THE JOY OF LIFE

Family Picutres June 2011

2011-12-19T22:04:00.000-08:00

Julianne's Blessing

2011-11-07T16:33:00.000-08:00

As I went back through my posts I realized that I missed posting a very important event in our family. Julianne's blessing. We were so blessed to be able to travel home during spring break and share this special time with family. Unfortunately a lot of the pictures that were taken got lost. Thank goodness for my sister Stephani who got the best shots out of all the pictures that were left. She doesn't know that I copied them from her blog but here they are.

Jules and her sweet Aunt Stephani.

Jules and Grandma Bean. I'm so glad that Steph got this one of Jules alone. It's the only one I have.

We were also lucky to have Josh's parents and his brother Dan and his wife Ashley be there for the blessing. I hope this little girl knows how much she is loves!

Julianne got to spend some special time with Grandma Hill while we were there. I love these pictures!! I think they're so sweet. It was also sweet that my parents took the time to sit down with my kids and play a game. It was the first time Isaac played Candy Land and he loved it. How lucky my children are to have such wonderful grandparents. They are great example to my kids and are an important part of their lives.

Just so you know. Yes, Isaac is still a crazy kid!!

2011-11-06T07:10:00.000-08:00

Wow, it has been a long time since I have posted. We ended up going to Idaho Falls for an internship last summer, a trial in some ways but a huge blessing in others, and then when we got back we jumped into school and the craziness of life and then I hurt my back and ended up in the ER and have been down flat for the last week and off and on for a few weeks before that. So needless to say life has been a little too chaotic to blog. Thank goodness for my sweet mom!! It's not often that a mom gets to have someone to take care of her. Even when we get sick or hurt we have to muddle through. But last week my mom came a took such good care of me and now I'm on my way back to normal. Thanks mom for your example and love!! I sure appreciate you. For my own records I'm going to start posting again but I have to start with what happened at the beginning of the summer to get back on track. It will take some time because so much has happened but hopefully it will give you a sense of what has happened and what we have learned. So if you are interested, watch for more posts over the next week, but be patient with me because it's going to take some time.

2011-04-29T15:26:00.000-07:00

I just have to share this with everyone because I'm so excited about it. So who doesn't need a little help spicing up their marriage. You could have the perfect marriage and be blissfully happy but a marriage like that takes work and we all know that it's important to keep dating, especially when kids and work can get in the way of being together. I just found the most fantastic website to help keep romance fun and spark the fire again in your marriage.
This is it..... thedatingdivas.com It's written by a team of extremely creative ladies and I can't wait to try some of their ideas out on Josh. I hope you enjoy it.

family pics

2011-04-17T11:15:00.000-07:00

This post has been in the works for the last two months, in fact, I forgot that I started it until I looked at my drafts a week or two ago. Jenny came up a week after Jules was born to visit and while she was here she was so awesome and took pictures of my family. Unfortunately my boys were little pills that night so they didn't turn out the way I had hoped. We'll have to get some spring ones taken, Jules is SO MUCH bigger now than she was here, but in the meantime these are the ones that we have. THANKS JEN!!! Sorry my kids are such a pain to take pictures of but I really appreciate you!!

This one is so not my favorite but it's the best one of the bunch. AHH, my children!!!

Don't let that cute face fool ya!!1

I love this picture!!!! It's one of my faves!!

I LOVE this picture!! I gave Josh his superman shirt for one of the first Christmases that we were together and last Christmas when he was at Old Navy shopping for me he came upon this little pink superman shirt for Jules and he HAD to buy it. He is such a sweet daddy!!

I really love this picture!!! Three generations together!!! Thanks again Mom for all of your help!!!

I'll post some of the pictures of Jules on the next post but I did want to post this collage. Jen, you did a great job!!!

Recap of the first of the year

2011-04-03T15:23:00.000-07:00

Wow!! It's amazing how fast time flies!! And I haven't posted anything for a long time. So I'll just do a little post of what's happened over the last few months. I've found that I'm not taking enough pictures!! So hopefully there will be many more posts to come with lots more pictures.

Julianne is a tummy baby!!! She actually enjoys being on her tummy but I don't give her near enough tummy time. Thank goodness she started out with a really strong neck or we might have some problems. She has actually grow so much since this picture!! It's amazing how much a new born can change over a matter of weeks!!

I turned thirty-one in January and Josh totally spoiled me. Unfortunately Isaac didn't share the same attitude about my birthday.Aren't these gorgeous!! I have the best husband!! Along with these he got me a Yankee candle and a gift certificate to get a manicure. I've never had one before and I haven't found the right time to use it but I'm looking forward to it.

Like I said, Isaac decided to celebrate my birthday in his own special way. I think I was feeding Jules at the time he was doing this and he was so quiet I didn't even realize that he was on the counter until long after he had done this. The little stinker. Spice cake anyone?

Emma is continuing to be a fantastic big sister and a huge help to me. I'm so grateful she's my first!!

The city put on a father/daughter princess ball and I couldn't pass up the opportunity for my little girl to spend time with her daddy. Josh didn't take the camera but here are the pics we took before they left. Isn't she beautiful!! Just so you know, she was the one who choose the color of her eye shadow, not me.

The rest of these are random pictures that I thought were cute and showed the characters of my children so I had to include them in the post otherwise they would get forgotten. Isaac likes to draw. Unfortunately it's on the walls as well as paper that he puts his masterpieces.

To remedy the drawing problem we bought an easel so the kids have some way to display their artistic talent and this is what Emma did with it. She has always been such a good little artist but she's really getting good with details now. She's also getting really good at writing and reading!! My little baby's growing up!!I can't remember which kid put this little caterpillar toy next to Jules but I thought it was so cute and sweet, I had to take a picture. Yup, Isaac is still Isaac. And this totally proves it. It's a darn good thing he's so cute!!

Six Weeks and Smiling

2011-02-18T09:26:00.000-08:00

Random Goings On Around the Hill House

2011-01-28T08:01:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I find that I have a bunch of pictures that don't really go with anything that result in a post like this. They are pictures that I think are fun but are so random. And here they are for you to enjoy. Grandma and Emma took turns painting each others toenails. Don't ask me who came up for the position on this one.I love this photo!! Just looking at it makes me happy.
We had to get some new containers for some of the boys Christmas gifts and this is what Emma came up with on how to use them. Silly girl.

One day it got really quite I saw that most of the kids had disappeared. You know what that can translate into with kids. When I went looking for them this is what I found. Jaxson got this camera for Christmas and there are silly little games on it that Josh was playing while the kids watched. Do men ever grow up? :)
Emma makes me laugh. Her friend let her borrow these earmuffs and she liked them so much she had to wear them to bed.

JULES CAN NOT BE MORE LOVED

The kids love to hold Julianne!! Jaxson is especially fun to watch because he is so gentle with her and handles her in almost a reverent way.

First Bath

2011-01-25T07:48:00.000-08:00

Emma was so excited to be able to help with Julianne's first bath. It was so cute to watch her. Jules is so lucky to have such a wonderful big sister.

Her umbilical cord has since fallen off and you wouldn't think that in just two weeks she has gotten bigger but she has. She did pretty good with the whole bath thing until the end when she got tired of it all. Hence the binky in her mouth. I'll tell you, whoever invented the binky was inspired, because I could not have a baby without one!!

Coming Home

2011-01-22T07:10:00.000-08:00

I'm back!! Although it seems like I was never gone because my sweet husband stepped in to take my place because he wanted you all to be able to see Julianne as well. She is two weeks old now and though we have had some challenging moments (what baby doesn't give us some of those?) we are happy and doing well. Here are a few pictures of when we came home from the hospital. I'll post more pictures throughout the week, including Christmas.

I realize more and more how blessed I am to have this man in my life. He takes such good care of me and is a fantastic father.
Dressed to come home. I don't know about you but for us it seems like it takes them FOREVER to discharge us from the hospital. This was our shortest wait by far but it was still waiting.
I had to take a picture of these beautiful flowers that Josh and my mom brought to me while I was in the hospital. The roses were so fragrant that I could smell them halfway across the room. Aren't they beautiful!!
When we got home Isaac was so excited for the baby he almost jumped on top of her, more than once. He also wanted to "love" her by poking her in the head and face. He has since learned how to be soft and he really loves his little sister.
My mom was so wonderful. She came up for Christmas with my dad and little brother and she stayed until a week after Jules was born. It was about three weeks and I know my crazy kids wore her out but we really appreciate her taking care of us. Thanks Mom!!

Mom also made this awesome blanket!! It is so soft and is perfect to wrap Jules in for her naps. Isn't it pretty!!

More of Jules

2011-01-08T18:10:00.001-08:00

It's easy to see Jules is already loved by her brothers and sister.

Spelled wrong, but adorable

2011-01-08T12:27:00.000-08:00

So her name is Julianne, but they did take a good picture.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JULES!!!!!!!!!

2011-01-07T12:21:00.000-08:00

Julianne Hill was born 8:59 AM today weighing 8 lbs 1oz, 21 1/4 in. and extremely cute. Pictures will be coming shortly. Alisha and Jules are doing great.

Where's the Baby?

2010-12-18T12:42:00.000-08:00

It's time to play "GUESS WHEN JULES WILL APPEAR". I'm sure that any of you moms know exactly what I mean when I say the last few weeks of pregnancy are "lovely". We are so excited for her to come but who knows when that will be so in the mean time let's play a little game. So to play all you have to do is leave a comment with your guess on when she will make her grand entrance. My due date is JANUARY 7th and that doesn't leave a lot of time so post a comment as soon as you can. All of the prizes are things that help make the cold winter more bearable so take your pick and post which one you would like along with your comment.

Here they are:

What is better than curling up with a good book and a nice soft blanket. This blanket includes some yummy treats for you to munch on while you read. You'll have to find a book you like yourself though.

I LOVE it when my house smells good. There is something about candles that makes me happy. This is Salt City's German Streusel Cake candle. YUMMY!!

Like I said before, I like stuff that smells good and Bath and Body Works has A LOT of stuff that smells good. Take your pick between their fabulous body cream or their Wallflowers scented oil. It makes me happy just thinking about it!!

The winter is a great time to relish in a bath when the kids are in bed and it's all quiet. But a new bath towel and some nice bubble bath makes the experience even better

And lastly, I hate going out in the cold without a hat and gloves. I can never find them though or their never exactly the ones I want. If you feel this way too pick these and I'll get the kind that you want.

Have fun with this and hopefully all you who want to will get a chance to guess before she gets here. Happy Guessing!!

SNOW!!!!

2010-12-08T09:00:00.000-08:00

It took a long time for the snow to come this year and when it came it DIDN'T STOP!!! The kids have been having a BLAST playing in it though. I have a lot of mixed feelings about the snow. I love it for the memories I have a playing with my brothers and sisters in it when I was a kid. If it snowed a week before Christmas and then went AWAY a week after I would be happy. But I actually think that I wouldn't mind moving to a place that gets very little of the stuff when Josh is finished with school. At least my kids are making HAPPY memories of their own with it right now. I baby sit a little boy and when we went out the other day he and Emma discovered ICICLES together. They cleared the snow off the picnic table for a place to examine them. It was fun to watch their EXCITEMENT over it.

