Yahoo!....oh, wait

Yahoo!! I was so excited to open up my new Photoshop Elements I got from Santa. I really don't have enough time right now to play with it, but I thought I would anyway because who really cares if my house is clean? The kids don't even seem to realize if it's clean or dirty. Does Dave notice? Beats me. He never says anything regardless of how it looks. Maybe that's a good thing... So I take advantage of the new Guitar Hero living in my house that does such a great job babysitting Dave & the boys and plop the disk into the computer. Uh-oh. Guess Santa didn't pay attention to how much RAM I would need to run it. So as I painfully try to get it to run (chug-chug) I can actually hear it whirring "I think I can". But unlike the story, it can't. So sad me has to wait for another week for the memory upgrade to get here before I can start playing with my new toy. In the meantime, I'm left to choose if I want to clean my house, play legos with the kids, finish my CEUs that are due NOW, work on my grandpas history, or just veg out and watch the snow fall. Is anybody motivated to do any work this week??

Playtime

I hope you all had a Merry Christmas. Ours was very nice and VERY white. The snow started Christmas Eve and is still going. It makes for a beautiful Christmas, but makes it difficult to get anywhere.

Dave has been talking about leaving work early today to come home and play. Silly me was thinking he wanted to come home and play with the kids. NO! He wanted to come home and play Guitar Hero!!! As I have two kids putting together two different lego sets, one kid that has several unopened toys he wants to play with, a girl that needs her new doll's clothes changed every five minutes and a 2 year old that is getting into everything, he is sitting downstairs rocking out and going on tour. I thought I was married to a man, not a teenage boy. If I wanted one of those, I'd go hang out at the skate park. But I must confess, it is really fun to play, just not when all these kids are wanting help and attention.

Dance

Finally, we get to do girl things. Tiara had her very first dance recital tonight and it was so much fun. She has been talking about it for a week and just dying to wear her costume. She was so excited when today finally came and it was time to get ready. Hair, costume and...oh, yeah...MAKEUP!! She loves to watch me put on makeup and frequently asks when she gets to wear makeup. My reply is always, "In Jr. High." which never makes her very happy. But when I told her today that she got to wear makeup for the recital she just squealed. She had so much fun and Dave and I enjoyed it too (if only we could have left the boys at home.) We'll remember that next time. We're so used to just taking everyone everywhere that we never thought about how rowdy Davis is and how Seth has to always be hanging or sitting on top of one of us. Not so fun when you're trying to video, which needless to say, turned out terrible so all I have to post is a few pictures. And guess what?? I didn't delete them! Anyway, Davis kept tugging on Dave's arms saying, "I'm not touching you!" That kid is the worst tease EVER! Lesson learned. From now on, when the girls have a dance thing, the boys get a babysitter.
Here she is with her friend, Lexie. And Makayla. Tiara thinks they are the same age. Makayla's so sweet to play along.

Stupid!

Do you ever have those days when you wonder how you EVER get by in life? Well, that's me. I usually pride myself on being pretty smart and a thinker, but maybe I shouldn't. Thursday night, as I was looking at some pictures on my camera, I noticed that some of them weren't focused very well and seemed to be more of a resolution problem than a focusing problem. So I went through the settings I had on my camera and changed a few things...increased the resolution, etc. What I didn't realize I had done until it was too late was reformatting my memory card. DUH!! How I could have ever done that without really thinking about what I was doing is beyond me. I'm partly mad at myself and partly in awe that I actually did that. ALL of the pictures on my camera are gone! Thanksgiving, McCall's birthday, Seth's Christmas program, our cruise, and Santa. ALL GONE!! Luckily I had transferred a few of them to post on here, but I had compressed them so it's not like they will print very big. How could I be so stupid???

Christmas Is Coming!

