Future missionary

Jimmy has been carrying around the scriptures Grammy made him for Christmas since the day he got them. He is so cute about them. Today Tyler (another one of my "boys" that came home on Monday) was over today. Jimmy was sitting at the dining room table "reading" his scriptures. Tyler asked him "Are you reading some good scriptures there Jimmy?" Jimmy responded by saying "No. I can't find a page that I can read yet."
This afternoon we heard Jimmy over in Bella's corner. He was sitting next to her with his scriptures in front of her nose. "Bella, look at this page. Its a good one.... Read this page Bella.... We don't eat the scriptures Bella... We just read them." I think he is preparing to be a great missionary. Dogs need to learn the gospel to I guess.
Thank you Grammy for the wonderful scriptures. They have created many precious moments in our home.

Am I crazy?

Merry Christmas! I have not yet had a chance to blog about what a great and wonderful Christmas we have had. I am sad that it is already gone and passed. But I am getting in trouble by my husband for not blogging about the kids "best Christmas present EVER!" Yes I do think I am crazy. This is Bella.... our puppy German Shephard. We got her from a breeder that Mike assisted at work. Mike instantly fell in love with her. Once I met her I understood why. She is the sweetest thing ever. The kids have been asking for a dog for about the last 6 months. When asked what they want for Christmas the first answer out of their mouths was "a dog"! We had no intention of fullfilling this wish until Mike met Bella. On Christmas morning I wrapped 4 things.... A tennis ball, a rawhide chew toy, a rope toy and a stuffed german shephard. Jimmy opened the tennis ball and was actually kind of excited about it. Then Sara opened up her raw hide and had NO clue what it was. "What in the world is this?" Then Katie opened her rope toy. You could see a little flicker of hope in their eyes. Then Eberly opened her stuffed dog. The look of confusion was priceless. I then told the kids "You said you wanted a dog, well there is your dog (pointing to the stuffed dog)... Sara handed her chew toy to Katie and said "here.. you can have this". They were horrified. They couldn't believe that I would be this "mean".... Eberly than said "I am going to check in the back yard... just in case".. Mike was not yet back there with Bella. I then told the kids that Daddy had just gotten home from work and was out in the back getting fire wood. So they all ran back there to see there dad AND to tell him to hurry up so they could open up their "real" presents. All of a sudden I heard a gasp and Eberly ran outside. "Is that a REAL dog? Is that a REAL dog?" Then Katie asked "Do we get to keep it?" I can't even begin to tell you how wonderful it was to see their excitement. It was the best feeling ever.
And I have to report that she is a FANTASTIC dog. She is already housebroken. When she comes inside the house you lay down a towel, say "down" and she lays down until you tell her she can get up. She plays soccer with the kids. (Eberly is thrilled about that). She doesn't bite. When you tell her "no" she actually stops. She even gets along with Betty Boop. Betty did make sure that Bella knew who was queen bee though. The only issue she has had thus far is the leash! She is so mortally offended that we would even think about putting a leash on her. She plants her buns down and just sits there. I have been watching the Dog Whisperer and I even bought his dog training cards. I used his technique and it worked. She actually walked on the leash yesterday! Go Ceasar!
Those that know my Katie know that she prefers animals to humans any day. This morning she told Eberly that she thinks she is half dog and half human!
So, yes I might be crazy, but I have to admit, I have been sleeping a lot more soundly knowing I have a guard dog. AND the kids happiness is worth it :)

Sweet Boy

Yesterday we got a really good storm here in San Diego. It was wonderful! We have desperately needed the rain. It was rainy, windy and cold! I loved it. I was a little nervous sending Katie to school though. She is just getting over walking pneumonia. She is still on an inhaler, but I figured that since she was off her antibiotics she would be okay to go. I sent her off to school with directions to make sure she stays inside and to bundle up if she did go outside. When I went to pick her up she was walking with this boy. He was holding an umbrella up over the two of them. (primarily over her though) I was so touched with this boy. He was looking out for my sweet Katie. Then when she walked away to me, he folded up his umbrella and went along his merry way. I thought this was so sweet!

Best Sunday Ever

What a fantastic Sunday! It all started this morning. The kids were straightening up their rooms. All of a sudden they came out and asked "Mom, why is there a christmas tree in front of our house?" I had no clue what they were talking about. I went outside and there leaning on our front porch was a beautiful 8 foot noble fir christmas tree. It was still all bundled up. I ran inside and woke Mike up. I made him come outside and take a look. We were floored. We had no idea who had done this. We asked a couple of our neighboors if they had seen anyone. They had not. We still have no idea who gave us this wonderful gift. Buying a Christmas tree this year was really cutting into our Christmas "budget". I wish I could find out who started our day so wonderfully and gave us a priceless gift. I would love to be able to thank whoever did this. We then went to church. All of us were already on cloud 9. Church was wonderful today. Mike got up in Sacrament Meeting and bore his testimony. I won't go into detail about what he said, but I will say that he touched many people. The spirit was so very strong. I honestly didn't think the day could get any better. We came home and put up the tree. We made some delicious chili (thanks for the recipe dad)! Then we decorated the Christmas tree. We had SO much fun. We turned on some Christmas music and had a blast. By the end they kids were dancing around the living room to some great Christmas tunes. Eberly said "We need to do this every night!" I agree!
What a great day! It started out with someone being so extremely generous. I wish they could understand how much they have blessed us. Today was ALL about family. I agree with Eberly. I wish every day could be like today!

Christmas Lights

Yesterday was my happy day! It was time to put up our Christmas lights. This is our third year at this house. Each year we add a little more. Our neighbors actually look forward to the day when they see us putting up our lights. We have been nicknamed "The Gingerbread House". We have had people ring our doorbell to tell us how much they love our lights. This year we added 2 additional inflatables. I wish the pictures turned out better. It is 100% better when you see them in person. Our whole house is outlined in icicle lights. We have santa in a sleigh on our roof, a carousel, a snow globe like inflatable with penguins and an 8' santa. We then outline our lawn with the big C9 lights. Last year we attempted to put arches over our driveway. They had a hard time staying up. We had a good rain and it weighed down the garland so much that they fell down. We are going to try redesigning them and reattempt them again next year. I took the PVC pipe that we used for the arches and made candy canes out of them. We have lined on each side of the driveway. We also have little mini lighted trees going up our walkway. Yes, our SDG&E bill is a little more expensive, but it is SO worth it. The kids look forward to this every year almost as much as Mike and I do. We started putting up the lights around 10am yesterday and didn't finish until after 5pm. That was with some additional help too. Garrett (one of my boys) came and helped. I LOVE Christmas!

