The Five Little Monkeys

You better get in bed...

2011-12-24T22:11:00.000-07:00

...or Santa will not come and leave you a present!

Claire: That's okay. We have lots of presents down there.

Me: Okay then I will start taking those presents away!

- did not see her the rest of the night!

Fast Sunday...

2011-12-24T22:08:00.000-07:00

Benjamin: Will you make pancakes for breakfast?
Me: No, it is Fast Sunday.
Benjamin: Oh, I know what you are talking about. It is when we only go to church for a little while.
Me: No, it is when we do not eat and then give the money we would have use to eat to those in need.
Benjamin: That is not FAST.

Sometimes having a literal thinking child is too funny!

Cursive...

2011-10-17T12:03:00.002-06:00

After signing Aubrey's homework she exclaimed, "What is that?" Cursive I stated. Aubrey - Oh, they only let us write in English at school.

She is just acting...

2011-08-14T15:45:00.000-06:00

Just so you know... Ariel is just acting. She cannot really change into a human. She is a mermaid. That is what actors do. - Aubrey

I love you...

2011-08-08T09:23:00.000-06:00

more than WINDOWS! - Julia to Mom

Why do you not sleep with your shoes on?

2011-04-21T06:42:00.000-06:00

After getting Benjamin's new shoes last night. He asked me why people did not wear shoes to bed. I told him that shoes were usually dirty and you do not want to get your bed dirty. So he made me carry him in from the van to the house so he would not get the new shoes dirty. And he did sleep with them on all night! He must like them.

I remember this...

2011-03-21T10:30:00.000-06:00

I little while ago I cleaned out the girls closet. Aubrey was going through the pile I was getting rid of. She keep holding things up and saying... " I remember this... when I was 4, when we were at Grandma's, and such." Well one of the shirts she held up and said, " I remember this shirt, it was when you didn't yell at us!" After I got over the shock of what she just said. I told her, "Oh, I remember that too. It was when you use to listen to me. Maybe we should both try harder."

Thanks, Aubrey, for calling me out on that!

Trash...

2011-03-04T08:04:00.000-07:00

Julia - with her hand stretched out with trash in it - "Here.."

Aubrey - "I am not a mom!" - and refused to take the trash.

I am afraid of what Aubrey's opinion of what a MOM is. Nose wiping, trash taking, laundry doing, food cooking... but she is leaving out the hug catcher, kiss getting and the kid snuggler. I will admit that sometime I forget and leave those out also.

updating our blog: Lets just jump right in!

2010-11-11T20:31:00.000-07:00

This summer I went Sky Diving in KY. With all the on lookers below I flew above and screamed like a little girl!

Dad is scared...

2010-11-11T19:58:00.001-07:00

Apparently Dan is scared of pumpkins! Thanks for letting us know Benjamin!

My new Mom...

2010-08-17T20:11:00.000-06:00

Claire just told me she likes her teacher SO much that she wants her to be her Mom. What am I chopped liver?

WE CAN GET A DOG...

2010-08-04T20:03:00.000-06:00

This is what Benjamin declared after finding this in a magazine of some sorts.

I guess I am going to have to come up with some other reason for no pets. The whole pee on the floor has been solved! They are getting a little to smart for me. ( I know it don't take much)

Zachary is sick...

2010-05-24T21:18:00.001-06:00

So Zachary has been sick today. Aubrey has declared that she is allergic to throwup. I said, "I think I am too!" I will spare you with the pictures.

Don't leave it where he can get it...

2010-05-12T09:34:00.001-06:00

I don't know how many times I say this a day. And this is the result of them not listening to me.

Thanks, guys!
He is pretty cute though.

Is this stealing?

2010-05-11T11:30:00.001-06:00

What do these have in common?

These are all things that I left with from the grocery store!
Yes, they paid me to take all those items! Awesome, Right!

Here is the proof! Saved 105%

Listening Points!

2010-05-06T08:47:00.001-06:00

One of the BEST things that I have come up with. My kids LOVE points. So if they "Listen" to me the first time I ask them to do something they get a point. You would think that I was handing out money or candy or something really really great. Benjamin even turned down a cookie after dinner last night for a "point". We have been doing this for about a week with no way of charting the "points". So after a couple of minutes on Excel. They now have a chart. And it is nothing short of a miracle. Let's see how long I can ride this wave.

Here is the chart.

Here are the stickers.

Here is what they do when you put them together. Yes two of my point hunger children emptied and put away all of the dishes. For a point each. Cheap labor.

Derby Time...

2010-05-03T09:31:00.000-06:00

I just went on a fun trip to the Kentucky Derby. I know who would have thought that was something I would want to do. Well I had a great time. It was a girl cousin get together. My in-laws put the whole thing together. There were three of Dan's cousins that came up from Tennessee and I came over from Denver to Louisville where my in-laws live. Friday was beautiful weather. Saturday not so much. It rained all day. So we opted to play dress up, take pictures and then go to the Derby in Jeans and ponchos!

We are still here...

2010-05-03T08:48:00.002-06:00

I know it has been a long time since I've posted anything. I have indeed finished the Easter dresses and several other projects and trips. Here are a few pictures of our goings-on's.

Going to the park!

Making treats!

Eating treats!

Going to the Zoo!

We went to the zoo with two of my good friends and their kiddos. All together we had 3 moms and 11 kids! We were the the side show!

We had a great time! And we are looking forward to many more trips to the zoo!

Then we ventured out to a park were we tried to fly kites and had our face painted.

