The Beecher Bunch

The best and funniest Christmas pagent ever..

2012-01-25T14:38:00.006-06:00

Our makeshift last minute reenactment of the Christmas story was a hit.

Ivy as Mary (pregnant and all)

Eli as Joseph

Longest 6 months of my life!

2012-01-05T11:54:00.006-06:00

After 6 months of living 1,500 miles apart I was able to head to Alabama and bring Russ back home! We had a great trip just the two of us we went through 9 states in 2 1/2 days; AL,MS,AR,TN,OK,TX,NM,CO,UT. The kids are SOO excited to have him home again! Now that he is back I sit and think how did I do it alone for that long?? I know we were all blessed and are just happy it is over!

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-23T13:41:00.004-06:00

Hope You all have a very Merry Christmas!!!

Halloween...

2011-10-30T21:49:00.002-05:00

This is what I am up against this year..

Sported out!

2011-10-07T14:53:00.011-05:00

I am officially sported out.. Practices or games everyday of the week and on weekends is about to due me in.. The kids are thriving and loving every second of it so that makes it all worth while. I on the other hand need a day at the spa..

Picnicking

2011-09-23T16:36:00.004-05:00

Today was a perfect day to have a picnic with the kids at the park. No school. Just me and my four kids alone. It was heaven. I am not ready for winter yet..

River Rampage Tri

2011-09-01T11:53:00.007-05:00

Russ and some of his siblings competed in the Green River Rampage Triathlon a few weeks ago. It was so inspiring to watch. I really think I should start training now for the one next year. Russ placed 3rd in his division. Pretty awesome!

New school again...

2011-08-25T13:27:00.007-05:00

I am amazed at how resilient my kids are. I can't count how many schools/states they have moved too and from and they still pick right up and don't complain about another year of a new school/ new friends etc.. They have each other and that is all they need..

Kanyon 7th grade (Jr. High) I don't know how I feel about having a kid in Jr. High but thankfully Kanyon is the sweetest 7th grader I know. He is playing on the Jr High football team this year.. He is also playing the Saxophone again. He is growing up way too fast.

Saul 6th grade. He is such a smart kid; to date he has read the Harry Potter series NINE times. He is playing football through the city and loves it.

Eli 3rd grade. Eli is a fun loving and sensitive kid. He lights up the place around here.

Watch out girls! The Beecher brothers just moved ta town!!!

West

2011-08-23T14:22:00.013-05:00

I love that we have moved back west. We have missed the Mountains so much over the past 10 years we have been away. A few weeks ago we went to one of our favorite places in UT. Moab. We went hiking, rappelling, river rafting, swimming and spent lots of quality family time together. We are so lucky to live in such a beautiful place!

Wild Summer

2011-08-09T16:36:00.012-05:00

I haven't had a minute to slow down this summer. Moving closer to family has been great but I do miss the less busy days in Alabama. Here is a look at what we have been up too..

Four Corners. Each kid was in a different state. Pretty cool!

Crawdad Fishing!

Feeding the ducks.

Going to the Zoo!

Big Day..

2011-07-20T15:42:00.003-05:00

What a whirlwind! We Moved across the country and a few days later we Baptize Eli. It was so great to have family to join in on the special occasion with us. Although it was pretty funny that most of the family including Russ were playing in a golf tournament and were about 20min late for the baptism. It all still worked out and Eli is an official member of The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter Day Saints. We are so proud of him!! (If you look close at Russ's arm you can see his white hand from his golf glove and his very sunburned arm.. That's what he gets for being late to baptize his son!)

13 years and still going strong

2011-07-14T09:42:00.007-05:00

For our anniversary this year Russ surprised me with an overnight bed and breakfast and a 3hr Zip Line tour in Atlanta, Georgia. It was pretty amazing! We were literally flying from tree to tree going so fast for 3 hrs. After enduring the worst electrical storm I have ever seen on our drive there we were very happy to have them bring us dinner into our little cabin that night. The weather turned out perfect and other then Russ flying down one zip line and not breaking early enough flew into me leaving me with a few scrapes and bruises, it was perfect. The zip line Russ was on was called "Big Daddy" So he got the nickname "Big Daddy, Wife Beater" for the rest of the tour. It was such a great weekend and I am so grateful I have a husband who likes adventure as much as I do! I'm a lucky girl! Here is to many more years!!

Back in action

2011-07-12T15:33:00.009-05:00

It has been a while. We have been in the process of moving across the country. Before we moved I wanted to get a few pictures of Kanyon with his Saxophone. He loves to play it so much. Also my brother Jake came out to visit and we had ourselves a little photo shoot. So fun!

