My beautiful kids

This week has been so beautiful. We spend as much time as we can outside. I thought it might be fun to get some pictures of the kids. Aren't they beautiful?

Max

Max and Jenna-grace

Jenna-grace and Maggie

Poor Maggie! She gets so much love!

Aiden with his slick new hair-do that Dad gave him.

The rest of the pictures are an attempt at getting a picture of all three of them together.

I think I give up.

At least for now.

Boys at door

My friend Catherine picked up Aiden and took him to the Zoo with her and her kids. Aiden was so excited he waited by the door until she arrived. Max was curious about what he was looking at. I found them both just sitting at the door, and I thought it was so cute!

Then I was discovered....

And then Aiden.... well does what Aiden does.

I love my boys!

Jenna-grace's lip gloss

Jenna-grace is in the two year old class at pre-school. She loves it.

The other day she came home with a goody bag. One of the girls in her class had a birthday. I thought that cupcakes were good enough. I didn't realize that goody bags were required for a class party already. Anyway, In the bag was a little princess lip gloss. She brought it to me and asked me what it was. I showed her how to put it on her lips and then forgot about it. About twenty minutes later I found her looking like this.

The pictures don't really show how the purple lip gloss is all over her face!

What a cutie!

Barbara's Wedding

My friend Barbara got married this month and my sister and I made her cake! It was so much fun.

Three days to make and only a few minutes to eat!

The wheels fell off!

The Race is next week. I haven't posted for weeks 5, 6, or 7. Because everything pretty much fell apart. The wheels of my stroller broke and literally almost fell off. So, I couldn't go to Stroller Strides. Then Max got Strep throat. So, I couldn't go to the gym. I tried using the Tread-mill at home. But, with the kids at home all the time, I either had to get up before them (before 6 am) or wait till they all go to bed. (after 8 pm) With Max being sick, and getting up during the night, getting up early or having the energy at night wasn't an option either. After Max started to get better, he caught the stomach flu.
I am not giving up. I just, am not as far along as I thought. Now, I will simply do my best this Saturday and keep on trying to get better.

Week 4

Halfway there! Only 4 weeks to go!
Fleas, Weevils, Ants, Dust Mites, Kids, and a Snake.
This week was a week of plagues. I am still battling the fleas that Maggie brought into the house two months ago. Vacuuming everyday and washing her bedding every few days.
I discovered a weevil outbreak in a small pack of crackers and didn’t want it to spread any further. I spent two days cleaning out my entire pantry and putting everything in plastic containers.
Just about when I was finished with the pantry, Aiden started yelling about the ants on the kitchen floor. I thought that he was just overreacting to a few small ants. When I finally came to see what he was so concerned about, I found a highway of what looked like a million ants who were loving a sticky spot on my floor. So the kitchen floor and all the floor boards got a good scrub.
Aiden has been coughing for several weeks. I finally took him to the allergists who reminded me that Aiden’s biggest allergy is to dust mites. I needed check the pillow covers, mattress covers, no stuffed animals, etc. So of course I had to get busy cleaning. I gave Aiden’s room and all the upstairs a serious cleaning.
By Friday I was more than exhausted. I skipped my stroller strides class and let Max and Jenna-grace play in the back yard. I didn’t want them to step in any of Maggie’s poop, so I spent a few minutes scooping. With my handy scooper claw in hand, I was focused on a particular target when I realized that I was standing about two feet away from a snake!! After the shock wave passed, I got a good look at it and determined that it was just a garden snake. It was a decent size; definitely not a baby. As soon as I baked away, it quickly retreated under a very large planter box. Even though it was not a poisonous snake, I still had a very thorough talk with each of the kids about what to do if they see a snake.
Needless to say, this week, exercise was not at the top of my list. But I did get to class a few times and I ran 2.5 miles in 26 minutes on Saturday!

As a side note.... BYU is now ranked 8th in the Nation!!!

Fun Pictures

I couldn't resist posting this funny picture of Max. Often, I will take Max's cloths off before dinner because he is so messy. After dinner the kids headed into the back yard while I was cleaning up the dishes. I think Max is saying that his tummy is nice and full. That or he swallowed a frog.

I have a great picture from that same evening of Jenna-grace holding a frog. But she has the same amount of clothing as Max does here. I am not sure if I want it out there on the Internet. She found three little frogs and said that they were a family. A mommy, daddy and baby. I made the mistake of asking which one was which and how she could tell. She said, ''that one is the mommy, because it is the biggest." Eric and I just busted out laughing!

Aiden my Mountain Climber! Wow!

At the Germantown Festival they had a climbing wall. Aiden seems to have grown out of the baby rides and wanted to climb. I had no idea he would be able to do it all by himself! He got almost to the top and decided he wanted to come down. But he didn't realize that the rope would slowly lower him if he let go. So he got scared, until we convinced him to just let go.

Look out world! We are all in trouble when these two get ready to drive!