Benjamin is also trying to Rollerblade.

That is about it for now.

The problem...

2010-03-30T09:52:00.000-06:00

The problem with making THREE Easter dresses is that by the time you finish one you want to move on to another project.

Aubrey's Art

2010-03-25T08:25:00.002-06:00

This is apparently a picture of me (Amie) and Aubrey who has turned into a pony. Don't you just love the way my eye's sparkle?
P.S. Grandma, Aubrey would like a call from you about this picture. Her request not mine.

Where did this hair come from...

2010-03-15T10:40:00.000-06:00

Just found hair all over the family room floor! When I was inspecting everyone's hair to find out who's it was. (pretty much ruled out Julia, Benjamin, and Zachary. Not blond and way too long for the boys.) Found out it was Aubrey's. Asked her why she cut her hair.
"But Mom I didn't do it Benjamin did."
"Why did you let him? "
"I don't know... he's bigger than me?"
"So was he sitting on you?"
"No."
"Was he holding you down?"
"No."
Not sure that was the best defense.

Randomness...

2010-02-26T12:46:00.004-07:00

What pray tell do these two things have in common?

They are two of my FAV things!

Since I do not have a Costco membership. My friend Leah picked them up for me yesterday! What a true friend! Thanks again, Leah!

Isn't he charming?

Love the shoes. Love the glasses.
And who couldn't love that smile?

The simple joys in life...

2010-02-25T07:18:00.000-07:00

Isn't it great when turning on and off a light can make you laugh out loud? And also your almost 5 year old sister...

If only mom could stand at the light switch all day!

Laundry...

2010-02-22T04:54:00.000-07:00

This is how I feel most days. Well, with the exception of when my mother is here. Anyone else feel this way?

Slinky gone bad...

2010-02-19T08:44:00.000-07:00

Not really sure what happened here but... it was not pretty!

It looks like Benjamin was an assistant with the wreckage.

We were able to recover the slinky and the hair. All is well!

Who bit you?!?

2010-02-18T08:06:00.000-07:00

The other night we were out very late grocery shopping with all the kids. When all of the sudden Julia starts screaming hysterically!

"What happened?" I asked her.

She mumbles something that ended in BIT. (You other parents know the kind of talk where you only get one word of the whole sentence.)

I said Benjamin BIT you? (He was the one closest)

She quickly replied, "NO, I BIT Julia!"

"You bit yourself?"

"YES".

Our little mother Aubrey jumped right in. "It's okay, Julia. I bit myself and it got better."

Julia, "It's not getting better"

Aubrey, "It will. You might have to wait until tomorrow."

By this time I was laughing so hard.

And maybe this is only the kind of story that is funny after a long day with the kids and then you decide to take them all grocery shopping because you have spent valuable time clipping coupons and it is the last day of the sale and THEN you have some kind of brake down and think they were so good let's go to "Old McDonalds".

Sorry there were no pictures. She did not want to "recreate" the incident. I don't blame her.

How do they crack your belly open to get the baby out?

2010-01-12T16:01:00.001-07:00

This was the question that Aubrey asked me when we were cleaning dinner up last night. I told her in a brief description how babies come out. And that is how Benjamin came. Then I told her how sometimes mommies have to have a little cut for the baby to come out. And that is how Claire and her were born. She of course wanted to see my cut. So I showed her. Now she claims that she is only going to have one baby. I guess that the cutting thing did not appeal to her. Well guess what it didn't me either!

PS Just to confirm any questions. No we are not having another baby. I do not know where she came up with this subject! But it was not from us.

SANTA!

2009-12-17T09:19:00.001-07:00

We meet some friends at the mall yesterday. I told the kids that we were going to see Santa. So we all got ready and left in a hurry so that we could be back for school. So I pull up to the mall and tell them we are here and we needed to hurry so that we could see our friends and Santa and get back before the bus left the girls. Claire took one look around and declared that we were not at the North Pole so there was no way Santa would be here. Then refused to get out of the car. Of course I did not let here miss this moment to etch in history. (that and I did not want to be arrested for leaving her in the car)

Claire would not be in the picture unless I was. Thank you for including me Claire. I felt so loved by the time this history event was over.

What do you do when...

2009-12-01T10:33:00.002-07:00

...your daughter drops the sacrament tray and the bread goes everywhere?

Jen don't look...

2009-11-24T19:22:00.001-07:00

I just made this dress for my friend Jen's daughter.

I just could not help but post it before I send it to her.

I made the girls Christmas dress from this same pattern. I will post those soon.

Jen, if you are reading this, sorry to ruin the surprise.

Benjamin is thankful for...

2009-11-23T15:50:00.005-07:00

FAMILY!

Do you notice that Grandma made the family portrait,
but Julia and Zachary did not?
(she has always been his favorite)

Claire was quick to point out that Zachary would fit between Benjamin and Aubrey. Julia would fit next to Grandma.

I am just grateful that he was thankful for family and not something like video games or candy.
I am blessed!

We spent a weekend in the mountains of Breckenridge!

2009-11-18T20:11:00.004-07:00

Let the adventure began!

View from our Condo, not bad!

Out hiking.

Claire's courageous climb next to the old mine.

Amie and Aubrey checking out the waterfall.

I've said it before... this is God's Country!

I need to find a new hiding spot.

2009-11-11T21:41:00.001-07:00

So, my Mom got a FurReal cat for Aubrey (don't tell her) for Christmas. The cat is probably going to be the closest thing my kids get to a pet for a long time. Anyways, it make real cat sounds and moves like a cat. It is really "real" looking. It is hiding in my sewing room closet.

