Oh my, how the time flies!

Nights at the ball park!

2011-06-15T15:39:00.000-07:00

Finally it quit raining and after 3 weeks of rainouts we have been playing ball. I love base ball it is by far my favorite sport to watch. Its simple and fun. There are no off sides, first down, etc, Just hitting the ball, running the bases, playing the field. Besides the occasional really bad call, its a rather calm fun game. Chayston team has lost only 1 game and won 6, so they are having a great season. Last night Chase pitched an inning after not pitching in a game for a year. He did a really good job! He loves baseball its his thing and the season goes way to fast.

So for any of you who know my Brady boy he is not a fan of clothes. At this game it was 80 degrees. He asked for permisson to take his shirt off. I said he could, nest thing I new he had taken off his shoes and socks. I quickly made sure he knew the shorts stay on. Anyways funny site my boy going for a ride only partly dressed. He makes me laugh. I have know idea how he will survive next year all day dressed at school.

This is a first, I was trying to take a picture of Chase he said, "knock it off mom people are watching" WHAT!!!!! Who cares your chase and you dont care what anyone thinks. Its official he is a teenager and I can embarass him just by asking for a smile in his baseball uniform! Let the fun begin!

There is my super cute husband. I love that dimple! He loves baseball and I love watching his face when Chaser is makin him proud. Makes for a fun night with the boys.

*only thing missing from these pictures is Ella torturing some poor puupy, adopting a new mom, while begging for someones pizza. And of course Charlee checkin out the cute boys!

Crazy busy or just tired!

2011-04-20T09:34:00.000-07:00

So its been a crazy few months since I posted last. There has been lots going on. Lots of weddings, sickness, babies, tiredness. This picture is of me and my girls. Just takin from a disposable at my cute cousins wedding. I cant believe how big my girls are getting.

So besides attending a lot of weddings lately. I also pretty much catered one. This is the 200 micky mouse chocolate dip sugar cookies across my counter. Thank you Brenda you were so helpful. I made mint julip from disneyland( not without more friends great advice, I love my friends) I set up ruan the tables and cleaned up, it all went great!!

We got us a new little nephew to cuddle, He is sooo cute. Amys sweet little baby Rylen melts my heart, If his sweet little eyes are open there is no resisting.

This sweet baby boy, my baby boy, turned 6. The time has gone quickly, I cant believe he goes to school all day next year. He is a great kid, he is kind and worries about others feelings. He has a little anxiety, which surprises me because he so layed back. He worries like if its pajama day and I drop him off he will run back to the car and want to go home and change. He had a great day, got spoiled. I love him lots.
There will be more pictures to come my computer is acting up now... Have a good day!

Ella Bella Surgery

2011-01-24T21:46:00.000-08:00

Ella Bella all dressed and having no clue whats about to go on, poor girl!

After surgery, She did not come off of the meds very well, 2 extra shots of morphine were required to settle her down.

This is what last week looked like, she layed around drinkin from her sippies, cuddled to her mama.

Luckily grandpa showed up and surprised me to help with my little posesssed angel. Seriously I could not have contained her myself. I was grateful he showed up.

Ella was fascinated by the anesthesiologist talking about his 3 legged dog!

Recovery, please ignore giant wrinkles on my fore head, stress is not making me look younger.

Drive home

I had to take a picture of that IV, she wanted to tear it out, with her hand, her teeth, whatever she could think of . She got a little crazy about it. She has been a trooper. I hope this helps her to not be chronically sick anymore. Its hard to be a mom. Its hard to watch your kids suffer. I have just wanted to cry watching her feel so uncomfortable. I understand why she needed the surgery, she does not really. Thats the hard part. She is on the mend now, each days a little better. Now to just get her to eat. My skinny little girl, I love her.

Rough Day, new do!!!

2011-01-10T18:45:00.000-08:00

Some days start off so nicely, 7 hours sleep, hang out, do a little laundry. Than an exhilarating 7 miles at seven, We giggle about the frost growing on our eyelashes, clothes and hair. Then I hope in my van with smile on my face drive 2 blocks home and then my teenager waves me down on her way to bus stop. Uhhhh Mom hurry home Ella cut her hair. My heart races calm down I am sure its not that bad, right. I came home to this about 6 inches chopped off, she wanted to look like her mama!!

She was all smiles as I cried and hyperventalated. She thought it was great!

So for Christmas I got a new do and a new kitchenaid. One gives me more work and the other does the work, we will see if you can guess which one.

She made it three minutes in the car after we finally got it fixed around 2. We were worn out from hiding under large hats all day while running errands.

There she is cute as ever little a-line bob. She looks adorable and loves it. One more head of hair for me to round brush. Good thing she is so cute. That was just the start of the day, I lost a 20 dollar bill, noticed brady lost half of one of his teeth while getting Charlee ready for her dentist appt. SHe has an infection so bad she has to see an oral surgeon to clean out some of the infection before root canal. It was one thing after another, really. I just want you to know I am always learning new lessons. Todays theme was If you think it cant get any worse, uh it CAN!! Even if you smile alot and have a really good attitude. Ok I admit it my attitude was not so great today. Looking forward to bed time and sweet dreams.

Catching up!!!

2010-12-16T08:25:00.000-08:00

So I have this weird problem, If the battery dies in my camera it is this overwhelming impossible task to charge, the camera might as well be broken. Its a simple task, I just struggle more than you know with it. Luckily for camera phones or I would have nothing. SO the last few months have been pretty stressful. Chayston has not been feeling well. He wakes up everymorning with a headache, nausea and stomach pain. We have had lots of blood work done numerous doctor appointments and still no answeres. In the meantime he missed over 30 days of school, so I had to withdraw him from his school and he now does eschool till we figure this out. The only other clue we have is that his eyesight has gotten significantly bad over the last few months. so tommorow he has an eye appt. and we are hoping they might have some answers for us. Keep him in your prayers for me!!

We have still managed to squeeze in some silly James fun!!

Also played with our baby Kaison, who is clearly now a big boy. He is so easy going. We just love when he comes to play. He just goes with the flow. Give this kid a ball and he is HAPPY!!

Raegan comes to play too!! Her and Brady were posing for a pic they wanted me to take for Santa. Brady is aware of his moms ever failing memory. He likes me to take pics of the things he really really really wants.It is not good enough to just say I will let him know. Smart boy. Once Santa see this picture and what two darling little angels the are, I am sure he will make that 5 dollar bakugan happen.

Decorated the house for christmas! It is still not quite right they rearrange it daily. Which means I have to rearrange again, lecture about not touching tree, repeat daily:) I love the feeling of the glow from the lighted tree it is calming and It makes me happy. They love it too.

We have enjoyed some snowy days, they love playing in it. I enjoy running in it. A nice morning with fresh snow is alot better than blue sky and no snow, COLD!!! 15 degrees this morning, but I still love to start my day with my morning run. Its my favorite way to start the day come snow, rain or clouds. I hope everyone is having happy holidays!!!

feelin stronger

2010-11-17T07:56:00.000-08:00

Sometimes this life wears me down, way down. I have had a rough little bit lately, I dont know if its since the hysterectomy or what. But few times a year I just feel overwhelmed and inadequate. Sometimes I feel like I should be a better mom, better wife, better friend, etc. I should be more organized and patient. I want to do better be better and this all leads to feeling more overwhelmed.
Then the other day as I sat in church and sang(or tried to sing) Count your blessings. I was comforted and grateful that as long as we are doing are best, thats what really matters. I know sometimes my best is not enough. But its all I got and stress and anxiety, never help anything.
Than I read this quote,

You get what you give! We'd all like a quick fix solution to our problems, an express lane to our goals. But if your looking for something meaningful, it calls for hard work and perservance. A halfway job will produce halfway results. Remember, you will only reap the benefits of whatever effort you exert in the first place. While its tempting to cut corners and be lazy. Remember down the road you are only cheating yourself and those cop-outs will become regrets. Draw from your inner strength to stay focused on your goals. A little more work today means a much better tomorrow.

It got me thinking alot, about my life, the gospel, fitness. Its going on my fridge for awhile. Its all totally worth it. Thank goodness at the end of every rough day, I can go to sleep and tomorrow is always a better day.

Brady, "Hey dad this looks like mom, If mom was a superhero this is the one she would be. lol. I will take it, if I could only see myself like brady does.

st george pics details below.

2010-10-04T13:01:00.000-07:00

The scorching hot St george Marathon!!

2010-10-03T21:39:00.000-07:00

So since I started this adventure, one of my biggest goals was to get to run the st george marathon. Well since thousands of other people have this goal its been difficult. It does not matter that I was born there, my mom and her family grew up there. That I spent almost every school break and summer there. That my behind has been burnt by I think as many metal seatbelts in that 110 degrees temp as any washington resident. Besides the fact that my grandma could have just signed up and I used her bib:) No I decided to be fair. I tried the lottery 2 years and luckily 3rd year is always a charm. Well I signed up the begining of april and I have been training the last 4 months. After a long fabulous 22.5 mile run a few weeks back I even drove to st. george to drive the course. But in life we all know there are things you cant prepare so instead we learn from them, we grow from them and thats how we become a better stronger person. So I gotta tell you all about it now.
So friday at 11 we headed to St george, nicki(one of my fabulous runnin buddies) We wanted to get there earlier so we could get to the expo, get our bib, have some dinner and get to bed early, so we could load the busses at 4am, Yes Not a type error 4 in the morning, they give away some super cool prizes, we thought we would give it a try with no luck.

