Nate said it first...

So....Nate and I were laughing hysterically because he's built so funny. Its not as bad as it looks in the one picture, so DON"T email me with concerns for my chubbo! But Nate pointed out that he is built like my grandpa Mac...and brother Jerry...both of which liked their tighty whities too!

Primary Program

So this is probably my favorite Sunday of the year...when I'm not in primary...because there is nothing so sweet as the little kids singing and bearing their tender testimonies. I had to sit in the front row with the youngest kids, so the audience had full view of us! I was actually pleasantly surprised...we only had a few episodes(one punch-but it was behind the pew so no one saw). Anyways...everyone tries to look their best for the day. The girls discovered that their Christmas skirts from 2 years ago still fit(not sure how it ever did fit Avery then) so they were determined to wear them. Have to find some new gold shirts...Walmart had some gold satin ones that would look good with them...anyways...Kolbe is getting so big and handsome. I love my good boy...he's a treasure. Eli borrowed on of Kolbe's old ties and thought he was hot stuff! Well....he was!

On a side note...WE ARE POTTY TRAINED! For the first time in 9+ years there are no poopy diapers here...pull ups for bed, but I can handle that! WHOO HOOO!

From one tight wad to another

So, I am insanely addicted to the thrill of a good deal...so I'm sharing my good fortune! I LOVE the Childrens Place clothes...and right now www.thechildrensplace.com is having SUPER good clearance sales. Its 5 bucks shipping, so stack it up!

The real deal is at goapex.com Type in the name of the store you want to shop at, like the children's place coupon....and then find a coupon. I got an additional 15% off on things...and spent under fifty bucks and got 8 things...2 of which were full price sweater vests for the boys. Smoking good buys.

I also used goapex to find a coupon for kmart online. Try it out, I love it!!!

The end of one season...

Today marked the end of flag football for Kolbe this year! Yahoo...no more cold days in the wind. We are glad its done, but it was SO fun this year. We are seeing a more competitive Kolbe emerge, which is exciting to Nate and I! He was way more aggressive at chasing down the flags and was surprisingly fast this year! For all those who know him you know how much he resembles my baby brother Brad...in fact we laugh at how he even runs like him. We were all a bit worried that perhaps he'd also inherited Brad's super SLOW speed(sorry Brad), but this year he left uncle Brad in the dust!

Our favorite play was probably last weekend when Kolbe ran about 30 yard down the field, spinning in and out of the defensive kids...the last few yards he'd managed to clear some space so he held the ball above his head and stretched his strides and sort of danced into the end zone! Then he did a monster celebration dance..it was funny, but as a parent...you cringe because it looks bad! So, I watched Nate, who's always on the field because he coaches, march the field to where Kolbe was still celebrating, and send him walking to the sidelines! Kolbe will tell you with a smile that he 'got a little cocky on that one!' I love watching him grow up. He is such a good kid...and I realize that I probably don't focus near enough on how thankful I am for that!!! He is my low-maitenence, beautiful boy!!!

But we're so so so glad its done, because basketball is going fast and furious...3 or 4 nights a week. They had their first game Thursday and won. We have an awesome team this year...and it actually looks like basketball!

I love Nate for his willingness and ability to handle all these crazy kids and coach one sport to the next!

The first pic is of Kolbe and Easton, Kolbe's new BFF!!!!

AVERY...

Just wanted to share some funny things my Avery has said this week!

1. Avery is really into writing letters of the alphabet lately...she writes all sort of random letters and then asks me to read what she writes. So the other day I read the letters, as they were, and it obviously was mumbo-jumbo...she puckered up her face and asked, 'what's that?' I realized she was a little sad it didn't make sense so I said, 'oh, that's japanese for 'have a sunshiney morning!'. She made the funniest face again, and then said, smiling, 'I know Japanese?"

Love her!

The other night my parents brought over a toy bull for Kolbe. After they left Avery, and Kolbe and I were laying on the couch deciding what to name it. I kept suggesting things like 'sugar' and 'sweet thing'...and Avery said in this really funny voice, 'we should name him hot lovva' I laughed out loud and seriously had tears, and I asked her again, and she repeated it...but I could tell this time she wasn't saying lovva, but lava. It was her voice that made me think she said hot lovva...I personally like that name the best!

My kind of pumkin....

Since I have serious issues with strange textures...i.e. raw pumkin...I CAN"T bring myself to carve pumkins. There have been times in the past that Nate will handle it, but even he has become accostomed to the 'mr. potatohead' kind of pumkin! All I have to do is poke a few holes, and we're done.

Probably our favorite halloween tradition is to go 'spooking' as a family. Our goal is to do more than the year before...but last year I was insane and so this year I'm starting over! We have this cute little ghost poem that attatches to treats and you drop and ditch on friends...

It has become our family goal to get the Arkoudas'...they are so dang good...we were sure we'd be sneaky this year but the darn dog got Sam's attention so he found us creeping across the back yard. We are so gonna get em next year...we already have a plan!

The funnest, and most frustrating for Nate and I, part of this is that the kids, especially Kenna, can't be quiet...so when we're hiding she's giggling hysterically. But that's the fun part for her and its funny.

I love fall...its my favorite time of year. I love the colors...the weather...the smells...But, it brings winter, which I hate. So, as I watch the snow flutter right now I'm sad...and cold. And there's nothing I hate more than cold....

Reasons to smile...

It has definitely been 'one of those' weeks...maybe months. But I have really felt more peace and understanding in recent times than before. I am so thankful for the gospel. I NEVER email or blog about church, because it is not in my comfort zone. But I have to just say that I am grateful for the perspective the gospel brings. I read the best blog today of a friend of a friend who has some TERRIBLE challenges and she quoted Elder Holland. I don't know what talk it was, and there were so many great parts, but the overall gist was that the gospel is the way to happiness, and that 'when things are tough you don't jump ship, you hunker down under the oars and ride it out'. I love this gospel.

