Ellie's Thanksgiving Play

Every preschooler has to star in their very own class' Thanksgiving play! Who can go through life without the opportunity to dress as a Pilgrim or Indian and sing and dance for adoring parents?

Ellie had her shot today, and it didn't disappoint! There was a feast made out of foods that started with the first letters of any of their first and last names, and even a middle name to boot!

Their food choices went something like this...mmmmm for mmmmac 'n cheese and mmmmorgan...Eggos and eggs for Ellie....etc.! Seriously cute! And a recipe for a tummy ache I might add!

Then came the performance...lots of smiling, songs with matching hand gestures. Ellie was best with her bowing debut! So funny! Overly dramatic, but very endearing!

We are so grateful for all that we have. It's been a long year...but we have been so blessed. We love you Ellie!

AJ's Championship Day

AJ had a championship football game today!

It was a perfect football day. About 65 degrees on a field nestled behind a Broomfield recreation center with a beautiful view of the mountains. Gorgeous!

Then the game began. Yelling, screaming, play calling and off they went!

The end result was a 35-7 game, in our favor.

I asked AJ what was his favorite play of the game and he spoke of the first kickoff.

The kick was made, the ball was caught. AJ had the player in his sights, but several others had HIM in THEIR sights.

He shed block after block, getting quickly to the ball carrier and took him down on the 5!

It was a great day, a challenging season, and a precious memory of a boy who had to work hard for his position!

Words of Wisdom

Four year olds are brilliant!

Here they are with no formal education. Just listening in on life going on around them. They know how to write their names, but not neccessarily the phonics to sound it out. But they use those little minds and figure it out.

Ellie was in the car the other day with her friend, Emma. They were just having their own little conversation when John and I overheard this:

Emma: "Ellie, do you know why they call them airplanes?"

Emma patiently sits with a huge smile and dimples waiting to see if her sweet friend can muster up the answer.

Emma: "Because they fly in the air and they are planes!" Absolutely brilliant!!

Now Ellie, knowing in her mind that she could play this game thinks....

Ellie: "Emma, do you know why they call them stores?"

Emma, now loving that her little friend has caught on to the wonderful line of questioning, responds, "No, why?"

Ellie: "Because you shop in them!"

They both sit there contemplating their next word. This time something clicks in Ellie's mind and she makes the move to the "compound word" game!

Ellie: "Do you know why they call them swimsuits?"..."Because you swim in them."

Emma smiles this loving look at her counterpart.

They both sit in silence with a look of brillance and wisdom in their eyes.

They both smile whimsical smiles of heaven.

Happy 13th AJ

AJ's 13th!

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"I can't believe I have a teenager!" is I am sure what everyone says, with despair and anticipation for the challenging days with a "teenager" in the home.

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I feel differently.

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I know that it may be somewhat naive of me, but I have been excited at the thought of having my 5 born in eight years, all teenagers at the same time.

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Jr. high and high school were some of my most treasured memories and I can't wait to experience those ups and downs, full of learning experiences all over with my kids!

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This is when they bulk up those testimonies, learn to really pray (especially after that first painful breakup,) start praying about missions and schooling, and of course, start the graying process on their parents!

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The trouble, the pain and the joy wrapped up in a little package called, "teenagers!" Well, here's to our first one....

AJ is still a genuinely happy boy!

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He sees life "half-full," and embraces whatever he is doing. He is sure of himself. The kind of confidence that we pray our children will have without growing their head a little too large! His humility is in turn challenged often, but he takes it in stride.

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He is a true leader. The sort that leads with kindness and by example first.

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He also has learned to express himself a little too clearly. The kind that sound like "sassing" to a mother and father trying to teach the principle at hand. However, nothing gets too out of control for him. He restrains his tongue when he knows that it is the best course of action.

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All in all, AJ is headed toward the tree! The tree whose fruit is desirable above all else, and he is reaping the blessings in his life! We love you AJ! Happy Birthday!He blew out each candle to incur 13 wishes instead of one! Clever boy!
New music for a new time period...Flobots and Fray!!

Always the USC fan!

Our second Sacrament meeting

These photos may not mean anything to anyone reading this other than our children. Ever since Annie came to bless our home, we have had a lot of great help, but there has been one little glitch.

Sacrament meeting.

Every Sunday starts out the same. Everyone gets ready in their Sunday best (which means the easiest thing to iron.), they search for where they put their scriptures last, find a quick bite to eat, and load up in the car waiting to take them to church.

