5 Men and a Lady

Introducing: 2009 Turkey Bowl Champion

2009-11-14T19:26:00.002-05:00

Carter is #10 second from the right

Just finished!

The trophies are nearly as big as he boys!

Tiny boys on the very large, astro turf, 5 Star Stadium

Here we come, Carter is the 3rd one. He ran faster today than I have ever seen him run! We are so proud of Carter, but very glad the season is over! Grueling 1.5 hour practices 3 nights a week and every Saturday since the beginning of August. I imagine we will be doing this for years to come!

New Family Addition! Another BOY!

2009-11-07T15:46:00.002-05:00

NO I am NOT PREGNANT! Our new addition is of the four legged variety, a boston terrier. Carter rescued LUIGI from the Boston Terrier rescue. Carter wanted to spend his hard earned money on a dog and of course Matt backed him up! LUIGI is 5 years old and he has lived his whole life in a puppy mill. He is a little timid and needs some extra help potty training, but I think he will be a good dog for the boys.

My favorite twins!

2009-11-01T21:13:00.001-05:00

Dawson & Declan sharing a Root Beer.

October 28, 2009 Seriously?

2009-11-01T20:38:00.004-05:00

Dawson fell asleep while eating candy out of his bucket.

Declan trying on the spider costume, Does it look better with or without the glasses?

Evan & Dawson playing in the snow 10-28-09. Snow Day no school!

Dawson and Declan all geared up to play in the snow. If only they could see.

Here we go, where's the snow!

Dawsy trying out the monster with the glasses.

Carter as a Karate Kid.

Evan a mummy, Carter championship football player, Declan a green monster, Dawson a spider and me a crazy hat lady.

Denver Zoo on Halloween 2009

10-28-09

Don't get me wrong, we love most things about Colorado, but 18 inches of snow before Halloween! Come on! The babies were too distracted by the snow to actually make it up to many doors for trick or treating. And Carter was too interested in standing in the flowing water along the curb of all of the melted snow from the day. Halloween Day actually was a gorgeous 65 degrees. Perfect for a day at the Zoo, but by the time we got home from that the babies and Carter were tuckered out. Here are a few pictures from the day and leading up to trick or treating.

House of Brotherly Love

2009-10-14T20:12:00.004-04:00

No Longboard? No problem! The twins started using the strollers as their own personal longboards today. Up & Down the driveway. Carter thought it was genius!

The kids "helping" me rake leaves. Evan's stunt.

Carter's stunt.

Do you think they will always feel this way about one another?

My handsome Carter! He is not showing his missing teeth. Mom got him again! I am the official tooth puller in the house.

my new mantra

2009-10-09T23:03:00.002-04:00

Choose your Love,

Love your Choice.

Thomas S Monson

Here comes the SNOW! Loveland ski resort opened this a.m.! Not sure I am ready for winter yet!

2009-10-07T17:33:00.002-04:00

Just Say NO to Costco wipes! The new wipes SUCK! Why change a good thing?

2009-10-07T17:31:00.002-04:00

Labor Day Weekend

2009-10-07T16:38:00.006-04:00

Not the best picture ever!, but how many wild buffalo have you ever seen?

Buffalo and Moose are so intriguing. I am not sure why, but they are among my favorites. The prairie dog is at the top of my list as well.

Indian Chief Carter at Wall Drug, South Dakota.

Needles Highway South Dakota

Can you say claustrophobia? Needles Highway South Dakota.

We borrowed Brigham coming back, so he joined us on our trip to Wall Drug.

Evan on the Alpine slide.

Matt and Carter heading up the ski lift to ride the alpine slide down.

Carter really wanted ride horses, so Matt & I rode with him. Carter's horse was named Bummer, I was riding Maverick.

Bear Country USA. Fun drive through an animal sanctuary. We saw loads of animals we don't normally have the opportunity to see except at the Zoo maybe.

Big Elk

Dawsy waiting for dinner

Infamous Mt Rushmore. Astonishing really!

Evan

Carter was trying to pick Jefferson's nose.

Back in Denver at a restaurant/farm. White Fence Farm, famous for their Fried Chicken.

Carter & Dawson

Evan feeding the bull and getting slimed! Evan of all of the boys is the least fond of animals, can you tell?

Bailey, Carter & Dawson or Declan? in the tree house.

Dawson, Declan & Papaw riding the horse.

For Labor Day my parents flew out for 5 days. With Cary and her kids and my parents we all drove to Mt Rushmore, South Dakota for the weekend. It was only a 5-6 hour drive. It was great fun, a tourist trap I must say, but fun nonetheless.

Carter turns 6!

2009-10-07T16:10:00.004-04:00

Carter is a defensive lineman on the Fury football team. Since he was 3 he has been talking about tackle football! Fortunately here in Denver kids can begin tackle football at the age of 6.

This football league really believes they are in the NFL. Carter has a practice uniform as well as a game uniform. He practices 3 nights a week with games every Saturday. This week he will play a Friday Night Game under the Big Lights, too bad it is supposed to snow!

A favorite gift from Grandma Jean is always Chucke Cheese tokens!

Someone always has to be a jokester.

Carter enjoyed frosting his own cake. I went all out and made him a checkerboard cake, vanilla & chocolate. We took Carter to dinner at Golden Coral after his football pictures. He had school the next day so we were unable to do anything fun afterwards.

(A bit late, but he hasn't changed much in the last month since turning 6. )

Good Thing They R Cute!

2009-08-16T21:42:00.003-04:00

Evan is becoming an adolescent much too quickly & is in his awkward not wanting to shower or groom himself stage! GROSS! And three more coming up behind him, ugh. His latest comment regarding this stage was, "Mom just buy me some Fabreeze and I will spray myself down instead of showering!" Seriously can't you just see him saying that?
Then we have Carter who is constantly wishing he were 5 years older because he cannot wait to conquer everything and everyone! He is constantly wanting to do & beat Evan in everything, literally,physically and mentally. Ay, Ay, Ay, Carter, Carter, Carter!
Last but not least the babies are really starting to talk more and more each day except they don't quite have all of the vocabulary to express themselves completely. Too cute though! They're latest expression is "light on, all gone" or "bye bye light on", when they could simply say "light off", but that wouldn't be as cute would it?

Just Can't Get Enough of These Boys!

2009-07-03T01:06:00.003-04:00

Declan Jacob, 28 months old

Dawson Norris, 28 months old

Best Buddies!

Dawson

Declan

Here are some more pics of my babies. I cannot seem to let go of calling them babies, but as you can see they are no longer babies.

Glenwood Springs Weekend 6-5-09

2009-07-01T11:35:00.002-04:00

We had to bring out Carter's old leash. Declan was none to thrilled.

Stinky horse! Bekah, Evan & Carter getting ready to baord a horse drawn carriage in Aspen.

Riding the carriage in Aspen.

Rhett, Carter & Evan at Glenwood Springs Adventure Park.

Have your kids ever done this?

2009-07-01T11:21:00.002-04:00

Lately Dawson & Declan have been acting like dogs. They will beg for treats, bark like a dog, sit and stay. Do you think this is Post Traumatic Stress Disorder from losing their Cosmo earlier in the year?

Still Very Much a Work in Progress, Stage II

2009-07-01T11:13:00.006-04:00

More Pics of the Boys!

2009-07-01T10:34:00.004-04:00

Before grass

Trees coming down

Beautiful trees, why did they have to cause so much trouble?

Big machine to grind the stumps of the naughty trees

Baren bacyard with no grass and no trees

More baren space

Working hard at ripping out choke cherry tress in hopes that they will be contracted to plant the replacements.

Evan & Daddy climbing a wall on top of Glenwood Springs adventure park.

Carter & Evan & Daddy climbing

Bug boys playing with goggles

Messy ragamuffin after getting into the oreos

What do you think? Is it me?

Carter trying to mimic the bug boys. Looks pretty realistic, praying mantis?

Bugs

All-Boy!

2009-06-29T19:33:00.003-04:00

My Gorgeous Blue Eyed Boys!