Can you guess what was Jenna-grace's favorite ride?

Week 3

Last week was my most difficult so far. I'm tired and whiny. I missed two days because of other obligations. I was loosing motivation fast. But Friday night I ate a giant Huey's Burger and felt much better. Hee! Hee! But in all seriousness, I realized that I was not eating enough. Your body needs fuel to burn. Even when you have plenty in storage, it still needs some to get the engine started. So my focus for the next week is to remember that I am trying to get healthy. It is not all about calories! It is more about healthy food, and lots of healthy exercise! I did 2 miles in almost 20 min. on Saturday! This next week I am moving up to 2 1/2 miles.
Oh, BYU still rocks! 44-0 over Wyoming!

Week Two

A great week! I only missed Friday, because of a Young Women’s (church) meeting. I had plans to go play racketball that night, but the courts were all booked.
Saturday was the best. I ran 1 1/2 miles in 15 min! I wanted to puke, but I did it. And then BYU killed UCLA 59-0! Rise and shout! The Cougars are out!

For all of my readers who don't care about BYU and only want to see more pictures of the kids... Don't worry. It can't be too long before they do something worth blogging about.

The 8 week Plan

Over the past two years (since Max was born) Eric and I have been working on our health. We both felt that we had put on a few too many ‘baby pounds.’ Me gaining with the pregnancies. Especially the last two, being born only 11 months apart. I felt like I was pregnant for a solid two years! (Aren’t Elephants pregnant for that long?) Eric gaining out of sympathy for my pregnancies. (Who wants to eat ice cream alone at two in the morning?)
But over the last two years Eric and I have lost over 60 pounds each! We feel stronger and healthier, but not finished. We have more to lose, but the whole process is getting old. We took a break over the summer. Now we are ready to give one good last push before we put the diet on the shelf and just maintain a healthy lifestyle, for a while, without trying to lose.


It is an eight week program that we started on September 1st. Counting down to the Race for the Cure on October 25th. Our goal is to exercise everyday (except Sunday). On Monday, Wednesday and Friday I am going to either Stroller Strides or to kickboxing at the YMCA. Eric is doing push-ups. On Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday we are running. Our running plan starts at 1.5 miles each day and increases little by little to get us further and faster by race day.

I wanted to share this with you, our friends and family, because we have been so supported by you over the past two years. Your support and encouragement has made the difference for us.

Week 1: It is so hard starting any new routine. I ran the Chick-fil-A 5K on the 1st. I barely made it through the first two miles, and then had to walk the rest. 39 min. Not impressed. My best time is 35 min. I want to do the Race for the Cure in under 30. I have my work cut out for me. Then I skipped Tue. Uhhh, is busy an excuse? Wednesday’s kickboxing class was not up to par. It is not good when your instructor is more tired than you are. Then I skipped Thursday. Busy again! Still not an excuse. Friday I went to my first Stroller Strides class in over four months. Wow! I forgot how tuff and great that class is. I was sore for three days! Saturday was the first group meeting of the team I put together for the Big Race. I ended up helping a slower runner keep up her effort. Only 1 mile completed. Not the best week, but it can only up from here.

If you would like to join the team for the Susan G. Komen Race For the Cure. Check out our team page. Click here.
Love you guys!

By the way, BYU won again last Saturday!! A game that we completely deserved to win, and won it fairly, no matter what the sports news people are saying! The officials made quite a few calls that were “iffy” against both teams. UCLA next week. It is going to be a tuff one, but this one is at home.

The Quest Begins!

BYU gets its 11th straight W with a 41 to 17 finish against Northern Iowa, Saturday.
The Quest for Perfection Begins!
Go Cougars!!! Anyone who would like to join our weekly party, here is what the season looks like. All cougar fans are welcome at our house for the game. (Yes, we even have The Mtn. network)

Date -Day -Opponent -Place/Time- Television
AUG 30 -SAT- Northern Iowa- PROVO, UT4:00 PM- The Mtn.
SEP 6- SAT -Washington- Seattle, WA12:00 PM- FSN
SEP 13 -SAT -UCLA- Provo, UT1:30 PM -VERSUS
SEP 20- SAT -Wyoming -Provo, UT1:00 PM -The Mtn.
OCT 3 -FRI -Utah State -Logan, UTTBA -TBA
OCT 11 -SAT -New Mexico -Provo, UT4:00 PM- The Mtn.
OCT 16 -THU -TCU -Fort Worth, TX7:00 PM -VERSUS
OCT 25 -SAT- UNLV- Provo, UT12:00 PM- The Mtn.
NOV 1 -SAT -Colorado State -Fort Collins, CO4:00 PM -The Mtn.
NOV 8- SAT -San Diego State- Provo, UT12:00 PM- The Mtn.
NOV 15 -SAT -Air Force -Colorado Springs, CO1:30 PM -CBS C
NOV 22 -SAT -Utah -Salt Lake City, UT4:00 PM -The Mtn.

