Happiness Depends Upon Ourselves

New Chore System

2011-09-09T16:40:00.000-07:00

With the start of a new school year, we have organized ourselves a bit more and have started a new chore system. We have our chore chart that we made a while back pictured below. Every time the kiddos get something marked off, they get 1 point. After 10 points are accumulated, they get a Wii/Video Buck, also pictured below, that they can "spend" on 10 minutes worth of video time. That includes Wii, computer, or DS games. So far it is working great. They have a wonderful incentive to get their chores done and then they get to learn how to budget their spending, because of they want to be able to play video games, they need to make sure they have enough "bucks."

Here is the chore chart...

With the 6 kids, each child has their own color. There is a list of things they need to do each day to include make bed, clean room, "chore" which is blank and I can write in the chore for that day with a dry erase marker, a "help mom" space where I can again write something extra for them to do, homework, read, and brush teeth, family scripture/prayer, and personal scripture/prayer. The more things they do each day on their lists, the more points they earn each day. They can spend their Wii bucks only on Friday nights or Saturdays, so they have all week to save up for video game time.

This is a picture of the page full of Wii/Video Bucks that I designed. I just printed off a few pages worth and cut them up into individuals. We then made little pockets that go next to the Chore chart and when they earn their bucks, they go in the pocket for later use.

As you can see, their are chores written on each of their chore spots. These chores include things like Garbage, dishes, vacuum, puppy chores (feeding, taking for walk, outside to go potty etc), set table for meals, clear table after meals, sweep, mop, bathroom sinks, etc. Each day they get a different one. I rotate the "easy" ones between the little kids and the harder ones between the bigger kids. Also, you can see that each one has a few Wii/Video bucks peaking out of their pockets ready for use.

So far it is working out great. I think this is one that we can keep up with. We tried doing different things, but most of the "rewards" ended up being things we have to spend money on, but this is something that is free for us, we already have all of it, etc. It is also a great way to make them earn time to spend on Video games as well as "limit" their usage of video games.

BASEBALL 2011

2011-06-17T16:41:00.000-07:00

Here are just a ton of photos for the start of baseball season 2011. SYSA has been fun to do over the last few years and this year just adds another fun experience for us. Daniel gets to play for the first time this year and he sure is having a great time. Abigail and Daniel are on the same team, T-ball. Noah is on a coach pitch team. Jacob is in the 9-10 year old division. They are having a great time.

Snook Starting Line Up

This is Abi and Daniel's team all together

SUNSHINE, Daniel Snook

what a cutie pie

Getting ready to hit the ball

Doesnt really look like he is having any fun at all does it :0)

Sometimes those accident pictures turn out the best. Not sure how I got this shot above, but I absolutely love it.

He was so excited to make it to base.

Just having a ball!

He made a good play here and stopped the ball. Has some good looking form there throwing it back to the pitcher.

Abi and Daniel were on the same team. Here are a few pics of them working together!

Abi had a lot of fun last year and was so excited to get to play again this year. Her batting form is looking pretty good.

But she still has some work to do in the outfield. Most of the time we find her dancing around to the princess song playing in her head. LOL.

But she can get in there and get to the ball! And she is not afraid to take a beating to make the play! You go ABI!

NOAH has tons of fun and it is such a great outlet for all his pent up energy. This year, he has several classmates on his team, so it is extra fun getting to play with so many friends.

Nice baseball stance Noah!

Hitting it out of the park (or maybe just between 1st and 2nd, but it was a good hit)

Jacob also was very excited to get to play. Here he is showing the kids the proper baseball stance.

Really mom! Why so many pictures :0)

He got to pitch for the first time and did pretty good. He got a strike out, which made him feel pretty great. It is a hard position and he has some work to do, but he really liked it so we will have to keep working with him.

The kids sure enjoy this every year. I am so glad that we have something so affordable for them to enjoy. It allows us all to get out and have fun every Tues/Thurs and keeps them busy for at least a few months of the summer. Here's to a great Baseball Season 2011.

Abigail Kindergarten Graduation

2011-06-17T16:25:00.000-07:00

Our little Abigail graduated from Kindergarten! I cannot believe how big these kids are getting and how fast time is just flying by. She is very excited for 1st grade and to have Daniel in school with her next year when he starts Kindergarten.

Here are some pics for your enjoyment.

She got to come over and say hi when we arrived. She was so happy to see us.

Her class did their typical morning schedule to show us what they have done for the last year. Video will follow of the songs they sang.

Here she is after her little program with diploma in hand. We got her some flowers and she was so very happy. She is definitely a girly-girl and enjoys getting flowers, especially from her Daddy! She made lots of friends and had tons of fun in kindergarten. I cant wait to see what the next 12 years of school bring for this little girl!

Here she is with her teacher, Mrs. Landis. She was a great teacher and Abi had lots of fun with her and all the friends she made.

Congratulations Abi! We love you. This year was a great one and I know you will have many more wonderful years of school ahead of you!

Our new addition

2011-04-08T16:11:00.001-07:00

We are so excited to announce the arrival of .......

OREO

Everyone is very excited to have such a cute little guy join our family. He is just so precious and we all love him tons already!.

and I think he is getting use to all of us as well

Happy Birthday to ME! I have been telling the kids and James for about 6 months now that I wanted a puppy and "teasing" them when they asked me what I wanted for Christmas, Valentines day, and my birthday. I didnt actually think it would happen. James surprised me last night and I couldnt be happier with his choice of puppies. This is the exact one I have always wanted. Thank you so much. So far, I am sleep deprived from being woken up by cute little puppy squeaks every 2 hours last night and keeping Jameson away from him is proving to be a chore in and of itself, but he is just so CUTE that it is all worth it. So, welcome to the newest member of our family! Oreo, we are glad to have you with us, I hope you can survive the love and affection that will be thrown at you by 6 very excited kids.

Rejection

2011-04-01T19:07:00.001-07:00

It is a hard thing. I try to stay upbeat and happy, but it still hurts! Unfortunately, I did not get accepted into the nursing program this time around. I am saddened and my heart hurts a bit, but I will survive this. I can reapply in September/October, which gives me time to retake a few classes and get better grades. This will only bring my GPA up and make me look that much better on paper so maybe next time they will give me a chance. We will see, I will keep you updated. For now, I must concentrate on my current workload and keep on swimming.

Tyler's testimony

2011-02-07T09:21:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was Fast Sunday at Church. Tyler always amazes me that he is brave enough to get up in front of the whole congregation to bear his testimony. Yesterday he had such a good testimony that I wanted to write it down so that I do not forget it.

He has been doing a science experiment with Brine Shrimp. they have a few different batches going and are testing the correct environment for the shrimp to grown in. One is not enough salt, one is too much salt, and one is just right. Anyway, he got up and told about the experiment and how it reminded him that he needs to have the best environment to grow his testimony as well.

It was such a sweet, short, and true statement that it struck many people yesterday. I had quite a few people after church tell me how much they enjoyed his testimony. Words of truth from this young man!

I cant believe how big he is getting, how mature he is, and how much of a help he is to all of us. Love you Tyler.

Non-napping 2 year old

2010-11-20T15:57:00.000-08:00

So, lately Jameson has been ON-THE-GO. He literally never stops and gets into this, that, and everything else. This afternoon, he was just so tired. You could see it in his eyes. he was also very cranky (as we all know crankiness comes with tiredness)!

James tried to put him down for a nap, to no avail. We have tried everything. He now knows how to climb over the gate, kick out the bottom gate if we double gate his door, gets out of his bed, etc, etc, etc. Getting him to bed at night and down for a nap has been a challenge for a while now.

Today, James decided that he just NEEDED his nap, but since he was refusing to cooperate on his own, a little bit of force was needed. ;0) This is how you "wrangle" a very active 2 year old and get him to fall asleep. It took about 10 minutes. He fought for a bit, but pretty soon we were hearing some pretty load little zzzzzzzz's coming from the lil man.

Notice how his lil feet are poking out from between the backs of Jim's legs and how Jim pretty much has him in a locking bear hug. LOL! Love the boy to peices, but boy has he proven to be a handful. Good thing he is so darn cute, especially in peaceful (finally) slumber.

The Rest of Photo Class Pics

2010-11-04T21:08:00.000-07:00

Here are the last few weeks worth of pictures from my photography class. It was fun. I learned a lot and I am excited to keep working on all that I learned. Hopefully I can be as good as my husband some day :0)

We went to the Temple last night to get a last few pictures...

I love the Fall colors and the Temple... Together it makes for a great picture.

This is the best we can do for a pic of all 6 kids at once. No way we can get them all to look at the same time, staying still, and no hands in front of their faces...

Photography Class

2010-10-11T21:14:00.000-07:00

I have been taking a photography class. It has been a ton of fun and I have learned a lot. It has also been fun for James and I to go out together for my homework assignments. He has been very patient trying to teach me more and help me get the right shot. It has been a lot of fun. here are some of my favorites from the last 4 weeks.

LIFE

2010-09-27T07:53:00.000-07:00

"The Lord compensates the faithful for every loss. That which is taken away from those who love the Lord will be added unto them in His own way. While it may not come at the time we desire, the faithful will know that every tear today will eventually be returned a hundredfold with tears of rejoicing and gratitude." -Elder Joseph B. Wirthlin "Come What May, and Love It"

I found this quote while reading a friends blog this morning. What a great quote and such an inspiring time. I needed this quote this morning. Life is hard. Life is darn busy. But, I know that it will all be worth it in the end. We all have our struggles of different kinds, but if we keep on trucking and live with faith, our tears of trials will be turned to tears of rejoicing and gratitude.

Here is another quote from that same conference talk "every life has peaks and shadows and times when it seems that the birds don’t sing and bells don’t ring. Yet in spite of discouragement and adversity, those who are happiest seem to have a way of learning from difficult times, becoming stronger, wiser, and happier as a result.

I love the thoughts from the prophets. Cant wait for Conference next week for some more inspiring words from these dear people!

Reflections as I prepare my R.S. lesson

2010-09-25T12:37:00.000-07:00

I love music, especially with a great spiritual, uplifting message added to it. Teaching the lesson in Relief Society tomorrow. This has helped me to "get in the spirit" of the lesson!

Funny moments

2010-08-22T20:24:00.000-07:00

Our little Sunshine (Daniel) keeps us laughing with some of the things he comes up with.... Today he had quite a few gems that I want to record before I forget about them.

After church, the kids all found their cowboy boots (and cowgirl boots for Abi). We had 3 kids (Abi, Daniel, and Noah) wearing boots outside. Daniel comes in the house saying "Howdy pardner" over and over. it was just too cute!

This evening Abi and Daniel were playing around. Daniel was spinning and spinning. He stopped for a second and promptly fell over as he was so dizzy. He kind of just looked up at me. I asked if he was okay and he said yeah. I asked if he was dizzy, again I got a yeah. He then got up and exclaimed "Well... That was embarrassing!"

I love that kid and all the funny things he has to say! He is going to be the life of the party when he is older. Tons of personality in such a little body right now. He really is our little ray of Sunshine!

Bountiful Basket

2010-07-31T08:15:00.000-07:00

This was my first experience with Bountiful Baskets. It is a fruit/veggie co-op thingy sweeping the country. Some wonderful friends had family in other areas participating and worked really hard to get it going up here in Spokane. You go to their website www.bountifulbaskets.org find your area, register, and every week you go on and sign up for how ever many baskets you want. Then Saturday morning you go and pick up your basket(s). It is $15 and this is all that I got.

There are green beans in the 3 bags, celery, corn on the cob, broccoli, lettuce, carrots, cantaloupe, oranges, apples, bananas, strawberries, and plums. Not sure that we will go through all of it in 1 week, but WOW look at all that food. It seems that there is something for everyone. Abi is very excited about the strawberries and Tyler is wanting to cut into that cantaloupe right away. We will enjoy some corn on the cob for dinner tonight and now I have salad stuff for work this next week.

Anyway, first experience with Bountiful Baskets, so I thought I would share. If interested go to the website and see if they have a co-op in your area. If they don't, find someone willing to head it up and get it organized in your area because it seems to be well worth it.

In other news, the family is great. Kids are enjoying their summer at home. They are ready for school to start all ready though. I am glad I have kids who love school and learning as much as I do. Tyler has read almost the whole series of Pendragon since Easter when he got the first book in his basket. That is 10 books. He has us all hooked so Jacob and I are working on the series as well. Noah is enjoying getting Percy Jackson read to him. We are on Book 2 of that series. I personally cannot wait for Mockingjay to come out, the 3rd book in the Hunger Games series. A Summer of Books, what can be better.

SYSA Baseball 2010

2010-07-20T20:23:00.000-07:00

Baseball Season has been upon us. We sure do enjoy this sport! This was our second year doing baseball through SYSA and I have to say that we are again pleased with the season. The boys had a wonderful time and gained some skill in the last few months. This was Abi's first year in baseball and first time playing an organized sport. She had a blast. Here are some pictures of our teams this year.

Abi's Orange Crushers with Coach Junior and Coach Teresa. As a side note, Coach Junior's father (Gordy Sr.) was Noah's coach last year. It was fun to have that familiarity! Abi LOVED playing baseball. She was very nervous at first, but once she got into it, the smile never left her face. She played T-ball, but the last few games they did coach pitch to get them used to being pitched to. She got a few hits, which I think surprised her more than anyone. She loved being out there with the boys and having fun. It was not unusual to see her dancing around in the outfield though. I guess she still has to prove that she is a girl! LOL.

Noah's Team The Fireballs with Coach Soran. Noah had a blast. His favorite position has been catcher. He just loves getting all the gear on. Noah was in Coach Pitch, but the last few games they always give the boys a chance to pitch and learn that position so they are ready for the higher levels. Noah said his last game he got a chance to pitch and he really liked it. He is a good little baseball player and made some great plays. I saw him get a few grounders and throw the ball to the correct base, even getting a few of them out. It is great to see him gaining confidence and having fun playing around.

Jacob's team was a pretty good little team. They won quite a few of their games (although technically they do not keep score, LOL). He had a blast playing again this year. It was great to see him gaining some skill and confidence in his abilities. He got a few hits. His level is player pitching, so there were sometimes only a few opportunities to actually hit the ball as these guys learn that position. It is a hard skill to learn, but you could see all of their confidence and strength build throughout the games. Most of the time Jacob was walked, which his team attributed to his small strike zone. LOL. He had a great time and made some new friends.

Tyler had a good time as well. He is figuring out his favorite positions and gaining some skill and knowledge in those positions. He likes second base, short stop area. I think he likes being in that action spot. His coach put him in the outfield the first game and you could see the boredom on his face. He really likes the in-field spots. He had a good time as well. His team was lacking a bit in a few areas, but the boys tried their best every game, gave it their all, and most importantly had a great time.

Here is a slideshow of just some random shots throughout the season.

The kids all had a great time. I love that they make it so easy and accessible to everyone. Our games were T/Th and for the most part were all at one big sports complex. I could wander around with the 2 little ones and watch parts of each game. There were a few times when Tyler or Jacob were at a different field, but that was rare and within a short driving distance from the main fields. We had a fun time, but I have to admit that I am okay with it being over. Now back to a good dinner routine and bedtime LOL. Heres to a wonderful 2010 season and we look forward to our 2011 season. PLAY BALL!!!!!!!

Noah's Birthday and Baptism

2010-07-19T16:56:00.000-07:00

So I think I say this with every birthday, but I cant believe how big these kids are getting. Feels so weird to think that half the Snook crew is now 8 and baptized. Noah has been so excited for this birthday. He was so excited to be baptized, get his own set of scriptures, and finally be 8.

He requested an ice cream cake and wanted iron man. So we got this ice cream cake and the iron man toys to put on top. He thought it was the best. I am glad that they can still be pleased by simpleness.