2009-06-29T17:45:00.002-04:00

Dawson

Declan

Dawson

Declan

Dawson & Declan

Thanks for the pics Kasi, they turned out fabulous! I cannot wait to see the rest.

Home Again!

2009-06-29T17:05:00.002-04:00

We (the kids and my mother-in-law and I) had the chance to go back to the midwest for a week. Just a fun little road-trip to see family and friends and play! We had a great time! The kids were exceptionally good in the car(for the most part), I mean it was 3100 miles worth of driving! We made a stop over in Nauvoo,IL and left Grandma Jean there with her sister Betty for the week.

Some of the highlights were my B-day, my mom treated me to a mani-pedi! Matt spoiled me with a new camera, I shouldn't tell this part because I wasn't any better at taking pictures than I usually am. So for no reason I really don't have many pictures documenting our time away. I will rely on friends and family to send me some of their pics.
It was funny & a little sad to me how many things the older boys had forgotten in 1 short year since moving away. Of course as soon as we were in Brownsburg Evan swore he wanted to move back b/c of his favorite restaurant, BOB EVANS. And then their memories were suddenly flooded with all of their favorites that we simply cannot get in Denver like White Castle (frozen from the grocery store are not the same), Rally's, Steak N Shake, Donatos Pizza, Ritters frozen custard and Bob Evans. We tried our hardest to fit them all into our dining experience. The kids & I fell right back into playing with our friends as we scheduled play dates all week long. It was fun seeing everyone again. In one short year 6 of my friends or close acquaintances bore children. It was fun to meet these new tikes.
My family was able to take a day off work and head to Kings Island in Cincinnati Ohio. This was very reminiscent of growing up as this was the closest theme park back then. Fun and way overpriced we played at the water park during the heat of the day and then rode mostly kiddie rides in Nickelodeon Universe. The kids had a blast and were tuckered out by the end.
We spent more time with family and friends and then had to head back to Nauvoo, IL to pick up Grandma Jean and head home.
We made a stop or created a stop rather at Matt's families homes in Springfield, Missouri. We dropped Grandma off at her other sister Dorothy's home and the kids & I rove around the corner to Matt's cousin Rachel's home. She has three boys all pretty close to my boys ages. They have acres of woods! The kids were very content and thrilled to be able to explore & play with new toys for the day. It was a very short day and then we had to head back to Denver.
Again the boys did fabulous in car on the way home. Now it is back to the same old around the house. The kids decided on hour 13 of the drive that next vacation we were definitely flying!

EV, EVSKY, EVAN!

2009-05-03T17:04:00.003-04:00

Our dear Evan is now 9 years old! Where have the last nine years gone? Oh Evan, there is so much that can be said of Evan. He is very literal, Black & White! As a child of 4 years he had a dream of his Daddy flying him on a magic carpet ride to China. But not his Matt-Daddy. I can remember the afternoon that he told me this dream. He was soo excited! Every since he has been infatuated with China & the Chinese culture. So it was no surprise when asked what he wanted for his treat to take to his class he said sushi(technically Japanese). After much convincing I was able to concede and bring candy sushi to pass out to his class on his birthday. It was a bear to make, but what mom doesn't try to bend over backwards for their child? I gave it my best shot, but my back doesn't bend, leave alone backwards! For his birthday dinner he chose he second favorite food, mashed potatoes. We took him to Golden Corral, all you can eat buffet. He stood on a chair and had the staff at the restaurant sing their version of Happy Birthday, the entire time he was embarrassed and uttering to his father that he was gonna get him for this! We finished his fun filled day at Boondocks riding go carts and playing video games! He had a good day, and that was enough for Evan! Happy Birthday Budd! A few days later he celebrated with a small family gathering where Evan iced his own Yellow Fudge Marble Bundt cake, YUM!

More Different than Ever!

2009-05-03T16:51:00.004-04:00

Trying to keep the boys out of Evan's birthday presents all day while Ev was at school proved to be difficult.

Are you Okay? and giving luvs after beating one another happens hundreds of time a day!

Dawson laying on top of Declan.

Posing for the camera! Dawson in yellow & of course Declan in blue.

Dawson in Jail! Look at that pathetic face.

Clothes hampers! Who knew they were so fascinating? No one likes them when they have clothes clothes in them, clean or dirty!

Dawson is officially pulling ahead! At their 2 year physical Dawson is 1/4 of an inch taller and 4 ounces heavier than Declan. Otherwise they are still exactly the same!

Declan not easily defeated can be just as mean as Dawson, and then kiss and make up.

Official stats:

Weighng in at 25.6 pounds & standing 34 1/2 inches tall is Dawson.

Not far behind is Declan weighing in at 25.2 pounds, standing 34 1/4 inches tall.

What do you do in your spare time?

2009-04-15T15:48:00.004-04:00

I just whipped together this fabulous slip cover for my ottoman. Hard telling when I will get my leather sectional, so I had to make do with my incredibly worn denim sofa. Who would make a slip-cover sofa and sew the slip-cover onto the furniture? I have no way of cleaning the stinking furniture except to spot clean it, so I decided to make a slip-cover. I am not ambitious enough to tackle the sofa so hopefully we can make do until Santa brings me my leather sectional.

Easter Morning!

2009-04-13T11:42:00.004-04:00

The Easter Bunny found our basement and hid the baskets there! The kids really did not question this seeing as though our backyard is muddy d/t no grass. The kids all ran to find their hidden treasures and this is what they found! The babies got a bubble blowing machine and some other random treats.

Evan got something educational,lots of sugar and a new toothbrush and tooth paste.

Carter got much of the same, something educational and sugary yada yada yada

Declan with the bubble machine. He chose the this over his basket of treats until he realized how much candy was involved.

Dawson with his treats.

We neglected to do our Easter tomb cookies this year, maybe tonight for FHE. At the last minute we decided to drive to Grandma Jeans early and go to church with her & Jerry. We then went to their home for a yummy Easter dinner. Grandma had a fun Easter Egg hunt in her basement for the kids. Warmer weather would have been nice, however we made good use of our basements!
As a family we watched The Ten Commandments movie, well part of it. Matt & I watched all of it. It is a 4 hour plus movie. I think the kids got the important parts!

Random Snapshots That Say it ALL!

2009-04-12T01:09:00.004-04:00

Dawson & Declan taking a ride in the Lazy Susan. You may also notice all of the fingerprints on the stove! Ugh, neverending!

They actually spin themselves around inside the Lazy Susan.

Carter's new look!

He asked me to take his picture and this is how he chose to pose.

Declan has such a big heart! They still sleep in the same bed, always touching!

Evan & Carter are SOOO into Diary of a Wimpy Kid series.

They babes entertaining themselves in the car on our 11 hour road trip.

Dawson's new favorite place to sit while watching TV.

Disclaimer: Evan is content playing legos & reading or playing on the computer. We love him just as much as the other kiddos even though we do not snap pictures of him as often.

Farewell Friend!

2009-04-12T00:47:00.003-04:00

Taken this morning, Declan & Dawson watching TV with Cosmo.

We are very saddened by the sudden loss of our dear Cosmo. He had been losing weight rapidly and vomiting every since we left him for the weekend(last weekend). Prior to that we noticed his appetite dwindling. We took him to the vet, spent too much money, only to be told that there was nothing obvious wrong with him. So we put him on the famous boiled chicken & rice & cottage cheese diet, as we have had all of our boxers on at some point. This morning after a solid week of vomiting when the vet called to check on him we decided to take him in again. Matt explained to the boys that Cosmo was very sick and may not come home. Everyone said their good-byes and that was it. After doing some x-rays it was evident that he had multiple intestinal blockages requiring surgery(quite possibly cancerous tumors, we had no way of knowing w/o surgery & biopsies). Poor Matt had to make a decision, reluctantly we had to put him to sleep. We knew when we adopted Cosmo that our time with him would be limited because he was soo old, we didn't think it would only be 6 months. Just enough time for everyone to get really attached. The babies keep asking "Where Momo?" And Carter said he was "really worried about Cosmo because he really loved him". We explained that he was in 'Doggy Heaven" with Santana & Bella our other beloved boxers. We will miss our "Old Man Cosmo" dearly!

