Playing Trains

Well one of my new goals is to do something "with" each of the little kiddos each day.  This is not my forte!! Pretending and playing is not on my list of things to get done for the day.  But I realize that my kids will not be little forever and that I should get down and play with them every now and then.  Some of you are great at this and I look to your examples! anyway so the other day as I was playing trains with Beckett we were driving our trains along his paper track and racing, I went off the track and into the road, and he says," Mom, that doesn't make any sense you can't go on the road, you go like this." And he proceeds to jump his train from one track to the other instead of driving on the road.  So in his logical mind, jumping trains is way more sensible than driving trains on the road, love it!

Keeping the Sabbath Day

So proud of my Brookie! When I asked her why she wasn't going to play with her AAU basketball team on Sundays she said, "I have seen too many people start playing on Sundays and then its all downhill and they start losing their testimony.  Basketball is not worth that."  Oh so wise for an 11 year old.  Hope she keeps it up!

Jan 19?

Well I think the day was the 19th anyway, not too sure now that I think about it though.  I just had to write about this day, because in a month or so I want to look back and be able to laugh about it.  Let me tell you the preceding circumstances.
Tues: New Beginnings with Brooklyn, we took Carson with cause he was feeling a bit sick and cranky, the other kids stayed with Connie.  I can't believe Brooklyn will be in YW's this year. WOW!  We get home and the power is off in a quarter of the house, we flip breakers and everything and nothing is working.  Chas is leaving Thurs to go out of town till Tues for his Grandma's funeral in CO.  He comes to bed late and can't figure it out, plus got shocked trying to figure it out.  Not HAPPY!
Wed:  Take the cat in to get spayed. Call Bro. Rogers to see if he can come and help figure out the electrical as Chas is leaving in the AM. Comes over can't figure it out.  Chas has to go and do his tutoring for a guy in our ward, then comes back around 8, and thankfully Bro. Rogers comes back out and they get it all figured out and working by about 9, they give Carson a blessing and I go to bed.
Thurs:  Chas doesn't leave until about 7, he had to work until 6, comes home for a few minutes and then says goodbye. Pick up the cat from the vet and they tell us she has to stay in for 7 days, seriously??? kiliing me here!  Sorry no cats in this house, so we go and buy a little carrier thing.
Fri: I am thinking I am going to get so much done, (I need to stop thinking that way, cause everytime I do something happens, like the post I wrote the day Carson was born HAHA!!) I think Heavenly Father just laughs when I write my to do list in my head, maybe it's His way of saying, "Hey those things aren't that important to get done." I don't know.... Anyway the kids are off school, so I start by trying to get the laundry room/ garage cleaned out. The kids have a pretty easy day, with no chores so the house is a wreck.  Connie and Verl bring over pizza and we watch a movie, Carson is really fussy, finally goes to sleep around 9.
Sat: Carson is up multiple times in the night, hasn't kept much down since Wed.  Wakes up at 4 and throws up all over the bed in his room where we were sleeping. Take all the sheets off clean him up at try to go back to sleep, ya right! He finally sleeps for about 30 min. about 5:30.  I feed him again at 6:30 and lay him down at 7, I change into my shorts thinking I really an adrenaline rush to get through the day and am going to exercise, I take one bite of breakfast and Brooklyn yells "Mom! Carson threw up all over your bed!"  All over the sheets, blankets, everything.  At this point I am trying to remember the last wet diaper he had, and how he is not keeping anything down, figure I should call my friend Donna who is a nurse and come and check him out.  We decide I should take him to the Urgent Care clinic, which the main one is closed this Sat.!! Bummer.  I go out to the car to leave and the battery is dead, I get the truck to jump the car and can't get it close enough.  Donna comes back in her car, we finally get it started! So I take him to this tiny clinic and after him fussing for 30 min  I finally get in for her to say I am sending you up to the ER.  We get to the ER, which was exceptionally quick and they test him for all kinds of things.  They give him an anti- nausea pill  in hope that he can start to keep stuff down.  They try to give him an IV, but he too dehydrated and after 5 tries they decide to try later.  That was a loonnng hour!  Donna comes up and brings me some lunch and stays with Carson so I can try and make arrangements for the other kids because they are admitting Carson. I come home get some clothes and stuff for the hospital, pack the other kids bags and are ready to leave when I notice the sink in the kitchen will not drain and just drained into the dishwasher, GROSS!!!!  As a last resort I put in the toilet plunger in the sink ( I know GROSS) and it works.  Whatever!  When it rains it pours, as my Dad would say! Anyway finally get everything taken care of and get back to the hospital......what a day!

Just had to add this one!! Thought it was a funny picture whoever snapped it.  I think I had a headache!!  Reminds me how many red streaks I have!! The older I get the more I think I look like my Mom, which is just fine with me. SHe is a beautiful woman!!  Wait is that saying I think I am beautiful? You know what I mean!

