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Brayden...again!!

Well we have yet another doctor visit for Brayden. Somehow he fell off a nine foot cement driveway and was no worse for wear, but play Santa Claus with his brother, Brock, and watch out!! Somehow, in Brayden's words, Brock dodged him and he hit the table...I don't know I never knew Santa Claus could be so dangerous but with our boys I guess anything goes! So for Christmas this year Brayden got six stitches! He handled it well...didn't cry at all until i got home and changed the band aid...go figure...the shots don't hurt...the stitches don't hurt...but take off a band aid... :)

Makeover!!!

Well, with Chei's help my bathroom got a makeover this week!! I didn't get any before pics but lets just say it really needed it! Our baseboards were cracking (Darrin and a friend replaced those-my hero!!), our towel rack was broken off the wall (another heroic act by Darrin got a new one put on the wall :) ), and we didn't have a shower curtain...yes, it was sad. Oh and it is our guest bathroom....so here are the pics of my new bathroom...after lots of painting by Chei and I and lots of scraping paint off the floors by Tristan and Jordan it had its unveiling on Thanksgiving. Yay to new bathrooms!! :)

Yes Chei and I were a little crazy off the fumes!!

The finished product!!

13!!!

Tristan turned the big 13 last Thursday. I told her the whole week before she couldn't cop an attitude because she wasn't 13 yet...I am still trying to come up with a good reason she can't cop one now...If you have any ideas let me know!! :)Anyways, here's too our little girl all growing up. sniff sniff. She is a great kid and we are blessed to have her 13 and all.

Halloween

I couldn't wait to post the families costumes. Some how the kids all ended up in black...and Darrin ended up in pink-he just can't help but try to prove he looks good as a woman. I guess we all know what he would like as an old woman...and it just isn't pretty

Brayden's Adventure!!

Well...we always knew that life with 4 boys was bound to end us up in the hospital at some point but we didn't expect that with 4 boys we would end up being blessed to stay out of the hospital after an 8-9 foot fall onto cement!! Brayden has been learning to ride his 2 wheeler bike and decided to try his new found skill on our neighbors driveway. Unfortunately as he got to the end he forgot how to brake and rode his bike right off of their (8-9 foot dropoff) driveway onto a cement pad. I didn't see it happen and when he came in he didn't tell me what he had done...just that he had fallen and needed a bandaid on his face. So I bandaged him up and sent him back out to play. 2 hours later as we were getting ready for lunch, Kenzie asked if we should include a prayer of thanks for keeping Brayden safe in our prayers. I asked her why and she said because he had fallen off the driveway. I had Brayden show me what happened and sure enough he had...the kids had found his bike earlier and figured it out but nobody thought to tell me. :) So Darrin and I watched him like a hawk all day yesterday, did pupil tests, taste tests, smell tests, amnesia tests, confusion tests and Darrin stayed up all night with him. Everything looked good except he said his arm hurt. So we took him to the doctor today and they said all looked good but they would have him wear a brace for a week just to make sure and if at the end of the week he was pain free he could take it off. I don't know how Brayden wasn't seriously injured...I only know we have said many prayers of thanks and I, even more than ever, know that miracles still happen today.

A side view of the driveway Brayden rode off of.

A view from the top of the driveway...his bike landed next to the wood piece on the left, he landed next to the one on the right.

Brayden's face injuries...I really thought he just fell off his bike on the road...nothing there to clue me in to the extremity of the accident.

Brayden's brace...he is really using it to his advantage...I should get this because I have a brace, I should get to do that because I have a brace.... :)

Brock's Baptism

Brock was baptized on Saturday, October 11th!! It is hard to believe he is old enough but here we are with 3 of the 5 baptized!! We were so proud of him and had a great day with much family support and lots of good food! Thanks to all who came and supported Brock and thanks to Debbie and fam who tried to come but got sick (again poor things :) ).
Sunday I was set apart as Mia Maid advisor so that will be a fun new adventure. I am looking forward to being in Young Women's with Tristan (although she is still a Beehive for another year). The boys are disappointed I am not in Primary but they got me for a few years so I guess it is okay. :)
Well off to prepare my first lesson.....

Happy Birthday to Barb!!

