Our Little Adventures in Big Ole Texas!

Happy Birthday Pops!

2012-01-12T04:43:00.000-08:00

Today would have been my Dad's 64th birthday. I really miss him! I need to be better about remembering, especially for my kids. Olivia was born after he passed away, so I need to make sure and tell her all about him.
He was the greatest! There is so much that I wish I could have told him, but I didn't get the chance. It's always hard when you live far away from family to keep in touch. You know, out of sight, out of mind. I thought of my family often, I just thought I would have a lot of time with them, so I slacked off. I need to be a better daughter, and sister. Life is full of regrets, but we can't let that get us down. I just need to take the opportunities I have now with the family I have left and make the memories count. I read a thought recently that has stuck with me. It said, "Count your blessings, and make them count." I guess I am a visual learner, because I really like signs, Nate teases me all the time about it. But I'm pretty sure it's always good to have reminders, right? All we can really do is leave a legacy for our own children, I really want to work on that. My Dad did the best he could with what he had. I need to follow that example. I really appreciate all that he did for me, he was a hard worker and always tried to give me everything I could ever want. I was spoiled rotten :) Sorry I am rambling, these thoughts have just been on my mind lately, and it feels really good to get them out in the open! On a brighter note, I do have a lot to be thankful for, I need to always remember that! And I need to go forward, learning from the past, and make a brighter future! Those are my thoughts for today :)

Thanks for beind a great Dad and always being there for me! I love you!

It's a new year!

2012-01-12T04:22:00.000-08:00

I've been meaning to blog for a long time. I just never seem to make time for it though. Today is as good a time as any, right? It just so happens that I can't sleep, so I might as well write in my journal :) Bing Crosby said it best on White Christmas, "If you're tired and you can't sleep, just count your blessings, instead of sheep, and you'll fall to sleep, counting your blessings!" I love that movie!! Anyway, a lot has been on my mind lately, with the celebration of a New Year there is always time for reflection. I want to write down some resolutions, so maybe I will be more likely to actually do them this year. I will just put down a few, but I have much to improve on :)

1. Get. Organized.
2. Be a better Mommy, be more kind and loving, less yelling.
3. Put more effort into my calling, better planning, more organized, get those boys in gear for getting their Bear badges! Go Scouts! :)
4. Go to the gym at least 3 days a week.
5. Blog at least once a week, probably Sunday.
6. Be a better friend, and keep in better contact with family.
7. Serve others.
8. Make time, and plan for Date night.
9. K.I.S.S keep.it.simple.stupid. A lot of the time I really complicate things for myself :)
10. Make it to the temple at least once a month.

These are probably the hardest ones I want to work on. I'm sure I will come up with more, but now these are here to remind me. I just want to improve, and we can always be better than we were last year, right?

Olivia is 2!

2011-11-30T07:33:00.000-08:00

Livy had a birthday, shout hooray! We celebrated her birthday a couple weeks ago. She is such a big girl now! I can't believe my baby is 2!

The birthday girl showing off her spoils.

She had a blast! She got lots of presents and lots of attention!

Time for cake!

Caleb is 6!

2011-10-11T06:09:00.000-07:00

Caleb's birthday was back in August, but I am just getting around to posting the pictures.

It's great to be 8

2011-10-06T11:43:00.000-07:00

Posing for a picture for the baptism

Another shot

Opening presents for his birthday, he got his own scriptures.

Showing off his Boise State jersey

My favorite one, and the one we framed for display at his baptism.

Singing in the rain

2011-10-06T10:53:00.000-07:00

We got rain in Midland, finally. So Hannah got to try out her rain coat and boots. She was a happy camper!

Memories

2011-09-29T09:56:00.000-07:00

This month marks 2 years since my Dad passed away. I have been having dreams(or nightmares) about it all. The memories have come flooding back and they usually come at a not so great time. I find myself tearing up at the store, in the car(a song triggers it), and it usually is in front of one of my children. They still look at me like I've grown a third arm or something if they see that I'm crying. Hannah was only two, so she doesn't remember him. Olivia wasn't even born yet, but I like to think that Grandpa got to tell her about our family and get to know her. Maybe that is why she is such a good girl. Hopefully my boys have some memories of him, I need to help them remember. I just made a photo book of Grandpa for them, from when he was a baby to an adult. I hope we look at it often and remember the good times. I miss him a lot and I need to be better about teaching my kids about him. It's been 2 years, but my heart still aches. I really feel sad for my Mom, she hasn't had the easiest time with all this. She is still struggling and I wish I knew how to help her. I guess we have to want to be happy, before we can really BE happy. I read a quote somewhere recently and have made it my new motto.

"Now and then we have to pause in our pursuit of happiness, and just BE happy."

I also had a really awesome RS lesson a couple weeks back about choosing happiness. It was a real eye opener. We can make our lives what we want them to be. It is through our decisions and actions that it happens. There was a quote in the lesson that I really liked (I'll probably slaughter it). It went something like this, "It is our reaction to our adversities, not the adversity, that writes our life story." I wrote it down somewhere, but can't find it. I'll have to email the lady who gave the lesson and get an exact quote. I have been suffering from depression lately(off and on) and this lesson really has helped me. I know I need to be happier, and I am trying. I always have to count my blessings, because I have been very blessed. It is usually through our trials that we realize what we have.

School starts.....

2011-09-13T11:40:00.000-07:00

The boys started a few weeks back, but I am just getting around to posting the pics. Kylan started 3rd grade, he has Mrs. Parker. So far he is doing really well. Caleb is in 1st grade this year, he has Mrs. Butts and she is amazing! Hannah just started preschool. She is going to Step by step preschool and she has Mrs. Melanie. She told me this morning that she loves her teacher, so it is going great!

Caleb on the first day

Kylan on the first day

Hannah on her first day

Slideshow of our trip

2011-08-22T09:23:00.000-07:00

This photo slideshow personalized with Smilebox

Happy Birthday Hannah!!

2011-07-09T20:46:00.000-07:00

this is the birthday cake, a giant cupcake

The birthday girl having fun on the swing

modeling her birthday shirt and matching tutu I made for her, it has a 4 and a ladybug(go figure, right?)

This is what she asked for, a ladybug girl doll, she also got a camera, a tangled dress, some books, and a movie

she was grinning the whole time we sang to her

make a wish....

kinda blurry, but maybe Grandma got a good one :)

A little piece of heaven...

2011-07-09T20:28:00.000-07:00

Here in Morgan, UT, we are surrounded...

by mountains....

on all sides...

it is really nice compared to home, where it is flat and not green at all :)

Yummy treats

2011-07-09T19:39:00.000-07:00

S'more Cups

The campfire is optional--these little treats can be enjoyed anywhere.

Ingredients:

7 whole graham crackers (1 cup/250 mL finely crushed)

1/4 cup (50 mL) powdered sugar

6 tbsp (90 mL) butter, melted

4 bars (1.55 oz or 43 g each) milk chocolate candy, divided

12 large marshmallows

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Place graham crackers into a large resealable plastic bag. Finely crush into crumbs using Baker's Roller®;. Combine graham cracker crumbs, powdered sugar and butter in Small Batter Bowl. Using Small Scoop, place scant scoop of crumb mixture in each cup of Deluxe Mini-Muffin Pan. Press crumbs to form shallow cups with Mini-Tart Shaper. Bake 4-5 minutes or until edges are bubbling. Meanwhile, break two of the candy bars into rectangles. Remove pan from oven; place one rectangle into each cup.

1. Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Place graham crackers into a large resealable plastic bag. Finely crush into crumbs using Baker's Roller®;. Combine graham cracker crumbs, powdered sugar and butter in Small Batter Bowl. Using Small Scoop, place scant scoop of crumb mixture in each cup of Deluxe Mini-Muffin Pan. Press crumbs to form shallow cups with Mini-Tart Shaper. Bake 4-5 minutes or until edges are bubbling. Meanwhile, break two of the candy bars into rectangles. Remove pan from oven; place one rectangle into each cup.

2. Cut marshmallows in half crosswise using Professional Shears dipped in cold water. Place one marshmallow half, cut-side down, into each cup. Return to oven 1-2 minutes or until marshmallows are just slightly softened. Remove from oven to Stackable Cooling Rack; cool 15 minutes. Carefully remove cups from pan. Cool completely.

3. Break remaining candy bars and place in (1-cup/250 mL) Prep Bowl. Microwave on HIGH 1 minute-1 1/2 minutes or until melted and smooth, stirring every 20 seconds. Dip the top of each marshmallow in melted chocolate. Turn top-side up and let stand 40 minutes-1 hour or until set.

