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2011-08-27T21:51:00.000-07:00

Easter

We finally got a new computer so I can blog again! I can not believe how fast my kids are growing up. I'm not going to lie...I am not a fan. These three are so much fun and I love being their mom!

Anderson is now four

Adalayde is three

and sweet baby Elle is 8 months.

Lots of Pictures

2011-04-03T14:33:00.000-07:00

Adalayde at her first ballet recital

Babay Elle enjoying the recital

Adalayde with her friends from dance

We went to St. George as a family and had lots of fun. While we were there Anderson put this rattle on her foot and Elle thought it was fantastic.

St. Patrick's Day

Our cute little baby girl.

Elle's blessing

Elle and Machi

My first baby with a round little body.

Anderson and Adalayde love Elle

I read a home school blog and try to do one activity a day with Anderson and Adalayde. This day we were practing writing the alphabet in flour. Anderson loved it, one big mess but lots of fun.

I am not a big fan of guns and had not bought one for Anderson. Have no fear he is a boy so he made on out of my breast pump. He slept with his breast pump gun for weeks!

Elle loves her sling

Anderson still loves Toy Story

Addy going to dance class

We are having so much fun as a family of five. The kids are growing up so fast and it makes me sad. Anderson will be four on Thursday, Addy will be three in August and Elle is four months. Anderson and Adalayde love baby Elle so much and we feel so lucky to have her in our home.

8 Weeks

2011-01-25T13:44:00.000-08:00

I really can not believe that my baby is 8 weeks old already. Time flies when you are having fun. The last 8 weeks have been pretty crazy. Not because of Elle but because of life. In the last 8 weeks Anderson and Adalayde have had strep twice. Anderson had mono and we are pretty sure Addy did too. Anderson had a bad cold and had to go on prednisone which makes him horribly grouchy! Adalayde cut her chin and had to have it glued only to fall down the stairs a day later and reopen the wound. Good thing I had super glue. Anderson hurt his foot and we thought it was broken. Turned out to be badly bruised but he could not walk for two days. So sad to watch your three year old crawl around the house! And just to make sure that Elle did not get left out she had a hair tourniquet on her finger. Poor baby her little finger was all purple because the hair was so tight around it. Luckily we have a doctor who works at Primary Children's in the emergency room who lives on our street. She came to the rescue with Nair hair removal. Who would have know that you should have nair in your first aid kit!

Other than that life is good. Elle is a sweet baby and sleeps pretty well at night. Her brother and sister love her so much. She has a very round face and still has all of her dark hair. I even think her little legs are getting chubby which is so surprising to me since Anderson and Addy were far from chubby. She smiles a lot and we think she is so cute! We love her so much and it makes me sad that she is growing up so fast. We are still having computer problems so no pictures today. Sorry!

Welcome to the world!

2010-12-07T14:43:00.000-08:00

We are happy to have our sweet Elle Liesl here. She was born November 28th and weighed 6 pounds 8 ounces. She was 18 1/2 inches long. She came very fast, so fast that I did not even have time to get an epidural. But, who needs one of those, right? She is an angel baby, sleeps six hours at night and loves her brother and sister. Anderson and Adalayde have been so great with her. I was really worried about Adalayde but she has been so amazing. I guess what Addy needed was a little sister! I agree with her I know I could not be happy with out my sisters so I guess Addy is the same way.

We love our little baby and are adjusting to life as a family of five. It has been a little crazy but only because we all got sick and Justin had a tough week at week the work after she was born. Anderson is still sick and will be for a little longer. Yes, my three year old caught mono! Other than that the adjustment from two to three kids had been pretty smooth. I think that is because my first two were 16 months apart and to go from that to an almost 2 1/2 year space seems easier. Anderson and Adalayde are really good friends and entertain each other when I am busy with Elle. I overheard Adalayde tell Anderson that he is her best friend! So cute, for sure makes a mother smile.

2010-11-05T19:38:00.000-07:00

All those cute little bottoms!

Hailey and Beza

I know Erin will not love this picture but I had to have one of her with Addy. Adalayde is a big fan of her Aunt Erin and her Uncle Shannon.

Adalayde asleep in her orange bed, luckily she was kind enough to share it with Noel. Good thing since it is Noel's room and all.

Anderson and Solomon showing off their matching Duke jerseys. So cute!

I sure do love Noel!

Solomon helping Anderson boogie board. Anderson was in heaven with all of his cousins!

We loved being at the ocean with all of our cousins who learn about all the ocean animals at school. They taught us lots and found lots of cool little creatures to show us.

It is hard to see but in Anderson's left hand he is holding a dead fish. He held that fish in his hand for over two hours. He was talking about how he was going to take it back and put it in a bowl. Finally I told him that it was dead, he looked at it and threw it back in the ocean. Honestly if I had know he was going to take it so well I would have told him two hours earlier!

Thanks again to the White family, we had a great trip!

Blog slacker

2010-10-21T14:18:00.000-07:00

Justin has been on me about updating the blog but we have not had a computer for the last couple of weeks. We now have a computer but being the computer genius that I am I still need to figure out how to do pictures on it. So this post will not have any pictures, just an update. Sorry!

We have been busy since our last post. The kids are both back in Kindermusik and swim lessons. Anderson now goes to his own Kindermusik class and Adalayde and I go together. They are both loving swim lessons and think their teachers are fantastic.

Anderson also started preschool. I can not believe that my baby boy is old enough to go to preschool but, he is and he loves it. On his first day of school he was so excited, he is in a carpool with two little girls from our ward but I insisted on driving them all to his first day. We got to his school and I could feel the tears welling up. I had promised myself that I would not cry but I am pregnant and all. So I get him out of the car and am trying so hard not to cry, lucky for me his teacher is all business. I love her but she was not going to give us much mommy sheds a few tears time. She has a schedule to follow, so she took and Anderson and Daisy's hands and just like that my baby was gone. So, I did not even have time to cry. I got back in the car and started to drive away. Well, that is when Adalayde figured out exactly what had happened. Her brother left her to play with other kids and she did not get to go. Adalayde proceeded to cry tears for both of us. Poor girl cried for twenty minutes straight. She is adjusting to him being gone but we have to go shopping/ run errands while he is gone. She is not a fan of being home without her brother, and even though I think she enjoys our time together she is always very excited to pick him up.

We took one last family vacation before the arrival of baby number three. We went to North Carolina to visit some of our most favorite people in the world. We had so much Fun! My kids were in absolute heaven. I mean what could be better than having six loving cousins to play with and a house full of balls. It was seriously the most relaxing trip I have been on since I had children. My kids were entertained by cousins twenty four seven. Well not really twenty four seven but during all hours they were awake. I knew that not only were they being entertained but they were being watched and loved. The White kids know exactly what my kids like and before bed they read books to my kids like WALTER THE FARTING DOG and EVERYBODY POOPS. Yes, the White kids really know my kids!

My kids are typically home bodies and when we are on vacation they always say they want to go home. Not on this trip, Adalayde specifically made herself right at home by declaring that Noel's bedroom was her new room. She would willingly go to bed and take naps as long as she was in her orange room. Noel was so nice to share with her. Anderson consumed the other kids time by playing pin ball basketball and hing hong (ping pong) anytime we were at the house. Shannon and Erin took us to a little beach that you could only get to with a boat. It was so fun to let the kids swim in the shallow water and explore and find all kinds of sea creature. We also saw tons of Dolphins, Adalayde was so excited about the dolphins she was shaking. Justin enjoyed spending time watching sports with other guys who appreciate sports as much as he does and I enjoyed not even noticing the game was on because I had Erin and the girls to talk too. As we drove back to the airport we laughed about how much fun we had and I cried because I wish we lived closer and we talked about our next trip, which we hope will be very soon! It was so much fun I would even brave the flight with three kids!! The kids were great on the flight, especially on the way home. For Anderson it was complete exaushtion having had so much fun. When we landed in SLC and got off the plane Anderson lost it. He was screaming at the top of his lungs that he did not want to come back that he wanted to go back to North Carolina. Then he tried to run back on the plane. Luckily it was pretty late so the airport was not very busy because trust me he made a scene. People were laughing saying well, I guess he had a good trip. Yes, indeed he did, we all did. Thank you White family for welcoming us into your home and making us feel right at home. We miss you all so much and Can't wait to come back soon! Pictures will be coming soon!

As for baby number three, she is making me fatter everyday. Actually this is the best I have felt during my pregnancies. I guess that might have something to do with the fact that I have only gained about 25 pounds this time verses the nearly forty with my other two, imagine that? We fully expect that in less than six weeks we will have another baby in our home to love and cherish. No, we are not ready but will be soon. We are excited to have a baby girl and that we will soon be a family of five.

Cute kids!

2010-09-06T08:23:00.001-07:00

A little something to make you Smile!
Poor Adalayde, I feel the same way sometimes when daddy is driving!

Anderson

2010-09-03T15:38:00.000-07:00

This is a long story but since I use the blog as our journal we need to write it. It is one of those things that you think you will remember but you forget. So here is the story:
Anderson and Adalayde were outside playing together very nicely the other night. Justin and I had been watching them out the window and laughing at them. All of the sudden Anderson came running inside and started pushing a chair up to the sink and told me he needed to wash his mouth out with soap. On a side note, I have washed Anderson's mouth out with soap on a few occasions. The first time because he was telling us he hated us, which is for sure not allowed in our house. The second time was for calling me a stubborn jack@$%, after watching shrek with his dad, also not allowed. The soap works wonders too!

So, we asked him why he had to wash his mouth out with soap and he said "I said a bad word." My next mistake was asking what it was. He told me 'Jack" you can fill in the blank. I was trying so hard not to laugh, Justin on the other hand did not laugh at all which was really surprising to me. I went to get the camera and Justin helped him give himself his punishment.

Getting the soap on his hand.

Spitting after he had rubbed it in his mouth.

It is a good thing he is so dang cute and that we love him lots and lots!

I forgot this one of Bear Lake. They set up an outdoor movie screen for all the kids Friday night. Here is Anderson with some of the other boys watching it. He had so much fun on our little trip!

Bear Lake

2010-09-02T18:58:00.000-07:00

The last two years our neighborhood has gone together camping to Bear Lake. Some of my favorite memories with my dad when I was younger were camping at the lake. Justin on the other hand is not really a big camper but, since Anderson has been asking to go camping Justin has warmed up to the idea. So at the last moment I decided that we should go. I called my mom and she had camping gear so we decided that we would borrow her tent and sleeping bags and see how it went.

Justin could not leave on Thursday so I asked my Friend Ange if we could follow her up. The day before we were leaving she told me that they had an extra pop up trailer we could use. How awesome is that! So we headed out of town on Thursday for a little two hour drive. Thursday it is raining actually pouring but we are packed, the kids are already in their swimsuits so we decide to go.

Because of the rain and the fact that we are both pulling trailers our trip is taking a little longer. Pulling the trailer in my big old car is no big deal, in fact I could not even tell I was pulling anything. Well, about 15 minutes away from our destination this couple flags me down to tell me that the trailer has blown a tire. As I pull over I can feel it! It turns out I had been driving for a while on the rim so it is all bent. Poor Jeff, he comes to the rescue but the rim is really bent. I called Justin he said to call a tow truck but Jeff refused. He was determined to do it. After about an hour another family from the neighborhood saw us on the side of the road and came to our rescue. We are so lucky to have such great neighbors and friends!
The entire process took about two hours. Luckily the kids all 5 of them 5 and under were troopers!

All that was left of the tire!

We decided that we were for sure on a Griswold family vacation but, lucky for us this was the only trouble we had.

Adalayde and Jack enjoying breakfast camping.

Adalayde loved the sand and the water.

Anderson and Daisy. My hope is that she is his future wife! They have a love hate relationship so it is looking pretty good!

