johns-junk

EAGLE PROJECT-CHECK

2012-01-08T21:09:00.000-08:00

When we starting talking about what Colton could do for his eagle project last year, all he ever said was that he wanted to do something for animals. Landon and I both agreed that he had to do something HE was interested in or it would become our project. So he called a few places to see if they needed any service, and the AZ Humane Society was grateful for the help. They needed cat/dog beds and showed us the kind that they like to use. So we went to work figuring out how to make they durable beds. After several failed attempts, Landon and Colton finally got something figured out that worked!

Yesterday we finally delivered 18 animals beds to the shelter. They were so excited and happy to get them. We are so excited and happy that it's over!!

Delivering Beds!

We are so proud of Colton for accomplishing this goal. He is super busy with school and sports and friends and young mens (he's the Teachers Quorum President) so I know putting in 140 + hours on this project wasn't easy. Now if we can just get through all the paperwork to appy for his eagle scout award, life will be good. May I never hear the word SCOUT again!!

Trying Something New

2012-01-07T16:52:00.000-08:00

So everyone that knows us, knows that my girls love soccer. I mean L-O-V-E soccer. I always suggest that they try another sport to see if they might like it with no success. Until now! I finally talked Kennedy into playing basketball. At first she didn't want to, but once I explained that it wouldn't interfere with spring soccer and added that her good friend from her old school Sydney would be on her team, she was in!

They only had time for 1 practice before their first game today, so I wasn't expecting too much. I figured we were in for a long hour since before the game I was showing Kennedy how to "box out" and she was confused about who was shooting at what hoop. I realized then, that she had no idea how to play basketball. OH BOY!

Kennedy (sitting next to Sydney) taking a break.

She was a little timid at first, but as the game went on she got better and better. She finally made a shot in the 4th quarter, and was much more aggressive going after the rebounds. Hopefully with a little more practice she can actually get into the swing of things. Right now she's pretty much more interested in the fact that her shoes are "AWESOME" than the game.

Bella

2012-01-05T18:58:00.000-08:00

This is Bella. Isn't she the cutest thing EVER! We have been talking about getting another puppy forever. I was the reason we hadn't done it. I just wasn't sure I was ready for another dog. The kids asked me all the time when we could get a new puppy. So I started doing some research.
There were certain things I knew I wanted in a dog, and I found a breeder who had 2 puppies that I knew I could do. So we went to take a look. We bought and paid for Bella before we left that day. We left her there and they were going to deliver her on Christmas morning. So fun!! We went back later that night to get her. Landon and I couldn't leave here there. When we got her she weighed 2 1/2 lbs. Today she weighs 4 1/2 lbs. She will probably only weigh 5-6 lbs when she's full grown! My kids are in heaven! She's a good dog, as far as dogs go. We love her!

A Rough Couple of Weeks

2012-01-02T11:00:00.000-08:00

Even though I decided to start fresh on my blog this year, there are a couple of things that need to be documented in order for other things to make sense. Plus, there are just some things that happened that are worth remembering. A week before Christmas, I had just finished wrapping some presents and was putting everything away when my phone rang. I saw that it was the Jr. High and wondered what Whitley needed. It wasn't Whitley. It was the school nurse telling me that Whitley had hurt her wrist in PE. I could tell she was trying not to alarm me, but suggested that I come and get her and maybe get some xrays. I knew it was bad. Whitley is tough as nails and I knew she'd never be in the nurse's office, in the middle of PE, unless she was really hurt. So I jumped in my car and went to get her. I could tell instantly her wrist was broken! So we headed to an urgent care for xrays where they confirmed that yes, it was broken. They informed us that we needed to go see an orthopedic surgeon to have them put a cast on it. They asked if I needed a referral to an ortho. Well it just so happens that I have spent some time with an ortho in the last month with Colton who's knee was swollen and they thought he'd torn his miniscus. But that's another story! I called and made an appt. with my ortho for Thursday morning to get her a cast. That would be 3 days before Christmas! Thursday morning Whit and I head for the ortho. I had several other things to get done that day, and then we had tickets to the Nutcracker that night. When we get there, they take more xrays of her wrist, and then the Dr. comes in to see us.

He shows me the xrays, and then points to this one and tells me that her bones are not lining up (see the arrow above) He would like to do a cat scan so he can see it better, but that she might need to have pins put in to get it lined up. Otherwise she could lose some of the mobility in her wrist! Being the good mother that I am, I am cracking up while he's telling me this. Seriously?? We just had to have several xrays and an MRI on Colton's knee like 2 weeks before this. (miniscus not torn FYI-no known reason for the swelling in his knee) I think maybe he thought I was losin' it because he said that he could try numbing it with a couple shots, and then moving it by hand. So I figured what the heck! If it saves me a cat scan and surger let's go for it. Whit wasn't as convinced. We tried. It was UGLY (I'll save you the details). We failed. We went for a cat scan, and were scheduled for surgery for the next day. Friday, 7am. She did beautifully! She had very little pain. After a week in a half cast, she got a cast that goes up past her elbow. Pins still in!! She'll get that one removed in a few days and then go to a cast that hits the middle of her forarm. Good times. Oh and did I mention that she got braces this morning? Well she did. Poor Whit. Life is a little rough right now!

Drumroll Please.....

2012-01-01T20:38:00.000-08:00

I'm BAAACK! Ok, it's really not that exciting except maybe to me. Last year was crazy, not that every year isn't, but I just got behind. Once you're behind, getting caught up is overwhelming. So I just blew it off. But I'm ready to go again. So I'm starting with New Year's. We had a pretty low key night. Heidi's family came over and we ate and played games. Then around 11pm we went out to light our fireworks. We tried to hold the kids off until midnight, but they weren't havin' it. Turns out, that was ok. We had more fireworks than I thought. It took us almost an hour and a half to light them all off! Every picture of Jimmy is like this. PUNK! Keep your eyes open.

I've decided that I'm going to put more pics of myself on here too. As I have looked back, there aren't a lot of pics of me on here. I'm always worried that I look fat, or ugly or whatever. I just decided that who cares! Maybe I am fat and ugly, but my family won't even remember what I looked like it I don't put a few pics of me on here. So enjoy!

Giveaway Tip

2011-03-23T20:44:00.000-07:00

My cousin Brooke is having a giveaway and I thought it was worth sharing.

http://iwannatalkaboutbrooke.blogspot.com/

She's giving away a swimsuit from this fabulous place.

http://www.hapari.com/

(Yes I'm still alive. Yes I'll return to blogging for real someday)

Back in the Saddle Again

2011-01-04T14:51:00.000-08:00

I have been working out/running fairly consistently since Colton was born. Now that I think about it, there really wasn't a time when I wasn't pretty active. I played basketball all through Jr. high and high school and did a little cheer leading as well. (don't laugh, we were a competitive team and it was a workout). I even took an aerobics class in college. Landon and I have always had a membership to a gym, and I'm too cheap to pay for it and not use it. Every once in a while I fall off the wagon for a few weeks, maybe even a month. But then that little something clicks in my head and I get right back in the saddle again. So yesterday, after spending the better part of December with a sugar cookie in my hand, I climbed back in the saddle and went for a run. Okay, a brisk walk. But you've got to start somewhere. Plus I knew that I would be playing basketball today and that if I was too sore I would be toast. (again, don't laugh. It sounds a little "dikey" but it's a great workout) So I guess I'm not calling it my New Years resolution. Just "back to normal".

Landon, not so much. He hasn't worked out consistently since high school??? He's dabbled in a little racquetball here and there. Which is a great workout, if it was consistent. But lets be honest. Why would he?? I try to tell him about keeping his heart healthy and whatnot. But the man can not workout, eat whatever he wants, and not gain any weight. Something not right about it. This year he started talking about really working out again. I was all for it. He told me that he thought if he worked out 5 days a week, and ate better he would be in "prime condition" when we went to the beach in July. He was drinking water and eating small meals all day yesterday. He's really into it. I hope for his health, he sticks with it. And I'm not going to complain if tightens and tones things up a bit. With his metabolism, it won't take much. I'll keep you updated at the progress around here.

**On a side note. While talking about goals with the kids, I had a momentary lapse in judgement and told them if we could read The Book of Mormon cover to cover by June, we'd get a dog! It sounds easy enough, but with our crazy schedules we thought we'd need that much time. Now I'm trying to decide if it's worth mine and my children's salvation to sabotage the whole thing. MAYBE???

New Years Eve

2011-01-01T23:46:00.000-08:00

For the first time ever fireworks were legal in Arizona on New Years Eve! So you know the whole neighborhood had a stock pile. We started firing them off sometime around 9 with our neighbors. We could hear people around the corner firing off as well. By midnight our entire neighborhood was covered in a thick layer of smoke. We had everything from sparklers to illegal, straight from Mexico, shoot up in the air like the professionals fireworks. The kids were out of their heads.

I grabbed the video camera and handed Lan my camera. This is what he got.
Yep, that's it. Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas

2010-12-25T14:03:00.000-08:00

We had a great Christmas this year, as usual. The kids always get to open 1 present on Christmas Eve. And it's ALWAYS Christmas pj's. They know this, and yet they're still super excited to open them. I think it's just the whole idea that they're that close to the "real deal"!

After they were changed into jammies, we finished up our advent calendar. Colton and Whitley are getting a little old for this, but Kennedy was way into it. They let her put up the Santa Claus. 5:30 AM Waiting in our bed while Landon "checks to see if Santa came", and turns on some lights and the camera.Opening up the flood gates. I so remember this feeling as a kids. The excitement. The anticipation. So fun.

I think Whitley has the best reactions to her presents. She so wanted this Kindle.I think my favorite gift we gave the kids this year were these awesome "Who is your hero?" posters. Colton favorite scripture story is Samuel the Lamanite.
After we had finished opening everything and the kids were checking out all their new stuff, Landon asked Colton to get something from the family room. Santa had brought the family one last present and we were helping him find it. He stood right next to it for several minutes, telling us he couldn't find whatever is was Landon had sent him in for. Finally Kennedy glanced his way and went nuts when she the the big present. How did he miss this thing? It was wrapped in shiny blue and silver paper!! It's an air hockey, ping pong combo table. We are going to put it in our loft for yet another space for the kids to hang out and have fun.

