The Colonel's Kids

Our family is all far away . . .

2011-06-05T21:13:00.000-07:00

It means that we spend most of our special occassions and holidays with just the two of us - and that can be a little lonely.

On the up side, it means we have been able to take the opportunity to travel to fun and wonderful places to visit them. In May, I was able to visit Mom and my sisters in White Rock and then to visit Sunni in Seattle and travel out to Orcas in the San Juan Islands together. We went whale watching and saw most of the members of the local pod of Orcas.

While we were there, Chris called to let us know that Asher Benjamin had arrived in their family. Mother and baby are doing well. We can't wait to snuggle him. He is so lucky to be in Chris and Rachel's special family:)

Here Today, Gone to Maui

2011-05-14T21:37:00.000-07:00

dan did alot of research on restaurants and we had some amazing food.

did some snorkeling

fell in love with the Plumeria Tree

did ALOT of body and boogie boarding.

and paddle boarding, that was alot of fun, maybe we'll be brave enough to try it in the surf next time

drove the road to Hana and went on a few hikes in the rain forest

3 Bears Falls

love the chickens that were everywhere

snorkeling trip to Molikini Bay

the beach we were staying on

our view

coconut juice

Maui in May, LOVED IT! that's all I can say. Thanks Jen and Tomy and Curt for watching our kids. 12 years together. Greatest anniversary trip ever.

Random pictures from this winter

2011-04-13T20:41:00.000-07:00

I have spent this LOOOONG, gray, cold winter painting my house, not all red of course, but painting. only the tall entry way left, not sure how to reach those high corners-; I love the way Jace and Jaxon talk. they swinged on the swings and swanged on the swangs that day and we drank hot lockit (hot chocholate)

I guess we had some static electricity in the house that day. We got our rec room insulated and heated. getting closer to finished. just some framing and drywall left. we put a swing up there and it has been very popular.

The snow fort that the kids made after ski lessons one day.

Spring Break

2011-04-13T20:33:00.001-07:00

Komodo Dragon. That was so cool to see one for reals. Amazing.

Los Angeles in January-It just doesn't get any better!

2011-01-30T08:44:00.000-08:00

For Martin Luther King weekend, we headed south for a weekend with Chris and Rachel and the boys. We had a marvelous time. We visited the science museum and went to the beach, shopped in the "Alley" downtown (Earings for $1 and the boy's favorite - pellet guns!) and ate at In and Out Burger with dessert at Diddy Riese (made to order cookies ice cream sandwiches for $1.50!). We enjoyed family movie night, playing at the park, opening belated birthday presents with Jackson and attending church at their ward. The grand finale was Monday at Disneyland - the happiest place on earth! As you can see, we arrived early and stayed late - until we were all worn out! But it was worth it. (The picture below is us waiting for the fireworks and night show to begine;))

We had so much fun. Many thanks to our wonderful hosts:)

Inaugural Festivities - January 7th & 8th

2011-01-30T08:18:00.000-08:00

We helped Governor Otter and the other state wide officers celebrate all weekend. Gavin attended Mass and then the swearing in - sat on the steps of the Capital! Friday night we attended a Jo Dee Messina concert with our good friends the McFarlands. Saturday, we got all "glammed" up (for me that means even polishing my nails!) and attended two balls - one at the State Capital and the other at the BSU ballroom. It was fun but I wouldn't want that lifestyle all the time!

It's been 38 years since this day - January 2, 1973

2011-01-06T16:35:00.001-08:00

The faces (and figures) have changed a bit but the love is even stronger! I'm so grateful to Gavin - for his humor, his kindness, his integrity and most of all, his love for me:)

Here's to 38 more years and then on to eternity!

Libby

it's been a while

2011-01-02T21:25:00.000-08:00

thanksgiving in Eastern Montana and the snow was already deep, we spent hours sledding, especially Will and Payson who spent two entire days on the hill, we made them come in to eat lunch and use the bathroom and then they were right back at it until dark. we had two tobagons and had a blast being pulled by the four-wheelers and the pick-ups, especially entertaining watching the Chevy get stuck twice and getting pulled out twice by the Ford, funny family joke. our camera ran out of batteries so i had to use my moms and i still haven't gotten those pictures from her. Tana got engaged to Don Mark. so exciting for them.

we have so much snow in our yard now that i can't get my trash out to the street. it just keeps coming down, it's a winter wonderland.

we built the snowman family right after the first snow, we've had about two feet since then, you can barely see the snow family any more, i need to take another picture, it's kinda funny and they are all tilting.

Brookie is 10 years old today. she's been with us for a decade, just a great kid. can't really imagine life without her, i'm not sure who i was before she came along. we don't really do cakes, #1 because i can't decorate them worth a darn and i don't find it fun, #2 noone eats them even if i make one or buy one, so we just do favorite desserts for birthdays. Brookie picked Cream Puffs this year. Huge hit, we haven't had those for a while so it was fun to make them and then watch the kids devour them with chocolate goo and vanilla pudding running through their fingers. had to get creative with the candles, hard to fit 10 candles on an eclair.

love this new thing Will does. he likes to catch me off guard and WINK at me. i love it, it is so cute, he makes me laugh. that's a Christmas Eve pajama picture with a great WINK going on.

Big Sky a couple weeks ago
Me and my girls

me and my man.

me and Melissa.

Will and Luke, they cracked me up, they would just bomb down the hill, it was all about competition, boys are funny. Will went so hard he had leg cramps that night and growing pains, kept us up. such a funny kid.

Corbin and Brookie in the lodge taking a lunch break.

Paige getting brave. she's doing so good now.

our favorite thing about living in mt has been skiing alot as a family, we love it and we go every chance we get. lately it's been especially fun that Curt and Tomy moved closer. we've gone 3 times with them and it's only jan.2 so we are really excited that they are into it too, because we have loved having someone to do it with.

Do I look like me?

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

I hope not - this was what I wore when I helped our Young Men & Young Women with their "Where Waldo at the Mall" activity.

White Christmas - Yes! White Thanksgiving????

2010-11-22T16:34:00.001-08:00

October

2010-10-31T20:29:00.000-07:00

October has been a busy month. We enjoyed a trip down to Albuquerque with many stops along the way. We had to stop in Moab similar to how Grandpa Merrill always had to work Yellowstone into a trip. We enjoyed the sun, aquarium, zoo, explora, balloon fiesta and catching up with friends. Janey is already 2 years old and has been alot of fun. She now gets some alone time with Honey and I now that 3 of the kids are in school. Haloween was alot of fun filled with multiple parties, costumes and of course lots of sweets. We hope you are well.

40 DAYS OF TRAVEL

2010-10-31T18:49:00.000-07:00

I looked at my calendar for the last three months and tallied it up! That is a lot of time on the road. But it has all been so much fun! We went rafting in Riggins with Sunni and Dan & Honey and their family. (Dan's new raft is awesome and they really know how to make camping and rafting fun.) We spent Labor Day weekend in LA with Chris & Rachel and the boys (Sea World was a blast. As you can see in the pictures, we closed the place down!) Columbus Day weekend, we flew to Lawrence, Kansas and saw Carson & Deena's stomping grounds. They were great hosts. I just got back from a week in White Rock with Mom and Jeanne and Marnie and their families. We worked on Dad's history but still found time for visits, good food and fun! In between were a couple of trips to Coeur d'Alene, and a trip to Lake Okeboji, Iowa and Omaha. Whew! That's a lot of suitcase packing and unpacking! During the days I was home I was managing our remodel and doing the related painting and packing & unpacking of boxes.

