My Four Sons

My Boys

2011-09-07T13:14:00.002-06:00

I am so blessed to be MOM to these 4 sweet little boys. I love them each so much!

USA

2011-05-01T22:15:00.000-06:00

Announcing...the fourth noisy boy!!

2011-02-18T16:29:00.004-07:00

We welcomed our fourth baby boy just a couple of weeks ago. Meet our sweet little Henry. Okay so maybe he's not so little. He was 9 pounds 4 ounces and 22 inches long. He was born by c-section and has been just a perfect little bundle of joy to our family.

Where does the time go?

2010-11-19T22:19:00.006-07:00

Well hello my dear little neglected blog. I thought I would at least put some updated info and pictures of my sweet family since it has been so long, so very long.

Last week Randy checked another item off his bucket list when we went to Notre Dame to watch his UTES play. It was a dream vacation for him and everything was perfection...except for the game. Randy got to see so many things he has loved since he was a child. He is a football junkie and knows so much history of the game, so Notre Dame football is a big deal to him. We got to see a lot of things that mean a lot to him and he was just like a kid on Christmas morning. I love that he gets so excited about things. I just wish that darn football team of his would have given us a good game to watch.

This is us in front of the Knute Rockne entrance to the stadium.

Here we are standing in front of "touchdown Jesus", an icon at Notre Dame. You can see it from inside the stadium, like Jesus is overlooking the game.

Randy loves Eric Weddle. We stood and watched him and some other important football people inside the tunnel chatting, but then when we went to go to get some grub he was standing right there. I walked over to him and he was chatting with 3 other jockish looking guys. I asked him if we could get a picture with him. He was so friendly and loved it. Well, I wanted to be in the photo too, so I just asked the guy he was talking to if he would take the picture for us. It then became apparent that the other guy was someone "important". They all joked and razzed him for being Eric's photographer. I think he must have been a more important NFL player than Weddle, but hey to me he was just a guy to snap a photo. Weddle and Randy then chatted for a minute about our kids and playing for the Chargers and stuff. That was cool for Randy, and for me. The thing that got me was that so many of the football players are so small in stature. I was standing right next to an NFL player, and even if I wasn't 7 months pregnant I still would have been bigger than him. That was weird to me. I just figured the guys that got to the NFL would all be 6'5" and at least 250 lbs. That Weddle is just a little guy.
This is inside the stadium before the teams came out. In the distance you can see "touchdown Jesus" and to the left the "golden dome" another Notre Dame important spot.

This was the best part of coming home. Seeing our sweet little angels. I missed them so much, but I never worried about them because I knew they were being well taken care of. Thanks to Weezy (Aunt Alisa) and family and Grandma and Grandpa Huff. They broke Max of his bottle while we were gone. Isn't that what family is really for...to do the hard parenting for you. haha.

Is it really so wrong?

2010-04-25T00:44:00.002-06:00

Is it really so wrong that I get a total gut-chuckle when I see this picture of Luke. After I posted the last picture of him on the rollercoaster at Legoland, I remembered this picture. This was taken two years ago atop a cliff at Captitol Reef. I was waiting in the car, the teeny tiny car that you can see in the distance, whilst the boys hiked to the top of this mountain. The wind was blowing really hard and Luke was convinced he was going to blow off the top of the mountain.

I really thought Luke was the brave child, but I guess his tough-guy exterior sometimes breaks and we see what the heck he really thinks.

So, is it really so wrong that I bust up over this picture and the rollercoaster picture?

What a Blast!

2010-04-20T14:20:00.003-06:00

So this is what we did on our Spring Break. We went to San Diego, this was at Legoland. I think my children thought they were in heaven. Okay, most of the time Luke thought he was in heaven, maybe at this particular moment he wasn't thinking heaven.

It's Great to be 8!

2010-03-17T10:38:00.006-06:00

What a little heartbreaker! I'm just crazy about this kid.I can't believe our baby Jack is 8. It seems like he was just born, but then again it seems like he has always been a part of our lives. Jack is such a special sweet boy, and we love him so much. Some of the things Jack enjoys right now as an 8 year-old are:

playing with his brothers (he is the most patient and loving big brother)

playing the Wii and DSi

doing karate (he just got his purple belt)

playing the piano (okay, I like this one more than he does, but he tries to comply with my wishes)

writing stories and illustrating them

reading books (right now he is reading Percy Jackson)

riding his bike and jumping on the trampoline

playing basketball (this is a new-found pleasure and I am happy about that)

sewing (yes I said sewing, he recently became interested after watching me involved at the machine with my endless projects and last week finished his first project--a space pillowcase for his bed)

and many other 8 year-old boy activities.

Last week Jack was baptized and we had a great day celebrating his decision. He has worked so hard to get ready for this and everything went off without a hitch. Well, that is unless you call being locked out of the church in a frosty spring snow storm a hitch. I always say its things like that that make memories even more memorable. I will forever envision all of us huddled next to the church in dresses and suits with umbrellas (for some) with really wet snow pounding us sideways. The people without umbrellas were really wet, but all was resolved quickly when someone was kind enough to bring us the keys.

I just love this kid and can't imagine life without him. He is such a sweet and kind kid and melts my heart everyday, even now that he thinks he is all grown up.

I will post later about a special gift Jack was given on this great day. Chirp chirp, there's your clue.

Once upon a time...

2010-01-31T22:53:00.007-07:00

Not so long ago
Tommy used to work on the docks
Unions been on strike
He's down on his luck...it's tough, so tough
Gina works the diner all day
Working for her man, she brings home her pay
For love - for love

She says we've got to hold on to what we've got
Cause it doesn't make a difference if we make it or not
We've got each other and that's a lot
For love - we'll give it a shot

Whooah....

I do loves me some Bon Jovi's. Okay some lots of Bon Jovi's. So, I must admit I had to watch them perform on the Grammy's. Oooooh baby. Isn't he so cute (Jon that is)? But, I have to admit (that's 2 confessions in one post) I gots meself a little sumthin sumthin for the Richie too. I prefer the new and surgically improved Richie Sambora, but nonetheless these boys are not only cutie patooties, but super amazing musicians. I have never heard a performance that I didn't love by them, but I've got a complaint tonight... who the heck was the chick they let sing with these musical perfections? If I wanted to watch a chick thinking she was a big deal, superstar sing I would have just watched Lady Gaga perform.

I like my Bon Jovi pure and original, no overexuberant chicks get to sing with these jersey boys unless its me.

So, enjoy the pics of the boys. Your welcome :)

Oh, and just in case you are singing it in your head (or out loud) here's the rest of the lyrics:

We're half way there
Livin on a prayer

Take my hand, we'll make it - I swear

Livin on a prayer

I'm on a mission...

2010-01-28T08:07:00.002-07:00

...and I'm wishing someone would cure my lonely condition. Okay, okay, just a little flashback from 7th grade.
The School Board Meeting went great! But if you weren't there (and I know you weren't that's why I have a lonely condition) you still have a chance to do your civic duty next month on February 9th-same time same place.
Thanks to those people who showed up and had the guts to speak up. My wet pants can tell you it was intense and a little intimidating, but hopefully we are making a difference.
There were several people who made "patron comments" at the meeting and the board heard from many of them the same things that people from our group expressed. Those comments were basically be responsible with our money, raise taxes to ease the burden on the cuts that are necessary, cut things that don't impact the classroom directly, cut across the board to minimize the impact on one group or area, and keep Jordan a place where good teachers and leaders and students want to be.
I hope to see you at the next board meeting February 9th. If you need help preparing comments to the board I've got your back. We would like to see 2 or 3 people at least comment next month to support our cause. So that's you!! Just comment or email me if you are a willing participant and I will get you on the agenda.
ah hem (clearing my voice to finish my rap) lookin for love in all the wrong places, no find love just ugly faces. That should do for now.
Be Strong and of a Good Courage!!