Yield: 24 cups

Nutrients per serving: (1 cup) Calories 100, Total Fat 6 g, Saturated Fat 3.5 g, Cholesterol 10 mg, Carbohydrate 11 g, Protein 1 g, Sodium 60 mg, Fiber 0 g

Cook's Tips: Dipping the Professional Shears in cold water before cutting the marshmallows helps minimize sticking.

The time it takes the chocolate to set varies depending on weather conditions and room temperature. You can refrigerate the cups briefly until the chocolate is set; store them at room temperature.

Store the cups in a single layer in an airtight container for up to 1 week. Freezing is not recommended.

For a richer chocolate flavor, substitute dark chocolate candy bars for the milk chocolate.

The Fourth of July

2011-07-09T18:40:00.000-07:00

Liv didn't know how to hold the flag :)

We love the U.S.A.!

Hooray!

Proud to be Americans!

Sparklers!

Cheese!

Cache Valley Cruisin'!

2011-07-09T18:27:00.000-07:00

I took a picture of some of our favorites...

a white mustang, with a blue stripe

a mater-like truck

Bumblebee, zoom in and you can see the Autobots symbol

the delorian

Kit, from Night Rider

some monster trucks

got some Porches for my Dad :)

Herbie :)

We had a lot of fun and the boys really enjoyed it!

Swimming fun...

2011-07-09T18:14:00.000-07:00

We got to go swimming at my cousin's community pool.

Livy is ready to dive in!

If you look closely at Caleb, you can see his purple ring around his mouth. He had a lot of fun with a gatorade bottle, and had a bruise for a few days :0)

Bittersweet memories...

2011-07-05T16:49:00.000-07:00

This was the first time I had been to my Dad's grave since he passed away.

It was also the first time to see the headstone.

It was really hard to see, usually being out away from my parents it was easy to forget that he wasn't still here. Then you see the dates on there and it hits you. It's still really hard. When I think about him, I have a huge ache in my heart. I love and miss you Dad!

Raindrops keep falling on my head

2011-07-05T16:36:00.000-07:00

It rained while we were at my Mom's house, Livy couldn't quite figure out what to do with the umbrella.

But she sure was stylin in her new rain boots!

Isn't she so cute? :)

50th Wedding celebration....

2011-07-05T16:32:00.000-07:00

My in laws just celebrated their 50th Wedding Anniversary, so we got together for a temple trip, pictures, and a nice dinner. It's hard to get 10 kids and their spouses together at one time, in one place :)

We met at the Salt Lake Temple for a session, while we were there, Nate was able to go through for my Dad, it was the most emotional session so far in my life.

The kids also put together an open house for them. It was a great party, this was the part where they gave them the memory book that Nate put together.

We got even more pictures while we were at the open house, there were better pics taken and I will most likely post them when I get some copies.

Fun riding a train and the children's museum....

2011-07-05T16:12:00.000-07:00

Hannah was super excited to ride the "Dinosaur train"

Dad and Caleb

Hannah and Olivia

Grandma and Grandpa and Kylan

Mom, Hannah, and Olivia

The Museum had a cute store with tiny shopping carts

Hannah shopped til she dropped :)

Kylan stayed in this section for a long time, he worked hard on this.

Building with a friend

Livy wouldn't look at me for any pics, this is what I got

There was also a play house with a cute kitchen

There were also giant legos, they were a lot of fun.

We had a great time and would definately recommend that if you are in the Salt Lake area, you take your kids to the Discovery Children's Museum.

Toothless

2011-06-14T17:42:00.000-07:00

I liked this shot best, but it doesn't quite show the toothlessness

Last summer Kylan had 6 teeth pulled right before vacation, 4 of those teeth have still not come in (one is starting to break through though)

Here is a good shot of all the missing teeth, he could almost be from Arkansas :)

yesterday Kylan had his two front teeth pulled, the permanent one's are coming in and the baby one's just didn't want to come out. We leave for vacation on Saturday.

Notice a trend here? :) I sure hope he can pull at least one of his baby teeth out by himself, it's gonna be pretty expensive if not! haha

This is the best day EVER!

2011-06-09T15:17:00.000-07:00

That's what I was saying when they put my new counter tops in :) I really love my new kitchen! We still have a few things left to do, but it is coming along nicely. I will show you the difference in the before and after shots.

Before pic of sink and stove top

Close up shot of my new sink, no close up of the old one cuz it wasn't pretty!

old stuff....

new stuff, the old microwave was in the cupboard, now it's over the range. That is quite the adjustment for me and my kids laugh at me all the time, hey it's been over 7 years, it's hard to teach an old dog new tricks :)

We also decided to repaint, we went with a bold accent color and I love it! Now I need to go find some red stuff to go with my kitchen :)

Some of the things we have planned in the near future are doing the backsplash, a new dishwasher, and an oven(it will be nice to not over-cook everything!)

There you have it! My new kitchen! It was worth the wait :)

Utah, here we come!

2011-05-29T20:51:00.000-07:00

We get to go to Utah next month! I am way excited! We are going to stay for almost 6 weeks! I may go a little crazy, but we will get our family fix :) We are going there in June for my in law's 50th wedding anniversary party and we're just staying because we're getting Kylan baptized the first weekend in August. It will be an adventure, that's for sure! I will need to visit lots of friends while we are there so I can keep some sanity! It will be a par-tay!

End of the year teacher gifts....

2011-05-29T20:39:00.000-07:00

This year I went a little overboard for the teachers. But I felt kinda bad that both my boys were hard on their teachers throughout the year. I guess I was trying to make up for it :)

These were so easy and fun to make. I got the idea from http://www.sugardoodle.net

I couldn't find a bath bead for the cherry, so I improvized and made one from a starburst and cardstock :)

These were way easy to make also, I borrowed the idea from my friend Emily, she gives a tutorial here

All packaged and ready to go!

I loved these so much that I made them for the people I visit teach. Aren't they just so cute?

Enjoy your flight!

2011-05-13T12:42:00.001-07:00

Caleb had his Kindergarten program at school and it was called Magical, magical me.

He got to dress up as what he wants to be when he grows up.

He looked pretty spiffy :)

Mother's Day

2011-05-13T12:38:00.001-07:00

I had a great Mother's Day! Nate got me a nice black dress to wear (which he picked out by himself!) and the kid's picked me out some new jewelry and a cake keeper. I got to take a much needed nap and was well cared for :) I have a great hubby and great kids! I am truly blessed!

Brand new park...

2011-04-27T19:53:00.000-07:00

There's a new playground at Hogan Park

It's got cool ropes to climb on...

We really like it!

It also has a cool walk way and slides, a couple swings, and some other cool stuff.

It's definately worth the trip, it's over by the Sibley Nature Center.

Take the Loop to Lamesa and turn left on Wadley. You pass all the ball fields and turn left to get to the park. If you get to the nursery you went too far :)

Slow going....

2011-04-27T12:34:00.000-07:00

Out with the old,

In with the new...

We are remodeling and it has been slow progress, but we are getting there. We just got our new fridge, we've ordered our new stove top (which should be on the way), and we have narrowed down on the selection for granite countertops. Now we just have to go get the sink picked out and we can call to order the granite! Yippee!! I am super excited!! Then after the countertop is done, I get to pick out a new dishwasher, and get a new oven. Oh, and a new microwave that goes over the stove! I know, it sounds like I'm really spoiled, (which I am) but this house was built in 1982 (I was 4 years old) and it has all the original stuff in it. The whole house could use a good facelift! :) We have done a lot with it, but there's always room for improvement! hehe

So stay tuned, for the pics and the updates. I'm hoping it will start to speed up :)

The clean bottle

2011-04-27T12:14:00.000-07:00

I bought some of these handy things for soccer. They are great! I love how the top and bottom come off and that you can throw them in the dishwasher! We go through a lot of water bottles with two kids in soccer, and chances are good that next season it will be three kids :) So I decided to save money on the throw away water bottles and invest in these babies. I highly recommend them! Go buy your own today! Check them out at http://www.cleanbottle.com/

Photo shoot

2011-03-28T20:40:00.000-07:00

The girls were dressed cute today, so I had to get some pics

I love this one!

Cheese!

The little twinkle toes

Curly Lu

2011-03-28T20:36:00.000-07:00

Livy has really curly hair

View from the front, catch the wave! :)

The Grandparents haven't been able to see this yet, so here you go! I just love the curly hair, and it just adds to how adorable she is! I am a little biased!

