The Robertson Family

The Springs

2009-04-26T22:49:00.001-07:00

So, since selling our house we have been hanging out in the apartments down the road from our old house. We put most of our stuff in two PODS. (Can I just say I love these things--They are brilliant. They drop them off, you fill them up, they take them away and store them for you. When you are ready you call them back up and they drop them off wherever you want. No renting a truck and storage place, loading and unloading and reloading and unloading.--I love it). I got off track. The apartments actually aren't bad at all. Our has two levels, so there is no one above us or below--That's a good thing. We only have people to one side of us, and, interestingly enough, they moved out this last weekend. They swear it had nothing to do with our kids. I'm choosing to believe them:)

Because we choose to do a month to month contract we have to pay more rent a month. So, to cut costs, we decided to go with the two bedroom unit. Ms. M is now sleeping in a pack-in-play in the closet in T and A's room. She's fine with it. Actually, it's a good size closet and we can close the door when she takes a nap and A can still play. It's worked out great. My only complaint would be that we sold our kitchen table before moving. It suited the space it was in, but not most houses so we decided not to take it with us. However, that left us with no table. I didn't want to buy a new table until we were in a new house and I could see what we needed. Sooo, we have been using the coffee table as a kitchen table, eating Japanese style.

It works out okay, but the girls not having a chair to sit in is mostly a bad thing. There is nothing to stop Ms. M from running from plate to plate. She likes to inspect each plate to make sure she's not missing out on anything. And she's not above taking what she wants. Then the screaming begins. Oh, the joy. Dinner is a little crazy. But then, even when we did have a kitchen table it was crazy.

We have found a house we like--mostly:)--so hopefully things will work out okay with it. If all works out we will close and move this week. I'm actually a little sad. I haven't minded the apartment, and we will be making a lot of changes. S says it's good for me. I'm still sad.

(This is after an Easter Egg Hunt--See how happy M is--She has probably eaten 15 pieces of chocolate by this point--out of control).

The big event in March

2009-04-26T22:15:00.000-07:00

The big event in March was we FINALLY got our house sold. Rejoice! Actually, it officially closed in February, but the people let us rent it for a month, hoping we would fine a home to move into. We didn't. Well, we did, but things didn't work out with that one and then we found another, but that didn't work as well. We ended up moving into the apartments down the street. They have worked beautifully for us. There are a few things I would change, but overall, they have worked out just fine.

Some funny things with packing:

1. S was out of control with the packing. The first thing he packed up was all my food storage/pantry. I had no food to cook with. Not necessarily bad, except when the kids get hungry.

2. While packing the living room S found a bag behind the piano. He asked me what it was and I said probably something the kids threw back there. He pulled it out, yelled, and dropped the bag. It was Bob--as in bobcat. I don't know if you remember my December post about the co-op white elephant Christmas party I went to, but Bob made his first appearance there. Since then he has been traveling around, "visiting" different homes of those in the co-op. After the initial scare, S saw the humor in it. I laughed so hard I was crying. T wanted to keep Bob, but he has since ventured on to another home. We loved having him and I couldn't have planned it better to have S find him.

Scary looking, huh...It 's the eyes.

3. This is what happens when you are busy packing and not paying attention to your two small children.

Thank goodness we had already packed up all the scissors or who knows what might have happened.

We need to say a BIG thank you to the ladies from church that came in and helped me clean my house. It was so so so so helpful. I also had people bring in dinners and men helping us move. We were really overwhelmed by all the service people provided for us. My visiting teachers were amazing. They showed me how to be a better visiting teacher in the future. My co-op group brought us dinners and lunches, as well. Like I said--We were overwhelmed with love. Thank You!

On to March

2009-04-26T17:30:00.000-07:00

Little Ms. A turned 4 the first part of March. After MUCH debating, she finally settled on a theme of "Going on a Bear Hunt". In pre-school Ms. Katie read that book to the group and A loved it so much Katie sent in home with her. I would read it and A would say, "Read it again". I can almost tell the story without the book word-for-word (the adjectives always mess me up, though). Anyway, I was leaning toward the bear hunt theme, T was in favor of a My Little Pony party. Fortunately, Ms. A choose wisely.

The invitations told everyone to wear clothes tht could get dirty.

Here they are, ready to listen to the story. After, we got ready to "go on a bear hunt". S tried to scare them by telling how we sometimes have bears try to get into our garbage cans--nice. The long, wavy grass.The cold, icy river (I don't thing those are the right adjectives--I sometimes make up my own:))--Oh, and a big Thank you to Ellen for letting us borrow her brand new, never used blow up pool for the kids to tromp through.--Kisses! Also, looking at these pictures you might be asking, who is this party for, T or A? That's a good question! Next year we might arrange for T to be somewhere else.The oozy, gooy mud--S wouldn't let me soak the garden boxes, so it wasn't nearly as exciting as it could have been. So you get the idea, we also went through the dark, something forest, the snowstorm, and added in a mountain because the kids could climb up the toy structure.

We ended in the deep, dark cave. Of course, S was the bear. There was only one little guy that jumped--everyone else thought he was halarious. We had gone to the dollar store and bought stuffed bears, so all the kids could take one home.Don't be scared about the state of the shed--it added to the "hunt"--really.

Lastly was cupcakes and ice cream. I thought about doing a bear cake, spent hours, well, one, looking into it. Then I thought about doing bear cupcakes, but ulimately settled with chocolate cupcakes with chocolate frosting and chocolate sprinkles, because that's what I do--cupcakes. I will cry when my kids decide they want a cake--or go to the store and buy one.

Also, a side note--my mom bought that "4" candle for T's fourth birthday and somehow we saved it--I have no idea how or why. T found it and decided it HAD to go on the cupcakes as well.
Whew...one more party down! Happy (late posting) Birthday Ms. A. Our life wouldn't be complete without her. She brings sunshine and hugs everyday.Also, don't mind the crazy hair and ribbons--That's just how it is sometimes:)

I almost forgot

2009-04-26T17:15:00.000-07:00

I almost forgot a very important event the end of February. My sister and brother-in-law and his parents came down to visit--Okay, they actually came down to go to a Brad Paisley concert, but Saturday we got to take B, C, and K while they went to the temple. Cousin B is my Ts favorite person on the planet--even more than her mom (she told me). T made a list of things she and B were going to do. It was really darling. I should have saved it, but I didn't. It included the event and the amount of time they would spend doing each activity. For example, "play with the babies--7 minutes". Some things on the list were "do crafts" ,

and "playing sports outside"We were hoping to fit the zoo in as well, but ran out of time--(and T only scheduled 78 minutes for that, anyway). We did fit in a trip to IKEA--love it! Hopefully, next time they can stay longer:)

Let's start with February

2009-04-26T15:56:00.000-07:00

I know it's been a while since I've written. I'm soo sorry! Life has been slightly chaotic, but then, when is it not. Let me try to update you as to what we have been up to these past few months.

Let's start with February. We spent Valentine's Day weekend in the Tri-Cities. Friday night my in-laws watched our kidlets while S and I went out to dinner. It was such a treat! S took me to the same restaurant we went to on our very first blind date. Good food, and not so awkward as before.

The next day, Valentine's Day, we watched multiple basketball games that our nieces and nephew were playing in. It was so fun. It inspired us to sign T up for spring basketball--that, and the fact she screamed and hid from the ball while playing with her cousin. She's too much like me:)

That night we went to my sister's house for a family dinner. My sister is living in my parent's house while they are on their mission. They are doing amazing with all the cows, chickens, cats, dogs, etc.. Anyhow, we had dinner with my two sisters and their families. (We did Olive Garden take-out--Yummy!) And that is sparkling cider everyone--don't get excited. Also, we broke out The Chocolate Fountain. It was kind of fun, kind of a lot of work, and kind of messy. The kids, however, loved it.It might have been better if the kids were in bed. They required lots of monitoring.
It was fun to spend the weekend with our families. Sadly, we had no cow experiences to report.

The other event in February was my birthday! Unfortunately, S had to work in Sunriver the weekend of my birthday. Since the idea of spending my birthday weekend alone with the girlies wasn't that appealing, we all went with him. I had never been to Sunriver. It was fabulous! We took the girls ice skating,

played in the snow (which was patchy, but the girls didn't mind),and celebrated my birthday (with a mostly yucky snickers cake from the only grocery store in town),

The next day we checked out the High Desert Museum, a recommendation from the great Ms. Brittany. It so happened that we went on the day everything was free. A credit union in Bend was sponsoring the event, so not only was it free, but there were tons of people dressed up, doing demonstrations and explaining things. It was very interesting, after we waited 30 minutes to get in and find a spot to park.

Overall, we had a great weekend. I was glad we didn't stay home--I probably would have been grumpy.

Joshua Scott Ringer

2009-02-17T21:51:00.000-08:00

This darling little boy is my cousin's son. He was born one week and one day after my T. Last Tuesday I got a phone call from my Aunt B letting me know that Joshua was hit by a school bus and killed. I can not tell you how heartbroken I am. I can not imagine anything worse. My brother and sisters and I love our cousins and their families. We tried to figure out how to make it to the funeral, but due to the speed of the funeral and the location we couldn't. I am so grateful to have a knowledge of our Savior, Jesus Christ. I know families can be together, even after this life. I am so grateful to my Savior who made that possible.