My travels were wonderful - seeing family was the best part - but now I am glad to be home. Like Dorothy said, "There's no place like home!"

My First Movie Role

2010-09-29T21:00:00.001-07:00

Please enjoy the following propaganda. It was filmed at UCLA for a national Retina society.

summer 2010

2010-08-29T21:57:00.001-07:00

loved having a huge garden this year. i've got carrots, lettuce, spinach and green beans coming out of my ears. just enough raspberries and strawberries and peas to eat right there and corn in a week I think. lots of pumpin, butternut squash and gourds but i don't think the watermelon and cantoloupe are going to make it, they are tiny still. the asparagus and sweet potatoes are also doing amazing, but not quite ready. fruit trees are all looking great but the Kristin Cherry. the peach trees have made a comeback.

Dan got his roll down. he did the Gorge again in the kayak and I THINK he made it down without panic-ing this time. he did flip in Tumbleweed but got right back up no problem, unlike last year. Hopefully no more nightmares about being stuck upside down in a boat.:)

We spent most of our summer on some kind of boat or another.

We're going to try to sneak in one more trip down the Gorge if there are any takers?

And probably once down the Gallatin since we just had family move to Bozeman (yeah, we are so excited to have an excuse)

The vegetable game was my favorite campfire game of the summer. (it's definately easiest to just be a pea.) YW camp was a RIOT. I did the Polar Dip, Dan couldn't believe it.

After Shalayne fell out on Tumbleweed we made the kids wear helmets the next time.

then Gavin and Brookie swam Fiddle Creek, two spills the whole summer, not too bad. Made for good memories and fun times.

This is my world!

2010-08-27T06:50:00.001-07:00

We are deep into the second (and hopefully the final) stage of our remodel! New flooring, new bathtub tile and new stair rail. Right now, we are completely moved out of the upstairs. In two weeks, we move upstairs and clear out the downstairs. Sunni was working in the garage with the door open when they were having our neighborhood yard sale last Saturday and people passing by kept looking at her hopefully - but it all has to go back inside!

Diving Contest

2010-08-01T21:44:00.001-07:00

Here are the boys with their Durham cousins. Christopher and Ethan did their first diving board flips. Matthew tried but did not quite get all the way around.

Grandma Heaven

2010-07-18T21:43:00.000-07:00

We brought Brookie and Emma back from Missoula after Emma's baptism and two days later Honey brought Will and Janey. The first day they were here we made a list titled "Things We Want To Do". We got all of them done and a few more! Here is the list Emma and Brookie wrote and the pictures for proof.

1. Bake bread

2. Buy food

3. Look through Grandpa's books

4. Make jewelry

5. Pick raspberries

6. Yard work (It wasn't all play!)

7. Swim

8. Pack houses (We are getting ready to do the next phase of our remodel.)

9. Pack Santas (See above.)

10. Fix screen (Remember the one Christopher ran through last summer?)

11. Visit swans

12. Library (We needed to get additional copies of "The Spiderwick Chronicles.)

13. Watch movie (The kids picked "Where the Wild Things Are" - we wished we hadn't;))

14. Water slides (Roaring Springs water park)

15. Buy yarn (I am going to make ponchos for the girls.)

16 Postcards (To send to Dan who had to stay in Missoula and work.)

17. Toy movie (Toy Story 3)

Our last Month in Winston Salem

2010-06-24T05:22:00.001-07:00

Happy 28th Birthday to Carson!!

2010-06-20T14:43:00.001-07:00

Isn't he precious? He is even more precious today. Love you son.

Happy Father's Day

2010-06-20T14:33:00.000-07:00

I am so grateful to have the VERY BEST father in the world as the father to my children. (Although Dan and Chris are close runners up!)

Will turned 5

2010-06-04T18:00:00.000-07:00

we went to Moab.
I love that place. there's something about it.

Brookies friends at school love Janey.

Will turned 5, the light sabers were a huge hit.

Gifts

2010-05-18T09:49:00.001-07:00

We were given a special gift for three months. I went today to hear the little heart beat of our baby for the second time and found that our little baby had decided to go back up to be with our heavenly father. I am so grateful for this wonderful gift to have been able to carry this baby and be with it for such a short time. Even though we didn't get to meet it sure brought a lot of joy and happiness to our sweet family. I know God lives and loves each and everyone one of us. I know he has a plan and that with his mercy GREAT things are brought to pass. I am was truly blessed with this great experience. And will be sad and mourn its loss but know that its little heart was sick.

Moab

2010-05-16T20:54:00.000-07:00

We headed to Moab for another fun time in southern Utah. The kids really love it and Honey and I enjoy the scenery, hiking, biking and restaurants. The flowers were in bloom. The temperature was just right and the only challenge was driving 12 hours and when Janey spiked a fever and she came down with hand, foot and mouth. She is doing well now. Hope everyone is doing well.

2010-05-10T18:17:00.000-07:00

After telling Matthew that his pants were on backwards, he found an unusual place to change!

So excited!

2010-05-09T13:51:00.000-07:00

We are excited to announce we are going to have another baby. We told the kids it was coming for Christmas. Even though it will be here earlier due December 8th. Matthew asked in how many boxes I thought it would come in. I love kids and their curious minds. He also thought I would be pushing it out of my foot. So he might be confused still since I just told him I would bring it home from the hospital after I pushed it out. No more details need, few close call. As for the other boys they are excited. We are getting set for another great baby.

We also wanted to thank everyone for all your thoughts and prayers. We feel were answered as the IUI or the doubling of the medication never need to happen. We truly feel like we have been watched over. We are excited that its one baby! We have seen the heart beat and all looks great.

We are hoping everyone will find sometime and come hang out at our house and spend some time with us at the beach this summer. Love ya'll as they say here in North Carolina.

A Little Swinger!

2010-05-04T21:37:00.000-07:00

We went to the park in Coeur d'Alene and Janey was swinging by herself. Listen to the joy! (Sorry, I can't figure out how to rotate it. Any suggestions?)

The Saga of the Slippers

2010-05-04T20:56:00.001-07:00

I started crocheting slippers for Dan and Honey's family for Christmas.
It took a couple of trys and Dan's "pickles" are a little strange - but don't they look cute in them? (I made the pink shawl for Sunni when she was little and now Janey can wear it!) Behind them is the gorgeous view out our window in Coeur D'Alene. We were up there for meetings and Dan and the gang drove over from Missoula to spend Saturday with us. The weather was wet and rainy but we still had a blast! Can you say shriveled fingers? 3 hours in the pool and hot tub will do that to you!

Spring Break in EM

2010-04-09T21:26:00.000-07:00

We had a blast over spring break. I got to spend two days with my Grandma who I hardly ever get to see and it was the funnest two days I have spent in a lonnnnnnnnnnnnng time. I learned all about 100 different things. We made raspberry tea out of the leaves she had dried last summer from her raspberry patch and she gave me some shoots for some flowers and I ate Hot Cross Buns for the first time in my life and tasted her canned meat (elk) that was the best dinner I have ever had and we just talked and talked. She told me all about her childhood and told my kids about their pet antelope "Bucky" that she had when she was a kid. She showed us her quilts that she has made over the years and I saw her apple orchard where I made many memories as a child. We rode Cisco and Scottie and Grandpa took Will and Keaton for a walk into "the forest". Which is what my "city slicker" 4 year old called the patch of pines behind their house. They were all laughing at him and his "forest". It was so much fun.

