Adam, Rachael, our kids and our stories.....

Spanish class

2012-01-26T12:41:00.001-08:00

The boys started taking a Spanish class at the library. It is a community service project that 2 high school seniors are doing. I think it's a great idea.

It's an hour long Monday-Thursday and Aaron and Ashton sit still, participate, and look forward to it!

It couldn't have come at a better time because just the other night Aaron was sad because he couldn't understand what some kids at school were saying (because they were speaking Spanish.)And I told him we would just have to learn some Spanish too. The very next day at school Aaron came home with a note saying there was going to be a Spanish class at the library. :)

And this is what Adam and I do while we wait in the library for the boys. Livia fixes us some amazing dishes in the kitchen. :)

Happy Birthday Livia!! And basketball adventures for the boys begin!

2012-01-14T15:29:00.000-08:00

Happy 3rd Birthday Livia!

She got this cut over her eye from the library! She tripped into a cupboard. Luckily we have lots of butterfly bandages on hand!

She got a beautiful "twirly" dress from Grandma and Grandpa!!

Look at her twirl!

And she got some mini American Girl dolls. :) I love these dolls....super cute, and not as expensive as the regular size American Girl dolls. And both my girls love them.

And she got Play dough. I am a FAN of play dough now. My kids can all sit in one spot for over an hour playing with play dough. (Just keep it in the kitchen is all I ask!)

And Livia picked angle food cake with strawberries and whipped cream for her cake. YUMMY!!!! (Ok, I may have talked her into this one....but we were regular birthday caked out!)

And she got to lick the whipped cream off the beater....a win, win.

Happy birthday to our sweet, and beautiful baby girl. Love you sweet girl.

And Basketball has started!!! I LOVE watching my boys play basketball. What a great thing to do in January and February! And even more fun this year.....Adam is coaching!!!! FUN FUN!!

Ashton has the ball, he's #9 and Aaron is #6 on the Celtics.

I love this group huddle! :)

Go team!! We look forward to watching you guys!

A trip to the desert and a Happy Birthday!!!

2012-01-06T13:41:00.000-08:00

We've had amazing weather this last week, and on the 30th of December we went with our friend's the Brown's to the desert looking for caves to explore! We were a little disappointed with the first cave we found, but then we decided to explore this lava field, and we had a great time. The kids could have stayed there all day.

Preston was a little exhausted at first.

Ashton and Dylan climbing the lava rock

Ella on the left and Allyson on the right. ---out in the middle of no where!

Liv was picking desert "flowers" :) Of course.

Adam and our faithful dog Max running full speed after Ashton. hahaha! (Unexplored desert territory is a little scary----especially knowing Ashton.)

Adam and Preston at the top of the lava.

Livia and Marshall (This will be on their wedding slide show some day. Right Kim? hahaha)

There were a few "thrill hills" to drive over on the way there and back, and Livia couldn't stop laughing!

And then we always get to double celebrate New Year's Eve....it's also Aaron's birthday and he wanted to go bowling!! It was sooooo much fun. (why haven't we taken them more often?)

Adam got some fun action shots.....Ella

Ashton---complete with tongue hanging out!!!

Aaron--a little early on his take off.

I helped Preston and Liv push the ball down a little ramp.

Look at that perfect form.....hehehe ( I happened to win this game with a whopping 94)

Go Adam!

Pretty view near our home on the drive home.

Aaron's b-day cake------he picked strawberry frosting which happens to be pink.....Adam tried adding red food coloring to make it red.......it turned out dark pink instead!

It's a Ninja Lego cake.

Making a wish! Happy 7th Birthday Aaron!!!! We love you so much! You are an important part of our family.

All I want for Christmas...

2011-12-29T09:02:00.001-08:00

Aaron lost is 2nd front tooth the day before Christmas Eve :) So all he wanted for Christmas was his 2 front teeth (and a couple of other things!) These two are 2 peas in a pod. Those are some mischievous grins if I ever saw any.

I love these kiddos so much. Christmas morning was a lot of fun. I love that Christmas is so magical and exciting for them. I hope that always lasts.

Good morning! Our morning started at 6:30. Not bad, I thought.

Santa brought Aaron and Ashton their very own bottle of Root Beer. They were soooo excited!

Aaron (and Ashton) got "spy kits" and I don't know if they've taken their spy glasses off since that morning.

Preston was fascinated with his candy cane.

Livia has LOVED her purse that Aunt Marla made her. She's packed it around everywhere.

Ella quickly changed into her new PJ's from Grandma and Grandpa. :)

Santa got the boys their very own snowmobile!!!--non motorized... (Now we just need snow!)----they've actually done pretty well on the hills even with no snow. hehehe

On Monday my brother and his family, and my sister and her husband came up. We had a lot of fun!! We took them to Brooklyn's playground. (It was a little chilly---but my kids still had fun. Kaden got a little cold though.)

Ella shared her jacket with Kaden. My kids were playing tag and running around in just their T-shirts! Crazy kids!

I love this grin on Miss Liv's face! She was having so much fun!

Preston couldn't get enough of the slide

And Sarah with her mouth full---we came back and had pizza. FUN DAY!!!

Sarah and Kelvin surprised the boys with Light Sabers that actually light up and make sounds. The boys were in HEAVEN! Sarah made herself a Darth Maul (sp?) costume and the boys dueled! hahaha. Enjoy the video!

Our December so far....

2011-12-20T11:58:00.001-08:00

We've been super busy this month! (Mostly trying to get our basement finished before Christmas---which I think is going to happen! Carpet is scheduled for Friday!! WOO HOO!)

At our church Christmas party, a special visitor from the North Pole came.........
Preston was NOT interested at all.....sorry Santa
Ella was shy and didn't tell him anything that she wanted.

Aaron wasn't shy and said right away that he wanted a snowmobile. Why not shoot for the stars right? :)

And Ashton told Santa he wanted Light Sabers. :)

Aaron had his Christmas music concert at the nursing home. His teacher is the little Hispanic gal kind of behind him (Aaron's in the blue jacket in the front). I'm really liking his teacher now.

Singing away!

OK---for everyone who lives near me----or if you want to travel a distance to come see----Pocatello's newest and most amazing park ever....Brooklyn's playground!!!!!! Talk about amazing in every way!!!!! We are going here lots from now on.

They had a whole section just for little kids. Preston could have spent the whole time right here.

Ella and Aaron on a fun spinning thing

Adam and Livia

Livia climbed up high!

A beautiful princess looking out of her tower!

Ashton made some friends and spent the whole time playing football instead of playing on the playground. I thought that was funny- and then afterwards he complained about not getting to play on the playground for very long. Sorry buddy--- We will be back here soon.

Hi Preston!

Lights, Lights, Lights!!!

2011-12-09T05:41:00.000-08:00

Adam and I got to go with our church youth group to Salt Lake City and see Temple Square, and the beautiful Christmas lights!! It was so much fun- and the lights were just amazing.

We got down early enough on Saturday to take some tours first. We started with the church history museum. (I could have spent all day there).....This is neat though----Adam and I were in different groups for this museum and we each only took 1 picture in the entire museum--and this is the picture that we both took-----it stood out to both of us.......

It says, "What E'er thou art, act well thy part." And it is a magic square on the bottom. (vertically, and horizontally-they add up to 18 in this square)---It just means, whether you're a 2 or a 10- you're important, and needed--and without you, it just doesn't work. We both just loved this.
Then we went to the Assembly Hall. BEAUTIFUL!

Adam was admiring the masonry (naturally)

Out of order, but this is when we first walked outside and saw the Christmas lights, and the lights of the temple. Breathtaking!

Back to the right order---Next we went to the Tabernacle

ok- another picture in front of the temple

Here's the tabernacle---Such an incredible building!!! And it was neat to see the famous organ. This is where the Mormon Tabernacle choir sings every Sunday.

I just couldn't get enough of the lights.

(We texted that picture to the kids who were with Adam's parents, and Aaron says, "They went to Disneyland without us!!!" hahaha---he thought at first that it was fireworks over the castle. ) Silly boy, we wouldn't go to Disneyland without you......or maybe we would. :)

And we set up our Christmas tree--and admired those pretty lights!

I love this picture---Preston was just staring and staring at the beautiful lights, and tree. It's so magical to the kids, and I just love that.