His birthday was on a Sunday. He even got to do scripture/prayer in primary on his birthday. That was a planned or special thing just because it was his birthday, it just worked out that way, but he sure thought it was special. When we came home from church, he enjoyed opening his presents.

The kids each love to hand their presents to the birthday boy/girl and wish them a Happy Birthday. Jameson unfortunately still thinks the presents are his and wants to play with them.

Here is his take from the fam. He had a great time and cant wait to use the squirt gun. He is very excited about the legos. Him and daddy had a great time (during nap time the next day) putting together the Lego Power Miners and the Mega Blocks Iron Man. Geronimo Stilton is also a huge favorite so he was excited to get 2 books from Mommy.

it is hard to get him to sit still long enough to do anything, but here is one quick shot of him getting ready to blow out his candles. He just couldnt wait to get the iron man toys off of it. One to lick the frosting off and another to play with them. I dont think he ate too much of his cake as he was too busy playing with his new toys.

The next Saturday he finally got to be baptized. He has been so excited to be a big boy like Jacob and Noah and get baptized. Him and James spent some time practicing and he was ready for the big day. Below is a picture of Noah and the other boy who was getting baptized with Noah. He was from a different Ward in our Stake.

We had someone that was just standing there take a picture of all of us. Thus, we have a picture from too far away. Anyway, here is all 8 of us on Noah's big day.

Here is one of all 6 kids. Look at all those cute little people. They make me smile and laugh each and every day. I cannot believe how blessed I am.

Noah and Daddy on the big day.

Noah got to finally open his brand new set of scriptures. This is probably the thing he has been waiting for the most. He wanted a green set of scriptures, so we got him green scriptures with a green tote. He was seen all day Saturday of the baptism and the Sunday following carrying around his scriptures. He is so proud to finally have his own set. Now at night when we do scripture and prayer, he is one of the first to run and get his very own scriptures! Here he is right after (I mean right after) the baptism was over. I barely caught up to him in time to get this shot.

I wanted one of Noah in front of the font. I cannot decide which picture I like better, the one above or the one below. I like the one above because it is totally Noah's personality. I like the fingers pointing up and his cute little bare feet. But, the one below is just so precious as well. Thank you to my awesome photog husband to capture the great spirit of the day!

Anyway, Happy Birthday to our little man Noah! Here are some great things we love about Noah.

Noah has a wonderful imagination. He loves Legos, building, and creating things. He comes up with some of the funnest, craziest, and most amazing things sometimes.
Noah is always very cuddly. I can always count on him to sit on my lap and snuggle with me. I miss that in some of the other (older) kids, I will appreciate this fro Noah for as long as it lasts.
Noah is a funny, crazy little man. He can be a big goof ball at times and make us all laugh.
Noah comes up with some great stories. He has such a good imagination and can make up some fun stories, games, and songs as he is playing around.
Noah LOVES to play baseball. He absolutely loves playing catcher and has a great time out there at all his games playing around and enjoying being a part of his team.
Noah is a great brother! He loves his little brothers Daniel and Jameson and can be seen sharing and playing with them often. He also loves his sister Abigail. It is fun to watch him interact with her and play some kind of family game or doll stuff. He enjoys being one of the "big" boys too and playing around with Jacob and Tyler.
Noah is full of all kinds of spirit! As much as this gets him in trouble sometimes, it is also very endearing. He always has energy and exuberance to play and have a good time.
As much as Noah is full of all kinds of spirit, he is also full of a wonderful Spirit. The Spirit of Jesus Christ. His genuine excitement about church and reading scriptures shows his testimony. He is often the one to remind us to do scripture and prayer at night.

I love you Noah. Here is to many more Happy Birthdays! Hope you had a great day and congratulations on the baptism.

Summer happenings

2010-07-18T15:26:00.000-07:00

So I promised that I would keep up with my blogging and just have not been able to lately. Somewhat due to laziness, somewhat due to not enough time, and somewhat due to waiting for pics from Jim's camera to get to my computer. We were finally able to culminate the picture transfer so I am buckling down to get some blogging done.

With a non-existent vacation budget, we are spending a lot of the summer doing "free" things. Splash pads, hiking, and playing at parks. The kids are having a great time seeing all the different parks Spokane has to offer. Here are some pictures of us enjoying our summer so far.

Another thing we have tried to do is go hiking every weekend. We have gone to The Bowl and Pitcher at the Spokane River, Camp Caro at Dishman Mica Hills, and while camping we hiked the Liberty Lake trail. These times out in the woods with the kids have been a lot of fun. We have enjoyed the beauty of this world as well as some peace and quiet (in between squeals of delight from the kids). There is just something about being in the woods to keep you grounded and focused on life.

We had the opportunity to go camping last weekend as well. We just went to the Liberty Lake campground and it was only overnight, but it was tons of fun. The kids had a blast getting the fire going, roasting marshmallows and hot dogs, and sleeping in the tent. We went on a hike and saw a turtle, a beaver working on his dam, and a toad. After breaking down camp the second day, we tried to go swimming, unfortunately the wind was so strong that day. While sleeping during the night Jim and I feared that the tent was going to blown down. The side fell in on us quite a few times. We swam for a bit, enough to get pictures, but had to cut it all short due to the wind blowing the sand all over and freezing us out after being wet. It was still fun and the kids had a great time getting dirty, cant really beat that...

So there are some of the things we have been doing so far this summer. We will have more fun stuff with baseball, maybe some trips to the beach, and some more park fun around Spokane.

6th Grade Promotion

2010-06-24T22:05:00.001-07:00

My Futures So Bright, I Have to Wear SHADES!

I cant believe Tyler is old enough to be "promoting" from 6th grade. I officially have a child in Middle School. WOW! At the end of 6th Grade they have a promotion. The Principal gave a great speech about how they choose to use the word promotion, because it denotes moving on to bigger and better things whereas graduate means the end of something. They want to emphasize that these kids are moving on to something better in Middle School, it was a pretty good speech. Anyway, here are some pics of my biggest guy "promoting" from the 6th grade.

Above is Tyler in the 6th Grade Chorus. They treated us to a few fun songs.

Tyler receiving his "diploma" from his teacher Mr. K.

Posing after receiving his diploma.

Me and my boy

Tyler with a few of his friends.

Mrs. Constantine his 5th Grade Teacher.

Mr. K 6th Grade Teacher.

So, here is to growing up! Congrats Tyler on all the hard work in your elementary school years.

Random Blogging

2010-06-20T20:45:00.000-07:00

So have you ever seen the little "next blog" button at the top of the screen. Every once in a while I click on it just to see what I get. Sometimes it is nothing special at all, sometimes it is something I wish I had not seen, but every once in a while it is a special little nugget that makes a lasting impression.

This is what I found tonight. This lady apparently follows a friends blog who has a daughter with down's syndrome...

So here is what she said today:"Nella had her four month appointment yesterday.And, amid most of the time where I honestly forget she's different, I am reminded every once and awhile. Like getting ready to go to the doctor and feeling a little flutter inside. Like what if they tell me something. Like what if they rock my world again. Like what if one of those "increased likelihoods" that happen to attach themselves to that sweet little chromosome comes true. But, here's the thing. Once you become a parent...once you start feeling a little funny and you buy that pregnancy test...once you see a pink plus sign...once you know it's not just you anymore...well, you automatically carry around, for the rest of your life, an increased likelihood. To have your heart broken. And it's a constant fear that we struggle to put to rest.And we can choose to be afraid or we can choose to live. And I choose to live. Because an "increased likelihood of having your heart broken" also carries with it an increased likelihood to find yourself the happiest you've ever been in life."

What a wonderful attitude and how true is that. I am trying to remember that last part and the "increased likelihood" to find myself the happiest! Risks seem scary.... Whether in motherhood or with life in general. There is that increased chance that you will fail, but without that risk we have no increased likelihood to become happy and make our lives better. So, I too choose to live. Life is hard, life is scary, and life can be down right unfair sometimes, but life is also so very enjoyable, so very happy, and so WORTH it in the end. Glad I clicked that button for that little reminder...

Father's Day Talk

2010-06-20T20:14:00.001-07:00

So I was asked to speak today in church. I always get nervous, but this is something I do enjoy doing. Here is a copy of my talk just in case others wanted to hear the message. It is also a good way to remember what I said.

I asked a friend some advice about giving a talk, and she said, "Speak loudly so that everyone will hear you, speak clearly so that everyone will understand you, and speak briefly so that everyone will like you."

I was asked to speak today on Fathers. Having respect for Fathers as well as our Heavenly Father. I would like to talk about another topic for just a bit and then come back to my original topic. Don’t worry Bishop, I think I know what I am doing here. First lets turn to a well know scripture in Matthew.

Matthew 22

37 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt ^alove the Lord thy God with all thy ^bheart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy ^cmind

38 This is the first and great ^acommandment

39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt ^alove thy neighbour as thyself.

40 On these two commandments hang all the ^alaw and the prophets.

In his conference address titled “The Love of God” given in the October 2009 President Dieter Uchtdorf said, “Because love is the great commandment, it ought to be at the center of all and everything we do in our own family, in our Church callings, and in our livelihood.”

My question that I would like you to consider for the remainder of my talk is Why is love so important?

When I first was asked to give a talk on Father’s day, I was a bit nervous. I am not sure that I am worthy to speak on what I feel is such an important topic. All week I have worried about doing the subject justice. Not only do I want to give respect to our earthly fathers, but I want to give respect to our Heavenly Father as well. I do not have many stories to give of our earthly father as I cannot say that I have “that kind of father” with the amazing faith-building stories. I can say that I have an amazing husband and father of my children. One story with that is the very first time that I met him……

STORY ABOUT FIRST MEETING JIM!

He has not let me down on that first thought either. Mostly because every day I can see the love that he has for our children.

Upon researching for this talk, I came across the primary song titled FATHERS I would like to read the words for you now.

The Father of our home leads our Family

With wisdom’s light in all that’s right;

My father’s good to me.

The father of our ward tends with loving care

Each member’s needs with kindly deeds;

Our bishop’s always there.

And now we’ll sing great praise and reverently recall

The Holy One who gave his Son,

The Father of us all.

First, the FATHER OF OUR HOME. The song says that he leads our FAMILY. We have all heard the P’s associated with Fatherhood. Presiding, providing, priesthood, patriarch. These are all important and good words, but one about one very basic word….. LOVE!

Read story in What the Lord Requires of Fathers by Elder Robert L. Backman in September 1981 Ensign.

Ten thousand high school students in Kansas were asked what question they would ask their parents and want a straight answer on. Eighty percent replied: “Do you love me?”

The next most asked question: “If you had to do it all over again, would you have me?”

How vital it is for fathers to give their children a sense of personal worth, to let them know they are loved and needed. We need to love them unconditionally as the Savior loves us, using our time, energies, abilities, understanding, and concern to help them recognize their relationship to their loving Father in Heaven and their divine potential as his children.

Fathers, we need to express our love and approval for them. Too many of us are like the father of the little boy who cried: “You always tell me when you’re disappointed in me. Why don’t you ever tell me when you’re appointed in me?”

I said earlier that I do not have “that kind of father.” He was an alcoholic and struggled with a lot of things as I was growing up. Of all the things I am grateful for my father is that he tried really hard. He got himself clean, was baptized into the church, took my family to the temple when we were kids, and tried when I was young to instill a little bit of faith in me. He has since fallen away from the church and we have our issues on communication, but I am grateful to my earthly father for helping me with the basics so that I could grow into the testimony that I have today.

The second verse talked about another Father that we have here on this earth. He is the Father of our Ward. Our Bishop.

In the October 2003 Priesthood Session of conference, President Gordon B. Hinckley gave a talk in which he talked mostly to the Bishops of the church. He stated, “We have more than 18,000 bishops in the Church. Every one is a man who has been called by the spirit of prophecy and revelation and set apart and ordained by the laying on of hands. Every one of them holds the keys of the presidency of his ward. Each is a high priest, the presiding high priest of his ward. Each carries tremendous responsibilities of stewardship. Each stands as a FATHER to his people.”

Here are some of the words President Hinckley used to describe Bishops, “ Counselor, comforter, anchor and strength in times of sorry and trouble, strong with strength that comes from Lord, wise with wisdom that comes from the Lord, open door to hear the cries, strong back to carry the burdens, sensitive heart to judge needs, godly love broad enough and strong enough to encompass even the wrongdoer and the critic, man of patience, willing to listen, striving to understand.” These are some very powerful characteristics. But what I think they have in common is LOVE! How many of us have wonderful stories of Bishops who have LOVED us and cared for us. I can truly say that our bishop loves each one of us and I am grateful for the FATHER OF THIS WARD who leads us and LOVES each one of us.

Describe different bishops in my life. Bishop Beck, Murdock, Nielsen, Crump, Bullough, Steenblik, Smith, Finn.

The last part of that song talked about our Heavenly Father. The Father of us all! We are all children of our Father in Heaven. We were created in His image. Why do we love God? We find the answer in Ist John 4:19 We love him because he first loved us!

Look at all that He has given us. President Uchtdorf states in his conference address “Our Father in Heaven has given us, His children, much more than any mortal mind can comprehend. Under his direction the Great Jehovah created this wondrous world we live in. God the Father watches over us, fills our hearts with breathtaking joy, and brightens our darkest hours with blessed peace” “He offers to His children the promise of a glorious and infinite existence and has provided a way for us to progress in knowledge and glory until we receive a fullness of joy. He has promised us ALL THAT HE HAS.”

Gods love for His children is no respecter of person’s. He does not look on outward appearances. Heavenly Father loves the disciple as much as he loves the sinner. He loves us all… His love is an infinite love that is pure and Holy. We are important to God, not because of the things we do, but because we are HIS children. I believe this statement can be true and should be true of the other 2 Father’s as well. Our bishops towards our Ward family and our earthly Father’s towards his children.

Elder Uchtdorf gave some very inspiring words when he said that “God the Eternal father did not give that first great commandment because He needs us to love Him. His power and glory are not diminished should we disregard, deny, or even defile His name. His influence and dominion extend through time and space independent of our acceptance, approval, or admiration.

No, God does not need us to love Him…. But OH, how we need to Love God!

For what we love determines what we seek.

What we seek determines what we think and do.

What we think and do determines who we are – and who we will become.”

So yes, in talking about Father’s on this Father’s day, I have chosen to also speak on LOVE. I ask again, why is Love such a great commandment… Again, I turn to Elder Uchtdorf who says “When we truly understand what it means to love as Jesus Christ loves us, the confusion clears and our priorities align. Our walk as disciples of Christ becomes more joyful. Our lives take on a new meaning. Our relationship with our Heavenly Father becomes more profound. Obedience becomes a joy rather than a burden.”

The chorus of that Primary song I referred to early reads:

Fathers are so special with a very special love.

They watch us and protect us.

They guide us and direct us.

Back to our home above.

Father’s do have a very special kind of LOVE don’t they. Our Heavenly Father towards all of His children. The Bishop towards his Ward Family. And a Father here on this earth towards his Children. On this Father’s day, let us Honor all of these Father’s and give them the respect and reverence they deserve, but most importantly, let us all show them the LOVE that we have for them.

HAPPY FATHER's DAY to ALL the wonderful Fathers that I know and love.

Answer to Prayers

2010-06-11T21:34:00.000-07:00

We have been very blessed lately with a lot of answers to our "small" prayers. We are gaining testimony everyday of the power of prayer. All these little prayers add up to faith building experiences, whic is so wonderful. Here are just a few examples that I can think of over the last few months for the Snook's.

