiet Time", which actually should be called some "Make As Much Noise As You Can Time." When the all the jumping, shouting, singing, banging noises stopped, I went to check on him. As all mothers know, it's usually a sign that he's gotten into something. I found him sleeping peacefully inside his dresser. Notice the empty top shelf? Yeah, those clothes have been nicely scattered all around his room.

Nice People Rock

2009-01-13T19:53:00.000-08:00

So the day wasn't going so well. My first mistake was trying to take a grumpy 3 year old to the grocery store. He cried through most of the shopping trip because he was collecting the coupons that come zooming out of those little coupon holder thingys in the aisles and when he threw them all on the ground (on purpose), I didn't stop to pick them all up for him and give them back. He thought that was pretty much the end of the world.

Then when I went to put the groceries in the back of the suburban, I forgot that my dear husband had packed four tons of Goodwill Donations back there. (We cleaned out the playroom...hooray for that) So that when I opened the hatch, everything came crashing down, with bags bursting open. I had to chase down little run away toys and random things rolling around the parking lot. Very frustrating.

Then, on the way home, Little Guy was yip yip yapping to me about something or other and he wasn't happy. He likes to argue with me about everything when we are driving. It makes me crazy. I think I've blogged about this recently. He asks a question and then argues with me about the answer. Or he bosses me about how to drive and what to do and where to go and how fast. We were in the middle of one of those "conversations" when we were taking an exit that curves around and then comes to a stop light.

There was a car in front of me and the light had just turned green. I turned around to respond to Little Guy for a split second. In that time the car in front of me, rather than turning right at the green light, decided to stop and I ended up ramming into her back end. It wasn't hard, just a little more than a tap, but it was enough to really freak Little Guy out. I rolled down my window as the lady was getting out of her car. I called to her as she was walking up to my vehicle and told her I was so sorry (I know attorneys tell you not to ever admit fault, but it was obviously my fault and I felt bad.) She came up and took my hand in hers and looked me in the eye and told me it was just fine and to have a nice day. Then she got back in her car and drove away.

And after that, I did have a nice day. Don't nice people rock?

Daily Riddle

2008-12-26T21:25:00.000-08:00

What do you get when you leave two of these...

alone upstairs

with one of these accidentally left in the hallway?

(We thought it was a little too quiet upstairs, if you know what I mean)

Oh Christmas Tree

2008-12-14T21:58:00.000-08:00

Only 11 more days until Christmas and we finally got our tree strung with lights

Hopefully some day soon we'll get some ornaments on it

Kinda funny, but not really...

2008-12-02T21:29:00.000-08:00

This is the door sign I found hanging on our teenage son's bedroom door. It's a gift he received when his second sister was born and he was 7 years old. It used to say "No Girls Allowed" but he's obviously changed it to suit his more "mature" personality. [Lest anyone (especially him!) think we condone this and allow hot girls into his bedroom, the sign has been removed from his door]

Nurse Carolyn

2008-11-17T22:23:00.001-08:00

My Mom and Dad are leaving to go back home. Their 5 days off at the temple are over and their duty calls. I'm so sad. I have LOVED having them here and my Mom has been such a big help with the kids, the laundry, the cooking, the dishes, the vacuuming, the driving, and she even cleaned my toilets! Like a good nurse, she made sure I took my pain pills and got enough sleep, and she watched me like a hawk so that I didn't lift or bend.

Thanks so much for your help--I couldn't have done it without you! In fact, I'm not sure how I'm going to do it the next 5 weeks without you. I LOVE YOU.

Tickets

2008-11-07T09:53:00.000-08:00

For a while now, driving with Little Guy has been providing a bit of a mothering challenge. He has taken to back seat driving. Each and every time we get in the car to go somewhere (which is LOT) he will tell me to "Go faster, Mom" or "Go slower, Mom." He tells me when the light is red and if I don't stop immediately, he freaks out. "Mom, it's red, you have to STOP!" He tells me when he sees a green light and if I'm still waiting for the car in front of me to go, he freaks out. "Go, Mom, it's green!" Then he will ask me, "Are you going fast Mom?" "Are you going slow, Mom?" When I give him an answer, he argues about it. "No you're not going fast, Mom"

It gets really old. Some of his questions are difficult to answer because SLOW and FAST are relative terms. And it's frustrating because he doesn't accept one easy answer. He keeps at it. Asking more questions. And making more demands regarding my driving. I started telling him exactly what speed I was traveling, which led to a discussion of speed limits. Which led to a discussion of what happens when you don't follow the speed limit. (This is a DAILY conversation, by the way).

So yesterday I was amused to have this conversation with him as I was driving:

LG: Mom, drive fast. We have to get there.

M: I'm going as fast as I can. I have to drive the speed limit.

LG: Oh yeah, or else you will get tickets.