ENCOPRESIS

2009-03-30T16:30:00.002-04:00

Do you know what it means? I use this term generically b/c I don't know what else to call it. It is 3-6 times more likely to happen in boys, of which I have 4! How can I complain really, I have been blessed with boys who are excellent sleepers, great eaters, healthy & energetic, but at one point in their lives (I'm being generous, it has happened dozens of times it seems like) they have all done this. What you say? Well if you still haven't googled it, it means PLAYING IN POOP! What pray tell is the fascination? Not 1, but 3 times on Saturday I was cleaning up fecal messes caused by my children! Don't worry I didn't take pictures, it wouldn't have done the situation justice unless there was such a thing as scratch-n-sniff photos. It is terrible when one child does it, but even more terrible when two children are involved! Oh and Matt was skiing all the while I was sanitizing the kids and their toys and their bedding and their walls and the doors and their dresser and the floor vent and finally the kids and myself! Oh yah, Dawson & Declan have a thing with taking off the floor register covers and stashing things down them. Fortunately my search came up empty when I bravely checked. Until recently when people would make the comment DOUBLE TROUBLE when referring to my boys I would just smile or if I was having a particularly good day I would say "NO, DOUBLY BLESSED" back to them. I have to say the twins have been much harder the older they get. I know there will be a day, I'm hoping , when I will look back and laugh and wander where the years have gone. But for today I have to agree with the DOUBLE TROUBLE comments. Oh and yes if you are wandering I busted out the duck tape and have also started putting their diapers on backwards, just as I had to do with the older two!

Snowy Spring Day!

2009-03-30T10:50:00.002-04:00

The babes just watched from the window while the big boys played in the snow, that seemed to be good enough for them. They did however enjoy the same yummy lunch of alphabet tater tots and chicken nuggets. Notice they feel that they are too big for their highchairs!

Evan & Carter thought it was great that we were eating Evan & Carter for lunch. We experimented spelling all kinds of fun words including poop & dork and some other fabulous words.

Evan & Carter were outside for hours playing. I asked them to build a snowman out of the 12+ inches of snow we had. This is what Evan came up with! He thought is was great because it was portable? I didn't ask why that was so important. As long as he had fun, who am I to squander his plans.

They worked all day on building this "snow fort". It got to be quite tall, they were pretty proud of it!

Again a picture of the portable snowman in a different locale.

I COULD HAVE KILLED HIM!

2009-03-25T12:20:00.003-04:00

Declan not to sure of the camera in his face.

Dawson being a ham. Dawson was not as patient as Declan, so he ended up with more of a mohawk.

Dawson & Declan showing off their bathtub mohawks.

Another shot of their bathtub mohawks, Dawson in front Declan behind.

Okay, so I was barely over the last wack job Matt performed on the Babies hair! I worked a 12 hour shift, get home at 8pm in time to put the kids to bed only to find that Daddy had decided to play Barber Shop at my babies expense. I was thrilled the their hair had grown back curly and was excited to take them for their 2 year pictures, until THIS! I guess I need to get over it, hair will grow back, I can only hope they hold on to those baby curls for awhile longer. I am the Barber in this house how dare he. He needs counseling anyway for his post traumatic stress disorder his mother caused by not cutting his hair as a child! Leave me and my children out of it!

Tagged!

2009-02-19T19:51:00.004-05:00

Okay, I am not as organized as you all! I do not have files of pictures. I have two full SD cards and the rest, pre-digital are organized by year. So here is what you get #66 on my SD card in lieu of the 6th folder and the 6th picture.

This is Dawson & Declan playing with my aforementioned digital camera. They were about 15 months old.

My Babies are 2!

2009-02-15T23:29:00.006-05:00

The proud parents!

Declan's CHEEZE!

Dawson saying CHEEZE, take the picture already mom!

The party is over, saying goodbye to Grandma Jean & Jerre.

Declan's favorite game of Catch & Release, he is adorable when he jumps up in an effort to catch the balloon on it's way up!

We had to wake the sleeping babes for the party. It took them a long time to wake up and get into & become the life of the party.

Declan still loves necklaces or anything around his neck. We dubbed these his party necklaces.

Two new trikes!

I have loads to say about my kiddos! They are fabulous, except when I cannot get them to take a nap & also during the 3rd hour of church, otherswise they are the most even tempered jolly guys! They continue to fascinate us with their differences & similarities. They are just so fun! Harder now then ever as far as CLIMBING and RUNNING everywhere. I still have a hard time taking them anywhere by myself w/o a stroller, they take off in opposite directions. Getting them in & out of the car has proved to be somewhat of a challenge, unless I am parked in the garage Declan runs across the culdesac & Dawson runs next door. Dawson is still the instigator and has a fierce attitude at times, he is slow to warm up, but has no fear(except for the burning candle on top of his cake)! Declan is a momma's boy. He loves to flirt & play peek-a-boo, but he would rather stay on my lap while doing so. He is very kind hearted. They are learning to say please & thank you. When Dawson refuses to say please, Declan will say it for him and share his cookie. They have officially outgrown their pacifiers, or more truthfully ruined all of their paci s by chewing wholes in them, so I guess I can no longer call them by babies.

5 Things.........

2009-01-26T00:52:00.002-05:00

5 Things that I did yesterday. Not very interesting, but I never respond to these things. So racked with guilt here goes!
I finally got proof that my babes are Right & Left handed! Dawson thus far is left hand dominant & Declan is right hand dominant! Mirror image identical twins possibly.

On Wednesday of this week, I know I am cheating since this didn't happen yesterday. Anyway, I took the kids to the Zoo. It is an incredible place! The kids have begged ever since to go back. The weather was gorgeous 72 degrees, perfect!

We kept running into these peacocks just wandering around the zoo grounds. So Evan took the camera & ran after this peacock for his picture.

You cannot tell from this picture, but I went to Aveda and got my hair highlighted. You cannot see any gray can you?
I also treated myself to a Jamba Juice( Caribbean Passion!).

And last but not least I went fishing in the registers for everything that has been missing. I didn't find Carter's missing tennis shoes, but I did find a couple of pacifiers and a sippy cup of milk, tons of hotwheel cars and a few legos.

I tag:

Carissa

Amy

Kathy V

Meggan

Camille

What did you do today?

Housefull of Christmas!

2009-01-02T00:00:00.006-05:00

We were fortunate enough to have a house-full of company for Christmas. 17 in all home for the holidays! Chaotic, but fun. We fortunately have a finished basement that suited the children perfectly. Sleeping bags lined the floor. To be a child again and sleep wherever you land. Carter enters after the babies.

The babes entered first on Christmas morning, escorted by their new favorite cousin Bailey.

The rest anxiously awaited. Dylan, Clara, Evan Brigham, & Ethan.

Christmas break has been full of fun activities. We found this rock wall for the kids to climb. Evan chose a challenging course & did wonderful.

Tradition calls for Pawpaw making chocolate covered cherries w/ the assistance of all the grandkids. Dylan, Ethan & Brigham rolling out balls of fondant.

Clara, Evan & Carter covering the cherries w/ fondant under the supervision of Pawpaw.

We drove up the mountain to Estes Park and along the way we saw long horn sheep. Apparently the camera man forgot to zoom in on them. Where the Long horn sheep? Can you spy the herd?

We also came across 6 Elk posing for the camera. Can you spy the elk?

The kids crowded in a horse drawn carriage around the historical downtown of Louisville Colorado.

Ice Skating in Downtown Louisville Colorado.

Clara & Brigham

Uncle Ryan & Clara

The kids got a new remote control car. They are all looking on as Dad checks it out!

The babies playing with their new kitchen.

California Dylan doesn't get to play in the snow that often. He had a blast playing in the snow after we found him enough warm clothes. He & Carter had a snow ball fight. Not enough snow to build a snowman.

Oh Christmas Tree!

The Grinch Can't Steal our Christmas!