What I will say to the school board: (read all three recent posts)

2010-01-25T17:42:00.006-07:00

#1 I expect the District to use my tax dollars at the district level more efficiently. I expect a fine tooth comb to be raked over district level spending, and cutting the things that don't better my child's education. Does the size of district leadership and administration match the new smaller size of the district? Are we a top heavy district like some outside the district claim? Let's figure that out and cut where needed.
#2 I expect every citizen of the district boundaries to pay for quality education for our students. This will require a tax increase, and I encourage you to make the difficult and politically incorrect decision to raise taxes the maximum that has been proposed. Which will cost the average home owner of a $200,000 home an added $10 per month on your tax bill. Doing this first will minimize the amount that will be necessary to cut from subsequent areas.
#3 I expect every citizen within the boundaries of the new Jordan School District to get involved and get the State Representatives and Senators out of office that caused our district to be in such a bad position in the first place. They caused the problem that we are now facing, why do we keep voting them in?
#4 I expect you to keep class sizes minimally impacted. We cannot expect 1 teacher to teach 5 or 6 more kids and be effective. Class sizes in our district are already to large. Don't make the mistake of increasing them just because you don't want to make the difficult decision to raise taxes. Class size increase should be last on your list of changes to help the budget.
#5 I expect that funding for paraprofessionals that work one-on-one with kids in the classroom will remain intact. We need aides and technicians in the classroom helping kids who fall behind or have special needs. Teachers already do more with less. If classroom helpers are cut, teachers will be able to do even less with less. If you get more from the taxpayers, you will be able to cut less in this area.
#6 I expect the teachers and leaders in our district to be well trained and to have continuous improvement in their fields. This requires staff development and training. How do we expect our teachers and principals to implement the latest and greatest in educational models without staff development funds. I expect our teachers and leaders to be the BEST! Let's make this possible by giving them the tools to become the best. This requires staff development days, and not furloughs for these days. If furloughs are a decision that you make, please make them across the board, not just for teachers. Janitors, custodians, special ed departments, district leaders, everyone should be furloughed if anyone is. This would require fewer days.
#7 I expect Jordan School District to be a place where great teachers, wonderful principals and administrators, and positive people want to work. If you impose on these great teachers and leaders an environment where they are unable to shine, where they have no resources, where they are just keeping their heads above water, we will lose them. Don't let Jordan develop a reputation where people leave. People and businesses will stay away from an area that does not have a good school system. Raising taxes will hurt now, but must be done for the sake of our students and our future. The tax increase will minimize the impact to our students and help to maintain a positive environment for teachers and students.

Out of Time...Rally the Troops!

2010-01-25T17:22:00.002-07:00

I just found out from an "insider" that the board has pretty much made up their mind on certain important budget decisions. We need community support tomorrow night at the school board meeting. Last month there were 1200 citizens at the meeting to tell the board to do/cut anything but DON'T raise our taxes.
We need to tell them tomorrow to make other cuts, but please do raise taxes before increasing class size, before cutting certain school professionals and programs.
What do you think is important in your child's education? Do you think they need 5 or 6 more kids in their class? Do you think they should have unsupervised playgrounds? Do you think highschool kids don't need school counselors even though that is who helps with college prep and admissions? Do you think when teachers in Jordan School District have bigger classes, less support staff, less supervising staff, fewer resources, lower morale, and just plain poor crappy working conditions they will keep teaching in Jordan School District?
Well, I want the good teachers to stay. I want good people to continue to move to the westside. I want business growth on the westside. None of this will happen if our school district becomes what it might without tax increases. Do you want to live in a district and send your kids to school in a place that within a few years will earn the reputation for having the worst teachers, biggest classes, no extracurricular activities, and just plain POOR educational opportunities for kids.
I DON'T!
So, let's make a difference tomorrow night at the school board meeting. Just tell them what you think. They change what they do based on citizen input. Let's not let the 1200 uninformed become the people who made the difference. I think we can all give up a little something for the kiddos.
We pay more for a night out than we do for a year of educating our own kids.
Call everyone you know and let's see how many people we can get to speak up tomorrow night at the Jordan School District Board of Education Meeting.
Held at:
Auxiliary Services Building (Board Room)
7905 South Redwood Road
7:00 pm
this is the old DI building near the corner of 78th and Redwood across from Gold's Gym.
Call me if you have any questions (801) 792-1478

MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

2010-01-25T13:55:00.003-07:00

HELP ME, HELP ME!!! (do I sound desperate, well then read on)
If you live in, or know someone who lives in Jordan School District please follow my blog for the latest correct information on what is happening in our district. I will be giving daily updates on what we as citizen can do to help take control of our children's educational futures.
Background information:
Two years ago the Utah State Legislature approved the eastside cities of Jordan District to withdraw from the district. This created the new Canyons District and the new Jordan District. The legislature imposed on the westside students an enormous burden of lost revenue. This coming year we will see the biggest impact to date to the new Jordan District.

WE ARE BROKE!!! Thanks a lot Senator Waddoups (my personal fav) oh, and for you proud South Jordaners a big fat super T-H-A-N-K-S to Senator Buttars (what a gem for our state). I might have to go off now that I mentioned him. Where oh where to begin.... I better save it for another day, I want to keep this post G-rated.

So, all you passionate (or not) citizens of Jordan District join with me won't you? (pound your fist and chant)
RAISE MY TAXES!
RAISE MY TAXES!
RAISE MY TAXES!
Wait I didn't hear you with me. Maybe you need more info before you join in my chant.
We need approximately 40 million dollars to keep the schools running at less than they are right now.
There are many proposed ideas on what to do. Cut teacher salaries by 3%, cut school psychologist, counselors, nurses, music programs, on and on and on. Oh and did I mention increase class size by up to 5 students per class.
These are just a few of the millions of dollars in programs and professionals proposed to cut.
What then, you ask, is a gal (or guy) to do?
Well, one option that will minimally impact everyone is.....(drum roll please)
RAISE MY TAXES!
RAISE MY TAXES!
RAISE MY TAXES!
The largest tax increase proposed by the Board of Education (they're the one's who will decide what to do about our poverty-stricken district) will cost approximately $60 per $100,000 of house value. So if your house is worth $200,000 (according to another love of mine the county tax valuation committee) you would pay an extra $120 per YEAR.
SAY WHAT?!?!? you ask. That's it. That's all.
YEP, 10 bucks a month more to edu-ma-freakin-cate your kiddos. What a DaRn bargain.
So, join with me...
Dear Jordan Board of Education,
Because we love you so, please do our kiddos a favor (and my coronary arteries) and let me skip one trip to McDonalds per month and therefore maintain a quality education for my oh so intelligent, genius, talented, children.
There you go! Part 1 of the save our district post.
Please send a link to this blog to anyone you know who lives in Jordan School District and lets see if moms and bloggers around here can make a difference.
Check back tomorrow for more. (oh and maybe even some more about our Senate gems Waddoups & Buttars----was that a punk band in the late 80's?)
PS the board meets tomorrow,they may have already decided on the budget.

Sorry mom....

2009-09-30T14:16:00.003-06:00

This is the conversation I had with Luke this morning.
"Sorry mom, but we can't give you a piece of the world for your birthday."
"Oh really?" (I am totally clueless what this kid is talking about)
"Yeah, but how about a crab instead?"
"Okay that would be great too."
After the conversation was over I had to think what on earth he was talking about. Then, it dawned on me. Every year on my birthday or Christmas the boys ask me what I want and I always tell them, "Peace on Earth, Good Will to Men." Well, they have been asking me what I want again this year, and I have been giving my usual response. It now occurs to me that my sweet little 4 year old is trying to figure out how to buy a piece of the earth for me. What a cutie pie. As for the crab I have no idea!

My Baby is One!

2009-09-15T13:22:00.003-06:00

Well, actually he's 14 months now, but this is one of his adorable one year old photos that I just had to share. I finally got some printed and I think he is too cute for words. And yes, those are his actual eye color, no photo editing at all on this photo. I just love this kid, he is such a busy BOY. That is what everyone says about Max, he is all boy.

A Memorable Memorial

2009-05-28T08:40:00.018-06:00

We had a fun-filled Memorial Weekend. First, my dad invited all the boys in the fam to go on his ward's father and sons outing. My boys were so excited. Of course I spent some time Friday morning having the boys pack all the possible things they might need for the campout. In all it wasn't too much stuff, only one bag for the boys to share. Apparently my sis Alisa was a good mother too and made sure her boys were prepared, but we both got sufficiently mocked in the end for overpacking our boys. It is true that boys can just plain do without all the stuff we girls think they need. This was definitely evidenced when my brother "packed up" all his gear for the campout. He came up the stairs with a sleeping bag, a sweatshirt and a hat. 'Nuf said!

They all had a great time making memories with grandpa and the uncles and cousins, but everyone missed the out-of-state boys.

My cute camping boys. Randy snapped this pic because he had never seen anything like it before. Yes, that's Mike reading a book. That's what a good woman will do for you. The filthy little pigs. I'm pretty sure those hands never got washed, not even before eating.

