A Summers events-

Well we've been out busy doing fun stuff! We went to Lagoon. The kids had so much fun. I thought that Evie might be too young to enjoy it or that they might be kind of scared, but they LOVED it!

Evie still talks about riding a zebra everyday.

We had a really low key 4th and we just did sparklers at home.


We went with cousins to the dinosaur park.

We went camping by Heber were Asher figured out the purpose of the small door in the tent, and we enjoyed a flat tire, forgotten flashlights and lots of ants! It was still a lot of fun.

We participated in the days of 47 children's parade. Our stake's primary was able to walk in the parade. We all dressed as TV's since the inventor of the TV was LDS. The theme was "catching the vision". Because he had the vision of the TV we are able to watch conference and receive the vision. Let me tell you how glad I am as primary president to have this over with!
We've been really busy with Monday night softball games as well. Here's Brian hitting a home run. I've learned to never be surprised by Brian. We've been married almost 6 years and he casually mentions he likes softball and we should play sometime, so this year when we have an opportunity to play I learned he's not just kinda good, he's the star player! He pulled the same surprise on me a couple years ago when I heard him play the drums, and my brother said he was WAY better than the drummer in his band, and Bri hadn't picked up the drumsticks in 10 years!!!
Anyway, those are our fun events for the summer.

Names

A few names we're considering.

-Leena, (Can you name her Emaline and call her Leena? For some reason this makes sense to me even though the name leena isn't in Emaline)
-Elsa or Ilsa
-Norah
-Hayden
-Paige
-Meda (my g. grandma's name who is my hero. Brian okayed if for a middle name only!)

What a si-wee girl!

Evie has developed into quite a ham. She is a chatterbox! She always is talking whether it's to herself or to anyone that's listening. We moved Asher's bedroom downstairs so I went through all the toys and found her dolls. She's had them for a while but never really liked them. But once I pulled them out she can't get enough. She carries it with her everywhere. The doll has her own special blanket and Evie loves to dress/undress her. She puts her doll to "night night" and gives her hugs and kisses. It's adorable.
She still has the sweetest most loving attributes. The other day we were outside and Asher fell and started crying. Evie went into the house on her own, found his blanket and brought it out to him.  Then later, I was watching a movie with them and started to doze. I kept waking up because blankets were too close to my face. I then realized Evie was putting her special blanket under my nose because that's how she likes to sleep, fingers in mouth and blanket right under her nose.
On a side note, my most favorite word my kids say is "silly". Evie is always calling herself "si-wee VeVe" It's my favorite.

New Bike

So Asher had been asking for a bike, but he really is spoiled, so we decided he was old enough to earn a bike. So we started paying him to do extra chores, his favorite being cleaning the toilet.  We only had him earn money for a few weeks, but he emptied his piggy bank and he chose his favorite.

 I don't know why but it made me SO happy to watch him on his bike. Maybe because I'm realizing how quick he's growing. I remember my first bike and the excitement. Anyway, he was estatic and it makes me so happy to see him happy.

This one is just cute, and no he is not wearing boots!

GIRLS TRIP!

Here are some pictures of my BEAUTIFUL friends for your viewing pleasure.
Viva Las Vegas!
We did all kinds of crazy, (well I guess the definition of crazy has drastically changed in the last 15 years!), I guess a better descriptive word would be silly, (such a parent word), anyway, this is us at the Mac counter in the mall. The poor worker ladies ended up giving most of us makeovers. I don't feel too bad for them since once 6 or 7 board girls wait for a few friends, they end up piddling in the make-up and I'm sure between all of us we spent WAY too much $.
We spent 6 HOURS IN THE SPA! Seriously it was amazing! Naps and all!
I know that I have the most incredible friends in the world. It really says something that we've all stayed close after 15+ years. I look forward to these trips every year. I leave remembering who I am and liking myself, but ready to start being better. Thank you girlies for so much goodness! YOU MEAN THE WORLD TO ME!

He loves her, he loves her not....

Well I think Asher is finally coming around to liking his sister. He FREAKS OUT and screams whenever she is near the road, (I guess this could be just a good excuse to yell at her), but he also now plays with her and the other day he voluntarily held her hand!!! Evie is loving it! She insists he does up her seat belt, puts her shoes on and plays with her toys. It's such a beautiful sight! Could this be a sign of a wonderful friendship forming? One could only hope!