Lessons learned

Have you ever had one of those days when you feel like you can only fail. A day where the only thing you have accomplished is to learn how not to do things. I feel like I have had a couple of those days in a row. Lessons learned... #1. Pulled pork sandwiches are quite simple to make and are perfect in the crock-pot after about 4 hours on high heat. After about 8 hours they are gross and only taste like soggy mush sandwiches! #2. Cakes only need to cool until they are cool. If you leave them out on the counter for several hours (even if it is because you have three children distracting you) the cake becomes very dry and un-tasty. #3. Gum paste is rather heavy. My cute little sheep below started out quite a bit taller and thinner. But that didn't bother me as much as when it sank into the top of the cake like quicksand and when I tried to save it, all its legs and curls fell off. That happened of course after I learned lesson #4 Jenna-grace will eat gum paste even if I tell her that it is play-dough, very yucky and not to touch it! The baby carriage on the front of the cake was supposed to have wheels and sit on the top of the cake. But after I glued it back together and filled in the cracks with frosting I didn't dare try to stand it up on its own.

All is well. No one complained about the pulled pork sandwiches, because they were all to polite to say anything (except Eric, but I still love him). I had time to remake the cake. And after I reassembled the poor little lamb, I had just enough gum-paste left to make a little blanky to hide a base for it to sit on. The curls aren't as well placed any more. But I think it was a great first attempt. And definitely a lesson just begun to be learned.

July and then some.

At the beginning of the summer I was so worried about how long and difficult it was going to be. How in the world was I going to entertain, educate and nurture three kids during the long hot days without going nuts! It really wasn't that bad. We kept busy and had a lot of fun.

We swam a lot. Aiden and Max both love jumping off the diving board. Jenna-grace mostly likes playing with the water hose.

We went to the YMCA a lot. We have a great YMCA with classes for me and the kids. I got in some good exercising while the kids were having fun.

Aiden went to quite a few fun summer camps including: safety city, zoo camp, and pirate camp.

We also played with our neighbors. We live in the best neighborhood, full of young kids. I even bought this great sign for the street because we were out in the front yard so much. The kids know that they are not allowed in the street, but this helps keep the cars aware and slower. I love it!

During the summer months Max's hair got long and curly.

His hair was so adorable I really thought about just leaving it long.

And then it got so long that it started to get into his eyes. I had a choice. I could cut the bangs and keep the curls in the back. Then I ran the risk of giving him a mullet, which I didn't want. I even thought about putting a barrette in his hair, just to keep it out of his eyes, but knew that Eric would kill me. And so would Max in the future.

Even though I was sad to finally cut all his beautiful curls off, I knew that cleaning him off after dinner would have to be easier.

Yes that is his bowl on top of his head. For some reason, he puts it there every night when he is done eating. To him, it just makes sense.

Aiden is now 6!

For his birthday he wanted a superhero party. I wanted to have it anywhere but at the house, so I convinced him to have it at the sprinkler park. We all love the sprinkler park. What I didn't know is that on his birthday it would be 111 degrees outside. No kidding. The weatherman confirmed that the heat index for that day was 111 degrees. Add in that we had never been to the sprinkler park on a Saturday before and severely underestimated how crowded it would be. It was quite miserable for the adults, but I think the kids didn't care about any of that. They seemed to really have fun.

I wanted to make cupcakes instead of a cake, so it would be easier to transport. But then I went overboard on decorating the cupcakes. The buildings are make out of sugar cookies with lolly pop sticks to hold them up. My sister Christie did an amazing job decorating the cookies. But it was sooo hot that everything turned into mush. The icing on the cupcakes started sliding off and the buildings were all falling over. It worked great in my air conditioned kitchen. But at the park it looked like super-town after a major earth quake. But again, the kids didn't care. It still tasted great. Eric had the camera that day so I only have a few pictures.

Aiden's First Day of School!!!

After I took his picture, I ran Jenna-grace and Max to our neighbors house and sent Aiden on to the bus stop ahead of me. But by the time I was approaching the corner, the bus was already there and this next picture was all that I got to see. I quickly jumped in my van and followed him to school with his giant bag of school supplies. (As was the plan) But I was sad to not have taken a better picture of him getting on his first bus ride, after he has been looking forward to it for so long.

Jenna-grace and Max are going to a great little preschool a couple days a week.

They both really love it!

Now that the summer is over and I might be able to find a few more moments for myself, I am setting two goals. One: to increase, and improve my scripture study and Two: to blog more frequently, so I can keep all of my wonderful friends and family involved in our crazy, wonderful amazing little life. Love you all!!

Guest Book

Hi to all. An update is due and will come when I have more than a moment to sit down. I wanted to highlight the new addition to our blog. I am asking for all who visit this blog to take a small moment and sign the guest book located in the right column. I am trying to figure out who my audience is. Who reads this silly stuff that I write? Not that I plan on changing anything. I am just a little curious. Thank you!