Our trip

2011-03-28T20:29:00.001-07:00

Spring Break

2011-03-15T18:38:00.000-07:00

This week is Spring Break. We were hoping that it would be all fun and games, but we are still having some fever problems at our house. But instead of sulking around the whole entire week, we are going camping. We decided to get out of Midland and check out a place that we have wanted to go to for a while. On Thursday we are going to Palo Duro Canyon. It is the Grand Canyon of Texas, at least that's what the website says :) The pictures they show are beautiful, so I sure hope it will be. I'm sure it will be better than the brown grass we have around here! So we are super excited and can't wait to go. It may be a little cold at night, but we're going to bundle up and play lots of games! This will be my second camping trip since we moved here and I can probably count on two hands the number of times I have been camping in my life. Yes, I said life. My first experience camping was going to Girl's Camp as a young woman. Isn't that crazy? My parent's idea of camping was staying in the family cabin, with running water and all the amenities :) I can actually say that I enjoy camping, it's nice to get in touch with nature. The only down side to this trip will be no camp fire. There's a burn ban, so at least we have a camp stove and lots of blankets! It should be an adventure for sure and we're certainly making some memories!

Incredible kid day!

2011-03-15T18:28:00.000-07:00

The other day Kylan came home with a letter in his back pack. It was a letter from the City of Midland. I was a little confused, it had his name on it, so I thought, "Is he getting a bill?" So I opened it up to find out what it was. This is what it said,

Dear Kylan,
I recently heard that you are an outstanding student that deserves being recognized for your hard work and extraordinary effort. Congratulations! What an honor that is and you should be very proud of yourself.

Has anyone ever told you that you can do anything you truly believe in? Well, I'm telling you now! Whether you want to be a pilot, a doctor, an artist, or even President of the United States, you can accomplish your goals by working hard and dreaming big! Keep up the great work, Kylan, and remember that you are special and that the world can't wait to see what dreams you can think up!

This letter is my way of letting you know that you are special and that someone is thinking about you. I hope you have an Incredible Kid Day!

Sincerely,
Wes Perry
Mayor

I was pretty suprised to find this! It's not every day you get your very own letter from the Mayor of your city, right? Way to go Kylan, and keep up the good work!

Kylan's 2nd grade program...

2011-03-06T20:00:00.000-08:00

My white Tiger

Kylan had his 2nd grade program this last Thursday. It was "It's a jungle out there," He didn't have a part, but they sang some pretty cute songs. I'll have to get him to sing some of them and put a video on here. He's been practicing them for a long time, and Caleb has even picked up a couple songs :)

Back in the saddle again....

2011-02-17T19:30:00.000-08:00

We have had a lot going on lately. I haven't been very good at posting on here. Ever since I got my Primary calling last year, the posts have been sporadic. It also didn't help that the computer was having issues. Plus life has been a roller coaster. Last month we had to take Caleb to have surgery for a hernia and that was pretty crazy in itself. We had issues with the Dr. and trying to get things lined up. I'll just say that I am glad we don't have to go back to that Dr. anymore since he is retired now. It was a simple procedure though and everything went well. So we are glad that is over with. Once we got back from the surgery though, that's when the flu hit us. Both Olivia and Hannah had a fever the night we got back from Lubbock. And we've been dealing with sickness off and on since then. It has been a blast!

Just last week though, I was released from being Primary Chorister and given a new calling. I am the new Relief Society chorister! So it's a whole different ball game. Now all the time I spent on my old calling, can go into blogging! :) I will definately be better at keeping it up, it is my journal and I haven't been doing very well. Today is a new day! I probably won't be back tracking too much, but there are some pictures I need to post. So be patient :)

A new look...

2011-01-14T12:36:00.000-08:00

We noticed him squinting quite a bit lately so he got to go see the eye doctor. Sure enough, he needed glasses. He really is excited about it so I guess we'll see how long that lasts :) He looks so studious now!

We have also been going through a lot of other adventures that I need to post about, but that will come later.....stay tuned!

Santa pics

2010-12-24T19:01:00.000-08:00

The local library had a Christmas party and we got to go! There was a special visitor!

Livy had just woken up from a nap, so I thought she'd cry, she was great!

They all had a fun time, memories were made! :)

Photos.....shoot!

2010-12-14T19:08:00.000-08:00

Try number one, Livy was excited!

Same pic, but black and white

Try number two, Livy was really squirmy! I need to fix it :)

I like to take pictures, most the time it works, but after several tries. This time, Livy was happy one second, then screaming the next. So I'll either have to try again, edit the pics to what I want, or stick with the first one, what do you think?

A newfound love....

2010-11-09T12:36:00.000-08:00

A friend told me how to make these beauties (thanks Camilla!). So now I am obsessed :) They go together super fast and are so cute!

I made this one for Olivia, I'll post a pic soon of her with it on.

This one is pink, since the pic isn't that great, it's kind of hard to tell. I made this for a baby shower present to match an outfit. I just love it!

Halloween 2010

2010-11-04T07:12:00.000-07:00

We had a great Halloween! We were able to spend it with our friends in Houston. Caleb had an eye appointment so we made a trip out of it. A good time was had by all!

Showing off his web flinging! He has a lot of spidey sense! :)

She loved trick or treating, but got tired and had to be carried, she was a trooper though.

Here's our Indiana Jones and the Halloween Crusade.

Double the Minnie, double the fun!

She got gloves, and they lasted only a block or so :)

I love Caleb's face in this, and Kylan could barely reach, too funny!

The Hammerheads

2010-10-13T10:49:00.000-07:00

Caleb is playing his second season of soccer. He is on a different team this year, who knows why because his old team still exists, but that's another issue. He really likes to play and is doing really well. He even made a dollar by getting a goal! He may be the most aggressive player in our family, maybe it's because he's so fiesty?! We love to watch him!

Hammerheads 2010 from Jaimie Shaw on Vimeo.

A bit of randomness...

2010-10-13T10:42:00.000-07:00

Olivia and Hannah from Jaimie Shaw on Vimeo.

Olivia and Hannah were being cute the other day, so I took some video of it. I'm sure there will be more soon! :)

I'm going private...

2010-09-27T07:29:00.000-07:00

I have thought about it for a while now, and I am making my blog private. My decision has been helped along because my Mom's house was robbed and they stole her computer. She had my blog in her favorites, so I've made up my mind. If any of you readers would like to view the blog, just comment with your email or send me a message on facebook with it. It will probably be within the week that I will do it. Who knows what the losers will do with the information that is on my Mom's computer. People do stupid things! Have a great day!!

In loving memory....

2010-09-25T07:05:00.000-07:00

Today marks a year since my Dad passed away. It has been a rough year. I know that it has been a lot easier for me than for my Mom, she's still struggling. I have hard days, but I also have more distractions. I still can't listen to the radio without flipping stations like crazy, it's hard to listen to most songs. Especially ones that I know he liked. I don't know if I'll ever be able to listen to the Temptations again without crying. It's really tough losing someone you love so much. There's a big ache inside and a hole is left in your heart. Everytime I think about him there is a tightening in my chest and I just have to change what I'm doing or I'm a blubbering mess. I know as time goes on the pain will lessen, but I don't want the memories to fade. I am going to try really hard to keep his memory alive and help my kids to remember, and know their Grandpa. He was a great man and I love him very much!

My Dad with Kylan

Mom and Dad

My favorite picture of my Dad and me

Here's a song that reminds me of my Dad

Always something there to remind me

I walk along the city streets you used to walk along with me,
And every step I take recalls how much in love we used to be.
Oh, how can I forget you?
When there is always something there to remind me
Always something there to remind me
I was born to love you, and I will never be free
You'll always be a part of me, whoa oh whoa
When shadows fall, I passed a small cafe where we would dance at night
And I can't help recalling how it felt to kiss and hold you tight
Oh, how can I forget you?
When there is always something there to remind me
Always something there to remind me
I was born to love you, and I will never be free
You'll always be a part of me, whoa oh whoa, whoa oh whoa

I miss and love you Dad!

Obladi, oblada....