There is just something about red and white that I LOVE!!!  After making Kayla a red and white quilt, I had to make one for myself! It was painstaking though, let me tell you!! It has taken me a year and a half to get this baby this far, but I did have a baby and move twice in that year, so that's a good excuse eh?  Not really, but I so love how it turned out!! Somebody gave us a new king size bed, so now I have to figure out how to make it fit our bed, but I am thinking just a couple more border pieces will work just fine! I can't wait until it's finished and put on my bed.  I am going to get it quilted which I am so excited about!

Bath time!

What is it about bathtime? I just love all these pictures. Beckett is his best friend, and he is always looking at him for entertainment!

Love these eyes, he definitely has Brady's eyelashes!!

Our little MAN!

I just can't get enough of this little boy!! His chub is adorable, and his smiles even more so !!!!

Cross Country Skiing

Chas took the kids cross country skiing the other day at Anthony Lakes.  We were all going to go, but I couldn't find a babysitter plus I wasn't feeling that great with a major head cold. I have to admit, I was jealous!! They had so much fun!!!

I love this one.  The kids say the lady snapped it right as Brady slipped and fell. PERFECT!

Sunbeams

Today Beckett went into primary, I can't believe he is that old already.  And Brooklyn is in her last year of primary.  I got an invitation for us to go to New Beginnings next week, can't believe she will be 12.  Good thing it is not until December. Brady is very proud to be in Senior Primary now and thinks he very mature.  Haha. I asked him to go up and bear his testimony with me today, he said " Mom, that's too embarassing." made me laugh.

Just another day as Beckett...

Beckett is hilarious!! I just love watching him.  Here he is getting ready for church last Sunday.  I had Brooklyn sneak in and get a shot of him doing his hair. LOVE HIM!!  You'll have to enlarge these to get the full effect of his facial expressions in each one! too funny!

Christmas Morning

Amazing that Santa finds us every year! Again we had a wonderful Christmas and are constantly amazed at the blessings we have received over the last year.

Emree sporting her new bike, we are hoping she is brave enough to learn to ride this year without training wheels!

 Beckett got a marble run, which he loves putting together and taking apart again.

 Brooklyn and her new cd player.

 I got the boys a "Who's your Hero poster?" This one is Helaman, I think it is awesome, they are excited to hang it in their room!

The girls got one of Rebekah from the Old Testament, beautiful!

 Hanging out on Christmas morning.

 Man he is getting so big!

We got Brady a waffle iron for Christmas, he is a waffle making man, and just having one was taking a long time for him to make enough for all of us, he was excited!! As am I!!

And the stockings were hung...

We have been lucky in every house we have lived, (except Provo) we have had a fireplace with a mantle for the stockings, so here they are in all their glory, not really, but you get the idea anyway.  I made these stockings when we lived back in Provo, a long time ago, and for some reason Chas does not want to part with them.  The first four were made at the same time and each one thereafter get a little bigger, haha!! Poor Carson didn't even have one this year, but in my defense I went to make him one and Walmart doesn't carry Christmas fabric!! Since When?? Anyway I wasn't happy, and also wasn't about to spend a ton on fabric from somewhere else around here, when I really want some nice stockings someday.

 The kids and I have been trying to think of something to make to use for stocking holders, our idea started out as making snowglobes, but turned into this.  Beckett loves his "boxing glove" stocking holder, that kid cracks me up!

Anyway we all know that craftiness is not my forte, ok I am not even blessed with one crafty bone in my body, so don't laugh! But the kids and I had fun picking out the stuff and making them, so that's what counts around here!  Plus the didn't cost a lot and that's another bonus!

Christmas with the Long's

We always have a little gift exchange with the kids' adopted Grandparents here, before they leave to go and see their kids.  This year was a hit!!  We all had a great time, and the kids LOVED their gifts!

 Here are the twins, only 8 years apart.  It's kind of spooky!

 Getting ready to open presents.

 This gift was pretty funny.  Every time Verl comes out here to help Chas with a project he can never find a hammer.  So they got him a flourescent green one, hopefully this way he won't lose it!!

 I got an awesome cookbook.

 Brooklyn got a cupcake decorating book, which she loves!

 Mr. Brado got some binoculars, which have been really handy to check out the herd of elk close to our house.

 Emree was soo excited to finally get a soft teddy bear.  She got one last year for Christmas, but it ripped so we took it back and never did get another one.  She was asking me right before Christmas when I was going to get her another one.  Jeesh!!! I felt bad, didn't even think twice about it and she still was waiting for one! So she was super excited for this one.

Beckett got some trains and a mat to drive them on along with a Thomas book.

And last, but not least, here is the little guy, who really is not so little anymore.  He got a stuffed star and a book! Merry Christmas!