Then we had Easter at my parents house and my two uncles who won the wall-eye tournament last summer put on a fish fry for our whole extended family and I swear there were 100 people there, half of them kids.

We played some Major League Softball and it was a mean game. Thanks to the game and spotlighting the night before, Dan now has a couple new names. "Dead Eye Dan" and SuperGlue glove Gee".

the kids got to see 3 baby calves be born. quite the "education":)

Will and Keaton kept disappearing. Kyle and I would have to go looking for them. once they were exploring the "forest". the second time they were in my parents hay loft. they could climb up the ladder but they couldn't get back down, so they were just up there waiting for someone to come and help them down. they missed the egg hunt because of that one.

anyway, life is going by fast. looking forward to summer.

Start your engines!

2010-03-26T06:40:00.000-07:00

Last Saturday night was our ward Pinewood Derby. It made for a couple of busy weeks for me since our activity committee was in charge. Combining that with March of tax season (even working no more than 40 hours per week) was a little crazy;-) But it was a big success and I had a good time too! The silver car in the top picture was made out of metal and weighed 6 1/2 pounds! (It was in our "Anything Goes" category.)

Mini high-school reunion

2010-03-21T13:11:00.000-07:00

hey all- last weekend was full of memories and laughs...so much so that a group at the restaurant sitting next to us asked to be moved. My friend (since kindergarten) Amee Walker was in Boise and so we got together with Ali Dougal Haskell (Carson- I think you know her husband Chris?) and Kris(sy) Powell Jensen that live in town and took a trip down memory lane that included playing wonderwoman on our swingset, slumber parties, toilet-papering cute boys' houses, Saturday night dances and catching up on each other's lives since we got out of high school WAY back in 92 (can't believe I'm that old).

I know my Redeemer Lives

2010-03-18T09:25:00.000-07:00

This is my all time favorite Hymn. Every time I hear this song I am touch by the Holy Ghost. I couldn't be more grateful for our redeemer and his sacrifice for me. I feel his love when I hear this song. I am so grateful to have his love and guidance in my life. There are times when I have felt alone or forgotten and then I realize it was me that forgot to pray or lean on him. When I have reached out for his hand in my life he has always blessed me. It hasn't always been the way I would choose but it has been the right way. And in this I know that my redeemer lives and loves and blesses my life and the lives of my family.
I needed this post today and I am going to be a little personal. So for me to vent and as a testimony of what I believe. I feel like I should share. We have had a very hard year with so many ups and downs I am sometimes sick(not literally, I am fine!). Through this whole process of applying for fellowship and feeling over and over the comforter letting us know we are doing what we are suppose to. Giving us the confidence to move forward. We actually felt strongly that Chris would get into a great program. With much frustration from some of the Attendings at Wake Forest things weren't working out. Still leaning on the faith that we would be taken care of we kept pursuing a strong fellowship. With great work and faith great things came to be. I know it is not by works alone that we are going to be able to experience this time at UCLA. We are working hard in making this move but seem to be a little overwhelming at the moment. I know that we will be watched over. I feel his love and hand in our life. There have been days that I have woken up and felt inspired to clean my house and then get a phone call that someone wants to see our home that morning. There is no doubt in my mind that my Savior is watching out for me and my family. Our housing at UCLA isn't working out but it will wether we get to move into the housing UCLA offers or somewhere else it will be where we are suppose to be. I love my savior and know that he lives. That he cares about each one of us. It is so calming to know that I have a redeemer who lives and is there for me. Love ya all, thanks for letting me be personal.

The Power of Music - a challenge!

2010-03-14T21:17:00.000-07:00

A while back we had a sacrament meeting where people were asked to come up and talk briefly about their favorite hymn and then the congregation sang one verse of the hymn. It was one of the most powerful meetings I have attended.
They asked the ward leaders to come prepared in case there were few volunteers, so Gavin put together a list. There were plenty of volunteers (we could have gone for an hour at least!) so Gavin didn't go up but I thought I would share his list with you.

Because I Have Been Given Much
Do What Is Right
Count Your Blessings
Come Follow Mee
How Gentle God's Commands
Joy to the World (You knew there would be a Christmas song!)
I heard the Bells on Christmas Day (or two!)
I'll Go Where You Want Me To Go
Families Can Be Together For Ever

There are some of my favorites on this list.

Now, the challenge. Post a hymn/hymns (or other piece of music) that has had power in your life and, if you are comfortable, share why.

I would love to know what some of your favorites are.

Libby

Life Lately

2010-03-07T17:06:00.001-08:00

Cinnamon and Sugar, Brookie's rabbits.

The Kids Putting on an incredible play!

Hiking the M-Trail

Eating Otter Pops on the M. M is for University of Montana

Riding the chair at Discovery. This chair is the learners chairs and goes at a very slow pace.

Getting ready to hit the slopes at Discovery. What a striking resemblance to the US Ski Team.

Lovin' the Olympics!

2010-02-17T21:25:00.001-08:00

We are loving watching the Olympics! I'm so proud of Canada! And all the wonderful athletes! Here is mom's encounter with a torch bearer. Doesn't she look great?!! (Jean, I hope you don't mind me using your picture!)

2010-02-14T10:55:00.000-08:00

I went for a great walk with mom and dad yesterday on the greenbelt. They have become quite the birdwatching experts so they showed me all the good spots and I took photos. Here's some Boise wild (and not so wild...)life. love and besos...

Winter in Missoula

2010-02-14T09:27:00.001-08:00

Will is quite the skier

The wall came down and opened up our living space

Brookie and Emma just completed 6 weeks of lessons

We have had some snow at our place but not as much as we hoped

The trampoline is fun in the winter too!

Brookie and Emma were in the Missoula Children's Theatre Jack and the Bean Stock. It was a crazy week of daily evening practice. They did great!

Brookie had her birthday cake in a hockey locker room and then we skated

The stars of the show!

The Bird Count from Boise

2010-02-07T19:08:00.000-08:00

The numbers just keep climbing. Since a week ago last Thursday -

Bald eagles - 4 sightings - 3 pairs and one single

Herons - 2 in the river, 1 in the canal, 2 flying over and 4 sightings of herons returning to their nests high in the trees by the river - There were 8 there this morning.

Ducks - Lots of mallards - of course. Widgeons - Always some on the canal and in the pond by River Run. Wood ducks - They are back on the island in the pond by River Run. Today we saw about 5 pairs. Merganzers (See posting on 2/1/09) - on the pond and the river every time we walk. Yesterday - for the first time - what we call "chocolate ducks" are back. They are so pretty with chocolate brown heads, creamy chocolate chests and brown beaks with a white frosting stripe going across it.

Canadian geese - Too many too count - and noisy!!!!

What an amazing world we live in:)

2010-02-07T13:57:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone...thought I'd finally get back on here and say hello. I don't have any exciting new pictures, I've mostly been trying to get used to working again and learning a new area of nursing and get settled into some kind of a 'normal' life. St Lukes is good and I like working recovery so far, it's a nice change.

Pics: The trees are here in Boise down by Barber park and here's a picture of Carson and Deena's ferret goin mad for her pencil case. Last one's from the top of the arch in St Louis on our drive across country from Florida. Love to everyone!

Woot.com

2010-02-01T11:20:00.001-08:00

These are normally 70 dollars and today you can get them for 20 so if you need one of these Honey go to Woot.com my kids love theres.

Hot Tubbing in the Snow!

2010-01-07T20:06:00.000-08:00

I finally figured out how to get the videos off of Gavin's camera so I thought I'd share this crazy night from December at Sunni's apartment complex. Crazy people!!

