A few new things

I have been such a slacker about taking pictures lately. I don't know why but life seems so much busier in Utah. Before I know it my days are gone. But busy is good, I'd rather be busy than bored.

Maggie looked so cute for church the other day and I tried to get a cute picture but she refuses to be still so this is the best I got. The image I had in my head of the way I wanted it to look was better, but this one is okay too!
Doesn't this look like a dangerous shot? Tyler's legs are through the railing overlooking downstairs. Looks like he is about to jump off!
We went to the park to feed the ducks at Salem Pond, but to my surprise and the kids' disappointment there were no ducks to be had. Well, I guess that's not entirely true--there was a mama ducks with 4 ducklings but they didn't want anything to do with us or our stale bread. Oh well. The kids played at the small park there (did I mention it was small? and old--it still has a metal slide--those of us born before 1980 remember those burned bottoms!) and Tyler was my swing pusher!
Joey had fun watching the kids play. Luckily he was happy in his stroller for most of the time. He is such a fun little chunk. I just love to squish and squeeze him!
And Jacob showed us all his penchant for the monkey bars--I had to watch him every time he went across--which was many many many times.
My kids had some so-called "washable" colored bubbles that they have been waiting to play with once the weather warmed up. They decided to get them out the other day and I agreed thinking it would be fun and keep them occupied while I tried to sweep away some of the dirt from our sod laying party. Well, I was thinking "colored bubbles" would just be lightly tinted or something along those lines. Boy was I ever wrong. Look what happened...

They were absolutely covered. In blue, green and orange. And so was my driveway--oh, and the "washable" claim? Untrue. I even had my brother-in-law spray off the stains with a power washer and they are still there. Lighter, but there. Ugh. I even made sure to read the bottle first and it said, and I quote, "Rinse off asphalt and concrete with a garden hose." Ummmm, sorry Crayola--I should sue them for false advertising. What a mess. Plus I had little orange handprints all along the wall in the garage. Ugh again.

With all the business going on, we've gotten creative with Joey. Here he is playing in the back of the van while I sprayed (tried to) the bubbles off the drive.
And just yesterday the boys were in charge of watching Joey while I was cleaning up and I came upstairs to this.....
They had put Joey in their laundry basket (it was empty of dirty clothes, thank goodness) with some toys to keep him happy. And guess what? He sat in there happy as a clam for a good half hour at least. He probably would've stayed in longer if I hadn't gone and gotten him to change his diaper. Who knew?

I've got some catchin' up to do...

Where does time go? It seems like the older I get the faster and faster it passes. I promise to make an effort to post more frequently! We're mostly settled here in our new house. A few things left with the house but they are small, and the yard is in the process of completion. It still looks like an empty dirt plot but now there are sprinklers under that dirt. Hooray!

It has finally stopped raining so much and the kids have been loving playing outside. They are getting pretty creative too....notice Jake's addition to his scooter.... Yes, those are deer antlers.
Joey is growing like a weed. I don't get many pics of him, partly because I am busy but it is mostly because he starts crying whenever people leave his side. So he will be doing something cute, but as soon as I get up to get the camera he starts crying...and that means no more photo-op of cuteness. But if he's around people he's usually relatively happy. Big smile, love it. And he has the BEST laugh of any little baby, as you will see later.
Noteworthy happenings: Jacob learned to ride a 2-wheeler. It took about 2 minutes. Nice. Now we can't get him off his bike!
There was a little carnival at Tyler's school. Lots of fun activities. Here are the boys jousting. I am thinking about buying one of these for the basement--you know, as a way for the boys to work out some aggression.
There was a little "train" made from a tractor pulling these cute cars....
Jacob turned 5! He had a party with old friends, new friends and family. It was great. The prize for favorite present goes to Aunt Jessica and family with the pillow pet alligator. He does love all his presents though.
As I mentioned the yard is currently under construction. Uncle Cory has been over doing the sprinkler system for us. What's great about Cory is that even though I am sure he'd like to just get the job done, he always takes the time to let the kids have some fun--Tyler got to drive the Bobcat and here they are getting a ride in the bucket...
We went out to Winger's restaurant last week or whenever (my brain is in some kind of time warp) and my kids were TERRIBLE! And when I say that, I mean it! Usually my kids are just okay at restaurants. Not great but not horrible, after all, they are only 1/2, 2, 5 and 7. I can't expect little angels. But they were downright devils! It was so bad it was comical. Literally Eric and I were laughing about it--only because we were at an early lunch and we were the only people in the place. I did catch them in a sweet, quickly fleeting, moment.
Tyler is playing coach pitch baseball. He is really enjoying it and doing well. I will take some pics at the next game--I usually have to drag all the kids to the game by myself because Eric is still at work so picture taking takes a back seat. But I did get this great one at a game Eric was able to attend--Joey loved hanging on to the fence. It was the only way we could keep him happy. Look how cute...
Besides a bunch of dirt, my backyard also has a big hole--actually it is all ready for the in-ground trampoline. But it looks like the kids don't care about the jumping, they have just as much fun playing in the hole!
I couldn't find Maggie yesterday and I found her in the garage. She had put her helmet on herself....
We went to a fun park and had a picnic with cousins. Just a few snapshots....