My baby is 10!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Eberly turned 10 on Thanksgiving! I cannot believe my little girl is 10 years old. These past 10 years have just flown by. 10 years ago we started our little family. Eberly and Megan came into our lives both with very special purposes. We know Megan was needed very much by Heavenly Father. We also know that Eberly was very much needed here on earth by all her loved ones. From the moment she was born she carried a special spirit with her. To this day she still has it. She is always so thoughtful and so sweet. We are so blessed to have her in our lives. Happy 10th Birhday Ebi!. We love you very much!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hello everyone! I haven't been able to blog for a while now. It is amazing how much I miss it :) Anyways, long story short... We have had the virus from hell hit our home. Sara had bronchitis, Jimmy had croup along with a 105 fever. I had bronchitis and strep (I was in bed for a week). And now my poor Eberly has it now on Thanksgiving and her birthday!
I just wanted all of you to know I have not vanished. I have just been laid up in bed with that horrible bug! I have been trying to catch up on reading. I will try and start catching up on my posting too here soon. Have to catch up on the week of housework first!
Love you all. Looking forward to getting back into the swing of things.
Happy Thanksgiving!

Help!

Calling all sister-in-laws, mother-in-laws, friends, sisters.... ANYONE! We have a party to go to tomorrow for Michael's squad. I am supposed to bring a side dish... BUT I am totally bored with my same old same old recipes.
If you have any great side dish recipes... PLEASE send them on over. I know so many of you are great cooks and very creative so I am very excited to see what you can come up with.

THANKS A MILLION!

Happy Birhtday Jimmy

Make a Smilebox slideshow

4 Years ago... Our family was made complete with the birth of our little guy... Jimmy.. Here is a little slideshow of some pictures from the last 4 years. It has gone by so fast. We are so greatful to have him in our home. We never have a dull moment with him in our home :)

Happy Birthday Jimmy!

Love a Man in Uniform

Mike made his debut on Cops last Saturday night. We had a blast watching him. Mike was working that night, but he was still hoping to be able to watch it at his department. That didn't happen. He got a call during the second tidbit that they showed. So, he missed the whole thing. Eberly, Katie, Jimmy and I watched it together. (Sara was spending the night at my mom's house) The kids were SO excited to see him on TV. You could see the look of pride on their faces. Mike called me about half way through the episode to see what they were showing. I finally had to tell him to "shut up" and hung up on him. He was interrupting!
The kids all clapped when it was all done. Sara called me and screamed "COOL! DAD IS FAMOUS!" You would have thought he won an emmy. The kids were on cloud 9. They said to me "We can't go to sleep now, MOM! We are too excited."
I love how proud they are of him. I am proud of the work he does. Next Friday Mike is getting a special Sheriff's Certificate of Lifesaving. He helped to save a man's life and Sheriff Kolender will be presenting him with an award at a special ceremony.
If you weren't able to watch the episode, you can watch it on the website:
http://www.cops.com
They will have it on the website for about another week. They have said that he might be on again. I will keep you all posted. Love my man in uniform!

Welcome Home

Two weeks ago Wednesday, my second son came home! Garrett returned from his mission in Tempe Arizona. He called us Wednesday night and was able to talk to each of the kids. He was shocked at how much Jimmy talked. On Saturday he gave us a call to see if he could come over. We really wanted to surprise the kids so we didn't tell them he was coming. We told them we had a surprise for them. Eberly says "It's Garrett huh? He's coming over?" We didn't want to ruin it for them, so we told them "No, we are just going to let you guys stay up late and watch a movie." They were really disappointed. When Mike saw his car pull up he went outside telling the kids he was just checking to make sure his car was locked. They were all engrossed in a movie when Garrett quietly walked in. All of a sudden Eberly saw him out of the corner of her eye; about the same time that Jimmy did. Eberly was all wrapped up in her blanket and couldn't get out fast enough. Garrett was bombarded with lovings! What a great welcome home.

We were able to see him last Sunday for his homecoming talk. As I mentioned when Kyle came home, I was so impressed with how well he spoke. You could tell how much knowledge he has of the gospel.

We got to spend some time with him this afternoon. He was able to come with us to pick up the kids from school. They all ran to him and soon as they saw him. Mike and I were cooking dinner and all we could hear outside was laughter. Garrett was out there with the kids playing dodgeball, tag and wrestling. I got a couple of pictures, but my camera's batteries were dying and half of them turned out fuzzy. As you can see from the two pics that actually turned out, there was nothing but happiness in my backyard this afternoon. At one point I looked out the window and Garrett had ALL 4 kids hanging on him. I wish I could save that laughter in a bottle. It was priceless. After dinner we sat down and watched a movie together. All the kids took turns snuggling in Garrett's lap to watch the movie.

As VERY hard as it was to say goodbye two years ago, it has been so special and wonderful welcoming my boys home.

Happy Halloween

Here are some pictures from tonight. We had a pretty busy day. I wasn't sure how today would work out. Jimmy got really sick Wednesday night. He had a temp of 104.8. But he snapped out of it pretty quick and was ready for the festivities; Although you could tell he wasn't quite 100%. The kids and I went and saw High School Musical 3 today. About 3/4 of the way through Jimmy kept on asking "Is it almost over yet? How about now? Now? Is this the last song?" What a trooper. We then went to the mall to have lunch with my mom. Then this evening was the trick or treating. We went in a neighborhood of one of our friends. It is a hopping street. Katie got to even trick or treat at her teacher's house. She loved that. Our last stop was to Grammy and Papa's house. Betty Boop was very excited to see the kids. Ginger said that she knew even before the kids got to the door that it was them. She got REALLY excited. A total different reaction than when other kids came. Jim was at their ward's trunk or treat. So we tried to catch him there. I gave him a call and he said "I am on my way home." So we made a u-turn and waited to see Papa.

It was a great day and night.

Happy Halloween!!!!

Primary Program

The kids had their primary program yesterday. It has been a lot of fun for them preparing for it. Jimmy has been really enjoying it. He was a little confused on Saturday though. They were having a practice for the program at the church. Right before we left Jimmy ran into his room and starting changing into his church clothes. I explained to him that he didn't need to wear his church clothes. He was quite confused by this.

Eberly did a great job. She seems to have a talent for public speaking. She is great at making eye contact with the congregation and is smiling the whole time.