M: Yes, and then I will have to pay lots of money.

LG: No.

M: Yes. If I get a ticket, I have to pay money to the city.

LG: No. Mom, if you get tickets, you have to go to Chuck E. Cheese. They have the tickets. Then you get a prize.

So THIS is what it's been about all this time? Chuck E. Cheese? He's thinking if I get a ticket then he gets to go to Chuck E. Cheese. Funny guy.

A Buzz and 2 Witches

2008-11-04T19:52:00.000-08:00

and the candy is already gone...HOORAY

drowning

2008-10-31T13:41:00.000-07:00

I've been on a little Blog-cation, in case you haven't noticed. I'm up to my ears dealing with doctors (ruptured disc--ouch!), attorneys (little guy), stressed-out husband (bishop), and lots of decisions that have to be made sooner rather than later. Hopefully I'll be back soon...

Little Guy's First Prayer

2008-10-19T20:53:00.000-07:00

Tonight as I was putting Little Guy to bed, he told me he didn't need help saying his prayers. This was a first. He said he could do it all by himself. So I kept quiet. And this is what I heard:

I love my Mommy

I love (Montana)

I love (JJ)

I love (Reed)

I love going to school

Playing on the playground

I love going home

I love playing with my daddy

And my (Reed)

Please bless me

And we're going to adopt me

I love Grandma Carolyn

I love Grandpa Con

I love the Yukon

Amen

Ocean World

2008-10-15T10:22:00.000-07:00

Last Thursday Reed's football team had a game down south. None of the kids had school the next day and I had previously made arrangements for our family to travel down to the game and then continue on to the northern California coastline and the Redwoods and make a long weekend of it.

Ironically, Reed sustained a concussion in his football game the prior week and he wasn't cleared to play by Thursday, but since we had already paid for the beach house reservation, we went anyway.

One of the favorite activities was going to Ocean World. We all got the chance to pet a shark. Some of us were braver than others...

The younger kids had fun climbing inside the big fake shark and pretending they were being eaten

We watched a really fun seal show.

The girls loved this picture of a seal painted on the wall

Hank caught some waves on the surfboard (in his socks and sandals!)

Reed was too cool for surfing (and for pictures)

To be continued...

Today's Ortho Appt.

2008-10-07T10:22:00.000-07:00

Before

During...

After!

SALLY FOSTER /// ENTERTAINMENT BOOKS

2008-09-30T16:24:00.000-07:00

I admit it. I am officially the world's biggest Fundraising Grinch. Just ask my children. Every year, on a sunny day in September, the kids race home from the bus stop and can hardly wait to show me what they "get" to sell this year. And every year I go into denial. Maybe if I just ignore it, it will go away.

How is that working for me, you ask? It's not. They don't forget about it. And every day I have to think of another excuse why we can't go out that day to sell.

I don't like my children hitting up friends and family for money. And I certainly don't want them wandering the neighborhood hitting up the neighbors for money. I don't like it one bit. OK. I'll tell you how I really feel. I hate it the whole thing.

On that happy note, I have decided this may be the least painful way to allow my children to participate (so they don't feel like total losers when all their classmates sell tons and win lots of prizes and my children sell none because their mother is, well, you know... the fundraising grinch) I will simply put up a few links to the websites. If you are interested in participating, simply click on the links. Any purchase you make will be credited to them and their school if you use the link provided.

The great thing is...you don't feel any pressure and I don't feel any guilt. It's a win-win, right? So, go ahead and check out the websites and if you feel so inclined, purchase away!

Here's the link for the ENTERTAINMENT BOOK... Make sure to enter the seller number 340745 so the girls get credit. http://www.entertainment.com/discount/fundraisingLookup.shtml
It's only $20 and there are great savings on restaurants, shopping, services, etc. You can buy one for the city you live in, or someplace you plan on visiting. They make great gifts for holidays and birthdays!

Here's the link for SALLY FOSTER... Make sure to enter the seller number 340695 so the girls get credit. Just click on th Button that says Give Credit.
http://www.sallyfoster.com/sally/home.jsp

Sally Foster sells lots of neat products. My favorite is their high quality, really cute wrapping paper and gift bags. They also sell organizing tools, stationary, gourmet chocolates, gadgets and gifts. Check out their catolog. You're sure to find something you can't live without! 50% of every purchase goes to the school!

You shouldn't need this, but just in case....the school's account number is 172258 for both fundraisers.

YOU ONLY HAVE UNTIL OCTOBER 14TH, SO GET YOUR ORDERS IN NOW

**If you want free shipping with Sally Foster, you can call me and I'll place the order through the school and then make sure it gets to you. The Entertainment Book has free shipping.