So I set my alarm for 325, I was sound asleep dreaming away I dreamed that we slept in till like 11. woke up startled looked at my clock it was 319. So I hoped up, I had been battling a head cold so I thought I would shower to feel good, usually no shower before runs, Oh I had to shave to before I wore my new running shorts. So we hoped in the van headed over and loaded the school bus at 405. We arrived at the start line about 25 minutes later, it was amazing. In a small town off the side of the road, this huge set up. Tables of hot chocolate, coffee, gatorade, water, vaseline, bandaid, safety pins, tape, your a runner you need it they got it. Unless you forget to charge your Ipod and the low battery is flashing and you are going to cry, because you dont want to do this with out your music. I was having a heart attack really.
Anyways here goes the whole 26 of the marathon for me...
1- one strong mind, ready to do this determined
2- two strong legs, trained and strong.
3- three hours of my ipod playing me music, by some miracle
4- four gels, I brought my own my favorites!!
5-five hours of sleep night before race.
6-How many ambulance races runners to hospital(pysching me out a little)
7-seventh mile Veyo hill, there was a sign that said Leukemia sucks, veyo hill sucks they both can be conquered and it said some kids name that was running. Big tough one mile long hill, ( huh what hill:))
8-eight oclock that night, what time I was ready for bed.
9-nine pictures taken, along route, there are few I will admit it I am not smiling.
10- ten toes screaming, yup my toesies are not a fan after mile ten, they are pretty much done.
11- Eleven oclock in the morning I was all done and laying in the grass unable to move.
12- twelve is the number of times I thought I might just be crazy for doing this.
13-thirteen minutes in my ice bath, it felt good, really I liked it.
14-fourteen cups of gatorade I consumed along route.
15-family members there cheering me on, I just cant even tell you how amazing it is when you feel tired and not sure if you can do it to see them, It gives you that extra little push and it makes me cry alittle, I love em'
16- sixteen ounces of delicious recovery chocolate milk, We love winder dairy!
17-Seventeen weeks of training! Some good, some bad, but all of it neccessary.
18- Eighteen kids I gave 5's too, I'm a mom I see those kids cheering us on, waiting so patiently, yup I will run to the other side of the road to give em a five. I hope my kids got fives too...
19- nineteen cups of water(4 dumped directly on my hot head)
20-It was TWENTY degrees hotter than I wanted it to be, really.
21-Mile marker 21 I was feelin great, 5 miles to go(the loop) was all I had left.
22-Mile marker 22 you are coming into town, I know I am getting closer, I am approaching the crowds the sounds, I am almost done.
23- Mile marker 23, finally someone I recognize, I know I am a big baby, I cry. Run accross street give them five, uncle kyle and Shanna. It revives me a little I gotta look strong now.
24-Mile marker 24, I see a girl to guys carrying her, she is dilerious, shes fallen blood down her shorts. Starts to pysch me out more, its hot people are dropping its hot, i am tired, Can I really do this.
25- mile 25 A lady has a cup of big ice cubes from her fridge I take one its pure heaven, I suck on it, I rub it all over my face, I dream of my ice bath. I stop for water at the table. My legs are a little shaky.
26- mile 26 theres my family, I had been watching for them the whole time, there they were, I cry some more, I tell them its to hot and I dont like it. 84 degrees. TOOO HOT for me.
.2-Most the time I sprint in, one time I even carried Brady. Not this time, most people were walking. I told myself I had worked to hard, I was going to finish this, I reached way inside, I could not sprint, But I kept runnin clear up to that finish line. THey put a neat metal on me made out of native rock.
I just wanted to sit down, before I passed out and I wanted my shoes off and I wanted ice water. Not lukewarm water or gatorade. Really cold water and I did laid in the grass and felt like I might die. But you know what I did it. Not in my goal of 3:40 I was a little over 10 minutes over. But I didnt give up I worked through it all and Guess what else it may sound awful, But it wasnt it was AMAZING. I finish 1810 out of almost 6000 people and I am ready to do it again. Thank you everyone for all your love and support!!

Ella Bella's Birthday photo shoot!!!

2010-09-28T08:09:00.000-07:00

My super fabulous, talented, wonderful, strong, amazing friend Amy did a quick little photo shoot of Ella when she was all done up for her party. I dont mean to embarass her. But sometimes she forgets how great she is so I thought I would remind her, give her a little shout out. I love her photos they are really good, If anyone needs family pictures done or any photography, let me know I can give you her info. Ella was being a little difficult, 3 hours at the Er will do that to a person. But she captured some of Ella's faces that she pulls regularly. I love them, My Ella Bella makes me smile!!!

a new post

2010-09-02T21:23:00.000-07:00

Went back on my get fit blog, I have not been there in awhile. Wrote a post on my running if you want to check it out runninmommy.blogspot.com:)

My Brady Boy starts Kindergarten!

2010-09-01T09:51:00.000-07:00

Brady started kindergarten, he is in the afternoon class. He got chayston's teacher who I absolutly love and adore. He is a little unsure about going to school everyday. He would rather stay home with me. It makes me feel good that he wants to be with me. But it is time. His friend Kendrick is in his class. That made it way easier for him, took away all his nervousness.

Have you ever seen that epidsode of friends when they are trying to take chandlers picture. Uh well thats about how my photo shoots with brady go. seriously

I am pretty sure thats as close to a smile as it gets. I love this boy he is rough and tough, yet still tender. He is huge for his age. I took him to his school check up. He is in the 98th percentile for his height and weight. His body mass on paper looks like he would need to watch what he eats. But the doc says no worries he is a healthy, active kid. they gave him four shots, pricked his finger, he had to pee in a cup, check his blood pressure and one more thing wont go into detail just glad I am not a boy!! He was pretty much traumatized. But he was brave. He is growing up and as I listened to his teacher test him, I was surprised how much he knows. When the doctor asked him to write his name he said he was not in the mood for all five letters, but he would do 4 for her. She said that would make you Brad. He giggled finally gave in and wrote all 5. I love my Brady boy and I am very proud of him.

My Baby is 3!

2010-08-30T09:41:00.000-07:00

Yesterday my Baby girl turned 3. I cant believe it how has it been 3 years already. I think back to the day she was born. We knew Ella Bella would be our last. So we decided to have a huge surprise and not find out the gender. Let me rephrase myself nick decided this and made me go along against my will:) But I will tell you it really was super fabulous. So the whole pregnancy we knew it would be Ella Victoria if she was a girl, Ella after nicks grandma and Victoria after his mom. We never really could come up with a boy name we both loved. I wanted to name him miles, I was a few weeks pregnant with Ella when I ran my first marathon and I did not know it. But nick did not like that. We must of just know we would not need a boy name. After a scary experience with my epidural during Brady. I decided to go ALL Natural. It was really a great experience, I am so happy I did it even if it was my last one. My labor was quick and easy, except for the last 10 minutes, The nurse squeezed face and told me to climb back down the bed and push a couple more pushes and I would be done. When Ella came out she had the cutest little drama queen baby cry I had ever heard and the doctor said This is one pretty baby boy! I was thrilled deep down I really really wanted another girl and she was all mine. It was fabulous With in 20 minutes of having her I felt great I could have cleaned my house. It takes along time for my epidurals to wear off. So it was so great to be done and feeling fabulous. She was beautiful and we were so happy to have her, Back to her 3rd Birthday.

Yaya dropped off a bunch of balloons the night before. She woke up to balloons, her favorite thing. I was tired from working late and staying up grocery shopping, preparing food. I did not want to get out of bed. But when I heard her walking down the hall singing happy birthday to Me! I figured I better get up and celebrate with her!!

I love this little girl. She is a sweety. She has limits and she does not get pushed around anymore. The kids call her avatar Ella. She gets mad and growls and they know the have crossed the line. She makes me smile, she is stubborn, I look forward to quiet afternoons with Ella this year. We have not had much quiet alone time in her life. She entered my Chaos and just goes with the flow. She is a good little caboose to my other children.

Well if anyone knows much about my life lately. My mom says the song if it were not for bad luck I would not have any luck at all, reminds her of me. In all the birthday excitement. Ella fell off a bar stool and hit the back of her head on tile, hard. Immediately you could tell she was not feeling well. We watched her a bit and then when she started to throw up I went to instacare. Well they sent me straight to ER, UGH. We spent 3 and a half hours at the hospital, no fun. When the girl put the hospital bracelet on her, she said thank you, she thought it was a gift. With a 300 dollar copay can you imagine the bracelet I could have bought her. Everything was ok, they did a scan her brain and skull were fine. They did discover some severe sinitus, bad sinus infection we did not know she had. So with some anitbiotics she will be good to go.

She had a great day this is her in her birthday princess Jammies. It only took 10 minutes to convince her to put them on , she thought they were baby pajamas.

She got her new Dora Bike and was done at the hospital in time for a family party and plenty of time to celebrate her. We love you ELLA Bella and are so happy you are ours!!

first day, #2

2010-08-25T22:40:00.000-07:00

So today Char started her first day of school. I cannot believe she is in 8th grade and next year is high school. How, How I just dont understand. She was very excited, we did our usual fashion show so every
one could vote on her outfit. She is a beautiful, fabulous young women who I am very proud of.
List of 8 things I love about her for my 8th grader:

1- I love how she says it like it is, sometimes she hurts my feelings or others. Opposite of her mother who sugar coats it. I love that she speaks her mind and reminds us of what acceptable.
2- She is stubborn. Let me tell you there are times I dont love this trait, but I hope she continues to refuse to budge when it comes to her goals.
3-I love her creativity, she is always making little village out of rocks or buttons. A home for Ellas zhu zhu pet. SHe is very creative I love that.
4- She is strict, she is my best helper with the littles when she is in the mood. When I got back from my trip to Texas the kids were calling her mama char. She does not let them bend the mood, she is always reminding them of consequences for there actions. I know I should work on that.
5- She is such a great student she almost had straight A's last year, all on her own, she rarely asks for help.
6- She is very compassionate for those around her. She is a good friend.
7- I love that she keeps me in check. She is constantly helping remind me of all that is going on in our busy schedule. If there is ever anything really important I let her know and she makes sure I remember.
8- She also is a great leader, she makes me proud, she is organized and strong.
Teenagers are alittle tougher than I thought they would be. Dont get me wrong, I have some pretty great kids. I just always thought I could be the cool mom and understand them and that they would always look at me like I was great. They dont! They get frustrated with me. I learned alot in my life and I am not very old. I may not be the most experience mom. But it was not to long ago I was a teenager and I made some not so great choices. I just have to find the balance. Nick and I worry alot and want the best for them. She did great she came home with a big smile and I have a big smile thinking about what a great girl she is.....

