Sunday Walks

When we moved, were so excited to find out that our new ward had 9am church! For years we've always had 1pm, which usually means you stay up late on Saturday nights, put things off until Sunday morning, sleep in, spend the morning lounging around, try to find something fun for the kids to do that is also Sabbath Day appropriate, and then still rush at the end to get to church on time. Jeff was always gone for meetings so it wasn't even family time. By the time you're home from church, it's time for dinner and bedtime routine. Now I'm not trying to complain about it, there are some definite perks to late church, but we were just all very excited to see that we would finally be able to go to church early! Even better, we live right next door to the church, it's right past our front yard, so we walk every week. I love it!
I love that there is plenty of time to do things together as a family after church, even when you add church responsibilities, visits, and home teaching. One of my very favorite activities is to go for a walk as a family. Summer evenings are beautiful, and I love to spend that time with my family outside. The kids love being outdoors, Emily loves stroller rides, and I find that we end up having some great conversations together. I know we wont' always have early church that allows for walks, and obviously the weather isn't 'walk friendly' year around, but we've certainly been enjoying our walks this summer.

6 Months Old

Emily turned 6 months old on September 19th!

14.2 pounds (11th percentile)

25.5 inches (30th percentile)

Wow, where has the time gone? Our sweet little girl is already 6 months old; she's already half way to her first birthday. I love this age! 6 months is such a fun time for babies. I just wish time would slow down even a little bit.

- Emily likes to smack her lips and click her tongue.

-She loves to play with her toes. The boys especially think it's funny when she sucks on her big toe.

-She is still really enjoying the baby food, although she doesnt' seem to be a huge fan of baby food peaches. She loves the real thing, but not the jars of peaches.

-She loves to grab, pull on, and play with my hair; sometimes she even tries eating it.

- She is pushing up on her knees and starting to crawl all over the place. She's always been a mover and gets around the room, now she's finally starting to do it the right way. I was hoping that she would be a little slower to crawl- all my babies have been about this age- but she's wanting to keep up with everyone I guess. It just makes her seem like less of a baby and I'm not ready for her to be so big yet!
-As she's gotten older, her personality really seems to be coming out more. I think she's going to be a feisty little girl. But she's also such a sweetie and loves to cuddle.

- Emily has this cute little way of sitting. She's done it as long as I can remember. Rather than just lay on her tummy or back (which she still does some of the time) she props herself up on her little elbow and lays on her side. I'm impressed with her balance!
-She absolutely loves to be outside, especially when we're going for a walk. She loves riding in the stroller and would be content to go on walks for hours. I don't blame her. It's one of my favorite past times too.

-Emily still has her cute little dimple, and her hair seems to be getting lighter in color.

-She says "ooh" and "aah" all the time in her sweet little girlie voice. It's amazing to me how different baby girls sound from baby boys- even at such a young age there has been a definite difference with our kids.

-She laughs all the time. Sometimes we'll just be sitting there holding her and she'll see something that she thinks is funny and just starts laughing at it. I love it.

Ward Campout

On September 17-18th, we were able go camping with our ward. Jeff and I both grew up camping a lot, but sadly we haven't been able to take our kids much over the past few years. So we were excited when we found out our ward would be having a camping trip, even if it was only for the purpose of a service project and only for one night. The boys were so excited to be able to sleep out in a tent and cook marshmallows over a fire.

While we got everything ready and packed up, I also kept a close watch on the weather report. It was a church campsite and although they did have cabins, there were only a couple of them, and they were all full so we knew we'd be sleeping in a tent. By the time we left, it said there was a 40% chance of rain. I figured the odds were still in our favor so we decided to go anyway. It was about a 2 hour drive, and by the time we got there it was pretty much a downpour. Call me wimpy, but the thought of setting up a tent and spending the night on a mountain with four little kids- including a 5 month old baby- in pouring rain didn't sound too appealing; and I was ready to just turn around and head home if there wasn't a good solution. Fortunately, Jeff talked to some of the people in charge and they said we could sleep on the loft bunkbeds in the lodge. That sounded good to me!

That night everyone enjoyed dinner, I pre-made tin foil dinners at home, and although it wasn't quite the same as cooking them over a fire, they were pretty good! We also enjoyed some hot chocolate and granola bars.

One of my favorite parts of the whole trip was after dinner. The bishop stood up and told a really nice spiritual story. After he finished, he was talking about campfire traditions and asked if anyone else had a story to share. After a few minutes of silence, I saw a little hand go up up front and then Caleb went and hopped up on the chair in front of the group of about 60 people. He then proceeded to share a 'scary' story with everyone involving a ghost, a dragon and a pretty imaginative story line. Jeff and I were in the back of the group and were pretty much busting up at this point. Caleb was making up the story on the spot, with plenty of enthusiasm and feeling, and doing a pretty good job- all the kids were laughing. After the story went on for a little while, I had Jeff go up and help him finish the story. :) Everyone had a good laugh over that one.