Later our parents and grandma great came over for more gifts and breakfast. I didn't snap 1 single picture! We tried something new this year with our gift giving, and it really simplified life. it really helped us focus on Christ and the first Christmas so many years ago. It is definitely something we will continue with. I'll have to explain in another post. This one is already to long.

Christmas Eve Cookies

2010-12-24T13:54:00.000-08:00

Christmas eve we made our cookies for Santa. We always do sugar cookies. MY FAVORITE!

This year I pretty much turned it over to the kids. There was flour and dough all over my kitchen, but they had a good time. I made Colton wear this apron. He was bitter! That's just the kind of mom I am.

For some reason when it's time to frost the cookies it's always a competition. Being the competitive person that I am, I always bring my A game. This is usually about the time Landon starts hanging around. His method seems to be something like this. Frost a cookie, eat a cookies, frost a cookie, eat a cookie.

Piano Recital

2010-12-18T22:36:00.000-08:00

Today was the kids Christmas recital. I know they look forward to this all season long!! Their recital is always at an assisted living center and the residents are invited to join us. I love that idea. There were several cute little tapping their fingers and singing along to the Christmas songs.

Afterwards Grandma Great took everyone out to eat at Claim Jumper to celebrate the recital being over. Landon and Kennedy ordered the "I Declare" for dessert. This thing was bigger than Lan's head. It's a big eclair with a ton of ice cream all around the base, covered in whip cream and chocolate sauce.

Yes, they ate the whole thing. Just the two of them.

Christmas with the Nutcracker

2010-12-17T22:41:00.000-08:00

The girls and I went to see the Nutcracker tonight. As you know, we do this every year, but this year was different. Two reasons. First every year Kennedy tries to ruin the night. Maybe not on purpose, but she does nonetheless. She's bored, or tired, or mad about having to wear a dress. This year she loved the ballet. She kept leaning over to me and saying "oh I love this one", or "I remember that one". She was actually enjoying the ballet!

Second, my sweet 90 year old grandma is in town for Christmas, so we took her with us to see the ballet. She loved it. She lives in a tiny town in Idaho, and doesn't go out much. She went on and on about what a fabulous night she was having. I'm so glad she was able to go.

Of course Grandma Ruth was there this year too. So fun to have 4 generations enjoying something together. I'm go grateful that my kids have had the opportunity to know my grandparents, their great-grandparents.

Of course the girls got their traditional nutcracker. They should have a pretty good collection by the time they're adults! Whitley got another snow globe for her collection, and Kennedy went for a shiny blue nutcracker.

I'm so grateful for this tradition that was started years ago by my other grandma in Salt Lake. It is something I look forward to every Christmas season, and it's been so fun to be able to pass this tradition on to my own girls.

Mesa Temple Lights

2010-12-13T22:55:00.000-08:00

Tonight we took the kids to the Mesa temple to see the lights. Going to the temple lights is as much a part of our Christmas celebration as brushing our teeth is part of getting ready for the day. It's just automatic. A no brainer. You get the idea. We went in to see Luke 2 first, and I found myself wishing it was longer. There is such a peace when you watch the humble circumstance in which the Saviour came into this world. My kids all commented on wanting it to be longer too. Then we wandered around the temple grounds. The weather was perfect! We barely needed a sweatshirt tonight. After seeing all the lights we needed to, we headed out for some dinner.

It's nice to take a day, or at least a couple hours and pause in all of the chaos of our lives and this time of year and reflect on what matters. Why we celebrate Christmas. His birth, His life, and His Atonement for us.

Athena - Goddess of War

2010-12-08T10:14:00.000-08:00

The 6th grade finally had their Greek God/Goddess wax museum this morning. Whitley was Athena, Goddess of War.

I found this sa-weet gold vest and white nightgown at the Goodwill and hacked them up to make this costume! I turned out good pretty good if I do say so myself!Tatum, Bailee, Whitley

We Start at 7AM

2010-12-06T07:48:00.000-08:00

All three of my kids take the piano. This is not optional in our house. Maybe it's because I grew up with the piano Nazi, and that's just what I know. But I do think it's good for them, and I am grateful that I know how to play the piano. (yes mom, you were right). So I want that for my kids too.

My mom is their piano teacher, and I hear her complain about her students not practicing. I'm sure it's frustrating. However, I am on the other end of that deal and know how crazy busy life is. So years ago, I figured out that if we were going to get all 3 kids their 30 minutes of practice time, it was going to have to be before school! Lo and behold, it's working.

Now, don't get me wrong. There are plenty of mornings that it just doesn't happen, or maybe it just kind of happens. And most mornings one, if not two of them is bitter about the whole thing and they practice the piano as ridiculously as they can. For instance Whitley this morning...
Throwing her head back, and playing as slowly as possible. What she doesn't understand is that I don't care! That only makes her practice time longer! Welcome. Welcome to 7:30am at my house! Please sit, stay a while. There will be another pouting, angry child practicing at 8:00am.

Christmas "Flute" Concert

2010-12-02T22:59:00.000-08:00

This is Whit's second year playing the flute. She likes it okay, but when I asked her the other day if she was going to keep playing in Jr. High she said "nope"! They had their Christmas concert tonight. Colton had a basketball game in Tempe, so Landon and I drew straws to see who went where. (I won't tell you who "won"). I will just say that the 5th grade band, then the 5th grade strings, then the 6th grade band, and then the 6th grade strings were all performing several songs each. And they really frown on you leaving in middle of the concert after your own kids has played. The basketball game was the beginning of a tournament, and Colton's first game! 'Nuff said.

I sent Lan with the camera and instructions to get some pics. He got just enough to document the fact that when Whit was 11 she played the flute. That'll do.

Haul Out the Holly

2010-11-28T20:45:00.000-08:00

After a long weekend of running around, and getting things done we FINALLY got our Christmas tree up tonight. Kennedy has been begging since Thanksgiving morning to get it out. We cranked up some Christmas tunes and the kids hung the ornaments.

I was busy decorating the rest of the house. I like to get it done this weekend so we can enjoy it the whole month of December. It's too much work for me to wait any longer. By New Years Eve I will be sick of it! Until then, we are loving it.
(Don't mind my vacuum)

I try to get a little something new each year to add to my collection of decor. Some years I just get a little something. This year I went for it. I have had my eye on this framed picture of Santa for years, but didn't want to spend the money at Christmas time for it. This year I threw caution to the wind and went for it. I got the presents and lighted garland for my banister. Man that stuff is pricey, but so worth it. I thought I was going to put my Christmas tree in this little corner. Then I stuck this picture on my easel just to keep it safe, and I loved it! I love the evenings when the garland on my banister and the presents and tree are all lit up. So cozy!

Thanksgiving 2010

2010-11-26T11:18:00.000-08:00

We had a nice, quiet Thanksgiving. Landon and Colton got up early to play in the annual Turkey Bowl. No one was seriously injured this year, so that was a bonus. Then Colton went with Grandpa Scott downtown to the car show. This is a tradition of theirs. They both love it, and no one else wants to go. While they were gone Grandma Ruth, the girls and I started fixing food. Landon's Dad came over for dinner, and we ate ourselves silly. Then it was time to get down to business. The Black Friday Ads. There weren't too many things we just had to have, but decided to go out anyway just for the fun of it. We actually did some online shopping early and scored some great deals. Now there's just no getting around it. Break out the Christmas decorations.

The End of Fall Soccer

2010-11-20T22:30:00.000-08:00

We finally wrapped up soccer season this weekend. HOORAY! We love soccer season, but by the end we are exhausted! 2 girls with 2 practices each and 2 games each weekend is plenty! Both girls had great seasons again, and truly love this sport. Truth be told, I think Kennedy is only in it for the trophy!

Whit rocked again this year against bigger older girls. Can't wait to see what she does with this big talent.

SVJH Basketball

2010-11-19T15:14:00.000-08:00

HE MADE IT!!

This Year

2010-11-15T10:58:00.000-08:00

Here we go again. Colton is trying out for the Jr. High basketball team. He tried out last year, and didn't make it. But last year was different. He didn't seem to want it. He didn't seem to care much. Like he was trying out because his friends were. And I'm sure it showed on the court. In fact he was so un into it, that when he came home Friday at the end of tryout week, I had to remind him to open his letter to see if he made it or not. Just didn't care. The Monday after tryouts, the coach pulled him aside and told him to work on a couple things over the next year and he'd make the team next year. He told him that they needed him. They needed his height. Needed him to be more aggressive.

This year is different. This year he cares. This year he's more mature. This year he wants it. This year he IS more aggressive. This year is for real. This year, is much more stressful for me. Keep your fingers crossed! We'll know if 5 days.

Threading = Pain

2010-11-12T11:40:00.000-08:00

5 years ago, days before my sister got married, I decided I needed a new haircut. I wasn't thrilled with "my girl" so my sister sent me to a girl she had just had do hers. She loved it! This girl was from India, and really did do a great job on my hair. However, she spent the whole haircut talking me into letting her thread my face.

I had seen threading on Oprah, and was somewhat interested in it. It wasn't very popular, like it is now. I knew my eyebrows needed waxing, so I told her she could do my eyebrows. For the wedding and all. Once she started, I knew I was in trouble. It hurt so bad. I had tears running down my face. She was working so fast, and I was in such a state of shock over the pain, that before I knew what what happening she was threading down my cheeks and along my jawline. You think the eyebrows hurt?? That was nothing compared to those tender areas on my cheeks.

At this point I can't stop her. I can't have one side of my face soft and smooth, and the other side looking like Sasquatch. So I just sucked it up and did my whole face. Not a single hair left when she was done.

