King Jeremy

Christmas fun

2012-01-06T01:04:00.000-08:00

I know, I know this is not the best picture quality

but it's the only one I have. Santa came to our house, sad thing was

A was at basketball practice.

Good thing B filled Santa in on what A wanted ...

what a nice thing to do

Bodee's Christmas Concert
Yes he is having a grand time dancing and singing...
"Jingle Bells"
(i think that action goes with the HEY at the end of the song)

more of what we have been up to...

2011-11-14T15:45:00.000-08:00

Halloween, what a scary bunch...

and a broken arm... she has to be the first to do everything right?

more of what we have been up to

2011-11-14T15:42:00.000-08:00

Birthdays!

Yes, my new toy...

Really 9? wow

and more of what we have been up to

2011-11-14T15:32:00.001-08:00

hiking to the rocks of sharon playing with Dozer g-ma and g-pa's new puppy

Riverfront park

more of what we have been up to

2011-11-14T15:28:00.001-08:00

Fishing, my catch...
camping with nana. scout raingutter regatta races

Fishing... one of J's

Monster truck show!

what we have been up to since July

2011-11-14T14:14:00.000-08:00

Back to school. (note: these aren't in any specific order...

sorry i'm just not that organized right now)

Family Reunion, tubing down the salmon river. COLD but so fun

cub camp, since I was a den leader I had the opportunity to go to day camp again.

It was such a blast - This is A shooting here.

what we have been up to since July...

2011-11-14T14:02:00.000-08:00

Air show, the kiddos loved these airplanes.

Helicopter Ride, did I go, um no... but the kids and J man loved it.

The pilot is a friend of ours.

spiders

2011-07-25T13:17:00.001-07:00

Found a spider down at the shop... it was big (just bigger than a quarter) but the body was so strange and round... and I'd never seen one like this before... and of course the kids wanted to keep it. So we put it in a jar and it couldn't hardly walk with such a huge body!

tron

2011-05-10T08:08:00.001-07:00

B loves the new movie Tron. He loves it so much that he has been talking about Halloween and that he wants to be Sam from the movie. He'll talk about how he wants his costume to look and what he wants it made of... Yesterday he became tired of "waiting" for me to make it and he created one all on his own. Today I wouldn't let him wear it to school and instead he could put it on and that we'd take pictures so he could share the pictures.

There is a note that comes with these pictures from B, he wants to tell you that he still needs to add the light strips to the black clothing so they aren't finished yet. Just so you know.

Man I love this boy!

easter

2011-05-10T00:15:00.001-07:00

Yeah, i totally have no idea where my camera went to after the whole Easter thing was done... but luckily others got some family photos... The matching outfits, yes, that tradition comes from my side and if I remember correctly, I loved it (Mom might remember differently) still do love it, the boys...hmmm... not so much.

The year I remember most is when my younger sister and I had dresses made from the same material but they were different patterns. Purple with white hearts. The dress was perfect for twirling. Twirling was the true test of a dress.

So sisters, what do you remember about Easter outfits? Did you like them? Do you have a favorite? Any other memories about Easter? I am curious ...

hmmm this looks familiar

2011-05-08T00:00:00.000-07:00

I seem to remember some pictures of us as kids on Dad's old red tractor that look very much like this one... Fun memories and a side note, C did not want to get off (though I can't blame her) that tractor was fun to play with.

what we've been up to

2011-03-29T16:28:00.001-07:00

Reading... this is C's favorite book. Pinkalicious!

If you haven't read this book yet, you must. It is supper cute.

Baking...This is a dark wheat bread similar in taste to the bread you get at Outback. I let it "proof" in my brotform, the basket you see at the top of the picture. mmmm I love bread!

Movie time!

Tree climbing... need I say more

Jump, jump, jump

Please throw the ball... it's at my feet thus you can't see it.

Derby time!

Science with Pa-J

Birthday Boy

sweet C

2011-03-29T16:03:00.000-07:00

I know pictures are more fun

2011-03-03T11:42:00.000-08:00

Yes, it has been a while since I've posted anything.

Let's see, A is in his 2nd season of Y basketball. He LOVES basketball! It is such a blast to go and watch him play. Not such a blast to wrestle C during the game but J-man and I take turns, I get a quarter he gets a quarter. Works great!

B is learning to read. I have a book called "Teach your child to read in 100 east lessons" love love love this book. They are quick and easy lessons and he is doing so well. B is a little sad today because he and his best friend K were supposed to have a play day but because of sickness it had to be canceled ... bummer.

C is growing way to quick. She is a climber now and her favorite place to climb is the kitchen table and now that she can pull chairs out on her own... the table is all hers. Any thing on the table is free for the taking or that's what she thinks.

And with these three busy kids running around all day, what do I do...run after them of course. No better purpose than that!

J-man and I have been busy with work too, even though it's winter and the roofing is slower the office work isn't. Taxes and paper work never cease!

so...

I know, I know pictures make it more fun to visit blogs right? I totally agree, and being as I don't have any pictures (of my cute kids or family or the fun things we've been up to) on this little notebook I've been using (since our computer stopped working) I thought I'd share some other pictures of things I like.

Feel free to oooh and aaah!

love these shoes

thanks for visiting ... come again and have a great day (or night)!

skiing

2010-12-29T07:51:00.000-08:00

We woke up to this... which would normally be good

and these boys were up at 7:30 ready to go... and I stayed up late to make these to eat on the way...

up to the mountain to go skiing. but... with the snow and the way others drive around this town and the fact that we are picking parents up at the airport in a few hours we decided it was safer to wait... at least we can still eat ... yum

Thankyou Santa

2010-12-29T07:50:00.000-08:00

For Christmas Santa brought me a camera. I have been without one since October when mine became water logged. I am so excited!