Isaac loves snow!!! Loves to EAT snow that is. He likes it so much that he will even try to eat it off peoples shoes when they come in from outside. Can I say DISGUSTING!!! Unfortunately he has rubbed off on his brother. I have caught Jaxson doing it a few times as well. YUCK.
It's a darn good thing he's so cute, and that he has a good immune system or we might have problems.

My Wreath

2010-12-06T15:40:00.000-08:00

I found this idea for a wreath on this awesome website called Piccadilly Peddlers. Well I actually found it through Tip Junkie but it had a link to this website and I fell in love. I had to make it. I didn't do the same colors that she did on her wreath but I actually like the way it turned out a little bit better. It is actually extremely easy and fairly inexpensive to make. I found a fabric bundle of Christmas fabric on sale at Joann's and then I added a few more colors that I had lying around and this is what I came up with. The wreath actually only cost about ten dollars to make but for those of you who sew and have scraps that will work already it will only cost you about 4.00 for the grapevine wreath.

I'll show you what I did but if you want more detailed instructions go to this website for them. I took my measuring cups (1, 1/2, & 1/4 cups) and traced all different sizes of circles on the fabric. The most time consuming part of the project is actually cutting out the circles but if you have a night that all your shows are on TV you could get most of it done while you watch. It also helps if you iron your fabric before you cut the circles out.

If your a scrapbooker like I used to be you'll probably have some ordinary old brads lying around. Layer the circles from largest to smallest and then stick a brad through the middle. You don't have to fold the brad down because when you have all your circles done you put a big glop of hot glue on the back of the brad and then stick it in the wreath. Cover the wreath with the circles, tie a ribbon around it and there you go. I was a little worried about whether the ribbon would match or not but I actually really like it. It was a fun project to make. What are your holiday projects this year? Do share. I need more ideas even if I don't get them made this year.

2010-12-05T14:20:00.000-08:00

There are some things that kids like that I just don't understand. Like drinking the bathwater. That's just gross. Or sticking their hands in the toilet. Yuck. Or trying to get out the front door EVERY time it's opened even if there is six inches of snow outside that hasn't been shoveled and they have bare feet and no coat. One that my boys like is being sprayed in the face with water. You may think that we're mean parents but my boys kept asking for more. Does that look like the face of a kid who is not enjoying himself?

I also don't understand why it has taken my kids almost a year to really get into a gift that they got for Christmas last year. Jaxson got a tool set last year and they have played with it off and on but it hasn't been until this last week or two that they have really taken more than a few minutes to play with it. I don't get it but at least they're having fun now.
Josh got those goggles from a chemistry class that he took at BYU-I and the kids love to play with them. If only they were magic goggles that every time they put them on they were suddenly obedient!! If that were the case I'd make sure that at least one of them had them on all the time.

I get such a kick out of watching the expressions on Isaac's face. I love it.

2010-11-26T09:17:00.000-08:00

My baby turned two on the twenty-third of October!! I can't believe that he's two already!! He is such a joy to have in our house but he sure gives us a run for our money!!! Between pulling him off of the counter, off the oven or the dishwasher door, out of the toilet or the bathroom sink, off of the window sills, off of his dresser, or off the TV stand, he keeps us pretty busy. He is such a sweet fun kid though. He is always happy and consequently I'm always laughing at the things he's doing. I'm so glad that Heavenly Father blessed us with this little boy because he is a very important part of our family. He actually opened his own gifts this year instead of me doing it for him. He had a lot of fun with that and his new toys.

Josh did most of the decorations on his cake this year. I love that he was a part of something that I normally do. I think he did a great job!!
Who needs to take just one bite when you can have the whole cake!!!

Emma is Six!!!

2010-11-25T09:39:00.000-08:00

Yes this should have been blogged forever ago but I guess it's better late than never right. Emma turned six on October first and I can't believe that she's grown so much. She is such an energetic wonderful girl and I'm grateful she's my daughter. There have been many times that I don't think I could handle having the boys so close in age without her help. I have been thinking this week about her life and what she was like when she was little and how much she's grown since then and I thank Heavenly Father that He sent her to me. She is truly a blessing and I love her.She is a fantastic big sister and her brothers just LOVE playing with her!!
We had a family birthday party for her on her birthday and then her party with her friends a week or two later. We gave her our gifts at the family party and she even got to go to the store a pick out a cake. I'm such a pushover. I should have just had her get cupcakes because I was going to make her a cake at her friend birthday party but she got one for both.

I think she enjoyed the gifts that she got this year. Now if we can only teach her to be thankful for them and say thank you without us telling her too. She is getting better at that though.
It was a really good cake but I think I ended up throwing away half of it. It was just too big.

THE FRIEND PARTY: Emma really wanted a "flower" party this year which was a big challenge for me because that theme is hard to do in the fall. We decorated with paper flowers all over the walls and I cut the last of our cosmos and other flowers and put them around the room. It actually turned out pretty cute even though our Halloween decorations were mixed in with the flower decor.
Sadly I didn't get many pictures taken during the party. We played pin the butterfly on the flower, which is why the big flower is on the wall. We also adapted the game musical chairs to musical flowers which turned out fun. I think the kids had fun and it actually turned out better than I thought it would.
I had fun making Emma's cake this year and finally I made a cake that I didn't feel like throwing against the wall in the middle of decorating it. Isaac liked it to and wanted to add a few more candles to liven up the party.
A little note: Emma has decided that she is now old enough to do her own hair. And she does it about half the time now. It's kinda sad that I don't get to do something anymore that I've done her whole life for her. I know she has to grow up sometime but I just don't want to let go of the little things like doing her hair for her. These are pictures of the first time she did her hair by herself.

Shower Notes

2010-11-24T09:04:00.000-08:00

Is it a surprise that I'm behind on my blog again?!! Not really. I feel like I'm behind on pretty much everything these days. Some day I'll get my act together. I do want to start blogging more though so to start out a new period of blogging (who knows how long it will last) I wanted to post this because it made me laugh.
Josh and I have some bath crayons in our shower because we think it's fun to leave notes to each other and it seems Emma likes to leave notes for us as well. If you don't understand this cute kindergarten writing it says. "Mom, I want a dog. Signed by Emma." and of course " I love you mom and dad." I love how she is getting old enough to try to express herself through writing but I honestly wonder where the time has gone. All of a sudden she is a six year old with a mind of her own. Actually she has had a mind of her own since she was a toddler but you know what I mean. It makes me realize how precious each moment is with our kids because it doesn't last very long. I hope you are all enjoying your kids!! What a gift they are.

2010-09-26T14:54:00.000-07:00

It's that time of year and soccer has started. It's amazing the change in Emma from last season to this one. Last year she would rotate in and then say she was tired and wanted to come out after only being on the field for a minute. This year she gets right in there and plays the whole time. She is really enjoying it and it is really pleasant to spend the evening on the field, assuming the weather is nice.

The boys really enjoy going to watch her. They were a little out of control when we took these pictures but now they sit on the side lines and cheer for Emma. Even Isaac does and it's so cute!!
Is it just my kids or does every kid go through a stage where they can't smile normally for a picture and they wind up looking funny? At least he's cute!!

Labor Day Weekend

2010-09-26T14:29:00.000-07:00

Labor day weekend was a really relaxing time that we spent just hanging out as a family. We didn't do much but we did go black berry picking and let me tell you that was a new adventure in itself. It was a perfect day to go so we packed some food for lunch, got in the car and drove about a half hour to a town called Julietta where black berry bushes grow wild along the side of the road and you can pick as many as you want. What we didn't know was that these bushes have massive thorns so to actually get the berries you have to go through some pain, well, a lot of pain. Next time we'll bring gloves. The pain was worth it though because the blackberries were FANTASTIC!!! We picked enough to freeze thirteen cups, make a pie and have a little left over. I was so grateful that my kids were so good. We didn't want them to get hurt so they spent the time playing on the trail that ran next to the bushes while Josh and I picked. It went surprisingly well and will be a tradition that we'll keep doing for as long as we live here. After we were finished we at lunch at this little park that was right next to the trail. And of course no day would be complete with out chasing after Isaac.
When we got back Daddy made blackberry shakes. So Good!!

I love that doing little things like this bring us closer together just as much as doing big expensive things. I have the best family ever!!

My Baby Girl is Growing Up!!!

2010-09-07T20:40:00.000-07:00

I can't believe that Emma is in kindergarten already!!! She has grown up so fast!!! I'll admit, it was a little sad to see her drive off on the bus the first time but it's also so fun to see her having fun experiencing new things. For the longest time I felt like I had no idea what was going on. I didn't know how to get her ready to ride the bus, we were extremely late the night we were supposed to go meet her teacher because I couldn't find my stinking keys, I didn't know if I should take her to school the first day or just let her ride the bus. AHH!! It was a little stressful and I'm sure it was mostly caused by the lack of brain cells I've had since I got pregnant. It all worked out so well though. The day before school started Emma and Josh were able to ride the bus around the loop that it would go to get her used to it and then after listening to advice from my wonderful sister I decide to take her on her first day. I was the only one out of the whole class to take her and get pictures with her that morning and I'm so glad that I did. She is so smart and is going to do so well. Now we just have to get Jaxson started in preschool. I was so glad that Josh was able to share such a fun experience with her. He is such a great dad!!
Going on the trial run the day before school.

I surprised her with this outfit for her first day. I think she looks so cute in it!! I'm not biased though am I.

Oh What Do You Do in the Summer Time??

2010-09-05T07:34:00.000-07:00

So for some reason format of this post is turning out dumb so if it looks bad it's not my fault. I have tried to fix it four or five times and by now it's just not worth the aggravation!!

I can't believe school has started already!! This summer has gone by so fast!!! I'm not complaining though, it's nice to have cooler weather. We had a lot of fun this summer so here's a not so brief picture overview of our life since the wedding in June. We had a family reunion somewhere in the midst of all the chaos that I didn't blog here but I'll get it up soon.

THIS SUMMER WE......

HAD A GIRLS NIGHT!!

Ever since the amazing girl's night that Aunt Hayley put on while we were down for the wedding Emma has been wanting to do one with her friends. We finally did it a few weeks ago and they had so much fun. Between getting their hair and makeup done and getting all dressed up to the door signs they decorated and all the junk food that was there I think they all had a pretty good time.

They also had a ton of fun dancing to barbie music.

Emma is so lucky to have so many wonderful friends here!!

We had a yard sale. Yuck, It is so much work to put one on!! Emma did make eight bucks selling doughnuts and juice though!!

Emma lost her first tooth!!!

Grandma and Grandpa Bean gave us a bunk bed!!! What a blessing this was!!! The kids love it and they actually have a little room to move around in now!! THANKS SO MUCH Mom and Dad.

We got into big sister's makeup!! Isn't that LOVELY!!

WE PLAYED WITH DADDY!! I realize more and more every day how very blessed I am that Josh is my kid's dad!! He is such an amazing person and I'm grateful that they have him to learn from. Josh had summer classes but wasn't able to find a job until mid-summer which meant that he had extra time with us and the kids had so much fun having him home.

WE HAD FUN WITH FRIENDS. Our friends the Shurtliffs moved away last March and we were so sad to see them go. They went camping not too far away from our home this summer though and it was so fun to be able to be with them again. We spent a really great day with them and were sad to have to say goodbye again.

The campground that they started at had a bunch of chickens and ducks randomly running around so we decided to go feed them. Both Emma and Jaxson were afraid of them but at least Jaxson tried to be around them. Emma locked herself in the car and refused to come out. Isaac however couldn't get enough of them. He had so much fun chasing those birds around and traumatizing them.