Once I had recovered from it, I had to admit my face felt awesome. Smooth as a babies bottom! But I did make an oath, to myself, never to get threaded again. Fast forward 5 years. Now they have threading Kiosk's in the malls. I'm at the mall with Stacy and she casually says, lets get our eyebrows threaded. It hurts, but it's totally worth it. Well of course I launch in to my story and my oath, to which she is laughing hysterically. But my eyebrows really do need a wax job, and this time I won't let them do anything but that. I can handle that.

And I do. And it's not as bad as I remember, so I have her do my upper lip. That was my mistake. That's where the tears started to run down my face. That's where the horror of my first threading came rushing back to my mind. But again, I gotta tell you. Once you get over the shock and pain, man is your face smooth!

The verdict is still out, whether or not to try again. Maybe if I just stick to my eyebrows.

FHE by the Fire

2010-11-08T22:06:00.000-08:00

Tonight as part of our FHE, it was finally cool enough to light a fire in our fire pit! We roasted hot dogs and marshmallows a had our lesson by the campfire. There is something so peaceful about sitting around a fire. And even though the lesson wasn't anything heavy the spirit was very strong. Good memories!This is not the best picture obviously. It was taken at night, in the dark, with Landon's cell phone. At least I remembered to snap a shot!

You Gotta Love Walmart

2010-11-05T21:44:00.000-07:00

Anyone who has read my blog for any length of time, knows we spent about 6 months living in Moses Lake Washington. I made two really good friends there that kept me sane. One of them moved before we did, and the other one is still there. Poor Lisa. Anyway, Lisa's husband is the head honcho at the Walmart there and sees a lot of crazy things. And his friends and family send him pictures of crazy people they see at Walmart. She posted this picture today on her facebook page. I laughed until I cried! Thanks for sharing Lisa.This woman has no shirt on. Just tucked her boobies right into her pants! Must have been too hot for a shirt?? You gotta love Walmart.

She Loves Me She Loves Me NOT

2010-11-02T19:36:00.000-07:00

Kennedy has been home from school for the last couple of days sick. This morning after Colton and Whitley went to school we were sitting together eating breakfast. She started to tell me a "scary" story about snakes crawling up her legs. Being the good mom that I am, I jumped at her and gave a good scare. She didn't like it at all. Later I found this note. It reads... Dear Mom, I'm hiding from you. You scared me. I almost puked, and you interrupted me in the middle of the story That was very very mean of you to do that to your own daughter. I don't know if I can trust you anymore. Should I? Maybe but then again I may not trust you. It's a mystery to solve, for you to solve because I can't because I'm hiding form you. P.S. Don't look under the computer Maybe with love, from Kennedy

Then tonight, as part of her homework, she was suppose to write a short story using as many of her spelling words as she could. Here is what she wrote...

My mom and dad were being mean to me and I ran away to the city, then the country. I could hear my mom and dad yelling to me, but I didn't answer them. I went up to a high mountain that was very steep. I said to myself "I would rather be raised by bears than my mom and dad". I got very lonely so I went home and said hi to everybody . The end

SERIOUSLY??? You would think this poor child was abused with all this drama! I'm just glad I know her teacher really well, and that we can have a good laugh over this, instead of trying to explain myself! As for me scaring her this morning, get over it. What are you, new here?? It's how we roll!

Happy Halloween

2010-10-30T21:33:00.000-07:00

Halloween week has been insane! So much to do, so little time. This year my friend Stacy and I decided it would be funny if our kids were Smurfs! We figured the costumes seemed easy enough. White pants, blue shirt! Then a couple more kids from the neighborhood decided they were in. And then a couple more. And a couple more. Before we knew it, we had 20 Smurfs and Gargamel. That meant 20 matching blue shirts. 20 matching white pants. Shoe covers, blue face paint, and hats. Where do you find 20 electric blue shirts and white pants that fit kids from size 6 months to men's XL??? Well it wasn't easy, but end product was hilarious and totally worth the effort. Whitley chose Smurfette

Kennedy chose Sassette SmurfAnd Colton went for Papa Smurf

Here is the whole gang before heading out for our ward Trunk or Treat! They all had name tags to tell which Smurf they were.And of course what's Halloween without Landon and I making fools of ourselves!

Naked Chinese Man

2010-10-28T08:58:00.000-07:00

This is "Naked Chinese Man". Is that politically correct?? Probably not, but that's what we call him. This nasty man runs nearly naked every morning past the elementary school. There are hundreds of little kids walking to school that have the opportunity to check him out. Could that be any fouler?? Really buddy, can you not find any other street in the entire city to run on during that 8:30 half hour? And I'm not the only one who's noticed him. Everyone is starting to talk about this creepo.

Here he is waiting at the crosswalk yesterday with several kids. Isn't that nice. Don't you wish you could walk to school with a sweaty "Naked Chinese Man". The girls and I have been trying to get a picture of him forever, and haven't been able to get a good shot. He's noticed us a couple of times with our camera, or the phone, and gives us a weird look. We just hang right out he window and snap away. I figure if he's freaky enough to run nearly naked by the elementary school, we're gonna be freaky enough to hang out the window and take pictures!

Ridin' Along in my Automobile

2010-10-26T21:29:00.000-07:00

This is how Kennedy rides in our car. It doesn't matter if we're running to the store for 5 minutes, or we're driving to California for 6 hours. Either side of the car, she sits sideways and stairs out the window. I think she does some pretty deep thinking this way!!

Klondike Camporee

2010-10-23T18:36:00.000-07:00

This weekend the scouts finally went on another campout. They haven't been on a campout for several months and they were super excited. It was a district camporee and each troup built klondike sleds to race.

Mason broke his ankle the day before they left and was in a boot. He rode the sled and yelled "MUSH" while the other boys pushed/pulled him around. He thought it was hilarious.

They ended up taking second place out of 56 troops. Most of them slept under the stars to earn another patch. Landon went with them, and said it was freezing. He slept in his own tent. What more can I say...

Casey

2010-10-19T00:51:00.000-07:00

This is my cute little neighbor Casey. He is a crack up. The other day his mom borrowed some timfoil from me. She asked Casey to return it. When I wasn't home, this is where he left it! Too funny!

Fall Break

2010-10-16T22:46:00.000-07:00

Right after school on Friday we headed to Utah for fall break. We stayed at Matt's house for the first few days. This is all of the Warner cousins (minus Braydon, who wouldn't stay in the picture) together for the first time since Wyatt and Brady were born. That's too long!We did some shopping, eating, and lots and lots of playing together. I love my family and don't spend enough time with them. It's hard when you live in different states. Monday night we met Shane and Nicole (Landon's brother) and their kids at Thanksgiving point for family night. We had never been, so I was excited to check it all out. They really do it up right for the holidays. We went through the corn maze, shot paintball guns, raced tractors, climbed rock walls, and ate. The kids love hanging out with their cousins. I finally found time on a Utah trip to see my old BFF Liz. We haven't seen each other in 4 years. That's so long. I remember once watching an Oprah and she was reuniting BFF's from High School who hadn't seen each other for 10 years, and I remember thinking that would never happen to Liz and I. Crazy what 7 kids and 2 states will do to a friendship. We were literally inseparable in High School. We cheered together, slept at each other's houses too much, vacationed together, made up goofy names for each other and loved each other like sisters. I miss her! We only got 2 short hours together, but it was like we never missed a beat. Her 3 year old son Easton took this picture of us. Hence the squat. She took me on a tour of her new neighborhood, and look what we found! Is this place nuts. I loved it. Thanks for a great 2 hours Gene. Lets not wait 4 years to do it again. I got to see so much of my family. Aunts, cousins, cousins' kids, grandparents. I didn't get pictures of them all, but I loved getting see so much of my Utah family. Thanks to all of you who put your buys lives on hold for me. I saw my cousin Brooke for just a second, who just had a baby. (I stole this picture of him from her blog. Sorry Brooke. Hope you don't mind) They call him Buster. He is about the cutest, squishiest thing ever. My kids have been talking about him since we left her house. I wish she was closer so I could squish him more often.

BUSTER

Heidi, Mom, Grandma Anthony, Me (this is the morning we left to drive home, sans make-up) After a few days in Utah, it was off to Idaho to see my grandma. Heidi and her family went with us. My grandma is so itty bitty. She will be 90 next March, and is still going strong.

Grandma with Whitley, Rowdy, Brady, Colton and Kennedy

Grandma lives in a tiny little town called Ririe. It's just outside Idaho Falls. I think the population is like 500. So I figured what better time to introduce Colton to driving than in Ririe. He was stoked! He drove us to the Maverick gas station about a mile from Grandma's house. It was a little shaky, but not bad for his first trip. He offered to drive the rest of the trip. Isn't he so thoughtful! On the way home, we went over the Hoover Dam. This is the new bridge that is opening up, so that you will no longer have to go over the Dam. I think I'll be finding a new route to Utah!

These pictures just don't do it justice. It's ridiculous!

We had a great time in Utah and Idaho. It was nice to remember the Fall. Leaves changing, a cool breeze, sweatshirts. I miss the Fall, and I miss my family.

School Day

2010-10-08T12:40:00.000-07:00

Today we ALL went to school. It was "Take your Dad to School day" at the elementary, so Landon went with the girls. He spent time in both classes. The girls didn't want to have to share him, but life's not fair. The 6th graders were having their Greek Olympics so Landon got to watch. Looks like they had a good time. It was "Shadow a Student day" at the Jr. High, so I got to go to school with Colton for the day. This is a great way to get a small glimps into his days, and put a face to the name of his teachers. It's also always a huge eye opener about Jr. High. I'm go grateful for the friends Colton has. There really are some scary kids over there.

Fall in Arizona

2010-10-04T22:35:00.000-07:00

What do we do in the fall, when all the world is cold... we swim in our pool. Even though it's freezing, they did it. And loved it!

You gotta love the fall in Arizona!