Check out Anderson's tan line.

Lots of neighborhood kids. We took up a good portion of the beach. We had toys all over the place and all the kids were loving it.

Anderson with a frog on his shoulder.

Showing the frog again. We had such a great time. We owe the Schroepfer's and the Wiscomb's dinner for all their help and for putting up with us. Jeff and Ange especially made our camping trip very enjoyable. My kids were good little campers and loved it. We feel so lucky to live in such a great neighborhood. Thanks to everyone who shared toys, boats, jet skies and food with everyone. We live in in a neighborhood with very generous people who are raising great kids and we are looking forward to more camping trips as a family and with friends!

Happy Birthday Adalayde

2010-08-24T19:06:00.000-07:00

Happy birthday to our very precious baby girl. I can not believe that you are two years old.
Adalayde loves to sleep with lots of her babies, blankets and her many stuffed animals.

When I asked Adalayde what she wanted for her birthday dinner she said salads. So that is what we had! A few days before her birthday our friends brought us this zucchini from their garden. When I came into the kitchen Adalayde had gone to town on it. Yes, she is our little vegetarian.

Opening gifts while enjoying the worlds largest candy Necklace. Thank you Drew and Camille, I am still finding pieces of it on her face! Actually in all honesty she loved it and while it did make her one sticky mess you two made her very happy. Liz and Creighton also got her a candy necklace. So to the the four of you , I can not wait until you have kids!

She was a big fan of the birthday song!

Adalayde did not want to have her picture taken on her birthday so Aunt Hilary did the best she could to get a few pictures. She had a wonderful birthday and she loved every minute of it. She of course was very spoiled but has loved all of her gifts! Thank you to everyone who came and for all of the very thoughtful gifts ( even the candy)! My kids are so lucky to have so many people who love them so much.

A few things about Adalayde:

Today you weight 19 pounds. You are in the first percent for you weight and 62 percent for you height.

You love to eat veggies and fruit

You could be toilet trained but you have a lazy mom who wanted to enjoy summer. You frequently tell me when you want to go and always do. We will work on that soon.

You know the alphabet and can count to at least thirty. You know your birthday and your brothers birthday.

You talk very well, sometimes a little to well.

You think that you are going to preschool this fall with your brother and I am afraid you will be very disappointed when you do not get to go.

You still love to play with my hair.

You make us laugh even when you are a little bit naughty.

Your brother loves you and wakes you up from your nap everyday because he misses you.

You are a joy to have in our family. While it is hard to believe that you are two already, we can not imagine our life with out you. You have brought us so much love and joy and we are so thankful that you are a part of our little family. We love you Addy!

Cooper's Run

2010-08-02T14:29:00.001-07:00

Our family has a new tradition on July 31st, we run in Cooper'r Run. It was such a fun experience for us to all get together and remember sweet Cooper and to raise money for scholarships. It was so neat to see so many people come together to support the run. Yes, it was sad but it was also lots of fun. Cooper would have loved it!

This one is for Noel. You have been asking to see my baby bump so here it is. All 5 1/2 months of our newest addition!

Kent, LaRae, and Creighton all came to run. It meant a lot to have so much support. My amazing friend Ange also drove down with her three kids to come for the run. You know you have a good friend when they are willing to do that!

Before the race started! The race started with White doves and balloons flying in the sky and Coopers favorite song. Watching the doves fly was really neat.

Anderson and Adalayde ran the last part of the race. Anderson was so cute he was running so hard. When he got to the finish line he told me he ran fast for Cooper.

All of the kids had a ton of fun but Pierce especially loved it. I have no idea how many otter pops were eaten but I can tell you that Pierce had no less that 15. The kids loved getting in the life flight helicopter and getting sprayed by the fire truck hose.

We miss and love you Cooper. Thanks for helping us be better people and teaching us to love a little more and cherish our time together however long it may be!

Cooper's Run!

2010-08-02T14:28:00.000-07:00

Our Little Mother

2010-06-22T15:21:00.001-07:00

Adalayde loves her babies very much and has to have them with her all the time.

She has figured out how to buckle them into the car seat.

I thought it was very funny but Justin was not as impressed with it after Adalayde cried for her babies and I got a panicked phone call that we had lost them. I have no idea why he did not think of checking in the infant car seat in storage!

She had another minor melt down when she was unable to carry all four of her babies with out dropping them. So we pulled out the sling that I carried both she and Anderson in and tied it in a knot on her shoulder so she was able to carry all four!

Yes, she is a baby lover and we could not be more relieved because come this December miss Adalayde is going to have a little baby SISTER! Yes folks it is true we are having baby number Three and we could not be more excited.

Yes, our hands will be full but, more importantly so will our hearts!

Adalayde rides her bike

2010-05-17T14:00:00.000-07:00

Adlayde loves her bike! She is pretty good at it and she wants to take it everywhere we go. Today she even wanted to sleep with it during her nap. No, I did not let her take her dirty bike to bed with her but she was not very ahppy about it

Aunt Amelia can even ride Adalayde's bike!

Church

2010-05-17T13:43:00.001-07:00

Adalayde does not always get to go to church because it starts right when she takes her nap. We have chosen to keep her home for the benefit of all that we go to church with because, she has been known to make church the opposite of Heaven! We love her so much but a nap is not an option for our sweet girl. So, on the rare occasion that she gets to go to church I love to take pictures of the two of them.

Anderson on the other hand loves church! He is so good during Sacrament meeting and he loves to go to nursery! Church is also during his nap time but he makes it through nursery because he loves it so much. He has been know to fall asleep in the car on the way home from church and yes the church is just one street over!

Swimming

2010-05-17T13:22:00.000-07:00

Adalayde is one good little back floater, she can float for so long. Last week the teacher was having her float for so long that she started to yell at her. She was yelling so load saying I'm all done Richelle I already did abc song. She is a very funny girl with a lot of personality. Sometimes it is not as cute as other times but we will still keep her.

Anderson is very proud of his new trick!

These two LOVE swimming lessons, they love their teacher and they love the water. I have been asked several times this winter when we have gone swimming why the kids wear swim caps? They wear them because the keep their goggles on and that way I do not have to fix them a zillion times!

Anderson is THREE

2010-04-14T13:44:00.001-07:00

Aunt Hilary made Anderson this cute sign. He loved it so much!

The amazing bowling cake that Aunt Liesl did for him! He is very lucky to have an aunt who loves him enough to spend hours making a very special cake for him.

Anderson at his Friend party. He invited 18 kids and would have invited even more if I would have let him.

With his big boy cousins that he loves!

Not only did Liesl make a bowling cake she also made a golf cake for the family party. She is one awesome aunt.

My Sweet boy!

No need for a fork.

Check out his outfit. He picked it out all alone.

Anderson loving his Aunt Tenley and Uncle Aidan.

Anderson I can not believe that you are Three. You are a very happy little boy and you make us very proud to be your parents.

You are the best big brother in the entire world. Adalayde is so lucky to have you.

You weigh 30 pounds and you are officially forward facing in your car seat in Mom's car only.

You love to play with friends and you are a good friend.

You can not wait to go to school.

You love sports and you love to color and read books.

You have the best laugh that I have ever heard.

You are very obedient for the most part.

You love to go to church and you love to read and hear stories about Jesus. You also love to say prayers.

You make our family a happy one because you are kind and loving.

Thank you for making me a mommy. You have brought more joy to my life than I could have ever imagined. We love you so, so much. We are thankful to be your parents. Happy Birthday to my sweet little baby boy! I love you!

Happy Easter

2010-04-05T14:23:00.001-07:00

2010-04-05T14:20:00.001-07:00

Toilet Trained

2010-04-05T13:49:00.001-07:00

Anderson was so easy to toilet train. He woke up one morning and told me he did not want to wear a diaper. I told him that was fine but if he had an accident in his basketball shorts he could not wear them the rest of the day. I had not really been thinking about toilet training so we did not have any underwear for him. So for two weeks he has gone camando.

Well, that went great until I put pajamas on him. He had an accident in them and i don't clean up accidents very well so those pajamas went straight to the big black stinky garbabge can outside. Anderson was not impressed to say the least.

Total he has had about four accidents in two weeks and no accidents for a week. I should have thought of the basktball shorts sooner. I should have know that Anderson would not want to ruin his basketball shorts.

We told him he could pick a gift for his big accomplishment. He decided that he wanted bases so that he could play baseball and on Friday we decided he deserved them so we went and bought them.

We are proud of Anderson, he is saving his mommy some cash by not using diapers. Yay for BIG BOY ANDERSON!

Anderson

2010-03-09T13:56:00.001-08:00

Anderson is almost three and is growing up so fast. He got into our neighborhood preschool and will be starting that in the fall with his friends. He loves to play with his friends, most of which are girls. He is a sports playing and sports watching fool. He clearly takes after his dad and uncles when it comes to his sports obsession but is a lot like me. He is very ocd about a lot of things and very sensitive to smells and hates things that smell bad. He still loves all sports and spends all day mixing it up. He will play basketball, golf, bowl with his little bowling set and if the weather is nice he will go out and hit baseballs. We just signed him up for t-ball and soccer with his cousin Ainsley. They are very lucky kids because they have the best coaches in the world. Uncle dude will coach soccer and Justin will coach t-ball. I can't wait to watch him play! Anderson is a very good big brother and loves Adalayde. He is a little bit rough with her but he for sure loves her. He still loves Kindermusik and swimming lessons and has been doing so well with swimming. Last week he swam the length of the pool and than went off the diving board. He was very proud of himself.

All Anderson wants to wear are basketball jerseys and basketball shorts. He especially loves his North Carolina jersey and shorts. He will wear them over his pants because it is still cold and then we have to put them on over his pajamas!

Anderson slam dunking the basketball. He shoot baskets all day and is very proud that he can slam dunk it.

We took Anderson bowling, He had to do it all alone and would not let us help and would not use a ramp. He scored 69 points, not bad for a little guy.

Anderson brightens our day and makes us very happy. He has a funny sense of humor but is very sweet. He loves to snuggle and read books, Anderson makes us so happy and we love him very much!

Adalayde

2010-03-09T13:09:00.000-08:00

Adalayde is just over eighteen months old and I have no idea where the time went. It is hard for me to believe that when Anderson was her age I had a two month old baby! She doesn't seem like a baby anymore and it makes me kind of sad. She is talking very well and communicates all of her needs and wants verbally. She loves to play with the big kids and she is a little dare devil. She will go down any slide and will climb on anything that she can. She loves shoes and especially boots. She loves her brother and when she can't find him she will stand at the top of the stairs and scream his name. she loves to play outside, in fact that is really the only time that she likes to not be held. She loves her Kindermusik class and her swimming lessons. She has been going to nursery at church and so far she is not a fan! She screams bloody murder when they start saying the closing prayer and screams all the way to her class room all the while holding on to me for dear life. She makes a huge scene and people laugh at her. Once I drop her off she screams as loud as she can for about two minutes, which seems like an eternity and then she heads right for the toys. When we go to pick her up she cries again just to let us know how awful it is that we left her. Little does she know that we look through the door no less that fifty times between the two of us and we always see her happily playing.

She is still very much a Mommy's girl. She still loves to be in the carrier and still even loves to be in the moby wrap, nice and close. This day she feel asleep in the carrier holding on to my hair. Aunt Liesl calls her our little monkey because she loves to hold onto my hair!

Aunt Erin and Beza sent her all of these little bows on a ribbon to hang in her room. She loves them so much and often times wants all of them in her hair.

She is obsessed with her swim cap and goggles. If she could she would swim all the time. She also loves to wear her swimming suits it reminds me of her cousin Noel.

Adlayde is a joy to have in our family. She makes us laugh and for sure keeps us on our toes. She is our very sweet baby girl and we love her!

