Secret Santas

Christmas

Okay, so our pictures are finally working again and it's Sunday afternoon - a pretty mellow time here. So I just wanted to put a few pictures on of what we've been up to.

My favorite thing about Christmas this year was the kids "gifts of love". In the past they usually draw a name and buy a gift for that sibling, but this year thanks to my sister Krystal doing this, we decided to make the gift instead. We decided that they would open their "secret Santa" gifts on Christmas Eve. I really wanted them to appreciate them and not get overlooked on Christmas morning. I really loved it. It gave me that wonderful warm fuzzy Christmas spirit feeling to see them open their gifts and appreciate what their sibling had taken the time to make for them. Brayton painted a little doll house for Jessi and picked out some little animals to go inside it, Jessi painted a box for Meri and picked out horses to go in it. Ethan gave Orion his drawing of a storm trooper that took him a really long time to draw. It was his favorite drawing - Orion knew this and felt really special that Ethan gave it to him. Orion (it was his idea) made a periscope with Shawn for Brayton which Brayt loved. And Meri painted a picture of Yoda and R2D2 for Ethan. It really was my favorite Christmas moment this year. We'll definitely do the gift making again in years to come.

Snow Day!

As you can see we haven't posted in awhile. Partly because our computer is having trouble and we can't get to our photos easily and partly because I've been konked out on the couch as soon as the kids are in bed. But our lives continue to be lively. Over Christmas and New Years we got to see all the Bairds and all the Teares. I'm so grateful to have such a fun family and that my kids adore their cousins. It's whole lot of fun and a whole lot of people when we all get together. We got to go out to Alcatraz while we were visiting in San Ramon. We went with Josh and Sarah. It was so interesting and a bit creepy to think of all the stuff that went on there. We took a picture of the kids in one of the solitary confinement cells. Maybe we'll use it for our Christmas card next year. :)

In January Orion turned 8 and he just got baptized this past Saturday. It is just pure joy to see your child standing in the baptismal font - a precious moment. He is a ball of energy and emotions and sweetness. I just love him so much and I'm so happy he came to us. It was so nice that a lot of our family and some friends came to be with Orion on his special day. Thanks so much to everyone who came. We just love having you all around.

Also in January our cub scout pack had it's pine wood derby. It was one to remember. It was Orion's first derby, Ethan's 2nd, Brayton's last. For 2 weeks they were cub scouts together. I felt kind of teary watching all 3 of our boys get excited over the races and seeing them build their cars with Shawn. All three cars really held their own this year and Ethan's got 3rd place! It was a pine wood derby to be remembered.

Yesterday Brayton turned 11. Is it really possible that we have an 11 year old? How can this be? Where have the years gone? It's hard to believe that Brayton has been with us almost as long as we have been married. I'm so glad he came to us. Our family was still here (from Orion's baptism) when we had cake after church and he loved having a bunch of cousins and family to celebrate with.

And finally, today. It was supposed to be the science fair at school so we got the boys projects all finished up last night and then it snow like crazy last night. So school was cancelled today and will likely be tomorrow as it is still coming down. So it has been a day of sledding, hot chocolate, snow cones, and naps for me. Shawn even got to come home early and took a nap too. It was such a nice lazy day.

8 weeks til baby.

Christmas Recital

Last night was our Christmas piano recital. My kids have settled into the idea of mom being their teacher and they are progressing really nicely on the piano. I also have 6 other students right now too. So the last couple days Shawn cleared out all the furniture from the family room and rolled the piano out of the spare room. He brought 50 chairs from the church and built a fire to create the mood. Brayton, Ethan, and Meri's school teachers, Jessi's primary teacher, and Orion's best friend came which really made it special for the kids since our family lives too far to come. The other students brought families and friends too and it was really a special night. I'm so grateful for Shawn for helping me get it all to turn out nicely. It was really fun to hear all the Christmas music. I loved it! (and I'm also glad it's over.) :)