Pre-req's to be in the stake presidency?

Q: How old do you have to be to be in the stake presidency? A: Turns out 30 is old enough. (And if your wondering the new stake president is only 32!)
Q: How many children under 4 can you have? A: Three is apparently not too many. (Again, if your wondering the new stake president has 2 kids under 3! We can hold each others heads and cry Mary!)
Q: Do you have to have served in the bishopric? A: Nope- common misconception.
Q: Are you disqualified if your wife is primary president? A: Again, this is just a minor detail, and can be taken care of quickly.

I know these answers really wouldn't make a difference if someone is called to serve in the stake presidency or not, but when these are your questions, your circumstances suddenly it seems like a big deal.

The last 48 hours have been really crazy and honestly an incredible experience. I know Brian will do really well and this will be a great blessing to our family, but I'm kinda freaking out!

Happpy Mothers Day!

Sorry, so late, but I couldn't let the opportunity pass to mention what a great blessing it is to be a mother. I love my kids so much and can't imagine life without them! Thank you mom for all your help and always be willing to listen to what ever complaint or heart ache I have for the day. Thanks for teaching me how to be a great mom. Thanks Cindy for being the most perfect mother-in-law ever. You are so involved in the kids life. They truly love grandma Kris and Nana endlessly.

Call Heavenly Father!

When we first started asking Asher if he wanted a baby brother or sister he told us he wanted a baby sister that was a boy. He's since changed his mind and insists the baby is a boy. He talks about toys they'll play with and that there will be 3 boys and 2 girls. He's even named the brother Nemo. Well we went and had the Ultrasound yesterday and it's a GIRL!!! All of us are so excited, well except Asher obviously. He started yelling, NO- I DON'T want another girl! Then on the way home he asked us if we called Heavenly Father. We asked him why and he told us we needed to call Him and tell him that he didn't want a sister and to only send a brother. A little late for that prayer. Anyway, I hope he warms up to the idea pretty quick. He still won't allow Evie to touch him so we'll see....
We're super excited! The baby had hiccups during the U/S and she was wiggling like crazy. She kept moving her arms around and opening and closing her fists, kicking up and down, just wiggling. It's so fun to see them inside moving and alive.
Now we just have to come up with a name...

How much testosterone could a 3 yr old really have?

I'm telling you Asher has more hormones than a 14 yr old boy. When we go to the store we always have to pull him away from the manikins, often touching their legs, and anytime he sees a pretty girl on TV he raises his eyebrows up and down like huba-huba. Anyway I checked out a couple movies from the library, 3 for the kids and one for me. Out of those movies he clings to my movie and is just staring at the girls on the cover. Brian asked which girl was his favorite and he told us right away it was the blond.... should I be scared?

Coming Up!!!

Hooray!!! Our annual girls trip is all booked and I can't wait! Less than a month to go! I think this will be the first year all 8 of us will be there and I'm sooo excited!

I didn't die!

First of all I have to say that if you're really tough and are super outdoorsy and exercise regularly you're not allowed to make a comment on this post.
Well, Jason and his girlfriend Alisa and Brian and I went backpacking this weekend to Canyonlands. I was under the impression it would be a nice flat walk for about a mile then we could set up camp and go on other short walks, and stop when ever we were tired. This was really important to me since #1 I'm so out of shape and #2 pregnancy is exhausting! Well when we pulled up to start our hike and I put my 35 pound pack on, I was told five or six miles to camp, my eyes immediately welled with tears. I knew I couldn't do it, I can hardly take a shower without sitting down during this stage of pregnancy, but I was already there and everyone was ready to go. Brian kept insisted we just didn't go, but I decided to quit thinking about it and put one foot in front of the other. After we hit the 5 mile mark there was a sign that said 2.7 miles to go. Are you freaking kidding me! We hiked for 8 hours taking maybe 4 fifteen minute breaks. The most ironic part was when we finally made it to camp, a truck drove by.  I was so mad.  We could've driven there!  I get going on a hike just for hikings sake, but if I'm going to kill myself I better end somewhere I wouldn't be able to see unless by foot!  After we set up camp all I could think is this is what rigamortis must feel like!  Anyway, I insisted on the way out we walk the road rather than the trail, since this was 3 miles shorter.  Brian hiked the last 3 miles to get the car and come pick us up. The last day we did a 3 mile hike and called it a weekend. I've decided backpacking isn't my thing, but it was beautiful and I am so dang proud of myself!

