One

Macey turned one yesterday!!! Can you believe that she is a one-year-old? I can’t.

She was adorable on her birthday. She did everything that she was supposed to. She ripped open her presents and played with the paper more than the gifts. She almost caught her hand on fire trying to grab her candle. She danced every time that we sang Happy Birthday to her. And she got frosting all over her as she attacked her very own cupcake. She was delightful!

The kids all bought her cute gifts. Skyler picked out a ball toy that he wanted to play with himself. Shaylin bought her a shirt that says, “Girls are just better!” And Sawyer got her a warm hat “because she doesn’t have enough hair”.

Happy birthday, Baby!

David and Goliath

Skyler gave the scripture in primary today, and he was hilarious. He wanted to share a scripture from the story of David and Goliath (his favorite). So he and I read the story together in 1 Samuel before church. He loved it. I told Sky that some of the verses were a little too graphic for junior primary, but he begged until I consented to let him read verses 45 and 49.

45. Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied.
49. And David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone, and slang it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead, that the stone sunk into his forehead; and he fell upon his face to the earth.

When Skyler finished sharing those verses in primary, he said, “I highly recommend that you all go home and read verse 46 because I wasn’t allowed to read it to you”. That little stinker.

I know you are curious now, so here is verse 46.

46. This day will the LORD deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcases of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel.

Gross.

Dear Diary

Shaylin keeps this cute little diary under her pillow, and every night she writes something in it. Here are some of her recent entries:

“I love Strawberry Shortcake. Skyler hates her. I don’t understand why.”
“I never close my pajama drawer after I get clothes out of it.”
“I can’t wait until I’m a missionary like Blake, but I still don’t want to get married or move away from home.”
“I don’t really like to flush the toilet.”

She is so funny.

Wheelin'

Sawyer has been on his four-wheeler every free second this week. Maybe he can sense that winter is coming and his riding days are limited.



Here is my little dare devil - oh dear.

Our Week

We had a fun week for a few reasons. First of all, the kids were out of school on Thursday and Friday for some teacher-training thing. So Skyler and Shaylin were on cloud nine all week.

Second, this week was Homecoming at the high school so we got to go to a lot of fun events like the parade, the Powder Puff game and the Football game. (We lost. Sad.) I even made everyone in the family wear the school color (orange) to the parade. We were cute.

Third, we had fun visitors this week. Both my mom and Jason’s parents had dental appointments with Jason this week, so they each stayed with us for a few days. It has been so fun to have grandparents here to love us and take care of us. The kids have really enjoyed all the attention and the extra playmates.

Comedian

This week Macey has turned into a regular comedian. When we tell her to say “Mommy”, she smiles really big and says, “Daddy!” If you say, “I love you” to her, she answers, “Thank you!” She knows that those answers gets her a lot of laughs and she loves that.

Martyr

Sawyer said, “Mommy, I don’t like my TWO teachers at preschool. I only like ONE teacher.” I asked, “Why don’t you like one of your teachers? Was one of them mean to you?” I replied, “Yes! My one teacher was very mean to me. She said, ‘Sawyer, please don’t throw trucks at the other kids.”

She sounds like a real child abuser, don’t you think?

Spy

Shaylin has been very into spying this week. She has been sneaking around the house with her binoculars, walkie-talkies, and camera. She is often heard giggling around corners and behind curtains.

Jason and I are being very careful about what we do and say.

Bear

Skyler had his Cub Scout Pack Meeting on Thursday, and he was so proud. He earned his bear and three silver arrows. (Ten achievements earn one arrow.)

Scouting has been a confusing mystery to me thus far, but I am trying to understand it and help Skyler stay on top of it. We have been working hard. The look on his face at that pack meeting was all the compensation that I will ever need. He was so proud. What a good boy.

Well, I need to go back to being a good hostess to my in-laws now. So far I have made them two edible dinners and none of the kids have said or done anything too embarrassing. But don’t worry, the night is young.

Family Reunion

This weekend we went to a Family Reunion in Birdseye, UT. It was so much fun. Here are my top 10 favorite parts.

1. Watching Wade paint a pink bunny and Jason paint a pink horse for the Humanitarian Center
2. Hearing Kelsey teach Sawyer to say, “Horse poop is NASSSSS – TY.”
3. Seeing Shaylin lead little Reagan around all weekend and wink every time she passed me like, “Don’t worry, I have this all under control”.
4. Hearing this conversation between Jason and Trent:
Jason: Trent, are you still in school?
Trent: Yeah.
Jason: Are still taking ballet classes or just modern dance?
Trent: By modern dance, you mean pole dancing, right?
Jason: Of course.
Trent: Yeah, those classes are great.
5. Watching Lucas and Sawyer playing tackle football with Grandpa for hours
6. Seeing Thomas teach Shaylin and Jake how to fish (They caught five!)
7. Watching Macey try determinedly to pull all of Great Grandpa’s chest hair out as he held her.
8. Seeing Skyler and Isaac play practical jokes on anyone and everyone
9. Going to church as a family
10. Learning together what it means to be “fixed and determined” to follow Christ

It was an awesome family reunion!

