Where has the time gone?

Well, I know that I have a month to update on(where has the last month gone?), so here goes...
On August 21, we celebrated my birthday. I'm not too excited about my birthdays any more! And now that I'm in my 30's I'm even less excited! But not to dwell on the negative...Paul came home that morning with a cake (he was working a grave-yard shift) just for me, that he had to taste before he went to bed!

Then Kassidy, Emma, Addison, and Nathan gave me a beautiful card that Kass made and had the others sign(she was good to sign Nate's name)!
Here are 3 of the 4 kiddies wishing me "Happy Birthday"!

That was about the extent of my celebrations, as my husband had to work another grave-yard that night and I had to go grocery shopping for Emma's birthday party! Saturday the 22nd was fun as we had a family party for Emma's 6th! Her birthday wasn't until the 26th, but we try to do weekends for family parties(we have to have Sonja bring the cake!)

She did a "castle" cake this year that was a 3-D layer cake...it didn't fare too well on the 2 hour drive from Bountiful to my house! We still loved the "leaning tower of birthday cake"! But Sonja has said "No more 3-D cakes!" Thanks anyway Sonja! Emma had a great party and thanks to all who came and celebrated with us! Next we did celebrate her "real" birthday on the 26th with more gifts(thanks to grandma) and her friend party!

Fun times were had by all and Emma was a very spoiled Birthday girl!!! Next came the very dreaded day...the first day of school(only dreaded by the kids)!!

I know, totally crappy picture! But we are just lucky that I remembered, at the last second, to take a picture on the first day! Emma is now in 1st grade, that means that she has to be at school all day, but she now gets to eat lunch at school! How did she get old enough for this??? And Kassidy Grace is in the 3rd grade...multiplication and cursive writing, ahh the excitement! I love the beginning of a new school year!

Then on 9/3/09 Addison started preschool! Her teacher is Miss Becky(who is the best!) and she is loving it! Addison is NOT potty trained and Paul said that he didn't think she should be able to go to school if she wasn't trained...he was over-ruled!!! I've tried EVERYTHING I can think of to get her to go on the potty! NOPE! She is the most head strong, stubborn, non-caring child I've ever seen! So, she wins this one and gets to go to school(so I don't go crazy)! And now Nate is crawling! He is into EVERYTHING! And I don't think my house is "Nate Proof"! But he truly is the sweetest dang thing(with just a touch of the redheaded temper)! Now you're caught-up for the moment and I might remember to blog before another 5 weeks is up!

Fun for all!

Free Offer
Today I found this hard-to-pass-up offer on my friend's blog:
The first 5 people to respond to this post will get something made by me--my choice!
This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:
1. I make no guarantees you will like what I make! (I can only hope!)
2. What I create will be just for you.
3. It will be done some time this year.
4. You have no clue what it's going to be--it may be cards, something delicious, a paper weight, or a complete surprise to you (and me)! Who knows?
5. Most importantly, you must offer the same deal on your blog.
The first 5 people to comment on your blog post get something made by YOU!
I don't know how this will work, but I hope it will be fun for all(and that at least 5 people comment)
I took her up on it, so here is my official "I'm in the game" post. It's the ultimate give and take!

Crazy Times!

For those of you who watch PBS cartoons, you'll understand this...

WEIRD GIRL and her sidekick CAPTIAN NUGGIE-FACE

(Poor Nathan)

Ahh Summer Fun!

On Thursday, Aug. 6th, Kassidy had a little party! She called it a "3 hour slumber party" which was really a late night, since I don't do sleep overs! I told her that she could invite 4 friends so, they went in this order:

Katie Kjar(kassidy's best friend)

Chandler Cook (her best friend that's a boy and Addi's boyfriend)

Carlie Pay (other best friend)

And Kelcey Cook (friend since about birth)

They started @ 7pm with a few games: musical sleeping bags, sleeping beauty, and all tied up. Then they made individual fruit pizzas. Yummy! And ended the evening by watching "Horton Hears a Who"! Then the kids were returned home by 10pm! Good times all around!

Kicked my butt!

Wednesday morning Paul woke up and proceeded to ask us what we were doing that day! This is a normal occurrence, and usually we don't have an answer for him! Well that morning he asked if we wanted to go hike to Timpanogos cave. I think that every one's first response was "NO!" , but no one voiced this except Emma! I asked him what we were going to do with Nathan and Addison, so he got online and showed me that it was a paved trail so we could take the stroller! So, I conceded and after 2 1/2 hours getting everyone ready we were off!