2010-09-16T21:19:00.000-07:00

So this week I have been a single parent. But it's a little different for the real ones. I didn't get to drop off at daycare and then go to work. They ARE my work. And work they are. It is now Thursday night, and I have almost made it. Nate will be coming home Sunday night. So that leaves Friday, Saturday, and Sunday on my lonesome. I will spare all the details, but it has pretty much been draining and I'm done. It wouldn't be so bad, if it weren't for soccer games, two of them on Saturday. And then Sunday I am in charge of singing time in Primary, but I have my baby to take care of too. So now I get to sucker someone into taking her for me. Usually it's Nate that has her, which works, but she's a Mommy's girl and who knows how it will go since she hasn't had Daddy around all week and she's only had Mommy spoiling her ALL week. Such is life, I guess. I really dislike that Nate had to work out of town, out of state for that matter. He got to go to Wyoming, Colorado, and Utah and I'm stuck in the rain, with nothing to look at but Mesquite bushes and pump jacks! Sorry I am complaining, but hey, it's my blog! Which is pretty much my journal, so sorry folks! :) I know I'll make it through, well duh! And it's my attitude that will help (oh shut up already!). But there is a reason that God has said there should be a Mom and a Dad. We are here to help each other out, and I really hate doing it all myself. The kids have no distractions, but me, and my nerves are shot! I'm sure hoping for a great weekend, but I'm very pessimistic and I like to plan for the worst. Then if it does go well, Great! Yada, yada, yada.....I will just end here, because I need sleep and I'm pretty crabby, as you can see. I'm gonna hit the hay!

Gotta go back, back, back to school again....

2010-08-30T20:04:00.000-07:00

The boys are enjoying school so far. Caleb is struggling a little with the listening aspect, but we'll have to adjust. Hopefully we can bribe him to be good :)

The boys on their first day of school.

This is how Caleb and Hannah walked across the grass together, it was too cute!

Caleb in his classroom. He has Mrs. Cook.

Kylan in his classroom. He has Miss Weaver.

Olivia's new favorite thing...

2010-08-30T19:51:00.001-07:00

*disclaimer....do not judge me by the looks of all the dust and crumbs on my oven door, it's not the week to clean it, and it may not be done soon either :)

Olivia is just now tall enough that she reaches the knob on the cupboard perfectly. Just the right height to fit in her mouth! She gnaws on that thing quite a bit. So I guess it's a good time to clean them, right? haha

Here she is cleaning off the knob of all the germs.

Here she is licking her lips and thinking, "Wow that was filling!"

P-A-R-T-Y? Because I gotta!

2010-08-30T19:21:00.000-07:00

We were invited to a 50's themed birthday party and we just had to dress up! It was a lot of fun and I enjoyed throwing together the outfits :)

Caleb and Mom hanging out

Hannah being a Diva :)

After the party we grabbed some pics, Caleb didn't want to be in them.

Mommy's girl

making memories

2010-08-22T20:39:00.001-07:00

Can I just say, I love my kids! They are so adorable! I love taking pictures of them, and then love looking at them :) So here are some that I am sharing, enjoy!

The real deal, I took these wanting to have them as black and white.

I love Caleb's attitude in this one, he was mad at me.....such is life :)

Too cute for words!

I wanted to get some good pics of all the kids so I can get them developed for frames, I just gotta say it, not too shabby! haha

Caleb's 5th birthday

2010-08-16T06:30:00.001-07:00

Caleb is 5 now! I can't believe my baby boy is getting so big!

Posing with the presents

One of his favorites from his siblings

another favorite

a cute book I found for him

this hat was too cute to pass up, plus it was on clearance :)

his new puzzle

he got a webkinz and loves it!

he wanted a bumble bee cake, it turned out pretty cute!

He had a fun birthday, with lots of presents. It was such a whirlwind that I forgot to get pics of the presents from the grandparents. He got a Wii game from G and G Shaw and some Toy Story 3 legos and glo doodle from G Stahl. Thanks everyone!

Caleb gets a haircut

2010-08-01T16:24:00.000-07:00

These are for you Grandma!

Caleb's new hair do

the back view

Happy Birthday Kylan!

2010-07-31T07:39:00.000-07:00

Wednesday was Kylan's 7th birthday. The day was pretty crazy, but I think he had a good one. We started out with french toast with blueberry syrup for his bday breakfast. Then I made the cake so it could cool. We made some lunch and went to the swimming pool for a few hours. Then we got home in time for me to whip up some frosting for the cake and throw it together, along with getting dinner ready. Kylan wanted pizza for his dinner, so we got some Digorno style(HEB brand) and it was pretty good. The cake was alright, looks wise....it tasted delicious though, so that's all that matters, right? :) We got it all in, then we had an indoor soccer game to go to. We had the cake and icecream and presents after the game. It was a whirlwind day!

He got a new guitar from Grandma, Thanks!

Here's Mickey, or maybe a cousin :)

He got a fun dodge tag game too.

He ended up with some cool stuff, he should be happy with it all. It was a good birthday and I can't believe he's 7! Wow, how time flies!!

the new do

2010-07-26T06:10:00.000-07:00

After having a baby I usually get my hair cut. I have waited extra long this time. I don't really like having long hair with a baby since it gets pulled and spit up in. And I usually get really sick of having long hair so I just go and get it cut in whatever style. This is what happened again. I even did some research and was planning on taking a picture of what I wanted, but I didn't. I think it turned out good, other than the bangs, I wanted the long tuck behind your ear kind, but I guess she didn't understand what I meant :). At least it will grow back, right?

the new hair do, it kind of shows it off....Kylan took the picture for me, the little sweetie :)

Frilly fairy party

2010-07-26T05:46:00.000-07:00

Our local library put on this cute fairy party last week. I was a good mom and took my kids. The boys got a kick out of all the girlies dressed up and even played some of the games. They had the whole room decked out and there were games, face painting, coloring, even a photo spot. Plus there were goodies and drinks. We had fun and got some cute pics.

Enjoying the refreshing drink and sweets.

Who knows who that girl is, she just sat herself down and so she got to be in our picture, she was running amok the whole time and I never saw who she was with :)

getting her face painted, she wanted a butterfly.

Happy Birthday Hannah!

2010-07-15T07:49:00.001-07:00

Hannah had her third birthday.

She likes My little pony.

Caleb tried to help out a lot

She got a Tinkerbell scooter, thanks grandma!

She loves her new princess book.

Happy Birthday Bitsy Boo!

I made my first fondant cake....it looks cute, but I still need to work on the cake part :)

4th of July

2010-07-15T07:36:00.001-07:00

We didn't do too much for the 4th. We had a barbeque and just hung out together as a family. We did dress up in matching shirts though :)

Here are the kids

Brothers gotta hug

Such cuties!

Miss Olivia

2010-07-15T07:27:00.000-07:00

Olivia is traveling all over the house now. She used to just stick to the carpet, but now she goes from one side of the house to the other. She really likes to get in this particular spot. It's pretty funny and she laughs when she gets caught. Maybe she's going to be the clown of the family :)

Pesky little critter!

2010-07-14T08:45:00.002-07:00

A couple weeks ago I saw that my tomato plant had been all chewed up. I looked closer and saw this huge worm on the stem. So like a good educating mom, I caught it in a jar. The kids lovingly named him Monstro.

This is the damage he did to my plant. He ate almost every leaf, I'm glad I caught him when I did, it was my biggest plant.

He only lasted a few days though in the jar. I didn't have anything to feed him because he only wanted tomato leaves and I think he got enough of those :) I tried tree leaves and spinach leaves....after a day of not eating those, I gave up. He got a ride in the dumpster. I don't think we'll be having a pet here any time soon :) They are a lot of work.

Awesome message

2010-07-01T13:48:00.000-07:00

How I stay so skinny....

2010-07-01T13:20:00.000-07:00

Other than being blessed with some awesome genes, I don't really do much. I guess I did just start going to the gym, so that helps. I think I'm just lucky....in fact I kind of wish I could gain some weight. Weird, I know. I always hear how skinny I am, and my family is always telling my that I am too skinny. But when I am nursing a baby I just can't keep on the fat. I really try though, I pretty much eat anything and everything I want to. I told myself that I didn't want to get as skinny as I was before I got pregnant with Olivia. I will spare you the numbers, but I am only a few pounds away from being there and I can't.....stay.....fat. I really do eat a lot, like all day. I guess I better stop going to the gym, then I won't be burning all the calories I take in :) It also helps that I have 4 children that I have to chase around. And I have major mommy brain and walk around my house many times wondering what the heck I was doing. I better get working on some soduku or cross-word puzzles or something....I need some help. I guess we all have our problems, huh? I hope this is my problem for a long time though, I don't want to get fat when I'm over 40! I'm up for the challenge :)

Cute pics and a re-do

2010-06-29T09:44:00.001-07:00

I have been wanting to get some good pics of all the kids, so on Sunday while the kids were dressed all cute, I got some.

Kylan 6 years old

Caleb 4 years old

Hannah 2 years old

Olivia 7 months old

I also had a high chair that has been through all the kids. The cover on it was cracking and a little beat up. So I took a vinyl table cloth that I already had and I made a new cover. So voila! There you have it! I can be frugal if I really try :) Yeah for me!!!