It is wrapped in two or three layers of plastic. Indiscernible to the naked eye. But when it comes to light this cat can tell the difference. When you turn the lights off it will meow. I have known this for a while now. But it is only today that the kids have heard it.

Benjamin has been playing his playstation in my sewing room. Tonight I went in and without thinking told him, "you do not need the light on". And then it happened. "MEOW".

Benjamin, "what was that?".

Me, "what I did not hear anything".

Benjamin, "something went in my ear and I heard a meow. I think there is a cat in here".

Me, "let's turn the light on and see".

Benjamin, "oh, there is no cat".

Then he proceeds to turn the light off and play his game.

Cat, "MEOW"

Benjamin, "there was that sound in my ear that told my thinking brain that there is a cat in the closet."

(and yes he said it just like that)

Me, "well tell me if you see it".

Benjamin, "I will because it will poop in here".

(I do want to thank him for his concern)

So, I thought it was over. Oh no, it was not. While I was relaying the story to my friend on the phone. I over hear Benjamin telling the girls, "come here. There is a cat in Mommy's sewing room."

Great now everyone in involved!

I must go and intervene. I go upstairs to find them flashing the lights on and off to try and persuade the cat out of it's hiding spot. To no avail the cat, of course, did not come out. So I quickly usher everyone back to bed.

As Julia goes into her room she looks back at me and says very quietly, "Shhh, kitty sleeping."

(so so cute)

Now, I am off to find a new sleeping spot for kitty. Before morning comes.

Pumpkin Pan

2009-11-04T12:38:00.000-07:00

Just went to Wal-Mart.

Found the best deal on 75% clearance

Only $3.25!

I think it will work for more than just Halloween.

If you can not tell I am very excited about this find.

Can't Leave 'em Alone

2009-10-29T17:25:00.003-06:00

So, while I was doing some cleaning. Yeah, yeah I know it is hard to believe that I was cleaning, but I digress. Claire decided to wear - play - DESTROY- my glasses. I don't know they aren't so bad.

What do you think?

While I was trying to bend them back the glasses snapped! Thanks, Claire. You may be getting a new pair of glasses for Christmas.

Is somebody in there?

2009-10-28T08:24:00.001-06:00

So the other day I could hear Zachary crying, but it took a while to find him. He would start and stop off and on. And the other kids were not any help. They said they had not seen him. Well they lied. They had built him a house and knew they would be in trouble. Here are some pic of the house they built for him.

Where are the windows? Could someone possible be in there?

HELP ME !

Zachary if you survive your siblings it will be a true miracle!

First Haircut!

2009-10-27T08:41:00.014-06:00

Aunt Hanna was recently in town and gave Zach his first haircut!

Here is the mop head!

Not to sure about all this.

Dad seems pretty calm about it.

You did not tell me I could have a SUCKER!

And MILK?

I think it Hanna did a great job.

Now he looks more like a little boy

instead of my baby.

(And NO this does not mean that we are going have another baby.)

(Just trying to divert any questioning.)

Let it SNOW!

2009-10-26T10:33:00.005-06:00

It snowed yesterday!

Julia thought it was tasty! (good thing it was not yellow)

Let the snowballs fights begin!

Benjamin wanted to get me when I answered the door...

too bad I am smarter than that!

We finished the fun with pretzels and hot chocolate!

What a cool mom these kids have!

Pumpkin Picking Pleasures!

2009-10-16T20:29:00.002-06:00

Everyone had a great time picking out their pumpkin, going through the mazes, petting the animals and climbing the haystacks. Its official now... fall is here.

Trip to Naples Florida

2009-10-15T20:10:00.001-06:00

At the Hotel

Last Month, Amie and I went for an all paid three day trip to Naples Florida. It was really a great vacation. We took long walks on the beach, and spent a day (full day... we opened the park and closed the park) at Busch Gardens, and ate until our heart was content... then ate a little more.

Where's the beef?!

Right before our first roller coaster ride... one of 12 rides on this roller coaster alone!!

Photo of a photo... good times at 4.5 Gs.

Another shot of our hotel lobby.

Pancakes anyone?

2009-10-15T09:51:00.005-06:00

This morning I let the kids make pancakes.
(with supervision)

Four-grain pancakes! Yum!

Claire thought that the counter was the better helping spot.

Aubrey wanted to help with Claire.

Dig in!

I think that everyone had a great breakfast!

Why do we have tongues?

2009-10-06T19:41:00.002-06:00

Aubrey: "Why do we have tongues?"

Claire: "To lick ice cream cones, duh!"

Laundry and Thoughts...

2009-10-06T00:53:00.002-06:00

As I am still up doing the hundredth load of laundry... I am lost in thought. How can we all get along? What makes us think and say mean things to each other? I know that confrontation is in this world, but why does it have to be among family and friends? Nothing earth shattering has happened to me. I just wish that there were a little more love. Me included. So do me a favor (and I am going to do this too) next time you chance to meet a frown, turn it upside down. Do your part to make this world a better place. I know we all can do it. Now on to the next load...

Sweet Slumber!

2009-10-02T06:11:00.003-06:00

This is what I found yesterday after dropping Benjamin and the girls off for school. They both stayed asleep until it was time to pick them up also!

I was able to make my neighbor dinner and make a baby gift for her.

Also talk to my friend Leah for almost 2 hours on the phone.

Nothing like multitasking and nothing like a great afternoon!