My Very Cute Date

2010-02-09T20:41:00.000-08:00

Justin has been out of town so I had to find a date to go to the Harlem Globetrotters with me. I did not have to look very far before I found the perfect date. He is very cute and loves basketball.

My cute date is perfect, he thinks that I am pretty cool at least most of the time. He loves to snuggle and he even thinks that I have nice "yegs".

There are only two problems with my very cute date. The first one is he did not pay for the date, his dad did. The second problem is sometimes, not often but sometimes my very cute date can be boarderline verbally abusive. We are working on that!

All and all my date was great and I for sure plan on keeping him around!

Me with my very cute date!

Waitting for the train. Anderson was very excited to ride trax.

Drew, Camille, Aidan, Hilary and Anderson. Anderson was having so much fun with cute camille in the car on our way home. He was laughing so hard with her. He is a lucky boy to have another Aunt who loves him! We were also lucky to have Hilary stay with us while Justin was gone since I am a wimp. Anderson and Adalayde love her so much! When we would drop Hilary off to school Anderson would ask the rest of the day when she was coming back. Today I told him that she was going back to grandma chocolates and he started to cry. My children are very spoiled with love!

Aidan and Anderson on the train on our way to the game. Anderson loves Aidan so much. I love the way he is looking at Aidan and smiling.

My date even ended with a smooch. One thing is for sure I am head over heels, Whole heartedly in love with this one!

Forgot a cute one of Adalayde

2010-01-25T18:26:00.000-08:00

Playing in the snow.

Lots of Pictures!

2010-01-25T12:13:00.000-08:00

I took the memory card from Liesl's camera so now you get to see tons of pictures in no particular order.

The kids this morning playing in the laundry basket together. They are really starting to play together and well and they love eachother very much

Pierce holding Adalayde. Pierce and Ainsley adore little Adalayde and she eats it right up. She is one lucky girl.

Grandma and Anderson.
Lake Tahoe over Thanksgiving.

Tachi and Adaladye playin peek a boo.

Pierce's school Christmas program. He was so cute and we loved watching him. Anderson missed it because he was at his little Joy school.

I was watching Pierce and Ainsely a few weeks ago and thought it would be fun to all go out and play in the snow. Fun it was but what was I thinking, get all four kids ready for oh, maybe thirty minutes of fun just to come back in and take off all the wet clothes and make hot chocolate. Ok, thirty minutes is actually longer than I expected!
The pictures below are from our wonderful cruise that Machi took the entire family on. We had so much fun and could never thank her enough for such a wonderful trip. When I get the picture disc from Machi I will post more pics.

Our little family enjoying the warm ocean water.

Pierce and Ainsley.

Adalayde loved the beach and the ocean so much. She was so funny to watch play but she was such a sandy mess. Don't worry we only had to throw away two swimsuits.

Playing soccer on the beach with my sweet boy.

Mermaid Ainsley!

Pierce made his own night vision glass's, so funny! Anderson was so impressed by Pierce's creation. They hid in the closet and they were laughing so hard. I love to to watch the kids play together. I love that my kids have such a great relationship with Pierce and Ainsley. Often times they treat eachother like sibiling. That is sometimes good and sometimes bad!

The kids last year at Christmas. Wow, what a difference a year makes. The kids are so much bigger this year.

Tenley's Baptism

2010-01-23T12:31:00.000-08:00

Tenley on her very special day. She looked so beautiful!

All of us together.

All of us sisters together. Notice our soon-to-be new one! Drew's fiance. We love her and we can't wait for her to be officially part of our family.

All of the brothers with the baptism girl.

Christmas

2009-12-31T14:13:00.001-08:00

Justin reading Christmas books with the kids while I got dinner ready.

Our Christmas eve dinner.

All ready for bed.

Adalayde riding her new bike.

Anderson in his football uniform.

Adalayde's favorite gift was her googles and her dive rings.

Anderson got his very own putting green from Machi. Wow, what a hit he loves it so much!

Uncle Dude and Anderson showing off their Utah gear. Take note NC Whites, Anderson is wearing his basketball shoes!

We had a wonderful Christmas and enjoyed our time with our families. We especially enjoyed being together with our little family in our new house. Having kids makes Christmas lots of fun!

Pre Christmas Pictures

2009-12-27T12:56:00.000-08:00

Tachi and Grammy came and had Christmas early with us and Adalayde got this little car. What a hit. Not just with Adalayde but with all of the kids. When Pierce and Ainsley were here the other day we had to set the timer so they could all have a turn! As for Andersons gift pictures to come soon!

Cheri made these darling skirts for Adalayde and Ainsley. Liesl and I could not resist taking a picture of Adalayde in her Angel wings!

Have I mentioned before that getting a Christmas picture of these four kids is a real challenge. Don't worry between Liesl and I we have no less than 500 pictures. So if you would like you could see them all.

The finished product!

Happy Birthday Noel

2009-12-27T12:43:00.000-08:00

Happy birthday to our sweet cousin Noel! You are such a sweet girl and I love that you love me and my kids so much. I love that one of your favorite things is to be with family. When I think about you it always makes me smile! I wish that we lived closer so that I could see you all the time. I hope that you had a wonderful birthday! I can't believe that you are twelve years old. I wish that you were in my ward so that you could come to young woman with me. I would love it so much! Thank you for loving me, Justin, Anderson and Adalayde you always make us feel very special!
Love,
Justin, Maris, Anderson and Adalayde

Happy Birthday Tenley!

2009-12-27T12:34:00.000-08:00

We are a little behind on blogging because our internet was not working! Anyway Happy birthday to Tenley! I can't beleive that you are 8 years old. How blessed we are to have you in our life! You are such a little miracle being born weighing only 2 pounds, you have always been a fighter. I am thankful everyday to have you for my baby sister you have brought us a lot of joy and happiness! Thank you for loving me and for being a wonderful aunt to Anderson and Adalayde! They love you so much! I hope that you had a wonderful birthday!
Love,
Justin, Maris, Anderson and Adalayde

Random pictures

2009-12-16T19:48:00.000-08:00

Adalayde Being an Animal at the Zoo!

Adalayde in front of the beatiful Jazz Christmas tree! Yes, Anderson has his very own Jazz Christmas tree thanks to his dad!

Some kids sleep with a teddy bear,not Anderson he prefers his golf cart, clubs, a basketball, football and anything else sports related! All of that in a little port a crib for his nap!

Going to the Utah Game with the Boys! Anderson loves to hang out with his dad and his uncles!

Happy Birthday Noah!

2009-12-16T19:35:00.000-08:00

Noah we are so glad to have you for a nephew and cousin to Anderson and Adalayde. They love you so much, especially Anderson. When Anderson knows that he is going to see you his eyes light up and he is so excited! Thanks for playing with Them and loving them! Happy Birthday!

Love,
Justin, Maris, Anderson and Adalayde

Tenderness

2009-12-14T13:38:00.001-08:00

This holiday season I have found my heart to be very tender as Justin and I have prayed as a family for so may people that we love dearly who have faced some very hard trials this year. We have prayed for my cousin Patti and her babies lauren, who passed away shortly after birth and baby Ryan who was born very premature. We have prayed for Quinn and Jana who lost little Cooper and for their family. We have also prayed for my cousin Dalton and his family as he has been through Chemo to fight Cancer. We have found ourselves to be heartbroken at may points this last summer but have also found much to be thankful for.

Just the other day during one of my moments which, by the way always come with tears sweet Anderson came and wrapped his little arms around my leg and said " mom, Jesus loves you". It is so amazing to me to watch my child who seems to understand that when we are sad or suffering pain that is when Jesus loves us most! If only I had the understanding of a child!

This holiday season I am thankful for all that I have learned this year! I am thankful for the tender moments that I have had. I am thankful that Baby Ryan and Dalton are doing well! I am thankful for the impact that Cooper, Quinn and Jana have had on our life. I am thankful that we have learned to appreciate the little things in life. I have tried hard to be a little more patient with my children and to let them know each day how much I love them. They are the greatest gift that we have!! I am grateful for the birth of our Savior and have found it so much easier this year to focus on the true meaning of Christmas. I am thankful for Justin, he is is the best husband and dad and I do not know what I would do with out him! I am thankful for our families and for all that they do for us!

I can't get enough of these two!

Hapyy Birthday Chase!

2009-12-14T13:24:00.002-08:00

I know that this is way late but it is not because I forgot your birthday! We were out of town on the 25th on November and I have been a huge slacker since we got home. Drew actually did the babies post for me! Anyway, Happy birthday Chase I am so glad that you are my brother. you have such a tender heart and have always been so sweet! You are so incredibly smart and I am so proud of how well you are doing with your job and in school! Thank you for being such a great brother and uncle to my kids! How lucky are my kids to have so may aunts and uncles who love them! I hope you had a very happy birthday!

Love,
Justin, Maris, Anderson and Adalayde

Drew has all of the pictures from your very fun birthday party so I was unable to put them with this post. We will post them when I get my card back!

2009-12-14T13:24:00.001-08:00

Babies

2009-12-11T14:39:00.000-08:00

Yes, it is true sorry to disappoint you Noel but the gummy bear song has been replaced! A friend send me the Babies movie trailer in an email and Anderson is hooked! He comes and asks me all the time if he can watch the babies. I love it, I think it is so dang cute that my boy loves babies! I must say that I myself would love to go and see this movie. I would really want to see this with Erin, Liesl, my mom, Krisitn and all of the girls. Wouldn't that be the best! So when it comes you should all come to Utah so we could all go together! Watch the trailer in the post below.

Babies

2009-12-11T11:22:00.000-08:00

This is Anderson's new favorite video. It beat out the Gummy Bear Song.

Adalayde Laughs with Aunt Hilary

2009-11-22T17:15:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday Uncle Beastie!

2009-11-21T18:50:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday Brigham! Thanks for being such a great brother in-law and uncle to my kids! You are always so pleasant to be around and you always make me feel welcome and comfortable. Thank you for loving me and Anderson and Adalayde! They are lucky to have you for an uncle. I am glad that we were able to spend your birthday with you! Hope you had a good one!

Love,
Justin,Maris, Anderson and Adalayde

Happy Birthday Bethany!

2009-11-21T18:43:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday to our awesome cousin Bethany! Bethany you are such a sweet girl and so kind to everyone. One of the things that admire most about you is that you are always willing to stand up for who you are and what you believe in. I also admire the kind way that you treat Duncan and Olivia! That says a lot to me about who you are when I see the way that you treat your siblings and your parents! I hope that Anderson and Adalayde will treat each other the same way that you and your brother and sister treat one another. I hope that you have a wonderful birthday! I wish that we could have spent the day with you. I would have loved to have seen your cute face on your 16th birthday!! I still can't believe that you are 16! I love you!

Love,
Justin, Maris, Anderson and Adalayde

Happy Birthday Drew!

2009-11-19T13:08:00.001-08:00

Happy Birthday Drew! I remeber how excited I was the day that you were born!! I was so glad to have a baby in the house and to have a little brother. I am so glad that you are my brother! Thank you for all the times that you have helped your electronically, computer challenged sister out! Thank you for loving me and my kids! I hope that you have a wonderful birthday!

Love,
Justin, Maris, Anderson and Adalayde

Hilary!!

2009-11-16T14:55:00.000-08:00

I am proud of my baby sister!! Check out this blog post about her from her coach!

Happy Birthday Machi!

2009-11-16T12:48:00.000-08:00

We are so thankful to have Machi for our grandma and for all that she does for us! Machi is one of the most generouse people that I know. She is always so thoughtful and we love spending time with her. Machi is a good friend and in turn has so many good friends. Liesl and I laugh because Machi litterally has friends all over the world! We are so glad that because of Machi we were able to spend her birthday with her. She flew Liesl, Adalayde and me down to sunny Arizona for her birthday. Then upon arrival she made us a wonderful dinner! That is how Machi spent her birthday, doing for us. Thank you Machi for all that you do! We loved spending your birthday with you and look forward to many more years to come of Sunny Arizona in November!! We LOVE you VERY MUCH!