Utah Fruit

2010-10-01T23:58:00.000-07:00

A friend of mine introduced me to the "fruit lady". Some woman in Mesa that is bringing in huge truckloads of fresh fruit from Utah. The fruit here in AZ, is not the best so I was excited to get some Utah peaches and raspberries.My friend Stacy and I decided to split a box, and make us some freezer jam. We were in over our heads when we realized how much freakin' fruit we had. But we kept at it. We made raspberry, peach, and our own special blend peach/raspberry jam. DELISH. I now have a freezer (okay a couple of freezers) full of jam.

Just Dance

2010-09-29T20:27:00.000-07:00

Today was a half day at school. That means that by 12:30pm I have several boys in my kitchen eating me out of house and home. Today I had just finished making some jam (YUM) when they came in. They loved it. And then, as these boys usually do, they ended up in our theater room playing video games. Only today was no ordinary video game. Today it was JUST DANCE!! That's right. All these deacons at my house were gettin' their grove on. It was the funniest thing I have ever seen. First off, these boys can't dance. In the beginning a couple of them were a little shy or embarrassed about getting up and taking a turn. Slowly but surly they tried it, and before I knew it they were hooked. Some of them were dancing without even having a controller. They were just so into that they were dancing along with the ones that were actually playing. They were sweating and laughing for hours!

There were tons of little kids trying to get in on the action, but these boys were having so much they didn't want to share much. I am kicking myself for not getting video to have for blackmail purposes later. But they'll be back, and I'll be ready!

Let the Games Begin

2010-09-25T22:20:00.000-07:00

Fall at our house means girls soccer. It means new cleats, new jerseys, and hot, sweaty Saturdays. I don't know how they play when it's 106 degrees! The girls season officially started today. Kennedy's game was at 8:30, so it wasn't too hot. She played awesome and scored 4 goals. That's her record.

This is a shot of one of her goals.

And then there's Whit. Her team moved up a division this year so they could have a little more competition. That means they were playing against 13 - 14 year olds. Our girls were very nervous. The other team was obviously older. Much taller and very intimidating.

However, once Whitley had scored twice within the first five minutes, they all settled in and realized they could beat these guys. And beat them they did. It ended up 4 - 1. Should be a fun season. A hot season, but a fun season.

Global Warming

2010-09-25T09:07:00.000-07:00

Kennedy: Mom I really want my own pet. All my friends have their own pets. I want one of those HUGE mice/rat things.

Me: Do you mean a Ginnie pig?

Kennedy: Yeah yeah, that's what I want. And I'll keep it in my room. I'll be really responsible.

Me: No

Kennedy: Come on mom. If I don't take good care of it you can take it back to the pet store.

Me: You can't just return a pet to the pet store like it's a shirt that didn't fit right.

Kennedy: Ah, yeah you can. It's called global warming mom, DUH!

Me: What??

Kennedy: Yeah, when you just return something that isn't working for you, like your pet, it's global warming.

Me: You're wrong, and I'm done!

Ear Infection

2010-09-24T21:15:00.000-07:00

Two weeks ago I woke up in the middle of the night with intense pain in my right ear. Aching really. My teeth hurt. I couldn't lay on the right side of my head. I put some drops in my ear on Saturday trying to fix the problem, and by noon was completely deaf in that ear. It felt like I had water in my ear that I couldn't shake out. AHHHHH.
Finally Sunday morning I gave in and went to urgent care. The doctor said I had a massive ear infection, put me on some antibiotics and medicated ear drops and sent me on my way. After three days of being deaf in that ear, the swelling finally went down and the pain went away. I took the 10 days worth of antibiotics and figured I was done. Fast forward to last night. I went and played volleyball with our ward, and felt fine. When I was getting ready for bed my ear started to feel sore. I put some medicated drops in hoping to clear up any infection that might be lingering. NOT. More drops in this morning, and by 3pm on this afternoon I knew I had to head back to urgent care. They flushed my ear, which is a special treat if you've never had that done, and then looked in and said everything looked fine. I wasn't going for that since my ear was throbbing. The doctor gave me another round of super strong antibiotics and sent me on my way. Meanwhile, Landon is suppose to be taking Colton to do baptisms for the dead with his friend, and both my girls had soccer practice. I am sitting there with my ear dripping, giving Landon instructions on who to call for rides, and how to get Colton where he needs to be. Thank goodness our friends just waited for Lan and he was able to go with Colton after all. The girls made it to practice and I got don in time to pick everyone up.

I'm crossing my fingers this round of antibiotics works. This whole ear infection business is nasty. I feel so bad for babies!

Crazy Days

2010-09-22T14:15:00.000-07:00

Landon is out of town for work. You think I would be use to this whole single mother thing since he lived in a different state for nealy a year. But he's been home now for a couple months, and I've gotten use to the help. This has been a crazy week as usual, and tonight is not going to be any different Here's the schedule between now and bedtime.

3pm- Coton has football practice
3:40 - Pick up girls from school. Feed them, have them change into soccer clothes, and do homework.
4:45pm - Take Whitley, Kennedy and neighbor girls (my turn for carpool) to activity days at 2 different places
5pm- Pick up Colton from football and get him fed
5:30- Pick up Whit's friend for soccer practice (my turn for carpool)
5:40- Pick up Kennedy and Whit from acitivity days (early) and head for soccer
6pm- Both girls have soccer practice (luckily at the same place)
7pm- Kennedy done with soccer
7:30- Whit done with soccer
7:45- Home for showers! Finish any unfinished homework.
8pm- Bedtime for Kenendy
8:30- Bedtime for Whit
9pm- Bedtime for Colton

Now that I type it all out it seems doable. I guess it's all the driving in between that adds up. Why is it that everything always seems to be on the same day. That is until you get to the next day. Then everything is on that day! I wouldn't trade a minute of it, just wish my help was here!

Air Soft War

2010-09-21T18:10:00.000-07:00

As the weather gets nicer and nicer the kids are starting to come out of their houses like rats! This was the scene on my front lawn right around dinner time tonight. 3 of the boys had already gone home for dinner. They were planning a huge air soft war. Whit was knee deep in the war, but Kennedy and her friend Lauren were using moving boxes to protect themselves!

I can't say enough how much I love this neighborhood. Too bad these kids all play football, soccer, have piano, scouts, activity days, oh and homework to get in the way of all their fun!

More Bread

2010-09-18T22:04:00.000-07:00

For dinner tonight we had meatballs subs. They are my kids' favorite! I decided, since I'm slightly obsessed with bread making, that I'd make the rolls for them. They were awesome. However, they were huge. They got away from me a little bit.

This picture doesn't do them justice. Colton's bun was huge! Big enough to hold like 12 meatballs. Big shocker, he ate the whole thing.

NEON Love

2010-09-15T21:01:00.000-07:00

Seems like when my kids turn 11 their taste in shoes turn NEON! These are Whit's new soccer cleats this year. YOWZA! She LOVES them. I guess they'll see her coming.

Books Books and More Books

2010-09-12T14:28:00.000-07:00

I have been reading like crazy lately. My mom started bringing me books that she had read, and before I knew it I had a pile waiting for me. I love that. I love a good book, and I love a good series even better. I think I'm about the last person on earth to read some of these, but here are a few of my favorites as of late. In no particular order...

This was a great series. I love books from the late 1800's early 1900's. Life was hard, yet simple.

I think I was halfway through this one before I realized it was a true story. AMAZING. Makes me want to do more, do better.I am finally starting Mockingjay. My friend Stacy brought it to me a couple weeks ago to read, and I have so many others waiting to go back to the library I haven't been able to get to it. I can't wait! I hope it's as good as the first two.

Grandparents Day

2010-09-10T13:53:00.000-07:00

My mom was the only Grandparent that was able to make it to Grandparent's Day this year. She took the girls and had breakfast at the school. How lucky my kids are to have their Grandparents live so close and able to be so involved in their lives! Something I took for granted as a kid.

What a Great Life

2010-09-08T17:24:00.000-07:00

When I picked up the girls from school today we went straight to the store for some soda. Buy 2 12 packs, get 3 free. How can you pass that up? My girls were starving, since they hadn't eaten in like 3 hours, so taking them to the grocery store was not by best move. Kennedy spotted some snowballs and went CRAZY! She kept calling them fat cakes. When I tried to tell her they were snowballs, she said that iCarly called them fat cakes, so that's what she was calling them. These are things I don't have the energy to argue anymore. I let her have the fat cakes!

I made her share one with Whitley, and said they could eat them in the car. Better known as a trash can on wheels (sorry Landon). On the way home she is scarfing this thing down. She said to me "mom the only thing that could make this better is if there was cream in the middle". And then not 2 seconds later she screams "there is cream in the middle. My life just keeps on getting better!" You don't really know how great your life is as a kid until you're not one anymore, do you? Enjoy Kennedy!

It's All About Colton Today

2010-09-07T23:12:00.000-07:00

Colton is playing flag football at the Jr. High again this year. He loves it. They divide the kids into 4 teams, with 4 different coaches. He got the coach he really wanted, so that is even sweeter. They played their first scrimmage game today, and he did awesome. He play tight end, and is so much bigger than the other boys that he just pushes people out of the way. He ran down the middle for one play, and caught the ball. He then proceeded to drag 3 boys with him as they tried to get him down. Too funny. (number 92) I need to get some better shots of him. I forget what I'm doing at these games.

Later on was his Court of Honor. He worked really hard this summer, and is still playing catch up. He earned his Life Scout awards and 9 more merit badges. He is now finally working on his Eagle. Hallelujah! There's a light at the end of this tunnel.

Colton getting his awards with scoutmaster Dave. I love it when he gets to pin the mothers pin on me for all my efforts. Tonight he chose to pin it on my sleeve. He said he didn't want to hurt me. Really? Have I taught this child nothing??

