Perfect Sunday

I love Conference weekend. I love being with my little family and listening to all of the talks that have been prepared for us. Friday we had a stormy day and Saturday was a little cooler but Sunday was perfect. Normally we have nine o'clock church but yesterday Conference didn't start until noon. We decided to go and take advantage of the good weather and try to wear the kids out a bit. The turtles and frogs are starting to show themselves again so we ventured out to find them.

As we approached the bridge and stream we noticed that there were puddles and flooding all over the trails. Charlie and Jane couldn't resist. I noticed them from afar after it was too late. So I just decided to capture it.

They were soaked and certainly worn out.

7-52

We are trying to eat a little better at our house and so every Monday morning I make two loaves of whole wheat bread. The kids love to help any time we are baking. This is what I look like each morning before getting ready. I hope this is the last scary picture you'll see.

Running Away

The other day while driving in the car Charlie was teasing his sister. (this is not out of character for him) I let him know that we would be home any minute and he would be sitting on time out. This is when he informed me that he wouldn't be sitting on time out because he was going to run away. Mike's quick response was "fine, then I'll help you pack."

I'm not so sure that was the right thing for him to say because Charlie seemed to be pleased and excited. I tried to tell him that I would really miss him and he turned to Jane and said "you want to come with me?"

I asked him what he would do when he got hungry or scared and he said "then I'll just come in the house". I'm not quite sure he knows what running away from home is yet. He seemed to have a nice camp out with his sister so I guess that took care of the teasing.

Oh Why Did I Start This?

You know this is really a stretch and struggle to get myself behind the camera. I didn't know I was signing up for something so hard. 6-52

Mom and Dad's 50th Wedding Anniversary

We were able to celebrate Mom and Dad's 50th Wedding Anniversary on the Island of Oahu with their five and spouses. It was really fun to vacation together and just relax. Here are some pictures from our adventure.Richard, Anne, Andy, Matt, Brian, LeslieKimber and Mike , We are at the Pearl Harbor memorial.

(I am totally counting any picture that I'm in toward my yearly goal 5-52 )

Richard, Anne, Brian, Leslie, Dad, Mom, Andy, Matt, Mike, Kimber, Roger, RuthThis made Mom laugh every night. We would all gather together in Mom and Dad's room and about half of us would have would be working a laptop. Oh the modern day.

We had a wonderful trip and were able to make a lot of fun memories. Mom and Dad have lived such good lives and have great kids to show for it. I am certainly lucky to be a part of this family.

My sister Debi watched our children in Utah and here is an excerpt from her email update of how the kids were doing.

Tonight when Janie was saying her prayers, Charlie kept telling her to bless baby Mya. She would stop her prayer to tell Charlie 'no'. Then Charlie would cry because she wouldn't say it. So, I told him to say it in his prayer. I think he was going to until Janie told him to then he deliberately left out blessing baby Mya. They can really push each others buttons when they want to. Mags is so easy! She is happy, giggly and can down her bottle or a jar of food in less than a minute! The funny thing is when she is seated eating her food, she is so excited that she keeps her hands raised in the air with her wrists going around and around, and her legs kicking. She is so happy. Then when she gets a little cranky she goes right down. Easy!

I've been getting after the kids to clean up their messes. Charlie will go right over and start to clean up but when I tell Janie to go help she suddenly goes deaf! Yesterday I was getting lunch ready and told them to go pick up the marbles. Charlie went right over and started picking them up but Janie just dottled around the room. I told Charlie to pick up half of them and told Janie when she picked up the rest she could come eat lunch. She was slow and cried a bit but in a few minutes she was up to the counter ready for lunch. They really are good if I remind them to clean up and make sure they do it.

Be Jealous

Be very jealous. This is what I get to wake up to every morning. Eat your heart out.

This last picture I like to call "Nina hair". This is what my mother looks like after she wakes up. Totally flat back of the head hair. Have any of you ever noticed that my husband has an amazing ability to look super creepy at a moments notice?

Too Much Fun - 4-52

This week we are celebrating Ivan and Helene Croslands 50th Wedding Anniversary. (My in laws) Their five children and spouses (that's me, a spouse)are playing and enjoying our time together in Hawaii. We are soaking up the sun. That is why I'll post more pictures later.

It was time to post another photo so here is one of Leslie and I in the backseat of our convertible.

3-52

Time for another photo. I should invest in a tripod.

An Honest Prayer

Charlie and I had a really good day yesterday. He was very sweet and helpful and he was even nice to his sister. You know, one of those moments where you see that they have been listening all those other times. Last night we went up to bed and he said his prayers.

"Dear Heavenly Father, bless our Aunt Trish so her brain can get smart like mine. Please make me be nice to my sister. Make me always be a good boy. And please make me be in first place all of the time so I can always beat my friends. In the name of Jesus Christ Amen."

It was one of those moments where I tried not to laugh out loud. My favorite is when he told Heavenly Father to "make me" I'm not sure if that was a challenge or a request. I really feel like this was the best prayer he has given so far. I'm certain that he meant every word.

Catch Up

So much has been going on and I have completely forgotten about blogging. Weird I know. This also means that I haven't checked any one's blog in over a week. That's really strange for me. So here is a little catch up.
I purchased some items from my sisters store in Colorado. She sells home decor and other fun little things. You can check out her cute stuff at http://www.homeaccentsonline.net/ . My children loved the packaging a little more than I did. The dip in the box started out a little cute and then turned into a giant mess.

They had fun despite our efforts in telling them to stay in the box. The racing became more fun as they would run from the dining room into the living room. They liked watching all of the popcorn fall off as they ran at "super speed". I left for book club in the middle of this fiasco and by some miracle the home was clean when I returned. Woohoo. (Thanks a lot Nancy)

A few days later we had a real snow day. Here are some pics of the kids getting ready to go outside. Have I ever told anyone that when it snows an inch, schools are canceled? You heard me right. They were cancelled for two days even though by the afternoon of the first day roads were clear. In our county there are some rural routes and so school is easily canceled for very mild snow days. It's a little ridiculous.

Last, I would like to show you what happens when some of us ladies decide to get together for lunch. We thought it would be fun to get take out every other Wednesday. You know, mingle, laugh, let the kids play together while we enjoy adult conversation. Yesterday was only our second time. Here is a picture that I couldn't resist taking. Do you see a problem here?

Yeah, that's right. Some of the boys just couldn't handle knowing the fun we would be having. For a moment we looked over at the table and thought. Where are we going to sit? I do love it when my husband can't resist joining in. We had a great time.