AINT

I'm not sure who wrote this but I loved it!!

AIN'T...

He was just a little boy, On a week's first day. Wandering home from Bible school, And dawdling on the way.

He scuffed his shoes into the grass; He even found a caterpillar. He found a fluffy milkweed pod, And blew out all the 'filler.'

A bird's nest in a tree overhead, So wisely placed up so high. Was just another wonder, That caught his eager eye.
A neighbor watched his zig zag course, And hailed him from the lawn; Asked him where he'd been that day And what was going on.

'I've been to Bible School,' He said and turned a piece of sod. He picked up a wiggly worm replying, 'I've learned a lot about God.'

'M'm very fine way,' the neighbor said, 'for a boy to spend his time.' 'If you'll tell me where God is, I'll give you a brand new dime.'

Quick as a flash the answer came! Nor were his accents faint. 'I'll give you a dollar, Mister, If you can tell me where God ain't.'

HaPpY bIrThDaY tO hAYdEn!!

We now officially have 2 teenagers in the house.... CRAZY! My baby (my 2nd baby) just turned 13 and I can't believe it. Wow time flies!

It seems like it was just yesterday that I locked myself in the bathroom and was crying like a baby because I was supposed to be at the hospital to be started and I decided that I didn't want another baby because it wasn't fair to Kolton. I couldn't imagine loving anyone as much as I loved Kolton. It was my Mother in Law that had to talk me into coming out of the bathroom so I could get to the hospital (there was really no way out of it).

We (Kelly, my Mom & I) got to the hospital and was started at midnight. Kelly & my Mom had brought videos because it was going to be a long night and we were going to make a party out of it. My Mom is good at making things into a party. She loves an adventure!

It was a long night... and a long afternoon too! About 1:00 p.m. the nurse came in and checked me........ not even close. Things were going so slow. My Mom said she was going to go for a walk and that she'd be back. Well in the time she was gone (about 1/2 hour) the nurse came in and said I was ready. I sent Kelly out to find my Mom and he about missed it. My poor Mom did miss it. She had ran down to Mervyn's to buy me a new nightgown. As she was walking back down the hall to my room she heard a baby crying. Sure enough it was coming from our room. She was so surprised when she came back to see that her Grand baby had been born in the time she was gone.

At first I wanted nothing to do with him (absolutely horrible.. I know!). Kelly held him, my Mom held him, my Brother in law held him but not me. I felt like I was betraying Kolton. Everyone kept asking me if I wanted to hold my baby and I just kept saying "no, that's ok.. you can". After maybe 2 hours my SMART Mom finally realized what was going on and just put him in my arms and had everyone leave the room. I was instantly in love! Holding him one time is all it took. No one was able to pry him out of my arms after that.

Hayden is such a sweet kid. He has everyone fooled! He is so quiet in front of others but he is definitely my very most loudest kid. He is such a tease too. He loves to torment Wyatt, Chet, Jasmyn and especially Kolton. His sarcasm on a scale of 1-10 is atleast a 17. He is also a mamma's boy. He is always by my side and I love that!

f R o G s S n A i L s A n D p I g G y T a I L s

The first 10 years of our marriage were all about Frogs and Snails. Having 4 little grubby but adorably handsome boys, how could it not be? (I think growing up as the only girl in the family and having 5 brothers was to prepare me for being the mother of all boys... and 4 of them). I absolutely loved it too! I loved everything about it. I loved the dirty little hands they'd have from carrying aroud treasures, the hot wheels cars and plastic army men that I'd step on in the middle of night on the way to the bathroom, the potato bug parts that I would find in the bottom of my washing machine while Chet was going through his little potato bug fetish, the snake that slithered out of the bucket and was loose in my kitchen for an afternoon (not!). I loved the deep, gruff little boy voices and I even loved the wrestling my 4 little boys would do in the living room among my "pretty things" at bedtime with my BIGGEST BOY.. (their DAD!) I was content and I was what my kids would call "boytrapped".

And then the call came... out of the blue! What? A baby? Well, I would most definitely want a boy because that's what I'm used to.. Huh? A little girl? Why yes.. We would love to!