Ever since we got home, we have been watching the snow fall and freezing to death. So today, rather than complaining about it, I decided to take advantage of it. I took the kids to get some new snowboots, since just about everyone needs new ones. We then picked up Davis from school and went to lunch at McD's with his bestest buddy Hunter (and Kim). After lots of playing we headed to the mall to see Santa. I love having the kids off-track in December because we can go do all of the Christmas stuff without all of the crowds. We waited for only 10 minutes to sit on Santa's knee!

After getting home to still more snow, the kids got all bundled up and went out to play in the snow. They had a blast, except for McCall. Her mean mommy wasn't quite ready to send her out into the cold so she had to stay in and watch through the windows. Oh well.

Tomorrow we're going to start our cookie-making factory and put together a cute gingerbread train that the Fullmers gave us (thanks guys!) This time of year is so fun...IF I can survive the kids!

I Love My Husband

After 10 years, yes, I still am in love! I get so sick of hearing people (women) complain about their husbands that I have to counter it. He is my best friend and I love being with him. Here are a few pictures we had taken on our cruise. The first one is my favorite...

Isn't he just so cute?!!

Cruisin'

Our cruise was so much fun! We (I) have wanted to go on a cruise for so long and have tried to plan one before, but it hasn't ever worked out. We decided that for our 10th anniversary would be a great time, so off we went. Finding places for all of the kids was the hardest part. This is the first vacation we've been on without kids (other than little weekend getaways) since before the kids, so it was much needed. But having to find places for 5 was nearly impossible and I thought about cancelling our trip a few times because of the hassle. I'm so glad I didn't. Grandpa Martin (yes, you read that right!) took Spencer and Seth for the week and they had a blast. As I said before, Seth wanted to stay and live with them (read - live with the Wii)! Grandpa took them to lunch every day, to the DUP museum and to visit Grandma at school. Thank you Grandpa! And my friend/angel, Kim, took Davis, Tiara and McCall. She was so brave to even consider it, especially because she has 4 of her own and is expecting another in February! She is amazing! They had fun and are still talking about when they lived at Kim's house. I could never thank her enough for helping. Now she just needs to go on vacation so I can pay her back! (hint, hint Chet!)

So with all the kids taken care of, we headed off to San Diego and onto our ship. Dave had never gone on a cruise before, so I wasn't sure (but hopeful) that he would like it. He did and is ready to plan the next one! We ehjoyed the time alone together and being able to be "Dave & Sonda" instead of "Mommy & Daddy". It didn't take long to relax and get back in to being a couple. It felt like another honeymoon. I fell in love with him all over again and couldn't believe how much time had gone by that we were just on autopilot. It's so easy to focus only on the kids, especially while they are young, and forget that we both need attention too. Well, this trip made up for it. It made me realize how much energy I put into our family and how little enrgy I have left to nurture my relationship with Dave. We've always done things together, but it's been with the kids or after they go to bed. Maybe now we'll be a little better about getting a sitter and going out together. If it was only that easy *sigh*

We made stops in Cabo San Lucas and Ensenada. We hung out at the beach in Cabo and did a little shopping there. The weather was great and made us forget that it was December. In Ensenada we went to La Bufadora, which is a big blowhole. The ocean water comes in and fills a cave and then shoots air and water out a hole in the top. It was pretty cool. We did a little more shopping in town and found some cute things for the kids. Our time on the ship was quite relaxing. We both read an entire book each and turned into sudoku junkies. I can't remember the last time I had so much time on my hands that I was looking for something to do. It was great!

I'm, excited to go again, although I need my mom to get home from Chile so we have another Grandma to lean on with the kids. So any of you that are making plans in the next couple of years, keep us in mind. It would be really fun to go with another couple ot two.

Reality Sucks!!!