We have been looking for a piano to add to our house. It is something that we have been wanting for a very long time. Nothing we have ever sat down and prayed as a family about, but something that is always a prayer in my heart. One night a thought just popped into my head to ask on Facebook if anyone knew anyone getting rid of a piano. That same day I had a friend reply that they had one that they were going to list on Craigslist for free literally the next day. Needless to say, we have a wonderful piano downstairs in our living room as I type.
Tyler is loving math and really grasps concepts with the piano. They say this goes together. We have wanted to get him into some kind of musical lessons for a while now. Now that we have a piano, we have also found a lady in our church that is giving him lessons.
Jim texted me at work one day desparate because they could not find Jameson's binkie. He was still very addicted to the darn thing and having a very hard time going down for a nap. I guess the kids and dad looked through the whole house and could not find it. When I got home, Tyler told me that he felt so bad for Jameson that he went and said a prayer to help find the binkie. Apparently, a few minutes later Jacob came up from his bedroom with the binkie in his hand. It had fallen onto one of the bean bag chairs.
Tyler's 6th grade daycamp adventure to Camp Sweyolakan was scheduled for this last Wednesday. Tuesday was a gorgeous sunny day. Unfortunately, Wednesday we woke up to downpours. On my way to work, I felt so bad for the poor 6th graders I said a little prayer as a was driving. A few hours later, the rain was totally gone. Tyler said that it only drizzled a bit when they first got there, but they were inside for art stuff anyway. By the time they went out to do all the outdoor adventure stuff, the rain was gone. Still cold, but no rain so they were able to enjoy their time at Camp.
I have been lacking time to do a lot of things lately, one of the most important is reading my scriptures. I have an ipod, so I have been trying to get the scriptures on CD so that I could put them on the Ipod and listen when I have a chance. Sometimes at work when I am going to file for an hour or so, I listen to music on my Ipod. I thought times like these would be perfect for scripture "study" instead. I have looked at the library, with friends, etc. and just have not been able to find any CD's of the scriptures. It has been very frustrating over the last few months of searching. I have had a prayer in my heart that some kind of answer would come. Well, last month, my prayer was answered. I went to a Relief Society Mini-conference. We all little classes all morning that you could pick from. My first class I chose to go to was "Your own personal Liahona" which I felt I needed as I was searching to find that all important scripture study (liahona) time. In her discussion with the class, the teacher mentioned that she had issues of finding time to read her scriptures while working and having young children at home (sound familiar). She was told about how on LDS.org you can download the MP3 files of the scriptures to listen to. She was able to download them all and then burn them to CD and listen in a walkman (giggle inside at the advances in technology). HELLO! Could that be any clearer of a message! The rest of the class was so much more, but that one little sentence was so important for me to hear. I am so grateful that I chose to go so my prayer could be answered. You bet that I went straight home, got the files downloaded, and now enjoy listening to my scripture reading on my Ipod while driving too and from work, during work hours when filing, and sometimes at night after the kiddos are in bed. Makes this one more thing on my list to do each day just a bit easier!

It is amazing how each of these times, I have felt a distinct spirit associated and my testimony on faith has grown bit by bit. We have some "big" prayers we are needing answers to, mostly centered around a career type job for James. I know that these prayers will be answered in time. Will that be now or in 10 years. I dont know, but I know thos prayers will be answered and the perfect opportunity for James will come.

Anyway, I have a solid testimony that prayers are answered. Whether big or small, our prayers (whether spoken or in our hearts) are heard by our Father in Heaven and answered. Just saying!

Baseball and piano

2010-06-08T21:35:00.000-07:00

So the SYSA baseball season has officially begun. Abi's first year playing and she has been so excited. Unfortunately her first practice did not go so well and she "got scared" and would not participate. It will take her a while to get used to the idea. Doesnt help that she is the only girl on the team, but somehow I think she might be used to that ;) Noah's first practice was tonight and he had a blast. This will keep us pretty busy, thursday we have 3 practices at the same time at different places. Luckily they are all relatively close and between Jim and I we can work it all out. Cant wait for the games to get going next week. Luckily most of the games are all at the South Hill Sports complex, so Tues and Thurs evenings will be hanging out there for 3 or 4 hours playing baseball.

Tyler had his very first piano lesson today. He is LOVING it. Below is a video of him practicing before bed tonight. He has been very excited to get started on this new skill. It really was his very first piano lesson today and look at what he can do already!!!!

Thats all for tonight. Baseball and piano pretty much sums up our life for a while. It is so great to watch your kids playing and having fun as well as learning new skills and enjoying it.

New Goals

2010-06-07T20:44:00.000-07:00

So, the purpose of this blog was originally so that I could document our life raising these 6 crazy rascals. I have been so busy lately that I have kind of left that behind. My new goal for the summer (since I dont have school anymore :0) is to be better about documenting.

Jameson is getting so big. I cant believe he is 2 now. He is starting to talk more and more each day. I love it when he grabs a book and sits down, turning pages, and just babbles to himself like he is reading himself a book. Too cute!

A new thing he has started in the last week or 2 is to call me "Mo". I think it is adorable. He has been a daddy's boy from day 1 and has said Daddy, Dada, and the many other forms for that wonderful baldy he loves dearly. However, he has not usually called me anything, which I have been okay with. I know he has been around Dad a lot more since birth just because of our life situation right now. I am okay with that. Well, a few weeks ago, he just started calling me "Mo." Today, I came home from work and he was standing in the living room. He turned and beamed and said "Hello Mo!" I just love that little man.

Anyway, my new goal is to try and post something every few days. (I would say everyday, but I dont want to put too much pressure on myself LOL). Raising 6 kids is not always easy, there are some fun times, but a lot of frustrating times as well. I am sure it will not be too hard to come up with stuff to post about. I would also like to be able to remember these little things when the kids are older, so here goes my trial run at some new goals

So I am a total slacker!!!!

2010-05-14T22:42:00.001-07:00

I just cant seem to find the time to blog anymore. Sorry guys. Here are some pics to get you up to speed on our life as of late.

We had a rough go of it for a bit with all the little kids catching a pretty harsh case of pneumonia and RSV. Little Jameson above spent 5 days in the hospital. Daniel and Abi (below) spent 1 night in the hospital. James was with Jameson as he was getting discharged while I was with Daniel and Abi in the ER getting admitted.

Daniel and Abi recovered fast and were out of the hospital the next day. I cant really say they enjoyed being in the same room becuase they were sick and in the hospital. LOL. It was one long week, but they all got healthy and are back to their normal selves. I get nervous at any runny nose or cough now, but they are doing well. We have such wonderful church members who helped with childcare, cleaning, and bringing us meals. Not to mention one great Visiting Teacher who took the top half kids a few times as well as gave me a great shoulder to cry on. Thanks to all who helped out. We really do appreciate it.

Other than the hospital stay, nothing too SHOCKING has been going on at the Snook house. We are just hanging out... Bouncing on the trampoline....

Enjoying hot dogs bigger than our heads....

Getting in touch with the ape inside of each of us....

Jumping for joy at the blessings we see each day....

Reaching for the sky at a higher potential in each one of us...

Spending some family time on hikes outdoors...

And enjoying some great bedtime stories....

I very much enjoy peaking at the world through the eyes of these little guys....

As they strap themselves in tight to me...

With working full time, school full time, and some various other duties (like laundry, kids, etc) I am staying very busy. One thing I am very grateful for is a loving family. I enjoy each moment I spend with these kiddos and thank my Heavenly Father every day for the chance to be their mother. I love them all and have learned a lot from each one.

A great, Spirit filled night to remember!

2010-01-17T21:36:00.001-08:00

Last night was the Adult session of Stake Conference, which I must admit that I have never gone to before. Yesterday was Abi's birthday and I was totally not planning on going. I admit that even forgot about the meeting. About 6 p.m. I came and checked my facebook account and saw a status update from a friend about being a speaker at the meeting and so on. This reminded me and I began to think, maybe I should go and see what is said. I was wishy-washy for a bit and by 6:45 I decided I should go and threw on a skirt and shirt, and put my hair in a pony. I still even had a Tinker Bell tattoo on my face from Abi's birthday festivities that day. I just felt I needed to be there. Boy am I glad that I decided to go. It is probably the most spiritual meeting I have been to in a very long time.

The theme for the meeting was "one by one." The meeting started off with a member of the stake presidency talking about a recent talk by Elder Eyring that spoke how he wrote down instances where he felt the hand of the Lord in his life. These are mostly small moments we dont even realize when they happen. The meeting went on to talk about how the hand of the Lord has been present in our lives in an individual way?

The meeting then turned to 4 members of the stake who have struggled in some way with some major trials. One was a recent convert who talked about decisions that he has made in his life and he can break them down into his pre-Christ decisions and post-Christ decisions. He talked about his early 20s when he did not "have the influence of Christ" in his life and he made his decisions on his own, for his own good, and to make him happy. He made some pretty rough decisions and actually had a major gambling addiction that was hard to overcome. After he came to know and understand Christ better, his decisions began to change. he started to seek guidance with the Lord rather than make these decisions on his own. he became happier, made better decisions, and was able to change his life.

The next speaker was a young mother whose husband is currently deployed in Afghanistan. She talked about the "tender mercies" she has seen. One story was when her children were all sick with fevers and she could not for the life of her find a thermometer. She was overwhelmed with the sickness of 3 kids, alone, missing her companion. She said a quick prayer and asked Heavenly Father for help. Her neighbor called later that afternoon to ask if she could borrow an ingredient to a recipe. She said yes and the neighbor came over to find her bedraggled, tired, and overwhelmed. The neighbor asked if she was okay and she said yes, but the kids were all sick and she was just so frustrated because she could not find a thermometer. The neighbor reached into her coat pocket and withdrew a thermometer and stated "that is so funny. On my way over I put my coat on and reached into my pocket and found this. I dont know how it got there and I was going to put it away when I got home, but here you take it!" How amazing. She spoke on many other "tender mercies" that she has had and continues to have of people hepping and taking care of her while she is working through her trial.

the next speaker spoke on loosing a few people close to him. One a very close friend at work who ended up taking his own life and the confusion that caused. Being so close to someone during the day at work, but not really knowing him. Another loved on he lost was his sister who was a music/band teacher. She died as the bus her group was on lost control and went off the road. She was in the front and tried to step in to correct the bus back on the road, but was unable to and was thrown from the bus. She was much loved by her "family" of students. He talked about the struggle of working through these tragedies and how Christ was by his side to love and support him the whole way.

The last speaker was a young woman who spoke about her few years spent in prison after she caused a fatal car accident. This was an amazing talk on the strength a person can have with Christ by her side. I was so impressed by her attitude towards life and her "never give up" spirit. Many things she said brought me to tears, but I will always remember a scripture she quoted. At one point after the accident she recalls being mad at the Lord for "doing this to her." "Why did you let this happen?" I remember her saying she kept asking God. "I am a good person, why is this happening to me?"

It is so amazing how the Lord works. I do not know why I suddenly decided to go to that meeting, but I am so glad I did. Why? because these are the same questions I have been asking myself lately. "Why are these things happening to me? I am a good person. My family is a good family! My husband and I are so done with these struggles, why cant you just let us get the blessings we want?" These are all questions that have been going through my mind so often over the last few weeks. This last speaker quoted D&C 122:7 "if the very jaws of hell shall gape open the mouth wide after thee, know thou, my son (or daughter), that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be fore thy good." that scripture along with her story and some other things she said really hit home with me.

All of these people spoke of the way the Lord carried them and taught them and helped them or is helping them through these trials. All of these stories helped me to understand where I am in my life and the things I need to do to get out of this "funk" that I am in. I need to look for the tender mercies, open my eyes to the instances when the Lord is present in my life in an individual way. I want to understand more how the Lord has manifested himself to me as an individual. These are the things I need to focus on. So here are just a few that I can think of right now.

Life has been a struggle for us as of late, that is no surprise, but through all the "bad" there has also been good. Our van broke down a few months back. This leaves us with just one car to get us to and from everything, but this car does not fit the whole family. thankfully, my parents have stepped in and they are letting us use their extra car. This car also does not fit the whole family, but between the two cars, we can all get somewhere if need be. For the most part, we only ever have to go in halfsies, except for church and then we take two cars. It is a pain, but it is what it is and for now it is working. Plus, this is such a wonderful blessing for my parents to be able to help us in this way. Without their extra car, we would not be able to make it through this trial at all.

Another "tender mercy" that I know is our neighbor Mary. With 6 kids, you can imagine that we go through milk like there is no tomorrow. Probably 1 gallon or more per day. Mary works for her church collecting donations from local stores for the church's food bank. Well, they always have a bit extra, so for the last month our fridge has never been empty of milk and usually over flowing with 4 or 5 gallons. It comes at a time when we had run out of WIC coupons for the month and other ways to get any milk in our fridge. This is a small thing, but definitely a very BIG thing for our family.

The biggest way I think the Lord has shown me lately that he loves me is through my wondeful husband, James. The previous blog post talks about that in more detail, but to re-iterate, his strength and love through all of this is an awesome example to me. I am continually amazed at his good spirit and attititude towards life. I love his dearly and thank the Lord for making me get up that day 15 years ago and getting my picture taken (when I really did not want to, but felt that I just needed to go). I know why I needed to go know and I am thankful for the Lord in my life and his nudges for me to keep doing the right thing.

there have been so many other little moments that it is hard to name them all. Times when I felt alone and I got a phone call from a friend, or when I had a miscarriage and was having hard time dealing with those emotions, etc. All of these times are experiences that I am grateful for. They have taught me to be stronger, to be closer to others, to be friendlier, or whatever. I am truly grateful for the Hand of the Lord in my life!

Our Photo Daddy

2010-01-14T19:20:00.001-08:00

To say that the last few years have been rough would be an understatement. We have struggled a lot financially, emotionally, and spiritually. Times have definitely been trying. But through all those trying times, James has been so strong and courageous. I am continually amazed at how these "little" things just dont get him down, or at least he doesnt show it too much. When we were nearing the end of schooling and thinking things were soon going to get better, James started turning in applications for a "permanent" job in photojournalism. 2 years later, he is till looking to find that dream job. FOr now though, he is happy hanging out and taking pictures whenever he gets the chance and he never complains about having to take some pretty crappy jobs to get by.

A few weeks ago we had yet another heartbreaking let down in the job category and I must say that I was crushed. Not for myself or for the lack of money, but I just felt like we had "put our time in" and deserved a break. He deserves a lot more than what he is getting right now and I just thought that maybe our time was up and the blessings should just start pouring in any moment now. I totally believe in enduring to the end and keep on moving and all that, but seriously can we find the end any time soon. That is just what I was feeling. doors kept slamming in our faces, opportunities just kept slipping through our grasps and for what, so we could remain poor and unable to support ourselves, blah, blah, blah. I guess I just had a mental breakdown of sorts and still am fighting my way out of it. but through it all, James has remained happy and strong. He did have some sadness at the lost opportunity of yet another job, but he has not crashed like I have. he even had to give a talk on the importance of prayer the Sunday after hearing he did not get the job and I must say that I dont think I could have done it. I was seriously doubting prayer at that point. I mean we prayed night and day, fasted, attended the temple, all of those things you are supposed to do and still did nto get the job. What more could we do? I would have found it very difficult to get up in front of the church and profess my testimony on prayer because at the moment, my testimony was lacking ALOT!

Anyway, things are looking up. He has struggled to find the job that fits just right and has yet to find it except for the Baseball photography, which is only during the summer. Through it all though, we have been blessed in so many other little ways and i need to remember those little things more often.

This past week he landed a job. Is it his "dream job"? No. But he is still very happy about it. it is an opportunity to be doing something he loves to do, shooting photographs! What can be better. It is also a job that he can "grow" with where moving up is an option. I am continually amazed at his wonderful attitude and his "just ducky" attitude. That is his favorite saying because he says he tries to look at stuff like a duck would and just let the "water run off his back." he doesnt let these things get him down. he just picks himself back up and tries again. I am proud of you hunny. Good luck with the new job and I pray that I may some day have a good attitude about life like you do. I have a lot to learn from you. thanks for putting up with my doldroms lately. LOVE YA!