Yes, it looks like I'm going to strangle Jaxson here but I'm really just trying to get him to calm down and look at the camera.

After that we found a park in town and had a picnic lunch. The kids loved playing on this train. Especially Isaac. I can't believe he didn't fall off and get hurt with the way he was climbing all over it!!

In the process of looking for a place to hike we found an amazing place for them to camp. It was perfect. Close to the river so the kids could throw rocks in and very secluded, the way camping should be. It was so fun but really hard because Isaac was running around everywhere!! At his age he doesn't understand how dangerous things are and he's so independent so he wants to be able to go wherever. It was a little stressful keeping him safe. I do think we'll try to go there next summer when he's a little older.

I love this picture of Jaxson picking a wedgie!! It cracks me up!!

PLAYTIME!! It is so nice when your children reach an age where they can actually communicate together and have fun playing. I love watching them and I'm so glad they can have so much fun together.

Yes it's a pink cowboy hat!!! I guess you do the best you can with what you've got.

Dance parties are a norm at our house. Excuse Jaxson's lack of clothing please.

WE PLAYED IN THE POOL!!

And of course what is a hot summer day without POPSICLES!!

WE PLAYED SOME MORE WITH DADDY

And did some snuggling too.

I think Emma asked Daddy for a massage first and when one kid gets something they all want it. Luckily they have a fantastic daddy that was more than willing to do it.

This picture is really random but it makes me laugh. Emma got a pair of skates from her cousin Alex and any time Jaxson sees them he has to put them on. He's obsessed and with Isaac liking them as well they cause quite a few problems. Needless to say, we don't bring them out very often.

MORE POPSICLES AND POOL FUN!!

MY FLOWERS WERE AMAZING THIS YEAR!! Thanks to mom!! When she was up in June she fertilized and got them all ready. I really love you mom!!

WE RAN AROUND WITH PILLOWS ON OUR HEADS. Don't ask me why!!

AND YES, WE PLAYED IN THE POOL SOME MORE!!

Isaac actually started this; I don't know why but he thought it was hilarious to pour water over his chest so he'd walk over to the pool, get a big cup full and them come and stand right in front of me to dump it down his front. The other kids caught on and had fun with it do.

Random Pics

I came in to check on Jaxson one day and found him like this. Yep, he's asleep. I don't how kids fall asleep where they do!! Doesn't that look so uncomfortable.

AHH, the classic horsey ride. Good Josh!! I don't know how they haven't broken his back yet!!

BABY!!!

2010-08-22T14:06:00.000-07:00

So most of you know that we are expecting our fourth child, and for those of you who don't, SURPRISE. I bet you're not as surprised as we were when we found out. This is something that we weren't expecting and it took a little while to get used to the idea but now we are so excited. We had our ultrasound on Friday and found out that it's a girl. I didn't think I'd ever want another girl because Emma is so dramatic and boys are crazy but not dramatic. But I really am excited to have another girl. It will be great. I know these ultrasound pictures are small and one's upside down but it's the best I could do for now.

Right now I feel incredibly grateful for the Lord's hand in our lives. I know that this little girl is supposed to come to our family now and I'm so grateful the Lord trusts me enough to send another child to our home inspite of my shortcomings. How blessed we are 1)to have children to help us remember how we should be and 2)that we have such a loving Father in Heaven that helps us so much in our lives. I know that our life hasn't been all that we expected but I am so grateful for all that I have learned. I truly am amazingly blessed!!

The Fourth of July

2010-08-22T13:06:00.000-07:00

I'm going to slip this post in between the others because I want it for my records. Our fourth of July was different this year because it was the first year we didn't have any family around to celebrate with us. It still turned out fun. We did most of our celebrating on Saturday the third. Instead of going out to breakfast this year I decided to make a little restaurant for the family at home. I put together a menu of pictures of all the breakfast things you can think of and that morning they got to order whatever they wanted. Luckily they all wanted close to the same thing so it wasn't too much work.

Later that afternoon we went over to our friends house to have a barbecue. It would have been a lot more fun if Josh didn't have to work so I wasn't by myself with the kids. Plus to add to the excitement Jaxson picked that day of all days to poop in his underwear. Three times!!! I was exhausted by the end but I the kids sure had fun.

I had to take a picture of this because it was the first time I got all of them to sit down and eat at the same time in a place that wasn't home. I was so grateful!!
My friend had all sorts of fun games put together for everyone to play. Emma had fun playing them and the boys had fun running around the yard playing on the toys. Needless to say I had to stick with the boys instead of playing to make sure they didn't get into trouble.

We did go to the fireworks in Pullman this year. Yes it was on Sunday but we wanted to celebrate and we really tried hard to make it a good family time. We brought games and treats and just had fun being together. Isaac was enthralled by the fireworks as well as the other kids and I was surprised to find that the show was better than I thought it would be. They light of the fireworks on a hill and the crowd sits at the bottom of the hill so we were pretty close to them. All in all we actually had a pretty good fourth of July.

Trip Down South

2010-07-19T15:03:00.000-07:00

I have been working on this post for about a month and I guess it's about time to finish it and get it published. My little brother Mike got married to an awesome girl named Liz at the beginning of June. What a great excuse for us to make a visit. We haven't been to Utah for years and even though it was a really quick trip down there before heading back to my parents Idaho it was so much fun. We went a day early so that we could have a little time to play before all the festivities began. We met my sister Jenny and her family and my Uncle Larry and his girls there and even Uncle Mike showed up at Hogle Zoo the day before the wedding. It was so fun being together. I haven't been to a zoo that big for a really long time so it was fun for us to go as well as the kids.
Emma and her cousins Brant and Alex. I love this photo!!!
Near the beginning of the zoo they have a massive elephant that makes weird noises and blows misty air from it's nose. Emma obviously thought it was funny.
I'm sure Jaxson was thinking "Get it over with Mom" while I was taking this picture but I love the little baby elephant with it's mom in the background.

All the cousins together. Apparently Jaxson had other things in mind than posing for a picture.
This is the last photo of Mike as a single man. Now he's hooked forever. Good thing he found someone great!!
We of course had to take a train ride around part of the park. They loved it.
At the entrance to the park they have this big ball with water running over it that the kids for some reason thought it was fun to play in.

AT THE TEMPLE

On this trip we got to see my little brother Greg and his family for the first time in three years. I had never met his kids and he'd never met my boys. The time was way too short but it was so wonderful to be with them again. This is Jaxson and his little girl Emiline. Isn't she a doll!!
Posing for yet another picture while waiting for Mike and Liz to come out of the temple.
THE LUNCHEON: After the temple ceremony we had quite a bit of time to kill while Mike and Liz got their photos taken and we had no where to go so we all ended up at the center where the luncheon would take place. They had a little ballroom that the kids had a blast running around and dancing in.

What a nice Uncle Brian to dance with the little girls.
Jaxson could not keep his hands off the piano. It's a good thing he's so cute!!
I am really lucky to have such a great dad for my kids!!

I don't know why I don't have any pictures of Mike and Liz at the temple or even from the reception but I don't. After the reception we drove back to Idaho and had a great time with all of us together.

LEOS PLACE: There is a great place in IF called Leos that has so many fun things for the kids to do. So after a meal of greasy pizza, yum, they ran off and had a blast.

Don't ask me why kids love these little machines that hardly move at all but they do. Especially Jaxson when it's a train.
They have a really fun play land there and the kids had a ball playing in it.
They also have an arcade and my kids had a blast running around playing games and trying to get as many tickets as they could.

Sadly this is the only photo I have of the girls night that Aunt Hayley put on for the girls. She went all out from crowns and games to any item of junk food you can think of. No exaggeration. I think that she is now the favorite Aunt, at least of all the girls.

Here are a few more random pictures of the kids at my parents house. Josh had to come home early for school and the rest of the family left a little after that so me and my kids were the only ones left at my parents house for awhile. It was sad but my kids still had a lot of fun running around the yard and getting into stuff they shouldn't. Isaac's favorite things to do was throw rocks into grandma's garden or throw them into the pond. Ahhh!! That kid is such a handful!! Both boys were very interested in the washer. It was so cute to watch them.

On one of the last nights that we were there, Grandpa Bean built a fire and we had a little cookout. It is a miracle Isaac didn't fall into the fire.

Isaac loves Poacher and the sweet dog patiently endures being poked and sat on.

What did I say about the washer? Well apparently the same thing applies to the dryer.
Our last night there Emma slept upstairs in the bunk beds. I came in to check on her and found that she had shoved a blanket through the rungs of the top bunk to make herself a little tent. So sweet.

Jaxson

2010-07-10T09:47:00.001-07:00

So since I haven't blogged about his birthday that was way back in April I thought I'd do a post about Jaxson as well. Jaxson is a very caring little boy but he is definitely all boy. He can go from yelling at you one minute to snuggling you the next. And I'm so glad he's a snuggler. Whenever I have a bad day I can say "Jax, I need a hug" and he'll come and not just give me a hug but he'll snuggle me for a few minutes. He loves cars, trains, dinosaurs and he loves to be outside. He is so funny!! He really likes the show Dinosaur Train on PBS and I love to hear him sing the songs from it. We have been potty training lately and he is actually doing really well, thank goodness!! I'm tired of two kids in diapers!! I am so glad that he is a part of our family!! This picture cracks me up!! Talk about being able to fall asleep anywhere!!
Jaxson made a train out of blocks and was so proud of it I had to take a photo. Sorry it's at such an awkward angle!! Jax always likes to bury himself in the pillows of the couch.

Jaxson turned three on April 18th. I don't know why but he always picks the hardest cakes and they never turn out how I want them to. At some point in time during the process I huck the spatula with frosting across the table because I'm so frustrated. So please don't look very closely!! He really liked it though and I guess that's all that matters!!
He got trains and dinosaurs and I really can't remember what else but I know he liked them and I'm glad that he had a good birthday. I'm glad that we have days to celebrate the important people in our lives.

Isaac

2010-06-27T20:54:00.000-07:00

When we found out we were pregnant with Isaac it was a big surprise and very unexpected. But as he has grown I see more and more why the Lord sent him to our family at this time and I will be eternally grateful for Heavenly Father's foresight in doing this. He is by far my busiest kid but he brings so much joy and I couldn't even imagine a world without him. He is always so happy and he loves to give kisses to everyone and everything. This morning when he woke me up before six (a norm in our house these days *sigh*) he took out two blocks and got ready to pound them together, something he likes to do now. It is SO LOUD and I knew it would wake everyone up so I told him no and to put them down softly on the side table. The sweet boy kissed one of the blocks and set them both quietly down. That's not to say that he was quiet for the rest of the morning but it's little things like that, that make him so sweet. Here are a few photos of the crazy little monster.

Isaac and Jaxson are finally loving to play with each other and it's so fun to watch them.
If you can't see it, he tried to put one of my hair ties in his hair.
Grandma made this cute hat for him and he loves it. He put it on all by himself in this picture.
Not even two and he already has the classic man face down!!

Easter

2010-06-27T17:02:00.000-07:00

Yes, this is another post that should have been published a long time ago but hey, better late than never right? We had a fun Easter. Isaac and Jaxson are finally big enough to enjoy Easter egg hunts and dying eggs. What made it even funner this year was that our kids that I babysat were able to join us for some of the celebration. We started out the afternoon with an easter egg hunt that Jaxson and Isaac did surprisingly well on.