Dave and I just got back from a cruise to Mexico last night, and I'm having a hard time adjusting. I really did miss the kids, but I really miss the childless life too. I'm still rocking back and forth and feeling like the earth is moving. Dave has been really dizzy, although better today than yesterday. We had so much fun and I'll post pictures later. But right now, I really need someone to bring me a Diet Coke and make me something yummy to eat. I can't find anyone that will make my bed, clean up all the messes and I didn't get a chocolate on my pillow last night!! Reality is here with kids running wild, whining and piles of dirty clothes in my laundry room. Spencer and Seth had so much fun with Grandma and Grandpa, although Seth informed us that he wasn't homesick yet and wanted to stay longer. Could it be because Grandpa took them out to lunch every day??? He wants to go live with them! Apparently, our house isn't fun enough because we don't have a Wii and we fix food at home. Some days I might let him! Davis, Tiara and McCall went to Fullmer's house with Davis' bestest buddy, Hunter. From Kim's blog, it looks like they had a good time. I'm just glad to get McCall back. She's so good that I'd really miss her sweet spirit around our house. Maybe Kim will get lucky and have one just like her. Thanks you to everyone for taking such good care of our kids while we were gone. Now are there any volunteers out there to bring me a Diet Coke and that yummy chocolate melting cake that I totally overindulged in? I want to go back...

2 Wahoo!

Yippee! McCall is 2 today! This morning she got to open her 1 present we got her. Seth was quite upset that we only got her 1 and made sure we knew that he thought that was a bum deal. But with a big sister only a year older and Christmas 3 weeks away that was all she was going to get. I feel a little bad, but I'm sure we'll make it up to her when she's older. She didn't seem to care though. She got a new baby that is all hers, NOT Tiara's. She's always had to "borrow" one from Tia when they want to play. Not anymore. She is officially a big girl now.

We took our traditional trip to McDonald's for lunch and she got her own Happy Meal! I usually just give her a little bit from the other kids' meals, but I figured since it was her birthday, I could splurge on the extra $2.50. Well, she made sure I knew that she should always get her own now. She ate all of hers and 1/2 of Tiara's cheeseburger. How she stays so tiny is beyond me because that girl can seriously put it away when she wants to.Here she is with her cake from Sunday at Grandma's house and tonight at home.

Happy Birthday, Baby Girl!!!

10 Years

Today is a special day. No, not because of Thanksgiving, but because 10 years ago today Dave & I were married. It's been a fun, hard, exciting, busy and crazy 10 years! As I think back, it seems so long ago and has gone by so fast all at the same time. So much has happened in our family. Dave has been a perfect fit for me. He is my best friend and the one I always turn to, good or bad. I love our life all that we have. I am more in love with him today than I ever thought possible. He really is my Prince Charming! Dave surprised me last night with a beautiful diamond anniversary ring. It has 10 diamonds for our 10 years and all of the diamonds are princess cut. (He knows me so well!) We had a nice Thanksgiving with his family and then went to show the kids where we got married. Here's us, then & now...

8 is great

8 Shows I like to watch:
1 - Law and Order
2 - Survivor
3 - the news (boring, I know)
4 - Oprah
5 - Good Things Utah
6 - Studio 5
7 - Worst Week
8 - Friends (I REALLY miss them!)

8 Restaurants I like to eat at:
1 - Olive Garden
2 - Black Angus
3 - Cafe Rio
4 - McGrath's
5 - Cheesecake Factory
6 - Chili's
7 - Robintino's
8 - Any place I go with my cute hubby

8 Things that happened today:
1 - Took Tiara to dance
2 - Cut many, many 8 inch pieces of yarn for Spencer's class
3 - Sat at home waiting for FedEx to deliver Dave's anniversary gift
4 - Read to Davis for 45 minutes
5 - Laundry, laundry, laundry
6 - Went to Pack Meeting
7 - Went tanning
8 - Grocery shopping

8 Things I'm looking forward to:
1 - Our cruise!!!!!
2 - Christmas morning/watching the kids open their presents
3 - Summer
4 - All the kids out of diapers!
5 - Kids to be old enough so Dave & I can go out and leave them home alone
6 - Having time to go to the gym
7 - Taking the kids to Disneyland
8 - No more child support

8 Things on my wish list:
1 - A clean house (that lasts more than an hour!)
2 - Digital camcorder
3 - A shower that works
4 - New kitchen
5 - Playhouse for the girls (and me!)
6 - Nicer sewing machine & serger
7 - Regular date night
8 - A BMW convertible (and no carseats!)