Labor Day

2010-09-06T21:56:00.000-07:00

Lately I have been into yeast. I know that sounds so random, but it's true. I really want to not be so afraid of it. I want to have the smell of freshly baked bread wafting through my house. I decided to start off easy, and not jump right into trying to bake 8 loaves of bread every Monday to have for the week. Maybe someday I'll be that mom, but I doubt it. So I've been practicing. I've tried a couple different dinner rolls, cinnamon rolls, these swedish roll things (which is so far our favorite) and a cinnamon swirl bread (that one sounds better than it was. Needs some tweaking). Anyway today being Labor Day and all, we are having our families over for a BBQ. I decided to make some rolls. I got out my Lion House Recipe book, and found their rolls. My problem with dinner rolls has been the shape. Plain old boring round rolls is just not cutting it. I want to be a bread maker, not just some round roll boring maker. I told you, I'm in to it! So I got online, and found a clip of the Lion House baker and how she shapes her rolls. Now I'm in business.
See how they're all rolled up like that. Almost croisant like, and yet NOT! I'm giddy. I didn't get a shot of them once they were all puffed back up, or baked. Trust me, once they come out of the oven they don't stick around too long.

Whitley my trustee helper brushing these little beauties with butter. Everything's better with butter.

After the rolls were finished, we spend some time relaxing in the pool. These three goons crack me up! We had a great dinner with our families, ate too much, and watched a football game. I'd say we had a pretty great weekend.

PS. Happy Birthday to my little brother Matt. Love you

16 Years!

2010-09-05T12:51:00.000-07:00

Landon and I left first thing Saturday morning for our weekend anniversary getaway. Usually I am in on the planning of these little getaways in some way or another. This time, Landon did it all. He picked the hotel, arranged for a babysitter, and even got a sub for our primary class. It took 16 years, but I finally have him trained! We ended up at the Desert Ridge Marriott. This place was gorgeous. We ate, swam, slept, ate some more, floated in the lazy river, ate some more, and just relaxed. It was the perfect way to celebrate 16 years together.

It's funny thing being a parent. You want to get away without your kids and just relax. But we spent the whole time saying "the kids would love this, or they would have a blast doing that". I guess there really is no "getting away". Thanks Lan for another great getaway.

LImbo Lower Now

2010-09-03T20:34:00.000-07:00

It's still so hot here, that even though the kids are in school, they still want to play like it's summertime. One of the reasons we chose this neighborhood to live in, is that my kids have tons of friends that live here. Kennedy's friend Anna lives a couple houses down, and they have had a great time playing together all summer long. Anna and Kennedy are polar opposites, but they get along great. They were outside at the park after school today, and one of the neighbors had water in his gutter. Well, who can resist water in a gutter?? They started off just splashing in the puddle, fully dressed. Then they decided to change in to their swim suits. That's about the time Whitley joined in. Then the puddle wasn't big enough, so they brought out the big guns. The hose!Landon had bought me some glass canisters, and they were all wrapped up in bubble wrap, which spurred on this fashion show!

The girls capped of the evening by having a late night and watching Camp Rock 2.

Bundt Heaven

2010-09-02T09:44:00.000-07:00

About a week ago I was heading home from the grocery store. I was stopped at a light, and out of the corner of my eye I notice the lady next to me waving and rolling down her window. I realize it's friend of mine, so I roll down my window. I ask her what she's doing, and she holds up this little white box. She is grinning like a school girl! Now I'm curious. She tells me she just made a sweet run, and then the light changes. I didn't have time to ask her where she went or what was in the box!
I wondered about that box the rest of the day. I called her the next day to get to the bottom of it. She says she went to a little place clear over in Tempe, and that the treats were delish. However, she thinks a little place in Ahwatukee is better. I had no idea where this little cake place was, so we make a plan to have lunch and head out there.

This little place it to die for! Now, I love cake. But this cake is crazy good. The best part is, they're a franchise so they're all over. You can get a whole big bundt cake, or just little individual bundt cakes in tons of different flavors. I am in bundt cake heaven.

Thanks goodness this place is 20 minutes from my house, or I'd be stopping in regular!

16 Years and Counting

2010-09-01T22:41:00.000-07:00

Today is our 16th wedding anniversary. That sounds like such a long time, and it is. But man has it gone fast.

We left the kids home doing homework, and such out for a quick bite to eat at Oregano's. We hardly ever eat there because it's always so crowded. We figured on a Wednesday night we would be safe. We still had to wait for almost 30 minutes! Anyway, as we were talking we started to try to remember what we had done to celebrate all of our other anniversaries. The first couple were easy. Then of course the big ones 5, 10 and 15. But a lot of those others I just don't have any idea. 8, 11, 14?? I'm sure we had dinner, and cards and gifts were exchanged. I realized that this blog gives me the perfect outlet to record what we did. So that's it. We went to dinner, exchanged gifts and cards, helped with homework and showers, and went to bed. Kind of pathetic! Luckily Landon has booked us a weekend stay in Scottsdale to really celebrate.

Mystery Rolls

2010-08-31T07:56:00.000-07:00

Last night I was sitting in the kitchen helping Kennedy finish up some homework. Landon had run an errand, and Colton and Whitley were milling around doing whatever it is they do! I hear a knock at the door, and figure one of them will get it. Colton does. I hear no talking and then I hear him kind of yell out "thanks". He shuts the door and brings into the kitchen these yummy rolls and homemade jam. And this is the conversation that follows...

Me - Who brought these?

Colton - I don't know

Me - Didn't you answer the door?

Colton - Yep

Me - Well who was it?

Colton - I don't know his name.

Me (getting irritated) - So it was a man?

Colton - No, some kid

Me - Have you ever seen this kid before?

Colton - Yeah, he's in our ward I think

Me - How old was he

Colton - Maybe 6

Me - Well who is it. I need to be able to at least thank his mom for these.

Colton - I don't know

Me - Did you see the parent?

Colton - Nope. The kid just handed them to me, and ran off. So I stuck my head out the door and yelled thanks.

Me - How could you not know who it is. You don' just take something and not at least know where it came from

Colton (getting more and more defensive) - Maybe it's that Farnsworth kid (our neighbor)

Me - Well you've seen those kids. Was is one of the Farnworth boys?

Colton - I don't know!

Me- What did the car look like?

Colton - Kind of like the Hixons car (a gray excursion)

Me - Was it gray like that?

Colton - I think so

Me - Was it big like the Hixons car, or smaller?

Colton - I think it was big. I wasn't really looking

Me- Could you maybe point this kid out at church for me?

Colton - yea, probably

Heaven help me. This kid is a tard! How do you take something from someone, and not at least have the brain to figure out who it is. ( I love you Colton, but really?? ) I don't have a clue who my visiting teachers are, and I have tons of neighbors who are so freakin' nice that it could be any of them! I can't think of anyone else in my ward with a car like the Hixons. I could've just beat him! I hate stuff like that, and he couldn't figure out why I was so bugged!

So, if you brought me rolls and jam last night. THANK YOU. They are yummy. And could you please tell me who you are so I can thank you in person!

Kennedy VS. Her Vitamins

2010-08-30T08:18:00.000-07:00

Every morning it's the same battle. Kennedy vs. her vitamins. She hates them. I make her take them anyways! She is by far my worst eater, so I figure of all my kids she needs them the most. She is ridiculous about them. She hides them behind her drink.She won't touch them so she uses her cup to move them. She will only eat yellow calcium chews, and only red multi vitamins. This is the attitude I get each and every day when I put these on the counter for her! When will she learn? She is so not winning this battle!

A Happy Day

2010-08-28T23:33:00.000-07:00

Colton got a cell phone for his 11th birthday. BIG MISTAKE!! We had just moved to Washington, and we thought it would be a great way for him to stay connected to his best friend back home. Well, they seldom called each other and after 2 months he had lost it. He was clearly not old enough, or responsible enough for a phone. Landon vowed that he would never buy him another cell phone again! I new that would never stick.
Fast forward a couple years. Colton is coming up on 14 and much more responsible. Not to mention starting to go hang out with his buddies a lot more. There have been several times in the last year or so that I have so wished he had a phone. It was time. Now I just had to convince Landon!
As luck would have it, Landon was in need of a cell phone of his own! He has had a company issued phone for as long as I can remember. His new company doesn't do that. He doesn't travel, and he just doesn't need one for work. So we finally broke down and got new phones. Colton is thrilled! He spent most of the day messing with his phone, and texting me. He has been threatened with his life if he loses this thing.

Kennedy snapped up Landon's old phone, which is really a little piece of crap that we've had since Moses Lake that he got to replace Colton's lost phone. He wanted to keep that line for personal use, but didn't really need it. (Don't ask. These are the things I just ignore). So he got this little crapper to have, and it has been his phone for the last couple weeks. Kennedy has had it on her person solid since we got home from AT & T.

And Landon. Bless his heart. Got himself the new iPhone 4. He is in heaven. I don't know who is more excited about their phone. This thing is pretty sweet though. It makes my old 3G iPhone look like a dinosaur. This is Landon tonight in bed. It's 11pm, and he won't turn it off!

Just Hangin' Out

2010-08-24T15:53:00.000-07:00

Noah, Colton, Dayton

This is becoming a regular scene at my house, and I love it. We're missing Chip today, I think he had homework. Not that these three don't, they're just not doing it... yet. They all ride the bus home together, and jump my back fence. They come through my back door, get a snack and drink, and then just hang. Sometimes they play XBOX, and sometimes they just hang around and harass each other. It can be any combination of boys, but there's always somebody here.

Oh Yeah!

2010-08-22T19:48:00.000-07:00

This is the kind of thing that Landon brings home from work on occasion. We've had this forever and I've never tried to do it. That golf ball has been off it's tee for years. Many a people have given it a go, with no success. Until tonight. I casually picked it up, and started messing with it. Landon was explaining to me how impossible it was to get it on there when I landed it on the tee with ease. Then I freaked out. Colton was screaming, and trying to get it from me. I slowly got off the couch, and placed it on the book shelf for all to admire! About an hour later Whitley came walking by. She forgot that I had gotten on there, and mindlessly grabbed it and started to shake it around. Just playing with it. Then in a complete panic, remembered what I had done! Bless her heart. She went to pieces. I assured her it was just fine, and that it was easy for me to get it back on there. I then spent the next hour trying to recreate the magic. It's still not on there!