FHE for Dummies

2010-01-11T19:42:00.000-08:00

My friend posted this to her blog, so I thought I would pass the information along as well. I am all for the simplest way to get things done. This is a lesson manual for FHE for 1 full year. I full year people!!!! Can you believe that. the lessons are already done for you and ready to go. Just add your prayers, treats, and plug in your activity and you are ready to go! Sweet! Simple is the best way to go. Enjoy.

click here for the download

Good luck to all on their FHE Challenges. I know we have a hard time keeping on task every Monday night. You know with 6 kids and all. Sometimes I feel as we are praying, doing FHE, or reading our scriptures that I am screaming more than I am reading. Might take a bit away from the spirit as my voice keeps getting louder and louder to surpass their building noise, but oh well, it gets done and they are obviously learning something, so we will stick with it. LOL. For now, it is nice to think that I dont have to "plan" to much for the next year. Yippee!!!!

Better School Pictures

2010-01-02T22:14:00.000-08:00

With a built in photographer in our family, we have chosen to not pay for anymore unsuccessful "school" pictures for the kids. Instead, James and I take the kids to the park on a sunny fall afternoon and get new pictures of each one. Here are this years pictures.

Jameson is just growing so fast and getting so big. I cannot believe that he is 20 months, almost 21 months old now. It sure does go fast. He is into EVERYTHING! Climbing all over the place and generally getting himself into all kinds of trouble. Good thing he is so darn cute! LOL. We love his bubbly personality. He has shown his love for music and anytime he hears music from a comercial, the radio, or even his sister singing he will stop what he is doing and do a little baby dancing jig for us. He is a little ham and is always strutting his stuff. If it is not music he is enjoying, it is Elmo! The kid is an Elmo addict! He has few words that he can say, the typical Mama, Dada, Ty-Ty, and of course Elmo. Elmo and music though are nothing compared to his big bro Ty-Ty. Those two are best buds and Ty-Ty is such a wonderful help with his lil brother. Jameson is very fond of Tyler and I think Tyler is pretty darn attached to Jameson.

Jameson at 18 months old

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Daniel is 3-1/2 now and is growing fast as well. He has mastered potty-training (yay) and is showing the usual 3 year old interest in Buzz Lightyear and Woody. Daniel is a goofy little guy who is always making us laugh. He is always coming up with funny little things to entertain everyone. His future career may indeed be the stand up comedian!

Daniel at 3-1/2

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Abi has proven to be a little Princess Diva as we like to call her. She definitely rules the roost most of the time. James is very thankful to only have one melodramatic daughter on his hands. LOL. She can be very dramatic when she doesnt get what she wants, but boy is it fun to have a "shopping buddy!" I look forward to the days when we can go to lunch and get our nails done and do a bit of shopping together. Just her and I chillin as girls whilst the boys are out playing with mud and junk. Those will be fun times. I cannot believe that she is almost 5 and ready to start Kindergarten next year. She is looking forward to being in the same school as her brothers.

Abigail at 4-1/2

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Noah is doing wonderfully! He is learning to read and getting better at writing every day. For Christmas he got a Tag reader and he enjoys using that to build his reading skills. It is so fun to see him do things on his own. He is still very shy and worried about a lot of things, but I see progress every day. He loves being in 1st grade and cant wait to be able to read like the big boys so he can read things like Harry Potter and Fablehaven. He is happy with Geronimo Stilton being read to him for now and working out words with his Tag reading system. It is great to see him learning and growing each and every day.

Noah 7

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Jacob is a big 3rd grader now. He is an amazing reader and is on the 4th Harry Potter book and 3rd Fablehaven and somewhere around the 2nd Percy Jackson. He is very much enjoying reading the same books that Tyler has been reading for the past few years and being able to talk to him about the storyline and so on. It is fun to see this kind of interaction between these two boys. Usually Jacob is in the midst of reading 4 books at one time because as he says "he might get bored with one for a while so he has a back up, or 2, or 3..." LOL. He is a great kid. He is still a challenge at times with his ADHD stuff, but we have learned how to work through things a bit better and as long as he is making such good progress with school, I cannot complain at all. His teacher is amazed at all the ideas he has floating in that head of his and loves to read his daily writting, because he always has such great things to say. Along with reading, he has taken well to math and science and just generally enjoys school alot. I am grateful for this in my children. They have all loved school so much.

Jacob 9

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Tyler is in the 6th grade. Again, I cannot believe how time has gone by so fast. He is just a wonderful child. Always willing to help with the little brothers and sister, eager to play with them, and ready to help us with anything we need. I cannot live my life without Tyler there assisting me in my daily routine. He is truly a blessing to this family. Him and Jameson have developed a special bond and they very much enjoy playing with each other. Anytime we need Jameson out of the room (like when we are doing dishes and he is pulling all the dirty dishes out of the dishwasher faster than we can put them in) Tyler is ready to take him away and keep him occupied. Tyler too is doing wonderfully in school. He has taken a few tests at school and has scored "off the charts" according to his teacher. This year he has a great teacher who encourages these kids at such a critical juncture in their lives. He is trying to prepare them for the crazy world of middle school and I am impressed by his dedication and love for his kids. Tyler is blessed to have a great teacher like him. Tyler enjoys reading, math, science, and sports. He will be starting basketball soon for the school and is very excited about this.

Tyler 11

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This is a picture we tried to get off all of them crossing the bridge together. It is okay, but did not work exactly how I was picturing it. It was very hard to get Jameson to cooperate. It did turn out good though. I like how most all attention is focused on Jameson in the middle.

This is the one that we used for our Christmas Card this year. We tried to get everyone, including Jameson, to hold hands while walking towards the pond. Alas, Jameson proved uncooperative again in regards to holding hands with these guys. They kept pulling him over and such. We decided to let Jameson hang back and see what happened. We sent the big kids off walking towards the pond while holding hands and Jameson turned to look at us (probably checking to see if we were coming, LOL). This is the shot we got and I loved it!

Anyway, those are our school pictures this year. A friend photographer calls them "better school pictures" and takes them every year for her kids and some clients. Jim is interested in starting to do more of this kind of thing as well. We will see how that all pans out. It seems to be a pretty good business, once you get the client base going an so on.

Nativities from around the world

2009-12-07T20:27:00.001-08:00

Our Stake Center has what they call Nativities from Around the World every year. It is a huge event that has grown over the last 7 years. For the last 3 years it has been ranked as one of Spokanes top 10 things to do during the Holidays. that is so awesome. The stake center is literallhy taken over by nativities of all shapes and sizes and people stand in line to get a chance to get inside and partake of the spirit of it all. Every night there are concerts from different choirs of the area. Children's choirs, cathedral choirs, etc. The gym is decked out in all Christmas galore, lights, trees, and tables surrounding the edges and in the middle all beuatifully adorned with Nativity sets that people have donated to the church for the week. There are over 300 nativities on display. In the Young Women's rooms there is a childrens area were they can play with less fragile sets of nativities and even get the chance to dress up and play in their own nativity scene. Good think I have plenty of kids to fill those precious spots. All the above picture is missing is a Joseph and Mary, which in hindsight daddy and I could have done, but well, the kids look so darn cute anyway.

The Releif Society room this year held a new exhibit called The Life of Christ with a pictorial chronology of Christ's life. We did not make it in there, but hope to see that next year.

Overall, it is a wonderful way to celebrate this Holiday season. I am so grateful to have such wondeful teaching moments like these for the children. They loved the childrens area and got all their wiggles out before going in to be reverent and see all the Nativity sets. They loved them and had a great time seeing sets from places like Peru, Mexico, Italy, and Portugal as well as Nativities made from Legos and toilet paper rolls, paper mache, and nuts and bolts. There were the small and cute sets and the obviously expensive and imprressive sets as well as sets that were handcarved or blown from glass. It was an amazing, spirit filled night. I cant wait for next years display!

Family Night at Mobius

2009-11-07T21:42:00.000-08:00

We earned some free tickets for the children's museum here in Spokane. After school on a Monday night we decided to take the kids (you know, before the FREE tickets expired. LOL). Mobius is very small, but we ended up being the only people there. When we first got to Mobius, there were a few other kids, but they all departed within a 1/2 hour leaving the Snook family to roam the place alone. The kids had a blast! I think the little cars were the biggest hit, even for the biggest kid out there.

After our time at Mobius, we walked across the street and enjoyed a rare treat of dinner at Red Robin. That means that Jim and I actually braved a Restaurant with 6 kids. Actually the kids were great. Of course we got plenty of stares and finger points. Seems we are an oddity going out in public with so many kids, but I am getting more and more used to that. (especially when the stares are because they are amazed the kids are being good and not for the opposite reasons. LOL).

At Red Robin of course they ask if the kids can have balloons. I am not a big fan of latex balloons mainly because of the fights that they tend to cause, but also for the choking hazards with the little kids. I know, spoil sport mommy. I decided since it is a special night of rare treats, why not give in for this one as well. Of course, just because they got the balloon doesnt mean they got to keep them. After dinner we walked over to the park and gave our balloons to Jesus. The kids enjoy letting their balloons go and watching them fly up into the sky. It is a fun thing for them to do and keeps me sane by not actually keeping the balloons.

Anyway, it was a very fun night. Here are some pics to share with you!

Woodland Park Zoo

2009-11-07T19:45:00.000-08:00

We took a fun drive down I-90 a few weeks ago and spent the day at the Zoo. We went over to the Seattle area to take some baby clothes, toys, pay pen etc to my brother who is having a baby in just a few short weeks. I thought since we were over that way we would make a day of it and have some fun at the zoo and boy did we have fun.

The kids enjoyed looking at all of the animals and sites. Here is a slide show of the pics from the day.

The elephant featured in the above slide show was doing a dance. It was so cute to watch. Here is a video that Tyler shot of the 'dancing elephant.' One of the zoo workers said that she was taken to anothe zoo to 'mate' and while in the big truck traveling she started doing this dance and has ever since. I guess it is a stress thing, which is sad to think about, but the dance itself if very cute to watch.

Anyway, it was a very fun day. The kids had a blast and it was well worth the 4 hour drive to get there. We will definitely have to make the trip again.

I am still here, I promise

2009-10-17T14:23:00.000-07:00

Well, life has been very VERY busy for us all lately and I have not been able to post any blogs in a very long time. I apologize for this. The kids have started school, I have started working full time, I am attending school full time, and James is working full time as well. The bottom half of the kids (Abby, Daniel, and Jameson) are in KinderCare every day and are loving it. Abby loves "school" and making more friends. She is learning so much faster now, so she definitely will be ready for kindergarten next year.

Daniel has taken a while to get used to his school, but he does enjoy it after the initial shock of Daddy leaving him passes every morning. By the time I pick him up in the afternoon, he is smiles and gigles and doesnt want to go home.

Here is a picture of the boys first day of school.

Such handsome young men. Tyler is a 6th grader this year. OMG! he is getting so old. I cant believe it. Jacob is in 3rd grade and Noah is in 1st grade. Everyone is loving school and learning lots. Noah is a beginning reader and enjoys his Geronimo Stilton books every night before bed. Jacob is on Book 4 of Harry Potter and also enjoys reading. His teacher says that she is amazed at how much he enjoys reading and sharing the stories to his class.

The boys are in their routine of going to school and walking home together after school. They are home for no more than an hour alone after school while I get off work and go pick up the babies from daycare. It has been a rough transition, but I think we are doing well with it. This leaves just a few hours to cook dinner, clean house, get homework done, and get everyone ready for bed before the morning comes again. We are so busy right now, but we are happy, healthy, and having fun.

Anyway, just an update on how things have been going for us. We have had some fun adventures over the summer and in the recent few weeks. A trip to the lake, a trip to Seattle and the zoo, and a fun time at the Children's museum. If I can find a few extra minutes here and there, I will try and blog some more and get pictures up.

Our Toofwess NOAH

2009-06-03T17:58:00.000-07:00

It is so much fun to go through each stage with all of these kids. I remember the front tooth stage of both Jacob and Tyler and it is finally Noah's turn.

I think this look is the cutest look in the whole world! They are just adorable. I love the lisp while the teeth are gone. Everything seems to have just an added whisp sound to it. It is so cute and so fun. I tend to ask Noah to repeat himself, just so I can hear his cute little articulations one more time.

He was so excited to have both teeth fall out at once and was even more excited to go to school to show off his new smile to all his friends and his teacher. I love all these stages and watching this little man grow up.

Tyler

2009-05-23T17:57:00.000-07:00

Well, our soccer season has come to an end. We are sad to see it go, but also very releived. It added quite a bit of caos to our little world taking 3 boys to different fields for practices 4 nights during the week and then 3 soccer games, usually at different fields ALL day on Saturdays. It was a busy time so I am glad that is over and we can get back to normalcy. But, I will miss seeing the boys in action. They had a wonderful time and it was fun to "get out of the house" for some exercise and sun.

All 3 boys participated in the Wendle Tournament last weekend, but Tyler's age group competed for championship. It was a rough first few games for Tyler's team, but towards the end of the season they really started coming together as a team and it showed during the tournament.

Their first game was on Saturday morning. They led most of the game 2-1, but ended up giving up a few undeserved goals in the last few minutes, mostly due to tired boys. They lost 4-3, but fought very hard to stay alive in that game. Their next game was Saturday evening and they slammed that team 9-1. The last game was on Sunday, which we did not participate in, but apparently they won this game as well putting them into the championship game. They were playing for 1st or 2nd place. Tyler's coach called after the game and said that they tied 7-7 so they had to go into a tie-breaker shootout, which they ended up loosing by 1 point. That means that Tyler's team got 2nd place overall for his age group. WooHoo. Way to go Tyler. They had a medal for Tyler, which we picked up a few days later. It sounds like it was a fun game to watch and the boys did an excellent job. They should all be proud of themselves.

Here is Tyler with his medal and a trophy that his coach got for the team. What a great soccer season. I am so proud of the hard work Tyler put into learning this new skill and the success he achieved with such hard work and determination. Way to go Tyler, your are AWESOME!

Our Park adventures.

2009-05-01T12:20:00.001-07:00

We enjoyed an evening at the Park with some nice weather last night during Jacob's soccer practice. It is always a fun time for the kids since the practice is right next to Shadle Park with lots of fun toys. It is fun to see all the kids have a great time. Abby made good friends with another little sister of the soccer players and they were running around the whole time playing some game. Of course she had her purse with her with all of her most important things.

Daniel had a great time being chased by Tyler and Jameson. They went up and down the slides I don't know how many times. Jameson just had a ball exploring all over the place. He is just not afraid of anything and had so much fun trying all the new things.

This is video of Jameson going up the stairs to the slide.

And this is video of him going down the slide.

He is just too brave for his own good. He had a lot of fun doing this over and over again. Tyler helped out a lot and took him down some of the other slides. If he was not climbing stairs, playing with Tyler, or going down slides, then he was just wondering around taking it all in.

And here is some video of our little Noah. He has recently learned how to swing himself and he spent 90% of the time just swinging and swinging. I am so proud of him and all the growing he has done over these last 6 months or so. He is a totally different child and it is so fun to see him out there interacting and learning and growing and most important of all finally acting like a kid and having fun.

The video clips are from my phone, so they are not the best...

Overall, it was a fun night while Jacob was at soccer practice. It is so nice that we can finally go outside and enjoy ourselves. We have been trying to spend more time outside being active and less time sitting and watching TV or playing Wii. It is great to finally have the opportunity to burn off all this energy these kids keep building up. I hope the weather continues and we can have more and more fun outdoors.

Mani-Pedi

2009-05-01T11:47:00.000-07:00

The Easter Bunny brought Abby some fun new fingernail polish in her Easter Basket this year. She really wanted me to paint her nails, so I did her fingernails before church. She really wanted her toenails done as well, but I had already put her tights on for church, so I promised after church we could paint her toenails. She decided that since she got her fingernails and toenails painted, then I needed mine done as well. Here she is doing my fingernails

And now for my toes. She had so much fun. She wanted to do Grammy's as well, but Grammy declined the offer, saying maybe next time. For some reason, the boys wouldn't let her do theirs, hhhmmm I wonder why? She even begged Daddy to do his as well.

