December 4, 2010
Today was our neighbors annual gingerbread house extravaganza! The kids look forward to this every year and this year was no exception. Treats, creating fun houses, friends, and a good movie make for a very fun afternoon.


Liberty and Brylee and the girl table.


Liberty's masterpiece.



Kayson with his house. ( He was so proud that he made me take a picture of each side.)

Brylee showing hers off.

Brancyn enjoying this tratidition for the first time.

Thank you to our wonderful neighbors!

December 3, 2010
Tonight was the ward Christmas Party. Kade was asked to help with a musical number, but didn't feel like he had time to get one ready. He told the activities committee to ask Liberty. So they did! Liberty said yes. So she prepared a song out of the children's song book. I thought she did wonderfully. So far she has only played in front of a small audience at recitals, but tonight she played in front of 200 people! Way to go Liberty.


We also enjoyed a wonderful meal catered by BYU-I, a song by the primary, another musical numbers by Sister Earl, and a Christmas story told by the MC. We finished off the night with a visit from our favorite jolly fellow St. Nicholas himself!

Liberty

Kayson

Brylee

Brancyn

And no tears for Santa Claus this year!!!

November 28, 2010

Tonight when I was getting Brancyn changed for bed, he was being a really big wiggle bug. So Kade came over to him and put his hand on his chest to hold him. He told Brancyn that he was holding the soccer ball on his shirt (so that Brancyn wouldn't get mad about being held down.) Brancyn thought this was pretty funny and said that he wanted to kick the soccer ball on his shirt. Kade ran for the camera knowing this would be a good video. Enjoy!

November 28, 2010

Tonight we decorated our kid Christmas tree. We invited Grammy and Grampy up for the festivities. The kids enjoyed themselves and were exctied to see their new ornaments. Liberty got Lady and the Tramp puppies, Kayson got Chip and Dale, Brylee go Mulan, and Brancyn got Lightning McQueen. After we were done, Brylee came upstairs and asked me why she got Mulan. I told her it was because she liked the show so much and also because we had boys from China here this year and that the ornament would help her remember. Then I double checked with her and said, you do like Mulan right? She said yes and smiled. Then she said that maybe she would get Mulan again next year since she liked her so much. I told her that maybe she would, but maybe she would get something else she liked instead. She then says, I like Grammy, it would be funny if I got her. Lol, I thought it would be funny too. What a little nut!

Liberty was our photographer for most of the night (that is why there are so many silly ones) The rest of them Kade captured.

November 25, 2010

I never seem to remember to get pictures at Thanksgiving. Luckily this year I remembered a few (thanks to the constant reminder of Halle walking through the house with her Flip camera:).

This year we gathered at Grammy and Grampy's. All but Quin and his fam were there. We had all of the traditional fixin's and even got to enjoy some of Bryon's fabulous deep fried turkey. Mmmmm!

It was so cold today, that Bryon had a little trouble getting the oil hot enough. But, he got it done and it was appreciated by all. As were the wonderful turkeys Grammy had cooked in the oven.

Grandma braved the cold and slick roads and came to joing the family for the meal.

The kids enjoyed a slow lazy day. Grampy let them watch movies on his new laptop and they thought that was a lot of fun.

The next day, it warmed up enough to pull out the snow clothes and sleds. Grampy wanted to get in on the fun, so he hooked the train up to his tractor, tied a sled to the back end and took all of the grandkids for a ride through the yard and out into the "forest". They were really cruisin' on this thing and loved every minute.

We finished off the weekend with Black Friday shopping, a sleepover with cousins, and a Christmas party with the Farley Family. It was busy, but fun. The holidays are in full swing!!!

November 11, 2008.

When my children are young and I am teaching them to pray, I say the words of the prayer and have them repeat after me. This has always worked well and we do this until they are old enough to decide exactly what they want to say. Usally it goes something like this. Please help me to sleep good, (echo), please help me to share nicely, (echo), thank Thee for my family, (echo), etc. Well tonight I was helping Brancyn say his prayers, and it was more like this.
Thank Thee for my friends (me). Thank Thee for your friends (Brancyn), Thank Thee for my teachers, (me). Thank Thee for your teachers (Brancyn) etc. He had me all but laughing by the end of the prayer. I don't think I've had a two year old yet that has had such a great command on the English language that he would even put that together. Usually you are still hearing them say things like "me want to" instead of "I want to" or "Mommy do that" instead of "you do that". So for him to insert your rather than just repeat me was too funny. He is such a nut!