How could I really have two kids in middle school?

2010-08-24T22:26:00.000-07:00

So this was my sixth grader last year. This was my son before he became a teenager, a slight pain in my behind, major tension in my shoulder and ache in my head. Dont get me wrong look at that smile its contagious and it all worth it!! So Today Chase started 7th grade. We missed camp dixon so he just went this morning with not really a clue around the school. Maybe a few his sister had gave him:) He loved, He had a great day. Chaser recently started football, tackle, 2 hour practice a day kind. He is a little worn out and he eats at least two meals at dinner time. SO combine that with school and he should be worn out nightly. I thought I would say 7 things I love about Chase today.
1- Its really a no brainer, I love his smile, he is funny and he makes me laugh.
2- I love that he loves to sing and dance, he has no shame singing Taylor swift at the top of his lungs.
3- He is easy going, he doesnt get nervous or stressed very often, he is one cool guy.
4- He is humble, I have not bought this kid shoes since last year, he doesn't care, he doesn't complain.
5-I love that he is a leader, he isnt afraid to stand up for people.
6- I love how athletic he is, I love that even though I cant get him to focus on most things most days, Put a uniform on that kid and he will work hard.
7- He is one smart boy, he has been reading above grade level for a long time now and when they give him a few paragrahs to read, to see how many words in a minute. He always finishes the whole thing. Its all him, I am not a scholar, I did not know how to teach him. SO he read and taught himself.
I am grateful for Chase in our family. He helps me out alot, He already has lots of homemaking skills. Though I wish he would not tease his siblings as much as he does. What would we do with out him......

Holy cow, 14 years!!!

2010-06-01T22:19:00.000-07:00

14 Years ago these 2 crazy kids got married. With the odds stacked against them, very little money, a black VW Bug and a white plymoth laser. They started there life in a cute little 2 bedroom attic apartment. It was so small that it didnt have a bathroom door. The door was a shower curtain and no bathtub. 2 babies came quickly, One baby girl and one baby boy, that brightened there world. But it was stressful they both worked full time and did whatever it took to take care of each other and those 2 kids counting on them. Though at time they both just wanted to go home to there own moms. They struggled and recognized that there trials made them stronger. They noticed each others weakness and at times wanted to quit, but they were committed to there family. Just as they knew how much heavenly father love them and knew them personally. The adversary also knew them and he knew there weakness even better. But through time and through what men at times refer to as nagging. These two overcame there weaknesses. They were sealed to each other and the two beautiful children that brightened there world. Than they were blessed with two more one boy and one girl. 14 years later they enjoy breakfast at village inn cuddled in a booth. Because he has to go to work late that night 4 pm until 4 am. Though its not a fancy dinner, they are together and thats all that matters. Her hair is messy and she is in sweats with no makeup. He still looks young as ever ball cap and jeans. Those two crazy kids with the odds stacked against them beat the odds and sit in that booth grateful that they did not give up when times got tough. Grateful that they found each other and though at times they still make each other crazy, they are still committed.

My thoughts of my mom

2010-05-24T11:57:00.000-07:00

So a few months back my mom had a little bit of a breast cancer scare. The night I found out, I could not sleep. I stayed up writing down my thoughts of my mom. I was scared something would happen to her. She had a very powerful blessing that we believe healed her that night and nothing else came of it. I was thinking of my post for my moms birthday and thought i would copy these thoughts down. So my mom would know what she means to me!!

My thoughts

Tonight has been a rough night for me. Tonight my mom called to tell me the mammogram she had done, came back with something to concern the docs. She didn’t have many details. But let me know they would be doing more testing. She was so cute she kept it to herself because she didn’t want us to worry. She called during the one show I watch each week and I was in the middle of dinner. Once she told me none of that other stuff mattered. She said I will let you get back to your show. I said I am not worried about my show. I wanted her to tell me she was just teasing me like usual. Her voice shook as she told me, I don’t recall the last time I heard my mom talk that I could hear how scared she was.. She apalogized for being so quiet lately, I teased her that I just thought she didn’t like me anymore. I love my mom more than words can say. I have admired her my whole life. I have always been so proud to call her my mother. Her confession of illness left my heart heavy, I think I cried the rest of the night, worrying….

Than the thoughts of me and my moms joke for as long as I can remember, that she was preparing funeral material, when ever she did something silly. Like stop in the middle of a run to pick up a penny or carry a newspaper the whole way. Because it was extra, she declared always that she was only giving me funeral material.

My mom is amazing she strong, you will never meet another person who is as humble as my mom. As I get older I remind others a lot of my mom. To me I take this as a absolute compliment. MY mom has been a server for a lot of years. It may have been in a restaurant, but it should be enough service to get her into heaven. Just kidding. She had this amazing talent of giving each of her customers a total experience, She would approach the table, introduce herself, ask how they were doing and when the question was returned she would say, Just happy to be here!!! They always smiled. Even though little did they know she had her own problems her own worries, her own bad days. But when you were there and in her section she was happy to see you and happy to take care of you. She took a lot of pride in her work and so often when us kids were asked, Where did you get such a great work ethic. We would reply from our mom. We grew up watching her work hard, She worked hard at work and then worked hard at home. Mom had an amazing talent of making something out of nothing. I swear you would look in the fridge look in the cupboard and there was nothing. Dinner time would come and it was a feast. She always made wonderful homemade meals made from scratch. My whole childhood I remember her in the kitchen working so hard to make us nice meals. She suffered she suffered bad from SUPERWOMAN syndrome. Its an actual syndrome I looked it up , Always doing good. That simple three-word motto could be used as an advertising slogan for many women. Do you ever feel as though you’re always doing good—always fixing a meal, or cleaning a house, or volunteering on a committee, or listening to a friend, or washing or organizing or scrubbing?

There are many ways to be a do-gooder. Most of us have filled at least one of these roles.

Superwoman. She can balance housekeeping, motherhood, and a busy career without batting a perfectly made-up eyelash. She’s juggling so many tasks in the air that you wonder what will happen when they all come crashing down.

Selfless Saint. She has given up her life in the service of another—perhaps an ailing parent, a disabled child, a dysfunctional husband, a demanding boss. She seems to have no life of her own—no time to care for her own needs, no hobbies or interests of her own. When you ask her how she’s doing, she smiles a sad little smile and says, “Oh, I mustn’t complain.”

Busybody. Often a stay-at-home homemaker or a retired woman, she pours her hours and energy into serving the church, running the food bank, helping the less fortunate. She can be a little bossy and officious Of these three types of do-gooders—and there are many others—the woman described in Acts 9 seems to at times, but nobody has the heart to tell her that, because everyone relies on the work she does.

She did it all when I married nick her had to teach me how to do laundry. Because mom never let us touch the Washer and Dryer. You never can really appreciate it till you enter the real world. When I married Nick alls I wanted to do is go back to my mom. No offence nick and I probably would of If she would of let me. She was so amazingly supportive to me. She was the one person I could talk to about my problems and know that at one point she wouldn’t use that info against me or would she judge. She was always there for me. Sometimes I think I called her ten times a day and I probably would have called her more if I didn’t think dad would kick my butt. I was so blessed to spend the mornings with my mom. She was my mornings, brady’s too. From the time he was in my belly listening to us jabber for an hour. Than we would enjoy a nice fiber breakfast. We started out walking , than I started running a little , than I started running a little and than after a lot of convincing mom started running a little. She said she couldn’t run, she refused to even try. But once she started she fell in love.. She ran close 3-4 miles a day pretty faithfully. I loved those times together. Than Brady was born and he went through rain, sunshine, snow and whatever else the weather dished out. Most years we only missed 2 days due to too much snow. We were fully commited. Later on the babies outnumbered us and slowly quit going together. It was a bummer because she was my morning. My mom was so humble she rarely bought herself anything. Her wish list for bdays and stuff consisted of dish towels, bathroom rugs, sheets, one black , one white shirt. Not because they couldn’t afford to buy these things. She was the only woman I knew that truly hated shopping. She would rather save the money or pay a bill. She loved paying bill s too. I know weird. She loved to make her little list with boxes to the side of each bill to be filled in when payed. Mom was very responsible and never took her commitments lightly. She hated when us kids didn’t follow thru with our obligations. Sometimes we would catch her taking care of one of there obligations because it would make her to crazy to know that. She was strong she rarely complained. She would say take a Tylenol or Crosby up!! She loved animals Horses, dogs, cats, rooster , duck, goat . she always had an adventureous pack. They were good company to them. Nothing like seeing mom out drinking some cocoa with her pet duck on her lap… Mom always amazed me. She was my strength when I felt week, She boosted me up when I was low and always asked me how I wanted my crow. When I was wrong. By the way she liked her medium rare. Never complained about eatin it and always humbly announced that will be medium rare for me, To my mom, my best friend, my hero. You are going to beat this if it something that’s going to try and take you down. You are strong and your adventure is not done yet. Your smiles are needed daily and your love we all need it. She is like our families light house in the storms. She is always going to be there standing strongly and shining so brightly. Guiding us to be where we need to be together. To the best mom in the world I love you tons!!!!

Happy Birthday Mom!!

2010-05-24T10:58:00.000-07:00

This is late, I know you are not suprised, I am often late. My mom celebrated her 51st birthday on saturday, lookin fabulous as ever. We surprised her in the mornin with pedicures. It was her very first and I think she enjoyed it. We love our mom so much and we are grateful for all her sacrifices and not only beng a great mom. But always being a best friend, love you mom. Hope your day was Great!!!!

Brady boy is 5!!!