A Warm and Wonderful Christmas

2010-01-03T21:04:00.000-08:00

Keeping Grandma warm while we open the gifts!Before andAfter!

Gavin's awesome snowboarding hill.

All snuggled up on Christmas Eve!

Always room for one more!
It was lovely to have Sunni and Alan here to share the fun! Mom arrived a week before Christmas and we put her right to work. Shopping and wrapping, music and movies, good food and good company - it was all wonderful:)

Dan & Honey and the kids came to Boise!!!!

2010-01-02T10:11:00.000-08:00

This is the incredible candy house we built!

Of course, we made a visit to the science museum. Janey loved running. Brookie and Emma got to use the "blue screen" and be in TV.

We decorated the tree - what a lot of memories it holds.

We went hot tubbing at Sunni's - crazy people in the snow!

Salt Lake & Christopher's Baptism was wonderful!

2010-01-02T09:39:00.000-08:00

We loved being there on December 12th:)

oh yeah

2009-12-20T19:34:00.000-08:00

this is Pippin', Emma's cat. he's an outdoor cat despite the picture. he's our mouser.

our tree, not too bad for out in the woods.

Dan works thru the holidays so this was our Christmas break a little early.

Our Christmas Break

2009-12-20T17:57:00.000-08:00

Dan and I haven't been to the Boise temple, where we got married, for 10 years, so that was great!! Thanks Libby for babysitting.

We haven't been to Boise for 4 years, when Will was brand new, so it was really fun.

Janey really loved that swing. She has not swung since we left ABQ. 5 months.

Snowman in the making with Grandma.

this is the snowman in SLC at Christophers baptism. That was a blast Chris and Rachel, thanks for letting us share in the fun.

Ethan and Will falling down the "hill"

that silly stray cat that wouldn't leave us alone

Christopher "King of the snowman"

random pic. the kids love that silly banister, they slide down it all day long.

hunting for the perfect Christmas tree. our picture for our Christmas card came from this excursion just 2 weeks ago, despite the date on the photo.

our new hickory island.

we got our tree 5 min. from our house.

another shot of the island.

Can you believe he's 60???!!

2009-11-27T19:59:00.001-08:00

Is it possible that he has passed the 6 decade mark? That's what the calendar says, but his joy and delight in life will keep him young forever! (We hope!!!) We love you Gav! You are the best:)

Christmas Gift exchange

2009-11-18T14:46:00.000-08:00

Sunni- Dan
Dan- Sunni
Chris- Carson
Carson- Chris

Well I am excited to announce the christmas exchange list for 2009. These like last year are who's family is giving to which family. I love celebrating Christmas and I know its always fun at Christmas with all the Gee's. Grandpa's trained us well. So have fun shopping for your family.
love
Rachel

Grandma Redd - We've done it!!!

2009-11-08T20:25:00.000-08:00

Ten years ago, a friend gave me this African violet. (It was a centerpiece at her son's wedding and I helped decorate.) This is the third time it has bloomed and each time I think of my grandmother. She grew African violets and they never bloomed. She had a friend that grew them and hers bloomed all the time. Grandma Redd tried everything her friend suggested without any success. So each time my little plant blooms, I think, "This is for you Grandma Redd. We did it!"

I really do like it here

2009-11-07T20:49:00.000-08:00

Notice Dan way in the back drilling holes with an auger.

with a borrowed pick-up and a rented auger, 52 holes later, we have the beginnings of the deer fence for our garden and orchard. we are getting excited.

the snow and cold weather was short-lived

so this week we decided to go ahead and get started on the deer fence for the orchard. notice how tall the fence posts are. we are serious because around here, the deer are serious.

Janey and Will were a HUGE help, as you can imagine

One thing I hate about blogs is that sometimes I really wear my heart on my shirt sleeve when I get emotional like my last post. so I'm going to try and make up for it, because there really have been some great things about being here. Over labor day, my family was here and my mom and sisters taught me how to can. i haven't done it since i was a kid and couldn't remember the first thing about how to do it, but i am living in apple country and have had apples coming out of my ears. everyone gives you apples around here, so thankfully my mom taught me what to do with it all. and it's been really fun for me. but I had so much that I ended up freezing alot to can another day. just can't do it all at once, it was so much apple pulp and juice. So far I have made oooodles of apple butter, apple sauce and everyones favorite: apple strawberry jam. so put your order in now for which you would prefer for Christmas:)

2009-11-01T21:29:00.000-08:00

Will was a firefighter one night and a ghost the other, but it looks like he should have been a missionary. with 3 sisters, I have to admit this little man has to fight pretty hard around here to get any attention.

Pippy Longstocking and her pet monkey, Mr. Nelson, actually won the costume contest at the trunk or trunk.

it's no joke, she's a monkey.

Brookie and her teacher were both ABBA. I could not find a ABBA costume Brookie's size so I made her one and then her teacher told me she saw them at ShopKo, DON'T TELL ME THAT!! seriously, that is not even funny.

I think Brookie was a little jealous that Emma won the costume contest, but I was really proud of her sportsman ship.

this was an emotional evening for me. as I'm checking everyone's blogs, my heart is in my throat as I read about Shelley S. and Holly A. having beautiful healthy babies and at the same time, Stephanie and Taylor losing their mom from cancer and now Tomy's dad is not well with cancer also and my heart is going out to all of you. I hope you all know we love you and miss you all. I think I am at my height of missing ABQ and wanting to go back, and wondering if we did the right thing. the school here has been a huge disappointment for me. I miss NACC so much I could cry, I actually already have. I feel like staying here is like committing to a life of dumbing down America and just resigning to the fact that my children will have a 3rd rate education and that's how public schools are and there's not much I can do about it. I'm starting to be okay with that, because I don't think we are moving back. I think I'm the only one who wants to and maybe Emma. But I think I would have to ddddddddddrrrrrraaaggggg Dan back. He loves it here and the job situation is so much better and we do love the area. so, I miss you ABQ and I guess visiting will have to be enough. it is starting to feel a little more like home here, I know time will help. okay, enough of my blah, blah, blah!! hfg

Halloween Challenge-Post Your Pics Now!!

2009-11-01T20:40:00.000-08:00

Can't wait to see what you all looked like!!!!

This is what we wore for a Halloween party. I got one vote for "scariest". Guess they must have heard how tough I was as a Cub Scout den leader - right Chris???

Your dad entered for me in the contest for guessing the number of pieces of candy in the jar. Just imagine how surprised I was when I won!

Gavin the Younger takes the plunge in Austin!

2009-10-19T06:18:00.000-07:00

We had a great time in Austin! Janice and Erin were wonderful hosts - Erin took us to the capital and he and Janice gave us a tour of the university and the downtown area. It was great to be with family! We are so grateful to have so many amazing nieces and nephews. The wedding was wonderful. Denny and Gavin had everything beautifully planned. Her colors were orange and green - don't you love her orange shoes? (She wore another pair with her wedding dress but I didn't get a picture of them.) The San Antonio temple is beautiful - stained glass windows with Texas scenes. I didn't get any pictures at the reception but it was a backyard fairyland with votive candles in jars hanging from the trees and all kinds of wonderful sweet treats.

Snow

2009-10-11T14:05:00.001-07:00

Janey turned 1.

We made her an ice cream cake and Emma decorated it with Janey's favorite things (marshmallow mateys, bananas and kittys)

Janey got lots of help opening presents.

we've finally introduced her to sugar. mint oreos are everyones favorites right now.

we got snow on the morning of Janey's birthday. (ignore the date on the photos)

she's learned how to walk.

we planted four trees.