P.S. I did not leave them in the stroller the whole afternoon. Thanks, Mom, for your concern.

Something does not look right?

2009-10-01T05:51:00.001-06:00

When we were looking for Aubrey's shoes yesterday we could not find one of them.

I wonder why?

Then we found one of Claire's. Wait she already had her shoes on. And then the mystery was solved...

I think we got our money's worth!

2009-09-30T08:53:00.002-06:00

Yesterday after school. I decided to mow the grass. While I was doing that. Claire found the apples I had purchased earlier that day. And proceeded to eat it. When she was done this is all that she had left.

And it was no little apple.

Next, she wanted another.

At least they are good for you!

Umm... What Happened to My Cake?!?

2009-09-27T15:56:00.003-06:00

I guess I cannot leave the kitchen while baking a cake... even to update Facebook.

They (Benjamin and Claire) were very hungry. Mostly for cake...

But they told me they were VERY sorry!

(in the most dramatic voice they could muster)

After it was frosted no one could tell.

Grandma's Panties

2009-09-26T02:47:00.002-06:00

I will spare you a picture of this one. Aubrey the other day, while she was getting dressed, was running around saying. I love wearing Grandma's panties. I was like what are you talking about? Then I figured out that she was talking about the panties that Grandma had given them on her last trip here. Something you don't hear everyday. "I love wearing Grandma's panties!" at the top of someone's lungs! I just hope the windows were not opened. I am afraid what the neighbors think of us already. What a funny girl!

If you don't have a shot, don't take it...

2009-09-24T09:48:00.001-06:00

Some times we save a trip downstairs, by throwing diapers at the trash can from upstairs. Today it did not save a trip or time.

The diaper hit the chair and EXPLODED!

EVERYWHERE!

I was just glad that it did not have a present inside!

Hope you have an EXPLOSIVE day!

I already am!

Eggs anyone?

2009-09-17T08:34:00.000-06:00

The kids have leaned how to make bird nests and eggs with playdoh. Their friend Brinley was over for a fun play-date. They want her to come over everyday. They have so much fun playing with her. The reason that Aubrey is not pictured is that she is off drawing pictures for Brinley so she can remember coming over.

Subtle hints...

2009-09-15T05:24:00.009-06:00

So I found this in the food storage area of the basement. I was what is this? Why is there a smiley face on the cereal? Then I looked at it closer. Benjamin has left me some clues on what he likes and does not like!Apparently he is not a fan of the bananas or the nuts.

But likes the flakes. Thanks for letting me know Benjamin. I will keep theses in mind when I go grocery shopping. Got love this guy so so funny!

Finally some of the painting we have been doing!

2009-09-15T04:26:00.017-06:00

So here are some of the painting projects we have been up to! We are by no means finished! With the painting or the decorating! This is just the start. This first one is the art niche over the fireplace. And yes I know that the picture need to be updated. And for all you funny people out there no we did not change Zachary's name to Chelsea. And no he is not really a flower.
My friend Amy Farnsworth is going to take the replacement pictures. I think that they will be amazing!
This one is in the dining room when you first walk in the house. The colors are Cappuccino and Garnet from Restoration Hardware. LOVE their paint!
This is also in the dining room. This is the fabric for the curtains.
This one is a hallway between the dining and the kitchen. I will be adding more to it than just this shelf, but for now this is what I have. The paint is chocolate from RH.
Here is going up the stairs. The paint is Cappuccino.
Here is the study that is off of the family room. The paint is Flax again from RH.
Another view of the study. We also painted the powder room in Flax.
Here is the kitchen. I am proposing Saffron from RH in here. We are trying to find the same tile that is around the fireplace to do as a back-splash.
Another view of the kitchen. We have not painted the living room or any of the rooms upstairs. Let us know what you thing! People I want to see comments here.

Did you know we have bones?

2009-09-11T09:47:00.003-06:00

Aubrey just came up to me and asked if I knew we had bones. And that she drew me a picture to show me the bones. Thanks for the Osteology lesson!

If the inventer of Spot Shot is out there...

2009-09-11T09:26:00.004-06:00

If the inverter of Spot Shot is out there we would like to shake your hand! Last night I was telling Dan about everything I do in a day. Yesterday it just happened to be getting grape jelly out of the new carpet! Spot Shot got it out with ease! It is the best carpet cleaner out there. So, this is a public thank you to the inventor and makers of SPOT SHOT! (sorry there is no pictures of the named jelly and carpet incident. I could recreate it but... I am sure there will more opportunities to prove the true miracle of Spot Shot in the near future.) I did just find a screaming deal at Sam's Club. Two large cans of Spot Shot for just $3.21! I was very tempted to buy all they had, but settled on all I could carry to the basket.

The littlest monkey is now 1!

2009-09-09T09:23:00.009-06:00

So. we finally celebrated Zachary's birthday last night. We had a small gathering over for dinner and cupcakes. As you can see from the pictures he thoroughly loved the cupcakes!
I cannot believe that my baby is one!

The First Day of School

2009-09-03T07:48:00.005-06:00

So, I think that I can post about this now. We had quite a traumatic first day of school. It was Aug 24th. So on Aug 23rd I decided that I was going to had a Boo-Hoo or Woo-Hoo luncheon. To make a long story short I did not have the ingredients for what I needed to make for the luncheon, so off to Sam's we went Monday morning. Yes, just hours before school. I can do it all right? So, we get home with just an hour for me to clean the house and make the food and oh get the kids to school.