I hope everyone is enjoying all the beautiful lights this time of year. And keep in mind the reason we celebrate this wonderful season. Christ is the Light of the World. I am so grateful for my Savior.

Thanksgiving

2011-12-01T09:16:00.001-08:00

We spent our Thanksgiving with Adam's parents and sister's family this year. Yummy food and about a pie a person is how his family does it. That's ok with me!

Preston was loving the cheese whiz! haha--right out of the can! A far off pic, but this was the closest the girls would let me get with a camera! Brooklyn and Livia had a lot of fun playing.

These are out of order- but WE ARE FINISHING OUR BASEMENT!!!! And can you tell I'm just a little excited?! After 7 years of unfinished--I am looking forward to more comfortable living space down there. I'll post more pics in a bit---but I thought this was cute.

Preston is learning how to hold a pencil properly

He learned from the best. :)

More basement pics to come---today we are going to tape and texture it!

Ok- back to Thanksgiving....

Hello Dad!

Ashton loves running around grandma and grandpa's house. (He spent most of his time in their elevator. I'll get a pic of that next time!)

And Ella spent most of her time on the clavinova. That is a fun piano!

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!! We have so much to be grateful for.

Ouch!

2011-11-18T11:25:00.001-08:00

Livia had a "run in" with the wall yesterday, and got quite the bonk on her forehead! Luckily she wasn't running too fast, or I'm sure we would have had stitches. We are counting our blessings!

The funny part is, I told her to go show her brothers her forehead, and I went with her----they look at it, Aaron gasps of course and is near tears for her----Ashton's comment....."THAT'S AWESOME LIVIA!!!! YOU LOOK LIKE HARRY POTTER NOW!!!!" I laughed pretty hard.

Liv loves her big brothers! They always look on the bright side of things! haha!

A corn maze and Halloween!

2011-11-02T07:10:00.001-07:00

We've had a busy Halloween weekend-(Which means lots of late nights) but it's been worth it. We went to a corn maze in Shelley on Friday night and it was a blast. We got our money worth out of the little train ride. The kids road that train probably 6 times!

Sorry for the cell phone pics, but we didn't think to bring any other camera--- Here is the long train (pulled by a tractor) Ella and Livia in the train cart

Preston climbing on the hay

Ella, Aaron and Ashton at the beginning of the maze. We opted to do the "short maze". It was about a mile and a half. :) It took a while.

Adam and Preston

Ashton in the train cart

Aaron in the train cart

And Halloween! We went down to Downey- which has been our tradition over the past several years, and the kids had a blast. I think Adam's parents had fun too. (Adam's mom LOVES to trick or treat! She would go all night, and the kids love it!)

Ella as Hermione

Aaron casting a spell as Harry Potter

Ashton was a super scary vampire

Ahhh! Look at those teeth!

Livia was a cute little lady bug

And easily distracted

Forced smile by Livia. hahaha

I actually wasn't going to even dress up Preston (Party pooper I know- but he's in a stroller all wrapped up--and it's a fight to put a costume on. But our neighbor let us use a pea pod costume--and as you can tell, Preston loved it........or not.)

Grandpa gave him an apple to hold and that helped. He held it the entire night. I'm serious.

What a scary bunch! :)

They weren't interested in pics- they wanted to head out the door!!! Can you blame them?

Happy Halloween everyone! (The kids managed to point out yesterday that we didn't even carve pumpkins. oops!)

Fun in Washington!

2011-10-26T14:36:00.000-07:00

We had a great time in Washington with my parents this last weekend. We took advantage of the kids days off school and went and road horses, made applesauce and had a great time with family.
This is Ella combing Wendy. The kids all took turns laying on Wendy. Aaron sporting the riding helmet

Ashton being a cowboy

Aaron riding Danny

Grandma getting Livia!!

Ashton is loving riding Danny all by himself this time!

Me and my handsome hubby

Livia and I rode together on Danny

Ella is a pro now. :) At least she thinks so

Preston didn't know what to think of the horses at first.

But pretty soon he was sitting on the horses too.

Ashton and Ella with Grandpa

My mom spending time with her grandkids. :)

My mom and Livia. :)

Family pic on the hay!

We spent an entire morning making applesauce. And at the rate we're eating it, it will be gone next week. hahaha

That's a pot of applesauce YUM!

My parents got a new horse "Ruger" while we were there, so that was exciting. He's a great horse, and really good with the kids.

Here's some family pics we took while we were there. No one wanted to take them but me. Oh well.

And Preston is flying! Love that grin!

Thanks mom and dad for spoiling us this weekend! We made many wonderful memories.

Runner's club champs!

2011-10-15T14:06:00.001-07:00

Ella and Aaron participated in the annual Runner's Club Race!!In Aaron's group there was probably at least 60 kids from the 1st- 3rd grades! I should have counted. Aaron is lining up here 4th from the right. (Look for the cast. :) ) Aaron behind his friend Britton in the red. (he tells me later, "I let Britton pass me mom". hehe)

Almost there! Aaron got in the top 10! I thought he did great!

Ella's group only had 9 girls in the 4th and 5th grade

Go Ella!

Coming in 3rd! Good job!

This video is a little crazy at first, but this is the start of Aaron's race. You can get a feel of how many kids he was racing! He told me later he was bumping into everyone with his cast! haha

I think Runner's Club is a great program. They run a half mile every day. It's a great way to stay in shape...hmmmm...maybe I should give it a try! I'm proud of my runners!

Getting out of the house!

2011-10-09T16:48:00.000-07:00

This week has been so rainy and cold! We took advantage of some "decent" weather on Saturday and went to the park. I really hope this wasn't our last trip to the park this year. But if it was, we sure had fun- and it was a much needed outing for everyone! (especially me)

I think Preston spent a good hour in this swing. :)
Hello Ashton

Aaron sporting his cast

Liv was digging rocks and cooking me macaroni

Ella even enjoyed the swings.

Cute boy!

Then that evening we went to town and had pizza. Everyone had to try a lemon- so I got some pictures of them trying. It was pretty funny.

Here's to hoping that fall/winter hasn't started for real yet!! We need a few more nice days!!

Free Zoo day---and a not- so- free break

2011-10-02T08:38:00.001-07:00

As noted in the previous post, our weeks are very busy! (I've had some people tell me I haven't posted for a while, but hey- I think I've been doing pretty well actually-the last post was only last Friday--and we've had a few things going on that have slowed me down more--in fact--Dad- when was your last blog post? hehehe)

Anyway---

I do have some fun pics- It was free zoo day up in Idaho Falls last Saturday and of course we took advantage of that! Kim and I were brave (or crazy) and took our kiddos to the zoo. Between the two of us there were 9 kids!! (Soon to be 10!-Kim is having a girl in January!)

I'd never been to the Idaho Falls zoo before--I was impressed!! They even had lions.

Livia liked the zebras

This was an African safari tent

There was even a petting zoo!

Preston hung out in the stroller the entire time and did great!

Livia and Marshall (They are inseparable!)

The boys

Thanks for a fun time at the zoo Brown's!

And this is what has happened this week to add to our crazy week----we've had our first bone break!! Aaron was climbing some playground equipment at recess and someone slid his fingers off and he fell down. Rude!!

I was actually there at the school when it happened because I was dropping off Ashton for afternoon kindergarten. So I just took Aaron home with me.

And we waited until the next day to have it looked at, and yes, he broke his wrist.

Cool blue cast Aaron! It should heal quickly- hopefully he'll only have to be in the cast for 3-4 weeks. He has been a really good sport about it though, especially because it's his right arm!--I think he's loving the attention! :)

Soccer has started!

2011-09-23T09:38:00.000-07:00

I tried to put these pics somewhere else in the blog, but it wouldn't let me oh well.....runners club has started too! Aaron is soooo competitive! He is trying to hard every day to get 1st place! (So far he's been getting 2nd) but he is determined!

Soccer season has started. Ella and Ashton are playing soccer this year. I asked everyone if they wanted to play and Aaron said, "No I just want to do basketball." and I told him he could do both- but he said he just wanted to do basketball. That was fine with me.....
Then the first soccer game comes and Aaron says, "Why am I not playing basketball yet?" I guess I forgot to explain that basketball won't be until January. ooops. Sorry Aaron.

