Halloween 09

Halloween this year was different to say the least. This was the first year that we stayed home for Halloween. In years past we have always gone to my mothers house for a big Halloween party. This was the first year that she had decided not to do it anymore. Even if she had decided to we would have had to decline our invitation. Laine and Kaylee are old enough now that they want to Trick or Treat with their friends so for the few years they have left to do it we needed to stay put.

With that in mind, it was a good thing that we were home. Halloween was on a Saturday this year. The Monday before Tom came down with the flu. For three days he was home sick. Then on Thursday, Chesney, Jaycie and I came down with a really bad chest cold. Jaycie, I would dare say had the same flu that Daddy had. So Halloween came and no one was up for the festivities.

It did turn out nice though, since we were on the down side of our sickness we still got everyone dressed up and took the little ones out Trick or Treating. Laine was a Werewolf. Kaylee was a Cowgirl. Chesney and Jaycie were both Princesses. I made Kaylee's shirt and both princess outfits. Very proud at my first attempt at something so complicated. Then we just stayed in the rest of the night. Chesney and Jaycie had the most fun answering the door and handing out candy. So all in all a good Halloween.

Chesney is 4!

Every time a birthday comes for one of my kids I just can't believe where the time has gone. My precious Chesney is now 4 years old. WOW! I must say that she is a cute 4 year old. For months all I would hear at every toy commercial on TV would be "can I have that for my Birthday?" So shopping for her was really easy to do. Just go down the toy isles and pick a toy you like and she would love it. I love this age for things like that.

We had a small family party on the 19th. The actual day of her birth. We picked up a cake. All she said all morning was that she wanted a cake with purple and pink on it. So we found a princess cake with purple and pink icing on it and brought it home. We got her a couple of outfits, the mom standard gift, and a new "big girl" bike with helmet and pads. I think she was more excited about the cake then the bike.

Then the following Sunday we had her big birthday party. Again she wanted rainbow cake. Mom, not being a baker in the very least, made cupcakes and formed them in a rainbow and frosted them to look like a rainbow. She wasn't as excited about that but it worked. Everyone came and she made a hall, as usual. She got coloring books and crayons, Littlest pet shop, a toy phone, a Yo Gabba Gabba costume, a dance camera that you plug into the TV and see yourself dance, the Elefun game, and some very cute clothes! Everything was a big hit! It has been so cute to see and hear her use her imagination as she plays with everything.

I must say, I don't think there was a happier 4 year old on the planet! She had so much fun!

Thank you everyone for helping make her birthday a great one!

Deer Hunt 09

I must say that this year is one for the record books. In the past Tom will go hunting for a week or so and I stay home with the children and life is pretty normal. This year there must be something in the air, because it seemed that whatever could go wrong did.
Tom left on a Tuesday afternoon. I swear that his last words to the kids were "make moms life unbearable while I am gone." At least I like to tease him about that. Because, even though I stay home with them all day long, they decided that the first couple of days would be the perfect time to cause havoc.
Wednesday cute, sweet, innocent, Jaycie decided it would be great fun to color on her closet doors with dark blue and purple markers. Yeah for me! Something new to clean up!
Thursday morning Chesney decided it would be great fun to lock and shut all the doors upstairs that lock. This included the room that kept the keys to unlock said doors, mine. Of course she had to do this first thing in the morning before I had the opportunity to get dressed. Frantically I was running around the house hoping to all who is mighty that there was a key somewhere so I wouldn't be running to the store, in my bath robe, to buy something to unlock the doors. Luckily, I found one downstairs.
Things quited down until Friday night. At 4:30 in the morning the smoke detectors decided it would be great fun to beep. Just once mind you. But enough to scare the tar out of me! Frantically I am running all over the house checking for anything that would have set them off. My mind was racing, how was I going to evacuate 2 children and 9 dogs. 8 of which can't walk and 1 that would run away if given the opportunity. I didn't find anything so I chalked it up to a fluke. It still took me the next two hours to calm down enough to get back to sleep.
Saturday I needed to pick up some more fabric for the girls Halloween costumes. I ran into the craft store thinking that it should be a quick in and out trip. WRONG. The moment we step through the door my lovely Jaycie started screaming over everything. Over the usual stuff. She wants to be where Chesney is. Must sit where Chesney is, must have what Chesney has. So on and so forth. Well, my quick in and out turned into over an hour. We had to wait in line at the cut table for 45 minutes. It sucked. I was really wishing I could discipline my child in public without worrying about the consequences. She of course stopped once we got going down the road and mom yelled at her for over 10 minutes. Can I just say I HATE the terrible 2s!
Sunday, thank goodness, was quiet. WHEW.
Then Monday reared it's ugly head with a vengeance! I was working on a Halloween costume when my sewing machine started to act up on me. NO NO NO! I looked up to see that our 50 inch tv is now tilted at a 45 degree angle on its stand. AAAAHHHH! All that kept going through my mind was, save the tv, save the tv. So I called my brother in law to come help me lift the tv and set it down on the stand. Once he got there we proceeded to take the tv down. Neither one of us thinking that it would probably be a good idea to see if we need to disconnect any wiring in the back. We ended up saving the tv, but two of the nice expensive wires that run the tv now need to be replaced. So now in order to watch tv and keep the kids entertained, I rob one cable from the upstairs unit and plug it in downstairs. Then, when I need it back upstairs I unplug it from the downstairs and take it back up. Yeah for musical cables! Oh yeah, the sewing machine malfuntion was my own fault. I just kept forgetting to put the pressure foot down. So at least that isn't broken on top of everything.
This afternoon Tom is coming home. I quite honestly don't know what is up with this week. I have been on my own before and nothing like this has ever happened.
Oh, and as of this morning, no deer. I guess we can call that the icing on the cake.