She had a blast and I am sure that she will be doing more nails before long, maybe even a few of Daddy's. he tends to be a bit of a sucker when it comes to what Abby wants. LOL. It is so fun having a little girl and getting to do all these little girly things. Cant wait till she is older and we can enjoy real "big girl" spa days together full of shopping, mani-pedis, and lunch dates out.

Soccer 2009

2009-04-25T19:00:00.000-07:00

The boys are enjoying SYSA (Spokane Youth Sports Association) soccer this spring. It is so much fun to watch them play and enjoy themselves. It has made our life completely upside down busy with practices for each of them during the week at different places and games all on Saturday at different places, but so far we have made it work and it has been a blast. Jim and I usually have to tag team the kids and split up, he and I taking 1/2 of the kids and heading off in different directions. They are having a ball and doing great, learning some new skills, and enjoying themselves.

Our 3 Snook Soccer Studs!

Our little Noah is so fun to watch. His coach is doing well with him and it is great to see him grow so much over this past year. He has really begun to interact more with other kids his age and we are learning to work with his deficits. I was not sure how he would do at an "organized" sport, but I have to say now that it is THE best thing we could have done for him. He is enjoying himself so much and have a great time. He even almost scored twice now. He has his moments of "watching butterflies" out there, but he is starting to pay more attention and have a ball. I am so proud of him and the progress he has made in his little life. He has grown so much this year and I am so glad that he is my son and I get to see all these milestones and witness all this progress for him. Way to go Noah!

Here is Jacob really giving it his all. Wow has he really found something he likes to do. It is so good for him to get out there in practice and run off all the extra energy he seems to have in that little body of his. At today's game, his coach practiced a lot with him beforehand in the goalie position. He was doing so awesome. He was so excited to get a chance to play goalie. He got out there and had a ball doing it. he made one really good save, but good for his team the rest of the time he was in the goalie position, all he did was stand around. Seems our team dominated and we were down on the other end of the field most of the time. Jacob had fun and stayed in his goalie stance the whole time he was out there. He was so cute to watch. He really is excited about playing the goalie position. I am happy that he has found something he likes so much and can have fun doing (and something that can wear him out LOL.)

Tyler is having a great time also. His team is in an older age group so he has a bigger field, bigger goals, etc. It gets pretty intense at his games sometimes with a crowd of parents, family, and friends cheering on those players. It is amazing to watch. Tyler has done soccer before, but it was coached by High School kids and they pretty much just let them run around and kick the ball. This is his first "real" soccer experience and he is doing great. He is out there keeping up with kids that have been playing for a few years and making some pretty cool moves. He is getting a hang of dribbling and running at the same time. LOL. It is fun to watch them grow and gain new skills. Keep up the good work buddy!

They are all halfway through their seasons. They have had 3 games and have 3 more games to go. I wish them all luck. We have a few week break after soccer and then start into baseball. that will be a lot of fun to watch as well. I hope they continue to be so active and have fun playing sports. James and I are both big sports fans so it is great to have kids that want to be out there doing it. LETS GO SNOOKS!!!

Favorite Spot

2009-04-21T17:24:00.000-07:00

Funny how the kids will find their favorite little spots to hang out. Jameson has been so into sitting on the hearth. He first learned to climb on it, then penguin slide off it, then walk around up there, and now that his legs are a bit longer he can finally sit on it. It is so funny to see him back up to it and pop a little tiny squat right there. He will look up at you with a big grin and just sit there and let his feet dangle. So cute. Here is a pic of him at his favorite spot. What a cutie...

My Love

2009-04-15T14:08:00.000-07:00

I just had to take a quick moment to Congratulate my talented husband. Today he gets to do something he has dreamed about doing his whole life. Right now he is on his way to Seattle to photograph an MLB Baseball Game. I am so proud of him and his accomplishments. It has taken a while for him to get to this spot and there is still a long way to go getting into this career, but he is on his way to a wonderful and rewarding career in photojournalism.

So to the love of my life, I LOVE YOU and I AM SO PROUD of you. I hope you have a blast. When you have fun and get to do something you really love to do, you cant really call it WORK can you.

Happy Birthday Jameson

2009-04-12T18:38:00.000-07:00

And you thought the birthday wishes were over. LOL. Not quite. Jameson turned the Big #1 on April 11. There has been so much going on this last year with graduating from school, moving back to Spokane, and welcoming this wonderful little man into our family. He has been a great addition and it seems like this is the way it has always been with the 6 of them.This little guy is a definite go getter and has added some spunk and activity to this already boisterous household. He is so determited to keep up with all the other little people he sees around him. Jameson has such a sweet disposition about him. He is usually very happy and is always on the go.Albertsons gives out a free first birthday cake, so here is the one that Daniel and Abby chose for him. It was very cute. We give this cake to the birthday child for their own cake to mess with and play in and sometimes actually eat.

That is Tyle holding down his hands. He just wanted to grab that thing. If you look closely he alread grabbed the Oreo cookie ears off the cake and started muncin on those. He is a fast one.
He was pretty tentative at first. Mostly justed wanted the cookies, but he soon got into the fun of making a mess and eating some yummy frosting.Of course some actually did make it in his mouth, but mostly it just went all over his face, budda belly, and highchair tray.

To be able to play with your food again. Oh what a life.

Showing off his goopy hands.

YEAH CAKE!!

And of course a bath to end the day. Happy Birthday baby. We love ya. Jameson has grown so big and fits into this family just perfectly. I cannot wait to see what this next year holds for our little J.

Yeah for Crafts

2009-04-10T23:13:00.000-07:00

I love it when I get the opportunity to be crafty. For my birthday, Jim got me the Cricut design studio to go with my Cricut machine. So much fun. Tonight I worked on a project for a wedding gift. It was a lot of fun to make and for my first time playing with the Cricut design studio, I think I did pretty good.

Hopefully I will have the chance to make many more projects like this. It will be a fun new hobby. Thanks again Jim for the wonderful present. I love it.

Happy Birthday Daniel

2009-04-09T18:23:00.000-07:00

Daniel is the big 3 years old. It is so amazing to think of the last 3 years and what has transpired. He has gotten so big and adds such joy and silliness to the house. He is a big ball of love and sunshine and you just cant help but smile when he is around. Happy Birthday big guy. We love you tons.
For a few weeks before his big day, we kept asking what he wanted for his birthday and the only thing he would every say was "An Elmo Cake!" In fact, Jim baked the cake during the day while I was at work and he told me that as he was taking it out of the oven, Daniel just looked up at him with sadness in his eyes and asked, "Where is Elmo?" Jim told him that Mommy would do it when she got home, but he insisted that Elmo needed to be on his cake now. He waited as patiently as a just 3 year old could and as soon as I walked home he reminded me that his cake needed Elmo. He had a lot of fun and was thrilled with the outcome. I wished we had the Elmo cake pan and that I could have spent a bit more time on the cake, but he is 3 and he was so happy with this Elmo, that it really did not matter to him that I did not spend more time or money on it. Thanks for the lesson there buddy.

Of course, he was also excited to eat Elmo. LOL. He had a great time and all of the kids were so good about making it a special day for him. We love you Daniel and I hope you have many more Elmo years to come.
Oh yeah, gotta snitch some more frosting when no one is looking. What can he say, it is sitting there waiting for a finger to run through it.

Easter pics

2009-04-08T22:26:00.000-07:00

We went to the mall the other day and saw the Easter Bunny. They let us put all the kids up there and take 2 (only 2) pictures with our own camera. Here is what we got. I havent even looked at these yet, so lets see what we got.

it is what it is right. LOL. Not too bad I guess. You cant have everyone looking and/or smiling all at the same time.

Love that Abby is cringing as jameson pulls her hair. These are our Easter babies. From left to right we have Daniel, Jacob, Abby, Jameson, Noah, and Tyler.

We had a fun filled day that I will blog about later, but it included a stop at the mall where we ran into the Easter bunny. This was not a planned thing, so we don't have any fancy clothes on them or anything. It was just something the kids saw and they wanted to get a picture, so here it is. Happy Easter to all of you. Hope you have a hopping good time.

Pinewood Derby

2009-04-08T19:44:00.000-07:00

It is that time of year again. the time when Fathers get out there saws, sanders, and design kits and boys get out there legos cause you know they don't get to do anything. LOL. Actually, Tyler and Jacob both designed their cars. Jim did the cutting, but after that, the boys did a lot of their own work on sanding and stuff. It was fun having 2 cars in the race this year. It looks like we have learned a few things from our first 2 years in the Pinewood Derby world. Tylers car won 2 races and Jacobs car won 1. They both got quite a few second place races after that. They tell me that they tied for 6/7th place. I am not sure if that is the final score though. they took the top 5 to the district meet, so we missed out by just a bit.

Tyler's car is the red one and Jacob's is the blue. This is actually Jacobs second design. We had a few pinewood derby emergencies with the first that required designing, painting, making a whole new car the night before the race. It was fun though.

Tyler's car. The red sliver. He was going for the sleek, thin look.

Jacob's first car was a skateboard and look pretty cool. This is the second attempt and is a dragster type.

Tyler with car. Cant believe this is his last year in Cub Scouts. Getting so big he is...

Jacob with his car. he can never seem to take a picture without blinking. This is the best of the bunch.

We had a great year. Although we have come a long way since the first build with Tyler, we still have a few things to learn about in the pinewood derby world. We are thiking of investing in our very own track, lights, and scales. We figure we have 11 more pinewood derby cars to make, we might as well have a track of our own to do test runs and stuff. We will be doing pinewood derby cars for a while so it will be a good investment. LOL.

It definitely is a fun time of year. Cant wait till next year and see the design Jacob comes up with. Then the year after that will be both Noah and Jacob. Good job Tyler and Jacob, your cars are way cool and you both did awesome in the race.

Crazy J

2009-04-08T19:41:00.000-07:00

It has been so nice since last Friday. The kids have really enjoyed being able to play out in the backyard. Of course, whatever the big kids can do, Jameson can do even better, right. Here is his no fear side. He is just a crazy little guy and is all over the places. This one definitely keeps us on our toes.

Happy Birthday Jim and Teresa

2009-04-07T19:10:00.000-07:00

What can I say. Happy Birthday to Us. I enjoy sharing a special day with my honey. It was a great day with a surprise date at the end. Thanks for a great day Jimmy. I love you tons.

Vinyl projects

2009-04-06T20:24:00.000-07:00

I have had some fun with the Cricut and vinyl. I have learned it is very fun to do and gives me some craft time, which I desperately need. Here are a few of the projects that I have been working.

This is our family portrait collage. You can see that right now, we just have pictures of a really cute dog and little boy. Unfortunately, as cute as they are, I cannot claim either. We do still need to get family pictures LOL. But the collage is done and I am so proud of it. We will do a family pic in the big middle. Then under live we will have a picture of the kids and under love we will have a picture of Jim and I. Then on the bottom we will have a picture of Jim and the boys and then a picture of Abby and I. In the middle between Families are Forever will be a picture of the Portland Temple, where Jim and I were sealed. Hopefully with the nice weather, we will be getting family pictures soon and I will post an updated with all the pics in their propers places.

When we first moved into the house, we wondered what we would do with this ledge. As you come into the front door you face this wall into the kitchen. The ledge above the doorway to the kitchen extends the whole wall and actually turns the corner into the dining room. I though it would be fun to get a picture of each child up there. When that was done, I thought that maybe it needed just a little bit more, so I added each childs name in Vinyl under their picture. I think it turned out pretty good.

Plus those are the pictures that Jim (own personal photographer) took for us in lue of school portraits. We had a bad school picture year and have decided to never go with school pics again, just Daddy Pics. LOL.

I am excited for more Vinyl projects around the house. I want to do one more for the living room with my favorite quote. Then I will do one for Abby's room and one for my bedroom. I will think about the boys rooms. Not sure what to do with that. We will have to see.

Random Daniel Moments

2009-03-31T19:08:00.000-07:00

I cant believe our little Montana Boy is turning 3 very shortly. It is amazing how fast time flies around here. These are just some randome moments caught on by my phone camera.

Daniel wearing cousin Zach's shades. Too cool!
Uncle Kevin teaching Daniel how to drive!

If he is in the car around 3 p.m. for any length of time, this is what we get.

A day at Ocean Shores Summer 2008

Sleeping with Elmo! His second best friend.

2 of the best things in the world. A box and toys.

A candid shot on the Apple ride at Toys R Us.

Again with the shades. He is my lil heart throb

Guitar Hero Nut. Taking after brother Tyler.

Elmo garb to go out in the snow.

A lunch out with Grammy and Poppy. Love the chocolate face.

Clawing for me under the bathroom door. Such a sad lil man.

Optimus Sunshine!

Daniel is such an amazing little guy. He has a wonderful imagination and is often found playing animatedly with a few toys, talking back and forth to each other, rescuing one another, and going on different adventures. He has always been the little boy with 1,000 different facial expressions. Since he was very small, he just gets the kookiest little expressions on his face. So much emotion, so much passion, so much Sunshine. He is a great addition to this family and always keeps us laughing. WE LOVE YOU DANIEL!!!!!

Abby's haircut better views

2009-03-31T19:06:00.001-07:00

For family back home... This is a better view of Abby's new haircut. it is nice how the back is all one length and it even flips out like that on its own. It has been fun to do her hair every day now. We still have "Medusa" head quite often, but the hair cut has helped tame that a bit.

Sibling Love

2009-03-31T19:05:00.001-07:00

Just have to cherish these precious moments in life. Showing love. Our little Sunshine and Abby in the middle of Costco.

Calm Abby

2009-03-31T18:57:00.000-07:00

Abby had to use the restroom, so she decided to use the "boys bathroom" (the one downstairs that the boys use all the time). This bathroom has a very tall handle (above her 4 year old head) and a lock. I realized she had been in there for a while, so I went over to the door and knocked and asked if she was okay.

She said, "Yes Mom."

I asked why she was still in there and she said "Cause I cant get out."

I tried the handle and sure enough she was able to reach up and lock the door, but because it is such a tall handle, she was not able to get it unlocked. Now proceeds us trying to unlock the door so she can get out. It is the kind of handle that has a hole on the outside, so we try sticking stuff in to get the lock to pop with no luck. I keep reassuring her that we will get her out soon and she just stays calm and says "Okay Mom."

Enters dad, trying to stick all kinds of tools into the knob to unlock it with no luck. I again ask her in maybe an anxious voice (she is 4 afterall, trapped in a bathroom and cant get out) if she could try and turn the button on the knob.

Very calming she replies, "Mom, don't panic!" :0)

What a trooper. It took about 5 minutes total. We ended up having to take the handle out of the door, which will be switched with another door handle tomorrow. No reason to lock another child in the bathroom. I cant believe she stayed so calm and was reassuring us all was okay and "not to panic." She surprises us every day with her thoughts, feelings, dancing, and singing. What an angel.

Abby's first haircut

2009-03-02T17:29:00.000-08:00

Abby and I had the chance to go on a Mommy-Daughter date. We went up to get haircuts and then go out to dinner. She was so excited to get her haircut and had been telling grammy for the last week or 2 that she was going to get a haircut. When the time finally came to actually get in the chair though.....She was so scared, but with the promise of getting a balloon afterwards, she was caoxed onto the chair. You can also see in these 2 pictures how long it has gotten. Except for a few trims of the bangs out of her eyes, she has never had a haircut in her 4 years of life. You can imagine her trepidation. Big chair, scary place, etc.