My Louie

2010-12-12T18:35:00.001-08:00

Louie

a best friend, protector, cuddly 70 pound puppy, loving no matter what i do wrong, lovable no matter what he did wrong, sweet boy, my first child, athletic buff boxer, full of hugs and licks, long runs and hikes, lap dog, loyal trampoline jumper with the boys, ready to play keep away from Rozzie with her ball, follower, garden helper, ride with dad to work, loved to sit shot gun, camping buddy, "bird dog" that is if you consider catching them in mid air or instead of flushing them he'd just catch them , rock lover (didn't hardly have teeth because of rocks), front door greeter, door bell, loved to play hide and seek, sneak up on the bed,
I love this dog! Love, love, love and miss miss miss him. I never realized how much he followed me around until now, he isn't there. It feels so empty here in this home without him. My heart just aches. He left us very suddenly today. I think that is why I am so sad, I wasn't prepared. We are all sad. He was happy active and healthy yesterday and even at breakfast this morning... and now he is gone...
We miss you Lou!

Political Stuff

2010-11-22T08:26:00.000-08:00

I am glad I found this quote on a friends blog. It has always bothered me how some could be anti abortion in their personal lives but then pro choice in public policy, this was an a-ha quote to me so I thought I'd share. The entire article is great too if you want to look it up.

"If we say we are anti-abortion in our personal life but pro-choice in public policy, we are saying that we will not use our influence to establish public policies that encourage righteous choices on matters God's servants have defined as serious sins. I urge Latter-Day Saints who have taken that position to ask themselves which other grievous sins should be decriminalized or smiled on by the law due to this theory that persons should not be hampered in their choices. Should we decriminalize or lighten the legal consequences of child abuse? of cruelty to animals? of pollution? of fraud? of fathers who choose to abandon their families for greater freedom or convenience?
Similarly, some reach the pro-choice position by saying we should not legislate morality. Those who take this position should realize that the law of crimes legislates nothing but morality. Should we repeal all laws with a moral basis so that our government will not punish any choices some persons consider immoral? Such an action would wipe out virtually all of the laws against crimes. "
Dalin H. Oaks
Ensign, January 2001

Can she really be two

2010-10-29T14:54:00.000-07:00

Yes it's true Carli is 2! I am amazed at how quickly the last two years have gone.

Yeah I know it's blurry but you get the idea right? This little girl has blessed and continues to bless our lives so much. She has this way about her where you can't help but smile when you are around her.

If Ave can't wake up in the morning the perfect cure is to put Carli up there, he is instantly up and happy! She loves her family especially those brothers. She gets so excited when they come home from school and gives them big hugs and says her version of their names

(i can't begin to spell it)
Every time I look at her I am reminded of my many blessings, and that is something I am continually thankful for.

body boarding

2010-09-18T22:03:00.000-07:00

C and the Life guard, not the best picture but let me tell you she loved it.

Our superstar

2010-09-18T21:51:00.000-07:00

When we stayed in Kellogg we got passes to the water park so we decided to bring the kiddos along, well... A and B went to the fair with Gma and Gpa but C came with us and she wasn't about to let just Daddy try this one. J man was in line for the body boarding and he was about to do it and C threw a huge fit and started sobbing and crying because she wanted to do it. The Lifeguard said he would take her out and boy did she love it. She got to do it twice! And for the water slides ... well I'll just say we had a very hard time leaving.

weekend anniversary fun

2010-09-18T21:30:00.000-07:00

What a wonderful man he is! He swept me away for a quick afternoon and evening to celebrate our 10th anniversary. We went and biked the Hiawatha (and stayed in Kellogg afterwords) Starting from the bottom we rode up 4 1/2 miles then took the easy ride back down 4 1/2 miles. It was perfect cool weather and it had just rained so the smell of the sweet wet woods around us was absolutely wonderful! This is Jeremy on one of the bridges you cross, I think it was 760 feet high.

What a wonderful 10 years it has been and here is to many many more! And many thanks to grandma and grandpa for taking the wee ones! thank you, thank you, thank you!

another for mom

2010-09-18T21:23:00.000-07:00

Flies seem to be its favorite. I say it because we don't have a clue if it is female or male. Even though its name ( Santianna ) sounds like a girls name to me I still call it a he and so does everyone else in this home except carli she just says bug and gets all excited and points at him, i mean it.

2010-09-16T21:27:00.000-07:00

Bo First day with friend A and Teacher B in the back! he loves preschool!

some of the garden

2010-09-16T21:21:00.000-07:00

for mom
the garden

2010-09-16T21:16:00.000-07:00

The new PET?

2010-09-16T21:08:00.000-07:00

2nd week of school

2010-09-13T12:45:00.000-07:00

Yippie, we made it through the 1st week of school and are onto the 2nd. Football is going, piano is starting, this weeks homework is half way done, peaches and pears are canned for this year, one chair has been recoverd and 3 left to go, getting ready to do driveway and septic system (double yippie), preschool starts tomorrow, and on top of it all it feels like fall! My favorite time of the year FALL yes FALL is just around the corner. I love this weather and all the colors and smells.

This picture is from last year and I am so excited for this years trip to the Finch!

first day for A

2010-09-07T09:29:00.001-07:00

Can it really be? Where did summmer go? Where did the warm weather go? And how can it be that my boy is in grade 3 already?

what is there something wrong?