Please hug your children a little tighter and give them extra kisses. I forget what a tremendous blessing they are and I regret I had to be reminded in this way. I am grateful my cousin and his family understand the plan of salvation and know that Joshua has returned to his Father in Heaven. I know they know they will see Joshua again. I know they know our Savior died so we can live again. I hope that eases their pain a little. They are an amazing family. I try not to brag about how cool my cousins are, but trust me--this family is amazing.

As I said before, I was not able to attend the funeral, but the eulogy has been posted. If you care to find out what a truly remarkable boy Joshua was, take a trip over to http://manhattanmelody.blogspot.com/, but have a tissue handy. I am grateful to know that families are forever, through the gospel of Jesus Christ. So let us hold hands, never say "hate", name our cars, visit people, and keep all our cookies. Thank you for touching our life.

Hawaii--part two: Maui

2009-01-27T21:15:00.000-08:00

I've actually sat down to do this many times but something always came up. However, I want to finish this up so I can also post some of December as well. (I know, I'm waaaay behind).

Maui was amazing. Perfect!

This was the view from our balcony. I wish I had taken a picture of the view from our balcony in Waikiki, because it was the complete opposite. It was a view of another huge hotel that was probably 10 feet away. I didn't know places like this were real.

We mostly spent our days alternating between the pools

and the beach S and I both snorkled, but not usually together. We'd take turns watching the kids and would go out with S's brother and/or sister-in-law. We saw some great fish--I wanted to see a turtle, but no luck--B saw one, though.Some fun things we got to do were going to a luau (T and A learning to dance the hula)

and whale watching. We were able to see tons and learn tons about Humpback Whales. The captain of the boat knew soo much and talked almost the whole time we were out. It was very interesting.I didn't get any pictures of them jumping out of the water (grumble), but we saw it. Again, it seemed a little unreal to me.

Sunday we went to Church with S's cousin K and her family. Soo soo nice. Also, it was funny--there were probably over 50 visitors and that is quite common.They don't usually were lais to church--It was ward conference and her husband is the bishop. I could tell you all a funny story about S wearing a Hawaiian Shirt to church on our honeymoon and getting seriously chastized, but he might not want that on here:)

After church we took family pictures and drove around the island.

S also got to celebrate his birthday in Maui--Lucky! (Only he got no presents--The trip was his present). His cousin K and family joined us for swimming and also brought a yummy, homemade birthday cake (Daughter H was the chef). It was so sweet. They also brought a bag of gifts for each family. We were spoiled. For dinner S picked Bubba Gump Shrimp Co., had a tasty dinner, quoted many lines from the movie (Forrest Gump--in case you haven't seen the movie 23 times), and answered trivia from the menu.Also, this was not the only time Ms. A didn't make it through dinner--poor thing. We didn't stop to take naps and she would be exhausted by dinner and fall asleep. I wasn't being a super good mom, but I hated the thought of spending the afternoon inside (and actaully, she would have hated it as well.) Also, this resturant is right on the water and there was a big puffer fish my nephew was throwing french fries to--that's their normal diet, I think.

Our last day, after checking out, we went to the aquarium. Again--excellent. The kids (and adults) loved seeing all the marine life and the workers were full of interesting bits of information.

After the Aquarium we waved good-bye to the sun and warmth and flew home, happy and very tired. Taylor is the only one that didn't sleep on the plane ride. She was busy finishing her homework. (Again, I know I'm a slacker mom).
Good-bye Hawaii! We love you!

Hawaii--part one: Oahu

2009-01-18T15:20:00.000-08:00

It has been so long since I blogged I'm not even sure where to start. I still have all of December to blog. So many lovely, fun things happened. However, I think I'll start with the now and work backwards.

On Jan 5th, when T should have been going back to school, we were boarding a plane for Honolulu. We were suppose to board at 9 am but our flight was delayed until 2 pm. Really! On the bright side, we got food vouchers. On the sad side, 5 hours we could have been enjoying the warm weather in Hawaii was GONE. (And you know every second counts.) This is T and A with their cousin A. S's brother and family came with us. They have three children also, so it gave my girls someone to play with. Plus, there was another fun family to do things with. It was lovely to have them.

We stayed in Oahu three nights, two and a half days (since we were robbed of Monday). Here's some quick highlights of our time there.

These first pictures are of a place called Turtle Beach. It's a safe area, free from sharks, so turtles hang out there. You can't get very close, as there are volunteers that make sure no one bothers the turtles, but you can snorkle there as well and swim with turtles. We did not, but you can:) The turtles are fun to see, plus there were crabs (which the kids loved) and starfish.We stopped at the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saint's Temple and visitor center in Laie. However, we passed on the Polonesian Cultural Center. I'm bitter and don't want to talk about it:) (We've been there before, but it's fabulous.)

We spent most of our time at the beach and pool,Ate lots of good food, and snorkled at Hanauma Bay and Waikiki.

Just a bit of trivia for you. Ms. A threw up in the car on our way to Hanauma Bay. T is an experienced thrower-uper and is very good at keeping all the contents in the throw-up bag. (We always grab extras from flights and stock the cars.) Clearly, A needs more practice. The throw-up bag was practically empty but the back seat was a mess. Hooray for rental cars.

We left Oahu on Thursday afternoon and flew over to Maui for 6 days, 5 nights. The girls were sad to leave and didn't quite get the concept that we were just going to another island. T, I hope, has finally figured out that Maui is part of Hawaii. She liked to tell people we went to Hawaii and Maui.

A wasn't sad to be leaving--She was just grumpy!

The first of December

2008-12-09T21:57:00.000-08:00

Somehow I thought I would be much farther along on my list of things I need/want to get done than I am. Teaching pre-school this month was not a good idea, but since I made the schedule, I can't complain too much:)

This first week of December has been busy and full of craziness. First, on Tuesday I went to a Christmas party with some of the ladies from the neighborhood. They are great! (and soo funny). There was wonderful food (the yummiest ham), good conversation, and fun games. We had a white elephant exchange and, though there were some great gifts, no one could top K's.Lucky S took home a stuffed bobcat (i think..maybe a cougar?..). It was the greatest white elephant gift ever. I tried to get it for the Hs annual Christmas party, but there's no trading in this game--you get what you get. (Doesn't she look thrilled?--I would have died to take that cat home--Can you imagine S's face when I brought that baby in!)

Next, on Friday we got our Christmas tree, Happy day! It was soo much better than last year. (S was out of town, so I took the three girls and got it by myself--It was halfway through the month. I had some great friends that helped me get it in the house and in the tree stand.) But not this year. S was home and it is up and decorated. I love it! Now I just need to keep the kids from knocking it over, looking for "the pickle". And, not to ask too much, but it would be reeeeaaaaally nice to have some lights on our house this year. (hint...hint:))

Saturday was a big day. First, I took the girls to the Festival of the Nativities while S stayed with the napping Ms. M (who would NOT have done well with all the "please do not touch" signs.I don't actually have pictures of any of the nativities, but it was BEAUTIFUL! The girls got a little bored after a while but the spirit touches you. It's a great way to start the month, remembering why we celebrate Christmas. The paper said there were 825 nativities, 103 from other countries. The girls liked seeing a nativity from the Phillippines, where G and G K are. They also liked the childrens' room, where they got to dress up as nativity characters (a sheep and a shephard) and "Joseph's Workshop" where they had crafts. It was such a nice event (and soo much work--wow!).

That afternoon we went with some friends to see the Vancouver Dance Theater's production of The Nutcracker. Lucky E got to experience my crazy driving (I missed a few turns). But, sigh of relief, we made it and the girls loved it. I was a little worried about A, because we went to the 2pm performance and that is naptime. She did fine. I did not; I slept though almost the whole first act.

The girls being ballerinas (except for Ms. A)

And...a picture with the Sugar Plum Fairy. (You can tell how into this A is). It humors me:)

Last, (I'm almost done, I promise) Saturday night was our church Christmas Party. Again, lots of planning and time when into this event. S and his friend, J, were asked to be Roman Gaurds They greeted everyone as they came in the doors. (and I heard they were giving people a rather hard time--no good). We were asked to come dressed in clothes from the time of the Savior's birth and bring a blanket to sit on. The culture hall was decorated like Bethlehem.

They had games and crafts for the kids, yummy food, and a wonderful program. It was really a great event and, again, helped us better focus on the true meaning of Christmas. Overall, a crazy, lovely week. And it looks to continue being crazy up until I finish teaching pre-school. Why am I doing this again? How was your week? I hope lovely and bright!

Thanksgiving Weekend

2008-11-30T18:35:00.001-08:00

Thanksgiving was fabulous, of course. We were soo fortunate to be able to spend time with family, which is one of our favorite things.