Helping Hands

2011-05-17T09:04:00.004-05:00

As you all know and have heard about the terrible storms that came through Alabama on April 27. There were many tornados that leveled cities around us and hundreds of people killed here.. We were very fortunate to be kept safe from the storms and feel so blessed that we were protected. We awoke to tornado sirens at 5:00am Wednesday April 27. Kanyon and I were the only ones that heard the sirens; Kanyon came into my room and we turned on the TV to see if we needed to take cover. It looked like the storms were a little North of us so I told him to go back to bed and I would keep my eye on the weather. Well at 5:30am the sirens went off again and the weather man told us to get in a shelter right away. We grabbed the kids out of bed and ran down into our storm shelter in our basement. We sat in there hearing the wind,rain,hail etc. Our power flickered a few times and then went out completely. So at 5:30am we are down in a dark room praying we will be kept safe. We were, but when we came out of the basement there was SO much damage. Trees everywhere, on houses on roads, power lines down etc. Little did we know that the HUGE storm was yet to come. At around 5:00pm that evening was when the real huge storm hit. Cities completely leveled and people killed. We again spent the evening in our storm shelter with no power. (which we got back on about 3 days later) It was a scary and surreal experience. We were very blessed. We received no damage at all. So when the church set up Tornado relief we jumped at the chance to help. Hundreds of people came in from out of state and Russ and I were asked to be the Team Leaders for a group of about 30 people. We were given the Mormon Helping Hands Shirts and we went to work. It has been an amazing experience to be a part of a disaster of this magnitude. We even had our church in the parking lot because our church still didn't have power. Russ got some pretty bad Poison Ivy after helping with tree removal poor guy! The people out here are amazing. The cashiers at the grocery stores or the guy at the McDonald's drive through ask how your and your family are doing. Everyone is pulling together and helping. It is amazing to watch. I even saw Air Force One with President Obama in it flying overhead to look at the damage. Wow.

Good Mom?? Bad Mom??

2011-05-08T07:07:00.002-05:00

This is the card I woke up too this morning on Mothers Day. Not quite sure what to think about it... I think I really am "Susie" and they are secretly trying to tell me something. I'm confused.

Hiking Around

2011-05-06T13:47:00.004-05:00

Don't you love the crack.. Why do they have to grow up.. Really?!

World of Coke!

2011-05-04T08:52:00.005-05:00

We are a Coke family. Grandma Lu owned a Coke factory back in the day and so we all have a special love in our hearts for Coca cola. We made sure to stop at the World Of Coke in Atlanta Georgia. Mostly the kids just wanted to spend the whole time in the tester room where they had all the drinks that Coca cola makes from around the world and you could stay and test anything for as long as you wanted. I tell ya there are some pretty nasty drinks out there!

Can't resist!

2011-04-22T13:00:00.002-05:00

Don't you want one of these at your house?! Somebody better stop me from wanting to become a Pagent Mom. It's almost impossible to resist the urge with her in the house.

How did this happen?

2011-04-13T11:51:00.006-05:00

How do I have a 12yr old? A "pre teen".. I am way to young to watch my son pass the sacrament in church but that is exactly what I was sitting doing this last Sunday.. When Kanyon received the Priesthood last week I made him cut his hair. He was not happy about it but we came to a good compromise. Doesn't he look like a stud!! I wanted to snap a few quick pics before church on Sunday. His first day as a Deacon passing the Sacrament. Russ was able to pass with him. It was a priceless moment to witness.

Signed!

2011-04-11T08:43:00.004-05:00

This is old news for most of you but I am behind on my blogging.. We are moving to UTAH!! We signed the contract and it is now official! Cannot wait to be closer to family! Although we are going to miss the beach immensely!

Lets ride..

2011-03-22T13:50:00.003-05:00

Eli has finally mastered his bike without training wheels. Really all it took is about a 5min lesson and he was off. We should have tried this a long time ago...

No Fear!

2011-03-15T13:41:00.009-05:00

DISCLAIMER: First of all you must know that Ivy dressed herself. This is "fashion" to her. Belly shirt and all. I was not planning on seeing anyone on a Sunday afternoon at the park so I let her wear her "fashion". Now that that is covered I can explain the post...

Growing up with three brothers you learn to have no fear. Ivy doesn't care or realize what might happen after she does something she just goes for it. Case and point :

Ivy looking at me wondering if she should hang high above the ground..

Still looking at me realizing that it was not the best idea...

Thankfully she has a good brother who helps her, so her Mom can take a picture of her bad decision to remind her in the future what she should not do.

Trouble continues...

No broken bones this trip. Just maybe a call from the fashion police...

Derby Disaster

2011-03-04T12:38:00.005-06:00

We are bad parents.. Really we are. We have known about the Pine Wood Derby for a long time now and the night before the car was still a block of wood in the box. It's not like we just didn't do it but I leave that stuff to Russ and well, he just is NEVER home! Never! I even got the electric saw out myself and tried to make something out of it. Thankfully Russ and Saul stayed up really late and then Russ got up at 4:00am before work to finish it up. It was still a disaster. Saul didn't win one race. I warned him on our way that it may not be a very fast car due to the fact that we didn't spend much time on it. (and the wheels were not even put on it until Russ showed up to the church 5 min before it started) Saul said "Mom, I don't care. I really don't" That makes it worse. When your child is forgiving and lets you out of it when you have clearly been neglectful... He is a good son. He did win an award for "best paint job". Better then nothing.

Ivy turns 4

2011-02-28T12:41:00.011-06:00

I can't believe my baby is 4 yrs old. This year Ivy wanted a "white" party. She is a little obsessed with weddings and chases Saul around asking him to marry her all the time. I wasn't sure how we were going to pull off the "white" party but I just channeled a wedding reception and this is what we came up with. Ivy's friends wore white too. It was Adorable! Ivy is the sweetest 4 yr old you will ever meet; she also has a wicked sense of humor! I don't know what we did to deserve her but we thank our lucky stars everyday for this angel!