Standing - almost

Macey is crawling faster and better now. She can pull herself up to standing but only for a few seconds. She has her mothers’ coordination.

Her current favorites activities are eating watermelon, pulling all the books off the bookshelves (seriously, will that never get old?) and turning lights on and off.

Diver

The other day Shaylin was teasing Sawyer. She said, “Sawyer, you are so pretty – just like a princess.” Sawyer answered in his most gruff and masculine voice, “No, I’m pretty like a MAN!”

Sawyer was taking a bath this week, and I told him that he was doing a good job washing his hair, but he still had some shampoo on the front of his head. After several failed attempts to get it off, he climbed out of the tub and walked over to me. I thought that he wanted my help until he smiled, turned around, ran across the bathroom and DOVE headfirst into the tub. Well, he got the shampoo out.

Music Lover

Shaylin is enjoying her new school. She has made some really cute friends. Unfortunately they all have the same name. Taylor. It is very confusing. Now she calls them Taylor E., Taylor S. and Taylor W.

Shay has gotten very into music lately. She uses her allowance (and my help) to download songs, burn CD’s and design labels for them. She loves her portable CD player and her new $4 headphones. I hate how her headphones make her seem disconnected from the family, so she isn’t allowed to wear them very often. But I have to admit hearing her sing along LOUD and seeing her dance around while she has headphones on is pretty dang entertaining.

Author

Skyler is doing great in school. He is working hard, but I can tell that he gets bored sometimes. He even has a drawer in his desk at school where he keeps “things to do while I’m waiting for the rest of the class”. He is currently writing a book. It is called “Mission to Save the World”. It is now 30 pages long and is illustrated. On our long drive to Utah this weekend, he worked on typing it up on the laptop. Look for it soon in your local libraries.

Here is a funny thing that Sky said at the reunion. Each of the kids wrote down a way that they could be “fixed and determined” to follow the Savior. Skyler wrote, “I am fixed and determined not to date until I am 16. (And I don’t think that will be a problem.)” I think he is right.

Irobot

For my birthday, Jason bought me an irobot vacuum that cleans the floor BY ITSELF. He bought me one that sweeps and mops and it came with another one that vacuums. I love them. Sometimes I just sit and watch them. They make me so happy.

Girls Gone Wild

I spent this weekend in Park City with my mom and my sisters. We had our first ever Annual Girl's Weekend. It was wonderful - shopping, eating out, chick flicks and laughing until we cried. We had such a great time. It was heaven!

Jason's Weekend

Skyler and Shaylin stayed with friends in Utah, but Jason took care of Sawyer and Macey all weekend.

I left him on Thursday at like 7:00 pm. (Keep in mind that Sawyer and Macey go to bed at 7:30.) At 9:00 he called me to see how my long drive was going. I asked him how he was doing. Here is our conversation;

Me: "How are you? Are the kids in bed?"
Jason: “Well, actually, I am in Durango.” (a town an hour from us)
Me: “What? What are you doing in Durango? Are the kids OK?”
Jason: “Um… yah. You see… I uh, brought them with me to go see a motorcycle?”
Me: “A what?”
Jason: “A motorcycle. It's for sale. Listen it is a really good deal. It is old and small and cheap. I researched it online, it’s a really good buy.”
Me: “You went to look at a motorcycle!?!”
Jason: “Um. Yes. And I uh, bought it. It’s in my trunk.”
Sawyer: (in the background talking 100 mph) “Mom, Dad got a motorcycle and it is so fast! And we are going to go ride together! And my helmet it blue and Dad’s is orange! And we are going to go on jumps! And we are totally fast…”

That's what I get for leaving town.



The next day Jason called me from Walmart. Here is our next conversation:

Jason: “When are you coming home again?”
Me: “Tomorrow. Are you OK?”
Jason: “I just want you to know that I may or may not have killed your son by then. Oh, and what kind of chips do you buy, Cilantro and Lime?”
Me: “Yes.”
Jason: “OK. I’ll probably call you again in five minutes.”

He was so funny. But he survived taking care of Sawyer and Macey all by himself for three days. That is saying something.

Faker

Skyler called me from school yesterday and said (in a very miserable voice), “Mom, I don’t feel very good. Do you think that I could come home?” I said, “Well, you were fine last night and this morning. You know if you miss school today, you probably shouldn’t miss again on Friday to go to the family reunion.” He answered, “Oh. Um. I forgot about that. Well. Um. OK, maybe I should give it another hour and see how I feel.” I told him that was a great idea.