November 8, 2010
It's Snowing!!!

I can't say that I'm really ready for the snow, but maybe it will help get me into the holiday mode. It has been so beautiful the last couple of weeks, that I couldn't get my mind to turn to Thanksgiving and Christms. This ought to do the trick!

The kids made quick work of our front yard as soon as they got home from school.

What was once one became many! They are multiplying like rabbits around here.

October 16-30, 2010

Our Halloween celebrations this year started in the middle of the month and went right up through Halloween night. We started off with a party with friend on the 16th. It was a chili cook off, costume contest, dance party all in one. It was a lot of fun and a good start to our sugar overload for the month. At the party, our family won a game and the prize was carmels, apples, and sticks. I have never made a carmel apple before, so this was my opportunity. On the 21st we pulled everything out, looked up the how-to on the internet and went for it. They turned out beautifully-that is until i remembered seeing that some people also dipped theres in chocolate in decided to try. I just melted chocolate chips, and they don't get creamy enough, so we ended up putting globs of chocolate on the apples and smearing it around. It made them look quite terrible in the end, but they sure were yummy!!!! We had fun sharing them with cousins and friends while we watched an episode of the Adams Family.

Brancyn

Brylee

Kayson

The next night was the Elders Quorum Party. Everyone dressed up except me (I know, I'm such a party pooper.) Brancyn was a Knight (or a fight guy as he was calling himself at this point.) Kade was Jack Skellington, Liberty was a Fairy Princess, Jared(our little friend) was a Jaguar, Brylee was Mickey Mouse, and Kayson was a Ninja (He was hillarious with his costume. Every time he wore it he'd start hiding in dark corners, slinking along walls, hopping over fences, etc. He was quite in character!). The party was fun with food and games and all of the kids came home with a pumpkin to carve.

On Monday the 25th, we went to the kids school carnival. They always enjoy that. This year since it was on Monday night, it made for a fun Halloween Family Night.

Finally we got around to carving our pumpkins on Friday the 29th-just in time! The kids had fun helping to scrape out the pumpkin "guts" and also helped to pick their designs. Liberty was big enough to help poke her design in her pumpkin. Then Kade and I went to work carving with plenty of encouragement from the kids.

Brancyn's was a train. Kade had to change this design a little to make it work on a pumpkin. I think it turned out great.

Brylee did Mickey Mouse to match her costume.

Kayson picked a bat.

Liberty thought this cat sitting on the moon was "so cuuute".

And Kade also matched his costume with a Jack Skellington face.

Halloween was celebrated on the 30th around here. We started our day off with ghost, pumpkin, bat, spider, and witch hat shaped pancakes. I started out with just pumpkins and then branched out to ghosts and was soon getting requests left and right!

Brancyn and his fun breakfast.

After that, we packed up and headed to Idaho Falls. On the way there, we saw a fox running through a field. We took a picture so we could show Grammy, but never remembered to. The kids thought it was pretty exciting.

We stopped in at Mimi's so she could cut Brancyn's hair. I was a rocky start, but he soon calmed down and enjoyed himself. ( The sucker that Mimi had for him sure helped matters.)

After that we showed our costumes off to Great-grandma Ruby and then went to Grammy and Grampy's Ward party. They had a cute talent show, dinner, and carnival games. Finally we headed back to Rexburg to Trick-or-treat. The kids made quite a haul even though I swore we wouldn't do as much this year. Oh well-they sure enjoyed it. We eneded the night at a neighborhood candy swap and party. It was a very full day, and I think we celebrated Halloween more than we ever have. Now we are truly ready to start thinking about something else like Thanksgiving and Christmas!!!!!!

October 14, 2010


This little goof is such a copy cat these days. I had put Brancyn to bed the

other night, but he decided he wasn't ready. I was reading a book on my bed when I heard him come back upstairs and shuffle around. When I went out to check on him, there he was just as comfortable as can be with a blanket, his stuffed animals, and a stack of books to keep him busy. He looked up and smiled at me and then just kept right on reading.

He also has been copying my popcorn habits. I could eat a bowl of popcorn almost daily and Brancyn has shown a similar love for it. I eat my popcorn kind of weird. I spread a towel across my lap and then eat all of the kernal/crunchy parts off of the popcorn and then leave the "nubs" for later. Lately when I give Brancyn a bowl of popcorn, he grabs a dishtowel and settles it across his lap just like mom. That is as far as it goes though because he really doesn't know why he does it-it cracks me up.