Ella is on the Rapids and is #1. (Blue shirt and shorts)

Ashton is on the Flames and is #7 (Grey shorts)

And Adam has taken Aaron and Ashton on dates this week. I love that he does that- it is so good for the kids to spend time with their dad. Aaron went to Applebees and got some new running shoes. :)

Ashton went to Chinese and got some new cleats. (He had been insisting on wearing some shoes that were about 4 sizes too big!) these cleats fit him much better!

And I got some cute pics of Liv and Ashton this week.

Busy weeks--but we love it!

Preston is 1!!! And a delicious recipe....

2011-09-14T06:51:00.000-07:00

Our "little" baby boy is 1!!!!! This year has really flown by. Preston is such a miracle and a blessing in our lives. He is the most easy going, good natured little boy. He loves being with his family and is just a wonderful part of our family.

He was such a good sleeper when he was a newborn!! (And he's finally getting that way again!)
This is one of our many (at least 30) ultrasounds that we had of Preston

Happy Birthday!!!

Admiring his tractors! (He calls them "vroom vroom's")

New cars from Grandma and Grandpa! He loves anything with wheels.

We went to the park for pizza and play time!

Come on guys!

Then we went rock climbing and Preston was happy to be in his stroller. He LOVES his stroller. (Or anyone's stroller for that matter)

Aaron all geared up!

Ashton loving it!

This picture makes Livia look like she's really high, but I promise she didn't get much out of my arm's length.

Ella climbing

And instead of birthday cake......we made doughnuts!!!! I looked up a recipe for Krispy Kreme doughnuts and we made them....and they tasted like a slice of heaven. DELICIOUS!!!!!

http://m.wikihow.com/Make-Krispy-Kreme-Doughnuts

Happy Birthday Preston!!

Look at this boy!!! An adorable church outfit from Grandma and Grandpa---he got so many compliments, and pinches on the cheek at church!

We love you so much Preston, and we are sooooo glad we got lucky enough to have you in our family.

First day of school!

2011-09-06T08:24:00.001-07:00

I wish this was another post about our summer, but it's not. :( School started today and the kids were so excited and up and ready by 7:00! (We'll see how long the excitement lasts!)

Ella starts the 4th grade!!!

Aaron is a "big, tough" 1st grader! (Who, he wants everyone to know---can do a back flip on the trampoline!)

Ashton gets to go to Kindergarten!!! He is soooo excited and has the same teacher Ella and Aaron had for Kindergarten. So watch out Mrs. Udy's class---here comes Ashton!!!

Livia gets to stay home with me and Preston....and I think she's fine with that! What a fun little girl she is- it will be nice to spend some time -almost one on one with her now.

And Mr. Preston Roger is going to be a year on Saturday!!!! And it's looking like he's going to have strawberry blond hair---at least for now. All of our kids hair color has changed a lot in the first few years, so we'll see. But at least for now he's the closest thing we have to a red head around here. And what a cutie he is.

Race weekend and more fun!

2011-08-23T11:49:00.001-07:00

We had a fast but fun weekend. Adam had a race (the video is in the previous post) on Friday night, then on Saturday we got to meet Chris, Marla, Kaden, Sarah and Kelvin at the zoo! It was great that everyone could come--I know we had a fun time. Then later Saturday afternoon we got to go to the church history museum and Temple Square and we had a great time there too.

Adam getting ready to race
The girls in their seats before they all filled up!

Ella was a HUGE help chasing Preston

He puts everything in his mouth. (I don't even want to know what that was)

Liv was just in her own little world and played and played and was fantastic!

Preston giving Ashton a "kiss". :) (He's actually trying to eat him hahahaha)

Then on to the zoo in the morning

Our nephew Kaden.....isn't he the world's cutest red head?!

There were dinosaurs there and this is what Livia thought of them.....

Ella being eaten by the dinosaur! AHH! (Note Liv's face in previous picture)

Livia and aunt Marla

Livia and aunt Sarah

Ashton, Aaron, and Kaden playing in the sand. Ashton thought it was the coolest thing ever to find "real" bones in the sand! WOW!

Aaron and Liv watching the tiger in the water. This was the kids favorite.

Chris and Marla got the kids tickets to the carousal and they had so much fun! (Ashton figured out how to climb the poll almost to the top. oops.)

Then temple square! (The sun was in their eyes)

The church history museum had a kids section and they could have stayed there all day.

Even twirling dress ups for the girls!

I love this picture. (And they didn't even have to look at the camera!)

Hello my beautiful children!

What a great trip! The kids are anxious to do it all over again. Next year guys....

Adam's race!

2011-08-23T11:48:00.000-07:00

Adam got to race this weekend and he did great! This was his best time and speed. (113 mph in 12.22 sec.) There were 70+ trucks in his class, and he made it to the third round. We had fun watching him!

Out with the old, in with the.....older

2011-08-07T15:16:00.001-07:00

Well, Adam's motorcycle didn't last long! hahaha. We decided to get some enduros instead. So we found 3 and they are vintage! But fun! We took them out on the desert yesterday for their first ride (and my first ride!) and we all had a blast.

Adam on his "hog"!

Yep that's me....:) I still have to get the shifting thing down---and figure out how to turn without it tipping over (it was sandy though)
Ashton was having the time of his life!

Adam and Ashton

Livi holding on tight!

Ella's turn

Preston even sat on it and couldn't help smiling

I didn't get a pic of Aaron on the motorcycle---he wasn't on for very long- but he hung out with Preston!

And Liv with Preston (The stroller was the only shade!)

I couldn't resist a shadow pic. (If only Preston wasn't pulling my hair) oh well--still fun!

We really had a lot of fun yesterday---now we need to find heavier duty helmets for the kids--and find some more fun places to ride (preferably with less sand)---although that did make it nice and soft--perfect for our first rides!

New toy for Adam and cement carvings....

2011-07-27T15:28:00.000-07:00

This is Adam's new toy! He got it last weekend and he's been tinkering around with it all week in hopes of it running well soon. I will post pictures of when that happens and I'm sure it will--Adam is very handy and I'm excited for him. He has promised me to always wear a helmet!! And Doug reminded me that I need to post a cement carving picture and yes I do. I know it's not the best picture, but if you look hard you can see an "A", (there's actually 2 A's and a bunch of lines, and some faint footprints)
My darling boys and their friends got into some freshly poured cement at the stake center (our church building) while we were playing softball and obviously keeping a very close eye on them....oops. In my defense I would not have let them near if I'd known they'd poured or if it had been marked at all, but it wasn't--

Luckily the Stake President has a sense of humor and just told us,"Which one of us when we were 5 and 6 years old wouldn't have done the same thing." And he said, "When your boys get married and have their reception here, I want you to take a picture of them by this sidewalk!" hahaha. We will do that.

Rock climbing!

2011-07-20T16:15:00.000-07:00

We had fun this weekend rock climbing/ jumping/ enjoying being outside! It was a great place for the kids to run around and have fun. And I love watching them have fun, and climbing too.
This is Livia with her best friend Marshall. They are way to cute together! Here's a bunch of fun climbing pics.....

Liv always pulls on her hair when she's unsure about something. It's so cute.

Preston wishing he was big enough to climb.

Adam having fun too!

Goofy Aaron.

I love it when we can find good, cheap (or no cost) fun activities for the whole family!!

Fourth of July fun!

2011-07-07T10:51:00.000-07:00

We had a fun Fourth of July weekend. We spent the night at Adam's parent's house on Sunday and let the kids do fireworks there (we let the grandparents spend money on fireworks) :) Plus a random person gave us a box of fireworks for Adam being a good Samaritan by towing him. So the kids had a good time with the fireworks.
On the actual Fourth of July night, the kids were so tired they didn't even stay up for any fireworks! hahaha I don't think they even knew what they missed.

On Monday we went to a near -by park that had some fun rocks to climb/ jump off of--and the kids had a blast. We took lots of pics trying to get "mid air" shots! Fun!

And I think this needs some serious documentation.......ALL the kids are looking at the camera!!!

And this one!!!

And Preston....Is 10 months this week!! And today---a milestone---he pulled himself up to standing! AHHH!

Yellowstone 2011!!