2008-12-14T00:23:00.003-05:00

Oldtown Hotel

Old Towne Georgetown's 6th Ave

Twin Santa's Helpers

Evan & Carter in Georgetown, Colorado

Today is December 13th! Officially 12 Days before Christmas! So in light of the miserable week we had, we decided to try & bring the Christmas spirit into our home. We drove to the mountain town of Georgetown. They were having an old Victorian Christmas Market. It was fun to see the mountain village. It seemed 20 degrees colder up there & it was snowing. We then came home and tried our best to teach the big boys the true meaning of Christmas with our first of twelve Christmas lessons & Christmas songs. We also began our Service Star!

This poem is attached to a metal star ornament:
Here's a Magical Christmas Star

With a tradition old and true

May it bring you warmth and love

Not only at Christmas, but all year through.

Now every day til'the New Year

Find someone in your home,

And secretly do a deed of love

So your identity won't be known.

And when the secret act is done,

Place the star upon their bed.

They in turn do a secret deed

For another it is said.

And like the star so long ago

Lit the sky for all the world to see,

May this star bring light and joy

To your wonderful family.

1st COLORADO SNOW!

2008-12-04T12:36:00.001-05:00

2008-12-03T18:48:00.002-05:00

110 Christmas cards isn't even enough! Which I guess is a good thing(too many friends to quantify), right? Anyhow, if you have not received a personal card in the mail I apologize. Consider this your Able Christmas greeting. And know we value each and everyone of you!

Dawsy Bossy Boo! Such a Trooper

2008-12-02T23:20:00.002-05:00

So Dawson smashed his finger in the trundle bud nearly four weeks ago and just this last weekend (while we were otherwise occupied) it became very red & inflamed. Long story.....3 hours in the Urgent Care and an allergic reaction to an antibiotic, another MD visit by our new Pediatrician Joseph Smith, a referral to an orthopedic surgeon & a 4 1/2 hour visit w/ more x-rays culminating with a SURGERY all for a smashed finger! AY, AY, AY. Did I mention Matt is out of town this week & Dawson's Uncle Craig had just passed away under general anesthesia 2 weeks ago? I was a basket case, but Dawson was a rock, one would never know he was hurting. Official diagnosis, Osteomyelitis. We are awaiting culture results to find out whether or not he will need a PICC line and infusion therapy x 1 month.

38 Balloons, Seriously So Sad!

2008-12-02T22:15:00.004-05:00

38 Balloons for 38 vibrant years were released by his beloved children.

We had a very tearful Thanksgiving to say the least. Unfortunately, we went home to give support to my sister & her family and bid farewell to their husband & father. In memory of Craig Andrew Oliver who left this earth way before his time. There is a time and season for everything including death. We may not understand why Heavenly Father chose this time for Craig to come home, we must believe it is for a divine purpose!

Anual Christmas Card Photos

2008-11-23T22:28:00.002-05:00

We asked a friend to snap some Christmas card photos for us this afternoon. I have to say they turned out better than last year. Here are the 4 in the running for our Christmas card.

2 Thumbs Up! 4 STARS!

2008-11-19T01:11:00.001-05:00

80 degrees in Denver!

2008-11-18T21:18:00.002-05:00

Just as warm as Matt in Cancun( minus the scenery, ocean , pool, jacuzzi, room service & peace & quiet).

Brightened my Monday

2008-11-17T23:19:00.004-05:00

I saw this bumper sticker & just couldn't help but chuckle. A funny take on such a serious & nasty beast as Breast Cancer. If everyone could have such a positive, funny take on cancer!

The Making of a Statue (dejavu)

2008-11-17T14:52:00.003-05:00

CAUTION: not for weak stomachs!

So, two nights ago Carter awoke us way early in the morning crying b/c he didn't make it to the bathroom before throwing up. Needless to say he & Matt stayed home from church. We had a houseful of company so he was quarantined to the Master Bedroom for the day. Later in the day when our guests left I went up to get the babies out of bed & Dawson was covered from head to toe in vomit! I was not sure however if it were his or Declan's. It was on the bed & Declan as well. Dawson must have heard my wonderment and decided to prove to me that it was indeed his vomit. While I am undressing him for the bath, Declan had wondered off. All I heard was the heaving and then SPLAT! Declan had gone to the balcony and preceded to vomit between the spindles. Fortunately, most of it landed on the hardwood down below instead of on our NEW carpet. Don't get me wrong it was still a task to clean up. So to the tub they both went. A couple more rounds of vomiting ensue in the tub. But about the statue! Growing up I had a recurring dream when I would throw up in the night in my bed(I must have done it often, b/c I remember it so vividly). The dream was of myself becoming a statue. I stayed as still as possible b/c I was being covered with concrete (really vomit!). Is that soo disgusting or what? Evan woke this a.m. vomiting. Four down to two go! Matt left for Cancun first thing this morning, hopefully he will be able to get his work done before he gets hit w/this virus. And maybe I can escape this one! Who is gonna clean up after me? And care for the kids if I get it? Oh yeah, ME! HAPPY MONDAY!

No Theme Halloween!

2008-11-02T01:16:00.003-04:00

Matt debuting his monstrous creation.

The babies refused their hoods on their costumes! Dawson was a skunk & Declan was a blue monster, Carter was a vampire bat and Evan was Commander Cody. Cosmo was an exorcist Dog!

I always thought it would be great to have coordinating costumes or a theme of some kind with our Halloween costumes. Maybe someday? This year our them was REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE! Yes, we just went through our Halloween tote & had to buy 1 out of 4, not bad. The kids were out of school, so we had an all-day celebration. We went to Chick-fil-A for lunch(free lunch if you were in costume)! Can't beat that! Then we went to a Halloween party of some friends that have also recently moved to Colorado. Good times! Then last but certainly not least we went trick-or treating! Matt stayed behind and manned the candy while the boys & I went down our cul de sac and then some. Fortunately the babies were quite content to ride in the stroller this year! I have a feeling next year will be a very different story!

What do you do on Sunday Evenings?

2008-10-27T15:47:00.002-04:00

This is what we do.

ABC's first....

2008-10-27T15:39:00.003-04:00

I was checking on the babies the other day and tis is what I found! First I checked to make sure Declan was breathing, then I ran and grabbed the camera! AIRWAY, BREATHING & CIRCULATION first always!

Republican Street!

2008-10-19T22:21:00.002-04:00

We have apparently moved to a Republican street or neighborhood. Politics seems to bring out the worst in people. We had an officer knock on the door this past week asking if we were the home that reported their Obama signs stolen? We do not display our political preferences, but apparently of all the political signs on our street all of the Obama signs were stolen! The display was about 50/50 then 100% McCain for a short time! I guess that was the point!

FALL FUN!

2008-10-11T22:07:00.008-04:00

While Matt was out of town the kids were on break for parent-teacher conferences. We got a little stir crazy and decided to check out Colorado's version of a pumpkin patch. We stumbled upon Fritzler's Acres. We were quite sad that our annual tradition of going to Nauvoo's Pumpkin Walk and our favorite pumpkin patch in Illinois would no longer be feasible and knew that we would be unable to find a comparable pumpkin patch. Fritzler's Acres was much more commercialized and pricey, but fun nonetheless.

Commander Cody claims he has a Magnifying Mask, so I challenged him to clean up all of the crumbs!

Carter driving the pedal go-karts.
Evan on the pedal go-kart.
Declan trying to figure out the pedal go-kart.
We rode this barrel train!
I don't know what I was thinking! This inflatable creature was a maze inside, nothing spooky, completely dark, supposedly stroller friendly. WRONG! Nothing about this thing was stroller
friendly and it was spooky. NOT for the claustrophobic. We were all a mess inside this THING. The emergency exits were not large enough for the stroller to fit through, although Evan kept jumping out the emergency exits I had to keep pulling him back in b/c I had no idea where he would be once we came out at the end. I could just see this whole thing deflating on us b/c I kept ramming into the sides w/the stroller just trying to make it through! After this fiasco I was very reluctant to try and navigate the corn maze w/o another adult to accompany us. We would have for sure gotten stuck in the dark in the middle of the corn field.

Dawson in the corn sand box.
Declan playing in the corn.
Carter making a corn angel.

Matt went on a Business trip & brought back........