We usually stay with my parents or my husband's parents, but things worked out that this time we stayed with two of S's brothers (on different nights). My girls loved being able to play with their cousins. Very fun times!Here's the girls with two of their cousins. This night B and M taught us two new games, Buzz Word and No Peekie. The girls were robbed. We should have won!

Thanksgiving was at my parents house. Dinner was, of course, scrumptious. This is the kid's tableand the adult table. My two sisters and their families and my sister's in-laws were there, as well as my family. Crazy, but good times.That night the kids got to open a present from grandma and grandpa (pajamas to save for Christmas). Then we had to say good-bye to grandma and grandpa for a little while. They left early the next morning for Utah and the Missionary Training Center. They will be there a week and then it's off to the Philippines. They will love it and be wonderful missionaries. And they'll be home before we know it. (But I'm still a little sad).

Friday I got up at 4:46 to run to Walmart for a few specific items. Granted, I wasn't there right at 5 am when it opened, but when I did get there (at 5:10) the parking lot was JAMMED full. I kid you not--It was the craziest thing. And people in the store were a little crazy themselves. Funny! Not that I'm bitter, but I was only able to get ONE of the items on my list and it was a $5 set of cars for my sister. After checking out the line I decided she was going to sacrifice for the greater good and I left the store empty handed. I already had the two items I went there for, but it was $20 cheaper (and I had bought two). That was worth getting up early for. But not to get them made me grumpy (or the lack of sleep). However, fear not--I fared much better at Target and Fred Meyer. (The Target line was a little crazy, as well, but moved at a good pace).

Friday afternoon we went bowling with another set of cousins. T and A had never been bowling before and loved it. I haven't been bowling for a while--the new lanes have the bumpers automatically come up when it was T or A's turn. Fancy! Fancy! S, T and her cousins.I don't know why, but both T and A would have their legs spread apart and usually had both hands in the air. It was pretty funny to watch.I had a hard time adjusting the camera for the lighting at the bowling alley--The pictures mostly turned out dark.

There was also a birthday party

And an early visit from Santa (Grandpa R)It was really nice, since we (and another set of cousins) won't be back for Christmas this year.
Here's all the cousins that were home
and our girls. Ms. M wasn't the least bit afraid of Santa. Both T and A were terrified at that age. (of course, T was afraid of carpet samples at Home Depot, pumpkins, and the list goes on and on). It was a very enjoyable, busy trip. I'm glad we have Christmas coming up. This is one of my favorite times of the year and it's nice to have so much to distract me. It's hard to be sad with so much going on. Good luck Mom and Dad! We love you!

Three things

2008-11-19T21:32:00.000-08:00

Three quick things so I can go to bed!

First, my new obsession! Leaf blowing! (Clearly, this isn't me:)) On Monday I spent way too long trying to sweep all the wet, matted down layers of leaves off my back deck. My girlfriend lent me her leaf blower and it was MAGIC! Seriously! Within 15 minutes I had all the leaves off my deck AND my cement patio. Then, I went out of control. I can't TELL you how much I love this thing. I do have to take care of my children (feed them, etc..) so I have had to put it down a few times, but Monday I blew leaves until it was so dark I was tripping over things. Tuesday was busy, but today I finished up our back yard (until the big tree by the house drops all its leaves). It is soo fun. The girls love it, as well. Ms. A held on to it with me for about 15 minutes until I couldn't stand it any longer. She gave me her saddest face, but it was still too hard. I did let T blow leaves while I put them in the yard bin. (She did okay, not great, but okay.) Anyway--this is the coolest power tool. I'm thinking we might need to invest. I was sad to return it today.

Second, I had my first stitches incidentLook at that cute face! I ran to the library a little after 4 today. The girls played while I reserved some books on the computer that they didn't have at our little branch. Somehow Ms. M fell right on the corner of one of the tables. I have never seen so much blood. The poor librarians were all in a flutter. I took her into the bathroom to try to clean her up and stop the bleeding, but, as you can tell, she got blood all over--her clothes, my clothes, the carpet (just a little). Thank goodness we are getting a new library. I took her home, cleaned her up a little more, but ended up having to take her to urgent care for stitches. Only three--It was kind of interesting to watch, but I felt so bad for poor little M. The doctor says there will not be a scar--probably.

Last, this last weekend we went home for my parents farewell. They report to the MTC Dec 1st and then off to the Philippines. I think I'm going to be very, very sad come November 28 when they drive away. The farewell talks were very nice. No surprise that I cried, but no one else did. (A few people were a little teary-eyed, which made me feel better.) The weekend, overall, was a little crazy! My job was to watch children. All weekend. My parents moved their stuff downstairs. My sister A and family moved their stuff into my parent's house. My sister E and family moved their stuff into sister A's house. I think I had the easiest job.

One fun thing. I took T, A, and cousin B to the musical "The Twelve Dancing Princesses" Saturday night. It was darling. The girls got to dress up and participate in the princess parade during intermission. Also, it was interesting enough to hold everyone's attention the whole time (even Ms. A). Of course, quote the girls, "It wasn't like the real one." (meaning the Barbie version). Soo sad they think that is the real version. I'll have to work on that.

Getting ready to go in. Hooray for Uncle S who was able to locate all the dress-up amid the chaos of moving.

Learning how to wave like a princess. (Do you like T's boots?:) and A's jeans)

Practicing their wave as they parade around on stage.At the end, the cast comes out so you can ask them questions. Very fun evening.

Halloween week--a little late

2008-11-10T14:13:00.001-08:00

I know Halloween is past and gone, except for the candy that lingers on forever. Also, I know I'm falling behind. S was out of town most of the week last week (and the week before, for that matter). I never had time to sit down at the computer. Soo sad, I know. Sooo, here's our Halloween week, just a little late.

First, we had our trunk-or-treat on Friday, the 24th. The ward did a great job, with games to play, food to eat, a glow room, a movie room, and last...trunk or treating. (We parked a little too far out, so I had to borrow a friends trunk to give out candy).You might be saying, "Wait a minute--I've seen these costumes before." And you would be right. M is wearing A's old princess costume. A is wearing T's old Tinkerbell costume (with red shoes--we tried to change those). Actually A had a couple options, unlike M, but wanted to be Tinkerbell. That left us with only having to find a costume for T, who wanted to be red riding hood (for a few years now--And next year as well). Happy day!T doing the cupcake walk.M playing pumpkin bowling.

Next, because both our husbands were out of town, my friend Ellen, invited us over for dinner-in -a-pumpkin. Sooo fun! I can't say my kids ate a ton, but I loved it. I think this may have to be a tradition. (Of course, S is a little wierd about food--we'll have to see.)The kiddlets, all ready to dig in.Dinner--It looks a little stewish, but it's not. The main ingredients are rice and ground beef. I thought it was yummy! And very festive.

We finally got around to carving our pumpkins on Thursday night (I was waiting for dad to be home--he's good with sharp objects).Everyone was very into the pumpkin carving. My job is to take pictures and sort out all the pumpkin seeds for baking. Kind of slimy, but sooo yummy. Also, don't ask why S is still in a white shirt and tie. "I know what I'm doing. I'll be fine".T, cleaning out her little pumpkinTrying to keep M from eating the pumpkin seeds and gunk.Finished product (minus dad's pumpkin--he was inside, very maticulously at work carving away.)

Finally, it was Halloween! (I know this is a long posting--I'm soo sorry. Stick with me. We are almost done)Here's the girls, ready to go out--Ms. M stayed home to hand out candy with dad.Some friends of ours have a trailer they decorate and take the kids around to look at scary houses in the neigborhood (the driving was a little scarier than the houses, but the kids LOVED it.) What a fun idea.They stop the trailer at a few houses that are known to give out lots of candy.After the trailer ride we finished the night by trick-or-treating with friends. This is A with her sweet friend. She (A) was soo tired by the end of the night I had to carry her home. You would think she would have gone right to bed, especially since she had no nap. That was the plan. No, we got home and had to check out the candy and run around crazy for a bit. I love Halloween, but Hooray that it is done for another year.

Turning Six

2008-10-26T16:41:00.000-07:00

T just recently turn six years old--that would be two hands instead of one. She, of course, thinks she is twenty six, but that's for another posting. What a happy day for all. We made her wait until her birthday to open gifts. We told her it would be worth the wait. She wore the outfit Grandma and Grandpa R gave her Friday (her birthday), Saturday , and Sunday. Thank goodness I do wash on Monday.She has watched the Sleeping Beauty movie from Grandma and Grandpa K many a time and feels very brave about it. She keeps telling A, "it's not scary." (Even though it is a little).

Friday night T got to choose where we went for dinner--She choose Sweet Tomatoes, even though S tried hard to tempt her with other places that brought ice cream and sang. S does not like Sweet Tomatoes, but he sucked it up. Also, we had Uncle B visit. What a fun treat. T loved playing adult sequence with him and dad and winning.

Saturday was her birthday party she could invite her friends to. I thought we had the rule of a friend birthday every other year, but apparently not. We'll have to revisit this idea later. Anyhow, T wanted a costume halloween party. We had beautiful princesses, ninjas, vampires, witches, a football player, and a cat. Very fun! (Sorry , in the chaos I did not remember to take a group picture like I planned). The kids decorated halloween bags, played games, ate, and opened presents (the opening presents was a little rushed--I ran out of time at the end).