The report upon returning home was that the best part was the tug-of-war and the snake they found on their hike.

While the boys were off being manly, the girls all stayed at grandma's. We went out to dinner, chatted on the patio and experienced some trauma. Max wasn't invited on the boys campout so he had to stay with the girls. This was the result.

(this was after a bath and 2 popsicles to bring down the swelling)

Max is so blessed to have his cousins that love and take care of him. I felt so bad for both Max and his loving little cousin mother when they took a horrible fall leaving the restaurant. Max ended up somehow smashing his face on something when they fell and split his lip, tore the frenulum (that little thingy inside your mouth that connects your top lip to your gums), bloodied his nose, and skinned his nose, lip and chin. There was so much blood and he was crying so hard. I guess I have been out of nursing practice too long because I had to try to keep calm. I just didn't want his little cousin mother to be more traumatized than she already was. It was so sad, but amazingly he has healed up so quickly like kids do. The fall was Friday night and this is how it looked only 24 hours later. The "Homer Simpson" look was gone quickly. I just hope Bev's little heart is feeling better now too.

And now less than a week later it's just a little scab.

On Monday we took the kids hiking in Big Cottonwood Canyon. We started out heading up to Doglake, but after crossing the creek twice and looking on to the steep rocky cliff that was ahead we decided to go down to the Lake Blanche trail instead. The kids did awesome and had a great time. On the campout they had been a little rusty on their hiking, so we got it back in their blood really quick. When we were done they didn't want to leave, they had to climb a few more rocks first. Max was a little trooper in his "maxpack".

It was a great weekend and now I can't wait for summer. Thanks for all the memories.

Look who's walking!

2009-05-18T10:21:00.008-06:00

I can hardly stand it! My baby wants to grow up to quickly. I knew when he was 3 months old that this kid was going to walk early, but I still like to think of him as my brand new baby. He is so funny, he loves to walk everywhere now and is always in a hurry like a walk/run combo. He has been walking pushing his little car for a couple of months, so I knew any day he would just take off on his own and he has. He gave up the crawling just a few days before his 10 month birthday. I am thankful for the sake of his poor knees that he has given up crawling just in time for shorts. I started feeling guilty everytime I would dress him in shorts because his knees would get such bad rug burn. Jack and Luke love that he can walk. They try to bribe him to walk to them, its a contest to see who he will walk to. The winner is usually whomever has the best sock to give Max. That boy loves to chew himself a good sock.

I Hate Guns

2009-04-05T10:07:00.008-06:00

As far back as I can remember I have always hated guns. I used to go shooting with a friend's family in middle school and I remember hating it then, but I haven't shot a gun since. Ever since Randy first met me he has tried to change my opinion of guns since he loves to shoot and now he has an ally in a dear family member who loves guns more than a person should (this person will remain anonymous). So, they finally got the girls out shooting, and I must say it was fun...after the initial shock. I really didn't mind shooting the little guns like the .22 revolver and .22 rifle, but the big guns still scare me. Maybe someday I could see the fun in such a hobby, but I'm not a full believer yet.

As you can see I don't look natural in any way shooting a gun.

It's kind of like that old mom saying "it's not that I don't trust you...I just don't trust the other people out there". I feel that way, I trust myself with a gun, but I don't trust anyone else to be as careful as me.

Thanks for the fun day everyone, and special thanks for not killing me or anything else. I do have a question for you out there...does anyone know if it is safe to shoot a 100 year old gun with 100 year old bullets? (oh well, I'm just glad they didn't explode)

By the way, after all the anxiety of handling and shooting guns all day, I didn't sleep a wink and had the most horrible nightmares. I think it's going to take a lot more shooting therapy to get me over this intense phobia.

I am so happy it SNOWED!!!

2009-03-24T10:50:00.005-06:00

No, I haven't completely lost my mind. (that is up for debate though) I was so happy it snowed because I finally had my car in the garage for a storm and didn't have to scrape the snow and ice off my car before leaving. I also didn't have to risk my life and Max's life carrying the carseat to the car on the slick driveway.

Randy told me I couldn't make a big deal out of it, but I am totally throwing a party or something. We haven't been able to park in the garage since we started finishing the basement and all our storage went to the garage. Oh, and by the way it only took us 347 years to finish the basement. Well, the basement got finished just before Christmas and we were waiting for a nice day to purge the garage of all the junk that got tossed out there the last 347 years. Since Saturday was an absolute dream day, we worked all day on the garage and got it done. I must say it felt a little like "casting our swine before pearls" pulling all our junk out of the garage for all the neighbors to see, but at least now the kids can get their bikes out of the garage and I don't have to be so embarassed.

Unfortunately, Randy only got his car in the garage for a short time. We still have to sell his weight bench and all his weights, return a borrowed ladder and take one dresser to the DI that didn't get hand-me-downed, then he will get his spot back. (understanding it will only be until I start my next furniture project) I have determined in all the excitement of having the garage back and organized that it is still too small. Oh well, we will make do, I am just happy to have it.

On a completely related and unrelated note, I want to make it clear to everyone in my neighborhood that our return to parking in the garage had nothing to do with the totally insulting talk given in church a couple of weeks ago. Come on, you all know I wouldn't do it because someone told me I should. That would go against every stubborn, hard-headed bone in my body. For those of you who didn't have the pleasure of hearing the talk, we were told that we've all seen neighbors who have so much junk in their garage that they can't even park a car in it. Then we were told that "those" people should have spent their money on their food storage instead of all the junk in their garage. It was a shining moment for my thoughts at that moment. I really wished it would have been in a lesson so I could make a comment, but it wasn't, so I swallowed my mouthful of mean things and spewed them on Randy after church. Maybe my food storage was sooooooo huge and organized that it filled my entire garage, maybe my best friend was homeless and I made an apartment for her in my garage, maybe my husband turned it into his mancave with a bigscreen and weights, maybe I was operating an animal sanctuary and rescuing abandoned puppies, maybe I had an elaborate drug making facility running in there, maybe I got so much hand-me-down furniture and was finishing my basement without going into debt that I needed a place to put it....I mean how do you know why people don't put cars in the garage. Come on!!!

Okay I have now taken a deep breath and will return to my praises. I am happy for all I have, even if it is sometimes a pain in the neck. And I was really grateful that Randy and I completed a big project together without wanting to kill each other at the end. Now that's a good day!!

Oh, the JOY!! (that was my happy dance)

Max was an awesome helper while we worked.

Weights for sale! (maybe I should ask Randy first) But seriously, any takers.

The Kids

2009-03-03T09:22:00.012-07:00

I have the most amazing kids. I can't believe what a great life I have. I thought I would share an update of the sweet, cute, smart, funny, happy little ones that make life awesome.

Max is 7 1/2 months now and is such an active little tiger. He has the nickname of Rascally-roo at home. He loves to explore everywhere. As you can see from my previous post he loves to splash and today was found splashing in the toilet. He has been physically strong since the day he was born, so he has always seemed older than his age which makes me sad. I want him to stay small and brand new for a long time. At three months he was rolling over, 4 months sitting up by himself, 5 1/2 months rolling across the room to get what he wanted, 6 months crawling like a crazy inchworm and pulling himself up to furniture, now at 7 months he is everywhere. He loves to walk the furniture, play in the curtains, clean the crumbs from under the table (yuck!), and of course loves a good wrestling match with the big brothers and daddy. He gets right in the middle of anything his brothers are doing. He especially loves to crawl into their bedroom when they have friends over playing. He really does think he's just one of the boys. This kid loves his lunch. He will eat anything, and is starting to like things with more texture. He got two little teeth on the bottom the day after turning 6 months and loves to put them to use. He melts my heart when he talks. Some of his words are "mama", "bah bah", "hi dad", "ahh duh" (all done). He is such a happy, easy, well-natured baby, and we love him so much.

Luke is 4 and is an amazing little one. He is so intense and full of energy. He loves Star Wars or as he says "Staaa Whoas", karate, learning to read, playing with legos, playing with his brothers, soccer, basketball and mashed potatoes. It is so fun to just sit and listen to Luke; he will tell a great story (the truth), then after he has heard it come out of his own mouth he will have to retell the bigger, more embellished version and try to convince you the latter is the way it really happened. A favorite saying of his (and Jack's) is "seriously mom, no seriously" (I seriously don't know where they get it from) it is so funny to hear him try to convince me of things. "Seriously Mom, Grandma told me I could watch movies all day, no seriously." That's the one I heard today. Luke loves the tough guys. As an infant he always preferred dad and the grandpas and uncles holding him, now he looks up to his dad so much and wants to do anything that big strong guys do. He does his own little workout routine everyday. He even came up with his own pushups where he puts his feet on the couch and stretches out and does full, awesome pushups. He is playing indoor soccer right now and loves it. He wants to go outside and practice everyday. He is such a happy, sweet, fun boy and we love him so much.