2008-10-11T21:47:00.004-04:00

A 100lb Boxer named COSMO. He is older at between 6-8 yrs old, quite geriatric in Boxer years. But b/c of his age he is EXTREMELY GENTLE and VERY PATIENT. The babies love on him constantly with no reaction on Cosmo's part.

Declan mounting Cosmo.
The babies trying to figure this thing out.
Dawson trying to hitch a ride, but going nowhere. Notice his fingers poking Cosmo in the eye, again with no reaction on Cosmo's behalf. GOOD BOY!
Hulk trying to catch a snooze with the big lug. Cosmo is not too into forced naps.

Random Pics of the Boys

2008-10-06T21:25:00.005-04:00

Dawson

Evan & Carter debuting their new hair-cuts from the Able Barbiere!
Declan saying "cheese"!

Dawson saying "me"!

CLASS OF 2021 & 2025

2008-10-06T20:57:00.003-04:00

A picture can elicit soo many emotions! One that came to my mind was HOLY COW! Especially when I realized the babies will be graduating in 2025! Carter doesn't have any concept of time yet, he has been going around saying he is 2021! And the other night he and Matt were playing the Wii, and Carter was legitimately beating Matt at whatever they were playing. I piped up and said, "Matt are you getting beat by a 5 year old?" And Carter chimed in saying," I am beating an 80 year old!" Matt was none to happy of Carter's assessment of his father's age. I guess I should stop calling Matt old, little ears are listening and they take everything so literally.

1st Week Down!

2008-10-03T22:56:00.002-04:00

Tonight we will have officially been in our new home for 1 week! Lot's of changes, mostly good. We have yet to attend our new ward, but the kids love their new school and are finding that making friends is easier than they thought it would be. The new school schedule is kicking my butt! There is no bus service, meaning I walk or ride bikes to the school 3 round trips a day, yes 6 one way trips daily. Evan & I leave at 725 am, depending who is awake, they tag along. Next week Matt will be traveling so I am on my own,everyone must go at 725 am! Then after I return home from round 1, Carter and the babies & I eat breakfast and get ready for the day only to leave at 1125 to take Carter to Kindergarten. Then if the stars are aligned, the babies will nap when we return. Only to be woken up at 215 to run out the door for the final trip to pick the kids up! Shew! Who needs an eliptical? Oh and every Wednesday is early release day, school lets out at 115pm! Come on! it would be impossible to have a job around this schedule. However, I did start my new position this week thanks to Matt being able to work from home! I was able to drive down to Canon City(pronounced Canyon City). It was a 330 mile round trip adventure all by myself! I really enjoyed my first assignment!I said goodbye and closed the door to my labor & delivery saga. We are getting situated rather well, the house is really taking shape nicely. We have a million projects that we would like to do in time! We are adjusting well and enjoying our new surroundings! Next week is sure to bring new adventures!

Mouser for Hire!

2008-10-01T00:27:00.002-04:00

You may laugh, but I am not! Growing up in the country surrounded by fields, I have had my fair share of mice. Moving into a filthy vacant home we naively thought being neat freaks as we are, we will just thoroughly clean the place and add new carpet and the mice will disappear. WRONG! So Matt & I joked that we just needed to put an add on Craigslist to borrow a cat to rid our home of mice. Well wouldn't you know I found an add for a temporary home for 2 cats! So we welcomed our mousers this afternoon, Puffy & Miagi. They are still freaked out about the move and have hidden all afternoon & evening. They will be busy tonight! I will post some pictures when the cats come out of their shells. Who could ask for anything more, no expense to us, no long-term committment of adopting a pet & we will rid our home of mice! Carter is in Heaven!

Children & Politics

2008-09-19T23:45:00.002-04:00

We have had some very interesting conversations lately. Evan & Carter have both asked "which team I am on?" They don't know the names of the teams, only that Obama is the leader on one team and John McCain is the leader of the other team. Denver hosted the DNC, but we didn't really talk about that much. I wander how much they get in school about the election? Or more importantly on the bus? They both want McCain to win. Carter cannot tell you why, but Evan said, "Duh mom, Obama is African American." I then asked him what that meant to him. He rolled his eyes and said, "that means he was born in Africa and now he lives in America, get it AFRICAN AMERICAN. SO he cannot win because you cannot be President of the United States if you weren't born here." So simple in the eyes of an 8 year old.

Lunch-What A Bore!

2008-09-19T23:40:00.002-04:00

New House

2008-09-16T00:46:00.001-04:00

Fall Already?

2008-09-03T11:54:00.002-04:00

Crazy Colorado weather! Yesterday it was 92 degrees, today the high is 63 degrees! Everyone woke up freezing this am. Don't get me wrong, I love the fall, it happens to be my favorite season. It just seems so early. We have been warned that it doesn't warm up here until after Memorial Day and it starts to get cool around Labor Day and that it always snows here on or before Halloween! Choose the Halloween costumes wisely, preferably warm. This is proving to be sound advise.

THE ROCK

2008-09-03T11:45:00.002-04:00

On Labor Day we climbed "The Rock", the one our city is named after. We had great expectations and gave it a valient effort to climb to the top w/ all four kids, however 1/4 of the way into the hike we decided it best not to continue on w/ the babies. So Matt, Evan & Carter climbed to the top. It was all I could do to turn around and get back down w/the babies. The kids were very proud of themselves for this huge accomplishment.

Nursery, Here we come!

2008-08-24T21:04:00.002-04:00

Oh Glorious Day! Declan & Dawson waiting at the front door for church. Declan has become our little Lynus, always carrying a blanket around. They did fabulous their first day in nursery, Matt & I did as well!

OUR CARTER!

2008-08-24T20:42:00.003-04:00

Evan & Carter celebrating Carter's birthday at Jungle Quest, having a zip line race.
In the Jungle Tree House.
Carter opening presents at the home we may or may not buy(we were there for the inspection).
New Carterisms: I have to check the FEVER outside! Having a brother isn't as horrible as I thought it might be! Hi s favorite number is 5,500- everything is 5,500. He absolutely loves school he says, "it's learning me a lot"! He seems to be doing well in all his left handed ways, with writing and coloring and all, much easier than Evan did at this age. Can't wait to see if the babies are going to be left handed, I wonder what the odds are of having 4 left handed kids w/ right handed parents? Life is never a bore w/ Carter around, he truly is our spitfire!

IT'S SO ExHAUSTING BEING A KID

2008-08-19T14:12:00.003-04:00

Declan on top of Dawson

LAZY SUNDAY

2008-08-17T19:24:00.004-04:00

What else do we do we have all of our toys out? Climb & play with empty containers I guess. Dawson in the box, Declan on the box.
Dawson cheesing for the camera. I pulled out the camera, since we are homebound today. Cold and rainy on a Sunday with Daddy out of town and Mommy sick?
Declan didn't want to be left out. Declan & Dawson think they are soo cool they got a hold of my camera. Good thing the battery is dead.

Carter Goes to SCHOOL!

2008-08-17T17:22:00.003-04:00

Carter began shool this past week! He is in afternoon kindergarten, so we have to drive him in the afternoon, but he gets to ride the bus home. Evan is on year-round school and was off track for Carter's first week of school, but typically they will be riding the bus home together. The bus stop is around the corner & out of site from our front porch which kind of worries me, but of course the boys love being out of site. Hummm I wonder why? On a side note, Carter is quite the ladies man. His teacher is Hot! He likes MRS. Whalen!

Alas, Time to Resurface!

2008-08-06T15:44:00.003-04:00

Back to reality, after 4 1/2 days of fantasy my book is over. While I am elated at the outcome it saddens me deeply to know that there will be no more vampire/werewolf stories coming, only a movie in Dec.! I am unsure how Hollywood could do it justice, but I will see as soon as it comes out. My house is sooo ridiculously neglected, as I also worked two nights while reading this book, meaning I absolutely did nothing besides eat, sleep, work and READ. So unlike me to read, Matt knew it was only temporary(this was the last of the series), he knew better than to say anything. Nothing would have stopped me. Now I have to focus on getting my home back in order and preparing for a talk I have to give in church on Sunday. If only I could transfer all of that gumption to my new tasks at hand!