Ever been to a Feis? We have!

2009-09-27T19:18:00.000-07:00

Shanna Salmon Clark and her three girls came to stay with us to attend this Irish dance competition. They have just been dancing for a year and don't have wigs or solo dresses, but they dance beautifully and are such remarkable young ladies. We had soooo much fun with them! (Check out the costumes of the other contestants on the feis' website - boisefeis.com.)

They also helped us "close" our pool by taking the last swim of the season!

Summer 09

2009-09-13T21:42:00.000-07:00

I just thought we would post some pictures from this summer. As you can see we don't get too bored around here with all these kids. We hope everyone is doing well. We love hearing from you all. It was fun to have Sunni, Mom, and Dad out to our place. You are welcome any time!

Dan

Quick Trip to Missoula

2009-08-31T09:53:00.000-07:00

Sunni didn't want to miss out on a visit with Dan & Honey & family while she was here from Spain, so after the others left we went on a road trip! The drive was beautiful and the visit was a blast. We watched the kids in swimming lessons, floated the river near their house and made a day trip to Stevens' Lake. We finished up with a visit to Dragons Hollow where they have the world's fastest carousel - at least that is what it seemed like to us!

Reunion in Boise

2009-08-30T20:27:00.000-07:00

We had such a great time having Sunni here from Spain, Chris and Rachel & family here from NC and Carson and Deena here from Kansas. Sunshine, water, good food, laughing and visiting. The only thing that would have made it better would have been to have Dan and Honey and their family here with us.

Before and After

2009-08-30T19:28:00.000-07:00

We are finally done our kitchen and bath remodel - at least almost. (I have a problem outlet to get fixed.) We had all the counters and sinks functional and the new lights in when the kids arrived:) Now all the tile is grouted and sealed. We experienced the usually ups and downs that seem to be part of a remodel and it took 3 times as long as originally projected, but we LOVE the end result!!

A couple of things.

2009-08-24T12:33:00.000-07:00

the blue shirt brigade:) we miss you all!!!!

I never posted pictures from Dan's graduation because the only camera I had was my blackberry and they all turned out blurry. Anyway, I decided to post some anyway, because I am really proud of him. So there you have it. It was at the Corrales Events Center. Good food. Good company. Good Laughs. Good memories.

Sunni and Grandma Libby came to visit. I guess we wore everyone out.

Sunni got us this dish in Morracco!! Isn't it cool? I am so excited. We love it. It looks great on the mantle Sunni, THANKS!
P.s. That book "Staying Home" you started reading here is actually really good, like you were saying. It gets very political very fast. It makes me feel extremely guilty about shopping at places like Costco where the oranges come from Chili. There is nothing wrong with Chili, but the book is all about supporting your local economy and local farmers. Did you know that the food an average American eats has been handled 22 times before you eat it and that 90% of Americans have no idea where their food comes from. It really got me going probably because we bought 5 acres with the idea of a big garden and orchard and chickens, etc. so this book got me all excited. I think some of the programs going on out there to get people to buy more local products are great. We just need more programs like that. And we need more awareness. If anyone wants to read a good book and do something great for their community and theirself, read this book.

My "little" brother Joe got married and I got to go. It was great. I drove down with my sister, Sherry and we had alot of great conversations.

My brothers all looked GREAT!! such great guys!

Donovan and Paige were the ring bearer/ flower girl. They were so cute.

Seeley Lake camping, etc.

2009-08-10T14:56:00.000-07:00

Playing in the River.

Bear Moss makes great mustaches and hairy armpits. Camping for long enough will do that to you.

Lily pads up at Seeley Lake. This picture doesn't really do them justice, but the reflection is cool. We went on a hike while we were there and we found a ton of huckleberry bushes and ate them until we were all full. It was so great because the locals will not tell you where to find huckleberries. they don't want you eating all their finds so you have to find them yourself. We were so excited.

The sunset from our deck.

Roasting marshmallows.

Playing in the mud is so fun.

Isn't this a beauty? It's my moms and I'm going to reupholster it. My latest project. I'll let you know how it goes. it really needs some love, but if you ever get a chance to rock on it, you'll understand why I'm going to the effort. It's my favorite loveseat/rocker ever.

Grandpa jumping on the tramp. They were taking turns doing tricks and the kids kept trying to talk him into doing a flip for them.

Latest NC Gee Video for Montana A-cabin-y Awards

2009-08-06T18:34:00.000-07:00

The Montana Gee's are great!

2009-08-02T20:10:00.000-07:00

We had a great 24 hours with them. We swam and slid at Splash Montana, walked down their lane, jumped on the tramp and sat out under the stars in their back yard. Church with them Sunday morning and we had to leave for Coeur d'Alene but we took with us some wonderful memories!

The Remodel Begins

2009-07-19T18:51:00.000-07:00

We are in the middle of our project - you can see the first couple of phases. We hope to get the cabinets done today and then we are on hold for a few days waiting for the quartz countertops to be cut. After that, a couple of days while they do the tile and then we can begin moving back in. We are getting excited! But for now, we are living out of our kitchen in the family room and boxes in the bathroom;-)

Finally have a working Camera

2009-07-15T21:28:00.000-07:00

We haven't had a camera for a while but today Dan fixed it. As a result I'm posting but I don't have any pictures of us here even though we've been here almost 3 weeks (can you believe it?) So I'm reminiscing (Sp?) instead. I'll post pictures of our land and what we've been up to, etc. soon.
THIS IS WHAT WE Are NOT MISSING:

I have never been more excited to post something on Craig's List before. we are so excited to get rid of these couches, slipcovers or not, but we'll throw them in there for free. And you name the price.:)

Swinging with grandpa more often.

And the wide open spaces. I LOVE THAT, AND I'vE BEEN MISSING IT!!!

Flip side of the coin,

This is what we have been MISSING ALOT!!!

the RIO GRANDE BIOPARK AND ZOO, the sprinklers were always a huge hit.

And FRIENDS, we are really missing our friends. Sorry Addilee about the hair pulling, you're probably not missing us but I love that face.:)

Brookie's has had many emotional moments thinking about Camella.

And Emma misses Abbey, Natalie, and CAsey. She has notes and letters and all kinds of accessories to mail to them if she only had a mother who could get it together to find the nearest post office, (I have nothing better to do).

We miss the Corralles Library so much. We love that place.

Notice Janey in the background about to pull all the books off the shelf.

We love this place. Looking at these pictures makes me want to cry.

the goats by the library were so fun. sometimes i have to admit we spent more time with them than we did in the library, which is hard to do.

we loved those goats. we had names for them all and we had their personalities all figured out.

they liked the dead leaves more than the green and they would only eat certain flowers. very particular goats.

Another thing we are missing is misquito free NM. my kids are not immuned to misquito bites yet so their bug bites have been swelling like crazy. it's amazing. Brookie's legs have gotten huge once or twice. they don't even BUG me, but the first week we were here, my kids thought the misquitos were going to eat them alive. they have started to disappear because the river levels are going down now.

More Drama about our MOVE:

Emma got a cat for her birthday and it was fine for one day. then it started having diarhea all over the place and I banned her to the mud room. today we took her to the vet and i guess she has some disease. just great!! dan and i've cleaned up enough cat STUFF to last us a life time and I'm surprised that i got through it without throwing up. i thought about it a couple of times. Anyway the Humane Society gets to keep the cat I think after the vet is through with her. I'm not sure I have it in me to take her back.