Decorating bags.

Playing games--S was a huge help--Here he is demonstrating pumpkin bochee, which he wants to make sure and get credit for. Pumpkin Bochee was his idea.This was the "Over the head, Under the legs" game. Just so you know, the Stealth Ninjas beat out the Vampire Princesses and the Superstars.There were a few more games, but the favorite was the scavenger hunt leading to...

the skeleton pinata (That was S's pick--He passed up the nice, happy pumpkin for a scary skeleton--The kids loved it--hope they didn't have nightmares)The ninja, who was the only one who wanted to be blindfolded, finally broke it on his second turn.Last, cake and presents. I know many of you that make beautiful, amazing birthday cakes. I am not a cake person. I feel like I'm doing well to make cupcakes (from a box). The girls helped me decorate them. We also had ice cream and cream puffs--aka eyeballs. Last was opening gifts. T has very wonderful, thoughtful friends.

Also--Very exciting! A few days after her birthday T lost her first tooth.It was a very exciting week. But hopefully it will be a little quieter for a while.

The Pumpkin Patch

2008-10-22T16:30:00.000-07:00

Sorry this is soo late being posted. I've gotten behind.

Last Monday we went with Ms. Carolyn's pre-school to the Pumpkin Patch. She is sooo wonderful to let our co-op pre-school tag along with her. I actually had my three girls, plus my girlfriend's little guy, who just turned two. It was a little crazy. (Made me re-think my having four children plan:)). As a result, I didn't get a picture of my three girls together--in fact, Ms. M never left the backpack. But the pumpkin patch is always a blast. And no rain or even mud can't be beat. Here's one of the picture I got of the girls togetherRunning through the hay maze--much better than a corn maze; you can see your way out.The girls loved the baby animals--the baby goats, however, were the cutest things ever. Here's my girlfriend's little guy, Mr. M--He's such a good natured kid.

Finally on the hay ride. Here's T with her friends. Right before this A got stung by a bee. There are millions of kids running around and somehow A got the bee sting. (and this isn't the first time--Crazy)This is the only picture of Ms. M. Like I said, she never left the backpack--poor thing.Here the girls head out on their hunt for the perfect pumpkin. The rule was the child had to be able to carry their own pumpkin out. A went for the biggest one she could find, but we settled for one a little smaller.--I don't think I could even carry this one.T went for the smallest pumpkin she could find. At least she didn't need help carrying it.

Success! We made it out without losing anyone and the girls love their pumpkins. Now I just have to convince them it's okay to carve them--that's what we do with pumpkins.

Haircuts, Birds and Belly Dancing

2008-10-12T19:09:00.000-07:00

The major trauma for the week was A taking the kitchen sheers to Ms. M's hair. I was trying to reorganize the freezer and was in the garage. By the time I came back in A had cut a good part of the top of M's hair off (at least part of the left side). I was soooo sad. I remember that I and my two sisters also cut our hair at one time or another, but I was hoping to avoid that. Sidnee, who cuts my hair and my girls hair, was sweet enough to let me bring M over ASAP, but there wasn't much we could do. Alas, no pony tails or curls for a bit.

Second, on Saturday we went to Birdfest up in Ridgefield, WA. There is the Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge up there, and Saturday and Sunday was the big Birdfest. We've never actually been there before, but it was kind of fun. In college I had to take a nature appreciation class for my major and one of the assignments was to find and identify 50 birds. I spend many a Saturday with my girlfriend and my binoculars. However, ever since then I've paid much more attention to birds. This weekend everything was free and they even provided a little bus we could take that took us through the refuge. There was also two "tour guides" on the bus explaining about the refuge and pointing out birds and wildlife. These are Cackling Geese and are smaller than Canadian Geese. I guess it's too early in the season for the Canadian Geese. The girls played bird bingo and had fun crossing out the birds we found and even got a prize. S and M were a little bored(okay, really bored), but T, A and myself had a great time.

Here we are on the bus, looking for birds and wildlife--We saw a family of raccoons that were adorable, but mostly we saw lots and lots of birds. Ask S what the difference is between Great Blue Herons and Sandhill Cranes. He's now a bird pro. There were many other activities around town, but S (and the girls) were done after the refuge.

Lastly, Saturday night was a date night. S took me to a restaurant we went to when we were dating. It is a Moroccan Restaurant called Marrakesh. You sit on little cushions/tuffets and eat the dinner with your hands. It's pretty fun. You get a five course dinner--soup, salad, appetizer/pastry thing, main dish, and dessert. The dessert is fruit salad--chocolate would have been better, but we had a great time. They also have a belly dancer that goes around providing entertainment. Somehow S and I got pulled up to belly dance. I actually took a belly dancing class in college, but wasn't very good. We had fun and would recommend the restaurant to anyone.

Last Weekend

2008-10-09T14:08:00.000-07:00

I meant to get these pictures downloaded Monday, but life has been to busy.

Last Saturday we dropped S off at the airport bright and early. He had to got to a conference in Florida for multiple days so after dropping him off we continued on the the Tri-Cities to watch conference and visit family. I didn't think it through terribly well. My mom was watching my sister, A's three children for the weekend so it wasn't very calm--fun, but not calm. After the afternoon session of conference my mom, sister E and myself took the kids down the the rivier to feed the ducks. That is always an adventure for all. T is afraid of the ducks and geese and screamed until she was safely standing on a park bench.A likes to kick the ducks and geese that get too near to her. She lures them in with the bread and then kicks them. My mom was appaled. We are working on Ms. AM wasn't afraid of the ducks and geese, but didn't quite know what to think of them, either. She did love running off after her sister or whatever caught her fancy. With so much water around, she made me nervous. This is T with her favorite person in the whole world, her cousin B.Sunday we ran over to visit S's parents for the morning session of conference and lunch. The girls loved running around outside once conference was over. The girls helped grandpa pick tomatoes for lunch--Yummy! I think we managed to make sure no green tomatoes were picked. At home M is always bringing me green tomatoes.Here the girls are visiting the shells--They love to bring different shells to grandpa and have him tell them about it.

Lastly, we went back to my parents for the last session of conference. My mom earned her wings by helping my girls and their cousins make a Halloween gingerbread house. This is not a tradition we will continue when they are on their mission. The black frosting stained anything it touched, be it the counter, table, clothes, hands, whatever. Somehow, much to T's great joy, we ended up taking it home. I have now eaten all the purple balls off the top. Soon it's heading for the garbage--maybe while T's at school. It might take her a while to miss it.

Lastly, it wouldn't be a trip to the Tri-Cities without "moving the cows". I think my dad has lost confidence in my abilities, now that I'm a "city girl". My job was to stand on the deck and watch the kids, all two of them--both T and A were out helping.

It's a little embarrassing.

This is A and her cousin C and their sticks. They were actually WAY out of the path of the cows, but they wanted to feel like they were helping.

We ate dinner and drove home--A long drive but everyone fell asleep. Happy day. I'm going to miss my fun weekend get-a-ways once my parents are on their mission. A year and a half isn't so long, right?

Are they right?

2008-10-03T21:54:00.001-07:00

Kind of fun! I got this idea from my sister-in-law, the lovely Ms. L. We thought it was pretty funny. What do you think? Is myheritage.com right? Check out our results below.

Robertson Look-alike Meter

2008-10-03T21:50:00.001-07:00

MyHeritage: Family tree - Genealogy - Celebrity - Collage - Morph

Robertson Look-alike Meter

2008-10-03T21:47:00.001-07:00

MyHeritage: Look-alike Meter - Free genealogy search - Genealogy sites

Robertson Look-alike Meter

2008-10-03T21:43:00.001-07:00

MyHeritage: Look-alike Meter - Family website - Family tree project

The Zoo and Japan

2008-09-28T15:23:00.000-07:00

Hello! Another lovely week has passed without too much excitement. No one missed the bus this week, no major falls or scraps, we made it to curriculum night, and everyone got their homework done--at least for last week.

Wednesday was early release, so T had no school. It would work out much better for me if early release came on Monday or Friday, but Wednesday is fine. We went to the zoo. We have a Zoo pass, so I like to get as much use out of it as possible. We went over alone, but met up with some friends at lunch, much to T's joy. I actually have tons of pictures of my kids at the zoo, so I didn't take many pictures, but they did have some baby animals on display, and there is nothing cuter than baby animals. This is the new baby elephant that has been in the news lately. He has a name, Sam-something-ku, but I can't remember it. I'm sure it's on the zoo webpage with pictures. They call him Sam, for short. He was very fun to watch.There were also baby Worty Pigs on display. The worty pigs are a little on the ugly side, but the babies are darling, running all over the place. There is also a new frog exhibit, which is really well done. There are activities for the kids as well as lots of varieties of frogs. Here's the girls with their friends on the way out. Ms. A likes to blend in with the animals when we go to the zoo:) I had two, almost three asleep on the way home, but since I was the third, we are all happy I stayed awake.