October 16, 2010

We have had quite a bit of illness in our home over the last month. Someone is always complaining of being sick. Brancyn has heard this and almost daily tells me that he is sick. I don't want to assume he's not (you never know when he really might be sick) so I ask him why he is sick. His answer over the last few days has been. Butterflies, with a frowny face. Lol! He is sick because he has butterflies in his tummy:)

October 14, 2010

I'm Caugt Up!

I haven't been able to say that for over 3 months. It is no longer hanging over my head. Everything has been recorded for my photo book at the end of the year. Let's all cheer for Deidra!!! Hip, hip, hooray! Hip, hip, horray! Hip, hip, hooray!!!!!

October 3, 2010

Conference weeked hear meant sick tummies, yuck!! But, despite that, we thoroughly enjoyed the conference broadcast. By Sunday afternoon, the kids were getting a little restless, so Kade pulled out this large piece of paper and told them to go at it. The created a Boo-tiful Halloween mural to hang in our stairwell. They even remembered to include President "Monster".

September 29, 2010

Brylee is in a little neighborhood preschool this year. Today it was our turn to do it at our house. We were learning about the letters D and E. We learned the sign language for these letters, read books about ducks, played with playdough, played and elephant game, and exercised. To top it off we had doughnuts for snack. I think it went well and I'm glad I'm already done with my turn for the fall semester!

Britain, Sydney, and Hunter

Katelyn, Brylee

Brancyn, Briell

Aspen, Chloe,

Tillman

Tillman, Brielle, Katelyn

September 23 and 25, 2010

These are just a couple of random pics that I wanted to make sure would end up in my photo book at the end of the year.

I was babysitting Brielle the other day and she and Brancyn were sitting by each other. I asked Brancyn to lean his head by Brielle for a picture so he put his hand on her forehead. I laughed and said "no, lean your head by her head". He put his hand on her forehead again. I could see this wasn't going to work, so I asked Brielle to lean her head over by Brancyn. Finally we got it. And it was just such a cute picture for our effort.

Brancyn and Brielle

Kade was playing on the computer one day and Brancyn was repeatedly trying to take the mouse from him and push the keys for him. So I finally got an old keyboard out and set him up with his own chair. He was content for quite awhile. These two are just so much alike. Brancyn is more than willing to watch ball or play computer with Kade anytime.

September 21, 2010




You have to be quick around here or Brancyn takes care of the candles for you. He blew Kade's out for him and almost got mine!

I've decided birthdays are just kind of blah when you get older. Especially when you are the mom. I'd almost rather skip my birthday because I always end up feeling sad. I think it is just because you don't want to do your own birthday celebration, but you also don't want to have to spell out everything for your birthday. And it seems I always have to do one or the other since I became a grown-up. So birthdays are just a let down. Maybe I'm just silly, but I think I'll skip my birthdays from now on. I turned 29 this year anyways and who wants to have birthdays after that?

This makes me sound very ungrateful to my family. They were very kind on my birthday and this isn't to complain at them. It's just how I've felt about my birthday for about the last 5 years, blah!

September 16-19, 2010

Kade and I went to California for our Anniversary this year. We found a good deal on a flight and hotel and had enough Disney Reward points to pay for Disneyland tickets. It was just a quick in on Thursday, leave on Sunday kind of a thing, but it was fun.


Our first day in we decided to head to the beach. I was really hoping we'd get to swim at the beach, but it was barely 70 degrees and breezey. So, we just waded and looked at a free little aquarium. The ocean is so relaxing. I honestly could have stayed there for hours. But, we still had dinner at the Cheesecake Factory and a hotel to find, so we didn't linger.

Kade


Deidra


The next two days were spent at Disneyland. We had a lot of fun, but it was physically exhausting. I have to say it was nice to not have to be counting heads and always looking four directions to make sure all kids were with me. We wore ourselves out and enjoyed the Halloween themed things that were up.

We hit splash mountain on our second day just before sun set. As fate would have it, two larger people were seated ont he front of the ride with us behind. Anybody that has ridden splash mountain before knows this is a recipe for a very wet ride. Sure enough. My bottom have was COMPLETELY wet and my top half was plenty wet. It made for a chilly night, but we did enjoy sour dough soup bowls for dinner and that helped. We also got to sit on the warm pavement as we waited for the World of Colors show. It was AWESOME. We had a great time and are already planning our next trip to California with the kids.