We all are well aware that Katie can be quite shy. This has made for difficult times in the past programs. She did FANTASTIC! She was smiling the whole time. She did great! We were so proud.

Sara surprised us. She got up to the podium and said her part word for word without looking at the paper in front of her. She had it memorized! All weekend she was telling me that she didn't have it memorized. I don't know if she was teasing me or if she didn't even realized that she had memorized it.

Jimmy was one of the highlights of the program. For the past 2 weeks he has been walking around the house singing the songs and practicing his part. "I am Jimmy Proffitt and I am a Child of God." Over and over and over. When it was time for his part... the poor little guy got SO nervous. He started bouncing up and down and flapping his arms like he was ready to fly away. " I am..... I am..... I AM JIMMY!" That was all he could say. Even though he was nervous he continued smiling. The WHOLE congregation couldn't help by laugh.

Mike and I had a great time watching our kids up there. They sang their little hearts out. We did enjoy making faces at them the whole time. They just smiled and smiled. I love primary programs.

Geisha Girl

The young women in our ward had a great activity on Thursday for the Achievement Day girls. They had a little sister/big sister Halloween party. Eberly had such a great time.

I am a total procrastinator though. I always think to myself..Okay... I have so many days until Halloween... I don't have to get everything yet. So Eberly was without chopsticks for her hair. I had Mike go across the street and to see if Frank and Ona had any. Of course they had to make fun of us.... "You married a Japanese girl and you don't have any chopsticks in you house?"

Sad huh!

But, they had some and Eberly had a great time!

Let's try again....

It looks as if I can stop boycotting COPS now. I have been boycotting them since they rode around with Mike for a month and didn't show him when they said they would... They have redeemed themselves for the most part. According to their website he will be shown on Saturday November 1st..... If you go to the website www.cops.com you will see photos of the clips they are going to show on the 1st... If you scroll down you will see the heading that says :
Deputy Jason Phillips of the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department responds to a ‘code cover’ assistance call. (It is Mike asking for the "code cover")
You will see two bald men with their weapons pointed at the "bad guy". The one on the right, closest to the cop car is Mike. Mike took down 6 people, one with a loaded double barrel shot gun. Deputy Phillips is Mike's best friend at work. You get to see how well these two work together.

I Have Been Tagged

Lauri has tagged me. I have been trying to think of 7 things that you might not know about me. It has been a lot harder than I thought it would be. So here we go.....

1. I LOVE watching the Food Network and HGTV..... I would love to be a chef or a professional decorator. I get so many great recipes from the Food Network. I wish I could say I was a fantastic cook, but I am not. I am definitely a visual learner. I do much better when I have watched someone cook the recipe than if I just read it. But yet, mine never seem to turn out as pretty as the ones on TV. I also love watching the transformations on HGTV. Some day I will have enough money to decorate my house all pretty like they do on TV :)

2. I am a sucker for a good romantic book. I am not talking harlequin romance type books. I like to call them Romantic Tragedies. They are the kind of books that you might need a box of tissues while reading. Nicholas Sparks is my favorite author of these kinds of books. They are simple love stories that tend to have a tragic twist of some sorts. I love romantic stories...

3. I have days when I feel I am totally inadequate to be a mother. I sometimes wonder what Heavenly Father was thinking sending ME these 4 beautiful children. They are such sweet and wonderful kids. I am truly blessed that they are in my life. It makes me feel so guilty when I am having a "bad mommy" day.

4. One of my favorite "guilty" pleasures are Double Chocolate Chip Frappaccinos from Starbucks. There is NO coffee in them (so I don't feel guilty in that way) ... If you are ever having a really bad day, it is amazing how a cup full of cold chocolaty goodness topped with whipped cream can make it all better. :)

5. I LOVE animals. If I had lots of money and lots of land, I would love to have dogs and cats running around everywhere.... I am a sucker for those sweet little faces. All they want is to be loved and I am more than happy to give them the love that they need and want.

6. The very first time I saw Mike was when he returned from his mission. He was giving a homecoming talk in our ward. I was dating someone at the time who I had been with for about 3 years. He converted to the church while we were dating, but was still not very active. My mom was not very keen on me being with him. During Mike's talk my mom whispered to me "Now isn't he the kind of man you would like to marry?" I told her "No. He has too much gel in his hair." :) I guess this story is proof that mom's know what they are talking about. We have now been married for over 10 years and I love him more today than I did when I married him.

7. I love Flip Flops... I hate wearing shoes (unless they are a cute pair of wedges :) ) Last Saturday it was kind of cold and it was supposed to rain. Eberly had a early soccer game so I thought I should go ahead and wear tennis shoes. My friend wondered what was wrong with me. She said.. I can't remember the last time I saw you in anything by flip flops. I volunteered at the Bishop's Storehouse 2 days last week. I wore tennis shoes both days.. By Thursday night I had blisters on the back of my heel. Yes, I even wear flip flops in the rain.

Cancelled Date Night

Mike and I were supposed to go out on a date tonight. The babysitter was all set and ready to go.....Unfortunately we had to cancel.. Our budget was all used up on a stupid $200 tire that we had to purchase....We were both pretty bummed out. We were looking forward to spending some time together.
We still got that chance. Our great neighbors Frank and Ona were just called to serve an 18 month mission at the Bishop's Storehouse. They have been so great to us, so we offered to come down today and help.
What a fantastic day! We got there first thing this morning after dropping the kids off at school. Frank and Ona were nice enough to allow us to bring Jimmy along with us. We spent the day helping others. We stocked shelves, assisted families and other various tasks that were needed. Mike also got to drive a forklift. :) Jimmy even helped by stocking shelves and stacking boxes. The day was spend doing labor, but not once did I feel tired. It felt fantastic being able to help our wonderful neighbors and also those that are struggling right now. You could see the look of relief on their faces when their cars were filled with food. You could actually see their shoulders being lifted from the weight they were obviously carrying.
So, no... Mike and I didn't get our date night. Instead we spent hours together serving others. It was a great day!

No COPS

Mike won't be on Cops this weekend. They were told it was probably going to be later on in the season. They have only showed one from his department..... So, we will keep you posted....

COPS

Well according to the COPS website, it doesn't look like Mike is going to be on this weekend. It will still be people from his department, but it doesn't look like he made this week's cut.

I kept my promise

So I kept my promise and took the kids to the beach today. It was a beautiful day at the beach. It was low tide, so the kids found great little warm wading pools to play in. They had a blast boogie boarding and trying to find sand crabs. They gave up trying to find sand crabs. But they did find a lot of clams. I again was grateful for fall in Southern California

Fall in Southern California

I have been so jealous hearing about Fall in other states. I love changes in weather. We don't get much weather change here. Today was a day that I was not disappointed about living in Southern California. I was having a "lazy day" I had no desire to do house work. The house was fairly clean anyways... but it was a really hot today...