Then we dyed eggs. Yes it was a little crazy helping six kids and the pink got spilled about half way through but the memories we made was more than worth the effort
This Sam, the oldest of the girls I babysat. She was such a big helper!! And Gracie is in the photo below. Aren't they cute girls.
The kids got their Easter baskets on Saturday morning and they had another two easter egg hunts to go to that day but of course I didn't have my camera but they had so much fun. I'm grateful for Easter because it gives us another chance to remember the birth and resurrection of Christ without all the hustle and bustle of the holidays. How blessed we are to know our Savior and feel of His love!!

2010-06-23T13:12:00.000-07:00

We redecorated months ago but of course I am a slacker and never posted about it so I am now. It was a lot of fun and I'm really pleased with the way it turned out.

Spring Break

2010-06-23T11:14:00.000-07:00

So yes, this stuff should have been posted months ago but I want to do it now for my own records. Where we are in school and don't have a huge income we haven't been able to do many family vacations but for spring break we splurged. We got a really good rate for a hotel up in Spokane so we decided to go spend a few days there. There were a lot of fun things to do and it was so nice to be able to spend time together. Some of my greatest memories growing up were on family vacations and I hope to be able to make memories like that with my kids even if it's just a short trip to a city that's close. Here are a few highlights of our trip.

EATING OUT: This is the only photo of it that I have but can I just say that it is bliss not to have to decide what to make for dinner!! Taking my kids out to a restaurant is another story.
Cat Tales Zoo: There is a zoo in Spokane that only has big cats like lions and tigers, leopards and jaguars and a few bears. It was sad to see them in such small cages but it was neat to see the different species of predatory cats.
This was the most random thing to see behind a fence at the back of the zoo but it made me laugh.
One of the zoo keepers took us on a "tour" of the park. It was kind of lame but he did tell us some interesting things about the animals.

The zoo had a fun little play area that we stopped at just before we left. The kids liked it almost as much as they liked seeing the animals.

The Children's Museum: If you ever go to Spokane this is a fun and cheap way to spend the day. We spent hours here and the kids had a blast. Of course Emma went straight for the play stage and dress ups they had there. And Jaxson went right for the trains. Big surprise!!
What is it about dirt and water that kids like so much? At least it wasn't too messy.

We were the only ones at the museum the whole last hour it was open so we didn't have to worry about bothering other people, which made it even more fun. Josh spent some time building this big old pyramid with Emma. She sure loves her dad!!

Riverfront Park/ The Carousel: Riverfront park is one of the funnest places to go in Spokane. We went there for the fourth last year with Mom and Dad and the Bahnmillers and though the rides weren't open yet the carousel was and the kids loved it.
I know this picture is random but I love it. Jaxson is sitting so nicely waiting for me and Isaac to finish. He is such a sweetheart!!

Feeding the Ducks: When we were finished riding the carousel we went out to feed the ducks. Psychotic. There were so many birds!! Jaxson wouldn't even get out of the stroller because he was afraid of them but he had fun throwing bread to them.

You may remember this slide from my post back in July but the kids had so much fun I had to post it again.

Aside from the crappy sleeping that comes from shoving a family of five in one room we had such a fun time. There really is nothing better than spending time as a family!!

I'm such a slacker!!

2010-06-23T10:46:00.000-07:00

So Yes, I have neglected my blog completley. But between babysitting full time and then going out of town for my brothers wedding for ten days there just hasn't been time. I am finished babysitting, my house is fairly clean and my kids are contained so I finally feel like I have the energy and desire to post now. Better posts are to come later today. I promise!!

Random Pics and a Day in the Sun

2010-03-23T09:59:00.000-07:00

These are a bunch of random pictures taken over the last month.

So I put Isaac in my bathtub one morning because one of the other kids was in the other bathtub. He had a tube of mascara and I didn't think anything of it because I didn't think he could get the lid off. Oh, he so can. As you can see he got it EVERY WHERE!! What you can't see is that his little privates are totally black!! Apparently that's what he likes to do in the tub. The sad thing is that this was waterproof mascara and wouldn't just wash off with soap. I had to get a little brush and scrub it off. I tried to do it as soft as I could but it still hurt. I learned my lesson. No more tubes of anything for him. He is just too dang smart!!

Jaxson fell asleep like this one afternoon, and yes, his hands are down his pants.

Silly boys!!!

So Isaac is my little monkey!! Seriously, he climbs on EVERYTHING. His favorite thing to climb on is this rocking chair. I know it's ugly, we got it from Josh's grandparents when they went into the nursing home, but I really like it. And obviously so does Isaac.

We have had such a mild winter here!! It has been FABULOUS!! A couple of weeks ago it even got up in the sixties. Not really warm but wonderful weather for the winter!! We couldn't help but go out and enjoy the sunshine.

Sadly some our good friends moved away a few weeks ago. We love you Shurtliffs!! They had a yard sale to get ready for the move and we got this awesome little car from them. Now instead of carrying Isaac when we go for walks I can just push him along. He LOVES it!!
Isaac couldn't get enough of the bubbles!! He had a blast.

Sweet Children

2010-03-18T17:13:00.000-07:00

It has been awhile since this happened but it was so cute I have to post it. One morning I came out to find this. Emma had gotten Isaac up in his seat, put a bib on him, and gotten out some food and a spoon all by herself. She is such a little mom already!! I realize more and more how blessed I am to have my children. Being a mom is definetly challenging but really, there's no better thing in the world!!

Sledding

2010-03-03T13:41:00.001-08:00

A day or two after Christmas Josh's sister Becky and her husband Armando and their kids came up and spent some time with us. It was so fun to be with them!! We all went sledding one afternoon and it was so much fun!! Emma has only been sledding a few times and this was Jaxson's first time. They had such a great time. Jaxson wanted to go over and over and let me tell you, it wasn't easy getting that kid off the hill. Even though the park we went to was SO crowded, it was totally worth the great time we had.

Jaxson with his cousin Ethan. This great kid was so helpful with Jax.
The ants were marching one by one, hurrah, hurrah.
There's not much to say other than, yuck.

Thanks to whoever took this photo for cutting off my head!!

The silly looking guy in the orange hat is Josh's brother Danny and the one on the sled is Mando. It was hilarious to watch them try to hit the jump as they went down the hill. I didn't get any good photos, but all the guys got into a pretty good snow ball fight when we were done. Why is it that guys have to bring a competition into everything? Thanks guys for such a great afternoon!!

New Years Eve Olympics

2010-03-03T11:22:00.000-08:00

So we tried something new for New Years last year. We had the first ever New Years Olympic Games. We divided everyone up into three teams, even the kids. Each team had to come up with a cheer. Then they decided which team members were going to participate in which event. Some of the events were, Ice fishing(bobbing for apples), the golden ring event(eating a doughnut off a string, snowman stuffing(each participant sees how many marshmellows they can shove in their mouth, and elf mud wresting(each participant is blindfolded and one of them tries to feed the other a cup of chocolate pudding) to name a few. Needless to say we had a blast. I can't remember why but my camera stopped working sometime in the middle of the games so I'll post the pictures that I have. If any of my family has more please send them to me!!

This is Steph and Adams team cheer

This is Jen and Blairs team cheer

I think Brian and Dad's team cheer is on moms camera with the rest of the photos, so mom, would you send them to me so I can post them. Please!!

Christmas 2009

2010-03-02T09:09:00.000-08:00

So brace yourselves because this is a massively long post and it's going to be long. It happened a long time ago so if you don't want to read, I DON'T BLAME YOU!!! I have to do this though for my benefit, so I don't forget it. So this year, actually it was last year, we weren't going to go to Idaho Falls until after Christmas. A big part of it was that we knew that Emma was getting a dollhouse and there was NO WAY that we could fit it and all the rest of the gifts plus our luggage into the van. After realizing that we really did want to go early we called Santa and asked him if he would bring their big gifts a day or two early. He of course complied. So the kids got their big gifts early and we packed (more like shoved) everything else into our van and headed home. I am SO GLAD that we went early!! We were able to spend some fabulous time with my brothers and it was so nice to be home for the Holidays!!

GETTING SOME GIFTS EARLY: The night that Santa brought some gifts early Josh and I were in the living room helping get things ready. Some one knocked on our door but when we opened it all that was there was a box of gifts. Some sweet person wanted to make our Christmas better and left clothes and toys for the kids. It was so appreciated and I'm so grateful for examples like that who show my kids the way they should be. These are some photos of them opening their gifts early. We got to do so many fun things at Grandma and Grandpa's house because we went early!! One of them was we got to play in the snow. We haven't had much snow up here this winter so the kids had a blast playing in my parents backyard. Isaac LOVES the snow!!

Jaxson had a blast throwing the ball to Poacher. All I can say is that it's a good thing he had gloves on because that ball is NASTY!!I took Isaac inside earlier than the other kids and when I looked out the window I saw this. Josh is such a great daddy!! They had so much fun with him on the trampoline.
The power went out on Christmas eve day, but that didn't stop Uncle Mike from having fun. He pulled out his battery operated Ipod docking station and turned up the tunes. It was HILARIOUS watching him dance around with the kids!! Mike you are the greatest!! So are you Brian!! I am so glad I got to spend time and play games and just be with you guys!! I love you both tons!!

When the power came back on the kids helped Grandpa make the sugar cookies that they would decorate later that evening. Thanks for taking time to keep the traditions up with my kids Dad and Mom. I sure love you guys!!

CHRISTMAS EVE: Our family has a lot of traditions on Christmas eve. One of them is that we ALWAYS decorate sugar cookies. (I even had to make sure that I did on my mission) Everyone got into it and I'll tell you we had some pretty interesting cookies. What's sad is that the weirdest ones were done by the adults, not the kids.

Another tradition is that we always open a gift on Christmas Eve. Josh and I have changed it a little so that they always get some fun pajamas. A tradition that is really important to all of us is one that we have done ever since I can remember. There is a poem about the birth of Christ that is narrated by Burl Ives and comes with a book that you turn the pages as you listen to it. We couldn't find the book so we had to improvise but the spirit was there and that's all that mattered.

EGGNOG IS ALWAYS A MUST ON CHRISTMAS EVE!!

After one try, Isaac is now addicted to the stuff!!

It was so funny that on Christmas morning it was the adults waiting for the kids to wake up and not the other way around. I came up to find them all piled on the bed together. In the end Mike couldn't stand the anticipation and pounded on the floor to wake the kids up.

TIME TO OPEN GIFTS!!

I love that Isaac is finally at the age that he has fun ripping the paper off instead of looking at us and wondering what the heck we are doing. Emma was sooo excited about this. Needless to say it has taken a beating since it came out of the box.

Jaxson LOVES Thomas the train and was ecstatic to get a remote control Thomas.

PLAYTIME WITH GRANDPA HILL: After we opened gifts at my house on Christmas morning we headed over to Josh's parents house. Grandpa Hill wasted no time getting down on the floor to play. The kids love it when they can climb on Grandpa Hill's shoulder and have him flip them over into a pile of pillows. They have so much fun.

Isaac LOVES poacher!!! He thinks that he is the greatest thing in the world and tries to lay on him whenever he can. Poor Dog.

We had a great Christmas!! I realize every time that I am home that I have such a wonderful family!!