Giddy Up

2010-08-21T20:41:00.000-07:00

Tonight was the girls activity day daddy daughter date. Wow say that 5 times fast! It was a cowboy/cowgirl themed night. This is the best we could come up withThey took Landon's truck of course!

I told the girls to share their dad nicely, and he says they did. Lucky girls.

They had some pie, played some games and had a little lesson. They all had a good time, and I know the girls were so happy to have their dad there with them.

Whit's Real Party

2010-08-20T22:29:00.000-07:00

Whitley and 13 of her closest friends celebrated her birthday at the Freestone Rec Center tonight. They rock climbed, played wally ball, ping pong, pool, foosball, and basketball. Mostly they climbed!

Then we headed in for cake and ice cream, and of course presents.

The only thing she really wanted this year, besides gift cards, was an ASU soccer jersey. Unfortunately they don't sell the ASU soccer jersey, so we settled for a women's football jersey. She loves it!
Colton and Mason spent most of their time getting schooled by a couple of random strangers in basketball. At least they had fun.

Whitley turns 11

2010-08-15T21:23:00.000-07:00

We celebrated Whit's 11 birthday today. It was nice to have more family around. Whitley wanted Korean Beef and Potstickers for dinner. And she requested a Texas sheet cake for dessert!

After dinner we were getting ready to open presents, and Bumpa taught Whitley how to whistle with her hands. She spent the rest of the night showing off her new talent!

She is at the age where all she wants is gift cards. She wants to shop for her own presents. That makes life easy for me! Plus I get to be in on the shopping trip.

Happy Birthday Whit. We sure love ya!

Heidi and Jimmy

2010-08-14T18:15:00.000-07:00

Heidi, Jimmy and their boys are here visiting this week. My kids are having a blast with their cousins. They have been over swimming a couple times, we've been out to dinner, and have played games late after the kids went to bed. Rowdy
Whiterbug

Jimmy and Brady

Landon chucking Rowdy in the pool. I don't think he's too happy about it

We've had so much fun spending time with my sister and her family. We love you guys and can't wait to see you all again.

1st Day of School

2010-08-11T08:39:00.000-07:00

The first day of school is always exciting. By the end of the summer, I am ready for them to go back. But then a couple days before school starts, I get sad because the easy summer livin' is over. Back to life. Back to a schedule, and homework, and practice, and rushing around! It's exhausting. Plus, that's less time to hang with my kids. And they're old enough now that when they're not fighting, they pretty awesome. We've spent the last several days getting last minute shoes, clothes and supplies. We're ready to roll! Kennedy - 3rd Grade - Mrs. Melki
Whitley - 6th Grade - Mrs. Williams
Colton - 8th Grade - 1 year away from High School

He's Comin' Home

2010-08-01T15:45:00.000-07:00

Landon has been interviewing with a company for several months now. We were suppose to hear whether or not he got the job on Friday before we went to California. Friday came and went, and still no answer. So we left for vacation with a bit of a knot in our stomachs. Tuesday, July 20th, we finally got the call we've been waiting for for a year. Landon got a job. And not just any job, but a great job. He gives his 2 weeks notice tomorrow, and then starts on August 16th.

We have lived in different states for 1 year now. 1 year! That's a long time. It's been a long road. But through it all we have seen the hand of the Lord in our lives. And we knew all along, and continued to have confirmed to us along the way, that we were doing the right thing. Even though it didn't always feel that way, it was. We both knew that this is where we want to finish raising our kids. These are the people and friends we want our kids to go through Jr. High and High School with. This is the ward that we want to be a part of. It's interesting when you look back on a trial. Would I have made this choice a year ago had I known it was going to be this long? Don't know. Would I have made it the same way? Prayer, fasting, temple, absolutely. I know that the Lord wanted us in Washington when he did, and I know that he wanted us back in Arizona when he did. Believe me, we didn't do this the easy way, but we sure are stronger because of it. So hopefully, now that my life is "back to normal" I can get back to normal. Blogging more regular, cooking dinner more often (maybe) having Landon home to split the running around after school. I can't wait. Let's see what the next curve ball is going to be! 'Cause I know it's comin'.

San Clemente, CA july 17 - July 31 2010

2010-07-31T14:00:00.000-07:00

This is going to be a million pictures of our vacation this summer. Once again we went over to San Clemente, CA to camp and play for two weeks. We took our good friends with us. We have so much fun with these guys, and our kids just love each other.
We spent several days at our "usual" beach. Just eating, and sitting and playing in the ocean.

Spending time at the campground at night is a huge part of the fun. The four adults sat in these chairs for 2 weeks and laughed our guts out.
Our kids almost always woke up before theirs, so we spent some quality time in the trailer racing each other on Mario Kart DS.

Kennedy sleeps in some of the most unusual positions. An NO she's not faking!
Then it was time to head to California Adventure to use our free tickets we had earned from tying blankets. Luckily it was overcast for the first part of the day. But by noon it was hot and the lines were long!

Colton, Casey and Kennedy wanted to ride the huge Ferris wheel. I hate those things, so Stacy took them on. Casey loves Landon. If his mom or dad isn't available for a ride, then Landon is definitely his first choice!

A couple of the days we decided to head to Oceanside and try the beach there. It was way more sandy that San Clemente, and the waves started out way far so the kids could ride them in a long ways. The drawback was that there were jellyfish in the water. Tons of them. Colton came limping in saying he had been stung on his leg. He had 3 long red marks where he had been stung. I, jokingly told him that he needed someone to pee on it to take the sting out. He instantly had several volunteers! Mason was finally the lucky winner, and he peed in a sandcastle mold, and poured it over his leg. He claims it help. About an hour later, Mason comes limping in and says he's been stung. Now it was payback. Colton then peed in that same mold, and poured it all over his leg. I think that might be my favorite moment of the trip!

It was really cloudy most of the trip, and hard to figure out my camera settings.

We're off to Knott's Berry Farm. They have awesome rides. Much more up our alley.

Stacy and I found a couple of gents to hang with.

The sun came up for a little bit in the afternoon, and we tool full advantage. We hit the Perilous Plunge, and got SOPPING wet!
Not to be outdone, Landon and Travis hooked up with these two floozies!Last but not least, Landon and Travis took the kids on a fishing trip the last day. They caught tons of fish. However, Whitley was the day's winner. She caught a shark! A 6 foot thrasher shark. After about 2 seconds she needed help reeling it in, so Landon took over. They cleared the deck, and just about had it in the boat and it broke the line. So disappointing! An awesome memory though.

Once again we had another great vacation with the Nuzmans. Can't wait to see what next year's adventure brings.

Zion Encampment aka Scout Camp

2010-07-10T19:21:00.000-07:00

This is Colton's first scout camp. He missed the one in Washington last year because we moved. He was so excited to go. They left Tuesday morning, and didn't get back until Saturday afternoon. The deacons all ready to go
First night at camp

They had an FBI obstacle course for the boys to run.

Noah and Colton finishing. Shirts off of course!

As a troop they would have a spiritual thought each day.

They shot bow and arrows

Colton and Mason were working on their Wilderness Survival merit badge, and had to built a shelter and sleep in it one night. This is what they came up with. Colton said Sam slept in it with them just for fun. However, once it got dark, Sam didn't think it was so fun. He kept making Colton shine his flashlight all around.

Noah, Colton and Dayton earned the Climbing merit badge. Colton loved repelling.

Look how filthy they are. Can you image how they smell? When Colton got home, he hadn't changed his socks in 4 days. Hadn't brushed his teeth. Hadn't showered. I pretty much burned everything he had on.

Colton said is was one of the most spiritual experience of his life. From the pictures it looks like all he did was have fun, which he did. But they also had many testimony building opportunities. The spirit was so strong at camp. To bad they can't do this more often.

Diving Lessons

2010-06-30T13:00:00.000-07:00

I decided to put the girls in to diving lessons this summer. Colton didn't want to since he is leaving for scout camp next week. Whitley and Colton has done diving in the past, and really liked it. Kennedy was not old enough when we lived here before to do it. She was super excited.

After a couple weeks of lessons, Whitley and her friend Parker were both able to do back flips, and a one and a half. They were pretty impressed with themselves.

Kennedy got her front dive, back dive, and eventually her back flip as well. We will definitely do this again next summer.

Lake Pleasant

2010-06-17T11:48:00.000-07:00

We signed Colton up for a scout camp with a few of his buddies this summer. He was a little iffy on going, but ended up having a blast. They earned 3 merit badges. Canoeing, Rowing, and Small Boat Sailing. They left early every morning, rode the bus about 2 hours north to Lake Pleasant and then spent the entire day on the lake. They each had a partner for most of the boats and Colton ended up partnering with Mason N. (Mason is standing to the right of Colton in green) Colton is easily twice Mason's size. Poor Mason had to row Colton all over the lake. When they would race Colton would row and Mason claims he was the "motivator".

When we picked them up at the end of the day, they would smell so bad you couldn't hardly ride home with them. During small boat sailing they were in their own boats. Colton is so tall that his sail kept smacking him in the head. They were crashing into each other, the mountain and who knows what else. I'm so glad Colton had the opportunity to go to camp, and for his buddies that went with him.

Bear Flats Campout

2010-06-12T23:13:00.000-07:00

Here we go again. The boys are working on their fishing merit badge, so the leaders took them up to Hon-Dah to catch some fish. Brother Johnson claimed this was a sweet spot! Nick, Colton, Dayton, Chip and Noah
Apparently Colton decided he needed to chop down this stump

When he got home, Colton told me that they had been fishing in a certain spot, and no one was catching anything. They all decided to move downriver a little bit, but he stayed. Said he had a good feeling about that spot. Not long after the other scouts left, a wrangler came up and told Colton he needed to move immediately because they were bringing a head of cattle across the river. He moved and didn't think much about it, until the head of cattle showed up. (Colton is in the bushes on the far left of the picture). He had been right in the path of the cattle a few minutes before, and probably would have been trampled! Bless that wrangler's heart!