So this is what we decided to do today!

:

We packed it up and went to the beach. My poor girls were stuck in school, but I promised I would take them tomorrow since they get out early. The beach was fantastic. The water was warm and the weather was perfect. Jimmy enjoyed just kicking back, playing and doing his version of surfing.

So I am actually hoping for hot weather tomorrow so the girls can go too. Nothing like fall in Southern California.

Little Did I Know Part 2.....

READ "LITTLE DID I KNOW" FIRST: Apparently the lucky underwear worked. Eberly scored her first goal of the season on her outdoor soccer team. She showed some much older girls her fancy footwork too. Our team won 3-2! Go EBERLY!

Little Did I Know

Eberly is getting close to entering the double digits. She will be ten at the end of November. I realize that she is getting to an age where I will probably be oblivious to certain things going on in her life. I am fortunate that she communicates with me pretty well. Just like she did first thing this morning.
Last night she had an indoor game (yes I lost her "scoreboard" during my layout mishap)...It was a tough game. We played an all boy team who have some fantastic players on their team. They also play extremely unfair. I am talking shoving in the back and pulling on our shirts... But that is a whole other story. Well, they lost last night and Eberly didn't score a goal.
Out of the blue she says "I KNOW WHY WE LOST LAST NIGHT! I wasn't wearing my lucky underwear."
Little did I know that my 9 year old daughter has lucky underwear that she wears for her soccer games. I guess it is never too young to be superstitious :)

I don't get it

I don't understand why little girls can be so mean. My poor little Sara has had a hard time with some of her friends this year. Just this week her friend decided that she didn't want to "be Sara's friend anymore". It just kills me. I could tell by the moment I saw her that something was wrong. She came running to me sobbing and telling me about what this little girl did to her. The really sweet thing though was all the kids that came and asked her if she was okay. It helped her to see that she was cared about. It really brought a smile to her face. Of course once Katie and Eberly found out, they wanted to go corner that little girl and give them a piece of their minds. Of course by the next day she wanted to be friends again. It reminds me of a story that happened last year. There was a boy that had told Katie that she could never be a vet because she was a girl. This was a boy that Eberly had in her class the previous year. Eberly and her friend Emily cornered this boy and told him to never say those kinds of things to Katie again. Never mess with family!
Katie has dealt with the same thing too. This is the first year that Katie has had actual friends that are girls. She had been playing with boys the last two years. I can't say that I blame her.
Just had to vent. I guess this is a great lesson for our kids. It teaches them how it feels to be left out. It teaches them how to treat others. It teaches them to just roll with the punches. Unfortunately we are going to meet some mean people in our lives, but at the end of the day it is our family that matters.

Bad Boys, Bad Boys Whatcha Gonna Do....

Set your DVR's! Mike is going to be on Cops. The dates that he might be on are October 4th and 11th at 8:00. We have no clue how many times he will be on or if you will only get to see the back of his shiny bald head.... But he was told that he should be on there a couple of times. He had to taser a man while they were filming him one day. The crew said that should make the show. So get the popcorn out. Disclosure: I am not responsible for anything my husband may say or do on either of these episodes :)

Ugh

I love blogging, but man I had a frustrating day with it today. I was just trying to download a cute layout for Halloween and I lost everything in my side bar. Or at least the stuff that takes forever to redo... So I have finally got it up and running. I almost had to call Lauri to save me :)!!! It is all fixed, but don't be surprised if you see my Halloween layout up until next year!

Future Fireman?

Jimmy and I (Mike) were at the grocery store. And the heavens parted and there was a Poway Fire Department Ladder Truck. This is a big long truck that has the telescoping ladder and there is a driver steering in the back. Jimmy felt it was Christmas in September: "OH Dad!!! Awesome! I like firetrucks, and firemen are cool too. Can I see it? The firemen like me I'll show you." Sure enough the fire,men do like him. So Much so that they put him in the driver's seat, to enjoy the full firetruck experience. It was cute, but daddy was ready to honk. Here were fire fighters actively trying to pull Jimmy over to their team. They kept telling Jimmy, "You want to be a fire fighter right? Not a Cop." Daddy knew one of the firefighters and he thought it was hilarious. Of course Jimmy kept agreeing with them. He would have said anything to stay in the cab of the truck. Daddy let him humor them. As soon as they got in the car Daddy reminded him that Cops are so much cooler. He agreed because cops shoot and kill bad transformer robots. As long as daddy keeps the bad tranformer robots at bay I think the firefighters will have a hard time stealing him from the Police man team. Still they did a good job bribing and tempting him with their huge fire truck. He loves all trucks and this made his day.

"Oh my gosh! My sister has armpit hair"

Today when I picked up the kids from school, Katie came running up to me. I was talking with Sara's teacher, but she was bouncing up and down waiting to tell me something. She finally couldn't take it anymore and shouted to me "MOM! Sara has armpit hair! ALREADY!" Then she tried to hold Sara's arm up so that I could see. Sara was very embarassed and wouldn't let me see. The fact that there were hundreds of kids around could have had something to do with it too. But anyways, the whole way home Katie kept on saying "I can't believe my younger sister already has armpit hair." When we got home I decided I better take a look at what Katie was talking about. So I lifted Sara's arm to see what was "hiding" under there. I laughed..........The armpit hair was just fuzzies from Sara's shirt. She was wearing a black shirt today and it left little fuzzy lint in her armpits. :) I explained to Katie what the deal was and she says "oops..I guess I better go and tell my class tomorrow that Sara DOESN'T have armpit hair!"
NICE!

Here is the picture!

Here is the picture of Jimmy with his new haircut! He now likes his haircut because he got a lot of attention from the ladies!