Everything goes very smoothly until...we enter the pew. EVERYONE wants to sit by the baby. EVERYONE wants to be the person who holds her when she stirs. EVERYONE wants to ask, "Am I next?" And on and on....

This is embarrassing. We added a child to our pew who can't even crawl and makes very little noise without prompting, and I feel like I did when I had four little ones aged five and under.

Well, today, dad had had it!

When we got home, John informed them that they would be spending an hour in these seats because of their behavior in sacrament meeting.

I don't think that the kids believed us, because they continued with their nonsense. Everytime they spoke or complained, the time started over. It was a long hour and 57 minutes, but eventually they caught the vision!

Next week Annie gets to sit between dad and I, and no one else gets to touch her.

We'll let you know if the lesson of, "the second Sacrament meeting" worked for us.

Baby Love

I have been getting "tagged" to write about 6 random things. I was just feeding Annie and realized that there was something special that I loved about each one of my newborns, and not one was the same. I scanned old pictures of all the kids (so you have to click on the pic for a close-up), and decided to share each special connection that I felt about each one of the six! Life is about these little things that you will always cherish.

AJ was a beautiful baby! I remember calling my sister, Julie, who lived in Connecticut, and telling her he was beautiful and knowing that that was what EVERY mother probably felt toward her baby. With AJ, he had the sweetest little features and I remember just staring at him and being amazed at his face. He still lights up a room and it brings me back to those days when it was just the two of us!

Madison had the most beautiful blue eyes! When I held her in my arms, I couldn't believe that I had a little girl. Since she was born in June, it was pool time and AJ loved swimming. My favorite thing was to hold Madie relaxing next to the pool, watching her smile as she got splashed from the kids in the pool. What newborn likes to get splashed? She was a doll!

Easton was the cutest little thing with the biggest eyes you have ever seen! When Easton was a baby (7mo) I found out that I was pregnant with Brooke. I was worried that I would miss all the great things Easton would be doing as a baby while caring for two little ones. So everytime that I sat down to nurse him, I just soaked him in. I watched him as he reached up and held my fingers with his little fist. I just prayed that I would be a good mother to all four of them. By looking at him (and lots of prayers), I was at peace when Brooke came to bless our home. I will never forget that year of holding that sweet Easton!

Brooke was our fair-skinned baby. Everyone else was born with a olive skin, but she was a fair as could be. We were living in California at the time, and it was July! So my fondest newborn memories of Brooke were watching her in her swing right by the window as she peacefully slept. She was a content baby and a joy to have. When she arrived, peace filled our home, which is the exact opposite of what you would think with four children under the age of 5!

Ellie was a Colorado baby! She was born in February with snow on the ground and the only brown-eyed girl in our family. My special moments with her came when I would put my face on hers and stare at her profile. Even to this day I can pick her up and hold her close and look at that profile up close and personal. I loved how when I was that close, that it was a little bit blurry and I could feel our connection.

A moment I had nursing Annie this morning is what inspired this blog entry. As I finished feeding her, I looked at her, and then gently put her on my shoulder to burp. As her sweet little body nestled right up to my cheek, I could just smell her sweetness. She has been an answer to prayer for me and many others. How can you not just stop and smell the sweetness?

This is just a fun picture that I can across of my four little ones when Brooke came to join us. Their smiles say it all!

Madie and Ellie's first photo shoot

Today Madison and Ellie decided to play "photo shoot." Madie found her a cute dress, straightened her hair and went to work. They were adorable! Madie took her out front and had her pose all over the yard smiling away! Madie is much more creative than me, and put that creativity to use. She captured some fun photos of Ellie! Enjoy!

These are a couple from last week when she was just getting a feel on the camera.

I have NO idea what Brooke is doing!

The kids LOVED this picture of Ellie because of her hair!

Obama's Mistaken Job Identity

On Tuesday night, we were laying in bed watching history be made.

As we were moved to see Obama give his acceptance speech, Ellie began to cry.

We asked her what was wrong, and she said, "I wanted the other guy."

We asked if she meant John McCain, and she repeated, "No, the OTHER guy."

We couldn't figure out who she meant, then she said, "I love President Monson!"

"Oh Ellie, so do we! President Monson is our Prophet and President of our church. He was chosen by Heavenly Father, not misinformed voters."

Now that, is what I call, "a teaching opportunity!!"