2010-03-01T15:56:00.000-08:00

OK, so I know that it has been SO LONG since I have posted anything it has been just a little bit crazy around here!! I started babysitting full time and though it has been a good thing it leaves me with little time and no energy for other things like blogging. Even when I had last week off, because of sick kids all I wanted to do was get my house clean and relax. So, my goal this week is to get caught up. I have to start back at Christmas (I know that was a long, long time ago) but I want to do it for my own records. So you can check at the beginning of the week and see what happened over christmas, or you can hold out and check at the end of the week to see what's happening more recently. I will try to do better and thanks to all of you for caring about us!!
Love Ya!!

Cutting Down Our Tree

2009-12-15T09:18:00.000-08:00

There is something about having a real tree that makes it really feel like Christmas. Both our families always had one when we were growing up but because our car was so small and couldn't handle off road we haven't been able to get one for years. Plus, I am way to cheap to go and pay fifty bucks for one at a tree stand. This year we had a van and some good friends that knew where to go to find a good tree. We had a lot of fun getting out into the forest and spending time as a family and with our friends, plus we found a great tree. We also only paid five dollars for the permit to cut it down.

The batteries died in our camera so our friends took some pictures for us that I don't have posted here, like when I fell down with Isaac in the front pack on me. Luckily I fell back instead of forward so he didn't get hurt but I felt pretty silly. As soon as I get them from our friends I'll post them. Here are the photos that I have.

The kids all bundled up in the car on the way to find a tree. Isaac looks so excited doesn't he.

Josh and our friend Marie trying to decide if it was a good tree or not.This had to be some time before the fall.
Jackson had a lot of fun traipsing around the hill even if he did fall a couple of times.
Brian and Marie cutting a smaller tree for some friends of theirs. Don't you love his hat!! Its a Russian hat and he said that it was the warmest had he'd ever had.The kids found a big pile of dirt to climb and get dirty on, of course!! They had a lot of fun and I'm really glad that one of them didn't fall down it and get hurt. These are Brian and Marie's two boys. I think this photo turned out really cool!!

DECORATING THE TREE!!!I forgot how long it takes to put the light on the tree!! It takes FOREVER!! And of course Isaac was obsessed with the lights.
Isaac was so excited about the bulbs. And he was so not soft with them. I was afraid that he was going to end up breaking one in his hands but when I'd try to take it away from him he would freak out!! Josh ended up sitting on the couch reading to him to distract him while the rest of us finished decorating. Notice that the lower third of the tree has no decorations on it. That would be because of my kids!! They can't keep their hands off it. In fact, the other day I came out to find that, some how, the boys had pulled the tree down!! More bulbs have been broken this year than in all of the years we have been married put together!! This year has already been eventful, I wonder what else is going to happen!!

Thanksgiving

2009-12-04T20:22:00.000-08:00

This Thanksgiving was a new adventure for us. It was the first time we weren't spending it away from home, which meant that it was a lot more work. We got to cook our own turkey, which turned out delicious and all of the food that we made and that Kami and Mike brought was fabulous!! We even got to spend it with the elders. Next year I'm going to have to plan a little betther though. I thought I was doing great until 1:30 rolled around (we were supposed to eat at two) and I realized that it wasn't close to being ready. Sorry it was late guys!! I even forgot to make the stuffing!!! I love stuffing. Oh well. I'm glad that we were able to spend the holiday in the company of good friends. I realize more and more how blessed I am, and I give thanks that the Lord is a part of my life. How sad life would be without that knowledge. I also give thanks for all of you. Thank you for being a support and an example to me. I love you all!! The kids had a little table all to themselves. That had fun even if they did only eat a quarter of the food on their plates.

I couldn't help putting this one in. She just looks so darn cute!!

Our good friends Kami and Mike celebrated with us. They are moving in two weeks so we were really glad that we got to spend some time with them. We are really going to miss them when they're gone!!

Isaac was being so cute at the table. He'd smile and then put his foot up and then duck under the table. That kid makes me laugh!!

A couple of months ago I was at Target in Courdelane when I found a pin the hat on the turkey game that I thought would be fun to play on Thanksgiving. The kids all had fun but the adults were all too lazy to try. We had a hard time keeping the boys from cheating but when it was done they all got pretty close.

ISAAC

2009-12-02T19:29:00.000-08:00

I just realized that I didn't post anything for Isaac's birthday!! AHHHH!! I'm such a bad mom in so many ways!!! So Isaac turned a year old on the 23rd of October. I don't remember exactly why we didn't start celebrating his birthday until later in the evening (I think Josh was at school)but we did it right before bed. We were trying to decide if we wanted to celebrate it that day or wait until another day but we chose to do it that night on the spur of the moment because we had a Halloween party to go to the next night and we wanted to get it done. I wish that we had waited until another night though. Here's why I'm such a bad mom, I didn't even have time to make a cake for him. I always make their cakes for their birthdays but we bought his this year. I didn't even have all of his gifts ready, I had to go out that night to get them. I know that it probably won't matter to him even when he's grown up, but it does to me. So I have promised myself that I'm going to make his next birthday better. At least it isn't really ugly.

At least he liked the gifts he got this year. I think the reason I feel so bad is because Isaac is such a special part of our family and I want him to feel important. Yeah, he won't even remember it but he'll see pictures when he's older. I'm so grateful that the Lord sent him to us. He is such a happy, fun baby and I'm honored to be his mom.

The First Snowfall!!

2009-12-02T19:23:00.000-08:00

We have had a few snow falls this year but this is the only one that we could actually go out and play in. The kids had so much fun and I think their dad did too. I wasn't sure if Isaac would like the snow or not but he loved it!!! He went off and played by himself while the rest of us made snowmen. He was so fun to watch.
Josh is showing the kids how to start a little ball and to make it bigger for the snowmen. He and Emma made one and Jaxson and I made one. Later that day some punk kids were walking by and they push my snowman down and messed up Josh and Emma. It made me so mad!! Why do people do stuff like that?

Jaxson hated playing in the snow last year!! Of course that could have been because there was so much snow that he could barely walk around. He had fun this time, even if his gloves kept coming off.Of course Emma and Josh would be the ones having the snowball fight. Josh threw a snow ball and accidentally pegged Jaxson in the face. He felt so bad!! Luckily kids are very resilient.
My snow babies!!

Better Late than Never

2009-12-02T18:47:00.000-08:00

So yeah, it's a month late, but I really wanted to put these up anyway for my records. We had a really fun Halloween this year. Lots of parties make for lots of fun and we had lots of parties to go to this year. Halloween night we went over to our friends house for some food and fun. We watched Disneys, The Legend of Sleepy Hollow, do you guys remeber it? I love it!!, and then went out for some trick or treating. Josh stayed home with Isaac while I took the other kids out. It was Jaxson's first time trick or treating door to door and he had a blast!!! He was dragging me from house to house!! We had a lot of fun and I look forward to next year when Isaac will be able to enjoy it as well.

Emma was a spider bride this year. Her make up looks horrible but she loved her costume.
Jaxson would not stand up for a picture so we did the best we could. He fell a week or so before and got a rug burn under his nose in the worst spot, especially because he had a runny nose.

Isaac was so hungry when we got home so this is the only way I could get a picture of him without making him cry. He was sure cute though.
He's my hunk of burning love!!The kids got a haul this year!! Too bad I was the one who ate half of it!!!

Emma's Birthday Party!!

2009-11-08T19:00:00.000-08:00

After waiting for two weeks, the morning of Emma's birthday party finally arrived. I am the queen of procrastination and that morning I hit an all time high. My house wasn't clean (I had to grab piles of junk off my table and counters and shove them in my room so no one would see them!! As a result my room was trashed for the next two weeks!! Sorry Josh!!) I hadn't made all of the food. I hadn't even decorated her cake!!! Luckily it was an easy one to decorate so I while everyone came in I finished it up. In spite of my being so unprepared I think it turned out well and everyone had fun. Here are some photos of the events of the day.

We had the table set up with masks for everyone to decorate as they got there but I didn't have time to take pictures of them decorating them because of everything else I had to get done.

When they were finished with their masks they went into the living to play freeze dance. It was so fun to watch their moves to Michael Jackson's, Thriller.

This is Emma's friend Eliza. She had the best moves out of all the kids there.
Josh drew a picture of a witch and I printed off a bunch of witch hats to play pin the hat on the witch. Emma was the first and she wasn't very happy with where her hat ended up.

These next few pictures are of every one eating lunch. Isn't Buzz Lightyear cute!! We had little pizzas that looked like mummies and bone bread sticks and hot dogs wrapped up like mummies. It was actually really good.

Eliza and Joey

Hyrum, Emma, Kennedy and Eliza

Grace, Jacqueline, and Joshua : Her friends Miriam and Sam were also there but aren't in these pictures. Emma and her cake. It didn't turn out the best but it was still yummy!!

Emma got a lot of fun gifts from her friends. I always forget that this house has horrible lighting so most of the pictures didn't turn out very good. I like this picture though. It captures her excitement pretty well.

We are so lucky to live in a place where we have such wonderful friends. I'm also so glad that Josh and also Jacqueline's mom Jenny Lynn were there to help. It was SO MUCH easier because of them!!! Thanks guys!!

A Birthday and a Visit Home

2009-11-07T10:34:00.000-08:00

OK, this post is over a month late but I guess it's better late than never. My baby turned five on the first of October!! Where has the time gone? This year her birthday was a little crazy. Here's why.

My whole family gets together the first weekend in October to go duck hunting. I wasn't going to go but my sweet husband convinced me and so I decided on the spur of the moment to go. Josh couldn't go because of school so we celebrated her birthday a few days early so he could be there. She also wanted a Halloween birthday party this year but her birthday is so far away from Halloween we decided to wait a few weeks to have the party when it was closer to it. I'll post pictures of her party in the next post. I hope she felt special because she got to celebrate her birthday three different times this year!! I'm so grateful that Emma is a part of my life!! Though sometimes she makes life challenging she is a sweetheart!! A strong willed little girl but a sweetheart as well. I don't think that I could handle having my boys as close as they are without her help. I really enjoy spending time with her and I hope that she knows how much I love her. I'm so grateful that Heavenly Father made her a part of our family.

I took her to McDonalds for a special birthday lunch. She and Jaxson had a lot of fun playing on the big toy.
I didn't make a big cake before we left because she would get one for her party and I knew Josh wouldn't eat it while we were gone so she got cupcakes.
I had another picture of her opening her presents but I accidentally deleted it and it's too complicated to try and get another picture on in the right place so this one will have to do. She was really excited about the My Little Ponies and the Barbie swimming pool that she got.

Our Trip Home: We were really lucky that the weekend we were down Josh's brother and his family were there as well. We hadn't seen Jess and Adam for a long time so it was special to be able to spend sometime with them.

It was so fun to watch this soccer game with all the kids playing along with the adults. It was hilarious!! Even Mom and Dad Hill joined the game. My camera died somewhere during the game so I didn't get any pictures but we sure appreciated the time and effort they put into to spending time with us. We really are lucky to have them in our lives.
My kids really enjoyed playing on the swings and the slide. Isaac is borrowing Jaxson's hat in this picture, that's why it's so big. Grandma Bean worked so hard to make hats for all of the grandchildren and they turned out great. Thanks mom, for loving us so much!!
Brinley and Jaxson are not quite a month apart so it was so fun for them play together.I love these two pictures because they show what a wonderful grandma my kids have. Thanks Dianne for taking time with and loving my kids!!