Brookie broke her nose on our tiled jetted tub. it was wet and she slipped and fell on her face. NICE, huh?

Will (and Brookie and Emma sometimes) have decided that the only place they can fall asleep is of course in Mom and Dad's bed. So we're all getting LOTS of sleep. Too much transition, everyone is just a little in need of some stability. it's coming soon.

Janey's doing great. I'm not sure she realized anything happened.

Dan loves his job. I love this house and my land and I can't wait to post pictures of the sunset we've been watching every night.

That's it. Hope everyone is doing GREAT!!

Can't wait to see pictures of your new house, Carson and Deanna.

More Morocco

2009-07-07T09:13:00.001-07:00

Dressed up Berber style in a jewelry stall

I was alright with the monkey, it was the guy with the snake that I wasn't OK with. I HATE and have a completely irrational fear of snakes. I spent the entire time in Djemaa el Fna making sure I knew where all the snakes were (and staying as far away as possible from them). Our last morning there I got distracted by the monkeys and of course....snake man snuck up on me (rookie mistake) BTW I love that he is wearing a modern leather jacket under his traditional djellaba (it's absolutely Marrakech)

snake charmers in the square, cobras and pythons and rattlers, oh my!

Joined a band of Gnaoua musicians for a song or two...they were surprised I could (sort of) play the Krakeb (symbols)...thanks to an amazing experience in Essaouira

I could post a million pics of Morocco, it was a beautiful place and I feel so lucky to have been there and had such a great experience.

Finally...internet!

2009-07-07T08:48:00.000-07:00

Getting some henna 'tattoos' and letting them dry in the sun

Cactus silk drying in the sun after being dyed in the dyers' souk in Marrakesh

Music stall in the souks

Riding camels through the dunes and on the beach in Essaouira, here's our 'guide' hehe

this is the cistern in the old fort in El Jadida

We are finally online in our new apartment in Madrid. Here's a few pictures (I took about 3000) of my trip...these are all from Morocco

HGTV arrives at our house!

2009-07-05T14:46:00.001-07:00

Not really - but I wish they were in charge of our projects! We are refinishing the cabinets and redoing the counter tops and sinks in the kitchen and all four bathrooms. I have learned a lot about quartz, tile, sinks and faucets. It is a little scary trying to figure out what looks good - not just for me but for a potential buyer some time in the future! Here is what I am thinking - Chocolate cabinets with a Craftsman look (color on the left on doors on the right), "Buttermilk" Ceasar stone counters, creamy crackle tiles (4x4 squares) with a line of 3 rows of the glass tiles. We are thinking about getting daring in the downstairs powder room and having a vessel sink. The one "non neutral" item! Weigh in a let me know what you think. Would you buy a house that looked like this?

(I will post before and after pictures when it is done. The goal was to have it all done when the kids come home in August, but the countertop may be back ordered until the end of August:()

Heaven - or the Oregon Coast!

2009-07-05T14:32:00.000-07:00

From our hotel balcony (The hotel was a recommendation from Sunni and Alan!) we could see Yaquina head. It reminded us of our time there with all of our children and their families! It was a little windy - especially on Cape Foulweather - but we loved the view of Haceata Head. We remember freezing there with Erin and Janice and their family on a day when it was 104 in Eugene! We ate clam chowder and the yummy onion rings at the "original" Mo's in Newport. Lots of memories there too!

Paint the Town

2009-07-05T14:09:00.000-07:00

Gavin's High Priest's group took the lead when our ward particpated in this community event. We fixed up the home of a ward member. Over 200 hours were spent by 50+ members of the ward. It was hard for the members too let us serve them, but it was a real blessing to the ward as we worked together.

(Us hard at work with before and after pictures.)

ABQ--We miss you!!

2009-06-19T10:27:00.001-07:00

Make New Friends,
But keep the OLD,
Some are Silver,
and the others Gold.

Life's a cirlce,
That never Ends,
That's how long
I want to be your Friend!!

You guys are definately GOLD.
I just got an email for book club in ABQ and I am missing you guys already. If you are checking this blog, leave comments, I would love to hear from you. I'm so sad I won't be there for book club.
Here's what we've been up to

RANCH STYLE FOR A WHILE
Putting fly repellent on the baby calves backs.

Janey loved the cows. I thought they might scare her, but she just thought they were so fun to watch and listen to. They were loud. We had separated them from their babies and they were all bawling.

We went up into the hayloft to look for kittens. No luck. too bad.

WHOA cowboy!! My dad's idea of a horse is a four-wheeler. The cow's took a while to get in the corral. they were really resistant and my kids thought we were going to be chasing cows all day.

Janey fell asleep in the pick-up while chasing cows. the bumpy ride rocked her to sleep.

Wagon rides are always popular.

A couple more I forgot

2009-06-17T21:43:00.000-07:00

I didn't mean to leave Janey out, it's just that she was catching up on sleep most of the day and missed out on alot. Here she is with the classic, "I'm wearing grandpa's glasses" picture.
Looking for turtles in the colvert (sp?)

If this doesn't make you miss us, I don't know what will:)

This is for you Dan

2009-06-17T21:12:00.000-07:00

Dan, we made it and we miss you. We wish you were here, but I'm also still trying to find a way to make it back for your graduation. Here is my favorite driveway. I always love taking pictures of my parents driveway as you know.

Grandpa is taking the loader off the front so he can hook it up to the baler in back.

Grandpa said there were baby kittens in the shed but we still haven't found them yet.

Will really wants to go baling RIGHT NOW and is very impatient about it.

CHEESE.

Getting the swather ready now. Grandpa had to do some welding which was exciting to watch.

the tire swing.

Will kept going back to play in the tractor.

Emma.

helping Grandpa load some water tanks onto a trailer.

Brookie wanted a ride too.

It was starting to storm and the wind was blowing.

We went to look for box turtles in the skunk-aurora. the grass was taller than Will and we didn't find any turtles. That was sad, but we are going to keep looking. We did find a goose nest that Grandpa had told us to go look for but the eggs were hatched and all the babies (and mom) were gone. Just a bunch of broken egg shells.

Our camera broke, I can not get it to work, I'm using my parents. There are a couple of pictures on it that I really wanted to post. One of us crossing the state line, we got out and took a picture by the sign. It's so green here.

Broken Hearts

2009-06-11T03:13:00.001-07:00

It's 4 in the morning and I can't sleep. I've never had so much going on in my life. Closing on two houses, two days apart from each other plus moving and saying good bye. There's so much paper and un-organization around here and boxes (and forts made out of boxes) and it's just CRAZY. I'm not even sure how we are going to make it from point A to point B.

We don't do sleep overs, but we made an exception for Casey. We are going to miss her so much.

We have been crying and crying here in NM. I think Emma's heart is broken. Yesterday when she had to say goodbye to Casey after playing for 48 hours straight,they were both sobbing. I was sobbing. It was so hard to seperate them. I hate this.

Casey is the only one Emma invited to her early birthday party this year. Ella came to play with Brookie.

Emma and Casey reading Frances before bed. They are so dang cute together. We swear Casey got sent to the wrong family. She would be a great addition. We'd stuff her in our suitcase if we could.

The weather here has been crazy. Rain and clouds everyday. The pool has been open and the kids have been dying to go so Tracey (the neighbors) and I finally took them and it was freezing. They only stayed in for about 1/2 an hour.

Sara and Janey didn't mind the cold water for a while.

Best buddies in the making. Will loves pushing Janey around in the dumptruck, she loves it too.