Saturday we spent part of the day at the Japanese Festival at Uwayimaya's, an Asian market in Beverton. The girls loved it.There was marial arts displays, a stage with different groups performing, crafts for the kids to make, and tons of booths. One booth had students giving free masages. Both Stuart and I had one--a little wierd, but it felt good.

This was called the Live Goldfish Pond. Basically, you pay a buck and get to fish for goldfish with the net. Then you can take two home with you. This was T's favorite thing, but we did not take home any fish. Crazy!The girls got airbrush tatoosAnd met Hello Kitty. We also ate yummy (greasy) food and --Happy day for S--Hawaiian Shaved Ice.

Ms. M came away with no cuts of bruises--Hooray!

T and A came away with balloons, necklaces, bags, but no squishy pig (dad said no and then when we went back they had run out). Also, what a beautiful day! It was actually on the warm side. Got to soak in as much sun as possible to make it through the winter:)

Saturday Market

2008-09-21T14:13:00.000-07:00

This last week has been pretty non-eventful, which is usually a good thing. We are getting a little more use to our schedules (though we did miss the bus on Thursday, which was just the saddest thing in the world for Ms. T) and before we know it, another week has passed by.

Saturday we decided to head down to Saturday Market. It's been a while since we went down there and we were looking for something fun to do. There is always plenty of things to see and do.

This was a street band we listened to for a while. Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture of the dancing Elvis. He had some good moves.With so much to see, the girls had a hard time not touching things. Saturday Market also provides lots of interesting conversations, like why that girl's hair is bright pink.

The second we got down there, the only thing A wanted to do was ride the "train" (the MAX). She takes after her Uncle B. Since it's free downtown, we jumped on and went up to Pioneer Square.I felt like a complete tourist taking this picture:) Oh well. We grabbed some lunch and ate on the steps. At least the adults ate. Ms. A had a hard time focusing, mostly she just wanted to chased the pigeons.And T decided her family was a little embaressing, or something.--She had to go off and find her own place to eat.After eating we road the "train" back to the Market, looked around, ate more yummy food and eventually headed to the Rose Garden. It is beautiful this time of year--in fact there was one wedding/reception going on (complete with a small string quartet) and another bride and groom getting pictures taken. We, of course, ate more--The best Hawaiian Shaved Ice in 100 mile radius--ran around, and smelled flowers. The girls favorite thing was picking petals off the ground. I returned home with three pockets full of petals. Ms. M loved running free and the water.

We ended by playing on the big play structure just down from the rose garden. This was a treat for the kids because I never take them there on my own. It is sooo big it's hard to keep track of everyone. Even with the two of us, it was hard.

A very fun day, but I only had one asleep on the way home. Also, Ms. M had a bit of a tumble. Actually, she had multiple tumbles, but only one that caused any damage. Once, while running free in the rose garden she fell on asphalt and did a face plant. It was pretty sad, but she seems to have recovered (at least emotionally:)
Hopefully next week we won't have any bruises or scraps to report, but no guarantees.

The Bus, Pre-school, and Runs

2008-09-14T22:23:00.000-07:00

This has been a fun week for our family. It stared on Monday when T got to ride the bus to school for the first time. The first couple of days we spend at least an hour waiting for the bus to come to and from school, but, sigh of relief, we always managed to catch it, and now we have a fairly good schedule down (I hope, anyway). For T, the best part of school is riding the bus and recess (but snack is also a highlight). She made it though the first week and seemed quite happy. I was a little stressed about the bus, but she rides with only kinders on the way there and her bus driver on the way home is a lady from church, which made me happy. Soo, we are into the first year of many, complete with the fund raiser coupon book that has already come home to start selling--hum...

Paitently waiting! Climbing aboard!

Also, ms. A started our co-op pre-school this week. She is learning about the alphabet, the seasons, and apples. She mostly likes it, but doesn't like doing "homework" with me. So sad!

First day!

Working in her journal before coming home with me.

I didn't plan it out well. A has pre-school in the morning and T has kg in the afternoon, but thank goodness for naps--In theory, I should get at least an hour of quiet time a day. I might actually get something done--or a nap:)

Lastly, on Saturday I did my first 1/2 marathon. My girlfriend, A, and I have been running together since January or February and this race was our goal. She is actually a much better runner than I am, so it wasn't a big deal for her. We ran together all spring and summer and I got to where I could mostly keep up with her:) The week before the race we drove the course so we'd know what to except--too many hills--but it was better to know. I wasn't sure what to expect, and it was definitely hard, but I'm happy to say I survived, I kept up with A until she left me on a hill at mile 8, I ran the whole time, and I did beat the guy pushing his one year old in the stroller (but it was iffy for a while). I did, however, get passed on the last mile by a guy in his 60's that (I found out after) was running with a broken toe--nice! Both A and I got 3rd for our age groups (that's right, she's older than me and faster as well.) S brought the girls out to cheer me on at the end--very fun!

Us with our metals. S made fun of me because I was the only runner not in shorts.

A's goal for the next year--A marathon!

My goal for the next year--have another baby!

S's goal for me for the next year--A marathon!

T's first day of Kindergarten

2008-09-07T22:13:00.000-07:00

Friday was T's first day of Kindergarten. She was SOOO excited. The school district here does something called Smart Start, where the kindergarten class is broken into thirds and a third goes Wed, a third Thurs, and the last third on Fri. T, of course, was in the last third. (A friend told me they do it by last name). Anyhow, Friday she picked out what she wanted to wear, put her backpack by the door, and waited and waited for the time to come to head to school (Of course, there was also the dash over to the neighbor's house to get her shoes she hide there from the night before--love it).

Doesn't she look little to be going to school? I tried to get her to wear pants, as she would be going out to recess, but she wouldn't go for it.

Ms. A wanted to be in the picture, too. (She starts Pre-school Tuesday, so look for posts on that next week).

Here she is in front of her classroom. And can I say I LOVE her teacher. I use to sub for her quite a bit my first year I lived here. She is a very happy, lovely person.
Doing the counting jar. It was about here I gave her a kiss good-bye and got all teary. How embarrassing! Tomorrow she gets to ride the bus for the first time. I'll probably be a wreck again.

It finally came!

2008-09-07T21:58:00.000-07:00

Some of you know that my parents had decided to serve a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. We had all been waiting to see where they would go. They put they wanted to do a one year mission, so we thought they would stay in the States. While we were in the Tri-cities over Labor Day the mission call came. I was thrilled I was there when they opened it.

My parents were a little suprised. They were called to the Philippines for a year and a half. I can't remember the exact name, but it's north of Manila. They leave Dec 1st. I'm already missing them, but it will be such a great experience for them. My parents have always been wonderful examples of disciples of our Savior, Jesus Christ. I know they will touch many lives. Congratulations Mom and Dad!

Ms. M's Big Day!

2008-07-29T22:00:00.000-07:00

Hooray! Little Ms. M is officially one year old and facing forward in the car. Though her birthday was on a Saturday I had a class all day and we were watching kids that night, so we moved her birthday to Tuesday. Of course, K couldn't wait to give M her birthday present and gave it to her Saturday, making the rest of us look bad:)

A very cute, orange outfit. (We really like orange at the moment.) M mostly loved the tags.
Her birthday party was pretty low-key. We just had our sweet neighbors over to help us celebrate. M got to be a princess (her sisters had crowns, but they didn't have the birthday wand--a bit of a sad day),

opened her gifts,(This was from the Bs)--Soo sweet!

Blow out her candle,

And, of course, devour her cupcake.

We sure love our sweet girl! Happy first year!

Blueberries for Sal

2008-07-22T21:09:00.000-07:00

Don't those look yummy! I love blueberry picking (Mostly because it is sooo easy--there are no pricklies involved). Monday I took the girls to this darling little farm to go blueberry picking. I was a little worried (mostly about little A), but overall, they did so good. I was quite pleased.
The girls got their buckets and after a short lesson about which berries to pick (the blue ones) from Ms. V, they were off.T was very focused on the task at hand, A was more into eating the berries, picking the dandelions, and petting the cat. Baby M hung out.and took a little nap.

I couldn't have asked for better weather (middle 70's, my favorite), and better company (some adorable ladies from church). We were out there for about 1 1/2 hours. I was impressed we made it that long. In the end I got 8 pounds, T got 3, and A ended with 1 (Notice the dandelions in every bucket--that was also Ms. A's contribution.)
We had to make a stop at Sonic on the way home for 1/2 price drinks as a reward for working hard (and because I totally forgot to bring water--I don't know what I was thinking.) 4 1/2 pounds were for my neighbors that couldn't come, but I now have a good stash in my freezer. Does anyone have any yummy blueberry recipes they want to share?

Stuart's First Triathlon

2008-07-20T22:01:00.000-07:00

What a wonderful day! We finally, after a month plus of no internet access and several months of dealing with a very old, yucky computer that barely worked, broke down and bought a new computer. I'm soo thrilled I can actually download my pictures right to the computer as opposed to going to Costco to put them on a disk and then downloading them from the disk to the computer--way too much work.