Love,
Justin, Maris, Anderson and Adalayde

Adalayde really walked while we were gone. She is DONE crawling and has moved on to big girl walking! Pictures to come of the trip when I get them from Machi!

Halloween 2009

2009-11-16T12:36:00.001-08:00

We had lots of fun on Halloween! We went to Lagoon and then came home and went Trick-or-treating! The kids loved it. Little Adalayde was suppose to be a butterfly but she would not wear her wings. Oh well we thought she still looked cute!

So Much Fun!

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

Underwater photos of the kids during swimming lessons!

Anderson has been playing lots of golf lately and loving it. So, we decided that it would be fun to go miniature golfing together on Friday. Anderson loved it and I must say he was pretty good for a two year old! Lets just say this we started with two balls one for Justin and one for Anderson and we finished with one! It was the same red ball that Anderson is holding in the picture and the same one he played golf with the entire time we were there. So, if I had to pick a golf partner I would probably pick Anderderson! No offense honey!

808795106 border=0 alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_X0LCVQi0CS8/SuUJsKfgR-I/AAAAAAAAAos/FZcoBkiC7kE/s320/Site+Inspection+242.jpg"> Adalayde did what she loves to do and hung out in the moby wrap with her mommy very close!

Check out his form!!

0767842 border=0 alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_X0LCVQi0CS8/SuUHq_0dVmI/AAAAAAAAAoc/hNSmdWbFDwI/s320/Site+Inspection+228.jpg"> The kids got a fun Halloween package from Machi. It had a skeleton bowl full of candy and Mcdonalds gift certificates. My kids were so excited! Mcdonalds is something they get only from Machi gift certificates. Oh and as soon as Daddy reads this on the blog he will be calling to find out when we can go!

HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id=BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396727578423275106 border=0 alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_X0LCVQi0CS8/SuUHI7V5LmI/AAAAAAAAAoU/srqWt_ajGIA/s320/Site+Inspection+229.jpg"> Adalayde was a little bit offended by that skeleton head!

All was forgiven when she realized that the bowl contained candy. Suddenly that skeleton was not so scary after all!

lock; HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id=BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5396725805892534850 border=0 alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_X0LCVQi0CS8/SuUFhwJogkI/AAAAAAAAAoE/j7BrG6dVJvs/s320/Site+Inspection+237.jpg"> Anderson was in Heaven because his Baybin came over with a new Halloween book and they cuddled up on the couch and read it together!

Happy Birthday Aunt Kristin!

2009-10-23T19:04:00.000-07:00

We hope that you are having a wonderful birthday. How lucky I am to have you for an Aunt. I love and admire you in so many different ways. You accomplish so many things and do it all so well. What I really need is for you to come and spend a few weeks at my house so that you can teach me and help me get all organized. Things on my list to learn from you are ; how to get my children to be kind to one another all the time. How to make all your healthy homemade beans, soups and delicious meals. How to really garden, and compost and how to be a better young woman leader. Thanks for being such a good example to me! Happy Birthday!

Love,
The Scotts

We have pictures to post of Friday Night Family Fun but my camera died so they will have to wait!

Adalayde

2009-10-15T13:20:00.001-07:00

Adalayde got this little outfit from Kent and LaRae for her birthday and she wore it on Sunday! She looked so cute and I was so excited to put her little orange boots on her. I bought them last year and they have been sitting in the closet just waiting to be worn! She looked so, so cute! Thanks for the darling outfit!

She is lots and lots of fun!

Basketball Shoes!

2009-10-15T13:04:00.001-07:00

After taking Anderson to a few different stores we were unable to find the shoes that he wanted. So I talked to the basketball shoe expert Erin and she told me exactly where to find them. So I got online and went to finishline.com and sure enough as soon as I pulled up the site little Anderson's face lite right up. Oh mommy those are basketball shoes, he said. So we ordered them and Anderson waited very patiently for them to come!
Pointing to Michael Jordan on the box, he knows that means basketball shoes!

He is in love with his basketball shoes!

Anderson still loves to play outside, it is getting a little cold but he still loves it. Notice the golf shoes. Now that he has golf shoes and basketball shoes it is my job to change his shoes during the day according to the specific sport he is playing at that moment! So Anderson changes his shoes no less than 15 times a day. Yesterday it was raining so the frog boots were ok to shoot hoops, play baseball and play golf!

What Have We Been Doing?

2009-10-05T18:42:00.000-07:00

Adalayde got to go to Hires Big H and have a hamburger before the Jazz game!

Anderson got to go to his very first Jazz game. He came home way past his bedtime, all smiles with a brand new Jazz jersey that his Baybin bought him. He was so, so excited! The smile on his face made me wish I had been at the game with him! When I asked him if Mom could take him to a Jazz game he said no Just Dad and Baybin. Surely that was because they had stuffed him so full of junk food and he knows that his mom would not. However sadly to say they did not get him any junk at all. He loved the game so much they did not have to bribe him at all. I hope someday he will change his mind and want to go on a date with his Mom!

Adalayde got this cute hat in the mail from her Tachi and Grammy. It is a pumpkin hat and she looks so cute in it!

Anderson got some athletic shoes that he refers to as golf shoes from Tachi and Grammy. He loves them so much and just today went and got his golf balls and clubs and told me he needed his golf shoes. We are very appreciative since it has taken the pressure off to find his basketball shoes right away and I think it might have actually bought Justin one more week before he has to buy them. It is not exactly easy to find black MJ high tops in Anderson's size.

Anderson stayed up way to late and had lots of fun with his cousins Noah and Sam. They played for hours and then had pizza. Anderson loved every minute of it!

Anderson watching Monday night football and eating popcorn tonight with Justin and Creighton! Anderson loves it when Creighton comes over. Anderson and Adalayde are very lucky to have so many Aunts and uncles who love them so much!!

Anderson has been a big helper and we have made lots of apple juice and fresh applesauce with the apples from our tree! Anderson loves to make and drink his own jucie!

Happy Birthday Uncle Winston!

2009-10-02T15:18:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Winston! We hope that you are having a wonderful birthday. Thank you so much for being such a wonderful uncle to Anderson and Adalayde. They love you so much! Anderson is especially missing you right now! He talks about you everyday. Thank you for going out of your way to have such a great relationship with my kids. I really appreciate all the times that you have stopped at our house just to see them, called just to talk to them and taken time out just to play with them. It means a lot to me and even more to them! I hope that you have a wonderful birthday! We love you!

Love,
Justin, Maris, Leon and Addy

45 minute conversation

2009-10-01T14:15:00.000-07:00

It has been cold here so we have been inside a lot. I am really freaking out about what we are going to do all winter!! Anyway, Anderson was downstairs shooting baskets and I was making dinner. He came upstairs and said mom I need basketball shoes! Oh good I thought, glad to hear that since all he has wore since May are his Keens and his frog boots. So I took him to his closet and got some tennis shoes out. No mom I need basketball shoes! I showed him another pair and this continued while we went through every pair of shoes in his closet. Now mind you I am trying to make dinner and I have to go to Young Woman so I like to have the dishes all done before I leave!

Anderson follows me into the kitchen and will not stop with the basketball shoes. He is not whining but he will not stop talking about it and I don't know what to tell him. He is pretty smart so he is sure that his mom has no idea what basketball shoes are! I have to say he is right I don't really know.

We had kids over to play earlier so I think one of them must have worn shoes that have a basketball on them. I must admit I am a little frightened by that thought! So I ask him if he wants shoes that have basketballs on them and he says no. So just to clarify I ask him again you just want shoes to play basketball in. Yup!

Great, lets call your dad. Anderson gets on speaker phone and tells Justin that he needs basketball shoes. Justin tells him that he will get him some and Anderson is thrilled. When Justin gets home he takes Anderson into our room and shows him some running shoes and some basketball shoes. Anderson immediately picks out the basketball shoes. He knows what he wants!

That night while he was in the bath he proceeds to tell me that he needs baseball shoes, golf shoes and soccer shoes! I told him he could pick one and he decided that he wants basketball shoes. I guess Justin and Anderson are going shopping on Saturday!

He has not forgotten that we have promised him basketball shoes and has told several people that he is getting them. He told his swimming teacher, Amber at Great Harvest who gives us our slice of bread after swimming lessons and Liesl and Tony!

Up The Canyon With Cousins!

2009-10-01T13:55:00.000-07:00

Liesl and Tony invited us to go up the canyon with them and we were thrilled. We had lots of fun all together and the kids got nice and dirty and very tired!

Anderson holding the Caterpillar.

Adalayde was very interested but she would have for sure done some damage. We did manage to leave the poor creature unharmed!

Swimming Lessons

2009-09-24T14:35:00.000-07:00

We are back at Swim Kids after our summer break! Anderson was thrilled to be back, Adalayde is not to sure that she is a fan!!
The kids before lessons started. Notice Anderson's froggy boots! They have become a regular part of his attire! Also notice a single stroller! A year ago I could not imagine that I would ever be able to go anywhere without a double stroller. All of the sudden Anderson has grown up so much. He is so good about holding hands and hanging on to the stroller. It is amazing how fast time flies.

Adalayde is not a fan of swimming lessons! This week she cried a little but did not scream bloody murder so that is an improvement!

Anderson is learning how to dive!

He floats all alone and now can flip to his stomach and swim then back to his back! He is doing so well!! The doll hanging off the side of the pool is a little creepy!

Is he the next Olympian? Justin and I laughed so hard at this picture! Don't you love the swim cap and goggles?

After lessons I was getting Anderson dressed and he kept saying " mom I am a really good swimmer'

Anderson keeps us laughing that is for sure!

We are going to update the blog more since we promised Winston that we would while he is gone! We are missing Winston and Camille. We hope that you guys are having a wonderful time and enjoying your trips

Our Weekend ALONE!

2009-09-21T20:33:00.000-07:00

Justin went out of town this weekend with Creighton so I was alone with the kids! I decided that we had better do some fun things or we would miss Justin way too much! Friday we went to the state fair with Grandma Chocolate and Aunt Marion. We also meet up with Aunt Carol and Uncle Darrell. We had lots of fun! The pictures are below. On Saturday we went on a hike with Liesl and her kids. Pierce and Ainsley did awesome, they walked the entire time and never complained

Anderson decided early on that he was not going to walk! I guess since Justin was gone they decided to be very clingy too. So they would not let Liesl carry them. It was great I needed the work out!

On the way down Pierce did complain that his legs were a little tired! He was so funny he brought his backpack with a water bottle and a flashlight. When we got into a part where it was shady he got his flashlight out and showed us the way. It was so cute. Anyway we got back in the car at the end and pierce unloads no less than 15 big rocks out of his backpack! I guess that would explain his fatigue!

Adalayde at the fair showing you her gold sandals!

This is kind of hard to see but it is grandma chocolate holding Anderson's hand and walking him up to take him on the big slide! He was so excited!

Coming down, Anderson is loving it!

At the bottom, he could not wait to go again! Now how many kids do you know that get to go down the big slide at the fair with their great grandmothers. Isn't that the coolest thing ever!

Anderson eating his beef tenderloin that Uncle Darrell cooked. Well maybe he did not cook Anderson's but we can pretend. It was so yummy!

Grandma Chocolate and her sisters Aunt Marion and Aunt Carol. We were so glad that they came with us. They are very brave to go to the fair with me and my little ones! We all survived and as for the Scotts we had a great time. You will have to ask the others when we are not around!!