Be of Good Cheer

2008-09-26T09:13:00.000-07:00

Two friends stopped by last night. One was holding a butter tub filled with steaming hot homemade hot fudge. The other had a message that spoke peace to my soul. Neither of these friends knew much about what we've been struggling with. I am not able to share many details here. But generally, we are in a legal battle with the state and the biological father over Little Guy. They are adament about reunification and we are adament that it is not in his best interest, given his extremely traumatic life threatening injuries and abuse at such a young age and the amount of time he has been with us and bonded and attached to our family. The biological father is basically a stranger to him.

After spending thousands of dollars in attorneys fees and incalculable stress, worry, and tears over the past year and a half, it appears that we are fighting a losing battle. A battle that we felt led to fight. It has begun to feel like we are simply smashing our heads against the wall to no avail. We are being falsely accused and maligned by attorneys and state workers. We (I) have begun to doubt and wonder if we should continue the fight. Is it worth it? Our life would be so much easier if we gave in. What will the outcome be? Can't we just have a little peek into the future to see how things will turn out?

And then my two friends came. They sat with me and cried with me. They shared a scripture with me that I have heard countless times, but hadn't thought of recently. "And ye cannot bear all things now; nevertheless, be of good cheer, for I will lead you along." It spoke directly to my soul as if that scripture were written for me alone.

Thank you friends. It was exactly what I needed to hear.

(And that hot fudge is almost gone...)

Little Brown Snakes

2008-09-24T11:27:00.000-07:00

Conversation overheard last night at bedtime:

Hank: Come on, let's go get your pajamas on and brush teeth
Little Guy: Not yet, I haven't made any little brown snakes.
Hank: You don't need to make any brown snakes before bed.
Little Guy: Yes, I do!!! Mom told me.
Reed: What in the heck are little brown snakes?
Hank: That's what he calls going #2 in the toilet. If he does it in the toilet, he gets to see the brown snakes. If he does it in his diaper, they don't look like snakes anymore.
Reed: Oh. Very nice.

Sharing a Snack

2008-09-19T10:46:00.000-07:00

Cousin Carter came to play today. They played so hard they needed a snack so they helped themselves to a banana and went outside to eat on the bench. This was just before they decided to dig a big hole, fill it with water, and then stand in it. Past their ankles. With Carter's new shoes on. Good thing his mommy is a good sport.

The Secret

2008-09-14T22:15:00.000-07:00

I think I've discovered the secret

to keeping the children happily occupied

for hours at a time:

ASK THEM TO CLEAN THEIR ROOMS

They will disappear for hours

entertaining themselves

doing anything OTHER than actually cleaning their rooms

Evidently, the girls got down the dress-up box

and had some fun with Little Guy

He LOVED it

Thanks to them,

he now wants to be a princess for Halloween

We'll have to think about that one

15,000 Words

2008-09-11T14:28:00.000-07:00

If a picture paints a thousand words, how many words does this post paint?

Testing the waters...

Attempts to push each other in the lake

Pinkie-Promise not to push in

Contemplating

Please bless it won't be too cold

(she wasn't really praying...I don't think...I didn't ask)

OK, I think I'm ready...

Mom! Why do you have to take a billion pictures?!?

In she goes!

Come on in, Montana. It's not cold, I swear!

Should I believe her?

JERONIMO!!

Brrrrrrrrr!

OK, I guess it wasn't so bad

Canoe Adventures

2008-09-09T21:41:00.000-07:00

Out for a leisurely canoe ride/fishing trip

Oops.

Oh no. Where's the fishing pole?!? DANGIT!!

Blame. Blame. Why'd you do that?

Notice the Lochness Monster in the top right hand corner. Freaky.

Better get back in the boat!

You climb in, I'll hold it steady

OK, We're both in

Wait, that didn't work so well

Back to School

2008-09-03T22:44:00.000-07:00

They said they weren't excited about going back to school.

(I think they secretly were)

As for me, I thought once the kids were back in school I would get a bit of a break. Not today. With 2 orthodontist appointments (1 morning, 1 afternoon), a visit at DHS with "Grandma Teresa", Freshmen registration, school supply shopping for Reed, and driving to and from football and soccer practice, I think I logged more miles on the family car than I did any other day this summer.

Whew. Good thing gas is "so cheap" now.

Brave Voyager

2008-09-01T23:18:00.000-07:00

How many 92 year olds do you know that would cheerfully and bravely climb into a rickety old rowboat and go for a ride with her great-grandchildren? What a trooper! We rowed over to join some friends on a rope swinging adventure this afternoon.

Wii golf?

2008-08-22T22:27:00.000-07:00

Being the avid non-golfer that I am, I was amused to go upstairs this evening and find my youngest daughter and my husband playing wii golf. I mean, wii have a set of golf clubs in the garage, but I can't guarantee that they've ever been used. It's just not something wii've taken to. Enter the incredible Wii. It makes you think you can actually do these things. I was impressed to hear little Montana throwing around words like "fairway, par, birdie, double bogey" I had to ask her what some of those meant. When did she become an expert on golf? She adjusts for wind speed, calculates just how hard or how soft she needs to hit the ball depending on distance and slope, and she knows all the terminology. Maybe someday she'll teach mii.