Jack just turned 7 last month and is growing up so fast. He is a very curious boy and loves to read and learn. He is also very artistic and loves to draw, and make things, and is a very good reader. Star Wars and Legos are at the top of his to do list everyday, and now he has combined his two loves and looks forward to playing with his Star Wars Legos and Legos Star Wars on the Wii everyday. Jack is a very good helper and an awesome big brother. He loves to roll around on the floor with Max and take care of him when he needs help. He loves to rescue him when he's into mischief. Jack has such a funny personality; he makes me laugh everyday. Recently we were planning our weekend and he was in the middle of a big Legos project. We had been talking about going to the grandparent's house on Sunday. Jack interupted Randy and said, "Dad, are we going to grandma's house on Sunday, I need to know these things you know." He was planning out when he would have time to finish his big project. He is an awesome example and wonderful big brother, and very patient with the little ones. He is such and easy, happy, fun, boy and we love him so much.

(all of us at the Temple Open House in February)

What a wonderful life I have!

I Just Love This Kid!

2009-02-26T21:13:00.005-07:00

We took the kids swimming last week, and that was all it took for Max to figure out that bath time could be so much more fun than it had been. He is now a wild man at bath time and the whole bathroom requires a mopping when he's done. I do love this kid. He makes me smile every day.

Go UTES!!!

2009-01-03T11:04:00.003-07:00

What a game! We couldn't be more proud at our house to be UTES this year. A big congratulations to our National Champions! Even though we didn't end up going to the game, they didn't need Randy's good luck after all and pulled it off big time without us there.

Go UTES!!!

Fall in Review

2008-12-12T09:14:00.010-07:00

It has been a busy year for our family, so I thought I would catch up on some blogging that we missed sharing in the last couple of months.

Jack got the Star Student Award at his school. We were so proud of him!Jack looked awesome for crazy hair day at school. He had decided for crazy hair day he wanted to do his hair bald. I explained that bald would be a more long term hair do, but he didn't care he still wanted me to shave his head. Luckily I can still pull the mommy card with the 6 year-old and he got spiky instead.Luke showing off some of his "moves" in the backyard in his skivvies. He and Jack have loved going outside to play in their underwear, and in the summer and fall could often be found jumping on the trampoline with nothing on but underwear and socks.A favorite time of year for the boys...a hated time of the year for Randy. We so hate the trees in our neighbors yard that are such a mess, but the boys sure enjoy jumping in the leaves and sliding down the slide into a huge pile. A little late for the halloween post, but they were so cute I had to share.Jack was Darth Vader and Luke was the red Jungle Fury Power Ranger. I have learned this fall that there are several different varieties of Power Rangers so it is necessary to clarify which one Luke is. As a 4 year-old he has made this very clear to me lately.Our sweet little jack-o-lantern.Horseback riding in Wyoming with Landon's family. Jack has taken lessons in the past so it was fun for him to get back in the saddle. It was Luke's first time on the horse and he loved it eventually, and both have been asking when we can go back to Landon's and ride horses again. After visiting I thought of how fun it would be to raise kids in the country. We just let them run loose for a couple of hours and didn't have to worry. There was so much fun to have just finding things to do. But, I still think I am a city girl and we will just have to visit.Randy's birthday. Yes, he got wedding cake for his birthday cake. I told him it was the most expensive birthday cake he'll ever get and hey it wasn't pumpkin pie.With my sis and her fam here from out of state we did a ton a fun stuff. This was the light parade in SF. It was such a lovely night, no snow and not terribly cold. But just a note to the city, dusk is not 7pm, more like 5:30. We had to wait quite a while for "dusk". The kids all loved it and got their first glimpse of Santa for the season.My mom helped keep Max nice and snuggly warm. (I think they look alike)My little dress up doll. The older boys love to make Max look silly. I think he makes a cute 4th amigo.Just a little eye candy. We had fun at a Jazz game, with good seats. I have always loved CJ Miles since he came to the Jazz. No one ever understood my facination for him. Randy thinks its a crush thing, but it has nothing to do with his appearance, I just love that the game truly excites him. Whenever you watch him on the bench he looks like a kid on Christmas morning, he get so genuinely excited and still has the glow in his eye. (Now Boozer, that's the candy)My little Max has loved to sleep on his tummy ever since he first learned to rollover at 3 months. I hate tummy sleeping. I have battled him for 2 months on this and wake up in the night many times to flip him over. I do think it is cute though, especially how his little bum sticks up in the air.The curse of our existence! If you ask Randy about the basement he will gladly tell you we have been "working" on it for 3 years. YUCK! This picture is what happens when you buy a crappy mask and don't wear eye or hair protection when painting. I really did love my white mascara.We finally have paint, and there is hope it will be done SOON! Thanks to my parents who have helped us so much lately with the painting, and everything else. It has been such a mess and I can't wait to have it DONE!

I have given myself many deadlines over the past couple of years with regard to the basement. First it was...we can't have another baby until the basement is done. That didn't happen. Then when I was pregnant...I am not having this baby until this basement is done.That didn't happen. I tried really hard though. This was me caulking and puttying a week before Max was born.

My latest...we are not having Christmas until this basement is done. I so hope this one works out, I think the kids might be traumatized if there is no Christmas. (and I did remind Randy the other day that he doesn't actually have the power to cancel Christmas). The carpet guy emailed me today and the carpet will be installed either tomorrow or Thursday. YEAH!!!

The Big Day!

2008-12-01T13:45:00.009-07:00

Well, my little sister is married. It was a perfect event. First the whole fam traveled to Wyoming on Saturday for the open house. Randy showed how much he loves me and my fam by selling our Utah/BYU tickets and missing the game. (that game is a big deal at our house)This is my parents and siblings at the Wyoming open house.This is all the cousins. Aren't they cute? They were in this room during the reception making up a "show" for us.Me and my lovely sis the bride.Then the wedding at the Bountiful Temple. Aren't they a great couple. Landon's mom said they could be centerfolds (I think she meant in a clean magazine)

All my cute boys at the temple.Me and my sweet baby boy. Aunt Nata and Max.After the wedding was the reception at the Art Museum. It was so nice. This was taken near the end of the night and the boys were getting tired. They were all so well behaved the whole day, I was so proud of them. I am so happy for Natalie and Landon. It was a fun week. My sister and her family came in from out of state and it was a fun and crazy week, and was so good to see all the family and spend time with them.

One down...

2008-11-12T22:32:00.005-07:00

Tonight we had our YoWIE Awards for Young Womens. It was for our Young Women in Excellence. It turned out fabulous! The girls were so good, two of them hosted the "awards show" and did so well presenting everything. My fabulous presidency (especially Brittany) did such a good job making it a memorable evening. Brittany even did the girl's hair in up-do's.

The theme for the night was "Rock Stars" since our theme this year in YW's has been "steadfast and immovable". I was in charge of the rock star photography and writing the script. Brittany requested that the script have some jokes and tease some of the audience like they do in real awards shows. Thank heavens I have a funny husband who can think up good one-liners. He helped me write the script until 2:00 in the morning Sunday. Unfortunately at 2 am everything he says makes me laugh, so I was hoping the jokes would go over well, and they did. I did have to filter about half of the jokes he suggested (he is still a 14 year-old boy in some of his humor).

I have to brag about the awesome girls in our ward. They are so cute and did so good tonight.

Here are some of the "ROCK STARS" from the night. (edgy I know)

That is one big project down, many more to go.

Hey Stranger!

2008-11-10T13:56:00.003-07:00

That's what my husband and kids say to me when they see me these days. Life is very busy lately. I feel like I have a million undone projects, some will wait, but those that have deadlines are kicking me in the pants. Last night Randy held Max in front of his face and used him as a ventriloquist puppet. Max said, "Hey lady, nice to see you. I think we've met before." What a turkey I married. He is such a good husband and father, so just a shout out to Randy for stepping in when my life gets crazy and I slack getting everything done, and when I'm just plain not around much. I've really got it good, I know our kids have a great dad that can be a Mr. Mom now and then when needed. Love you babe, things will slow down soon, I promise.