All Maggie wants to do at the park is swing....the whole time.
Joey's first time on a swing; he liked it!
Tyler on a spinning seat--they spin by themselves and make you (me) very dizzy!
And today I made a chocolate cake to bring to a dinner at a friend's house (yes, i am starting to make friends...hooray!) and I walked in the kitchen to find this... little stinker.
And last, but not least, do you remember earlier when I said Joey has the best laugh? Here's the proof...

Who's the Boss?

Life has been really busy these past few weeks, but the house is getting put together and that makes me happy! I will post some pics soon, but today I just wanted to share a couple funny things.

A couple days ago Tyler said to me, "Mom, did you know there is a boy at school who like the color hot pink?" I responded, "Really?" Tyler: "Yeah, he said he likes hot pink because he likes hot girls." I had to pause for a minute and let that sink in...that a 7-year-old class mate of Tyler's is talking about hot girls. Then, just to see how innocent my sweet little boy is, asked, "What's a hot girl?" Tyler: "It's a girl who is really really cute." Oh dear..he's only 7! Boy am I going to be in trouble...

Jacob's birthday is in a few days. I asked him what kind of party he wanted.... He wants a rhinocerous beetle themed party. Could you expect anything less from Jacob?

Then this morning I overheard the boys talking at breakfast. Jacob said, "I am in charge of myself." to Tyler. Then together the boys discussed the topic. It didn't take them long to come to the conclusion (Tyler is saying this): "Maggie's in charge of Joey, you (Jacob) is in charge of Maggie, I (Tyler) am in charge of you (Jacob), Dad's in charge of me, and [pause for effect] mom is in charge of dad." I have trained my little padowans well.....

Catching up....

Well, I know it has been a while and for that I am sorry. Life has been extremely busy and hectic and crazy the past month. We are now moved into our new house in Utah (pictures to follow--the house isn't put together yet so it will be a little bit longer) and Tyler is loving school and the neighborhood. There are tons of kids here. Just a bit of brief catching up..

Tyler was in flag football before we left Fort Irwin--he loved it! He was totally into every game and his team was awesome--they were undefeated. It was nice to see him in a sport he loved.
Our last couple weeks there, we had to cram in a few activities--you know, the kind you keep telling yourself you will get to but then the end comes around and you realize you still haven't done them! We went to the Fort Irwin Museum, pretty interesting! The kids loved the tanks outside the building...who wouldn't?
Then we climbed all over the painted rocks. If you've been to Fort Irwin you know exactly what I am talking about--as you pull into post there is a huge rock pile, more like boulders, all painted by the units that have come through Fort Irwin. There a ton of them, and a ton of rocks. Some are pretty badly weather beaten, some are okay, but some are just dang awesome. The pile is pretty high but the boys went hog wild--climbing as high as they could get. It was so much fun...this is one activity I wish we had done more of. Free + Fun = My kind of afternoon.


As per Fort Irwin tradition, we made a stop on our last day there as a family to "Kiss the Coyote." First a family shot (sans Dad who had to take the picture...)
Now the kissing...
Maggie didn't quite grasp the concept. She just kept looking at the camera saying, "Cheese!" And I told the boys to watch out for any bird droppings!

After some stressful days of repainting, packers and movers we got checked out and off we headed to Utah. We stopped off for a few days as my mom's, which the kids loved of course. On to Utah, we stayed with Eric's parents for a couple weeks which was very very generous of them. Finally got into our house and are still in the process of unpacking. As I said earlier, I will got some house pictures once it is put together more.

Yesterday we ran (walked) in a 5K fund raiser Hope for Sarah. It is for a woman, Sarah, who has stomach cancer. She knows Jessica's family (Eric's sister) and so we decided to do it as a family. We got up Saturday morning and it was freezing! Even snowing a bit. (I never thought I'd miss Fort Irwin heat, but...) But we decided to brave it anyway...we're creating memories, right? So we bundled up...
Got our numbers...(Right after this pic Jacob asked Eric, "What's this number? Is that how fast I am?" So cute.)

Tried to convince Joey we weren't crazy for getting him out there in the cold...
And set off running. Eric ran ahead and finished in about 7th place I think. He did well, Tyler ran ahead and I lost track, I lagged behind with Maggie, Joey and Jacob (yeah, I wondered how I got stuck with that lot myself....). Turns out Tyler is a running fool! He ran the whole way and did so good--beat a lot of grown-ups! You can see a bunch of adults behind him and this was at the end of the race. We were really proud he did so well and tried to hard.
Well, as you can guess, we've done a lot more than this, but I have got to take baby steps to get back into my routine. So for now, this is what you get. But just know we are having a good time here, but miss all our friends in California a LOT LOT LOT! Hope to see some of them soon....

