Better late than never!!!

It has been such a crazy week since we got home from Arizona. We came home Sat. night and by Sunday night Bill and I were both feeling yucky. By Monday I had the full blown flu, Tuesday, I couldnt even get up and by Wednesday, I started feeling better. Luckily, Bill felt better by Monday so he was able to take good care of me. Im now caught up on housework and laundry and its time for blogging!!!

We left on Saturday for Arizona-we had been counting down the seconds for this trip. We hadent been home since Feb. and it was long overdue. The week before we left, Lani and Noah both got strep and Caleb had a sinus infection. I was glad it happened before we left so we wouldnt get sick on our trip. When I took them to the doctor, I had Tyson tested too, just in case. His test came back negative. On our way down to AZ, his doctor called and said she had sent in his culture for more testing and it came back positive for strep-so she called in a prescription that we picked up on the way in. The day after we got there, lani started complaining that her throat hurt again-yikes. So, Lani and Tyson shared the medicine and both felt better after a day. My paretns were loving having us stay with them-as if the strep wasnt enough-after we ate dinner the night we got there, I gave Avery a bath. I forgot her diaper so I ran upstairs to get it and by the time I got back down, she had pooped on the carpet, steped in it and walk all over the air mattress sheets and carpet. When I put her down for bed, she was not having the port-a-crib, so she cried so hard she threw up everywhere. It was a GREAT start!!!
By Monday, we were feeling better and waiting for Stacy and her Family to arrive. We all stayed at my parents house-it was a crazy house-FUN-but crazy.
The first thing Noah did was build a sand castle and he was so proud that he wanted a picture for the blog-so here it is!!!



I also took care of buisness, first things first-we headed off to Neds crazy sub. It had been way too long. Yum is all I can say.
Monday night we had a family night and EVERYONE was there. It had been a long time since we we have been able to all be together. Jackie did a fabulous lesson about being grateful and it was a hit with the kids. She is so creative.


She also had a fabulous, sassy new hair cut!!!

We ended the night with a little Rock Band. Trent thinks he is a pro because he works at Fender Guitar and they play for hours like everyday. Im pretty sure he hates working there-its a tough life for Trent.

I even joined in the action. Not so good.

Lani and Noah took a turn too. Not so many kid friendly songs-when doen Rock Band for kids come out?? Notice Noah the big cheater-he had Bill pushing down the foot part. My parents made a mad dash for their room-I think it was a little too loud and not quite their taste in music.

On Tuesday night, we had a fun talent night with the Lomu Family. Mary and Selle had us over at their house for some mean BBQ. Of course I forgot my camera, so I have no pictures of the fun night, but we had smores around the fire pit, and a fun talent show by all the kids. Noah did some magic tricks, Lani baked some brownies-she is a pretty good little chef, Tyson and Caleb named all of the NFL football teams (Such a talent), Jake and Jonah did some karate, Claire sang a song, Drew did some sign language and then the kids danced the night away. It was such a fun night.

On Wednesday, I did a few more haircuts. Tyson decided he wanted one too-he wanted to be completely bald. We compromised with a mohawk.

He has that awesome cowlick on the crown of his head, but it still looked awesome and he thinks he is just the coolest!

Thanksgiving was so fun with all the family and food. We went to Bills family Thanksgiving first and then headed over to mine. I was stuffed. I even fit a nap in there somewhere. Later that night, I took Stacys family pictures. We should have done it earlier, but it was raining-so we did what we could and they turned out really cute.

When we were done, the kids decided to have a little chicken fight

Im not sure anyone won.

Coming home is the worst part. This drive was pure Hell. I think Avery cried most of the way, Noah and I both were super car sick and the kids were just cranky and ready to be done. I had never been so happy than when we pulled into the drive way. We fed the kids a delicious mac and cheese dinner, did some baths and went to bed. Heaven.

We had so much fun and loved seeing all our family. It always takes me a few days to get over leaving. Im not saying I hate Utah, but I really miss being home.

Tyson loves to dress up and he got Bills hunting clothes on so he could be a "camo fighter". Someone wants to be just like his dad!!

Noah got this great idea...

came downstairs and scared the crap out of Bill. It was pretty funny.

On Sunday, before I got sick, we got out the tree. Its so much fun to have so many helpers..especially this one!

And this one.

This is Averys favorite thing to do, everyday. My tree looks great!!!

Random Happenings

Just some random pics from our daily happenings.

Lani was chosen as student of the month. This is such a huge deal. They only have one in the whole school. They pick using some random factors. One of them was not being absent for the whole month. On the day she was picked-she was absent!!! Whoops
She got a free meal from Cafe Rio, a free meal from Mimi's cafe, free food from Del Taco, and a free day at a skate place here-oh and free Coldstone. She scored. We are so proud of her.