Now about the blog, that is on the back burner for now. I promise I will update when I regain control of my life.

More birthday for Luke

2008-10-28T18:02:00.004-06:00

Since Luke had a party with his friends 2 days before his actual birthday, when Sunday came he thought he had turned another year older and insisted that he was now 5. We had to explain to him that Friday was his pretend birthday and Sunday was his real birthday. I guess it can be confusing for a kid. Then on Monday Jack wrote me a letter to inform me that on Oct. 28th we would be celebrating his pretend birthday. He told me all of the things I could buy for him. He was quite disappointed when I told him we couldn't just have a pretend birthday any time we want and get presents, it had to be at your birthday time. He was so mad, he pouted on his bed for a long long time. It's still hard for him to see Luke get something he can't get, but they usually share and get a long really well.

On Sunday Grandma and Grandpa J came and visited and brought Luke some gifts. He loved the clothes so much he wore them the rest of the day, even though they weren't intended to be worn together.

Then we went to Grandma and Grandpa H's house for a birthday dinner and party. He got some fun stuff from them and Grandma and Grandpa B. He also had fun hanging out with aunt Nata, uncle Ry and uncle Landon.

Luke is 4

2008-10-28T17:26:00.006-06:00

Happy Birthday Luke!

Luke celebrated his 4th birthday on Sunday. He is such an awesome kid, he brings so much energy and intensity to our home. He says the funniest things, and loves to do karate, hip hop dance and play with his brothers.

On Friday Luke had a Star Wars Birthday Party with some of his friends.

The front door.

Darth Vader (Jack) greeted all the guests.

We played lots of fun Star Wars games.

Outside the Jedi's in training played "Jedi, Jedi, Stormtrooper".

Luke has such nice friends, and they gave him awesome presents. It's hard to go wrong with this kid, he loved everything.

Light saber and Darth Vader cake.

The party finished with the Jedi's in training going for a scavenger hunt around the yard, they found a great treasure in the end! Luke had a great party and loved having his friends over for some fun.

Happy 3 Months Baby Max!

2008-10-08T21:01:00.003-06:00

I can't believe Max is three months old today. He is growing so fast and learning so many new tricks. When I got home from Young Womens tonight Randy told me that Max allegedly "rolled over" when I was gone. Of course, the baby saves the big tricks for when I'm not around. I naturally didn't believe him, so we put Max on the floor and sure enough it didn't take a minute and he rolled from back to belly. (I know my baby is a genius).

Other things aside, the cutest trick Max does these days is his giggle guts. It is a little disturbing what gets him to laugh, you will see in the following video that the family snorting at him like pigs works the very best. He is a big boy now weighing in at 13 1/2 pounds, and still always STARVING! (and yes that is a pull-up on the floor...oh the life)

Don't Forget the baby, Mom!

2008-10-06T13:51:00.003-06:00

Apparently my last few posts didn't include enough pictures of baby Max, so here's a cute one of him just hanging out helping me make dinner. Isn't he getting big? I'm trying to enjoy every day with him while he's still small.

Elephant and Tiger poop Stinks!

2008-10-04T09:17:00.003-06:00

Last Friday we kidnapped Randy from work and headed to the circus. For the last couple of years whenever Jack hears anything about the circus he asks when we can go. I have been giving him the "Oh, we'll go someday I promise" answer for 2 years. It got to the point that I couldn't put it off any longer. He loved it. I think he was in a full belly laugh for the first 20 minutes. He gets overly amused by lame clown gimmicks, he was laughing so hard the little boy in front of him kept checking over his shoulder to see what was so funny. We were in the cheap seats, but man when those tigers and elephants started pooping we still weren't far enough away. Randy kept sniffing Max's diaper to see if it was him. HOW INSULTING! My baby doesn't smell that bad even on his worst day.

Everyone had a good time. It was the first time I had been to the circus, so I think I'm good for another 30 years. The next day Jack asked when we could go again and I told him it was kind of like going to Disneyland, we can't go every year. Luke asked when we could go to daddy's office again. (hmmm...I wonder what Luke thought of the circus)

The Orange Traffic Cones

2008-10-04T08:56:00.003-06:00

The boys started soccer in September. They got these fabulous flourescent orange uniforms. When they were trying to name the team, the parents had great names, one of which was the orange traffic cones. The kids decided on the Tigers. I put them on the same team to make it easier for us to get to all the games, this means 3 year-old Luke is playing with 5 and 6 year-olds. They are both getting warmed up to it and doing great now.

Hey boys, the ball is over there. Like I said they are warming up to it.

They also get to play with cousin Nick (Randy's sister Julie's son), he's the one kicking in this picture ^. It is fun for them to be able to play with their cousin, and to see them so often.
Jack is a good mentor, he tries to remind Luke when the ball is coming to kick it and which way to go.
Even though he is 2+ years younger than everyone on the team, Luke is still bigger than half of the kids.

When our aggressive little Luke is feeling nervous, he just follows around Jack and stays right on his tail, then when they are in the middle of the bunch he will hold on to Jack jersey. What a good big brother to protect him.
Great kick Jack!
A little embarrassed by his mother's endless cheering.

Luke is very proud of his uniform, we have a hard time getting him to wear anything else during the week. Church could be interesting. (do you think cleats are inappropriate "dress shoes"?)

A few outings...

2008-10-04T08:49:00.002-06:00

I've been a slacker on the blog lately. Here are a few of our recent outings.

The State Fair

Luke with an extra large chicken.
On the Ferris Wheel

The boys had to dress the part for the fair.

My little sister...

2008-09-18T22:19:00.003-06:00

So, my little sister Natalie got engaged a few weeks ago. She is marrying Landon on Nov. 25th. Tonight we did their engagement photos and I just had to share one. Isn't she so beautiful. We are so happy to have Landon joining our fam.

Max's Blessing

2008-09-18T15:46:00.005-06:00

We had a great celebration of Max's arrival and blessing. Thanks to the fam & friends that made it so great. Max is so blessed to have such a great network of people who care about him.

Most of the men who were in the circle

(a couple of peeps didn't make it back to the house).Proud mama and beautiful babe.A few of the cute neices.Max's great grandma and grandpa & some of the Jones clan.

"Grumpy Old Men 4" ...just kidding, more people who love Max.

(uncle Ryan, grandpa H, grandpa B and brother Luke)

The beautiful aunt Nata!

More of my family enjoying the most lovely afternoon and delicious meal.

Retired (a little long)

2008-09-10T22:40:00.003-06:00

So, I have officially been retired as a registered nurse for one month, even though I haven't worked for about 9 months. I was feeling a little weird about it lately, then I read this list of
"You know your a nurse when..." and I actually missed nursing for about 2 minutes. I know I will eventually go back, but reading this brought back some good memories. I wouldn't trade being home with my boys for that though. I thought I would share this list of the twisted humor we nurses share.
Randy loves to tell the story of the first time he met my family. We went to dinner at my parent's house and my sister Melanie (also an RN) was living at home at the time and working for a plastic surgeon. Combine that with me, a nursing student at the time, and my dad a mortician, and we had a conversation Randy will never forget. It started off with a discussion of Melanie's day of work and details of breat enhancement surgery and moved on from there. Randy was disturbed, but thank goodness he stuck around. Sorry to say the medical conversations have never ended. He's used to it now.