2011-06-29T12:50:00.001-07:00

We had a family reunion in Yellowstone this last weekend and had a wonderful time. I can say that now---because we all survived!! ( I have been stressing about this trip for about 6 months now.) And the picture below pretty much sums up how I felt on most of the hikes.......... Yes, the boiling hot water, steep cliffs, and other various dangers terrified me---a mother of some rather rambuncious children. HOWEVER----->we all made it out in one piece, the weather was great, the scenery was beautiful, and I loved being with my family. So enjoy the pictures of our family in Yellowstone!

This first picture actually comes from Teton National Park....we came through the south entrance which was just a breathtaking drive.

This is our family and my dad at a waterfall.

Ashton was the king of shoulder rides, (or talking people into giving him shoulder rides)

We backpacked Liv and Preston and they did great.

The boys watching a geyser

Livi insisted on holding Preston's hand when they were in the stroller together. I loved it!

My sister Jesse and her husband Doug at Old Faithful. (Doug would not look at the camera. hahaha)

A grizzly bear! Another one came right into the campground my parents were at!! (That didn't unnerve anyone did it Jess?!)

Ella, Aaron, and Ashton at the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone.

We went on a super fun chuck wagon dinner ride and the guide let Aaron and Ashton wear her cowboy hat!! (I think they were secretly thinking it was an Indiana Jones hat)

Livia finding "magic rocks". :)

Ashton wearing the Indiana Jones- I mean cowboy hat.

That tiny black dot in the background is a buffalo! Look at us out in the middle of no where!

World's strongest man!!!! My cousin Mike was so good with my boys!

My parents, my brother Chris and his wife Marla and baby Kaden, sister Sarah and her husband Kelvin, My sister Jesse (Doug was sick!) and us of course, after the dinner.

At the paint pots. We liked these a lot!

Preston was just loving life!

Thanks mom and dad for putting this amazing trip together. We made lots of wonderful memories. Family is a wonderful thing.

And this is a crazy video we got of some wolves eating an elk. We actually saw them make the kill---Adam was loving it---I enjoyed seeing the wolves but didn't want to think to much about what they were doing!!

A summer day?!

2011-06-08T15:48:00.001-07:00

We finally had a nice summer day this weekend!! (We've had horrible summer weather lately) So we snuck in one of our favorite hikes. (paved trail, not too far, bathrooms) hahaha. We love this trail and the kids don't get tired of it, so we took advantage of the nice weather!!

First, a Preston pic....there's a video at the end. This little man will be 9 months this week!! What a sweet boy he is. He's crawling, sitting up, eating more and more, and just a joy. I love this age! Ok, back to the hike.....this trail has some fun trees to climb. This is Ashton and Adam in the tree.

I did this!! Isn't it cool?! Aaron and Ashton were so cute on the hike. They were sooo in their element and loving the hike, loving each other, and loving life. I love moments like these.

The boys

Adam and I. :)

All 5 of the kiddos. (I don't think I have a picture yet, where they're all looking at the camera. I don't think I ever will.)

Aaron and Ashton

Done with the hike.....just another group shot. Ok- so all looking at the camera I guess....but is smiling nice AND looking at the camera asking too much?

Livia is done at this point.

This is a video of Preston's funny crawl!

Our "WalMart Vacation"

2011-06-01T12:34:00.000-07:00

We went to Colorado over the weekend!!! This was a very spontaneous trip for us. I've been wanting to go for a while because my cousin Christina was graduating and my cousin Kim was having her bridal shower, but I was scared to travel with 5 kids and......PACK. I hate packing.
So.....Thursday Adam says, "Ok, so just don't pack. We'll just stop at a WalMart if we need anything."
I thought he was kidding....but he wasn't, and so I let the idea sink in.....and we went with it! (So we did pack a few cosmetic things, and socks and shoes) but other than that, if we needed it, we stopped at WalMart for it. And it was so much fun. And stress free!
We drove through the night on Friday and made it for Christina's 10:00 graduation. :) Congratulations Christina!!!
Mike, Thomas and Aunt Kelly......(thanks for letting us stay at your house Coleman's so last minute. You guys are amazing!!)

Uncle Randy helping Liv find "magic rocks." She found a bunch of them. :)

Grandma with Preston.

And Mike helping Liv find even more "magic rocks."

Jill with Preston

Mom and Preston (yes, everyone had their turn holding Preston. And he loved all the attention.)

My cousin Thomas found the best park EVER!!! We spent several hours there and got nice and sun burned. (Yes, SUN burned....the sun was out in Colorado)

Mike pushing Ella

See? We ALL had fun playing there!

This swing was a lot of fun.

I even got to hold Preston. hahaha

And it was so nice to be able to go to Kim's bridal shower. Liv was so cute ( of course) and would not take off this gecko necklace....and she played with it the entire way home.

Congratulations Kim!!!!! We are so happy, and excited for you. Steven (can we say his name now? hehehe) is a terrific guy!

Liv got to help hand out cards and felt sooo big. :)

Me and my girls.

I am so blessed to come from a wonderful family. It was great to see everyone- and I'm so glad we went!!!

Ella turns 9!!!

2011-06-01T12:25:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday to my beautiful girl!!! Love you Ella!!!
Ella is such a joy in our lives. She is my best helper-- and is so beautiful and talented. I can't believe she's 9!!! We all celebrated before she left for school!

We don't wait until cake to open presents---it's a first thing in the morning deal.

Ella had a fun day at school----pizza party and root beer float party...(love the end-of-the-year parties) and then that evening she had her gymnastics performance.

She got moved up in gymnastics and she's learned a lot this year. I still can't believe how flexible this girl is.

And ice cream cake for her cake of choice.....smart girl!!

WE LOVE YOU ELLA!!!!-----oh--watch out world....she got a mountain bike!!! AHHH!

The great outdoors!!

2011-05-14T18:52:00.000-07:00

The boys had a "father and son's" camp out this weekend and they had a great time!! The girl's and I (and Preston) went shoe shopping while they were gone and we had a great time too. :)

The boys had to show the rest of us where they went camping, so we went hiking and rock climbing there on Saturday afternoon. It was so nice to be outside and enjoying the weather!! YEAH!

The boys by a bunch of cactus
Ashton holding up a huge boulder!!

Cute Preston in the grass

A picture with just Adam and I? Weird! :)

Liv needed a picture taken too. Sweet girl!

Mid air!!!! I wish my camera was zoomed more! Preston was LOVING it!

Aaron jumping off the rocks.

The kiddos

Preston and Mommy.

Another picture of just Adam and I. (Preston was at my feet, Ashton is hiding behind us, Livi is crying, and Aaron was jumping off rocks. Ella was our photographer as we ignored all the chaos.) :)

Fun with grandparents! (Spoiled really)

2011-05-06T13:09:00.001-07:00

My parents came for just a fun visit this week. In the middle of all of our normal chaos, we still managed to have a really great time!! Thanks mom and dad for taking the time to come see us. We love you and don't get to see you enough! For family night we went to "Randy's Tumbling".....it was so CRAZY!!! but a TON of fun. What more could a bunch of kids ask for than padded walls, trampolines and a foam pit?!

And a rock climbing wall

Preston just got to be held all night. :)

Dad even jumped off the platform into the foam pit.....and Livia even jumped!!! (That scared me more than I care to admit!) Yes, I'm an over-protective mom. (no pics of Liv because I was too busy panicking)

Dad getting some snuggling time.

My mom got a couple of good pics of some of the kids...

Aaron

Ashton

Livia (Thanks Marla for the shirts! I owe you $3 sometime!--put it on my tab! hahaha)

And Preston!

While I was teaching piano, my parents took the kids to the zoo. It was a beautiful day!

And we've missed this handsome guy for a couple of days this week.

So I took the kids to a park that was super fun, and "dangerous". aka...has a merry-go-round.

and teeter totters

Preston was loving the grass

cute boy!

Thanks mom and dad for those great couple of days! And we even got a glimpse of some nice weather! If only it will last!

Easter and a birthday!!!

2011-04-26T12:50:00.000-07:00

We had a busy weekend. It was Easter (obviously) and Ashton's 5th birthday was Saturday!!! Happy birthday to Ashton!! He has been looking forward to his birthday for a while!!
He had a tall order for his cake.....Harry Potter of course----and he wanted, "When Harry was casting the Expeliaramous charm and Voldemort was doing the Avada Kadavra curse and the spells collide and then Voldemort dies...." hmmmmm.........so........I printed out a picture of that "scene" and held it above the cake. And he thought it was the coolest cake ever! phew! (And he didn't just want 5 candles, because that was boring and not a challenge at all to blow out, so....he got the whole box! Happy Birthday to my favorite 5 year old!!