Anyway, I am thrilled to be blogging again. I have tons of fun posts, but Stuart wanted me to start with the most important event (at least for him) so far this summer. Stuart did his first triathlon on June 14th at Blue Lake. His brother Steve (who is a well seasoned tri-athlete) and his parents came up to give him support (plus his cute girls were cheering him on). Steve did the triathon with him and gave him lots of tips and suggestions, fixed his bike, and got him all ready. It was wonderful to have everyone here.

The big day we had to leave at 6:15 am so we wouldn't be late. It was a good thing we were so early. I've never seen such long lines to use the porta-potties in my life. Here's Stuart getting into the wetsuit. I was suppose to take careful notice so I could help him when Steve wasn't around.

Here's Stuart coming out of the water. He said the swim was the hardest part. I was a little worried he might drown, even though he had been swimming in the pool at the club for months--I was very relieved to see him coming out.

Next is the bike event. I actually didn't get to the bike transition area until after he had left, and I couldn't get a picture of him on the bike. I did, however, catch him coming back after the bike ride. Last was the run. I got a picture of him on the way out, but the best picture was when he crossed the finish line (he wanted the beat a 12 year old girl that had been passing him and then fallen behind--speaking of which, I couldn't believe how many young kids 12 and up were doing this thing. Amazing!)Here they are--the Triathletes. We were so proud of him.

Stuart, overall, loved it and is planning a longer one for September.

Stay tuned for more fun summer blog posts to come!

Bon Appetit

2008-04-24T21:39:00.000-07:00

Today I was feeding Madelyn her baby food when a neighbor stopped by. She came in the kitchen and we talked a bit. I left Madelyn sitting in her bumbo seat on the counter to walk my friend to the door. (Don't lecture me on how unsafe that is--I'm okay with it). I thought I had made sure everything was out of reach , but apparently not. I came back to find that she had somehow gotten into the goldfish food and was downing it by the fistful, not to mention she was covered in those multi-colored flakes--nice! I thought about calling poison control, but figured it was about the same as kids eating dog food. Plus, all the ingredients looked edible, though I'm not sure about the "fish meal" or "shrimp meal". No allergic reactions so far. Who would have thought ground brown rice would be the second ingredient. Dried yeast the third. Taylor and Alyson never ate anything weird. How about you? Have your kids tried something a little "uncommon"?

Tag from Becca--10 years ago

2008-04-21T21:22:00.000-07:00

I know this is an all-time high for posts in one month, but my sister-in-law "tagged" me (actually, this is the second tag), so I feel somewhat obligated to respond. Those of you that check out this blog for updates on the girls will find this a little boring.--Sorry! I did add some pictures, though:).

10 years ago:

1. I was teaching kindergarten in Japan.

2. Almost 10 years ago exactly (it was in March) I went with some girlfriends (hello Jenn Rigo) to visit Bejing, China.

3. I also went with a girlfriend to spend two weeks in Thailand.

(I actually went to this location. It's famous because it's in a James Bond movie, but don't ask me which one.) Fun, but would have been better with Stuart--not that I knew him then.

5 things on my to-do list:

1. Paint Madelyn's room (I was suppose to do that before she came--hum..)

2. Organize my closet

3. My visiting teaching (I know it's the 21st, I'm a slacker)

4. Buy and mail baby Peter a birthday present

5. Update my first aid kit I have in my car--There is no kid's medicine/thermeter, etc...

5 places I have lived:

1. I was born in Colorado, but we left when I was about 6 months old and have never been back--A shame

2. Barstow, California--until I was 7. A desert, but close to Disneyland.

3. Kennewick, Washington--My parents still lives there, and one sister, soon to be two (not that I'm bitter or anything:))

4. Rexburg, Idaho--two years of college. Very cold and windy, but nice people.

5. New York City--A year and a half as a missionary

5 Jobs I've had

1. TCBY--great high school job

2. Northwest Argiculture Consultants--I tested plant samples to find out how much nitrogen or boron or whatever they contained. A great summer job during college.

3. Cleaning the Marriott Hotel in Park City on Saturdays--Not such a great job, but it worked well for my schedule. I did it with my brother until he bailed for a real job and left me.

4. Downeast Outfitters--a fun college job, but I didn't make enough. I spent too much of my paycheck on clothes.

5. Columbia Industries--working as an employment specialist for underprivilaged youth.

5 things not commonly know about myself

1. I quite LOVE brownies and buy the little bite size brownies from Costco and freeze them in Ziploc baggies for a yummy treat when I need a chocolate fix. However, I have to be careful where I hid them in the freezer because Stuart likes them as well and doesn't just eat one every other day or so. Nothing is worst than going for my brownie treat and finding an empty baggie.

2. In high school I really wanted to parachute out of an airplane. However, it was a little pricie for me. I did bungee jump twice, and that cured any desire I had for parachuting.

3. I want to learn how to sew. I am most envious of those that can. My sweet cousin gave me her old sewing machine, and I took a class through the community a few years ago. I learned how to make an apron, but haven't touched the sewing machine since. This year is the year--I can feel it:)

4. I LOVE childrens books. I love them. My ideal job would be a librarian in an elementary school. My current favorite place to find great deals on childrens' books is Goodwill. You have to sift through a lot, but they range in price from 50 cents to a dollar.

5. I was in the Utah Pagent of the Arts my second year at Ricks--What they do it take famous works of art and put real people in them. My roommate talked me into trying out. I made it, but she didn't. I was "The Flame Leaper". Basically, every night for two weeks I had to paint my body white, put this flame crown thing on my head, climb up on this flame/fire statue, contort my body in this leaping position, and try to keep my arms perfectly still while holding two stick flame things (are you getting the flame theme here) as the statue slowly turned around for all the audience to see. Here's the real thing. How crazy is that.

There you go--probably more than you wanted to know. I tag melanie--she promised to update her blog when she got back from her cruise.

Lincoln City

2008-04-10T20:19:00.000-07:00

Last week Stuart had to work in Lincoln City, which is right on the beach. It was Spring Break, so Taylor had no preschool and we were free to go along. I hate to have her miss school, even though it's only preschool, but I also love traveling along with Stuart when we can. This was a great spot and I think we're going to have to come every time. We left a little later than planned, but still made it in time to watch American Idol. Staurt was trying to get a room with a Jacuzzi on the balcony, but when they found out we had kids with us it was a big no go--soo sad. One of my FAVORITE things about staying in a hotel is trying out the different kinds of soap, shampoo, and conditioner. This hotel had a mint theme going--I can't remember the name, but I loved it. I even took the used bar of mint/oatmeal soap home with me, along with the half-used shampoo. Stuart thinks I'm wierd.

The next morning Stuart went to work and the girls and I went down to the beach to play. It was a perfect beach day (for Oregon), lots of sun and no wind. So the girls and I are happily walking along, picking up shells, random rocks, and various other objects,

(notice the jacket and rain boots. Gotta love the Oregon coast in April--or July:))

When we look up and notice there is this guy walking towards us in a full suit and tie.

It took a moment for it to register that it was my husband. Stuart had gotten done early with his work, so he came to find us. It was pretty funny to see this guy on the beach in a suit and tie, dress shoes, the works; nice to have him there, but kind of funny, none the less. We didn't stay too much longer after Stuart came. He had more people to see and I think he got tired of people staring at him.

Here's our latest family picture (The couple that took the picture asked Stuart about his "beach attire").

And here's our latest picture of the girls. Quite a fun little trip. Stuart even let me run into the outlet stores all by myself for some quick shopping. We'll have to come back for more.

Taylor's Field Trip and Dance

2008-04-07T22:14:00.000-07:00

Don't be too shocked. I know--two postings in less than a week, but I think I'm on a roll--That and Stuart is out of town tonight. I have more time when he's gone, for some reason. (Maybe because I haven't cleaned up the dishes from dinner yet and probably won't until tomorrow:)).

Also, I just finished my month of teaching pre-school. It was actually pretty fun. The only problem is I usually use the time when Taylor is in school to get things done. As a result I have been a little behind this last month. BUT..happy day! Tomorrow starts a whole new month with Ms. Shantel as the teacher. Love it!

My month's theme was transportation--good stuff. As the closing field trip we went to the Pearson Air Museum (Brittany and Sara would have a cool link to the museum website right here, but I'm not that good yet:).) It was good, but probably aimed at older kids. There was tons to see and read, but not as many hands-on activities as I would have liked, though the ones they did have entertained them well--The kids could have stayed at the model aircraft carrier the whole time. Also, they have flight simulators that I thought would have been awesome, but they were locked up--sad day. However, the kids still seemed to have fun. Here are a few pictures from the event.

The preschool group (not counting Alyson and Cole.) Notice Taylor's awful shoes. Not only are they bright pink, but they have Dora on top. I hate them and would like to throw them out, but Stuart bought them for her and, of course, Taylor loves them.

Taylor, our future pilot. Alyson, not so into the pilot thing.

The field trip was Wednesday. Friday was observation day for Taylor's dance class. We had no idea about this because we had missed the class the week before. Fortunately, we were on time for a change and I had my camera in my bag. Unfortunately, I had Alyson and Madelyn with me (which made for interesting picture taking), hadn't really done Taylor's hair that morning, and didn't quite manage make-up myself. Oh well! Here are a few shots from the observation day.