Puppies, Puppies, Puppies

Well, we did it! We successfully mated our dog, Asia. The first time we tried it, it was a flop. But this time worked wonders. We have 8 happy, healthy puppies running around now. The sad thing is that she delivered 12 pups total but 4 didn't make it. I have to say it will be fun and sad to watch them grow up and leave us so soon. But we will enjoy them while we have them.

Family Fun at the Water Park

Usually every year we try to take the kids swimming. For the last few years we have been going with my sisters and their families to the Roy swimming pool around the 4th of July. This year was different. That family trip to the pool happened spontaneously when Tom and I asked Angie to babysit while we went to Lagoon for the day. So we missed out but the kids had a blast with Aunts and Uncles and Grandma.

With that in mind, we decided to take the kids to a big water park instead. We picked Raging Waters to host this years family get together. It was a great day! The weather was a little iffy in the morning and when we got there at 11:30am the pools were really cold. But in about an hour or so they started warming up. This was the first time ever I have gone to a park this size and it was not wall to wall people. We could go down the river without bumping into people right and left. No fighting for space in the wave pool. We walked on every slide, no waiting at all. It was fabulous!

The kids enjoyed every minute of it and so did the rest of us. It was a great day!

Sweet Little Angel

My cousin Staci and husband Danny lost their little boy, Bridger, this week. Attached is his obituary. Our heart and prayers go out to their family.



BRIDGER SMITH
Bridger James Smith 09/04/2008~08/08/2009 Bridger was gratefully received by Staci and Danny Smith on September 4, 2008 in Salt Lake City. From the moment Bridger entered this world, he had a way of winning the hearts of all those around him. From birth to the end of his time here on earth, Bridger fought many battles and until the morning of August 8, 2009, he was able to persevere with a smile. It was while in Texas being evaluated for a heart-lung transplant that Bridger faced his final battle in this world. Bridger is a miracle to his parents, to the medical world and to all those who had the privilege of knowing him. We will forever miss our beautiful, blue eyed boy and look forward to the moment we see his smiling face again. We would like to give our love and gratitude to all of our family at Primary Children's, because of your love for our son and dedication in your work, we had an amazing 11 months and four days with Bridger. Bridger we are all better for knowing you. Your mom and dad love you more than you will ever know! Thank you for choosing us! Services will be held at Jenkins-Soffe Mortuary at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, August 15, 2009, 4760 South State Street, Murray, Utah, with viewings on Friday at the mortuary from 6-8 p.m. and Saturday 10-10:45 a.m. prior to the service. In lieu of flowers, a foundation has been arranged in Bridger's name at Primary Children's Medical Center. All funds raised will go toward sleep chairs in the Pediatric ICU. Online condolences at http://www.jenkins-soffe.com/

Laine's 12th Birthday

Our oldest child turned 12! That is just amazing to me. The time has gone so fast. Only yesterday I was bringing him home from the hospital after his birth and now I have a budding teenager on my hands. Ok, enough nostalgia. Time to get to the event at hand.

We had just a small family party for Laine. He was so excited. At the same time a little confused. Because he lives at Rick's house now we only get him every other weekend. His actual birthday wasn't for another week. Usually I will throw their birthday parties after their actual birthday has passed. This year however, we held it a week early. He was scheduled to have another surgery on the 13th and not knowing his recovery with how he would be feeling and what he could and couldn't eat we decided to host his event early. Makes sense right??? He made a killing, as usual. We got him a ramp for skateboarding or biking and of course, the mom standard, clothes. Grandma Wendy made him a book of card games and gave him some cards to he had something to do while recovering from surgery. Grandma and Grandpa Simmons and family gave him a new skateboard and helmet and pads. He also got some other stuff from other family members and of course money. It was a simple party of cake and ice cream and great company. I think he had a ball and was very pleased with everything. Thank you to everyone for coming and helping celebrate.