There isn't a day that goes by that I don't laugh at my kids...I hope they see more of that than the times I'm frustrated by messes made(I know, I'm borderline OCD) or silly mistakes. They are an absolute riot. I also love Nate...He is so calm, maybe that's the wrong word. But he grounds me, because I am easily excited and am apt to react quickly to things. Nate always encourages me to wait and he always says the right thing. I think I did SO awesome when I found him...my ONLY complaints against him are his love of golf and city league basketball! Not bad huh?

Look at the pic of Eli...he got this wood gun, and usually had pants on that he stuck it in. Since he was short britches, he used his diaper. I had the camera, and realized this would pose some difficulty when he tried to remove it. Seriously laughed myself into tears and he 'tenderly' removed the gun from its holster!!! It only happened once...

My Kolbe is always sneaking away to have quiet time in his room, away from the others. He has always like to be on his own. He's a good mix of Nate and I's personalities...I am so thankful that he loves his siblings, and for the most part, loves playing with them nonstop.

Girls are just an experience. They are so different from boys from the moment they arrive. But its a fun balance to the boys, and its fun to see them grow and develop their own interests and personalities. They're so much different from each other, different strengths and all...But each of our children is the perfect fit to our family. I couldn't imagine being short one(or duplicated one!)

All in all...life is good...life is happy!

Some of my projects

So I don't really finish one thing before moving on...as you can see from the downstairs bath

room pic, it isn't really finished...I still have to tap the nails, fill and caulk and paint it...but even just this looks SO good compared to the plastic brackets that were screwed around the edges to hold it in place. I am really liking tinkering with the saw...I may want one of my own for Christmas!!! Nah...I'll just keep "borrowing" dads.....The other pic is Eli's room. For those of you who've visited, you'll recognize the horses. They have resurfaced again, as Eli loves them now! Kolbe took forever to outgrow this phase so I was hesitant to give in to Eli but the horses are awesome, my mom painted them years ago. I think I'll paint an eagle in the left corner...if you've seen the movie Spirit you'll remember the horses, and the eagle was an important character. I wish I could convince my mom to paint the mountain and lake scene she did for the original bedroom, but she's not interested. So, I just painted grass instead! It works....

A Super Hero-of some kind

This past weekend our stake did a preparedness fair. They did a SUPER job of having things for the kids to do so that parents could wander and stuff( I contemplated going shopping-heehhee!)Anyways, one of the stations was these masks. Kolbe carefully made masks for all the kids...each had some special thing on it...like Kolbe's said "blood thirsty", Kenna's said "fabulous fashionable" and Avery's said "gorgeous". Eli wore his mask for days, and for obvious reason, it cracked us up!

Just a funny....

Today after I finished changing Eli's diaper he said, "want some sugar on my bum mom." I was just a little confused???? And then he pointed to the baby powder. Apparently I bake too much if my two year old recognizes white powder as sugar! It was so stinking cute.

Another one bites the dust!

today my number hit 8...it was another squeaky little friend on a sticky trap....and again...no Nate

7 down....and (please no more) to go!

As I got home from work I heard this weird squeaking...I thought there must be birds on our roof(I actually thought, great, now we have birds nesting in here too)...but as I walked up front there was another furry friend, very much alive, caught in one of those sticky traps. Stuck...alive...and moving...waiting for me to do something. Why is Nate never around when the dang things come out?

So, Avery again asked if she could pet the mouse....'he's soooooo cute mom'. Um....maybe next time! And I pitched him, sort of forcefully, into the big empty garbage bin.

Please, please please let us be nearing the end of my mouse family.!

Conference with Eli

So, as usual conference was an experience with the kids! I began telling Eli there were "mean men" when we are in public to help encourage him to stay close by me. Of course today when we sat in the chapel for the Sunday morning session there was a old man sitting two rows back. He was a little gruff looking...and Eli noticed him immediately. Eli has two volumes: loud, and louder. So when he saw the old man he yelled, "Mom, MEAN MAN!" and started pointing. I tried really hard to shush him and explained he was a nice man...then Eli started yelling, "Want to say hi to good man! HEY, GOOD MAN!"

About 5 minutes later he noticed a REALLY old man, probably in his 80's. I thought he was cute, sitting there all hunched over with his wife. Eli again started to yell...only this time...he thought the old man looked like a baby, I'm guessing becuase he was small?! He said, "mom, a baby man!" over and over and over again!

Just when I thought I might get to listen, Eli crawled under the bench up two rows where there was a younger couple. The guy was flopped back, totally sleeping away! Eli sort of snuck up and then, very reverently, jumped up and yelled, "you sleeping?"

I spent the remainder of the session in Relief Society room with him...much quieter for the rest of the chapel!

EEEywwwwww!

So all of you who know what a germ phobe I am are probably laughing hysterically now....because we have a stinking mouse problem in our house! Well, not our house, our garage...but its attatched! I'm dying...I set 2 traps the other night and within a half an hour I had two dead mice...but when I went to remove the trap from WAY UP HIGH on the shelf in my garage...a mouse ran by! I can't take it....I have some food storage stuff in there on shelves...just my dry stuff like cereal and crackers. My mom warned me forever and I told her she was nuts. Then AVery informed me she saw a mouse and I of course thought she was telling stories...but then I climbed and looked and sure enough, on the top shelf...mouse poop galore. Today I set 6 new trips and 2 d-con traps. And, just for the sake of sheer happiness....while I was setting them I literally heard a mouse climbing in the wall behind my shelves.


Please pray for me....I may just go crazy!

Yes, my family is laughing their bums off right now!