8 People I'm tagging:
1 - Janine
2 - Melanie
3 - Emery
4 - Wren
5 - Spencer
6 - Aubrey
7 - Shannon
8 - Dave (Oh, wait! You don't have a blog)

Thankful

With Thanksgiving approaching, it's given me the chance to think about all of the things I am thankful for. I really do have a good life. Sometimes I take things for granted and sometimes I complain, but I am so thankful for all I have. I have a nice home, great car, food to eat and clothes to wear. It may not be the newest nicest house, but it's plenty big and I like the small payment. My clothes are just boring "mom" clothes, but they are clean and comfortable. I am healthy and able to do what I need to do for my family. I have great kids that are just the sweetest things ever. They are the light of my life. As hard as it can be some days with so many kids, I am so very glad I have them. (I sometimes have to remind myself of that.) I have a terrific husband that puts up with more than he should have to at times. He is supportive of me and really tries to make our family work, as complicated as it can be at times. He is a great provider and dedicated father. He is the one person in this world that I can always turn to when I'm down or need help. I have the best in-laws in the world. I feel just as much a part of their family as anyone else and it has been that way from the beginning. I have a mom that, until she was gone, I never really appreciated enough. We often butted heads because of our different personalities, but now that she's on the other side of the planet, I miss her terribly. She is the nicest person I know and would do anything for anyone. This used to bug me, but now I see that she is more Christlike than I am and maybe I should try to be more like her. I'm thankful for the time I've been able to spend with my Grandpa the last couple of years. It has been such a blessing to get to see him and talk with him as much as I have. I used to just idolize him and my Grandma when I was younger. They were always so happy and fun to be around. I wanted to be just like them. I am thankful to have the gospel in my life and to know who I am and where I'm going. I can't imagine going through life with all of it's ups and downs and not have some sort of eternal perspective to guide me. I'm thankful for the trials in my life, for they have brought me some of my greatest joys. Having to put myself through college, being single for way longer than I wanted, Jessica, losing that first baby, Davis getting meningitis, 3 babies in 2 1/2 years. All of these things were very, very hard at the time. (Some still are!) But they all helped me to appreciate what I have now. I could probably go on and on but these are the main things I've been thinking about lately. I'm just glad that I have the life I do, good and bad. It's made me who I am and I like me.

We Lost Davis...or...Harry Potter Lives Here

Davis just cracks me up sometimes. There is never a dull moment with him around. So the past week or so, he's been living with Seth's sunglasses on. And when I say living, I mean LIVING! He won't take them off for anything...including sleep! He can't take them off he says, because then he won't be Harry Potter. Now I know many of you are thinking that Harry Potter doesn't wear sunglasses. But he does wear glasses and in this little boy's mind, they are synonymous. Well, being the great mom that I am (humble too) I decided to go on a quest for real Harry Potter glasses. After searching a couple of stores, I ended up at Zurcher's. They are the best! I should have started there to begin with and I would have had a lot less stress. They had some which I promptly bought. But evidently, they don't fit right so he's back to the sunglasses. He no longer answers to "Davis" only "Harry". He even made his "bestest buddy" Hunter call him Harry today which angered Hunter immensely. He, of course, knew that he was Davis and didn't understand the whole Harry thing. So I'm coming back to the car after picking up Tiara from school and Davis, I mean Harry, was in his car seat rubbing his forehead and moaning. I thought something had happened to him while I was getting Tiara. When I asked him what happened he said (with a straight face), "My scar is hurting." Well, I burst out laughing. Sorry Harry, I shouldn't laugh at your pain, but I just couldn't help myself.