I had a piano festival that morning and was worried I wouldn't be there when he woke up and wanted to open presents....silly me......6:30 and all the presents were torn into!

Harry Potter Legos from Grandma and Grandpa were a hit all day!

And Adam made him a Harry Potter broom! Which was pretty much the coolest present any 5 year old, Harry Potter obsessed, boy could ever even dream of.

Look side-ways :) It's Ashton on a broom!

Preston is a rolling machine! We'll just enjoy this before he starts crawling.

Later that day we "colored" Easter eggs. Did you notice I didn't say dyed? Nope....colored with washable crayons. They loved it. Who knew it could be that easy?!

This is Ella coloring an egg.

And Livi concentrating hard on coloring her egg. She broke about 4 of the eggs. :)

Easter day we went to Adam's parents house. It was a beautiful day!!

My boys. :)

Livia with cousin Brooklyn

And at Grandma and Grandpa's house they dyed eggs. That's fine with me....if they want to deal with the mess then more power to them! (We're sticking with just crayons at our house)

Happy Easter to all!! And what a wonderful Easter it was. I just want to share that I am so grateful for my Savior and grateful for His sacrifice for me and for all. That we can repent and become clean because of the Atonement and be able to live with our Savior and Heavenly Father again. I am so grateful.

Pat on the back!

2011-04-15T13:12:00.001-07:00

I am giving myself a pat on the back for not only being ready for 9:00 church early, but having time to take pictures of the kids in their church clothes!!! ---Now- that doesn't mean we got a good photo---but we're focusing on the fact that we had TIME to take pictures, (not the pictures themselves)....hehehe So here is how our fabulous before church photo shoot went......... "Ashton don't put your arm around Preston"....... "Livia- stop picking your nose!!".................

"Aaron... stop pulling faces"...............

"Come on guys- Look at the camera!"

And this is the best one we got. :) They're all looking at the camera. What a fun bunch!! And Sunday was Preston's 7 month mark! This "bunch" really is my pride and joy. Love you guys!

And here's another pat on the back for being to church on TIME! (Did I mention I do this all by myself since Adam has early meetings--pat on the back was well deserved!!)

Sweet moments

2011-04-08T13:39:00.001-07:00

Liv is so tenderhearted. If someone needs something done she does it (at a run), if some one's crying, she's the first to give them a hug--if anyone needs anything- she's there. She cares. This was Livia with Preston when he was just days old........ Now 7 months later.......... She is still so sweet with her baby brother.

Love you Miss Livi----keep smiling! It's a beautiful smile.

We love our library!

2011-03-30T15:06:00.001-07:00

We love our library. This is the second year (that I know of) that they've had Safari animals on exhibit there. And the kids can TOUCH them!!! We went 3 times to go see them, and each time the kids acted like it was the first they've ever seen them! (I have to figure out what size to take the pictures in on my new phone-sorry the pics are a little small) but you'll get the idea. FUN! Adam and I taking a pic with an arctic fox. hahaha. This one was my favorite though. And I had to slip in some cute pics of Preston of course. He's almost 7 months!

Priceless! Liv did not know what to think of the bear!

PythonThe kids all put antlers on.

This is a croc eating a deer of some sort. Ashton thought it was very cool.

I wish I could have zoomed in on Liv's face. Hysterical!

Aaron liked the Hedgehog

We had soooo much fun! We're all hoping the library will make this an annual thing.(The kids wouldn't mind if it was a weekly thing!)

Boys will be boys.....

2011-03-26T10:58:00.001-07:00

This is what happened when Adam, his dad and Shayne went to drive to the caves. I asked him if it was muddy drive and he said, "A little." hmmmmm................

I asked him when he was going to wash it and he said, "It took work to get it THAT dirty! That's an accomplishment!" That's right hun.

FUN museum and Adam's Birthday!

2011-03-21T12:44:00.001-07:00

We just discovered something wonderful!!! And it was free!!! And it was kid friendly!!! It's the Idaho Museum of Natural History at the college. What a FUN place to go. We're definitely going back soon!
The kids were FASCINATED by pretty much everything there. These are animals in jars. They thought it was the coolest thing ever. (Standing next to the 'do not take pictures sign') haha oops. They had a huge room of HANDS ON kid friendly everything. These were bugs in cases that they looked at with magnifying glasses.

Ashton was LOVING it.

Fun masks!

A giant clam shell.

Look mom a rock!

Adam looking at fossils.

Ashton thought this was soooo cool! A horse skull!

The boys looking at sea shells

More rocks. Seriously....Kid heaven.

More masks!

And Preston hung out in the stroller. Lucky boy! (He still loved it.)

And we celebrated Adam's birthday!!!! One year older and wiser too!!! (And even more handsome if I do say so myself!)

Ashton and Liv giving Adam a good morning birthday hug!

The kids were very helpful handing dad his presents. (and opening some of them. )

Lookin' good in his new shirt! Happy birthday Adam you are very loved. :)

"Spring Break"

2011-03-11T09:08:00.001-08:00

Our Spring Break this year has come and gone....(It was only a couple of days) but if that gets us out of school by the end of May, then whatever. We still had a great Spring Break. :)
Adam scored free tickets to a Jazz game so we met up with our great friends Shayne and Kim and went to the game! It was so much fun, and a really good game. Plus we got to have a fabulous dinner with Chris and Marla- what a fun night! It was worth pulling a late night for. How Preston managed to sleep for half the game I have no idea. It was soooo loud!

Then he was awake!

First Jazz game for Preston!

Then on Monday I took the kids to a free petting zoo. They LOVED IT!

She really wanted to ride in her "pink"stroller. :) Such a girl.

They could have stayed all day watching the goats. Except I started getting cold because Aaron stole my jacket!

Ella feeding a goat or ram, or whatever they're called!

Ashton was pointing out that this was the goose that bit his finger last time and he was NOT going to stick his finger through the fence this time. (He actually didn't. He probably wanted to though).

And Aaron staying nice and warm in MY jacket. :)

Then on Tuesday it had snowed (not a whole lot) but we had to go sledding!

This is Ashton and best bud Dylan.

See what I mean....hardly any snow, but they still had FUN!

Liv all dressed up for serious snow.

I'm glad we could still have a fun spring break, even if it was short. I really can't wait for SUMMER!!!! Come on warmer weather!!!!

First Surgery!

2011-03-02T10:04:00.001-08:00

Aaron was our first kid to have a surgery! (Wouldn't it be great if it was the last too) I'm not holding my breath though. Aaron had his tonsils and adenoids taken out. And sorry for the cell phone pics, but we had to document this somehow. :)
Adam ended up being the one to take him....it was SO hard being at home waiting for news. I would text Adam about every 5 minutes to see what was going on!
Here's Aaron before surgery.....trying to be so brave! After surgery! Still trying to be so brave!

He's been recovering really well. Mostly watching movies and coloring....and of course lots of Popsicles. (We'd loaded up on ice cream and yogurt and then realized most of his medicine says you can't have "dairy products" within an hour before or after of taking). That's great. So any ideas on soft foods that aren't dairy?! Poor kid can't live on Popsicles.

His friend Spencer got him a balloon and made him a......duck? We weren't sure, but Aaron's been wearing it as a hat! LOVE IT!

Here's to a quick recovery Aaron!

Preston's 6 month photo shoot!!

2011-02-26T11:28:00.001-08:00

Before I show Preston's photo shoot......these were on the camera too and I thought they were too cute to pass up. Livia LOVES to be by Preston, hold Preston, snuggle with Preston, attempt to give Preston a bottle, read to Preston, and just ADORE Preston. :)
This is just one time that I've caught her in the bassinet with Preston.....this time reading to him.

So Preston isn't technically 6 months yet, but we're calling it his 6 month photo shoot. (He'll be 6 months in a week and a half so close enough).

Disclaimer....Preston is the cutest baby in the world, but NOT PHOTOGENIC! Or maybe I'm just a really bad photographer! I probably took 60+ pictures of Preston...and here are a sample of what I got.....( so they weren't all bad......ok....some are just adorable if I may say so myself!) Love you sweet boy!