Josh

2011-02-11T10:08:00.004-06:00

I feel like Joshua Radin and I are on a first name basis now. I did shake his hand outside with snow falling on us, alone in the dark on the sidewalk.. Russ was there too and Joshua had a girl with him but I am sure I was all that mattered for a split second; even though I didn't even give him my name. Anyway, He (Joshua) is one of my favorite all time singers since being introduced to his music from some good friends. (shout out Dave and Tisha) . Love, Love, Love him! So when Russ and I found out he was having a concert in 2 hrs just 15 min away from our home we dropped everything to go to it! It was amazing! Russ and I have been to lots of concerts together and this one took the cake! It was a small intimate setting and we were literally feet away from him! He didn't use the microphone for some of the songs because everyone was so close. It was fantastic! If you haven't heard his music go HERE now!! There were also a couple of cool people who opened for him. Andrew Allen and Anya Marina. What a perfect night!!!

The Holiday

2011-01-14T12:03:00.019-06:00

The kids were pretty excited when it snowed most of the 3 weeks we were in Utah over the Holidays. Our warm Alabama blood took a little getting used to the freezing temps. We enjoyed every moment and look forward to moving closer we hope next year.

Russ got a bloody noes sledding.

Tea Party!

Cooking with Grandma Kat.

Merry Christmas

2010-12-16T12:30:00.002-06:00

See y'all next year!

My Sidekick...

2010-12-11T15:00:00.005-06:00

When I have a Photo Shoot and I have to bring Ivy with me and the clients aren't there yet, my little sidekick Ivy gets to help me make sure my camera settings are correct. She actually loves to be my helper and Model.

Holidays

2010-12-08T12:38:00.002-06:00

We are getting ready to go to UT for Christmas! Super excited! Which means we have been busy getting Holiday things ready for the trip. Hopefully after the Holiday Season I will have much more interesting things to post about. These things in the pictures below are interesting to me..

Enjoying the scenery..

2010-11-24T14:34:00.006-06:00

We have lived a lot of places; but none as beautiful as Alabama. I am completely amazed at how gorgeous it is just driving the kids to school etc.. We went on a little walk with some neighbor kids the other day. These boys have become wonderful friends!

Uses

2010-11-10T12:37:00.003-06:00

I am glad to know that Russ thinks the Treadmill is his own personal desk. Gives me a good excuse to talk myself out of getting on it.

What a bust!

2010-11-01T10:58:00.003-05:00

Eli said it best.. "This is the worst year ever". There should be some law against Halloween on Sunday. My kids feel totally jipped! We had heard that some neighborhoods were celebrating on Saturday so we got our kids ready and took a couple of Kanyon's friends with us to search out someone who would give us candy the day before Halloween. No such luck. We did get about 4 pieces. Then we thought we would make our house really spooky and have fun passing out candy to all the kids that came by on Sunday.. NOT ONE! Not one trick or treater. Thank goodness for the Churches trunk or treat. Even worse is that now I have a whole candy bowl full of candy that no one took. Now I have to eat it. Its my duty right?!

What a ham..

2010-10-28T13:39:00.006-05:00

I know my days of having a little one at home are coming to an end... Ivy and I are lucky enough to get to spend all day together everyday. Living in a new place we have even more time together as there aren't many friends to play with yet and the last few days have been rainy and lonely. Ivy always knows how to spice up my day.

Models

2010-10-24T18:21:00.011-05:00

My poor kids! I have been driving around here looking for places to take Photos and I have no choice but to make my kids my Models. They are SOO sick of it. Now that I have found a few great places I think I can give them a break for a while. But I thought I would show what great Models I have.

Eli has had it! He complains the most about getting his picture "made" (that's what they say in the South.)

Yes ma'am!

2010-10-11T12:33:00.012-05:00

Although we are not going to be living in the deep south for long there are a few things we really love and are going to miss.

#1 Our favorite is the respect they teach there children out here. the kids are expected to use "yes Ma'am" and "yes Sir" for everything. And out here if someone doesn't hear what you say instead of saying "what?" they say "Ma'am?" or "Sir?" The schools require it. It is a lesson that we have decided to continue after we move. Ivy is even getting great at it.

#2 We are still in the nineties in October.. The weather is perfect. Most of these Fall days are in the 70 - 80s.

#3 The people like our neighbors etc are SO friendly! The local people out here really full fill the Southern Hospitality. We have never felt so welcomed by people living around us.

#4 Living within 4 hrs of the Ocean and beaches.

There is LOTS we are not going to miss also ie- cockroaches, humidity etc. But I am choosing to focus on the positive.

Geocaching

2010-09-10T09:35:00.011-05:00

Last weekend we finally got around to try something we have wanted to do for a long time. Geocaching. This was our first time so we went about it like we were Pirates searching for a treasure. I pulled out the eye patch the big pirate earring and the arrg! But the kids were just embarrassed for me and took all the stuff away and used it amongst themselves. We went to three locations and found one "cach" it was a pretty lame "cach" so we didn't take anything out we just put something cool in it. I think we will try it again. The kids were hiking all over and not complaining like usual when we just go on a hike.

Finding our first "cach"!

