My Walk by the River Today Was Awesome!

Isn't my walking companion scary and ferocious? He certainly barked threateningly at some of the rather interesting folks I walked past today. I was so very grateful! It is amazing that a grown man can be scared of an ankle biter like Remi! It sure gave me a good laugh though!

Conversation concerning spiders

James and Carter swear that they keep finding spiders in their room. Really I think its a tactic to avoid going to bed. Tonight the conversation went like this:

James: Mom, there is a huge spider under my bed.
Mom: James for the 100th time, go to bed and say your prayers.
Loreli yells down the stairs: TALK TO JESUS!

Man I love my kids. I hate it when I'm mad and they make me laugh when I don't want to :-)

Carter's Castaway Buddy

Although Carter has never seen the movie "Castaway", I couldn't help but laugh when he made his soccer ball into his pirate buddy. He is the middle child and sometimes gets left out. He is the best at entertaining himself. We sure love him!

Finally...a moment to reflect.

It has been a crazy couple of months. Not really very fun either. My brother gave us a good scare when he tried to leap off a cliff and win a fight with a boulder. I flew out the day after the accident and got 2 weeks of "bonding time" as Mitch put it. It really was great to be with my family, all of us together after 5 years. I only wish it had been under different circumstances. He is doing well thankfully! It really is a miracle!
While I was out of town, our house was burglarized. Not really what we needed at that moment in time. Thankfully no one was home. I am so grateful that it was only "stuff"!!! I could care less about the stuff, I am really glad to get things back in order however!

This past week, because our lives were getting boring, Scott's body decided it was the perfect time to have a kidney stone. Ya, like we needed that too. He has had one unsuccessful surgery and will go in for another procedure tomorrow. I really hope and pray that it works. I hate to see a grown man cry! Especially one as tough as Scott!

All things considered, I do want to mention how grateful I am for friends and family. We have been well taken care of through all of our trials these past weeks! I can't be thankful enough! Life has given me a lot of lessons in perspective lately. I only hope that I can continue to remember what is really important in life!

Loreli's First Preschool Graduation

Happy Mother's Day to All of US!!!

Is it Spring or what?

This is the only proof I have that it is Spring!!! Today's high was 45 degrees and that was this morning. It is now snowing. That is so WRONG!!!

At least I have this proof that winter can't last forever. We are going to have so many apples this year! It's awesome!

Food Co-op! Oh Yeah!!!

Do you have a Food Co-Op near you? If you don't know, it is well worth researching out!
Look at all this food I got for $15!!! Isn't it amazing!!!

Basket contains:
1 bunch of swiss chard
1 bunch of spinach
1 bunch of celery
1 bunch of romaine lettuce
1 bag of apples
1 lb bag of baby carrotts
6 oz of blackberries
7 large tomatoes
5 oranges
1 pineapple
2 bunches of bananas
25 large red potatoes
$15 WOW!!!

Carter is 7!!!

Carter wanted to have Pizza for his birthday dinner at the "Pizzarira". They were awesome and let us bring Carter's cake and we sang to him in the restaurant.

I am not sure where Carter got his love of notebooks from (might be hereditary) but he has one hidden in every nook and cranny of the house. I got him this so that he would have a "cool" one to record his stories in.

His cousin Josh watches on as Carter opens present after present, Bakugan after Bakugan. He was so spoiled! He had so much fun!
Happy Happy Birthday Carter!!! We love you!

James' Baseball :-)

If you put your cursor on the picture there are captions. If you double click on the slide show you can watch it in a separate box. It might be easier to see. Have fun and enjoy James the superstar :-)

Carter Is Wildcat of the Month!!!

Good Job Carter!!! We are so proud of you!!!

The Best Thing Ever Invented! (so far)

So awesome!!! My kids got a chance to see their Uncle Alex and Aunt Emilie who they haven't seen in more than 4 years. It was so fun! I recommend this to anyone who has family out of town! All you need is web cam on both ends and you get free video calls. It was so much fun because my brother took us on a tour of their home and we got to see Jill and Mitch and Grandma Andrea and Grandpa Yehuda. Thanks Alex for making that happen!

Finally found my camera :-)

We had a busy month of February! We got a weekend out of town, made a new pet, learned to see better, competed in a drag race, and I got almost 100 hours of therapy, all in one month. Amazing! Awesome! Spectacular!


Scott and I celebrated our 11 year anniversary in Vegas. We went to Hoover Dam and saw this bridge that they are building across the canyon. I know that this is a strange picture, but I thought the architecture was really amazing. Happy 11 years to us!

Loreli wanted a snake. So I made one. This snake is a lot less threatening than a real one and therefore, her Grandma Shupe will still come and visit us.

Carter got glasses. The picture stinks but he really looks handsome in them!

James had the pinewood derby and came in 8th overall (out of 56). We were so proud of him! He competed against a few kids that either had there dads do it for them or hired professionals. James picked the design and helped Scott with every step. Most important thing, he had fun!!!

I got to go to Seattle and visit Kristie. We made a list of things that we wanted to make for her sister's miracle baby. The amazing thing was that we accomplished everything on her list and still had time to go for walks, pay attention to her kids, go shopping, make dinner every night, and spend a lot of time laughing. It was a very cheap form of Therapy for both of us.

Sled 'till you Drop!

Loreli's "Shirley Temple" moment

Oh man, are we in for it or what? If she looks this beautiful at three, we are in big trouble!!! I don't ever want her to grow up! I don't think I get to win that battle though!

Family parties are fun...right?

This time of year is always really crazy. We went to 2 family parties in a row yesterday, we have one today and one more Wednesday. Every year we try to cut out something, to simplify. It never works. That is why my kids save the day. The joy on Loreli's face when she got "the Lion I always ever wanted my whole life" makes it worth all the insanity! Thanks Keith for capturing this candid moment!

Glad to know they listen...Sometimes.

Hello All! Happy December!!! Tonight we went as a family to see some Christmas lights. There is a great place near our house that you can drive through in your car. Did I mention that it is a frigid 20 degrees out? Anyways, you drive through in your car and see all the fun of Santa mixed with the true spirit of Christmas. They have music playing and so many fun seasonal light displays! We had a blast!

On the way home I asked Carter to tell me the story of when Jesus was born. I was so proud that he knew most of the story (only a few made up details which were quickly put right). James also told us about when Jesus was separated from his family and they found him teaching the scholars. It truly makes a mother proud to know that some of the things we try to teach our children really do get through. It's good to know that even when I am sure they aren't listening, they are...sometimes.

James is in trouble....again!

James was doing something not so nice the other day. Not unusual lately for him to be disobedient. The what doesn't matter so much as my reaction. I was so very mad...I took his head in both my hand forcing him to look at me and said "James, please use your brain. God gave you a good one and it would be a shame to see it wasted." I went upstairs to cool down before I did anything more stupid. Loreli barreled into me and hugged me and said "I use my brain mom, I love you." Guess if I am going to yell, I should do it quieter. They have such an awesome way of making me feel like such a bad mom. Oh well, live, love and learn, right?

Stupify...now pay attention ;-)

Are you paying attention yet? If not, Carter knows a couple of unforgivable curses! He also knows how to banish a Dementor. Expecto Patromum! We tried Silencio! on James and Loreli but it didn't work (go figure).

We did manage to conjure up a dragon and a shark. Pretty terrifying aren't they!