Well, over an hour later we were inside the National Park! We got the little newsletter as we were pulling up to park and I happened to read "no strollers!" WHAT?? I told Paul that I was NOT going to do this hike if I had to pack a kid up it! He said that he would leave if I wanted to, but he thought we could do it! I, of course, didn't want to look like a wimp, so I said that we'd do it! Well, 1 hour and 18 minutes, 1 1/2 miles and over 1,000 feet higher in elevation we made it! Now I've actually been working out regularly for the 7 weeks, so I thought I was in pretty good shape...This trail was HARD!!! It probably didn't help that I was packing either Addi or Nate the entire time or that we started the hike at 3:45pm(the HOT part of the day), or that the trail is REALLY steep! But we did it!!!

Nate was really thirsty, since he'd worked so hard! Once at the top, we had about a 20 minute wait then we got to take the cave tour! This was really cool(literally too since it's about 47* inside the mountain) since we got to tour 3 different caves all hooked together. And see really cool formations!

The tour was about 30 minutes and about 20 minutes in Addison needed to "go really bad"! And Nathan thankfully fell asleep! We got to see the "Heart of Timpanogos" Which is this huge stalactite that they put a red light behind and really does look like a heart! Once we got out of the caves Paul and Addi headed off to the "emergency potty" and thankfully it was just in time! Oh the fun of trying to potty train Addison!! Once we were back at the van, Kassidy told me that the hike was worth it after we got to see the caves! Emma wasn't as sure, but she did like the cave. Nate was happy to have his bottle, and Addi was happy to be off the trail! Over all we agreed that the tour made our hard work worth it!

Don't they look happy? Fun family times!!

Wow! I'm so bad!

Summer is almost over and yet, I've posted NOTHING this whole summer! I know I should have been sooo much better, but...

So here are some highlights from our summer so far...
We started the summer with a trip to Moab on the first weekend in June! We went with the Lucas family(Paul works with Tim, the dad), and Stretch(Paul also works with him). We had lots of fun...

Can't you see how much fun Kassidy was having! This was as we started up the trail called "Hell's Revenge" which is known as an extreme trail, but isn't too bad if you sit back and just enjoy the ride! Addi was also having so much fun she had to go to sleep! But Kassidy ditched us and rode with the others in our group and decided that Moab trails weren't too bad if she didn't have to ride with her parents! Poor girl!

Next was Addison's birthday...

I still can't believe this girl is 3! Kass seemed so"big" when she was 3 and Em was just so tiny, but grown-up, but Addi May is just still so little! But she tries to be big when she wants to!

We had a nice family party out under the carport, and of course Auntie Sonja made the cake that was requested!

Addi decided months before her birthday that she wanted a "care bear" birthday so luckily Sonja came through(again)!! Addi loved having family here to help her celebrate and is thankful to her uncle Royal for putting her princess scooter together(her daddy was on the phone with the Sunday school president at the time)! Great job, Roys! Later that night Paul took Kassidy and Emma to the Mormon Miracle Pageant! They got eaten by bugs, Emma fell asleep 1/2 way through, and got a little cold...BUT over all they enjoyed it! And they actually made it home a little before midnight!

And to end the month off just right, we got a puppy! Dagney is the newest member of our family! She is a black lab, who likes to chew on little girls and stuffed animals! We LOVE her!

Now onto July...

Here are the cuties waiting for the "Mammoth" parade on the 4th! Woo Hoo! Got loads of taffy and Nana got a T-Shirt(actually Dan got it, but Angie told him to give it to her Mom)!

After the parade, it was on to the park to have fun at the carnival! They did it better this year, just big items like the all famous 25' water slide! Addi was all for it, until she got to the top, then she started screaming and crying for me and I was NOT about to climb up there and get her! I know that doesn't make me the BEST mom, but oh well! So I sent Emma back up there and she had to literally PUSH Addison down the water slide! Needless to say, she didn't want to go back up! Then after the carnival, we went to Royal and Janielle's for more fun and games and yummy dinner! Then we were all set to watch the city fireworks, but it started raining and blowing so they were cancelled! Oh well!

The weekend of the 10th we had a family reunion! It was just for the day at a park in Draper(can we say WIND), and lunch was catered...this is the way to do family reunions! I, of course, didn't take ANY pictures! But it was great fun! And the kids had even more fun, since they went to Sonja's house on Friday afternoon and didn't come home until Monday afternoon! Lucky kids, Sonja was in for a REAL adventure since my cousin and her 5 kids also stayed with Sonja! I'm so sorry I missed all the fun!