The "junk" inside

Best buddies! Even dressed the same and wore there hair the same.

Ivy's mean Pirate look

Enjoying the view..

Watch out boys!

And girls!

Labor Day trip!

2010-09-06T16:41:00.031-05:00

Friday night at 5:00pm we decided to drive to Florida and go to the beach. we were on our way 1/2 hr later. We just threw swimsuits in a bag and left.

Highlights: Beach, Sleeping in, Family time, Crocodiles, Free breakfast, Palm trees

Low lights: Forgetting to pack under ware for all the kids.., BAD traffic on the way there, Camera Battery dieing after first hour and charger left at home! (Meaning I missed taking pictures of the kids with Crocodile's), Not having Hotel reservations so paying WAY too much for a room.

Next time I think we will plan a little better like; bringing under ware for the kids. But, what a fantastic trip! We love living close to Paradise!

The slow days in the South

2010-09-01T09:22:00.014-05:00

While the boys are at school...

2010-08-24T17:43:00.004-05:00

Ivy is a natural dancer. She was SO excited to start her Ballet/Tap class. It is a pretty serious Dance Theater Company. They have to wear there hair in buns every class and everything. Ivy is pretty much a girl who has died and gone to Heaven.

School Starts

2010-08-22T14:42:00.006-05:00

School is finally in session. The schools here are pretty amazing although, what I have gained in academics I have lost in convenience. It takes me almost TWO HOURS to drop off and pick up my kids at school. They don't bus out here so EVERY parent is there. The last three years they were able to walk so I know I am due for it but it is still quite frustrating. The boys are all in a different school which gives me THREE SCHOOLS to figure out. It is quite a learning curve. Not to mention that the schools start at 7:45AM. Way too early! I am going to get myself a book on tape and Ivy some Learning movies to make the process a little more bearable. Kanyon signed up for Band this year. He is playing the Saxophone. He is doing a really great job and is very enthusiastic about it. Kanyons school has a DRESS CODE so he has to have his shirt tucked in every day and they are particular about how nice your clothes are. And they have to "dress out" for P.E. (meaning they have a locker room where they change into an assigned gym uniform.) Pretty intense! Welcome to Middle School!

First day of school!

Saul 5th grade

Eli 2nd grade

I don't know how I didn't get a close up of Kanyon..

The rest of the Summer...

2010-08-17T13:08:00.012-05:00

Camping, Train riding and Cousins. Such a fun Summer. Now back to the real world.

REALLY Late Fourth of July post

2010-08-12T20:50:00.009-05:00

Every year Russ's family gets together in Richfield Utah at Grandma Lu's house for the Fourth of July. If you haven't been to a Fourth of July in Richfield you haven't lived. The city shuts down for this Holiday. The Fireworks are the best I have seen anywhere! We were lucky to get to go this year and loved every minute if it.

Cousins

I am back to blogging! Finally!

2010-08-08T14:34:00.012-05:00

It has been far too long. Between spending the Summer in Utah and moving to Alabama. We have been pretty preoccupied. It will take me a few posts to get caught up. But it is good to be back. The move went as smooth as possible. We had lots of help and are almost all the way unpacked. We actually are loving it here already.

Kanyon's 5th grade graduation. Middle school here he comes.

Russ and I went to Memphis TN on our way home from looking for a place to live in AL. We stopped in Graceland to visit Elvis's house.

We didn't want to pay the $$ to get in so we just snuck a peak over the fence.

We went to Nauvoo before heading out to Utah for the Summer. The kids got into the spirit of things.

Neglected

2010-05-30T18:53:00.002-05:00

I am well aware of how neglected this blog has been. We are in the process of selling our home (which is not going so well) we are trying to tie up all the loose ends before the move. We also got rid of our Internet at home in preparation for the move so it is making it hard to keep the Blog very current. As I type Russ and I are down south looking for a new place to live.. Russ just left the hotel room to get some forks for us to eat some cheesecake. So this update will be short. He will eat it all if I am not fast. :) Anyway, I promise to keep up better when things slow down a bit. :)

Playgroups

2010-05-10T19:55:00.005-05:00

One of the greatest things about having a Resident as a Husband is the association's I get with the Spouses. They are always planning such great activities. Here are a few pictures of the recent playgroups Ivy and I have gone too.

Riding the train

Hanging with the horses.
Ivy was a little disappointed she didn't see a Unicorn. Maybe next time.

Excuses, excuses..

2010-04-29T14:49:00.010-05:00

I have been such a slacker. I have good excuses. Busy! Really busy, I broke my toe on March 30 and have been in a full boot to try and heal it. What a racket it has been. I didn't know so much pain could come from such a small thing. But on a happier note some friends and I went on a girls trip to NYC. What a blast it was. I don't think we were there long enough but I think it was agreed that if we stayed any longer our Husbands would close our bank accounts so we couldn't withdraw anymore money. The big thing was that we were on the Today Show. We were just standing there when a guy came up to us and said "Hey, you guys want to be on TV" Umm, YES! Here is the link if you want to watch. http://today.msnbc.msn.com/id/26184891/vp/36689175#36689175
It was good to get back home but I am looking forward to another girls trip next year!

Come and gone..

2010-04-12T18:45:00.007-05:00

I can't seem to keep up right now. Here are some pics I didn't post of Easter. It seemed like Easter came and went so fast this year. But I thought I should post that we did celebrate it.