2010-04-14T05:49:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to my Brady I cannot believe he is 5. He is so full of life and his energy is endless. He makes me laugh and smile daily. As he talked to his aunt amy it was early they were both giggling. He stops and ask her what she is laughing at, he is just a kid! He is silly and though he can pick on the little girls more than anyone. He can also be gentle and help them and protect them. He gave Chayston a black eye the other day. Chase looks at me and ask, "mom I need a story of how this happened, I wont exactly look cool at school saying a 4 year old beat me up!" He loves me, he loves me so much, he never wants to get married and leave me. I say," just wait" My heart swells a little as I talk of him. I was so blessed to have him. I had went 7 years with no babies. Though we were not trying, we also were not preventing. As I went through the temple 5 years ago. I still remember the comfort the lord gave me as I sat thru my initatories. He told me that day not to worry, they were coming. Little did I know that day, he was already in my tummy. He has blessed our lives. He challenges me regularly and he is worth every minute of it. Love you Brady Boy! Happy Happy Birthday!

update

2010-04-02T07:44:00.000-07:00

I got an early birthday present yesterday. All of Ella's test came back good. Yea. She has healthy kidneys and that makes me one happy mama!!!

Ella update

2010-03-26T16:36:00.000-07:00

My Ella bella is doing well. The full work up came back from the lab and it is abnormal. SO we will be headed up Primary Childrens Hospital on wednesday. THey will be running some tests on her kidneys. I appreciate everyones love and concern and I will keep you posted.

What are we up to.

2010-03-24T15:50:00.000-07:00

This is my cute nephew Kaison. Oh I love him He makes me smile every time I see him. He is crawling now and very mobile. He has lots of exploring to do.

Raegan still insists that she does not need a nap but She does. This is what it looks like on Brady's preschool days when we have nap time later. Exhausted!!

Exhausted #2. Ella has had a rough month. She started it off with some ear problems. They lasted for about 3 weeks. We went to see the specialists, she will be getting her tonsils out on april 20th. 5 days ago she came down with the adno virus. I hope I am saying that right. It caused inflamation in the muscles in her legs. You could feel giant spasm going through her legs. Than to finish off the fun week of no sleep, unhappy child. SHe was up all night with 102 fever belly hurt the whole works and as much as I wanted to take her to the emergency room. I held out and waited for the doc to open this morning. She now has a Urinary tract infection. We are waitin on results to find out if we have to go to primary childrens hospital for and ultrasound on her kidneys. They are concerned with the high levels in her urine that it might be something more. So a shot of antibiotics in the leg. Plus 10 more days. Pray for my little girl. SHe needs your prayers and sunshine, lots and lots of sunshine.....

Than there is this pleasant sight. The james house is becoming a little quieter. Chayston has always been a drawer, he loves reading and writing. My Brady Man he love being rowdy. He is noisy and hyper. But as he nears 5 he sits quietly more often. He recently has started drawing he loves it he sits with his brothers drawing all kinds of things. Which brings us to the next Picture.

For those of you who dont think there are enough pictures of me on my blog. This is my most recent. Brady drew it of me. I love it. I wish I saw myself like he sees me. I mean look at that picture, it looks like I dont have a care in the world.

Half-Marathon Training Plan for Beginners

2010-03-21T14:00:00.000-07:00

For those who did not see it on facebook. This looks pretty fun. Half-Marathon Training Plan for Beginners

Being our best!

2010-02-17T07:54:00.000-08:00

Today I have been looking at some blogs, both of people who seem perfect and happy and also of people who are going through tremendous trials. Its got me thinking, I know maybe a bad idea. Why is it so hard to be our best, seriously. When it comes to spiritual, physical and emotional choices. Why is it so hard sometimes. To me alot of my goals and alot of the things I need to do to make my life better. They are so basic, when I write them on paper its like, Oh I can so do that. But in the day to day, its HARD. Daily I have every intention to get up early, enjoy some quietness read my scriptures, pray and start my day off right. But then the alarm goes of my bed is so comfortable and I will get up in a few minutes. Next thing I know a small little girl yells, MOM, MOM,MOM and I am off to a bad start. Not that going in a cuddling my baby girl is bad, its actually fabulous. But the quiet is gone and the kids are up and the day is in full swing. Physically and for my health, there are lots of choices I make. Should I have a chocolate donut or two with my morning diet coke. Should I go for a run or workout. Or is there two much to get done. Its not just about my weight. Its about being healthy and I will tell you what I am not a naturally healthy person. It requires hard work for me. If I made my daily choices by what I want to eat and what I want to do. I just might weigh 300 pounds. I love fitness I really do, I love working out. I just get tired some days and if I can just accomplish all my tasks, its usually enough to pass out by 9 pm, sometimes 9 am. But you got to admit when you get up and workout you feel good, you feel strong. ALot better than when you sleep in and feel guilty about not starting your day off like you planned. I recently quit my job. I needed too besides having some issues. I need to be with my family, my kids need me right now. Nick is working 50+ hours. He is exhausted by the end of his day. Its so nice to be home, taking care of everyone. But still I never sit, when I do I cant, theres always so much to be done. Dont get me wrong I love every minute of it. I love my family, I love my life, I love serving those around me, I love being me! I just wish I was better at being my best and that there was 2 extra hours in my day:) Thank you for all those who inspire me to be alittle better....

One cool dentist.

2010-02-05T10:53:00.000-08:00

Do you remember the days when you were a kid and the dentist was an old guy and he was not very nice and defiantly scary to you. Not my dentist he is one cool guy, he is young and he has all the coolest latest technology. Dr Hamilton in provo if anyone needs a dentist, he is your man. Anyone who knows Brady, knows that the odds of him sitting still for the dentists are slim. Nick thought maybe I should call ahead and get some kind of sedative, because there was no way he would do it. well he sat in the chair was a big boy. Than they put those headsets in and we showed him the movie on the ceiling. They did xrays...

He just watched the show occasionally opening is mouth just in case someone needed him to.

They poked around his mouth and I will be honest he was done and I just let him sit there and I relaxed and few extra minutes. The dentist even joked with me that I could run some errands and come back for him later.

It was truly amazing!

So The bad news is he has 5 cavities, one tooth needs what is comparable to a root canal on a baby tooth. I have the prescription for valum and we will give him some gas. I hope he can do it and it goes as well as our last visit!

2010-01-13T08:00:00.000-08:00

Christmas morning santa was good to us. She is a little tired too.

Ella Bella giving her new soccer ball a stroller ride.

She started off really slow. Slowly and carefully opening each gift. Half way in she looks up at me with a huge grin, I LIKE THIS. SHe says and then she helped open all of mine.

Brady new pedal go cart. I am sure he will enjoy it come spring!

Now I dont want you to think we dont love our two older children. The reason I have not been posting is my digital camera broke. My new camera came with a small card. THe rest of christmas are on that card and it is currently missing. AHHH. sometimes I cant win. Charlee got a new long board. Chayston got a new bike and I will post those when I find that card. We had a Very merry christmas and a wonderful 4 hour nap for me.

Christmas 2009

2010-01-13T07:47:00.000-08:00

I had a lot going on this year. I just had a hard time getting the energy to decorate or prepare for christmas. So 10 days before christmas it was time.

I dont know how to flip the picture sorry. I was grateful the tree was only up for a short time this year. Ella liked to take all the balls and candy canes off and organize them in piles. 3 balls got broke. She just would not leave it alone little stinker.

It sure makes it feel a lot more like christmas when you decorate. I got much more in the christmas spirit when the house was lit up:)

Naked Boy!!

2009-12-20T22:03:00.000-08:00

I know what you are thinking a little late for halloween post. Brady is quite the character. He hates clothes, he changes at least 2 times a day. To be quite honest most the time you can find him running around in his under
wear or something much like the attire he has on in this picture. He makes me laugh everything he wears, he wears proudly. Never shy or embarrased of his getup. When he is only in his underwear , he refers to himself as naked boy! Lets just hope he outgrows this one by kindergarten!

2009-11-21T21:51:00.000-08:00

Yea Brady's first day of preschool. Everyone was excited.

Look how big he is, Ella has her back pack on too.

Had to put this one in here, love this baby! He is so adorable. I am so happy I am his auntie Tara. I love our cheek time:)

First day of preschool

2009-09-10T09:03:00.000-07:00

Brady started preschool on tuesday and he absolutely loves IT!!! He was so excited all morning and it was torture waiting for 1230 to roll around. I had to work so I missed, i know bad mom. Thank goodness for my fabulous sisters. They save me on a regular basis and I am so so grateful. Amy stayed with the little girls. While YaYa drove him to school. THey were 15 minutes early, I know that would have never happened if I was driving. No one was there yet not even the teacher, The teacher came and he was the first kid there so he got first picks at which seat he wanted. That made him feel special. They painted in paint clothes. He painted a self portrait. Traced his hand and wrote his stats, 49 pounds and 46 inches. He is the tallest kid to attend his preschool, by 3 inches. He is only four. He is a big boy. I asked him about his day and he was so excited about everything. He said, "mom there is 4 boys and 4 girls, they are all nice and my friends. Except for the blue guy he is mean" Translated the little boy wearing blue tshirt. He is starting mature alot and does so good at church also. Hopefully this will help him even more at learning to be a big boy! I will post some pics when I get them:)

TImpanogas Cave

2009-09-05T13:18:00.000-07:00

For Ella's birthday we hiked up to Timpanogas Cave! I love it there. I wish it didn't take so long to get there I would like to hike up and down that once a week. It is a workout. We got seperated from part of our group so I stayed behind. Once I found the lost party, we only had 30 minutes to get to the top. Its pretty insane. I felt like I was going good, good pace I was thinking I have to almost be half way. Then I noticed the little marker telling me I was 1/4 of the way. I did do it in a bout 25 minutes and I was walking as fast as could before it was considered running. Thank goodness for my long legs. I found the rest of my group and we were there on time.

There is my mom and nick(ella on shoulders) just a short way before cave. They dont let you take the little ones in, in backpacks!

Brady man was such a tough guy. He did it all by himself and did not complain a bit. I was so proud of him.

finished with the cave. You gotta sign the book so they know you were there.

The birthday girl in the cave. She wanted to be on her own, but you got to watch them close with all those rocks everywhere. They want to climb and lean on them.AHHH

There is Amy and baby kaison. He is 2 months old now. He was a very good boy. Not many kids can say that they went to timp that young. We were happy they could come.