How Dads Save Time

Rub-a-dub-dub, how many kids can you fit in a tub? Dave so nicely offered to get all the kids bathed tonight. I wasn't complaining because I was pretty much done-in after homework tonight. Well, because we have 5 kids, bath night can get pretty busy. Dave thought he'd save time by giving baths in our tub...ALL AT ONCE!! This isn't exactly what I had in mind when he said he'd do baths, but I was in no position to question the help. The kids loved it, can you tell?

Family Addition

Guess what? We're adding to our family! It became official tonight and I guess there's not much I can do about it now. I've been ignoring all the begging and fighting with my desire to give in. So I caved. I'm weak. But I've run out of reasons to say no.

So for family night tonight, we made it real. We took the kids to Petco and let them pick out some fish. (HA!! How many of you actually thought I was pregnant again??) We now have an aquarium full of cute little fish and have added 6 new family members. The kids have been begging for a pet and this is the least offensive one I could think of. Now they all have their own fish with one for Daddy, too. Names are still pending, but I think Darth Vader, Spongebob and Dorothy are definites so far. I'll let you know the names of the rest when they decide. The kids are so excited at having a pet (or 6) and were just beaming all night. What a fun FHE activity!

Halloween

With all the craziness of Halloween, I didn't get a chance to post some of our pictures until today. So I'd like to introduce Scream, Jango Fett, Buzz Lightyear, Cinderella and Belle.

The kids had a blast trick-or-treating and came home with way more candy than I'd really like them to have. They all wore their costumes the entire day. We had to say goodbye to Grandpa Herm as he went back home.Then we hurried off to the school to see the parade. Unfortunately, we got there a little late and missed seeing Jackson and Seth. Bummer! This was the first year I've ever missed a kid in the parade, so I was quite disappointed.

Once the kids got home from school, we went to Dave's work for a party and some early trick-or-treating. Then it was home for a quick dinner and the quest for more candy. I got to take the kids this year, which was great because it was so warm. They covered most of our ward before getting tired. Spencer & Tiara were still going strong, so we dropped off Seth & Davis and went out for more. Tia ran most of the way and had so much fun. Spence was the perfect big brother, taking care of his little sister.

And this is what we woke up to this morning...

I've let the kids go crazy with their candy today. My theory is that if the eat so much they get sick, maybe they won't care about the rest of it. Besides that, if they eat everything in one day, I can brush their teeth super good tonight and not to worry about cavities forming because they continually eat candy every day. I don't know if it really works, but it makes me feel better that way.

Grandma Dot & Grandpa Herm

I've been so lucky to be able to visit so much with Grandpa Herm. He came and stayed with us again this week, mostly to try and get some work done on his life history, but also partly just to visit. Somehow this all started a couple of years ago and some conversations we had at Stephanie's wedding. He came to visit last fall and we spent a lot of time just talking. (Although we did take a break to go with Dave's parents to the Jazz game. Thanks again, Loren & Marilyn and Tom for the tickets!) Well a couple of days into the last trip Dave said I should record everything and write it down. At that point it was a little too late to go back over everything again, so we decided the Grandpa would record stories and send me the tapes. A year later, he realized that it's not so fun to talk into a recorder and booked another flight so we could do it together. So this week we have been talking, talking, talking. We both wore ourselves out each day, but I think we go a lot accomplished. He flies home tomorrow and I'm so sad to see him go. I have loved having so much time with him and reminiscing about all of the old times.

Today, though, was an especially hard day since it was the anniversary of Grandma Dot's death. I have so many fond memories of her and the great lady that she was. I think about her quite often and wish she was still here with us. I think that if she was still here my dad's side of the family would be closer. The older I get, the more I wish I had a close family, yet it seems to be farther apart than ever. She was the glue that held everything together and very much the heart of the family. I will never forget the times I had with her and the lessons she tried to teach me. She is the most classy lady I have ever known, yet also the most down to earth and fun. So 23 years after her death, I want to tell her how much I love her and how much I'm looking forward to seeing her again in the next life. I know she watches over me and has played a part in me & Grandpa getting closer and being able to work on this project together.