Then on the weekend of the 24th we were back in Moab! Yes, we understood that it was MOAB in JULY, but we were all feeling adventurous! We took a day and did a trail called "elephant hill" that took us through the needles district of Canyonlands! It was fun and Frank got a good dose of whiplash! Jamie and Ryan rented a Jeep and went with us! Great Fun!Then the next day we went to Dead horse point and Arches! It was warm, but fun all around!

Then Paul and I finished the month with trip to Park City. Our anniversary is on the 8th of August, but Paul has to work then! So we took last weekend to celebrate! The girls stayed with Grandma and Nate got to stay with Sonja and Frank! With Frank giving him crawling lessons! And I missed it!!

Spring Break!!!

I know that I'm a bit late (like a month) to show our spring break pictures, but oh well. I just got them uploaded on my computer! We started out the trip with our first stop at Lake Powell! How beautiful, all that blue water! And the weather was warm, but a little windy! Then it was back in the van and on to Flagstaff, AZ where we stayed!

Our first day we went to Sedona, which was so beautiful! And if you want a psychic reading...this is the place to go! The girls were happiest when they got to hike and climb on rocks(so easily entertained)! Here they are waiting to hike up to "bell tower" rock. Nate and I hiked a little of the way and Paul and the girls went the rest of the way! Addi takes after her grandpa Kay, she's like a mtn. goat when she's "hiking" just like him.

The next day was supposed to be yucky weather, so I decided we should go to the Grand Canyon. BAD IDEA! We never did see the Grand Canyon, except in the IMAX movie we watched before we entered the park! But we saw LOTS of snow! Here's our documentation that we WERE there. Emma refused to get out of the van, so she and I have no proof that we were there! But we were!!! We tried to wait out the snow, and Addi kept saying that she wanted to "climb on the Grand Canyon", but it NEVER stopped! So our kids will now have great memories of the Grand Canyon!

The next day we made our way home, and it was a much better day, we stopped at Lake Powell again and had our Easter Egg Hunt. It was a beautiful day for this, 73' outside ! And the water was not too cold...we couldn't keep the girls out of it! I asked them to please not get their clothes wet, though!

Emma had a small problem with this request! She ended up sitting down, a lot! But they had a blast and now can't wait to go back to Lake Powell! Expect a blog update on that soon!!!

5 months now!

He just keeps growing! On Wednesday Nate turned 5 months!!!! Where is the time going? He is getting more fun everyday(except for the puking on me)! His new thing is trying to blow raspberries! But he is constantly chewing on his fingers so he's always slimy, and then he now blows that "slime" all over while trying for raspberries!

He's also VERY ticklish, so it's fun to make him laugh and laugh! But of course when the camera was on he was more interested in it than laughing for me! Last night Kassidy was holding him for me so I could get the others ready for bed...

Kass loves to read and from the looks of things Nate does too! Nate loves all of his sisters, but Kass can make him laugh the best! She is such a good "mama"!

Out of the mouth of Kass...

Kassidy is neurotic! I'm not kidding! She is a little bit OCD too! She gets something into her mind and she doesn't drop it, and she obsesses and talks about it constantly! But I do love her, don't get me wrong! Just this morning she was getting dressed and as some of you know this alone is a trial for her. Anything that goes on her butt MUST have a proper and perfect fit or she is bugged all day! Her favorite thing to wear is "stretchy pants"(yes think Nacho Librae?). And she loves granny panties(you know the briefs that come up to the armpits)! Well this morning I handed her clothes to her and told her to get dressed(she has a hard time matching things and likes me to do it for her). I had given her "bikini briefs" and jeans. I forgot that this is a dangerous combination for her. All morning long she was messing with her pants. Pulling her panties up, so she felt covered enough, then pulling the wedgie? out. Then finally as I was drying her bangs she said in her most pitiful voice, "I want my granny panties!!!" I told her that we had no time for her to change and she would just have to deal! I know, I'm a mean mom! But sometimes I have to help her through her neuroses!

Time Flies

Oh, my goodness...where has the time gone? My little (ok, quite chubby) Nathan is 4 months old today! Crazy times!
He is such a joy to have! All of his sisters love him so much! Even Addi, she's had no jealousy towards him! He's so good! And the happiest kid I've ever seen! He's slept through the night since he was 8 weeks old and only really fusses when he's hungry or messy! Although his favorite place is in Mommy's arms!

We are all so blessed and grateful to have him in our lives! We love you Nafan!

Another Crazy Saturday!