George's Planter Benches

2008-08-21T16:48:00.000-07:00

I was planning on posting some before and after pictures, but since things have been so busy around here, I haven't had a chance to actually DO the after, let alone take pictures of it. So, I guess I'll just start with the before.

These are some planter boxes that were given to me by my dear Grandma Dorothy's Cousin's husband. His name is George and he has a great talent for making things with wood. He is getting older in years and has had to slow down considerably. He used to make all kinds of neat things out of wood and sell them at flea markets. Recently he has had to stop wood working because of some health issues.

A few months ago my dad told me he was going to go visit with George and Hazel. I asked him to check and see if George had any more of his planter boxes because I would like to buy one from him. I came home one day to find these boxes all set up, with the benches across them, in my kitchen. I should have taken a picture of THAT. It was pretty funny.

Evidently, George had one bench left and wanted me to have it. (Dad insisted on at least paying him for the cost of the wood) I was instructed not to expose them to the weather until they had been properly stained. So they sat in my kitchen for about a week until we all got tired of tripping over them.

Eventually Dad and I went to Home Depot and picked out some stain. Then the girls and I spent an evening and a good part of the next day staining them. I sure like how they look, but I'm sure they'll look much prettier if I can ever get to the store and buy some flowers to put in them.

Kix Treats

2008-08-10T20:26:00.000-07:00

Kix Treats is one of our favorite Family Home Evening treats. I got the recipe from my sister-in-law, Mikell. It's super easy, quick, and YUMMY. Here's the recipe, if you want to try it sometime.

Kix Treats

1 cup Karo syrup

1 cup sugar

Heat over medium heat until it's semi-clear. Don't boil.

add:

1 cup peanut butter

6 cups Kix cereal

Pour into 9x13 pan and sprinkle chocolate chips on the top

Three Little Monkeys

2008-08-02T14:03:00.000-07:00

Last night I was relaxing in the living room watching DVR'd Oprahs. Hank had taken the kids to see "Space Chimps" so I could have some alone time. I was planning on going to a Breaking Dawn party last night, but unfortunately I came down with a sinus/head/chest cold and lost my voice.

I heard the garage door open and these three little monkeys came walking in. They looked so funny I couldn't stop laughing. The kids gave the movie great reviews, although I don't think Hank loved it so much.

While the boys are away...

2008-07-30T19:45:00.000-07:00

We had a girls day recently when Hank was at work, Reed was at basketball camp, and Little Guy was at a foster care play date. The girls looked through my cookbooks and found "Cooking with Kids." They had so much fun looking through it and picking out things they would like to try.
I taught them how to make No-Bake Cookies and they LOVED them. So today, while I was in the shower, they decided to try it all by themselves. I came down to these two cuties with a cookie sheet full of finger licking good No-Bakes. I was a little nervous about the fact that they had been using the gas stove without any supervision, but I realized they really did just fine and maybe I need to relax a little. Maybe not.
What do you think? How old do you think a child needs to be before they are allowed to use the kitchen stove by themselves?

Catch of the Day

2008-07-28T21:00:00.000-07:00

We celebrated Hank's birthday tonight at McGraths. They made him wear the big blue fish hat while they sang "Happy Birthday, Dear Fish Head." He's a good sport, isn't he?

Like Father, Like Son

2008-07-20T18:58:00.000-07:00

For Hank, it's always less about style and more about comfort and convenience. (love his heart, as my grandma would say) Those of you who have spent much time around Hank will recognize this outfit as his typical year round Sunday after-meetin'-clothes. Changes into shorts, leaves the white shirt, leaves the black socks. You can imagine the good laugh I got when he went up to change Little Guy before Sunday dinner and they both came down like this:

Bandon Tide Pools

2008-07-16T04:35:00.000-07:00

Over the 4th of July weekend we went to Bandon. We rented a nice big house close to the golf course (it even had a putting green in the back yard). Not that we're golfers. We just wanted a place big enough to be together with family.

The tide pools were great! We were able to drive right onto the beach (I didn't enjoy that as much as Hank did...he LOVED the 4-wheeling). The kids enjoyed sticking their fingers in the sea anenomes. There were star fish and mussles everywhere. We also saw little crabs, big crabs, and even a dead sea lion. Ewww.

Cousin Ty-Ty

Grandpa Con fishing in the ocean

Grandma Carolyn with Little Guy

Montana got her face painted at the Bandon 4th of July Festival

(not sure what she's supposed to be, but she liked it!)