Dear Baybin and Winston

2009-09-21T15:42:00.001-07:00

Dear Baybin and Winston,

I love you very much and my mom loves you lots too! However Mom has warned me that if she finds gummies in my pockets again that I am going to be grounded! Lucky for me she found them in the washing machine and not in the dryer this time! Mom says she will be better about checking my pockets but she always forgets until it is too LATE! So please help me and just stuff all the gummies you would like to give me in my mouth instead of my pockets! Thank you!

Love,

Leon

P.S We are really going to miss having Winston here, Anderson is going to be especially sad! We hope that you have a great time and can't wait to see you in December!

The Big Party!

2009-09-13T15:15:00.001-07:00

Her Birthday Party Theme Was Nursery Rimes!
The Little Miss Muffet cake!

I See The Moon cake!

Her Peter, Peter Pumpkin Eater Cake

The Humpty Dumpty Cake!

Adalayde with her great grandmothers!

Our little family of four!

Adalayde driving the mini cooper!

Aidan enjoying the ice water!

Her party was lots of fun! She got lots of really great gifts and we were so glad to have so many family members here for her birthday! Thanks to all who came for all who helped. I am especially grateful for Liesl and my Grandma who spent days helping to prepare for the big party. They slaved away in the kitchen for days! Also thanks to Machi who as soon as she arrived off her flight was put straight to work. My Mom had the same welcoming. Come in and get to work!! Thank you so much!! We thought the party was a sucsess. We can't believe our baby girl is one!!

Adalayde's First Party!

2009-09-13T14:59:00.000-07:00

Adalayde's birthday was on a Tuesday so it was to hard to have her big party that night. I decided that she still needed a cake on her actual birthday so we got one and had Justin's family and Tony and Liesl over to share with us!
Anderson got a hold of the cake before we served it. He had just enough time to run his finger through the frosting and then he got caught!

I think Kent is really enjoying having a Granddaughter!

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_X0LCVQi0CS8/Sq1rq7tZJeI/AAAAAAAAAgo/HzSW3RlmFdo/s320/Site+Inspection+113.jpg"> At the end of the night Pierce inisted that Adalayde open her gifts since it was her actual birthday. I gave in and we allowed her to open her gifts from us!!

Catch up

2009-09-09T20:56:00.000-07:00

These are not in any special order!
Anderson watching golf! Jumping on the bed saying " yes, he made it mom"

Anderson loves his new basketball shorts and shirt he got from the Whites in North Carolina!! When he wears this it reminds me of all of you especially Stilman, Anders and Solomon!!

Going to the baseball game! My boys are in heaven!!

Sun Valley!

Enjoying Montana!

816728114 border=0 alt="" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_X0LCVQi0CS8/Sqh9yo40fjI/AAAAAAAAAfw/45ZLl4DBjhw/s320/Site+Inspection+052.jpg"> Adalayde on the 4th of July!

_PHOTO_ID_5379687106815632226 border=0 alt="" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_X0LCVQi0CS8/Sqh867x-o2I/AAAAAAAAAfo/3jmucePyvmk/s320/Site+Inspection+073.jpg"> Adalayde's bed for 9 1/2 months! Yes, it is a stroller bassinett!

Thank goodness she had to be swaddled or she would have fallen right out! And they say you can only use those for 4 months max! We got our use out of it for sure. We wheeled that puppy in and out of our old house almost everyday so that we could show it!!

HEIGHT: 214px; CURSOR: hand" id=BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5379686374413691906 border=0 alt="" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_X0LCVQi0CS8/Sqh8QTXv7AI/AAAAAAAAAfY/XtxH1H0RYvg/s320/Site+Inspection+004.jpg"> Adalaydes bed in our new house!

Fathers Day Picture!

Pudding Paint!

2009-09-07T19:33:00.000-07:00

Anderson was not a fan!!

Adalayde and Pierce enjoyed it the most!!

Technical Difficulties!

2009-09-04T12:49:00.001-07:00

For some odd reason my computer will not allow me to post pictures right now so this is going to be kind of boring! Justin keeps telling me that I need to update the blog so that he can read it. That makes me laugh since we live in the same house and deal with the same crazy kids but here go!

Funny things about Anderson

He has to sleep with a collection of balls they are a basketball, 2 baseballs, 2 golf balls, a football and a soccer ball. They must all be present or he will have a melt down. He is very careful not to miss place them, when he wakes up in the morning he takes them all outside to his baseball bucket and puts them in it. He will not use any of them to play with. They will sit in the bucket until nap time. Then he takes a brown paper bag outside collects them all and puts them in the crib with him to nap. When he wakes up he will return them to the bucket until bedtime.

He likes to have his blanket tucked around his body and under his feet. I guess he still likes to be swaddled!

He has decided that he likes to watch golf on t.v! I can't think of anything more boring than golf on t.v. However I even find it entertaining when I watch it with Anderson. He gets so excited it cracks me up. He is litterally on the edge of the bed the entire time!

He loves to color and use chalk on his easel.

He sings to himself when he thinks nobody can hear. I listen to it on the baby monitor and love it!!

He is doing very well in his swimming lessons and loves to swim.

He calls Adalayde sweetheart and always wants to give "lobes" before her naps!

Thanks to Noel and Anders he loves to watch the Gummy Bear Song on the computer.

He loves to watch the slide shows of family pictures that Machi and Heather have put together.

He is a little bit naughty and a lot cute and sweet! He makes us so happy and we love him tons!

Adalayde has started swimming lessons also. She is not a fan and cries but I gusess that is part of it!

She is getting more teeth and she has been a little bit sad and clingy.

She loves to eat dirt and chalk.

Anderson has a little mini cooper car that she sits on the botton of it and pushes the gas and can make it go. She can't see where she is going but it is one of the funniest things I have ever seen! She is so proud of herself when she moves it! I will post a picture of her in it when we get the problem fixed.

Adalayde is our little snuggle bug. She love to be held and carried. She loves to swaddled and snuggled up with us. She is so mcuh fun and brings a lot of happiness to our home. We love her so much!

Because I have not been able to post we have missed some very import things so here they are!
Congrats to the family graduates Hilary, Hailey and Jeremy!
June 10th- Happy Birthday Cheri!
June 21st- Happy Birthday Amelia!
July 27th- Happy Birthday Shannon and Stillman!
July 27th- Happy Anniversary Honey I love you very Much!
August 24th- Happy Birthday Aidan!
August 30th- Happy Birthday Gabe! The big 21!
August 31st- Happy Birthday Anders!

We hope you all had a great birthday. We love all of you!

Love,
Justin, Maris, And 1 or Anders 2, and Adalayde

Happy Birthday Aidan!

2009-08-24T19:26:00.000-07:00

Thanks for being such wonderful uncle to my kids. They love you so much, especially little Schwinney. He talks about you all the time and gets so excited when he knows that he is going to see you! I hope that you have had a wonderful birthday! We love you so much!

Love,
Justin, Maris, Schwinney and Adalayde

I am having computer issues and can't get the pictures loaded so when it is fixed I will put a picture of Aidan up!

Happy Birthday Sweet Adalayde

2009-08-18T12:02:00.000-07:00

I can not believe that a year has gone by since you were born. Your dad and I were so excited to have a little Girl. You are everything and more than we ever could have imagined. You make our home so happy with you cute little smile and laugh. You brother loves you so much and hated it when you have to take a nap. He is a little rough with you but he adores you! Everyday when I get you dressed he tells you that you are beautiful and you are. We are grateful everyday for you and love you very, very much!
1 Day old. The day we brought you home. We were so excited to be out of the hospital and back home so we could all be together. Your brother instantly loved you!

1 week old.

4 1/2 months old. I loved these pink boots so much and she looked adorable in them!

Sor9tkHMSnI/AAAAAAAAAd4/gDZtE-2zSxE/s320/Site+Inspection+080.jpg" border=0> Adalayde 8 months old. Outside enjoyed the grass. She is an outside girl!

ot.com/_X0LCVQi0CS8/Sor9NRJvDLI/AAAAAAAAAdw/sbKtYuG6_Ho/s320/Site+Inspection+001.jpg" border=0> Adalayde going to a neighborhood swimming party. She loves the water!

TODAY

You weigh 15 pounds

You still love to be swaddled to sleep.

You love to cuddle!

You still love to nurse

You love to be outside and you love the water!

You love to play with your brother

You say mama, dada, brother, please, thank you, dog, ball,banana, more, love you and thanks to your brother for teaching you and your dad for laughing you say fart.

You can stand all on your own but will not take steps

You take two two hour naps and sleep 12 hours at nightt

You love your dad very much but you are kind of a mamas girl!

You have brought us more joy than we could ever imagine! We love you so very much and are so glad that you are a part of our little family. Happy Birthday Lulu we love you!

Love,

Mom, Dad and Anderson

Back To Blogging!

2009-07-31T13:15:00.000-07:00

A picture of the kids this morning reading with Justin!

It is time to start blogging again. Thanks to Winston who came over and set up our computer and helped me figure it all out we can start blogging again. We have had a crazy last couple of months. We moved in June, went to Newport Beach, I went to Youth Conference. Then we went to Montana, I went to Girls Camp and then we went to Sun Valley. And in between all of that the kids got para influenza. We thought they had swine flu but luckily they did not! We have lots of pictures of our trips and our new house. It will take me a while but we will catch up

Happy Fathers Day!

2009-06-21T13:46:00.000-07:00

Happy Fathers Day to Justin! Justin you are the best Dad in the entire world!! Our two children are so very lucky to have you. They love you so very much! Why? Because you are always willing to take time out to spend with them. You work all day and then come home to spend quality time with us. After a long day at work you still have plenty of energy to do something fun as a family. Anderson especially looks forward to your arrival home from work. By 5:00 he wants to know when Dad will take him on a bike ride or play basketball or baseball with him. You make our kids so happy and even though I do not always tell you I do really appreciate all that you do for us. I appreciate that you work hard so that I can stay home and that when you come home you jump right in to help do baths, books , prayers and bedtime. Anderson and Adalayde love you so much as do I! I hope that you have a wonderful fathers day.

Happy Fathers Day to my own Dad! You and Justin will have to arm wrestle for the best Dad in the entire world trophy! I am so lucky to have you as a Dad! You are a wonderful Dad and grandfather to my children. Thank you for all that you have done for us. Not many Dads would drive 16 plus hours just to help their kids move. You are so generous and loving. One of the things that I appreciate about you the most is your wonderful sense of humor! I know that I have not always appreciated it like I should! Sometimes I will think of things that you have said and I start giggling to myself. I once heard that the family who laughs together stays together! I believe that this is true so thanks for always making me laugh. Again I do not always express my appreciation to you like I should! I hope that you know how much I love and appreciate you!

Happy Fathers Day to Kent! You have raised the most wonderful son in the world. Thank you for teaching Justin how to be such a fun and loving Father. I appreciate all that you do for us and for the love that you show me and my children. Even when that love results in gummy bears melted all over the dryer! I hope that you have a great day!

Happy Fathers Day to Daddy Toot. Daddy Toot is Cheri's Dad and my Grandpa. He has accepted Liesl and I and loved us as his own grandchildren. Thank you for that! My children also love Daddy Toot so much! He makes them laugh and has lots of energy to play with them! I hope that you have a wonderful Fathers Day!

Happy Fathers Day to Tony! Thank you for sharing your children with me. You are a great Father and your kids adore you! I am so glad that you are my brother! Thanks for loving me and my children. Happy Fathers Day!

I took cute pictures of Justin and the kids today before church but I cant get them to post. We sill try later. I know that I am way behind on blogging but will try to catch up. In the last month we have moved so we have lots to catch up on!

Happy Mothers Day!