Even though it was a little rough sleeping that night and kids didn't sleep real soundly, I was just grateful to be under a roof. The next morning we had an early 7am breakfast, loaded up all our things, and then the service projects began. There were wards from all over coming to do various projects at the camp. Our ward's assignment was chopping firewood. Men were cutting down trees, chopping it into logs, hauling it to the camp, and chopping it down to necessary size. It was a lot of work, Jeff helped for 4 hours. I played 'nature' mom and played with kids outside for those four hours since another ward was cleaning the lodge and we couldn't be inside. It was still pretty wet outside, but fortunately not raining anymore. We had fun looking for squirrels, playing games, and throwing rocks into the lake. I will admit though, I was definitely ready to head home after we were done. Playing outside for 4 hours in the mud quickly gets old (for the mom anyway) and it gets a little tricky helping your 2-year old go potty in the port-a-pottys while you're holding a baby who can't be set down.

Throwing rocks in the muddy lake

The other funny part was when we were leaving, I had to run back inside a couple times for some different things. There was a nice '40-something' guy there who struck up a conversation with me while I washed some dishes. He told me about some projects they had done as part of their adult singles ward. Then he asked me if I was single... :) I laughed and told him no, and that I had four kids. Then he said, "And a husband?....:) I said Yes. He then said, "Well, you don't have a wedding ring on." and I explained it was off because of the camping trip, but I definitely do have a husband and four children. He didn't seem to believe me with the previous answers. Maybe for some, church service projects have more involved than just the service! Nice guy, but I'm happily attached. :) Jeff got a good laugh out of the situation.

It was fun to go and spend time with ward members, and enjoy the scenery, but I'm hoping next time we go, the weather cooperates and we can do some fun things with our daddy as well!

First Day of Preschool

Caleb started preschool on Thursday, September 9th. This kid is pretty much a 'super' preschooler considering that this is his third year. Most of his friends and kids his age started kindergarten this year, but the deadline for kindergarten is September 1st and his birthday falls on the 2nd. I'm perfectly happy to keep him home one extra year though. I think it's helpful for boys to be at the older/bigger end of the spectrum, and I wasn't quite ready to send my little guy off to real school. So although I know Caleb would have loved to start kindergarten this year, I'm so happy to have him home with me for one more year.

We got really lucky with his preschool as well. When we moved to the area, that was an item at the top of my to-do list- find a good preschool. I looked around and finally found one that I really liked. It's close to our home and has been run by a local church for about 15 years. When I called, they told me they were completely full, but they would put us on a waiting list. I know someone has been looking out for us in the school department lately- because just a few days before preschool started, they called me to let me know they had a spot open up. Such a blessing!
The preschool is wonderful. Caleb goes two days a week for 2.5 hours. There are three women who run the show and they really do a fabulous job. After 15 years, they have an incredible program and do so many fun things with the kids-they really put the focus on the kids. The preschool itself is pretty amazing inside with various rooms, and different toys/stations are rotated around as they learn about different things. They also have an attached outdoor playground. The only complaint Caleb has is that they say funny prayers and end their prayers with "AAH-Men" as he puts it. It's a Christian church based preschool, and I sure don't mind. It's nice to have a spiritual aspect added to the schooling. The only problem I have now is trying to get Matthew in and out when we take Caleb- he wishes he could stay too!

Labor Day Weekend

This year for Labor Day weekend, we headed to Idaho for a get-together with my family. Becca, Houston's fiance, was coming home to meet the family and we thought it would be the perfect excuse to hold a quick mini-reunion. Everyone got into town on Friday night, some earlier than others. We pulled in around midnight, right after Houston & Becca. It was fun to see everyone and meet Becca for the first time.

(Twins anyone?)

Saturday was filled with lots of fun time together. Even simple things like getting ready together in the bathroom has a whole new level of fun when you're with sisters! Saturday was filled with fun activities outside. We had a pretty intense game of ultimate football. It was so fun to play together. It wouldn't be complete without a few minor casualties, but everyone turned out pretty good.

(Pretty sure this is one of my all-time favorite pictures of my dad :)

After the ultimate football game, some of the boys kept themselves entertained creating obstacle courses for Jacob and Caleb. Some people might call it cruel and unusual, others might just call it cheap entertainment.They were pretty impressed with Jacob and Caleb's skills! It all started to get a little crazy from that moment on, including funny face contests and so on.

Saturday night the group deserted us to go watch the BYU football game with some neighbors that had a nice set-up. Poor mom and I were left behind to watch kids and slave over dinner. Actually we opted out of the game- it was much easier to watch kids and work out naps at mom & dad's house. We had a lot of fun reading stories to the kids, and talking while working together whipping out a yummy dinner for the gang. BYU had a successful night, so everyone was in good spirits when they got back.

After dinner, we had a little birthday celebration for Caleb. He was pretty excited to see the fun presents Grandma and Grandpa had for him. He and Jacob ran around playing with the boat and Ben10 alien light watch all night.