Spring Break

2010-04-05T18:17:00.009-05:00

We had the best Spring Break this year. Russ had a ton of time off so we took full advantage of having him home. Russ was just going to take the boys fishing one morning and I made him take me and Ivy too. We didn't catch one thing but it was so much fun!

Saul is our most patient fisherman. He made faces out of rocks while he waited for a fish to bite.

This lasted for about 3 minutes for Russ. It was nice while it lasted.

Its true

2010-03-29T21:08:00.004-05:00

I know, I look way too young and hip to have an 11 year old.. But I do. Dang it, I do. Kanyon is the glue that holds us all together here at our house. He is a pleaser and has such a tender spirit. We are so blessed to have him as part of our family. When Kanyon was about 1 yrs old he was almost kidnapped. It is a story for another time, one that I don't like to think about; because of how close he came to being taken. Thankfully, he is still with us and blesses our lives daily. I don't know how I would have made it without him! We love you! Happy Birthday! Stud!

Should I be worried?

2010-03-24T13:33:00.001-05:00

St Patty's

2010-03-17T20:55:00.008-05:00

I am one of those people who loves St Patricks day. I think I love it more because of my kids. I love running in there room early in the morning to pinch them while they scramble to get something green on (they are learning to sleep in something green). I love using my whole bottle of green food coloring in one day. I love that my kids might think I am crazy planning a dinner with only green food but they secretly think they have the coolest Mom on the block.. And they do..

Kanyon was determined for his class at school to win the contest for the class wearing the most green. Every item he wore was mine.. I was shocked he agreed. His exact words were...

Me: "Kanyon you do realize you are going to school wearing your Mom's capris and sweater."
Kanyon: "Mom, I am not embarrassed. Last year the coolest kid in school painted his fingernails green; so I am not embarrassed."

Funny thing is is that Saul's class won and although he did have quite the outfit on he didn't stand out like Kanyon.

This is how he left for school..

We had green shamrock pancakes for breakfast and a dinner that consisted of only green items.

Funny Story

Eli was using my bathroom while I was sitting on the computer right outside the door. he was in there for a while and then I heard him laughing. Laughing hard. I hear the toilet flush and hear him washing his hands and he continues to laugh. He comes out and says:

Eli: " Mom, you know how it is St Patricks day, I just pooped and my poop is even green"
Me: (laughing) "Your pooped even dressed up"

We had a really good laugh. I guess that's whats happens when you eat too much green food coloring!

I think you people who are too cool to dress in green on St Patty's day, are missing out! Big time!

3 going on 13

2010-03-07T17:25:00.005-06:00

Ivy turned 3 last week. We had a small party for her with three friends. Ivy is such a sweet little thing until her bipolar disorder comes out. I had no idea that 3 year old's have 13yr old hormones running through them.. She was SO excited to have a Princess party until 15min before guests arrived and she only wanted to wear her swimming suit. I couldn't get it off of her. We finally compromised by her wearing her swimming suit under her dress.. Phew!

Ivy was Cinderella. (Thanks to Grandma Kat for the Dress and Grandma Leonard-Holt for the crown and wand) She thought she was pretty beautiful!

Disney

2010-03-02T21:28:00.017-06:00

That's right, the big man himself.

Ivy and Annie, born one week apart and hate that they live So far away from each other.
You would never guess that Ivy is the younger one..

Now Ivy's life is complete. The look on her face when she saw her favorite Princess Snow White was priceless.

Meeting Cinderella was a pretty big deal too.

"Seal Life" at Legoland

It was a pretty awesome Vacation! I decided that I loved the Tower Of Terror ride and hated California Screamin. Russ on the other hand hated Tower of Terror and loved California Screamin.. Go figure.. Ivy liked any ride she could sit in a car and drive. Kanyon loved ALL the rides and was a complete wild man. Saul and Eli liked the easy going rides. Saul did go on Space Mountain and loved it.

More Cali

2010-02-27T19:31:00.015-06:00

We visited the Newport Temple and Newport Beach. It was beautiful. We were able to meet up with a Cousin of mine and her kids who I haven't seen in many years. It was great to catch up.

Me and Stef

Why does Eli look like a Bodybuilder in this Picture??

Cali

2010-02-24T14:24:00.011-06:00

This will take a few posts.. We had such a fun time in CA. We went to Hollywood, Newport Beach, Disneyland, Legoland etc. The weather was fantastic. It was hard to fly home to snow.

This is me in front of the Hollywood sign. Although while we were there is was covered with the words "save the peak" Even after having it explained to us I still do not understand really why it was there. This was right next to Madonna's house. (one she used to own I think)

We saw a lot of famous looking people but no one really famous. Unless you want to count Russ swearing that he locked eyes with Natalie Portman driving past us... I am not counting it.

Disneyland here she comes..

2010-02-10T13:52:00.006-06:00

I mean, here WE come but, no one is more ready to meet Micky Mouse and all the Princess's than this Princess.

When you..

2010-02-05T10:22:00.011-06:00

When you are getting ready to put your house up for sale you must recruit some help.

Although after you have had your help clean every weekend they may revolt and decide to play and mess up everything you just worked hard to do..