We headed off to for the girls to catch the school bus. The bus is suppose to come at 12:07 (Yes, that is the time they told me.) I am thinking they have it down to the min. They are good. I cannot get anything down to the minute when kids are involved! Well, we found out they can't either. So we waited for a good 20 mins. Then I snapped this picture and decided I needed to take things into my own control. Told the kids to run home and get in the van, because we could not wait any longer or Benjamin would be late for school. Yes, to add a little excitement in my life the girls go to a different school than Benjamin. They are bused to an elementary that has Preschool. The one down the street does not have Preschool.

So back to the story... Run kids run. Then right before we get down the street to Benjamin's school, Benjamin decides that he needs milk. He is not giving in. Oh, I forgot to mention that I was suppose to meet the Special Ed director to sign some papers at 12:15 well we are way past that. So I call her and tell her to meet us at the kindergarten door. Which she is outside waiting for us when we get there. And Benjamin and his milk obsession. She goes in to get him some milk from the cafeteria (and please do not "help" him by getting chocolate milk that would put him at a whole new level). She is now his new hero.

Now, the girls are going to be late if we do not hurry. So we leave Benjamin with Miss Lauren to wait the few minutes till school starts. Then we rush off to Henderson Elementary for the girls. Only to find out the only way I know how to get there the road is closed. Well, I am going to go around it. Yeah no. The whole road has been covered in a pile of gravel and I forgot the 4X4 van at home. So now what do I do? It is 12:40 their school starts at 12:45 and a dozen people are going to be at my house at 1 o'clock! So I find a different way! Yes, I made it in time. My poor kids. I ditched them too. I did not have time to be sucked into the whole first day of school sob story. I need to party!

So, I get back home and the party goes great! I meet a lot of great people. They food turned out great. Then all of the sudden could it be time to pick them up? Already? So we start the pick up process. Load the two kids that are still at home up and head over to the school to get Benjamin. The good news is that he had a good day! Then, off to the park to wait for the bus for the girls. And wait and wait and wait. After 50 mins. I run home to call transportation. My friend Amy stays at the park with my kids and her kids, just in-case the bus comes. Only to find out when I get home there are three messages from the school. The girls are at the school. What? They were not sure if they should put them on the bus! So this whole time they have been waiting for me to pick them up. What did I say to give them that impression? Oh well, off to the school to pick them up. Good thing I know how to get there now.

So by the time that Dan gets home. We are ALL in are jammies and ready for bed. We were all exhausted. The next day was better. And everyday since.

To cover or not to cover...

2009-09-03T07:04:00.008-06:00

So here is a little project my sister Tammy and I did a few weeks back. These are before and after pictures. We recovered the chairs for the kitchen. There are four and they are all different fabric layouts but same collection. I think they turned out great!
Thanks for the help, Tammy!

We are Building a Home!

2009-05-26T21:59:00.006-06:00

http://www.richmondamerican.com/Shop+and+Buy/Home+Detail.htm?mr=Denver%20Metro&pl=8294&cm=1037

I think we are here to stay. Denver has been great for us so far, our Business, my job, church and of course the beauty of "Gods Country, " so we are building a home.

This is a link to check it out. The link is not to the same neighborhood or price, just floor plan and specks. We are pretty excited! We got to go to the design center and pick out the flooring, counters and cabinets ect. two weeks ago.

Our neighborhood is great. We are 15 houses down and on the same side of the street as the elementary school and a block from the park.

This is actually our third home to build but we get all excited every time we go thought the process. We should be moving in at the middle of July.

1950 All Over Again!

2009-05-23T02:18:00.002-06:00

Our Ward had a little party!

The kids loved dressing up with lipstick and in the clothes Amie skillfully make for them.

Then Benjamin saw a cake that he just had to have.... we won it in the auction and everyone got a little buzz. (of sugar)

What's for Dinner?

2009-05-18T06:50:00.004-06:00

If you have ever wondered what's for dinner I think that Pampers has come up with a solution!

Watch the short video below and see!

Now if you can pick yourself up off the ground and try to contain the laughter, but most of all have a great day!

Pay it forward ~ with Crafts

2009-05-12T08:51:00.003-06:00

While looking at my sister-in-law's blog I couldn't help but get excited about this wonderful idea she had about paying it forward. It's a great way to spend some time thinking about someone else and getting those creative juices flowing for the benefit of others! So thanks Misty for the motivation and here's how it works:

The 1st three people (and only those three) to leave a comment on this post will receive at some point during the next few months a handmade gift from me. If you don't live nearby, leave me your address on my email, isonhouse@me.com

What your gift from me will be and when it will arrive is a total surprise! But here's the catch: you must participate as well!

After leaving your comment you MUST write up a “pay it forward” post on your own blog (or, do it in your neighborhood if you don’t have a blog) to keep the fun, creativity and good-works going. So, as you wait for your own gift, you must be making gifts for your three friends who commented! Lets share the love and have fun!

remember the snow?

2009-05-06T18:12:00.004-06:00

Here is a small clip of good times in the snow. Including tunnels snow balls tromping in quicksand snow and more. Even some training passed down from my father to me and now to my son about a well placed snow ball onto a tree heavy with snow on the branches.

My office closed down one Friday because of all the snow, so we did the only reasonable thing... find the biggest hill in Boulder and take Claire and Benjamin on their first sled ride.

This was a great winter!

FACES

2009-04-21T14:43:00.011-06:00

Thanks to our awesome brother in law, Jordan, we now have a new photo software. It uses facial recognition and analyzes all of your photos in your library. On a separate page it categorizes all of the photos with any given name. Then when you scan your mouse over the face it laps through all of the series of photos of that person. It is pretty tripy to see the change in faces through the years. OK, enough with the Apple Software sales pitch...