Note to Grandparents....if you'd like any of these I can easily order them from our favorite store. (Costco) :)

Mostly for Grandparents....

2011-02-20T13:38:00.000-08:00

This post is mostly for grandparents who REALLY wanted to watch Aaron play basketball...(If you're not a grandparent and REALLY want to watch Aaron play basketball you can still feel free to watch) hahaha. I couldn't get blogger to download the videos, so hopefully these links work. I had to download them onto YouTube.
Aaron had a GREAT last game of the season. He made 4 baskets and was so excited and we had a blast watching him. Hopefully this was the first of many more years to come in basketball for him. GO AARON!

This first video is just the first couple minutes of the game and fun to watch! The others are of Aaron making baskets......ENJOY!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=19VdsZ1vRqM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsROwMgeXIA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZmLo4iOJYXk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vqMtDlAE9yQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-5ckcjFrd60

Birthday fun

2011-02-10T17:36:00.000-08:00

I even got to have a birthday! (It was on a Monday though--blah!) And my day started with unplugging a toilet.....there's just no getting around those things, even on a birthday. blah. And why is it that the kids were especially naughty, and I made my own dinner and helped make my own cake (which didn't exactly turn out). I think I set my expectations a little too high for that day.
In Adam's defense---he was working and it is hard to make a dinner and cake. But he DID make me some yummy muffins for breakfast.....THANK YOU!
Aaron picked out my candles....they melted all over the cake....really fast. And I really wanted a picture of me and the kiddos......Adam took about 30. :) I love trying to get the kids to look good and look at the camera... at the same time. (I'm not even looking)

Not a bad shot.....I was getting tired of it though and ready to give up at this point.

But after the boys and Liv went to bed, Preston put on a show and it was the highlight of my birthday. :) He rolled....

And he laughed....and I loved it. Thank you Preston for making my day.

10 years of marital bliss... :)

2011-02-07T09:21:00.000-08:00

Adam and I have been married for an entire DECADE!!! Crazy. Time flies when you're having fun! We had a great anniversary and I'm more in love with this man every day. Adam's parents took the kids on Thursday so we went to a movie (True Grit)---it was good---lots of hilarious dialogue, and then to dinner at Texas Roadhouse. We spent the night at a Themed Suites and this was the "Tropical Paradise". It even had a waterfall! It was a fun place to stay. And Adam surprised me with frozen custard for dessert!! He had picked some up when he was in Utah and surprised me. He knows the way to this Wisconsin girl's heart! hahaha

And of course I had to throw in some pics of the kiddos......

Preston is almost 5 months and according to the Dr...on the 38% for height/weight.......I'm no doctor, but......I DON'T THINK SO! Take a look at these pics and tell me what you think?!

Adorable.....but no 38th percentile. My kids just don't run that small!

And...Aaron lost 2 teeth in one week! The tooth fairy was busy here!

And Ashton wanted a pic of his teeth too. hahaha. They're all still there Ashton....for now. :)

What a wonderful 10 years we've had and I'm looking forward to all of eternity.

Chicken corn Chowder

2011-01-29T12:53:00.000-08:00

This is our new favorite soup!!! It's seriously the best ever---you've got to try it!!!!!! It says let it simmer for 1 hour, I ended up letting it simmer for about 3. :) Just because that's when we finally were together to eat. But it was worth the wait and the extra simmer time I think. This soup was amazing and an instant hit for everyone! So follow the link below and ENJOY! http://www.cucinafamiglia.com/2011/01/chicken-corn-chowder.html

ALSO--
If anyone wants to participate in the "Pay it Forward 2011" then just let me know.
I tried this last year, and I can't remember if I ended up making everybody that posted something or not....but....here it goes and I will try to do better this year....
The first 5 people to comment on this blog (about pay it forward) will get something handmade by me this year. And then in turn you do the same thing posting this on your blog, or email or facebook or whatever. FUN!

He shoots, he scores!

2011-01-24T13:32:00.001-08:00

We actually got Aaron making a basket on video! He is having such a fun time with basketball, and I'm so glad. We all LOVE watching him. And I LOVE that right at the beginning of the video someone yells, "That's the Daniels' kid!" :) That's right- that's my boy.

And here's Preston cheering Aaron on. Preston is 4 and a half months now and a CHUNK! He goes to the Dr. on Wednesday so I'll post his weight and height then. I'm guessing he's off the charts! His eyes are changing too. I think they're going to be brown like Ella's. He is still such a good baby- we love him so much! (not a very exciting video, but still cute.)

Photo shop and basketball.

2011-01-16T16:04:00.000-08:00

Yes, photo shop and basketball are in the same post! hahaha.....Adam got this cool new program (photoshop) and I love how some of these pictures turned out. I think we're going to being seeing more black and white and tweaked (is that a word) pictures from now on. We had fun!

I LOVE this picture....it's actually not even black and white it's got some color....I just love it. Now we need a more updated kid pic! We may have gone a little too fuzzy on this one, we're still experimenting.

These are Preston's 4 month pics. Here's the "soft focus"

Here's just black and white.

This is cool.....sketched!

And in a frame.

I'm not sure what Adam did to this pic other than crop it, but Liv sure looks cute.

Rainbow!!! See, I told you we were having fun!

And here is our new, rising basketball STAR!!!! Aaron is #4 on the Bulls. :)

Listening to the coach.

This video is funny because you hear me telling him to dribble (I think I distract him-we're working on that) and then he shoots and it looks like he makes it, but that time he didn't (or you would have heard some serious cheering on our part). He actually did make 2 baskets that game though. He had a lot of fun and we're looking forward to cheering him on for the next 5 weeks!

Happy 2nd Birthday Livia!!!

2011-01-10T09:34:00.001-08:00

Our little Livia had her 2nd birthday! I couldn't find her tiny baby pictures, but this is a picture when she was about 6 months. We had a great day as a family to celebrate.
Grandma got her a Princess Polly Pocket and she's LOVED it!

Say cheese!!

Ella liked her Polly Pockets too!

All the kids were excited about Liv getting a kitchen and toy food. (And Max is there thinking, "Chew toys?!)

Adam and I made the BEST cake!!! Livia wanted an ice cream cake (smart girl) and it turned out amazing! It was oreo crust, mint chocolate chip ice cream. YUM!

There's Ashton sneaking off with Liv's new kitchen! hahaha

We love this little girl so much. Livia knows how to bring a smile to any one's face. She is so sweet, and caring. She's always ready to give a hug and make someone who's sad feel better. She's a great big sister to Preston, she's a huge helper at getting his diapers and pacifiers! And if we can't find her----she's getting into trouble. Bring on the terrible two's! WE LOVE YOU MISS LIV!

Aaron turns 6!

2011-01-05T17:30:00.000-08:00

I can't believe Aaron is 6!!! It doesn't seem that long ago that we were having our little "tax break baby!". hehehe. New Year's eve is definitely better than having the New Year's baby. :)
Aaron is such a FUN little boy. He was such a cute baby....... And is still such a handsome little boy. :)

He got the coolest cake ever at Grandma's house. He wanted "Darth Vader, fighting Luke Skywalker." I thought the cake turned out awesome! Thanks mom!

The only thing Aaron wanted was a sling shot. (What a BOY!) So we told him if he got one, we'd have to keep it locked up and he could only use it with dad (We were trying to talk him out of it) but he still wanted one, so that's what he got. He was so excited! He's been shooting wads of paper everywhere. :)

We had another cake on his real birthday and of course we all stayed up late to ring in the New Year. He is a party animal!!

We love Aaron so much. He is always trying to please everyone, and is so tender hearted. He is a wonderful little brother, big brother, son and friend. Love you Aaron!

Christmas picture overload!

2010-12-29T10:50:00.001-08:00

We had a wonderful Christmas in Washington!! We had so much fun, and now for the picture overload.......:)
We saw "Tangled" which was soooo cute!! This is one of my new favorite movies. Of course riding Danny was top on the list of things to do.

Ella and Liv saying hi to the horses.

Livi playing with Kaden (Chris and Marla's little boy) . They were being so cute.

Ashton riding Danny.

Ashton and Livia on Danny.