And that is when we added piggy tails to our frogs and snails. Things have not been the same around here since... they never will be... And I love it! I love the hair ponies that I find all over the house, the drama (not so much), the purses, the dress ups, the long strands of hair stuck in the drains after showers, the babydolls, the frilly clothes and disney princesses. I even love the barbies (Not really.. I NEVER owned one single barbie in my WHOLE life and never imagined that I would have to share my house with one).. and the fact that they are naked 97.3% of the time (with 4 brothers around sometimes I even wonder if it's ONLY Jasmyn that undresses them. lol) I never imagined life with a little girl could be so fun. I had no idea what I was missing out on. My little girl became the dream I didn't even know I had.

It's amazing how different little girls and boys are. So fun in different ways. I am one lucky girl.. I am the Mom of 4 handsome boys and 1 Island Princess.. surrounded by Frogs, Snails and oh yes.. PiggyTails!

WhAt My KiDs ThInK aBoUt Me...

My friend sent this tag to me on facebook and I thought it was so fun that I had to post it here. I interviewed each of them separately so they could not hear the others answers. This is what they came up with...

1. What is something Mommy always says to you?

Jasmyn 6: I love you

Chet 9: I love you (he says I love him the most)

Wyatt:I love you

Hayden 13: hey Hobart (my nickname for him and only I am allowed to call him that too)

Kolton 16:clean your room

2. What makes Mommy happy?

Jasmyn: when I tell you I love you (for sure!)

Chet:when I tickle you

Wyatt:me being your son

Hayden:going fishing

Kolton:being with your family

3. What makes Mommy sad?

Jasmyn: when I don't mind

Chet:that's a hard one.. you're never sad

Wyatt: when I don't mind

Hayden: when Chet & Wyatt don't clean their room (funny.. he doesn't mention his room)

Kolton:when we do something wrong

4. How does your Mommy make you laugh?

Jasmyn: when you tell jokes

Chet: tickling me

Wyatt: when you show me funny things on the computer

Hayden: when you play with my yo yo

Kolton: being around you makes me laugh

5. What was your mommy like as a child?

Jasmyn: I don't know

Chet: that one's a hard one

Wyatt: happy

Hayden: wild (what?!)

Kolton: you liked your pony, bunnies and every other animal

6. How old is your mommy?

Jasmyn: 23

Chet: 32

Wyatt: 32

Hayden: 29 (good boy)

Kolton:35

7.How tall is your mommy?

Jasmyn: 60 feet tall

Chet: 10 feet

Wyatt: 5 foot 2 inches (yep)

Hayden: 5 foot 1

Kolton:shorter than me..(as he laughs)then he says..as tall as Yoda & E.T.) what a butthead!

8.What is her favorite thing to do?

Jasmyn: play with your facebook pet

Chet: play on the computer

Wyatt: metal detecting

Hayden: camping & fishing

Kolton:spend time with your family and you love to go for rides and fish

9.What does mommy do when you’re not around?

Jasmyn: go play at Grandma's

Chet: goes shopping with Grandma

Wyatt: goes somewhere with Grandma

Hayden: play on the computer

Kolton:cleans the house, earns coins playing with your animal on facebook

10.If your mommy becomes famous, what will it be for?

Jasmyn: you will be rich

Chet: for the longest computer player (I am that bad? LOL)

Wyatt: being the best mom ever (awww!)

Hayden: singing (huh!?)

Kolton:your cooking

11.What is your mommy really good at?

Jasmyn: you are a good speller

Chet: playing with me

Wyatt: metal detecting

Hayden: fishing & camping

Kolton:drawing, cooking and making me feel good (awww!)

12.What is your mom not very good at?

Jasmyn: you are not good at soccer

Chet:nothing

Wyatt: doing back flips on the tramp

Hayden: having a frown at your face.. you're always happy (aww!)

Kolton:nothing (buttkiss!)

13. What does your mommy do for her job?

Jasmyn: you take care of your kids

Chet: you take care of us kids

Wyatt: cleaning

Hayden:you make us food, you take care of us

Kolton:you take care of your boys, girl & hubby

14.What is your mommy's favorite food?