She finally decided that she would stick around and get it done. She really was looking forward to getting the haircut. She has such funky hair that can be very madusa-like in the mornings. With never having a haircut before, it had grown from original baby hair in various different lengths. I was afraid to get it all cut even we would have to go very short. I was therefore worried about what kind of outcome we would have.

The picture below is the actual very first cut. I am taking it from my chair as my hair is being cut as well. Our stylists were very nice and let us sit next to each other, talk to each other, and allowed me to watch her and take pictures throughout. It was a very fun time. She kept looking over at me and giggling. We will have to try an actual spa day next with pedicures and all. It was pretty fun.

Abby's stylist got done first, so while I was getting finished up, she played with her hair and styled it a bit. She put some french braids on each side, letting the back hang. It seems to flip out on its own, which is cute most days.

After the haircuts, we headed over to a little diner just down the way. Abby had a great time there as well. We ordered a milkshake to share, which Abby got most of, as you can imagine.
And she ordered a pancake, but had to have it with eyes, nose, and mouth. The waitress and cook were very accomodating.
We had a great time and will be planning many nights out like this in the future. I can see many spa days and shopping weekends in our future.

Blue and Gold Banquet

2009-03-01T17:23:00.000-08:00

With 2 boys in Cub Scouts, this year we had the chance to make 2 cakes for the Blue and Gold Banquet. The theme was the United States, so the boys decided on what they wanted to do.Jacob wanted to do a flag. He chose the Betsy Ross Flag.

Here he is learning how to use the star tip and putting stars on the flag. As you can see it is just a basic rectangle cake pan decorated with red, white, and blue frosting. We got the can of red and blue, I thought that would be easier with the lines and such. Before we put the stars on, we marked on the blue with a toothpick the position for each star, so we would not end up with a lopsided circle.

Tyler really wanted to do a boat cake. He wanted the Mayflower. I was hesitant to do the cake at first, but then I remembered that for his birthday we got a SD car cake pan. I figured that we could use that and turn the car on its top giving a basic boat shape and then cut/shave it into an actual boat shape. It turned out pretty good, I think.

We had fun decorating it and cutting it up. The first cut to put the back and deck into the boat, it actually fell apart. I was afraid that we were done for right there. Luckily I brought home a lot of chopsticks from a party at work, so we used 3 chopsticks from back to front that held the whole thing together. Covered in icing you never even see them. LOL.

The front chopstick that angles out is actually holding the front of the boat together as well. Towards the end of putting it together, the front end started to crumble and fall apart. I was afraid we were going to loose it before the night actaully came. Tyler said if it did then we would just have a crashed Mayflower and explain how thankful we should be that this did not really happen. He had a great spirit about it. I was afraid he would be upset if it fell apart, but he really proved that he understood how hard of a task it was. he did a great job decorating it.

Here he is piping Mayflower onto the back of it with black icing. He also put the sails together and figured out how to do the crowsnest. We were tempted to put a few lego guys on deck and in the crowsnest, but did not want to tempt fate in holding the boat together.

Finished Mayflower

Finished Betsy Ross Flag

Both finished cakes together.

It was a pretty fun night. I was a bit overwhelmed at the thought of putting together 2 cakes with working full time and all, but it got done with happy boys in the end. I could not ask for anything more. They had a great time, learned a few things about cake decorating, and of course had fun eating it all as well.

Tyler's cake won Most Original and Jacob's cake won Most All American.

Jameson in a tie

2009-02-24T17:38:00.000-08:00

I just thought he looked especially cute in his tie this past Sunday, so I snapped some pictures. What a cutie-patootie my little guy is....

Basketball Game

2009-02-18T20:30:00.000-08:00

Tyler starts our long journey into the wonderful world of school sports. Sheridan Elementary 5th and 6th grade students get to play sports throughout the year. The basketball season started in January and they had their first game tonight against Whitman Elementary. Tyler had a blast and it was fun for us to watch him as well.

They had quite a few 6 minute games that they rotated all the boys into. Tyler got to play in 3 of the games. He did a great job. It is amazing the different sizes of all the kids out there. Tyler had to guard mostly kids twice his size, so that was a bit scary for him, but other than that he had a lot of fun. We are looking forward to many years of sports in the future.

Tyler is Green #27 in the video

He is an official WALKER

2009-02-18T19:52:00.001-08:00

Okay, so all of the kids (minus 1) have been early walkers, walking before 1 year old. Tyler was probably the earliest at about 10-1/2 months old. Well, that is before now. Jameson started taking his first steps just a week or so after he turned 9 months old. By 10 months old he is just walking all over the place and getting into everything. HE IS CRAZY!!!!!!

He definitely keeps us all on our toes. It is so cute seeing such a little guy toddling all over the place. He has the Frankenstien stiff leg walk down pat and enjoys chasing after all his brothers and sister. I am convinced that he thinks he has to keep up with them all, so that is why he has been so fast at all this stuff. He is determined to do everything they are doing. LOL. Here is some video of his walking from just the other day. Enjoy.

Abby's Birthday

2009-01-20T19:18:00.001-08:00

I think I say with all the kids birthdays, but I really cant believe she is 4 already. She is growing up so fast.

This year we decided on a Teddy Bear Tea birthday party. It was centered around the fact that we got her a gift certificate for Build a Bear Workshop and her and Daddy went on a date a few days before her birthday. She had a blast with daddy on their date.

They went to Red Robin for lunch. She was so excited when they sang to her and had a blast with her chocolate sundae and balloons.

This is actually when they are signing to her. She is just too cute.

And of course, loving the chocolate sundae. Daddy had to give her a straw so she could suck up all of the chocolate.

After lunch, they headed off to the mall to the workshop. Grammy was given a Build a Bear a few days before this, so she had been asking us if she could go to the "workshop" too. She kept saying things like, "Mommy, I need to go to the workshop. Where is my workshop." Perfect timing. All the fun with Grammy's bear was build up to getting her own.

She had a blast picking out her bear and stuffing it. She picked the Hannah Montana bear of course with a cute little outfit. She was very tempted to go with the guitar as well, but decided on a pink purse at the last minute.

Her party was on her birthday. It just happened that Daddy was off that day, so we planned it around the big kids being at school and out of the way. We invited all of her friends over for a "tea party." They all brought their bears/dolls with them. When they arrived, they got dressed up for a picture with their teddy bear. We then set our teddy bears on a picnic blanket and served them tea. After our bears were satisfied, we went to the table for our tea and lunch. Then it was story time. After story time was back to the table for bear cupcakes and ice cream. Then we opened presents and sat around talking and playing. It was a really fun time. The kids all had a blast.

Abigail has grown up a lot this year. I see her getting more into the "big girl" things like barbies and dress up and even make up. It is crazy to think about. In this last year she has

Concurred potty training.
Learned some of her ABC's.
Started to perform for us.
Learned to talk CONSTANTLY. lol.
Become a wonderful big sister to her little brothers.

It is sad and awesome to watch all these little people grow. I wish I could keep them at the little baby cuteness ages forever. but then it is also so wonderful to watch them grow and make good choices and continue to learn. It is fun to see them become bigger little people.

And in case all of that was not enough, at the end of the day we got to open family presents and have a family party. We purposely had her party with her friends during school so that the big boys would not be there (3 less kids to worry about, right). That meant that after dinner, we had the chance to open the presents from the boys and Jim and I. Grammy and Poppy came over and had some cake and Ice cream with us. For her "family cake" she wanted a barbie cake, so this is my attempt at the barbie cake. It was my first attempt. Pretty good for a first try. Now I know what not to do. LOL. It was a good cake for her though. She loved it.

And here she is opening the present from Jim and I. The boys got her some magnet dolls. You know, big wooden dolls with magnets in them with a ton of interchangeable clothes, shoes, and accessories. it has proven to be a favorite with all of the kids. Jim and I got her a V-tech motion game system. We have a ton of V-smile games and so this plays those as well as the new v-motion games. She was very excited. She also got some doll stuff with a stroller, carseat, and bassinet. She loves that as well. Overall, not very hard to please her. LOL.

Happy Birthday Abigail, we love you tons.

FEED ME!!!!

2009-01-16T08:15:00.000-08:00

This little man of ours is just way to active. I had just gotten home from the store and was putting groceries away, thus the fridge door was open. I turned around to get something and when I turned back, I found this....

9 Months old. I just cant believe him sometimes. My mom and I were laughing so hard. It was just too cute. Apparently he was hungry and I was just not fast enough for him, so he had to take matters into his own hands.

Jameson Firsts

2009-01-14T08:19:00.001-08:00

Jameson is growing way to fast. It always happens doesn't it. We just go through each day and they get bigger and bigger and progress so fast.

I just thought I would document a few of his firsts for memory sake. He is now officially 9 months old (as of a few days ago) and is just getting into everything and keeping us on our toes. He climbs the stairs, gets into the bathroom, loves to pull drawers open and empty them of their contents, and has officially taken his first steps. WOW! He is an amazing little man. I am so proud of him.

Here are some pictures of some of the fun times with Jameson.

This is actually one of the first times he was able to pull himself up on the hearth. It was about at 6 months or so. He has now moved on to climbing onto it and cruising along the fireplace. He will also lean over the edge to get something off the floor and kind of belly slide (like a seal) to get off. It is very comical to watch.

This is actually the very first time he stood up on his own. It was just a bit before Christmas so he was about 8-1/2 months old. I just thought I would snap a shot and text to Jim at work to say hi. I stood him up thinking he would fall down and he didnt. I quickly took the shot. Now, he is all over the place. LOL. What was I thinking teaching him a new trick. He has enough in his arsenal. LOL.

And here is his lovely drawer emptying abilities. He loves to pull open these drawers and pull out all the towels and rags. The drawer below has all the "kids" cups and he loves to play around with those as well. Fun times.

Here he is with his first sucker. Boy it really pays to have older siblings!!!!! He loved this one. I couldnt help it, I had to take a picture before I took the sucker away from him. LOL. Look at those chubby little cheeks. He was really sucking hard on that one.

I love this one as well. Notice the binky upside down. He loves to put it in this way. He is just TOO COOL FOR THE BINKY!!!!

Don't Eat Pete!!!

2009-01-13T10:25:00.000-08:00

I just had to blog this mostly so that I would not forget the moment. We played Don't Eat Pete for FHE last night and Daniel was just hilarious. If you are not aware how to play... We divided a piece of paper into 8 slots. Each family member got to draw a face. We then sent one person out of the room and decided which face was "Pete". I put 2 pieces of M&M's on each face and when the family member came back to the room, they started eating candy off the faces. When they got to the face we chose as Pete, everyone screams "Don't Eat Pete."

It was a lot of fun. The kids had a blast. Daniel was the 5th person to go out of the room, so he had watched all the brothers eat the candy and was sooooo excited to get his chance to eat candy. When he came back in the room, he just started shoving the M&M's in his mouth as fast as he could. He was laughing so hard and as he was putting candy into his mouth, it was falling out. He actually did very well and did not pick "Pete" until last, so he got to have all of the candy. He was a slobbery, laughing, cocholate mess, but he was so very cute. It was adorable. At 2, I am not sure he understood the idea of the game, but boy did he understand that you get to eat the candy. LOL. What a fun night. FHE can really be entertaining at times.

Roses

2009-01-07T14:25:00.001-08:00

Jim likes to surprise me with roses sometimes when he goes to the store in the evening (usually for milk LOL). The other day he had to run to the store and came home with 2 roses, one for his wife and one for his little princess. How totally sweet.

Abby was thrilled to get a rose of her own. She was not so thrilled to get her picture taken, but she did enjoy daddy's attention and rose.

Thank you Daddy, your girls love you so much.

The boys sledding

2008-12-21T13:49:00.000-08:00

We decided to make a backyard sledding run for the kids to enjoy. It is small, but they had a blast going down the little hill we made.

There is just a bit of a slope to our backyard, so after piling snow up we were able to make a nice little run for the boys. Tyler and Jacob really had some fun. Here is some video of them going down.

Towards the end, Tyler added a few bumps and was trying to catch some air while sledding. He had a great time.

Christmas Carols from Abby and Daniel

2008-12-21T13:13:00.000-08:00

Jim won a digital video camera at his work Holiday party last night. I have had a bit of fun playing with it today, so I thought I would try my hand at uploading videos to blogger.

This is a video of Abigail and Daniel serenading us with Christmas songs. She loves to sing and he loves to do anything she is doing...

I love how she has started to bow when she is done performing. I am not sure where she picked this up at, but it is just too cute. And in typical Daniel fashion, we get a little push at the end. I hope you enjoyed the video and look forward to more fun videos of the kids.

2008-12-20T16:11:00.000-08:00

Here are a few shots of the kids playing in the snow yesterday after the huge snow storm. They had a good time, but were dissappointed that they could not make very good snowballs to throw at each other. They found other ways though.

The boys climbing the "mountain" of snow from shoveling off the driveway.

Princess Abigail finding her way in all this snow. She had a hard time as most everywhere she went it was to her armpits.

Sunshine enjoying a nice comfy seat just the right size for his small frame. He had a great time also, but like Abby became quickly overwhelmed at the amount of snow. It was hard for these little guys to do much more than just walk on the shoveled sidewalk as the snow was just too deep for them.

Jacob and Noah trying to rescue the sleds from the jungle gym. They were pretty buried, but never fear, mommy came to their aide and pulled them out. Jacob then became frustrated as he "tried" to sled down the small slope in our backyard, but failed. Again, just too much snow. We will have to go out there next week and build a little sledding hill of our own for them to enjoy.

Putting Sunshine to work. He is a great little helper. Notice Abby in the background in the safety of the house. She got too cold and too tired of trying to climb over all the mounds of snow. She did the smart thing and went inside to stay warm.

With this picture you can also see how deep it is. I only shoveled a little bit on the back porch and all of it went out over the railing, so what Sunshine is standing next to is as deep as it got. There is over 24 inches back there. It is amazing how fast it came, so much in just a short time.

Tyler had fun running from the top of the slope in the backyard and jumping into the fresh snow. He is totally covered here. The only downfall, he said, was the snow that snuck its way into his boots and gloves.

Noah standing in the middle of the jungle gym. he was trying really hard to clear all the snow out so he could play. Not sure if he ever got it the way he wanted it. He had fun trying though.

Some icicles off the back of the house. The kids had a great time throwing snowballs at them to knock them down with plenty of warning from mom to stand back so they don't get impailed, followed by a lengthy discussion on what it means to get impailed and then stories from the boys about guts falling and etc, etc, etc...

I really do think the snow is beuatiful. It is hard to drive in, but just look at this... I love going for walks in the snow, especially when it is snowing. There is just something about it that is so peaceful. The snowfall adds a muffled tone to the noise of the world that I really enjoy. It is so pretty to look at also. Granted, there is a lot more than we really know what to do with at this point, but it is gorgeous none-the-less. Lets see what I say after all of the next few snow storms make their way over us. We are due for more snow in the coming week. I just wonder how much this time.

Let it snow, Let is snow, Let it SNOW!!!!

2008-12-18T09:33:00.000-08:00

I was not in Spokane for last years amazing amount of snow, so this is all new to me. I dont think I remember this much snow at once since I was a little girl.

It has been snowing since yesterday morning. We have accumalated about 2 feet of snow so far. It is very pretty to look at, but hard to get much done in. I am glad that I finished my Christmas shopping yesterday and dont need to go anywhere. LOL. We will just have to call family on the coast and tell them there packages might not make it before Christmas. We were supposed to mail those today. I dont think we are going to make it to a post office.

Anyway, here are some pics of our snow covered life.

Jims car is under there somewhere. We dug him all the way out and got him about 100 feet down the street before he got stuck. Good thing some neighbor guys were out snowblowing and shoveling. They came and helped us push the car back. Jim called the store and they are closed today, so we all get to enjoy a rare "snow day" together. I think we will make cookies and stuff. Should be fun. If anything, the snow has given us some time to spend together as a family.

Our back porch.