I don't know why I don't have any pictures of my time with my family but I'm so glad that I went down. I had a great time with my brothers and sisters and it was worth the nine hour drive it took to get there. Life really is all about family and I'm so grateful to be a part of two incredible families.

Emma and Soccer

2009-11-05T12:12:00.000-08:00

YIKES!!! It has been way too long since I last posted!!!! And now I have a million things to post and I feel overwhelmed. I'll do it a little at a time I guess so watch for outdated posts over the next few days. I'll start way back at the end of September when Emma started soccer. We weren't sure if she was going to get on a team, but she did at the last moment. This was the first time Emma had ever played soccer so she really didn't know what she was doing. She started out running around everywhere but in the center of the action. She didn't want to be so improper as to steal the ball away from the other team. But by the end of the season she had improved so much!! She now knows what it is to play soccer and I'm proud of her for getting out there and improving so much. It was alot of fun watching her, but I have to say that I'm glad it's over!!!

He's Walking!!!

2009-09-27T21:01:00.000-07:00

Isaac has started to walk!!!! I can't believe how much this little guy has grown lately!!! He gets into everything now even without walking so he might as well take his first steps. I can't tell you how many times I have had to pull him out of the toilet in the last few weeks.
The problem is that he is a wimp. Up until today he would pull himself up on something and cruise along the furniture but when I would try to get him to walk to me he'd fall down and crawl to me instead. This week he has been walking with his hippo walker but when he'd run into the wall or couch he'd get mad and cry until we turned him around. He loves walking though!! It won't be long before he's running and then what am I going to do!!!!????

Sorry this is sideways.

School FINALLY Started!!!

2009-09-27T20:47:00.000-07:00

School started so LATE for Emma this year!! I don't know why but I do know that she is very glad to be back. She is in the morning class now and has a great teacher. Four of the kids from our ward are in the same class so it's been great for her to have friends there and for me to have someone to car pool with. It's also been great for me to be able to have some one on one time with Jaxson while Isaac is down for a nap and Emma is away at school. I've really enjoyed it. Now I just need to make sure to spend one on one time with Emma. I tell ya, life gets more complicated and chaotic and busy the older they get. Here are a few photos of her first day at school.

I don't know why but she felt that she had to have this bear with her on her first day, even though it stayed in her cubby the whole time.

This is Emma's friend Eliza. We were excited to find out they were in the same class. Aren't they cute!!!

In front of her cubby.

Jumping around in circle time to start out the day.

Our First Camping Adventure

2009-09-15T09:27:00.000-07:00

We have been saying for YEARS that we are going to go camping and we never have. UNTIL NOW!!! We finally got to go with our good friends Mike and Kami Bahnmiller over Labor Day weekend. It was so much FUN!! We went to the Hell's Gate campground that is right by Lewiston. Thanks guys for setting it up for us!!
We were in charge of dinner so we decided to do dutch oven. I didn't realize how LONG it takes to cook something dutch oven so we didn't have dinner until really late. Thanks for not killing us Mike and Kami!!! Even with the vegetables a little under-cooked the dinner turned out pretty good and the s'mores the Bahnmillers provided were fabulous. It was SO MUCH FUN hanging out around the fire and playing games. I was really surprised how well my kids slept. I wish I did. Oh well, what's camping without crappy sleep. The kids had a BLAST and we enjoyed spending the time with such good friends. I only wish they would be here to camp with us next year. Here are some pictures of our trip.

Emma was so excited for her first camping trip.

Kami setting up chairs.

These next two photos MAKE ME LAUGH. Emma packed her own special back pack with all of her girly things she would need for camping and while she was out running around playing Jaxson got into her stuff. The next picture shows his reaction to being caught. Isaac wanted to be the one to hold the roasting stick. He thought it was so COOL.
Jaxson thoroughly enjoyed the s'mores. I couldn't keep this kid clean at all this weekend.

All of us around the campfire. Luckily Jaxson didn't fall in. I was stressed the whole time he was around it. That kid is so BUSY!!!

Mike cooked a really YUMMY breakfast the next morning. The kids enjoyed watching him.
Jaxson, excited about breakfast and of course dirty.
Jaxson tried to get the zipper on the tent open and it wouldn't work. So what does a two year old do when something doesn't work? You guessed it. They fall on the ground and throw a tantrum.
Mike got ambitious and climbed a tree. His kids wanted to see what it was like. Here's little Emma checking out the view.
The boys saw Mike and they wanted to climb too. Unfortunately, they're a little too short.
Isaac tried his first licorice rope and he LOVED it!!

The kids wanted to go swim but they had barely gotten wet when we saw a dead fish. GROSS!!!That ended the adventure right there but it didn't stop Jaxson from getting dirty. AGAIN.

Fun At the Park: After we had packed everything up we went on a picnic to a really fun park in Lewiston. The kids really enjoyed playing on the toys. Jaxson especially liked the train.

He is holding up his arm and saying "toot, toot" in this picture.
Aside from being to young for this climbing wall, Emma didn't have very good shoes for it. She didn't get very high but she had fun trying.

THANKS Mike and Kami, for making it such a wonderful weekend!! We're sure going to miss you. Mike got accepted to BYU so they are moving in December. We love you guys!!

Garden Fun

2009-09-04T08:34:00.000-07:00

This is my first time EVER doing a garden of my own. Though it didn't turn out exactly as good as I wanted it to I'm still excited about what has grown. We've been OVERRUN by zucchini, and yellow squash and cucumbers for the last month or two and the corn, peppers, pumpkins, tomatoes, green onions and carrots are almost ready to be picked as well. It definitely has been a learning experience. For example, I don't think I will grow cucumbers next year. It seems like every cucumber I try is nasty and bitter and then when I tell Josh it's his turn to try them he gets all of the good ones. NOT FAIR!!! Here are some photos. Just don't look to closely because I'm sure that your gardens are ten times better.

I think I'm most excited about our pumpkins. Only two have made it but it has been so fun to watch them get bigger and think about the fun jack-o-lantern they'll make.

Our Trip Home

2009-08-20T20:15:00.000-07:00

We had a really great trip to Idaho Falls about two weeks ago. Along with most of my family (Greg and Hayley were sadly missed) we were also able to see Josh's brother Jon from Minnesota and his sister from Burley plus their families along with his little brother Danny and his wife Ashley. Although it was a little chaotic with so many kids running around it was so great to see so many people that we love but don't get to see very often. These are some photos of visiting Josh's parents. We were also able to visit the Titanic museum and spend time playing with cousins on Josh's side but unfortunately I lost my camera so I didn't get any pictures taken. We had a lot of fun though. Their is also a slide show following this post of my family reunion. Thanks everyone for making it a great reunion. We love you.

I so appreciate the time that Josh's Dad took with my children. The first night that we visited them the kids were outside playing and Dave scooted his seat right in front of Isaac's swing and talked to him and pushed him and he blew bubbles for the kids. I'm so grateful that they have grandparents that do little things like that to show their love. Thanks Dave.

The kids really enjoyed the swings and slide at Grandma and Grandpa Hill's house.

Silly Daddy, that's Emma's chair!!!

2009-08-20T17:14:00.000-07:00

Slip and Slide Fun

2009-08-17T10:43:00.000-07:00

I haven't posted in a long time!!! Part of that is due to us being gone and then to loosing our camera. Thankfully our prayers were answered and we found it. Can you guess where? In the back of our van. Yeah, anyways, this and the preceeding two posts are the first in a series of posts that will cover the last month and a half. I've already spent way to much time on this so I will have to do the post on my family reunion a little later. That will be a fun one so keep watching for it. I should be able to post more regulary now, assuming we don't loose our camera in the back of our van again. Thanks for keeping in touch with us!!

We got a slip and slide last month and the kids have had so much fun on it. This is the first night we go it out and it turned into a great family activity.

Isaac had fun watching everyone. Don't ask me what Emma is doing in the background.

This is the only time the Jaxson would go down it. He loved to play in the water but wouldn't slide in it.
OK, so maybe we're bad parents, but Emma is such a water baby and we were hoping that Isaac would be too. Evidently, he's not. We never put him right in the water and the stream of it wasn't falling on him but I think the sound of it on the plastic scared him. A guy was driving by as we did this and he actually stopped and watched and then laughed at us when Isaac started to get upset. Yes, we are retarded.
The kids couldn't figure out how to drop and slide on it so Josh put them on the pillow thing and then pushed them down the slide. Emma thought that was the greatest.Even Josh took a turn going down it

This is Emma attempting to slide on her own. Obviously she hasn't gotten the hang of it yet.

Isaac

2009-08-17T10:11:00.000-07:00

I can't believe that Isaac is nine months old already!!! He is such a happy baby and I am so glad he's part of our family . Isaac found a black marker, what fun!!! We did a yard sale last month and he was rolling around the room and rolled onto to the papers that the pricing stickers come on and it got stuck to his face. He makes me laugh.
He's doing push ups already.

Josh gave the boys a bath and this is the result. He tried to do the same on Jaxson's head but Jaxson flipped out and wouldn't let him.

Lightning Storms and Lessons Learned

2009-08-17T09:25:00.000-07:00

I've debated whether I should do this post or not because it happened so long ago but it's one that I'd like remember so I've decided to do it.

We had a thunder storm here a month or two ago. The kids had just gone to bed when it started but it's kind of a tradition that we watch the lightning together as a family(I've even woken Emma up to watch it with us before). This was the first storm we've watched that Jaxson was with us and he did not like the thunder at all. I love lightening storms and I wanted him to learn to like them as well, so instead of taking him into the other room and rocking him to sleep I saw an opportunity to teach him how fun it can be to watch the lightning. We made it a positive, fun, experience by saying "did you see that?" every time it flashed and "there it is" every time the thunder sounded. By the end he was saying it to us and was having a great time.

About a week later I was up around 3:00am feeding Isaac and I saw the most beautiful sky I've ever seen. The sun rises early up here so the sky was already starting to get light and it illuminated the clouds and made them look kind of like a wave of the sea. That's the best way I can describe it. It was so beautiful!! Of course I had to share it, so I woke up Josh and Emma to come look. The pictures we took didn't turn out very well but I will always remember that experience. It's amazing that something as simple as a sunrise or a lightning storm can convey the love of Heavenly Father so fully. I truly believe that makes beautiful things in nature to tell us that He loves us. How blessed we are.

This is the best photo we got of the sunrise. It isn't exactly what it looked like, but it's close. This doesn't show the prettiest part of the sky though.