Little miss Monkey loves her baths and if anyone is in the bath and she's not, she will throw a major fit. Last night, Tyson and Caleb were taking a bath after haircuts and she decided she wanted in too. I told her no because she already had her jammies on. I guess she just decided to take matters into her own hands and she climbed in-or fell in-whatever. She didnt like it. (is it sad that I yet again let her cry while I took the picture-im so mean)



Tyson built this super cool tower to display all is beloved football helmets and he asked me to take a picture for the blog. Silly boy

Noah finished up his football season a couple weeks ago. They finally started playing good at the end of the season-so we have some high hopes for next season. It was so much fun to watch Noah play and learn this new sport. They really worked them hard-so hard that he lost his little tummy and got a cute little six pack and some buff arms. Lots and lots of running. He said he loved football he just didnt like the running. We cant wait for next year!!

Here are all the boys with their trophy blankets. Such a fun group of boys!!

TY-BO

I know that all parents think there kids are the funniest, but this guy has the FUNNIEST whit about him. I seriously could write a book with just the things he says. Today I had a real serious conversation with him and it went a little somthing like this:

Tyson came in the door and slammed it with a sigh. He kicked his shoes off and sat on the couch.

Me: Whats the matter, Ty

Tyson: When im at my friends house sometimes I just need a break

Me: Why, dont you have fun at Noahs house.

Tyson: Yes, I have so much fun

Me: Then why did you come home?

Tyson: Because he has so many cool toys that I want for christmas and its just too much.



We then had a little talk about being grateful for what we have and that there is always going to be some friend that has more than we do and yada yada yada. I wasnt very convincing with all my mom talk.

Tyson is a package of 1000 different emotions. He is so sensitive and caring. He has a very big guilty concience. He still feels bad for acting up over 2 months ago. He is very aware of what others think of him. He is so worried about his clothes to the point of obsession. Hes funny and sarcastic and he worships the ground his daddy walks on. He always says that he never wants to grow up but yet he wants to do everything adults do. I just wanted to write this down so I wouldnt forget how he was at this age. I just love this kid!

The first official snowfall and other things

I guess its official...Winter is here.

As in snow, ice, more snow, shoes (no more flip flops), jackets, gloves, boots, hats, mittens, cold, cold and more cold.

I miss Az!!!

We were a little caught off gaurd by this storm. We have had awesome weather this last month and we were not prepared for the snow. The weather man said we would get a couple inches. I had about 6 inches on my car in the morning. I had to break out the winter bins and get all the snow stuff out so the big kids could have boots for school and the little kids could go outside and play. Poor Lani, she grew a ton since last winter and her boots were way too small-she is now a womens size 6-she is 7. Noahs were ok but a little tight. I was happy to see that jackts still fit (except Lani) and most of the gloves and hats still fit. Snow pants are a different story. Caleb is the only one that is completly outfited(thank you hand me downs). Tysons were riding a little high, if you know what I mean, but he wanted to go outside so bad he was willing to suffer.

Since Avery was so little last year, I never really took her in the snow. She had the star suit when we went outside, but I never got her boots or anything like that. She wanted to go outside so bad, so I found some of Lani's old boots from Idaho (size 11), some gloves that were way too big, and Calebs old bibs from last winter and put them on her. She could barely walk because they were so big.

She loved it, she was having so much fun...

Until she fell and couldnt get up!

( Is it bad that I took a picture before I helped her?)

Its gonna be a long winter.

Some other things:

Avery has been sick with croup, the stomach flu and now a bad cough and cold. She has been so grumpy and clingy. The only thing I can bribe her with to give me a little break is Dora. She will sit on the couch with her blankie and sippie cup and not move until its over. Its gotta be Dora-nothing else will do!!

Tyson built this "crumb catcher" so that all the crumbs would go into it so he wouldnt have to wipe the table off anymore. He is pretty creative. Lazy, but creative.

The kids in our circle have named this hill "Mt. Fugi-wugi" and it is there new playing spot. It is across the street from out house, but just far enough away that they feel they are so far away from home. It makes them feel big!

They all went over there after it snowed and came home a muddy mess. I think MT. Fugi-Wugi is off limits until its ALL snow.

Lani lost another tooth. She was so excited because she was just playing with it and it came out. We have had some issues with Lani and trying to pull out loose teeth, so we were sooo happy this came out on its own. The tooth fairy even brought her $2!!