Taylor loves her dance class. Her teacher, Ms. Jessica, is the greatest. She is soo positive. It was fun to see some of the things She is learning.

Easter

2008-04-02T22:08:00.000-07:00

I know I have been so bad about blogging. I have major issues with our computer. I won't go into it all, but the bottom line is we need a new computer. Today! Anyhow, when I talked to my mom on Sunday she was giving me a hard time about my lack of posts, so I promised her I would do a few. Even though it's a little late, here are some Easter pictures.

This is Taylor and Alyson after THE Easter egg hunt. We changed our travel plans to attend this thing. (That sounds impressive, but what that means is we went to the Tri-Cities a day later than planned.) But seriously, we LOVE this hunt and weren't going to miss it. This is the second year this amazing family (mostly the wife--Karen Hill) in our ward has done this easter egg hunt. As you can tell my the number of eggs in my girls' baskets, there is an incredible amount of eggs (I think 1000 or so). The family has a beautiful, huge back yard that is broken into three areas by age group. There are also golden eggs to be found worth prizes, the Easter Bunny herself is there, and this year there was a most colorful easter egg contest. A BIG thank you to Karen Hill! The girls had a wonderful time.

After the egg hunt we headed to the Tri-Cities to celebrate Easter with family. That morning my mom called to tell me my father was throwing up (guess we won't be seeing you guys--So far my kids haven't got that awful flu that is going around and I'd like to keep it that way). We had planned to stay with Stuart's family, but it was a bummer not to see mine on Easter. However, it was probably more of a bummer for them. Sounds like Easter was very quiet at my parent's house.

Easter Sunday was great. After all the bunny and egg fun it is nice to have a day to remember the real reason for Easter. Church was great, Stuart's mom and dad made a scrumptious dinner, I got to take a nap, and we visited with Staurt's brother's family. A wonderful day. Here are some pictures we took of the girls after church.

This is Stuart's favorite--the Charlies Angels pose. I put Alyson's hair in curlers the night before and it turned out REALLY curly.

Here's my little Madelyn (even though she's not that little) She'll be 9 months in a few weeks. They are my sweet, sweet girls. (most of the time)

We were also able to see my sister and her kids and my parents before we came home--makes me happy. It was a fabulous Easter Weekend.

Ms. Madelyn

2007-12-05T21:12:00.000-08:00

This is going to be just a quick post, but I wanted to put a current picture of my little Madelyn on my blog. Hooray! I have my new camera so I am enjoying playing with it. Maddy will be 5 months tomorrow. Shocking! We sure love our smily girl (even though we would love it if she'd learn to sleep better at night:))

Also...keep posted for our fun Disneyland pictures. (I might get to it tomorrow--We'll have to see how the day plays out.)

Girl Problems

2007-11-07T21:18:00.001-08:00

I'm having a few minor problems with my little girlies and am wondering if you have any good suggestions.
First is my little Alyson.

She is very good about brushing her teeth. In fact, if I forget she will remind me. However, I haven't been using toothpaste for quite some time because she eats it. She won't spit it out but swallows it instead. We have practiced spitting water in the sink, but she won't spit the toothpaste out. She just swallows it down. Any suggestions?

Next girl problem: Taylor

One of Taylor's jobs for the past year, if not longer, has been to make her bed in the morning. It's not her favorite thing, by any means, but she does it. Lately, however, she completely refuses to sleep in her sheets. She sleeps on top of the covers with a blanket we keep at the end of her bed. That way she doesn't have to make her bed in the morning. I get complete breakdown, sobbing hysterics if I make her sleep under her covers. I keep thinking if she gets cold she's climb under, but this has been going on well over a week. Should I just leave it alone and figure she'll get over it? I've been trying to do that, but it makes me a little crazy. What do you think?

Whose daughter is this?

2007-11-04T21:56:00.000-08:00

Last Sunday after church we took a quick trip to the Tri-Cities. It was a last minute decision. I wasn't planning to go because it's such a hassle packing everyone up, and it was such a short stay; leave Sunday after church and come home Monday evening. Plus 3 1/2 hours each way with three crazy girls. However, Stuart had just got home from another trip and had only been home for one night. After church, when I thought about him leaving again it made me sad, so I decided we'd all go (Lucky Stuart--He says he likes having us come, and I know he does, but it does add an element of chaos. I would like to point out that I beat him at our"who can get 10 trivia cards first" game. I hardly ever win, so when I do I gloat a little. I'm working on being more gracious.)

In the end I was really glad we went. We saw Staurt's parents, which is always good (they always feed us--LOVE it). We stayed with my parents (because I still get homesick, I know it's pathetic), and I got to spend the afternoon with my sister and her children. Alyssa has three children, Brooklyn, Conner, and Kylie. Brooklyn is the oldest and turns 6 this month, Taylor LOVES Brooklyn and when they get togehter they like to "get wild". On Monday the craziest thing happened. After moving the cows (you know no trip to the Tri-cities is complete without some cow contact), Taylor and Alyson stayed outside with their cousins, Brooklyn and Conner (age 3), and Grandpa. I went in the house, happy the girls were getting fresh air, and were quiet. After a bit my dad came in to report the kids were having fun but getting "really dirty". I'm thinking, "my kids don't get dirty--they don't like dirt" (If Taylor could have her way she would wear a dress every day and only recently tolerates sand; Alyson freaks out if she gets anything on her--water, food, baby spit-up, etc...) So I went to look out the back window and there is Taylor picking up handfuls of dirt and dumping them on HER head. Unbelievable! There is this dirt hill behind my parents house (I should add a sidenote here--My senior year of high school and my summers during college I worked at an agriculture consulting firm--I have many stories I could tell from that job, but the first thing I learned was not to call dirt dirt. The proper name is "soil". I was corrected many a time my first few months. As a result, I usually say soil. Bob would frown at me, but this is definately a dirt hill.) Sorry for the random tangent:)

Anyhow, I couldn't believe my eyes. Alyson was mostly clean and was concerned about having gotten dirt in her shoes, but Taylor and Brooklyn were scooting down the hill (Taylor is, of course, in a skirt), rolling in the dirt, and Taylor was pouring dirt on her own head. It completely caught me off guard. I took pictures of her because I couldn't believe it, and it was pretty funny, but since I still haven't bought a new camera I have resorted to a disposable one. (Again, I know it's pathetic and my goal for the week is to go buy a new camera, I'm just having a tough time deciding which one to buy.) Sooo, I can't share these funny, crazy pictures with you. You'll just have to imagine a filthy little girl in a skirt with so much dirt in her hair you can't even see her scalp. I had to shake her down and strip her down outside, put her straight in the bath and bag up her clothes, shoes, and hairband. I ask, Whose child is this? This isn't the Taylor I know. However, I think I'm probably in for more suprises than just getting filthy dirty. I hope I'm up for it.

Happy Birthday Fu-Fa!

2007-10-16T16:54:00.000-07:00

Today is my younger sister Alyssa's birthday! Happy Birthday to you! (Alyssa is on the left, than me, and then my youngest sister, Emily.) When Taylor was little she couldn't say Alyssa, and somehow came up with Fu-Fa. (I have no idea how she got Fu-Fa out of Alyssa, but I thought it was cute and did all I could to encourage it).

Some quick Alyssa trivia for you:

*Alyssa (and Emily) use to memorize trivia pursuit cards, so she is very hard to beat when we play--She can even get the sports questions.

*Alyssa hates to get up in the morning.

*She was the founder and president of the bridge club in high school.

*Alyssa know everything about history and the US presidents.

*She likes poetry, and her son's middle name is Walter, in hopes he will be a poet.

*My daughter, Taylor's middle name is Marie, the same as Alyssa's, in hopes Taylor will be like her aunt.

*Though she originally wanted to be a lawyer (she likes to argue her point), she got a business degree and works part time for a great company in the Tri-Cities.

*She makes a wonderful apple pie.

*She had two pet guinnea pigs, named Napolean and Napolean's wife's name (whatever that was--I forgot)

*She was on the stardards committee at Ricks.

*Alyssa is an avid reader.

*She has always been a good example of a follower of Christ.

*She is one of my favorite people on the planet and I often call her for advice because she is very smart.

Happy birthday Alyssa! I love you!

(I haven't mailed your present yet, but you'll get it soon:)

Shopping for a new ward!

2007-10-16T15:42:00.000-07:00

Okay everyone, before I continue with this post, let me say we LOVE our ward. It is filled with WONDERFUL people who are truly amazing. They are angels. Last week is a perfect example. I had gotten sick. I had Stuart make one phone call to cancel pre-school (I was suppose to teach the next day), and before I knew it, I had people watching my children for the next two days and bringing me dinners. It was amazing! No, we are not shopping for a new ward--we love our ward. However, this funny thing happened on Sunday that made me laugh.