Fun on the Fourth

2009-07-09T16:59:00.000-07:00

I love the fourth of July!!! It is one of my favorite holidays. This year was a little different because it was our first year that we didn't go to Idaho Falls to celebrate it but we still had so much fun. Mom and Dad came up on Friday to spend it with us and that made it even more special. We got to go to Spokane with our really good friends Mike and Kami Bahnmiller, and their kids Joey and Emma . I'm going to tell you now that Kami's blog of the fourth is way better than mine so if you want to skip to hers and read it instead I totally understand and recommend it. Click http:/mkbahnmiller.blogspot.com/to see hers. On Saturday morning we woke up early to go to breakfast (a tradition in my family). We ate at Denny's and then headed on to Spokane. We took a different way than we normally take and it was such a pretty drive. There is a park in Spokane called River Front park that has fun rides so as soon as we got to Spokane we went to play. Emma really liked riding, but Jaxson wasn't sure if it was scary or fun. After rides we went to the hotel (we stayed in a really nice hotel (Kami has pictures) where the kids took a nap and Mike, Kami, and Josh went to the IMAX to see the new Transformers movie. After two hours in the hotel room I started to get bored, so my mom stayed with the sleeping little ones (thanks mom) while my Dad and I took Joey and my Emma to go on more rides. It was so fun to be with the "big kids" and my dad and not have to worry about where Jaxson was running off to. When they were done we went and met up with Kami, Mike and Josh, and took the kids swimming. It was so fun. We played tag (kind of hard to do while holding a two year old) and worked on jumps and kicks. It was a little chilly though. When we finally got dried off it was time for pizza and fire works. I have never sat so close to watch the fireworks. Jaxson was freaked out. I had to wrap him up in a "special protection" blanket before he would calm down. It was so fun though and the firework show was actually better than I thought it would be. On Sunday we went to sacrament meeting in Spokane and then headed home to spend a little more time with Mom and Dad. Dad told us to go take a nap and he spent some time with Emma watching a Strawberry Shortcake video and drawing with her. She loved the time with him. Thanks dad. My parents have a way of making my children feel so special and they had so much fun spending time with their grandparents. I really do have the best parents in the world and my kids adore them too. We spent the rest of Sunday just hanging out so when they left on Monday morning it was really hard to see them go. Needless to say I was depressed for the rest of the day and I didn't get much done around the house. We're back to normal now but we still miss them. Luckily we have a family reunion in August so we'll see them again soon. Thanks Kami and Mike and Dad and Mom for a great fourth of July weekend.

We had Dad and Mom ride in our car so they wouldn't have to spend more on gas so we shoved all three kids in the back seat. They actually did really well.

My beautiful mother working on hats for the kids.

This picture was so dark that I had to over expose it in order to be able to see it at all. Kami and I had fun but I'm not sure that Jaxson and little Emma did.
Mom took Emma while Mike to Joey on the Spider ride. They ended up stopping the ride in the middle of it so Joey and Emma could get off. I'm surprised they lasted as long as they did.
This ride is just like the Scrambler at Lagoon. I love it and Emma did too.

Bumper boats are so much fun. It's just too bad that they weren't big enough for Josh and I to ride in.

Jaxson riding the airplanes.

Radio Flyer Slide: River Front Park has the worlds largest Radio Flyer and it has a slide coming off it. My kids are such wimps so I had to put both of them on my laps before they would go down it. I hate this picture!! I look like a whale because of the way my kids are sitting on me. Oh the things we do for our kids.
Getting a two year old to stand still for a picture is like spitting into the wind and trying not to get hit. The two are almost impossible to avoid.
Emma and Jaxson had so much fun with their dad on thier first ferris wheel ride. It took FOREVER though and they were pretty hot by the end of the ride.

Farmers Market Fun

2009-07-09T15:58:00.001-07:00

Every Saturday there is a farmers market in a little square in the middle of town. Last year Josh worked on Saturdays so the kids and I would walk to it together. Every Saturday it was the same. We would walk past all the stalls, buy our veggies and fruit and then we would buy a giant cookie and sit on the benches to listen to whatever musical group was playing that day. This year Josh doesn't work on Saturdays so he decided to join us on our outing. I think he enjoyed it. Isaac tried a cookie for the first time and loved it. As you can see from the pictures Jaxson really enjoyed the cookie too.

Emma and Josh had a lot of fun dancing.

Updates

2009-06-25T08:40:00.000-07:00

So I lied!! I guess I really wasn't back seeing as it has been a month since I have posted anything. Sorry this is another long post. I finally got my house completely spring cleaned and I feel more on top of things than I have for awhile so its finally time for another post. I have been working on this post for the last four days because my computer has been retarded but I think it'll work now. We have been able to do some really fun things as a family and I can't believe how much the kids have grown in the last month. Emma finished preschool and is enjoying playing with the little girls that I babysit. I found a bike for her at a yard sale a few months ago and she is having so much fun learning to ride. She has really been into doing her own hair lately and is dying to get her hands on some makeup. Jaxson now has a motor mouth and it has been so fun to see him learn to talk. I was playing around with him on the floor the other day and he launched himself on me and said "I EAT YOU!!! He is such a funny kid. I love this stage where they can talk and tell you what they want but they are to young to talk back. Well at least not as much. Sunday was a monumental day because it was the first day that Jaxson was actually quiet during sacrament meeting!! I actually got to listen to the talks!! It was amazing. Isaac is growing so fast!!! He will sit up now but he really likes to roll all over the place. He also is at the wonderful stage where he puts anything he can get his hands on into his mouth. He is finally used to a bottle and it has been good for both of us especially since he just cut two teeth. He is such a happy baby and I am so grateful that he's a part of our family. Here are some photos of the fun things we've done over the past few week. Sorry there are so many. Jaxson got to go on his very first father and son camp out. Josh took a few more pictures than this but this one turned out the best. They had fun and I think Jax felt special to be able to spend time alone with Josh.

Jaxson loves his little brother. A lot of times he ends up mostly laying on top of him but Isaac doesn't mind. He just grabs Jaxson's face and laughs at him. I sure hope they will be good friends.

SWIMMING LESSONS: The kids have had swimming lessons for the last few months and we just had our last class. Emma is getting so good and can hold her breath under water now. I have been doing a parent child class with Jax and it has taken some time to get him used to the water. He hates the feel of it in his ears. Our last few classes he finally got up the courage to jump in by himself. He is doing so good, and is feeling more comfortable in the water. I just hope that we can get to the pool enough this summer so they don't loose everything they've learned.

DISCOVERY SCIENCE CENTER: We spent some fun family time at the children's museum a few weeks ago. The kids had a lot of fun playing there and it is a good place to learn. Afterwards we went for a picnic at the park. I hope my kids grow up remembering the fun things we did as a family instead of what a mess their mother always was.

Jaxson, experiencing a red world.

Jax loves to pull things so when he found this dog it was love at first sight. He pulled this thing all over the museum.

There was a bin full of lentil beans where the kids could "dig" for dinosaur bones. Lentils aren't even close to sand but the kids still had fun playing in them.

What a great dad!!

This was Isaac's first time in the swing. He loved it.

SINGING IN THE RAIN: There was a really big rain storm so the kids and I went puddle jumping. Needless to say they had a blast.

SATURDAY AT THE PARK: Last Saturday what started as a simple picnic at the park ended up to be a really fun time for the kids. The Hope Center here was having a "Day at the Park" donation drive. The kids played on a big blow up slide, got their faces painted and got free popcorn. Emma even got to ride her bike for a little while. They had a lot of fun, plus it was free, even better.

The slide was too high for Jaxson to climb up himself so the little girl you see at the top of the slide pushed him up so he could go down by himself.

Jaxson with his popcorn and lemonade.

I had to put these next pictures in because I think they are so funny. Jaxson often falls asleep in front of the door and this night he had poked his hand out and fallen asleep with it there. I snapped the photo and then Josh found that you could see his face under the door. Priceless.

I'm Back!!

2009-05-18T07:34:00.000-07:00

Do you ever feel like your life is spinning out of control? I do. Frequently. These last few weeks I have been trying to get it under control. Have I succeeded? Not really. But I'm trying. They say that trying is enough, but when the house is a mess and dinner needs to be started and you have to change a dirty diaper, trying really isn't enough. You moms with small children will hopefully understand what I'm talking about. I wanted to post something though so you didn't give up and stop checking my blog. We have had a really fun filled month. We took a trip to see my family. My brother is back from his mission!!! My whole family but one brother, who we missed, was there. It was so great to see everyone and we got our van while we were down there. We also blessed Isaac while we were down there and we got family pictures. This post covers what has happened in our family for the last month. It's going to be a long post, but what can you expect when I haven't blogged for a month.

I couldn't ask for better grandparents for my kids. They are so wonderful. I don't have a picture of it, but when we were at Josh's parents house Bubba wasn't content to sit on the chair next to Grandpa Hill he had to be on his lap.

The cousins had so much fun playing together.

Bubba sat for a long time with my brother-in-law Adam looking at a book about birds. Adam was so patient with him and Bubba really enjoyed spending time with his uncle.

Tea Party Time: My mom is so awesome. While we were there she got out her cute little tea sets and did a tea party for the kids. She sent out invitations for the kids a week or two before we got there. The girls got all dressed up in their princesses dresses and I did their hair cute. They had so much fun.

Blessing Day: So yes, Smalls is six months old, and that's a little old to bless a baby, but we wanted to do it with family, so we waited and did it there. I'm so grateful that Josh is a worthy preisthood holder and could do it.

I was thinking yesterday about how grateful I am that Smalls is a part of our family. He was a surprise but I'm so glad that the Lord sent him to us. He is such a sweet mellow boy and I'm glad to be his mom.We are so grateful that Josh's brother and sister and their spouses and family came up for Smalls blessing. It was so fun to see them. I realized the next day that I'm a dork and didn't get pictures with my family on the night of the blessing. I hope they know that we love them though.

Family Photos: My brother in law is a fabulous photographer and was nice enough to take photos of the family while we were down there.

This is the first family picture we've had taken since Isaac was born.

Does any one have a trick for getting a perfect picture of all the kids. Because obviously I don't know it. At least they're all sitting down for the moment.

I had to put this one is. Bubba likes getting his picture taken so much and so he kept wandering into the photos when it wasn't his turn. He is such a funny kid.

Emma's Photo Shoot: While I was in the shower one day, Emma found the camera. The pictures tell it all. She actually didn't do a bad job on some of them.

More recently: We got out the exersaucer for Smalls and he loves it. I can't believe how fast he grown!!

Josh's boss had a sandbox that they gave to us and the kids love it. Maybe it will help Bubba stay in the yard instead of running into the street. Yeah right!!

Bubba decided that he likes to eat whole apples rather than sliced. I wouldn't be surprised if he ate a seed or two in the process.

Birthdays and Rollovers

2009-04-21T08:02:00.000-07:00

I think it is so amazing that you can blink and all of a sudden your baby is now a two year old toddler with an attitude. Bubba's birthday was last Saturday and though we couldn't do anything with friends (he has a cold) I think he still had a special day. We went to swimming lessons in the morning and in the afternoon we spent some good family time together outside blowing bubbles and coloring on the sidewalks. His birthday reminded me how lucky I am to have him in my life. He is such a funny kid and brightens even the darkest of days. I'm sure grateful that the Lord sent him to our family. Josh had almost as much fun blowing bubbles as the kids.

The only way that Bubba will color with sidewalk chalk is on his tummy.

PRESENT TIME: He was actually interested in tearing the paper off this time. CAKE TIME: So this didn't turn out at all like I planned. In fact by the end all I wanted to do was hurl the darn cake against the wall. Bubba sure liked it though. I'm not sure that I'll ever do neon frosting again.

Emma has a way of her own to celebrate birthdays. She had a hard time remembering that it was Bubba's day not hers. Luckily he's still a little young so that he doesn't punch her out every time she steals one of his toys.

ROLLOVER TIME: Smalls decided he finally was ready to rollover on Sunday night. He did it once before last week but he did it at a time that my back was turned. This time I got it on video. Excuse the horrible lighting and my cheesy commentary.

My Boys Are Talking!!