Libby made these skirts and matching shirts, isn't she amazing? by the time they are 16 I'm going to have her talked into making their prom dresses. I'm working on it.

Emma was Pippi Long Stocking for Crazy Hair Day at school.

Saying goodbye to teachers was so emotional. Brookie and I were both a mess. Ms. Heather and Ms. Anni were so great and we could have had them again next year if we were staying:(

Brookie and Ms. Anni were especially close. They gave us each some New Mexican turquoise jewelry to remember them by, which I've been wearing everyday and loving.

The neighbors left for vacation so we had early goodbyes. More tears. They've been the best neighbors in the world.

Casey and Emma have written songs for each other and books and a million cards and they have stuffed animals named after each other and their first children are going to have each others names and they have a hundred acronyms describing themselves (B.F.F, etc.) Casey is such a sweet girl, we really are going to miss her. Making them say goodbye yesterday was enough to break my heart. Emma's was already broken. Emma is so sad that we are moving. She thinks life has ended. To her it was like a funeral. I keep telling her we can come and visit, but she knows realistically it won't be often. She is one sad, sad girl.

They aren't ugly ducklings!

2009-05-31T21:18:00.000-07:00

We have been watching the swan parents - their names are Romeo and Juliet - all spring as they build their nest and sat on the eggs. Last week, their babies were born! Aren't they cute? We often walk the path along the river and by some ponds and streams and have seen baby geese and baby ducks too!

Sisters!!

2009-05-24T15:46:00.000-07:00

I am back from my week in Canada and it was awesome - lots of talking, laughing and just enjoying being together. A crazy coincidence, we ran into Loni and Alan on the pier in White Rock! They were doing a home exchange there so we saw them again at church and they came over to Jean and Bill's and were gracious enough to take some pictures for us. We enjoyed a visit to "The Glades", a rododendron garden in Surrey and two days in Victoria. So much beauty, but the most beautiful thing was being with family:) Thanks to all the husbands for supporting us in this annual tradition!

Rafting the CHAMA with Doug and Dora and family

2009-05-22T09:43:00.000-07:00

The kids all played Hookie. (it was a great cause)

All I have to say is " THat was soooo much fun." The only sad part is that we haven't done it more often.

Ferrets and Things

2009-05-10T20:54:00.000-07:00

So I haven't posted here, and Mom has been bugging me for long enough that it appears to be that time. Life has been crazy for Deena me this past month, and it isn't getting any less crazy. The good part of the recent crazy is going through the house buying process for the first time. It feels way too grown up for kids like us, but it seems doable. Anyway, without further ado, some ferret highlights.

The saddest thing ever, a wet ferret

They both got very dirty and in trouble

Bobobo in a jar

Sleepy Bo

Sleepy Momo

Forgot, I was supposed to post a picture of my new drums forever ago.

Air Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo

The ferrets think they own the bathtub, and get fairly protective of it when you have the nerve to be in it.

trying to take a picture of them is never easy

Wheels!!

2009-05-10T18:12:00.000-07:00

This is me with my Mother's Day present!! My old bike was in pretty sad shape, so, in keeping with my goals to get healthy, I asked for a new bike. We have already been on two rides and it is awesome!!!

Happy Mother's Day!

2009-05-10T14:07:00.000-07:00

My thoughts on being a mother

2009-05-10T13:40:00.000-07:00

If I had to sum up my thought on what it is like to be a mother of four, I would say "Every day at our house is a PARTY!" I just read "Cheaper by the Dozen", which by the way is the funniest book I have ever read. Anyway, if I had a maid, a cook and a gardener I could maybe have 12 kids also. Which I am sure would be a major PARTY! But I love the four I have and we have so much fun together. When I think about all the other things I could be doing right now if I had chosen differently I wouldn't change a thing. Every minute of it is so worth it. They are a riot and I love their individual personalities so much and I love watching them grow up.

we got out of town yesterday and went on a hike. we love getting out of the hustle and bustle more than almost anything else, it's so good for our family.

Emma with her teacher and a couple friends, oh yes and batman too.

Emma is on the student council this year and they were selling pretzels to raise money for playground equipment. Batman was also helpful. He is just good to have around in general.

I LOVE those LEGS!!

Fun Times in ABQ!!

2009-04-29T06:30:00.000-07:00

I wanted to share some of the fun I had in Albuquerque last week. This was a part of the Sunday evening song fest we enjoyed. Aren't they all wonderful? I had a hard time choosing between this and "Albuquerque, he's my turkey"!

I had a blast and am so grateful to Dan and Honey for raising such wonderful and well behaved children. Honey wrote up an instruction/driving directions book for me that was invaluable! I loved having Mom there with me. Taking care of the kids was different than just visiting and made me feel even closer to them. I am hoping I will have the chance to do the same with Chris and Rachel's children.

Thank You So Much!!

2009-04-28T13:57:00.000-07:00

Libby was so sweet to come and watch our kids while we went "house hunting" last week and we just wanted her to know how Grateful we are for her and the sacrifices her and Gavin both made for us. We REALLY APPRECIATE IT!! It was so nice to know our kids were doing fine and I think having their own schedules and home made a huge difference. It was so nice not to have to farm them all out just to leave for 4 days. THANKYOU LIBBY!!! The kids miss you already.
We did find a house and we are excited for this transition to be over.
P.S. Sunni, I can't wait for pictures of what you've been up to. I keep checking!!

Just Cute so I had to post them

2009-04-12T15:12:00.000-07:00

my new trick, I learned to sit up. the world from a whole new perspective!!

picnic on the lawn

Easter Egg hunt with some friends!

Rachel, did I ever tell you how much we love those clips?

Lessons Learned while trying to sell a House

2009-04-12T14:23:00.000-07:00

Lesson Number 1: when people come to walk through your home, they spend approximately 30 seconds in your house, So why clean for 3 hours just for that? (I walk around the block and they pull out of the driveway and leave when I'm only at the third or fourth house.)

Lesson Number 2: when people come to look at your home, they usually know within the first 8 seconds wether or not they would be willing to buy it, So why clean for that? (just clean the first eight seconds of the house:)

Lesson Number 3: when you have four kids, it's not only sort of impossible to keep it clean, it's officially proven to be completely impossible and it's also known that you could Die trying, So Why even try?

Lesson Number 4: when trying to sell a house, all your friends have advice and stories for you. Most of them go like this, "the one day that my house was a total mess and trashed was the day we finally had an offer" SO WHY CLEAN? (I've heard this story or a similar one four times now in the last month) I'm taking it as a sign.

Lesson Number 5: why stage it for someone else, when you're the one who bought it so you could live in it. So why clean for them? Believe me, they don't appreciate it.

Lesson Number 6: I now know what it's like to be OCD about cleanliness and I absolutely hate it. what a boring life. You could spend your entire life doing something you hate. I'd much rather practice my guitar or read a good book.

Lesson Number 7: the person around the corner has never put a dime into their house or any home improvement projects and it will sell before yours that you've put lots of sweat and money into for some weird unknown reason. (probably because they can list it at a lower price as they didn't spend anything on it, they don't have anything to lose)

Lesson Learned: There's NO REASON TO CLEAN! Thanks for letting me vent!

Our Great Spring Break!

2009-04-03T11:24:00.000-07:00

Will with his best friend Tyler.

Spring Break before Taos. We love our great neighbors.

The only thing Janey got out of Taos was a bath.

Brookie was a pro at skiing. She remembered everything and was on her own basically from the start. She loved it.

