Double Digits

So the pretty princesses finally hit double digits! Can you believe it? They had a "dinner and a movie" PJ party.

We started off with 4 xl pizza's, 48 wings and 5 gallons of home made rootbeer for the 14 girls and they finished everything off but about 4 slices. Hungry bunch!

Then it was on to the presents. They got everything their hearts could desire from their friends, gift certificates, pet shop toys, lotions and potions, books, cash money, paint, and even a movie pass (can you say..night out for mommy and daddy?!)

From us they hit the mother load...they have been begging for the Ninento DS for their birthday or Christmas for 2 years. We finally broke down and bought them. (We have been hiding them for 2 months!) They were thrilled and couldn't have been any happier and that picture is the only fuzzy one of the evening!

We then moved on to our movie "Kung Fu Panda" and it was a hit! The party favor was a pillow for each girl to take home and they used them for their viewing pleasure. They were too full for popcorn but after the movie they were just hungry enough to polish off some cake and ice cream. Yummy! So they had a fantastic party and everyone went away happy. The parents kept trying to get their girls to leave the pillows and when they realized they were the party favor they were very happy, I don't know if the girls will get them for long! :>

We were so happy Grammy and Leksi could come down to join us. Grammy frosted the cake 30 min before the guests arrived. Sweet! It looked amazing and we loved it!

Helen, Grammy, Mary and the huge, yummy cake!

Cake and gifts

So all is well with our partied out family. We just want to relax for a while! Thanks to everyone who made this party a hit!

3 Treasures from the past

As I was looking at my kids pictures and class pictures the other day I was reminded that I had recently found 3 treasures! 3 of my class pictures from way back in the day. It is so fun to see how cute we all looked. I wish I had all of my class pictures. Hopefully (I make no promises) I will remember to keep all of my kids pictures someplace safe. I thought I'd share my treasures. Feel free to leave a comment trying to figure out which child I am in the photos. That ought to be funny! Remember you can double click on the picture to make it larger!

Pretty sure I cut my own hair for this kodak moment!

Not sure why I put the no sign on Jason, maybe I had a crush on him and he was mean to me that day! :> Also some seriously awesome smiles captured here!!!

4th grade! Wow, that's the grade my princesses are in now. How the styles change, for the girls anyway, boys its still jeans and a striped shirt!

2008-2009 School Pictures--Fall

Thankfully they came back rather nice! I think they looked great and I am very happy with the results! How lucky am I to have such fantastic and wonderful children? I just wish I could have snuck Lewy in to get a picture too!

Helen was smiling a fantastic smile and looked beautiful!

Mary was thrilled that her little curl on the side of her face was still there for the picture. She even wore her "only needed for school glasses" for the photo.

Griffin, he looks soooo cute but, what was I thinking with that dark colored shirt? It shows every speck of dirt he smeared on himself that day. :> But with such handsome looks you don't even notice!

Chicky Bawk Bawk

Doesn't a freezer full of food just make you smile?!? We always stock up on chicken (and milk) when it is on sale and it is so worth it! We eat mainly chicken so we have it on hand at all times. I always watch for sales and when we are running low, we restock, usually about 40 lbs or so. This time it was $1.69 a lb and we got lots and lots. Brad has a system of trimming and preparing it so it is quick and easy to use when thawed. Ahh, bliss. It is a small measure of food storage and it makes me happy to see it in the freezer!

All done.

A whole row of chicken in the deep freeze!!

Yippee!

Halloween Happiness

We had a fantastic Halloween. We had a school carnival the Friday before where we got lots of treats at all the booths. Then I bid on stuff for the silent auction and won some tickets to the Wildlife World Zoo and a month of Little Gym fun for Lewis, so it was a score.

On Wednesday, we had our ward Trunk-or-Treat which Brad and I were in charge of. We served hotdogs and homemade rootbeer for everyone. It was a huge success. We served 20 gallons of rootbeer along with 15 gallons of water--since it was still in the 80's outside we had some heavy drinkers. We bought 380 hotdogs which everyone thought would be wayyyyy tooooo many and only had 12 leftover. The missionaires threw themselves on their sword and took the leftovers off our hands! The kids went around to all the cars multiple times---we just have them go till the candy run's out--and we had so much candy we didn't need any more for Halloween but....