"I Look Ugly"

This afternoon Jimmy asked if he could brush his teeth. Hmmm let me think about that one....That little guys brushes his teeth like 4 times a day. I was busy doing housework and I realized that he had been in the bathroom a little too long to just be brushing his teeth. So I went into the bathroom and the first thing I saw was a pile of dark brown hair on the floor of the bathroom. Then there is my little boy standing there looking in the mirror with a look of "uh oh" on his face. Yes, Jimmy cut his own hair. The funny thing is that when I walked in he was actually trying to cover up what he did. He was trying to brush his hair so I wouldn't notice. I was not a happy camper. I wish I would've thought to get the camera, but I was trying to figure out how to fix it. The only thing to do was to shave his head. He was not happy with this consequence. He was supposed to go within the next week to go and get his haircut with Papa. Something that is an ABSOLUTE treat for that little boy.
So I shaved his head. He was quite funny through the process. He thought it tickled. Then he caught a look of himself in the mirror. He actually almost cried! I asked him if he liked it and he said "NO! I look ugly!" I showered him off. He got dressed and went in search of his hat. For the next hour he kept on repeating "I look ugly!"
When it was time to pick up his sisters he told me that he wasn't going to tell Ebi, Katie and Sara that he cut his hair. He didn't want them to see how "ugly" he looked. Poor little guy. I guess that will teach him a lesson. Well, girls, I guess we aren't the only ones that cry about a haircut that we don't like.

We already have one casualty

What is it about school and germs? Katie is our first casualty in the germ war. She woke up this morning miserable. Sore throat, cough, stuffy nose, achy, fever..... Second week of school and she already has to stay home. I was so close to just giving her some tylenol and sending her anyways :) But she was feeling too awful.
I had been feeding them apples, orange juice, vitamins with extra vitamin C; I make sure they are in bed at 8:00 every night; I disnifect the door knobs, toys, faucets, basically anything they touch; but no luck....What do you guys do to keep the "germs" away.... I am at a loss...

1 down; 3 to go

Don't Under-estimate girl power!

Yes, I have another soccer story.... Eberly ended her indoor season last Friday night. Her new one began last night. When you sign them up for soccer you get to request one person that you would want on your team. They are always real good about trying to get at least one friend on your team. Well, apparently we had a lot of girls requesting to be with each other. Due to football starting, there is also a shortage of boy players compared to girl players.
So, it was asked if playing on an "all girl" team would be okay. I had to laugh.. They don't know our girls I guess. Eberly is playing with 5 of her good friends. They are all really good soccer players... and more than that they play with each other. Team play is essential in soccer. The 7th player on the team we just met last night. But she fit right in.
Right before the game, the other team looked at ours and one boy started heckling and saying how they were going to "kick our butts", since it was an all girl team. Lets just say that the game ended up being quite frustating for that little boy. The final score was 6-1! Eberly scored 2 goals last night. One of the things I loved about watching the game was seeing how the girls fed off each other. There were a few girls, that were more reserved and not quite as "go-getting" as the others. But they showed a new level of confidence last night. I couldn't help but think that having a cheering section from their own teammates had something to do with that. It is amazing what a dose of encouragement from your friends can do.
I guess that boy learned his lesson. Never underestimate the power of a group of girls!

First Day of School

Today was the first day of school for the kids! Eberly is now entering the fourth grade. She is so excited because she is in a class with her best friend for the first time. She is also excited because she has a great teacher, Mrs. Seeley. You should have seen the excitement on her face when she realized that her classroom is on the 2nd floor. It is hilarious what excited kids these days. Katie is entering the second grade. She too has a great teacher. Mrs. Nishigushi. It was hilarious trying to teach Katie her name. "Mrs. Hoochicoochie?" I think she is getting better at it though. She was the one I was worried about since she doesn't like change and/or being away from me. But when we got to school we went and checked out her class list. Her cute little friend Jeffrey is in her class. YA!!! They are really cute together. She calls him Jeff Jeff and he calls her K-K. So there were no tears once we got to school. Woo Hoo! Last year I had to leave with her teaching holding her while she was screaming for me. ugh.

Sara is now is Kindergarten. Last year she was enrolled in Poway's Pepp program which a pre-kindergarten program. It was wonderful for her. So she is now a full-time kindergartner. She was so excited that she got to be at school for the same amount of time as Katie and Eberly. Her teacher, Mrs. Baird, was Katie's reading and writing teacher last year. She said this morning that when she saw Sara's name "she had to pick her!"

Our prayers were definitely answered. They all got fantastic teachers!

Now Jimmy is the center of attention (not like he wasn't already)! He was quite sad this morning though. He moped all the way to the car after dropping them off. He wouldn't even walk on his own. Daddy had to carry him.

Why do these things happen?

I know we have all asked this question... Why is this happening to me/us? I have been asking myself that question over the last couple of days. I woke up Sunday morning with EXCRUCIATING stomach pain. I am talking the kind that has you rolled up in a little ball. I assumed that I was just having a bad stomach flu. By the late afternoon I was almost in tears it hurt so badly. It was as bad as the labor pains I experienced with Katie (before the drugs :) )... So I decided it was time to go and have this checked out. After spending hours and hours at the ER... my cat scan revealed that I had an ovary colapse and an ovarian cyst rupture at the same time. But, apparently both of those things are fairly common... just not at the same time. But this also caused my appendix to get irritated. So for the next 24-48 hours I have to rest and be aware of any worse pain... especially on the right side. I am feeling SO much better than I was on Sunday. The pain is almost non-existant; with the exception of some sharp pains here and there once in a while. Stupid ovaries ( I am done with them anyways!) I am just extrememly tired.
So, yes, I have been asking myself why is this happening to me? Here are some of the conclusions I have come up with:
1. To make me realize and appreciate how great our ward is. I have mentioned our sweet, dear neighbors across the street. (The one that planted the apple tree) Mike went over to borrow a heating pad. When they got to church they informed the bishop/relief society president about how sick I was. (I did not know yet what was wrong with me). As soon as church was over we got a call from our home teacher and our Bishop. Our neighbors, Frank and Ona, came over immediately to offer dinner and to make sure we were taken care of. They made us a fantastic dinner last night. So good in fact that Eberly said "Gosh Mom. You should get sick more often". I also received a call yesterday from the relief society saying they would like to bring our family dinners for the next couple of days. I felt silly accepting since I was already feeling so much better and Mike would be home; but they wouldn't take no for an answer. They offered to pick up the kids too. What a great ward we have.
2. To again gain appreciation for the Power of the Priesthood. When Frank and Ona came over, right before I went to the ER, he and Mike gave me a blessing. What a wonderful experience. While I was still in pain, it was not nearly as severe as even a few minutes before. Instantly I knew I was going to be okay.. Because trust me, I thought I was going to die.
3. To appreciate my friends. I had planned on taking the kids and one of Eberly's friends to the beach tomorrow. Those plans have now changed so I called my friend to cancel the "play date". After I told her what happened, she offered to take the kids to school (even though they attend different schools) and to make us dinner on Thursday. I told her that I should be fine on Thursday and it wouldn't be necessary. I told her I would feel silly if I was totally up to par and she was bringing me dinner. She just laughed at me and said "SO WHAT!!!!" "Now it is one less thing you have to worry about on Thursday."
4. Mike now knows what I have been through. He has had 4 trips to the ER in the last year and a half. It has been quite stressful. He now appreciates what I went through and how hard it is to see your sweetheart suffering.
5. It has also helped Mike to appreciate ME in general. He has been so worried about me that he has been waking up all through out the night to make sure I was okay. He has also come to realize that those dishes don't wash themselves and those clothes don't get clean magically.
6. To make ME appreciate housework. It is amazing how quickly you miss being able to do the little things. I get yelled at right now if I even try to do some cleaning. I actually miss being able to clean my own house. But I am supposed to be resting.
7.To make me appreciate my health. I think sometimes we take for granted feeling good. Those that are mothers understand that we are in a constant state of tired. But when we get sick we realize how strong we really are. I miss being JUST tired.
8. Made me realize how much I am loved. Mike contacted Dad to let him know what was going on. I don't think a half an hour went by where he wasn't texting Mike asking how I was and what was happening. He called yesterday just to see how "his girl" was doing and to have Mike hug me for him. Mike's cell phone died in the hospital... Since we live only minutes away he went home to get mine. When he got back he had beautiful home made cards from the kids. Mike has barely let me breathe on my own for the last day or so. He has told me how much he loves me over and over again. My mom and sister have called regularly to check on me and see how I am doing. And my friends have also showed such great love and concern. I am so thankful for those who have shown me such great love.