Jesse and Doug with Preston. (Doug is deep in thought! )

We all had fun playing piano.

My Grandma snuggling with Preston.

Grandma had the best job.

My dad made a fire for the kids. I thought it was so sweet how he had his arm around Liv.

Ella made these "q-pon" books for the boys! haha. I thought it was sweet.

Waiting patiently on Christmas morning.

Santa came! And brought Harry Potter dress up!! Perfect!

And Hermione dress up. (We live and breath Harry Potter in this house!)

And more Harry Potter. (Even though I think Aaron says he's "Ron")

The boys loved exploring.

Adam, me and Liv.

Grandpa and Preston

Aaron playing with Kaden! Aaron could do anything and Kaden would think it was hilarious!

Preston!

Grandma and Grandpa and all 6 grandkids!

Hi Preston!

Ella and Jesse playing chess. (I tried playing too, and then realized it was a ridiculous game. Seriously, who made up those rules?!)

Happy Livi!

I thought this was cute! Then Liv jumped to grandma- good thing she was ready!

Proof that I even rode Danny. :)

More of happy Preston

We had a great time and are so lucky to have a wonderful family to spend the holidays with.

Here and there and everywhere!

2010-12-20T13:15:00.000-08:00

It always seems like the weeks leading up to Christmas are the busiest of the whole year! I haven't been the best at taking pictures of everything that's been going on, but here are a few of the many places we've been........
Count the grocery carts....1,2....3!!!! Yep, that is a milestone! Ella pushed one with Livi in it, I pushed one with Preston in it, and Adam pushed Ashton and they were all piled high with groceries! I had my Christmas piano recital and Adam was in charge of the video camera. He only got this one picture of Aaron and it was after he was done. (He's fired) The kids all did great though!

Ella had her gymnastics performance. She is SOOOO flexible and did great on her beam routine!

Ok- blurry cell phone pic, but the kids had a mini basketball camp (Aaron is going to do basketball). Ella is in the very back of this pic with purple shorts.

Aaron waiting his turn.

Ashton even participated even though technically it was only for Kindergarten- 3rd grade. He had fun though, and surprise, no one could tell he wasn't in school. He's such a big kid!

Liv had fun being the cheerleader!

And believe it or not, Preston slept through it all. haha. That's what he does best!

And we've had a trip to the Dr. Ashton cut his foot on glass. He stepped on a clock that had a glass front (I thought it would be fun for him to mess around with the clock and see how it worked, he was having fun until he decided to step on it- or jump- we don't know which, the story keeps changing).

Anyway- I always handle these occasions sooo well- NOT! I had to pull a big piece of glass out of his foot. YUCK! And then there was blood, and panicking, and crying....and my awesome friend Kim saved the day....again! She just happened to be right around the corner and watched the kids while I took Ashton to the dr.

The Dr. decided to try gluing it, which ended up not holding at all because Ashton can't hold still. So, he's going to have a scar. :) one more scar! (This pic is several days after it happened-it hasn't healed very well)

And now we're off to Washington for Christmas!!! We are soooo excited!! Merry Christmas everyone!

Concert!! My cousin saved the day

2010-12-17T08:56:00.000-08:00

Adam and I were excited when we saw this Collin Raye concert coming to the Performing Arts Center. We love Collin Raye's music. When I got the tickets I SPECIFICALLY asked the guy if it was OK if I brought a baby. And he says, "Oh yeah, that's not a problem." So I bought these non refundable tickets and then on our way to the concert I'm reading the ticket and on the bottom (the pics blurry) but it says "NO INFANTS". Oh no!!!!

So I had to think fast since the concert was going to start soon, and I called my cousin Naomi and she saved the day!!! She sat on some chairs for 2 hours outside of the concert hall with Preston. We owe her BIG TIME. THANK YOU NAOMI!!!

The concert was great. Collin Raye sang some beautiful Christmas songs, and of course he sang some of his best hits.

Great cell phone shot I know, but we don't get many pictures together anymore! It was a lot of fun, even if we were frantic for a minute! It's always great to get out with my hubby. :)

I tried not to laugh...

2010-12-02T09:27:00.000-08:00

Ashton came upstairs very distraught after I had put him and Aaron to bed. I asked him what was wrong and he very tearfully said, " Aaron said if he had a magic wand he would turn himself into a karate master, but he wouldn't turn me into one. I wish he would turn me into a cheetah though so I could run fast and I would give him a ride on my back."
At this point I was really trying hard not to laugh, so I just told him, "Well, maybe he can teach you how to be a karate master, and maybe you should have your own wand and turn yourself into a cheetah."
He brightened up at this prospect and I walked him to bed. :) I love these moments!

Fun in the snow!

2010-11-28T09:11:00.001-08:00

We have gotten so much snow already this winter! The kids are loving it of course, they've even gotten a snow day out of it. I'm not to keen on driving on the roads, but I do love watching the kids play in the snow, and even going sledding myself. :)
Of course I had to throw in some cute pictures of Preston too...... Look at those cheeks and tummy!

Ella was getting some grins out of him!

Ashton wouldn't let me get a close up of him- he was too busy sledding!

Hello Miss blue eyes! Livia LOVED the snow---she was a little dare-devil!

Preston got out of the car long enough for me to wrap him up good and put him back in his seat---and a quick picture.

Aaron having FUN!

Seriously Liv could not get enough!

Ella was having a ball!

And Adam had to get a pic of me (to prove I was out in the snow). :)

Pile on dad!

Enjoy the video! We sure had a great time in the snow!

In the Spirit of Thanksgiving

2010-11-21T19:59:00.000-08:00

Cheesy Smiles! We love it!

2010-11-18T09:47:00.000-08:00

Preston is 10 weeks old tomorrow!!! And he is such a joy in all of our lives. The kids LOVE to take pictures of him. So here are a few pics that the kids took....he's SMILING!!! I am such a sucker for little boy hats!

He's putting on the chunk!

Cheesy!

Smile!

He loves to snuggle.

No, you can't eat that now....

2010-11-14T20:35:00.000-08:00

Who knew that a pop tart could double as a coloring book?! Liv is our trouble maker when it comes to coloring on things. This evening she wanted a pop tart, and as soon as I turn my back she gets out a pen and starts coloring....on her pop tart. She was very distraught when I threw it away(after I took a quick pic for posterity) and told her now she couldn't eat it. What a mean mom, I know.

"Twick or Tweet"

2010-11-04T09:08:00.001-07:00

Halloween is my least favorite holiday. I'm just not a fan, and never will be. In fact I think my anti- Halloween is rubbing off on my kids (and I feel a little ashamed of this....) We were driving around town looking at decorations and Ella says, "Why does everyone have pumpkins out? Isn't that more of just a fall decoration?" hmmm......Yes I am guilty of NOT carving pumpkins this year. In fact, we didn't even buy pumpkins. oops.
HOWEVER......what I did love about Halloween night, and it just about melted my heart hearing Livi say, "Twick or Tweet" and then be sooo excited that that resulted in a handful of candy into her bucket. That's what I like about Halloween.

Livia was our Packers cheerleader! Go Pack!

I love this face! "Seriously? Seriously? You really put me in this pumpkin suit?" !! hahaha

Ella the witch (I love the tights!) Ashton is Batman, Aaron is Venom (aka Black Spiderman) Preston the pumpkin and Liv the Cheerleader!

ooohhhh....One scary bunch!

Family of 7!

2010-10-31T16:06:00.000-07:00

It was such a beautiful fall day on Friday, that I couldn't resist taking some outdoor pictures of our family of 7!!

So sweet...

2010-10-27T15:29:00.001-07:00

This is how we feel most days....... But he is so sweet! (And look at those cheeks!) He's putting on some chunk! And balding on top. hahaha

Livia brought a bunch of books to read to Preston and parked herself next to him in his car seat. I thought it was pretty much the cutest thing ever. So sweet.

Awake! And ready for church. He looked so big in his sweater and khakis! So sweet.... :)

Whose good lookin' kids are those?!?!

2010-10-24T14:45:00.001-07:00

It was time for our annual photo shoot....this time with 5 kids! It was definitely a challenge, but I think we managed to get a few good ones!
Preston got his photo shoot laying down, and in his bed. Lucky boy!