Here is my mom in the cave. looking fabulous as ever. We were so happy grandma came on our little adventure.

Charlee in the cave. She hiked down with 3 backpacks gave my shoulders a rest. No I am not a mean mom she wanted too. She is always watchin out for me.

There is a tired daddy and one pooped birthday girl. She slept the whole way down and on the drive home. Power napping to finish her birthday festivities:)

All done, what a fun hike and the cave is so cool. I love things like that because it reminds you of the beauty all around you. Its crazy all the beautiful places we have close by and we dont take the oppurtunity to explore. I hope to take time, more often to enjoy the beauty all around us!

My Ella Bella is TWO!

2009-08-30T08:36:00.000-07:00

So saturday the 29th was Ella"s birthday. She was so cute in the morning when she woke up. I was not home so I called her. I sang her Happy Birthday and she sang along. We took her to breakfast and Her aunt Amy, brought her balloons, lei and tiara. She was such a cute little birthday princess. I love her so much. She is my last so I have just wanted to keep her a baby forever, No such luck! She is growing and its fun to watch. Each day she gets more and more dependant. She even is going potty some of the time. She will just tell us she needs to go, we take her in and sure enough. I am not scared of the terrible two's with this little sweetie. Not saying things could not change at any moment. But she has been my sanity, She is so quiet and so good. Sometimes when it is chaos all around her, I will watch her and she will just play quiet or just sit back and observe. Not that she doesnt have her moments. But in general she has been my little angel. I have felt so blessed to have her in my life! I cant wait to watch her to continue to grow and learn. I love you Ella Bella!

Almost Back!

2009-08-22T21:45:00.000-07:00

So I know this isnt the best picture! I probably get alot more joy out of the sweat on my neck than you do. I just have to say that I am so grateful to those people who got me through these last 6 weeks. I decided that having the hysterectomy was not as hard on me physically, as what it was like for me mentally. I am a goer, I am always on the go, running, cleaning, doing things for others, yard work, baking, you name it I probably do it. To take it easy for 6 weeks, not lifting anything over 5 pounds is tough. Especially my Ella, oh how I missed picking up my baby doll. But it was hard to not be able to clean my house or just take care of simple tasks and errands. I had to rely on other people, Asking people for help is not my specialty. My two older kids, Charlee most of all carried the weight of my responsiblities and it is no easy Job. I am so thankful for them sacrificing their summer fun to take care of me. The doctors and nurses make it sound so easy. Just veg out the rest the summer, watch movies and relax. Oh it just sounds so much easier than it is. Anyways my point is I am starting to feel like myself again and it feels so good. I can be left alone to care for my littles, I can lift things heavier than a gallon of milk, I can drive my car and get me a diet coke whenever I feel like it. I have been released back in to my life to all regular activities. I will tell you one thing, it makes me so grateful for my strength, even if it is a little weaker than usual. I am grateful to be able to take care of my self. After having Charlee drive me around in a wheelchair one time a t Target. I realized how blessed I am for some of that little stuff I sometimes take for granted. I have developed a greater empathy for people who are handicap and rely on others always. I guess I am just alot more happy just being me. I ran 2 miles again and though it is one 13th of a marathon. I feel like I just finished a big marathon. I know what your thinking, whats next? We will just have to wait and find out:)

Back to school!

2009-08-19T08:50:00.001-07:00

So I cant believe the summer is gone. I am sitting her left alone to care for my littles. I am going to be just fine. The house is quiet noone is fighting and just little footsteps up and down the hall. Charlee started junior high, today can you believe it. She is so excited not worried or anything just totally prepared. She might be feeling a little different right at this moment. Running from class to class, trying to get that dang locker to open and so many kids. Ha Ha the memories. I know she will do great.

Chase is the big guy on campus six grade. His teacher was his math teacher last year. I have to admit I am a little scared of her. It might be a rough year from him, but you know chase he will keep smiling. Anyways I am ready for a day with my two littles and cant wait to hear about the kids day.

Catching up !!!!

2009-08-07T07:19:00.000-07:00

We were all very excited to welcome my new nephew Kaison!He is almost six weeks so I am way behind on this post. sorry. He is adorable and me and the kids fell instantly in love. Ella loves when amy sends me pics on the phone. She wants to look at them all day long.

Look at that baby he was so long and thin!! Amy did a great job. I was so proud of my little sister.

Charlee and her turn.

Chase and his turn. Chase may be tough but he has no problem just loving this baby. I like to watch him hold him because he is so calm, unlike chase and he just watches that baby boy almost in amazement.

This trip to the hospital was bittersweet for me. I was feeled with absolute joy for my sister and to have this beautiful baby in our lives. Then there was that baby hunger that hits you when you see a newborn. As I walked out of the hospital, 10 days before my hysterectomy, knowing I would never, for sure never do that again. I felt sad. Than I looked up ahead of me at my big kids and the littles. I felt blessed, way blessed and all was well!

Happy fourth of July!!

2009-07-06T21:49:00.000-07:00

Ella loved the parade. She waved she clapped she danced. It was way adorable.

All you parents of toddlers. Notice the cute monkey attached to ella's back with a tail that is a leash. This is a great investment. Its a cute stuffed animal they love while at the same time allowing them a few feet of freedom. But you dont have to worry about losing them in 3 seconds flat. I love it. I own 3 for each of my toddlers in my life. Some people walk there dogs, I can walk my toddlers. Just kidding ya.

Arghh look at these cute pirates. Brady and his cute cousin sterling!!

Look at us in our sweet parade spot. We arrived to the parade 15 minutes late. Nick looked across the street and noticed the concrete guard rail that was almost empty. Thanks to the nice guy we didnt know that was kind enough to strattle his feet so me and stephanie could have a seat and the extremely nice officer who came by every little bit to remind us we could not be sitting or standing in street only on guardrail. It was a great spot lots of shade.

We had a great time at parade and most of all the kids loved it. Thats what we do that stuff for anyways. Thank you to my wonderful brother Jesse who is a soldier in the army. Everytime I see a flag I think of him and all the wonderful people who defend the freedom we all enjoy!

family reunion

2009-06-30T15:42:00.000-07:00

THis is the last night of our family reunion. Yes we are all dirty and had alot of fun. Do you ever look at pictures of your family and just think wow look how big everyone is getting. My little family is growing up. I love spending time with my family camping, when there is no distraction and no where to be it the best. Grandma did so much so we could have a fun family reunion at otter creek thank you grandma!!!

MOM turned "50" surprise!!

2009-06-16T08:38:00.000-07:00

I love my mom. I am so lucky to have a young fabulous mom. She is really one of my best friends. I dont know how I would survive without her. For her 50th birthday we through her a surprise party. She is so much fun and put a smile on everyones faces around her, occasionally a woo hoo too.

Me and my sisters. We put the party together for my mom.

My fabulous mom, we thought she was on to us and then when she showed up in her running clothes, very little make up, ponytail and a smile we knew we had pulled it off!

The pavillion where we had her party. At first we thought we were going to get eaten alive by mosquitos than we realized they really liked the homemade rootbeer and moved it away from the party. They moved away also.

It was so fun all of her family was in town for my little brothers wedding. So they all got to be there to celebrate her. We love you mom, Your the BEST!!

randoms!!

2009-06-05T22:13:00.000-07:00

Chayston what a kid. I told my grandma that she always gets her moneys worth with the christmas jammies she buys him. Uhhh I am thinking these are the ones he got when he was 5. Ha ha it makes me laugh. Because he loves them. I know your probably thinking that I should put them away when I change sizes or maybe seasons. But he is so content he never complains. Honestly two years ago I had to hide his super man pajamas. Because they were so little, but I kept putting them away and he would find them. He is a great boy. He wears whatever he is not picky. I am grateful for my easy going boy!!

Ella and Brady playing in a tupperware box. Ella is not much of a toy girl. She prefers to play with little empty plastic jars, anything with a lid she can take off and on. She is funny that way. Brady pushed her around in her box for awhile. He loves Ella most the time.

Just chillin in her box with her jammies and dont forget her shoes. She is obsesses with shoes. She usually has a pair on and two pair close by.

We did it again!!!

2009-05-18T07:33:00.000-07:00

Saturday May 16th we ran the ogden marathon! Oh wow that is an amazing one. The views and scenery are amazing! When we started running up ogden canyon it was 28 degrees and when we finished it was about 80. IT was a beautiful day.

There is Kami all finished up!! Doesnt she look great you would never guess she just ran 26.2 miles.

There is me the last block runnin in I think you can tell I just ran 26.2 miles.

Almost to the finish line. Finishing time 4 hours 10 minutes. I took 20 minutes of my time. WOO HOO!!!

There is Kami finishing up. We worked so hard it all payed off. Thank you everyone for there love and support!! I couldnt do it without you(thank you Kami you are the greatest one ever)

Worth getting up for!!!!

2009-04-16T16:48:00.000-07:00

Look at the view, who would expect to see this view in mid april. I know I want the sunshine just as much as you. But you got to admit that is an awesome view. Let the adventure begin:

Kami and I had a six mile run this morning at 7. We knew it would be cold and snowy. But it was a bit of an obstacle course. Snow covered trees that occasionally dump on you.

Dont forget your Running Buddy. Yesterday morning it was raining like crazy, we had to run ten miles in it. So we ran 5 miles, ran home changed into dry clothes and ran the next 5 miles. Long wet run, soaked all the way through. Me and Kami still did it. It feels the best when you are all finished. By the way this cute girl ROCKS!!! She is so tough. She is always doing her best and never complaining. She always inspires me to do better. She is so supportive and fun! She is mine though, so dont even try to take her. Thank you so much Kami for being the best and for putting up with me!

Throw in some large trees. Most you can leap over, these ones we had to walk around so we could climb over.

Some of the trail clear, other parts inches of snow. Look only one other person out enjoying this!So I am sorry you missed out on this beautiful morning. I wanted to share. thank goodness for camera phones. I look forward to many more adventures!