Jameson, Daniel, and Abby had fun watching Daddy outside shoveling the snow.

Here is what they saw. As you can see, it is still coming down.

Anyway, that is our Winter Wonderland. We will enjoy the day off and see what the weather brings us tomorrow.

Jacob's Baptism

2008-12-15T14:10:00.000-08:00

DADDY AND JACOB

What more can we say. We are so very proud of Jacob on this day. He was very adorable and very nervous, but he did great. He was a bit scared about the whole "getting dunked" issue. We practiced and practiced at home, but Jim said that when they were getting dressed he was a bit shaky and awkward. TOO CUTE.

Jacob enjoyed his day and said that he feels happy about the whole thing. It was a Stake Baptism, so there others from the Stake getting baptized at the same time. We all met in the chapel first where we had some talks about baptism and the Holy Ghost. There was also a great musical number by 2 of the Young Women. It was very well put together. The Glenrose Ward was then excused to go do the little girls baptism and we waited for a few minutes for that to get done. We then went to the Relief Society Room and did our Wards baptisms, which was Jacob and Cameron.

Our family did okay during the whole thing. We had to get up at 6 in the morning to get everyone breakfast, dressed, and up to the Church by 8:30 for pictures. It was hard and Jameson and Daniel were both very tired. Jameson was taken by a wonderful lady from our Ward who fed him and put him to sleep. That left Jim and I able to deal with Daniel who was so very grumpy. Abby ended up with a family friend as well drawing pictures and stuff. It is nice to have so many friends willing to help out so that we could enjoy the day with the kids. They did good though, considering they had to get up so early.

Here is a pic of the whole family at the baptism. I cant believe we were actually all able to squeeze onto that couch. LOL. Not for too much longer when all these boys grow up.

Here is a pic of all 3 of the children getting baptized with Jacob. I cannot remember the little girls name, but she is from Glenrose Ward. Cameron Johnson is on the end and he is from our Ward (6th Ward). He is in Jacob's class and they are friends.

Along with turning 8 and getting baptized, Jacob is very excited to have started Cub Scouts. He has watched Tyler go for the last few years and he is excited to finally have his chance to join in the fun. The first thing out of both of their mouths was "You are going down at the Pinewood Derby." LOL. Not that we encourage competition, but how can we help it with 5 boys. So begins our double duty in Cub Scouts. Soon Tyler will be in Scouts and Noah will be following Jacob into Cub Scouts. Fun and busy times are starting.

Decorating for Christmas 2008

2008-12-10T12:00:00.000-08:00

We have had a great December with these children of ours. Our tradition every year is to decorate the house on the first weekend in December. So, Saturday December 6th we went and got our Christmas tree. The kids and I had fun decorating the house, especially putting up James' army of Nutcrackers.

Notice the pillows lined up. This is our attempt to keep Jameson off the fireplace and from attacking the bigger nutcrackers. "Attempt" is stressed. They kept him at bay for a while, but he soon figured out how to get around and attack when he wanted.

We decided to save decorating the tree for FHE on Monday night. We had Grammy and Poppy over for dinner and decorating after that. It was really fun. It is nice to have Grammy and Poppy so close lately that they can do these things with us. We have not had them so close with kids around, so it was a very nice experience this year.

So this is everyong sharing in putting all the ornaments on the tree. We have put the tree up on boxes for the last few years. It provides a taller base so that little hands cant get to the tree/ornaments. Anyway, you can see Daniel on a chair to put his ornaments on. Also notice that he is in only a diaper. He has learned how to undress himself and spends most of everyday naked. Refer to future pictures and see him in zip up pajamas that I have strategically put on backwards so that he cannot take them off as it is freezing lately and can get chilly in the house sometimes. My attempt to keep him warm during these cold winter months.

Anyway, back to decorating. Noah had a chance to put the Angel on top of the tree this year. Here he is with daddy holding him up smiling big as he holds up the Angel. It is a special treat to be the one to put the Angel on. Good job Noah.

Here is all the kids under the newly decorated tree. It is impossible to get them all looking happy or at the camera all at the same time, so you get what you get. Cute kids anyway and awesome looking tree. They did a great job.

After decorating, we enjoyed some hot cocoa and cookies with Grammy and Poppy and talked about what each of us wanted for Christmas.

Grammy and Poppy want clothes.
Jim wants camera stuff.
Teresa wants books or Cricut cartridges.
Tyler wants Wii Skate It.
Jacob wants Wii Lego Batman.
Noah wants Planet Heros.
Abby wants Barbies, or as she says Darbies.
Daniel wants Elmo.
Jameson probably just wants to be left alone, but we said toys for him. LOL.

It was a fun night and one to be remembered, especially having Grammy and Poppy there. I am glad that they were able to join in our fun this year.

Christmas Card 2008

2008-12-05T21:32:00.001-08:00

Just had to show off my scrapblog creation for our 2008 Christmas Card. I love being crafty and designing these pages. It is so much fun.

Jacob is the Magical age of 8

2008-11-24T14:49:00.000-08:00

I cannot believe another one of the boys is old enough to be baptized. It is amazing how fast time goes. I am so proud of Jacob for the growing up he has done in the last few years. He has really matured (as much as an 8 year old can) and has grown and learned so much.

The typical birthday pancakes with "J" for Jacob. They love them and I don't think another birthday will go by without making their special pancake.

For Jacob's birthday we got to go visit Missoula and friends. The day was spent playing with one of his best friends, Aubrey, whose mom just happens to be one of my good friends also. It was fun for everyone. They had cupcakes prepared for him and made the day so nice. After visiting with them, as well as others in Missoula, we went to dinner where Jacob got to open his presents and then were able to attend Current's Night for the University Villages. Currents is an indoor water park and the UV was having a free night for all UV residents. We got permission to "crash" the party and had a wonderful time. Jacob says it was one of the best birthdays he could remember. (of course that has only been 8 :p)

Here is Jacob with his best friend from Missoula, Aubrey. They went to dinner and currents with us and we spent pretty much the whole day with them. It was a fun day.

Eight wonderful things about my Jacob.

Jacob is very understanding of how people are feeling around him. He understands happiness, sadness, anger, etc and tries to make all around him feel better about their day, life, or whatever. (Of course, every child has an opposite and he can be grumpy and cause all around him to be grumpy also, LOL).

Jacob is very kind to all around him. When he sees that something needs to be done, he does it most of the time without asking and without complaint. His teacher has told me many times that he is the one who puts everyones chairs on their desks after school, picks up trash in the room, etc. most of the time without being asked to do it.

Jacob has a great spirit. He believes so easily and loves the Lord and the gospel. I am so proud of him and his desire to be baptized.

Jacob loves his little brothers and sister very much. He has been known to have a tea party with Abby, play legos or bionicles with Noah, make up games with Noah, and chase Daniel around tickling him.

Jacob has a very strong will and determination. When he sets his mind to something, it gets done.

Jacob is very imaginative. He is constantly making up games with Noah complete with a list of rules and regulations. It is amazing some of the things those 2 can come up with, using only a few toys and lots of paper. They are constantly making maps, lists of names of their bionicle creations, and drawings of different things.

Jacob is a great student. He has become an avid reader and is enjoying doing things that Tyler has done. He has read our whole collection of Magic Treehouse and Secrets of Droon, forcing me to try and collect all the books we are missing in those sets so he can finish them both in order. I love that he has become such a lover of books and reading, since I am also, and we have fun having afternoon reading time together.

Jacob is very friendly and not shy at all. He is the child who will walk up and ask to join kids while playing at the park or whatever. He can just pick up where they are and go with the flow. As a mom who is very timid and a bit shy about approaching others I do not know, he has taught me a lot about just jumping in and having fun. It is great to see this come out in him and learn this trait from him.

So Jacob, on your birthday, I wish you a very Happy day and I love you so much kiddo. Keep up the great job. Cant wait until next month when you get to be baptized.

What do you get when you dont have to go to school?

2008-10-12T21:08:00.000-07:00

Special days at home with mommy while older kids are in school bring about very special surprises. We had an impromtu shopping trip for some last minute items and Abby was able to talk mommy into getting cookies. Now if it was all of them, I would never have gotten these cookies for them, but when you only have 2 to buy for it makes it a bit easier. LOL.

Abby and Daniel both enjoyed their special little treat. Of course Abby picked a pink flower for herself. It is pink afterall and a flower. What more can a little girl want.

And for our little Sunshine, Abby picked the Sun. What a perfect little treat.

I did not get the picture of the mess that they made with the cookies afterwards. They only ended up eating the icing off the cookie and then crumbling the cookie all over the floor and smearing left over icing across the bookcase. Oh well! It was tasty while it lasted.

First Day of school

2008-10-12T20:58:00.000-07:00

We have 3 in school this year. It is amazing to think that I will only have 3 kids at home during the day. Boy, what will I do with all my spare time. LOL. We have been anxiously awaiting the first day of school, so it was a releif to finally be at this point.
Tyler is in 5th Grade this year. He has been very excited to get the chance to make some friends here in Spokane. Since I am posting this very late, I can already tell you that he has become friends with a boy who is in both his class at school and also at church. He is a triplet with a brother and sister in the 5th grade also, so he has made some good friends and I cant complain too much. He enjoys walking home from school with them every day. It is great to see him growing up.

Jacob is in the 2nd grade this year. Wow, I cannot believe it. He is getting big so very fast. Jacob is very excited to be reading and getting to a point where he can keep up with Tyler a bit better. He is learning and growing and becoming a great student. We are excited for the progress he has made.

Noah is our big Kindergartener. His big day is finally here. We are so proud of him and all the work he has put in the last year to get to this point. The school we are going to this year has all day kindergarten, so he is at school all day with his brothers. This is so great for him (as well as for Mom). He enjoys school very much, but it does wear him out by the end of the week. I am excited to see him start his school career and begin all the fun stages we have started with the older boys. It is amazing that he is at this point already. Yeah Noah.

I am so very proud of all 3 of my school boys. They are doing so well and enjoying school so much. I wish them all a good time at school this year.

Our growing baby

2008-09-26T14:09:00.003-07:00

Any excuse to post pictures of the cutest little baby in the world. LOL. I cant believe he is getting so big already. Enjoy the photos.

Yes he is really always this happy.

This next one was actually taken by Tyler. Their favorite thing to do is bury the poor kid with all the pillows from the couch. He is crawling out and peeking around one pillow here and I thought it was a great capture by big brother.

Mirror, Mirror

2008-09-26T14:09:00.001-07:00

When mom and dad moved, a mirror of theirs got left in our living room. It is impossible to return now, as this is a favorite spot for all the kids. Jameson loves admiring himself and Abby enjoys dancing in front of it.

I thought it would be fun to take pictures one day of them in front of the mirror and here is the result.

Here is Miss Abigail

And here is Master Jameson (sitting up for the first time might I add)

Laser Light Show at Coulee Dam

2008-09-26T14:07:00.002-07:00

Something that I remember as a child was going to Aunt Florence and Uncle Walter's house in the summer. Uncle Walter worked at the Dam, so we would always get great tours of the inside of the dam and then go and see the light show in the evenings. Of course, when I was growing up it was just a light show with music and colored lights on the water. Now it is a laser show with designs, and pictures portraying the story of the Dam. It is a fun time and provides some nostalgia for me.

After a fun day of swimming, we headed into Coulee Dam to enjoy an evening at the Laser Light show. Tyler has seen this, but he could not remember as it had been a while. We thought it would be fun to take everyone, for some fun education about the Dam.

Before the show, we had the chance to walk around the little museum in the parking lot. The kids had fun with some of their interactive displays. They got to fly a computerized jetpacker around the dam. That was pretty interesting to watch. I am glad they do not get driver's licenses for many years. They all need to work on their hand-eye coordination. LOL.

After the museum tour, we had a bit of waiting to do until the light show started. We got there around 7 p.m. as it was getting to cold to swim and we had nowhere else to go. So Daddy made up the game of water bottle football. We had lots of water bottles with us, to keep us all hydrated, so Jim grabbed one and they started using it as the "ball" in their football game.

Noah really got into it and he actually leveled Tyler at one point. Someone passed the "ball" to Tyler and Noah just ran right up to him and tackled him to the ground. For a little guy, he sure can pack a big wollup, ask Tyler.

After dark started coming upon us, we had to entertain the kids amongst all the mosquitos. I did not think to bring any bug spray with me and we all got eaten alive. We also have a "fun" time trying to convince the kids it would be worth it to stay. They were getting bored with the sitting around and wanted to go home. Of course, with the photos below, you can see they came up with ways to entertain themselves. She really is surrounded by a bunch of goofballs.

We even had the opportunity to see the moon rise. It was really quite fun to watch. I saw the glow of the moon over the mountain first and over a 20 minute or so period we watched it rise right over the mountain. The kids were amazed at that one. Here is a picture of it, only because the kids kept begging me to take a pic. It is far away, but you can see it rising up from behind the mountain. God really did create a beautiful world for us.

After what seemed like forever, the light show finally started and the kids all say it was well worth the wait. It is a definite stop for us each summer, I think. We sat down on the grass below so we were able to see all the lasers as they were passing over our heads. It was fun to see the kids reactions to all the fun designs and to share something with them, that I did as I was growing up.

Swimming at Lake Roosevelt

2008-09-26T14:07:00.001-07:00

This summer we had the opportunity to spend some time together with a day full of swimming and fun. We packed a picnic lunch and dinner (as we stayed all day for the laser light show to be shown in another post) and headed to Lake Roosevelt behind the Coulee Dam. We have enjoyed this spot for camping in years past. It was the plan to camp for the night/weekend, but during the move, some of the camping gear was misplaced. We have located it all now and plan on a camping trip next summer. LOL. For this summer, we just had fun swimming and enjoying the day.

Before leaving, we purchased just a small inflatable row boat. Daddy enjoyed taking all of the kids for rides around the swim area. It was quite a workout really.

The kids also tried their hand at rowing themselves around. Unfortunately, circles was about the only thing they accomplished. They had fun trying though.

There is also a dock in the swim area that the kids enjoyed jumping off of. The water level was low, so on one end it was deep enough to jump off, but on the other end, it was sitting on the ground.

This made it fun to crawl under and Daniel and Abby had fun chasing Daddy around under the dock.

Noah was able to relax in the sand a bit. He got worn out by all the swimming and jumping.

After swimming for a bit, we had some lunch and relaxed a bit before going back in for more swimming and boating. Jameson really does love his big brother Tyler. They have so much fun together.

Here they both are with their hats on backwards of course.

Just a fun pose of 3 of them enjoying the day.

Overall, it was a fun day. We had fun swimming, boating, and splashing in the water. There was lots of building in the sand and designing turtles and waterways and the such. It is nice when we can spend the day enjoying the beautiful things the Lord has blessed us with. Cant wait until next year's trip.

Playing around with Daddy

2008-09-26T14:05:00.001-07:00

We spent a long summer away from dad, so on one of his days off after the big move, the kids enjoyed a fun day playing around with Daddy.

Abby had a tea party with Daddy and has wanted to have one almost every day since.

All of the little kiddos got to have horsie rides on Daddy's back. It is always a special treat. It is fun for the kids to enjoy, but also fun for us to watch. They are so comical and giddy with laughter.

Of course, if you get to have horsey rides, why not get rocket rides as well. The funnest part of this was watching the other kids tackle daddy while one was being rocketed.

Even Little J got in on the fun with Daddy.

Basically it is just a time for Daddy to get some good exercise. He loves playing around with the kids like this and they have a great time "beating up" on their daddy. Overall, a wonderfully fun night for them all.

Love to read

2008-09-26T13:48:00.000-07:00

Here are some candids of Daniel relaxing and reading a book. Too precious. If only we all had the time to kick back like this and enjoy a good book.