Family Time

2008-07-14T16:28:00.000-07:00

We've been a family traveling machine so far this summer. As soon as school got out, we were on our way to Hank's family reunion. Then my sister came out from Texas and my parents got a few weeks off at the temple, so we took off again. This time the destination was Central Oregon. We stayed in a townhouse at Eagle Crest. We had some good quality family time.

Grandpa braided hair !!

Grandma played cards

JJ got lots of sleep...

Good times with Sally and Brad (they're awesome!)

The boys taking some "down" time

We also swam a lot, played basketball (ugh, I'm out of shape), watched movies, ate homemade ice cream (YUM), learned how to play pinochle, rode bikes and scooters, passed kidney stones (well, one of us did), watched thunder and lightening storms (and decided NOT to hike the butte during said storm), visited, read, worked on crossword puzzles, and generally just relaxed and enjoyed being together.

"Lake Taco" Reunion

2008-07-07T22:10:00.000-07:00

We have been on the go ever since school let out for the summer. Our first adventure was driving to Lake Tahoe for Hank's family reunion. All 10 siblings and their spouses were there, as well as his parents and 39 of the neices and nephews.
We had such a fun time with everyone. Our kids were in heaven with all those playmates.

Hank with his parents and siblings

We went on hikes

Spent lots of time at the lake

Little Guy called it Lake Taco

Reed loved the babies, as well as all the attention from his teenaged girl cousins

For family talent night, we showed how Hank can pick up the girls by their ears

And, of course, what's a family reunion without a good father/son wrestling match?

The Graduate

2008-06-25T23:24:00.000-07:00

The other night we attended Reed's 8th Grade Promotion. He marched in with his class, to the music of IZ, and looked so handsome in his new suit and (size 16!) shoes. He received several awards; one for Outstanding Achievement in Leadership and one for Community Service. After the ceremony in the 107* gym was over, they loaded up on buses and headed to their big party/dance sponsored by the school. Now he's moving on to bigger and better things. High School things.

CONGRATULATIONS, REED. YOU MADE IT THROUGH MIDDLE SCHOOL !!!

HAPPY FATHER'S DAY

2008-06-15T10:00:00.001-07:00

Father; Leader; Friend; Grandpa; Listener; Teacher; Coach; Counselor

(and, of course, Fisherman)

I LOVE YOU, DAD !!!!!

Cautiously Optimistic

2008-06-13T19:28:00.000-07:00

We got some exciting news yesterday from Little Guy's caseworker. His dad's home study was denied. This doesn't necessarily mean we get to adopt him, but it does mean he most likely won't be going to live with his dad in August. Hooray!!
His dad's attorney will surely appeal the decision and drag that out as long as humanly possible. And the caseworker told us the state will now begin doing serious relative searches and determining if there are any relatives who would be appropriate permanent resources. I know he has several aunts and a grandma who have expressed interest.
In other words, there's still a long, hard road ahead.
But we're starting to feel a glimmer of hope.

Cute Little Brace Face

2008-06-11T13:00:00.000-07:00

Montana has been so excited about getting braces, even though her big brother and big sister have been sure to *warn* her about how much it hurts. Her big day finally came. She was so happy. She chose silver brackets with turqoise rubber bands around them. She could hardly wait to get to school this morning to show her teacher and her friends. Of course, they didn't put any wires on the brackets yet, so it's all fun and games until next week...

Circus Circus

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

While we were in Las Vegas we took the kids to Circus Circus. Everyone (except me) got a full day pass. I don't particularly like rides, but I had fun watching them and taking pictures. They had a B*L*A*S*T. We chose a great day to go because school was still in session and there were hardly any lines at all. They were able to just walk up and get on most of the rides. I think they rode the big roller coaster 4-5 times in a row.

Little Guy saw the Pirate Ship and wanted to ride it. It ended up scaring him because it went so high. But as soon as the ride was over, he wanted to do it again. So they stayed on for another turn. Even the older kids loved this ride.

Frog Hopper

The Disk-O--caused a few tears

We went home for lunch and swimming, then spent the evening with Hank's family. Afterwards, he took the 3 older ones back because their passes were good until midnight. They used every last minute.

Cops in Las Vegas

2008-05-30T22:01:00.000-07:00

We took a whirlwind trip to Las Vegas this past weekend. We stayed in a nice house with a fun pool in the backyard. Our first day there we swam for a couple of hours and then went to the Luxor for the dinner buffet. The kids were in pasta heaven, but it cost us about $95. Holy expensive.

It was pretty late when we got back home after dinner, but Hank really wanted to take the older kids over to see his parents. I stayed to put Little Guy to bed. About 20 minutes after they left, I thought I heard some pounding on the upstairs door/windows. It freaked me out. A lot. I kept hearing this pounding type noise outside, first upstairs and then downstairs by the back door I called Hank on his cell and told him I was really scared and didn't know what to do.