Weekend in St. george

2009-03-09T22:09:00.000-07:00

gas $40, Hotel $60, Burger $1.59.
Not being able to stay awake 1 minute to eat your In and Out
Burger....... Priceless

Happy!!

2009-02-07T23:58:00.000-08:00

Just wanted to update everyone. After we lost all those pictures and important stuff. We shut the computer down until we decided what to do. Well a great friend Dave was able to help out lots and give us an idea of what might work and than a great friend michelle found a referral through her network. Well we took the whole computer to a guy in american fork who thought he might be able to help out. At 50 dollars an hour we thought it was way worth it. Well he finally got to it today. After a prank message that he had no luck. He called backed to let us know he had recovered ALL OUR PICTURES. Yeah!! After lots of stress and tears. We are back in business and saving all of our photos to CD. It took him about 4 hours and he gave us a great deal. I am one happy girl!

SAD

2009-02-01T09:00:00.000-08:00

Yesterday something went wrong with our computer and all of my pictures I save from my digital were lost. I am extremely grateful for my blog this morning. I am grateful that some of my favorite pictures that otherwise would be lost, are saved. I am still heartbroken of the loss. Most of Ella's life is saved on computer. When brady was a baby I was still saving them to disks. I have some of my favorites on digital. Anyways my point is make sure you are saving your pictures in other ways than the computer, disk etc. Also if you find any pics of Ella when she was a baby please forward them to me it would it be so, so appreciated. Thank you

Sharing

2009-01-22T07:37:00.000-08:00

Have you ever noticed toddlers are pretty similiar to the family dog. Anytime some one is eating, all the sudden they have a little one begging or a best friend. Either way its dang cute. I caught him sharing with her. I was trying to be sneaky anout the camera so the pics aren't the best.

Dont you worry she had the same cereal in her bowl, it just wasnt as appetizing as Brady's and he still got plenty!

Preschool

2009-01-14T16:18:00.000-08:00

I am looking for a preschool for Brady. If I could I would like it be semi-close and affordable. Idf anyone has a great suggestion i would so appreciate it. Thank you

Oh yeah dont forget CHRISTMAS!!!

2009-01-10T11:49:00.000-08:00

With all that has been going on I forgot my christmas post... SO here it is. This is one tired saint Nick, Mrs. claus gave him his cute new hat. FYI assemble dresser in advance so you are not up past 3. Check got it for next time.

Chayston got his long board. Although Santa was having a hard time finding his name on the good boy list. He trusts in a promise of a better year.

Brady helping Ella open her gifts, she was new to this. He was so kind he helped her open each of her gifts, before he opened his own. We didnt even ask him to do that. He was just watching out for his little sis. It was pretty precious!!

Charlee and her new dresser. Santa was very good to this good girl. Charlee recently read the detergent bottle and the lid of the washer and learned how to do wash. She does laundry, I LOVE THIS KID!!! WhenI was in texas, the day I came home she wanted to surprise me and did all there laundry for the week. SHe washed, dryed, folded and put away. I came home to an empty laundry basket. That was the best gift the holidays could bring!

Cute little picture of daddy and the littles not wanting to get up christmas morning even though presents were waiting.. This mommy is ready for along winters nap. I am grateful for the holidays and all they remind me of. I am grateful for memories made in 2008. I am most grateful to have made it home from my trip safely. 2009 is going to be a great year I think. I am going to slow down a little and enjoy, SERIOUSLY. I know you dont believe me, if you really know me, but I am going to try!

A quick trip to Texas!!

2009-01-03T13:06:00.000-08:00

My brother Jesse that is a soldier in the army got married in Texas on January 31st. It was a beautiful quiet ceremony, with only close family. Her name is Atir and she is very sweet we are happy to have her in our family. She has an amazing voice, she sang her vows it was beautiful..

These are my new nieces, they are so sweet, they are the ages 2 and 4. they are adorable!! Ella loved playing with them. we wish we lived closer so we could play with them more often.

Your looking at four generations here. This was our traveling party. Me, Ella, my mom, my grandmas and my sister Amy. We had a good time together.

It was a lot of fun to spend some time with Ella. But the problem is when you are a fourth child, you are quiet, independant and patient. When you spend four days with your mom all to yourself you are loud, needy and you want it NOW!!! We are adjusting to being home and getting back in the routine of being easy going.. Her newest thing is she yells her own name at the top of her lungs when she wants something, the problem is ELLA, ELLA, Ella does not always translate to I am hungry, tired, thirsty or want to play with that toy very quickly..

She really is a sweet heart. She was an angel while we flew and she did really good considering how much time she had to sit still. You can tell that all that travel wore her out!

2008-12-28T11:57:00.000-08:00

We hope everyone had a very Merry christmas and we wish you a happy new year!!

Ella Adventures

2008-12-03T21:46:00.000-08:00

So I was getting ready for work the other day, runnin behind like usual. I started me a nice warm shower. Ran to the laundry room to get a towel. Ran back to bathroom and this is what I found. She must have been waiting for me to leave the room. She hopped right in fully dressed, Backed into the water and was enjoying a nice warm shower. Little stinker, I couldn't even get mad at her because she was so relaxed and seriously look at that face. She is an adventure!!

Daddy painted her fingernails and I put a little ring on cute little hands. I couldn't get a picture to work though.

Last of all this weekend while we were in st. george in our hotel room. Ella fell in love with her self. She would run over to the mirror smile give her self a big kiss and run away. This entertained her for a long time. The maid was probably not entertain when she got to clean the mirror and a 100+ kiss marks. I cant blame her I want to kiss that little Ella bella's face everytime I look at it, too.

I Love vegetables! WHaT!!!

2008-11-14T08:26:00.000-08:00

Last Night we went to the Gingerbread Festival. Oh my goodness some people are creative!

This is Brady standing next to the BEST OF SHOW. It was huge and tons of details. Nick said now that he knows that he will have to step up his game now that he knows the competition..
The James family TA DA. Oh look yeah thats me I am actually in a picture for once.
The James gingerbread tree house. Nick created this I was the assistant. We used pretzel rods to do the tree trunk and branches. The dog house is made out of candy legos. It was a lot of fun. We donated it to the Boy scouts of America. So it was fun to do it for charity. I would really suggest it for anyone next year a fun family project for a good cause. It is up at Thanksgiving point, this weekend lots of activity and fun for family or couples or anyone....f
Ella Bella loves veggies not kidding. She will take veggies over anything any day. Last night I noticed her organizing the veggies, see the pile of green beans and broccili. She is a funny girl.

Different night same shirt I noticed, still just lovin the veggies. It may be a silly thing to post about, I think its great!!

Catchin up!!

2008-11-12T04:43:00.000-08:00

Here is the few pics I got on Halloween, I forget the camera alot and when I dont forget my hands are to full. We had a blast and we are so excited for the holidays!

A current picture of Nick. He was complaining that I dont have any current pictures of him. We had a great time on his birthday. He blew out all the candles and was not even phased by the trick ones I put in there.

Happy Birthday to Nick!!!

2008-10-31T12:03:00.000-07:00

So I know his b-day is not till tomorrow. But the rest of my day is busy and So will my day be tomorrow. Its really sad a few people pointed out that there is not many pics of Nick on my blog, so I wanted to do a post just about Nick.(pics included) I am so lucky to have Nick as a husband and the father to my children. He is such a great guy he is fun and adventurous, caring and way thoughtful. He comes up with the best gifts and i am not very creative when it comes to gift giving. He is such a hard worker and takes so much pride in the things he does. I can always count on him and he will drop whatever he is doing for someone in need. He is also a good looker and I love his dimples. People always say did you know your husband looks like Matt Damon? Here's to you babe!!

Pumpkins, pumpkins where did you come from!

2008-10-28T15:10:00.000-07:00

So last night I had to work I left at 530 and worked till 930. I made dinner before I left and left the fam to hang out. I called Nick at 830 to see how he was doing, He said he was good and that they were just hangin out nothing much. So I come home and on the counter there is all these pumpkins decorated cute. I think where did they come from. Well than I take some cute pics and go to download them and the mystery is unraveled. I have such a great husband. He took the kids to pumpkin land, picked out pumpkins. Then the kids said they went to like 3 different stores looking for the paint he wanted. They decorated and painted them. Sooooo cute, he is such a good dad and I am so grateful for him. He loves spending time with his kids and I love that his mom loved creating memories, he gets that from her and I love it... anyways I cant give you many details, because I was at work...

babies!!

2008-10-24T12:37:00.000-07:00

Brady likes to sit on my lap and look at the blogs of all our friends with me. He looks up at me and say "mommy how do people get babies in their stomaches" I say, "Why heavenly father sends them to us". OK. Oh I love these days when answers were so easily answered. Oh not for my big kids. I get two full hours of maturation with them next week. AHHHH. Oh the birds and the bees. Wish me luck...

A whole new adventure!

2008-10-22T10:40:00.000-07:00

So Ella has discovered she is the perfect size, she fits in all of Brady's toys. She first discovered on sunday that she fit in his dump truck. She took turns grunting at each of us till we would take her for a spin around the house. She just sits in it patiently waiting for the next push. Than on monday she found Brady's toy wagon she got in the Raegan and Brady gave her dollies and a book. They took turns pulling her around the house. Once again being 2 and 3 they would get easily distracted. Ella would just sit in the wagon quietly reading, until someone would remember she was there and take her for another ride. She cracks me up, she is so little and petite, but she is so grown up for her age. She is plays so quietly and hardly ever puts up a fuss. I am so grateful for her and how sweet she is. I love her and so grateful for my little angel!!

Picture tag!!

2008-10-17T23:05:00.000-07:00

So I have seen a lot of these picture tags so I got curious to what mine was. Here it is . Little Brady. I am not sure what he is doing, he is a about the age Ella is now. So sweet before he learned how to slam doors and tell me he hates me. Toddlers are tough. If anyone has any advice on how to get my 3 year old to quit being mean, please, please let me know.