We're 17 months old, on the 17th wearing our 17 shirts!

2008-07-19T20:11:00.003-04:00

Dawson, Matt & Declan. Apparently I interrupted Dawson during his important phone call!
Today was another milestone, or so I thought! I have been super reluctant and vigilant about the babies not having peanut butter. With all of their sensitive skin issues and respiratory problems I was holding out. But today I just gave in and tried it(uncrustables are so easy & quick). Apparently, while on Matt's watch Carter fed the babies ritz peanut butter crackers. No reaction yet so we may just be in the clear! Declan on the left, Daws on the right.
Declan & Dawson eating peanut butter!

BIG BOYS ONLY!

2008-07-16T11:46:00.003-04:00

Balboa Park Mosaic Art This wasn't the train Carter really wanted to ride, but it did the trick.
Ready to EJECT at the USS Midway Museum
Armed w/ their maps and ready to go!
Carter was way to into this for my liking!

We had the opportunity last week to tag along w/Matt on a business trip to San Diego. We left the babies behind w/ Grandma Jean and made it exclusively for the older boys. Every activity we planned we could not have done w/ the babies( at least it would have been difficult or miserable or both). Flying for instance was such a thrill w/ only 2 big boys! We visited Legoland! We quickly discovered that we are raising 2 Roller Coaster enthusiasts! Although Carter is only 4, he is the size of most 6 year olds and could and did ride all the big rides! Many of them multiple times. We also visited the USS Midway Aircraft Carrier Museum, the boys liked it, I would have rather stayed behind and gone shopping or something. They played at the pool everyday, really they would have probably been content to do this the entire week. W ventured out to the movies, rare for us. We saw Wall-E. Don't bother seeing it! We went to Balboa park and saw a model train museum and then rode a small train. San Diego has miriads of transportation options from pedi-cabs to taxis to busses to trains to trollies to water taxis. Carter was in heaven! We rode a pedi-cab one night. Coronado island was a fun beach adventure, as well as Mission Beach where Matt and Evan were quite successful at body surfing! We had a blast, we missed the babies, but the big boys have asked if we could make this an annual tradition! Of course we didn't capture enough of our trip on camera, but these are some shots that we did get.

Slime, Off Roading & Green Sand........

2008-06-18T18:26:00.003-04:00

Is it BECAUSE I have all boys or the REASON I have all boys that these things are all acceptable and fun to me? Carter got high centered in our yard of all places. The boys love the backyard, it has been unkempt for at least two years and is such a nightmare. But it's only temporary!
RED SLIME! It's great, easy to make, not very messy & very entertaining!
Not the most brilliant idea I have ever had, but again the boys love it(Dawson, not so much!) and we are only renting! Do you see a pattern here? Believe it or not, I am much less anal about the cleanliness of my home these days!
Can you say INCREDIBLE HULK? Fortunately most everything is washable with a little soap and water, including four boys that I know!(I'm really not stepping on Declan's toe like it appears in the picture.)

Gas(the petroleum kind) & Miralax!

2008-06-18T18:24:00.002-04:00

The are very few things I have found to be cheaper in Colorado, but gasoline & Miralax seem to be exections. Who knew?

Carter's Transition

2008-06-18T00:37:00.002-04:00

Carter has been having a bit of a difficult time transitioning into our new home, new state and not having Dad around. He still has many bloody noses almost daily d/t the dryness and elevation here in Colorado. We cannot tell you the population of our new city , but we can tell you the elevation is 6300 ft. In the midwest the city limit signs would tell the population, here in the west the signs tell you the elevation instead. Anyhow, Carter had all but masacred his "Grandma Jean" baby blanket so when grandma visited us this past weekend she took it home w/her to recessitate it. She did a fabulous job and returned it promptly(he freaks out during the night screaming and crying for it when he does not have it!). We have noticed Declan starting to carry around blankets or towels or aprons, whatever he can get his hands on. Declan also seems to be much more dependant on his pacifier. Dawson has learned to do w/o, if Dawson had one in his mouth Declan will always steal it, even if he already had his own. After months of this occurring, Dawson can pacify himself, while Declan hoards all the pacifiers.
We promised the boys that when we moved we would set up this fish tank. Carter chose a male and female Black Molly. He named them Wally & Molly. Evan chose a silver tip shark, who is as of yet unnamed. Once we determine that these fish are viable we will get them some decor.

Haircuts & Seperate Beds!

2008-06-18T00:25:00.003-04:00

16 months old today! Matt has been threatening to cut the babies hair, so I took it upon myself before he got the chance. I cut 2 inches of curls off all over, still managing to salvage some curls. Why not change everything? We seperated the babies finally when we made the move. Declan is more agressive while Dawson is passive. So Declan would jump up and down on Dawson and wake him up or keep him up, not to mention help each other climb out of their crib. So they were in need of a change. We are still looking for a bed for them, so for now seperate pack-n-plays will work.They are growing up so fast!

Digging for Chocolate Chips

2008-06-06T00:10:00.003-04:00

Evan & Carter went to The Dangerous Boys Club tonight at Barnes & Noble bookstore. They love The Dangerous Book for Boys so I thought this would be a fun & different thing to do. They started out on a scavenger hunt looking for insects around the children's book section. Then they made a T-Rex pop up card & then they excavated the chocolate chips out of chocolate chip cookies using tooth picks and brushes. All this plus they got treats. They had great fun and cannot wait until the next meeting next month.
I think by this point Carter was eating his artifacts.

Ken-Caryl Valley

2008-06-04T23:41:00.003-04:00

We went on an adventure today to Ken-Caryl Valley where awesome parks and trails abound. This particular park was full of climbing rocks that the boys couldn't get enough of.
Carter must have thought I was going to push him off of the rock by his expression. I was actually holding him back, he gets dangerously close to the edge.
Great fun!
Unfortunately this is what the babies and Nana got to do while we were playing on the rocks. Dawson on the left, Declan on the right.
Ev found this fun crevis where he ate his lunch.

We're Off!

2008-06-02T00:06:00.002-04:00

It was quite a disappointment packing up our moving truck. Our stuff wouldn't fit in a 26' truck. So after taking 7 pick up truck loads to our storage unit we got a late start on our drive across the country. We had booked a hotel in Topeka Kansas so we had to make it at least that far on day one. We made it in a little less than 12 hours. Which was good considering we had 3 vehicles to keep gas in & 2 little bladders & 2 toddlers in carseats. The big boys enjoyed riding in the moving truck w/ Daddy the entire way! On Sunday we slept in and left for our final leg of our journey around 11am. We made it to middle of no where Hays Kansas. Hays boasts the most awesome Mcdonalds playland ever. The kids loved playing, but inclement weather was moving in so we took off in hopes of driving away from the TORNADO. Instead we drove right into it! Scary lightning, hale crazy wind , fires and Tornadoes. We kept driving even though the radio was asking that everyone take shelter including those in their cars. Where were we to go? And the babies? Honestly! We actually passed the official Storm Chaser mobile on the freeway, fortunately they were headed the opposite direction. We rolled in to our new city around 9pm just after dark. The kids traveled remarkably well! Our new place is interesting! It has it's issues, but overall the floorplan is wonderful and it is roomy enough for our needs. The boys seem to like their surroundings we got them library cards and found their new school. They are waiting for the neighborhood pool to warm up so that they can swim.Matt flew out this a.m. to Indianapolis for a couple of weeks. He has to rent another moving truck to haul the rest of our belongings and pull his Mustang. I landed a great job on a Labor & Delivery unit, I will start June 9th. We didn't bring the babies crib because they were climbing out of it. In the inter um of getting them a new bed we have set up both pack-n-plays in their room. We have actually separated them and they are sleeping just fine. We are on the hunt for new beds and dressers for them. Overall we are making a smooth transition, Carter is having the hardest time, but I think with a little extra love he will get through it. We are on the countdown for Daddy to come back!

Two weeks of Get-togethers & Good-byes!

2008-06-02T00:03:00.002-04:00

It was a bitter sweet feeling saying goodbye to dear freinds. Please know that all are welcome to visit us in Colorado! We look forward to it!