He said to call 911. I don't know why I didn't think of that. I guess because I've never had to do it before and I wasn't SURE what the noises were. But it kept happening, so I called. The operator stayed on the line with me until the police showed up at the front door. I just stayed back in the room where Little Guy was sleeping. They looked all around the front and back of the house, with their big flashlights on and their hands on their holsters, ready for action.
They came back in and told me the outside was "clean."

Before they left, they did an inside "sweep" as well. They opened every cupboard, every closet, looked under beds, even in the fridge! They were very thorough and professional. I kept apologizing. They were so nice and reassured me it was better to be safe and they were glad they could help me, that they were just doing their job, etc. They didn't find anything and I felt pretty stupid, but I tell you, I don't think I've ever been that scared, so I was glad I called.

Memorial Day

2008-05-27T21:20:00.000-07:00

We took a little trip over to the cabin for Memorial Day weekend. We didn't get there until Saturday evening because Reed had a basketball clinic on Saturday that went until 3:00 pm. We got there before dark, though, and Hank went right to work on a few trees that were leaning over the roof. He eventually got the chain saw out and at 10:30 pm I had to go out and ask him to turn it off because the neighbors might not appreciate the noise. He was having so much fun!

He had a real manly-man's weekend...cutting down trees, building big bon fires, catching 4 lb. bass for breakfast...

Here's the kids doing some karaoke in the basement:

Montana shucked the corn for our Sunday dinner and discovered a "baby" corn attached to the "mommy" corn. She thought that was pretty cool!
The men went fishing at 6:30 am Monday morning and came home with this for our breakfast:
Scott and Mikell drove over Monday afternoon and we had a BBQ. Reed was the chef and he did a great job. Little Guy and Carter had fun playing together. It was a fun weekend.

Nap Time

2008-05-22T10:52:00.000-07:00

As usual, last Sunday Little Guy made it approximately 1/4 of the way through Sacrament meeting before being taken out. Here's how it goes down every week: Little Guy has a melt-down, usually about something really important like not being allowed to pull the carpet out of the hymnal pocket and suck on it, not being allowed to race cars back and forth under the benches with the little boy sitting 2 rows ahead of us, or not being allowed to grab an entire handful of sacrament bread.

I hand him off to Hank, who has taken it upon himself to be the sacrament-meeting-taker-outer (which I totally appreciate, by the way.) They go out into the foyer to sit, or into "room 5" if things have really escalated. After a few minutes, Little Guy calms down and gets the "privilege" of coming back into the meeting to sit with Mommy.

Last Sunday they went out and, curiously, never came back. Hmmm. Reed mentioned it to me after the meeting and wondered out loud where they were. We concluded that Hank had most likely fallen asleep and Little Guy was probably running around in the hallways by himself. Or at his favorite hang-out, the drinking fountain. He can occupy himself there for hours.

A friend of ours, who happened to be out in the foyer as well, was able to capture the evidence on his cell phone. He also mentioned that it really shook his testimony to see Hank like that during Sacrament Meeting. I guess Hank will have to answer for that one.

Hot Tub Buddies

2008-05-18T21:23:00.001-07:00

Yesterday was a beautiful sunny day. We turned the heat off in the hot tub and let it cool down to a comfortable temperature. JJ and Little Guy spent a couple of hours out there "swimming." (don't worry, Mom, Little Guy can touch bottom with his head above water everywhere in the hot tub) JJ is so good with him and they had so much fun together. I was trying to take a candid shot, but Little Guy looked over and saw me pointing the camera through the kitchen window.

Flower Therapy

2008-05-15T19:45:00.000-07:00

I attended an enrichment meeting recently. (I know, it's a shock) The guest speaker was a master gardener and she mentioned the idea of gardening as a form of therapy. I guess I had never thought of it that way before, but I think there's something to it. I love planting flowers and tending to them. It makes me happy. It's something I inherited from my dad, who is sometimes lovingly referred to as "Farmer Brown."

Today, in between chauffeuring children to school, doctor's appointments, the park, and piano lessons, and while Little Guy was having a "quiet time" I was able to sneak away for a half hour in my backyard and plant a few flowers. For the planter, I used this old, antique-ish ammonition box that I found at an estate sale a few years ago.

Afterwards, I felt refreshed and ready to take on the world. Or at least 4 of the children in the world.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY

2008-05-11T22:09:00.000-07:00

To My Angel Mother--
Thank you for being such a Loving, Happy, Giving, Spiritual, Fun, Awesome Mom !!

(isn't she cute?)

Two in One

2008-05-08T15:54:00.000-07:00

Montana left for school with one loose tooth and came home with 2 missing teeth!

90 Days

2008-05-06T08:31:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was Little Guy's permanency hearing. It was pretty discouraging. The attorney for his father put her spin on things and made the man out to be a victim whose child had been torn from his home through no choice or fault of his own. She presented him as a hard working, respectable father who is doing everything in his power to get his child back. If only that were true. Little Guy wouldn't be in this situation to begin with.