And, one of the helpers may decide to teach another helper how to dance the Macaraina.

So that is when you put your foot down and send them outside in the snow with no coat on to teach them to keep the house clean and to only practice that annoying dance outside. Because freezing them will get the point across!

(you all know I tried to get this kid to put a coat on)

Not much but a little laugh

2010-01-25T13:51:00.002-06:00

I saw this and thought it was hilarious. Since nothing exciting has been happening in my life besides painting/cleaning and getting ready to try and sell this house I thought I would share the laugh.

What a Speller!

2010-01-12T15:40:00.005-06:00

Saul did NOT get his spelling skills from me. I actually yell for him every time I need help spelling a word. But today was his Schools Spelling Bee. We were so proud of him for being chosen to compete. It is actually quite an honor! There were 40 contestants out of over 300 in the 4th and 5th grade classes. They began by making sure us parents knew that "these were the top spellers in there school and each of them have won the spelling bees in their classes." It is even a bigger deal because Saul is the youngest 4th grader of them all. Saul made it to the top 8! (Also the only 4th grader left) He did AWESOME!! We are SO proud of him!

A lesson

2010-01-10T18:15:00.007-06:00

Well, I like to think that I have very well behaved and honest kids and then yesterday I caught two of my boys in a lie. These two are VERY tight with each other. What one does the other does. After catching them lying to me I told them that I was very sad that they made that choice and I wanted them to write me 2 paragraphs of why they shouldn't lie. I got this card from them about 10 minutes later..

My favorite part is in Sauls paragraph were he says that it "makes people not trust you that much when they find out if they ever find out. " That scares me a little. But hopefully they learned something.. Even if they just learned to be better at lying next time.

The Holiday..

2010-01-04T14:16:00.010-06:00

Christmas/New Years was filled with.. Roller Skating, Swimming, Movies, Painting (my Kitchen), Snowman making, Grandma & Grandpa, Eating, Games and the list goes on.. It was a great one! (But glad it is over and school is back in session..)

I think the Snowman was over 7ft tall. It was not easy to build. But fun.

EARLY Christmas Morning

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

2009-12-24T13:28:00.001-06:00

White Elephant

2009-12-23T15:20:00.002-06:00

The Young Women had a White Elephant gift exchange. Only rule was that the gift couldn't cost more than $5 bucks. This is what I got..

That's right a 5 Dollar Foot long. (Dance was not included) Classic. Love those girls!

All I want for Christmas is, this thing taken out of my mouth..

2009-12-19T17:45:00.005-06:00

Warning: Graphic picture below!

Kanyon has had this Cyst under his tongue for months now. Poor guy, I honestly don't know how he has been able to eat or talk with this. The Dr. told us he would need Surgery to get it out. Kanyon was such a trooper! Needles don't bother him and he was willing to let all the Doctors and Nurses do what they needed too without any trouble at all! The Nurses told us he was the "sweetest patient" they have ever had. The Surgery didn't go exactly as planned but they were able to get most of the cyst out. After he received a shot of Morphine where he had an allergic reaction. They fixed him up but next time he will not be receiving Morphine. He is home resting now and is slowly recovering.

Waiting for Surgery.
Kanyon of course chooses
to watch the news..

After it is over.
Heading home.
Kanyon just wants a bed!

Impressive

2009-12-06T14:33:00.006-06:00

This Saturday Russ had to be the Medical help at a Wheelchair Basketball game. We decided to take the kids because we thought it would be something great for them to see. I tell you what, it is pretty impressive at what these guys can do in a wheelchair! As we were sitting there Eli looked over at a guy in the audience watching the game (who was also in a wheelchair) and said "Mom look, a real guy in a wheelchair that really needs it" I said "Eli, all these guys playing really need the wheelchairs." and Eli said "WHAT?! I thought they were just doing it for fun!" So funny!

Another Impressive thing is that we actually got our Christmas lights up on our house. Not all of them but we are making progress. Maybe by Christmas Eve we will have the time to finish it..

So much for that...

2009-12-02T08:39:00.008-06:00

After listening to General Conference this past Oct. We thought that the idea President Monson mentioned in his talk "What have I done for someone today" read the talk here.
The idea of the Warm Fuzzy jar sounded like a great idea for our family. Every night at dinner we discus what warm fuzzies we have done that day, it can be saying a nice thing, helping someone out at school or home or just smiling at someone who you think might need it that day. Then we put the warm fuzzies in the jar.. Until last night. Our little Ivy took it off of the shelf and as I was cleaning up dinner I hear a crash. This is what I find.. Poor Ivy kept saying "sorry Mom", "sorry Mom", "Tape fix it", "make better". (not to mention I had just moped that floor 2 min earlier) We may just have to make a new one.. But this time I think I will get a plastic jar!

Traditions

2009-11-29T20:34:00.010-06:00

Every year since we have lived here we have gone to this awesome little Christmas Tree farm the Saturday after Thanksgiving to cut down our Christmas Tree. It seems that we are either traveling during the holidays or have Family visiting that it is hard to have our own Family traditions. This is one that we have been able to keep the few years we have been here. We are going to miss this little place!