Poor, poor Caleb

2010-06-22T16:57:00.000-07:00

At his last eye appointment, the doctor prescribed a drop for his good eye. It blurs the vision so he won't be able to peek out of the eye patch if he tried. We tried it out on Monday morning and he complained about it being blurry all day. Then we check it this morning and it is still dialated and he says it's still blurry. We only put in one drop yesterday. So today I put a drop in my eye to see if it is different for an adult and how long it lasts. After only a few hours, I was done. It's really annoying not being able to see, dang it! And if I think about it, Caleb really can't see out of his bad eye, so blurring the good eye can't be any fun right? So no wonder the kid is cranky! I had a dumb mommy moment, so I thought I would share it, for a good laugh :) I have been spending most of the day walking around with my one eye closed because it's no fun with it fuzzy. I sure can sympathize with Caleb now, and maybe I won't be so hard on him now.....well, we'll have to see about that. :)

What time is it?

2010-06-22T16:35:00.000-07:00

Summertime!

We have been beating the heat at the Kimber-Lea pool. It's fun and wears the kids out. We definately have to have somewhere to go in this Texas weather.

Caleb in the water

Miss C showing off Olivia

Kylan playing around

Miss C with Hannah, don't they look like they could be sisters? Their hair is the same color :)

A little comparison

2010-06-20T19:06:00.001-07:00

This is Hannah at about 8 months.

This is Olivia at 7 months, in the same outfit.

The picture doesn't show it, but I see a lot of similarities. But I also have other pictures to compare :)

Father's Day

2010-06-20T18:27:00.001-07:00

Nate got a little spoiled for Father's Day. At least I think it's spoiled since I get the Anniversary/Birthday/Mother's Day celebrations all balled into one, but I'm not complaining, really I'm not :)

We made him a yummy lasagna with garlic bread for dinner. Then Kylan, and I made cookie cake, it was delicious! It probably would have looked better in the picture if I had waited until it cooled completely to frost it, but I was anxious to eat it :)

This may be a new family favorite, it had oreos in it, so who would'nt love it?

The kids colored him a service coupon book.

It turned out cute.

It has coupons for taking out the trash, and helping with yard work too. They were excited to give it to him.

He got an rc Apache helicopter also, which the boys are in love with as well. Then he got some bbq tools, and some clothes. It turned out pretty well.

This was my first Father's Day without my Dad. It was rough, but I tried to make the best of it and send him my own message.

I decided to send my Dad a balloon with my message. It was hard, but I had to do something.

I had to steer clear of the power lines.

It may have ended up in someone else's backyard, but it's the thought that counts, right?

Let's rewind a bit....

2010-06-17T08:40:00.001-07:00

Caleb had his eye surgery in the middle of May. It was actually done on my birthday, the 10th. But who needs to celebrate when your an adult, right? Anyway, back to the beginning. We had to go to a pre-op appointment on May 3rd, so we drove to Houston with 3 out of 4 kids. Kylan got to stay home and sleep at a friends' house so he wouldn't miss another day of school (we were going on vacation the next week)So some Midland friends were nice enough to take him for us. It was a long drive, but we made it :) Lucky for us we have some fabulous friends that live in Houston, and they were even willing to put up with us and let us stay with them. You rock Bass family! So the pre-op went well, as well as it can with two extra kids. The girls were actually really good considering how long we were there.

Then a week later....Caleb, Olivia, and I flew to Houston on Mother's Day so we could be ready for the surgery on Monday. Let's just say the flight was something I wouldn't repeat. I will not fly with another baby again. Olivia did not like the pressure in her ears and she has a very high pitched scream cry that she unleashed on the poor other passengers. I finally got her to go to sleep on my lap and got to enjoy a little of the flight. We got to Houston and I have to mention I probably looked like a pack mule, I had Olivia strapped on me in the baby carrier, the diaper bag, a carry-on bag, and the baby's carseat with Caleb's booster seat in it....so as I was waddling through the airport, the pilot of our plane we just arrived on took pity on me and said he could help me carry some stuff. Well he ended up taking me all the way across the airport and to the desk for the rental car. He was so sweet! I'm so glad there are nice people still around :) I got to the desk and it was closed so I had to go wait for the shuttle to take me to Enterprise, we didn't have to wait too long, but boy was my back aching :) We got our rental car and headed out to our friends house. It was so nice of them to let us barge in on their Mother's Day celebrations, Thanks again! And I was even given the royal treatment, my lunch was made special, and the sandwich was great! Then we had a great dinner too! Nate totally got off the hook on that one :) We didn't get to visit for too long because we had to get up extra early for the surgery, we had to be there at 6:15 am, yes that's am people! I had to be up before the sun and it wasn't easy. I didn't sleep well, because I kept thinking of the surgery going bad and then waking up to check on Caleb. Then my friends dog decided she wanted some attention and came in to lick my hand, it was 4 in the morning. I wasn't really asleep anyway, so I got up and started getting ready to go. My friend was super duper nice to me because she was willing to watch Olivia for me while I was with Caleb (the hospital had told us that no siblings were allowed). So lucky for me she was on baby food and she took a bottle. She was really good for her and I am so glad since my friend had her own baby to take care of. This story is getting so long.....anyway we head out for the surgery, check in at 6:15 and we waited....and waited....and waited....his surgery was at 9:15. The hospital at least had a bunch of toys, otherwise I would have gone bonkers. Finally they took him back and I got to wait some more. It wasn't really that long, but it was hard. They finally took me back to recovery and that was the hardest part. He took about an hour to wake up and it was weird seeing him like that. He was so sweet and peaceful :) I'm sure glad I didn't have the baby with me, she would have been hard to take care of. I had to carry him out because his legs were really wobbly. We went straight to my friends house to get ready since we were flying out that afternoon to go to California for our trip. I ended up losing track of time and left too late, I got stuck in traffic and still had to drop off the rental car. Let's just say I was a basket case. I just about had a mental breakdown on the freeway. I thought for sure I was going to miss the flight. Anyway, it all worked out, after a lot of sweat and tears. I tried booking in across the airport, but had to carry even more that time since Caleb could barely walk. I added his backpack, and a hospital bag to my already overloaded self. It was a sight I'm sure. We flew to Phoenix, then on to Orange county. I have sort of blocked it out of my head since it went about the same as the other flight. Olivia does not like flying, and I felt really bad for the people around us, but I did try everything possible to keep her happy. What do you do, huh? Can't please all the people all the time. It was a rough couple days and I was ready for bed when we finally got to California. Did I mention it was my birthday that day? Oh boy! Nate and the family were nice though and had a cake for me and I got to open presents before bed, so it wasn't a total loss :) All I know is that I will never do it again :) It sure was an adventure.

After we got back to the real world, we had preschool graduation to attend.

Caleb now gets to move on up to Kindergarten! Way to go buddy!

I can't believe how fast time flies!

This is my life....

2010-05-25T06:27:00.000-07:00

This is sad, but true.....and why I don't get anything done. Add to it that I am feeding a baby several hours a day. Sheesh!

C. A. A. D. D. Recently, I was diagnosed with C. A. A. D. D. - Child Activated Attention Deficit Disorder.

This is how it manifests: I decide to do the laundry. As I start toward the laundry room, I notice that there are cheerios all over the floor and my car keys are in the cereal bowl. I decide to pick up the cheerios before I do the laundry. I lay my car keys down on the counter, put the cheerios in the trash can under the counter, and notice that the trash can is full. So, I decide to take out the trash. But then I think, since I'm going to be near the mailbox when I take out the trash I may as well pay the bills first. I take my checkbook off the table, and see that there is only one check left, my extra checks are in my desk in the office/playroom, so I go to my desk where I find a sippy cup full of juice. I'm going to look for my checks, but first I decide I should put sippy cup in the refrigerator to keep it cold. As I head toward the kitchen with the sippy cup, a vase of flowers on the counter catches my eye--they need to be watered. I set the sippy cup on the counter, and I discover baby wipes that I've been searching for all morning. I decide I better put them back in the bathroom, but first I'm going to water the flowers. I set the wipes back down, fill a container with water and suddenly I spot the TV remote, one of the kids left it on the kitchen table. I realize that when they go to watch TV, I will be looking for the remote as they fight over who lost it, but I won't remember that it's on the kitchen table, so I decide to put it back in the den where it belongs, but first I'll water the flowers. I splash some water on the flowers, but most of it spills on the floor. So, I set the remote back down, get some paper towels and wipe up the spill. Then I head down the hall trying to remember what I was planning to do.