I have been trying for the last 30 minutes or so to download some pictures, but to no avail. I love when that happens!!! So instead of pictures(i will hopefully get it done tomorrow) you have to settle for my Jack Handy's (deep thoughts if no one caught that)

Im not quite sure what brought it on, maybe my many, many nights of no sleep due to too much in my head-nothing in particular-just too much. Maybe it was watching Noah make up these crazy stories on the computer-man that kid has an imagination. But whatever it was, I started remembering back in the day before marriage and kids and how much I LOVED to write. I had this massive folder full of poems and stories and I wrote in a journal everyday since I was in Junior High.(that stopped about 7 years ago) I just loved to write. Im not really sure when I stopped, but im pretty sure it was around the time I had kids and my brain became a jumbled mess. I have always had an overactive imagination and I could daydream all day(and night). My favorite thing to think about in bed is if I had tons and tons of money(or won the lottery) what I would do with it. I just have a lot of thoughts running through my head,just a bunch of randomness. I think I have figured out that I need to write. To write about nothing and everything. To write about my goals and what I want to accomplish in my life as a wife, mom and ME. Im sure im not the only one who has been thoughtful of what is most important in life these days. Its a scary time right now and unfortunately it just got worse. Im more focused on what I can do as a mom to make sure my kids are well armed. Ive been slowly, verly slowly getting my food storage put together. I dream about being a photographer. I am obsessed with taking pictures and capturing the moment. One of these days, when I have a second in time, im going to take classes and teach myself as much as I can. Thats my dream at the moment. I am nowhere near creative, anyone who knows me knows that, BUT... I sure am trying. I have always thought that my brain was so full already that it was impossible for me to learn anything. Maybe if I can push out all that useless US magazine and PEOPLE knowledge, then there just might be some room in there for some good stuff.

I think this is a good start.

(Disclaimer: I never said I was GOOD at writing, I just said I LIKED to write. Just so you know)

P.S. The other night when I went to check on the kids before I went to bed, Lani had fallen asleep with her radio on her bed, with Radio Disney blasting. I just had to smile-thats so much like me. I could only fall asleep with the radio on (it helped distract the crazy head)I love that she loves music!! Im going to read this in about 5 years and wish that she still liked the sweet music of HSM. Speaking of Lani, she is puking her guts out right now. I sent Bill upstairs because even the sight of throwup makes me gag. Poor thing. I better go comfort my girl.

Blah, blah, Change, blah, blah, Hope, blah, blah.

Pumpkin Patch and Halloween!!

This Halloween season was actually pretty lame. It seems that every year, the kids get dressed up at least 3 or 4 times. I always dread getting them ready over and over again and am usually burned out by the big day. But this year, they dressed up on Halloween and thats it. Our ward is new and the activitys comittee was not on the ball.

For family night we decided to go get a pumpkin. There is this adorable little pumpkin patch in front of this old mans house and the pumpkins are so cheap. The kids had a blast. I tried to get a family picture, but the kids were more interested in climbing all over the pumkins.

Tyson had fun climbing in his enormous tree

There was also this really old swingset that my kids would not get off of. I told them I was leaving and I got in the car and they still didnt come. Im starting to think my threats dont work anymore. Time to think of some new ones!!!

Noah and Lani got to wear their costumes to school for a Halloween parade.

Tyson is in afternoon preschool so he got to wear his the whole day.

I think Tyson was trying to imitate the Jack Sparrow drunken stance!!

These cute boys are just some of the 5000 boys his age in our neighborhood. They are at the bus stop waiting and sooooo excited for their school parade.

Halloween night:

Noah was G.I. Joe army guy

Lani was a dead bride

Tyson was the awesome Jack Sparrow. I told him Jack didnt wear and eye patch, but a pirate isnt a pirate without a patch.

He loved his beard and said he was going to grow one when he got bigger because he thought he looked sooo cool.

We really dont know what Caleb was. I guess a trooper of some sort. He just liked that it looked like he had big muscles.

Avery was the cutest of all little Ladybugs. Isnt this the sweetest costume!!!

I couldnt stop taking pictures of her because she looked so dang cute.

It was such a nice day and we couldnt believe that we were actually going to get a nice Halloween night. Last year, it was like 30 degrees and windy and snowing. This year it was supposed to be 70. All the weather men need to be fired because they said that rain was coming on Sunday and what do you know, the second we walk out the door it starts raining. And... the second we all came inside it stopped. At least it was warm.

Avery was so excited to dress up and do what the older kids were doing even though she had no idea what she was really doing. She was all geared up and ready to go...

And then she realized that she had to go up to strangers doors and she was NOT having it.

(if you look closely at her face you can see her panic)

So I ended up just carrying her from door to door.

(excuse my 50 year old face in this picture)

After going for a while, we realized that there were too many empty houses and it was too hard to tell if they were occupied or not, so we decided to head over to Scott and Andreas neighborhood.

The kids had better luck and I got to see this cute little Lia.

Isnt she the cutest thing!!!

Avery decided she was done so we stayed with Andrea and played with tractors in the rain.

I think they did pretty good this year.

Im already so sick of candy.

When they came in, they all dumped out their buckets in piles and starting chowing down.

It was so cute, after we made them put the candy away, they went and sat on the front step so they could pass out the candy. Tyson and Caleb were yelling "candy over here-free candy"

Claire was the cutest dragon, but she wouldnt let me take a picture of her. I think she decided that since her face was painted so cute, she needed her nails to look cute too, so she broke out the polish, sat on the front porch and painted them. She is almost 5 and can paint better than me.

Fun night and too much candy...cant wait till next year!!!