So basically I am not happy that I have gotten sick. But I think we need to look at the bright side of things in order to survive them. So yes... I feel awful! But, I have gained a lot through this experience too!

My boys

I am going to try and make a long story as short as I can, but that is easier said than done. A lot of you already know the beginning of this story.

Mike and I have a special group of "boys" in our lives. They are young men that Mike has taught since they were the age of 12. He taught them in some way until they left for their missions. They have been in our lives for most of our marriage. Katie, Sara and Jimmy don't know that life exists without these young men. Eberly was about 18 months or so when they first came into our lives. Our story is living proof that you never know in what ways a "simple" calling can change and affect your lives.

Our boys have brought so much to our lives. They made regular visits to our home throughout the years. They were the only babysitters our kids ever knew. They always seemed to have this special intuition when I was having a bad day. I would get a phone call out of the blue "Hey Sister Proffitt! Whatcha doing? Can we come over?" I always wondered how they knew. When Mike was working grave yard shifts, they would show up on a regular basis to keep me company and help with the kids. They have been a major part in our lives.

Well two years ago we started having to say goodbye. Our first boy left on his mission to August of 2006. It was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do. I don't know how moms do it. They aren't "technically" my sons, but it was so hard to say goodbye. Katie cried for hours after we had to say goodbye. We had the wonderful experience even of taking one of our boys, Ricky, to the MTC. Mike still makes fun of me because I cried off and on from Utah until we got to Las Vegas. I though it would get easier, but it hasn't. I miss them more and more it seems like.

Receiving their letter is amazing. You can hear the growth just in their letters. And amazingly enough; they still have their intuition of when I am having a bad day. I always seem to get a letter from one of them when I just not up to par.

Well, the wait is over! They are coming home! Kyle returned home from his mission on Wednesday. It was indescribable how good it felt to hear his voice. I was amazed at the maturity I could hear.

They boys have been so worried that the kids would forget them. Not a chance! Even Jimmy, who was not yet two when they started leaving, gave Kyle the biggest hug when he saw him! You show him a picture of any of the 8 boys and he can name them in a heartbeat! They know who their family is.

We had the wonderful experience of attending Kyle's homecoming talk yesterday. The spirit was so strong in that chapel when he spoke. He spoke of something Mike had taught his when he was twelve and how he used that in his mission. It was proof that you never know who or how you may touch in your callings. He remembered something that was taught to him 9 years ago!

We have had so many wonderful experiences with them. They have allowed us to share so much of their lives. And now we get to experience the joy of welcoming them home.

Another Hat Trick

She has done it again! She played indoor soccer last night. *(this picture is from her outdoor season last year; not from indoor) Her team won 8-6. Eberly scored 3 goals again! We are so very proud of her. Even if she didn't score any goals, the fact that she has such enthusiasm and drive. That is what makes us proud of her.

Mike and Dad were not yet back from their trip. So I made sure to text them when she scored. Her first goal was at 7:55. Her second goal was at 8:03 and her third goal was at 8:08! I guess Dad was amazed that she was able to not only score 3 goals, but also under 10 minutes.

Way to go Ebi!

Blessing of the Week

I have decided that it is time for me to do my blessing of the week. The thing I am greatful for this week is My Husband! We have now been married for over 10 years. As many of you know he and Dad left yesterday for their week long backpacking trip. It has been only 24 hours and I miss him tremendously.

I was cleaning up my room today and I came across a letter he wrote for me for our anniversary. He wrote a letter listing 10 things that he loved about me. It was better than any gift I could have received. It made me feel so special. You get so involved in the day to day stuff that it is nice to rekindle those special feelings.

I was thinking tonight of how much I missed him. Even the snoring :). It reminded me of the first week that we met. One night we were having one of our three+ hour conversations on the phone. He started quoting Disney movies. I couldn't believe this handsome young man knew Disney movies word for word. I was shocked and totally smitten. I can specifically remember him quoting the movie Robin Hood. He even used the accent; "Absense makes the heart grow fonder."; "Or forgetful." I remember it so well. It is so true though.... Absense definitely makes the heart grow fonder! I cannot wait for him to get home.

I'd like to share a special story. On our first date we went to Seaport Village. We spent hours just walking and talking. We had both just gotten out of long relationships and honestly weren't interested in anything serious. We both felt such a connection that scared the heck out of both of us. We were scared of even the slightest of touch. At the end of the night we went on the Carousel. At the end of the ride as the carousel was slowing down, my horse slowly made its way to the highest possible point. It was as if someone was pushing it up as high as it could go. Being a tall 5 feet 2 inches, getting down was not going to be easy. Mike reached out and took my hand and helped me off the horse. The moment he grabbed my hand the both of us felt a spark! Literally. We knew at that moment that this was going to be something special. A while later we told the carousel story to my mother. She made a comment that has stuck in my head ever since. My father had passed away just a few years prior. She said that she would bet on the fact that my dad "helped" push that horse up to the highest point. I truly do feel that my dad was my angel that night. I don't know that we would have progressed the way we did if it had not been for that spark.