At the end of the day: the laundry isn't washed, the bills aren't paid, there is a warm cup of juice sitting on the counter, the flowers aren't watered, there is still only one check in my checkbook, I can't find the remote, I can't find the wipes, and I don't remember what I did with the car keys. Then when I try to figure out why nothing got done today, I'm really baffled because I know I was busy all day long, and I'm really tired.

California

2010-05-20T21:29:00.001-07:00

We had a blast on our trip, I'll write more about it later, but aren't pictures worth a thousand words? :)

The Tooth fairy, travel pillows, and a ruffled blanket...

2010-04-27T19:34:00.001-07:00

The Tooth Fairy
The tooth fairy visited Kylan last night. Yesterday we went to the Dentist to get a tooth pulled and came out with the toothless wonder :) We knew we had to pull the baby tooth, but when I was told that really it would be good to pull 6, I was shocked! The x-rays were the selling point, you could totally see all the permanent teeth coming up and the reason we went was that his bottom front permanent tooth was coming in behind the baby tooth. It wasn't even close enough to push the baby one out, and it was pushing against the one next to it also. So for the sake of some straight teeth, we just bit the bullet! haha It won't be long and the teeth will be coming into place, so for now, we just call him our little gummer :)

Here he is, showing off :)

Travel Pillows
I have been working on some travel pillows for our road trips coming up. I will spare you with the pictures, they're just the U shaped ones. But they are turning out great and now the kids (and I) won't have floppy heads while we're driving across America :) We'll be going to Houston, twice in the next two weeks. Driving home from California. Then probably to and from Wyoming later in the summer. And if we do Caleb's eye surgery then we'll have to go back to Houston for a three month check-up. So we will be getting some good use out of those babies! Yikes! That will be a lot of mileage :)

Ruffled blanket
My friend is about to have her fourth girl. I decided to be a nice person and help her girls, 12, 10, and 8 years old make something for their Mom and new sister. I helped them tie her a quilt. It didn't really take very long to do and they caught on fairly quickly. It turned out cute, but the best part about it was the what I found online. I had bought a remnant of pink satin, my friend likes the satiny blankets and I wanted part of it to be satin. So now I needed to find out how to incorporate it into the quilt. I had never made my own binding for a blanket before, so I didn't want to foul it up. Then I came across this awesome blog that gave a tutorial that was perfect! It's called Notes from the patch and whenever I try a link on here it never works so I will try to copy and paste.

http://patches.typepad.com/notes_from_the_patch/2009/11/tutorial-tuesday-2-satin-ruffles-or-how-to-tame-the-fabric-from-hell.html

It gives you the step by step instructions and it turned out fabulous! I didn't go out and buy the ruffler, but I might have to now, after making this blanket and seeing how cute it turned out, I would love to see one that had perfect ruffles :)

This is my attempt at serging, I don't have a serger, so I just did what she suggested. Hopefully the blanket won't fall apart ;)

Here's the finished project! I hope she'll love it! I'm really excited to give it to her!

On a side note, I have never really been that much of a "girly girl" But now I think I can say I am a member of the club. If you can make a ruffle for a blanket and love it, you must be pretty girly :) I guess deep down I really am! haha

Houston, we have a problem....

2010-04-27T19:20:00.001-07:00

Well, for those of you who missed my comment on facebook, Caleb gets to have eye surgery. We found out the last time we visited the Pediatric Opthamologist that the patching of the eye just wasn't doing anything for him. So he referred us to a study that is going on in Houston. It's at Texas Children's Hospital and they have been doing it for 9 years. It is PRK, a laser surgery that takes off part of the cornea so it improves the vision. We get to go for a consultation with the Doctor and a pre-op visit on May 3rd. Then the surgery, which is only done every three months, is scheduled for May 10th. We have a lot of questions we need answered still, so we haven't really decided if we are going to do it or not. It really is his only option though, the poor kid has never had perfect vision. His eye started wandering at almost a year and who knows if he could really see before that. So now that he is almost 5, he may be able to see better, but probably will still need glasses. I guess we will find out. Plus if we don't do something about it now, he could lose the use of that eye completely. Since the brain has started shutting it down, it could happen totally if not taken care of by a certain age. So you can see why we are struggling. The cost is not really a problem, it's just the risks involved, and if he would have to have surgery again later on, or what....we don't really know. So there you have it.....Houston, we have a problem.....or it could be a solution....things that make you go hmmmmm? :)

Cookie cutter kids

2010-04-15T07:42:00.001-07:00

A lot of people that knew Kylan as a baby have said that Olivia looks like him. I see it every day :) It is kind of eerie how much they look alike. These pictures kind of show it, but I haven't found that one picture that really does the trick yet. I guess you'd have to see it in my head :) Looking at her definately brings back memories of Kylan as a baby. Too bad they aren't looking the same direction :)

Olivia at 3 months

Kylan at 3 1/2 months

A little tip...

2010-04-06T20:36:00.000-07:00

Like I've said before, my friend at Alittletipsy.com has some awesome ideas! Especially around the holidays. She does blog swaps with her friends too and I got a great idea from one of those. They're called Resurrection rolls and the kids loved them. It was fun to do for Easter, but it would also work for FHE treat too. You should totally try them. Check it out! smashedpeasandcarrots.blogspot.com

Thanks for the great ideas Michelle! I love your blog!

Making memories

2010-03-26T20:39:00.001-07:00

While I was growing up we didn't take very many family photos(professional-like) so I guess I am trying to make up for that :) I probably take too many, but at least my kids will be able to see themselves in every stage, huh?

My Mom was able to come for another visit. She came during Spring Break and stayed for 10 days. We had a lot of fun hanging out with her. This is a picture that we took while she was here. Hannah wasn't really cooperating, so this was the best one :)

A new addition...

2010-02-19T12:04:00.001-08:00

I made this for the girls' room. I need to get organized and it's helpful if the little people can hang up their own jackets and backpacks. So voila!

It really is centered on the wall, it just looks off because of the door :) It was fun to make and really easy!

3 months....

2010-02-19T11:48:00.000-08:00

Olivia is 3 months old now! Time is sure flying! She is such a doll and is so easy going that she just fits perfectly into our family.

I just took her yesterday for her 2 month shots, bad, I know. But there's a story behind it :) We forgot to add her to our insurance after she was born, DUH! I can blame it on lack of sleep, mostly. Then with the holidays, it was just a blur. So anyway, she has her own major medical insurance, but nothing else. We are hoping that she will stay healthy until open enrollment in June! Anyway, so I took her in to the Health Department for her shots. I may start doing that for all my kids, $10 is still cheaper than the stinkin copay for the visit to the doctor :)

She is doing very well. She's gooing and smiling all the time now. We grow to love her more each day!

Confessions of a shopaholic...

2010-02-19T11:36:00.000-08:00

Okay, so I'm not as bad as the girl in the movie, I don't have 12 credit cards! And I don't usually buy for myself, but I love to shop! Yet I really don't have much to show for it. Only piles and piles of laundry. I have some bad obsessions.

the first one is the clearance racks....

I just can't resist, as hard as I try :) And it's mostly the kids that I buy for.

the second one is ribbon...

For some reason since Hannah was born I have been buying ribbon like crazy. It's probably because I like to make hair accessories, huh? But yet I haven't gotten around to using all the ribbon that I have bought! Go figure!

the last one is really dumb, I'm obsessed with stocking up on food....

Big Lots is my favorite store! And right before Olivia was born I was stocking up like crazy. I bought so much stuff for lunches, and just snack food. I was trying to make up for the lack of shopping after the baby came. I figured I wouldn't want to go to the store and that Nate wouldn't think to buy this stuff.

It's actually pretty funny how bad it is. Except that all the clothes keep piling up because I get behind in the laundry and then I have baskets of clean and dirty clothes all over the house. Plus there is no where to put all the clothes. I really should seek some professional help, then again maybe not! :) Or maybe I should just try to find another outlet, that would be a great idea! Now what to do.....? I guess I'll need to think about this. Any suggestions?

A little late..

2010-02-17T09:19:00.000-08:00

We celebrated Nate's 32nd birthday last tuesday. He worked a long day and we had a lot going on, so we had to squeeze it in. I made him the best chocolate cake ever (at least that is the name we told the kids, it's actually called something else that I can't really post!) :) It was really good!! He got to open presents and play the Wii with the kids, so hopefully it was a good one.

Happy Birthday Nate!

There's a first time for everything...

2010-02-17T09:07:00.001-08:00

This is my first atempt at cutting little girl hair...

If at first you don't succeed...

I may take her to someone else :)

I had to blow dry it to see what it would look like. I guess we'll see what it looks like on a normal day when I don't do her hair. She may be getting her hair done a lot in the next while. :) It will grow back, right?