"You Know You're a Nurse When..."
1)The front of your scrubs reads 'Nurses... here to Save your butt, not kiss it!'
2) You occasionally park in the space with the 'Physicians only' sign... and knock it over.
3) You believe some patients are alive only because it's illegal to kill them.
4) You recognize that you can't cure stupid.
5) You own at least three pens with the names of prescription medications on them.
6) You believe there's a special place in hell for the inventor of the call light.
7) You believe that saying 'it can't get any worse' causes it to get worse just to show you it can. **8) You wash your hands BEFORE you go to the bathroom.
9) You believe that any job where you can drive to work in your pajamas is a cool one.
10) You consider a tongue depressor an eating utensil.
**11) Eating microwave popcorn out of a clean bedpan is perfectly natural.
12) You've been exposed to so many x-rays that you consider it a form of birth control.
13) You've ever heard a patient with a nose ring, a brow ring, and twelve earrings say 'I'm afraid of shots.'
14) You've ever placed a bet on someone's blood alcohol level.
15) You've told a confused patient that your name is that of a coworker and to call if they need help.
16) Your bladder can expand to the size of a Winnebago's water tank.
17) You have seen more boy parts than any prostitute could dream of.
18) You believe that not all patients are annoying... some are unconscious.
19) Your family and friends refuse to watch medical sitcoms with you because you spend the whole time correcting everyone and pointing out upside down x-rays.
20) You don't get excited about blood, unless it's your own.
21) You've sworn to have 'do not resuscitate' tattooed on your chest. Soon.
22) Discussing dismemberment over a gourmet meal is perfectly normal to you.
23) Your idea of fine dining is anywhere you can sit down to eat.
24) Your idea of a good time is a cardiac arrest at shift change.
25) You believe in the aerial spraying of Prozac.
**26) You believe that 'shallow gene pool' should be a recognized diagnosis.
27) You believe that the government should require permits to reproduce.
28) You believe that unspeakable evils will befall anyone who utters the phrase 'Wow, it's really quiet, isn't it?
29) You have ever wanted to write a book entitled: 'Suicide: getting it right the first time.'
30) You have ever had a patient look you straight in the eye and say 'I have no idea how that got stuck in there.'
31) You've had to leave a patient's room before you begin to laugh uncontrollably.

Playing around with photos

2008-09-08T19:27:00.004-06:00

I adore my boys.

Happy 2 months Max!

2008-09-08T18:08:00.005-06:00

Our sweet brand new one is 2 months old today. We love Max so much and he brings so much love and happiness to our world. His brothers adore him and so do his parents. He was blessed yesterday and we had a great celebration of his arrival into this world. I will blog about that later.

(I love those blue eyes)

To our sweet Max, we love you and are glad you are a part of our family.
Happy Birthday!

Ten years...ten things

2008-09-07T22:43:00.003-06:00

Randy and I celebrated our ten year anniversary a couple of weeks ago. I have not gotten around to post anything about it until now. I can't believe it's been ten years, but we've made a ton of memories and had lots of adventures and best of all we've got our three boys. We actually went out on a date (we took Max with us) dinner at The Cheesecake Factory and shopping for carpet. I guess some of the glamour of the anniversary has worn off, but I promised Randy we will do something better when Max is a little older. I know he would have like a getaway but not with a newborn.

Here are the top ten things I love about Randy:
10. He still thinks he's a 14 year old skater boy.
9. He plays with the kids like he's a 14 year-old.
8. He doesn't get stressed out about silly stuff.
7. He can make me laugh about anything.
6. He supports me in everything I do.
5. He doesn't complain too much when I spend too much money.
4. He works hard to provide a good life for our family.
3. He is the best dad in the world.
2. He is kind and treats me like a queen, always compliments me.
1. He loves me always.

I love you babe! Happy ten year!

My Three Favorites...Tag

2008-09-07T22:14:00.003-06:00

What are the last three things you purchased?
1. Groceries
2. A skirt (don't like it, it will be returned)
3. School clothes for kids.

What are the last three songs you downloaded onto your iPod?
1. "Handlebars" by Flobots (the boys like it too)
2. Can't remember the others, it's been a while.

What are your three favorite movies?
1. Tommy Boy
2. Mamma Mia (most recent)
3. ??? I have a bad memory, I can't remember any more.

What are three things you have not done yet?
1. Paint the basement...ugh.
2. Organize my life...ugh.
3. Kiss my hubby today...done.

What are three things you can't live without?
1. My family
2. Chocolate
3. Friends

What are your three favorite dishes?
1. Grandma B's chicken noodle soup over mashed pototoes.
2. Fresh BLT
3. Italian food with fresh garlic bread, no pasta just the sauce and bread.

What are your three favoite TV shows?
1. Survivor
2. The Office
3. Dateline NBC

What are the last three places you have traveled to?
1. Spanish Fork
2. Murray
3. Sandy (ya, I get out)

What are your three favorite desserts?
1. Brownies from Schmidts
2. Peanut butter bars
3. Adam's Chocolate Peanut Butter ... cheesecake

What are three things you would buy if money was not an issue?
1. New everything for my house.
2. Randy a new commuter car or truck.
3. The Canon 5D camera and all the accessories.

If you could have three wishes, what would they be?
1. For everyone I love to be healthy.
2. For grandparents not to get old.
3. Money

Three people I tag
1. Suzie
2. Alice
3. Alisa

School's in Session

2008-09-04T11:10:00.009-06:00

Jack and Luke are now in school. Jack started first grade a week ago Tuesday, and Luke started preschool this Tuesday.

This is Jack on his first day.

At the beautiful new school. We love the fresh bright new school, it was long overdue in this neighborhood.

Jack with his darling 1st grade teacher Miss N.

Luke enjoyed doing his karate at Jack's new school.

He couldn't be left out.

Max wasn't left out either, he just didn't get a picture at the school.

This is after we got back home.

Luke had a preschool openhouse the week before school actually started. He insisted it was a real day of school. This meant he had to wear his backpack, and his own specially chosen outfit. Why fight a 3-year-old over clothes. This is why Luke is usually so well dressed. After we left the openhouse Luke was sad, when I asked what was wrong he said, "Next time I come to school I want to learn!" Well, I can't complain about that.

This was Luke's first real day of preschool.

His cool Cars backpack.

Luke and his friend Dillon, and showing off their backpacks.

Luke with his sweet teacher Miss Margaret.

The Last Week of Summer

2008-08-28T12:40:00.027-06:00

The week before school was to start we told Jack that it was the last week of summer and asked if there was anything we needed to do before school started. That was probably a bad idea, he had a whole list of things to do. I told him we would do something fun everyday, again probably a bad idea. We did end up having a fun week though.

On Monday we went with some friends to the Air Force Museum. The boys loved it and had so much fun. Jack wanted to read all of the information at each exhibit, but had too much fun running around with his friends. Max did really well too. I was glad I had some help though. The moms agreed we need to go back without the kids to actually learn the info there. Thanks for the idea Brit.

Tuesday was another fun outing. We went to the 3-D movie "Fly Me to the Moon". The older two kids thought it was great and had so much fun. It was fun to hear them laughing out loud and to hear the comments between the little friends. Max did okay for his first movie. I tried to plug his ears with blankets, but I really think that kid can sleep through anything (except the night). Maybe I need to strap him in his carseat and put him in front of a loud recording of his brothers screaming and playing to get him to sleep.

It was off to the aquarium on Wednesday. Jack and Luke had earned some money (I'm not sure how legitimately) helping some friends with a lemonade stand. They decided to spend it going to the aquarium. Jack has always been obsessed with the underwater world and has now passed that love on to his little brother.
Thursday was swimming lessons, so I let them swim before and after for a long swim day. Notice in the second picture that the top of Jack's hair is still not wet. Unfortunately, Jack inherited his parents' natural love and talents for the water. He is not fond of putting his face in the water. I remember being a teenager and still swimming with my face out of the water. Luke on the other hand doesn't think anything of it. Thank heavens their teacher Emma is very patient--there are many times that I wanted to jump in the pool and dunk Jack or push him off the edge (I know, what an evil mother). That's what my teacher did when I was little, even pushed me off the high-dive. They have both made huge improvements and Jack can swim by himself in the deep now. We're so proud!

On Friday I wanted to take the kids to the farm and go for a wagon ride or ride the ponies. They had other ideas. They both agreed we should go back to the aquarium, so that's what we did. (sorry no more pictures) Then on Friday night Randy took the boys swimming again at the rec center. I think I'm exhausted, I thought we were done, but Randy had other ideas.

My hubby has a problem--I know acknowledging it is the first step. From about Easter on his brain is on automatic countdown to the start of football season. When August hits it seems that nothing can distract him from this countdown. So....Saturday was the Ute Fan Fest. He took Jack and Luke and they had a blast. Well actually I'm not sure who has more fun at these things the kids or their dad.

The boys with Swoop.

The boys with the Utah Cheerleaders. Randy?! tsk..tsk..tsk(that's me shaking my finger at you)

That's Luke in the middle playing tennis with the Utah Men's Tennis Team.

The annual picture in the middle of the U on the football field.

Coach Boylin the Men's Basketball Head Coach.

Checking out the Women's Volleyball team.

Adding to the boys obsession with Michael Phelps, this is a cut out of him at the Olympics. I'm still not sure of the Utah connection, but Jack and Luke loved it. And yes, Luke is wearing both goggles and a red swim cap.