Baby pushups

2008-09-20T14:13:00.000-07:00

Jameson has picked up on learning many new skills. This is one of his newest to do and is a preclude to crawling very shortly. I cannot believe he is already to this point and growing so fast. We call him SuperBaby cause he is just progressing so fast. he will be crawling before we know it and then running us all ragged. LOL. Here are a few shots of what we have termed, Baby pushups.

He is just barely 5 months old at this point. Wow. He is literally on his hands pushing up to only only his toes. Amazing he can get the budda belly off the ground. LOL.

Tyler's 10th Birthday

2008-08-16T14:06:00.000-07:00

Double Digit boy. I am so proud of Tyler. He has grown into quite the young man. I cant really call him a little boy anymore, can I? It is amazing to think that 10 years has gone by, he has been a joy the whole time.

There are so many things about Tyler that it is hard to narrow it down to just a few. Here is a list of 10 wonderful things about Tyler for his 10 years of life.

The bestest big brother that anyone could ever have. He plays with, takes care of, and looks out for each and every one of his brothers and his little sister.
Loves cars, bikes, skateboards, and as he tells me anything with wheels. It is fascinating to watch his mind work when it comes to vehicles of all kinds.
Has taken after his mom and loves to read. I enjoy being able to read the same books as he does and discussing things with him. We have enjoyed reading the Harry Potter Series together and he is now following me in reading the Twilight Series. It is great to have a reading buddy.
He enjoys school so much and is eager to learn and grow.
He loves Cub Scouts and is always eager to earn whatever badge I put in front of him.
He is a hard worker. If I give him a task, he accepts it and does it to the best of his ability. He has taken very nicely to emptying the dishwasher and vacuuming, something I need help with more and more these days. He is happy to help and tries hard to get it all done with a smile on his face.
He is the funniest 10 year old I have the pleasure of knowing. He is quickwitted and comes up with some very funny things just in the spur of the moment. One funny recently was stated in the wake of me teasing him that I was going to "break his bum" for some teasing to me of his own. He immediately turned and said, "Don't break my bum, It alread has a crack in it!" Okay, so crude humor, but funny nonetheless. He is always able to come up with these kinds of things so fast.
He loves sports and outdoor fun. This is exciting for Jim and I as we were both sports people ourselves growing up. It will be fun watching him (and the others) grow into whatever sport they choose.
He has a great personality that is very easy for anyone to get along with. He is a bit shy (like his mother), but once he opens up, it is so easy to just like him.
He has such a wonderful spirit about him. He has such wonderful faith in the gospel that comes very easy for him. He never doubts or questions anything, he just simply believes. He is a constant reminder of how easy the gospel truly is and how we just need to simply believe. Tyler loves the Lord and always thinks of what the correct thing to do is. His wonderful spirit is just an added blessing in our home.

We love you Tyler!! Happy 10th Birthday!!

4 months old already

2008-08-10T16:33:00.000-07:00

Just an update on our little J. I cant believe he will be 4 months old tomorrow. It goes so very fast. He is getting so big and so aware of all these other people around him. He is just in love with all of his brothers and his sister.

He is getting so strong, holding his head up and rolling over. He is even trying to crawl believe it or not. There are times when he gets himself up on his knees. He just needs to learn to strengthen those arms and he will be off. He is going to be a handful in a few months I think.

Here is an updated pic.

He sure is a cute little guy (of course I am not biased at all). He is smiling and laughing and so interactive. Tyler loves to play peek-a-boo with him and he just giggles and laughs at his biggest brother. He also takes after his mom and is very ticklish.

We are so excited to add this special boy to our family and look forward to getting to know his little personality. So far, he is a pure joy and such a very happy baby. Hopefully that continues.

4th of July

2008-08-07T09:40:00.001-07:00

The next fun thing we did during our interlude in Yelm was enjoy a nice 4th of July with family. The last 3 years we have just ended up in Oly on the fourth and it has become a nice tradition to spend it at Grandma Snook's house with a blow out of fireworks. The kids have really enjoyed it and the time with the cousins is always great.

Heres a pic of all the cousins. They grow so much bigger each year, it is amazing how fast it all goes. Amanda is getting her driver's license this year, Zach is starting High School, and Skylar is keeping up with it all.

This is our booty this year. The kids loved to pick out some favorites and with Zach's help spent the day lighting snakes and throwing pop-its.

Time out for a cool moment with Daniel. Just way to cute for his own good.

Dog pile on Aunt Tammy and Uncle Kevin.

And here is the trick on getting the little kids to sit and watch, but not play with the fireworks. Both Abby and Daniel spend a bit of time "locked" into their carseats for their own safety and mom's peace of mind.

Overall, it is really a very fun time. We have decided that we will make it a family tradition, after all we have done it for the last 3 years so why not keep it up. Watching the fireworks is great, watching the kids is even better. We all look forward to the future years of fun and excitement.

Happy Birthday Noah

2008-08-02T14:19:00.001-07:00

Another day, another catch up blog. While at Grammy and Poppy's Noah turned 6 years old. I cannot believe the little guy is 6 already. It goes by so fast. Seems like just the other day we were running around calling him Baby Noah.

He has grown so much in the last few years. He is our quiet little guy and has really begun to blossom in the last few years. He loves to tell stories and play pretend. He also loves his big brother Jacob and follows him whereever he goes.

I remember a few years in a row where Noah got Thomas the tank engine stuff for every birthday and christmas present. He has grown beyond Thomas now and is in to Dinosaurs and legos.

His 6 birthday just happened to fall on the day that Wall-E came out in the theaters, so Tyler, Jacob, Abby, and I all accompanied Noah on a trip to the theater to see Wall-E. It is now a new favorite movie and we eagerly await its arrival at the stores for purchase.

Amongst many birthday presents, Noah enjoyed receiving a V-smile pocket from Grammy and Poppy, a board game from Tyler and Jacob, and a Planet hero guy from Daniel. We had a nice quiet day and enjoyed some cake and ice cream for dinner. (Who said I cannot be a cool mom :)

Some highlights of Noah's year:

Preschool at St. Pauls were he learned his ABC's and made lots of new friends. They went on some great feild trips including PetSmart, Griz Stadium and running through the tunnel, and the Bread store to learn how bread is made.
Grew 2 inches since last summer. (Someday he will start to gain weight LOL).
Enjoyed going Folfing with Daddy.
Rode a 2 wheeler by himself for the first time.
Moved from Missoula, MT to Spokane, WA.

I am sure there is more, but that is why we are supposed to write these things down before we forget them all. He really has grown a ton. I remember this time last year, we were stressing about if he was ready to go to Kindergarten. We decided to hold out one more year and I truly think it was the best decision. He is so ready and so excited for kindergarten this year. He is talking better and learning so much now. I am sure he will love school just like his big brothers. Happy Birthday and here is to another year with our little guy.

WE LOVE YOU NOAH!!!!!!

A Day at Point Defiance Zoo and Aquarium

2008-08-01T17:28:00.001-07:00

I thought maybe doing a scrapblog would be easier than posting all these pictures on blogger. LOL. You can click on the scrapblog logo in the bottom right corner and it should take you to scrapblog to view full size. I did not want to make a post that goes on forever and ever.

The kids had a great time. We took Aunt Tammie with us to help me out with all the kids. She was funny, kept hearing her count to make sure we had everyone. In our home video, you can even hear her in the backgroud counting, "One, two, three, four, five, and you have Jameson that's six." LOL. We kept her hopping and wore her out good.

This was one of the kids favorites events from our time at Grammy and Poppy's house. It is something we have not been able to do for a few years and don't have over here in Spokane either. It was nice to be able to take them. Hopefully we can make it back when Jameson is older and can appreciate it more.

Camera-maniacs

2008-07-30T16:33:00.000-07:00

The kids have found a new love... That is stealing my camera any chance they can get and take hundreds of pictures. Thank goodness for digital cameras and I can delete the many repeats. LOL.

Tyler especially has gotten into photography and is a budding photojournalist just like his father. Just before we left Missoula, Jim took him out quite a few times to take pictures of the Rugby and Lacrosse games that were constantly going on in the big field by the house. He really did enjoy it and got quite a few great pics out of it. Here is his favorite from that.

While at Grammy's house, Jacob and Tyler were constanly running off with my camera. They did get a few shots that I liked, so I kept them and will share them with you now.

Of course one of the most important shots is to get one of yourself. So I thought this was a fun one of Jacob. Don't see that smile on him very often, so we gotta enjoy it while we can.

This one is also a favorite of mine. It is of Jacob and Noah's shadows. I just thought it was a fun idea and came out pretty cool looking.

Needless to say they all want digital cameras for their birthdays. If only we could afford to get them all one cause you know if we only get one for use by all the kids they will constantly fight over it. We will have to check into something I guess for these budding photographers of ours. I can also say that Jim is so very proud of them all. Glad they can follow in his footsteps.

Cooking with Poppy

2008-07-29T14:56:00.000-07:00

Noah found a new interest while at Grammy and Poppy's house. He has learned to love to cook. All the kids enjoy cooking with me, but Noah has really gotten into it. He helped Poppy cook dinner a few times while there and watched Food Network with Grammy a lot. He has now continued to watch food network while being home and just really seems to enjoy it. I hope he continues to love it and can grow into a wonderful cook.

New House

2008-07-29T14:24:00.000-07:00

Okay, I promised that I would get up to date with all that has gone on in the last 2 months. I finally got all the pics onto my computer and there are a lot of them. It may take me a little while to get them all up and going.

First I wanted to start with pics of our new house. Here she is.

We really are loving all the extra room. Here are a few shots of the inside of the house just to get to know how we are living here. It is a nice house with essential 4 levels and a big backyard.

Here is the backyard view from the back sliding glass door and porch area.

And here is the end of the backyard looking at the back of the house. You can see we have lots of room to run around and the kids have been having fun making a mess and all.

When you walk into the front door, you see the kitchen and dinning room. The stairs there in front of you are going up to the master bedroom and Abby's bedroom. There is a bathroom up there connected to the hall and the master bedroom.

Next is a view of the stairs that go either up to the 2 bedrooms and bath or down to the family room, office, and 2nd bathroom.

This is a pic of Abby's room. She loves the colors and the butterflies. Although if you catch her at bedtime, she says she hates her room and she hates butterflies. LOL.

Next is a view of the living room from the top of the stairs. The fireplace is really quite extravagant and then the bay window just adds to it. We are running short on furniture to go here, but I keep dreaming about all the possibilities up here. Cant wait to work with it all and cant wait to decorate at Christmas. It should be fun.

Now if you go down that set of stairs just inside the door, you come to the family room. It is a bit small, but very well used right now. With the addition of some furniture from mom and dad, we have made it a cozy little place for us to be together to watch TV, movies, or of course play Wii. Also, if you go to the right you come to a little office area for me and a bathroom.

Here is the office area. It sure is nice to have that office area (not in my bedroom). Makes it easier to separate my work from my home life. It is also nice to be close to the family room, but not in it so I can be nearby for the kids, but still out of the way and able to hear what I am supposed to be transcribing.

And the final level is through the family room and down another set of stairs. We have 2 bedrooms which we have broken up to be for Tyler and Daniel and then Noah and Jacob. They seem to be enjoying the split that way. The door you see just straight down the stairs is Noah and Jacob and I purposely closed it as it is a huge mess and I am afraid to say always will be. Tyler and Daniel's room is just to the left of that. Then on either side is 2 more rooms. On the right we have a storage room for our food storage and miscellaneous storage. Also the furnace and things are in there. On the left is the laundry room. There is also some storage under the stairs.
Well there you have it. A virtual tour of our house. Like I said before, we are really enjoying it. I was a bit skeptical at first, not sure how we would all fit, but we have worked it all out and I love it. With the 4 levels, we are amazed at how we can loose each other. I was down in the laundry room the other day and Jim searched all over the house for me. I could not hear him calling for me upstairs. LOL. The kids are enjoying the neighborhood, being able to go out and ride bikes, scooters, etc. The backyard is nice too. Jim and I have gotten some nice chairs to go on the porch and we have enjoyed sitting out there in the evenings watching the kids play and so on.

We miss Missoula and all the fun we were able to have as CA's, but we are looking forward to our new life here in Spokane.

I will soon post all the fun stuff we did while we were away at Grammy and Poppy's house. Things that include going to the zoo, going to the beach, and fun around the house. Hope all is well with everyone. Keep looking back for more updates from us in Washington.

The Big Move!!!!!

2008-07-18T23:41:00.000-07:00

Our time in "The Country of Montana" as Jim says is over. Jim has graduated and we are now in Spokane, WA. It took a while for us all to get here. We left Missoula on May 31st, but just moved into our new house on July 14th. Jim has been staying with an Aunt in Spokane and working while the kids and I have been in Yelm with my parents.

We have had lots of fun experiences during these last 6 weeks that I will post about later, but for now we are glad to finally have a place to call home again. I will post pics of the new house at a later date. The kids are loving all the "extra" room. I never realized how small our place in Missoula was until we finally have so much room here. We dont have enough stuff to fill it all up right now, but I am sure it wont take long to get there. It is nice to see the kids having fun running around and playing, but not being in my hair either.

I am slowly getting things organized and I would say after 4 days I am about 50% done. Just got all the toys organized, which is a hard thing to do with the kids playing and getting toys out as fast as I can get them put into buckets and figure out where to put them. LOL.

Anyway, I will post pics of the kids and of all our fun adventures soon as well as a pic of the new house.

More scrapblog pages.

2008-05-19T18:08:00.000-07:00

These are the latest pages that I have made for Jameson. I am going to try and get a book bound of them to give as a gift to grandmothers. So if you see this mom before I get it done, surprise. LOL.

I have found it way to much fun in making these scrapblog pages. Tyler has even gotten into it and made himself a page for a Scout project. Thanks for looking.

Always surrounded

2008-05-14T20:40:00.000-07:00

This new little man is always surrounded by faces. With 5 older siblings, he is never left alone. here is a shot I got when he was about 1 week old with the 3 younger kiddos just adoring him.

Jameson Blessing

2008-05-14T20:33:00.000-07:00

Here is the scrap page I made of Jameson's blessing day. It was a great day and we are so happy to add this wonderful addition to our family. He has been a sweet little baby and we have enjoyed him immensely.

Each of these children has brought something so very special to this family. Tyler is a great big brother and shows so much responsibility with his new baby brother. Jacob brings us humor and love. Noah is so loving to his new baby, hugging and kissing him all the time. Abby has become a "big helper girl" bringing me diapers and anything I need for baby J. Daniel just enjoys his baby brother and every moment with him.

Getting the chance to bless another baby and be responsible for the upbringing of these kiddos is such an awesome responsibility. I am so grateful for the knowledge that I have and the gospel in my life that helps me with all of my responsibilities as a mother. I am so very blessed with each and every one of the kids and I am grateful for them all.

CONGRATULATIONS GRADUATE

2008-05-14T20:25:00.001-07:00

May 10, 2008
University of Montana
BA in Journalism, photojournalism option

We are so very proud of our graduate. It has been a long road for us all, but Jim has finally made it through schooling. We have had a great time here in Missoula, MT. It has been a long 3 years with many bumps in the road, but we have endured and are so very proud of Jim and this wonderful accomplishment.

Next next chapter of our lives will find us back in Spokane were Jim will do an internship with the Spokane Indians as their team photographer. He will also work for Huppin's again to earn extra money and have something to do during the day. We are excited for this new chapter.

My new favorite website

2008-05-14T20:18:00.000-07:00

I was recently introduced to www.scrapblog.com and have become addicted. It has been very fun to create these scrap pages. Here are a few that I have made. I am in the process of making more.

This is one of James with all the kids. We dressed everyone up in Griz wear for Jim's graduation party. More to come on the graduation.

Here are all 6 of my kiddos. Love them all so much.

Here is the first one that I made. Just a quick look introduction for me to the program and so on.

Anyway, I have fallen in love with this website. Look for more scrapblog pages to come.