Blogiversary!

2010-02-17T08:20:00.000-08:00

My friend has a really cool blog and it's almost been a year that she's had it up and running. She's got some cool giveaways going on all this week, go check them out!
Just click on the button on the side, or she's on my list of fellow bloggers, a little tipsy.

Welcome to my pity party....

2010-02-17T07:48:00.000-08:00

I just have to get this off my chest. I am having a really hard day today. I miss my Dad a lot. Plus I think I may be depressed, but I don't want to admit it. I don't want to be on medication either, I've done that before. So I've been trying to stay positive and not think about things too much. But this morning it hit me...

Like a ton of bricks....

I cried like a baby in the bath tub. At least I was already wet, so what if I bathed in my own tears.

I am really struggling with the fact that I didn't get to say goodbye...He was going into the transplant surgery when my plane landed in Utah. I did get to talk to him on my cell for a second, but he had his oxygen mask on and I couldn't understand him....I didn't realize that it was the last time I would talk to him.

I also didn't realize how bad it really was. I think when I talked to my parents, they kind of sugar coated it for me. I wish I could have been there for them. I know that I can't do the what if....but it's hard. I wanted to be there to hold his hand and tell him how much he means to me. I don't know if he really knew how much I love him. It breaks my heart that he was suffering for so long and my Mom is really the only one who was there for him the whole time. He did have a lot of support from his family, they were with him a lot at the hospital, but my Mom had to watch her strong husband deteriorate. She told me that he was skin and bones that last time at the hospital. I guess maybe the Lord was protecting me too. I don't know if I could have handled seeing him suffer like he did. But he really didn't let on that he was suffering, he was such a tough guy!

Anyway, I know I need to count my blessings, and remember all the good times that I did have with him. I have many good memories and I will cherish them always.

Now I need to turn off the water works, take some tylenol for this blasted crying headache and get on with my day. At least I have my kids to distract me.

I'd like to log a complaint...

2010-02-17T07:29:00.000-08:00

This post is not for those with weak a stomach. This last week has been pretty messy....

On Thursday night, after we had just finished feeding the missionaries, Caleb came to me and said, "Mom, I think I had some poop in my underwear." So I look down at him and he's got it on his hands. So we go into the bathroom and sure enough, it was in his underwear. He didn't poop in his underwear, he just hadn't wiped good enough and must have had a cling on. But he didn't just leave it at that, nope, he smeared it all over his bottom by squishing it with his fingers. Lovely. So that was really nice to clean up.

Then Friday afternoon I notice that Hannah has a fever, which lasted until late Saturday night. She went to bed Saturday with a fever of 102. We missed church on Sunday so she wouldn't it spread it around. For Valentine's Day we gave them some candy and she was enjoying a piece before the boys left for church, and she gagged on it and threw up. Fabulous! So I got to clean that up too.

Oh, I forgot to mention that on Friday while holding Olivia, she blew out of her diaper and I got pooped on. So she needed a bath, and new clothes. Then I had to start the stain treating and wash the laundry. Lucky for me I had her wrapped in a blanket so it only got the top layer of clothes for me. It didn't soak into my underwear, she just got my shirt, undershirt, and some on my jeans. Great!

Then on Monday, while I have all the kids home, we have kids over to play and the house gets destroyed. I already have a hard enough time getting my kids to clean up. So it's been a battle, I've had to ground my boys from the Wii, because they just do not like to clean. Oh well, I guess it will get done eventually. But the bad part is that Kylan woke up in the middle of the night, I guess early Tuesday morning to tell me he didn't feel good. I was still half asleep so I didn't check his temperature, and I sent him back to bed. When I went to get him up for school I checked his temp and it was 101. So there's another day home from school. His fever came and went all day and he complained of having a headache, but I think he's over it now. I sent him to school today, so he better be :)

So it's been pretty crazy around here lately. Oh the adventures of Motherhood!

Girls just wanna have fun

2010-02-08T11:00:00.000-08:00

The girls had a play date last week....

They wanted to play dress up....

And while doing that they wanted to play ring around the rosie too :)

It was too cute, so I had to take pics of it!

I love it!

2010-02-08T10:54:00.000-08:00

I know you all are making fun of me because my girls match :) But until they are old enough to want it different, I'm gonna do it! It's too much fun to pass up :)

precious moments

2010-02-05T08:31:00.000-08:00

This morning I was in the bathroom doing my hair for the day. Caleb, Hannah, and Olivia were in my bed in the next room and I hear Hannah say, "Caleb tell me a story." So Caleb says, "Once upon a time there were two ladies, the smaller one was named Olivia. They were laying in bed and the bigger one, Hannah, said you are so cute Olivia. The end." It was so cute. Then he started telling a story to just Olivia that went just about the same. I love it when the kids are sweet to each other :)

Gratitude

2010-02-03T08:14:00.001-08:00

I was going to do a bunch of cute pictures, but they won't load onto here so what do you do? Is anyone else having that problem with uploading pics or video? It may just be my computer, ugh! Technology! I have a love/hate relationship with it :) Anyway, I need to write what I am grateful for because I have been complaining a lot lately.

I am grateful for.....
*A loving husband, who works really hard for our family.
*My beautiful children
*All the conveniences of the times we live in, it is so nice to have a dishwasher, washer/dryer, hot water heater, computer.....etc.
*A wonderful extended family
*Many great memories of my Dad
*The gospel, it keeps me going!
*Great friends and family

Those are just a few and if I ever can get some pics on here then it would look better, but for now this will do :)

2010-01-22T07:13:00.000-08:00

This is supposed to be a cute video, I'm still working on it. It won't load and I have tried several times. It's of Olivia and this noise she makes when she is asleep. I'm not sure if it's snoring, or just talking in her sleep :) I guess maybe it's both! She doesn't really do it that often any more, but from when she was born she did it almost every time she slept. It's super cute and I wanted to share it, but I guess it's not going to happen.

Sweet and sour

2010-01-22T07:09:00.000-08:00

This boy is such a cutie! He is my most challenging, but at times he is the sweetest. He gives the best hugs and kisses! And sometimes he gives too much love :) He definately has a temper and you can really make him mad pretty easy. But he's really a good boy and I need to remind myself of that often :) I just want this picture on here to help me remember that he's not a stinker all the time! LOL

Earth Angel

2010-01-19T16:41:00.000-08:00

2 months old already!

I have been so lucky! This baby really is an angel! She sleeps a lot! And all she wants to do when she is awake is eat, or smile at me :) She does have her moments of crying, but it's usually because of something mommy ate that she shouldn't have. I am truly so blessed with this sweet girl. I love her to pieces!

Hard times...

2010-01-12T06:08:00.001-08:00

My Dad doing what he loved.

This was a gift from my Uncle and Aunt, it's a tree ornament(obviously) but it spins around and on the back this is what it says,

God saw him getting tired,
A cure not meant to be
So He wrapped His arms around him
And whispered "Come with me"
makes me cry every time I read it

Don't they just look so in love?

Today would have been my Dad's birthday. He would have been 63. It will be a rough day today. I do have a lot of good memories, and that will help me through. But it's still pretty fresh and I miss him a lot. I have good and bad days, usually it's a song that helps trigger the memories, but mostly I just can't let my mind wander too much. It's just hard to think about, I am really sad that my Dad is gone, but it breaks my heart when I think about my Mom. I know my Dad is in a better place and that he's not suffering anymore, so that's a comfort. But my Mom is struggling every day and I know it will be hard for her. I wish there was more that I could do.

Happy Birthday Dad! I miss you so much!!

Blessings from Heaven

2010-01-11T10:18:00.000-08:00

Here she is modeling her dress.

Look at the detail on the skirt.

It's beautiful!

Half smile :)

She's plum tuckered out!

We blessed Olivia yesterday because my in laws had come to visit. It was a beautiful day, though a little cold. She was an angel, she didn't cry at all during the blessing, and she was wide awake when Daddy held her up for all to see. Grandma Stahl had to miss it, since she had already come to visit when the baby was born. So these are for you Grandma!

I also have more to update, but that will have to come later.

I believe there are Angels among us....

2009-12-29T20:21:00.000-08:00

The other night I had an epiphany(sp?). I was sitting on the couch feeding the baby in the middle of the night, and it hit me. Olivia had finished part of her meal and was giving me some really cute smiles. She didn't quite look like she was looking at me though, so I had the thought that maybe she is seeing someone she knew in Heaven. I like to think that she got to know Grandpa Stahl a little while she was waiting to come to our family. She was smiling pretty big while she was staring at whatever or whomever she was seeing. Maybe the veil is a little thin at birth and thickens along with our skulls :) Maybe it isn't so much that we can't remember, but that it's a forgetting? :) Maybe those first smiles aren't just gas, huh? It's definately something to think about and until I find out otherwise, I'll just indulge myself and think that my baby actually did get a chance to meet her Grandpa. Just a thought.