2010-08-14T10:55:00.001-07:00

Carli loves to do things like her big brothers! This is B's dress up outfit, Looks like she wants to go bug hunting too! Man I just love this guy. He brings such joy and fun into our home! He reminds me of the boys sometimes. I love it when he gets down on the floor with the kids and becomes one of them. I've never been very good at becoming and acting like a kid. Someone has to be the adult! Just after this pict was taken he was teasing me and trying to convince me that he put a bigger lift on my Jeep. I kept asking if he really did and he would reply with some silly justification of why it had to be done. The boys thought it was so funny! Did he? you ask... nope... such a tease! Even with the way he dresses! I did convince him that he should change his boots cause I thought it looked silly to wear boots and shorts. Perfectly ok for a little boy but a big boy? hmm ... you tell me

bugs... and beans

2010-08-11T13:21:00.001-07:00

This is my latest picking from my garden. They are Royal Burgundy beans. When boiled in water they turn green which is kinda sad because they are so beautiful in this rich purple color. And this is Avery's new hobby. Nana got him a bug vaccume! This is his first bug, it is a Ten-lined June beetle or Watermelon Beetle. He started a bug journal to keep track of all the bugs he catches. Fun times in my home!

Just a quick note to all who are wondering, yes I'm feeling much better. It willl take a while to get my strength back and what not but thus far all is well. Thanks for all the prayers!

Something I never thought my boys would have...

2010-05-30T21:35:00.000-07:00

I never thought my boys would have mohawks. Well the day has come... Daddy gave the hair cuts tonight as I put C to bed. Ave didn't get one just B. ( try to look past the the smore pie that is still all over his face)

mmmmmmmmmm chocolate crinkles!

2010-05-10T20:29:00.000-07:00

One of my all time favorite cookies is the chocolate crinkle. I remember Mom making these after all of us kids were in bed. It's no wonder why she had to do that, they are delish. I made some today and the "boys" finished off a tray (10) of them (with a little help from me).

I also remember sneeking out of my bed at night and taking some of the warm cookies off the cooling racks when she wasn't watching.

So here's to chocolate crinkles and Mom (for trying to make them without us finishing them before they could be used for lunches the next day)

soo very good

Just finishing it off.

water, mud and what more mud...

2010-05-06T08:34:00.000-07:00

Saturday we had a family day. It was long overdue. We headed to Idaho, spent some time down by the water, which is always a favorite of the boys. So many rocks and sticks to throw in we could have stayed for hours!

After our time at the lake we headed down the road ...
for some ...
fun in the mud?
OK so we started pretty clean, all was well

till we had to cross this stream.
Jer was wearing somewhat water resistant boots and I was just in shoes (nothing fit for walking through water). J decided that he would carry us all across. So up first were Carli and I. We got half way across the stream and I slipped off his back and got terribly wet anyway! Feet, bum and all.

Here he is bringing the boys across the stream.

After the stream crossing ...
the rest of the trail was full of mud puddles which of course you need to sit down in.
as shown here by Bo.
I have to say, after I was muddy and wet it was a lot more fun.
Just letting loose and playing in the puddles with the boys.

What a blast!

Carli was the only one who stayed clean.

This is a picture of the first stream we crossed.
As you can see it had some rocks to step on.
That made crossing a little easier.

These were my jeans after the ordeal.
That was not fun, driving home for an hour in wet pants.

Ah, sleeping boys after a long day of play!

I'd do it all again (mud and all) next weekend!

Easter, Bo's Birthday and such

2010-04-18T15:58:00.000-07:00

So this is a little out of order but we'll start with Easter. What fun, to have General Conf. and Easter in the same weekend. Such a treat. We had a nice quite day and then had all the grandparents over for an Easter dinner. This is what jer and the dogs did durning the egg hunt...

Sweet girl, finding eggs!

Carli got out of the hospital on B's birthday and he knew it was his birthday and we didn't want to make him feel bad so we put together a wonderful party, suprised him with a house full of decorations, and an Indiana Jones cake. Here he is cutting his cake with a play knife he got in an army guy dress up kit. He did a pretty good job too!

J and B-

Nana got a wonderful card for B. You open it and it plays the indiana jones theme... yeah that was his favorite gift. A CARD! so simple

and you ask... do we still hear that card every day, um yeah. Funny thing is that Carli will clap every time she hears it now too.

What happens when Nana takes the boys...

2010-04-18T15:30:00.000-07:00

So Nana took the boys so I could get a nap in today. With all that Carli has going on I haven't slept much. And guess what happened just as Nana was driving away with the boys... yes, that's right my bright eyed girl woke up from her nap. Time to eat!

More of the Pinewood winner!

2010-03-18T22:32:00.000-07:00

Yup, our little first timer got first place and is on his way to districts. Good job Ave!

Yeah For the Pinewood Derby

2010-03-18T22:22:00.000-07:00

An assortment of photos showing Ave working on his car for the pinewood derby. (not in any order what so ever)

Ave took part in the Pinewood Derby tonight. What a blast! This was my first time attending this type of event. All of the kids worked so hard on their cars and they had so much fun. I was so very proud of all the boys in my den. It was neat to see them cheering each other on too. Kids are great.

Carli, our almost walker!

2010-03-07T22:27:00.000-08:00

Here is Carli with her walker.

just for fun

2010-03-07T22:12:00.000-08:00

The kids in Avery's grade did a Presidents Wax Museum at school. They were all assigned different Presidents and they had to write and memorize 6 or so sentences about their President . Then on the day of the event they dressed like the president and sat very still in a chair till some one came up and pushed a "button"(round sticker) on the back of their hand then they would come to life and tell you about "themselves" (like they were the actual president). Avery had Theodore Rosevelt. All of the kids did so well and it was so cool to hear what the kids thought of the presidents. This is Averys speech. Ignore the kid in the background.