2009-04-10T16:18:00.000-07:00

Ok so Bubba's the only one who says real words, but still. We have been waiting for him to talk for a long time. He is definitley a kid who can't be pushed. Even if he said a word one day when we asked him to say it again the next day, he wouldn't. Well, he finally decided that he wants to talk and will repeat almost anything we ask him to. Monkey was a quick talker and once she started she never stopped. She would lay under her toy bar and yell and laugh even if no one was near her. It seems that Smalls is taking after her. I love to hear babys yell, as long as they're happy. Here is a little clip of Smalls chatting with me.

Smalls also got to taste cereal for the first time on Sunday. He loved it and did so good at keeping it down instead of spitting it out. He is such a speciatl blessing. It was a big surprise when we found out that I was pregnant again but I am so grateful that the Lord sent him into our lives. He is such a happy spirit and is a reminder of how much the Lord loves us.

I need some advice

2009-04-06T13:49:00.002-07:00

I need some advice. Recently Monkey has not been excited about going to pre-school. We get her all ready and out the door but once she is into the car she decides that she doesn't want to go. It took close to ten minutes today of her getting into the van and then getting out over and over again. Finally when I told my friend that I car pool with just to go for the third time and she was pulling away Monkey finally made the decision to get in and go. I don't know what her deal is. We've asked her why she doesn't want to go and she says that another kid hits and pushes her, but my friend talked to her teacher and that should be taken care of. She's been given the option to stay home in the past if she has a friend that she wants to stay and play with but she has never opted not to go when no one is here. So what do I do? Do I be the mean mom and make her go, even if she really doesn't want to, or do I let her stay home? You are all wiser than I am so please give me some advice on what I should do.

Sweet Monkey

2009-04-05T21:35:00.000-07:00

My sister in-law likes to do flashback Fridays and though it's not Friday I have a flashback for this post. After a year we finally got all of the pictures transferred from our old computer to our new one!! A lot of those photos were of Monkey when she was little. Lately I have been thinking about how blessed I am to have this sweet daughter of mine. I take my time with her for granted so much and sometimes I am too hard but I hope that she knows that I love her. She is such a big help and is so fun to be with. I am truly grateful to be her mom. Here are some photos of her when she was little and some more recent ones as well.

I had to put this one in. She is so funny.

Lately she has been doing the sweetest things for us.

She made our bed for us one morning all by herself.

She helps keep Isaac happy when I need to do something and this day she decided to read the Book of Mormon to Smalls. I don't think I could handle having three kids without her help.

Though it has it's challenges, I am so grateful to be a mom. Monkey is such a wonderful girl, I just hope that I can teach her well enough to prepare her for this life.

WE FOUND A VAN!!!!!

2009-04-02T10:22:00.000-07:00

I don't have any pictures to go with this post so I'll have to do a follow up later, but I am so excited that we finally found a van that will work for us!!! It is all that we wanted and more. Unfortunately we don't have it yet. Josh was looking on craigslist yesterday and he found one that looked great in Shelly. My parents were on their way to Boise so they stopped to look at it for us. It was perfect so they took care of the technicalities for us right there. My parents are the best. It's actually because of them that we are finally able to get a van. We have been trying to sell our Lumina for a couple of months now but because of the economy, no one is buying. So my parents are buying our car for my little brother who gets home from his mission in two and a half weeks. We'll pick up the van when we come down to see him. I don't know about you but I think that buying a new car is a huge pain in the you know what!! We have been so blessed and I'm so glad that it's over. Thanks Mom and Dad!!! Your the best.

Friendship

2009-03-26T20:42:00.000-07:00

This is going to be a long post!!! I had kind of a tough week last week. I struggle a lot with feelings of inadequacy and I always wish that I was a better mom and a better person. It all boiled over last week. We are ward missionaries in our ward and last Tuesday I went out my friend Susan, another ward missionary, to visit a family that we are teaching how to be better member missionaries. But, we couldn't go until Josh got back from work. And as we waited, I lost it. My kids were misbehaving, I felt stressed because I didn't feel completely prepared, and my house was probably messy, like it always is. Susan could tell that I was having a hard time and so the next day she showed up on my doorstep with flowers. What a sweet lady!! It made think of the quote that says, "God does notice us and watches over us, but it is usually through another person that He meets our needs, therefore it is vital that we serve each other in the kingdom." What a blessing she was to me that day, and those flowers have continued to brighten my day and keep me happy, especially when we all had the stomach flu last week. THANK YOU SUSAN!! Then I thought about how much friendship has meant to me throughout my life. I just wanted to say thank you to all of you for being such great friends. You have touched my life and helped change me in a way that would never have happened had we not crossed paths. I look up to, and love all of you.

Aren't the flowers beautiful!!!

Ashley, I'm so glad that Danny found you. You are such a neat lady, and I look forward to getting to know you better.

I'm so glad that you're my sister-in-law Hayley!!! Even though we don't get to see you, EVER we think about you guys lots. I love you and am glad that Greg has a wife like you.

I don't know what I would do without my sisters!!! Jen, and Steph, I look up to you both so much!! You are both such great moms. I couldn't ask for better sisters.

This picture is so old, but it's one example of how you were always able to make me laugh Steph.

I never thought that a sister-in-law would be such a great friend, but you are Jess. I'm really glad that we had the opportunity to live so close in Pocatello. Even though we live far away from you now I'm glad that we still talk. You are wonderful.

If there was anyone that made being a mom look easy it would be you Marisa!! You are such a great mom and are so crafty. Maybe someday I'll be like you. Right now I'm just trying not to go crazy!!!

Remember Knightline Amy? This photo is at Nationals in California, forever ago. You were then and still are such a nice person.You are the funnest person I know Brooke!! You are the best.

I think that roommates are one of the only people that see you at your good times and at your bad times. I'm sure that you have seen me at both. Thanks for being a true friend Danielle.

There are very few child hood memories without you in them Jessica. We had so much fun together!!! And now we're both moms!! How crazy!!! I'm really glad that we are in touch. You are awesome.

You are such a strong person Kami!! I am so glad that you guys moved up here!!! You have been such wonderful friends!!! We need to have a game night again!!

You are a true friend Tiff!!! I'm so grateful for your friendship. Even though you got married and I went on a mission and our lives have gone in different directions you have always kept in touch. You are the greatest!!!!!

You are the most friendly person Wendy!!! From the very beginning you were so nice to us. Thanks for staying in touch.

Of course I have to mention my mom. I'm so glad you're my mom!!! You are such a wonderful lady and an amazing grandma!! Thanks for doing all you did mom, even if it made you a little crazy. I don't think I could make it without you and dad.

He's going to be embarrassed that he is the only man who is shown, but how can I not mention Josh. Our six year anniversary is in May and it amazes me how much my love for him grows more and more every year that we are married. He is such a wonderful husband, father, and friend. I am so honored to be his wife!!

You make think that this is sentimental and cheesy but oh well!! Thank you all for making my life better with your friendship.

Trip to Grandmas

2009-03-25T11:41:00.000-07:00

I've always loved my family but I didn't realize how much until we moved up here a year and a half ago. We had the opportunity to travel home last weekend to see J's brother get married, and even though it was so chaotic, it was so nice to be with family that we hadn't seen for a long time. I can see more and more why the Lord put us into families. It would be almost impossible to make it through this life with out them. I just hope that I can be worthy to have them forever. Here are a bunch of pictures from our weekend. The weather was SO nice that the kids didn't even have to wear jackets outside.

Bubba testing out the trampoline.

Having fun outside.

Bubba fell asleep in my moms arms. She is such a wonderful grandma!!

Bubba was a little terror at the reception so we had to leave early and I was so sad that my kids didn't have more time to play with their cousins that they hadn't seen for so long. Luckily, everyone ended up over at Josh's parent's not long after we left. They all had so much fun, especially Bubba who took bites out of three pieces of chocolate cake before I discovered what he was doing. I swear, my kids can smell sugar a mile away.
Of course you can't eat chocolate cake without making a mess of it.

Bubba helped grandma put the last of the bird seed into the feeder and then decided to wear the bag.

He kept running into the wall. Here he is stuck in the corner.

Apparently he couldn't get out of the corner.

My Little Boy is Growing Up!!!

2009-03-17T17:05:00.000-07:00

Smalls will be five months next week!!!! I can't believe how fast time flies!! He is such a happy baby!! Always ready to smile!! And he is so mellow. He is grabbing things now and is content to sit under his toy bar alot of the time. He discovered his feet this week which means that it is a challenge to keep socks on his feet. He is the best kind of surprise that could have happened to our family and we sure love him.

Emma put her sunglasses on him. She's trying to dress him up already!!!
She sure is a great big sister and there have been alot of times that I could not have made it without her.

Bubbas Headpieces and More

2009-03-11T10:45:00.000-07:00

It's time for another installment of Bubba's headpieces . I can't get enough of this kid!! He is so entertaining.

This is really gross, but of course kids don't care about germs. He just dumped the garbage out and plopped it on his head.

Grandma made this blanket. Isn't it cute.

This is the bag that holds all the blocks that you can see on the floor. Luckily the back is netting so he can breathe. One night Bubba was playing on this bouncy seat (it's cover was in the wash). All of a sudden he said "Beep,Beep". He had made it into a car. I had no idea that he had such an imagination already. Daddy's sandals, on the wrong feet.

Bubba had just finished his chocolate treat and decided he wanted some of sister's popsicle. He wanted it so much he had to crawl on the table. Any ideas how to keep kids of the table? I push in the chairs but he's up there all the time now.

Going Public

2009-02-28T15:22:00.000-08:00

I've decided to go public for a while because I don't have everyone's e-mail addresses to do invites. This way anyone can find us through a link on one of your blogs. I would really like all of your blog addresses so that I can put them on my blog list as well. You can put them in the comments box or e-mail them to me at beanie_397@hotmail.com. I'm still new at this so if any of you have any suggestions or things that you really like to do on your blogs please share!! I'm so glad that I can keep in touch with you all better through all of our blogs.

Time with dad.

2009-02-28T14:46:00.000-08:00

My kids have got such a great dad!! They love to spend time with him, and he does what they want even if he doesn't want to, because he loves them. Like playing horsey. He doesn't enjoy it but he does it because the kids love it.

Doesn't he look thrilled about playing the horse.

The horse is dead!!! "J" always tells them he needs a kiss to get going again.
They all really like to wrestle and play steam roller. It's a wonder they don't get hurt more often.

"J" was teaching Bubba how to brush his teeth. I love this picture!!

Time to spit, or at least try too. Bubba hasn't quite mastered that yet.
Don't ask me what Bubba is doing in this photo. I have no idea, but I still think it's cute.

Fashion in our home.

2009-02-08T20:53:00.000-08:00

"Bubba" has been cracking me up lately. He is the funniest kid. I could watch him instead of TV any day. He likes to put things on his head and walk around. He doesn't care if he runs into stuff, he thinks it's fun. "Monkey" did the same thing at this age. What is up with my kids? Here are a few pictures of "Bubba's" headpieces.

Bubba is wearing his daddy's hat here, even though you can't see it very well.

"Bubba" dumped the clothes out of this little collapsible hamper and decided it was his new home.

As you can see, I had to put it on top of him while he was eating lunch just so that he wouldn't freak out.

I bought "Monkey" some princess boots for next year and he decided that they were his as well.

I had to add this one because it makes me laugh so much. "Monkey" tried so hard to take a pretty picture of herself. At least her nose is clean.