Jasmyn: apple burritos

Chet:mac n cheese (only because that's his favorite)

Wyatt:chinese

Hayden:apple quesidilla

Kolton:depends on what mood you're in (smart kid.. it changes all the time)

15. What makes you proud of your mommy?

Jasmyn: when you do my hair

Chet:you take care of us

Wyatt:you feed us

Hayden: because you stay home so we don't have to go to daycare after school (another favorite)

Kolton:that you always take care of us

16.If your mommy were a cartoon character, who would she be?

Jasmyn: that white cat on "Tom & Jerry" (Tom). LoL Atleast she didn't say the wicked witch on sleeping beauty huh?

Chet: batgirl because you are the best

Wyatt: Tom & Jerry (what's the deal there?)

Hayden:super mom

Kolton:goofy (what?!)

17.What do you and your mommy do together?

Jasmyn: draw

Chet: play together

Wyatt: eat at restaurants

Hayden: play karaoke, fish, camping and play monopoly

Kolton:go for rides, talk & fish

18.How are you and your mommy the same?

Jasmyn: we are both girls (duh!)

Chet: we love eachother

Wyatt: me & you are not allergic to nothing

Hayden: we both like to camp & fish

Kolton: we both love the outdoors

19.How are you & mommy different?

Jasmyn: you have white skin and I have brown skin (another duh!!! lol I loved this one)

Chet: you are a girl and I am a boy (duh!)

Wyatt:I'm a boy and you're a girl

Hayden:you are taller than me (barely!)

Kolton: you take an hour 1/2 to get ready (funny! he takes as long as I do!)

20.How do you know your mommy loves you?

Jasmyn: when you give me hugs

Chet: because you take care of me

Wyatt: you feed me

Hayden: if you didn't you wouldn't give me a hug all the time and tell me you love me

Kolton: by your actions in taking care of me, my brothers, sister & dad

21.Where is your mommy's favorite place to go?

Jasmyn: yellowstone

Chet:to yellowstone

Wyatt: camping

Hayden: north fork

Kolton: anywhere as long as you're with your family

22.What does mommy like about daddy?

Jasmyn: his kisses

Chet:that he takes care of us

Wyatt:that he's handsome

Hayden:his facial hair (really?)

Kolton:the way he arranges his plate (can you say OCD?) and his muscles

SaTuRdAy FuN

After dealing with influenza & bronchitis we all had cabin fever. So we loaded up the fishing poles, kites and kids and headed out. We ended up at one of our favorite places... Locomotive Springs. We love to take the kids fishing out there in the early spring because it is always a guaranteed good fishing day. We also love the 75 mile trek out there. A lot of dirt road, beautiful scenery and fun times. It was nice & sunny when we left the house but as we pulled up out there it was super cold and windy (a bad day for fishing but a good day for kite flying). I was the only one that got my pole out. After a few casts my hands were so cold they were stinging so Kelly and some of the kids flew Hayden's kite for a bit while me & some of the kids kept warm in the "burban". It was a good day.

bLuE & gOlD

It's that time of year again.. Cake making & decorating time for the Blue & Gold. Each boy was to make & decorate a cake and I was a little overwhelmed thinking we had to make & decorate 3 cakes this year but then was happy to realize we only had to decorate 2. The theme was also a hard one too.. American ABC's? Of course we put off even thinking about how they were to be decorated until maybe 2 hours before we were supposed to be there (being cub master & asst. cub master there were too many other things to worry about)but they turned out cute and Chet & Wyatt were proud.

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Ice Fishing..

What a blast! I forgot how much fun it is. The kids were a little nervous at first and Hayden still hasn't made it out with us yet because he's always had something going on (and to tell you the truth.. I think he's scared) but soon. We'll get him out there too and just like the others.. he'll see how much fun and how safe it really is.

Sledding

We took the kids sledding and had a blast. It was a perfect day.. not cold (ok, not that cold) just perfect. We played and then had a picnic in the snow. Everybody loved it!

Chetty Chetty Bang Bang we love you!

9 years ago this evening is when it all started.. My parents called wanting to have a game night (I had been to the Dr. earlier that day and was to be started the following Monday.. The Dr. was going out of town for the weekend and assured me that I wasn't ready). So in an effort to hurry and clean up I vacuumed the living room while waiting for them to come down. I felt pretty crampy while vacuuming but there was work to be done so I didn't think anything of it.