Livia gave us the cutest smiles when Adam was teasing her behind me. Good work hun!

Here's her serious look....... :)

And Ashton....looking mischievous as always....hahaha

My favorite....love those eyes!

And Aaron......was cold (literally).......he gave me a few grins early on.....

And then gave up...

Miss Ella was just looking so grown up! But I love her care-free look and smile.

I am so blessed to have this beautiful bunch ALL call me mom! (well, technically Preston can't talk yet, but I know he's thinking it!) I love these guys so much.

X-treme Tumbling!!

2010-10-17T20:30:00.000-07:00

Ella went to this X-treme tumbling place with her Achievement Day Girls group, and talked us into going as a family for Family Night. It was a blast!! Everyone had so much fun and did NOT want to leave! We will definitely go there again. Probably in the dead of winter when we all have cabin fever. This was just a great place for everyone to play and have fun,fun, fun! The kiddos before we went inside.

Adam on a long trampoline. That's a rock climbing wall in the background.

Adam holding Ashton up high on a balcony. You are supposed to jump from there into a big foam pit. I even did it!

Ella ready to jump!

Adam running down the trampoline!

Livia did not want to go home!

Not a great picture of Ashton, but this is the foam pit...it is hard to climb out of!

Aaron jumping on another trampoline. Seriously, trampolines and padded walls, what more could a bunch of kids want?!

And....Preston slept. :) Surprise. Surprise. Marla made me this car seat cover and I LOVE it!! Thank you Marla it is sooooo nice.

Here are some videos of our fun family night!

A hiking we will go.....

2010-10-12T15:57:00.000-07:00

On Saturday we went hiking!! We have a favorite trail that we go to in the mountains and we had such a good time! Plenty of photo opportunities. :) Even Preston enjoyed his time being packed in his Snuglie. Ashton in the tree. The kids found a tree, and they all had so much fun climbing! They could have stayed there all day.

Aaron climbing!

Ella, Aaron, Ashton and even Livia made it up in that tree.

Adam, me and Preston (hiding in the Snuglie). It was so beautiful up there.

What a good lookin' bunch!

They found some rocks to climb too! (This whole hike was totally in their element). They were in heaven the whole time, and I loved watching them.

Adam and Aaron

Rock climber!

Ella is a really good climber.

It was soooo pretty! I love being outside. It was such a nice fall day.

What a cutie!

Piggy back ride on the way back of course!

I thought this was cute. :) Liv was giving Ashton such a big hug!

Preston slept the whole time. :) That's my boy!

It was such a fun time with the whole family. Outings like these make me sooo grateful to NOT BE ON BED REST!!!! HOORAY!

Preston's Blessing Weekend

2010-10-06T10:19:00.000-07:00

We decided to have Preston's blessing this weekend down at Adam's parent's house. It was wonderful. (well, most of it) I'll explain... We started off on an adventure to Lariat Cave on Saturday, with my parent's and Chris and Marla. This is where we were when this happened.....

Lovely, lovely.....I kept telling Adam I was hearing something rattling! And he kept saying it was just something in the door pocket. Not quite! We drove on this tire (well the rim really) for 2 miles!!! hahaha Luckily we had a spare, and my dad had the right tools. We were lucky!

My parent's in front of the cave with all 6 grandchildren!!!

A handsome baby boy in his blessing outfit. (It didn't fit him all that well. He kept eating the collar).

Yawning- He slept most of the day!

So dear to my heart.

The Brown's came too, to join the fun!

Jennifer, Shawn and Brooklyn

My mom and Preston

Our nephew Kaden and my aunt Carol Ann. Kaden was having a rough day- he's cutting teeth.

Sarah and Preston

Adam's dad and Preston

Adam's mom and Preston

Adam and Livia crashed!

Adam's dad and Aaron

Kaden and Preston- they are 9 months apart.

We had such a good weekend, and are so grateful for our little Preston. What a miracle and a blessing he is. And thank you to all who could come and be a part of this wonderful weekend! Preston is loved dearly.

2 week check-up

2010-09-29T15:23:00.000-07:00

Preston had his 2 week check up yesterday. Not a fun trip to the doctor for him. He was poked and prodded and poked again, and he really didn't appreciate it. I don't blame him. He's doing better today though. I was a little worried yesterday though, because he had a couple of really sad cries.
He is weighing in at 8 lbs 8 oz!!! And he is such a joy. Seriously- he is one amazing boy. So handsome! (like his daddy)

Sleeping-like usual.

Adam says he looks like a lima bean in this onesie, but I think it's cute. :)

My angel of a mother and all 5 kiddos! Now we need a picture with our nephew Kaden so she can have all 6 of her grandkids in a picture.

Our first family photo. Not my favorite....but it needs documented because it's our first...with all 7 of us!!

A week old!

2010-09-17T15:44:00.000-07:00

I can't believe Preston is a week old already! He is such a good baby! (knock on wood) He sleeps well and eats great, and not a whole lot else is required of him at this point. :)
This is how Preston has reacted to all the chaos that is going on around him....... He covers his ears!

And sleeps like a baby.

Oh I love this little boy so much.

Our little miracle!

2010-09-12T14:39:00.000-07:00

After a very long 9 months of waiting........
Preston Roger Daniels ...was born on 9-10-10!!!!
He was 7 lbs 11 oz and 21 in. long. He was born at 1:03 in the afternoon.
He is definitely our little miracle. We are so blessed to add Preston to our family. He has been showered with love from the moment of his arrival!! Our beautiful baby boy.

The brothers!!

All 5 siblings! (This was the best shot we could get....and Adam took a lot! ) haha. Not a bad looking bunch I must say. :)

Everyone has been dying to hold him!

His little shirt says, "Handsome like daddy"....and he is definitely handsome like his daddy. :)

A very proud dad.

We love you Preston!

The labor and delivery went so well. The blood clot just came out with the placenta, and didn't cause any problems. It was actually the weirdest labor I've had, because I didn't think I was in real labor!

I had called my doctor because I was bleeding some, and they told me to go to labor and delivery--I really didn't want to because I didn't want to be sent home again. But Adam and I went, and they monitored me for a little while--the baby was doing fine, and I'd only have contractions if I stood up.

The resident dr. checked me and told me I was at a 7! I couldn't believe it! I was in no pain at all, and still didn't think I was in labor. 20 minutes later my dr. came in to break my water and said I was now at a 9 and he'd come back in, in 15 minutes when I had to push. I still couldn't believe it! The nurse asked me how much pain I was in on a scale from 1-10 and I told her 0! She said, "I can't put that!"

So in about 15 minutes I had to push and he came out in 3 contractions! He was a little harder to push because he was face up and turned a little to the side, but I can't complain!

So after a ridiculous pregnancy, Preston made it up to me in the labor and delivery. Thanks buddy!

I feel amazing, and I still can't believe it's over! I know we've been watched over, and I'm so grateful to so many wonderful friends and family who have helped us out in so many ways during this pregnancy. I know we are so blessed, and we are so very thankful.

First day of School Pictures....sniff sniff

2010-09-09T08:34:00.000-07:00

This year I had an especially hard time sending my kids to school. I could blame it on the pregnancy and that I am an emotional basket case, but I don't know if that's really it. :) (Maybe just part of it) I just love having all my kids home- even though it's chaos most of the time!
However---they were super excited to start school. I now have a 3rd grader AND a kindergartner! Ella and Aaron

Is it just me, or does she just look too grown up in this picture?!

Liv had to come give Aaron a hug

This almost made me cry-- Ashton was upset he couldn't go with Aaron--these two have always done everything together. Next year Ashton...next year.

He was so excited to start school!

Ok- not a first day of school pic, but I thought this was so cute!! Liv just CRASHED next to Ella one day while watching something on the computer. :)

A big sigh of relief!!

2010-09-01T14:05:00.000-07:00

We made it to September!! This week I'll be 36 weeks according to the first ultrasound I had -and 39 weeks according to all the other ultrasounds I've had---so we're good!!! The baby is over 6 pounds now, and doing great.
I've been feeling really good and have been able to take it very easy these last few weeks thanks to my mom! I am so grateful that this miracle baby has been able to stay in for as long as he has, and I know it has everything to do with answered prayers.
Now it's just the waiting game! And we are very excited for when this baby boy decides to join the family officially! So come on baby!!