welcome to the zoo

Our home is never very quiet, but the last few days I have been wondering if we have 5 kids or 5 animals. Wait, we do have 5 animals too, but anyway, our kids have had major ants in the pants issues lately. No matter what I do they seem to be constantly rough housing. Today before church, I got after them because we were trying to get everyone ready - not to mention they were just being so darn loud, and pregnant momma is very easily annoyed as of late. So we went to church -Orion having a tantrum and Brayton giving me dirty looks and saying how I always ruin all their fun. So we made it through church, although sacrament meeting was more irreverent than our normal irreverance. Then even though I have a hard time going to Gospel Doctrine class - I was greatful for an hour of sitting in peace and quiet. Then on to Young Women's which I am finding that I quite enjoy. It took me awhile to adjust from primary these last several months, but I can honestly say now that I LOVE working with the Young Women! So then back home, and the kids have been and still are in rough housing mode. For awhile I hid in my room and read and then I realized - I hadn't been hearing any fighting or calling names -all I am hearing is happy squeals of laughter and my kids enjoying each other. Yes, occasionally I would hear someone cry for a few minutes because of a bonked head or something, but mostly all the sounds were happy ones. So I came out to the family room and took a picture of them and decided to just enjoy them enjoying each other no matter how loud or wild they get - or no matter how many times one of them yells "someone farted!". The only thing I can think is that maybe they are so excited about Christmas and that it's supposed to snow tonight so they are anticipating a snow day tomorrow. We'll see if I'm so happy with all the rough housing after a joyous snow day tomorrow! But anyhow, I just love my kids. They each are such a treasure. I'm so proud of them how hard they work at school and they did so well at the piano recital last night. I'll have to post about that next.

Christmas at Disney!

Last Wednesday we decided to use our Disney passes again. We pulled the kids out of school and went to see Christmas as Disneyland for our first time. It was amazing. The decorations were beautiful and the best part was that it was not crowded and it was a cool day. Turns out, Wednesday is a perfect day to go to Disneyland. We had very little wait time or just walked on all the rides we wanted to. It was such a pleasant day. Meri was even brave enough to get her picture with Mickey and Minnie and get their autographs. Our kids have always been to nervous about people in costumes to get near them, but finally Meri decided it would be a fun thing to do. The only thing we missed was the snow at the end of the day. We saw the Christmas parade and then we were just too tired to stay for the fireworks and snow. But really, it was such a perfect day.

Thanksgiving

We had a terrific time up in San Ramon with the Teares for Thanksgiving. The boys loved picking apples out of Grandpa's apple tree, cutting and drying them with him. We also enjoyed an amazing train show and all had a great time there. But mostly it was just nice to be with our family. 1. Brayton excited about his Thanksgiving dinner 2. apples with Grandpa 3. train show with Grandpa and cousins 4. Meri and Mady playing uno

It's a Boy!

Today we had our ultra-sound. It's a boy! Hooray!

A Magical Halloween

For halloween this year I got my dream come true- the Harry Potter gang. Ethan was Harry, Orion was his best friend Ron Weasley, and Meri was his other best friend Hermione Granger. Meri has been wanting to be Hermione for awhile and we talked the boys into completing the group. The night before we had a night of hair dying. I think my favorite costume turned out to be Ron's because of how great the red hair turned out. Orion was also really excited to carry the broken wand and that he has a rat just like Ron does. Brayton was Ash Ketchum with his pal Pikachu played by Jessi. They were really cute too. That night instead of trick-or-treating we went to Disneyland. We got alot of great comments from people about the Hogwarts friends and people even recognized Ash and Pikachu! We met up with our Larson cousins there and had a ball (and a very late night) at Disneyland. The kids had so much fun riding rides and hanging out with their cousins. Happy Halloween everyone!

Shawn's Birthday

Last Sunday was Shawn's birthday. We had cake after church and then headed to Disneyland for 2 days! We had a fabulous time! Highlights of the trip were swimming at the hotel, Brayton fighting Darth Maul, Splash Mountain, the carousels, Soarin' California, the Toy Story ride, the rafting ride, the parades, and the "screamin" roller coaster. We had the best time and hope to go back soon! We have only been once before 3 years ago so the girls don't remember so much. It was so fun to be a part of the magic!