That got me thinking about doing a highlight of the short stuffs. This way you can actually see their faces as opposed to that motley crew that is our Easter Family Picture.

P.S. I realize this is something only the mom and dad would do but... if you click on the picts you will get all up close and personal with them.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

BENJAMIN

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

AUBREY & CLAIRE

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

JULIA

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

ZACHARY

Happy Easter!

2009-04-19T15:10:00.010-06:00

FOR A SLIDE SHOW OF NEW PHOTOS, CLICK ON THE LINK AT THE TOP, ON THE RIGHT.

We had a great Easter last weekend! It was also Aubrey and Claire's fourth Birthday on Saturday. We had some family come in to celebrate with us. We must have hid and found easter eggs five or six times over that weekend.

Happy Easter!... Amen

2009-04-09T18:07:00.006-06:00

Amie got the kids some marshmallow peeps. Of course they loved them, took them every where and then had an even better idea. They went up stairs to our Master Bed Room, got there friend and helped get him ready for Easter! Then they brought him down and put him on our entry way table for all of our visitors to see! We didn't see it until latter that night. At least they know who the season is about. HAPPY EASTER... amen.

"Got to go someone is at the Door!"

2009-04-08T21:53:00.007-06:00

This was last month... but wanted to report in our make shift journal, the blog.

My sister, Misty had a birthday! It was Friday the 13th of March. That morning I text her wishing her a happy birthday and hope all goes well. Little did she know I was at that same moment at the Denver Airport getting on a plane to come see her. I arrived in the afternoon, her husband Jordan and my mother who had also flown in came and picked me up. That night Misty and Jordan had invited several friends to have a party at the church building.

Misty had to work a little later so didn't get there until around 6:30. Finally she arrived. I slipped out the back door as she came in the front. I then text her again asking about her day. She said so far so good. Then I knocked on the front door of the church. She stopped texting my message and went to answer the door. You should have seen her face... she was more confused than anything else. She looked at me then down at her phone then back at me again. She said it was like a star trek move to be beamed up to the party.

We sure had an awesome time. We had game night every night, we had to let birthday girl win a couple of corse.

We went to the smithsonian and down to the memorials. We also went to Abraham Lincoln's Memorial. On the way up the elevator my nephew Asher needed a little more entertainment for the evening... So right on que, Jordan with the Beat, Misty with the back up lyrics and beat, mom with some big 'ol boy lyrics and all with some sweet moves gave the needed entertainment for Little Asher in the stroller.

Defiantly good times!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY AMIE!!

2009-04-04T09:19:00.005-06:00

Tomorrow, Sunday the 5th, is Amie's birthday!

As you all know, Amie is really amazing with her plethora of talents, her constant eye for service and her super human abilities to maintain this home and teach our kids everything she knows.

So if you are grateful to know that Amazing Woman, give her a shout out and a HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Self-Incrementing Evidence

2009-03-27T14:58:00.005-06:00

We went to download some photos from our camera today and found that our sweet little girls who we thought were sleeping last night were actually not. Here is a little movie of what they were really doing! Thanks girls for the nice footage, but next time you better stay in bed!

Missing!

2009-03-09T22:17:00.002-06:00

After looking at our blog all of our favorite blogs are MISSING! So if you want to make our list and even if you don't please send me your blogs so I can re-add you!

I think that it was worth the trip!

2009-03-09T21:58:00.005-06:00

Okay, I have not fallen off the ends of the earth. Apparently I have just been clipping coupons. Sometime I wonder if it is worth going grocery shopping. On the phone the other day Dan asked me if I had a bunch of cats in the van. I told him no, but I felt like I was herding some at the grocery store today. On that note, my friend Leah told me that this receipt was blog worthy. And I would have to agree. If you look at the percent saved it is 101%! After all my coupons they owed me .58 so I bought a candy bar and they still owed me .06! I walked out of there with 2 bags of frozen chicken breasts, one bottle of salad dressing, a bag of tortilla chips, tortillas, 3 boxes of Frosted Mini Wheats (the 24 oz size!), Alfredo sauce, a bag of frozen veggies, a frozen pizza, and 5 lbs of onions! I think it was worth the trip!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

2009-01-01T22:39:00.004-07:00

Yes, this is a Thanksgiving clip, but it is the most recent. The family all came to Denver to celebrate with us. We had our Thanksgiving feast, Benjamin and Brad's birthday, Zachary's Baby blessing and through in a little Christmas with everyone. Good Times! Hope you enjoy.

The First Snow!

2008-11-14T10:29:00.003-07:00

Well, we made it to Colorado! And the computer is unpacked.

We had our first snow this morning. I would post some pictures, but I was not able to locate the camera for the 3 sec Claire would stay outside. (she was the only one to venture outside)

Just now Benjamin came and asked me where the snow went! I told him that the sun melted it. Then he proceeded to cry for about 5 min. I am sure by the end of the winter he will be crying that the snow will not go away!

P.S. I loved all the comments on the last post!

What a great fortune!

2008-10-28T09:08:00.006-06:00

I just wanted to share a cute thing Benjamin did yesterday. We went out for Chinese last night for dinner. In the car on the way home I gave the kids their fortune cookies. When Benjamin opened his he read the fortune and said "It says I am a child of God". I thought that was too cute to not to share.