This weekend was Barb's birthday (August 17) so we celebrated by having a girls' weekend. Chei, Barb, Becky, and I started the weekend by staying at Chris and Jen's house and staying up till 3 in the morning taking color coding tests!! Go blue!! The next day we met Debbie, Jan, and Wendy up at Jackson Hole. Thanks to Wendy and her friend, Mark, we were able to rent a raft and go white water rafting and having a great time. The water was freezing but we couldn't resist hopping in anyway!! Barb and I showed we aren't too old to scare ourselves to death by rock jumping into the river off a high (well to me anyway) cliff that we had to do a little rock climbing just to get to. Somehow I put off my fear of heights enough to do it. The real adventure didn't really begin until we got to the end of our river run and realized that we had locked the keys in the car (we really wouldn't have known what to do without some sort of mishap...it wouldn't have been a real girls' weekend). Becky and I waited with the car until the everyone else returned from finding cell phone service to call AAA. That night we stayed at Wendy's apartment thanks to her and her roommate, Chelsea's, generosity. We started the next morning right by having birthday strawberry shortcake for breakfast and were off, returning to our everyday adventures of kids, work, and more kids!! :)

AAAH....is it that time already??

So I dropped Tristan off at the church today for...Girls' Camp!! Yes... she is old enough to start the next phase of her (and our)life! I have to admit after dropping her off and saying goodbye to her for the next 4 days I had to hold back a little tear. I can't believe the stages I am reaching...Tristan is in Young Women's, she will be starting junior high in less than 3 weeks, Jordan will be in 6th grade, Brock in 2nd grade and my babies, Brayden and Connor will be going to Kindergarten! Wow...I think the last week of August will be a bit emotional for me watching my kids move on to the next phases of independence. It really does seem like I just brought Tristan home from the hospital as a little black haired baby....oh well...at least I am still only 21...

Here is Tristan on her first day of school...where does the time go?

Ooh sweet summer!!

This will be kind of a long post...it has been a busy week. But it has been a fun one for the kids and I!! Last Friday, Becky and I took our kids and Barb's kids to the Hill Air Force Base Museum. It was fun!! We talked about Great Grandpa York serving in World War II and just let them look at the planes, uniforms, and atomic bombs!! We looked as scary as the planes...2 women and 10 children...we got some funny looks but had a great time and didn't end up causing any major explosions!

Saturday the kids and I (minus Tristan who was at a friend's cabin) went to the lake with relatives and had a great time. I love the lake and my kids seemed to share my enthusiasm. I got up on wakeboarding for the first time and that was great. I didn't do any awesome tricks like Kurt but I felt cool just because I stayed up for a few minutes!! Jordan knee boarded for the first time and got up on his knees for a minute. I was so proud!! Brayden, Connor, Jordan, and Brock all enjoyed the hot dog tube ride. Brayden was so excited...he is going to be my little dare devil I'm afraid. It was a great Saturday and I felt like I could finally say it was summer after a fun day at the lake.

Woo Hoo! Just don't ask me to move from this spot!! :)

Here is Brayden bouncing the hot dog himself because it just wasn't wild enough for him!!

Brock, Caleb, and I after our great crash!! Caleb and Brock were so proud. They still talk about how cool they are because they crashed first and how crashing is soooo fun!


Jordan just before his fateful time of getting his knees on the board...way to go!!

Wednesday, Becky, Chris, Jen, Dad, Kendra, and I went to Jackson Hole and visited Wendy. We went up to Jenny Lake and enjoyed the view of the river coming out of the lake and lots of junk food! Then we went rafting down the river with the Mad River Rafting Company which Wendy works for. It was a beautiful day, perfect weather, and the river was so relaxing and pretty. We saw bald eagles, pelicans, and even a vulture waiting for us to drown...we disappointed him-thank heavens. So thanks to Wendy for making such an adventure possible. I feel as though this week has really brought in the vacation part of summer as most of my days are filled with kids, kids, kids and the messes that go with! :)





Well back to real life...for now!!

Tagged

Joys:
1. Watching my kids play with each other and getting to know their fun personalities.
2. Spending time with my wonderful hubby who now has a job with normal hours and reasonable expectations (finally!!)
3. Serving and friendship...I think the two go together more often than not.
4. Of course the gospel and the savior...what greater joy is there.


Fears:
1. To echo what has been said in many other blogs...to lose a loved one...even if it is for only a "blink of an eye"
2. That I will not teach my children all they need to know to fulfill their divine purposes on this earth.
3. That I will not do all I can to fulfill my divine purpose on this earth...that I will have any serious regrets at the end of my life.
4. Heights


Goals:
1. To raise my children to the very best of my ability.
2. To be a good wife, mother, and person.
3. To become a spin teacher although I am feeling a little chicken on this one. :)
4. To serve others, to be a good friend, to make people laugh, and to lift others and help them see the good they have to offer.


Current Obsessions:
1. Gardening (see below pictures), it is amazing that someone as black thumbed as I am can actually get things to grow!!
2. Blogging...and why can't I get the spacing to go right on my last paragraph
3. Reading...Twilight...reading
4. Sugar...mostly jellybeans, gum drops, and swedish fish...but really any kind of sugar!!