Kassidy's Turn
I told Kass that I would take her to Build-a-Bear after her birthday and baptism. So we finally went at the end of February! I said that it would be a trip for just the 2 of us, but it didn't work that way.(with 3 other kids how can it?) We started out in Bountiful and we were all going to ride front runner down to trax and then trax to the Gateway. Well, we missed the train by 10 minutes, so my mom decided that we should go to 13th South and ride trax to the Gateway(so the kids could still get the experience). So, we made it to the Trax station at 13th South and got in line to buy tickets and Sonja, Nate, Kassidy, Grandma, Emma, and Addison all got tickets and on the train. Jamie and I were slower and my ticket came out right as the train took off! So there the two of us were waiting for 15 minutes for the next train. I had no children, no purse(just the diaper bag my purse was in the stroller with Nate), no cell phone, and no key to MY van(Sonja drove it so she had the key). As we were standing there in that WONDERFUL neighborhood I asked Jamie(my sister) "why am I willingly leaving my van here?" Finally then next train arrived and we made it to the Gateway and Grandma was waiting for us. We then trekked on to Build-A-Bear.

Kassidy picked a bunny and the fun began! Sonja, Grandma, Emma, Addison, and Nate all waited patiently while Jamie and I walked along with Kass!

Don't they look like they were having SO much fun?

Kassidy is silly, fun, and sweet but I truly HATE shopping with her when she has to get something! She one of those girls who takes FOREVER to make up her mind! Decisions are so hard for her! So I was running out of patience with her over the outfits! Luckily her aunt Jamie was there to support her!
And here is the finished bunny! She named her cinnamon and dressed her in jammies and Grandma bought her the "bunny slippers" that I told her cost too much and I wouldn't buy! Good thing for grandmas right?

Then it was back to Trax with all of us making it on the same train for the ride back to 13th South and what do you know? My van was still there! Darn it!(I'm ready for something else to drive ;-)


Sonja, Jamie, Addison, Grandma, Kassidy, Nate, and Emma!

A little bit of fun!

Hell-o world, I am still alive! I'm sure no one was actually wondering, but each time I thought of updating I wondered! This past Saturday we went on a little adventure! My husband is so much like his dad, if they are not working on Saturdays it's a day to get out of the house! No house or yard work!!! Saturday is a day for DOING something fun or GOING somewhere not home! As this was one of Paul's Saturdays not working (as a coal miner it always varies) we had to GO! No one had any suggestions, so he had to come up with a plan on his own! The rest of us are usually up for adventure, just not planning it! He did well all on his own! We went "exploring" Nine Mile Canyon. This road starts in Wellington, UT (just east of Price) and eventually will end up in Myton, UT(between Duchesne and Roosevelt). Paul read the info and printed out driving instructions (6 times) and said the road was 40 miles. It was dirt, but easily taken in a "family sedan" according to the info sheet. I must say that it needed to have rained the day before, because my van is so dusty you almost can't tell its red! According to our info sheet Nine Mile Road was the most important in the early development of the Uintah Basin (I grew up there and had never heard of this?). The road was carved in the late 1880's and was needed to supply the 300 soldiers garrisoned at Fort Duchesne, and it linked with the nearest rail head in Price. For the next quarter of a century the road was the most heavily traveled in eastern Utah. It was the main route for stagecoach, mail,freight, an telegraph into the Uintah Basin. It was a 6 day journey by wagon from Price to Ft. Duchesne. Thankfully it didn't take us that long!!

This was the first stop we made to see petroglyphs up close! You can kind of see them at the side of the girls' heads. All along the way we saw a plethora of amazing petroglyphs! And the girls found them so cool, until they had seen ENOUGH! But we also got to see the "pigs head" rockAnd Nutter's Ranch which once had a 15 room hotel and a saloon. The ranch was also used as a relay station for the telegraph between Ft. Duchesne and Price, and one of the cabins housed soldiers assigned to the telegraph relay! And a ghost town (Harper). Also on this little trip we got to see one of the most well known petroglyph panels, The Hunter Panel. Even Nathan got to get in on the fun! He got to pose in this picture and go on a little hike to see lots of petroglyphs but mostly he was just chillin' in his seat!

When I said that Paul said it was40 miles, he didn't read all of his info correctly! In his mind(and what he told me) it was a 40 mile long dirt road that started in Wellington and ended in Myton. I wondered how that could be, but didn't ask, since I was just along for the ride! Actually, Nine Mile Road is 40 miles until you get to the turn for Gate Canyon. Gate Canyon is the road that you take to get to Myton, which is 37 miles long all by itself! I would suggest doing what we did, Do the whole Nine Mile Road and forget about Gate Canyon. When you've seen all you can in Nine Mile, turn around and go back to Price for dinner(unless of course, you have a good reason to go to Myton?)! Over all, this was a fun little day trip and enjoyed by all! Thanks Paulie!