STUFF

2008-05-13T23:25:00.002-04:00

As I am packing my STUFF I am trying to envision what it was like for the pioneers to pick and choose what they would bring on their long journey in a hand drawn cart. I guess there was really no question of choosing for them, they only brought bare necessities. If I had to pull my things by hand, what would I pack vs do without?

$3.95 ARE YOU KIDDING ME!

2008-05-13T23:19:00.002-04:00

YES $3.95!!!!! Who can afford $3.95 for a gallon of gasoline? Who? I have got to find a way to boycot driving and still get me and my four around town.

Happy Birthday Matt! & Family Matters

2008-05-12T00:01:00.004-04:00

Matt turned 38 today! The boys picked out a Rock Star themed card and then got sad when I explained to them that the card was implying that Daddy was old. I got it anyway b/c it was super funny. We celebrated with him and then went to brunch at Mom & Dad's. Carter made me a card and then last minute decided to give it to Nana instead. Nice! Evan was conflicted who to honor today, Matt or myself. He got real confused when I told him that my birthday often falls on Father's Day. Darren was in town so we took the opportunity to take some family pictures. Happy Mother's Day!

SOLD! COLORADO HERE WE COME!

2008-05-01T07:36:00.002-04:00

After 18 gruelling months, it is official! Maria(our realtor)has sold our house. We close on May 16th, yah in 2 weeks. And move on the 24th, just three weeks from now! To top it off Matt will be out of town or in meetings until the morning of the 24th. HELP! We asked for it alright! So Matt will be flying out next week to secure housing for us. He will be home in time to sing Happy Birthday to himself on Mother's Day to fly off again the following Day for Canada. He will be home just in time to sign the papers to get rid of this house and then is immediately indisposed for the week in a Conference. Ev's last day of school is the 22nd. Matt's last meeting ends on the 23rd. Moving on the 24th! Is this possible? Oh yah, Matt will be moving us out to Colorado, staying for a week to get us settled and then coming back to Indiana to work for the summer! Fortunately we already had a vacation planned the first two weeks of July so we will be together then. I couldn't do this summer thing w/o help so my mom has graciously agreed to come for the summer! Whew! I am tired already!

It's Great to be 8! From booster seat to Baptism!

2008-04-27T21:53:00.005-04:00

Evan is now 8! Which means two big milestones. In the state of Indiana he is now legal to lose his booster seat! Being 8 also means that he can now be baptized, even bigger MILESTONE!
Matt and Evan in front of the church Baptism Day April 27th, 2008.
Matt & Evan in their baptism clothing.

Happy 8th Birthday Evan! April 24th, 2000! We opened presents as a family then took Evan to the dinner of his choice, a chinese buffet. He wanted crab legs & sushi. So crab legs & sushi we ate. To top it off his other wish was to stay up ats late as he wanted watching a movie marathon. Since he didn't have school on Friday, his wish was granted. He received Tom & Jerry and the Smurfs on DVD for his birthday. I turned the DVD off at 1215am and he was zonked. I don't know exactly how long he was awake.
Just a random shot as we were settling the boys down for bed. Carter, Matt & Dawson on the left, Declan on the right sitting in the boys' club chair.

More of the Infamous Helmet

2008-04-19T20:36:00.003-04:00

Evan even got into the spirit.
Carter strumming to his own beat. Apparently this is how lefties play the guitar?
We can almost always count on Carter to entertain the babies. Although, they are not babies anymore. They are now 14 months old! I have yet to get their 1 year pictures taken, someone always has a bump, bruise or scratch on their face. I will work on that this week.

Best Buck I EVER Spent!

2008-04-19T14:44:00.003-04:00

This morning before anyone was awake I went garage saleing (made up word, I know. It makes sense to me, it is a verb) and I found this Colts helmet for Carter. If you know Carter, he is destined to play Pro football! Everything is about Colts and tackling. The helmet is great for riding his scooter or rollerblading or riding his bike, all of which he has already done in the few hours that he has been wearing it.
Opening Day of soccer, technically it was last Saturday, but the fields were under water. Today it just rained on us the whole game. Carter's favorite part was the game end snacks! Bytheway, Carter was talked to by his coach about being too rough and tackling, so he ran and fell and rolled around w/o technically tackling anybody but himself.

SUNSHINE-BRING IT ON!

2008-04-11T14:24:00.003-04:00

I thought that I couldn't wait for the sun to shine, but I attempted a garage sale today and now I am not so sure. It went great in the first 2 hours, tons of people came out and most everyone bought something. Then the babies got tired of being in their pack-n-play on display. It was supposed to be a miserable rainy day today. So I thought no big deal I will keep the sale all in the garage so that when it does in deed start to rain I will just close the door and call it a day. Not so! It is beautiful, the people kept coming, no longer buying anything and the babies progressively got fussier and fussier. So I put the babies right inside the door in the family room w/ Carter as their entertainer. That lasted for about 10 minutes. I was running low on change anyway, so we all got in the car and headed out for change. When we got home the babies were asleep, great. I thought I would give the garage sale thing another go. Wrong the babies started to scramble, so I thought I would ease them out of their carseats and gently put them down in their bed for their afternoon nap. Wrong again. They are just a jabbering away, no sleep for them this afternoon. I don't dare try to open the garage door for fear what the babies will get into in their room. They are getting to be such rascals. Walking just enough to be dangerous.

I used to love having garage sales, the cost seems to outway the benefit. I will always love to shop at them though! The babies are so active and going in opposite directions, what is one person to do?

Soup's on!

2008-04-03T18:52:00.003-04:00

What a blah day! Overcast and cold, I am surrounded by green snot, diarrhea and vomit! Happy Spring Break! Could it hurry up and get warm already?!
Chicken and stars for everyone! Daws enjoyed making a mess of it, I am not sure how much of it he actually ate aside from what I fed him.
And Declan ejoyed the mess making portion of lunch and ate even less.
Poor Buggy not feeling well decided to take a nap on the hard floor.
Carter ate it and then vomited! Notice his barf bucket on the table.

Belated Easter photo

2008-04-03T18:34:00.002-04:00

Not the best photo ever, but hey everyone was looking at the camera! I am holding Dawson and Matt is holding Carter & Declan, then Evan, who after 10 pictures was trying to hide behind the chair.

The Best Pet EVER!

2008-03-16T23:47:00.003-04:00

We welcomed Taco Boy into our home this weekend. Evan received straight A's on his report card and earned some extra cash doing chores and decided to buy a Webkinz Chihuahua. All he knows about Chihuahuas is that it is the mascot of Taco Bell, consequently his name, Taco Boy. His diet consists of tacos, doritos, burritos, pop tarts and jolly ranchers (according to Evan). The best part is that I don't have to do thing! No complaint from me! Someday we will get a real pet again, but for now bring on the Webkinz!

Siskel & Ebert

2008-03-16T23:39:00.002-04:00

I have rented entirely too many movies lately, but I'm on a roll. I am not usually a very good judge of movies. Matt was out of town all last week and I watched four very cute movies that I would recommend

August Rush
Dan in Real Life
Nancy Drew
Bee Movie

I also rented Jane Austen Book Club. I liked it, didn't love it. It was sloooow.

Carrots, Green Beans & Peek-a-Boo for Dinner

2008-03-07T20:07:00.003-05:00

Declan

Evan the Entrepeneur

2008-03-07T10:11:00.002-05:00

Evan made his first 2 bucks from changing dirty diapers! He made $1 a piece. He will do anything to earn money!

Making Easter Meaningful

2008-03-06T16:46:00.002-05:00

In an effort to make Easter a more meaningful Holiday I have come across this recipe that we are going to try out. Hopefully this will become an annual Easter tradition. I cannot stand all of the commercialized Easter bunny crap that the kids buy into. Hopefully Easter will be more Christ-centered this year and every year to come in our home.