During the birthday celebration we also had a little streaker escape from his bath - he managed to swipe a lollipop before he was captured, contained, and dressed in his pj's

That night after putting kids to bed, we enjoyed staying up and playing some games with the adults. I always seem to forget to pull out the camera during these times, but I'm sure it's because we're too busy having fun, laughing, and keeping some individuals from cheating!

We also attempted to get a picture of the two little girls together in their jammies. At first, Emily would have nothing to do with it! She just did NOT want to sit there. She made poor little Lilah, being so good, sit there all by her cute little self. Then Emily ended up wacking Lilah in the face with her hand, poor Lilah didn't know what had hit her. Finally we were able to coax a little of a smile of out Emily. By this time, Lilah was done! Probably just ready to be done dealing with her crazy little cousin. These little girls are so fun.

Sunday we all went to church together in Mom & Dad's ward. It was a beautiful testimony meeting, and the grandkids especially loved listening to Grandma Tanner bear her testimony. I loved going to the classes, especially Relief Society with my mom and sisters. Sunday afternoon we enjoyed a yummy dinner, and then spent the rest of the evening watching some good old home videos. Maybe we shouldn't have shown them to Becca, I guess she can see what she's really getting herself into! We definitely had some good laughs. Then we spent some time playing a new game that Cole and Tom taught everyone, 'Choose Your Weapon' as well as Jacket Monsters. There were no pictures taken during this part of the evening for a reason...we all need to retain our dignity! :) It was a fun evening.

(These two little girls both look just like their mommies!)

Monday rolled around all too soon. The morning was spent in various ways. After lunch, we decided to fit in a last game of croquet. I used to think I was pretty good at the game,but I'm pretty sure I came in dead last this time. Dad was the ultimate champ- I think he must practice in his spare time. He's just a natural at whatever he does, he's always been. The kids ran around outside during the game.


Matthew stayed close to his beloved Carly- these two really have become pretty inseparable. Carly really has withdrawals when we leave- she wanders around with the toys they played with. In fact Mom said Carly kept whining to come inside and would sniff around the toys, she was looking for Matthew. She finally gave up when the toys were all put away. It kind of breaks my heart- the two of them have such a sweet little relationship. Matthew loves Carly and Carly loves Matthew.

After taking some pictures for Houston and Becca, we decided to do one last family picture. It was nothing special, far from formal or fancy; just a plain, simple perfect picture that did a pretty good job of capturing a summary of the weekend spent together.

Showing off the crazy side!

These boys...

We finished out our Labor Day with a grand finale- we were able to head to Scott & Amanda's and spent the evening watching the BSU game together. It was an awesome game and so fun to watch it with family. Scott & Amanda, along with Mom and Dad Stevens, Jonny & EmiLee, Greg & Amy were all there. Grandma Stevens surprised Caleb with a birthday gift- an amazing talking/walking robot and some treats to share with cousins. We didn't end up leaving until pretty late that night, but it was totally worth it. We feel so blessed to have such great family on both sides. We can't wait for the next get-together. I'm so grateful for family- so grateful for the love that binds family together- and the experiences and time spent together than strengthen the bonds. It was a short weekend, way too short, but still so fun; the type that leaves you anticipating the next one. Hopefully that 'next one' won't be too long in coming!

Happy Birthday Caleb

Caleb turned 5 on September 2nd. Holy Cow! When did my little guy get so big! When he woke up in the morning, he came running out so excited. Then he got kind of a sad look on his face. I asked him what was wrong. He said, "I don't even look 5, I just still look 4." I finally convinced him that he did look older that day. :) We had a fun day together and enjoyed celebrating his birthday. When I showed him what I had bought special for his breakfast -Lucky Charms- he told me he didn't want Lucky Charms, he wanted macaroni & cheese. Oh well, it's his birthday! So he enjoyed mac 'n cheese at 8:30 in the morning.

We played during the day and had fun at the park. For dinner, he requested pizza and breadsticks, so Jeff took the kids to pick up the food while I finished wrapping his presents. After dinner he opened presents. He had 2 requests for his birthday, a remote controlled car and a nerf gun. Fortunately they had some good sales so after doing some research (i.e. which remote controlled cars had good reviews, and run on a rechargeable battery) I found some good deals on both of the items, then a couple other little things. It was funny watching him open presents. The first present he opened was his new shirt- he thought that was great, then quickly tossed it aside. The 2nd item he opened was his pair of pants. At this point, he was ready for toys, not clothes, so his reaction was a sad face and "Oh, clothes." I thought that was pretty typical and kind of funny.

After he opened the presents, and he and Jacob tried some of them out, we got out the cake and sang happy birthday. I was pretty impressed with the cake. I am pretty much the worst cake maker ever- I'm always worried someone is going to post my cakes on that Cake Wrecks blog. But this was honestly the easiest, 'cool' cake I've seen. It was done by Family Fun magazine, and although I didn't have all the extra goodies to decorate with, Caleb was pretty darn excited with his dragon cake. The best part- it was pretty tasty too.

It was fun to celebrate Caleb's birthday. He's such an energetic, fun little boy and keeps life completely busy and exciting. Happy Birthday Caleb!