I hope everyone is having a great day. The kids and I are on our way to Denver this Saturday. It should be interesting 2 adults and 5 children on 1 airplane. I think that security scares me more than the flight. Wish us luck. We are going to LOVE being together as a family again. amie

New Photos!

2008-10-11T16:19:00.002-06:00

On the top right side of the blog is a mac link to our photo page. Amie has put some of the kiddos on there yesterday!

Remember Us?

2008-09-12T21:24:00.015-06:00

ZACHARY IS HERE!

He was born last Friday, September 5th. Eight pounds and eight ounces at 20.5 inches long. Happy healthy chunky monkey! So it is official, we now have our coed basketball team in the making.

Amie and the kids are all staying with Amie's mother so our home would be easier to show (hopefully sell) and for the support she needs. (since her dead beat husband is across the country)

I flew in on Thursday night and stayed until Wednesday. Amie's sister Tammy is flying in to stay a week to help as well. (Thank you Tammy!) Then some of Amie's great friends are helping out as well until Amie recovers.

Our home in Houston has still not sold, which is the only real hick-up in our grand plan. But it is a big hick-up that has caused some rough times. Mainly, Amie and the kids staying in Houston longer than we wanted while I start work in Denver.

Benjamin rides the bus to preschool each morning and really enjoys it. He showed everyone including the bus driver his new baby brother "Wackery" aka Zachary. The girls are definatly growing up to their own individualls. And Julia has supprised me the most. When I came up to Colorado she had taken only one step. Now she is walking all over the house, throwing dipers away for Amie, throwing clothes and shoes in the trash for Amie... well she is trying to help.

Thank you all for your prayers and help. We are blessed to have such great family and friends!

Follow our new link on the top right side of the blog page to see more new pics.

Mac Photo Gallery

Happy Belated Birthday America!

2008-07-07T21:56:00.004-06:00

We joined the masses to check out the fireworks in Tomball TX. After getting Chick-fil-a shakes and checking out the live bands we settled down for some red, white and boom! The kids loved it, as they kept yelling out the colors of the fireworks. Benjamin loved them too and was spell bound with the size of the fireworks, that is until he became spell bound by the size of some great looking Texas bugs.

Our little innocent girl...or not so innocent.

2008-07-03T20:16:00.005-06:00

Our friends were over today and Aubrey was very happy because she and their son have a little crush on each other. This time it looks like they got out of hand.

National Children Museum Tour

2008-06-30T22:16:00.005-06:00

Amie has visited 6 cities and 6 museums. When we kick the kids out we will check out all of the Hard Rock Cafes so something, but until then we are in the kid business and we love it!

Swim Time!

2008-06-22T12:16:00.003-06:00

I'm sure everyone has enjoyed swimming several times this year already. Our community just opened our new pool and we have been taking full advantage of it. The kids have just really started this year to be independent and they are taking off!

This video is of some extended family too. We loved having them. It made this swimming stuff even more fun!

Birthday time...Julia's First!

2008-06-14T06:32:00.002-06:00

While Amie's family was in town, Julia had her first birthday party!

Trip to KY

2008-06-05T23:03:00.004-06:00

The Blue Grass state is where my parents live. We drove up there to be apart of my sister and brother-in-law's sealing of their new adopted son, and my new nephew, Asher. Once there Amie and the kids stayed an extra two weeks and I flew home. Then flew back to drive them home. We might have started a new annual tradition of the week long visit to the grandparents, that is if they will still take us! This video is just some of the stuff we go into.

Julia's Birthday Time!

2008-06-02T20:14:00.009-06:00

Cousin Max and Julia are PARTY ANIMALS !!

Aunt Lindy and the girls "helping" Julia with her presents.

With all the family in, we had a lot of good times!

This is a movie of cute baby Max and very cute baby Brad at dinner time.

Road Warriors

2008-06-02T19:00:00.003-06:00

There has been so much that has gone on in the past month.

--We drove to KY for the sealing of our nephew to my sister Misty and brother-in-law Jordan.

--Amie and the kids stayed at the grandparents for two weeks, then I flew back up to drive them home.

--Then whole family jumped back in the car to drive to TN for a wedding.

--Some people like to see Hard Rock Cafe across the nation, but we are in the children business so we have been stopping by each of the Children's Museums in each of the cities and have hit five cities so far.

--Julia had a one year birthday party!

--Now this weekend all of Amie's five brothers and sisters are in town for her youngest sisters graduation.

We will share with you some of the highlights of our adventures.

2008-05-08T16:22:00.002-06:00

This is in our back yard. The kids love to spin crazy fast.

The good thing is they have all lived to tell about it.

The Joys of Toilet Paper!

2008-05-04T20:04:00.004-06:00

"Hey! check out what i found!"

"You just pull a little here and look what happens!"

Doing some exploring under the table.

Hey I even found some colored cheerios! Jack pot!

Julia was having such a good time, Claire thought she would join in.

I scream U scream for "pie ice-cream"

2008-05-01T19:37:00.009-06:00

It's "Pie Ice-cream" time! How can you not smile after seeing how much Claire loves her ice cream?

A few months back, but cute non the less. Aubrey doesn't even mind that her sucker still has the rapper on it! It is more fun making sounds with Claire than actually having a sucker.

Crazy Quotes of Metaling Monkeys

2008-04-15T22:54:00.001-06:00

Benjamin – “May I have some pie ice cream please?” he would ask for his “pie ice cream” for several days, but we could not figure out what he was talking about when he declined each kind we offered. Finally about a week later Amie bought some vanilla ice cream and elated Benjamin yelled out “PIE ICE CREAM!” The ice cream you eat with pie...of course!