Random Surprising Facts:

1. I have killed a cactus (proof of above "black thumb" comment)

2. I love peanut butter on cheddar cheese (not singles...the real stuff)

3. I LOVE math. I took Calculus in college just because I thought it sounded fun.

4. I couldn't stand chocolate until I was pregnant with Brock and the twins...now I find myself actually craving it at times...although a plain old Hershey bar still sounds repulsive!

I now tag Chris (I know not fair but I really want to know his list!!), Cheilah, and Debbie

The villain, the heroine, and the hero.

Here is the wonderful story I was able to go see at Brock's school. It was so cute I HAD to post it!!

Just Hanging Out

For all of you wondering what life is like with five boys in the house here you go. For fun they wrestle, play video games, play ninja (don't ask just picture bruises, cuts, and tears!!), and now have learned a new way to just hang out. To all the boys out there-play away!!

A Well Balanced Diet

Last night Tristan performed at her last concert for orchestra. She did great and looked beautiful...much better than her blurry pic shows!! :) As much as we got used to having the cello around, she decided it is not for her...oh well, maybe another child will make great music around the house! We have high hopes for Brayden who can be seen jamming to hymns in the middle of sacrament meeting. :) Afterwards we decided to go out for dinner to celebrate (Tristan's performance...not the fact she is quitting!!) We took one look at Connor and realized he has the idea of a balanced diet down. Now that is a diet we can all handle!! By the way he ate it all and topped it off with french fries!

Turn left here...no, wait, right...no wait left...

There is nothing quite like womens conference...lots of laughter, long lines, the best brownies, really sore feet, amazing service and the spirit that can only come from the presence of tens of thousands of women, united by purpose and the love of God. The only thing that is even better is going with family who is also attending, hoping to become better wives, mothers, and individuals. Womens conference is a time to reflect, reevaluate, and remember who we really are and what we are really here to accomplish. Just days before we left I was telling a friend how overwhelmed I was with my inadequacy and my lack of influence on the world. I felt that I wasn't making any sort of difference for anyone. After Women's Conference I had a renewed vision of the importance of motherhood, sisterhood, and service. I realized that I was doing exactly what I was supposed to be doing. I may never be in the headlines or win the nobel peace prize but in the eyes of my family I am a hero. We, as women of God, do have purpose- greater than we realize most days. Changing diapers, doing endless laundry, teaching our children their divine worth, being an example to friends, standing firm in our beliefs and not apologizing when much of the rest of the world thinks that only women in the spotlight and the news matter....these are the things we do daily to make our portion of the world a better place. To all mothers, sisters, daughters, grandmothers, and friends...keep up the good work...nothing is more important than the work you do.

Prayer Rocks...Multiple Uses

Each of my four boys came back from church on Sunday holding a prayer rock...not a little run of the mill prayer rock but a nice sized, if you lay your head on your pillow you will feel this rock, prayer rock. Darrin and I looked at each other and said, "Rules, now!" No throwing, hitting, or tossing. Four boys...four rocks....hmmmm. Needless to say, yesterday they came home with the rocks, today Connor has one less rock and Brayden has one nice goose egg. I am not sure if that is really the purpose of the prayer rocks but I will say Connor took one look at Dad and started to pray...maybe they really do work.

Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own

As many know, this last year has been a tough one. But one thing I have learned is we truly are here to help each other. I wanted to start my blog by saying thank you. Thank you to all who have lifted and loved me and kept me on solid ground. Without you I don't think I would still be smiling, loving, and laughing, and on most days doing even more than just surviving. Thank you to my honey who is still my best friend, who is always trying today to be better than he was yesterday, who laughs with me (and sometimes at me), and sees my good and my bad and loves me anyway! Thank you to Becky who is a sister at her finest...a friend, a confidante, a supporter, and a cheerleader. You tell me constantly that I am doing ok and that tomorrow will be a better day and you can somehow listen and talk even with 3 kids in your background and 8 in mine (Barb's kids are here too!) Thank you to Barb who tells me I am strong and beautiful, everyone needs someone who makes them feel they still have so much too offer even when life gets you down. Thank you to my good friend Taunie for knowing more about me than any friend should have to and loving me and my family wholeheartedly. Thank you to Wendy (and her friends) for making me laugh and making me feel funny...a true compliment from the master comedian. Thank you to Chris and Jen for showing me true strength in the face of adversity, for keeping my faith alive in the power of the human spirit, and for always putting others first and caring about other people's problems even when theirs are biggers than most of us could ever imagine. Thank you to Grandma, Aunt Luan, Dad, Kendra, Cheilah, Adam,and Marylyn and Jack for always being concerned about our financial situations and helping us in every way you can while still letting us know you realize we are truly doing all we can...thank you for loving us, and never making us feel second rate. Thank you to my kids for making me smile always. Thank you to too many others to name but please know we truly do need each other and I truly do appreciate you all. I love you!!