I hide my feelings well don't you think?

Our beautiful camp, Devils Kitchen

The four of us

Corona Arch

Flowrider

Well it was my sister's Katee's birthday and she wanted to go to the flowrider in Ogden. It's an indoor surf/bodyboard place. So Brian, Kate and her boyfriend Travis and myself enjoyed an hour of craziness. I didn't dare surf, the bodyboard was enough for me. I really couldn't believe how powerful it was. It really was so fun. I may be getting older but I was in the water while none of my other YOUNGER siblings would do it!  See, I'm tough!  I love that Brian and I are the same in that way:)

WELCOME HOME!!!

Toff is home from Iraq! He came home last weekend and it's great to have him back. It was great to see him and mostly to have him out of all the danger. It was also a great weekend because my dad was able to make it from North Dakota for his return. Family is the greatest and I love all the time I can spend with them.

Grandpa Kelly and grandkids

Grandma Kris and grandkids

Spoke too soon!

Please refer to the post on Jan 19 and change a few words. "Am not ready" needs to be changed to "guess I'm ready," And I would also like to change my statement of "my favorite" since I obviously wasn't remembering the 1st weeks, oh it's not fun at all! Anyway, this is the surprise of the year and we're trying to adjust to the new plan. The funniest thing is that when I posted the previous post I was already in my, um... current condition, just didn't know. I guess that's God trying to get me to warm up to the idea! After the initial shock has worn off we've had a chance to get more excited. Guess we'll start looking for a minivan!

Plug for Rachel!

I had Rachel take some pictures of Evie a few months ago and thought I would share her talent, and of course show off cute Eves.

Happy St Patrick's Day

Asher just started drawing people and it's my absolute favorite! This leprechaun is wearing a big hat and a four leaf clover on his chest. I can't figure out how to rotate this picture so just turn your head!

Tub time fun!

I figured out this great assembly line, where if I can get the kids to lay next to one another I can go straight from one kids face to the next, one set of hands to the next, ect. Much easier than chasing the kids around the tub trying to grab body parts as they fly by. Asher has given the thumbs up so maybe this system will work!

Viva Las Vegas!

My sister Klare her husband Dan, and Brian and I went on a get away to Vegas. We found a super cheap flight and 3 nights stay, so decided it was a great chance to get away from the kids and take a break. So off we went to the smoke filled, thong wearing, brightly lit, casino infested city. It is not my favorite place, but it was a fun break. We are so cheap we went to two time share presentations to get free dinner and show tickets. Should I be embarrassed? Hey a few hours of saying "yes, they are beautiful, yes we probably would use them, but no thanks" for $100 at Beni Hana's, tickets to the top of the Stratosphere, another dinner and two different shows was time well spent! It was a blast and I think our kids had fun too. Asher is so into scheduling, so if you want to know where they played and how many nights they stayed at each persons house, just ask and he'll inform you. Thanks Robyn, Katee, Mandy and Tawny. What a kid shuffling 4 days!

Their relationship

This picture defines their relationship perfectly. Evie is all over Asher and Asher just goes through the motions to make us happy. Compared to how they used to be, they are BFF!

My Favorite

I'm so not ready for another baby, but I really loved being pregnant and the birthing process. How fun to meet your beautiful new babe for the first time. I just found this picture and it makes me so happy, although I look huge!

Evie

Evie is getting so big! She started nursery and Asher is now in sunbeams with me. The nursery leader commented on how opposite they are, and it’s true. She is just content and quiet and independent. She won’t really talk. I’ve noticed a few attempts. Like when she wants to brush her teeth she says “shh” for brush, and the other day I heard “goo” when geese where flying over our house.  She just learned how to jump. She loves it. She just bounces until she finally lifts her feet off the ground. She is in love with Baby Einstein. But it has to be the one with all the animals. She knows all the animal sounds and would watch it over and over if I’d let her. She has the greatest cheese smile whenever I tell her to look at me, even if it’s just to clean her face.
She just got her first haircut! Kristi did a beautiful job! It's an adorable bob. I don't have very good after pictures so you'll just have to believe me!

She also loves to read. She'd rather look at a book than play with any toy.