2009-05-10T19:57:00.000-07:00

I have always felt that Mothers Day is not just about your Mother but the woman in your life who are Mothers. The woman who are there for you, who love you and who are good examples to you. I am so blessed to have such a long list of woman who are in my life that fit into this category. First of my own Mother who is an incredible Mother. Who has been such an example to me. When I feel overwhelmed with my two kids, I think of my Mom. She has ten kids and has done a wonderful job. My Mother is kind and loving and always willing to help me. She is with out a question the best Mother in the world.

Next is my second Mom Cheri she amazes me. While I believe that being a Mother is the hardest job in the world I believe that being a step parent is even more challenging. Cheri is the best step Mom in the world. I don't like to use the word step mom because it has a bad connotation so I will call her a second mom. Cheri has always made me feel so loved. She has treated me like one of her own. She frequently calls just to check in and always expresses her love. How lucky I have been to have her in my life.

Next up are all of my Grandmas. Grandma Chocolate, Machi and Grammy. I really believe that I have been blessed with the best Grandmas in the world. I love all of my Grandmas so very much!! They are all wonderful examples to me. They love my children and all of them take time out frequently for me and my children.

Happy Mothers Day to Mudder. Mudder is Cheri's Grandma so she would be my great Grandma and my children's great, great Grandmother. We don't see her often but when we do you know that there is something very special about her. Pierce, Ainsley, Anderson and Adalayde instantly go to her and laugh and play with her. Our children will not do that with just anyone. She is always so thoughtful of us and our children!

Also to my Aunts Kristin and Erin. I love you both very much and am so grateful for you! For the love that you have shown to me. For the wonderful examples you are to me. You are incredible Mothers and the best Aunts in the world.

Happy Mothers day to Liesl. You are my best friend in the world and I am so glad that you experienced motherhood first!! You teach me every day. You have incredible patience and you are an amazing Mother!

Happy Mothers day to LaRae. Thank you for raising the most incredible son. He is a wonderful husband and father and I believe that you with out a doubt have played a very important role in how he turned out. Thank you for accepting me and loving me!

Happy Mothers day to Heather. You are a wonderful mother and especially to boys. I have learned and continue to learn so much from you about raising boys. Having come from a family of so many girls, I need all the help I can get in the boy department.

I had a wonderful mother day. We went to Liesl's house and had a wonderful dinner compliments of Grandma Chocolate. The kids enjoyed running crazy outside and all of us Mothers enjoyed the amazing food and talking together. How grateful I am to be a Mother. I love my two kids so much and can't imagine my life with out them! I hope that everyone had a wonderful Mother Day. Thank You again to all of you have been Mothers to me. Words can not express how grateful I am for all of you and the different roles that you have played in my life. Happy Mothers Day

Love,

Maris

2 Year Well Child Check

2009-05-08T13:53:00.000-07:00

Anderson had his two year well child check. The doctor said that he looked great and that his lungs sounded clear. Music to my ears to hear that his lungs sounded good. The doctor and I laughed because I really think that is the first time in Anderson's life that the doctor has said that.

Anderson weighed in at a whooping 24 pounds that puts him in the 5th percentile for weight. Taking his current measurements they predict Anderson will be 5'9". The doctor thinks that he will be taller and that he is small right now because of his allergies and the respiratory illness that he has had. We will see but for right now he still gets to rear face in the car and wear his 12 months size shorts!!

At the end of the exam the doctor asked how Anderson's speech was coming along. Since Anderson had not said one word the entire time the doctor had reason to be concerned. I told him that he was talking a lot but that he was kind of hard to understand. Since I am a proud mother I did share that he can identify the entire alphabet. The doctor said that was great! Just as he was getting ready to walk out of the room Anderson decided to talk. He reached up patted my chest and said Breasts, Mommies Breasts. Well, said the doctor I guess he knows body parts too. Yep that is my boy!

Oh, and I finally did it. Anderson received his MMR. I am glad to have that over with. I am a really big wimp about immunizations but he will be fully immunized by the time he goes to school!

Anderson Picks His Own Outfit!

2009-05-01T13:06:00.001-07:00

Anderson picked this get up all on his own. Under the sweatshirt is a green baseball shirt, the sweatshirt has a basketball on it and the jersey had to go over the top of the other two shirts. Don't worry it was only 67 degrees outside! Oh and yes the hood was also mandatory. I do love my little boy!

Happy Birthday Justin!

2009-04-28T12:44:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to my wonderful husband and the best daddy in world! I am so lucky to be married to you. You have brought me so much happiness and joy in the almost 3 years that we have been married. You are kind and thoughtful not only of me and our children but of my extended family. You are especially kind to my younger brothers and sisters. You will never know how much that means to me and to them. As I watched you with my siblings I knew that you were the perfect man for me! I knew that you would be the best Dad and I was right! You come home from a long day of work and immediately jump right in to help with the kids. Anderson especially is a daddy's boy. When he sees your car pulling in he gets so excited Thank you for all that you do. For loving us, providing for us and being a worthy priesthood holder. I love you so very much and am grateful everyday for you! I hope that you have a wonderful birthday

Love always,

Maris

It Worked

2009-04-24T20:44:00.000-07:00

I love this picture. My sweet Adalayde is not happy with just anyone but sure loved Erin. She is her mothers daughter!

All In A Week!

2009-04-24T19:54:00.000-07:00

Anderson received a birthday gift from his Gram and Daddy toot. He got a baseball and a mitt and two outfits. He was most excited about the shirt that had a baseball, basketball, soccer ball and a football. What more could a kid want. He would not hold still for the picture but he truly loved his gifts. Adalayde also got some new bows and a cute book that she loves. Thanks to Gram and Daddy toot the gifts were a hit. Anderson and Adalayde are so very lucky to have so many grandparents and great grandparents who love them so much! They also received a wonderful table with an umbrella and benches from Machi for Easter. We have not put it together yet since we are saving it for the new house. My kids are going to feel like they are in heaven when we move and they will suddenly have a swing set, sandbox, tree house and a fenced in yard.

Adalayde got her first taste of beets this week. She loves beets but wow what a mess to clean up! The only way to clean her up is with a bath. So, that is exactly what we did. I put her in the kitchen sink in her bath and was cleaning up while she was playing. Well, the most disgusting thin happened. Remember I worked in a doctors office for years. I have seen and heard some gross stuff but this wins by far!! I look over and Adalayde is eating something. I pick her up out of the water to see what is in her mouth and hand. Much to my disgust she was eating her own POOP. Can you believe it? My sweet girl with poo in her mouth. Luckily she did not get sick. However it did make me throw up. Something I have not done since I was pregnant with her!

The weather has been so nice and all Anderson wants to do is play outside. He runs around shoots hoops, hits balls of the tee, rides his bike and drives his mini cooper. When it is all said and done and it is time to come in he has a total loss of control and freaks out. We also have been taking care of Pierce's turtle Mack. Anderson is a big fan of Mack and before we can leave our house Anderson has to say goodbye to the turtle. It is going to be sad for him next week when we give Mack back. We went to the Zoo this week with our friends the Schroepfers and Anderson loved it. He went on his first train ride at the Zoo and cried when we had to leave! I did not get pictures but he was so cute. I love watching him with other kids because he loves it so much!

We moved all the catering stuff out of the garage. It was perfect weather to do and we are glad to have that part of our move done. So my blogging days will probably be few and far between for the next month. We will be packing and getting ready to move. By this time next month we should be in our new house. We are so excited and will post pictures of the new house soon!

The kids are getting so big! Anderson is really starting to talk and it is making life a lot easier now that he can communicate a little better.

Easter

2009-04-24T19:21:00.000-07:00

The kids all dressed for church!

Before dinner we took the kids over to Grandpa and Grandma Scott's for Lucky Bunny. Anderson received lots of baseballs with gummy bears attached and some books. He really got the activity this year and loved it. Adalayde got a glow worm and a new Baby Einstein CD.

We had a wonderful dinner thanks to my Grandma who made it. Most of all we enjoyed having family here. We were so glad that the Hartts were here for Easter and we were sad that the Whites left.

Happy Birthday Erin!

2009-04-21T22:07:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to my aunt and one of my very best friends. I am so glad that you are my aunt you have blessed my life in so many ways. You are one of the most generous people that I know. You are always thinking of others and giving of yourself. I have always loved spending time with you and still do. You make me happy and you can always make me laugh. Thanks you for loving me, my husband and my children. I hope that you have had a wonderful birthday. I wish that we all could have been together to celebrate. We miss all of you!!

Love,
Justin, Maris, Anderson and Adalayde

I have the cutest picture of you and Adalayde to add but the computer is not working. I have been saving it for your birthday because I loved the picture so much!

SO MUCH FUN WITH COUSINS

2009-04-15T13:53:00.000-07:00

Pierce and Noel stayed at my house and they were sure tired after a long day of playing outside

Solomon is a ladies man!!

Bethany and Noel

Not the best picture of me but I sure love little Beza!

Beza and Pierce had so much fun together! If only I had as much energy as those two!

Anderson loving Noel with goggles on. If only we could get him to wear goggles in the pool!

We had so much fun with all of our cousins. Anderson especially loved swimming with all of his cousins. Thanks to the Whites and the Hartts for traveling so far to come and spend time with us! We loved every minute of it and miss you all tons!

Love,

Justin, Maris, Anderson and Adalayde

Anderson's Party Pictures

2009-04-10T20:01:00.001-07:00

The birthday boy in his new Mini Cooper he got from Tachi and Grammy. He is learning how to drive it and loves it! Just today he drove it right of the treadmill. He scares me!!

Anderson loves playing ball with his Grandpa Scott!

Anderson got so many very nice gifts and has enjoyed all of them. Thanks to all who put so much thought into their gifts for Anderson. They were all perfect for him! He got a new Red tricycle from his Grandma, aunts and uncles. The perfect gift for our little Schwinn! He got an awesome Shark book from Grandma Chocolate. A duke Jersey and Duke basketball from the Shannon and Erin clan. He got a white board and some shape staking blocks from Greg and Heather and their boys. He got a cute puzzle and some big stacking blocks from Tony, Liesl and the kids. A new basketball hoop and some gummy bears from Grandpa and Grandma Scoot. A U of U shirt from Creighton a U of U basketball hoop and ball from Brigham and a really cute Curious George book from Winston. He also got some Signing Time Cd's from Machi and he got the cutest little basketball slippers, and a baseball and basketball piggy bank from the Hartt family. He is very Spoiled! Actually we will just say that he is very loved!

Big J likes to take credit for Anderson's athletic ability but look at Aidan with the amazing slam dunk! Hopefully Aidan can teach Anderson how to do that!! Maybe my genes help out a little!

Anderson loved playing with all his older boy cousins! Thanks Boys for being so nice to my little boy! You are all good examples to him!

Anderson signed up for the Stilman White Basketball Boot Camp. For every five shots made coach Stilman rewarded Anderson with a gummy bear. Anderson is so lucky to have such a great coach. We wish that he lived closer so that Anderson could go to his games. He would love to watch Stilman play.

Grandma Chocolate and Aunt Liesl spent all day making these cakes for you. You know that they really love you when they spend an entire day making your cakes with kids running crazy through my house. Aunt Erin and her family got you tons of fun balloons orange, brown and different balls. You were so excited about them!! It was so fun to have all of cousins here and so many people went to a lot of work to make a wonderful birthday party for you! He had a great day thanks to all the family who came! We could never have had such a fun party for him without all of our family. Thanks to everyone who took time out to come to Anderson's party we really appreciate it!

Happy Birthday Mom!

2009-04-10T19:12:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday to the woman who game me life, along with 9 others! Thanks for being such a wonderful Mother, Grandmother and friend. You continually amaze me with your strength and courage. You have ten children and a full time job and still have time to do favors for me. Thank you for always being so willing to drive to Salt Lake to see us or to bring us things! You Are a wonderful example of a mother to me. I hope that you have a great birthday. I love you very much! Thanks for being my Mom and my Children's grandma! We love you more than you know!