Dallas Trip

I'm a little behind in posting everything from our trip to Dallas, but better late than never, right? Dave & I took Jackson, Davis and McCall with us this time. Dave's training was in super nice resort just north of Dallas in a city named Grapevine. While I would have loved to stay in that hotel, it just wasn't the best for kids. Lucky for us, we found the absolutely BEST place to stay with kids right across the street. It's called the Great Wolf Lodge. There are several around the country and if you ever have a chance to take your kids, they will love you forever! It was pretty pricey, but when the company picks up the tab, who cares? The boys loved having their own room and bunk beds.

They had an indoor water park right there at the hotel that was included with your stay. Anyone that knows Jackson knows that this is his kind of place. That kid loves water more than anything! We spent any extra time we had at the water park going down the slides and playing in the wave pool or kiddie pool.

On top of that, they have this ultra cool game that you can play throughout the hotel. It's called MagiQuest. Basically, you buy a wand and then can go through the hotel pointing it at pictures, treasure chests, etc. to make them light up, talk or give you gold points. We went on several scavenger hunts trying to find all of the clues to solve the puzzles and win the game. We often were out searching until 11 PM when everything shut down for "Hibernation hours". I thing we easily could have never left the hotel and still have had plenty to do and keep busy with. Between the game and the water park, there was never a dull moment.

We did break and head to the outlet mall to find Jackson an early Christmas present--a Cowboys jersey, and to see High School Musical 3. Such a cute show!


On Friday, I took the kids on a train ride to Fort Worth Stockyards. We ended up having to wait for over an hour to leave because of a freight train clogging up the tracks, but it was worth the wait. This was a really old train and it took us down to where they still have a cattle run daily. We had some lunch, saw all the real cowboys and then headed back to Grapevine. Davis was in heaven and basically bouncing off the walls all afternoon. The normally quiet little boy was wild! We're guessing that he really liked it.

On Sunday, Dave and Jackson headed off to the Cowboys game and I was going to take the little kids to the zoo. As we were walking out of the hotel, Davis started puking and continued through breakfast. What I thought was going to be a fun day wasn't looking so great. We dropped off Dave & Jackson at the stadium and started toward the zoo, looking for a Target or something so I could get Davis some clean clothes. Well, there's nothing in downtown Dallas that closely resembled a Target, so I hoped for something at the zoo, even if it would cost more. Sweet little McCall gave up her stroller to her sick brother and we headed in to the zoo. That day happened to be their "Boo at the Zoo" day and the handed the kids a trick-or-treat bag and a handful of tickets. Davis continued to play dead until after the first treat station where McCall turned in one of her tickets for a candy bar. All of a sudden, he thought he felt good enough to sit up and participate. One more stop for treats and he was all better, running from station to station collecting as many treats as he could. Thanks to Dallas Zoo for curing my sick child!

The boys had a blast at the Cowboys game until it took me an hour and a half to figure out a way to pick them up. The police had blocked off every road getting anywhere near the stadium, making it impossible for me to get to them. After being yelled at, flipped off and sworn at, I was in tears. Just when I was ready to give up, they opened a road into the parking lot and we were able to find each other and rush off to the airport.

But, in keeping in line with the way my day had gone, our flight was overbooked by 4 people. After some discussion, we decided it was worth the free flights, hotel, etc. for me to stay with Davis and McCall and take a flight home on Monday. It actually ended up a little better, because for the first time on our trip, I got to bed before midnight! Dave & Jackson continued home (despite Jackson's begging to stay) so that Jackson could get back to school Monday and Dave could relieve our babysitters. The rest of us got home about noon on Monday after flying all over the country to get here.


This was a one of the funnest (I know it's not really a word) trips we've taken. So many thanks go out to Aubrey & Britton for taking such good care of the kids we left home. They had so much fun and were well cared for. Thanks to Kim & Chet for taking the kids to church with them and always letting my kids be a part of their family. Only a parent knows how valuable it is to have someone else that will love your kids when you can't be there.