Goals

2010-03-07T21:49:00.000-08:00

OK, for the longest time (the last 10 years) I've wanted to make amazing, yummy cinnamon rolls and I had a list of qualities that these cinnamon rolls would have. For example: tons of gooey caramel filling (my problem was it kept falling out the bottom or would soak into the dough), the dough has to be a little doughy like cinnabon but a hint of bready texture like my mom's (so hard to do), light brown color on top with a yummy cream cheese frosting and lastly they still have to taste good the next day. For the last 10 years I have tried and tried to get them just right but they would always flop in one way or another. It usually was that the dough wouldn't be just right. Well tonight, after 10 years, I have mastered the cinnamon roll. I am just soooooooo excited. I think half of it was getting the baking time correct. So now I am left with two cookie sheets of cinnamon rolls, any one up for breakfast? yeah - so good I ate two.

home again

2010-02-21T19:26:00.000-08:00

Ah! to be home after a quick overnight trip, it feels so gooooood!
Thank you to mom for feeding the pets that couldn't come.
Poor lou and roz.
The boys had fun swiming with Jer (too cold for me & Carli came down with a runny nose). They had some kids activities where we were staying and the boys painted some small canvas bags. A- did a star wars scene and B- did a camo monster truck. Most of our time was spent on the basketball court with all types of balls of all sizes. Even Carli crawled all over that court.
such a fun quick trip

Today is much better than yesterday!

2010-02-17T16:35:00.000-08:00

So I made sugar cookies with frosting (like the lofthouse kind) today! Do you think they are better for you if make them with fresh ground whole wheat flour and organic sugar? hum... i bet with the frosting they are just as bad. Oh well, they are still yummy, and I had that craving and after dealing with sick kiddos for two weekends and counting, I SO DESERVE THEM!

And I just have to brag that I have such a rockin' visiting teacher (and great friend). I think she had an inspiration to call me yesterday to chat and I totally opened up and was way too emotional but she had some great words of wisdom and it really helped and I needed to hear what she had to say. Then today she brought over a lovely flowers and a sweet note!

Just evidence of the Lords tender mercies.

Valentines?

2010-02-12T10:38:00.000-08:00

Poor, Poor Avery, worked so hard on his valentines and early this valentines morning got sick and now he can't to to school. What a bummer! Cute idea though. He found it on the computer and we worked together to make them. The body of the ipod is a pack of gum. He was so excited about handing them out.

-dessert tonight-

2010-01-22T18:48:00.000-08:00

Just made "Chocolate Mint Brownie Cookies" from The Prepared Pantry (www.preparedpantry.com). My mom gave them to me a while ago and they have been sitting on my pantry shelf, tempting me. So tonight as I was waiting for dinner to finish baking, I pulled them out and whipped them up. YUM and Oh so easy.

Our Sunbeam

2010-01-17T21:42:00.001-08:00

Bo is a sunbeam!

Holy crow, how did that happen

Yum Cake!

2010-01-17T21:25:00.000-08:00

Tonight I made some

"rainbow / san fran cake" (that is jeremy's addition, he also calls it our gay or lesbian cake)(Hmmm...no comment).

So the picture isn't great, sorry! but it was delish and pretty all at the same time

(no comment on the yucky dyes used to make the cake that color)

We had Nana and Pa-j over for cake and a long game of UNO attack, yeah that's the one where it spits the cards at you when you are just about to get rid of all your cards. So fun yet irritating at the same time.

What a wonderful Sunday evening!

Found!

2009-12-22T16:03:00.001-08:00

So there is a funny story to this one, Carli was crawling around content and happy and I sat down to type up a bill for Jeremy real quick. A minute later I hear happy baby sounds, talking, giggles, squeeling. It lasts a while so I become curious about why she is so happy!
This is what I found : Carli playing with Bodee's under-roos! silly girl

Found the camera!

Where - you ask did I find it?

Jeremy took it and forgot he took it

and I found it in one of his coat pockets, thankfully.

So glad to have it back, especially before christmas.

Anyone know where i could find my camera?

2009-12-11T21:57:00.000-08:00

I am so sad.
I can't find my camera any where
and there are some great pictures on it.
Bummer!

Has it really been a year...

2009-11-06T10:42:00.001-08:00

One year ago... October 28, 2008

After weeks of bed rest, tons and tons of help and prayers from family and friends

our little miracle was born (15 weeks early, weighing 1 lb 11 oz)only as long as a ruler... we weren't sure

what kind of a future was in store for us all but look at her now.

I can hardly believe it has been a whole year.

What a year!

What an amazing blessing she has been to our family and lives. Through this experience our testimonies have grown so much. Carli Brings such joy to us all. She is 16 pounds already, crawling all over and pulling her self up to standing.

Happy 1st Birthday Car!

this is what we get...

2009-11-06T10:33:00.000-08:00

So we made an old family recipe (Butter Cookies) a few days ago. It is from J's side of the family and it came from his great great grandpa who owned the Arapaho Bakery in Salt Lake City. Yeah, so the boys and I sat down to roll and cut the cookies out. Then Jer decided to join in the fun. This is what we get. Can you tell what it is? I think great great grandpa would be proud! Ok, so if you couldn't tell what he created... an egg and baccon. the little thing at the top is Avery's idea of scrambled eggs!

Yeah! Jeremy is home

2009-10-25T19:14:00.000-07:00

Autumn is my favorite season. I get to pull out all of my cozy sweaters, and i just love the color in the trees. The crisp fall air that makes my nose cool and crunch of leaves beneath my feet make me so happy. There is nothing better than to play with the family on a cool fall day at the Finch Arboretum. And what makes it even more special is that we have been missing Jeremy for weeks now. It was nice to have him home for one day and not deal with the business. The boys raked up several piles of leaves to jump into and throw all over.

Lots of giggles, Carli especially enjoyed the leaf throwing.

I wish I had a video of that action.

Of course there was football involved.

And tree climbing...

more tree climbing...

and more tree climbing!

To end our wonderful family fall day we drove to Coeur d'Alene and had dessert at the dockside.

Yeah you know it. You love it. The way over sized desserts, yum!

Jer had the large Butterfinger dessert to himself (well Carli helped a little) and the boys had one to share. Me of course (being the lactose intolerant one) had huckleberry cobbler.
What a treat!

Happy Fall Everyone!