After finding the "perfect" tree twice. (Other people thought it was the Perfect tree also and they were the ones that ended up taking them home) Russ was afraid I was going to fight one lady. I assured him that if she would just put down her saw I could totally take her. We ended up walking away and finding this little joy. I didn't have to fight anyone for it. The kids were not having fun anymore and just wanted me to pick one so they could go get more free hot coco.

Kanyon was our Lumber Jack this year.

They are thinking
"don't look at our tree
we cut it down fair and square, hurry Ivy sit on it!"

Santa even made a visit in the barn.

My Girl...

2009-11-20T10:05:00.006-06:00

There has been talk.. Talk that my blog is basically a "scrapbook of Ivy". So, maybe it is..

I took these yesterday spur of the moment. I can't resist. She is only this little once right?!

The Weekend

2009-11-10T19:12:00.011-06:00

It was such a beautiful weekend, instead of getting done the numerous things we have to get done around the house we went and hiked the "Devils Icebox". We went into the cave and had a great time. The boys saw a bat and that was the end of the cave for Eli. It has been so nice to have such nice weather.

For Sale

2009-11-05T15:08:00.003-06:00

No refunds or exchanges!

Haloween

2009-11-04T09:17:00.005-06:00

So, after Kanyon's incident the rest of Halloween went well. We had a great time at the ward party. Russ and I dressed up as the Swine Flu. (We were in a hurry and that was the best we could come up with) Ivy took to Trick or Treating like a pro. Elbowing out all of her competition on her way to the doors.

Old man, Kate Gossilin, Billy Mays, Napoleon &Deb, Workout duo, Swine Flu

Embarrassament!

2009-10-30T19:18:00.007-05:00

When you are in Fifth grade; and you Accidentally grab your First grade Brothers Costume thinking it was yours and realize it moments before you have to parade around your school is a Nightmare. Well, That happened to Kanyon today. Kanyon and Eli both have the same costume's but one is much smaller than the other. Kanyon was changing into his costume at school and realized when he couldn't fit his pants into it that something was VERY wrong. He didn't know what to do so he took his pants off squeezed himself into the costume and made the best of it. When I saw Eli parade by in a costume three times his size I knew what had happened. I ran to find Kanyon (laughing so hard I thought I was going to pee my pants) he was already parading in front of the whole school. I thought I should just take pictures to document this horrible moment in Fifth grade for him.

Here is when I noticed Eli was definitely wearing the wrong costume

Kanyon is hunched over because he can't stand up straight. Look at those ankles. Classic!

I wish you could experience it in its full glory like I did. Poor guy. His Teacher and I had a good laugh. He is still a little traumatized.

Family Time

2009-10-28T14:36:00.003-05:00

I made this desert for Family night the other night. It was a BUG hit. (Thanks Angela for the idea) They are just chocolate bowls with ice cream in them. The kids thought they were SO fun and SO easy to make. Then on too Pumpkin carving. Our house is pretty scary this year. I will take a picture of the outside and post it sometime.

New Camera/Grandma's Visit

2009-10-21T13:56:00.015-05:00

Most of you know that my beloved Camera was stolen from my car about a month ago. I have been very devastated about it until now. Our Home Owners Insurance replaced my camera and I LOVE it! I actually love it more than my last one. Here are a few pic's I have taken just trying it out and getting used to it. Also my Mom has been in town visiting. (Out of all the pictures I took I have zero of her, weird) Anyway, here are some pic's of our fun.

Corn Maze.

This is only after the first time Eli fell in the mud. He looked much worse by the end.

Amish Country

Random picture of the kids all huddled around the computer playing games.

Magic House

2009-10-13T12:14:00.002-05:00

We are trying to fit in all the stuff we haven't done in Missouri since we are moving next summer. The Magic house is one of the places we haven;t gone too yet. It was huge and exhausting and the kids didn't want to leave. The Adults couldn't get out of there fast enough.

Captian Underpants

2009-10-08T09:34:00.002-05:00

We have a sick sense of humor at our house. I think it has to do with all the boys running around in this place. I am now even finding fart jokes funny. Well, my boys love these books, Eli and I just finished this one and I laughed so hard through the whole thing. I couldn't wait for him and I to start reading it every night. If you have boys and have a distorted point of view about what is funny. You should go get these books. Hysterical!

Family Night

2009-10-05T20:25:00.004-05:00

Tonight during "family night" we discussed being prepared. Right as we sat down Russ yelled "fire drill" where we all jumped up ran outside to our family meeting spot the light post. After we were there we came back inside and talked for a bit about what to do in a fire etc then (getting the idea from the Friend magazine) we told the kids that they had two minutes to take whatever they thought they would need to be gone from the house for 72hrs. Maybe longer. After we all met in the car and drove out of the drive way we discussed what we all got. Here is the run down

Russ: Ivy and her shoes (thank goodness someone put her in the car we were all frantic)
72hr kits
keys to the car (Keys to the wrong car , luckily I had the right ones in my purse)

Jessica: Dried apples/peaches
Ivy's blanket
Diapers/wipes
Purse
Shoes

Kanyon: Blanket
Clean pair of socks
Clean pair of underwear (he has his priorities)
Shoes

Saul: Blanket
Huge box of Gold Fish crackers
Bakugan (If you don't know what these are you don't have boys)
No shoes

Eli: Blanket
Connect four game
No shoes

So if all else fails, Kanyon will have clean underwear and Saul and Eli will have a game to keep them occupied. I think we will try this again in a few weeks/months just to see if we can start to think about real survival.