I am so greatful that Mike didn't let me talk him out of going on our first date (long story)...I am greatful for his family and for instantly accepting me into the family. He knew that if I passed the sister test... I was in!

I am so greatful for all that he does for me and for our family. He is not only my husband, but he truly is my best friend.

Link to Eberly's Website

Here is the link to Eberly's Blog:
http://eberlysthoughts.blogspot.com/

Eberly has joined the blogging clan

Eberly has been watching me do the family's blog and she has been bugging me to do one.. So she now has a blog of her own. There isn't too much yet, a work in progress; but you will have to check it out.

The Metal Box

I just got another Chicken Soup for the Soul book. I still love those books. I cannot believe what they have come up with now though... Anyways.. I just read a fantastic story that I thought you might all love. In fact you might want to start this in your own home....
The Metal Box
Last weekend, we celebrated my parents' fiftieth wedding anniversary. This morning, they left on a long awaited trip to Hawaii. They were as excited as if it were their honeymoon.
When my parents married, they had only enough money for a three-day trip fifty miles from home. They made a pact that each time they made love, they would put a dollar in a special metal box and save it for a honeymoon in Hawaii for their fiftieth anniversary,
Dad was a policeman and mom was a schoolteacher. They lived in a modest house and did all their own repairs. Raising five children was a challenge and sometimes money was short, but no matter what emergency came up, Dad would not let Mom take any money out of the "Hawaii account." As the account grew, they put it in a savings account and then bought CD's.
My parents were always very much in love. I can remember Dad coming home and telling Mom "I have a dollar in my pocket," and she would smile at him and reply, "I know how to spend it."
When each of us children married, Mom and Dad gave us a small metal box and told us their secret, which we found enchanting. All five of us are now saving for our dream honeymoon. Mom and Dad never told us how much money they managed to save, but it must have been considerable because when they cashed in those CD's they had enough for airfare to Hawaii plus hotel accommodations for ten days and plenty of spending money.
As they told us goodbye before leaving, Dad winked and said, "Tonight, we are starting an account for Cancun." That should only take twenty-five years.

I hope you all enjoy this story. I LOVED it and wanted to share it with all you.

She shoots! She scores!

Eberly had an indoor soccer game this evening. If you haven't guessed, she lives, eats and breathes soccer. She is currently playing on a co-ed indoor league. Her team won 8-5 tonight. During the first half, Eberly was the first one to score.... Making the score 1-0. Mike was at work as was not able to watch the game, but I kept him posted. At half-time the score was 5-4 (Our team was up by 1) I called Mike and gave him the update. He asked me who had scored and I couldn't quite remember how we got to 5. All I could remember was that she had scored 1. About 4 minutes later, I gave Mike a call again. So I called up Mike and said "Eberly scored 3!!!!!" He said "Oh... so Eberly did score more than one before half time." I said "NO!.. She scored 2 goals since I last spoke to you."
Eberly scored 2 goals in less than 4 minutes. In this league if you score 3 goals, you are not allowed to score any more for the rest of the game. She was beaming! She was so excited.
The thing I absolutely love is that Eberly has proven that you can become good at anything you want to if you just practice and give it your very best. When Eberly first started soccer a couple of years ago, she could barely dribble straight... But she practiced and practiced and practiced... You rarely will see her at home without a soccer ball close by. She is always dribbling up and down the hallway or teaching her brother and sisters how to play outside. I am so proud of her. She has become that soccer player she is today because she didn't give up.

Sara's Birthday wish

All Sara wanted to do on her birthday was go to the beach. She got her wish. Although it was majorly packed, the weather was beautiful and the water was nice and warm. Eberly spent the whole day trying to perfect her boogey boarding skills. Katie had a blast jumping waves. Although a few of those waves got the best of her. Sara had a blast in the water and making sand castles. It took Jimmy a while to warm up the waves. There is a story behind that. Back in March our family went camping at the beach. During that trip, Jimmy got TOPPLED by a wave. Apparently he has not forgiven that wave for taking him out. When that happened he sobbed and he said "That water tastes disgusting." I proceeded to tell him that there is salt in the water. That is why it tasted so nasty. A few minutes later, once he had calmed down, he said to me "Why doesn't it have any pepper?" Gotta love him.

Best of Friends!

Eberly is such a little mother hen... Especially when it comes to her little brother. She watches over him like a hawk. Jimmy and Eberly are the best of friends. They are sharing a room together right now. I was thinking of possibly changing rooms around. Eberly wouldn't hear of it. She told me outright "NO!" She loves sharing her room with Jimmy. When you ask Jimmy who his best friend is he will say "Ebi or Eberwy". He has his big sister wrapped around those cute little fingers of his. Whatever he wants, he gets where she is concerned. Especially if her calls her by her full name (Eberwy). She just melts. I thought this picture captured so well the great relationship these two have.

Sara Turned 6!

Happy Birthday Sara! I am happy to report that Sara was free and clear of all pain to celebrate her 6th birthday. Sara decided that she wanted to go to the beach on her birthday. So she got some fun in the sun and a fun little sunburn. I kept on trying to convince her that she was turning 5, but she wouldn't fall for it. Instead of having me "pre-buy" her birthday gifts, she decided that she would rather have me take her shopping. Smart girl! She said she wants to have some "alone" Mommy time, other than sitting in the hospital. Me Too! We Love you Sara!!! Happy Birthday!