Princess in Training. oh NO

2008-10-13T11:00:00.000-07:00

Let the fun begin. Ok dont get me wrong I love it.. So something interesting happened on Saturday. Charlee realized that Ella is fun! She realized she has her very own real live baby doll and she loves it!! That she can have fun with her minus the moaning and groaning. So we were just hangin out and charlee says, "hey mom can I go out to the garage and get Ella that cute little table that use to be in my room, "sure". Can I give her some of my Baby dolls and little toy crib. "Sure" Next she says we are going to play. Next thing I know Ella comes wandering down the hall in a tutu, with 3 necklaces and her hair with a little band, No tiaras were available. Heres my concern girls figure out how to be princessed and girly all on there own. Ella has expert to guide her in every direction. She even taught her in one day how to get up on that little stool and change the radio station. She would say ella change the music and she would hurry over get up on the stool and change the station. Ha Ha mom. Big trouble for me. She is such a little dolly and Charlee is such a great girl, you gotta love them!! Charkee was 110 percent girl when she was a toddler and I loved it I bought her tiny ring and tiny jewelry, tiaras what ever her heart desired and No princess Ella will take over the thrown. Since CHarlee is Queen and I am servant. LOL

2008-10-06T07:50:00.000-07:00

I was thinkin about fall and how much I love. I was glancing back at some pics from last October thinkin. I cant believe how much these two have changed. Brady is pretty much potty trained and does everything on his own, He dresses himself and you know it UNDRESSES himself all day. He is so smart and I watch the things he does in amazement some days. Ella is so big she walks and runs everywhere she goes now. She is starting to add words to her vocabulary all random. SHe says HI, horse, ella, uh oh and many others. She is growing fast, with a determination to keep up with the others.In fact he is yelling at her right now for turning the tv off with remote. Got to go have a good day.

Fat lip or is it a bad botox job, who knows?

2008-10-02T07:40:00.000-07:00

This one is for you Kami! So I was running along the Provo river trail yesterday and it was not even 7 yet so it wasn't very light. When a large bug of sort flew into my face, my lip. I couldn't see what it was it just hit into my lip made a loud buzz as it stung me. I swatted it off and continued running. It was throbbing and felt fat right away. Finally I stopped for a minute so Kami could take a look.yup FAT LIP. It is pretty big this morning the pic doesnt really do it justice... The moral of story is watch out for flying bugs in the dark,

2008-10-01T10:07:00.001-07:00

You Are Mulan!

Strong and spirited. You're no one's girly girl; actually you are very determined person with a strong sense of self. Never let go of that! The only thing that equals your sense of self is your family, but the traditions of society can always be bent to protect something or someone you love.

Which Disney Princess Are You?

All Natural!

2008-09-30T20:54:00.000-07:00

So I love the littles all done up, cute clothes, cute little bow in Ella' hair. But I love them all natural, ya know just woke up in the morning, messy hair. Just something about mornings and no fuss that I love...Than we bathe get ready and love them so much too.

One of the best sounds in the world!!

2008-09-26T07:47:00.000-07:00

Last night while I was sleeping, I heard the little pitter pat of a little one running down the hall. Than it went quiet and then the toilet flushed.Yeah!!! He is finally doing it. I am still putting him to bed in a diaper. He tore that diaper off and went potty. Than he went back to bed, yes you guessed it no bottoms and didnt have an accident. I am Sooooooo excited. I cant wait till he is all potty trained.

Betty Crocker, not yet!

2008-09-25T22:53:00.000-07:00

So I have been learning how to make cinnamon rolls, I got a recipe and taught myself. They are alot of work but really yummy. I love cooking I just dont always have the time or energy for it. But when I put my mind to it, its starting to turn out good. Below is a picture of the goodies I made for youth conference. I was in charge of cookies. You know me I cant just do one kind I need variety. I took a picture of my snickerdoodles, sugar cookies and pumpkin chocolate chip. I just thought it was funny it looked like I could open a bakery with just a few more goodies. Anyways any yummy recipes you have, send my way, thanks Tara

My little Cowboy!!

2008-09-24T12:47:00.000-07:00

So we have been doin some pretty serious potty trainin. I am thankful for moments like this that remind me what a cute sweet boy he is so I dont scream. The other day he came out of his room dressed like this. He did his costume all by himself. We were giggling and had to grab the camera as he wandered back down the hall. He makes me smile everyday and I love him so much potty or no potty....

Little Buddies

2008-09-20T19:57:00.001-07:00

Nick came into the kitchen on saturday night and said,"Tara go look at your kids" I hurried down the hall and found this. The two little ones sitting up to Brady's little table playin away. I am so glad they get along(most the time). Brady still gets a little frustrated with his little sis getting in all his stuff. She is growin so quickly. She totally walks all the time, all over the house. He liked it before when he could keep things out of her reach. little cuties!

Happy Birthday Dear Charlee!!

2008-09-19T12:39:00.000-07:00

Today Charlee is 12, I cant believe it. Below is a picture from last year. I am trying to figure how she could have changed so much over the last year and how there can be such a big difference between 11 and 12. Well I am so grateful for my charlee bear. She keeps me in line. 12 years ago at 10:45 a.m. SHe entered my life, she was this beautiful tiny baby, with tons of thick black hair. I was only 18 and thought I knew what I was about to get myself into. I remember the moment so perfect so clear when they set her in my arms. I was overcome with the most amazing purest love I had ever felt. I had no idea I could love someone that I just met so much. She was perfect. THe dr. said she was 99.9 percent perfect. She had a birthmark on her right eyelid till she was about 6 months and then it disappeared. She started sleeping thru the night at 2 weeks. 9 to 9. She was my babydoll and then she turned into this adorable little toddler. She was 100 percent girly girl. She wore these little rings for years till they got to tight. Once she got new rings she figured out that they come off I dont think she knew. She has been such a blessing to my life. She has made me want to be a better person since the moment we met. Cheers to you Charlee girl, my pretty young woman.

Say Hi to your new Pta President!

2008-09-12T20:49:00.000-07:00

So I was looking through some pictures looking for a picture where I looked like a PTA President.I could not find one. So I put a picture of me at Ella's party. I usually take the pictures, so I am not in many of them. I know what your thinking all kinds of people are PTA Presidents. But I imagine this well put together,organized, soft spoken, did I say organized ok I will say it again. I guess what I am getting at is I was floored me when the principal called to ask me if I would do this. I am the president Elect this year and the president next year.When I talked to one of my great friends about some of my shortcomings that I wasnt sure I could do this. She kindly let me know I have a whole year to prepare myself. That was good advice. I feel really good about this. I love kids and I love school. I love kids to get a great education and I love for them to have a great time doing it. I do not know of all the detail of my upcoming job. I do know that it has helped me to get some things in perspective and it has made me want to work on my short comings and be a better mom. I am so grateful for the great support system I have, that I know will help me along the way...thank you

She did it again!!

2008-09-09T19:38:00.000-07:00

So Charlee was up to the challenge again and she decided she would drag her best friend Cassidy along. They did it again. I dont want to seem like I am bragging. I am just so proud of them. I find it great motivation to me that they dont give up!
I couldn't help but giggle at all the work we all put into getting fit and heres my little Ella wandering around without a shirt on. I thought wow you got to love that little chubby belly hangin over her pants. If we could only love ourselves more for the way we are...

Go Charlee Go!!!

2008-09-08T19:52:00.000-07:00

I would like to do a little shout out to my Charlee bear. She has been wanting to run a 5k so bad and I just have not know if she could do it. Last summer running 2 miles was like a form of torture. This year her running has improved a ton. Well today she announced she would like to run 4 miles today. So we compromised and decide we would run 3 miles. Well we drove our course to the lake and back I showed her where the 2 mile mark would be so we could for sure get in her 2 miles. Off we went and guess what she did it!!! I am so proud of her. She pretty much is ready for the school 5 k coming. THe only time she cried is when I told her we should run one more block. She is so emotional right now so it doesnt take much. Way to go Char.

2008-09-05T14:52:00.001-07:00

2008-09-05T14:49:00.001-07:00

Long Days!!

2008-09-03T19:04:00.000-07:00

Some days are so long and tiring. Ya just feel like you could fall asleep sitting up. Thats the great thing about kids they DO!!! Drool and all it doesnt really matter where they are at or whats going on if they are tired they fall asleep in the middle of whatever they are doing. Brady is playing with playdo at the end of his day, next thing we know sound asleep.. lol so cute

On Ella's first birthday Eve!

2008-08-28T19:54:00.000-07:00

Today's post is dedicated to Ella. She turns one tomorrow, I know I cant believe it either. Yes I know time flies. Notice the sparkle in her ears, she got her ears pierced yesterday, she was so funny kissing this duck at my grandparents house. She was fascinated by him.

One year ago this was me. Headed to the hospital, Yeah. Time to have a baby.... I did everything the old fashioned way. We didnt find out what sex the baby was at the ultrasound. No epidural and it was an amazing surprise. I wouldn't have done it any other way.

Here she is My grand finale I like to call her. She is such a great completion to my little family.

Raegan felt like a little baby clear till Ella was born. Its fun to think soon they will be the same age and in the same grade and everything. Hopefully they will great friends.

So I attached some of my favorite Ella pics over this last year. She has been so much fun and such a great blessing. It has gone so quickly, I just want her to stay my baby a little longer.

Her Blessing dress, she is so pretty in her first white dress!!

Sleeping, I love to just watch them sleep, they are so peaceful.

Look at Me in my Jumperoo!

Her first time eating. By the way Ella loves to eat. ALot.. Everytime anyone has food by her they better be sharin or they are in big trouble. I wonder where she gets that from??

Happy Happy birthday to my sweetest Ella Bella!!

She is soooo cool!!

2008-08-24T18:19:00.000-07:00

My Ella Bella has just not been herself lately. Sure enough I took her to the doc and she has an ear infection. We are three days into antibiotic so hopefully she is all better. Only 7 more days to go. Seriously who can remember to take meds twice a day for 10 days. I know it doesnt sound that hard it just is.