These are "those nastics girls". Even after taking gymnastics themselves for a couple of years they both still say it that way. They loved that the girls had been having handstand contests with each other and the spectators. They're BUFF!

And of course some of the football team. They were all pumped up for the start of the season, and Randy loved adding to the fever with the team members.

The boys had a full and exciting week and after it all we were all ready for a vacation. I can't believe I have a 1st grader and a preschooler. They are awesome boys and I am so blessed. They have such a great dad that is willing to do fun stuff with them.

One project down, many to go...

2008-08-28T12:28:00.003-06:00

We finally got our new back porch. It was actually finished a week and a half ago, it is so nice to get rid of the ghetto porch that was falling apart. It took a little more effort than we had anticipated (sorry Mark), but for those of you who don't know Trex is a whole different thing to build with. Thanks to our patient friend who did this for us. Once again its great and sorry about the grief it caused.

"Child, SHUT UP!!!"

2008-08-21T20:19:00.003-06:00

I know the title is disturbing, but I have to share. Tonight after back to school night we took the kids to Applebee's (its really Fazoli's, but the kids have always called it Applebee's). Anyway, we were almost done eating and I had been holding Max and he was just a little fussy, but hardly making a peep. All of a sudden Luke said, "Child, Shut up!!!" He even said it in his sweet little innocent, but intense voice. Randy and I were so disturbed, but it was one of those parenting moments where you can't keep a straight face while disciplining the kid because you are in shock. I was holding back the laughing and trying to scold him while Randy and I were both almost in tears trying not to laugh. The funny thing is, at our house "shut up" is not even said, it is referred to as the "S" word. I asked Luke where he heard that word and he pointed to Jack. Who knows, what do you do? We just laughed...such bad parents. We'll have to fix this one later.

Correction

2008-08-18T16:20:00.002-06:00

My last post was apparently mistitled. Today while Jack was helping me change Max's diaper I called him (Max) cutie pie. Jack said, "Mom, I think you mean cutie banana pie." I asked what he meant and he said that I call all of the boys cutie pie, so Max wouldn't know I was talking about him so he has to be banana flavored pie. Okay--from now on I guess Max will be cutie banana pie.

My Little Cutie Pies...

2008-08-17T17:11:00.009-06:00

I've been trying to remember to write down the cute things that my kids say and do, but I am horrible at it. It seems like everyday there is something that totally busts me up, but I forget to write it down. My Luke is a character, here are a few of his latest obsessions.

Luke absolutely loves tomatoes, so this time of year is great for him. At this particular afternoon "snack" he ate 4 tomatoes. Thank heavens we have a cheap "dealer" for this addiction. Thanks grandma and grandpa J. He eats so many tomatoes that his face starts to burn and itch from all the acidic juice on it. Hey, at least I know he gets his lycopene.

Luke is also obsessed with Michael Phelps. For those of you who live under a rock, he is the American olympic swimming sensation. I have always loved watching the olympics so we have had a good dose of it at our house lately and Luke has become totally obsessed with "that tough guy" Michael Phelps. As we were watching this race Luke had to pretend he was Phelps and this is what it looked like. He waits for me to blow the whistle, then jumps off the couch and "swims" from the family room to the kitchen, hunched over with his cheeks puffed up and turning his head to breathe. Then he races back and declares himself the winner! We have to reinact this race 10 or 12 times a day.

Jack's current cutie pie moments usually revolve around Max. He is such a protector to his little brother. Don't you dare touch Max if Jack is around. He will stop you and make sure you washed your hands. The other day Max was fussing and Randy was fixing a bottle while I tried to calm him down. Jack is standing over my shoulder just watching me try to settle down the baby, then he said, "uh, mom...you might want to feed him." He can even tell what the baby needs when his is fussing. He is always sure to point out when I am doing something wrong with the baby. I'm just glad Max has such good brothers, he will be just fine with them by his side.

And then there's Max. He is a cutie pie when he just does anything. My favorite thing right now is that he has lost all his hair on top of his head. I call him my little old man because he didn't lose it around the back and sides, but just the bangs and the top of his head. It is soooo funny and cute.

My sweet blue-eyed little old man.

My sister Alisa's kids (mostly Jessica and Andrew) are obsessed with Max. They are so cute with him. This is Jessica helping me change Max's diaper at swimming lessons. Max has such great cousins (too bad these ones aren't just around the corner anymore). Thanks for all the help Jessica and Andrew.

I can't help myself...

2008-08-08T15:23:00.002-06:00

I just want to eat him up. Max is now one month old...how the time really does fly.

Back to the Blog

2008-08-06T22:19:00.002-06:00

So the computer saga continues! The old computer finally really truly died. It was a sad day. I guess we're just lucky it didn't actually ignite and burn the house down. We bought a new computer last week because I was dying to blog and to work on my photography, and as luck would have it the day we bought the new computer we had a power outage and the surge fried our dsl modem so we couldn't connect to the internet. Today we finally got the new modem and got it all set up tonight so we're back connected to the world. I didn't realize how dependent we are on the www until we didn't have it for so long.
Everyone is doing well and we are adjusting to having three boys. Max is growing and eating a lot! I will post more pics soon, I'm still figuring out how to transfer my old programs to the new computer.
Thanks to everyone for your support and friendship during the last few weeks. We are blessed to have such great people in our lives.

More baby!!!

2008-07-20T19:05:00.014-06:00

So, Max was breech, we had known this for a while. My doctor had suggested that we could try what is called an external version, where 2-3 doctors lube up your belly and try to grab the baby from the outside and turn him around. I saw this done once when I was in nursing school and I remember telling myself I would never do that to myself or my baby. Then I thought more about it and thought it might be better than surgery, and maybe I was just being stubborn. I asked my doctor what he would do if it was his wife, he said he would at least try it. I told him my concern about a cord accident occurring and he said it was always a possiblility, but he had never had a bad outcome. I told my doctor to schedule the version, so we did for July 8th. The whole way home from the doctor and all weekend I was so anxious every time I thought about it and I just knew that it meant I shouldn't do it. I would just do the C-section. So, on Monday the 7th I called the doctor and told him. He is really great and just told me he would do whatever I wanted. So we went ahead with the C-section plan.
Tuesday morning after several delays and threats of being bumped off the schedule due to a busy labor and delivery unit, we were finally ready to go. Randy all decked out in his surgery attire.
Randy captured some great photos of the delivery. This is our little Max coming out feet then butt first. I was so worried about Randy during the surgery. He was standing next to me watching. I remember the first time I saw a surgery in nursing school and how sick I got, and I just didn't want him to be sick or end up on the ground. He was awesome. He didn't get sick at all, and just kept giving me updates on what was happening, like "oh, they're just digging through a lot of stuff right now." Thanks, sounds delicious! Always wanted to picture people digging through my guts.

Our brand new boy, fresh into the cruel harsh world.
As Dr. Roth was trying to deliver Max, he wouldn't come out by pulling on his feet. Dr. Roth had to reach up and untangled the umbilical cord which he told us was wrapped around Max's neck 3 times. Right after he freed the cord and could deliver Max he told us that the version (trying to turn the baby) would not have worked and we would have ended up doing an emergency C-section. He credited "mother's intuition". I am so glad that I listened to that voice inside and didn't try turning him and kept him out of danger. And I am so grateful for a doctor who didn't try to convince me to do something I didn't feel comfortable doing. We were so blessed.

Cutting the cord.Being checked out by the nurses and respriatory therapist.I promise I really wasn't scared, but this is the first time I got to hold my precious Max.The fabulous Dr. Roth. We love Dr. Roth so much, he is such a caring and kind person and also a talented and skilled doctor.Jack's first time holding baby Max. I don't know about the face he is pulling, but he loves his baby brother so much. He is constantly cheek to cheek with Max. His favorite expression are "Oh, come on Max" and "you're big brother is here, don't worry." He is so sweet and sensitive.Luke's first time holding his baby Max. At first at the hospital he wasn't interested for too long a period of time. He loved holding him and looking at him, but would be done very quickly. As time has gone on he loves being next to Max and holding him and feeding him and burping him. He too is such a loving caring big brother. I am so happy for Max that he has brothers who I know will always take good care of him and watch out for him. Going home from the hospital day. Randy thinks I dressed him like a chef, but I think he looked cute. His outfit was definitely too big, but in a couple of months it will look better. What a doll!