We headed Flag to Grammy and Pap's for Halloween. They give out full size/king size candy bars. Their house is well known because you don't just knock and go, you do something. Mostly it was singing, the ABC's, Twinkle Twinkle, etc. There were a few magic tricks and even some dancing. You gotta work for those candy bars! Since Halloween was on Friday we had people from 4 to 9:30 ringing the doorbell. I have no idea how much candy my parents went through but it was alot! Aleksia and Brax came to Grammy and Paps to trick or treat with my kids and they hit so many houses they had to come dump their bags to go out longer. It was also unseasonably warm so they didn't even have to cover their cute costumes with coats or anything!

The best costume award went to Brax. He was a leprechaun. Amie did an awesome job. He was 'sitting' on a pot of gold. The pot kept his legs warm underneath and the fake legs fooled my dad and many others, my dad said "I didn't realize how little his legs were!" It was a good fake out!

Check out their blog

http://freerville.blogspot.com/2008/10/brax-as-leperchaun.html

for the before and after pictures.

Baby Nathan

I am a cousin again! (Or second cousin 10 times removed or whatever, who can keep track?!)

Yep, after ripening for only 31 1/2 weeks Nathan decided to make his debut (8 1/2 weeks early.) He was born on Halloween and weighed 3 lbs 7 oz and was 16.5 inches long. He will have to hang out in the NICU for a few weeks but he is doing really well and is breathing on his own and everything!! The girls and I went to the hospital yesterday to visit him and he was so happy to see us he cried the whole time! :> Tears of joy I'm sure!

My cousin Julie is doing very well after her semi-emergency c-section and only has one more day in the hospital before she is checked out and has to start juggling the kids at home and Nathan at the hospital, and since she can't drive for a few weeks that's going to be fun!

Nathan

Az State Fair

My parents came down for the day and we had so much fun. We partied and partied and didn't get home until 8:30 (which is late for a school night!)

Grammy & Pap & Lew at the State Fair!

So I had to check my kids out of school early so they could party at the state fair! They were soooo disappointed to miss out on all that schooling! Griffin's teacher told us to make sure to eat a fried twinkie for her, so Griffin, being the fantastic student that he is, did!

Fried Twinkie

The Macey's petting zoo was a huge hit since they have exotic animals to pet and feed. We spent lots of time there and I think the animals were better for it! :>

Lewis feeding llamas

Pap and Camel

Mary feeding baby bull

Helen and baby camel

Grif feeding Goats

We even rode an elephant named Becky.

Not as cool as the picture of my Grandpa Wally in India riding an elephant but it will do!!!

We rode so many rides! Even Grammy and Pap got in on the action. Actually Paps rode tons of rides with the girls while I rode the smaller rides with Griffin and Grammy was on stroller duty with Lewis. It was great fun!

Ferris Wheel

Dune Buggy Ride

G-Force: Pap and girls on top left

Tug Boat: Pap and all the kids

M&M Visit (last March)

I just found these pictures taken in March of our friends Matt & Molly visiting us. Matt golfed every day and we had lots of fun but I took very few pictures because Molly was a snappin fool!

zoo fun

I thought I'd share the few I actually took. We had fun at the zoo and hanging out playing on our Big Kid scooter.

The Awesome Scooter!

The last day Molly, Helen and I even went to visit Molly's Uncle Eph who hangs out down here in the winter. He helps out at a farm where he had tilled up the land and planted grass so they could build corrals and get some horses in. I guess it's about time for him to come on back! So enjoy the pictures.

Rattlesnake tracks!



Uncle Eph's house--the one on blocks not the house in the background!

Eph and Molly Doodle
Helen, Mol & Eph touring the property

Eph's fine new field all ready for some horses

Unka Eph