Greenbluff fun with Nana

2009-10-25T18:56:00.001-07:00

Carli and Nana sat together while the boys and I did the corn maze up in Greenbluff. I am surprised that this picture turned out so well considering they were running around crazy, it was a little challenging to keep them together. We had to take turns deciding which way to go. We made it to the end ... eventually! What fun the boys had. I think their favorite part was the pirate ship you could climb on at the end.
This was the train ride, I absolutely think this is the cutest picture of Nana and Ave!

Oh yeah, i was there really!

Of course we had to get a pumpkin for each of the kids. I told Ave he could get any pumpkin he wanted but he had to be able to put it into the barrel. So he got this huge one in, and then like 5 minutes later he changed his mind, so i helped to get it out and he picked a different one, (about the same size) but because he put the first one in and he was SOOOOOOOOOOO tired, I helped with the second one.

This is Bo's selection, a little bit more modest in his selection!

They picked out a pumpkin for Carli together, with out any arguing either!

We ended the day with caramel apples, yum, then hurried home to prepare for Jake and Matts surprise party!
What a fun day we had and I am so glad Nana got to come with us and share in the fun!

What have we been up to?

2009-10-07T22:00:00.000-07:00

Earlier this summer...

we took a vacation because Jeremy had a business meeting out of town.

It was so fun to tag along and get away from all the stress for a short while.

We got to see my sister and her new LITTLE baby boy Jack! So cute! I wish I had some pictures of our visit but Jeremy had the camera at his business meeting.

But here are some of the other highlights of our trip!

We always have to have a hike in there somewhere... My favorite part, smores on the beach at night! Yum

Jeremy skim boarding...

Oh no... what happened?

What a climb... but we did make it.

Silly bones...

My fire fighters...

After the climb up the tower.

Legal battle and light sabers

2009-08-04T21:31:00.001-07:00

So I was talking to Avery tonight and I was telling him that we have a big day tomorrow and he needed to head off to bed. He asked why and I said that I needed to support Daddy in the Labor and Industries battle we are fighting tomorrow and it was important that I be there.and he asked how I supported Daddy which i explained and he said. "Oh a battle, like you fight in" "I'm gonna ask Pa J to help me make a light saber and a lazer gun and I'll go attack them with my friends!" talk about support eh!

Ave's Star Wars birthday

2009-08-01T21:38:00.000-07:00

So because I was running the party I didn't get hardly any pictures but the grandma's got more so I'll post those when i get them but of the photos i got : This is one of the two cakes, yes i said two cakes. Ave couldn't decide on which one he'd rather have so i did both (to make up for him not really having a party last year) this is R2-D2
And this is the 2nd cake i just did a round one with happy birthday written on top then he wanted to put the action figures on the cake like they were fighting because the way i had them "wasn't very good" lol then he stuck all their guns around the cake. I'm glad he got into it and when he told his friends that he put them on top they all thought that was cool!

We did a rain gutter regatta boat race. Ave and I delivered all the invitations with a boat for the kids to race (they were all very excited to race their boats) and some of the parents even stayed just to watch the races. Then we had lunch and everyone put on their Padawan (Jedi in training) uniforms and the Jedi master (me lol) taught them the Jedi creed, some Jedi moves with their light sabers and showed them how to go through the training obstacle course. The obstacle course was so fun. They crossed hot lava on some floating stones and crawled under tree roots, threw Gungan water bombs at Ventress, Count Duku, Darth Vader, Darth Mol and a number of bad droids, rolled under some more obstacle and drew out their light sabers to disable some traps in the trees, then climbed up the ladder to ring some bells then they swung through the trees on some vines and raced home. This i wish i got on video cause they all had a blast, even the shy girls loved doing this. After that we opened presents and had cake and ice cream. The the Jedi in training demolished a death star pinata with their light sabers. Just before the Jedi went home they were all made Jedi Knights and awarded certificates. Ave had a blast and i have to say, i had just as much fun if not more!

July in a nut shell or among a bunch of trees!

2009-08-01T21:28:00.000-07:00

So we went golfing on my birthday and Jer got stuck in the trees! Every time he tried to get out he hit another tree. 3rd time was a charm though! I think this was the most enjoyable part (for me anyway)! Shade and a good chuckle, though I had my fair share of mishaps and bad swings, they just didn't get caught on video!

What happened to this blog?

2009-07-16T16:24:00.000-07:00

July is almost over and there may be those that are wondering what happened to our forgotten blog, well we've been busy both with fun and not so fun activities the last couple months. We wont bore you with the not so fun things and just show you the fun ones.

to start: Our friends the Jones family invited us up to their family cabin for the Memorial weekend (SO FUN) the water was cold but that didn't stop the kids from swimming. While we were up there we went to a museum that had cars and airplanes in it. As we were walking around we stopped to look at these military uniforms, and we happened to notice that one of the name tags read "Tassie" which is Jeremy's great-uncles last name and since he lives just down the road from the museum we thought it might be his tag. After speaking to a worker at the museum we found out that it was his uniform not just his tag and that he volunteers at the museum. Fancy that!

The boys spent lots of time in the water! and lots of time getting into water fights! some of which leaked through the back door and into the kitchen!

At the end of the school year they had a farm day (remember this is a farm school), and the dad and grandpa of one of the boys brought some huge farm equipment for the kids to climb up in and play on. This is Ave all decked out in his boots and hat.

And of course Bo had to join in! You can't see it in this small picture but he has a smile from ear to ear on his face!

We enjoyed 7 weeks of baseball which Ave just loved. Catcher was his favorite position to play. I was just amazed at all the kids on his team. They could all hit so well and their throwing wasn't too bad either.

Last week Disney had a train in town to advertise for a movie "A Christmas Carol." On the train they showed how the movie was made and at the end you could morph your face into one of the characters faces (so neat). The boys loved it. Then they were showing a 15 minute clip from the finished movie. Bo and i sat out on that one but Nana and Ave went in. They had 3-D glasses to wear and Ave said he jumped in a couple parts but he still wants to see it when it comes out.