Our first morning at home with all three boys. They sure love their baby Max. Luke had a little bit of a hard time at first. I think it was more that Randy and I had been gone for so long that he was just wanting to be around us and home in his normal routine. But, grandma took them for a sleep over just to help us out and when they came home and we got back to somewhat of our routine things have been great for both of the older boys.
This is how we see Max most of the time. He is such a good baby. He wants his dinner and wants to sleep. He is such an angel, we are so blessed!

I know this was a long post, but I just want to end by thanking everyone who has helped us out during the pregnancy and in the past 2 weeks since his birth. We are so blessed to have such kind and helpful family and friends. We couldn't have done it without everyone's help, love and support. Thank you.

Oh Baby!!!

2008-07-20T12:29:00.004-06:00

Our precious baby boy is here! It has been 12 days, but I am finally feeling a little more amongst the living, and ready to blog. He's crying now so I'll post more details later.

Max Randall J.

July 8, 2008

7 pounds 14 ounces

20.5 inches long

Young Women Camp

2008-06-24T17:37:00.004-06:00

Last week was Young Women camp. I just couldn't keep myself away. I really wanted to be there with all the girls, but I knew I would be miserable sleeping in a tent. I ended up spending the days at camp and sleeping at my parents house only about 45 minutes away. It worked out great. Randy, among others, thought I shouldn't go being only 3 1/2 weeks from my due date, but he agreed to me going after I promised him what I would and would not do. One of the things on his DO NOT list was I was to stay away from a ride on the zip line. Well as you can see from the pictures, I just couldn't resist. I just wanted to ride down it too badly.Okay, that was just a joke. I didn't really ride the zip line, but staged these pictures just to get Randy. What a mean wife. I may be crazy, but I'm not stupid. There was not going to be a mountain baby born this week.

Camp was a lot of fun and it seems like the girls all had a good experience. As always one of the highlights was the song/skit performance. We did the boot scootin boogie in great costumes we made, then sang the "naughty" camp song I taught the girls.

"Mom, I'm bored!"

2008-06-24T17:07:00.004-06:00

Luckily that's not something I hear too often this summer. Jack and Luke are such easy kids, I usually don't have to do too much to keep them busy. This summer they have done a couple of projects that I thought were funny. First, Jack designed finger puppets (literally) and did a show. He made me take pictures of them. Of course Luke had to be the villian. There is just something with that kid, he always wants to be the "bad guy". Should I be concerned?

The next was Circus Day. Jack made a calendar for the summer that he has taped next to his bed and everyday is a different theme. Monday was circus day so he made a show. He was the clown, Luke was the volunteer (who was the subject of all the magic tricks) and Randy and I were the audience. It was so cute. He made all the props, came up with a bunch of magic tricks, and made his own costume. He wanted to wear underwear with hearts on them since he was a clown and brought me some white underwear and markers and asked me to help him make them into clown underwear. Luckily I talked him out of that. His bunk bed was the stage and the rest of us sat in the audience. It was so funny, every time he did a different trick, like pulling the rabbit out of his hat he would tell the audience to close their eyes and then kaboom there was the rabbit. Maybe we have a future star in our home! YIKES!

End of Kindergarten

2008-06-24T16:49:00.003-06:00

I have been horrible at updating my blog lately, so here goes the update!

Jack finished Kindergarten. He loved the year and especially loved riding the bus (gasp!). That was hard for me, but he did great and didn't have any problems. He has grown so much this year and is such a smart kid. I am so proud of him and the kind of boy he is. I can't believe my baby is a 1st grader YIKES!!

Capitol Reef

2008-05-29T16:35:00.004-06:00

My boys had so much fun hiking and climbing. Jack is really into climbing these days and always asks when we can go to another mountain to climb on the rocks.

The cousins were quite the scene at the national park. For some reason it seemed like we were the only people there with small kids. That made it nice for them though, extra attention at the Jr. Ranger station and the Nature Center.
This one is for Rachel, my almost 4 year old neice said she wants to see pictures of aunt Mimi. There sure is nothing like a family going on a national park vacation when mom is 32 weeks pregnant and dad is 6 weeks post-op from a total ACL repair of his knee. I have to say Randy is the trooper, he actually did all the hiking with the boys (don't tell Randy's physical therapist), while I did good supervising and getting them started then turning back.

This was my favorite of the whole trip. I sent Randy and the boys to "climb a mountain" as Jack put it. You can see me in the far distance watching from the van. Right behind Luke is a cliff that drops all the way down to where the van is. It was quite windy and when they got to the top huge gusts of wind threatened to blow them right off the cliff. (that's according to Jack and Luke) I could hear Luke screaming all the way down below.

Jack did better at being brave for his little brother.

What a troop! We had a great vacation. Thanks family for a good time.

I haven't figured this out completely yet!

2008-05-29T16:28:00.004-06:00

He kind of freaks me out, but the kids loved seeing Sir Topham Hatt.

These were the two most excited kids in line to ride the train. We were waiting in line for Thomas to arrive and when they saw him coming down the track they both started screaming and jumping up and down. The lady behind us in line said to me, "gosh, I thought my kids were excited." I'm glad they had so much fun and that Jack is still not to old to appreciate Thomas (and that he now allows his little brother to sometimes actually touch all of his Thomas paraphernalia).

This one's for Grandpa J., two cute engineers in front of the Union Pacific engine.

A Fun Memorial Day Weekend

2008-05-29T15:36:00.008-06:00

Randy is known for referring to the proverbial Huff hair... This is when someone in the Huff family gets a hairbrained idea and we actually carry it out. This time it was mom's hair to go to Capitol Reef. I was so glad she had the idea and did the planning work because we had a great time (sorry dad, but the Mount Rushmore hair will just have to wait). The boys just couldn't bear to go hiking without first going to see Thomas, so just like last year we stopped by "A Day Out With Thomas" on our way to Capitol Reef. (Heber isn't exactly on the way to southern Utah, but it wasn't really on the way to Seattle last year.)

A bun in the oven.

2008-05-21T12:10:00.002-06:00

My list of "things to do" is always a mile long, but with the approaching birth of number 3 it seems the list grows and my ability to cross things of it slows. This week I finally go going on the nursery. I decided to repaint, I got the ceiling painted (after 3 freaking coats), then attempted to cover the cute blue walls with plain old tan (to better match the new decor). But of course problems, it was going to take three coats on the walls too, so I decided to change my wall color back to a different blue and begin again. It will be done soon, it's not too complicated now. I also got started on sewing the bedding and made Randy set up the crib in the kitchen so I could test out the fabrics with the crib before I got to far (I know OCD). The house looks lovely right now to say the least: the play room in the living room, the crib in the kitchen, and a nursery with no paint. I'm not too worried, it will all get done eventually, and what would my life be without another unfinished project in the works.

Xeriscaping gone wrong!

2008-05-21T10:58:00.003-06:00

Randy and I were driving down the street Monday and found this attempt to conserve water very humorous. The parking strip relandscaped with gravel, being fully watered by the sprinklers. Oops!

Family Night at the Park

2008-05-21T10:47:00.002-06:00

The boys have been wanting to go fly kites for a while. Randy took them to Target to get new ones, but while Jack had no problem picking one out, Luke decided he didn't want one. So, Monday we decided to go to the park for family night, and of course now Luke regretted his decision so we stopped by Target and bought Luke a kite. We got to the park and Luke's kite was missing parts so he still didn't get to fly his own, but his big brother was so kind to share and they took turns running laps with the kite around the big field because there was absolutely NO wind. I think they will be pleasantly surprised if we actually ever fly kites in the wind and it is not an aerobic activity.

Outings...

2008-05-21T10:36:00.003-06:00

We've had some fun lately. Last week I told Jack that he wouldn't have school all week this week because of testing, he suggested that we need to do something fun everyday. His first suggestion was we should go to the farm. So, I told him we would go on Monday. You would think in six years of being a mom not to give the child a date, he has the memory of an elephant. Everyday he would report the count down until we went to the farm. We had fun, and being with some friends made it even more fun. I told Jack this was his school fieldtrip since the Kindergarten cancelled fieldtrips this year (ugh!).

I've only just begun...

2008-05-16T18:04:00.003-06:00

Keep your expectations low. I refuse to become part of the blog obsessed world, but I thought I would at least give it a try. As many of you close to me know I have been having major computer issues for months and I just can't seem to justify getting that new computer yet. Having said that, with the current model I use it is so out-dated and full that downloading new photos makes it crash, so for the time being pictures will be at a minimum (except when I risk the crash).