Anyways she got these silly little glasses from the prize bucket. She was rather fascinated by them, so we did a little photo shoot. She kept them on for a while, I was surprised!

Peeking!

Back to school photo shoot.

2008-08-18T14:37:00.000-07:00

Okay so maybe I am partial, but those are two good looking kids, I can't believe how big they are getting. I cried when I dropped them off because I realize that next year char goes to junior high and chase is right behind her. They are great kids, I am very lucky.

The ever famous red door pose. 5 years in a row. They are such good sports!!

This is Chase and what he calls his MAG! One strap is cool, so we found him this messenger bag at my favorite place. He will let you know its not a man purse and he is so confident about it.

One more month and she is in young womens with me, CRAZY!!! She is turning into such a young woman, she is so responsible and sweet. Everyone pray for me that she stays this way as we approach the teenage years.

Ella Bella is not feelin so good today. Not her usual smiley self, poor girl. I love my girls. Almost 11 years between them. I hope they are still great friends..

Brady wants to go to school, clear till I tell him he needs to be potty-trained then he says,"Nevermind" Yesterday I asked him if he did something on purpose. He said "Yes purpose is my best friend" He keeps me laughin all day long.

There they are the whole gang. They look so much alike. except for that Ella. SHe has a look of her own. I know you can still tell she belongs to the James's!!

Get out of the dog food!!!

2008-08-17T12:13:00.000-07:00

So no matter how many toys I buy. The little ones just want to play in the dog dishes. It just fascinates them. She eats a little dog food, spills the water all over her self and the floor.

Look at that look, she knows better. Glaring at me, little stinker.

Ok go ahead I warned you dont eat the dog dish. This has been my daily battle since Raegan was a baby. I thought I had her trained and now she is rebelling. Its ok we will figure it out. Just another daily battle, I fight. Good thing she is so CUTE!!!

Dont you just love haircts!!!

2008-08-07T22:14:00.000-07:00

Brady and Charlee got new haircuts today. Nick always goes to Dollar cuts, I am not a fan.

But they did a good job. Charlee chopped her hair off. We were growing it back, by we I mean me. I was lookin at her school pics last year. Her hair was so long and beautiful. So I told her I wanted her to grow it back. She did for two months and now its back to how she wants it. THe score is Charlee 1 mom 0. Ha HA I know one day I will be in charge, just you wait.

I love Brady's haircut I was especially pleased. He was such a big boy. He held still the whole time.

Looked at that cute face. Trouble.. Doesn't he look like he is up to something. No way never.

Danger!!

2008-08-06T21:19:00.000-07:00

Ha Ha in this picture Ella looks naked, I assure you she is diapered. Is that a word, I am not sure. So Brady and Ella have started to play more together. Which is cute and fun to watch. But always a but. I can not leave the room for long or run a diaper to outside trash. He like to put her up on the couch. Which she actually will just dive off of. This particular day. He put her in a storage bin on the table. I know. I seriously ran to the bathroom. I was so quick. Came back to this. I sure hope this sweet baby can survive her big tough brother...

Recap!!

2008-08-04T14:37:00.000-07:00

So I have had a few concerned ward members on the little performance Charlee did. Just to clear things up. It was activity day girls talent show. It was in my ward, But not the entire ward.

Sweet Moments

2008-07-30T14:36:00.000-07:00

The other morning I went for a jog. I woke Charlee up to keep an eye on the kids. Well I got home and the house was quiet. I started to panick My little escape artist was not in his bed. As I went to get Charlee, I found this. It was one of those moments where you realize how precious your kids really are. He had woke up and since he couldn't find me. He found the next best thing. His big sis, she always great for a cuddle.

Its a hard knocks life for me!!

2008-07-28T20:08:00.000-07:00

Charlee and her best friend Cassidy Clegg. Sang a couple songs at the ward talent show. Of course they picked annie's Its a hard knocks life for us. They both are the oldest with 3 younger siblings. They did such a good job they acted out the skit, just like the movie. I dont reccomend this song playing over and over in your house. It is a permanently stuck in my head I still find myself singing it at least twice a day. She is growin up.

We are the champions

2008-07-18T07:24:00.000-07:00

Way to go Rockies!!! Second place in State is not bad at all. The boys played so hard and they had fun. Now the Baseball season is over we have to figure out what we are going to do with our time. Oh yeah silly soccer mom. Two weeks off and than soccer starts for all 3 kids. Nevermind.

Take me out to the ball park!

2008-07-17T07:49:00.000-07:00

No time to blog lately! We have been living at the ball park. It Is the State Tounament. Luckily its at fort utah 2 minutes from our house, all the other teams are travelin lots of miles. You see the boys havin a little after celebration. The first day they had 2 games, first game we won 9-6 and the second game we won 22-3. wow the boys did great!

This is Chayston workin hard. He is the first baseman. Its his first year on first base, last year he was catcher. He is doin so good, his catching and throwin so much better. He loves it.

There is dad with a big smile. He has been a proud dad the past few days. Chayston has been batting really well. He has been batting some doubles and everyone wants to know what we have been doin with him to do so well. Nick spent a couple nights at the ballpark practicing, but honestly we think its just starting to click for him and he has been workin so hard.

You know Chayston he's got lots of big smiles. One game I was a little late and all the parents were giving me a hard time about missin a great hit and two seconds later he yells from the dug out. Hey mom where ya been, you missed my hit. Everyone started laughing, there goes my mother of the year award again!

There's mom and Ella. Say Peas not cheez. She has been such a great baby. I put her in the baby bjourn and she just hangs out, so patient. pretty cute too..

There is Raegan. Her cheer is "go boys' SHe yells that everyonce in awhile. She wants to play not watch the game. But she has been good to. One game everyone was at work and it was just me my kids and Raegan everyone there thinks I am crazy, not crazy just out numbered. lol

Update second day we won the first game 7-6. It was the hardest game yet. They were tough the game was pretty intense. We pulled through by one hit at the last minute.phew. Second game we won 15-9. So today we play at 4 if we win this game. we play for first or second at 6. If we lose we play for 3 or fourth at 6:15. So its another day at the ballpark. I am very proud of Chase and his team. Its fun to watch them improve and do so well.. I will up date you tommorow.

Potty Time

2008-07-06T17:48:00.000-07:00

So this Sunday afternoon we sent Brady into bathroom to Poop! Get in there and poop or else type of things. Nick came and got me and said Go look at Brady! This is what I found. lol.
So This is not done with any help I promise. He turned his underwear into a hat and was reading the scriptures. I dont know if he has listened to us talk about reading the scriptures when you are going thru hard time or he knew the holy scriptures were the only thing that could help at that time. OK I know its neither, He wanted a book to read. But it was dang funny. Have a good afternoon.

Introducing Bubbleman

2008-07-03T10:27:00.000-07:00

Look at Brady man having a blast in the bathtub. He said" watch out I am bubble man, I will shoot you with my bubbles. pshoo pshoo." I wasn't too scared.

So I have been talking to the kids about responsibility lately. They have a tendency to rush to get things done, instead of paying attention to details. Today I asked Charlee to start a bath for the littles, I walked into the bathroom and this is what I found. Where's Raegan you might ask, We are still looking. Just kidding. The water is not to deep its mainly bubbles. So Bubble man bathed alone and the little girls bathed in the other bathtub. Run by guess who yes ME!

Sunny Days!!

2008-06-27T13:18:00.001-07:00

Wow the days have been hot lately. I love these little cheap pools. The kids have a blast!!

Even Ella thought she might give it a try. My least favorite part is the grass. It never ends I sweep it I wash it and there is still more. Great way to cool off. Fun to sit and watch too.

Look at this cute little baby doll. Who said you cant look cute on a buck! I bought her this little tank top and skirt at the dollar store. One buck each, I dont shop there for clothes I was getting the kids some entertainment and then saw this on the shelf. Anyways I love a bargain!!

2008-06-09T15:50:00.000-07:00

So while at Nick's brothers house for a blessing we decided to take a family pic. Everyone knows how much fun it is to get everyone to smile at once. So the plan goes everyone look at the camera and smile and then we will see if we can get the little ones attention and maybe a smile. Well out of the four pics taken. This was the best one and see if you can notice who's not looking at the camera, yep you guessed it MOM!!! Ha ha, at least we tried.

Lucky Charm

2008-06-07T15:01:00.001-07:00

I am not sure I have seen anyone enjoy Lucky charms like Ella does. She is so funny with the marshmallows sticking to her face and she doesnt even realize the best part is not in her mouth.

In the picture above besides my messy kitchen. You will notice all the freezer strawberry jam. Chayston was my happy little helper. He mashed, stirred, cored until he was not having fun anymore. He said it was fun at first. We made 16 containers of freezer jam and 20 jars of regular jam. It was my first time and I just followed the directions and hope it tastes yummy.

You will also notice Chayston's mohawk. This was my valuable lesson of the month and let it be a lesson to all you other mom's. Chayston has been asking for a mohawk, actually driving me crazy begging for one. So to the boy who cant remember what I told him 30 seconds ago. I said 2 weeks before school got out. You can have one the last day of school and then we will shave it off for church the following sunday. I said this knowing he would forget. So guess what he didnt. The night before the last day of school. He yells, woo hoo I am ready for my mohawk and his dad starts up the shaver and I could say nothing. So always remember they cant remeber to take the trash out, clean there room or show you there homework. But they can remember the things that are most important to them. Now lets just see if I can remember...

Oh my, How the time flies!

2008-06-06T20:09:00.000-07:00

Well here it is, I know what half of you are saying to me. Its about time! I know I dont know why I am so intimidated by blogging, I just am. But I can do this and I will get over it. So this is the family blog, a way for you to keep up with us crazy james's, well at least you can try. I cant believe how we have grown. This weekend while we were camping and all of us were in our little trailer. I was just sitting there thinking about how it amazes me that all those kids are mine. I love them so much and I am so blessed by each of them each of them daily. Whether they are teaching me about patience or kindness or some more patience. I am one lucky girl.....