This is a picture of Bo and the outside of the train.

Then that same weekend we took a one day trip to North Bend and took a ride on Thomas the train! It was so hot but we still had fun. There were many booths around the train depot that had fun things for the kids to do. This is Carli durring the train ride.

And here we are with Thomas after our ride.
This was a little open car that a small train was pushing around. It was faster than Thomas and a lot cooler too! Sad to say, they all liked this ride more than Thomas.

After eating dinner in a diner, we did a hike on Mt Sai. I think this was Jer's and my favorite part. The boys: got dirty, picked some blackberries, found great walking sticks, climbed some rocks and trees, saw a black snake, added more dirt to their existing dirt, and did a light saber fight with the walking sticks. Best of all they both slept the whole way home all 4 hours and 10 minutes! I think Carli liked it too cause she was talkin and droolin the whole way.

I just had to put this in because i was just feeding Carli dinner and she would have rather chewed on her toes than eat peaches. I would pull her foot out and give her a bite and as soon as the spoon left her mouth her leg would shoot up and in would go her toes. She is just fascinated with those toes! Neither one of the boys ever really played with their feet the way Carli does. Silly girl.

So that's the end for now. I'll try not to wait so long to make the next post.

LAUGHING!

2009-05-04T09:31:00.001-07:00

so carli has been laughing for a week now but this is the first time caught on video. Just ignore the silly boys and dogs in the background that act like they are strving for attention. It seems they act like that when ever we shoot video! lol

march, what happened to march?

2009-04-17T11:49:00.000-07:00

Um... i'm not sure where march went. What did we ever do?
My rockin sisters threw Carli a baby shower, it was so fun to see so many friends!
Carli had 6 dr apts, yikes!
Bodee turned the big 3! he had a batman cake (made by mommy) and a small party with family.
We all got colds, yuck! and I thought i was supper mom, immune to things like that, he he he!
Ave had parent teacher conf. He's doing so well. He is still my biggest helper around the house and usually he is really willing, especially if it has to do with Carli. He just loves her, and she him. She gives him the best smiles.
so that was ou march in a nut shell...

Do you remember?

2009-04-17T11:38:00.000-07:00

This was Carli's first time to go to church. Thanks to Nana, Carli has been able to stay home durring this really bad rsv season. I think she likes her dress. She gave me a big smile when i put it over her head! So you can't tell very well but their shirts and carli's dress are made of orange gingham. love it

So one of my favorite memories of easter when i was growing up was the matching easter dresses mom would make. We have picts of them, green and purple etc... i'm sure many of you can relate... some like it and some don't. Me i love it, i don't do matching christmas... just easter. As for Jeremy on the other hand, he is one that doesn't like to match (anyone), but for me just this one day he tried! what a guy!

2009-02-14T22:55:00.000-08:00

For Aunti Mindy - this was the best smile i could get, and yes Bo had to be in the picture. he he
Thanks for the cute quilt from Gma Freedman. The little foot prints on the quilt are the same size as carli's.

I feel very busy but at the end of the day i think to my self what did I do... i'm not sure! So it has been just over two weeks since Carli came home an life is a little crazy at times. But thanks to wonderful family and friends we are surviving. Thanks to mom who knows how to work the apnea monitor and care for Carli I have been able step out and get away a couple of times which was so wonderful.

Ave colored some pictures for carli to look at when she is in her bed. One is a pict of Ave, Bo and Carli (not a baby carli of course) wearing cowboy hats, shirts, jeans and boots walkin in the mud and another is of him and carli on a horse going for a ride! so cute

Bo is just a boy... that should explain everything.

After 3 months...

2009-02-01T21:39:00.000-08:00

Carli came home on Thursday the 29th. We are so excited she is home. Ave and Bo are such BIG helpers. They run in and check on her when she fusses to make sure she's ok. Ave likes to pick out her outfits and Bo wants to hold her all the time. The last few nights Ave told her bed time stories with stuffed animals, he even did different voices for the different animals.

She came home on an apnea monitor which is actually a relief to me, if she wasn't on the monitor i don't think i could sleep or get anything done.

I just love this pict of Ave and Carli. He's such a great big brother!

Home already?

2009-01-12T22:02:00.000-08:00

So Carli is doing so well. She is 4lbs 11 oz and now she is eating all of her full feeds through a bottle, and today she pulled her feeding tube out so they aren't going to put it back in. Yippie and to top it off she isn't on the canula either ( the little nose oxygen thing). She got to go to the Intermediate NICU too. this pict was taken on the 4th. You can see how her legs, arms and tummy are getting fuller, i was going to write chunky but they aren't quite there yet.

Another Surgery

2009-01-07T12:33:00.000-08:00

Carli had another eye surgery today. We'll find out how it went in the weeks to come. she is doing well right now. Last night she was 4 1/2 pounds and this morning when I went to see her before surgery she looked soooo big! She has really grown.
School is closed today because of snow on the roof of the school. Ave said there was a leak and water damage in the gym yesterday. No school days are so fun!

The Latest News

2008-12-30T17:01:00.000-08:00

Let's see, Christmas was wonderful and busy. Jeremy and Ave jumped off Nana and PaJ's roof into a big snow pile but I am hessitant to put the video on. Bo went skiing for the first time and loved it. Ave and I rode the snowmobile to Don and Donna's home because there was so much snow and there weren't many cars on the road. So fun. Last night Carli graduated from her incubator into a crib and she is now 4 lbs. I don't know what happened to the 3 lb stage but it sure went quickly. They pulled her off of the constant feeds so now she gets her food in a 2 hour period with a 1 hour rest in between feeds and so far that is going well (meaning she is able to digest her food well). She is 2 months old and my goodness how the last month has gone by quickly.

snow snow and more snow

2008-12-30T16:55:00.000-08:00

Don and Donna in front of their home, that snow is from their drive way and just in front of their home. This was befor the 6 inches we got yesterday and the 10 we are expecting tonight.