Lake Powell 09

2009-09-20T14:25:00.009-05:00

No words, just pictures.

Fish Lake

2009-09-16T12:01:00.010-05:00

Fish Lake is probably our favorite trip of the year. Grandma Lu hooks us up with an amazing cabin and we stay up way too late laughing and playing games. The kids catch snakes, fish and play outside all day long. This year Eli got bit by a snake. I don't know if he will join in on the snake hunt next year. Beautiful weather and great company make for a fabulous Labor Day weekend. If only we didn't have to travel 20hrs to get there...

Saul Turned 9 while we were at Fish Lake.

Russ and his Brothers after a long early morning fishing trip.

Broken..

2009-09-03T11:05:00.003-05:00

Eli Broke his arm on Sunday. We were at a picnic at the park and Eli was on the top of the slide. As he started to go down he noticed a little tiny kid climbing up the slide at the bottom. Eli panicked in fear that he was going to hit the little kid and hurt him so he grabbed onto the side of the slide (not realizing how far up he was) and jumped off landing right on his wrist. After 5 1/2 hrs in the ER, Eli has a Buckle Fracture. He only needs to where the cast for 3 1/2 weeks. We got a water proof cast so on our trip to Lake Powell he could still swim. But we found out that he still can't get it in lake water.
Eli chose a Black cast. Not very exciting but they were out of Glow in the dark. He has been a trooper and if your going to brake your arm it might as well be doing something heroic.

The rest of the Trip

2009-09-02T09:42:00.008-05:00

I know this is a lot of pictures but I promise I did edit A LOT out.

This was probably my favorite place we visited in Hawaii. It was just a look out point on the road and we hiked down to the edge. It was Amazing!

We hiked to the top of the Diamond Head Crater - NOT a fun hike but totally worth it when you got to the top.

Pearl Harbor Memorial

A flea market where we spent way too much on overpriced souvenirs.

My second favorite place was this Botanical Garden we went too. Although we went after church and I wasen't expecting to hike around in new shoes. I got BAD blisters this day. I still am healing. No joke.

This is what it is all about for me.

We met up with some great friends we had in Medical School. They live in Hawaii now and are in the Army. It was fun to see them.

China Town. Crazy place.

This is what Russ's Mom got for Ivy from the trip. SO cute.

Eli & Saul Trying out the boogie board that we brought home.

Snorkeling and Pineapple Plantation Hawaii part 2

2009-08-30T20:15:00.010-05:00

Sharks Cove Snorkeling!
We didn't see a shark thank goodness!

That is the REAL bark.
Amazing!

Pineapple Ice cream!

Hawaii ~ Part 1

2009-08-28T11:16:00.013-05:00

I know it has taken a while. I feel like I can't catch up with everything. This will take a few posts but here is the first. These are not in any real order.

Russ's cute parents
came too.

Hiked to some falls

Bamboo Forest

This was when the Hurricane.. or, really the Tropical storm hit. Everyone was so worried and it turned out to be nothing. This is from the city bus window.
LOTS MORE TO COME!!

The begining of THE TRIP...

2009-08-25T18:59:00.010-05:00

Before I get to Hawaii I need to show the before. We had tons of fun with cousins before Russ and I headed out.

Hiking to Mt. Timp Cave

This is how we all felt...

I know, I know..

2009-08-24T13:58:00.002-05:00

I know I have been back for almost a week now and still don't have pictures or all the funny stories from our month long trip. Let me just say that there are about 400 amazing (if I do say so myself) pictures begging to be put into a montage; but my card reader is holding my pictures hostage.. I am beside myself about it. I took my card into a camera shop today and they are trying to recover them for me. I guess my card has been "corrupted". Of course it has; just because I went to Hawaii and took my camera everywhere and now I can't even look at my pics. Also today is the first day of school and I couldn't even get a picture of my boys... Even though it would look like every other picture they have because they refused to where their new clothes. Like it is not cool to have creases in your shirts. They don't want to look like they care what they look like. Anyway, I will hopefully get my pictures back tomorrow and show them off then.

Don't be too Jealous..

2009-07-21T15:42:00.001-05:00

We are off so spend a few weeks in Utah and 10 days in Hawaii. See you when we get back. Aloha!

What we do in the Summertime

2009-07-13T12:00:00.006-05:00

Saul and Eli have been going to Summer School. Kanyon decided he didn't want to go this year so us three have been finding activities to do.

Give it up for CEU!

2009-07-10T13:51:00.004-05:00

Just a shout out to my favorite College. (Well, the only college I went too) Met my Husband there, sluffed classes playing sipa all day, skipped work to hang out at the dorms, bleached Russ's hair for the first time. CEU was a definite party school. Best years of my life were spent there! Besides the years that followed of course. Russ and I both fantisize about how great those days were. These are good too but, those days were freedom. I have been waiting to put this on Ivy for yrs now and it finally fits. I was worried she might grow out of it before halloween so why not let her wear it anytime. Ahhh nastolgia...

I know she looks constipated in this picture. But she was dancing and doing a cheer. It just looks painful.

Just another day..

2009-07-08T10:49:00.003-05:00

You would think I would hide the markers by now. This happens everyday.