The Easter Story Cookie
To be made the evening before Easter

You need:

I cup whole pecans
1 tsp. vinegar
3 egg whites
pinch of salt
1 cup of sugar
ziploc bag
wooden spoon
tape
Bible

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F

Place pecans in ziploc bag and let children beat them with the wooden spoon to break them into small pieces. Explain that after Jesus was arrested, He was beaten by the Roman soldiers. Read John 19:1-3.

Let each child smell the vinegar. Put 1 tsp vinegar into the mixing bowl. Explain that when Jesus was thirsty on the cross, He was given vinegar to drink. Read John 19:28-30.

Add egg whites to vinegar. Eggs represent life. Explain that Jesus gave His life to give us life. Read John 10:10-11.

Sprinkle a little salt into each child's hand. Let them taste it and brush the rest into the bowl. Explain that this represents the salty tears shed by Jesus' followers, and the bitterness of our own sin. Read Luke 23:27.

So far, the ingredients are not very appetizing. Add 1 cup of sugar. Explain that the sweetest part of the story is that Jesus died because He loves us. He wants us to know and belong to Him. Read Psalm 34:8 and John 3:16.

Beat with a mixer on high speed for 12 to 15 minutes until stiff peaks are formed. Explain that the color white represents the purity in God's eyes of those whose sins have been cleansed by Jesus. Read Isaiah 1:18 and John 3:1-3.

Fold in broken nuts. Drop by teaspoons onto wax paper covered cookie sheet. Explain that each mound represents the rocky tomb where Jesus' body was laid. Read Matthew 27:57-60.

Put the cookie sheet in the oven, close the door and turn the oven OFF. Give each child a piece of tape and seal the oven door. Explain that Jesus' tomb was sealed. Read Matthew 27:65-66.

GO TO BED! Explain that they may feel sad to leave the cookies in the oven overnight. Jesus' followers were in despair when the tomb was sealed. Read John 16:20 and 22.

On Easter morning, open the oven and give everyone a cookie. Notice the cracked surface and take a bite. The cookies are hollow! On the first Easter, Jesus' followers were amazed to find the tomb open and empty. Read Matthew 28:1-9.

Priceless!

2008-03-06T10:10:00.004-05:00

Declan, Dylan & Dawson at Nana's house.
Dylan

We had the opportunity to have cousin Dylan in our home for a couple of days. What fun the kids had w/ him. We don't get to see him often, so we try to make every moment count. He fits in great at our house, he is 1 year older than Carter, 2 years younger than Evan. But he acts as a buffer between the two. Perfect! No fighting, just lots of playing, just as it should be. Anyhow, Carter was testing Dylan and asked, "which baby is which?". Dylan said, "Easy(as he pointed to ) Dawson & Declan". I was amazed! I asked, "How'd you know?" Dylan said, "My brother." I said your brother?", And he said with total clarity, "My brother Donnie told me." What do you say to that? Donovan died a little over a year ago, but he will always be Dyl's brother!

In a pinch....

2008-03-06T09:59:00.002-05:00

In my quest to be Supermom some things slide. But in my efforts to get the house in "show condition" in as little as 45 minutes, as well as get all 4 kids out the door at lunch time, I have discovered short cuts. Two that I used just yesterday, fleece zipper pajamas make great dust rags! And the other shortcut that I am not so proud of, only because they should have already been folded and put away, is the laundry. I took a clean pile of unfolded clothes from my bed and put them back in the dryer! But I got all 4 kids packed up,fed,out the door and to the airport on time. What more can you ask for? I have a whole bag of "in a pinch tricks", but I will never put my covered cake pan in the oven, just to get it off of my counter top. The next time I turned my oven on, I melted the lid. Some short cuts are not worth taking!

A cigar anyone?

2008-02-29T08:48:00.003-05:00

Welcome to the Boys Club! Declan on the let, Daws on the right.
Dawson waving.
Declan gazing.
This is how we found our love bugs the other night. They truly have to be touching when they sleep. So much for seperating them into different beds at 4-5 months.

Random

2008-02-18T15:42:00.004-05:00

I love having the office in the babies old room. It is so bright and cheery(the same reason I loved it for the nursery). The contrast of the brown and black office furniture works well w/ the yellow. And who wouldn't love a refrigerator and microwave in the office!?

We still have to paint the cord keeper red to match the wall.
We got negative feedback on this room previously so we painted the top of the chair rail the lighter tan that is in the rest of house. Before it was all chocolate w/ the white chair rail and crown molding. Apparently it was "too dark". It was much richer looking before.

Our realtor had requested a couple of specific pictures of the house in order to update the listing. While I was already sending them to her I decided to post them here too. What the heck! We painted the bathroom this nautical blue and put up wainscoating. Send buyers our way!

From Trash to Treasure

2008-02-18T12:41:00.003-05:00

We love thrift store finds! We found this table at the Good Will several years ago for $10. It was originally army green in color and the paint was chipping. With a little sanding, spray paint & some new hardware, now look at our beautiful piece( it is supposed to be distressed). Refinishing furniture is so gratifying, not to mention cost efficient!

Bye Bye Bottles!

2008-02-18T12:34:00.002-05:00

Hello Sippy Cups! We have never had a problem ridding our home of bottles on the kid's 1 year birthday and the babies are no exception!

Sugar Crash!

2008-02-17T22:17:00.003-05:00

Although they had more sugar today then they have ever had, I don't really believe it was a true sugar crash. They hadn't really napped all day due to our 1-4 pm church schedule.
Dawson & Declan's new favorite toy! Big Hit! This toy gets rave reviews, we love it so far(all four boys play with it!). It does so much from light swithes & mailboxes and windows & doors to door bells to ABC's and counting and 21 different songs and so on.......Happy Birthday Boys!

Happy Birthday to Us!

2008-02-17T21:58:00.003-05:00

Dawson had no trouble digging into his "Ding Dong Cake"!
YUMMY! Bathtime is next!
Declan, not so much! It is funny we have heard from different families how they choose to celebrate their twins birthdays, some as individual parties, while others celebrate with one combined party. The babies dictated their own party. Dawson was the first to arrive into this world and the first to celebrate his 1st birthday. Declan arrived 9 minutes after Dawson, so it was very fitting that he slept allowing Daws his moment to shine.
Once Declan awoke, he too enjoyed his very own cake. He was digging that marshmallow cream filling.Although the presents were very much appreciated, the boys really didn't get into them. The ribbon was the most exciting thing for them.

Happy Valentine's Day!

2008-02-14T22:02:00.003-05:00

My three youngest Valentine's. Declan, Dawson & Carter
Move over Martha Stewart!
Carter & I had a good time in the kitchen!
A heart for Evan & Carter.
A few of my favorite things, the color red, red cowboy boots & the 4 year old boy who wears them.

Is it Wrong to be Excited about a Divorce?

2008-02-14T15:29:00.002-05:00

It sounds so evil of me! We got news from our realtor that a previous potential buyer of our home had contacted her. After our realtor got to talking to this lady she discovered that she knew a lot about our home and asked if she had toured it w/ another realtor. "No", she explained, "but we've seen it 3-4 times (when it was by owner) and I want this house!" Yeah for us, unfortunately for her she is going through a divorce and that is the reason she has come back to our home. I am so ready to get on w/ our lives outside of this home, but I feel evil to be glad about a divorce b/c it benefits me! To quote a popular reality show, (getting deep, words of wisdom from reality TV) "It's just businness, nothing personal. At the end of the day..............." I will sleep fine, I did nothing to cause this family to get a divorce. Right?

Long Awaited, Highly Anticipated-BUST!

2008-02-12T20:07:00.000-05:00

Well, we finally made the big purchase, a flat screen LCD TV. Christmas after Christmas Matt was disappointed for not receiving a flat screen. Well, Uncle Sam was good to us this year so we decided to indulge ourselves. We finally receive this gift in the mail, perfect timing , we were all held up sick w/a stomach virus. What better thing to do than sit around watching TV all day. The stinking thing is broken! SO, now we have to go through the trouble off shipping it back and waiting for the replacement! I guess we have waited this long.

It's exhausting being a baby!

2008-02-12T19:50:00.000-05:00

Dawson fell asleep while playing.

Who needs toys, just toy buckets! (Dawson)
Declan crashed!