Parting is such sweet sorrow

Our time here at Fort Irwin is now drawing to a close, another chapter of our lives ended. We are definitely excited about our future, and some of you may think that we are elated in every possible way to leave our isolated desert home. But in truth, leaving Fort Irwin is bittersweet.

No, I will not miss having to fill 4 callings at church and having Sundays be my busiest day of the week. I will not miss 120 degree temps in the summer when even a dip in the pool can't make the heat less unbearable. I will not miss driving over and hour just to go out to eat (or anything else)...and that is to Denny's anyway. I will not miss a house so cramped we have a baby sleeping in the closet. I will not miss the grocery store (commissary) that has only slightly more selection than a 7-11. I will not miss the tank target practice rumbling my walls and knocking things off my shelves. And I won't miss the constant control the army keeps over our lives.

But, I will miss all my wonderful friends I have made here. I will miss the beautiful sunsets that I get a perfect view of from my back porch. I will miss the excitement in my children's eyes when they watch the helicopters zoom overhead (by the way, that never gets old). I will miss the mild winters when I can take my kids to the park. I will miss the serenity and quietness that comes with living in the desert. But most of all I will miss this place for the mere fact that this is where my family grew up. When we got here, we were a family of four, and Jacob was barely over a year old. We've added 4 years onto our married life, doubled our kids, and they call this place home. Tyler spent the bulk of his "little-boyhood" here. We've got great friends who will be dearly missed and are required to visit us every time they are in Utah (you know who you are...). Fort Irwin has been a challenge at times, but overall she has treated our family well. We will always look back on this time in our lives with a tender spot in our hearts for Fort Irwin....just don't think that means we would EVER come back!!!

Our kids when we moved here...

Our kids now...

My how time flies....

Rhyme Time

Jacob is really into rhyming right now. Yesterday he came up to me and said, "You know a rhea, the big bird? Like from Diego? That rhymes with diarrhea." Nice.

Out of order

Okay, so all the pics in this post are out of order, but I am short on time so it will have to suffice. I am confident in all of your ability to figure out what goes where.

I have to say first that life is speeding along at breakneck pace. I keep thinking it is Tuesday when it is Friday, that it is still the beginning of March when it is closer to the middle, and can't believe in less than 2 weeks we will be out of Fort Irwin for good, that my oldest will be baptized in a few months and that my little newborn is 6 months old! Where does the time go?

The other day was Dr. Suess' birthday (I am sure those of you with little kids knew that from all the stuff they did at school about it...) and Jacob's class got to make big Cat in the Hat hats at school. He brought it home and left it on the desk. A few minutes later I couldn't find Maggie so I walked around to the front room and saw this--I couldn't stop laughing for at least 3 minutes....
I haven't posted too many pics lately, so here is a spotlight of each wonderful child.

Joey is a chunk and a half. He loves to eat all the time--he outgrew all of his 6 month clothes a month and a half early. He is a total people person--hates to be alone, but loves to watch his brothers and sister play even though they often end up injuring him in some way with a bonk in the head or stepping on a hand. When he smiles his whole face lights up and his mouth opens hugely wide. It just melts your heart....even though he keeps my up at night!
Tyler isn't a little boy anymore--he is big grown-up kid. He loves to be independent. He is very social and is friends with just about everyone at Fort Irwin. He won an award at school for "Sharing and Caring" and when other kids got called up for their awards there was normal applause--when Ty was called up the auditorium erupted in "WOOHOO!"s and "GO TYLER!"s. He's a rock star! Plus he is so tender-hearted--it makes it more difficult at times but it also makes him so considerate and sweet and caring.
Maggie can definitely hold her own with her brothers. She is a little sassy girl. She has to have so much stuff in bed with her at night that it leaves little room for her to sleep--2 blankets, 4 baby dolls, at least one book, a huge stuffed dog, My Little Ponies, etc. I try to sneak away without giving her one of her items but she always knows. She keeps up with her older brothers amazingly well, but still loves all things girly including the color pink. If it's pink, it's Maggie's.
And Jacob is as Jacob'y as always. He is loud, excited about life and seems to have more vigor than his body can handle sometimes. So he always keeps our life interesting. He is a wonderful helper--always bringing diapers, getting things, and helping clean up. He always helps take care of Maggie and Joey, and loves playing with Joey too. He is very smart--his teachers always tell me that he is very smart, social, and they love having him in their class. We love having him as part of our family too.
I mean, seriously, how could anyone not love these guys?

One good thing about living in the desert is that it is outdoor weather 99% of the time. Yesterday was one of those days when it was sunny (as always) and 70 degrees so we went out back and rode bikes/scooters. The kids love playing outside--I will miss being able to go outside all winter long once we are living in Utah. Maggie got a new scooter for Christmas and she loves it! They played so well together...one of those rare moments when there is no fighting over toys or whose turn it is. It was jut a nice afternoon. Love it. Jacob gave us a preview of a song he is learning about kindergarten. The kids love to be filmed--it is so funny!