This was only Emma's second time skiing, she's hoping that the third time is the charm, but she did great too. By the end of the day she was doing the chair lift and did her last run by herself.

Will did the magic carpet (the zipper) most of the day I think.

Emma was the only one in her class so she had an instructor all to herself.

Brookie and I. I am so sad that Dan is not in any of these pictures. Our batteries were going low unfortunately and he was the one with the camera.

Brookie on the chair lift. She loved it, she was so excited the whole time.

We forgot the girls skis coats, but they were troopers!

Well, I got my picture of Will skiing. If that's what you want to call it. He spent most of his day falling I think, but he is related to Dan and loved every minute of it. He was cold and didn't even know it and after 7 hours of skiing he was so sad when we made him go in and take off his stuff. He wanted to sleep there and asked if we were coming back and do people live there?

This is the Stewart House where Dan had been spending his month and where we stayed with him while we were up there. It is your classic New Mexico/Taos experience. We highly recommend it for anyone wanting to vacation in Taos.

I was so sad this picture was blurry. I just love her curls, but they only last as long as her hair is wet.

We love the chub!!

My sister-in-law Jen came and visited us with her two kids. We had alot of fun. I'm sad I didn't get a picture of her and I. Why do you always think about those things later?

The twin cousins Janey and Katie? Can you guess which is which? I think Janey has maybe 5 pounds on Katie. They are six days apart. I think we officially wore them out that day.

This is the Pirates Cove at the aquarium. The kids call it their secret hiding place.

Old Town.

Bubble Bath with Payson and Will.

Happy Belated St Patrick's Day!

2009-03-18T06:42:00.000-07:00

We had fun with the "wearing of the green"! Good Luck to All!

2009-03-12T19:54:00.000-07:00

We finally got rain!!! We haven't had moisture since January 4th so we are so dry. Our skin is cracking and we all have eczema (sp?) With the storm, the lights went out and the girls thought it was so fun to get ready for school by candlelight.

Janey got the lid off of her teething toy! Bad mom! Nice mustache!

Another game of Emma's that she has Will wrapped into.

White Sands

2009-03-01T13:11:00.001-08:00

On the way home from Carlsbad, we detoured and went to White Sands National Monument. It was so worth it. We stayed for a long time just playing. Doesn't it look like snow? It was alot of fun.

Carlsbad Caverns

2009-03-01T12:19:00.000-08:00

over the weekend, Dan had some time off so we decided to take a road trip. We went to Carlsbad Caverns in Southern New Mexico. You walk down into the ground 75, yes 75!!! storeys and then (we would've walked out if they would've let us) you take an elevator out. It was amazing. Much to Brookie's disappointment, the bats that live there are only there from March to October so we did not get to see the bat flight, which is one of the most exciting things about Carlsbad Caverns. so we just enjoyed the stalactites nad stalagmites without the bats. :)

This is the whales mouth, I'm not exactly sure how many storeys down this was.

This is the entrance to the cave. The "Big Room" at the very bottom of the caves were the size of 5 or 6 (can't remember) football stadiums, with several Giants in it (stalactites).

The Bottomless Lakes in Roswell, NM. Very worth going to(wink, wink)!

MEXICO??? Well, almost. It was right on the border and it was warm!!!

The Bottomless Lakes, again.!!

Our highly intelligent baby usually reads the business section, but she was taking a break and checking out the sports!

Sol: random pictures

2009-02-22T07:29:00.000-08:00

some random photos I took in sol last week. In the old part of town all the street signs are these big painted tiles and a lot of the streets are named for what they used to sell there...here is the 'knife seller' street and the 'salt' street.

this one's for you dad...the famous chocolateria 'San Gines'...even has a big neon arrow pointing the way down the dark alley towards temptation (good thing it's next to a great big cathedral)

speaking of cathedrals...I still haven't gotten used to the sight of nuns in habits...these are of the 'barefoot' variety which nowadays seems to mean 'in birkenstocks or teva sandals'

this is one of the 'cows' they have around town...you might have something like it where you live, artists paint and decorate them and then after a month out on the streets they auction them off for charity...i'll translate that spanish for you, it says 'no hunger' haha just kidding, it's funny to me when and how they use english here. one of my favorite examples right now is a fast food chain called (in english) "fast good" maybe if you visit we can eat at the 'fast good' eh?

the kids

2009-02-20T12:26:00.000-08:00

Janey is 4 months and has rolled over a total of 5 times.

She just had her 4 month dr. appointment and weighs 16 lbs. 5 oz. WOW!!

Brookie started Activity Days and LOVES IT!!!

Will is taking on a new look.

Emma has Will wrapped into being Rudolph for her.

she has 2 teeth on the bottom

Brookie got her ears pierced for her 8th birthday and gets to take them out tomorrow, she has a shopping trip planned to buy some new earings with her birthday money. she's very excited.

Janey's first set of pony tails. so cute! Although the rest of us loved it, she did not think it was fun at all.

Happy Valentine's Day from Boise!!

2009-02-16T19:41:00.000-08:00

Gavin had the house all decked out for Valentine's. It kept the winter gloomies at bay! I took this picture last night and today we started taking things down - getting ready for St. Patrick's Day!

catching up

2009-02-04T08:34:00.000-08:00

Here's a few picture from the holidays...This is the cathedral in Segovia.

This part of the Alhambra in Granada

This is on top of an open top double-decker bus touring Granada

This is the crystal palace in our park in Madrid

I hope everyone is doing well...we miss you guys, Besos

We've Been Birding!

2009-02-01T20:02:00.000-08:00

When we walk in the protected area by Barber Park, we often see adult and juvenile bald eagles. (Apparently, they don't get their distinctive feathers until they are a year old!) It took us a while to find out that thethe pair in the top picture are both Merganser ducks. We thought the top one (the female) was a different species;)

Lately

2009-01-25T20:28:00.000-08:00

Dump Truck fun

This is the one picture that got taken on the day that Dan took Will on their first Daddy/Son skiing excursion. So can anyone tell me why there is no snow in this picture? (well not enough to ski anyway). The answer is , of course, that Dan forgot to take any pictures and he knew I was going to kill him for it (figuratively speaking) so he pulls over on the side of the road on the way home and takes a picture. Nice, huh? Well, he says it's the memory that matters and I guess he's right, but I still really wanted a picture of this little man on his skis. oh, well. next time. maybe?

By the way, when they got home, Will slept for 14 straight hours.

UPSIDE DOWN CLOWN

movie night

Gatita

2009-01-25T20:06:00.000-08:00

Emma reminded me that I promised to post a picture of our "foster cat" Gatita. She is very loving. She makes us laugh - gets into crazy places. Today I could hear her meowing. I followed the sound to our hall cupboard, opened the door and there she was! She had slipped in when I opened the door for a moment to get something out.

Christmas at our house!

2009-01-19T21:40:00.000-08:00

We thought we would take some pictures before we take everthing down. (Yes, I know you all took your decorations down weeks ago!)

Christmas with the NC Gees

2009-01-19T20:53:00.000-08:00

Christmas and kids - What could be more fun than that?

Pillows by Grandma:)

Brookie's Baptism and Janey's Baby Blessing weekend

2009-01-11T18:10:00.000-08:00

Chinese Checkers and Jungle Speed

Trouble anyone?? Who me??

the dads

the birthday cousins, Brookie and Paige

Janey's blessing day

two white dresses in one day!!

Brookie got baptized! What a special day!

the girls

Family Pictures in Old Town

2009-01-11T17:41:00.000-08:00