He came home happy and healthy as could be.

Dance Lessons

Shaylin started taking dance lessons again, and she loves it. She is in a Jazz class that she likes and a theater dance class that she loves. They are not only learning how to dance but how to act and sing on stage. She is freaking out. She says, “This is so great. It is exactly what I like – being dramatic.” Oh really? We never would have guessed?

New Words

Macey is starting to talk more. Her newest (and cutest) words are, “One, two, three!” and “owie!” (she uses that one a lot) and “tree”. She loves trees. She especially loves to eat the leaves. I think she is part koala.

Pretty

The sunflowers are in bloom here. They are gorgeous. This picture doesn't do them justice. The fields look like they are on fire.

Sweet Skyler

Well, our week was good. It wasn’t too eventful, but it was good. The kids are getting into the routine of school, and I am enjoying having some time alone with Macey during the day.

Skyler still thinks that school is torture, but he loves school lunch and he has admitted that recess and gym are “pretty fun”. That’s progress.

I asked Skyler to keep an eye on Shaylin because she is the new kid in her class this year. He never said anything to me, but Shaylin told me later that Skyler played with her every recess until she told him that she was OK without him. Oh, I love that boy!



Skyler gave a talk in primary today. It was on service. He read a short story about giving service, and while he was reading, he slowly took off his shoes and then his socks. Then he slowly put his socks on his arms and his shoes on his hands. All the kids were giggling, and Skyler was trying really hard not to laugh himself.

When the story was over, he said, “I bet that most of you weren’t even paying attention to that story I just read. You were too busy watching what I was doing. That is like service. No one cares what you SAY, they care what you DO. I hope that we won’t just TALK about service, we will DO it.” It was such a cute talk. (By the way, Skyler also wanted to take off his shirt. I had to really put my foot down on that one.)

Boarder

Last year, Shaylin came home from school every single day with at least one hour of homework. It was really hard on her. This year she has a darling teacher who believes in a “hands on” approach to learning. Her class is always out of their desks doing some fun experiment. Plus, she doesn’t believe in homework. (I LOVE her!) Shaylin is so happy.



This week we went to a big toy store in New Mexico and the kids were all drooling. I told them that if they wanted something, I would buy it for them if they could pay me back when we got home. Skyler just moaned because he currently owes me $19.98. Shaylin said, “Well, I know that I have 10 dollars in my piggy bank, and each of those dollars says 10 on it.” Then Skyler really started groaning.

So Shaylin bought herself a little skateboard. It is cute and she loves it, but she is terrible on it. Really terrible. She is covered in band-aids and bruises. But she is not giving up. I am so proud of her. She is really trying.

Super Sawyer

Sawyer is loving preschool. His teachers told me that he is the friendliest and most polite kid in his class. Yay! (Or does that just mean that the other kids are really bad?)

Sawyer comes home everyday and tattles on everyone in his class. “The boy in the red pants wiped his nose on his shirt. It was gross. And the girl with a pink shirt told us to get out of her playhouse. And the little boy ate his Twinkie BEFORE he ate his sandwich. I think my teacher was frustrated.” We hear it all.



This week we found Skyler’s old Superman cape. (The one that he lived in for a year.) Skyler was proud to pass it on to Sawyer. Sawyer loves it! I showed him how the cape flaps behind him when he runs, and he liked that. Then I suggested that he jump off his bed and watch how the cape flies out behind him. Sawyer bounced as high as he could and then spread eagled off the bed! I watched in horror as he did a complete belly flop on the floor. He looked over at me with big tears in his eyes and said, “Mommy, I didn’t fly!” At that moment I would have given all that I own for some pixie dust.

Macey is movin'!

Macey is crawling all over now. She’s discovering a whole new world this week. It is a world filled with dog food to eat, plants to tip over and bookshelves to ravage. Why did we want her to learn to crawl?



Macey loves our garden! She gets super excited when I put her in her wagon. I used to think that was because she likes to go on walks. Oh no… it is because she likes to go on walks to the garden. She knows that as soon as we get out there, someone is going to hand her an apple, or a snap pea, or a handful of raspberries. She really likes fruits and vegetables, so the garden is her favorite place in the world.

Jason's Paragraph

Jason just came in and said, “Where is my paragraph?” So here is it. Jason is doing great. He has lost 38 pounds! He looks so good. None of his clothes fit, but he refuses to admit it because he hates shopping for clothes.

He works hard at his office and at church. He won’t bathe Chulo (our dog) because he thinks that will teach him to stop chasing skunks. And right now (at this very moment) he is trying to ride Shaylin’s skateboard across the kitchen. Now he’s telling the kids how good he used to be at boarding. He just ran into the door. Oh, where is my camera?