Downtown

2008-12-30T16:51:00.000-08:00

Christmas Shopping downtown, sure they all look happy in this picture but boy really likes to shop unless it is in a toy store, motorcycle shop, or outdoors camping store?

December in a nutshell

2008-12-30T16:40:00.000-08:00

Christmas Eve, holding Carli. She is getting to be such a big girl. She is wide awake in this photo. Christmas Eve Bodee got to see Carli for the first time (Ave saw her the first week but not since then because it is RSV season and no one under the age of 12 is allowed in the NICU now). The nurse got her all dressed up and even put a pink bow in her hair. She did really well at the visit and the boys just adore her. As soon as they wheeled her back into her room she was wide awake so i decided to hold her for a while. ( that's the pict above) you'll have to excuse the darkness of the photo, they don't let you use a flash because it is too bright for the babies.

Thanksgiving Fun

2008-12-05T17:47:00.000-08:00

The things Jeremy teaches our boys!

Carli

2008-12-05T17:41:00.000-08:00

This is Carli's most recent photo. She is almost 3 pounds now and 14 1/2 inches long. Her feedings are going well to.

holding Carli

2008-11-23T00:10:00.000-08:00

Nov 21st was the first time i got to hold Carli. They call it Kangaroo care. It was the most wonderful time! I got to hold her for a whole hour! Sorry you can't see her very well she was just taken off the ventilator and put on a CPAP it looks scary but really she is doing much better and breathing on her own. The CPAP just gives her "possitive pressure air flow" or something along those lines. That night she weighed 2lbs 3oz. and she is now 14 inches long.

Carli's eyes

2008-11-22T23:49:00.000-08:00

Just ignore my silly talking! And she isn't really

this chubby, she just had a lot of water retention.

fun at the finch

2008-11-22T23:45:00.000-08:00

From the mind of Avery

2008-11-05T21:21:00.000-08:00

So, G-ma Donna was telling Avery about a story she read in the paper of a dentist that was paying children for their "extra" candy ($1 per pound). And Avery replied "Grandma i really don't think we have any extra candy. We just have enough to last one year. We can put it in the freezer and eat it in the winter, and in the spring"
I heard that and thought to myself "hum... do I talk about food storage too much with or around him?"

Halloween

2008-11-03T12:50:00.000-08:00

Ave and Bo on their way Halloween night. Jeremy and Gpa Don took them around the neighborhood while mommy sat on the couch and Gma Donna handed out the candy! Ave is a ninja and Bo is a race car driver!

Carli opened her eyes!

2008-11-03T12:43:00.000-08:00

So Carli's eyes have been closed since she was born. Yesterday after church we went to visit her and while I was helping the nurse with her care time (diaper change etc) she opened both of her eyes. It was so sweet! At first they opened just a little, then more and more. Some times after opening them she would make a cute grumpy face like it was just too bright. When she opened her eyes you could also see her long blond eyelashes. so sweet!

2008-11-03T12:25:00.000-08:00

Just minutes old

2008-11-03T12:13:00.000-08:00

Here's Carli just a few minutes old, the Docs were still putting my innerds back together and such. I like this pict cause is gives you an idea of her size compared to my hand, I promise we'll get some better ones. My Mom's blog (Mom and Dad on the side bar) has some more well rounded picts of my time in the hospital too if you want to check those out.

so sad to be home?

2008-11-03T11:40:00.000-08:00

Ok so the thought of going home sounded great at first till it hit me that I wouldn't get to bring Carli home for another 3 months or so. That totally sucks. I just cried and cried!
So I am leaving the baby counter up because they keep telling me that, that will be about the time she gets to come home if all goes well.
Carli is doing well, she had a blood transfusion yesterday because her little body can't produce red blood cells quick enough to make up for the blood they draw for her daily blood tests. The nurse said she was very spunky after the transfusion and when we went up after that her coloring looked better too.

Welcome baby Carlie

2008-10-29T14:23:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple of pics I took of Erin one holding a pic of carlie . I love the name! The rest of this post if from Erin, enjoy. -Mindy

After five weeks of bed rest and one week in the hospital, baby carlie joined the McSpadden family at 25 weeks and 2 days old (about 99 days early).

Erin wanted to let everyone know "how thankful we are for all of the prayers, we have been so blessed".

Some highlights:
*1-11oz (yes, that is only one pound)
*13 1/2 inches*Born October 28 2008 about 1 A.M.
*She came out strong & breathing on her own
*Apgar score was a 9 (which is amazing for a preemie)

-With love, Erin (mommy) & Jeremy, Avery, Bodee & Carlie

she is flexable

2008-09-11T21:51:00.000-07:00

I got a kick out of this pict, it just looks painful. She was moving a ton during the ultrasound and when I saw this it was hard to stop laughing.

Can Ultrasounds be wrong?

2008-09-11T21:29:00.000-07:00

Ok, so I know I just put a post on that we were having a boy but that is truely what we thought up until today. So here's the scoop- Aug 15th our last Dr apt we had an ultrasound because I had been bleeding so much. The Dr told us it was a boy, (oh and that everything was ok) the pict we saw looked like a boy and were we suprised at all? No, cause we don't get girls in my family. My folks have 11 grandsons and zip for little girls and Jer's side just has boys too, even the cousins just have boys. So girls just don't happen. Well today we went in again, another ultrasound (cause I'm 19 wks along) and the gal doing the ultrasound asks if we want to know the sex of the baby so we explained that we already know it is a boy because of past ultrasounds and she kindly informed us they(the ultrasounds) were wrong and it was clearly a girl. Yes, we have proof, but do I truely believe? Not fully. Not until I have a baby in my arms and can check for myself. So for now it is a girl. Next month, who knows maybe I'll go for twins!