Love Dr. Rosie

I don't think we can thank Lauri enough for finding Dr. Rosie. She is wonderful. Our poor little Sara has had quite the ordeal this past week. What started out as little minor tummy aches turned into MAJOR doubled over in tears tummy aches. I had never seen her in so much pain. So we took a trip down to the ER on Saturday night. Yes I know this may sound a little premature, but with all that has occurred in the past year I think you might just understand. Of course now I wish we had never gone. The doctor was at the end of her shift and pretty much just didn't want to deal with us. She took an x-ray of Sara's tummy; determined she was "plugged up"; gave her some Maalox and told me to get her some Miralax. And sent us on our merry way. Of course by this point I am feeling like I over-reacted and she would probably be better by the morning anyways.
Not the case. She continued having severe stomach pain and it was getting worse. So Monday morning I called to get her into Dr. Rosenfeld. The only problem was that she is so popular I couldn't get her in until 3:00. I was nervous about waiting so long since that morning she woke up very weak and couldn't even walk really well. So I decided to make an appointment with "the other" doctor. Another mistake. She thought that it was a bladder infection and dehydration. So after two seconds she wrote us a prescription and sent us on our merry way.
By the afternoon, Sara was still getting worse. She was weak, the pain seemed to be increasing and she was not keeping anything in. So I called Dr. Rosie to see if there was something I could be doing in the mean time to at least help comfort her. Love this woman. While I was on the phone with her, Sara was throwing up. She heard her and said "You need to get her down the the ER right now. She needs an IV." She told me that she was probably getting dehydrated and the IV would probably also help with the pain. She said it is amazing what an IV will do. She also told me to not back down and make sure they give her one.
So, Monday afternoon we got to go back to the ER. And to make a really LONG story short... Once they started the IV, she started to perk up. I had an amazing doctor who was very thorough. He took another x-ray, drew some blood and really showed concern for our little one. Fortunately it all turned out well. It all turned out to be a really bad case of constipation. Once they "relieved" that problem.. she is almost as good as new. Sara was a brave little soldier too. Not a single tear through the whole visit.
So I am greatful for Dr. Rosie and her amazing way of knowing how to take care of my kids.

Up and Running Again

I am loving this blogging thing. I am glad to have our new one up and running. Since I am so new at this.. I did something and I couldn't get the page to look right. So here we go again. I won't mess with it this time :)

More antibiotics

So, if you have read Ginger's blog.. you heard about Mike, Eberly and Dad's hiking trip. Eberly was fortunate enough to bring home a present. Bunches and bunches of mosquito bites. Poor little thing was itching like crazy. But they seemed to go away.... until Saturday. She came into me and told me her knee was itching again. When she showed me her knee, it was even more swollen before. I assumed it was because she was scratching them. By Sunday morning, the swelling was down, but she had developed the bright red ring around her knee. With the experience I had with mosquitos I thought that I should probably take her in. Glad that I did. The doctor told us she was almost at the infected stage...which means hospital time. So fortunately we caught it early enough and she is taking some lovely pink antibiotics :)

Help Me Obe One Kenobe

Help me Obe One Jimmy!. Last night he kept on saying he was cold. So he decided to put on a sweatshirt that even doesn't quite fit Eberly! We thought it was hilarious. When he walked all you would see were his cute little feet.

Eberly's Point of View

Eberly has come up with quite some interesting.... tidbits... lately.. The other day my mom, the kids and I were driving down the freeway. All of a sudden Eberly yells out "Wow! That is a COOL car!" My mom and I automatically look over expecting to see some pimped out ride. Maybe something with flames on the side or something like that... Not the case. Within seconds a hearse pulls up along beside us. My mom and I just started laughing! We couldn't control it. I then explained to Eberly exactly what a hearse is and she no longer thinks it is a cool car. She says that she hopes she never has to see the inside of one. We hope so too dear!Then the other night we were watching the Track and Field Olympic Trials on TV. I made the comment that you rarely see any "white" people doing track and field. (Meaning that most track runners seem to be African American) Eberly has a theory on that apparently. She said to me "Maybe it is because they spend so much time in the sun!" Mike and I were in stitches. Of course then they showed a caucasian women and Mike says "Guess she hasn't been practicing enough."What would we do without our kids. The make us crazy, but they make us laugh on a regular basis.
Posted by Mike, Suzann and Family at 3:19 PM

What a Week!

Mike and I have decided to keep doctors and nurses and Pharmacists in business. Friday night (4th of July) I got bit by some sort of bug. No big deal right? Not in our house. By Sunday morning the bite had grown a good 4-5 inches and was bright red and REALLY hot to the touch. I decided that I should probably get it checked out. Glad I did. The heat and the redness indicated infection. Since it was on my elbow and so close to the joint my doctor gave me IV antibiotics. She was worried the infection would get into my joints. So now I am on oral antibiotics. Fortunately they are working and they won't have to amputate :) (ha ha)Well, I guess Mike didn't want me getting all the attention. He called me early Wednesday morning and informed me that he was leaving work. "Why?" I asked....He was heading to the ER. He felt symptoms that his diverticulitis was returning. Let panic attack begin! Fortunately he is aware of the symptoms now and he was able to catch it REALLY early. So he got IV antibiotics also. They were able to send him home. We are very greatful for that. We will be meeting with his doctor on Monday to see what the next step is. He is on some pretty heavy duty antibiotics, but we are hoping with all our heart to avoid surgery.It is quite sad when the pharmacist actually knows me by name. "Hi Suzann! Where are the kids?" Yep.. they all know me and the kids! In fact when I came home from picking up MY antibiotics, I had a message to call the pharmacist. I called her back and she wanted to make sure that I knew that the antibiotic I am on will make the birth control pill null and void. Hmmm... is she trying to tell me something :)

The kids just completed their fourth week and final week of swimming lessons. I cannot thank their teacher enough. The kids have made such amazing progress. Eberly has now passed level 4! She is even doing IM's! She knows the front crawl, the backstroke, the breaststroke, the butterly, the sidestroke and the elementary backstroke. Katie and Sara have now passed level 3! Congratulations girls! I am so proud of them. And Jimmy has now passed level 2! Karen, his teacher, thinks he is going to be a fantastic snorkler. He LOVES to skim across the top of the water and look at all the fun things at the bottom of the pool. The kids have had such a great time. Now it is time to test out their skills in Grammy and Papa's pool!

Future Backpacker

Mike, Jim and Eberly are going for their second attempt at backpacking tomorrow. Jimmy wanted to show that he is ready to go too! (That is Eberly's fully loaded backpack) Yes he is carrying a backpack that is almost just as big and heavy as he is. Backpacker in the making! He is a little excited to go along.

Apple Tree

Make a Smilebox slideshow

We have wonderful neighbors in our ward; Frank and Ona. The kids absoutely love them. They have a beautiful apple tree in their front yard. He is always bringing apples to the kids from his tree. One day he decided that the kids need to watch their own tree grow. So, he went out and bought our family an apple tree. Not only did he buy the kids the tree, he helped them plant it. They had such a great time that day. We have already gotten 4 apples off that cute little tree. I will have to take pictures through the years to show how it is growing.

Swimming Lessons

Make a Smilebox postcard

The kids just finished two weeks of swimming lessons. We were fortunate to have Eberly's school teacher from the last two years be their swimming instructor. She and her daughter Katie were fantastic! Eberly passed both level 2 and 3. Katie, Sara and Jimmy all passed level one. We have decided to continue on for another two weeks. We are very excited to see how they progress.