Stuart has been traveling a lot for work lately. Two Sundays ago he was gone, then we had general conference, and then he had to be gone this last Sunday, again. It makes church a little crazy, but really I only have to survive Sacrament meeting and then I'm fine. (BLess the primary and nursery workers, and Ashley Marshall who always takes Madelyn so I can teach my class). Back to Stuart. This last Sunday Stuart had enough time before his flight to attend the Cascade Park Ward (that meets at 9 am in our building) sacrament meeting so he could get a little church and take the sacrament (He invited me and the girls to go with him, but I thought one sacrament meeting would be PLENTY.) He came home from church and basically had fallen in love with this ward. Actually, mostly it was the activities the ward was doing. THursday night was a debt reduction/budgeting class (Stuart's favorite topic ever--In fact, he still wants me to go because "You take good notes." Whatever!) Friday night the ward had a chili and pie cookoff (If you know Stuart, he is very competitive and also thinks he's a master chef). Saturday morning the stake (That's right, this isn't even our stake) is having a 1mile walk/5-k or 10-k run, which he is really into at the moment. To end the week, Saturday night the ward Elder's quorum was playing dodge ball/ family potluck. Quote Stuart, "I've always wanted to live in a ward that plays dodgeball." I thought the whole thing was pretty funny, but that also meant we got to spend the drive to the airport talking about how if he was ever in our ward he would remember how fun it is, which is such an important part of church anyway (And to help him remember how fun we are I signed him up to be in charge of a booth for the Trunk or Treat activity at the end of the month). Also, we had to talk about if he isn't careful he is going to be the next activities director and will be hating life (at least I would be hating life, but I'm sure there are people who would actually enjoy it--I'm just not one).

I had thought the experience was kind of funny (my mom laughed about it when I told her), so I figured I'd add it to my blog. I sat down Monday to write about it, but got distracted. Then, when I did get back to it, I decided it wasn't as funny as I thought it was and not blog-worthy, so I deleted it, but apparently I didn't delete the title. That, in and of itself, was kind of funny. So to everyone that called or commented, No, we are not really shopping for a new ward. We love our ward and are here to stay. (probably:))

Gentian Violet pictures (But no Bumbo)

2007-10-02T22:23:00.000-07:00

I know I have been so bad about posting. My excuss is I am cameraless at the moment and I love posting pictures. However, on the bright side, I think I found a replacement camera at Costco, so soon I'll be back at it. What I'd really like to post is a cute picture of my little Madelyn sitting in her new Bumbo seat (thank you Karen Hill!) Oh my goodness, I love this thing. If you have a baby between 3 months and 14 months (that's what the box says) you NEED this. Alyson and Taylor also LOVE this and I have to keep telling them NOT to sit in it. (grumble)

However, since I have no cute picture of the Bumbo seat and Ms. Maddy, What I do have is pictures of Madelyn with her dark purple mouth. Shortly after she was born, Madelyn developed Thrush, which is a yeast infection (I think) babies sometimes get in their mouths. It is this white, gucky stuff on their cheeks and tongue. (There is probably a more scientific term, but you get the idea). I took Madelyn to the doctor and she put us on Niostatin. For two weeks we had to use a Q-tip and swab the inside of her mouth four times a day with this stuff. (plus I got to swab my nipples four times a day--probably more info than you wanted to know, but it was mostly awful.) This did NOTHING. We went back to the doctor and got plan B--Gentian Violet. It was soo funny. The doctor starts by saying when I buy this DO NOT get alarmed at the scull and cross bones on the label. (I wish I had a picture for you). Yes, she said, it is toxic if swallowed, but your baby will not be swallowing it. (Are you sure about that?) I just had to use a Q-tip and swab her mouth once a day for three days (and yes, I get to swab my nipples again, too--Love it!). So I'm thinking, Why didn't we start with this, it's so much easier. The doctor when on to explain it will turn everything dark purple and it does not come out. Also, the last piece of advice was not to take my baby out in public because people will freak out. It's now a little clearer as to why this is plan B. However, the scull and cross bones should have tipped me off.

So, off to the store I go, bought the Gentian Violet (scull and cross bones and all) and gave it to

Madelyn. Stuart thought she looked like a Black Mambo snake and was ready to sue the doctor when Madelyn died from poisioning. The damange to her clothes and mine was kept to a minimum, but she wore the same outfit two out of the three days, and could only use one blanket. However, it was worth it. The Gentian Violet worked like a charm. It took a day or so for the purple to wear off, but the Thrush was gone.

Gone, that is, until two weeks later I noticed some white spots on Madelyn's lip again. Sooo, we go three more days with purple mouth and nipples (you're jealous, huh?)

I am hoping the second time does the trick. I guess I should be grateful, though, because Thrush is pretty minor on the list of diseases/sicknesses Maddy could have. And I'm pretty sure purple bras are in fashion.

Will you marry me?

2007-09-18T22:07:00.000-07:00

Today I had one of Taylor's friends, Clark, in the car with us for a little while. It was amusing to me to listen to their conversation. Somehow it came up that some mutual friends, Grace and Braden, where going to "get married". (Were you aware of this, Laurie?:)) Clark asked Taylor who she was going to marry. Taylor responded she was going to marry Clark. Clark thought this was funny and all, but then reminded Taylor HE was going to marry Audry. Taylor then began an active campain, trying to show why she was the better candidate and Clark should abandon his love.

Taylor: But Audry moved, Clark.

Clark: But I could go there for the wedding.

Taylor: Anyway, I think she is going to marry her dad.

Clark: (laughing) No. He's already married, Besides, he's old. He's going to die.

After that, the conversation changed to another topic. I guess Taylor realized you just can't argue with true love. However, she's still on the lookout for somone to marry. (Can't I choose for her? I'm suddenly all for arranged marriages:))

The baby blessing and cattle drive

2007-09-15T21:42:00.000-07:00

I'm a little concerned about starting this blog and am not really sure what I'm doing so I hope you will be patient with me while I work it out. I'm really excited about it, thought. And thank you everyone that has given me suggestions and help.

As of late I have had some camera problems. In fact, at present my camera is at the repair shop (not that I'm grumpy about it or anything. I had a cute picture I wanted to take today:))- But since I brought up the carera issue, What do you think? Should I pay $120 to fix the camera or buy a new one for $220? Because I am cameraless, I'm going to write about my labor day weekend, even though it was two weeks ago. I hope that's allowable.

Over Labor Day weekend we went to the Tri-Cities, where both my husband and I grew up. We also have both sets of grandparents and brothers/sisters/cousins..etc..that are living there. We had decided it would be much easier for everyone if we had our little daughter, Madelyn, given a name and blessing there instead of having everyone come here. It was a hard decision, because we love our ward, (the church we attend), and feel like they are our family, too. In the end it was just easier, and I actually quite love the Tri-Cities, (which are Kennewick, Richland and Pasco) so I was okay with it. Stuart doesn't share my love, which is why we live in Vancouver.

One of my favorite things about going home is taking my girls to visit "the farm". My parents live just outside of Kennewick on a little farm. It's not a full blown farm, and actually my dad is downsizing since he recently retired and my parents are thinking about going on a mission, but he still raises cows and chickens. I love it because that's where we get our beef each year and we always come home with fresh eggs. I also like that my girls get the "farm" experience. Taylor likes helping grandpa with the "farm chores". She followed after Grandpa gathering eggs, feeding the cat, things like that.

Alyson helped me gather yummy grapes--That's more her style.

(I'm sorry the pictures are sideways--I was just happy to get them on the post. I'll figure it out soon:)) My parents neighbors have llamas, and they love baby carrots, so we usually feed them at least once a visit. So far we haven't been spit on. My brother wasn't so fortunate.

On Sunday Madelyn was given her name, Madelyn Jane Robertson, by her father and a blessing. I know it's no shock, but I always cry when my babies are blessed. She cried, too:) Maddy wore the same dress her sisters were blessed in and was wrapped in the shawl I was blessed in. Stuart makes fun of the shawl because it's old and a little yellow (he calls it the holy grail), but I love it. And I loved having family involved and around us all day. It was a great day. Stuart's mom made this amazing dinner.

Monday we had a BBQ picnic at my parents. My parents had invited a bunch of neighbors and it was fun to see families I grew up with. Because there were a fair amount of people, by father decided it would be a good time to "move cows". This is a phrase from my childhood. I'd be lying in bed on Saturday morning enjoying that I didn't have to get up early for school and my dad would come in at the crack of dawn (at least it felt like the crack of dawn) and announce we were going to "move cows". Moving cows involves moving them from one pasture to another. This is all good and fine, but the pastures are usually not connected. In fact, sometimes they are a good ways off. To get the cows where he wanted them to go Dad would station us kids along the way to show them, so to speak, where to go. Basically, when the cows came towards you, you waved your arms and yelled. It works well if there are lots of people, not so well with limited numbers. I've been involved in many "not so well" cow moves. However, sign of relief, this one when without a hitch. And it isn't really a trip to the farm without some cow experience. (In December I was home alone with my girls when I noticed all the cows were out--gotta love it).

I tell Stuart he's lucky he married a "farm girl". His trips would be so boring if all he did was play golf.