Aubrey - When I was fixing breakfast this morning I commented that we are having eggs for breakfast, then Aubrey looked very discussed and exclaimed "Those are baby bird eggs! That is mean." But in the end she did eat them with the rest of us, which may be even more mean!

Claire - Dan picked her up from nursery at church and she had a picture of a lot of different animals that she had colored. Dan asked her if she made it. She looked up at him and stated, "No Jesus made them, I just colored them." I am sure she was thinking, "I thought you were smart, Dad?"

Julia - Mama! Dada! And of course her growl... check out the movie.

The Great Sock Puppets!

2008-04-12T13:30:00.008-06:00

Cousin Asher and Julia are getting to know each other.

Showing off their sock puppets

Asher and Julia also had some quality bonding time. Julia is much more mobile now but in a couple of months she doesn't stand a chance.

Misty and Jordan came with a great idea to make sock puppets with the kids. Needless to say, it was a hit. The kids picked out all the accessories and even named their puppets. Benjamin had to take his to pre-school and then to bed with him! "Cha-Che" is his puppets name, yea we didn't get it either but he has stuck with it. Aubrey's name is simply puppy, and then we have the Aunt Misty puppet... with changing voices.

if one birthday is good... three is GREAT!

2008-04-12T11:41:00.002-06:00

It's Birthday time here with Amie's birthday on the 5th as well as Aubrey's and Claire's on the 11th. The Twins turn three and Amie turns... sorry that part got edited out. We like to get a jump start on things so the festivities all started last Friday when my sister Misty, brother in law Jordan and new nephew Asher came to visit from Ohio.

We packed the weekend with a BBQ and church auction, (where a wall mounted singing bass went for $400... only in Texas! ) general conference, making sock puppets ( another entry all together ) and of course the Birthday Party! The girls got princess outfits, swim suits, clothes and sleeping bags for as cold as 20 degrees! Colorado camping here we come!

Nana from KY sent personalized children books with pictures of all the family throughout the pages. I thought that was an ingenious idea. The Kids were at first excited for the books then ECSTATIC and went crazy when they saw their own pictures on the pages. There were even pics of there "new friend Asher"

When cake time came, for good times we had to through in some trick candles that just wouldn't blow out.

Rodeo Time!

2008-03-28T01:22:00.006-06:00

View Album

Get your own

Down here in Texas, it is a prerequisite to go the the Rodeo at least once every couple of years or they will kick you out! This year we went early and spent a day with grandma!

All nighter!

2008-03-26T07:59:00.004-06:00

My friend Lisa Hyde and I had an all nighter last night and these are some of the things we made! The girls woke up to a photo shoot.

Check out our viedos!

2008-03-26T01:07:00.003-06:00

Claire is definatly our speed racer! More like this one are on the left side with the youtube attachment.

Movies only a parent could love...and hopefully you too.

2008-03-23T22:19:00.000-06:00

Maybe at your lunch at the office or when you're trying to dodge a meeting and have some time to kill, you can check out some movies. I have edited some photos and movie clips with music (sometime that is the best part so make sure you can hear it)

I know that some are the type as they say only a parent can love, but we sure do love them so just humor us. They shouldn't be too bad.

Say hello to our 5 little monkeys!

2008-03-23T21:20:00.002-06:00

For some of our friends, and even more unfortunately, for some of our family it has been too long since we have been in touch. That said, I'm sure we have a lot of catching up to do including the introduction or the re-introduction of our short stuffs.

Benjamin as the oldest is now four years old and reserves the right and sole responsibility of picking on his sisters, and will ward off anyone else who tries. He sure takes good care of them.

Then the twins, Aubrey and Claire are going to be three in April. As two, they hold their own together and yet have very separate attitudes, likes and dislikes.

Almost a year ago Julia joined forces with the girls and left Benjamin and I to stick together as the only manly men in the house.

We are now expecting one more. Yes we checked twice to make sure it was only one more. This time the nurse thinks it is a boy...preliminary ultra sounds only, but I could sure use another vote around here.

So do the math real quick... in September we will have five children four and under for a couple of months at least. We are very blessed and grateful. Amie is an unbelievable women with patience, love and happiness abounding. We have been married almost nine years and just like most of you have stories that will make your sides hurt from laughing. And I can say most of those have happened in the past four years. We look forward to sharing with you some of the ones that are to come.

Please leave comments, we would love to hear from you.

Happy Easter!

2008-03-23T19:36:00.002-06:00

Last night the Easter Bunny came and left baskets of goodies including little bunnies for each of the kids. Then early this morning Benjamin woke us up and said, "look what Santa brought!" So cute right? Only that today is Easter! He is a little behind with the holidays.

Yesterday we colored Easter Eggs. That was a great hit. The kids loved the "magic".

This afternoon we had three families over this afternoon and had the best time. All together there were 8 adults and 8 kids (and three babies in the oven). We ate our weight in ham, sweet potatoes, rolls, and salad, not to mention all the desert! Then we shared a lesson of Easter while the eggs were hidden and then we let the crazies out to find the eggs and more importantly the candy. We had a great Easter, hope yours was great too.

Here we go

2008-03-23T19:00:00.000-06:00

So much to share...so little time. That and we have just started this blog stuff for our selves at least. We love visiting our friends and families, but haven't jumped on the bandwagon until now. This year is going to be amazing we already know, so it's a good time to start keeping a record if for no other reason than to keep us grounded.