Happiness Slide Show on Earth

Labor Day Fun

Below is a slideshow of our trip last weekend to see my brother Adam, his wife Elida and their boys Diego, Ezra, and Alan. Not sure why Weezer showed up on the slideshow, oh well. Anyway, we had such a fun time with them. We did a lot of swimming, went out to see some tanks, found a couple geo-caches, and just had a terrific time being together. Jessi and Alan were 2 peas in a pod and were inseparable. All the kids had a great time together. They couldn't get enough of the pool and being with their cousins and despite the intense heat and the large sign telling us NOT to climb on the tanks we obviously enjoyed ourselves a great deal. And hunting for geo-caches are a first for us. Adam and his boys search for them all the time. So we enjoyed that new adventure. Thanks Adam and Elida for a super time!

First Day of School

First day of school line up: Brayton 5th grade, Ethan 4th, Orion 2nd, Meri 1st. Jessi also started pre-school. The kids all like their teachers so that is a huge blessing. It was nice to not be starting a new school this year also. I always get kind of sad to see the summer end. We had so much fun this summer. I enjoy the kids so much - they are a lot of fun. But I must say it is quite peaceful around the house! not to mention, the house actually stays clean for a while without everyone here to mess it up all day!

And yes, we are expecting a new baby early next April. We are thrilled, the kids are excited and were quite surprised when we told them. A new adventure! p.s. we are not going to China next summer. :) Don't you love my husband's sense of humor.

Greetings from Yuma

We are in Yuma this weekend to visit Adam, Elida, & cousins.

Preston's baby blessing

Earlier this month we went to see our new little nephew Preston have his baby blessing. It was great to see all the Teares. The kids loved being with their cousins as usual. Congratulations Josh and Sarah! Preston was so fun to hold. He's just adorable! And the best thing (according to the kids) about Josh and Sarah's place was Phyllis the snake who patiently let the kids play with her multiple times. 1. Jessi with cousin Lucas and little cousin Preston 2. Sarah, Josh, and baby Preston 3. Orion and Phyllis 4. Phyllis wrapping around Meri!

beach trip

In July we went to the beach and up with Cody and Shannon there. We all had a ball. The kids loved seeing their cousins and playing in the waves and sand. 1. meri and jess 2. Orion and cousin Jaidyn 3. Brayton and Ethan booging boarding

Next summer

We have been enjoying watching the 2008 Summer Olympics. It has inspired us to plan a visit there next summer. We want to take our six kids to see some of the inspirational sights in the Land of the Dragon.

Here is me playing aeronautical engineer. This the Wildfire race plane that I have been working on for years now. I am designing the landing gears doors for the plane. One funny thing about this photo is how the hair on the top of my head has changed from blond to a fleshy pink color. Is that weird?

a few more

Here is a picture of Brayton's water color painting. I had each of the kids do an outdoor scene. Orion did mountains, Meri did a forest, Jessi- a rainbow, Ethan - the desert, and Brayton - beach sunset. I was so happy with how they all turned out we framed them and hung them up. I need to get pictures of the others. (Brayton took a pic of his for a Webelos thing). I love the next picture because it's just how I think summer should be- swinging and popsicles. The last picture is of these little monkeys the kids decorated last week. This week is our no electricity week - "The Old Days". I have to admit, I chickened out and we decided to do no electricity for 2 days (thurs and fri) instead of all week. My sister Krystal does this with her kids and they do no electricity ALL week! wow! But we are still doing some activities that have to do with what it was like to live back then. Today we learned about the first 49ers and how they came to California looking for gold. We went on a gold hunt and found some gold! (Well, dollar store gold anyway). We also harvested radishes from our garden. Tomorrow we will wash our clothes by hand and hang them out to dry and bake bread. I really want to make soap and candles at some point too so we'll see if we can figure that out. Tomorrow those who are brave enough are going to sleep in teh backyard under the stars like the cowboys. And Friday we will go on our family camp out. I'm really enjoying this summer. I love not having to be too many places at a certain time and just doing our thing.