Love,
Justin, Maris, Schwin and Addy

Happy Birthday Anderson Leon!

2009-04-07T09:27:00.000-07:00

Two Years ago today you were born. I can't believe that it has already been that long. Today as I think about the day you were born I am flooded with emotions. Your dad and I were so excited to be having a little boy. We could not wait to cuddle and love you! I remember the first time I held and saw you. You were perfect! I held you and was forever changed. The love that a mother feels for her child can not be described. That very first night that you were in our room with us we fought over who got to hold you! We still argue over who gets to snuggle with you if you will let us. Anderson WE LOVE YOU SO VERY MUCH

One of the very best days in my life, the day we brought you home from the hospital!

Anderson turns one! We had a great birthday party for you. Shortly after at your one year well child check we found out you were allergic to wheat, whey, oatmeal, bananas and milk. We took you off all of those and you felt so much better!

Today you weigh about 22 pounds!

Today you especially love your Dad and Addy!

Today you love to read books especially MY DADDY AND I, GOODNIGHT MOON AND MOO, BAA, LA LA LA.

Today you love to play with balls! Especially basketballs and Hoops!

Today you love to eat peas, peppers, almond cheese and cereal!

Today you love to play with other kids especially your cousins and aunts and uncles!

Today you still love your pacis but can only have them in your bed!

Today you love your crib. When it is time for bed you go right to bed and wave to us. You sleep from 7:30-7:30 or 8:00!

Today you love to do puzzles and can identify 3/4 of the alphabet and count to Ten!

Today you are really starting to talk and still sign sometimes!

Today you love to watch Signing Time and Basketball with Dad!

TODAY WE ARE SO VERY GRATEFUL FOR YOU!

Happy Birthday to my little boy! I love you more than you will ever know! You are a most precious gift and we are so blessed to have you in our family! Always remember how much you are loved!

WE LOVE YOU!

Mom, Dad and Addy

Pictures of the party to come later!

Happy Birthday Karenna!

2009-04-02T21:11:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Karenna! I can't believe that you are 16 years old. You can officially date and drive very scary! I remeber the day you were born so well. I was so glad that you were here and safe. You were such a fun and crazy little girl. Your amazing energy always made me laugh! You were and still are such a fun person to be around. One thing that I love so much about you is how excited you get. You appreciate and get excited about little things. You are so easy to please and that makes us all feel appreciated and loved by you! You are such a sweet sister and aunt. You are always so sweet with my kids and they love you. How lucky I am to have you for a sister you have been a wonderful blessing in our family! Happy 16th birthday, I hope that you have had a wonderful day!

We Love You,
Justin, Maris, Schwinney and Adalayde

Happy Birthday Solomon!

2009-04-01T12:58:00.001-07:00

Happy 8th Birthday Solomon! You are a very sweet. kind and gentle boy. I loved watching you with your Dad at the basketball games in Las Vegas. You were watching out for your Dad you made sure that you got all the stickers off his back that Stilman had put on as a joke. It said a lot to me about how sweet you are. You wanted to make sure that you took good care of him! I love that about you. I also love that when I asked you if you missed North Carolina while you were gone you immediately told me that you missed your Mom! You always make people around you feel loved. I also love your very funny sense of humor. You have a great smile and an even better laugh. We are looking forward to having you here in Salt Lake and seeing you get baptized. We are so proud of you and love you very much! See you on Friday!!

Love,
Justin, Maris, Anderson and Adalayde

Sweet Anderson!

2009-03-30T20:38:00.000-07:00

Today Anderson had his Kindermusik class. During the class the kids play with lots of different instruments and they pick them up and then when the teacher Miss Anna tells them to put them away they all put them away. There is a little girl in our class who has a disability and is unable to walk. So every time the kids change instruments her mom has to hold her and try to get and put away the instruments. Today when Anderson went to get his instruments I told him to get two for Ada and her Mom. He walked right over picked two up and handed them to Ada. He then went over and got two for us. The rest of the class he would get the instruments first for Ada and then for us he even put them away for Ada. I didn't even have to tell him too. WHAT A SWEET BOY! I have already had to remind myself of his sweetness when he was throwing food at the dinner table! Really he is a very Sweet Boy!

Pierce's Party Pictures!

2009-03-27T20:28:00.001-07:00

These pictures are late but still fun to see!
The birthday boy! 5 Years old I can't even believe it!

Enjoying the party with my sweet baby girl!

Indiana Jones!

Once again Liesl with her amazing cakes. Look how cool the sharks are!

This Week

2009-03-27T20:00:00.001-07:00

Noah and Sam came and played Monday after school. Anderson was in HEAVEN he loved playing with his older cousins. They are so sweet with him. Noah especially is a trooper he spent the entire time doing what ever Anderson wanted. Getting dinner on the table was a breeze because Anderson was totally entertained

Adalayde got her first taste of asparagus and she loved it! It made a huge mesh but she ate two spears!

We went to the Children's museum! Anderson loves to go and play with the balls. I carry Adalayde in the carrier put Anderson on his monkey leash, I mean let him wear his monkey backpack and we are off. Oh, and we make sure to have hand sanitizer with us at all times!

We had a good week! Anderson still loves Kindermusik and swimming lessons. He is really improving and loves to swim. I have been going to Stake aerobics and Anderson goes to nursery with a girl named Maddie who watches the kids while we work out. He loves it! We have been spending a good portion of these winter months at the church. We have aerobics three days a week and then play group in the gym once a week. It has saved us this winter to have a place that Anderson can run around. We have also put our museum pass to good use as that also gets us of the house . We are looking forward to warm weather next week we hope and the ARRIVAL OF ALL OF OUR COUSINS!!

Getting so big

2009-03-21T13:45:00.000-07:00

After our run I took Adalayde to get her own sippy cup. She has been wanting Andersons and he did not want to share. Since we have gone BPA free and these stupid sippy cups cost a fortune each of them get two cups. Anderson will only use Orange so we got Adalayde a yellow and a pink. She was so excited! We came home and washed it and she loved using it.

It must feel good on her teeth. Yup, that's right my baby has one almost two teeth. You can't seem them that well yet but soon I HOPE they will be very visible and I will post a picture!

Why I love Saturday

2009-03-21T13:37:00.001-07:00

We ate breakfast then went for a run as a family. We ran 15 miles! Ok, not really we ran 2 miles then Big J wimped out and we had to go home. I think it had more to do with March Madness but you never know! It felt so good to be outside and we actually used our new double jogger as a jogging stroller. My kids love to be outside and they love the stoller. Thank goodness for that!

Anderson and the SCARE of my life

2009-03-20T14:18:00.000-07:00

Have a sucker or maybe a frosting coated ice cream cone!

Anderson gave me the scare of my life while we were gone. We were staying in Deadwood at a small hotel. Luckily it was small. Anyway, Anderson was obsessed with the elevator. By the way, the person who makes elevators with the buttons low enough for kids to push them should be fired!!

So, one day as we are all meeting to go to breakfast, Anderson disappears. I thought Justin had him and he thought I had him. Anderson is very sneaky! I was scared but I could hear the alarm going off in the elevator. Frantically I pushed the button so the elevator would come to our floor, the 2nd floor. When the doors finally opened... NO ANDERSON!

I was freaking out, I started to cry and was running up and down flights of stairs screaming his name. Gabriel ran outside to make sure he was not on the street. My dad went to the first floor and Justin went to the third floor.

When my dad went to the first floor he asked the lady at the front desk if the place had a basement. She said yes but that nothing was down there. Well, there was a little something down there. While she was getting the key to stop the elevator it came to the first floor and guess who was on it? That stinker had gotten off in the basement and then gotten back on!

When I got down to the first floor I saw the best thing ever! My dad holding Anderson and he was safe. We figure he was gone for no more than five minutes but as a mother it felt like days.

I would like to say that it will never happen again but it did on the same trip. We took our positions quickly minus Gabe in the street and found him again on the first floor.

So, if you want to get Anderson a really great birthday gift you could put an elevator in our house with buttons low enough for him to reach, it would keep him entertained for hours!!

I DO LOVE MY BOY TONS!! He is a stinker but the best stinker in the WORLD!

Mount Rushmore!

2009-03-20T14:03:00.000-07:00

I am way behind on blogging but here are some pictures of our Mount Rushmore trip!

Anderson was not a fan! Can you tell?

Mount Rushmore was really amazing to see!

Pierce with his Tachi Man!

Adalayde missed it!! She slept the entire time!

We had a great trip and enjoyed spending my dads 50th birthday with him!

The Weather Outside is Delightful!!

2009-03-20T13:50:00.000-07:00

The kids had swimming lessons today and when we got home we decided to have a picnic outside. Mostly because I am sick of hearing Anderson cry when we get out of the car and go inside. My boy is an outside kid!! When I took him in to put him down for a nap he was already filthy. I guess that is what little boys are suppose to look like!

The best picnic ever according to Pierce

The great outdoors wears my kids right out! Yes, at 7 months Adalayde still needs to be swaddled to sleep!

Happy Birthday Miss A!

2009-03-17T20:56:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday Ainsley. You are such a smart, sweet and fun little girl. You make me laugh every single day. I can't believe that you are already three years old. Even though you seem so much older than three, I can't believe that three years has gone bye since you were born. You are such a good cousin to Schwinney and Adalayde and they love you very much. You have been a very precious gift to all of us, especially your parents! I am so glad that my kids have such a wonderful cousin so close! You are the best niece the world! I love you very, very much!

The Amazing birthday cake that Liesl made. A real Princess cake for Princess Picky Pants as I call her!

Ainsley showing off her new earrings! She is a true DIVA!

No, I did not forget her birthday! We celebrated late because we were out of town on her actual birthday. And, as all princesses do Ainsley had a very specific idea of what her birthday should be. A castle cake would have been hard to find in Mount Rushmore!!

WE LOVE YOU!

Justin, Maris, Schwinney and Adalayde

Happy St. Patty Day!

2009-03-17T15:32:00.000-07:00

Check out this picture of Anderson last year. Look how few teeth he had! Don't you love the bow tie. We really decked him out last year!

Happy Birthday Olivia!

2009-03-16T12:36:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to our darling cousin Olivia. Olivia you are such a sweet girl. As you all know from previous posts Olivia is one of our faithful blog readers. She loves family so much and loves to hear things about my kids. To me that says so much about Olivia and her sweet personality. She is kind and cares so much about others! WE ARE SO EXCITED TO SEE HER VERY SOON!! We wish that she was here so that we could celebrate her birthday with her right now. We are looking forward to seeing her and her family in April! We hope that you have a very happy birthday!

We Love You Very Much,

Love,

Justin, Maris, Anderson and Adalayde

Happy Birthday Dad!

2009-03-08T18:54:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to my Dad, the best Dad in the world. I am so very blessed to have such a wonderful father. I have many fond memories of my Dad. Some of my favorites are when I lived in Reno and we would work out together. I still like to listen to AC/DC when I run because it reminds me of working out with my Dad. I also loved going to Pyramid lake with my Dad, he spent hours teaching me how to water ski and I loved every minute of it!! Every year in Montana we make new memories together. He created a wonderful place for us to all get together as a family. This is where my children will create very special memories with their Tachi. I love more than anything watching my children with their Tachi because he loves them just like my Tachi loved me and that is the greatest love around!! Thanks Dad for all that you have done for us. You are a great EXAMPLE of a hard worker and a true family man! I hope that you had a very happy birthday. We loved spending your 50th with you! WE LOVE YOU MORE THAN YOU WILL EVER KNOW!