As my parents, Kelly & I were playing games I was hurting worse.. every few minutes. I had never really started labor on my own so I had no clue how it felt. I was the score keeper. As I kept score, at the bottom of the score card I was also keeping track of how far apart what I thought might be contractions were too not saying a word to anyone else. Everyone was laughing and having a good time (except for me every 4-5 minutes). I kept saying "don't make me laugh, don't make me laugh."

After a while of giggling and having fun my mom realized that I was keeping track of more than the score and that I couldn't laugh & giggle along with them every few minutes. She leaned over and looked at the score card and said "are you having contractions?" "Yes" I replied. So she started keeping track of them herself. Every 3-4 minutes at that time. She looked at me and said "Stacy, you're in labor." At that point I was a little nervous.. I didn't have a thing packed. After all... I had until Monday to worry about it. By this time I couldn't even walk. Kelly & my Mom were rushing around the house throwing things in bags and my Dad had run home to grab a suitcase. I just stood in the hall and held onto the wall. We were frantically trying to get a hold of Kelly's parents who were on call to watch the other kids but they weren't answering.

The other kids were already in bed so my Dad agreed to stay the night at our house. We piled into the bronco to head to the hospital.. it was just like in the movies.. I could of sworn that Kelly was hitting every bump in the road and pot hole on purpose..I was hollering at him for TRYING to make me uncomfortable and my Mom was defending him trying to tell me that there were no potholes that he was swerving to hit. I could of hurt them both at that point.

As we got to the hospital I couldn't even get down out of the truck.. I felt that if I even tried everything would fall out & hit the ground. We get up to the room and was surprised to learn that I was dilated to an 8. Good.. that meant that I could have my epidural!! From then on is sort of a blur.. the stinkin picture of the dove on the wall was making me mad, the nurse (poor lady.. had a wandering eye so seriously everytime she looked at me I was getting even madder.. at her eyes) I really wanted to just beat her up and tell her that I didn't even know where she was looking... "duh, I'm over here", I was claustrophobic and wanted to tear out all the tubes and just the fact that Kelly (the one who hit all the bumps and potholes on the way to the hospital) was standing close to me made me even madder too. Also.. the anesthesiologist was taking forever! My Mom tells me I started speaking in tongues that night.. some of the things that came out of my mouth surprised us all.. I was mean to the nurse, I was mean to my Mom and I was mean to Kelly. I spoke like a sailor. About an hour later he was here... it was all worth it and all better.. I fell instantly in love!


Happy 9th Birthday Chet.. I love you!

Happy New Year!

Sheesh.. it's been a long time since I've gotten the chance and taken it to write.

Christmas is here & gone and now it's the New Year. This upcoming year I hope the very best for everyone. I hope that all my loved ones stay safe and healthy and that all your 2009 dreams and goals happen.

2008 was a big year for our family.. we took a lot of big steps. Here are a few of them..

- My baby went in to the first grade which means that all of my kiddos are in school full day (I was so lonely there for a bit)

- Kolton started his first year of High School

- Hayden started his first year of Jr. High

- Wyatt had his tonsils out

- We got our kitchen done so we didn't have to cook on the patio anymore (huge step!! lol)

- Chet turned 8 and was baptized

- Hayden went on his very first scout camp, turned 12 and was ordained a Deacon

- Jasmyn lost her very first tooth (while Chet & Hayden lost about 6 each within about a 2 week period.. poor tooth fairy!)

- We went on vacation and spent maybe 5 days of the week with car breakdowns (what's a vacation without hiccups?)

- During one of those car breakdowns (2 flat tires at the same time) Wyatt had a super special experience he will never forget

- Kelly & I celebrated our 16th anniversary

- We lost a dear Grandma, an Aunt and a Cousin but gained a new niece and have one on the way

- Kolton & his Weber High Sophomore Football team went undefeated 9-0 and so they lettered the whole sophomore team. (Yay Weber!!)

- Kelly's work slowed down so much that they laid off a bunch and then put the guys left on 4 days a week so that means every Monday Kelly & I get to spend the day together with no interruptions :)

- Kolton turned 16

We are looking forward to a New Year and the next steps each of us will take. HAPPY NEW YEAR!

I love this time of year.. I love decorating and I love the magical feeling