I don't want to dwell on the negative, although that's what is coming naturally in this case right now. I want to remind myself of why we're doing this in the first place. And focus on doing all we can in the next 90 days to help Little Guy gain the skills and reserves to make it through the probable transition and beyond.

Of course, we're not counting out a miracle. We know with assurity that the Lord is in charge of this world and in particular, this situation. We know that He will bring about His purposes. We know that our ways are not His ways and that we can't possibly see the entire picture from our limited perspective. Unfortunately, that knowledge doesn't make it hurt any less.

This morning I picked him up and held him close. I told him we would love him forever, no matter what, even if he went back to live with his dad. He looked up at me with his big brown eyes and a big smile and said with certainty, "But you're gonna 'dopt me!"

Now, the word 'adopt' has most definitely been in our vocabulary and in our prayers over the past year. But no one has ever sat down and explained to him what that word meant. I really had no idea that he had the concept down. Evidently, I was wrong. Hopefully he's not.

3 Down, 1 to Go

2008-05-04T22:22:00.000-07:00

I think it's some strange twist of fate that 3 out of our 4 children have birthdays in the same month. And the other child has a birthday only 1 month prior. So it's been birthday central around here lately. Montana recently celebrated her big day.

Here she is letting Little Guy help her open a present. His was the birthday just before hers, so he got a little bent out of shape, thinking it was his day all over again.

They each have a "family party" on their actual birthday with our immediate family. We take them out to dinner where ever they choose to go. Then we come home and have cake and ice cream.

This year they also had a "friends" party as well. After acquiring a 4th child, I think I'll revisit this decision...planning 2 parties for each child seems a bit much. What do YOU do for YOUR kids' birthday? I'm curious.

Princess and the Pauper meets Harley

2008-05-01T21:20:00.000-07:00

Little Guy turns 3

2008-04-28T08:35:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe we've had Little Guy for over a year now. He recently celebrated his 3rd birthday. He had been looking forward to it ever since JJ celebrated hers in March. He talked about having a pirate party and wearing party hats and singing the happy birthday song.

He woke up to lots of presents and didn't waste any time opening them all. In fact, at one point I was helping the girls get ready to catch the bus and Little Guy was in there unwrapping presents all by himself. He didn't want to wait for me.

This was his party at DHS with his grandma. She brought cupcakes and all kinds of party favors. He was in heaven. His grandma really wanted it to be a kid party for him, so I pulled my kids out of school and brought them over for it. You can tell Reed is feeling a little uncomfortable. He doesn't like the idea that Little Guy doesn't belong to US. He only stayed for about 15 minutes and then he asked his dad to take him back to school. You know something's up when a teenager asks to go back to school.

This was the pirate ship that my friend Stacie made out of butcher paper. Didn't she do a great job? Little Guy loved it. We kept it up on the wall for a few days.

GO DUCKS

2008-04-24T13:24:00.000-07:00

My good friend Tracie came down from Portland yesterday to attend the U of O Women's Football Clinic with me. We had such a fun time. Her son, Brian, is on the team so she was somewhat of a celebrity with the other women. One lady was so excited and asked to have her picture taken with Tracie. We were able to meet all of Brian's coaches, which was kind of cool. Of course, they all told her what a great kid he is.

There was a reception in the beginning, where they served salad, chicken and salman skewers, veggies and drinks. Mike Belotti talked to us and gave us the run down on all the new rules for the upcoming season. (I was able to scoop my husband and teenage son when I got home!) Then we split up into 4 rotations: defense, offense, special teams, and locker room/training room/weight room tours.

I learned the most from the offensive rotation taught by Chip Kelly, the offensive coordinator. They taught us about the different positions on the field, went through some plays, and showed us some film. There was also time for Q & A. (I got extra points for asking 2 good questions) In both the defense and special teams rotations we got to get on the field in the Moshofsky center and run through some actual plays. The coaches tried to yell really loud and act like they were mad if we didn't do it right, but they didn't fool us.

As we left, we got a little gift bag with a t-shirt, some wine (gave it away), and a gift card and coupon to the Duck Shop. It was a good time.

Open letter to April

2008-04-20T09:26:00.001-07:00

Dear April,
I bet you think you're pretty funny pulling this little weather trick on us. I have to admit it was pretty exciting to wake up to the sound of children's feet running to the windows to check out the new fallen snow. And it looks pretty and all. But could you please spare my newly bloomed flowers and buds? Please?!?

Just when you think it's safe...