They fished their guts out, but not one of them caught a dang thing. Guess this means they'll be another fishing camp out soon.

Skinny Dippin'

2010-06-08T20:12:00.000-07:00

So our new house has a pool YEAH! I know this will come as a shock, but Kennedy has been asking to swim naked since we moved in. Being the good mother that I am, I explained to her that that was called skinny dippin'. I kept putting her off when she'd ask if she could "skinny dip" thinking that eventually she'd forget. Yeah right. So the stars finally aligned for my little exhibitionist. Colton was at scouts and Landon, of course, was out of town. Whit and Kennedy wanted to swim, she asked again to skinny dip, and I let her. Whitley was appalled! She could not believe that Kennedy was just sauntering around the yard naked, and that I was just sitting there laughing and taking pictures! I say, you're only 8 once! When else will you truly not give a care in the world what your butt looks like, or if you have cottage cheese on your legs, or who's looking for that matter.

The Lizard Hunter

2010-06-03T22:49:00.000-07:00

This is the kind of crap Colton does all the time. There are little geckos all over our yard (which is a good thing. They eat the gross bugs) Colton loves to catch them, and harass me with them. Luckily I saw him, and locked the door. The funny part is, the lizards don't seem to mind. They just sit there, and wait for him to put them back down!

Foster Care

2010-05-29T10:16:00.000-07:00

This is Jaws. He is a desert tortoise. He is my neighbors' pet. He lives at my house. It's a win, win situation.

Let me back up. Our friends have had this tortoise for a little over a year now. They love him. He's the easiest pet ever. You don't have to feed or water him. He eats the grass, weeds, and whatever else is in your yard, and gets all the water he needs from that. If you get a wild hair, you can put out some lettuce, and he'll eat that up. But you don't have to. Plus, he hibernates for 3 or 4 months in the winter!

Several months ago, these friends of ours got a dog. The dog and tortoise lived harmoniously together for a few months. Then one day, the dog went after the tortoise. Luckily my friend was home and saved the tortoise. She brought him inside and put him in a big cardboard box for a little R and R. Her husband is suppose to build him an enclosure in the yard where he'll be safe. That was a couple weeks ago. The tortoise is going crazy in the box, and still no enclosure!

So when we finally got into our own house, with our own yard, she asked if we would take Jaws into "foster care" until the enclosure got built. She thought maybe that might embarrass her husband into building it! Until then, the kids love him. We bought him some lettuce and they are training him to come up to the porch for food. I'm thinking that we'll have to get our own when Jaws goes home. You just can't beat this guy for a pet. Especially if you're not a pet person!

Givin' Up

2010-05-24T08:26:00.000-07:00

This is what we've become. It's the end of a long school year, and I've given up on trying to make Kennedy dress cute. She put on this old soccer uniform of Whit's to go to school today. I was to tired to stop her. Sorry Ms. Busken. At least she's clean!

Spring Piano Recital

2010-05-22T20:52:00.000-07:00

Don't you hate it when you only have enough juice left in your camera battery to take 1 picture. This is the one and only picture I got at the kids piano recital tonight. And it's average at best.

They all played well. They were all nervous. They all practice hard-ish, every morning before school, with very few complaints. I'm so grateful for my mom. She is a great piano teacher. It's so nice to have a teacher that is so flexible. She pretty much works around our crazy life, and sometimes just comes to my house when I can't get to hers. Thanks mom!

Flute Concerts

2010-05-18T16:57:00.000-07:00

This week, Whitley had 2 different flute concerts. She loves playing the flute, and is getting really good. She sits next to Bailee, one of her BFF's, so that makes it even more fun!

Their band teacher arranged for a little concert type thing at Barnes and Noble. He wanted 10 small groups to perform. Solos, duets and Trios. The kids had to sign up, pick a song, and tryout if they wanted to play. Whit said there were 24 groups that tried out for only 10 spots. Whit and Bailee got one of the spots. I'm so proud of her. When I was 10 I never would have tried out for something like that.

Scouts Head to Bear Flats

2010-05-15T23:00:00.000-07:00

The scout headed out on another outing this weekend. I'm calling it a miracle that we were able to get Colton's stuff ready to go 1 day after moving everything we owned! These boys have so much fun together. Not only are they in the same ward/scout troop, they really are awesome friends. This is a huge part of why we came back, and where we bought our home! Dayton and Colton (Dayton lives across the street now) Nick, Noah, Colton and Dayton
Brother Whaley, Nick, Colton, Noah

These boys have been so lucky with their leaders. They have changed on them a couple times, and each time the new ones just keep rockin'! Noah and Colton
Must be cold

Colton and Dayton really excited about something

They found a spot to do some cliff jumping this trip. Colton said it was awesome.

Our Home

2010-05-13T10:45:00.000-07:00

We finally got a house! YIPPEE. We are 1 step closer to being normal again. This house is such a blessing, and we know that it is where we're suppose to be. It is the model we like, in the neighborhood we wanted, at a cheaper price than we wanted to pay. Plus, it's a lot nicer inside than any of the other ones we've looked at. I guess good things come to those who wait!

Ashland Ranch Academic Night

2010-05-10T21:02:00.000-07:00

Whitley got invited to Academic Night this year. It's for all 4th, 5th and 6th graders who have all A's for the first 3 semesters.

Mr. Roth, our new principal, talking to the kids.

Whit receiving her certificate.

Bailee, Paige and Whit (BFF's)

Whitley has worked hard all year long. We are so proud of you Whit. Keep it up!

JK Rowling

2010-05-07T10:07:00.000-07:00

Whitley was JK Rowling at the 5th grade Wax Museum. She was not thrilled with who her famous person was. She wanted princess Diana and someone else got her! She had to do some research, write poems, and draw some pictures. It was fun to see all the kids dressed up.

Suns Playoff Game

2010-05-06T11:00:00.000-07:00

Colton got invited by one of his good buddies to go to the Suns playoff game tonight. Who know why they had an extra ticket, I am so glad they did. They had a blast!

The were handing out these planet orange shirts before the game. Colton and Dayton wore them to school the next day.

They were clear in the nosebleed section, and loved every second of it!

Thanks Murset family for taking Colton. Can't wait to be your neighbors!

Soccer Party

2010-04-24T18:47:00.000-07:00

We wrapped up Kennedy's spring soccer season with a pizza/trophy party at Barros. She had so much fun with this team. Coach Lisa was great.

Coach Lisa had made this team flag that they had attached to PVC pipe and a stake at the bottom. She brought it to every game and stuck it behind the bench. The girls liked it, but Kennedy loved it! They had a little wrap up after every game, and Kennedy would grab the flag and hold it through every meeting. At the end of the party, coach Lisa gave Kennedy the flag.

Rawhide Fieldtrip

2010-04-21T20:35:00.000-07:00

Kennedy's class went on a fieldtrip to Rawhide this afternoon. As luck would have it, Landon was in town, and we both got to go! They took us on a tour of the old city, we saw a gunfight, had some lunch, panned for gold, and rode horses. The kids loved it.

The original electric chair outside the jailhouse

Kennedy, with her two best friends Tatum and Jules

Piano Lessons

2010-04-12T18:30:00.000-07:00

Kennedy started piano lessons today. She has been chompin' at the bit to get started! It's so convienent to live at your piano teachers' house. Help is never far away. Thanks mom, and good luck!

Scout Jamborama

2010-04-10T10:53:00.000-07:00

Colton went with his scout troop to the Jamborama this morning. They were able to meet and get their picture with President Beck, from the General Young Mens Presidency. They also had a great time launching balloons, and of course eating! They have awesome leaders, who really do love these boys. We are so lucky to be in this ward.

Easter/Conference Sunday

2010-04-04T18:37:00.000-07:00

This year Easter fell on Conference Sunday, or did Conference fall on Easter Sunday?? Either way, it made for a very enjoyable day.

Last night we died Easter eggs. My kids love this. It seems like every year I boil more eggs, and every year we don't have enough!

He is pulling this face in almost every picture we took this weekend. Not sure what that's about?

After breakfast, the kids made a huge sniggle bed on the floor and got ready for conference. Notice their baskets of candy are all right next to them. My parents took one look at this, and headed straight for their bedroom where they could watch conference in peace and quiet!

I loved conference this time. I always come away feeling renewed and recharged. I'm so grateful for a living prophet, who leads and guides this church. How lucky we are to be able to hear his words from the comfort of our living rooms.

Easter Sugar Cookies

2010-04-02T13:09:00.000-07:00

I am trying to keep things as "normal" as possible this year for my kids. I don't want them to look back on this year and remember how jacked up things really are! I want there to be some sense of the ways thing were, and the way they will be again. It's getting really hard, on all of us. Anyway, every year before Easter we make sugar cookies. The girls love to help me bake the cookies. Colton is always around when it's time to frost and eat the cookies! I decided that this year should be no different. This is the best sugar cookie recipe. I got it from my mother-in-law. It was her mother's! YUM.
The Best Sugar Cookies

Road Trip

2010-03-22T14:54:00.000-07:00

Heidi and I packed up the boys and headed out to Utah. I stayed there over the weekend, and spent time with my grandparents, and brothers. The only picture I took on the entire trip was this one of Rowdy chilin' in his chair at home.

Heidi and I talked and laughed all the way from AZ to UT. I think we pretty much got the world's problems all solved, and laughed until we peed doing it! When we hit Vegas Friday night, we were in rare form! Heidi and I had wanted to go to St. George, stay at the Abby in where the breakfast would be free, and hit the road. Well once my dad got wind of that, it killed the deal. He found us a way better rate at one of the big hotels in Vegas. Sometimes it's just easier to go with the flow than to fight it! So we stopped in Vegas. We were tired. Both boys had had their fill of the car, and we were hungry. The hotel was a zoo! We left our car to be valet parked in what looked like a giant parking lot of cars waiting in line. We knew the chances of getting that back that night were slim to none! So we hauled our pantless party into the lobby, checked in, and decided to get room service. We payed an obscene amount of money for some gross nachos, and hit the hay! The next day was not too bad. We did stop in Beaver for some cheese curds, which I have never done. I always say I'm going to but never do! I was glad we did. Not as glad as Heidi (she loved those curds) but still glad!