She is our adorable girl!

Asher

He’s the cutest boy “I’ve never seen!” This is how he expresses when things are really great. He still has the strongest personality ever! He insists on wearing my boots. They go up to his knees and he wears them EVERYWHERE! I finally ended up buying new boots for myself because they are so stinky and gross! This is only part of his permanent wardrobe. He will only wear 3 specific shirts. Nothing important about these shirts, they’re just the ones he wants. So he has a full closet of things he won’t even try on. He also will only wear shorts. I have to convince him to put pants on whenever we leave the house. It is very cute to only see about an inch of leg between his boots and his shorts, but it’s just not the season for his new trend. On the rare occasion he will put underwear on, he still insists they’re backwards. He wears gloves all day long- and why shouldn't’t he, he’s probably freezing with his shorts and t-shirt.  It’s awesome! He loves chicken. Everything good is "like chicken". A few months ago, before the boot obsession obviously, he was trying on shoes at the store and I asked him how they felt, and he replied, "feels like chicken".  I knew he loved them.  He is currently obsessed with garbage cans. Every where he goes he wants to know if they have a garbage can and what color it is and if it has wheels (?).
We built a snowman the other day. He put an extra glob of snow on the snowman's chest. I asked if that was his heart and he informed me it was not, but another part of the anatomy. He was quite upset when I wouldn't let him finish adding parts to this, apparently transgender snowman.
He also occasionally has an imaginary pet chicken. He likes me to invite the "little yellow chicken" to dinner and ask if he wants pajamas on. He's defiantly not lacking personality.

Happy belated....

Okay, I missed Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years. I didn't even send Christmas cards this year! So let me just give glimpses of the holidays.

Halloween was great. Evie was a beautiful fairy/ ballerina, (I don't know what she really was just a tutu and wings, whatever that adds up to), and Asher was the meanest pirate ever. Thanksgiving was terrific. Kiel came from Oregon and we split the day between Cindy's and Klare's. I wish all my family could've been here. Maybe another year.
Christmas was so fun. The kids are such a great age for the excitement of Santa. All Asher wanted was a "way big gun to shoot bugs and monsters." So when Asher woke up he saw all the gifts then said oh-no and ran to the front door. He poked his head out and said "Maybe Santa had to go to everybody else's house and then will come back and give me a way big gun." Once he found his way big gun, he picked it up shot it a few times, and hasn't really picked it up since. I don't know if he imagined it so much better or if it was just the idea of the gun he like, but he doesn't really care about it and hasn't asked for a different one. Evie loved her princess slippers and wants to wear them always. It was a great Christmas! Our camera is broken... again, so I don't have any pictures of Christmas- way sad.

Asher...

I know I've been blogging about Asher a lot, but he is doing the funniest things lately! He has a few favorite things to pretend. He wants to be a mailman. He has this certain bag he carries around delivering mail. One day it was quiet so I started looking for Asher. He was down the street delivering mail!
Next, he loves to be a pirate. We got him pirate accessories for Halloween and he couldn't wait to open it. He now wears his pirate hat, eye patch, earring, and hook all the time. The best is he's sometimes a pirate doggy! Anyway sometimes he only wears part of his costume. That's when this picture was taken. Remember when this was cool? Earrings and a backward hat.
One day he was in full Pirate attire and was in the driveway singing "yo ho, a pirates life for me". The neighbor came out to talk to the pirate and asked if he was Jack Sparrow. Asher replied, "no I'm Johnny Cash!"
Which brings us to the next phase.  Because he loves to "jam out", Brian thought that Johnny Cash would be perfect jamming music, so we turned it on for him. He sat and listened to the entire album 3 times! So of course he can sing a few songs with no help. Brian's brother, Uncle Rico, (Brian thought it would be a fun nick name and it has stuck!) Anyway, Tyler asked if he knew Johnny Cash and Asher said, "Don't take your guns to town Bill, leave your guns at home." This is a line from one of his songs, I wouldn't have known that if it wasn't regularly playing at our house. He can really belt out Ring of Fire.
Asher's favorite place to jam out is in the car. The only music we can listen to in the car is Jack Johnson, so I'm quite in love with it- sarcasm-.   Anyway Asher keeps a pink ukulele in the car so he can jam out every time we're in the car.
This pretty much sums up Asher's imagination right now. I'll keep you posted.