2008-09-09T21:50:00.000-07:00

For those that I haven't told yet, it's a boy!

First day of 1st grade fun!

2008-09-09T21:40:00.000-07:00

Camping

2008-09-09T21:27:00.000-07:00

This is Rozzie looking for the stick that I threw in Lake Gillette for her. Fetch- a game that is hard to quit when it comes to Roz. When I was tired i began to walk up to our cabin and I called for her "come on roz" and she just stood in the water with the stick in her mouth and stared at me. I totally had to bribe her with a treat to get her out of the lake.
Ave and the rest of the boys went for a motorcycle ride, while up in the hills, Ave took his first big wreck on his pw50. He was proud of it. This was the first real ride he has done with the training wheels and the rev limiter off. So Big!
The Cabin, need I say more.
Yes, i was actually there although there isn't one pict of me up there, i was there. My one and only trip of the summer.
Ave and cuz Ian in the lake.

2008-09-09T21:16:00.000-07:00

Bodee loves to be outside and he loves to do what we are
doing too. What a big helper though I'm not sure the fire engine
cuts the grass too well.

If you are wondering what I did with way to much of my summer (while on bed rest) here's an idea for you. My two best friends
1-the couch
2-Louie our dog
yeah, he is totally a lap dog all 72lbs of him!

more summer fun

2008-09-09T14:32:00.000-07:00

Takin care of the toys!
Fun times at the Baumert Reunion.
That is Jeremys maternal grandmas side for those who want to know.
I don't know who the cute girl is other than she is a distant cousin on Jeremy's side. I was left at home this weekend (yes, more bed rest).

Summer Fun!

2008-09-09T14:14:00.000-07:00

Ken and Lisa came over for dinner so of course Ave had to challenge Ken in boxing on the wii.

Ave turned 6, yippie! This was on the way back from tripple play where we had a small last minute friend party.

Jer's friend Brian took Jer for a ride in this thing then after they landed the boys got to check it out!

This is the 4th of July. I was on bed rest again so Jer took the boys to the baseball game and after the game was over they did a fireworks show too! The boys loved it. Bo kept saying Mo Mo Mo Mo when they were all through.

The Driveway

2008-06-30T14:47:00.000-07:00

So I know this is such a dull photo, but I am so excited about it cause it is our future driveway. Yippie! There was one there before but now it is ready for rock and that means we can start the house!

So i know another dull photo. Jer and his dad put the gate in a few weeks ago so that we wouldn't have anyone driving on the new driveway and messing it up. We had the driveway smoothed out once before and a week later it rained and someone drove all over it and dug huge tracks and ruts through it.

We were smart this time.

2008-06-30T14:42:00.000-07:00

A guys day out in the woods!

Multiply...

2008-06-27T09:30:00.000-07:00

I am so sick! I hate being sick.
Lucky for me I have been blessed with a wonderful family and group of friends to help me out.
We are gonna have our 3rd and the due date is Feb 4
i'll write more when i feel a little better.
sorry for being such a whimp

What does the Donkey Say?

2008-06-03T21:11:00.000-07:00

2008-06-03T20:50:00.000-07:00

The Old

So this is the old tricycle which Bodee loves. it is just his size and if we had a path in the back yard i'm sure he could make it go. He likes to be pushed around on it

(or any other thing that has wheels on it).

Notice the back wheels, they are from one of Jeremy's compressors. The original wheels fell off some how and Ave didn't want to get off so this was the temp. fix and for some reason we never changed it.

LOL

The New

thanks to daddy! this is the new tricycle. Notice the large off roading wheels and tires. of course it is too big for Bodee but Ave sure enjoys getting around on it.

And you ask,

so what did we do with the old one?

kept it! Bodee likes it better, compressor wheels and all!

Home Made!

2008-06-03T20:43:00.000-07:00

okay so i know it is lumpy, but it sure tastes yummy!

I decided to break in my new bread pans, this is the result.

I was searching for a good white bread recipe, i have some good wheat and multi grain recipes but i didn't have a good white one till now!

Stupid Fun

2008-05-28T14:14:00.000-07:00

so i didn't know jeremy took this video till i uploaded it into the computer, I just have one comment, I never knew how stupid you can look while playing a wii. Ave and I are boxing against each other in this clip for thos that want to know.

The Bike

2008-05-28T13:57:00.000-07:00

Ave's new bike. He earned it by working for Jeremy. Avery likes how fast it goes. I asked him "How fast does your bike go" his reply " like a hundred miles fast"

and the race is on...

2008-04-27T00:49:00.000-07:00

Gpa Campbell

2008-04-27T00:20:00.000-07:00

So I don't know which of my siblings remembers this or if it is just me. This is the perfect example of how you are supposed to eat Fudge Stripe Cookies. You have to have your finger in the middle and eat around the cookie, just try not to break it. I remember Grandpa teaching me this and of course i teach the boys the same thing. Yum!

Of course there is one other acceptable way to eat fudge stripe cookies, thanks to my sis, put a toasted marshmallow right in the middle of two. The perfect Smore!

2008-04-10T15:18:00.000-07:00

Bodee and Davis' 2nd birthday
the cake, you can't tell from the picture but it is a 9 inch bottom and a 6 inch top.
While it was sitting on the table the two little boys just had to play with the trains that went around it, thus you can see that thomas (the blue train for those that don't follow the trian thing) has frosting on his back bumper. some of the trees that went around the cake were chopped down and eaten by Davis and Bodee. They sure had fun doing it!

here is Bodee with his motorcycle gear on. Yes, it was from Daddy not Mommy!
I don't ever remember it snowing so late in the season. This picture is the day after Bodee's birthday (sunday march30). The day before there was no snow in our backyard.