The weekend went fast. We ate at every yummy place Heidi could think of. Visited grandma and grandpa Warner (who are now 89 and 95) My grandpa was laughing telling me that he had just renewed his license for another 5 years. 5 YEARS!! That makes him 100. He rocks!

The night before I left, all of my sibling and their spouses (except mine 'cause he lives in a different state than me. Yes I'm getting bitter) went out to dinner. The four of us haven't all been together since Matt's wedding which was 9 years ago. It was long overdue, and I really enjoyed it.

I flew home early this morning and got home just in time to help get the girls to school. I miss my kids like crazy while I am away, but I knew they were in excellent care while I was gone. My parents and Bumpa split the responsibilities, and I can't thank them enough!

St Patty's Day

2010-03-17T09:16:00.000-07:00

Happy St. Patricks Day!!

Since we're on Spring Break, and since we love them we went and got bagels from BagelNosh this morning. All of the bagels were green, as was the cream cheese. I dyed our milk green and we really celebrated.

We're headed to the park with Heidi and the her boys for a picnic. The weather is still nice, so we're going to take advantage of it.

RoWDy

2010-03-16T14:42:00.000-07:00

This is my little nephew Rowdy! Boy does he live up to his name :) We just adore him though. I was taking pictures of him with my phone, because I have an app that does funny things with pictures. He was lovin' it!

Jimmy had to go out of town for a month, so my mom flew up to Utah and drove to AZ with Heidi and her boys. She mostly came for Kennedy's baptism, but we're so glad they're here.

Spring Break Hiking

2010-03-15T16:32:00.000-07:00

Today is the first day of our Spring Break! This presents several problems! You see, if you don't go out of town, then what?? Most of my kids friends were well out of town! You are left with only your siblings to fight with for an entire week! This is nothing our of the norm, and really nothing I can't handle. My parents, on the other hand will probably loose their minds if my kids are home for 7 days solid fighting. It's especially helpful that my dad is trying to work from his home office! I'm sure they would both argue that this is not true, but we are still guests that are just right up in their grill, and won't go away.

So when my friend called and invited us to go hiking at Usery Mountain, I jumped on it. We are not huge hikers. I'm not really sure why. We're pretty ourdoorsy folks, and we try to stay active. I guess I'm just not really sure where to hike, or maybe what the good hikes are! Anyway, my kids loved it. They climbed right to the top of this peak, and right on back down without a complaint!

Clearly Colton is not an avid hiker. I guess he though he could get in a game of football at the top!

My friend had brought some binoculars and Kennedy was all into checking things out.

One day down, 4 more to go. Lets see what we come up with tomorrow!

Kennedy's Baptism

2010-03-13T19:31:00.000-08:00

We baptized Kennedy this morning. Well, okay, Landon baptized Kennedy this morning. We had a nice program, and the spirit was so strong. I know that the Lord just jumps for joy as each of these precious children makes the right choice to be baptized. We are so proud that Kennedy made the decision to be baptized. She threatened for MONTHS to not go through with it. We continued to tell her it was her choice. In the end, thankfully, she made the choice to follow Christ. I know her life will be blessed because of it.

Bumpa and Kennedy

Bishop Rogers with Kennedy

Parker, Kennedy and Casey

Landon and I gave the talks at her baptism, and I was so wound up making sure every little detail was perfect, plus give a talk, that I didn't take 1 single picture of her in her baptism clothes. I am so frustrated.

Kennedy's Birthday Party

2010-03-07T20:24:00.000-08:00

We celebrated Kennedy's birthday tonight. As usualy she ordered an ice cream cake!

Even though it killed to not just tear into her presents, she was really good to read through all her cards.

Colton and Whitley gave her this giant bear. It was by far her most favorite thing! She saw it in Sam's Club a few weeks ago, and hasn't stopped talking about it!

2010-03-06T15:06:00.000-08:00

Kennedy is playing soccer again this season, and loving it. She is on the Pink Panthers with several of her friends. We have learned a couple things about her game this season. First, she has a very strong leg. She can kick the ball from one end of the field to the other. Second, she is a great defender. Much more aggressive playing defense than she is at offense. Earlier this season she was playing defense, and she really booted a ball forward. It smacked a little girl on the other team right in the stomach. She went down hard, and Kennedy felt so bad. I reassured her that she hadn't done anything wrong. Ever since then she's been a little bit hesitant to kick it too hard. We are having a blast watching her. Landon so misses these games! Hopefully by fall season he'll be able to see more of them.

Kennedy turns 8

2010-03-05T21:23:00.000-08:00

Today is Kennedy's 8th birthday. She has been waiting for this day for a LONG time. I woke up early and made pancakes (like I do for every birthday) like she asked for! It's hard to tell, but she chose orange pancakes with chocolate sprinkles! I went and picked her up from school to have lunch "out". She chose Panda Express, and she wolfed it down!

The rule at our house is that you have to wait until you're 8 to get your ears pierced. I just want to make sure that they REALLY want them, and that they're old enough to be the ones to take care of them. She had been saying for a while now, that she didn't think she wanted to get her ears pierced. I told her they were her ears, and she could pierce them whenever she wanted to, now that she was eight. NO PRESSURE!

So to my shock, she asked this morning if I would take her after school to get her ears pierced. She had changed her mind. So I jumped on it, and we went straight there after I picked the kids up from school. She was pretty nervous, and almost tried to chicken out. But Colton, Whitley and I talked her into staying. She chose little black studs to pierce them with.

Once it was all said and done, she was so happy she had gone through with it. And claims that it didn't really hurt "that bad"! Happy Birthday Kennedy. We love you !

Scouts

2010-02-23T22:49:00.000-08:00

My calling in my ward is Scout Committee Advancement Chair. Which means that I'm in charge of keeping track of all of the scouts in my ward, and how they are advancing! Oh yeah, I know you're jealous! Anyway, I was pretty much solely in charge of putting on the court of honor, and I'm so glad it's over. There were 93 awards earned! I'm proud to say that Colton earned 5 merit badges, his 2nd class, 1st class, and star scout all tonight. He is a life scout now, which is only 1 level below eagle. After living in Washington, he was behind where he should've been, and has had to work really hard to play catch up. There's still work to be done, but I'm really proud of him. I am ready for this whole scout thing to be over!

Give a Day Get a Day

2010-02-19T12:34:00.000-08:00

At the beginning of January, we decided as a family to get involved with Disney's Give a Day Get a Day. We signed up to make blankets for Project Linus. This is a charity that gives new blankets to sick or traumatized children ages 0-18. We picked this charity for 2 reasons. 1 we could do the blankets at home, which was great since we had to work aroud Landon being in town. Second I let each of the kids pick their own material to make their blanket out of, and it was way more personal that way. They were all so picky about what they like and what they wanted. I sent the blankets off about a week ago, and today our tickets came! Disneyland here we come!!

5 blankets tied and shipped!

On the Lord's Errand

2010-02-15T20:47:00.000-08:00

Tonight for FHE I took the kids to the Mesa Temple Visitors' Center to see the new movie "On the Lord's Errand: The Life of President Thomas S. Monson. It was excellent. I learned so many interesting things about our Prophet that I didn't know. What an amazing man!
If you haven't taken the opportunity to see it yet, do it.

Valentine's Day

2010-02-14T13:00:00.000-08:00

Dear Landon
Thanks for the beautiful tulips you sent me for Valentine's Day. They are my favorite. I love you!

Snow Campout

2010-01-30T15:38:00.000-08:00

Colton headed up north to Strawberry, AZ with the scout this weekend for a snow camp out. We had to borrow some warm stuff from Bumpa, and buy him a new coat to get ready. All I can say is BRRRR!

Look how cold they look. He said that they weren't too bad. Colton took a lot of little hand warmers, and his sleeping bag was suppose to keep him warm up to 40 below 0.

What's a snow camp out without a snowball fight. I love this picture. I totally looks like Colton is about to bean Brother Johnson in the head.

WARNING- Teenager!

2010-01-29T20:24:00.000-08:00

Colton turned 13 today. It's official, he's a teenager! He chose orange pancakes with sprinkles for breakfast.

And of course, he ordered an ice cream cake! (Kennedy just practicing up for next month)

Colton got tons of nice gifts from many friends and family. He mostly got money, and gift cards which he was super excited about. Landon and I helped fill up his sword display with 6 new swords.

He is officially 6 feet tall! He weighs a whopping 170 lbs. and wears a size 13 shoe. His hands are bigger than Landon's and his legs are as long as Grandpa Scott's. He eats like he was just let out of prison, and he doesn't seem to be slowing down!

What can I say about Colton that I haven't already said. He is such an easy child to raise, and I can't wait to see what this next stage of his life brings. I feel lucky to be on this journey with him. I love you Colton! Happy Birthday!!

This is My Box

2010-01-23T12:20:00.000-08:00

What is with a kid and their box! It doesn't matter what size it is, if there's an empty box, there's gonna be someone who has a "need" for it. Today, Kennedy's need was a little TV watching box.

Street Rats!

2010-01-21T22:39:00.000-08:00

The west coast is getting nailed with some big storms, and we have had rain for 4 days solid! For us, that's insane! We even had a tornado warning on the news tonight. Nothing happened but the wind was blowing so hard that is was knocking trees down all over the place. Kinda scary.

There are greenbelts all over in the neighborhoods, and most of them look like lakes right now! My kids took this golden opportunity to have some fun. They played out in the rain and water for hours! They couldn't figure out why I wouldn't join them.