Love,

Justin, Maris, Scwinney and Lulu

WE ARE OFF

2009-03-04T12:51:00.000-08:00

We are on our way to " mountain Rush" as Pierce calls it. We are on our way to Mount Rushmore for a suprise 50th birthday part for my Dad. Cheri came up with this wonderful plan! My dad thinks that he is coming to Utah for his birthday because Anderson is sick. Actually we will be meeting him inside the airport and all getting on another plane to head to Mountain Rush! We are looking forward to this trip and some time together! I will post when we get back! We will have a few birthday posts to catch up on when we get back.

If you want to have a good laugh just think of us at the airport. Our huge stroller, Anderson on a leash, four car seats between us, our luggage, my pump, diaper bag and all the kids! WE ARE A SIGHT TO SEE!!

Thanks Grandpa Scott

2009-03-02T14:56:00.000-08:00

Back in November Kent bought Anderson a nerf basketball hoop. The kind that you hang on the back of a door. Anderson and Justin were so excited. I think initially Justin was more excited about it! Until Anderson figured out what it was. Then he feel in love with it. HE HAD A HOOP IN HIS BEDROOM! He no longer had to go downstairs to shoot hoops. He could now shoot hoops during bedtime prayers and scripture reading. When you sleep with a ball you can get out of bed a shoot a basket first thing in the morning and right before you go to bed. What more could a kid ask for!

Well, it fell apart. That is what happens when you dunk balls in it, make baskets with books and any other toy that could fit in the basket. We used tape and glue but it could not be saved. So one day after putting Anderson in the car. When I was sure that he was not looking that Nerf hoop went in the garbage. When we got home Anderson looked all over for it. He would say Mom and then sign basketball. It was sad, I did not dare tell him that it was in the gross outside garbage can.

Well, no fear that very night Grandpa Scott pulled through. He showed up at our house with the Jazz basketball hoop and a Jazz ball. Anderson loves it so much. He slept with the ball that night and plays with it all the time! If Anderson had his choice we would have one in every room in the house!

SISTERS

2009-03-02T14:00:00.001-08:00

Today I am grateful for my sisters. These girls in this picture are my very best friends, BFF. That is right Best Friends Forever! I don't have a picture with Brittany because my computer won't except a disc right now. But I want Brittany to know that she is included. As for my brothers I love you all very much too. However there is a very different connection between sisters. I enjoy spending time with all of them so much! They make me laugh, cry good tears and I know that each of them would do anything for me. What could be better than having eight very loving sisters. Today as Liesl and I sat on the porch watching our kids it really hit me hard how greatful I am for her and all my sisters. I am also thankful for the four kids we have between us!

Today I also had a very sweet discussion about adoption with my aunt who is also one of my very best friends. As most of you know she adopted a sweet baby girl for Etheopia 4 years ago. As I look at Beza I am reminded that Childeren no matter how they come to our famlies are by far the greatest blessings you can have. I hope someday that Justin and I will be able to adopt and take part of that very special oppourtunity and spiritual experience.

Today, I also have had the experience of praying for a family that I do not really know all that well. They are a friend of a friend. They are saying good bye to their sweet baby today. She was born with a heart defect and they have done all they can do for her. This is always a real downer and I don't like to post about sad things. However I feel that this family can use all the prayers they can get. So, if you are reading this blog please remember sweet baby Gracie Gledhill, her parents and her brothers and sisters. Her mom Michelle has written a very touching blog about her journey. You will cry your eyes out but you will be touched. The blog is thegledhillfamily.blogspot.com.

LOOK AT MY BEAUTIFUL SISTERS! AND OUR TWO DARLING DAUGHTERS!!

Look At That Face

2009-02-26T20:22:00.000-08:00

WE THINK SHE IS THE CUTEST LITTLE BABY GIRL IN THE WORLD!!

Sleep Over With Cousins

2009-02-26T20:11:00.000-08:00

For Tonys birthday Liesl took him on an overnighter. The kids stayed at our house and we loved having them!! Anderson was especially excited to have his cousins here. I even let Anderson watch part of a movie before he went to bed! They watched the BEE movie and loved it. They stayed most of the day today and they all played together very well. Anderson was taking his nap when they left. When he woke up he cried for Pierce and was trying to open the door. I told him Pierce was gone and so he started to cry for his Dad. Poor kid he gets so sick of his Mom! Imagine him as a teenager! Actually lets not I don't even want to think about it!!

Happy Birthday Hong Chow!

2009-02-25T10:34:00.000-08:00

Happy birthday Hong Chow. You are officially 30! I spent many years grwoing up wishing I had an older brother. I am so very lucky to have gotten the best big brother in the world. Hong Chow really is a brother, protective and a big tease. Lucky for Justin he was the first and only man that Hong approved of. Well, I guess big brothers know best!! Thanks for being such a great big brother. You are a great husband to my dear sister and a wonderful father to my nephew and niece that I love so very much! I hope that you have a very happy birthday!

Love,

Justin, Maris, Schwinney and Adalayde

A Day In The Life

2009-02-24T20:08:00.001-08:00

7:30 Anderson wakes up and call us from his crib. We all wake up including Adalayde. Justin gets up with Anderson and changes his poo diaper. I have Anderson trained so well. I stay in bed and feed Adalayde and pump. Justin feeds Anderson breakfast and I feed Adalayde some cereal and squash. I unload the dishwasher, clean up breakfast and make beds. We all get ready and dressed.

8:40 Out the door. Adaladye and I go to her appointment. Anderson can not come because he screams bloody murder when they give Adalayde her shots. So, Justin takes Anderson to Liesl's. He is thrilled and can't wait to see Piercey.

9:30 I pick up Anderson and we go to playgroup over at the church. Anderson loves going and playing with all the kids.

11:00 We get home. Adalayde is asleep so Anderson and I do puzzzles and shoot baskets. ANDERSON AND I ARE NOT WATCHING T.V DURING THE WEEK! This is a new thing and it is hard but I feel that Anderson behaves better when we don't watch t.v. We listen to music instead and then on the weekend he can watch SIGNING TIME.

12:00 Adalayde wakes up. I nurse her and feed Anderson lunch. He wants to eat peas and apparently I live with an ape. He takes the pods and shreds them with his teeth. He then eats the peas out and throw the pods on the floor. I guess he is not sure how humans behave. So, Off to time out. He gets out and we clean up the mess together. THIS HAPPENS EVERY SINGLE DAY. Time out for food throwing!

12:30 We read books and he snuggles up with me and we sing BABY MINE. This and before bed at night when we do the same thing is my very favorite time of day with Anderson. I love holding him close and cuddeling with him!

1:00 Nap time! Anderson loves his bed and when the time comes he waves and tells us bye. I swaddle Adalayde and put her down. The guy who bought our house and his inspector show up. NAP TIME IS WASTED! The buyer asked me a bunch of questions and made small talk for 2 hours. HONESTLY, he is a nice guy but come on!

3:00 Adalayde wakes up. I love this time with Adalayde I nurse her and talk to her and enjoy the time with just the two of us.

4:00 Anderson wakes up and is hungry but, I need to change Adalaydes poo diaper. While I am doing this Anderson figures out a new trick and opens the cupboard. He gets out the cookies and is sitting on the floor eatting them as fast as he possibly can.

It made me laugh so I got out the camera to take pictures. While I was taking pictures Adalayde also had a little trick up her sleeve. She pulled over the tree on the island and was about to eat the dirt.

Ok, my house was all clean for the inspection and dinner was already to go in the oven. My house was about to be destroyed and it was a nice day outside. So, I decided to take the kids on a walk. I had the table set for dinner and turned on the ovem. I had it all planned out. We would walk for 45 minutes. Come home at 5:00 put dinner in the oven. It would be done at 5:30 just as Justin got home.

We leave on our walk and the kids are loving the outdoors. We walk and get home just in time! Just in time to realize, I DON'T HAVE MY KEYS! Thats right locked out with the two kids. Thank goodness it was still pretty warm. I called Justin and told him that he had to come home and let us in. We play outside until he gets home. Anderson is a disaster mud, dirt, runny nose you name it!

5:30 Justin gets home and unlocks the house. I put dinner in the oven, nurse Adalayde and feed Anderson. Again he wants more peas and again he throws a lot of them. Again he goes to time out. Adalayde gets cereal and more squash. She loves it!

6:00 We eat, I clean up and Justin and Anderson go down to shoot baskets and wrestle. I give Adalayde a bath and get Andersons medicine ready.

7:00 I go to Young Women. Justin gives Anderson and bath and takes care of Adalayde while I am gone. He reads books and prays with Anderson. I am always sad on Tuesday night because I don't get to snuggle with Anderson before bed.

7:45 Anderson sleeps

8:00 My phone rings it is Justin and Adalayde she is screaming. Luckily the church is close. I walk in and she hears my voice and stops! Stinker, She loves her mommy. I can't say that I mind! I change yet another poo diaper and nurse her. While I was nursing her she would stop and just look at me and smile and laugh. It was like she was saying thanks for coming home Mom! It is moments like that and when I get to snuggle with Anderson that it is all so worth it. They are so much fun and Justin and I spend so much time laughing and talking about our kids. WHAT WOULD A DAY BE LIKE WITH OUT THEM? WAY TO BORING!

10:00 It is my bed time. I will not be back on duty until 7:30 and then we start over. I am so thankful to have a husband who supports my decision to stay home. I truely enjoy every minute of it!

6 Month Well Child Check

2009-02-24T19:58:00.000-08:00

I took Adalayde to the Doctor today for her 6 month check up. The Doctor said that she looks good and is doing great developmentally. She weighted in at a whooping 12 pounds 10 ounces! That puts her right in the 5th percentile! She was 25 inches and that puts her in the 25th percentile. My babies are bitty babies, what can I say. My Doctor asked me today if Justin and I have trouble putting weight on? REALLY, HE SAW ME WHEN I WAS PREGNANT. No, we seem to put weight on with the best of them but, thanks! Bottom line is I can assure my cute kids that they will not always be so low on the weight chart! Adalayde performed beautifully for the Doctor and gave him lots of smiles. I decided not to give her shots because she has a cough. I will take her back for them when her cough is gone.

Happy Birthday Pierce!

2009-02-19T12:55:00.000-08:00

Happy Birthday to my sweet nephew Pierce. Five years ago today you totally changed my life! I took one look at you and my heart was melted. You were perfect! As you grew older and older you became even more fun! I looked forward to watching you when your parents would go out which was never enough. I lived with Buffy when you were little and we loved so much when you and your Mom would come to are house. You are such a fun and smart little boy and I love you so very much! I now look forward to Wednesdays when you come to my house and we make cookies. I am so glad that you and Schwinney are " best friends". Both Schwinney and Adalayde are lucky to have you as a cousin! Happy Birthday!

WE ALL LOVE YOU VERY MUCH!!

Love,

Poo Dog, Donna, Schwinney and Adalayde

How Big J Gets It Done

2009-02-18T14:38:00.000-08:00

First off I have to explain why I am calling Justin Big J. When we went snowshoeing a few weeks ago Justin was pulling the kids. I wanted a turn so I hooked in and off we went. We went down this very little hill and then I tried to pull the kids back up. Well, I fell and could not get up and could not stop laughing. Jutin helped me up and said It's not so easy is it? Now maybe you will appreciate Big J a little more. Well, I do really appreciate Big J! I don't always tell him that but I do really appreciate and love him! Ok enough of the lovey dovey stuff!

The other night Big J was giving Anderson a bath and I needed him to hold Adalayde for a minute. Usually at bath time we perform man on man defense. He gives Anderson a bath and I give Adalayde one. But this night I needed him to hold her while Anderson was in the bath. When I came to get her this is what I found! Adalayde in the sink with a towel looking all around. That is how Big J gets it done!