2008-04-16T21:10:00.000-07:00

I've been pretty good about keeping things out of Little Guy's reach ever since this incident. But he recently had a bad rash and his skin was peeling. And really dry. So after his bath the other night, I lubed him all up with my favorite (expensive!) lotion, Eucerin. Then I forgot to take it out of his room before putting him to bed. BIG OOPS. This is what I found when I went to check on him before going to sleep myself:

Little Stinker!!!

Day at the Coast

2008-04-13T21:05:00.000-07:00

Friday the kids didn't have school (what's new?) so we took a day trip to the coast. I had some work to do at the cabin, so we started there. Reed entertained the hooligans at the lake while I did some things inside. It was a beautiful, clear, sunny 70* outside.

They took a canoe ride

I thought that was pretty risky of Reed to take them all at the same time

He did a lot of teaching about how to behave in a canoe

"If you think we're going to tip over...DON'T FREAK OUT... "

Caught some salamanders from the dock

Little Guy wasn't sure what to think--He was intrigued, but a little scared

Reed has an amazing ability to get his sisters to do the dirty work

Not sure what they were doing with that yellow power bait...

Afterwards, we went to the beach where it was sunny, but WINDY

Montana and Little Guy had fun on the rocks and driftwood
(We also played in the surf, but my camera ran out of batteries)

Piano Lesson

2008-04-10T19:52:00.000-07:00

I caught Montana giving Little Guy a piano lesson the other day. I just sat and watched them for a while. I thought it was so cute how she was simultaneously teaching him the about the keys and also holding his little hand behind his back, most likely to keep him from using the piano as a roadway for his truck.

Kitchen Help

2008-04-08T14:19:00.000-07:00

My children LOVE to help in the kitchen. (with cooking, not cleaning) At dinnertime, they are often right there underfoot, begging for things to do to help get dinner ready. Until recently, however, I haven't actually made a point of TEACHING them to cook. I have simply given them small tasks to do or let them help with whatever I thought they were capable of. Thanks to the book, The Parenting Breakthrough, I have started to take a different approach.

My friend, Meg, turned me on to this author and I definitely recommend this book. I've read a LOT of parenting books, and this one is different. It's a specific plan for training your kids to be truly independent. She gives ideas of things they need to learn, and a timeline by when she thinks they should have each skill mastered. After reading the book, I realized that I haven't given my children enough credit. They are capable of doing much more than they do.

The girls in their cute aprons that I "won" for them at the Relief Society service auction

I'm pretty sure this method of cooking hot dogs was NOT in the book

Phone Parenting

2008-04-03T10:03:00.000-07:00

I'm sure every mom out there can relate to the problem of trying to manage children while talking on the phone. You get it. Around our house, the girls have taken to writing me notes while I'm on the phone. I guess they've heard me rant enough about not trying to TALK to me while I'm already TALKING or LISTENING to someone else. So they've decided it works better to WRITE to me. The problem is, I still have to concentrate on TALKING or LISTENING to someone else and it's not easy for me to READ and RESPOND to their notes at the same time I am LISTENING/TALKING. This is an example of a note I got yesterday while in the middle of an important phone call about our foster child, who happens to be sick with pneumonia.

The all-important subject of the interruption? Snacks

"can I bring a snak to soccer becuse Karly awas dos it and every time the coch says we can get a drink she gets a bite"

I don't know what non-verbal cues I gave her or what kind of "Can this please wait until I'm off the phone?" message I gave her, but this was her written response:

"does that mean yes?"

(I tried to scan the notes, but they were written in pencil and didn't show up well)

Spring Break Part Two

2008-03-30T20:24:00.001-07:00

We took the kids up to Mt. Bachelor to the superblast snowtube park. It was C*O*L*D, but it was a lot of fun! There is a daycare in the lodge that we took Little Guy to, since he wasn't tall enough to go on the tubes. There were 6 well groomed trails to ride down and a rope tow to haul people up to the top on their tubes. After two hours, they were cold and ready to head back to the cabin.

Spring Break Part One

2008-03-27T19:32:00.000-07:00

We took a little family vacation to Eagle Crest Resort for spring break. We had such a great time. Here are some snippets of our trip:

We rode bikes

We enjoyed the Sunbursts
We ate (too much)

We had our cousins, Pete and Kelli over for Easter dinner with their three cute kids. Hank, Pete, and JJ got into a roaring game of Monopoly. Guess who won? JJ did, much to the chagrin of the "experts", who claimed to have superior negotiating and real estate skills.

Hank wondering how this happened?? Notice his many "mortgaged" properties.

More to come...

BasketBrawl

2008-03-18T21:18:00.000-07:00

Several times a week after Hank gets home from work, we have a Father/Son basketball game (brawl)

At this point, they've each won about the same number of games. They're both extremely competitive, but one of them (I don't want to single anyone out, but he's the one wearing shorts) gets REALLY mad when he loses and the whole neighborhood hears about it. Tonight I had to lay down the verdict. No more outbursts like that or the competition is off.