My girls

2009-12-29T20:13:00.000-08:00

I have been so blessed! I always wanted a sister growing up, and I really wanted that for Hannah. So now it is a reality. She is enjoying it so far. She always wants to be near her. She usually is sitting right next to me while Olivia eats, she's right there when the baby cries, with the binky. And she even tries to shove the binky in when baby is sleeping :) Recently she has started giving the baby knuckles, or what we call "word". You know, when you make a fist and hit the other person's fist? Well since the baby always has her hand in a fist, I guess Hannah just decided to start doing that, it's really funny to see! :)

Both the girls are adjusting so far. I am excited for when Olivia will smile and laugh at all of Hannah's antics. And they can be the best of friends :)

My sweet baby

2009-12-17T06:15:00.000-08:00

my precious gift from God

I can't believe that she is a month old now. The time is sure flying! We have had our struggles, oh wait, we still are struggling :) But we are trying to get it figured out. It was great having Grandma here for three weeks, but we didn't really get a schedule figured out while she was here, so now we get to. My house is a mess and laundry has been piling up, but at least my baby is fed and changed and happy. Oh and the other children too! haha It's definately a challenge having three older kids and a newborn. I never have a minute to myself. The hardest part of the day is after school and homework/dinner time. Fixing dinner while entertaining a 2 year old, while she's crying, "Mommy, I hold you!" I hear that multiple times a day. And they all seem to get hungry at the same time! How does that happen? :) Then Mom gets to eat cold food, since the baby needs to be fed first. Sheesh! Why is it that we suffer through labor, then the complications and pain of breastfeeding, and then it's still a struggle? I know, the kids are supposed to bring us joy, right? I'm trying to stay positive! So, any advice on how you juggle all your kids and get your housework done too? I sure hope I can figure this thing out soon :)

It's finished!

2009-11-30T06:05:00.000-08:00

Kylan modeling the finished project

A view from one side

the other side

The closet is done! It turned out great and things are finally being put away. Now comes the hard part of organizing everything. It won't be easy, but it will be worth it!

My little sweetie

2009-11-30T05:49:00.003-08:00

Olivia is such a sweetheart. She has been a great baby so far. We have been through a lot together. There has been some issues with feeding and she has been a trooper. We've made it through blisters, cracks, and lots and lots of tears. Oh and a case of mastitis. But we are getting by, thank goodness for technology and the breast pump! She has had to go from breast to bottle and back again and she is so laid back that she doesn't even mind. She even had a couple of stinky formula bottles and drank them like a good girl :) She is sleeping great, she usually will go 3-5 hours between feedings. And has gone a couple nights for 7 hours straight. She is also a very vocal baby, more than my others. She makes the usual newborn noises, but she also does what I like to call humming, or singing. When she's fed and happy, she sits and hums, it is too cute!

The other kids really love her. Kylan likes to hold her and rub her head. Caleb likes to show her off and give her kisses. Hannah likes her a little too much sometimes, she tries to play with her when she's sleeping and give her the binky. But then she'll tell me to put Olivia down when I'm holding her and Hannah wants to be held :) It should be interesting once we find a schedule and it gets back to normal. It has been great to have Grandma here helping out. I couldn't do it without her! And Nate has been helping out a lot too, he does laundry and has been cooking for us too! I have a great husband!!

The new arrival....

2009-11-20T07:55:00.000-08:00

the pretty girl

On the way home

the proud papa

Big Brother #1

The Big Sister

Big Brother #2

Scrunchie face

Mom and the babe

The adventure begins.....We had our baby. Olivia Kathleen Shaw was born on November 17, 2009. She was 10 days early. She was born at 12:19pm and weighed 7 lbs even. She's 19 1/2 inches long. It all went pretty fast. I woke up on Tuesday morning and started having contractions at 6am. They were getting closer together by 9am, so I called Nate to come get me. We got to the hospital and in a room by 10am and when the nurse checked me I was a 4. At my last appointment I had been a 2 and that was the last Tuesday. So I had made some progress :) Well back to the story, I decided to wimp out and get the epidural, but she said it would be an hour, yikes! So an hour later I get it, she checked me right after and I was an 8. And since I had dilated so fast, my blood pressure was low so I had to be put on oxygen. Well, that just made me emotional since my Dad had just passed away and was on oxygen the last few months of his life. So both the nurse and the doctor were asking me if I was in pain, I just explained that I was just crying about my Dad. Anyway, it was just over an hour later that she was born. So it's been a whirlwind for the last few days. We are adjusting to having her here and she is such a cutie that we like having her around. We are glad that she came for an early visit! I can eat whatever I want for Thanksgiving now that my tummy isn't overcrowded :)

The wonderful world of parenting...

2009-11-12T19:24:00.000-08:00

So tonight was mega busy for me...or at least it seemed that way since I'm big and pregnant and not really wanting to get out anyway. Once Kylan got home from school at around 3:30pm this was our to do list...

reading for Kylan for 15-20 minutes
piano practice for a half hour
make dinner
feed children to make them happy
Soccer practice at 5:30, since we have the Turkey shoot out on saturday
At 6pm we head out for a basketball evaluation for Upwards at 6:30.
Baby shower at 7pm
Then the regular putting kids to bed routine.

We get to the basketball evaluation and Hannah had fallen asleep. I get her put in the stroller and get about 5 feet from the car when she throws up all over herself and the stroller. Luckily I hadn't buckled her in since she was still sleepy, so I grabbed her and aimed her at the sidewalk. Hopefully missing the front end of the car in the lot :) So I call for the boys who have bee lined for the farthest point away from Mom, and make a U-turn back to the car. I grab every napkin that I have in the glove box (lucky for me I save every one on our road trips from the fast food places) the wipes, and search for the plastic walmart bag that I keep stashed in case of a potty accident. I thank my lucky stars that I had that stuff! So I wipe her down the best I can, cover her with the sweater that was in the car (again, lucky for me that I am a slacker and hadn't put it away earlier) because she was saying she was coldy. I reach under her to buckle her in, and got a nice handful of throw up, great! At least I knew she wouldn't likely want to go anywhere anyway, seeing as she just lost her dinner. Then we head into the building to do this blasted evaluation, which is the absolute last one since I missed the others. We got in fairly fast and it really only took 10 minutes. I felt bad taking her in because she smelled quite potent and I'm sure everyone we passed got a good whiff. But I really had no other choice. Anyway, now that I have written a novel :) We got in the car and headed to the shower, which now I wouldn't be going to, to drop off the present. I was super bummed, but what do you do, eh? Oh, I forgot to mention that it was Nathan's night for Elder's Quorum meetings. So I had no way to get out of going home and cleaning up all that wonderful smell off my daughter and her clothes. Enough of my pity party, hopefully now she will get better and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that no one else will get this. Sorry to anyone who came in contact with Hannah this afternoon!

37 weeks

2009-11-11T19:47:00.001-08:00

I'm actually almost 38 weeks now, but I thought I'd post this anyway. I'm doing well, since I've past the point where I had Hannah. So that's a good sign. I guess we'll see if I make it to the due date or not, there's always a first for everything, right? Now the dilemma is finding out what to name the baby if it's a boy. If it's a girl then she will be Olivia. It's just the waiting game now :)

Our fun trip

2009-11-11T19:42:00.000-08:00

We had a lot of fun at the farm with the Shannon's. The guys had gone shooting for the day, so we teamed up to take the kids. They all had a lot of fun!

Reality check

2009-11-07T07:15:00.000-08:00

Our new travel system

Hannah couldn't get enough of the stroller and climbed in the basket, she got stuck :)

Our old Graco stroller

It's lime green with some yellow and has one picture of Winnie the Pooh, Tigger, and piglet.

So I got the infant car seat down from the attic last week to wash the liner. That's when I noticed that it was past the date where it says DO NOT USE after. So I start doing research and freaking myself out. I'm probably just paranoid, but I ended up finding a pretty good deal on the one we got. I found it at Big Lot's and it's the car seat and stroller combo for only $79! It's a Cosco brand, so hopefully it will all work out. Anywho, so now I have an extra stroller to get rid of. It's in great shape, other than needing to be cleaned. And I am going to work on that soon, hopefully. So if anyone wants a good Graco stroller, or knows someone who does, let me know. Otherwise it's going to go to Goodwill.